Entertainment

They have been changed for good.

Friday's release of the second and final Wicked film, Wicked: For Good, has stars Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande bidding farewell to their beloved characters.

“I could write you an essay, a poem, Shakespearean prose, to describe what this journey has meant to me, what lessons this time has taught me, bought me,” Erivo writes on Instagram, alongside a slideshow of photos from set. “I could try to give a metric to the love I have felt and experienced. I could give a number to the stories I have heard. The truth is the numbers are too small and the words are not enough.”

“So I’ll simply say this,” she continues. “Take my hand and walk with me to the end of this road paved with gold and hopefully, the things that I’ve found, might find you too. Thank you for letting me be your Elphaba.”

Ariana posted her own slideshow of behind-the-scenes photos, captioning it, “thank you, my sweet Glinda, for everything. i will love you always ... Wicked For Good is out now.”

According to Variety, Wicked: For Good has already made $30.8 million in previews at the box office.

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Ready, set, binge! Here's a look at some of the new movies and TV shows coming to theaters and streaming services this weekend:

Netflix
A Man on the Inside: Ted Danson is back in season 2 of the sitcom from Mike Schur. 

Train Dreams: Felicity Jones and Joel Edgerton star in the film based on the novella of the same name.

Apple TV
The Family Plan 2: Celebrate the holiday season with the Mark Wahlberg-starring sequel film.

Prime Video
The Mighty Nein: The adult animated fantasy series adapts Critical Role's second Dungeon & Dragons campaign.

Movie theaters
Wicked: For Good: Find out what happens to Elphaba and Glinda in the sequel to last year's smash hit Wicked.

Rental Family: Academy Award winner Brendan Fraser stars in the film about an American actor living in Tokyo.

That’s all for this week’s Weekend Watchlist – happy streaming!

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Chadwick Boseman is the latest actor to be honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

The late Black Panther actor received a posthumous star on Hollywood Boulevard on Thursday and was honored by his widow, Simone Ledward Boseman, as well as director Ryan Coogler and Oscar winner Viola Davis.

Boseman died in August 2020 from colon cancer.

The actor was best known for portraying T'Challa/Black Panther in the 2018 Marvel film Black Panther. He also earned accolades and critical acclaim for his roles in 21 Bridges, Spike Lee's Da 5 Bloods and Ma Rainey's Black Bottom.

In her tribute to Boseman on Thursday, Davis, Boseman's co-star in Ma Rainey's Black Bottom, called her late co-star a "castle."

"Chadwick was a mighty, mighty elixir that sort of stirred up that alchemy that we're all in search of, which is meaning," she said. "I celebrate him today, and I say to him, I hoped all the angels in heaven just sang him to a beautiful rest. And I thank him for what he left behind in me, which is a burning ember that always guides me to a higher meaning of my work and my purpose."

She added, "This star, as beautiful as it is on the Walk of Fame, shines a whole lot less brighter than Chadwick is in heaven."

Coogler, who directed Boseman in Black Panther in 2018, recalled the actor's "fearless and firm yet gentle" leadership.

He also called Boseman "ageless," saying that he "never really knew how old he was until I went to one of his birthday parties."

"Chad felt thousands of years old," Coogler continued. "He was that calm and that wise. It was a very unnerving feeling to be around him."

Ledward Boseman, who accepted the star on behalf of her late husband, took the stage last to share a few words.

"Chad taught all of us a great deal," she said. "His heart was so vast he could give each and every person a specific part of him and still have so much left to share with the world."

Also in attendance at Thursday's ceremony were Boseman's Black Panther co-stars Michael B. Jordan and Letitia Wright. In addition, Boseman's brothers Derrick L. Boseman and Kevin Boseman attended the Walk of Fame ceremony to honor their late sibling.

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The second season premiere of Landman did big numbers for Paramount+. According to the network, the premiere had over 9.2 million streaming views in its first two days, making it the most-watched premiere for any original series on Paramount+. Season 2, starring Billy Bob Thornton and Demi Moore, debuted Nov. 16. New episodes air every Sunday ...

A new trailer for Disney and Pixar’s new animated film, Hoppers, has been released. According to the official description, the film follows an animal lover who uses a new technology to “hop” her consciousness into a robotic beaver so she can communicate directly with animals. It features an all-star voice cast including Meryl Streep, Dave Franco, Kathy Najimy, Bobby Moynihan and Jon Hamm. Hoppers hits theaters on March 6. Disney is the parent company of ABC News …

Mara Brock Akil will be honored with the Norman Lear Achievement Award by the Producers Guild of America. The prolific producer will accept the award at the 37th annual Producers Guild Awards on Feb. 28 in Los Angeles. Akil has produced TV series including Girlfriends, The Game, Being Mary Jane and the recent Netflix series adaptation of the Judy Blume novel Forever …

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Brendan Fraser stars as an actor struggling to find his purpose in Rental Family.

When he lands an unusual gig playing stand-in roles for real-life strangers, Fraser's character, Phillip, finds himself forming genuine connections with his clients. It's an original, feel-good movie of the like that studios aren't putting out much of anymore, and Fraser told ABC Audio it is much needed.

"In the David and Goliath relationship of filmmaking, where the little guys normally get kicked to the side, I think we can stand up to the bigger, splashier films because people really are seeking an authentic connection, a story that moves them, a story that really does capture their attention," Fraser said. "One that makes them think about it long after they've walked out of the theater."

While Philip is not necessarily the greatest actor, the Oscar winner says there are other ways he can relate to his character. Fraser thinks many other people will be able to relate to his story, too.

