Reality Beat: ‘Angry Young Men' Premieres Worldwide, Bobby Lashley Confirms Las Vegas Boxing Match

Docuseries: Angry Young Men has made its worldwide premiere on August 20th following its trailer release on August 13th. The three-part docuseries is focused on the personal and professional journey of the writer-duo Salim Khan and Javed Akhtar (popularly known as Salim-Javed). Rare archival footage is featured in the series, offering a glimpse of their relationships, camaraderie, and creative brilliance that pushed them to create 24 films. Salim-Javed revolutionized Indian cinema in the 1970s and revitalized the Bollywood formula by introducing ‘angry young man’ heroes. The duo made action dramas a beloved genre in an industry dominated by romance and created blockbusters such as Deewar, Sholay, and Dostana. Angry Young Men was produced by Salman Khan Films, Excel Media & Entertainment, and Tiger Baby. The duo’s children (Salma Kahn, Salman Khan, Farhan Akhtar, and Zoya Akhtar) served as executive producers on the docuseries alongside Ritesh Sidhwani and Reema Kagti, while Namrata Rao made her directorial debut. The docuseries is now available on Prime Video in India and over 240 countries and territories worldwide.

Salim Khan said, “I started my career in front of the camera but realized that my true strength lay in telling stories. That’s when I decided to focus on what came naturally to me – writing. I then met Javed who was equally passionate about writing, and together we did some fantastic work together, which I am very proud of. We had an excellent run and achieved great success, and also challenged industry norms along the way. It feels wonderful that our journey is being documented for future generations, and I hope they will be inspired to do their best and not be confined by society’s prescribed roles. I’m excited for audiences across the world to see our journey unfold on Prime Video.”

Javed Akhtar shared, “I arrived in this city as a young man with no job, contacts, or money and often going to bed hungry; despite that, quitting never crossed my mind. What I always knew, however, was that my life story was something I would want to share with the world. The support we have received from our family, friends, and the industry in documenting our journey has been heartening and I would like to thank them all for their love. We're delighted to share our story on Prime Video with a global audience, offering them a candid look into our journey from early struggles to achieving our dreams.”

Daveed Diggs will executive produce a KQED documentary series titled The Class, focusing on high schoolers coming of age at the height of the Covid pandemic. The six-part docuseries was filmed during the 2020-2021 school year in the California East Bay Antioch community when kids were forced to readjust to the sudden social isolation and great disruption of their daily lives. The series features a half dozen seniors from Deer Valley High School and college adviser Mr. Cam who helps the students fight for their dreams of a college degree and prevail over obstacles brought on by the pandemic. The Class is directed and produced by Adam Fenderson and Jaye Fenderson of Three Frame Media and will premiere nationwide in the spring of 2025.

“High school has always been a challenging time, but in the age of Covid it took an extra dose of courage and perseverance to succeed,” observed Diggs, the Tony- and Grammy-winning actor, producer, and musician (Hamilton, Blindspotting, Snowpiercer). “As an Oakland native and a fierce advocate for expanding opportunities in education, I am proud to be a part of The Class which highlights the stories of six incredible Bay Area teens as they fight to achieve their dreams.”

KQED says the debut of the series will be accompanied by an impact campaign intended to allow audiences “to reflect on the educational inequalities resulting from distance learning, the mental health crises facing students, and a hopeful path forward to create opportunity for the pandemic generation.”

Romesh Ranganathan is set to launch the investigative docuseries Misinvestigations of Romesh Ranganathan. The comedian and presenter will investigate the lives and deaths of some of the world’s most well-known cultural icons: Hip Hop icon Tupac Shakur, Guitarist Jimi Hendrix, and Sex Pistols bassist Sid Vicious (and his girlfriend Nancy Spungen). Romesh recently completed the final season of BAFTA-winning Misadventures where he explored some of the least tourist-friendly destinations in the world. His new series Misinvestigations will launch on BBC Two and iPlayer this summer. All four cultural icons had a lasting impact on pop culture and met a sudden death in their twenties which have been consistent topics of suspicion and debate. Criminal psychologist, writer, and podcaster Dr. Julia Shaw will assist Romesh as he talks to experts, eyewitnesses, friends, and journalists to educate himself on the lives of each icon and properly investigate the enduring mystery behind their deaths. Misinvestigations’ Jimi Hendrix episode originally aired on BBC Two in 2022 as a pilot episode. The investigative docuseries is produced by Rumpus Media (a part of STV Studios).

