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The Muschiettis Ink First-Look Deal With WB; Janitor Layoffs at Studios Spur Demo; 'Barbie' Looks to Open Ahead of 'Oppenheimer'; 'The Blackening' Review

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June 16, 2023

What's news: Andy Muschietti will direct Batman movie The Brave and the Bold. The seventh season of Billions will be its last. Christine McCarthy is stepping down as CFO of Disney. Spotify has ended its podcast deal with Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. Nine more women are accusing Bill Cosby of sexual assault. — Abid Rahman

The Muschiettis Ink First-Look Deal With WB

►🤝 Doubling down on Double Dream 🤝 THRs' Aaron Couch and Pamela McClintock have the scoop on The Flash director Andy Muschietti and producing partner Barbara Muschietti inking parallel first-look deals with Warner Bros. Pictures and Warner Bros. Television Group/Max. The Muschiettis' relationship with the studio dates back to Warners and New Line’s It. The duo are already working on an It spinoff, Welcome to Derry, for Max. The story.

—Winning. More good news for the Muschiettis, with WB officially confirming Andy will be directing The Brave and the Bold. The feature project will introduce a new big-screen version of Batman, and the film will fit into the expansive universe being developed by DC Studios heads James Gunn and Peter Safran. The story.

—It's official. Showtime has confirmed that the seventh season of Billions, which will feature the return of Damian Lewis as Bobby Axelrod, will be its last. Season seven will begin streaming Aug. 11, with an on-air premiere at 8 p.m. ET/PT Aug. 13. While Billions is ending, the world of the show could continue as Showtime is developing several spinoffs (two of which are tentatively titled Millions and Trillions) with co-creators Brian Koppelman and David Levien. The story.

—"Only human creators are eligible to be submitted for consideration." The Grammys are changing requirements for its top award, album of the year, and also introducing a new rule on songs created using artificial intelligence. The Recording Academy also removed a previous requirement for the best music film category, which will impact Hollywood and allow more music-based movies or docs to compete for awards. The story.

—"One of the most admired financial executives in America." Disney CFO Christine McCarthy is stepping down from her role to take a family medical leave of absence, the company said Thursday. Veteran Disney exec Kevin Lansberry, executive vp and CFO of Disney Parks, Experiences and Products, will serve as interim CFO, effective July 1. The company will now begin a search for a permanent CFO, with McCarthy agreeing to serve as a “strategic adviser” during her leave, helping to onboard whomever her successor is. The story.

Strike: Janitor Layoffs at Studios Spur Demo

►✊ "We’re not going to be divided" ✊ THR's Katie Kilkenny reports that hundreds of janitors and supporters marched from the Sony lot in Los Angeles to Amazon Studios on Thursday to support striking Hollywood writers and protest alleged layoffs at major entertainment companies during the ongoing work stoppage. According to the SEIU United Service Workers West union, which organized the demo with the WGA, about 50 janitors have been laid off since the work stoppage began May 2, while others have seen their hours cut. The story.

—✊ "We deserve to live with a living wage" ✊ Lin-Manuel Miranda, Sara Bareilles and members of the Broadway community serenaded Times Square Thursday in a show of solidarity with the WGA. At the themed "WGA Broadway Day Rally," performers belted out classic show tunes with nods to organizing such as “Do You Hear the People Sing?” from Les Misérables, “Ya Got Trouble” from The Music Man, with references to residuals and streaming and "America" performed by Rent star Adam Pascal and Catch Me if You Can star Norbert Leo Butz, his original understudy. The story.

—One and done. Spotify has ended its podcast deal with Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. In a joint statement, reps for the audio giant and the couple's Archewell said the two parties had “mutually agreed to part ways” and are “proud” of Archetypes, the podcast hosted by the Duchess of Sussex that served as the first and only series released as part of Archewell’s podcast deal with Spotify. Archewell retains the IP rights to the Archetypes podcast and existing episodes of the series will remain on Spotify. The story.

—New allegations. Nine more women are accusing Bill Cosby of sexual assault in a lawsuit that alleges he used his “enormous power, fame and prestige” to victimize them. A lawsuit filed Wednesday in federal court in Nevada alleges that the women were individually drugged and assaulted between approximately 1979 and 1992 in Las Vegas, Reno and Lake Tahoe homes, dressing rooms and hotels. The story.

—Blocked. Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse has been blocked from release in the United Arab Emirates after failing to pass local censorship laws. The film has apparently fallen foul of the country’s censors due in part to the blink-and-you-miss-it protect trans lives poster featured in the background of one frame, according to a source familiar with the situation. Across the Spider-Verse is set to debut on June 22 across the Middle East ahead of the upcoming Eid Al Adha holiday. The story.

