2022 Critics Choice Awards Goes Bi-Continental
The 2022 Critics Awards goes global, with have two parties/broadcasts this year, one in LA and one in London. I wanna go to London — but I’ll probably end up in Century City.
Here’s the official word on the 2022 Critics Choice Awards — Something new every day, it seems…
(Los Angeles, CA – February 16, 2022) – The Critics Choice Association (CCA) announced today that the 2022 Critics Choice Awards will be an international affair, with celebrations planned in both London and Los Angeles on March 13th, 2022.
Hosted by Taye Diggs and Nicole Byer, the star-studded 2022 Critics Choice Awards gala will broadcast LIVE in the U.S. on The CW and TBS on Sunday, March 13 from 7:00 – 10:00 pm ET and will also be seen in many countries around the globe. The Los Angeles awards ceremony will be held at the Fairmont Century Plaza Hotel, while stars in London will gather at the Savoy Hotel for a late night soiree that will be an integral part of the live telecast.
“The role of the Critics Choice Awards in the entertainment world has grown exponentially over the past quarter century,” notes CCA CEO Joey Berlin. “When the pandemic made us move our show date from its traditional kick off in January into the heart of the awards season, we felt the need to add a second stage in London to make sure that all our honorees would have the opportunity to participate in the live telecast. Two parties, two networks, two hosts – it’s going to be a heck of a night – on two continents!”
2022 Critics Awards Nominees
When it comes to film, “Belfast” and “West Side Story” lead the 2022 Critics Choice Awards nominees, having earned eleven nominations each. In addition to a Best Picture nod, “Belfast” received nominations for Best Supporting Actor for both Jamie Dornan and Ciarán Hinds, Best Supporting Actress for Caitríona Balfe, Best Young Actor/Actress for Jude Hill, and Best Acting Ensemble, while Kenneth Branagh could take home both the Best Director and Best Original Screenplay trophies.
Steven Spielberg also received a Best Director nomination for his Best Picture contender “West Side Story,” while two of the film’s standout performers, Ariana DeBose and Rita Moreno, will be vying for Best Supporting Actress and Rachel Zegler earned a nod for Best Young Actor/Actress.
The list of Best Picture hopefuls featured several more films with impressive nomination counts, including “Dune” and “The Power of the Dog” which picked up ten each. Denis Villeneuve earned a Best Director nomination for “Dune,” while Hans Zimmer is up for Best Score, and Jacqueline West and Robert Morgan were nominated for Best Costume Design.
“The Power of the Dog” was recognized with a Best Actor nod for Benedict Cumberbatch, a Best Supporting Actor nod for Kodi Smit-McPhee, and a Best Supporting Actress nod for Kirsten Dunst, while Jane Campion was nominated for Best Director.
“Succession” leads this year’s Critics Choice TV Awards with eight nominations. In addition to Best Drama Series the show racked up a slew of acting nominations including nods for both Brian Cox and Jeremy Strong for Best Actor in a Drama Series.
Several of their co-stars also find themselves vying with each other for Critics Choice TV awards, as Nicholas Braun, Kieran Culkin and Matthew Macfadyen all scored nominations for Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series, while J. Smith-Cameron and Sarah Snook are both up for Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series. “Mare of Easttown” and “Evil” have five nominations each.
Several programs earned four nominations each, “Only Murders in the Building,” “Ted Lasso,” “The Good Fight,” “This Is Us,” and “WandaVision.”
The final round of voting for the 2022 Annual Critics Choice TV Awards and film awards will take place March 9th-11th.
The 2022 Critics Choice Awards goes global, with two parties/broadcasts this year, one in LA and one in London. Shall I go UK or US?
Another Helping of ‘The Gilded Age,’ Please
Rejoice! The HBO drama series The Gilded Age has been renewed for a second season! From creator Julian Fellowes (Downton Abbey), The Gilded Age debuted on January 24 with episodes currently streaming on HBO Max. The nine-episode drama series stars an ensemble cast including Carrie Coon, Taissa Farmiga, Denée Benton Cynthia Nixon, Christine Baranski and Louisa Jacobson (Meryl Streep’s youngest). The season one finale will air March 21.
It’s all about the American Gilded Age, a a period of immense economic change, of great conflict between the old ways and brand new systems, and of huge fortunes made and lost. The series begins in 1882, with young Marian Brook (Jacobson) moving from rural Pennsylvania to New York City after the death of her father to live with her thoroughly old money aunts Agnes van Rhijn (Baranski) and Ada Brook (Nixon).
