It is crunch time for Raj Kapoor, Katy Mullan and Molly McNearney, the three Executive Producers of the 96th Annual Academy Awards. As they are putting final touches in place for what they hope will be a show that honors not just this year’s crop of movies but also Hollywood’s and Oscar’s rich history, they say they are planning a ceremony that excites viewers to the point of maintaining the recent post-pandemic ratings rise.
All indications are good that this could be a banner year for viewership of the Oscars, particularly with the potency and popularity of this year’s Best Picture contenders. Leading that crowd-pleasing charge is the dual phenomenon of summer blockbusters Barbie and front-runner Oppenheimer.
Here, the producers speak with Deadline's Pete Hammond about the show's earlier start time, how they plan to keep it tight, word of a Scarface reunion and, after strikes and a pandemic, finally letting the show be a celebration. >>>Read The Interview |
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| Deadline Exclusives & Originals |
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"Guilty" - A New Mexico jury on Wednesday found Rust armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed guilty of involuntary manslaughter in the fatal 2021 shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the set of the indie Western. >>>Taken Into Custody 'Panda' Eats Sandworms - The thawing of the winter box office continues this weekend with Universal/DreamWorks Animation’s Kung Fu Panda 4 which is bound to see a domestic opening at $50M+. Second weekend presales in Imax for Dune: Part Two look great, so that film's sophomore take is expected to be around $39M. >>>Full Forecast
He Got Game - Rapper Nas has teamed up with Power Universe EP Mark Canton for a TV series based on the life and victories of Maurice Ashley, the first Black International Chess Grandmaster. >>>Eight Episode S1
'American Dreamer' Movie Review - A slyly dark comedy smartly acted by a superlative cast led by Peter Dinklage and Shirley MacLaine, American Dreamer, after being buffeted by the pandemic, has finally found distribution. And deservedly so. >>>Pete Hammond's Take |
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Viggo Mortensen really puts the word multi-hyphenate to good use for his second directorial effort, The Dead Don’t Hurt, as he also wrote, co-stars in and composes the music for this distinctive Western film, which world premiered to critical acclaim at the Toronto Film Festival last year.
Deadline sat down with Mortensen in advance of the UK premiere of The Dead Don’t Hurt at the Glasgow Film Festival, where he was presented with the festival’s inaugural Cinema City Honorary Award, to discuss his second film in the director’s seat following 2020’s Falling, how he approached the Western genre and the importance of bringing multicultural stories to the big screen. >>>Read The Interview |
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Exclusive
Academy Award winner Anthony Hopkins has been set to star in Eyes in the Trees, a reimagining of the classic H.G. Wells novel The Island of Dr. Moreau, from director Timothy Woodward Jr.
Denzel Washington and Jake Gyllenhaal will star in a 2025 Broadway revival of William Shakespeare’s Othello, producer Brian Anthony Moreland announced Wednesday. The production, to be directed by Tony Award-winner Kenny Leon, will open in Spring 2025 at a Shubert Theatre to be announced.
The Young Sheldon finale is going to be extra special for The Big Bang Theory fans as Jim Parsons and Mayim Bialik return as their characters Sheldon Cooper and Amy Farrah Fowler, respectively. The episode will air Thursday, May 16, on CBS and streaming on Paramount+.
In Brief - Juliette Lewis among cast joining Woody Harrelson & Owen Wilson in Lips Like Sugar... Billy Zane to star in Lifetime movie about college cult... Lela Rochon, Yvette Nicole Brown, Orlando Jones, Pooch Hall among 16 cast in The Family Business spinoff... Minnie Driver and more join The Serpent Queen |
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BY THE NUMBERS
9 million viewers - The global audience for Episode 1 of FX's 'Shōgun' across Hulu, Disney+ and Star+ in its first six days |
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More News 🥊 Netflix is continuing its push into live sports, scheduling a boxing match between Jake Paul and Mike Tyson on July 20.
📺 German broadcaster ProSiebenSat.1 Media reported a drop in full-year earnings of €100M ($109M), but said its recent recovery looks set to continue with fourth quarter income up “significantly.”
📉 UK broadcaster ITV said its full-year profits tumbled 32% but it pointed to green shoots in a solid performance from the Studios production arm. The company also disclosed that it is in the early stages of a “strategic restructuring and efficiency program.”
💰 UK Chancellor Jeremy Hunt announced what many film vets called a “game-changing” new 40% British indie film relief for movies made for less than £15M ($19M).
🎵 Two-time Grammy Award winning singer and songwriter Gloria Gaynor will be the subject of a new biopic under the Robin Roberts Presents banner for Lifetime.
⚖️ Dominique Boutonnat, the President of France’s cinema board, will stand trial for sexual assault in June.
📺 Tom Hanks will host and narrate a 20-part documentary series about World War II on the History Channel. History is also teaming with Barack and Michelle Obama, Derek Jeter and Danny Trejo on nonfiction projects. |
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Obituaries
🕯 David Libert, a founding member of the ’60s pop group The Happenings as well a tour manager for Alice Cooper and Prince, manager for George Clinton and Parliament/Funkadelic, Bootsy Collins, the Runaways, Living Colour and many more, died February 20, according to a post on his official Instagram page. He was 81. 🕯 Jim Beard , a pianist, keyboardist, composer, producer and arranger known for his work with Steely Dan as well as jazz musicians Wayne Shorter and John McLaughlin, died March 2 in a New York City hospital from complications of a sudden illness. He was 63. 🕯 Debra Byrd, a vocal coach for such shows as American Idol, Canadian Idol, Military Idol, The Voice, Majors and Minors and others, died in Los Angeles on Tuesday, March 5. She was 72. 🕯 Hollywood & Media Deaths In 2024 Photo Gallery |
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On the Radar
Thu - Poor Things debuts on Hulu; State of the Union
Fri - SXSW begins
Sat - Razzie Awards; Josh Brolin hosts SNL
Sun - The Oscars |
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Rolling Toward The Weekend - The red carpet officially rolled out Wednesday at the Dolby Theater for the 96th Academy Awards, kicking off the final stretch of Oscar pre-parties and events. |
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