Talk Fuse

    Topic: Entertainment

    Entertainment brings together the latest from film, television, music and gaming, tracking everything from big studio releases and streaming hits to the smaller stories behind the scenes. Expect a mix of reviews, interviews and features that look at how films and shows come together, the choices actors and musicians make along the way, and how decisions by studios and networks play out once viewers get involved.

    The topic also keeps an eye on the business and cultural side of the industry: how streaming services are reshaping what gets made and watched, the sometimes tangled relationship between entertainment and technology, and the moments when a franchise, format or platform doesn't go the way its backers hoped. Older films, shows and songs feature too, revisited with the benefit of hindsight on decisions that looked different at the time.

    For readers, it's a way to keep up with what's actually worth watching or listening to, understand the reasoning behind the projects that shape popular culture, and see how the industry's bigger shifts affect the entertainment on offer day to day.

    • Nicki Minaj Gets a Presidential Compliment — on Her Looks

      Rapper Nicki Minaj was publicly complimented on her appearance by US President Donald Trump during a White House Rose Garden Club luncheon on Monday, when he described her as “so hot” while introducing her to attendees. The remark, delivered amid a string of other praise, drew criticism online for judging a woman’s political worth by…

    • The Highest-Rated Minions Movie Officially Opens With the Lowest Box Office

      “Minions & Monsters”, the seventh “Despicable Me” film and third prequel in the franchise, has opened to the lowest box-office start in the series’ history, despite being its best-reviewed entry. The mismatch matters because it suggests audience appetite for the once-dominant Minions brand may be waning, even as critical acclaim reaches a franchise high. The…

    • Jessica Knoll Novel ‘Helpless’ to Be Developed for TV at Universal Global TV, Stacy Sher to Produce (EXCLUSIVE)

      Universal Global Television is developing a TV series based on Jessica Knoll’s new novel “Helpless”, Variety has exclusively reported. The book was published on 7 July by Scribner and acquired by UGT’s Creative Acquisitions & IP Management team, with Knoll adapting her own work for the screen and serving as executive producer. The move continues…

    • John Goodman Joins Brie Larson In Horror Thriller ‘Skeletons’ From Sony Pictures

      John Goodman has joined the cast of Sony Pictures’ horror thriller Skeletons, starring alongside Brie Larson, with JT Mollner directing. The casting adds a well-known name to a project that Sony acquired worldwide rights to earlier this year, signalling continued momentum for the creature-horror film. The film is a modern take on the creature-horror genre,…

    • Controversial Anne Frank Musical Releases Crowdfunded Cast Album

      “Slam Frank,” a deliberately provocative Off-Broadway musical that reimagines Anne Frank as a pansexual Latina hiding from the Nazis alongside a diversely reinvented family, has released a crowdfunded original cast album. The recording, available to download from the show’s website for $20 from today, arrives ahead of the musical’s transfer to a larger New York…

    • Fallout season 3 starts filming, The Ghoul actor confirms

      Actor Walton Goggins, who plays The Ghoul and Cooper Howard in Prime Video’s Fallout, has confirmed that the show’s third season is now filming. He shared Instagram photos of himself undergoing the elaborate makeup process to become the irradiated Wasteland mutant, saying he was “back in the saddle”, and the official Fallout and Kilter Films…

    • The FCC wants to make easier for ISPs to hide junk fees

      The US Federal Communications Commission, under its Republican leadership, is proposing to weaken a Biden-era transparency rule that requires internet service providers to display “broadband nutrition labels” itemising the fees customers will pay. The most significant change would remove the obligation to list all “passthrough fees” — extra charges stemming from government agencies and third-party…

    • USMNT’s World Cup Exit Scores Historic Ratings

      The United States men’s national team’s 4-1 defeat by Belgium in the last 16 of the World Cup drew 30 million viewers, making it the most-watched football telecast in US history and continuing a run of record-breaking ratings for broadcaster Fox. The match peaked at 36.9 million viewers between 9:15 and 9:30am ET, as Mauricio…

    • Legend of the White Dragon trailer reveals a Power Rangers legend’s final role

      A trailer has been released for Legend of the White Dragon, the final acting role of Jason David Frank, the actor best known for playing Tommy Oliver in Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers. Frank, widely regarded as the franchise’s biggest star, died by suicide in November 2022 at the age of 49. The independent studio behind…

    • The Best Assassin’s Creed RPG Is Officially Free To Play

      Ubisoft has made Assassin’s Creed Origins free to download for subscribers to PlayStation Plus Extra, Xbox Game Pass and Ubisoft+. The 2017 title, set in ancient Egypt, marked the franchise’s shift towards role-playing game mechanics and is regarded by many as one of the series’ strongest entries, holding an 81% critics’ score and a 7.3…