Indicted New York City mayor could appear before a judge Friday

NEW YORK (AP) — New York City's embattled and indicted mayor, Eric Adams, could make his initial court appearance Friday on charges that he accepted illegal campaign contributions and free overseas trips from people looking to buy his influence in city government.

An indictment unsealed Thursday accused the Democrat of taking a variety of improper gifts from Turkish officials and businesspeople, including free hotel stays and deeply discounted airline tickets to destinations including France, China, Sri Lanka, India, Hungary, Ghana and Turkey.

In return, prosecutors said, Adams did favors for his patrons. That included helping Turkey get fire department approvals to open a new diplomatic tower in Manhattan, despite concerns about its fire safety system, prosecutors said.

Adams says he is innocent. His lawyer has said it was neither unusual nor improper for a government official to accept some travel perks. The mayor has denied ever knowingly accepting an illegal campaign contribution and said any help he gave people navigating city bureaucracy was just part of doing his job.

Adams was scheduled to appear at noon before Magistrate Judge Katharine Parker.

Adams' lawyer, Alex Spiro, asked the court to delay the arraignment until at least Monday, mainly for the purpose of reducing the number of times the mayor would have to come to court. A judge did not immediately respond to that request.

It was unclear late Thursday how the mechanics of Adams' trip to court might unfold. Many people charged with federal crimes are arrested, booked, then brought before a judge after spending some amount of time in detention. But that isn't always the case.

When former U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez, of New Jersey, was arraigned on corruption charges in the same courthouse exactly one year ago Friday, he arrived as a free person in the morning, had a short appearance before a judge and walked out after around 4 1/2 hours in the building. He was never seen in handcuffs.

Adams, a Democrat, faces conspiracy, wire fraud and bribery charges in a five-count indictment.

U.S. Attorney Damian Williams on Thursday said that several businesspeople and a Turkish diplomat had engaged in “a multiyear scheme to buy favor" from Adams.

In public remarks Thursday, Adams asked New Yorkers to avoid making any judgments until they heard his defense.

His lawyer, Spiro, told reporters the travel perks and seat upgrades Adams accepted were commonly offered to VIPs and members of Congress.

“That’s what airlines do,” he said, noting that many of the charges relate to trips Adams took years ago when he was Brooklyn Borough President.

It was unclear whether this week's indictment was the last word on federal investigations involving the administration.

Federal prosecutors are believed to be leading multiple, separate inquiries involving Adams and his senior aides and relatives of those aides. In early September, federal investigators seized devices from the police commissioner, schools chancellor, two deputy mayors and other trusted Adams confidants.

In the last two weeks alone, the police commissioner resigned and the schools chancellor announced he would retire. Neither has been charged with a crime or been publicly accused of wrongdoing.

New York City Mayor Eric Adams, left, exits Gracie Mansion, the official residence of the mayor, Thursday, Sept. 26, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

James Dennehy, FBI New York Assistant Director in Charge, left, speaks at a news conference detailing an indictment against New York City Mayor Eric Adams as U.S. Attorney Damian Williams looks on, Thursday, Sept. 26, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

U.S. Attorney Damian Williams, attends a news conference detailing an indictment against New York City Mayor Eric Adams, Thursday, Sept. 26, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

U.S. Attorney Damian Williams, speaks at a news conference detailing an indictment against New York City Mayor Eric Adams, Thursday, Sept. 26, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

U.S. Attorney Damian Williams, speaks at a news conference detailing an indictment against New York City Mayor Eric Adams, Thursday, Sept. 26, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

New York City Mayor Eric Adams speaks during a news conference outside Gracie Mansion, Thursday, Sept. 26, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

People exit Gracie Mansion, the official residence of New York City Mayor Eric Adams, Thursday, Sept. 26, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

A vehicle drives into Gracie Mansion, the official residence of New York City Mayor Eric Adams, Thursday, Sep. 26, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

This image taken from video released by New York City Office of the Mayor, Wednesday, Sept. 25, 2024, shows mayor Eric Adams speaking during a videotaped statement. (New York City Office of the Mayor via AP)

Police officers stand outside Gracie Mansion, the official residence of New York City Mayor Eric Adams, Thursday, Sep. 26, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

New York City Mayor Eric Adams speaks during a news conference outside Gracie Mansion, Thursday, Sept. 26, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

New York City Mayor Eric Adams speaks during a news conference outside Gracie Mansion, Thursday, Sept. 26, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

New York City Mayor Eric Adams, left, listens as his attorney Alex Spiro, right, talk to the members of the media as they exit Gracie Mansion, the official residence of the mayor, Thursday, Sept. 26, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

