Innholdsfortegnelse for February 23, 2022 i The Hollywood Reporter

Squid Game The streamer ended 2021 with 221.8 million global subscribers but added only 18 million for the year, fewer than half the nearly 37 million recorded in 2020 amid COVID-19 stay-at-home orders worldwide. Revenue in 2021 rose only slightly less in percentage terms than the year before, while operating profit growth slowed after a 77 percent spike in 2020. Netflix boosted its spending on content to $17 billion, up from $11.8 billion in 2020, which had seen COVID production delays, and touted such series as Squid Game, The Witcher, Emily in Paris and Money Heist and films including Don’t Look Up and Red Notice as viewership drivers. Up next? More tentpoles. Co-CEO Ted Sarandos said Jan. 20: “The idea [of] big-ticket movies that people really care about premiering and…

FILM Kate McKinnon (UTA) is in talks to join Warner Bros.’ Greta Gerwig directed Barbie alongside Margot Robbie (CAA), who plays the title character, Ryan Gosling (CAA), America Ferrera (CAA) and Simu Liu (CAA). Steve Carell (WME) and Kristen Wiig (CAA) will reprise their voicestarring roles for Universal’s Despicable Me 4, from co-directors Chris Renaud and Patrick Delage. John Cena (ICM) will star in Coyote vs Acme, a liveaction/CG animation hybrid feature from Warner Bros. with director Dave Green. Adam Sztykiel (UTA), who worked on Black Adam, will write and direct an original live-action feature, Wonder Twins, for HBO Max based on the DC Comics characters. Anonymous Content has acquired rights to the upcoming novel We Spread, from author Iain Reid, with Minhal Baig (CAA) set to direct the planned…

Maybe “We Don’t Talk About Bruno,” but people sure are watching him and the rest of the Madrigal family. In addition to a $94 million domestic box office take, the animated film racked up more than 7 billion minutes of viewing time on Disney+ from Dec. 24 (its streaming debut) to Jan. 23 — the equivalent of nearly 69.5 million full runs of the movie, per Nielsen’s latest streaming chart. For the week of Jan. 17 to 23, Encanto drew 1.51 billion minutes of viewing time, higher than either of the previous two weeks.…

In preparation to star as Mötley Crüe rocker Tommy Lee in Hulu’s Pam & Tommy, Sebastian Stan needed tattoos — lots of them. Thirty-five, to be exact. To pull it off, he went to special effects house Autonomous FX before shooting and had his body scanned and measured; he was then covered in plastic wrap as tattoo designers sketched onto his arms, back and torso. The artists then cut out the images, fully designed them in Photoshop, printed them onto decal paper and, after two hours in the makeup trailer, Stan, tattoo-less in real life, was transformed into a sleeved rocker. The actor’s Lee makeover is the latest in Hollywood productions’ approach to showing tattoos, which has seen a surge in recent years as body art has become more mainstream.…

Mary Parent is, at her core, a storyteller. But the producer and vice chairman of worldwide production at Legendary Entertainment, whose work on Warner Bros.’ Dune has earned her a second Oscar nomination for best picture (after 2015’s The Revenant), admits that she never expected a career in filmmaking to be her calling. “I’ve always loved movies, and was an avid reader growing up,” Parent tells THR, “but I never envisioned that there could be a place for me in Hollywood.” It turns out her place would be near the top, with roles including chairperson of MGM’s Worldwide Motion Pictures Group and president of production at Universal Studios. Ahead of receiving the David O. Selznick Achievement Award, which recognizes a producer’s body of work while they’re working in the film…

Landing a job on the second season of Peabody- and Emmy-winning civil rights documentary series Eyes on the Prize was a turning point in the career of Lillian E. Benson, the first woman of color to be inducted into American Cinema Editors, which is honoring her with its career achievement award. “It was my first PBS hourlong documentary,” she says, reflecting on the project and the people who mentored and supported her during her career. “Producer Jackie Shearer believed I could do it, and she wanted to hire me. Other people felt — as sometimes happens in this industry — if you’ve never done it, you can’t do it. She had to lobby hard for me, and I got the job, and it transformed me. “I’m a beneficiary of the…

