| | | | | | What's news: It's magazine day! This week's cover star is the impossibly handsome Jon Hamm. Hannah Minghella is Netflix's new head of feature animation and live-action. Spaceballs 2 is in early development at Amazon MGM Studios. Will Smith is in talks to star in Sony's Resistor. Matt Damon and Ben Affleck are teaming up for crime thriller RIP. House of the Dragon S2 premiered to 7.8m viewers. Resident Alien is shifting from Syfy to USA Network. — Abid Rahman
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Jon Hamm Doesn't Want to Be Your Leading Man ►On the cover. A decade after Mad Men, Jon Hamm is still wrestling with Don Draper's demons. The 53-year-old actor tells THR's Lacey Rose that with therapy, a new marriage and an avalanche of plum roles in shows like Fargo, The Morning Show and the upcoming series Your Friends and Neighbors he's having a much smoother ride of it nowadays: "Jimmy Gandolfini, whom I knew a little bit, had a similar relationship to Tony Soprano, and Bryan Cranston had it with Walter White. The character got celebrated for the wrong reasons. People thought that Don was this paragon of masculinity or whatever." The cover story. |
Shari Redstone Goes for Broke ►Can Paramount pick up the pieces? Shari Redstone came ever so close to selling Paramount Global this month, then backed away, for now. THR's Alex Weprin writes that new suitors have emerged amidst the chaos. But can the studio be saved? The analysis.
—Another one. Paramount Global is losing another top executive, with general counsel Christa D’Alimonte set to exit the media company later this month. D’Alimonte was elevated to general counsel of Viacom in 2017, and continued in that role after it merged with CBS to create ViacomCBS and later Paramount Global. In a message to legal employees Tuesday, she noted that she first began representing Viacom more than 25 years ago. The story.
—The plot thickens. Steven Mnuchin keeps buying Lionsgate stock. The former banker and Treasury Secretary under President Trump has in the last few weeks acquired another $10m or so in shares of the entertainment company, bringing his stake to 11 percent. Mnuchin has been on a Lionsgate buying spree ever since initially disclosing a 5.5 percent stake back in September. It is still not entirely clear what Mnuchin’s ultimate goal is with Lionsgate, though a filing says that the purchases were "made for investment purposes." The story.
—🤝 Settlement 🤝 WME and La La Land composer Justin Hurwitz have settled a lawsuit accusing the agency of a conflict of interest when it produced live orchestral shows of the movie using his score while mostly locking him out of profits from the touring live-to-film concerts. Terms of the deal weren’t disclosed. Hurwitz, in a lawsuit filed in 2022, claimed that WME abused its relationship with him to secure a license from Lionsgate for a La La Land tour, "only to self-deal by competing directly against" him for the profits from the concerts. The story.
—More legal woes.TikTok may be facing a new lawsuit over alleged violations of a federal law intended to protect children’s privacy online as it fights a First Amendment legal battle against the U.S. government challenging a national ban on the social media platform. The FTC said that an investigation “uncovered reason to believe” TikTok and Chinese parent company ByteDance are “violating or are about to violate” the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act. It recommended for the Justice Department to take legal action and lawmakers to call a congressional hearing. The story. |
Netflix Plans Immersive Experiences in Texas, Pennsylvania ►"Netflix House represents the next generation of our distinctive offerings." Netflix has rolled out plans for out-of-home immersive venues, dubbed Netflix House, to open first in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania and Galleria Dallas, Texas next year. On the streamer's Tudum site, the company noted that initial year-round Netflix House sites will build on earlier live experiences for Bridgerton, Money Heist, Stranger Things and Squid Game, and promises an "experiential entertainment venue" to immerse fans in its most popular titles. The story.
—On the move. Hannah Minghella is exiting her post at Bad Robot to head feature animation and live-action at Netflix. Minghella will report to new film head Dan Lin, who recently reorganized the division to place more of an emphasis on genre. Along with Minghella, Sharon Taylor is returning to Netflix to head up production on feature animation based out of Vancouver. Karen Toliver, who was tapped to lead film animation in 2022, and feature animation president Traci Balthazor will be leaving Netflix after launching films like Leo and Nimona. The story.
—Flexing. Over in South East Asia, Netflix has showcased some new original films and series, including not one, but two new zombie films. In its first collaboration with star Indonesian filmmaker Kimo Stamboel, Netflix is in production on Indonesia's first ever zombie film, tentatively titled Abadi Nan Jaya. Among the other highlights are Doctor Climax, a period Thai sex comedy, and Timo Tjahjanto's new action film The Shadow Strays. The story. |
'Spaceballs' Sequel in Works at Amazon MGM ►May The Schwartz be with you. A sequel based on comedy classic Spaceballs is in early development at Amazon MGM Studios. Josh Gad and Mel Brooks, who wrote, directed and starred in the 1987 original, are producing the project that has Gad attached to star. Josh Greenbaum is helming the comedy from a script by Gad, Benji Samit and Dan Hernandez. Plot details for the sequel to the Star Wars-spoofing comedy feature have not yet been shared. Kevin Salter will serve as executive producer on the sequel. The story.
