| | | | What's news: It's magazine day! This week's cover stars are The Last of Us' Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey. The Lion King grossed more than $4m on Broadway over the holiday period. Cineworld denies reports it is selling individual assets. Chelsea Handler is keen to become the next Daily Show host. Apple TV+ hires Ricky Strauss as marketing head. — Abid Rahman |
'The Last of Us': Inside HBO's Zombie Apocalypse Plan ►On the cover. Debuting on Jan. 15, The Last of Us is a new zombie drama from HBO that aims to overcome Hollywood's legacy of weak video game adaptions and become a monster hit. THR's James Hibberd spoke to The Last of Us game creator Neil Druckmann, series showrunner Craig Mazin and stars Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey about the elevated survival horror that they hope will win over fans of the game but also make an impact with a wider audience. The cover story.
—"I'm too messed up now to type." Jeremy Renner was run over by his snowplow after getting off of the equipment, the Washoe County Sheriff’s Office said on Tuesday. At a presser, authorities laid out the series of events that led to Renner's injuries, describing the incident as a "tragic accident." Ahead of the news conference, the actor posted to Instagram a photo of himself in a hospital bed. The story.
—Almost here. One of Nielsen’s new critical measurement projects, Nielsen One Ads, officially has a launch date. The company says that the cross-platform measurement product will hit the market on Jan. 11, well ahead of the 2023 upfront negotiations, and fresh off the launch of new ad streaming tiers from Netflix and Disney+. The story.
—🤝 Measurement pact 🤝 In not so great news for Nielsen, Warner Bros. Discovery has signed an audience measurement agreement with rival company VideoAmp. While still using Nielsen, WBD hopes VideoAmp will better identify audiences for advertisers across linear, streaming video, digital and social media services. The story. |
'The View' Pays Tribute to Barbara Walters ►"The reason we’re all sitting here, really." Tuesday's episode of The View paid tribute to Barbara Walters, the trailblazing newswoman who, by creating the veteran Emmy-winning ABC talk show, brought more seats to the table for women in television. Walters was celebrated by co-hosts past and present, including Joy Behar, Whoopi Goldberg, Sunny Hostin, Sara Haines, Alyssa Farah Griffin, Meredith Vieira, Star Jones, Debbie Matenopoulos, Lisa Ling, Sherri Sheperd and Elisabeth Haselbeck. The story.
—"That’s a perfect job for me." Chelsea Handler is keen to be in the running to replace Trevor Noah as the next host of The Daily Show. In a new interview, the comedian says she’s very seriously pitching herself to take over the late-night gig. Handler was announced as a Daily Show guest host ahead of Noah’s final episode on Dec. 8. The story.
—Clarification. Bankrupt exhibition giant Cineworld, which filed for Chapter 11 in the U.S. in September, has said it is holding out for a buyer for its entire business, denying reports that it has been looking to sell off individual assets. It also clarified that there had been no discussion with AMC over the sale of its cinemas. The assertions come following a filing by AMC in December which revealed there had been talks with Cineworld lenders. The story.
—Big hire. Industry veteran Ricky Strauss has been hired as head of AppleTV+ marketing. He will lead consumer marketing campaigns, creative advertising, media and promotions across original series and films for Apple’s streaming platform. Strauss was most recently president of content and marketing for Disney+, spearheading the launch of the service before leaving in early 2021. The story. |
Globes: What to Expect From the (Scaled-Back) Party Scene ►Reset. THR's Kirsten Chuba and Chris Gardner write that in a typical year, the Beverly Hilton would be teeming with Golden Globes afterparties, but 2023 will see a revised social calendar as the Hollywood Foreign Press Association rebounds from controversy. The story.
—Some good news, at last. Broadway rebounded during the week between Christmas and New Years, as multiple shows broke box office records and the industry saw one of its first relatively normal holiday weeks since the pandemic began. The Lion King, which has been running on Broadway since 1997, topped the charts by grossing more than $4.3m across nine performances — the highest gross ever for the show. The story.
