The all-new Hollywood Reporter offers unprecedented access to the people, studios, networks and agencies that create the magic in Hollywood. Published weekly, the oversized format includes exceptional photography and rich features.
FOR ITS SIXTH ANNUAL NEW YORK ISSUE, THR brought together director Spike Lee and Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders on March 31 for a fascinating conversation between two native Brooklynites (page 66). To capture these iconoclasts for the cover, photographer Wesley Mann approached his subjects as he would have any other: “I didn’t want to psych myself out.” Mann had only a few precious minutes to capture the shot at NoHo’s Neo Studios — a nail-biting window that required a great deal of preparation. “Ultimately, I had just a handful of frames to try and create something that one hopes is iconic or stands out,” explains Mann. THR deputy editorial director Alison Brower describes the atmosphere ahead of Sanders’ arrival as “anticipatory but still relaxed,” with Lee (who calls the…
WITH BATMAN v. Superman: Dawn of Justice, has Warner Bros. finally turned a corner? After an abysmal run of expensive underperformers including Jupiter Ascending, Pan and In the Heart of the Sea, the studio launched its effort at a Marvel-style film universe with the DC Comics movie that had been touted as proof the regime installed in 2013 and headed by chairman and CEO Kevin Tsujihara was getting on track. But a dizzying 69 percent plunge that followed its March-record $166.1 million domestic opening ($422.5 million worldwide) means Batman is not a clear win. Some competitors say the film may turn a profit but hardly will be the money gusher studios hope for when they pour massive resources into making a giant tentpole with a big star — with a…
JACK DORSEY The Twitter CEO beats out rivals for a deal to stream 10 NFL games next season, a muchneeded win as the company seeks to boost slow user growth. DAVID ZASLAV The Discovery Communications CEO’s pay drops from a stock options-fueled $156 million in 2014 to $32.4 million in 2015 amid an 18 percent stock slide since January 2015. GWEN STEFANI A decade after her previous solo album, the singer and The Voice coach notches her first No. 1 on the Billboard 200 for This Is What the Truth Feels Like. JACKIE CHAN The Hong Kong legend is among dozens of world figures (including Pedro Almodovar and his brother) whose offshore business accounts are made public in the Panama Papers leak. SHOWBIZ STOCKS $6.38 (+22%) SALEM MEDIA GROUP (SALM) Earnings…
AN AWKWARD PALL HUNG OVER THE APRIL 4 PREMIERE OF DISNEY’S The Jungle Book reboot. Hours before CEO Bob Iger, 65, walked the red carpet in Hollywood, the company had revealed that his heir apparent, COO Thomas Staggs, 55, will step down. The move, which left many at the premiere shocked, threw a carefully choreographed succession plan into disarray as Iger’s contract expires in June 2018. Disney isn’t talking, but insiders and observers have theories. Here are five: 1. Sheryl Sandberg wants the job The Facebook COO has served on Disney’s board since 2009 and, according to some, has made it known she would like a CEO position that likely never will become available at Mark Zuckerberg’s company. While Sandberg, 46, lacks traditional Hollywood experience, she is savvy in digital…
THE FINE PRINT ON THE investors’ agreement for The Public Theater’s spring 2015 musical warned that backers likely wouldn’t see a return on their money unless the show enjoyed a successful Broadway run — the chances of which were “impossible to project or predict.” That disclaimer seems hilarious in hindsight. The show, Hamilton, is the hottest ticket in New York in years. Through April 3, the hip-hop musical about the “$10 founding father” has grossed $61.7 million at the box office since its Broadway previews began in July. Shows are sold out, with premium tickets selling for $549 each (and scalpers asking double and triple that price). So who’s raking in all those 10-dollar bills? Hamilton grosses about $1.5 million weekly in ticket sales while it costs about 40 percent…
1 WORLD PREMIERES Kevin Spacey as Richard Nixon and Michael Shannon as Elvis Presley make Liza Johnson’s Elvis & Nixon a must-see of the festival, running April 13 to 24. Other curiosities: Katie Holmes’ directorial debut, All We Had; Tom Tykwer’s adaptation of Dave Eggers’ A Hologram for the King, starring Tom Hanks; and Eddie Murphy playing serious in Bruce Beresford’s drama Mr. Church. 2HOT DOCUMENTARIES Robert Kenner, an Oscar nominee for 2008’s Food, Inc., takes aim at the world’s nuclear arsenal in Command and Control, and The Banksy Job probes the street artist. 3 TELEVISION TUNE-IN The fest will bow episodes of TNT’s Animal Kingdom, starring Ellen Barkin, and Greenleaf, which marks Oprah Winfrey’s return to acting for her OWN network. There’s also the Broad City finale. 4 BOLDFACED…
