| | | | | | What's news: CAA has lost its bid to dismiss a Weinstein-related lawsuit from actress Julia Ormond. Almin Karamehmedovic is the new president of ABC News. Michael Madsen has been arrested on a charge of domestic battery. Michaela Coel is reteaming with HBO and the BBC for her next series. — Abid Rahman
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Biden Signs Off at the DNC: "America, I Gave My Best to You" ►"You can’t say you love the country only when you win." All eyes were on Joe Biden as the Democratic National Convention closed its first night in Chicago on Monday. Amid chants of "Thank you, Joe!" and after a lengthy standing ovation, the president gave one of the most memorable speeches of his long and storied political career. Earlier on Monday, speeches from Hillary Clinton, Steve Kerr, Andy Beshear and a barnstorming address from Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez were the highlights of a jam-packed day at the DNC. The recap.
—Poor sweet baby James! A planned performance by James Taylor on the first day of the DNC was scrapped at the last minute as organizers grappled with scheduling problems that pushed Biden's speech outside primetime. "Because of the raucous applause interrupting speaker after speaker, we ultimately skipped elements of our program to ensure we could get to President Biden as quickly as possible so that he could speak directly to the American people," convention officials told THR. The story.
—"The greatest honor." A performer who did manage to perform on day 1 of the DNC was singer Mickey Guyton. THR's Rick Porter spoke to the Grammy winner, who performed her song "All American," about how she came to be at the convention. The story.
—"We can never take our foot off the pedal for one instant." For THR, Brande Victorian spoke to actress Jenifer Lewis, producer Debra Martin Chase and writer and producer Janine Sherman Barrois about how Black women in entertainment are mobilizing for Kamala Harris during the DNC. The interview. |
Edgar Bronfman Unveils $4.3B Bid for Paramount ►EBJ enters the chat. Paramount Global mogul Shari Redstone, who deliberated for months about whether and how to relinquish control of her family’s film and TV empire, now formally has a new offer to consider. On Monday, a consortium led by veteran media exec Edgar Bronfman, Jr. unveiled a competing bid for Paramount and Redstone’s holding vehicle, National Amusements. The bid is roughly $4.3b bid to acquire NA. The offer includes $2.4b in debt and equity for NA and Bronfman also would contribute $1.5b to Paramount’s balance sheet, which could be used to pay down debt. Bronfman, Jr.’s bid also adds the $400m breakup fee if NA were to go with a rival deal. The story.
—Moving forward. CAA has lost its bid to dismiss a lawsuit from actress Julia Ormond, faulting the agency for failing to warn her about Harvey’s Weinstein’s history of sexual misconduct before she took a meeting with the former movie mogul that led to her assault. Ormond last year filed a wide-reaching lawsuit accusing her ex-agency, Miramax and Disney of turning a blind eye to Weinstein’s crimes. After she was assaulted, she said her agents at the time, who were allegedly told by another client that Weinstein proposed sex in exchange for career opportunities, discouraged her from reporting the incident to law enforcement. The story.
—Upped. Almin Karamehmedovic has been named president of ABC News. Karamehmedovic has overseen the production and daily operations of World News Tonight with David Muir since August 2014. He takes over the role of president after Kim Goodwin announced her plans to retire in May. Debra OConnell president, News Group and Networks, Disney Entertainment, has been running ABC News in the interim. Since January 2022, Karamehmedovic has also overseen news content development as his role expanded to senior executive producer from executive producer. The story.
—Arrested. Reservoir Dogs and Kill Bill actor Michael Madsen has been arrested in Malibu on a charge of domestic battery, ahead of being freed from jail. The Los Angeles Sheriff Department in an Aug. 18 booking report said the 66-year-old had been booked into the Malibu/Lost Hills Station at 1:40 a.m. after an arrest for a domestic battery misdemeanor 25 minutes earlier. A rep for the Malibu/Lost Hills Station in a separate statement told THR deputies at 12:15 a.m. on Aug. 18 arrived at 31600 Broad Beach Road in Malibu to answer a “family disturbance” report. The story.
