| | | | | | What's news: Paramount is undergoing another round of layoffs. Broadway theaters will dim their lights in memory of James Earl Jones. The Tonys will return to Radio City Music Hall. Netflix is set to release a Menéndez Brothers docuseries. A biopic on couturier Ann Lowe is in the works. CBS' Matlock debuted to 7.73m viewers. — Abid Rahman
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Robert De Niro's Billion-Dollar Gamble ►"New York is the greatest backlot." Hollywood icon Robert De Niro teamed up with superstar Danish architect Bjarke Ingels and developer Adam Gordon to build Wildflower Studios, a massive vertical production complex in Astoria, Queens. So what do you get for that $1b price tag? THR's Julian Sancton got the first tour. The story.
—Brutal. Paramount is implementing another round of major company-wide layoffs on Tuesday. In a memo to staff, co-CEOs George Cheeks, Brian Robbins and Chris McCarthy said that the company will undergo “phase two” of its workforce reductions today, but that by the end of the day “90 percent of these reductions will be complete.” Last month, the executives announced a sweeping plan to cut 15 percent of the company’s U.S. workforce in pursuit of $500m in cost-savings. The first round of layoffs took place shortly after that announcement, with the co-CEOs telling staff that the cuts would happen in three phases. The story.
—"Kimberly was allegedly taken from us because she was set on course to accomplish what Mrs. Cassie Ventura did." A week after the arrest of Sean Combs, singer Al B. Sure! (real name Albert Joseph Brown) took to Instagram to detail what he claims is a vast conspiracy around the 2018 death of model-turned-actress Kim Porter, Combs' former flame and then, after their split, an on-off partner. As part of his call for an investigation, Brown alleges Porter's supposed knowledge of Combs' alleged sex trafficking led to her death. Porter was found dead in her home in Toluca Lake, California in 2018 after days of flu-like symptoms. The coroner initially listed Porter’s cause of death as “deferred” but later changed it to lobar pneumonia. The story.
—New insights. As Saturday Night Live readies its 50th season, 60 Minutes is releasing never-heard-before audio from a 20-year-old interview with its famously private maestro Lorne Michaels and his talent from the period. Running as part of the news magazine’s newly launched podcast series, 60 Minutes: A Second Look, the episode weaves together interviews that Lesley Stahl conducted in 2004, when the show was granted full access to a week at SNL, but only aired some three minutes of the interviews. The episode centers largely on the lore around Michaels and his supposedly "aloof" management approach, as well as drug use by past castmembers. The story. |
Broadway Theaters to Dim Lights for James Earl Jones ►Fitting tribute. Broadway theaters will dim their lights in memory of James Earl Jones. The actor, who died Sept. 9 at the age of 93, was a two-time Tony Award winner as well as a recipient of the 2017 special Tony Award for lifetime achievement. The Cort Theatre was renamed the James Earl Jones Theatre in September 2022. Broadway theaters will dim their lights at 6:45 p.m. on Sept. 26 in his honor. The dimming of lights has been a tradition on Broadway for notable members of the community who have died, but must be approved by the theater owners. The story.
—Heading home. The Tony Awards will return to Radio City Music Hall in June, after several years away from the midtown concert hub. While the Tonys had been traditionally held at the 6,000-seat Radio City Music Hall, the ceremony was held at the smaller Lincoln Center’s David H. Koch Theater last year, and the United Palace Theater and Winter Garden Theatre in recent years. The awards show celebrating the 2024-2025 Broadway season is set to take place on June 8, 2025. The story.
—🎭 Cast in place 🎭 Joy Woods has been cast to play Louise in the Broadway revival of Gypsy this fall. Woods will play opposite Jordan Tyson, who will take on the role of June, as the two daughters that Mama Rose, played by Audra McDonald, intends to shape into stars. The revival of the musical, which features music by Jule Styne and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, is directed by George C. Wolfe and choreographed by Camille A. Brown. The show was first staged on Broadway in 1959 and was inspired by the memoir of Gypsy Rose Lee, a burlesque entertainer reflecting on her relationship with her mother. The story. |
Kyle Chandler to Star in HBO's 'Lanterns' Series ►🎭 Hal-lelujah 🎭 HBO's DC series Lanterns has found its Hal Jordan. Emmy winner Kyle Chandler is set to play the legendary member of the Green Lantern Corps in the series. The show will be the first series role for the Friday Night Lights star since Showtime’s 2022 drama Super Pumped. Lanterns, which scored a straight-to-series order in June after years of development, comes from Chris Mundy, Damon Lindelof and Eisner Award-winning comics writer Tom King. The trio are co-writing and executive producing the series, with Mundy serving as showrunner. The story.
