☀️NETFLIX Explores More NFL; FOCUS Takes Samberg Pic
SONY sets Epstein series / DIS+ sets more int’l TV deals / APPLE’s Skarsgård - Fanning pairing
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 Tuesday, March 31, 2026.
Where there’s nothing quite like the excitement of a women’s 🏀 Final Four with . . . the same 4 teams as last year, and all #1 seeds.
Then again, on the men’s side, when the “underdog” is a #2 seed that’s been in the Final Four 3 of the past 4 years — welcome to college sports in the mid 2020s.
However, at least you’ll have something to make real KALSHI bets on this weekend, since apparently D.C. bus stops this week are telling us that . . . this activity👇 is frowned upon 🙄 (kudos to the REDDIT poster for the hed).
I MEAN: You know it’s getting bad when the NFL tells you to cool it on the more blatantly speculative gambling prediction markets around the sport.
FYI: The Super Bowl champion SEAHAWKS will be the subject of HBO’s Hard Knocks this August, with the PATRIOTS already lined up for 2027 as well.
BUT: Then again, when Pete Hegseth’s investment broker reportedly approached BLACKROCK about buying in a defense company exchange-traded fund (ETF) in the weeks leading up to the Iran war, according to the FT, I mean — what’s wrong with a few death markets?
THEN: The DOJ sent subpoenas to the parties involved in the WARNAMOUNT deal regarding studio output, content rights, streamer competition and the potential impact on the movie theater business, according to Reuters.
YAH: Just a reminder — not all business valuation prospects pan out. ALLBIRDS business valuation:
2021: $3.9B on its first day of trading
2026: $39M in a sale to AMERICAN EXCHANGE GROUP (home of ED HARDY and others)
YUP: Nice to see Lindsey Graham enjoying the DISNEY offerings in Florida while on the congressional break. I’m sure he got a nice welcome from the Florida TSA.
OH: If you also like to fly JET BLUE — they’re now charging you more for checked bags.
ALSO: Look out, Ms. Rachel — Danny Go! is comin’ for ya! NETFLIX set a deal with the kids YT channel to add 5 compilation episodes to the service starting on April 6.
SWEET: Well, the demo work is done to build NETFLIX’s new home on the Jersey Shore . . . now, how fast can we get this thing propped up?
AH: Good news for “Max Stryker” — INSTA is testing the launch of a paid membership tier that lets you browse IG Stories anonymously.
META also agreed with the MPA to (mostly) cool it on the use of “PG-13” when describing its teen accounts parameters.
AND: Alex Cooper is producing an original 4-episode YT reality competition series called Unwell Winter Games, where 16 reality world folk compete in “mental and physical challenges over four days” at a luxury Park City chalet. Competitors include Anna Delvey and Mormon Wives’ Dakota Mortensen. Have fun, internet.
YEAH: We’ve all seen the datapoint that vinyl record sales had a big year in 2025 (well, big for vinyl) — pretty much thanks to Taylor Swift — but this overall chart👇 from the NY Times on the evolution of U.S. music industry revenue is pretty great to put the U.S. recorded music business’ evolution in perspective.
Note that this is adjusted for inflation — and yes, this means the music business is currently making the same amount it did in the late 1970s in the recorded music sector.
Ok, now do the TV business! A Broadcast TV / Cable TV / Streaming split would be fascinating to see.
A THOUGHT EXERCISE: Consider CDs to be Cable TV networks in a TV biz analogy for the above chart. Granted, there was also a large Broadcast TV component in the overall picture mix, but just as a bit of a 1:1 comparison (i.e., expensive bundles that consumers had to take with no choice that caused the industry to boom into its glory years).
While Streaming grew significantly for the music biz over its first 10-12 years to help replace that melting CD “bundle,” and saved a business that was on the brink about 15 years ago . . . Streaming is also:
A) Plateauing despite #pricehikes in the past couple of years at a top player in SPOTIFY.
B) Still not making up for the CD revenue domination in its heyday as a now mature business.
Granted, there are multiple viable players in U.S. video streaming, while U.S. music basically has 2.5 players (SPOTIFY, YOUTUBE and APPLE MUSIC — add in scant revenues from social platform usage or things like AMAZON MUSIC as ya like).
BUT: Consider that if the WARNAMOUNT deal goes through, we’re down to basically 4 main video streamers (NETFLIX, AMAZON, DIS+ and HBOMAXPAR+) plus the FAST players with smaller revenue profiles, and . . . its not far off from where the music biz netted out.
Ok, yes, there are PEACOCK and APPLE TV, too — but let’s give it some time.
SO: While that chart is not a perfect crystal ball for the TV business ahead, it ain’t bad.
YEAH: This NYT read about the results at a Kansas school that ditched Chromebooks this year and is instead using good old pens and paper is a #goodread. Hint — less gaming and YOUTUBE watching is resulting in more engaged students.
OH: Here’s the effect that the Trump administration’s policies are having on Obamacare health insurance fees that over 23M Americans are paying this year — including the amount of folks paying $6k+ a year doubling in 2026 vs. the previous 4 years. Ok, sure, but think about all the money they’re saving at the gas station!
PLUS: The WNBA’s CONNECTICUT SUN will be moving to HOUSTON next season in 2027, and will be renamed the COMETS once the Fertitta family completes its $300M acquisition of the club (it also owns the NBA’s HOUSTON ROCKETS). The deal also still needs approval from the WNBA’s Board of Governors.
The HOUSTON COMETS existed previously in the WNBA from its formation in 1997 through 2008, when the team folded after no one stepped up to buy it for a $10M price tag.
GET WELL SOON: Goes out to IMAX CEO Rich Gelfond, who is taking a temporary medical leave of absence to treat pneumonia.
🎥 THE SILVER SCREEN
