Universal Pictures, in collaboration with the stars of Wicked—Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande and Jeff Goldblum—announced The Journey Through Oz, a five-city global premiere tour celebrating the release of Universal Pictures’ generation-defining cinematic event, Wicked (in theaters Nov. 22), according to a press release. The events will be “Munchkinland” (in Sydney, Australia on Nov. 3), “Shiz University” (in L.A. on Nov. 9), “The Enchanted Forest” (in Mexico City on Nov. 11), “Ozdust Ballroom” (in NYC on Nov. 14) and “Emerald City” (in London on Nov. 18). Erivo and Grande will be joined at various stops on the premiere tour by their fellow cast members, including Michelle Yeoh, Goldblum, Jonathan Bailey, Marissa Bode, Ethan Slater, Bowen Yang and Bronwyn James.
And speaking of Wicked, Cynthia Erivo called out a fan-edited “Wicked” poster circulating online, describing it as “offensive” and “deeply hurtful,” NBC News noted. The image features Ariana Grande’s character, Glinda, whispering to Erivo’s Elphaba. The film’s poster differs from the Broadway version as it shows Elphaba’s eyes by lifting her hat and changes her lipstick from red to green—but one person altered the poster to cover Elphaba’s eyes, prompting Erivo to respond. “Our poster is an homage not an imitation, to edit my face and hide my eyes is to erase me,” Erivo wrote. On X, fans had mixed reactions to the change and to Erivo’s reaction, with some saying that she overreacted while others backed her.
Even though some straight actors, like Jeremy Strong, have called criticism of heterosexual actors playing gay roles “valid,” out actor Joe Locke has taken the opposite stance, Metro Weekly noted. Locke (known for roles in the series Heartstopper and Agatha All Along) told The Guardian that he doesn’t believe it’s “fair” to prevent straight actors from playing LGBTQ+ characters. Locke stated that the focus should be on how actors approach their roles in an effort to portray a character’s experience as authentically as possible, although he added, “If it wasn’t for Heartstopper, I don’t think I would talk about my sexuality in the media at all.”
Broadway dancer Zelig Williams (MJ The Musical, Hamilton and Hugh Jackman‘s 2019 tour The Man. The Music. The Show) has gone missing in South Carolina—and Jackman has appealed for the public’s help in finding him, Deadline reported. “Please … if anyone has any information as to the whereabouts of Zelig Williams please reach out to your local authorities,” Jackman wrote in an Instagram Story. The 28-year-old dancer—who had recently relocated from New York to his hometown of Columbia, South Carolina—to work as a dance teacher, was last seen by family members on Oct. 3; he was reported missing by his mother and other family members on Oct. 4. Anyone who may have seen Williams or has information is urged to call the Richland County Sheriff’s Department at 803-576-3000 or contact Crime Stoppers at crimesc.com.
UK-based LGBTQ+ media brand Gay Times ran a list of 21 LGBTQ+ horror films to watch this Halloween. The 1985 queer classic A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy’s Revenge (with out actor Marc Patton) is on the list as well as the 2019 Nicole Maines vampiric vehicle Bit; the 2022 movie Bodies Bodies Bodies, with Amanda Stenberg; the 1996 teen-witch film The Craft and its 2020 sequel The Craft: Legacy; the 2004 movie Hellbent, which has been called the first gay slasher film; the 2003 French film High Tension; the 1983 Catherine Deneuve/David Bowie/Susan Sarandon film The Hunger; the 2022 Kevin Bacon/Theo Germaine film They/Them and many others.
AMC and AMC+ announced that queer award-winning artist, musician and horror enthusiast Janelle Monáe (Glass Onion; Antebellum) as the official host of “FearFest”—the long-running, annual horror and genre programming event featuring more than 700 hours of iconic horror films franchises, new series, specials and more. Monáe will be featured throughout the month-long party sharing her love of the genre, favorite thrillers, and her horror-score knowledge and musical prowess. Monáe has also curated a list of her favorite horror films for a special collection on AMC+ available to stream during October. “Janelle Monae’s ‘FearFest’ Faves” includes An American Werewolf in London, Candyman (1992), The Fly, Killer Klowns From Outer Space, Puppet Master, Carrie, Jeepers Creepers and more.
Two-time RuPaul’s Drag Race runner-up Kandy Muse is making history as the first drag queen on the reality-competition show House of Villains, per People. Muse’s appearance came after fellow Drag Race alums have gotten spots on other reality shows, such as Peppermint and Bob the Drag Queen on The Traitors, Alyssa Edwards on America’s Got Talent and Laganja Estranja on So You Think You Can Dance. “Now being on the show [House of Villains], it’s a completely different ballpark and just another door to open,” Muse said. “Queer voices and queer stories need to be heard.”
