TV/STREAMING . . .

See Disney's Touching Tribute to Descendants Star Cameron Boyce. Disney Channel is paying its respects. The network dedicated Descendants 3 to late star Cameron Boyce, and followed up the dedication with a heartwarming video tribute to the young actor who passed away. Boyce, known for playing Luke on Disney Channel's Jessie and Carlos in the Descendants franchise, passed away at the age of 20 due to an epilepsy complication. "From a young age, Cameron Boyce dreamed of sharing his extraordinary artistic talents with the world. As a young man, he was fueled by a strong desire to make a difference in peoples' lives through his humanitarian work. He was an incredibly talented performer, a remarkably caring and thoughtful person and, above all else, he was a loving and dedicated son, brother, grandson and friend," Disney Channel said in a statement after his passing. "We offer our deepest condolences to his family. Castmates and colleagues and join his many millions of fans in grieving his untimely passing. He will be dearly missed," the network concluded. In the video tribute, Disney unearthed early audition footage and behind-the-scenes video of Boyce working on Jessie and Descendants, as well as previous interviews with his costars singing his praises. There's a blooper featuring the moment he made Michelle Obama break during a guest spot. "Everything you are... Every smile, every laugh, every dance, every hug, every moment, everyone you touched... you mean everything to us," Disney Channel said in the video. (Eonline)

Ginnifer Goodwin Has a Warning Abut Her New Show for Once Upon a Time Fans. Ginnifer Goodwin needed a break. The Once Upon a Time veteran was coming off lots of family fare, including the Disney fairy tale series, Zootopia, Tinker Bell and the Legend of the NeverBeast and was ready to, well, be in something that she would watch. Enter Marc Cherry and Why Women Kill. "I had spent years making material that, like, my kids can see. So yes, I wasn't looking for that next," Goodwin told a small group of reporters at the 2019 Television Critics Association press tour. "I was definitely looking for something that my husband and I would watch together alone at night when the kids are definitely in bed." And Why Women Kill, the new CBS All Access series from the creator of Desperate Housewives is definitely something she wouldn't watch with her kids. Set in three different decades, the series follows Goodwin in the 1960s as Beth Ann, a quintessential housewife, Lucy Liu as socialite Simone in the 1980s and Kirby Howell-Baptiste as Taylor in present day, all women who live in the same house and have to deal with a very common problem: infidelity. This is far cry from Snow White on Once Upon a Time. However, Goodwin hopes some of the Once fans follow her -- if they're old enough. "I think the younger viewers should wait quite some time. Um, I only realized the other day when my mother told me that she showed my grandmother, who is in her late 90s, the trailer. It was the first time that I had thought about the fact that maybe even my mother and grandmother should not see some of these episodes, Goodwin said. "It's the kind of show that I would binge watch, which is why I wanted to be part of it, and I was really hungry to be on something that I would kill to watch if I weren't part of it. I'll still binge watch it even though I'm part of it. So, there are darker elements. Yes, the darker elements may be a lot for the Once Upon a Time fans because we're going to go pretty gross." Why Women Kill premieres August 15 on CBS All Access. (Eonline)

What to Expect When Shameless Season 10 Premieres in November. The wait for new Shameless episodes is almost over. Season 10 of the fan-favorite series premieres November 3, and Showtime has released new details on how the Gallaghers are moving forward after the departure of Fiona (Emmy Rossum). In a press release, Showtime said the new season of Shameless picks up six months after the events of last season's finale. In the new season, Frank (William H. Macy) uses his leg injury to get as many prescription drugs as possible, and his exploits lead him to an old friend. Meanwhile, Debbie (Emma Kenney) is emboldened by the $50,000 left to her by Fiona and starts ruling over the Gallagher household as the new matriarch. Lip (Jeremy Allen White) is still navigating his relationship with Tami (Kate Miner), Carl (Ethan Cutkosky) is at a crossroads after finishing military school and heading back to the South side. And then there's Liam (Christian Isaiah), who is committed to learning more about black history and culture under the guidance of V (Shanola Hampton), while Kev (Steve Howey) faces an identity crisis. And Gallavich returns this season with Ian (Cameron Monaghan) and Mickey (Noel Fisher) rekindling their romance in prison as cellmates and lovers. Rossum said goodbye in the season nine finale. The show didn't reveal where she was jetting off to, but viewers can expect to find that out in season 10. Will Rossum appear? The door remains open, but there aren't plans at this time. The new season of Shameless starts Sunday, Nov. 3 at 9 p.m. followed by the return of Jim Carrey's Kidding at 10 p.m. The new season of Ray Donovan starts Sunday, Nov. 17 in a new 8 p.m. time slot. (Eonline)

