Critics' Choice Winners; 'Hamilton' in Puerto Rico; Viacom Divesting in China?; 'Upside' Upsets 'Aquaman'; 'Thrones' Teaser; Kareem on 'Green Book'

What's news: Roma wins big at the Critics' Choice Awards. Plus: The Upside's shocking box office win, Viacom is exploring cutting its Chinese TV stake and Game of Thrones' return date is set. — Will Robinson [The Hollywood Reporter - Today In Entertainment]( January 14, 2019 What's news: Roma wins big at the Critics' Choice Awards. Plus: The Upside's shocking box office win, Viacom is exploring cutting its Chinese TV stake and Game of Thrones' return date is set. — Will Robinson ^Netflix's night: Roma was the big winner of the night at the Critics' Choice Awards on Sunday, taking home trophies for best picture, foreign-language film and both director and cinematography for Alfonso Cuarón: + Film competition: Going into the night, The Favourite led the film nominees with 14 nods, but aside from an acting prize for Olivia Colman, the film only won one other award, for best ensemble. Black Panther and Vice followed with three wins apiece, with the latter [including]( two best actor prizes for Christian Bale. + Co-winners!: In two of the best actress categories, there were multiple winners due to ties. Lady Gaga (A Star Is Born) and Glenn Close (The Wife) [tied]( for best actress on the film side, and for lead actress in a limited series or TV movie, Amy Adams (Sharp Objects) and Patricia Arquette (Escape at Dannemora) [also tied](. + TV picks: FX's The Americans and Amazon's The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel led with three wins each. While another FX show, The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story, initially scored five nominations, the show went home with just two awards: limited series and best actor for Darren Criss. [Full winners list.]( Inside the show: Julia Roberts and Bradley Cooper hugged it out, Lady Gaga got a standing-O, and Glenn Close took a lot of selfies inside Santa Monica's Barker Hangar. [Things cameras missed]( | [Best dressed]( 'The Upside' Thrives Surviving Weinstein: The Kevin Hart-Bryan Cranston dramedy opened to $19.6 million at the North American box office in a surprise victory for an indie film that wasn't expected to launch to much more than $10 million after a long delay, Pamela McClintock reports: + Star power: The STXfilms and Lantern film affirms Hart's continued box-office prowess, as well as Cranston's star status. It drew both an ethnically diverse audience and an older audience. Nearly one-third of ticket buyers were over the age of 45, including 11 percent 55 and older, suggesting the appeal of an older star like Cranston, who is 62. + Quieting noise: Moviegoers not only disregarded Hart's Oscars hosting drama and generally poor reviews — which can often sink an adult-skewing title — they awarded The Upside an A CinemaScore. STX reports that The Upside boasts the best PostTrak exit scores ever for a Kevin Hart movie. "I’m not sure that the broader moviegoing public was paying as much attention to that subject as people in Hollywood were," Adam Fogelson, chairman of STXfilms poses. [Full analysis.]( The weekend box office... Aquaman followed at No. 2 in its fourth weekend with another $17.3 million for a domestic total of $288 million, [crossing]( $1 billion worldwide for Warners... Entertainment Studios' Replicas bombed with $2.5 million, a career-worst opening for Keanu Reeves... Sony's A Dog's Way Home bowed in third place with $11.3 million, earning an A- CinemaScore. [Weekend box office.]( + Bumblebee continues Chinese success: The Paramount Transformers spinoff [easily topped]( two new Chinese-language releases to win its second weekend with $25.8 million, topping $100 million in the Middle Kingdom. Elsewhere in film... ► China's Wanda sees growth in film unit in 2018. Total revenue at billionaire Wang Jianlin's embattled conglomerate fell for a third consecutive year, but the company's film holdings reported [revenue growth]( of 9 percent to $8.61 billion. ► Tom Sizemore arrested for drug possession. According to arrest records, a consented search of the actor's vehicle [revealed]( "various illegal narcotics." On the festival circuit... ► Japan's Shoplifters claims FIPRESCI prize for Palm Springs' best foreign film. Miranda de Pencier's The Grizzlies, about teens in a remote Arctic town, scored the audience award for best narrative feature and John Chester's The Biggest Little Farm, about how he and his wife created a biodiverse farm, took the audience award for best documentary feature. [Winners.]( ► Santa Barbara to open with doc about biologist Mike deGruy. The fest, which will feature 63 world premieres and 59 U.S. premieres from 48 countries, [will close]( with Wyatt Daily’s Spoons: A Santa Barbara Story, a look at the community’s surfers and innovators. For your consideration... ► Asian directors dominate as Netflix is embraced at L.A. Film Critics Awards. "This year's crop of winners is the most diverse in LAFCA's history," the organization's president Claudia Puig said during her opening remarks. "Film transcends borders." [Inside the event.]