• HOLLYWOOD
  • WALL STREET
  • SILICON VALLEY
  • WASHINGTON
  • MEDIA
  • FASHION
  • PTB: LIVE
Get 1 free article
RECENT AUTHORS
  • Matthew Belloni
  • Tara Palmeri
  • Lauren Sherman

  • Sign In
  • Join Puck
  • Newsletters
  • Authors
  • Podcasts
  • Sign In
  • Join Puck
Welcome back to What I’m Hearing, 100 percent free of White Lotus spoilers.
 ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ 
What I'm Hearing
What I'm Hearing

PREVIEW VERSION

Start a free 7 day trial to unlock unlimited access to Puck.

Welcome back to What I’m Hearing, 100 percent free of White Lotus spoilers.

🚨🚨First, another box office contest: Reply with your best guess of the Avatar: The Way of Water opening weekend (domestic only). Closest without going over will win the usual status-defining Puck hat, just in time to wear to Roman Abramovich’s NYE boat party in St. Barts. Deadline is Thursday noon. Good luck!

Second, thanks to Esquire for namingThe Town to its 30 Best Podcasts of 2022 list. This week I broke down the year’s most innovative show with Welcome to Wrexham star/producer Rob McElhenney, discussed why Bob Iger couldn’t quit Disney with ex-ESPN chief John Skipper, and debated the most-effed companies with Lucas Shaw. Subscribe on Spotify or Apple.

As always, if this was forwarded to you, join the WIH community by clicking here. Still time to give your entire team a holiday gift they will actually use!

Discussed in this issue: Taylor Swift, Meg Smaker, Mark Wahlberg, Tom Cruise, Todd Boehly, Kelly Bush Novak, Lina Khan, Kim Yutani, Ari Emanuel, Jen Salke, Dwayne Johnson, Guillermo del Toro, Bob Iger, and Will Smith’s new favorite reality show….

But first…

Who Won the Week: Brad Pitt, Dede Gardner, and Jeremy Kleiner
Who says big content deals are dead? France’s Mediawan co-founder Pierre Antoine-Capton agreed to pay...

Can’t see the full story? You're receiving the free version of What I’m Hearing at . For full access to Puck, and to each of my colleagues, you can subscribe here

Learn More
How Taylor Swift Ended Up at Searchlight
How Taylor Swift Ended Up at Searchlight
Behind the scenes of Swift’s first feature foray in Hollywood.
MATTHEW BELLONI MATTHEW BELLONI
I guess it was inevitable that Taylor Swift, who has been directing or co-directing her music videos since back in 2010, would try her hand at a feature. What might be a bit more surprising is that her untitled debut was announced this week by...
Keep Reading with a Free Trial
$(ad3_title)
FOUR STORIES WE’RE TALKING ABOUT
TV Executive Brain Drain
TV Executive Brain Drain
The TV news executives of today are not winning any popularity contests.
DYLAN BYERS
Breitbart, Ye & Mercer
Breitbart, Ye & Mercer
Rebekah Mercer is looking to offload her stake in the alt-right media site. What happens now?
TINA NGUYEN & TARA PALMERI
Trump’s Greased Pig
Trump’s Greased Pig
A conversation encircling The Trump Org’s latest legal headaches.
PETER HAMBY & BILL COHAN
The Robot Takeover
The Robot Takeover
The rise of ChatGPT suggests A.I. is coming for the arts.
BARATUNDE THURSTON
https://puck.news/subscribe
Puck
Facebook Twitter Instagram LinkedIn

Need help? Review our FAQs page or contact us for assistance. For brand partnerships, email ads@puck.news.

Puck is published by Heat Media LLC. 227 W 17th St New York, NY 10011.

SEE THE ARCHIVES

SHARE
Try Puck for free

Sign up today to join the inside conversation at the nexus of Wall Street, Washington, Silicon Valley, Hollywood, and more.

Already a member? Sign In


  • Daily articles and breaking news
  • Personal emails directly from our authors
  • Premium podcast content
  • Gift subscriber-only stories to friends & family
  • Unlimited access to archives
  • Bookmark articles to create a Reading List

  • Off the record conference calls with authors and staff
  • Invites to exclusive in-person events
  • Early access to new editorial and product features
  • Exclusive access to Puck merch

Exclusive to Inner Circle only

Latest Articles from Hollywood

NYT Columnist Andrew Ross Sorkin and C.E.O. of The Walt Disney Company Bob Iger speak during the New York Times annual DealBook summit on November 29, 2023 in New York City.
Matthew Belloni • December 1, 2023
Iger’s Disney De-Wokening
The “go woke, go broke” narrative persists, despite its origins as social media and Fox News noise. And now it’s clear that Disney C.E.O. Bob Iger himself believes that, whether it’s B.S. or not, the company’s progressive “messaging” has become a problem.
Was Amazon’s Black Friday game a gimmick, or the future of sports?
Julia Alexander • November 28, 2023
Amazon’s NFL Retail Therapy Experiment
What Prime’s $100 million bet on a Black Friday game portends for the future of live sports on streaming.
Producer David Ellison attends the Royal Film Performance and U.K. Premiere of Top Gun: Maverick at Leicester Square on May 19, 2022 in London.
Matthew Belloni • November 26, 2023
Final Strike Jitters, Disney Blame Game & A Shari-Ellison Scenario
A special Thanksgiving mailbag answering the town’s most burning questions, including what happens if SAG-AFTRA rejects its deal, an odd funeral no-show, and what to do with all the antisemitism around Hollywood.
Say what you will about Netflix’s film strategy, but the company consistently nails holiday fare.
Julia Alexander • November 21, 2023
The Christmas Streaming Miracle
You have no earthly idea how much people watch holiday movies between Thanksgiving and New Years. But is owning and developing this I.P. a worthy R.O.I.?
Jonathan Handel • November 20, 2023
A Quick Fix for (Some of) the Actors’ A.I. Contract Fears
SAG-AFTRA can take some control of the playing field by issuing its own consent forms for digital replicas.
Jay Penske celebrates on the podium during the Hyderabad E-Prix on February 11, 2023 in Hyderabad, India.
Matthew Belloni • November 20, 2023
And the Golden Globes Go to… CBS
In a last-ditch, third-try effort, Jay Penske sold the Golden Globes telecast to CBS. The deal is a huge discount from NBC’s previous $60 million-per-year offering, but it prevents the awards from being the Billboards—at least for now.
Brie Larson in 'The Marvels.'
Matthew Belloni • November 19, 2023
Apple, Marvel, and the Great Box Office Fallacy
In a perverse side effect of the streaming age, Hollywood seems unwilling to call a flop a flop. Instead, the question of what is “profitable” or “value-additive” has become convoluted—especially if it involves a pure-play streamer or a Scorsese movie.


