| | | | What's news: Bijou Phillips has filed for divorce from Danny Masterson. AMC has renewed Dark Winds for a third season. Marc Webb is set to direct a film about the Bermuda Triangle. A theater production based on Stranger Things has revealed its cast. Vanna White is sticking with Wheel of Fortune. Max is launching a premium sports tier. WGA West has re-elected Meredith Stiehm as its president. — Abid Rahman
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Lana Del Rey Forgives You ►On the cover. Lana Del Rey, music's introspective queen of melancholy, talks to THR's Mikey O'Connell about moving on from (and winning over) her longtime detractors, being a mentor to Billie Eilish and Olivia Rodrigo, that viral gig at Waffle House, her refusal to publish her lyrics and why, nearly 12 years after a maligned Saturday Night Live appearance, she’d consider performing on TV again. The cover story.
—"Her priority remains with her daughter." Bijou Phillips has filed for divorce from Danny Masterson less than two weeks after the actor was sentenced to 30 years to life in prison for the rapes of two women in 2003. The filing, submitted Monday in Santa Barbara, caught many off guard since there was a stream of headlines following Masterson’s sentencing that suggested Phillips would stand by her husband as she had throughout his years-long legal battles. The story.
—Sticking around. Vanna White will remain with Wheel of Fortune as the show enters a new era. White has signed a two-year contract extension to continue as co-host of the syndicated game show through the 2025-26 season. That will take her two years into the hosting tenure of Ryan Seacrest, who will take over for longtime host Pat Sajak in fall 2024. The story. |
Does CAA Have a Succession Problem? ►"If I were a young person at CAA right now, I’d be like, 'Fuck, these guys are never going away.'" In the wake of French billionaire François-Henri Pinault’s deal to acquire a majority interest in CAA — an agreement valuing the talent agency at a rich $7b — Bryan Lourd, Richard Lovett and Kevin Huvane are sticking around as co-chairmen. THR's editor-at-large Kim Masters writes that decades before the recent sale, it was clear the leadership trio, the so-called Young Turks, would take the reins at the talent agency. But who’s being primed to take their place? The analysis.
—"Do you just want to murder kids in schools?" Larry David confronted Elon Musk over his support for the Republican Party at Endeavor chief Ari Emanuel’s wedding last year, according to Walter Isaacson’s new biography of the tech mogul. David, an Emanuel client who officiated the nuptials between the talent agent and Sarah Staudinger, was seated at a table that included Musk, and the Curb Your Enthusiasm star “seemed to be fuming” as he took Musk to task over his political views. The story.
—No brainer. AMC and sibling streamer AMC+ have renewed Dark Winds for a third season. The pickup comes about three weeks after the conclusion of the drama’s second season, which ranks among the top 10 cable dramas for this season. AMC is aiming for an early 2025 premiere date for season three, with writing and production to resume after strikes by writers and actors come to an end. The drama, based on the Leaphorn & Chee novels by Tony Hillerman, has earned widespread critical praise and solid viewership for AMC. The story. |
Showrunner Fundraiser Blows Past $500,000 Goal in a Week ►"There’s no such thing as too much help." In the latest sign of a new coalition between showrunners and crew during the writers strike, a showrunner match fundraiser has blown past its initial goal of raising $500,000 for the Entertainment Community Fund in less than a week. Inspired by conversations in the nearly 500-strong showrunner text group, the so-called Showrunner Fundraising Match was launched on Sept. 11 in an effort to help support film and TV workers who are not out on strike but have been impacted by the stoppage. The story.
—Another term. The WGA West has re-elected Meredith Stiehm as its president and Michele Mulroney as its vice president in an unusual strike-era officer and board of directors election. Incumbent Betsy Thomas won the seat for secretary-treasurer, beating out Jeffrey Thompson, in the voting period that ended on Tuesday. Other officer candidates included Rich Talarico, who had been running for president, and Isaac Gómez, who had been running for vice president. The story.
—Anonymous strike diary. THR's series of frank accounts of the writers strike continues. The Eastside Warrior returns, and like everyone else at this point is feeling the pain. But with the AMPTP and the WGA hunkering down, a resolution may at last be in sight: "It's fucking dark out there." The diary entry. | In TV's Wild West, Which Channels Will Be Dropped Next? ►"We expect that Disney will reevaluate these networks and the amount spent to operate them as other distribution agreements come up." THR's Georg Szalai and Alex Weprin write that Disney’s standoff with Charter shows that the carriage fees for core channels (like ESPN) may keep rising, but the padding of the bundle (like Freeform) is now in the past. The analysis.
