TV/Film

18 Aug 2023

It’s a ‘Barbie’ World: How Songs From the Soundtrack Are Faring in U.S. vs. Worldwide

Yet again, Barbie The Album lands three songs in the top 10 of the Billboard Global 200 and Billboard Global Excl. U.S. charts (dated Aug. 19).

Barbie‘s (and Ken’s) global journey began on the June 10-dated lists, when Dua Lipa’s “Dance the Night” arrived at No. 24 on the Global 200 and No. 26 on Global Excl. U.S. In between its debut and the film’s July 21 opening, the song drifted into the 40s and 50s before hitting the top 10 on the Aug. 5-dated rankings, blasting 46-27-8 and 45-24-5, respectively.

Nicki Minaj, Ice Spice and Aqua entered the fray on the July 8-dated tallies, when “Barbie World” debuted on the Global 200 at No. 12, fell to No. 61, and shot back to No. 6 in two weeks’ time.

Released just one week before the film, Billie Eilish’s “What Was I Made For?” was spared the roller-coaster chart run, arriving at No. 18 and flying into the top 10 the following frame.

Barbie and its billion-dollar hype led all three songs into the top 10, but the album’s momentum continues as box office receipts recede. Eilish leads the pack, rising to No. 2 on the Global 200. Lipa follows — up to 3 — while Minaj and Ice Spice, with the most immediate tie-in to the film, given their flip of Aqua’s iconic ‘90s chorus, scored the best debut of all Barbie tracks and has stayed relatively steady since the movie’s premier, returning to their No. 6 high.

Even a song as inextricable from the film’s plot as Ryan Gosling’s “I’m Just Ken” continues to make progress. The Mouseketeer-turned Oscar-nominated actor-turned global chart phenom rises 79-70 on the Global 200 and 97-87 on Global Excl. U.S.

Further, Charli XCX inches to a new high of No. 58 on the Global 200 with “Speed Drive.” On Wednesday (Aug. 16), she premiered the song’s official music video, which could give it enough juice to become her highest charting global hit yet (dating back to the charts’ 2020 start).

Through Aug. 16, Barbie is the second highest grossing film of 2023 worldwide, at $1.2 billion. Of that global sum, 45% ($541.9 million) comes from the U.S. and 55% ($660.6 million) comes from foreign territories.

Meanwhile, all five of the soundtrack’s charting hits have a larger international share of streams. They range from “Barbie World” at 63% to “Dance the Night” with 74% non-U.S. clicks. That comes in just shy of the average among all globally charting hits, at 76%.

18 Aug 2023

Lil Nas X to Give a Peek Behind the Curtain in New Documentary ‘Long Live Montero’

Sure, Lil Nas X may be known for his love of trolling fans and haters alike. But with his latest announcement, the pop sensation is ready to show everyone a more sincere side of himself.

On Friday (Aug. 18), Lil Nas X announced the official world premiere of his new documentary Lil Nas X: Long Live Montero. Chronicling his life on the road during the Long Live Montero tour, the project is set to debut during the Toronto International Film Festival, which kicks off on Sept. 7.

The film — directed by Carlos López Estrada and Zac Manuel and produced by RadicalMedia — will not only deal with the creation, production and execution of the star’s globe-spanning tour of the same name. Long Live Montero will also take a look back at Lil Nas X’s many achievements, and deal with “an artist on tour navigating identity, family, expectations and acceptance, all while reflecting on his place within the legacy of Black, queer performers,” according to a press release.

Speaking about the film, TIFF CEO Cameron Bailey called the documentary “a triumphant ode to the extraordinary power of self-expression,” while also expressing his excitement for audiences to see it. “In this groundbreaking documentary, we witness Lil Nas X challenging boundaries and reshaping the artistic landscape. The film’s captivating journey underscores the profound impact of Lil Nas X, who fearlessly brings audiences together through the universal language of music. We are thrilled to host Lil Nas X at TIFF this year.”

