What's news: AI "actor" Tilly Norwood will never be eligible for a BAFTA. Godzilla vs. Kong franchise star Kaylee Hottle has died at 18. The Daily Show is getting into microdramas. Amazon has finally greenlit its Robocop TV series. And Sony and Alamo Drafthouse are in talks to save Cinerama Dome and Arclight Hollywood. — Abid Rahman
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'Ted Lasso' Was Finished. Then Jason Sudeikis Had An Epiphany |
►On the cover. When Ted Lasso returns for its long-awaited, once inconceivable fourth season on Aug. 5, it will feature AFC Richmond’s all-female team rather than the male one at the center of the past three seasons — though fan favorites like Ted (Jason Sudeikis), Rebecca (Hannah Waddingham), Keeley (Juno Temple) and Roy (Brett Goldstein) will all be back. But after more than three years without any new episodes, it’s impossible to predict how much of the series’ once-massive fan base will return with it. As Apple TV’s game-changing hit and 13-time Emmy-winner takes the pitch once more, THR's Lacey Rose goes deep with the cast and creators on the off-field drama — and on-brand hope — that made it possible. The cover story.
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Disney Cutting Hundreds More Jobs |
►Pixar hit hard. Disney is cutting hundreds of jobs across the company as it continues a corporate streamlining that began in earnest earlier this year. Some corporate functions, ESPN, Disney Entertainment Television and film studios are expected to be impacted, with Pixar said to be the film studio seeing the most cuts, and Nat Geo most heavily impacted at DET. The cuts also include some notable on-air talent at ESPN, including longtime SportsCenter anchor and Baseball Tonight host Karl Ravech, who has been with the channel since 1993, and former NFL star Ryan Clark. The story.
—"SAG-AFTRA singers, voiceover artists and loop groups, I want you to know that I see you and the union sees you." When California Gov. Gavin Newsom unveiled his final state budget on June 29, he did not include funding for the postproduction tax credit bill that certain segments of Hollywood are attempting to push through. THR's Katie Kilkenny reports that SAG-AFTRA chief Sean Astin is pushing Newsom to fund the incentive and is getting involved in advocating for California’s AB 2319 at an “all-hands-on-deck moment for our industry.” The story.
—Saviors? Sony and Alamo Drafthouse, the upmarket cinema chain the studio acquired in 2024, are in talks with the ownership of L.A. iconic Cinerama Dome theatre and adjacent ArcLight Hollywood multiplex about reopening the shuttered venues. The movie houses closed at the onset of the pandemic in 2020. Their operator, Pacific Theatres, later filed for bankruptcy. The properties are still owned by the family of Pacific’s founder, William R. Forman, who built the Dome in 1963. It is now a Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument. The story.
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Kaylee Hottle, 'Godzilla vs. Kong' Actress, Dies at 18
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►Tragedy. Kaylee Hottle, the deaf actress who played the character of Jia in two Godzilla vs. Kong franchise movies, has died. She was 18. Hottle died in a car crash on Tuesday morning in Maryland, as confirmed by her father, Joshua Hottle. Coming from an all-deaf family, her dad also used American Sign Language via a post on Facebook to convey his grief alongside the caption, “I am taking a flight that I never would like to take.” The Frederick County Sheriff’s Office in Maryland confired fire and rescue services responded to a fatal single-vehicle collision involving a 1995 Honda Accord in the town of Ijamsville, near Baltimore. The obituary.
—"Devastated to hear this news." The Godzilla vs. Kong family is paying tribute to late franchise star Kaylee Hottle. Franchise stars Rebecca Hall, Dan Stevens and Millie Bobby Brown all shared their shock about Hottle's death. "She was a cherished member of our film family, and her kindness, warmth, and remarkable talent touched everyone fortunate enough to work alongside her," Legendary Pictures, the production company behind the Godzilla movies, said in a statement. The reaction.
—Cleared. A Sydney court has cleared Rebel Wilson of defamation claims made by Australian actress Charlotte MacInnes, who was the lead in Wilson’s 2024 film The Deb. MacInnes had sued Wilson for Instagram posts the Pitch Perfect star had made on her own account in 2024 and 2025 that saw Wilson accuse MacInnes of retracting her complaint of sexual harassment against a film producer so she could further her career. The story.
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World Cup Final Scores 63M Viewers! |
►WOOOOOOF! The biggest World Cup ever in the U.S. was fittingly capped by the most watched final match — and most watched match, period. Spain’s 1-0 victory over Argentina delivered a combined total of nearly 62.8m viewers on Fox, Telemundo and Peacock. That is well beyond every other record set in earlier stages of the tournament and more than doubles the 25.78m who watched the 2022 final between Argentina and Spain (16.78m on Fox, 9m on Telemundo and Peacock). The ratings.
