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Showtime Pulls 'Vice' Episode on DeSantis; DGA Reaches Tentative Deal With Studios; 'The Idol' Stars Defend Show; 'Spider-Verse' Opens to $120.5M

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June 05, 2023

What's news: Hollywood writers have been reacting to the DGA's tentative deal with the studios. There will be no trailers or marketing promo for Hayao Miyazaki's final film. Chuck Todd is exiting Meet the Press. Spotify is cutting 2 percent of its workforce. Disney is developing a third Hocus Pocus film. — Abid Rahman

Showtime Pulls 'Vice' Episode on DeSantis

►"We don’t comment on scheduling decisions." THR's Rick Porter reports that Showtime quietly pulled an episode of its Vice newsmagazine last week — one that featured a report on Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ time as a U.S. Navy lawyer serving at the Guantánamo Bay detention facility in Cuba. The episode had been slated to air May 28. Mentions of the originally scheduled episode, titled “The Gitmo Candidate & Chipping Away,” have been scrubbed from Showtime’s website and press portal. The story.

—The brand is strong. Studio Ghibli says it won't release a trailer or launch a marketing campaign for maestro Hayao Miyazaki’s final film How Do You Live? The forthcoming feature, which opens in its home market on July 14, is easily the most anticipated movie coming to Japanese theaters in years — and very little is known about it. In a very Ghibli-esque move, the legendary anime house is asking fans to go see the film with no preconceptions. The story.

—No show. Prince Harry did not appear at a court in London on Monday, where he is set to make history this week as the first royal to testify in over a century. Much to the disappointment of the assembled photographers, the Duke of Sussex failed to arrive at the High Court for the first day of the first of his five pending legal cases, most centered around battles with the notorious British tabloids. Opening statements were scheduled to be made Monday, with the royal set to take the witness stand Tuesday. The story.

DGA Reaches Tentative Deal With Studios and Streamers

►"A truly historic deal." After less than a month of negotiations, the Directors Guild and Hollywood’s top studios and streamers struck a tentative deal on a new three-year labor contract late on Saturday night. The agreement between the union and the AMPTP includes gains in wages and benefits, streaming residuals, AI protections and more and comes as the writers remains on strike. There is no date yet for the ratification vote; the tentative agreement will be submitted to the DGA’s national board at a special meeting set for Tuesday. The story.

—"Thrilled that the DGA was able to use the power of the WGA’s labor action to secure a deal that works for them." After the proposed deal between the directors and the studios was revealed, THR's Lesley Goldberg gauged the reaction of WGA members. Lesley writes that with issues including protections against the use of "mini-rooms" and "span," the WGA still has a number of proposals on the table that are not going to be impacted by the DGA deal with the AMPTP. The reaction.

—"We’re mad." Writers Zoanne Clack, Greg Iwinski and Julie Plec sat down with their fellow scribe Beau Willimon for an ATX Television Festival panel to discuss the strike and how it’s different from previous stoppages. Plec pointed out that she has friends who worked as writers in the industry for 15 years and are currently out of a job or are taking jobs for up to 60 percent less pay. The story.

CNN Chief Addresses 'Meltdown' Magazine Profile

►"I should not be in the news." After a devastating profile in The Atlantic, CNN CEO Chris Licht addressed employees on the daily editorial call Monday, telling them he will “fight like hell” to win back their trust, and that they “deserve a leader who will be in the trenches” fighting for them. It was a mea culpa that was warmly received after a week of confusion about his future at the network, and the Tim Alberta story about Licht's tenure at CNN that rocked the network. The story.

—New pod about to drop. THR's Alex Weprin has the scoop on MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow expanding her burgeoning podcast empire with another new show. Debuting June 12, Rachel Maddow Presents: Déjà News will be a six episode limited series in which Maddow and her longtime producer Isaac-Davy Aronson explore news stories from the past that have notable parallels with the present. The story.

—End of an era. In a change that shakes up the Sunday show landscape, Chuck Todd is exiting as the moderator of NBC’s Meet the Press, with Kristen Welker succeeding him beginning in September. Todd will become chief political analyst for NBC News, working on long-form journalism and producing the Chuck Toddcast and Meet the Press Reports. The story.

—"Fundamental pivot." Spotify is making a new round of cuts to its podcast division following a broad round of layoffs in January and job cuts in October. In a memo to staff Monday, the company said that it would be reducing its workforce by about 2 percent, representing around 200 jobs. In addition, Spotify will merge its Parcast and Gimlet into a single Spotify Studios division, which will join The Ringer in producing Spotify originals. The story.

—Good sign. National CineMedia has signed a new longterm deal with Regal Cinemas, in the latest sign both companies are moving towards restructuring their struggling businesses in a recovering exhibition sector. Terms of the new 10-year exhibitor service agreement were not disclosed, but the deal will see NCM continue to exclusively offer on-screen advertisements at Regal Cinemas’ over 6,000 screens and 450 theaters, while also running its Noovie show with national, regional and local advertisers. The story.

—No-brainer. A third Hocus Pocus film is in the works at Disney. Sean Bailey, president of Walt Disney Studios Motion Picture Production, confirmed in an interview with The New York Times that Hocus Pocus 3 is happening. It comes as little surprise given the success of last year’s sequel, which set a record for an opening weekend by a movie on a streamer with 2.7b minutes viewed. Overall, the film landed at No. 5 on the most-streamed movies of 2022 with a total of 5.7b minutes viewed. The story.

