Candy Crush TV show in the works
The US cable network CBS is creating a television adaptation of the popular mobile game Candy Crush Saga. The hour-long series will feature two players competing against a giant interactive game board to defeat obstacles. The player who moves quickest through a series of levels will be crowned the Candy Crush champion. The TV show will also have an interactive element for viewers at home who will be able to play along too. A launch date for the upcoming project has yet to be confirmed by CBS. — IANS
Parinetti Chopra wants private life kept private
Bollywood actress Parineeti Chopra says that her personal life must remain off-limits to the public. "My love life, I would like to be private, because there is so much scrutiny in there," says the 27-year-old, "There are so many people in the world who are looking at you and judging you." The star of Ladies vs. Richy Bahl says that while her Hindi film industry peers may choose to lay bare their souls, she is more selective about the details she reveals. "To each his or her own," she says. "You can choose what information to put out there and what not to." - IANS
Tom Hanks wins tabloid apology
Tom Hanks and his wife Rita Wilson have received apologies and retractions from The National Enquirer and Star Magazine which claimed that the Hollywood couple were divorcing because Hanks was in love with his co-stars Meg Ryan or Felicity Jones. Hanks and Wilson, who have been married for 28 years, said in a statement that in the past they had laughed off tabloid stories about the state of their relationship. The pair said they considered their marriage to be "the foundation of our family" and it was now time to take action against the "lies we would not put up with any longer". – Reuters
Ken Loach debuts new film I, Daniel Blake
Veteran British director Ken Loach has debuted his latest film I, Daniel Blake, in London. The movie explores how Britain's social security system pushes a downtrodden carpenter and a single mother into poverty in the northeastern city of Newcastle. The film, which opens in U.K. cinemas on Friday, October 21, and globally in December, stars comedian Dave Johns as joiner Daniel, who is denied disability benefits when unable to work through his illness. He befriends young mother Katie — played by newcomer Hayley Squires — as they battle with the authorities.
The film won the prestigious Cannes Film Festival Palme d’Or trophy for drama earlier this year. — Reuters
Gwen Stefani returns to The Voice as coach
Singer Gwen Stefani will make a return to the popular US television show, The Voice in February of next year. The 47-year-old will join current coaches Alicia Keys, Adam Levine and Blake Shelton for Season 12 of NBC's musical reality series. American television presenter Carson Daly has also been confirmed to return as the show's host. Executives at the NBC network said in a statement that current coach Miley Cyrus would be returning for the 13th season next autumn, with additional coaches to be named at a later date. The talent show is currently in its 11th season. Stefani originally coached in seasons seven and nine, she was also an adviser for seasons eight and 10. — AP
Author Thom Jones dies at 71
Acclaimed short-story writer Thom Jones, who drew upon family tragedy and his own painful struggles for bestseller The Pugilist At Rest, has died. He was 71 and died from complications as a result of diabetes. Published in 1993, The Pugilist At Rest, was Jones' debut book and a finalist for the National Book Award. Its stories of violence, trauma and spiritual striving led to comparisons to Ernest Hemingway, Norman Mailer and fellow Pacific Northwest resident Raymond Carver among others. "Jones' steady strength is in the unprettified dialogue, in the fine gutbucket descriptions where irony tangles with Hemingwayan macho," the Los Angeles Times noted in its review. Jones is survived by his wife and daughter. — AP
Amitabh Bachchan starts filming Sakar 3
Bollywood legend Amitabh Bachchan has started shooting the third instalment of the popular crime-movie Sarkar. The 74-year-old — who played key roles in the first two instalments of the series — exclaimed that the movie by filmmaker Ram Gopal Vasrma was producing some unexpected results. "First day of Sarkar 3! Larger, intriguing and oh so unpredictable," Bachchan wrote on Twitter. The 74-year-old star also shared with fans on his blog that there was "apprehension on the first day of shoot". "An entirely new environ, an entirely new set up, even if the designs of the story and characters have been indulged well in the past ... happens all the time. And yet, we never stop speaking about it," he wrote. — IANS