—🎭 Next up 🎭 Will Smith is lining up his next feature, following the career-reviving success of Bad Boys: Ride or Die. Smith is in talks to star in Resistor for Sony Pictures and Escape Artists that is an adaptation of the 2014 novel Influx from New York Times bestselling author Daniel Suarez, although specific plot details have not been shared. The book focuses on a government agency that locks away inventors in a secretive prison and hijacks their work. A director is not yet attached for the film, which is currently in development. The story.
—🎭 Inseparable 🎭 Matt Damon and Ben Affleck are set to share the screen again, this time in crime thriller RIP. The film package is currently making its way around town and has Joe Carnahan, the filmmaker behind Smokin’ Aces and The Grey, attached to direct and write the script. Plot details are not yet known, and a fall shoot is planned. Affleck and Damon will also produce via their Artists Equity banner. The duo recently produced and starred in Air Jordan movie Air, which Affleck also directed. The story.
—Snapped up! Sony Pictures Classics has nabbed the worldwide rights to Richard Linklater’s Blue Moon, which is set to star Ethan Hawke, Margaret Qualley, Bobby Cannavale and Andrew Scott. Production is set to start in early July in Dublin on the drama about the final days of Lorenz Hart, half of the songwriting team Rodgers & Hart and set around Sardi’s Restaurant on March 31, 1943, on the opening night of the musical Oklahoma! The story.
—📅 Dated 📅 Horror Maestro Mike Flanagan’s reimagined The Exorcist film will hit theaters on March 13, 2026, Universal announced Tuesday. Blumhouse and Morgan Creek’s plans for a trilogy of new Exorcist films were derailed with the poor and polarizing response to last year’s The Exorcist: Believer, directed by David Gordon Green. Last month, the filmmakers announced they were giving the reigns of the franchise over to Flanagan. The story. |
HBO's 'A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms' Reveals First-Look ►And off we go! A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, the next Game of Thrones prequel series, is returning to a familiar filming location — and has released a first-look photo. In the first image, we see Peter Claffey who plays Ser Duncan the Tall in the series. The photo arrives as A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms begins shooting its debut season in Belfast, Northern Ireland. The move returns the franchise to the same production hub as GOT, while the franchise’s other prequel series, House of the Dragon, has shot outside London for its first two seasons. The story.
—Slidin'. The second season premiere of House of the Dragon brought in 7.8m viewers across all platforms in the U.S. Sunday night — a strong showing, without a doubt, but about 22 percent below the show’s record-setting series premiere in August 2022. The first season premiere drew nearly 10m viewers across all platforms in its first night, making it the most-watched series opener in HBO’s history. Season one’s first-night average was in the 9m-9.5m range for most episodes. The ratings.
—Fond farewell. The final episode for long-time Wheel of Fortune host Pat Sajak drew a big audience — the biggest for the game show in more than four years. Sajak’s June 7 farewell on Wheel of Fortune, which he hosted for more than 40 years, drew 11.03m viewers, the biggest tune-in for the syndicated series since April 29, 2020. Excluding live sports, it was the most-watched program on broadcast or cable TV, at any time of day, for the week of June 3-9. Only game two of the NBA Finals (12.31m viewers on June 9) outdrew Wheel of Fortune. The ratings.
—New home. Resident Alien, the dark sci-fi comedy starring Alan Tudyk, has been renewed for a fourth season, and is shifting homes from Syfy to USA Network. The idea is to expose the show to a broader audience, as USA tends to have a bit more reach than Syfy. Resident Alien has also recently gotten an awareness boost from Netflix picking up its first two seasons earlier this year. The third season of the show averaged 3.3m total viewers across all platforms. The story.
—🎭 Pieces in place 🎭 The creators of Will & Grace and Ryan Murphy are teaming for a Hulu project — which is already attracting a top-notch cast. The streamer has ordered a pilot for a multi-camera comedy titled Mid-Century Modern, written by Will & Grace’s David Kohan and Max Mutchnick. Matt Bomer, Nathan Lane and Linda Lavin are set to star in the show, which reads as something of a gender-swapped take on The Golden Girls. Murphy is an executive producer, and James Burrows is set to direct. The story.
