How did Alec Baldwin end up in a shitshow movie like Rust?
‘Rust’ Blame Game: Let’s Follow the Money
Matthew Belloni
October 31, 2021
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Latest Articles from Hollywood
Scott Mendelson
•
October 31, 2021
Letters from the HollyTube Revolution
The breakout weekends for ‘Backrooms’ and ‘Obsession’ tell us something real about the origin of Hollywood’s next generation of talent—and something more complicated about its future.
Eriq Gardner
•
October 31, 2021
The Blake Lively–Justin Baldoni Suit Could Be Headed for a Do-Over
While Lively elected to settle with her ‘It Ends With Us’ director, her search for attorneys fees and damages has vexed the judge overseeing the case. Will the solution be a new suit in a new venue?
Eriq Gardner
•
October 31, 2021
Disney Is Ready to Clobber Brendan Carr
The F.C.C. chairman is forcing a showdown with Disney over its D.E.I. policies—seemingly a thin pretext for punishing ABC News. But Carr, usually a savvy operator, has an unusually weak hand. And Disney’s lawyers have figured out exactly how to exploit it.
Matthew Belloni
•
October 31, 2021
The 27-Year-Old Assistant Who Found ‘Backrooms’
Shawn Levy’s production company assigned a young staffer to monitor YouTube for potential talent. Four years later, Kane Parsons’ fantasy thriller opened to $118 million worldwide and has everyone in town talking about a possible sea change.
Matthew Belloni
•
October 31, 2021
The Hollywood A.I. Appeasement Vibe Shift
As the industry—even the creative class—shifts to cautiously accept A.I., a Cate Blanchett–founded nonprofit is pushing to adopt a framework of consent for performers. Meanwhile, the business is groping around for new ratings standards in an effort to separate out the slop. Both battles are just beginning.
Kim Masters
•
October 31, 2021
Hollywood’s Saudi Tax Rebate Problem
Saudi Arabia has been offering generous rebates to lure productions to the Gulf. But even before the region experienced war and instability and spending slowed, some producers had been left holding an empty bag.
Eriq Gardner
•
October 31, 2021
The Ellison Trust-Busting Is Getting Political
Paramount’s planned takeover of Warner Bros. has triggered an all-out legal arms race between white-shoe law firms and an increasingly aggressive coalition of state A.G.s. Among the first battle lines: whether the Ellisons secured favorable regulatory treatment in exchange for favorable coverage.
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Latest Articles from Hollywood
Matthew Belloni
•
October 31, 2021
Hollywood’s Gen Z Gap Is Real… and It’s Growing
In a complementary study to my annual survey of L.A. teens, it turns out that young people across America have pretty specific—and not all that shocking or unfair—gripes with the movie business.
Matthew Belloni
•
October 31, 2021
What I’ve Heard: Five Years of Hollywood Disruption
A half decade of M&A opportunists, Peak TV casualties, industry contraction, devastating strikes, and approximately 1,500 David Zaslav mentions later, show business still can’t figure out if it’s reinventing itself or fading away. So I asked 100 industry sources what they think is going on.
Scott Mendelson
•
October 31, 2021
Summer Box Office Blackjack: What the Biggest Movies Need to Beat the House
From Grogu to Spidey, here’s what each of this summer’s top 10 tentpoles actually needs to earn—and why success means something different for everyone.
Eriq Gardner
•
October 31, 2021
SAG-AFTRA’s Surprise A.I. Détente
News and notes on the union’s peace treaty with digital “actress” Tilly Norwood. Plus: The bizarre lawsuit over Tung Tung Tung Sahur, which may be the first major test of whether trademark law can do what copyright won’t—protect an A.I.-generated creation.
Julia Alexander
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October 31, 2021
Streaming TV’s Romantasy Problem
Hollywood keeps trying to mine the red-hot genre for adaptations with built-in female fandoms. So why haven’t Amazon or Netflix cracked the code?
Matthew Belloni
•
October 31, 2021
The Hollywood C.E.O. Gluttony Index
Executive compensation in media has exploded in the past 30 years, even in a period of steady decline for the industry and a generally stagnant stock market. An eye-opening new study ranks the boom’s victors and their jaw-dropping spoils.
Kim Masters
•
October 31, 2021
Netflix Goes to the Movies & Baldoni’s Second-Act Chances
News and notes from around town: Will the famously theater-shy streamer go all-in on distribution? And now that the Blake Lively war is almost over, what are Justin Baldoni’s Hollywood prospects?
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Latest Articles from Hollywood
Eriq Gardner
•
October 31, 2021
Yes, the Blake-Baldoni Case Does Have a Winner
Lively’s lawyers say the ‘It Ends With Us’ settlement is just the preface to another battle to recover attorneys’ fees, treble damages, and potentially punitive awards, too. But will a Manhattan judge really apply an untested California law to a conflict on a New Jersey film set?
Matthew Belloni
•
October 31, 2021
Disney’s Josh D’Amaro Manifesto Translator
In his first earnings call as C.E.O., D’Amaro dropped a 3,000-word mission statement preaching A.I., a “One Disney” strategy, and a super-app to end all super-apps. But perhaps what’s most telling is what he glossed over: coming layoffs, the rising costs of sports, and the price for each attempted spin of the Disney flywheel.
Eriq Gardner
•
October 31, 2021
Trump Defamation Theories & Newsom’s Weak Case
California’s governor is fighting to highlight the president’s legal inanities with a ridiculous Fox lawsuit of his own. Meanwhile, the lawyer battling Melania offers a bold legal theory: If the president can’t be held liable for what he says in office, he shouldn’t be able to sue anyone else.
Matthew Belloni
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October 31, 2021
Why Netflix Caved for Greta Gerwig’s ‘Narnia’
Securing a wide release and 45-day window for 'The Magician's Nephew,' the 'Barbie' director broke the streamer's will on its previously nonnegotiable day-and-date strategy. So why now?
Scott Mendelson
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October 31, 2021
Can ‘Grogu’ Rescue ‘Star Wars’ From Itself?
After years of creative chaos, executive indecision, and a streaming glut that cannibalized the franchise’s theatrical appeal, Lucasfilm is returning to theaters with something very different. Will ‘Grogu’ be a ‘Solo’-sized disaster? Or has Disney just lowered the bar for success?
Matthew Belloni
•
October 31, 2021
‘Michael’ Star’s Pay Dispute & Who Will Direct Part Two?
News and notes on the chatter that ‘Michael’ producer Graham King is stepping in to direct the sequel, and Nia Long’s quiet fight with Lionsgate over her compensation for the movie.
Matthew Belloni
•
October 31, 2021
Hollywood’s Report Card, According to High School Kids, Pt. 3
My annual sit-down with a candid group of teen moviegoers, who share their brutally unfiltered thoughts on the stars and stories that do (and don’t) get them into theaters—from ‘Spider-Man’ (“always gonna hit”) to Spielberg (“He’s no Nolan”) to Sydney Sweeney (“like… no”).
