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By Keith Weir, Elvira Pollina and Julien Pretot MILAN/CORTINA D'AMPEZZO, Italy, Feb 6 (Reuters) – U.S. pop diva Mariah Carey helped to get the party started on Friday as the Milano Cortina Winter Olympics staged a unique opening ceremony combining elements from the co-hosts, seeking to reflect both city and mountain life. Carey performed the 1950s Italian song "Nel blu, dipinto di blu" ("In the blue, painted in blue") with its famous "Volare" ("To fly") refrain to cheers in Milan's San Siro stadium. U.S. Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio were among the crowd in the iconic soccer stadium. Italian President Sergio Mattarella was introduced to the fans via a recorded video clip in which the 84-year-old was seen travelling through the city on one of Milan's historic trams.  The opening stages also included a tribute to the late Italian fashion designer Giorgio Armani, who made Milan his base and died last September. CEREMONY SPREAD ACROSS VENUES Co-host Cortina d'Ampezzo had its own supporting role in the celebrations from more than 400 km (250 miles) away in the mountains, in a spectacle entitled "Armonia" (Harmony) expected to draw a huge global audience on television and online. There was some confusion over access in Cortina. Loredana Vido, from Padova, owner of a second home in Cortina, was blocked at the start of Corso Italia, the town's main street, and said: “We were not told that everything would be closed off. We were told it was free entry.” Athletes were also parading in the mountain venues of Livigno and Predazzo, in a Games spread over 22,000 square kilometres. The ceremony is celebrating the diversity of Italian life, from fashionable Milan to the smaller mountain towns in the Alps that host the outdoor events at the Games, which run until February 22. Some in Cortina were pleased to get a slice of the action without having to trek to Milan and back. "Do I wish I was at the full one? Kind of. Am I happy I don't have to spend 10 hours on a bus that day? Yes," said Austin Florian, part of the U.S. skeleton team. For the first time, two Olympic cauldrons, one of the symbols of the Games, will be lit simultaneously and burn throughout – one at Milan's Arco della Pace (Peace Arch) and the other in Cortina's Piazza Dibona. Alberto Tomba and Deborah Compagnoni, two of Italy's most successful Alpine skiers, have been tipped to have the honour of lighting the Olympic cauldrons, but the names of those involved and the format have not been disclosed. PROTESTS IN MILAN A series of protests took place on Friday, with more planned over the weekend, in the Italian financial capital to oppose the presence of analysts from a department that falls under U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). More local issues such as the closure of schools and streets in the city have also irked some Milanese. Milan enjoyed a sunny afternoon and the mood outside the stadium was festive as crowds built up. David Arwood, 59, from Washington, D.C., was attending his fifth opening ceremony and did not expect political controversies to spoil the party. "The Olympics always reflect what's going on in the world," said Arwood, who was wearing novelty glasses featuring the five Olympic rings. "But I think once the Games start, people tend to forget most of that stuff. It's controversial beforehand, but once the ceremony starts, once the athletes come in I think everybody has a good camaraderie," he added. ($1 = 0.8462 euros) (Additonal reporting by Giselda Vagnoni in Milan and Mitch Phillips in CortinaWriting by Keith Weir; Editing by Hugh Lawson, Toby Davis and Alison Williams)

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Feb 6 (Reuters) – Timothy Busfield, the U.S. actor and director known for his role in "The West Wing," was indicted by a New Mexico grand jury on charges of child sex abuse, the prosecutor's office in Albuquerque announced on Friday. Busfield surrendered to authorities on January 13 after Bernalillo County District Attorney Sam Bregman filed a criminal complaint accusing the actor of abusing twin boys over two years of production of the Fox crime drama "The Cleaning Lady," when the boys were seven or eight years old. The boys are now 11. The 68-year-old actor, in a video recorded before he surrendered, said the charges against him were "lies," and that he would be exonerated. A judge ordered Busfield to be released from jail about a week later, ruling there was insufficient evidence for pre-trial detention. Busfield could not immediately be reached for comment. His defense lawyer, Christopher Dodd, did not respond to queries. Allowing prosecutors to proceed to a trial, a grand jury voted to indict Busfield on Thursday on four counts of criminal sexual contact of a child, a third-degree felony in New Mexico. The indictment was not yet public on Friday morning, but the district attorney's original criminal complaint said Busfield abused the twin boys while filming "The Cleaning Lady" in Albuquerque, the state's biggest city. Busfield was an executive producer of the show, and also the director of some episodes. Busfield is famous for his prime-time television roles as a White House reporter on the NBC political drama "The West Wing," which ran from 1999 to 2006, and as an advertising agency executive on the 1980s ABC ensemble series "Thirtysomething."  He is married to Melissa Gilbert, an actor and former president of the Screen Actors Guild. (Reporting by Jonathan Allen in New York; Editing by Paul Simao)

