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    'Riverdale' Creator Promises Vanessa Morgan 'Change Is Happening' After Her Diversity Criticism

    The CW

    The actress playing Toni Topaz on The CW’s teen drama series has previously voiced her frustration over the portrayal of black people as sidekick to white leads in the media.
    Jun 5, 2020
    AceShowbiz – Vanessa Morgan’s campaign about the lack of diversity in the media has been heard. Days after she voiced her frustration over how “black people are portrayed in media,” the actress known for her portrayal of Toni Topaz on The CW’s “Riverdale” received a public apology and a promise to do better from the show’s creator Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa.
    On Thursday, June 4, Aguirre-Sacasa made use of Instagram to declare, “We hear Vanessa. We love Vanessa. She’s right. We’re sorry and we make the same promise to you that we did to her.” In the statement, he continued, “We will do better to honor her and the character she plays. As well as all of our actors and characters of color.”
    The showrunner went on to note, “CHANGE is happening and will continue to happen. Riverdale will get bigger, not smaller. Riverdale will be part of the movement, not outside it.” He added, “All of the Riverdale writers made a donation to @BLMLA, but we know where the work must happen for us. In the writers’ room.”

    Morgan made a public complaint about the unfair treatment of black people in support of the Black Lives Matter movement. On Sunday, May 31, she tweeted, “Tired of how black people are portrayed in Media, tired of us being portrayed as thugs, dangerous or angry scary people.”
    The “Geek Charming” actress continued expressing her anger in the same post, “Tired of us also being used as side kick non dimensional characters to our white leads. Or only used in the ads for diversity but not actually in the show. It starts with the media. I’m not being [quiet] anymore.”
    On Wednesday, June 3, the 28-year-old actress explained why she got vocal about the unfair treatment. “To my black fans, I have now made it my purpose to fight for us. To the six year old me who had no role model that looked like me on TV. This is for you,” she tweeted. “We aren’t your token black non dimensional characters. This is being black in Hollywood. I will fight for YOU.”

    Vanessa Morgan explained reasons behind her fight for change in the media.
    While she criticized the portrayal of black people in the media, Morgan stressed it has nothing to do with her “Riverdale” co-stars, which include Lili Reinhart, Camila Mendes, Cole Sprouse, KJ Apa, Madelaine Petsch and Charles Melton. “They don’t write the show,” she pointed out. “So no need to attack them, they don’t call the shots & I know they have my back.”

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    Sylvester Stallone Finds It Lucky Original Ice Skating Scene Plan for 'Rocky' Was Scrapped

    Chartoff-Winkler Productions

    ’40 Years of Rocky: The Birth of a Classic’ director Derek Wayne Johnson additionally admits there were several things that surprised him about the making of the iconic 1976 film.
    Jun 5, 2020
    AceShowbiz – Sylvester Stallone is glad his plans for an ice skating scene in his breakthrough movie “Rocky” fell through, because the end result was better than he could have imagined.
    The movie star has narrated new film “40 Years of Rocky: The Birth of a Classic”, which features home videos and behind the scenes footage from the 1976 classic, and in one segment he talks about the iconic skating scene he filmed with co-star Talia Shire, revealing it would have looked a lot different if he’d had his way.
    “I had written this scene for 300 extras,” he explains. “Adrian (Shire’s character) was supposed to be taken out on the ice by this incredible ice-skater and he’s showing off and Rocky is sort of humiliated. Then I get into a sort of a beef with the fella (as Rocky).”
    “I show up on the set and they said, ‘We’ve had to cut the extras back a little bit…’ And it was to none with no heads up. I had to rewrite it with just the two of us on the ice and since I can’t ice-skate Rocky runs alongside of her. She was not exactly Ice Capades either! It reflected that neither one of them was very graceful in life but together they’re a perfect fit. It turned out to be 1,000 times better than if there had been a big crowd, so I got very lucky on that day.”
    Meanwhile, the new documentary’s director, Derek Wayne Johnson, admits there were several things that surprised him about the making of the 1976 film, including the fact filmmaker John Avildsen had to shoot a pivotal boxing match around a beauty pageant.
    “The final fight, you find out in our documentary that a beauty pageant was scheduled in between filming,” Johnson explains. “So they had to film, wrap, set back up for a beauty pageant and then set back up the next day. I just thought that was so funny. It’s just low-budget filmmaking at its best.”

