What's news: Casey Bloys will run streaming at Skydance, George Cheeks will run TV. Mark Thompson is staying at CNN. Netflix’s The Watcher and A Different World get second seasons. Amazon MGM's Verity topped the weekend box office. And Avengers: Endgame is back on top of the all-time global box office chart. — Abid Rahman
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Ellison Unveils Skydance Team |
►C-suite set. David Ellison announced the senior executives that will help him run the combined Paramount-Warner Bros. Discovery when the deal closes Tuesday. As previously announced, Ellison will be chairman and CEO, with Ynon Keiz joining him as co-CEO. Casey Bloys will run Skydance’s streaming business, adding oversight of Paramount+ and Pluto to his HBO Max fiefdom. Josh Greenstein and Dana Goldberg will run the combined company’s film studios. George Cheeks will rule TV, overseeing the linear channels and TV studios. Also, Mark Thompson is staying and will continue running CNN. The story.
—Staying put. Ellison also confirmed DC Studios heads James Gunn and Peter Safran are remaining in place. Multiple sources tell THR's Borys Kit that the duo met with Ellison in person last Thursday and that the meeting was positive. The pair were asked to stay and “keep doing what you’re doing,” per one source. The story.
—"At the end of the day, you can’t have four chairmen." Mike De Luca began hearing the rumor over a month ago: He and his Warner Bros. film co-head Pam Abdy were on the chopping block. The source of the rumor was not David Ellison, whom the duo had met months earlier and seemed to indicate they would stay on in a post-merger world. No, De Luca was hearing that this was coming from Josh Greenstein, co-chair of Paramount Pictures... THR's Aaron Couch, Borys Kit and Mia Galuppo have the definitive account of De Luca and Abdy's ouster, as well as their potential next act and how insiders feel about their legacy. The story.
—What's in a name? THR's James Hibberd reflects on David Ellison naming his enlarged media empire Skydance. James writes that Ellison's decision to eclipse two iconic names with his own company arguably declares "I won" at the expense of a century of brand value. But how much the parent company's name matters has yet to be seen. The column.
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'Digger' Buried at Box Office |
►L'art pour l'art. Tom Cruise took a big swing with Digger that did not pay off in its opening weekend at the box office, as the satirical black comedy becomes a major disappointment for Warner Bros. Alejandro G. Iñárritu's film opened to $8m from 3,300 North American theaters, which is tough to swallow for a feature that carries a low-end production budget of $125m. This marks a letdown from even the scant $12m to $15m that WB had projected and represents Cruise’s softest opening since 2007’s Lions for Lambs, which launched to $6.7 million but with a much smaller budget. Digger added only $12m internationally.
Nabbing the top spot on the domestic chart was Amazon MGM Studios' Verity, as the feature adaptation of the Colleen Hoover novel notched $32.6m from 3,510 North American locations. The audience skewed heavily female at 78 percent, while 38 percent of Verity’s crowd fell between the ages of 25 and 34. The box office report.
—"I’m so proud of what we created." President of Movies Tom Cruise isn’t prepared to bury Digger just yet, despite the movie’s disappointing box office opening. The star took to social media on Saturday morning to share behind-the-scenes photos from the film’s shoot and express his appreciation to the cast and crew." I am so honored to have had the opportunity to create this film alongside such talented artists," Cruise wrote. The story.
—Sacre bleu! Over the weekend, WB rolled out a new ad for Digger that is trying yet another approach to market the tough-to-sell film. The online ad shows a series of glowing quotes from critics from various countries and contrasts them with negative reviews from U.S. critics. The sort-of implication: The rest of the world loves this movie — it’s just dumb Americans who fail to appreciate its genius. The story.
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'Social Reckoning' Is an Even Bigger Zuckerberg Burn |
►"Strong goes full-on villain." Aaron Sorkin's The Social Reckoning had its world premiere in New York on Sunday night, and THR's Steven Zeichik was there to see the followup biopic about Meta chief Mark Zuckerberg. Steven writes that Sorkin's film takes on a sitting mogul in a way Hollywood rarely attempts. The story.
—"It’s in service of the material." Jeremy Strong says it’s “never my intention to interfere” with the people he works with when method acting, but he doesn’t believe he “need[s] to apologize” for his approach. The Social Reckoning actor is a known method actor, which he has led to criticism from his peers in the past. In a new interview, Strong was then asked if he gets frustrated by others who are not at the same level of commitment, to which Strong responded, “No, just meaning that I’m just there to commit utterly to serving the material.” The story.
