AP National Entertainment News

By JAKE COYLE AP Film Writer After more than 13 years at the helm of Lucasfilm, Kathleen Kennedy is stepping down from the “Star Wars” factory founded by George Lucas. The Walt Disney Co. announced Thursday that it will now turn to Dave Filoni to steer “Star Wars,” as president and chief creative officer, into

By DAVID BAUDER AP Media Writer The Pentagon said Thursday that it is changing the independent military newspaper Stars and Stripes so it concentrates on “reporting for our warfighters” and no longer includes “woke distractions.” That message, in a social media post from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s spokesman, is short on specifics and does not

By LINDSEY BAHR AP Film Writer David Linde, the former chairman of Universal Pictures and CEO of Participant Media, has been named CEO of the Sundance Institute. The nonprofit organization said Thursday that Linde will assume the role on Feb. 17, after this year’s festival concludes. “I am honored to join Sundance Institute as CEO

By MARIA SHERMAN AP Music Writer NEW YORK (AP) — In this world, it’s just him: Harry Styles has announced that his long-awaited, fourth studio album will arrive this spring. Titled “Kiss All the Time. Disco, Occasionally” and out March 6, the album is Styles’ first full-length project in four years. It follows the 2022,

By MARIA SHERMAN AP Music Writer NEW YORK (AP) — After a nearly four-year musical hiatus, the K-pop giants BTS are back. Well, almost. On Thursday morning, the entertainment company BigHit Music shared on social media that the septet — RM, Jin, Jimin, V, Suga, Jung Kook and j-hope — will release a new album

By HILLEL ITALIE AP National Writer NEW YORK (AP) — The publishing arm of Mattel Inc. is teaming with million-selling novelist Alex Aster on a Barbie young adult novel in which the iconic doll embarks on a journey across “treacherous, magical lands.” “Barbie: Dreamscape,” scheduled for July 28, is the first novel for young adults

By HILLEL ITALIE AP National Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Rachel Goldberg-Polin, who has become known worldwide for her advocacy on behalf of her son and others abducted by Hamas-led militants on Oct. 7, 2023, has a memoir coming out this spring. Random House, an imprint of Penguin Random House, announced Thursday that “When We

By DAVID BAUDER AP Media Writer If the byproduct of a raid on a Washington Post journalist’s home is to deter probing reporting of government action, the Trump administration could hardly have chosen a more compelling target. Hannah Natanson, nicknamed the “federal government whisperer” at the Post for her reporting on President Donald Trump’s changes

By SUSAN MONTOYA BRYAN and MORGAN LEE Associated Press ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Emmy Award-winning actor Timothy Busfield was ordered held without bond at his first court appearance Wednesday, a day after turning himself in to face charges of child sex abuse stemming from allegations that he inappropriately touched a minor on the set of

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (AP) — Actor Michael Keaton has been named 2026 Man of the Year by Harvard University’s Hasty Pudding Theatricals. The theater group, which dates to 1844 and claims to be the world’s third-oldest still operating, announced Wednesday that Keaton will receive his Pudding Pot award at a celebratory roast Feb. 6. Afterward, Keaton

By JAKE COYLE AP Film Writer An audience of 8.7 million viewers watched the Golden Globes on Sunday, according to Nielsen, a decline of almost 7% from the year prior. Sunday’s telecast on CBS, hosted by Nikki Glaser, didn’t quite reach the viewership levels of the two previous Globes on CBS. In the network’s first

By RONALD BLUM Associated Press LONDON (AP) — There’s a new generation this season at the Royal Opera in London, where Jakub Hrůša took over after Antonio Pappano’s 22-year reign as music director, and Speranza Scappucci became the first principal guest conductor in three decades. Hrůša led the company’s first new staging of Puccini’s “Tosca”

By DAVID BAUDER AP Media Writer Not every musician has the pull to announce a concert tour with a trailer that stars Sean Penn. John Mellencamp does. The 74-year-old rocker revealed Wednesday that he’ll embark on a 19-date run of U.S. amphitheaters this summer. The theme of “Dancing Words Tour — The Greatest Hits” is

By HILLEL ITALIE AP National Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Min Jin Lee’s first novel since her million-selling “Pachinko” is a long book that grew out of a basic question: What do Koreans care most about? “We’re obsessed with education, and it became my obsession over why Koreans care so much,” says Lee, whose “American

