Which amazing race contestants have died

A potential writers strike would be incredibly harmful for many in Hollywood, but there’s one sector of the entertainment industry that is quietly optimistic that it could lead to a boom for them: the unscripted television makers. As history has shown, there’s also precedent for an uptick — from the 1988 strike that led to the creation of Fox’s Cops and the 2007-08 strike, which bolstered unscripted shows such as The Amazing Race and Keeping Up with the Kardashians. The issue was top of mind at this week’s Realscreen conference in Austin, where thousands of nonfiction producers, documentary filmmakers and buyers discussed the future of the unscripted business. Kathleen Finch, Chairman and Chief Content Officer of Warner Bros. Discovery’s U.S. Networks Group, told Deadline that while a strike would aid the unscripted business, she warned there would be “big repercussions” RELATED: WGA Writers Look Back At 2007-08 Strike For Lessons To Apply To Looming … [Read more...] about As Writers Strike Looms, Reality Producers Optimistic About Possible Unscripted Boom

English actress Sylvia Syms has passed away in the UK aged 89, according to her family. Syms was best known for roles in movies including Ice Cold Alex , Victim , The Tamarind Seed and Stephen Frears’ The Queen , in which she played The Queen Mother. Syms passed away this morning at Denville Hall, a care home in London for those in the entertainment industry. In a statement shared with The Sun , Syms’ family said: “She has lived an amazing life and gave us joy and laughter right up to the end. Just yesterday we were reminiscing together about all our adventures. She will be so very missed. “We would also like to take this opportunity to thank everyone at Denville Hall for the truly excellent care they have taken of our Mum over the past year.” Syms was born in London in 1934 and attended The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. In 1958, she landed a role in BAFTA-nominated film Ice Cold in Alex . A year later she starred in Expresso Bongo alongside Cliff … [Read more...] about Sylvia Syms Dies: ‘The Queen’ & ‘Victim’ Star Was 89

Gallery Launch Gallery UPDATE 11:02 AM PT -- Simon Cowell , who served as a judge during Tom's time on the show, just released an emotional statement about Dani's death, telling TMZ, "As a father myself, I simply cannot imagine the heartbreak Tom and his family are going through and will be personally reaching out to him. From my family to his, we extend our deepest condolences and all of our love during this tragic time." "The X Factor" star Tom Mann suffered a horrible tragedy over the weekend ... his fiancee died just hours before their wedding. Dani Hampson , a 34-year-old publicist, had no apparent health issues and the cause of her death has not been revealed. She had posted pics of her and Tom, along with their 8-month-old son Bowie , just days before she died. Tom and Dani were actually supposed to get married Sept. 25, 2020, but the pandemic got in the way. At the time she posted, "I can't wait to marry you, but the world has other … [Read more...] about ‘X Factor’ Star Tom Mann’s Wife Dies on Wedding Day, Simon Cowell Offers Condolences

UPDATE 9:27 AM PT -- According to our sources, King's fiancée is telling friends King had been drinking and smoked weed in the hours before his death. Rodney King -- the man who was at the center of the infamous Los Angeles riots -- was found dead this morning in Rialito, CA. He was 47. According to our sources, King's fiancée found him dead at the bottom of the pool ( see photo of the pool below, taken today ). Law enforcement sources tell TMZ they responded to a call at 5:25 AM PT. We're told they physically removed King from the pool and attempted CPR. Our sources say he was pronounced dead at 6:11 AM. Law enforcement sources say Rialto PD will open a drowning investigation, but so far there are no signs of foul play. Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck released a statement today saying, "Rodney King has a unique spot in both the history of Los Angeles and the LAPD. What happened on that cool March night over … [Read more...] about Rodney King Dead — Face of L.A. Riots Dies at 47

Spike Lee is to receive a BFI Fellowship, the highest honor bestowed by the UK’s lead organization for film. The award will be presented to filmmaker Lee at an event at BFI Southbank, hosted by BFI Chair Tim Richards and BFI Chief Exec Ben Roberts, with an on stage Q&A with Spike Lee accompanied by a screening of Summer of Sam , on 13 February 2023. While in the UK, Lee will visit teams at the BFI National Archive, who have liaised with the director on a new 35mm print of Malcolm X (1992), to premiere at the BFI’s inaugural Film on Film Festival taking place at BFI Southbank in June. He will also take a masterclass with young filmmakers. Born in Atlanta in 1957 but raised in Brooklyn, New York City, Lee received his MFA in Film Production at NYU/Tisch. After graduation, he founded 40 Acres and a Mule Filmworks, based in Brooklyn. Among his string of acclaimed movies are Cannes title She’s Gotta Have It , Oscar nominee Do the Right Thing , Jungle Fever , … [Read more...] about Spike Lee To Receive BFI Fellowship