( ^Dystopian draw: After a small turn in Netflix hit Bird Box, actress Rosa Salazar bows as a leading (cyborg) lady in another dystopian film, Alita: Battle Angel, Mia Galuppo reports: + Bird Box disappointment: While Salazar is "very pleasantly surprised" by the viral response to the film, she's upfront about her disappointment with its final cut. "Everything we shot that was added — which was the catalyst of me agreeing to do the movie — was not in the movie," she says. "I stand by my performance, even though it [has] been abbreviated." + Cameron's praise: It took James Cameron, who co-wrote and produced, over a decade to bring Alita to the screen. Ahead of filming in Austin, he gave Salazar a window into his passion for the film and for her character, an amnesiac cyborg who must rediscover her past: "Jim wrote me an email that said, 'I see her in you. She is yours now. ... I have lived with her for so long, and I am happy now she has found her body.' " [Full story.]( From the stage... ► Lin-Manuel Miranda puts a new shine on Hamilton in Puerto Rico. "Not only is there no sign of rustiness in his performance after a two and a half-year absence, he's actually improved," David Rooney hails. "No less notable is the fact that he's surrounded by a sensational new company." [Full review.]( Musical notes... ► Missy Elliott, Cat Stevens among 2019 Songwriters Hall of Fame inductees. Elliott is just the third rapper [to enter]( into the Songwriters Hall, following Jay-Z and Jermaine Dupri's inductions in 2017 and 2018, respectively. Wedding bells... ► Chris Pratt, Katherine Schwarzenegger announce engagement. "Sweet Katherine, so happy you said yes! I’m thrilled to be marrying you. Proud to live boldly in faith with you. Here we go!," Pratt wrote on Instagram. The couple is [tying the knot]( after a whirlwind romance that began last June. In memoriam... ► RIP Mark Urman. The veteran indie film executive who founded New York-based distribution company Paladin Films died after a bout with cancer. He was 66. [Obit.]( ► RIP Jo Andres. An artist, choreographer and filmmaker, she leaves behind one son with her husband of over 30 years, Steve Buscemi. [Obit.]( Olivia Colman joins Awards Chatter. Having played one queen in Hyde Park on Hudson and soon to appear as another on The Crown, the British "national treasure" reflects on her royal assignment in Yorgos Lanthimos' dramedy The Favourite, her beginnings in comedy and what it's like to now be the center of so much attention. [Listen]( | [Subscribe]( [COLD WAR, a decades-spanning love story between two fatefully mismatched people in post-war Europe has been named Best Foreign Language Film by the National Board of Review and New York Film Critics Circle directed by 2018 Cannes Best Director Pawel Pawlikowski. For Your Consideration In All Categories]( Viacom TV Exiting China? TV divestment?: Viacom is considering selling off majority control of its Chinese TV operations, which would theoretically include MTV and Nickelodeon, Patrick Brzeski and Georg Szalai report: + Difficult climate: The news comes amid a trade war and softer media industry growth in China than at any time in recent memory. The Wall Street Journal's sources, who were not named, said Viacom has been frustrated by the difficulties in scaling its business in the world's most populous nation. A sale could also reduce the U.S. company's political exposure during a time of rising tensions between Beijing and Washington. + Asian strategy: A deal in China also would bring Viacom’s business there in line with the structure pursued elsewhere in Asia, especially India. Viacom reduced its stake in its India joint venture, Viacom18, to a minority position in January 2018, as Indian partner Reliance Industries took operational control of the company. Viacom also has a similar arrangement in place in South Korea, where its local partner, SBS, has majority control over the joint venture channels SBS MTV and Nickelodeon Korea. [Full story.]( Elsewhere in TV... ► Women take lead in U.S. network dramas. The Ampere Analysis study found 42 percent of network dramas feature a strong female lead, more than double the number of shows with a male lead character (20 percent). Of the five broadcast networks, Ampere found NBC and The CW had the strongest female representation in terms of the number of female-led series relative to their full slate. [Results.]