Today In Entertainment

SEPTEMBER 29, 2020

What's news: A presidential debate preview, HBO renews Real Time with Bill Maher, Cuties controversy could hurt Netflix, Dolly Parton goes to Netflix, No Sudden Move sets its cast, Neon picks up New Order, WGA Awards pushed. Plus: Disney sells another Fox asset, delays D23, will have to release a pay equity study and and launches a co-viewing product. --Alex Weprin

 Debate Preview

➤Debate night in America: The first (and if you believe former White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney, the only) presidential debete between Donald Trump and Joe Biden will be held tonight in Cleveland, Ohio. While most voters may be locked in to their preferred candidate already, BuzzFeed's Matt Berman notes that the debate will be the first time we get to see either candidate outside of their respective "bubbles" in months. Here's what to look out for from a media angle:

+The moderator: Fox News anchor Chris Wallace is the only moderator to return from the 2016 cycle, where he garnered bipartisan praise for his detailed interrogation of Trump and Hillary Clinton. "My job is to be as invisible as possible," Wallace told his network about his role. "I’m trying to get them to engage to focus on the key issues, to give people at home a sense of why I want to vote for one vs. the other, but if I’ve done my job right, at the end of the night people will say that was a great debate… who was the moderator?”" The L.A. Times has a good backgrounder on Wallace.

+Where to watch. Unlike the primaies where networks jockey for exclusive coverage, the general election debates arefreely available everywhere. Expect full coverage on the cable news channels and all the major broadcasters, plus C-SPAN, PBS, Univision, Telemundo and of course streaming online just about everywhere you turn. All the networks say their ad breaks are sold out.

+The ratings: The first Clinton-Trump debate averaged 84 million viewers across the TV networks (millions more likely watched online). All together, Nielsen estimated that a total of 259 million viewers watched at least one debate during the 2016 cycle. Will the first Trump-Biden matchup top Trump-Clinton? 

+The post-debate coverage: From a business perspective, this is where the TV networks expect to rake in the ad dollars. It is also where they will showcase their A-talent.

--At Fox: Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum will anchor news coverage, but the channel is also airing new editions of Sean Hannity and Laura Ingraham's shows at 11 PM and 12 AM.

--At CNN: Anderson Cooper, Wolf Blitzer, Dana Bash, Jake Tapper and Abby Phillip will lead coverage, with Don Lemon and Chris Cuomo coming on starting at 1 AM.

--At MSNBC: Rachel Maddow, Brian Williams, Nicolle Wallace and Joy Reid lead coverage.

--At ABC: George Stephanopoulos, David Muir and Linsey Davis will lead coverage.

--At NBC: Lester Holt, Savannah Guthrie, Chuck Todd and Andrea Mitchell lead coverage.

--At CBS: Gaye King, Norah O'Donnell and John Dickerson lead coverage.

+What's next? The vice presidential debate between Kamala Harris and Mike Pence will be held Oct. 7 in Salt Lake City, Utah. The next matchup between Trump and Biden is slated for Oct. 15 in Miami, Florida.

 In TV News...

➤HBO is extending its Real Time. The premium cable outlet has renewed its long-running late night show Real Time With Bill Maher for two more seasons. The pickup will take the show through its 18th season in 2022. The show's previous multi-season pickup was due to expire at the end of this year. The story.

+The battle for Christmas content continues: Country music icon will star in and executive produce a musical holiday movie for the streamer called Christmas on the Square. The movie, which also stars Christine Baranski, Jenifer Lewis, Treat Williams and Jeanine Mason and is directed by Debbie Allen (Grey's Anatomy), is set to premiere Nov. 22. The story.

+Another unscripted show sets its return: Top Chef is the latest reality series to head back into production amidst ongoing concerns over the COVID-19 pandemic. In accordance with CDC guidance, production is now underway to safely shoot the latest cycle in Portland, Oregon. More.

+Super Bowl season already? Veteran live-event producer Jesse Collins has been tapped to executive produce The Pepsi Super Bowl LV Halftime Show next year. The National Football League, RocNation and Pepsi said Tuesday that the Emmy-nominated producer will join longtime award-winning director Hammish Hamilton for the halftime show of the game, which is set to take place Feb. 7 in Tampa, Florida. More.

➤Cuties controversy could come back to haunt Netflix. The streamer could see its third-quarter subscriber growth hit by the controversy around the film, Wells Fargo analyst Steven Cahall wrote in a Tuesday report, cutting his subscriber forecast for the period in half to 2.5 million, with the full impact modelled to come in the U.S. and Canada. While he called the controversy a "flash in the pan," he adds that "we think this could weigh more heavily on third-quarter net adds than investors realize..." The story.

➤David Harbour, Noah Jupe, Kieran Culkin and Brendan Fraser have joined the all-star cast of Steven Soderbergh’s heist thriller, No Sudden Move. The casting comes as the HBO Max and Warner Bros. Pictures production gets underway Monday in Detroit with Casey Silver producing. The companies said strict COVID-19 safety protocols are being enforced to ensure the health and safety of cast and crew. The story.

In other film news...

