2019 Teen Choice Awards: ‘Avengers: Endgame’ leads first wave of nominations

June 19, 2019

The following is a press release from Fox:

Teen Choice 2019, the summer’s hottest live show, is back with a brand-new wave of nominees. Celebrate the year’s hottest teen stars in television, music, film, sports, comedy and social media when the star-studded two-hour live event airs, for the first time in Teen Choice history, from Hermosa Beach, CA, on Sunday, Aug. 11 (8:00-10:00 PM ET live/PT tape-delayed) on FOX.

Box office blockbuster “Avengers: Endgame” leads the Teen Choice 2019 film category with nine nominations, followed by “Aladdin” with five nominations. “Captain Marvel,” “Aquaman” and “Crazy Rich Asians” earned four nominations each. Leading the television category with five nods each are fan favorites “Riverdale,” “The Flash” and “Shadowhunters,” followed by “Arrow” with four nominations. Musical artist Lil Nas X tops the music category with five nominations. Post Malone follows with four nominations. Host(s), performers, presenters and additional nominees will be announced soon.

Voting is officially open as of 9:00 AM PT today through Tuesday, June 25, at 9:00 AM PT via https://fox.tv/TCA19 and Twitter. Fans are allowed 10 votes per category, per day, per platform user ID, for their favorite Teen Choice 2019 Wave One nominees. Vote via Twitter by tweeting a category hashtag (please see below) with the nominee’s name (either @nominee, or if the nominee does not have a Twitter account, use #nominee). You may only vote for one Teen Choice 2019 nominee per Tweet.

For voting rules and more information, visit fox.com/teen-choice/rules and FAQs at fox.com/teen-choice/faqs.

Following are “Wave One” categories and nominees for Teen Choice 2019:

MOVIES

Choice Action Movie (#ChoiceActionMovie)
“Ant-Man and the Wasp”
“Avengers: Endgame”
“Bumblebee”
“Captain Marvel”
“Men in Black: International”
“Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse”

Choice Action Movie Actor (#ChoiceActionMovieActor)
Chris Evans – “Avengers: Endgame”
Chris Hemsworth – “Avengers: Endgame,” “Men in Black: International”
John Cena – “Bumblebee”
Paul Rudd – “Ant-Man and the Wasp,” “Avengers: Endgame”
Robert Downey Jr. – “Avengers: Endgame”
Samuel L. Jackson – “Captain Marvel”

Choice Action Movie Actress (#ChoiceActionMovieActress)
Brie Larson – “Captain Marvel,” “Avengers: Endgame”
Evangeline Lilly – “Ant-Man and the Wasp”
Hailee Steinfeld – “Bumblebee”
Scarlett Johansson – “Avengers: Endgame”
Tessa Thompson – “Men in Black: International”
Zoe Saldana – “Avengers: Endgame”

Choice Sci-Fi/Fantasy Movie (#ChoiceSciFiFantasyMovie)
“Aladdin”
“Aquaman”
“Dark Phoenix”
“Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald”
“Mary Poppins Returns”
“Shazam!”

Choice Sci-Fi/Fantasy Movie Actor (#ChoiceSciFiFantasyMovieActor)
James McAvoy – “Dark Phoenix”
Jason Momoa – “Aquaman”
Lin-Manuel Miranda – “Mary Poppins Returns”
Mena Massoud – “Aladdin”
Will Smith – “Aladdin”
Zachary Levi – “Shazam!”

Choice Sci-Fi/Fantasy Movie Actress (#ChoiceSciFiFantasyMovieActress)
Amber Heard – “Aquaman”
Emily Blunt – “Mary Poppins Returns”
Katherine Waterston – “Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald”
Keira Knightley – “The Nutcracker and the Four Realms”
Naomi Scott – “Aladdin”
Sophie Turner – “Dark Phoenix”

Choice Drama Movie (#ChoiceDramaMovie)
“After”
“Bohemian Rhapsody”
“Breakthrough”
“Five Feet Apart”
“The Hate U Give”
“To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before”

Choice Drama Movie Actor (#ChoiceDramaMovieActor)
Bradley Cooper – “A Star Is Born”
Cole Sprouse – “Five Feet Apart”
Hero Fiennes Tiffin – “After”
Noah Centineo – “To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before”
Rami Malek – “Bohemian Rhapsody”
Taron Egerton – “Rocketman”

Choice Drama Movie Actress (#ChoiceDramaMovieActress)
Amandla Stenberg – “The Hate U Give”
Chrissy Metz – “Breakthrough”
Haley Lu Richardson – “Five Feet Apart”
Josephine Langford – “After”
Lady Gaga – “A Star Is Born”
Lana Condor – “To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before”

Choice Comedy Movie (#ChoiceComedyMovie)
“Crazy Rich Asians”
“Instant Family”
“Isn’t It Romantic”
“Little”
“Pokémon Detective Pikachu”
“The Perfect Date”

Choice Comedy Movie Actor (#ChoiceComedyMovieActor)
Henry Golding – “Crazy Rich Asians”
Kevin Hart – “Night School”
Liam Hemsworth – “Isn’t It Romantic”
Mark Wahlberg – “Instant Family”
Noah Centineo – “The Perfect Date”
Ryan Reynolds – “Pokémon Detective Pikachu”

Choice Comedy Movie Actress (#ChoiceComedyMovieActress)
Awkwafina – “Crazy Rich Asians”
Constance Wu – “Crazy Rich Asians”
Laura Marano – “The Perfect Date”
Marsai Martin – “Little”
Rebel Wilson – “Isn’t It Romantic”
Tiffany Haddish – “Night School”

Choice Movie Villain (#ChoiceMovieVillain)
Johnny Depp – “Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald”
Josh Brolin – “Avengers: Endgame”
Jude Law – “Captain Marvel”
Mark Strong – “Shazam!”
Marwan Kenzari – “Aladdin”
Patrick Wilson – “Aquaman”

TELEVISION

Choice Drama TV Show (#ChoiceDramaTVShow)
“Good Trouble”
“Marvel’s Runaways”
“Pretty Little Liars: The Perfectionists
“Riverdale”
“Star”
“The Resident”

Choice Drama TV Actor (#ChoiceDramaTVActor)
Adam Huber – “Dynasty”
Cole Sprouse – “Riverdale”
Justin Hartley – “This Is Us”
K.J. Apa – “Riverdale”
Oliver Stark – “9-1-1”
Sterling K. Brown – “This Is Us”

Choice Drama TV Actress (#ChoiceDramaTVActress)
Camila Mendes – “Riverdale”
Cierra Ramirez – “Good Trouble”
Lili Reinhart – “Riverdale”
Maia Mitchell – “Good Trouble”
Ryan Destiny – “Star”
Sofia Carson – “Pretty Little Liars: The Perfectionists”

Choice Sci-Fi/Fantasy TV Show (#ChoiceSciFiFantasyTVShow)
“Charmed”
“Chilling Adventures of Sabrina”
“Legacies”
“Shadowhunters”
“Supernatural”
“The 100”

Choice Sci-Fi/Fantasy TV Actor (#ChoiceSciFiFantasyTVActor)
Aubrey Joseph – “Marvel’s Cloak & Dagger”
Bob Morley – “The 100”
Dominic Sherwood – “Shadowhunters”
Harry Shum Jr. – “Shadowhunters”
Jared Padalecki – “Supernatural”
Ross Lynch – “Chilling Adventures of Sabrina”

Choice Sci-Fi/Fantasy TV Actress (#ChoiceSciFiFantasyTVActress)
Danielle Rose Russell – “Legacies”
Ellen Page – “The Umbrella Academy”
Katherine McNamara – “Shadowhunters”
Kiernan Shipka – “Chilling Adventures of Sabrina”
Melonie Diaz – “Charmed”
Olivia Holt – “Marvel’s Cloak & Dagger”

Choice Action TV Show (#ChoiceActionTVShow)
“Arrow”
“DC’s Legends of Tomorrow”
“Gotham”
“MacGyver”
“Supergirl”
“The Flash”

Choice Action TV Actor (#ChoiceActionTVActor)
Ben McKenzie – “Gotham”
Brandon Routh – “DC’s Legends of Tomorrow”
Brenton Thwaites – “Titans”
Grant Gustin – “The Flash”
Lucas Till – “MacGyver”
Stephen Amell – “Arrow”

Choice Action TV Actress (#ChoiceActionTVActress)
Candice Patton – “The Flash”
Danielle Panabaker – “The Flash”
Emily Bett Rickards – “Arrow”
Gabrielle Union – “L.A.’s Finest”
Jessica Alba – “L.A.’s Finest”
Melissa Benoist – “Supergirl”

Choice Comedy TV Show (#ChoiceComedyTVShow)
“black-ish”
“Brooklyn Nine-Nine”
“Fuller House”
“Jane the Virgin”
“One Day at a Time”
“The Big Bang Theory”

Choice Comedy TV Actor (#ChoiceComedyTVActor)
Andy Samberg – “Brooklyn Nine-Nine”
Anthony Anderson – “black-ish”
Daniel Radcliffe – “Miracle Workers”
Jaime Camil – “Jane the Virgin”
Jim Parsons – “The Big Bang Theory”
Marcel Ruiz – “One Day at a Time”

Choice Comedy TV Actress (#ChoiceComedyTVActress)
Candace Cameron Bure – “Fuller House”
Gina Rodriguez – “Jane the Virgin”
Kaley Cuoco – “The Big Bang Theory”
Nina Dobrev – “Fam”
Sarah Hyland – “Modern Family”
Yara Shahidi – “black-ish”

Choice TV Villain (#ChoiceTVVillain)
Adam Scott – “The Good Place”
Cameron Monaghan – “Gotham”
Jon Cryer – “Supergirl”
Luke Baines – “Shadowhunters”
Sarah Carter – “The Flash”
Sea Shimooka – “Arrow”

Choice Reality TV Show (#ChoiceRealityTVShow)
“America’s Got Talent”
“Keeping Up with the Kardashians”
“Lip Sync Battle”
“Queer Eye”
“The Masked Singer”
“The Voice”

Choice Throwback TV Show (#ChoiceThrowbackTVShow)
“All That”
“Beverly Hills, 90210”
“Friends”
“Moesha”
“The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air”
“The Office”

MUSIC

Choice Male Artist (#ChoiceMaleArtist)
Ed Sheeran
Khalid
Lil Nas X
Post Malone
Shawn Mendes

Choice Female Artist (#ChoiceFemaleArtist)
Ariana Grande
Billie Eilish
Cardi B
Halsey
Lauren Jauregui
Taylor Swift

Choice Music Group (#ChoiceMusicGroup)
5 Seconds of Summer
Jonas Brothers
Panic! At The Disco
PRETTYMUCH
The Chainsmokers
Why Don’t We

Choice Country Artist (#ChoiceCountryArtist)
Brett Young
Dan + Shay
Kacey Musgraves
Kane Brown
Kelsea Ballerini
Thomas Rhett

Choice Latin Artist (#ChoiceLatinArtist)
Bad Bunny
Becky G.
CNCO
Daddy Yankee
J Balvin
Maluma

Choice R&B/Hip-Hop Artist (#ChoiceRBHipHopArtist)
Cardi B
Drake
Nicki Minaj
Normani
Post Malone
Travis Scott

Choice Rock Artist (#ChoiceRockArtist)
AJR
Cage the Elephant
Imagine Dragons
lovelytheband
Panic! At The Disco
twenty one pilots

Choice Song: Female Artist (#ChoiceSongFemaleArtist)
Ariana Grande – “7 rings”
Billie Eilish – “bad guy”
Lauren Jauregui – “Expectations”
Taylor Swift (feat. Brendon Urie of Panic! At The Disco) – “ME!”
Katy Perry – “Never Really Over”
Halsey – “Nightmare”

Choice Song: Male Artist (#ChoiceSongMaleArtist)
Khalid – “Better”
Shawn Mendes – “If I Can’t Have You”
Lil Nas X – “Old Town Road”
Travis Scott – “SICKO MODE”
Louis Tomlinson – “Two of Us”
Post Malone – “Wow.”