Accompanied by Peggy Scott (Benton), an aspiring writer seeking a fresh start, Marian inadvertently becomes enmeshed in a social war between one of her aunts, a scion of the old money set, and her stupendously rich neighbors, a ruthless railroad tycoon and his ambitious wife. Exposed to a world on the brink of the modern age, will Marian follow the established rules of society, or forge her own path?
THE Super Bowl Ad to Beat
We admit we haven’t seen all the Super Bowl ads yet. We also admit that the ads are usually among our favorite parts of the big event (right up there with the halftime show). JK — kind of. But this Amazon ad, where Alexa is a little too good at reading the minds of Scarlett Johansson and hubby Colin Jost, is one of the most clever we’ve seen in…I dunno, maybe ever? Doritos and Budweiser will have to really up their games to beat this one. And we can’t wait to see what all the Crypto sellers have to offer. But in the meantime, feast your eyes on this instant classic:
Live Like They Do in ‘And Just Like That…’
If you’ve been love/hate watching the Sex and the City sequel And Just Like That… like I have, your jaw dropped when you saw Charlotte and Harry playing tennis in what looked like one of the swankiest athletics clubs ever built. But of course that wasn’t a real life athletic club — it was the oh-so-elegant Waterline Square, a condo highrise like no other. And get this! There are units available, so you can live there too! See all the details in my feature on Realtor.com.
Return to South Park — The COVID Edition
South Park has finally returned for weekly episodes—oh how we’ve missed it! The last full season of the show aired in late 2019, but like most other shows, the Comedy Central staple was impacted by the pandemic. The new season, which coincides with South Park‘s 25th anniversary, will consist of six episodes that focus on COVID. We are especially enamored of the one that shows what happens when COVID has finally been beaten — 40 years later.
Finally! Season Two of ‘Love is Blind’
One of our biggest guilty pleasures was the mesmerizing dating show Love is Blind on Netflix. But after Season 1 premiere, along came, you know, pandemic, and Season 2 was postponed. Until now. See details below:
Sneak Peak at My Brilliant Friend Season 3
The official word on the third season of one of my all time favorite series:
The eight-episode, third season of HBO and RAI’s My Brilliant Friend, MY BRILLIANT FRIEND: THOSE WHO LEAVE AND THOSE WHO STAY, based on the third book in Elena Ferrante’s quadrilogy, debuts MONDAY, FEBRUARY 28 (10:00-11:00 p.m. ET/PT) on HBO and will be available to stream on HBO Max.
MY BRILLIANT FRIEND follows Elena Greco and the most important friend in her life, Raffaella Cerullo, whom she has always called Lila. They met in the first year of primary school in 1950 and their story goes on to cover more than 60 years of their lives and explores the mystery of Lila, Elena’s brilliant friend and – in a way – both her best friend and her worst enemy.
Filmed in Italian and starring Margherita Mazzucco and Gaia Girace, Season 3 picks up with Elena and Lila, both now grown women, during the great open sea of the 1970s. Lila took her young son and left her husband and a comfortable life to work as a factory worker in the toughest of conditions, while Elena left the neighborhood to study in Pisa, and is now an author of a successful novel that has paved the way to an affluent and cultivated world. They now navigate a scenario of hopes and uncertainties, still united by their strong and ambivalent bond.
Season 2 of MY BRILLIANT FRIEND received rave reviews, with Vanity Fair calling it “immersive,” “addictive,” as well as “serious, novelistic art, and verified prestige television.” Rolling Stone deemed it “masterful,” “gorgeous and gripping,” while IndieWire observed, “it’s hard to think of a more striking show on television.”
https://youtu.be/hn0SL4pi2a8
Another Modern Cowboy Show in the Works
NBC is the most recent network to attempt to ride on the coat tails (bronco tails?) of the uber popular Yellowstone, with a pilot for a new series called Unbroken. The official description: “Three dynastic ranch families on the central coast of California make love and war in a passionate struggle to survive, ultimately setting the stage for a group of fiercely determined young women to win big for all at the National Championship of Rodeo.”which follows ranch families and rodeo competitions”
And get this: It’s from producer and singer Shaun Cassidy, whom you may know as a recording artist and actor on shows like The Hardy Boys Mysteries, Breaking Away and General Hospital, but is also as a prominent television producer, with shows like Cold Case, New Amsterdam and Invasion to his credit.
