Innholdsfortegnelse for March 29, 2017 i The Hollywood Reporter

Disney executives gathered March 28 for the unveiling of their $200 million-plus Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales at CinemaCon in Las Vegas, hopeful that the summer release will succeed despite Johnny Depp’s personal dramas and rumors of his repeated on-set tardiness. But that may matter less than a larger question lingering over the $179 billion company: What will happen now that Walt Disney Co. CEO Bob Iger has said he’s “serious this time around” about retiring in July 2019? Days after Iger, 66, revealed that he had extended his contract by a year — he cleverly broke the news March 23 during a USC-hosted tech conference in an interview by his wife, Willow Bay, the new dean of the Annenberg School of Journalism — the issue…

China may have approved the March 17 theatrical release of Beauty and the Beast — despite what The People’s Daily called its “controversial gay moment” — but don’t expect the same for Oscar best picture winner Moonlight. “They think Moonlight is unsuitable and not politically correct,” says a source close to the state-backed China Film Group. Depicting gay relationships on TV is banned in China, but no rules prohibit such stories in feature films or online (though regulators often have pulled popular gay-themed dramas). So why would Beauty get through — along with Power Rangers, which features Hollywood’s first queer-questioning superhero protagonist — but not Moonlight? Disney’s connections may have helped; the relatively safe gay content didn’t hurt, either. “Each of these decisions is a calculation,” says one exec. Tipped…

The Women in the Castle (WILLIAM MORROW, MARCH 28) BY Jessica Shattuck AGENCY WME April’s top Indie Next List pick is about three German widows whose husbands died trying to kill Adolf Hitler, rebuilding their lives after WWII. It follows a provocative March 24 New York Times essay from the author about her grandmother, a Nazi. Honey Girl (SKY PONY PRESS, 2015) BY Lisa Freeman AGENCY Sandra Dijkstra Lit Moonlight meets Gidget in this ’70s-set YA tale (and May sequel) of a bisexual teen girl who moves to Santa Monica and gets caught up in the surf scene. The author, daughter of Hawaii Five-O creator Leonard Freeman, mined her own upbringing for inspiration. 326 Big Numbe Number of Chinese cinemas that will be punished in a major crackdown on box-office…

F or six seasons, Chris Hardwick, 45, has hosted AMC’s Talking Dead, a Walking Dead “aftershow” in which cast, crew and fans of cable’s top-rated series unpack that night’s episode. Now AMC is betting that his unparalleled geek cred — honed from moderating countless Comic-Con panels and his Nerdist podcast — can support a talker that doesn’t come “after” anything. Talking With Chris Hardwick premieres April 9 and will recur yearround on weeks when new episodes of Dead and its spinoff, Fear the Walking Dead, don’t air. THR got the host talking about Talking. Explain your new format. The show was AMC’s idea — at first I didn’t understand what they were asking for, but eventually I got it. It’s a different guest each week — actors, directors, writers, casts…

F orget worries about rising sea levels when it comes to scoring a Malibu summer rental. “Prices are still going up year-to-year, especially for the shortterm- lease, amazing homes,” says The Agency’s David Parnes. The Million Dollar Listing Los Angeles star recently leased a Malibu Colony pool-less home for $275,000 a month. And that’s not even the market’s top dollar as THR highlights options for all takers, from royals to the rank and file. EXCLUSIVE ESTATE 25040 Pacific Coast Highway Westside Estate Agency’s Kurt Rappaport, a perennial on THR’s top 25 agents list, has already booked out his own 6-acre, art-filled Malibu estate — at $750,000 a month, the most expensive rental in the U.S. MIDRANGE MODERN 24380 Malibu Road This newly designed, modern fourbedroom home with stunning views, a…

Was O.J. Simpson’s recent TV ubiquity just the beginning? FX Emmy darling American Crime Story and ESPN Oscar winner O.J.: Made in America had the infamous NFL running back dominating the cultural conversation in 2016 — 21 years after his acquittal on murder charges and months before his potential parole: Simpson could be out of the Nevada penitentiary where he’s serving 33 years for armed robbery and kidnapping as early as October. Many in the industry think a reality show might soon follow. “The danger of trainwreck shows is that you’ve got to watch out for the train because it will run you over,” cautions 44 Blue Productions CEO Rasha Drachkovitch (Lockup), one of several reality producers who thinks at least one network or streamer could make a play for a Simpson docuseries to…