—"A compelling proposition to viewers." Max will launch a new premium sports tier Oct. 5, just in time for the MLB playoffs, which start two days later. The new tier will be called the Bleacher Report Sports Add-On (or B/R Sports), taking the name of WBD’s digital sports news brand. It will cost $10 per month on top of the subscription for Max, however it will be available for free during a promotional period that runs through the end of February, covering the MLB playoffs, and much of the NBA and NHL seasons. The story.
—Still a draw, even for a repeat. Paramount Network hit Yellowstone made its CBS debut Sunday night and pulled in a solid audience of 6.8m viewers for the two-episode block. The broadcast network is airing the series, beginning with its first season, on Sunday nights in the fall to help fill out its strike-affected primetime lineup. The show got an assist from the day’s biggest NFL game (25.78m viewers) bleeding into primetime and the season opener for 60 Minutes (11.8m). The ratings. |
THR's 25 Platinum Players in Music ►The artists who have defined the year in music. From Beyoncé and Taylor Swift to SZA and Luke Combs, THR introduces its inaugural Platinum Players power list honoring 25 musicians who have owned the year. The list.
—🏆 Édgar's year 🏆 The Latin Recording Academy announced this year’s Latin Grammy nominations on Tuesday. Édgar Barrera — the producer and songwriter known for his work with such artists as Madonna, Karol G, Peso Pluma, Shakira, Grupo Frontera and beyond — leads the field with 13 noms. Just behind him are some of his collaborators, like Karol G, Shakira and Camilo, who have seven nominations each. The nominees.
—Bigger and better. Erykah Badu and Herbie Hancock are set to headline Penske Media’s second annual LA3C festival, which will return to downtown Los Angeles in November. The three-day event, featuring a curated mix of entertainment, music and food, will take place Nov. 10-12 across four iconic L.A. venues — Theatre at the Ace Hotel, Los Angeles Theatre, Orpheum Theatre and Palace Theatre — as well as several surrounding lots. (Penske Media is the parent company of THR.) The story. |
Hollywood Stars Sign Open Letter Denouncing Book Bans ►"It’s only a matter of time before regressive, suppressive ideologues will shift their focus toward other forms of art and entertainment." Ariana Grande, Guillermo del Toro, Padma Lakshmi, Roxane Gay, Gabrielle Union, Sandra Cisneros, Amanda Gorman, Margaret Cho and Ron Perlman are among the signatories of an open letter published Tuesday calling on creative communities in Hollywood and beyond to leverage their voices to stop book bans. Upwards of 175 prominent people have lent their support to the letter spearheaded by LeVar Burton and MoveOn Political Action. The letter.
—"Why I took a congressional delegation to Bollywood." In a guest column for THR, California Rep. Ro Khanna writes that Indian movies shaped his childhood. Now the representative for Silicon Valley is seeking to strengthen cross-cultural ties as Hollywood and Bollywood face similar challenges amid the strikes and the "AI revolution." The column.
—"This is truly a unique moment." New York has launched a new council aimed at addressing challenges to the city’s live entertainment industry. On Monday, Mayor Eric Adams convened the inaugural meeting of the first-ever Live Performance Industry Council, which features a mix of leaders representing the theater, music and dance industries from the city’s arenas, cultural institutions, unions, nonprofit sector and city government. The story. |
Selena Gomez on Why She Will Never Watch Her Doc Again ►"I felt like I got to say things that I’ve been keeping in for years." Selena Gomez opened up about the struggles she had making My Mind and Me, the Apple TV+ documentary that chronicled her six-year journey battling autoimmune disease, mental illness and the pressures of being thrust into the limelight. Speaking at a mental health conference, Gomez said that when the doc was released she "felt like a huge weight was lifted" but still cannot bring herself to watch it again. The story.
—Helmer found, for now. Marc Webb is set to direct Bermuda for Skydance. The latest incarnation of this long-gestating project has no actors attached or script, with a writer to be hired after the WGA strike concludes. The feature takes inspiration on the section of the Caribbean that where planes and ships are said to have vanished, never to be seen again. Skydance has been developing Bermuda for some time, with Sam Raimi and Scott Derrickson attached to direct at various points. The story.
