| | | | | | What's news: Cassie Ventura is set to testify against her ex-partner Sean “Diddy” Combs. The White Lotus S3 finale brought in 6.2m viewers for HBO. Fremantle has launched a sports division. AMC Networks is developing a Grapes of Wrath series. Madonna and Elton John have finally ended their feud. — Abid Rahman
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Is China Mulling a Hollywood Ban Over Trump's Tariffs? ►Hollywood ban incoming? The U.S. film industry so far has escaped direct retaliation from countries hit by Donald Trump's tariffs, thanks to theatrical releases and streamers being categorized as services rather than physical goods. But Hollywood’s luck in China, the world’s second-largest film market, could soon run out, according to statements issued Tuesday by two influential public figures in the country. The two public figures — one an editor for a state media outlet, the other the son of a former party chief — released identical outlines on Tuesday of countermeasures Chinese authorities are said to be considering in response to Trump's tariffs, and they include a ban on Hollywood movies. The story.
—"We've been moving things around like a chess board on steroids." It was a wild Monday for the likes of CNBC, Fox Business Network, Bloomberg and other financial cable channels as the markets tanked reacting to Trump's tariffs. THR's Tony Maglio spoke to Fox Business anchor Liz Claman about covering one of the craziest days in financial history. The interview.
—Hiring spree. SpinCo made a number of communications hires ahead of Comcast’s spinoff of its cable TV channels. Lauren Skowronski will serve as senior vp of global communications for CNBC, after most recently serving as senior director of communications at Snap Inc. Richard Hudock has been promoted to senior vp of communications for MSNBC. Diana Rocco has been named vp of internal communications for SpinCo, and Hollie Tracz has been named vp of media relations. All four hires will report to SpinCo chief communications officer Keith Cocozza. The story.
—New division. Indie production powerhouse Fremantle is pushing hard into sports content with the launch of a new division, Fremantle Sports, to focus on non-scripted and factual documentaries, as well as digital formats, in the wide world of sporting competition. Owain Walbyoff has been appointed to the new job of director of sports at Fremantle, charged with expanding the company’s sports content offering. The story.
—"He brings not only deep expertise and a great reputation but also a collaborative spirit and strong relationships." Sony Pictures Entertainment has named Jay Levine executive VP, chief strategy officer and head of business operations, overseeing the company’s M&A activities, as well as corporate development and investments. Levine joins Sony from Kevin Hart’s Hartbeat productions, where he had been CEO. Levine joined Hartbeat only a year ago from Warner Bros. He had previously overseen Warners’ corporate development team, and will now do so for another studio, reporting to SPE president and CEO Ravi Ahuja. The story.
—Supine. Mattel, the toymaker behind Barbie whose film arm has major movie ambitions, is backing away from diversity, equity and inclusion disclosures to investors. In a move to avoid winding up in the crosshairs of the Trump administration's campaign against DEI, Mattel scrubbed references tied to boosting diversity at the company. Compared to previous years, when it highlighted its commitment to such initiatives, Mattel omitted DEI resources and goals. The pivot was apparent in investor disclosures filed on April 3 ahead of a shareholder meeting in May. The story. |
Elton John and Madonna End Decades-Long Beef ►"We finally buried the hatchet." Madonna and Elton John appear to have officially ended their notorious decades-long feud. "Over the decades, it hurt me to know that someone I admired so much shared his dislike of me publicly as an artist. I didn’t understand it," Madonna wrote on Instagram, adding that she went to visit John backstage to confront him after he had performed on Saturday Night Live alongside Brandi Carlile. Madonna wrote that they ended their beef backstage. The feud dates back to the early 2000s, and was mainly instigated by the “Rocket Man” singer after he had thrown barbs about Madonna’s James Bond theme song for Die Another Day. The story.
—"Prepared to testify under her own name." Cassie Ventura is set to testify against her ex-partner Sean “Diddy” Combs at his upcoming trial and will not take the stand as “Victim 1” but will use her name when she tells the court of her relationship with the rap mogul as he defends himself against federal sex trafficking and racketeering charges. Ventura and three other alleged victims are set to testify in court at Combs’ trial. In a Friday motion submitted by the prosecution, federal attorneys told the court that the witness listed as “Victim-1” will no longer be testifying anonymously during the New York trial, which is set to begin May 5. Combs faces five counts on three charges of racketeering, sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion and transportation to engage in prostitution. He has pleaded not guilty. The story.
