| | | | What's news: Harry Belafonte has died. Richard Lewis has revealed he is suffering from Parkinson's disease. Sony's Kraven the Hunter will be R-rated. Alec Baldwin has returned to filming Rust. Amazon is developing a Magnificent Seven TV series. Netflix plans to invest $2.5b on Korean content. Spotify now boasts 210m premium subs. — Abid Rahman |
The Wildest Day in Cable News History ►Egads! In a bombshell announcement Monday, Fox News said that it had parted ways with Tucker Carlson. The decision to fire the host of Tucker Carlson Tonight is a surprising one, to say the least, with his show routinely ranking as the most watched on Fox News and on some days all of cable TV. He had just inked a new contract with the network two years ago, a deal that included a dramatic expansion of Carlson-related original programming for the Fox Nation streaming service. The story.
—Gadzooks! The cable news shocks continued Monday, when CNN fired Don Lemon. The CNN This Morning anchor shared a post on his social media accounts saying that he was informed by his agent on Monday morning that he was being terminated. "I am stunned. After 17 years at CNN I would have thought that someone in management would have had the decency to tell me directly," he said. CNN PR released a statement saying that Lemon "was offered an opportunity to meet with management." The story.
—"An absolutely delightful shock." Fox News unceremoniously jettisoning Tucker Carlson and CNN defenestrating Don Lemon was, unsurprisingly, picked over on late-night television on Monday night. The likes of Jimmy Kimmel, Seth Meyers, Jimmy Fallon and The Daily Show's Desi Lydic barely hid their glee at the demise of Carlson, in particular. The reaction.
—Short and sweet. Brian Kilmeade quickly addressed Carlson’s split from Fox News as he filled in as host of Monday night’s show. During the network's coveted 8 p.m. slot, the political commentator started off the newly-named Fox News Tonight wishing Carlson the best, adding, "I’m great friends with Tucker and always will be." More reaction.
—"We wish him the best." CNN This Morning co-anchors Poppy Harlow and Kaitlan Collins addressed Lemon’s firing at the top of the show Tuesday morning. The duo shared prepared statements recounting their long professional histories with Lemon, before pivoting to keeping things "within the focus on the news and where that belongs." Yet more reaction. |
Sony's Rothman: "Streamers Don’t Create Movie Stars" ►"No balls, no glory." It has become a tradition for Sony Pictures chief Tom Rothman to kick off CinemaCon with a colorful remark or two. This year was no different as he took to the stage in Las Vegas Monday night and addressed the state of theatrical. THR's Pamela McClintock writes that Rothman, in his typically ebullient style, took the streamers to task for their lack of star creation and doubled down on his optimism for the future of the theatrical business. The story.
—"A preternatural, enduring, iconic talent." Rothman took a moment during Sony's presentation to talk about a new NRG study that investigates the most popular movie stars in Hollywood. The veteran studio chief used the hot topic as a way to tee up a surprise award presentation — a lifetime achievement award given to Denzel Washington. The story.
—Expects lots of gore. Kraven the Hunter leapt into action to kick off CinemaCon in Las Vegas on Thursday, with star Aaron Taylor-Johnson sending a video to give the first glimpse of the Sony film to cinema owners. The footage included a look at Taylor-Johnson in costume, including Kraven’s trademark fur. The actor sent in a video introducing the footage, and revealed the film will be Sony’s first R-rated Marvel feature. The story.
—"Back in the saddle." Sony’s CinemaCon presentation got a helping hand from the Bad Boys themselves as Will Smith and Martin Lawrence sent a recorded message for the gathered attendees. The two actors are teaming up once again for Bad Boys 4, in an installment that will also reunite them with Batgirl filmmaking duo Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah. The story.
—Galloping ever closer. Sony revealed the first footage of Ridley Scott’s epic Napoleon. Rothman introduced the clip, noting that the film, which is an Apple Original Films production, will have a "robust theatrical window and a full-throttle marketing campaign before moving to Apple TV+." The story.
