News News Briefs

Venice Golden Lion Winner Milcho Manchevski’s ‘Sister Brother Manhole Cover’ Heads to Tokyo for World Premiere, Trailer Unveiled (EXCLUSIVE). “Sister Brother Manhole Cover,” the new feature from Venice Golden Lion winner Milcho Manchevski, will world premiere in the Tokyo International Film Festival’s main competition. Variety is debuting the trailer. Francesca Breccia’s Coccinelle Film Sales is handling the film and will start selling it to international buyers during Busan’s Asian Contents & Film Market. Manchevski […].

Indonesian Director Ariani Darmawan Ends 15-Year Hiatus With ‘Jani Be Good,’ Debuts Trailer Ahead of Tokyo World Premiere (EXCLUSIVE). Indonesian director Ariani Darmawan is ending a 15-year absence from filmmaking with her debut feature, “Jani Be Good,” which will world premiere in the Asian Future competition at the 39th Tokyo International Film Festival. Variety is debuting the film’s first trailer. The drama is titled “Desember Jani” in Indonesian and produced by Jakarta outfit Palari […].

Garin Nugroho, Mishima Yukiko, Qiu Jiongjiong Titles Among 15 in Tokyo Film Festival Competition. The 39th Tokyo International Film Festival has unveiled its complete program, led by a 15-film main competition featuring work by Indonesian director Garin Nugroho, Japanese filmmaker Mishima Yukiko and Hong Kong-based Qiu Jiongjiong. The competition spans world and Asian premieres. Seven titles receive world premieres: “The Canary’s Lullaby,” a Taiwan-Japan co-production directed by Ikeda Akira; […].

Tokyo Film Festival Unveils Competition Line-up With World Premieres From Garin Nugroho, Milcho Manchevski & Qiu Jiongjiong. Tokyo International Film Festival has announced its full line-up including the 15 features selected for its Competition section, seven of which are world premieres. Indonesian filmmaker Garin Nugroho’s historical drama Red Before Dawn will be receiving its world premiere at the festival, along with Macedonian filmmaker Milcho Manchevski’s Sister Brother Manhole Cover, and two Chinese […].

Ted Sarandos Has No Regrets Over WB Pursuit, Talks Netflix’s Engagement Growth Challenges, Overall Deals & Casey Bloys. Appearing at Bloomberg’s Screentime hours after Paramount’s acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery overcame the last hurdle when a federal judge approved the settlement with the state attorneys general, Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos was asked whether he regretted going after Warner Bros. given the scrutiny from Wall Street the streamer has been put under since then. […].

Starz Goes Dark On Verizon FiOS Amid Carriage Dispute. UPDATED: Earlier this evening, Starz warned of the potential loss of all of its channels, Starz on Demand and the Starz app through Verizon FiOs amid negotiations with Verizon on a distribution agreement. Now, the company says those channels have gone dark. “Since an agreement was not reached, customers have lost access to Starz ’s […].

Modi’s India takes on Trump more openly, from ‘terrorism’ to tariffs. After months of wait-and-watch, India is calling out differences with Trump head on as domestic pressure mounts.

Mourners bury DR Congo official killed after defending Ebola response. Marie-Celestin Karondwa died of his injuries after being beaten at his home in Butembo, an Ebola hotspot, on Sunday.

Anne Hathaway Would Rather Have Another Knicks Championship Over a Second Oscar. When it comes to the New York Knicks, Anne Hathaway is their good luck charm. Let’s revisit: On April 20, the Knicks lost Game 2 of their NBA Playoffs series to the Atlanta Hawks. On May 1, Hathaway’s “The Devil Wears Prada 2” premiered and featured a scene where Hathaway’s character chats up Knicks star […].

Disney+ and Vidio Launch Indonesian Bundle Pairing Global Franchises With Local Originals, Live Sports. Disney+ has struck its first partnership with Indonesian streamer Vidio. The two are launching a joint subscription that packages Disney+ Standard with Vidio Ultimate All Screen and puts Marvel, “Star Wars” and Korean series in the same plan as Premier League and UEFA Champions League soccer. The offering is called the “Vidio Ultimate Disney+ All […].

