Vera star shares 'hope' for future of series as it comes to an end

LE SSERAFIM have dropped their third mini-album ‘Easy’, alongside a music video for its title track.The five-piece released both the record and music video today (February 19) at 6pm KST, marking their first new music of 2024. It also marks their first body of work since they released their first full album ‘Unforgiven’ in May last year.In the video treatment for title track ‘Easy’, the five members of LE SSERAFIM strut into what looks like a church, empty aside from overgrowth and trippy neon lights as they begin to perform the choreography for the song.“I could get hurt but keep on walking, kiss me / If it’s hard then I make it easy / Up on the stage, sparks fly off my body / Pull up and I rip it up like ballet,” the group sing on the song’s trap-infused chorus.According to a statement from Source Music, the new album “[enhances] the authenticity of the album’s theme surrounding anxiety and vulnerability beneath a confident exterior”.

Fallout: New Vegas that adds Limp Bizkit’s Fred Durst to the game has been rediscovered, years after it was supposedly lost.The original but unofficial Limp Bizkit mod was released in 2015 and saw a Fred Durst lookalike take on the role of Fallout: New Vegas companion but would only talk in song lyrics.However, less than a year after it was released, it was seemingly wiped from Nexus Mods forever. The only clip of it to survive the purge was this 40-second Youtube video, “My Fred Durst Mod For Fallout: NV”.Despite apparently being lost to time, the original Limp Bizkit mod was rediscovered over the weekend and swiftly restored.“Ladies and Gentlemen, today we’ve made modding history,” wrote YouTuber MickyD on social media.

Fever 333 have shared a blistering new single titled ‘Ready Rock’ – check it out below.The track marks the latest single to be shared from the American band’s forthcoming album. At time of writing, the title of the upcoming LP is still unknown, however, it is set to arrive later in 2024 via Century Media.In ‘Ready Rock’, frontman Jason Aalon Butler and co.

NME’s latest stars of The Cover, Royel Otis, have shared a playlist exclusively to accompany the story’s launch – check it out below.The Australian indie duo are on this week’s (February 19) edition of The Cover, a renewal of NME’s commitment to supporting emerging talent across the globe on a weekly basis. Every week, a rising artist will feature on The Cover – you can read Royel Otis’ profile here, written by Rishi Shah and featuring photography by Danny Draxx.Accompanying the story is an exclusive playlist curated by Royel Maddell and Otis Pavlovic: ‘Songs To Cheese To’, which runs the gamut from King Krule to Stereolab to Fontaines D.C.

Kylie Minogue performed her huge hit ‘Padam Padam’ at the People’s Choice Awards last night (February 18) – check out footage below.The Australian pop star attended the awards show, hosted by Simu Liu at the Barker Hangar in Santa Monica, where she gave the Grammy-winning hit its latest live rendition.The singer recently won the inaugural Best Pop Dance Recording at the 2024 Grammys, 20 years after her last victory, where she beat out competition from Troye Sivan, Calvin Harris, Bebe Rexha and more.Check out the performance of ‘Padam Padam’ below.Taylor Swift won Female Artist of the Year and Pop Artist Of The Year at this year’s awards, while Jungkook won Male Artist Of The Year.‘Padam Padam’ features on Minogue’s 16th studio album, which NME said in a four-star review was “up there with her best”, adding that the singer was “back with another high-energy blast of dance-pop that’s more than just hit single ‘Padam Padam’.”The pop star was recently announced as the latest headliner for London’s BST Hyde Park 2024.“I can’t wait to return to BST Hyde Park this summer,” Minogue said in a statement. “My last appearance at this iconic event was in 2015 and it was a truly unforgettable experience.

Unmasked, Blood Free, The Tyrant, Gangnam B-Side, Uncle Samsik and Light Shop, as well as the long-awaited third season of reality programme The Zone: Survival Mission. Blood Free will star Ju Ji-hoon (Kingdom) and Han Hyo-joo (Moving) in a tale of a former bodyguard haunted by the failures of his past, Meawhile, Unmasked, set in contemporary Seoul, follows a team of investigative journalists fighting for their careers as they reckon with the aftermath of broadcasting a controversial story.

Squid Game.Sarandos recently visited the headquarters of Netflix Korea, located in the heart of Seoul, South Korea. During a press conference held during his visit, the Netflix CEO shut down rumours that an American remake of Squid Game is in the works.“That’s just a rumour,” he said, according to South Korean news outlet SBS Star.

Michael J Fox brought viewers to tears at the BAFTAs last night (February 18) after making a surprise appearance.The Back To The Future star, who was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 1991, came onstage in a wheelchair but insisted on standing up at the podium as he handed out the prize for Best Film to Christopher Nolan‘s Oppenheimer at London’s Royal Festival Hall in the Southbank Centre.As he presented the prize to a standing ovation, he spoke about film bringing people together, “no matter who you are or where you’re from”.He added: “There’s a reason why they say movies are magic because movies can change your day. It can change your outlook.

Taylor Swift has issued a “public service announcement” about how she plans to approach the surprise songs portion of the ‘Eras’ tour going forward.When the pop star kicked off the North American leg of her huge ‘Eras’ tour in March last year, she revealed plans to perform a different surprise song in the acoustic portion of the set each night, with no repeats.“The plan, the goal, would be to play different songs every single night and never repeat one. Right?” she said (per Billboard).

