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Isao Takahata, a highly influential Japanese animator and filmmaker, and a co-founder of Studio Ghibli alongside longtime collaborator Hayao Miyazaki, died Thursday after a brief hospitalization. He was 82.

Takahata died following a battle with lung cancer, according to a statement Studio Ghibli provided to TheWrap.

Takahata directed the animated wartime drama “Grave of the Fireflies,” “Pom Poko,” “My Neighbors the Yamadas” and was nominated for an Oscar for his film “The Tale of the Princess Kaguya.”

March finished down -24% compared to last year's record-breaking performance and yet the first quarter of the year finished down just -2% compared to last year, thanks in large part to Black Panther making up nearly 23% of the quarter's overall gross.

It's far too early in April to make any declarations as to whether this month will turn things around, but things do look promising with the likes of Avengers: Infinity War on the horizon as well as this weekend's top two offerings.

Both A Quiet Place and Blockers are showing plenty of promise, receiving strong reviews and exhibiting signs of lengthy runs, and be on the lookout for Wes Anderson's Isle of Dogs as it expands into nearly 550 theaters before going nationwide next week.

Looking to finish atop the weekend box office is Paramount's well-reviewed horror A Quiet Place, which currently holds a 97% rating on RottenTomatoes. Additionally,

Nat Geo is developing a series inspired by the film “Hidden Figures,” Variety has learned exclusively.

The film was itself based on the book of the same name by Margot Lee Shetterly, which told the true story of the black female mathematicians who were instrumental in the early days of the American space program. The 2016 film starred Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer, Janelle Monáe, Kevin Costner, Kirsten Dunst, and Jim Parsons. It was nominated for three Academy Awards, including best picture, and grossed over $235 million worldwide.

The TV project, which is in the early stages of development, will be executive

Exclusive: Solo: A Star Wars Story will make its debut at the Cannes Film Festival, Deadline has learned. The festival is still finalizing its competition film roster, but they won’t find a bigger film than this one. Sources said that the Lucasfilm origin story will premiere in a special screening May 15, before the picture makes its global premiere May 25. The Ron Howard-directed origin story stars Alden Ehrenreich as the young Han Solo, the role made famous by Harrison Ford. Donald Glover plays Lando Calrissian, and Game of Thrones‘ Emilia Clarke, Woody Harrelson, Paul Bettany and Thandie Newton also star.

The Cannes roster has been the subject of wide speculation, and the festival announced this morning that the Javier Bardem-Penelope Cruz drama Everybody Knows will be the opening night film, directed by Asghar Farhadi. That and numerous other films have been rumored for weeks, but The Force being

More than a year after tapping Michael Green as showrunner and nearly three after landing at FX, the basic cable network is moving full steam ahead with its adaptation of Brian K. Vaughan's beloved comic book series Y: The Last Man.

FX on Thursday announced that it has handed out a formal pilot order and enlisted Aida Mashaka Croal (Jessica Jones, Turn) to serve as co-showrunner alongside Green, with Melina Matsoukas (Insecure, Master of None, Beyonce: Formation) on board to direct the highly anticipated drama.

Y: The Last Man ranks as one of the most critically acclaimed comic...

Lin Manuel-Miranda and “In The Heights” co-creator Quiara Alegría Hudes have regained control of movie rights to the Tony Award-winning musical, in the aftermath of The Weinstein Company’s downfall, an insider with knowledge of the situation told TheWrap.

Deadline originally reported that the underlying rights to “In The Heights” reverted back to Miranda and Hudes before TWC filed for bankruptcy since the film had not yet gone into production.

After the accusations of Harvey Weinstein’s decades of sexual assault and harassment, Miranda and Hudes demanded the rights back.

The tale of John and Lorena Bobbitt has served as a warning to men, and a delightful daydream for ladies since the year 1993. As the story goes: Lorena Bobbitt, who after being involved in a volatile relationship with her abusive husband John, chopped off his penis at its base while he was sleeping, went for a drive, then threw the genitalia out of the moving car window where it... Read More...

