Paul Sorvino 1939-2022

►"A life of love and joy and wisdom." Paul Sorvino, the burly character actor who made a career out of playing forceful types, most notably the coldhearted mobster Paulie Cicero in Martin Scorsese’s GoodFellas, has died. He was 83. Sorvino, the father of Oscar-winning actress Mira Sorvino, died Monday of natural causes, his wife, Dee Dee, announced. The obituary.

—"One of the truest and honest actors." Hollywood stars were heartbroken over the news of Paul Sorvino’s death on Monday and took to social media to pay tribute to the late actor. The reaction.

—Consummate screen baddie. David Warner, the classically trained British actor renowned for his performances as polished villains in Time After Time, Time Bandits, TRON, Titanic and so much more, has died. He was 80. The obituary. 

'Saul' Writer-EP Discusses Going Back to the Post-'Breaking Bad' Future

►"We almost felt like we were starting something new." THR's Brian Davids spoke to Better Call Saul writer and executive producer Alison Tatlock discusses season six episode "Nippy." Tatlock opens up on Carol Burnett's role, Gene's Omaha life and the decision to go full black and white. Warning spoilers. The interview.

—Heading to the Lido. The 79th Venice Film Festival has unveiled the movies that will compete for this year's Golden Lion, as well as screen out of competition. Darren Aronofsky's The Whale, Alice Diop's Saint Omer, Alejandro González Iñárritu's Bardo, False Chronicle of a Handful of Truths and Andrew Dominik's Marilyn Monroe film Blonde are among the standout titles in the competition. The lineup. 

—Industry babies lead the way. The nominations for the 2022 MTV Video Music Awards have been unveiled with Kendrick Lamar, Jack Harlow and Lil Nas X leading the nominations with seven each. Doja Cat and Harry Styles closely follow with 6 nods each. The nominations.

—Expansion. ABC News is doubling down on documentaries and docuseries, launching a new non-fiction division called ABC News Studios. The studio already has 15 series in various stages of production, as well as 4 feature-length documentaries, which will live under the ABC News Films banner. The story. 

—The cuts keep coming. TBS has canceled its late night show Full Frontal With Samantha Bee in the latest pullback from original programming at the cable outlet. The Emmy-winning late night series is finished after seven seasons, with the last installment having aired on June 23. Full Frontal is the latest in a string of cancellations at the so-called TNets — TBS, TNT and TruTV — following the merger of WarnerMedia and Discovery. The story. 

Emmys: Why Do Broadcast Networks Want to Air Their Own Funeral?

►Lacking relevance. In the era of “Peak TV” the TV Academy has expanded the number of nominees for best drama and best comedy from five to six in 2008 to eight in 2020. Not even that has masked the fact that network shows account for a much smaller piece of the pie than they used to. THR’s awards columnist Scott Feinberg explores the plummeting Emmys presence of ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox, which take turns airing the awards show and whether they will do so in the future. The analysis.  

—We go again. Adele has unveiled new dates for her Weekends With Adele Vegas residency, months after she abruptly postponed the initial shows just a day before the concerts were set to take place. The new concerts will run from Nov. 18, 2022 through March 25, 2023. In addition to the 24 rescheduled shows, she has added eight new concerts. The story. 

—Straight to Hulu. Sarah Paulson is set to star in and exec produce Searchlight Pictures’ upcoming horror thriller Dust. Will Joines and Karrie Crouse are directing the project penned by Crouse and set to start production in late August. The film will debut on Hulu in the U.S., with additional release plans to be announced. The story.

—Big hire. Former STX Film chief Adam Fogelson has joined Lionsgate as vice chair of the Hollywood studio’s Motion Picture Group. He will report to Joe Drake, chair of the studio’s Motion Picture Group, as he oversees worldwide marketing and theatrical distribution and has a role in planning and executing the film unit’s content strategy. Fogelson starts work at the studio on Sept. 1. The story. 

—Big exit. Mike Moon, director of adult animation at Netflix, is leaving the company at the end of the month to pursue other opportunities. Moon joined Netflix close to five years ago and helped build the streaming platform's animation production facility, Vine Studios. Animation projects during his tenure included Inside Job, Human Resources, The Midnight Gospel and more. The story. 

