☀️Brutal Math: Why WBD Rejected PSKY Again
How prediction markets see Oscar races / Influencer doc rules NETFLIX / AMAZON's new Unscripted head
Mornin! This is Sean McNulty (connect with me on LINKEDIN here if ya like or email me at seanmcnultynyc@gmail.com), and here’s the Hollywood + Media news to know on Wednesday, January 7, 2026.
Where it’s GOOGLE’s Larry Page 👎 and NVIDIA’s Jensen Huang 👍 on the CA billionaires list.
Page has reportedly cut all business ties in CA as the ‘billionaires tax’ issue comes to the fore, ahem, while Huang has said he’s “perfectly fine” with paying such a tax.
So, #TechBros2020s > #TechBros2000s.
OH: Some shifts in the Penske empire — Deadline is shifting Mike Fleming, Jr. to an Editor-at-Large role, with Nellie Andreeva taking the “co” off of her Editor-in-Chief title and now running the ship solo.
WTF: Is this 🔥 💩, CBS Evening News? Yikes. Yes, the new era of the show is 100% “more accountable and more transparent than Cronkite or anyone else of his era.” Everyone remembers Walter’s famous salute to John Ehrlichman to round out a newscast.
THEN: Jelly Roll, Sarah Michelle Gellar and Chrissy Teigen will be judges in NETFLIX’s Star Search reboot that launches Jan. 20 with Anthony Anderson hosting.
PLUS: SEMAFOR raised another $30M in new financing, at a $330M valuation according to the WSJ. It plans to use the cash to expand further into live events and hire some more journalists.
2025 had $40M in revenue (half from ads, half from events), $2M in EBITDA and was its first year of profit.
THEN: The movie theater trade organization CINEMA UNITED has issued another letter today citing its concern over the NETFLIX BROS. deal . . . or a WARNAMOUNT deal, in written testimony to the House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Administrative State, Regulatory Reform and Antitrust.
THANKS!: To the folks at PARAMOUNT+ for the invite to check out the new Star Trek TV series, Starfleet Academy, last night in NYC, where I don’t think I’ve seen Paul Giamatti have this much fun in a role in some time. Live your best life, Paul!
IN TODAY’S EDITION
WBD has officially given the 🫸 to PSKY on its latest revised offer this morning — take a look at what its problems are with it, and what the next wildcard options are ahead in the ongoing saga.
WBD #STUBWATCH: It was another -10% for VERSANT stock yesterday on day 2 (yes, PSKY, we hear you in the corner).
But with YTD VERSANT financials through Q3 like these 😳 . . . yeah, very curious to see how its first Wall Street pitch on the Q4 earnings call lands sometime in about 4-6 weeks.
🧐 WBD AUCTION
Yes, unsurprisingly, WBD officially said #hardpass to PSKY’s latest offer, with the ironclad Larry Ellison fortune guarantee 🤝, calling it “inferior” to the NETFLIX bid . . . nor “even comparable.” #howrude
Large concerns included: