Entertainment News Roundup: Prince Harry launches lawsuit against UK paper, joining wife Meghan; SiriusXM signs new five-year deal with Howard Stern and more

Nolan, whose thriller "Tenet" was released by Warner Bros earlier this year, said the work of top talent was being used "as a loss leader for the streaming service." Chadwick Boseman, Trump and pop group BTS dominate Twitter in 2020 The announcement of the death of "Black Panther" star Chadwick Boseman was the most shared on Twitter worldwide in 2020, and got the most "likes" of any Tweet ever, the social media platform said on Monday.

Following is a summary of current entertainment news briefs.

Signed for his killer, 40 years on John Lennon album is up for auction

The album signed by John Lennon for his assassin 40 years ago is up for auction in New York, as his widow and former Beatles band mates on Tuesday paid tribute to him. The copy of "Double Fantasy" that Lennon signed for Mark David Chapman a few hours before his death on Dec. 8, 1980 is being sold by a private collector through New Jersey-based Goldin Auctions.

Prince Harry launches lawsuit against UK paper, joining wife Meghan

Prince Harry is suing the publishers of a British newspaper for libel, joining his wife Meghan who is separately suing them over breach of copyright and data protection, British media reported on Monday. A spokesman for Harry, grandson of Queen Elizabeth, declined to comment. Associated Newspapers, publishers of the Mail on Sunday, could not immediately be reached.

Pandemic forces La Scala to replace traditional season opener

Milan's La Scala opera house staged a three-hour televised medley of arias and ballet late on Monday after the coronavirus pandemic forced the cancellation of the traditional season opener for the first time since World War Two. Masked members of the choir and orchestra performed the national anthem in an empty auditorium that in other years would be packed with Italy's political, business and showbusiness elite for one of the highlights of Milan's cultural calendar.

SiriusXM signs new five-year deal with Howard Stern

Satellite radio service provider Sirius XM Holdings Inc said it had signed a new five-year deal with celebrity Howard Stern to continue to produce and host his popular "Howard Stern Show". Sirius shares were up 1.4% in premarket trading.

Nile Rodgers sees no good times for artists in music streaming

Veteran U.S. musician and record producer Nile Rodgers told British lawmakers on Tuesday that artists were losing large amounts of money due to a lack of transparency in money streaming services. Rodgers, who shot to global fame in the 1970s with his band Chic and their hit song "Le Freak" and who produced, among many other albums, David Bowie's "Let's Dance", is the latest in a flurry of big names from the music industry to appear before the lawmakers investigating the economics of music streaming.

Nicole Kidman to endorse U.S. cannabis company

Academy Award-winning actress Nicole Kidman has signed up to promote cannabis-based products for U.S.-based Cure Pharmaceutical, the company said on Tuesday, the latest celebrity to endorse the plant for its therapeutic and pain relief related benefits. Kidman will help the unit, Sera Labs, boost its multi-channel distribution efforts and sales of an anti-aging skincare line and for its pain relief body creams and serums.

Bob Dylan sells entire song catalog to Universal Music

Bob Dylan has sold his entire catalog of more than 600 songs spanning six decades to Universal Music Group's music publishing arm, the company said on Monday. The deal includes Dylan's iconic 1960s counterculture songs like "Blowin' in the Wind" and "Like a Rolling Stone", the company said in a statement, but did not disclose the terms of the deal.

'Tenet' director Nolan slams Warner Bros same day streaming plan

Movie director Christopher Nolan on Monday slammed plans by Warner Bros to release its 2021 films in theaters and on its streaming service HBO Max on the same day, saying the studio should have consulted filmmakers first. Nolan, whose thriller "Tenet" was released by Warner Bros earlier this year, said the work of top talent was being used "as a loss leader for the streaming service."

Chadwick Boseman, Trump and pop group BTS dominate Twitter in 2020

The announcement of the death of "Black Panther" star Chadwick Boseman was the most shared on Twitter worldwide in 2020, and got the most "likes" of any Tweet ever, the social media platform said on Monday. The Aug. 28 post by Boseman's family saying the actor had died of colon cancer at age 43 was "liked" more than 7.5 million times, Twitter said, releasing data of the most shared events on its platform for 2020.

Oscar organizers see April awards ceremony as innovation opportunity

Director Steven Soderbergh will help produce what organizers on Tuesday called a re-envisioned Oscars awards show in April, but they did not say what form the ceremony would take. Soderbergh, a best director Oscar winner for "Traffic," will produce the April 25 televised ceremony along with Hollywood veterans Stacey Sher and Jesse Collins, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences said in a statement.

(With inputs from agencies.)