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.
When Elon Musk announced last May that he was naming Linda Yaccarino the CEO of the company that I will always call Twitter, few people outside of the media business had any idea who she was. By now, just a few months later, the former head of advertising at NBCUniversal has become a lightning rod for rage arising from Musk’s erratic, impulsive and, in many cases, repulsive behavior, even as he has made it all but impossible for her to fulfill the mission of making Twitter an alluring place for advertisers. Through it all, Yaccarino has generally presented herself as oblivious to Musk’s conduct and its impact on the company that she at least nominally leads — behavior so maddening that she has been dragged on the very platform she…
André 3000 The rapper’s surprise flute album New Blue Sun nets a Billboard record: longest song (12 minutes, 20 seconds) to chart on its Hot 100 list, where the track bowed at No. 90. Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs The mogul steps back from Revolt after being hit with three lawsuits (one settled) alleging sexual assault. Combs denied the claims, which his rep called “a money grab.” Jeff Shell The ousted NBCUniversal chief is set to join ousted CNN chief Jeff Zucker at a private equity fund, RedBird Capital, with a war chest eyeing media and sports buys. Kathleen Finch The Miracle Workers cancellation closes out TBS and TNT’s live-action scripted biz, a process begun before she joined WBD to oversee TV nets that has now picked up. Showbiz Stocks $147.03 (+2.3%)…
April 25, 2022 The Twitter board accepts Elon Musk’s offer valuing the company at about $44 billion. Founder Jack Dorsey would have been set for a $978 million payout, but he said he rolled over his equity into Musk’s Twitter. July 2022 Musk tries to back out of the deal, citing spam and bot accounts, but also probably smarting from second thoughts about the sky-high price tag. Twitter takes him to court. Oct. 10, 2022 After Kanye West sends out antisemitic tweets, the mogul says he “talked to ye today,” which “I think he took to heart.” Less than two months later, West’s account is suspended after he posts a swastika inside a Star of David. Oct. 27, 2022 Musk tries to reassure advertisers in a note, promising the platform…
The voice is unmistakable. As the video of a woman wading into the ocean during sunset played, a melodic tune was overlaid: “I woke up, woke up, woke up in a sunshine stattte, that’s livin’ up to me.” The voice was clearly that of T-Pain, including his signature Auto-Tune eccentricities. The catch? The lyrics — and T-Pain’s singing voice itself — were created by generative artificial intelligence tech called “Dream Track” from YouTube. The AI wrote the song and re-created T-Pain’s voice so that a user could include it as a personal soundtrack to a video. YouTube also has signed John Legend, Demi Lovato and Charlie Puth, among others, for its Dream Track tech. Facebook and Instagram owner Meta has beta-launched a cast of AI “characters,” all of which share…
The pressure is on for the December box office after an unusual Thanksgiving feast. An epic historical drama catering to older adults and running nearly two hours and 40 minutes fed more moviegoers than a new family offering from Disney’s animation empire, which for years dominated the November holiday. (Remember that little blockbuster called Frozen?) Heading into Thanksgiving, Disney’s original music-infused Wish — an ode to Walt Disney’s trademark “wish upon a star” mantra — was widely expected to be the peak performer with a projected North American debut of $45 million to $50 million for the Nov. 22-26 corridor. Instead, it became the latest misfire from Hollywood’s once-invincible film empire, opening to a tepid $31.6 million. Ridley Scott’s Napoleon, starring Joaquin Phoenix as the French military commander, narrowly conquered…
2023 THANKSGIVING LEADERS The five-day frame was up a hefty 41 percent from last year but still trailed pre-pandemic times (revenue was down 34 percent from 2019). TOP THANKSGIVINGS OF ALL TIME The holiday, typically a top box office driver, hasn’t yet recovered from its pandemic-era lows since hitting a high in 2018, led by Disney’s Ralph Breaks the Internet and MGM’s Creed II. NORMALLY, THIS IS DISNEY’S HOLIDAY Wish’s struggles are all the more apparent given that past Disney animated titles are among the 10 biggest Thanksgiving pics of all time. Source: Comscore…