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    Oprah Winfrey to Front TV Special Addressing Racism in America

    WENN

    Titled ‘OWN Spotlight: Where Do We Go From Here?’, the two-night special will see the media mogul talking with civil rights leaders, activists and artists about systematic racism and police brutality.
    Jun 5, 2020
    AceShowbiz – Oprah Winfrey is tackling America’s race issues with a two-night TV special.
    As activists continue to take to the streets to protest the death of George Floyd, Oprah will front “OWN Spotlight: Where Do We Go From Here?” on her cable network next week (June 09-10).
    The special, which will also air across Discovery’s 18 other U.S. networks, will feature Oprah talking with civil rights leaders, activists and artists about systematic racism and police brutality.
    Featured guests include Winfrey’s “A Wrinkle in Time” and “Selma” director Ava DuVernay, her “Selma” co-star David Oyelowo, and professor and author Jennifer Eberhardt.

    “I’ve been having private conversations with friends and thought leaders about what’s next and where we go from here,” Winfrey says. “I thought it would be both of interest and service to bring their ideas, concerns and comments into a national spotlight.”

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    Gabrielle Union Accuses NBC Boss of Trying to 'Silence and Intimidate' Her Amid 'AGT' Row

    Instagram

    The former judge of ‘America’s Got Talent’ has hired a top lawyer as she’s preparing to launch a lawsuit against ‘AGT’ producers following ‘toxic’ workplace allegations.
    Jun 5, 2020
    AceShowbiz – Gabrielle Union has filed a complaint against Simon Cowell and his Syco Entertainment partners over her dismissal from “America’s Got Talent”.
    The actress exited the show after just one season at the end of 2019 and maintains her departure came as a result of complaints she made about the “toxic” working environment behind the scenes, referencing harassment, inappropriate behaviour and misogynistic conduct.
    Union sat down with the TV show’s bosses at the end of last year 2019 to outline her issues and the producers carried out an independent investigation into her claims. Last week, as the 2020 season of “AGT” began, they pledged to improve reporting processes behind the scenes thanks to Union’s complaints about diversity off-camera.
    NBC, Fremantle and Syco officials issued a joint statement about the results from the investigation into the circumstances surrounding the firing of the former judge and concluded that “no one associated with the show made any insensitive or derogatory remarks about Ms. Union’s appearance, and that neither race nor gender was a contributing factor in the advancement or elimination of contestants at any time.”
    “While the investigation has demonstrated an overall culture of diversity, it has also highlighted some areas in which reporting processes could be improved,” the statement continued. “NBC, Fremantle and Syco share Ms. Union’s dedication to diversity and inclusion in the industry. We continue to remain committed to having an inclusive environment for everyone associated with the show, and to upholding AGT as one of the most diverse programs on television.”
    Now Union has responded with her intent to sue Cowell, Syco, Freemantle Productions North America, and Universal TV by filing a harassment, discrimination and retaliation complaint with California’s Department of Fair Employment and Housing.
    As part of the document, obtained by Deadline, she claims NBC Entertainment Chairman Paul Telegdy directly intervened in the investigation, sparked by her complaints, to “silence and intimidate” her.
    Tough Hollywood lawyer Bryan Freedman, who previously helped Megyn Kelly win a multi-million dollar payout from NBC following her 2018 exit from the network, has signed on to represent the actress.
    He writes, “On or about February 4, 2020, Telegdy threatened Union through her agent and warned Union’s agent that Union had better cease from pursuing her claims of racism while filming AGT. Union’s agent was shocked that the Chairman of NBC Entertainment was attempting to threaten and intimidate Union. Union’s agent could not recall another instance in his career when a senior executive at a network had threatened and intimidated an employee during an ongoing workplace investigation…”
    “It thus became clear to Union that Telegdy was not merely attempting to silence Union in the media, but attempting to silence Union from making any further comments to the investigator.”
    Speaking to Deadline on Thursday, June 4, 2020, Freeman said, “There is no place for this type of racial bullying in the workplace, and it is going to take more than a Tweet from NBC to demonstrate that NBC intends to create an environment free from racism.”

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    Lin-Manuel Miranda Pushes Back Movie Release in Solidarity With Black Lives Matter Activists

