Paramount Cools on Skydance Deal; ABC News President Exits Network; 'Fall Guy' Lands with $28.5M at Box Office; 'Maze Runner' Reboot in the Works

[View on web]( [New reader? Subscribe]( May 06, 2024 What's news: Condé Nast has reached a tentative deal with Condé Union. Kim Kardashian was booed during Tom Brady's roast. Gen V producers have decided against recasting the late Chance Perdomo’s role. Netflix has ordered a women-focused F1 docuseries. NBC has renewed Night Court. Star Wars: The Phantom Menace made $8m at the box office this weekend. — [Abid Rahman]( Do you have THR's next big story? Confidentially share tips with us at [tips@thr.com](. Paramount Appears Set to Back Away From Skydance Deal ►Uncertainty continues. After weeks of negotiations, Skydance Media’s proposed merger with Paramount Global appears to be on the ropes. Paramount’s special board committee appears to have cooled on the offer, which would have seen the David Ellison-led studio, joined by financial partners RedBird Capital and KKR, acquire controlling shareholder Shari Redstone’s stake in the company and then merge Skydance into Paramount, keeping it as a publicly traded company, with new leadership at the helm. Paramount is also weighing an offer from Apollo and Sony. [The story.]( —Shari to go it alone? With Paramount's deal with Skydance appearing to be dead, THR's [Kim Masters]( and [Alex Weprin]( report that controlling shareholder Shari Redstone isn't convinced by the $26b offer from Sony and Apollo — a deal that would lead to the breakup of the empire her father built. Kim and Alex write that with a deal off the board, insiders say a streaming pact with NBCUniversal's Peacock may be the surest way to quiet anxious investors. [The analysis.]( —"David's proven himself." Both James Cameron and Ari Emanuel offered their support this weekend of Skydance's bid to acquire Paramount. The Oscar-winning filmmaker and the Endeavor CEO told The Financial Times on Sunday that they supported David Ellison’s potential leadership of the studio. "If [David] gets . . . to run Paramount creatively, it could be a huge boon for this business in these ailing times," Cameron said. Emanuel also saw promise in Ellison’s vision, calling him "a natural acquirer" of the company. [The story.]( —What does Paramount owe investors? Although exclusive talks between Paramount and Skydance ended without a deal, questions linger about controlling shareholder Shari Redstone’s duty to minority investors, some of whom have vocally opposed the merger on grounds that their interests have taken a backseat in negotiations. THR's [Winston Cho]( reports that Paramount was sued by an investor looking for records related to deal talks. [The story.]( —"We sold it all, and we lost quite a bit of money." Warren Buffett's two-year dalliance with Paramount Global has come to an end. The famed investor and Berkshire Hathaway CEO says that his company has exited its position in Paramount. Buffett disclosed the news during Berkshire’s annual meeting in Omaha, Nebraska, on Saturday. Berkshire surprised Wall Street when it disclosed a $2.6b stake in Paramount in May 2022. Later that year, it added even more shares, ultimately becoming the largest shareholder in the company. [The story.]( ABC News President Kim Godwin Exits Network ►"I have decided to retire from broadcast journalism." ABC News president Kim Godwin is out at the network. Debra OConnell, president, News Group and Networks at Disney Entertainment, and Godwin shared the news in internal memos sent to staff Sunday night. In her memo, OConnell said that she would lead ABC News in the interim. Godwin had faced some public challenges, most notably the suspension and ultimately the firing of GMA3 co-hosts Amy Robach and TJ Holmes last year. She had also been a target of grumbling from staff. [The story.]( —Strike averted! After negotiations went down to the wire on Sunday, Condé Nast has reached a tentative deal with a union representing hundreds of its workers and averted a strike that would have coincided with the Met Gala. The Condé Union, which represents around 550 staffers, and the company announced the provisional agreement on Monday. Details were not immediately available about the deal, which, if ratified by the union’s membership, will be the first labor contract for this group of workers. [The story.]( —Call for strike action. A collective representing the interests of French film festival workers has called for a general strike “of all employees of the Cannes Film Festival and of its sidebars.” The Sous les écrans la dèche (Broke Behind the Screens) collective, made the call in a public statement on Monday. The group has long been sounding the alarm about the precarious nature of film festival work, which typically involves short-term freelance contracts. [The story.]