#MeToo Missed Us: Female Composers Speak Out

►"We don’t have an HR department. We don’t have a union. Where are we supposed to go?" While most corners of Hollywood have begun to grapple with the lessons of the #MeToo movement, the field of composing has proved particularly slow to evolve on gender issues. THR's Rebecca Keegan spoke to composers who say their vital but often overlooked corner of the entertainment industry — still only 1.7 percent female — is rife with harassment, exploitation and worse. The story. 

—COVID challenges. West Side Story started off its North American box office run with $800,000 in Thursday previews. The low-key number isn’t necessarily a surprise for a musical, which depends upon older moviegoers. The genre is more challenged than ever in the COVID-19 era, considering that consumers over 35 are more nervous than younger consumers regarding returning to the multiplex. The story.

—Fisher & Sons revisited? HBO is in the earliest stages of developing a follow-up show to Six Feet Under. No writer is attached yet, and it’s unclear whether the potential series would be a direct sequel, a remake or something else. Sources tell THR's Rick Porter that the project is not on any kind of fast track and might not move forward. Series creator Alan Ball and executive producers Bob Greenblatt and David Janollari are attached as EPs. The story.

—Another crack at it. Universal is tackling a reimagining of The Phantom of the Opera with a modern musical update, picking up a spec titled Phantom by John Fusco. Emmy- and Grammy-nominated producer Harvey Mason Jr. and EGOT recipient John Legend will produce alongside Mike Jackson, Legend’s partner at production banner Get Lifted Film Co. The story. 

—Producers picks. The Producers Guild of America has announced its 2022 documentary picture nominees. One of the eight films will be honored at 33rd annual Producers Guild Awards, set to take place on Feb. 26. The nominees.

Tom Holland on Spider-Man and Planning the Future He Wants

►"The next five years is going to be about, 'What do I want the future of my life to look like?'" THR's Brian Davids speaks to loveable English scamp Tom Holland about his sixth outing as Peter Parker in almost-here Spider-Man: No Way Home, his future in the MCU and clearing up some misconceptions. The interview. 

—Spider-Man: No way in. A number of Hollywood tentpoles, including popular superhero titles Spider-Man No Way Home and Venom: Let There Be Carnage, still have no China release dates, and their chances of getting the green light are becoming slimmer by the day. THR's Asia bureau chief Patrick Brzeski writes that Hollywood and Bollywood's travails in China have opened the door for South Korea in the world's biggest movie market. The analysis. 

—The short stuff. The Sundance Film Festival has revealed its 2022 shorts lineup. The selection includes dramatic titles that center on an aspiring Baltimore rapper and an embattled true-crime novelist while nonfiction selections tackle everything from family caregiving to Nixon whistleblower Martha Mitchell. In the Collection section, the fest will screen past short films by now A-list filmmakers including Taika Waititi, Garrett Bradley and Daniel Destin Cretton. The lineup.

—Family business. Caitlin Cronenberg, daughter of iconic filmmaker David Cronenberg, is making her directorial feature debut with Humane, a thriller scripted by Michael Sparaga, who is also producing. The movie chronicles the events at a family dinner, held after an environmental collapse where the world lost 20 percent of its population. The story. 

—Resolved. The WGA West and Constantin Film have resolved a residuals dispute and ended a brief guild boycott of the German mini-major. WGA West president Meredith Stiehm, vice president Michele Mulroney and secretary-treasurer Betsy Thomas wrote guild members on Thursday that the two parties had reached an agreement on foreign residuals and health and pension contributions. The story. 

THR Songwriter Roundtable

►"I can make an anthem for this character." THR's Scott Feinberg speaks to Camila Cabello, Kid Cudi, Anderson .Paak and brothers Ron and Russell Mael (aka Sparks) about their humble starts in life, what it was like to collaborate with the likes of Jay-Z and Ariana  Grande, and the rush of writing songs for movies. The roundtable.  

—"Death can seem so much closer than we realized." THR's Abbey White speaks to And Just Like That... stars Kristin Davis and Cynthia Nixon about why HBO Max series explores grief and its darker, emotional moments don't betray Sex and the City and help capture who Carrie, Miranda and Charlotte are now. Warning spoilers. The interview.  

—"Extravagant lifestyle." Peloton has sought to clear up the furore created by the first episode of AJLT after the shock death of a character was caused by an intense session on one of its exercise bikes. The company issued a statement to media outlets from a cardiologist who is on Peloton’s health and wellness advisory council, who made clear the entirely fictional character's lifestyle and made up previous history of heart issues was the culprit. Warning spoilers. The story. 

—Casting news. Camryn Manheim is the latest star to join NBC's Law & Order revival. The Emmy winner will play NYPD Lt. Kate Dixon, head of the homicide detective squad that typically anchors the first half of an L&O episode. The story. 

Michael Nesmith 1942- 2021

►"I particularly enjoyed channeling ‘Monkee Mike.'" Michael Nesmith, the guitar-playing singer-songwriter with the wool hat who along with Davy Jones, Peter Tork and Micky Dolenz became a TV star and 1960s pop sensation as a member of The Monkees, has died. He was 78. The obituary.  

—"I was so happy when Norm took it and ran with it." Courtney Thorne-Smith has revealed that not only was she not mad at Norm Macdonald for making a mockery of her film Chairman of the Board during a classic 1997 interview on Late Night With Conan O’Brien, but she was also happy and very grateful. The story. 

—"A language is a bit like programming." THR's Beatrice Verhoeven speaks to I’m Your Man director Maria Schrader and star Dan Stevens about their collaboration on the German-language film in which the English actor plays a humanoid robot. Stevens discusses how he began to think and even dream in German and talks about his newfound interest in rumba dancing. The interview. 

—"I love immersive work. I love the idea of a mask." THR's Tyler Coates spoke to House of Gucci scene stealer Jared Leto and Oscar-nominated makeup designer Göran Lundström about the collaborative process of turning the Oscar-winning actor into his unrecognizable on-screen persona, Paolo Gucci. The interview. 

In other news... 

—Carey Lowell launches new ceramics line

—11-year-old Belfast star Jude Hill signs with UTA 

—Guy Burnet joins Melissa Barrera in STX thriller Bed Rest

—Mexican actress Carmen Salinas dies at 82

—CAA signs author and entrepreneur Arian Simone

What else we're reading...

—How Olivia Rodrigo Went From Disney Princess to Pop Queen [Los Angeles Times]

—Closed Movie Theaters Leave Void From Small Towns to Big Cities [Bloomberg]

—Lina Wertmüller: A Thrilling Live-wire Who Displayed A Colossal Black-comic Daring [The Guardian]

—With Its Final, Harrowing Season, The Expanse Sticks the Landing [Daily Beast] 

—"I Spontaneously Burst Into Tears": How 13 Songwriters Felt Watching the New Beatles Documentary [Washington Post]

Today... 

...in 1987, Warner Bros. unveiled Steven Spielberg’s 152-minute World War II-era drama Empire of the Sun in theaters. The film went on to earn six nominations at the 60th Academy Awards ceremony. The original review. 

Today's birthdays: Rita Moreno (90), Hailee Steinfeld (25), Mo'Nique (54), Yalitza Aparicio (28), Courtney Henggeler (43), Karla Souza (36), Gary Dourdan (55), Yasiin Bey (48), Nesta Cooper (28), Rider Strong (42), Ben Browder (59), Gabriel Basso (27), Moe Dunford (34), Tom Shadyac (63)