Maggie Gyllenhaal has been named president of the international competition jury for the upcoming Venice International Film Festival, which runs Sept. 2-12, 2026. The board of La Biennale di Venezia appointed the U.S. actor, director, writer and producer on the recommendation of festival director Alberto Barbera. Gyllenhaal, whose directorial debut The Lost Daughter won Venice’s Best Screenplay prize in 2021, recently wrote and directed The Bride! (2026) and returns to the Lido as an established auteur. As jury president she will lead the panel that awards the Golden Lion for best film and other main prizes; the remaining jurors will be announced closer to the festival. Barbera praised Gyllenhaal’s “intellectual and visceral” cinematic perspective and her consistent artistic trajectory. Venice organizers highlighted her career across film and television — including award-nominated performances and series work — as qualifying experience to head a jury that has recently been led by prominent filmmakers and actors.

Darrell Sheets, the larger‑than‑life bidder known as “The Gambler” on A&E’s long‑running reality series Storage Wars, was found dead at his home in Lake Havasu City, Arizona, on April 22, 2026. Lake Havasu City police said officers responded at about 2 a.m. and located a 67‑year‑old male who had suffered what appeared to be a self‑inflicted gunshot wound; the case remains under active investigation and the body was turned over to the Mohave County Medical Examiner. Sheets, a fan favourite who appeared across 15 seasons (more than 160 episodes) and who later ran an antiques shop in Arizona, had publicly battled health problems in recent years. A&E said it was “saddened” by his death. Several former co‑stars, including René Nezhoda and Brandi Passante, have publicly mourned him and urged people to seek help. Nezhoda has alleged Sheets had been subject to sustained online harassment; police say cyberbullying claims are part of the ongoing inquiry. Media outlets have also revisited Sheets’s on‑screen legacy and his role in popularising storage‑auction culture.

The first official trailer for Coyote vs. Acme debuted on April 22, 2026, ahead of the film’s Aug. 28 theatrical release. The live-action/animation hybrid, directed by Dave Green and starring Will Forte, John Cena and Lana Condor, follows Wile E. Coyote as he sues the Acme corporation; the teaser features numerous Looney Tunes characters and pointed meta-jokes that reference the movie’s real-world history. Completed in 2023, the picture was controversially shelved by Warner Bros. in late 2023 as part of cost-cutting and a tax write-off strategy that sparked widespread industry and fan backlash. Ketchup Entertainment acquired global distribution rights in March 2025 for about $50 million after Warner Bros. reportedly rejected higher bids and sought roughly $75–80 million. The trailer leans into that backstory—portraying Acme as a Warner Bros. stand-in—and signals a full promotional push for what distributors call a family-friendly courtroom comedy rooted in Ian Frazier’s 1990 New Yorker piece.

Netflix on April 23 released Stranger Things: Tales From '85, a 10-episode animated spinoff set between seasons two and three of the flagship series. Executive-produced by creators Matt and Ross Duffer and developed by showrunner Eric Robles, the series is produced by Flying Bark and features a newly recast voice ensemble for the core child characters. It introduces Nikki (Odessa A'zion) and her substitute-teacher mother (Janeane Garofalo) and includes guest voices such as Robert Englund and Lou Diamond Phillips. The show adopts a kid-friendly, Saturday-morning cartoon tone, leans into 1980s nostalgia and centers on a serialized mystery involving new Upside Down–related plantlike creatures. Critical reaction on release was mixed: several reviewers praised its return to the franchise's earlier, youthful spirit and strong voice performances, while others called it unambitious, repetitive and potentially disruptive to canon. CNET noted all episodes are available on demand and reminded readers of Netflix's recent subscription-price tiers. The series is the first of several promised Stranger Things extensions and is positioned to keep the IP active without the original live-action cast.

French production company Chi‑Fou‑Mi (part of Mediawan) and 31 Juin Films are developing a feature biopic about Bernard Loiseau, the celebrated chef who helped put the Burgundy town of Saulieu and his restaurant La Côte d’Or on the global gastronomic map. The film will be written and directed by Thomas Lilti, known for films and series that probe professional vocation, and is being produced in partnership with Loiseau’s family and the Groupe Bernard Loiseau. Loiseau’s La Côte d’Or earned a third Michelin star in 1991; he later died by suicide in 2003 amid widely reported struggles with depression and fears over his restaurant’s rating. Loiseau has been cited as a partial inspiration for the character Auguste Gusteau in Pixar’s Ratatouille. Producers say the family’s cooperation will help shape a sensitive portrayal; Chi‑Fou‑Mi — which has recent French box‑office successes and multiple titles at Cannes — will shepherd the project toward production and festival circuits.

American actor-director Maggie Gyllenhaal will preside over the main competition jury at the 83rd Venice International Film Festival, organisers announced on April 23, 2026. The festival runs Sept. 2-12 on the Lido, with films in competition traditionally announced in July. Gyllenhaal, an Academy Award nominee for acting and the 2021 Venice Best Screenplay winner for her directorial debut The Lost Daughter, said she was “thrilled” to accept the invitation and vowed to bring “curiosity, admiration and excitement” rather than judgement. Festival director Alberto Barbera and the Biennale board appointed her on Barbera’s recommendation, praising her intellectual and courageous body of work, which includes her recent film The Bride! The international jury Gyllenhaal will lead will decide the Golden Lion for best film and other top awards at the festival. Organisers said the rest of the jury will be announced closer to the event.