What's news: The notes sent to the media about Nancy Guthrie's abduction were fake. Danny Glover has Alzheimer’s disease. Paramount has committed to withdrawing from United International Pictures. Bille August is set to direct a Giorgio Armani biopic. And Michael Weatherly will rejoin the cast for NCIS for its 24th season. — Abid Rahman
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Taylor's Wedding Is Getting Kinda Ridiculous |
►Please respect their privacy. Taylor Swift wants her massive sports arena wedding privacy, dammit. The singer's wedding to Travis Kelce in New York at Madison Square Garden is dominating the news cycle, for good and bad reasons. An event with 1,000 celebrity guests, held at a sports arena in the biggest city in the country, that nobody is allowed to talk about? Call it what you want, but it’s a bit much, writes THR's James Hibberd. The story.
—The man with the plan. Creative event specialist Mark Seed is reportedly Swift and Kelce's wedding planner. THR's nicest man Chris Gardner has the lowdown on Seed, a man credited with spearheading weddings for Jennifer Lawrence and Billie Lourd, but you won’t find him bragging about those nuptials as he has a limited online presence and no social following. The story.
—What we know about the dress. Has any other bride-to-be ever had this many designer wedding gown options? Meghan Markle? Princess Diana? Elizabeth Taylor? For THR, Merle Ginsberg talks to people in the fashion world as to who will likely end up designing the wedding dress of the decade. The story.
—How we got to the Traylor/Swelce union. For those looking to go down memory lane, or want to fill in some gaps, THR has put together a timeline of America's premier celebrity couple. From Kelce putting the singer on blast on his New Heights podcast to Swift breaking the internet with her Chiefs game appearances to the engagement seen around the world, here's everything to know about their whirlwind romance. The timeline.
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Nancy Guthrie Ransom Notes Were All Reportedly Fake
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►Disgraceful. The three notes sent to media outlets involving Nancy Guthrie's abduction were fake and not connected to the disappearance of Today host Savannah Guthrie’s elderly mother, federal investigators told Reuters this week. Two notes were sent to local media outlets and to TMZ in the days after Nancy Guthrie was last seen at her Tucson-area home on Jan. 31. The FBI did not reveal how it determined that the third note, which it said originated from a different source than the first two, was also fake. The story.
—"Things are going to be different." Danny Glover has revealed he has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease during an appearance on the Today show. The 79-year-old Hollywood icon said he was first diagnosed with the progressive neurodegenerative disease in 2022, the same year he earned an honorary Oscar. “I could live with it, in a sense,” Glover said about his ongoing health battle as it takes its toll on his ability to move, speak and retain memories. The story.
—Nothing to do with Netflix, honest. At least one celebrity couple in New York that’s getting married isn’t afraid of people seeing them. Daredevil couple Angela Nikolau and Ivan Beerkus climbed to the top of the Empire State Building spire on Wednesday. The duo unveiled a pro-peace banner which read: “When the power of love beats the love of power, the world knows peace.” Nikolau and Beerkus starred in the 2024 Netflix documentary Skywalkers: A Love Story, where the couple traversed the top of the world’s second-highest skyscraper. The story.
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Trump Made Millions From Hollywood Last Year |
►Banana republic latest. THR's Alex Weprin reports Donald Trump earned millions of dollars last year from Hollywood companies, including an eight-figure sum associated with the Amazon MGM documentary film Melania; tens of millions of dollars in lawsuits that he settled with media giants; residuals from appearances in TV shows and films (including from ABC’s The View!) and a payment from his Screen Actors Guild Pension. The numbers come from Trump’s annual financial disclosure, which was filed Tuesday evening. The story.
—Concession. Paramount Skydance has committed to withdrawing from United International Pictures, its film distribution joint venture with Universal, as a condition for securing approval from the European Union for its $111b acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery. European antitrust authorities last week suggested Paramount drop its UIP stake to allay concerns voiced by European cinema operators over the merger. Established in 1981, the London-based UIP was once a major international distributor for both studios but has been scaled back in recent years. The story.
—Not happening. The planned merger of Lotte Cinema and Megabox, South Korea’s second- and third-largest multiplex chains, has collapsed, ending a 14-month attempt to combine the two companies into the country’s biggest theatrical exhibitor. Neither company gave a reason for walking away, but there was little uncertainty in the Korean industry about the cause. Megabox’s corporate parent, JoongAng Group, is in an open financial crisis. The story.
