Category: Arts and Entertainment

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Review: ‘A Fall From Grace,’ starring Crystal Fox, Phylicia Rashad, Bresha Webb, Mehcad Brooks and Cicely Tyson

January 17, 2020

by Carla Hay

Donovan Christie Jr., Tyler Perry, Bresha Webb and Crystal Fox in "A Fall From Grace"
Donovan Christie Jr., Tyler Perry, Bresha Webb and Crystal Fox in “A Fall From Grace” (Photo by Charles Bergmann/Netflix)

“A Fall From Grace”

Directed by Tyler Perry

Culture Representation: Set in the fictional American city of Holloway, “A Fall From Grace” has predominantly black middle-class characters who are connected in some way to a murder mystery case.

Culture Clash: The characters have conflicts over the guilt or innocence of a woman accused of murder.

Culture Audience: “A Fall From Grace” will appeal primarily to fans of Tyler Perry and low-budget, melodramatic “women in peril” movies.

Crystal Fox and Mehcad Brooks in “A Fall From Grace” (Photo courtesy of Netflix)

If you’re watching a Tyler Perry drama, here are three things you can expect to happen:

(1) A husband or boyfriend will cheat on his wife or girlfriend.
(2) The woman will find out about the infidelity.
(3) She not only gets mad, she also gets even.

The legal mystery “A Fall From Grace” (written and directed by Perry) falls right in line with this formula, with plenty of melodramatic and implausible moments, as well as a few touches of humor. (“A Fall From Grace” is definitely for mature audiences, since there’s partial nudity, adult language and very bloody violence.) Perry’s dramas overall are much more interesting than his comedies, but there’s such a similarity to the narratives of Perry’s dramas that they’re very much like passing by a car wreck: You know what you’re probably going to see is messy and tragic, but sometimes you’re compelled to take a look anyway.

To his credit, Perry gives a lot of work to black actors and actresses, since his movies and TV shows have predominantly black casts. It’s just too bad that he can’t come up with more original scripts that don’t have the same, tired concept that the central character (who’s usually an African American woman) is stressed-out and unhappy because of a man. She’s either dealing with a lying cheater, or she’s having problems finding a good man who won’t cheat on her, because she was treated badly by a cheater in her previous relationship.

In “A Fall From Grace,” the troubled woman is Grace Waters (played by Crystal Fox), a mid-level bank employee in her 50s who’s confessed to bludgeoning to death her much-younger second husband, Shannon DeLong (played by Mehcad Brooks), who was married to Grace for less than a year. The crime is shocking to people who know Grace, because she has a mild-mannered and passive personality. Grace’s 26-year-old attorney is public defender Jasmine Bryant (played by Bresha Webb), who’s reluctant to take the case because she’s eager to have her first experience going to trial. Her demanding boss Roy (played by Perry) thinks a trial isn’t necessary, since Grace has confessed to first-degree murder and wants to plead guilty.

As Roy explains to Jasmine, he put her on the case because Jasmine is an excellent negotiator of plea bargains, and he’s training her to do what public defenders usually do: make plea deals for almost all of their clients. But there’s another reason why Jasmine doesn’t want to take the case: As she privately tells her loyal and supportive husband, Jordan (played by Matthew Law), who’s a police officer for the city, she’s become disillusioned by representing so many people she thinks are guilty. Jasmine is seriously thinking about leaving her budding law career to start over in a new profession, but Jordan encourages her not to give up so easily.

Because Grace’s case is very high-profile in the local news, Jasmine is also feeling the pressure of getting the right deal for Grace. The maximum penalty for pleading guilty will be life without parole, but Jasmine is hoping that Grace (who has no previous arrest record) will get a plea bargain of 15 years with the possibility of parole. If Grace goes to trial, she risks getting the death penalty if she’s found guilty. Jasmine meets with a disheveled and dejected Grace in jail, and something about their meeting seems “off” to Jasmine—Grace’s only request for the deal is that she’s sent to a prison that’s near where her grandchildren live. Jasmine begins to wonder if Grace is really not guilty and possibly covering up for someone else.

Jasmine’s doubt about Grace’s guilt grows even more when she looks at the crime-scene photos, and sees that the blood patterns don’t match the patterns of someone who’s supposedly lost blood from a blow to the head. She shows the evidence to Roy, who orders her to make a plea deal and not bring the case to trial. Jasmine decides to investigate further anyway, knowing that she could end up getting fired for insubordination.

Jasmine finds herself meeting with one of Grace’s close friends named Sarah (played by Phylicia Rashad), who runs a boarding house for retired women. (Cicely Tyson has a cameo as one of the residents. She’s literally in the movie for less than 10 minutes.) Sarah tells Jasmine that she’s been friends with Grace for about six years.

In a flashback, viewers see Sarah and Grace talking after attending the wedding of Grace’s ex-husband, who left her for his much-younger secretary, whom he ended up marrying. Grace and her ex-husband (who have a married adult son together) had a divorce where Grace was willing to give up their house to him because she wanted to avoid any nasty legal battles. Grace has convinced herself that she’ll never fall in love again, but Sarah encourages her to get out of the house more and start dating again. Sarah suggests that Grace meet new people by going to an upcoming gallery event that will be the opening of a new photo exhibit.

While Grace is at the gallery exhibit, which features Ethiopian tribe photos taken by Shannon DeLong, she is approached by a hunky man who’s about 20 years younger than Grace. He strikes up a conversation with Grace and asks her what she thinks of the photos. Grace says that she’s very impressed with the photos.

She also tells the man that she thinks Shannon is probably an African woman, because the people in the photos look like they trusted the photographer. While they’re talking and as the man openly flirts with her, the gallery owner makes a speech to introduce Shannon DeLong. And lo and behold, to Grace’s surprise (but not to anyone else watching this who could easily guess who this mystery man is), the charming man whom she was talking to is none other than Shannon DeLong.

The next day, Shannon sends Grace some roses and one of his photos. Grace is curious and a little taken aback at his attempts to romance her because she doesn’t think she’s attractive enough for a man as good-looking and young as Shannon is. At first, she plays hard to get, but she eventually agrees to go out on a date with him.

While on the date, she asks him point-blank: “Why me?” Shannon replies, “Shouldn’t the question be, ‘Why not you?'” They end up having a whirlwind, chaste romance (Grace is religious and won’t sleep with him as long as they’re not married) that leads to Shannon proposing, and then they get married.

But how well does Grace really know her new husband? He starts to show a Jekyll-and-Hyde personality that can flip on a moment’s notice. When Grace overhears him talking on the phone to someone she doesn’t know, and she asks him who he’s talking to, he sneers at her in a menacing tone: “Grace, there are two things I don’t like: (1) being checked up on and (2) being questioned.” Grace finds out the hard way how much of a mistake it was to marry Shannon.

Grace catches him in their bedroom having sex with another woman. Grace also gets fired for embezzlement, and she finds out that Shannon committed the crime by stealing her identity. (This isn’t spoiler information, since it’s in the movie’s trailer.)

When they’re alone together, Shannon openly mocks Grace because he’s sure he can get away with what he did. Things get very ugly and bloody, with Grace whacking him repeatedly with a baseball bat, like someone fighting zombies in “The Walking Dead,” and it’s all resulted in Grace facing prison time for Shannon’s murder.

But wait. This wouldn’t be a Tyler Perry movie without something ludicrous about the plot. It turns out that Shannon’s body was never found. (This detail is also revealed in the movie’s trailer.) Presumably, the district attorney felt there was enough blood evidence to suggest that Shannon is dead, but even that’s a stretch of the imagination.

In real life, prosecution of a murder case, even with a confession, rarely happens without a body (or vital body parts, such as a skull or torso), in order for a medical examiner to determine the cause of death. In the rare instances when someone is charged with murder without a body being found, several years have passed after the allegedly murdered person has been declared missing. Perry is assuming that most people watching this movie won’t know all of that, because the point of having a missing body in this murder mystery is to make viewers wonder if Shannon is really dead.

But that opens up a whole other set of questions: Why did Grace confess in the first place if there was no body found? If Shannon isn’t dead, shouldn’t Grace still be in trouble for attempted murder? And who got rid of the body if he’s dead? Viewers won’t necessarily get the answers to these questions during the course of the movie, as Grace changes her mind about pleading guilty, and the case goes to trial.

The courtroom scenes are predictably over-the-top, but at least they’re more realistic than the bumbling cop scenes with Jasmine’s husband Jordan. In one scene, Jordan is handcuffing someone in an arrest on the street, and then when Jordan suddenly gets important information about Grace’s case, he drives off and leaves the suspect (still handcuffed) out on the street. Would it have been so hard to put the suspect in the back of the squad car instead of leaving him out on the street so he could run away? And in another scene that happens in the beginning of the movie, Jordan unsuccessfully tries to prevent a suicidal elderly woman from jumping off the roof of her house. Apparently, this city must be seriously lacking in police officers, since Jordan doesn’t have any other cop to back him up in this emergency scene.

The suicide scene at the beginning of the movie is explained at the end of the movie, which has a twist that’s kind of crazy. But people should know by now that Perry loves to churn out these soapy, pulpy dramas where people can soak up his brand of cheap thrills. Dive right on in, if that’s your thing.

Netflix premiered “A Fall From Grace” on January 17, 2020.

Review: ‘Dolittle,’ starring Robert Downey Jr.

January 17, 2020

by Carla Hay

Robert Downey Jr.  and parrot Polynesia (voiced by Emma Thompson) in “Dolittle” (Photo courtesy of Universal Pictures)

“Dolittle”

Directed by Stephen Gaghan

Culture Representation: Set primarily in the United Kingdom, this dramatic adventure movie’s live-action characters are nearly all white; the voice actors portraying the animated animals are a racially mixed cast; and the social classes range from working-class to royalty.

Culture Clash: A reclusive doctor with the special power to talk to animals reluctantly goes on a journey to find a rare medical cure, and faces obstacles that include more than one villain.

Culture Audience: “Dolittle” will appeal primarily to fans of children-oriented entertainment who don’t mind if the visuals are much better than the storytelling.

Dab-Dab the duck (voiced by Octavia Spencer), polar bear Yoshi (voiced by John Cena), parrot Polynesia (voiced by Emma Thompson), Dr. John Dolittle (played by Robert Downey Jr.), ostrich Plimpton (voiced by Kumail Nanjiani), Tommy Stubbins (played by Harry Collett) and gorilla Chee-Chee (voiced by Rami Malek) in “Dolittle” (Photo courtesy of Universal Pictures)

It’s not really a good sign when a major-studio film headlined by an A-list movie star is released in January, the month that’s a notorious dumping ground for bad movies. Universal Pictures must have known that “Dolittle” was going to be a dud, even with star Robert Downey Jr. coming off his major hot streak in the blockbuster superhero “Avengers” and “Iron Man” movies. (“Avengers: Endgame,” Downey’s 2019 movie that was released before “Dolittle,” now holds the record as the world’s biggest box-office movie hit of all time, ending the 10-year reign at the top held by “Avatar.”) “Dolittle” isn’t a terrible film. It’s just a terribly generic film in an era when we’ve been bombarded with kids-oriented movies that have talking animals.

By making “Dolittle” an action-adventure film, “Dolittle” director Stephen Gaghan, who wrote the screenplay with Dan Gregor and Doug Mand, tried to do something different from previous “Dolittle” movies. The original 1967 “Dr. Dolittle” film, starring Rex Harrison and a cast of other Brits, was a musical adapted from Hugh Lofting’s “Dr. Dolittle” book series. The three “Dr. Dolittle” movies from 1998, 2000 and 2006 were slapstick American comedies—the first two starred Eddie Murphy as the title character, and a third film was an ill-conceived flop starring Kyla Pratt, who played Dolittle’s daughter in the first two Murphy-starring films.

Gaghan’s “Dolittle” goes back to the original United Kingdom location, during the mid-1800s era of a young Queen Victoria (played by Jessie Buckley), who has come down with a mysterious illness. During the film’s animated opening sequence, viewers see that veterinarian John Dolittle once led a happy life taking care of animals with his beloved wife Lily (played by Kasia Smutniak), who died tragically.

Fast forward seven years later, and Dr. Dolittle has become a cranky hermit who has neglected his hygiene (he’s so unkempt that a mouse has been living in his beard), as he lives with his animals on his estate that’s essentially an animal sanctuary. The filmmakers have made Dolittle a Welshman, so it might take a while for some viewers to getting used to hearing Downey speak in a Welsh accent that sounds a little too pretentious for a movie where most of his co-stars are animated talking animals. This is a kids’ movie, not Shakespeare.

Tommy Stubbins (played by Harry Collett), a boy from the small village of Puddleby-on-the-Marsh, is an orphaned misfit who lives with his aunt and uncle. Tommy loves animals, and is therefore uncomfortable when he’s forced to go hunting with his uncle. When Tommy accidentally shoots a squirrel while hunting, he decides to take the injured animal to the mysterious Dr. Dolittle, even though the doctor has a reputation for being a curmudgeon. Instead of being afraid of Dolittle’s menagerie of wild animals, Tommy is fascinated and finds out that he has a knack for communicating with animals too. Affected by Tommy’s presence, Dolittle cleans himself up, as he notices that Tommy sees him as a role model and possible mentor.

It isn’t long before Dolittle gets another visitor: Queen Victoria’s attendant Lady Rose (played Carmel Laniado), who arrives with orders to bring Dolittle to Buckingham Palace to give medical aid to the queen. Dolittle has a big incentive to save the queen’s life, because his property has been loaned to him by the queen, and if she dies, he will lose the property.

While at the palace, Dolittle has an awkward reunion with a former school rival: royal physician Dr. Blair Müdfly (played by Michael Sheen), who is jealous of Dolittle’s talent and acclaim. Müdfly is such an over-the-top villain that he practically twirls his moustache and gnashes his teeth. And there’s another antagonist in the story: the ambitious Lord Thomas Badgley (played by Jim Broadbent), who will inherit the throne if Queen Victoria dies. (At this point in her life, Victoria is not married and has no children.)

Dolittle determines that the best cure for the queen’s life-threatening illness is fruit from the Eden Tree on Eden Tree Island, because this fruit is said to have magical powers. (How biblical.) Tommy has essentially decided that he doesn’t really want to go home, so he tags along on Dolittle’s voyage, with Dolittle’s numerous animals in tow as they set sail on a ship called the Water Lily.

Now, about the animals. The problem with “Dolittle” is that there are too many of them in this film. If you’re someone with a short attention span, good luck trying to keep track of all the talking animals. The “Madagascar” movies (another animated series with a variety of wild animals that talk) worked so well because the animals were in a relatively small group and their personalities were so distinct. In “Dolittle,” the personalities of most of the animals tend to blend together in a crowded mush, with the notable exception of the parrot Polynesia (voiced by Emma Thompson), a dutifully efficient assistant/caretaker with a whip-smart attitude. Polynesia holds a special place in Dolittle’s heart because the parrot used to be owned by Dolittle’s late wife Lily.

The other animals in this mixed-bag menagerie are Chee-Chee (voiced by Rami Malek), an insecure gorilla; Dab-Dab (voiced by Octavia Spencer), a maternal, scatterbrained American Pekin duck; Plimpton, a nervous osctrich (voiced by Kumail Nanjiani); Yoshi (voiced by John Cena), a polar bear who hates the cold, loves adventure, and often bickers with Plimpton; Betsy (voiced by Selena Gomez), a kind giraffe; Kevin (voiced by Crag Robinson), the injured squirrel that was accidentally shot by Tommy and who has a cheeky sense of humor; Tutu (voiced by Marion Cotillard), a fearless fox with leadership qualities; and Mini (voiced by Nick A. Fisher), a baby sugar glider that’s constantly curious.