—Familiar voice. Chris Rock will be part of the voice cast of Everybody Still Hates Chris, an animated series based on the comedy Everybody Hates Chris. As with the original, Rock will narrate the show — which is set to premiere on Comedy Central later this year — as his adult self, looking back at events from his childhood. Terry Crews and Tichina Arnold will also reprise their roles from the live-action series as Chris’ parents. Tim Johnson Jr. will play the young Chris, Ozioma Akagha and Terrence Little Gardenhigh will voice his younger siblings and Gunnar Sizemore will play Greg, Chris’ only friend at school. The story. |
The Art of Filming Sex Safely ►The case for an intimacy coordinator Oscar. THR's Lily Ford spoke to Challengers intimacy coordinator Mam Smith and award-winning adult filmmaker Erika Lust to discuss a safe environment on set and why the industry needs more guide rails when it comes to sex scenes: "It's a bit like the Wild West right now." The interview.
—"It wasn’t beautiful, and that was really fun to do." Olivia Cooke offered a behind-the-scenes tease of a cut sex scene from House of the Dragon's second season this week, saying the “messy as fuck” moment didn’t make the final show out of concern that it didn’t further the plot. In a new interview, Cooke also described the scene as "carnal" and "animalistic" but ultimately showrunner Ryan Condal dropped the scene as "we weren’t learning any more about the characters." The story. |
THR Critics Pick the 10 Best TV Shows of 2024 So Far ►Cream of the crop. THR's TV critics Daniel Fienberg and Angie Han pick their TV faves from the first half of the year, including a pair of addictively dark Netflix dramas, a heart-tugging sports doc/celebrity bromance and the stronger-than-ever season of Hacks. The list.
—"The rare celebrity doc that fulfills its promise of intimacy." THR's Lovia Gyarkye reviews Irene Taylor's I Am: Celine Dion. The documentary details the Canadian star's struggles with Stiff Person Syndrome and appraises the impactful legacy of the singer's career spanning four decades-plus. The review.
In other news...
—Lady in the Lake trailer: Natalie Portman and Moses Ingram’s lives converge around mysterious woman’s death
—Berlin Film Festival names new directors of film programming
—Viggo Mortensen, Daniel Brühl, Clive Owen to receive Karlovy Vary Film Festival honors
—Imax expands partnership with China’s Wanda Film
—K-Pop stars shine at Milan Fashion Week
—Lionsgate promotes Chase Brisbin to global FAST channels head
—CAA hires Elizabeth A. Morrison as global head of inclusion, recruiting and development
—Willie Mays, entertaining icon of baseball, dies at 93
What else we're reading...
—Max Tani outlines Vivek Ramaswamy’s plan for BuzzFeed [Semafor]
—Ben Lindbergh believes Amazon's The Boys is better at satirizing superheroes than it is at satirizing Trump [Ringer]
—With Jude Law's Firebrand in theaters, Elle Carroll looks back at all the depictions of Henry VIII on screen down the years and how portrayals of the monarch have modernized with the times [Vulture]
—Tiffanie Turnbull reports from Tasmania, where some lucky people got to listen to Wu-Tang Clan's infamous Once Upon a Time in Shaolin album [BBC]
—Asa Fitch writes that Nvidia's journey to becoming the world's most valuable company has echoes of Cisco's rise to the top spot during the Dot-Com Boom [WSJ]
Today...
...in 1987, the comedy Roxanne hit theaters. Steve Martin, who also wrote this adaptation of Cyrano de Bergerac, starred as a big-hearted and big-nosed fire chief who falls in love with a beautiful astronomer. The original review.
Today's birthdays: Zoe Saldaña (46), Paul Dano (40), Kathleen Turner (70), Gena Rowlands (94), Hugh Dancy (49), Giacomo Gianniotti (35), Phylicia Rashad (76), Jean Dujardin (52), Paula Abdul (62), Robin Tunney (52), Millie Gibson (20), Mia Sara (57), Ryan Hurst (48), Sadie Frost (59), Aidan Turner (41), Samuel West (58), Ashly Burch (34), Poppy Montgomery (52), Atticus Shaffer (26), Virginia Hey (72), Lauren Lee Smith (44), Chelah Horsdal (51), Robin McLeavy (43), Mía Maestro (46), Chuku Modu (34), Helen George (40), Chris Larkin (57), Bumper Robinson (50), Lisa Chandler (39), Rebecca Field (47), Courtney Miller (29), Jessica Alexander (25), Michael Maloney (67), Molly Windsor (27) |
| Anthea Sylbert, the two-time Oscar-nominated costume designer who worked on Rosemary’s Baby, Chinatown, Carnal Knowledge, Shampoo and Julia before becoming a studio executive and producer, has died. She was 84. The obituary. |
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