WB Execs Tease Adult Animation Projects at Annecy

►"Adult animation is in a renaissance." Execs from Warner Bros. Animation, Adult Swim and Max descended on the Annecy International Animated Film Festival this week to announce a slew of projects and reaffirm WB's support for adult animation. At a Friday panel at the festival, Adult Swim president Michael Ouweleen, Suzanna Makkos, evp original comedy and adult animation at Max and Adult Swim, and Peter Girardi, evp alternative programming for Warner Bros. Animation spoke of shifting industry attitudes and the embrace of more multigenerational shows. The story.

—"Create new universes and to tell great stories." Dan Houser, the co-founder of Rockstar Games and writer behind the Grand Theft Auto franchise, launched a new media venture on Thursday that will create IP across formats. Absurd Ventures is based in Santa Monica and will give Houser an opportunity to expand his focus outside video games to include programming for live-action and animated shows, books and podcasts. The story.

—🤝 New credit agreement 🤝 Fox Corp. has revealed that it has secured a $1b revolving credit agreement with a consortium of banks that renews an existing credit facility established in 2019. In a securities filing on Thursday, Fox said the debt facility — a five-year unsecured revolver from a consortium of banks led by Citibank that could potentially go to $1.75b — will be used for "general corporate purposes." The new agreement comes after the $787m defamation case settlement with Dominion Voting Systems. The story.

—🤝 Settlement 🤝 Netflix and the production company behind Afflicted have settled a suit brought by subjects of the docuseries who said they were defamed when the show misrepresented their chronic illnesses. Both sides moved to drop the suit, according to a request for dismissal filed on June 6. Details of the deal weren’t disclosed. The story.

—In the game. ITV said on Friday that it was “actively exploring” a potential acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery and Liberty Global's production joint venture All3Media, the largest TV production firm in the U.K. WBD and Liberty have been considering options for All3Media, including a full sale for a reported price of between $1.25b and $1.87b. The production house is behind the series The Traitors and The Tourist, as well as the 2019 film 1917. The story.

'Barbie' Looks to Open Ahead of 'Oppenheimer'

►The pink ascendancy. A battle for the ages is set to take place over the July 21-23 weekend, with Greta Gerwig's Barbie and Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer going head-to-head for box office supremacy. THR's Pamela McClintock looks at the early tracking data which suggests the female-fueled movie starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling will beat Nolan's epic drama. The box office report.

—📅 Another one 📅 Apple Original Films is teaming with Universal to give Matthew Vaughn's Henry Cavill-starring spy thriller Argylle a Feb. 2, 2024, exclusive global release. It’s the latest high-profile feature that Apple has opted to grant a theatrical window ahead of its streaming debut. The company is already partnering with Sony to put Ridley Scott’s Napoleon into theaters this Thanksgiving, while Martin Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon is due out Oct. 6 via Paramount. The story.

—"You’re looking at it, going ‘I can see, you know, 500 nits of what the fuck.'" David Fincher has confirmed he is remastering Seven in 4K, adding that the process has required him to make some background tweaks. The filmmaker revealed the news, long speculated amongst his fans, at a Tribeca Festival talk with Steven Soderbergh Thursday night. Fincher said he's had to fix some blown-out elements but clarified he wasn't going to make fundamental changes. The story.

'Black Mirror' Stars Talk "Beyond the Sea" Episode

►"The sins that lead to their horrible outcome." THR's queen of chat Jackie Strause spoke to Josh Hartnett and Kate Mara, stars of the Black Mirror season six episode "Beyond the Sea." The actors unpack the themes revealed in the space story and share their feelings on that ending. Warning: Spoilers! The interview.

—"When you get to play a person that you’d like to be and that exemplifies grace and passion and bravery, you want that kind of character to reach peoples’ hearts." Jackie also spoke to 1883 star Isabel May about reintroducing her beloved character Elsa to an even wider audience as the show is rereleased on Paramount Network. May reflects on the breakout part and looks ahead to her role in Taylor Sheridan's Yellowstone-verse beyond 1883. The interview.

—🏆 Congrats! 🏆 The 2023 Tribeca Festival revealed its award winners across various competition categories on Thursday, with Cypher, A Strange Path and Between the Rains among the films winning the top prizes. Cypher won the founders award for best U.S. narrative feature with the prize going to director Chris Moukarbel. The winners.

—Renewed interest. SWAT made its first appearance on Nielsen’s streaming charts a week after CBS briefly canceled the series. The crime drama cracked the overall top 10, and came in fourth among acquired series, for the week of May 15-21 with 635m minutes of watch time on Netflix. Jennifer Lopez’s Netflix movie The Mother rose to No. 1 overall, swapping places with Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story, which led the previous week. The story.

Film Review: 'The Blackening'

►"A total blast." THR's Lovia Gyarkye reviews Tim Story's The Blackening. A Juneteenth reunion weekend turns fatal in this slasher satire starring Yvonne Orji, Jay Pharoah and Melvin Gregg. The review.

