Moviefone Editorial

Tag: john-oliver

  • Late Night Hosts to Return After End of Writers’ Strike

    (Left) Jimmy Kimmel. Photo: ABC/Jeff Lipsky. (Center) 'Tonight Show' host Jimmy Fallon. Photo: Todd Owyoung/NBC. (Right) Stephen Colbert from 'The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.' Photo: CBS.com.
    (Left) Jimmy Kimmel. Photo: ABC/Jeff Lipsky. (Center) ‘Tonight Show’ host Jimmy Fallon. Photo: Todd Owyoung/NBC. (Right) Stephen Colbert from ‘The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.’ Photo: CBS.com.

    When the writers’ strike began in May, it meant that all the Late Night talk shows had to shut down, since they employ Writers Guild of America staff to write monologues, questions for guests and skits for the hosts to appear in.

    Plus, the hosts themselves are WGA members and would not cross picket lines to work.

    Yet with the Writers and the AMPTP, which represents the studios sealing a successful deal, the WGA officially ended the strike at midnight today (Wednesday 27th September). And that means that the hosts of ‘The Late Show with Stephen Colbert’, ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ ‘The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon’ and ‘Late Night with Seth Meyers’ will all be back on Monday.

    Last Week Tonight with John Oliver is returning Sunday, and the hosts are wrapping up their podcast Strike Force Five. It takes a few days for their shows to ramp back up to production, book guests and other necessary work.

    What was Strike Force 5?

    'Late Night with Seth Meyers' host Seth Meyers.
    ‘Late Night with Seth Meyers’ host Seth Meyers. Photo: Lloyd Bishop/NBC.

    During the strike, Oliver, Kimmel, Fallon, Colbert and Meyers created a podcast called ‘Strike Force 5’ that they hosted, with proceeds from paid subscriptions going to the crews who needed support while the different shows were shut down.

    “Their mission complete, the founding members of Strike Force 5 will return to their network television shows this Monday 10/2 and one of them to premium cable on 10/1,” said the hosts in a statement.

    They followed up with a typically humorous summation of the whole situation:

    “Of course, in a greater sense, the Strike Force 5 will never end because Strike Force 5 is not a place, Strike Force 5 is not a people, Strike Force 5 is barely a podcast, nay Strike Force 5 is an idea. An idea five men could talk on top of each other for 12 episodes and maybe somebody would listen. As we say goodbye, we would like to thank all those somebodies, truly, you were the heroes. We were mostly the heroes, but you were in there, too. We want to thank the entire Strike Force 5 team, our wives, our special guests and apologize to Conan O’Brien, who agreed to do the pod, but Stephen forgot to send him any possible dates and the strike ended.”

    Related Article: Writers Guild Makes Tentative Deal with Studios to End Strike

    The Bill Maher issue

    Bill Maher and Andrew Yang on 'Real Time with Bill Maher.'
    (L to R) Bill Maher and Andrew Yang on ‘Real Time with Bill Maher.’ Photograph by Janet Van Ham/HBO.

    Some of their fellow talk show hosts, the daytime likes of Drew Barrymore and ‘The Talk’ team had planned to come back before the strike ended but curtailed that idea after public backlash and comments from Guild members.

    Bill Maher, host of HBO’s ‘Real Time with Bill Maher’ is usually something of an opinionated instigator and not known for going with the flow.

    He announced via social media on September 13th that he was planning to bring his show back on September 22nd.

    Here’s Maher’s original statement:

    “‘Real Time’ is coming back, unfortunately, sans writers or writing. It has been five months, and it is time to bring people back to work. The writers have important issues that I sympathize with, and hope they are addressed to their satisfaction, but they are not the only people with issues, problems, and concerns.”

    There was predictable backlash from those who knew he would be crossing strike lines to work on the show himself, and Maher later announced that he would be pressing pause on the plan to return.

    He will now be back on Friday this week.

    This was Maher’s announcement:

    “My writers and Real Time are back! See you Friday Night!”

