What's news: Street Fighter opened with $31m. Paramount has nabbed the film rights to Pierce Brown's Red Rising. Nicolas Cage and Antonio Banderas will lead S5 of True Detective. And Sean “Diddy” Combs has been transferred to a new prison. — Abid Rahman
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Inside Netflix's Regime Change
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►Ruthless cuts set the stage for a new era. Even though Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos had long been telegraphing that a major reorganization was ahead at the streamer, content chief Bela Bajaria didn’t expect the ax was coming for her role. As lower level executives were being informed of pink slips, sources tell THR, Bajaria did not know she was going to be ousted until at least Wednesday last week and had been personally informing staff of company layoffs. With the seismic changes at the top, Netflix is now in open warfare with YouTube and its infinite, cheap content. THR's Alex Weprin, Borys Kit and Mia Galuppo report that the new plan at Netflix may be to recalibrate around the U.S. market once again, with a focus on the big and buzzy and, yes, franchise-worthy. The story.
—Suppression fears. THR's Steven Zeitchik has the scoop on TikTok suspending the Musk film advertising account, citing a repeated pattern of political content that violates its policies. The move, which comes just as Alex Gibney’s investigation into Elon Musk expands to more than 470 screens across North America, raises concerns about Big Tech suppression that the very film seeks to expose. Distributor Bleecker Street was informed Friday afternoon that a “permanent suspension” was coming regarding any ads it tried to buy, and the company was unable to do so shortly after. The story.
—"Curiosity is important, judgment is important, taste is very important. [AI] has no taste." Ari Emanuel, TKO Group executive chair and CEO and executive chairman of WME Group, was in London on Saturday to discuss his memoir, entitled Roll the Calls. And to no one’s surprise, he didn’t hold back, including on issues like AI, politics in the age of Donald Trump — and his brother Rahm’s potential White House run. In a conversation with Tina Brown, former editor-in-chief of Vanity Fair and The New Yorker, he also touched on such details as his early days in the CAA mailroom all the way to the super-agent and Hollywood power broker he is today. The recap.
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R.J. Mitte's Mother Opens Up About His Tragic Passing to Help Others
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►"I’m taking one step at a time." Dyna Mitte, the mother of actor R.J. Mitte, is dealing with unimaginable grief after discovering her son at his Texas home after he took his own life at age 34. The blow gave way to highs of hearing how much of an impact he had on the lives of those touched by his acting work on shows like Breaking Bad or his advocacy on behalf of the disability community. To honor her only son, Dyna Mitte spoke to THR's Chris Gardner, offering advice to families out there that may one day see red flags like she did: "Listen to your children. Watch for the signs. Be in tune with them, be there for them and be willing to get help when it’s needed." The interview.
—"Selma did not intend to harm anyone." Selma Blair's spokesperson is speaking out, explaining the actress’ side of what happened onboard the Los Angeles-New York flight last week, where Blair allegedly assaulted two flight attendants, one of whom she allegedly bit, leading to an arrest and charges. Blair also reportedly attempted to open the aircraft door at some point during the flight. “Selma Blair experienced a medical emergency on the flight,” Blair’s rep said in part in the statement on Friday. “There was no attempt to open the door of the aircraft." The story.
—"A sweet, beautiful soul." Cindy Crawford and Kaia Gerber are breaking their silence following the death of Presley Gerber, at age 27 last month. Crawford took to her Instagram on Sunday to share a heartfelt tribute for her son, writing, “We are beyond heartbroken to lose our beloved son and brother. We feel so blessed to have had Presley in our lives for 27 years.” Kaia, who is Presley’s young sister, also took to Instagram Sunday to share a lengthy tribute. “Prez, I don’t have the words, and maybe the tiny mercy is that we didn’t need them all along." The story.
—Family at war. Good Times actor John Amos' daughter is suing her brother and people in his orbit over the death of their father for elder abuse and wrongful death. The daughter, Shannon Amos, faults her brother, Kelly Christopher Amos, for delaying medical care while isolating the actor from his family and friends in the years leading up to his death. The lawsuit seeks a court order that, if granted, would bar K.C. Amos from inheriting from John Amos’ estate and to void the current will, plus unspecified damages. The story.
