General
Pearlena Igbokwe Sets Leadership Team for Universal Studio Group
Tim Baysinger, The Wrap
Pearlena Igbokwe wasted no time in setting her leadership team for the Universal Studio Group, which covers all aspects of TV production at the company.
Paradigm Talent Agency permanently cuts 180 employees
Wendy Lee, Los Angeles Times
Paradigm Talent Agency said it will permanently lay off 180 employees, roughly 70% of the staffers who were temporarily let go from their jobs in March. The layoffs are the latest sign of the economic stress in the agency business, which has been hammered by fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Two in Three Black Americans Don’t Feel Properly Represented in Media
Danielle Turchiano, Variety
Two in three Black Americans don’t feel they see their stories represented on-screen, according to a new study from National Research Group (NRG).
Jerry Harris of ‘Cheer’ Arrested on Child Pornography Charge
Sarah Bahr, The New York Times
Jerry Harris, a fan favorite on the Emmy-nominated Netflix documentary series “Cheer,” was arrested and charged with production of child pornography in a federal court in Chicago on Thursday.
‘None of this is celebrity for celebrity’s sake’: How publishers are trying to scale virtual events with high-profile star power
Kayleigh Barber, Digiday
What does actor Chris Evans, former U.S. secretary of state Hillary Clinton, immunologist Dr. Anthony Fauci and Apple CEO Tim Cook all have in common? They all will be headliners for next week’s virtual The Atlantic Festival as the publisher seeks to surpass 1 million viewers during the event’s four days.
Film
Oscar Academy Members Split on New Inclusion Rules for Best Picture: ‘Great’ to ‘Half-Baked’
Brian Welk, The Wrap Pro
Since the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced new inclusion standards for the Best Picture category last week, Academy members privately seem to be equally split on the move — one of the biggest changes to Oscar rules in decades.
Imax Partners With Leading Camera Makers to Open Up Its Large-Format Production to More Filmmakers
Carolyn Giardina, The Hollywood Reporter
Imax has formed a partnership with camera makers ARRI, Panavision, Sony and Red that could greatly expand the opportunity for filmmakers to make movies in the Imax format.
‘The Batman’ Resumes Production After Shutdown Over Robert Pattinson’s Positive COVID-19 Test
Brent Lang and Adam B. Vary, Variety
“The Batman” is going back to work. Robert Pattinson has been cleared to don on the cape and cowl again after his positive COVID-19 test brought production on the comic book movie to a standstill.
How a COVID-Era Toronto Film Festival Found a New Purpose – as a Platform for Unheard Voices
Steve Pond, The Wrap Pro
What if they threw a fall film festival and it didn’t really have anything to do with Hollywood’s awards season? The Toronto International Film Festival has been doing something like that over the past week.
Television
Daytime TV’s Dark Side: Former ‘TMZ on TV,’ ‘Ellen’ and ‘Rosie’ Employees Detail Abusive Work Culture
Katie Kilkenny and Seth Abramovitch, The Hollywood Reporter
On Aug. 17, Warner Bros. Television confirmed that Ellen DeGeneres Show executive producers Ed Glavin and Kevin Leman, also the head writer, and co-executive producer Jonathan Norman were being dismissed following an investigation into workplace toxicity, sexual harassment and discrimination.
No red carpet? No problem. The preshows are ready for a ‘semi-glamorous’ Emmys
Greg Braxton, Los Angeles Times
The 72nd annual Primetime Emmy Awards are rolling up, instead of rolling out, the red carpet. Because of the continuing dangers of the COVID-19 pandemic, this year’s festivities saluting excellence in TV will be virtual for host Jimmy Kimmel, presenters and dozens of nominees, throwing a wrench into the gala ceremony.
‘NCIS’ Spurs CBS To Another Full-Year Season Viewer Win; Network & NBC Tied For Total Reach
Dominic Patten, Deadline Hollywood
CBS has topped primetime, daytime and late-night TV viewership for a second 52-week season in a row.
ABC Sets November Dates for Grey’s, Good Doctor, Million Little Things and Others — The Rookie’s Return Delayed
Matt Webb Mitovich, TVLine
The doctors, both good and Grey, will be in come November on ABC.
