CALLIE KHOURI News

Metro Goldwyn Mayer Pictures has dated the Aretha Franklin biopic Respect for Aug. 14, 2020, according to Deadline.

Lionsgate and Producer Scott Delman (President, Blue Spruce Productions) announced today that the beloved Lionsgate and ABC Studios television series Nashville, a hit for six seasons on ABC, CMT and Hulu, is being adapted as a Broadway musical. Delman, a 10-time Tony Award® winner who will serve as lead producer, has acquired the live theatrical rights from Lionsgate and ABC Studios, which co-produced and distributed the television show.  Additional information, including production dates and the complete creative team, will be announced shortly.

Final Draft, a Cast & Crew Company, now in its 28thyear as the industry standard for screenwriting software, today announced the honorees for the 14thAnnual Final Draft Awards. Academy Award® winning screenwriter Callie Khouri will be presented the prestigious Hall of Fame Award for her prolific contribution to the art of screenwriting and devotion to writers and the writing community. This year's New Voice Award recipient for Film is writer-director Boots Riley whose critically-acclaimed debut feature Sorry To Bother You announced the arrival of Riley as an exciting, brave new voice in cinema. The New Voice Award for Television will be presented to Tanya Saracho, the dynamic creator and executive producer of the acclaimed Starz Original series Vida. Final Draft will also announce the winners of the prestigious 2018 Big Break® Screenwriting Contest. The 14thAnnual Final Draft Awards will be held at the Paramount Theatre on the Paramount Studios lot in Hollywood, CA on Jan. 29th and will be hosted by comedy duo Randy and Jason Sklar (The Sklar Brothers).

Metro Goldwyn Mayer Pictures (MGM) announced today acclaimed stage director Liesl Tommy, the first black woman to earn a Tony Award nomination for Best Direction of a Play, is set to direct Respect, a feature film based on the life of music icon Aretha Franklin. As previously announced, Academy Award, Golden Globe, Screen Actors Guild, BAFTA and Grammy Award winner Jennifer Hudson was personally handpicked by Ms. Franklin to portray her on the big screen.  Academy Award and Golden Globe winner Callie Khouri (Thelma & Louise, creator of Nashville) will pen the screenplay following the rise of Ms. Franklin's career, from a child singing in her father's church's choir to an iconic and international superstar. The announcement was made today by Jonathan Glickman, President, Motion Picture Group.

VIDEO: Watch Promo For All New NASHVILLE

VIDEO: Watch Promo For All New Upcoming NASHVILLE

ABC's “Take Two,” the network's newest procedural crime series starring Rachel Bilson (“Hart of Dixie,” “Nashville”) and Eddie Cibrian (“CSI: Miami,” “Rosewood”), is set to premiere THURSDAY, JUNE 21, at 10 p.m. EDT.

It's an ending you won't believe. The final episodes of Nashville start June 7 at 9/8c on CMT.

ABC's “Take Two,” the network's newest procedural crime series starring Rachel Bilson (“Hart of Dixie,” “Nashville”) and Eddie Cibrian (“CSI: Miami,” “Rosewood”), is set to premiere THURSDAY, JUNE 21, at 10 p.m. EDT.

ABC's “Take Two,” the network's newest procedural crime series starring Rachel Bilson (“Hart of Dixie,” “Nashville”) and Eddie Cibrian (“CSI: Miami,” “Rosewood”), is set to premiere THURSDAY, JUNE 21, at 10 p.m. EDT.

CMT Announces NASHVILLE Midseason Premiere on 6/7, Followed by Series-Ending Finale 7/26

Nashville has set the dates for its midseason return, as well as the series finale, according to Deadline. The show will return on June 7, and the finale is set for July 26. Watch the promo video below!

The Texas State Library & Archives Commission (TSLAC) recently awarded funding to Austin Film Festival (AFF) and The Wittliff Collections at Texas State University under its TexTreasures Grant program. Starting September of this year, The Wittliff Collections is confirmed to host more of Austin Film Festival's vast audiovisual archive and feature materials preserved from Festivals and Conferences between 1997-2002.

The final season oF NASHVILLE premiered strongly Thursday night on CMT, notching a .80 rating among Adults 18-49 and 1.6 million viewers, which is the best since the S5 Midseason Premiere (.81) and up +20% (ratings) and +7% (viewers), respectively, over the prior cycle average. (L+3)

On the heels of record ratings growth, CMT today announced a multi-platform winter slate of original programming including the premiere dates for new docu-series Music City, from the creator of The Hills and Laguna Beach, and CMT Crossroads: Kesha and Old Crow Medicine Show,

Today, on what would have been her 85th birthday, UMe is proud to announce that Cline's remarkable life and enduring legacy will be honored in WHEN PATSY WAS...CRAZY, a new DVD, available October 6, that collects the acclaimed PBS documentary

Stars of the hit CMT series Nashville will embark on a fourth U.S. concert tour this summer, playing 11 shows in July and August, which includes a stop at Ruth Eckerd Hall today, July 25 at 8 pm.  Tickets go on sale Friday, May 5 at noon. The U.S. tour comes on the heels of a highly successful 10-show international tour that has already sold out multiple concerts in the UK and Ireland.  For a complete list of tour dates visit http://www.opry.com/nashvilletour.

Stars of the hit CMT series Nashville will embark on a fourth U.S. concert tour this summer, playing 11 shows in July and August, which includes a stop at Ruth Eckerd Hall on Tuesday, July 25 at 8 pm.  Tickets go on sale Friday, May 5 at noon. The U.S. tour comes on the heels of a highly successful 10-show international tour that has already sold out multiple concerts in the UK and Ireland.  For a complete list of tour dates visit http://www.opry.com/nashvilletour.

CMT today announced “Nashville” will return for a new season with 16 episodes premiering early next year. In addition, the network revealed a midseason premiere date of Thursday, June 1 at 9 p.m. ET/PT.  Charles Esten (Deacon) first announced the renewal on Facebook Live on behalf of the entire cast. In the coming weeks, CMT will announce its complete 2017-2018 slate.

CMT today announced Rachel Bilson (“The OC,” “Hart of Dixie”) and Kaitlin Doubleday (“Empire”) will join the cast of NASHVILLE.