Meanwhile, other talking animals include brainy dog Jip (voiced by Tom Holland), a long-haired Lurcher tasked with guarding the queen; Humphrey (voiced by Tim Treloar), a whale that helps navigate the Water Lily; James (voiced by Jason Mantzoukas), a nervous dragonfly; Barry (voiced by Ralph Fiennes), a Bengal tiger with mommy issues and a grudge against Dolittle; Don Carpenterino (voiced by David Sheinkopf), the leader of an ant colony; Army Ant (voiced by Matthew Wolfe), Don’s sidekick; and Dragon (voiced by Frances de la Tour), guardian of the Eden Tree.

As for other human characters, there’s also Pirate King Rassouli (played by Antonio Banderas), who lives on Monteverde Island, one of the stops along the way to Eden Tree Island. Banderas hams it up as yet another adversary to Dolittle and his crew. Large ensembles can work for well-written, live-action films geared to adults. But when it’s a mostly animated film geared to kids, the movie can come across as too cluttered for its own good.

“Dolittle” certainly has an impressive cast of acting talent. It’s too bad that so many of the characters are bland. Furthermore, Chee-Chee (the gorilla that’s a visual standout) is a missed opportunity, since the character was miscast for its voice. Malek sounds more like the minature “Frozen” snowman Olaf than a massive gorilla. The Chee-Chee character needed an actor with a deeper voice to better reflect the gorilla’s intimidating physical presence. Former wrestling champ Cena, who’s the voice of Yoshi the polar bear, would have been better in the role of Chee-Chee.

Although the characters in this movie are very underdeveloped, the compelling visual effects (overseen by visual effects supervisors Nicolas Aithadi and John Dykstra) are the most entertaining aspect of the film. Young children who are dazzled by visuals should enjoy “Dolittle” for the movie’s colorful ambiance, even if they won’t remember most of the movie’s animal characters weeks after seeing this film. (Don’t expect there to be a high demand for “Dolittle” toys.) More mature viewers might get easily bored with this movie, because it wallows in a lot of mediocrity that wastes this talented cast.

Simply put: “Dolittle” is not the kind of movie that people looking for high-quality entertainment will rush to see multiple times while it’s in theaters. We all know how this movie is going to end anyway.

Universal Pictures released “Dolittle” in U.S. cinemas on January 17, 2020.

 

 

 

Peacock announces more programming details for 2020 debut

January 16, 2020

NBCUniversal Content Studios chairman Bonnie Hammer at “Peacock Investor Day” at 30 Rockefeller Center in New York City on January 16, 2020. (Photo by Peter Kramer/Peacock)

The following is a press release from NBCUniversal:

At a Comcast investor presentation held in the iconic Studio 8H of 30 Rock, NBCUniversal unveiled Peacock, a free premium ad-supported streaming service with subscription tiers offering more than 600 movies and 400 series, as well as compelling live and on-demand content across news, sports, late night, and reality. From world-class originals and treasured hits, to blockbuster films and streaming channels, Peacock will offer consumers everything fans love to watch, all in one place.

Taking a different strategic approach, the company announced a tiered offering that gives consumers broad access to Peacock across web, mobile and connected-TV devices:

•    Peacock Free: This free, ad-supported option will provide fans everywhere with more than 7,500 hours of programming. Peacock Free includes next day access to current seasons of freshman broadcast series, complete classic series, popular movies, curated daily news and sports programming including the Olympics, Spanish-language content, select episodes of marquee Peacock originals and tent-pole series, as well as curated Peacock streaming genre channels such as “SNL Vault,” “Family Movie Night” and “Olympic Profiles.”
•    Peacock Premium: Bundled at no additional cost to 24 million Comcast and Cox subscribers, this ad-supported option will additionally include full season Peacock originals and tent-pole series, next day access to current seasons of returning broadcast series, early access to late night talk shows, and additional sports – such as the Premier League – totaling more than 15,000 hours of content. Also available for $4.99 per month on all popular connected mobile and web devices for non-bundled customers.

The company expects to bundle Peacock Premium with additional partners in the coming months.

Premium customers can upgrade to an ad-free experience for an additional $5.00 per month, or any customer can purchase the ad-free experience directly for $9.99 per month.

“This is a very exciting time for our company, as we chart the future of entertainment,” said Steve Burke, Chairman of NBCUniversal. “We have one of the most enviable collections of media brands and the strongest ad sales track record in the business. Capitalizing on these key strengths, we are taking a unique approach to streaming that brings value to customers, advertisers and shareholders.”

“Peacock will provide consumers with a destination that goes beyond movies and television, aggregating a variety of content that fans want on one service,” said Matt Strauss, Chairman of Peacock and NBCUniversal Digital Enterprises. “By delivering timely and topical content like breaking news, live sports, and watercooler moments from late night, Peacock is uniquely bringing a pulse to the world of streaming that does not exist in today’s marketplace.”

LAUNCH DATES & SUBSCRIBER TARGET:
Xfinity X1 and Flex customers will have early bird access to Peacock Premium starting April 15. And beginning July 15, taking full advantage of the massive promotional opportunity of the Tokyo Olympics, Peacock Free and Peacock Premium will be available nationally on popular web, mobile and connected-TV devices. The company expects to reach 30-35 million active accounts by 2024.

BRAND SPONSORS:
Peacock will launch with a select group of top brand sponsors, bringing in hundreds of millions of initial advertising revenue. Peacock’s launch sponsors include State Farm, Target and Unilever. Each launch sponsor will have the exclusive opportunity to define Peacock’s new advertising experience to give consumers the best content at the best price: free.

NEW CONTENT ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Peacock announced a broad slate of new, high-profile TV and film acquisitions, as well as a robust programming strategy around late night, sports, kids, news, and more, including:

TV ACQUISITIONS:
Peacock will stream the ratings juggernaut brands from Dick Wolf’s Wolf Entertainment, including “Law and Order,” “Law and Order: SVU,” “Law and Order: Criminal Intent,” “Chicago Fire,” “Chicago P.D.,” and “Chicago Med.” These dramas are consistently among the top-rated shows on television and among the most-streamed shows across platforms.

Peacock will also stream Paramount Network hit series “Yellowstone,” the record-breaking drama, licensed from ViacomCBS. “Yellowstone” is co-created by Taylor Sheridan and John Linson, and is co-produced by David Glasser’s 101 Studios. Additionally, “Two and a Half Men,” and “The George Lopez Show” from Warner Brothers were announced.

As previously announced, Peacock will offer some of the most popular NBC and classic TV series of all time, including “30 Rock,” “Bates Motel,” “Battlestar Galactica,” “Brooklyn Nine-Nine,” “Cheers,” “Chrisley Knows Best,” “Covert Affairs,” “Downton Abbey,” “Everybody Loves Raymond,” “Frasier,” “Friday Night Lights,” “House,” “Keeping Up with the Kardashians,” “King of Queens,” “Married…With Children,” “Monk,” “The Office,” “Parks and Recreation,” “Parenthood,” “Psych,” “Royal Pains,” “Saturday Night Live,” “Superstore,” and “Will & Grace.”

PEACOCK ORIGINALS:
Peacock has signed a multi-year partnership with Kevin Hart’s Laugh Out Loud network, which includes an equity investment in the company, a first look deal with LOL, and the distribution of LOL’s catalog on the service. As part of the agreement, Laugh Out Loud will produce a Kevin Hart stand-up comedy special and an original interview series called “Hart to Heart,” and a series of short-form content exclusively for Peacock.

Additional newly announced Peacock originals include Tina Fey-produced original series “Girls5Eva,” about a one-hit-wonder girl group from the 90’s that reunites to give their pop star dreams one more shot; international series from NBCUniversal International Studios, including drama thriller “The Capture,” fresh off its rating success on the BBC in the UK, and comedy “Lady Parts,” launching on Channel 4 in the U.K., as well as three highly anticipated new comedies from Sky Studios: “Intelligence” starring David Schwimmer, “Code 404,” and “Hitmen”; a racing series from Dale Earnhardt Jr.; and a behind-the-scenes documentary series that follows USA Basketball superstars on their journey to Tokyo, produced in partnership with the NBA.

Previously announced Peacock scripted originals include comedies such as “Rutherford Falls,” “Saved by the Bell,” “A.P. Bio,” “Punky Brewster,” and the movie spinoff “Psych 2: Lassie Come Home,” as well as dramas “Dr. Death,” “Battlestar Galactica,” “Brave New World,” “Angelyne,” and “Armas de Mujer.”

LATE NIGHT EARLY:
For the first time ever, fans will get exclusive early access to NBC’s acclaimed late night shows. Starting in July on Peacock Premium, NBC’s late night talk shows will be streaming on Peacock beginning at 8 p.m. ET with “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon,” followed by “Late Night with Seth Meyers” at 9 p.m. ET.

SPORTS:

OLYMPICS:
Peacock will give viewers a front-row seat for the most-watched event of 2020, the Tokyo Olympics. Peacock will feature live coverage of the Opening and Closing Ceremonies before they air on NBC in primetime, and three daily Olympic shows including, “Tokyo Live,” with live coverage of one of the day’s most exciting events; “Tokyo Daily Digest,” with mid-day highlights of the Games; and “Tokyo Tonight,” a complement to the primetime show that will help audiences catch up on the day’s events. Peacock will also live stream more than 1,000 hours of exclusive coverage from the Tokyo Paralympics. And following Tokyo, in partnership with the US Paralympic Committee, Peacock will add the Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA, 24/7, 365, featuring live coverage and can’t-miss content as America’s best athletes prepare for the 2022 Winter Olympics and beyond.

PREMIER LEAGUE & RYDER CUP:
Beginning in August 2020, soccer fans will be treated to 2,000 hours of Premier League coverage, including more than 140 matches that aren’t available on television, as well as clips and replays of the most exciting moments from the pitch.

The Ryder Cup golf tournament will be coming to the service in September 2020 with featured groups of Europe’s and America’s best pairings.

FILM:
Peacock will have the exclusive streaming rights for the 2020 Universal film slate and beyond in the network window. Films will include some of the biggest live action feature films of all time, including “Fast & Furious 9” and “Jurassic World 3.”

This is in addition to the previously announced premium original films and animated series in development for Peacock from Universal Pictures and DreamWorks Animation, and hundreds of critically-acclaimed films and box-office hits including “American Pie,” “Bridesmaids,” “Knocked Up,” “Meet the Parents,” “Meet the Fockers,” “A Beautiful Mind,” “Back to the Future,” “Brokeback Mountain,” “Casino,” “Dallas Buyers Club,” “Do the Right Thing,” “Erin Brockovich,” “E.T. The Extra Terrestrial,” “Field of Dreams,” “Jaws,” “Mamma Mia!,” “Shrek,” “The Breakfast Club,” and franchises including “Bourne,” “Despicable Me,” and “Fast & Furious.”

KIDS:
Peacock will have access to the first pay window for DreamWorks Animation films “Trolls World Tour,” “The Boss Baby 2,” and “The Croods 2.”

Peacock will also be the exclusive streaming home to new episodes of “Curious George,” one of the most beloved children’s titles in the history of animation.

New original series from DreamWorks Animation will also stream on Peacock, including “TrollsTopia,” “Madagascar: A Little Wild,” “The Mighty Ones,” “Cleopatra in Space” and “Where’s Waldo?”

Additionally, popular family film titles from DreamWorks, Illumination Entertainment and Universal Kids will be available on Peacock including “Shrek,” “Shark Tale,” and “Despicable Me.”

NEWS:
Unique among the major streaming services, Peacock will be home to live breaking news coverage – just as all eyes turn to the highly anticipated 2020 presidential election. NBC News NOW, the newly launched streaming network, will bring Peacock viewers “NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt” as well as original video from “TODAY” and across the NBC News portfolio. The longest running show in television history will also be part of the newest streaming platform – with an original offering from “Meet the Press with Chuck Todd” on Peacock each weekday. In addition, NBC News will create signature, original documentaries for Peacock – delving deep into politics, biographies and history. Peacock will also be home to full episodes of “Dateline” – the true crime original. And America’s most-watched news brand will go global, with coverage of the biggest stories shaping the planet as NBC News unveils a brand new international news network in collaboration with Sky.

ABOUT PEACOCK:
Peacock (www.peacocktv.com) is NBCUniversal’s new streaming service, launching in 2020. Peacock will deliver a world-class slate of exclusive originals, on-demand libraries of hit TV shows, including two of the most-watched streaming series “The Office” and “Parks and Recreation,” plus critically-acclaimed films from the vaults Universal Pictures, Focus Features, DreamWorks Animation, Illumination and Hollywood’s biggest studios. In addition, Peacock will tap into NBCUniversal’s unmatched ability to deliver a broad range of compelling topical content across news, sports, late-night and reality. NBCUniversal is a subsidiary of Comcast Corporation.

PEACOCK CONTENT ADDENDUM

Peacock Content Highlights

With 15,000+ hours of content, Peacock has something for everyone – from sports and news, classic films, exciting new originals, next-day episodes of broadcast favorites, to some of the most popular shows in television history. Simply stated, Peacock is the ultimate content destination. Below is a summary of the programming that is expected to be available on Peacock Premium through 2021.

Current Season Broadcast

NBC and Telemundo are home to some of the most acclaimed shows on television today. Peacock users can stream shows like This Is Us, Superstore, Law and Order: SVU, Operación Pacífico, and World of Dance the day after they air, with access to most previously aired current season episodes as well. For fans of late-night, episodes of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon and Late Night with Seth Meyers will be available to stream early on Peacock each day.

News & Sports

There has never been a more important time to stay informed. Drawing from trusted and iconic brands like NBC News, Sky News, MSNBC, and CNBC, Peacock users will have access to live news, same-day rebroadcasts, curated shorts, and exclusive 2020 Election coverage.

With the 2020 Tokyo Olympics beginning this summer, Peacock will be the ultimate hub for sports-lovers. Users will have access to live coverage of marquee Olympic events, in addition to analyst commentary, athlete profiles, and more. For fans of the Premier League, Peacock will stream 2,000 hours of programming including over 140 live matches. And for golf enthusiasts, Peacock will cover the Ryder Cup, with live coverage of featured holes and groups. All this – in addition to thousands of hours of original documentaries, curated clips, and more.

Original Series & Films

Peacock originals will feature the industry’s very best directors, producers, writers, and actors, with an impressive collection of shows that are completely unique to the service. Bold dramas like the new adaptation of the classic novel Brave New World will complement innovative comedies like Tina Fey’s Girls5Eva, and an exciting portfolio of unscripted shows, including an original interview series from Kevin Hart, Hart to Heart and a behind the scenes look at the making of Saturday Night Live. Revivals of classic favorites like Saved by the Bell and Battlestar Galactica make Peacock originals impossible to miss.

Television Series Library

10,000+ Hours

Peacock will be home to a collection of iconic library television series, including marquee scripted hits like The Office, Yellowstone, and the Dick Wolf library (over 1,000 hours of the Law and Order and Chicago brands), unscripted tent-poles such as Top Chef and The Kardashians, kids favorites like Curious George, and an expansive library of Spanish-language hits including Betty En NY.

Film Library

1,200+ Hours

Drawing from Universal, DreamWorks, Illumination, and Focus Features’ vast libraries of premier movies and franchises, Peacock will offer over 600 films in its first year after launch. Peacock films will appeal to the entire household and include celebrated titles like Jurassic Park, The Fast and the Furious, E.T. the Extra Terrestrial, Trolls World Tour, The Croods, and Shrek.

Current Season Broadcast

NBC is home to some of the most beloved TV shows. For most of our broadcast primetime slate, Peacock will offer viewers next-day access to new current season episodes, as well as previously aired current season episodes. 

Select Next-Day-Airing Titles

America’s Got Talent: Champions
Blindspot
Bluff City Law
Bring the Funny
Chicago Fire
Chicago Med
Chicago P.D.
Council of Dads*
Ellen’s Game of Games
Hollywood Game Night
Indebted*
Law and Order: SVU
Lincoln Rhyme*
Making It
Manifest
New Amsterdam
Perfect Harmony
Songland
Sunnyside
Superstore
The Blacklist
The Inbetween
The Kenan Show*
The Wall
This Is Us
Titan Games
World of Dance
Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist*

Daytime Broadcasts

Access Hollywood
The Kelly Clarkson Show
Days of Our Lives

Late-Night “Early” Broadcasts

The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon (available at 8pm ET)
Late Night with Seth Meyers (available at 9pm ET)

Telemundo will also offer several current-season titles next-day, including “Caso Cerrado” and “Operación Pacífico.”

