A six-part documentary series going behind the scenes of Alan Cumming’s NYC gay bar and nightclub, Club Cumming, has been greenlit for WOW Presents Plus, a press release noted. Titled Club Cumming, the new reality series will be produced by the Emmy-winning World of Wonder (the RuPaul’s Drag Race franchise) with plans to air in 2026. The queer cast of characters will include cabaret singer Daphne Always, go-go dancer/drag performer Michelle Wynters, drag queen Brini Maxwell, drag king Cunning Stunt, comedian Jake Cornwell, Club Cumming co-owner and manager Darren Dryden alongside Cumming himself.
Tessa Thompson, Jamie Lee Curtis and Regina King are among those to be feted at the Women in Film (WIF) Honors ceremony on Nov. 6, Variety noted. The event—taking place at the Beverly Hilton, with Atsuko Okatsuka as host—will be themed “Unity,” highlighting a shared commitment to equity, sustainability and stories that represent the degree to which the human experience can transform culture. Oscar winner Curtis will receive the Jane Fonda Humanitarian Award while Thompson will receive the Crystal Award for Advocacy in Film Award and King will be among a group to be honored with the the Crystal Award for Advocacy in TV honor.
Lesbian stand-up comedian Jessica Kirson expressed “sincere regret” for performing at the Riyadh Comedy Festival in Saudi Arabia, according to Them. The comedic event had been criticized as an attempt to whitewash the Saudi regime, which is distinctly anti-LGBTQ+; almost three dozen comedians were slated to perform at the festival, including Louis C.K., Aziz Ansari and Dave Chappelle—with the latter known for his anti-trans lines in more than one Netflix special. Kirson told The Hollywood Reporter that she regretted accepting the offer, and that she had donated her performance fee to an unspecified human-rights organization.
OUT named actress Niecy Nash-Betts as its Icon of the Year. “Never saw this day coming in my life. In my whole entire life,” Nash-Betts said with a laugh when asked about being given the honor and becoming the cover star. “I remember my daughter, when I said I wanted to be with Jessica, she [asked], ‘Are you the same mama that said, I’m strictly dickly?’ I’m like, ‘Well, I did say that, didn’t I?’” In the 2000s, she starred as Deputy Raineesha Williams in Reno 911!, and earned four Daytime Emmy nominations and one win as host of the home renovation show Clean House. In the next decade, Nash-Betts garnered more notice and accolades for The Soul Man, Claws, Scream Queens, When They See Us and Getting On; recently, she starred in Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story and Grotesquerie.
GLAAD honored Emmy-winning director/producer/writer Michael Patrick King with the Vito Russo Award at its 40th Anniversary Gala in New York, per a media release. The award is presented to an LGBTQ+ media professional who has made a significant difference in accelerating queer acceptance. Ross Mathews hosted the event, which attracted such celebrities as award presenter Sarah Jessica Parker; GLAAD President/CEO Sarah Kate Ellis; actor/singer Cheyenne Jackson, RuPaul’s Drag Race alumni Peppermint, Kandy Muse and Aja; and model/actress Isis King, among others.
For International Lesbian Day (Oct. 8), GO Mag profiled 12 sapphic celebrity couples. Some of them included WNBA player Paige Bueckers and college-basketball standout Azzi Fudd; Kristen Stewart and her wife, screenwriter Dylan Meyer; pop star Hayley Kiyoko and former Bachelor contestant Becca Tilley; fitness trainer/influencer Annabella and Navy officer Karina Gomez; and WNBA stars Natasha Cloud and Isabelle Harrison.
Variety named singer Sabrina Carpenter as its Hitmaker of the Year. Hitmakers culminates with an invitation-only brunch held in Los Angeles on Saturday, Dec. 6. Carpenter will headline the Coachella festival next April, and she made her Grand Ole Opry debut on Oct. 7 in Nashville; in addition, the North American tour behind her album Man’s Best Friend begins Oct. 23 in Pittsburgh, with Carpenter hitting other cities like NYC, Toronto and Los Angeles.
Philadelphia’s Mazzoni Center is celebrating the life and legacy of Tony winner and four-time Grammy nominee Melba Moore with a star-studded concert, “Mazzoni Center Honors Melba Moore,” on Nov. 3 at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, per Philadelphia Gay News. The concert lineup includes Tony Award-winning tap dancer Savion Glover; two-time Grammy winner Lisa Fischer; Broadway stars J Harrison Ghee, Nikki Renée Daniels and Joy Woods; and many others. Ghee—a non-binary Tony- and Grammy-winning Broadway actor, singer and dancer—said, “She literally has done it all. So, to be able to honor her and to celebrate her, she felt like family to me from the moment I saw her on screen.”
Out musician Orville Peck is among those who join Noah Cyrus on several songs on a deluxe version of her new album, I Want My Loved Ones To Go With Me, per a press release. The two duet on the song “Love Is a Canyon.” Blake Shelton and Fleet Foxes are among the others who join Cyrus on various tracks.
