What's news: Nithya Raman is sticking with her opposition to the Paramount-WBD deal. The Odyssey is now the highest-grossing R-rated film of all time. Myles Bullock Be will play Dr. Dre in the Snoop Dogg biopic. Charles Melton is in final negotiations for the Naruto movie. Amazon has renewed Sterling Point. And Masters of the Universe topped the Nielsen’s streaming rankings! — Abid Rahman
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Mayor Bass Backs Paramount-WBD Settlement |
►"The continued uncertainty is not good for workers, not good for productions and not good for the future of this industry." Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass has changed her tone on the proposed merger between Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery. The mayor, who is running for reelection this year, previously opposed the $111b deal unless it avoided loss of jobs. But in a news conference Thursday, Bass urged Paramount Skydance and California Attorney General Rob Bonta to come to a quick settlement on the antitrust lawsuit from 12 state regulators that is challenging the transaction. The story.
—"This is a bad deal for entertainment workers and a bad deal for Los Angeles." L.A. mayoral candidate Nithya Raman is sticking by her position that the legality of the Paramount–WBD merger should be decided in court. The sitting L.A. councilmember reiterated her support for Rob Bonta’s antitrust suit. The story.
—"What worries me about the war on Paramount and Warner Bros." In a guest column for THR, Cory Jacobson, the owner of Phoenix Theatres offers his thoughts on the Paramount-WBD deal, and asks, what happens if the merger doesn’t occur? "Industries rarely suffer because too many people are willing to make sensible long-term investments. The greater danger comes when investment stops," writes Jacobson. The column.
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Director: Hayden Panettiere's Team Planned "Intervention"
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►New details. On what would have been her 38th birthday, more details have emerged about Hayden Panettiere‘s life before her death on Aug. 16. Director Griff Furst, who helmed one of Panettiere‘s final films, revealed how her team asked him to participate in an “intervention" after working on a project with the actress. “When we wrapped, however, I stayed in touch with her team,” he continued. “What eventually got determined was that she might need an intervention and I got asked to participate. I said yes, and that intervention did not happen, at least not that I’m aware of, and I wasn’t leading the charge on that and it wouldn’t have been appropriate for me." The story.
—First statement. Hayden Panettiere‘s on-again, off-again boyfriend, who was with her at the time of her death, has released a statement reiterating that police have said there was no foul play suspected. Brian Hickerson, who dated Panettiere on and off since 2018 and was arrested several times in the subsequent years for domestic abuse and, at one point, pleaded no contest to two felony charges related to an assault against Panettiere, released a statement via his lawyers. The story.
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How Natalie Portman Got Caught in A Novelist's Autofiction Trap
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►"Rachel’s book, Life of M, has really pissed [Natalie] off." The acclaimed writer Rachel Cusk’s controversial new novel Life of M is an intimate, unvarnished character study of an A-list movie star who is depicted as hollow, immature and cynical, an intellectual poseur and an artist wannabe. The apparent inspiration: Natalie Portman, who selected Cusk’s works for her online book club and hosted her for a 2022 discussion, calling the author “one of my favorite writers.” THR's Gary Baum goes inside the apparent betrayal has become the literary scandal of the year. The story.
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Steven Yeun to Topline 'Pagans' at Netflix
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►🎭 Next up. 🎭 Steven Yeun is headed back to Netflix for his next series role. The Emmy winner will star in a series titled Pagans from creator Joshua Zetumer. Yeun will also be an executive producer. Netflix won a multi-outlet bidding war for Pagans last year with a straight-to-series order. The supernatural drama began as a spec script from Zetumer, whose writing credits also include feature films Patriots Day and the 2014 RoboCop. The story.
—🟢 Team up. 🟢 AMC Global Media and Netflix, which have an ongoing licensing agreement for AMC shows, are becoming production partners as well. Netflix has greenlit Bannerman, a spy thriller that it will co-produce with AMC Studios. The show is based on a series of five novels by John R. Maxim about a retired covert operative living in semi-secrecy in suburban Connecticut. Shane Black and Craig Silverstein co-wrote the first episode, with Silverstein serving as showrunner and Black set to direct the first two episodes. The story.