News

Peacock users will have access to full episodes, curated clips, and original shorts covering politics, current events, pop culture, finance, and more.

Same-Day-Airing Broadcasts
NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt, Meet the Press with Chuck Todd

Live Channels
NBC News Now, Sky News, NBC/Sky Global News (new channel)

Short-form Content
Timely and curated clips from TODAY, CNBC, MSNBC, E! News, NBC Nightly News, and Meet the Press

Originals & Documentaries
Original content from the Meet the Press franchise, investigative documentaries including full seasons of “Dateline” and “Lock Up,” and dozens of library documentaries from NBC News and CNBC

Sports
Peacock will be a destination for premium sports content, including live coverage of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, and dedicated streaming channels.

Olympics Coverage (July – August 2020)

Live coverage of Opening and Closing Ceremonies, and three daily shows:

“Tokyo Live,” a five-hour live morning studio show during Tokyo primetime with live coverage of major events, plus medal ceremonies, engaging segments with athlete profiles, and real-time analysis

“Tokyo Daily Digest,” an hour-long highlight show with the best and buzziest moments, athlete interviews, features, and more

“Tokyo Tonight,” a nightly live studio show with quick turn-around highlights, in addition to medal ceremonies, features, interviews, and primetime previews

Paralympics Coverage (August 2020) 
1,000+ hours of exclusive live streaming coverage of the 2020 Paralympic Games

Premier League Games (August 2020 – May 2021)
2,000 hours of Premier League coverage, including over 140 live matches across all teams and a dedicated streaming channel

Ryder Cup Coverage (September 2020)
Live coverage from Whistling Straits of featured holes and groups at the 2020 Ryder Cup

And, Curated Highlights from NBC Sports

Peacock Originals

Peacock will offer an unparalleled slate of original shows, with content for the entire household, and genres spanning drama, comedy, unscripted, and kids.

Scripted Drama Originals

Peacock’s original dramas reach every corner of the drama-loving universe. From Gen-Z (“One of Us is Lying”) to adults (“Angelyne”) to sci-fi (“Battlestar Galactica”) to crime (“Dr. Death”) – anyone can get hooked on a Peacock drama.

SERIES ORDERS

Angelyne
Limited series based on The Hollywood Reporter feature that explored the identity of L.A.’s mysterious billboard bombshell.
Executive Producer/Star: Emmy Rossum
Executive Producers: Sam Esmail, Chad Hamilton, Allison Miller
Director/Executive Producer: Lucy Tcherniak
Consultant: Gary Baum
Studio: UCP

Armas De Mujer
From the team behind Telemundo’s hit La Reina del Sur comes a new dramedy series led by Mexican superstar Kate del Castillo. Four women suffer their worst nightmare: the police arrest their husbands for being linked to the same criminal organization. Accustomed to a life of abundance, they will be forced to join forces in the most unusual manner.
Writer: Jose Luis Acosta
Executive Producer: Marcos Santana

Battlestar Galactica
From the mind of Mr. Robot creator Sam Esmail comes a series that explores a new story within the Battlestar Galactica mythology, the eponymous TV show that saw humanity at war with Cylons, machines of their own creation.
Executive Producers: Sam Esmail, Chad Hamilton
Studio: UCP

Brave New World
Based on Aldous Huxley’s groundbreaking 1932 novel, Brave New World imagines a utopian society that has achieved peace and stability through the prohibition of monogamy, privacy, money, family, and history itself.
Writer/Executive Producer: David Wiener
Director/Executive Producer: Owen Harris
Executive Producers: Grant Morrison, Darryl Frank (Amblin), Justin Falvey (Amblin), Brian Taylor
Starring: Alden Ehrenreich, Jessica Brown Findlay, Harry Lloyd, Kylie Bunbury, Hannah John-Kamen, Sen Mitsuji, Joseph Morgan, Nina Sosanya, Demi Moore
Studio: UCP

The Capture
A timely conspiracy thriller exploring pressing questions about surveillance and misinformation. Set in London, the modern-day spy show begins with the arrest of a former soldier, which spirals into a complex conspiracy involving manipulated video evidence. Produced by Heyday Television.
Director/Writer: Ben Chanan
Executive Producers: David Heyman, Rosie Alison, Ben Irving, Tom Coan, Tom Winchester
Producer: Derek Ritchie
Starring: Callum Turner, Holliday Grainger, Ron Perlman, Famke Janssen, Ben Miles, Ralph Ineson, Paul Ritter, Lia Williams, Laura Haddock

Dr. Death
Based on Wondery’s hit podcast of the same name, Dr. Death tells the terrifying true story of Dr. Christopher Duntsch (Jamie Dornan), a rising star in the Dallas medical community. Young, charismatic and ostensibly brilliant, Dr. Duntsch was building a flourishing neurosurgery practice when everything suddenly changed. Patients entered his operating room for complex but routine spinal surgeries and left permanently maimed or dead. As victims piled up, two fellow physicians, neurosurgeon Robert Henderson (Alec Baldwin) and vascular surgeon Randall Kirby (Christian Slater), set out to stop him. Dr. Death explores the twisted mind of a sociopath and the gross negligence of the system designed to protect the most defenseless among us.
Writer/Executive Producer: Patrick Macmanus
Executive Producers: Todd Black (Escape Artists), Jason Blumenthal (Escape Artists), Steve Tisch (Escape Artists), Hernan Lopez (Wondery), Marshall Lewy (Wondery)
Starring: Jamie Dornan, Alec Baldwin, Christian Slater
Studio: UCP

PILOT ORDERS

One of Us is Lying
Based on Karen M. McManus’s New York Times best-selling novel of the same name, One of Us is Lying is the story of what happens when five strangers walk into detention and only four walk out alive. Everyone is a suspect, and everyone has something to hide.
Writer/Executive Producer: Erica Saleh
Director/Executive Producer: Jennifer Morrison
Author: Karen M. McManus
Executive Producers: John Sacchi (5 More Minutes), Matt Groesch (5 More Minutes)
Starring: Marianly Tejada, Cooper van Grootel, Annalisa Cochrane, Chibuikem Uche, Jessica McLeod, Barrett Carnahan, Melissa Collazo, Mark McKenna
Studio: UCP

Comedy Originals
Nobody knows comedy like Peacock and NBCUniversal, with a dream-team including Tina Fey, Lorne Michaels, Michael Schur, Seth Meyers, and Jimmy Fallon. Peacock will boast an impressive collection of comedies, including a revival of the classic sitcom “Saved by the Bell.”

SERIES ORDERS

The Amber Ruffin Show
Each week The Amber Ruffin Show will showcase Amber’s signature smart-and-silly take on the week.  A late-night show with just the good parts – the comedy.
Executive Producer/Star: Amber Ruffin
Executive Producers: Jenny Hagel, Seth Meyers & Mike Shoemaker (Sethmaker Shoemeyers)

A.P. Bio
When disgraced Harvard philosophy professor Jack Griffin loses out on his dream job, he is forced to return to Toledo, Ohio, and work as a high school Advanced Placement biology teacher. As he comes crashing in to Whitlock High School, Jack makes it absolutely clear he will not be teaching any biology. Realizing he has a room full of honor roll students at his disposal, Jack decides instead to use the kids for his own benefit. Eager to prove that he is still king of the castle, Principal Durbin struggles to control the force of nature that is Jack Griffin.
Writer/Executive Producer: Mike O’Brien
Executive Producers: Lorne Michaels, Seth Meyers & Mike Shoemaker (Sethmaker Shoemeyers), Andrew Singer (Broadway Video)
Starring: Glenn Howerton, Patton Oswalt, Lyric Lewis, Mary Sohn, Jean Villepique, Paula Pell
Studio: Universal Television

Code 404
Detective Inspectors Major and Carver are the top crime-fighting duo at the Met Police’s Special Investigation Unit, until Major gets gunned down on the job. But in an experimental artificial intelligence project, he’s brought back from the dead.

Director: Al Campbell

Writer: Daniel Peak (co-creator)

Executive Producers: Tom Miller (co-creator), Sam Mayer (co-creator), Phil Temple, Diederick Santer, Morwenna Gordon

Producer: Charlotte Surtees

Starring: Daniel Mays, Stephen Graham, Anna Maxwell Martin

Studio: Sky Studios

Five Bedrooms 
This is a story of five unlikely allies in life who throw caution to the wind and hit upon a unique solution to a common problem. Ignoring the nay-saying of families and friends, they’re teaming up, signing contracts and buying a house together. Yes, it’s a grand social experiment. It might be genius, or it might be a total disaster…but they’re not putting their lives on hold for love any longer. There’s just one glaring problem: they’ll have to live with each other.

Directors: Peter Templeman, Corrie Chen, Fiona Banks

Writers: Michael Lucas, Christine Bartlett

Executive Producers: Pino Amenta, Tracey Robertson, Nathan Mayfield

Starring: Kat Stewart, Stephem Peacocke, Doris Younane, Katie Robertson, Roy Joseph

Girls5Eva
When a one-hit-wonder girl group from the 90’s gets sampled by a young rapper, its members reunite to give their pop star dreams one more shot. They may be grown women balancing spouses, kids, jobs, debt, aging parents, and shoulder pain, but can‘t they also be Girls5Eva?

Writer/Executive Producer: Meredith Scardino

Executive Producers: Tina Fey (Little Stranger, Inc.), Robert Carlock (Bevel Gears), Jeff Richmond, David Miner (3 Arts Entertainment), Eric Gurian (Little Stanger)

Studio: Universal Television

Hitmen
The hits and (more often than not) misses of two hapless, dead broke best friends trying to make their way in the world with only each other to rely on. They also just happen to kill people for a living. Having stumbled into a career in contract killing, misfits Fran and Jamie are not your typical killers for hire. Working out of their scruffy van, each episode follows the hapless duo as they try to carry out their latest hit, inevitably derailed by incompetence, bickering, and inane antics.

Director: Ollie Parsons

Executive Producers: Myfanwy Moore, Siobhan Bachman, Morwenna Gordon
Producer: Arnold Widdowson

Starring: Sue Perkins, Mel Giedroyc, Jason Watkins, Sian Clifford, Asim Chaundry

Studio: Sky Studios

Intelligence
A workplace sitcom set in the UK’s Government Communications Headquarters, which is a kind of weedier, geekier, more bureaucratic version of MI5 and MI6. When an arrogant, maverick NSA agent Jerry comes over from the US to join the team, he enlists an inept and tactless computer analyst Joseph in a power grab that threatens to disrupt the team’s ability to combat cyber terrorism.

Director: Matt Lipsey

Writer/Executive Producer: Nick Mohammed

Executive Producers: David Schwimmer, Nerys Evans, Morwenna Gordon

Co-Executive Producer: Tom Hodges

Producer: Charlie Leech

Starring: David Schwimmer, Nick Mohammed

Studio: Sky Studios

Lady Parts
Lady Parts is an anarchic, laugh-out-loud music comedy following a Muslim female punk band called Lady Parts. It tracks the highs and lows of the band members as seen through the eyes of Amina Hussein – a geeky PhD student who is recruited to be their unlikely lead guitarist. Produced by Working Title TV.

Director/Writer: Nida Manzoor

Executive Producers: Mark Freeland (Working Title TV), Surian Fletcher-Jones (Working Title TV)

Studio: NBCUniversal International Studios

Psych 2: Lassie Come Home (Film)
Santa Barbara Police Chief Carlton Lassiter is ambushed on the job and left for dead. In a vintage Psych-style Hitchcockian nod, he begins to see impossible happenings around his recovery clinic. Shawn and Gus return to Lassie’s side in Santa Barbara and are forced to navigate the personal, the professional, and possibly the supernatural. Separated from their new lives in San Francisco, our heroes find themselves unwelcome in their old stomping grounds as they secretly untangle a twisted case without the benefit of the police, their loved ones, or the quality sourdough bakeries of the Bay Area. What they uncover will change the course of their relationships forever.

Writer/Director/Executive Producer: Steve Frank

Writer/Executive Producer/Star: James Roday

Writer: Andy Berman

Executive Producers: Chris Henzie, Dulé Hill

Starring: James Roday, Dulé Hill, Maggie Lawson, Kirsten Nelson, Corbin Bernsen, Tim Omundson

Studio: UCP

Punky Brewster 
In this continuation of the iconic 80s sitcom about a bright young girl raised by a foster dad, Punky is now a single mother of three trying to get her life back on track when she meets Izzy (Copeland), a young girl in the foster system who reminds Punky a lot of her younger self.

Executive Producer/Star: Soleil Moon Frye

Writers/Executive Producers: Steve Armogida, Jim Armogida

Director/Executive Producer: Jonathan Judge

Executive Producers: Jimmy Fox (All3Media), Tim Pastore (All3Media), David Duclon

Starring: Soleil Moon Frye, Cherie Johnson, Quinn Copeland, Lauren Donzis, Oliver De Los Santos, and Noah Cottrell. Freddie Prinze Jr. guest stars in the pilot.

Studio: UCP/Universal Television

Rutherford Falls 
A small town in upstate New York is turned upside down when local legend and town namesake, Nathan Rutherford (Ed Helms) fights the moving of a historical statue.

Writer/Executive Producer/Star: Ed Helms

Writers/Executive Producers: Michael Schur (Fremulon), Sierra Teller Ornelas

Executive Producers: David Miner (3 Arts Entertainment), Mike Falbo (Pacific Electric), Morgan Sackett

Studio: Universal Television

Saved by the Bell
When California governor Zack Morris gets into hot water for closing too many low-income high schools, he proposes they send the affected students to the highest performing schools in the state – including Bayside High. The influx of new students gives the over privileged Bayside kids a much needed and hilarious dose of reality.

Writer/Executive Producer: Tracey Wigfield

Director/Executive Producer: Trent O’Donnell

Executive Producers: Peter Engel, Franco Bario

Starring: Mario Lopez (Producer), Elizabeth Berkley (Producer), John Michael Higgins, Josie Totah

Studio: Universal Television

The Kids Tonight Show
The Kids Tonight Show is the only late-night talk show for kids, by kids. Kids doing a monologue, kids playing games, and kids interviewing the biggest stars in the world. It’s everything you love about Jimmy Fallon, but the kids are in charge.

Produced by Universal Television Alternative Studio in association with Matador Content LLC and Electric Hot Dog, Inc.

Executive Producers: Jimmy Fallon (Electric Hot Dog, Inc.), Jay Peterson (Matador Content), Todd Lubin (Matador Content), Mark Efman (BoomTown Content), Paul Ricci (BoomTown Content)

Who Wrote That
A docuseries that gives a behind the scenes look at Saturday Night Live’s most important writers.

Executive Producers: Lorne Michaels, Andy Breckman, Susan Morrison, Andrew Singer & Erin Doyle (Broadway Video), Derik Murray & Brian Gersh (Network Entertainment), Erik Kenward, Howard Klein (3 Arts Entertainment)

Director: Brent Hodge

Studio: Universal Television Alternative Studio

Kids Originals
Peacock’s original kids shows will feature top IP from DreamWorks as well as the first new “Curious George” episode in 6 years.

SERIES ORDERS

Archibald’s Next Big Thing
From the creative mind of Tony Hale (Veep), Archibald’s Next Big Thing is the story of Archibald Strutter, a chicken who ‘yes-ands’ his way through life. Archibald and his siblings live in Crackridge, a close-knit community filled with an ensemble of quirky characters. Archibald’s adventurous spirit often gets him in over his head, but he always manages to leave his world better than when he found it. Through Archibald’s unique perspective, we discover that things are seldom perfect and instead learn to focus on the humor and beauty of life’s imperfections.

