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Cobie Smulders has been cast in the lead role of the ABC drama pilot inspired by the graphic novel “Stumptown” by Greg Rucka, Variety has learned.

The project follows Dex Parios (Smulders), a strong, assertive, and unapologetically sharp-witted army veteran working as a P.I. in Portland, Oregon. With a complicated personal history and only herself to rely on, she solves other people’s messes with a blind eye toward her own.

Parios is further described as a whip-smart, hard-luck heroine you can’t help but get behind. Once a decorated Military Intelligence officer overseas, Dex is now back home in Portland,

A “Gremlins” animated series is in development at WarnerMedia’s upcoming streaming service, Variety has learned exclusively from sources.

The potential series is said to be a period piece that would follow Mr. Wing, the Chinese grandfather played in the films by Keye Luke, as a young man as he goes on adventures with the friendly Mogwai Gizmo. The series will be produced by Warner Bros. Television and Amblin Television. Both Warner Bros. and Amblin produced the films on which the show will be based.

Warner Bros. and Amblin declined to comment.

Tze Chun is attached to write and executive produce.

The ratings for the 2019 Oscars telecast are up slightly from last year in the preliminary numbers.

The awards show, which went without a host this year, drew a 20.1 rating in metered market households, up approximately 6% from the 18.9 last year’s telecast drew.

The 2018 Oscars’ household rating was down approximately 16% from the 22.5 rating drawn by the telecast in 2017. The 2018 Oscars initially drew a 6.4 rating in adults 18-49 and 24.4 million viewers before rising to a 6.8 rating and 26.5 million. That final number is the lowest viewership for an Oscars telecast in the show’s history.

“Bohemian Rhapsody” proved to be the big winner of the night, taking home four awards including best actor for star Rami Malek. “Roma,” “Black Panther,” and “Green Book” took home three Oscars each, with ‘Green Book” nabbing the best picture statuette. Spike Lee also took home his first competitve Oscar, winning for best adapted screenplay for the film “BlacKkKlansman.

Chicago police have additional evidence against Empire actor Jussie Smollett that they have not shared with the public, including “physical evidence, video evidence and testimony,” Chicago Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson told "Good Morning America" co-host Robin Roberts this morning.

“Let me tell, you, Robin, there’s a lot more evidence that hasn’t been presented yet, and does not support the version he gave,” Johnson said. “There’s still a lot of physical evidence, video evidence and testimony that just simply does not support his version of what happened.”

The disclosure of additional evidence followed ABC News’ obtaining and posting a copy of the $3,500 check allegedly written by Smollett to Abimbola Osundairo, one of the two brothers who now say they were paid that amount by Smollett to stage the phony attack. In the memo line of the check appear the words: “5 week Nutrition/Workout program

Oscar Sunday marked a night of important firsts — and seconds — for diverse artists and filmmakers and their Hollywood contributions.

The 2019 telecast started making history almost immediately. After Regina King accepted best supporting actress for “If Beale Street Could Talk,” Ruth E. Carter became the first African American woman to ever win best costume design, for her work on Marvel’s “Black Panther.”

“I dreamed of this night and I prayed for this night honestly…what it would mean not just for me but for young people coming behind me,” Carter told press backstage at Hollywood’s Dolby Theater. A nod to a new generation of costumers could have been expected, as the first person Carter thanked in her acceptance speech was Spike Lee. The director gave her her start, she said, and he was himself a multiple nominee on Sunday for “BlacKkKlansman.”

“I hope through my example this means there is hope.

“Singin’ in the Rain” director Stanley Donen, Sondra Locke, the Oscar-nominated actress and former partner of Clint Eastwood, Verne Troyer, character actor Dick Miller and Golden Globe nominee R. Lee Ermey were omitted during the Oscars’ In Memoriam tribute on Sunday.

Carol Channing, who was nominated for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in the 1967 film “Thoroughly Modern Millie” and died in January, was also omitted during the tribute to showbiz people who died in the past year.