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'Siren Head' Movie in the Works With Cregger, Duffield
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►The meme era. Coming out on top of a five-studio bidding war with a massive, multi-million-dollar deal, THR's Borys "Scoopz" Kit has the scoop that Warner Bros. Pictures has picked up the underlying rights to Siren Head, a viral horror sensation created by creature designer Trevor Henderson that centers on a tall, rotting skeletal figure with, wait for it, two sirens as a head. Making this package even more exciting to studios was the heavy hitting talent attached. Weapons filmmaker Zach Cregger is teaming on the script with Brian Duffield, whose upcoming Whalefall is already generating buzz. The plan would be for Duffield to direct. The story.
—Man of the moment. The Furious has been christened this year’s breakout action film by both critics and audiences. Now, director Kenji Tanigaki is setting his sights on his next original action feature. THR's Mia Galuppo has the scoop on Tanigaki directing The Reckoner, which will be written by John Wick scribe Derek Kolstad and has Peter Dinklage attached to star, with plot details being kept under wraps. Lionsgate, which acquired The Furious out of last year’s TIFF, has closed a deal for The Reckoner, with Anthony and Joe Russo’s AGBO set to produce. The story.
—📅 Dated! 📅 Tom Hanks‘ forthcoming baseball film is ready to hit the ground running. Sony Pictures announced Wednesday that it is set to release The Comebacker theatrically on July 30, 2027. Hanks stars in the movie that Marielle Heller helms from her own script, which adapts Dave Eggers’ 2024 short story of the same name. The Comebacker stars Hanks as a pitching coach whose life is changed dramatically after he gets beaned in the head with a hit ball while standing at the mound. The story.
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Bille August to Direct Giorgio Armani Biopic
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►A colorful life. Bille August is set to direct Armani: The King of Fashion, a biopic about the late Giorgio Armani. The legendary fashion designed died in September in Milan at 91, and August has been tapped by Italian producer Andrea Iervolino to chronicle the life of the fashion giant and cultural icon from Italy. August won the Palme d’Or twice at the Cannes Film Festival and is known for movies like Pelle the Conqueror, The Best Intentions, The House of the Spirits, Night Train to Lisbon and A Fortunate Man. The story.
—📅 He will return...in 4K. 📅 Mel Gibson’s blockbuster 2004 biblical drama The Passion of the Christ is returning to theaters in September, ahead of his follow-up The Resurrection of the Christ hitting the multiplex starting in May 2027. Lionsgate and Fathom Entertainment announced the nationwide re-release for the biblical epic from September 10 to 17, with the box office hit remastered from the original camera negative in 4K resolution. The Passion grossed a massive $612.1m worldwide against a $30m budget after becoming something of a global phenomenon. The story.
—🎭 Heading west. 🎭 Barry Pepper will be seeing Kiefer Sutherland will have a good, old-fashioned showdown in The Horseman, a feature-length Western from Nomadic Pictures set for an early 2027 release across Scripps Networks, which here prominently includes multiplatform channel Grit. The Horseman, directed by Rod Lurie and developed and co-written by Pepper and Ed Gass-Donnelly, is set in the late-1800s West, “where America’s burgeoning demand for illumination sparked a transformative oil rush,” per the logline. The story.
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Michael Weatherly Books 'NCIS' Return |
►Getting the band back together. Another long-time NCIS regular is returning to the franchise. Michael Weatherly, who starred in the first 13 seasons of the long-running CBS drama, will rejoin the cast for NCIS‘ 24th season in 2026-27. News of his return comes a day after the network announced that Mark Harmon will have a season-long, on-camera role on NCIS: Origins. Weatherly will likewise appear throughout the coming season of NCIS as his character, Tony DiNozzo, reunites with the team in Washington, D.C. Weatherly last appeared on the flagship series in February 2024, although he starred in NCIS: Tony and Ziva. The story.
