• Kevin Reilly has extended his contract with WarnerMedia through 2022, where he will now oversee truTV in addition to his role as president of TNT and TBS and chief content officer for the company’s upcoming streaming service. In his time with the networks, Reilly has launched “Full Frontal With Samantha Bee” as well as comedies and dramas such as “Search Party” and “The Alienist.” (The Hollywood Reporter)

• Upcoming streaming service Quibi is looking for daily content to balance out scripted and unscripted projects, four digital publishing and entertainment studio sources said. One digital publishing executive that has met with the company said that the service is looking for content that is “lower cost but at a higher frequency,” though it is unclear if any of this content has been ordered. (Digiday)

• Financial disclosures for Sony Corp.’s Crackle streaming service revealed that the service’s first-quarter revenue totaled roughly $11 million, with operating income coming in at $3.5 million. The disclosure — the first time this information has been released to the public — was made by Crackle’s majority owner, Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment, in an effort “to allow investors to understand the impact of the Crackle transaction” and highlight the potential offered by the joint venture with Sony. (Variety)

• The CW’s upfront presentation showed off its 14 returning series, as well as the three new upcoming series: another superhero show in “Batwoman,” “Riverdale” spin-off “Katy Keene” and “Nancy Drew.” In addition to mixing up time slots for shows — for example, placing the final season of “Arrow” on Tuesday alongside spinoff “The Flash” — the fall lineup includes 12 hours of scripted programming a week, topping Fox’s 7. (Deadline Hollywood)

• In response to the news that the deal between the network and Netflix Inc. would not be renewed, CW President Mark Pedowitz stressed that streaming rights for the individual shows are up to the studios that produce them, and shouldn’t impact the business of the network, which he said is a “vital part of their ecosystem.” (Variety)

New Star Wars Land Helps Disney Attract a Lucrative Guest: Older Dudes
Christopher Palmeri, Bloomberg

Doug Ridley remembers seeing the first “Star Wars” film when it came out in 1977 and snapping up all the toys he could persuade his parents to purchase. Now 47, the criminal-defense attorney often dons a stormtrooper uniform with his fan club and plans to be one of the first guests at Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge when the attraction opens at Disneyland on May 31.

Georgia’s Abortion Ban Is Polarizing Hollywood
Joy Press, Vanity Fair

Over the last several decades, Georgia has become known as the Hollywood of the South. It’s become one of America’s top movie and TV locations, thanks to generous tax incentives; in 2017, it surpassed California as a shooting site for the highest-grossing domestic films, and it’s also the backdrop for many TV shows, including Netflix’s Stranger Things and Ozark, AMC’s The Walking Dead, and the forthcoming HBO series Watchmen.

Emmys 2019: ‘Game of Thrones’ and ‘Veep’ look to go out on top
Glenn Whipp, Los Angeles Times

Savor the stress and suspense and speculation swirling around Sunday’s “Game of Thrones” series finale because, as far as this year’s Emmys are concerned, there’s absolutely no doubt about the celebrated show’s fate. “Game of Thrones” is going to win just about everything — putting it in select company.

Verve Signs WGA’s Code Of Conduct, A First Crack In Agencies’ Solidarity
David Robb, Deadline Hollywood

Verve has signed the WGA’s new Code of Conduct, the biggest win yet in the guild’s campaign to “divide and conquer” the agency business. Verve is not a member of the Association of Talent Agents, but its signing makes it the biggest lit agency to sign the code so far.

Sony Music Jumps Into Podcasts, Forms Venture With Producers Adam Davidson and Laura Mayer
Todd Spangler, Variety

Sony Music Entertainment is diving into the red-hot podcasting biz. In its first move into the space, the company has formed a joint venture with two veteran podcast producers: Adam Davidson, a New Yorker staff writer and co-founder of NPR’s “Planet Money” show, and Laura Mayer, who has worked at Stitcher, Panoply Media and WNYC.

Donald Trump Still Collecting Cash From His Hollywood Days – Remember That ‘Fresh Prince’ Cameo?
David Robb, Deadline Hollywood

President Donald Trump still is raking in the dough from his days in Hollywood, pulling down a $90,776 SAG pension and an $8,724 AFTRA pension last year, according to his latest financial disclosure report.

Gannett and Tribune may restart merger talks after surviving takeover bids
Keith J. Kelly, New York Post

The two largest newspaper chains in the country, USA Today publisher Gannett and Chicago Tribune owner Tribune, may reignite merger talks, now that both have dispatched with hostile takeovers by smaller suitors.