Choice Song: Group (#ChoiceSongGroup)
Imagine Dragons – “Bad Liar”
BLACKPINK – “DDU-DU DDU-DU”
5 Seconds of Summer – “Easier”
Panic! At The Disco – “Hey Look Ma, I Made It”
Jonas Brothers – “Sucker”
Why Don’t We – “8 Letters”

Choice Pop Song (#ChoicePopSong)
Sam Smith & Normani – “Dancing With A Stranger”
Ed Sheeran & Justin Bieber – “I Don’t Care”
Taylor Swift (feat. Brendon Urie of Panic! At The Disco) – “ME!”
Jonas Brothers – “Sucker”
Ava Max – “Sweet but Psycho”
Ariana Grande – “thank u, next”

Choice Country Song (#ChoiceCountrySong)
Maren Morris – “GIRL”
Kane Brown – “Good as You”
Thomas Rhett – “Look What God Gave Her”
Kelsea Ballerini – “Miss Me More”
Kacey Musgraves – “Rainbow”
Dan + Shay – “Speechless”

Choice Electronic/Dance Song (#ChoiceElectronicDanceSong)
Zedd & Katy Perry – “365”
The Chainsmokers & Bebe Rexha – “Call You Mine”
Ellie Goulding, Diplo, & Red Velvet – “Close to Me (Red Velvet Remix)”
Mark Ronson (feat. Camila Cabello) – “Find U Again”
Marshmello & Bastille – “Happier”
The Chainsmokers & 5 Seconds of Summer – “Who Do You Love”

Choice Latin Song (#ChoiceLatinSong)
Ozuna, Daddy Yankee & J Balvin (feat. Farruko, Anuel AA) [Remix] – “Baila Baila Baila”
ROSALÍA, J Balvin & El Guincho – “Con Altura”
Daddy Yankee & Katy Perry – “Con Calma (feat. Snow)”
Bad Bunny (feat. Drake) – “MIA”
CNCO – “Pretend”
Nicky Jam & Ozuna – “Te Robaré”

Choice R&B/Hip-Hop Song (#ChoiceR&BHipHopSong)
Meek Mill (feat. Drake) – “Going Bad”
Lil Nas X (feat. Billy Ray Cyrus) – “Old Town Road [Remix]”
Mustard & Migos – “Pure Water”
Post Malone & Swae Lee – “Sunflower (Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse)”
Khalid – “Talk”
Post Malone – “Wow.”

Choice Rock Song (#ChoiceRockSong)
AJR – “100 Bad Days”
Panic! At The Disco – “Hey Look Ma, I Made It”
Bastille – “Joy”
Imagine Dragons – “Natural”
Cage The Elephant – “Ready To Let Go”
lovelytheband – “These Are My Friends”

Choice Breakout Artist (#ChoiceBreakoutArtist)
Billie Eilish
HRVY
Juice WRLD
Lil Nas X
Lizzo
ROSALÍA

Choice International Artist (#ChoiceInternationalArtist)
BLACKPINK
BTS
CNCO
EXO
Little Mix
NCT 127

Choice Collaboration (#ChoiceCollaboration)
BTS (feat. Halsey) – “Boy With Luv”
Sam Smith & Normani – “Dancing With A Stranger”
Ed Sheeran & Justin Bieber – “I Don’t Care”
Lil Nas X (feat. Billy Ray Cyrus) – “Old Town Road [Remix]”
Lady Gaga & Bradley Cooper – “Shallow”
Julia Michaels (feat. Niall Horan) – “What A Time”

Choice Ship (#ChoiceShip)
Katherine McNamara & Dominic Sherwood – “Shadowhunters”
Lady Gaga & Bradley Cooper – “A Star Is Born”
Lana Condor & Noah Centineo – “To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before”
Laura Marano & Noah Centineo – “The Perfect Date”
Lili Reinhart & Cole Sprouse – “Riverdale”
Madelaine Petsch & Vanessa Morgan – “Riverdale”

Choice Comedian (#ChoiceComedian)
Ellen DeGeneres
Ethan & Grayson Dolan
James Corden
Kevin Hart
Lilly Singh
Tiffany Haddish

Choice Male Athlete (#ChoiceMaleAthlete)
AJ Styles
James Harden
Lionel Messi
Patrick Mahomes
Stephen Curry
Tiger Woods

Choice Female Athlete (#ChoiceFemaleAthlete)
Katelyn Ohashi
Serena Williams
Simone Biles
Sky Brown
The Bella Twins
Tobin Heath

Teen Choice 2019 is produced by Bob Bain Productions and Fox Alternative Entertainment. Bob Bain and Ashley Edens serve as executive producers. Like Teen Choice 2019 on Facebook at facebook.com/TeenChoiceAwards. Follow the action on Twitter @TeenChoiceFox and join the discussion at #teenchoice. See photos and videos on Instagram by following @teenchoicefox. Fans also are encouraged to follow @TeenChoiceFox on Twitter for the latest Teen Choice 2019 news, including voting and announcements of the host(s), performers, presenters and nominees.

2019 TV Upfronts: Fox announces 2019-2020 schedule; see photos and videos

May 13, 2019

by Carla Hay

Tom Payne and Michael Sheen in “Prodigal Son” (Photo by David Giesbrecht/Fox)

Fox has officially announced its 2019-2020 schedule, in advance of the network’s upfront presentation at the Beacon Theater in New York City on May 13, 2019. Most of the existing shows had previously been announced as renewed. However, the upfront presentation made it official that the following shows have been cancelled: “Lethal Weapon,” “The Gifted,” “Star,” “Rel,” “The Cool Kids,” “The Passage,” “Proven Innocent,” “Gotham,” “The Four: Battle for Stardom,” “Showtime at the Apollo,” “Cosmos” (which was a limited series) and “Love Connection.”

New scripted shows on Fox include “Prodigal Son,” “Filthy Rich,” “Bless the Harts,” “Duncanville,” “9-1-1: Lone Star,” “Not Just Me,” “Outmatched,” “neXt,” “Deputy” and “The Great North.” New unscripted shows on Fox include “Ultimate Tag” and “Spin the Wheel.” Several actors who are familiar to TV audiences are starring in these shows, including “Prodigal Son” stars Tom Payne (formerly of “The Walking Dead”) and Michael Sheen (who used to be on “Masters of Sex” and is currently on “The Good Fight”); “neXt” star John Slattery (formerly of “Mad Men”); “Filthy Rich” stars Kim Cattrall (an alum of “Sex and the City”) and Gerald McRaney, whose numerous former TV shows include “House of Cards,” “Promised Land,” “Major Dad” and “Simon & Simon”; and Rob Lowe of “9-1-1: Lone Star” (a spin-off of “9-1-1”), who is also a veteran of several TV shows, including “Parks and Recreation,” “The West Wing,” “Californication” and “Brothers and Sisters.”

Fall premiere dates will be announced at a later time. Please note that shows picked up but not listed on the schedule below will have their season debuts at other times in the 2019-2020 season. They include new shows such as “The Great North,” “Ultimate Tag,” “Deputy,” “9-1-1: Lone Star,” “next,” “BH90210” and “Spin the Wheel” and renewed shows such as  “Last Man Standing,” “The Orville,” “Beat Shazam,” “Gordon Ramsay’s 24 Hours to Hell & Back,” “Hell’s Kitchen,” “MasterChef,” “MasterChef Junior,” “So You Think You Can Dance.” It has not been announced yet if the “Paradise Hotel” reboot (which debuted on May 9, 2019) will be renewed or cancelled. In addition, Fox has announced at the limited series “BH90210” will premiere on August 7, 2019. The show, which is a satirical look at the lives of the stars of “Beverly Hills, 90210,” reunites several of the original “Beverly Hills, 90210” cast members, including Shannen Doherty, Jason Priestley, Jennie Garth, Tori Spelling, Ian Ziering, Brian Austin Green and Gabrielle Carteris.

The following is an excerpt from a Fox press release:

FOX FALL 2019-2020 SCHEDULE

All times listed are Eastern Time only.

MONDAY

8-9 p.m.   “9-1-1”
9-10 p.m. “Prodigal Son”

TUESDAY

8-9 p.m.   “The Resident”
9-10 p.m. “Empire”

WEDNESDAY

8-9 p.m.   “The Masked Singer”
9-10 p.m. “Not Just Me”

THURSDAY

7:30-8 p.m. “Thursday Night Football Pre-Game Show”
8-10 p.m.      “NFL Football”

FRIDAY

8-10 p.m.      “WWE’s Smackdown Live”

SATURDAY

7-10:30 p.m. “Fox Sports Saturday: Fox College Football”

SUNDAY

7-7:30 p.m.  “NFL on Fox”
7:30-8 p.m.  “The OT”/Fox Encores
8-8:30 p.m.  “The Simpsons”
8:30-9 p.m.  “Bless the Harts”
9-9:30 p.m.  “Bob’s Burgers”
9:30-10 p.m. “Family Guy”

NEW DRAMA SERIES

“BH90210”

Gabrielle Carteris, Tori Spelling, Brian Austin Green, Jason Priestley, Shannen Doherty, Jennie Garth and Ian Ziering in “BH90210” (Photo by Brian Bowen Smith/Fox)

Jason Priestley, Shannen Doherty, Jennie Garth, Ian Ziering, Gabrielle Carteris, Brian Austin Green and Tori Spelling, the original stars of “Beverly Hills, 90210,” the groundbreaking teen drama that defined Southern California life, return to FOX, the network they called home for the entire decade of the 1990s, in an all-new event series the takes the concept of a series reboot to a whole new meta-level.  When the cast gets back together, it will come with a big twist: the seven former teen idols will be playing heightened versions of themselves in the brand-new serialized drama – with a healthy dose of irreverence – that is inspired by their real lives and relationships with each other.

Having gone their separate ways since the original series ended 19 years ago, Jason, Shannen, Jennie, Ian, Gabrielle, Brian and Tori reunite when one of them suggests it’s time to get a “Beverly Hills, 90210” reboot up and running. But getting it going may make for an even more delicious soap than the reboot itself. What will happen when first loves, old romances, friends and frenemies come back together, as this iconic cast – whom the whole world watched grow up together – attempts to continue from where they left off?

Spawning generations of imitators, “Beverly Hills, 90210” premiered on FOX on October 4, 1990, when it became an instant pop culture sensation and one of the most adored programs in the network’s history.  Centered on the tony Los Angeles community identified in its title, the show aired for 10 seasons, during which it documented the trials and tribulations of a group of friends from high school to college and into early adulthood, as they navigated a myriad of coming-of-age dramas and complex rivalries, often making real-world headlines by tackling controversial and socially relevant topics.

PRODUCTION COMPANIES: CBS Television Studios, FOX Entertainment

EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: Patrick Sean Smith, Chris Alberghini, Mike Chessler, Gabrielle Carteris, Shannen Doherty, Jennie Garth, Brian Austin Green, Jason Priestley, Tori Spelling, Ian Ziering*

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER/WRITERS: Patrick Sean Smith, Chris Alberghini, Mike Chessler*

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER/DIRECTOR: Patrick Sean Smith*

CAST: Gabrielle Carteris, Shannen Doherty, Jennie Garth, Brian Austin Green, Jason Priestley, Tori Spelling and Ian Ziering as themselves

*May 16, 2019 UPDATE: According to Variety: “Patrick Sean Smith and several senior writers have quit the six-episode series…The exact reason for the exodus is unclear. One source said the dispute was over interference from two of the show’s lead actresses, while another noted that the writers were unhappy with one of the executives overseeing the project. Paul Sciarrotta has been named the new showrunner along with series’ creators Chris Alberghini and Mike Chessler. Sciarrotta, a member of the show’s writing staff, is currently under an overall deal with CBS Television Studios, which is producing the series.”

“NOT JUST ME”

Emily Osment, Megalyn Echikunwoke and Brittany Snow in "Not Just Me" (Photo by Linda Kallerus/Fox)
Emily Osment, Megalyn Echikunwoke and Brittany Snow in “Not Just Me” (Photo by Linda Kallerus/Fox)

Executive producer Jason Katims (“Friday Night Lights,” “Parenthood”) and writer Annie Weisman (“About A Boy,” “Desperate Housewives”) bring you the story of an unusual family formed through extreme odds. Exploring such hot-button issues as identity, human connection and what it truly means to be a family, this unconventional dramedy taps directly into the zeitgeist, harnessing the emotional complications that new generations of IVF-bred children all face. Only child JULIA BECHLEY (Brittany Snow, the “Pitch Perfect” franchise, “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend”) finds her life turned upside down when her father, LEON BECHLEY (Academy Award winner Timothy Hutton, “American Crime,” “Leverage,” “Ordinary People”), reveals that, over the course of his prize-winning career as a pioneering fertility doctor, he used his own sperm to conceive upwards of a hundred children.

