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When director Ryan Coogler took the stage last July at Comic- Con to unveil clips of Black Panther, it wasn’t the first time fans had seen footage. The annual gathering in San Diego, along with Disney’s own D23 event, generally are the go-to launchpads for Marvel Studios marketing campaigns. But this time, Disney had debuted a trailer more than a month earlier during the NBA Finals on sister network ABC. That teaser generated 89 million views in its first 24 hours (besting Star Wars: The Force Awakens), the first step in a unique and groundbreaking campaign that led to a record $242 million opening over the Feb. 16-19 weekend. In releasing the first event superhero pic featuring a nearly all-black cast, Disney’s marketing team leaned in. In addition to heavy…
Lucian Grainge The Universal Music Group CEO reveals an earnings spike for 2017, with the music giant reporting $940 million in EBITDA, compared with $787 million in 2016. David Glasser The Weinstein Co. president is ousted by his board “for cause” after the New York attorney general sues alleging “egregious” conduct, including knowledge of Harvey Weinstein’s behavior. Mark Burnett The reality megaproducer nabs two CBS series orders in two weeks, an obstacle course competition and a global talent format. Jeffrey Tambor Amazon drops its Transparent star after an internal investigation into harassment claims as showrunner Jill Soloway backs his accusers. Showbiz Stocks $56.25 (+3%) CBS CORP. (CBS) The TV company beats quarterly revenue expectations as revenue from licensing and distribution jumps 33 percent. $2.78 (-6%) REAL NETS (RNWK) A week…
Like any divorce where children are involved, Ryan Murphy’s split with 20th Century Fox Television is poised to get messy. The studio had been his longtime partner, after all, and together they’d birthed such hits as FX’s American Horror Story, Feud and Fox’s 9-1-1. But on Feb. 13, Murphy said he’d be moving on, having found a new partner in Netflix, which lured him with a five-year deal worth as much as $300 million. What’s left to be hashed out is not only the focus of his attention with seven active 20th TV series but also the longer-term fate of his superstar collaborators, at least some of whom sources expect he’ll try to recruit to Netflix pacts once their own multiyear 20th TV deals expire. Among them: Tim Minear, Brad…
NBC’s Pyeongchang coverage, overseen by Sports chairman Mark Lazarus, has not been the disaster many speculated that these Winter Games might be. But the network’s relatively stable ratings have been aided by some unconventional math. Daily reports from NBC Sports have combined not just NBC and NBC Sports Network primetime telecasts with streaming; they’ve added the West Coast’s live carriage of the East Coast feed — primetime essentially airing twice, once at 5 p.m. and again at 8 p.m., in 23 percent of the country. It has made a difference for the Olympic narrative. Through Feb. 18, Pyeongchang averaged a total 21.3 million primetime viewers with all NBC vehicles tallied. Compared with the Sochi Winter Games in 2014, Pyeongchang’s loss stands at a modest 7 percent. If one was to…
Facing an uncertain boxoffice climate, executives at major studios are more frequently asking: “Should we try our luck in theaters or sell this thing to Netflix?” In the case of midbudget sci-fi films like The Cloverfield Paradox (Paramount) and Extinction (Universal), the recent answer was “sell.” The streamer paid more than $50 million for Paradox, even if the gamble didn’t make major waves initially. Paradox drew 2.8 million viewers in its first three days after a stealthy plan to drop it following the Super Bowl on Feb. 4. By comparison, the Will Smith starrer Bright, which cost Netflix $90 million to produce and likewise included a pricey Super Bowl ad, brought in 11 million customers in the same frame after its Dec. 22 release, according to Nielsen’s SVOD ratings report.…
Lionsgate may have hoped to avoid any turbulence as the mini-studio looks for a buyer, but an executive reshuffling is in the works. Sources say motion picture group co-president Erik Feig has been raising money to launch a company focused on youth-oriented projects, while motion picture group co-chair Patrick Wachsberger also plans to leave within months. An executive with knowledge of the situation says Lionsgate CEO Jon Feltheimer and vice chairman Michael Burns had hoped Feig would remain for another year, presumably to give them time to pursue a sale of the company without any major changes at the company that could raise concerns for a buyer. Feig had championed such successes as La La Land, which grossed $446 million worldwide on a $30 million budget, and the Julia Roberts…
