Entertainment Daypop Archives

The stars of the Guardians of the Galaxy franchise released an open letter Monday in support of ousted writer-director James Gunn. The letter, signed by Chris Pratt, Bradley Cooper, Zoe Saldana, Vin Diesel, Dave Bautista, Karen Gillan, Michael Rooker, Sean Gunn and Pom Klementieff, was posted on social media. Walt Disney Studios fired Gunn on July 20 for offensive tweets he posted about pedophilia and rape between 2008 and 2012.  The Guardians of the Galaxy cast members did not defend Gunn’s offensive tweets, but noted the political climate in the country. In the open letter, the cast referenced a Change.org petition asking for Gunn to be reinstated. So far, that petition has attracted more than 342,000 signatures.  

In a surprising move, CBS’ board of directors is keeping Leslie Moonves in place as chairman-CEO; this even after they said they will launch a probe of sexual assault allegations leveled against him by six women in a New Yorker expose. A board meeting that ran about three hours was held by teleconference Monday, three days after the report by journalist Ronan Farrow detailing accusations of sexual misconduct by six women, some stretching back to the 1980s. A statement from CBS on the meeting said the board was “in the process of selecting outside counsel to conduct an independent investigation. No other action was taken on this matter at today’s board meeting.” The board considered a range of topics during the meeting, according to a person familiar with the matter, but Moonves’ status was not put to a vote, and the CEO was said to have participated in various parts of the proceedings.  The board also decided to postpone for the second time CBS’ annual shareholders meeting, which had been set for Aug. 10 in Pasadena.

22 years after “Mission: Impossible” first hit the big screen, the franchise’s sixth installment, “Fallout,” has made $23 million from 4,386 screens, to put the film on course for a $60 million opening weekend. “Fallout” is the highest raw opening in franchise history, passing that of “Mission: Impossible II” back in 2000. The film could set a new opening weekend record for leading man Tom Cruise, topping the $64.8 million launch for the 2005 adaptation of “War of the Worlds.”  “Fallout” is also the most critically successful film in the “M:I” series, becoming the first to earn an A from CinemaScore audience polls and also has the highest Rotten Tomatoes score of the franchise with a “Certified Fresh” 98 percent rating from critics.

Disney has announced the cast for “Star Wars: Episode IX” and it will include the late Carrie Fisher. Fisher will reprise her role as Princess Leia Organa, using “previously unreleased footage shot for ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens,'” director J.J. Abrams announced Friday. Abrams added that with “the support and blessing” from Fisher’s daughter, Billie Lourd, the film found a way “to honor Carrie’s legacy and role as Leia in ‘Episode IX’ by using unseen footage we shot together in Episode VII.” Fisher died in 2016 after suffering a cardiac event on a flight from London to Los Angeles. She was 60. Following her death, Disney said that it had “no plans to digitally recreate Fisher’s performance. “Star Wars: Episode IX” is set to premiere on December 20th, 2019.

Demi Lovato will seek drug abuse treatment following her hospitalization for an overdose, according to a source close to Lovato. The singer and actress has been surrounded by family and friends at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles since she was rushed to the hospital on Tuesday afternoon, and should be released from the hospital “soon.”  This will not be the first time Lovato has sought professional help for substance abuse. She previously entered rehab in 2010. Lovato has been open about her struggles with an addiction to cocaine and alcohol, as well as mental health issues and an eating disorder. In the hours after news of her hospitalization broke, fans of the singer took to social media with the hashtag, #HowDemiHasHelpedMe to talk about how she and her music have helped them with their own struggles. Lovato has been touring and promoting her music in recent months. She last performed July 22 at the California Mid-State Fair in Paso Robles, California.