    Steve Bannon and Bill Maher on 'Real Time with Bill Maher.'
    (L to R) Steve Bannon and Bill Maher on ‘Real Time with Bill Maher.’ Photograph by Janet Van Ham/HBO.

    Movies Affected by the WGA and SAG-AFTRA Strike:

    Buy Jimmy Fallon Movies On Amazon

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  • Beyonce, Donald Glover, and ‘The Lion King’ Cast Face Their Characters in New Photos

    Beyonce, Donald Glover, and ‘The Lion King’ Cast Face Their Characters in New Photos

    Disney

    Disney fans have already seen the impressive trailers, heard some of the soaring songs, and geeked out over the A-list cast of the upcoming live-action remake of “The Lion King.” And now, audiences can ogle some gorgeous new character portraits from the film, featuring the stars alongside their onscreen animated alter egos.

    Director Jon Favreau shared the images on social media on Tuesday, with the photos serving as yet another reminder of both the flick’s beautiful animation, as well as its insanely famous ensemble.

    Disney
    Disney
    Disney
    Disney
    Disney
    Disney
    Disney

    The featured actors and their characters are: Beyoncé Knowles-Carter as Nala; Donald Glover as Simba; Seth Rogen, Billy Eichner, and John Oliver as Pumbaa, Timon, and Zazu; Alfre Woodard as Sarabi; Chiwetel Ejiofor as Scar; Keegan-Michael Key, Florence Kasumba, and Eric André as Kamari, Shenzi, and Azizi; and JD McCrary and Shahadi Wright Joseph as Young Simba and Young Nala. (Curiously, only James Earl Jones, who’s reprising his role as Mufasa, is missing from the lineup.)

    Favreau led off his post with the Beyoncé portrait, and it’s not hard to see why: Queen Bey looks positively regal as the lioness; as her own self, she’s even more resplendent.

    “The Lion King” roars into theaters on July 19.

  • Here’s When ‘Last Week Tonight With John Oliver’ Season 6 Premieres

    Here’s When ‘Last Week Tonight With John Oliver’ Season 6 Premieres

    John Oliver hosting Last Week Tonight
    HBO

    The dark months without “Last Week Tonight” are nearing a close.

    John Oliver‘s late-night talk show is headed into its sixth season in 2019, meaning fans will continue to get a weekly look at news, politics, and current events, as well as broader issues, all with heavy doses of satire and very random humor. HBO revealed the Season 6 premiere date on Wednesday, Jan. 2, and the show is returning Feb. 17.

    The HBO series has been a hit since it first aired in 2015, racking up numerous awards, including 12 Primetime Emmys. Four of those came in 2018, including its third consecutive award in the Outstanding Variety Talk Series category. In that time, it has covered a wide variety of topics, from Brexit to tobacco to crisis pregnancy centers.

    Oliver is returning to host, and there are surely more surprises in store. We’ll see them when “Last Week Tonight With John Oliver” returns Sunday, Feb. 17 at 11 p.m. ET/PT on HBO.

    [h/t: Deadline]

  • Emmys 2017: John Oliver Seriously Got #DCPublicSchools Trending, Immediately

    69th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards - ShowThis is power.

    HBO’s “Last Week Tonight With John Oliver” won Outstanding Writing for a Variety Series at the 2017 Emmy Awards. In his speech, John Oliver referenced presenter Dave Chappelle‘s quip from earlier in the night, thanking DC public schools.

    Oliver said he too wanted to thank DC public schools, just to get that trending for no real reason. So he asked fans at home to tweet #DCPublicSchools.

    And they did.

    Pretty much immediately, #DCPublicSchools got itself trending in the U.S.

    Between the two of them, Dave Chappelle and John Oliver could get fans to tweet or do anything, and that was the chosen topic of the night. But every Sunday night, Oliver gets fans tweeting and talking about even more serious issues — in his own cheeky way — and that’s why he keeps winning.

    Here’s the full list of winners at the 69th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards.

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  • ‘Lion King’ Live-Action Remake Adds John Oliver to Cast

    “The Lion King” is getting a dose of “Last Week Tonight.”

