H'Wood's Mental Health Reckoning; Silvio Horta's Struggle; 'Bad Boys' Review; Amazon, Apple Deals

What's news: Hollywood's mental health reckoning, Silvio Horta's secret anguish, Billie Eilish to sing No Time To Die theme, George Cheeks readies jump from NBC to CBS, Amazon and Apple make TV deals, The CW expands the Arrow-verse. Plus: A rave review for Bad Boys For Life. --Alex Weprin [The Hollywood Reporter]( [The Hollywood Reporter]( Today In Entertainment JANUARY 15, 2020 What's news: Hollywood's mental health reckoning, Silvio Horta's secret anguish, Billie Eilish to sing No Time To Die theme, George Cheeks readies jump from NBC to CBS, Amazon and Apple make TV deals, The CW expands the Arrow-verse. Plus: A rave review for Bad Boys For Life. --Alex Weprin What's news: Hollywood's mental health reckoning, Silvio Horta's secret anguish, Billie Eilish to sing No Time To Die theme, George Cheeks readies jump from NBC to CBS, Amazon and Apple make TV deals, The CW expands the Arrow-verse. Plus: A rave review for Bad Boys For Life. --Alex Weprin [Hollywood's Mental Health Reckoning] Hollywood's Mental Health Reckoning ►Hollywood's mental health reckoning has arrived. As a seeming epidemic of suicides pummel the entertainment world, leaders and companies are responding with innovative answers to help erase the stigma around mental illness and provide help, Ashley Cullins, Degen Pener and Alex Ritman report: "I've seen the pain and devastation it causes." Quote: “Many — particularly young adults — are experiencing anxiety or depression, and Hollywood is filled with many young adults. But there are particular pressures associated with celebrity, or striving for celebrity," said Dr. Gail Saltz, associate professor of psychiatry at the NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell School of Medicine. "There is a constant concern that one won’t get that next opportunity, and fame is very fleeting. There is intense focus on physical appearance, making aging — which is inevitable — the enemy. This focus creates a lot of insecurity. Constant scrutiny, inability to have failures or mistakes be private, vocal judgment by others, feelings of never being enough are all highly stressful, and chronic stress can lead to anxiety or depression.” [The story](. ►The secret anguish of Silvio Horta: Demons and Hollywood anxiety plagued the Ugly Betty creator. Friends and former colleagues recall a writing wunderkind whose hit ABC show paved the way for greater representation on TV, but who faced drug addiction and quiet struggles before ending his own life: "When you are pretty and successful they flock to you, but when you are facing the darkness, they walk away." Seth Abramovitch has [the story](. ►George Cheeks exits NBCUniversal for ViacomCBS. The move comes three months after he was plucked from his role as co-chairman of entertainment at NBC to serve as Bonnie Hammer's No. 2 at the company's combined studio operation. His exact role at CBS is to-be-determined, as the talks are still ongoing. Some reports suggest that he is being positioned as a potential successor to CBS CEO Joe Ianniello, who signed a fixed 15 month contract extension when CBS completed its merger with Viacom last month. [The details](. ►The rumors can be put to bed: the next James Bond film has its singer. Billie Eilish has been officially unveiled as the musician to perform the title track for the latest 007 outing, No Time to Die, becoming the youngest artist ever to record a Bond theme. The 18-year-old has written the song — to be released on Darkroom/Interscope Records — together with her older brother, Finneas. [More](. ^Review: Bad Boys For Life. Todd McCarthy reviews the Will Smith and Martin Lawrence-led action comedy, writing that "the heaviness and sense of needless excess in [Michael] Bay’s approach has been replaced here by a more fleet-footed and alert style that’s all to the good." Quote: "[T]his new installment directed by two virtually unknown Moroccans based in Belgium, Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah, is decisively the best of the trio; it actually has a heart, or what passes for one in a gigantic, slam-bang industrial enterprise like this. Michael Bay is not missed. In all events, this quite gigantic crowd-pleaser looks to be the first big hit of the new year and decade." [The review](. ►Alice Initiative reveals annual list of emerging female directors. This year's list, voted