What's news: AMC Theatres brings back 15-cent prices for a U.S. relaunch. Plus: A legal update in the writers vs. agencies standoff, a new Nielsen look at the streaming landscape, an uncertain future for TikTok creators, and an epic battle over movie props. — Erik Hayden

 The Streaming Battlefield

New Nielsen report: Disney+ has made inroads into becoming part of consumers' streaming habits, but the platform has a ways to go to catch its more established rivals, Rick Porter writes: 

+ Netflix is by far the largest of the group, accounting for 34 percent of streaming time, per Nielsen's figures. YouTube ranks second at 20 percent, followed by Hulu (also controlled by Disney) at 11 percent. All other streaming platforms — including Apple TV+, CBS All Access and niche services — together made up 23 percent of time spent. Disney+ accounted for 4 percent of streaming usage. Full story. 

Elsewhere in TV...

► CBS brings on advisory group for crime and legal shows. The studio has inked a deal with 21CP Solutions, which works with cities to design public safety initiatives. CBS Studios produces 11 crime or legal dramas, including the NCIS franchise, Blue Bloods and The Good Fight. Details.

+ Tough as Nails renewed. CBS has handed out a speedy second-season renewal for the reality competition series from The Amazing Race's Phil Keoghan. Averaging 4.23M viewers.

► Fox Entertainment loses head of casting. Tess Sanchez, who has been with the company for more than a decade, has departed. Sources say Sanchez's deal was up and she wanted to leave rather than re-up.

*New Kareem Abdul-Jabbar column: TV series such as Ultimate Beastmaster and American Ninja Warrior have been incredibly popular during the pandemic but are wildly divergent in their depiction of female athletes — with real-world consequences. Story.*

► Apple orders Harriet the Spy animated series. Beanie Feldstein, Jane Lynch and Lacey Chabert will lead the voice cast of the series from The Jim Henson Co. The show will be written by Will McRobb. Story.

► Netflix's Avatar: The Last Airbender series loses creators. Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko say that they came to believe their vision for the show wasn't being supported and they exited.

► Peacock orders YA drama series One of Us Is Lying. Dario Madrona, co-creator of Netflix breakout Elite, will executive produce and serve as showrunner of the show, originally developed for E!

New Feinberg Forecast: Scott's first read of the Emmys race after the nominations were unveiled includes Succession, Ozark, The Crown and Killing Eve leading the way in the best drama race. 

 An Epic Battle Over Stolen Movie Props

The Memorabilia King vs. the Studio Detective: Back when the entertainment world was just getting wise to the value of their on-set assets, an LAPD cop embarked on a hunt for the man he claims led a sophisticated theft ring. Gary Baum's latest: 

+ David Elkouby's Trouble began with a missing gun, but since he deals in Hollywood memorabilia, it was a movie prop. Mr. Freeze's light-up cryogenics blaster, wielded by Arnold Schwarzenegger, had disappeared from the Warner Bros. set of Batman & Robin in the fall of 1996... Full feature. 

Elsewhere...

► Florida to open COVID-19 test center at Disney World. The testing site is set to open Thursday in Osceola County at Disney's main gate office complex near Animal Kingdom. Details.

► AMC Theatres plans 15-cent movie tickets for U.S. relaunch. The largest domestic circuit, shuttered during the coronavirus pandemic, expects to open around 100 American theaters. 1920 prices.

► Studios ramp up virtual production efforts. Amid the pandemic, companies are aiming to "limit the number of actors and on-set crew required" by increasingly turning to VFX techniques.

► Blumhouse reteams with Elisabeth Moss. Following The Invisible Man, the actress and her Love and Squalor Pictures banner are developing the upcoming book Mrs. March into a feature film. The plot.

► Paramount options YA fantasy novel Caster. The 2019 book will be co-developed and produced by Scholastic Entertainment, Josephson Entertainment and Akiva Goldsman's Weed Road Pictures. Story. 

► TKO Studios, Macro team with Roxane Gay to adapt graphic novel. The author will adapt for screen her novel The Banks, which tells the story of three generations of female master thieves involved in a heist.

► Sony Pictures to host drive-in screenings on lot. The studio plans to host socially distant drive-in screenings of classic titles like Ghostbusters and The Karate Kid on its studio lot in Culver City. Begins Aug. 14. 

► Jill Scott set to play Mahalia Jackson in biopic. The singer has signed on to topline Mahalia! playing the queen of gospel Mahalia Jackson, a project exec produced by Jamie Foxx and Queen Latifah. Story.

Heat Vision update: memories behind Scott Pilgrim vs. the World. As the cult hit turns ten, director Edgar Wright and stars Michael Cera and Aubrey Plaza recall the intense training, the mix-ups and the joy that went into the film. Story. 

 "The Worst Is Behind Us"

In the latest financial quarter, entertainment giants' earnings reports revealed pain from the pandemic, but CEOs tried to focus on bright spots, Georg Szalai writes: 

+  After slamming the brakes in April, marketers have re-engaged, boosting ad pricing, Macquarie Capital analyst Tim Nollen notes. Guggenheim Securities analyst Michael Morris calculates that second-quarter ad revenue for the media giants he covers dropped 31.3 percent I Full chart.

Legal briefs...

► Writers vs. Agencies in court. Having recently scored agreements with UTA and ICM that include a stipulation to end packaging fee practices by 2022, the WGA convinced a California federal judge on Wednesday to allow it to proceed with legal claims against CAA and WME. Story.

► Walking Dead update. Frank Darabont and CAA may finally get their shot at going to trial and winning hundreds of millions of dollars from AMC in 2021. Story. 

In THR, Esq: Starz v. MGM. Last summer, a Starz employee saw Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure was available on Amazon Prime. That's what the company says put it on notice that MGM had been violating the terms of their exclusive library deals and prompted it to sue for copyright infringement.

 TikTok's Uncertain Future

Creators are looking to other platforms like Triller and newly launched Instagram Reels, amid privacy concerns and an impending ban by the Trump administration, Natalie Jarvey reports: 

+ There are now companies that exist solely to manage TikTok stars or to help them broker partnerships with record labels. But as TikTok faces an uncertain future in the U.S., one that could include a sale to Microsoft to avert the ban, TikTokers are learning how fleeting influence can be. Full story.

What else we're reading...

— "Apple readies subscription bundles." Mark Gurman reports: "Apple Inc. is readying a series of bundles that will let customers subscribe to several of the company’s digital services at a lower monthly price." [Bloomberg]

— "Hollywood’s entertainment industry unions have a whiteness problem." Anousha Sakoui reports: "unions are gatekeepers to the entertainment industry, yet Black crew members say getting access for recognition for minority members is hard." [Los Angeles Times]

— "Summer’s only blockbuster is a South Korean zombie film." Dasl Yoon and R.T. Watson write: "Peninsula has faced little Hollywood competition and has won ticket sales across Asia." [Wall Street Journal]

— "We are the guinea pigs." Nicole Sperling and Brooks Barnes write: Jurassic World: Dominion, filming in England, is a chance for the movie industry to see if it can move past the financial woes caused by the pandemic." [New York Times]

— "Pop culture failed to imagine Kamala Harris." Megan Garber writes: "Her candidacy meets a culture that, too often, still doesn’t know what to make of women who seek to lead." [The Atlantic]

From the archives...

Today in 1997: South Park premieres — "Though the title makes South Park sound like a frothy soap, this new series from Comedy Central is anything but." Flashback review. 

Today's birthdays: Debi Mazar, David Crane, Dawnn Lewis, John Slattery, Paul Greengrass, Sebastian Stan.