Entertainment News Roundup: David Blaine pulls off high flying balloon 'Ascension' stunt; BBC reverses course in 'Rule Britannia' singing row and more

1 hit on the main U.S. Billboard music chart, K-pop juggernaut BTS on Wednesday set its sights on a standalone performance at next year's Grammy Awards - and maybe a trophy or two.

Following is a summary of current entertainment news briefs.

Revised Weinstein settlement draws opposition at court hearing

Lawyers for Harvey Weinstein's bankrupt film studio on Wednesday presented a revised proposal to settle sexual misconduct claims against the disgraced former producer, but an attorney for accusers pledged to oppose the plan. The $35.2 million proposal filed on Tuesday in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware was financed by insurers and includes $17 million to settle sexual misconduct claims in various courts as well as a lawsuit by New York's attorney general.

Scaled-down Venice film festival hopes to shake off virus gloom

Fewer Hollywood stars will grace the red carpet and there will be no fans clamouring for autographs. But for all the COVID-19 restrictions, director Alberto Barbera says the very fact that the Venice film festival is going ahead in front of live audiences this week sends a positive message.

David Blaine pulls off high flying balloon 'Ascension' stunt

Daredevil David Blaine performed his latest stunt on Wednesday, ascending nearly 25,000 feet (7,600 meters) into the Arizona sky while hanging from a cluster of jumbo-sized balloons before parachuting safely back to earth. "It's like magic, it feels like I'm floating in the air," Blaine said on a radio to his team of aides back on the ground after gently lifting off from a desert airstrip in Page, Arizona, connected to dozens of balloons in an event he called "Ascension."

BBC reverses course in 'Rule Britannia' singing row

The BBC has rowed back on a plan to omit the words from two patriotic songs at the pomp-laden climax of a classical music festival this month after critics including Prime Minister Boris Johnson accused it of seeking to censor Britain's past. With COVID-19 restrictions limiting the size of the choir and preventing an audience from attending, the broadcaster planned to play orchestral versions of "Rule Britannia!" and "Land of Hope and Glory", which are normally sung by flag-waving fans.

Harry and Meghan team up with Netflix in major Hollywood move

Britain's Prince Harry and his American-born wife Meghan have signed an exclusive multiyear production deal with Netflix Inc, a major step in their plan to make a living for themselves outside the royal family. Under the deal, whose value was not disclosed, the couple will produce films and series ranging from children's shows to scripted content, the streaming platform said on Wednesday.

'Game of Thrones' creators to adapt Chinese sci-fi trilogy for Netflix

The creators of television's "Game of Thrones" are to adapt a best selling Chinese science-fiction book trilogy for a Netflix series. Netflix said on Tuesday that the English-language adaptation will cover all three of the award-winning Chinese novels - "The Three-Body Problem," "The Dark Forest," and "Death's End," written by Liu Cixin.

Actor Dwayne Johnson says he and family have recovered from COVID-19

Pro-wrestler turned Hollywood actor Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson said in a video message posted on social media on Wednesday that he, his wife and their two young children tested positive for COVID-19 in recent weeks but that they all have recovered and are healthy. Johnson, 48, said in the Instagram post that he and his spouse, Lauren, 35, and their daughters, Jasmine, 4, and Tiana, 2, caught the virus about 2-1/2 weeks ago from "very close family friends" whom he said had no idea how they had become infected.

After blowing up Billboard chart, K-pop colossus BTS eyes Grammys 'Dynamite'

Fresh from scoring Korea's first-ever no. 1 hit on the main U.S. Billboard music chart, K-pop juggernaut BTS on Wednesday set its sights on a standalone performance at next year's Grammy Awards - and maybe a trophy or two. Since its 2013 debut, the seven-member South Korean boy band has surfed the global K-pop craze to dizzying heights. On Monday it landed top spot in the Billboard Hot 100 chart with breezy disco hit "Dynamite", a first all-English language single that's been lapped up by mainstream U.S. pop fans.

Netflix, Russia's NMG group team up for fully Russian service

Streaming giant Netflix and Russia's National Media Group (NMG) have set up a partnership to run the U.S. group's Russian service, they said on Wednesday. Netflix's international version has been available in Russia since 2015. NMG is a leading private media holding in the country.

Venice film festival opens with show of support for battered industry

The heads of Europe's main film festivals came together for the opening of the Venice movie showcase on Wednesday in a show of solidarity for an industry which has been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic. The director of the Cannes festival, the world's biggest, and his counterparts for the Berlin, Rotterdam, San Sebastian, Locarno, Karlovy Vary and London film festivals made the trip to Venice for the first such international event to take place since the health crisis all but shut down the movie world.

(With inputs from agencies.)