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For all the Hollywood buffs, here are the latest updates from the world of Hollywood! Take a look-
HOOQ expands reach in India
Southeast Asian streaming service HOOQ has struck a partnership with Indian video streaming platform Hotstar.
The pact provides Hotstar with a significant upscaling of its Hollywood content, while for HOOQ, the arrangement is a massive expansion of its reach in India, reports variety.com.
Launched less than four years ago, Hotstar claims over 350 million downloads, and 150 million monthly active users.
Hotstar Premium users currently have access to Hollywood content from HBO, Fox and Disney. The new deal is a seamless extension, at no extra cost, that brings in movies and series from other studios including Warner Bros., Sony Pictures, and content producers including Lionsgate and Miramax.
The move comes at a time when Indian appetite for Hollywood content is growing.
For years, Hollywood movies had minority appeal in India and accounted for less than five per cent of the Indian box office. In its latest entertainment industry report, published in March, FICCI and audit firm Ernst & Young, calculated that Hollywood earned $110 million (Rs 8.01 billion) in theatres in 2017, or some 13 per cent of the gross box office total.
Titles covered by the new deal include The Big Bang Theory, Arrow, The Flash, S.W.A.T., The Goldbergs, Wonder Woman, Harry Potter, Spider-Man and Pulp Fiction. HOOQ Originals like The Oath will also be available.
HOOQ is backed by, among others, Sony Pictures Television, WarnerMedia and Singtel, and is currently operational in four Southeast Asian countries - Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand and The Philippines -- plus India.
Given the challenges of collecting recurring monthly subscriptions in Southeast and South Asia, relationships with telecoms operators and DTH satellite providers are crucial to the success of video platforms operating within the region. Within India, HOOQ is currently distributed through Airtel and Vodafone.
"This collaboration with Hotstar combines their reach with our offering as the 'Home for Hollywood' in India," HOOQ CEO Peter Bithos said in a statement.
"With the appetite for Hollywood content in India growing at a furious pace, we are poised to offer the Indian customer easily accessible and a very affordable way to watch the best of Hollywood," Bithos added.
Stephanie Davis' son saved her life
Actress Stephanie Davis has revealed that it was her 21-month-old son Caben-Albi who saved her life following her rehab stint for alcohol addiction last year.
In an interview to OK! Magazine, the 25-year-old said, "Although I look after him, he has looked after me more than he knows. If it wasn't for him I would have been dead and buried a long time ago. I was so suicidal, but he kept me going."
Davis had Caben with her now ex-boyfriend Celebrity Big Brother contestant Jeremy McConnell.
Their relationship turned toxic and McConnell was later convicted of assaulting Stephanie in August after a fight at her home, reportedthesun.co.uk.
She said she has now moved on from the past trauma and admitted she no longer thinks of her ex.
"I don't feel anything. I used to, but now I don't. A few months ago I had a turning point - I made peace with everything that's happened in my life. I'm looking forward now and I'm focusing on being the best mother," Davis added.
Kerry Katona to undergo breast enlargement for 4th time
Singer Kerry Katona will undergo breast augmentation for the fourth time, after complaining she has drastically lost weight.
The 38-year-old reportedly wants to go back to the same size when she was a teenager so she has the "perfect body" for her beau Ryan Mahoney, according to media reports.
Katona, who lost three stone (approximately 20 kg) after a fitness overhaul last year, has been vocal on social media about wanting to undergo the surgery, complaining to fans her breasts looked like a "Cocker Spaniel's ears".
A source close to the "Right Now" hitmaker said, "She has been down about her breasts for a while. Katona says they're like a pair of shrivelled up balloons and she hates them. The implants will fill her out and take her back to the same size she was as a teenager."
Earlier this year, the mother of five children asked her social media followers whether she should continue her body transformation and undergo a breast job.
The TV personality broadcast an Instagram Story from her home, explaining she felt she had lost her ample chest.
Katona has been open about her past cosmetic surgeries, once spending 15,000 pounds on liposuction surgery. She has also undergone two tummy tucks, the most recent being in 2016.
Iggy Azalea tour cancelled
Nearly all of the dates of rapper Iggy Azaleas "Bad Girls" North American tour have been cancelled, according to the tours promoter, Live Nation.
The 21-city, five-week tour, her first headlining trek in the territory in four years, was scheduled to kick off on 27 October in Hollywood and wrap up on 4 December in Houston.
"Due to unforeseen circumstances, Iggy Azalea's The Bad Girls Tour has been cancelled," a statement from Live Nation said.
"Refunds are available at point of purchase," the statement further reads, reports suggest so.
The rapper tweeted on Sunday, "Believe me - I was really excited for this tour… and I'm genuinely disappointed it can't happen this year. The choice was out of my hands and not my call to make."
She followed with another tweet that said, "All i can do is keep pushing, keep recording and keep a smile on my face."
While there was no elaboration on what those circumstances were, a large number of tickets were available for the four dates that had not yet been cancelled late Saturday night.
McCartney loves meeting Beatles bandmates in dreams
Legendary singer Paul McCartney has revealed that he still spends time with his Beatles' bandmates, but in his dreams.
