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Trump And Zelenskyy Meet For Talks On Ending Russian War; Millions Under Winter Weather Alerts On Busy Travel Weekend; 2025 Top 10 Biggest Stories In Entertainment; Tomorrow: Trump, Netanyahu Meet Amid Rising Middle East Tensions; Uncertain Future For Migrants Released From Detention In Chicago; Now: Trump And Zelenskyy Speak After Holding Talks On Peace Plan. Aired 4-5p ET
Aired December 28, 2025 - 16:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[16:00:00]
HUGH JACKMAN, ACTOR: Well, we're touring the world.
LYNDA KINKADE, CNN HOST: Over the holidays and looking forward to 2026. Wishes and hopes.
KATE HUDSON, ACTRESS: I'm going back to Neil Diamond's house. I've decided I'm spending the holidays with the Diamonds.
JACKMAN: Goal was to get invited.
HUDSON: On cinnamon sticks.
JACKMAN: To Kate Hudson's for Christmas. That's the epic Christmas.
KINKADE: That would be gold. Like her family, I just feel like you just want to hug them all.
JACKMAN: It's true.
HUDSON: Oh, well, it depends on if we're playing games. If we're playing games, you won't want to hug us. We get really competitive.
JACKMAN: Really?
HUDSON: My mom leaves the room.
JACKMAN: There's a line in our movie, dream huge. And I wish that for every single one of you for 2026.
ANNOUNCER: This is CNN Breaking News.
DANNY FREEMAN, CNN HOST: Hello. Thank you so much for joining us on a very busy holiday news weekend. I'm Danny Freeman in for Fredricka Whitfield.
And we have breaking news to begin this hour. Right now, Ukrainian President Zelenskyy and President Trump are meeting in Florida along with their teams of negotiators. For about two and a half hours now, they've been discussing a new peace proposal that had been worked out in recent days. The key sticking point, though, is a security guarantee for Ukraine.
Here's what President Trump said about that ahead of the talks.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: There will be a security agreement. It will be a strong agreement, and the European nations are very much involved in that. They'll be very much involved in protection, et cetera. But the European nations have been really great. They're very much in line with this meeting and getting a deal done. They are all terrific people. I think you can say that. There's no nobody there. They all want to get it done.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FREEMAN: With us now is senior White House reporter Kevin Liptak, who is near Mar-a-Lago and CNN senior international correspondent Fred Pleitgen. He's in Berlin.
Kevin, I want to start with you. It's interesting. We haven't really heard anything from inside the room since this meeting began a few hours ago. How would you describe, though, the tone going into this meeting?
KEVIN LIPTAK, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, certainly when we saw them there on the steps of Mar-a-Lago, it was fairly cordial. The president called Zelenskyy very brave. He said he was a gentleman. He said he had been working very hard. The president also sounding a fairly optimistic note about these intensive efforts to bring the war in Ukraine to an end, saying that they were in the final stages and that he was confident both Zelenskyy and the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, did want some peace.
But of course, it is the tone in the dining room of Mar-a-Lago behind those closed doors that we'll be so eager to learn about once this meeting wraps up, what exactly these two men were able to discuss, whether they were able to reach any agreements, and whether President Trump has signed off on this revised 20-point peace plan that Zelenskyy arrived at Mar-a-Lago hoping to talk about in some greater detail.
President Trump had something quite interesting to say I think when he was standing there out on the steps. He said this war will either end or it will go on for a long, long time. I think that's probably his way of saying both to Zelenskyy, but also by extension to Vladimir Putin, that now is the time to come up with some kind of agreement. Now is the time to say yes to the deal that is on the table.
You know, in the hour or so before this meeting began, Trump did speak on the phone with Vladimir Putin. That has been a choreography and a sequencing that has caused some concern among supporters of Ukraine because we've seen this happen before. You know, President Trump, just before he set to meet with Zelenskyy, gets on the phone with Putin and hears the Russian perspective on all of this.
And so I think it will be interesting to see in this meeting whether the president is perhaps echoing some of Putin's talking points. He does say that he plans to speak again with Putin once this meeting is over, as well as a host of European leaders and so certainly intensive talks still underway over on Palm Beach, Danny.
FREEMAN: Fred, I want to pick up on something that Kevin was just talking about. But first, let's listen to what President Trump said specifically about Vladimir Putin's role ahead of this meeting. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: We're going to have a very good meeting today, I think, and I'm also calling President Putin back after the meeting, and we'll continue a negotiation. Very complex, but not that complex.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FREEMAN: OK. So again, Kevin noted that that call is going to come after this meeting to President Putin.
Fred, from your perspective, why are these calls both before and after the meeting with Putin so significant?
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, they're extremely significant because in the end, of course, the Russians are also going to have to sign on to any sort of peace agreement that could take place. And one of the things that the Russians have said for a very long time is they don't want a temporary ceasefire with the Ukrainians. They believe that the Ukrainians will use that to regroup.
