Month: January 2023

After just 10 days on Netflix, Rian Johnson’s “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery” has become Netflix’s third most-watched movie based on hours viewed in its first 10 days. Between December 26 and January 1, the film accumulated 127 million hours watched.

Following its release on December 23, which raked in 82.1 million hours viewed, Glass Onion has accumulated a total of 209.4 million hours viewed, placing it behind Red Notice (364.02 million hours viewed) and Don’t Look Up (359.79 million hours viewed). The mystery film currently holds the No. 10 slot on the Most Popular Films list.

The movie, starring Daniel Craig as the beloved detective Benoit Blanc, centers on a tech billionaire who invites his friends on his private island for a getaway only for it to turn into a crime scene when someone turns up dead. In addition to Craig, the film features an all-star cast including Kate Hudson, Janelle Monáe, Edward Norton, Kathryn Hahn, Leslie Odom Jr., Dave Bautista, Madelyn Cline, Jessica Henwick. The film also includes the final appearances of Stephen Sondheim and Angela Lansbury, as well as guest appearances from Hugh Grant, Ethan Hawke, Natasha Lyonne, Serena Williams and Yo-Yo Ma.

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NBC has picked up the pilot for the drama The Irrational, starring Jesse L. Martin. The Irrational, written by Arika Lisanne Mittman, is based on Dan Ariely’s bestselling novel Predictably Irrational.

The show follows Alec Baker (Martin), with according to a synopsis is ‘a world-renowned professor of behavioral science who lends his expertise to an array of high-stakes cases involving governments, law enforcement and corporations with his unique and unexpected approach to understanding human behavior.‘ Maahra Hill, Travina Springer, Molly Kunz and Arash DeMaxi also star, with Martin also producing the pilot.

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Music icon Dionne Warwick revealed on The Tamron Hall Show, that she and country music legend Dolly Parton are coming together for a gospel duet. Said Warwick:“She sent me a song that she wanted me to record. And I said, ‘OK, that sounds like a deal.’ And she’s such a sweetheart, I know her. And then she sent me another song, the one that we’re going to be doing as a duet. A gospel song called ‘Peace Like a River.’ She wrote it … I am very excited about this, I really am. I’ve done so many duets over the years, but this one’s gonna be very special.”

Hall then pointed out how Parton originally wrote and recorded the song “I Will Always Love You,” which was later popularized by Warwick’s late niece, Whitney Houston. Houston covered the song for the soundtrack of the 1992 film The Bodyguard and Parton has repeatedly said that the track has become “Whitney’s song.”  Warwick observed of her upcoming collaboration with Parton: “It’s preordained. God’s got a purpose.”

Warwick’s award-winning documentary Dionne Warwick: Don’t Make Me Over, premiered on Jan. 1. The film is narrated by Warwick and blends archival footage with personal photographs and newsreels of her career, following the singer’s career from her start singing in gospel groups with family members in New Jersey, to her becoming a pop music sensation after she teamed with the songwriting duo of Burt Bacharach and Hal David.  Dionne Warwick: Don’t Make Me Over is streaming on HBO Max.

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Al Roker is returning to the Today Show following several hospitalizations for blood clot complications at the end of 2022. Today show co-anchors Savannah Guthrie, Hoda Kotb, and Craig Melvin announced Tuesday that the 68-year-old weather personality will appear on Friday’s episode of the long-running program, marking his first time on the how since late last year. Kotb said, “Well, we have our day. He’ll be here Friday. He’ll be right here in Studio 1A. This is his place. He’ll be in his seat right where he belongs. We cannot wait for that,” while Guthrie added: “Not the same without Al. Our sunshine is coming back Friday morning.”

Roker revealed on Nov. 18 that he was hospitalized for blood clots in his leg and lungs, which led to his absence from NBC’s broadcast of the annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. He appeared virtually on the Today show in mid-December,  updating viewers on his condition:“This has been the hardest one yet, and you know, I’ve had my fair share of surgeries. But it gives you a profound sense of gratitude for this outpouring of prayers and thanks. I’m a very fortunate person.” Still, he said, “I feel good, I feel strong. And every day, I feel a little bit better … You lose a certain amount of muscle mass for every week you’re in the hospital, and I was in the hospital for four weeks. So it’s just a certain amount of weakness… I’ve got to just get my strength back.”

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