—"I’m feeling unused and inconsequential." Ed Harris says he wanted to escape Taylor Sheridan‘s Dutton Ranch. The 75-year-old actor is speaking out about his time on the Paramount+ hit, where he is billed as one of the show’s main characters. In the Yellowstone spinoff, he plays Everett McKinney, ally to Beth Dutton and Rip Wheeler, played by Yellowstone alum and Dutton Ranch stars/EPs Kelly Reilly and Cole Hauser, respectively. He now says that he felt “misled” about the extent of his first season role. The story.
—Portrait mode. The Daily Show has long satirized television news, but now, it’s spoofing the microdrama format as well. THR's Katie Kilkenny has the scoop that The Comedy Central brand will soon debut a microdrama series titled The Daily Show Presents: Two Billionaires Fight to Dominate the Country… And My Heart! The story is set to satirize both the state of U.S. politics as well as the verticals format, which typically uses soap opera-esque plotlines, romance and wild twists to keep viewers hooked. The story.
—Cummings and goings. A joke about Donald Trump was cut from this year’s Mark Twain Prize ceremony, which began streaming on Netflix on Tuesday. But Netflix says you shouldn’t blame it for leaving it on the cutting room floor. After Whitney Cummings made a quip about the president during the taping for this year’s Twain Prize, which honored Bill Maher, its absence from the final product on Netflix raised eyebrows. A Netflix spokesperson says that it was not responsible for the joke being cut: “While it’s our preference not to cut jokes from anyone’s set, The Kennedy Center has the contractual right to do so." The story.
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'Robocop' Series Officially a Go at Amazon |
►🟢 Chrome and punishment. 🟢 Amazon MGM Studios has finally greenlit its Robocop TV series for Prime Video from Blumhouse Atomic Monster. The new Robocop will be an eight-episode series from showrunner Peter Ocko and executive producers James Wan, Michael Clear and Rob Hackett. The project was first announced in development three years ago. The original 1987 RoboCop film from director Paul Verhoeven told the story of a crime-ridden Detroit where a fatally injured police officer is rebuilt into a mechanical superhero. The film was acclaimed for its satirical take on corporate America. The story.
—📅 Breaking bad. 📅 Untold, the Netflix sports-documentary series from brothers Chapman and Maclain Way, returns with three more standalone installments starting Aug. 25. The new volume kicks off with Untold: The Testimony of Vince Young, directed by John Henion. The following week, we finally get the inside story of 2024 Paris Olympics breakdancer Raygun, who took the world by storm for all the wrong reasons. Untold Mr. T: I Pity the Fool, directed by Scott Weintrob, wraps up the brief season on Sept. 8. The story.
—Upped. Bravo is welcoming back The Real Housewives of New York City, and one familiar face from the franchise’s past has been upped to full-time status. After previously being announced as a “friend of” the upcoming season 16 cast, Carole Radziwill is making her return as a full-time Housewife. Radziwill joined the Real Housewives franchise in season five of RHONY, where she remained through season 10. The story.
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How 'The Odyssey' Conquered the Box Office
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►"We had high expectations for the movie and high expectations for our performance, and it exceeded both." Christopher Nolan's box office journey with The Odyssey has gotten off to an epic start. THR siren Ryan Gajewski digs into how the starry project gave the acclaimed filmmaker his best-ever global launch, thanks to IMAX demand, trust for Nolan and Gen Z appeal: "There are tons of content creators breaking down his storytelling." The analysis.
—Dorks unbowed and unhinged. Refusing to accept the humongous L, Elon Musk is continuing his campaign against The Odyssey. The X owner and trillionaire oligarch has vowed that his AI platform Grok will make “a full-length movie of The Odyssey that is historically accurate and true to the art of Homer” before the end of the year. His X post on Wednesday was accompanied by a three-minute AI-generated short that a follower had made using Grok Imagine. The story.
—Do it for real! Audiences in 2026 are sending a clear message to filmmakers: We want movies to look real — and for you to sweat while making them. THR's James Hibberd writes that the most exciting box office hits so far this year — The Odyssey, Project Hail Mary, Backrooms and Obsession — have been projects that emphasized analog filmmaking and had directors going the extra mile to create original cinematic worlds that felt grounded and tactile. Meanwhile, several disappointing franchise films — projects with the wind at their backs thanks to built-in audiences — were criticized for looking overtly artificial. The story.
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Could Tilly Norwood Ever Be Eligible for a BAFTA?
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►No. AI “actor” Tilly Norwood will never be eligible for a BAFTA Film Award, the British Academy has confirmed, amid updates to its rulebook and voting processes. BAFTA is now reserving the right to ask for more information regarding the use of AI and “the extent of human creative involvement” in work submitted for Film Awards consideration. Following “industry consultation,” BAFTA has clarified its approach to AI and on Wednesday said its Awards are “presented annually to recognise, honour and reward individuals for outstanding human achievement in originating, shaping and realising the final artistic outcome, regardless of the tools used to bring this work to life.” The story.
