| | | | | | What's news: The Late Show is set to end on May 21. Spotify paid out $11b in royalties in 2025. Rhodri Talfan Davies has been named interim director-general of the BBC. Apple has renewed Shrinking for a fourth season. And Ted Lasso will return this summer. — Abid Rahman
Do you have THR's next big story? Confidentially share tips with us at tips@thr.com. |
Bari Weiss Unveils Sweeping Vision for CBS News ►"We are going to put huge emphasis on scoops. Not scoops that expire minutes later. But investigative scoops. And, crucially, scoops of ideas. Scoops of explanation." CBS News will undergo a radical transformation in the coming months, with editor-in-chief Bari Weiss outlining her vision at an all-hands meeting Tuesday morning. The embattled Weiss delivered a PowerPoint presentation that outlined her view on the state of media and how CBS can remain relevant in a challenging time for broadcast news. She also noted the barrage of interest and press in her arrival. Weiss unveiled a slate of contributors, including podcasters and writers like Niall Ferguson, Andrew Huberman, Caroline Chambers and Casey Lewis. She also unveiled plans to bring on digital-first journalists who are veterans of social platforms like TikTok and YouTube. The story.
—"That’s the real shift and extraordinary progress that these numbers represent." Spotify paid out $11b in royalties to the music industry in 2025, the streaming platform said on Wednesday, $1b more than Spotify reported to have paid out a year prior. The $11b payout brings Spotify’s all-time payments to the music industry to $70b, according to a post from Spotify’s head of music, Charlie Hellman, who added that half of last year’s $11b once again went to independent artists and labels, reflecting the indie music industry’s continued growth in the streaming era. Hellman called last year’s payout “the largest annual payment to music from any retailer in history." The story.
—Betting big on YouTube. Former Paramount co-CEO Brian Robbins has launched a new entertainment company, Big Shot Pictures, which will leverage the reach and scale of YouTube to develop new animated franchises, with the goal of bringing them to theaters and other streaming platforms as they take off. The company has acquired the rights to the children’s book series Eloise at the Plaza, created by Kay Thompson and illustrated by Hilary Knight, with Big Shot planning to expand the franchise into other media. Big Shot has also inked a first-look theatrical deal with Sony Pictures Entertainment, and the entertainment company is also investing in Big Shot, alongside Greycroft, MarcyPen Capital Partners, ValueAct Capital, and CAA. The story.
—Llongyfarchiadau! After an explosive memo knocked down the BBC's top brass, the British public broadcaster confirmed director-general Tim Davie would stand down. On Wednesday, the BBC board said that Cardiff-born Rhodri Talfan Davies, currently the BBC’s director of nations, will become interim director-general until the position is filled permanently. The story.
—Another cancelation. Celebrated composer Philip Glass is removing the premiere of his new symphony from the Kennedy Center lineup. In a Tuesday post on Instagram, Glass said the message of the symphony, entitled “Lincoln,” is in “direct conflict” with the values of the embattled Kennedy Center. The new work was scheduled to premiere June 12 and June 13 at the arts center, which the board has now renamed the Trump Kennedy Center, in a move that was met with outrage by Kennedy family members and the arts community. The story. |
Russo Bros.' Production Company Cuts 15 Percent of Staff ►Not great. Joe and Anthony Russo’s production banner AGBO underwent a notable round of layoffs as the company looks to realign its budget to focus on its core film, TV and gaming ambitions. The Los Angeles-based company cut 15 percent of its workforce of about 130 employees. Staff was informed of the move last week, which was characterized as a realignment of resources. The pink slips are understood to be across the board at AGBO rather than in specific units. The story.
—🤝 Sold! 🤝 Range Sports has acquired Superfly, the marketing and event company behind Bonaroo and more. As part of the acquisition, Superfly will drive experiential opportunities across sports, entertainment, music and more as Range launches a new live experiences division. Superfly founders Rick Farman, Rich Goodstone and Kerry Black, as well as the company’s leadership team and staff, will move with the company. The acquisition does not include Superfly’s ownership interest in the music festival Outside Lands. The story.
—🤝 Wait, what?! 🤝 Khaby Lame, the most-followed TikTok creator, has sold a stake in his company, Step Distinctive Limited, in an all-stock deal valued at $975m. Rich Sparkle Holdings, a Hong-Kong based financial firm that is listed on the Nasdaq, has acquired a stake in his company, which will allow the company to have 36 months of exclusive global rights to Lame’s brand. During that time period, the company plans to capitalize on his fanbase of 160m followers on TikTok, including the rights over his TikTok shop, live stream and short-video commerce planning and programming, brand endorsements and more. The story.