on by more than 50 studio executives and producers, highlights 10 women who have directed at least one (non-studio) feature and 10 who have garnered attention for their work on TV or in short films. The list this year includes recent awards season contenders like The Farewell's Lulu Wang, Honeyboy's Alma Har'el and Portrait of a Lady on Fire's Céline Sciamma. [The full list](. Elsewhere in film... --A trio of Oscar best picture contenders [will hit the China market]( shortly after the Academy Awards ceremony on Feb. 9, Beijing film authorities revealed Tuesday. The films are Marriage Story, Little Women and Jojo Rabbit, with 1917 close to securing a release. --Peggy Holmes [has come aboard]( to direct Luck, Skydance Animation’s first animated feature that is currently in production. --How Tyler Perry [filmed the Netflix thriller]( A Fall From Grace in five days. --Breaking down the [strengths and weaknesses]( of each Oscars best picture nominee. --Sony Pictures [released the international trailer]( for its upcoming action film Bloodshot on Tuesday. Hollywood's Mental Health Reckoning ►Hollywood's mental health reckoning has arrived. As a seeming epidemic of suicides pummel the entertainment world, leaders and companies are responding with innovative answers to help erase the stigma around mental illness and provide help, Ashley Cullins, Degen Pener and Alex Ritman report: "I've seen the pain and devastation it causes." Quote: “Many — particularly young adults — are experiencing anxiety or depression, and Hollywood is filled with many young adults. But there are particular pressures associated with celebrity, or striving for celebrity," said Dr. Gail Saltz, associate professor of psychiatry at the NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell School of Medicine. "There is a constant concern that one won’t get that next opportunity, and fame is very fleeting. There is intense focus on physical appearance, making aging — which is inevitable — the enemy. This focus creates a lot of insecurity. Constant scrutiny, inability to have failures or mistakes be private, vocal judgment by others, feelings of never being enough are all highly stressful, and chronic stress can lead to anxiety or depression.” [The story](. ►The secret anguish of Silvio Horta: Demons and Hollywood anxiety plagued the Ugly Betty creator. Friends and former colleagues recall a writing wunderkind whose hit ABC show paved the way for greater representation on TV, but who faced drug addiction and quiet struggles before ending his own life: "When you are pretty and successful they flock to you, but when you are facing the darkness, they walk away." Seth Abramovitch has [the story](. ►George Cheeks exits NBCUniversal for ViacomCBS. The move comes three months after he was plucked from his role as co-chairman of entertainment at NBC to serve as Bonnie Hammer's No. 2 at the company's combined studio operation. His exact role at CBS is to-be-determined, as the talks are still ongoing. Some reports suggest that he is being positioned as a potential successor to CBS CEO Joe Ianniello, who signed a fixed 15 month contract extension when CBS completed its merger with Viacom last month. [The details](. ►The rumors can be put to bed: the next James Bond film has its singer. Billie Eilish has been officially unveiled as the musician to perform the title track for the latest 007 outing, No Time to Die, becoming the youngest artist ever to record a Bond theme. The 18-year-old has written the song — to be released on Darkroom/Interscope Records — together with her older brother, Finneas. [More](. ^Review: Bad Boys For Life. Todd McCarthy reviews the Will Smith and Martin Lawrence-led action comedy, writing that "the heaviness and sense of needless excess in [Michael] Bay’s approach has been replaced here by a more fleet-footed and alert style that’s all to the good." Quote: "[T]his new installment directed by two virtually unknown Moroccans based in Belgium, Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah, is decisively the best of the trio; it actually has a heart, or what passes for one in a gigantic, slam-bang industrial enterprise like this. Michael Bay is not missed. In all events, this quite gigantic crowd-pleaser looks to be the first big hit of the new year and decade." [The review](. ►Alice Initiative reveals annual list of emerging female directors. This year's list, voted on by more than 50 studio