| | | | | | Welcome back to The Weekender, where we've got tons of fresh new features from our latest 100-page glossy magazine issue (flip through it here). Or, maybe, take THR with you in the real world. Print honestly is a better reading experience. Like newsletters, but no phone needed. Subscribe here. — Erik Hayden
+ News ticker: Bob Iger gets wistful; Charlie Ergen's $2.6 billion deal; David Zaslav's WB shotgun wedding; John Mulaney visits the Supreme Court.
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WB AND THE BANKERS After Warner Bros. Discovery tacked up a "For Sale" sign, things have gone quiet. Too quiet. That may be because the bankers are now involved.
In recent days, Reuters has scooped that Netflix has hired Moelis & Co while Comcast has tapped Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley to start crunching the numbers. Given what Comcast's Mike Cavanagh and Netflix's Ted Sarandos have said on earnings calls, that's not too surprising. The question may be if Paramount's David Ellison can pull off a bid to buy all of Warners outright before it splits. Which leads to...
THE CONTENDERS: Will it be Paramount (2 to 1), Comcast (5 to 1), Netflix (10 to 1), Private Equity (12 to 1), Sony (15 to 1), Apple (25 to 1) or some combination of the above (8 to 1)? Alex Weprin on the odds.
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MEET THE NEXT GEN THE EXECUTIVES There are fewer names from traditional studios like Warner Bros. and Paramount, as corporate cost-cutting continues to cull young talent, but these 35 upstarts are building their own companies and making award-winning projects independently. Full list + photos.
THE RISING STARS These eight rising screen stars — Tom Blyth, Erin Kellyman, Havana Rose Liu, Archie Madekwe, Isabel May, Esther McGregor, Chase Sui Wonders, Tyriq Withers — are popping up everywhere from streaming successes to festival stand-outs, catching the attention of directors, studio executives and audiences alike. Full list + photos.
+ Next Gen anonymous survey: Questions ranged from office mandates and streamers of choice to how top CEOs stack up and whether Birkenstocks count as appropriate officewear. The results.
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Teyana Takes Over After hustling in music, film and fashion since she was 15, the One Battle After Another breakout Teyana Taylor has major Oscar buzz. It appears the business may have caught up to Taylor with a blitz of work — projects she’s developed on her own and features she’s filmed with Ben Affleck, Matt Damon and Kevin Hart. Mikey O'Connell's cover story.
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A UFC Boss In Vegas Ultimate Fighting mogul Dana White — whose gambling exploits are so wild they are going to be the subject of a Netflix doc — once apparently lost $30 million at the tables. But when the house is owned by your BFF billionaire business partners, is anyone really going to make you pay? Gary Baum's investigation. |
Mad About Madigan Amy Madigan's performance as the creepily clownish aunt in Weapons has relaunched her career and made her an Oscar frontrunner — not to mention the year's most unlikely Tiktok star. Madigan, 75, is not on social media, but Zach Cregger and others send her the dances and memes. David Canfield's profile. |
Microdrama Gold Rush But is it fool's gold? As shoots dry up for features and episodic TV in Los Angeles, there have been a few big-money bets placed by Hollywood veterans that soapy, short "vertical" stories are the next big thing — even if some see the format as a fad. Katie Kilkenny's report. |
Yes, They Did Say That "The best compliment I get is when people say a video doesn’t look like AI." — Jason Zada, Secret Level’s founder, whose team created an AI-powered ad for Coca-Cola that's drawn fire from creatives all week. "The talks with Netflix are in their infancy." — AMC Theatres chief Adam Aron, on more streaming films playing on the big screen, as the cinema giant posts a $298 million loss.
"Sounds like they’re making a big push for Q1." — an agency source, to THR, as Netflix sends out dozens of requests to agents at WME, UTA and CAA to sign on more video podcasters.
"I think California has some work to do, frankly, to catch up." — Nick Day, who leads Screen Alliance New Jersey, on the future of the state's film incentive program and newly elected Gov. Mikie Sherrill's industry plans.
"Spotify’s business model has made true personalization impossible." — Lawyer Innessa Huot, in a complaint alleging Spotify represents that playlists are tailored to listeners when they're subject to influence from major labels.
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Clooney Opens Up "When I was directing and I was casting, and it was between two actors, the casting director and the studio would come to me and go, ‘Well, she’s got 175,000 followers on Instagram, and the other girl’s got 30,000.' Those were literally the discussions we had. And I said to all these actors, ‘Get the fuck off of it. Get off of all of it."
^There's many more quotable lines in this 65-minute, career-spanning interview between George Clooney and Scott Feinberg for Awards Chatter. Listen here.
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GRAMMY NOMS Kendrick Lamar is the top nominee for the 2026 Grammys, with the rap superstar heading into the awards with nine nominations including for album, record and song of the year for album GNX and its hit single “Luther.” He faces stiff competition from fellow superstars Lady Gaga, Bad Bunny and Sabrina Carpenter. The full list. |
A French Twist Eleven years ago, Richard Linklater told Zoey Deutch that he had a dream of one day casting her as Jean Seberg. At the time, the actress was only 19, shooting her first film role. More than a decade later, that offhand comment has become a reality. Seija Rankin's profile. |
Signs of Life After years of turbulence, venue shifts and pandemic-era gloom, the American Film Market, the indie world’s biggest film market, is back in fighting shape — with a packed slate of star-driven titles proving there’s still life (and buyers) in the business when it returns Nov. 11-16. Scott Roxborough's report. |
About Town Events of the week: Sadie Sink, Caleb McLaughlin, Finn Wolfhard, Gaten Matarazzo, Noah Schnapp and Millie Bobby Brown celebrated the premiere of Stranger Things in L.A. ... Harrison Ford surprised alongside Joel Edgerton and Felicity Jones at the Train Dreams premiere in L.A. ... Elle Fanning, Renate Reinsve and Joachim Trier brought Sentimental Value to L.A. ... J.J. Abrams supported Daniel Craig and Rian Johnson at a New York screening of Wake Up Dead Man ... Jane Fonda presented a Humanitarian Award to Jamie Lee Curtis in Beverly Hills. All 61 photos from this week's events gallery. + The newsiest red carpet of the week: How the Duffer Brothers responded to a viral report alleging on-set Stranger Things bullying claims against David Harbour. Their reply. |
The Bottom Line Snapshots from THR's team of critics: Jennifer Lawrence and Robert Pattinson starrer Die My Love is "a punishing watch that pays off in the end." Alex Woo's animated Netflix film In Your Dreams is "a winning blend of fantasy and emotion." Elle Fanning actioner Predator: Badlands "understands the assignment." Vince Gilligan’s Apple TV drama Pluribus is "an intriguing and sometimes hilarious star showcase" for Rhea Seehorn. NBC's cheerleading mockumentary Stumble "does exactly what the title says." Ken Burns' doc The American Revolution is "rousing, if repetitive." Peacock's Sarah Snook mystery All Her Fault is "solidly constructed, sharply observed." And, finally, Hulu's Ryan Murphy drama All's Fair, starring Kim Kardashian, is "brain dead." |
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