—"Amusing, but struggles to maintain its momentum." Lovia reviews Chelsea Peretti's First Time Female Director. The Brooklyn Nine-Nine star directs and stars in a mockumentary-style film about an anxious playwright who becomes a community theater's first woman director. The review.

—"A moving chapter in queer history." THR's chief film critic David Rooney reviews Stephen Kijak's Rock Hudson: All That Heaven Allowed. This archive-rich doc for HBO and Max finds double-meanings in deftly chosen Hudson movie clips and repositions the star’s legacy as an unwitting AIDS activist. The review.

—"Utter fabulosity." David reviews Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman's Taylor Mac’s 24-Decade History of Popular Music. This doc captures the radical performance artist’s one-time-only marathon event, covering one decade per hour over an entire day, spanning 1776-2016. The review.

—"Efficient but unoriginal psycho-horror." THR's Caryn James reviews Stewart Thorndike's Bad Things. Four friends (Gayle Rankin, Hari Nef, Annabelle Dexter-Jones and Rad Pereira) and a chainsaw spend a weekend at an abandoned hotel in Stewart Thorndike's horror film, which premiered in competition at Tribeca. The review.

Thank Pod It's Friday

► All the latest content from THR's podcast studio.

—TV's Top 5. THR's Lesley Goldberg and Dan Fienberg break down the latest TV news. This week's episode is something special, with the guys talking to 14 members of the creative team behind the 2011-13 ABC comedy Happy Endings — including creator David Caspe, Jonathan Groff, Prentice Penny, Sierra Teller Ornelas and Hilary Winston — who open up about the benefits of learning on the job and explain why rushed mini-rooms are bad for television. Listen here.

—Awards Chatter. THR's executive awards editor Scott Feinberg talks to the great and the good of Hollywood. In this episode, Scott spoke to Martin Short. The comedy legend reflects on getting through childhood tragedies, why he was drawn to sketch in his native Canada and in the U.S. and what is at the root of his nearly 40-year friendship and collaboration with Only Murders in the Building co-star Steve Martin. Listen here.

—It Happened in Hollywood. THR senior writer Seth Abramovitch goes behind the scenes of the pop culture moments that shaped Hollywood history. In this episode Seth spoke to Julie Taymor. The visionary filmmaker goes behind the scenes of her 2007 masterpiece Across the Universe, revealing the intricate and mind-bending creative process that brought the film to the big screen. Listen here.

—Behind the Screen. THR's tech editor Carolyn Giardina's podcast focuses on the filmmaking crafts. In this episode Carolyn spoke to Peter Sohn. The director of Elemental, Pixar's latest animated feature, discusses how he created the film as a tribute to his family. Listen here.

In other news...

—What We Do in the Shadows S5 trailer sees Guillermo struggling with "transformation"

—Stephanie Hsu, Sherry Cola get rowdy in R-rated trailer for Joy Ride sex comedy

—Saamer Usmani, Amy Forsyth join Amar Wala’s Shook drama

—Mortal Kombat 2 adds Martyn Ford, Desmond Chiam, Ana Thu Nguyen, Damon Herriman

—Al Pacino welcomes baby boy with girlfriend Noor Alfallah

—Outfest to honor Amandla Stenberg with Platinum Maverick Award

—Mags Creative, U.K. podcast studio, signs with CAA

What else we're reading...

—Nick Schager talks to Wes Anderson about his new film Asteroid City as well as the controversy around Bill Murray and all the AI memes about his work [Daily Beast]

—Katie Razzall talks to actress Sienna Miller about the celebrity phone hacking case that is roiling the U.K. at the moment [BBC]

—Charles McNulty pens a moving tribute to the late Glenda Jackson, writing that she was a formidable talent who helped change contemporary acting’s tone [LAT]

—A wonderful photo essay from Ben Barzilai and Christopher Lee documenting the exploding world of battle rap in New York [NYT]

—Here's your Friday list: "Every DC Comics movie, ranked" [Vulture]

Today...

...in 1960, Alfred Hitchcock premiered his iconic mystery thriller Psycho in New York, with secrecy as the theme when it came to the plot. The original review.

Today's birthdays: John Cho (51), Laurie Metcalf (68), Daniel Brühl (45), Anna Cathcart (20), Clifton Collins Jr. (53), Abby Elliott (36), Verónica Echegui (40), Nathan Parsons (35), Frederick Koehler (48), Geoff Pierson (74), Camila Morrone (26), Missy Peregrym (41), Jessica McNamee (35), Arnold Vosloo (61), Sibel Kekilli (43), Lyndsey Marshal (45), Charlotte Kirk (31), Eddie Cibrian (50), Enid-Raye Adams (50), Iantha Richardson (33), Finn Elliot (21), Tommy Tiernan (54), Daniel Zelman (56), Mithun Chakraborty (73), Sam Register (54)

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Written by José Vizcarra
on Friday, June 16, 2023 at 7:01 AM.

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