What's news: Keith Cox is leaving Paramount TV. Jodie Comer will play a lead role in HBO's The Chain. Doctor Who is returning to AMC. The Israeli government is suing the NYT. And Expendabelles, a female-led Expendables movie, is back in development. — Abid Rahman
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Byron Allen Bought BuzzFeed. He Wants Starz Next
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►"When I decide to buy the whole company — I will buy the whole company." There’s one thing that Byron Allen wants to make clear. He says raising capital is easy, the trick is deploying it for a good deal. For his latest move, the 65-year-old mogul went to the bargain bin, snapping up the majority stake in an ailing BuzzFeed. The deal will add BuzzFeed and HuffPost to Allen properties that include Local Now, The Weather Channel, TheGrio, HBCU Go, Cars.TV and Pets.TV. and local TV stations in multiple cities. In a wide-ranging conversation, THR's Erik Hayden spoke to the ever acquistive Allen about his latest plans including his open interest in Starz. The interview.
—End of an era. Long-time Paramount TV Studios executive Keith Cox is departing the company after 20 years. Cox, an early advocate for Taylor Sheridan and what would become the sprawling Yellowstone universe and former head of development and production at Paramount Network and TV Land, is currently president of MTV Entertainment. The story.
—The pre-post-war push. Saudi Arabia has sharply increased the cash rebate offered to international film productions shooting in the kingdom, raising the topline figure to as much as 60 percent of eligible local spending, the Saudi Film Commission announced Friday at the Cannes Film Festival. The new scheme makes Saudi Arabia’s incentives among the most generous in the world. The story.
—Legal action. Israeli officials are preparing to sue the NYT for defamation over a column documenting rape and sexual abuse of Palestinians in detention facilities. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar have instructed the “initiation of a defamation lawsuit” against the paper. The saga leading up to the legal threat started on Monday when the paper published an op-ed from Nicholas Krisftof in which 14 men and women alleged sexual violence by Israeli military forces and prison guards. The story.
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Colbert, Letterman Launch Pieces of 'Late Show' Set Off Roof
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►"We are up here for the wanton destruction of CBS property." One week ahead of the final episode of The Late Show, former host David Letterman joined current host Stephen Colbert to pay tribute to the long-running late night series. To really commemorate the occasion, the duo made their way to the roof of the Ed Sullivan Theater for some mischief making, throwing off a few pieces of set furniture onto the CBS logo below. The recap.
—🎭 First link. 🎭 Killing Eve star Jodie Comer will play a lead role in the thriller The Chain, from showrunner Damon Lindelof. Her character, Rachel, is described as a surburban mother “who must consider the unthinkable when her daughter is kidnapped.” HBO ordered the series in January as the first project to result from a two-year overall deal Lindelof signed with the outlet last year. The Chain is based on a 2019 novel of the same name by Adrian McKinty, which details a kidnapping scheme where an abductee’s parents must kidnap another child to secure their own child’s release. The story.
—🤝 Sold! 🤝 The TARDIS is set to land in a new location in a few weeks. AMC+ has acquired streaming rights to most of the 21st century run of Doctor Who. Thirteen seasons of the series, spanning the runs of the ninth through thirteenth Doctors (2005-22), will be available on the streamer starting June 11. The AMC+ acquisition is something of a homecoming for Doctor Who. BBC America, which like AMC+ is part of AMC Networks, was the U.S. home for the series from 2009-22 (Sci Fi Channel, the forerunner to Syfy, had the first few seasons). The story.
—Going out on a high. HBO’s Euphoria made its first ever appearance on the Nielsen streaming charts the week after its season three premiere, and The Pitt set a new high mark for the week of its finale. Euphoria logged 556m minutes of watch time on HBO Max in the week of April 13-19, good for eighth place among acquired series. Nielsen lists shows that also air on HBO’s cable channel as “acquired” by HBO Max for streaming, but were Euphoria classified as an original, it would rank fourth on that chart. The Pitt spent its third straight week as the overall No. 1 with 1.39b minutes of viewing for the final week of its second season. The streaming rankings.
