Tatyana Ali to Appear on Season Three of ABC’s Hit Comedy Series “Abbott Elementary”

Tatyana Ali is heading to the classroom…

The 45-year-old half-Afro-Panamanian American actress and singer will appear on season three of ABC’s hit comedy series Abbott Elementary.

Tatyana AliAli, best known for her roles on NBC’s The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air and CBS’ long-running soap opera The Young and the Restless, is among a list of recently announced guest stars/recurring stars that includes Lana CondorKeegan-Michael KeyCree Summer and Karan Soni.

It’s been a star-studded season on the Emmy-winning series.

During Sunday’s post-Oscars special episode, Bradley Cooper made a special appearance, while Season 3 kicked off in February on a high note with guest appearances from Philadelphia Eagles players Jalen Hurts, Brandon Graham and Jason Kelce.

The series has also previously had guest appearances from Taraji P. Henson, Ayo Edebiri, Vince Staples and Leslie Odom Jr.

Abbott Elementary takes place in a predominantly Black Philadelphia public school. Quinta Brunson, who created the series, plays Janine Teagues, an optimistic second-grade teacher who makes it her mission to help enrich her students’ lives while also managing her own personal life.

Tyler James Williams, Janelle James, Lisa Ann Walter, Chris Perfetti, William Stanford Davis and Sheryl Lee Ralph also star.

Anya Taylor-Joy & “Super Mario Bros. Movie” Cast Mates Join Jimmy Fallon & The Roots to Perform Game’s Original Theme

It’s theme on for Anya Taylor-Joy

In celebration of MAR10 Day (March 10), the 26-year-old Argentine American Golden Globe-winning actress joined her Super Mario Bros. Movie, Tonight Show host Jimmy Fallon and The Roots to one-up the game franchise’s original theme song.

Anya Taylor-JoyTaylor-Joy, who portrays Princess Peach, Chris Pratt, Jack Black, Seth Rogen, Fred Armisen, Keegan-Michael Key and Charlie Day joined Fallon and his in-house band for a special Tonight Show video, singing a choral rendition of the instantly recognizable video game’s theme song.

The actors make up the main voice cast of the upcoming animated Super Mario Bros. Movie, which will arrive in theaters April 5.

Anya Taylor-Joy, Princess Peach, Super Mario Bros MovieIn the video, Fallon and the actors take turns taking center stage as Questlove and other members of The Roots add layers of suave harmony. All the while, the singers are edited into the pixelated landscape of the Mario universe, where they pop in and out of green pipes and send shells flying at one another.

Then, Nintendo legend and Mario game creator Shigeru Miyamoto makes an appearance, and even has a little solo at the very end of the video.

Fans in the comments absolutely loved the creative take on the Mario music.

“Broooo… This is so awesome!” wrote one. “Just to see the voice cast of The Super Mario Bros Movie and even seeing Miyamoto singing [an a cappella] cover of the iconic Super Mario tracks is just phenomenal to watch.”

“The ending was a masterpiece in every way,” added another.

Apple TV+ Renews Musical Comedy “Schmigadoon!,” Starring Ariana DeBose, for Second Season

There’s more Schmigadoon in Ariana DeBose’s future…

Apple TV+ has ordered a second season of its musical comedy Schmigadoon!, starring the 31-year-old half-Puerto Rican Oscar-winning actress.

Ariana DeBose,Hailing from creators Cinco Paul and Ken Daurio and executive producer Lorne Michaels, the series stars Cecily Strong, Keegan-Michael Key, DeBose, Dove Cameron, Jaime Camil, Kristin Chenoweth, Alan Cumming, Ann Harada, Jane Krakowski, Martin Short and Aaron Tveit — all of whom are set to return.

Tituss Burgess and Patrick Page will also join the fun in the new season, which will find Josh (Key) and Melissa (Strong) in Schmicago, the world of 60’s and 70’s musicals.

Following its global debut on Apple TV+ last year, Schmigadoon! was honored with an AFI Award, and has received wide acclaim and accolades, including a Critics Choice Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress for Chenoweth.

