| | | | | | What's news: Lionsgate has extended CEO Jon Feltheimer’s contract. Kim Kardashian has signed a first-look deal with 20th Television. Phylicia Rashad is set to make her Broadway directing debut. Netflix has renewed Guy Ritchie’s crime series The Gentlemen. Peacock has ordered two more seasons of The Traitors. Netflix will make a feature adaptation of Shelby Van Pelt's Remarkably Bright Creatures. — Abid Rahman
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Gena Rowlands 1930 - 2024 ►Legend. Gena Rowlands, the wife and muse of John Cassavetes whose unvarnished abilities found in such films as Faces, A Woman Under the Influence, Opening Night and Gloria put her in the pantheon of acting legends, died Wednesday. She was 94. Rowlands received Oscar nominations for her performances in A Woman Under the Influence (1974), where she played an isolated, emotionally vulnerable housewife who lapses into madness, and Gloria (1980), where she sparkled as a pissed-off child protector who rails against the Mob. The obituary. |
THR's 50 Most Powerful Players in Kids Entertainment ►The kids are alright. The execs, stars and creatives in THR’s annual roundup of the 50 Most Powerful Players in Kids Entertainment are shaping the next generation’s favorite content, with megahits like Inside Out 2 and Bluey buoying the industry. The list.
—Unboxing the box office. Ryan Kaji, the 12-year-old toy-unboxing star of YouTube's Ryan’s World, is perhaps the most famous tween on the internet with a staggering 83b (that's billion) views. After conquering video streaming, Kaji and his family are now putting his appeal to the test with the feature Ryan's World the Movie: Titan Universe Adventure, the first-ever theatrical release by a digital creator. The story. |
Sony Chief Praises 'It Ends With Us' for "Advancing the Conversation Around Domestic Violence" ►"Cultural movement." With a boffo five-day domestic tally of $64m, a tidy sum for a film that cost $25m to produce, It Ends With Us is a sterling success for Sony Pictures. Speaking to THR's Pamela McClintock, Tony Vinciquerra, the chair-CEO of Sony Pictures, commended author Colleen Hoover, star Blake Lively and the other women who made the hit movie possible. The story.
—Wait, what? Disney is asking a Florida court to dismiss a lawsuit brought by a man suing the company for the wrongful death of his wife by arguing that the plaintiff signed up for Disney+. The lawsuit involves a 42-year-old New York doctor whose family claims had a fatal allergic reaction after eating at an Irish pub in Disney Springs. The company argues the plaintiff had agreed to settle any lawsuits against Disney out of court through the arbitration process when he signed up for a one-month trial of Disney+ in 2019 and acknowledged that he had reviewed the fine print. The story.
—🤝 Extension 🤝 Lionsgate has extended longtime CEO Jon Feltheimer’s contract for another five years through July 31, 2029. Feltheimer signed a new deal in 2020 that aimed to keep him at the studio through Aug. 2025. Feltheimer has served as CEO of the studio since March 2000. The story.
—Naughty list. The WGA West is prohibiting its members from working with producer Steve Small and his company Fifty Feet Movie, LLC. The union notified members on Wednesday that it had placed Small, a former Paradigm agent and Emmett/Furla Films executive who has produced the indies The Hungover Games (2014), Cash Out (2024) and the upcoming Armored, and his company on its Strike/Unfair List. The union’s rules bar members from working with individuals or companies on the list or risk a fine. Small and his company work with Gotti producer Randall Emmett, who has been on the guild's list of banned producers for years. The story.
—🤝 New AI pact 🤝 SAG-AFTRA has inked a deal with AI ads marketplace Narrativ, offering union members the ability to license their digital voice likeness through the platform. Under the new pact, union performers who wish to offer their digital audio replicas on Narrativ can set their own wage rates, as long as they meet or exceed the union’s commercials minimum rate. Performers signal what kind of ads they want their voices to appear in and can greenlight or deny offers for those commercials that come their way. For every use of a performer’s voice in an ad, the actor must consent to that use. The story. |
All the Stars Traveling to the DNC... So Far ►Hollywood hits the Windy City. While the world waits to see if/when/how Taylor Swift and/or Beyoncé will weigh in on the historic campaign to elect Kamala Harris as president, details are surfacing on the celebrity contingent that has committed to traveling to Chicago next week for the Democratic National Convention. From Jon Stewart's live The Daily Show taping to John Legend's concert for Illinois governor JB Pritzker, THR's nicest man Chris Gardner has rounded up details on Democratic shindigs in the Windy City. The story.