Out Québécois actor/director Xavier Dolan confirmed he is working on a new feature project that he hopes to shoot next year, Variety reported. He was speaking at a master class at the Lumiere Film Festival, a fest organized by Cannes chief Thierry Fremaux that runs through Oct. 20, in Lyon, France; Dolan will host a special 10th-anniversary screening of his Cannes Jury Prize winner Mommy at Lyon’s 2,000-seat auditorium. The last movie he directed was the 2019 drama Matthias & Maxime, although he made the Canadian drama series The Night Logan Woke Up, which aired in 2022. Last year, he said on Instagram that his “current state of mind and the state of the world don’t inspire me to pursue what was once an inevitable vocation.”
The Santa Barbara International Film Festival (SBIFF) will honor Angelina Jolie with the Maltin Modern Master Award at its 40th annual edition on Feb. 5, 2025, Variety noted. The award—initially called the Modern Master Award, and which was created to honor filmmakers who have changed the movie industry through significant contributions and impact—was renamed the Maltin Modern Master Award in 2015 to honor long-time SBIFF moderator and film critic Leonard Maltin. “Angelina Jolie makes bold choices, both as an actress and as a director,” Maltin said. “She sets the bar high in both disciplines and always comes through. I look forward to reviewing her career with her in Santa Barbara!”
Actor Jermelle Simon (The Upshaws) came out as gay in an emotional video celebration National Coming Out Day, per LGBTQ Nation. Simon plays Bernard “Bennie” Upshaw Jr on the Netflix series, which chronicles the lives of a Black working-class family in Indiana—and the character came out as gay on the show last year. In a social-media video, Simon said, in part, “To myself, I want to say to myself, Happy National Coming Out Day. I have decided to embrace myself fully, all the parts of me. I’ve decided to love myself unconditionally. I’ve decided that the one thing that I thought was the biggest curse in my life is actually the biggest blessing I could ever receive.” Simon captioned the post with a quote from the late gay writer James Baldwin: “You have to go the way your blood beats. If you don’t live the only life you have, you won’t live some other life, you won’t live any life at all.”
Queer actress Sophia Bush (One Tree Hill; Chicago P.D.) will have a major recurring role on ABC’s Grey’s Anatomy, per Deadline. First appearing in an episode slated to air Nov. 7, Bush will play Dr. Cass Beckman—described as “an amiable, fun and a little messy around the edges trauma surgeon at Seattle Presbyterian whose husband David Beckman is a cardiothoracic surgeon at Grey Sloan.” Also, Bush and fellow One Tree Hill original star Hilarie Burton Morgan are set to executive-produce and reprise their roles as Brooke Davis and Peyton Sawyer, respectively, in a Hill sequel series that is in development at Netflix.
More than a year after being acquitted of sexual assault in the UK, actor Kevin Spacey appears to be back in front of the camera, according to Parade. The two-time Oscar winner shared a photo to X of himself sitting on a horse, wearing a cowboy hat, scarf and brown coat, tagging conservative British personality Piers Morgan in the caption. (Spacey sat down for a long interview on Piers Morgan Uncensored in June 2024 about the multiple sexual misconduct suits from various men against him in recent years.) Also, actress Rebecca De Mornay has been in the news, as she has defended Spacey (her co-star in Peter Five Eight) to The Independent, saying he was “unjustly accused” of sexual assault, Newsweek noted. She added, “I’m not sure why he was jumped on to the extent that he was. I think the timing was unfortunate with, you know, the Harvey Weinstein thing.”
And in another matter involving Spacey, his attorneys appeared in Baltimore Circuit Court and asked a judge to disqualify Bethesda real-estate investor Sam Asgari from buying the Inner Harbor mansion, The Baltimore Banner noted. The lawyers argued that the waterfront home was auctioned without sufficient notice and, therefore, garnered too low a price. The 9,000-square-foot, floating pier-home was sold in a foreclosure auction last July to Asgari, of Simo Homes LLC; Asgari’s high bid of $3.24 million was $2 million less than Spacey paid for the house seven years ago.
On the Sibling Rivalry podcast, hosts Bob the Drag Queen and Monét x Change discussed the accusations against fellow RuPaul’s Drag Race star Shangela, according to Pride. “Some people have taken my silence as some form of allyship,” Bob said. “Someone even accused me of quote unquote ‘working overtime to silence victims,’—which seems really wild to me personally, a really wild accusation.” Bob said that she only stayed silent about the issue because she “did not know what was going on” and “did not want to spread rumors,” adding that she stands by the alleged victims. At least six people have accused Shangela of sexually assaulting or attempting to sexually assault them.
