New this week: 'Friends' again, Mike Tyson doc & 'Cruella'
This week’s new entertainment releases include DMX’s first posthumous album, the documentary “Moby Doc” and the gang from “Friends” getting together again
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Your support makes all the difference.Here’s a collection curated by The Associated Press’ entertainment journalists of what’s arriving on TV, streaming services and music platforms this week.
MOVIES
— No “101 Dalmatians” love is necessary to enjoy “Cruella ” available to rent on Disney+ starting Friday. This live-action movie starring Emma Stone and directed by Craig Gillespie (“I, Tonya”) is, at best, very loosely related to the 1961 animated film (or the 1996 live action pic with Glenn Close for that matter). Instead this is a part punk, part camp origin story set in 1970s London about a girl who has dreams of designing high fashion and gets a shot from Emma Thompson’s slightly sadistic Baroness.
— Based on the true story of the creation of the 1993 Oslo Peace Accords and adapted from J.T. Rogers’ Tony Award-winning play, “Oslo” stars Ruth Wilson as the Norwegian Prime Minister and “Fleabag’s” Andrew Scott as her husband. It premieres on HBO Sunday night.
— The musician Moby narrates his own life in the documentary “Moby Doc,” a surrealistic examination of his fraught childhood and turbulent experience with fame, fortune and addiction from director Rob Bralver. David Lynch, David Bowie and Shepard Fairey are just a few of the luminaries who talk about his impact and influence. “Moby Doc” is available to rent on demand Friday.
— Actor David Oyelowo makes his directorial debut with “The Water Man,” a fantasy adventure about a young boy searching for a mythic figure who may have the power to help his ill mother (played by Rosario Dawson). Oyelowo told the AP that the story reminded him of ’80s classics like “The Goonies” and “Gremlins,” which, he said “have some heavier themes where kids are still involved.” It’s available to rent on demand Tuesday.
— AP Film Writer Lindsey Bahr
MUSIC
— DMX’s first posthumous album will be released Friday and it features collaborations with Jay-Z, Nas, Bono, Lil Wayne, Alicia Keys, Snoop Dogg and Usher. “Exodus” arrives a month after DMX died at age 50. The album of new material will be released on Def Jam, where DMX released most of his albums and made music history. “Exodus” also features tracks with DMX’s longtime collaborators from the Ruff Ryders collective, including The Lox and Swizz Beatz, who also produced the album.
— A collective of hip-hop artists from Oklahoma has written and recorded a new album to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Tulsa Race Massacre. “Fire In Little Africa” will be released Friday on Motown Records/Black Forum in partnership with Tulsa’s Bob Dylan Center and Woody Guthrie Center. The 21-track album was recorded in the Greenwood section over a five-day period last March and it even features a guest appearance from soul legend Charlie Wilson.
— AP Music Editor Mesfin Fekadu
TELEVISION
— Doughnuts and pursuit of the American dream are at the heart of a documentary about Cambodian refugee Ted Ngoy. “The Donut King,” airing Monday as part of PBS’ “Independent Lens” series (check local listings for time), recounts Ngoy’s founding of a West Coast doughnut shop empire that allowed him to live lavishly and create opportunities for fellow immigrants, before his life took a hard turn. Filmmaker Alice Gu has said she wants Ngoy to be viewed in a larger context: Accounts of refugee suffering are common, but rarely do we focus on those who are given a chance and make the most of it.
— There are dueling biopic series ahead on Mike Tyson but for now the boxing great is getting the documentary treatment in a two-part ABC News special airing on consecutive Tuesdays. “Mike Tyson: The Knockout” promises to examine his career and life rollercoaster and address “pressing questions about resilience and reinvention.” ESPN’s Jeremy Schaap and people in Tyson’s inner circle are among those interviewed in the four-hour documentary, which includes previously unaired Tyson interview footage. The first part airs on ABC Tuesday, part two on June 1 (both nights 8 p.m. EDT).
— You may have heard about it, but just in case: The gang from “Friends” is getting together again. The pandemic delayed but didn’t stop HBO Max’s “Friends: The Reunion,” a celebration of the hit comedy that aired from 1994 to 2004. Stars Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, Matthew Perry and David Schwimmer gathered on the show’s Warner Bros. Stage 24 to recall old times, with guests including David Beckham, Cindy Crawford, Tom Selleck and Reese Witherspoon. The special debuts Thursday on the streaming service.
— AP Television Writer Lynn Elber
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Catch up on AP’s entertainment coverage here: https://apnews.com/apf-entertainment.