New Delhi [India], January 28 (ANI): As the vaccination drive against COVID-19 has begun in the country, Bollywood actor Vaani Kapoor is hoping that 2021 will bring people back to the cinema halls after a long halt.
“I’m hoping this will be the year of big-screen entertainers! People are waiting for the virus to be under control and with the vaccines, the confidence of the people will slowly build. They would want to go back to doing the things that they used to,” Vaani said.
“Community celebrations will come back in a big way and for Indians going to a theatre to watch a movie with friends and family is a huge thing. That’s going to make a big comeback. They would want to come back to soak in an experience,” she added.
The ‘Befikre’ actor is certain that new, disruptive content will play an important role in bringing people back to the theatres as she expects the taste of the audience to have changed during the pandemic.
“They (audience) would want to watch films that are new, fresh, and clutter-breaking,” Vaani said.
“The taste and preference of the audience must have changed because of the coronavirus and they would only want to come to theatres to watch something that tells them a grand, new, compelling story! So, I’m really confident that the films that are lined up for release will do that,” she added.
The 32-year-old actor also shed light on her upcoming films that have been lined up for theatrical releases.
“I’m lucky that I have three films Shamshera, BellBottom, and Chandigarh Kare Aashiqui which are all theatricals because of the subject and the experience that they are offering to the audience,” she said.
“I can’t wait for people to watch these films in theatres because they will truly entertain them to their core,” she added.
Vaani was last seen in the 2019 superhit entertainer ‘War’ alongside actors Hrithik Roshan and Tiger Shroff. (ANI)

Washington [US], January 28 (ANI): Good news for all the ‘Game of Thrones’ fans! WarnerMedia is planning an animated spin-off of the insanely popular series for streamer HBO Max.
According to Variety, an animated ‘GOT’ series is in the early development stages at HBO Max. However, there are no details available about what the focus of the potential series would be.
No writers or artists are currently attached to the project. Variety had reported last week that a series based on George R.R. Martin’s ‘Tales of Dunk and Egg’ is in the works at HBO.
The series of fantasy novellas follow the adventures of Ser Duncan the Tall (Dunk) and a young Aegon V Targaryen (Egg) 90 years prior to the events of ‘A Song of Ice and Fire’, which served as the basis for ‘Game of Thrones’.
The network is currently working on the ‘GOT’ live-action prequel series ‘House of the Dragon’ which is slated to premiere in 2022. The show will document the buildup to the Targaryen civil war in Westeros that is known as the Dance of Dragons.
WarnerMedia is looking to expand the ‘Game of Thrones’ world since the hit series ended in 2019. There are reportedly multiple projects set within the world of Westeros that Martin created in the works currently.
WarnerMedia is also currently prepping a number of other shows. Variety reported earlier this week that a live-action ‘Harry Potter’ series is in the early development stages at HBO Max.
HBO Max already has multiple DC Comics shows in the works, including the ‘Peacemaker’ series starring John Cena as a spinoff of the upcoming James Gunn ‘Suicide Squad’ film as well as a ‘Green Lantern’ series from Greg Berlanti.
JJ Abrams is also plotting a ‘Justice League Dark’ series for the streaming platform. There is also a series inspired by ‘The Shining’ that Abrams and Bad Robot are prepping, as well as a ‘Dune’ spinoff show about the Bene Gesserit. (ANI)

Washington [US], January 28 (ANI): Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, American film studio Paramount Pictures is moving the release date of its animated feature film ‘Rumble’ from May 14 this year to February 18, 2022.
According to Deadline, the movie directed by Hamish Grieve is going to be set in the world of monster wrestling, where monsters are superstar athletes. Teenage Winnie seeks to follow in her father’s footsteps by coaching a loveable underdog monster into becoming a champion.
The screenplay of the film has been written by Matt Lieberman and Etan Coen, with Mark Bakshi and Brad Booker producing it.
As per Deadline, currently, there aren’t any world-wide releases scheduled on February 18 next year. ‘Rumble’ would release in the wake of two February 11 untitled releases from 20th Century Studios and Universal. (ANI)

