| | | | | | Freedom of the press, once an abstract idea, is being tested over Jimmy Kimmel's abrupt suspension. For The Weekender, here's a wide lens view of what matters (and what's interesting) from THR's team of reporters now. — Erik Hayden
+ Ticker: Taylor Swift's new movie; Shari Redstone's next act; Willow Bay's awkward free speech fundraiser; A.G. Sulzberger's round one win.
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BATTLE OVER KIMMEL First, Stephen Colbert. Now, Jimmy Kimmel. While Donald Trump has always framed himself as at war with the media — it can be an easy foil — it feels different this time as big voices blink off the air. Boycott calls, from the left, are now being prepped to pressure Disney chief Bob Iger even as the FCC, led by Brendan Carr, and some station owners pressure from the right.
+ Inside Disney's decision: Disney’s Iger and Dana Walden wanted to know how Kimmel was going to address the situation. Sources say he planned to defend what he said rather than "kowtowing” to the outrage. Disney thought that would fan the flames.
+ Station pressure mounted. Nexstar CEO Perry Sook and broadcasting division president Andrew Alford decided to inform Disney executives their company would be preempting Jimmy Kimmel Live! on the 30 or so ABC stations it owned, everywhere from Nashville to Salt Lake City to Hartford to New Orleans. Competitor Sinclair followed, and Disney soon had little choice but to cancel Wednesday’s show and put Kimmel on indefinite leave.
+ What's being done is illegal. "By dangling carrots of selective regulatory enforcement and favorable regulation, Trump's effectively been able to strongarm networks, which disguise the could-be censorship as private business decisions," Winston Cho writes. THR, Esq's view.
+ Will boycott calls matter? The unions and other late-night hosts condemned the move — the same voices that weighed in on Colbert — and there are efforts to have talent not work with ABC until the suspension is lifted. You have to wonder how Iger will make his next move when even his Disney CEO predecessor, Michael Eisner, is pointedly asking, "where has all the leadership gone?"
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The Way He Was “I was always about breaking the rules,” Robert Redford once said. In the latest THR cover story this week, Stephen Galloway offers an authoritative read on the legend of the Hollywood icon. "He was talking about his childhood, growing up in the 1940s and ’50s in a heavily immigrant part of Santa Monica, where his dad worked 'brutal hours' as a milkman, but he might as well have been describing his career. As an impatient teen, 'I was just getting more anxious about wanting out ... and it made me anxious. I wanted to be free. '"
+ In their own words: Euzhan Palcy on how Redford changed her life; Peter Biskind on the star's legacy; Richard Linklater on his indie film impact.
"Redford's greatest gift may have been his most subtle: he made helping people seem cool." -> Steven Zeitchik's column.
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After KirkAs Turning Point USA mourns Charlie Kirk, influencers like Riley Gaines, Xaviaer DuRousseau, Alex Clark and Allie Beth Stuckey could rise to lead a form of socially conservative activism even more ardent than their mentor. The report.
+ "How Legacy Media Fumbled the Charlie Kirk Shooting," by Taylor Lorenz.
++ "Pandora has opened her box and its ills are fully integrated into our world. They should probably be in some of our movies then, too," by Richard Lawson.
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Poll: Who America TrustsIn 2025, there’s a clear “Trump won” impact on who America sees as trustworthy to deliver the news: Nearly all Fox News anchors saw increases in respondents who placed “a lot” or “some” trust in them in a new THR/Morning Consult poll, compared to last year's survey.
On the flip side, centrist names like ABC's David Muir, who hosts the highest-rated evening news show, saw trust levels decline. Ditto for CNN’s Anderson Cooper, MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow, CBS’ Gayle King and left-leaning late night hosts like Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert.
Also: 48 percent of respondents in the new THR poll described Jimmy Kimmel as having a “very liberal” or “somewhat liberal” lean, which was higher than all of his other late-night contemporaries. Full report + charts.