A protestor talks with law enforcement personnel and media while demonstrating against New York City Mayor Eric Adams during a news conference outside Gracie Mansion, Thursday, Sept. 26, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

U.S. Attorney Damian Williams, left, speaks at a news conference detailing an indictment against New York City Mayor Eric Adams, Thursday, Sept. 26, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

New York City Mayor Eric Adams speaks during a news conference outside Gracie Mansion, Thursday, Sept. 26, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

A person wearing gloves and carrying Manila folders exits Gracie Mansion, the official residence of New York City Mayor Eric Adams, Thursday, Sept. 26, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

U.S. Attorney Damian Williams, speaks at a news conference detailing an indictment against New York City Mayor Eric Adams, Thursday, Sept. 26, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

New York City Mayor Eric Adams speaks during a news conference outside Gracie Mansion, Thursday, Sept. 26, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

What Ellen DeGeneres says is her last comedy special landing on Netflix and George Clooney and Brad Pitt starring in a sleek, New York City caper are some of the new television, films, music and games headed to a device near you.

Also among the streaming offerings worth your time as selected by The Associated Press’ entertainment journalists: Serj Tankian, frontman of the Grammy-award winning Armenian-American nu-metal band System of a Down, releases a solo EP, we get two Ryan Murphy series — “Grotesquerie” on FX and the ABC medical drama “Doctor Odyssey” — and nearly 40 years after the debut of The Legend of Zelda, Nintendo is finally making the title character the star of her own game.

— Hard as this may be to believe, George Clooney and Brad Pitt are good together. Yes, stop the presses and all that. But it’s been a while since Clooney and Pitt, who first teamed up for “Ocean’s 11” had a movie built around their easy charisma. “Wolfs,” streaming Friday on Apple TV+, corrects that with a sleek New York caper about two fixers who have been hired for the same clean-up job. In my review of the film by writer-director Jon Watts (“Spider-Man: No Way Home”), I wrote that “Wolfs” is “designed to show you that they can still, without ever really breaking a sweat, get the job done.”

— Some Pixar fans have quibbled in the past when the digital animation studio has leaned too hard into sequels. But the box office for “Inside Out 2” is hard to refute. With nearly $1.7 billion in ticket sales, it’s the year’s biggest box-office hit. On Wednesday, “Inside Out 2” arrives on Disney+ to make one of the most anticipated streaming debuts of the year. In it, Riley has grown up a couple years but entered a new chapter in life: puberty, bringing with it a number of new emotions. In my review, I wrote that "the filmmakers of ‘Inside Out 2’ have managed again to filter complex psychological developments into a bright, entertaining head trip that in its finest moments packs an emotional wallop.”

— Will Ferrell and Harper Steele became friends and collaborators at “Saturday Night Live,” where Steele was head writer from 2004 to 2008. When Steele came out as transgender a few years ago, Ferrell, interested in reconnecting, proposed a road trip. In “Will & Harper,” streaming Friday on Netflix, the two embark on a cross-country expedition full of revelations about what this changes and doesn’t change in their relationship.

— AP Film Writer Jake Coyle

— Remember the first time you heard “Million Dollar Baby”? The rap record feels like it came out of nowhere — as so many TikTok smashes do — but continues to endure, moving from hit song of the spring to hit song of the summer to hit song of the fall and beyond. But now, fans of Tommy Richman will get to dive deeper into his musical abilities when he releases the full-length “Coyote,” on Friday. Little is known about the 11-track release, but the lead singles “Whitney,” a disco-funk electro-detour, and “Thought You Were the One” – a hook-heavy R&B ballad – suggest range.

— Serj Tankian, frontman of the Grammy-award winning Armenian-American nu-metal band System of a Down, will release a short solo EP, “Foundations” on Friday. The release maintains his band’s abrasion but experiments with different forms of audial rebellion. The single “A.F. Day,” for example, is a kind of psychedelic-punk treatise on the absurdity of everyday mundanity. And it sounds explosive.

— There is nothing predictable about the band Being Dead’s sophomore album, “EELS,” produced by Grammy-award winnerJohn Congleton. Across 16 tracks that move from asymmetrical egg punk, Devo-worship, a recording of a bus driver who has had enough, timeless, near-psychedelic harmonies and various other oddball sensibilities that make them the best college radio rock band in recent history – Being Dead’s organized chaos is future-seeking and familiar all at once.