On June 11, 2002, American Idol premiered its first season on Fox — crowning champion Kelly Clarkson, igniting the reality competition show genre and breaking new technological ground as co-host Ryan Seacrest taught America how to text in their votes. Times change. Reality competitions litter the dial — on broadcast and streaming — but none even dream of luring the 38 million viewers Idol once drew. But the show that long led the pack has remained a relative constant. As the singing show returns Feb. 27 for season 20 (and its fifth on second home ABC), judges Katy Perry, Lionel Richie and Luke Bryan once again lead the search for the country’s next star. “I think Idol’s success and why it is still thriving is because it’s rooted in something…

Nikole Hannah-Jones has become one of the most recognizable journalists in the country. The New York Times Magazine investigative reporter won a Pulitzer in 2020 for her magnum opus The 1619 Project, which reframed the American story in the context of slavery’s ramifications and the ongoing contributions of Black Americans in shaping the nation. The groundbreaking piece was celebrated and led to a deal with Lionsgate, the Times and Oprah Winfrey to produce a plethora of projects based on 1619 (including an upcoming Hulu docuseries); the latest installment is the anthology book The 1619 Project: A New Origin Story, published in November. It also sparked a reactionary movement to ban literature that examines history and society through a racial lens — evidence of its influence, as is the response from…

Deal of the Week On Feb. 15, Paramount (nee ViacomCBS) announced that it would boldly go where it hasn’t managed to go before — a fourth iteration in a stalled 21st century feature strategy for the Star Trek franchise. During the Paramount investor day on Feb. 15, producer J.J. Abrams — who rebooted the sci-fi franchise for the big screen in 2009—revealed that the USS Enterprise was being readied for a new flight. The proclamation came as a surprise, not just to observers who have been watching the movie studio haltingly try to revive Trek for years but to the actors and their representatives as well. Sources tell THR that most, if not all, teams for the franchise’s primary players — who include Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Simon Pegg, Karl…

Rep Sheet Jeremy Pope, Emmynominated for Netflix’s Hollywood, has signed with WME. Actor Tommy Flanagan (Starz’s Power Book IV: Force) has inked at APA. TikTok creator/dancer Michael Le has signed with WME. Gamer Tarik has signed with CAA. Actor Coy Stewart (Netflix’s Mr. Iglesias) has signed with KEY Talent Management. THR, Esq. CASE Rockmond Dunbar’s vaccine mandate suit. WHY IT MATTERS The actor, a cast-member on 911, is suing Disney and 20th TV after being dismissed from the drama series for refusing to get the COVID-19 vaccine. Disney claimed that Dunbar breached his contract, which had more than $1.3million left to be paid out, by failing to comply with its vaccine mandate. The actor also alleges racial discrimination tied to his exemption claim, which was denied.…

“What I would like to see is for them to hand $100 million to somebody who is Black.”JEMELE HILLThe journalist and Spotify podcaster, in The New York Times, joining the debate over Spotify sticking by Joe Rogan — noting she’s most interested in seeing other talent command his kind of salary. “I might have been woefully off.”JOHN LANDGRAFThe FX chairman, during his TCA panel, admitting that his 2015 prediction about TV output contracting was a tad premature. “One positive of the sea of poison that is Instagram.”PATTI HARRISONThe actress, in The New Yorker, revealing that she got her big break (Netflix’s I Think You Should Leave With Tim Robinson) when Robinson reached out to her on the social-media platform. “Believe it or not, I don’t spend my time thinking about…

Following the L.A. Rams’ Super Bowl LVI win, quarterback Matthew Stafford and crew partied at Harriet’s Rooftop, while star defensive lineman Aaron Donald took a seat at Wolfgang Puck at Hotel Bel-Air. … Longtime studio chief Jim Gianopulos was spotted at Polo Lounge. … Leonardo DiCaprio had a night out at Antico Nuovo. … Lena Dunham celebrated Valentine’s Day with a small group at Damian in downtown L.A. … Nicole Scherzinger stopped by the grand opening of Ella Beverly Hills. … Nick Jonas and Priyanka Chopra Jonas had a date night at Nobu Malibu. Cabra The Quick Pitch The new flagship eatery at The Hoxton, Downtown Los Angeles, the Peruvian restaurant and bar from chef Stephanie Izard (Girl & the Goat) offers panoramic views of the city. Bright and flavorful…

