Following is a summary of current entertainment news briefs.

Hollywood off-screen union members authorize strike if talks fail

Members of the union representing camera operators, make-up artists and other behind-the-scenes workers on Hollywood films and television shows have voted resoundingly to authorize a strike if they cannot reach agreement with producers on a new contract, the union said on Monday. The International Alliance of Stage Theatrical Employees (IATSE), which represents some 60,000 workers who also include the likes of sound editors and hair artists, said in a statement that 90% of its members cast ballots and more than 98% of the votes returned were in favor of authorizing a strike.

‘Venom’, Bond pull in 4 million people to AMC theaters over weekend

Nearly 4 million people worldwide flocked to theaters owned by AMC Entertainment over the weekend to watch “Venom: Let There Be Carnage” and the latest James Bond film, setting a record since the movie halls were reopened after being shut for more than a year. Moviegoers are returning to theaters in droves after relying on Netflix and Apple TV for much of their entertainment during pandemic-induced lockdowns, leading to a surge in advance ticket bookings as a number of much-awaited titles hit theaters.

From soundstage to space: “Star Trek” actor Shatner on board for Blue Origin rocket launch

William Shatner, the “Star Trek” actor who found fame by pretending a Hollywood soundstage was a spaceship exploring the galaxy, will be launched to the edge of space for real next week in a rocket built by Blue Origin, billionaire Jeff Bezos’ space company. Shatner, best known as Captain Kirk in the original “Star Trek” television series, will be part of a four-person crew aboard Blue Origin’s New Shepard launch vehicle on the flight scheduled for the morning of Oct. 12, the company said on Monday.

Spanish court backs Shakira’s tax claim, criminal case still pending

A Spanish administrative court has ordered tax authorities to reimburse Colombian singer Shakira, court officials and lawyers said on Monday, while a separate criminal lawsuit she faces over a 14.5 million euros ($16.8 million) tax dispute continues. Shakira’s legal team did not specify how much money she would get back, however, or when the decision was made.

Billie Eilish to headline Glastonbury music festival next year

Grammy Award winner Billie Eilish will perform at Glastonbury next June, becoming the British music festival’s youngest-ever solo headliner, organisers said on Monday. The 19-year-old hitmaker, who sings the theme tune for the latest James Bond movie “No Time To Die” , performed at the festival’s Other Stage in 2019, the last time the major greenfield music event was held.

‘No Time to Die’ opens with $121 million in international box office sales

The latest James Bond movie took a mighty $121 million at the international box office over its opening weekend, Universal Pictures said on Monday. The British and Irish box office led the way with a total of $35 million, making “No Time to Die” the biggest movie release there of the coronavirus pandemic and the highest opening three-day weekend ever in the UK and Ireland for a Bond movie.

Son of Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan in custody in drugs probe

A Mumbai court sent the 23-year-old son of Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan to three days’ custody on Monday, a lawyer said, after he was arrested in a drugs investigation that has captivated India’s broadcast media. Aryan Khan was arrested on Saturday night after police raided a ship off Mumbai and found narcotics, local media said. The court remanded Khan and two others in custody with the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB), the federal agency that is investigating the case.

Private collection tells story of Egypt’s cinematic heyday

In a small apartment-turned-museum in the northern city of Alexandria, 72-year-old Makram Salama’s cluttered collection of negatives, posters and projectors traces the history of Egyptian cinema through its 20th century heyday. The collection started with photos and posters from his hometown in southern Egypt where he worked in a sugar cane factory, and grew to include thousands of items picked up from production companies and others who abandoned them as they switched to digital film.

Box Office: ‘Venom’ Sequel Feasts on Monstrous $90 Million Debut, Setting Pandemic Record

“Venom: Let There be Carnage” roared to $90.1 million in its debut, setting a new pandemic record. It’s an impressive result, one that provides a lifeline to struggling movie theaters and (once again) proves Marvel’s might at the box office. The much darker “Venom” follow-up comes from Sony Pictures and is separate from Disney’s Marvel Cinematic Universe, which recently delivered “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings” and “Black Widow” — the two highest-grossing films of the year at the domestic box office. If its first three days in theaters are any indication, “Venom: Let There be Carnage” looks to find itself among that group as 2021’s biggest earners. The film is playing only in cinemas as opposed to a hybrid release on-demand, a factor that should help ticket sales.

(With inputs from agencies.)