—"It’s time to read the fucking room." J.K. Rowling is once again taking issue with John Oliver, who addressed right-wing outrage over trans athletes who compete in women’s and girls’ sporting events on Sunday’s episode of Last Week Tonight. On Monday, the Harry Potter author again shared her thoughts on the subject and criticized Oliver’s take on X. In response, Rowling wrote: “I understand why men like Oliver, who’ve consistently mocked anti-science people on the right, sold out initially. They didn’t want to blow up their careers. Taking fashionable anti-women’s rights positions was the cost of doing business. But it’s time to read the fucking room.” The story. |
De Niro, Herzog Set for Lifetime Honors at Cannes and Venice ►🏆 Félicitations! 🏆 Robert De Niro will be honored with an honorary Palme d’Or for lifetime achievement at the opening ceremony of the 78th Festival de Cannes. De Niro will be honored on May 13, marking 14 years after the two-time Oscar-winning served as president of the Cannes jury in 2011. In addition to receiving the honorary Palme d’Or during the opening ceremony, De Niro will participate in a masterclass for festival attendees on May 14, at the Debussy Theatre. The story.
—🏆 Congratulazioni! 🏆 Legendary German filmmaker Werner Herzog will be honored with a Golden Lion lifetime achievement award at this year’s Venice Film Festival. The Fitzcarraldo and Grizzly Man director will be honored at the 82nd Venice International Film Festival, which runs Aug. 27-Sept. 6. "I feel deeply honored to receive a Lifetime Achievement Honorary Golden Lion by the Venice Biennale. I have always tried to be a Good Soldier of Cinema, and this feels like a medal for my work," Herzog said in a statement. "However, I have not gone into retirement. I work as always." The story.
—An honor for Tom, too. Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning is headed to the Cannes Film Festival. The film will screen out of competition on May 14, with Tom Cruise, director and screenwriter Christopher McQuarrie and the rest of the film’s cast walking up the steps of the Palais des Festivals for a launch in the Grand Theatre Lumiere. The story. |
THR Critics: 'White Lotus' Finale Was a Downer. Was It Also a Series Low Point? ►"Most of my favorite vacations haven’t had closure, either narrative resolutions or happy endings." The Thailand-set chapter of Mike White's anthology series The White Lotus closed with dramatic deaths and a lot of resolutions in an episode that's probably more rewarding to think about than it was to watch, say THR TV critics Daniel Fienberg and Angie Han. Warning: Spoilers! The critics' conversation.
—Boffo! The super-sized, incident-filled season three finale of The White Lotus set yet another ratings mark for the series. The 90-minute episode brought in 6.2m cross-platform viewers, a first-night record for the show. It grew by 29 percent from the previous episode’s 4.8m viewers — which had been the previous high mark, surpassing the 4.2m for the week before that. As the finale is the show’s biggest episode to date, it naturally topped previous editions in viewers. Sunday’s installment was about 50 percent larger than the season two closer in December 2022, which drew 4.1m viewers on its first night, and it more than tripled the first season finale’s 1.9m. The ratings.
—Returning for season four? While Jon Gries is the most likely to be back for the next installment of The White Lotus, the season three stars have ideas for other returnees, including Natasha Rothwell's Belinda and Leslie Bibb's Kate, with one suggestion for an all-star season. Warning: Spoilers! The story.
—"It was great fun being part of Mike White’s traveling circus." For THR, Josh Wigler spoke to The White Lotus season three murder victim, who unpacks the final episode and reveals the secret dying word you never heard. Warning: Spoilers! The interview.
—"There was this beautiful scene with Rick and Chelsea that didn’t make it into the final episode." THR's Lacey Rose spoke to White Lotus star Aimee Lou Wood about the season three finale. Wood can finally talk about her character’s fate, and the heartache that accompanied it as well as scenes involving her character that were cut. Warning: Spoilers! The interview.
—Things we're still wondering. From a missed Victoria Ratliff opportunity to a Saxon and Lochlan gripe, THR's James Hibberd points out a few things that were left hanging from Sunday's episode of The White Lotus. Warning: Spoilers! The story. |
AMC to Develop 'Grapes of Wrath' Series ►Recession indicator. AMC Networks announced it is developing a new TV franchise produced by AMC Studios and “built on iconic American stories.” Up first: John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath. “Each season of the anthology series will be devoted to a different celebrated work, historical moment, or individual narrative celebrating and highlighting the American spirit,” the company said. The Great American Stories anthology will air on the AMC cable channel and stream on AMC’s primary streaming service (out of a bunch), AMC+. Rolin Jones, showrunner on Anne Rice’s Interview with the Vampire, will take on Grapes and then “manage the franchise” from there, “working with acclaimed creative talent connected to individual seasons,” per AMC. The story.
—Upfront pitch. In addition to a new anthology series, on Monday AMC Networks' Acorn TV ordered a Brooke Shields-starring mystery, a horror reality show, and a partnership with the Sphere in Las Vegas. Allie & Andi is a crime drama starring Shields, who plays a crime novelist who partners with a writer to solve the murder of her friend. The company has ordered a new unscripted series for Shudder and AMC+ called Guts & Glory from Walking Dead special effects artist Greg Nicotero, thrusting participants into immersive horror-themed challenges. For this year, AMC Networks is partnering with the Sphere (another company that shares common ownership with the Dolan family), on this year’s "Sphere of Fear." The story.