—🎭 Level up. 🎭 Amazon Prime Video‘s God of War series has found a new lead actor to replace the injured Ryan Hurst. Dave Bautista will take on the role of Kratos in the show, which is based on the long-running video game franchise. Hurst was originally cast in the role but had to step aside after tearing a bicep while performing a stunt on set. Amazon confirmed Bautista’s casting after initial reports in early August that the actor was in talks to take over the role. The story.
—🟢 Signed up. 🟢 Prime Video has ordered a second season of Sterling Point, the coming-of-age series created by Megan Park. The renewal comes two weeks after the first season premiered on the platform. The show has earned praise from critics and viewers online for its realistic dialogue when it comes to its teen characters. In the series, 17-year-old Annie, played by Ella Rubin, inherits her late grandfather’s Canadian cottage and island along with her twin brother, played by Keen Ruffalo. The story.
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'Sons of Anarchy' Creator Kurt Sutter Reacts to Spinoff |
►"I'm not involved, Nor should I be." There was one big name absent from FX‘s order of a new Sons of Anarchy project yesterday: the original series creator, Kurt Sutter. Legends will reunite the core cast from the hit motorcycle gang drama in a “meta thriller.” In the limited series, the cast attends a fan convention where they get caught up in a dangerous life-imitating-art situation — a premise drawing comparisons to the beloved sci-fi comedy Galaxy Quest. The project was developed by series star Charlie Hunnam and Jonathan Groff. Sutter took to Instagram to give his reaction to the project. The story.
—📅 Dated! 📅 The Wiskayok Yellowjackets are heading home at last. Paramount+ announced Thursday that the fourth and final season of Yellowjackets will premiere Nov. 20 for subscribers to its premium tier (i.e., the former Showtime tier). The final season will debut about 19 months after season three concluded in — which coincidentally is also how long the teenage versions of the show’s characters spend in the Canadian wilderness after their plane crashes. The story.
—Woof! In brightest day, in blackest night … a fairly large number of people watched the premiere of Lanterns. The DC Studios series based on the Green Lantern comics amassed 9.3m viewers worldwide in its first three days on HBO and HBO Max. About 71 percent of that total (6.6m) came from the U.S. The U.S. total outperformed the series premieres of several recent-ish HBO shows, including IT: Welcome to Derry (5.7m), The Penguin (5.3m) and True Detective: Night Country (2m). Lanterns‘ U.S. audience comes in just behind the 6.7m viewers over three days for A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms in January. The ratings.
—He has the power! After an underwhelming box-office take in movie theaters, Masters of the Universe found a softer landing in its streaming debut. The movie scored the No. 1 overall ranking in Nielsen’s streaming ratings for July 20-26, its first week of streaming. It debuted July 22 on Prime Video, less than weeks after its theatrical premiere; it has made a little under $114m worldwide at the box office against a $170m budget. Masters scored 1.17b minutes of watch time for the week and was one of just two titles to cross the billion-minute threshold. The other was The Big Bang Theory, which had 1.12b minutes of viewing time on HBO Max. The comedy scored an all-time high in viewing time for the second straight week. The streaming rankings.
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Charles Melton in Talks to Play Kakashi in 'Naruto' Movie
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►🎭 Sugoi! 🎭 THR's Borys "Skewpz" Kit and Mia Galuppo have the scoop that Beef star Charles Melton is in final negotiations for a key role in the live-action Naruto movie set up at Lionsgate. Destin Daniel Cretton, who is currently in theaters with Spider-Man: Brand New Day, is set to direct the movie based on the manga series by Masashi Kishimoto. Naruto is the coming-of-age story of a young and enthusiastic ninja named Naruto Uzumaki who wants to grow up to be the leader of his ninja village but also happens to have the spirit of a nine-tailed demon fox inside him. The story.