—More Menendez. After slamming Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story, the Menendez brothers are now getting the documentary treatment on Netflix. On Monday, the streamer announced a new doc titled The Menendez Brothers will hit the platform on Oct. 7. The project, directed by Argentinian director Alejandro Hartmann, will “offer new insight and a fresh perspective on a case that people only think they know,” per Netflix. The news comes as Ryan Murphy’s true-crime drama series about the brothers is currently the No. 1 show on Netflix in the U.S. The story.
—Not happy. Disgraced former WWE CEO Vince McMahon says that he has seen Netflix's upcoming docuseries about his life, and he is not happy with it. In a statement Monday, the wrestling promoter said that he recently screened an “early partial cut” and that based on what he has seen so far, "this doc falls short and takes the predictable path of conflating the ‘Mr. McMahon’ character with my true self, Vince. The title and promos alone make that evident." The docuseries, which debuts on Wednesday, follows McMahon’s career as he took his father’s regional wrestling promotion and turned it into a global entertainment firm. However, it also explores the dark side of the business. The story.
—🎭 Couple goals 🎭 Apple TV+'s upcoming drama Margo’s Got Money Troubles has added another A-list name to its cast. Michelle Pfeiffer will star opposite Elle Fanning and Nicole Kidman in the series, which is based on the best-selling novel of the same title by Rufi Thorpe. She’ll also be an executive producer on the project, which A24 is producing; David E. Kelley is adapting the novel and will serve as showrunner. Pfeiffer’s casting is also notable because it will mark the first time she and Kelley, who have been married for more than 30 years, have worked together. The story.
—🎭 Thalia found 🎭 Season two of Percy Jackson and the Olympians has cast another important role. Tamara Smart is joining the series based on author Rick Riordan’s Greek mythology-laden novels as Thalia Grace, the demigod daughter of Zeus. She’ll recur in season two, which is in production and slated for a 2025 premiere. Smart is the latest addition to the season two cast. Previously, Daniel Diemer was cast to play Tyson the cyclops. The story.
—“The One With the Game Show.” To mark the 30th anniversary of Friends, Max has greenlit a four-episode game show based on the classic comedy. Titled Fast Friends, the show is set to begin production next month at The Friends Experience interactive exhibit in New York. Warner Bros. Unscripted Television and Warner Horizon are behind the show. Fast Friends will put players in re-creations of the sitcom’s iconic sets. The story.
—Posting big numbers. CBS’ update on Matlock brought in a strong audience for its premiere Sunday night. The legal drama starring Kathy Bates — which shares a name and basic premise with the 1980s-90s series starring Andy Griffith, but not much else — brought in 7.73m viewers for its debut. Excluding shows that debuted after the Super Bowl, that’s the largest series premiere audience for a CBS show in more than five years (since The Code followed an NCIS episode in April 2019). The ratings. |
Robbie, Elordi to Star in Fennell's 'Wuthering Heights' ►🎭 Heathcliff, it's me, I'm Cathy 🎭 Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi are set to star in Saltburn filmmaker Emerald Fennell's feature adaptation of Wuthering Heights. Robbie is set to play Catherine Earnshaw, while Elordi will portray Heathcliff. MRC has tapped LuckyChap Entertainment to produce the film that is based on author Emily Brontë’s classic novel of the same name. Fennell is writing, directing and producing the project that is currently in preproduction and preparing to shoot in the U.K. later this year. The story.
—Trailblazer. THR's Mia Galuppo has the scoop on pioneering fashion designer and American couturier Ann Lowe getting the biopic treatment at TriStar thanks to Serena Williams and Oscar-winning costume designer Ruth Carter. Sony’s TriStar Pictures acquired the pitch for the project, titled The Dress, about Lowe, one of the country’s most prolific but also least-known couturiers. Lowe, who died in 1981, designed mid-century wardrobes for the biggest names in American society and industry, including members of the Rockefeller, Roosevelt, Du Pont and Whitney families. The story.
—Glowing word of mouth. In a surprise box office upset last weekend, family friendly animated film Transformers One opened behind expectations to lose the Sept. 20-22 race to holdover Beetlejuice Beetlejuice — but there still could be hope. THR's Pamela McClintock looks at a possible path forward for Transformers One, something similar to critical darling Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse back in 2018. The analysis.
—Sold! Sideshow and Janus Films have picked up the U.S. rights to David Cronenberg’s sci-fi drama The Shrouds. The U.S. deal follows a world bow in Cannes, a North American premiere in Toronto and additional play at the New York Film Festival next month. The Shrouds stars Vincent Cassel as Karsh, a businessman overwhelmed with grief at the death of his wife who builds a device — a high-tech shroud — to watch her body decompose in real-time. Sideshow and Janus plan a spring 2025 theatrical release. Sideshow and Janus are also reteaming with body horror director Cronenberg after earlier releases of films like Videodrome and Naked Lunch. The story. |
Oscars: Mexico, Brazil, India and Italy Make Their Picks ►Ready to compete. Mexico has picked Sundance Film Festival winner Sujo to represent the country at the Oscars in the best international feature category. The drama from Identifying Features directors Astrid Rondero and Fernanda Valadez premiered at Sundance this year, where it won the Grand Jury Prize for World Cinema. It is currently doing the festival tour and will screen in San Sebastián and the London Film Festival this fall. The coming-of-age story focuses on the titular Sujo, the son of a small-town cartel sicario who is orphaned when his father is murdered as a traitor. The story.