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Backstage at the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show
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►Glitz and glamour. Fashion brand Victoria's Secret brought its iconic runway show to Sony Pictures Studios in L.A. on Saturday where stars Nicole Kidman, Tate McRae, Victoria Monét, Tinashe, Law Roach and Dylan Sprouse watched models like Gigi Hadid, Anok Yai, Alex Consani, Adriana Lima and Alessandra Ambrosio strut their stuff. The gallery.
—The latest. The child sexual abuse case against Timothy Busfield has been tossed out by the judge overseeing the proceedings as he accused prosecutors of misconduct and violating grand jury statutes as the case began to move through the justice system. A New Mexico judge says prosecutors failed to act “in a fair and impartial manner” before the grand jury, but refiling remains possible. The charges of sexual assault involving two minors that were filed earlier this year in New Mexico against Busfield stem from time on the set of the TV series The Cleaning Lady, episodes of which he directed, between 2022 and 2024. The story.
—"Thank you for being there for me during this time." Carrot Top returned to Instagram Saturday with a message for his fans, marking the comedian’s first comments after a Sept. 18 suicide attempt and hospitalization. “I’m truly overwhelmed by the outpouring of love, support, prayers, and well wishes I’ve received over the past couple of weeks. Every message, text, and kind thought has meant more to me than you know,” posted the 61-year-old comedian. The story.
—On the move. Disgraced rap mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs has been transferred from the federal prison where he has been incarcerated for the past year after a report indicated that he harbored contraband items and paid fellow inmates to assist in what amounted to a pampered prison lifestyle. The Federal Bureau of Prisons confirmed to THR on Friday that the agency is transferring Combs, 56, from FCI Fort Dix in New Jersey to FCI Allenwood Low. His new federal lock-up is a low-security facility south of Williamsport, Pennsylvania. The story.
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'You Can See Everything' Triumphs With $15M
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►WOOF! The Elizabeth Holmes documentary You Can See Everything far outpaced box office expectations in its impressive opening as Street Fighter ended up victorious over the weekend. Nathan Fielder and Lance Oppenheim‘s three-hour film YCSE grossed $15m from 855 North American theaters, averaging an eye-popping $17,544 per screen. This was well beyond initial projections for the A24 release that landed the biggest opening from fewer than 1,000 locations since 2006’s Borat.
The film’s Oscar buzz is likely to increase as YCSE boasts sterling word of mouth. It holds a 99 percent critics approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes and a score of 98 from audiences, while standing as the highest-rated Letterboxd title ever at 4.8.
Finishing top this weekend was Paramount's Street Fighter that opened with $31m from 3,575 North American theaters. Marking the first release in Paramount’s distribution deal with Legendary, the studio had been expecting a debut in the mid-$30m for director Kitao Sakurai’s feature adaptation of the Capcom video game. The $82m-budgeted movie added $20.1m from 65 international markets, despite weak reviews. The box office report.
—You can read everything. If you've seen You Can See Everything, you may have a mountain of questions, and that's where THR's Steven Zeitchik can sort you out. Steven has the six key points you’re likely curious about that arise from the buzzy film. Warning: Spoilers! The story.
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Paramount Plans 'Red Rising' Movie Adaptation
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►🤝 Sold! 🤝 THR's Borys "Scoopz" Kit has the scoop on Paramount picking up the film rights to Red Rising, the best-selling dystopian sci-fi series by Pierce Brown. Francis Lawrence, no stranger to dystopian sci-fi thanks to his many installments of The Hunger Games franchise, is attached to direct the adaptation of the first novel, also titled Red Rising. Justin Rhodes, who worked with Lawrence developing Netflix’s video game adaptation Bioshock, will pen the script. The story.
—🤝 Sold! 🤝 Sony Pictures Classics has taken The Julia Set, Niki Byrne’s debut and starring Chase Infiniti as a college math genius, for the U.S. and a slew of international territories. Terms of the sales agreement were not disclosed, but the deal follows a Toronto Film Festival bow for the coming-of-age drama starring One Battle After Another breakout Infiniti, along with Jason Isaacs and Gillian Anderson. The story.
