| | | | | | What's news: Jimmy Kimmel Live! drew its largest ever audience for a regular episode on Tuesday. YouTube content is heading to Delta Airlines. Spotify is cracking down on AI-generated songs. Millie Bobby Brown is close to playing gymnast Kerri Strug in a Netflix biopic. And Row K Entertainment has nabbed the U.S. rights to the Cliffhanger reboot. — Abid Rahman
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Disney Shareholders Revolt Over Kimmel Debacle ►"Disney was complicit in succumbing to the government overreach and media censorship." A group of Disney shareholders are exercising their right to demand materials related to the company’s decision last week to suspend Jimmy Kimmel‘s late-night show, a precursor to a potential lawsuit. In a letter to Disney, the American Federation of Teachers and Reporters Without Borders said there’s “credible basis to suspect” that the board breached its fiduciary duty to investors by prioritizing “improper political and affiliate considerations.” “The fallout from suspending Jimmy Kimmel Live! sparked criticism as an attack on free speech, triggered boycotts and union support for Mr. Kimmel, and caused Disney’s stock to plummet amid fears of brand damage,” stated the letter. The story.
—More legal woes. Disney is continuing to enforce its intellectual property rights to characters in Steamboat Willie, the first animated short to depict Mickey Mouse that entered the public domain last year. Personal injury law firm Morgan & Morgan intended to push a nationwide advertising campaign featuring the character but was met with resistance by Disney’s legal team. The firm has filed a lawsuit seeking a court order that the commercial doesn’t violate any of Disney’s rights. The filing follows Disney in July suing a jewelry company whose product designs incorporate Steamboat Willie ‘s Mickey Mouse, though it appears as if it’s trying pass off the merchandise as coming from the entertainment giant. Disney still retains copyrights for later iterations of the characters, as well as trademarks, which vastly limit exploitation from competitors. The story.
—Woof! Some very good news for Disney, finally! The return of Jimmy Kimmel Live! drew a big audience Tuesday night — the show’s largest ever for a regular episode. Despite not airing in about 23 percent of the country’s TV homes — due to blackouts at 66 ABC affiliates owned by Nexstar and Sinclair — Tuesday’s episode drew 6.26m viewers, based on preliminary Nielsen figures. That’s the largest tune-in (save for a couple of special episodes) in Jimmy Kimmel Live!’s 22-year history and more than three times higher than the show’s average for the second quarter of 2025, before Kimmel’s annual summer break when guest hosts fill in for him. The ratings. |
Kamala Harris' Book Tour Disrupted by Gaza Protesters ►"What is happening to the Palestinian people is outrageous, and it breaks my heart." It was roughly 30 minutes into Kamala Harris‘ first book tour event to promote her look back at her brief 2024 presidential campaign, 107 Days, when the event in New York was disrupted by the first of at least three protesters yelling about “genocide” in Gaza. After the second protester, located somewhere else in the packed Town Hall venue in Manhattan, Harris tried to take charge of the situation, urging the audience to “bring the temperature down” and getting out of her seat and walking to the front of the stage. The story.
—Sweeping new policies. Spotify is set to strengthen AI protections for artists and music producers with a series of measures, including improved enforcement of impersonation violations, a new spam filtering system and AI disclosures for music with industry-standard credits. The music streaming giant made the announcement in a post on its website on Thursday, revealing that it had removed 75m "spammy" tracks. Spotify said it was looking to push back against AI use by "bad actors and content farms to confuse or deceive listeners, push “slop” into the ecosystem, and interfere with authentic artists working to build their careers." The story.
—🤝 Multi-year deal. 🤝 YouTube is taking flight with Delta Airlines. The airline, which is celebrating its centenary, has inked a wide-ranging, multi-year partnership with the video platform, a deal that will bring YouTube content to the airlines sea-back inflight video displays, free trials of YouTube Premium for Delta Skymiles members and a custom YouTube Music playlist (curated by flight attendants!) when passengers are boarding. The story.
—✊ "It is unfair to be treated as a second-class employee." ✊ Remote DreamWorks Animation staffers have gone public with their attempt to unionize with The Animation Guild. The IATSE Local announced on Wednesday that employees who work remotely on L.A.-based film and television projects had submitted a request for voluntary recognition of the union to management. On Thursday, they plan on filing for an election with the National Labor Relations Board. The Animation Guild is attempting to represent around 75 employees, in roles ranging from character effects artist to production coordinator to animator to technical director, in collective bargaining. The story. |
Ruffalo, Bardem Board Jordan Oscar Contender 'All That's Left of You' ►A-list additions. Javier Bardem and Mark Ruffalo have boarded All That’s Left of You, Jordan’s selection for the best international feature Oscars category, as executive producers. Palestinian-American director Cherien Dabis’ historical drama premiered at Sundance and tells a multigenerational story of a family expelled from Jaffa in 1948. When a Palestinian teenager gets swept up into a protest in the occupied West Bank and experiences a moment of violence that rocks his family, his mother recounts the political and emotional threads that led to that fateful moment. The story.
