Elizabeth Wagmeister-Senior: Last News

Elizabeth Wagmeister Senior Correspondent A Ukrainian influencer was pulled off the red carpet at the Cannes Film Festival, after she covered herself in fake blood on the steps up to the Palais, staging a protest in support of Ukraine. This year, the city of Cannes banned protests along the Croisette and its surroundings during the festival. Ilona Chernobai — a Ukrainian fitness trainer with one million followers on Instagram — walked the red carpet at Cannes in a blue and yellow dress, symbolizing the Ukraine flag. As she got to the stairs, she pulled bags of fake blood from underneath her dress and poured them over herself. Security immediately grabbed her and escorted her off the carpet.

Elizabeth Wagmeister Senior Correspondent Dermot Mulroney is showing his support for the writers on strike — in somewhat dramatic fashion. Mulroney walked off “The View” during a segment that is scheduled to air on Friday, a source tells Variety, explaining to the hosts that he was going to “symbolically walk off in support of the writers” as he left the stage toward the end of his interview. Before leaving the stage, the actor asked the hosts if they were getting ready to go to commercial break and then thanked them before walking off mid-segment, according to an individual who was on-set, who adds that Mulroney’s interview was friendly and went smoothly, covering topics of his upcoming Disney+ series “Secret Invasion,” his past roles, his career, family and work ethic and longevity in Hollywood. When Mulroney left the stage, Variety is told the hosts remained professional and Joy Behar plugged his Disney+ series as she tossed to break.

Elizabeth Wagmeister Senior Correspondent NBC has announced its panel of coaches for “The Voice” Season 25, with Grammy-winning artists Dan + Shay joining the show as the first-ever coaching duo. Dan + Shay will serve as coaches alongside RebaMcEntire, John Legend and Chance the Rapper. Season 25 will air in the spring of 2024. The network’s announcement comes ahead of the show’s 24th season, which airs this fall with the previously-announced coach lineup of Niall Horan, Gwen Stefani, Legend and McEntire in her debut season as coach. Season 24 will be the first season without veteran coach Blake Shelton, who has been with “The Voice” since it premiered in 2011 and took his final bow with Season 23, which wrapped up last month.

Elizabeth Wagmeister Senior Correspondent Brooke Shields came up in a different time. The model and actress has been working since infancy, and when she shot to superstardom in the ’70s and ’80s, she became a lucrative commodity whose own opinion was rarely heard, but became the focus of many other people’s opinions. This is all explored in her two-part documentary, “Pretty Baby: Brooke Shields,” which hails from ABC News Studios and launched on Hulu earlier this year. Produced by Ali Wentworth, George Stephanopoulos and director Lana Wilson (Taylor Swift’s “Miss Americana”), the doc that received rave reviews out of its premiere at Sundance uses Shields’ story of being sexualized as a child to paint a bigger picture of the treatment of women in society.

Elizabeth Wagmeister Senior Correspondent Sherri Shepherd’s daytime talk show, “Sherri,” is shaking up its executive ranks, setting a new senior producing team ahead of its second season. The inaugural season of the top-rated freshman show carried over the production staff from “The Wendy Williams Show,” which was replaced in its time slot on the Fox stations by “Sherri” when Williams’ show ended in 2022. Now, Shepherd’s show has parted ways with some of Williams’ top producers, who helped launch “Sherri,” which has been renewed through 2025. “Sherri” hails from Lionsgate’s Debmar-Mercury, the same company that was behind “The Wendy Williams Show” for its 13-year run.

Elizabeth Wagmeister Senior Correspondent Jimmie Allen has been dropped byBBR Music Group, the label confirmed to Variety late Friday, after a second woman sued him for sexual assault. “BBR Music Group has dissolved its relationship with Jimmie Allen,” the brief statement reads. “He is no longer an active artist on its roster.” The country singer was previously put on suspension by label, as well as his agency and manager, in the wake of being sued by his former female manager for sexual assault and battery. Allen denied the claims from his ex-manager that he raped and sexually abused her over the course of 18 months, calling the allegations “not only false, but also extremely damaging.” But less than one month after those first accusations, another woman came forward to accuse Allen in a new sexual assault lawsuit in which the second Jane Doe alleges the singer secretly filmed her during sex without her consent or awareness. After that alleged incident, which occurred in July 2022, this woman filed a police report, according to her lawsuit.

Elizabeth Wagmeister Senior Correspondent Country star Jimmie Allen is being sued for sexual assault by a new accuser, who claims she filed a police report after Allen secretly filmed her during sex. This is the second woman to come forward publicly with sexual assault allegations against the Grammy-nominated country singer. The new lawsuit, filed Friday in Tennessee federal court, comes less than one month after Allen was accused of rape and repeated sexual abuse by a woman who worked on his former management team. Those accusations, first reported by Variety, resulted in Allen being dropped by his publicist and suspended by his label, agency and management. In the new lawsuit, obtained by Variety, the woman — who is identified as “Jane Doe 2” – alleges that she was randomly approached by Allen on a plane last year, and after that first meeting, the country singer pursued her and engaged in daily communication over the phone. After two months of constant, long-distance conversation, they agreed to meet in Las Vegas where, according to the lawsuit, she was sexually assaulted.

Elizabeth Wagmeister Senior Correspondent “The Rookie: Feds” remains on the bubble, as one of two shows at ABC awaiting news regarding a renewal — and its star, Niecy Nash-Betts, is crossing her fingers for a second season. Nash-Betts has had an in-demand year, starring in Netflix’s “Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story” and hosting Fox’s gameshow “Don’t Forget the Lyrics,” in addition to headlining “The Rookie: Feds.” And she’s hoping to keep her busy schedule going, continuing to play her character, Simone Clark, on the ABC police procedural. “I love my job so much, I love the people that I work with, and I love the fact that I get to work with my better half over there,” Nash-Betts says of her wife, musician Jessica Betts, who plays her love interest on “The Rookie: Feds.”

Elizabeth Wagmeister Senior Correspondent Lily-Rose Depp takes on her biggest role to date, playing pop star Jocelyn, in HBO’s “The Idol,” which premiered on Sunday night. Depp — who knows a thing or two about stardom, having grown up in the Hollywood limelight herself — says she was interested in “The Idol” because it delves into the crazy and chaotic world of the music industry. “I was really intrigued by this project as soon as I heard about it. The world that it was exploring with all of the craziness and chaos that goes on is one that we don’t get to see all the time,” Depp says. Speaking about her character, she adds, “Jocelyn is a pop star who is constantly surrounding by people who she’s not sure if she can trust.”

Elizabeth Wagmeister Senior Correspondent A paparazzi photographer is suing Ye — the musician formerly known as Kanye West — for assault, battery and negligence after he was caught on-camera grabbing her phone and throwing it into the street. The photographer, Nichol Lechmanik, says she was just doing her job as a celebrity photojournalist when she was capturing content of Ye. “He reached into my car as if he were going to hit me, he grabbed my phone out of my hand and then angrily threw it into the street,” Lechmanik said on Thursday during a press conference. “He caused so much fear that I have not been the same since.”

Elizabeth Wagmeister Senior Correspondent Leonardo DiCaprio was seen taking a selfie with a lady in red as he sat sandwiched in between Cannes chief Thierry Frémaux and festival president Iris Knobloch, deep in conversation at Kering’s Women in Motion Dinner. As he left, he walked to the back balcony of the party where Salma Hayek was sitting on a step smoking a cigarette. He bent over and hugged Hayek as he headed home just before 1:00 a.m. If DiCaprio had stayed a bit later, he might have been dancing on a table with Michelle Yeoh and Brie Larson. Yeoh — the night’s honoree as the recipient of Kering’s Women In Motion Award for 2023 — left shortly before 2 o’clock in the morning, glistening with sweat after dancing the night away with Larson, who is a member of the Cannes jury. The two Oscar winners got up on chairs to dance and were joined by a saxophone player, who jumped on the table, and even Frémaux, who got in on the dance party. (The video, first captured by Variety, has now gone viral with Yeoh and Larson sharing on their social media and raving about meeting each other for the first time.)

Elizabeth Wagmeister Senior Correspondent Cate Blanchett debuted her latest acting role in “The New Boy” at the Cannes Film Festival this week, but the Oscar-winner wouldn’t mind staying behind the camera a bit more. “I’m always trying to get out of acting,” Blanchett said. “I’ve been trying to stop acting my entire professional life.” Speaking at her Kering Women in Motion talk at Cannes, in conversation with her producing partner, Coco Francini, Blanchett said that her recent producing work behind the camera “feels an extension, for me, of my work as an actor.” “I remember an Australian film director saying to me really early on in my career that I had to stop taking small roles,” Blanchett recalled. “And I said, ‘Why?’ I said, ‘That was the most interesting role.’ I didn’t want to play the lead. I want that one.”

Elizabeth Wagmeister Senior Correspondent A new social media campaign with the hashtag #CannesYouNot is calling out the Cannes Film Festival for “celebrating abusers for 76 years.” The campaign was launched online, days before the festival, by supporters of Amber Heard. Her ex-husband Johnny Depp’s new film, “Jeanne du Barry,” will open the prestigious festival on Tuesday night when Cannes kicks off in the South of France. Eve Barlow — a journalist, activist and close friend of Amber Heard’s — posted the hashtag across her social platforms. “Cannes seem proud of their history supporting rapists and abusers,” Barlow posted on social media with the French expression, “Plus ça change,” which roughly translates to, “The more things change, the more they stay the same.”

Elizabeth Wagmeister Senior Correspondent Kelly Clarkson has addressed a report detailing the culture on her daytime talk show, which contained allegations that “The Kelly Clarkson Show” is toxic behind the scenes. “To find out that anyone is feeling unheard and or disrespected on this show is unacceptable,” Clarkson said in a statement posted on Instagram. “I have always been, and will continue to be, committed to creating and maintaining a safe and healthy environment at ‘The Kelly Clarkson Show.'” On Friday, Rolling Stone published a report in which 11 current and former employees anonymously made complaints about being “overworked” and “underpaid” on Clarkson’s talk show, telling the magazine that working under the show’s “toxic environment” was “traumatizing to their mental health.” In the report, the anonymous staffers said Clarkson is “fantastic,” but a number of the producers make their lives “hell.”

