Study: TV's Jews play down their identity / Henry Cavill-led Warhammer 40,000 officially in development / Halsey creating an Amazon show
PLUS: Jimmy Kimmel was the only late-night host to mention Luigi Mangione's name — Stephen Colbert has it bleeped.
Study: TV's Jewish characters are still depicted as hiding or playing down their Jewishness
The USC Annenberg Norman Lear Center’s Media Impact Project's new "Jews on Screen" study, put together with the Jewish Institute for Television and Cinema Hollywood Bureau, "also confirmed that 'Jewface' really does exist, noting that only half of Jewish characters are played by Jewish actors," says The Hollywood Reporter's Seth Abramovitch. "It also pointed out that Jewish actresses are 21 percent less likely to be cast as Jewish characters than their male counterparts are. The study is the first of its kind to focus on Jewish representation since 1999 and predates the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel and ensuing war in Gaza, which has led to an explosive 60 percent increase in antisemitic hate crimes. Still, incidents of antisemitism rose in the period covered by the study, which analyzed 108 Jewish characters in 49 episodes from 15 scripted TV series that aired between 2021 and 2022. Among the series are The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Big Mouth, Curb Your Enthusiasm, The Goldbergs, The Good Fight and And Just Like That. Only 18 percent of Jewish characters reference their Judaism, the study finds. When you omit characters who are in Jewish careers like rabbis or funeral directors, the number of Jews who reference their culture goes down to 13 percent."
Jamie Foxx reveals he had "a brain bleed that has led to a stroke" in his emotional Netflix special
Foxx went into detail of his mysterious 2023 illness in his new comedy special, What Had Happened Was, which premiered today. “I don’t remember 20 days,” Foxx said of blacking out and remaining unconscious after having a stroke.
Jimmy Kimmel was the only late-night host to mention Luigi Mangione's name — Stephen Colbert has it bleeped
The 26-year-old Ivy League grad's arrest on Monday for allegedly gunning down United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson last week was addressed on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, the Jon Stewart-hosted The Daily Show, Late Night with Seth Meyers, Jimmy Kimmel Live! and After Midnight, but not on Jimmy Fallon's Tonight Show, according to LateNighter. Kimmel was the only host to actually mention Mangione's name. “No matter how you feel about this,” said Kimmel, who is half-Italian. “I think we can all agree that no one could have imagined this suspect would have a name as funny as Luigi Mangione.” Stephen Colbert, meanwhile, had Mangione's name bleeped in his monologue "because if he didn’t do it, I don’t want to say it. And if he did do it, I don’t want to say it.”
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Luigi Mangione's arrest draws boos from The Daily Show audience
CNN anchor Kasie Hunt has a weird moment in requesting to show Luigi Mangione's abs
The Diplomat creator: Donald Trump's second presidential administration will "absolutely" influence her Netflix series
“The next four years are going to be very different from the last four, but much more similar to the world that was in my head when I was first developing the series, which is, how do we interact in the world with other countries when the basic agreements that we’ve had with most of our allies are in question?” The Diplomat creator Debora Cahn tells Deadline. “So I’m worried for the world but believe we have plenty to talk about.”
Henry Cavill-led Warhammer 40,000 series is officially in development at Amazon
The miniature wargame's TV adaptation with Cavill attached was first announced two years ago this week. "According to sources, a mini-room was assembled to hone in on a creative direction for the Warhammer universe," reports Deadline's Nellie Andreeva. "Based on the material produced by the writers, a decision was made to proceed with the development of a TV series as the first project, sources said. No showrunner has been locked in yet, with a deal being, ahem, hammered out." Cavill teased the new phase of the Warhammer 40,000 screen adaptation in an Instagram post, writing: “My incredible team and I, alongside the brilliant minds at Games Workshop, have been working away in concept rooms, breaking down approaches to the enormity and magnificence of the Warhammer world. Together, we’ve been sifting through the plethora of incredible characters and poring over old tomes and texts. Our combined efforts have led us to a fantastic place to start our Universe, which has been agreed upon by those up on high at both Amazon and Games Workshop.”