Reeling from this explosive revelation, Julia discovers two new sisters – her former best friend, EDIE PALMER (Megalyn Echikunwoke, “The Following,” “90210”), and an ex-Olympic athlete, ROXY DOYLE (Emily Osment, “The Kominsky Method,” “Young & Hungry”). As these three young women begin to embrace their new reality, Julia must figure out what life is like without Leon by her side; Edie comes to grips with her burgeoning sexuality, as her marriage falters; and Roxy faces adulthood out of the spotlight. Against all odds, the three women will attempt to form an untraditional bond as sisters, even as they must welcome a tidal wave of new siblings into their rapidly expanding family.

PRODUCTION COMPANIES: Universal Television, FOX Entertainment

EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: Jason Katims, Jeni Mulein, Imogen Banks, Sharon Levy

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER/WRITER: Annie Weisman

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER/DIRECTOR: Leslye Headland

CAST: Brittany Snow as Julia Bechley, Megalyn Echikunwoke as Edie Palmer, Emily Osment as Roxy Doyle, Mustafa Elzein as Dr. Isaac Abadi, Mo McRae as Tim Moore, Victoria Cartagena as Amanda and Timothy Hutton as Leon Bechley

“PRODIGAL SON”

Tom Payne and Michael Sheen in “Prodigal Son” (Photo by David Giesbrecht/Fox)

From Emmy Award-nominated executive producers Greg Berlanti and Sarah Schechter (“Riverdale,” “The Flash”) and writers Chris Fedak (“Deception,” “Chuck”) and Sam Sklaver (“Deception,” “Bored to Death”), PRODIGAL SON is a fresh take on a crime franchise with a provocative and outrageous lead character and a darkly comedic tone. MALCOLM BRIGHT (Tom Payne, “The Walking Dead”) has a gift. He knows how killers think, how their minds work. Why? Back in the 1990s, his father was one of the best, a notorious serial killer called “The Surgeon.” That’s why Bright is the best criminal psychologist around; murder is the family business. He will use his twisted genius to help the NYPD solve crimes and stop killers, all while dealing with a manipulative mother, annoyingly normal sister, a homicidal father still looking to bond with his prodigal son and his own constantly evolving neuroses.

Meet the happy family. DR. MARTIN WHITLY (Emmy Award and Golden Globe nominee Michael Sheen, “Masters of Sex,” “Frost/Nixon”) is intelligent, wealthy and charismatic, and also happens to be a predatory sociopath who killed at least 23 people. Bright’s mother, JESSICA WHITLY (Bellamy Young, “Scandal,” “Criminal Minds”), an elegant and WASPy New Yorker, wields sarcasm like a samurai sword and has an opinion on every aspect of Bright’s life. Perhaps Bright’s only ally is his sister, AINSLEY WHITLY (Halston Sage, THE ORVILLE), a TV journalist who wishes her brother would “take a break from murder” and have a normal life.

Unfortunately for his sister, the only way Bright feels normal is by solving cases with the help of his longtime mentor, NYPD Detective GIL ARROYO (Emmy Award and Golden Globe nominee Lou Diamond Phillips, “Longmire,” “Stand and Deliver”). Arroyo’s one of the best detectives around, and he expects no less from his team – Detective DANI POWELL (Aurora Perrineau, “The Carmichael Show,” “Jem and the Holograms”), a headstrong no-nonsense cop who quickly becomes impressed with Bright’s work; and Detective JT TARMEL (Frank Harts, “The Path,” “Billions”), a born-and-bred New Yorker who questions whether Bright is a psychopath himself. So much for normal.

PRODUCTION COMPANIES: Warner Bros. Television, Berlanti Productions, FOX Entertainment

EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: Greg Berlanti, Sarah Schechter

EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS/WRITERS: Chris Fedak, Sam Sklaver

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER/DIRECTOR: Lee Toland Krieger

CAST: Tom Payne as Malcolm Bright, Michael Sheen as Dr. Martin Whitly, Bellamy Young as Jessica Whitly, Lou Diamond Phillips as Gil Arroyo, Halston Sage as Ainsley Whitly, Aurora Perrineau as Dani Powell, Frank Harts as JT Tarmel, Keiko Agena as Edrisa Tanaka

“9-1-1: LONE STAR”

FOX’S #1 drama, 9-1-1, expands its reach to the city of Austin, TX, with new installment, 9-1-1: LONE STAR, starring Rob Lowe. 9-1-1: LONE STAR debuts with a special two-night event beginning Sunday, Jan. 19, 2020, following the NFC CHAMPIONSHIP, and continuing with its time period premiere on Monday, Jan. 20, 2020. From 9-1-1 co-creators Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuk and Tim Minear, 9-1-1: LONE STAR follows a sophisticated New York cop (Lowe), who, along with his son, re-locates, and must try to balance saving those who are at their most vulnerable with solving the problems in his own life.

PRODUCTION COMPANIES: 20th Century Fox Television, Ryan Murphy Television, Brad Falchuk Teley-Vision

CO-CREATORS/WRITERS/EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuk, Tim Minear

CO-EXECUTIVE PRODUCER: Rob Lowe

“DEPUTY”

Stephen Dorff in “Deputy” (Photo by Tyler Golden/Fox)

From writer/executive producer Will Beall (“Aquaman,” “Gangster Squad”) and director/executive producer David Ayer (“Training Day,” “End of Watch”), DEPUTY blends the spirit of a classic Western with a modern-day attitude and emotionally driven, visceral storytelling. Featuring an ensemble of ambitious and complicated human beings who won’t rest until justice is served, DEPUTY brings a gritty authenticity to the modern cop drama. The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department is one of the largest police forces in the world, but when the elected Sheriff dies, an arcane rule in the county charter, forged back in the Wild West, suddenly thrusts the most unlikely man into the job.

That man is BILL HOLLISTER (Stephen Dorff, “True Detective,” “Star”). A fifth-generation lawman, Bill is only interested in justice; his soul wears a white hat. The bad guys don’t stand a chance, but neither do the politicos in the Hall of Justice. Under Bill’s command is a county-wide crew of LA’s finest, including Deputy CADE WARD (Brian Van Holt, “Cougar Town”), a former Marine stationed in Afghanistan, eight years sober and one of Bill’s few confidantes; Deputy RACHEL DELGADO (Siena Goines, “Andi Mack,” “Chase”), Walker’s partner, a meticulous officer who is knee-deep in a nasty divorce; Deputy BREANNA BISHOP (Bex Taylor-Klaus, “Arrow,” “Voltron”), the whip-smart, sarcastic driver in charge of Bill’s security detail; and Deputy JOSEPH BLAIR (Shane Paul McGhie, “What Men Want”).

The dangers associated with the job often lead the police to LA County General Hospital, where Bill buts heads with Dr. PAULA REYES (Yara Martinez, “Jane the Virgin,” “True Detective”), the hospital’s chief trauma surgeon – and his wife. Given a job he never wanted, in an unfamiliar sea of politics, Bill quickly learns that doing what is expected and doing what is right are two different things, and that his innate, dogged pursuit of justice is the only skill the job truly requires.

PRODUCTION COMPANIES: Entertainment One, FOX Entertainment

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER/WRITER: Will Beall

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER/DIRECTOR: David Ayer

EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: Chris Long, Barry Schindel

CAST: Stephen Dorff as Bill Hollister, Yara Martinez as Dr. Paula Reyes, Brian Van Holt as Cade Ward, Siena Goines as Rachel Delgado, Bex Taylor-Klaus as Breanna Bishop, Shane Paul McGhie as Joseph Blair, Mark Moses as Jerry London

“FILTHY RICH “

Gerald McRaney, Aubrey Dollar and Kim Cattrall in “Filthy Rich” (Photo by Alan Markfield/Fox)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EX8feK5WK68

From writer/director Tate Taylor (“Ma,” “The Help,” “The Girl on the Train”) comes FILTHY RICH, a southern Gothic family drama in which wealth, power and religion intersect – more correctly, collide – with outrageously soapy results. Meet the Monreauxes, a mega-rich Southern family famed for creating a wildly successful Christian television network. On the cusp of launching a digital retail arm of the company, the family’s patriarch, EUGENE (Emmy Award winner Gerald McRaney, “This Is Us,” “24: Legacy”), dies in a plane crash (or so we think), leaving MARGARET (Emmy Award and Golden Globe nominee Kim Cattrall, “Sex and the City”), a now-“Oprah” to the religious and Southern communities, to take charge of the family business.

Not surprisingly, Eugene’s apparent death greatly impacts the Monreaux children: ERIC (Corey Cott, “The Good Fight,” “Z: The Beginning of Everything”), the couple’s ambitious son, who assumes he will now run the show; and daughter ROSE (Aubrey Dollar, “Battle Creek”), a budding fashion designer, who constantly struggles to evade the vast shadow cast by her mother. If that wasn’t enough, the Monreauxes are stunned to learn that Eugene fathered three illegitimate children, all of whom are written into his will.

Now, Margaret must use her business savvy and Southern charm to control her newly legitimized heirs, whose very existence threatens the Monreaux family name and fortune: GINGER (Melia Kreiling, “Tyrant,” “The Borgias”), the tough-as-nails daughter of a Vegas cocktail waitress, whose life was virtually destroyed by Eugene’s rejection; ANTONIO (Benjamin Levy Aguilar, “Straight Outta Compton”), a single dad and boxer from Queens, NY; and JASON (Mark L. Young, “The Comeback,” “We’re the Millers”), another scion, who is not what he seems to be. With monumental twists and turns, not to mention lies, deceit and shade from every direction, FILTHY RICH presents a world in which everyone has an ulterior motive – and no one is going down without a fight. The series is based on the New Zealand format created by Filthy Productions Limited.

PRODUCTION COMPANIES: 20th Century Fox Television, Imagine Entertainment, FOX Entertainment

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER/WRITER/DIRECTOR: Tate Taylor

EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: Brian Grazer, Francie Calfo, John Norris, Abe Sylvia

PRODUCER: Kim Cattrall

CAST: Kim Cattrall as Margaret Monreaux, Melia Kreiling as Ginger Sweet, Aubrey Dollar as Rose Monreaux, Corey Cott as Eric Monreaux, Benjamin Levy Aguilar as Antonio Rivera, Mark L. Young as Jason Conley, Olivia Macklin as Becky Monreaux, with Steve Harris as Franklin Lee and Gerald McRaney as Eugene Monreaux

“neXt”

John Slattery in “neXt” (Photo by Ed Ariquel/Fox)

From creator and executive producer Manny Coto (“24: Legacy”) and executive producers and directors John Requa and Glenn Ficarra (“This Is Us”), neXt is a propulsive, fact-based thriller about the emergence of a deadly, rogue artificial intelligence, a series that asks us to look closely not only at our relationship to technology, but to one another. Silicon Valley pioneer PAUL LEBLANC (Emmy Award nominee John Slattery, “Mad Men,” “Veep”) built a fortune and legacy on the world-changing innovations he dreamed up, while ignoring and alienating the people around him, including his own daughter, ABBY (Elizabeth Cappucino, “Jessica Jones,” “Deception”), and his short-sighted younger brother, TED (Jason Butler Harner, “Ozark,” “Ray Donovan”), who now runs Paul’s company.

After discovering that one of his own creations – a powerful A.I. called neXt – might spell doom for humankind, Paul tried to shutter the project, only to be kicked out of the company by his own brother, leaving him with nothing but mounting dread about the fate of the world. When a series of unsettling tech mishaps points to a potential worldwide crisis, LeBlanc joins forces with Special Agent SHEA SALAZAR (Fernanda Andrade, “The First,” “Here and Now”).

Having escaped crime, poverty and a deadly criminal father to remake herself as a force for good, Salazar’s strict moral code and sense of duty have earned her the respect of her team – a talented but contentious group held together by her faith in their ability to defy expectations and transcend their differences, including GINA (Eve Harlow, “Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.,” “Heroes Reborn”), a high-strung cybercrime agent; BEN (Aaron Moten, “Disjointed,” “Mozart in the Jungle”), a straight-laced, buttoned-up hard worker, who is boring to the point of being interesting; and CM (Michael Mosley, “Ozark,” “Seven Seconds”), an ex-con hacker with a genius IQ.

