The Frame

In the 1973 movie "Westworld," Michael Crichton created a fantasy world that now doesn't seem so far-fetched in the new HBO series; Desert Days may be jokingly called "Oldchella," but the promoters are laughing all the way to the bank; Get Lit was founded with the goal of using poetry to increase teen literacy ... and it’s working.

“Delusion: His Crimson Queen” is a haunt for people who will pay for the privilege of being scared, while "Hollywood Premiere Party: The Show" lets movie fans have the red carpet treatment; as rumors swirl about Netflix being sold, the streaming service continues to throw its weight around.

Between "Portlandia," "Documentary Now" and "Seth Meyers: Late Night," Fred Armisen may be the hardest working man in show business; since its release in May, Ezra Edelman's "O.J.: Made in America" continues to resonate as a chronicle of the relationship between African-Americans and law enforcement.

Google announced a slew of new products today, including the Pixel phone, Chromecast Ultra and the Daydream VR headset; Willie Bobo was a Latin music legend from the '60s-'80s. His son, Eric, has assembled an album of his father's previously unreleased music; for 40 years, filmmaker Terrence Malick has been working on a documentary about the origins of the universe. We talk to the producers who shepherded the project into existence.

We debate the issues surrounding the film, "The Birth of a Nation," and its writer-director-star, Nate Parker; remembering two L.A. cultural icons: Gordon Davidson of the Center Theatre Group and conductor Sir Neville Marriner, the first music director of the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra.

The creators of “For the Record” build cabaret-like stage shows around classic pop songs used by top filmmakers; "Saturday Night Live" returns in the heat of the presidential campaign; L.A. singer-songwriter Devendra Banhart uses the city as inspiration on his latest album.

Bell says the title of his new comedy album refers to his being called on as a news show commentator only after more prominent people are unavailable; Kirsten Johnson is an award-winning documentary cinematographer who has woven footage from her 25-year career into a documentary memoir called “Cameraperson."

Filmmaker Andrea Arnold cast “American Honey” with amateur actors, including Sasha Lane, who was discovered on a beach in Florida; the Wanda Group's purchase of American movie theaters and production companies has some members of Congress worried; there's an effort to make vinyl copies of a recording of life on earth that was sent into outer space.

The success of "Between Two Ferns" with Hillary Clinton explains why Funny or Die opened a bureau in the nation's capitol; a new state bill aims to prevent websites like IMDb from publishing the age of actors and actresses; Grammy nominee Austin Wintory composed the music for the new video game, "Abzu."

Director Mira Nair's new movie, "Queen of Katwe," tells an inspirational story that's set in Uganda, showing a side of Africa not often seen in big studio movies; TV producers are high on reboots and remakes, with no sign of slowing; photographer Phil Toledano's bizarre attempt to deal with his death anxiety is documented in the film, "The Many Sad Fates of Mr. Toledano"

Movie ticket sales dropped five percent in 2014, worrying studios and theater owners; filmmaker Lee Daniels talks about his foray into TV production with his new Fox series, "Empire" (pictured); Shamir is one musician to watch in 2015.

Ranking various versions of the New Year's Eve tune, from Rod Stewart to Mariah Carey to ... cats!; Christmas came early for music lovers when an L.A. record store let customers cart off 25 albums for free; the City of L.A.'s former arts czar assesses the city's place in the cultural world.

The iconoclastic theater/opera director Peter Sellars (pictured) uses Los Angeles as his base while he travels the world to mount work with themes of social justice; a new investigation concludes North Korea wasn't behind the Sony hack; and a look at the top films of 2014.

We break down the Christmas weekend box office and video-on-demand numbers for the controversial film, "The Interview"; writer/director J.C. Chandor talks about his latest film, "A Most Violent Year," starring Oscar Isaac and Jessica Chastain (pictured); David Lynch's artwork is featured in a major museum exhibition.

Alamo Drafthouse cinema on convincing Sony to release "The Interview"; The screenwriter of ‘The Imitation Game’ always wanted to tell the true story of Alan Turing; Celebrating 10 years of The Black List, the place where Oscar winners “Argo,” “Slumdog Millionaire” and “The King’s Speech” debuted; What television to binge-watch over the holidays.

Sony will allow "The Interview" to be seen after all! We talk to the founder of the Downtown Independent about his quest to get the film at his theater; The screenwriters of “Big Eyes” spent a decade trying to get their movie about kitschy art made —and it cost them dearly; Song Exploder dissects a tune from the rock band, The National; Meet the L.A. rabbi with a side job in television.

Playwright James Lapine compares the Hollywood and Broadway versions of "Into The Woods"; "Nightcrawler" writer/director Dan Gilroy weighs in on the Sony hack and "The Interview" scandal; and a Festivus for the rest of us.

Director Angelina Jolie talks about her personal commitment to bring Lou Zamperini’s story to the screen in the movie “Unbroken.” Seth Rogen and James Franco, the stars of “The Interview,” got a special shout-out from President Obama at a White House news conference.

Since you won't see "The Interview," we have a recap of the film, and two critics weigh in on whether the movie is worth all the drama; The Museum of Latin American Art in Long Beach has the first solo U.S. museum exhibition of contemporary Cuban artist Esterio Segura; and we end our Colbert Countdown.

Sony won't release "The Interview" amid threats and the largest theater chains declining to screen the film; writer/director Judd Apatow weighs in on potential harm to the industry; Day 3 of our countdown to the end of 'The Colbert Report'; Rafe Fiennes on working with Wes Anderson.

The Japanese rock star Miyavi was picked by Angelina Jolie to play a WWII prison commandant for his first acting role; what makes Stephen Colbert geek-out, and what did an appearance on "The Colbert Report" do for author Gregory Rodriguez?; artist Ben Noam looks for inspiration in a park.

Dan Sterling talks about the genesis of "The Interview" (starring James Franco, left, and Seth Rogen, right) and how North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un made his way into the script; we launch our week-long farewell tribute to "The Colbert Report."