Innholdsfortegnelse for November 2, 2022 i The Hollywood Reporter

Consolidation” was the buzzword at MIPCOM, the international TV market that wrapped Oct. 20 in Cannes, with news of buyouts, both real and imagined, that could shape the future of the global production business. On the eve of the event, global production and sales juggernaut Banijay, producer of Big Brother, Peaky Blinders and Temptation Island, signed a deal to acquire Australian nonscripted giant Beyond International, makers of MythBusters and Highway Thru Hell. And the two halves of Rupert Murdoch’s media business — News Corp and Fox Corp. — disclosed that they are considering reuniting nearly a decade after splitting. Once MIPCOM kicked off, rumors that British producer-distributor ITV Studios (Love Island, Night on Earth) was up for sale dominated cocktail conversations. Reported suitors Banijay and fellow Euro giant Fremantle (makers…

Pasta Ramen Only 10 people at a time can experience chef Robbie Felice’s lavish Japanese-Italian 10-course spin on Tokyo’s “wafu pasta” concept (pasta cooked with Japanese ingredients) through Nov. 13. Items include cacioe pepe gyoza. $295 per person, drink pairings included; location provided upon reservation; pastaramen.com Lil’ Pinky’s The cozy, ’80s-style Pinky’s has expanded with a pop-up satellite bar in the brick-walled pathway outside. Fridays and Saturdays from 10:15 p.m. to 1:15 a.m. in an indefinite run, Lil’ Pinky’s offers an exclusive rotating menu of new cocktails such as a gin-based Negroni with damson plum. pinkyslosfeliz.com, 1816 N. Vermont Ave. Hansei Chef Chris Ono’s tasting menu pop-up, through at least February at Little Tokyo’s Japanese American Cultural & Community Center, is designed to represent Japanese American cuisine in L.A. with…

Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977) A father (Richard Dreyfuss) is so obsessed with an extraterrestrial encounter, he grows distant from his family. E.T. (1982) Scrappy kids in a newly divorced household find comfort with their single mother (Dee Wallace) and an alien. Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1988) Indy (Harrison Ford) rescues his dad (Sean Connery), who had always been more interested in the Holy Grail than fatherhood. Hook (1991) Peter Pan (Robin Williams), now a workaholic lawyer and absentee dad, rediscovers the importance of relationships after a trip to Neverland. Saving Private Ryan (1998) Capt. John Miller (Tom Hanks) is a surrogate father to his men in this World War II epic, which Spielberg dedicated to his dad.…

WILL FERRELL “When A Night at The Roxbury first came out, I went to the theater to watch it with an audience. I heard the kid in the front of me say, ‘Look at the tall one! He’s got a lazy eye!’ Which I don’t. I wanted to correct him, but instead I sat there in silence.” JOANNA CALO “‘You’re not good at singing. I don’t like you and you’re not my family.’ It was my 4-year-old daughter, this morning.” GABRIEL “FLUFFY” IGLESIAS “Just like Enrique Iglesias if he got stung by a bee.” BERT KREISCHER “At my fattest, someone said I looked like the Octomom had transitioned.” JIMMY KIMMEL “The first time I met Sarah Silverman was at the Friars Club roast of Hugh Hefner in 2001. She said,…

A film about a middle-aged woman undergoing a tax audit should be a relatively simple proposition, unless it’s in the collective hands of the filmmaking duo known as Daniels. Everything Everywhere All at Once is a multiverse movie, but unlike the superhero tentpoles that typically define the concept, this everything-plus-the-kitchen-sink picture — at $100.6 million worldwide, A24’s highest-grossing release ever — was made on a shoestring budget. “There’s that scene in Apollo 13 where they throw the tools they have on the table and are like, ‘That’s what they’ve got up there, we’ve got to bring them home.’ That’s how we approach filmmaking: ‘We have $14 million, we have all this stuff, how are we going to squeeze it in and make a thing?’” says producer Jonathan Wang, who, like…

DANIEL FIENBERG For decades, the fall TV conversation has focused on broadcast, on the exhaustively promoted new offerings from ABC, CBS and NBC (and then Fox and The WB/UPN/CW). But this year, the oxygen has all gone to a quartet of franchise cable/streaming TV blockbusters: a Lord of the Rings show (Amazon’s The Rings of Power), a Game of Thrones show (HBO’s House of the Dragon), a Marvel show (Disney+’s She-Hulk: Attorney at Law) and a Star Wars show (Disney+’s Andor). How could a dinky, occasionally likable show like CBS’ So Help Me Todd ever compete against some of the most expensive and anticipated programs ever made? Movie box office analysts have wondered for months whether, in our dramatically changed, COVID-impacted theatrical landscape, there’s room for anything but the biggest…