But the demands of Shea’s challenging job have taken their toll on her home life, where Salazar’s young son, OWEN (Evan Whitten, THE RESIDENT, “Mr. Robot”), has been raised primarily by his father, TY (Gerardo Celasco, “How to Get Away with Murder,” “The Haves and the Have Nots”), a recovering alcoholic. Now, LeBlanc and Salazar are the only ones standing in the way of a potential global catastrophe, fighting an emergent superintelligence that, instead of launching missiles, will deploy the immense knowledge it has gleaned from the data all around us to recruit allies, turn people against each other and eliminate obstacles to its own survival and growth. Marrying pulse-pounding action with a layered examination of how technology is invading our lives and transforming us in ways we don’t yet understand, neXt presents us with a villain unlike anything we’ve ever seen – one whose greatest weapon against us is ourselves.

PRODUCTION COMPANIES: 20th Century Fox Television, FOX Entertainment

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER/WRITER: Manny Coto

EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS/DIRECTORS: John Requa, Glenn Ficarra

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER: Charlie Gogolak

CAST: John Slattery as Paul LeBlanc, Fernanda Andrade as Shea Salazar, Jason Butler Harner as Ted LeBlanc, Michael Mosley as CM, Eve Harlow as Gina, Aaron Moten as Ben, Gerardo Celasco as Ty Salazar, Elizabeth Cappuccino as Abby, Evan Whitten as Ethan Salazar, Olenka Wos Kimball as Iliza, Dann Fink as neXt

NEW COMEDY SERIES

“BLESS THE HARTS”

Created and executive-produced by Emmy Award winner Emily Spivey (“The Last Man on Earth,” “Parks and Recreation,” “Saturday Night Live”), BLESS THE HARTS is a new half-hour animated comedy that follows the Harts, a Southern family that is always broke, and forever struggling to make ends meet. They one day hope to achieve the American dream, but they’re already rich – in friends, family and laughter. JENNY HART (Academy Award and Golden Globe nominee Kristen Wiig, “Bridesmaids,” “Saturday Night Live”) is a single mother supporting her family working as a waitress in the small town of Greenpoint, NC. While Jenny’s the head of her family, she’s often at odds with, or scheming with, her lottery scratcher-obsessed mother, BETTY (Emmy Award and Screen Actors Guild Award nominee Maya Rudolph, “The Good Place,” “Bridesmaids”), and her witty, creative daughter, VIOLET (Emmy Award nominee Jillian Bell, “Workaholics,” “Fist Fight”). Jenny’s doting, eternal optimist boyfriend of 10 years, WAYNE EDWARDS (Ike Barinholtz, “Neighbors,” “Blockers”), is the love of her life and a surrogate father to Violet. He’s a charming dreamer who may never hit the big time, but he’s not going to give up the fight. In the end, the Harts may not have much, but they may just have everything they need.

PRODUCTION COMPANY: 20th Century Fox Television, FOX Entertainment

CREATOR/EXECUTIVE PRODUCER: Emily Spivey

EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: Phil Lord, Christopher Miller, Kristen Wiig, Seth Cohen

VOICE CAST: Kristen Wiig as Jenny Hart, Maya Rudolph as Betty Hart, Jillian Bell as Violet Hart, Ike Barinholtz as Wayne Edwards

GUEST VOICE CAST: Fortune Feimster as Brenda, Drew Tarver as Randy, Mary Steenburgen as Crystalynn

“DUNCANVILLE”

From Golden Globe winner Amy Poehler (“Parks and Recreation,” “Saturday Night Live”) and Emmy Award winners Mike and Julie Scully (THE SIMPSONS, “The Carmichael Show,” (“Parks and Recreation”) comes DUNCANVILLE, an animated family comedy centered around a spectacularly average 15-year-old boy with a rich fantasy life, and the people in his world. Like most 15-year-olds, DUNCAN (Poehler) can see adulthood on the horizon: money, freedom, cars, girls…but the reality is more like: always being broke, driving with your mom sitting shotgun and babysitting your little sister. He’s not exceptional, but he has a rich fantasy life where he’s never anything less than amazing. Duncan’s mom, ANNIE (Poehler), a parking enforcement officer who dreams of someday being a detective, lives in perpetual fear that her teenage son is one bad decision from ruining his life and will do anything to stop him from doing so. Duncan’s father, JACK (Emmy Award winner Ty Burrell, “Modern Family”), a classic-rock-obsessed plumber who’s determined to be a better dad than the one he had, is constantly posting on Facebook – and annoyed that his kids won’t “friend” him. Duncan’s younger sisters are 12-year-old KIMBERLY (Emmy Award nominee Riki Lindhome, “Garfunkel and Oates: Trying to be Special,” “Another Period”), an awkward, emotional girl who can hold grudges forever; and six-year-old JING, who adores her older brother maybe a little too much and whose catchphrase is, “Watch me!,” followed by the world’s slowest cartwheel. Helping Duncan navigate adolescence are his friends, class clown BEX (Betsy Sodaro, “Another Period,” “Disjointed”); trendy influencer YANGZI (Yassir Lester, “Making History”); aspiring troubled youth WOLF; and his on-again, off-again crush, MIA (Rashida Jones, “Parks and Recreation,” “Angie Tribeca”), who never met a cause she wouldn’t dedicate her life to. The coolest guy in their school is MR. MITCH (Wiz Khalifa, “American Dad!,” “BoJack Horseman”), the universally loved teacher/guidance counselor, and occasional gym coach and school nurse, due to budget cuts. Animated by Bento Box Entertainment (BOB’S BURGERS), DUNCANVILLE is in the long tradition of FOX Sunday night animation, and has just started production on a line of over-priced, shoddily produced merchandise for the whole family.

PRODUCTION COMPANIES: 20th Century Fox Television, Universal Television, FOX Entertainment

CO-CREATORS/EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: Mike Scully, Julie Scully, Amy Poehler

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER: Dave Becky

VOICE CAST: Amy Poehler as Duncan/Annie, Ty Burrell as Jack, Riki Lindhome as Kimberly, Betsy Sodaro as Bex, Yassir Lester as Yangzi

GUEST VOICE CAST: Rashida Jones as Mia, Wiz Khalifa as Mr. Mitch

“OUTMATCHED”

Jason Biggs, Maggie Lawson, Connor Kalopsis and Ashley Boettcher in “Outmatched” (Photo by Michael Becker/Fox)

From writer/executive producer Lon Zimmet (“LA to Vegas”) comes OUTMATCHED, a multi-camera family comedy about a blue-collar couple in Atlantic City trying to raise four kids – three of whom just happen to be certified geniuses. For most parents, parenting is hard. But for CAY (Maggie Lawson, “Lethal Weapon,” “Psych”), a caustic, take-no-prisoners casino pit boss, and husband MIKE (Jason Biggs, “Orange Is the New Black,” the “American Pie” franchise), a handyman and uncultivated guy’s guy, parenting may as well be advanced calculus. Dealing with the demands and egos of three high-IQ children would be tricky for any parent, but it’s especially hazardous for two working stiffs who barely got through high school. Mike and Cay are committed to bringing some normalcy to their kids’ hectic, unconventional childhoods, but these geniuses don’t make it easy. Leading the charge is BRIAN (Connor Kalopsis, “The Grinder”), a condescending and pretentious 16-year-old math whiz, who thinks he already knows more about the world than Mike and Cay ever will, even though he’s never actually been out of New Jersey. His 15-year-old sister, NICOLE (Ashley Boettcher, “Lost in Oz”), is a deceptive and fiercely competitive language prodigy who can manipulate her parents into getting anything she wants. The youngest and most recently anointed child prodigy is MARC (Jack Stanton, “The Mick”), a 10-year-old music savant. Introverted and idiosyncratic, he just wants everyone to leave him alone, so he can become the next Beethoven in peace. The only child not driving their parents crazy is eight-year-old LEILA (Oakley Bull, “Beautiful Boy”), who is decidedly not a genius. In fact, she might be kind of dumb. She’s the only kid Mike and Cay even remotely understand. OUTMATCHED takes an honest and heightened look at every parent’s worst fear – that they’re “ruining” their kids. When you have children with the type of gifts that can change the world, the pressure is really on. Raise them right, and these kids could cure cancer, stop global warming or invent time travel. But screw it up, and you could unleash three new super villains into the universe – good luck!

PRODUCTION COMPANIES: 20th Century Fox Television, FOX Entertainment

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER/WRITER: Lon Zimmet

DIRECTOR: Jonathan Judge

CAST: Jason Biggs as Mike, Maggie Lawson as Cay, Tisha Campbell-Martin as Rita, Jack Stanton as Marc, Connor Kalopsis as Brian, Ashley Boettcher as Nicole, Oakley Bull as Leila

“THE GREAT NORTH”

From executive producer Loren Bouchard (BOB’S BURGERS), animated comedy THE GREAT NORTH follows the Alaskan adventures of the Tobin family, as a single dad does his best to keep his weird bunch of kids close, especially as the artistic dreams of his only daughter lead her away from the family fishing boat and into the glamorous world of the local mall.

PRODUCTION COMPANIES: 20th Century Fox Television, FOX Entertainment

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER: Loren Bouchard

EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS/WRITERS: Wendy Molyneux, Lizzie Molyneux, Minty Lewis

VOICE CAST: Nick Offerman, Megan Mullally, Jenny Slate, Will Forte, Paul Rust, Aparna Nancherla, Dulcé Sloan

GUEST VOICE CAST: Alanis Morissette

NEW ALTERNATIVE SERIES

“ULTIMATE TAG”

Hosted by football superstars and brothers JJ, TJ and Derek Watt, ULTIMATE TAG is a high-octane physical competition show based on the classic playground game of chase. The thrilling, energy-sapping competition will premiere in 2020.

PRODUCTION COMPANIES: Znak & Co., FOX Alternative Entertainment

EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS:  Natalka Znak, Conrad Green, Glenn Coomber, JJ Watt

2019 Miss USA: Miss North Carolina USA Chelsie Kryst crowned the winner

May 2, 2019

Miss USA logo

Miss USA Chelsie Kryst at the 2019 Miss USA Pageant at Grand Sierra Resort and Casino’s Grand Theatre in Reno, Nevada, on May 2, 2019. (Photo by Frank Micelotta/Fox)

The following is a press release from the Miss Universe Organization:

Cheslie Kryst from North Carolina was crowned the new Miss USA in front of a worldwide audience at the Grand Sierra Resort and Casino’s Grand Theatre in Reno, Nevada. The two-hour special programming event aired live on Fox on May 2, 2019.

Cheslie is a full time complex litigation attorney who is licensed to practice law in two states. She earned both her law degree and MBA from Wake Forest University and graduated cum laude with a bachelor’s degree from the Honors College at the University of South Carolina. The 28-year-old is a former Division I athlete, having competed in the heptathlon, long jump and triple jump on South Carolina’s track and field team. The Charlotte native runs a fashion blog, “White Collar Glam,” that focuses on work wear fashion for women and is an active volunteer for Dress for Success.

The all-women selection committee panel was made up of entrepreneurs, business leaders, industry experts, and former pageant titleholders. They oversaw both the preliminary and final rounds, a new format that has allowed the panel to better understand what each contestant wants to pursue both personally and professionally.

Actress, host and former pageant winner Vanessa Lachey and multi-Platinum recording artist and television personality Nick Lachey returned as hosts for the annual event. Supermodel and pageant expert Lu Sierra provided analysis and commentary throughout the live telecast.  Grammy® award winning singer, songwriter and producer T-Pain performed and along with his hosting duties, the show included a very special performance from Nick Lachey.

Throughout the show, contestants participated in swimsuit, evening gown, final question and final word. During the Top 5 final question round, the women were asked questions formed from their fellow contestants.

The event concluded with Miss USA 2018 Sarah Rose Summers crowning Cheslie Kryst her successor, chosen from representatives of all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Cheslie will go on to represent the USA in the MISS UNIVERSE® pageant later this year.