—🎭 Filling out. 🎭 Filmmaker George Tillman Jr.‘s One Night Out is adding to its cast. Rory Culkin, Oona Roche, Hattie Hoskins and Mark Lane III have joined the thriller feature from Amazon MGM Studios‘ specialty film label Orion Pictures. Aldis Hodge and Wunmi Mosaku were previously announced to star in the movie that has a script from Nelson Greaves, with revisions by Lauren Schuker Blum and Rebecca Angelo. The story.
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►Who needs the Kwik-E-Mart? After almost a decade away, Apu Nahasapeemapetilon has returned to The Simpsons. The beloved bullet-magnet Kwik-E-Mart owner, one of the show’s most iconic characters from the golden age of the long-running Fox animated comedy series, is set to be a Springfield regular again as producers cast veteran voice actor Sunil Malhotra in the role. Apu made his comeback in the season 38 episode, “Treehouse of Horror Presents: The Revengening” that aired on Sunday. The character has been missing since Hank Azaria decided to stop voicing Apu following criticism and the release of the 2017 doc, The Problem With Apu. The story.
—"Everyone who leaves [The Simpsons] regrets it, except for maybe David X. Cohen, Greg Daniels and Conan O’Brien." Tied to our inaugural Animation Power List, THR hosted its first Most Powerful People in Animation breakfast on Friday, in a toast to both the legends and the newcomers. The event — held at Spago Beverly Hills and sponsored by Paramount Animation, Warner Bros. Animation, Warner Bros. Pictures Animation and ASIFA — began with some mingling and early morning cocktails, followed by a keynote conversation with The Simpsons creator Matt Groening and showrunner Matt Selman, moderated by THR's Scott Roxborough. The recap.
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Cage and Banderas Set for 'True Detective' S5
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►🎭 Bad lieutenants. 🎭 Nicolas Cage and Antonio Banderas will star in season 5 of HBO's crime anthology True Detective, which is set to begin filming in 2027. Both stars have been rumored to be attached to the show for some time, but it's all official now. Details are scant, but HBO did offer up character names: Cage will play Henry Logan, and Banderas will play Rai Garcia. HBO picked up a fifth season of True Detective in February 2024, shortly after the show’s fourth season — subtitled Night Country — concluded with strong ratings and more critical praise than the anthology’s previous two seasons. The story.
—🟢 Greenest of green lights. 🟢 Prime Video has ordered a new series Rally, a competitive tennis drama from The Vampire Diaries creator Julie Plec, which will be executive produced by former tennis pro Andre Agassi. The series is set at an elite tennis academy, where "ambitious young players discover that the loneliest sport in the world demands sacrificing the very connections that might be the only thing that makes winning worth it." Plec will write, direct, showrun and executive produce the series hailing from Universal Television in association with Entertainment 360 and Amazon MGM Studios. The story.
—"Val’s social media post was inappropriate." Val Chmerkovskiy will not participate in Dancing With the Stars‘ upcoming Dedication Night episode after he made a controversial reference to Will Smith’s infamous Oscars slap while critiquing Carrie Ann Inaba’s judging of his wife, Jenna Johnson. “The well-being of everyone who works on Dancing With the Stars is non-negotiable. Val’s social media post was inappropriate and does not reflect the values or standards expected of anyone connected with the show," producers BBC Studios said in a statement. The story.
—"There were no incidents of this nature and there is no evidence to support these allegations." The BBC has denied that its Celebrity Traitors star James Acaster clashed with fellow comedians Romesh Ranganathan and Rob Beckett during the making of the show. Over the weekend, the Daily Mail published an article claiming that producers on the Studio Lambert series said Acaster complained that he was being “teased and mocked” by comic duo Ranganathan and Beckett. On Monday, a BBC representative refuted the article entirely. The story.
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'Diplomat' PM Unpacks "Shocking" S4 Storyline
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►"You’ve built all these relationships, and suddenly you have nothing." THR's Hilary Lewis spoke to The Diplomat showrunner Debora Cahn and actor Rory Kinnear, who break down the realistic reasons for the Netflix series' latest political shakeup, which plays out amid a surreal episode replete with hallucinations, costumes and an aria. Warnings: Spoilers! The interview.