EXCLUSIVE: Amelia Brown, Managing Director of Britain’s Got Talent , The X Factor and Too Hot to Handle producer Thames , is leaving after two decades to set up an entertainment production company. Brown handed her resignation in several weeks ago and will exit in July. She has been with Thames since 2003 and became MD when the company merged with Talkback in 2017 – a merger that was undone two years later at which point she kept her post. She will launch her own production company later this year and becomes the second Fremantle label boss to be revealed to be leaving in the past fortnight, following Fatima Salaria , who is exiting The Apprentice indie Naked in the spring . During her lengthy stint with Thames, Brown has shepherded ITV stalwarts The X Factor and Britain’s Got Talent , for which she was a key creative on almost every series. The Simon Cowell creations are co-produced with Cowell’s Syco shingle and while The X Factor has not … [Read more...] about Amelia Brown To Exit ‘Britain’s Got Talent’ Label Thames & Launch Indie

On September 11, 2020, The New York Times published an obituary for Shere Hite, the renowned sex researcher and author, noting that her work “helped awaken women to their sexual power and advance the Second Wave of feminism.” One of the readers of that obituary was filmmaker Nicole Newnham , and it became the spark that set her on a journey to document a woman who sold almost 50 million books worldwide but who faced such a backlash over her research that it drove her into exile. The result of that cinematic quest is the film The Disappearance of Shere Hite , which just premiered in U.S. Documentary Competition at the Sundance Film Festival. For Newnham, the Oscar-nominated director of Crip Camp (co-directed with Jim LeBrecht), the new film amounted to a rediscovery of Hite. She first became acquainted with the author’s taboo-shattering work, The Hite Report , as an adolescent. “I found it in my mom’s bedside chest where she would stick the books she didn’t … [Read more...] about Sundance Doc ‘The Disappearance Of Shere Hite’ Focuses On Famed Sex Researcher Canceled By Conservatives And Defensive Men

The Sundance Film Festival has begun unveiling its Jury and Audience Award winners for 2023. Jurors present for the announcement, livestreamed to the festival’s social media channels from The Ray Theatre in Park City, Utah, included Jeremy O. Harris and Marlee Matlin for U.S. Dramatic Competition, Ramona Diaz and Carla Gutierrez for U.S. Documentary Competition, Funa Maduka for World Cinema Dramatic Competition, and Madeleine Olnek for NEXT. Deadline will update this story with the list of winners as they come in. The 2023 festival featured 111 features and 64 shorts, selected from 15,856 submissions, which were screened in Park City, Salt Lake City, and at the Sundance Resort. Over 75% of both short and feature-length works, along with many selected Indie Episodics, will be available for streaming via the fest’s online platform through January 29. Sundance’s first in-person festival since the Covid pandemic was marked by a number of major sales — most of which we were … [Read more...] about Sundance Film Festival Sets ‘The Persian Version’ And ‘Beyond Utopia’ For U.S. Audience Awards — Updating Live

EXCLUSIVE : Nicole Kidman is back at HBO with another high-profile limited series based on a novel, The Perfect Nanny . Kidman and Pen15 co-creator and co-lead Maya Erskine are set to star in the project, which HBO landed in a very competitive situation. Erskine is the creator and writer of the limited series, based on the book of the same name by Leïla Slimani. Legendary Entertainment is the co-studio with HBO. In The Perfect Nanny , a seemingly perfect nanny goes to work for a couple with two young children, but her helpful personality eventually deteriorates into something sinister. Kidman and Per Saari executive produce for Kidman’s Blossom Films; Erskine also executive produces alongside Pascal Caucheteux for Why Not Productions, and Philippe Godeau for Pan-Européenne. Kidman previously starred and executive produced HBO’s Big Little Lies , which originated as a limited series and earned her an acting and producing Emmy award, and The Undoing . … [Read more...] about Nicole Kidman & Maya Erskine To Headline & EP ‘The Perfect Nanny’ Limited Series In Works At HBO From ‘Pen15’ Co-Creator & Legendary

TMZ.com The TikTok community was dealt a devasting blow this week, with Randy Gonzalez of popular father-son duo Enkyboys dying after a battle with stage-4 colon cancer. Trae Tha Truth is feeling the loss as well ... having befriended both Randy and Brice over the years and collaborated on several skits. Waiting for your permission to load the Instagram Media. We caught Trae out in NYC as he attempted to find silver linings in losing his friend. The Houston rapper said Randy was a "fighter" to the end and also praised him for being brave enough to share his cancer diagnosis with the world back in April 2022. Waiting for your permission to load the Instagram Media. TMZ broke the story ... Randy passed away on Wednesday morning in hospice, leaving behind his wife Kimberly , 3 children and nearly 16 million followers on social media. Trae tells us he spoke to Randy's wife following the sad news, and he's in early talks to continue on … [Read more...] about Trae Tha Truth Mourns ‘Enkyboys’ Randy Gonzalez, Plans to Support Legacy