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The move comes at a tumultuous moment for CNN after a 2021 that saw the cable network bogged down with scandals from both its on-air talent and c-suite executives. Legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin was suspended for eight months for inappropriately exposing himself on a Zoom call. Primetime anchor Chris Cuomo followed that by secretly advising his brother, former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, on his sexual harassment scandal while also covering the story for CNN....

Thus Monday’s fifth annual Critics Choice Documentary Award winners — which recognize the year’s achievements in documentaries released in theaters, on TV and on digital platforms, for which I voted in several categories — push Best Documentary Feature “Dick Johnson Is Dead” (Netflix) and its Best Director Kirsten Johnson into the lead for the Oscar shortlist of 15, which the Academy will announce on February 9, 2021. Netflix dominated the field with six wins, including “Dick Johnson is Dead,” popular hit “My Octopus Teacher,” which took home Best Cinematography and Best Science/Nature Documentary, Best Narration winner “David Attenborough: A Life on Our Planet,” and, with “Athlete A,” tied for Best Sports Documentary....

Conceived by Postmaster General Frank Hitchcock in 1912, Operation Santa is a USPS tradition so good and pure that not even Louis DeJoy would dare to dismantle it (though it wouldn’t have been a surprise to see him try). The idea started when Hitchcock authorized postal service employees and civilians alike to open letters that were addressed to the North Pole, and it only grew from there, with charities and corporations getting in on the action and doing their part to make sure that Santa receives (and responds to) some of the many requests that kids have for him each December....

Chapek said in the memo as obtained by IndieWire that he believed there is room to make the organization “more nimble” and have “improved efficiency,” which they expect would lead to “some staff reductions,” though he did not disclose how many layoffs would be coming or in which departments. As for the targeted hiring freeze, Chapek said in the memo that only “hiring for the small subset of the most critical, business-driving positions will continue, but all other roles are on hold....

The “Downton Abbey” sequel follows Julian Fellowes’ 2019 film and six seasons on BBC. While plot details have remained under wraps, we do spot the Crawleys visiting a new villa in the South of France, which Lady Violet (Maggie Smith) is said to have inherited. Fans are also expecting to learn more about Violet’s past in the latest installment. Returning stars include Michelle Dockery, Laura Carmichael, Hugh Bonneville, Elizabeth McGovern, and Jim Carter....

“That is not allowed in 2021,” Stone said when The New York Times brought up Cruella being a non-smoker in the live-action movie. “We are not allowed to smoke onscreen in a Disney film. It was difficult to not have that cigarette holder…I was so excited to have that green plume of smoke in there, but it was not possible. I don’t want to promote smoking, but I’m also not trying to promote skinning puppies....

After being recruited by Lin-Manuel Miranda, who musically spearheaded “Encanto” with his eight songs (including the Oscar-nominated “Dos Oruguitas” and the record-breaking “We Don’t Talk About Bruno”), Franco immediately started thinking about Colombia and its vibrant musical traditions, the magical Madrigal family and their enchanted village, and the plucky Mirabel (Stephanie Beatriz), whose quirky ordinariness makes her feel like an outsider. “What I did was spend time with [directors] Byron [Howard] and Jared [Bush] to discuss how to apply magical realism from literature to the score,” Franco said, “and what they wanted was something that didn’t sound traditionally Disney and huge Hollywood orchestra all the time....