—"No one has said anything to me about when the last season is going to be." THR's queen of chat Jackie Strause spoke to Grey’s Anatomy boss Meg Marinis about the season 23 premiere cliffhangers, the Texas spinoff and Ellen Pompeo. The showrunner also dishes about keeping TV's reigning medical drama fresh amid competition and after so many years. Warning: Spoilers! The interview.
—"Shooting it was dope, but it was also bittersweet." For THR, Ronda Racha Penrice spoke to Chicago P.D. star LaRoyce Hawkins. The actor discusses his final episode at Kevin Atwater and after saying goodbye to an era, the Chicago-area native reflects on his journey, his departure and the fan reaction to his exit after 14 seasons. The interview.
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Stars Show Out at the "Met Gala of the West Coast"
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►Hollywood's finest. The Academy Museum Gala once again brought out some of Hollywood’s biggest names for its annual fundraising event on Saturday, this year raising over $14m. The sixth annual event — which is put on in partnership with Rolex and supports the museum’s exhibitions, education initiatives and public programming — handed out special awards to Charlize Theron, Colman Domingo and John Carpenter, while also welcoming a slew of A-listers to back up its nickname as the “Met Gala of the West Coast.” The recap.
—15 standouts. THR's Laurie Brookins offers her expert opinion on the fashion at Saturday’s Academy Museum Gala. Laurie writes that forward-thinking style fresh from the Spring 2027 runways was mixed with archival and custom pieces among the stars who walked the red carpet — and if there was a common thread throughout many of the looks, it was a wonderful ease, an effortless blend of relaxed chic that’s not always present on an awards show carpet. The looks.
In other news...
—New York’s Plaza Hotel to close in 2027 for at least four years
—Betty McGuire, actress on Broadway and Growing Pains, dies at 100
—Georgina Cates, An Awfully Big Adventure and Clay Pigeons actress, dies at 51
—Tim O’Donnell, veteran sitcom writer, producer and director, dies at 77
—Mark Pucci, longtime music publicist and blues advocate, dies at 79
—Gene Schwam, Hollywood publicist to Elvis Presley, Judy Garland and Julie Andrews, dies at 96
What else we're reading...
—Patrick Greenfield has a useful guide to Cop17, the UN's crucial nature summit [Guardian]
—Stacy Meichtry reports on the rioting in France and how the country's leaders are trading blame on the protests [WSJ]
—Mike Baker and Tim Arango have a wild must-read story that sheds new light on the O.J. Simpson murder case that also weirdly involves rapper Fat Joe [NYT]
—Liam Dillon reports on the growing boomer revolt over property taxes for homes that have been paid off [Politico]
—Max Tani reports that CBS News chief Bari Weiss is taking an unusually "hands-on approach to the Michigan Senate race" [Semafor]
Today...
...in 1994, Miramax debuted Kevin Smith’s Clerks in theaters. The indie black-and-white comedy kickstarted Smith’s career that would eventually include two more Clerks sequels. The original review.
Today's birthdays...
Rebecca Ferguson (43), Gillian Jacobs (44), Jon Favreau (60), Trey Parker (57), Chris Kattan (56), Jason Reitman (49), Gabrielle Dennis (45), John Lithgow (81), Desmond Harrington (50), Katie Douglas (28), Samantha Robinson (35), Katja Herbers (46), Hunter King (33), Vanessa Marshall (57), Caroline Catz (56), Sara Tomko (43), Ken Stott (72), Silje Torp (52), Sunny Deol (69), Art Parkinson (25), Benjamin Salisbury (46), Roger Cross (57), Annie Golden (75), David Labrava (64), Noah Le Gros (27), William O'Leary (69), Yayan Ruhian (58), Ciara Renée (36), Omar Gooding (50)
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Michael Forest, the strapping actor who starred in Beast From Haunted Cave and other B-pictures for Roger Corman and made memorable guest-star appearances on classic episodes of The Twilight Zone, The Dick Van Dyke Show and Star Trek, has died. He was 97. The obituary.
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