Romesh Ranganathan stated, “We wanted a spin-off for Misadventures, and after we discussed Misinterpretations, Miscalculations, and Misunderstandings, we finally settled on Misinvestigations. It’s been really interesting to look into these high-profile deaths and I am very excited for people to see the show. Unless, of course, people don’t like it, in which case I will release a statement explaining how I never really believed in the project.”

Docusoap: Filming has begun for NBCUniversal’s Dating #NoFilter South Africa at the Mall of Africa in Johannesburg. The local adaptation will be broadcast on E! (DStv 124) later this year. Dating #NoFilter has a panel of comedians who watch and provide commentation on footage of blind dates set up by the producers. Brainstorm Entertainment produced the series which will have ten hourlong episodes. Dating #NoFilter was first premiered in America in 2019 with a British remake premiering in 2021. Comedians set to appear in the South African remake include Margo Fargo, Jason Goliath, Sentle Andile, Robby Collins, Tumi the Narrator, and Skyf Your Loss among others.

Ana Langenberg, senior vice president for format sales and production at NBCUniversalFormats, said in a statement, "Dating #NoFilter is a brilliant format with international appeal.” Langenberg stated, "Viewers love watching their favorite comedians offer side-splitting commentary while love seekers navigate the hilarious and unpredictable world of dating. I can't wait to see South African audiences be swept off their feet by what promises to be a sensational new series."

The trailer for The Real Housewives of New York City Season 15 has been released. Before the premiere, Bravo is hosting a fan experience at the Chelsea Factory in NYC on Friday, September 20th. The event will feature a scenic autumn apple orchard and present fans and attendees with the touch of Bravo’s hit reality series through a photo experience inspired by the cast. The cast of Season 15 includes the return of Ubah Hassan, Sai De Silva, Jessel Taank, Erin Lichy, Bryn Whitfield, and Jenna Lyons. RHONY Season 15 will premiere on October 1st at 9 P.M. ET.

Yolanda “Londie” Favors has passed away unexpectedly at age 34 on August 7, 2024. Favors appeared on Bravo’s The Real Housewives of Atlanta: Porsha’s Family Matters, a spinoff of the RHOA franchise. The one-season series premiered in 2021, focusing on RHOA star Porsha Williams and her extended family in Atlanta. Porsha Williams mourned the death of her baby cousin, sharing her tribute in a social media post on August 7th.

“Londie – you were our best friend, our sister, our aunt, our cousin, and so much more. Your life was a blessing, your memory a treasure, and you are loved beyond words and will be missed beyond measure,” Williams shared in an Instagram post. Williams continued, “The impact and value you provided all of us during your time here was tremendous, but we know that your spirit will always be with us every day guiding us through this difficult time and what’s still to come. For that, we’re eternally grateful. Love you always Dear Baby Cousin.”

Jaleel White - Jeff Kravitz

Games Shows: CBS Media Ventures announced the new game series Flip Side hosted by Jaleel White and scheduled to premiere on Monday, September 9th in national syndication. Two teams of players are pitted against each other to be tested on how they think two groups of people feel about the same issue. Competing for a prize of $10,000, the teams must guess the top answers based on anonymous surveys. Jaleel White is an actor, writer, and producer, well-known for his role as Steve Urkel in the sitcom Family Matters. White hosted two seasons of Total Blackout and was a recurring celebrity guest on 25 Words or Less and Pictionary. He set a record on Celebrity Family Feud for guessing all the number one answers in the bonus round. Flip Side will air at 5 P.M. on WLNY in NY, 6 P.M. on KCAL in LA, and 7 P.M. on WCIU in Chicago. Viewers can check their local listings to see when and where the new series airs in their city and can tune in to bonus airings on Game Show Network beginning Monday, September 16th.