To learn more about the Toronto International Film Festival, including how to get tickets, click here. See the poster for the project below:

17 Aug 2023

Guns N’ Roses Classic Crowns Top TV Songs Chart After ‘The Summer I Turned Pretty’ Synch

Multiple songs from the second season of Prime Video’s The Summer I Turned Pretty dot Billboard’s Top TV Songs chart, powered by Tunefind, for July 2023, paced by Guns N’ Roses’ classic “Sweet Child o’ Mine” at No. 1.

Rankings for the Top TV Songs chart are based on song and show data provided by Tunefind and ranked using a formula blending that data with sales and streaming information tracked by Luminate during the corresponding period of July 2023.

“Sweet Child o’ Mine” featured in the fourth episode of The Summer I Turned Pretty’s second season, which aired July 21.

In July 2023, the song, a two-week No. 1 for Guns N’ Roses on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1988, racked up 19.3 million official on-demand U.S. streams and 3,000 downloads, according to Luminate.

Four songs from The Summer I Turned Pretty reach the July 2023 ranking in all, with “Sweet Child o’ Mine” followed by Frank Ocean’s cover of “Moon River” at No. 6 (1.6 million streams, episode five).

The Chambers Brothers’ “Time Has Come Today” takes No. 2 after a synch in Justified: City Primeval on FX. Heard in the show’s second episode (July 18), it earned 292,000 streams in July 2023.

Big Star’s “Thirteen” leads a trio of songs from Apple TV+’s The Afterparty at No. 3, with 347,000 streams after its inclusion in the second season’s fourth episode on July 26.

See the full top 10, also featuring music from The Righteous Gemstones and What We Do in the Shadows, below.

Rank, Song, Artist, Show (Network)
1. “Sweet Child o’ Mine,” Guns N’ Roses, The Summer I Turned Pretty (Amazon Prime Video)
2. “Time Has Come Today,” The Chambers Brothers, Justified: City Primeval (FX)
3. “Thirteen,” Big Star, The Afterparty (Apple TV+)
4. “I Wish,” Skee-Lo, The Afterparty (Apple TV+)
5. “Party Up,” DMX, The Righteous Gemstones (HBO)
6. “Moon River,” Frank Ocean, The Summer I Turned Pretty (Amazon Prime Video)
7. “Ants Marching,” Dave Matthews Band, What We Do in the Shadows (FX)
8. “Good Day,” Nappy Roots, The Afterparty (Apple TV+)
9. “Edamame,” bbno$ feat. Rich Brian, The Summer I Turned Pretty (Amazon Prime Video)
10. “The Distance,” Cake, The Summer I Turned Pretty (Amazon Prime Video)

17 Aug 2023

‘Snoopy Presents: One-of-a-Kind Marcie’: How to Watch the New ‘Peanuts’ Special on Apple TV+

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With the success of Apple TV+’s revival of Peanuts’ The Snoopy Show and the brand’s collaboration with Cariuma, the streamer is treating us with a new special. This time, instead of following Snoopy and/or Charlie Brown, Snoopy Presents: One-of-a-Kind Marcie will spotlight someone we normally don’t get an inside look at: Marcie. Mark your calendars and get the popcorn ready as the movie will drop on Friday (Aug. 18) on Apple TV+.

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As an introvert, Marcie (voiced by Arianna McDonald) enjoys her solitude, but struggles to share her ideas and advice with friends and peers without landing in the spotlight. In the midst of school elections, Marcie discovers how to feel empowered and find the courage to do things her way, and not what her friends want from her.

Other cast voicing the iconic Peanuts characters include Lexi Perri, Etienne Kellici, Antonia Battrick, Isabella Leo, Wyatt White, Caleb Bellavance and Lucien Duncan-Reid.

Keep reading to learn your streaming options to watch the new movie online for free.

When & How to Watch Snoopy Presents: One-of-a-Kind Marcie

The new Peanuts special will air on Friday (Aug. 18) exclusively on Apple TV+. If you’re already subscribed to the streamer, then you can watch the movie for no additional cost — just sign into your Apple account to gain access.

Not subscribed? Apple TV+ is $6.99/month after a one-week free trial. If you’re looking for additional ways to save money, you can get three months free with the purchase of an eligible Apple device or a free month trial when you sign up for Apple One, which bundles Apple TV+ with up to five other services.