The series hails from Broadway Video and Universal Television, a division of Universal Studio Group.

Paul, who is the showrunner, wrote all of the original songs for the series. Robert Luketic directs and co-executive produces. Andrew Singer serves as an executive producer, while Micah Frank is a co-executive producer. Strong and Caroline Maroney are producers.

First Trailer Released for Judd Apatow’s Lockdown Comedy “The Bubble,” Starring Pedro Pascal

Pedro Pascal’s latest project is bubbling up

The first trailer has been released for Judd Apatow’s lockdown comedy The Bubble, starring a stacked cast that includes the 46-year-old Chilean actor.

Pedro Pascal, The BubbleThe film looks at the high stakes and high jinks involved in filming a studio tentpole film during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The scenario unfolds somewhere in England during the dark days of October 2020 as a group of actors is quarantining at a posh hotel while shooting Cliff Beasts 6the latest in an action franchise about people battling dinosaurs. And it’s no walk in the Jurassic Park.

“Thank you for wearing proper PPE,” the ensemble is told. “Physical touch is, of course, off the table, so I would recommend making sweet eyes at each other.”

But there’s an incentive to keep the cameras rolling: “We are one of two movies in production right now — if we fail, the studio’s going to go down.”

So the show goes on, and we get the lighter side of greenscreen acting.

Karen Gillan, Iris Apatow, Fred Armisen, Maria Bakalova, David Duchovny, Keegan-Michael Key, Leslie Mann, Kate McKinnon and Peter Serafinowicz also star in the Apatow-directed film.

Apatow wrote the script with Pam Brady.

The film-within-a-film will hit Netflix in the spring.

Amazon Prime Video to Stream Selena Gomez’s Hotel Transylvania: Transformania Globally in January

Selena Gomez will be Transform(ania)ing around the globe January…

Amazon’s Prime Video will stream Sony Pictures Animation’s Hotel Transylvania: Transformania, featuring the 29-year-old Mexican American actress/singer, on January 14, 2022, in 240 countries and territories.

Selena Gomez

Amazon licensed the rights to the fourth installment in the franchise from Sony earlier this year, extending its opportunistic streak as COVID-19 continues to disrupt the film marketplace.

The discussions were aimed at enabling the film to avoid a head-to-head matchup with another major animated title, Addams Family 2. Both had been scheduled to come out in early October.

Hotel Transylvania: Transformania

Sony, which is unique among major studios for not having its own streaming platform to supply, has made moves during the pandemic like selling Greyhound to Apple and reaching a major overall agreement with Netflix.

The Hotel Transylvania franchise has grossed $1.3 billion. The new outing is directed by Jennifer Kluska and Derek Drymon. It features voice work by Gomez, Brian Hull, Jim Gaffigan, Andy Samberg, Kathryn Hahn, Steve Buscemi, Molly Shannon, David Spade, Keegan-Michael Key, Fran Drescher, Brad Abrell and Asher Blinkoff.

“The success of the Hotel Transylvania franchise over the years speaks for itself,” said Jennifer Salke, head of Amazon Studios. “Audiences around the world have fallen in love with the films created by the brilliant Genndy Tartakovsky, and the latest installment is the perfect ending to an incredible journey. We could not be more excited to work with Sony, Genndy, Jennifer Kluska, Derek Drymon, Selena Gomez and the talented producing team to bring this funny, heartwarming film to our customers early next year.”

Sony Pictures Animation chief Kristine Belson said the Hotel Transylvania films, the first of which was released in 2012, “have thrilled audiences and paved the way for so many artists working in CG animation. … We are thrilled to work with Amazon to bring this film to families everywhere.”

Anya Taylor-Joy Among Cast for Illumination’s ‘Super Mario Bros.’ Animated Film

Anya Taylor-Joy is preparing for her next royal excursion…

Illumination and Nintendo have announced the powerhouse voice cast for their upcoming Super Mario Bros. animated film, which includes the 25-year-old Argentine American actress.

Anya Taylor-Joy

Taylor-Joy, who earned an Emmy nomination for her performance in Queen’s Gambit, will star as Princess Peach in the film, which will hit cinemas on December 21, 2022.

