‘Mission: Impossible’ debuts with $80M over five days, igniting box office but missing expectations
After a globe-trotting publicity blitz by star Tom Cruise, “Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One” launched with a franchise-best $80 million over five days, though it came in shy of industry expectations with a $56.2 million haul over the three-day weekend.
Rihanna, Martin Scorsese hype Paramount movies at CinemaCon
Paramount Pictures, still riding high on the success of “Top Gun: Maverick’s” nearly $1.5 billion in worldwide ticket sales, brought a slew of stars from Rihanna to Martin Scorsese to CinemaCon for its presentation to theater owners Thursday.
New this week: Brooke Shields, 'Grease' prequel and NF album
This week’s new entertainment releases include an album from Michigan rapper NF, a two-part documentary about Brooke Shields on Hulu, and Kathryn Hahn portraying a character inspired by writer Cheryl Strayed in the series “Tiny Beautiful Things.”.
New this week: Mariah Carey special, 'Maverick,' 'Best Man'
This week’s new entertainment releases include Mariah Carey in concert on CBS singing Christmas songs, a free stream of the beloved 1965 animated special “A Charlie Brown Christmas” and megahit "Top Gun: Maverick” lands on Paramount+ on Thursday.
'Elvis,' 'Top Gun' tie for box-office crown with $30.5M each
Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis Presley biopic “Elvis” shook up theaters with an estimated $30.5 million in weekend ticket sales, but — in a box-office rarity — “Elvis” tied “Top Gun: Maverick,” which also reported $30.5 million, for No. 1 in theaters.
Back to normal? Cannes Film Festival prepares to party
After the 2020 Cannes Film Festival was canceled by the pandemic and the 2021 edition was scaled back — even kisses were forbade on the red carpet — the lavish French Riviera cinema soiree is set to return with a festival that promises to be something like normal.
Movies love a comeback story. This summer, it's their turn.
Hollywood is bringing out some of its biggest and most reliable players for the 2022 summer movie season, which unofficially kicks off this weekend with the help of Marvel and Disney’s “Doctor Strange and the Multitverse of Madness” and runs through the end of August.
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John Travolta selling $5M oceanic mansion with 20 bedrooms
FILE - In this Aug. 22, 2019 file photo, actor John Travolta attends the LA premiere of "The Fanatic" at the Egyptian Theatre in Los Angeles. The Maine mansion that Travolta shared with his late wife, actor Kelly Preston, has been put up for sale. (Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP, File)ISLESBORO, Maine – The Maine mansion that actor John Travolta shared with his late wife, actor Kelly Preston, has been put up for sale. Built in 1903, the 10,830-square-foot home has 20 bedrooms and sits on a 48-acre estate along the ocean. Travolta became a Hollywood star in the 1970s and was nominated for an acting Oscar for his 1977 performance in “Saturday Night Fever.” He was nominated again for his role in 1994's “Pulp Fiction.”
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1st private space crew paying $55M each to fly to station
On Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2021, Axiom announced they will be the first private space station crew, a year ahead of the planned launch. (Courtesy Axiom Space via AP)CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – The first private space station crew was introduced Tuesday: Three men who are each paying $55 million to fly on a SpaceX rocket. “This is the first private flight to the International Space Station. It’s never been done before," said Axiom's chief executive and president Mike Suffredini, a former space station program manager for NASA. Russia has been in the off-the-planet tourism business for years, selling rides to the International Space Station since 2001.
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Q&A: Clooney on 'Midnight Sky' and his twilight as an actor
“The Midnight Sky,” which Clooney directed and stars in, is an apocalyptic sci-fi drama with some striking solitude. Debuting Wednesday on Netflix, “The Midnight Sky,” based on Lily Brooks-Dalton's novel “Good Morning, Midnight," is Clooney's seventh film as director and his biggest scaled production yet. ___AP: You finished shooting “The Midnight Sky” in February, right before the pandemic began. AP: What drew you to “The Midnight Sky”? I know people who are older -- older than me, even -- who live with real regret.
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On a mission: Tom Cruise insists on social distancing on set
FILE - In this Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2020 file photo, actor Tom Cruise wears a face mask to prevent the spread of COVID-19 as he greets fans during a break from shooting Mission Impossible 7, along Rome's Fori Imperiali avenue. Tom Cruise has launched an expletive-laden rant at colleagues on the set of his latest Mission: Impossible movie after he reportedly spotted two workers failing to abide by social distancing rules. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini, file)LONDON – Tom Cruise has launched an expletive-laden rant at colleagues on the set of his latest "Mission: Impossible" movie, after he reportedly spotted two workers failing to respect social distancing rules. Many movies have either been delayed until after the pandemic is over or because of COVID-related delays on set, including the seventh instalment of the “Mission: Impossible” franchise. During his outburst, Cruise notes the higher costs for insuring a movie in these times.
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World's space achievements a bright spot in stressful 2020
The European and Russian space agencies skipped the 2020 Mars launch window, their life-sniffing Mars rover grounded until 2022 because of technical issues and COVID-19 restrictions. Three weeks later, SpaceX launched its biggest cargo shipment yet to the space station for NASA. If the repairs work and the capsule finally reaches the space station, the first Starliner astronauts could be flying by summer. The actor was in talks with NASA this year about filming a movie at the space station. “Whatever else can be said about the four years of the Trump administration, they have been positive for the U.S. civilian space program,” noted John Logsdon, professor emeritus at George Washington University’s Space Policy Institute.
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Final goodbye: Recalling influential people who died in 2020
The world also said goodbye to U.S. Rep. John Lewis, a lion of the civil rights movement who died in July. Other former political figures who died this year include Egyptian leader Hosni Mubarak, New York Mayor David Dinkins, Arizona Gov. Here is a roll call of some influential figures who died in 2020 (cause of death cited for younger people, if available):___JANUARY___David Stern, 77. The guitarist who supplied the scratching, seething sound that fueled the highly influential British punk band Gang of Four. He fused African rhythms with funk to become one of the most influential musicians in world dance music.
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Venice reclaims spotlight as 1st COVID-era film fest opens
Festival attendees cycle in front of the main cinema ahead of the start of the 77th edition of the Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy, Tuesday, Sept. 1, 2020. The 77th edition of the worlds oldest film festival opening Wednesday looks nothing like its predecessors. Italys strict 10-week lockdown largely tamed the virus, but infections are now rebounding after summer vacations. Guests to the glamorous film festival are not exempt. Italian films are well represented, including the first Italian opening-night film in years, the out-of-competition family drama Lacci by Daniele Luchetti.