—🤝 Stake deal. 🤝 The Chernin Group has taken a minority stake in former soccer star-turned-broadcaster Gary Lineker's podcast firm Goalhanger, the producer of popular podcasts like The Rest Is History and The Rest Is Football. Financial terms of the strategic partnership were not disclosed, but Peter Chernin’s media and sports banner will get a seat on the Goalhanger board of directors and help broaden the U.K. company’s podcast reach into the U.S. market. The story.
—Ominous. Pinterest is planning to lay off less than 15 percent of its workforce as it moves to “AI-focused roles.” In a filing Tuesday, the digital pinboard company said it was planning this reduction in staff as it is “reallocating resources to AI-focused roles and teams that drive AI adoption and execution,” as well as “prioritizing AI‑powered products and capabilities.” There will also be office space reductions, with the total restructuring charges amounting to about $35m to $45m. The story. |
NBC Hires Caitlin Clark for Its NBA Coverage ►Big get. NBC Sports is adding arguably the biggest star in the WNBA to its roster. The network said that Indiana Fever point guard Caitlin Clark will join its coverage of the NBA this season as a special contributor. Clark will make her on-air NBC debut on the network’s pregame show Basketball Night in America live at Madison Square Garden in New York City on Feb. 1 at 6 p.m. ET ahead of the debut of Sunday Night Basketball, which will see the Los Angeles Lakers take on the New York Knicks, and will return for another game in March. The story.
—Curry picks up another win in Utah. NBA superstar Steph Curry is now a Sundance Film Festival award winner. The Baddest Speech Writer of All — a short film co-directed and produced by Curry and directed by two-time Oscar winner Ben Proudfoot — picked up the grand jury prize Tuesday night during the festival’s short film awards ceremony and party in Park City. The victory is not Curry’s first Sundance showing. In 2023, he attended the festival in support of the Peter Nicks-directed documentary about him, Underrated from Apple TV. The winners. |
Daily Wire's 'Pendragon Cycle' Sparks Fantasy Fan Debate ►"Do not pay these losers." Fantasy fans rejoice? There's a new and fairly expensive-looking swords-and-sorcery series now streaming, The Pendragon Cycle: Rise of the Merlin, an adaptation of Stephen R. Lawhead’s bestselling novels which blend historical elements of post-Roman Britain with mythic tales of King Arthur and Merlin. Just one catch, it's from conservative media company The Daily Wire. THR's James Hibberd reports that the association with Ben Shapiro's company has divided fantasy lovers on whether they should watch. The story.
—🤝 Sold! 🤝 Starz continues to look across the Atlantic to help bolster its series roster. The premium outlet’s latest addition is The Listeners, a limited series starring Rebecca Hall. The acquisition comes on the heels of Starz picking up a series adaptation of Amadeus, starring Will Sharpe and Paul Bettany, earlier this month. The Listeners is based on a novel by Jordan Tannahill, who adapted his book for the series. Janicza Bravo directed. The series aired on the BBC in late 2024, where it garnered critical acclaim. The story.
—📅 The end is nigh. 📅 The Late Show With Stephen Colbert is set to end — for good — on May 21, Stephen Colbert revealed during a Monday taping of Late Night With Seth Meyers. After 33 years on CBS airwaves in the 11:30 p.m. time slot, the show started by David Letterman is hanging up its hat. Colbert first announced the news on his own program back in July 2025. The story.
—🤝 Overall deal. 🤝 Liz Tigelaar is taking her Best Day Ever Productions banner to Paramount TV Studios and CBS Studios in the first-ever joint overall deal between the sister studios. An Emmy and WGA-nominated writer, producer and creator, Tigelaar most recently spearheaded the Hulu miniseries Tiny Beautiful Things. Tigelaar also served as executive producer on another recent Hulu entry, Under the Bridge. The story. |
'Ted Lasso' S4 Sets Summer Return ►Edging closer. Jason Sudeikis' Ted Lasso will be back on the sidelines this summer, when Apple TV’s hit comedy Ted Lasso tackles women’s soccer. Hannah Waddingham, Juno Temple, Brett Goldstein, Brendan Hunt and Jeremy Swift are all confirmed to return for season four alongside newcomers Tanya Reynolds, Jude Mack, Faye Marsey, Rex Hayes, Aisling Sharkey, Abbie Hern and Grant Feely. Season four is currently in production. After a long period of speculation about the show’s future following its third season finale in May 2023, Apple officially ordered a fourth season in March. Sudeikis was the only castmember that Apple would confirm at that time. The story.
