| | | | | | What's news: David Ellison made his first appearance in front of WBD staff on Tuesday. Thomas Mazloum is set to become chairman of Disney Experiences. Billy Parks will run Fox Creator Studios. Barbra Streisand is set to receive an honorary Palme d’Or. James Wan will direct a Hollywood remake of The Gangster, The Cop, The Devil. And Quentin Tarantino's first stage play is set for a West End run in 2027. — Abid Rahman
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Zaz Gets the Last Laugh ►The rich get richer. Before the bidding frenzy late last year, David Zaslav was running a company that had a share price of $10 a year ago. Now he is the toast of Wall Street, more than tripling Warner Bros. Discovery's value as Paramount, Netflix and NBCUniversal circled the prize. Zaslav himself is poised to exit with shares worth just shy of $800m, including the $114m or so in stock he sold March 3, just days after the Paramount deal was announced. The executive, of course, now oversees a studio set to dominate the Oscars, and a resurgent HBO. THR's Alex Weprin writes that Zaslav's $111b deal with David Ellison reveals the next stage of the business: The rich get richer, the big get bigger and everybody else is left in the dust. The story.
—"There is still a tremendous amount of uncertainly over here." THR's Borys Kit reports that Paramount CEO David Ellison made his first public appearance in front of an expectant WBD crowd Tuesday, speaking about his company’s impending acquisition of the Burbank-based studio. Ellison spoke for about 45 minutes in person to senior leadership (about 150 staffers) in the lot’s Steven J. Ross Theatre. In attendance were motion picture heads Pamela Abdy and Mike De Luca, WB TV group chief Channing Dungey, HBO’s Casey Bloys, head of streaming JB Perrette, and DC Studios co-head Peter Safran, among others. More than 300 executives watched via a webcast from U.S. and international locations. Ellison’s lieutenant, chief operating officer Andy Gordon, was also in attendance. The story.
—All change. Disney has found the next chief executive for its lucrative and increasingly important experiences division. The company says that Thomas Mazloum, currently president of the Disneyland Resort, will become chairman of Disney Experiences. He succeeds Josh D’Amaro, who is set to take over as Disney’s CEO. Mazloum will officially succeed D’Amaro next Wednesday, the same day that Bob Iger hands the keys to the kingdom to the next generation of leadership. Mazloum has only been in the job at Disneyland for a bit over a year, taking over operations of Walt Disney’s original theme park last January. The story.
—"Billy has built his career at the forefront of creator-driven media." Fox Entertainment has found an executive to lead its nascent Fox Creator Studios division, which will work with new and emerging creators in categories relevant to the company’s programming. The company has hired Billy Parks to head Creator Studios. A veteran of Otter Media, Fullscreen and Astronauts Wanted, Parks was recently an operating partner at The Chernin Group and a venture partner at Slow Ventures Creator Fund. The story. |
AI Actor Tilly Norwood Drops Debut Single and Music Video ►Enough already. AI “actor” Tilly Norwood has released a debut single and accompanying music video. From the London-based Xicoia Studios, the release comes ahead of Norwood’s official AI acting debut this year and offers the first glimpse into the evolving “Tilly-verse,” a new entertainment world where AI characters “live, interact and work.” “Take the Lead” is inspired by a recently published essay written by Eline van der Velden, Norwood’s creator and CEO of production company Particle6 and its AI talent studio Xicoia. The lyrics, she explains, reflect on last year’s extensive backlash across Hollywood following the news that agents were looking to sign Norwood. The story.
—Spacey testifies. In a dusty annex at a Santa Monica courthouse on Tuesday, Kevin Spacey detailed the behind-the-scenes maneuvering of people in his orbit to recover money from the imploded final season of the Netflix show. THR's Winston Cho reports that the Oscar-winner testified that he was ready and willing to film the sixth season of House of Cards but that he was unfairly ousted on false grounds so the show’s producers could submit a massive insurance claim. The actor was articulate and quick-witted, unrepentant and resolute — challenging the allegations of sexual impropriety and sexual compulsion diagnosis that upended his career nearly a decade ago. The story.
—🤝 Settlement. 🤝 CAA has settled a lawsuit with a writer who had accused the agency of breaching its duty by placing him on blacklists. Lawyers for the writer, John Musero, informed the court on Monday of a deal to resolve the case ahead of a trial set to start with opening statements this week. The agreement is conditioned on the completion of certain terms within 45 days. CAA will pay roughly $500,000 in the settlement, according to a source. Musero sought $25m. Further details weren’t disclosed. The story.
—Official apology. The embattled Toronto Film Critics Association is looking to put the controversy around its alleged pro-Palestine comments censorship behind it with an apology to the indigenous filmmaker who returned her awards trophy after revealing that her acceptance speech had been cut short. “We sincerely apologize to Elle-Máijá Tailfeathers for the fact that her message was not aired in full and that she was neither given an opportunity to review the edits to her acceptance speech, nor were time constraints communicated to her,” the TFCA said in a statement. The story. |
WGA's Top Negotiators Ready to Play Hardball ►✊ "We know our value, we know the contributions we make to the industry, and we are not, as I think you know, a union that gives away our power." ✊ The WGA may be facing a contracting business, a staff strike on its doorstep and a funding crisis for its health plan, but on Tuesday, union leaders made clear to THR's Katie Kilkenny they are uncowed heading into this year’s contract negotiations with Hollywood’s top companies. In 2023, the union struck for 148 days. This year, negotiators say “we're not interested in hearing there's no money” as they push for studios to shore up their health plan and pay writers for AI licensing. The story.
—✊ Strike pledge. ✊ Writers for CBS News 24/7 say they are ready to strike if a new contract deal isn’t reached soon between their union and Paramount/CBS management. The bargaining unit at CBS News’ free streaming network delivered a strike pledge on Tuesday calling for “a fair deal with our union by the end of today.” Tuesday marks the last scheduled bargaining date for the group of writers, producers and graphic designers, who are represented by the WGA East. Ninety-five percent of the 60-member bargaining unit signed the pledge, which called for the company to “meet us where we are at on our most important issues” including guaranteed wage increases, overtime directives, union jurisdiction and work from home policies. The story.
—✊ First contract. ✊ Motion capture workers employed by the video game company behind NBA 2K and WWE 2K have ratified their first labor contract in a move that union IATSE is calling historic. Workers at 2K’s motion capture studio in Petaluma, CA have unanimously ratified a deal with management at parent company Take-Two Interactive, IATSE announced on Tuesday. The crew union represents stage technicians, engineers, animators and recording and audio specialists at the studio. The new deal establishes wage minimums as well as annual wage increases and bonuses. The story.
—✊ It's happening. ✊ The indie video game studio Heart Machine has voluntarily recognized a union formed by staff members. The developer behind 2021’s Solar Ash and 2016’s Hyper Light Drifter agreed to recognize a wall-to-wall union representing all non-managerial employees, the Communications Workers of America announced on Monday. Previously, the union states, a majority of the workers at the studio signaled their interest in joining CWA. Heart Machine is based in L.A. and the union will be under the umbrella of Burbank-based CWA Local 9003. The story. |
Barbra Streisand to Receive Honorary Palme d'Or ►🏆 The Streisand effect. 🏆 Legendary singer/actress/director Barbra Streisand will be feted by the Cannes Film Festival this year with a honorary Palme d’Or for her life’s work. Cannes unveiled the award on Wednesday, calling Streisand “an iconic artist and embodiment of the American dream in all its original splendor.” The EGOT winner has never had a film in Cannes before. She will make her Croisette debut on stage this year, receiving the honorary Palme at the Cannes awards ceremony on May 23. The story.
—Shut up and take my money! James Wan has come aboard to direct and produce an English-language reimagining of Korean movie The Gangster, The Cop, The Devil for Paramount Pictures, becoming the latest bold-faced filmmaker recruited by the Skydance-owned studio. Don Lee, also known as Ma Dong-seok and one of the stars of the original movie, is attached to star in the new project. Wan is already producing the next installment in the Paranormal Activity franchise for Paramount, but the action crime thriller could mark his first feature since 2023’s big-budget DC movie Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom. The story.
—📅 Dated! 📅 Two beloved Studio Ghibli classics are headed back to the big screen this spring, as Gkids and Imax continue their effort to give the Japanese animation house’s catalog a premium theatrical revival in North America. The distributor unveiled on Tuesday that newly restored 4K editions of Whisper of the Heart (1995) and The Secret World of Arrietty (2010) will screen exclusively in Imax theaters across the U.S. and Canada on April 21 and May 19, respectively, with both subtitled Japanese-language and English-dub versions available. The plan follows last year’s Imax rerelease of Hayao Miyazaki’s Princess Mononoke , which opened to $3.9m domestically and ultimately earned $6.9m — making it the second-highest-grossing vault release ever for Imax. The story.