—🤝 Sold! 🤝 Row K Entertainment has nabbed the U.S. rights to the long-awaited Cliffhanger reboot that stars Pierce Brosnan and Lily James. The eight-figure deal coming out of the Toronto Film Festival calls for a wide release for director Jaume Collet-Serra’s fresh take on Sylvester Stallone’s 1993 action flick, now slated for a wide theatrical release in 2026. The project, which was shot in Austria and is now in post-production, centers on mountaineer Ray Cooper (Brosnan), who runs a chalet with his daughter in the Dolomites, a mountain range in Italy. When the pair is kidnapped, older daughter Naomi (James), who is still dealing with trauma from a previous climbing incident, must overcome her past to save her family. The story.
—🎭 One more. 🎭 Ali Astin is the latest actor to join the indie dramedy Wake, which stars Cole Sprouse, Penelope Ann Miller, Chris Parnell and Nelson Franklin. The film centers on semi-estranged siblings who reunite for their father’s wake, only to disagree over how to say goodbye and move on. Devon M. Schwartz directs and co-wrote the script with Kelly O’Malley. In Wake, Astin will play Cassie, the social sibling of the bunch who hides her grief behind her warmth, wit and need to keep up appearances. Astin is the daughter of Rudy and Lord of the Rings star Sean Astin, who was recently elected the president of SAG-AFTRA. The story. |
Rick Moranis, Bill Pullman and Daphne Zuniga Confirmed for 'Spaceballs 2' ►🎭 The Schwartz is strong. 🎭 Amazon MGM Studios confirmed Thursday that the forthcoming sequel to Spaceballs will see Rick Moranis, Bill Pullman, Daphne Zuniga and George Wyner reprise their roles from the original film, as will Mel Brooks, whose casting was previously announced. Additionally, Josh Gad, Keke Palmer, Lewis Pullman and Anthony Carrigan will play new characters. Josh Greenbaum is helming the comedy from a script by Gad, Benji Samit and Dan Hernandez. Producing the film are Brian Grazer, Ron Howard and Jeb Brody for Imagine Entertainment, alongside Gad, Brooks, Greenbaum and Kevin Salter. The story.
—📅 Moving up. 📅 The long waiting game for Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse is getting slightly shorter. Sony revealed the animated feature will arrive a week earlier than expected, and land on June 18, 2027 in Imax and premium formats. Notably, that new date will cover the Juneteenth holiday as well as Father’s Day. It was previously dated for June 25, 2027. Beyond the Spider-Verse is arguably the most anticipated animated movie on any studio’s release calendar. Into the Spider-Verse (2018) won an Oscar and earned $393.6m globally and helped usher in a new era of inventive animation. Across the Spider-Verse (2023) earned $690.6m globally. The story.
—🎭 Edging closer. 🎭 Millie Bobby Brown is close to landing a role as an American sports icon for Netflix. The Stranger Things standout is in final negotiations to star as Olympic gymnast Kerri Strug in director Gia Coppola‘s feature Perfect. Brown would also join the film’s producing team. Coppola, who most recently directed The Last Showgirl, is helming the movie from a script by Ronnie Sandahl. The project is based on the real-life U.S. women’s gymnastics team’s historic success at the 1996 Summer Games in Atlanta. Netflix is eyeing a 2026 shoot for Perfect. The story. |
'South Park' Bets on Mocking Gambling Epidemic ►No punches pulled. Predictive betting comes to South Park in episode five of the show’s sporadic yet highly rated 27th season, when the odds on whether Kyle’s mom, who is a Jewish woman, will attack Gaza becomes a topic of hot speculation at the elementary school. Also in the episode, Satan and President Trump's different attitudes toward becoming parents together become clear. The recap.
—Wingin' it. The series adaptation of Fourth Wing has a new showrunner. Meredith Averill, co-showrunner on Netflix's Locke & Key, will take the reins of the Amazon Prime Video series, based on Rebecca Yarros’ best-selling fantasy novels (collectively known as The Empyrean) from Entangled Publishing. Averill takes over for Moira Walley-Beckett, who left the project in July. Fourth Wing, named after the first of Yarros’ Empyrean books, is still in development at the streamer and has not been ordered to series. The potential series will center on Violet Sorrengail, whose plans for a quiet life are upended when her mother, a military general, orders her to join the brutal Basgiath War College and become one of several hundred candidates vying to become dragon riders. The story.
—🎭 New face. 🎭 NBC’s Law & Order is filling a vacancy in its regular cast. Star Trek: Discovery alum David Ajala has joined the long-running crime procedural, where he’ll play an NYPD detective alongside Reid Scott’s Vincent Riley. Ajala’s first appearance on the show will come partway through the season; Law & Order opens its 25th campaign Thursday night. Ajala’s casting comes two months after Mehcad Brooks, who played Detective Jalen Shaw for three seasons, departed the series. In a somewhat unusual setup for the series — which has almost always featured two lead detectives investigating homicides — Scott’s character will not have a partner for the first few episodes. The story.
