Latest news with #MOCAGala
Yahoo
06-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Mindy Kaling Reveals Plans to Act Again and Ben Affleck's Reaction to Her 2002 Play ‘Matt & Ben'
Mindy Kaling sat down for a Paley Media Council Series conversation on Thursday, touching on her two-decade career in Hollywood and what she wants to do next. The star, who got her start as a writer and supporting actress on The Office, said her original goal was 'if I could just be a staff writer on even a terrible show, even if I could just be in the WGA and have health insurance and live in Los Angeles, I would be happy for the rest of my life.' As she became more successful, though, she wanted to produce and be No. 1 on the call sheet, admitting her idea of success 'keeps changing and so I'm never happy, and that's the writer's disease.' More from The Hollywood Reporter 'The Better Sister' Stars React to Murder Mystery Reveal: "They Totally Threw Me Off and I Was There" Frank Gehry, Theaster Gates and Wendy Schmidt Earn "Legend" Status at Star-Studded MOCA Gala Keanu Reeves Applauds Ana de Armas' "Joy for the Action" as She Joins 'John Wick' Universe What got her on The Office in the first place was a play she wrote in 2002 called Matt & Ben, where 'I played Ben Affleck and [her friend Brenda Withers] played Matt Damon in a fictionalized version of a time of strife in their relationship, with a creative difference. It was them writing Good Will Hunting and it takes place over a course of like one day in their lives,' Kaling explained. The Office creator Greg Daniels saw the play and hired her a result. Kaling joked, 'Ben Affleck is to this day the most fun role I've ever played,' and years later the two know each other a bit, as she revealed of his reaction to the piece, 'For the record, he's not like crazy about it. He's like such a good sport but he had a Christmas party a couple of years ago and I remember going, and he's like, 'You still owe me residuals from that play you did.' But he's nice — I would have sued.' During the conversation at the Beverly Wilshire hotel, Kaling also touched on the decision to keep her production company Kaling International smaller — 'I'm obviously very envious and have so much admiration for Shonda [Rhimes] and J.J. [Abrams] with Bad Robot and Shondaland, where they have these big companies and this big infrastructure that can make all these things, but I think that works better in drama' — and how she chooses which entertainment companies to partner with, admitting, 'I think it's pretty simple, which is, who can pay the most?' 'Here's my thing. I have worked on many different platforms and it's not just about the money, but more often than not, the money represents real enthusiasm. Sometimes it doesn't; sometimes I've done stuff for less money because the people seem so excited, like on the Zoom after the pitch,' Kaling continued. 'The problem is that people are switching their jobs quickly that for me, I don't think there's been an instance where the person I sold a show, to that team has stayed intact for two years. Executives are moving constantly up and so to me, I never get too married to a creative team.' After having recently wrapped up Never Have I Ever and The Sex Lives of College Girls, and in the middle of working on the second season of Running Point, Kaling also weighed in on returning to acting after six years away. She said she's decided against joining the casts of her recent shows, joking, 'Never Have I Ever, a show literally about an Indian American family in Southern California, and if I wasn't on that — what's wrong with me? I think there is a part of me that feels a little superstitious. I'm like, these seem to have gone well and I'm not in them so maybe I'll wait.' But, she added, 'I miss it, and I would like to write or co-create a show for me to act in soon.' She doubled down later in the chat, noting that on The Mindy Project when she was the lead and also the creator, 'it is unbelievably fun and it's so efficient. I would love to do that again…that's the thing that maybe in the next couple years, when I launch a couple other things that are earlier in the pipeline, that would be something that would be fun to do again.' Best of The Hollywood Reporter 'The Studio': 30 Famous Faces Who Play (a Version of) Themselves in the Hollywood-Based Series 22 of the Most Shocking Character Deaths in Television History A 'Star Wars' Timeline: All the Movies and TV Shows in the Franchise
Yahoo
06-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
‘The Better Sister' Stars React to Murder Mystery Reveal: 'They Totally Threw Me Off and I Was There'
[The following story contains spoilers from the Prime Video limited series .] When the execs at production company Tomorrow Studios were talking to people about producing a TV adaptation of Alafair Burke's The Better Sister, they would ask prospective partners after reading the first episode who they thought was behind the story's central murder mystery of who killed Adam Macintosh, played in the Prime Video limited series by Corey Stoll. More from The Hollywood Reporter 'Lee Soo Man: King of K-Pop' Director and Subject Talk New Prime Video Documentary Frank Gehry, Theaster Gates and Wendy Schmidt Earn "Legend" Status at Star-Studded MOCA Gala Keanu Reeves Applauds Ana de Armas' "Joy for the Action" as She Joins 'John Wick' Universe 'People had different answers,' Tomorrow Studios president and Better Sister executive producer Becky Clements told The Hollywood Reporter at The Better Sister's New York premiere last month. 'And for us that was perfect, because you wouldn't be able to predict.' Even the Better Sister actors were surprised when they learned who did it, despite helping to realize the narrative. 'I was shocked because they put so many twists and turns,' Maxwell Acee Donovan, who plays Adam's son and murder suspect, Ethan Macintosh. 'Even after we made it and I've been watching it, they totally threw me off and I'm like, I was there. I did not see it coming.' That sentiment was echoed by the actors behind a number of other key characters in Ethan's murder trial. 