| | | | | | What's news: The Disney+, Hulu and Max bundle launches today. Jennifer Aniston slammed J.D. Vance for his comments about childless women. Lady Gaga is set to perform at the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics. Inside Out 2 is officially the top-grossing animated film of all time. William Jackson Harper has joined the cast of The Morning Show. Judd Apatow and Michael Bonfiglio will direct a doc about Mel Brooks. — Abid Rahman
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Biden Says It's Time to "Pass the Torch to a New Generation" ►"The best way to unite our nation." President Joe Biden delivered a forthright address to the nation on Wednesday night, where he explained that it’s time to pass the torch to a new generation following his announcement on Sunday that he is suspending his campaign for a second term and endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris to lead the Democratic ticket. The recap.
—"For the president, it was never about himself." Jeffrey Katzenberg paid tribute to “selfless” Joe Biden, in the media mogul and Democratic Party megadonor’s first public comments since the president’s shock decision to end his re-election campaign. In a New York Times op-ed, Katzenberg was effusive in his praise for the president, someone the DreamWorks co-founder and Quibi founder said he had known for 40 years. Katzenberg, who has faced some flak in Hollywood before Biden stepped aside, also fully backed Kamala Harris. The story.
—"A race democrats can and must win." Hillary Clinton was quick to endorse Kamala Harris, and now, in a guest essay for the NYT, she shared more thoughts about the 2024 election and Harris’ campaign. Clinton reminded readers that while the "next 15 weeks will be like nothing this country has ever experienced politically." The story.
—"I truly can’t believe this is coming from a potential VP." Jennifer Aniston slammed Trump's running mate J.D. Vance for his resurfaced comments about women such as Kamala Harris who have not given birth. In a 2021 interview, Vance said that "the entire future of the Democrats is controlled by people without children" before asking, "how does it make any sense that we’ve turned our country over to people who don’t really have a direct stake in it?" Addressing Vance on Instagram, Aniston also suggested that Vance was looking to take away IVF options for women. The story.
—"The crazier politics get, the more the show holds up." With Veep Kamala Harris attempting to grab the top job, HBO's Veep is having a moment. THR's queen of chat Jackie Strause spoke to Veep showrunner David Mandel about the Emmy-winning show going viral (again) and whether he would ever revisit the series. The interview. |
Pricing Revealed For Disney+, Hulu and Max Bundle ►Here we go! One of the most significant streaming bundles in the market has officially launched. The Disney+, Hulu and Max bundle is launching today, with both ad-supported and ad-free options. Disney, which is taking the lead on implementing the bundle, says that the ad-supported tier will cost $16.99 per month, while the ad-free version will cost $29.99 per month. If users were to buy all three services individually, they would cost about $26 per month for their ad tiers, or $20 per month if they combined the Disney Bundle with Max. The ad-free versions would cost about $37 combined. The story.
—Madame Gaga. Lady Gaga is set to perform at the opening ceremony of the 2024 Paris Olympic Games this Friday. The news comes after fans speculated the “Shallow” singer was set to take the stage on the River Seine in Paris, along with other rumored artists, including Celine Dion, Dua Lipa, Ariana Grande and French singer Aya Nakamura. However, the ceremony’s lineup of performers has mostly been kept under wraps. The story.
—"When is this going to stop?" Actress Tia Mowry is demanding action after the deadly shooting of Sonya Massey, a Black woman in Illinois who was shot and killed in her own home by a sheriff’s deputy after calling 911 to report a possible intruder. In an Instagram video posted Tuesday, a tearful Mowry said, "I just saw the video of Sonya, and my heart goes out to her family. I am literally shaking right now because to see how someone’s life can be taken in such a way is so terrible and so disgusting." The story.
—"I am disgusted." YouTube star MrBeast has addressed the grooming allegations made against his longtime collaborator Ava Kris Tyson, saying that he has taken "immediate action to remove Ava from the company, my channel, and any association with MrBeast," in light of the claims. MrBeast, whose real name is Jimmy Donaldson, was responding to weeks of social media pressure created by the allegations against Tyson, who is accused of inappropriately messaging a minor when she was 20. The story. |
NBA Inks Long-Term TV Deals With Disney, NBCU and Amazon ►🤝 It's official 🤝 The NBA has finalized its new long-term TV deals. ESPN/Disney, NBC Sports/NBCUniversal and Amazon Prime Video are set to be the new home for NBA games beginning in 2025 and running into 2036. Disney will remain the NBA’s partner for the “A” package, including the NBA Finals, in a deal sources estimate at around $2.6b per year. The NBA also found new rights partners in the form of NBC Sports, which is in line to get the “B” package for around $2.5b per year, and Amazon for the “C” package at around $1.8b per year. The story.