—Woof! It’s no secret that The Pitt‘s second season was much bigger than its first — HBO Max‘s internal data shows the series averaging 15.4m viewers over its first 90 days, more than 50 percent higher than the first season in 2025. The show recorded more than a billion viewing minutes in Nielsen’s streaming ratings 13 times in its 15 weeks this season. The year-to-year growth is even more pronounced in some new data from Nielsen — which shows every week of The Pitt’s second season outpacing its first, and sometimes more than doubling the same week from season one. The ratings.
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'The Batman: Part II' Cast Expands |
►🎭 "Next exit, Gotham." 🎭 The Batman: Part II has added more faces to its stacked cast. Director Matt Reeves revealed on X that MCU stars Scarlett Johansson, Sebastian Stan and Brian Tyree Henry, Game of Thrones' Charles Dance as well as German actor Sebastian Koch are joining a cast that already includes Robert Pattinson, Andy Serkis and Colin Farrell. The story.
—Lipstick and lead. Eclectic Pictures and Hollywood Ventures Group are teaming on a “female-driven expansion” of The Expendables franchise, tentatively titled Expendabelles. Sound familiar? It is. Ever since the first Expendables hit theaters in 2010 and went on to gross north of $100m — effectively launching a Sylvester Stallone-led franchise that has now produced a total of four movies — a handful of filmmakers have tried to crack a version starring women in the lead roles. Eclectic and HVG think they’ve found a way forward with the project, part of a new features slate of “globally commercial films” they are developing together. The story.
—"It does feel like a supersized high budget few episodes of the TV show." Jon Favreau‘s The Mandalorian and Grogu held its first press screenings on Thursday night and the early reaction on social media seems rather muted. While critics reviews for the film are embargoed till May 19, closer to the release date of May 22, Disney/Lucasfilm allowed press to release brief social media reaction after the screenings. Mandalorian and Grogu is the first feature length Star Wars movie since 2019’s The Rise of Skywalker, and is a big screen outing for the Disney+ hit show The Mandalorian. The reaction.
—🤝 Sold! 🤝 THR's Mia Galuppo has the scoop that Netflix has acquired four documentaries that were highlights of the festival circuit, from Sundance to Telluride and Tribeca. Free Leonard Peltier, Teenage Wasteland, The Bend in the River and Room to Move have all been picked up by the streamer, with Adam Del Deo, Netflix’s vp, documentaries, saying, “It’s a privilege to give them a home on Netflix so audiences can keep discovering and loving great works like these.” The story.
—🎭 Voice cast set. 🎭 The children’s animation phenomenon CoComelon has unveiled a first look image and the voice cast for CoComelon: The Movie, an upcoming Universal movie set for a Feb. 19, 2027 theatrical release. The big screen animated treatment based on the popular kids show will follow JJ, his friends, and a new cast of characters will be voiced by SZA, Ike Barinholtz, Nicholas Hoult and Sarah Sherman. Also set to voice new characters is Ego Nwodim, Josh Johnson, Matt Friend, Rhys Darby and Cristo Fernández. The story.
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Ehrenreich on Being Loved and Hated on Broadway
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►"It’s just an incredibly dynamic, entertaining role." THR's Caitlin Huston spoke to Alden Ehrenreich, who recently received a Tony nomination for his role in Gina Gionfriddo’s Becky Shaw. The busy actor, who made his Broadway debut in the play, discusses what it’s like to get into the mind of the acerbic Max each night and what he’s taking from his experience to his new theater, the Huron Station Playhouse in Los Angeles. The interview.
