Hollywood’s New Lifeline & G.O.P. Succession Roulette

Apr 2, 2026

Epstein Exclusives, ICE’s Backdoor, An Alix Earle Blockbuster

Welcome back to The Daily Courant, your afternoon guide to Puck’s best new reporting. Here’s what you need to know…

Dry Powder: Sen. Ron Wyden’s tireless investigation into billionaire Leon Black has fueled a stream of New York Times stories on the Apollo co-founder’s suspicious ties to Jeffrey Epstein and his payments to women. Bill Cohan shares an exclusive interview with Black about his shadowy history with the late pedophile. [Read More]
Line Sheet: Influencer Alix Earle’s new skincare line, Reale Actives, became one of the most successful celebrity beauty launches in history on Tuesday after generating around $1 million in sales in less than five minutes. Rachel Strugatz has inside details on the debut, and whether a Sephora partnership is in the works. [Read More]
The Best & The Brightest: Speaker Mike Johnson has held his leadership position for longer than anyone expected, but he might lose it if Republicans can’t keep control of the House. Leigh Ann Caldwell gets the scoop on all the preemptive jockeying to replace him. [Read More]
Wall Power: The auctions in Hong Kong last week reversed a four-year slide with stronger totals, impressive sell-through rates, and renewed momentum for Asian artists. Marion Maneker crunches the data behind the market’s comeback. [Inner Circle Exclusive]

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Meanwhile, on the pods…

The Town: Matt Belloni is joined by UTA’s Jason Richman to discuss why Hollywood is once again turning to books for source material after the success of Project Hail Mary, Wuthering Heights, and The Housemaid. [Listen Here]
The Powers That Be: Peter Hamby and Leigh Ann get to the bottom of the Republican backdoor strategy to secure funding for D.H.S. and ICE for the remainder of Trump’s term—effectively boxing out Democrats from implementing any reforms. [Listen Here]

WALL STREET

William D. Cohan

Leon Black From the Ashes, Part III

The erstwhile Apollo executive has more to say about his entanglements with Epstein, Ron Wyden, and his latest foe, The New York Times.

FASHION

Rachel Strugatz

Reale Love

The debut of Alix Earle’s new acne-focused skincare line, Reale Actives, is already one of the most successful celebrity beauty launches in history. What happens next?

WASHINGTON

Leigh Ann Caldwell

Pass the Mike

Speculation is building around who could replace Mike Johnson as Republicans’ leader in the House if and when the party finds itself in the minority. And there are already four names on the theoretical shortlist.

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ART

Marion Maneker

Eastern Promises

Though still a ways off from the global art market peak of 2022, last weekend’s Hong Kong auctions showed a definite rebound: vastly improved totals, impressive sell-through rates, and signs of strength for Asian artists.

HOLLYWOOD

Matthew Belloni

Why Hollywood Needs Books More Than Ever

Matt is joined by Jason Richman, UTA partner and co-head of media rights, to talk about the recent success of high-profile book adaptations at the box office (Project Hail Mary, Wuthering Heights, The Housemaid), why the long-standing Hollywood strategy of adapting books into films went away and is now back, the rise of female-focused authors, why this is leading to more power for book rights-holders, what genres are most popular, and more.

WASHINGTON

Peter Hamby

Leigh Ann Caldwell

The Powers that Be Daily, Starring Peter Hamby

The G.O.P.’s ICE Box

Leigh Ann Caldwell joins Peter to break down Republicans’ strategy to lock in funding for D.H.S. and ICE through the remainder of Trump’s term—effectively boxing out any Democratic reforms. They also discuss the quiet jockeying to replace Mike Johnson as House speaker, and whether he’s ready to step aside from leadership altogether.

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