Talking with Them, singer/songwriter August Ponthier came out as nonbinary. Among other things, Ponthier said, “Being myself and knowing that other people can see me and have the ability to see me how I want to be seen is like, I never thought that would be possible. It feels just as good as playing a giant show or putting out a record.” Also, Ponthier said that poring over their old discography revealed “a murder mystery amount of clues” about their identity. “It’s kind of funny because it’s one of those things where you get to the end of the movie and the plot twist is revealed and you look back and you’re like, ‘All of the hints were there the whole time,’” they joked.
Amazon MGM Studios officially greenlit the sequel to the hit rom-com Red, White & Royal Blue, starring Nicholas Galitzine and Taylor Zakhar Perez, according to Variety. Jamie Babbit (But I’m a Cheerleader) will direct the film, which has officially been titled Red, White & Royal Wedding. The original film followed Claremont-Diaz (Zakhar Perez), the First Son of the United States, and British royal Prince Henry (Galitzine) unexpectedly transform from bitter enemies to passionate lovers; in the process, they attempt to navigate their blossoming relationship out of the international spotlight.
Bette Midler, Kerry Washington, Nancy Sinatra and many more paid tribute to Oscar-winning actress Diane Keaton, who passed away at age 79, Variety noted. On Threads, Midler—who co-starred with Keaton in The First Wives Club—posted a carousel of photos of them together and wrote, “The brilliant, beautiful, extraordinary Diane Keaton has died. I cannot tell you how unbearably sad this makes me.” Her other First Wives Club co-star, Goldie Hawn, posted on Instagram, “I was blessed to make First Wives Club with you. Our days starting with coffee in the makeup trailer, laughing and joking, right through to the very last day of filming. It was a rollercoaster of love.”
Grammy-winning pop singer Kim Petras unveiled her newest single “I Like Ur Look,” out now via Republic Records, a press release noted. In the days leading to the release, Petras released snippets of the song across social media. This past summer, the trans performer took over Pride festivals across the country and entertained at the World Pride Music Festival.
Fathom Miracles, Vertigo Live Productions and Roc Nation are planning to release Christina Aguilera: Christmas in Paris Dec. 14 and 21 in theaters, Deadline noted. The concert movie marks the 25th anniversary of the Grammy winner’s holiday album My Kind of Christmas. The concert movie was shot in Paris before 250 guests at the winter-garden terrace above the Musée du Quai Branly. Aguilera performed both holiday classics and career hits against the backdrop of the Eiffel Tower fashioned into a Christmas tree.
As expected, Taylor Swift’s The Life of a Showgirl set dozens of records upon its release. A press release noted that, among many other accomplishments, the album posted the largest sales week for any album in U.S. music history, moving more than 4 million units. Also, Showgirl marked Swift’s 15th number-one album, breaking the record for the most top albums in the 21st century; continued her streak of 11 consecutive studio albums debuting at No. 1, beginning with Fearless (2008); and became the first album in history with all its songs appearing uninterrupted from #1 through #12. In addition, Showgirl earned the largest vinyl sales week in Nielsen history, surpassing 1 million units sold—the first album ever to achieve this milestone.
Also, Taylor Swift’s full concert film The Eras Tour | The Final Show—featuring the entire Tortured Poets Department set—and a docuseries on the tour are coming to streaming on Dec. 12, per Yahoo! The movie and the first two episodes of the docuseries, Taylor Swift | The Eras Tour | The End of an Era, will debut on Disney+. Two episodes of the docuseries will release weekly following the Dec. 12 release.
American Federation of Musicians Local 802—which represents Broadway musicians—opted to authorize a strike as negotiations continue with The Broadway League for a new standard contract, Playbill noted. A rep from Local 802 told Playbill that a strike can be called in the next few days if negotiations with the Broadway League remain unsuccessful. The musicians’ most recent contract expired Aug. 31; since then, the union has been trying to achieve a new contract that includes increased wages, increased healthcare contributions, and employment and income security.
The Bay Area Reporter revealed that legendary adult gay film star, actor, singer and fitness trainer Glenn Soukesian, 62—better known as Colton Ford—died of an accidental drug overdose, according to a Riverside County Coroner’s investigative document. The report listed the cause of Ford’s death in Palm Springs in May as acute MDMA intoxication; the drug is better known as ecstasy or molly. Concerned friends found Ford’s Jeep Cherokee parked near the trailhead; after a four-hour search, his nude remains were found “off the established trail in a downhill crevice.”
Queer model and Batwoman star Ruby Rose posted on Threads in defense of megastar musician Taylor Swift, who has recently been accused of becoming more conservative and aligning herself with the MAGA contingent, Out noted. “Given her public position against Trump, and his against her. If you are falling for the propaganda ‘Trad wife’ ‘X,y,z’ claims, you are most definitely walking into the biggest man made, rage bait, black hole,” Rose stated, in part. “Stop it. It’s not true, and it’s incredibly stupid. It’s also embarrassing and hurtful to see energy put into this. Keep that energy and let’s take it where it’s necessary and needed.”
