| | | | | | What's news: Garth Brooks has been sued for rape. Paramount Global is facing a class action suit over recent layoffs. That 90's Show is not getting a third season at Netflix. Kurt Sutter is no longer working on Netflix's The Abandons. Abbott Elementary and It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia are set for a crossover. — Abid Rahman
Do you have THR's next big story? Confidentially share tips with us at tips@thr.com. |
Why the Diddy Party Was Once the Most Coveted Invite ►"He’s from the Donald Trump school of publicity, and he knew how to get attention." For THR, Amy DuBois Barnett writes that years before accusations cast Sean Combs' lavishly produced parties in a criminal light, the Diddy bash was a cultural phenomenon, packed with stars from Anna Wintour to Trump and other eager "A-listers begging to get in." The story.
—Rape accusation. Country music icon Garth Brooks has been sued by his makeup artist and hairstylist, who accuses him of raping her at a Los Angeles hotel in 2019. The “Jane Roe,” in a lawsuit filed on Thursday in Los Angeles Superior Court, advances allegations of sexual assault, battery and violations of California laws providing protections from intimidation and coercion. In addition to rape, she claims he repeatedly groped and subjected her to sexually explicit comments. Last month, the singer brought a lawsuit in federal court to block the accuser from suing. The story.
—Class action suit. Paramount Global is facing a new lawsuit over the latest round of major companywide layoffs. The proposed class action, filed in New York federal court on Thursday, alleges that Paramount failed to give more than 300 employees proper notice of their terminations in violation of the state’s Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act, which requires at least 90 days notice of a mass layoff. In a statement, the company denied the allegations. The story.
—Cross complaint. Rebel Wilson is countersuing The Deb producers Amanda Ghost, Cameron Gregor and Vince Holden, accusing them of a “troubling pattern” of “theft, bullying and sexual misconduct.” The cross-complaint comes months after Ghost, Gregor and Holden sued Wilson for defamation in July after she initially accused them of sexual harassment and embezzlement in an Instagram video. The producing trio alleged in their lawsuit that Wilson lied in an attempt to release her movie The Deb — which Wilson directors, produced and starred in — at the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival, as well as secure a writing credit on the film. The story. |
L.A. Prosecutors to Review New Evidence in Menendez Case ►Request to vacate. Prosecutors in Los Angeles are reviewing new evidence in the case of the Menendez brothers, who were convicted of killing their parents in their Beverly Hills mansion more than 35 years ago. Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón said during a news conference on Thursday that attorneys for the brothers have asked a court to vacate their conviction. Gascón said there is no question the brothers committed the murders, but that his office will be reviewing new evidence and will make a decision on whether it warrants a resentencing. A hearing was scheduled for Nov. 29. The case has gained new attention after Netflix began streaming Ryan Murphy’s Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story. The story.
—"They are not monsters." Nearly two weeks after Kim Kardashian's advocacy work around prison reform led her to a meeting with imprisoned Erik and Lyle Menendez, on Thursday, the reality TV star published an essay which outlined her hopes that the brother’s life sentences can be “reconsidered.” The publication of Kardashian’s column came hot on the heels of a report that prosecutors in Los Angeles are reviewing new evidence in the case. The story.
—"Episode five is basically a multimillion-dollar infomercial for the case to be re-examined." Reacting to the latest developments in the Menendez case, Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story creator Ryan Murphy hopped on the phone with THR's Mikey O'Connell Thursday night. Murphy discusses the latest developments, giving Kardashian an early look at the crime drama and why he doesn’t believe the aggrieved Menendez family members have even watched the show in its entirety. The interview. |
Will Amazon Shake Up the Streaming Ad Market in 2025? ►Prime position. Earlier this year, Amazon shook up the world of advertising when it turned on ads for all of its Prime Video users. After snagging $1.8b in commitments at the 2024 upfront, THR's Alex Weprin writes that Amazon is poised to bring even more ways for marketers to advertise on Prime Video in 2025. The analysis.
—✊ Strike authorized ✊ More than three years ago, The New Yorker's unionized employees authorized and threatened a strike during a contentious first contract negotiation that culminated with scores of protestors descending on the Greenwich Village home of Condé Nast executive Anna Wintour days before a deal was ultimately reached. Now, as the labor group is in the middle of negotiating a second contract with Condé Nast, it is applying similar pressure. THR's Katie Kilkenny reports that in a vote that took place Wednesday, 100 percent of voting members of the bargaining unit opted to authorize a strike. The move comes less than a month before this year’s edition of The New Yorker Festival (Oct. 25-27). The story.