Apple TV+

$6.99/month after 7-day free trial

Besides Snoopy Presents: One-of-a-Kind Marcie, an Apple TV+ subscription will provide you access to the full library of Apple TV+’s original movies, TV series, sports and more. Programs you can look forward to include The Afterparty, The Crowded Room, Ted Lasso, Platonic, The Last Thing He Told Me, Silo, Severance, High Desert, Shrinking, The Big Door Prize, Bad Sisters, Schmigadoon!, The Problem with John Stewart, The Morning Show, Ghosted, Still, Tetris, Palmer and more.

You can also stream Apple TV+ on the Apple TV app, your iPhone, iPad, Apple TV, Mac and popular smart TVs including Samsung, LG, Sony, VIZIO, TCL, Toshiba and others, along with Roku and Amazon Fire TV devices, Chromecast with Google TV. Apple TV+ is available on PlayStation and Xbox gaming consoles as well.

Check below to watch the trailer for Snoopy Presents: One-of-a-Kind Marcie.

17 Aug 2023

Leonard Bernstein’s Family Say They’re ‘Perfectly Fine’ With Bradley Cooper’s Fake Nose in ‘Maestro’ Trailer

The three children of late conductor/composer/pianist Leonard Bernstein have defended Bradley Cooper‘s artistic choices amid criticism that the actor/director’s portrayal of their father in the upcoming biopic Maestro leans into an antisemitic stereotype.

After the first trailer for the long-awaited film starring and directed by Cooper dropped earlier this week, some commenters questioned the star’s choice to wear a large prosthetic nose, an image that they said amplified a hurtful Jewish stereotype.

“Bradley Cooper included the three of us along every step of his amazing journey as he made his film about our father,” Jamie, Alexander, and Nina Bernstein said in a statement; while Cooper is not Jewish, Bernstein was born to Jewish parents. “We were touched to the core to witness the depth of his commitment, his loving embrace of our father’s music, and the sheer open-hearted joy he brought to his exploration. It breaks our hearts to see any misrepresentations or misunderstandings of his efforts.”

They added that, “It happens to be true that Leonard Bernstein had a nice, big nose. Bradley chose to use makeup to amplify his resemblance, and we’re perfectly fine with that. We’re also certain that our dad would have been fine with it as well. Any strident complaints around this issue strike us above all as disingenuous attempts to bring a successful person down a notch — a practice we observed all too often perpetrated on our own father.”

The Netflix film co-written by Cooper as well, is focused on the beloved composer’s relationship with Felicia Montealegre (Carey Mulligan), who the conductor married in 1951; the film is co-produced by Steven Spielberg and Martin Scorsese, among others.

One of those criticizing the choice was Joel Swanson, a Jewish History PhD student at the Univ. of Chicago, who wrote, “This isn’t about making a non-Jewish actor look more like Leonard Bernstein; it’s about making a non-Jewish actor look more like a Jewish stereotype.” After his comment was picked up by a number of major news outlets — including in a Time magazine article that asked a representation question about whether “only actors of a certain ethnicity or marginalized group” should portray characters with that same background — Swanson clarified on Wednesday that he was not advocating for that position.

“I just think the nose is a little gross, that’s all,” Swanson wrote of the use of the nose prosthetics as other commenters noted that when Cooper starred in The Elephant Man on Broadway in 2015 he chose not to wear prosthetics to portray John Merrick, who suffered from severe physical deformities.

Maestro is slated to premiere at the Venice Film Festival later this month and hit select theaters on Nov. 22 and Netflix on Dec. 20. So far Cooper has not made a public statement about the controversy and a spokesperson for Netflix had not returned Billboard‘s request for comment.

Bernstein’s children also noted in their post that “at all times” during the making of the film they could “feel the profound respect and yes, the love that Bradley brought to his portrait of Leonard Bernstein and his wife, our mother Felicia. We feel so fortunate to have had this experience with Bradley, and we can’t wait for the world to see his creation.”

