Here's the Scoop...
Prepare for a nostalgia overload! The 'Muppet Babies' are back!
The new incarnation of the animated series Muppet Babies is scheduled to premiere March 23.
Two back-to-back episodes will debut that day on Disney Channel and via the DisneyNOW app.
Featuring a theme song performed by Tony Award-winning, Hamilton star Renée Elise Goldsberry, the series follows the pre-school adventures of beloved Muppet characters Kermit the Frog, Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Gonzo and Animal, as well as the new addition Summer Penguin.
Statler and Waldorf, Bunsen and Beaker, Rowlf the Dog, Rizzo and Dr. Teeth are expected to make guest appearances throughout the first season.
Leading the voice cast is Jenny Slate as Miss Nanny; Melanie Harrison as Piggy; Dee Bradley Baker as Animal; Ben Diskin as Gonzo; Eric Bauza as Fozzie and Jessica DiCicco as Summer.
Matt Danner will voice Kermit and serves as supervising director on the series.
Are you cooing for this new version of Muppet Babies?
Be Well,
Steve
Comments? Questions? Nooz? Email Steve
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Mark Hamill to receive star on Hollywood Walk of Fame
Star Wars icon and Joker voice actor Mark Hamill is set to receive the 2,630th star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Hamill will be honored with the star on March 8 during a ceremony at the El Capitan Theatre in Los Angeles. The Hollywood icon will be joined by Star Wars creator George Lucas, series co-star Harrison Ford and CEO of the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce Leron Gubler.
"Star Wars fans will be over the moon that hearing their idol Mark Hamill is going to be honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. We are proud to add this extraordinary actor on our historic Walk of Fame," producer of the Walk of Fame ceremonies Ana Martinez said in a statement.
Hamill, 66, began his career with guest appearances on a variety of television shows and television movies including a nine-month stretch on General Hospital. In 1977, he scored his first feature film role in Lucas' Star Wars as Luke Skywalker, an iconic character Hamill continued to play in multiple films including 2017's The Last Jedi.
Hamill is also known for voicing DC Comics villain The Joker in Batman: The Animated Series, which began in 1992. He voiced the character a number of times across multiple animated movies and video games such as the Batman: Arkham series.
Other film credits include Corvette Summer, The Big Red One, Slipstream, Walking Across Egypt, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, Sushi Girl, Kingsman: The Secret Service and Brisby Bear. Voice acting credits include roles on Avatar: The Last Airbender, Regular Show, multiple Studio Ghibli films and Dragons: Riders of Berk.
Joss Whedon won't write and direct WB's 'Batgirl' as planned
Writer-director Joss Whedon will not be making a Batgirl movie for Warner Bros. after all.
This would have been the DC superheroine's first standalone, live-action adventure.
"Batgirl is such an exciting project, and Warners/DC such collaborative and supportive partners, that it took me months to realize I really didn't have a story," Whedon said in a statement to Variety, thanking DC President Geoff Johns and Warners Picture Group President Toby Emmerich for the opportunity, even though it did not work out.
"I'm grateful to Geoff and Toby and everyone who was so welcoming when I arrived, and so understanding when I... uh, is there a sexier word for 'failed'?"
The Hollywood Reporter said Whedon tried for nearly a year to come up with a plan for Batgirl, but couldn't find an angle. During that time, Patty Jenkins' Wonder Woman became a critically acclaimed blockbuster, raising expectations for future comic-book adaptations.
A female filmmaker will likely take over the Batgirl project, but the studio has not announced Whedon's replacement yet, THR said.
Whedon took over directing duties on WB's Justice League after Zack Snyder stepped away to be with his family, following the suicide of his daughter. Whedon previously wrote and directed 2012's The Avengers and 2015's Avengers: Age of Ultron for Marvel/Disney, and created the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Firefly, Dollhouse and Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
LOOSE LIPS:
"I loved it from the minute I read it."
--Danai Gurira, on her wig-throwing scene in Black Panther, to PEOPLE
??? Guess Who ???
Which actress posed for Playboy at 67 and said she's...'Feeling better-than-ever'?
'Jurassic World 3' in development with June 2021 release date
Universal has announced the creative team that will develop the third entry in their Jurassic World series and the release date of the film -- June 11, 2021.
Jurassic World 3 will be penned by franchise newcomer Emily Carmichael along with Colin Trevorrow who directed the original Jurassic World and who co-wrote this summer's Fallen Kingdom which roars into theaters on June 22, noted The Hollywood Reporter.
Trevorrow is also returning to executive produce with Steven Spielberg who brought audiences Jurassic Park back in 1993.
"It's important to this franchise that we welcome new creative voices to keep our storytelling fresh and alive," Trevorrow said in a statement. "I'm thrilled with the tension and beauty J.A. has brought to Fallen Kingdom, and I know Emily will add another layer of emotion to the concluding chapter of our trilogy," he continued in reference to Fallen Kingdom director J.A. Bayona.
Carmichael's writing credits include co-writing the upcoming Pacific Rim Uprising and The Black Hole for Disney and director Joseph Kosinski.
The first Jurassic World, released in 2015, kicked off a new trilogy of films starring Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard. The first entry was a hit at the box office earning $1.6 billion worldwide.
Norm Lewis, Ben Daniels, Brandon Victor Dixon join NBC's 'Jesus Christ Superstar'
Norm Lewis, Ben Daniels and Brandon Victor Dixon are to co-star in NBC's upcoming Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert.
Scandal alum Lewis will play Caiaphas, The Exorcist actor Daniels will play Pontius Pilate and Hamilton veteran Dixon will play Judas in the musical event, which is air Easter Sunday, April 1 from the Marcy Armory in Brooklyn, N.Y.
John Legend was previously announced as Jesus Christ, Sara Bareilles as Mary Magdalene and Alice Cooper as King Herod.
The staged version of the Bible-inspired, rock musical is being executive produced by Legend, Andrew Lloyd Webber, Tim Rice, Marc Platt, Craig Zadan, Neil Meron, Mike Jackson, Ty Stiklorius and Alex Rudzinski.
David Leveaux is directing the production.
??? Guess Who ???
Which actress posed for Playboy at 67 and said she's...'Feeling better-than-ever'?
Jane Seymour was feeling "better-than-ever" while posing for a new Playboy pictorial.
The 67-year-old actress posted a photo Wednesday on Instagram from her third feature for the magazine, having previously posed in 1973 and 1987.
"I'm THRILLED to finally share this with you!" Seymour captioned the image, which shows her smiling in a pink coat and slip in bed.
"I was recently photographed and interviewed in my home by Playboy. I open up about my career, my family, feeling better-than-ever at 67 and so much more!" she said. "[Photo by] @feaverish."
Seymour spoke to Playboy at her home in Malibu, Calif. She discussed growing older in the interview, saying her looks are all-natural and that she feels "much sexier" at 67 than when she was younger.
"I haven't done any surgeries or injections or anything. I haven't done any of it. So I still look like 'me,'" the star said. "Everyday I'm kind of tempted, but then I look at people I know and I don't [recognize] them. I'm authentically being me. That's important to me."
"I feel much sexier now than I ever did when I was younger. Then, I was like, 'Oh gosh, I'm supposed to be sexy. What is that?!'" she added. "There's an enormous freedom in having lived as long as I have. Like my father used to say, I'm comfortable in my own skin."
Seymour is known for the James Bond film Live and Let Die, and for playing Dr. Michaela "Mike" Quinn on Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman. She most recently appeared in the movie The Female Brain starring Whitney Cummings.