The aftermath of COVID-19 continues to be felt in the world of academia, and its impact has extended to The Hollywood Reporter’s annual list of the world’s best music schools. Some programs, like the Sundance Institute Film Scoring Program, have shut down, while others have managed to launch and survive during the pandemic. The Film Scoring Academy of Europe makes its debut on this list, and another new program, at Brooklyn College/CUNY’s Feirstein Graduate School of Cinema, offers a master of fine arts degree in media scoring. The past year also has upended THR’s top rankings a bit as ascendant Columbia College Chicago moves into the top spot, overtaking perennial leaders USC Los Angeles Thornton School of Music and The Juilliard School. To achieve the rankings this year, THR reached…

Netflix is browsing memory lane with an ironic subject for nostalgia: renting movies. Blockbuster, a workplace comedy launching Nov. 3, stars Randall Park as Timmy, the frazzled manager of the last remaining Blockbuster Video store. While set in present day, the series that also stars Melissa Fumero and JB Smoove is a reminder of the rental company’s heyday pre-streaming. Launched in Dallas in 1985, Blockbuster Video quickly grew to hundreds of stores and in 1994 was acquired by Viacom for $8.4 billion. At its peak in the early 2000s, the rental giant operated more than 9,000 stores worldwide — and even had the chance to purchase a fledging company called Netflix for $50 million. Blockbuster passed, and before long, it was struggling to keep up with its new DVDs-by-mail rival.…

I Phone users: Have you purchased an audiobook on Spotify’s iOS app? If you’ve used the app recently, the answer is likely no, but not due to lack of effort on Spotify’s part. The audio giant admits to painstakingly developing workarounds for its fledgling audiobook business, led by Nir Zicherman, to circumvent Apple’s in-app purchasing system, which requires developers to give Apple a 30 percent cut of purchases of digital goods made within an iOS app. The solution, which was initially approved by Apple, sent users an email to direct them toward an external link to purchase the book. Though inelegant, the workaround was, well, working when Spotify launched audiobooks in September — until Apple reversed course and proceeded to reject three versions of Spotify’s app updates, sending Spotify developers…

As Paramount gears up for the December launch of Babylon, its big-budget prestige swing, the studio has to contest with headlines about its leading man, Brad Pitt. Instead of chatter about the star’s first awards hopeful since he won an Oscar for Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, the actor is facing accusations about a 2016 altercation on an airplane involving then-wife Angelina Jolie that have come to light amid a legal dispute over the French winery Château Miraval, which they had owned together. A countersuit filed Oct. 4 by Jolie detailed the incident on a private plane during which Jolie says Pitt abused her and some of their children. The FBI launched an investigation over the incident in 2016 but declined to press charges, while a rep for Pitt…

In the opening scene of The White Lotus’ second season, Meghann Fahy sits on a beach chair in Taormina, Sicily. She’s wearing a yellow one-piece, with a coordinating Louis Vuitton bag nearby, and radiates an end-of-luxury-vacation glow. “Italy’s just so romantic, you’re gonna die,” her character, Daphne Babcock, tells two fellow resort guests before getting up to stroll into the Ionian Sea. As we watch her take one last idyllic swim, she bumps into a floating dead body. Fahy’s Daphne is a stay-at-home mother married to financier Cameron (played by Theo James), who has a wandering eye and questionable politics. They’ve traveled to The White Lotus resort to welcome newly rich friends (Aubrey Plaza and Will Sharpe) into their corner of the one percent, and viewers are quickly shown how…

Weddings Musician-influencer AJ Rafael married longtime sweetheart Alyssa Navarro in Oahu, Hawaii, on Aug. 5. Births Writer Haley Mancini and actor Geoff Ross welcomed daughter Autumn Ross on Sept. 13 at Providence Saint Joseph’s Medical Center in Burbank. CAA agent Jessica Graboff and Josh Glick, a partner at the Grandview management firm, welcomed Dylan Wilder Glick on Aug. 13 at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. Congrats Gina Balian and Nick Grad were promoted to presidents of FX Entertainment on Oct. 26. Jesse Ehrman was upped to president of production and development at Warner Bros. on Oct. 20. Athan Stephanopoulos was named executive vp and chief digital officer of CNN on Oct. 27. Jenny Ramirez joined NBCUniversal Television and Streaming as senior vp unscripted Oct. 27. JP Richards was hired…

