General
Disneyland and California Adventure Park tickets go on sale next week
Hugo Martín, Los Angeles Times
With about three weeks to go before Disneyland and Disney California Adventure Park reopen, the Anaheim resort announced that ticket sales will begin Monday for those who are holding unused tickets and sales for all other California residents will launch April 15.
Fox Files Suit Over Valuation of FanDuel Investment Option
Christopher Palmeri, Bloomberg
Fox Corp. said it filed an arbitration claim over the value of its stake in FanDuel, a fast-growing sports-betting business majority owned by Irish bookmaker Flutter Entertainment Plc.
Caitlyn Jenner Eyeing Run for California Governor
Haley Bosselman, Variety
Olympic champion and former reality TV star Caitlyn Jenner is exploring the idea to run for governor in California.
Forbes World’s Billionaire List
Kerry A. Dolan et al., Forbes
It’s been a year like no other, and we aren’t talking about the pandemic. There were rapid-fire public offerings, surging cryptocurrencies and skyrocketing stock prices.
Advertising Showcase Cannes Lions Goes Online Only In June Due To The Pandemic
Andreas Wiseman, Deadline Hollywood
Advertising and marketing confab Cannes Lions will be fully digital this year, running from 21-25 June.
Disney World to allow guests to take off masks for photos
Alexandra Steigrad, New York Post
Later this week, visitors to the Magic Kingdom will be able to go maskless — for photos, at least.
Film
Blame Canada: Box Office Recovery Faces New Challenge Despite ‘Godzilla vs Kong’ Success
Jeremy Fuster, The Wrap Pro
After weeks of incremental growth, “Godzilla vs. Kong” provided a big leap in the recovery process for the domestic box office. In Canada, however, theaters are still closed in approximately 75% of the country, making the country the next big challenge in the struggle to return to normalcy.
Oscar Nominees and Guests Can Get Essential Workers’ Waiver to Attend Academy Awards
Marc Malkin, Variety
Oscar nominees and their guests will qualify as essential workers to attend the upcoming Academy Awards, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced in a letter on Tuesday.
Casting directors call to be included in the Oscars
Daniel Vaillancourt, Los Angeles Times
The Emmys, Spirits, Canada’s Geminis, Australia’s AACTAs and Britain’s BIFAs and BAFTAs each bestow an annual prize upon casting directors in recognition of the central role they play in show business. At the Oscars, no such accolade exists.
Television
‘Reading Rainbow’ legend LeVar Burton wants to host ‘Jeopardy!’
Ben Cost, New York Post
Take a look, he could get booked. Amid mixed reception for the latest crop of “Jeopardy!” guest hosts, Twitter is campaigning for one beloved celeb to succeed Alex Trebek as full-time MC — former “Reading Rainbow” host LeVar Burton.
Social justice activist Tarana Burke lands CBS Studios production deal
Meg James, Los Angeles Times
Tarana J. Burke, prominent social justice activist and founder of the #MeToo movement, and her producing partner, Mervyn Marcano, have entered into an overall production deal with CBS Studios to develop scripted and unscripted programming and documentaries for TV networks and streaming services.
Disney Continues Pursuit of New ABC News Chief
Brian Steinberg, Variety
Disney’s search for a new leader for ABC News continues weeks after the company unexpectedly disclosed the former president, James Goldston, would leave the post.
MTV, Annenberg Inclusion Initiative Lead Mental Health Storytelling Coalition
Haley Bosselman, Variety
In recognition of the role storytelling can play in addressing the nation’s mental health crisis, a coalition of experts and entertainment giants are taking steps to raise awareness and change the narrative around mental health.
Greg Gutfeld’s Late-Night Debut on Fox News More Than Doubles Don Lemon’s Audience on CNN
Lindsey Ellefson, The Wrap
Greg Gutfeld’s new late-night Fox News show premiered Monday night at the top of its time slot, at least where the cable news networks are concerned. In fact, it doubled CNN’s 11 p.m. ET total viewership.
