Television
“Empire” Showrunner Ilene Chaiken Renews Contract with 20th Century Fox
Ilene Chaiken will continue ruling her “Empire” — so to speak. The showrunner of the Lee Daniels-created soap opera has extended her contract with 20th Century Fox Television. According to...
Ava DuVernay Adapting Story of Central Park Five for Netflix Miniseries
Ava DuVernay is re-teaming with Netflix. Her first collaboration with the streaming giant led to Oscar-nominated doc “13th,” an investigation of the connection between slavery and...
Apply Now for a Fellowship with WritersForWriters
The lack of mentorship is one the largest barriers to entry women and people of color face in Hollywood. Breaking into the industry is hard, and it’s damn near impossible if you don’t have...
“Flip the Script” Web Series Turns the Table on Workplace Sexism
Would you say that to a guy? Would you do that in front of a guy? That’s the basic sexism litmus test, and it was definitely a major influence on the Women in Film (WIF) web series “Flip...
Trailer Watch: Andrea Savage Is a Funny Mom in “I’m Sorry”
“Sorry. I forgot moms aren’t supposed to be funny,” Andrea Savage tells her TV husband in a new trailer for “I’m Sorry.” Created by Savage, the TruTV series sees the “Veep” alumna...
Trailer Watch: Issa Embraces Single Life in Season 2 of “Insecure”
Issa and Molly are back for Season 2 of “Insecure,” and a new trailer makes it seem like the BFFs are closer than ever after overcoming some drama last season. Issa’s breakup with long-term...
Trailer Watch: Witness the Impact of Education in Vanessa Roth’s “Daughters of Destiny”
“I will show the world I am that girl who makes doorways of freedom, hope, and relief,” says one of the students at Shanti Bhavan in a trailer for “Daughters of Destiny.” Directed by Oscar...
Trailer Watch: Learn More About Leia, Rey, & Jyn Erso in “Star Wars: Forces of Destiny”
Today in non-controversial “Star Wars” news: You won’t have to wait for “The Last Jedi” to hit theaters to see more of Rey, Daisy Ridley’s badass “Force Awakens” character. A trailer...
Olivia Cooke to Topline “Vanity Fair” TV Adaptation
“Bates Motel” alumna Olivia Cooke is following in Reese Witherspoon’s footsteps: she’ll take on the role of Becky Sharp in an upcoming Amazon Studios and ITV adaptation of William Makepeace...
Veteran TV Director Gail Mancuso to Helm Her First Feature Film
Gail Mancuso’s name probably sounds familiar to you — chances are you’ve seen at least a couple episodes she’s helmed during her 25-year career as a television director. Now, as Deadline...
Eileen Myers Signs Overall Deal With Sony TV, Sells Female-Led Drama to Showtime
TV producer and scribe Eileen Myers has inked an overall deal with Sony Pictures TV. Myers has penned episodes of series such as “Big Love,” “Hung,” and “Masters of Sex.” Deadline...
Gillian Jacobs, Vanessa Bayer, and Phoebe Robinson to Star in Clubbing Comedy “Ibiza”
Gillian Jacobs is going to Spain with “SNL” alumna Vanessa Bayer and “2 Dope Queens” podcast co-host Phoebe Robinson. The three will star in the Netflix comedy film “Ibiza,” per The...
New York State Senate and Assembly Pass TV Diversity Bill
The New York State Senate and Assembly have passed new landmark legislation: the TV Diversity Bill. Spearheaded by State Senator Marisol Alcantara and Assemblyman Marcos Crespo, the bill would...
“Queen Sugar” Season 2 Premiere Scores Series-High Ratings Among Women Aged 25–54
All hail the “Queen.” The second season premiere of OWN’s “Queen Sugar” drew 2.3 million viewers as well as a 0.7 18–49 rating and a 2.09 rating among women 25–54 on Tuesday night. As...
Exclusive: “This Is Us” Star Milana Vayntrub Shares Her Refugee Story in “Lives of Women”
“I think that my refugee experience was very different than a lot of people coming to this country now,” says Milana Vayntrub in an episode of Indigenous Media’s new digital portrait series...
Common Sense Media Unveils “Positive Gender Representations” Seal
Since 2003, Common Sense Media has suggested suitable children’s entertainment to parents and educators. In addition to rating TV series and movies based on age-appropriate content and the...
“One Day at a Time” Co-Showrunner Gloria Calderon Kellett Signs Deal with Sony TV
If “this is it” for “One Day at a Time” co-showrunner Gloria Calderon Kellett, then she must be having a ball. The co-creator and EP of the updated Norman Lear series has inked an overall...
