| | | | | | What's news: Scopely is acquiring Niantic for $3.5b. Rosie O’Donnell has moved to Ireland. Substack has passed 5m paid subscriptions. Netflix is making a feature based on Stephen King's Cujo. Jack Huston is directing a biopic of "Elephant Man" Joseph Merrick. Othello broke the record for highest weekly gross for a Broadway play. — Abid Rahman
Do you have THR's next big story? Confidentially share tips with us at tips@thr.com. |
Top YouTube Creators to Hold Their Own Upfront ►Changing of the guard. A number of major YouTube creators will host their own upfront-style event later this month in a bid to lure marketing dollars from traditional TV to creator-driven content. MrBeast, Dude Perfect, Ryan Trahan, Kinigra Deon, Rebecca Zamolo, Jordan Matter, and Colin & Samir are confirmed to participate. The creator-focused firm Spotter is behind the event, which is called the Spotter Showcase, and will be held in New York on March 27. Colin & Samir will lead conversations with creators and will also produce the event alongside Spotter. More than 150 CMOs of major brands are expected to attend, alongside other creators. The story.
—🤝 Sold! 🤝 In a deal that reshapes the mobile video game landscape, Scopely is acquiring the gaming business of Niantic for $3.5b, bringing franchises like Pokémon Go, Pikmin Bloom, and Monster Hunter Now into its portfolio. Scopely is the studio behind a number of major mobile games, including IP-driven franchises like Monopoly Go!, Star Trek Fleet Command, and Marvel Strike Force. In addition to the games, Scopely will also acquire Niantic’s companion apps and services Campfire and Wayfarer. The story.
—"Frustratingly far apart." SAG-AFTRA has been on strike against major video game studios for more than seven months, and the two sides don’t seem to be particularly close to making a deal. That’s the impression that negotiators for the performers’ union gave to members in a message on Tuesday that warned that the companies’ latest proposals contained “alarming loopholes that will leave our members vulnerable to AI abuse” — the very issue that prompted the union’s current work stoppage in the first place. The story.
—"It’s a cry for help." Wendy Williams called in to New York morning radio show The Breakfast Club on Tuesday to explain what happened the day before, when it was reported that she was removed from the assisted living facility where she’s currently residing and taken to a New York hospital for evaluation. THR confirmed with the NYPD that “it responded to a welfare check” at the location of Williams’ assisted living facility. “I told them, ‘I am not incapacitated,’” Williams said of her talk with the NYPD officers. Williams, who was diagnosed with dementia in 2023, has been residing at an assisted living facility since 2023. The story.
—"It has been heartbreaking." Rosie O’Donnell has confirmed she has moved from the U.S. to Ireland, where she is in the process of taking up citizenship. “The people here are so loving, kind and welcoming. I’m very grateful,” O’Donnell said, while adding she missed the rest of her family and friends back in the U.S. Her news, conveyed during a nine-minute TikTok video, mentioned the challenges of navigating a new country. At the same time, O’Donnell made it clear crossing the Atlantic to find a new home was prompted by the current U.S. political climate, with Donald Trump recently returning to the White House for the start of his second term. The story.
—Trump bump. Substack is seeing explosive paid subscription growth this year, with the crazy political environment and a strategic push into audio and video helping it do so. Substack co-founder Hamish McKenzie tells THR's Alex Weprin that the platform has passed 5m paid subscriptions. That is up from 4m just four months ago, and 3m a year ago. A year ago, Substack says that half of its top 250 creators used audio and video as part of their regular content. Now that number is 82 percent, underscoring just how much audio and video content have transformed the platform. The story. |
Half of Spotify's Royalties Are Going to Indie Artists ►"It speaks to opportunities and choices that artists have today." Spotify updated its annual Loud and Clear report on Wednesday, confirming that for a second consecutive year, the streaming giant paid out half of its royalties to independent artists. Of the $10b Spotify doled out to music rights holders last year, it gave about $5b to indie labels and artists, the company said, a $500m increase from 2023. The report comes weeks after Spotify announced its first-ever full year of profit, 18 years after the company was founded in 2006. Spotify launched its Loud and Clear initiative back in 2021 in an effort to increase transparency with artists and contextualize how the streaming service pays for music. The story.
—Inching closer. Concord Music is in talks with digital music platform Stem for a possible acquisition. Financial terms of the deal, which was taken to market by the Raine Group are as yet unknown. Based in Nashville, with offices in L.A., New York and London, Concord encompasses a label group (its imprints include Concord Records, Concord Jazz, Fantasy Records, Rounder Records and Fearless Records, among others), music publishing (among its notable catalogs are songs by REO Speedwagon, Kiss and Cheap Trick), and a theatrical arm focusing on licensing, script publishing and cast recordings. The story.