[16:05:03]
They want a larger peace agreement, which is, of course, also what the president of the United States is working towards as well. It's been quite interesting over the past couple of weeks to hear some of the messaging coming from the Russians. They've been demanding those territorial concessions from the Ukrainians. And now that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has been talking about that possibly being something that could happen, I was in touch with the spokesman for the Kremlin a couple of days ago, and he said that, yes, if the Ukrainians did give up the rest of that Donetsk Oblast, which is in the east of Ukraine, that that could move things forward significantly.
But the other thing that the Russians keep talking about, Danny, is what they call the root causes of the conflict. One of them being the expansion of NATO over the past couple of decades. That, of course, is something that the U.S. is now trying to bridge by saying, look, the Ukrainians are not going to be part of NATO, but they are going to receive significant security guarantees from the United States that are de facto almost like being in NATO.
But it's extremely important to obviously get the Russians on board. And so far, Danny, I think it's important to note the Russians feel that right now they're winning on the battlefield. They're moving forward. And so at the moment, they believe it's the Ukrainians who need a pause, not the Russians who do -- Danny.
FREEMAN: Kevin, I want to get your perspective on, I guess, the view of the working lunch, let's call it that, we saw all of the principals here enter into, because there were a lot of notable folks in that room, including White House envoy Steve Witkoff, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Department of Defense Secretary Hegseth.
What do you make of having this specific group of people inside of that room during these negotiations?
LIPTAK: Yes, and I would add one more who is Jared Kushner, who's the president's son-in-law. Doesn't have an official role in the administration this time around, but has been working with Steve Witkoff to try and get this deal over the finish line.
I think the fact that the president has brought so many Cabinet level members down here to Mar-a-Lago for these discussions does demonstrate a willingness and a desire to get into some of the details of what Zelenskyy is putting on the table here, particularly when it comes to those security guarantees. You know, we've heard talk of Article Five- like guarantees. That's the NATO provision that an attack against one is an attack against all.
Ukraine isn't going to be joining NATO. President Trump has made that pretty explicit. But I think what Zelenskyy wants to know is what the U.S. will do if Russia does re-invade once this war comes to an end, and by having Marco Rubio there, by having Pete Hegseth there, they are able to get into some of the specifics and some of the nuances about what exactly the U.S. is providing here.
The one person who we don't see at that table is someone from the Treasury Department. There was an official on the Ukrainian side, sort of in the finance realm. That is the other thing that they want to discuss is sort of the rebuilding and the billions and billions of dollars that it will take. And so it remains to be seen what they'll discuss on that front as well -- Danny.
FREEMAN: And Fred, before you go, can you give the perspective from European countries out there? I mean, they're expected to be called right after this meeting as well, right? We only have a few moments left but please.
PLEITGEN: Yes, yes, for the for the Europeans, it's obviously very important, all of this, and I think since the past two weeks, the Europeans certainly feel that they're more part of the process of these negotiations than they were before. They were very impressed when they met Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner at how well the American side was prepared. Also, some of the compromises that the Americans were willing to make.
And those talks that happened in Berlin two weeks ago, generally, the atmosphere all sides were saying was very good and a lot of headway was made. So right now, the Europeans do feel that they're part of that process. President Trump is probably right when he says the European countries also want to end -- want all of this to end as fast as possible. But at the same time, the Europeans have also made clear that they are going to support Ukraine for as long as it takes. So they'll definitely be very keen to hear what was said in that meeting and what President Trump and President Zelenskyy are going to say to them.
Certainly, it's something where we know that a lot of back and forth has been going on over the past couple of weeks -- Danny.
FREEMAN: Yes, very well said. All right. Fred Pleitgen and Kevin Liptak, thank you both so much for all your help and reporting throughout the afternoon. Appreciate it.
Let's continue the conversation with more analysis on these developments.
Evelyn Farkas is the former U.S. deputy assistant secretary of defense for Russia and Ukraine. She's also the executive director at the McCain Institute.
Thank you so much for being here with us. Listen, President Trump implied it's pretty much now or never for a peace agreement. I mean, I think it's no coincidence that this is happening over a holiday weekend essentially. What's your assessment here?
EVELYN FARKAS, DIRECTOR, THE MCCAIN INSTITUTE: Yes, Danny, I think that President Trump really does think that he can get an agreement, that he can push it through this weekend. I am still skeptical because, you know, I haven't heard anything coming out of Moscow that indicates that Putin is willing to meet Zelenskyy anywhere near the middle. So far, all the compromise has been on the Ukrainian side. And, you know, as all of the correspondents have noted, there's still a big gap.
[16:10:06]
You know, there are still outstanding issues. Security guarantees certainly are not completely clear. But in addition to that is the question of territory and the Ukrainian government, the president has said, you know, we're not going to give up people basically. You know, areas that we control that have people on them, we're not going to turn them over to Moscow. So that's also something that will have to be discussed.
Obviously, that's probably what's being discussed in the room. But then even if we have a full agreement between the United States and Ukraine, will Vladimir Putin accept that, I'm skeptical.