Final Results: Miss North Carolina USA Cheslie Kryst crowned Miss USA

First Runner-Up: Miss New Mexico USA Alejandra Gonzalez

Second Runner-Up: Miss Oklahoma USA Triana Browne

Top Three: Miss New Mexico USA Alejandra Gonzalez; Miss North Carolina USA Cheslie Kryst; Miss Oklahoma USA Triana Browne

Top Five: Miss New Mexico USA Alejandra Gonzalez; Miss North Carolina USA Cheslie Kryst; Miss Nevada USA Tianna Tuamoheloa; Miss Oklahoma USA Triana Browne; Miss Arkansas USA Savannah Skidmore

Top Ten: Miss Arkansas USA Savannah Skidmore; Miss Ohio USA Alice Magoto; Miss Kansas USA Alyssa Klinzing; Miss North Carolina USA Cheslie Kryst; Miss District of Columbia USA Cordelia Cranshaw; Miss New Mexico USA Alejandra Gonzalez; Miss Maryland USA Mariela Pepin; Miss Florida USA Nicolette Jennings; Miss Nevada USA Tianna Tuamoheloa; Miss Oklahoma USA Triana Browne

Top Fifteen: Miss Florida USA Nicolette Jennings; Miss New Mexico USA Alejandra Gonzalez; Miss Arkansas USA Savannah Skidmore; Miss Ohio USA Alice Magoto; Miss Oklahoma USA Triana Browne; Miss Iowa USA Baylee Drezek; Miss Minnesota USA Cat Stanley; Miss District of Columbia USA Cordelia Cranshaw; Miss Louisiana USA Victoria Paul; Miss North Carolina USA Cheslie Kryst; Miss Kansas USA Alyssa Klinzing; Miss Pennsylvania USA Kailyn Marie Perez; Miss Maryland USA Mariela Pepin; Miss Hawaii USA Lacie Choy; Miss Nevada USA Tianna Tuamoheloa

MISS USA® was made possible with the support of Reno Tahoe, Grand Sierra Resort and Casino, Nevada Division of Tourism, CHI Haircare, Sherri Hill, Lauren Lorraine, Victoria Duke Beauty, and Sinesia Karol.

The Miss Universe Organization
The Miss Universe Organization (MUO) is a global community that empowers women to realize their goals through experiences that build self-confidence and create opportunities for success.  MUO believes that every woman should be “Confidently Beautiful.” MISS UNIVERSE®, MISS USA® and MISS TEEN USA® programs provide the 10,000 women who participate annually an international platform to affect positive change through influential humanitarian and professional efforts. The contestants and titleholders are leaders and role models in their communities, develop personal and professional goals, and inspire others to do the same. The Miss Universe Organization is an Endeavor company. To learn more, visit www.missuniverse.com.

About Endeavor
Endeavor, is a global leader in sports, entertainment and fashion operating in more than 30 countries. Named one of Fortune’s 25 Most Important Private Companies, Endeavor is the parent of a number of subsidiaries with leadership positions in their respective industries, including WME, IMG and UFC. Collectively, Endeavor specializes in talent representation and management; brand strategy, activation and licensing; media sales and distribution; and event management.

For more information, visit www.missusa.com and www.missuniverse.com. Follow Miss USA on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.

2019 Miss USA: Nick Lachey, T-Pain announced as performers

April 25, 2019

The following is a press release from Fox:

As previously announced, Vanessa and Nick Lachey return to host the event taking place inside Grand Sierra Resort and Casino’s (GSR) Grand Theatre, located in Reno Tahoe.  Season One winner of FOX’s THE MASKED SINGER and Cinematic Music Group’s T-Pain will take the Miss USA stage to perform during the two-hour special programming event and, along with his hosting duties, the show will include a very special performance from Nick Lachey. The 2019 MISS USA® airs Thursday, May 2 (8:00-10:00 PM ET live/PT tape-delayed) on FOX.

Supermodel and pageant expert Lu Sierra returns as a competition insider to provide analysis and commentary throughout the live telecast.

Additionally, the MISS USA® selection committee will be comprised of an all-female panel that will help select the winner, while overseeing both the preliminary and final rounds. This new format has allowed the selection committee to understand what each contestant wants to pursue both personally and professionally.

The women who will determine the next Miss USA include:

  • Hillary Schieve: Entrepreneur and Mayor, City of Reno, NV.
  • Ukonwa Ojo: Former Chief Marketing Officer of COVERGIRL, recognized with over 50 honors and awards, including Business Insider’s Most Innovative CMOs list, Marketing Magazine’s Power 100 List and Financial Time’s Upstanding Top 100 Ethnic-Minority Executives.
  • Amy Palmer: Founder and CEO, PowerwomenTV; Emmy-nominated TV host, Chief Content Officer and Executive Producer
  • Nicole Feld: Executive Vice President of Feld Entertainment, the worldwide leader in producing and presenting live family entertainment experiences.
  • Kim Kaupe: CEO and co-founder of The Superfan Company, hailed as a Top 30 Startup to Watch by Entrepreneur; named to Forbes’ 30 Under 30, Advertising Age’s 40 Under 40 and Inc.’s 35 Under 35 list.
  • Pat Smith: Entrepreneur, philanthropist and Miss Virginia USA 1994.
  • Demi-Leigh Nel-Peters: Miss Universe 2017 of South Africa; IMG Model; founder of women’s empowerment program, “Unbreakable.”
  • Denise Quinones: Miss Universe 2001 of Puerto Rico, actress, singer and pageant expert.

Women representing all 50 states and the District of Columbia will compete for the opportunity of becoming the next Miss USA. The FOX broadcast concludes with Miss USA 2018 Sarah Rose Summers crowning her successor. To learn more about this year’s contestants, please visit: www.missusa.com/contestants.

Find MISS USA® on Facebook and YouTube, and follow on Twitter and Instagram.

Disney completes acquisition of Fox entertainment assets

March 20, 2019

by Carla Hay

Walt Disney Company 21st Century Fox logos

The Walt Disney Company has completed its $71 billion acquisition of 21st Century Fox’s entertainment assets, which include movie studio 20th Century Fox, production company Fox 21 Television Studios, movie studio Fox Searchlight, FX Networks, National Geographic Partners and Blue Sky Studios. The acquisition now makes Disney the world’s largest entertainment company. Disney also owns Marvel Studios, Pixar, Lucasfilm and ABC. The deal was first announced in December 2017.

News Corp., which sold off most of its Fox entertainment assets, is still retaining ownership of Fox News, the Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox-owned local TV stations, Fox Sports, the Wall Street Journal and the New York Post. As a result of the acquisition, News Corp. has changed its name to Fox Corp., and the Fox Broadcasting Company (whose TV shows include “The Simpsons,” “Empire,” “Hell’s Kitchen” and “The Masked Singer”) will be operated by the newly formed Fox Entertainment.

Disney’s acquisition of 21st Century Fox means that Disney now owns movie assets such as the “X-Men” series, the “Deadpool” series, the “Fantastic Four” series and the “Avatar” series. Fox’s other blockbuster movie hits in recent decades include “Titanic” (jointly owned with Paramount Pictures), “Bohemian Rhapsody,” the “Planet of the Apes” series, the “Ice Age” series, the “Alien” series and the “Predator” series.

A merger of this magnitude will result in new leadership and thousands of employee layoffs. Most of the job cuts are expected to be at the Fox companies that were acquired by Disney.

So what does this Disney/Fox mega-merger mean for consumers?

Disney will now have even more content for its streaming service Disney+, which is expected to launch before the end of 2019. Disney+ has not yet announced its content, but the Disney+ service is poised to become the biggest threat to Netflix, since Disney can exercise exclusive rights to have Disney content on its own streaming service. That means it’s only a matter of time before Netflix will lose Disney-owned blockbuster films such as Marvel superhero movies, the “Star Wars” series, the “Pirates of Caribbean” series and Pixar films, such as “The Incredibles” and “Toy Story.” Netflix has already canceled its original Marvel superhero series “Daredevil,” “The Punisher,” “Luke Cage,” “The Defenders,” “Iron Fist” and “Jessica Jones.” Disney has already announced that Disney+ will have exclusive streaming rights to Disney-owned films released in 2019 and beyond. These films include “Captain Marvel,” “Avengers: Endgame,” “Toy Story 4,” “Star Wars Episode IX” and the live-action remakes of “Dumbo,”  “Aladdin” and “The Lion King.”

Logan, Deadpool, Iron Man, Black Panther, Disney, Marvel, 21st Century Fox
(Image courtesy of Marvel Entertainment)

As for TV series that originally aired on other networks, Disney-owned series such as “Grey’s Anatomy” and FX series such as “American Horror Story” might no longer be available on Netflix once Netflix’s licensing agreements expire with those shows.

Because of the Disney/Fox merger, Disney now owns 60 percent of Hulu, which could mean that Hulu will get much of the Disney/Fox content that Netflix currently has. It’s unclear how much longer Hulu will exist, now that Disney+ is going to launch. It’s possible that the Disney+ service will be a more family-oriented brand, allowing Hulu to have Fox content that is edgier and more adult-oriented.

Unlike Disney, Fox releases numerous R-rated movies, and that is not expected to change. It’s unknown at this point what the fate will be for Fox Searchlight, which is a boutique studio that has a stellar track record of releasing Oscar-caliber films, including Best Picture winners “The Shape of Water” and “12 Years a Slave.”

Fox 21 Television Studios’ current TV series are mostly on the FX network (“American Horror Story,” “American Crime Story,” “Feud,” “Pose,” “Mayans M.C.”), while a few are on Showtime (“Homeland,” “The Chi”) and other networks, such as National Geographic’s “Genius,” USA Network’s “Queen of the South” and Netflix’s “The Politician.”

Disney’s theme parks will also be affected by the Fox acquisition. Don’t be surprised if attractions related to “X-Men,” “Ice Age” and/or “Planet of the Apes” are added. In 2017, Disney added an “Avatar” attraction at Disney World in Florida.

Although critics of the Disney/Fox deal say that less competition is not good for consumers, this type of corporate consolidation is a reality that is here to stay. (The Disney/Fox merger comes on the heels of AT&T’s 2018 acquisition of several former Time Warner entertainment assets, including Warner Bros. Pictures, Warner Bros. Television Studios and Turner.) There may be more entertainment content than ever before, but the number of corporations owning the content has gotten much smaller.

March 21, 2019 UPDATE: As a result of Disney’s acquisition of several Fox entertainment companies, Fox 2000 Pictures (a sibling company of 20th Century Fox) will be shut down, according to Variety. Some of Fox 2000’s releases included “The Hate U Give,” “Love, Simon,” “Hidden Figures,” “The Fault in Our Stars,” “The Life of Pi,” “Diary of a Wimpy Kid” and “The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader.” Two of the last movies to be released under the Fox 2000 banner is the faith-based drama “Breakthrough” ( due out on April 17, 2019) and the family drama “The Art of Racing in the Rain,” which is scheduled for release on September 27, 2019.

2019 iHeartRadio Music Awards: Drake, Ariana Grande, Ella Mai win big

March 15, 2019

Drake won the most prizes (four) at the 2019 iHeartRadio Music Awards. Following close behind, with three prizes each, were Ariana Grande and Ella Mai. Neither artist attended the ceremony, but Grande did have a prerecorded performance that was televised on the show. Drake won the prizes for Male Artist of the Year, while his “Scorpion” album was named Hip-Hop Album of the Year, and his song “God’s Plan” won Hip-Hop Song of the Year and Most Thumbed-Up Song of the Year. Grande won the awards for Artist of the Year, Female Artist of the Year and Pop Album of the Year (for “Sweetener’). Mai won the awards for R&B Artist of the Year, Best New R&B Artist and R&B Song of the Year (for “Boo’ed Up”).

The following is a press release from iHeartMedia:

The 2019 iHeartRadio Music Awards brought the biggest names in entertainment and fans together from Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles to celebrate all things music live on FOX; on iHeartMedia radio stations nationwide and on iHeartRadio, the all-in-one digital music, podcast, on demand and live-streaming radio service on March 14, 2019. Hosted by T-Pain, the fan-fueled iHeartRadio Music Awards featured performances and incredible collaborations including Alicia Keys, Ariana Grande, Backstreet Boys, Ella Mai, Garth Brooks, Halsey with special guests Yungblud and Travis Barker, John Legend, Kacey Musgraves with special guest Chris Martin, lovelytheband and Marshmello with special guest Lauv

The 2019 iHeartRadio Music Awards honored Alicia Keys with the iHeartRadio Innovator Award; Garth Brooks with the first-ever Artist of the Decade Award; Halsey with the iHeartRadio Fangirls Award presented by L’Oréal Paris; and Taylor Swift with the Tour of the Year Award.

In addition, iHeartMedia partnered with leading short-form mobile video app TikTok to present seven awards in the seven days leading up to the Thursday, March 14 telecast. Beginning Thursday, March 7, winning artists were presented their awards and gave acceptance speeches that aired exclusively on the TikTok app each morning at 8:00 AM ET.  Winners included Panic! At The Disco for Alternative Rock Album of the Year, Jason Aldean for Country Album of the Year, twenty one pilots for Rock Album of the Year, Marshmello for Dance Artist of the Year, Imagine Dragons for Most Thumbed Up Artist of the Year, the Chainsmokers for Dance Album of the Year and Lauren Jauregui’s dog, Gracie, for Cutest Musician’s Pet.

