Entertainment – Brandon Sun

Renée Watson’s ‘All the Blues in the Sky’ wins Newbery Medal for best children’s book

Hillel Italie, The Associated Press 2 minute read Yesterday at 1:51 PM CST

NEW YORK (AP) — Renée Watson's “All the Blues in the Sky,” in which the author blends poetry and prose to tell the story of a teen confronting the death of her best friend, has won the John Newbery Medal for the year's best children's book.

The Randolph Caldecott Medal, for outstanding illustration, was given to Cátia Chien for the summertime picture book “Fireworks,” written by Matthew Burgess.

The Caldecott and Newbery awards, along with dozens of other prizes for children's literature, were announced Monday by the American Library Association.

Jewell Parker Rhodes's adventure story “Will’s Race for Home” won the Coretta Scott King Award for best book by a Black author, and R. Gregory Christie won the King illustration award for the book he worked on with author Calvin Alexander Ramsey, “The Library in the Woods.” Author-illustrator Kadir Nelson, whose dozens of credits include the Caldecott-winning picture book “The Undefeated,” received the King-Virginia Hamilton lifetime achievement award.

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‘Take pride in what we’ve built’: Producer says ‘Frankenstein’ Oscar noms spotlight Canadian talent

Nicole Thompson, The Canadian Press 3 minute read Preview

‘Take pride in what we’ve built’: Producer says ‘Frankenstein’ Oscar noms spotlight Canadian talent

Nicole Thompson, The Canadian Press 3 minute read Yesterday at 1:47 PM CST

One of the producers behind Guillermo del Toro's "Frankenstein" says the Oscar-nominated film is an example of Canadian talent at the highest calibre.

The movie earned a spot in the best picture race last week, as well as nominations for behind-the-scenes craftspeople — many of whom are Canadian, Toronto-born producer J. Miles Dale said.

"This is a significantly Canadian production with the exception of one genius Mexican and a crusty Dane and one Kiwi ... and a French composer," he said Friday, referring to the film's writer/director, cinematographer and costume designer.

"The rest of us...the other hundreds or, really, thousands of people are all Canadian. We take pride in what we've built here."

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Yesterday at 1:47 PM CST

Christoph Waltz, left to right, producer J. Miles Dale, producer Scott Stuber, Guillermo Del Toro, Christian Convery, Oscar Isaac, Mia Goth and Jacob Elordo pose for a group photo on the red carpet for

Music Review: Joyce Manor delivers nostalgia, polished and punk, in ‘I Used to Go to This Bar’

Krysta Fauria, The Associated Press 3 minute read Preview

Music Review: Joyce Manor delivers nostalgia, polished and punk, in ‘I Used to Go to This Bar’

Krysta Fauria, The Associated Press 3 minute read Yesterday at 11:25 AM CST

LOS ANGELES (AP) — In his seminal 1981 book “Simulacra and Simulation,” cultural theorist Jean Baudrillard argued that Disneyland is emblematic of reality’s collapse into perpetual imitation. “Disneyland is presented as imaginary in order to make us believe that the rest is real, whereas all of Los Angeles and the America that surrounds it are no longer real,” he writes.

On their seventh album, the LA county pop-punk stalwarts Joyce Manor remind listeners why the band’s origin lore, which involves day-drinking Four Lokos at Disneyland in 2008, is so apt. In the nearly two decades since their debut album, the band has descended further into millennial nostalgia, unironically cosplaying their ’00s influences with little creativity.

That's not to say they haven't maintained a loyal fanbase — if Baudrillard were alive, he may have chalked up Joyce Manor’s sound more to cultural fluency than creative stasis. In “I Used to Go to This Bar,” that yields about 20 minutes of nine polished, catchy tracks that will unapologetically transport listeners to the teen angst of the early aughts.

Much of the album, like its titular track and the existential dread-filled “The Opossum,” embrace pop-punk tropes, like power chords, simple lyrics and relentless tempo, to a tee. But a couple songs attempt ambition by incorporating additional, still nostalgic, sonic elements, like almost funky bass lines in "After All You Put Me Through" and monotone vocals on "All My Friends Are So Depressed.”