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Feb 6 (Reuters) – Timothy Busfield, the U.S. actor and director known for his role in "The West Wing," was indicted by a New Mexico grand jury on charges of child sex abuse, the prosecutor's office in Albuquerque announced on Friday. Busfield surrendered to authorities on January 13 after Bernalillo County District Attorney Sam Bregman filed a criminal complaint accusing the actor of abusing twin boys over two years of production of the Fox crime drama "The Cleaning Lady," when the boys were seven or eight years old. The boys are now 11. The 68-year-old actor, in a video recorded before he surrendered, said the charges against him were "lies," and that he would be exonerated. A judge ordered Busfield to be released from jail about a week later, ruling there was insufficient evidence for pre-trial detention. Busfield could not immediately be reached for comment. His defense lawyer, Christopher Dodd, did not respond to queries. Allowing prosecutors to proceed to a trial, a grand jury voted to indict Busfield on Thursday on four counts of criminal sexual contact of a child, a third-degree felony in New Mexico. The indictment was not yet public on Friday morning, but the district attorney's original criminal complaint said Busfield abused the twin boys while filming "The Cleaning Lady" in Albuquerque, the state's biggest city. Busfield was an executive producer of the show, and also the director of some episodes. Busfield is famous for his prime-time television roles as a White House reporter on the NBC political drama "The West Wing," which ran from 1999 to 2006, and as an advertising agency executive on the 1980s ABC ensemble series "Thirtysomething."  He is married to Melissa Gilbert, an actor and former president of the Screen Actors Guild. (Reporting by Jonathan Allen in New York; Editing by Paul Simao)

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By Angelica Medina SAN FRANCISCO, Feb 6 (Reuters) – Oversized sunglasses, colourful shirts, Puerto Rican straw hats, and even an "ICE out" sign filled a San Francisco restaurant on Thursday as Bad Bunny lookalikes competed for $100 and bragging rights ahead of the reggaeton star's Super Bowl halftime show. Tacolicious along with Mision Loteria hosted the lookalike contest that drew massive interest. Organizers said 300 VIP tickets sold out in two days, with a wait list of 600 people. "We knew it was going to be a lot of people because we sold out in two days," Luis Guido, one of the organizers told Reuters. "There were at least 300 people inside and at least 200 people outside. So it was a big crowd, but we made it work." Attendees saw the 34 contestants parade their best impersonations of Bad Bunny, born Benito Antonio Martinez Ocasio. Two radio hosts cut the field to 11 finalists before the crowd chose the top four based on cheers and applause. The winner, "Abdul Bunny", who works as a Bad Bunny impersonator, took home the cash prize and NFL swag. "I feel really good because Bad Bunny, Benito is representing all the Latinos and even more now with Super Bowl this Sunday," Abdul said. "Benito, if you hear me, blessings. I do this, your tribute, the Bad Bunny tribute … because I love you bro, I love so much." Bad Bunny's Super Bowl halftime show on Sunday will be a historic moment for Latin music on one of the world's biggest stages. The 31-year-old Puerto Rican star, fresh off winning Album of the Year at the Grammys for "Debi Tirar Mas Fotos," will perform for an expected audience of over 130 million viewers when the Seattle Seahawks face the New England Patriots in the NFL championship game on Sunday. The artist has been outspoken about his political views, particularly his criticism of U.S. President Donald Trump's deportation policies and support for Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential race. Upon accepting one of his three Grammy awards last week, he declared "ICE out" from the stage, referencing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement — a message that resonated with fans who turned out in droves for the San Francisco lookalike contest. (Reporting by Angelica Medina in San Francisco, additional reporting by Maria Cardona; Editing by Ken Ferris)

