'Dear Evan Hansen' Sings Off-Key With $7.5M Debut

►Flat. Dear Evan Hansen flopped on debut with a $7.5 million second-place finish as superhero sensation Shang-Chi topped domestic chart in its fourth weekend after earning another $13.3 million, writes THR's Pamela McClintock.  

Dogged by poor reviews and a social media pile on, Dear Evan Hansen's mediocre launch was mitigated by the fact that the movie adaptation of the smash Broadway musical cost less than $30 million to produce, a relatively modest sum for a major Hollywood studio film. Still hopes were high, considering that the Tony award-winning stage play was a cultural phenomenon, so the slow start is a disappointment. 

Circling back to Shang-Chi, the Marvel film became the top-grossing pic of the pandemic era in North America, a record previously held by fellow Marvel title Black Widow ($183.4 million), and now has a domestic total of $196.5 million.

Overseas, the spice continues to flow with Dune topping the foreign charts with another $26.3 million from 32 markets for an early offshore cume of $76.5 million. The full box office report.  

—Waiting game. With No Time to Die almost here, the bookies are already taking bets on who will replace Daniel Craig as 007 (Tom Hardy and Regé-Jean Page are current faves, in case you were wondering). However, Bond producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson say they haven’t made any decisions and won't start the search until 2022. The story. 

—67 million account holders can't be wrong? Netflix has picked up a second season of drama Sex/Life. The renewal comes after strong viewing figures, according to Netflix's own internal metrics. According to the streamer 67 million member accounts watched Sex/Life in its first four weeks of release. The story.

—Yes from the cinematographers. The national executive board of the International Cinematographers Guild, Local 600, announced that it has voted unanimously to support the IATSE nationwide strike authorization vote. The story. 

—Powerful drama. Steve Coogan will play Jimmy Savile in the BBC One drama The Reckoning. The series will focus on the British television personality whose horrific sexual crimes were concealed until after his death in 2011. The story. 

Tonys: 'Moulin Rouge,' 'Inheritance,' 'Soldier's Play' Nab Top Prizes

►"We’re a little late, but we are here!" The Tony Awards honoring the 2019-20 Broadway season were finally handed out Sunday night, with Moulin Rouge! The Musical named best musical, The Inheritance best play and A Soldier’s Play best revival of a play.

After a long delay due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 74th annual Tony Awards returned to the stage as part of a four-hour event airing across CBS and Paramount+. The full winners list.  

—"A ceremony better late than never, but still too late." THR's awards analyst Scott Feinberg weighs in on the pros and cons of Sunday's ceremony that was a frustrating evening for theater lovers and "a hot mess of the sort that is particularly inexcusable given that CBS and the forces behind the Tonys... had 16 months longer than usual to get their act together." The analysis.

—Snubs. Jeremy O. Harris’ Slave Play, which set the record for most nominations earned by a play, failed to win a single award and finished the night with another less-wanted record. Other productions shut out on Sunday night include multiple nominees Betrayal, Sea Wall/A Life and Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune. The story.  

In other Tonys news... 

—Bernadette Peters, Leslie Odom Jr. spotlight COVID impact during Tonys.

—Audra McDonald, Inheritance’s Matthew Lopez, more winners push for increased Broadway inclusivity.

—Special Tony winners American Utopia, Broadway Advocacy Coalition celebrate diversity, pandemic evolution.

—Lauren Patten thanks trans and nonbinary Jagged Little Pill colleagues while accepting best featured actress in a musical. 

Tudum Ta-da!   

►Fan service and more. Netflix's first ever fan event, which the streamer is insisting on calling “Tudum” after its two-note intro sound, took place on Saturday and it lived up to the hype with big announcements, reveals, first-looks, teasers and more besides from some of the company's biggest properties. Here's a run down of the major stories from Tudum (that will take getting used to). 
 
—Creepy new location. Netflix offered up the most extensive look at Stranger Things season 4 on Saturday. The 90-second teaser released during Tudum, gave us a string of cryptic looks at the coming season centers on a house belonging to Robert Englund's character. The teaser trailer.

