Reuters Entertainment News Round Up: Amy Schumer; London film fest; Steve Irwin; Marie Colvin's story

Comic Amy Schumer backs Kaepernick, says she won't do Super Bowl ads

U.S. comedian and actress Amy Schumer has said she will not appear in any commercials during the 2019 Super Bowl in support of National Football League quarterback Colin Kaepernick's protests against racial injustice. "I personally told my reps I wouldn't do a Super Bowl commercial this year," Schumer wrote in an Instagram post on Friday. "Hitting the NFL with the advertisers is the only way to really hurt them."

London film fest closes with a flash of 'Stan & Ollie' comic genius

Laurel and Hardy, perhaps the greatest comedy double act in cinema history, returned to London on Sunday, twiddling their bowler hats to a delighted West End crowd as they arrived for the world premiere of the biopic "Stan & Ollie". The closing film of the London Film Festival covers the twilight years of a couple who made more than 100 films spanning the silent and talkie era, with John C. Reilly as Oliver Hardy, the lovably oafish Southern gent, and Steve Coogan playing the idiot-savant Stan Laurel.

'Crocodile Hunter' Steve Irwin's family launch the new show

The family of late Australian conservationist and "Crocodile Hunter" Steve Irwin are following in his footsteps with a new television show dedicated to their wildlife conservation work. "Crikey! It's the Irwins" will follow Irwin's wife Terri and their two children, Bindi and Robert, looking after animals at their Australia Zoo in Queensland as well as heading out on various expeditions.

'A Private War' goes to the front line to tell reporter Marie Colvin's story

Award-winning American war reporter Marie Colvin was known for her dispatches from some of the world's most brutal conflicts. Now a new film starring "Gone Girl" actress Rosamund Pike tells her story about being fearless on the battlefront. Focusing on the last decade of her life, "A Private War" takes audiences to the frontlines of fighting in Sri Lanka, Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya and Syria. Colvin, reporting for Britain's Sunday Times, was killed in Syria in 2012.

Julia Louis-Dreyfus, star of Seinfeld and Veep, awarded U.S. humor prize

Julia Louis-Dreyfus, an American comedian whose career on the improv stage led to iconic roles on shows such as Seinfeld, was honoured on Sunday for contributing to the national culture. Louis-Dreyfus gained fame as Elaine - the perpetually single neurotic in Jerry Seinfeld's ensemble sitcom - but her role as a blundering politician on the HBO show Veep has brought more acclaim.

Box Office: 'Halloween' slashes franchise record with $77.5 million launch

"Halloween" made a killing in North America, earning $77.5 million when the slasher film launched in 3,928 locations. David Gordon Green's "Halloween," a direct sequel to John Carpenter's 1978 classic, obliterated the franchise record opening of $26 million, previously held by the 2007 Rob Zombie reboot. "Halloween" also notched the second-best start for an R-rated horror film following "It's" $123 million launches. It also landed the second-highest debut for an October release, set earlier this month by "Venom" with $80 million.

(With inputs from agencies.)