Innholdsfortegnelse for February 22, 2023 i The Hollywood Reporter

The closing of CAA’s closely watched megadeal for rival ICM last June and the reverberations of the Writers Guild’s years-long standoff with agencies over packaging fees and affiliate productions have reshaped Hollywood’s representation landscape. With only three majors left — CAA, Endeavor-owned WME and UTA — there’s now a race among midsize firms to become the de facto No. 4. One of the firms eyeing an expansion is A3 Artists Agency, which had its outside counsel send letters of purchase inquiry to three of its rivals — Verve, APA and an undisclosed agency — in mid-January. A3 chairman Adam Bold says the Bill Weinstein-led Verve dismissed the offer to open discussions (Verve had no comment), while APA president Jim Osbourne tells THR that “a sale to anyone, much less A3,…

1.59B viewers 10 episodes NETFLIX Netflix’s sequel to That ’70s Show grabbed a lot of viewing time in the U.S. during its premiere week — and made up the majority of its global viewing. Per Nielsen, the 10-episode comedy had 1.59 billion minutes of viewing for its first week, which works out to 26.5 million hours. Netflix’s own rankings put That ’90s Show at 41.08 million hours worldwide for the week. The two companies use different methodologies to compile their stats, but it’s safe to say that U.S. viewers made up more than half the global audience for the show, which earned a season-two renewal.…

The new film 21 Miles in Malibu — a documentary about traffic, grief and bureaucratic inertia — premiered Feb. 16 at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival. It centers on the film’s producer, Michel Shane (Catch Me If You Can; I, Robot), his wife, Ellen, and their daughter Emily, who was fatally struck at age 13 by a driver in 2010 while walking along Pacific Coast Highway. The man who killed Emily — Sina Khankhanian, found to be speeding for miles before colliding with her — is now in prison for second-degree murder. The 56-minute film by Nic Davis (who directed the 2019 music documentary Enormous: The Gorge Story) explores the evolution, dynamics, paradoxes and, most crucially, dangers of PCH, which serves as the key conduit for the residents of…

The Directors Guild of America revealed its winners for the 2023 DGA Awards at the Beverly Hilton on Feb. 18, with Daniel Scheinert and Daniel Kwan taking home the top prize for Everything Everywhere All at Once. “This has been an incredible year for our little film that somehow keeps going,” Kwan told the crowd, noting they wouldn’t be anywhere without star Michelle Yeoh or studio A24. Scheinert thanked Kwan for “putting up with me when I asked to make our movie weirder, and thank you for making our movie so much braver and more vulnerable,” adding, “Holy shit, this is crazy!” Also among the night’s big winners were Barry’s Bill Hader for comedy series, Euphoria’s Sam Levinson for dramatic series and Aftersun’s Charlotte Wells for first-time theatrical feature film…

Make sure you put the things that will get me canceled right up in the headline,” Ike Barinholtz jokes in early February as I leave the Los Angeles home he shares with his wife and three daughters. We’ve just spent the past hour plus talking about everything from casting to cancel culture in the guest house he’s converted into his office. The space is an homage to comedy, though mixed in with his books and posters sits his latest, crowning achievement: the trophy he has recently won as a contestant on Celebrity Jeopardy! As Barinholtz explains, he keeps it just behind his desk chair so it’s firmly in view whenever he’s on Zoom. “That way if someone disagrees with me, I can just swing around and tap it,” he says…

At a world premiere of a new streaming series in Hollywood in February 2022, a castmember walked the carpet in front of TCL Chinese Theatre wearing a bold, asymmetrical top paired with black flare-leg trousers. After fielding a journalist’s compliment, the actress responded with a brief explainer of why she picked the understated yet chic look. “I wanted to look good, but not too good, you know? I’m not the lead,” offered the veteran actress, who appears in a handful of episodes but not all of the season’s full order. “It’s never a good idea to outshine the stars of the show.” That didn’t happen on the night in question, as her famous co-star turned up in a showstopping gown. The considerate castmember’s choice brought to light one of the…