( —Downsizing. The New York Times is restructuring its documentary unit. THR's [Katie Kilkenny]( and [Mia Galuppo]( report that the company, which has produced nearly four dozen docs, is changing the unit with the goal of further enmeshing non-fiction video filmmaking into the company’s existing sub brands and verticals. Several sources say the Times will be reducing its output. The media company released over 20 films in 2019 under their The New York Times Presents banner while it released only four films in 2023. [The story.]( —"I'm not saying that Biden can't contribute to society, he just shouldn't be president." At a comedy show as part of Netflix Is a Joke Fest on Friday, Jon Stewart went deep on Joe Biden, antisemitism and the idea of “go woke and go broke.” Stewart headlined at The Greek Theater in L.A. and started things off with the upcoming presidential election, focusing on Biden and Trump's age: "Why are we allowing this? And now we’re going to have a president that’s the two oldest people that have ever run for the office." [The story.]( Brady Roast Features Jokes about Gisele, Belichick, Deflategate ►"You have seven rings. Well, eight, now that Gisele gave hers back." Tom Brady was a good, um, sport on Sunday night, where he was roasted about all aspects of his life, from his former marriage to Gisele Bündchen to his role in deflategate. During Netflix's The Greatest Roast of All Time: Tom Brady, the NFL legend took shots from host Kevin Hart, as well as Jeff Ross, Bill Belachick, Will Ferrell, Ben Affleck, Kim Kardashian, Nikki Glaser, Robert Kraft and Rob Gronkwoski. [The recap.]( —Yikes. Brady took the jokes in stride at his roast — well, most of them. The former Patriot took exception to one joke, one aimed at the team's 82-year-old billionaire owner Robert Kraft. During his turn onstage, Jeff Ross quipped: “So Tom became a Patriot and moved up to New England, and on the first day of training camp, that scrawny rookie famously walked into the owner Robert Kraft's office and said, ‘I’m the best decision your organization has ever made. Would you like a massage?’” Brady then approached Ross, who’d blown a kiss Kraft’s way, and said in his ear: "Don’t say that shit again." [The story.]( —"I am a very big deal, but tonight is not about me." Will Ferrell appeared at the Brady roast in character as his Anchorman persona, Ron Burgundy. After being introduced as "a living legend, a world-class lover and the No. 1 news anchor," Burgundy started out by commenting on Brady’s good looks. "This man is gorgeous. Look at those cheekbones. That’s a million-watt smile right there. I could get lost in those eyes," he said. "Ron, pull it together. You’re a straight man. He’s making you question your sexuality. Stop looking at him. You’re here to make fun of him. Not fall in love. Concentrate." [The story.]( —I was saying boourns. Kim Kardashian was met with a mixed reaction from the crowd at the Tom Brady roast. The reality star and businesswoman took the stage with a glass of champagne in hand. She was first met with applause, saying “thank you” in response. But then the boos overtook the cheers, and Kardashian paused to give a look. “All right, all right, all right,” she said, giving a little laugh. Offscreen, Hart could be heard saying, “Whoa, whoa.” [The story.]( 'Gen V' Will Not Recast Chance Perdomo ►"No one can replace Chance." The producers of Amazon Prime Video's Gen V announced Sunday they will not recast Chance Perdomo’s role following the actor’s death in March, telling fans they are working to find a way to best honor him. Perdomo played Andre Anderson in Gen V, Amazon’s spinoff of The Boys. Andre is a popular student at Godolkin University who is capable of magnetically manipulating things. [The story.]( —Drive to thrive. Netflix is delving deeper into the world of Formula 1 racing, with an assist from Reese Witherspoon's Hello Sunshine. The streamer and Hello Sunshine is producing a docuseries called F1 Academy, which will chronicle the women-only developmental division of the racing circuit. The series is currently in production and is slated to premiere in 2025. F1 Academy will join Formula 1: Drive to Survive in Netflix’s stable of sports-doc programming. [The story.]( —Favorable verdict. NBC has picked up a third season of comedy series Night Court, a revival of/sequel to the 1984-92 show of the same name. Night Court is the first of NBC’s three current comedies to earn a spot on the 2024-25 schedule; decisions have yet to be made on Lopez vs. Lopez and Extended Family. NBC also has one new comedy, St. Denis Medical, on tap for next season, and a pilot called Happy’s Place starring Reba McEntire. Night Court averaged 3.73m viewers in Nielsen's seven-day linear ratings for its second season. [The story.]