executives and producers, highlights 10 women who have directed at least one (non-studio) feature and 10 who have garnered attention for their work on TV or in short films. The list this year includes recent awards season contenders like The Farewell's Lulu Wang, Honeyboy's Alma Har'el and Portrait of a Lady on Fire's Céline Sciamma. [The full list](. Elsewhere in film... --A trio of Oscar best picture contenders [will hit the China market]( shortly after the Academy Awards ceremony on Feb. 9, Beijing film authorities revealed Tuesday. The films are Marriage Story, Little Women and Jojo Rabbit, with 1917 close to securing a release. --Peggy Holmes [has come aboard]( to direct Luck, Skydance Animation’s first animated feature that is currently in production. --How Tyler Perry [filmed the Netflix thriller]( A Fall From Grace in five days. --Breaking down the [strengths and weaknesses]( of each Oscars best picture nominee. --Sony Pictures [released the international trailer]( for its upcoming action film Bloodshot on Tuesday. [Amazon Makes Moves] Amazon Makes Moves ►Amazon Studios' Jennifer Salke touts "increased appetite" for global TV strategy. The executive, flanked by TV co-heads Albert Cheng and Vernon Sanders, touted Amazon’s efforts to bring original programming to the company’s 100 million-plus Prime members around the world at the Television Critics Association winter press tour. [The story](. Amazon also announced a number of major deals, pickups and castings at the Television Critics Association press tour... +The deals: The retail giant and streamer used its time at the Television Critics Association's winter press tour to announce another slate of TV overalls with Brad Pitt's Plan B (Moonlight, Underground Railroad), Cortes duo Gael Garcia Bernal and Diego Luna as well as Steve McQueen, the latter of whom is prepping BBC Studios-produced anthology Small Axe for Amazon. [The story](. +Jack Reacher: Amazon has given a series order to Jack Reacher, a drama based on the best-selling series of novels by Lee Child. The series will air on the tech giant's Prime Video streaming platform, with a premiere date yet to be determined. The first season will be based on the inaugural Reacher novel, The Killing Floor. [More](. +Casting news: Amazon [has inked]( Game of Thrones veteran Richard Madden and Priyanka Chopra Jonas to star in Citadel, a global event series from Avengers directors Joe and Anthony Russo... Amazon also [revealed the cast]( for its long-gestating Lord of the Rings series... +And: Heidi Klum and Tim Gunn explained [why they decided]( to "jump ship" from Project Runway and create their forthcoming Amazon show Making the Cut, which debuts March 27. Some news from another streaming service... ►Little America's Lee Eisenberg inks overall deal at Apple. As part of the pact, Eisenberg will remain actively involved in running the hotly anticipated and critically praised series' second season as well as develop new fare for the months-old service, Lacey Rose reports. He will also launch a new banner, Piece of Work Entertainment. [The details](. The cable channels of ViacomCBS held court at TCA as well on Tuesday... +Awkwafina's forthcoming Comedy Central scripted comedy, Awkwafina Is Nora From Queens, has [scored an early season two renewal]( ahead of its Jan. 22 launch on Comedy Central. +Comedy Central also handed out a massive four-season, [80-episode renewal]( for Tosh.0 and signed Daniel Tosh to a sweeping overall deal. +Paramount Network is doubling down on Taylor Sheridan. The ViacomCBS-owned basic cable network [has handed out]( a straight-to-series order for scripted drama Mayor of Kingstown from the creator of its top drama Yellowstone. +Also from TCA: Starz CEO on American Gods controversy and expanding the Outlander franchise. "The streaming wars continue to make headlines, with each new entrant looking to replace what is traditionally known as basic television and to become the primary service in the home. That is not the Starz strategy," Jeffrey Hirsch told reporters. "We're not looking to compete with these broad content services. Instead, we're positioned to be a complimentary service and strategic partner with them." [The story](. ►Meanwhile: The CW orders a couple of notable shows. The network has handed out straight-to-series orders for Arrow-verse spinoff Superman & Lois as well as Jared Padalecki's Walker, Texas Ranger reimagining Walker. Both script-to-series