TV producer Ryan Murphy told Deadline that he would “strongly disagree” with suggestions that his series Grotesquerie should have been under the American Horror Story banner, or that Aaron Hernandez’s story would’ve been better suited as a new installment of American Crime Story rather than the first in a new anthology series, American Sports Story. “Grotesquerie has nothing in common with American Horror Story. It just does not. … It was never considered for that. It’s a much different animal,” he said. Those are just four of the several series Murphy has ongoing at FX currently, which also include American Horror Stories and Feud, as well as those still in the works like American Love Story—the first season of which is set to depict the relationship between John F. Kennedy Jr. and Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy.
Primary Wave Music announced a partnership with the heirs of a producer behind the legendary dance-music group the Village People that involves a stake in the outfit’s brand, master recordings and publishing assets, MSN noted. Songs included in the partnership are such dance anthems as “Y.M.C.A.,” “Macho Man,” “In the Navy,” “Go West” and more. And in other Village People-related news, frontman Victor Willis is no longer speaking out against Donald Trump using the song “Y.M.C.A.” at his rallies, saying he’s benefiting greatly from the publicity, according to TMZ. After the former president danced for 40 minutes to a variety of songs, including the Village People’s anthem, during a Pennsylvania town hall, Willis issued a formal response in which he criticized Trump’s frequent use of the song—but confessed there’s not much he can do about it, especially since Trump previously applied for a political-use license from Willis’ performing-rights organization, BMI.
Wendy Williams has broken her silence regarding Diddy’s legal situation, according to Billboard. Talking with The Daily Mail, Williams—who is still battling health issues—said, in part, “What is really weird is that I have been told by so many people, ‘Wendy, you called it—Including some people from my family who have said the same.” Regarding the video that shows Diddy attacking then-girlfriend Cassie, Williams (who also said that she’s doing well) added, “To see this video on TV of [Cassie] getting pummeled… it was just horrific. But now you have to think, how many more times? How many people? How many more women? It’s just so horrible.” Williams and Diddy have a contentious history, most notably in 1998 when the mogul allegedly got the then-radio show host fired from her Hot 97 gig, according to her protégé Charlamagne Tha God, who mentioned the rumor during an appearance on the Flagrant podcast.
British singer Liam Payne—who shot to global fame with boy band One Direction—was found dead (at age 31) after he fell from a third-floor hotel room balcony in Buenos Aires, Reuters reported. Police said in a statement they had been called to the CasaSur hotel after being notified of an “aggressive man who could be under the effects of drugs and alcohol.” While details about the circumstances of Payne’s death were not immediately clear, Payne had spoken publicly about his struggles with mental health and using alcohol to cope with the pressures of fame. Celebrities such as Paris Hilton, former British Vogue editor-in-chief Edward Enninful and Charlie Ruth reacted to Payne’s death on social media.
A pair of major Miami nightclubs, Club Space and DAER, called on their patrons to bring in essential items for victims of Hurricane Milton, EDM.com noted. Items on Club Space’s “prioritized essentials” list include canned food, bottled water, baby formula, toilet paper, paper towels, first-aid kits, over-the-counter medication, hydrogen peroxide and personal hygiene items. DAER offered free entry to those who arrived with relief essentials on Oct. 11-13.
Authorities are investigating a threatening, homophobic email sent to WNBA power forward Breanna Stewart’s wife while the New York Liberty competed in the finals, NBC News noted. The email said the couple “don’t deserve to live and I hope you both die.” Stewart, who plays for the New York Liberty, is married to former WNBA player Marta Xargay Casademont, a member of the Spanish national team. They married in July 2021 and share two children.
The National Women’s Soccer League’s newest team, Boston-based BOS Nation Football Club, apologized after its name reveal and brand campaign launch were criticized online, NBC News noted. BOS Nation, the 15th club to join the NWSL, revealed its name alongside a citywide ad campaign called “Too Many Balls.” The video also featured Boston’s professional sports teams, namely the New England Patriots, the Red Sox and the Celtics—which are all men’s sports teams. Some social-media users criticized the ad for its emphasis on male athletes, while others complained that the campaign assumes that only men have balls, claiming that it makes the campaign transphobic.
