| | | | | | What's news: Around 300 filmmakers have signed an open letter opposing two Israeli films set to screen in Venice. A24 has acquired U.S. rights to Luca Guadagnino's Queer. Netflix has picked up Pablo Larraín’s Maria. Yelp is suing Google. YES Network and MSG Networks will launch a new app. — Abid Rahman
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Fmovies: Top Movie Piracy Ring Taken Down ►"Powerful deterrent message." An anti-piracy coalition comprised of major studios in the U.S. and across the globe is claiming victory against Fmovies, a significant streaming operation based in Vietnam. On Thursday, the Alliance for Creativity and Entertainment revealed that it had worked with Hanoi police to shutter Fmovies and affiliated sites, which together made up “the largest pirate streaming operation in the world,” according to the organization. With sites including bflixz, flixtorz, movies7, myflixer, and aniwave in addition to Fmovies, the operation attracted more than 6.7b visits between January 2023 and June 2024, ACE says. The story.
—Back in the game. The government’s antitrust victory over Google has cleared the way for a lawsuit against the company from Yelp, a competing online service that lets users find and review local businesses. In a lawsuit filed on Wednesday in federal court in San Francisco, Yelp accuses Google of leveraging its monopoly power in general search to divert people away from local search providers and toward its own offerings. It seeks a court order blocking Google from further engaging in anticompetitive conduct, as well as unspecified monetary damages. The story.
—Expansion. Content Partners LLC — a prominent Hollywood investment firm that buys out backend profit participation from talent and production companies and has amassed a large holding of movie and TV titles — is looking to expand its business. The L.A.-based company, co-founded by Steve Kram and Steven Blume, is launching a credit investing division titled Content Partners Capital led by film finance veteran Alphonse Lordo, who joined in January. The new division’s first deal will provide debt financing to entertainment investor Michael Lambert’s Media Capital Technologies, which pacted with Lionsgate to back its features slate. The story.
—Heading north. James Huntsman’s Blue Fox Entertainment, the indie film distribution and sales company, has hired Dave Hudakoc and Ian Goggins to open a Canadian office just in time for the Toronto Film Festival, which gets underway Sept. 5. Former levelFILM co-founder Dave Hudakoc will lead Blue Fox Canada as president and partner, while Ian Goggins, former executive vp of global home entertainment at Entertainment One, joins as executive vp. The story. |
Nikki Glaser to Host Golden Globes ►"This is truly a dream job." Nikki Glaser will host the 82nd annual Golden Globes in January. The popular comedian and scathing celebrity roaster is having a banner year after the release of her HBO special Someday You'll Die and stealing the show at Netflix's The Roast of Tom Brady. Glaser follows Jo Koy as host, who had something of a nightmare during the 81st edition of the awards. The Globes will air Sunday, Jan. 5, on CBS, and stream on Paramount+ for Paramount+ With Showtime subscribers. The story.
—Frightening claims. The thwarted terrorist attack on a Taylor Swift Eras Tour concert in Vienna earlier this month was intended “to kill a huge number, tens of thousands of people,” including Americans, according to the deputy director of the CIA. At the annual Intelligence Summit just outside Washington, D.C., on Wednesday, David S. Cohen shared an update on the investigation into the planned terrorist plot earlier this month, which resulted in the pop star canceling all her shows in Austria’s capital. The story.
—"I can’t afford the gas anymore." Armie Hammer is trading in his beloved truck for a “tiny” hybrid as he returns to Los Angeles to start a “new life.” The actor took to social media to share a video from a California CarMax, in which he shared he’s been back in Los Angeles for a couple of weeks, after retreating to the Cayman Islands following allegations of 'cannibalism' against the actor. The story.
—"Grief never ends." Lupita Nyong’o remembered her Black Panther co-star, Chadwick Boseman, on the fourth anniversary of his tragic death. Nyong’o took to social media on Wednesday to share two photos of the actor and included a quote by an unknown author in the caption of her post: “Grief never ends. But it changes. It is a passage, not a place to stay. Grief is not a sign of weakness, nor a lack of faith. It’s the price of love.” Boseman died at age 43 from colon cancer in 2020, which he had been diagnosed with four years before he died. He had never spoken publicly about his diagnosis. The story.
—Weapon charge. Rapper Lil Baby has reportedly been released from custody on bond in Las Vegas after he was arrested on Monday morning for carrying a concealed weapon without a permit. The 29-year-old Atlanta-born rapper, whose legal name is Dominique Armani Jones, was taken into custody on a suspicion of carrying a concealed weapon charge while on the north end of the Las Vegas Strip. His attorneys released a statement indicating that they are unclear why Jones would be arrested on the weapons charge when he has a valid permit in his home state to carry a concealed weapon. The story. |
A24 Acquires Luca Guadagnino's 'Queer' ►Snapped up! A24 has acquired the U.S. distribution rights to Queer, director Luca Guadagnino's new film starring Daniel Craig. The announcement comes ahead of the movie’s world premiere at the Venice Film Festival. The film also stars Drew Starkey, Lesley Manville, Jason Schwartzman, Andra Ursuta, Michael Borremans and David Lowery. Queer, adapted from William S. Burroughs’s novel of the same name, is set in 1950s Mexico City. It follows an American ex-pat in his late 40s who lives a solitary life, but his life is turned upside down when a young man arrives in town. The story.