The official hashtag of the evening, #iHeartAwards2019 trended #1 on Twitter Worldwide and in the U.S.

Additional highlights included:

  • For the first-time ever, the iHeartRadio Music Awards presented an AI (Artificial Intelligence) voice assistant with an award. The iHeartRadio Game Changer Tech Award, which honors the most innovative use of technology that brings fans closer to the music they love, was awarded to Amazon’s Alexa. Garth Brooks and Bobby Bones spoke to Alexa, who gave a tongue-in-cheek acceptance speech. Watch it HERE.
  • Halsey opened the show with a stirring performance of “Without Me.” She was later joined onstage by YungBlud and Travis Barker for the song, “11 Minutes.”
  • Kacey Musgraves performed her hit, “Rainbow,” sitting on an actual rainbow, with surprise guest Chris Martin accompanying her on piano.
  • Jamie Foxx presented Alicia Keys with the iHeartRadio Innovator Award and later came back to introduce her performance. The iconic superstar performed for the first time ever with her son, Egypt, who accompanied his mother on piano for a special medley of her new song, “Raise A Man,” and one of her biggest hits, “You Don’t Know My Name.”
  • In a world television premiere, Ariana Grande gave an intimate performance of her new hit single, “Needy,” accompanied by violinists.
  • For the first time in the iHeartRadio Music Awards show history, winners of three Best New Artist categories – Marshmello (Best New Pop Artist) with special guest Luav, lovelytheband (Best New Rock/Alternative Rock Artist) and Ella Mai (Best New R&B Artist) – came together to perform a medley of their hits including “Happier,” “broken” and “Trip”
  • John Legend performed his new song, “Preach,” backed by a choir.
  • Backstreet Boys started their performance of “No Place” from the audience before seamlessly transitioning into their iconic hit, “I Want It That Way.”
  • Actor and Country music fan, Chris Pratt, surprised those at the show by presenting Garth Brooks with the first-ever Artist of the Decade Award. It was a rare award show appearance for Brooks, who performed a live medley of his number one hits — with Pratt even joining in on stage to sing along — before accepting his award.

Award presenters of the March 14 telecast included Bebe Rexha, Chris Pratt, Elle Fanning, Jamie and Corinne Foxx, Katy Perry, Maren Morris, Nicole Scherzinger, Pharrell Williams, Robin Thicke, Shay Mitchell, Steven Tyler, Zedd and more.

In addition, the show featured celebrity guest appearances from 5SOS, AJR, Alan Bersten, Baby Ariel, Badflower, Betty Who, Billie Eilish, Brent Faiyaz, Drake Bell, Draya Michele, Dylan Scott, Faithe Herman and Parker Bates from This is Us, Grey, Hannah G. from The Bachelor, Heidi Klum, Jana Kramer and Michael Caussin, Jessica Szohr, Jordan Davis, Kat Graham, Katie Stevens from The Bold Type, Lele Pons, Madison Beer, MAX, Miguel, Nia Sioux, Nio Garcia, Reza Farahan, Russell Dickerson, Stassi Schroeder, Tom Sandoval and Ariana Madix from Vanderpump Rules, Tank, Three Days Grace, Tiffany Young, TK Kravitz, Wayne Brady, Zara Larsson and more, plus iHeartRadio personalities including Angela Yee, Bobby Bones, Danielle Monaro, Elvis Duran, Enrique Santos, Gandhi, Sisanie, Tanya Rad, more.

Category winners were:

Song of the Year:

  • “The Middle” – Zedd, Maren Morris, Grey

Artist of the Year:  

  • Ariana Grande

Female Artist of the Year:  

  • Ariana Grande

Male Artist of the Year:  

  • Drake

Best Duo/Group of the Year: 

  • 5 Seconds of Summer

Best Collaboration:

  • “Finesse (Remix)” – Bruno Mars featuring Cardi B

Pop Album of the Year:

  • “Sweetener” – Ariana Grande

Best New Pop Artist: 

  • Marshmello

Alternative Rock Song of the Year:

  • “High Hopes” – Panic! At the Disco

Alternative Rock Artist of the Year:

  • Imagine Dragons

Alternative Rock Album of the Year:

  • “Pray for the Wicked” – Panic! At The Disco

Best New Rock/Alternative Rock Artist:

  • lovelytheband

Rock Song of the Year:

  • “Safari Song” – Greta Van Fleet

Rock Artist of the Year:

  • Three Days Grace

Rock Album of the Year:

  • “Trench” – twenty one pilots

Country Song of the Year:

  • “Meant to Be” – Bebe Rexha featuring Florida Georgia Line

Country Artist of the Year:

  • Luke Combs

Country Album of the Year:

  • “Rearview Town” – Jason Aldean

Best New Country Artist:

  • Jordan Davis

Dance Song of the Year:

  • “The Middle” – Zedd, Maren Morris, Grey

Dance Artist of the Year: 

  • Marshmello

Dance Album of the Year:

  • “Sick Boy” – The Chainsmokers

Hip-Hop Song of the Year: 

  • “God’s Plan” – Drake

Hip-Hop Artist of the Year: 

  • Cardi B

Hip-Hop Album of the Year:

  • “Scorpion” – Drake

Best New Hip-Hop Artist:

  • BlocBoy JB

R&B Song of the Year: 

  • “Boo’d Up” – Ella Mai

R&B Artist of the Year: 

  • Ella Mai

R&B Album of the Year:

  • “My Dear Melancholy” – The Weeknd

Best New R&B Artist: 

  • Ella Mai

Latin Song of the Year:  

  • “X” – Nicky Jam and J Balvin

Latin Artist of the Year: 

  • Bad Bunny

Latin Album of the Year:

  • “Vibras” – J Balvin

Best New Latin Artist: 

  • Manuel Turizo

Regional Mexican Song of the Year:

  • “Mitad Y Mitad” – Calibre 50

Regional Mexican Artist of the Year:  

  • Calibre 50

Regional Mexican Album of the Year:

  • Con Todas Las Fuerzas – Banda Sinaloense MS de Sergio Lizárraga

Label of the Year: 

  • Republic Records

Producer of the Year: 

  • Louis Bell

Songwriter of the Year:

  • Frank Dukes

Most Thumbed Up Artist of the Year: 

  • Imagine Dragons

Most Thumbed Up Song of the Year: 

  • “God’s Plan” – Drake

Best Lyrics: *Socially Voted Category

  • “Consequences” – Camila Cabello

Best Cover Song: *Socially Voted Category

  • “You’re Still The One” – Harry Styles and Kacey Musgraves

Best Fan Army presented by Taco Bell: *Socially Voted Category

  • BTSArmy – BTS

Best Music Video: *Socially Voted Category

  • “Delicate” – Taylor Swift

Social Star Award: *Socially Voted Category

  • Agnez Mo

Cutest Musician’s Pet: *Socially Voted Category

  • Gracie – Lauren Jauregui

Best Solo Breakout: *Socially Voted Category 

  • Tiffany Young

Song That Left Us Shook: (New Category) *Socially Voted Category 

  • “I’ll Never Love Again” – Lady Gaga

Favorite Tour Photographer: (New Category) *Socially Voted Category    

  • Helene Pambrun (Harry Styles)

For a full list of categories visit iHeartRadio.com/awards.

Executive Producers for the iHeartRadio Music Awards are Joel Gallen for Tenth Planet and John Sykes, Tom Poleman and Lee Rolontz for iHeartMedia.

Proud partners of the 2019 iHeartRadio Music Awards include “Five Feet Apart” in theaters March 15, Norwegian Cruise Line, L’Oréal Paris, Taco Bell®, TikTok and Total Wireless.

About iHeartMedia

iHeartMedia is the number one audio company in the United States, reaching nine out of 10 Americans every month – and with its quarter of a billion monthly listeners, has a greater reach than any other media company in the U.S. The company’s leadership position in audio extends across multiple platforms including 850 live broadcast stations; streaming music, radio and on demand via its iHeartRadio digital service available across more than 250 platforms and 2,000 devices including smart speakers, digital auto dashes, tablets, wearables, smartphones, virtual assistants, TVs and gaming consoles; through its influencers; social; branded iconic live music events; and podcasts as the #1 commercial podcast publisher globally. iHeartMedia also leads the audio industry in analytics and attribution technology for its marketing partners, using data from its massive consumer base. iHeartMedia is a division of iHeartMedia, Inc. (PINK: IHRTQ). Visit iHeartMedia.com for more company information.

2019 iHeartRadio Music Awards: Backstreet Boys, Marshmello, Ella Mai and more added to lineup

March 12, 2019

Backstreet Boys
Backstreet Boys (Photo by Brian Friedman/iHeartRadio via Freeform)

The following is a press release from iHeartMedia and Fox:

iHeartMedia and Fox Broadcasting Company (FOX) announced that the Backstreet Boys, Ella Mai, lovelytheband and Marshmello with special guest Lauv will perform at the 2019 iHeartRadio Music Awards, plus Travis Barker and Yungblud will join Halsey as special guest performers. Previously announced performers include Alicia Keys, Ariana Grande, Halsey, Garth Brooks, John Legend and Kacey Musgraves, with a special appearance by Taylor Swift. Hosted by Grammy Award-winning singer and songwriter T-Pain, the live two-hour event airs Thursday, March 14 (8:00-10:00 PM ET live/PT tape-delayed) on Fox from Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles.

The sixth annual event will also air live on iHeartMedia radio stations nationwide and iHeartRadio, the all-in-one digital music, podcast, on demand and live-streaming radio service.

Award presenters for the March 14 telecast include Bebe Rexha, Elle Fanning, Jamie and Corinne Foxx, Katy Perry, Maren Morris, Nicole Scherzinger, Pharrell Williams, Robin Thicke, Shay Mitchell, Steven Tyler, Zedd and more.

The 2019 iHeartRadio Music Awards will also honor Alicia Keys with the iHeartRadio Innovator Award; Garth Brooks with the first-ever Artist of the Decade Award; Halsey with the iHeartRadio Fangirls Award presented by L’Oréal Paris; and Taylor Swift with the Tour of the Year Award.

For the 2019 iHeartRadio Music Awards, iHeartMedia has partnered with leading short-form mobile video app TikTok to present seven awards in the seven days leading up to the Thursday, March 14 telecast. Beginning last Thursday, March 7, winning artists are presented their awards and give acceptance speeches that air exclusively on the TikTok app each morning at 8:00 AM ET.  Already announced winners include Panic! At The Disco for Alternative Rock Album of the Year, Jason Aldean for Country Album of the Year, twenty one pilots for Rock Album of the Year, Marshmello for Dance Artist of the Year, Imagine Dragons for Most Thumbed Up Artist of the Year and the Chainsmokers for Dance Album of the Year with the award for Cutest Musician’s Pet to be presented Wednesday, March 13.

In addition, TikTok will partner with iHeartRadio to capture exclusive red carpet content available to fans @iHeart on TikTok.  The iHeartRadio Music Awards red carpet live stream will be available on iHeartRadio’s Facebook page and hosted by TikTok’s Nick Tangorra and iHeartRadio’s Elvis Duran, Danielle Monaro, Medha Gandhi and Maxwell, as well as iHeartRadio’s social correspondent Ellie Lee.

Nominees for the 2019 iHeartRadio Music Awards were announced on January 9. Artists receiving multiple nominations include Cardi B, Drake, Ariana Grande, Shawn Mendes, Post Malone, Maroon 5 and Imagine Dragons. For a full list of categories visit iHeartRadio.com/awards.

In addition to being a compelling celebration of music and artists, the 2019 iHeartRadio Music Awards will again celebrate the fans, giving iHeartRadio listeners the opportunity to decide winners in several new and established categories. Fan voting will determine this year’s Best Fan Army presented by Taco Bell®; Best Lyrics; Best Cover Song; Best Music Video; the Social Star Award; Best Solo Breakout; Cutest Musician’s Pet; and the first-ever Song That Left Us Shook and Favorite Tour Photographer awards.

Social voting began on January 9 and closed on March 7. Fans voted on Twitter using the appropriate category and nominee hashtags or by visiting iHeartRadio.com/awards.

Proud partners of the 2019 iHeartRadio Music Awards include “Five Feet Apart” in theaters March 15, Norwegian Cruise Line, L’Oréal Paris, Taco Bell®, TikTok and Total Wireless.

Executive producers for the iHeartRadio Music Awards are Joel Gallen for Tenth Planet and John Sykes, Tom Poleman and Lee Rolontz for iHeartMedia.

