ESPN and Prince Harry Facing Backlash Over 2024 Pat Tillman Award Honor, Wicked Receives New Release Date, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice to Open Venice Film Festival 

ESPN facing backlash for granting Prince Harry the Pat Tillman Award honoring fallen Army vet
Prince Harry is set to be honored with the Pat Tillman Award for Service on July 11 at ESPN’s ESPY awards in Los Angeles. The award, named for late NFL star and U.S. Army Ranger Pat Tillman, is awarded annually to an individual who has positively reflected Tillman's legacy in sports. The Duke of Sussex earned himself the honor through a decade of dedication to the Invictus Games, a sporting event created for sick and injured servicemen both active and veteran, which he founded back in 2014. However, Tillman’s mother has since spoken out, claiming that she was not consulted about who this year’s recipient would be, stating that there are more deserving recipients that don't have the same “money, resources, connections or privilege” as Prince Harry, who she also calls “controversial and divisive.”

Wicked film bumps up release date a week early, now to premiere November 22
The screen adaptation of the legendary Broadway show will hit theaters ahead of schedule. Wicked: Part One initially shared a November 27 release date with Disney’s highly anticipated Moana 2, leaving many fans questioning which film they would see first. But with its newly announced November 22 debut, another “Barbenheimer” box office brawl has been avoided. The film’s second installment is still on schedule to premiere November 26 of the following year.

Tim Burton’s Beetlejuice Beetlejuice to make screen debut at Venice Film Festival in August
The sequel to the 1988 fan favorite Beetlejuice is set to make its world premiere on August 28, opening the 81st annual Venice Film Festival just over a week prior to its September 6 U.S. debut. The film’s stars who are expected to attend the screening at the Lido’s Palazzo del Cinema include Michael Keaton, Winona Ryder and Catherine O’Hara, who all starred in the original film, along with Jenna Ortega, Justin Theroux, Monica Bellucci and Willem Dafoe.

In today’s birthday news:
NASCAR legend Richard Petty turns 87, comedian Larry David 77, E Street Band pianist Roy Bittan 75, model Jerry Hall 68, actress Ashley Tisdale 39, actress Lindsay Lohan 38, actress Margot Robbie 34.