Entertainment News Roundup: Singapore lures Taylor Swift with grant for sold-out March concerts; From Berlinale to Eurovision, anger over Gaza clouds Europe's cultural events and more

Based on the novel "Spaceman of Bohemia" by Czech author Jaroslav Kalfar, the film follows Jakub (Sandler) as a year-long solo journey to a purple interstellar cloud takes its toll on his mental health and his marriage to Carey Mulligan's Lenka until Hanus, a big spider voiced by Paul Dano, suddenly appears. World exists beyond eurocentric gaze, 'Black Tea' director tells Berlinale For director Abderrahmane Sissako, it was important to show a side of Africa that is not often portrayed on the big screen in his bicontinental tea-obsessed romance "Black Tea," which premiered at the Berlin Film Festival on Wednesday evening.

Following is a summary of current entertainment news briefs.

Actor Sterling K. Brown basks in Oscars nomination moment

American actor Sterling K. Brown is no stranger to the thrill of winning awards in Hollywood with three Emmys, a Golden Globe and four Screen Actors Guild awards. So for his first Oscar nomination, the actor has decided to play it cool. "I'm sort of the Vince Lombardi mind, when you score a touchdown, act like you've been there,” Brown told Reuters at the Oscars nominees luncheon this month.

Olivia Colman, Jessie Buckley reunite in sweary 'Wicked Little Letters'

Olivia Colman and Jessie Buckley play two very different neighbours in new film "Wicked Little Letters", a comedy mystery based on a real life British scandal from the 1920s, which saw people receiving expletive-laden notes. Set in an English seaside town, the movie follows Colman's pious and conservative Edith and Buckley's loud and rowdy Irish migrant Rose as they become friends.

Singapore lures Taylor Swift with grant for sold-out March concerts

Singapore has awarded Taylor Swift a grant to perform in the city-state, government authorities said on Tuesday, acknowledging efforts to persuade the pop superstar to perform on the island - her only stop in Southeast Asia - and the potential boon to the economy from her concerts. Swift is set to perform six sold-out shows in Singapore early in March.

From Berlinale to Eurovision, anger over Gaza clouds Europe's cultural events

Indian-American filmmaker Suneil Sanzgiri was set to showcase his film about anti-colonial resistance against the Portuguese empire at this month's Berlinale film festival but dropped out. Announcing his boycott on Instagram, Sanzgiri accused the German authorities of silencing voices speaking out for Palestinians in the war in Gaza. "I will not be complicit. We all have blood on our hands," he wrote.

Live-action 'The Last Airbender' series adds elements of its own

Paul Sun-Hyung Lee feels like being cast in Netflix's "Avatar: The Last Airbender" is both a dream come true and a great responsibility. The American adventure-fantasy series, which arrives on the streaming service on Thursday, is a live-action adaptation of the highly acclaimed animated television series of the same name created by Michael DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko in 2005.

Diesel opens up catwalk show, protester storms Fendi at Milan Fashion

Diesel livestreamed its preparations for Milan Fashion Week and highlighted its online audience at its runway show on Wednesday while a protester stormed the Fendi catwalk on the second day of the city's leg of the autumn/winter 2024 catwalk calendar. Creative director Glenn Martens took the unusual step of sharing the behind-the-scenes preparations from its atelier, fittings and catwalk space this week ahead of the Diesel show.

Adam Sandler gets deep with space spider at Berlinale

On the edge of the universe, Adam Sandler confronts the pain of loneliness - and stunt wires - through a therapist-cum-guru giant space spider in the Netflix-backed science-fiction drama "Spaceman" that premiered Tuesday at the Berlin Film Festival. Based on the novel "Spaceman of Bohemia" by Czech author Jaroslav Kalfar, the film follows Jakub (Sandler) as a year-long solo journey to a purple interstellar cloud takes its toll on his mental health and his marriage to Carey Mulligan's Lenka until Hanus, a big spider voiced by Paul Dano, suddenly appears.

World exists beyond eurocentric gaze, 'Black Tea' director tells Berlinale

For director Abderrahmane Sissako, it was important to show a side of Africa that is not often portrayed on the big screen in his bicontinental tea-obsessed romance "Black Tea," which premiered at the Berlin Film Festival on Wednesday evening. "It was important for me to think about opening up this gaze. There's very often a European or eurocentric gaze, as if that was all that made up the world," the BAFTA-nominated director told journalists ahead of the premiere.

Taylor Swift named IFPI 2023 global recording artist of the year

Pop superstar Taylor Swift added another honour to her long list of accolades on Wednesday, winning the global recording artist of the year award for the fourth time from the IFPI, the organisation that represents the recorded music industry. The "Anti-Hero" singer scooped the award for the second year running, and has previously won it 2014 and 2019. The latest is for 2023.

Aerosmith's Steven Tyler wins dismissal of sexual assault lawsuit

A U.S. judge on Wednesday dismissed a lawsuit accusing Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler of sexually assaulting a former teenage model twice in one day in Manhattan nearly 50 years ago.

U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan in Manhattan said Jeanne Bellino waited too long to sue the 75-year-old Tyler, who has "vehemently" denied her allegations, under a New York City law protecting victims of gender-motivated violence.

(With inputs from agencies.)