Cable's Hell; Gen Z Virgins; Indie TV Studio Surge; Spotify-YouTube War
Plus: Who killed original animation?; ICE hits Hollywood
Hello from Malta, where I’ve been attending the sunny Mediterrane Film Festival (tough job, I know). The island has played a starring role in Gladiator II, Jurassic World Rebirth and Midnight Express — all films shot on this glittering Hollywood-on-the-Mediterranean. I interviewed Josh Gad and Glenn Gainor, Amazon MGM Studios’ head of physical production, and will have more to say about that later this week. But check it out — this is what it’s like going to the movies on this island.
(Janice watching Gladiator II amid the original ruins where it was filmed 👇)
Meanwhile — we love scoops! — Natalie Jarvey landed a huge exclusive this week with a leaked Spotify deck that maps out the audio giant’s push to lure top YouTubers and their video libraries — but not exclusively. It’s another twist in the war for video, even windowed, as the war for attention, screen time and ad dollars between creator-led and legacy media heats up. (Zohran Mamdani, 33, certainly represents this generational shift in media, harnessing social media and new platforms and spending only $7.8 million to trounce Andrew Cuomo — who pumped $32 million into legacy TV ads — in New York City’s mayoral primary.) To understand this sea change underway, and ensure your career and business are keeping pace, get on it and subscribe to Natalie’s Like & Subscribe, the only trade dedicated to the business of the creator economy. It’s so good:
Now, without further ado, ICYMI, our best of the week:
Dealmakers: Big TV Money, Better Deals @ Indies
Ashley Cullins caps off her series on the new state of TV deals (she previously broke down “showveralls” and mini-first-looks and scooped Apple’s new backend) with a look at how indie studios like A24, Media Res and Fifth Season are reinventing traditional contracts, from inking pacts faster to offering generous backend, and delivers the goods on specific numbers and deal points (it’s a can’t miss):
Series Business: Cable Hell; ICE Toll; Gen Z Virgins
Through conversations with a dozen current and former staffers from the cable landscape, Lesley Goldberg reveals (paid subscribers only) the dark mood inside WBD, NBCU and Paramount; how workers are trying to adapt, survive and stay hopeful; and our seven essential stories you must read to reinvent your career (including a primer on where jobs are now):
Reflecting on her own background as an undocumented immigrant, Elaine Low reports on productions disrupted by raids and protests; how studios and guilds are responding (or notably, not); and the invisible and integral work immigrants do in the entertainment industry:
Channel 4’s top unscripted launch for 16- to 34-year-olds isn’t Love Island; it’s Virgin Island, a series where — you guessed it — 12 virgins work to overcome their fears around sex and intimacy. Manori Ravindran chats with the two execs behind the show and what it reveals about Gen Z taste and where that audience is headed:
Richard Rushfield
After Elio’s rough opening weekend, Richard explores why original animation hasn’t produced a hit since 2017’s Coco. Plus, he laments AMC Theatres’ acquiescence to the annoyance economy:
Little House, Big Problem
Netflix’s Little House on the Prairie reboot comes with a built-in fan base of millions — from rabid fans of the original books, MAGA moms and Millennials and Gen Xers nostalgic for the hit NBC series. Andy Lewis goes deep on the complicated legacy Netflix and CBS Studios will have to navigate:
Hollywood’s Fire Families, 6 Months Later
As many in entertainment are still struggling to recover, Nicole LaPorte talks to many, including DGA president Lesli Linka Glatter to screenwriters Meghan Malloy (Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse) and Will Beall (Bad Boys: Ride or Die, Aquaman) about the emotional toll:
Prestige Junkie
With Emmy Phase I jockeying in the rearview, Katey Rich anoints the campaigns with the most consistent messaging, most baffling strategy, best voter perk and more. Plus, she weighs what the 534 new Academy invitees mean for next year’s Oscars and chats with Nicole LaPorte about the new (and improved?) press tour:
The Wakeup
Amazon has found God — or, rather, its partner in a new SVOD service centered on faith-based film and TV. Sean McNulty outlines the details of the service, set to launch this fall, and Amazon’s pact with Wonder Project:
Top 10s of the 21st Century
As the New York Times sets film buffs ablaze with its list of the top 100 films since 2000, Richard & Katey argue over their own personal top 10s, featuring what Katey posits might be Scorsese’s peak, a 2021 sleeper Richard deems the best comedy of the century thus far and much more:
Monday Morning QBs
Make sure to catch our weekly live show with Richard & Sean on Monday mornings PT to review what just happened with weekend box office. This week, Katey and deputy editor Christopher Rosen filled in for Richard to break down what went wrong with Elio — Pixar’s worst opening ever:
🎧 PODCASTS
THE ANKLER
Now It's Spotify vs. YouTube — Plus Personal Struggles Post-L.A. Fire The new front in the video wars; plus: Cali tax incentive & Elio bombs:
‘Broadcast Is Dead’ Isn’t a Hot Take — It’s Josh Richards’ Business Plan Live at Cannes Lions, Natalie Jarvey interviews creator Josh Richards and CrossCheck Studios CEO Chris Sawtelle about building a Gen Z media empire on the back of TikTok stardom:
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👓 THE OPTIONIST BY ANDY LEWIS
FINAL HOUSEKEEPING!
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