pickups will be for the network's 2020-21 broadcast season. [The story](. +Also: Arrow boss on the DC Universe's [Earth-shattering death](. Elsewhere in TV... --Daniel Fienberg reviews [Disney+'s Diary of a Future President](... Fienberg also reviews [Paramount Network's]([68 Whiskey](. --Media Res[is bringing]( author Nnedi Okorafor's award-winning book Binti to the screen. Hulu has handed out a script order for an adaptation of the three-part, African futuristic novella. --Ratings: The Bachelor and America's Got Talent: The Champions [both declined some]( in Monday's ratings, but the two were easily the best of the broadcast networks' shows — and among only a handful of originals airing opposite college football's title game on ESPN... And: The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel [got off to a fast start]( when its third season debuted in early December — but it didn't rack up quite as big an audience as one of its Amazon counterparts after a week... Amazon Makes Moves ►Amazon Studios' Jennifer Salke touts "increased appetite" for global TV strategy. The executive, flanked by TV co-heads Albert Cheng and Vernon Sanders, touted Amazon’s efforts to bring original programming to the company’s 100 million-plus Prime members around the world at the Television Critics Association winter press tour. [The story](. Amazon also announced a number of major deals, pickups and castings at the Television Critics Association press tour... +The deals: The retail giant and streamer used its time at the Television Critics Association's winter press tour to announce another slate of TV overalls with Brad Pitt's Plan B (Moonlight, Underground Railroad), Cortes duo Gael Garcia Bernal and Diego Luna as well as Steve McQueen, the latter of whom is prepping BBC Studios-produced anthology Small Axe for Amazon. [The story](. +Jack Reacher: Amazon has given a series order to Jack Reacher, a drama based on the best-selling series of novels by Lee Child. The series will air on the tech giant's Prime Video streaming platform, with a premiere date yet to be determined. The first season will be based on the inaugural Reacher novel, The Killing Floor. [More](. +Casting news: Amazon [has inked]( Game of Thrones veteran Richard Madden and Priyanka Chopra Jonas to star in Citadel, a global event series from Avengers directors Joe and Anthony Russo... Amazon also [revealed the cast]( for its long-gestating Lord of the Rings series... +And: Heidi Klum and Tim Gunn explained [why they decided]( to "jump ship" from Project Runway and create their forthcoming Amazon show Making the Cut, which debuts March 27. Some news from another streaming service... ►Little America's Lee Eisenberg inks overall deal at Apple. As part of the pact, Eisenberg will remain actively involved in running the hotly anticipated and critically praised series' second season as well as develop new fare for the months-old service, Lacey Rose reports. He will also launch a new banner, Piece of Work Entertainment. [The details](. The cable channels of ViacomCBS held court at TCA as well on Tuesday... +Awkwafina's forthcoming Comedy Central scripted comedy, Awkwafina Is Nora From Queens, has [scored an early season two renewal]( ahead of its Jan. 22 launch on Comedy Central. +Comedy Central also handed out a massive four-season, [80-episode renewal]( for Tosh.0 and signed Daniel Tosh to a sweeping overall deal. +Paramount Network is doubling down on Taylor Sheridan. The ViacomCBS-owned basic cable network [has handed out]( a straight-to-series order for scripted drama Mayor of Kingstown from the creator of its top drama Yellowstone. +Also from TCA: Starz CEO on American Gods controversy and expanding the Outlander franchise. "The streaming wars continue to make headlines, with each new entrant looking to replace what is traditionally known as basic television and to become the primary service in the home. That is not the Starz strategy," Jeffrey Hirsch told reporters. "We're not looking to compete with these broad content services. Instead, we're positioned to be a complimentary service and strategic partner with them." [The story](. ►Meanwhile: The CW orders a couple of notable shows. The network has handed out straight-to-series orders for Arrow-verse spinoff Superman & Lois as well as Jared Padalecki's Walker, Texas Ranger reimagining Walker. Both script-to-series pickups will be for the network's 2020-21 broadcast season. [The