Playing the fraternal, mushroom digesting plumbers and squashers of turtles are Chris Pratt as Mario and Charlie Day as Luigi.

Playing bad guy Bowser is Jack BlackKeegan-Michael Key as Toad, Seth Rogen as Donkey Kong, Fred Armisen as Cranky Kong, Kevin Michael Richardson as Kamek, and stand-up comedian Sebastian Maniscalco as Spike.

“Each voice actor was cast for their ability to capture the unique spirit of their character,” reads the release.

The co-financed feature between Universal and Nintendo will be directed by Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic, who previously collaborated on the animated series Teen Titans Go! and the film Teen Titans Go! To the Movies.

The film’s screenplay will be written by Matthew Fogel, whose credits include The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part and the upcoming Illumination feature Minions: The Rise of Gru.

Future offshore release dates will be announced.

“Mario and Luigi are two of the most beloved heroes in all of popular culture, and we are honored to have the unique opportunity to work so closely with Shigeru Miyamoto and the widely imaginative team at Nintendo to bring these characters to life in an animated movie, unlike any film Illumination has made to date,” said Chris Meledandri who is also an outside director of Nintendo.

“We are collaborating with Chris and his experienced team to not just create a character licensed film, but a new piece of entertainment which brings Super Mario Bros. to life on the screen, and allows everyone to enjoy whether or not they know about the game. The production so far is constructive and going very well, and both parties are learning a lot from each other. We humbly ask that fans wait just a little longer for the premiere, and we hope they look forward to seeing the unique characters from Super Mario Bros. on the big screen,” said Miyamoto.

Super Mario Bros. is a huge franchise play for Universal and Illumination. Already, there’s a Super Mario Bros. land open at the Universal Japan theme park with others under construction at Universal Hollywood and Universal Orlando.

The movie has been a long awaited revival for fans. There was a live action movie in 1993 starring Bob Hoskins as Mario and John Leguizamo as Luigi and Dennis Hopper as baddie King Koopa. There was also in the late 1980s The Super Mario Bros. Super Show! animated series which starred Captain Lou Albano as the voice of Mario and Danny Wells as the voice of Luigi.

Mario Brothers was designed by Shigeru Miyamoto and Gunpei Yokoi, Nintendo’s chief engineer in 1983. Super Mario Bros. the subseries, was launched in 1985. It is the best-selling video game franchise of all time, with more than 758.06 million copies of games sold, including 388.92 million for the Super Mario games alone.

Trailer Released for Selena Gomez’s “Hotel Transylvania: Transformania”

Selena Gomez is transform(ania)ing

The first trailer has been released for the 28-year-old Mexican American actress/singer’s Hotel Transylvania: Transformania, the fourth and final film in the franchise that has bitten off $1.36 billion worldwide — thus far — with each of the three films grossing more than its predecessor.

Selena Gomez

Since the original film hit theaters in 2012, the Fang gang has expanded their lodging to include humans and welcomed a baby (2015’s Hotel Transylvania 2) and took a decidedly unrelaxing sea cruise (2018’s Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation).

Fast-forward to 2021, and Van Helsing (Jim Gaffigan) has perfected his mysterious invention that allows humans to become monsters. But the Monsterfication Ray goes haywire, and Drac (Brian Hull, replacing Adam Sandler) and his monster pals are all transformed into humans, and Johnny (Andy Samberg) becomes a monster. In their new mismatched bodies, Drac — now stripped of his powers, sporting a “dad bod” and making dad jokes — and his exuberant son-in-law Johnny, who’s loving life as a monster, must team up and race across the globe to find a cure before it’s too late. With help from Mavis (Gomez) and the human Drac Pack, the heat is on to find a way to switch themselves back before their transformations become permanent.

Kathryn Hahn, Keegan-Michael Key, Steve Buscemi, David Spade, Asher Blinkoff, Brad Abrell, Fran Drescher and Molly Shannon also lend their voices to the film from first-time feature helmers Jennifer Kluska and Derek Drymon. Amos Vernon and Nunzio Randazzo and Genndy Tartakovsky penned the screenplay.