—Juicing the numbers. Avengers: Endgame has powered its way back to the top spot on the all-time global box office chart. From the second weekend of Disney‘s Avengers Endgame: Encore rerelease that is timed to drum up excitement for this year’s Avengers: Doomsday, the 2019 superhero blockbuster collected $4.4m domestically and $14.4m overseas. This brought the overall global sum for Endgame to $2.9255b, barely enough to surpass Avatar's total of $2.9237b. The story.
—Battle royale. Sony has emerged as the frontrunner to land Michael B. Jordan’s Battlefield video game movie adaptation. The possible deal follows major Hollywood studios and streamers earlier circling the movie inspired by the biggest video game of 2025. Christopher McQuarrie is attached to write, direct and produce. Jordan is also on board to produce and possibly star. EA's Battlefield first launched in 2002 as a World War Two game titled Battlefield 1942. The story.
—Safe pair of hands. J.A. Bayona has emerged top of the list at Universal to direct the follow up to Jurassic World Rebirth. The Spanish filmmaker who directed Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom in 2018 is not yet in formal talks with the studio, but has emerged as a frontrunner after Gareth Edwards left the sequel to Rebirth over "creative differences." Rebirth grossed $869m last year on the strength of performances by Scarlett Johansson, Mahershala Ali and Jonathan Bailey. The story.
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Will 'The Shards' Return?
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►Limbo. As The Shards hit screens in early August, Ryan Murphy spoke about how he and author Bret Easton Ellis saw the series potentially running for several seasons. It will have to get to season two first — and on that front, The Shards remains in limbo, writes THR's Rick Porter. Murphy has a big overall deal with Disney's 20th TV and a long working relationship with FX. Is that enough to ensure a renewal for a show that wasn't a ratings breakout? The analysis.
—Moving back in. Naomi Watts, Bobby Cannavale, Margo Martindale and Isabel Gravitt are all returning for the long-delayed second season of Netflix’s The Watcher. The buzzy series from Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan released season one all the way back in 2022. Production on the followup chapter begins this fall in New York, with a premiere date yet to be set. The story.
—🟢 Quick as you like. 🟢 Netflix has renewed A Different World for a second season. The renewal for the show, a sequel to the 1980s-90s NBC sitcom, was a quick one as the streamer announced the season two order just eight days after A Different World’s Sept. 24 debut. The second season will follow Deborah (Maleah Joi Moon) and her Hillman College classmates into their sophomore years. The story.
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Blair Reveals Fallout After Anti-Islam Comment |
►"I didn’t have a career at all." Selma Blair has revealed new details about the career fallout she faced following a controversial Instagram comment she made amid the Israel-Hamas war in February 2024. Blair she lost her entire career and the team that supported it — talent agency CAA, a manager of 30 years, a lawyer and personal and book publicists — in the wake of leaving a comment widely criticized as Islamophobic. Though she apologized, Blair noted it wasn’t enough and she lost brand deals, payment for a supposed Super Bowl ad, her son’s godmother and more. The story.
—73,538 fans. Zach Bryan broke a record while performing at Gillette Stadium in a “Free Palestine” shirt, just weeks after Macklemore was dropped from Ed Sheeran‘s tour ahead of his shows at the Robert Kraft-owned stadium over his pro-Palestine speeches. Bryan wore a “Free Palestine” shirt during his Friday and Saturday night shows for his With Heaven On Tour. He reportedly did not address the shirt or comment further onstage about Palestine. The story.
—Locked-down luxury. Sean "Diddy" Combs may not be getting out of prison as soon as he once expected after a Dateline segment this week detailed the luxe lifestyle the disgraced rap mogul has allegedly been enjoying behind bars — complete with a team inmates acting like his personal staff. Inmates were allegedly paid to clean his cell and give him massages, per NBC News, as Combs' release date keeps shifting. The story.
—Not happening. Kanye “Ye” West, has had his sold-out concerts in Russia, set for next weekend, canceled after weeks of back-and-forth between the promoter and the St. Petersburg stadium. The venue’s promotion of the shows dwindled as the country’s foreign ministry and political figures began to speak out about the rap mogul’s history of antisemitism. The story.
—New gig. Former White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt is joining Fox News as a contributor. Leavitt will begin in her new role, providing commentary and analysis, on Nov. 1. The move comes after Leavitt stepped down as press secretary in August, with Trump saying that she was leaving to spend more time with family, but would remain an outside adviser. She started in the White House role in January 2025, at the start of Trump’s second term. The story.
