Entertainment
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Essential entertainment industry news & intel to start your day.
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April 4, 2023
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Today’s Top News
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Warner Bros. Discovery Inc. is close to a deal to develop a new TV series based on JK Rowling’s “Harry Potter” books, which it wants to be the foundation of Max, the company’s soon-to-be-rebranded flagship streaming service, according to two people with knowledge of the matter. A Warner Bros. spokesperson declined to comment, but sources said Rowling, who has sparked controversy over comments about the trans community, will be involved in the series to make sure it stays true to the source material but won’t serve as the series’ primary creator. (Bloomberg)
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Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) called for the state’s inspector general to investigate the legality of an agreement signed by the board previously backed by the Walt Disney Co., which retained control of its special district in Orange and Osceola counties before DeSantis’ approved board could take power. Disney Chief Executive Bob Iger addressed the ongoing feud during an annual shareholder meeting, calling DeSantis’ actions against the company “anti-business” and “anti-Florida.” (CNBC)
- Netflix Inc. reportedly ordered a pilot for the first time, a single-camera comedy series called “Little Sky,” from creator and director Rightor Doyle, starring Samara Weaving, who is also set to executive produce. Sources said the show is the only pilot in development at Netflix, which has stuck to the straight-to-series model when ordering TV shows for the past 12 years and does not indicate a permanent shift in how the streaming service will choose future projects. (Deadline)
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| A MESSAGE FROM MORNING CONSULT |
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What Else You Need to Know
WWE Shares Slide After $9.3 Billion Deal With Endeavor’s UFC
Kamaron Leach, Bloomberg
World Wrestling Entertainment Inc. shares tumbled as investors expressed disappointment in plans to combine the professional wrestling company with Endeavor Group Holdings Inc.’s mixed martial arts league, Ultimate Fighting Championship.
AMC Theatres Settles Shareholder Lawsuit Over Reverse Stock Split Plans
Etan Vlessing, The Hollywood Reporter
The settlement payment is potentially valued at over $100 million, based on recent share prices for the mega-exhibitor, according to law firms representing stockholders.
Inside Amazon Studios: Big Swings Hampered by Confusion and Frustration
Kim Masters, The Hollywood Reporter
Despite ambitious bets like “Daisy Jones & The Six” and the upcoming “Citadel,” insiders complain that there’s still “no vision for what an Amazon Prime show is.” But chief Jen Salke says they are missing the point: “You don’t reverse-engineer true creative vision.”
Disney Streaming Strategy: CEO Bob Iger Tells Shareholders Marvel, Star Wars, Disney And Pixar Titles Will Stay Exclusive, But Others Could “On Occasion” Be Licensed To Third Parties
Dade Hayes, Deadline
Disney CEO Bob Iger said Monday the company has reached a new stage of its evolution in streaming and will consider “on occasion” licensing some titles to third parties.
Studio Ghibli President Hoshino Koji Resigns
Patrick Frater, Variety
Hoshino Koji, president of the iconic Japanese animation firm Studio Ghibli, made public his plan to retire Tuesday. He will be replaced by Studio Ghibli co-founder Suzuki Toshio.
Writers Guild Calls a Strike Authorization Vote
Katie Kilkenny, The Hollywood Reporter
While the decision does not guarantee a work stoppage will occur, the referendum will gauge union members’ willingness to walk this spring.
Actors’ Equity Issues Strike Threat for Broadway National Tours
Caitlin Huston, The Hollywood Reporter
The union for actors and stage managers has been negotiating with The Broadway League for higher wages and per diems since mid-January.
Leonardo DiCaprio testifies in Fugees rapper trial, saying his team vetted ‘Wolf of Wall Street’ backer
Alexandra Bacallao and David K. Li, NBC News
Pras Michel is accused of conspiring to make illegal campaign contributions using foreign money, witness tampering and failure to register as a foreign agent of the Chinese government.
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Paddington’s Back: Threequel ‘Paddington In Peru’ Will Begin Filming In July
Andreas Wiseman, Deadline
Make that a triple marmalade sandwich. Long-awaited movie threequel “Paddington In Peru” is on course to start production on July 24, we can reveal.