Swedish filmmaker Ruben Östlund wants to make films that get people talking, and his latest — Neon’s Triangle of Sadness, the 2022 Palme d’Or winner, now nominated for three Oscars, including best picture — did exactly that. Set on a yacht for the super-rich that sinks and leaves its guests clamoring for survival on an island, the film is a social satire that also happens to include a 15-minute vomit scene. “I think if the audience goes to the cinema, and they want to watch a Ruben Östlund film, they should be challenged,” the director tells THR. “There should be a risk involved to go to the cinema. Otherwise, the audience gets bored.” Östlund, whose The Square earned a nom in 2018 for best international film, returns to the Oscars…

For the aspiring costume designer who dreams of creating looks for film, television, theater and concert stages, the journey typically starts with the right school, where a host of considerations awaits. Classroom size, location, specialized classes, participation in theater programs, job placement, networking with alums and, most important, tuition are all part of the equation. As schools meet the demands and technology of an ever-changing entertainment landscape, nothing tops a good education. To create its annual top 10 list of costume design schools, The Hollywood Reporter consulted with costume designers and academics, looking at the critical factors — including class size, reputation and alumni success — that help make each school unique. CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF THE ARTS (CALARTS) VALENCIA, CALIFORNIA “There was so much freedom there, and they let people…

As Hollywood’s writers prepare for a round of union negotiations that is expected to be especially combative and potentially even trigger a strike, some are revisiting the wins and losses of their last work stoppage, in 2007-08. The 100-day Writers Guild of America strike more than 15 years ago rocked the industry as the union fought in large part for a greater cut of what was then called “new media” — projects distributed or rerun over the internet, on iPods or cellphones. In an action that cost the L.A. economy $2.1 billion, per the Milken Institute, deals were lost, scripted series including 30 Rock, Lost and Pushing Daisies were curtailed or forever altered, late night shows were hobbled and the Golden Globes were reduced to a press conference. Though periodically…

There are defining roles that come along once or maybe twice a lifetime, and I have to say that voicing the glorious gato Puss in Boots for almost two decades has made a huge impact in my life. Of course, when I was first asked to play this beautifully imagined and animated character, I had no idea that it would have such a phenomenal global appeal and lasting power. Coming back to voice the memorable hero for Puss in Boots: The Last Wish has been a remarkable experience. I felt like I was visiting a very dear, clever friend that I hadn’t heard from in a few years. We both have grayer whiskers and are no longer the brash, young players we used to be. But we’re now wiser and…

ON the day he turned 16, Paul Mescal was on a stage, being presented with a cake by the cast and crew of his high school production of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s The Phantom of the Opera. “That’s the first thing I ever did, so I actually take great pride in it,” says Mescal of his public acting debut, playing the Phantom. (The entire production has been uploaded by the school to YouTube. Mescal is a gifted high baritone.) “That was the moment when I was like, ‘Oh fuck — this adrenaline is incredible,’ ” he says. “I’ve never felt a high like that.” Imagine the high, then, that Mescal is feeling today, his 27th birthday. He’ll spend it on a stage once more, as the marquee draw of the hottest…

01. This was an early logline for Everything Everywhere All at Once. A An existential nihilistic take on superhero films. B A kung fu flick about generational divides. C A movie simply about a woman trying to do her taxes. D A Chinese American family hops around the multiverse exploring the infinitude of possible lives. 02. The image on Tár’s movie poster of Cate Blanchett — with her arms extended while conducting a symphony orchestra — was one of a dozen sent to designers, who then rotated the photo (to foreshadow her downfall) and added title info. Why were they nervous before showing it to director Todd Field? A The poster wasn’t all that different from the original art. B Blanchett’s name was missing. C She has a blissful expression on her…

