The Frame

Author, religion scholar and TV consultant Reza Aslan adds talk show host to his credits with "Rough Draft"; Oscar nominee Lon Burden breaks down the sound design for a crucial scene in "The Revenant"; the toughest Oscars trivia contest happens at a pub in Santa Monica.

The Black Version is a group of improv performers who put an Afro-centric spin on mainstream movies; Leonardo DiCaprio sees environmental parallels between the 1820s when "The Revenant" is set and modern-day America; eligibility rules for the Oscars raise questions for the original score nominees.

Will this year’s Academy Awards be the tipping point for racial representation in Hollywood? Marc Bernardin of The Hollywood Reporter weighs in; The Song Exploder podcast takes apart a song with the band Clipping; "Inside Out" writer Meg LeFauve gets a Pixar education and now takes on Ms. Marvel.

USC's Institute for Diversity and Empowerment at Annenberg tracked the representation of women, people of color, and the LGBT community in film and television and found Hollywood is still "a straight, white boys club." Then co-star and co-creator of the HBO show 'Togetherness', Steve Zissis, mines his life-- failures and all-- for the show. And comedian Kamau Bell is excited to see Chris Rock turn #OscarsSoWhite into comic gold at the Academy Awards.

Comedian Paul Rust went from Iowa to working with his childhood heroes Judd Apatow and Paul Rubens, and now he's landed the Netflix series "Love," which comes out today. The Coen Brothers bring water ballet back to the big screen in "Hail, Caesar!" with the L.A. aquatic dance troupe Aqualillies. Also, we deconstruct the Oscar race for Best Picture with John Horn and Kyle Buchanan from The Awards Show Show.

Writer-director Robert Eggers' impressive feature debut is about witches in colonial New England; after camera assistant Sarah Jones was killed on a film set, her parents became advocates for production safety; the play 'Placas' tells the story of a man who escapes one of the world's most brutal gangs.

David Javerbaum created @TheTweetOfGod, which led to the hit Broadway play, "An Act of God," currently starring Sean Hayes; faced with low ratings, ABC fires network chief Paul Lee; singer-songwriter M. Ward revisits his early years in the Conejo Valley on his new album.

The producer of the Record of the Year Grammy talks about what went into making the dance hit, "Uptown Funk"; France's Academy Awards entry for Foreign Language Film was actually shot in Turkey by a Turkish-born filmmaker; Edward Gero played Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia in a show at Arena Stage.

Leonardo DiCaprio and Alejandro G. Iñárritu of "The Revenant" are among the filmmakers and actors on The Frame's annual Academy Awards preview. You'll also hear from Sylvester Stallone, Brie Larson, Bryan Cranston and many others.

Sylvester Stallone turned down the part of an ailing Rocky Balboa in "Creed" twice before agreeing to do it-- with the help of an acting coach. Now he's nominated for an Oscar. Grammy nominated musician Lianne La Havas finds inspiration in Jamaica. How only Kanye West could pack Madison Square Garden while playing an album off his laptop.

Bruce Springsteen's long-time guitarist has his first solo album in 20 years —and it's just one of his many gigs; Democratic presidential hopefuls are starting to make the rounds in Hollywood.

The streaming service, now mostly owned by Disney, unveiled its new projects that include big stars and an expansion of the company's comic book properties; playwright Eleanor Burgess deals with 'The Niceties'; Jonny Pierce leads the way for the band The Drums.

The musical "Hadestown" led the way with 14 nods, but the big surprise was the omission of "To Kill a Mockingbird" and "Network" in the best new play category; Michelle and Robert King talk about their hit TV series, "The Good Fight."

The campaigns of the rookie Congresswoman and three other candidates are documented in a Netflix film; filmmaker John Singleton ("Boyz n the Hood") died today at the age of 51; with "Avengers: Endgame" breaking box office records, what's next for the Marvel movie universe?

Former CBS executive speaks out about the workplace culture at CBS which she says is toxic. Then, the Victoria Riskin, daughter of Hollywood legends, writes a memoir. And one Armenian-American musician strives to keep her culture's musical history alive.

Aaron Sorkin was approved by Harper Lee to adapt "To Kill A Mockingbird" to the stage but just months before it was due to premiere her estate sued. The issues got resolved and now the play is a timely Broadway blockbuster. And, "Empire" actor Jussie Smollett's future on the show is unknown but last night his character made TV history.

Actress Kate del Castillo is back with "La Reina del Sur." She opens up about her secret meeting with El Chapo, the backlash she suffered in her career and her return in a role of a lifetime; As Disney chief Bob Iger benefits from the largess of his company, critics look at what Disneyland workers are paid and question the mogul's compensation.

The humorist, best known for his work in The New Yorker, is on tour before live audiences; students at Chapman University have successfully petitioned for the removal of posters from "The Birth of a Nation" that had been on display at the film school; Angelina Spicer fights postpartum depression through comedy.

The documentary by Penny Lane explores the misconceptions behind the Satanic Temple; L.A. Times TV critic Lorraine Ali on depictions of Muslims; Zev Feldman of Resonance Records is known as the "Indiana Jones" of lost jazz recordings.

The women behind the weekly podcast scheduled a live taping for April 18, and then had to scramble when the date was chosen for the Mueller report's release; actress Michelle Williams on playing Gwen Verdon in "Fosse/Verdon."

The Tony Award-winning actor takes on the role of newsman Howard Beale in a stage adaptation of the 1976 movie; with the final season of 'Game of Thrones' underway, we visit with the show's weapons master.

When the actresses met a few years back, they bonded over their love of music, and it led to the formation of their eclectic act; the Writers Guild of America filed suit today against Hollywood's major talent agencies, claiming some of their practices violate state law.