    HBO host John Oliver is joining the voice cast of Disney’s live-action remake of “The Lion King” as the fussy hornbill Zazu, the majordomo (a sort of butler) of Mufasa’s household.

    The new version is being directed by Jon Favreau, who had success remaking “The Jungle Book” for Disney. The cast includes Donald Glover as Simba, James Earl Jones as Mufasa, Seth Rogen as Pumbaa, and Billy Eichner as Timon. And there have been rumors that Disney is trying to get Beyonce to voice Simba’s friend/love interest Nala.

    Oliver — a veteran of Comedy Central and now the host of his own weekly show — hasn’t done a lot of acting, but he voiced Vanity Smurf in “The Smurfs” and “The Smurfs 2,” and has done voice work in animated series including “Rick and Morty,” “The Simpsons,” and “Bob’s Burgers.”

    “The Lion King” is slated to hit theaters July 19, 2019.

  • Jennifer Lawrence Admits She Took Ambien Before Filming a ‘Hunger Games’ Scene

    Now we have to go back and re-watch “The Hunger Games” to see where the odds of staying awake were not in Katniss Everdeen’s favor.

    “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon,” and she joined Jimmy and “Last Week Tonight” host John Oliver for a game of “True Confessions.” They had to open one of two envelopes — one containing a true confession from their past, another a lie — and then try to sell whatever story was in the envelope while the others interrogated them to determine if they were telling the truth or not.

    JLaw went first, and her envelope had a pretty juicy “confession”: “I once took an Ambien before filming a scene in ‘The Hunger Games.’”

    She told Jimmy and John it was not before a sleeping scene, or a fight scene, and no one else was around at the time. When Jimmy asked if it was a mistake, she said yes, adding, “I thought it was something else.” John Oliver asked, “If this is true, is it going to cause you legal problems with the studio?” Jen answered, tentatively, “Um, well, the movies are done?” John replied, “That’s not how the law works!”

    So was she lying or not? John made his guess: “It’s plausible. It’s reckless. I kinda like it. If it’s not true, I am going to be very sad.” He said it’s true. Jimmy took a while but also decided it was true. Jen admitted that it was true. And somewhere out there a producer is having a seizure.

    Watch the full seven-minute video for Jimmy and John’s “True Confessions”:

    But John needs to finish that naked Tokyo sauna story!

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  • Jon Stewart Is Headed to HBO to Produce Digital Content

    "The Daily Show With Jon Stewart" #JonVoyageDaily Show” hat in August, the comedian is now headed to HBO, where he will produce new TV and film projects, as well as frequently-updated digital content for HBO’s streaming platforms.

    Last Week Tonight”), just with a digital bent. Here’s the scoop from the press release:

    In his first project for HBO under the new deal, Stewart will view current events through his unique prism. Working with the pioneering cloud graphics company OTOY Inc., he is developing new technology that will allow him to produce timely short-form digital content, which will be refreshed on HBO NOW multiple times throughout the day. Additional projects will be announced as they are confirmed.

    The project will also be made available on HBO Go and “other platforms,” though the cabler declined to mention specific details about those logistics.

    In a statement, Stewart said he was “so excited” join HBO, adding, “Appearing on television 22 minutes a night clearly broke me. I’m pretty sure I can produce a few minutes of content every now and again.”

    No word yet on when Stewart’s project will make its debut. Stay tuned.

    [via: HBO PR]

    Photo credit: Getty Images for Comedy Central

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  • Best of Late Night TV: Big Questions With Tom Hanks, How Kunal Nayyar Lost His Virginity

    If you’re like us and value your sleep, you probably nodded off into your Ambien dreamland before the party started on post-prime time TV. Don’t worry; we’ve got you covered. Here’s the best of what happened last night on late night.