Because One ‘Yellowstone’ Spin-Off is Not Enough
First came the 1883 prequel, and now Paramount+ is planning yet another Yellowstone spin-off, this one about The Sixes, the Texas ranch that made a man out of fan favorite Jimmy. according to the press release: “Founded when Comanches still ruled West Texas, no ranch in America is more steeped in the history of the West than the 6666. Still operating as it did two centuries before, and encompassing an entire county, the 6666 is where the rule of law and the laws of nature merge in a place where the most dangerous thing one does is the next thing.” Giddyup!
Although no official casting announcements have been made, we’re thinking Jimmy (Jefferson White) and his fiancé Emily (Kathryn Kelly) will be in the mix. No announcements on premiere dates either, but we’ll keep you posted.
‘Promised Land’ Uncorks Tonight
Could this be the new Succession/Yellowstone/Empire, only in wine country? See for yourself tonight, when ABC’s new Promised Land premiers at 10/9 Central. Described “as a sultry and intoxicating new drama set in wine country! Scandal‘s Bellamy Young, John Ortiz, and Cecilia Suárez lead a powerhouse cast in this generation-spanning saga about a Latino family vying for wealth and power.” We’ll be watching…over a glass of Pino Grigio. Cheers!
https://youtu.be/BFBasnNP3Uw
Everything You Need to Know About StarTrek: Picard Season 2
This just in from Paramount+ about StarTrek: Picard Season 2 — It premieres March 3 and includes Whoopi Goldberg, reprising her role as Guinan.
Paramount+, the streaming service from ViacomCBS, today revealed the official trailer for season two of its hit original series StarTrek: Picard — it will premiere on Thursday, March 3, exclusively for Paramount+ subscribers in the U.S.
Following the premiere, new episodes of the 10-episode-long second season will drop weekly on Thursdays. In addition, the trailer unveils a first look at Academy Award winner Whoopi Goldberg, reprising her beloved role as Guinan from Star Trek: The Next Generation.
The second season of the beloved show takes the legendary Jean-Luc Picard and his crew on a bold and exciting new journey: into the past. Picard must enlist friends both old and new to confront the perils of 21st century Earth in a desperate race against time to save the galaxy’s future – and face the ultimate trial from one of his greatest foes.
StarTrek: Picard Season 2 features Patrick Stewart reprising his iconic role as Jean-Luc Picard, which he played for seven seasons on Star Trek: The Next Generation, and follows this iconic character into the next chapter of his life. The series is produced by CBS Studios in association with Secret Hideout and Roddenberry Entertainment.
For the second season, Alex Kurtzman, Akiva Goldsman, Terry Matalas, Patrick Stewart, Heather Kadin, Aaron Baiers, Rod Roddenberry, Trevor Roth, Doug Aarniokoski and Dylan Massin serve as executive producers. Akiva Goldsman and Terry Matalas serve as co-showrunners for season two.
StarTrek: Picard Season 2 cast members include Patrick Stewart, Alison Pill, Jeri Ryan, Michelle Hurd, Evan Evagora, Orla Brady, Isa Briones, Santiago Cabrera and Brent Spiner. This season’s cast also includes Annie Wersching and special guest stars Whoopi Goldberg and John de Lancie.
And get this: the show is currently in production on a third season.
The show streams exclusively on Paramount+ in the U.S. and is distributed concurrently by ViacomCBS Global Distribution Group on Amazon Prime Video in more than 200 countries and territories. In Canada, it airs on Bell Media’s CTV Sci-Fi Channel and streams on Crave.
Find out more on Paramount+, and take a peek at the trailer below:
This just in from Paramount+ about StarTrek: Picard Season 2 — It premieres March 3 and includes Whoopi Goldberg, reprising her role as Guinan.
The Skinny On the New Limited Series From One of Our Favorite Novels
As if a TV adaptation of one of our favorite novels, All the Light We Cannot See isn’t enough, now we hear that Mark Ruffalo and Hugh Laurie will star opposite newcomer Aria Mia Loberti in the adaptation of Anthony Doerr’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel about a blind French girl and a German boy whose paths collide in occupied France as both try to survive the devastation of World War II. It will air on Netflix (where else?) and comes from Shawn Levy’s 21 Laps Entertainment.