By JOSEPH WILSON and DÁNICA COTO Associated Press BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Spanish prosecutors are studying allegations that Grammy-winning singer Julio Iglesias sexually assaulted two former employees at his residences in the Dominican Republic and the Bahamas. The Spanish prosecutors’ office told The Associated Press on Wednesday that the allegations were related to media reports

By MARIA SHERMAN AP Music Writer NEW YORK (AP) — The global music industry hit 5.1 trillion streams in 2025. It’s a new single-year record, up 9.6% from 2024, which held the previous record. That’s according to a 2025 Year-End Report from Luminate, an industry data and analytics company that provides insight into changing behaviors

By MARIA SHERMAN AP Music Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Ten years ago, Kim Gordon — a revolutionary force in the alternative rock band Sonic Youth, the ’80s New York no wave scene and the space between art and noise — debuted solo music. At the time, she was already decades into a celebrated, mixed-medium

By JAIMIE DING and ANDREW DALTON Associated Press LOS ANGELES (AP) — Actor Kiefer Sutherland was arrested on suspicion of criminal threats early Monday morning after Los Angeles police say he assaulted a ride-hail driver. Just after midnight, officers responded to a call reporting an assault at an intersection just south of Hollywood Hills. The

By SUSAN MONTOYA BRYAN AND MORGAN LEE Associated Press ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Emmy Award-winning actor Timothy Busfield turned himself in to authorities Tuesday and vowed to fight charges of child sex abuse stemming from allegations that he inappropriately touched a minor on the set of a TV series he was directing in New Mexico.

By JAKE COYLE AP Film Writer NEW YORK (AP) — An emotional plea by Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi and moving words from Ryan Coogler on the violence in Minneapolis stirred a National Board of Review Awards ceremony Tuesday in which Paul Thomas Anderson’s “One Battle After Another” was again crowned the best film of the

NEW YORK (AP) — John Forté, the Grammy-nominated musician known for his work with the Fugees and the Refugee Camp All-Stars among others, has died at age 50. He was found dead Monday afternoon in his home in Chilmark, Massachusetts, according to police. Chilmark Police Chief Sean Slavin said in a statement that there were

By JONATHAN LANDRUM Jr. AP Entertainment Writer LOS ANGELES (AP) — Snoop Dogg arrived at Intuit Dome hours before tipoff, long before most fans filled the arena and even before some players. Dressed in a gray suit and black turtleneck, a diamond-encrusted Peacock pendant resting on his chest and purple Chuck Taylor sneakers with gold

NEW YORK (AP) — Trevor Noah will be hosting the Grammy Awards for the sixth consecutive year, but this time, it’s being billed as a farewell gig. The Recording Academy announced Tuesday that the South African comedian is returning “one final time” for the Feb. 1 show, for which he will also serve as an

By MARIA SHERMAN AP Music Writer NEW YORK (AP) — The BTS comeback is upon us. The K-pop septet has announced a 2026 – 2027 world tour, kicking off in South Korea in April and running through March 2027 with over 70 dates across Asia, North America, South America, Australia and Europe. They mark the

By MARK KENNEDY AP Entertainment Writer Scott Adams, whose popular comic strip “Dilbert” captured the frustration of beleaguered, white-collar cubicle workers and satirized the ridiculousness of modern office culture until he was abruptly dropped from syndication in 2023 for racist remarks, has died. He was 68. His first ex-wife, Shelly Miles, announced the death Tuesday

STAMFORD, Conn. (AP) — Kaylee Hartung will work her first Super Bowl as a sideline reporter when NBC carries the game on Feb. 8. Hartung will join Melissa Stark as sideline reporters. It is the second time that NBC has had two sideline reporters for its coverage of the Super Bowl. Hartung will also be

By JONATHAN LANDRUM Jr. AP Entertainment Writer INGLEWOOD, Calif. (AP) — Tom Brady stood on the basketball court at Intuit Dome as Aaron Donald, Travis Scott, James Harden and Hailey Bieber mingled nearby Tuesday night, part of a couple-hundred-person crowd brought together for the launch of Fanatics Studios. The sports merchandising giant best known for

By JILL LAWLESS and BRIAN MELLEY Associated Press LONDON (AP) — The BBC plans to ask a court to throw out U.S. President Donald Trump’s $10 billion lawsuit against the British broadcaster, court papers show. Trump filed a lawsuit in December over the way the BBC edited a speech he gave on Jan. 6, 2021.