Any actor who has ever had to look a bank teller in the eye while cashing a residual check for 30 cents should be cheering the news: SAG-AFTRA has signed a multiyear deal with a new company called Exactuals that will standardize the data regarding those teeny residual payments and allow them to be automatically deposited electronically. The union announced its approval of the service in February, and since then, payroll heavyweight Entertainment Partners has invested $8 million in the new software startup. Exactuals CEO Mike Hurst says he’s so sure the industry will adopt the auto-residual deposit practice that Hollywood can take it to the bank — or not, actually. “It’s all about getting rid of the millions and millions of tiny payment checks,” he says. “The model we…

Whatever you think the election of Donald Trump has meant for global politics, the new U.S. president has proved a ratings dream for international news satires. With such shows as HBO’s Real Time With Bill Maher and Last Week Tonight With John Oliver hitting ratings highs in Canada and the U.K., Full Frontal, which eOne is introducing to international buyers at MIPTV, is looking to tap into this growing market. ITV, Britain’s leading commercial broadcaster, has moved to capitalize on the trend with The Nightly Show, the U.K.’s first daily news satire program that premiered in February. Reviews have been mixed, but ratings have been solid, up 27 percent year-over-year for 10 p.m. In Germany, Die Heute Show, a weekly Daily Show-style satire on public broadcaster ZDF, features, and skewers,…

The 2017 Emmys opened for submissions March 20, beginning the awards race in earnest. With a glut of ensemble vehicles, many strategists say this year has the pool of actors not only submitting earlier but also competing against more of their co-stars within certain categories. Take NBC’s This Is Us, considered broadcast’s best shot at cracking the drama race: Mandy Moore and Milo Ventimiglia will vie in lead categories, as will co-star (and 2016 People v. O.J. Emmy winner) Sterling K. Brown (though none of the actors with whom he shares screen time will be submitted as lead, with Chrissy Metz, Justin Hartley and Ron Cephas Jones all going for supporting). Hopefuls from HBO’s A-list limited entry Big Little Lies may bring even more intrashow battles. Reese Witherspoon, Nicole Kidman…

A s far as banner years go, 2014 was a big one for Carrie Coon. She won over critics for her portrayal of the grief-stricken Nora Durst in Damon Lindelof’s weighty HBO drama The Leftovers, then did the same as Ben Affleck’s twin sister in Gone Girl. “I really needed the time doing the many, many takes in a David Fincher film to prepare me for television,” she says, noting she’d never done a film or series before. Coon, who earned her master’s of fine arts at University of Wisconsin Madison, had done mostly theater work and credits the 2013 Tony nomination she received for her Broadway debut in Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? with turning Hollywood’s attention her way. Now the 36-year-old is adding another prestige series to her…

The Archer School for Girls gets an A for A-list wrangling: Kathleen Kennedy will keynote the school’s upcoming Archer Film Festival, “dedicated to empowering female filmmakers” but open to all high school students. The uber producer, whose next film is Star Wars: The Last Jedi (Dec. 15), will walk the pink carpet and speak at the Writers Guild Theater on April 26, the midpoint of the two-day event of screenings and panels. The tony Brentwood school’s fest is always Hollywood-heavy, with prior powerhouse keynoters including J.J. Abrams, Nina Jacobson and Fox Studios Animation president Vanessa Morrison. Among the 2016 fest panelists: Ed O’Neill, Jason Reitman, TriStar Pictures’ Hannah Minghella, Bad Moms producer Suzanne Todd and UTA’s Rena Ronson. Archer seniors Alexandra Sherman and Billie Wakeham, enjoying spring break at press…