"I think we've all felt like we've been on the outside looking in, and this is a film about wanting to belong. This is a film about eradicating loneliness, if that's possible. This is about people who take a chance and say, 'Hey, I need help, I'm going to go to this rental family agency, and I need a grandmother, I need a dad, something, anyone, to come and help me fill this void that I find myself in, living in a place as populous and busy as Tokyo is,'" Fraser said. "This is a film that is a love letter to loneliness, and it's addressed to Tokyo, but it could be anywhere."

Rental Family arrives in theaters everywhere on Friday.

Disney is the parent company of ABC News and Searchlight Pictures.

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It Ends With Us author Colleen Hoover is opening up about how she feels about the ongoing legal battle between the movie adaptation’s stars, Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni.

In a new interview with Elle, Hoover says, "It feels like a circus. When there are real people involved, with real feelings and emotions. This actually truly has impacted some of the actors' careers in huge ways. And I just find it all around sad."

She says that even though she has her own story to tell, she’d rather "stay removed from the negativity.”

But she does admit that the controversy that followed the film has tainted the way she views her novel.

"I can't even recommend it anymore," she tells Elle. "I feel like [the lawsuit] has overshadowed it. I'm almost embarrassed to say I wrote it. When people ask what I do, I'm just like, 'I'm a writer. Please don't ask me what I wrote.'"

Hoover’s most recent film adaptation, Regretting You, is in theaters now. That will be followed by adaptations for Reminders of Him and Verity in 2026.

On Nov. 3 a federal judge formally ended Baldoni's $400 million counterclaim against Lively. Baldoni and Lively have been locked in a bitter legal dispute since December 2024, when Lively filed a complaint against Baldoni with the California Civil Rights Department, accusing him of sexual harassment on the set of the film, which he also directed.

Lively's case against Baldoni and Wayfarer Studios is still expected to go to trial in March 2026.

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Another BookTok favorite is coming to your TV screens.

Leighton Meester and Jared Padalecki are set to star in Netflix’s adaptation of The Bodyguard by Katherine Center.

According to Tudum, it’s a “comedy about a no-nonsense bodyguard who is assigned to protect a charming action star over the holidays.” While the story follows Center’s 2022 novel, the movie version will go by a different title — since that title is already taken by the 1992 Whitney Houston/Kevin Costner film. The production is enlisting fans to help choose the new title. 

The rom-com will also star Andie MacDowell and will be directed by Elizabeth Allen Rosenbaum.

“I began paying close attention to BookTok culture around the success of my last Netflix film, Purple Hearts,” Allen Rosenbaum tells Tudum. “The overwhelming enthusiasm on social media and with readers for Katherine Center’s novel was a major factor in my decision to come on board as director.”

She adds, “It’s been amazing to work closely with Katherine so far and to see her so excited about moving her witty story about a no-nonsense bodyguard [for] an A-list actor into the holiday season. It makes the most gorgeous backdrop for the sparks that fly between them to be even brighter.”

A release date for the film has not yet been announced.

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Task and House of the Dragon are among the shows returning for another season on HBO.

The network announced Thursday that Task, the Mark Ruffalo-starring crime drama series, will be back for season 2, while the Game of Thrones prequel House of the Dragon will return for season 4.

The third season of House of the Dragon will air in summer 2026, with the fourth season airing in 2028.

Another Game of Thrones spinoff series, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, was renewed for a second season before the first season has even aired. Season 1 debuts Jan. 18.

HBO also renewed the comedies I Love LA and The Chair Company for second seasons.

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Cynthia Erivo has made her first public comments regarding the Nov. 13 incident in which Ariana Grande was accosted by an online prankster during the Wicked:For Good premiere in Singapore.

Erivo told Savannah Guthrie on NBC's Today show Thursday why she stepped between the man, Johnson Wen, and her co-star Grande, and physically pulled him off her before security took him away.

"I was really thinking, I just wanted to make sure my friend was safe," Erivo told Guthrie. "I’m sure he didn’t mean us harm, but I just, you never know with those things and I wanted to make sure that she was okay. That was my first instinct."

Erivo went on to add of her relationship with Grande, "This is a long-lasting friendship for us. We’re kind of like sisters at this moment. And I think we’ve both learned from each other and given each other some really, really beautiful gifts. We’ve really looked after each other through this.”

As previously reported, Wen was sentenced to nine days in jail by a Singapore court after pleading guilty to public nuisance charges.

Wicked: For Good arrives in theaters Friday.

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We have our first look at The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping.

Lionsgate has released a teaser for the prequel film, which shows a young Haymitch Abernathy, played by Joseph Zada, being chosen as a tribute for the 50th Hunger Games.

The teaser shows glimpses of the arena and counts down from 10 as we see the tributes – 48 instead of the usual 24 – prepare to fight to the death.

There are also shots of Ralph Fiennes as President Snow, Jesse Plemons as Plutarch Heavensbee and Elle Fanning as Effie Trinket.

At the end of the teaser we hear the voice of Woody Harrelson -- who played Haymitch in the original films -- say, "I think these games are gonna be different."

The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping is based on Suzanne Collins' 2025 novel of the same name. It revisits the world of Panem almost 25 years before the events of the original book and film saga. Francis Lawrence, who was behind the camera for four out of the five previous movies in the franchise, is directing the film from a screenplay by Billy Ray.

The character of Haymitch eventually becomes the mentor for Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark, played by Jennifer Lawrence and Josh Hutcherson in the original films. 

The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping arrives in theaters on Nov. 20, 2026.

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