—The wait is over. Pioneering rap trio De La Soul’s catalog will finally be available on streaming services on March 3. The group’s first six albums, including its platinum-selling 1989 debut, 3 Feet High and Rising, will be available for streaming on Spotify, Apple Music and other digital platforms. The release coincides with the 34th anniversary of the trio’s first album. The story.
—✊ A first ✊ In a major breakthrough for labor organizing in tech, video game workers at The Elder Scrolls Online: High Isle developer ZeniMax Studios have successfully organized Microsoft’s first U.S. union. A majority of quality assurance professionals at the developer opted to join the Communications Workers of America. The story. |
How Amazon's 'The Bad Guy' Breaks With Mafia Show Traditions ►Going against the grain. Following the global success of Gomorrah and Suburra, mob shows have become the go-to genre for the Italian TV industry. The Bad Guy, the new mafia show from Indigo Film and Amazon Studios that debuted in December, is something different. THR's Gianmaria Tammaro looks into how The Bad Guy subverts mob genre conventions. The story.
—"I totally understand it’s an expensive show." Westworld star James Marsden has reiterated his disappointment over the HBO show getting shut down before receiving a proper sendoff. In a new interview, Marsden said he was well aware that decisions to cancel high profile shows like Westworld often came down to money, but he wished that "it was about more than financial success." The story.
—"He knew he was beloved." Call Me Kat star and exec producer Mayim Bialik says the show will address the late Leslie Jordan's absence in the Jan. 5 tribute episode of the Fox comedy. In a new interview, Bialik said the main goal as a cast was to figure out "how do we honor our friend while also honoring a grieving process." The story. |
TV Review: 'Will Trent' ►"A broadcast drama with promise." THR's chief TV critic Dan Fienberg reviews ABC's Will Trent. Ramón Rodriguez and Erika Christensen topline the police procedural series based on Karin Slaughter's Atlanta-set detective novels. The review.
In other news...
—Hunters trailer shows group working to “bring Hitler to justice” in final season
—Amazon Prime Video’s new releases coming in January 2023
—Banijay closes deal to buy Australia’s Beyond International
—Former WBD svp Christopher Brady joins Tribeca Enterprises
—Frank Galati, Tony winner and Chicago stage champion, dies at 79
—Don Williams, last surviving member of the Williams Brothers Quartet, dies at 100
—Alan Rankine, co-founder of The Associates, dies at 64
What else we're reading...
—Ramin Zahed interviews Polish director Jerzy Skolimowski about his Oscar contender EO, and why the film looks to ease the plight of animals in the world [LAT]
—Maureen O’Connor meets Shanghai etiquette guru Sara Jane Ho, the breakout star of Netflix’s Mind Your Manners [NYT]
—Justin Pot looks into the hidden cost of cheap TVs [Atlantic]
—Eric Lutz writes that Kevin McCarthy will lose — even if he eventually wins the vote to become speaker [VF]
—Kirsten Grind has a zany report on Spiegelworld, a Las Vegas-based company known for adult-themed acrobatic performances, purchasing a California town [WSJ]
Today...
Today's birthdays: Julia Ormond (58), Emma Mackey (27), Michelle Mylett (34), Dafne Keen (18), Maddie Hasson (28), June Diane Raphael (43), Dyan Cannon (86), Erin Cahill (43), Lenora Crichlow (38), Charlyne Yi (37), D'Arcy Carden (43), Samantha Sloyan (43), Jeannie Mai Jenkins (44), Julian Sands (65), David Foley (60), Jaeden Martell (20), Charles Melton (32), Richard Rankin (40), August Diehl (47), Harmony Korine (50), Graham McTavish (62) |
| Chris Ledesma, who served as the beloved music editor of The Simpsons on every one of its first 734 episodes, from the Fox animated series’ premiere in 1989 through a 34th-season installment in November, has died. He was 64. The obituary. |
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