Entertainment News Roundup: Adele and Ed Sheeran lead nominees for BRIT Awards; 'Avatar' director James Cameron's inspirations laid bare in art book and more

Following is a summary of current entertainment news briefs.

'Spider-Man' ignites pandemic box office with historic opening

"Spider-Man: No Way Home" racked up a head-spinning $253 million in U.S. and Canadian ticket sales over the weekend, setting a pandemic record and ranking as the third-biggest domestic debut in Hollywood history even as a new COVID-19 variant spreads. Around the globe, "No Way Home" generated an additional $334.2 million for a worldwide weekend total of $587.2 million, according to estimates from distributor Sony Corp.

'Avatar' director James Cameron's inspirations laid bare in art book

Movie director James Cameron has created some of the most striking images on screen, from the sinking of the ocean liner in "Titanic" to Sigourney Weaver battling with an extraterrestrial creature in "Aliens." The original concepts and characters stem from his early days as a young artist in Canada, as revealed in the book "Tech Noir: The Art of James Cameron," which shows how his early ideas evolved into films.

Adele and Ed Sheeran lead nominees for BRIT Awards

Adele and Ed Sheeran were announced on Saturday as two of the top nominees for the 2022 BRIT Awards, with four nominations each. Rappers Dave and Little Simz also received four nominations for the awards, in a list that saw Britain's annual pop music honours dispensing of male and female categories.

(With inputs from agencies.)