FREEMAN: Well, let's talk a little bit more about that because President Zelenskyy has said several times he does not think that Vladimir Putin is interested in peace. It was interesting, President Trump said that he thinks both parties are interested in peace. But if no agreement can be reached here that President Putin would sign off on, what then?
FARKAS: Yes. I mean, Danny, look, I will say to add on to what Fred said earlier, you know, the president Putin thinks time is on his side. He may be fooling himself about the advances on the ground because, yes, the Russians have made some advances on the ground vis- a-vis Ukraine. They've taken some small pieces of territory at the cost of about 1,000 Russian deaths a day, or casualties at least. And of course, there's been a staggering amount of losses writ large. So the -- and these small tactical advances don't add up to a big strategic change.
At the same time, Russia's economy is under incredible stress. We know that the Ukrainians are taking out oil tankers that are -- that are illegally transporting Russian oil. And we know that they're striking the back. So, you know, in the rear areas of oil refineries in Russia. So I don't think Russia is in a great position. But Vladimir Putin is trying to put a really good face on it, and he's trying to portray to I think President Trump, first and foremost, that Russia has got the upper hand.
So therefore he's encouraging our government to put pressure on Ukraine. But I think it's the Russians that we have to put pressure on, Danny. My bottom line is that I don't see movement from Putin and I don't know that I would even believe him if he said he was willing to make a full deal without further pressure, without seeing some change in the dynamic inside Russia, meaning the military, the elites telling Putin, you know what, we're done with this war. We haven't seen that yet.
FREEMAN: Evelyn, I want to broaden out this conversation for a moment here because President Trump has this meeting today, speaking with Putin afterwards as well. Tomorrow, he will welcome Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for talks on the next phase of the Gaza ceasefire agreement.
I guess, from your perspective, is the reason that we're seeing both of these meetings back to back with Zelenskyy and Netanyahu at Mar-a- Lago, the winter White House, I guess, as they call it, is this -- is the idea a punctuation mark at the end of President Trump's first year back in office?
FARKAS: Maybe. I mean, Danny, he clearly believes these things are linked because they're wars that he thinks that he can bring to an end, that only he can bring to an end. And he made a lot of progress with regard to Gaza. That is undeniable. The hostages, all of the Israeli hostages are home. Maybe there's one body still that hasn't been returned. That's huge progress, but it appears that the ceasefire is under strain and maybe breaking down.
The Israelis also have made statements that seem to indicate that they are not going to leave Gaza, when in fact they, under the agreement that President Trump brokered, they had agreed to leave Gaza. And it's unclear whether all of the countries who said they would send security forces to create that interim security force so that the Israelis can withdraw from Gaza, whether they are actually going to be able to find enough personnel, enough troops to put in there.
So there are a lot of questions that are now, you know, out there, and most of them have been raised, we believe, on the Israeli side, although Hamas also doesn't want to disarm. That's clear. So, you know, President Trump is needed. I mean, he does need to really put pressure on Israel as well.
FREEMAN: You know, for a normally sleepy weekend in between Christmas and New Year's, a lot happening on the foreign policy front.
Evelyn Farkas, thank you so much for your expertise as always. Really do appreciate it.
FARKAS: Thank you, Danny.
FREEMAN: Now one of the busiest travel times of the year could, though, be upended by a major winter storm. Yes, another one. Blizzard warnings, whiteout conditions and growing flight delays are all on the horizon. We'll tell you where the worst is expected and when. And also, the mother of the last remaining Israeli hostage is set to personally deliver a message to President Trump from her son beyond the grave. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[16:19:00]
FREEMAN: Officials in California are working to determine the cause of a natural gas pipeline rupture that shut down a major highway for more than three hours in both directions on Saturday. The interstate has since reopened, but you can see clouds of dirt and dust were seen flying into the air.
Now, this happened in Castaic, about 40 miles northwest of downtown Los Angeles. And officials have not ruled out a mudslide near the rupture as a potential cause. Shelter in place orders have been lifted for two nearby neighborhoods.
And millions of people in the Midwest and northeast are still under winter weather alerts on this busy holiday travel weekend. Look at Lady Liberty right there. Now, parts of the Midwest are seeing dangerous blizzard conditions and heavy snow moved through the northeast in recent days.
CNN meteorologist Allison Chinchar is tracking the threat.
ALLISON CHINCHAR, CNN METEOROLOGIST: More than 30 million people are under some type of winter weather alert across the Midwest and into the northeast in anticipation of our next system. Now that low pressure system right through here is not only going to bring rain, freezing rain and snow, but also very windy conditions. So you actually have several million people under blizzard warnings because we are expecting wind gusts of 40 to 60 miles per hour that will take all of that snow, blow it all around, reducing visibility back down to about a quarter of a mile or less.
