An Urgent Fix for Budget Bloat; 28 Execs’ Fave Shows; Emmys’ ‘Heated Rivalry’ Dilemma
Plus: ‘Marty Supreme’ and merch madness; Richard’s 2026 roadmap
Happy holidays, Ankler fam.
A few things we’re excited for in January around here:
The Ankler Invitational 🎾 Our private tennis tourney on Jan. 10 in L.A., cohosted by Elaine Low and Propagate Content CEO Howard Owens, will welcome dozens of top execs, showrunners and stars who love the game as much as the industry — plus a few bona fide court pros. It’s gonna be aces! Stay tuned for highlights and more on our socials @theankler.
Documentary Spotlight: The Shortlist Save the date! On Jan. 7 Thom Powers will host a virtual global gathering of the filmmakers and forces behind this year’s Oscar-shortlisted nonfiction films.
Sundance Film Festival For the final Utah fest (Jan. 22-Feb. 1), Richard Rushfield and I will be on the scene in Park City — look for daily dispatches from Richard, and find us on Jan. 22 at The Impact Lounge’s Pull Focus event (request to attend here), where we’ll be leading conversations about the power of film and storytelling to drive change.
Meanwhile, with another week left in the holiday break, check out the binge-worthy recommendations from more than two dozen TV C-suiters, from HBO’s Francesca Orsi and FX’s Nick Grad to Netflix’s Jinny Howe and NBCU’s Pearlena Igbokwe, as shared with Lesley Goldberg:
Their list is a great reminder of what’s working in Hollywood — and how quickly the business continues to evolve.
Before the year wraps, one smart move: Give your team a running start into 2026 with a subscription to The Ankler. Our reporting is built for executives, creatives and dealmakers who want clarity on budgets, deals, talent and the forces reshaping the industry — without the noise.
For a few more days, group subscriptions are 30% off — our best offer of the year — but it expires at midnight on New Year’s Eve.👇🏼
Now, ICYMI, here’s our best of a (short) week:
Rushfield’s 2025 Takeaways
With a rough year almost in the rearview, Richard takes a hard look at what (and who) failed, what worked and what comes next:
Dealmakers: A Fix for Film Budget Bloat
Call it One Budget After Another as dealmakers from Blumhouse to Weil tell Ashley Cullins about the deal point that can bring costs back down to earth — and get more films made now:
Series Business: Survey Says…
Elaine reveals candid takes from her survey of industry pros on what Hollywood needs most in 2026 — and what it must shed:
Crowd Pleaser: Merch Madness
With the box office under strain, movie merch is a fast, social-first way for studios to tap into fandoms, Matthew Frank reports, as consumer products execs from Sony to Universal share their strategies:
Prestige Junkie: Heated Rivalry Emmy Heat
Katey Rich explores the arcane Emmy regs that could keep Heated Rivalry out of contention. Plus, Katey’s chat with Sentimental Value’s Renate Reinsve:
The Wakeup
Larry Ellison finally agreed to an “irrevocable personal guarantee” to back $40B of his son’s hostile bid for Warner Bros. Discovery. Sean McNulty analyzes the latest development in the M&A saga and surmises what’s still coming our way:
📹 Ankler Shows
Monday Morning QBs: Avatar: Fire and Ash will top $1 billion with ease — but Richard & Sean explain why its $88 million domestic opening lands on the tepid side for James Cameron’s sci-fi trilogy:
🎧 PODCASTS
THE ANKLER
Elaine, Sean and Natalie Jarvey are joined by a cavalcade of Ankler’s best to share their winners of the year, as well as the unfortunate losers:
📱 LIKE & SUBSCRIBE BY NATALIE JARVEY
FINAL HOUSEKEEPING!
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