    WENN

    The ‘Hamilton’ creator has decided to postpone the release of his new documentary ‘We Are Freestyle Love Supreme’ amid the nationwide protests against racial injustice.
    Jun 5, 2020
    AceShowbiz – Broadway star Lin-Manuel Miranda has put the release of his new documentary on hold in light of the Black Lives Matter protests taking place across the U.S.
    The “Hamilton” creator and actor had been due to share “We Are Freestyle Love Supreme”, a film about his improv hip-hop group Freestyle Love Supreme, on Hulu this week, but he has since delayed the launch to show solidarity with social and racial justice advocates.
    “We will be postponing the release of the We Are Freestyle Love Supreme documentary and look forward to sharing it with you in the future,” reads a group statement posted on Twitter.
    The announcement also included ways for followers to help and support the Black Lives Matter movement.
    The message continued, “We are for the freedom of expression, creativity, inclusion, equality, and most of all, love,” the group said. “Our work has always centered around creating a safe space for those ideals to flourish. Our show does not exist without the operations of brilliant black artists that created two of our most beloved American art forms, jazz and hip-hop.”
    “Today our country, our world struggles to reach an end to this systemic racial injustice, intolerance, police brutality and hate. We add our voices to that fight.”
    “We Are Freestyle Love Supreme”, which premiered at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival in Utah, chronicles Miranda’s reunion with a number of his Hamilton collaborators, with whom he had performed improv shows before and after the show became a Broadway smash.
    A new launch date has yet to be revealed.
    It is thought to be the first film to have its release postponed in the wake of George Floyd’s murder at the hands of a white police officer in Minnesota last week.
    The news comes days after Miranda personally expressed his deep regret for not taking an official stand on police brutality, racism, and white supremacy issues sooner, branding his previous silence “a moral failure.”

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    Jordan Peele Assures John Boyega Won't Be Blacklisted After Actor Joins Black Lives Matter Protest

    WENN

    Boyega’s ‘Star Wars’ co-star Mark Hamill and Lin Manuel Miranda also show their support for the Finn depicter after the British actor said, ‘I don’t know if I’m going to have a career after this,’ during a protest in London.
    Jun 5, 2020
    AceShowbiz – Jordan Peele has got John Boyega’s back. The comedian/filmmaker has assured that the actor won’t be blacklisted in Hollywood after he joined a Black Lives Matter protest at London’s Hyde Park on Wednesday, June 3,
    During the protest, the 28-year-old delivered a powerful speech, while also revealing his fear about the future of his career. “I don’t know if I’m going to have a career after this [speaking out], but f**k that,” he said to the cheering crowd.
    Seeing news about Boyega’s participation in the protest, Peele later let him know that he won’t be out of work after this. “We got you, John,” he simply wrote in response to the actor’s concern, while sharing photos of the British star holding his bullhorn.
    Many fellow actors have also shown their support for Boyega, with his “Star Wars” co-star Mark Hamill tweeting, “Never been more proud of you, John.” He affectionately signed off the message by referring to himself as Boyega’s “dad.”
    The official “Star Wars” Twitter account praised him, writing, “Lucasfilm stands with John Boyega and his message that now is the time. Black lives have always mattered.” It added, ” ‘Black lives have always been important. Black lives have always meant something’. The evil that is racism must stop. We will commit to being part of the change that is long overdue in the world. John Boyega, you are our hero.”
    Actor/writer Lin-Manuel Miranda tweeted, “Oh god I WISH, Ojala! From Attack The Block to this day!”, referring to Boyega’s 2011’s film “Attack the Block”. Olivia Wilde posted, “I would be honored to work with @JohnBoyega and can only hope to have the chance. We’ve got your back, John. Don’t hold back.”
    Movie producer and writer Seth Grahame-Smith similarly assured the Finn depicter, “Any project. Any role he wants.” Rodney Rothman, the co-writer and co-director of “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse”, said he had immediate offer for the actor, “I have something great I would offer him today. Tell yer agents man.”
    Director Edgar Wright and playwright Jack Thorne said they would love to work with Boyega again, while Paul Feig joined the chorus of support as writing, “My hand is up high. It would be an honor to work with John.”

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    Ice-T Proud of 'Law & Order' Boss for Firing Writer Threatening Looters Amid BLM Protests

    Instagram

    The ‘Law & Order: Special Victims Unit’ actor praises the creator Dick Wolf for ‘cleaning the house’ after the series spin-off writer threatened violence against looters.
    Jun 5, 2020
    AceShowbiz – Rapper/actor Ice-T has applauded “Law & Order” creator Dick Wolf for taking immediate action to fire a series spin-off writer for threatening violence against looters during protests in Los Angeles.
    Craig Gore hit headlines on Monday, June 1, 2020 after he shared a series of controversial posts on Facebook, including a photo of himself carrying a firearm, as a warning to anyone who disobeyed the city’s curfew following violent clashes between demonstrators and police during Black Lives Matter rallies.
    “Sunset (Boulevard) is being looted two blocks from me,” he wrote. “You think I won’t light motherf**krs up who are trying to f**k with my property I worked all my life for? Think again.”
    Gore had been working on the forthcoming Chris Meloni show, “Law & Order: Organized Crime”, but Wolf condemned his actions and cut all ties with the writer on Tuesday. He was also fired by his Hollywood agency, Paradigm, as a result of the posts.
    And Ice-T, who is a series regular on “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit”, is proud to have Wolf as his boss.
    “Oh s**t…,” the hip-hop veteran tweeted after learning of Gore’s firing. “The Big Boss is cleaning house… RESPECT.”
    The protests have continued across the U.S., demanding an end to police brutality and justice for George Floyd, an African-American man who was killed at the hands of a white cop on May 25, 2020 in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

