Entertainment News Roundup: Shawn Mendes' new song not holding back after public breakup; Batiste wins album honor, Zelenskiy makes appeal at Grammys and more

The podcast follows "The Batman" movie, which was released in cinemas in March and has sold nearly $712 million worth of tickets worldwide. Factbox-Key winners at music's Grammy awards The Grammy awards, the highest honors in the music industry, were out at a live ceremony in Las Vegas on Sunday.

Following is a summary of current entertainment news briefs.

British government set to sell broadcaster Channel 4

The British government has decided to sell Channel 4, the publicly-owned but commercially funded broadcaster founded nearly 40 years ago as an edgy alternative to the BBC and ITV, the company said on Monday. Ministers said last year that privatisation would help secure Channel 4's future as a public service broadcaster.

Box Office: 'Morbius' Opens to No. 1 With Decent $39 Million

"Morbius," the latest comic book adventure from Sony's Universe of Marvel Characters, opened in first place at the domestic box office, though ticket sales were considerably softer than recent superhero blockbusters. Dinged by comically terrible reviews, "Morbius" sunk its teeth into $39.1 million from 4,268 North American theaters in its first weekend of release. That initial tally is at once a sign that audiences truly love comic book movies (in pandemic times, a non-superhero film with a 17% on Rotten Tomatoes wouldn't stand a chance at the box office) and an indication that not every superhuman character will be greeted equally on the big screen. (Sony's 2018 antihero origin story "Venom" was similarly panned but still managed to score at the domestic box office with $80 million to start and $213 million in total).

Shawn Mendes' new song not holding back after public breakup

Shawn Mendes is working through his very public breakup with singer Camila Cabello with his new single, "When You're Gone". Mendes called the up-tempo tune therapeutic and said it is about the "essence of processing a breakup and what that is and memories and all of these feelings kind of start flowing."

Batiste wins album honor, Zelenskiy makes appeal at Grammys

Multi-genre artist Jon Batiste won album of the year and R&B duo Silk Sonic took two of the top honors on Sunday at a Grammy awards ceremony that featured a surprise appeal for support from wartime President Volodymyr Zelenskiy of Ukraine. Batiste, who leads the band on "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert," landed five awards overall, including the night's biggest prize for "We Are," a jazz album inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement.

UK to ban celebrities popular with under-18s from gambling ads

Gambling advertisements in Britain featuring celebrities, sports people and social media influencers popular with the under-18s will be banned under a new ruling designed to protect children in one of the world's largest betting markets. The tougher rules form part of the Advertising Standards Authority's commitment to "safeguarding young people and vulnerable audiences", the regulator said on Tuesday.

Zelenskiy asks Grammys audience to support 'in any way you can'

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on Sunday made a surprise video appearance at the music industry's star-studded Grammy Awards celebration in Las Vegas and appealed to viewers to support his country "in any way you can." "What is more opposite to music? The silence of ruined cities and killed people," said Zelenskiy in the video that introduced John Legend's performance of "Free" and featured Ukrainian musicians and a reading by Ukrainian poet Lyuba Yakimchuck.

New Batman story coming to Spotify podcasts in May, in 9 languages

Spotify's podcast fiction series about Batman alter-ego Bruce Wayne will debut around the world in May with local adaptations in nine countries including India, Brazil and Japan, the company said on Tuesday. The podcast follows "The Batman" movie, which was released in cinemas in March and has sold nearly $712 million worth of tickets worldwide.

Factbox-Key winners at music's Grammy awards

The Grammy awards, the highest honors in the music industry, were out at a live ceremony in Las Vegas on Sunday. Below is a list of winners in key categories.