The cast and writers of Showtime's groundbreaking series Queer as Folk are returning for one-time reunion special at this year's ATX Festival, which begins June 4 in Austin, Texas, The Wrap reported. The award-winning show, which aired from 2000 to 2005, followed the lives of a group of gay friends and their relationships, careers, loves and ambitions. Based on the British series by the same name, Queer as Folk was the first hour-long drama on U.S. television to portray the lives of gay men and lesbians.
Sam Smith, 22, is no longer single, and he happens to be dating 23-year-old model Jonathan "Jongo" Zeizel, Out.com noted. The singer made it official via Instagram over the New Year weekend while vacationing with his new boyfriend in Sydney. Zeizel met Sam Smith while working as an extra on the singer's video "Like I Can."
Speaking of Smith, he and Meghan Trainor were among those named in Forbes' 30 Under 30 in Music list. Trainor hit it big in 2014 with the song "All About That Bass," while Smith has scored six Grammy nominations. A few of the others on the list include Charlie XCX, Hozier ( "Take Me to Church" ), Mike Will Made It, Iggy Azalea, FKA Twigs and 18-year-old DJ Martin Garrix. No repeats are allowed on the list, which is why such superstars as Taylor Swift are not present.
As for Forbes, the magazine is honoring 600 millennials in 20 fields, including "Hollywood & Entertainment." Included on the list is Ellen Page, the producer and actress who came out on Valentine's Day, 2014. Also included on Forbes' list is Hannah Hart, an out YouTube star, author of My Drunk Kitchen, and co-creator of the comedy film Camp Takota. Some of the others on this list are actress Keira Knightley, stunt coordinator Walter Garcia, actress Tatiana Maslany ( Orphan Black ), actress Emma Stone, actor/comedian Spoken Reasons and actor Zac Efron.
The David Stone-produced musical If/Then, in which Idina Menzel plays two versions of the same character, will close March 22, one week shy of its first anniversary at the Nederlander-owned Richard Rodgers Theatre, according to Deadline. One of the few new, original musicals to open on Broadway last season, the show never recovered from a snub by the Tony nominating committee, which declined to put it in the competition for Best Musical.
Speaking of closings, producer Jeffrey Seller said that the Grammy Award-winning singer/songwriter Sting's Broadway musical The Last Ship will close when his stint in the show ends Jan. 24 at the Neil Simon Theatre, according to Page Six. Sting, who wrote the songs, jumped into the musical in early December, playing a shipyard foreman that had been portrayed by Jimmy Nail. While that move improved sales for the $15-million show, they didn't skyrocket.
Amazon's groundbreaking TV series Transparent snagged two awards at the 2015 Golden Globe Awards, which aired on NBC Jan. 11. The Hollywood Foreign Press Assocation made Transparent the first online show to win Best TV Comedy or Musical. Jill Soloway's showwhich is about an older man/father who makes the transition into becoming a woman, and the reactions and lives of his childrenalso yielded an acting award for Jeffrey Tambor, who dedicated his award to the transgender community, starting his acceptance speech by saying, "This is much bigger than me." Some of the other winners included out actor Matt Bomer ( for his role in Larry Kramer's '80s-set AIDS work The Normal Heart ), Kevin Spacey ( House of Cards ), Julianne Moore ( for her role in the feature film Still Alice ) and The Grand Budapest Hotel ( Best Motion Picture-Musical or Comedy.
Someone most U.S. entertainment networks did not report was the presence of bearded Eurovision drag-queen winner Conchita Wurst at the Golden Globes, according to The Huffington Post. Wurst wore a belted emerald green gown with a blush bustier. Before the event, Wurst tweeted a message of unity in the wake of the tragic shooting at the Charlie Hebdo offices in Paris; the message included the hashtag "#JeSuisCharlie."
Comedian Margaret Cho has responded to critics who deemed her North Korea-skewering Golden Globes appearance racistironically enough, in an evening filled with achievements for diverse voices and cries of "Je Suis Charlie" in the name of freedom of expression, Deadline reported. "I'm of mixed North/South Korean descentyou imprison, starve and brainwash my people you get made fun of by me #hatersgonhate #FreeSpeech," she tweeted. Cho showed up in a running gag throughout the Globes show as "Cho Young-ja," a humorless North Korean general-slash-Hollywood Foreign Press Association member who criticized the Globes show.