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Yesterday at 11:25 AM CST

This image released by Epitaph Records shows

The 2025 Tony Awards set June 7 ceremony date at Radio City Music Hall

Mark Kennedy, The Associated Press 1 minute read Preview

The 2025 Tony Awards set June 7 ceremony date at Radio City Music Hall

Mark Kennedy, The Associated Press 1 minute read Yesterday at 11:01 AM CST

NEW YORK (AP) — Fans of Broadway, circle this date: This season's Tony Awards will take place on June 7 at its familiar home of Radio City Music Hall.

Producers of the show announced the date and location Monday. Nominations will be announced May 5.

Radio City can seat 6,000 people and has been the longtime home of the awards.

The host will be revealed later.

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Yesterday at 11:01 AM CST

FILE - A view of the stage appears before the start of the 75th annual Tony Awards in New York on June 12, 2022. (Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP, File)

Broadway and Hollywood songwriter Marc Shaiman looks back with pessimistic humor in memoir

Mark Kennedy, The Associated Press 5 minute read Preview

Broadway and Hollywood songwriter Marc Shaiman looks back with pessimistic humor in memoir

Mark Kennedy, The Associated Press 5 minute read Updated: Yesterday at 3:00 PM CST

NEW YORK (AP) — Some people see the glass as half full and some as half empty. Marc Shaiman is something else entirely.

“I’m not even happy with the glass,” he says with a laugh.

The award-winning Hollywood and Broadway composer and lyricist cheerfully likes to call himself an “Eeyore” and “a card-carrying pessimist” despite many of his biggest dreams coming true.

“Just as soon as something good happens, something bad’s going to happen,” he tells The Associated Press. “I am always waiting for that other shoe to drop, and it inevitably drops.”

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Updated: Yesterday at 3:00 PM CST

FILE - Marc Shaiman appears at the 74th annual Tony Awards in New York on Sept. 26, 2021. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP, File)

Lionsgate names former U.S. treasury secretary Steven Mnuchin to board

The Canadian Press 1 minute read Yesterday at 8:48 AM CST

VANCOUVER - Lionsgate Studios Corp. has named former U.S. treasury secretary Steven Mnuchin to its board of directors, effective immediately.

The movie and television production company says Mnuchin brings financial and regulatory expertise from his time as treasury secretary, as well as entertainment industry experience from his leadership at Dune Capital Management.

It says Mnuchin co-financed Avatar and has more than 35 executive producer credits.

He is currently the managing partner of Liberty Strategic Capital, a private equity firm focused on technology, financial services, fintech, and new forms of content.

Celebrity birthdays for the week of Feb. 1-7 includes Harry Styles and Shakira

The Associated Press 5 minute read Preview

Celebrity birthdays for the week of Feb. 1-7 includes Harry Styles and Shakira

The Associated Press 5 minute read Yesterday at 7:57 AM CST

Celebrity birthdays for the week of Feb. 1-7:

Feb. 1: Actor-comedian Garrett Morris is 89. Bluegrass singer Del McCoury is 87. TV personality Joy Philbin is 85. Guitarist Mike Campbell of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers is 76. Blues musician Sonny Landreth is 75. Actor-writer-producer Billy Mumy (“Lost in Space”) is 72. Singer Exene Cervenka of X is 70. Actor Linus Roache (“Law & Order”) is 62. Actor Sherilyn Fenn (“Twin Peaks”) is 61. Comedian Pauly Shore is 58. Actor Brian Krause (“Charmed”) is 57. Jazz saxophonist Joshua Redman is 57. Drummer Patrick Wilson of Weezer is 57. Actor Michael C. Hall (“Dexter,” ″Six Feet Under”) is 55. Rapper Big Boi of Outkast is 51. Musician Jason Isbell is 47. Country singer Julie Roberts is 47. Singer Andrew VanWyngarden of MGMT is 43. TV personality Lauren Conrad (“The Hills,” ″Laguna Beach”) is 40. Actor-singer Heather Morris (“Glee”) is 39. Singer Harry Styles is 32.