How Naomi Watts Prepared for the Game of Thrones Prequel. When Naomi Watts was approached about starring in the upcoming Game of Thrones prequel, she knew nothing, Jon Snow. It was revealed in October that the 50-year-old Oscar-nominated actress was cast as a lead in the new project, which is rumored to be titled Bloodmoon, and is set to play a "charismatic socialite hiding a dark secret." The prequel takes place thousands of years before the events of Game of Thrones, which ended its eight-season run in May to mixed reviews. "I didn't start watching until I was approached about this job," Watts told NET-A-PORTER's digital magazine, PorterEdit, in a cover interview posted on Friday. "But my brother [photographer Ben Watts], who is heavily into it, told me, 'Under no circumstances are you going to turn this down.'" Watts said she tore through the first seven seasons in three months and "was in -- hook, line and sinker." She knows that the show will boost her public profile, and told PorterEdit, "I still have fears about that. I don't really know what to prepare for." The actress just finished filming the Game of Thrones prequel's pilot episode, the outlet reported. The project is based on a story by George R. R. Martin, whose A Song of Ice and Fire novels inspired Game of Thrones, and fellow writer Jane Goldman. None of the characters in the books and original series will appear in the new project. However, Martin has said that the Starks, the White Walkers and dire wolves and mammoths will be featured. Watts also talked to PorterEdit more about her career. The English-born, Australian-raised actress began acting onscreen in the mid-80s. Her breakout role came in 2001, when she starred in the film Mulholland Drive. She went on to appear in movies such as The Ring, a King Kong reboot, and 21 Grams and The Impossible. The latter two films earned her Oscar nominations. In recent years, Watts has starred in movies such as Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance), Insurgent and Allegiant, as well as the Twin Peaks reboot series, and most recently, Showtime's The Loudest Voice, in which she plays former Fox News personality Gretchen Carlson opposite Russell Crowe's Roger Ailes. "At the beginning of my career, in my mid-twenties, everyone told me that I should expect it all to be over at 40," Watts told PorterEdit. "And to be honest, it was kind of looking that way. At that time, there were only a few people who seemed to scrape through and have careers beyond that." The actress also opened up to the publication about co-parenting with her exLiev Schreiber, star of Ray Donovan, with whom she shares two sons, Sasha, 12, and Samuel Kai, 10. The former couple announced in 2016 they had split after 11 years together. "I'm pretty proud of us, corny as that may sound," Watts said. "We've made it our absolute priority to be good and kind to each other and we're absolutely committed to that." To see the full interview with Naomi Watts read PorterEdit at www.net-a-porter.com/porter/article-fcb67429df8753b8 and/or download the NET-A-PORTER app for iPhone, iPad and Android. (Eonline)

Willa Ford's Eye for Interior Design Impresses Scott Disick During Flip It Like Disick's Series Premiere. Scott Disick just flipped a sunny beach house in Malibu! Now, to sell the property... "A house usually sells 80 percent faster when it's staged," explains the real estate aficionado in this clip from Sunday's series premiere of Flip It Like Disick. As its name suggests, "staging" a space essentially means furnishing it -- as in, down to the cutlery -- so prospective buyers have an easier time envisioning themselves living there. Usually, Scott stages the properties himself or commissions designers to do so on a project-by-project basis, but this time, the luxury house flipper needs "extra help" and might even consider hiring for a more permanent position. Enter: Willa Ford, former pop singer and current interior design superstar, whose talents were brought to Scott's attention years ago and continue to impress him in the present. "I couldn't find you in this jungle!" he jokes, calling out to Willa from across the yard at Malibu Design Center, which looks kind of like an obstacle course fashioned out of rustic-chic decor. "You could've told me not to wear these shoes," she replies, and they hug like old friends. The duo agrees there's quite a lot to work with here -- textured pots that Scott thinks look like "teeth," geometric planters several feet tall and bathroom accessories even Lord Disick appreciates -- and Willa points out several "finishing pieces" that might work to elevate the Malibu house interior. "You were what I was missing in this whole scenario," Scott tells her. Sounds like someone's getting a new job! Flip It Like Disick Sunday at 9 p.m., on E! (Eonline)