New Delhi [India], January 28 (ANI): Ahead of the announcement of his upcoming OTT project, Bollywood star Tahir Raj Bhasin on Thursday said that he feels that this is a great time for actors to express themselves because of the availability of multiple mediums through which one can get the deserved spotlight.
“I look forward to Looop Lapeta and 83’s release and a very special OTT project that’s brewing. It’s an incredible time to be acting because of the number of mediums a film star can work in,” he said.
Last year, which marked a major change in the entertainment industry due to the coronavirus pandemic-induced lockdown, many actors made their digital debut on various streaming platforms. Tahir feels that the year has “ushered in a convergence of storytelling in digital and theatrical work.”
He said, “The year has ushered in a convergence of storytelling in digital and theatrical work coupled with an increased acceptance of the audience to watch their favourite stars who they’ve seen on the big screen, to also work in OTT. This has opened up new avenues for actors to express themselves and reach out to the audience.”
Taking part in the ongoing OTT vs Theatrical debate, Tahir said that both mediums can serve extremely different purposes while entertaining audiences to the fullest
“OTT’s lend themselves to chapter wise, episodic stories while theatres are more about the 120-minute cinematic community experience. The intersection between the two mediums has only allowed for storytellers and actors to reach their audience even though the prohibitive times we’ve all lived through,” the actor said.
The 33-year-old actor, who was last seen in Nitesh Tiwari’s ‘Chhichhore,’ alongside late actor Sushant Singh Rajput and Shraddha Kapoor, is awaiting the release of ‘Looop Lapeta’ and ’83’. (ANI)

Washington [US], January 28 (ANI): American singer-songwriter Halsey is ringing in the new year with some big news to share! The star recently revealed that she’s expecting her first child with screenwriter Alev Aydin.
The singer took to Instagram to announce the news. In a series of pictures posted by her on the photo-sharing application, the 26-year-old singer can be seen cradling her baby bump.
“Surprise!” she captioned the photo, along with a milk bottle, rainbow, and angel emoji. She tagged her beau Alev over her belly in the first picture.

In the comments section, Alev wrote, “Heart so full, I love you, sweetness.” After seeing the cute comment, the ‘Without Me’ singer responded, “I love you!!!!!! And I love this mini human already.”
Alev re-shared the announcement on his Instagram Story, adding a pair of red heart emojis.

According to E! News, the duo first sparked romance rumours in early January when Halsey posted a photo of him on her Instagram account. For the unversed, Halsey revealed in 2018 that she’s freezing her eggs due to endometriosis, an often painful disorder that can lead to infertility, in which tissue that normally lines the inside of the uterus, is present or grows outside the uterus.
While appearing on an episode of ‘The Doctors’, Halsey, who was just 23 at the time, shared, “Doing an ovarian reserve is important to me because I’m fortunate enough to have that as an option, but I need to be aggressive about protecting my fertility, about protecting myself.”
Halsey, who suffered a miscarriage while on tour in 2015, continued, “When I started touring and playing concerts and traveling, the stress and strain on my body really started to enhance the symptoms and make the experience a little bit worse.”
She also reflected on her endometriosis diagnosis. “It was the relief of knowing that I wasn’t making it all up and I wasn’t being sensitive and it wasn’t all in my head. It also kind of sucked to know that I was going to be living with this forever,” Halsey said.
However, a few months after her diagnosis, Halsey discovered that she was pregnant. She shared on ‘The Doctors’, “Before I could even really figure out what that meant to me and what that meant for my future, for my career, for my life, for my relationship…The next thing I know I was onstage miscarrying in the middle of my concert.”
“The sensation of looking a couple of hundred teenagers in the face while you’re bleeding through your clothes and still having to do the show. Realizing in that moment I never want to make that choice ever again of doing what I love or not being able to because of this disease. So I put my foot down and I got really aggressive about seeking treatment.” Halsey recalled.
Halsey added that she underwent surgery and, at the time of the interview, felt “a lot better.” Halsey has been previously linked to rapper G-Eazy, Yungblud, and actor Evan Peters. (ANI)

Washington [US], January 28 (ANI): Hollywood actor Zendaya addressed the intense backlash she has been facing for her new Netflix movie ‘Malcolm and Marie’, regarding the 12-year age difference between her and co-star John David Washington.
According to E! News, the 24-year-old actor addressed the 12-year age gap between her and her co-star during an interview while she was promoting the Netflix movie. She stated that she thinks the controversy is because, “I’ve played a 16-year-old since I was 16.”
Zendaya added “You have to remember, also, people grew up with me as a child”
“It’s like watching, I guess, your younger sibling now, you know, they’re grown…So it’s hard for people to wrap around the idea that I am grown in real life. You know, even though I do play a teenager on television still,” she concluded.
‘Malcolm & Marie’, a black-and-white romantic drama premieres on February 5, and it’s safe to say the Oscar buzz has already begun for the film. However, some people have been very critical regarding the age gap between the 24-year-old Zendaya and her 36-year-old co-star John David Washington. (ANI)