| | | | What's news: Cometh the hour, cometh The Nanny as the actors go on strike. Lisa Marie Presley's cause of death has been revealed. ITV has backed away from a deal to buy All3Media. The CW will broadcast ACC football and basketball games. Veteran exec Mike Darnell is leaving Warner Bros. TV. Finally, thanks to Ryan "Street Urchin" Gajewski for filling in for me the last few days. Also, there's no Saturday newsletter this week, but we'll be back on Monday! — Abid Rahman
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SAG-AFTRA Calls History-Making Strike! ►✊ It's on ✊ Hollywood now has its first double strike involving both actors and scribes since 1960. SAG-AFTRA’s National Board officially called a strike Thursday as contract talks with studios and streamers broke down without a deal on July 12. The union’s national executive director Duncan Crabtree-Ireland said that the talks left the union “with no choice” but to call a strike, while union president Fran Drescher said that the studios "stand on the wrong side of history." The story.
—Fran's moment. Drescher did not mince words when addressing members of her union and the press during Thursday’s formal strike announcement. "What are we doing, moving around furniture on the Titanic? The jig is up, AMPTP," the union leader exclaimed in an impassioned address. The story.
—"The digital age is cannibalizing us." Not long after the work stoppage was called Thursday, THR's Katie Kilkenny spoke to Drescher and Crabtree-Ireland about the historic walkout. The two discussed the issues that SAG-AFTRA and the AMPTP agreed on during negotiations, the topics that divided them and why Drescher believes “the whole world is looking at us right now.” The interview.
—All covered services and performing work must be withheld. SAG-AFTRA has released strike rules governing work its members can and cannot perform amid the work stoppage. With the strike in full effect, the actors will be taking to the picket line starting Friday morning. Shoots on major films are all expected to be immediately shut down. The rules.
—The studios respond. As SAG-AFTRA called a strike, the AMPTP outlined its proposal to the union on Thursday. In a statement, the AMPTP said it “presented a deal that offered historic pay and residual increases, substantially higher caps on pension and health contributions, audition protections, shortened series option periods, and a groundbreaking AI proposal that protects actors’ digital likenesses.” It pinned the blame for the work stoppage on the performers union. The story. |
Hollywood's High-Stakes Strike ►"The ripple effects and where that shuts things down nationally and globally will be very different to the writers strike." As the 160,000-strong performer's union joins the work stoppage, THR's Katie Kilkenny and Winston Cho write that the sides are far apart on minimum rate increases, residual increases, AI protections and, increasingly, the big picture. The analysis.
—"Nobody wants to be in an abusive relationship in which one group kind of lords over the other." The announcement of the Emmy nominations brought as much chaos as it did joy and celebration on Wednesday, as some of television’s biggest stars were expecting the SAG-AFTRA strike to be called a day later. THR's Tyler Coates spoke to the likes of Taraji P. Henson, Bill Hader, Padma Lakshmi and more Emmy nominees who offered their thoughts on Hollywood's double strike. The reaction.
—"We stand solidly behind our union siblings." The WGA, whose members have been on strike since May 2, pledged support to the actors, while noting that members of both unions have already been supporting each other on the picket lines. During the last “double strike” in 1960, the guild noted that both parties won gains in residuals, pension and health funds. The WGA reacts.
—"The. Fucking. Nanny." THR's Lesley Goldberg was out on the picket lines, where many WGA members huddled around cellphones streaming the SAG-AFTRA news conference announcing the actors strike and cheered Fran Drescher on as passers-by honked in support: “So proud of her!” The writers react.
—Anonymous strike diary. THR's series of frank accounts of the writers strike continues. The Eastside Warrior returns, and in his latest dispatch he thanks SAG-AFTRA for joining the fight — as well as the "dumb dumb dumb" producer who told writers to starve, galvanizing the picketers just as they were starting to flag: "Our souls were cracking… but then the AMPTP fucked up." The diary entry. |
Nolan and Cast Unleash 'Oppenheimer' ►"This can’t be safe. It’s got to have bite." Oppenheimer director Christopher Nolan and stars Cillian Murphy, Emily Blunt and Matt Damon talk to THR's Rebecca Keegan about the stakes of making an R-rated, three-hour, CGI-free summer flick about the godfather of the atomic bomb: “It’s got to be beautiful and threatening in equal measure.” The story.
—Cause of death revealed. Lisa Marie Presley died from a “small bowel obstruction caused by scar tissue that developed after a previous bariatric surgery years ago,” according to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner. A toxicology report for the singer-songwriter and only child of Elvis Presley, who died in January at 54, is yet to be released. The story.
—Pulled! Add Vice to the list of disappeared series from cable and streaming outlets. The docuseries was removed from Showtime and Paramount+ earlier in July as part of a broader set of programs taken off the Paramount Global services. Vice joins the likes of The L Word: Generation Q, Ziwe, I Love That for You and American Gigolo in being taken down from Showtime, which is focusing its programming on key franchises like Billions, Dexter and The Chi. The story. |
Iger Ponders Disney TV Assets Sale ►Bobby Deals is back. Disney CEO Bob Iger is weighing a sale of the company's linear TV business including ABC, though he still plans to keep ESPN. Speaking to CNBC’s David Faber in Sun Valley, Idaho, Iger opined about Disney’s future in streaming, and what it means for many of its legacy businesses. In the case of ESPN, that likely means a “strategic partnership,” one that will help it make the jump to direct-to-consumer. In the case of its linear TV networks, Iger suggested that "they may not be core to Disney." The story.
