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.
On Jan. 15, Marvel Studios boss Kevin Feige expanded the Marvel Cinematic Universe into streaming with WandaVision, a nine-part TV series that marks the studio’s first original for its parent company’s prioritized Disney+ service. With five more shows and four movies slated for release in 2021, the goal is for Marvel to always have something new for MCU fans, enticing audiences to join Disney+’s 86 million global subscribers and keep them paying monthly. Feige tells THR that every project he’s developing fits in one of two categories: Marvel theatrical films and then “everything else,” which encompasses live-action and animated series as well as one-offs that include an upcoming Guardians of the Galaxy holiday special. Disney+ shows are key to setting up characters and plotlines, he says: “It really does come…
Reed Hastings/Ted Sarandos The Netflix co-CEOs beat expectations for growth, with 8.5 million additions during Q4 of 2020 for a total of nearly 204 million global subscribers. Bill Hornbuckle The CEO of MGM Resorts International drops a multibillion-dollar takeover attempt for digital gaming firm Entain after the U.K. company rebuffed a bid in early January. Rob Mills ABC’s unscripted chief steers Celebrity Wheel of Fortune to lead all broadcast entertainment shows, averaging 8 million viewers since its Jan. 7 launch. Pat Esser A federal judge upholds a $1 billion ruling against the Cox Communications CEO’s firm, confirming that it is liable for infringement of thousands of songs. Showbiz Stocks $3.06 (+36.6%) AMC ENT. (AMC) With liquidity concerns eased for now, the exhibitor has seen its stock rise as the market…
Hollywood executives in charge of the release calendar couldn’t have imagined they’d be facing another great migration in 2021 as the COVID-19 crisis keeps up. The feeling of deja vu is demoralizing as they look to rearrange their spring and early summer slates. Almost a year ago, MGM surprised its rivals when pushing James Bond pic No Time to Die from April to November. Soon, though, all the studios followed suit before most cinemas shut down March 20 in the U.S. Hollywood and cinema owners assumed moviegoing would resume in fall 2020. That wasn’t to be. In the case of No Time to Die, it was subsequently pushed to April 2, but not even that date will hold, sources tell THR. The only question left is whether MGM will relocate…
Of the 158 million Americans who voted in the recent presidential election, likely zero did so with music licensing rules in mind. Nevertheless, the election has already proved consequential for the song industry. When Donald Trump leaves office Jan. 20, it’ll be a mild surprise that key restrictions on ASCAP and BMI — the two largest performance rights organizations — will survive his administration. Those restrictions date to the early 1940s, when the Department of Justice settled an antitrust investigation into how a group of composers and publishers had gained enormous power by pooling rights. Since then, thanks to the ASCAP and BMI consent decrees, anytime a TV or radio broadcaster, sports stadium, restaurant, etc., wants to play a song to the public, they can get immediate access to a…
It’s 5 a.m., and my whole body is shaking. Not because I’m cold or having a caffeine or drug withdrawal, but because I have been up for 18 hours straight, six days a week, for the past three months, working on an unscripted TV show. I am not a “veteran producer” yet, but with a decade of experience under my belt on projects for major networks and streamers, I’ve seen enough to know that behind the scenes, the postproduction world in unscripted TV has changed. Story producers, most of whom are freelancers, are traditionally leaned on in reality formats to go through hours of footage and create a rough “string out,” a sequence of clips strung together in the order that an editor will later cut. But that job description…
In the past decade and a half, Apple has built influence in the podcasting industry by letting creators reach its large audience of device owners without charging them a dime. But the company’s talks with creative partners about introducing a subscription product to its podcasting business signal that its reign as a benevolent distributor might be coming to an end. The negotiations, first reported by The Information, have been ongoing since at least last fall, sources tell THR, and ultimately could end up taking several different forms. Regardless, it’s clear that Apple — after spending the past two years watching rivalin-music-streaming Spotify invest hundreds of millions of dollars to align itself with some of the most prolific producers and most popular personalities in podcasting — is no longer content sitting…
