Netflix users spent more time streaming “The Office” than any other show last year. “Friends” was second, which is why Netflix paid $100 million to keep it. But Netflix COULD be in danger of losing BOTH. NBC Universal is in the process of launching its own streaming service and they may want both shows to be exclusive to it. It’s unclear when that would happen, but Netflix’s $100 million deal for “Friends” reportedly lasts through this year. All nine seasons of “The Office” are currently streaming on Netflix.
JUSSIE SMOLLETT might be able to put whatever went down in Chicago behind him . . . because the cast of “Empire” wants him back. The cast wrote a letter to the Fox execs saying, “Together, as a united front, we stand with Jussie and ask that our co-star, brother, and friend be brought back for our sixth season . . He is kind. He is compassionate. He is honest, and above all he is filled with integrity . . . He is also innocent, and no longer subject to legal uncertainty with the criminal charges against him having been dropped . . .That is why we write today to ask you to keep Jussie on the cast so that we can all put this behind us and move forward.” It’s signed by all the main cast members. There’s no word how that was received . . . but Jussie did have lunch with the showrunner yesterday. Jussie was written out of Season Five, and his last episode aired last night.
It’s hard to believe ANYONE hasn’t heard of “Fixer Upper” stars CHIP and JOANNA GAINES . . . especially someone who’s part of that whole home improvement universe. But at the party celebrating “Time” magazine’s 100 Most Influential People, they found someone. Chip says, “We were so excited to meet MARTHA STEWART, but she didn’t have the faintest idea who we are, not a single clue . . . [But she] was very gracious and supportive, it was really [a] wonderful moment for us to meet her.” Martha says she DOES know who they are, but she didn’t immediately recognize them when she was introduced.
The season finale of “The Simpsons” has Marge opening a new age store called Murmur, that sells Goop-like products. And her competitor is a woman named Piper who owns a store called Plop. One of the show’s producers says, “Gwyneth Paltrow will not like this episode.”
CARRIE UNDERWOOD is inviting you to perform with her on stage on the Cry Pretty 360 Tour. But you won’t be singing. You’ll be doing the Ludacris rap from “The Champion” . . . while Carrie’s handling the vocals. If you’re interested, you need to submit a video of yourself doing the entire rap . . . and then fill out some details. She wants to know who YOUR champion is and why you want to honor them. Plus, you have to submit photos of that champion. You’ll also need to let them know which show you’ll be attending. The details are at CarrieUnderwood.fm/ChampionContest. The Cry Pretty 360 Tour kicks off Wednesday, May 1st in Greensboro, North Carolina.
LORI LOUGHLIN and her husband will reportedly use IGNORANCE as their defense in the college cheating scandal.
KEN KERCHEVAL from “Dallas” has died. He was 83. He played Cliff Barnes on the original series, and returned for the reboot a few years ago.
Diplo has released “So Long,” his debut country collaboration under his name Thomas Wesley. The song is a country-dance crossover set to piano and fiddles, features vocals from Cam. “So Long” is the first in a series of country collaborations expected from Diplo, who will be appearing at this year’s Stagecoach Festival for the first time. Earlier this year, Diplo told Variety that he was considering working with country singers like Zac Brown, Thomas Rhett and Sam Hunt for an upcoming project.
ERIC CHURCH has added more shows to his Double Down Tour. He’ll be in San Francisco on September 28th . . . and then he’s doing back-to-back shows in Grand Rapids, Michigan on October 4th and 5th. There’s also a October 26th concert in Birmingham, Alabama. Sat, Oct 12 – Wells Fargo center in Phila
MIRANDA LAMBERT and her MuttNation Foundation will be doing a “Mutt March” on June 6th at CMA Fest. It’s a parade of dogs and people walking through downtown Nashville helping raise awareness about shelter pet adoption.
KIP MOORE has released an acoustic song called “Reason to Believe”. He recorded the original a few years ago for an album project that he never released.
KIEFER SUTHERLAND’s second country album, “Reckless and Me”, is out tomorrow. He did over 300 shows the past two years whipping the songs into shape. I’ll give that an “A” for effort.
LUKE BRYAN’s wife Caroline shared a video on Instagram of a school project that she “helped” put together with their son Tate. It’s a replica of Ben Franklin, and it looks nothing like him. The best part is when Luke comes over and describes it as “Benjamin Franklin and Whoopi Goldberg had a child.”
CHELY WRIGHT is dropping a new EP called “Revival” on May 10th. She released a preview track called, “Say The Word”. It’s a duet with her producing partner, a guy named Jeremy Lister.
The 1st round of “The NFL Draft” at 8:00 p.m. Eastern on ABC, ESPN and the NFL Network.
Renée Zellweger is 50 Rory Feek is 54.
Len Goodman is 75. Al Pacino is 79.
