The Frame

Adrian Tomine's most recent book, "Killing and Dying," is showing up on a lot of "Best of 2015" lists; Lucas Hnath, who once considered becoming a preacher, addresses themes of faith and salvation in "The Christians"; young British actors John Boyega and Daisy Ridley are in "The Force Awakens"

Will Smith reveals why he was reluctant to be in "Concussion" and how he sees Hollywood's diversity problem; Star Wars mega premiere and Disney's plans to monetize the new movie to the tune of billions; Spike Lee commends J.J. Abrams

Mary Steenburgen may be the busiest actress in TV. She can be seen on "Togetherness,” “Orange Is the New Black” and “The Last Man on Earth”; the annual list of the top un-produced screenplays is out; The Force is strong on the shelves of grocery and drug stores where you’ll find an endless variety of "Star Wars" tie-ins.

Nick Hornby is an esteemed novelist who also adapts other authors for the big screen, including his latest, "Brooklyn"; composer Dustin O’Halloran deconstructs his theme music from "Transparent" for Song Exploder; the Havana Film Festival showcases the nascent Cuban indie film movement.

The screenwriter talks about dramatizing the Apple co-founder's story and how Donald Trump "may be the end of political satire"; John Malkovich's reading of Plato's "Allegory of the Cave" has been set to music by Yoko Ono, Ric Ocasek and other musicians.

The premise of the comedy "You're the Worst," created by Stephen Falk, is that even the most flawed people deserve to find love; the Screen Actors Guild Award nominations provide an early indicator of Oscar choices; The Beach Boys' album, "Pet Sounds," gets a spoken word treatment, of sorts.

Nathan Fielder offers off-the-wall business advice on his Comedy Central series, "Nathan For You"; the Grammys could be a face-off between friends Taylor Swift and Kendrick Lamar; Scott Fagan's 1968 album, "South Atlantic Blues," gets new life thanks to Light In the Attic records.

Daniel Wu was born in California but launched his acting career in China. Now he's starring in an AMC series that puts his martial arts background to good use; Katie Couric and Stephanie Soechtig will debut "Under the Gun" at the Sundance Film Festival.

At 82, Michael Caine plays the lead in 'Youth' but for the most part he considers himself retired; Roy Orbison's son releases his dad's 1969 lost album 'One Of The Lonely Ones'; The Oscar short list for documentaries is out and Sundance is the big winner.

Alan Yang says the Netflix series he created with Aziz Ansari was sparked by their shared experiences as millennials and second-generation Americans; Hollywood power brokers have ideas for improving the standing of women in the entertainment industry; the Sundance festival will include the directing debut of actress Clea Duvall.

Playwright Stephen Karam tells the story of making "The Humans" a Broadway hit; "Hamilton" broke a Tony nomination record and Broadway proves more diverse than Hollywood; Anybody who's anyone in the digital media world is making online videos, so what's hot at the Newfronts?

The Broadway musical "School of Rock" stars Alex Brightman in the role originated by Jack Black in the 2003 movie of the same name; the married musical duo Marty and Elayne celebrate 35 years of their lounge act at The Dresden Room; a massive festival planned by the promoters of Coachella is stacked with some of the biggest — and oldest — names in classic rock.

Susan Sarandon and Rose Byrne star in Lorene Scafaria's film that was inspired by her own meddlesome mother; North Carolina’s so-called “bathroom law" has some film/TV studios threatening to move out of state. Three below-the-line workers tells us how their lives and careers could be upended; Pace Gallery opens its first West Coast venue in Palo Alto.

Tracy Oliver co-wrote "Barbershop: The Next Cut," her biggest credit in a career that's only getting bigger; What does Comcast's $3.8 billion deal to buy DreamWorks Animation say about the state of Hollywood?; musician and composer Adam Young is writing scores for movies that haven't been made.

Raymond Lee channels the mindset of a school shooter, and the legacy of Korean rage, in the new play "Office Hour"; Vulture's Kyle Buchanan on the trend of casting actors such as Idris Elba and Lupita Nyong'o in roles where you don't see their faces; Kevin Morby finds musical inspiration in his L.A. neighborhood.

Eddie Huang criticized ABC's adaptation of his memoir, "Fresh Off The Boat." He's turned to reality TV for the Viceland food-travel series "Huang's World"; Turner Classic Movies and Criterion Collection are creating a streaming service for film fanatics; painter Lily Simonson's new exhibit depicts the world she found while on a research expedition to Antarctica.

The official weapons master for "Game of Thrones," Tommy Dunne, shares secrets from the show's war chest; "After The Thrones" is the official GoT after-show, hosted by Andy Greenwald; Beyoncé takes a bold artistic and personal leap forward with her new album and short film.

John Carney ("Once") makes a love letter to '80s rock with his new movie, "Sing Street"; playwright, choreographer and theatrical activist Larissa FastHorse chronicles what it means to be a Native American in Los Angeles through her play, "Urban Rez."

The Frame pays tribute to Prince: music critic Melissa Ruggieri reports on Prince's final concerts; singer Judith Hill had her debut album produced by Prince; Alex Pappademas of MTV News on Prince's legacy in music and film; and Scott Goodman got a personal request from Prince to have his music removed from Goodman's file sharing website.

Kathryn Bostic has a varied music career as a composer for film, stage and the concert hall, and a singer/songwriter; the Ford Amphitheatre in the Hollywood Hills is nearing the end of an extensive renovation; an unprecedented number of women comic book writers and artists are up for Eisner Awards.

Kamau Bell's new CNN docu-series gets off to a wild start when he spends time with some Ku Klux Klan members on their turf; on a new episode of Song Exploder, punk legend Iggy Pop and Josh Homme of Queens of the Stone Age dissect their collaboration.

Rachel Bloom, star and co-creator of the CW show, “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend,” reveals how she took her love of musical theater and made it into a modern day commentary on sex and the single woman; Plus, electronic music rules at Coachella this year. We'll hear a wrap-up of the first weekend and a review of some wearable tech aimed at audiophiles.