When Pete Docter thinks back to his early days at Pixar, working on 1995’s groundbreaking Toy Story, he thinks of his time studying animation at CalArts. “[It was] just a bunch of people drawing, trying to do something cool,” he says. Now a three-time Oscar winner and Pixar’s chief creative officer, Docter — along with Powerpuff Girls creator Craig McCracken and the late Evelyn Lambart from the National Film Board of Canada — will receive the Winsor McCay Award for career contributions to animation during the 50th Annie Awards. While speaking about his career to THR ahead of the gala event at UCLA’s Royce Hall, Docter fondly remembers meeting a trio of his own animation idols — Disney legends Joe Grant (Dumbo) and Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston (two of…

When supervising sound editor Gwendolyn Yates Whittle accepts her career achievement award on Feb. 26 at the 70th Motion Picture Sound Editors’ Golden Reel Awards, she’ll be only the third woman to do so. “I’m hoping to start a trend of more women getting more recognition,” Yates Whittle, who worked on Avatar: The Way of Water (for which she received her third Oscar nomination) and Top Gun: Maverick, tells THR. “There are a lot of fantastic female sound editors out there. We should be a bigger club.” Based at Skywalker Sound in Northern California for three decades, Yates Whittle has worked on more than 120 films, including Star Wars: Episode I — The Phantom Menace, Minority Report, Munich, Iron Man, Cloverfield, Jurassic World and Fight Club. Her two previous Academy…

At Berlin’s European Film Market, which wrapped Feb. 22, the indie industry was back in force, and plenty of deals got done. Amazon Prime Video snatched up international rights to AGC Studio’s The Order, a white supremacist thriller starring Jude Law and Nicholas Hoult from Assassin’s Creed director Justin Kurzel; also, in a deal with sales outfit Rocket Science, Amazon grabbed pirate-themed survival thriller The Bluff, starring Zoe Saldaña from Anthony and Joe Russo’s AGBO banner. Black Bear International sold out most of Europe and a number of other international territories for Nicolas Cage serial killer movie Longlegs, and the Jamie Bell- Margaret Qualley musical biopic Fred & Ginger. Buyers across Europe pounced on Dogman, Luc Besson’s comeback movie, starring Caleb Landry Jones, which Kinology is selling, with a domestic…

Insiders Respond to Streamers Pulling Projects: ‘It’s Horrifying’ Creatives are burning with rage over Hollywood’s hottest new trend: streaming platforms’ habit of canceling finished films and TV series before they’ve aired or pulling projects from platforms and shelving them indefinitely. THR has been asking around town about the effects of consolidation, budget cuts and tax write-offs kneecapping megaprojects like Batgirl, Snowpiercer, Westworld and, more recently, Arrested Development. “It’s been horrifying,” prolific creator Rian Johnson (Glass Onion) tells THR. “The fact that it’s becoming common practice is terrible and adds to the awfulness.” But Johnson makes a case for optimism: “All you can do as someone who makes stuff is ultimately put your faith in the notion that if you make something, it’s going to find its audience.” Jerry Bruckheimer agrees:…

Weddings Taylor Hasselhoff, a luxury L.A. real estate agent with the Aaron Kirman Group and daughter of David Hasselhoff, married strategist Madison Fiore on Feb. 4 at Ethereal Gardens in Escondido, California. Births Writer-actor Luke Barnett and teacher Emily Barnett welcomed son Felix Erhardt Barnett on Dec. 26 at Cedars-Sinai Tarzana. Congrats Former Twitter exec Briana McElroy was named head of worldwide digital marketing for the Lionsgate Motion Picture Group on Feb. 16. Steven Johnson joined Alcon Entertainment as executive vp, head of physical production Feb. 16. Jason Miller was hired as GM of the North East division of live entertainment promoter Outback Presents on Feb. 15. NBCUniversal promoted Tammy Filler and Jamie Cutburth to executive vp in the advertising and partnership group and Jenny Depper to senior vp E!…

