While most of Hollywood is shut down for the Memorial Day weekend, Donald Trump and an Emmy-winning writer/producer on “Modern Family” are staying plenty busy on Twitter. Danny Zuker, who also serves an exec producer on the hit ABC series, is one of TV’s most active creatives in the social media world and regularly takes... Read more »

Mike Darnell isn’t just the best-known alternative programming exec at any of the major networks. He’s the only guy who has held the post in the 27-year history of the Fox network, which he joined in 1994 after spending eight years on the news side of Fox’s Los Angeles O&O, KTTV. “No one else has... Read more »

Baby Boy, the partially-sighted poodle who appears in “Behind the Candelabra,” has been named the top dog of the Cannes Film Festival as winner of the Palm Dog award. Judged by film critics, the prize is not an official part of the festival, but is independently-awarded like other prizes such as the Queer Palm. In... Read more »

Mike Darnell leaving Fox? After all the hell he put multiple entertainment chiefs — including Sandy Grushow, Peter Roth and Gail Berman — over the years? Say it ain’t so. Years ago, somewhere between “When Animals Attack” and “Who Wants to Marry a Multi-Millionaire?,” I suggested that some struggling network, like UPN back when it... Read more »

Stereoscopic cinema desperately needs some wild, artistic directors to experiment with the format, though this clumsy omnibus amounts to little more than a vanity commission by the town of Guimaraes, Portugal.

Sony Pictures Classics has acquired all North American rights to Jim Jarmusch’s vampire drama “Only Lovers Left Alive” on the eve of its world premiere at Cannes in competition. Tilda Swinton, Tom Hiddleston, Mia Wasikowska, John Hurt, Anton Yelchin and Jeffrey Wright star. Story is set in Detroit and Tangiers and follows an underground musician... Read more »

Class conflict is slyly dissected in “The Owners,” a compact Argentinean comedy-drama that reps the feature debut of writing-helming duo Agustin Toscano and Ezequiel Radusky, known mostly for their legit and shorts work. Set entirely on the country estate of a wealthy family from Buenos Aires that visits occasionally, the film explores the combustible combination... Read more »

Coming off of a season of double-digit ratings declines, “American Idol” producers are in talks with former finalist Jennifer Hudson to join the judges’ panel next year, according to a report on Vulture. “Idol” is expected to overhaul its judging panel next year, which was criticized for lack of chemistry among Mariah Carey, Nicki Minaj,... Read more »

Jim Jarmusch tweaks the vampire genre slightly in this sweet but slight love story about world-weary hipster bloodsuckers.

Forget any talk of Oregon. Now it seems the Simpsons’ home is in Florida. Universal Studios has announced that our favorite Springfieldians are expanding their reach at Universal Orlando Resort this summer. The new area is anchored by the simulator Simpsons Ride, which opened at the park in 2008, and will include the new ride Kang... Read more »

Zach Braff’s Kickstarter campaign for indie drama “Wish I Was Here” has closed after raising $3.1 million in 30 days, including over $400,000 in the final four days. The campaign raised the funds from 46,520 fans with pledges from $10 for T-shirts and production notes to two $10,000 pledges –one for the slate used on... Read more »

With mobile devices in everyone’s pocket, headphone sales are hot, especially with manufacturers like Beats by Dr. Dre reinventing their look with brighter colors and bolder designs encasing improved sound technology.

Participant Media, a key backer of touchstone documentaries such as "An Inconvenient Truth" and "Food," Inc., isn’t afraid to take on divisive issues like government secrecy and the state of Palestine.

Although Watkins handles everything from wedding parties to Oscar bookings, her specialty is press junkets.

The box office action this summer will be triggered more by superstars than superheroes, contrary to recent history. And the studios have created and endured some messy budgetary headaches and production melodramas to make that happen.

Pathe Intl. has revealed a raft of sales on its Cannes slate, including Jerome Salle’s thriller “Zulu,” which closes the fest. “Zulu” was picked up by Japan (Klockworx), Brazil (Europa), Scandinavia (Scanbox), Latin America (Telexcine), India (Pictureworks), Ex-Yugoslavia (MCF) and Iceland (Myndform). The pic, which stars Forest Whitaker and Orlando Bloom, previously sold to The Weinstein Company... Read more »

The 66th Cannes Film Festival unveiled its official selection lineup Thursday. This year's competitors include Roman Polanski, Steven Soderbergh and Alexander Payne, which leads us to ask--which feature will win the coveted Palme d 'Or?

More than a dozen members of SAG-AFTRA — including former SAG president Ed Asner — have sued the actors union, alleging misconduct in its handling of foreign levies and residuals they are owed. The suit, filed Friday in federal court in Los Angeles by the United Screen Actors Committee, alleges that SAG-AFTRA has improperly withheld... Read more »

NBC has set May 29 for the “Healing in the Heartland: Relief Benefit Concert” special hosted by “Voice” panelist Blake Shelton to aid victims of the tornadoes that ravaged Oklahoma this week. Shelton, an Oklahoma native who is currently living in Tishomingo, organized the event that will feature performances by Miranda Lambert, Reba McEntire and... Read more »

Mike Darnell has announced he is exiting Fox Broadcasting, where he has been leading unscripted programming for the past 18 years. In a statement issued Friday, he said he would step down with his contract ending in June. “I’ve been in ‘Reality’ since before it was even called that, and it has truly been an... Read more »