Feb. 2: Singer Graham Nash is 84. Singer Howard Bellamy of the Bellamy Brothers is 80. TV chef Ina Garten (“Barefoot Contessa”) is 78. Actor Jack McGee (“The McCarthys”) is 77. Actor Brent Spiner (“Star Trek: The Next Generation”) is 77. Bassist Ross Valory of Journey is 77. Model Christie Brinkley is 72. Actor Michael Talbott (“Miami Vice”) is 71. Actor Kim Zimmer (“Guiding Light”) is 71. Actor Michael T. Weiss (“The Pretender”) is 64. Comedian Adam Ferrara (“Rescue Me”) is 60. Bassist Robert DeLeo of Stone Temple Pilots is 60. Actor Jennifer Westfeldt (“Kissing Jessica Stein”) is 56. Rapper T-Mo (Goodie Mob) is 54. Actor Marissa Jaret Winokur is 53. Actor Lori Beth Denberg (“The Steve Harvey Show”) is 50. Steel guitarist Jesse Siebenberg of Lukas Nelson and Promise of the Real is 50. Singer Shakira is 49. Actor Rich Sommer (“Mad Men”; “The Devil Wears Prada”) is 48. Actor Zosia Mamet (“Girls”) is 38.

Feb. 3: Actor Blythe Danner is 83. Guitarist Dave Davies of The Kinks is 79. Actor Morgan Fairchild is 76. Actor Pamela Franklin (“The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie”) is 76. Actor Nathan Lane is 70. Guitarist Lee Ranaldo of Sonic Youth is 70. Actor Thomas Calabro (“Melrose Place”) is 67. Drummer Lol Tolhurst (The Cure) is 67. Actor Michele Greene (“L.A. Law”) is 64. Country singer Matraca Berg is 62. Actor Maura Tierney (“ER,” ″NewsRadio”) is 61. Actor Warwick Davis (“Harry Potter” films, “Willow”) is 56. Actor Elisa Donovan (“Clueless”) is 55. Singer Daddy Yankee is 50. Actor Isla Fisher is 50. Singer Jessica Harp (The Wreckers) is 44. Actor Matthew Moy (“2 Broke Girls”) is 42. Rapper Sean Kingston is 36. Actor Brandon Micheal Hall (“God Friended Me”) is 33.

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Yesterday at 7:57 AM CST

FILE - Harry Styles appears in the press room at the 65th annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles on Feb. 5, 2023. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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Figure skater Fournier Beaudry opens up about Sorensen allegation in Netflix doc

Daniel Rainbird, The Canadian Press 4 minute read Preview

Figure skater Fournier Beaudry opens up about Sorensen allegation in Netflix doc

Daniel Rainbird, The Canadian Press 4 minute read Sunday, Jan. 25, 2026

Figure skater Laurence Fournier Beaudry broke down in tears in a new Netflix documentary as she described being caught up in the fallout after Nikolaj Sorensen, her boyfriend and former ice dance partner, was accused of sexual assault.

Fournier Beaudry, a 33-year-old from Montreal, opens up about the allegations in “Glitter & Gold: Ice Dancing,” a docuseries set for release Feb. 1.

The three-part show follows three of ice dancing's top teams ahead of the Milan Cortina Olympic Games in February, including Fournier Beaudry and Guillaume Cizeron of France.

"I never really publicly discuss about how much damage it's created,” Fournier Beaudry said in the first episode. “I don't even want to go back to what I've felt in those moments because I thought I was so strong, and I really thought I could handle everything.

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Sunday, Jan. 25, 2026

Laurence Fournier Beaudry and Nikolaj Soerensen of Canada perform their free dance in the ice dance competition at the 2024 ISU World Figure Skating Championships in Montreal, Saturday, March 23, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Graham Hughes

Natalie Portman, Seth Rogen debut new movies at Sundance Film Festival

Lindsey Bahr, The Associated Press 3 minute read Preview

Natalie Portman, Seth Rogen debut new movies at Sundance Film Festival

Lindsey Bahr, The Associated Press 3 minute read Sunday, Jan. 25, 2026

PARK CITY, Utah (AP) — The comedy streak at the Sundance Film Festival continued Saturday with the world premieres of the art world satire “The Gallerist,” with Natalie Portman, and Oliva Wilde’s “The Invite,” a sharp look a crumbling marriage.

