| | | | | | What's news: This week's digital cover stars are K-pop megastars Seventeen. Max has renewed Hacks. Donald Trump is set to pardon reality TV stars Todd and Julie Chrisley. NPR is fighting back against its funding cuts. Lilo & Stitch's final opening weekend domestic box office gross was a whopping $192.7m. — Abid Rahman
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Edge of Seventeen: How the K-Pop Powerhouse Is Reinventing Itself ►On the cover. They fill more stadiums than Bruce Springsteen and sell as many albums as Taylor Swift. But the world’s most successful K-pop band still faces one last hurdle: growing up. THR's Nicole Fell spoke to Seventeen as the 13-member group transition from teenagers to men and evolve their look and sound: "We are standing at a new starting line, preparing for a new path ahead and ready to blaze a new trail." The cover story. |
Stunt Performer Sues Kevin Costner and 'Horizon 2' Over Unscripted Rape Scene ►Suit filed. One day in May 2023, stunt performer Devyn LaBella showed up to the Utah set of Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 2, the second part of the sprawling Western series from Kevin Costner, expecting to double for one of the film’s stars in some basic, fairly boring shots. Instead, she says, she was surprised by being subjected to an unscripted, brutal rape scene without proper notice, consent or the presence of a contractually mandated intimacy coordinator. Now, THR's Katie Kilkenny reports that LaBella is suing Costner and the film’s production companies for sexual discrimination, harassment and the creation of a hostile work environment. Moreover, the complaint alleges LaBella faced retaliation after she reported the incident by not being called back for subsequent work on the Horizon series and never being hired again by the film’s stunt coordinator, with whom she had worked previously. The story.
—Bleak. California is a uniquely expensive and complex setting for film and television productions, and outdated processes are scaring away badly needed shoots and the jobs they provide, according to a new report from the Milken Institute. A Hollywood Reset: Restoring Stability in the California Entertainment Industry paints a bleak picture of a production environment in desperate need of an overhaul at a time when the state is bleeding the entertainment work that has traditionally been its calling card. Add to that larger forces, like a strong U.S. dollar and the competitive edge that countries with nationalized healthcare wield, and the report predicts work could continue to flee unless big changes are implemented soon. The story.
—Kakistocracy. Donald Trump has shared his plans to issue full pardons to reality TV stars Todd and Julie Chrisley, who were serving years-long prison sentences after being convicted of federal bank fraud and tax evasion charges. Margo Martin, the president’s special assistant and communications adviser, announced the news on Tuesday with a video of Trump on a phone call with Todd and Julie’s children, Savannah and Grayson Chrisley. Todd and Julie were found guilty on federal charges including bank fraud and tax evasion in June 2022. The couple was later sentenced in November of the same year, with Todd receiving 12 years in prison plus 16 months of probation, while Julie Chrisley got seven years behind bars and 16 months of probation. Both are currently serving their sentences. The story.
—"Textbook retaliation." National Public Radio and Colorado public radio stations have brought a lawsuit against the Trump administration for a May 1 executive order seeking to cut off federal funding for the non-profit broadcaster. The May 27 legal action argues Trump’s executive order “violates the expressed will of Congress and the First Amendment’s bedrock guarantees of freedom of speech, freedom of the press, and freedom of association, and also threatens the existence of a public radio system that millions of Americans across the country rely on for vital news and information.” The story. |
Barry Diller and the Twilight of the Hollywood Tell-All ►End of an era. Barry Diller’s colorful, candid new memoir is a book that can’t help but read a bit like a bookend. Not necessarily for himself, or even for his cohort, but for the era of colorful, candid memoirs authored by Hollywood heavyweights. THR's Gary Baum writes that the juicy Who Knew is like a last-of-the-Mohicans memoir for a business no longer defined by the big personalities and singular tastes of its iconoclasts. The story.
—The latest. A former top aide to Sean “Diddy” Combs testified Tuesday that the hip-hop mogul threatened to kill her on her first day on the job and kidnapped her at gunpoint as he sought to kill rapper Kid Cudi. Capricorn Clark’s account of Combs’ volatile, violent tendencies launched the third week of testimony at his sex trafficking trial in federal court in Manhattan. Prosecutors called Clark, the former global brand director for Combs’ Bad Boy Entertainment, as they work to prove he led a racketeering conspiracy spanning two decades that relied on beefy bodyguards, death threats and a code of silence among frightened staff to ensure he got what he wanted. The story.