—Expanding. Apple TV has renewed Shrinking for a fourth season. The renewal comes a day before season three of the comedy is set to premiere. Season three will pick up after events of the second season finale, where Jimmy (Jason Segel) saved the life of Louis (Brett Goldstein), the man who killed Jimmy’s wife in a drunk driving accident. The new season will also follow Paul (Harrison Ford) as he seeks treatment for his Parkinson’s disease, where he meets a character played by Michael J. Fox, who has Parkinson’s and through his foundation has raised millions of dollars to research the condition. The story.
—📅 Dated! 📅 Netflix has released first look photos of Rachel Weisz as a woman with a growing obsession with a colleague ahead of the limited series Vladimir premiering on March 5. The project, based on Julia May Jonas’ novel of the same name, portrays a woman’s growing obsession with a colleague. Weisz sees her character’s life unravel as she becomes obsessed with Vladimir, played by Leo Woodall. Playwright and author Jonas is also a writer, showrunner and executive producer on the series, which was filmed in Toronto. The ensemble cast includes John Slattery, Ellen Robertson, Jessica Henwick, Matt Walsh, Kayli Carter, Miriam Silverman, Mallori Johnson, Tattiawna Jones and Louise Lambert. The story.
—Peaks and troughs. Climber Alex Honnold’s ascent of one of the world’s tallest buildings drew a sizable audience for Netflix, but the live special didn’t reach the pinnacle of the streamer’s weekly viewing charts. Skyscraper Live, which streamed on Jan. 24 — a day later than scheduled due to weather concerns — collected 6.2m views worldwide Saturday and Sunday, according to Netflix’s internal data. That was good for third among English-language shows for the week of Jan. 19-25. The ratings. |
Emmys: TV Academy Merges Scripted Variety and Talk Series Categories ►Back to what works. Following a years-long decline in the number of TV shows submitted for consideration in the best scripted variety series and best talk series Emmys categories, the Television Academy’s board of governors has voted to merge the two categories into one, best variety series, effective immediately, the organization announced Wednesday. This is a return to the way things used to be for the Emmys — indeed, there was a unified variety series category until 2015 — but with a few major differences. The story.
—🏆 Something to write home about. 🏆 The 2026 Writers Guild Awards nominations have been revealed, with awards season stalwarts Sinners, Marty Supreme, One Battle After Another and Hamnet among the nominations in the original and adapted screenplay categories. The original screenplay nominees are Black Bag, If I Had Legs I’d Kick You, Marty Supreme, Sinners and Weapons. The adapted screenplay nominees are Bugonia, Frankenstein, Hamnet, One Battle After Another and Train Dreams. The nominees.
—🏆 Making the cut. 🏆 The American Cinema Editors has revealed its nominees for the 76th annual ACE Eddie Awards, which recognize outstanding editing in 14 categories of film, TV, documentaries, and now, shorts and digital content. Among the nominees in the best edited feature film drama are F1, Hamnet, Sentimental Value, Sinners and Weapons, while the corresponding comedy category features Bugonia, Marty Supreme, One Battle After Another, Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery and Wicked: For Good. For best animated feature film, the nominees are The Bad Guys 2, Kpop Demon Hunters and Zootopia 2. The nominees.
—🏆 Jesus Murphy! 🏆 Justin Bieber and Tate McRae lead the nominations for the 2026 Juno Awards, Canada’s version of the Grammys, which were announced on Tuesday. Bieber, already an eight-time Juno winner, will compete in the best single category for “Daisies,” album of the year for SWAG II, and artist of the year, among other categories. Tate McRae returns to the Junos competition this year with a best single nod for “Sports Car,” album of the year for So Close to What, and an artist of the year nod. The nominees.
—🏆 Félicitations! 🏆 Richard Linklater’s Nouvelle Vague has emerged as the frontrunner for the 2026 César awards, France’s equivalent to the Oscars, picking up 10 nominations. Linklater’s French-language, black-and-white is a deep dive into the making of Jean-Luc Godard’s 1960 classic Breathless. The Académie des César released the official list of contenders on Wednesday. Following closely behind Nouvelle Vague are three French films with 8 nominations each: L’Attachement, Dossier 137, and L’Inconnu de la Grande Arche. All four are nominated in the best film category, joined by Jafar Panahi’s Oscar contender It Was Just an Accident. The nominees. |
A24 Wins Battle for Olivia Wilde's 'The Invite' ►🤝 Sold! 🤝 After a good old-fashioned Sundance bidding war, Olivia Wilde’s latest movie The Invite has landed at A24. The sale is the biggest of the festival so far and seems unlikely to be eclipsed. It comes after at least one all-night bidding session and saw multiple distributors vying for the title, including Neon, A24, Focus and Netflix. Tuesday saw a late-in-the-game push by Warner Bros.’s newly launched indie label, which hoped to make a statement with a splashy buy. In the end, A24 prevailed in a eight-figure deal. The story.