( —Lifeline. ABC has greenlit a new season of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire that will air starting July 10. The new run will coincide with the game show’s 25th anniversary on ABC; it premiered on Aug. 16, 1999. Jimmy Kimmel, who hosted the last Millionaire revival on ABC in 2020 and 2021, will return to the host’s chair once again. The show will feature pairs of celebrities playing to win up to $1m for charities of their choosing. [The story.]( —"There really isn’t a model yet of independently made television where you make the whole season and try to sell it." Penelope, the pandemic-written, independently financed and produced young-adult series from co-creators Mark Duplass and Mel Eslyn, has landed at Netflix. The streamer has acquired U.S. rights to the eight-episode first season. Duplass Brothers Productions plans to sell both domestic and international rights to the indie series through a “piece by piece” model that will allow them to retain control over it, including greenlighting a season two. [The story.]( 'Maze Runner' Reboot in the Works ►Back to the starting line. THR's [Borys Kit]( has the scoop on 20th Century Studios is rebooting the sci-fi action adventure franchise The Maze Runner. The Disney arm is in negotiations to tap Jack Paglen, perhaps best known for writing the Johnny Depp-starring sci-fi movie Transcendence, to pen the script for a new installment. Wes Ball, who directed the original trilogy, will also be involved as a producer. The first Maze Runner movie was released in 2014, with sequels dropping in 2015 and 2018. [The story.]( —Next up. Siân Heder, whose CODA won the Oscar for best picture in 2022, has signed on to direct Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, Paramount's adaptation of the best-selling novel by Gabrielle Zevin. Described as a modern love story that spans three decades against a video game industry backdrop, the story tells of two friends, Sam and Sadie, who meet as children and reunite as adults, finding stardom in the cutthroat industry. Zevin's book landed on numerous top 10 lists and spent 50 weeks on The New York Times bestsellers chart. [The story.]( —🎭 When in Rome 🎭 Olivia Cooke and Jamie Bell have signed on to star in Takes One To Know One, a contemporary romance from Italian director Nathalie Biancheri based on Brooke Baker’s 2022 Black List script. The Brit actors will play Eleanor and Lucas, two people who meet in Rome and immediately feel a spark, connecting over their shared passion for Italy and art, despite both already being in relationships. [The story.]( —"One of the decade's worst movies." Jerry Seinfeld's new Netflix movie Unfrosted is getting a sharply divided reaction from critics. The comedy has only a 46 percent positive critics score on Rotten Tomatoes, despite boasting some good reviews with top publications like The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post and San Francisco Chronicle. But the negative reviews have been downright scathing. [The review roundup.]( Box Office: 'Fall Guy' Lands with $28.5M ►Concerning numbers. Universal’s The Fall Guy, the Ryan Gosling starrer inspired by the 1980s TV show, kicked off the summer movie season at No. 1 with $28.5m, while Disney’s re-release of Star Wars: The Phantom Menace surprised by coming in at No. 2 with $8.1m. Despite The Fall Guy’s No. 1 finish, its haul came in behind initial expectations of $30m to $35m, and overall the box office is down dramatically from the same frame a year ago, when Marvel Studios’ Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 bowed to $118.4m domestically. The weekend is down 53 percent from last year, and off more than 66 percent from 2022, when Marvel’s Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness opened to $187.4m domestically. THR's nice guy [Aaron Couch]( writes that The Fall Guy is said to have a net budget of $130m after tax incentives for shooting in Australia. Universal will now hope that the film's A- CinemaScore from audiences and strong reviews will help it make up ground in the coming weeks with word of mouth. Phantom Menace returned to theaters as part of the film’s 25th anniversary, as well as for May the 4th, the unofficial Star Wars holiday, and it edged out Amazon MGM Studios’ sexy tennis drama Challengers for No. 2. [The box office report.]( Drake Denies Pedophile Claims In New Kendrick Diss Track ►"I’ve never been with anyone underage." The Drake–Kendrick Lamar feud continues to escalate after the Canadian rapper released "The Heart Part 6," a new diss track on Sunday night that pushed back against some of the sexual predator allegations made by Lamar in a series of songs released over the last week. Addressing the predator allegations head on in, Drake raps, "Speakin’ of anything with a child, let’s get to that now / This Epstein angle was the shit I expected," intimating that Lamar was spreading lies. [The story.]