Peter Bart: Troubled Times Might Demand More Exotic Solutions In Dealing With Corporate Cutbacks

Pep Guardiola called on his Manchester City players to be ready when called upon as the fixtures start to come every three days this month, following the 4-0 win at Norwich.

Southampton showed qualities that Manchester United lack during Saturday's draw, according to ex-Red Danny Higginbotham.

The Queen is scheduled to return to work next week, which suggests that she didn't catch Covid off her son Prince Charles after having afternoon tea with him a couple of days before he tested positive.Major concerns had been raised after The Queen and Charles had afternoon tea together at Windsor Castle two days before he tested positive for Covid.Many were concerned as Charles would typically greet his mother in public with both a kiss on the hand and a kiss on the cheek.After a long-anticipated nervous wait, it's understood that the Queen, who has been triple jabbed, is showing no symptoms and has submitted a negative result.In an exclusive chat with The Sun, Royal sources told that Her Majesty has a diary of engagements at Windsor Castle next week which she is expected to go ahead with, which is an indication that she doesn't have Covid.The jobs are believed to be video calls with ambassadors and dignitaries from her desk.

The Masked Singer is a cultural phenomenon so an exciting arena tour is the natural next step.The ITV series has been entertaining audiences since its UK inception in 2020 and a touring version of the hit show will be hitting the road later this year.With 10 dates lined up from Liverpool to London, The Masked Singer: Live On Stage will take place in April, with just a few changes on board.While comedian Joel Dommett will be returning on presenting duties, The Masked Singer judges Davina McCall, Rita Ora, Mo Gilligan and Jonathan Ross will be replaced with three other superstar judges.So, what other changes can The Masked Singer fans expect from the tour?The Masked Singer: Live On Stage tour will welcome former competitors Aston Merrygold and Denise Van Outen as judges this time around.They will be joined by a mystery third celebrity judge who will change every night of the tour.Of the tour, Denise said (via Daily Record): "I am so excited to be a judge on The Masked Singer Live tour."I'm sure we're going to be thrilled by an incredible line-up of mystery celebrities bringing electrifying live performances to audiences up and down the country."Aston added: "The idea of taking The Masked Singer to arenas around the country is absolutely brilliant."The show is not about judgment, it’s about having fun and keeping the audiences guessing."I am so happy to be joining the panel."Being on other side of the desk will be exhilarating in a completely different way, but still with all the excitement and drama of the TV series.

Nick Vivarelli International CorrespondentChiara Bellosi, whose first work, “Ordinary Justice,” launched from Berlin’s Generation 14plus section in 2020, is back with “Swing Ride” (“Calcinculo”) about an overweight 15-year-old named Benedetta pining for attention in an Italian province where she falls in love with the skinny non-binary Amanda.A key difference between the two films is that while “Ordinary Justice,” which examined the lives of two families on opposite sides of a murder case, originated from a deeply researched screenplay that Bellosi wrote, “Swing Ride” — premiering in Panorama on Feb. 13 — stems from a prizewinning script proposed to her by Carlo Cresto Dina, her producer, who also discovered Alice Rohrwacher (“Happy as Lazzaro”) and is known for nurturing the cream of Italy’s new cinematic crop.   “It’s a very different process; it was the first time that I had to start from a world that didn’t germinate from me,” said Bellosi about working from the script penned by Maria Teresa Venditti and Luca De Bei that won Italy’s prestigious Solinas prize in 2018.It was like moving into a new house that she had to make her own, she said.“I worked with the writers; I wanted to make a few tweaks and we did that together,” she added, noting that initially “it was a leap into the void.” But directing from their screenplay actually ended up giving her “more freedom” than her previous pic because “the container is already there; but you can go pretty wild with the rest.”This freedom also made it more fun.

Elsa Keslassy International CorrespondentMK2 Films, the banner behind Joachim Trier’s “The Worst Person in the World,” has boarded “Love Life,” the anticipated next film of laureled Japanese director Koji Fukada. Fukada’s credits include the 2016 movie “Harmonium” which won the jury prize at Cannes’ Un Certain Regard, as well as “A Girl Missing” which played at Toronto. His latest film, “The Real Thing” was part of Cannes 2020’s Official Selection.

K.J. Yossman Fresh from appearing in Netflix hit Adam McKay’s “Don’t Look Up,” Mark Rylance’s latest big screen outing is “The Outfit,” in which he stars as Leonard, a 1950s tailor. It is a role that could not be more dissimilar to the fictional megalomaniac billionaire Peter Isherwell, whom Rylance plays in McKay’s disaster movie.Written and directed by Graham Moore, the Oscar-winning scribe behind “The Imitation Game,” “The Outfit” sees Rylance star as a Savile Row tailor who has fled across the Atlantic to escape his tragic past.

