'Stranger Things' S4 Spoiled by Netflix Monopoly Game, Duffer Brothers Upset

►When it rains, it pours. Netflix's efforts to promote Stranger Things season four has been turned upside down after images leaked online from an official Monopoly game tie-in pegged to the long-awaited new season of the retro sci-fi hit. The streamer wasn’t happy about the mishap, but sources say the show’s creators, The Duffer Brothers, were livid as they weren’t consulted about the game. Matt and Ross Duffer have long valued maintaining story secrecy and were said to have had a “total meltdown” about the blunder. The story. 

—Some good news. Scripts for the second season of Netflix's global smash hit Squid Game are inching towards completion, says creator Hwang Dong-hyuk, with the whole series potentially arriving towards the end of 2023 or sometime in 2024. Hwang also spoke about how thematically the upcoming season might differ from its predecessor. The story. 

—Shocker. The CW announced Thursday that Riverdale will end with its seventh season. The show is set for a midseason berth and will premiere in early 2023. Riverdale, created by Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa, became a breakout for The CW after its 2017 debut — aided by a streaming run on Netflix that helped its second season ratings jump by about 30 percent. The story.

—Return of the theatrical qualifying requirement. The Academy has issued rules and campaign regulations governing the race to the 2023 Oscars. Among the rules, the Academy is now returning to its traditional calendar year eligibility period and requirement of a theatrical release between Jan. 1, 2022 and Dec 31, 2022. The rules. 

—"Too niche." The Wonder Twins, a DC feature project for HBO Max, has been shelved. Riverdale star KJ Apa and 1883 actress Isabel May would have starred in the film from writer-director Adam Sztykiel. Sources tell THR's Borys Kit that the leadership of Warner Bros. Discovery are pushing a strategy that DC movies should now be made with a theatrical-first goal and Wonder Twins was "too niche." The story.

—"I couldn’t see out of my left eye." Colton Haynes is opening up about the trials and tribulations about his life and career in his upcoming memoir, Miss Memory Lane. In a recent interview, the Arrow star talked about how after he publicly came out as gay in 2016, his acting roles and content endorsements became limited. He also shared details of his 2019 drug overdose and subsequent hospitalization. The story. 

—Freedom. Fyre Festival founder Billy McFarland was released from prison on Wednesday and is now living in a halfway house in New York. In 2018, McFarland was sentenced to six years in prison after admitting to defrauding investors in the disastrous 2017 Fyre Festival. McFarland's attorney says his client's focus now is on "the best way to generate income to pay this restitution back and make amends." The story.

Upfronts: Warner Bros. Discovery Rolls Out the Stars, Paramount Plays It Straight

►"We are in the storytelling and talent business." David Zaslav took the upfront stage Wednesday morning for the first time as CEO of Warner Bros. and Discovery. THR's Mikey O'Connell's writes that despite the shiny new entity that is WBD, the upfront was much the same, with a parade of stars and wonky industry speak. HBO Max and Discovery+, still separate entities for the moment, got ample due throughout the presentation. The recap.  

—Short on levity. Mikey was also at the Paramount/CBS upfront presentation on Wednesday evening, where the company's news show 60 Minutes was the theme leading to a more serious affair than the other presentations. No surprise that the biggest cheers were reserved for Kevin Costner and Kelly Reilly, stars of ratings monster (the thing advertisers actually care about) Yellowstone. The recap. 

—Chris and Chris. Newly minted CNN CEO Chris Licht previewed his vision for the future of the news channel on at the Warner Bros. Discovery Upfront, and that vision includes a Sunday primetime show for Chris Wallace that will also stream on HBO Max. Licht also said that CNN will “reimagine” CNN’s morning show, leveraging the network’s journalists and correspondents. The story.

—Bound to be good as hell. A feature doc about Lizzo is officially in the works, the singer announced at Warner Bros. Discovery Upfront presentation. Lizzo revealed that HBO Max will be taking on the yet-to-be titled project, which is set to arrive this fall. The story. 

More from Upfronts... 

—The CW Fall 2022 schedule: Supernatural, Walker prequels join pared down slate

—Fox is happy to stay out of the streaming wars “bloodbath,” says CEO Lachlan Murdoch

—CBS head Kelly Kahl on Magnum P.I. cancellation, scaling back comedies

—Paramount’s Upfront plans: Broadcast, a streaming shift and “super franchises”

Cruise Touches Down in Cannes With Fighter Jets, Surprise Palme d'Or

►The last real movie star. Tom Cruise was the toast of Cannes on Wednesday night at the glitzy high octane festival premiere of Top Gun: Maverick. The event saw eight fighter jets zooming overhead, expelling smoke in red and blue to match the colors of the French flag. Festival director Thierry Fremaux also presented Cruise with a surprise honorary Palme d'Or much to the actor's shock. The recap. 

—"No one asked Gene Kelly, ‘Why do you dance? Why do you do your own dancing?'" Earlier on Wednesday, Tom Cruise sat down for a "MasterClass Conversation" at Cannes where he talked at length about his career, and gave his views on cinema and the theatrical experience. The actor revealed that the long-delayed Top Gun: Maverick was never in danger of being pushed to streaming and explained why he does his own stunts. The story. 