—Charged. Four men have been charged in the killing of General Hospital star Johnny Wactor, Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón announced Monday. The four suspects — 18-year-old Robert Barceleau, 18-year-old Leonel Gutierrez, 18-year-old Sergio Estrada and 22-year-old Frank Olano — were arrested Thursday. Wactor was shot and killed while walking to his car after a bartending shift on May 25 in downtown Los Angeles. He was 37. The actor played Brando Corbin on General Hospital from 2020 to 2022. The story. The story.
—"I’ve had to make a lot of decisions over the last couple of days." Boy Meets World alum Danielle Fishel has revealed that she has breast cancer. At the start of the latest episode of podcast Pod Meets World, the actress shared, “I was recently diagnosed with DCIS, which stands for Ductal carcinoma in situ, which is a form of breast cancer.” She explained that it was detected “very, very, very early; it’s technically stage zero.” Fishel assured listeners that she’s “going to be fine,” as she is having surgery to remove it and will receive follow-up treatment. The story. |
Disney+ Cancels 'The Acolyte' ►One and done. The Acolyte will not return for season two. Lucasfilm has opted not to continue the Disney+ Star Wars series, which aired its season one finale last month. The Leslye Headland-created show earned respectable reviews from critics, but was panned by audiences, with only 18 percent on Rotten Tomatoes. The show was review-bombed from some quarters who perceived it as “woke,” with certain corners of the internet going after Headland, who is a member of the LGBTQ+ community, as well as the series’ diverse group of actors. The story.
—Get excited. I May Destroy You creator, director and star Michaela Coel is reteaming with HBO and the BBC for her next series. The two outlets will co-produce First Day on Earth, which Coel created and will star in as a British writer named Henri who takes a job on a movie filming in Ghana, her parents’ homeland. Various Artists Limited, which counts Succession creator Jesse Armstrong among its principals (and which produced I May Destroy You) and A24 are also behind the new series. The story.
—🎭 New faces 🎭 Amazon Prime Video has unveiled a host of new faces for its upcoming music drama The Runarounds. Joining the fictional YA drama from Outer Banks’ creator Jonas Pate about a post-high school band trying to make it big is Brooklyn Decker, Maximo Salas, Marley Aliah, Hayes MacArthur, Mark Wystrach and Shea Pritchard. They join the Skydance Television series previously announced real-life band’s members—William Lipton, Axel Ellis, Jeremy Yun, Zendé Murdock, and Jesse Golliher—along with Lilah Pate and Kelley Pereira. The story.
—As you were. The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City is returning with almost all of its cast in tact. Heather Gay, Lisa Barlow, Angie Katsanevas, Meredith Marks and Whitney Rose will all be back when Bravo's Real Housewives franchise returns to Salt Lake City. Mary Cosby, who had been a “friend of the cast,” also rejoins as a full-time Housewife. The fifth season premieres Sept. 18, at 9 p.m. ET/PT on Bravo, with episodes streaming the next day on Peacock. The story.
—Dramatic end. Following a Love Island USA season filled with love, heartbreak, betrayal and surprises, Peacock dropped its highly anticipated season six reunion special on Monday. The reunion, hosted by Ariana Madix, reunited many Islanders from the latest iteration of the beloved dating completion series, including finalists Serena Page, Kordell Beckham, Leah Kateb, Miguel Harichi, JaNa Craig, Kenny Rodriguez, Nicole Jacky and Kendall Washington. Other Islanders in attendance were Aaron Evans, Kaylor Martin, Rob Rausch, Olivia Walker, Andrea Carmona, Connor Newsum, Daniela Noelle Ortiz-Rivera and more. The recap. |
'Romulus' Director on That Surprise Character ►"It was unfair that the likeness was never used again." THR's Brian Davids spoke to filmmaker Fede Álvarez about his new film, Alien: Romulus. In a spoiler deep dive, the Uruguayan director talks the gruesome "fourth act" that worried Disney and reveals why he doesn't want to rush a sequel. Warning: Spoilers! The interview.