—"Ever since I was a middle-aged man, I’ve always wanted to be a part of the New York theater community." A musical featuring the works of “Weird Al” Yankovic is in the works with creatives behind Moulin Rouge! and Beetlejuice. Dare to Be Stupid: The Weird Al Musical will feature the songs of the five-time Grammy winner. Tony winner Alex Timbers is set to direct the musical, which features an original story by writing duo Scott Brown and Anthony King and Yankovic. Tony-winning film and theater production company Seaview is on board to produce. The story.
—Horror hits New York. Paranormal Activity – A New Story Live on Broadway, the Olivier-nominated stage adaptation of the horror franchise, will hit Broadway for a limited 20-week engagement. Previews begin Aug. 14, with an official opening night set for Sept. 15 at the August Wilson Theatre. Written by Levi Holloway and directed by Felix Barrett, the production previously had sold-out runs in London’s West End, Chicago, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., and San Francisco. The play follows an original story rather than adapting characters or couples from the films. The story.
—📅 Return all set. 📅 Following a fire at the Eugene O’Neill Theatre on May 4 — home to The Book of Mormon on Broadway — the Tony-winning musical has set a date to resume performances on May 21. "The work inside the theatre is being completed by an extraordinary team that has made tremendous progress," a spokesperson for the production said in a statement. The story.
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TV Review: 'Dutton Ranch'
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►"Palatable, if not yet cravable." THR's Angie Han reviews Paramount+'s Dutton Ranch. Kelly Reilly and Cole Hauser reprise their Yellowstone roles alongside franchise newcomers Ed Harris and Annette Bening for the new drama, which sees Beth and Rip moving onto a Texas cattle ranch. Also starring Finn Little, Juan Pablo Raba, Jai Courtney, J.R. Villarreal, Natalie Alyn Lind and Marc Menchaca. Created by Chad Feehan. The review.
—"A lovingly rendered family story." For THR, Richard Lawson reviews Leah Nelson's Tangles. A starry voice cast features in this Cannes-bowing animated adaptation of a well-regarded illustrated memoir about dementia. Featuring the voices of Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Abbi Jacobson, Bryan Cranston, Seth Rogen, Sarah Silverman, Bowen Yang, Wanda Sykes, Beanie Feldstein and Samira Wiley. Written by Leah Nelson, Sarah Leavitt and Trev Renney. The review.
—"A masterful exploration of family, history and angst." THR's Leslie Felperin reviews Pawel Pawlikowski's Cannes competition entry, Fatherland. The latest from the director of Ida and Cold War is a road that sees Sandra Hüller play the daughter of Death in Venice author Thomas Mann. Also starring Hanns Zischler, August Diehl, Devid Striesow, Anna Madeley, David Menkin, Joachim Meyerhoff, Enno Trebs, Theo Trebs, Waldemar Kobus, Daniel Wagner, Fritzi Haberlandt, Milan Peschel and Joanna Kulig. Written by Pawel Pawlikowski and Henk Handloegten. The review.
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►"Clear-eyed, even-handed and elevated by a remarkable performance [from Hiam Abbass]." THR's chief film critic David Rooney reviews Reed Van Dyk's Atonement. In this Cannes debuting-film, Kenneth Branagh plays a fictionalized version of combat journalist Dexter Filkins, whose 2012 New Yorker article chronicled the desire of a U.S. Marine to reconcile with an Iraqi family devastated by his actions. Also starring Boyd Holbrook, Hiam Abbass, Gheed, Majd Eid, Tahseen Dahis, Gratiela Brancusi, Amanda Warren, Yara Bakri and Khris Davis. Written by Reed Van Dyk, adapted from an article by Dexter Filkins. The review.
—"An intriguing premise that becomes contorted and dull." David reviews Asghar Farhadi's Cannes competition entry, Parallel Tales. The Oscar-winning Iranian director's second French-language feature following 2013’s The Past, is a drama about voyeurism and imagination. Starring Isabelle Huppert, Virginie Efira, Vincent Cassel, Pierre Niney, Adam Bessa, India Hair and Catherine Deneuve. Written by Asghar Farhadi and Saeed Farhadi, freely based on Dekalog 6. The review.