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Yes, They Did Say That "We’ll never put words in his mouth that aren’t in line with things he spoke about." — Bob Sabouni, a former Marvel exec prepping an AI Stan Lee hologram to bow at L.A. Comic Con. "I think she would be a good voice, so I’m hopeful." — Shari Redstone, on Bari Weiss' expected leadership role at a revamped CBS News. "It should not cost an arm and a leg to take the family to a baseball game or attend your favorite musician’s show." — FTC chairman Andrew N. Ferguson, on his agency's lawsuit against Live Nation and Ticketmaster. "I’ve found myself increasingly distant from what originally drew me to this industry." — from Vernon Sanders' exit memo upon leaving his post as head of TV for Amazon MGM Studios. "We didn’t get it done in time." — a rare Trey Parker and Matt Stone explanation on skipping a week of South Park during this highly polarized media moment. |
Testing "Netflix of AI"The leaders of AI startup Showrunner see a future in which audiences can insert themselves into their favorite shows and create new episodes. "AI is not just a tool in the toolbox; it's a competitor," chief executive Edward Saatchi says. But does it threaten actual pros? THR had Mike Schiff, showrunner, The Neighborhood, Jeff Dixon and Jim Cooper, showrunners, Curses!, and Marc Guggenheim, showrunner, Arrow, test out the tech.
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The Art of Sticking a LandingJenny Han, the novelist turned power producer of The Summer I Turned Pretty, discusses rewriting the conclusion of her own adaptation, what's next and why this is really the end (of the TV show, that is): "I can’t sleep the night before an episode drops." The interview.
+ Weekend longread pick: "Failure Is Not an Option": An Oral History of Apollo 13. |
When Elon Met YeIt’s one of the stranger bonding moments captured on camera this year: Elon Musk and Kanye “Ye” West — two men not exactly celebrated for their emotional sensitivity — are seen lying shoulder-to-shoulder on a giant floor cushion, talking about their love lives like teenagers at a slumber party. This bizarre little moment plays out in a new West documentary that’s equal parts concert film, therapy session and billionaire fever dream. Rambling Reporter. |
Making Tarantino's Hollywood In an excerpt from Jay Glennie's new book The Making of Quentin Tarantino's Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood, the film’s director and stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt and Margot Robbie explain how they took L.A. back to the summer of ’69.
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Power RankingsMemo to TV and film executives: Cast Lisa Manobal in everything. Luxury brands will thank you. The woman known primarily as Blackpink's Lisa from the moment the South Korean girl group debuted in 2016 has topped the charts in the Red Carpet Power Rankings for the 2025 Emmys, capturing millions in earned engagement not only for herself, but for Lever Couture. Full story.
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Around TownEvents this week: Frank Grillo and Sylvester Stallone debuted the third season of Paramount+ series Tulsa King in NYC ... Mariska Hargitay and Lucy Liu attended a Tribeca luncheon on Tuesday at Locanda Verde in the city ... Sterlin Harjo and Ethan Hawke brought their FX series The Lowdown to NYC ... Jordan Peele and Marlon Wayans shared a laugh at the L.A. premiere of Universal Pictures’ Him ... Donald Glover stopped by Complex’s Family Style food festival at L.A. State Historic Park ... Robert Downey Jr. and Shane Black sat down for a conversation at a L.A. screening of Play Dirty. All 65 photos from the gallery.
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The Bottom LineSnapshots from THR's team of critics: Paul Thomas Anderson's One Battle After Another is "a furious American epic, with style." ... Justin Tipping's Him, starring Marlon Wayans, is "Not the GOAT." ... Colin Farrell and Margot Robbie starrer A Big Bold Beautiful Journey is "a magical mystery tour, with greeting-card sentiment." ... Ben Wheatley's Bob Odenkirk crime caper Normal is a "bone-crunching good time." ... Jude Law and Jason Bateman's Netflix antihero drama Black Rabbit is more like "bleak Rabbit" ... Dan Harmon's animated Haunted Hotel is "thoroughly unobjectionable and mostly unmemorable."
We'll sign off with this week's cover ... 1936-2025. |
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