movies

Echo Lake Entertainment Hires Tanayri Novoa, Promotes Shiva Kaya

Published

1 day ago

July 21, 2026

EXCLUSIVE: Echo Lake Entertainment has two new managers: Tanayri Novoa and Shiva Kaya.

Novoa is a new hire, joining from CAA, who will be based at the company’s Beverly Hills headquarters. Promoted from coordinator, Kaya is based in New York.

With a focus on digital client representation, high-impact brand deals and strategic brand partnerships, Novoa’s nearly five years at CAA had her working extensively across the Commercial Endorsements, Global Client Strategy, and Talent Business Ventures departments, managing commercial bookings and brand strategy for top talent. For Echo Lake, the hire reflects an interest in continuing to scale its representation of top digital talent and creators.

Coming from an immigrant family, Novoa is bilingual in Spanish and English and has a strong focus on advocating for underrepresented voices, championing everything from LGBTQ+ creators to diverse ethnicities and emerging talent.

“Advocating for underrepresented voices and creators isn’t just a career focus for me—it’s personal,” Novoa said. “That’s why joining Echo Lake feels so right. I’m incredibly proud to be part of a team that’s actively investing in the digital community, and I’m ready to help our clients land the big, impactful partnerships they deserve.”

Echo Lake partner Adam Riback said of the hire, “Tanayri brings incredible experience and relationships in the content creator and brand partnership space. As we continue to build out and invest more into that business, we couldn’t be more excited for her to join us.”

Part of the talent division, Kaya reps actors in film, television and theater from around the world. A native of Turkey, she joined Echo Lake as an intern, moving up the ranks to become department coordinator and now manager.

“Shiva has been a rock star since she joined the company,” said Echo Lake Talent Partner Iris Grossman. “The clients and the larger community have come to respect her taste and her instincts, in a way that benefits all our clients.”

Kaya said, “The opportunities I have been afforded at Echo Lake have been invaluable in advancing my career. It is incredibly rewarding to be part of a company where my growth and my ideas are supported and encouraged.”

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‘Seinfeld’ Alum Jason Alexander Apologizes To Courtney Stodden For Filming “Inappropriate” Sketch When She Was Underage: “I Truly Regret It”

Published

19 minutes ago

July 22, 2026

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Jason Alexander is apologizing for filming a comedy sketch with then-17-year-old Courtney Stodden.

Stodden recalled the 2012 Funny or Die sketch and questioned why “so many adults look at a minor and decide this was acceptable.”

“Looking back at the comedy sketch in which Ms. Stodden and I participated in 2012, I completely agree that it was inappropriate and I truly regret it,” the Seinfeld alum told TMZ in a statement.

He added, “But more importantly, I am deeply sorry for any harm or distress it has caused Ms. Stodden. I offer her my sincerest apologies.”

Stodden resurfaced the sketch as she advocates for the state of California to pass AB1267, a bill that would ban child marriage. The television personality married 51-year-old Dough Hutchinson in 2011 when she was only 16 years old.

“The older I get, the more impossible this is to understand. During this comedy sketch, Jason Alexander repeatedly rubbed his phone across my breasts while saying there was ‘no signal’ in my head but ‘plenty of signal’ in my chest,” Stodden wrote in an Instagram post. “Later in the sketch, he joked that when I turned 18 he’d like to take me behind the couch and ‘have his way’ with me. IMDb credits him as one of the writers of the episode.”

Stodden continued, “As an adult, that fact has become harder—not easier—for me to understand. I was a minor. I didn’t have the legal power to decide whether I wanted to participate. The contracts were signed by adults. The paycheck went to Doug. The production moved forward. I was the only child in the room. I felt so alone.”

As Stodden looked back at the moment, she said, “I don’t see comedy,” adding, “I see a 17-year-old girl whose body became part of an adult joke. People still say, ‘You chose to be there.’ Legally, I couldn’t make those decisions for myself. That’s the point. I can’t change what happened to me but I can ask myself: How did so many adults look at a minor and decide this was acceptable?”

Shining light on this past experience is why Stodden says she is speaking up today, adding, “Children deserve laws that protect them. They shouldn’t have to become adults before realizing the law should have protected them all along.”

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Kaylee Hottle Cause Of Death Revealed

Published

26 minutes ago

July 22, 2026

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The official cause of death has been determined for Kaylee Hottle. The Godzilla star died of multiple blunt force injuries in a car crash Tuesday morning in Frederick, MD, the Maryland Office of the Chief Medical Examiner confirmed to Deadline. The manner of death is listed as accidental. An initial autopsy was completed Wednesday morning.

The Frederick County sheriff’s department said Hottle was a passenger in a Honda Accord that veered off the road at high speed early Tuesday morning, July 21, and crashed into a ditch at around 3 am. The driver, described as a 19-year-old Maryland man, was taken to a local hospital with injuries that were not believed to be life-threatening. Another passenger declined medical treatment at the scene. Hottle was taken to an area trauma center where she was pronounced dead.

The cause of the crash remains under investigation by the Frederick County Sheriff’s Office Traffic Unit.

Hottle’s death was announced by her father Joshua Hottle in a Facebook livestream using American Sign Language (he is deaf, as was his daughter). Hottle’s passing was confirmed on social media by Texas School for the Deaf, where she was a high school senior.

The young actor was known for her role of Jia in the films Godzilla vs. Kong and Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire. The character is a deaf orphan adopted by Dr. Ilene Andrews (Rebecca Hall) who develops a kinship with Kong. Hottle received praise for her performances, and was nominated for a 2025 Saturn Award for Best Performance by a Younger Actor for her work. The award was won by Jenna Ortega for the film Beetlejuice Beetlejuice.

Hottle was discovered by Kong casting agents after she appeared in a commercial for a video relay service designed for deaf, hard-of-hearing or speech-impaired users. Hottle was fluent in American Sign Language.

Hottle also appeared on television in a 2021 episode of Magnum P.I., and according to her IMDb page, she was set to appear in the feature thriller What Doesn’t Kill Us, currently in pre-production.

The Sun was first to report Hottle’s cause of death.

Greg Evans contributed to this report.

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Alphabet Q2 2026 Earnings: YouTube’s 13% Ad Revenue Growth Paces Results

Published

33 minutes ago

July 22, 2026

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YouTube ad revenue increased 13% in the second quarter compared with the same period a year ago, helping to pace parent Alphabet‘s financial performance.

Total revenue rose 24% in the quarter to hit $119.8 billion, while earnings per share nearly quadrupled to $9.11. Both metrics were ahead of Wall Street expectations.

YouTube pulled in $11.055 billion in ad revenue, showing double-digit growth that has eluded its traditional media rivals in recent years. Along with its deep well of creator content, YouTube is increasingly looking to cross over into traditional entertainment, landing rights to the Academy Awards and NFL football games.

In the company’s earnings release, Google and Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai flagged YouTube’s popularity as a way for people to keep current. “Month over month, people turn to YouTube for major world events, with over 1.7 billion unique viewers watching World Cup-related videos during the FIFA World Cup,” he wrote.

Debate about the stocks of Alphabet and the other “magnificent seven” tech giants (Nvidia, Apple, Amazon, Meta, Tesla and Microsoft) preceded to the earnings release. Some Wall Streeters fret about a recent divergence between the “mag seven” and semiconductor shares, given that chipmakers have slumped recently despite their key role in the AI boom.

Google, initially a laggard in AI, has moved the head of the sector over the last few quarters, though it also faces questions about strategic plans for Gemini and other tools.