—📅 Dated! 📅 Universal's Snoop Dogg biopic is set for theatrical release on Aug. 6, 2027. Jonathan Daviss, known for his role on the Netflix series Outer Banks, is set to star in the movie that will depict Calvin Broadus Jr.’s eventful path to fame as hip-hop icon Snoop Dogg. Song Sung Blue's Craig Brewer helms Snoop and revised the script that had an initial draft from Joe Robert Cole. This will be the first project through Death Row Pictures’ overall deal with NBCUniversal Entertainment & Studios. The story.
—Forza donne! Venice Days, the independent sidebar of the Venice International Film Festival, has unveiled the lineup for its 23rd edition, the first since the death in March of section founder and longtime head Giorgio Gosetti. This year’s Venice Days, running Sept. 2-12 alongside the 83rd Venice Festival, is dedicated to his memory. The sidebar, and its accompanying Italian cinema section Venice Nights, includes 25 world premieres, more than half of which (14) are directed by women. The lineup.
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►"Too bad it’s not Barb and Star Play Pickleball." THR's chief film critic David Rooney reviews Josh Greenbaum's The Dink. Jake Johnson’s failed tennis prodigy looks for redemption with pickleball in this Apple TV underdog sports comedy from the Barb and Star Go to Vista del Mar and Will & Harper filmmaker. Also starring Mary Steenburgen, Ed Harris, Chloe Fineman, Aaron Chen, Patton Oswalt, Cleo King, Lynne Marie Stewart, Andy Roddick, John McEnroe and Ben Stiller. Written by Sean Clements. The story.
—"Swims in circles." THR's Leslie Felperin reviews Rebekah Fortune's Learning to Breathe Under Water. Rory Kinnear leads this dramedy about a bereaved father and son that premiered at the Karlovy Vary Film Festival. Also starring Maria Bakalova, Ezra Carlisle, Niamh McCann, Margaret McAuliffe and Vanessa Ifediora. Written by Richard Brabin. The review.
In other news...
—Other Mommy trailer: Jessica Chastain returns to horror as a body-twisting doppelganger
—La La Land 10th anniversary poster finally corrects Ryan Gosling’s flat hand
—Prada taps Barry Jenkins to direct campaign
—Karen Laureano-Rikardsen joins Sphere as global head of corporate marketing and comms
—Love Island USA winner Trinity Tatum signs with WME
—Ron Perlman signs with Independent Artist Group
—Richard M. Rawlings Jr., cinematographer who split a season of Charlie’s Angels with his dad, dies at 82
What else we're reading...
—A French model recruiter who introduced young women to Jeffrey Epstein has been found dead in his Paris home [CNN]
—Nicole Nguyen and Natalie Kaufman consider what the upcoming folding iPhone will look like [WSJ]
—Tim Baysinger looks at why the MLS risks missing out on post-World Cup soccer-mania [Page Six]
—Angelina Chapin talks to the Gen Z women who are paying for, and parenting, their boyfriends [The Cut]
—Laura Cress reports that OpenAI says its AI went rogue and launched an "unprecedented" cyber-attack [BBC]
Today...
...in 2011, Paramount and Marvel Studios released Joe Johnston's Captain America: The First Avenger in theaters. The Captain America origin story was the fifth film in the MCU and scored $370.6m at the box office. The original review.
Today's birthdays...
Selena Gomez (34), Willem Dafoe (71), John Leguizamo (66), Danny Glover (80), Albert Brooks (79), Rhys Ifans (🏴59), Paul Schrader (80), Skyler Gisondo (30), Franka Potente (52), A.J. Cook (48), Josh Lawson (45), David Spade (62), Colin Ferguson (54), Jamie McShane (60), Blake Harrison (41), Madison Pettis (28), Patrick Labyorteaux (61), Joanna Going (63), Clive Standen (45), Alisha Newton (25), Adam Godley (62), James Arnold Taylor (57), Irene Bedard (59), Katherine Cunningham (40), Camila Banus (36), Rob Estes (63), Johnny Strong (52), Javon Walton (20), Jaz Sinclair (32), Sharni Vinson (43), Keegan Allen (37), Rosie Dwyer (30), Rena Owen (64), Sarah Lind (44), Jaime Camil (53), Jonathan Zaccaï (56), Diana Maria Riva (57), Ricky Russert (43), Parisa Fitz-Henley (49)
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Dixon Q. Dern, the influential entertainment lawyer who represented Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz and helped structure the business affairs of their landmark Desilu production company, has died. He was 97. The obituary.
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