‘A Sense of Belonging’ for Hispanic Children, With Puppets
Johnny Diaz, The New York Times
Standing outside a home, Romina Puga paints endangered animals, plants a garden, hosts guest experts and talks about the news. She is joined by two friends: Coco, a puppet shaped like a coconut, and Maya, a plush pink puppet.
Technology and New Media
Hulu Unveils Brand Redesign as the Streaming Competition Heats Up
Kelsey Sutton, Adweek
Hulu is getting a brand facelift.
Netflix Sued by Dad in College Scam Case for Portrayal in Movie
Patricia Hurtado, Bloomberg
A private equity and real estate executive accused of paying bribes to get his children into Harvard, Stanford and USC as recruited athletes sued Netflix Inc. over a documentary about the college admissions cheating scheme.
‘Knives Out’ Sequels: The Whodunit Behind Netflix’s $469M Power Play
Borys Kit, The Hollywood Reporter
Just over a year ago, it looked like an open-and-shut case. In February 2020, Lionsgate CEO Jon Feltheimer said during a quarterly earnings call that the company was officially moving ahead on a sequel to “Knives Out,” the surprise box office and critical smash whodunnit starring Daniel Craig and written and directed by Rian Johnson.
Apple TV Plus Launches True-Crime Podcast ‘The Line’ Ahead of Docu-Series Premiere
Todd Spangler, Variety
Apple TV Plus announced “The Line,” its first combination podcast-TV original — a bid to exploit the tech giant’s podcast footprint to seed signups for its TV subscription service.
Clubhouse Discusses Funding at About $4 Billion Value
Katie Roof, Bloomberg
Clubhouse, the buzzy audio-based social network, is in talks to raise funding from investors in a round valuing the business at about $4 billion, according to people familiar with the matter.
Intel Backs Video Data Firm Offering an Ad-Targeting Alternative to Cookies
Sahil Patel, The Wall Street Journal
Intel Capital, the investment arm of Intel Corp., has led a new $18 million Series B investment round in Iris.TV Inc., a data technology company that provides tools to help marketers and others understand the content of individual videos for the purposes of ad targeting and measurement.
Streaming music algorithm more likely to play male artists
Hannah Sparks, New York Post
Is your algorithm feminist enough? Streaming music platforms such as Spotify, Apple Music and iHeartRadio may be giving male artists more airtime, according to a new study that discovered a “widely used” algorithm is more likely to recommend male artists, as opposed to “female and mixed-gender artists.”
YouTube to Begin Sharing New Violative View Rate Metric
David Cohen, Adweek
YouTube will begin sharing a new metric in its Community Guidelines Enforcement Report, Violative View Rate, in an effort to provide transparency on what percentage of views on the Google-owned video site comes from content that violates its policies.
Opinions, Editorials, Perspectives and Research
Ray Fisher Opens Up About ‘Justice League,’ Joss Whedon and Warners: “I Don’t Believe Some of These People Are Fit for Leadership”
Kim Masters, The Hollywood Reporter
Ray Fisher is ready to talk. Ever since June 2020, when he fired off a tweet accusing Joss Whedon of “gross, abusive, unprofessional, and completely unacceptable” conduct on the set of “Justice League,” the 33-year-old actor has used social media and a series of interviews to lob serious allegations of racist behavior and a cover-up at Warner Bros.
‘Godzilla vs. Kong’ Might’ve Just Resuscitated the Movie Industry
Aric Jenkins, The Ringer
Have you heard the news? Godzilla and King Kong have utterly decimated Hong Kong, unfortunately, but also they may have just brought the movie business back to life.
Is Apple TV+ the best streaming service out there? Not yet. But it’s gaining.
Emily VanDerWerff, Vox
When Apple TV+ launched in late 2019, I found the whole idea of it deeply annoying. A big tech company entering the streaming game, simply because it could, throwing around money to attract big-name talent but without making shows that were all that great?
Why Lil Nas X Is the Best Marketer in the Game
Philip Pirkovic, Adweek
This week, Lil Nas X’s new single “Montero (Call Me By Your Name)” debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. It follows the massive success of “Old Town Road,” becoming a cultural phenomenon.
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