INAUGURAL VULTURE FESTIVAL LOS ANGELES, PRESENTED BY AT&T, ANNOUNCES ALL-STAR LINEUP, FEATURING KERRY WASHINGTON & THE CAST OF SCANDAL, NATALIE PORTMAN, SARAH SILVERMAN, JAMES FRANCO, ISSA RAE, LENA DUNHAM, SOFIA COPPOLA, AVA DUVERNAY, RYAN COOGLER, LENA WAITHE, EUGENE LEVY, CATHERINE O’HARA, BORED TO DEATH REUNION, SEARCH PARTY SCAVENGER HUNT, & MUCH MORE
Vulture today announced the lineup for its first-ever Vulture Festival Los Angeles Presented by AT&T, a weekend of high-profile events bringing the entertainment site to life, and an expansion of the pop-culture extravaganza that has taken place in New York City for the last four years. Vulture Festival Los Angeles features the best of today’s television, film, comedy, art, and more. The lineup includes panels, screenings, exclusive cast reunions, a private museum tour, and a live comedy show, taking place November 18–19, primarily at the iconic Hollywood Roosevelt in Los Angeles, with select events at other venues. Additional events will be announced in the coming weeks.
Among the featured events at the two-day live showcase, curated by Vulture’s editors, are:
· Scandal: The Final Season, featuring cast members Kerry Washington, Guillermo Diaz, Darby Stanchfield, Tony Goldwyn, Jeff Perry, Bellamy Young, Scott Foley, Joe Morton, Cornelius Smith, Jr., and George Newbern, and a look at how the series has changed the way we think about behind-the-scenes Beltway drama.
· Oscar-winning actress Natalie Portman (Black Swan) joins Vulture Festival for an in-depth, career-spanning conversation about her groundbreaking work as an artist, from stage to screen. The evening will feature highlights from her most esteemed performances (including her Oscar-nominated turns in Jackie and Closer), her efforts as a writer-director-producer (A Tale of Love and Darkness), and a look inside her deep commitment to global humanitarian causes.
· James Franco discusses The Disaster Artist, his new film about the making of the modern cult classic The Room (known to its many fans as the greatest bad movie of all time).
· Issa Rae, creator, executive producer, and star of HBO’s Insecure joins the festival for a wine down.
· Lena Dunham and Jenni Konner, the women behind HBO’s Girls and Lenny Letter, in conversation.
· An ultraexclusive private tour of the Broad museum led by New York Magazine and Vulture senior art critic Jerry Saltz.
· “State of the Union” with comedian, writer and actress Sarah Silverman in conversation with New York Magazine writer-at-large Frank Rich.
· Lena Waithe and Common unveil The Chi in an advance screening of their forthcoming Showtime drama series, followed by a conversation.
· The first-ever Bored to Death reunion, with stars Jason Schwartzman, Zach Galifianakis, Ted Danson, and creator Jonathan Ames.
· Writer-directors Ava DuVernay (A Wrinkle in Time, Selma, The 13th) and Ryan Coogler (Black Panther, Fruitvale Station, Creed) in conversation.
· The stars and creators of FX’s It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia: Rob McElhenney, Charlie Day, Glenn Howerton, Kaitlin Olson, and Danny DeVito.
· Amber Tamblyn and Roxane Gay host Feminist As F*ck, a reading series they co-created in 2014. The event will showcase the most daring voices in feminist writing today, including Rachel McKibbens and many more.
· A Search Party Scavenger Hunt, planting the stars of the show, including Alia Shawkat, Meredith Hagner, John Early, John Reynolds, Sarah-Violet Bliss, Charles Rogers, Lilly Burns, Judy Reyes and Jeffery Self, at secret locations throughout Hollywood, and culminating with an intimate cocktail reception with the cast and creators for those who successfully complete the hunt.
· Writer-director Sofia Coppola (The Virgin Suicides, Lost in Translation, Marie Antoinette, Somewhere, The Bling Ring, The Beguiled) in conversation with New York Magazine editor-in-chief Adam Moss, presented by DIRECTV Now.
· Writer-director-producer Guillermo del Toro and actor Doug Jones discuss their latest film The Shape of Water, winner of the Golden Lion for best film at the 2017 Venice International Film Festival.
· Stranger Things creators Matt and Ross Duffer and executive producer Shawn Levy discuss the second season of Netflix’s juggernaut series.
· Erika Jayne of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills in conversation with Brian J. Moylan, Vulture’s resident Real Housewives expert.
· Damon Lindelof (co-creator of The Leftovers and Lost) and Mike Schur (creator of Parks and Recreation and The Good Place) discuss TV and the meaning of life.
· Pop-Culture Trivia Game Show tests the pop-culture savvy of the cast of Lifetime’s UnREAL vs. another fan-favorite series, hosted by Bitch Sesh’s Casey Wilson and Danielle Schneider.
· Clone High reunion with co-creators Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, joining co-creator Bill Lawrence and stars Will Forte, Michael McDonald, Nicole Sullivan, and Christa Miller for a look back on MTV’s quirky animated series.
· Crazy Ex-Girlfriend co-creators Rachel Bloom and Aline Brosh McKenna, along with cast members Vincent Rodriguez III, Scott Michael Foster, Donna Lynne Champlin, Pete Gardner, Vella Lovell, Gabrielle Ruiz and David Hull, offer a look inside season three of the CW series and its 100 original songs.
· Comedians You Should & Will Know, a live show made up of comedians from Vulture’s annual list of up-and-coming comedic talent, hosted by star and creator of HBO’s Crashing, Pete Holmes, with special appearances by Jamie Lee and Lauren Lapkus.
· From Funny Or Die and IFC comes a Thanksgiving House – an immersive Holiday event that brings to life all the best and worst of this holiday—all in one pop-up house. Attendees move from room to room, experiencing live, acted-out scenes of a typical Thanksgiving.
· The Alienist screening and panel, with BAFTA award-winning costume designer Michael Kaplan (Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Blade Runner) and Emmy® award-winning production designer Mara LePere-Schloop (True Detective, Django Unchained) goes behind the scenes of TNT’s eagerly anticipated psychological thriller based on the New York Times bestseller by Caleb Carr.
· Screening and panel of PopTV’s Schitt’s Creek, featuring Emmy® winners and comedy legends Eugene Levy (co-creator and actor) and Catherine O’Hara (actor), along with Daniel Levy (co-creator, writer, actor), and Annie Murphy (actor).
· An exclusive sneak-peek at season three of the TBS hit comedy The Detour, created, written and executive-produced by Jason Jones and Samantha Bee, followed by a conversation with stars Jason Jones and Natalie Zea.
· DIRECTV presents an exclusive screening of its new film The Strange Ones, followed by a conversation with writer-director Christopher Radcliff, director Lauren Wolkstein, and actor James Freedson-Jackson.
Tickets will range from free events to $150, with most in the $25 range and including access to the AT&T Vulture Lounge poolside at The Hollywood Roosevelt. Citi® cardmembers have access to presale tickets on October 17, with general tickets going on sale to the general public on October 18 at vulturefestival.com. A limited quantity of all-access Vulture Passes will be available for $495 (excluding The Broad tour, Search Party scavenger hunt, and comedy night). Follow @VultureFestival and @Vulture for updates.
The weekend will kick off on Friday, November 17, with an exclusive opening-night party at The Hollywood Roosevelt, co-hosted by AT&T.
Vulture Festival Los Angeles is presented by AT&T, with additional sponsors including Citi, TNT, and JetBlue; media sponsors SiriusXM and Screenvision Media; and content providers DIRECTV and PopTV.
“We’re delighted to join as presenting sponsor for Vulture Festival Los Angeles, expanding our collaboration as the festival grows to a new market, and building on two successful years as a sponsor in New York City,” says Hanny Patel, vice president, Video Marketing for AT&T. “We are proud to join the top-tier talent who appear at the festival, and to showcase new initiatives like DIRECTV Cinema to Vulture’s passionate audience of entertainment fans.”