'P-Valley' Creator Calls on Other Showrunners to Depict Abortion

►"All them pro-lifers only be pro-life ’til the baby be born." Sunday’s abortion-themed episode of P-Valley, the critically praised Starz drama series, was inspired by Jackson Women’s Health Organization, whose real-life legal battles waged with the state of Mississippi set the stage for the overturning of Roe v. Wade. In a guest column for THR, P-Valley creator, executive producer and showrunner Katori Hall calls on other television showrunners to "reflect the times" and include issues like abortion. The column. 

—"I look in Jeremy Allen white’s eyes and he’s in pain." THR's Seth Abramovitch spoke to Ebon Moss-Bachrach one of the stars of FX's buzzy food-world series The Bear. Moss-Bachrach reveals the emotion and behind-the-scenes workings of the back-of-house dramedy. The interview.

—🤝 Overall deal news 🤝 Rodney Barnes, an executive producer and writer of Winning Time, has extended his overall deal at HBO. The new pact will keep him at the premium cabler for three more years. Under the deal, Barnes will continue on Winning Time — where he co-wrote nine of season one’s 10 episodes — while continuing to develop and produce series projects for HBO. The story. 

—"The lynching of my son has shown me that what happens to any of us." The first trailer for Till, Clemency director Chinonye Chukwu’s movie about the 1955 lynching of Emmett Till, has dropped and shows his mother Mamie Till Mobley warning her son about danger during his life, and then fighting for justice after his murder. The film is set to debut at the New York Film Festival. The story. 

—Off the ropes and off the books. The WWE says that former CEO Vince McMahon paid $14.6m in “unrecorded expenses” from 2006 through 2022, and that it will revise its previous financial results to account for the payments. In addition, the company disclosed that it is facing investigations related to the McMahon payments, which were reportedly to former female employees with whom he had personal relationships. The story. 

Film Review: 'Thirteen Lives'

►"A reliably tense retelling lacking in depth." THR critic Lovia Gyarkye reviews Ron Howard’s Thirteen Lives. Viggo Mortensen and Colin Farrell star as divers in this drama about the harrowing 2018 rescue of a Thai soccer team trapped in an underground cave. The story.

In other news...

—Make-Up Artists and Hair Stylists Guild announces 2023 awards timeline

—Digital creator Nina Daniele signs with CAA 

—Lena Dunham’s Catherine Called Birdy to world premiere at Toronto Film Festival

—Keith Olbermann to host new podcast on iHeartMedia

—20th Television ups casting executive Stephanie Levinson

—Inside the new $10m Toca Madera restaurant in Las Vegas

—Jean-Marie Lavalou, co-inventor of the remote-controlled Louma crane, dies at 76

What else we're reading...

—Alison Willmore has a great interview with Nope star Steven Yeun [Vulture]

— Daniel Chin reflects on Marvel's phase 4, 5, and 6 plans and the major takeaways [Ringer]

—Aymann Ismail is happy Disney+'s Ms. Marvel does right by Muslims but is not happy about the New Jersey slander [Slate]

—Keith Stuart on the rising popularity of collecting vinyl copies of video game soundtracks [Guardian]

—This Alex Beggs piece suggests that cannibalism is a hot film and TV trend [NYT]

Today...  

...in 1978, 20th Century Fox released The Driver, a car chase thriller starring Ryan O’Neal and Bruce Dern, in theaters. The original review.

Today's birthdays: Helen Mirren (77), Sandra Bullock (58), Kate Beckinsale (49), Jason Statham (55), Olivia Williams (54), Taylor Momsen (29), Monica Raymund (36), Jeremy Piven (57), Nana Visitor (65), Mick Jagger (79), Tom McGowan (63), Danny Woodburn (58), Peter Hyams (79), Grace Byers (38), Thomasin McKenzie (22), Elizabeth Gillies (29), Francia Raisa (34), Eve Myles (44), Susan George (72), Cress Williams (52), Juliet Rylance (43)