Cheryl Dunye, Aurora Guerrero, & DeMane Davis Among Directors of “Queen Sugar” Season 2
Season 1 of Ava DuVernay’s “Queen Sugar” was helmed entirely by female directors. As she explained in a Los Angeles Times profile, that was no accident — and Season 2 will be no...
America Ferrera, Emmy Rossum, and More Discuss Onscreen Nudity and Gender Pay Gap in Roundtable
America Ferrera in THR’s Comedy Actress Roundtable: THR “I think we should be equal opportunity P and D,” Emmy Rossum stressed during The Hollywood Reporter’s Comedy Actress Roundtable....
Jennifer Arnold’s “Fat Camp” Snagged by BET
Jennifer Arnold’s “Fat Camp” has found a home just days before its world premiere at the LA Film Festival (LAFF). A press release announced that the comedy has been acquired by BET with plans...
Penelope Bagieu’s Feminist Graphic Novel “Brazen” Headed to TV
A feminist, women-created animated series is on the way. “Brazen,” Penelope Bagieu’s graphic novel about rebellious, independent women throughout history, will be adapted for TV, Variety...
Glenn Close to Topline Amazon Zombie Pilot “Sea Oak”
Looks like Glenn Close has a fondness for stories about the undead. Earlier this year the Emmy winner starred in zombie sci-fi film “The Girl with All the Gifts,” and now comes word that...
WTF of the Day: Emmy Rossum Was Asked to Wear a Bikini Instead of Audition for a Role
Today in shudder-worthy news: “Shameless” star Emmy Rossum revealed her experience with sexual harassment during the audition process. In a roundtable discussion with The Hollywood Reporter,...
“Criminal Minds’” Kirsten Vangsness and A.J. Cook Succeed in Fight for Pay Parity
“Criminal Minds” actresses Kirsten Vangsness and A.J. Cook’s recent push for pay parity has been resolved. According to Deadline, the duo have signed new deals and received raises “that put...
Sandra Oh to Star in Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s “Killing Eve”
Move over, Cristina Yang; Sandra Oh has lined up a new series-regular role. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the “Grey’s Anatomy” actress has signed on to topline “Fleabag” creator and...
Season 2 of Nicole Byer Series “Loosely Exactly Nicole” Headed to Facebook
Nicole Byer’s cancelled MTV comedy may have found a new life at Facebook. A deal to pick up “Loosely Exactly Nicole” as part of the social media platform’s foray into original video content...
Trailer Watch: A Teen Tries to Move On from Her Viral Past in Kyra Sedgwick’s “Story of a Girl”
“It was three years ago when the video of me and Tommy Webber went viral,” says Deanna (Ryann Shane, “Banshee”) in a new trailer for Kyra Sedgwick’s “Story of a Girl.” The video...
Debby Ryan Beauty Pageant Dramedy “Insatiable” Lands at Netflix
If you loved “Drop Dead Gorgeous” you’ll want to listen up. The 1999 Kirsten Dunst-led cult comedy isn’t getting rebooted, but Netflix does have another beauty pageant-centric project in the...
Film Society of Lincoln Center to Host Jane Campion Retrospective
The Film Society of Lincoln Center (FSLC) has unveiled its schedule of programs and festivals this summer and fall, and a retrospective of director, writer, and showrunner Jane Campion is among the...
Trailer Watch: Naomi Watts Can’t Control Her Impulses in “Gypsy”
“I used to believe that people determine their own lives. Yet there’s one force more powerful than free will — our desires,” says Naomi Watts in a new trailer for “Gypsy.” The...
Zoe Saldana Developing American Adaptation of Israeli Reality Show “Mothers”
Zoe Saldana is keeping busy onscreen and off. In addition to starring in multiple blockbuster franchises and other films, the actress is finding time to produce. According to Variety, Zoe, Mariel,...
Winfrey, Witherspoon, Kidman, Lange, and More Talk Hollywood’s Double Standards and Portraying…
Winfrey, Witherspoon, Kidman, Lange, and More Talk Hollywood’s Double Standards and Portraying Trauma in THR Roundtable Reese Witherspoon and Elisabeth Moss in THR’s Drama Actress Roundtable:...
Freeform Orders “Misfits” Reboot Pilot From Diane Ruggiero-Wright
We’re one step closer to getting an American version of “Misfits.” Freeform has given a pilot order to a sci-fi drama inspired by the cult British series, Deadline reports. The project hails...