—For sale. Sable Ranch, a nearly 400-acre filming location in the Santa Clarita Valley that has hosted shoots for dozens of films and TV shows over the past five decades, including Sons of Anarchy, SWAT, American Horror Story and the upcoming The Accountant 2, has been put up for sale. The property, comprising the adjacent Rancho Maria and Sable Ranch lots, sits just off the 14 Freeway and Sand Canyon Rd near Coyote Canyon, and features a “Western Street” and multiple rustic facades that have been used for features, scripted and unscripted TV series and commercial shoots. The story. |
Is Disney Bad at 'Star Wars'? An Analysis ►The fandom menace. Eye-wateringly high budgets, a series of scrapped projects, and almost clichéd fan backlash. THR's James Hibberd writes that it’s been 12 years since Disney bought Star Wars and its galaxy far, far away arguably has too many broken toys. The analysis.
—Ready to grapple. Bangladesh has picked writer-director Iqbal Hossain Chowdhury’s award-winning feature debut Boli (The Wrestler) as its selection to the 2025 Oscars in the best international feature film category. The movie won the 2023 Busan International Film Festival’s New Currents prize, and it was warmly received by critics at the Shanghai International Film Festival in June. The movie follows an eccentric fisherman who resolves to beat the current local champion at Boli Khela, a traditional form of wrestling from Chattogram, Bangladesh’s second-largest city. The story.
—Blockbusting contender. Thailand has selected director Pat Boonnitipat’s heartwarming hit How to Make Millions Before Grandma Dies as its submission to the best international feature film category. The film, which has become a worldwide hit and grossed more than $50m, tells the story of a scheming young man who quits his job to care for his dying grandmother in the hopes of inheriting her fortune. Key to the film’s local appeal, the grandson is played by pop singer-turned-actor Putthipong Assaratanakul (also known as Billkin). The story.
—Oscar pedigree. Bosnia and Herzegovina has selected My Late Summer, directed by Oscar-winning filmmaker Danis Tanović, as its official submission for Oscars best international feature film category. The comedy-drama, which debuted as the opening film at this year’s Sarajevo Film Festival, follows Maja, a feisty 30-something (played by Anja Matković), who journeys to a remote island to resolve a family inheritance dispute only to be confronted with unresolved issues from her past. Tanović won the best international feature Oscar in 2002 with No Man's Land. The story. |
QVC's Latest Sales Pitch: Live Sports ►🤝 Wait, what? 🤝 QVC, the live shopping-focused operator of channels and streaming services, has cut a wide-ranging deal with USA Pickleball, including rights to stream its tournaments throughout the year, as well as the USA Pickleball Nationals tournament each November. QVC will stream the live pickleball matches on the QVC+ and HSN+ streaming services, and the company will have a significant presence at this year’s Nationals, to be held next month in Mesa, Arizona. The company is planning a range of “curated shoppable entertainment” around the matches, including behind-the-scenes programming and content, and it has created a pickleball shopping collection. The story.
—The Gang Tries a Crossover. ABC's Abbott Elementary is set to crossover with FXX's It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia.
Sunny star and creator Rob McElhenney confirmed the news in an Instagram post and story on Thursday. The news follows months of speculation that something was in the works involving both series. In July at Comic-Con, Brunson teased that Abbott would be featuring a crossover episode but offered little in the way of detail apart from saying it would air during the show’s fourth season, which premieres Oct. 9. The story.
—Wanton Abandons. Netflix and creator Kurt Sutter have parted ways on the streamer’s western The Abandons. Sutter, who created the drama and was serving as showrunner, left the show over creative differences. The Abandons, set in the Oregon Territory in the 1850s, has a few weeks of production on its season remaining and will continue filming in Canada. Netflix gave a straight-to-series order to the show in October 2022. The series, which stars Lena Headey and Gillian Anderson, centers on a group of outlier families in 1850s Oregon who come together to fight a corrupt, wealthy power that wants to force them off their land. The story. |
'That '90s Show' S3 Not Moving Forward at Netflix ►"We will shop the show." That ’90s Show won’t be getting a third season at Netflix. That’s according to one of the show’s stars, Kurtwood Smith, who posted the news on Instagram on Thursday night. "I know you have been asking me when season 3 is coming, but I have tough news… Netflix will not be renewing," he started his post. "I just want to take a minute to say THANK YOU to all of the fans everywhere who supported and watched the show." The story.
—Breakout hit. Hulu has renewed unscripted show The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives. The streamer has picked up 20 additional episodes of the show, which premiered Sept. 6 and became the first Hulu unscripted series to chart in Nielsen’s streaming rankings. The eight-episode season, which was released all at once, delivered 409m minutes of viewing for the week of Sept. 2-8. Hulu hasn’t said how it will dole out all 20 of the new episodes, but the first batch is due to premiere in the spring of 2025. The story.