'I was shocked,' Austin Smith, who plays the prosecutor making a case against Ethan told THR. 'As somebody who usually figures it out, I was shocked. So I'm hoping audiences will be as well.' And Bobby Naderi who plays Detective Bowen indicated he was upset he wasn't able to connect the dots: 'I was like I can't believe I didn't see it. But I was genuinely paying attention because I know what type of world I'm in but I was like I can't believe I missed that. The nuggets are there but you just have to be super observant and into that world.' And Lorraine Toussaint, who plays Chloe's (Jessica Biel) mentor Catherine, hopes audiences get caught in the story's twists and turns as she did. 'I got screwed up several times when reading it because I thought, 'I know who the murderer is; I know who the murderer is' and, 'Oh God, it's not that person; it's not that person,' so I was really shocked when it turned out to be the person it turned out to be,' she said. 'So I think the audience is going to go on the same kind of journey I did, which is a lot of wrong guessing, which is the fun of it all.' In addition to learning who killed Adam, viewers see Chloe and Nicky (Elizabeth Banks) come together to protect Ethan, who has learned the truth about why he was taken away from his biological mother and raised by his aunt. For Ethan, who's already been through so much in the series, Donovan says what he thinks comes next for his character involves some real psychological work. 'He's in such a different place than we found him at the beginning. He's going to have to basically rebuild his life and kind of redefine what he means and how he interacts with the world,' Donovan said. 'It's interesting because he's still 17. He's still a kid. He's got that opportunity to reinvent himself at a very young age, but I don't think it was anything that anyone was expecting him to have to do.' As for Chloe, Biel has a radical suggestion of what her character should do next. 'I hope Chloe changes careers fully and moves away, starts a new life, gets a new haircut — not that I don't love the bob — but I think she needs new color, new vibe, new wardrobe,' she told THR. 'I think she needs a full re-do, start over situation, with her new family.' Though The Better Sister is a limited series and based on a book with a beginning and end, showrunners Olivia Milch and Regina Corrado told THR they were open to telling more of the sisters' journey, with Milch specifically teasing, 'Even though at the end of the season, so many secrets have been revealed and so many mysteries sort of have been solved, there's now this new set of lies agreed upon, and secrets and choices that have been made that are setting things in motion.' Speaking to THR again at the Better Sister premiere, Milch stressed that she and Corrado wanted the limited series to feel 'satisfying and complete as a story,' but as for what's next for the characters, 'I think for us the question is, 'What happens now that the sisters are now back together?' They start so far apart, and then have to find each other once again. So where does that go? Is it possible? You find each other. Do you forgive? Can you move forward and what does that look like?' Corrado added, 'There's so much that's unresolved too. It's the big stuff that was resolved but not the internal.' Tomorrow Studios' executive vp, development, and Better Sister executive producer Alissa Bachner, said the production company would be open to continuing on the Better Sister journey if the opportunity presented itself. 'Yes, of course we would,' she told THR. 'Olivia and Regina are incredible storytellers and creators and if they want to keep telling the story, we would love that.' All eight episodes of The Better Sister are now streaming on Prime Video. Read THR's interview with Jessica Biel and Elizabeth Banks and the series' showrunners. Best of The Hollywood Reporter 'The Studio': 30 Famous Faces Who Play (a Version of) Themselves in the Hollywood-Based Series 22 of the Most Shocking Character Deaths in Television History A 'Star Wars' Timeline: All the Movies and TV Shows in the Franchise
Yahoo
02-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Legendary Actress, 87, Stuns in Monochromatic Purple Look
Legendary Actress, 87, Stuns in Monochromatic Purple Look originally appeared on Parade. Jane Fonda knows how to work it in front of the cameras. The iconic actress and activist, 87, got plenty of attention at the MOCA Gala at The Geffen Contemporary in Los Angeles on Saturday, May 31. There to deliver remarks honoring philanthropist Wendy Schmidt, Fonda looked stunning in a monochromatic purple look. The Oscar-winning actress and mastermind behind Jane Fonda's Workout wore a violet suit. Under the purple blazer, she wore a matching purple collared shirt. She paired that with metallic silver sandals and wore her gray hair in soft, thick waves as she worked the carpet next to Schmidt. 🎬 SIGN UP for Parade's Daily newsletter to get the latest pop culture news & celebrity interviews delivered right to your inbox 🎬 Last month, Fonda opened up to The Hollywood Reporter about her incredible career trajectory and explained that she has no intention of slowing down anytime soon. But instead of taking on intense dance cardio these days, she prefers walking and strength training. 'It has to do with how you move, how you carry yourself, your posture,' she told THR. 'And you can't carry yourself well and have good posture if your back isn't strong. So staying strong and flexible — and I work a lot on balance — this is all critical for staying young. I'm 87, and I'll tell you what, I was a lot older at 20 than I am at 87, and it has to do with what's going on in your head. So in some ways, I'm younger today. But it also just makes a huge difference as a performer; walking down a red carpet, for example, you can do it with confidence, because you don't worry about falling down. It just makes all the difference in the world, and I feel very grateful that I'm able to continue doing it.'Legendary Actress, 87, Stuns in Monochromatic Purple Look first appeared on Parade on Jun 2, 2025 This story was originally reported by Parade on Jun 2, 2025, where it first appeared.