Fox has put in development Forte, a supernatural musical soap based on the Fox International series Cumbia Ninja, from writer Justin Lo (Parenthood, Mistresses), producer Ben Silverman (Jane the Virgin), former Devious Maids star Roselyn Sanchez and Eric Winter (Secrets and Lies).

Written by Lo, Forte is set in mystical Miami where magical beings have lived secretly among humans for decades. Two rival nightclubs set the stage for this supernatural Latin musical soap that will explore our fractured American society through tales of unrequited love, the perils of greed, and above all, the power of música.

Lo executive produces with Silverman and Sean Canino via Propagate and the married producing duo of Winter and Sanchez. 20th Century Fox Television produces with FX International and Silverman’s Propagate.

“Justin has created a timely series set in a captivating, fantastical world that we can’t wait to bring to life with our partners Eric Winter,

Rejoice, Friday Night Lights fans, your beloved series is streaming on a high-profile subscription service once more!

All six seasons of the NBC high-school football drama are now streaming on Amazon Prime, six months after Netflix dropped Friday Night Lights from its streaming service.

Since then the series has been absent from popular subscription streaming services Hulu, Netflix and Amazon Prime. Still, the series is available for purchase on iTunes, Amazon Video and other digital services.

The series, which starred Kyle Chandler and Connie Britton, was streaming for Amazon Prime members several years ago...

Steven Spielberg thinks it’s time for moviegoers to meet Indiana “Joan,” as the director revealed to The Sun earlier this week that he is considering having Harrison Ford’s iconic Indiana Jones character be played by a woman.

“We’d have to change the name from Jones to Joan. And there would be nothing wrong with that,” the director said when asked whether he would make the infamous explorer female.

Spielberg and Harrison Ford are set to reunite to film the fifth installment in the Indiana Jones franchise next April, but the director confirms that the film will mark Ford’s...

“Avengers: Infinity War” is ready to turbo-charge the box office.

The every-hero-but-the-kitchen-sink Marvel adventure is on pace to open to a massive $175 million to $200 million when it premieres on April 27. If it hits those numbers, it will be in some rarefied company. Only seven other films in history have topped $175 million in their debuts and only five have hit the $200 million mark.

“Avengers: Infinity War” promises to deliver a cornucopia of spandexed idols. Among those rubbing elbows on the Quinjet will be Robert Downey Jr.’s Iron Man, Chris Hemsworth’s Thor, Chris Evans’ Captain America, Chadwick Boseman’s Black Panther, Chris Pratt’s Star Lord, Benedict Cumberbatch’s Doctor Strange, and Mark Ruffalo’s Hulk. Joe and Anthony Russo directed and wrote the film, which pits Earth’s Mightiest Heroes against Thanos, a baddie with a face like granite and some pretty ambitious plans to achieve inter-galactic dominance.

“Avengers: Infinity War

It’s that time of the year again: when “Dancing with the Stars” contestants start to leak before the cast is announced. The first three wannabe hoofers joining the all-athletes season are Olympians Tonya Harding, Adam Rippon and Jamie Anderson, according to Us Weekly.

Harding’s casting is a classic “Dancing” move that checks a lot of boxes: She’s a controversial figure (skater) who was recently thrust back into the spotlight with an Oscar-winning major motion picture, “I, Tonya,” that attempted to engender some sympathy and tell her side of the story in the infamous 1994 attack on Nancy Kerrigan. And “Dancing with the Stars” is nothing if not about redemption. Speaking of Kerrigan, she competed on Season 24, finishing seventh, and that competitive narrative is a thread “Dancing” wants to pull. “Tonya Harding never won an Olympic medal, but could she surpass the woman whose attack she may or may

Netflix has given a series order to a dark comedy from writer Liz Feldman and executive producers Will Ferrell and Adam McKay.

Titled “Dead to Me,” it is about a powerful friendship that blossoms between a tightly wound widow and a free spirit with a shocking secret. Netflix has given the show a 10-episode first season order.