Full, healthy hair is seen as a sign of beauty,” says Miriam Bloch, celebrity wig designer and founder of The Wig Addiction hair care products. But what if that mane is starting to wane? While hair loss is often thought to primarily affect men, according to the American Hair Loss Association, nearly 40 percent of those experiencing it are women. The fault lies with a variety of factors. “Hormonal changes, genetics, stressors, diet, environment, disease, illness and medications can all contribute to hair loss and thinning,” says dermatologist and hair surgeon Craig Ziering. “And for those who engage in tension-creating hairstyles, excessive use of heated tools, color and chemicals, this can lead over time to follicle damage and destruction, leading to thin, weak hair.” Time is of the essence though…

Quinta Brunson appears remarkably unfazed. Whether the creator and star of Abbott Elementary is plugging her project on a talk show or accepting the Emmy for best comedy writing over Jimmy Kimmel’s limp body, the 32-year-old projects an air that never leans too far toward humility or confidence. She’s simply making the TV show that she wants. What’s earned Brunson so much attention, however, is the fact that what she’s doing is anything but simple. Before ABC launched Abbott in January, the suggestion that a broadcast comedy could overwhelmingly win over critics and pull in 7 million weekly viewers across platforms in 2022 would have gotten more laughs than plenty of half-hours. But, with her mockumentary spin on an underserved Philadelphia grammar school, Brunson has many in Hollywood reassessing what’s…

KRIS COLLINS (47M FOLLOWERS) Collins (aka Kallmekris) has created an entire universe of comedic personas, including toddler Riley, dudebro Chad, Boston mom Janet and unsmiling Russian woman Katrina. The Canadian former hairdresser, who did hair on The CW’s Riverdale, joined TikTok in 2020 and soon amassed millions of fans. DE’MARCUS SHAWN (6.3M FOLLOWERS) TikTok users often joke that De’Marcus Shawn must have lived a hundred lives, judging from the number of everyday scenarios he’s able to hilariously reenact: the retail employee asking if you want to sign up for the store credit card, the soccer mom complaining at her kid’s game and the Animal Planet host handling a dangerous snake, to name just a few. JAKE KRANTZ (2.4M FOLLOWERS) It’s hard to define Krantz’s style of humor, which incorporates elements…

The funniest mean thing ever said about us … “Dave Sirus and Mike Lawrence called us ‘The Lonelier Island’ and ‘Toddlers in the Hall.’” I get my best material in … “My dreams, so I think. But then I wake up and find a note in my phone that says, ‘Car that looks like a plane’ or ‘What if instead of mice in your apartment you got birds.’” Please, no more jokes about … “Please, no more jokes about … anything. No jokes at all. They’re exhausting to listen to.” I’d love to be the spokesperson for … “Seltzer (no company, just the concept).” My favorite drama that’s actually a comedy? “Ah, the terribly comedic drama called life, of course! *THR has removed Please Don’t Destroy from this list*” Most…

It’s time again for that perennial question: Will the Oscar for best picture go to a crowd-pleasing film or a smaller, critical favorite? This season, the major studios boast bona fide blockbuster contenders, including the year’s top grosser, Top Gun: Maverick, from Paramount, plus Warner Bros.’ Elvis and Universal’s Nope. Disney looks to rule the multiplexes with November’s Black Panther: Wakanda Forever and December’s Avatar: The Way of Water, and Universal has a leading contender in The Fabelmans, which earned the people’s choice award at the 2022 Toronto Film Festival (and is director Steven Spielberg’s first feature to premiere in competition at a festival). The streamers once again will battle for one of the 10 best picture nominees (with Apple hoping to repeat CODA’s history-making win with Emancipation), while the…

In September, Paramount’s Pluto TV became the first free, ad-supported platform to crack the Nielsen Gauge, the ratings provider’s monthly, all-platform snapshot of TV use. The platform reached 1 percent of all TV viewership in the U.S. for the month, coming in just below HBO Max and ranking among other paid streaming services. The milestone was a coup for Pluto TV but not entirely surprising, says Tom Ryan, head of streaming at Paramount, given the platform’s longevity and content offerings. “I do think that this is the beginning of Pluto being broken out as one of the top players in engagement for U.S. connected TV,” Ryan tells THR. Pluto TV was founded in 2013, several years before competitors including The Roku Channel and Amazon’s Freevee. After Pluto TV was acquired…