Gustavo Dudamel conducted the Los Angeles Philarmonic to a track from 1978’s “Superman: The Movie.”

Also Read: Oscars: Watch Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga Sing 'Shallow' (Video)

Donen, whose death was announced Saturday at the age of 94, helped reinvent the big-screen musical, with a series of hits that included “On the Town,” 1954’s “Seven Brides for Seven Brothers,” 1957’s “The Pajama Game,” 1958’s “Damn Yankees!” and 1957’s “Funny Face,” with Audrey Hepburn and Fred Astaire.

A French prosecutor on Monday dismissed a rape accusation lodged against director Luc Besson due to a lack of evidence.

Besson was accused in May of last year of drugging and raping a young actress in a Paris hotel. The actress, later identified as Sand Van Roy, had worked on two projects with Besson, including 2017’s “Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets.”

Van Roy accused him of drugging her tea and then sexually abusing her while she was unconscious. According to French broadcast station Europe 1 at the time, Van Roy said she awoke with memories of touching and penetration, adding that Besson left the hotel room before she did, and he left behind a wad of cash.

Besson denied the accusation.

Also Read: French Director Luc Besson Denies Accusation He Drugged and Raped Actress

In a statement sent to TheWrap and translated to English from French, Besson

Spike Lee’s beloved New York Knicks won Sunday night, but his “BlackKklansman” was among the films that lost Best Picture to “Green Book” at the Oscars. And after the show ended, the director likened the decision to a referee making a bad call.

Asked about his reaction to the “Green Book” win, Lee, holding champagne, declared, “let me take another sip.” After a sip, he added tactfully, “next question.” But after a few moments, he added: “I thought it was courtside at the Garden and the ref made a bad call.” (Watch his reaction below.)

Asked about "Green Book," Spike Lee decided it was time for more champagne.

Full #Oscars coverage: https://t.co/GrNpbW052c pic.twitter.com/lTaEaS6SPH

— AP Entertainment (@APEntertainment) February 25, 2019

At the Oscars in 1990, “Driving Miss Daisy” won best Picture. The film is about a white Southern lady played by Jessica Tandy and her relationship with her black chauffeur,

Journalist Jorge Ramos and his Univision crew have been “arbitrarily detained” at the Miraflores Palace in Caracas following an interview with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, according to the Univision News Twitter account Monday. Maduro reportedly did not like the questions he was asked.

Attention: A @Univision team, headed by @jorgeramosnews, is being arbitrarily detained at the Miraflores Palace in Caracas. They were interviewing @NicolasMaduro but he didn't like the questions. Their technical equipment was also confiscated. https://t.co/c45tB0E4er

— Univision News (@UnivisionNews) February 26, 2019

Univision also said the team’s technical equipment was taken away. Kimberly Breier,

Roman Reigns, real name Joe Anoa’i, returned to WWE via Monday’s “Raw,” where he gave an emotional and wonderful update on his October leukemia revelation.

“The good news is, I’m in remission, y’all,” Reigns told a delighted Atlanta audience.

Oh yeah, and he’s back. Believe that.

The Big Dog is Back! #RomanReigns announces that he is in remission and back on #Raw! @WWERomanReigns pic.twitter.com/yHQdiFH2Ty

— WWE (@WWE) February 26, 2019

Also Read: WWE's Edge on That 'WrestleMania X-7' Spear Off the Ladder: 'I Almost Went Too Soon' (Video)

And then this gorgeous reunion happened:

Reunited At Last.#Raw @WWERomanReigns @WWERollins pic.twitter.com/75JGCTMBkG

— WWE (@WWE) February 26, 2019

Burn it down, and hug it out.

Also Read: Why Former WWE Superstar Christian Won't Be Pulling a Daniel Bryan-Esque Ring Return

Anoa’i opened the USA Network show by thanking the WWE Universe for their support,

Despite its ever-expanding roster of DC Comics characters, The CW will most likely never get to use its most famous one: Batman.