—"So deeply scared he was gonna die." Nick Kroll is opening up about the drug intervention he orchestrated for his longtime friend and collaborator John Mulaney in 2020. The Big Mouth co-creator and star got candid during a recent appearance on Dax Shepard’s Armchair Expert podcast, where he recalled being “so deeply scared that he [Mulaney] was gonna die” at the time. “It was so scary and brutal to go through,” Kroll said. “He was in New York. I was in L.A. It was the height of the pandemic. So it was incredibly stressful to be in the midst of the pandemic, trying to literally coordinate and produce an intervention, bringing a bunch of different people together, friends from college.” The story. |
'Harry Potter' Series Finds Its Harry, Ron and Hermione ►Welcome to Hogwarts. HBO’s Harry Potter TV series has found its Harry, Ron and Hermione, the trio of Hogwarts freshmen famously played by Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint and Emma Watson in the movie series. This time, newcomers Dominic McLaughlin will play Harry Potter, Arabella Stanton is Hermione Granger and Alastair Stout is the new Ron Weasley. The three child leads are the last of the cast for the series to be announced. The previously announced castmembers include John Lithgow (Albus Dumbledore), Janet McTeer (Minerva McGonagall), Paapa Essiedu (Severus Snape), Nick Frost (Rubeus Hagrid), Luke Thallon (Quirinus Quirell) and Paul Whitehouse (Argus Filch). The story.
—No-brainer. Max has renewed Hacks for a fifth season, which will make the comedy series the longest-running live-action show in the streamer's (admittedly not very long) history. Series creators and showrunnners Paul W. Downs, Lucia Aniello and Jen Statsky announced the renewal Tuesday evening at an Emmy FYC screening in Los Angeles. The pickup for the Emmy-winning comedy from Universal Television comes two days before its fourth season finale. The current season has seen Deborah Vance (Jean Smart) realize her dream of hosting a late-night talk show — though with more strings attached than she would like — with Ava Daniels (Hannah Einbinder) as her head writer. The story.
—As you were. CBS is looking to billionaire media mogul Byron Allen once more to fill in its post-Colbert slot. Starting on Monday, Sept. 22, Comics Unleashed with Byron Allen will once more follow The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, as it did in a limited run in fall 2023. Back then the @midnight spinoff After Midnight hosted by Taylor Tomlinson then took over the 12:37 a.m. hour. Panel show After Midnight aired for two seasons before being canceled. Comics Unleashed will air two back-to-back half hours, carrying CBS to 1:37 a.m. ET/PT. The show will be available to stream live on Paramount+. The story. |
'Lilo & Stitch' and the Power of Zillennial Nostalgia ►Atlantis: The Lost Empire reboot anyone? Nostalgia as entertainment is nothing new. But it has not yet been fully exploited for the Zillennial age demographic, now one of the largest age groups in the U.S. THR's Mia Galuppo looks at how Disney's live-action remake of Lilo & Stitch perfectly hit that Zillennial nostalgia button on its way to boffo box office over the Memorial Day weekend. The analysis.
—Final figures. Disney’s Lilo & Stitch and Tom Cruise’s final Mission: Impossible movie, from Paramount and Skydance, fueled the biggest Memorial Day weekend of all time as attendance skyrocketed across all demos. Lilo & Stitch blew away all expectations with a record-smashing, four-day domestic debut of $192.7m, and a jaw-dropping $361.3m globally, while Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning opened to a series-best $79m domestically and a franchise-high $191m globally, according to weekend actuals. The box office report.
—Repeating the magic. The Kick-Ass team is getting back together, with prolific comic book scribe Mark Millar and artist John Romita Jr. reteaming for the new comic book Psychic Sam. The book has launched on Kickstarter, and centers on a man who knows about murders before they happen, with a voice in his head telling him the name and address of future killers. Millar and Romita Jr. hope to repeat the Kick-Ass success, with producer Ivan Atkinson coming aboard to develop Psychic Sam as a feature. The story. |
Film Review: 'Karate Kid: Legends' ►"New kid, same old formula." THR's Frank Scheck reviews Jonathan Entwistle's Karate Kid: Legends. Jackie Chan, Ralph Macchio, Ben Wang and Joshua Jackson star in the sixth film in the series, that centers on a kung fu prodigy who enters a high-stakes martial arts competition to help a new friend. The review.