W hen you move, make it less dramatic, less melt-y because as the night progresses we are getting way more animalistic,” says the producer. She is addressing one of four women, all naked save for nipple pasties, thong bikini bottoms and Egyptianthemed jewelry, each coated head to toe in gold body paint. If this were a neighboring ZIP code, an observer could confuse this with an adult film — but the location is Opus, a $100 million home on Hillcrest Road in Beverly Hills that hit the market earlier in March from former Hollywood producer (The Watcher, The Patriot) turned mega-mansion developer Nile Niami, and the film is a marketing video. “The goal is to showcase the house, but [the video] is not about the house. It’s really about female…

Frances Berwick NBCUniversal Cable Lifestyles Chief Berwick not only has five cable networks under her purview, but she also has two of the most dominant reality players. Bravo’s endurance in maintaining and refreshing franchises, with ratings that actually saw average primetime viewership grow 8 percent in 2016, is enough to make the Big Four jealous. And the Kardashian empire on E!, which might not be as vital as its former self, dominates the celebrity-centric lineup with three current series. (New entry Rob & Chyna was its No. 1 launch of 2016.) What might be most impressive is the brand identity Berwick has cemented during her two-decade tenure leading creative at Bravo. As most networks are forced to stray in search of a hit, the home of Housewives, Shahs and Chefs…

REMEMBERING ROBERT APRIL 6, 12:30 P.M. Chinese Multiplex Friends and TCM staffers will gather to commemorate longtime TCM host, THR columnist and film historian Robert Osborne, who died March 6. CARL AND ROB REINER HAND- AND FOOTPRINT CEREMONYAPRIL 7, 10:30 A.M. TCL Chinese Theatre The multihyphenate father and son will leave their literal marks in the forecourt of the historic Hollywood theater. BROADCAST NEWS 30TH ANNIVERSARYAPRIL 7, 5:15 P.M. Chinese Multiplex Director James L. Brooks will attend this screening of his Oscarnominated comedy about network newsies played by Albert Brooks, Holly Hunter and William Hurt. SINGIN’ IN THE RAIN APRIL 9, 4:30 P.M. TCL Chinese Theatre Todd Fisher will be among those enjoying the 1952 musical that made a star of his mom, Debbie Reynolds, who died Dec. 28.…

BIG BANG THEORY’S BIGGER PAYDAYS (AND WHY THE STARS TOOK CUTS) Deal of the Week The Big Bang Theory stars are giving up some of their Friends-level cash in the name of friendship. CBS and producers Warner Bros. Television formally renewed the hit Chuck Lorre comedy March 20 with a two-season, 48-episode pickup that will take it through its 12th and expected final season. Joining stars Jim Parsons, Johnny Galecki and Kaley Cuoco in the top-salary tier are Simon Helberg and Kunal Nayyar. All five have signed rich new contracts that include 1.25 points off the backend, with Parsons and Galecki also extending their overall deals with WBTV. The former is executive producing and narrating CBS’ straight-to-series prequel Young Sheldon, while the latter’s Living Biblically pilot is in contention at…

W ho says you can’t start a directing career at 61? Though few have parlayed producing into a shot behind the camera (Irwin Winkler and James Schamus are among the mostly male exceptions), Denise Di Novi has managed the feat with Warner Bros.’ thriller Unforgettable (April 21), which nearly fell apart when Amma Asante dropped out to make A United Kingdom. “Greg Silverman and Kevin Tsujihara said I should direct it,” says Di Novi, who has been at the studio for two decades. “It was on the phone, and I just had a split second. I said, ‘You know what? I should direct it.’ ” The Laguna Beach native, practicing Buddhist and divorced mother of two isn’t the only one pivoting for the $12 million project. Katherine Heigl plays against…

A s any frequent visitor to the Fox lot in West Los Angeles will have noted, amid the blocky buildings, iconic water tower and billboards are tucked a number of quirky topiaries. Penguins, elephants and Bart Simpson all owe their existence to one eccentric, self-taught studio landscaper: Kathy Jones, who sculpts the creations solo and without the aid of wire frames. “It’s the best-kept secret that everyone knows about,” says Jones, whose creations have inspired a segment on The Simpsons, were mentioned in Mindy Kaling’s 2016 book and even spawned an episode of Bones centered on a murderous topiary artist. “Having worked [on the lot] for 11 and a half years, and bringing children to work every day, the botanical sculptures were an iconic part of the landscape,” says Bones…