    Here’s Stephen Colbert contemplating the mysteries of the universe alongside “Late Show” segment called “Big Questions with Even Bigger Stars.” It’s like a hilarious midnight picnic with Forrest Gump. The audience cheered for Tom for so long it kinda cut the segment short, but they still spent a lot of time asking deep questions and giving silly answers. For example, they tackled big Qs like “Why do bad things happen to good people?” and “What would you do with a time machine”? It’s great. A Hitler-killing baby is involved. Stephen Colbert + John Oliver = Where’s Jon Stewart? ‘Cause he would complete the trifecta. John got bleeped, saying he doesn’t give a toot about Donald Trump right now. But he can’t vote anyway, so… After his appearance, John Oliver left a funny video guest book message for Stephen Colbert, offering some tips on the show. “Late Show” guests Bill Withers and Ed Sheeran sat side-by-side and shared something in common: they both had stutters. The best part came after Ed listed all of his medical issues growing up: “The reason I became a musician is God looked down and said ‘You probably need some help getting laid.’” The audience cheered. Bill’s response: “That’s what you call going from ginger to a ginger snap.” Ken Jeong of “Dr. Ken” was on “Jimmy Kimmel Live,” talking about being a doctor who became an actor, and he did his Korean Johnny Carson impression: Seth Meyers got semi-serious over on “Late Night,” taking a closer look at Planned Parenthood and the recent Republican congressional attacks. Good work, man. This is what Seth does best, to be honest. He’s in his element when he’s mostly “The Daily Show.” Over on the “Late Late Show with James Corden,” Patricia Arquette, Matt Walsh, Jeremy Irvine discussed sex scene experiences. Which sock do you pick? Quite a dilemma. If you’re curious about how “The Big Bang Theory” star Kunal Nayyar lost his virginity, he wrote about it in his book and told the story on “Conan.” He was 19, it was anticlimactic and, the next morning, he called the girl the wrong name: On “The Tonight Show,” Bravo honcho Andy Cohen offered a guide to Twitter. “We are all just one tweet away from getting fired. Think before you tweet.” He also recently insulted Tori Spelling after she was burned, and then accidentally insulted her again when they e-mailed each other. Think before you e-mail too.
    Last but not least, here’s the beautiful Julianna Margulies drowning in sexual innuendo (grease of the cock?!) when explaining a magazine shoot in the south of France. She’s all wet!
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  • Daylight Saving Time Is Stupid, Says ‘Last Week Tonight’ (VIDEO)

    last week tonightYou’re probably still complaining about the lack of sleep you received thanks to Daylight Saving Time, and “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver” also has a bone to pick with the tradition.

    The satirical HBO show took a swing at the out-of-date practice in a segment entitled “How Is This Still A Thing?,” lamenting that the twice-yearly changing of the clocks does nothing for humanity other than confuse them about how to adjust the time on their microwaves. And the conventional wisdom that it was a practice invented for farming is false, too, the segment claims.

    Check out the video below — which highlights the fact that it was the German military, not American farmers, who spearheaded the practice — and just try to argue with “Last Week Tonight’s” logic. We may not think that cows are just stupid creatures (that one at the 1:03 mark is pretty adorable), but the rest of the segment’s sentiments seem sound.

    [via: Last Week Tonight]

    Photo credit: YouTube
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  • HBO Renews ‘Last Week Tonight with John Oliver’ for 2 More Seasons

    John Oliver, Last Week Tonight
    HBO knows how to hold on to a good thing: The cable channel has renewed buzzy show “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver” for two more seasons.

    The former “Daily Show” star left Comedy Central for his own gig at HBO last year, and quickly established himself as a giant in the comedy-news genre. His tenure at “Last Week Tonight,” which began in April 2014, has been marked by critical praise and viral videos galore, making his renewal a no-brainer.

    “We are incredibly proud to have John as part of the HBO family,” said HBO head of programming Michael Lombardo in a statement. “His unique ability to deliver socially significant commentary week after week, along with his innate comedic brilliance, puts John in a class by himself.”

    Season three will premiere some time in 2016, and season four will debut in 2017. Each season will consist of 35 episodes.

    “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver” is currently in the midst of its second season. It airs Sundays at 11 p.m. on HBO.

    [via: Deadline]

    Photo credit: Eric Liebowitz/HBO

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