Ukraine's Zelensky talks movies with Tom Cruise amid political storm
Volodymyr Zelensky may have been swept into the center of a major political storm in Washington, but the Ukrainian President still made some time to meet Hollywood A-lister Tom Cruise this week. (CNN) - Volodymyr Zelensky may have been swept into the center of a major political storm in Washington, but the Ukrainian President still made some time to meet Hollywood A-lister Tom Cruise this week. Zelensky hosted Cruise in his office in Kiev on Monday evening, his administration said in a statement. "At the invitation of President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky, the world-famous American actor, film director and producer Tom Cruise arrived in Kiev," the administration said Tuesday. In the video, Cruise mentions seeing cobbled streets.

Virginia's basketball coach turns down big raise after championship title
You have to wonder if the Virginia head basketball coach has ever viewed the 1990s Tom Cruise flick, famous for its "show me the money" catchphrase. Bennett, who led the Virginia men's basketball team to its first national title earlier this year, declined what the university described as a "substantial" raise. Instead the coach asked that financial investments be made to improve the basketball program he's run for a decade, and other sports under the school's athletic program. "This just does not happen in our industry," said Virginia athletic director Carla Williams, who was tasked with making revisions to Bennett's contract. Instead of taking the big raise, Bennett got another year tacked onto his current deal, which now runs for seven years.

Is Val Kilmer's 'Iceman' in the new 'Top Gun: Maverick' movie?
But what about his adversary and fan favorite, Tom "Iceman" Kazansky, played in the 1986 original by Val Kilmer? The trailer for Top Gun: Maverick is out. "Friends said it's official - #TOPGUN2 was announced today," Kilmer wrote with a photo on Instagram showing him in an Iceman T-shirt. Now that the movie is actually done and headed to theaters in 2020, Kilmer is even more excited. He posted the trailer on his official Facebook page with the caption "You up for this one, Maverick?"