—Sold! Netflix has picked up Pablo Larraín’s Maria, which stars Angelina Jolie as famed opera singer Maria Callas. The move comes ahead of the film’s world premiere in Venice on Aug. 29. Following its debut on the Lido, it will stream on Netflix at an undisclosed date. Based on true accounts, the film Maria will tell the tumultuous, beautiful and tragic story of the life of the world’s greatest opera singer, relived and reimagined during her final days in 1970s Paris. The story.
—🎭 Back on the big screen 🎭 Gwyneth Paltrow will join Timothée Chalamet in A24’s Marty Supreme, to be directed by Josh Safdie from an original screenplay he co-wrote with Ronald Bronstein. The Oscar winner is making a big-screen return after last appearing in Avengers: Endgame in 2019. Plot details remain under wraps, but while it was previously rumored to be loosely inspired by a pro ping-pong player, the movie is said to be a fictionalized original film. The story.
—"I think the thing was for me I didn’t want to just tick any boxes." Tim Burton has explained Alec Baldwin and Geena Davis' absence from his Beetlejuice sequel. Though Burton brought back original stars Winona Ryder, Catherina O’Hara and Michael Keaton for Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, his 2024 follow-up to the 1988 classic, Baldwin and Davis do not return. In a new interview, Burton said "even though they were such an amazing integral part of the first one, I was focusing on something else." The story. |
ESPN Signs 12-Year Deal With USTA ►🤝 Longest-term agreement 🤝 ESPN and the United States Tennis Association have signed a new 12-year agreement, which will see the sports network as the exclusive rights holder of the US Open in the U.S. through 2037. The deal starts in 2026 and will also make ESPN the home for the US Open in Latin America, the Caribbean and Canada on TSN and RDS. The deal includes a number of notable provisions for ESPN, including expanded streaming rights, a critical strategic goal ahead of next year’s “flagship” streaming service launch. ESPN will also secure whip-around coverage, enabling it to do a RedZone or Gold Zone-style program on ESPN+. The story.
—Much more Bill. Former New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick is going to be a regular on ESPN over the coming football season. Belichick has inked deals with Peyton Manning’s Omaha Productions to host a new show on ESPN called The Breakdown, and will appear on the Monday Night Football “Manningcast” on ESPN2 during the first half of the game; And in a deal with The Pat McAfee Show, Belichick will appear every Monday to talk about that week’s games. The story.
—🤝 Unity 🤝 In a move that shakes up the business models for regional sports networks in the biggest TV market in the country, YES Network and MSG Networks will launch a new app called The Gotham Sports App that brings together all of their live games and programming under one umbrella. YES — the TV home of The New York Yankees and Brooklyn Nets — and MSG Networks — the home of the New York Knicks and Rangers, as well as the Islanders, Devils and Sabres — will launch the app this fall prior to the debut of the NBA and NHL seasons. The story.
—Golden era. The BBC will air a new series on the boy band mania of the 1990s and 2000s featuring interviews with Take That's Robbie Williams, Westlife’s Brian McFadden, and music mogul Simon Cowell. Boybands Forever, a three-episode series, will release later in 2024. Produced by Mindhouse Productions and from producer/husband-and-wife pair Louis Theroux and Nancy Strang, the show will dive into pop culture in the ’90s and ’00s, looking at the success of some of the U.K. and Ireland’s most celebrated pop stars. The story. |
Venice Kicks Off With 'Beetlejuice 2,' Tribute to Sigourney Weaver ►"She's way overdue for that Oscar!" After a year when Hollywood strikes stripped festival red carpets of their stars, the 81st Venice Film Festival marked a return to oh-so-glamorous from Wednesday night with an A-list opening night. The Venice fans, many of whom spent up to 10 hours in the searing Italian heat for a glimpse, rarely stopped screaming as one star after the other shimmied past the paparazzi and into the Sala Grande for the opening night ceremony, and world premiere of Tim Burton’s Beetlejuice Beetlejuice. Sigourney Weaver received a lifetime achievement Golden Lion award and praise from her Avatar and Aliens director James Cameron. The recap.
—"No Artwashing." Around 300 filmmakers have signed an open letter opposing two Israeli films set to screen in Venice. The protest by filmmakers and artists amid the ongoing Israel-Gaza conflict is aimed at Dani Rosenberg’s Hebrew-language film Al Klavim Veanashim (Of Dogs and Men), which is set against the backdrop of the Oct. 7 terror attacks in southern Israel, and Amos Gitai’s Why War. The latter stars Irène Jacob, Mathieu Amalric, Micha Lescot and Jérôme Kircher and is set for a world premiere on Aug. 31 out of competition. The story.