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By Angelica Medina SAN FRANCISCO, Feb 6 (Reuters) – Oversized sunglasses, colourful shirts, Puerto Rican straw hats, and even an "ICE out" sign filled a San Francisco restaurant on Thursday as Bad Bunny lookalikes competed for $100 and bragging rights ahead of the reggaeton star's Super Bowl halftime show. Tacolicious along with Mision Loteria hosted the lookalike contest that drew massive interest. Organizers said 300 VIP tickets sold out in two days, with a wait list of 600 people. "We knew it was going to be a lot of people because we sold out in two days," Luis Guido, one of the organizers told Reuters. "There were at least 300 people inside and at least 200 people outside. So it was a big crowd, but we made it work." Attendees saw the 34 contestants parade their best impersonations of Bad Bunny, born Benito Antonio Martinez Ocasio. Two radio hosts cut the field to 11 finalists before the crowd chose the top four based on cheers and applause. The winner, "Abdul Bunny", who works as a Bad Bunny impersonator, took home the cash prize and NFL swag. "I feel really good because Bad Bunny, Benito is representing all the Latinos and even more now with Super Bowl this Sunday," Abdul said. "Benito, if you hear me, blessings. I do this, your tribute, the Bad Bunny tribute … because I love you bro, I love so much." Bad Bunny's Super Bowl halftime show on Sunday will be a historic moment for Latin music on one of the world's biggest stages. The 31-year-old Puerto Rican star, fresh off winning Album of the Year at the Grammys for "Debi Tirar Mas Fotos," will perform for an expected audience of over 130 million viewers when the Seattle Seahawks face the New England Patriots in the NFL championship game on Sunday. The artist has been outspoken about his political views, particularly his criticism of U.S. President Donald Trump's deportation policies and support for Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential race. Upon accepting one of his three Grammy awards last week, he declared "ICE out" from the stage, referencing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement — a message that resonated with fans who turned out in droves for the San Francisco lookalike contest. (Reporting by Angelica Medina in San Francisco, additional reporting by Maria Cardona; Editing by Ken Ferris)

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By Danielle Broadway and Rollo Ross LOS ANGELES, Feb 6 (Reuters) – Actor Margot Robbie says her romance film “Wuthering Heights” sinks into a love dark enough to wound, describing her Cathy and Jacob Elordi’s Heathcliff as doomed lovers whose dynamic makes the brooding new adaptation both “sadomasochistic and desperately sweet.” "I think they're just a couple who are destined to be doomed,” the “Barbie” actor told Reuters in an interview.   Warner Bros Pictures will roll out British director Emerald Fennell’s film globally in theaters on February 11 to coincide with Valentine’s Day week. The film revisits one of literature’s most enduring and reinterpreted love stories.  Since Emily Brontë published the book "Wuthering Heights" in 1847, its convoluted tale of Cathy and Heathcliff — bound by childhood devotion yet divided by class, privilege and their own self‑sabotaging impulses — has inspired generations of filmmakers, playwrights, musicians and directors. Robbie and Elordi are both Australians. "It is ironic that we're Queenslanders playing two very iconic, you know, English characters but here we are," Robbie said, referring to Australia's northeastern state. The story begins with Cathy's father deciding to adopt Heathcliff into their household when both are children. While the two are infatuated with each other, they are divided by both class and privilege.    Fennell aims to capture the same sensuousness she has brought to her previous productions, including numerous shots of intimate touch in the film.  "We had a wonderful little gremlin present with us all the time,” Elordi said in an interview. “It was Emerald Fennell in a raincoat in the bushes near where we'd be doing a scene and she'd be like, 'Now stroke her hair, now pull her leg up, yes, yes, yes, yes, now, kiss her on the neck if you're comfortable with that.'"      Fennell, the director of "Saltburn," also starring Elordi, said in an interview that she sought to depict the nuances of Cathy and Heathcliff, including their imperfections as people and how they often sabotage each other.  “All of the people that I love have things about them that are terrible and I have things about me that are terrible. And I think that's all part of what makes love so extraordinary is that we forgive and we accept," Fennell said. (Reporting by Danielle Broadway and Rollo Ross; Editing by Howard Goller)