Palme d’Or Winner ‘Fjord’ to Open Jakarta World Cinema as Festival Spreads Across Indonesia (EXCLUSIVE). Cristian Mungiu’s “Fjord,” which won the Palme d’Or at Cannes this year, will open Jakarta World Cinema, the Indonesian festival said Thursday as it revealed a 2026 program that also includes the top prize winners from Venice and Berlin. The Indonesian premiere of Thai filmmaker Banjong Pisanthanakun’s “Inherit” will close the event. The lineup draws […].

Quavo Says Death of Migos Groupmate Takeoff ‘Eased’ His ‘Friction’ With Offset: ‘It Can’t Get No Tougher Than That’. Quavo recently opened up about how the death of his nephew and Migos groupmate Takeoff impacted his then-fractured relationship with fellow group member Offset. “I feel like it eased it a little bit,” said the singer during a video interview with Complex. “It threw out all the things that I was upset about or that […].

Ben Affleck Doesn’t “Worry About SkyNet” When It Comes To AI; “It’s Another Form Of Computing”. Donald Trump could have done a lot worse than inviting Ben Affleck to his AI lunch with tech CEOs this week at the White House. Unlike the heads of OpenAI, Anthropic, Meta and more, the Oscar winner and InterPositive founder isn’t playing defense or doom and gloom when it comes to the quickly evolving technology […].

Universal Studios Execs Promise New Sound Barrier To Reduce Rollercoaster Noise; Angry Residents At Community Meeting Demand Fast Fix. At least 350 people on Wednesday attended a meeting to address the screams coming from Universal Studio’s new Fast & Furious rollercoaster that opened Sept. 16. Neighbors of the amusement park — who were required to RSVP for the meeting that was closed to the press — were greeted at Universal’s stage 7 with slides […].

Pakistan says 22 fighters killed in air attacks on Afghanistan. Kabul says the strikes on Kunar and Helmand provinces killed nine women and children.

‘Doraemon the Movie’ Guardians on Taking Nobita’s Undersea Adventure to Indian Cinemas: ‘It Transcends Generations’ (EXCLUSIVE). “Doraemon” has been on Indian television for 21 years, long enough, by TV Asahi’s reckoning, for the franchise to start passing from one generation of viewers to the next. Now the Japanese broadcaster is taking the franchise into cinemas. “Doraemon the Movie: New Nobita and the Castle of the Undersea Devil” opens across India on […].

South Korea’s exports hit record high on AI boom. Exports jump 83.5 percent to top $120bn for the first time amid ferocious semiconductor demand.

‘KPop Demon Hunters 2’ Targeting “A Very Broad Theatrical Release,” Netflix Co-CEO Ted Sarandos Says, Addressing Streamer’s Distribution Strategy. KPop Demon Hunters has broken streaming records for Netflix, amassing 325.1M views in its first 90 days on the platform and spending 63 consecutive weeks in the Global Top 10. The direct-to-streaming animated Sony title showed a massive box-office potential too — two months after KPop Demon Hunters‘ debut on Netflix, its singalong version grossed […].

Lobster’s Off The Menu: Conan O’Brien Laments The Decline Of Writers’ Rooms. Conan O’Brien remembers the good ol’ days but warns things are changing. Asked whether he believed comedians were losing something by having fewer opportunities to be in a writers’ room, the former Tonight Show host said it was a “real problem”. “When I first was put into a writer’s room when I was 22. I […].

Starz Blacked Out on Verizon Fios as Carriage Negotiations Stall and Both Sides Blame Each Other. UPDATED: Starz did indeed go dark for Verizon Fios subscribers on Wednesday night, as both sides failed to come to a carriage agreement. “Despite extensive efforts by Starz to reach a renewal agreement and preserve uninterrupted access for Verizon Fios customers, Verizon has chosen to remove Starz. Verizon has mischaracterized our position, shown an unwillingness […].

