Eddie Murphy to play funk legend George Clinton in upcoming biopic
Disney/Randy Holmes
Eddie Murphy has reportedly signed on to play a funk music icon on screen.
Variety reports that the actor/comedian is set to star as Parliament-Funkadelic leader George Clinton in a biopic directed by Bill Condon, the same director who directed Murphy in Dreamgirls, a role that earned him an Oscar nomination.
The film, which Murphy will also produce, will be based on Clinton’s 2014 memoir Brothas Be, Yo Like George, Ain’t That Funkin’ Kinda Hard On You?
Clinton, who launched his funk career in the ’70s as one of the founding members of the collective known as Parliament-Funkadelic, was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1997. He and the band were also honored in 2019 with the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.
Disney Jr. announced on Tuesday it has greenlighted the first preschool Iron Man series, the animated Marvel’s Iron Man and his Awesome Friends.
Following the hit kid-skewing Spider-Man and His Awesome Friends, the new show centers on a young Tony Stark aka Iron Man (Mason Blomberg) “and his world-saving besties,” Riri Williams aka Ironheart (Kapri Ladd) and Amadeus Cho aka Iron Hulk (Aidyn Ahn).
The producers tease that the show “follows the adventures (and misadventures) of best friends and super geniuses Tony Stark, Riri Williams and Amadeus Cho as they work together to solve problems both big and small and protect their city. … The young trio work together to make the world a better place, protecting their city and each other.”
From Disney Branded Television, the series is currently in production and slated for a summer 2025 premiere on Disney Jr. and Disney+.
Disney+ has set April 22 as the premiere date for season 2 of its Star Wars series spinoff Andor, according to Variety. The series follows Diego Luna‘s Rogue One: A Star Wars Story character Cassian Andor, and his early days with the Rebellion against the evil Galactic Empire. Genevieve O’Reilly, Stellan Skarsgård, Adria Arjona, Denise Gough, Kyle Soller, Fiona Shaw, Forest Whitaker and Andy Serkis also star. The 12-episode second season will take place over four years split into three-episode pods, with each pod covering a few consecutive days in each successive year before the events of Rogue One, per the outlet. Disney is the parent company of ABC News …
Actress/singer Andra Day has been tapped to play Athena in season 2 of Percy Jackson and the Olympians, according to Variety. Season 2 is based on The Sea of Monsters, the second installment in Rick Riordan‘s acclaimed book series. Athena, the Greek goddess of wisdom, is one of the most important Olympian characters in the Percy Jackson books. Day joins fellow newcomer Tamara Smart, and series regulars Walker Scobell, Leah Sava Jeffries, Aryan Simhadri, Charlie Bushnell, Dior Goodjohn and Daniel Diemer. Disney is the parent company of ABC News …
Tony Todd, the actor best known for starring in the Candyman and Final Destination horror franchises, died peacefully at his home in Marina Del Rey on November 6, his rep Jeffrey Goldberg tells ABC News affiliate KABC-TV. He was 69. A cause of death was not given. Todd’s other credits include Night of the Living Dead, The Rock and The Crow. He also played Kurn in Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and Alpha Hirogen in Star Trek: Voyager …
Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse has found its directors. The third film in the popular Sony Animation Spider-Verse trilogy will be directed by Bob Persichetti and Justin K. Thompson, the studio announced Tuesday. Both men worked in pivotal roles on the first two films of the trilogy. While the plot of the film is still being kept under wraps, they promise that they “have crafted what we feel is a very satisfying ending, and we can’t wait for fans to experience it – we’re bringing everything we’ve got!” according to Deadline …
ABC News Studios is putting out the first documentary about Luigi Mangione, the alleged shooter of Brian Thompson, the UnitedHealthcare CEO. The one-hour special Manhunt: Luigi Mangione and the CEO Murder — A Special Edition of 20/20 will air Thursday at 10 p.m. ET on ABC. It will also be available to stream the next day on Hulu. The special features an exclusive voice recording of Mangione, where he discusses his travels through Asia, according to Variety …
Dustin Hoffman, André Holland, Alison Brie and Tom Sturridge are coming together to lead Alex Vlack‘s directorial debut film, The Revisionist. Deadline reports that the drama film, which is currently filming in Louisville, Kentucky, follows a novelist who transforms the people in her life into the characters she needs for her story …