For breaking news and exclusive iHeartRadio Music Awards content visit iHeartRadio.com/awards or follow #iHeartAwards on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

Tickets are currently on sale to the general public at axs.com.

About Fox Broadcasting Company

Fox Broadcasting Company (FOX), a unit of 21st Century Fox, is home to some of the highest-rated and most acclaimed series on television, including 9-1-1, EMPIRE, THE ORVILLE, THE GIFTED, THE RESIDENT, LETHAL WEAPON, GOTHAM, STAR, THE SIMPSONS, FAMILY GUY, BOB’S BURGERS, HELL’S KITCHEN, MASTERCHEF, MASTERCHEF JUNIOR, THE FOUR: BATTLE FOR STARDOM, BEAT SHAZAM, SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE and GORDON RAMSAY’S 24 HOURS TO HELL AND BACK; as well as new series THE COOL KIDS, REL, LAST MAN STANDING, THE PASSAGE, PROVEN INNOCENT and THE MASKED SINGER. FOX airs 15 hours of primetime programming a week, as well as major sports and Sunday morning news. Through the FOX NOW app, FOX viewers can watch full episodes of their favorite FOX shows on a variety of digital platforms, while enjoying enhanced interactive and social capabilities around those shows. Download the FOX NOW app at www.fox.com/foxnow.  To watch primetime programming live on the web, visit www.fox.com/live. “Like” FOX on Facebook at www.facebook.com/FOXTV and follow the network on Twitter @FOXTV. For additional information about FOX, please visit www.fox.com.

About Microsoft Theater

Microsoft Theater hosts over 120 music, family, dance and comedy acts, award shows, televised productions, conventions and product launches with over 500,000 guests passing through the doors annually. The 7,100-seat theater offers guests mid-sized intimacy, with no seat further from the stage than 220 feet. Microsoft Theater offers 12,000 square feet of VIP & hospitality areas, 10 dressing rooms and state of the art technology making it is a favorite indoor venue for performers and fans alike. Since opening in October 2007 with six sold out shows featuring the Eagles and Dixie Chicks, Microsoft Theater has hosted concerts starring the most popular artists including Alan Jackson, Katy Perry, Charlie Wilson, Juan Gabriel, Aretha Franklin, Ed Sheeran, John Fogerty, Gabriel Iglesias, Kanye West, Marc Anthony, Sesame Street Live, John Legend, The Avett Brothers, Neil Young, Steely Dan, Trey Songz, Kelly Clarkson, Rush, Yanni, Nicki Minaj, Juanes, Cat Stevens, The American Idol Finale shows, Michael Jackson’s This is It, Straight Outta Compton, The Hunger Games and Twilight Movie Premieres and many more. Microsoft Theater is home to the American Music Awards, ESPYs, Primetime Emmy Awards, BET Awards, People’s Choice Awards, Radio Disney Music Awards, 2010, 2011 & 2015 MTV Video Music Awards, 2014 & 2015 MTV Movie Awards and the 2013 Rock N’ Roll Hall of Fame.

Microsoft Theater is centrally located within L.A. LIVE is a 4 million square foot / $3 billion downtown Los Angeles sports and entertainment district adjacent to STAPLES Center and the Los Angeles Convention Center featuring Microsoft Theater, a 7,100-seat live theatre, a 2,300 capacity live music venue, a 54-story, 1001-room convention “headquarters” destination (featuring The Ritz-Carlton, Los Angeles and JW Marriott Los Angeles at L.A. LIVE  hotels and 224 luxury condominiums – The Ritz-Carlton Residences at L.A. LIVE – all in a single tower) , the GRAMMY Museum, the 14-screen Regal Cinemas L.A. LIVE Stadium 14 theatre, broadcast facilities for ESPN along with entertainment, residential, restaurant and office space.

About TikTok

TikTok is the world’s leading destination for short-form mobile videos. Our mission is to capture and present the world’s creativity, knowledge, and moments that matter in everyday life. TikTok empowers everyone to be a creator directly from their smartphones, and is committed to building a community by encouraging users to share their passion and creative expression through their videos. TikTok has offices in Beijing, Berlin, Jakarta, London, Los Angeles, Moscow, Mumbai, Sao Paulo, Seoul, Shanghai, Singapore, and Tokyo. In 2018, TikTok was one of the most downloaded apps in the world. TikTok is available worldwide for iOS and Android. Visit tiktok.com.

About iHeartMedia

iHeartMedia is the number one audio company in the United States, reaching nine out of 10 Americans every month – and with its quarter of a billion monthly listeners, has a greater reach than any other media company in the U.S. The company’s leadership position in audio extends across multiple platforms including 850 live broadcast stations; streaming music, radio and on demand via its iHeartRadio digital service available across more than 250 platforms and 2,000 devices including smart speakers, digital auto dashes, tablets, wearables, smartphones, virtual assistants, TVs and gaming consoles; through its influencers; social; branded iconic live music events; and podcasts as the #1 commercial podcast publisher globally. iHeartMedia also leads the audio industry in analytics and attribution technology for its marketing partners, using data from its massive consumer base. iHeartMedia is a division of iHeartMedia, Inc. (PINK: IHRTQ). Visit iHeartMedia.com for more company information.

2019 iHeartRadio Music Awards: T-Pain announced as host

March 7, 2019

T-Pain
T-Pain on “The Masked Singer” (Photo by Michael Becker/Fox)

The following is a press release from iHeartMedia and Fox:

iHeartMedia and Fox Broadcasting Company (FOX) announced today that Grammy Award®-winning singer and songwriter T-Pain will host the 2019 iHeartRadio Music Awards. The live, two-hour event airsThursday, March 14 (8:00-10:00 PM ET live/PT tape-delayed) on FOX from the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles. The sixth annual iHeartRadio Music Awards will also air live on iHeartMedia radio stations nationwide and iHeartRadio, the all-in-one digital music, podcast, on demand and live-streaming radio service.

In addition to having two Grammy Awards® and 60 hit songs, T-Pain released his new album, “1UP,” from Cinematic Music Group, the same day he was named winner of Fox’s “The Masked Singer,” the season’s No. 1 new series. “1UP” has hit #1 on the iTunes Hip Hop charts and includes “Getcha Roll On,” featuring Tory Lanez, alongside new collaborations with Lil Wayne, Boosie Badazz, O.T Genasis, Russ and Cinematic label mate Flipp Dinero. T-Pain kicks off his tour for the new album March 16.  Last year, T-Pain launched the new Fuse TV series, “T-Pain’s School of Business,” and hosted several episodes of Red Bull’s live stream show, “Remix Lab.”

“The blessings keep rolling in. I am grateful and honored to host this year’s iHeartRadio Music Awards,” said T-Pain. “The past two weeks have been incredible, and the run continues. Thank you to everyone for all of the love and support. A special thanks to the iHeart team and FOX for having me.”

For the 2019 iHeartRadio Music Awards, iHeartMedia has partnered with leading short-form mobile video app TikTok to present seven awards in the seven days leading up to the Thursday, March 14, telecast.

Awards will be presented in the categories of Alternative Rock Album of the Year, Country Album of the Year, Rock Album of the Year, Dance Artist of the Year, Most Thumbed Up Artist of the Year, Dance Album of the Year and Cutest Musician’s Pet. Winning artists will be presented their awards and give acceptance speeches that will air exclusively on the TikTok app each morning at 8:00 AM ET, beginning today, Thursday, March 7.

In addition, TikTok will partner with iHeartRadio to capture exclusive red carpet content, available to fans @iHeart on TikTok. The iHeartRadio Music Awards red carpet live stream will be available on iHeartRadio’s Facebook page and hosted by TikTok’s Nick Tangorra and iHeartRadio’s Elvis Duran, Danielle Monaro, Medha Gandhi and Maxwell, as well as iHeartRadio’s social correspondent, Ellie Lee.

The 2019 iHeartRadio Music Awards will honor Alicia Keys with the iHeartRadio Innovator Award; Garth Brooks with the first-ever Artist of the Decade Award; Halsey with the iHeartRadio Fangirls Award presented by L’Oréal Paris; and Taylor Swift with the Tour of the Year Award. The two-hour event will also feature performances by Keys, Ariana Grande, Brooks, Halsey, John Legend, Kacey Musgraves and more, with a special appearance by Swift.

Nominees for the 2019 iHeartRadio Music Awards were announced on January 9. Artists receiving multiple nominations include Cardi B, Drake, Ariana Grande, Shawn Mendes, Post Malone, Maroon 5 and Imagine Dragons. For a full list of categories visit iHeartRadio.com/awards.

In addition to being a compelling celebration of music and artists, the 2019 iHeartRadio Music Awards will again celebrate the fans, giving iHeartRadio listeners the opportunity to decide winners in several new and established categories. Fan voting will determine this year’s Best Fan Army presented by Taco Bell®; Best Lyrics; Best Cover Song; Best Music Video; the Social Star Award; Best Solo Breakout; Cutest Musician’s Pet; and the first-ever Song That Left Us Shook and Favorite Tour Photographer awards.

Social voting began on January 9 and will close today, March 7. Fans can vote on Twitter using the appropriate category and nominee hashtags or by visiting iHeartRadio.com/awards.

Proud partners of the 2019 iHeartRadio Music Awards include “Five Feet Apart” in theaters March 15,Norwegian Cruise Line, L’Oréal Paris, Taco Bell®, TikTok and Total Wireless, with more to be announced.

Executive producers for the  2019 iHeartRadio Music Awards are Joel Gallen for Tenth Planet and John Sykes, Tom Poleman and Lee Rolontz for iHeartMedia.

For breaking news and exclusive iHeartRadio Music Awards content, visit iHeartRadio.com/awards or follow #iHeartAwards on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

Tickets are currently on sale to the general public at axs.com.

About iHeartMedia

iHeartMedia is the number one audio company in the United States, reaching nine out of 10 Americans every month – and with its quarter of a billion monthly listeners, has a greater reach than any other media company in the U.S. The company’s leadership position in audio extends across multiple platforms, including 850 live broadcast stations; streaming music, radio and on demand via its iHeartRadio digital service available across more than 250 platforms and 2,000 devices including smart speakers, digital auto dashes, tablets, wearables, smartphones, virtual assistants, TVs and gaming consoles; through its influencers; social; branded iconic live music events; and podcasts as the #1 commercial podcast publisher globally. iHeartMedia also leads the audio industry in analytics and attribution technology for its marketing partners, using data from its massive consumer base. iHeartMedia is a division of iHeartMedia, Inc. (PINK: IHRTQ). Visit iHeartMedia.com for more company information.

About Microsoft Theater

Microsoft Theater hosts over 120 music, family, dance and comedy acts, award shows, televised productions, conventions and product launches with over 500,000 guests passing through the doors annually. The 7,100-seat theater offers guests mid-sized intimacy, with no seat further from the stage than 220 feet. Microsoft Theater offers 12,000 square feet of VIP & hospitality areas, 10 dressing rooms and state-of-the-art technology, making it a favorite indoor venue for performers and fans alike. Since opening in October 2007 with six sold-out shows, featuring the Eagles and Dixie Chicks, Microsoft Theater has hosted concerts starring the most popular artists, including Alan Jackson, Katy Perry, Charlie Wilson, Juan Gabriel, Aretha Franklin, Ed Sheeran, John Fogerty, Gabriel Iglesias, Kanye West, Marc Anthony, Sesame Street Live, John Legend, The Avett Brothers, Neil Young, Steely Dan, Trey Songz, Kelly Clarkson, Rush, Yanni, Nicki Minaj, Juanes, Cat Stevens, the American Idol finale shows, Michael Jackson’s This is It, Straight Outta ComptonThe Hunger Games and Twilight movie premieres and many more. Microsoft Theater is home to the American Music Awards, ESPYs, Primetime Emmy Awards, BET Awards, People’s Choice Awards, Radio Disney Music Awards, 2010, 2011 & 2015 MTV Video Music Awards, 2014 & 2015 MTV Movie Awards and the 2013 Rock N’ Roll Hall of Fame.

Microsoft Theater is centrally located within L.A. LIVE, a 4 million square foot / $3 billion downtown Los Angeles sports and entertainment district adjacent to STAPLES Center and the Los Angeles Convention Center featuring Microsoft Theater, a 7,100-seat live theatre, a 2,300 capacity live music venue, a 54-story, 1001-room convention “headquarters” destination (featuring The Ritz-Carlton, Los Angeles and JW Marriott Los Angeles at L.A. LIVE  hotels and 224 luxury condominiums – The Ritz-Carlton Residences at L.A. LIVE – all in a single tower) , the GRAMMY Museum, the 14-screen Regal Cinemas L.A. LIVE Stadium 14 theater, and broadcast facilities for ESPN along with entertainment, residential, restaurant and office space.