Halsey creating dark comedy series Bloodlust for Amazon
The platinum-selling singer, songwriter and actress will not star in Bloodlust, which she created and will serve as executive producer. Details are being kept under wraps. Horror film director Ti West is attached to direct and executive produce, along with Severance veteran Mark Friedman. Halsey recently starred in West's horror film MaXXXine.
Suits L.A. casts Maggie Grace, Matt Letscher, Sofia Pernas and Carson A. Egan
All four will guest-star on NBC's Suits spinoff. Grace will play a pro bono lawyer, Letscher will play the father of Stephen Amell's Ted, Pernas will play a powerhouse attorney in the District Attorney’s office and Egan will play Ted's brother.
Shondaland's Netflix White House murder mystery The Residence gets a premiere date and first-look images
Uzo Aduba and Randall Park lead the eight-episode “screwball whodunnit,” premiering March 20. Giancarlo Esposito, Edwina Findley, Molly Griggs, Jason Lee, Ken Marino, Al Mitchell, Dan Perrault, Bronson Pinchot, Julieth Restrepo, Mel Rodriguez, Susan Kelechi Watson, Isiah Whitlock Jr. and Mary Wiseman also star.
Cris Collinsworth: My signature “slide” on Sunday Night Football is a result of Al Michaels contract stipulation
“You know how that all got started, right? So Al’s got it in his contract that he’s the only one on camera for the first minute of the broadcast,” Collinsworth said on the Manningcast Monday night. Collinsworth then explained how his slide worked. “So they would say, ‘Alright, Cris, Al’s gotta be the only one on. You gotta get out of the shot,'” Collinsworth said. “I was like, ‘Well you put a piece of tape down for my legs to be on either side to do it. What do you want me to do, have my legs around this piece of tape? Or do you want me to get out of the shot?’ (The producer) goes, ‘Well, just lean out of the shot. Just lean out!’ So I’m like, ‘What are you talking about?'”
Rob Schneider says he plans to launch an “all ladies talk show” to take on The View
“No Apologies Media, we’re going to do an all ladies talk show and that won’t be like The View,” the outspoken conservative comedian and SNL alum said on Fox News, referring to his production company, according to Mediaite. Asked if the show could air opposite The View, Schneider said: "It could be, but we’re just going to do a show — it will be the opposite because it will be entertaining! It’ll be funny, we’re going to have funny women on it that will tell jokes and have funny stories — and health and wellness."
Jeopardy! announces a Tournament of Champions fix after Abbott Elementary's Lisa Ann Walter dropped out
Celebrity Jeopardy! winner Walter was expected to be the 21st of 21 contestants in the Tournament of Champions. “Because Lisa Ann Walter is so busy with Abbott Elementary and couldn’t be with us as our Celebrity Jeopardy! champion, the person who is the first runner up in Champions Wildcard, which you will see in the upcoming weeks, that person is going to get a spot in the Tournament of Champions,” executive producer Sarah Foss announced on the Inside Jeopardy! podcast, per TV Insider. Foss and executive producer Michael Davies emphasized that Walter will be back for the 2026 Tournament of Champions.
RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars taps Season 4 winner Monet X Chang to host weekly spinoff show The Pit Stop
X Change and a guest will review and recap each episode of Drag Race Season 17, which premieres Jan. 3.
Matt Gaetz is set to join One America News as an anchor after failing to become attorney general
The Republican former congressman, whose joining of OAN hasn't been officially announced, would be "a big gain for the far-right network, given that most of the channel’s personalities are not well known," says CNN's Kristen Holmes. "The network was dealt a significant blow when it was dropped by DirecTV in 2022. Other big distributors have been reluctant to carry its programming, and OAN has urged people to stream the network online instead. OAN has established itself as perhaps the most extreme of the pro-Trump news outlets."