—Lucky! Sony Pictures Animation previewed a still unfinished 14 minutes of footage of the eagerly anticipated Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, the sequel to best animated feature Oscar winner Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, at CinemaCon. The story. |
Comcast: Shell Fired With Cause Over Harassment Claim ►"Evidence was uncovered that corroborated the allegations." In a Monday regulatory filing, Comcast revealed that Mike Cavanagh will replace Jeff Shell as NBCUniversal CEO. The company also said that Shell was ousted after he had engaged in "inappropriate conduct with a female employee, including allegations of sexual harassment." Attorney Suzanne McKie stated that her client, CNBC journalist Hadley Gamble, made the complaint against Shell that sparked an investigation. The story.
—No surprises here. Joe Biden has made it official: he’s running for a second term in office. What was already widely known for months was confirmed Thursday when he formally launched his re-election campaign, announcing the news on the fourth anniversary of his return to politics in 2019. The story.
—Yay for us! THR's Blackfamous Roundtable has won a Webby Award! THR was honored with the award in the diversity, equity and inclusion, social video category. The roundtable featured a conversation with Loretta Devine, Sheryl Lee Ralph, Wendy Raquel Robinson, Larenz Tate and Lynn Whitfield, moderated by THR editorial director Nekesa Mumbi Moody. The story.
—"Now outside of Bozeman to complete Rust." Alec Baldwin has returned to the set of Rust to wrap up shooting the movie after New Mexico prosecutors dropped involuntary manslaughter charges against him, at least for now, in the 2021 fatal shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins. In an Instagram post on Monday, Baldwin confirmed he was on set. Filming on the low-budget Western resumed last week at Yellowstone Film Ranch in Montana. The story.
—🤝 Blockbuster deal 🤝 Endeavor says that it has agreed to sell its IMG Academy sports education business to the private equity firm BPEA EQT in a deal valued at $1.25b. IMG Academy assets include a campus in Bradenton, Florida, sports camps across the country and worldwide, and online coaching and college recruiting businesses. Endeavor acquired IMG in 2013 for $2.3b. The story. |
Harry Belafonte 1927 - 2023 ►A force for good. Harry Belafonte, the actor, producer and singer who made calypso music a national phenomenon with “Day-O” and used his considerable stardom to draw attention to civil rights issues and injustices around the world, has died. He was 96.
Belafonte, the Caribbean-American star who received the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in November 2014, died on Tuesday of congestive heart failure at his home on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, his longtime spokesman Ken Sunshine confirmed to THR. The obituary. |
Amazon Western Refashioned as 'Magnificent Seven' Series ►Corporate synergy. Nic Pizzolatto is refashioning his idea for an original Western drama into a series adaptation of Antoine Fuqua's 2016 film The Magnificent Seven. The Amazon project remains in development and has a series commitment penalty attached. As THR's Lesley Goldberg reported in March, Pizzolatto’s show is being fast-tracked by Amazon which considers the drama as the streamer’s version of Paramount's megahit Yellowstone. Seven also arrives as Amazon is looking to monetize its acquisition of MGM. The story.
—Doubling down. Netflix is leaning into Korean content after achieving global impact with viral series like Squid Game, The Glory and Physical: 100. The streamer said Monday that it will spend a whopping $2.5b in South Korea over the next four years to produce drama series, movies and unscripted shows. The hefty investment would represent twice what Netflix has spent in Korea between its local launch in 2016 and today, according to the company. The story.
—🎭 No zeroes 🎭 Netflix is surrounding Robert De Niro with an A-list cast in its limited series Zero Day. Lizzy Caplan, Jesse Plemons, Joan Allen and Connie Britton have joined the political thriller that marks De Niro’s first ongoing role in a TV series. The plot will revolve around a former president, George Mullen (De Niro), a popular but complicated figure who’s pulled out of retirement to lead a commission that’s investigating a massive global cyber-attack. The story.
—"We had our strongest first quarter since going public in 2018." Spotify ended March with 210m paying premium subscribers, up from 205m as of the end of 2022 and above its forecast of 207m. The audio streaming giant also reported that it hit 515m monthly active users as of the end of March, up from 489m at the end of December. The company had previously estimated it would end the latest quarter with 500m MAUs. The results. |
The Unbelievable True Story Behind Hulu's 'Sam — A Saxon' ►"It’s almost impossible for Westerners to imagine what it was like, but the Neo-Nazis were just marching in the streets of Dresden." Sam — A Saxon, Disney+/Hulu's first ever German-language original, bows Wednesday. The drama is based on the remarkable true story of Samuel Meffire, East Germany's first Black policeman, who became a media star after Reunification but ended the 90s in jail. THR's Scott Roxborough spoke to Meffire about his story, and the long journey to a TV adaptation. The interview.