( ► Billy Bush in talks to make TV return on Extra. The news comes over two years after Bush [was let go]( from the Today show for his behavior in a leaked 2005 Access Hollywood video clip. ► NFL confirms Maroon 5, Travis Scott, Big Boi as Super Bowl LIII halftime performers. In recent months, numerous high-profile artists — including Rihanna, Adele, Jay-Z, Pink and Cardi B — have reportedly [turned down]( this year's halftime slot in solidarity with former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick. * Scott's deal reportedly required charity donation. The Houston rapper will donate $500,000 to DreamCorps, a social justice group founded by CNN's Van Jones. [[Billboard](] ► Paul Feig musical among pair of NBC drama pilot orders. Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist [joins]( Emergence, from Agent Carter duo Michele Fazekas and Tara Butters, at the network. ► Celebrity Big Brother cast includes Anthony Scaramucci, Dina Lohan, Ryan Lochte. Also [entering]( the Big Brother house is Kato Kaelin, actor Joey Lawrence, Olympic bobsledder Lolo Jones and former NFL running back Ricky Williams. ► Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Jane the Virgin, Twilight Zone set for PaleyFest 2019. The Walking Dead and RuPaul's Drag Race will also be part of the event, which runs from March 15-24. [Schedule.]( -> You Gets the Netflix Bump. "Lifetime’s role in bringing You to air seems fated to become a distant footnote in the show’s Wikipedia page and is already on its way to being buried under an avalanche of screenshots," Alison Herman writes. "A show skewering New York City millennials already feels more at home on an account five of them are sharing a password to than an old-school TV channel." [[The Ringer](] Around town... ► Hollywood players line up in support of L.A. teachers strike. After several entertainment unions [declared]( their solidarity with the teachers' union, many public school parents in the industry's creative class are preparing themselves and their families for a disruptive and drawn-out battle over wages, class size and more, Peter Kiefer reports. ► Bill Maher billboard targeted by conservative street artists. The artwork is courtesy of The Faction, conservatives who previously peppered the Hollywood Walk of Fame with dozens of Donald Trump stars. [Photos.]( ► Irving Azoff, Hollywood A-listers team to save legendary deli Nate 'n Al. The buyers of the Beverly Hills institution [include]( Azoff and his wife Shelli, UTA’s Jay Sures, real estate guru Mike Meldman, NBCUniversal executive Jeff Shell, nightlife industry entrepreneur Rande Gerber and his wife Cindy Crawford. ^Game of Thrones Final Path: The journey of Jon Snow: Ahead of the HBO blockbuster's final season, Josh Wigler will offer a character-by-character deep dive of their journey through seven seasons as well as what can be expected in the upcoming eighth and final season. [Spoilers.]( * Winter arrives April 14. The announcement, which came at the end of a teaser called "Crypts of Winterfell," was made Sunday ahead of the third season premiere of HBO's True Detective. The teaser was directed by franchise Emmy winner David Nutter. [Watch.]( Digital digest... ► Tidal's streaming numbers under investigation. Jay-Z's music streamer "is now being probed by the Norwegian Authority for Investigation of Economic and Environmental Crime (Okokrim) after having received allegations from Norwegian artist associations claiming potential loss of income from the manipulation of streaming data." [[Bloomberg](] From last night... ► True Detective, Mahershala Ali mark time in moody premiere. Exec producer Scott Stephens discusses finding the right locations and Ali's decades-spanning performance: "It was important to age him and make him look like the appropriate amount of years had passed, but we also [couldn't hide]( the actor under silicone and latex and hide all the emotion." [Season one connection?]( ► Outlander hurries along an engagement in departure from books. Executive producer Maril Davis explains why the show had to streamline some elements from Diana Gabaldon's book to fit Sunday's episode. [Spoilers.]( ► Family Guy producers discuss Trump-skewering episode. "We knew, writing this episode, that what we were writing we weren’t going to see on television for a year and a half, so we just had to lay into the fact that luckily Trump has been consistently a disaster, so that hasn’t changed at all," Alec Sulkin tells Dan Snierson. [[EW](] The arts scene... ► L.A. artist duo Haas brothers honored by Miami's YoungArts Foundation. The twin brothers, whose playful works are currently on view at the city's Bass Museum of Art, [were feted]( by the arts education nonprofit whose alums include such stars as Viola Davis and Billy Porter. Talking points... ► Trump mocks Amazon boss Jeff "Bozo," praises National Enquirer. The president [took aim]( at Bezos' impending divorce as well as alleged texts the Washington Post owner sent to his new girlfriend, Lauren Sanchez-Whitesell. Bill de Blasio blasts MTV for Made in