—🤝 Sold! 🤝 Neon is continuing its streak of picking up Sundance’s splashiest horror titles, having acquired this year’s resident Midnight section breakout, Leviticus. Adrian Chiarella directs the Aussie movie that follows Naim (Joe Bird), a quiet teenager in a fanatical religious community who becomes haunted by a supernatural force that takes on the form of the person he wants the most, his schoolmate Ryan (Stacy Clausen). The story.
—🤝 Sold! 🤝 THR wild card Ryan Gajewski has the scoop that Pinnacle Peak Pictures has acquired North American rights to director Jeremy Snead’s film Matter of Time and will release it theatrically on Feb. 27. Sean Astin, Myles Erlick, Ali Astin and Jaimie Alexander round out the cast for the movie that premiered at last year’s Dallas International Film Festival. Matter of Time centers on Charlie Fleck (Erlick), a 29-year-old aspiring video game designer who discovers a device that allows him to stop time, leading him to grapple with that power and its ramifications. The story.
—🤝 Sold! 🤝 The Gotham Group, the management and production company run by founder Ellen Goldsmith-Vein, has picked up the adaptation rights to “Tommy Supreme and the Blitz,” an Air Mail article written by George Pendle. The narrative, published in February 2025, chronicled the extraordinary life of Thomas Goldstein, one of the country’s most successful Supreme Court advocates. But Goldstein courted ruin with a high-stakes gambling problem that continued unabated for years, as well as a lavish lifestyle. The two worlds collided in January 2025 when he was indicted on federal charges of tax evasion. Goldsmith-Vein and longtime producing partner Eric Robinson are developing the story as a feature. The story. |
'Dirty Dancing' Sequel With Jennifer Grey Moving Forward ►Baby won’t be in the corner for much longer. Lionsgate‘s planned Dirty Dancing sequel is moving forward, with the studio announcing Tuesday that producers Nina Jacobson and Brad Simpson will oversee the feature project that is aiming to begin production later this year. Additionally, Kim Rosenstock is writing the script. Jennifer Grey was previously announced to executive produce and reprise her role of Frances “Baby” Houseman that originated in director Emile Ardolino’s 1987 original movie. A director has not been announced, as Jonathan Levine, who was previously attached to helm the sequel, is still set to serve as executive producer but will not direct. The story.
—Filled out. South Korean actor Bae Doona, Polish producer Ewa Puszczyńska, and American director Reinaldo Marcus Green are among the high-profile industry figures named to the international jury for the 2026 Berlin International Film Festival. The group, which also includes Nepali filmmaker Min Bahadur Bham, Japanese director Hikari, and Indian archivist Shivendra Singh Dungarpur, joins jury president Wim Wenders to decide the winners of the Gold and Silver Bears for the 76th Berlinale, which runs Feb. 12-22. The story.
—🎭 Epic. 🎭 Zoey Deutch has nabbed her next leading role. The Gail Daughtry and the Celebrity Sex Pass star will play trailblazing U.S. Women’s soccer executive Marla Messing in The 99’ers, a true-life sports drama that Nicole Kassell, known for her award-winning work on HBO’s Watchmen, is directing for Netflix. According to the streamer, The 99’ers follows the 1990s US Women’s National Soccer Team who, in 1999 defied the odds to emerge victorious in a dramatic penalty kick shootout against China in the Women's World Cup final. The story.
—📅 Fight night. 📅 Amazon MGM Studios' I Play Rocky will enter the ring just in time for the 50th Anniversary of Sylvester Stallone‘s iconic boxing film. Directed by Peter Farrelly, the high-profile movie about the making of Rocky will open nationwide in theaters Nov. 20 following a limited release on Nov. 13. The original Rocky was released Nov. 21, 1976. Anthony Ippolito stars as a young Sylvester Stallone in the drama, which tells the true Hollywood story about an unknown actor with an unshakable belief that he wasn’t just meant to write Rocky — he was meant to be Rocky Balboa. The story.