—The gang's all here. The cast of early 2000s reality TV phenomenon Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County is planning a reunion — though not at MTV, the show’s original home. Lauren Conrad, Kristin Cavallari, Stephen Colletti and other members of the Laguna Beach cast will come together for a special on the Roku Channel in 2026. Series creator Liz Gateley is among the executive producers, as are Conrad, Colletti and Cavallari. Laguna Beach ran from 2004-06 on MTV, and the Roku special will mark 20 years since the show’s finale (though several castmembers continued to have their lives filmed in spinoffs The Hills and The City ). Along with Conrad, Colletti and Cavallari, Lo Bosworth, Talan Torriero, Trey Phillips, Christina Shuller, Dieter Schmitz, Jessica Smith and Alex Hooser are set to take part in the reunion. The story. |
TV Review: 'House of Guinness' ►"Considerably less dark and bitter than its namesake ale." THR's Angie Han reviews Netflix's House of Guinness. Peaky Blinders creator Steven Knight is back with another period drama, this time charting the 19th century travails of the Guinness family, Ireland's most famous brewing dynasty. Starring Anthony Boyle, Louis Partridge, James Norton, Emily Fairn, Fionn O'Shea, Niamh McCormack, Jack Gleeson, Danielle Galligan, Ann Skelly and Seamus O'Hara. Created by Steven Knight. The review.
—"Unsettling and unsettled, for better and worse." THR's chief TV critic Daniel Fienberg reviews Netflix's Wayward. Mae Martin and Sarah Gadon play a couple arriving in a small Vermont town that's home to a cultish boarding school for troubled teens in this eight-parter. Also starring Toni Collette, Sydney Topliffe, Alyvia Alyn Lind, Brandon Jay McLaren, Tattiawna Jones and Isolde Ardies. Created by Mae Martin. The review.
—"If you can read this, you're too old for this movie." THR's Frank Scheck reviews Ryan Crego's Gabby's Dollhouse: The Movie. The popular Netflix show hits the big screen in a film featuring Laila Lockhart Kraner in the titular role and Kristen Wiig and Gloria Estefan in key supporting parts. Also starring Thomas Lennon, Jason Mantzoukas, Ego Nwodim, Kyle Mooney, Melissa Villasenor and Fortune Feimster. Written by Mike Lew, Rehana Lew Mirzer, Adam Wilson and Melanie Wilson LaBracio. The review.
In other news...
—Nobody Wants This S2 trailer sees first footage of Seth Rogen, Leighton Meester
—Loot duo Molly and Arthur finally act on their feelings in S3 trailer
—Wicked: For Good final trailer sees Ariana and Cynthia return to Oz
—John Mulaney to headline Chicago’s Wrigley Field, a stand-up first
—Rosé joins Global Citizen Festival lineup
—Sports creator Deestroying signs with CAA
—Bob Broder, agent and Chuck Lorre Productions executive, dies at 85
What else we're reading...
—Must-read piece from Josh Dawsey, Rebecca Ballhaus and C. Ryan Barber that goes inside the White House's struggle to tame the Epstein crisis [WSJ]
—Lucas Shaw reports that Disney is preparing for Trump to retaliate against the company for putting Jimmy Kimmel back on the air [Bloomberg]
—Suhauna Hussain reports on a California TV station abruptly shuttering news operations after 56 years on the air [LAT]
—Arthur Jones II reports on billionaire MacKenzie Scott gifting UNCF $70m for historically Black colleges and universities [ABC News]
—Ken Klippenstein has a big scoop about the Dallas ICE shooter, with details on his background and rather bleak online history [Substack]
Today...
...in 1987, 20th Century Fox unveiled The Princess Bride in theaters. The Rob Reiner-directed comedy would initially gross a modest $30m in theaters but live on as a cult classic. The original review.
Today's birthdays: Catherine Zeta-Jones (🏴56), Michael Douglas (81), Will Smith (57), Mark Hamill (74), Pedro Almodóvar (76), Bella Ramsey (22), Clea DuVall (48), Donald Glover (42), Heather Locklear (64), David Benioff (55), Colleen Atwood (77), Jason Flemyng (59), Joy Sunday (29), Maria Doyle Kennedy (61), Rossif Sutherland (47), Bridgette Wilson-Sampras (52), Jordan Gavaris (36), Tate Donovan (62), Benjamin Evan Ainsworth (17), Joel David Moore (48), Antonia Gentry (28), Zach Woods (41), Anna Lambe (25), Beth Toussaint (63), Mikael Persbrandt (62), Chris Owen (45), Aida Turturro (63), Mimi Kennedy (77), Jayne Houdyshell (72), Hyun Bin (43), Felicity Kendal (79), Robert Walden (82), Lee Norris (44), Greg Tarzan Davis (32), Baye McPherson (17), Charlotte Ayanna (49), Keely Shaye Brosnan (62), Jeremiah Bitsui (45), Charlene Amoia (43), Matt Battaglia (60), Dan Mintz (44), Hal Sparks (56), Anson Williams (76), Anita Barone (61) |
| Henry Jaglom, the maverick auteur who crafted deeply intimate and unconventional films that explored the intricacies of relationships and the quirkiness of human behavior, has died. He was 87. The obituary. |
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