—Give up the funk. George Clinton has sued his former business partner Armen Boladian to reclaim ownership of his music catalog for alleged fraud and copyright infringement. In a lawsuit filed on Tuesday in Florida federal court, the funk pioneer claims Boladian and several of his companies engaged in a “decades long scheme” that involved forging his signature on deals that surrendered his rights to his music. As part of the fraud, which includes withholding tens of millions of dollars in royalties, Boladian has accrued ownership of roughly 90 percent of Clinton’s catalog, according to the complaint. The story.
—"My health must come first." Billy Joel is postponing his tour for four months after surgery over an unspecified medical condition, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame artist announced Tuesday morning. Joel is pushing back show dates in Detroit, Toronto, Syracuse, Salt Lake City, Edinburgh, Liverpool, Charlotte, and Milwaukee, with the Detroit gig rescheduled for November while the rest have moved to 2026. Joel will pick the tour back up at Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh in July, and he’ll play New York shows at Yankee Stadium, MetLife Stadium and Citi Field in July and August. The story.
—"Right now, we’re a little concerned and cautious about where the ad sales are going." SiriusXM continues to feel the heat from Donald Trump threatening tariffs on automakers. The president most recently pausing tariffs for the Big Three carmakers still leaves uncertainty around SiriusXM and the advertising market. “When you look at the current environment, obviously with the tariffs, the inflation, just overall uncertainty in the market, I think it’s adversely impacting the ad space,” SiriusXM CFO Thomas Barry told the Deutsche Bank Media, Internet & Telecom Conference on Tuesday. The story. |
Steve Buscemi Joins Cast of Martin McDonagh's 'Wild Horse Nine' ►🎭 Worthy alternate 🎭 Steve Buscemi has joined the cast of Wild Horse Nine, a Searchlight feature being directed by Martin McDonagh. It is the filmmaker’s first feature since his acclaimed The Banshees of Inisherin. Buscemi is stepping into a role that was initially going to be played by Mark Ruffalo. Sam Rockwell, who starred in McDonagh’s Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, as well as John Malkovich and Parker Posey are already in the saddle for the dark comedic drama that begins shooting later this month in Rapa Nui, also known as Easter Island. Plot and character details are being kept under wraps, but it is extremely rare that a production shoots on the island, one of the most remote, inhabited places on Earth. The story.
—Bark times. Netflix has given a green light to a movie reboot of the Stephen King novel Cujo. Roy Lee will produce the remake of the horror story about a mother and son who fight off a rabid dog while trapped in their car. Cujo was first adapted from King’s 1981 psychological horror novel of the same name where Cujo is at first a lovable St. Bernard, but after being bitten by a bat becomes everyone’s worst enemy. In the 1983 film Cujo, a mother, Donna (Dee Wallace), and her son, Tad (Danny Pintauro) come into contact with Cujo and must fight for their lives. The story.
—🎭 Filling out 🎭 Lewis Pullman, Colm Meaney and Joan Chen have joined Sally Field in Netflix’s adaptation of Remarkably Bright Creatures, the wildly popular novel by Shelby Van Pelt. Also boarding the roll call are Kathy Baker, Beth Grant and Sofia Black D’Elia. The novel tells of the unique relationship between a lonely elderly widow named Tova working as a janitor at an aquarium and a giant Pacific octopus named Marcellus living at the facility. Olivia Newman, best known for helming Where the Crawdads Sing, is directing the feature that is now shooting in Vancouver. The story.
—Back on the big screen. Jack Huston, known for his acting work in Boardwalk Empire and American Hustle, has come aboard to direct a biopic centered on Joseph Merrick, the deformed Victorian-era artist known as "The Elephant Man." Phoenix Pictures is backing the feature, titled Joseph Merrick, which will be produced by Kate Cohen, Mike Medavoy and David Dobkin. Huston will also produce. Production is looking to start later this year. David Lynch directed an Oscar-nominated biopic of Merrick that starred John Hurt in 1980, titled The Elephant Man, and Merrick has also appeared in countless books, shows, plays and even an opera. The story.
—🤝 Sold! 🤝 Dead Lover has become the inaugural feature acquisition from a new distribution venture between Cartuna and Dweck Productions, marking one of the first deals from the 2025 SXSW Film Festival. The film from writer-director Grace Glowicki made its Texas debut on March 9 after its world premiere at Sundance’s Midnight section earlier this year. Glowicki stars alongside Ben Petrie, Leah Doz and Lowen Morrow in the Frankenstein-themed project that blends elements of horror, comedy and romance. The story. |
'Othello' Breaks Broadway Records ►King Kong ain't got shit on him. Othello broke the record for highest weekly gross for a Broadway play last week, and was the top-grossing show in the industry for the second week in the row. The play, starring Denzel Washington and Jake Gyllenhaal, brought in $2.8m in its second week of previews and played to 100 percent capacity at the Barrymore Theatre. Ticket prices are high, with an average price of $338.09, which is hundreds above the next highest ticket prices of $158 at Wicked and Hamilton. Othello again beat out Wicked, which had been the highest grossing show over the past several months. Wicked took the second spot last week, with $2.4m, followed by Hamilton with $1.7m, The Lion King with $1.5m and The Outsiders with $1.3m. The Broadway box office report.