[16:20:16]
Through the evening hours more of that snow is going to infiltrate areas of the Midwest. So the U.P. of Michigan, portions of Wisconsin and Minnesota, and then gradually start to spread eastward into the Great Lakes and into the northeast as we go through the overnight and early morning hours. So right around the morning rush tomorrow, the heaviest snow will still be focused over the Midwest, but you're also going to have some heavy rain at times right there along the I-95 corridor.
That could cause some problems as well, but all of these areas are going to be looking at very gusty winds as we transition through the next 24 hours. So these areas right here where you see the purple and pink color indicating some pretty heavy snow, some spots here you can see eight to 12 inches of snow total. Taking those 40 to 60 mile per hour winds is really going to reduce the visibility for a lot of these areas.
Here's a look at those winds that we talk about. Through the overnight, you'll gradually start to see them pick up 30, 40, 50 miles per hour, even around 50 to 60 miles per hour through tomorrow afternoon and through the early evening. It's not until we get to late Monday night into early Tuesday that we finally start to see those winds calming back down. Take a city like Chicago, for example. Still very, very warm today.
The last of those warmer days. High of 54. Dropping all the way down to a high of only 26 for Monday. And that's going to be mixed not only with some snow showers, but also those very gusty winds.
FREEMAN: Allison Chinchar, thank you so much as always.
All right. Coming up, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has just arrived in Florida for high stakes talks with President Trump. Well, tomorrow's meeting will take place as tensions flare across the Middle East. We'll tell you what impact those talks could have on the region. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[16:26:21]
FREEMAN: French actress Brigitte Bardot is being remembered for tantalizing audiences with her uninhibited performances. French President Emmanuel Macron called Bardot a legend of the century. The style icon died at age 91, according to a statement provided to CNN from her foundation. She became a box office phenomenon in the '50s and '60s, starring in more than 40 films. Her cinematic display of sexuality earned her the title of sex kitten.
In later years, Bardot left acting and focused on promoting animal rights, but she remained a controversial figure, facing criticism for denouncing Islamic rituals involving the slaughter of animals.
All right. On this last Sunday of the year, we want to take a look back at the year in Hollywood from the industry's struggles to lure audiences back to theaters, to the looming possibility of a mega media merger for none other than CNN's parent company, Warner Bros. Discovery.
CNN's Elizabeth Wagmeister has more on the biggest stories in entertainment. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ELIZABETH WAGMEISTER, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT: From Hollywood's battle with Trump to courtroom drama, and the engagement we were all waiting for. Here are the top-10 entertainment stories of 2025.
(Voice-over): Number 10, a supersized controversy.
BAD BUNNY, PUERTO RICAN RAPPER AND SINGER: I'm doing the Super Bowl halftime show.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): Bad Bunny is named halftime headliner, delighting his global fan base.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Bad Bunny is slated to become the first Latino male artist to headline the Super Bowl.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): But some others blasted the choice.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This guy does not seem like a unifying entertainer.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): The Trump critic decided not to tour the U.S. mainland amid ICE raids, opting for 31 shows in Puerto Rico, a U.S. territory.
MARIA CARDONA, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: And by the way, ICE did show up during his shows. So he did not want to have that happen for the Latino communities here in the United States.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): In response, conservative group Turning Point USA is producing their own halftime show.
Number nine.
TILLY NORWOOD, ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE: Let's get to know each other and thanks for watching.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): Artificial intelligence invades Hollywood. Meet Tilly Norwood, a British actress who is not real.
LYNDA KINKADE, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Real-life Hollywood stars are condemning the project.
SEAN ASTIN, ACTOR: It is a rip-off.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): But A.I. is coming to Hollywood.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Michael Caine and Matthew McConaughey have partnered with ElevenLabs that will allow the voice cloning company to use A.I. technology to replicate their voices.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): And Disney, while suing one A.I. startup, is licensing its characters to another.
Number eight. JACK BLACK, ACTOR, "MINECRAFT": Don't I know it.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): The box office rollercoaster, as "Minecraft" and "Lilo & Stitch" wipe away early-year box office bombs.
MICHAEL B. JORDAN, ACTOR, "SINNERS": Listen here, this ain't no house party.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): Beyond "Sinners" and "Weapons," many original stories failed to hit big. Theaters turned to special events to fill seats.
TAYLOR SWIFT, SINGER, SONGWRITER: Hey, it's Taylor.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): A Taylor Swift album party and a K-pop "Demon Hunter" sing-along prove that fans can be wooed into theaters.
Number seven. The Sydney Sweeney saga.
SYDNEY SWEENEY, ACTRESS: I'm not here to tell you to buy American Eagle jeans.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): Sweeney's American Eagle ads led to a political firestorm.
SWEENEY: Jeans are passed down from parents to offsprings.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sydney Sweeney has great jeans.
SWEENEY: You see what I did there, right?
BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: The ads featuring the blonde, blue-eyed actress generated a storm of criticism, accused of promoting eugenics.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): The internet blew up with calls of racism and Nazism. The ads spawned endless parodies.
SANCHEZ: American Eagle stocks soaring, up 35 percent.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): American Eagle had the last laugh. The jeans sold out within a week.