Out director Lee Danielswho's behind the new Fox hit Empirehas said he was apprehensive about tackling his first-ever TV show, The Wrap reported. "It was time to get into another medium," Daniels told TheWrap during a press junket for the show. "No one believed I could do it. Oprah said, 'You'll never last in TV.' She's right. I did two episodes and it's rough." However, Daniels added the experience of doing a TV series has already taught him one thing: how to be a collaborator.
Gary Sinisethe Academy Award-nominated actor who played the much loved role of Lieutenant Dan Taylor in the movie Forrest Gumphas pulled out of an appearance at a summit for an anti-gay Catholic group, the UK Independent reported. Legatus, a Christian organisation that encourages homosexuals to "seek a cure," had procured the star to speak at an upcoming event at the Ritz-Carlton in Florida. In a statement, Sinise said, "When I accepted the invitation to speak at the Legatus conference on veterans' issues and share my story, I was unaware of the controversy surrounding some of the participants, and their views on personal matters." Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal is still slated to speak at the Jan. 29-31 summit.
Will & Grace stars Eric McCormack and Debra Messing are reuniting on screen, according to Digital Spy. The pair, who played title characters Will Truman ( a gay attorney ) and Grace Adler ( his straight roommate ) on the show, will appear together in NBC's The Mysteries of Laura, which stars Messing. McCormack will star as Dr Andrew Devlin, Diamond's former fiancé and "a roguish, arrogant-as-can-be heart surgeon." Will & Grace ran on NBC from 1998 to 2006.
The New York City clinic that allegedly botched Joan Rivers' throat procedure just before she died will lose its federal accreditation at the end of this month, Page Six reported. That means Yorkville Endoscopy, beginning Jan. 31, "will no longer be eligible to receive federal funds for services provided to Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries," according to a notice from the Department of Health & Human Services. Rivers, 81, died on Sept. 4 at Mount Sinai Hospital, following her Aug. 28 visit to Yorkville Endoscopy.
Actor and comedian Taylor Negron, who first rose to fame as the pizza guy on Fast Times at Ridgemont High, has died after a long battle with cancer at 57, Advocate.com noted. In addition to film roles, Negron was on TV shows such as Seinfeld, The Hughleys, ER and Party of Five. Deadline reported that the out gay actora fixture in the Los Angeles comedy scene had recently been appearing at "Un-Cabaret ( where he is considered one of the monologue's shows original members ), The Moth and Comedy Central Stage's Sit-n-Spin, among many other shows.
John Travolta will star as defense attorney Robert Shapiro in American Crime Story: The People v. O.J. Simpson, the first installment of Ryan Murphy's new anthology miniseries, an offshoot of his hit American Horror Story FX franchise, according to Deadline. This marks Travolta's first TV series role since the 1975-79 comedy Welcome Back, Kotter. He will join David Schwimmer, who plays another Simpson attorney, his confidant Robert Kardashian, Cuba Gooding Jr., who portrays Simpson; and Sarah Paulson, who plays prosecutor Marcia Clark.
Ellen DeGeneres was named Favorite Daytime Host, and the prison series Orange Is the New Black was tabbed Favorite Dramedy during the People's Choice Awards, which aired Jan. 7 on CBS. The Big Bang Theory, which stars out actor Jim Parsons, won multiple honors. Also, Glee's Chris Colfer won for Favorite Comedic TV Actor, over such nominees as Parsons and Jesse Tyler Ferguson ( Modern Family ). Maleficient, which stars Angelina Jolie, was chosen Best Movie; Jennifer Lawrence won Favorite Movie Actress; and Robert Downey Jr. was selected Favorite Movie Actor and Favorite Dramatic Movie Actor. In the area of music, awards went to Taylor Swift, Ed Sheeran and Maroon 5, among others.
CNN anchor Anderson Cooper and gay activists are voicing their support for the late gay codebreaker Alan Turing, depicted in the award-winning film The Imitation Game, according to The Wrap. The Weinstein Company released a statement announcing LGBT supporters in entertainment, fashion and the media have praised Turing. Joining Cooper's praise were Bravo's Andy Cohen, GLAAD CEO Sarah Kate Ellis and fashion designer Marc Jacobs.
Francesca Hiltonthe daughter of actress Zsa Zsa Gabor and Hilton Hotel founder Conrad Hiltonhas died in Los Angeles at age 67, The New York Daily News reported. She was declared dead at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center after an apparent heart attack and stroke. Hilton, in recent years, battled stepfather Frederik von Anhalt over control of her mother's finances, with a judge at one point ordering von Anhalt to allow Hilton to visit Gabor. Gabor is now 97 and requires around-the-clock care after health crises.