— AP Music Writer Maria Sherman

— Ellen DeGeneres says her next comedy special coming to Netflix will be her last. “For Your Approval” drops Sept. 24 and the comedian is “going there,” by addressing reports that she was difficult to deal with behind the scenes of her daytime talk show, which ended its run in 2022 after 19 seasons. “I got kicked out of show business,” she says in the trailer.

— Ryan Murphy has a new series on FX called “Grotesquerie.” Niecy Nash stars as a detective who agrees to help a nun and reporter (Micaela Diamond) with a Catholic newspaper to investigate a series of gruesome murders. Super Bowl-winning Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce (otherwise known as Taylor Swift’s boyfriend), has a secret role in the show.

— If “Grotesquerie” isn't your bag, there's another Ryan Murphy series making its debut this week. A medical drama called “Doctor Odyssey” premiered Thursday on ABC. Joshua Jackson plays a doctor on board a luxury cruise ship called the Odyssey. Don Johnson, Philippa Soo and Sean Teale also star. The show also boasts a number of guest stars including John Stamos, Kelsea Ballerini, Shania Twain and Chord Overstreet. A trailer for the show had nearly 78 million views within 48 hours, making it the most-watched trailer for a new broadcast TV show. Episodes also stream on Hulu.

— One might assume a TV show called “Colin from Accounts” takes place in an office setting. Instead, it’s a modern day romantic comedy made in Australia. It’s created by and co-stars real-life husband and wife, Harriet Dyer and Patrick Brammel, who play two people who are brought together by an injured dog named Colin. All eight episodes of season two debuted Thursday on Paramount+.

— “The Walking Dead” characters Daryl and Carol, (played by Norman Reedus and Melissa McBride), make up one of the most popular platonic pairings on television. The two unlikely friends bond over similar pasts and share a deep trust. They next co-star in “The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon - The Book of Carol.” It premieres Sept. 29 on AMC and AMC+.

— Zachry Quinto is back on TV on Monday in a medical drama. But he’s not portraying any dour, by-the-rules doctor — he’s playing Dr. Oliver Sacks, the famed neurologist, path-breaking researcher and author once called the “poet laureate of medicine.” NBC’s “Brilliant Minds” takes Sack’s personality — a motorcycle-riding, fern-loving doctor who died in 2015 at 82 — and puts his career in the present day, where the creators theorize he would have no idea who Taylor Swift is or own a cell phone.

— Alicia Rancilio

— Nearly 40 years after the debut of The Legend of Zelda, Nintendo is finally making the title character the star of her own game. As The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom begins, Link — our usual hero — has vanished, so it’s off to the rescue for Princess Z. She’s hardly a damsel in distress, armed with a “Tri Rod” that lets her duplicate objects she finds outside her castle. She can even make copies of monsters and have them fight on her side. The magical staff gives Zelda the improvisational skills that made last year’s Tears of the Kingdom a smash, while the top-down dungeon exploration will remind old-school fans of early games in the franchise. The Echoes began reverberating Thursday on Switch.

— Lou Kesten

This image released by NBC shows Zachary Quinto as Dr. Oliver Wolf in a scene from "Brilliant Minds." (NBC via AP)

This image released by Netflix shows Harper Steele, left, and Will Ferrell in a scene from "Will & Harper." (Netflix via AP)

This image released by Netflix shows Harper Steele, right, and Will Ferrell in a scene from "Will & Harper." (Netflix via AP)

This combination of images shows album art for "Coyote" by Tommy Richman, left, "Foundations" by Serj Tankian, center, and "Eels" by Being Dead." (ISO Supremacy and PULSE Records/Gibson Records/Bayonet Records via AP)

This image released by Nerflix shows Ellen DeGeneres in a scene from her comedy special "Ellen DeGeneres: For Your Approval." (Wilson Webb/Netflix via AP)

This image released by Apple TV+ shows Brad Pitt, left, and George Clooney in a scene from "Wolfs." (Scott Garfield/Apple TV+ via AP)

This combination of images shows promotional art for the films, "Inside Out 2," from left, "Wolfs," and "Will & Harper." (Disney/Apple TV+/Netflix via AP)

This image released by Disney/Pixar shows, from left, Embarrassment, voiced by Paul Walter Hauser, Anxiety, voiced by Maya Hawke, Envy, voiced by Ayo Edebiri, and Ennui, voiced by Adèle Exarchopoulos in a scene from "Inside Out 2." (Disney/Pixar via AP)

This image released by Disney/Pixar shows, from left, Sadness, voiced by Phyllis Smith, left, and Joy, voiced by Amy Poehler, in a scene from "Inside Out 2." (Disney/Pixar via AP)