Number six.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There are houses on fire.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): The L.A. fires ravage Hollywood. Celebrities like Mark Hamill and Dick Van Dyke fled for their lives, while Jeff Bridges, Billy Crystal, and Paris Hilton are among those who lost their homes.
[16:30:09]
Actor Steve Guttenberg sprung into action as fires raged.
STEVE GUTTENBERG, ACTOR: I was helping people in wheelchairs and there were mothers who were hysterical.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I know one guy that lost his entire studio, burned.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): Award show producers had a dilemma. Should the show go on?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There is a sense of community right now in Los Angeles that I personally haven't seen before.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): The Grammys did go on, honoring firefighters and raising millions for victims.
Number five, the war for Warner Brothers.
JAKE TAPPER, CNN ANCHOR: It's a mega deal that could reshape the entire entertainment industry.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): Netflix wins a bidding war for the storied film studio in HBO. The streamer could change how we watch legendary titles like "Batman," "Harry Potter," and "Game of Thrones."
BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN ANCHOR: Paramount CEO, David Ellison is turning up the heat, launching a hostile takeover bid.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): Taking its bid for Warners directly to shareholders. Any deal needs federal approval.
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATESIt's a lot of market share, so we'll have to see what happens.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): Number four.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's Taylor Swift!
CROWD: Oh my God!
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): Another year of Taylor-mania.
CROWD: This is so good!
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): First, her engagement to Chiefs tight end, Travis Kelce.
COATES: Posting their engagement on Instagram today with the caption, "Your English teacher and your gym teacher are getting married."
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): Then came the number one album of the year, "The Life of a Showgirl," which Swift announced on a record-breaking podcast with Kelce.
JASON KELCE, AMERICAN FOOTBALLER: Do I have to wait until October 3rd?
TRAVIS KELCE, FOOTBALL TIGHT END AND TAYLOR SWIFT'S FIANCE: Yes, you do, Jason.
J. KELCE: This is unfair. TAYLOR SWIFT, POP SINGER: We don't trust you at all.
JASON CARROLL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The album is a coda to her biggest year yet. She finished her record-shattering Eras Tour. She announced in an Instagram post that she owns her master's.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): Cementing her as the most influential celebrity in the world.
Number three, shocking celebrity deaths.
KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: Hollywood legend, Rob Reiner and his wife, Michele, found dead in their Los Angeles home, an apparent homicide.
NICK WATT, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Nine-fifteen p.m., a suspect arrested, the couple's son, Nick Reiner.
ELEX MICHAELSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Reiner had well-known battles with substance abuse. But by 2015, he said he was clean and co-wrote the film, "Being Charlie," inspired by his own experiences with drug addiction, directed by his father.
ROB REINER, FILM DIRECTOR: It forced me to have to see more clearly and understand more deeply what Nick had gone through.
WATT: This actor, writer, director, producer, political activist, Harry Shearer, one of the stars of Spinal Tap, said this is unspeakable, the stuff of Greek tragedy.
ERICA HILL, CNN ANCHOR: We begin this hour with the shocking death of actor Gene Hackman.
JOSH CAMPBELL, CNN SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: The 95-year-old Hollywood icon was found dead Wednesday, inside his New Mexico home, along with his wife, Betsy Arakawa, and a dog, according to officials.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): The mystery ended when the cause of death was finally revealed.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Betsy Arakawa Hackman died from the Hantavirus. When she died, authorities say that Gene Hackman was unable to care for himself. He had advanced Alzheimer's.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): "French Connection, Unforgiving, Crimson Tide," Gene Hackman's legacy will endure. The deaths of Hollywood legends brought the end of an era.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How much can you tell me about Deep Throat?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How much do you need to know?
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): Robert Redford transcended the screen.
GLENN CLOSE, ACTRESS: He had the heart and soul of an artist.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): Oscar-winner Diane Keaton. RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Along the way, she became an icon of beauty and fashion, of eccentricity and humor.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): Ozzy Osbourne, the eccentric rocker turned reality star.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You know, when he put out a record that had like Post Malone, Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, it's like, look at all these people that want to work with Ozzy Osbourne, there's a reason for that.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): Number two, late-night chaos. Jimmy Kimmel pulled off the air by ABC.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The decision to pull the show came hours after Federal Communications Commission Chair, Brendan Carr, publicly pressured the company to punish Kimmel for recent comments he made about the reaction to Charlie Kirk's shooting death.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There was a tremendous backlash to this. Not just among the left, you saw people on the right saying you can't -- the government can't do this.
JIMMY KIMMEL, ABC HOST OF "JIMMY KIMMEL SHOW": I'm happy to be here tonight with you all.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): Six days later, ABC put Kimmel back on the air. The return set a ratings record for Kimmel. But that wasn't the only late-night drama in 2025.
STEPHEN COLBERT, CBS HOST OF "THE LATE SHOW WITH STEPHEN COLBERT": Next year will be our last season.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: CBS said it is canceling the late show with Stephen Colbert.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): CBS said the show was too expensive. Critics called it political. Coming two weeks after, CBS settled a lawsuit filed by President Trump.