—Perfect start. Netflix's The Perfect Couple shot to the top overall spot in Nielsen’s streaming rankings for its premiere week. The murder mystery limited series, which stars Nicole Kidman, Liev Schreiber and Dakota Fanning, accumulated 1.91b minutes of viewing for the week of Sept. 2-8 (it premiered on Sept. 5). That’s the fifth-highest total for any original series premiere week on the streaming charts this year, behind Fool Me Once (3.04b minutes), Fallout (2.9b), Bridgerton (2.76b) and Netflix’s live-action Avatar: The Last Airbender (2.56b). The rankings. |
Film Review: 'White Bird' ►"An affecting story undermined by pat conclusions." THR's Lovia Gyarkye reviews Marc Forster's White Bird. Helen Mirren and Gillian Anderson star in this feature adaptation of R.J. Palacio book about a former bully learning lessons in kindness and moral courage from his grandmother's tales of growing up in Nazi-occupied France. The review.
—"A blooming narrative of love and loss." Lovia reviews Truong Minh Quy's Viet and Nam. The director's third feature, which premiered at Cannes and is banned in his home country of Vietnam, artfully maps a heartbreaking queer romance onto the battered history of a nation. The review. |
Thank Pod It's Friday ►All the latest content from THR's podcast studio.
—Awards Chatter. THR's executive awards editor Scott Feinberg talks to the great and the good of Hollywood. In this live episode, Scott spoke to Paul Feig. The creator of the influential TV series Freaks and Geeks and director of the landmark film Bridesmaids reflects on his path from geekhood to standup to acting to writing/directing, what it was like working on TV shows like Arrested Development and The Office while he was in "directors' jail" and why he is so committed to centering funny women in his work. Listen here.
—It Happened in Hollywood. THR senior writer Seth Abramovitch goes behind the scenes of the pop culture moments that shaped Hollywood history. In this episode, Seth spoke to Jennifer Kent. The writer-director of the 2014 indie horror The Babadook unpacks the making of a cult favorite. Listen here.
In other news...
—What We Do in the Shadows final season trailer: Vampires set out on their own
—Nate Bargatze thinks Kenan Thompson has been on SNL for 50 years in new promo
—Netflix unveils trailer for first ever Filipino zombie film Outside
—Bruce Springsteen endorses Kamala Harris
—TikTok comedy producer Stapleview launches inaugural slate of shows
—LAX Airport filming moratorium to begin sooner this year
—How Hollywood’s favorite ’70s sports car inspired the new Ferrari
—Savannah Film Fest to honor Demi Moore, Amy Adams and Natasha Lyonne
—Stefano Pilati x Zara Collection full lookbook starring Gisele Bündchen
What else we're reading...
—Jake Kring-Schreifels profiles CBS' Kate Scott (formerly Kate Abdo) who has become the face of soccer on U.S. TV [Ringer]
—Fascinating piece on Kissimmee, a Florida city near Walt Disney World, that has over 30,000 Airbnbs and other short-term rental units, and how owners are struggling as the market declines [Bloomberg]
—Bobby Allyn reports that 23andMe is on the brink, and looks into what will happen to all its DNA data [NPR]
—Kevin Crowe, Shannon Osaka and Molly Hennessy-Fiske report that thousands of uninsured homes were in Hurricane Helene's path [WaPo]
—Here's your Friday list: "The 100 best albums of the 2020s so far" [Pitchfork]
Today...
...in 2013, Warner Bros. Pictures released Alfonso Cuarón's Gravity. The film, starring Sandra Bullock and George Clooney, was a massive success, earning $723m at the box office and winning 7 Oscars. The original review.
Today's birthdays: Susan Sarandon (78), Liev Schreiber (57), Dakota Johnson (35), Christoph Waltz (68), Vicky Krieps (41), Hoyte Van Hoytema (53), Stephen Gyllenhaal (75), Alicia Silverstone (48), Caitríona Balfe (45), Melissa Benoist (36), Rachael Leigh Cook (45), Wendy Makkena (66), Nick Mohammed (44), Armand Assante (75), Abraham Benrubi (55), Alan Rosenberg (74), Brynn Thayer (75), Tchéky Karyo (71), Reggie Lee (49), Morgan Spector (44), Bill Fagerbakke (67), Ella Balinska (28), Daniel Lissing (43), James Landry Hébert (40), Clifton Davis (79), Dana Davis (46), Ned Luke (66), Lori Saunders (83), Kali Hawk (38) |
| Bob Yerkes, the acrobatic stunt performer who slid down a clock tower cable for Christopher Lloyd in Back to the Future and hung around the Statue of Liberty under repair for Fred Ward in Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins, has died. He was 92. The obituary. |
|
|
|
| | | |
