• Kim Godwin is set to succeed James Goldston as ABC News president, becoming the first Black woman to head a broadcast TV news division after serving as an executive vice president at CBS News. Changes are also underway at CBS News, where President Susan Zirinsky has reportedly notified her staff that she has accepted a new role to create nonfiction programming for ViacomCBS Inc., according to people familiar with the discussions. (Los Angeles Times) 
• Amazon Prime, which includes a subscription to Prime Video, has more than 200 million subscribers, according to CEO Jeff Bezos’ final letter to shareholders. (The Hollywood Reporter)
• Consumers think Netflix is the streamer with the best original programming, according to a survey from Morgan Stanley, which found that 39 percent of consumers said Netflix’s originals were the best, with Amazon Prime Video originals taking second place at 12 percent. The survey also found that the average U.S. household pays for 2.5 streaming-video services and estimated that, by the end of last year, there were more than 300 million streaming subscriptions in the United States. (Variety)

Tracking the Return to Normal: Entertainment
Morning Consult

View Full Calendar

How will Hollywood get back to full speed? After the pandemic, some things may never return to normal

Ryan Faughnder and Anousha Sakoui, Los Angeles Times 

In Los Angeles, Hollywood’s awakening from the COVID-19 pandemic has been visible to anyone walking city streets in the last several months.

Netflix, Amazon, ViacomCBS, UTA and Celebs Join Hundreds of Corporations in Condemning Georgia Voting Laws

Brian Welk, The Wrap 

Numerous Hollywood actors and directors joined hundreds of businesses and CEOs from corporate America in signing an open letter Wednesday condemning Georgia’s laws that restrict and limit voting rights.

Inside Annapurna CEO Megan Ellison’s Long-Awaited Return to Work

Matt Donnelly, Variety 

On April 7, Annapurna CEO Megan Ellison made headlines as the only notable show business figure to openly criticize Scott Rudin on social media after the latest expose of the super-producer’s alleged workplace abuse and toxicity was published last week.

Lifewtr and Issa Rae Announce a New Inclusion Initiative to Boost Life’s Unseen Artists

Shannon Miller, Adweek 

As Hollywood continues to address the longstanding racial, gender and disability disparities plaguing the entertainment industry, more brands are finding ways to leverage their platforms to make the creative landscape more equitable for all.

Former Condé Nast Editor Plans a Vanity Fair for the Substack Era

Edmund Lee and Lauren Hirsch, The New York Times

A former editor at Vanity Fair has been working for more than a year to create a digital publication with a business twist: Its writers will share in subscription revenue.

White House Correspondents’ Dinner Canceled for 2021

Alex Weprin, The Hollywood Reporter 

For the second straight year, the annual White House Correspondents’ Dinner has been canceled due to the novel coronavirus pandemic.

Warner Bros. has ruled the box office in recent months despite its movies streaming simultaneously on HBO Max

Travis Clark, Insider

The US box office has been upended during the pandemic, but there has been a noticeable winner among the major Hollywood studios: Warner Bros.

As Moviegoing Returns, Will Hollywood Studios Continue to Hide Box Office Grosses?

Rebecca Rubin, Variety 

On the heels of opening weekend for “Godzilla vs. Kong,” Warner Bros., which distributed the film, celebrated its $48.5 million debut, the biggest showing in the coronavirus era. In a note to press, the studio cheered itself on with an all-caps message: “BIG MOVIES ARE BACK WITH OUR KAIJU-SIZED OPENING!”

Red Carpet or Not, Film Festivals Roll On

Joshua Rothkopf, The New York Times

It was January 2020, several weeks before everything jerked to a halt. Film fans were wondering if Bong Joon Ho’s “Parasite” could go the distance at the upcoming Oscars.

Oscars to Pre-Record Original Song Performances on Academy Museum Rooftop

Jazz Tangcay and Jon Burlingame, Variety 

With the Oscars just ten days away, Variety has learned a number of the original song performances will be pre-recorded this coming Monday and Tuesday.

Cannes Pre-Festival Virtual Film Market Bumped Back a Month to June

Brian Welk, The Wrap 

Cannes’ Marché du Film’s virtual prescreening sales event has been pushed back by one month to late June after a majority of sales companies requested the change, the festival announced Wednesday.

GoFundMe Teams With Director Bao Nguyen for ‘#StopAsianHate​ Together’ Film With Olivia Munn, Ken Jeong and More

Todd Spangler, Variety 

In the wake of escalating violence against Asians in the U.S., crowdfunding site GoFundMe collaborated with independent film director Bao Nguyen to produce a short film that shines a light on the historical issue of anti-Asian racism in the country — with the participation of Olivia Munn, Ken Jeong, Lisa Ling, and other entertainment and cultural leaders.

Why Oscars Remain Big Money for ABC Despite Expected Record-Low Audience

Tim Baysinger, The Wrap Pro 

When the Oscars take place next Sunday, it’s pretty much a guarantee the 2021 show will suffer the same fate that has bedeviled award show siblings in the last year: Record-low viewership that is down catastrophically from the year before.

