What's news: The Odyssey is getting raves on social media. Julia Garner‘s next TV project will be at Apple. Brooke Shields paid a stealthy visit to Matt Stone and Trey Parker's Casa Bonita to check on the working conditions. L.O.L. Surprise! is getting its own TV show. And the late Rob Reiner appeared in this week’s episode of HBO‘s Life, Larry, and the Pursuit of Unhappiness. — Abid Rahman
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"U.S. Soccer Is Not Ready for Primetime"
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►Don’t cry because it’s over. Smile because it happened… right? Right!? After a thorough thumping from Belgium, the U.S.’s World Cup dreams are over in the Round of 16. Alas, first contact with quality opposition in the tournament and it all turned into something of a nightmare for USMNT, and the fans, new and old, have been left dumbstruck. The likes of Bill Simmons, Dave Portnoy, Carli Lloyd, Alexi Lalas, and a host of figures from American sports, have not held back in criticism of the U.S. after the dismal exit, as the vibes went from immaculate to rancid. The reaction.
—"This doesn’t have to be the last soccer you watch for the next four years. It’s a beautiful sport." The Fox Sports broadcast team ended Monday’s World Cup coverage with a message to America: Please don’t turn off that TV. After the USMNT was clobbered by Belgium, Fox’s announcer team of John Strong and Stu Holden, aware that many viewers will be turning off of soccer until 2030, used the final moments of the match to implore American viewers to, well, not do that, please. The story.
—Banana republic latest. Before the U.S.'s exit, Donald Trump on Monday expressed astonishment at the TV ratings for the World Cup, and confirmed that he personally intervened to help overturn a suspension for the U.S.'s Folarin Balogun, allowing him to return for the Belgium game. "I spoke to [FIFA President Gianni Infantino], who’s highly respected, who’s produced the most successful World Cup in history,” Trump said of his highly controversial outreach. “So yes, I asked for a review by FIFA.” The story.
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Virtual Production Has Arrived at Television City |
►"This is exactly the kind of partnership that keeps Television City both iconic and essential." Orbital Studios, the virtual production company that has worked on History’s World War II with Tom Hanks and Netflix’s Nemesis, has moved to Television City and brought multiple LED walls along with it. The firm has relocated its headquarters from the Arts District to the 25-acre production campus on Beverly Blvd. in Los Angeles, it announced along with Television City on Monday. As a result, Television City will now house the company’s virtual production and research and development lab, offering LED volume possibilities to projects that shoot there. The story.
—Moving forward. A federal judge has narrowed the scope of a lawsuit from Terrifier actress Catherine Corcoran while keeping her core breach of contract claim for one percent of profits from the franchise alive. Corcoran, who plays Dawn in the 2016 film as one of Art the Clown’s first onscreen victims, reached a backend deal for 1 percent of profits from Terrifier. The legal fight centers on what that word covers. Corcoran has argued that it encompasses the entire franchise, including merchandise, streaming, and any related intellectual property. Director Damien Leone and his production company Dark Age Cinema have maintained it only applies to the original movie. The story.
—Ambush. Brooke Shields paid a stealthy visit to the South Park creators’ iconic Colorado theme restaurant to support unionized workers. The Actors’ Equity president took a trip earlier this year to Casa Bonita, a landmark Mexican restaurant owned by Trey Parker and Matt Stone, and delivered a letter asking for better wages for the restaurant’s live performers. Shields made her booking under a fake name so Parker and Stone wouldn’t know she was coming. "It was slightly an ambush,” Shields told CNN. “You try doing things respectfully, and then you’re not met with equal respect … so you have to resort to other tactics." The story.
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'Dutton Ranch' Duo Talk S2 After Cliffhanger Finale |
►"There was a moment where we were trying to figure out, 'How do we do this without him?'" THR's queen of chat Jackie Strause spoke to Dutton Ranch stars Kelly Reilly and Cole Hauser about that first season finale of the Paramount+ monster hit. The actors open up about moving from Taylor Sheridan's Yellowstone to the spinoff and Benjamin Cavell coming in as showrunner for Dutton Ranch season two. Warning: Spoilers! The interview.