Bang Bang Keith “Bang Bang” McCurdy — a favorite of Katy Perry, LeBron James and Rihanna — operates from two NYC studios (62 Grand St. and 328 Broome St.). JonBoy Known for his minimal microtattoos on Halsey, Hailey Bieber and Kendall Jenner, he has a shop inside NYC’s Moxy Times Square hotel (485 Seventh Ave.). Romeo Lacoste Owner of North Hollywood’s The California Dream shop (13131 Sherman Way), Lacoste has tatted Justin Bieber, Ariana Grande and Kendrick Lamar. His YouTube channel has more than 800,000 subscribers. Mark Mahoney Operating his famed Shamrock Social Club in West Hollywood (9026 Sunset Blvd.) for 45 years, Mahoney has cemented himself as a tattooing legend. He’s done work for Johnny Depp, Angelina Jolie, Adele, Lady Gaga and Jared Leto (who in 2013 posted about…

Amanda Seyfried is prepared when our conversation turns to “the voice.” Having signed up to portray disgraced Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes in the Hulu miniseries The Dropout, the actress understood why her colleagues and friends were so anxious to hear how she’d capture the Silicon Valley pariah’s peculiar manner of speaking — deep and distracting and strangely hollow. After all, as Holmes’ house of cards publicly collapsed between 2015 and 2018, it wasn’t just her business that turned out to be a lie. Holmes’ allegedly invented persona fascinated the media almost as much as the $10 billion grift she pulled on investors such as Rupert Murdoch, Betsy DeVos and Walgreens, and her seemingly affected voice proved a simple point of entry into a complex tale of mass deceit. “I knew…

It took the better part of two months to schedule an interview with Helen Mirren, the inaugural film star in the THR Icon series. Blame her punishing work schedule — the 76-year-old Oscar winner is coming off back-to-back-to-back productions, ranging from the British dramedy The Duke to F9: The Fast Saga (her third turn in the Fast & Furious franchise) to Shazam! Fury of the Gods, her first superhero movie, in which she plays the villain Hespera. When we finally nail down a time to talk, Mirren — speaking via video link from Italy in a home she shares with her husband, Oscar-winning American director-producer Taylor Hackford — has just finished shooting Guy Nattiv’s Golda, in which she plays Golda Meir, the prime minister of Israel during the Yom Kippur…

THE HARDER THEY FALL 12 nominations Outstanding motion picture, actor (Jonathan Majors), supporting actor (Delroy Lindo, Idris Elba and LaKeith Stanfield), supporting actress (Danielle Deadwyler and Regina King), ensemble cast, breakthrough creative (Jeymes Samuel), soundtrack, directing (Samuel), writing (Samuel and Boaz Yakin) RESPECT 6 nominations Outstanding motion picture, actress (Jennifer Hudson), supporting actress (Audra McDonald), ensemble cast, breakthrough creative (Liesl Tommy), soundtrack BRUISED 4 nominations Outstanding actress (Halle Berry), independent motion picture, breakthrough performance (Danny Boyd Jr. and Sheila Atim) PASSING 2 nominations Outstanding actress (Tessa Thompson), breakthrough creative (Rebecca Hall)…

THE DUTTON-VERSE Yellowstone 4 seasons, renewed The title that started it all follows a dynastic Montana family led by John Dutton (Kevin Costner). 1932 1 season ordered The Dutton family will face the Great Depression and Prohibition. 1883 1 season, additional episodes ordered Yellowstone’s wagon train prequel led by Tim McGraw and Faith Hill premiered to 4.9 million viewers in December. 6666 In development The Yellowstone spinoff is set at a tough Texas cattle ranch. THE NON-DUTTON-VERSE Land Man 1 season ordered Billy Bob Thornton is a crisis manager working in the world of West Texas oil rigs. Bass Reeves In development David Oyelowo is attached as the real-life Wild West lawman who inspired the Lone Ranger. Tulsa King 1 season ordered Sylvester Stallone, in his first TV role, plays…