—"I’ve had sort of a rocky time." Richard Lewis is opening up about the health issues he’s been privately dealing with over the last three-and-a-half years. The 75-year-old comedian and Curb Your Enthusiasm star shared in a video posted to Twitter that amid four “back-to-back-to-back-to-back” surgeries for his back, shoulder and hip in recent years, he was also diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease two years ago. The story. —Told its last story. Apple TV+'s anthology series Truth Be Told will not be returning for a fourth season. Star and exec producer Octavia Spencer revealed the news on Instagram on Monday. Season three of the anthology, which starred Gabrielle Union, wrapped its run in March. This marks the latest cancellation at Apple, with Truth Be Told joining one-and-dones including Mr. Corman, Dear Edward, Shantaram and Little Voice. The story.
—From Apple to Amazon. Gabrielle Union is set to be the prime suspect in a murder mystery at Amazon Prime Video. The actress will star in and executive produce Pretty Little Wife, a thriller in the works from A+E Studios and Amazon Studios. It’s based on Darby Kane’s best-selling novel of the same name, with Meredith Lavender, Marcie Ulin and Kristen SaBerre adapting the book. The story. —All good things. Animated comedies Big Mouth and spinoff Human Resources are both coming to an end on Netflix. Big Mouth has been renewed for an eighth and final season. Human Resources will wrap with its upcoming second season, yet its characters will also appear in the flagship show’s final season. The seventh season of Big Mouth will launch later this year, and the final season will air sometime in 2024. The story. |
TV Review: 'Love & Death' ►"Maybe it's time to put this case to rest for a while." THR TV critic Angie Han reviews Max's Love & Death. One year after Hulu's Candy comes another limited series based on the murder of Betty Gore, this time starring Elizabeth Olsen, Jesse Plemons, Lily Rabe and Patrick Fugit and created by David E. Kelley. The review.
In other news...
—The Witcher S3 teaser trailer: First look at Henry Cavill’s final season
—ChaseDreams is (almost) 18 in trailer for The Other Two S3
—Webby Awards: SZA wins artist of the year
—Kevin Bacon and Kyra Sedgwick speak out on drag bans in TikTok video
—Paradigm remakes leadership with partner promotions
—New York’s Marea Restaurant is heading to Beverly Hills
—Jim Wilhelm, veteran theatrical agent, dies at 68
—Ron Faber, busy New York stage actor, dies at 90
—Robert Crutchfield, veteran TV publicity executive, dies at 85
What else we're reading...
—Stephen Battaglio has more key details on Tucker Carlson's ouster at Fox News, including the nugget that Rupert Murdoch was intimately involved in the decision [LAT]
—Brian Stelter writes that Carlson’s abrupt exit from Fox News looks more like an execution [VF]
—Jesus Jiménez reports on the rather annoying trend of TikTokers aping Wes Anderson's idiosyncratic style for mundane diary posts (yeah, I'm not a fan) [NYT]
—After the fiasco at Coachella, Chris Richards wonders whether Frank Ocean has become the voice of a generation that does not want to be a part of public spectacle [WaPo]
—Julian Ryall reports on how the explosion in popularity of manga and anime in the U.S. and Europe is proving to be an unexpected boost to Japan's economy [DW]
Today...
Today's birthdays: Al Pacino (83), Renée Zellweger (54), Gina Torres (54), Talia Shire (77), Jonathan Bailey (35), Jason Lee (53), Hank Azaria (59), Jillian Bell (39), Philippine Leroy-Beaulieu (60), Jeffrey DeMunn (76), Melonie Diaz (39), Adria Arjona (31), Meghann Fahy (33), Marguerite Moreau (46), Daniel Sharman (37), Sofia Helin (51), Sean Harmon (35), Daniel MacPherson (43), Allisyn Snyder (27), Peter Jurasik (73), Jake Etheridge (35) |
| Ginnie Newhart, the wife of famed comedian Bob Newhart who came up with the innovative idea for how to conclude his Vermont-based sitcom by combining with it with his earlier Chicago-based show, has died. She was 82. The obituary. |
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