See Swanson and the Bernstein’s tweets and the movie trailer below.

17 Aug 2023

Jamie Foxx Says He’s ‘Finally Startin to Feel Like Myself’ Following Health Scare: ‘GOD IS GOOD’

Jamie Foxx has shared another update following his April health scare, revealing he’s feeling better than ever in the months since his hospitalization.

The 55-year-old movie star took to Instagram Wednesday (Aug. 16) to thank fans for the well wishes, sharing a carousel of photos showing him enjoying some time outdoors. “You’re lookin at a man who is thankful… finally startin to feel like myself…,” he wrote in his caption. “It’s been an unexpected dark journey… but I can see the light…”

“I’m thankful to everyone that reached out and sent well wishes and prayers…,” Foxx continued. “I have a lot of people to thank… u just don’t know how much it meant… I will be thanking all of you personally… and if you didn’t know… GOD IS GOOD… all day every day…”

The post comes about four months after the Strays star was hospitalized for an unknown “medical complication,” as shared by his daughter in April. The family has remained private about the details of Foxx’s illness, though the actor did open up about his experience in a July Instagram video.

“I went through something that I thought I would never ever go through,” he told fans at the time. “I know a lot of people were waiting and, you know, wanting to hear updates but to be honest with you, I just didn’t want you to see me like that.”

Foxx’s latest update follows close behind controversy surrounding a post he made about being “betrayed by a fake friend,” as he later clarified. His word choice in the since-deleted post — “They killed this dude name Jesus … What do you think they’ll do to you???!” — sparked outrage as some thought the star was spreading antisemitic rhetoric.

“I want to apologize to the Jewish community and everyone who was offended by my post,” he responded in a follow-up apology. “I now know my choice of words have caused offense and I’m sorry. That was never my intent. To clarify, I was betrayed by a fake friend and that’s what I meant with ‘they’ not anything more. I only have love in my heart for everyone. I love and support the Jewish community. My deepest apologies to anyone who was offended.”

17 Aug 2023

RBD’s Anahi Voted Dream Latin Barbie by Fans: See Who Won Ken

Billboard readers have voted and crowned RBD’s Anahí as the Latin artist they would like to see portray Barbie in a dream sequel. Our readers have also voted for their dream Latin Ken, picking Anahí’s very own group member Christopher von Uckermann. 

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The two fan polls were published in mid-July on the heels of the Barbie movie’s release, which in its opening weekend “claimed the top spot with a massive $155 million in ticket sales from North American theaters from 4,243 locations, surpassing The Super Mario Bros. Movie (as well as every Marvel movie this year) as the biggest opening of the year and breaking the first-weekend record for a film directed by a woman,” The Associated Press reported. 

So Billboard Latin asked readers to vote for their dream Barbie and Ken in polls featuring 50 Latin acts including Karol G, Thalía, TINI, Manuel Turizo, Romeo Santos and Maluma, to name a few. 

The winners were Anahí with 77 percent of the votes, and von Uckermann with more than 56 percent of the votes. The former is followed by Kimberly Loaiza and Kenia OS; the latter is followed by former RBD members Alfonso “Poncho” Herrera and Christian Chávez. 

In other RBD news, von Uckermann — alongside Chávez and Maite Perroni — are set for the 2023 Billboard Latin Music Week, which is returning to Miami’s Faena Forum the week of Oct. 2-6. The three Mexican pop stars will take center stage to talk about their “Soy Rebelde” reunion tour — following a 14-year hiatus — set to kick off on Aug. 25 at the Sun Bowl Stadium in El Paso, Texas. 

Billboard Latin Music Week will also coincide with the 2023 Billboard Latin Music Awards on Thursday, Oct. 5, at the Watsco Center in Miami, and will broadcast live on Telemundo. For registration and more information, visit www.billboardlatinmusicweek.com.

See the Barbie poll results below, followed by the Ken poll results:

16 Aug 2023

Bradley Cooper Sheds Light on Leonard Bernstein & Felicia Montealegre’s Relationship in ‘Maestro’ Trailer

Bradley Cooper is stepping into the producer and director’s seat for Netflix’s Maestro, in which he stars as American conductor and cultural icon Leonard Bernstein. The film, which details the lifelong relationship between Bernstein and wife Felicia Montealegre Cohn Bernstein — played by Carey Mulligan — released its first trailer this week.