Xavier Becerra and Steve Hilton Talk Of Bringing Jobs Back To Hollywood, But Tussle Over Who Is Responsible For Losing Them. California gubernatorial candidates Xavier Becerra and Steve Hilton agreed on the need for tax incentives to keep or lure production back to Hollywood, but they still sparred over who bears responsibility for the flight of tens of thousands of jobs from the state. Meeting in Burbank for a CNN debate, Becerra, a Democrat, and Hilton, […].

AFCON 2027: East Africa races to get tournament-ready. Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania have less than nine months to prepare for AFCON 2027.

‘South Park’: Trump’s Animated Penis Flies Away In Deepfake Clip Roasting “Billionaire Of Weenietown” Amid Data Center Infestation. As the human race braces for possible extinction amid the AI age, South Park resurrected its deepfake Trump to roast the “billionaire of Weenietown.” On Wednesday’s episode, Butters discovers Billionaire Weenietown in his literal backyard, a tiny kingdom of anthropomorphic disembodied penises who are destroying South Park—still renamed South America this season—with their invasive data […].

Tennessee inmate Christa Pike survives lethal injection execution attempt. Officials were unable to execute Christa Pike after two lethal injection attempts, with her remaining execution halted.

UK says Iran may be linked to alleged airbase plot, drawing angry denial. Andy Burnham says UK has 'strong indications' Iran involved in alleged security incident at RAF base used by US.

‘Heated Rivalry’ Producers Launch Book’s Irina Foundation In Real Life. As Heated Rivalry fans await the Crave series adaptation’s sophomore season, a page from the Rachel Reid books is coming to life. On Tuesday, the show’s production banner Accent Aigu Entertainment (AAE) launched a real version of the Irina Foundation, which is the nonprofit started by Shane Hollander and Ilya Rozanov in the books, named […].

‘Scrubs’ EP Aseem Batra On Dr. Cox And Carla’s Season 2 Presence, Casting Changes, Featuring Fewer Interns In Each Episode & More. SPOILER ALERT: The story includes details about the two-episode Season 2 premiere of ABC’s Scrubs revival. Scrubs returned Wednesday night with a two-episode Season 2 premiere that gave us a lot of Dr. Cox (John McGinley), established Tosh (Ava Bunn) as the lead intern following Bunn’s promotion to a series regular alongside OG stars Zach […].

Mark Ruffalo Slams Approved ParaBros Merger: “Bad Deal For This Country”. Mark Ruffalo has been one of the fiercest critics of the $111 billion Paramount-Warner Bros Discovery merger, and after the deal became a reality Wednesday, the man who plays the Incredible Hulk in the MCU came out swinging. “This merger will stifle creativity, weaken free speech and cost people their jobs — it is a […].

Eric Schmitt doesn’t seem to think he’s done anything wrong. Most people try to get their facts straight when accusing someone of perjury—especially if the accuser is a sitting U.S. senator. But that doesn’t seem to be the case for Missouri Republican Sen. Eric Schmitt, who has been ubiquitous on social media after a failed “gotcha” moment involving former special counsel Jack Smith, who led the federal criminal investigation against President Donald Trump. The viral clip features a line of questioning between Schmitt and Smith, in which Schmitt attempts to prove that Smith lied about his whereabouts in 2024, claiming.

America.gov fails MAGA: Trump’s beloved AI chatbot is giving very anti-Trump answers. When President Donald Trump unveiled the government’s new AI chatbot on Tuesday, he couldn’t stop singing its praises. In his speech, Trump said that America.gov is “one of the most revolutionary product launches of all time.” “It’s not just simply a website, it’s a restoration of America’s founding promise, and it’s a reinvention of your government for the 21st century and beyond,” he continued. In fewer words, Trump thinks his administration’s new invention is “damn good.” The new search engine , powered by artificial intelligence (or “superintelligence,” as.

This tool tells you how fossil fuel emissions actually translate into heat deaths, coral reef damage, and more. Every new fossil fuel project that comes online will add more climate-warming carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions into our atmosphere. But just reporting how many tonnes (metric tons) of CO2 a new coal or gas facility will produce can still be abstract. What does it really mean, for example, that a single coal mine in Australia will generate an estimated 4.7 billion tonnes of emissions over its lifetime? How will those emissions actually, tangibly impact the world and its inhabitants? A new open-source.