Elizabeth Wagmeister Senior Correspondent Grammy-nominated, multiplatinum country star Jimmie Allen has been suspended by his agency UTA, following a sexual assault and battery lawsuit lodged against him. “We have suspended our representation of Jimmie Allen due to the recent allegations against him, which we take seriously,” a spokesperson for UTA told Variety. Allen has been accused of rape, sexual assault and harassment by his former day-to-day manager, who sued the singer and his former management firm, alleging she was manipulated and groomed by Allen into an abusive sexual relationship while she worked on the singer’s management team. The lawsuit was first exposed in a Variety investigation into the woman’s allegations.

Elizabeth Wagmeister Senior Correspondent In May 2021, Grammy-nominated, multiplatinum country star Jimmie Allen visited “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” to promote his latest project, a children’s book titled, “My Voice Is a Trumpet.” Images flashed across the screen of Allen with his wife and kids, as he spoke about his recent wedding and gushed about his new baby girl. “When you see things happening that shouldn’t, stand up for it,” Allen said on the talk show as he shared the inspiration behind his book. “It’s so important to teach them at a young age,” he continued. “That way, they grow up to be adults that still have that same confidence to speak up for themselves and speak up for other people.”

Elizabeth Wagmeister Senior Correspondent For the past two seasons, Kelly Clarkson has filmed her talk show’s premiere weeks in New York City, but now, she is taking her show to the Big Apple for good. “The Kelly Clarkson Show” will move production from the Universal lot in Los Angeles to NBC Studios in 30 Rockefeller Plaza in New York next season, Variety has confirmed with a NBCUniversal spokesperson. The talk show will film in front of a studio audience in the iconic studio 6A, which has been home to Jimmy Fallon, Conan O’Brien and David Letterman. A new state-of-the-art studio will be built for Clarkson’s show, as well as technical facility and support space.

Elizabeth Wagmeister Senior Correspondent Don Lemon has been accused of many things, but being camera-shy is certainly not one of them. Days after the former star anchor was terminated by CNN, Lemon walked a red carpet Wednesday evening, telling press he’s ready for his new chapter. “I don’t have to rush to another job — even if I want another job,” Lemon said on the red carpet at the Time 100 gala in New York City on Wednesday night. “I want to work again. But I am lucky enough to be in a position where I don’t have to worry about those things.” Speaking to various media outlets at the gala, Lemon was in high spirits with a smile on his face, despite his departure — and alleged behavior in the workplace, as reported by Variety — dominating headlines.

Elizabeth Wagmeister Senior Correspondent Food Network superstar Guy Fieri will continue to travel and eat across America for another season of his series, “Guy’s All-American Road Trip.” The road trip series has been renewed for a second season by Food Network, Variety has learned exclusively. “Guy’s All-American Road Trip” is a travel and food series that follows Fieri with his family — his wife, Lori, and his sons, Hunter and Ryder — as they pack up their RV for an epic road trip together, along with a caravan of campers full of their family and friends. Season 2 will see the family road trip through Appalachia where cameras will follow them on wild adventures, family competitions and enjoying some of the best food in Tennessee and Kentucky. The second season will be comprised of four hourlong episodes, each of which will highlight new dishes, destinations and attractions.

Elizabeth Wagmeister Senior Correspondent After a mistrial was declared with a hung jury last year, Danny Masterson’s second rape trial began with a more aggressive and pointed approach from the prosecution who repeatedly told the new jury that they will present evidence that proves the former star of “That 70’s Show” drugged women before he forcibly raped them. “The evidence will show they were drugged,” said Los Angeles deputy district attorney Reinhold Mueller in his opening statement on Monday, speaking of the four women who will testify against Masterson during the trial. “The symptoms that they’re going to describe,” Mueller told the jury, will include “lightheadedness, loss of vision, loss of motor skills, loss of strength, inability to control their body, vaginal pain, anal pain, all occurring after the defendant had given them an alcoholic beverage and all occurring within a matter of minutes.”

Elizabeth Wagmeister Senior Correspondent “That ’70s Show” actor Danny Masterson is back on trial again. The new trial began on Monday morning with jury selection in downtown Los Angeles, after the jury in Masterson’s first trial last year failed to reach an unanimous verdict, stating they were “hopelessly deadlocked.” With a hung jury, a mistrial was declared in November and Judge Charlaine Olmedo denied a defense request to dismiss the case.  Now, Masterson will face the same three rape charges associated with the same three alleged victims, but in front of a new jury. Masterson — who maintains his innocence — is accused of forcibly raping the women at his home in the Hollywood Hills in incidents spanning from 2001 to 2003. At the time, he was starring on the hit sitcom “That ’70s Show,” which ran on Fox from 1998 through 2006.