Colbert was later crowned with an Emmy.
KIMMEL: Stephen Colbert.
(APPLAUSE)
(CROWD CHEERING)
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): And after the Kimmel saga, the hosts made history, appearing on each other's shows on the same night.
KIMMEL: I'll say I've never been happier to lose the Emmy.
(LAUGHTER)
COLBERT: I was never been happier for you to lose the Emmy. (LAUGHTER)
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): Number one, the trial and downfall of a music mogul.
TAPPER: Sean "Diddy" Combs told the judge, quote, "I'm a little nervous today", unquote. He should be. Jury selection started this morning.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): It was the trial that had everyone talking, as shocking details came out on the stand.
COATES: She described the freak-offs in lurid detail.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): The verdict was mixed.
[16:35:00]
WAGMEISTER: The most serious charges he has been acquitted on.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): But Combs was found guilty on prostitution charges.
COATES: Sean "Diddy" Combs will be sentenced to 50, 5-0, 50 months in prison, from billionaire to behind bars.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He's never going to be who he was again.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And the dirtiest of dirty.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): A Netflix doc produced by his longtime rival, 50 Cent, further tarnished Diddy's legacy, capping off a stunning fall for the man who once sat atop the music industry.
WAGMEISTER: And with Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni set for trial next year, it'll be another year with Hollywood in the headlines.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FREEMAN: Elizabeth Wagmeister, no one does it like her. Appreciate the reporting.
All right, coming up, President Trump has been meeting with Ukrainian President Zelenskyy for hours. Well, you can see right there live. We're awaiting remarks from the two leaders as peace talks intensify.
Stay with us.
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[16:40:18]
FREEMAN: Just a short while ago, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu landed in Florida ahead of a critical meeting at Mar-a-Lago tomorrow with President Trump. This all comes amid rising tensions in the Middle East. The two leaders will sit down as the White House pushes Israel to accept phase two of Trump's peace deal in Gaza.
Now, under the terms of that plan negotiated by Trump's Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, and son in law Jared Kushner, Hamas would hand over its weapons and Israeli forces would pull back from Gaza.
Now, earlier, I spoke with former State Department Middle East negotiator Aaron David Miller about what's at stake in tomorrow's meeting. Here's what he told me.
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AARON DAVID MILLER, FORMER STATE DEPARTMENT MIDDLE EAST NEGOTIATOR: I don't think -- I think both of these guys don't trust one another. I'm not even sure they like one another, but the reality is they need one another. Trump needs Netanyahu to avoid his much touted 28-point plan in Gaza. From cratering and Netanyahu desperately needs the prime minister -- the president of the United States, in order to manage growing calls for his resignation. And the prospects in 2026 of an election and to which he'd like to become prime minister again.
And Trump is more popular in Israel than it is now. So again, mutual need creates a certain amount of dependency. This may not be a great meeting, but it's not going to crater. May push the ball forward a tad on Gaza.
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FREEMAN: Now, under the current deal, Hamas was required to return all living and deceased Israeli hostages being held in Gaza, while one set of remains has still not been located.
CNN's Matthew Chance has more on the family's push to bring home their son.
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RAN GVILI, ISRAELI HOSTAGE: President Trump, my name is Ran Gvili, the son of Talik and Itzik.
MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CHIEF GLOBAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's an extraordinary message generated by A.I. from beyond the grave in Gaza, recreating the image and voice of the last Israeli hostage in Gaza, authorized by his relatives and released by the Hostage Families Forum.
R. GVILI: Mr. President, I'm asking you to see this through.
CHANCE (voice-over): It's a carefully crafted message. His mother tells me she'll personally deliver to President Trump when she meets him with the Israeli Prime Minister in Florida. Hamas is keeping hold of her son's remains, she insists, as a cynical bargaining chip. The group says it just can't find his body.
TALIK GVILI, MOTHER OF LAST HOSTAGE IN GAZA: We don't go to the second part of the agreement until Rani come back, because everyone in Israel understand it. CHANCE: U.S. officials, including the ambassador here in Israel from the United States, has suggested that the peace process can advance while the search for your son continues. Would that be acceptable?
T. GVILI: No, no. It's not acceptable because we don't want to -- Gaza will build on my son.
CHANCE (voice-over): Under the ambitious second phase of the Trump plan, Hamas would be expected to surrender its weapons and power, something the group, which has survived an Israeli onslaught, may be reluctant to do. Israel would also have to make painful concessions, like withdrawing from Gaza while handing control to an international force. Both sides, it seems, may share a common interest in stopping Trump's peace plan in its tracks.
But frustration in Washington is growing, amid concerns both Hamas and a skeptical Israel are dragging their feet.
R. GVILI: Mr. President, finish what you started. Bring me home before it's too late.
CHANCE (voice-over): While the unknown whereabouts of the last Israeli hostage is further complicating Trump's Gaza peace plan.
