☀️ ‘Springsteen’ Doesn’t Deliver, SONY’s Anime 🔥 Continues
NBA sports gambling ad spends / NBCU propels ‘DWTS’ to new ABC heights / NETFLIX swaps YA showrunners
Evenin! 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 SUNDAY, October 26, 2025.
Where one of the greatest pleasures of our sports streaming future is turning out to be the ability to avoid all local political ads!
I didn’t see any political advertising during the KNICKS vs. CELTICS debut of NBA on AMAZON Friday night — and I think I saw at least 5 NJ Governor ads in just 2 commercial breaks when I skipped over to FOX to check in on the World Series game.
Needless to say, I stuck with the NBA on AMAZON debut for most of the night. Thanks, tech overlords!
ANOTHER AMAZON BONUS: While FANDUEL gambling ads were certainly robust in AMAZON NBA ad breaks — its NBA broadcast didn’t have any intrusive gambling integrations, and the main sponsors for segments (pre-game, halftime show, etc.) were not gambling apps either. Thanks to CARMAX and AT&T for filling the space.
That’s unlike FOX . . . which had FANDUEL logos blaring from behind the batters during the evening on Friday (FOX CORP has an investment in FANDUEL parent company, FLUTTER).
Gambling apps accounted for 3.3% of linear TV ad spending for all NBA games last season, according to ISPOT — putting it at #9 among all categories (credit cards were #10).
AND: Make no mistake — this relatively newfound gambling advertising revenue has become a major contributor to supporting the rising sports rights fees we have seen in the marketplace in the past couple of years.
Yes, America, your gambling losses are helping fund the rising salaries of the athletes you are losing your money on (hopefully legitimately).
So, enjoy your parlays and totally not fixed prop bets, America!
FINAL NOTE: AMAZON and NBC are also taking DISNEY/ESPN’s cue and flooding NBA halftime with ads — another way to chip away at those NBA rights checks — so let’s just drop the facade of having “in-depth interview” segments at halftime? 🙏
Whether the MJ sitdown on NBC, or the Nowitski / Luka sitdown on AMAZON that was maybe . . . 50 seconds of actual interview? These are a joke.
OK: NBA opening week critique, fin.
THEN: I know this is basically at the “Yeah, we basically made a couple calls about their availability” stage — but I’m already buying tickets for an Austin Butler and Michael B. Jordan Miami Vice movie.
OH: Hey, kids — is AI taking your jobs? Good news, the Trump administration has a plan! So, how do you feel about picking vegetables in the Coachella Valley in 115-degree heat? It seems Trump’s ICE deportation efforts in the area are putting a significant crimp in labor supply in the area . . . but an administration spokesperson had this solve to offer:
“Over one in 10 young adults in America are neither employed, in higher education, nor pursuing some sort of vocational training.
There is no shortage of American minds and hands to grow our labor force.”
Plus — hey, maybe you can get the day off to go to that music festival there that you kids all love so much!
BUT: There’s always kicking field goals! This kid really drilled this thing yesterday . . . well done! Musta been the Jesus signs. Enjoy the half-mil.
ALSO: Eh, I don’t think many people noticed this back in 2022/23 as I recall, right?
WAKEUP BOX OFFICE POLL
Kudos to the “freeze-out” bears on the right Springsteen call. Sorry, fellow dreamers.
BUT: With the GIANTS also getting dealt a pretty bad injury today against the EAGLES 😩, let’s finish out the top today with a Jersey high point — JBJ sharing some pretty fun fan interaction stories from when he and Bruce have gotten together over the years.
🎥 THE BOX OFFICE
