Amazon Reveals Interim Leadership Structure at Town Hall With MGM Staff

EXCLUSIVE: Pan star Levi Miller has rounded out the cast of Sony Pictures’ Marvel movie Kraven the Hunter, starring Aaron Taylor-Johnson in the title role. He joins a cast that includes Ariana DeBose, Russell Crowe, Alessandro Nivola, Christopher Abbott and Fred Hechinger. It is unknown at this time who Miller will be playing.

HBO Max has set a May premiere date for Season 2 of the Emmy-winning, critically acclaimed comedy series Hacks, starring Jean Smart and Hannah Einbinder. The sophomore season will debut on Thursday, May 12 with two episodes. The eight-episode season continues with two new episodes a week, wrapping up on June 2, two days after the 2022 Emmy eligibility period ends. We’re also getting a first look at the new season in the teaser trailer (you can watch it above).

Joe Otterson TV ReporterLee Daniels’ long-gestating Sammy Davis Jr. biographical series has been ordered at Hulu, with Elijah Kelley set to play the lead role.The untitled series has received an eight-episode order at the streamer.

Amber Heard's former PA has told a court the actress "stole" her story of being violently raped at machete-point in Brazil three decades ago "for her own use".Kate James, who said while employed practically ran the star's life, accused her former boss of "'twisted it into her own story to benefit herself".The PA appeared on the third day of evidence in the explosive defamation trial in Fairfax, Virginia, between Heard and her former husband, Johnny Depp.Ms James told the jury she worked for the actress between 2012 and 2015 and that they had not spoken in the past five years.She described her former boss as a "very dramatic person", telling how Heard, 35, would need appeasing by constantly asking if she was alright.Ms James testified how the actress would complain or cry due to insecurities in her relationship with Depp but never told her anything about him being abusive. She said there was never any evidence of violence, adding she was at there at their Los Angeles home almost daily and never saw a thing.Asked if there was "nothing you heard, nothing you witnessed" that ever gave her an "inkling of concern" about possible violence in the relationship, she replied: "Never."Discussing her job, Ms James told by video one of her duties was to pick up two copies of any magazine featuring the actress.She was told to store them in her garage because Heard didn't want Depp to see them.She said the actress once got "very angry" one day when she failed to put them away."She went absolutely ballistic over that," Ms James said.Asked to elaborate, she said it was "yelling, abuse" but could not remember precisely what Heard said.

Josie Gibson left her This Morning co-star Vernon Kay and the crew in hysterics as she made an unusual revelation that she “doesn’t understand risotto.” The presenters, who are filling in for Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield during their Easter break, sat down to eat some risotto after a segment where Gino D’Acampo cooked up the rice dish. As the camera returned to the studio, Josie quickly killed the mood as she labelled the dish “alright” but not as good as the Pad Thai the other chef made earlier.

ITV viewers have called for Josie Gibson and Vernon Kay to be kept on as the main presenters on This Morning. The 37 year old and the 47 year old are filling in for Holly Willoughby and Philip Schofield while they are on their Easter break. Each day the presenter line up has been changed up across the two week break with Dermot O’Leary and Alison Hammond also filling in.

She recently revealed how her ex husband Kanye West wanted to give up his career and devote himself to be her stylist.But with Kanye out the picture, it seems some of Kim Kardashian's wacky new fashion choices are now getting roasted by fans online.The Hulu reality star set Twitter ablaze this week after stepping out in a flame print catsuit and furry black glasses, with fans comparing her look to everyone from Guy Fieri toElastigirl from The Incredibles. Roasted! Kim Kardashian's flame outfit gets compared to Guy Fieri andElastigirl from The Incredibles as she sets Twitter ablaze with memes'A grown woman looking like a flaming hot Cheetos bag,' one Twitter used said, while another asked: 'Is Kanye's offer to be her stylist still on the table?' 'Her entire stylist team are screaming for Ye's help,' another tweet read.Kim's eye-catching catsuit was made of a fuzzy material and was made to look as if the star was on fire as she stepped out on Wednesday.

The Only Way Is Essex stars Liam Gatsby and Dani Imbert have officially parted ways. Last year, it was reported that the pair had gone their separate ways, however, a separate source later dismissed the speculation and claimed they were still together. However, a few months after the first break-up reports, Gatsby has now confirmed the split.

Coleen Rooney’s request for the disclosure of messages between Rebekah Vardy, her agent Caroline Watt and a journalist was granted by a High Court Judge at a preliminary hearing on Wednesday. Rebekah, 39, is suing 35 year old Coleen for libel after Coleen accused Rebekah's Instagram account of "informing the press about her private online posts" in October 2019.