About TikTok

TikTok is the world’s leading destination for short-form mobile videos. Our mission is to capture and present the world’s creativity, knowledge and moments that matter in everyday life. TikTok empowers everyone to be a creator directly from their smartphones, and is committed to building a community by encouraging users to share their passion and creative expression through their videos. TikTok has offices in Beijing, Berlin, Jakarta, London, Los Angeles, Moscow, Mumbai, Sao Paulo, Seoul, Shanghai, Singapore and Tokyo. In 2018, TikTok was one of the most downloaded apps in the world. TikTok is available worldwide for iOS and Android. Visittiktok.com.

2019 iHeartRadio Music Awards: Ariana Grande, John Legend, Alicia Keys, Garth Brooks among performers

February 27, 2019

 

The following is a press release from iHeartMedia and Fox:

iHeartMedia and Fox Entertainment (FOX) announced today that the 2019 iHeartRadio Music Awards will feature performances by Alicia Keys, Ariana Grande, Halsey, Garth Brooks, John Legend and Kacey Musgraves, with more to be announced. The live, two-hour event airs Thursday, March 14 (8:00-10:00 PM ET live/PT tape-delayed) on FOX from the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles. The sixth annual 2019 iHeartRadio Music Awards will also air live on iHeartMedia radio stations nationwide and iHeartRadio, the all-in-one digital music, podcast, on demand and live-streaming radio service.

iHeartMedia also announced that Taylor Swift will receive the iHeartRadio Tour of the Year Award for her Reputation Stadium Tour. With more than two million tickets sold in the U.S. and grossing $266 million, it is the highest-selling U.S. tour in history by any artist. The Taylor Swift Reputation Stadium Tour broke Swift’s own record for highest-grossing tour by a woman. It was critically acclaimed for its cutting-edge, large-scale production value that gave tens of thousands of fans in attendance each night a rare and intimate glimpse at what makes Swift one of today’s greatest performers. The tour, which kicked off in May 2018 in Glendale, AZ, also traveled to Canada, Europe, Australia, New Zealand and Asia, and was made into a special concert film for Netflix. Swift will be in attendance to accept her award.

Nominees for the 2019 iHeartRadio Music Awards were announced on January 9. Artists receiving multiple nominations include Cardi B, Drake, Ariana Grande, Shawn Mendes, Post Malone, Maroon 5 and Imagine Dragons. For a full list of categories, visit iHeartRadio.com/awards.

In addition to being a compelling celebration of music and artists, the 2019 iHeartRadio Music Awards will again celebrate the fans, giving iHeartRadio listeners the opportunity to decide winners in several new and established categories. Fan voting will determine this year’s Best Fan Army, presented by Taco Bell®; Best Lyrics; Best Cover Song; Best Music Video; the Social Star Award; Best Solo Breakout; Cutest Musician’s Pet; and the first-ever Song That Left Us Shook and Favorite Tour Photographer awards.

Social voting began on January 9 and will close on March 7. Fans can vote on Twitter using the appropriate category and nominee hashtags or by visiting iHeartRadio.com/awards.

This year’s awards will feature a broad array of categories, including Artist of the Year, Best Duo/Group of the Year and individual winners for Album of the Year in music’s biggest genres, including Pop, Country, Alternative Rock, Rock, Dance, Hip-Hop, R&B, Latin and Regional Mexican formats. For the third year, the 2019 Best New Artist awards will be grouped by music format and format winners will then become finalists for the top title of Best New Artist.

Proud partners of the 2019 iHeartRadio Music Awards include the feature film “Five Feet Apart” in theaters March 15, L’Oréal Paris, Taco Bell®, TikTok and Total Wireless, with more to be announced.

Executive producers for the 2019 iHeartRadio Music Awards are Joel Gallen for Tenth Planet and John Sykes, Tom Poleman and Lee Rolontz for iHeartMedia.

For breaking news and exclusive iHeartRadio Music Awards content visit iHeartRadio.com/awards or follow #iHeartAwards on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

Tickets are currently on sale to the general public at axs.com.

About iHeartMedia

iHeartMedia is the number one audio company in the United States, reaching nine out of 10 Americans every month – and with its quarter of a billion monthly listeners, has a greater reach than any other media company in the U.S. The company’s leadership position in audio extends across multiple platforms including 850 live broadcast stations; streaming music, radio and on demand via its iHeartRadio digital service available across more than 250 platforms and 2,000 devices including smart speakers, digital auto dashes, tablets, wearables, smartphones, virtual assistants, TVs and gaming consoles; through its influencers; social; branded iconic live music events; and podcasts as the #1 commercial podcast publisher globally. iHeartMedia also leads the audio industry in analytics and attribution technology for its marketing partners, using data from its massive consumer base. iHeartMedia is a division of iHeartMedia, Inc. (PINK: IHRTQ). Visit iHeartMedia.com for more company information.

About Microsoft Theater

Microsoft Theater hosts over 120 music, family, dance and comedy acts, award shows, televised productions, conventions and product launches with over 500,000 guests passing through the doors annually. The 7,100-seat theater offers guests mid-sized intimacy, with no seat further from the stage than 220 feet. Microsoft Theater offers 12,000 square feet of VIP & hospitality areas, 10 dressing rooms and state of the art technology making it is a favorite indoor venue for performers and fans alike. Since opening in October 2007 with six sold out shows featuring the Eagles and Dixie Chicks, Microsoft Theater has hosted concerts starring the most popular artists including Alan Jackson, Katy Perry, Charlie Wilson, Juan Gabriel, Aretha Franklin, Ed Sheeran, John Fogerty, Gabriel Iglesias, Kanye West, Marc Anthony, Sesame Street Live, John Legend, The Avett Brothers, Neil Young, Steely Dan, Trey Songz, Kelly Clarkson, Rush, Yanni, Nicki Minaj, Juanes, Cat Stevens, The American Idol Finale shows, “Michael Jackson’s This is It,” “Straight Outta Compton,” “The Hunger Games” and “Twilight” move premieres and many more. Microsoft Theater is home to the American Music Awards, ESPYs, Primetime Emmy Awards, BET Awards, People’s Choice Awards, Radio Disney Music Awards, 2010, 2011 & 2015 MTV Video Music Awards, 2014 & 2015 MTV Movie Awards and the 2013 Rock N’ Roll Hall of Fame.

Microsoft Theater is centrally located within L.A. LIVE is a 4 million square foot / $3 billion downtown Los Angeles sports and entertainment district adjacent to STAPLES Center and the Los Angeles Convention Center featuring Microsoft Theater, a 7,100-seat live theatre, a 2,300 capacity live music venue, a 54-story, 1001-room convention “headquarters” destination (featuring The Ritz-Carlton, Los Angeles and JW Marriott Los Angeles at L.A. LIVE  hotels and 224 luxury condominiums – The Ritz-Carlton Residences at L.A. LIVE – all in a single tower) , the GRAMMY Museum, the 14-screen Regal Cinemas L.A. LIVE Stadium 14 theatre, broadcast facilities for ESPN along with entertainment, residential, restaurant and office space.

Jussie Smollett scandal: Fox drops him from ‘Empire’ after his felony arrest

February 22, 2019

by John Larson

Jussie Smollett
Jussie Smollett (Photo by Chris Fragapane/Fox)

Actor/singer Jussie Smollett has been dropped from the Season 5 finale of the Fox drama TV series “Empire,” one day after he was arrested in Chicago for felony charges that include filing a false police report about being the victim of a hate crime. His departure from the show is expected to be permanent. “Empire,” which debuted in 2015, is about the fictional Lyon family, a powerful dynasty in the R&B/hip-hop industry. Smollett, 36, played Jamal Lyon, one of the heirs to the dynasty. Terrence Howard and Taraji P. Henson play the patriarch and matriarch in the dynasty. Just like his character on “Empire,” Smollett is an openly gay entertainer. Although “Empire” is set in New York City, the show is actually filmed in Chicago. “Empire” is produced by Imagine Television in association with 20th Century Fox Television. Season 5 of “Empire” premieres on March 13, 2019.

“Empire” executive producers Lee Daniels, Danny Strong, Brett Mahoney, Brian Grazer, Sanaa Hamri, Francie Calfo and Dennis Hammer released this joint statement on February 22, 2019: “The events of the past few weeks have been incredibly emotional for all of us. Jussie has been an important member of our ‘Empire’ family for the past five years and we care about him deeply. While these allegations are very disturbing, we are placing our trust in the legal system as the process plays out. We are also aware of the effects of this process on the cast and crew members who work on our show and to avoid further disruption on set, we have decided to remove the role of ‘Jamal’ from the final two episodes of the season.”

Smollett’s scandal began when he claimed that in the early-morning hours (approximately 2 a.m.) of January 29, 2019, he was physically assaulted by two men wearing ski masks while he was walking by himself on a Chicago street near his apartment. He said that the alleged assailants yelled racist and homophobic insults during the assault, poured bleach on him, and put a roped noose around his neck, but he was able to fight them off and get away. He also claimed that the alleged assailants shouted, “This is MAGA country,” implying that they were supporters of President Donald Trump and his “Make America Great Again (MAGA)” slogan. Smollett, who was briefly treated for minor injuries at a local hospital, said the reason why he was outside so late on the streets of Chicago in freezing temperature was because he was looking for somewhere to eat. He claimed that he had just left a Subway sandwich shop and was on the phone with his manager when the alleged attack occurred. Smollett’s manager was the one who called the police.

Over the next few weeks, Smollett received an outpouring of support from his colleagues and fans, but his story was called into question by many others when he refused to turn over his cell phone to police. In an interview with ABC News’ Robin Roberts that aired on February 15, 2019, Smollett remained defiant in saying that he was telling the truth about everything. He also said that he didn’t want to give his phone to the police because it had too much private and sensitive information.

Smollett’s story began to unravel on February 15, when Chicago police arrested and then released two Nigerian brothers named Olabinjo Osundairo and Abimbola Osundairo, who who were known acquaintances of Smollett. The Osundairo brothers were extras on “Empire” and were known to be involved in gym/fitness activities with Smollett. Video surveillance footage was uncovered of the brothers purchasing the same clothing that Smollett described his alleged attackers as wearing during the assault. On February 20, Chicago police announced that Smollett was being charged for filing a false police report (a felony in the state of Illinois) and his arrest was imminent.

After the Smollett turned himself in to be arrested on February 21, Chicago police revealed in a press conference that the Osundairo brothers confessed that Smollett paid them (reportedly $3,500) to stage the attack, and that Smollett’s entire story was a hoax aimed at getting him sympathy and publicity because he was unhappy with his “Empire” salary and wanted a raise. (Smollett’s “Empire” salary was reportedly $65,000 per episode.) The Chicago police also said that although they believe that the Osundairo brothers might have caused some of Smollett’s injuries under his orders, most of Smollett’s injuries were “self-inflicted.”

The police also said that Smollett was behind a threatening hate-mail letter that was sent to him on the Chicago set of “Empire” about a week before the alleged attack. When the letter failed to get the reaction that Smollett wanted, police say that he then concocted a plan to stage a physical assault made to look like a hate crime. Smollett’s attorneys say that he is still maintaining his innocence. He has been released on $100,000 bail, and had to surrender his passport.

March 8, 2019 UPDATE: Smollett has been charged with 16 counts of filing a false police report.

March 26, 2019 UPDATE: All charges against Smollett have been dropped. He read this statement outside of a Chicago courthouse after it was announced that the charges were dropped:

“I just made a couple of notes. First of all I want to thank my family, my friends, the incredible people of Chicago and all over the country and the world who have prayed for me , who have supported me and who have showed me so much love. No one will ever know how much that has meant to me and I will be forever grateful. I want you to know that not for a moment was it in vain. I would not be my mother’s son if I was capable of one drop of what I’ve been accused of.

“This has been an incredibly difficult time. Honestly one of the worst of my entire life. But I am a man of faith and I am a man that has knowledge of my history and I would not bring my family, our lives or the movement through a fire like this. I just wouldn’t.”

December 9, 2021 UPDATE: A Chicago jury has found Jussie Smollett guilty of fix of six felony charges of disorderly conduct, for lying to police about being the victim of a hate crime in 2019. The felony charges were refiled against him after a new district attorney took over the case.

Copyright 2017-2024 Culture Mix
CULTURE MIX