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By Greg Bensinger SAN FRANCISCO, Feb 6 (Reuters) – Now reporting to Amazon CEO Andy Jassy: Hollywood star Chris Hemsworth. The Australian “Thor” actor appeared Thursday morning on Amazon’s official internal organizational chart, which was viewed by Reuters, with the title of “Chief Heartthrob” for Alexa Devices, the organization overseeing Amazon’s voice assistant.  Hemsworth, 42, was given an Amazon email address and the additional role of bar raiser, a high-profile internal designation for corporate employees who help with hiring across the company. “When I’m not starring in movies, I enjoy spending time with my family, campaigning for Ad Meter votes, snake wrangling, bear wrestling, hammer throwing and a nice cinnamon scrub,” read a quote attributed to Hemsworth on the chart. It was a stunt, meant to promote the airing of Amazon’s Super Bowl advertisement highlighting Alexa’s AI capabilities. In the ad, Hemsworth is shown imagining his own death at the hands of a sentient Alexa AI, including being crushed by his garage door, drowning in his pool and wrestling a bear sicced upon the actor.  Alexa’s voice in the ad assures him in the end that it is a force for good. Companies shell out big amounts for pricey ads during the annual football championship. This year ads cost about $8 million for 30 seconds of air time. Amazon's rivals in AI, Anthropic and OpenAI, are also airing Super Bowl commercials this year. For Amazon employees, though, Amazon’s splashy antics appeared tone deaf in light of recent layoffs, and a stock price reeling from a disappointing fourth-quarter earnings report Thursday. The company last week laid off 16,000 corporate employees, including many working on Alexa. The Washington Post, owned by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, began widespread layoffs on Wednesday, gutting a third of employees. “This definitely makes up for the hollow feeling of cleaning out my peer’s desk and meeting him out front with his boxes given he was laid off last week,” wrote one employee on a social media site used by Amazon employees and viewed by Reuters. “It’s less of a joke than it is an insult to the rest of us,” wrote another. An Amazon spokesperson called it “a fun internal Easter egg as we head into the Big Game this weekend.” She declined to address employees’ concerns. Representatives for Hemsworth did not respond to a request for comment. Amazon this week said its new Alexa+ service running on generative AI would be available to all Prime members. Alexa, which can answer questions and enable purchases and some home automation by voice, has been a money loser since its introduction more than a decade ago. The company has been pushing to turn that around with a costly AI-imbued revamp of Alexa, culminating in this week's ad. On Hemsworth's profile page, Amazon employees quickly awarded him with badges given for showing certain propensities outside of regular work, including being a flan enthusiast, CPR instructor and proficient in Mandarin. He had garnered nearly 500. By late Thursday, though, Hemsworth was demoted. He is now reporting to the head of devices and services. (Reporting by Greg Bensinger in San Francisco; Editing by Sayantani Ghosh and Shri Navaratnam)

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LONDON, Feb 5 (Reuters) – Tony Benna hadn't worked with former advertising creative Andre Ricciardi in years, when one day his friend reached out to tell him, "I've got stage four cancer, but I want to make a comedy and I want you to direct it," Benna said. He was taken aback. "First off, I was having to digest the fact that he has cancer. But second, how do you turn this into a comedy? Obviously, cancer is not funny, but Andre is one of the most hilarious and brilliant people I've ever met. So I figured if I could just capture Andre's character, there was a chance to look at something so dark… through a very different lens.” The result is "Andre Is an Idiot", a raw and funny documentary following Ricciardi as he comes to terms with his terminal illness. The title refers to Ricciardi's mistake of passing up on a colonoscopy the year before he finds out he has stage four colon cancer. The movie follows Ricciardi as he deals with his progressing cancer but also uses humour to prepare for death. Audiences see him meet a "death yell" teacher to practice his last words or share wacky ideas like a television show in which participants offer up unique ways for him to die. "What you see in the film is the tip of the iceberg as far as the adventures Andre took us on. And you never knew… if Andre was really serious about getting a head transplant or if it was just something he was joking about," said Benna. He used stop-motion animation to illustrate Ricciardi's stories and ideas. "You can't show… ten different ways to have your body disposed of with a human… But with a puppet, it's approachable. It adds the humour that Andre was really going for." The film features interviews with Ricciardi's wife Janice, their daughters, and best friend Lee among others, and brought a lot of emotional challenges. "Andre Is an Idiot" premiered at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival, where it won two awards. It is released in UK cinemas on Friday. "A lot of us hide, as Andre says in the film, from sickness. We're afraid of it. We're afraid to talk to our friends and family that have cancer. We don't know what to say," Benna said. "And what Andre teaches us is – just go be you." (Reporting by Marie-Louise Gumuchian; Editing by Alexandra Hudson)