She gave birth to her second child in February and Tracey Beaker’s Dani Harmer looked fantastic as she enjoyed a night out with friends this week, admitting she had no “mum guilt”. In a happy-go-lucky picture shared to Instagram, the 33 year old actress showed off her post-baby figure in a pair of pale pink dungarees and a white T-shirt as she beamed with her pals.

Danniella Westbrook has revealed that she is planning to marry her boyfriend after discussing his identity in a new interview.The 48 year old spoke earlier in the month briefly about her special someone as she told followers she was planning a romantic break for when the man in question is released from prison. Now Danniella has opened up in more detail about her romance, addressing her partner as David, who hails from Liverpool and is 28 years old.The pair met a few years ago in Spain and they continued to have a “tumultuous” on and off relationship, before breaking up just before David went to prison in 2019. Get exclusive celebrity stories and fabulous photoshoots straight to your inbox with OK!'s daily newsletter.

In the wake of being acquired by Amazon, MGM has made its first bold theatrical move, picking up worldwide distribution rights to Oscar-nominated filmmaker Luca Guadagnino’s first U.S.-set feature film, Bones and All. Timothée Chalamet, Taylor Russell, Mark Rylance, André Holland, Jessica Harper, Michael Stuhlbarg, David Gordon-Green, Francesca Scorsese and Chloë Sevigny star.

After holding two separate town hall meetings for Amazon Studios/Primetime Video and MGM employees earlier today, Mike Hopkins, SVP Prime Video & Amazon Studios, sent a followup memo to MGM employees Friday afternoon. In it, he shared more details about the interim organizational reporting changes that will be implemented as Amazon prepares to start the integration process following the close of its $8.5 billion acquisition of the stories Hollywood studio.

Amazon bought MGM for its history — but not necessarily its standalone future.The e-commerce giant surprised Hollywood on Thursday by announcing the completion of its $8.5 billion acquisition of MGM, an iconic Hollywood brand whose presence in the modern entertainment industry has diminished over time and numerous changes in ownership since the mid-1980s.The Federal Trade Commission had suggested it might object to Amazon’s purchase of MGM, raising the prospect of a long fight. On the heels of Thursday’s closing announcement, the FTC still raised the threat of a future challenge to the combination.Analysts expect the tech company to try and exploit MGM’s best-known pieces of intellectual property for future gain — but don’t believe the studio has a long path ahead as a separate, influential entity.

EXCLUSIVE: We hear that Amazon Studios and Prime Video SVP Mike Hopkins sent a warm, welcoming email to MGM staffers this morning about the streamer’s acquisition of the near-century old studio, telling them that “we look forward to working with you as we create the next phase of MGM’s rich history together.”

“Amazon joins MGM,” Amazon said Thursday as the $8.5 billion deal announced last May closes.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterAmazon has closed its $8.5 billion acquisition of MGM first announced last May, the companies said Thursday.Per Amazon, “The storied, nearly century-old studio—with more than 4,000 film titles, 17,000 TV episodes, 180 Academy Awards, and 100 Emmy Awards—will complement Prime Video and Amazon Studios’ work in delivering a diverse offering of entertainment choices to customers.”The completion of the transaction comes two days after the Amazon-MGM deal received clearance from the European Union’s antitrust regulator, which “unconditionally” approved Amazon’s proposed acquisition of MGM, in part because “MGM’s content cannot be considered as must-have.” The European Commission, in its antitrust review, found that the overlaps between the Amazon and MGM businesses are “limited.” At that time, the deal was still pending approval by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission, which had been given a mid-March deadline by Amazon to issue a decision on approval of the transaction, the Wall Street Journal reported.

EXCLUSIVE: MGM has signed a first-look feature film production deal with Oscar-winning writer Akiva Goldsman and his production company, Weed Road Pictures.

Brent Lang Executive Editor of Film and MediaAmazon is making some changes atop its movies team.Julie Rapaport, who previously served as co-head of movies, will become the sole chief of the division. Matt Newman, Rapaport’s fellow co-head, will transition to a new role at Prime Video’s global sports group, where he is being tasked with developing original sports docuseries, films, and scripted projects.

Todd Spangler NY Digital EditorThe European Union’s antitrust regulator “unconditionally” approved Amazon’s proposed $8.5 billion acquisition of MGM, in part because “MGM’s content cannot be considered as must-have.” The deal is still pending approval by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission.The European Commission on Tuesday announced the approval of the deal, announced in May 2021.

Chris Willman Music WriterIt wasn’t just country fans tuning in — or rather streaming in — to watch the Academy of Country Music Awards on Prime Video Monday night. It’s a safe bet that among the viewers were a lot of producers and execs connected with other awards shows, wondering if they, too, might someday land an exclusive deal with a well-heeled streaming service, as the broadcast networks are less inclined to spend big money on these shows with diminishing ratings for nearly all of them.Kudocasts being exclusively webcast instead of broadcast could be the wave of the future.