—"We are committed to making The CW a destination for live, appointment-viewing sporting events." The CW is continuing to expand its lineup of live sports. The Nexstar-owned broadcast network on Thursday announced a four-year deal to carry 50 Atlantic Coast Conference college football and basketball games, beginning this fall. In total The CW will carry 13 football games, 28 men’s basketball games, and nine women’s basketball games. The story.
—Not happening. ITV said on Friday that it was “no longer actively exploring” an acquisition of the U.K.'s largest TV production firm All3Media from Warner Bros. Discovery and Liberty Global. In June, the U.K. TV giant had said it was “actively exploring” such a deal. WBD and Liberty are looking at a potential sale of All3Media to a third party, but could also decide to have one of them buying out the other’s 50 percent stake. The story.
—"Call it fate, or just good timing, during my discussions with Channing, a couple of new ventures have come my way." One of the architects of reality TV is leaving his position. Mike Darnell, president unscripted television at Warner Bros. TV, is leaving the studio after 10 years. The former Fox executive says his departure comes after conversations with WBTV Group chairman and CEO Channing Dungey. The story. |
Spacey Tells Court He "Was Promiscuous," "Misread Signs" ►"I’m sure if I wanted to I could have had sex with people all the time." Kevin Spacey told a London trial on alleged sexual misconduct on Friday that he “definitely misread” the signs of one of the complainants. During his cross-examination, the BBC reported that he was asked if he might have ignored signs from people he interacted with. Spacey replied that he misread the signs of one of the complainants, adding: “And I accept that.” Spacey also told the London court that he had consensual agreements with two of the others. The story.
—"I was so distracted by how an actor that I had known for however long was now suddenly this young person." Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One nearly followed in the footsteps of Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny in de-aging its iconic lead actor. In a new interview, director Christopher McQuarrie revealed that the Dead Reckoning creative team looked into using the technology on Tom Cruise for one of the opening scenes in the film, but ultimately the process would distract audiences too much. The story.
—Charlie Brooker FTW. Netflix’s Black Mirror debuted at No. 1 on the streaming charts for the week of its sixth season premiere. The sci-fi anthology series delivered 1.36b minutes of viewing time in the U.S. for the week of June 12-18, according to Nielsen’s rankings. Black Mirror displaced the previous week’s No. 1, Avatar: The Way of Water, which fell by 45 percent in viewing time but still cleared the billion-minute mark across Disney+ and Max, which share streaming rights. The streaming rankings. |
Film Review: 'They Cloned Tyrone' ►"Sleek and surreal." THR's Lovia Gyarkye reviews Juel Taylor's They Cloned Tyrone. Jamie Foxx and John Boyega star in this story about a drug dealer, a pimp and a sex worker joining forces to uncover secrets about their community. The review.
—"More likable than lovable." THR TV critic Angie Han reviews Netflix's Survival of the Thickest. Michelle Buteau plays a 38-year-old stylist trying to get her life back on track after a breakup, in a series based on her own book of essays. The review. |
Thank Pod It's Friday ► All the latest content from THR's podcast studio.
—TV's Top 5. THR's Lesley Goldberg and Dan Fienberg break down the latest TV news. This week's episode covers the momentous last few days in Hollywood, including the actors strike, Bob Iger's week from hell and of course the Emmy nominations. Also, Dan reviews FX’s What We Do in the Shadows, Apple’s The Afterparty, Max’s Project Greenlight and FX’s Justified: City Primeval, among others. Listen here.
—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 Robin Wright. The actress/director reflects on her evolution from model to soap star to The Princess Bride and Forrest Gump, her collaborations with her ex Sean Penn and breaking out of typecasting with House of Cards — and then navigating the aftermath of Kevin Spacey’s downfall. Listen here.
In other news...
—Nicolas Cage thriller Sympathy for the Devil picked up by Signature for U.K.
—Netflix acquires hit Taiwanese horror comedy Marry My Dead Body
—Geraldo Rivera reveals he had "toxic Relationship" with The Five co-star before firing
—Halloween Horror Nights returns to the Upside Down with Stranger Things S4 House
—Karlie Kloss and Joshua Kushner welcome second child
What else we're reading...
—Michael Schulman writes that Netflix's Orange Is the New Black signalled the rot inside the streaming economy [New Yorker]
—With both the actors and writers on strike, Keli Goff looks at why Democrats are not calling out the Hollywood studio bosses [Daily Beast]
—David Marchese talks to Oppenheimer star Robert Downey Jr. about his post-Marvel career shift [NYT]
—AA Dowd believes that Mission: Impossible is the best franchise in Hollywood [Guardian]
—Here's your Friday list: "All 7 Mission: Impossible movies ranked" [THR]
Today...
...in 1969, Columbia brought Peter Fonda’s Easy Rider to the big screen at the Beekman in New York. The film went on to be nominated for two Oscars at the 42nd Academy Awards, for Jack Nicholson’s supporting role and for the screenplay. The original review.
Today's birthdays: Phoebe Waller-Bridge (38), Jane Lynch (63), Jackie Earle Haley (62), Scott Porter (44), Matthew Fox (57), Nina Siemaszko (53), Maxine Peake (49), Vincent Pastore (77), Alisha Wainwright (34), Stan Shaw (71), David Mitchell (49), Kyle Gass (63), Loni Love (52), Joel Silver (71), Eric Laneuville (71), Roosevelt Grier (91), Gail Mancuso (65), Jane Espenson (59), Kevin Connor (86) |
| Daniel Goldberg, the frequent Ivan Reitman and Todd Phillips collaborator who co-wrote and produced the Bill Murray starrers Stripes and Meatballs and shepherded other films including Space Jam, Old School, Road Trip and the Hangover trilogy, has died. He was 74. The obituary. |
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