'The Golden Wedding' Goes Off Without a Hitch

►"I’ve learned you are the woman I can’t live without." Gerry Turner and Theresa Nist made Bachelor Nation history as the first-ever Golden Bachelor couple to get married. The pair, who met and got engaged on ABC’s inaugural season of the senior-aged spinoff, wed in a televised ceremony on Thursday. The event, dubbed The Golden Wedding, aired just over one month following the conclusion to their hit Golden Bachelor season. The story. 

—Loves spreads. Bachelor Nation standouts Brayden Bowers and Christina Mandrell got engaged in the lead-up to Gerry and Theresa’s nuptials. Bowers, who competed for Charity Lawson’s affections during The Bachelorette season 20 before failing to find lasting romance throughout the latest run of Bachelor in Paradise, proposed live to Mandrell, who appeared on Zach Shallcross’ season 27 of The Bachelor. The story. 

—First interview. Jonathan Majors will give Disney-owned ABC News his first interview since being found guilty of reckless assault and harassment last month. ABC News anchor Linsey Davis will interview the actor, which will debut on Good Morning America on Jan. 8. The interview comes after Majors was found guilty by a Manhattan jury on Dec. 18, and was swiftly dropped by Marvel Studios — another Disney division. The story. 

Barry Manilow at 80

►Looks like he made it. As Barry Manilow breaks records in Vegas and takes on Broadway, the legend sits down with THR's Seth Abramovitch and looks back on life and love, with input from an emotional Bette Midler, who is finally ready to forgive her cherished accompanist for becoming a superstar in his own right. The profile. 

—🏆 Longlists innit 🏆 The British Academy on Friday unveiled the longlists for its 2024 BAFTA Film Awards in all 24 categories. Greta Gerwig's Barbie, Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer and Martin Scorsese's Killers of the Flower Moon leading the way with 15 mentions each, followed by Yorgos Lanthimos’ Poor Things with 14. The longlists. 

—Crossing the Atlantic. Jamie Lloyd’s revival of the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical Sunset Boulevard will transfer to Broadway in 2024, with Nicole Scherzinger reprising her role as Norma Desmond. Scherzinger will be joined on Broadway by her London co-stars: Tom Francis as Joe Gillis, Grace Hodgett-Young as Betty Schaefer and David Thaxton as Max Von Mayerling. Exact dates and a theater for the Broadway run have not yet been announced. The London run is scheduled to end Jan. 6. The story. 

Why ABC Canceled 'Station 19'

►Sounding the alarm. On Dec. 8, ABC announced that Station 19 will conclude with 10 episodes this year — the show’s shortest order since it debuted as a midseason replacement show when it launched in spring 2018. With Station 19 and Grey’s Anatomy serving as the only remaining shows on ABC produced by hitmaker Shonda Rhimes — who is now based exclusively at Netflix — why would the network ax one of its Thursday staples? THR's Lesley Goldberg writes that the answer can be found in the math. The story.  

—The cull continues. Disney+ has canceled comedy American Born Chinese after one season. Sources tell Lesley Goldberg that producers from Disney’s 20th Television will shop the series. The series from creator Kelvin Yu launched its eight-episode season May 24 to favorable reviews with the series starring Ben Wang and featuring Michelle Yeoh, Daniel Wu and Ke Huy Quan currently is certified fresh with a 94 percent score among critics and an 82 percent rating from viewers on Rotten Tomatoes. The story. 

—Itsa Mario! Three weeks after premiering on Netflix, Young Sheldon has ascended to the most watched show on streaming platforms in the U.S. A platform switch to Netflix also sent The Super Mario Bros. Movie to its biggest streaming week to date. The two titles, which rank second and third on Nielsen’s streaming chart for the week of Dec. 4-10, are the latest examples of Netflix’s multiplying power. The streaming rankings. 

Existential Crisis Ahead As Hollywood Rethinks What Makes a Hit

►"We can’t just keep cranking out the same old franchise fare." Domestic box office revenue was able to clear $9b in 2023, the best showing of the post-pandemic era. But that’s the glass half-full view. One out of every five moviegoers has vanished since the pandemic, according to research compiled by one Hollywood studio. THR's Pamela McClintock writes that whether those lost people will ever return to see a film on the big screen is anyone’s guess — and, if they do, when. The analysis. 

—"Increases our strategic optionality." Lionsgate CEO Jon Feltheimer says spinning off his Hollywood film and TV studio business from Starz via a SPAC deal offers the best flexibility available before completing a planned and long-awaited full separation. Feltheimer told analysts the SPAC deal was the best way to uncover hidden shareholder value for the studio and Starz assets after the Hollywood studio considered strategic alternatives. The story. 

—New shiny thing. Jeff Zucker's investment fund RedBird IMI is taking a stake in Media Res, the studio behind the Apple TV+ shows The Morning Show and Pachinko, among other projects. The studio, founded by former HBO executive Michael Ellenberg, will use the investment to fuel its scripted business in the U.S. and abroad, as well as to expand its unscripted and film divisions. Zucker will join the board of Media Res in conjunction with the deal, terms were not disclosed. The story. 

—Bonus! Spectrum TV select customers now have access to the ad-supported version of Disney+. The access comes as part of the landmark deal struck between Charter Communications and the Disney in September. The deal followed a carriage dispute between the two companies that saw Disney channels, including ESPN, local ABC stations, FX and Disney Channel, blacked out for close to 15m Spectrum subscribers for about a week starting Aug. 31. The story. 

