August 31, 2020
Backstreet Boys' AJ McLean joins 'Dancing with the Stars'
Backstreet Boys singer AJ McLean is joining Dancing with the Stars.
The 42-year-old singer said Thursday on Twitter that he's "so grateful" for the chance to take part in Season 29 of the ABC reality dance competition series.
McLean shared the news alongside a photo of himself in a dance studio.
"We're going for the mirrorball, baby!! I am so grateful to @dancingabc and @abcnetwork for the opportunity to be joining this season's cast of #DWTS. I also want to thank my wife and my two girls for letting Daddy go on this new adventure. I'm doing it ALL for you!" he wrote.
McLean married his wife, Rochelle McLean, in December 2011. The couple have two daughters, Ava Jaymes, 7, and Lyric Dean, 3.
On Good Morning America, McLean said his daughters are "stoked" about him joining DWTS.
"Especially my oldest -- she's been doing competitive dance now for the last two years. My youngest is obviously trying to follow in her big sis' footsteps. They're both just elated," he said. "It's going to be awesome for them to watch daddy cutting a jig on TV."
McLean's Backstreet Boys bandmate Nick Carter, who was the runner-up in DWTS Season 21, shared a message of encouragement for McLean on GMA.
"AJ, I'll never forget when we first started in Backstreet Boys and I auditioned ... You were there and you taught me my first dance moves in the Backstreet Boys. I owe so much to you, bro. I look up to you," Carter said. "If there's anybody who can get the mirrorball, it's definitely you."
GMA will announce the full celebrity cast for DWTS Season 29 on Sept. 2. Season 29 will feature Artem Chigvintsev, Val Chmerkovskiy, Jenna Johnson, Peta Murgatroyd, Gleb Savchenko and other dancers as pros. Tyra Banks will replace Tom Bergeron and Erin Andrews as host.
Mariah Carey announces audiobook version of memoir
Mariah Carey announced on Twitter that she is recording an audiobook version of her upcoming memoir, The Meaning of Mariah Carey.
"Not to add to your to-do list dahhling but I'm also recording an audio book," the singer tweeted on Wednesday in response to a fan thanking her announcing the memoir and a new album titled The Rarities.
Carey also uploaded a photo of herself sitting down and recording lines for the audiobook.
The Meaning of Mariah Carey is set for release on Sept. 29. Carey wrote the memoir with Angela Davis.
Carey has said that the book allows her to tell things from her perspective and is unfiltered.
The Rarities will be released on Oct. 2 to coincide with the memoir. The album will feature tracks that have never been released.
"Basically I found stuff in my vault that I either started to work on, like a long time, and never released," Carey said about the album while recently appearing on Good Morning America where she performed "Close My Eyes" virtually.
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 Which 'This is Us' cast member will star in the Netflix film 'The Noel Diary'?
Netflix orders live-action 'Resident Evil' series with dual timelines
Netflix has given an eight-episode order to a Resident Evil live-action series, based on the popular video game franchise of the same name.
Andrew Dabb (Supernatural) is serving as showrunner, executive producer and writer on the project which comes from Constantin Film, the studio behind the six live-action Resident Evil films from director Paul W.S. Anderson that starred Milla Jovovich.
Bronwen Hughes (The Walking Dead) will direct and executive produce the first two episodes. Each episode of the zombie drama will run for one hour.
Netflix detailed the show's plot which will feature dual timelines and follow sisters Jade and Billie Wesker. The characters share the same last name as Albert Wesker, one of the main villains of Resident Evil.
The first timeline will explore 14-year-old Jade and Billie as they move to New Raccoon City. The sisters will discover that their father may be concealing dark secrets that could destroy the world.
The second timeline will move to the future where less than 15 million people are left on earth after the T-Virus outbreak, creating six billion zombies. Jade, now 30-years-old, struggles to survive while her past continues to haunt her.
"Resident Evil is my favorite game of all time. I'm incredibly excited to tell a new chapter in this amazing story and bring the first ever Resident Evil series to Netflix members around the world. For every type of Resident Evil fan, including those joining us for the first time, the series will be complete with a lot of old friends, and some thing (bloodthirsty, insane things) people have never seen before," Dabb said in a statement.
Resident Evil, from video publisher and developer Capcom, was started in 1996 and has gone on to sell 100 million video games worldwide. The film series grossed $1.2 billion worldwide, making it the most successful film series based on a video game.
Capcom last released a remake of Resident Evil 3 for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC in April. Capcom is also developing the latest entry in the series, Resident Evil 8, for the upcoming PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X and PC.
Sara Gilbert: 'The Conners' Season 3 will 'reflect' COVID-19 pandemic
The Conners star Sara Gilbert says the show's new season will "reflect" the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
The 45-year-old actress discussed Season 3 during Thursday's episode of Good Morning America after resuming production on the Roseanne spinoff.
"We want to reflect what's going on. I think people ... they want to see some version of what's happening in the world or in their lives," Gilbert said. "I think it would be strange to just be sitting at a restaurant with a group of people in a scene when that's not what's happening in the world."
Gilbert, who plays Darlene Conner-Healy on The Conners, said the show said is balancing its portrayal of the pandemic with the "fatigue" many people feel about the health crisis.
"There are storylines that touch on it. It affects each of our lives, in terms of our livelihood, the way it's affecting many people," the star said. "We also have a lot of storylines that aren't related."
"You see masks and you see things like that, but it's not always front and center of every storyline," she added.
The Conners is the first broadcast comedy series to resume production following the shutdown in March. Gilbert said it's been "wild" to reunite with her co-stars.
"I feel grateful that we get to come into work every day. It's definitely different -- there's a lot of masks and a lot space. It's not exactly the same. I do feel very lucky," she said. "Definitely it's been a lot of fun."
Gilbert said the cast and crew wear masks, keep their distance while filming and undergo regular COVID-19 testing.
"It's pretty extensive," the actress said of the safety measures.
"I think no decision is being taken lightly right now," she added. "I think everybody, no matter who we are, are sort of weighing out what we can do and can't do, and what feels safe."
The Conners Season 3 will premiere on ABC in the fall. The series co-stars John Goodman, Laurie Metcalf, Lecy Goranson, Michael Fishman and Emma Kenney.
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Which 'This is Us' cast member will star in the Netflix film 'The Noel Diary'?
Justin Hartley will star in a Netflix adaptation of The Noel Diary.
The streaming service said in a press release Wednesday that it will adapt the Richard Paul Evans novel as a new film starring Hartley, Bonnie Bedelia and Treat Williams.
The Noel Diary is directed by Charles Shyer (Father of the Bride, The Parent Trap), who co-wrote the script with Rebecca Connor and David Colden. Hartley and Norman Stephens executive produce.
The Noel Diary follows Jacob Turner, a best-selling author who returns home at Christmas to settle his estranged mother's estate. Jacob discovers a diary that may hold secrets to his own past and that of Rachel, a beautiful young woman.
"Together, they embark on an adventure to confront their pasts and discover a future that's totally unexpected," an official synopsis reads.
Hartley plays Kevin Pearson on the NBC series This is Us, which completed a fourth season on NBC in March. The series will address the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic in Season 5.
Bedelia portrayed Camille Braverman on the NBC series Parenthood, while Williams played Andy Brown on the WB series Everwood.
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