—"I've never been afraid of the moves that I've made — never." THR's nicest man Chris Gardner spoke to Bozoma Saint John about joining the cast of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills for its 14th season. Saint John, a high-profile C-suite executive with buzzy tenures at Netlix, Endeavor and Uber, discusses her fearless segue to reality TV and what her former colleagues thought about the move. The interview.
—"I cannot imagine any circumstances in which I’d want to go further into the present, as it were, but at the same time, I don’t think I’m done with the subject." For THR, Brande Victorian spoke to Peter Morgan about wrapping up Netflix's awards favorite The Crown. The creator of the Emmy-nominated historical drama speaks on his future storytelling plans and the difficulty of pulling off six seasons of a prestige television show. The interview. |
'Shōgun' Creators On the 6-Year Journey to TV ►"It was chaos for a long time." THR's Beatrice Verhoeven spoke to Shōgun creators Justin Marks and Rachel Kondo about the challenges they faced in the six years they spent producing the Emmy-nominated FX drama. The duo also respond to those Game of Thrones comparisons and whether a season two was always in the cards. The interview.
—"These are some icons, real heavy-hitters." THR's Mikey O'Connell spoke to showrunner Francesca Sloane about her Emmy-nominated show Mr. & Mrs. Smith. Sloane discusses how the Amazon show was never meant to resemble the feature film it's based on, and reveals that she is already getting calls from actors hoping to guest star in season two. The interview.
—"I don’t really spend much time on budgets." Mikey also spoke to Julian Fellowes about his lavish HBO drama The Gilded Age. The creator of the period drama, and the genius behind Downton Abbey, also talks about the symbolism of the series’ season-long retelling of Manhattan’s opera wars. The interview. |
TV Review: 'Pachinko' S2 ►"A soaring (if slightly soapy) second season." THR's Angie Han reviews the second season of Apple TV+'s Pachinko. Soo Hugh's epic adaptation of Min Jin Lee's novel follows Sunja and her family through World War II and its aftermath, while in 1989 Solomon plots against a professional nemesis. The review.
In other news...
—Jeff Goldblum plays a vengeful, yet stylish Zeus in Kaos trailer
—Face to Face teaser: Scott Peterson denies affair played role in Laci’s death
—Thai hit How to Make Millions Before Grandma Dies scores U.S. release
—Johnny Depp-directed movie Modi to Premiere at San Sebastián Film Festival
—How to stream the Democratic National Convention online
What else we're reading...
—Kim Willsher reports on the bitter family feud that brought a Shakespearean tragedy to Alain Delon's final years [Guardian]
—Matthew Luxmoore reports that Russia is hunting down deserters in an attempt to backfill its massive war losses [WSJ]
—Tyler Austin Harper writes that the populist mantle is Kamala Harris’s for the taking [Atlantic]
—In a relatable piece, Alissa Wilkinson extols the joy of hate watching bad TV like Emily in Paris and The Bold Type [NYT]
—Kalhan Rosenblatt very helpfully explains why everyone on TikTok is suddenly obsessed with "demure" [NBC News]
Today...
...in 2010, Alexandre Aja's Piranha 3D was released in theaters. A remake of Joe Dante's comedy horror film Piranha from 1978, the film was a critical and commercial hit and made $83m at the box office. The original review.
Today's birthdays: Amy Adams (50), Andrew Garfield (41), Ke Huy Quan (53), Joan Allen (68), Demi Lovato (32), Ben Barnes (43), Fred Durst (54), Liana Liberato (29), James Marsters (62), Meghan Ory (42), Billy Gardell (55), John Noble (76), Misha Collins (50), Ray Wise (77), Kristen Miller (48), Alexandra Roach (37), Olivia Cheng (45), Michael Rady (43), Colin Cunningham (58), Sylvester McCoy (81), Brant Daugherty (39), Patrick Kilpatrick (75), Noah Bean (46), Geoffrey Blake (62), Ali Liebert (43), Peter Horton (71), Simon Shepherd (68), Miguel Gomez (39), Jay Acovone (69), Nikki SooHoo (36), David Rees Snell (58), Stanley Townsend (63), Alex Newell (32), Tony Terraciano (24), Billy Jenkins (17), Markus Flanagan (60) |
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