—🤝 Sold! 🤝 James McAvoy‘s feature directorial debut, California Schemin’, has been acquired by Bob Yari‘s Magenta Light Studios, with the company set to release the movie in theaters across the U.S. later this year. The film, which premiered in Toronto, is set in the late ’90s and follows aspiring musicians Bain and Billy Boyd, whose musical ambitions were dismissed because of their Scottish accents. The pair reinvent themselves as California rappers, re-recording their tracks with American accents and fabricating a backstory that includes connections to Eminem. The story.
—"The first great film of 2026." He’s here and he’s beautiful! That’s how critics are reacting to “Rocky,” the breakout star of Phil Lord and Christopher Miller’s first directing effort in 12 years, Project Hail Mary. Though the film is released in theaters on March 20, official reviews dropped on Tuesday and the consensus from professional critics is that Amazon MGM Studios has a winner on its hands. The film currently enjoys a 96 percent score from 109 reviews on Rotten Tomatoes and an 80 on Metacritic. The review roundup. |
What Has Hollywood Learned From 'Heated Rivalry'? ►"Was it the queer romance? The hockey? The steamy sex scenes? All of the above?" If something scores big in Hollywood, it’s a safe bet that the the town will want more of it. The latest example is Heated Rivalry, the queer hockey drama that became a cultural phenomenon after hitting HBO Max over Thanksgiving. THR's resident HR expert Nicole Fell writes that amid the show's insane success, writers, execs and reps are scrambling to understand what made the sleeper hit such a success — and how to repeat it. The story.
—📅 Dated! 📅 The Will Ferrell Sports Comedy Universe will expand in the summer. Netflix has given a title and a premiere window to Ferrell’s golf comedy. It’s called The Hawk (a change from the all-caps GOLF announced at the time Netflix ordered the series) and will debut sometime during the summer. As for the plot of The Hawk: If you’ve seen Talladega Nights (or Semi-Pro, or Blades of Glory), you probably have a rough idea of what’s to come. Fortune Feimster, Luke Wilson, Chris Parnell, Katelyn Tarver and David Hornsby also star in the 10-episode season. The story.
—🤝 To the Xtreme! 🤝 Roku has landed the digital rights to the first-ever X Games league, titled… X Games League. The XGL, sponsored by MoonPay (and thus officially called the MoonPay X Games League), will stream exclusively on Roku Sports Channel. Financial terms of the multi-year deal were not disclosed. Roku is already the streaming home to the proper X Games, which still take place twice a year. ESPN holds the linear rights to the X Games and XGL. So this is an extension of Roku’s existing deal. The story.
—📅 "No AI slop!" 📅 Rick and Morty is back with a new batch of episodes that Adult Swim pledges are among its best yet. The acclaimed hit comedy will return for season nine on May 24. The idea that season nine will be a return to form follows some fandom criticism that season eight was a bit lackluster by the show’s high standards. The story.
—📅 All set. 📅 The American Music Awards are returning to Las Vegas. CBS and Dick Clark Productions said Tuesday that the 52nd edition of the show will take place on Memorial Day, May 25, from MGM Grand Garden Arena. It’ll air live coast-to-coast starting at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on CBS and stream on Paramount+. The story. |
Tarantino's First Stage Play Set for West End Run in 2027 ►"Swashbuckling comedy." The Popinjay Cavalier, a new comedy written and directed by Quentin Tarantino, is set to open on London’s West End in early 2027. Sonia Friedman Productions and Sony Pictures Entertainment confirmed on Wednesday that the play is set in 1830s Europe, describing the show as “a rambunctious comedy of deception and disguise inspired by the grand swashbuckling epics of stage and screen.” "A sweeping celebration of theatre and its heightened romance, told with Tarantino’s signature style and unmistakable wit," the production company said. The exact theater, as well as casting, creative team, and dates, will be announced at a later date. The story.
—🎭 Return to Broadway. 🎭 Isa Briones is taking over the role of Connie Francis in the Broadway musical Just in Time. The role marks a return to Broadway for The Pitt star, who made her debut in Hadestown in March 2024. She begins her limited run starting April 1, opposite Matthew Morrison as the crooner Bobby Darrin, and will later play opposite Jeremy Jordan, when he takes over April 21. In addition to her role as Dr. Trinity Santos on The Pitt, Briones has often appeared on stage, including in the Hamilton national tour and East West Players’ Next to Normal. The story.
