“Blindspotting” adds to what is starting to feel like another very “Hamilton” summer, as veterans of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s blockbuster musical are getting their shots as they fan out across the pop-culture landscape. The Starz series features “Hamilton” cast member Jasmine Cephas Jones, playing the role that was a supporting character in the 2018 movie. The…… MORE
Category Archives: CNN – Entertainment
How Kase Peña is creating a legacy of authenticity
Kase Peña wants to make sure the facts are clear so that Bronx historians don’t come after her: Though her heart belongs to the Bronx, it’s a little more complicated than that. “I was born in Manhattan. My parents are from the Dominican Republic. I lived the first nine years of my life in Manhattan,…… MORE
Alan Luna hopes his eye for talent changes the face of Hollywood
Alan Luna makes his living putting people on the big and small screens, but growing up, he never saw someone who looked like his mother — a woman of indigenous Mexican descent who is one of the most beautiful and giving people he knows, her son says — on either. As a casting director, people…… MORE
Why the TV industry needs more voices like Claudia Lyon
As a college student, Claudia Lyon didn’t know what a casting director was, let alone that one day she would be the head of casting at one of the largest networks in the country. Lyon grew up in New York, navigating her childhood in a family with roots in Guatemala, Trinidad and Tobago and South…… MORE
Roberto Larios made his Hollywood dream come true and now helps others do the same
If there’s one thing you can’t accuse Roberto Larios of being, it’s lazy. The evidence stretches back to when he was about 13 years old. At the time, Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day and Sweetest Day — a holiday celebrated in the Midwest, including his native Chicago — meant working in his mother’s flower shop to…… MORE
‘This is also a face of Latinidad’: How Gina Torres made producers rethink their ideas of American beauty
For decades, Gina Torres has carved out a career in Hollywood feeling like she couldn’t fully express herself. Now, the Afro-Latina actor is using her power to change that. The daughter of Cuban immigrants, Torres said there was a time when she had to audition for a role multiple times early in her career because…… MORE
Hollywood’s Latin ambitions hit new heights
If this Clubhouse room was an actual club, it’d be the most FOMO-inducing spot in town. Drink special of the night: piping hot tea. It’s March, and some of the most accomplished Latinx voices in Hollywood are debriefing on two recent reports on an old problem. One, conducted by the Directors Guild of America found…… MORE
‘Gossip Girl’ reboot trailer is here to talk about
Welcome new generation of rich kids for us to obsess about. HBO Max (which shares CNN’s parent company) has released a trailer for the “Gossip Girl” reboot. The teen drama ran on The CW from 2007 to 2012 and helped make big stars of some of the cast, including Blake Lively and Penn Badgley. The…… MORE
‘In the Heights’ sets the bar high for this year’s movie musicals
Big and vibrant, “In the Heights” provides summer movie-going with a joyous jolt of adrenalin, wedding the sensibilities of Lin-Manuel Miranda‘s musical with “Crazy Rich Asians” director Jon M. Chu’s mouth-watering imagery. Throw in a dazzling cast, and Warner Bros. has gifted audiences with what feels like just the ticket to jog them out of…… MORE
Carrie Underwood and John Legend win Video of the Year at CMT Music Awards
Carrie Underwood and John Legend took home the coveted award for Video of the Year at the 2021 CMT Music Awards on Wednesday night. Underwood and Legend teamed up for “Hallelujah” in 2020, and despite some stiff competition in the category the duo prevailed. The voting was done by fans via Twitter. Underwood is the…… MORE