Matthew Chance, CNN, Jerusalem.
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FREEMAN: Thanks, Matthew, for that.
All right. Coming up in just a moment. They missed birthdays, school pickups and nights with their kids. Even judges said they shouldn't have been jailed. Advocates say it's just the tip of the iceberg. With thousands facing who worried they could be deported alone, leaving their families behind.
That story and more coming up.
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FREEMAN: We continue to follow breaking news out of New Jersey, where officials say one person has died and another is critically injured after two helicopters collided in mid-air. Local police say rescuers responded to a report of an aviation crash in Hammonton, New Jersey, about 30 miles southeast of Philadelphia, with emergency crews working to put out flames that had engulfed one of the helicopters. Now, officials say only the pilots were on board. Each aircraft, and the FAA and the NTSB are now investigating the collision.
This year, federal immigration agents have detained nearly 75,000 migrants with no criminal background. Three parents were among the thousands detained in what the Trump administration dubbed Operation Midway Blitz, the federal immigration crackdown in the Chicago area. Now they are all active in their communities, with no criminal history. But they were held for weeks until judges ordered their release.
CNN's Whitney Wild spoke with them about their uncertain futures.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hey, please, leave her alone. She's just working here.
WHITNEY WILD, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT CORRESPONDENT (voice over): These are moments of heartbreak --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She got babies, bro, please.
WILD (voice-over): -- and homecoming -- for Patricia Quishpe, Veronica Escobar and Victor Madrid. All three are migrants, parents who appear to have no criminal history, and yet were among the thousands arrested by federal agents during Operation Midway Blitz. They were detained hours from their homes then released by federal judges.
Attorneys say mass arrests are designed to intimidate migrants into leaving the U.S.
VERONICA ESCOBAR, ARRESTED DURING OPERATION MIDWAY BLITZ: When I get there, they push me like a lot and like, you have to sign. You have to sign. You got to sign this. And I was reading. I'm like, no.
WILD: What did it say?
ESCOBAR: Is this for deportation thing?
WILD (voice-over): Veronica spent 38 days in detention after her arrest outside this gas station on her son's eighth birthday.
Because you've been here for 19 years, did you ever think that you would be one of the people that they would target?
ESCOBAR: No. No, because they say they're for criminals, and I was not a criminal. And I was like, hey --
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FREEMAN: And we have to break in now because right now, President Trump is speaking to the press following his meeting with Ukrainian President Zelenskyy on potentially ending Russia's war. Let's listen in.
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Emmanuel Macron of France, President Alexander Stubb of the Republic of Finland, President Karol Nawrocki of the Republic of Poland, Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store of the kingdom of Norway, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni of the Italian Republic, Prime Minister Keir Starmer of the United Kingdom of Britain and northern Ireland, Chancellor Friedrich Merz of the Federal Republic of Germany, Secretary General Mark Rutte, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, NATO, President Ursula von der Leyen of the European Commission. We spoke to all of those great leaders. They are all great leaders and
we had a great talk with them after we were completed. We thought it was appropriate to speak with them and our meeting was excellent. We covered -- somebody would say 95 percent, I don't know what percent, but we have made a lot of progress on ending that war, which is really the -- certainly the most deadly war since World War II, probably the biggest war since World War II.
And I want to thank Steve Witkoff, who is here. And I'd like to thank Jared, who's here someplace. Thank you, Jared. Thank you, Steve, what a great job you've done. Jared Kushner, Steve Witkoff.
And Marco Rubio is here. Thank you, Marco. And Pete Hegseth is here, doing -- those two people are doing an unbelievable job. And the four people on this one are doing. I don't think anybody could do it. And we'll see if it gets done. But it's very close. Certainly, nobody would even have a chance of getting it to where it is right now.
Nobody would have thought that was possible. So, I just want to say we've done very well. Weve had discussions on just about every subject, and that includes with President Putin before and we went into great detail, and we likewise went into great detail today. And it was an honor to have you at Mar-a-Lago and have lunch. I hope you enjoy the food. Your people enjoy the food. I can tell you that your big, strong people, your general over there, it looks like central casting.
And I want to also -- by the way, speaking of generals, we have a great general, General Razin Caine who is here someplace. Thank you, general. Thank you very much. He's great.
So, Mr. President, maybe you want to say a few words.
VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT: Yeah.
TRUMP: And then we'll speak over the next couple of weeks. We'll speak probably quite a bit, but we'll speak tomorrow. Thank you very much. Appreciate it.
ZELENSKYY: Thank you so much, Mr. President.
TRUMP: Thank you.
ZELENSKYY: Thank you for everything.
Dear colleagues, first of all, I would like to thank President Trump for a great meeting at this amazing place in his home in Mar-a-Lago. And we had a really great discussions on all the topics, and we appreciate the progress that was made by American and Ukrainian teams in these recent weeks. Special thanks to Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, and thank you to -- for their engagement and full commitment. And also, to our team and first of all, to Rustem Umerov, General Hnatov and to all our teams.