—No dice. The NBA has officially rejected Warner Bros. Discovery, with the league saying in a statement that it will not accept WBD’s offer to match the rights package that the league cut with Amazon. A WBD rep shot back, "We think they have grossly misinterpreted our contractual rights with respect to the 2025-26 season and beyond, and we will take appropriate action." The story.
—🤝 Big uplift 🤝 The WNBA has also signed a long-term media rights deal with Disney, NBCUniversal and Amazon — with a big increase in the value of the contract. The 11-year deal, which will begin with the WNBA’s 2026 season, will consolidate the bulk of the league’s rights with those three companies, down from five (Disney, Amazon, CBS, Scripps’ Ion network and NBA TV) in the current deal. The agreement is reportedly worth about $200m per season, or $2.2b for the full term — more than three times the current, $60m per season deal that ends in 2025. The story. |
'Twisters' Reignites Debate Over Steamy Scenes in Movies ►"It speaks to our deep conflict with intimacy." THR Casanova Ryan Gajewski writes that moviegoers who went to see Twisters are getting swept up in the renewed debate surrounding depictions of sexual intimacy on the big screen. Ryan writes that social media users have been in a tizzy over the smoochless ending of director Lee Isaac Chung's natural disaster film. Warning: spoilers! The story.
—"Who are you to be able to say which Black story is important?" Tyler Perry dismissed the Black critics of his work, saying his films are meant to help his community. Appearing on Keke Palmer's podcast, Perry said, "You’ve got this highbrow negro who is all up in the air with his nose up looking at everything." He added, "Then, you got people like where I come from, and me, who are grinders, who really know what it’s like, whose mothers were caregivers for white kids and were maids, housekeepers, beauticians. Don’t discount these people and say their stories don’t matter." The story.
—All the emotions. Pixar’s Inside Out 2 has iced out fellow Disney release Frozen II to become the top-grossing Hollywood animated film of all time at the worldwide box office after finishing Tuesday with $1.462b, not adjusted for inflation. The film’s domestic total stands at $601m, while it has grossed $861.8m internationally. Disney Animation’s Frozen II topped out at $1.451b in 2019. The box office report.
—"The death of storytelling." James Mangold has revealed he's not a fan of cinematic multiverses. In a new interview, the Logan filmmaker took oblique shots at Marvel's current emphasis on the multiverse in the MCU, something that has allowed Hugh Jackman to reprise the role of Wolverine in Deadpool 3. "It’s weird that I’ve even worked in the world of IP entertainment because I don’t like multi-movie universe-building. I think it’s the enemy of storytelling," Mangold said. The story.
—Blumhousemates. Paul Feig and Jason Blum are teaming for a feature adaptation of the Netflix unscripted series Worst Roommate Ever for Blumhouse. Feig will direct a feature centered on a newly single woman finding a seemingly perfect gentleman to sublet the spare room in her dream home, only to learn his deceit goes beyond a phony name and application. She has unwittingly invited a serial squatter into her home, and he won’t leave without a fight. The story. |
Why Sports Docs Are Some of the Best Dramas on TV ►"The dominant vein of sports storytelling right now is decidedly nostalgic and backward-looking." With the Paris Olympics underway, THR's chief TV critic Dan Fienberg surveys the current state of sports-themed programming, from FX's reliable treasure Welcome to Wrexham to Netflix’s magic formula to scripted letdowns. The critic's notebook.
—🎭 Expanding the sports desk 🎭 Apple TV+'s The Morning Show has booked another star for season four. William Jackson Harper — the Emmy- and Tony-nominated actor beloved from The Good Place — has been cast in the role of Ben, who is described as the self-assured and innovative Head of Sports at the show’s fictional TV network. Already announced newcomers include Marion Cotillard, as savvy operator Celine Dumont, Jeremy Irons as Martin Levy, and Aaron Pierre, in a guest role, as an acclaimed visual artist. The story.
—🎭 Back to the small screen 🎭 Tessa Thompson will head to Netflix for her next series role. The Thor: Love and Thunder star will play a lead role and executive produce His & Hers, a limited series based on a novel of the same title by Alice Feeney. The six-episode drama will be Thompson’s first series work since Westworld ended on HBO in 2022. William Oldroyd, Bill Dubuque and Dee Johnson are writing the series — which will transplant the novel’s British setting to Atlanta — with Oldroyd also set to direct the first episode and Johnson serving as showrunner. The story.