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►All the latest content from THR's podcast studio.
—It Happened in Hollywood. THR senior writer Seth Abramovitch goes behind the scenes of the pop culture moments that shaped Hollywood history. In this episode, Seth spoke to Jonathan Lynn. Seth sits down with the famed British writer-director who turned the popular board game Clue into one of Hollywood's greatest cult comedies. The podcast.
—Awards Chatter. THR's executive awards editor Scott Feinberg talks to the great and the good of Hollywood. In this live episode Scott spoke to Dakota Fanning. The 32-year-old veteran actress reflects on child stardom and what she learned from co-stars like Sean Penn, Denzel Washington and Tom Cruise; how she navigated growing up, on screen and off; and why she has done some of her best work yet in limited series, including The Alienist, Ripley, The Perfect Couple and, most recently, Peacock's show about the kidnapping of a child, All Her Fault. The podcast.
—I’m Having an Episode. THR’s Mikey O’Connell attempts to stay on top of the latest TV and entertainment news with a little help from his friends, colleagues and a revolving door of actors, writers, showrunners and filmmakers. In this episode, Mikey talks to Wonder Man and Man on Fire actor Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, who discusses his recent spike in work, his evolving metric for success and potholes in New Orleans. But first, THR's Katie Kilkenny explains how both the writers' and actors' unions reached speedy deals with the studios after 2023's catastrophic strikes, what was won and lost in the negotiations and a rare west coast appearance of our beloved Scabby the Rat! The podcast.
In other news...
—Billy Idol to receive lifetime achievement award at American Music Awards
—Kristin Juszczyk signs with UTA
—Claudine Longet, singer-actress who shot skier Spider Sabich, dies at 84
What else we're reading...
—Bilge Ebiri interviews Hong Kong film legend (and coolest man in the world) Tony Leung. It's worth checking out for his not-so-great MCU experience [Vulture]
—Bullish piece on theatrical from Alfie Packham, who talks to Zoomers about why they love going to the movies [Guardian]
—Max Lakin talks to Matt Dillon about his large scale, Neo-Expressionist-inspired paintings that are currently on show in New York [NYT]
—A cri de cœur from Rebecca Shaw, who pleads with the studios to stop making music biopics, a "tired genre that is essentially expensive karaoke" [Guardian]
—Helen Lewis looks at the growing and virulent form of misogyny that has become an important force holding the American right together [Atlantic]
—Here's your Friday list: The teen shows that defined the 2000s, ranked [Refinery29]
Today...
...in 2013, Paramount released J. J. Abrams' Star Trek Into Darkness in theaters. The second film in the rebooted franchise was loved by critics but its global box office returns were distinctly meh. The original review.
Today's birthdays...
Jamie-Lynn Sigler (45), David Krumholtz (48), Chazz Palminteri (74), Grant Heslov (63), Dan Patrick (69), Nicola Walker (56), Alexandra Breckenridge (44), Sophie Cookson (36), Tammy Pescatelli (57), Lainie Kazan (86), Greg Wise (60), Caroline Dhavernas (48), Timothy Hornor (51), Brenda Bakke (63), Quincy Dunn-Baker (44), Russell Hornsby (52), Tom Wu (54), Ashlynn Yennie (41), Sarah Hadland (55), Madhuri Dixit (59), Chris Grace (53), David Charvet (54), Brigitte Bako (59), Jim Hoffmaster (65), Inanna Sarkis (33), Jamie Harris (63), Kim Young-ah (51), Tatsuya Fujiwara (44), Michael Patrick Jann (56), Rob Bowman (66)
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Aleta Mitchell, who portrayed Dussie Mae in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom on Broadway and appeared in films for Milos Forman, Wes Craven, Spike Lee and Clint Eastwood, has died. She was 74. The obituary.
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