In an interview to the Sunday Mirror, the 76-year-old became nostalgic and shared that he often dreams about his former late bandmates John Lennon and George Harrison.
McCartney said, "I often have dreams about John or George. I often dream about people who aren't here anymore. They tend to be very good. And it's only when you get to wake up you go, 'Oh yeah, it was a dream'."
Harrison died of cancer in 2001 aged 58 and Lennon was shot dead aged 40 by deranged fan Mark Chapman.
McCartney confessed that he suffers issues with his self-confidence.
He said that Lennon once told him that he fretted over how he was likely to be remembered, before he rightly told him he would be held as one of the greats.
Founded in 1960, the English rock band that was formed in Liverpool with Lennon, McCartney, Harrison and Ringo Starr -- and became widely regarded as the foremost and most influential music band of their times.
Bradley Cooper's biggest challenge
Actor Bradley Cooper says his biggest challenge was to keep going on through the long process of filming his first directorial venture A Star Is Born.
The 43-year-old actor co-wrote the script, directed and produced the movie as well as starring in it. He admits that it was the "most fulfilling" experience, reports suggest so.
"It was most fulfilling I've ever been artistically. I guess the biggest challenge was just the fortitude to keep going because it was a long process and you can't really see the light at the end of the tunnel for a good half of that process. You sort of get up knowing you're going to be digging a while before you find anything," Cooper said.
A Star Is Born is based on the eponymous 1937 film, which was directed by William Wellmam. The story centres on a fading movie star who helps an aspiring actress while his own career spirals downward.
Also featuring singer Lady Gaga, the film will release by Warner Bros Pictures in India on 12 October.
Awkwafina praises Lucy Liu
Actress-rapper Awkwafina has praised actress Lucy Liu for opening the door for Asian women in Hollywood.
Awkwafina made "Saturday Night Live" (SNL) history when she became the first Asian woman to host the comedy sketch show in 18 years since Liu in 2000. Awkwafina took a moment during her opening monologue to praise Liu and share a personal story about watching the "Elementary" star on SNL.
"I just want to say, and this is a true story, back in 2000 I came here to '30 Rock' and waited outside when my idol Lucy Liu hosted SNL," etonline.com quoted Awkwafina as saying.
"I was a kid and I didn't have a ticket, so I knew that I wasn't getting in. I just wanted to be near the building and I remember how important that episode was for me, and how it totally changed what I thought was possible for an Asian American woman," she added.
Awkwafina continued, "Thank you Lucy for opening the door. I wasn't able to make it into the building back then. 18 years later, I am hosting the show. I love you Lucy."
Michael Buble thought he would never make music again
Singer Michael Buble thought he would never make music again after his son Noah was diagnosed with liver cancer in 2016.
In an interview to The Sunday Mirror's Notebook Magazine, the 43-year-old Canadian singer said he has returned to the spotlight only because his son's condition has improved, reports dailymail.co.uk.
Buble had put his career on hold after Noah was diagnosed with liver cancer when he was just three.
"I thought I might never make music again. I knew if I came back into this world it would have to be bliss. And it is. If it wasn't I wouldn't be here," said the singer, who is married to Argentine actress Luisana Lopilato.
The "Haven't met you yet" performer also explained that dealing with his son's cancer battle let him re-evaluate the importance of his career, adding that now his family will always come first.
"I'll never put the ego of the job ahead of my family. It's the reason I've been gone for a couple of years. There was never a choice (when Noah was ill)."
‘Walking Dead' actor Scott Wilson dead
Actor Scott Wilson, a veteran actor with 50 years of credits, who most recently appeared in The Walking Dead, is no more.
He died after a battle with cancer. He was 76.
His death was announced on Saturday on The Walking Dead official Twitter account, reports suggest so.
Wilson played rural farmer Hershel Greene on the series. He was a regular on The Walking Dead from its inception in 2010 through 2014. His character helped the resistance led by star Andrew Lincoln in battling the show's walkers. The character lost a leg in season three and was killed off in season four.
News of Wilson's death came shortly after it was announced at The Walking Dead panel at New York Comic Con that Wilson would be among past cast members appearing in the show's ninth season, which debuts internationally on Sunday. Wilson had already filmed his scenes.
Wilson is survived by his wife, Heavenly, an artist and attorney.
Kanye West quits social media again
Rapper Kanye West has deleted his Twitter and Instagram accounts. It is the second time he is exiting from social media since 2017.
The 41-year-old rapper deleted his accounts on Saturday, reports dailymail.co.uk.
His decision comes a week after his appearance on show Saturday Night Live in which he surprised the audience by speaking in support of US President Donald Trump. He received a lot of social media backlash later.
This isn't the first time Kanye has removed himself from social media. In May 2017, he deleted his accounts and stayed off for 11 months, only returning in April this year ahead of his latest album's release.
The "My beautiful dark twisted fantasy" rapper made no announcement prior to the deletion of his accounts.
Kanye is working on his new album "Yandhi".
(SOURCE :IANS)
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