—"Hollywood, it’s time to Greenlight Disability." Inevitable Foundation, the non-profit that focuses on supporting mid-career disabled screenwriters, is following up a July study on disability portrayals in film and television with a call to action in Hollywood. The open letter, released on Wednesday, coincides with a billboard campaign in Los Angeles and New York City calling out the 66 percent of respondents to the study that expressed dissatisfaction with on-screen representations of disability and mental health. The story.
—"[The press] were determined to pit us against each other, like we hated each other." Julie Bowen has opened up about the press trying to push a rivalry between herself and her Modern Family co-star Sofía Vergara. While appearing on Jennie Garth's podcast I Choose Me, Bowen recalled the strange experience of the media fabricating a feud between herself and Vergara, who she has remained close friends with. “I felt it on Modern Family. The press kept trying to make me and Sofia sort of Betty and Veronica,” said Bowen. The story.
—Fit for Purpose. Phylicia Rashad will make her Broadway directing debut with a new play by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins. The play, Purpose, marks Jacobs-Jenkins return to Broadway after his play, Appropriate, a family drama about siblings returning to their father’s home, starring Sarah Paulson, won the 2024 Tony Award for best revival of a play. Purpose follows the Jasper family, which has created a powerful dynasty in Black American politics. However, when the family’s youngest son, Nazareth, comes home with an uninvited friend, the family must contend with faith, its legacy and the cracks beneath the surface. The story. |
Feinberg Forecast: Scott's Emmy Picks as Final Voting Starts ►Almost there. With the final round of Emmys voting starting today and running for the next 11 days (through Aug. 26), you may be wondering how THR's awards expert Scott Feinberg thinks the race is looking. Scott has come up with his latest assessment of dozens of categories, including some of which he has not projected before. The forecast.
—🤝 First-look deal 🤝 Kim Kardashian has signed a first-look deal with Disney's 20th Television, under which she’ll develop scripted series projects. The deal comes after Kardashian starred in the most recent season of FX’s American Horror Story and the forthcoming Hulu legal drama All’s Fair, both of which are produced by 20th TV. As part of the deal, Kardashian is teaming with her friend La La Anthony and Black-ish creator Kenya Barris for a show based on Anthony’s best-selling book The Love Playbook: Rules for Love, Sex and Happiness. The story.
—No-brainer. Peacock has ordered two more seasons of The Traitors, which will take the show through its fifth installment. The pickup comes after season two of the series earned four Emmy nominations and several months before season three's planned premiere in early 2025. The Traitors earned a good deal of buzz for its format — in which several players are “traitors” who work to eliminate other contestants from the game — and broke out in its second season, becoming the most watched unscripted streaming show in the U.S. for its premiere week in January. The story.
—Lovely jubbly. Netflix has renewed Guy Ritchie’s crime drama The Gentlemen for a second season. Ritchie, who set the TV show in the world of Miramax’s film of the same name, will return to direct the series, while Theo James, Kaya Scodelario and Daniel Ings will reprise their starring roles. Additional casting for the second season hasn’t yet been announced. The story.
—FAST news. CBS News' true crime-focused newsmagazine 48 Hours now has its own dedicated free streaming channel, in an expansion of the broadcast news brand. The free ad-supported streaming network will be called “48 Hours,” and will be programmed with the more than 500 episodes of the newsmagazine that have been produced so far, with new episodes running after they air on CBS. The 48 Hours network will initially be available on CBS News digital platforms, Paramount+ and Pluto, with other platforms to follow. The story. |
'Twilight of the Warriors' Director on Reviving Hong Kong Action Cinema ►We want more! Since its local release in May, Soi Cheang’s action sensation Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In has become Hong Kong’s second-biggest domestic hit ever, earning $13.7m in a city of just 7.2m people. But not only has the film reinvigorated Hong Kong’s fabled martial arts genre; it also has revived — if only fleetingly — one of the world’s most alluring architectural monstrosities: the Kowloon Walled City. THR's Patrick Brzeski spoke to Cheang about the massive success of Walled In, and the plans for both a prequel and a sequel. The interview.
—Snapped up. Netflix has picked up a film package that will adapt Remarkably Bright Creatures, the wildly popular novel by Shelby Van Pelt. Sally Field, the veteran actress last seen in 80 for Brady, is in talks to star in the feature that is to be directed by Olivia Newman, perhaps best known for helming Where the Crawdads Sing. Newman is also writing the script with John Whittington. The story.
—RIM shot. A documentary feature is set to focus on the dramatic highs and lows for the BlackBerry smartphone. Ugly Delicious filmmaker Eddie Schmidt is helming the doc that is currently in production. It aims to offer a deep dive into the real story behind the smartphone brand that was developed by Research In Motion and became ubiquitous in the 2000s. Canadian-based marketing company Viral Nation brought the project to Unrealistic Ideas, the unscripted production company known for HBO’s McMillions and founded by Mark Wahlberg, Stephen Levinson and Archie Gips. The story.
