THE BATMAN overperforms, but at under 50% of SPIDER-MAN opening
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THE BATMAN overperforms, but at under 50% of SPIDER-MAN opening
NBC pulling new content from HULU / I AM LEGEND getting sequel / Angelina Jolie sets next directorial effort
Mornin! This is Sean McNulty and here’s the Hollywood + Media news to know on MONDAY March 7, 2022.
Where I’ve been figuring you’re keeping up to speed on the rapid media pullout and bans in RUSSIA (with TIKTOK being the latest to end new postings & live-streams in the country yesterday) and now NETFLIX is suspending the service entirely… which will leave a 1 Million subscriber hole, although as service is listed as “suspended” it’s unclear how those accounts will be categorized.
And if you missed “60 Minutes” last night - this story about refugees coming to POLAND was very well done.
ALSO: NETFLIX’s “The Lost Daughter” took the top prize at the INDEPENDENT SPIRIT awards (full list of winners here).
PLUS: “King Richard” and ”Tick, Tick … Boom!” took the top honors at the EDDIE Editors Guild awards this weekend.
AND: Keeping a good thought for Taron Egerton who collapsed on stage during his inaugural performance of a new play in London this weekend. Thankfully there was a doctor in the audience who was able to attend to him and it sounds like he’ll be back on stage soon.
📽 THE SILVER SCREEN
BOX OFFICE
“The Batman” : $128 Million ($249 Million Global)
Less than half of “Spider-Man: No Way Home” opening ($260 Million)… but certainly hampered with a 3 hour running time in terms of screenings per day.
Although “Spider-Man” was only 30 mins shorter.
IMAX was basically its average percentage with 9% ish of total ($22 Million global, $12 Mil in US).
CHINA is slated for March 18.
If you saw it and are curious about some of the plot choices, Josh Horowitz has a good chat for his podcast with director Matt Reeves about many of them here.
“Uncharted” : $11 Million ($100 Million US, $271 Million Global)
“Dog” : $6 Million ($40 Million US)
“Spider-Man: No Way Home” : $4.4 Million ($786 Million US)
“Death on the Nile” : $2.7 Million ($37 Million US)
OTHERWISE AT THE BOX OFFICE
MGM’s “Cyrano” fell 50% with $680k from 800 theaters, as this looks to be an expensive no-show at the box office ($2.6 Million total).
“I Am Legend” sequel in the works at WB
Michael B. Jordan will be teaming up with Will Smith on this one (or at least in flashback form given he died at the end of the first one, or at least in voiceover form).
Script currently being written by Akiva Goldsman who did the original. No word on plot direction. /Deadline
Angelina Jolie sets next directorial outing, and 3 year Film & Docu deal with FREEMANTLE
Movie is “Without Blood”, based on a book about a girl’s quest for revenge and healing during a time of conflict and will begin shooting in May. /THR
ALSO IN MOVIES
SONY sets Alessandro Nivola to play the villain in MARVEL “Kraven the Hunter” pic with Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Russell Crowe. /Deadline
20TH CENTURY hires writer & director Fede Álvarez (“Don’t Breathe”) to do another “Alien” movie, but for HULU. Ridley Scott producing. The last film in the franchise “Alien: Covenant” was a theatrical release, made $74 Million US and $240 Million global. /THR
Randall Park joins Ferrell, Foxx and Forte in UNI’s “Strays” live action-CGI adult-skewing comedy about dogs looking to get revenge on their former owner. /THR
FOCUS gives Sept 2 theatrical + PEACOCK release date for satirical comedy SUNDANCE pic “Honk For Jesus. Save Your Soul” starring Regina Hall and Sterling K. Brown. /THR
📺 THE TV SET
NBC orders “Survivor”-ish series “Million Dollar Island”
100 people are put on an island, each with a $10k bracelet and compete in competitions involving alliances etc. When you lose/leave the island, they choose whom to give their bracelet to. /Deadline
ALSO IN TV
FOX cancels “The Big Leap”, NBC cancels “Ordinary Joe”. /THR
PEACOCK’S “Pitch Perfect” Adam Devine-led spinoff adds Sarah Hyland (“Modern Family”) and Jameela Jamil (“The Good Place”) to the cast of the show where “Bumper” moves to Germany to give his career another go. /THR
Ariel Winter (“Modern Family”) replacing Demi Lovato in NBC “Hungry” comedy pilot, a week before shooting begins (James Burrows directing). /Deadline
💻 THE MEDIA BIZ
NBC will terminate “next day” episodes deal with HULU
Starting with the Fall TV season / Late September, new episodes of NBC shows will no longer appear on HULU the next day (will be PEACOCK only). Older seasons of NBC series will still be avail on HULU.
