What's news: The coronavirus pandemic will take a severe financial toll on Hollywood, Disney gets downgraded, Frozen 2 getting an early premiere on Disney+, TV studios shut down production, the Masters is canceled but UFC is on (for now), TV ratings on the rise, and on a lighter note, a tale from the Bloodshot press junket. --Alex Weprin

 Hollywood Facing 11-Figure Financial Hit

President Trump declared the COVID-19 pandemic a national emergency on Friday. Meanwhile, the film business braces itself...

►Hollywood could take $20 billion hit from coronavirus impact. The dust is far from settling on the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic, write Tatiana Siegel, Borys Kit and Lesley Goldberg. But early estimates indicate that the blow will be unlike anything Hollywood has experienced before and losses will well eclipse the eleven-figure mark, even if conditions remain the same instead of taking a turn for the worse. The story.

►Box Office: Movies brace for tough weekend amid coronavirus pandemic. Early projections show Disney and Pixar's family animated film Onward staying at No. 1 in its second weekend with $15 million to $16 million. That would mark a decline of as much 60 percent, a steep drop-off for most Pixar titles (The Good Dinosaur fell 59 percent).

--So far, the trio of new films opening nationwide this weekend — I Still Believe, Bloodshot and The Hunt — are all projected to open behind expectations, albeit to varying degrees. The story.

►Disney suspends film production amid coronavirus concerns. The movies affected include those that were days from starting and those already underway. The live-action remake of The Little Mermaid, which was nine days away from shooting in London, is among the big productions being delayed. Peter Pan & Wendy as well as Shrunk, a sequel to 1980s classic Honey, I Shrunk the Kids, both in pre-production, are also delayed. The story.

+Frozen 2 to get an early premiere on Disney+. The family film will be available on the platform beginning March 15, three months ahead of schedule.

+Quote: 'Frozen 2 has captivated audiences around the world through its powerful themes of perseverance and the importance of family, messages that are incredibly relevant during this time, and we are pleased to be able to share this heartwarming story early with our Disney+ subscribers to enjoy at home on any device,” said Disney CEO Bob Chapek in a statement. The story.

+Disney analyst cuts earnings estimates on coronavirus. "COVID-19 is having a disproportionately negative impact on Disney's three largest profit centers," Needham analyst Laura Martin wrote in a Friday report entitled "Maybe Magic, But Not Lucky." "As of last night, Disney will close all its theme parks globally; the NCAA, NBA, MLB, MLS and NHL canceled or postponed their seasons and ESPN is the largest aggregator of sports programming; and many film openings (including Disney's Mulan) are postponed, which adds competition upon ultimate release and writes off marketing spending to date." The story.

+A long line of guests patiently waited to enter Disneyland one more time Friday before its temporary shutdown due to the coronavirus.

►How travel restrictions could boost Hollywood production in Canada. With the Canadian dollar tumbling to a four-year low below 72 cents this week, compared to the American greenback, could be a boon for Hollywood North as major studios and streamers eye even greater currency savings on top of tax breaks when producing in Canada. And that's especially true if Los Angeles producers don't have to leave North America, as the U.S. suspends flights from certain international regions. The story.

►SXSW revives film competition digitally after festival cancellation. Festival organizers said Friday that the juried awards scheduled for this year's festival will still take place, with jury members viewing submissions via links. All the feature films selected for SXSW this year are eligible for the Independent Spirit Awards next year, while the winners of the animated, documentary and narrative short film categories are eligible for Oscars next year. More.

►Cinemas shut down across Europe over coronavirus concerns. Several cinema chains in Spain shut their doors, France tightens restrictions and multiple cities in Germany shut theaters — while Denmark, Norway and Greece join Italy and Poland in a total movie lockdown. The story.

+France's cinemas are planning to stay open, despite new government regulations aimed at slowing the spread of coronavirus that ban gatherings of more than 100 people.

+North American theaters cut capacity: Canadian exhibition giant Cineplex has cut its seating capacity nationwide by half to help protect guests from possible COVID-19 infection... AMC Theatres, the largest chain stateside, as well as Regal Cinemas, said that they are cutting seating capacity by half in all locations in the U.S. and Canada. Cinemark is also reducing capacity in California, and is likely to follow suit in other locales, akin to AMC and Regal, according to insiders...

TV production continues to shut down...



^Netflix, Apple, Disney, Warners, NBCUniversal and CBS/Showtime have all paused production on nearly all of their shows and pilots. Here's THR's exhaustive guide to what's on hiatus. Meanwhile, many writer's rooms are trying to figure out ways to work remotely.