'Across the Spider-Verse' Opens to Huge $120.5M

►Gangbusters. Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse is spinning a powerful web at the box office. The sequel opened to $120.5m in North America, well ahead of expectations and the third-biggest opening ever for an animated film, as well as a best-ever for Sony Animation, not adjusted for inflation. It’s also the second-biggest opening of 2023 to date. The movie, which easily come in at No. 1, boasts both stellar reviews and audience scores.

Across the Spider-Verse also flexed its muscles overseas, opening to $88.1m from 57 markets for a worldwide bow of $208.6m.

THR's Pamela McClintock writes that Across the Spider-Verse played older than a traditional kid’s animated movie, with 67 percent of ticket buyers in North America falling between ages 18 and 34. And, like almost all superhero films, the pic skewed male (62 percent). The film also enjoyed the most foot traffic of any 2023 release behind Universal’s The Super Movie Bros. Movie. The box office report.

—So-so. Across the Spider-Verse opened to $17.2m in China over the weekend — a respectable start but a fraction of its barnstorming opening in North America. As in the U.S., the film has been very well received by Chinese critics and the audience alike. But ticketing app Maoyan only projects it to earn about $35m in total in the country, a major step down from Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse's $62.8m haul in 2019. The China box office report.

—The definitive list. Across the Spider-Verse is a feast for the eyes and catnip for eagle-eyed comic book fans. For THR, Dan Gvozden runs through 100-plus references that are found in Sony's densely packed sequel to the Oscar-winning Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. The easter eggs.

'The Idol' Stars Defend Controversial Show

►"We always knew we were going to make something provocative." The creative team behind HBO’s controversial new drama The Idol has been defending the show as it made its premiere Sunday night. In an interview published by The New York Times over the weekend and conducted at Cannes last month, stars Abel Tesfaye and Lily-Rose Depp as well as co-creator Sam Levinson defended the series and urged people to watch with an open mind, but noted that they never intended to make a family show. The story.

—"Apparently, [her cameo] was shot in the garage somewhere with no contact with anybody." Evan Handler is teasing Kim Cattrall’s return to the Sex and the City universe for season two of And Just Like That. In a new interview, the actor, who plays Charlotte’s husband Harry Goldenblatt, offered more details on Cattrall’s shock upcoming cameo in the sequel series. The story.

—"I thought, 'You think they’re going to hire Luke Skywalker to play the Joker?' The fans will lose their minds!" Mark Hamill’s voice role as the Joker in Batman: The Animated Series may not have happened if it weren’t for Michael Keaton’s Caped Crusader. In a new interview, the actor explained that the controversy surrounding Keaton’s casting as Batman and his eventual success with it helped him feel more confident going into his audition than he would’ve been otherwise. The story.

—"I think the culture of trying to 'find' some kind of hidden trait or behavior that a closeted person 'let slip' is very dangerous." Tyler James Williams took to social media to share a heartfelt and important message to kick off Pride month. In a series of Instagram Stories, the Abbott Elementary star addressed the rumors surrounding his sexuality and warned of the dangers of speculating about someone’s sexual orientation, explaining that the "conversation is bigger than me." The story.

Which TV Movies Look Strongest in Emmys Race

►Feinberg Forecast. In his latest dispatch, THR’s awards expert Scott Feinberg details which big features on the small screen are contenders in this year's race including Hulu's Fire Island and Prey, Roku's Weird: The Al Yankovic Story, HBO's Reality and more. The story.

In other news...

—Amazon Prime Video’s new releases coming in June 2023

—Anders Jensen out at Viaplay as Scandi streamer struggles

—YouTube’s list of top 10 ads for 2023

—From celebrity panels to wellness workshops, how Genspace is reframing the aging conversation

—George Riddle, actor on The Onion News Network and The Fantasticks, dies at 86

What else we're reading...

—Jesse David Fox is of the opinion that after a decades-long funk, The Simpsons is good again [Vulture]

—Christopher Grimes reports on how Hollywood actors are seeking a new deal over the use of AI "digital doubles" [FT]

—Ashley Carman looks at how Mexican music is taking over the charts around the world [Bloomberg]

—Corbin Smith wonders how the coverage and punditry around the NBA Finals got so dumb [Daily Beast]

—Ryan Mac and Tiffany Hsu report that Twitter’s U.S. ad sales have plunged 59 percent and according to internal documents are set to decline further [NYT]

Today...

...in 1987, Universal and Amblin released Harry and the Hendersons, about a family who takes a lovable Sasquatch into their home. The original review.

Today's birthdays: Mark Wahlberg (52), Kathleen Kennedy (70), Ron Livingston (56), Nick Kroll (45), Troye Sivan (28), Chad Allen (49), Mark Harelik (72), Nancy Stafford (69), Amanda Crew (37), Liza Weil (46), Michael K. Lee (50), Susan Lynch (52), Navi Rawat (46), Jeff Garlin (61), Nicholas Cirillo (26), Sophie Lowe (33), Elizabeth Faith Ludlow (34), Ellen Foley (72), Emy Coligado (52), June Gable (78), Mel Giedroyc (55), Tyler Bates (58), Leslie Hendrix (63), Brooke Newton (37), Ryan Devlin (43), Joe Gatto (47), Lisa Cholodenko (59)

Barry Newman, who propelled a supercharged Dodge Challenger across the American West in Vanishing Point and portrayed a defense attorney on the NBC series Petrocelli, has died. He was 92. The obituary.

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Written by José Vizcarra
on Monday, June 05, 2023 at 7:20 AM.

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