—📅 Dated 📅 Filmmaker Tommy Wirkola's ocean-set thriller starring Phoebe Dynevor is set to make a splash next summer. Sony Pictures announced Wednesday that the previously untitled movie is now called Beneath the Storm and will hit theaters on Aug. 1, 2025. Plot details have not yet been shared for the project that is said to involve sharks. Whitney Peak and Djimon Hounsou co-star in the film from producers Adam McKay and Kevin Messick. The story. |
Film Review: 'Alien: Romulus' ►"A greatest hits compilation that mostly rocks." THR's chief film critic David Rooney reviews Fede Álvarez's Alien: Romulus. Cailee Spaeny, David Jonsson, Archie Renaux and Isabela Merced star in the eighth installment in the sci-fi/horror franchise, set between the events of Ridley Scott’s original and James Cameron’s sequel. The review.
—"Ackie and Arjona steal the show." THR's Lovia Gyarkye reviews Zoë Kravitz's Blink Twice. A tech mogul (Channing Tatum) invites a waitress (Naomi Ackie) and her friend (Alia Shawkat) to vacation on a private island in Kravitz's directorial debut, also starring Adria Arjona, Simon Rex and Haley Joel Osment. The review.
—"Like the most violent video game you've never played." THR's Frank Scheck reviews Paul Feig's Jackpot! The Amazon Studios feature, starring Simu Liu, John Cena and Awkwafina, revolves around a twisted lottery game where anyone can claim the prize by murdering the person with the winning ticket. The review.
—"Subtle and haunting." THR's Jordan Mintzer reviews Laurynas Bareisa's Drowning Dry. Premiering at Locarno, Bareisa’s second feature follows two sisters who experience a life-altering event during their summer holiday in the country. The review.
In other news...
—Yvonne Strahovski, Scott Speedman face invisible threat in first Teacup teaser
—American Sports Story trailer charts Aaron Hernandez's rise and fall
—Michelle Visage signs with Verve
—First look at Diner Ross, Spiegelworld’s new restaurant opening in Las Vegas
—Kim Kardashian and Beats reteam for the perfect Skims accessory: Neutral-toned headphones
What else we're reading...
—Eboni Boykin-Patterson reports that Taylor Swift fans are taking extra safety precautions for her London shows after a terrorist plot canceled gigs in Vienna [Daily Beast]
—Alexis Soloski interviews rising star Cailee Spaeny who is having a banner year with a breakout role in Civil War and now the lead in Alien: Romulus [NYT]
—Shirley Li writes that Sean Wang's Dìdi is a movie that really understands the 2000s-internet generation that grew up with AIM and MySpace [Atlantic]
—Marianne LeVine and Clara Ence Morse explain why an increasingly unhinged Donald Trump keeps talking about fictional serial killer Hannibal Lecter [WaPo]
—Adi Robertson dives into X's new AI image generator that is swamping the rapidly declining social media platform with even more garbage [Verge]
Today...
...in 1979, Francis Ford Coppola’s Apocalypse Now arrived in theaters. The film went on to earn eight nominations at the 52nd Academy Awards, including a nod in the best picture category, and claimed wins for cinematography and sound. After multiple rereleases over the years, the film ultimately grossed more than $100m globally. The original review.
Today's birthdays: Jennifer Lawrence (34), Ben Affleck (52), Alejandro G. Iñárritu (61), Zeljko Ivanek (67), David Zayas (62), Natasha Henstridge (50), Con O'Neill (58), Peter Hermann (57), Joe Jonas (35), Debra Messing (56), Emily Kinney (40), Anthony Anderson (54), Matt Lauria (42), Barbara Bouchet (81), Courtney Hope (35), Carlos PenaVega (35), Tess Harper (74), Noshir Dalal (46), Samuel Roukin (44), Quinton Aaron (40), Vaitiare Hirshon (60), Christine Adams (50), Maddie Corman (54), Lubna Azabal (51), Lucille Soong (86), Tony Robinson (78), Ron Dean (86), Belinda Peregrín (35), Gaylen Ross (74), Ella Thomas (43), Cris Judd (55), Katy Stoll (40), Nicole Paggi (41), Caryn Ward (44), Ann Ryerson (75) |
| Winsome Sinclair, the casting director who helped bring in actors for Waiting to Exhale, Amistad, Precious, The Best Man and a dozen films directed by Spike Lee, has died. She was 58. The obituary. |
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