Dragon Rescue Riders 
Executive produced by Jack Thomas (Dragons: Race to the Edge), Dragons: Rescue Riders takes our young heroes to new highs when Dak, Leyla and their dragon friends find strange crystals that change their powers in fantastic and unexpected ways.  And to new lows when they discover the sunken city of Valantis – a place filled with much dragon knowledge and danger.

DreamWorks Where’s Waldo?
DreamWorks Where’s Waldo? brings the iconic character to life in a new animated series from executive producer FM De Marco (Spy Kids: Mission Critical) and co-executive producer John Tellegen (Spy Kids: Mission Critical). Twelve-year- old Waldo and his best friend Wenda are members of the Worldwide Wanderer Society—the international order of curious travelers who circle the globe celebrating cultures and solving problems through observation. Their mentor—Wizard Whitebeard, a seasoned wanderer—sends these inquisitive young adventurers on international travel missions so they can earn their stripes and someday become wizard-level wanderers too. But standing in Waldo and Wenda’s way is their rival Odlulu, who can’t help but cause trouble wherever she goes.

Curious George 
For more than 60 years the world has followed the adventures of a curious little monkey named George and his friend the Man with the Yellow Hat.  Created by Margret and H.A. Rey, Curious George was first published in 1941 and has remained consistently beloved by children ever since.  This animated series continues with that tradition as it introduces George to a whole new adoring generation. With a focus on education, the series incorporates early science and math content and draws upon George’s curiosity-driven adventures to target pre-school age viewers.  George’s entertaining and ultimately informative experiences have proven to parents and children worldwide that there is nothing wrong with wanting to learn about the world around you!

Sports Originals

Peacock will be home to fascinating sports documentaries that capture the excitement, passion, and intrigue of sports’ most compelling stories.

SERIES ORDERS

Dream Team 2020
Follow USA Basketball’s top superstars on their journey to Tokyo in this exclusive, behind the scenes documentary series produced in partnership with NBA Entertainment. We’ll take you inside the 2020 Dream Team’s training camp, exhibition games and preparation for the 2020 Olympics, where Team USA is expected to make another gold medal run.

Hot Water: In Deep with Ryan Lochte
At the 2016 Rio Olympics Ryan Lochte was at the center of a scandal that has since overshadowed his long and decorated swimming career. Now a 35-year-old husband and father of two young children, Lochte is hoping for one more chance to make Team USA, and prove he’s not the same man he was four years ago.

United States of Speed
From Jesse Owens to Carl Lewis to Maurice Greene, there is a proud tradition of sprinting success in the United States.  However in recent years, Jamaica’s Usain Bolt has been unbeatable at the Olympics. Now that the fastest man of all time has retired, meet the Americans who aim to put Team USA back on top in the sprints.

Run Through the Line
Nike founder Phil Knight and his friends take viewers through the creation of his world-renowned company and the ambitions he still chases at 81 years young. Based loosely on Knight’s best-selling memoir, Shoe Dog.

The Greatest Race
You probably remember where you were when you saw it. Michael Phelps and his teammates had fallen hopelessly behind race favorite France in the 4×100 relay at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.  In the final leg, 32-year-old American Jason Lezak was losing ground to Alain Bernard, the 100m world record holder and anchor of the seemingly unbeatable French team. Then the impossible happened.  Hear from the swimmers on both sides of the epic relay as we revisit The Greatest Race.

Untitled Dale Earnhardt Jr. Series
Created and hosted by Dale Earnhardt Jr., this series is an exploratory look at great racing cathedrals of the past. Dale Jr. tells the stories of speedways that have been forgotten, abandoned, and overtaken by nature.

Scripted Series Library
Peacock will be home to the best scripted series library, including favorites like “The Office,” “Parks and Recreation,” and the Dick Wolf library (“Law and Order” & “Chicago” brands).

Select Titles Coming in 2020/21 Include:

30 Rock
A-Team
Bates Motel
Battlestar Galactica
Brooklyn Nine-Nine
Chicago Fire
Chicago Med
Chicago P.D.
Cheers
Covert Affairs
Crossing Jordan
Downton Abbey
Everybody Loves Raymond
Frasier
Friday Night Lights
Heroes
House
Jeff Foxworthy Show
King of Queens
Knight Rider
Law and Order
Law and Order: Criminal Intent
Law and Order: SVU
Leave it to Beaver
Magnum P.I. (1980)
Married… With Children
Miami Vice (1984)
Monk
Murder She Wrote
New Amsterdam
Parenthood
Parks & Recreation
Psych
Roseanne
Royal Pains
Saturday Night Live
Saved by the Bell
Suits
Superstore
The George Lopez Show
The Mindy Project
The Office
The Purge
Two and a Half Men
Will & Grace
Yellowstone

Unscripted Series Library
Peacock will be a destination for premier unscripted content, with drama, food, crime, and more, including the most popular franchises on TV today.

Select Titles Coming in 2020/21 Include:

American Greed
American Ninja Warrior
Bad Girls Club
Below Deck
Botched
Chrisley Knows Best
Dateline
Don’t Be Tardy
Face Off
Flipping Out
Hollywood Game Night
Hollywood Medium
Keeping Up with the Kardashians
Killer Couples
Lock-Up
Married to Medicine
Million Dollar Listing
Paranormal Witness
Snapped
Southern Charm franchise
Summer House
The Profit
The Real Housewives franchise
Top Chef

Kids Library
Peacock will feature a library of top kids films and shows that range from new friends to characters beloved for generations.

Select Titles Coming in 2020/21 Include:

3-2-1 Penguins
Beethoven
Care Bears
Cleopatra in Space
Curious George library
Father of the Pride
Fievel’s American Tail
He-Man & Masters of the Universe
Kody Kapow
Madagascar: A Little Wild
Maisy
New Adventures of He-Man
New Adventures of Zorro
Postman Pat
Punky Brewster (Animated)
Sabrina the Teenage Witch
She-Ra
Shelley Duvall’s Bedtime Stories
The Chica Show
The Mighty Ones
TrollsTopia
Voltron Force
Voltron Defender of the Universe
Woody Woodpecker
Zafari

Hispanic Library
Peacock will offer the large and growing U.S. Latino audience premium programming from the #1 Spanish-language network, Telemundo. The platform will feature popular library titles like “100 Días Para Enamorarnos,” “Betty in NY,” and “Preso No. 1.”

Select Titles Coming in 2020/21 Include:

100 Días para Enamorarnos
Al Otro Lado Del Muro
Betty En NY
Chiquis N’ Control
Corazón Valiente
¿Dónde está Elisa?
El Barón
El Chema
El Rostro De La Venganza
Guerra de Ídolos
Historias De La Virgen Morena
José José
La Querida Del Centauro
Larrymania
Más Sabe El Diablo
Mi Familia Perfecta
Perro Amor
Preso No. 1
¿Quién es Quién?
Reina De Corazones
Relaciones Peligrosas
Santa Diabla
The Riveras
Un Poquito Tuyo
Victoria

Film Library
Drawing from Universal, DreamWorks, Illumination, and Focus Features’ extensive libraries, Peacock will offer over 600 titles.

Select Titles Coming in 2020/21 Include:

A Beautiful Mind
American Gangster
American Pie
American Psycho
Big Fat Liar
Big Lebowski
Boss Baby
Bridesmaids
Brokeback Mountain
Bruno
Casino
Changeling
Chicken Run
Children of Men
Cinderella Man
Dallas Buyers Club
Definitely Maybe
Despicable Me
Devil
Do the Right Thing
Dune
E.T. the Extra Terrestrial
Erin Brockovich
Evan Almighty
Field of Dreams
Forgetting Sarah Marshall
Get Him to the Greek
Heat (1986)
Hellboy II: The Golden Army
How to Train Your Dragon
It’s Complicated
Jurassic Park
Jurassic Park III
Jurassic Park: The Lost World
Kicking & Screaming
King Kong
Knocked Up
Liar, Liar
Little Fockers
Little Rascals
Love Happens
Mamma Mia!
Meet Joe Black
Meet the Fockers
Meet the Parents
Moonrise Kingdom
Parenthood
Prince of Egypt
Psycho
Ray
Scent of a Woman
Schindler’s List
Shark Tale
Shrek
Sinbad
Something New
Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron
Tale of Despereaux
The Blair Witch Project
The Blues Brothers
The Bourne Identity
The Bourne Supremacy
The Break-Up
The Breakfast Club
The Croods
The Fast and The Furious
The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift
The Good Shepherd
The Graduate
The Kids Are Alright
The Mummy
The Mummy Returns
The Road to El Dorado
The Scorpion King
Trolls World Tour
Waiting…
Wanted
What Dreams May Come
You, Me and Dupree
Peacock Virtual Channels
Virtual Channels provide users a unique lean-back experience, with 24/7 feeds of curated content. By the end of 2020, users will have access to dozens of virtual channels.

Select Virtual Channels Include:

Art House: Indie films with small budgets and big acclaim
Family Movie Night: Films for the whole family
Get Spooked: Scary movies to keep you up all night
L&O DUN DUN: Law & Order all the time
Latino Now by Telemundo: Películas y series en Español
Laugh it Out: All comedy, all the time
Nail Biters: Intense thrillers
Olympics Docs: The stories behind the biggest Olympic athletes
Olympics Profiles: Compelling stories about the athletes of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics
Out of This World: Sci-fi & fantasy that will blow your mind
Peachicks: Keeping toddlers entertained and educated
Peacock Kids: Shows every 6-11 year-old will love
Peacock Poker: Like the best seat at a casino, 24/7
Peacock Sports: Live, replays, and highlights from your favorite sports
Rotten Tomatoes: Fresh film and TV recommendations, hot trailers, breaking news, and top moments
SNL Vault: Every SNL season from Chevy to Che
Tear Jerkers: Movies with a side of tissues
The Ones You Love: The can’t-go-wrong classic TV and movies
True Crime: Real crimes. Real people.

2020 Songwriters Hall of Fame: Mariah Carey, Steve Miller, Isley Brothers, Pharrell Williams, Annie Lennox, Dave Stewart among inductees

January 16, 2020

March 31, 2020 UPDATE: This event has been rescheduled to take place on June 10, 2021. See information at the end of this article.

The following is a press release from the Songwriters Hall of Fame:

Musical legends Mariah Carey; Annie Lennox and Dave Stewart (previously known as Eurythmics); Ernie Isley / Marvin Isley / O’Kelly Isley / Ronald Isley / Rudolph Isley / Chris Jasper (previously known as The Isley Brothers); Steve Miller; Chad Hugo / Pharrell Williams (previously known as The Neptunes); Rick Nowels’ and William “Mickey” Stevenson will become the latest inductees of the Songwriters Hall of Fame at the organization’s 51st Annual Induction and Awards Dinner. These legendary songwriters wrote mega-hits such as, “Vision of Love,” “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This),” “Shout,” “The Joker,” “Hollaback Girl,” “Heaven is a Place on Earth,” and “Dancing In The Street.” The star-studded induction event is slated for Thursday, June 11, 2020, at the Marriott Marquis Hotel in New York City. Additional special award honorees will be announced soon.

SHOF Chairman Nile Rodgers said, “The first thing you need to know is it’s about the song, the second thing you need to know is it’s about the song, the third thing you need to know is it’s about the song. I am very proud that we are recognizing some of the culturally most important songwriters of all time and that the 2020 slate of inductees represents diversity and unity across genres, ethnicity and gender, writers who have enriched our lives and in their time literally transformed music and helped make it what it is today.”

Established in 1969, the Songwriters Hall of Fame (SHOF) serves as a vital bridge between music’s past and future. In the Hall, musical pioneers are enshrined and celebrated, while the organization’s outreach to the music community grooms the next generation of troubadours. To qualify for induction, a songwriter with a notable catalog of songs qualifies for induction 20 years after the first commercial release of a song.

Mariah Carey
Mariah Carey is one of the most celebrated singer-songwriters and the best-selling female artist of all time. Smashing the Billboard Hot 100 number ones, Mariah Carey is the all-time most successful female songwriter in chart history. She has written or co-written 18 of her 19 number one songs on the Billboard Hot 100, and holds the record as the songwriter with the most weeks spent at the number one spot on the chart, counting 77 weeks in total. Mariah is in an elite group of songwriters to have had four or more number one singles on the Billboard Hot 100 from one album, four of which are from her self-titled debut album.

She wrote her debut single, “Visions of Love” and first No.1 hit single at the age of 17. Since then, she has penned the most successful modern (post-1963) Christmas standard, “All I Want For Christmas Is You,” and in 2006 the song became the first ringtone to be certified Gold by the RIAA, and it is now certified 2x Platinum making it the first ringtone to do so. The Christmas hit also holds the Guinness World Record for highest-charting holiday (Christmas/New Year) song on Billboard’s Hot 100 by a solo artist in addition to becoming the most streamed track on Spotify in 24 hours.

In 2011, Rolling Stone voted Mariah Carey’s “One Sweet Day” with Boyz II Men the Best-Ever Musical Collaboration and the track held the record for most weeks at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 from 1995 to 2019. The superstar is also the only songwriter to have had three songs debut at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 (“Fantasy,” “One Sweet Day,” “Honey”) and she is the only songwriter to receive Billboard’s Song of the Decade twice (“One Sweet Day” and “We Belong Together” for the 90’s Together” for the 00’s). Additionally, Mariah’s “We Belong Together” and “One Sweet Day” are both on Billboard’s list of All-Time Top 100 Hit Songs.

Over the course of her career, Mariah Carey has received ample recognition for her songwriting. In 2012, she won the BMI Icon Award for Songwriting, and has won 34 BMI Pop Music Awards for 21 different singles including three Songwriter of the Year Awards and two Song of the Year Awards for “Vision of Love” and “One Sweet Day.” She was Grammy-nominated two times as a writer for Song of the Year for “Vision of Love” and “We Belong Together” and three times as a writer for R&B Song for “Honey,” “We Belong Together,” and “Don’t Forget About Us.” In 2018, Carey was nominated for a Golden Globe for the title song of the movie, The Star and in 2019 won the prestigious Ivor Novello Award for songwriting.

In addition to her outstanding songwriting achievements, Carey has won multiple GRAMMY Awards, numerous American Music Awards, Billboard’s “Top Female Artist of All Time”, Billboard’s “Artist of the Decade” Award, Billboard’s “Icon Award,” and the World Music Award for “World’s Best Selling Female Artist of the Millennium.” With her distinct five-octave vocal range, prolific songwriting, and producing talent, Mariah is truly the template of the modern pop performance.

Over the last three decades, Mariah Carey has written over 50 timeless songs and has collaborated with industry icons including Jermaine Dupri, Rick James, Tricky Stewart, Missy Elliot, Jay-Z, Dianne Warren, Carole King, George Michael, Randy Jackson, Whitney Houston and more. Mariah Carey’s songs have been covered, performed and sampled by numerous artists, including Aretha Franklin, Patti Labelle, Kelly Rowland, Kelly Clarkson, Fantasia, Ariana Grande, Idina Menzel, Cee-Lo Green, Michael Buble, Fifth Harmony and Drake. Her ongoing impact has transcended the music industry to leave an indelible imprint upon the world at large.

Annie Lennox / Dave Stewart (previously known as Eurythmics)
80’s British pop duo, Eurythmics namely, Annie Lennox and Dave Stewart, achieved global success with their album Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This) for which the title track became a worldwide hit topping the charts in numerous countries including the U.S. The duo went on to release a string of hit singles and albums before they went their own ways in 1990. Both Lennox and Stewart spent the next nine years focusing on their solo careers. Eurythmics reunited in 1999 to record their ninth album, Peace, and once again in 2005 to release their single “I’ve Got A Life,” which also appeared on the new Eurythmics compilation album, Ultimate Collection. The duo won an MTV Music Video Award for Best New Artist in 1984, a GRAMMY Award for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal in 1987, a Brit Award for Outstanding Contribution to Music in 1999, and were inducted into the UK Music Hall of Fame in 2005. They were also nominated for induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2017.