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►"Adagio when it needs to be agitato." THR's chief film critic David Rooney reviews Tony Gilroy’s Behemoth! A starry cast feature in the story of a former child cello prodigy struggling to free himself from the burden of his famous family. Starring Pedro Pascal, Olivia Wilde, Eva Victor, Alexa Swinton, Kaya Ralls, Erik Griffin, JoBeth Williams, Margarita Levieva, Hank Azaria and Will Arnett. Written by Tony Gilroy. The review.
—"Talky but stimulating and incisively acted." David reviews Tom McCarthy's A Statement. A top acting ensemble tells the story of a 1980 conference at which a group of experts is tasked with getting ahead of the climate crisis. Starring Paul Rudd, Evan Peters, Amy Ryan, Paul Giamatti, John Turturro, Tatiana Maslany, Nina Arianda, Jason Clarke, Noah Robbins, Zach Woods, Mary Catherine Garrison, Michael Chernus and Dylan Baker. Written by Noé Debré, Thomas Bidegain and Tom McCarthy, adapted from Nathaniel Rich’s book Losing Earth: A Recent History. The review.
—"Beautifully done, though not for all tastes." THR's Frank Scheck reviews Paul Thomas Anderson's Cameron Winter at Carnegie Hall. The Oscar-winning director follows One Battle After Another with this New York Film Festival-premiering documentary chronicling the Geese frontman's solo show. The review.
—"A fine intro to an important intellectual." For THR, Lovia Gyarkye reviews Edward Said: Between Worlds. The latest doc from the Icarus filmmaker examines the influential scholar Edward Said’s role in reframing the Palestinian struggle. The review.
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►"Breathlessly and tragically of the moment." THR's Angie Han reviews Starz's Tip Toe. From Swansea-born Russell T Davies, the creator of the acclaimed It's a Sin, the five-part miniseries centers on a gay bar owner who enters a rapidly escalating feud with his homophobic neighbor. Starring Alan Cumming, David Morrissey, Jackson Connor, Joseph Evans, Iz Hesketh, Elizabeth Berrington, Pooky Quesnel, Paul Rhys and Luyanda Unati Lewis-Nyawo. The review.
In other news...
—Jesse Jo Stark and Deadly Doll sign with BMG
—Tilda Swinton to release debut memoir
—Denver Film Festival unveils lineup and honorees
— Savannah: Keanu Reeves, Seth Rogen, Gemma Chan set for honors
—GLAAD’s New York Gala to honor Bruce Cohen, feature Ariana DeBose and Alex Newell
—Reggie McFadden, actor-comedian known for Def Comedy Jam and In Living Color, dies at 57
—J. Todd Anderson, The Nice Guys and The Big Lebowski storyboard artist, dies at 67
—Mary Louise Weller, actress in Animal House, dies at 79
—Jerry Golod, Tales From the Darkside producer, dies at 87
What else we're reading...
—Melena Ryzik talks to Alejandro G. Iñárritu about Digger, and why he deliberately made the year's most divisive film [NYT]
—Sian Cain has the entirely correct opinion that Digger is a misunderstood masterpiece [Guardian]
—Neil Armstrong unpacks why the new TV version of horror classic Carrie is already annoying people [BBC]
—The always excellent E. Alex Jung heads to Italy to profile Luca Guadagnino, who discusses his new film Artificial [Vulture]
—Jillian Vordick and Stephanie Stamm report that spending on AI is becoming almost impossible for ordinary businesses to budget [WSJ]
Today...
...in 2000, Gilmore Girls premiered on the then-WB network and became a critical favorite early in its run. The original review.
Today's birthdays...
Kate Winslet (51), Guy Pearce (59), Karen Allen (75), Jesse Eisenberg (43), Matt Johnson (41), Jacob Tremblay (20), Travis Kelce (37), Diane Morgan (51), Ti West (46), Clive Barker (74), Heather Headley (52), Tom Hooper (54), Jaden Michael (23), Parminder Nagra (51), Carolina Bartczak (41), Virginia Kull (45), Scott Weinger (51), Josie Bissett (56), Daniel Baldwin (66), Jesse Palmer (48), Taylour Paige (36), Cassandra Jean Amell (41), Noah Segan (43), Matthew Maher (55), Shelby Rabara (43), Nathalie Kelley (41)
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Marjoe Gortner, the celebrity child preacher who was the subject of an Oscar-winning documentary and an actor with roles in Earthquake, When You Comin’ Back, Red Ryder? and Falcon Crest, has died. He was 82. The obituary.
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