Entertainment News Roundup: South Korean retail investors bid over 450 billion to win; Netflix India screens three 'Bad Boy' and more

The movie industry received a jolt on Monday when Cineworld , the world's second-biggest cinema chain, said it would close its UK and U.S. movie theaters, blaming the reluctance of studios to go ahead with major releases for the decision.

Following is a summary of current entertainment news briefs.

South Korean retail investors bid over $50 billion to win coveted shares in BTS label

South Korean retail investors ponied up over $50 billion as they sought to lay their hands on shares in Big Hit Entertainment, the management label of K-pop sensation BTS - more than 600 times the value of shares on offer. The combined 58.4 trillion won ($50.3 billion) in orders fell just shy of a record 58.55 trillion won in bids for the retail portion of Kakao Games' listing in September.

Netflix India screens three 'Bad Boy' episodes after legal row

Netflix has released three episodes of its four-part series about four Indian tycoons facing fraud allegations after a state court lifted an injunction, a lawyer for the world's largest streaming service said on Monday. The "Bad Boy Billionaires: India" documentary series about liquor tycoon Vijay Mallya, Subrata Roy of the Sahara group, IT executive Ramalinga Raju and jeweller Nirav Modi had been set for release last month.

Led Zeppelin emerges victor in 'Stairway to Heaven' plagiarism case

British rock band Led Zeppelin on Monday effectively won a long-running legal battle over claims it stole the opening guitar riff from its signature 1971 song "Stairway to Heaven." The band, one of the best-selling rock acts of all time, was handed victory after the U.S. Supreme Court declined to take up the case, meaning that a March 2020 decision by a U.S. appeals court in Led Zeppelin's favor will stand.

AMC Entertainment to keep most theaters open

AMC Entertainment, the largest theater chain in the world, said on Tuesday most of its theaters in the United States and Europe would remain open, with several movie releases lined up for October and November. The move comes a day after rival Cineworld, the world's second-biggest cinema operator, said it would close all its screens in the U.S. and Britain after studios delayed major releases such as the latest James Bond film.

Warner Bros delays 'Dune', 'The Batman' movies

AT&T Inc's Warner Bros said it is delaying the release of "Dune" and "The Batman" movies, another setback for the entertainment industry hit by COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns and social distancing measures that have closed theaters worldwide. The movie industry received a jolt on Monday when Cineworld , the world's second-biggest cinema chain, said it would close its UK and U.S. movie theaters, blaming the reluctance of studios to go ahead with major releases for the decision.

Alec Baldwin defends Trump satire on 'SNL' while president hospitalized

Alec Baldwin defended his impersonation of Donald Trump on television's "Saturday Night Live" sketch show while the U.S. President was hospitalized with COVID-19, saying he wouldn't have done so had Trump been "truly, gravely ill." Baldwin said the producers and the NBC network "don't want to sink the ship. So if there was ever the suggestion that Trump was truly, gravely ill ... really in trouble, then I would bet you everything I have that we wouldn't even get near that in terms of the content of the show," Baldwin said in an Instagram video on Sunday night in response to criticism on social media.

Feeling lonely? Britain's Captain Tom launches podcast to tackle isolation

Britain's 100-year-old charity hero, Captain Tom Moore, becomes one of the country's oldest podcasters with the launch on Monday of a series to tackle isolation among older people, a corporate sponsor said on Monday. The podcast, called The Originals, is part of a campaign by charity Age UK and Cadbury's that aims to inspire people to have a meaningful conversation with an older person, a Cadbury's statement said, noting that social isolation, especially among the elderly, has worsened during the COVID-19 crisis.

Absent with leave: calls grow for BTS members to postpone or skip military service

Calls are mounting within South Korea for members of megaband BTS to be granted alternatives or delays to mandatory military service, with some lawmakers and fans arguing they are doing plenty for their country without wearing a soldier's uniform. By law, all able-bodied men in South Korea aged between 18 and 28 must serve in the military for roughly two years as part of the country's defences against North Korea.

Rocker Eddie Van Halen dies at 65, son Wolfgang says on Twitter

Eddie Van Halen, considered one of rock music's greatest guitar players and a founding member of the hugely successful rock band named after him and his drummer brother, died of cancer on Tuesday, his son said on Twitter. He was 65. "I can't believe I'm having to write this but my father, Edward Lodewijk Van Halen, has lost his long and arduous battle with cancer this morning," Wolfgang Van Halen, a bass player who played with his father in the band, said in the tweet.