—In the works. A two-part documentary about comedy legend Mel Brooks from directors Judd Apatow and Michael Bonfiglio has been set at HBO. The HBO Documentary Films and Apatow Productions project, now in production, will trace Brooks’ journey from Brooklyn to Hollywood and Broadway. Joe Beshenkovsky, who last worked with Apatow and Bonfiglio on HBO’s four-hour doc George Carlin’s American Dream, will edit the project. The story.
—Runway to TV. Anna Wintour, Edward Enninful, Hamish Bowles, and Tonne Goodman will lead a new Disney+ U.K. original documentary titled In Vogue: The 90s. The legendary editors will tell the story of the industry through their eyes, alongside some of the most influential names in fashion, film, and politics across a decade of vast change, from the Met Gala to some of the magazine’s most iconic covers. The story.
—"What happened was not cute." The Facts of Life star Mindy Cohn says a “greedy bitch” on the original cast sabotaged a potential reboot of the beloved ’80s sitcom. The veteran actress, who is enjoying a bit of a moment thanks to a role on the Emmy-nominated series Palm Royale, dished on the alleged betrayal during an appearance on SiriusXM’s Jeff Lewis Live this week. The story. |
Film Review: 'The Fabulous Four' ►"Best so far of the 60-something gal-pal lot." THR's Sheri Linden reviews Jocelyn Moorhouse's The Fabulous Four. Susan Sarandon, Bette Midler, Sheryl Lee Ralph, Megan Mullally and Bruce Greenwood star in the Key West-set comedy feature about estranged best friends. The review.
—"A shaggy but sincere medieval comedy." THR's Angie Han reviews Netflix's The Decameron. This series loosely inspired by the Giovanni Boccaccio's classic short story collection revolves around a group of nobles and servants waiting out the Black Plague in 14th-century Tuscany. The review.
In other news...
—Steph Currry makes scripted TV debut in Peacock’s Mr. Throwback trailer
—NY Film Festival sets Steve McQueen’s Blitz as closing night selection
—Cher’s memoir to be released in two parts, first will publish in November
—Helena Kennedy appointed chair of U.K. watchdog aiming to wipe out industry harassment
—Jamie Lee Curtis to receive honorary doctorate from American Film Institute
—20th Television hires Jillian Longnecker, Brendan Countee in key exec roles
—Matthew and Camila McConaughey celebrate National Tequila Day pantsless
—How to stream the 2024 Paris Olympics online
What else we're reading...
—The kids are at war again: Jim Rutenberg and Jonathan Mahler go inside the secret battle for the future of Rupert Murdoch's empire [NYT]
—With Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz coming out for Trump, Elizabeth Lopatto writes about the moral bankruptcy that has infected Silicon Valley [Verge]
—Gareth Vipers and James Rundle report on CrowdStrike's appraisal of went wrong with their systems that led to a massive global internet outage [WSJ]
—Kathryn VanArendonk was thoroughly impressed by the finale of Apple's Presumed Innocent that lent heavily on reaction shots [Vulture]
—With House of the Dragon sometimes veering dangerously close to misogyny, Avery Oliver wonders why the HBO show is afraid of violent women [Daily Beast]
Today...
...in 1973, Warner Bros.’ Paul Newman thriller The Mackintosh Man opened in New York at Loews theaters. The original review.
Today's birthdays: Zawe Ashton (40), Matt LeBlanc (57), D.B. Woodside (55), Darren Star (63), Iman (69), Dallas Jenkins (49), Ana Lily Amirpour (48), Shantel VanSanten (39), Meg Donnelly (24), David Denman (51), James Lafferty (39), Michael Welch (37), Preston Bailey (24), Jay R. Ferguson (50), Miriam Shor (53), Jaafar Jackson (28), Katherine Kelly Lang (63), Juan Pablo Di Pace (45), Wendy Raquel Robinson (57), Mason Cook (24), Linsey Godfrey (36), Andrew Lewis Caldwell (35), Anthony Tyler Quinn (62), Bobbie Eakes (63), Grace Dove (33), Katie Gill (39), Zeki Demirkubuz (60), Amanda Elwes (60), Ayumi Tanida (49), Mary Mack (49), Michael C. Williams (51), Yvonne Sciò (55), Lauriane Gilliéron (40) |
| Leo Chaloukian, the Emmy- and Oscar-winning sound designer and former chair of the Television Academy, has died. He was 97. The obituary. |
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