Julianna Margulies Won't Be on The Good Fight Season 4, But She Does Have a CBS All Access Show in the Works. For seven seasons Julianna Margulies came into viewers' homes as Alicia Florrick, the center character of The Good Wife. The Emmy-winning drama -- Margulies took home two statues for her role during its run -- birthed The Good Fight, a CBS All Access legal drama following several characters from the show including Christine Baranski's Diane Lockhart, the woman who whose slap ended Alicia's story on The Good Wife. The ghost of Alicia Florrick loomed over the first season of The Good Fight, then the show found its legs in a fraught political climate. Then Margulies made headlines when she said she was offered a guest arc on season three of The Good Fight -- but it didn't work out because CBS All Access wouldn't pay her the rate she wanted. "I don't need the money. That's not what it's about, that's not what it's about at all. I am so sick to death of women not being treated the same as men in our industry. And I am at a place in my career where that shouldn't ever happen. It's not that I want more than so-and-so, it's that I want equal. I'm not angry, I'm really not," Margulies told E! News. Despite all that, CBS All Access and Margulies are on good terms. More than that, they're working together. At the 2019 Television Critics Association summer press tour, CBS All Access boss Julie McNamara revealed Margulies may star in a new series for the streamer. "We love Julianna, and there's a long history there, a long, great history with her. And we did want to bring her to guest on The Good Fight. There was a different expectation of what sort of that meant and it didn't work out. And, you know, we have another project in development with her that we have a deal for her to star, if that goes forward here on the service, something in the future," McNamara said. McNamara told a small group of reporters after the panel that they're not sharing details about the project just yet, but they wanted to tell the public there's no hard feelings. "It's a development project and it's actually part of our development slate, we just don't usually announce development, but just to kind of illuminate we have a good relationship with her -- as far as we're concerned -- so we'll see what happens with that, we'll see what comes to fruition," she said. The Good Fight co-creator Michelle King told press there isn't a plan to bring Margulies in on the fourth season. "There was really nothing for us to figure out because we don't negotiate money, that's for the studio. That's for the studio. We love Julianna. I hope someday to work with her again, probably on another project. You know, deals don't make," King said. Margulies told us she would "of course" still appear on the series -- if the money was right. "There's no animosity. It's principle and there's a handful of us actresses that have been doing this for a while that have the ability to walk away and set the stage for the next group that are coming forward," she said. The Good Fight will return for season four on CBS All Access. (Eonline)

CNN Parent Sued for $50 Million By Chinese Billionaire Claiming Defamation. Guo Wengui says a July 23 episode of 'Erin Burnett OutFront' falsely painted him in a negative light. A Chinese billionaire and Mar-a-Lago member is suing WarnerMedia over a CNN segment that he claims falsely implies he committed espionage and was on the verge of being deported. Guo Wengui, who's known as Miles Kwok in the U.S., on Friday filed a $50 million lawsuit against WarnerMedia and CNN anchor Erin Burnett for defamation. According to the complaint, Guo is an "outspoken and vitriolic critic" of the Chinese Communist Party who's seeking asylum in the U.S. because his public statements about the Chinese government led to the arrest of his family members and the freezing of his assets. Since he fled in 2014, Guo claims the Chinese government has gone to "extensive lengths" to have him extradited, including asking CEOs of large companies and venture capitalist Elliot Broidy to put pressure on President Donald Trump. He maintains the Chinese government is actively working to discredit him and he's sued multiple people for defamation alleging they falsely labeled him a spy, a fraud, a swindler and a rapist. Guo is now claiming that he was defamed when Burnett began a Jul 23 CNN segment by teasing "New tonight, the Chinese billionaire and member of Mar-a-Lago accused of being a spy." "Clearly, the intent was to garner views for the sensational 'story' with no regard for the truth and less investigation into the underlying facts," writes attorney Aaron Mitchell in the complaint. "The CNN broadcast went on to make a number of false statements, along with various other statements intended to mislead its viewers and cast Plaintiff in a negative light." He also takes issue with statements made by Burnett's guest, Miami Herald reporter Sara Blaskey, in connection with another New York legal fight. She said "a company that he partnered with in the past" accused him in court documents of "trying to gather intel for the Chinese government" and went on to say "it's unclear if federal authorities are acting on that information." Guo says that company is Strategic Vision and its claims were dismissed because he never partnered with them, and Blaskey's follow up statement implies he had "done something illegal that 'federal authorities' should 'act on.'" "To further embellish their story, Defendants made statements that insinuated that Mr. Guo was associated with the woman arrested sneaking into Mar-a-Lago with malware and Cindy Yang who has been accused of selling access to Mar-a-Lago and President Trump," writes Mitchell. "Even a modicum of due diligence would have shown the falsity of these statements." In addition to $50 million in damages, Guo wants WarnerMedia to remove the story from any online publication and run a retraction on the front page of CNN's website and in physical publications. (Hollywood Reporter)

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