The Ryan Murphy-created series All’s Fair—starring Kim Kardashian and Sarah Paulson as divorce lawyers—will debut Nov. 4, Rolling Stone noted. “As much as I’d love to continue to exchange pleasant cocktail pleasantries, there is a war to be won,” Carrington Lane (Paulson) tells Allura Grant (Kardashian) and Emerald Greene (Niecy Nash-Betts) in the opening scene of the trailer. Naomi Watts, Glenn Close and Teyana Taylor also star in the show.
Out actor Lee Pace is set to play the villain Thragg in the upcoming fourth season of the Amazon MGM Studios animated series Invincible, Variety revealed. Season three aired its eight episodes this past February and picked up an early fifth-season renewal in July at San Diego Comic Con. After a nearly three-year break between the show’s first two outings, the third season was a return to form for the show and thrilled fans with its ultra-violent superhero action and more exciting comic-book storylines.
In the film Pillion, actor Harry Melling plays a submissive to motorcycle dom Alexander Skarsgard, but Melling has also starred in the 2022 film Please Baby Please—a very similar (although much campier) film, according to Queerty. Melling appeared opposite Birdman star Andrea Riseborough in the musical, which takes on gender issues and has Melling’s character wanting to be the plaything of a member of a motorcycle gang.
The 14th Annual Key West Film Festival will start Nov. 12, led by the Miles Teller and Elizabeth Olsen’s film Eternity, which debuted at the Toronto International Film Festival earlier this year, a press release noted. Closing the festival will be Hamnet, starring Paul Mescal and Jessie Buckley and directed by Academy Award winner Chloe Zhao (Nomadland). Golden Key Award honorees this year include renowned stage, screen and television star Billy Connolly, who will be honored alongside a 20th-anniversary screening of the film The Aristocrats, and Academy Award-winning Costume Designer Deborah L. Scott.
Williams Sonoma, Pottery Barn and Pottery Barn Teen are participating in an exclusive home furnishings and kitchen product collaboration inspired by the film Wicked: For Good, HomePage News noted. Creations range from Pottery Barn’s whimsical bedding and barware to Pottery Barn Teen dorm decor referencing characters Elphaba and Glinda to Williams Sonoma’s cookware to intricately beaded jewelry boxes.
The Hugh Jackman comedy—now formerly known as Three Bags Full: A Sheep Detective Movie—has been moved from Nov. 13, 2026, next year to May 8 (Mother’s Day weekend) by Amazon MGM Studios, according to Deadline. The Sheep Detectives (the movie’s new name) follows George Hardy (Jackman), a shepherd who loves his sheep and raises them only for their wool. Every night he reads aloud a murder mystery, pretending his sheep can understand—but he never suspects that not only can they understand but they argue for hours afterwards about whodunnit. When George turns up dead under strange circumstances, guess who attempt to solve his killing?
Paris Hilton is among the executive producers behind the new romantic-comedy show Aught to Be, per Variety. The show “follows one couples’ years-long love story told through the unforgettable pop-culture moments that shaped the early 2000s and beyond.” Hilton emerged as a major cultural figure in the early 2000s, including her starring role in the hit reality series The Simple Life with Nicole Richie.
Out actor Jussie Smollett was removed from the Fox show Special Forces: World’s Toughest Test over a medical issue, according to E! News. For their third-day challenge, the celebrity competitors were dropped into a simulated war zone and tasked with locating and extracting “fallen comrades” while navigating terrain, obstacles and fake explosions in the brutal heat of the Moroccan desert. The show’s physician revealed that Smollett had “developed an allergy to something in the dust,” adding that “his chest [sounded] horrendous.”
Amazon MGM Studios will release a documentary about First Lady Melania Trump—simply called Melania—exclusively in theaters on Jan. 30, per Variety. The film was directed by Brett Ratner, the Rush Hour filmmaker whose career was derailed by #MeToo allegations. Amazon shelled out a reported $40 million for the rights to the film.
LGBTQ+ actor Lukas Gage (who has a new memoir out) revealed on the show Live with Kelly and Mark how being shirtless cost him a role on the show Mad Men, per Out. After being cast, “I walk on set, I see [actress] Kiernan Shipka, who’s now one of my best friends and they [the crew] see this giant tattoo on the whole side of my body while I’m going to be shirtless, playing a 15-year-old in the 50s.” When show co-host Kelly Ripa asked if the tattoo could be covered, Gage responded, “It wasn’t gonna work,” and that they “recast [the part] real quick.” Interestingly, Gage’s ex-husband, celebrity hairstylist Chris Appleton, is coming out with his own memoir early next year.