☀️The Will Ferrell Studio Comedy is Back
APPLE TV+ enlists Bardem / FULWELL 73 - SPRINGHILL merge / New Jobs Tuesday! 💼
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, November 19, 2024.
Where gotta love COKE reading the room by using AI to create a series of holiday ads this year, that look about as cold and robotic as the executive who likely approved this idea.
“Hey guys, is there any way we can make our usually pretty lifelike CGI polar bears look more fake and creepy this year? Thx.” R&D is great — but knowing when your creative is ready for primetime and when it’s not is kind of an important part of the job responsibilities.
NOTE: There is also a COKE holiday ad that did actual shoots with real actors as well (uh, for now). How novel.
OH: Hope you enjoyed your 60-second Gladiator II ad last night at 9 p.m. ET, as PAR created a “roadblock” across several TV networks (local & national), radio stations and digital outlets last night. Although I noted seeing a Gladiator II ad on ABC MNF more like 9:15 p.m.-ish myself, unless I missed a 9 p.m. one (then again, the nature of a football game doesn’t exactly guarantee you an exact ad time in the game).
BUT: Good news, Hollywood! You’re not the only one with cost overruns — the new BUFFALO BILLS 🏈 stadium is already 36% over budget just one year into construction (the team’s owners are on the hook for the extra $560M, although the NFL will very likely help out to bridge loan some of that). The cost of the stadium is about 50% of the value of the entire franchise. See you in 2026 for the ribbon cutting.
MEANWHILE: The HOUSTON ASTROS are renaming their stadium after a Japanese air conditioning company. Enjoy your ⚾️ American pastime at DAIKIN PARK next year.
#FUNFACT: 13% of all hours viewed on NETFLIX in the U.S. in 2023 was for non-English titles (not sure exactly where Peaky Blinders viewing falls there).
WELL: Chrome browser, it’s been real — the DOJ will reportedly push for GOOGLE to sell the browser as part of the antitrust measures brought against the company in a case that originated under Trump, and was won under Biden.
Chrome has about a 61% market share in the U.S.
Other items under consideration relate to AI, and making GOOGLE license some of its search engine intel to others, but still more to come here.
An April hearing to announce the changes to GOOGLE’s business is expected, with August for a final ruling . . . which GOOGLE will then very likely appeal.
IT’S THE ECONOMY, STUPID — PT. 12: Americans have been rejected for credit applications (mortgage, auto, etc) at the highest rate in 10 years this year according to the NY Fed’s October survey. Yeah, gotta think that process will leave an impression on some folks about how “well” things are going in the economy.
BUT HEY: A private school in Miami that costs $52k a year is now raising a $30M fund to help the teachers at the school be able to afford to live in the area, so they can teach Johnny Dylan some algebra (they’re at $15M so far — come on, alumni!).
AND THEN: 36% of Gen Z & Millennials say that they’re planning on a cash gift from family members to be able to afford a house. Although this REDFIN survey is of just 3,000 folks, that’s up from 18% in a similar survey in 2019.
ALTHOUGH: Good news! TIKTOK now values itself at $300B. #samesies🤝 That’s up from $268B about a year ago in Dec. 2023 (this change in valuation occurs whenever the company issues share buyback opportunities to employees).
AND: Trump’s choice of Brendan Carr to lead the FCC only reinforces my post-election prediction that the Trump administration will be very bad for Hollywood legal department costs, although it really sounds like that may be a larger issue for #BigTech, ex. Elon of course.
PLUS: The AP is cutting 8% of its staff through buyouts. Revenue shortfalls were cited as the impetus here.
ALSO: WWE RAW will start off with an event at the INTUIT DOME in L.A. when it debuts on Jan. 6, with a new theme song by Travis Scott. And yes, John Cena will be involved.
THEN: Here is NIELSEN’S October Gauge report — of note:
Broadcast was +1.4 share points vs. September thanks to a full month of returning series across all networks, plus football games.
NETFLIX was still top among SVODs but -0.4 share points vs. September.
ROKU and TUBI tied.
AND: Just thinking out loud here — if you combined PAR+ and PEACOCK, you’d be 3rd behind NETFLIX and AMAZON. 🧐
🎥 THE SILVER SCREEN
