Netflix is gearing up to raise the prices of streaming plans without advertising “a few months” after the SAG-AFTRA actors strike is resolved, according to a new report. The streaming service is “discussing” raising prices in “several markets globally,” and likely will first increase fees in the U.S. and Canada, according to a Wall Street
Month: October 2023
“The Alchemist” by Paolo Coelho is set to be adapted for the screen. Legendary Entertainment has acquired the film, TV, and ancillary rights to the acclaimed book, Variety has learned. The company will lead development of a film adaptation along with Sony’s TriStar Pictures and Palmstar, with TriStar set to distribute under their distribution partnership
Visual effects workers at Walt Disney Pictures have voted unanimously in favor of unionizing with the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) in an election held by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). The 13-0 vote comes just weeks after VFX workers at Marvel Studios voted to unionize with IATSE and comes amid the
Netflix has made two significant appointments to its C-suite, elevating Eunice Kim to chief product officer and Elizabeth Stone to chief technology officer. Kim will oversee all worldwide product efforts for the streamer, and Stone will manage its data and engineering teams. “Elizabeth and Eunice have strong track records at Netflix and more broadly within
Burna Boy is on fire. In September, the Nigerian singer created a little slice of U.K. chart history as his seventh album, “I Told Them…,” went straight to No. 1 on the Official Albums Chart, making him the first international Afrobeats artist to top the ranking. Atlantic Records U.K. executive VP and president of Black
Happy Mean Girls Day to all who celebrate! In observance of the date, Paramount Pictures launched an official account for “Mean Girls” on TikTok (at this link) — and has made the entire one hour, 47 minute film available for free on the platform, broken up into 23 clips. The bio for the official “Mean
Some 25 years ago, Todd Solondz had a hot hand, and he knew it. His film breakthrough, “Welcome to the Dollhouse,” was a Sundance sensation and a surprise hit — surprising, in part, because of its scabrous and brilliantly profane view of life among the petty thugs known as middle-schoolers. So he set out next
Idris Elba revealed on the “Changes With Annie Macmanus” podcast that he’s been going to therapy for the last year after developing “unhealthy habits” as a professional actor. Mainly, Elba is such “an absolute workaholic” that there are now instances where he feels more relaxed working than he does with his own family. “I’ve been
“Snow in Midsummer,” a drama film which premiered in the Venice Days section of the recent Venice film festival, narrowly emerged as the front-runner for the Golden Horse Film Awards. Nominations for the November awards were announced on Tuesday, with “Snow” gathering recognition in nine categories, including best film. But it was only narrowly ahead
Dolphin Entertainment has added talent booking and events firm Special Projects to the roster of PR and marketing services it offers for entertainment, media, fashion and luxury brands. Dolphin, led by founder and CEO Bill O’Dowd, has acquired the bicoastal firm launched in 2016 by industry veterans Nicole Vecchiarelli and Andrea Oliveri, who serve as
Pierre Branco, general manager for Warner Bros. Discovery in France, Benelux and Africa, is stepping down from his position, Variety has learned. Branco took the job a year ago and was previously country manager for WarnerMedia in France, Benelux, Middle East and Africa and head of affiliates and ad sales for EMEA. A source close to
Disney sci-fi epic “The Creator” and Lionsgate U.K.’s horror franchise entry “Saw X” debuted atop the U.K. and Ireland box office — and the race was almost too close to call. “Saw X” won the three-day total with £1.92 million ($2.31 million), while “The Creator” was just behind with £1.89 million ($2.27 million). However, including
Kristy Matheson had big shoes to fill when she took over from Tricia Tuttle as director of the BFI London Film Festival (LFF) earlier this year. Over the course of a decade, Tuttle transformed LFF into a highlight of the fall festival calendar, drawing some of the biggest names in entertainment to the English capital
British filmmaker David Yates, known for his extensive work across the “Harry Potter” universe, will be the 2023 recipient of the Raindance Icon Award. Previous recipients of the Raindance Film Festival award include Vanessa Redgrave, Jonathan Pryce, Gemma Arterton, Michael Caine, Sally Hawkins, Jude Law, Olivia Colman, Terry Gilliam, Guy Richie and Ken Loach. Yates
Lisbon-based Ukbar Filmes, run by Pandora da Cunha Telles and Pablo Iraola, is prepping the period series “The Marquise of Alorna” (“A Marquesa de Alorna”), based on the eponymous bestseller by Portuguese author Maria João Lopo de Carvalho. Participating in the 2nd Iberseries & Platino Industria’s Co-Production and Financing Forum, the 6 x 50’ episode series