Feldman will executive produce alongside Ferrell and McKay, who will produce via their Gloria Sanchez Productions banner, the female-centric counterpart to the pair’s Gary Sanchez Productions. Jessica Elbaum of Gloria Sanchez will also executive produce. CBS Television Studios, where Feldman, Ferrell and

Longtime friends and business partners Diego Luna and Gael Garcia Bernal have launched Mexican production house La Corriente del Golfo.

The Mexico City-based outfit will produce film, TV and theater projects. Up first for La Corriente del Golfo (The Gulf Stream) is the world premiere of Aqui en la Tierra, a crime drama co-created by Garcia Bernal (Mozart in the Jungle) and produced with Fox Networks Group Latin America. Aqui en la Tierra (Here on Earth) is competing this week at the first edition of Canneseries, a new TV festival taking place alongside Cannes' MIPTV market.

La Corriente del Golfo's...

Anthony Williams won season six of “Project Runway All Stars” on April 5. He had contended on season seven of the main show but only made it to fifth place then. His win got us to wondering whatever happened to the designer who was crowned the winner of that edition of “Project Runway” as well as those who have walked away with the title in the other 15 seasons to date presided over by Emmy winners Heidi Klum and Tim Gunn.

The lucky seventh winner of “Project Runway” was Seth Aaron Henderson, who went on to win again in the third season of “Project Runway All Stars.” Two other winners of the original show — Dmitry Sholokhov (season 10), and Dom Streater (season 12) — prevailed again in seasons four and five of the “All Star” version.

See ‘Project Runway All Stars’: Where are the first five winners now? [Photos]

The most recent winner of “Project Runway” was Kentaro Kameyama,

Paige Davis has seen hundreds of room transformations from her years hosting “Trading Spaces.” And though the vast majority resulted in beloved transformations, a handful of the redesigned rooms were hated by the homeowners.

Yes, you all know about the room with hay-covered walls, and our readers have probably watched this woman break down over her new-look fireplace, but Davis can’t possibly defend the “Prison of Love” bedroom, could she? After all, it had two friggin’ toilets supporting a bench, jail-cell bars covering the windows, and a terrifying mural that would make one want to return to a nightmare.

“I actually thought that room was really neat! I really liked it,” Davis told TheWrap. “I did!”

Ok, Paige, maybe you shouldn’t be considered a tastemaker.

Also Read: Hgtv 'Home Town' Producer Brandon Davis Dies, Host Erin Napier Says

“The true, original concept is that ‘I know my neighbors and I know that they’re stuck,'” Davis explained. “‘Their home doesn’t represent the people that I know anymore. They’re stuck in the past or they’re too afraid to move forward, and I can envision for them the home that they should have, and I think they should trust me, and I’m gonna trust them, and we’re gonna trade.'”

“But for pure logistical [reasons] — out of absolute necessity, the designers need to plan and shop the room ahead of time,” she added.

That kinda kills the purity pitch about personal touches provided by a neighbor. But “Trading Spaces” certainly isn’t the only reality show to liberally bend the word “reality” — it was just among the first and most popular.

And those few gaudy rooms you couldn’t bear to watch the reveals of? The host has an excuse for her designers that we can kind of buy.

Also Read: 'Property Brothers' Jonathan Scott and Drew Scott Ink New Multiyear Deal With Hgtv

“It’s a little bit the same as seeing a high-fashion runway show, of couture. Or flipping through the pages of Vogue,” Davis said. “And I don’t mean that as the ‘Trading Spaces’ rooms are high-end — I mean it like they’re very high concept. So, you might see some crazy couture fashion design image in a Vogue magazine, with the crazy makeup. And you look at that picture and say to yourself, ‘Who the hell would ever wear that?'”

“Well, the ‘Trading Spaces’ rooms are very much like that, too. They often — not always — but some of them are out-of-the-box ideas and what some people would think are crazy ideas,” she continued. “They’re meant to inspire you.”

And to inspire high ratings, we imagine, from viewers saying to themselves, “Who the hell would ever sleep there?”

“Trading Spaces” returns to TLC on Saturday at 9/8c.