—Go fourth. Mike Birbiglia will return to Netflix for his next stand-up special. The comedian’s latest set, Mike Birbiglia: The Good Life, is set to premiere May 26 on the streamer. The special will be Birbiglia’s fourth at Netflix (and sixth of his career), coming about 18 months after 2023’s Emmy-nominated The Old Man and the Pool. As is usually the case with a Birbiglia set, The Good Life will combine jokes and storytelling as the comedian talks about his father suffering a stroke and how that led Birbiglia to re-evaluate his own ideas about fatherhood. The story. |
'Minecraft' Success Gives WB Execs an Extra Life ►"This is what happens when we believe in the power of our creativity, each other, and the strength of great storytelling." Warner Bros. and Legendary’s A Minecraft Movie bested already high expectations at the weekend box office to earn a massive $162.7m domestically and more than $313m in worldwide ticket sales in its opening weekend. After a string of underperforming titles — and a rumor mill that has been churning since the top of the year about Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy’s fate at Warners — Minecraft is the type of win that should silence critics. In a memo to Warner Bros Discovery staff, De Luca and Abdy took a deserved victory lap and touted the success of the movie. The story.
—🎭 Elbows up 🎭 Ed Helms, Paulina Alexis and Jana Schmieding have joined the cast of sports feature Smudge the Blades from writer-director Cody Lightning. Production recently began in Edmonton, Canada, with the film aiming to hit the 2026 festival circuit. Smudge the Blades centers on the Treaty 6 Blades, an under-18 reservation hockey team hoping to make the most of the members’ final year of eligibility amid their violent league in northern Alberta. Samuel Miller co-wrote the script with Lightning. The story.
—🤝 Sold! 🤝 Samuel Goldwyn Films has picked up North American rights to Jonny Campbell’s sci-fi comedy Cold Storage from production/sales group Studiocanal. Joe Keery, Georgina Campbell, and Sosie Bacon star in the feature, alongside Vanessa Redgrave, Lesley Manville, and Liam Neeson. Campbell directed Cold Storage from a script by David Koepp based on his debut novel, with Koepp producing together with Zombieland and Panic Room producer Gavin Polone. The story. |
TV Review: 'The Last of Us' S2 ►"A gripping, if not totally satisfying, middle chapter." THR's Angie Han reviews season two of HBO's The Last of Us. Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey are joined by newcomers Catherine O'Hara, Isabela Merced and Kaitlyn Dever in a fresh chapter that picks up five years after the last finale. The review.
In other news...
—Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning trailer: Tom Cruise hangs off airplane
—Wes Anderson’s The Phoenician Scheme trailer: Benicio del Toro plays a bloodied arms dealer
—Finneas and Kacey Musgraves team up on dainty duet of "Giver/Taker"
—Arista Records president David Massey to retire
What else we're reading...
—Annie Lowrey finds the places where the Trump recession has already begun [Atlantic]
—James Bartlet talks to Gary Archer, Hollywood’s top special-effects dentist who has made some of the most famous gnashers ever seen on screen [Guardian]
—Alexandra Scaggs investigates Walter Bloomberg, a random blue check X account that caused the markets to whipsaw by trillions of dollars in a matter of minutes on Monday [FT]
—Anniek Bao reports that China says it will "fight to the end" after Trump threatens 50 percent additional tariffs on the country [CNBC]
—Anna Cooban reports that the billionaire oligarchs are turning on Trump after the tariff omnishambles [CNN]
Today...
...in 1964, Paramount unveiled Audrey Hepburn and William Holden starrer Paris When It Sizzles in theaters. The original review.
Today's birthdays: Patricia Arquette (57), Robin Wright (59), Taylor Kitsch (44), Katee Sackhoff (45), Ana de la Reguera (48), Paola Núñez (47), Sung Kang (53), Craig Mazin (54), Dean Norris (62), Arienne Mandi (31), Gerardo Celasco (43), Emma Caulfield Ford (52), John Schneider (65), Anna Osceola (37), Taran Noah Smith (41), Sadie Calvano (28), Shelby Young (33), Gabriella Wilde (36), JR Bourne (55), Levy Tran (42), Joe Bird (18), Kirsten Storms (41), Stuart Pankin (79), Kane Hodder (70), Skai Jackson (23), Ty Panitz (26), Rachel Roberts (47), Sophie Grace (19), Evan Mock (28), John Madden (76), Dorian Brown Pham (46), Jim Piddock (69), Bailey Gavulic (27), Leif Gantvoort (53), Jacqueline Pinol (46), Michael Spound (68), Stephanie Cayo (37) |
| Clem Burke, famed drummer for Blondie, died Sunday. He was 70. The obituary. |
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