story](. +Also: Arrow boss on the DC Universe's [Earth-shattering death](. Elsewhere in TV... --Daniel Fienberg reviews [Disney+'s Diary of a Future President](... Fienberg also reviews [Paramount Network's]([68 Whiskey](. --Media Res[is bringing]( author Nnedi Okorafor's award-winning book Binti to the screen. Hulu has handed out a script order for an adaptation of the three-part, African futuristic novella. --Ratings: The Bachelor and America's Got Talent: The Champions [both declined some]( in Monday's ratings, but the two were easily the best of the broadcast networks' shows — and among only a handful of originals airing opposite college football's title game on ESPN... And: The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel [got off to a fast start]( when its third season debuted in early December — but it didn't rack up quite as big an audience as one of its Amazon counterparts after a week... [Weinstein Trial Latest...] Weinstein Trial Latest... The Weinstein trial: Jeremy Barr emails from the court... "Day by day, motion by motion, we are getting closer to the meat of Harvey Weinstein’s criminal trial in New York on charges of sexual assault and rape. Tuesday was another day of prospective juror panels and Wednesday will be more of the same, but Thursday is still expected to be the day when the defense and prosecution lawyers start questioning the whittled-down pool of potential jurors - including model Gigi Hadid - and the jury starts to take shape. So far, at least 140 potential jurors have passed the pre-screening process and been told to return starting a Thursday with a completed questionnaire. As far as we know, opening statements are still scheduled to begin in about a week, with March 6 as the latest estimated end date for the trial." +Netflix says Mo'Nique has failed to explain why she deserved the same pay for a stand-up special as "mega-stars" like Eddie Murphy and Ellen DeGeneres and can't show the company's decision not to give her a better deal after she called for a boycott amounts to retaliation, according to a motion filed Monday. The story. +Meanwhile: The U.S. Department of Labor on Tuesday dismissed challenges that were filed to Gabrielle Carteris’s election last August as SAG-AFTRA president, multiple sources stated, capping a bitterly-fought campaign. At least some of the challenges focused on the fact that Carteris, who ran on the Unite for Strength slate, played a fictionalized version of herself on the now-canceled BH90210. --Complainants contended that the role constituted an impermissible employer contribution by Fox to Carteris’s campaign, but the DOL apparently found no merit in that theory. [The story](. +Also: Meat Loaf has [filed a lawsuit against a hotel](at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport and organizers of a horror convention held there, blaming them for negligence when he fell from a stage while answering questions from convention goers last May... ►Shepard Smith could be picking between CNN and MSNBC for his next job. CNN's Jeff Zucker has been quite open about being interested in Smith, while the anchor has also reportedly met with MSNBC president Phil Griffin. At Fox News, Smith reportedly made an annual salary of around $15 million, a number that would be way be out of line with what MSNBC news anchors make, network insiders told Jeremy Barr. There's "no way" the network would pay him that much, one said, and another questioned how "serious" Smith's talks with MSNBC really are. [The story](. +The CNN Democratic debate: Elizabeth Warren made a vigorous case for a female president and stood behind her accusation suggesting sexism by progressive rival Bernie Sanders Tuesday night in a tense Democratic debate that raised gender as a key issue in the sprint to Iowa’s presidential caucuses. [More](. Also: The [late night reactions](. ►Mobile game spending expected to hit $75 billion in 2020. The mobile gaming industry is expected to continue its growth into 2020, analytics platform App Annie predicts in its annual State of Mobile report, published Wednesday. [More](. The Peabody Award are moving to Los Angeles. For the first time in its 80-year history, the ceremony will take place in L.A. This year's ceremony is set for June 18 at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel. The Peabody Awards have been handed out in New York every year except for the 50th anniversary, when the ceremony was