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    BAFTA TV Awards 2020 Nominations: Jodie Comer Up Against Glenda Jackson

    WENN

    ‘Chernobyl’ dominates with 14 nominations across the main and craft categories, while ‘The Crown’ will battle it out with ‘Gentleman Jack’ for the title of Best Drama Series.
    Jun 4, 2020
    AceShowbiz – Jodie Comer and Glenda Jackson will compete for the Leading Actress gong at the 2020 BAFTA TV Awards.
    Jodie receives another nomination for her performance as deadly assassin Villanelle in “Killing Eve”, while two-time Oscar winner Glenda is up for her portrayal of a woman battling dementia in “Elizabeth is Missing”
    The other contenders for the prize are Samantha Morton (“I Am Kirsty”) and Suranne Jones (“Gentleman Jack”).
    Battling it out for the Leading Actor in a Drama award are “The Capture”‘s Callum Turner, Stephen Graham (“The Virtues”), Takehiro Hira (“Giri/Haji”) and Jared Harris for “Chernobyl”. “Chernobyl” also has the most nominations across the main and craft categories with 14.
    The show, about the 1986 nuclear disaster at a Soviet power station, is also up for the Mini-Series award alongside “A Confession”, “The Victim”, and “The Virtues”. The nominees for Best Drama Series are “The Crown”, “The End of the F***ing World”, “Gentleman Jack”, and “Giri/Haji”.
    Stellan Skarsgard (“Chernobyl”), and Helena Bonham Carter (“The Crown”), are also among the nominees in the supporting acting categories.
    “Fleabag”‘s Phoebe Waller-Bridge and Sian Clifford both land a nomination for Female Performance in a Comedy Programme, competing with Gbemisola Ikumelo (“Famalam”), and Sarah Kendall (“Frayed”). “Fleabag” also lands a Scripted Comedy nod.
    “Succession”, “When They See Us”, “Unbelievable”, and “Euphoria” are all up for the International award.
    Meanwhile, TV host Graham Norton and “Famalam” actor Ikumelo received two individual nominations each.
    New talent has broken through too, with first-time nominees comprising 57 percent of the performance category nominations, with Ikumelo and Turner, joined by “Sex Education” star Ncuti Gatwa, “Top Boy”‘s Jasmine Jobson, and Naomi Ackie of “The End of the F***ing World”, among the BAFTA first timers.
    In regards to representation across nominations – with which BAFTA has been criticised for in recent years – this year’s awards has seen a 22 percent rise in nominees of colour compared to last year.
    Behind “Chernobyl” in nominations in the main and craft categories is “The Crown” with seven nods, “Fleabag” and “Giri/Haji” with six apiece, “His Dark Materials” and “The Virtues” with five, as well as “Killing Eve”, “Sex Education” and Netflix drama “Top Boy”, which land four nominations each.
    The 2020 British Academy Television Awards, presented by British comedian Richard Ayoade, will take place on July 31 in a closed studio, with nominees invited to accept their awards virtually.
    The full list of nominees for the main awards is as follows:
    COMEDY ENTERTAINMENT PROGRAMME
    “The Graham Norton Show”
    “The Last Leg”
    “The Ranganation”
    “Taskmaster”
    CURRENT AFFAIRS
    “Growing Up Poor: Britain’s Breadline Kids” (Dispatches)
    “The Hunt for Jihadi John”
    “Is Labour Anti-Semitic” (Panorama)
    “Undercover: Inside China’s Digital Gulag”
    DRAMA SERIES
    “The Crown”
    “The End of the F***ing World”
    “Gentleman Jack”
    “Giri Haji”
    ENTERTAINMENT PERFORMANCE
    Frankie Boyle – “Frankie Boyle’s New World Order”
    Graham Norton – “The Graham Norton Show”
    Lee Mack – “Would I Lie to You”
    Mo Gilligan – “The Lateish Show with Mo Gilligan”
