Madhuri celebrates Team India’s win
Just like any other Indian, actress Madhuri Dixit Nene, too, is over-the-moon with Team India’s world cup semi-final win and penned a note to congratulate the players. On Wednesday, Madhuri was at the Wankhede stadium during the India vs New Zealand world cup semi-final in Mumbai. She took to Instagram to heap praise and congratulate Virat Kohli as he hit his 50th ODI century, beating Sachin Tendulkar’s record. She shared a video montage from the match. It also features her husband Sriram Nene, Anushka Sharma, Vicky Kaushal, and Kunal Khemu. She also posed with Rajinikanth. Madhuri even shared a selfie with football legend David Beckham. For the caption, she wrote: “And there u have it. Congrats Team India. What a fabulous showing by our boys in Blue. Nice way to end Shami.” (IANS)
Katrina Kaif-Vijay Sethupathi starrer Merry Christmas to release in Jan
Filmmaker Sriram Raghavan’s upcoming directorial Merry Christmas has a new release date of January 12, 2024, the makers announced on Thursday. The Katrina Kaif-Vijay Sethupathi starrer has been delayed multiple times and it was last slated to come out in theatres on December 12 this year. Presented by Tips Films and Matchbox Pictures, the upcoming film is described as “a genre-defying tale” shot in Hindi and Tamil with a different set of supporting actors, according to a press release. In a statement, the film’s team expressed their deep love for the project and their unwavering commitment to delivering a truly exceptional cinematic experience. While the Hindi version of Merry Christmas co-stars Sanjay Kapoor, Vinay Pathak, Pratima Kannan, and Tinnu Anand, the Tamil iteration has Radhika Sarathkumar, Shanmugaraja, Kevin Jay Babu, and Rajesh Williams in the same roles. The film also introduces Pari, a child actor. (PTI)
Pedro Pascal in talks to lead Fantastic Four movie
Hollywood star Pedro Pascal is being eyed to play the role of Reed Richards in Marvel Studios’ much-awaited Fantastic Four movie. Pascal, who broke out with his portrayal of Prince Oberyn Martell in “Game of Thrones”, is in negotiations to play the leader of the titular superhero group, reported entertainment news outlet Deadline. The actor has already worked for Marvel Studios’ parent company Disney as he headlined the Disney+ series The Mandalorian. WandaVision director Matt Shakman will helm the Fantastic Four. He boarded the project after the exit of Spiderman trilogy maker Jon Watts. The movie is scheduled to open in US theatres on May 2, 2025. Marvel Studios acquired the cinematic rights for Fantastic Four, which previously has been made thrice for the big screen after it took over 20th Century Fox. (PTI)
Jimmy Kimmel to return as host
for 96th Academy Awards
Talk show host Jimmy Kimmel is set to return as host of the 96th Oscars, the Academy announced. For this year’s ceremony, Kimmel will also be joined by his wife and Jimmy Kimmel Live! co-head writer, Molly McNearney, who earned an Emmy nomination for her work as a writer and executive producer of the 2023 event, reports People magazine. “I always dreamt of hosting the Oscars exactly four times,” Kimmel said in a release. Molly McNearney returns as an executive producer for next year’s broadcast. “We are thrilled about Jimmy returning to host and Molly returning as executive producer for the Oscars. (IANS)
They share our love of movies and our commitment to producing a dynamic and entertaining show for our global audience,” said Academy CEO Bill Kramer and Academy President Janet Yang. Kramer and Yang continued: “We are deeply grateful to Jimmy, Molly and their teams for their incredible creativity and partnership and for going on this ride with us again.” (IANS)