Elsa Keslassy International CorrespondentTrustNordisk has closed a flurry of sales on a pair of 3D-animated family features, “Little Allan — The Human Antenna” and “The Super,” underscoring the market appeal of independent youth-skewing movies.“Little Allan – The Human Antenna” marks Danish film Amalie Naesby Fick’s follow up to her commercially successful debut “The Incredible Story of The Giant Pear,” which premiered in the the Generation Kplus section at Berlin in 2018. This year, the helmer has her daring drama series “Sex” selected for the Berlinale Series.The film takes place during summer vacation, when introverted, 11-year old Allan starts acting as a human antenna for his old neighbor, who thinks a huge invasion fleet from the outer space is on its way.

Leo Barraclough International Features EditorAhead of Sunday’s world premiere of documentary “1341 Frames of Love and War,” which plays in Berlinale Special, Variety spoke to Israeli writer/director Ran Tal about the film and its subject, Israeli war photographer Micha Bar-Am.In some ways “Frames” continues Tal’s interest in Israeli history evident in his previous work, “What If? Ehud Barak on War and Peace,” which centered on the former prime minister of Israel. Bar-Am was born in Berlin in 1930, but grew up in what became Israel, and across a five decade-long career as a photographer he documented many of the major episodes – in particular the wars – in the life of the young country, founded in 1948.

Nick Vivarelli International CorrespondentRAI Com is launching sales at the online EFM on Giuseppe Piccioni’s Fascist-era drama ‘L’Ombra del giorno,” starring Italian A-lister Riccardo Scamarcio (“Three Floors”) and Benedetta Porcaroli (“Baby,” “The Catholic School”).Pic, which Scamarcio produced, is a love story with a thriller twist set in 1938, two years before Italy entered World War II. It unfolds entirely in the central Italian town of Ascoli Piceno, a hidden gem with gorgeous medieval monuments, churches and piazzas.The film’s title translates as “The Shadow of the Day,” a reference to the darkness of Fascism.Luciano (Scamarcio), a wounded World War I veteran and a sympathizer of Fascism like most Italians at the time, runs a classy restaurant overlooking the town’s ancient square.

John Hopewell Chief International CorrespondentAdding to its notable lineup in Latin American movies, Paris-based sales agent MPM Premium has taken international sales rights to “Fogaréu,” from writer-director Flávia Neves, part of Brazil’s new wave of female filmmakers, which is one of the most exciting developments the country’s cinema currently has going for it.MPM Premium is introducing the film at this week’s Berlin Festival, where it world premieres in Panorama on Feb. 15.First glimpsed at 2020’s Ventana Sur project market, “Fogaréu” shares a sense of attitude and a feminist agenda and a visual verve with fellow Brazilian Ventana Sur titles “The Pink Cloud,” Iuli Gerbase’s a sci-fi character-driven thriller, and “The Joy of Things,” Thais Fujinaga’s portrait of motherhood, also playing at the same market.

It’s been nearly 30 years since Kristy Swanson slayed a vampire – but these days, she’s happily finding her footing on a ranch. The actress stars in Pure Flix’s streaming series "Sons of Thunder: Redemption." It tells the tale of a former biker gang member (Rocky Myers) who decides to seek forgiveness from his ex-fiancee at her California horse ranch that is about to close down.The ranch owner (Swanson) decides to host a fundraising rodeo, but trouble isn’t far behind.The show also stars Lorenzo Lamas of "Falcon Crest" and "Renegade" fame. Kristy Swanson attends the 2017 Monster Mania Con on March 10, 2017, in Cherry Hill, New Jersey.

Darius Rucker's favorite Super Bowl Sunday tradition involves spending time with his son. The country music star opened up about having the opportunity to attend Super Bowls with his son Jack in a new interview with Fox News Digital. "I've been going a lot in the past few years and taking my son, so that's kind of our thing," Rucker explained.

Jason Momoa is enjoying a day out with a friend.

Super Bow LVI pitting the Los Angeles Rams against the Cincinnati Bengals kicks off at 6:30 p.m. ET/3:30 p.m. PT from SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, the Rams’ home field. The game will air live on NBC as well as for the first time on the Peacock streaming service and Spanish-language network Telemundo.

Zachary Quinto and Lukas Gage are hitting the red carpet!

Scarlett Johansson and Colin Jost are about to be on everyone’s television screens thanks to their Super Bowl commercial.

It was yet another disappointing day for Manchester United as they once again took the lead in a match but didn't come away the winners.

Doja Cat is bringing the heat to a Super Bowl party!

A post shared by What Katie (Glass) Did Next (@katieelectricg)Still, the reality of having guests is not quite as rose-tinted as my expectations. I was naïve about just how much work is involved in stripping sheets, cleaning the baths, doing the laundry for the beds, following people around picking up cups, skittling back and forth to the kitchen to make sure everyone has a glass of wine, a cup of tea, some snacks.Although my friends are always here, we never actually get to hang out because I’m too busy being a butler, housewife, handyman – dealing with the fact someone is always telling me we’ve run out of loo roll or milk, or the toilet isn’t working.

Peter Bart Editor-At-LargeHe is still stalling, but the bottom line is that Donald Trump is ankling his job. For the uninitiated, “ankling” is Variety “slanguage” for getting fired, as Trump knows well.