Lennox’s solo career began with the release of her solo debut album, Diva, which includes several hit songs like “Why” and “Walking on Broken Glass.” Her 1995 album, Medusa, includes “No More I Love You’s” and “A Whiter Shade of Pale.” She has released six solo studio albums and a compilation album entitled The Annie Lennox Collection in 2009. Over the decades, Annie Lennox has received numerous accolades in recognition of her contribution to the music business, including 8 BRIT Awards (including a Lifetime Achievement), 4 Ivor Novello Awards, 3 MTV Awards, 4 Grammy Awards, 26 ASCAP Awards, a Golden Globe and an Academy Award for Best Original Song for “Into the West,” written for the soundtrack to the film The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King. She was also named one of The 100 Greatest Singers of All Time by Rolling Stone. Lennox has been awarded fellowships from some of the world’s most prestigious music institutions, including The British Academy of Songwriters, The Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama, Berklee College of Music, and The Musicians Company.

Dave Stewart is recognized as one of the most respected and accomplished talents in the music industry today with a music career spanning four decades and over 100 million album sales. Stewart co-wrote and produced each Eurythmics album along with Annie Lennox. He has also co-written and produced albums and songs with Tom Petty, Gwen Stefani, Jon Bon Jovi, Stevie Nicks, Mick Jagger, Bryan Ferry, Katy Perry, Sinead O’Connor, Joss Stone and many others. Along the way, his work has garnered numerous awards including 26 ASCAP Awards and BMI awards for most performed songs, 4 Ivor Novello Awards, 4 Brit Awards including Best Producer, a Lifetime Achievement Award, The Silver Clef Award, the Clive Davis Legend in Songwriting Award, and a Grammy Award. In 2015, Stewart also won the Outstanding Contribution to UK Music Award given by the Producers Guild. He has scored films for several directors, has written and produced the title songs for many hit movies and together with Mick Jagger, he wrote and produced the score for Alfie, which won the pair a Golden Globe for Best Original Song. Additionally, Stewart along with songwriter/producer Glen Ballard wrote the music for the musical adaptation of the 1990 Jerry Zucker film Ghost, which is now being performed in many cities all over the world. Beyond his creative work as a musician, Stewart is a renowned film and TV producer, author, photographer, entrepreneur, and philanthropist. He has established multimedia companies including Dave Stewart Entertainment (DSE) and The Hospital Club with Microsoft’s Paul Allen, co-authored The Business Playground: Where Creativity and Commerce Collide (Financial Times/Pearson), and Executive Produced NBC’s hit show Songland. Also, in 2001, Stewart was approached by Nelson Mandela to help fight against the Aids epidemic. Stewart developed a Global Campaign using Mandela’s prison number 46664 as a telephone number. When people dialed this number Mr. Mandela answered followed by new songs Dave had written with Joe Strummer, Bono and Edge, Paul McCartney, and many others. While you listened, money was being donated into 46664 foundation by the telephone companies. He then went on to organize the biggest concert ever staged in South Africa, appearing on stage with Beyoncé, Bono, Bob Geldof, Queen, Anastacia, and longtime partner Annie Lennox. The concert was broadcast live to over 1 billion people and Oprah Winfrey devoted a week to this special event. In addition, Stewart is an award winning public speaker winning best public speaking awards 3 times in the last ten years.

Ernie Isley / Marvin Isley / O’Kelly Isley / Ronald Isley / Rudolph Isley / Chris Jasper (previously known as The Isley Brothers)
The Isley Brothers started as a vocal trio consisting of brothers O’Kelly Isley Jr, Rudolph Isley and Ronald Isley. first formed in the early ’50s, the Isley Brothers have enjoyed one of the longest, most influential and most diverse careers in the pantheon of popular music. Over the course of more than a half-century of performing, the group’s distinguished history spans not only two generations of Isley siblings, but also massive cultural shifts which heralded their music’s transformation from gritty R&B to Motown soul to blistering fun.

The Isley Brothers have had over 15 #1 singles in the United States Billboard charts, sixteen of their albums charted in the Top 40 and 13 albums have been certified gold, platinum or multi-platinum by the RIAA.

After moving from Cincinnati, Ohio to the New York City area in the late 1950’s, the group first came to national prominence in 1959 with their fourth single “Shout,” written by the three brothers. Initially a modest charted single, the song eventually sold over a million copies. Afterwards the group recorded for a variety of labels, including the Top 20 single, “Twist and Shout” and the Motown single “This Old Heart of Mine (Is Weak for You)” before recording and issuing the Grammy Award-winning hit, “It’s Your Thing” in 1969 on their own label, T-Neck Records.

Influenced by gospel and doo-wop music, the group began experimenting with different musical styles incorporating elements of rock and funk as well as pop balladry. Younger brothers Ernie Isley and Marvin Isley and Rudolph’s brother-in-law, Chris Jasper, joined the group in 1973. The Isleys scored a massive hit with their rock-funk fusion cover of their own earlier single “Who’s That Lady” retitled “That Lady, Pt. 1.” The album “3 + 3” also proved highly successful, as did 1975’s “The Heat Is On” also spawned the smash “Fight the Power, Pt. 1” For the next decade, they recorded top-selling albums, including “Between The Sheets” and had several hit singles. Towards the end of the decade they frequently topped the R & B charts with singles like “The Pride,” “Take Me To The Next Phase, Pt.,” “I Wanna Be With You, Pt. 1” and “Don’t Say Goodnight.”

Isley/Jasper/Isley was formed as a splinter group of The Isley Brothers in 1984 by Chris Jasper, Ernie Isley and Marvin Isley, releasing three albums including “Caravan of Love,” which featured the #1 out-of-the-box title hit, written and sung by Jasper and subsequently covered by English recording group, the Housemartins, who made “Caravan” an international #1 pop hit. The group disbanded in 1987.

After the break-up, Jasper continued as a solo artist, multi-instrumentalist and producer, forming his own independent record label, Gold City Records. Ernie teamed up with Ronald Isley and they have continued to record and tour as the Isley Brothers. They have achieved mainstream success in the intervening decades with spots on the pop and R & B charts including Dreamworks first #1 record, “Body Kiss.” They most recently collaborated with Carlos Santana on 2017’s “Power of Peace” and are currently on a nationwide tour celebrating the Isley Brothers 60th Anniversary.

Ronald became a solo artist while keeping the Isley Brothers’ name and continued to record platinum albums. Ernie and Marvin later reunited with their brother Ronald until Marvin became ill. Marvin passed away in 2010. Ronald and Ernie are currently on a nationwide tour celebrating “Shout’s” 60th Anniversary!

The Isley Brothers, including Chris Jasper, were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1992 and received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2014. Two of the Isley Brothers’ songs have been inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. Their music has been sampled widely and featured in a number of hip-hop’s most important songs, including those by Notorius B.I.G., Ice Cube, Public Enemy, Jay-Z, Lil Wayne, Snoop Dog, Mac Miller, Ludacris, etc.

O’Kelly Isley Jr. died from a heart attack in1986. Rudolph Isley retired in 1986 and went into ministry with his wife Elaine.

Steve Miller
Steve Miller has been an enlivening presence on the American music scene for more than half a century. Miller crafted a brand of pure pop that was smart, polished, exciting, irresistible and that dominated radio in a way that few artists have ever managed. Hit followed hit in what seemed like an endless flow: “The Joker,” “Take the Money and Run,” “Rock’n Me,” “Fly Like an Eagle,” “Living in the USA” and “Abracadabra” among some of his stand out hits. Running through Miller’s distinctive catalog is a combination of virtuosity and song craft. In the course of his long, full career, Miller has sold tens of millions of records and with each listen the beauty and immediacy of his work, whether at its most playful or most serious, is palpable.

Key songs in the Miller catalog include “Abracadabra,” “Fly Like an Eagle,” “Living in the USA,” “Take the Money and Run” and “The Joker.”

Steve Miller Band announces a 40-city tour of the USA starting in June.

Chad Hugo / Pharrell Williams (previously known as The Neptunes)
Chad Hugo a native of Virginia Beach is a Grammy Award winning producer and multi-instrumentalist. Best known as half of the songwriting-production duo The Neptunes with Pharrell Williams, and member of the genre breaking hip-hop/funk-rock band N.E.R.D. For nearly 30 years, Chad has quietly and profoundly influenced the shape of hip-hop as a genre of music.

His most recent work, Hugo co-produced nine songs on Justin Timberlake’s Man of the Woods album that debuted at number one in the US. Hugo recently wrapped up a world tour with N.E.R.D and their platinum hit “Lemon,” featuring Rhianna. Also in 2018, Splice tapped the Virginian for his first ever sample pack of sounds. Featuring a library of high quality signature samples and loops from Chad’s expansive catalog of chart topping songs. He is currently in the studio working on solo material and collaborations with Pharrell, SG Lewis and others.

Pharrell Williams, visionary recording artist, producer, songwriter, philanthropist, fashion designer, and entrepreneur, has been a creative force in the music industry and beyond for more than two decades. From his beginnings as a teenage prodigy and multi-instrumentalist in Virginia Beach back in the early ’90s, through enough hits to earn him Billboard’s Producer of the Decade in 2010, to his current status as multi-media superstar, Williams has never stopped creating.

Starting his producing career as one half of The Neptunes with longtime production partner Chad Hugo, Williams has helped create classics such as Daft Punk’s “Get Lucky,” Robin Thicke’s “Blurred Lines,” Nelly’s “Hot in Herre,” JAY-Z’s “I Just Wanna Love U (Give it 2 Me),” Britney Spears’ “I’m A Slave 4 U,” and Justin Timberlake’s “Like I Love You.” Over four albums, Williams and Hugo, along with Shae Haley, created an unpredictable hybrid as part of the Virginia Beach alt-rock/hip-hop group N.E.R.D., which reunited for 2017’s No One Ever Really Dies. The album debuted with the wildly successful single, “Lemon,” featuring Rihanna, and includes world-class artists such as Kendrick Lamar, André 3000, M.I.A., Future, Wale, Gucci Mane, and Ed Sheeran.

The music industry has honored Williams with 13 Grammy Awards, including 2004’s, 2014’s and 2019’s Producer of the Year, and ASCAP’s prestigious Golden Note Award in 2012. He received a 2017 Academy Award nomination as one of the producers for Best Picture-nominated Hidden Figures, as well as a Golden Globe nomination for co-scoring the film. In 2014, his original song “Happy,” featured in the animated film Despicable Me 2, also received an Academy Award nomination. “Happy” remained atop the Billboard Hot 100 chart for ten consecutive weeks, peaking at No. 1 on iTunes in 103 markets worldwide, and was the lead single from his 2014 solo album, G I R L.

In April 2019, Pharrell launched the first ever Something in the Water, a multi-day music festival and cultural experience on the beach in his hometown of Virginia Beach. The festival’s mission was to unite the community and celebrate the diversity and magic of Virginia Beach. It was an opportunity to bring the best of what Pharrell has encountered around the world back to his hometown. The weekend celebrated opportunity and the chance to empower everyone from the youth to the small business owners. Some of the world’s biggest musicians, personalities, scholars, students, artists, activists and athletes converged on Virginia Beach to activate and amplify, collaborate and co-author, shift and shape the future.

Most recently, Williams and Hugo co-wrote and co-produced the original song, “Letter to My Godfather,” for Netflix’s The Black Godfather about the legendary music executive, Clarence Avant. Williams also produced five songs on the soundtrack for Disney’s 2019 remake of The Lion King including, “I Just Can’t Wait To Be King,” “Hakuna Matata,” “The Lion Sleeps Tonight,” “Can You Feel The Love Tonight” and “Mbube.”

Rick Nowels
A prolific songwriter since the age of 13, Grammy winner Rick Nowels has co-written over 60 Top 20 singles worldwide, Belinda Carlilse’s No. 1 global hit “Heaven is a Place on Earth” and “Circle in the Sand” among the most notable. His breakthrough came when Stevie Nicks heard his songs and teamed with him in writing “Rooms on Fire” and other songs. His numerous other credits include the #1 hit “The Power of Goodbye” on Madonna’s Grammy Award-winning Album of the Year “Ray of Light”.

Nowels received an Ivor Novello award for “White Flag” with Dido. He co-wrote the ASCAP Song of the Year “Game of Love” for Santana featuring Michelle Branch, “Green Light” for John Legend/ André 3000, “You Get What You Give” for the New Radicals, “Standing Still” for Jewel, “Fallin’ for You” with Colbie Caillat, “I Follow Rivers” for Lykke Li, “Loud Places” for Jamie xx and “Lost in your Light” for Dua Lipa/Miguel. Rick has also written with Lana Del Rey for all six of her studio albums. Their hits include “Summertime Sadness,” “Young and Beautiful,” “West Coast,” “High by the Beach,” “Love,” and “Lust for Life”. Other collaborations include Adele, Sia, Nelly Furtado, Tom Odell, Alessia Cara. Key songs in the Nowels catalog include “Heaven Is A Place On Earth,” “White Flag,” “Summertime Sadness,” “You Get What You Give” and “The Power Of Goodbye.”

William “Mickey” Stevenson
William “Mickey” Stevenson joined Motown in 1959 as its very first Head of A&R, responsible for building its roster of songwriters, musicians, and artists, writing hit songs, and producing its superstar roster. Notably, Stevenson is responsible for helping develop Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, The Four Tops, and Martha Reeves. He was one of the principal architects of the “Motown Sound,” having personally assembled the “Funk Brothers,” Motown’s famous house band for most of the label’s timeless 1960’s hits. Stevenson also discovered many of Motown’s legendary songwriters, including Ron Miller, George Ivy “Jo” Hunter, Norman Whitfield, and Frederick “Shorty” Long.

Described by Motown founder Berry Gordy, Jr as “the best A&R man who leads the list of [Motown’s] unsung heroes” and by Smokey Robinson as “never having received his props,” Stevenson was also a prolific songwriter and producer during Motown’s golden era.

Among his biggest songwriting successes are Martha & the Vandella’s “Dancing in the Street” (co-written by Hunter and Gaye), Marvin Gaye and Kim Weston’s “It Takes Two” (co-written by Sylvia Moy), The Marvelettes’ “Beechwood 4-5789” (co-written by Gaye and George Gordy), Marvin Gaye’s “Stubborn Kind of Fellow” (co-written by Gaye and Gordy), Marvin Gaye’s “Pride and Joy” (co-written by Gaye), The Four Tops’ “Ask the Lonely” (co-written by Hunter), The Contours’ “Can You Jerk Like Me” (co-written by Hunter), and Mitch Ryder and the Detroit Wheels’ “Devil With the Blue Dress On” (co-written by Frederick “Shorty” Long).

Stevenson was also a highly successful producer, having produced Jimmy Ruffin’s “What Becomes of the Brokenhearted” (co-produced by William Weatherspoon), Stevie Wonder’s “Uptight (Everything’s Alright)” (co-produced by Henry “Hank” Cosby), and countless other hits.

After leaving Motown, Stevenson was appointed head of Venture Records in 1969, a subsidiary of MGM, and founded Peoples Records. He later shifted gears to follow his passion, writing and producing a series of theatrical musicals including Swann, Showgirls, Wings and Things, The Gospel Truth, TKO, Chocolate City, and Sang, Sista, Sang.

In 2015, Stevenson released his autobiography entitled “The A&R Man”. Currently, he is collaborating with Brian Holland, Smokey Robinson, and Deitrick Haddon to produce “Azusa Revival,” a musical based upon the origins of the Pentecostal movement.