—🎭 Cast in place 🎭 The London stage production based on Stranger Things has announced its cast and set dates for the beginning of previews and its formal opening. Stranger Things: The First Shadow, a prequel to the Netflix hit that’s set in 1959, will begin previews on Nov. 17 at the Phoenix Theatre in London’s West End, with an opening date set for Dec. 14. Rehearsals for the play, written by Kate Telfry and directed by Stephen Daldry with co-director Justin Martin, are underway. The story.
—First special. Netflix is set to release Heather McMahan's debut stand-up special on Oct. 17. Titled Son I Never Had, the hourlong show is based on the material from her The Farewell Tour, which ran 94 dates throughout North America in 2021 and 2022. The comedian and host of the Absolutely Not podcast self-produced her debut hour, shot at the Lexington Opera House, before selling it to the streamer. The story.
—“Sometimes you’d be in a scene, and you’d be like, ‘What the hell does any of this shit mean?'” Nia DaCosta has revealed the challenges she had directing upcoming superhero film The Marvels. In a new interview, DaCosta said that while she loved filming the movie starring Brie Larson, she admitted there were days when she texted Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings director Destin Daniel Cretton to vent about how she was feeling. The story. |
Film Review: 'Stamped From the Beginning' ►"An engaging doc that could have drawn more ambitious conclusions." THR's Lovia Gyarkye reviews Roger Ross Williams' Stamped From the Beginning. The director of Love to Love You, Donna Summer and Cassandro adapts Ibram X. Kendi's influential book about the roots of American racism. The review.
—"A loving, haunting tribute." THR's Sheri Linden reviews Fernando Trueba and Javier Mariscal's They Shot the Piano Player. The Chico & Rita helmers reteam for another animated film, this time combining documentary material and invented sequences to tell the story of beloved Brazilian musician Francisco Tenório Júnior. The review. In other news...
—Amber Heard battles demons in comeback film In The Fire trailer
—Rachel Zegler enters the arena in trailer for Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes
—Nicolas Cage becomes viral star in Dream Scenario trailer
—Percy Jackson trailer travels to camp half-blood
—Vanessa Redgrave to receive European Film Academy Lifetime Achievement Award
—Dumb Money director Craig Gillespie signs with CAA
—Disney veteran Bryan Castellani named CFO at Warner Music Group
—Dan Abrams reups with Nexstar’s NewsNation
—Meet Maya, an AI real estate expert launched by celebrity agent Fredrik Eklund
—The best new home design shops in Los Angeles
—The Second City opening New York entertainment complex in November
—How Barry’s Gym is celebrating its 25th anniversary
—Real estate agent to the stars Jordan Cohen is sharing selling secrets in new book
What else we're reading...
—Ariana Garcia reports that a Texas teacher was fired after assigning an iillustrated version of Anne Frank's diary to her eighth grade reading class [Houston Chronicle]
—Michael Schulman profiles man of the moment John Waters who reflects on his long career and the upcoming museum retrospective about his work [New Yorker]
—Take it all with a pinch of salt, but Michael Wolff's behind the scenes account of why Rupert Murdoch dumped Tucker Carlson is a rather distracting read [Intelligencer]
—Clare Thorp looks at how supermodels Cindy Crawford, Naomi Campbell, Tatjana Patitz, Linda Evangelista and Christy Turlington came to define an era [BBC]
—Josh Eidelson and Brendan Case make the case for why Dollar General might just be the worst retail job in America [Bloomberg]
Today...
...in 2002, Fox rolled the dice with a new sci-fi series, Firefly. The Joss Whedon-created show was canceled after 11 episodes but would go on to become a cult favorite, spawning a feature film, Serenity, in 2005. The original review.
Today's birthdays: Sophia Loren (89), Maggie Cheung (59), Jon Bernthal (47), Gary Cole (67), Aldis Hodge (37), Chad Stahelski (55), Kristen Johnston (56), Samantha Hanratty (28), Moon Bloodgood (48), Chinaza Uche (36), George R.R. Martin (75), Robert Rusler (58), Jordana Largy (34), Charlie Weber (45), Spencer Locke (32), Wallis Day (29), Robert LaSardo (60), Mathilde Ollivier (29), Betsy Brantley (68), David Haig (68), Enuka Okuma (47), Mina Anwar (54), Debbi Morgan (67), Olivia Grant (40), Isabelle Grill (26), Sophia Tatum (26) |
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