NBCUniversal streamer Peacock has ordered two more seasons of The Traitors, ensuring it’d be carried through five installments. The Traitors attracted many for its premise where several players are ‘traitors’ who work and conspire to eliminate other players from the game. After season two of the series earned four Emmy nominations, the renewals come before season three’s expected premiere in early 2025. Alan Cumming will return for each upcoming season. During its second season, The Traitors became the most-watched unscripted streaming series in the US for its premiere week in January. In Nielsen’s ranking, it spent five weeks in the top 10 original streaming series. 

Netflix has set the judges’ panel and hosting for Building The Band, a music competition series. Nicole Scherzinger (The Pussycat Dolls) will serve as a mentor. Scherzinger will also serve as a judge with Kelly Rowland (Destiny’s Child) and Liam Payne (One Direction). Filming will begin this summer. Guest judges and various challenges will be announced at a later date. Building the Band is in pursuit of discovering the next great music group without bandmates initially meeting face-to-face. The singers have full control as they work to form their bands in individual booths without seeing each other. They’ll base their judgments only on musical compatibility, connection, chemistry, and merit. When the bands finally meet, will the judgment of looks, choreography, and style be the start of their rise or demise? Building the Band is produced by Remarkable Entertainment.

“Building the Band is a brave and bold undertaking for all involved as we hand over power to the singers themselves to form their own band based on chemistry first,” said Cat Lawson, who is on the team of executive producers. “With looks out of the equation, can they create a deeper connection with their bandmates? With limited bands, there are difficult decisions and heart-stopping moments along the way, but ultimately the outcome is truly amazing, with bands forming, who in my opinion are worthy of the very biggest stage!”

Nazleen Karim - YouTube

Competitive Series: Love is Blind UK is breaking down walls built on British masculine stereotypes. Executive producer, Nazleen Karim, feared that male contestants would be painfully reserved and shy from discussing their feelings due to the common idea that most British men refuse to talk about their emotions. Each British contestant showed no issue communicating their emotions within minutes of conversing in the pods with a potential spouse who they couldn’t see. Karim suggested the series helps set an example for other men by showing it is possible to maintain masculine energy regardless of talking about their feelings. Contestants in the UK remake are a little older, most in their 30s rather than their 20s (the more common age range in other remakes). The cast was selected from all over the UK creating a mix of diverse accents, some much stronger than others. Another British stereotype was broken down as series editor David Cheesman claims there is rarely alcohol present on the show, but rather a large sum of water, tea, and coffee.

“There’s something so beautiful and confronting about the pods, it just allows you to be really vulnerable,” says Karim, so people just lay their hearts and emotions on the line and the Brits bared their souls in a similar way to the U.S. cast. We were so proud of British men.”

“It feels more authentic that these people are ready to take the next step into finding a life partner and a soulmate and effectively saying ‘I do’ at the altar,” he says, noting that people tend to get married younger in the U.S. (the average age for women in the U.S. is 28.6 while in the U.K. it’s 30.6). “It’s not something people in their 20s can always afford to do in the U.K., so I think it makes our cast very believable and very relatable to people watching.”

Grant Ellis has been announced as the next star of The Bachelor Season 29, set to air in 2025. After being rejected at the Rose Ceremony in the August 12th episode of The Bachelorette Season 21, Grant Ellis has been chosen to hand out roses of his own next year. ABC admired Grant for capturing the hearts of Bachelor Nation with his genuine desire to build a family-centered future full of adventure, love, and genuineness.

"I want a family, you know? I want to be happy. I want a wife. I want to be in love," Grant shared with The Bachelorette cameras following his elimination. "I want that, you know? I want to give everything to somebody, and I want them to give everything to me in return. I don't know what else to say. I did not think that was going to happen tonight."

Love Island Games has been renewed for a second season. The reality series will return in 2025 and feature a new group of fan-favorite contestants worldwide to compete to be crowned the champion. The new cast, schedule, and location for the new season remain to be announced. Nielsen streaming charts reported that Love Island USA was the #1 reality series in the US across streaming platforms with over 1 billion viewing minutes since its season 6 launch.

