Lena Waithe News

Fan favorites Shamon Brown Jr. (Papa), Barton Fitzpatrick (Reg) and Michael Epps (Jake) have been upped from guest stars to series regulars for the highly anticipated second season of THE CHI. The hit SHOWTIME drama series is currently in production in Chicago and will return to the network in 2019. THE CHIaveraged 4.5 million weekly viewers across platforms and ranks as the highest-rated SHOWTIME freshman season since BILLIONS in 2016.

SHOWTIME is bringing its hot new comedy BLACK MONDAY and hit drama THE CHI to 2018 ESSENCE Festival. On Friday, July 6, THE CHI creator and executive producer Lena Waithe will headline a keynote conversation on the ESSENCE Empowerment Experience Stage and will later appear in the Great Hall to discuss THE CHI. All 500 fans who attend Waithe's Q&A at the Great Hall will receive $25 gift certificates to the SHOWTIME streaming service. On Saturday, July 7, BLACK MONDAY star Regina Hall returns to the Festival after the success of Girls Trip to debut the first footage from the highly anticipated new SHOWTIME comedy series exclusively for Essence Festival attendees, followed by a moderated Q&A. At the BLACK MONDAY conversation, SHOWTIME will give out 40 tickets to select fans for a meet and greet with Hall at the Fan Zone immediately following her Q&A. The debut season of BLACK MONDAY and season two of THE CHI will premiere on the network in 2019.

SHOWTIME is bringing its hot new comedy BLACK MONDAY and hit drama THE CHI to 2018 ESSENCE Festival. On Friday, July 6, THE CHI creator and executive producer Lena Waithe will headline a keynote conversation on the ESSENCE Empowerment Experience Stage and will later appear in the Great Hall to discuss THE CHI. All 500 fans who attend Waithe's Q&A at the Great Hall will receive $25 gift certificates to the SHOWTIME streaming service. On Saturday, July 7, BLACK MONDAY star Regina Hall returns to the Festival after the success of Girls Trip to debut the first footage from the highly anticipated new SHOWTIME comedy series exclusively for Essence Festival attendees, followed by a moderated Q&A. At the BLACK MONDAY conversation, SHOWTIME will give out 40 tickets to select fans for a meet and greet with Hall at the Fan Zone immediately following her Q&A. The debut season of BLACK MONDAY and season two of THE CHIwill premiere on the network in 2019.

AT&T* announced the 2018 lineup of mentors and mentees for its diversity-focused Hello Lab Mentorship Program.

Last Night at the 2018 'MTV Movie & TV Awards' hosted by Tiffany Haddish from the Barker Hangar in Los Angeles, blockbuster films and fan favorite TV shows such as Black Panther, Stranger Things, Riverdale, Wonder Woman and more took home the coveted Golden Popcorn. Check out the full list of winners below!

Tune In Alert: MTV Movie & TV Awards Air Tonight, Hosted by Tiffany Haddish

Celebrating its 36th Anniversary, Outfest - the Los Angeles-based nonprofit organization promoting equality by creating, sharing, and protecting LGBTQ stories on the screen - today announced the complete programming lineup for the 2018 Outfest Los Angeles LGBTQ Film Festival presented by HBO. The nation's leading LGBTQ festival will be held July 12-22, 2018.

SundanceTV's original non-fiction series “Close Up With The Hollywood Reporter,” produced in partnership with The Hollywood Reporter, returns for the first half of its fourth season on Sunday, June 24th at 10am ET. The first part of the season presents seven original episodes featuring roundtable discussions with Academy Award®, Emmy Award® and Golden Globe® nominated and winning actors, actresses and showrunners making an impact in the television industry today. A full schedule of the season is below.

Platinum producer Mustard and Grammy and Golden Globe nominated artist, Nick Jonas will perform the new single 'Anywhere' for the first time in its entirety at the 2018 "MTV Movie & TV Awards." The world premiere of the video debuted yesterday on MTV. Additionally, Chloe x Halle are set to take the stage for a medley of "The Kids Are Alright" and "Warrior" from their debut album.