—"I’m worried about the things everyone is worried about — whether cinema can continue to survive — because it’s very weak now." French screen icon Isabelle Huppert, president of Venice's main competition jury, took the stage Wednesday afternoon to share her thoughts on how she will approach her role as the event’s de facto artistic judge-in-chief. The gathering was marked by a triumphant tone from Venice artistic director Alberto Barbera, who sat by Huppert’s side and noted that his glamorous Italian festival will feature more big-name stars on its red carpet over the coming week than in any year of recent memory. The story. |
Film Review: 'Beetlejuice Beetlejuice' ►"A director with a love for the macabre finds new life in death." THR's chief film critic David Rooney reviews Tim Burton's Beetlejuice Beetlejuice. Winona Ryder, Michael Keaton, Catherine O’Hara, Jenna Ortega and Justin Theroux star in the Venice Film Festival opener, a sequel to the 1988 horror comedy about a renegade “bio-exorcist” liberated from the afterlife. The review.
—"The franchise's most interesting development since The Sarah Connor Chronicles." THR's chief TV critic Dan Fienberg reviews Netflix's Terminator Zero. André Holland and Timothy Olyphant lead the voice cast of an eight-episode anime adventure that moves the sci-fi action — past, present and future — to Tokyo. The review.
—"Good ideas, flimsy follow-through." Dan reviews Netflix's Kaos. Charlie Covell (The End of the F***ing World) brings together bickering gods, striving humans and the Orpheus and Eurydice journey into the Underworld for an eight-episode dark comedy starring Jeff Goldblum, Janet McTeer, Cliff Curtis and David Thewlis. The review.
—"Plays to the head, but misses the heart." Dan reviews Errol Morris' Separated. The Fog of War and Thin Blue Line filmmaker explores the origins and execution of the notorious family separation border policy enacted by the Trump administration. The review.
—"A CliffsNotes version of the president's life and times." THR's Stephen Farber reviews Sean McNamara's Reagan. Dennis Quaid, Jon Voight, Mena Suvari and Penelope Ann Miller star in the biopic directed by the Soul Surfer filmmaker, which hits all the major events of the former president's life and career. The review.
In other news...
—Apartment 7A trailer: Julia Garner senses evil forces in Rosemary’s Baby prequel film
—Kristen Bell and Adam Brody fall for each other in trailer for rom-com series Nobody Wants This
—Horror anthology V/H/S/ Beyond reveals first trailer
—Tyler Perry’s The Six Triple Eight teaser: Kerry Washington leads WWII women’s army corps unit
—The Shadow Strays: Netflix unveils teaser trailer, premiere date for Timo Tjahjanto’s action film
—Cate Blanchett and a giant brain star in trailer for Guy Maddin's Rumours
—London Film Festival unveils 11 competition titles
—Black Girls Rock! Awards reveal new taping date
—TikTok star Anthony “Tony” Dawson signs with CAA
—Matthew and Camila McConaughey celebrate Labor Day in new pantsless ad
What else we're reading...
—Kyle Buchanan talks to Emilia Pérez star Karla Sofía Gascón, the trans actress who could make Oscar history [NYT]
—James Sillars reports that the Oasis reunion tour will be a huge, much-needed, boost to the U.K. economy [Sky News]
—Alex Abad-Santos tries to explain why Love Is Blind: UK is so, so different from the toxic cynical mess the U.S. version has become [Vox]
—Kyle Chayka posits that "no show charts the streaming industry’s decline in inspiration quite like Emily in Paris" [New Yorker]
—Esther Zuckerman spoke to Winona Ryder, who reveals she was "terrified" about returning to the Beetlejuice universe [LAT]
Today...
...in 1933, MGM’s star-studded big-screen adaptation of Dinner at Eight, directed by George Cukor, made its world premiere in New York. The original review.
Today's birthdays: Carla Gugino (53), Rebecca De Mornay (65), Elliott Gould (86), Lea Michele (38), Nicole Byer (38), Tom Six (51), Karl Austen (60), Emily Hampshire (43), Jen Landon (41), Charlotte Ritchie (35), Dante Basco (49), Deborah Van Valkenburgh (72), John Hensley (47), Jay Ryan (43), Beth Dover (46), Lenny Henry (66), Saadet Aksoy (41), Laura Ashley Samuels (34), Jason Spisak (51), Minami Hamabe (24), Lauren Collins (38), William Levy (44), Candis Cayne (53), Émilie Dequenne (43), Stacey Travis (60), Juan Diego Botto (49), Dina Spybey-Waters (59), Erika Harlacher (34), Lycia Naff (62), Courtney Stodden (30), Nicole Gale Anderson (34), John Lacy (59), Toni Kalem (68) |
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