Showtime insiders worry it will struggle against big-spending rivals like Netflix if it doesn’t broaden its appeal or shake up its strategy

Ashley Rodriguez and Travis Clark, Insider

By the time Viacom and CBS announced their merger in August 2019, media giants like Disney and WarnerMedia already had plans to jump headfirst into the streaming space. Disney Plus would launch that November, and WarnerMedia’s HBO Max came the following May.

Is ViacomCBS ‘Blowing Smoke’ on Diversity as 4 Top Female Execs Exit?

J. Clara Chan, The Wrap Pro

At least four top female executives at ViacomCBS — including three women of color — have left the company in the last month, raising questions about the network’s ability to retain women and diverse talent at a critical time of change for media companies.

Live Sports’ TV Ratings Gamble: Will There Be a Comeback?

Rick Porter, The Hollywood Reporter 

Spring has brought a few glimpses of post-pandemic stability to the TV sports world. The NCAA men’s and women’s basketball tournaments put up fairly healthy ratings, and Major League Baseball has shown early promise, with games once again being played in front of some fans.

The Streaming Era Has Blown Up the Traditional TV Hierarchy. Now, Everyone Wants to Know: Who Do I Call?

Michael Schneider, Variety

For decades, a TV rite of passage took place every September at the Hollywood Radio & TV Society’s entertainment presidents’ luncheon. 

Some ‘Bachelor’ Fans Want Colton Underwood to Get Another Season – As ABC’s First Gay Bachelor

Andi Ortiz, The Wrap

Two years after finishing his season of “The Bachelor,” Colton Underwood has publicly announced that he is gay. Underwood revealed the news in an interview with “Good Morning America” on Tuesday.

From ‘Star Wars’ to ‘Avatar: The Last Airbender’: How Big IP Is Driving the Streaming Wars

Joe Otterson, Variety 

For years, rumors persisted that Lucasfilm was developing movies based on “Star Wars” characters Boba Fett and Obi-Wan Kenobi. But by 2018, after disappointing box office returns for other stand-alone “Star Wars” films like “Solo,” both projects stalled.

Plex Closes $50 Million Financing Round, Aims to Scale Free-Streaming Business

Todd Spangler, Variety

Streaming media service Plex, looking to grow its free, ad-supported video business, announced that it raised more than $50 million in Series C financing from existing investor Intercap.

Who gets to make millions selling NFTs? The intellectual property fight we knew was coming

Matt Pearce, Los Angeles Times

José Delbo’s days of drawing superheroes for Marvel and DC Comics ended decades ago, and when COVID-19 shut down comic conventions last year, the 87-year-old got cut off from the fans who bought his artwork too. Like many older Americans, he seemed isolated and lonely in his Miami apartment, his family says, as he sheltered from the pandemic.

Televisa-Univision Union Sets Stage for Spanish-Language Streaming Giant

Cynthia Littleton, Variety 

The union of Mexico’s Televisa and Univision has been considered by both sides for decades. The impetus to finally make a deal come together was a mutual desire to create a Spanish-language streaming giant serving the U.S., Mexico and the rest of the Spanish-speaking world.

How Amazon Strong-Arms Partners Using Its Power Across Multiple Businesses

Dana Mattioli and Joe Flint, The Wall Street Journal 

Amazon.com Inc. last year told smart-thermostat maker Ecobee it had to give the tech giant data from its voice-enabled devices even when customers weren’t using them. The Canadian company said no.

How MasterClass CEO David Rogier Brought Star Power to Online Learning

Cynthia Littleton, Variety

David Rogier got the inspiration to launch MasterClass, the online learning platform, from advice he received as a boy from his grandmother.

AT&T will launch a ‘digital learning platform’ with WarnerMedia content

D. Hardawar, Engadget

In a long-winded and jargon-filled announcement celebrating AT&T’s $2 billion effort to bridge the digital divide over the next three years, one minor announcement stood out.

Superfans’ Message to Taylor Swift, BTS and Other Music Superstars: Enough With the Deluxe Albums and Pricey Merch

Neil Shah, The Wall Street Journal 

Taylor Swift is selling cassettes, vinyl records and phone cases tied to an album she first recorded over a decade ago. The Weeknd just sold a song connected to visual art as an NFT, or non-fungible token, a new fangled kind of digital collectible.

Spotify adds more livestream platforms to its virtual event listings

B. Steele, Engadget 

Despite vaccine rollouts, the live music industry will still be wrestling with COVID-19 for a while. In a lot of cities, venues still aren’t allowed to open, and those that can must do so at drastically reduced capacity.

The world’s biggest music companies are scrambling to sign African artists

Carlos Mureithi, Quartz

Fueled by a young population, great musical talent, and more streaming opportunities, Africa’s music industry is booming, and the world’s major record labels are taking notice.

Triller Owner Names Mahi de Silva CEO as Mike Lu Transitions to President

Tatiana Cirisano, Billboard 

TrillerNet, the parent company of short-form video app Triller, is shaking up its leadership and appointing non-executive board chairman Mahi de Silva to CEO, the company announced today (April 14).