“I have flown United before with literally no pants on.” CHRISSY TEIGEN The model, tweeting in response to United Airlines’ controversial decision to prevent two female passengers — relatives of United employees flying on family vouchers — from boarding a flight because they were wearing leggings. “Netflix, my ass.” TOM ROTHMAN The Sony Motion Picture Group chairman, bragging about footage of Blade Runner 2049 at CinemaCon in Las Vegas. “Yeah. In the long haul.” TED KOPPEL The news legend, responding to Sean Hannity’s query, think I am bad for America?” during a contentious exchange on CBS’ Sunday Morning. “Hi, it’s Husky Eight-Niner Hotel Uniform and the schmuck that landed on the taxiway.” HARRISON FORD The actor, in released FAA audio that reveals what he said to air traffic control after…

Entertaining W hen Tom Ford bought the estate of the late Betsy Bloomingdale in December 2016, L.A. society gave a sigh of relief: The William Hainesdecorated home — where the widow of department store heir Alfred reigned as Hollywood’s top hostess until her death at age 93 — would not be razed to make way for a charmless white elephant. Bloomingdale’s legendary monthly dinner parties, where the Reagans, the Annenbergs, Kirk and Anne Douglas, James and Gloria Stewart, and Rinaldo and Carolina Herrera were regulars, were intimate affairs for 24 people max. “They sometimes hired a musician to play the piano that had Chinese pots and orchids on top, and afterwards cigars were always passed,” says her friend, writer Bob Colacello. Frequent guest Regis Philbin recalls her “exquisite taste —…

F ew of Paramount’s films under Sherry Lansing proved as complicated as 2001’s Lara Croft: Tomb Raider, which needed an actress sexual enough to resemble the computer creation while accessibly human. Only one person could pull it off: Angelina Jolie. It was early 2000, and the 24-year-old (soon to win an Oscar) was not yet a major star. She was plagued by damaging reports about her personal life, rumored to have dabbled in drugs and to have had an odd relationship with her brother, along with an even odder one with soon-to-be husband Billy Bob Thornton, whose blood she reportedly carried around her neck in a vial. “She definitely had some baggage and something of a dark reputation,” said director Simon West. “Funnily enough, that was one of my selling…

After a packed week of heavy hype and a barrage of criticism, A&E announced on Christmas Eve that it had pulled the plug on its Ku Klux Klan docuseries. Escaping the KKK — which featured Klan leaders and their family members who didn’t want to be a part of the organization — had been done in by an ethical misstep. The network didn’t mince words. A&E executives had learned from the doc’s third-party producers, This Is Just a Test, that Klansmen had received what they believed were nominal cash payments to “facilitate access” in the field. And while doing so may have been in “direct violation” of A&E’s “policies for a documentary,” as the statement read, the practice of paying subjects is common in many corners of the unscripted arena…

Virtual reality headsets, tailored to the individual, and moviegoing, a group activity, might seem poles apart, but various VR business models will be rolled out at CinemaCon, where it is expected to be trumpeted as the newest addition to the multiplex. A bullish Imax is already developing its plan to install VR pods in theaters and other public spaces with a test site, the VR Experience Centre near The Grove in L.A., supported by content deals from the likes of David Ellison’s Skydance and game developer Ubisoft. (Regal is developing two pilot centers in L.A. and New York, and AMC is planning a N.Y. site.) “It’s designed to be social,” says Imax CEO Richard Gelfond of the Imax installation, which lets friends watch a monitor to see what the headset-wearer is…

The biggest development in the international incentives arena is offered at Chinese conglomerate Dalian Wanda Group’s estimated $8 billion studio in Qingdao, China. Projects that shoot at the Movie Metropolis receive a 40 percent rebate, bankrolled by the regional government and Wanda from a development fund worth $750 million to be spread over five years. The rebate for a qualifying film is capped at $18 million. The pipeline from Legendary Entertainment, which Wanda bought for $3.5 billion in 2016, now is flowing — Pacific Rim 2 and Godzilla 2 are the first projects at Qingdao. Lionsgate and ArcLight Films also have signed on to shoot there.…