—Mother-daughter job. THR's Alex Ritman has the scoop on Stranger Things star Maya Hawke lining up to appear onscreen alongside her mother, Uma Thurman, for the very first time. Hawke has been cast in Yale Entertainment’s dark comedic thriller The Kill Room, also starring Samuel L. Jackson and Joe Manganiello. The story. 

—Not ideal. Cambodian auteur Rithy Panh has resigned from his position as chair of the jury for Cannes’ inaugural TikTok short film competition (aka #TikTokShortFilm) after a disagreement over artistic independence. The story. 

More from Cannes...

—Read THR's Cannes Film Festival day 3 daily

—Stephen Lang, Nick Cassavetes, Diego Tinoco join Aaron Eckhart thriller Muzzle

—Frank Grillo horror-thriller Merciless among new additions to Sentient’s Cannes slate

—Cannes diary: What happened to the women’s movements that rocked the fest?

—Cannes fashion flashback: Alessandra Ambrosio on her favorite festival looks

—Cannes first look: Mel Gibson in hacker thriller Hot Seat

—Alicia Vikander on 10 years since her A Royal Affair breakout, moving back to TV with Irma Vep

TV Review: 'Angelyne'    

►"Peacock is welcome to put 'Well, it gets better' on a billboard." THR's chief TV critic Dan Fienberg reviews Peacock's Angelyne. Emmy Rossum plays Los Angeles legend and billboard queen Angelyne in this five-part limited series based on THR journalist Gary Baum's feature. The review. 

—"Troubled waters." THR's chief film critic David Rooney reviews Saela Davis and Anna Rose Holmer's Cannes Directors' Fortnight selection God’s Creatures. Emily Watson and Paul Mescal play a mother and the son whose return home to their Irish fishing village brings trauma in the directors' second feature. The review. 

—"Poignant but too slender for its epic length." David reviews Felix van Groeningen and Charlotte Vandermeersch's Cannes Competition entry The Eight Mountains (Le Otto Montagne). Luca Marinelli and Alessandro Borghi play unlikely friends whose lives are inextricably linked to the Alpine village where they met as boys in this retelling of Paolo Cognetti’s prize-winning novel. The review. 

—"A striking portrait of dignity and desperation." THR critic Lovia Gyarkye reviews Lotfy Nathan's Cannes Un Certain Regard selection Harka. The writer-director's narrative debut follows a young man trying to survive in post-revolution Tunisia. The review. 

—"The romance was only in the music." THR film critic Jordan Mintzer reviews Kirill Serebrennikov's Cannes Competition selection Tchaikovsky’s Wife (Zhena Chaikovskogo). The Russian filmmaker's latest chronicles the disastrous marriage between the famous composer and his wife Antonina Miliukova. The review. 

In other news...

—Queer as Folk: Watch the trailer for the Peacock reimagining

—TikTok launches tools to credit original creators of trends

—Masked Singer reveals champion after controversial season 

—Herc Entertainment, Cinelease board Toronto film studio relaunch

—Neon promotes Jeff Deutchman to acquisitions and production president

—Proud anti-vaxxer Eric Clapton cancels two European shows after testing positive for COVID

—Taylor Swift delivers NYU commencement address: “My mistakes led to the best things in my life”

—Marnie Schulenburg, actress on As the World Turns and One Life to Live, dies at 37

What else we're reading...

—Wonderful Bilge Ebiri piece on the Top Gun franchise and Tom Cruise an out-of-time and out-of-place movie star [Vulture]

—Tabitha Vidaurri on what the iconic Canadian comedy show The Kids In the Hall taught her about feminism [Slate]

—Stacy Perman's long read on 1940s child star Lora Lee Michel who vanished in her 20s and the people looking for her [LAT]

—With the release of Alex Garland's Men, AA Dowd writes that the horror genre needs to drop clumsy oversized metaphors [Guardian]

—Alexis Soloski talks to Bros writer and star Billy Eichner and director Nicholas Stoller about making a rom-com that truly reflects gay life [NYT]

Today...  

...in 1977, Universal premiered Burt Reynolds’ Smokey and the Bandit at the Radio City Music Hall in New York. The action comedy grossed a huge $300 million and was the second highest-grossing domestic film of that year. Directed by Hal Needham, the film also starred Sally Field, Jackie Gleason, Jerry Reed, Pat McCormick, Paul Williams and Mike Henry. The original review.

Today's birthdays: Thomas Vinterberg (53), Grace Jones (74), Morten Tyldum (55), JoJo Siwa (19), Danielle Macdonald (31), Polly Walker (56), Eleanor Tomlinson (30), Bérénice Marlohe (43), Jason Gray-Stanford (52), Sean Whalen (58), James Fox (83), Zack Pearlman (34), Nawazuddin Siddiqui (48), Claudia Karvan (50), Catherine Haena Kim (38), Amanda De Cadenet (50), Sam Smith (30), Pete Townshend (77)