Jeremy Renner is writing a book about surviving being crushed by a snowplow
“I’m writing a book about it right now," the actor tells Variety of his January 2023 accident. "While I’ve been here this whole trip, I’ve been doing the final edit on it, so it’s kind of fresh in my brain, because I tried to push it away a lot of times. And there’s so many wonderful gifts that come from being tested to your limits of death. Because I did die, and I came back, and I came back for a reason, and nothing to do with me. If it was my choice, I’d rather stay. But I came back, and I’m glad I’m back. “I’m writing a book about it right now. While I’ve been here this whole trip, I’ve been doing the final edit on it, so it’s kind of fresh in my brain, because I tried to push it away a lot of times. And there’s so many wonderful gifts that come from being tested to your limits of death. Because I did die, and I came back, and I came back for a reason, and nothing to do with me. If it was my choice, I’d rather stay. But I came back, and I’m glad I’m back."
NBC hires Jamal Crawford for its return to NBA broadcasting
The TNT Sports and NBA TV vet is expected to call games for NBC's new NBA package.
TCM tonight presents a five-film tribute to Maggie Smith
The Oscar- and Emmy-winning Downton Abbey star, who died in September at age 89, will be honored tonight with film films kicking off with 1958's Nowhere to Go.
Jenna Bush Hager and Hoda Kotb burst into tears over Kotb's impending Today exit
“What’s happening? Is this the depression stage?” Bush Hager quipped of their crying, prompting Kotb and the show’s off-camera crew to cackle, according to Us Weekly, referring to her stages of grief over Kotb’s departure on Jan. 10.
Drake Bell would like to reteam with Drake & Josh's Josh Peck for a Curb Your Enthusiasm-style show
"I have a really special place in my heart for Drake & Josh and I would love to revisit the character," Bell said on the Beyond the Velvet Rope podcast, per EW. "I'd love to revisit something with Josh, whether it's a reboot or… my dream is to do something kind of like Curb Your Enthusiasm, where we're playing ourselves but trying to navigate life today."
Mike Myers denies Austin Powers' Dr. Evil is based on SNL's Lorne Michaels
The inspiration for Dr. Evil was always Blofeld actor Donald Pleasance from the 1967 James Bond film You Only Live Twice and not Myers' former Saturday Night Live boss, the actor told Vulture. “The Lorne of it is just a little tiny overlay,” Myers explained. “I’m Canadian. He’s Canadian. He had an educated Canadian accent, and I have a Scarborough accent. One time he goes, ‘Mike, do you want to come up to the Hamptons?’ I was like, ‘Am I fired?’ I went, and it was like, ‘That’s Mick’s room, or do you want Keith’s room?’ And I was like, ‘Either’s fine. Couch works! The car works!'”
New Year’s Rockin’ Eve adds Alanis Morissette, Reneé Rapp, Blake Shelton, Ja Rule and more
ABC's Dick Clark’s Rockin’ Eve with Ryan Seacrest 2025 will feature West Coast performances by Alanis Morissette, Reneé Rapp, Dasha, DJ Cassidy’s Pass The Mic Live! with Ja Rule, Fat Joe, Slick Rick & Doug E. Fresh, Ernest, HARDY, Kesha, Laufey, Natasha Bedingfield, and T-Pain. Blake Shelton will join from the Las Vegas celebration, Luis Fonsi from his native Puerto Rico, and TLC from Times Square in New York.
Lisa Vanderpump: New Vanderpump Rules will have a "different energy"
"I think everything we do is going to have a different energy to it," Vanderpump told E! News of the new cast for Season 12. "Not gonna try and compete with the old Vanderpump Rules. It's just gonna be totally different there. Still we'll go back to the premise of the complications of running a restaurant and the staff in it. And that always has a story to tell."
Jason Kelce cleared in post-College Gameday smashing of a Penn State fan's phone
A spokeswoman for the university's police department told TMZ the case has been closed, as "the individual in the video footage circulating on social media has not been identified, and no one has come forward to University Police with a related complaint about damage to personal property."
Max unveils the trailer for Friends game show Fast Friends
Whitney Cummings hosts the four-episode game show, premiering Dec. 19, that tests participants with Friends-themed trivia, puzzles and games.
Watch the trailer for The Rig 2
The second season of the Scottish oil rig thriller series premieres Jan. 2.