Lena Waithe, who made history as the first woman of color to win an Emmy Award for “Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series” for her work on “Master of None,” will be honored with the “Trailblazer” Award at the 2018 “MTV Movie & TV Awards.” The award recognizes game-changing creators with fresh and fearless voices in entertainment. Hosted by Tiffany Haddish, the 2018 “MTV Movie & TV Awards” will air on Monday, June 18th at 9:00 p.m. ET/PT from the Barker Hangar in Los Angeles.

New York Women in Film & Television (NYWIFT), which has empowered and championed women in the entertainment industry for 40 years, is thrilled to honor the women behind the scenes at this year's New York Women in Film & Television Designing Women Awards Gala on Monday, May 21, 2018. The 19th annual event will honor the distinguished makeup artists, hair stylists and costume designers that work tirelessly to create the characters on screen in film, television and digital media.

New York Women in Film & Television (NYWIFT), which has empowered and championed women in the entertainment industry for 40 years, is thrilled to honor the women behind the scenes at this year's New York Women in Film & Television Designing Women Awards Gala on Monday, May 21, 2018. The 19thannual event will honor the distinguished makeup artists, hair stylists and costume designers that work tirelessly to create the characters on screen in film, television and digital media.

MTV today announced the categories and nominees for the 2018 'MTV Movie & TV Awards,' hosted by Tiffany Haddish, that celebrate the actors, stories and moments that drove pop culture in the last year. The show will once again feature non-gendered categories - a change that marked an industry-first historic shift. Airing on Monday, June 18 at 9:00 p.m. ET/PT from the Barker Hangar in Los Angeles, additional categories and honors will be announced at a later date. The press credentials website will open next week.

The Trevor Project today announced that Emmy Award-winning screenwriter, producer, and actor Lena Waithe; Writers Guild of America Award, Directors Guild of America Award, and Golden Globe Award-nominated writer, director, and producer Greg Berlanti; and Managing Partner of global consulting firm McKinsey & Company Dominic Barton will all be honored at The Trevor Project's TrevorLIVE New York gala for their commitment to supporting The Trevor Project's mission to provide crisis intervention services and end suicide among gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and questioning young people. TrevorLIVE New York, the organization's annual star-studded signature fundraiser billed as "an irreverent evening of music and comedy," will be held on Monday, June 11 at Cipriani Wall Street in New York City.

Bravo Media's “Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen” heads to the city of stars as Lena Waithe and NeNe Leakes kick off a week of star-studded shows beginning Sunday, April 8 at 8PM PT/11PM ET. Hosted at the historically breathtaking Wiltern Theatre, the weeklong Hollywood residency marks the second time Cohen has brought the Bravo Clubhouse to Los Angeles since the series' inception. Fans excited to join in on the fun can grab tickets by visiting here!

Last night, SHOWTIME kicked off the 2018 Emmy® season with its new one-hour drama series, THE CHI at the DGA in Los Angeles.

Upcoming Guests On THE VIEW 3/12-3/16

On March 29, director Steven Spielberg's highly anticipated new film Ready Player One hits theaters. Based on Ernest Cline's best-selling novel of the same name, Ready Player One is a sci-fi adventure set in an expansive virtual reality universe.

A star-studded host committee, Academy Awards nominees and presenters, along with some of the most powerful industry influencers came together on March 3 rd, 2018 for the 16 th annual 'Night Before' party to benefit MPTF. Funds raised during the legendary evening will be used to support MPTF in providing social services and financial assistance to the entertainment community, as well as it's renowned retirement community and innovative programs for seniors and those who care for them. The organization impacts thousands of people each year who have committed their lives to a career in entertainment. The annual event raised $5 million last night, totaling just over $80 million in the event's history.

Kicking off Women's History Month; ESSENCE turned the spotlight on four remarkable women, during Oscar week, with its popular “BLACK WOMEN IN HOLLYWOOD AWARDS,” held Thursday, March 1, 2018 at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel in Beverly Hills, CA. Returning to its traditional daytime luncheon, the ESSENCE “BLACK WOMEN IN HOLLYWOOD AWARDS” was hosted by actress Yvonne Orji.  This year's program honored actress and comedian Tiffany Haddish; actress Danai Gurira; Emmy-Award winning writer and director Lena Waithe and actress and activist Tessa Thompson.  For the fourth consecutive year, the ESSENCE“BLACK WOMEN IN HOLLYWOOD AWARDS” will air as a primetime special on OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network on March 3, 2018 at 10 pm ET/PT.