Today In Entertainment

DECEMBER 30, 2020

What's news: The Writers Guild rejects Endeavor's deal proposal, TV and film productions pause amid COVID surge, a survey suggests Wonder Woman 1984 shows promise for HBO Max, Univision's sale closes amid strict government oversight, why Politico is turning to TV news anchors, how ViacomCBS sharpened its focus on streaming. Plus: Obituaries of Howard Rubenstein, William Link, and Joe Clark. --Alex Weprin

 WGA-Endeavor Standoff Continues

►Hollywood's long-running standoff between a top agency and the Writers Guild of America isn't over yet. The guild has declined WME's Dec. 22 updated proposal that would've allowed the talent firm to represent writers for the first time since April 2019, saying that the offer "substantially alters" a deal made with rival agency CAA earlier this month.

--The guild contends that Endeavor, the parent company of WME, won't place its ownership interest in film and TV company Endeavor Content in a blind trust. The guild has called affiliate production a conflict of interest for agencies and has stated that talent firms must reduce their ownership interest to 20 percent in such entities.

--"Having sat mostly on the sidelines for the past 20 months, there will be no 'going last' bonus for WME – no accommodation for the fact that they are the most conflicted of all agencies – no alterations to our existing deals that soften the protections that writers have fought for nearly two years to achieve," wrote the guild's agency negotiating committee in a note to its members on Dec. 29. The story.

►SAG-AFTRA says "most" productions will be on hiatus until mid-January amid pandemic. In the message posted Tuesday, the labor union emphasized the lack of ICU beds in California, particularly in Los Angeles County, and acknowledged a need for "immediate action." The story.

+Related: CBS has pushed the post-holiday restart dates on several of its series as COVID-19 cases in Los Angeles County have surged. Production on NCIS, NCIS: Los Angeles and SEAL Team, all broadcast by CBS, as well as CBS All Access' Why Women Kill and Disney+'s Diary of a Future President had been scheduled to return to production on Jan. 4 after their holiday break. All five shows will now resume on Jan. 11. More.

►Wonder Woman 1984 shows promise for HBO Max, audience survey finds. According to a Screen Engine survey, 23 percent of those viewing WW84 signed up for the streaming service in order to watch the superhero sequel over the Dec. 25-27 weekend. Among that group, 14 percent said they will continue to subscribe, while 9 percent are likely to cancel soon. The story.

 ViacomCBS' Streaming Pivot

►How ViacomCBS has sharpened its focus on streaming via deals. CEO Bob Bakish and his team have started getting credit for acquisitions, and sales of non-core assets, at attractive price tags that have transformed the company beyond the big merger that created it, Georg Szalai writes. In early 2021, it will detail how all its assets fit into its streaming strategy. The story.

►Univision's sale is official. An investor group led by former Viacom CFO Wade Davis (pictured above) said Tuesday it has closed its acquisition of a 64 percent stake in Spanish-language media giant Univision Communications. The group includes private equity firm Searchlight Capital and media- and consumer technology-focused operating and investment firm ForgeLight, which Davis launched as CEO last December after leaving Viacom due to its recombination of Viacom and CBS.

--Davis is now taking over as CEO of Univision, which has most recently been run by Vincent Sadusky who took over the firm after Randy Falco retired at the end of 2018. Mexican TV giant Televisa previously elected to retain its stake of about 36 percent in Univision. The story.

+Univision agreed to strict government oversight in order to gain approval for the deal, given Televisa's significant ownership stake. Eriq Gardner reports that a deal that the broadcaster signed with the DOJ includes a deal "to maintain a security officer who will have access to Univision's business information and be available to answer any concerns raised by the government. Additionally, Univision agrees to screen new employees given access to data and provide 30 days of notice to the Justice Department if access is provided to any foreign government, person, or entity." The story and details.

►Politico is turning to notable talent from the world of TV news and other high-profile journalists to lead its Playbook newsletter franchise until a new team takes over later in January. Starting Jan. 1, Politico says it will feature a rotating slate of guest authors for Playbook, beginning with Politico founding editor John Harris on New Year's Day.

--The company says that Meet the Press moderator and NBC News political director Chuck Todd, CNN anchor Don Lemon, and PBS Newshour White House correspondent Yamiche Alcindor will also take turns as guest Playbook authors in January. The story.

►Obituaries: William Link, the co-creator of TV series Columbo and Murder, She Wrote, has died. The two-time Emmy winner died Dec. 27 in Los Angeles of congestive heart failure. He was 87.

--Link and his writing and producing partner, Richard Levinson, collaborated on Columbo, Mannix, Ellery Queen, Murder, She Wrote and several other series and television movies. The pair won two Emmys for writing — for the 1970 TV movie My Sweet Charlie and for Columbo in 1971. They were nominated nine other times, including a best drama series nod in 1985 as executive producers of Murder, She Wrote. The obituary.

+Howard J. Rubenstein, the public relations guru who helped protect the image of New York's rich and famous including the likes of Donald Trump, Rupert Murdoch and George Steinbrenner, has died. He was 88. The obituary.

+Joe Clark, the uncompromising New Jersey high school principal who employed a bullhorn and baseball bat to round his students into shape en route to becoming the subject of the inspirational Morgan Freeman film Lean on Me, has died. He was 82. The obituary.

+Marcus D'Amico, the actor perhaps best known for his portrayal of the original Michael "Mouse" Tolliver on the Armistead Maupin miniseries Tales of the City, has died. He was 55. The obituary.

+Pierre Cardin, the Italian-born French designer of an eternal tomorrow who defined the futuristic look of the 1960s and revolutionized the business of high fashion, has died. He was 98. Cardin died Tuesday at the American Hospital in Neuilly-sur-Seine, just outside Paris, his family told the Agence France-Presse. The obituary.

Editor's note: Today In Entertainment will be off for New Year's, we will be back in your inbox with a new edition on Monday Jan. 4.

In other news...

--Cinema giant AMC Theatres has registered up to 50 million additional shares for sale, to raise up to $125 million to make it through the coronavirus pandemic.

--California's regional stay-at-home order has been extended as COVID cases continue to spike in the state, it was announced Tuesday.

--President-elect Joe Biden and future First Lady Jill Biden are set to appear during Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve With Ryan Seacrest 2021, airing live on Dec. 31.

--The NBA's primetime Christmas showcase fell a good amount from 2019, but two other games were up year to year.

--Yearly Departed team on "pulling off something impossible" with Amazon female comedy special.

--Rapper Sean "Diddy" Combs provided some coronavirus relief in a Miami neighborhood on Tuesday, handing out $50 bills amid a crowd of hundreds.

--Michael Sheen has returned an honor presented to him by Queen Elizabeth so he could air his views on the British monarchy without appearing like a "hypocrite."

--Anthony Hopkins on Tuesday celebrated 45 years of sobriety with a hopeful message to those afflicted with alcohol and/or substance abuse, especially his younger fans.

What else we're reading...

--"The Hilaria Baldwin story: 'I'm living my life'" [NY Times]

--"The pandemic gave network TV news shows a boost…on YouTube" [Fast Company]

--"The life in The Simpsons is no longer attainable" [The Atlantic]

--"60 Minutes keeps on the news and is rewarded by viewers" [AP]

Today's birthdays: Bryan Burk, 53, Eliza Dushku, 41, Ellie Goulding, 35, LeBron James, 37, Meredith Vieira, 68, Sean Hannity, 60.

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DECEMBER 30, 2020

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