Entertainment Daypop Archives

The Freddie Mercury biopic “Bohemian Rhapsody,” starring Rami Malek as the late Queen frontman, defied mediocre reviews to debut with $50 million in weekend ticket sales in the United States and Canada, and another $72.5 million internationally, according to studio estimates Sunday. These numbers were well beyond expectations, which were expected to be closer to $35-40 million in its opening weekend. The movie directed by Dexter Fletcher has a concert-like feel, including a lengthy re-creation of the band’s 1985 Live Aid performance.  

Julianne Hough of Dancing With the Stars fame has been cast as Jolene, the infamous man-stealer from Parton’s song of the same name, in the new anthology show from Netflix, called Dolly Parton’s Heartstrings. The eight-part anthology show is set to adapt the stories and inspirations behind Parton’s most iconic hits. According to press releases, Jolene is described as “a flirtatious free-spirit with aspirations of escaping her small hometown of Coventry, GA to follow her dreams of becoming a successful singer-songwriter.” Parton will play Babe, a “sparkly force of nature” who runs the local honky-tonk bar where Jolene works as a waitress and acts as a mother-figure. In addition to Hough and Parton, Kimberly Williams-Paisley will play local wife and mother Emily, whose life changes when she becomes president of the Coventry Women’s League, and Dallas Roberts will play Aaron, a husband in the midst of a midlife crisis. Dolly Parton’s Heartstrings is set to debut on Netflix in 2019.

The next chapter of HBO’s “Game of Thrones” will star Naomi Watts. The pilot for the network’s prequel has cast Watts to star in the project, from creators Jane Goldman and George R.R. Martin. According to HBO, Watts will play “a charismatic socialite hiding a dark secret in the drama pilot.” The pilot (and hopefully potential series) will be set thousands of years before the events seen in the current series, and chronicle the world’s “descent from the golden Age of Heroes into its darkest hour,” according to a description of the show. Goldman will also serve as showrunner on the series. HBO ordered the pilot for the prequel back in June. Meanwhile, the final season of “Game of Thrones” is scheduled to air sometime in 2019.

Barbra Streisand and Late Late Show host James Corden will take a musical car ride, as seen in a new teaser trailer for Thursday’s installment of Carpool Karaoke. Streisand said on Twitter Tuesday alongside the trailer, “They say there’s a first time for everything… can you believe this was my first time singing out loud in a car? Had so much fun with @jkcorden – tune in to @latelateshow Thursday night! #BarbraWalls.”  In the clip, Corden is then shocked to discover that Streisand doesn’t play music in her car. “I don’t usually put the radio on to hear music. Do you really have to hear music?” Streisand says before the duo launch into a rendition of “Don’t Rain on My Parade” from Funny Girl. Streisand recently released a new single titled “Don’t Lie to Me” that will appear on her upcoming 36th album, Walls. The project is set for release on Nov. 2.

Filmmaker Tyler Perry says he’s retiring the character of Madea, the grandmother he first featured on screen in “I Can Do Bad All By Myself back in 1999,” and has since appeared in 10 installments, along with numerous stage shows and TV appearances. Perry says he also plans to stage a farewell tour in 2019, along with the character’s final film, “Tyler Perry’s a Madea Family Funeral.” Perry said that the film was shot more than two years ago, but Perry wanted to delay the release in light of the two Madea Halloween films he made from 2016 and 2017, respectively. He’s also looking forward to working on different kinds of projects, including Acrimony, out earlier this year, and Nobody’s Fool, due out in November, both of which Perry wrote and produced.