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| Optimus Prime, Eeyore, prolific voice actor Peter Cullen dies at 85 | Peter Cullen died Wednesday at age 85. His agent, Kevin Motley, confirmed Thursday with Variety and Deadline. Cullen voiced Autobot leader Optimus Prime in the original Transformers animated series and live-action movies through 2023's Rise of the Beasts, as well as a 2024 episode of The Masked Singer. He also voiced Eeyore in The New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh and subsequent specials and movies. His creature voices include Gremlins and the original Predator. Other long-running series credits include Chip 'n' Dale Rescue Rangers, the animated Rambo series, Voltron and Heathcliff. He was a regular voice on the Filmation animated Ghostbusters and in one episode of The Real Ghostbusters, based on the live-action movies. |
| 'Rush' singer Arya Starr to headline NFL London Game halftime show | Nigerian singer-songwriter Arya Starr will take to the stage at the NFL London Game. The NFL announced in a press release Thursday that Starr, 24, will headline the halftime show at the matchup between the Philadelphia Eagles and Jacksonville Jaguars. The NFL London Game will take place Oct. 11 at 2:30 p.m. local time (9:30 a.m. ET) at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, with Starr's halftime performance to broadcast live on 5 and Sky Sports in the United Kingdom. The Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter is known for the singles "Away," "Rush" and "Treat U Right" with Fola, and released her third album, Starrgirl, earlier this month. "I am so excited to perform at the NFL halftime show in London," she said in a statement. |
| 'Unabomber' trailer: Jacob Tremblay plays young Ted Kaczynski | Netflix is teasing the new film Unabomber. The streaming service shared a trailer for the movie Thursday featuring Jacob Tremblay (Room) as a young Ted Kaczynski. Unabomber explores how the real-life Kaczynski went from Harvard prodigy to a domestic terrorist who killed three people and injured 23 others in mail bombing attacks between 1978 and 1995. "Subjected to controversial psychological experiments by Professor Henry Murray (Russell Crowe), Kaczynski's troubled past resurfaces decades later when his manhunt, led by FBI agent Joanne Miller (Shailene Woodley), brings to light the chilling consequences of ambition and isolation," an official synopsis reads. |
| 'Toy Story 5' to start streaming Sept. 23 on Disney+ | Toy Story 5 is coming to Disney+ in September. The streaming service announced Thursday that the movie will become available Sept. 23. Toy Story 5 is the fifth entry in the hit Disney-Pixar animated film series featuring the voices of Tom Hanks as Woody and Tim Allen as Buzz Lightyear. In this film, Woody and Buzz help the cowgirl doll Jessie (Joan Cusack) after her human, Bonnie, begins to neglect her toys in favor of her new tablet, Lily (Greta Lee). Other voice cast members include Conan O'Brien, Craig Robinson, Alan Cumming, Keanu Reeves and Tony Hale. Toy Story 5 opened June 19, meaning its streaming debut will come 96 days after its release in theaters. |
| Emma Thompson's 'Nanny McPhee' musical to open in West End | A Nanny McPhee stage musical penned by Oscar-winning actress and screenwriter Emma Thompson is to open in London's West End next summer. Thompson wrote the screenplays for and starred in the 2005 movie of the same name, as well as its 2010 sequel Nanny McPhee Returns. She wrote the book for the West End musical, and co-wrote the lyrics for its songs with Danny Wilson frontman Gary Clark. Katy Rudd is set to direct the project. "I've lived with Nanny McPhee for so long that to see her finally tread the boards is supremely exciting," Thompson said in a statement. "Theatre feels like her natural home -- magic, music, mischief and a good dollop of danger can all happen right in front of you," she added. |