Jane Lynch didn't have much to say about the implications of her divorce from Lara Embry last October in a conversation with HuffPost Live's Alyona Minkovski. Lynch commented on whether she felt pressure to maintain a certain family unity as a famous, gay, married woman. "I mean, with gay marriage is going to come gay divorce," the comedian said. "It's just how it goes. Where's my parade?"
USA has canceled the show Covert Affairs, which starred Piper Perabo ( the films Coyote Ugly, Looper, Lost and Delirious, and Imagine Me & You ) and Christopher Gorham, after five seasons, according to The Wrap. The season-five finale for Covert Affairs ended with several cliffhangers, including Annie ( Perabo ) trying to decide whether to accept a new assignment with the CIA and a marriage proposal. USA will reportedly now focus on its other dramas, including Suits, Royal Pains and Graceland.
Lawyers in a class-action lawsuit against Bethenny Frankel will get to grill the breakout Real Housewives of New York star about ingredients of her Skinnygirl Margarita mix, according to Page Six. Chicago federal judge Manish S. Shah granted the plaintiff's request to depose Frankel, who is being sued over her popular cocktail mix, which she advertises as all natural.
Actor Shia LaBeouf's been hitting the gymbut he's no match for 11-year-old dance phenom Maddie Ziegler in the video for Sia's "Elastic Heart," as Deadline revealed. It's also the second impressive recent turn for Ziegler, the stunning soloist from Sia's "Chandelier" video that went viral last summer and has garnered more than 400 million views to date. However, controversy has grown as Sia is firing back at those saying that her latest video for "Elastic Heart" contains pedophilia, MTV.com noted.
Colleagues and friends of Whitney Houston gathered Jan. 6 to screen Whitney, a new telefilm about the entertainer's triumphant career, often troubled life and tragic death, Page Six noted. However, Houston's family was conspicuously absent from the premiere, which took place just blocks away from The Beverly Hilton hotel, where the 48-year-old Houston drowned in her guest room in February 2012. The movie will premiere on Lifetime Jan. 17.
Logo TV, in a development that coincides with the 10th anniversary of the network, plans to unveil three original series and two returning hits, as well as a new documentary division, The Huffington Post noted. Among the new programs coming to Logo alongside the network's documentary division are Cucumber, Banana and a reality series called Behind the Movies. Logo will also air Secret Guide To Fabulous, Trailblazers and, of course, RuPaul's Drag Race.
Stage17 has a new Web series, What's Your Emergency, that will debut Jan. 27, according to a press release. Ugly Betty veteran Michael Urie directed this series, which features a cast of Broadway veterans such as Sierra Boggess, Debra Monk and Reed Birney in a six-episode arc. Taking place in Hell, Michigan, the show chronicles the misadventures of the inept rescue workers of the town's 911 call center. The show will also feature guest stars, including Urie's Ugly Betty co-star America Ferrera, Alan Cumming, Lynn Cohen, Richard Kind, David Krumholtz and Mike "The Situation" Sorrentino.
The network Starz has picked up the BBC production of The Dresser starring Anthony Hopkins and Ian McKellen, Deadline noted. An adaptation of Ronald Harwood's play, the project stars Hopkins as an ailing actor and McKellan as his devoted backstage hand and dresser. Also, the network will launch its first comedy block in 2015 with Survivor's Remorse and Blunt Talk, the upcoming comedy from Seth MacFarlane and Jonathan Ames.
The BAFTA ( British Academy of Film and Television Arts ) award nominations have been announced, and Eddie Redmayne ( The Theory of Everything ) and Benedict Cumberbatch ( The Imitation Game ) go head to head for best actor, as The Grand Budapest Hotel earned the most nominations, with 11, according to Sky News. The other best actor contenders are Jake Gyllenhall for Nightcrawler, Michael Keaton for Birdman and Ralph Fiennes for The Grand Budapest Hotel. The nominees for best actress are Felicity Jones for The Theory of Everything, Rosaumund Pike for Gone Girl, Amy Adams for Big Eyes, Julianne Moore for Still Alice and Reese Witherspoon for Wild. ( Also, the gay-themed movies The Imitation Game and Pride are among the nominees for outstanding British film. ) The winners will be announced at London's Royal Opera House on Feb. 8.