Love Island USA fan favorites Serena Page and JaNa Craig have signed with Gersh for representation. Serena Page won Season 6 of the reality dating series with her partner Kordell Beckham and continues to be represented by Essence alongside her new signing. JaNa Craig finished the dating series in third place with her partner Kenny Rodriguez. Page and Craig formed a sisterhood with Leah Kateb, calling themselves ‘PPG’ (Power Puff Girls). They recently filmed the Love Island USA reunion which streamed on Peacock on August 19th at 9 P.M. ET.

An exclusive first look at ABC’s The Golden Bachelorette introduces the 24 men vying for the golden love Joan Vassos yearns to give and receive. The men, ages 57 to 69, come from all parts of the country. They carry a variety of interests and hobbies, from cornhole to cooking to playing the ukulele. They also wield a variety of professions, from a firefighter to a salon owner to a caterer (and retirees, too). Contestants include Charles K. a 62-year-old portfolio manager from Rancho Palos Verdes, California; he’s expressed feeling proud of his work building homes in rural Nicaragua. Another contestant, Charles L. is a 66-year-old retired financial analyst flying in from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; he’s stated that during his golden years, if he could see anyone in concert, he’d love to see Britney Spears perform. 64-year-old Christopher comes from West Babylon, New York with an occupation as a contractor and a love for his birthday which falls on Christmas Eve. 65-year-old Gary is a retired finance executive from Palm Desert, California; he is the godson of Tina Turner and is musically gifted with singing and dancing. Jonathan, age 61, is a shipping consultant from Oakland, Iowa who toyed with the idea of being a bodybuilder. RJ, age 66, is a financial adviser from Irvine, California whose favorite Christmas movie is Die Hard (showing which side of the fence he’s on in that age-old debate). These contestants, among others, will compete for the golden rose when The Golden Bachelorette premieres Wednesday, September 18th at 8 P.M. ET.

Dancing With The Stars has confirmed the judging panel for Season 33. Carrie Ann Inaba, Bruno Tonioli, and Derek Hough will return as judges, with Alfonso Ribiero and Julianne Hough returning as co-hosts for the new season. The celebrity dancers have not been announced. Dancing With The Stars Season 33 premieres September 17th on ABC and Disney+, with streaming on Hulu.

RuPaul’s Drag Race has been renewed for Season 17 on MTV. Its companion series RuPaul’s Drag Race: Untucked has also been renewed. Paramount+ renewed RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars for a 10th season along with RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars: Untucked. The renewals follow the franchise’s Emmy nominations and the RuPaul’s Drag Race All-Stars premiere. The franchise earned a total of ten new Emmy nominations. RuPaul received his ninth consecutive nomination for Outstanding Host for a Reality or Reality-Competition Program this year. The reality series also received its first Emmy nomination for Outstanding Choreography For Variety Or Reality Programming.

Choreographer Jamal Sims expressed his contentment in receiving that recognition, stating, “We have to remember that we’re not working with professional dancers here on the show. They’re contestants and some of them have never had dance training before. So, to me, it feels like I’m part of the competition. I actually do want each one of them to succeed when I’m choreographing, and that’s what’s so important.”

Netflix is effectively expanding its Korean unscripted TV content, launching ten new reality series this year. On August 6th The Influencer was launched, featuring 77 of South Korea’s top influencers in a social survival competition. Following closely behind is A-List to Playlist (premiering August 30th), a reality series documenting actor Cho Jung-seok’s journey to debut as a singer. In September, the cooking competition series Culinary Class Wars premieres – an ultimate face-off between 100 chefs battling to be the best in Korea. In October, Kakao Entertainment’s Comedy Revenge premieres. In December, the sports survival reality series Rugged Rugby: Conquer or Die debuts, displaying the fierce competitiveness between rugby athletes. Kian’s Bizarre B&B is a new reality series set to premiere in 2025 that takes place in an eccentric guesthouse on the island of Ulleungdo and offers special moments for guests to enjoy. Single’s Inferno is set to return for a fourth season – a dating series featuring single contestants searching for love on a deserted island where they can only leave with a partner as a couple. Season 3 reached the upper ranks of the Global Top 10 TV Series (non-English) for five weeks and broke into the Top 10 in 31 countries. The new content was announced at the Netflix Unscripted Festival in Seoul.