About The Songwriters Hall of Fame:
The Songwriters Hall of Fame celebrates and honors the contributions of songwriters of all genres of music, educates the public with regard to their achievements and produces a spectrum of professional programs devoted to the development of new songwriting talent through songwriting craft forums, scholarships, digital initiatives and Master Sessions on both coasts. Educational activities are held at The GRAMMY Museum, which hosts the permanent Songwriters Hall of Fame Gallery, and at the University of Southern California/Thornton School of Music, with additional events and programs at Belmont University’s Mike Curb College of Entertainment & Music Business, the University of North Carolina and NYC’s Stuyvesant High School. Out of the tens of thousands of songwriters of our era, there are approximately 450 inductees who make up the impressive roster enshrined in the Hall of Fame. A songwriter with a notable catalog of songs qualifies for induction 20 years after the first significant commercial release of a song. The list of inductees include Kenneth Gamble & Leon Huff, Barry Mann & Cynthia Weil, Jerry Leiber & Mike Stoller, Eddie Holland, Lamont Dozier & Brian Holland, Smokey Robinson, Paul Williams, Hal David & Burt Bacharach, Billy Steinberg & Tom Kelly, Bob Dylan, Isaac Hayes & David Porter, Carole King, Paul Simon, Billy Joel, Neil Diamond, Lionel Richie, Carole Bayer Sager, Jon Bon Jovi & Richie Sambora, Elton John & Bernie Taupin, Brian Wilson, James Taylor, Don Schlitz, Bruce Springsteen, Phil Collins, Alan & Marilyn Bergman, Felice & Boudleaux Bryant, Loretta Lynn, Jimmy Webb, Van Morrison, Kris Kristofferson, Dolly Parton, Garth Brooks, Diane Warren, Stevie Wonder, Steven Tyler & Joe Perry, Mac Davis, Leonard Cohen, Ray Davies, Merle Haggard, Cyndi Lauper, Desmond Child, Mick Jones & Lou Gramm, Elvis Costello, Marvin Gaye, Nile Rodgers & Bernard Edwards, Bill Withers, Jay Z, Tom Petty, Toby Keith, Max Martin, Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis, Berry Gordy, Kenneth “Babyface” Edmonds, Robert Lamm & James Pankow, Bill Anderson, Steve Dorff, Jermaine Dupri, Alan Jackson, Kool & The Gang, John Mellencamp, Allee Willis, Yusuf/Cat Stevens, Missy Elliott, John Prine, Dallas Austin, Tom T. Hall and Jack Tempchin, among many others.

Full biographies and a complete list of inductees are available on the Songwriters Hall of Fame website at https://www.songhall.org. Joining online is quick and easy: https://www.songhall.org/join.

Ticket Information:
Tickets for the Songwriters Hall of Fame event begin at $1,750 each, and are available through Buckley Hall Events, 914-579-1000. Net proceeds from the event will go toward the Songwriters Hall of Fame programs. Songwriters Hall of Fame is a 501(c)3 organization. The non-deductible portion of each ticket is $180. Contributions, for which no goods or services are received in exchange, are fully tax-deductible as provided by law.

March 31, UPDATE: Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the annual Songwriters Hall of Fame ceremony in New York City has been postponed and rescheduled for 2021, and the show will award the previously announced honorees. Originally set for June 11, 2020, the ceremony will now take place on June 10, 2021. The previously announced honorees are Mariah Carey; Eurythmics co-founders Annie Lennox and Dave Stewart; the Isley Brothers members Ernie Isley, Marvin Isley, O’Kelly Isley, Ronald Isley,  Rudolph Isley and Chris Jasper; Steve Miller; the Neptunes founders Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo; Rick Nowels; and William “Mickey” Stevenson. Paul Williams will receive the Johnny Mercer Award. Universal Music Publishing chairman/CEO Jody Gerson will receive the Abe Olman Publisher Award.

2020 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: Depeche Mode, Doobie Brothers, Whitney Houston, Nine Inch Nails, Notorious B.I.G., T. Rex are the inductees

January 15, 2020

by Carla Hay

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame has announced its 2020 Inductees in the performer category:

Depeche Mode

Doobie Brothers

Whitney Houston

Nine Inch Nails

The Notorious B.I.G.

T. Rex

The 35th Annual Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony will take place at Public Auditorium in Cleveland, Ohio, May 2, 2020. The show will have a live radio broadcast on SiriusXM. HBO, which has been televising edited highlights of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame show for the past several years, will have its first live telecast of the ceremony on May 2 at 8 p.m. Eastern Time. Tickets go on sale to Rock Hall members on February 25, 2020, and to the public on February 27, 2020, at 10 a.m. Eastern Time at Ticketmaster.com or by calling 800-745-3000. Exhibits showcasing the new inductees will be on display at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland in conjunction with the induction ceremony.

Performers eligible for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame are those whose first single or first album was released at least 25 years before the artist can be inducted. Rock and Roll Hall of Fame voting members (which number about 1,000 people), as well online voting from the public, determine who will be inducted in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

The Ahmet Ertegun Award, given to people who are not artists, will go to longtime music-industry managers Jon Landau and Irving Azoff. Landau is best known for being Bruce Springsteen’s manager. Azoff (who used to be an executive at MCA Records and Live Nation) is best known for being the longtime manager of The Eagles and the CEO of Azoff MSG Entertainment, a venture with The Madison Square Garden Company.

Artists who were nominated for the 2020 induction but didn’t make the cut were Dave Matthews Band, Pat Benatar, Soundgarden, Thin Lizzy, Motorhead, Todd Rundgren, Rufus featuring Chaka Khan, Kraftwerk and MC5.

Depeche Mode released this statement: “We’re honoured to be included as one of this year’s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees, and to stand alongside the other incredible acts in the Rock Hall and those joining this year. A huge thank you to everyone who has supported us and our music over the years.”

The Doobie Brothers had this comment on their Twitter account:  “Congratulations to The Doobie Brothers on their induction into the @RockHall of Fame! Thanks to all who voted and made it possible.”

Houston died of a drug-related accidental drowning in 2012. The Notorious B.I.G. (also known as Biggie Smalls), whose real name was Christopher Wallace, was murdered in a drive-by shooting in 1996. His murder remains unsolved. T. Rex founder/lead singer Marc Bolan died in a car accident in 1977. The closest surviving family members of the deceased are expected to attend the induction ceremony. The show’s presenters and performers are to be announced.

March 24, 2020 UPDATE: Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the 2020 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony has been postponed and rescheduled for November 7, 2020.

July 8, 2020 UPDATE: Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the 2020 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony has been cancelled. On November 7, 2020, HBO will televise a pre-recorded tribute special about the inductees instead of the live ceremony.

2020 Grammy Awards: Aerosmith, Alicia Keys, Ariana Grande, Lizzo, Blake Shelton among performers

January 15, 2020

The following is a press release from CBS and the Recording Academy:

CBS and the Recording Academy® have confirmed the next slate of performers for the 62nd Annual Grammy Awards. Ariana Grande and Demi Lovato announced on social media earlier this week they will take the stage for Music’s Biggest Night. In addition, current Grammy nominees Camilla Cabello; H.E.R.; Jonas Brothers; Rosalía; Tyler, The Creator, and 13-time nominee Charlie Wilson are set to deliver unforgettable performances. Recording Academy Lifetime Achievement Award recipients Run-D.M.C will perform with previously announced Aerosmith. Ten-time Grammy winner Bonnie Raitt will deliver a tribute performance honoring Lifetime Achievement Awards recipient John Prine. They all join previously announced performers Billie Eilish, Lizzo, Blake Shelton and Gwen Stefani. Hosted by Alicia Keys, the 62nd Annual Grammy Awards will be broadcast live from Staples Center in HDTV and 5.1 surround sound Sunday, Jan. 26 (8:00-11:30 PM, live ET/5:00-8:30 PM, live PT) on the CBS Television Network and streaming on CBS All Access.

About the performers:

  • Four-time Grammy-winning band Aerosmith first performed on the 33rd Grammy Awards stage in 1991. This year, they are appearing as the MusiCares Person of the Year, being recognized for their considerable philanthropic efforts over five decades and undeniable impact on American music history.
  • Making her Grammy performance debut, first-time Grammy nominee Billie Eilish is nominated for six awards including Record Of The Year (“Bad Guy”), Album Of The Year (When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?), Song Of The Year (“Bad Guy”), Best New Artist, Best Pop Solo Performance (“Bad Guy”), and Best Pop Vocal Album (When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?).
  • First-time nominee Lizzo will also take the stage for her first Grammy performance. With eight nominations, Lizzo is the most nominated artist of the year for Record Of The Year (“Truth Hurts”), Album Of The Year (Cuz I Love You [Deluxe]), Song Of The Year (“Truth Hurts”), Best New Artist, Best Pop Solo Performance (“Truth Hurts”), Best R&B Performance (“Exactly How I Feel”), Best Traditional R&B Performance (“Jerome”), and Best Urban Contemporary Album (Cuz I Love You [Deluxe]).
  • Three-time Grammy winner Gwen Stefani will perform with current Grammy nominee Blake Shelton. Shelton is nominated this year for Best Country Solo Performance (“God’s Country”).
  • No stranger to the Grammy stage, nominee Camila Cabello is nominated this year for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance (“Señorita”).
  • Grammy  winner Ariana Grande is nominated for Record Of The Year (“7 Rings”), Album Of The Year (thank u, next), Best Pop Solo Performance (“7 Rings”), Best Pop/Duo Group Performance (“Boyfriend”) and Best Pop Vocal Album (thank u, next).
  • Two-time Grammy winner H.E.R is nominated for Record Of The Year (“Hard Place”), Album Of The Year (I Used To Know Her), Song Of The Year (“Hard Place”), Best R&B Performance (“Could’ve Been”), and Best R&B Song (“Could’ve Been”).
  • Taking the stage once again, multi-platinum powerhouse trio Jonas Brothers are nominated for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance (“Sucker”).
  • Making her Grammy stage debut, flamenco pop star Rosalía is nominated for Best New Artist and Best Latin Rock, Urban or Alternative Album (El Mal Querer).
  • Taking Music’s Biggest Night’s stage for the first time, three-time nominee Tyler, The Creator is nominated for Best Rap Album (Igor).

The 62nd Annual Grammy Awards are produced by AEG Ehrlich Ventures for the Recording Academy. Ken Ehrlich is executive producer, Ben Winston is executive producer, Louis J. Horvitz is director, Chantel Sausedo is the talent producer, and David Wild and Ehrlich are the writers.

About the Recording Academy

The Recording Academy® represents the voices of performers, songwriters, producers, engineers, and all music professionals. Dedicated to ensuring the recording arts remain a thriving part of our shared cultural heritage, the Academy honors music’s history while investing in its future through the Grammy Museum®, advocates on behalf of music creators, supports music people in times of need through MusiCares®, and celebrates artistic excellence through the Grammy Awards®—music’s only peer-recognized accolade and highest achievement. As the world’s leading society of music professionals, we work year-round to foster a more inspiring world for creators.

Review: ‘Weathering With You,’ an animated romance from Japan

January 15, 2020

by Carla Hay

"Weathering With You"
“Weathering With You” (Photo courtesy of GKIDS)

“Weathering With You”

Directed by Makoto Shinkai

Available in the original Japanese version (with English subtitles) or in a dubbed English-language version.

Culture Representation: This Japanese animated fantasy film takes place primarily in Tokyo, with teenagers as the lead characters and adults as supporting characters.

Culture Clash: In this alternate and supernatural world, underage teenagers who live on their own try to find their identities and independence, while sometimes clashing with adults who might try to control or exploit them.

Culture Audience: “Weathering With You” is a family-friendly film that will appeal mostly to fans of Japanese anime and romantic animated films.

“Weathering With You” (Photo courtesy of GKIDS)

“Weathering With You” is an old-fashioned love story wrapped up in a modern setting with futuristic and sci-fi/supernatural elements. This charming animated movie (written and directed by Makoto Shinkai) was Japan’s official 2019 entry for the Best International Feature Film category for the Academy Awards—and it’s almost the polar opposite from Japan’s 2018 entry: the bleak drama “Shoplifters,” which was about a group of thieves from different generations who live together. Interestingly, both movies do have something in common. The central characters are financially unstable people who are living outside the margins of regular society and who find themselves with a surrogate family.

In “Weathering With You,” viewers first see 16-year-old runaway Hokada Morishima on a ship going to Tokyo, where he wants to escape from his remote island home. While on the ship, and after hearing that a major rainstorm is headed that way, Hokada foolishly goes outside during the storm and almost gets swept overboard. He’s saved by a young man, and as a thank you, Hokada buys dinner for the stranger when they arrive in Tokyo. It’s clear from this scene that Hokada is an impulsive risk-taker, but he also has a kind heart.

Because Hokada is underage and doesn’t have any proper ID, it’s difficult for him to find a job. While figuring out where he’s going to get his next meal, a teenage girl who works at a local café takes pity on him and gives him a free hamburger. Hokada eventually runs out of money, and he ends up homeless and living on the street, where he finds a gun in a paper bag and keeps the weapon. That gun will get him into trouble later in the story. Meanwhile, Tokyo and other parts of Japan are experiencing torrential rainstorms.

As luck would have it, Hokada lands a job interview, based on going to an address of a business card he’s found. It’s a small magazine company run by a mysterious widower in his 30s named Keisuke “Kei” Suga, who works out of his cluttered home with his young female assistant named Natsumi. Keisuke and Natsumi report supernatural news stories, and the latest trends they’re chasing have to do with unusual weather-related events. Hokada is hired on the spot to be an assistant/housekeeper. His salary is very low, but he gets a free place to live and free meals as part of his employment.

Shortly after getting the job, Hokada sees the girl from the café being manhandled on the street by a sleazy local club owner, who’s pressuring her to work for him. (It’s implied in the movie but not said out loud that he owns a strip club.) As the club owner and a henchman try to force the girl into the club, and she resists, Hokada intervenes and is punched in the face by the club owner. Hokada then pulls out the gun and shoots it in the air, giving him and the girl a way to escape.

The girl’s name is Hina Amano, and she says she’s 17 and soon about to turn 18. As a thank you for rescuing her, Hina invites Hokada over to her place and makes him lunch. It’s during their lunch date that they both find out that they have something in common: They are living on their own without parental supervision. Hokada confesses that he ran away from home because he thinks living with his parents is too stifling. Hina lives with her younger brother Nagisa (nicknamed Nagi), and she says that the mother who raised them died about a year ago. (Somehow, Hina and Nagisa, who don’t seem to have any other living relatives, have avoided going into foster care.)

Hina also has another big secret that she reveals to Hokada: She’s a “sunshine girl”—a rare “weather maiden” who has the ability to make it stop raining and bring the sun out, simply by praying. Because Hina has recently quit her job, and Hokada wants to supplement his measly income, they both decide to go into business together by offering her weather-control services to the public. They start a website together, and almost immediately, their business becomes a successes, with Nagisa often tagging along when they go to different locations to fulfill weather-changing requests.

But their success comes at a price: According to folklore, the more a sunshine girl uses her weather-changing abilities, the more her body begins to transform from flesh into spirit, until she is supposed to disappear forever into the spirit world. It couldn’t come at a worse time, since Hokada and Hina are starting to fall in love.

Complicating matters, the police (led by the stern Detective Takei) are on the hunt for Hokada, since his parents have reported him missing, and he was caught on surveillance video using the loaded gun in the street fight where he rescued Hina. Meanwhile, Keisuke (who’s depressed and has a drinking problem) has secrets of his own about his family that end up affecting his relationship with Hokada.

If you’ve seen Studio Ghibli films, then you’ll probably know what to expect for this movie’s animation (from production companies CoMix Wave Films and Story Inc.), which has an unfussy but expressive animation style that’s very similar to Studio Ghibli films. The voices of the “Weathering With You” characters are portrayed by different actors, depending on which version of “Weathering With You” that you see. The original Japanese version (with English subtitles) has Kotaro Daigo as Hokada, Nani Mori as Hina, Shun Oguri as Keisuke, Tsubasa Honda as Natsumi, Sakura Kiryu as Nagisa and Yûki Kaji as Detective Takei. There’s also a U.S. version, with the dialogue dubbed in English, that has Brandon Engman as Hokada, Ashley Boettcher as Hina, Lee Pace as Keisuke, Alison Brie as Natsumi, Emeka Guindo as Nagisa, Riz Ahmed as Detective Takei.

“Weathering With You” won’t be considered a major Oscar-winning Japanese animation classic, such as director Hayao Miyazaki’s “Spirited Away,” but “Weathering With You” is still a better-than-average modern animated film. Although “Weathering With You” includes serious social issues about homelessness and the hazards of messing with the environment, ultimately this is a sweetly sentimental film where the biggest messages are about taking life-changing risks for true love.