Former American Idol finalist LaKisha Jones has been ordered to serve 45 days in jail after being found guilty of civil contempt for failing to pay her father's nursing-home bills, Page Six noted. Genesee County Probate Judge Jennie Barkey gave her until Jan. 16 to turn herself in, but she could avoid incarceration if she pays more than $5,000 she owes along with $2,000 in attorney's fees. Jones finished fourth in 2007 on the TV talent show and performed on Broadway in The Color Purple.
Writer and trans advocate Stephen Ira, 23the son of Warren Beatty and Annette Beningissued a series of impassioned iweets after trans teen Leelah Alcorn's death, People.com noted. "Give this young woman the peace in death that she deserves and work for what she wanted, work for the things she needed while she lived," he Tweeted on Dec. 30, later adding, "IF YOU CAN'T HANDLE HAVING A TRANS KID, DON'T HAVE KIDS." He also said he had experienced conversion therapy himself, using the hashtag #RealLiveTransAdult to join others sharing their experiences.
Drake, Deadmau5, St. Vincent, Florence + the Machine, Weird Al Yankovic, Charli XCX, Bjork, Lana del Rey, Kiesza and dozens of other acts are slated to take part in the 2015 Governors Ball Music Festival in New York City June 5-7, according to a press release. In addition to music, the ball will feature culinary options and art installations. See govball.com .
Gossip singer Beth Ditto and now-wife Kristin Ogata were finally able to marry legally, 18 months after their idyllic commitment ceremony in Hawaii, according to the UK Independent. The singer and campaigner announced the news on Facebook, saying: "Legally married finally, a year later! Thanks everyone who fought to make gay marriage legal in Oregon! In 2015, the whole US!" The couple's first ceremony was in July 2013; same-sex marriage was legalized in Oregon in May 2014. Ditto and Ogata are said to have married on New Year's Eve.
Anita Ekbergthe blonde beauty who added a smoldering Swedish sensuality to the pantheon of European 1950s and '60s screen sirens that included Gina Lollobrigida and Brigitte Bardotdied near Rome at age 83, Deadline noted. She had lived in Italy for decades since a starring role, opposite Marcello Mastroianni in Federico Fellini's 1960 movie La Dolce Vita made her an international sex symbol. Her last major film role was in Yvan Le Moin's 1999 movie The Red Dwarf.
Real Housewives of New Jersey's Teresa Giudice will be released early from prison, The Wrap noted. The reality starwho was convicted with her husband of mail, wire and bankruptcy fraud in a New Jersey federal court on Oct. 2is expected to be freed on Feb. 5, 2016, as opposed to April 5. Her husband, Joe, is set to begin his 41-month sentence immediately after she is released.
On the show Celebrity Big Brother ( which airs in the United Kingdom ), tensions ran high as out U.S. blogger Perez Hilton suggested that actress/housemate Patsy Kensit may have said something racially offensive, The Daily Mail noted. During a conversation about '80s/'90s R&B singer Alexander O'Neal, Kensit said she loves him and would like him to take her to the primarily African-American neighborhood of Crenshaw in Los Angeles, which she referred to as "the hood." Hilton said, "Some people might interpret your representation of Crenshaw as 'the hood' and find it offensive."
The CW has handed out new season orders for eight of its current series, renewing perennial hits The Vampire Diaries and Supernatural as well as new breakouts The Flash and Jane The Virgin, and practically every show in between, The Wrap noted. The series that are returning for the 2015-2016 season are Arrow ( Season 4 ), Jane The Virgin ( Season 2 ), Reign ( Season 3 ), Supernatural ( Season 11 ), The 100 ( Season 3 ), The Flash ( Season 2 ), The Originals ( Season 3 ), and The Vampire Diaries ( Season 7 ).
Yahoo plans to premiere season six of its newly picked-up original series Community on Tuesday, March 17, according to Deadline. Yahoo picked up the series in June a month after it was cancelled by NBC after five seasons. Thirteen episodes are planned. Original cast members Joel McHale, Gillian Jacobs, Danny Pudi, Alison Brie, Jim Rash and Ken Jeong return, and newcomers to Glendale Community College include Paget Brewster and Keith David.
Hairstylist-to-the-stars Garren has abruptly closed his salon at the Sherry-Netherland hotel in New York City, according to Page Six. The stylist to Madonna, Katy Perry, Gisele Bundchen, Christy Turlington and Lady Gaga first hit the scene in the 1970s and had a salon in Henri Bendel before the Sherry-Netherland. A rep for Garren's hair care products says he closed the shop as he expands his product line and will open a salon in Miami's Wynwood area in the next year.