Jimin and Jungkook - YouTube

Lifestyle: K-pop stars Jimin and Jung Kook set out on travel adventures in their new reality series Are You Sure?!. In each episode, Jimin and Jung Kook visit a new place, immersing themselves in each destination’s culture and cuisine. The K-pop stars also participate in action-packed activities. Filming for the series took place in 2023, showcasing their travels to New York, Jeju Island, and Sapporo before their mandatory military service in South Korea. The series launched on August 8th streaming on Disney+. New episodes are released every Thursday leading up to the season finale on September 19th.

Bobby Lashley - AMER HILABI

Sports: Bobby Lashley has confirmed an upcoming boxing match in Las Vegas. Lashley’s WWE contract is set to expire soon. Speculation began on whether Lashley would return after he was removed from the company’s internal roster. His last WWE match was in May during a live event in France. During an appearance on The Laboratory with Plaz, Lashley stated he was ardent about testing himself outside wrestling. He announced his plans to line up a boxing match in Las Vegas, though his opponent is yet to be announced.

"I love to be able to push myself to do things that are ridiculous. I set goals for myself every day," he said. "What can I do? How far can I push myself? How much can I do? I want to run a marathon. I'm going to try to do that pretty soon. I'll do jiu-jitsu, I'm going to try and win a world championship in jiu-jitsu. I'm going to do a boxing match. We've already talked about this boxing match. I might have an opportunity to do it. I'm boxing somebody in Vegas. There is an opponent."

The South African Football Association (SAFA) has renewed its partnership with the public broadcaster South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) for another four years. The new contract runs through 2028 and includes all SAFA matches and events. SABC has not released the cost of the four-year contract. They will broadcast matches of Bafana Bafana, Banyana Banayana, the women’s Hollywoodbets Super League, Abantwana [South African women’s U-17s], and all SAFA events. Keletso Totlhanyo, SABC head of sports, stated that the public broadcasting company will have a weekly magazine program covering everything about South African football.

During an announcement at the SABC's Auckland Park headquarters, SABC CEO Nomsa Chabeli said, “It's my great honor to announce that SAFA and the SABC have renewed their partnership that has held us in good stead for the past 32 years and that has allowed South Africans to be part of the football journey…” Chabeli added, “For me personally, I love that we are going to be able to showcase grassroots leagues, which are critical for this country in terms of people coming out in numbers and playing and the future stars of football in South Africa, and also having the opportunity to play globally.”

TelevisaUnivision and Major League Baseball announced a new multi-year agreement. On August 20th, TelevisaUnivision networks began providing dedicated coverage of the MLB regular season. Coverage will continue through the post-season. The network will also produce an MLB-focused regular season program called MLB Esta Semana airing on UniMás in the US every Saturday at 3 P.M. EST and PST, and on TUDN in Mexico. The series will feature hosts Antonio de Valdés and Enrique Burak, play-by-play commentators Daniel Nohra and Luis Quiñones, and reporters Luis Alberto Martínez and Daniel Schvartzman. The multi-year partnership also includes the new series MLB En Vivo, featuring up to 15 games of live look-ins, highlights, and recaps every Tuesday through the remainder of the regular season. The series will air live on UniMás from 9 to 11 P.M. EST. TelevisaUnivision will receive exclusive Spanish-language rights in the US to the 2024 American League Division and American League Championship Series with select games airing on UniMás and simulcast on TUDN. Univision will broadcast Game 1 of the World Series. The Fall Classic will be accessible to fans on an over-the-air Spanish-language broadcast network. With the new deal, TelevisaUnivision’s coverage is now the official national Spanish-language audio partner in the US and Puerto Rico. TUDN Radio broadcasts Sunday Night, July 4th, and Labor Day Games. TUDN Radio also covers the MLB All-Star Game, the MLB Postseason, and the World Series.

