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Jeff Garlin — who walked away from his starring role on “The Goldbergs,” after an Hr investigation into his on-set behavior — joked about being in trouble at the ABC sitcom at a recent standup show in Los Angeles, Variety can reveal.

Performing to a jam-packed crowd at Hollywood Improv on Nov. 24, the day before Thanksgiving, Garlin’s standup act revolved largely around how much he hated “The Goldbergs.” He told the audience repeatedly that he despised the show, did not want to talk about the show (though he kept talking about the show) and was only doing the show for the paycheck. He said things have gotten too politically correct for comics, and he was fed up that he was currently in hot water at ABC for commentary he was making on-set, including using the word “vagina,” which he told the audience in a tongue-in-cheek, yet serious, manner.

On Dec. 16, two...

Benedict Cumberbatch is enjoying a rigorous fall festival workout. The British actor started at Venice with the world premiere of western “The Power of the Dog,” in which he’s earning raves as a volatile cattle rancher in Montana, followed by a tribute to its writer/director Jane Campion at Telluride, and now he’s getting his own Tribute Actor Award at the 46th Toronto International Film Festival (September 9-18).

Every year, the festival anoints a chosen few award winners who tend to go on to win Oscars, including Anthony Hopkins (“The Father”), Joaquin Phoenix (“Joker”), Taika Waititi (“Jojo Rabbit”), Roger Deakins (“Blade Runner 2049”), and director Chloé Zhao, whose “Nomadland,” like “Jojo Rabbit” and “Green Book,” went on to win the coveted People’s Choice award, often an Oscar Best Picture bellwether.

Also accepting a Tribute Actor Award is Jessica Chastain, who also went to Venice, and then flew...

Stephanie Langhoff, exec producer of Starz’ Vida and former Duplass Brothers Productions President, has launched her own production company and struck a first-look deal with Boat Rocker.

Langhoff, who exec produced series including Togetherness during her time with the Duplass brothers, has set up High Tide Productions. She will develop TV, digital projects and feature films under the deal.

It is the latest partnership for the American Rust and Invasion producer, which has struck first-look deals with the likes of Lena Headey’s Peephole Productions and TeaTime Pictures with Dakota Johnson and Ro Donnelly.

As President of Jay and Mark Duplass’ firm, Langhoff also produced films including Jeff, Who Lives at Home and The Do-Deca-Pentathlon as well as The Bronze, The Skeleton Twins, and Safety Not Guaranteed. Prior to that she was an executive at Revolution Studios in New York.

“Stephanie is a formidable producer with a strong track record...

Jeff Bridges took to Twitter Monday evening to reveal he’s been diagnosed with lymphoma. In a nod to his iconic role in “The Big Lebowski,” the Academy Award-winning actor tweeted, “As the Dude would say.. New S**T has come to light. I have been diagnosed with Lymphoma. Although it is a serious disease, I feel fortunate that I have a great team of doctors and the prognosis is good. I’m starting treatment and will keep you posted on my recovery.” See below.

Bridges, who last starred in 2018’s “Bad Times at the El Royale” and will next be seen starring in the FX on Hulu series “The Old Man,” also added, “I’m profoundly grateful for the love and support from my family and friends. Thank you for your prayers and well wishes. And, while I have you, please remember to go vote. Because we are all in this together.

Updated, 7:15 Am: Disney+ has set an October premiere date for National Geographic Channel’s The Right Stuff. The period drama, starring Patrick J. Adams and Jake McDorman, will launch with a two-episode premiere on Friday, October 9. Based on the bestselling book by Tom Wolfe, the eight-episode season looks at the early days of the U.S. Space Program and tells the story of America’s first astronauts, the Mercury 7. The Right Stuff is produced by Leonardo DiCaprio’s Appian Way and Warner Horizon Scripted Television.

Previous, May 5 Exclusive: National Geographic Channel’s upcoming series The Right Stuff will become a Disney+ original. The period drama, starring Patrick J. Adams and Jake McDorman, will premiere in the fall under the Nat Geo brand on the SVOD platform. Adapted from Tom Wolfe’bestselling nonfiction account of the early days of the U.S. space program, The Right Stuff is produced by...

Composer Terence Blanchard will receive the TIFF Variety Artisan Award at the TIFF Tribute Awards, scheduled to air Sept. 15 on CTV.

The news was announced Wednesday by Joana Vicente and Cameron Bailey, the co-heads of the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF). The Variety artisan award acknowledges a successful member of the entertainment industry each year for their work in film and entertainment as a whole. It was awarded to cinematographer Roger Deakins last year.

Some of Blanchard’s recent film credits include “Da 5 Bloods,” “Harriet” and “BlacKkKlansman,” the latter of which earned him an Oscar nomination for best original score. He has also earned six Grammy awards throughout the duration of his career.

“For over 25 years Terence Blanchard has composed some of the most breathtaking and moving scores in film and television,” said Vicente. “From his frequent work with Spike Lee on ’25th Hour,’ ‘BlacKkKlansman’ and most recently ‘Da 5 Bloods,...

The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air is set to once again make the television landscape into its kingdom. However, it will do so in a tonally-divergent fashion from the classic 1990-1996 sitcom.

The reboot will be based on the 2019 viral short, Bel-Air (which you can view below), by Morgan Cooper. The short was a parody trailer that put a contemporary dramatic twist on the intended comedic premise of the original sitcom, and famously gained the attention of star Will Smith, who referred to it as “an idea that’s brilliant.” Now, said idea will yield the patronage of megastar Smith, whose shingle with wife Jada Pinkett Smith, Westbrook Studios, is teaming with Universal Television to bring Bel-Air to life and pitch the project to several outlets and streamers, some of which, according to THR, include Peacock (streamer of the original show’s NBC home), Netflix and HBO Max.

Cooper, the concept-conceiving clip’s conjuror,...

Three weeks into Sharkfest 2020, National Geographic is already looking ahead to Sharkfest 2021. The network has given a green light to Shark Beach (working title) a Sharkfest 2021 premiere special, with Thor and The Avengers star Chris Hemsworth to star and executive produce. The announcement was made Monday during Nat Geo’s virtual summer TCA press tour presentation.

In Shark Beach (wt), from Nutopia, Hemsworth investigates the measures put in place to safeguard our co-existence and to uncover the complicated truth behind the alarming increase in shark attacks in Australia.

In the special, Hemsworth, surfer and renowned environmentalist, joins local biologists to explore how existing preventative measures work to stave off shark-human encounters and dives with different species of sharks to understand their behaviors and power. He also uncovers the latest breakthroughs in shark science technology designed to protect both sharks and humans.

While scenes with Susie (Susie Essman) yelling foul-mouthed insults at her husband, Jeff (Jeff Garlin) on “Curb Your Enthusiasm” are insanely funny, Garlin explains that it took a bit for Essman to get comfortable going that far. They were shooting a scene that called for Essman to yell at him but she felt that she couldn’t do it. “She’s an old friend of mine, so she’s like, ‘I don’t know if I can do that,’ and Larry David and Larry Charles took her in the other room and said, ‘You can.’ And I said, ‘Go nuts! Come on, let me have it,'” he tells us in our recent webchat (watch the video above). Garlin elaborates that he believes those scenes contain his best performances. “That’s some of my best acting, because I have to look like it bothers me and it doesn’t bother...