—Bounce back. Death of a Salesman, starring Nathan Lane and Laurie Metcalf, played its first two Broadway previews last week to 100 percent capacity at the Winter Garden Theatre. The revival, the second Scott Rudin project on Broadway this season, grossed a strong $329,821 for its first two performances. The play is set to open April 9, amid a rush of plays and musicals that will open before the Tonys eligibility cutoff on April 26. Every Brilliant Thing , the one-man show starring Daniel Radcliffe, continues to perform well at the box office, bringing in $1.15m across nine performances last week, and playing to 96 percent capacity at the Hudson Theatre. The play is set to open March 12. Overall, industry grosses were up 8 percent from the prior week, as productions shook off lingering effects from the snowstorm and show cancellations. The Broadway box office report. |
TV Review: 'Scarpetta' ►"Alternately effective and bumbling." THR's chief TV critic Daniel Fienberg reviews Amazon Prime Video's Scarpetta. This eight-episode thriller is based on Patricia Cornwell's novels about medical examiner Kay Scarpetta. Starring Nicole Kidman, Jamie Lee Curtis, Ariana DeBose, Bobby Cannavale, Simon Baker, Rose McEwen, Amanda Righetti, Savannah Lumar, Jake Cannavale and Hunter Parrish. Created by Liz Sarnoff, from the novels by Patricia Cornwell. The review.
—"Violent, funny and energetic, if not always fresh." Daniel reviews Hulu's Sunny Nights. In this eight-episode Australia-set spray-tan comedy thriller siblings from Indiana (Will Forte and D'Arcy Carden) head Down Under to make it rich. Also starring Rachel House, Jessica De Gouw, Megan Wilding, Ra Chapman and Willie Mason. Created by Nick Keetch and Ty Freer. The review.
In other news...
—Miley Cyrus returns as Hannah Montana for 20th anniversary special trailer
—Netflix's Man on Fire: Yahya Abdul-Mateen II goes on rampage as Creasy
—Sadie Sandler gets the worst college roommate in trailer for Netflix’s Roommates
—Morgan Stewart McGraw brings new podcast to SiriusXM
—Hong Kong Film Festival to open with Anthony Chen’s We Are All Strangers
What else we're reading...
—Shocking report from Mark Mazzetti, Tyler Pager and Edward Wong on how the Trump administration completely miscalculate Iran’s response to war [NYT]
—Joe Heim reports that a Titanic statue featuring Trump and Epstein on Washington's National Mall is drawing praise as well as scorn [Washington Post]
—Stephen M. Lepore reports on Pete Hegseth's $93b Pentagon spending spree, including spending millions on lobsters, steaks and a handmade Japanese flute [Daily Mail]
—Danny Chau on Bam Adebayo's historic 83-point game that broke the NBA’s order [Ringer]
—Nellie Peyton and Tim Cocks report that some white South Africans are returning to their country after Trump gave them asylum in the U.S. to "escape persecution" [Reuters]
Today...
...in 2011, Focus Features released Cary Joji Fukunaga's Jane Eyre in North American theaters. The adaptation of Charlotte Brontë's 1847 novel of the same name, starred Mia Wasikowska as Jane and Michael Fassbender as Rochester. The original review.
Today's birthdays: Jodie Comer (33), Johnny Knoxville (55), Peter Berg (62), Jerry Zucker (76), Terrence Howard (57), Elias Koteas (65), Thora Birch (44), Alex Kingston (63), Matthias Schweighöfer (45), Wallace Langham (61), Craig Parkinson (50), Robbie Daymond (44), James Fleet (74), Rob Paulsen (70), Mircea Monroe (44), Nancy Kovack (91), Jeffrey Nordling (64), Christophe Gans (66), Robert Glenister (66), Evan Williams (41), Josh Robert Thompson (51), Barbara Alyn Woods (64), Lindsey McKeon (44), Rainey Qualley (37), Brent Huff (65), David Anders (45), Dominic Mafham (58), Rob Brown (42), Jonas Karlsson (55), Lucy DeVito (43), Daniella Kertesz (37), Jamal Duff (54) |
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