Renowned costume and production designer Catherine Martin and her husband, director Baz Luhrmann, are known for the bold visual style of their collaborations and, not for nothing, Martin also is a fourtime Oscar winner, having earned the costume and production design honors at the Academy Awards for Moulin Rouge! in 2002 and another pair in the same categories for The Great Gatsby in 2014. This year, she earned a trio of nominations for Warner Bros.’ Elvis, for costume and production design, as well as best picture since she also is a producer. Reflecting on her collaboration with Luhrmann, Martin has learned that “we’re in the busi ness of allowing an audience into a world, connecting the audience to how it would have felt to be somewhere.” Effectively, their work “translates…

When producer Jeff Waxman requires military hardware and tactical gear for his movies, he calls Adam and Cat Stone, a long-married couple operating out of the Manhattan Beach home they share with their three kids. In recent years, they’ve secured body armor and motorcycles for John Wick: Chapter 3 — Parabellum, as well as a C-130 military transport plane and an air base for Don’t Look Up. For Waxman’s still-to-be-slated feature Our Man From Jersey, a spy thriller starring Mark Wahlberg and Halle Berry, the pair was tasked with delivering Range Rovers in both left-hand and right-hand drive on deadline for action sequences in multiple international territories. “It’s always a mess when I’m not dealing with them,” the producer says. The Stones are among the leading independent product-placement specialists in…

→ If J.B Smoove had it his way, he’d cast himself as the lead in a biopic about the late comedian Dick Gregory. “In another world, another life, if I was 20 years younger, I would love to play that man,” says the Emmy-winning actor and stand-up comic. “He really had an amazing, fascinating life.” Smoove (né Jerry Brooks) did a deep dive on Gregory’s life when he narrated the six-part Audible Originals podcast Funny My Way, uncovering the lives of six Black comedy legends: Gregory, Flip Wilson, Paul Mooney, Moms Mabley, Rudy Ray Moore and Redd Foxx. His performance has earned the Curb Your Enthusiasm star an Ambie nomination for best podcast host. When Conan O’Brien — whose podcast production juggernaut, Team Coco, developed the show — approached him…

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DANIEL FIENBERG With nearly 600 scripted shows to distribute across the calendar, TV networks and streamers haven’t made the winter into a wasteland — but with many of the biggest titles saved for spring release ahead of the May 31 Emmy eligibility deadline, the months of January and February have become as topsy-turvy as the industry itself. The winter’s most critically acclaimed series is a video game adaptation; Peacock has become an unlikely comeback kid; the busiest TV star is Harrison Ford; and TV fans are spending more time obsessing over which shows are being pulled from the digital space than which are being added. What we need to discuss first is HBO’s The Last of Us — because otherwise the winter narrative for Warner Bros. Discovery would center on…

Three years after his PGA Awards nomination for outstanding producer of theatrical motion pictures for Rian Johnson’s Knives Out, Ram Bergman has pulled off another one for its sequel, Glass Onion. Bergman and Johnson first worked together on the director’s 2005 debut Brick, and two decades later — after hits like Looper and Star Wars: The Last Jedi made them highly sought after — they are now producing titles from other emerging filmmakers under a joint venture with their T-Street banner and studio MRC. The partnership’s first feature, Fair Play, a romantic thriller about two competing hedge fund employees, became the breakout at Sundance this year, selling to Netflix for $20 million despite little pre-fest buzz. Ahead of the 34th Producers Guild of America Awards on Feb. 25, where the…

Cocaine Bear, hitting theaters Feb. 24 from Universal, doesn’t mark Hollywood’s first fascination with bears, although it might be the only project about the animal’s rampage after ingesting a massive amount of the titular drug. Taking a more naturalistic approach was 1988’s The Bear, which told the story of an adult bear befriending an orphaned cub as they flee human hunters. Director Jean-Jacques Annaud, who won the foreign-language Oscar for 1976’s Black and White in Color, adapted James Oliver Curwood’s 1916 novel The Grizzly King for the film. Annaud considered 50 bears as the adult grizzly, eventually casting a 1,500-pound Kodiak named Bart the Bear, later seen in White Fang (1991), Legends of the Fall (1994) and The Edge (1997). Cinematographer Philippe Rousselot recalls the challenges of using real animals…