+Neon has picked up North American rights to New Order, the new feature from Mexican director Michel Franco that won the Silver Lion Grand Jury Prize at the Venice Film Festival earlier this month. The feature, which also played at the San Sebastián and Toronto fests, and is screening at the upcoming London and Chicago film festivals, is a look at a violent uprising against the wealthy ruling class. More.

+Apple has set the release date for its highly anticipated documentary about Billie Eilish. Billie Eilish: The World’s A Little Blurry will premiere in theaters and on Apple TV+ in February 2021. More.

 In Disney News...

➤Disney has sold another former Fox asset. The company has sold its advertising technology firm TrueX to the marketing data company Gimbal. Disney acquired TrueX last year as part of its $71 billion purchase of 21st Century Fox's entertainment assets. Terms of the sale were not disclosed. TrueX specializes in interactive advertising, with a particular focus on the connected TV/over-the-top video space. The story.

+Disney+ is jumping onto the co-viewing bandwagon with a new feature called GroupWatch. The experience, which launches Tuesday in the U.S. after a test run in Canada, Australia and New Zealand, allows up to seven people to watch the same Disney+ title together, even if they are in separate places. The story.

+First Black Widow, now this: The next edition of D23 Expo, a fan convention for all things Disney, has been delayed by a year to 2022. The event, which takes place every two years, had originally been penciled in for summer 2021, but it will now take place Sept. 9-11, 2022 at the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim, Calif. More.

+Disney must disclose information related to "secret" pay equity study. In 2017, consultants were hired to study pay equity at the Mickey Mouse giant. Disney asserts attorney-client privilege, but a judge says, "Not so fast." The story.

In other legal news...

+In TikTok ruling, judge rejects Trump's view of national security powers. U.S. District Court Judge Carl Nichols explains in an unsealed opinion why the video app is likely to win its lawsuit against the government. More.

+WWE headed to trial for copying wrestler's tattoos for video game. A tattoo artist is suing saying her work on wrestler Randy Orton's body was reused without permission. The question for a jury is whether the claim rises to copyright infringement. More.

➤WGA Awards get a new date. Following in the footsteps of the Oscars, Golden Globes, Directors Guild of America, Producers Guild and Screen Actors Guild, the Writers Guild of America has extended its traditional eligibility window and pushed back the timing of its annual awards due to the ongoing pandemic. The Writers Guild Awards ceremony usually takes place in early to mid February, but the 2021 edition — the guild's 73rd — has been slated for Sunday, March 21. More.

➤Awards Chatter podcast: Charlie Kaufman, the eccentric described by Roger Ebert as "the most creative screenwriter of his generation" reflects on abandoning acting for filmmaking, his creative process and why 12 years elapsed between his first and second live-action directing gigs. Listen.

Obituary: Kevin Burns, the prolific Emmy-winning producer of reality and nonfiction TV programs who guided the 2006 big-screen remake of The Poseidon Adventure and the reboot of Lost in Space at Netflix, has died. He was 65. The president and creator of Prometheus Entertainment, Burns died Sunday of cardiac arrest at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. 

➤Baking and protests: How Hollywood stylists have stayed sane during stay-at-home orders. The industry's top image architects discuss how they've pivoted from frenzied schedules to time with family, personal projects and activism: "I put on my sneakers and joined a march. I've been marching ever since." The story.

+"No bar? No problem": Cocktail caterers pivot to boxed kits. COVID-19 has been a bitter pill to swallow for anyone who loves to imbibe socially, but a new wave of DIY drink sets brings the party home. More.

In other news...

--Cannes Film Festival organizers, after having to cancel this year's physical event due to the coronavirus pandemic, said on Monday that four films from this year's Official Selection will screen in the city in the south of France after all during a "2020 Special" taking place at the end of October.

--Gravitas Ventures has picked up the North American rights to director Van Maximilian Carlson's foster child drama Princess of the Row, which is executive produced by Morgan Freeman and Lori McCreary.

--Want to attend a tapng of SNL this season? Don't forget your mask, and prepare for a temperature check and a rapid COVID test.

--Warrior Nun creator, showrunner and executive producer Simon Barry is going from a fight in the divine war between Good and Evil to dealing with an affair gone wrong for his next act with The Arsonist.

--The seven members of the K-pop supergroup BTS are set to make millions when their label Big Hit Entertainment goes public in October.

--Felicia day has launched a Twitch series titled WomenR, highlighting diversity among creators and content in a broad spectrum of entertainment fields.

--The Canadian government has stepped in to temporarily cover losses incurred by local producers forced to shut down or scrap film and TV shoots due to a coronavirus outbreak.

--A Texas sheriff has been indicted on charges of destroying or concealing video in an investigation into the death in custody of a Black man, Javier Ambler, that was filmed by the police reality TV series Live PD, prosecutors said Monday.

What else we're reading...

--"How reality-TV fame helped Trump land a $427 million lifeline" [NY Times]

--"Will Sacha Baron Cohen's Borat sequel arrive before the election?" [Vanity Fair]

--"How A+E Networks is building a portfolio of free 24/7 streaming channels" [Digiday]

--"Want to fix American politics? Start by copying The Great British Baking Show" [LA Times]

Today's birthdays: Jerry Lee Lewis, 85, Mike Post, 76, Bryant Gumbel, 72, Kevin Durant, 32, Halsey, 26.

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SEPTEMBER 29, 2020

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