‘No Other Land’ co-director Hamdan Ballal freed, ‘Adolescence’ sets Netflix and U.K. ratings records, and more of today’s top stories

Gold Derby's top news stories for March 25, 2025.

No Other Land director Hamdan Ballal released after attack by Israeli settlers, Yuval Abraham says

Hamdan Ballal, the Palestinian co-director of the Oscar-winning documentary No Other Land, has been freed after being attacked and detained by Israeli settlers, his co-director Yuval Abraham said on X on Tuesday. "Hamdan Ballal is free and is about to go home to his family," he wrote. In a post on Monday, Abraham said Ballal was attacked by Israeli settlers near his home in the West Bank and was taken by soldiers from an ambulance. Jihad Nawajaa, head of the Susiya local council, told Reuters that a group of settlers attacked the Susiya village during a gathering for Iftar, the end of the daily Ramadan fast, on Monday. Ballal, who was injured, was one of three men who were arrested. Ballal's wife Lamia Balall said Monday, "The settlers attacked him and started beating him, and then they arrested him, we do not know anything about him." Members of the film community called for Ballal's release after the news broke Monday.

Adolescence tops Netflix, U.K. ratings

Adolescence was the most-watched show on Netflix for the second week, amassing 42 million viewers from March 17-23. Its grand total of 66.3 million since its March 13 debut makes it the most-watched Netflix limited series over a two-week period. Across the pond, the four-episode series has made history in the U.K., becoming the first streaming series to hit No. 1 in the weekly TV ratings. The Netflix hit, which premiered on March 13, earned 6.45 million viewers for its first episode between March 10 and March 16, according to Barb. The figure is the biggest for a streaming show, surpassing the 6.3 million accrued by Netflix's Fool Me Once. Adolescence's second episode debuted at No. 2 with 5.94 million, while the third attracted 5.14 million (fifth place) and the fourth drew 4.65 million (ninth place).

Watch the new trailer for Drop

A second trailer for Drop has, uh, dropped. Directed by Christopher Landon, the Blumhouse thriller, which premiered at SXSW, stars Meghann Fahy as Violet, a single mother, who's on a date with Henry (Brandon Sklenar) when she starts to receive threatening messages on her phone. The caller tells her to follow instructions, including killing Henry, or her sister and son will be killed. Drop hits theaters April 11.

Kiss of the Spider Woman acquired, set for awards season release

Bill Condon's Kiss of the Spider Woman, starring Jennifer Lopez, has been acquired by Roadside Attractions, Lionsgate, and LD Entertainment, Deadline reports. The musical, which premiered at Sundance, will have a wide fall theatrical release for awards season. An adaptation of the 1976 novel and set in 1981 Argentina, the film is based on the stage musical of the same name and follows Luis Molina (Tonatiuh), who gets imprisoned because he's gay. Molina shares a cell with Valentin (Diego Luna), an Marxist. Lopez plays Ingrid Luna, a classic screen actress and star of musicals whom Molina sees in his fantasies as he tries to escape his current reality. "All of us who made this film believe it needs to be experienced in a theatre, so we’re grateful and excited to be partnering with the very talented folks at Roadside Attractions, Lionsgate Studios, and LD Entertainment to make that happen," said Condon. "On a personal note, this feels like a homecoming – Lionsgate picked up Gods and Monsters out of Sundance in 1998, and I’ve worked with them and Roadside on three other films since then."

Kathy Bates, Cristin Milioti, and more among Gracie Awards winners

Kathy Bates, Crisitin Milioti, Keke Palmer, Mayim Bialik, Margo Martindale are among the winners at the 50th Annual Gracie Awards. Other recipients include Norah O’Donnell, True Detective: Night Country showrunner Issa López, Jimmy Kimmel Live! head writer and executive producer Molly McNearney, St. Denis Medical, English Teacher's Stephanie Koenig, Descendants: The Rise of Red, Dune: Prophecy, Megan Thee Stallion: In Her Words, Legacy Talk with Lena Waithe. The Gracies, which is celebrating five decades of amplifying women’s voices, stories, and achievements in media, will celebrate the honorees at the Gracie Awards Gala on May 20. See the full list of winners here.

The White Lotus hits series high viewership with incest episode

"Denials," the sixth episode of Season 3 of The White Lotus, hit a series high with 4.2 million viewers on Sunday. The figure is the total of viewers who watched on HBO and on Max. The episode, which featured an incest sex scene with brothers Saxon (Patrick Schwarzenegger) and Lochlan (Sam Nivola), eclipsed the previous high of 4.1 million set by the Season 2 finale in December 2022. Season 3 debuted last month to 2.4 million. There are two episodes remaining in the season. According to Warner Bros. Discovery, Season 3 is currently outpacing Season 2 by more than 5 million viewers at the same juncture in the season.

Jessica Chastain and Adam Driver's The Dealer gets series order at Apple TV+

Apple TV+ has handed a straight-to-series order for The Dealer starring Jessica Chastain and Adam Driver, Deadline reports. Produced by Media Res, written by Lucas Hnath, and to be directed by Sam Gold, The Dealer is described as a "biting exploration of power, class, seduction and culture set inside the glittering world of the high-end art market, told through the eyes of an aspiring super gallerist, played by Jessica Chastain, and the tangled relationship with her most gifted and unnerving artist, played by Adam Driver." Chastain and Driver will also serve as executive producers alongside Sarah Lunnie, who produced A Doll's House, Part 2 with Hnath and Gold, Michael Ellenberg, Lindsey Springer, Kelly Carmichael, and Alan Poul.

Roy Wood Jr. to host Peabody Awards

Roy Wood Jr. will host the 85th Peabody Awards. "No higher honor than to be in the room as we celebrate some of our generation's best storytellers and reflect upon the ways in which we can all contribute to bettering the times we are in," the comedian said in a statement. "I am also there because there is a free dinner…. at least I'm assuming there is dinner……..there better some damn food, that’s all I know." Wood's first time hosting. The ceremony will take place June 1 at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel in Beverly Hills, Calif. Nominees will be announced on April 15 and April 17, and winners will be revealed on May 1.

Kenny Chesney, June Carter Cash among Country Music Hall of Fame inductees

Kenny Chesney, June Carter Cash, and producer Tony Brown will be inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame this year. The announcement was made Tuesday during a news conference hosted by Vince Gill. "I had a big dream, and I’m still pushing that dream as far as I can… I just wanted to spread as much love and positive energy as I could,” Chesney said at the podium. "Standing up here, I know it’s not a dream, it’s real, but it’s so surreal." Carter Cash's daughter Carlene said, "My mom was a force of nature. Anything that’s good about me is because of that woman. My mama was the shit, y’all." Brown, who will be inducted in the non-performer category, said, "I’ve always wanted to be in the Hall of Fame. I never ever, imagined I would be... This is better than money. This is about making an impact. When it comes down to it, that’s why we all get into this business, to make an impact. This means more than anything could ever mean to me."