“In Hotel Transylvania: Transformania we wrap up the franchise with a bang as we see our familiar, beloved cast of monster characters in a hilarious new light when they accidentally transform themselves into humans,” helmers Kluska and Drymon said. “The bond between the mismatched comic pair of human Drac and monster Johnny is put to the test on a ridiculous road trip to South America while Mavis leads the humanized Drac Pack on an adventure to find the cure. At their heart, the Hotel Transylvania movies are about family – monster style. We think the final chapter will bring the story full circle in a thrilling fun theater experience for the whole family.”

After a few pandemic-forced release-date moves, the toon from Columbia Pictures and Sony Pictures Animation hits theaters Friday, October 1

Jaime Camil to Star in Steven Soderbergh’s Next Film “KIMI” for HBO Max

Jaime Camil has landed his next role…

The 47-year-old Mexican actor/singer and Jane The Virgin scene-stealer has been cast in Steven Soderbergh’s next film, the New Line Max Original feature KIMI, with Zoë Kravitz on board to star. Byron Bowers is also on board.

Jaime Camil

The film will premiere exclusively on HBO Max. David Koepp penned the script and will produce along with Michael Polaire.

Plot details are being kept under wraps.

Camil can next be seen starring opposite Cecily Strong, Keegan-Michael Key, Jane Krakowski, Fred Armisen, Alan Cumming, Ariana DeBose and Kristen Chenoweth in the upcoming Apple+ musical comedy series Schmigadoon! from executive producer Lorne Michaels. He previously starred as fan and critic favorite in the Golden Globe-nominated and AFI Award-winning series Jane the Virgin. Most recently he starred in and executive produced the CBS comedy series Broke, becoming the first Latino lead in a comedy series for CBS since Desi Arnaz in I Love Lucy.

Camil is also teaming up with Jane the Virgin show creator Jennie Synder Urman and writer/comedian Al Magrigal to develop the single-camera comedy series Guerrillas through ABC, which he’ll co-executive produce and star in.

Pedro Pascal to Star in Judd Apatow’s Netflix Comedy “The Bubble”

Things are bubbling up for Pedro Pascal

The 45-year-old Chilean actor has been cast in Judd Apatow’s next comedy The Bubble for Netflix.

Pedro Pascal

Pascal, who recently starred in Wonder Woman 1984, joins a cast that includes Karen GillanIris Apatow, Fred ArmisenMaria Bakalova, David Duchovny, Keegan-Michael Key, Leslie Mann and Peter Serafinowicz.

Apatow will direct and produce the film, as well as co-write the script with Pam Brady.

The film follows a group of actors and actresses stuck inside a pandemic bubble at a hotel attempting to complete a film. The film couldn’t be more timely as more and more productions are ramping back up even as COVID-19 remains in full effect around the world.

Once Netflix boarded the project, it quickly was fast-tracked with a plan to start shooting at the top of 2021. The plan also always has been to deliver a cast that rivals previous A-list ensembles like those for The Disaster Artist and Knives Out.

Netflix Releases Trailer for Ariana DeBose’s Musical “The Prom”

Ariana DeBose is heading to prom

Netflix has released the first trailer for Ryan Murphy’s musical The Prom, starring the 29-year-old half-Afro-Puerto Rican actress, singer and dancer.

Ariana DeBose in The Prom

The plot centers on four Broadwayactors who’ve seen better days who come up with a publicity opportunity to reignite their careers by flying to a small town in Indiana to help a lesbian student banned from bringing her girlfriend to the prom.

The adaptation of the Tony Award-nominated stage musical has a screenplay from original playwrights Chad Beguelinand Bob Martin.

In addition to DeBose, who competed on So You Think You Can Dance, the all-star cast includes Meryl Streep, James Corden, Nicole Kidman, Keegan-Michael Key, Andrew Rannells, Jo Ellen Pellman, Tracey Ullman, Kevin Chamberlin, Mary Kay Place, Nico Greetham, Logan Riley, Nathaniel J. Potvin, Sofia Deler, and Kerry Washington.

The film will launch on the streaming service on December 11.