—Back with a bang. Brazil has picked Walter Salles' I’m Still Here to represent it in the best international feature category, 26 years after Salles scooped an Oscar nom in the same category for his 1998 international breakthrough, Central Station. The film tells the story of the family of Rubens and Eunice Paiva and their experience under the military dictatorship that ruled Brazil from 1964 through 1985. I’m Still Here, which premiered at Venice last month and had its North American bow in Toronto, is Salles’ first Brazilian feature in 16 years and among his most personal works to date. The story.
—Shocker! India has selected Kiran Rao’s comedy of errors Laapataa Ladies to represent the country in the 2025 Oscar race. The Hindi-language film, which premiered at last year’s TIFF, beat out Payal Kapadia’s All We Imagine As Light, which had been considered the frontrunner for the Oscar slot, after its rapturous reception in Cannes, where it won the festival’s coveted Grand Jury prize. But Rao’s feature has proven a crowd-pleaser on the festival circuit. The story.
—Fighting chance. Italy will send Maura Delpero’s WWII drama Vermiglio into the 2025 Oscar race for best international feature. Set in 1944 in the eponymous village of Vermiglio, high in the Italian Alps, the film follows a local family whose lives are disrupted by the arrival of a refugee soldier from the faraway conflict. Vermiglio premiered at the Venice Film Festival last month, where it scooped up the Silver Lion Grand Jury Prize. Sideshow and Janus Films acquired domestic rights for the movie shortly after its North American premiere in Toronto. The story. |
TV Review: 'Penelope' ►"An earnest and wholesomely effective coming-of-age story." THR's chief TV critic Dan Fienberg reviews Netflix's Penelope. Mark Duplass and Mel Eslyn's eight-part series centers on a 16-year-old girl who runs away into a national forest in order to connect with herself by connecting with nature. The review.
In other news...
—Ryan Coogler’s Sinners trailer brings mysterious Michael B. Jordan starrer into focus
—Outer Banks S4 trailer heads for Blackbeard’s Treasure, Netflix reveals mobile game
—Taylor Polidore Williams, Crystle Stewart become entangled in new Beauty in Black trailer from Tyler Perry
—Scott Speedman gets abducted in creepy Teacup trailer
—Florence Pugh leads band of Marvel misfits in first Thunderbolts trailer
—Vengeful warrior Paul Mescal fights for his life in latest Gladiator II trailer
—Isabella Rossellini to receive lifetime achievement honor at European Film Awards
What else we're reading...
—Ryu Spaeth's profile of Ta-Nehisi Coates is the talk of the internet and well-worth a read [Intelligencer]
—Lucas Shaw has a piece on the future of streaming and the three options open to WBD, Comcast and Paramount: bundle, merge or go it alone [Bloomberg]
—Jemima Kelly writes that the great Twitter exodus to Bluesky is creating a liberal/progressive social media echo chamber [FT]
—Max Tani looks at how Tim Miller and The Bulwark became politics YouTube's most unlikely stars of 2024 [Semafor]
—With The Shawshank Redemption celebrates its 30th anniversary this year, Scott Tobias wonders whether it is the greatest film ever made as many all-time lists suggest [Guardian]
Today...
...in 2010, 20th Century Fox released Oliver Stone's Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps in theaters. A sequel to Stone's 1987 classic Wall Street, the followup sees the return of Michael Douglas' Gordon Gekko and takes place around the 2008 financial crisis. The original review.
Today's birthdays: Nia Vardalos (62), Joe Locke (21), Brad Bird (67), Ben Platt (31), John Logan (63), Spencer Treat Clark (37), Jackie Sandler (50), Jessica Lucas (39), Harriet Walter (74), Ian Bohen (48), Yuka Kouri (34), Eloise Mumford (38), Kimberley Nixon (39), Andrew Leeds (43), Sven-Ole Thorsen (80), Kate Fleetwood (52), Megan Ward (55), Grey Damon (37), Lara Jean Chorostecki (40), Elizabeth Bogush (47), Brit Morgan (37), Erin Chambers (45), Ryan Paevey (40), Yetide Badaki (43), Allison McAtee (39), Rosamund Hanson (35), Jaye Griffiths (61), Fernanda Urrejola (43), Clare Foley (23), Coyote Shivers (59), Alex Paxton-Beesley (38) |
| Clifford Bell, the cabaret impresario, director and producer affectionately known as “Lawrence of Cabarabia,” had died. He was 67. The obituary. |
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