Get access to this story

Enter your email for a free preview of Puck’s full offering, including exclusive articles, private emails from authors, and more.

Verify your email and sign in by clicking the link we just sent.

Already a member? Sign In


Start 14 Day Free Trial for Unlimited Access Instead →

Latest Articles from Hollywood

SAG-AFTRA President Fran Drescher speaks as SAG-AFTRA National Executive Director Duncan Crabtree-Ireland looks on at a press conference discussing their strike-ending deal with the Hollywood studios on November 10, 2023, in Los Angeles.
Jonathan Handel • November 16, 2023
Are Actors Overthinking the A.I. Threat?
A close look at the three primary concerns raised by SAG-AFTRA members regarding how “synthetic performers” and other computer-generated replacements could threaten their livelihoods.
There were a few Easter eggs in Bob Iger’s analysis of Disney’s quarterly performance that may appease Nelson Peltz.
William D. Cohan • November 15, 2023
Iger’s Living Peltz
Will embattled Disney chief Bob Iger manage to ward off a looming proxy fight with Trian’s hyper-aggressive activist investor Nelson Peltz after his latest incursion into Disney’s cap table?
Neal Mohan, the C.E.O. of YouTube.
Julia Alexander • November 14, 2023
The Apple-Amazon-Google Streaming O.S. Mega War
The streaming conversation is consumed with a juxtaposition of Max, D+, Par+, Peacock, and Netflix. But the tech companies are playing Vulcan chess with higher stakes.
The Brie Larson-led ‘The Marvels’ vastly underperformed Disney’s hopes at the box office.
Matthew Belloni • November 13, 2023
Marvel Enters Its Age of Reduced Expectations
When did Marvel lose its automatic connection with casual movie fans, and what can Disney do to get audiences excited again about superhero films?
Warner Bros. film chiefs Mike De Luca and Pam Abdy
Matthew Belloni • November 13, 2023
Warners Reverses Course in ‘Coyote vs. Acme’ Fight
In a surprising about-face, Warner Bros. executives will allow the filmmakers of Coyote vs. Acme, a $70 million live action/CGI hybrid Looney Tunes film, to shop the movie to other potential distributors.
The 16 pages of contract language surrounding A.I. are by far the most intricate provisions in the new agreement.
Jonathan Handel • November 13, 2023
What the Actors Really Won on A.I.
A detailed look at the tentative SAG-AFTRA deal, from streaming residuals to health benefits to the extraordinary restrictions on the use of A.I.
SAG-AFTRA National Executive Director and chief negotiator Duncan Crabtree-Ireland (C) raises his fist while speaking at the conclusion of picketing outside Paramount Studios on day 113 of their strike against the Hollywood studios on November 3, 2023, in Los Angeles, California.
Matthew Belloni & Jonathan Handel • November 10, 2023
Are There Still More Strikes Ahead?
Hollywood is rejoicing after an awful six months, but as 2024 negotiations loom, will C.E.O.s take the high road?

You have 1 free article Left

To read this full story and more, start your 14 day free trial today →


Already a member? Sign In

  • Terms
  • Privacy
  • Contact
  • FAQ
© 2023 Heat Media All rights reserved.
Become a member

All of the insider knowledge from our top tier authors, in your inbox.

Sign up

Already a member? Sign In

Verify your email!

You should receive a link to log in at .

I DID NOT RECEIVE A LINK

Didn't get an email? Check your spam folder and confirm the spelling of your email, and try again. If you continue to have trouble, reach out to fritz@puck.news.

SIGN UP with Google
SIGN UP with Google
SIGN UP with Apple
SIGN UP with Apple
OR USE EMAIL & PASSWORD
Password strength:

OR
Sign in

Not a member yet? Sign up today

Sign in with Google
Sign in with Google
Sign in with Apple
Sign in with Apple
OR USE EMAIL & PASSWORD
Don't have a password or need to reset it?

OR
Verify Account

Verify your email!

You should receive a link to log in at .

I DID NOT RECEIVE A LINK

Didn't get an email? Check your spam folder and confirm the spelling of your email, and try again. If you continue to have trouble, reach out to fritz@puck.news.

YOUR EMAIL

Use a different sign in option instead

Member Exclusive

Try Puck for free

  • Daily articles and breaking news
  • Personal emails directly from our authors
  • Premium podcast content
Welcome to Puck!

You are logged into a free account as unknown@example.com

Already a member? Sign in with your paid account


Directly Supporting Authors

A new economic model in which writers are also partners in the business.

Personalized Subscriptions

Customize your settings to receive the newsletters you want from the authors you follow.

Stay in the Know

Connect directly with Puck talent through email and exclusive events.