—Made-for-TV overhaul. Pro golf is about to undergo a seismic structural change. Beginning in 2028, there will be two series of events happening concurrently, a Championship series with the best players in the world, and a Challenger series with up-and-coming players. Notably, as with European soccer, there will be a relegation and promotion system between the two series. There will also be a made-for-TV “last chance” series, where Championship players that have been relegated and some top Challenger players compete head to head for spots in the top league. THR's Alex Weprin goes inside the changes that could turbocharge media rights deals in the process. The story.
—It's official, eh? Canada will compete in the 2027 Eurovision Song Contest in Bulgaria, the CBC/Radio Canada and the European Broadcasting Union announced on Wednesday. The move follows the EBU, the Eurovision organizer, earlier announcing Canada’s full membership after a vote held at its 96th General Assembly in Prague. CBC/Radio-Canada, the country’s public broadcaster, had been an associate member of the EBU since 1950, and as a full member gains entry into the Eurovision competition and other EBU initiatives. The story.
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JonBenet Series Moves to Netflix from Paramount+
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►New home. A limited series about the killing of JonBenet Ramsey has landed at Netflix after being put in turnaround at its former home, Paramount+. The Murder of JonBenet Ramsey, starring Melissa McCarthy and Clive Owen as Patsy and John Ramsey, is set to debut in the winter on Netflix. The series was greenlit at Paramount+ in 2024 — before Paramount’s takeover by Skydance — and comes from 101 Studios (Yellowstone, Landman). Paramount TV Studios was initially involved as well, but will not be credited when the series streams on Netflix. The story.
—Going out big. MGM+ flagship series Godfather of Harlem will end with a two-hour series finale, that will likely air in two parts across as many weeks. Production will begin this month in New York. In the finale, Bumpy Johnson (Forest Whitaker) “faces the ultimate reckoning as the walls close in around his empire,” the synopsis reads. Godfather of Harlem ran for five seasons. The story.
—State TV. Fox Nation, the Fox News Channel streamer, will premiere documentary UFC Fight House: The Making of the Biggest Fight in History on July 2. The two-part film will bring viewers behind the scenes of UFC Freedom 250, the high-profile fight night that took place on the South Lawn of the White House on June 14. UFC Fight House is produced by the UFC Originals team. It follows Dana White and his team from the earliest planning stages for UFC Freedom 250. The story.
In other news...
—Matt Smith to star in Quinn Audio original drama The Wolf
—A$AP Rocky makes L.A. return with Tyler, The Creator and Danny Elfman
—Jaeger-LeCoultre taps Omar Sy as friend of house
What else we're reading...
—Do Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce have a prenup? Victoria Bekiempis talks to the experts [Vulture]
—Josef Adalian considers whether NBCUniversal really is up for sale, despite denials from Comcast [Vulture]
—Alexandra Petri recounts her eye-opening trip to Trump's Great American State Fair [The Atlantic]
—Charlie Warzel reflects on Nina Totenberg's epic Supreme Court blunder and wonders if there are lessons over the debacle [The Atlantic]
—With tech bros seemingly competing to have the most children, Anna Louie Sussman looks at whether "kidmaxxing" is now the ultimate status symbol for ultimate wealth [NYT]
Today...
...in 1946, director-star Orson Welles unveiled noir film The Stranger in Los Angeles. The film went on to earn a nomination in the writing category at the 19th Academy Awards. The original review.
Today's birthdays...
Larry David (79), Margot Robbie (36), Lindsay Lohan (40), Ashley Tisdale-French (41), Elizabeth Reaser (51), Owain Yeoman (🏴48), Saul Rubinek (78), Andrew Divoff (71), Wendy Schaal (72), Vanessa Chester (42), Lee Boardman (53), Ryan Serhant (42), Dave McCary (41), Kim Go-eun (35), Yancy Butler (56), Nelson Franklin (41), Caitlin Carmichael (22), Jean-François Richet (60), Julia Montgomery (66), Moon So-ri (52), John Emmet Tracy (57), Scott Aukerman (56), Peter Kay (53), Jerry Hall (70), True Whitaker (28), Keith Morrison (79), Quin Walters (44)
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Wilford Lloyd Baumes, the TV writer and producer who created The Love Boat and worked on Wonder Woman and the critically acclaimed Holocaust miniseries QB VII, all in collaboration with famed producer-executive Douglas S. Cramer, has died. He was 86. The obituary.
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