Entertainment News Roundup: 'Downton Abbey' cast feeling pressure ahead of movie; Renée Zellweger felt a 'sense of responsibility' in 'Judy'

Following is a summary of current entertainment news briefs.

Pro-Kremlin rapper deletes new song goading protesters after outcry

A prominent pro-Kremlin rapper on Tuesday took down a new music video praising Moscow's mayor and disparaging the opposition after it was panned as one of the most unpopular clips ever to be posted on the Russian segment of YouTube. The music video entitled 'Moscow' was published by rappers Timati and Guf a day before a municipal election in the Russian capital on Sunday that had been preceded by the biggest anti-Kremlin protests in almost a decade.

Renée Zellweger felt a 'sense of responsibility' in 'Judy'

Renée Zellweger said she felt a "sense of responsibility" to portray the late singer Judy Garland as authentically as possible in the movie "Judy," which was shown at the Toronto Film Festival on Tuesday to a standing ovation. The film depicts the last six months of Garland's life, arriving in London in 1968 as part of a sold-out concert tour meant to refurbish her financial state.

Atwood says 'Handmaid's Tale' got much closer to reality, prompting sequel

Canadian author Margaret Atwood said a deterioration in women's rights in some parts of the world including in the United States prompted her to write a sequel to her best-selling 1985 novel "The Handmaid's Tale". The novel, made into an award-winning television series in 2017, presents a totalitarian future in the state of Gilead, where the few remaining fertile women are forced into sexual servitude as "handmaids" to repopulate a world facing environmental disaster.

Geena Davis says Hollywood gender imbalance an 'embarrassment'

The under-representation of women in Hollywood behind the camera is an "embarrassment", American actor and activist Geena Davis said at France's Deauville Film Festival. Davis, who starred in the cult classic "Thelma and Louise" with Susan Sarandon, criticized the Hollywood gender gap from the red carpet of the festival, where she was promoting her new documentary "This Changes Everything" on gender inequality.

'Downton Abbey' cast feeling the pressure ahead of movie

Get out the tiaras and the best china. Hit British television series "Downton Abbey" is about to arrive on the big screen and the makers are feeling uncharacteristically nervous. Driven by fan demand, the aristocratic family and their servants return with a movie set around a royal visit to the vast Grantham country home.

Action! Nigeria's film industry draws global entertainment brands

"Oya!" shouts the director in Nigerian Pidgin English. Actors take their marks. Lighting blinks on. The film crew snaps into action after the order to hurry up. It's another day in Nollywood, the affectionate nickname for Nigeria's film industry - the world's second most prolific after India's Bollywood, producing hundreds of films and TV episodes each month.

No phones please: Rihanna stages fashion show for exclusive Amazon release

Luxury brands and retailers are increasingly collaborating with celebrities, including style bloggers and Instagram stars, to help design collections and jazz up their wares. The latest example of this is Rihanna, who is set to stage her designer lingerie show for New York Fashion Week on Tuesday to an audience where phones and cameras have been banned.

Also Read: Entertainment News Roundup: 'Downton Abbey' cast feeling the pressure ahead of movie; Renée Zellweger felt a 'sense of responsibility' in 'Judy'

(With inputs from agencies.)