Lauren Graham to Adapt YA Novel “Windfall” for the Screen
“Gilmore Girls” star and author Lauren Graham is writing a screenplay. As Deadline reports, Graham has optioned Jennifer E. Smith’s YA novel “Windfall” and plans to pen its film adaptation...
Rashida Jones Named SAG-AFTRA Foundation Actors Inspiration Winner
Rashida Jones is best known as an actress, screenwriter, producer, and director, but the “Angie Tribeca” star is set to receive an honor for her work outside of the business. Variety reports...
Script About Monica Lewinsky and Linda Tripp Acquired by Amazon
Amazon has snagged the rights to the 2016 Black List script “Linda and Monica.” As The Hollywood Reporter writes, Flint Wainess’ (“Hollywood Heights”) screenplay tells the story of the...
Web Series “Brown Girls” Is Coming to HBO
Like “Broad City,” “High Maintenance,” and “Insecure” before it, the web series “Brown Girls” is making its way to TV. According to ELLE, “Brown Girls” director Samantha Bailey...
Trailer Watch: Abbi and Ilana Resist and Persist in “Broad City” Season 4
Yas queen! The broads are back! A new trailer for “Broad City” is here and its brief 98 seconds is packed. As Jennifer Lopez’s “Get Right” plays, we see glimpses of Shania Twain, RuPaul,...
Cyndi Lauper to Receive Logo Trailblazer Honors for Her LGBT Activism
Throughout her 30-year-plus career, Cyndi Lauper has been known as an outspoken advocate of LGBT rights, so it comes as no surprise that the Grammy winner will be honored by Logo at its 2017...
Michele Fazekas and Tara Butters Sign New Three-Year Overall Deal with ABC
Michele Fazekas and Tara Butters have extended their overall deal with ABC. The showrunners of the dearly departed “Agent Carter” have signed a new three-year contract with the studio, Deadline...
Spec Script from “Underground” Co-Creator Misha Green Goes to Netflix
Misha Green is on a roll. Just weeks ago it was announced that the “Underground” co-creator is set to serve as showrunner on “Lovecraft Country,” a new HBO project that received a...
Rising Up: June’s VOD and Web Series Picks
“I Am Jane Doe” The release of “Wonder Woman” has Women and Hollywood reflecting on women who aren’t afraid to take charge of their situations. This month’s VOD and web series picks...
Netflix Nabs Rights to Olivia Milch’s Lucy Hale-Starrer “Dude”
“Pretty Little Liars’” famous time jump took its high school protagonists five years into the future, but the show’s star, Lucy Hale, is set to return to high school one last time. She and...
Women and Hollywood is Looking for Interns for the Second Half of 2017
Women and Hollywood is looking for two interns for the second half of 2017. The positions will begin on July 1, 2017 and end on December 23, 2017. Applicants must be willing to commit to six months...
Drama About Cleopatra in the Works at Amazon
History nerds, rejoice: Amazon Studios is developing a drama about Egypt’s most famous queen, Cleopatra. Described as a revisionist take “on one of history’s most misunderstood women,”...
Lee Grant to Receive Split Screens Festival’s Inaugural Legacy Award
Actress, director, and author Lee Grant will be honored this year at the Split Screens Festival. According to an announcement from the television fest, Grant will receive its first Legacy Award,...
Just Four of the New Fall Broadcast TV Series Are Women-Created
Now that the May upfronts are over, the Big Five networks (ABC, CBS, The CW, FOX, and NBC) have solidified their fall 2017–18 TV lineups. And CBS isn’t the only one failing women. Women and...
Ellen DeGeneres Has a Netflix Special on the Way
Long before Ellen DeGeneres brought smiles to people’s faces every weekday as the host of “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” she was lighting up stages as a stand-up comic. The Emmy winner is set to...
Release Dates Set for Elizabeth Banks’ “Charlie’s Angels” and Michelle MacLaren’s “The Nightingale”
Two upcoming women-directed projects have received release dates. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Michelle MacLaren’s “The Nightingale” will hit theaters in summer 2018 and the...
Watch: “Victoria” Season 2 First Look Sees the Monarch Embracing Motherhood
In the inaugural season of “Victoria,” audiences saw the titular young queen (Jenna Coleman) as she settled into her life as a monarch. Victoria was coronated, broke away from her mother...
Elisabeth Moss to Star in and Produce TV Adaptation of Mary Beth Keane’s “Fever”
Elisabeth Moss is set to topline another TV adaptation of a novel. Deadline reports that the Golden Globe winner will star in and executive produce “Fever,” a limited series based on Mary Beth...