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The trailer starts out with Bernstein and Montealegre sitting back to back in the middle of a grassy field, playing a number-guessing game. After shouting out multiple wrong numbers, Montealegre suggests the budding star “try to just concentrate.” Bernstein quips, “Maybe I should stop and think for a second,” to which she replies, “You should stop and think because I am sending it to you … oh, we need to build up a very strong connection.”

Scenes from Bernstein’s life then play in succession, from him falling in love with Montealegre and conducting a young choir, to receiving high praise from people within the music industry and having extramarital affairs with men. The trailer concludes with the pair walking with their hands wrapped around each other toward an area surrounded by trees.

Following the trailer’s arrival, Cooper and the film received some backlash for the prominence of the prosthetic nose Cooper wears, with some claiming it to be an anti-Semitic costuming choice. “The genuinely insane part is that standard pre-prosthetic Bradley Cooper looks much more like the historical Leonard Bernstein than the film version,” one Twitter user wrote. Another added, “This isn’t about making a non-Jewish actor look more like Leonard Bernstein; it’s about making a non-Jewish actor look more like a Jewish stereotype.”

Bernstein’s three children, Jamie, Alexander and Nina Bernstein, chimed in on the discourse, stating that they were largely included in the process of the film. The family additionally stated that their father would likely not have an issue with the use of a prosthetic nose being used to bring his character to life.

“It breaks our hearts to see any misrepresentations or misunderstandings of his efforts. It happens to be true that Leonard Bernstein had a nice, big nose,” the children shared in a statement posted to Instagram. “Bradley chose to use makeup to amplify his resemblance, and we’re perfectly fine with that. We’re also certain that our dad would have been fine with it as well. Any strident complaints around this issue strike us above all as disingenuous attempts to bring a successful person down a notch — a practice we observed all too often perpetrated on our own father.”

Maestro is scheduled to arrive Dec. 20 on Netflix and will be shown in select theaters starting Nov. 22. The film will premiere at the New York Film Festival on Oct. 2 at David Geffen Hall, where the New York Philharmonic, which Bernstein led for over a decade, plays.

Watch the trailer for Maestro in the video above, and see comments about Cooper’s appearance — as well as the statement from the Bernstein family — below.

15 Aug 2023

Meryl Streep & Ashley Park Team Up for ‘Only Murders in the Building’ Duet ‘Look for the Light’

Meryl Streep and Ashley Park have entered the building in a very musical way.

In the newest episode of Hulu’s hit series Only Murders in the Building, which premiered Tuesday (Aug. 15), Streep and Park team up to perform a song co-written by Sara Bareilles (Waitress) along with Benj Pasek and Justin Paul (The Greatest Showman, Dear Evan Hansen). The song, “Look for the Light,” is now available for fans to stream on all services.

“It was so easy to say yes to this invitation,” said Bareilles in a press statement.  “I love the delicious unpredictability of collaboration, and this was as joyful and undeniable as they come. I am such a fan of the Only Murders and of Pasek & Paul, so the idea of writing together for the first time, especially to offer something to someone like Meryl Streep truly felt like a dream. Meryl was gentle and focused, and I loved her musicality and her willingness to share her process. Ashley Park’s glorious counter melody was added later, and I got goosebumps the first time I heard it. It truly couldn’t have been a more seamless experience- how lucky am I to be a part of it!”

For Pasek & Paul, Bareilles was a dream collaborator, adding in a statement, “We were so fortunate to be able to create this song for the legendary Meryl Streep alongside her. As longtime fans of Only Murders, Meryl, and Sara, this opportunity was basically the most perfectly algorithmic targeted ad someone could throw our way. 

“Getting to shape this song around Meryl’s voice, and working together in the studio and on set, was a dream and we are three very lucky songwriters,” they continued. “Meryl not only amazed us with her usual brilliance and mastery of the craft, but also inspired us with her humility and tireless work ethic. While it is unfair for someone to be so wonderful at everything, it’s a basic human truth that we all must reckon with!”