The Making of 'Barbie'

►"The movie couldn’t just be propaganda." THR's Seija Rankin spoke to Maggie Robbie, Greta Gerwig, Ryan Gosling, Mark Ronson and more of the creative team behind Barbie discuss the making of the box office phenomenon. Among a host of fascinating nuggets, Robbie says that, despite some negative feedback, she insisted on writer Gerwig’s infamous gynecological punch line that ends the film because it has life-saving potential for the movie’s young viewers: "The hill I was ready to die on." The story. 

—"We genuinely thought Natalia had found a happy ending with her new family." For THR, Brande Victorian spoke to ID president Jason Sarlanis about the finale of The Curious Case of Natalia Grace: Natalia Speaks. Brande delves into the revelations from the six-episode series and the twist ending that shocked the production. The story. 

—"I thought it would be a mistake to shoot in a different language." THR's Scott Roxborough spoke to J.A. Bayona about the ten-year journey to bring his new film Society of the Snow to the screen. The helmer discusses his first Spanish-language film in 17 years, recreating the Andes in Spain, telling a snow-based story and other challenges he faced in working on the project. The interview. 

—"I’m not sure how Michael fit it all in." For THR, Creed III producer Elizabeth Raposo pens a guest column on the making of the boxing drama. Raposo reflects on the development process for the drama sequel, which saw her producing partner Michael B. Jordan head behind the camera while maintaining peak fighting form. The column. 

Most Anticipated Movie Releases of 2024

►The spice will flow, finally. The dual actors and writers strikes of 2023 have wreaked havoc on the theatrical landscape, with some projects delayed so long that they will no longer be hitting in 2024, making the year more barren than theater owners and movie studios would like. Still, there are plenty of projects that are on track and expected to be big, from long-gestating sequels (Gladiator 2, Beetlejuice 2) to R-rated comic book offerings (Deadpool 3, Joker: Folie à Deux). The list. 

—They chose Tyrone. It's never too late to post a Best Of list, and THR's Heat Vision blog has come in after the deadline with their top movies of 2023. From out-of-nowhere gems like Talk to Me to anticipated titles that overdelivered like Across the Spider-Verse, these were the best comic book, sci-fi and horror movies of the year. The list. 

—"The shallow end of the horror-film pool." THR's Frank Scheck reviews Bryce McGuire's Night Swim. A family discovers their swimming pool is haunted in this Blumhouse movie, starring Wyatt Russell and Kerry Condon. 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 begins with the headlines with news on Slow Horses, The Gilded Age, Watson, Jeopardy!, Starz and What We Do in the Shadows. There's a big segment on 2024 TV, including a platform-by-platform guide of the biggest shows to expect this year. And in Critic's Corner, Dan offers his thoughts on Netflix’s The Brothers Sun, Fox’s Grimsburg and the Stranger Things stage play. Listen here.

—Awards Chatter. THR's executive awards editor Scott Feinberg talks to the great and the good of Hollywood. In this live episode, Scott spoke to Emerald Fennell. The actress/writer/director, who for Promising Young Woman won the best original screenplay Oscar and became the first British female ever nominated for the best director Oscar, reflects on the roots of her interest in dark material, being handed the reins to Killing Eve by Phoebe Waller-Bridge and what inspired her sophomore feature, Saltburn. Listen here.

In other news...

—Hugh Laurie, Jonathan Van Ness face awkward interviews in Peacock’s In The Know trailer

—YES, MSG Networks pact for streaming tech venture

—David Tennant to host BAFTA Film Awards ceremony

—Tom Brady’s former rental condo in Miami hits market for $16m

—Pharrell Williams first Louis Vuitton collection debuts in L.A. at West Hollywood pop-up

—25 of this season’s hottest Hollywood hideouts

—Gersh taps Matt Andrée Wiltens as head of global corporate communications

—Jethro Nededog joins Lippin Group as vice president

​​​What else we're reading...

—With films and TV disappearing off streaming platforms, Clare Thorp looks into the resurgence of Blu-ray and DVDs and whether this trend is sustainable [BBC]

—Charles Bramesco writes that with their new comedy specials, Dave Chappelle and Ricky Gervais have sunk to new depths [Guardian]

—Elisabeth Vincentelli pens a piece on why women love Amazon's Reacher too, and it's not just because of the action and rippling muscles [NYT]

—Randall Williams breaks down how NBA unicorn Victor Wembanyama will become a basketball billionaire unlike any other [Bloomberg]

—Here's your Friday list: "The 10 most underrated Russell Crowe movies, ranked" [Collider]

Today...  

...in 1933, the Diana Wynyard-starring drama Cavalcade made its world premiere in New York and was greeted with acclaim. The film went on to win three Oscars at the 6th Academy Awards ceremony, including best picture. The original review.

Today's birthdays: Hayao Miyazaki (83), Bradley Cooper (49), January Jones (46), Robert Duvall (93), Diane Keaton (78), Shea Whigham (55), Deepika Padukone (38), Mike Faist (32), Wen Jiang (61), Roger Spottiswoode (79), Clancy Brown (65), Suki Waterhouse (32), Katie Parker (38), Vinnie Jones (59), Ida Ursin-Holm (33), Pamela Sue Martin (71), Maxim Baldry (28), America Olivo (46), Mandip Gill (36), Joe Flanigan (57), Paul McGillion (55), Kristin Cavallari (37), Nicole Mitchell Murphy (56), Cisse Cameron (70), Jessica Chaffin (42), Ted Lange (76), David DeCoteau (62), Olunike Adeliyi (47), Elizabeth Masucci (38)