Buenos Aires and Madrid-based Bikini Films is presenting Carolina Daza’s Canary Islands mystery series, “Non Trubada” at Iberseries’ Co-Production and Financing Forum. Set in Spain’s Canary Islands in the year 2025, “Non Trubada,” meaning Not Found in Latin, centers on the mythical island of San Borondón, which resurfaces after a period below the water. After a mysterious
Clad in his familiar accessories of dark suspenders and tortoise-shell glasses, Canal+ Group Chairman & CEO Maxime Saada cuts a decorous and professorial figure, though the two framed posters of “Scarface” and “The Godfather” that decorate his office walls offer a slightly better insight into the chairman’s inner passions. “[I follow] a logic of intensity,”
Leonard Bernstein‘s children Jamie, Alexander and Nina were in complete awe the first time they saw Bradley Cooper as the renowned conductor and composer. “It took our breath away, it made us gasp,” Jamie Bernstein told Variety at the North American premiere of “Maestro” at the New York Film Festival. “In some pictures, we could
Jack Neo, for two decades Singapore’s most commercially successful filmmaker, is to direct and produce “Money No Enough 3,” a second sequel to his oldest film franchise. The film is the first project from HiJack Pictures, the joint venture outfit between distributor-producer Clover Films and Neo’s J Team productions that was announced last year. Neo
Principal photography has commenced on “Paan Parda Zarda,” a high-end series that unites some of India’s top talents. “Paan Parda Zarda” is a gangster drama series set against the backdrop of illegal opium smuggling in central India. It is produced by billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s Jio Studios in association with Reliance Entertainment and Dreamer and Doers Co. The series is
Of the eight live-action TV shows that Marvel Studios has produced for Disney+ to date, only one has concluded with the explicit promise of a second season: That would be “Loki,” the outrageously entertaining series about Tom Hiddleston’s god of mischief and his metaphysical exploits in the Time Variance Authority. It turns out, those plans were
Late night was back in full force on Monday night, and the hosts of “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert,” “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon,” “Jimmy Kimmel Live” and “Late Night with Seth Meyers” were all expected to have something to say about it in their opening monologues. “It feels good to be back,”
Paramount+ has announced a documentary that will spotlight boy bands and their place in pop culture. Music manager Johnny Wright (New Kids On The Block, *NSYNC, Britney Spears) joins Gunpower and Sky CEO Van Toffler (MTV VMAs, “Tupac: Resurrection”) to produce this project exploring the boy band-obsessed era of the late 1990s and early 2000s. Bruce
Latin music revenue is growing at an unprecedented pace in the United States, rising in consumption by 15% compared to the first half of 2022. Not only that, Spanish is now the second most listened-to language in music across the U.S. accounting for an estimated 23% of listeners. These landmarks follow a breakthrough year for Latin
Actors union SAG-AFTRA and the AMPTP concluded a full day of negotiations on Monday, the first time negotiators have been in a room together since the union declared a strike on July 14. While little details were shared about the talks, both sides plan to meet again this week. “SAG-AFTRA and the AMPTP met for
What happens when the kidnapped becomes the kidnapper? That’s now the around NBC’s “Found,” which debuts on Tuesday on NBC. Originally, the logline for the Shanola Hampton-led drama series read: “Public relations specialist Gabi Mosely — who was once herself one of those forgotten ones — and her crisis management team now make sure there
The Johnny & Associates talent agency in Japan is to dissolve following a major scandal caused by the acts of sexual abuse conducted by the group’s late founder Johnny Kitagawa. The company announced on Monday that it will break itself into two parts – one to be called Smile-Up, entirely devoted to compensating victims –
A gloomy Los Angeles weekend ushered in the first day of October on the same evening the Arctic Monkeys put a cap on three sold-out nights at the Kia Forum in Inglewood. The band was appropriately dressed for the occasion, conjointly sporting black and white suits while frontman Alex Turner masqueraded behind a pair of
TikTok is exploring a new way to make money: The popular video app has kicked off a limited-scale test of a monthly subscription service that eliminates ads. However, contrary to an earlier report, the company says it is not currently available in the U.S. According to a report Monday by Android Authority, code in a
“Maestro” director and star Bradley Cooper made an inconspicuous appearance at the New York Film Festival premiere, skipping press in solidarity with SAG-AFTRA. Fitting for a film that focuses on legendary conductor Leonard Bernstein, the starry premiere marked a homecoming given its location: David Geffen Hall, home of the New York Philharmonic. On Sept. 23,