Following is a summary of current entertainment news briefs.

Hollywood studios race to avoid actors’ strike at midnight

Hollywood’s major film and television studios and the union representing 160,000 actors were engaged in last-ditch talks on Wednesday ahead of a midnight deadline to try to avoid a second labor strike in the entertainment business. SAG-AFTRA, Hollywood’s largest union, is demanding higher compensation in the streaming TV era plus safeguards around the use of artificial intelligence (AI). Members have authorized a strike if negotiators cannot reach a deal, and A-list stars including Jennifer Lawrence and Meryl Streep have said they are ready to walk off the job.

Motor racing-Formula One’s Netflix effect filtering down to schools

Organisers of the ‘F1 in Schools’ competition say the Netflix ‘Drive to Survive’ effect is reaching the classroom with a record number of teams entered in this year’s finals in Singapore in September. The global not-for-profit programme, which aims to encourage students into science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) subjects, offers university scholarships and future work opportunities with F1 teams.

A century on, Hemingway’s prose lures revellers to Spain’s Pamplona

The bell tolls – eight chimes. A fuse is lit and a rocket takes off. The pen doors open and out burst 12 behemoths – six bulls and six steers – working their pace up to a gallop, hooves thundering on the cobbled streets. On cue, throngs of white-clad runners begin to sprint. They glance back, ready to dodge the charging beasts’ piked horns with balletic moves defying a gory demise. Enraptured onlookers cheer on from balconies above.

Novelist Kundera mixed philosophy, irony to explore human nature

Czech-born novelist Milan Kundera, who satirized totalitarian regimes and mixed dark irony with philosophical musings to explore the human condition, has died, a library he worked with said on Wednesday. He was 94. The author of “The Unbearable Lightness of Being” won accolades for his style in depicting themes and characters that floated between the mundane reality of everyday life and the lofty world of ideas. He rarely gave interviews and believed writers should speak through their work.

Kevin Spacey says he never groped victims, UK court hears

Actor Kevin Spacey told British police he had never groped anyone but said he had had numerous one-night stands with people from the theatre world and might have a made some clumsy passes at people, a London court heard on Wednesday. The Oscar-winner is on trial at Southwark Crown Court where he denies a dozen charges of historic sex offences against four men, then aged in their 20s and 30s, committed in Britain between 2001 and 2013.

Factbox-Key nominations for the 2023 Emmy Awards

Nominations were announced on Wednesday for the Emmy Awards, the highest honors in television. Following is a list of nominees in key categories. The awards are scheduled to be handed out in a televised ceremony in Los Angeles on Sept. 18.

Factbox-Kevin Spacey: What is happening in his London sex offences trial?

Actor Kevin Spacey is on trial at a London court accused of a dozen historical sex offence charges with prosecutors saying he behaved like a “sexual bully”. Here are some details about the case and the trial.

Malaysian art studio behind The Last of Us, Spider-Man games plans IPO – sources

Lemon Sky Studios, the Malaysian art and animation company involved in videogames such as Square Enix’s “Final Fantasy XVI” and Marvel’s Spider-Man game titles, is planning to list on the local stock exchange as early as 2023-end or 2024, two sources said. Reuters could not immediately ascertain the potential size of the initial public offering (IPO) and the current valuation of Selangor-based Lemon Sky, which is also known for its work on Naughty Dog’s The Last of Us Part I and II as well as Capcom’s “Street Fighter 6”.

Milan Kundera, author of ‘The Unbearable Lightness of Being’, dies at 94

Czech-born writer Milan Kundera, author of the novel “The Unbearable Lightness of Being” who lived nearly five decades in Paris after emigrating in disillusionment from his Communist-ruled homeland, has died at the age of 94. The Moravian Library (MZK) in the Czech city of Brno, which houses Kundera’s personal collection, said he died in his Paris apartment on Tuesday after a long illness.

HBO’s ‘Succession,’ ‘Last of Us’ lead nominees for TV’s Emmy awards

HBO drama “Succession,” the story of a cutthroat fight for control of a family media empire, led the nominees for television’s Emmy awards on Wednesday with 27 nods for the show’s final season. Nominations for the highest honors in television were announced as Hollywood was in the throes of labor tensions that may delay the Emmys ceremony beyond its normal September date. Film and TV writers walked off the job two months ago, and actors may strike as soon as Wednesday evening.

(With inputs from agencies.)