Staten Island reality show. The New York City mayor tweeted a condemnation of the show, which follows a group of young people trying to distance themselves from their families associated with organized crime: "Anyone who has spent any time on Staten Island knows MTV is peddling stereotypes in a [shameless]([ratings grab](." The Case for 'Green Book' Missing the point: As awards season "scandals" pile up, dwelling on Green Book's historical inaccuracies, or the race (or boneheaded past actions) of its writer and director, misses the deeper value of an Oscar-worthy film, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar writes: + Beyond facts: While the purported discrepancies of Don Shirley's life may irk family members, they don't really matter because those plot details are about getting to a greater truth than whatever the mundane facts are. He has so much to hide from the outside world that he’s created an acceptable persona for that world. To show him cut off from his family, whatever the facts, is an effective way to emphasize the loneliness and despair that people like him endure. + Scandals bolster film's "truth": Both Peter Farrelly and Nick Vallelonga have apologized and disavowed their past behavior, which I take as being sincere. Neither act affects the merit of the film. Actually, the controversy embraces the movie’s point that we can learn from the past to set us on a more enlightened path for the future. [Full column.]( What else we're reading... — "Conan O’Brien Wants to Scare Himself With New, Shorter Conan." Dave Itzkoff reports: "The repetition can get to you after a while. I was the new guy for so long, and then that card flips overnight — you go from the inexperienced, nervous punk to the old dean emeritus. I started to think, does it have to be that way?" [[The New York Times](] — "The Tragic Legacy of John Belushi." Hadley Freeman reports — director John Landis: “It was extremely frustrating. John was so great, but he wasn’t able to give 100% in [The Blues Brothers]. With addiction, you can’t help someone unless they want it. It’s like offering a drowning man your hand and they refuse it. It was terrible." [[The Guardian](] — "How We Apologize Now." Lindsey Weber on the art of the celeb mea culpa: "The best Notes app statements follow the same guiding principles of any good apology: get in and get out; be direct; don’t try too hard to defend yourself; and (this is a bonus!) maybe say what you’re doing moving forward." [[The New York Times](] — "Thrift Store Donations Rise in Wake of Netflix Show." AJ Willingham and Andrea Diaz detail the Marie Kondo effect: "We've been in this location for four years, and people would walk up and down the street, and never noticed us before. I think a lot of people are now beginning to know us." [[CNN Entertainment](] — "Roma Through Alfonso Cuaron's Intimate Lens." Caleb Crain considers the Netflix film: "The end of humanity isn’t an explicit theme of Roma, but lately I’ve found myself wondering whether any artwork of the first caliber can be created anymore that doesn’t somehow reflect a sense that there are changes underway in the world so grave." [[The New York Review of Books](] What else we're watching... + "Jimmy honors Bob Einstein, aka Super Dave." [[Jimmy Kimmel](] + "Why Michael B. Jordan doesn't say 'Wakanda forever.'" [[Tonight Show](] + "50 Cent's new Champagne is 'for winners only.'" [[Late Show](] What's ahead this week... Monday: Fox debuts The Passage... ABC's The Good Doctor resumes. Tuesday: The CW's Roswell, New Mexico reboot bows... This Is Us returns for NBC... Temptation Island airs on USA. Wednesday: Riverdale and All American return for The CW. Thursday: Grey's Anatomy and How to Get Away With Murder return... Star Trek: Discovery picks up on its CBS All Access journey. Friday: Universal opens Glass... Netflix bows its Carmen Sandiego series while returning Grace and Frankie and The Punisher... The iHeart Radio Podcast Awards take place in Burbank. Saturday: PGA Awards take place at the Beverly Hilton... SNL returns with Rachel Brosnahan. Sunday: Showtime premieres Black Monday and returns SMILF, Shameless... HBO returns Crashing, High Maintenance. From the archives... + Today in 1952: NBC premiered Today, spearheaded by NBC vp Sylvester Weaver. Hosted by Dave Garroway, Today was the first network morning show and spawned endless imitators competitors: "What started as a two-hour program has grown to become a four-hour live broadcast, an institution that draws millions of viewers each morning as it weaves together news, weather and entertainment." [[The New York Times](] Today's birthdays: Grant Gustin, 29, Kevin Durand, 45, Jason Bateman, 50, LL Cool J, 51, Mark Addy, 55, Steven Soderbergh, 56, Lawrence Kasdan, 70, Carl Weathers, 71, Holland Taylor, 76, Faye Dunaway, 78. 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