Red Velvet singer Wendy has announced the upcoming release of her second solo mini-album, ‘Wish You Hell’.Red Velvet’s Wendy will be dropping her second solo mini-album, titled ‘Wish You Hell’, on March 12 at 6pm KST. Alongside the announcement, the K-pop idol also releases a poster that featured a graph drawn in the shape of a heart with a photo frame above it that reads, “Be You”.More details about the mini-album, including its tracklist, single and more, have yet to be released.

John Hopewell Chief International Correspondent This year, Spain has more titles at the Berlinale’s two TV showcases, Co-Pro Series and Berlinale Market Selects, than any other country in the world— a total of four shows, beating the U.S. with one, and even Germany, which has three. On top of that, running Feb.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent The Locarno Film Festival has formed an advisory board for its industry side and recruited a roster of top indie industry figures including former Amazon Studios film executive Ted Hope, Bobby Allen, who is senior VP of content at Mubi, and former European Film Market chief Beki Probst as members. Locarno’s industry advisory board will be headed by Nadia Dresti, the former head of the prominent Swiss indie cinema event’s market side who has been with Locarno intermittently for roughly 30 years with an interlude for a few years as head of marketing for Fox Switzerland.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor “From Hilde, With Love,” which world premiered Saturday in competition at the Berlinale, has debuted its trailer (below). The film, directed by Andreas Dresen, centers on a group of young anti-Nazi activists in Berlin during World War II. (Read Variety‘s review here.) The film, which is being sold by Beta Cinema and is produced by Claudia Steffen and Christoph Friedel for Pandora Film, stars “Babylon Berlin” breakout Liv Lisa Fries and Johannes Hegemann.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Four Chinese films dominated the mainland China and global box office charts over the latest weekend. “YOLO,” a comedy drama about weight loss and self-discovery, was crowned as the top earning film worldwide for a second weekend running. “YOLO” took $86.5 million (RMB614 million) between Friday and Sunday, giving it a 9-day cumulative total of $402 million (RMB2.85 million), according to data from consultancy firm Artisan Gateway. The second film by Jia Ling, who previously directed 2021 Lunar New Year smash hit “Hi, Mom”, “YOLO” released on Saturday, Feb.

Nick Holdsworth European film agencies, festivals and organizations could do more to support Ukrainian filmmakers, the head of Germany’s state film promotion body, German Films, says. Simone Baumann, managing director of German Films — which supports the promotion of national filmmakers at festivals and events worldwide — says there is a lot of talk at festival panels and industry gatherings of supporting Ukrainians, but little financial backing.

Naman Ramachandran Vanessa Williams will take on the role of queen of fashion Miranda Priestly in the London West End stage adaptation of “The Devil Wears Prada.” “The Devil Wears Prada” is a new musical based on the hit 2006 film and bestselling 2003 novel. It features an original score by Olivier and Tony Award winner Elton John (“Tammy Faye,” “Billy Elliot: The Musical,” “The Lion King”), direction and choreography by three-time Tony Award winner Jerry Mitchell (“Kinky Boots,” “Legally Blonde,” “Pretty Woman,” “Hairspray”), lyrics by singer-songwriter Shaina Taub (“Suffs”) and book by Kate Wetherhead (“Ever After,” “Submissions Only”), The story follows fresh out of college, aspiring journalist Andy who scores a job at the prestigious Runway magazine working for fashion’s most powerful and terrifying icon – editor-in-chief Miranda Priestly.

Annika Pham Copenhagen-based sales and financing outlet REinvent has inked major deals on the Danish/German thriller “Oxen”, ahead of its screening Feb. 19 as part of the Berlinale Series Market Selects label. The show, produced by Scandi major SF Studios with Germany’s Square One for TV2 Denmark and ZDF, has been acquired by GSN Networks for the UK, AMC for Spain/Portugal as well as Orion Group for Poland.

Callum McLennan Chile’s Storyboard Media brings its latest documentary venture to Berlin, a project centered on Jorge González, a Latin American music legend frontman of Los Prisioneros. Set to be shown at the EFM, the doc feature charts the life and legacy of a musician whose songs became anthems of resistance during Pinochet’s dictatorship in Chile, and are still played loud when protests flare.

Naman Ramachandran Prime Video has greenlit a feature-length documentary chronicling the final 12 days of Roger Federer’s professional tennis career. The as-yet-untitled documentary is described by Prime Video as “an intimate follow-along through the final 12 days of Roger Federer’s illustrious career. Originally a home video never intended for public viewing, the film captures Federer at his most vulnerable and candid self, as he says goodbye to a game and the fans that shaped his life for the last two decades.” It features interviews from Federer’s rivals and friends, including Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray.

John Hopewell Chief International Correspondent Series from Atresmedia TV, RTVE, Movistar Plus+, Javier Calvo and Javier Ambrossi (“La Mesías”), Zeta Studios (“Elite”) and director Carlota Pereda and Morena Films (behind Sundance hit “Piggy”) will unspool or be unveiled at the Berlinale. They underscore the breadth and depth of Spanish TV output: “Death to Love,” (“Que muera el amor,” Morena Films, Buendía Estudios) Carlota Pereda dazzled at Sundance with first feature, “Piggy.” Now, Pereda’s at the Berlinale Co-Pro Series on Feb.

EXCLUSIVE: Martin Scorsese is returning to the Berlin Film Festival tomorrow for the first time in a decade. The cinema legend, currently on the awards circuit with latest epic Killers Of The Flower Moon, will be feted with the Berlinale‘s highest honor, its lifetime achievement Golden Bear.