—"Sweet rom-com enlivened by a delightful heroine." THR's Lovia Gyarkye reviews Laura Piani's Jane Austen Wrecked My Life. Camille Rutherford plays a French bookseller who gets the opportunity of a lifetime to attend a writing residency named after her favorite author. Also starring Pablo Pauly, Charlie Anson, Annabelle Lengronne, Liz Crowther and Alan Fairbairn. The review.
—"Down but not out in the Big Apple." THR's Jordan Mintzer reviews Lloyd Lee Choi's Cannes Directors' Fortnight selection, Lucky Lu. Forest Whitaker executive produced the first feature by the Korean-Canadian director, a New York-set story about a Chinese migrant struggling to welcome his family. Starring Chang Chen, Fala Chen and Carabelle Manna Wei. The review.
—"A fine mix of biography, pop culture and local history." THR's Sheri Linden reviews Jake Sumner's Ron Delsener Presents. Sumner’s documentary features a who’s who of artists reminiscing about the New York concert scene of the ’60s, ’70s and beyond. Starring Patti Smith, Lenny Kaye, Bette Midler, Paul Stanley, Gene Simmons, Paul Simon, Art Garfunkel, Bruce Springsteen, Steven Van Zandt, Billy Joel, Jon Bon Jovi and Verdine White. The review.
In other news...
—Hoda Kotb launches Joy 101 wellness platform and community
—Banff: Taye Diggs, Jennifer Whalen to lead New Spanish live script read
—AMC Networks promotes PR executive Olivia Dupuis
—Co Hoedeman, Oscar-winning Canadian animator, dies at 84
—Marilyn Howard Ellman, daughter of The Three Stooges’ Curly Howard, dies at 86
—James McEachin, star of Tenafly and Perry Mason telefilms, dies at 94
—Taina Elg, actress in Les Girls and The 39 Steps, dies at 95
—Presley Chweneyagae, star of South African Oscar-winner Tsotsi, dies at 40
What else we're reading...
—With sales continuing to plummet in Europe, Andrew J. Hawkins reports that Tesla's brand crisis is worsening [Verge]
—Sam Adams writes that Nathan Fielder's The Rehearsal, "TV's most unpredictable show," just outdid itself with its jaw-dropping finale [Slate]
—With the Michael Jackson biopic seemingly riddled with production problems, Jesse Hassenger wonders if the film is cursed [Guardian]
—Esther Zuckerman talks to Rolf Saxon about his return to the Mission: Impossible franchise after 30 years [NYT]
—Kieran Press-Reynolds profiles comedian Adam Friedland who is about to launch the second season of his cult YouTube talk show [GQ]
Today...
...in 1970, Paramount unveiled the Jack Lemmon and Sandy Dennis comedy The Out-of-Towners in theaters. The original review.
Today's birthdays: Carey Mulligan (40), Jake Johnson (47), Kylie Minogue (57), John Wells (69), Romain Duris (51), Chiara Mastroianni (53), Lukas Gage (30), Emily O'Brien (40), Christa Miller (61), Laura Bailey (44), Alexa Davalos (43), Jessica Rothe (38), Megalyn Echikunwoke (42), Jesse Bradford (46), Liam O'Brien (49), Kate Ashfield (53), Justin Kirk (56), Monica Keena (46), Fabrizio Guido (26), Raza Jaffrey (50), Leah Ayres (68), Jason Kravits (58), Joseph Cross (39), Rafi Gavron (36), Nazmiye Oral (56), Ashley Laurence (59), Michael Barrett (55), Krista Kosonen (42), Julie T. Wallace (64) | | Rick Derringer, the classic rock guitarist-songwriter best known for performing the garage rock hit “Hang on Sloopy” and for writing “Rock and Roll, Hoochie Coo,” has died. He was 77. The obituary. |
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