GKIDS released “Weathering With You” for special sneak-preview screenings in select U.S. cinemas on January 15 and January 16, 2020. “Weathering With You” arrived in wider release in U.S. cinemas on January 17, 2020. The movie was originally released in Japan in 2019.

2020 Kitten Bowl: Information revealed about this year’s event

January 13, 2020

(Image courtesy of Hallmark Channel)

The following is a press release from Hallmark Channel:

Hallmark Channel hosts the nation’s most beloved rescue pet event of the year when “Kitten Bowl VII” premieres exclusively, Sunday, February 2, 2020 (2 p.m. ET/PT). “Kitten Bowl VII” will feature over 100 kittens rescued from across the country, as four teams will be competing for the Feline Football Championship. The 2020 game also marks a milestone of more than 40,000 shelter pet adoptions since “Kitten Bowl” premiered in 2014.

The shelter pet adoption effort around “Kitten Bowl” began with five shelter partners six years ago. Through the partnership with North Shore Animal League America, “Kitten Bowl” neighborhood shelter partners grew to 500. In 2020, more shelter partners than ever will join the effort to raise awareness around the plight of homeless animals and the joys that shelter pet adoption brings. During “Kitten Bowl” weekend, shelter partners of North Shore Animal League America show clips from the show while showcasing beautiful animals in need of loving, forever homes. Hallmark Channel, as part of the network’s overall pet initiative ADOPTION EVER AFTER, will provide cash grants to the top participating shelters. To find a “Kitten Bowl” party near you go to Hallmarkchannel.com or AnimalLeagure.org for further details.

TV personality, author and animal advocate Beth Stern returns as host for this year’s event from Hallmark Channel’s Kitten Bowl Stadium. Stern embodies the spirit of adoption in her everyday life, having fostered countless animals in need. Stern’s tireless year-round efforts to find homes for animals endears her to Hallmark Channel viewers and pet enthusiasts nationwide.

On the day of the big game, Stern is joined by Hallmark Channel commentators Jill Wagner and Brennan Elliott for all the play-by-play action along with field correspondent, former NFL running back Rashad Jennings, and four-time Pro Bowl quarterback Boomer Esiason, who returns as the Commissioner of the Football Feline League. “Kitten Bowl VII” will be the MUST SEE event on the day of the big game.

North Shore Animal League America and Last Hope Animal Rescue and Rehabilitation drafted the 2020 teams.

“Kitten Bowl VII” is produced by 3 Ball Entertainment with Ross Weintraub, Jeff Altrock and Kathy Sutula serving as executive producers.

2020 Academy Awards: Where to watch the Oscar-nominated films in theaters and on video

January 13, 2020

by Carla Hay

Oscars

Now that the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences has announced the nominees for the 92nd annual Academy Awards, people might be wondering where to see the nominated films before the winners are announced. The Oscar ceremony will take place at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles on February 9, 2020. ABC will have the live telecast of the show in the United States. Here is where the nominated films can be seen in theaters and on video before the Oscar ceremony. (This information applies to U.S. theaters only, and remains current until February 9, 2020.)

NOTE: “Home video” means available for rent or purchase in various formats.

BEST PICTURE

“1917”

Nominated for:
Best Picture
Best Director (Sam Mendes)
Best Adapted Screenplay
Best Cinematography
Best Production Design
Best Sound Editing
Best Sound Mixing
Best Original Score
Best Costume Design
Best Visual Effects

Where to watch:
Playing in theaters nationwide.
Regal Best Picture Film Festival (January 31 – February 9, 2020)
AMC Best Picture Showcase Day Two (February 8, 2020)
AMC Best Picture Showcase Marathon (February 8, 2020)

 

“Ford v Ferrari”

Nominated for:
Best Picture
Best Film Editing
Best Sound Editing
Best Sound Mixing

Where to watch:
Playing in theaters nationwide.
Available on home video, as of January 28, 2020.
Regal Best Picture Film Festival (January 31 – February 9, 2020)
AMC Best Picture Showcase Day One (February 1, 2020)
AMC Best Picture Showcase Marathon (February 8, 2020)

 

“The Irishman”

Nominated for:
Best Picture
Best Director (Martin Scorsese)
Best Supporting Actor (Al Pacino)
Best Supporting Actor (Joe Pesci)
Best Adapted Screenplay
Best Cinematography
Best Film Editing
Best Costume Design
Best Production Design
Best Visual Effects

Where to watch:
Playing in select independent theaters.
Streaming on Netflix.

“Jojo Rabbit”

Nominated for:
Best Picture
Best Supporting Actress (Scarlett Johansson)
Best Adapted Screenplay
Best Film Editing
Best Production Design
Best Costume Design

Where to watch:
Playing in theaters nationwide.
Available on digital video as of February 4, 2020.
Regal Best Picture Film Festival (January 31 – February 9, 2020)
AMC Best Picture Showcase Day Two (February 8, 2020)
AMC Best Picture Showcase Marathon (February 8, 2020)

“Joker”

Nominated for:
Best Picture
Best Director (Todd Phillips)
Best Actor (Joaquin Phoenix)
Best Adapted Screenplay
Best Cinematography
Best Film Editing
Best Sound Editing
Best Sound Mixing
Best Original Score
Best Makeup and Hair Styling
Best Costume Design

Where to watch:
Playing in select theaters.
Available on home video.
Regal Best Picture Film Festival (January 31 – February 9, 2020)
AMC Best Picture Showcase Day One (February 1, 2020)
AMC Best Picture Showcase Marathon (February 8, 2020)

“Little Women”

Nominated for:
Best Picture
Best Actress (Saoirse Ronan)
Best Supporting Actress (Florence Pugh)
Best Adapted Screenplay
Best Original Score
Best Costume Design

Where to watch:
Playing in theaters nationwide.
Regal Best Picture Film Festival (January 31 – February 9, 2020)
AMC Best Picture Showcase Day One (February 1, 2020)
AMC Best Picture Showcase Marathon (February 8, 2020)

“Marriage Story”

Nominated for:
Best Picture
Best Actor (Adam Driver)
Best Actress (Scarlett Johansson)
Best Supporting Actress (Laura Dern)
Best Original Screenplay
Best Original Score

Where to watch:
Playing in select independent theaters.
Streaming on Netflix.

“Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”

Nominated for:
Best Picture
Best Director (Quentin Tarantino)
Best Actor (Leonardo DiCaprio)
Best Supporting Actor (Brad Pitt)
Best Original Screenplay
Best Cinematography
Best Production Design
Best Sound Editing
Best Sound Mixing
Best Costume Design

Where to watch:
Playing in select theaters as a re-release.
Available on home video.
Regal Best Picture Film Festival (January 31 – February 9, 2020)
AMC Best Picture Showcase Day Two (February 8, 2020)
AMC Best Picture Showcase Marathon (February 8, 2020)

“Parasite”

Nominated for:
Best Picture
Best Director (Bong Joo Ho)
Best Original Screenplay
Best Film Editing
Best Production Design
Best International Feature Film

Where to watch:
Playing in theaters nationwide.
Available on 4K Ultra Digital HD as of January 14, 2020.
Available on DVD, Blu-ray and VOD as of January 28, 2020.
Regal Best Picture Film Festival (January 31 – February 9, 2020)
AMC Best Picture Showcase Day Two (February 8, 2020)
AMC Best Picture Showcase Marathon (February 8, 2020)

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

“American Factory”

Where to watch:
Streaming on Netflix.

“The Cave”

Where to watch:
Available on home video.
Available on National Geographic, Nat Geo on Demand and Nat Geo TV app.

“The Edge of Democracy”

Where to watch:
Streaming on Netflix.

“For Sama”

Where to watch:
Streaming on PBS’s website (free) and PBS’s YouTube channel (free).

“Honeyland”

Nominated for:
Best Documentary Feature
Best International Feature Film

Where to watch:
Available on home video.
Streaming on Hulu.

 

BEST INTERNATIONAL FEATURE FILM

“Corpus Christi” (Poland)

Where to watch:
Playing in select theaters as of February 7, 2020.

“Honeyland” (North Macedonia)

Nominated for:
Best International Feature Film
Best Documentary Feature

Where to watch:
Available on home video.
Streaming on Hulu.

“Les Misérables” (France)

Where to watch:
Playing in select theaters.

“Pain and Glory” (Spain)

Where to watch:
Playing in select theaters.
Available on 4K Ultra Digital HD as of January 14, 2020.
Available on DVD, Blu-ray and VOD as of January 28, 2020.

Nominated for:
Best International Feature Film
Best Actor (Antonio Banderas)

“Parasite” (South Korea)

Nominated for:
Best Picture
Best Director (Bong Joo Ho)
Best Original Screenplay
Best Film Editing
Best Production Design
Best International Feature Film

Where to watch:
Playing in theaters nationwide.
Available on 4K Ultra Digital HD as of January 14, 2020.
Available on DVD, Blu-ray and VOD as of January 28, 2020.
Regal Best Picture Film Festival (January 31 – February 9, 2020)
AMC Best Picture Showcase Marathon (February 8, 2020)

 

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE

“How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World”

Where to watch:
Available on home video.
Streaming on Hulu.

“I Lost My Body”

Where to watch:
Streaming on Netflix

“Klaus”

Where to watch:
Streaming on Netflix.

“Missing Link”

Where to watch:
Available on home video.
Streaming on Hulu.

“Toy Story 4”

Nominated for:
Best Animated Feature
Best Original Song (“I Can’t Let You Throw Yourself Away”)

Where to watch:
Available on home video.
Streaming on Disney+ as of February 5, 2020.

BEST SHORT FILMS (ANIMATED, LIVE-ACTION & DOCUMENTARY)

Every year, select theaters have special screenings of the Oscar-nominated short films. The screenings of the Oscar-nominated short films begin on January 29, 2020, at IFC Center in New York City, before expanding to various cinemas in North America and Europe on January 31, 2020. More information can be found here.

In addition, most cable and satellite TV companies will have the Oscar-nominated short films available as a VOD package for subscribers.

Some of the short films currently available for viewing on the Internet:

“Hair Love”
Nominated for:
Best Animated Short

Where to watch:
Streaming on YouTube (free).

“Kitbull”
Nominated for:
Best Animated Short

Where to watch:
Streaming on YouTube (free) and on Disney+.

“In the Absence”
Nominated for:
Best Documentary Short

Where to watch:
Streaming on Vimeo (free).

“Learning to Skateboard in a Warzone (If You’re a Girl)”
Nominated for:
Best Documentary Short

Where to watch:
Streaming on A&E, Sling TV and Philo.

“Life Overtakes Me”
Nominated for:
Best Documentary Short

Where to watch:
Streaming on Netflix.

“Walk Run Cha-Cha”
Nominated for:
Best Documentary Short

Where to watch:
Streaming on Vimeo (free) and The New York Times website (free).

“Brotherhood”
Nominated for:
Best Live-Action Short

Where to watch:
Streaming on YouTube (free) and Vimeo (free).

“Nefta Football Club”
Nominated for:
Best Live-Action Short

Where to watch:
Streaming on YouTube (free) and Vimeo (free).

“The Neighbors’ Window”
Nominated for:
Best Live-Action Short

Where to watch:
Streaming on YouTube (free) and Vimeo (free).

 

OTHER OSCAR-NOMINATED FEATURE FILMS

“Ad Astra”

Nominated for:
Best Sound Mixing

Where to watch:
Available on home video.

“Avengers: Endgame”

Nominated for:
Best Visual Effects

Where to watch:
Available on home video.
Streaming on Disney+.

“A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood”

Nominated for:
Best Supporting Actor (Tom Hanks)

Where to watch:
Playing in select theaters.
Available on digital as of February 4, 2020.

“Bombshell”

Nominated for:
Best Actress (Charlize Theron)
Best Supporting Actress (Margot Robbie)
Best Makeup and Hair Styling

Where to watch:
Playing in select theaters.

“Breakthrough”

Nominated for:
Best Original Song (“I’m Standing With You”)

Where to watch:
Available on home video.
Available on HBO, HBO on Demand, HBO Go and HBO Now

“Frozen 2”

Nominated for:
Best Original Song (“Into the Unknown”)

Where to watch:
Playing in theaters nationwide.

“Harriet”

Nominated for:
Best Actress (Cynthia Erivo)
Best Original Song (“Stand Up”)

Where to watch:
Playing in select theaters.
Free screenings (open to the public) at select Regal theaters on February 4 and February 11, 2020.
Available on 4K Ultra Digital HD as of January 14, 2020.
Available on DVD and Blu-ray and VOD as of January 28, 2020.

“Judy”

Nominated for:
Best Actress (Renée Zellweger)
Best Makeup and Hair Styling

Where to watch:
Available on home video.

“Knives Out”

Nominated for:
Best Original Screenplay

Where to watch:
Playing in theaters nationwide.
Available on 4K Ultra Digital HD as of February 7, 2020.

“The Lighthouse”

Nominated for:
Best Cinematography

Where to watch:
Available on home video.

“The Lion King”

Nominated for:
Best Visual Effects

Where to watch:
Available on home video.
Streaming on Disney+ as of January 28, 2020.

“Maleficent: Mistress of Evil”

Nominated for:
Best Makeup and Hair Styling

Where to watch:
Playing in select theaters.
Available on home video.

“Richard Jewell”

Nominated for:
Best Supporting Actress (Kathy Bates)

Where to watch:
Playing in select theaters.

“Rocketman”

Nominated for:
Best Original Song (“(I’m Gonna) Love Me Again”)

Where to watch:
Available on home video.

“Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker”

Nominated for:
Best Visual Effects

Where to watch:
Playing in theaters nationwide.

“The Two Popes”

Nominated for:
Best Actor (Jonathan Pryce)
Best Supporting Actor (Anthony Hopkins)
Best Adapted Screenplay

Where to watch:
Streaming on Netflix.

2020 Academy Awards: ‘Joker’ is the top nominee

January 13, 2020

by Carla Hay

Joaquin Phoenix in “Joker” (Photo by Niko Tavernise)

With 11 nods, including Best Picture, Warner Bros. Pictures’ DC Comics-based supervillain drama “Joker” has the most nominations for the 92nd Annual Academy Awards, which will take place at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles on February 9, 2020. ABC will have the U.S. telecast of the show, which begins at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT. For the second year in a row, there will not be a host for the Oscar ceremony. The 11 nods for “Joker” make it the highest number of Oscar nominations for a comic-book-based movie.

Coming close behind in Oscar nominations this year, with 10 nominations each, are Columbia Pictures’ 1969-set retro drama “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” and Netflix’s mobster drama “The Irishman”; and Universal Pictures’ World War I drama  “1917.” All of these movies are contenders for Best Picture.

The Best Picture category can have up to 10 nominated movies. This year, there were nine nominated movies. The other Best Picture nominees include Fox Searchlight’s Nazi satire “Jojo Rabbit,” Neon’s South Korean drama “Parasite,” Columbia Pictures’ remake of “Little Women” and Netflix’s divorce drama “Marriage Story,” which earned a total of six Oscar nods each. Rounding out the Best Picture nominee list is 20th Century Fox’s auto-racing drama “Ford v Ferrari,” which received four Oscar nominations.

Three of the Best Picture nominees do not have any nominations in the actor/actress categories: “1917,” “Ford v Ferrari” and “Parasite.” “Ford v Ferrari” does not have a screenplay or director nomination, therefore significantly decreasing its chances of winning Best Picture.

The nominees in the actor/actress categories all received Golden Globe nominations for the same roles, with the exception of Florence Pugh of “Little Women,” who was passed over for a Golden Globe nomination for that supporting role but scored an Oscar nod.

There were several people who received multiple Oscar nominations this year. Facing off in the same three categories (Best Picture, Best Director and Best Original Screenplay) are Quentin Tarantino of “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,” Bong Joo Ho of “Parasite” and Sam Mendes of “1917.” Meanwhile, Todd Phillips of “Joker” also has three nods: Best Director, Best Picture and Best Adapted Screenplay.