Michael Mann Eyeing ‘Heat 2’ As Next Film With Warner Bros In Negotiations With Director To Board Sequel; Adam Driver In Talks With Mann To Play Young Neil McCauley
Justin Kroll, Deadline
On top of Warner Bros in talks to return, insiders add that Adam Driver, who recently starred in Mann’s “Ferrari,” is in discussions with Mann to play young Neil McCauley in the movie.
Zoë Kravitz Set For Dark Comedy ‘Biter’ Based On Short Story By ‘Cat Person’s Kristen Roupenian
Matt Grobar, Deadline
Zoë Kravitz (“The Batman”) has signed on to star in Biter, a new dark comedy based on the short story by Cat Person‘s Kristen Roupenian.
Austin Butler to Star in Epic Crime Drama ‘City On Fire’
Rob London, Collider
The movie will be an adaptation of the first of a trilogy of Don Winslow novels.
Ridley Scott, Joaquin Phoenix Epic ‘Napoleon’ Gets Exclusive Theatrical Release Before Apple TV+ Debut
Brent Lang, Variety
“Napoleon” will charge into movie theaters just in time for awards season.
‘Moana’ Live-Action Remake Set at Disney With Dwayne Johnson Returning
William Earl, Variety
Dwayne Johnson announced a new live-action remake of “Moana” during the Disney 2023 Annual Meeting of Shareholders Webcast on April 3.
‘Street Fighter’ Film, TV Rights go to Legendary
Aaron Couch, The Hollywood Reporter
The studio will work with Capcom on future adaptations to the fighting game.
A duo once more, Ben Affleck, Matt Damon come up for ‘Air’
Jake Coyle, The Associated Press
While Ben Affleck and Matt Damon were writing “The Last Duel,” their first screenplay together since their 1997 breakthrough, “Good Will Hunting,” they noticed that something in their winding and usually separate careers had been missing.
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A Record 9.9 Million Tune In for NCAA Women’s Basketball Final
Rachel Bachman, The Wall Street Journal
Sunday’s NCAA women’s basketball championship game drew 9.9 million TV viewers, double last year’s audience and the most-viewed NCAA women’s basketball game on record, according to ESPN.
‘Yellowjackets’ Season 2 Premiere Doubles Audience During Debut Week With Nearly 4M Viewers
Katie Campione, Deadline
The debut episode has hit just about 4M viewers across linear and digital platforms, which is double the live viewership. According to Showtime, that’s the best premiere week for the network since Dexter: New Blood in November 2021.
‘Game of Thrones’ Prequel About Aegon’s Conquest Eyed at HBO
Joe Otterson, Variety
A new “Game of Thrones” prequel about Aegon I Targaryen’s conquest of Westeros is being actively discussed at HBO, Variety has learned exclusively from sources.
Lizzo Extends First-Look Deal With Amazon Studios Ahead Of ‘Watch Out For The Big Grrrls’ Season 2
Katie Campione, Deadline
Lizzo has extended her first-look deal with Amazon Studios as she searches for singers for the second season of “Watch Out for the Big Grrrls.”
Fire Breaks Out on U.K. Sets of Amazon’s ‘The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power’
Naman Ramachandran, Variety
A fire broke out on Monday on the U.K. sets of Amazon Studios’ “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power.”
Drag Race Winner Jinkx Monsoon Joins ‘Doctor Who’ Season 14 Cast
Nick Caruso, TVLine
RuPaul’s Drag Race standout and two-time winner Jinkx Monsoon is set to star in the upcoming season of the BBC’s sci-fi smash “Doctor Who,” the series announced Monday.
‘King Shaka’ Drama Series Not Moving Forward at Showtime
Loree Seitz, The Wrap
The limited series following the Zulu Kingdom founder is exploring other options.
Tubi partners with Vice for exclusive original documentaries
Bevin Fletcher, Fierce Video
Fox’s Tubi is teaming up with Vice Media Group to create a slate of original documentaries that are exclusive to the free ad-supported streaming TV (FAST) service.
