Entertainment News Roundup: Billie Eilish film offers intimate look at teen music sensation; NFL denies report on media rights deal with Disney and more

"Billie Eilish: The World's a Little Blurry" follows the American singer-songwriter's close relationship with her family, performing on stage, on the road, meeting fans and collecting five Grammy Awards, the music industry's highest honours.

Following is a summary of current entertainment news briefs.

New version of first ever African-American screen kiss discovered in Norway

A new version of the first known on-screen kiss between two African-American actors has been discovered in the collections of the National Library of Norway. The 1898 film, directed by U.S. film industry pioneer William Selig, stars vaudeville actors Saint Suttle and Gertie Brown and shows them courting and kissing in front of a cloth backdrop.

Emporio Armani nods to 1980s in fall line at Milan Fashion Week

Giorgio Armani is taking fashionistas back to the 1980s for his fall Emporio Armani line, nodding to the era's bright colours in his latest creations at Milan Fashion Week. The veteran designer, affectionately called "King Giorgio" in his native Italy, presented plenty of hot pink and purple creations, high-waisted trousers and chunky jewellery in the autumn/winter 2021-2022 collection called "In the mood for pop".

Pandemic forces Berlin Film Festival to go online

The Berlinale, one of the world's most open and public film festivals, begins on Monday in a decidedly low-key, private fashion, being streamed to a select audience of journalists and industry professionals rather than playing to packed cinemas. The organisers of the Berlinale, or Berlin Film Festival, now in its 71st year, have always prided themselves on running screenings that are open to an enthusiastic public, unlike Venice and Cannes, its main rivals in the festival calendar.

Study finds Netflix leads on women directors, lags with Latin, Asian roles

Netflix Inc outpaced competitors in hiring women to direct feature films but Latin-American and Asian actors were underrepresented in leading TV roles, according to a study commissioned by the streaming service and released on Friday. Hollywood has faced criticism in recent years for a lack of diversity among people on and off screen. Netflix, the world's largest streaming service, asked researchers at the University of Southern California to assess the prevalence of multiple groups among actors in its English-language programming and creators working behind the scenes.

NFL denies report on media rights deal with Disney

The National Football League (NFL) on Friday denied a report that said it had reached a media rights deal with Walt Disney Co's channels ESPN and ABC. The Sports Business Journal reported that ESPN will renew 'Monday Night Football' and ABC will return to the Super Bowl rotation. (https://bit.ly/3pYxSNF)

Tom Holland goes through transformation in opioid crisis movie 'Cherry'

British actor Tom Holland, best known for playing Spider-Man, went through a physical transformation to play a drug addict war veteran suffering from PTSD in the new Russo brothers' movie "Cherry". Holland, who rose to global fame when he was cast by the Russo brothers as Peter Parker/Spider-Man in the 2016 superhero movie "Captain America: Civil War", said he wasn't sure if he was ready to take on the title role in the new gritty crime drama.

Time's Up criticizes lack of Black members among Golden Globes voters

The Time's Up movement on Friday launched a campaign criticizing the lack of diversity in the organization that hands out the Golden Globes for film and television. Two days before the annual Golden Globes awards ceremony, Time's Up posted banners on its Twitter account saying: "Hollywood Foreign Press Association: Not a Single Black Member Out of 87," with the slogan "A cosmetic fix isn't enough."

Record-breaking Japan's anime film 'Demon Slayer' lands in U.S. cinemas

The record-breaking Japanese anime film "Demon Slayer: Mugen Train" carried over its box-office buzz to the United States on Friday, captivating Florida fans in its first screening. The Demon Slayer film, based on a popular manga and TV anime series, has grossed over $350 million at theaters in Japan, despite COVID-19 restrictions, surpassing Hayao Miyazaki's Oscar-winner "Spirited Away" in just over two months to become the most successful Japanese anime of all time.

Lady Gaga's two abducted bulldogs returned unharmed to police

Lady Gaga's two stolen bulldogs, snatched in a violent abduction that left the pets' caretaker shot in the chest this week in Hollywood, were turned over to police on Friday and have been reunited with the pop singer's representatives, police said. The safe return of Koji and Gustav came hours after Gaga, who was filming a movie in Rome when her pets were taken on Wednesday night, issued a plea on social media for "an act of kindness" to bring them home.

Billie Eilish film offers intimate look at teen music sensation

A new documentary captures Billie Eilish’s meteoric rise to fame, in an intimate portrayal of the teenager recording music at home, passing her driving test, going through a relationship break-up and meeting her idol Justin Bieber. "Billie Eilish: The World's a Little Blurry" follows the American singer-songwriter's close relationship with her family, performing on stage, on the road, meeting fans and collecting five Grammy Awards, the music industry's highest honours.

(With inputs from agencies.)