—📅 Dated, finally! 📅 Black Bear will release Guy Ritchie’s In The Grey in theaters on April 10, 2026 after the action film was quietly dropped from the Lionsgate calendar. Black Bear picked up the film’s distribution rights from Lionsgate, which had earlier scheduled a Jan. 17, 2025 rollout, before the movie was pulled. After Black Bear launched its own U.S. distribution operation, the indie studio and distributor stepped in to release In The Grey. As part of a collaboration with Black Bear, Lionsgate will continue to handle the film’s digital and pay-TV distribution. The story. |
Film Review: 'The Only Living Pickpocket in New York' ►"Contemplative, cool-headed and transfixing." THR's chief film critic David Rooney reviews Noah Segan's The Only Living Pickpocket in New York. John Turturro plays a small-time hustler facing obsolescence in this crime thriller that premiered at the Sundance Film Festival. Also starring Giancarlo Esposito, Will Price, Tatiana Maslany, Steve Buscemi, Lori Tan Chinn, Kelvin Han Yee, Karina Arroyave, John Gallagher Jr., Victoria Moroles, Jack Mulhern, Michael Hsu Rosen, Aida Turturro and Mark Cayne. Written by Noah Segan. The review.
—"Not if I see you first." David reviews Jay Duplass' See You When I See You. This Sundance-bowing tragicomic ensemble drama is based on stand-up comic Adam Cayton-Holland’s memoir about the loss of his sister. Starring Cooper Raiff, Hope Davis, Lucy Boynton, Ariela Barer, Kumail Nanjiani, Poorna Jagannathan, David Duchovny and Kaitlyn Dever. Written by Adam Cayton-Holland, based on his book, Tragedy Plus Time: A Tragi-Comic Memoir. The review.
—"An unfussy recounting of a surreal event." For THR, Richard Lawson reviews Alexandria Stapleton's The Brittney Griner Story. Bowing at Sundance, ESPN’s latest 30 for 30 installment focuses on WNBA star Brittney Griner's detention after being arrested and charged with drug possession and smuggling in Moscow. The review.
—"The whole human experience, in one sleek little package." Richard reviews Andrew Stanton's In the Blink of an Eye. Pixar fixture Stanton’s gleaming look at humanity's past, present and future adapts a Black List screenplay by Colby Day. Starring Rashida Jones, Daveed Diggs and Kate McKinnon. The review. |
TV Review: 'Memory of a Killer' ►"Too risible to be believable, not risible enough to be enjoyable." THR's chief TV critic Daniel Fienberg reviews Fox's Memory of a Killer. Based on a Belgian novel and film, the thriller series focuses on a killer-for-hire who may be suffering from Alzheimer's. Starring Patrick Dempsey, Michael Imperioli, Richard Harmon, Odeya Rush, Daniel David Stewart and Peter Gadiot. Created by Ed Whitmore and Tracey Malone. The review.
In other news...
—Keke Palmer, Demi Moore get caught up in shoplifting ring in I Love Boosters trailer
—Daredevil: Born Again S2 trailer: Krysten Ritter returns as Jessica Jones
—Berlin Film Festival unveils sidebar juries
—Dublin Film Festival unveils lineup
—YouTube Canada names Nicole Bell as new head
—A+E Studios names Chris Sanagustin head of current programming
What else we're reading...
—Michael Williams interviews "pink coat lady," the woman whose video of Alex Pretti’s murder contradicted the Trump administration’s claims [CNN]
—John Herrman reports that the self-censorship that accompanied Big Tech’s MAGA pivot seems to be ending [Intelligencer]
—Catherine Shoard reports that the Melania doc is really struggling in the U.K., with only one ticket sold for the premiere of the film at Vue’s flagship London branch [Guardian]
—Beth Alaw Williams interviews Swansea-born legend Bonnie Tyler, who reveals she "makes nothing" from 1b stream hit "Total Eclipse of the Heart" [BBC]
—Ezra Marcus spent a few months investigating the peptides industry and his findings are rather alarming [Intelligencer]
Today...
...in 1994, Universal brought Reality Bites to the Sundance Film Festival as a portrait of contemporary angst told in romantic comedy form. Backed by Danny DeVito and Michael Shamberg, the Ben Stiller-directed Gen X dramedy went on to gross $20m in theaters. The original review.
Today's birthdays: Elijah Wood (45), Will Poulter (33), Frank Darabont (67), Alan Alda (90), Angel Manuel Soto (43), Maluma (32), Joey Fatone (49), Tom Hopper (41), Ariel Winter (28), Matilda Lutz (34), Lee Ingleby (50), Kathryn Morris (57), Whitney Peak (23), Lynda Boyd (61), Tarik Saleh (54), Ty Olsson (52), Harley Jane Kozak (69), Gillian Vigman (54), Calum Worthy (35), Alexandra Krosney (38), Ema Horvath (32), Angelique Cabral (47), Yuriy Sardarov (38), Susan Howard (84), Sam Phillips (64), Henry Mortensen (38), Peter Youngblood Hills (48), Melody Perkins (52), Peter McDonald (54), Adam Bartley (47) |
| | | |