—📅 Dated! 📅 The fourth season of Hacks will join the crowded spring TV calendar as a number of shows set dates to get in under the wire of Emmy eligibility. The Max comedy, which is the defending best comedy winner at the Emmys, will premiere April 10. The 10-episode season will follow Deborah (Jean Smart) and Ava (Hannah Einbinder) as they work to get their late night show up and running amid rising tensions between the two of them. Max has also released a trailer for the coming season. The story. |
Film Review: 'The Parenting' ►"More amusing than scary." THR's Lovia Gyarkye reviews Craig Johnson's The Parenting. In this Max horror comedy feature, a couple's meet-the-parents weekend goes horribly awry. Starring Brian Cox, Edie Falco, Lisa Kudrow, Parker Posey, Brandon Flynn and Nik Dodani. The review.
—"A big swing with erratic results." Lovia reviews Andrew Patterson's The Rivals of Amziah King. Patterson's SXSW-bowing crime thriller film revolves around an Oklahoma apiarist who reunites with his estranged foster daughter. Starring Matthew McConaughey, Angelina LookingGlass, Kurt Russell, Jake Horowitz, Scott Shepherd, Rob Morgan, Tony Revolori, Owen Teague, Bruce Davis and Cole Sprouse. The review.
—"A potent advocacy doc." THR's Frank Scheck reviews Wendy Sachs' October 8. Sachs' film, which counts Debra Messing among its executive producers, explores the rise in antisemitism following the massacre of October 7, 2023. The review.
—"A slight but sincere 50th anniversary gift to fans." THR's Daniel Fienberg reviews Linus O'Brien's Strange Journey: The Story of Rocky Horror. Linus O'Brien, the son of Rocky Horror creator Richard O'Brien, assembles an impressive talking-head cast from the musical and film to discuss an unlikely 50-year trajectory. The review.
—"Becomes somewhat compelling ... five or six hours in." Daniel reviews Peacock's Long Bright River. The eight-episode adaptation of Liz Moore's novel tells a story of sisterhood, addiction and murder set in the Kensington neighborhood of Philadelphia. Starring Amanda Seyfried, Nicholas Pinnock, Ashleigh Cummings, Callum Vinson and John Doman. The review.
In other news...
—Alix Jaffe named president of TV at Miramax
—Kristin Chenoweth signs with UTA
—Tony Etz, veteran CAA agent, dies at 64
What else we're reading...
—Olivia George reports that DOGE's cuts have left Fulbright and study-abroad scholars stranded [WaPo]
—Citing the release of The Three-Body Problem, One Hundred Years of Solitude and most recently The Leopard reflects on Netflix's zealous pursuit in adapting global literary classics and the inherent problems with that [NYT]
—Nicole Narea writes that the shocking arrest of pro-Palestinian immigrant Mahmoud Khalil should worry every American [Vox]
—Derrick Bryson Taylor has an explainer on Wendy Williams' guardianship [NYT]
—Megan Lawton looks at why celebrities like Doechii and Nicole Kidman as well as Gen Z women love the jacket-and-tie look [BBC]
Today...
...in 2010, Paramount released Jim Field Smith's She’s Out of My League in theaters. The rom-com starred Jay Baruchel, Alice Eve and T.J. Miller and made nearly $50m at the box office. The original review.
Today's birthdays: Liza Minnelli (79), Titus Welliver (63), Aaron Eckhart (57), Lesley Manville (69), Richard Harrington (🏴50), Jaimie Alexander (41), Troy Winbush (55), Jake Weber (62), Jason Beghe (65), Courtney B. Vance (65), Frank Welker (79), Chris Sanders (63), Ron Funches (42), Luenell (66), Aleks Le (26), Julia Campbell (62), Malina Pauli Weissman (22), Jama Williamson (51), Cameron and Nicholas Crovetti (17), Jaz Singh Deol (36), Jake Lockett (40), Barbara Feldon (92), Jo Hartley (53), Rhys Coiro (46), Caren Kaye (74), Rick Worthy (58), Samm Levine (43), Jerry Levine (68), Luis Gerardo Méndez (43), Min Nam-koong (47), Wei Zhao (49), Larry Murphy (53) |
| | | |