“We are proud to partner with Major League Baseball, delivering action from the best players and teams to our viewers across the country,” said Marco Liceaga, senior vice president of sports rights acquisitions and commercial partnerships at TelevisaUnivision. “Baseball is engrained in Latin culture. With Hispanic players making up more than 30% of the league, this first-time partnership deal will undoubtedly bring a new wave of pride, influence, and sense of community, providing Spanish-speaking fans with in-language coverage of the game they love.”

ESPN has laid off college and pro football analyst Robert Griffin III based on a business decision to reduce costs. Griffin worked as part of the Monday Night Countdown team since 2022. He will be paid off for the two years remaining on his contract. His departure comes as ESPN signed retired Philadelphia Eagles player Jason Kelce as host for Monday Night Countdown. After news of his exit, Griffin shared a clip from the 1995 movie Friday where actor John Witherspoon’s character Mr. Jones says, “How the hell are you go get fired on your day off?” Griffin’s firing comes a year after ESPN let go of around 20 on-air personalities.

At the time (last year), ESPN said that “given the current environment,” the network had “determined it necessary to identify some additional cost savings in the area of public-facing commentator salaries.”

Hearst Media Production Group

Industry: Paid Streaming TV operator Fubo beat Wall Street’s second-quarter estimations. It reported a loss of 8 cents a share and $382.7 million in total revenue, a 26% improvement from last year’s losses of 19 cents a share. Paid subscribers reached 1.45 million, a 24% increase from the same period in 2023. The results were released on the morning of a hearing in federal court for Fubo’s antitrust lawsuit against Disney, Fox, and Warner Bros Discovery. Fubo filed an antitrust lawsuit last February in US District Court in New York, claiming Disney, Fox, and Warner Bros Discovery conspired as a monopoly in a coordinated effort to run Fubo out of business with lower-priced bundles of sports programming called Venu. After filing the lawsuit, Fubo requested a preliminary injunction that would bar Venu from completing its launch in the upcoming weeks if the judge ruled in Fubo’s favor. Fubo had steady growth despite being a smaller platform than its competitors such as YouTube TV or Hulu+ Live TV. It is projected to reach approximately 1.8 million subscribers by the end of 2024.

Fubo advised Venu holds “many unknowns.” Fubo’s quarterly shareholder letter stated the lawsuit had been filed “in response to anticompetitive practices by Disney, Fox, and Warner Brothers Discovery harming Fubo, industry competition, and consumers.”

Hearst Media Production Group reached a new agreement with the free Samsung TV Plus streaming platform. Samsung TV Plus will have over 500 hours of original Hearst content licensed to its platform. Viewers will gain access to series such as Lucky Dog, Matter of Fact with Soledad O’Brien, and Harlem Globetrotters: Play It Forward.

“In this evolving media landscape, we’re expanding the distribution and access of HMPG’s premium content reaching millions of new viewers,” said Frank Biancuzzo, HMPG president. “Our vast library of iconic family-friendly and timely series continues to build audiences across all platforms,” said Andrew Tew, HMPG senior vice president, of global licensing & distribution. “Samsung TV Plus is an ideal partner to advance our viewership footprint.”

Amid the new contract with Samsung TV Plus, HMPG’s parent organization Hearst Television has laid off dozens of employees working for its streaming service Very Local. Very Local is Hearst Television’s ad-supported streaming service launched in 2021, offering 24-hour access to local news, weather, and original series from Hearst and its local stations.

“Hearst’s Very Local initiative will streamline its production to focus primarily on documentary and news-adjacent programming, formats we have seen resonate with streaming viewers,” a Hearst spokesperson said in a statement. “Unfortunately, this impacts the roles of some of our very talented colleagues, who have produced an impressive slate of award-winning programming. We are grateful for their service and contributions to this project. Hearst Television will continue to innovate in the streaming landscape, and we believe that this strategy is the right path forward for Very Local.”