Disney+ 2.73B minutes viewed for Hocus Pocus 2 Seasonal films have burst out of the gate this year. Disney+’s Hocus Pocus 2 premiered with the biggest week ever for a feature in Nielsen’s streaming rankings, racking up 2.73 billion minutes viewed — equivalent to more than 26 million showings of the 103-minute movie. Hallmark also got a healthy start for its “Countdown to Christmas” stunt, averaging 1.78 million viewers for its first three movies (Noel Next Door, We Wish You a Married Christmas and A Kismet Christmas) Oct. 21-23.…

Two just-opened art exhibits showcase the work of powerfully influential women who trained their keen focus on L.A. and the film industry: Joan Didion: What She Means Hammer Museum, Westwood Like Joan Didion herself, this new show paying homage to the famed Slouching Towards Bethlehem writer is the perfect blend of East and West coasts. Curated by her friend and mentee, New Yorker writer and critic Hilton Als, to reflect her interests and inspirations, the show tracks the places Didion lived and visited (Berkeley, Hawaii, Miami, El Salvador). Works such as Betye Saar’s 1966 assemblage View From the Palmist Window and Ed Ruscha’s 1966 photo series Every Building on the Sunset Strip join photos and archival materials, including a film poster for 1976’s A Star Is Born, for which Didion…

In March 2020, in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, Steven Spielberg was watching his 103-year-old father, Arnold, deteriorate. After growing distant when the filmmaker, now 75, was in his 20s and early 30s, father and son had reconnected and become close. They lived near each other in Pacific Palisades, and Steven would go to Arnold’s house to watch movies, listen to music and hang out on the patio. Steven’s mother, Leah, had died in 2017 at 97, and by August 2020, Arnold would be gone, too. That spring, as Arnold’s condition worsened, Steven began to grieve. “Even before my dad left, I was missing the thought that I wouldn’t just be able to drive up to his house, as I did all the time,” Spielberg says. “For all…

JUDD APATOW “People being scared to make comedy.” MAYA RUDOLPH “Social media” CHRIS MILLER “The high cost of advertising a feature film is causing studios to be more and more risk-averse. It’s now such a huge financial investment to release a film in theaters with any public awareness, so the people spending money are afraid to gamble on weird, different or unusual films and see if they hit.” BERT KREISCHER “People pretending there’s an actual threat to comedy. From my perspective, comedy is thriving right now. Comics are taking huge chances not only with material, but also with autonomy. The biggest success stories are guys doing things their own way, whether it’s through podcasting or releasing specials on YouTube. I think comedy is in its Gold Rush era, and maybe…

Bardo, False Chronicle of a Handful of Truths (Netflix) His first Spanish-language film since 2010, four-time Oscar winner and Mexican auteur Alejandro G. Iñárritu’s latest is a fantastical, dreamlike tale of a Los Angeles-based Mexican documentarian (Daniel Giménez Cacho) who experiences an existential crisis upon returning to his native country. Close (A24) Belgium’s submission for best international feature tells the story of an intense friendship between two teenage boys, Léo and Rémi, whose connection is threatened when they are ridiculed by their classmates. But after Rémi’s sudden death, Léo forms a bond with his late friend’s mother, Sophie, as they come to terms with their shared loss. Decision to Leave (Mubi) South Korean auteur Park Chanwook won the best director prize at Cannes for this Hitchcockian romantic thriller, which serves…

As a critic and scholar, Elvis Mitchell has spent his career writing about film. With the doc Is That Black Enough for You?!?, he tried his hand at making one himself. The documentary, which will screen at AFI Fest before heading to Netflix on Nov. 11, is part visual essay and part academic deep dive into the Black cinema of the 1970s and the contribution of Black filmmakers and creatives to that decade of moviemaking. An achievement in archival work, the doc, which counts David Fincher and Steven Soderbergh as producers, deftly moves through works by Melvin Van Peebles, Gordon Parks Jr. and Sidney Poitier and films including Blacula, Shaft and Coffy, among a dizzying amount of others. “For audiences quick to dismiss or asleep to the contributions of Black…