NBCU hopes to peace out of it’s 1/3 stake in HULU overall when a contractual clause is triggered in 2024 whereby DISNEY would have to pay them out at a price that’s… still being determined. /Variety
A+E takes $50 Million stake in Production-Management co RANGE MEDIA PARTNERS
It put a sizable $300 Million valuation on RANGE overall - not bad for a company less than 2 years old that has yet to have an ownership stake in a hit TV show or Film franchise.
So this gives A+E roughly a 16% ownership stake in the company, with A+E’s production arm expected to become a production partner on scripted series, and A+E Studios had already set a joint-venture with RANGE in unscripted. /Deadline
DISNEY+ launching cheaper ad-supported tier in late 2022
Hmm what odds are we now putting on a November price hike for ad-free DIS+?
No exact timeline given but one would expect “late 2022” to coincide with their November 3rd year anniversary… which also will mark the point where the company has 2 years left to almost double their subscriber base to hit their promised 2024 projections.
So… time to start pullin levers despite stating that an ad-supported version would make the consumer experience worse back in Dec 2020.
Then again, the NFL was also once adamantly against gambling. /WSJ
🏦 STOCK NOTES:
AMC THEATERS -8% ($16.57)
CINEWORLD (REGAL Theaters) -8% ($0.42)
SNAP -7% ($33.09)
DISCOVERY -6% ($26.89)
ENDEAVOR -6.66% ($27.05)
ROKU -5% ($121.50)
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👩💻 NEW TO WATCH:
AMAZON PRIME ACM Awards - Live streaming at 8p
🕵️♀️ THE WEEK AHEAD
TUE - NBC premieres “The Thing About Pam” , HBOMAX expands into 15 Eastern European countries
WED - NETFLIX drops “The Andy Warhol Diaries”
THU - PEACOCK drops “Bust Down” with Chris Redd
FRI - NETFLIX drops “The Adam Project”, SXSW begins.
SAT - Zoe Kravitz hosts SNL
🎥 TRAILER HOUSE
FX “Atlanta” Season 3 trailer. Premieres Thu March 24.
NETFLIX “The Bubble” movie trailer. Judd Apatow’s “cast quarantined to make a 5th sequel to an action franchise” together comedy. Premieres Fri April 1
NETFLIX “The Ultimatum” teaser. Although this kinda feels like a trailer… but I digress - Nick & Vanessa Lachey host this dating show assembling couples who are on the show because one person wants to get married (but they don’t say which one), so they make them all break apart and live with another member of the group for 3 weeks to see if they still want to get married. And I’m sure none of them sleep with anyone else… Premieres Wed April 6.
SNL - In addition to Oscar Isaac killing it (how has he not been in a comedy yet??), the show also continues to take some pretty big swings: this “Meatballs” sketch being one of their biggest and most bizarre but definitely made me laugh even just for a “wtf is this??” factor.
And this “Inventing Chloe” sketch just goes out to any fans of the NETFLIX series - very well done.
🎧 PLAYING ME OFF
New WET LEG “Angelica” - I’ll lovingly call this kinda West Coast hipster rock? If your SPOTIFY playlist also has a decent amount of BEST COAST, HAIM, REAL ESTATE etc like mine, this is probably for you.
If you need some new tunes:
Email me anytime - just Reply to this email, or connect here on LINKED IN.
-SEAN MCNULTY
@theseanmac on TWITTER
@TheWakeupNews on INSTAGRAM