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By Hanna Rantala LONDON, Feb 5 (Reuters) – The emotional side of Emerald Fennell's highly anticipated adaptation of Emily Bronte's 1847 novel "Wuthering Heights" may surprise audiences, actor Margot Robbie said as she joined her co-star Jacob Elordi and the film's cast at the movie's rain-lashed London premiere on Thursday. The film tells the tumultuous love story of Catherine "Cathy" Earnshaw and Heathcliff, played by Robbie and Elordi.  The two forge a tight bond from a young age after Catherine's volatile father brings the orphaned Heathcliff home to the misty Yorkshire Moors from his travels. But despite vowing to always stay together, their unruly tempers, misunderstandings and social conventions of the time tear them apart, with toxic consequences.  Newcomer Charlotte Mellington and "Adolescence" star Owen Cooper play the younger versions of the characters. "Everyone's talking about how steamy it is, but I think people might be surprised about how emotional it is," Robbie, who also produced the movie, said on the red carpet. "It's pretty heart-wrenching, but beautiful. It leaves you with that full feeling, if that makes sense." Elordi described the experience of making the movie as "the greatest journey" and "a wonderful adventure", saying that his version of the famed literary character was grounded in Fennell's vision. "I just wanted it to be as, I don't know, sort of, truthful as possible, I suppose. But really, I'm in service to Emerald, so I just wanted to do whatever she wanted with him," said Elordi, who previously starred in Fennell's 2023 film "Saltburn". His "Saltburn" co-star Alison Oliver, who plays Isabella Linton in "Wuthering Heights", described the movie as a character-driven study of human nature. "There's a lot of stuff in this film that doesn't happen in the book and especially, I guess, the intimacy that happens between Catherine and Heathcliff," said Oliver, adding of Fennell: "I think she's really examining this sort of deepness and darkness of love and obsession." Warner Bros is releasing "Wuthering Heights", which also features original songs by popstar Charli xcx, internationally from February 11. (Reporting by Hanna Rantala; Editing by Stephen Coates)

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By Hanna Rantala LONDON, Feb 5 (Reuters) – The emotional side of Emerald Fennell's highly anticipated adaptation of Emily Bronte's 1847 novel "Wuthering Heights" may surprise audiences, actor Margot Robbie said as she joined her co-star Jacob Elordi and the film's cast at the movie's rain-lashed London premiere on Thursday. The film tells the tumultuous love story of Catherine "Cathy" Earnshaw and Heathcliff, played by Robbie and Elordi.  The two forge a tight bond from a young age after Catherine's volatile father brings the orphaned Heathcliff home to the misty Yorkshire Moors from his travels. But despite vowing to always stay together, their unruly tempers, misunderstandings and social conventions of the time tear them apart, with toxic consequences.  Newcomer Charlotte Mellington and "Adolescence" star Owen Cooper play the younger versions of the characters. "Everyone's talking about how steamy it is, but I think people might be surprised about how emotional it is," Robbie, who also produced the movie, said on the red carpet. "It's pretty heart-wrenching, but beautiful. It leaves you with that full feeling, if that makes sense." Elordi described the experience of making the movie as "the greatest journey" and "a wonderful adventure", saying that his version of the famed literary character was grounded in Fennell's vision. "I just wanted it to be as, I don't know, sort of, truthful as possible, I suppose. But really, I'm in service to Emerald, so I just wanted to do whatever she wanted with him," said Elordi, who previously starred in Fennell's 2023 film "Saltburn". His "Saltburn" co-star Alison Oliver, who plays Isabella Linton in "Wuthering Heights", described the movie as a character-driven study of human nature. "There's a lot of stuff in this film that doesn't happen in the book and especially, I guess, the intimacy that happens between Catherine and Heathcliff," said Oliver, adding of Fennell: "I think she's really examining this sort of deepness and darkness of love and obsession." Warner Bros is releasing "Wuthering Heights", which also features original songs by popstar Charli xcx, internationally from February 11. (Reporting by Hanna Rantala; Editing by Stephen Coates)

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