Scoops: Streaming Bonuses Revealed; Netflix's OWA News; Emma Chamberlain's VC Pitch Leak
Plus: Richard & Sean tackle the aging IP problem hitting Hollywood franchises
We had another banner week at The Ankler, starting with the announcement of two new team members joining us tomorrow: Kelsey Stefanson of The Hollywood Reporter is coming onboard as our design director; she and Janice had worked together back when the visuals of THR first dazzled the industry, so expect things to start looking spiffier around here almost immediately. And Simone Flournoy is coming aboard from The Washington Post as communications manager, helping steer and oversee our incoming and outgoing missives, often in relation to other media. So when we have a scoop-filled week like this one, expect to see our talented team out there sharing their expertise.
Let’s talk about those scoops for a second. Elaine Low had a huge one, revealing five shows where writers first received the streaming bonuses fought for during the 2023 strike. Then Lesley Goldberg led her column this week with news about season two of Netflix’s The Perfect Couple as her way into a must-read piece about open writing assignments (OWAs) and how writers can make them work. Like & Subscribe’s Natalie Jarvey obtained a leaked pitch deck for star digital creator Emma Chamberlain’s coffee startup backed by UTA, revealing its struggles that belie the creator economy’s mythmaking that everything is always up and to the right. And Sean McNulty was the first to understand the industry-wide implications of the comment from Courtenay Valenti, Amazon MGM Studios’ head of film, streaming and theatrical, that the studio hopes to release 12-14 films in theaters next year.
Now if you happened to peruse Variety, THR, Deadline, TVWire and other media, you would have seen versions of these stories after The Ankler published our own — but all too often without ever mentioning that The Ankler was the first to report or analyze the news.
Just to be clear: This is clown world stuff, not journalism. Every real professional in media — and hell, almost every industry — is quick to acknowledge where ideas originated, give credit and have faith that they can add value with their perspective.
The Penske conglomerate in particular is not a serious organization. There’s an example of this probably every hour, but go to Variety’s website and look at the Latest News section. Get a sense of the stories there. Now go to https://variety.com/exclusive/. Scroll through “All Exclusive Posts.” That’s right! It’s the exact same feed. Variety thinks every article it publishes — including SEO sludge like “Coachella 2025: How to Buy Tickets to the Season’s Hottest Festival” — should be tagged as an exclusive. Again: Clown World.
I’ve been a journalist for 30 years, with only this past one covering Hollywood full-time, and I remain gobsmacked how the entertainment business — one of the most important industries in all of society both to the populace and the nation — is so poorly served by the media (largely the monopolistic Penske Media) that covers it. From rewritten (barely) press releases to spoon-fed stenography to affiliate link e-commerce come-ons masquerading as lifestyle coverage to aggregated stories that don’t credit the source — I truly don’t get why anyone accepts this tsunami of crap, much less props it up.
As Janice, our editor-in-chief and CEO, crystallized in an interview with A Media Operator this week, we’re always thinking about our audience, asking, “How is this helping them do their job better? How is this informing what they do?” (See how easy that was for me to cite where I read that?)
Ask yourself if other outlets are focused on you that way, and not their cheap programmatic advertising and web traffic-at-any-costs. I’m biased, sure, but 10 out of 10 doctors would recommend you stop eating the Penske slop. Your media diet is important, maybe more than ever, and The Ankler will continue to be relentless in delivering not only scoops but important stories that can guide your career. You deserve better than what’s been accepted as “journalism” here for so long.
With no further ado, ICYMI, our best of the week:
Series Business: Writers’ Bonus Scoop; OWA Scoop
Elaine Low breaks the huge news first (paid subscribers only) of the first five series so far that have earned the coveted streaming performance bonus that the WGA fought so hard for during the strikes; what these first payouts mean for creators and how it might change where they’ll want to sell their shows (Peacock and Par+ play a very interesting role here):
In being the first to reveal Netflix’s plans and showrunner for season two of The Perfect Couple, Lesley Goldberg gets to the heart of open writing assignments, aka creative development for free: why even seasoned, in-demand writers participate; how writers can set themselves up for success on an OWA; which production companies are more likely to pay a development fee for a writer who takes an OWA; and agents’ advice for writers:
Rushfield: Big IP at the Crossroads; Traitors Talk
Richard Rushfield and Sean McNulty noticed a troubling trend: The foundational Big IP Hollywood has relied on for the past 30 years is beginning to look as old as Dumbledore, with many if not most of the franchises stalling out in performance. The two join forces in an excellent two-parter to assess 20 IP universes at an inflection point, from Marvel to Jurassic World to Harry Potter. Richard also mocks the trade press (see above) for their rapacious gossip, innuendo and desire to tear down studios making original “content.” Lastly: He convened Shōgun writer Emily Yoshida and Katey Rich for the latest episode of The Rushfield Lunch, where the three fans hashed out the season three finale of Traitors:
Reel AI: The New Kids App That Should Worry H’wood
Pika, an app that adds AI-generated effects to your images and videos, poses a huge threat in the battle for kids’ screen time. Erik Barmack reveals (paid subscribers only) why every animation studio should be very nervous; how entertainment companies could co-opt AI-generated media for their own benefit; and the lesson of the social-media era that also applies to the AI era:
Prestige Junkie: Inside Sony Pictures Classics’ Strategy
Katey Rich chats with Tom Bernard, co-chair of Sony Pictures Classics, to assess what his studio did right with I’m Still Here and how SPC’s model, unlike the streamers, is more conducive to awards success:
THE WAKEUP
Sean McNulty broke down Amazon’s new commitment to theatrical films and what this means for theaters, movie stars and Netflix’s strategy going forward:
🎧 PODCASTS
THE ANKLER
Big IP’s Midlife Crisis: Marvel, DC, Bond Did the mojo go-go as the franchise era ages? Plus: Streaming bonus reveal!
Like and subscribe on Apple Podcasts
MARTINI SHOT
A Priest Walks Into a Pitch Meeting . . . What happens when God meets Hollywood? Rob Long tempts fate:
📱 LIKE & SUBSCRIBE FROM NATALIE JARVEY
👓 THE OPTIONIST BY ANDY LEWIS
FINAL HOUSEKEEPING!
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