held in Atlanta, near the University of Georgia, which hands out the honors. [The story](. +Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductees: Posthumous inductees Whitney Houston and The Notorious B.I.G. will lead a new class into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, joined by Depeche Mode, the Doobie Brothers, Nine Inch Nails and T-Rex. [More](. +Also: Leonard Maltin, the iconic bearded and bespectacled veteran film critic and historian, [will receive]( the TCM Classic Film Festival's third Robert Osborne Award for his significant contribution to film history and preservation, Turner Classic Movies announced... The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences (AIAS) [has revealed]( its 24th hall of fame honoree: longtime Sony vet Connie Booth... Harvard University's famed Hasty Pudding theater troupe [has named]( actor and director Elizabeth Banks as the group's 2020 Woman of the Year... +The Oscars should expand Its directing category. In a guest column Dr. Martha Lauzen, the founder and executive director of the Center for the Study of Women in Television and Film at San Diego State University, argues that in order to improve diversity in categories like outstanding director, "an immediate remedy for the Academy to consider would be to expand the category for helmers to reflect the number of films nominated for best picture." [The column](. Revolving door: South Korean mobile game company Netmarble, maker of such titles as Marvel: Future Fight and K-Pop crossover BTS World, [has nominated]( Seungwon Lee as the company's new co-CEO... The Sundance Film Festival [has announced]( its 2020 jury members, including Ethan Hawke and Dee Rees... Casting roundup: Actor and rapper Method Man [will star]( in a spinoff of Power at Starz... George Clooney's sci-fi Netflix movie Good Morning, Midnight [has filled out]( its supporting cast with Sophie Rundle, Ethan Peck, Tim Russ and Miriam Shor... Corey Hawkins is the [latest addition]( to a powerhouse cast in HBO Max's limited series Americanah... What else we're reading... --"Star Wars keeps bombing in China" [[NY Times](] --"‘No cameras, no C-Span, no coverage.’ Rules will limit access during Trump’s trial" [[Kansas City Star](] --"Comcast creates accelerator for sports startups" [[WSJ](] --"Trying to cut the cord? Cable companies are wooing people back by offering free streaming" [[NBC News](] Today's birthdays: Regina King, 49, DJ Jazzy Jeff, 54, Grace VanderWaal, 16, Shane McMahon, 50, Skrillex, 32. Weinstein Trial Latest... The Weinstein trial: Jeremy Barr emails from the court... "Day by day, motion by motion, we are getting closer to the meat of Harvey Weinstein’s criminal trial in New York on charges of sexual assault and rape. Tuesday was another day of prospective juror panels and Wednesday will be more of the same, but Thursday is still expected to be the day when the defense and prosecution lawyers start questioning the whittled-down pool of potential jurors - including model Gigi Hadid - and the jury starts to take shape. So far, at least 140 potential jurors have passed the pre-screening process and been told to return starting a Thursday with a completed questionnaire. As far as we know, opening statements are still scheduled to begin in about a week, with March 6 as the latest estimated end date for the trial." +Netflix says Mo'Nique has failed to explain why she deserved the same pay for a stand-up special as "mega-stars" like Eddie Murphy and Ellen DeGeneres and can't show the company's decision not to give her a better deal after she called for a boycott amounts to retaliation, according to a motion filed Monday. The story. +Meanwhile: The U.S. Department of Labor on Tuesday dismissed challenges that were filed to Gabrielle Carteris’s election last August as SAG-AFTRA president, multiple sources stated, capping a bitterly-fought campaign. At least some of the challenges focused on the fact that Carteris, who ran on the Unite for Strength slate, played a fictionalized version of herself on the now-canceled BH90210. --Complainants contended that the role constituted an impermissible employer contribution by Fox to Carteris’s campaign, but the DOL apparently found no merit in that theory. [The story](. +Also: Meat Loaf has [filed a lawsuit against a hotel](at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport and organizers of a horror convention held there, blaming them for