The song came in an episode in which Martin Short’s Oliver Putnam attempts to pivot his sure-to-tank murder mystery Death Rattle into a raucous musical during one crazy night of writing. While the show’s producers are split on the effort that involves crab men singing about creatures of the night, unconvinced funder Donna Demeo (Linda Edmond) says she’ll give him 24 hours to come up with a slam-dunk showstopper song.

Just before showcasing the song for his producers, Steve Martin’s Charles-Haden Savage tells his friend and fellow sleuth that nobody is into the musical idea. Frustrated and desperate, Short tells Streep’s Loretta that he’s happy to release her from her contract so she can take a newly offered part in the Grey’s Anatomy spin-off Grey’s New Orleans Family Burn Unit if she’ll just sing his guaranteed “showstopper” for him, the lilting nanny’s lullaby (aka “Look for the Light.”)

With the cast gathered around him, Short sets up a scene in which the show’s star triplets are crying in the night as their nanny soothes them. To the accompaniment of a melancholy piano, Streep sings, “Hush, little one, let me sing you to sleep/ Moonlight has come, now drift off to a dream/ Sail from the day to the wonders awaiting you/ Out there in the deep.”

As violins swell, the Oscar winner captivates the room with the emotional powerhouse ballad, with Ashley Park’s Kimber unable to resist harmonizing on the sweeping chorus in a tour de force that helps to save the show.

The third season of Only Murders premiered Aug. 8, with stars Selena Gomez, Martin Short and Steve Martin returning as true-crime-loving neighbors who get wrapped up in a murder mystery. Back in April, Gomez took to Instagram to tease Streep’s guest appearance by sharing a photo, smiling wide alongside the Oscar-winning icon on the series’ set.

“Well we wrapped season 3 of @onlymurdershulu -I’m not sure I have enough words to explain just how beautiful this season has been. It has been deliriously hilarious, challenging and for me, an absolute dream,” she captioned the photo. “I’ll post more soon. But I’ll I leave it with the woman I adore, look up to and love.”

Listen to “Look for the Light” below, and watch Only Murders in the Building on Hulu.

15 Aug 2023

Tom Morello Plays Woody Guthrie’s ‘This Land Is Your Land’ For Picketing Hollywood Actors and Writers

Rage Against the Machine‘s Tom Morello is standing in solidarity with members of the SAG-AFTRA and WGA in the midst of the ongoing Hollywood Writers’ strike. The musician was the latest supporter to play for the strikers on Monday (Aug. 14), when he showed up armed with an acoustic guitar to sing some political solo tracks, as well as a special cover that was a perfect fit for one of the longest work stoppages in Hollywood history.

According to NME, longtime labor supporter and union member Morello performed a 15-minute set that included solo tracks “Union Song,” “Hold The Line” and “Union Town” in addition to a cover of Woody Guthrie’s “This Land Is Your Land.” Guthrie’s song has often been seen as a straight-on tribute to American beauty, but the folk legend also intended it as a harsh broadside against the rich hoarding the nation’s precious natural resources to the detriment of those with less; in fact, it was originally named “God Blessed America For Me.”

The Rage guitarist told the outlet that he stands by the Hollywood writers and actors as they continue their work stoppage over issues including residual payments from streaming services and promises about the use of AI technology. “They’re making history here on the sidewalk in front of Paramount Studios and I’m here to support them and express my solidarity,” he said.

Elsewhere during his surprise performance, Morello provided facts and a status update about the strikes, noting that “in the United States right now, we have the biggest wave of strikes and organizing in about 40 years. In town right now, we also have hotel workers out [on strike] as well, so the picket lines are hot!” As for his set and his song selections, Morello added, “I’ve made music throughout my entire life to be played on picket lines and on the front lines, so today is just one more day at the office with regards to that.”

Watch Tom Morello sing Guthrie’s “This Land Is Your Land” in the video below, and see the full list of musicians supporting the Hollywood writers’ strike here.