—Quick escape from director's jail. Julia Garner‘s next TV project will be at Apple TV. The three-time Emmy winner will star in and executive produce Guilty Creatures, a true-crime thriller. The streamer has given a series order to the project, which is based on Mikita Brottman’s book Guilty Creatures: Sex, God, and Murder in Tallahassee, Florida. Craig Gillespie, who is coming off a box office bomb with Supergirl, is set to direct the series. Stuart Zicherman will serve as showrunner, and Sarah DeLappe is adapting the book. The story.
—🎠Harlan World. 🎠A Netflix series based on Harlan Coben‘s Myron Bolitar books has cast three lead roles. Colin Woodell will play the title role in the series, which centers on the life and career of a sports agent. Riverdale’s KJ Apa and Orange Is The New Black’s Diane Guerrero will also star. The series marks another chapter in Coben’s long-running partnership with Netflix. Since he signed an overall deal with the streamer in 2018, 13 of the best-selling author’s novels have been adapted into television series, collectively drawing more than 300m views worldwide since 2023. The story.
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Rob Reiner Appears in Larry David's HBO Series |
►Posthumous appearance. The late Rob Reiner appeared posthumously in this week’s episode of HBO‘s Life, Larry, and the Pursuit of Unhappiness, where he portrayed George Washington and took a veiled swipe at Donald Trump. In the new sketch comedy series from Larry David, executive produced in part by the Obamas' Higher Ground, Reiner appears in the July 3 episode as Washington before a crowd of colonists and announces he will not be running for a third term. The story.
—Surprise! L.O.L. Surprise! has a lot of, ahem, surprises in store for its 10th anniversary. As part of the celebration, MGA Entertainment is set to debut a new live-action scripted series surrounding the product, which is touted as the “original unboxing brand.” For those who are unfamiliar with the dolls, they come equipped with blind bags featuring clothing, accessories and more that consumers are able to unwrap after purchase, showing the “surprises” within. Sometimes, the dolls themselves are even a surprise, depending on which product is purchased. The show will feature five aspiring performers taking part in a music competition. The story.
—Woof! Fourth of July festivities drew millions of people outside to watch their local fireworks displays, but millions more also took in a show on TV. Across all platforms (NBC, Telemundo and Peacock) and telecasts, including replays, Macy’s 4th of July Fireworks drew 11.2m viewers, based on preliminary Nielsen numbers. That’s a 59 percent improvement year to year and the highest total for the special since 2018. Fox News drew 3.3m viewers in primetime, and 2.2m for the full day, with slate of coverage of the semiquincentennial. The ratings.
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'The Odyssey' Comes Ashore
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►The Gods walk among us. THR's Lily Ford reports that London’s Leicester Square was alight on Monday evening as Christopher Nolan ushered in his hotly anticipated summer blockbuster at The Odyssey's world premiere. It was a home turf event for much of the cast, including Britons Tom Holland, Robert Pattinson and Mia Goth. They were joined by Matt Damon, Zendaya, Anne Hathaway, Lupita Nyong’o, Charlize Theron, Elliot Page, Benny Safdie, and Travis Scott, who walked the sandy carpet as screaming fans clambered to catch a glimpse of the star-studded lineup. A Trojan horse towered over the Odeon Luxe theater. The story.
—"Staggering." The first reactions to The Odyssey hit social media on Monday following the film's world premiere in London, and the consensus seems to be that the British filmmaker has produced another potential awards and box office monster. The reaction.
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AI "Actor" Tilly Norwood to Make Feature Debut |
►Welcome to hell. Tilly Norwood, the AI “actor” from London-based outfit Particle 6, has landed her first feature film role. Misaligned is described as “a hybrid production,” with traditional film and TV creatives working alongside AI specialists with AI training. Norwood will play the lead role in Misaligned, a comedy-drama telling a coming-of-age story infused with existential AI chaos. Set inside the “Tillyverse,” a surreal digital world located somewhere up in the Cloud, it follows Tilly, an AI being with no real body, no childhood and no lived experience of her own — only access to everyone else’s. The story.
—🎠Ever-expanding. 🎠The Phantom Thread star Vicky Krieps and 1917's George MacKay have joined the growing cast for Warner Bros. Pictures’ untitled Ocean’s Eleven prequel. Lauren Ridloff and Jack Holden have also been set for the comedic heist thriller. Omar Sy, the French star of Netflix’s Lupin, is in negotiations to also join the call sheet. The international thespians join a cast that already includes Bradley Cooper, Margot Robbie, Wagner Moura, Monica Barbaro and Josh Gad. The story.