( —Still under consideration. THR's [Mesfin Fekadu]( has the scoop that Sean "Diddy" Combs and Jonathan Majors — who are both embroiled in controversies and allegations involving assault and harassment — will appear on the ballot designed to pick who will be nominated at the upcoming BET Awards. First-round voting to help determine nominees for the June 30 awards show have opened, with Diddy on the ballot for album of the year (The Love Album: Off the Grid) and Major's considered for best actor. [The story.]( —🏆 Congratulazioni! 🏆 Matteo Garrone’s refugee drama Io Capitano was the big winner of this year’s David Di Donatello Awards, Italy’s equivalent to the Oscars, winning best film and best director as well as prizes for cinematography, editing, sound, and visual effects. Paola Cortellesi’s There’s Still Tomorrow, a black-and-white feminist dramedy that became the top-grossing film in Italy last year, won Cortellesi the Donatello honors for best actress, directorial debut, and original script for the screenplay she co-wrote with Furio Andreotti and Giulia Calenda. [The winners.]( —🏆 Glückwunsch! 🏆 Matthias Glasner’s epic dysfunctional family drama Dying best film at the 2024 German Film Awards, the Lolas. In addition, Dying star Corinna Harfoch won the best actress Lola and co-star Hans-Uwe Bauer took best supporting actor. The film also took the prize for best film music for composer Lorenz Dangel. Ayşe Polat took best director and best screenplay for In the Blind Spot, her twisty documentary-style conspiracy thriller set in modern-day Turkey. [The winners.]( Bernard Hill 1944 - 2024 ►"Blazed a trail across the screen." Bernard Hill, known to audiences as Titanic's Captain Edward Smith in James Cameron’s 1997 film and King Théoden in Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings trilogy, has died. He was 79. Hill appeared consistently in television and film, with roles in 1976’s I, Claudius, 1982’s Gandhi, 1999’s Clint Eastwood film True Crime, 1999’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, 2002’s The Scorpion King and 2008’s Tom Cruise film Valkyrie. [The obituary.]( In other news... —The world [is on the brink in The Boys S4 trailer]( —Adam Driver [controls time in first-look clip for Francis Ford Coppola’s Megalopolis]( —Ed Sheeran [rocks Dodger Stadium as Los Angeles Dodgers Foundation raises $54m]( —RespectAbility [expands entertainment lab from 6 weeks to 5 months]( —Demi Moore [set as Chopard’s Godmother for Cannes]( —Morgan Freeman [to be honored at Monte-Carlo Television Festival]( —Universal Pictures [taps Vanity Fair's Britt Hennemuth]( ​​​What else we're reading... —Lucas Shaw reports that stand-up comedy has tripled in value over the last decade and is set to cross the $1b mark this year [[Bloomberg]( —With AI looming over the news business, Sara Fischer looks at how the new tech and its possibilities is dividing the industry [[Axios]( —As The Phantom Menace heads back into theaters, Carlos Aguilar talks to actor Ahmed Best about the backlash and legacy of Jar Jar Binks [[NYT]( —Moeko Fujii writes that Hayao Miyazaki’s supposed final film The Boy and the Heron is the anti-comfort movie, in the way it revises, and sometimes upends, the themes that have defined the auteur's career [[New Yorker]( —Stephen Battaglio looks at how the NBA’s next mega TV deal could disrupt the media landscape [[LAT]( Today... ...in 2011, Marvel Studios and Paramount Pictures released Thor in theaters. The Kenneth Branagh-directed superhero movie introduced Chris Hemsworth's titular Norse warrior god hero and made $450m at the box office. [The original review.]( Today's birthdays: George Clooney (63), Gabourey Sidibe (41), Naomi Scott (31), [Meek Mill]( (37), Lars Mikkelsen (60), Emily Alyn Lind (22), Adrianne Palicki (41), Tyler Hynes (38), Roma Downey (64), Noah Galvin (30), Leslie Hope (59), Gregg Henry (72), Kavan Smith (54), Beatrice Grannò (31), Anne Parillaud (64), Lindsay Pulsipher (42), Alan Dale (77), Tristán Ulloa (54), Geneva Carr (53), Tiera Skovbye (29), Dominic Scott Kay (28), Shamier Anderson (33), Susan Brown (78), André Øvredal (51), Matthew Yang King (50), Julianne Phillips (64), Jaime Winstone (39), Sasheer Zamata (38), Nuno Lopes (46), Aryan Simhadri (18), Adrienne Warren (37) Edgar Lansbury, the Tony-winning producer and younger brother of famed actress Angela Lansbury who guided the Broadway and big-screen versions of The Subject Was Roses and Godspell, has died. He was 94. [The obituary.]( This email was sent to {EMAIL} by The Hollywood Reporter. 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