But with “Batwoman,” the CW is coming as close as it possibly can to The Caped Crusader, who remains off-limits for the foreseeable future. So the creative team behind the show decided to lean into that aspect: What is Gotham City without The Caped Crusader?

But unlike “Gotham,” which depicts the city before Bruce Wayne ever puts on his cape and cowl, “Batwoman” will see Gotham City after the Dark Knight has left. “It’s a post-Batman Gotham City,” Sarah Schechter, an executive producer for the series, told TheWrap. “What is it like after these heroes leave?”

Also Read: 'Batwoman': David Nutter Departs Pilot as Director, Dougray Scott Cast as Kate Kane's Father

“Batwoman” is one of the buzziest projects of this year’s crop

Brittany Snow has been cast in the lead role of the untitled Fox drama pilot from Annie Weisman and Jason Katims based on the Australian series “Sisters,” Variety has learned.

In the Fox project, only child Julia Bechley (Snow) has her life turned upside down when it’s revealed that her father, a pioneering Nobel Prize-winning fertility doctor, used his own sperm to conceive dozens of children over the course of his career. Reeling from this explosive revelation, Julia discovers two new sisters — her former best friend and an ex-Olympic athlete. Against all odds, the women attempt to form an

“The Lodge,” from legendary “Goodnight Mommy” directors Severin Fiala and Veronika Franz, scared the bejeezus out of Sundance-goers this year, and even star Riley Keough had one thing terrify her.

“I will say the score was really scary,” Keough said at TheWrap’s Sundance Film Festival interview studio last month. “We were there and it was dark while we were filming it, but the score really freaked me out.”

“The Lodge” follows Keough, who goes to a lodge with her boyfriend’s children (played by Jaeden Lieberher and Lia McHugh) when, naturally, everything goes terribly wrong. Fiala and Franz have established themselves as horror geniuses since their film “Goodnight Mommy” garnered critical acclaim in 2014 — but both of the Austrian directors don’t consider themselves horror filmmakers, per se.

Also Read: Neon Books Distribution Rights for Riley Keough Thriller 'The Lodge'

“We don’t think of them as pure

Israeli morning shows were in full-on celebration mode Monday morning, ditching politics-heavy news briefs for wall-to-wall coverage of the country’s newest celebrity, director Guy Nattiv — who on Sunday became the first Israeli to take home an Oscar in more than four decades.

Nattiv won Best Live Action Short for his movie “Skin” — about two gangs who engage in a war after a black man smiles at a 10-year-old white boy in a blue collar town — giving Israelis a much-needed moment of kvelling.

“It’s crazy,” Nattiv told TheWrap Monday. “The whole country is behind ‘Skin.'”

Also Read: Oscars 2019: The Complete Winners List

Just how crazy has it gotten? Well, consider this: Israeli TV crews were staked outside the homes of Nattiv’s parent’s, sister, and aunt at 5 a.m. local time in the hope of landing a quick soundbite from his relatives, who were still in their PJs.

Never before has so much Spanish been heard on the Oscars stage.

Alfonso Cuarón’s best director win was the fifth in the past six years for Mexican directors, and that was just one notable moment during the 91st Oscars, which presented a much different picture than ceremonies of just a few years ago.

Latino filmmakers and actors have been historically underrepresented at the Oscars, but recognition for Cuarón and “Roma,” a best actress nomination for Yalitza Aparicio, and a best animated film win for “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse” helped the Academy Awards take a big step toward greater inclusion.

Cuarón also won the cinematography prize for the semi-autobiographical “Roma,” the black-and-white Spanish-language drama that was Mexico’s first foreign film winner after seven previous nominations.