Bill Maher criticized queer singer Chappell Roan during his show, Real Time with Bill Maher, for comments she made about Gaza in a TikTok video, according to The Hill. He referenced her earlier comments in which she said it’s “important to use critical thinking” when it comes to the Israel-Hamas war, adding, “There’s a whole history of the Middle East that you and your fans aren’t hearing about.” “I didn’t learn about the Middle East from TikTok, which is a Chinese company whose totalitarian government would just love to have America’s youth hating America,” Maher also said, stating to Roan. “Now, first off, the fact that you don’t know much history isn’t your fault.”
Possibly released to coincide with the presidential election, Warner Bros. Discovery Home Entertainment will be releasing Veep: The Complete Series on Blu-ray on Oct. 22, per a press release. There will be all 65 episodes from HBO’s Emmy-winning original series, along with all the previously released special features. The political comedy series follows United States Vice President Salina Meyer (played by Julia Louis Dreyfus) and her dysfunctional team as they attempt to secure a legacy, but often instead become bogged down in day-to-day political games. Veep stars Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Anna Chlumsky, Tony Hale, Reid Scott, Timothy Simons, Matt Walsh, Sufe Bradshaw, Kevin Dunn, Gary Cole, Sam Richardson, Sarah Sutherland and Clea DuVall.
Former Grey’s Anatomy writer Elisabeth Finch apologized for lying about having cancer, according to Variety. On Instagram, she wrote, “I’ve given no one any reason to believe a word I say. I lied about so much; things so many people have been devastated by in real life. ‘I’m sorry’ feels like the smallest words compared to what I’ve done, yet they are the truest.” Then, Finch recounted that she fell in love with Jennifer Beyer—a woman she met while they were both in treatment in a mental-health facility in Arizona, concluding, “The biggest mistake of my life (alongside lying about cancer in the first place) was saying ‘yes’ to Jennifer’s proposal before I was honest with her.” Finch got the Grey’s gig after lying about having chondrosarcoma, a rare cancer. The timing of the apology happened as Peacock’s investigative docuseries Anatomy of Lies—about Finch’s scam—was about to premiere.
Queer reality-TV veteran Parvati Shallow will be among those competing on season two of TV’s Deal or No Deal Island that features host Joe Manganiello, a media release announced. (Former Big Brother winner Dr. Will Kirby and former supermodel/Australian Survivor victor David Genat are two other veterans who will also be on the show.) The winnings from each game of Deal or No Deal will be added to a group pot that will grow to an exponential value throughout the season. The last player standing will face the Banker to potentially win the biggest prize in the series’ history; season one found winner Jordan Fowler playing for $13,857,000.
A Jonas Brothers concert in Prague was briefly halted after Nick Jonas was targeted by a laser pointer, resulting in him running off stage, Variety noted. A representative for the O2 Arena in Prague, where the concert was held, confirmed to Variety that the show was stopped for several minutes. Artists’ fears for their safety were recently heightened when Taylor Swift’s August shows in Vienna, Austria were canceled when government officials discovered the threat of an ISIS-related terror attack.
The UK’s Glastonbury festival announced ticket sale details for 2025, per NME. Regarding this year’s edition, coach and ticket packages sold out in 25 minutes, and then the general ticket sale sold out in just under an hour; coach and ticket packages for Glastonbury 2025 will go on sale at 6 p.m. GMT on Nov. 14, followed by standard tickets at 6 p.m. GMT on Nov. 17. This year’s festival featured Dua Lipa, Coldplay and SZA on the Pyramid Stage at Worthy Farm, with Shania Twain taking the legends slot; other artists to perform over the weekend included Little Simz, Justice, Avril Lavigne, The National, LCD Soundsystem, Fontaines D.C. and Idles.
It’s confirmed: Joker: Folie à Deux is primed to be a box-office disaster, according to Variety. Ticket sales are projected to stall at a lifetime gross of $65 million domestically and $210 million to $215 million globally when the film leaves the big screen. By comparison, the first Joker generated $96.2 million domestically and $248.4 million globally after three days of release. In addition, the second movie—starring Joaquin Phoenix and Lady Gaga—cost $200 million to produce and about $100 million to market and distribute; at this rate, the film won’t get close to the $450 million needed to break even in its theatrical run (as ticket sales are split between studios and theater owners).
Former Apprentice competitor and Donald Trump aide Omarosa Manigault Newman said that she is “100 percent endorsing Kamala Harris for president,” The Hill noted. “Donald Trump squandered the greatest opportunity he had in his life to be a consequential leader, to shape the direction of our nation and bend it toward something positive,” Newman told Variety. In part, she added, “Donald Trump has been defeated before, and I think what’s grating on his nerves the most is that this [next] defeat may come at the hands of a woman of color. He reserves his most vitriolic attacks for women of color.”