And we discussed all the aspects of the peace framework, which includes and we have great achievements, 20-point peace plan, 90 percent agreed. And U.S.-Ukraine security guarantees, 100 percent agreed. U.S. Europe, Ukraine security guarantees almost agreed. Military dimension, 100 percent agreed.
Prosperity plan being finalized. And we also discussed the sequencing of the following actions. And we agree that security guarantees is the key milestone in achieving lasting peace.
[16:55:02]
And our teams will continue working on all aspects. We also had a joint productive call with European leaders like President Trump said already, and a lot of leaders, including NATO and E.U., and we agreed that our teams will meet in upcoming weeks to finalize all discussed matters.
And we agreed with President Trump that he will host us and maybe in Washington, European leaders and Ukrainian delegation. Yes, in January. And Ukraine is ready for peace.
And once again, I would like to thank President Trump for a warm welcome and substantial discussion.
Thank you, Mr. President.
TRUMP: Thank you very much.
ZELENSKYY: Thank you so much, Mr. President.
TRUMP: Any questions please
REPORTER: -- from Zelenskyy, 90 percent, 100 percent. The U.S.-Ukraine security guarantees, what number are we at right now?
TRUMP: Well, I think we're -- look, you know, you can say 95 percent, but I don't like to say percentages. I just think we're doing very well. We're very -- we could be very close. There are 1 or 2 very thorny issues, very tough issues. But I think we're doing very well.
We made a lot of progress today, but really we've made it over the last month. This is not a one-day process. This very complicated stuff.
But I think when the president says 95, I think, you know, it could be close to 95 percent.
Yeah, please. Behind you.
REPORTER: Mr. President, have you agreed on the so-called free trade zone on Donbas? How to separate how to separate the sides or how to make the separation line? Who will be responsible?
TRUMP: The word agreed is too strong. I would say not agreed. But we're getting closer to an agreement on that. And that's a big issue. Certainly that's one of the big issues. And I think we're closer than we were. Probably one -- it's unresolved, but it's getting a lot closer. That's a very tough issue, but one that I think will get resolved.
Yeah. Please?
REPORTER: We are receiving some mixed signals coming from Moscow. Even after you spoke with President Putin, can you assure us that you have received a written or an informal response from them?
TRUMP: Well, what was the issue? You have to tell me. What did they say?
REPORTER: They are telling you that Ukraine has to give up Donbas just very recent statement coming out.
TRUMP: Well, that's what they've been asking for. And you know, there's a dispute about that. So they're going to have to iron that out. That's an issue they have to iron out. It's -- but I think it's moving in the right direction.
REPORTER: -- delay the solution or peace agreement that you try to achieve.
TRUMP: If something doesn't happen. You mean if something doesn't happen?
Yeah. Go ahead.
REPORTER: May I ask --
TRUMP: No. Go ahead. You're going to finish your question.
REPORTER: Will there be any step that the United States be prepared?
TRUMP: Well, we'll see, we'll see. But I don't want to talk about that because I think we're getting pretty close.
Yes, please?
REPORTER: I may ask president --
TRUMP: Please.
REPORTER: Yes. About territorial question. Mr. President, what is your take on Donbass status? Are you prepared to see it as a free economic or demilitarized zone?
ZELENSKYY: Well, we spoke about 20 points planned and I'm happy that really our teams very close to results. And I agree with President Trump that they our teams work not one day and not one, not one week -- more than one month beginning from Geneva, then to meetings in Miami. Then we had berlin, and now we have Mar-a-Lago.
So, this is very difficult question. You know our position. So, it's -- I mean, this -- we have to respect our law and our people and we respect the territory which we control. And of course, there are -- our attitude is very clear. That's why President Trump said this is very tough question. And of course, we have with Russia's different positions on it.
REPORTER: And have you discussed it with him? About --
ZELENSKYY: No. When we speak about referendum, we spoke that it's one of the key. We can have referendum on, on any kind of points of this plan. I said that we can use referendum like for the plan or we cannot use referendum. It's one of the key. We can use -- I mean, this possibility of parliament to vote according to the law or to have referendum, it doesn't matter.
I mean, this referendum, if the plan will be very difficult for our society, very difficult. Of course, our society has to choose and has to vote because it's their land, the land not of one person. It's the land of our nation. For a lot of generous -- generations.
TRUMP: They'll probably have to get their plan approved by parliament or by referendum of the people. You would think that they want -- I know they had a poll that its 91 percent in favor of ending this war, so they want to end it like everybody wants. Russia wants it ended, everybody wants it ended.
So -- and we want it ended. I want it ended because I don't want to see so many people dying. We're losing, you know, massive numbers of people. The biggest by far since World War II. So, we want to see it ended. Absolutely.
Yes?
REPORTER: Mr. President, you said at the top that you plan to speak again tomorrow. Is that correct?
TRUMP: I might. I mean, it depends on what happens tomorrow. If there's an additional something to add. Otherwise, there's no reason to. Were in the process.