‘Tiny Beautiful Things” Liz Tigelaar Talks About the Tightrope Walk of TV Adaptations
Mikey O’Connell, The Hollywood Reporter
The showrunner opens up about the writers room that wouldn’t have her, embracing actor notes and the real reason her Tonya Harding passion project imploded.
Barbie Ferreira Left ‘Euphoria’ Because She Didn’t Want to Be “the Fat Best Friend”
Savannah Walsh, Vanity Fair
“I don’t think he relates to Kat,” Ferreira said of “Euphoria” creator Sam Levinson, adding that the decision for her to part ways with his HBO series was mutual.
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Apple to Cut Jobs in Some Corporate Retail Teams in First Known Layoffs
Mark Gurman, Bloomberg
Apple Inc. is eliminating a small number of roles within its corporate retail teams, according to people with knowledge of the matter, marking its first known internal job cuts since it embarked on a belt-tightening effort last year.
Spotify is shutting down its live audio app Spotify Live
Aisha Malik, TechCrunch
Spotify is shutting down its live-audio app Spotify Live, a spokesperson for the company confirmed to TechCrunch on Monday. The company says it will continue to explore live features on its main platform. The news was first reported by Music Ally.
Sony is adding more accessibility information to games on the PlayStation Store
Jay Peters, The Verge
The new Accessibility Tags will let you see an overview of accessibility options in a game while browsing the store on PS5.
Justice Department accuses Activision Blizzard of ‘suppressing’ esports salaries
Brian Contreras, Los Angeles Times
The Department of Justice on Monday announced a civil antitrust lawsuit against the video game giant Activision Blizzard, alleging that the Santa Monica-based firm limited competition among esports players in its professional “Overwatch” and “Call of Duty” leagues.
Ubisoft to Close Some European Sales Offices in Reorganization
Benoit Berthelot, Bloomberg
Ubisoft Entertainment SA is closing its sales offices in Spain, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland and the Nordics after the company disclosed a cost-cutting plan following disappointing sales in the fiscal quarter ending in December.
KSI Apologizes, Deletes YouTube Video & Plans Social Media Break After Racial Slur Sparks Outrage
Jake Kanter, Deadline
KSI, the British YouTuber with more than 24M subscribers, has apologized and said he is taking a social media break after using a racial slur during his latest video.
Women and Hollywood Founder Launching Podcast, No Longer Publishing Original Stories on Blog
Hilary Lewis, The Hollywood Reporter
Melissa Silverstein is starting a weekly audio offering, titled ‘In Her Voice,’ focused on interviews with women creatives.
‘Hot Ones’ Was a Slow Burn All Along
Maya Salam, The New York Times
This YouTube talk show’s premise is simple: Disarm celebrities with deep-cut questions and scorchingly spicy wings. Nearly 300 episodes later, the recipe still works.
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Opinions, Editorials, Perspectives and Research
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Is Writer Pay Up or Down? Depends How You Look at It
Gene Maddaus, Variety
Labor negotiations are typically marked by revolutionary rhetoric followed by incremental gains. For all the pre-game talk about rewriting the economic order, the end result typically looks like three yards and a cloud of dust.
How Ari Emanuel Bought His Way to a $21 Billion Fighting Empire
Lucas Shaw, Bloomberg
For the past year, Hollywood superagent Ari Emanuel has felt his company’s shares were undervalued by Wall Street.
How Twitch lost its grip on, and way with, the streaming community
Alexander Lee, Digiday
At this point, it’s no secret that something is amiss at Twitch. As of the last two weeks, the company is down one CEO and 400 employees; if you believe the headlines, it’s also lost things like “its way” and “the battle for its soul.”
Netflix’s Approach Shifts, Pushing Content That Can ‘Pop’
Nicole Sperling, The New York Times
The streaming service long thought spending on ads didn’t result in more viewers. That has subtly changed under the marketing chief Marian Lee.
As Classic Novels Get Revised for Today’s Readers, a Debate About Where to Draw the Line
Alexandra Alter and Elizabeth A. Harris, The New York Times
Agatha Christie. Roald Dahl. Ian Fleming. Classics are being reworked to remove offensive language. But some readers wonder, when does posthumous editing go too far?
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