Blake Shelton confirms that he’s dating Gwen Stefani

Speculation about the "friendship" between the recently divorced singers Blake Shelton and Gwen Stefani was answered on Wednesday when a representative for Shelton confirmed the pair are dating. Both Shelton and Stefani are mentors on NBC's reality TV series The Voice.

Stefani filed for divorce from fellow musician Gavin Rossdale in August after nearly 13 years of marriage, citing irreconcilable differences. Both are seeking joint custody of their three children. Shelton announced that he and the singer Miranda Lambert were divorced in July after four years of marriage. – AP

Angelina Jolie and Will Smith among big names at AFI Fest

The American Film Institute kicked off its annual festival yesterday with a handful of hotly anticipated world premieres as Hollywood’s awards season picks up pace in the run-up to the Oscars.

Angelina Jolie's By the Sea, the NFL drama Concussion starring Will Smith, and The Big Short – about the credit and housing bubble collapse of the mid-2000s – are all debuting at the 29th AFI Fest, which runs until November 12.

Films that have already debuted elsewhere – such as the harrowing drama Room – will also be screened, as studios look to build support for Oscar campaigns.

The event plays a crucial role in the race for the coveted golden statuettes, said Tom O'Neil, the founder of the show-business awards-prediction website www.goldderby.com.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announces Oscar nominations in mid-January, ahead of the ceremony on February 28.

In past years, the festival showcased such Oscar winners as Silver Linings Playbook, Lincoln and The Fighter.

This year, AFI Fest opened with the world premiere of By the Sea, which stars Jolie and her husband, Brad Pitt. – AFP

Quentin Tarantino says police have ‘demonised’ him

The filmmaker Quentin Tarantino says police groups are vilifying critics of police brutality to avoid focusing on their problems with enforcement.

The Academy Award-winning filmmaker appeared on MSNBC's All In with Chris Hayes on Wednesday to defend himself from a backlash by police groups that have called for a boycott of his upcoming movie, The Hateful Eight. The police groups were angered by comments he made at an anti-police brutality rally in New York, where he said he was on the side of the "murdered". Tarantino said he's being "demonised".

“Anybody who acknowledges that there’s a problem in law enforcement in this country right now is considered by law enforcement part of the problem – whether that be me, whether that be [the New York mayor] Bill de Blasio, whether that be President Barack Obama,” he said.

Tarantino has been condemned by the New York police commissioner William Bratton and numerous police groups, including the National Association of Police Organizations.

Tarantino said he was "surprised" by the angry reactions to what he said at the rally, which was organised by a group called RiseUpOctober. The Hateful Eight, starring Kurt Russell and Samuel L Jackson, is scheduled for release in late December. – AP

Anupam Kher to lead protest march in New Delhi

The veteran Bollywood actor Anupam Kher has invited Indians to march with him tomorrow to protest the voices being raised over “intolerance” in the country.

“#MarchForIndia will start from India Gate, New Delhi, at 10am on November 7. All INDIANS are invited. Jai Ho. :) #IndiaIsTolerant [sic],” Kher tweeted.

The Bollywood actor, who performed in Mera Woh Matlab Nahin Tha, also starring Neena Gupta, at Ductac, Mall of the Emirates last month, will be joined in the march by a selection of artists, writers and painters.

This follows the decision of a host of filmmakers, including the likes of Dibakar Banerjee, Anand Patwardhan and Shah Rukh Khan, as well as writers and historians, to raise a voice against a perception of rising intolerance under the BJP-led government, and to return various government awards and honours.

Kher earlier tweeted: “This #AwardWapsiGang has not insulted the government, but the jury, the chairman of the jury and the audience who watched their films.” – Ians

Keith Urban, William Shatner star at Country Music Awards

The country music stars Carrie Underwood and Brad Paisley kicked off the Country Music Association Awards in Nashville, Tennessee, on Wednesday night dressed as Star Wars characters, and were later joined by William Shatner, who came on stage dressed as a Stormtrooper.

Duets began the show, with Eric Church and Hank Williams Jr performing Are You Ready for the Country, and John Mellencamp and Keith Urban strummed their guitars during Pink Houses.

The bluegrass musician Chris Stapleton took home all three awards he was nominated for, including Male Vocalist of the Year and Album of the Year, while Little Big Town, the band nominated for five awards, took home three, including Single of the Year and Song of the Year for their No 1 hit Girl Crush.

Miranda Lambert was named Female Vocalist of the Year, while Entertainer of the Year went to Luke Bryan. – AFP

Petition against Donald Trump guest hosting SNL

Pressure is continuing to mount on NBC to cancel Donald Trump's guest-host appearance on this weekend's Saturday Night Live, as a coalition of advocacy groups delivered petitions to the network calling for him to be dropped from the show.

The petitions delivered on Wednesday marked the latest attempts to dissuade the network from allowing the Republican presidential hopeful to host the show, with the National Hispanic Leadership Agenda earlier asking that NBC reconsider the decision.

“There’s mounting evidence that Donald Trump’s racist demagoguery is resulting in real-world violence and physical and verbal intimidation,” said Mushed Zaheed, the deputy political director of Credo Action, in a statement.

In advance of the show, NBC released promotional spots featuring Trump, including one in which he refers to a Republican opponent, Ben Carson, as “a complete and total loser”.

Trump drew fire early in his campaign when he described some Mexicans who are in the United States illegally as criminals and rapists.

NBC declined to comment on the petitions or whether any other presidential candidates are being considered to host SNL. – AP

Sting and Katy Perry perform at meditation benefit

Sting played it cool at a New York benefit concert dedicated to transcendental meditation, while Katy Perry added some volume.

The pair and Jerry Seinfeld performed on Wednesday at Change Begins Within, an event at Carnegie Hall presented by the David Lynch Foundation. Lynch is an advocate for transcendental meditation, popularised by the Beatles in the 1960s and now used for treating post-traumatic stress, depression and other afflictions. The benefit raised money to offer meditation for 10,000 at-risk New Yorkers. – AP