—By Zeus' beard! Universal confirmed Thursday that Christopher Nolan‘s The Odyssey has collected $1.352b globally to become the highest-grossing R-rated film of all time. The sum surpasses the $1.338b that Disney/Marvel's Deadpool & Wolverine earned after hitting theaters in July 2024. The box office report.
—"Instant cult classic." Neon is giving Korean action maestro Na Hong-jin‘s gritty monster epic Hope an early theatrical launch on premium screens across the U.S. The distributor will hold large-format screenings of Hope on Sept. 7 at 175 premium locations ahead of its wide release on Sept. 9. The one-night event, with showtimes at 6:30 p.m., spans six formats at theaters in NYC, L.A., Chicago, San Francisco, Dallas and elsewhere. The launch strategy is reminiscent of Neon’s rollout last year of The Monkey, which used advance premium screenings to build word of mouth on the way to the film’s stellar $40m box office run. The story.
—"A24 wanted me to sign away my rights." Chris Hansen said he didn’t watch an early screening of Robert Pattinson‘s Primetime because he claimed that A24 wanted the the former To Catch a Predator host to "sign away my rights." During an interview on Fox News’ Jesse Watters Primetime Thursday evening, Hansen said he went to the indie production studio and distributor’s office earlier in the day for a private screening of the film, but ended up leaving without seeing it. THR learned that Hansen was asked to sign a standard NDA a week in advance that all preview audiences must sign in order to watch an unreleased A24 film. The story.
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Snoop Dogg Biopic Finds Its Dr. Dre
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►🎭 The Doctor is in. 🎭 Borys "Skewpz" Kit is back with another scoop, this time with news that Myles Bullock Be has nabbed the role of Dr. Dre in Snoop, Universal's biopic of hip hop icon Snoop Dogg. Bullock Be's credits include BMF, 2023's White Men Can't Jump and Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist. Jonathan Daviss, one of the stars of Netflix series Outer Banks, is portraying Snoop. Craig Brewer is directing the feature. The story.
—🎭 Seasoned talent. 🎭 Ron Perlman has joined the cast of Seasons, the horror thriller that Drew Hancock, the filmmaker behind Companion, is directing for Amazon MGM Studios. The veteran actor has joined Lily James and Jack Reynor in the feature, which is heading toward a September production start in Ireland. Hancock wrote the script adapting the book by Matt and Harrison Query, which in turn was based on a short story by Matt Query that first appeared on Reddit. The story.
—📅 Dated! 📅 Netflix announced Thursday that director Jake Szymanski’s action-comedy movie Bad Day is set to begin streaming Dec. 11. Cameron Diaz leads the cast that also includes Danielle Brooks, Rhenzy Feliz, John Higgins, Mark Duplass, Jessica Belkin, Ed O’Neill, Rob Corddry, Ayden Mayeri, Ben Schwartz, Retta, Emma Pearson, P.J. Byrne, Sherry Cola, Edi Patterson and Beck Bennett. Bad Day sees Diaz starring as a single mom who endures the toughest day of her life while striving to keep a promise to her daughter. The story.
—📅 On the move. 📅 Warner Bros. Pictures Animation and director Kirk DeMicco’s animated feature Margie Claus will hit theaters Nov. 12, 2027, shifting a week later than its previous release date. The studio also announced that Jim Gaffigan will voice Santa, while Andrew Scott is set as Jack Frost. Annie Mumolo, Georgette Falcone, Octavia Spencer, Gary Farmer, Luis Gerardo Méndez, Cedric Yarbrough and Maria Bakalova also join the film alongside previously announced castmembers Melissa McCarthy and Cole Escola. The story.
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Film Review: 'The Magic Faraway Tree' |
►"Too imaginative for its own good." THR's Frank Scheck reviews Ben Gregor's The Magic Faraway Tree. The visually colorful adaptation of Enid Blyton's beloved children's book is led by Claire Foy and Andrew Garfield. Also starring Nonso Anozie, Nicola Coughlan, Delilah Bennett-Cardy, Billie Gadsdon, Phoenix Laroche, Dustin Demri-Burns, Jessica Gunning, Hiran Abeysekera, Mark Heap, Pippa Bennett-Warner, Oliver Chris, Lenny Henry, Michael Palin, Simon Russell Beale, Jennifer Saunders and Rebecca Ferguson. Written by Simon Farnaby. The review.
