Month: February 2025

Sesame Street has a wide-array of special guests lined up for the 55th season of the beloved children’s show, which airs on MAX and also continues to be available on PBS stations (via streaming on PBS KIDS).

Sesame Workshop announced that among the artists appearing this season will be: SZA, Noah Kahan, Chris Stapleton, Reneé Rapp, actor Michael B. Jordan, TV personality/hair stylist Jonathan Van Ness, tennis legend Billie Jean King, and Samara Joy are set to appear on episodes this year.

Season 55 will center on teaching kids about emotional well-being, with the celebrity guests will join the program for “Street Stories,” songs and other segments.  A press release states that the show will aim to “help children learn accessible strategies to comprehend and cope with big feelings through fun, lighthearted, relatable and engaging stories.”

Sesame Street executive producer Sal Perez said: “new episodes of Sesame Street will help young viewers understand and express their feelings, learn new mindfulness practices, and as always, have a blast with their favorite furry and funny friends. Whether it’s taking a volcano breath when angry, learning to give yourself a hug when frustrated, or wiggling it out when disappointed, we are empowering children with the strategies to help build resiliency and the foundational skills for emotional well-being.”

Dr. Rosemarie Truglio, Sesame Workshop’s senior vp of curriculum and content, adds: “this season’s emotional well-being curriculum was developed in response to the growing mental health crisis affecting children globally. Focusing on emotion awareness and social connection skills, children will learn that all feelings are important and that we all experience big feelings, as well as how to navigate social scenarios with friends, families, and the wider community.”

See the full lineup of celebrity guests announced for Sesame Street Season 55 via the trailer here.

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HBO announced that it has renewed its sci-fi drama, Dune: Prophecy, for Season 2.

Showrunner Alison Schapker announced at a press conference that the series will return for a second season. Based on the novel, Sisterhood of Dune by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson, the show takes place 10,000 years before the ascension of hero Paul Atreides (played by Timothee Chalamet in the film franchise) and follows the Harkonnen sisters — Vayla (Watson) and Tula (Williams) as they establish the powerful, supernatural, Bene Gesserit religious and political organization.

The season one cast included Travis Fimmel, Jodhi May, Mark Strong, Sarah-Sofie Boussnina, Josh Heuston, Chloe Lea, Jade Anouka, Faoileann Cunningham, Edward Davis, Aoife Hinds, Chris Mason, Shalom Brune-Franklin, Camilla Beeput, Jihae, Tabu, Charithra Chandran, Jessica Barden, Emma Canning and Yerin Ha.

Jason Clodfelter, Legendary’s president of television, said in a statement: “This new season will allow us to continue building out the groundbreaking, epic Dune franchise that has captivated audiences worldwide across its installments. We look forward to continuing our incredible partnership with HBO and are thrilled for Alison Schapker, her team, and the cast and crew who have worked so passionately to bring this world-class source material from Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson to life.”

Sarah Aubrey, head of Max original programming, added: “Dune: Prophecy has captivated audiences around the globe thanks to the visionary leadership of showrunner and executive producer Alison Schapker, who will continue to guide this grand tale of truth and power. We are incredibly grateful to our partners at Legendary and to our extraordinary cast and crew for their service to the Imperium. We’re excited to collaborate with this team again to see what they have in store.”

Jason Clodfelter, president of television at Legendary (which produced the two Dune films), shared: “This new season will allow us to continue building out the groundbreaking, epic Dune franchise that has captivated audiences worldwide across its installments. We look forward to continuing our incredible partnership with HBO and are thrilled for Alison Schapker, her team, and the cast and crew who have worked so passionately to bring this world-class source material from Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson to life.”

According to HBO, the premiere episode of Dune: Prophecy racked up 15 million viewers worldwide on Max since its Nov. 17 debut. No premiere date for Season 2 has been announced yet.

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Christopher Nolan’s next project has been revealed, with the Oscar-wining filmmaker taking audiences to mythical Greece with his latest project. Nolan is the filmmaker behind epic films including “Inception,” “The Dark Knight,” “Dunkirk” and his most recent film “Oppenheimer,” which scored big at the 2024 Oscars.

Universal Pictures announced that “Christopher Nolan’s next film The Odyssey is a mythic action epic shot across the world using brand new IMAX film technology. The film brings Homer’s foundational saga to IMAX film screens for the first time and opens in theaters everywhere on July 17, 2026.”

The screen adaptation of the ancient Greek poem (believed to be written by Homer between 750 and 650 BCE) about a hero’s perilous 10-year journey home after the Trojan War is expected to start filming next year, starring Matt Damon, Tom Holland, Anne Hathaway, Zendaya, Robert Pattinson, Lupita Nyong’o, and Charlize Theron.

Holland recently spoke about signing onto the project, saying on “The Dish” podcast that the film hasn’t started shooting yet. Pattinson, Damon and Hathaway have all previously appeared in Nolan’s films, including “Tenet,” “Interstellar” and “Oppenheimer.”

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The 67th Annual Grammy Awards returned to L.A.’s Crypto.com Arena on Sunday, February 2, with Trevor Noah hosting the ceremony for the fifth year in a row.

Kendrick Lamar earned five Grammys, including Record of the Year and Song of the Year for his Drake diss track “Not Like Us.” Beyoncé won Best Country Album and took home the coveted Album of the Year award for Cowboy Carter, an award she has never won previously, despite being the most Grammy-nominated artist in history.

Sabrina Carpenter won three Grammys — including Best Pop Vocal Album for Short n’ Sweet; Charli XCX won three awards for her album Brat; and Chappell Roan won the Grammy for Best New Artist.

This year’s ceremony also centered on raising money for the victims of the Los Angeles wildfires. The Academy, along with its MusiCares organization, launched the Los Angeles Fire Relief Effort to raise money for people in the music industry who were affected by the fires, raising and pledging more than $4 million so far.

For the full list of winners, head to Grammy.com.

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Beyoncé has announced she will embark on a tour in support of her “Cowboy Carter” album, taking place later this year. Beyoncé‘s last tour was the 2023 “Renaissance World Tour” for her album “Renaissance.”

The tour announcement came in two Instagram posts made over the weekend, with tour dates and locations yet to be announced. “COWBOY CARTER TOUR 2025,” she wrote on her social accounts and official website, along with a new photo. The first post was a video clip of an LED sign that bore the concert’s name, with the second post sharing an image of herself with bleached-blonde hair.

Earlier this year, the singer postponed an announcement planned for Jan. 14 due to the Los Angeles-area wildfires. Beyoncé released a statement Jan. 13 postponing the planned announcement: “The Jan. 14 announcement will be postponed to a later date due to the devastation caused by the ongoing wildfires around areas of Los Angeles. I continue to pray for healing and rebuilding for the families suffering from trauma and loss. We are so blessed to have brave first responders who continue to work tirelessly to protect the Los Angeles community. To join our efforts in supporting those impacted, please visit @BeyGOOD. Love, B.”

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