“The Invite,” which debuted at the Eccles Theater, marks Wilde’s third time behind the camera and first since “Don’t Worry Darling.” It received an enthusiastic standing ovation.

Will McCormack and Rashida Jones wrote the script for “The Invite,” in which a couple on the edge (Wilde and Seth Rogen) have their upstairs neighbors (Penélope Cruz and Edward Norton) over for dinner. The evening starts with awkward small talk and becomes a raw and revealing encounter that's funny and devastating at times.

“Several of the greatest moments of this movie were written by the cast,” Wilde said after the premiere. “We shot in order, which was incredible. … It was such a luxury.”

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Sunday, Jan. 25, 2026

Audience members line up outside the Eccles Theatre during the Sundance Film Festival on Friday, Jan. 23, 2026, in Park City, Utah. (Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP)

Dave Franco and O’Shea Jackson Jr. lead road movie gone wrong, bringing comedy to Sundance

Lindsey Bahr, The Associated Press 3 minute read Preview

Dave Franco and O’Shea Jackson Jr. lead road movie gone wrong, bringing comedy to Sundance

Lindsey Bahr, The Associated Press 3 minute read Saturday, Jan. 24, 2026

PARK CITY, Utah (AP) — Sundance movies might have a reputation for leaning into serious dramas, but this year the independent film festival has a slew of comedies on the slate, from quirky documentaries to more raucous fare.

One of the latter comes from filmmaker Macon Blair, a Sundance veteran and grand jury prize winner for “I Don’t Feel at Home in This World Anymore,” whose new movie might best be described as a road movie gone wrong.

Dave Franco and O’Shea Jackson Jr. play two down on their luck guys and general screwups who are hired to transport a troubled teen (Mason Thames) to a treatment facility in “The S---heads,” which had its world premiere in Park City, Utah Friday night. It’s one of the films looking for distribution at the indie film festival.

Blair and Alex Orr started working on the script over 10 years ago. It almost got made in 2017, but financing fell apart when they were in pre-production.

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Saturday, Jan. 24, 2026

Government plans to bring forward online harms bill, AI minister says

Anja Karadeglija, The Canadian Press 3 minute read Saturday, Jan. 24, 2026

OTTAWA - The federal government is working on online harms legislation, Artificial Intelligence Minister Evan Solomon said Friday.

Solomon told reporters Culture Minister Marc Miller will bring the bill forward.

The bill would be separate from privacy legislation Solomon is expected to introduce, and from a justice bill the government tabled last year that includes elements criminalizing some deepfakes.

A spokesperson for Miller did not provide additional details about the bill when asked on Friday.

Meet the real-life couples behind psychological marriage drama ‘Honey Bunch’

Cassandra Szklarski, The Canadian Press 4 minute read Preview

Meet the real-life couples behind psychological marriage drama ‘Honey Bunch’

Cassandra Szklarski, The Canadian Press 4 minute read Friday, Jan. 23, 2026

TORONTO - There’s a "twisted love story" at the heart of the genre-bending Canadian thriller “Honey Bunch,” but it’s rooted in the realities of long-term commitment, say the two real-life couples behind the gothic tale.

Filmmaking duo Madeleine Sims-Fewer and Dusty Mancinelli wrote and directed the psychological drama about a car-crash survivor with faulty memory who is encouraged by her husband to try experimental treatments at a strange facility.

"Really at its heart, this is a twisted love story that asks the question: How far are you willing to go for the one that you love?," Mancinelli said during a round of interviews at last September's Toronto International Film Festival.

“We were really fascinated by the ebbs and flows of love and how in the valleys — in those low points of a relationship — how those are the most important, vulnerable moments to help find new ways to recommit, to devote yourself to your partner and how that can be both horrifying and thrilling.”