Cannes: Why Buyers Have a Renewed Interest in Romantic Comedies
Rebecca Ford, The Hollywood Reporter

The Cannes market is best known for its dramas and action and sci-fi projects of late, but, on the heels of the success of Crazy Rich Asians ($238.5 million worldwide) and Netflix’s viral rom-coms, there’s a renewed interest in romantic comedies — and in a way, it hasn’t been seen before.

Chris Rock Teams With Lionsgate to Relaunch ‘Saw’ Horror Franchise
Borys Kit, The Hollywood Reporter

Chris Rock, the comedian known for his standup and his work on Saturday Night Live, and producers Mark Burg and Oren Koules, have teamed to relaunch the Saw horror franchise for Lionsgate.

“Hold on to Your Wallets, Close Your Eyes”: Disney Positions Itself as the Dominant Force of the Upfronts
Laura Bradley, Vanity Fair

This year’s Upfront presentations, where media companies showcase their upcoming schedules to advertisers, unfolded before a backdrop of unprecedented upheaval.

New 2019-20 Broadcast Shows Hit Parity for Female Leads but See Fewer Roles for People of Color
Danielle Turchiano, Variety

As another year of new broadcast series orders comes to a close, and while parity has been achieved when looking at the division of male-female lead and co-lead roles on new series, the percentage of those roles for people of color, as well as executive-producer positions for women and people of color, actually declined when compared to last season.

‘The Big Bang Theory’: CBS Open To More Spinoffs
Nellie Andreeva, Deadline Hollywood

One of the most memorable moments during the CBS upfront presentation was the final bow The Big Bang Theory cast and co-creator/EP Chuck Lorre took to a long, standing ovation from the crowd. Earlier in the day, CBS unveiled a fall 2019 schedule without its biggest comedy hit as Big Bang spinoff Young Sheldon takes over its Thursday 8 PM slot.

NBC’s ‘Dateline’ Will Press Into Podcasts
Brian Steinberg, Variety

The long-running newsmagazine “Dateline” is about to explore a mystery that can’t be neatly wrapped in the one or two hours NBC typically devotes to the program: Can a TV-news staple flourish in the world of podcasts?

A petition to remake Game of Thrones’ 8th season offers a revealing glimpse of wider fandom backlash
Aja Romano, Vox

More than half a million fans are demanding that HBO “remake Game of Thrones Season 8 with competent writers,” just days before the season — and series — finale. While the online petition has rapidly racked up signatures since it went viral just one day ago, the number represents a small fraction of Game of Thrones’ immense fan base.

Viacom betting big that Pluto TV will rival Netflix, Amazon
Alexandra Steigrad, New York Post

Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+ and…Pluto TV? Viacom boss Bob Bakish is betting big on a little-known startup to compete among a fast-growing crop of video-streaming titans — but media insiders wonder whether the millennial viewers he’s targeting will have any time for it.

IFC Films Launches Subscription VOD Streaming Service
Brian Welk, The Wrap

IFC Films is getting into the streaming game, launching its own subscription-based, video on demand streaming service on Thursday. Called IFC Films Unlimited, the catalog of movies will draw on titles from the IFC Films, IFC Midnight and Sundance Select labels, including so far “Y Tu Mama Tambien,” “The Trip,” “45 Years,” “The Babadook” and more as part of an initial offering of several hundred movies.

Riot Games to Keep Arbitration Clause Despite Employee Protest
Josh Eidelson, et al., Bloomberg

Riot Games, maker of the worldwide hit video game League of Legends, said Thursday that it would maintain its requirement that employees’ sexual-harassment or discrimination complaints be handled via arbitration, rejecting demands from workers who walked out over the issue last week.

Scopely Sees Growth With Mobile Games That Live On
Beejoli Shah, The Information

Mobile games are a fickle business, in which one-time hits can quickly fade into oblivion. Scopely, the startup behind popular mobile games like “Star Trek Fleet Command” and “The Walking Dead: Road to Survival,” believes it has come up with a system to minimize that risk.

Microsoft and Sony Strike Pact for Gaming, Cloud Services
Dina Bass, Bloomberg

Microsoft Corp. and Sony Corp., bitter rivals in the game console market, are exploring partnerships in cloud-computing and artificial intelligence, including the use of Microsoft’s Azure for their respective video and content-streaming services.

Why Are Hollywood’s Biggest Studios and Stars Silent on Georgia’s New Abortion Law?
Bryn Elise Sandberg, The Hollywood Reporter

Georgia’s controversial abortion bill has sent Hollywood into a panic as filmmakers and studio executives grapple with how to protest the conservative legislation yet still keep their $3 billion business in the state.

How “let people enjoy things” became a fight against criticism
Constance Grady, Vox

Nobody likes a critic, and lately that’s felt more true than ever. You can hardly turn around without someone, somewhere, getting furious on social media about what critics are up to.