People who received two Oscar nods each this year are actress Scarlett Johansson (“Marriage Story,” “Jojo Rabbit”); producer Emma Tillinger Koskoff (“Joker,” “The Irishman”); producer David Heyman (“Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,” “Marriage Story”); “Marriage Story” writer/producer Noah Baumbach; “The Irishman” director/producer Martin Scorsese; “Jojo Rabbit” writer/director Taika Waititi; special effects supervisor Dominic Tuohy (“The Lion King,” “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker”); “Marriage Story” composer/”Toy Story 4″ songwriter Randy Newman; and Cynthia Erivo, who’s nominated for Best Actress and Best Original Song for Focus Features’ Harriet Tubman biopic “Harriet.”

Snubs and Surprises

“The Farewell” (Photo courtesy of A24)

Despite winning several awards leading up to the Oscar nominations (including a Golden Globe for star Awkwafina), the Chinese American drama “The Farewell” was completely shut out of the Oscar race. “Rocketman” star Taron Egerton was another Golden Globe winner who failed to get an Oscar nomination for his Golden Globe-winning role. The only Oscar nod for the Elton John musical biopic “Rocketman” was the expected nomination for Best Original Song: “(I’m Gonna) Love Me Again,” written by John and his longtime songwriter partner Bernie Taupin. The song won a Golden Globe and is a strong contender to win the Oscar.

“Rocketman” scored one Oscar nomination, but other movies that won awards elsewhere were completely snubbed for Oscar nominations, including A24’s drama “Uncut Gems,” Netflix’s comedy “Dolemite Is My Name,” STX Entertainment’s drama “Hustlers” and Universal Pictures’ horror film “Us.”

Disney’s popular sequel “Frozen 2” failed to get a nod in the category of Best Animated Feature, but Netflix’s Christmas film “Klaus” got a surprise nomination in this category. “Frozen 2” got an expected nomination for Best Original Song (for “Into the Unknown), while Beyoncé’s “Spirit” from “The Lion King” remake was snubbed in that category. The only Oscar nomination for “The Lion King” remake was in the category of Best Visual Effects, and that nomination was expected.

The NASA documentary “Apollo 11” has won numerous awards, but was shut out of the Oscar race for Best Documentary Feature. This snub should not come as much of surprise to observant Oscar watchers, since the documentary branch of the Academy Awards has a history of snubbing documentaries that rely heavily on archival footage that was not filmed by the documentaries’ directors.

A big surprise was that the North Macedonian documentary “Honeyland” was nominated in two categories: Best Documentary Feature and Best International Feature. It’s rare for a documentary to get nominated in the Best International Feature category.

Diversity and Inclusion

Cynthia Erivo in “Harriet” (Photo by Glen Wilson/Focus Features)

It was widely predicted that no women would be nominated for Best Director, and that prediction turned out to be true. In the 92-year-history of the Academy Awards, only five women have ever gotten nominated for an Oscar for Best Director, and only one woman has won: Kathryn Bigelow for the 2009 war film “The Hurt Locker.” “Little Women” director Greta Gerwig was considered the most likely female director to get an Oscar nomination for Best Director this year. Instead, she got an expected nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay for the movie. (Gerwig’s previous Oscar nominations were for Best Director and Best Original Screenplay, for the 2017 movie “Lady Bird.”)

Best Cinematography, another Oscar category that has been snubbing women for years, once again had only male nominees this year. Only one woman has been nominated in this category so far: Rachel Morrison, for the 2017 Netflix drama “Mudbound.”

“1917” director/co-writer/producer Mendes is multiracial (his father is Portuguese Creole and his mother is white), and Mendes has received his first Oscar nominations since winning for Best Director for the 1999 drama “American Beauty,” which was his feature-film directorial debut.

After a historic number of black people (five) won Oscars in 2019, black people are underrepresented in Oscar nominations in 2020. Only four black people got Oscar nods this year: British/actress singer (and double Oscar nominee) Erivo of “Harriet”; “Hair Love” director Matthew Cherry and producer Karen Rupert Toliver, both nominated for Best Animated Short; and Mali-born writer/director Ladj Ly, whose French drama “Les Misérables” (which is not an adaptation of the Victor Hugo novel) is one of the nominees for Best International Feature Film.

 Asians got the most representation with writer/director Bong Joo Ho’s  “Parasite,” which has six Oscar nods: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, Best International Feature Film, Best Film Editing and Best Production Design. “Jojo Rabbit” writer/director/producer Taika Waititi (who is of Māori descent) picked up three nominations: Best Picture, Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay. “Jojo Rabbit’s” other Oscar nods went to white nominees: Best Supporting Actress, Best Film Editing, Best Production Design and Best Costume Design.

Filipino songwriter Robert Lopez (a two-time songwriting Oscar winner for “Frozen” and “Coco”) is once again nominated with his wife Kristen Anderson-Lopez in the Best Original Song category—this time, for the “Frozen 2” song “Into the Unknown.”Jinko Gotoh, who is of Japanese descent, received a Best Animated Feature nod for producing “Klaus.” Oscar-winning “The White Helmets” producer Joanna Natasegara, who is of Asian descent, is nominated again for Best Documentary Feature—this time for “The Edge of Democracy.” She was previously nominated in this category for 2014’s “Virunga.” Japanese makeup artist Kazu Hiro, a previous winner for 2017’s “Darkest Hour,” is nominated again for Best Makeup and Hairstyling, this time for “Bombshell.”

Meanwhile, the categories for short films had a significant number of Asian filmmakers. Chinese filmmaker Siqi Song earned a Best Animated Short nomination for directing and producing “Sister.” South Korean filmmakers Yi Seung-Jun (director/producer) and Gary Byung-Seok Kam (producer) are up for Best Documentary Short for “In the Absence.” “St. Louis Superman” directors/producers Smriti Mundhra and Sami Khan, who are of Indian descent, are also nominated in the Best Documentary Short category.

People of Arab descent had strong showings in the Best Documentary Feature category, which includes two nominations for movies about the war in Syria: “The Cave” (directed by Feras Fayyad, a previous nominee in this category for 2017’s “Last Men in Aleppo”) and “For Sama” (co-directed by Waad al-Kateab in her first Oscar nomination). Tunisian-born director/producer Meryam Joobeur received a Best Live-Action Short nomination for the Canadian film “Brotherhood.”

Latinos were represented in the high-profile Oscar categories with Sony Pictures Classics’ Spanish film “Pain and Glory,” writer/director Pedro Almodóvar’s semi-autobiographical film, which has nominations for Best Actor (the first Oscar nomination for Antonio Banderas) and Best International Feature Film. Meanwhile, Netflix’s “The Edge of Democracy” is up for Best Documentary Feature, the first Oscar nod for Brazilian director Petra Costa and Brazilian producer Tiago Pavan. Other first-time Oscar nominees are these filmmakers for the animated movie “Klaus”: Spanish director/producer Sergio Pablos and Venezuelan producer Marisa Román.

Also a nominee in the Best Animated Feature category is “Toy Story 4” producer Jonas Rivera, a previous Oscar winner in this category for 2009’s “Up” and 2015’s “Inside Out.” In the technical categories, Mexican director of photography Rodrigo Pietro got a nod for Best Cinematography for “The Irishman,” while Adam Valdez was part of the Oscar-nominated visual-effects team for “The Lion King.”

Here is the complete list of nominations for the 2020 Academy Awards:

Best Picture
“Ford v Ferrari”
Producers: Peter Chernin, Jenno Topping and James Mangold

“The Irishman”
Producers: Martin Scorsese, Robert De Niro, Jane Rosenthal and Emma Tillinger Koskoff

“Jojo Rabbit”
Producers: Carthew Neal and Taika Waititi

“Joker”
Producers: Todd Phillips, Bradley Cooper and Emma Tillinger Koskoff

“Little Women”
Producer: Amy Pascal

“Marriage Story”
Producers: Noah Baumbach and David Heyman

“1917”
Producers: Sam Mendes, Pippa Harris, Jayne-Ann Tenggren and Callum McDougall

“Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”
Producers: David Heyman, Shannon McIntosh and Quentin Tarantino

“Parasite”
Producers: Kwak Sin Ae and Bong Joon Ho

Best Actor
Antonio Banderas, “Pain and Glory”
Leonardo DiCaprio, “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”
Adam Driver, “Marriage Story”
Joaquin Phoenix, “Joker”
Jonathan Pryce, “The Two Popes”

Best Actress
Cynthia Erivo, “Harriet”
Scarlett Johansson, “Marriage Story”
Saoirse Ronan, “Little Women”
Charlize Theron, “Bombshell”
Renee Zellweger, “Judy”

Best Supporting Actor
Tom Hanks, “A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood”
Anthony Hopkins, “The Two Popes”
Al Pacino, “The Irishman”
Joe Pesci, “The Irishman”
Brad Pitt, “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”

Best Supporting Actress
Kathy Bates, “Richard Jewell”
Laura Dern, “Marriage Story”
Scarlett Johansson, “Jojo Rabbit”
Florence Pugh, “Little Women”
Margot Robbie, “Bombshell”

Best Director
Martin Scorsese, “The Irishman”
Todd Phillips, “Joker”
Sam Mendes, “1917”
Quentin Tarantino, “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”
Bong Joon Ho, “Parasite”

Best Animated Feature
“How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World,” directed by Dean DeBlois; produced by Bradford Lewis and Bonnie Arnold

“I Lost My Body,” directed by Jérémy Clapin; produced by Marc du Pontavice

“Klaus,” directed and produced by Sergio Pablos; produced by Jinko Gotoh and Marisa Román

“Missing Link,” directed by Chris Butler; produced by Arianne Sutner and Travis Knight

“Toy Story 4,” directed by Josh Cooley; produced by Mark Nielsen and Jonas Rivera

Best Animated Short
“Dcera,” directed and produced by Daria Kashcheeva
“Hair Love,” directed and produced by Matthew A. Cherry; produced by Karen Rupert Toliver
“Kitbull,” directed by Rosana Sullivan; produced by Kathryn Hendrickson
“Memorable,” directed by Bruno Collet; produced by Jean-François Le Corre
“Sister,” directed and produced by Siqi Song

Best Adapted Screenplay
“The Irishman,” Steven Zaillian
“Jojo Rabbit,” Taika Waititi
“Joker,” Todd Phillips, Scott Silver
“Little Women,” Greta Gerwig
“The Two Popes,” Anthony McCarten

Best Original Screenplay
“Knives Out,” Rian Johnson
“Marriage Story,” Noah Baumbach
“1917,” Sam Mendes and Krysty Wilson-Cairns
“Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,” Quentin Tarantino
“Parasite,” Bong Joon-ho and Jin Won Han

Best Cinematography
“The Irishman,” Rodrigo Prieto
“Joker,” Lawrence Sher
“The Lighthouse,” Jarin Blaschke
“1917,” Roger Deakins
“Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,” Robert Richardson

Best Documentary Feature
“American Factory,” directed and produced by Julia Rieichert and Steven Bognar; produced by Jeff Reichert

“The Cave,” directed by Feras Fayyad; produced by Kirstine Barfod and Sigrid Dyekjær

“The Edge of Democracy,” directed and produced by Petra Costa; produced by Joanna Natasegara, Shane Boris and Tiago Pavan

“For Sama,” directed and produced by Waad Al-Kateab; directed by Edward Watts

“Honeyland,” directed by Tamara Kotevska and Ljubo Stefanov; produced by Atanas Georgiev

Best Documentary Short Subject
“In the Absence,” directed and produced by Yi Seung-Jun; produced by Gary Byung-Seok Kam

“Learning to Skateboard in a Warzone (If You’re a Girl),” directed by Carol Dysinger; produced by Elena Andreicheva

“Life Overtakes Me,” directed and produced by Kristine Samuelson; directed by John Haptas

“St. Louis Superman,” directed and produced by Smriti Mundhra and Sami Khan

“Walk Run Cha-Cha,” directed by Laura Nix; produced by Colette Sandstedt

Best Live Action Short Film
“Brotherhood,” directed and produced by Meryam Joobeur; produced by Maria Gracia Turgeon

“Nefta Football Club,” directed and produced by Yves Piat; produced by Damien Megherbi

“The Neighbors’ Window,” directed and produced by Marshall Curry

“Saria,” directed by Bryan Buckley; produced by Matt Lefebvre

“A Sister,” directed and produced by Delphine Girard

Best International Feature Film
“Corpus Christi,” directed by Jan Komasa (Poland)
“Honeyland,” directed by Tamara Kotevska and Ljubo Stefanov (North Macedonia)
“Les Misérables,” directed by Ladj Ly (France)
“Pain and Glory,” directed by Pedro Almodóvar (Spain)
“Parasite,” directed by Bong Joon Ho (South Korea)

Best Film Editing
“Ford v Ferrari,” Michael McCusker and Andrew Buckland
“The Irishman,” Thelma Schoonmaker
“Jojo Rabbit,” Tom Eagles
“Joker,” Jeff Groth
“Parasite,” Jinmo Yang

Best Sound Editing
“Ford v Ferrari,” Don Sylvester
“Joker,” Alan Robert Murray
“1917,” Oliver Tarney, Rachel Tate
“Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,” Wylie Stateman
“Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker,” Matthew Wood and David Acord

Best Sound Mixing
“Ad Astra,” Gary Rydstrom, Tom Johnson and Mark Ulano
“Ford v Ferrari,” Paul Massey, David Giammarco and Steven A. Morrow
“Joker,” Tom Ozanich, Dean Zupancic and Tod Maitland
“1917,” Mark Taylor and Stuart Wilson
“Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,” Michael Minkler, Christian P. Minkler and Mark Ulano

Best Production Design
“The Irishman”
Production Design: Bob Shaw; Set Decoration: Regina Graves

“Jojo Rabbit”
Production Design: Ra Vincent; Set Decoration: Nora Sopková

“1917”
Production Design: Dennis Gassner; Set Decoration: Lee Sandales

“Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”
Production Design: Barbara Ling; Set Decoration: Nancy Haigh

“Parasite”
Production Design: Lee Ha Jun; Set Decoration: Cho Won Woo

Best Original Score
“Joker,” Hildur Guðnadóttir
“Little Women,” Alexandre Desplat
“Marriage Story,” Randy Newman
“1917,” Thomas Newman
“Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker,” John Williams

Best Original Song
“I Can’t Let You Throw Yourself Away” from “Toy Story 4,” song written by Randy Newman

“(I’m Gonna) Love Me Again” from “Rocketman,” song written by Elton John and Bernie Taupin

“I’m Standing With You” from “Breakthrough,” song written by Diane Warren

“Into the Unknown” from “Frozen 2,” song written by Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson Lopez

“Stand Up” from “Harriet,” song written by Cynthia Erivo and Joshuah Brian Campbell

Best Makeup and Hair Styling
“Bombshell,” Kazu Hiro, Anne Morgan and Vivian Baker
“Joker,” Nicki Ledermann and Kay Georgiou
“Judy,” Jeremy Woodhead
“Maleficent: Mistress of Evil,” Paul Gooch, Arjen Tuiten and David White
“1917,” Naomi Donne, Tristan Versluis and Rebecca Cole

Best Costume Design
”The Irishman,” Sandy Powell, Christopher Peterson
“Jojo Rabbit,” Mayes C. Rubeo
“Joker,” Mark Bridges
“Little Women,” Jacqueline Durran
“Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,” Arianne Phillips

Best Visual Effects
“Avengers: Endgame,” Dan DeLeeuw, Russell Earl, Matt Aitken and Dan Sudick

“The Irishman,” Pablo Helman, Leandro Estebecorena, Nelson Sepulveda-Fauser and Stephane Grabli

“1917,” Guillaume Rocheron, Greg Butler and Dominic Tuohy

“The Lion King,” Robert Legato, Adam Valdez, Andrew R. Jones and Elliot Newma

“Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker,” Roger Guyett, Neal Scanlan, Patrick Tubach and Dominic Tuohy

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