Join Puck

Eriq Gardner

An industry-leading entertainment law expert reporting on the intersection of Hollywood, Washington, Wall Street, and media. Eriq was previously legal editor-at-large at The Hollywood Reporter.

THE LATEST ARTICLES

NEWSLETTERS

Terry Rozier

Eriq Gardner • May 4, 2026

Is Insider Sports Betting a Federal Crime?

For the first time ever, the government has filed fraud charges over insider trading on a prediction market. Could athletes, coaches, and trainers be next?

rebel wilson

Eriq Gardner • April 28, 2026

Rebel’s Yell: Anatomy of an Alleged Smear Campaign on Trial

The escalating dispute between director and star Rebel Wilson and the producers of ‘The Deb’ has evolved into a cross-continental legal battle, featuring allegations of reputational harm via “smear sites,” an unconventional defamation claim, and—perhaps not coincidentally—the involvement of two key figures in the upcoming Blake Lively–Justin Baldoni trial.

WWE WrestleMania

Eriq Gardner • April 27, 2026

A $957 Million WWE Title Fight

The pro wrestling outfit is flying high thanks to a slew of new deals and WrestleMania’s recent ESPN debut. But an imminent trial will question whether Vince McMahon undersold the value of the company ahead of the TKO merger that made it all possible.

Ted Sarandos

Eriq Gardner • April 21, 2026

WarnerMount vs. The Gathering Storm

Suspicions are building inside Paramount and beyond that Netflix is astroturfing Hollywood’s “Block the Merger” campaign and engaging with regulators about the deal. Netflix denies it all—but the growing push to kill WarnerMount is very real.

Brendan Carr fcc

Eriq Gardner • April 14, 2026

How Trump’s Anti-NFL Crusade Could Backfire

Stripping the league of its antitrust protection, which has already been winnowed down by courts, may lead to more football games on paid streaming, and a challenging landscape for conservative broadcasters like Sinclair and Nexstar.

Blake Lively court baldoni lawsuit

Eriq Gardner • April 7, 2026

Lively v. Baldoni: The Smear Factor Showdown

Yes, a judge narrowed the case. But there’s still plenty at stake in Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni’s long-running legal showdown, which now centers largely on Team Baldoni’s alleged retaliatory media campaign as the clock ticks down to a trial.

Bobby Kotick

Eriq Gardner • March 31, 2026

Bobby Kotick’s Call of Duty

After Microsoft’s 2023 acquisition of Activision, the game maker’s former C.E.O. came under legal fire for allegedly rushing the deal ahead of negative news about the company’s bro-ey culture. The ensuing lawsuit has now gone thermonuclear, with a featured role for superlawyer Alex Spiro… and the Epstein files.

NFL

Eriq Gardner • March 30, 2026

Their Eyes Were Watching Goodell

The NFL’s bid to fix blown calls with centralized, A.I.-assisted officiating—framed as insurance against a referee lockout—risks morphing into a far messier test case at the intersection of gambling, union power, and the future of human labor on the field.

Michael Rapino

Eriq Gardner • March 24, 2026

Will Live Nation Get Away With It?

A surprise deal with Trump’s antitrust cops seems to have tilted the courtroom odds in favor of Live Nation in its antitrust fight. But as state A.G.s press on, and the trial comes to a close, litigator Jeffrey Kessler is working inside the paint to distill the case to something jurors can understand: greed.

jeff shell

Eriq Gardner • March 17, 2026

The Jeff Shell Legal Saga Takes a Startling Turn

Strip away the theatrics, and R.J. Cipriani’s headline-making battle against Paramount president Jeff Shell may be the silliest Hollywood lawsuit filed this year. But that doesn’t mean the story is going away—or that Shell doesn’t have a bigger problem on his hands.

1 2 3 4 5 … 26