Carole Baskin of ‘Tiger King’ Will Star in New Show
Christina Morales, The New York Times
Carole Baskin, the animal rights activist who gained national attention while sparring with exotic tiger keepers on the popular Netflix documentary “Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness,” is getting her own show.
Technology and New Media
Nielsen now measures Disney Plus and Hulu in its weekly ranking of top streaming TV shows and movies. But the list is still dominated entirely by Netflix.
Travis Clark, Business Insider
Nielsen’s new weekly ranking of the top streaming movies and TV shows factors in Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney Plus, and Hulu. But you wouldn’t know that by looking at the list.
Why Cash-Strapped Towns Are Suing Streaming Giants
Eriq Gardner, The Hollywood Reporter
Until COVID-19 struck, Mayor Annette Blackwell felt like her city of Maple Heights, Ohio, had finally gotten on its feet again. The 2008 home mortgage crisis had delivered a financial wallop to this suburb that’s 15 miles outside of Cleveland.
Why ViacomCBS Rebranded CBS All Access as Paramount+ and Not Paramount All Access
Kelsey Sutton, Adweek
Hayes Roth remembers the first time Paramount Pictures’ logo really stuck with him. It was his first time watching Steven Spielberg’s 1981 film Raiders of the Lost Ark, when the snow-capped mountain from the film studio’s logo fades into a similar peak just before Indiana Jones begins his latest adventure.
Quibi wins two Emmy awards for #FreeRayshawn
Mariella Moon, Engadget
Quibi has joined the ranks of other streaming services who’ve scored Emmy awards for their originals. The streaming service, which offers shows composed of bite-sized episodes meant to be consumed on mobile, has bagged two Creative Arts Emmy trophies for police drama #FreeRayshawn.
Ron Howard and Brian Grazer say that their accelerator can help diversify Hollywood
Anthony Ha, TechCrunch
Impact Creative Systems (formerly Imagine Impact) is bringing a startup accelerator-style approach to finding fresh creative talent, and it announced this morning that, with funding from venture capital firm Benchmark, it’s spinning out from Imagine Entertainment — the production company founded by director Ron Howard and producer Brian Grazer.
Hulu tests its co-viewing feature ‘Watch Party’ with ad-supported viewers
Sarah Perez, TechCrunch
Hulu was one of the first major streaming services to introduce a “co-viewing” feature that allows friends and family to watch Hulu content together from different locations. The feature, Hulu Watch Party, was initially only available for subscribers on the the ad-free tier of Hulu’s streaming service.
Warner Bros. reassures fans that J.K. Rowling isn’t directly involved with new Harry Potter game
Bijan Steven, The Verge
Warner Bros., the studio that’s behind the latest Harry Potter video game title — Hogwarts Legacy, which will debut on next-gen consoles and PCs — has just posted an FAQ that directly addresses J.K. Rowling’s involvement with the title.
AMC Networks Continues Walking Dead Platform Expansion With Twitch Channel
Jason Lynch, Adweek
AMC Networks has been growing The Walking Dead franchise over the past several years with TV and movie spinoffs, but now the company is expanding the universe to several new platforms, including Twitch.
‘What the Constitution Means to Me’ with Heidi Schreck is coming to Amazon Prime
Jessica Gelt, Los Angeles Times
“Hamilton” isn’t the only Broadway hit to join the streaming wars. Heidi Shreck’s Tony Award- and Pulitzer Prize-nominated play, “What the Constitution Means to Me,” will premiere on Amazon Prime Video on Oct. 16, the company said Thursday.
Opinions, Editorials, Perspectives and Research
Why Hollywood isn’t worried about TikTok being banned by Trump
Nicole LaPorte, Fast Company
The first thing agents at the United Talent Agency did when it signed Charli D’Amelio, one of the biggest stars on TikTok, was help her build up her presence on YouTube.
The world is on fire. Why should we care about the Emmys?
Robert Lloyd, Los Angeles Times
Even in a normal year, it takes a lot to get me to care about the Emmy Awards — in fact, I never really care about the Emmys, apart from being happy to see artists I like win, because it’s nice for them.
The virtual Emmys could give a much-needed jolt to the fading awards show
Adam Epstein, Quartz
Sunday’s Emmys will be the most chaotic in history. That might be just what the 72-year-old award show needs to stave off irrelevance.
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