Booth (G.P. PUTNAM’S SONS, MARCH 8) BY Karen Joy Fowler AGENCY WME This work of historical fiction focuses not on the most famous member of the Booth family but on the inner and outer worlds of his many siblings in the lead-up to and the aftermath of first presidential assassination. The Marvellers (HENRY HOLT & CO., MAY 3) BY Dhonielle Clayton AGENCY Bent Set in a magical school in the sky, the story follows a student, Ella, who is the first of her kind to attend the famed Arcanum Training Institute, where she has to overcome prejudice and, hopefully, make a friend or two.…

Sam Corlett remembers wanting his next job to “demand all of myself, emotional, mentally and physically.” He got his wish making Vikings: Valhalla. In the new Netflix show premiering Feb. 25, a sequel to the hit History series, the Australian actor, 26, plays Norse explorer Leif Eriksson, portraying the reluctant warrior with a mix of fierceness and primal grace. Corlett — whose first movie was the 2020 Aussie drama The Dry, with Eric Bana, and who gained attention on the Netflix series Chilling Adventures of Sabrina — started every Vikings shoot day with meditation, a 7K run and a swim in the cold waters of the Irish Sea (the series mostly shot at Ashford Studios in Wicklow, Ireland), followed up by weight lifting every night. “It was quite a militant…

Weddings Jonathan Yunger, co-president of Millennium Media, married content creator Stefanie Rozhko on Oct. 24 at the Biltmore Hotel in Miami. Births WME literary packaging partner Hilary Zaitz Michael and Max Michael, head of UTA’s Asia business development, welcomed Maverick Roy Michael on Dec. 12. Congrats Mike White was tapped to lead Disney’s metaverse strategy as senior vp in charge of next-generation storytelling Feb. 15. Rebecca Franko and Kenny Tsai joined Universal Content Productions as senior vps current programming Feb. 15. APA partner Julian Savodivker was promoted to executive vp and head of global physical production Feb. 17. Jeremy Vuernick was upped to president of A&R for Capitol Music Group on Feb. 16. Adriana Martínez Barrón was named vp drama series development at CBS on Feb. 17. Walter Jones was…

In the And Just Like That premiere, documentarian Lisa Todd Wexler (Nicole Ari Parker) swans over to the table of a starstruck Charlotte (Kristin Davis). The “International Best Dressed List’’ character was originally scripted as “wearing head-to-toe Chanel.” But to illustrate her esteemed chicness, costume designers Molly Rogers and Danny Santiago changed course with an infusion of selections from independent labels, including a carnival-print party dress by zero-waste Berlin brand Rianna + Nina. “We wanted to give her a very unique style,” says Santiago, eschewing the expected “copy of a runway look.” Joining season two of Hulu’s Dollface, Melissa Walker sought to further differentiate each of the show’s millennial leads through a mix of up-and-coming labels. “To actually give aesthetic range,” explains the costume designer. “Just going to the mall…

Richard Chew’s body of work includes iconic films such as Milos Forman’s One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, for which he earned a BAFTA Award (shared with Walter Murch); Francis Ford Coppola’s The Conversation, for which he earned another BAFTA (shared with Lynzee Klingman and Sheldon Kahn); and Star Wars, which delivered an Oscar to Chew, Marcia Lucas and Paul Hirsch. Actors turned directors have also gravitated toward the skilled and humble editor, including Jack Nicholson (Goin’ South), Forest Whitaker (Waiting to Exhale, Hope Floats) and Tom Hanks (That Thing You Do!). Here are some of his experiences. On working as a camera operator at Woodstock My first industry experience was as a documentary cameraman. I had the good fortune of being a last-minute replacement at Woodstock. I don’t think…

With Studio 666 (out Feb. 22), The Foo Fighters continue in a long, not-always-successful tradition of bands attempting movie stardom. The new horror-comedy is a spiritual successor to 1978’s Kiss Meets the Phantom of the Park — one of the most critically maligned yet passionately loved kitsch oddities to emerge from that decade. The hard rock band’s elaborate costumes, face makeup and pyrotechnic stage shows helped turn them into one of the biggest acts in the world at the time (between 1977 and 1979, they sold $100 million in records and merchandise, roughly $400 million today), and their manager, Bill Aucoin, wanted to take it to the next level. Curiously, Hanna-Barbera, the animation studio behind The Flintstones and The Jetsons, was chosen to produce the TV film for NBC. Phantom…