negligence when he fell from a stage while answering questions from convention goers last May... ►Shepard Smith could be picking between CNN and MSNBC for his next job. CNN's Jeff Zucker has been quite open about being interested in Smith, while the anchor has also reportedly met with MSNBC president Phil Griffin. At Fox News, Smith reportedly made an annual salary of around $15 million, a number that would be way be out of line with what MSNBC news anchors make, network insiders told Jeremy Barr. There's "no way" the network would pay him that much, one said, and another questioned how "serious" Smith's talks with MSNBC really are. [The story](. +The CNN Democratic debate: Elizabeth Warren made a vigorous case for a female president and stood behind her accusation suggesting sexism by progressive rival Bernie Sanders Tuesday night in a tense Democratic debate that raised gender as a key issue in the sprint to Iowa’s presidential caucuses. [More](. Also: The [late night reactions](. ►Mobile game spending expected to hit $75 billion in 2020. The mobile gaming industry is expected to continue its growth into 2020, analytics platform App Annie predicts in its annual State of Mobile report, published Wednesday. [More](. The Peabody Award are moving to Los Angeles. For the first time in its 80-year history, the ceremony will take place in L.A. This year's ceremony is set for June 18 at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel. The Peabody Awards have been handed out in New York every year except for the 50th anniversary, when the ceremony was held in Atlanta, near the University of Georgia, which hands out the honors. [The story](. +Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductees: Posthumous inductees Whitney Houston and The Notorious B.I.G. will lead a new class into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, joined by Depeche Mode, the Doobie Brothers, Nine Inch Nails and T-Rex. [More](. +Also: Leonard Maltin, the iconic bearded and bespectacled veteran film critic and historian, [will receive]( the TCM Classic Film Festival's third Robert Osborne Award for his significant contribution to film history and preservation, Turner Classic Movies announced... The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences (AIAS) [has revealed]( its 24th hall of fame honoree: longtime Sony vet Connie Booth... Harvard University's famed Hasty Pudding theater troupe [has named]( actor and director Elizabeth Banks as the group's 2020 Woman of the Year... +The Oscars should expand Its directing category. In a guest column Dr. Martha Lauzen, the founder and executive director of the Center for the Study of Women in Television and Film at San Diego State University, argues that in order to improve diversity in categories like outstanding director, "an immediate remedy for the Academy to consider would be to expand the category for helmers to reflect the number of films nominated for best picture." [The column](. Revolving door: South Korean mobile game company Netmarble, maker of such titles as Marvel: Future Fight and K-Pop crossover BTS World, [has nominated]( Seungwon Lee as the company's new co-CEO... The Sundance Film Festival [has announced]( its 2020 jury members, including Ethan Hawke and Dee Rees... Casting roundup: Actor and rapper Method Man [will star]( in a spinoff of Power at Starz... George Clooney's sci-fi Netflix movie Good Morning, Midnight [has filled out]( its supporting cast with Sophie Rundle, Ethan Peck, Tim Russ and Miriam Shor... Corey Hawkins is the [latest addition]( to a powerhouse cast in HBO Max's limited series Americanah... What else we're reading... --"Star Wars keeps bombing in China" [[NY Times](] --"‘No cameras, no C-Span, no coverage.’ Rules will limit access during Trump’s trial" [[Kansas City Star](] --"Comcast creates accelerator for sports startups" [[WSJ](] --"Trying to cut the cord? Cable companies are wooing people back by offering free streaming" [[NBC News](] Today's birthdays: Regina King, 49, DJ Jazzy Jeff, 54, Grace VanderWaal, 16, Shane McMahon, 50, Skrillex, 32. [Image] [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Instagram]( [LinkedIn]( Is this e-mail not displaying correctly? [View it in your browser.]( ©2020 The Hollywood Reporter. 5700 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90036 All rights reserved. JANUARY 15, 2020 [UNSUBSCRIBE]( [MANAGE PREFERENCES]( [PRIVACY POLICY]( [TERMS OF USE](