►Walking Dead writers were already prepared for global pandemic. "We're well set up to work remotely," showrunner Angela Kang tells THR. "I'm a tech head. We do video conferences regularly. On a normal basis, I'm very stringent about, 'If you're sick, don't come into the office.' The other day, I was on the phone and in meetings from 9AM to 7PM, all day straight. I did Skype, I did FaceTime, I did Zoom, I did remote reviewing of VFX. We are very well set up to work remotely. That's been fine for us." The story.

+Here's a look at what happened on the late night shows, which taped without an audience Thursday night. All will be shuttered starting next week.

+Joy Behar said that she will take some time away from The View. The longtime co-host said she is staying home until further notice because she is "in a higher risk group because of my age, but I’m perfectly healthy."

►Jorge Ramos on dropping out of debate over coronavirus fear. "It was a very difficult decision but it was the right one," he told THR's Jeremy Barr. "Especially in times like these. Too much is at stake." Ramos confirmed that he's asymptomatic. "I am feeling perfectly fine and the doctors are confident I will be OK," he said. The interview.

 Fallout, Cont'd

In sports...

+The Masters Tournament will be postponed due to the coronavirus outbreak, Augusta National Golf Club announced Friday. The classic tournament was to take place April 9-12.

+Despite mounting coronavirus concerns, the UFC will continue on with its scheduled live events. According to the organization's president, Dana White, President Donald Trump encouraged him not to cancel any upcoming fights.

+NASCAR and IndyCar both reversed course Friday and pulled the plug on racing this weekend, with IndyCar suspending its season through the end of April due to concerns over the COVID-19 pandemic.

+The Boston Marathon has been postponed until autumn.

►And more: Los Angeles Fashion Week will be rescheduled for a later date... The Hot Docs Festival has been postponed... Film students work through restrictions caused by coronavirus... The Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences told staff to avoid its facilities for the time being... Museums around the L.A. area are being shut down....

Here's the rest of the day's news...

►Broadcast TV ratings rise: Broadcast TV viewing was up across the board Thursday, possibly because more viewers stayed in as a precaution against the coronavirus outbreak.

--Nearly every show on the five English-language networks grew its audience vs. a week ago, and as a whole the five networks averaged about 7 percent more primetime viewers (17.56 million vs. 16.45 million) and grew by 11 percent in adults 18-49 (2.9 rating vs. 2.7). That runs counter to the usual pattern this time of year, when ratings tend to dip following the start of daylight saving time. The numbers.

►Tupac Shakur estate, Soundgarden leave Universal fire class action. In June, UMG was sued on behalf of five artists whose master recordings were feared to have been destroyed in the 2008 fire on Universal's backlot: Soundgarden, Tupac Shakur, Tom Petty, Hole and Steve Earle. Now, only Jane Petty and Earle remain as plaintiffs. Discovery is ongoing with regard to their claims and the parties on March 6 filed a joint motion urging the court to rule on UMG's pending motion to dismiss the complaint, which was taken under submission following a hearing in November. The story.



^Vin Diesel has left the building. Aaron Couch shares a tale from one of the last press junkets before Hollywood shut down: Bloodshot, starring Vin Diesel.

Quote: "I grab my book and take a seat in the hallway, where things are more interesting. Diesel's publicist and team are concerned. Interviews are running behind, and they seem worried about how long they can keep the actor's attention. The lead publicist holds a piece of paper with a list of all the interviews they have committed Diesel to. The publicist doesn't want to cut anyone who is here in person, but cuts must be made, because dear God they need to get out of there by 8:30." The reporter's notebook.

►Video Game companies search for marketing alternatives after E3 shutters. While some are exploring alternative options for game exhibition and to share news, others are launching digital events to celebrate the game industry in this uncertain time. More.

+U.S. video game spending up in February, but still way down from 2019. Overall spending across video game hardware, software and accessories in the U.S. was down 29 percent in February to $755 million when compared year-over-year to 2019, the NPD Group reports. The number, however, is a tick up from January's $678 million. More.

+Nintendo of America is working with public health authorities after an employee in its Redmond, Washington, offices tested positive for the coronavirus. "We have determined that the individual had contact with other employees and we have notified those employees to the situation," the company said in a statement to THR on Friday. "All impacted employees are now self-quarantining, whether they are experiencing symptoms or not." More.

Revolving door: Longtime executive Jonathan Berg has joined Greg Silverman’s Stampede Ventures as president of production... Digital-first management firm TalentX has signed with ICM Partners, bringing its 32 clients under the agency's fold... Dana Brunetti and Keegan Rosenberger's Cavalry Media has launched a podcast division to develop, finance and produce audio stories... CAA has signed family friendly YouTube gaming group The Krew...