Following is a summary of current entertainment news briefs.
Catalog of late rocker David Bowie sold to Warner Music
Warner Music Group’s publishing unit has bought late British rock star David Bowie’s entire catalog spanning six decades, including hits such as “Heroes” and “Let’s Dance.” Bowie, who pushed the boundaries of music and his own sanity to produce some of the most innovative songs of his generation, died in 2016 aged 69.
Show must go on: Madrid races to substitute COVID-hit La Boheme cast
Madrid’s Teatro Real opera house had to act fast when the leading lights of its production of La Boheme contracted COVID-19 one after another, forcing the director to scramble for replacements who will perform together for the first time on Monday night. To mitigate the risk of contamination, Teatro Real productions operate with two full casts, which alternate performances and never come into contact with one another, a theatre spokeswoman said.
‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ Continues Box Office Domination, Crosses $600 Million in North America
Another weekend, another chance for Sony’s superhero adventure “Spider-Man: No Way Home” to flex its box office dominance. The comic book sequel, starring Tom Holland as Marvel’s favorite neighborhood web-slinger, towered over domestic box office charts for the third weekend in a row. “No Way Home” captured $52.7 million over the New Year’s holiday frame, boosting its domestic tally to $609 million. It extends an epic streak for the latest Spidey adventure, which continues to deliver the kind of ticket sales it would have been expected to make in pre-pandemic times. No other blockbuster has been able to come close to reaching similar box office heights, at least in the U.S. and Canada. After “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” the next highest-grossing tentpole of COVID-19 times is Disney and Marvel’s “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings” with $224 million domestically. Without any real competition until Paramount’s scary sequel “Scream,” the fifth installment in the slasher series, opens on Jan. 14, Holland’s teen vigilante will keep raking in the dough.
(With inputs from agencies.)