    ENTERTAINMENT PROGRAMME
    “The Greatest Dancer”
    “The Rap Game UK”
    “Strictly Come Dancing”
    “The Voice UK”
    FACTUAL SERIES
    “Crime and Punishment”
    “Don’t F**k With Cats”
    “Leaving Neverland”
    “Our Dementia Choir with Vicky McClure”
    FEATURES
    “Joe Lycett’s Got Your Back”
    “The Misadventures of Romesh Ranganathan”
    “Mortimer & Whitehouse: Gone Fishing”
    “Snackmasters”
    FEMALE PERFORMANCE IN A COMEDY PROGRAMME
    Gbemisola Ikumelo, “Famalam” – BBC Studios/BBC Three
    Phoebe Waller-Bridge, “Fleabag” – Two Brothers Pictures/BBC Three
    Sarah Kendall, “Frayed” – Merman, Guesswork Television/Sky One
    Sian Clifford, “Fleabag” – Two Brothers Pictures/BBC Three
    INTERNATIONAL
    LEADING ACTOR
    Callum Turner – “The Capture” – Heyday Television, NBC Universal/BBC One
    Jared Harris – “Chernobyl” – Sister Pictures, The Mighty Mint, Word Games, HBO/Sky Atlantic
    Stephen Graham – “The Virtues”
    Takehiro Hira – “Giri/Haji”
    LEADING ACTRESS
    Glenda Jackson – “Elizabeth is Missing” – STV Productions/BBC One
    Jodie Comer – “Killing Eve” – Sid Gentle Films/BBC One
    Samantha Morton – “I Am Kirsty”
    Suranne Jones – “Gentleman Jack”
    LIVE EVENT
    Blue Planet Live
    Election 2019 Live: The Results (ITV)
    Glastonbury 2019
    Operation Live
    MALE PERFORMANCE IN A COMEDY PROGRAMME
    Guz Khan – “Man Like Mobeen”
    Jamie Demetriou – “Stath Lets Flats”
    Ncuti Gatwa – “Sex Education”
    Youssef Kerkour – “Home” – Jantaculum
    MINI-SERIES
    “A Confession”
    “Chernobyl”
    “The Victim”
    “The Virtues”
    NEWS COVERAGE
    Hong Kong Protests
    ITV News At Ten: Election Results
    Prince Andrew & The Epstein Scandal (Newsnight)
    Victoria Derbyshire: Men Who Lost Loved Ones to Knife Crime
    REALITY & CONSTRUCTED FACTUAL
    “Celebrity Gogglebox”
    “Harry’s Heroes: The Full English”
    “Race Across the World”
    “RuPaul’s Drag Race UK”
    SCRIPTED COMEDY
    “Catastrophe”
    “Derry Girls”
    “Fleabag”
    “Stath Lets Flats”
    SHORT FORM PROGRAMME
    “Anywhere But Westminster”
    “Brain in Gear”
    “Soon Gone: A Windrush Chronicle”
    “Toni_With_An_I”
    SINGLE DOCUMENTARY
    “The Abused”
    “David Harewood: Psychosis and Me”
    “The Family Secret”
    “The Last Survivors”
    SINGLE DRAMA
    “Brexit”: The Uncivil War
    “Elizabeth is Missing”
    “The Left Behind”
    “Responsible Child”
    SOAP & CONTINUING DRAMA
    “Casualty”
    “Coronation Street”
    “Emmerdale”
    “Holby City”
    SPECIALIST FACTUAL
    “8 Days: To the Moon and Back”
    “Seven Worlds, One Planet”
    “Thatcher: A Very British Revolution Production Team” – BBC Studios: The Documentary Unit/BBC Two
    “Yorkshire Ripper Files: A Very British Crime Story”
    SPORT
    2019 Rugby World Cup Final: England v South Africa
    ICC Cricket World Cup Final
    FIFA Women’s World Cup 2019 Semi Final: England v USA
    Wimbledon 2019 Men’s Final
    SUPPORTING ACTOR
    Joe Absolom – “A Confession”
    Josh O’Connor – “The Crown” – Left Bank Pictures, Sony Pictures Television/Netflix
    Stellan Skarsgard – “Chernobyl” – Sister Pictures
    Will Sharpe – “Giri/Haji”
    SUPPORTING ACTRESS
    VIRGIN MEDIA MUST SEE MOMENT
    “Coronation Street” – The Death of Sinead Osborne – ITV Studios/ITV
    “Fleabag” – Confessional scene – Two Brothers Pictures/BBC Three
    “Game of Thrones” – Arya Kills the Night King
    “Gavin and Stavey” – Nessa Proposes to Smithy
    “Line of Duty” – John Corbett’s Death
    “Love Island” – Michael recouples after Casa Amor

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