Read original story ‘Trading Spaces’ Host Paige Davis ‘Really Liked’ That ‘Prison of Love’ Bedroom – for Real At TheWrap

Heidi Klum and Tim Gunn have presided over “Project Runway” since it launched in 2004. The hosts of this popular reality competition show that currently airs on Lifetime guide would-be designers through a series of challenges. The winner of each season gets a cash prize as well as a chance to have a line of clothing featured in a leading outlet.

Catch up with all the winners to date in this photo gallery, with info on both then (when they won and who they beat) and now (what they are up to these days).

Horror-thriller “A Quiet Place” has opened with an impressive $4.3 million at 2,740 North American locations in Thursday night preview showings, while “Blockers” took in $1.5 million at 2,650 sites in previews.

Paramount Pictures’ “A Quiet Place,” starring John Krasinski and Emily Blunt, has been forecasted to debut with as much as $30 million from 3,508 locations. The film, which opened at South by Southwest to rave reviews, currently boasts a 96% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

“The Office” star Krasinski directed the story of an isolated family of four who must live in silence while hiding from creatures that hunt by sound.

Universal’s “Blockers” is expected to pull in between $16 million and $20 million at 3,379 theaters. Leslie Mann, Ike Barinholtz, and John Cena play parents trying to stop their teen daughters’ pact to lose their virginity on prom night.

“Blockers” marks the directorial debut of Kay Cannon, who wrote the “Pitch Perfect” trilogy. It was produced by Evan Goldberg,

In the first trailer for “The First Purge,” fans of the franchise will find out how the tradition of legalized crime for 12 hours came to be in “The Purge” universe.

“Citizens, this will be a tradition we celebrate every year,” the president tells the nation in the trailer.

It’s a method for people to release their built up anger and aggression for 12 hours, with no consequences — a social experiment in its testing phase. But soon, the creator of the experiment realizes that she created something dangerous.

Also Read: Upcoming 'Purge' Prequel Announces a Title

The last film in the series, “The Purge: Election Year,” ended with an anti-Purge senator becoming the next president on a campaign platform of ending The Purge. Now, “The First Purge” will show the rise of the extremist political party known as The New Founding Fathers of America and how it began as an experiment in an isolated community to see if allowing humanity’s darkest impulses to run wild for one night could lead to lower crime rates.

Gerard McMurray (“Burning Sands”) is directing the film from a script by “Purge” creator James DeMonaco, with Jason Blum and Michael Bay producing with Brad Fuller, Andrew Form, and Sébastien K. Lemercier. “The First Purge” hits theaters July 4.

Watch the trailer below.

Announcing the commencement of #TheFirstPurge. In theaters July 4. pic.twitter.com/DL25hhd6MI

— The First Purge (@UniversalHorror) April 6, 2018

Read original story ‘The First Purge’ Trailer Explains the History of Dangerous Tradition (Video) At TheWrap

Can normal humans live in California? No, says Fox News host Tucker Carlson, who derided the state on his show Thursday as a third world style dystopia dominated by illegal aliens and “tech oligarchs.”

“44 percent of Californians now do not speak English at home. The state no longer has a common language or a common culture, it’s infrastructure is collapsing, debt is out of control, schools are unusable, public spaces are filthy. The middle class is fleeing California for all those reasons. Normal people can’t live there anymore,” Carlson said.

The message of doom and gloom continued as Carlson ripped the Golden State.

Also Read: Fox News' Ed Henry Grills Epa Chief in Brutal Interview (Video)

“The state increasingly consists of tech oligarchs and their imported low-wage servants, that’s the point,” he said. “California is developing the economic structure of Latin America. How long before it is Venezuela? You’re not supposed to think about any of that. Our leaders command you not to.”

Carlson’s broader point was that all this is a result of California’s lax policy towards illegal immigrants, and warned about the state’s historical tendency to set national trends.

“In California right now, more than six percent of the entire state is there illegally, that’s about two and a half million people. A million of those have state drivers licenses,” he said, “Politicians in California are very proud of that fact.”

Carlson’s Fox News program is broadcast regularly out of the network’s headquarters — in New York City.

Watch above.

Read original story Tucker Carlson: ‘Normal People Can’t Live’ in California, State Dominated by ‘Tech Oligarchs’ At TheWrap