—📅 Dated! 📅 Johnny Knoxville faces a summer camp uprising as his new comedy heads to theaters. Inaugural Entertainment has acquired North American rights to Tiny Fugitives and is set to release the indie film theatrically on Sept. 18. Knoxville stars in writer-director Michael Lewen’s feature that counts Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg as producers. Tiny Fugitives centers on a group of reckless 12-year-olds who set out to spend the remainder of their lives at sleepaway camp with a scheme that will allow them to avoid reality. The story.
—In demand. Inde Navarrette is meeting with major directors and considering her next moves. The Obsession star has enjoyed a meteoric rise in awareness and acclaim since the release of Curry Barker’s horror hit, which has now crossed $400m globally at the box office. In a new interview, the 25-year-old was asked if she would do a Marvel movie. “I would,” she replied. Speaking of which, Navarrette has reportedly met with Thunderbolts helmer Jake Schreier, who is directing Marvel’s upcoming X-Men reboot. Navarrette has also reportedly met with Michael Mann, who is currently casting Heat 2 — the sequel to his iconic 1995 crime thriller. The story.
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TV Review: 'The Five-Star Weekend' |
►"Pretty and polished, to a fault." THR's Angie Han reviews Peacock's The Five-Star Weekend. Jennifer Garner, D'Arcy Carden, Gemma Chan, Regina Hall and Chloë Sevigny star in the drama based on Elin Hilderbrand's novel about a widow who convenes her four best friends for a Nantucket getaway. Also starring Harlow Jane and Timothy Olyphant. Developed by Bekah Brunstetter, based on the novel by Elin Hilderbrand. The review.
In other news...
—Sarajevo Film Festival unveils new award, the Prix Cineplexx
—Noah Kahan headlines Rolling Stone’s first ever U.S. festival
—Carter De Haven III, producer of Hoosiers, dies at 94
—Moritz de Hadeln, Swiss director known as “Mr. Film Festival,” dies at 85
What else we're reading...
—Adam Crafton reflects on where a disgraceful Trump controversy and a thumping U.S. defeat leaves Gianni Infantino’s stained World Cup [The Athletic]
—Joy Press goes inside CAA’s secret AI "vault," where actors go to get digitally cloned and potentially "live forever" [Vanity Fair]
—Spencer Kornhaber looks at how once widely popular popstar Lizzo became one of pop culture’s great flops [Atlantic]
—Max Tani reports that The View is throttling back political candidate bookings following a FCC inquiry [Semafor]
—Emily Chang and Erinn Gardner talk to billionaire oligarch Karlie Kloss about her plans to revive I-D and Life magazine [Bloomberg]
Today...
...in 2017, Sony released Jon Watts' Spider-Man: Homecoming in theaters. The film, the first standalone Spider-Man film starring Tom Holland, was a huge critical and commercial success, making $881m at the global box office. The original review.
Today's birthdays...
Robert Eggers (43), Hamish Linklater (50), Ringo Starr (86), Eve Hewson (35), Sarah Pidgeon (30), Kirsten Vangsness (54), Jack Whitehall (38), Jim Gaffigan (60), Akiva Goldsman (64), Cree Summer (57), Tom Sandoval (44), Billy Campbell (67), Robin Weigert (57), Julianna Guill (39), Christian Camargo (55), Jorja Fox (58), Marika Dominczyk (46), Johnny Berchtold (32), Bérénice Bejo (50), Tracy Reiner (62), Mo Collins (61), Nina Hoss (51), Joe Spano (80), Martin Wallström (43), Sam Morelos (21), Lori Tan Chinn (78), Troy Garity (53), Karen Malina White (61), Alex Cazares (34), Bill Butts (40), Dylan Sprayberry (28), Jonathan Dayton (70), Allen Payne (58), Jessica Chobot (49), Jamie Flatters (26), Robia Scott (56), Sandy Johnson (72), Chloe Csengery (26)
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Lauren Bennett, a British singer who was featured on LMFAO’s hit song “Party Rock Anthem” and a founding member of the girl group G.R.L., has died. She was 37. The obituary.
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