The “Roma” helmer continued the recent streak of Mexican filmmakers taking home the best director prize, a feat started when he won for “Gravity” in 2013. Since then,

AMC Networks streaming service Shudder has picked up horror film “The Night Shifter” from Brazilian media giant Globo TV in its continued bid to diversify and expand its programming lineup. This is AMC’s second acquisition from Globo, after 10-episode series “Supermax,” a co-production led by Globo, Argentina’s Tvp, Mediaset Spain, Mexico’s TV Azteca, and Uruguayan channel Teledoce. The fictional reality prison-set series was created by Argentine director-producer-writer Daniel Burman, whose 2003 “The Lost Embrace,” won Berlin’s Grand Jury Prize and a best actor Silver Bear for Daniel Hendler.

“The Night Shifter” turns on morgue employee Stênio whose

AMC Networks streaming service Shudder has picked up horror film “The Night Shifter” from Brazilian media giant Globo TV in its continued bid to diversify and expand its programming lineup. This is AMC’s second acquisition from Globo, after 10-episode series “Supermax,” a co-production led by Globo, Argentina’s Tvp, Mediaset Spain, Mexico’s TV Azteca, and Uruguayan channel Teledoce. The fictional reality prison-set series was created by Argentine director-producer-writer Daniel Burman, whose 2003 “The Lost Embrace,” won Berlin’s Grand Jury Prize and a best actor Silver Bear for Daniel Hendler.

“The Night Shifter” turns on morgue employee Stênio whose ability to speak with the dead makes for interesting nights. Stenio unleashes a curse that will endanger himself and his family after some conversations with the afterlife inadvertently reveal secrets of his own life.

Directed by Dennison Ramalho, the film premiered at the Fantasia International Film Festival in Montreal and

Glenn Close couldn’t leave the Vanity Fair Oscar party. Even though she’d lost in the best actress category on Sunday night, she still found herself winning the title of the queen of Hollywood. Throughout the celebrity-packed soiree, guests kept coming up and telling her how much they adored her. At around midnight, when Close decided it was time to get some sleep, the long line of movie and media stars paying their respects wouldn’t stop.

First, Close nibbled on an In-n-Out burger with Gayle King. Next, there were some kind words from Jennifer Lopez and Alex Rodriguez, who were seated in a booth overlooking the dance floor. Close walked into the main room at Wallis Annenberg Center. Jeff Goldblum stopped her for a kiss. James Marsden wanted a hug. She was being pulled and patted and comforted by strangers.

She eyed her exit; there was just one man blocking her escape.

In today’s TV news roundup, CBS set a new premiere date for season four of “Life in Pieces,” and HBO announced the release date for its upcoming drama series “Native Son.”

Casting

As season two of “Altered Carbon” approaches, Netflix confirmed the return of Renée Elise Goldsberry as Quellcrist Falconer and Chris Conner as Poe. New cast members joining the series include Simone Missick as Trepp, Dina Shihabi is Dig 301, Torben Liebrecht as Colonel Carrera and James Saito as Tanaseda Hideki, with additional casting announcements to come.

Dates

Season four of the CBS comedy series “Life in Pieces” is

Relief was palpable at the Governors Ball Sunday night. The hostless show was entertaining, and surprise winners like Olivia Colman (“The Favourite”) dive-bombed many an office Oscar pool. Studio films obviated the need for a Best Popular Film category: Fox’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” dominated the night with four Oscars, while Universal’s “Green Book” and Disney’s “Black Panther” each won three. With presenters and performers with high global profiles, ratings were up slightly from last year, to 29.6 million viewers.

But most of all, Hollywood was relieved that Netflix did not win Best Picture. “‘Roma”s on Netflix, what’s next?” quipped presenter Tina Fey. “My microwave makes a movie?”

Clearly the most expensive campaign for a foreign-language film in Hollywood history, “Roma” came very close to winning the big prize. The preferential ballot favored a consensus title like “Green Book,” a movie in the tradition of “In the Heat of the Night,