—The stuff that dreams are made of. Tudum debuted the teaser trailer for the series adaptation of Neil Gaiman's The Sandman, giving us our first glimpse at Tom Sturridge playing Dream. Needless to say, the internet lost its mind. The teaser trailer. 

—Testy new relationship. Bridgerton fans got a first look at season two of Netflix's breakout hit during Tudum. The teaser revealed a curt meeting between Anthony Bridgerton (Jonathan Bailey) and Kate Sharma (Simone Ashley) that will no doubt lead to (overly graphic) romance later. The teaser. 

—Renewal news. Netflix has confirmed a fourth season of Sex Eductation, the beloved British dramedy from creator Laurie Nunn. The announcement made at Tudum comes a week after its delayed third season hit the streamer. The story.

—Coming back. Chris Hemsworth stopped by Tudum to tease the sequel to Extraction. Netflix has touted the action movie as its most-watched original film ever and quickly put the sequel on the fast-track. The teaser.

—The Byrdes flee. Netflix released a full scene from the premiere of the upcoming fourth and final season of its acclaimed crime drama Ozark. The scene. 

—First look. Also on Saturday, Netflix revealed several new videos and news from season two of The Witcher plus a behind-the-scenes look at its upcoming prequel limited series The Witcher: Blood Origin. The new footage. 

Hollywood Elite Celebrate Cinema at Academy Museum Opening 

►Open for business. The Academy Museum celebrated its long-awaited opening with a star-studded gala that included guests such as Lady Gaga, Nicole Kidman and Spike Lee, while Tom Hanks and Sophia Loren were among the icons receiving honors Saturday night.

The Opening Gala, co-chaired by Jason Blum, Ava DuVernay, and Ryan Murphy, comes amid a week of festivities culminating in the museum’s public opening on Sept. 30. The story. 

—"A pioneer, a maverick and one cool cat." Filmmaker Mario Van Peebles remembers his father Melvin publicly for the first time since his death on Tuesday: "He made it easier for all of us who have followed." The story.

—"On the mend." Tom Felton took to social media on Saturday to share a brief update on his health, following the medical emergency he suffered earlier this week. The story. 

In other news... 

—Red Notice: Dwayne Johnson shows off first clip of “Netflix’s biggest movie ever."

—Army of Thieves trailer expands Zack Snyder’s zombie universe.

—Beverly Hills, West Hollywood luxury retail bounces back post-shutdown.

—Coda team praises on-set experience of groundbreaking film: “It was like gold."

—Christopher Reeve called playing Superman a "calculated risk."

—Netflix hires Three Identical Strangers producer Adam Hawkins to head up U.K. doc series team.

—Rolling Stones open American tour, pay tribute to late drummer Charlie Watts.

—Instagram’s Carolyn Merrell joins Calm as global communications chief.

What else we're reading...

—"Netflix’s Biggest Deal Ever: A New Spin on the Same Strategy" [Bloomberg]

—"Comedians Turn Their Attention to Abortion" [New York Times]

—""I Never Talk About Nevermind!": Courtney Love On the Nirvana Album That Changed Everything" [Los Angeles Times]

—"Everything You’ve Learned From Movies About Fire Sprinklers Is Wrong (Except Die Hard)" [Wall Street Journal]

—"Visions Brings Star Wars Full Circle" [The Ringer]

Today... 

... in 1968, ABC tried out a new half-hour comedy show at 9 p.m., The Don Rickles Show. Described "as a host and a guest format interspersed with insult skits and film clips," the series proved to be short-lived, lasting all of 17 episodes. The original review. 

Today's birthdays: Tamara Taylor (51), Indira Varma (48), Gwyneth Paltrow (49), Jenna Ortega (19), Anna Camp (39), Marc Maron (58), Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa (71), Meat Loaf (74), Sam Lerner (29), Avril Lavigne (37), Andy Lau (60), Carrie Brownstein (47), Scott Lawrence (58)