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►All the latest content from THR's podcast studio.
—Awards Chatter. THR's executive awards editor Scott Feinberg talks to the great and the good of Hollywood. In this episode Scott spoke to Lisa Kudrow. The beloved actress/writer reflects on the huge influence of The Groundlings on her career, how being fired from Frasier and taking a small part on Mad About You paved the way for her being cast as Phoebe Buffay, and why her post-Friends journey playing fictional actress Valerie Cherish in The Comeback has been "in some ways the highlight" of her career. The podcast.
—Awards Chatter. In this episode Scott spoke to Shawn Hatosy. The longtime actor, now experiencing newfound appreciation for his portrayal of Dr. Jack Abbot on The Pitt, reflects on starting in the biz in his teens; his special relationship with TV creator John Wells, which spans 20 years and five projects (including ER, Southland, Animal Kingdom and The Pitt); and how he feels about calls for a Pitt-spinoff about the titular hospital's night shift. The podcast.
—Awards Chatter. In this episode Scott spoke to Sarah Pidgeon. The in-demand actress, who at just 30 already has Tony and Emmy noms to her name, reflects on her Broadway breakthrough in Stereophonic, and the challenges of playing Carolyn Bessett in Love Story: John F. Kennedy Jr. & Carolyn Bessette. 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 interviews Furious showrunner Liz Meriwether, who discusses her TV trajectory from sitcoms to serial killers, her New Girl cast turning their reunion jokes into public spectacle and what Britney Spears songs she's listening to as she writes the singer's biopic. The podcast.
—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 Julie Klausner. The Difficult People showrunner and star discusses her groundbreaking sitcom in front of a live audience at Televerse. The podcast.
In other news...
—Chris Pratt returns to battle for redemption in Terminal List S2 trailer
—Tribeca 25 doc trailer highlights post-9/11 origins of festival
—Film and TV spending dropped in New Mexico
—Gwyneth Paltrow pokes fun at that viral dinner party invite
What else we're reading...
—Molly Lambert profiles Charles Melton, one of a new generation of "strong and sensitive" Hollywood leading men [Vulture]
—After blowing up 60 Minutes, Charlotte Klein goes inside Bari Weiss' attempts to fix the venerable news show [Intelligencer]
—Rebecca Ford has a very revealing interview with Yahya Abdul-Mateen II that covers Disney's recent decision to cancel the acclaimed Marvel series Wonder Man [Vanity Fair]
—A former Hollywood publicist pens a personal essay about his father, who was a Nazi soldier during WW2, and the even more shocking details that were revealed after his father's death [Huff Post]
—Here's your Friday list: TV’s 15 best teen dramas of all time, ranked [THR]
Today...
...in 2013, Sony released Harald Zwart's The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones in theaters. Despite a cast of rising Hollywood talent, the big screen adaptation of Cassandra Clare's fantasy novel was panned by critics and stalled at the box office. The franchise did manage to come back as a Freeform TV show that ran for three seasons. The original review.
Today's birthdays...
Kim Cattrall (70), Carrie-Anne Moss (59), Peter Weir (82), Bo Burnham (36), Alicia Witt (51), Laura Haddock (41), RJ Mitte (34), Kate Robbins (68), Aubri Ibrag (25), Loretta Devine (77), Cleo King (64), Patty McCormack (81), Marc Evan Jackson (56), Nathan Jones (57), Elarica Johnson (37), Mustafa Shakir (50), John Brotherton (46), Isabella Pappas (24), Christian Navarro (35), Cody Kasch (39), Will Harrison (30), Richmond Arquette (63), Dallas Liu (25), Kevin Janssens (47), Bryony Corrigan (34), Jonathan Lajoie (46), Jacqueline Emerson (32), Greg Cromer (55), Anne-Louise Lambert (71), John Hollingworth (45), Thomas Beaudoin (45)
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