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Friday, Jan. 23, 2026

Madeleine Sims-Fewer, left, and Dusty Mancinelli pose for a portrait during the Toronto International Film Festival in Toronto, Wednesday, Sept. 10, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sammy Kogan

Top 20 Global Concert Tours from Pollstar

The Associated Press 1 minute read Friday, Jan. 23, 2026

The Top 20 Global Concert Tours ranks artists by average box office gross per city and includes the average ticket price for shows Worldwide. The list is based on data provided to the trade publication Pollstar by concert promoters and venue managers.

TOP 20 GLOBAL CONCERT TOURS

1 Bad Bunny $8,095,908 56,498 $143.30

2 Lady Gaga $5,371,774 29,142 $184.33

Kendrick Lamar, Lady Gaga, K-pop and more: AP predicts who will win at the 2026 Grammys

Maria Sherman And Jonathan Landrum Jr., The Associated Press 10 minute read Preview

Kendrick Lamar, Lady Gaga, K-pop and more: AP predicts who will win at the 2026 Grammys

Maria Sherman And Jonathan Landrum Jr., The Associated Press 10 minute read Friday, Jan. 23, 2026

The competition is fierce. Kendrick Lamar's dominance continues at the 2026 Grammy Awards, where he leads the nominations with nine. He's followed closely by Lady Gaga, Jack Antonoff and Canadian record producer/songwriter Cirkut, who boast seven each. Then it's Sabrina Carpenter, Bad Bunny, Leon Thomas and Serban Ghenea with six.

But who will win? Who will make history at the 68th Grammy Awards on Feb. 1?

The Associated Press’ Maria Sherman and Jonathan Landrum Jr. break down the close races for Grammy glory.

Album of the year

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Friday, Jan. 23, 2026

FILE - Lady Gaga performs during the 67th annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles on Feb. 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello, File)

Jazz musician Laila Biali will compete in a pop category at the Grammys. She doesn’t mind

Marissa Birnie, The Canadian Press 4 minute read Preview

Jazz musician Laila Biali will compete in a pop category at the Grammys. She doesn’t mind

Marissa Birnie, The Canadian Press 4 minute read Friday, Jan. 23, 2026

When Laila Biali's fellow jazz musicians heard about her Grammy nomination, along with congratulations, they offered their condolences.

That's because the 45-year-old Vancouver native is up for best traditional pop vocal album, even though she submitted her "Wintersongs" album in a jazz category.

"It's crazy," Biali said of her nomination, noting she'll compete with artists including Jennifer Hudson, Elton John and Lady Gaga. She said she learned about the category change the day the first voting period opened.

"My initial reaction was one of shock. It was complete overwhelm. Full body, full mind, full spirit overwhelm. And then it was trepidation, and then joy," she said in an interview from her home in Toronto on Monday.

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Friday, Jan. 23, 2026

Canadian jazz musician Laila Biali earned a Grammy nomination for best traditional pop vocal album after originally submitting to a jazz category. Biali, shown in this 2024 handout photo, says her album

Halifax’s Ben Proudfoot teams up with NBA’s Steph Curry for Sundance film on MLK’s speechwriter

Alex Nino Gheciu, The Canadian Press 5 minute read Preview

Halifax’s Ben Proudfoot teams up with NBA’s Steph Curry for Sundance film on MLK’s speechwriter

Alex Nino Gheciu, The Canadian Press 5 minute read Friday, Jan. 23, 2026

When Nova Scotia filmmaker Ben Proudfoot got a call a few years ago from his one-time executive producer Stephen Curry, he didn’t expect the NBA superstar to pitch him a co-directing gig.

“He said he had an idea for a movie that he wanted to direct with me. I was like, ‘OK?’” laughs Proudfoot.

“And then he told me about Clarence Jones.”

Jones — a lawyer, political strategist and draft speech writer for King — is the subject of “The Baddest Speechwriter of All,” a 29-minute documentary co-directed by Proudfoot and Curry that premieres at Sundance on Friday.

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Friday, Jan. 23, 2026

January 27, 2026

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