Mel's Unlikely Advocate; Spotify Demotes R. Kelly; Cannes Deals; TV's 'Roseanne' Effect; Meet Weinstein Co. Buyers; Showrunner Summit

What's news: TV's top showrunners and writers gather together to discuss everything from pay parity to writing habits. Plus: Avengers: Infinity War looks to win its third weekend in theaters, NBC insiders react to the Matt Lauer report and a look at how Roseanne is changing the TV landscape. — Ray Rahman [The Hollywood Reporter - Today In Entertainment]( May 10, 2018 What's news: TV's top showrunners and writers gather together to discuss everything from pay parity to writing habits. Plus: Avengers: Infinity War looks to win its third weekend in theaters, NBC insiders react to the Matt Lauer report and a look at how Roseanne is changing the TV landscape. — Ray Rahman Showrunner Summit Heading into Emmy season and the upfronts, 12 top TV players sound off to Lacey Rose about political storylines, sex scenes, pay parity and more. On inclusion... Lena Waithe: "I don't have a black exec on the studio or network side, and so there is a level of trust that they have to have for me. This came up in the room, which is predominantly African American, and sometimes things can be generational. There was a writer in our room who basically said, 'Well, if I'm in trouble, I call the cops.' But for a lot of us, we're like, 'We wouldn't do that, we'd want to figure it out on our own.'" Bruce Miller: "So, you took the debate from the writers room and put it in the story. That's one of the most interesting things about diversity. When I started my career, there was often one woman in the room. My room now is basically all women and me. And the thing that you get is the disagreement. Because if you have one black person in the room, that black person speaks for all black people in the universe." Courtney Kemp: "Blackipedia or Blacktionary. Been both of those on many shows." (Laughter.) On pay parity... Peter Morgan: "There are some areas where some of us write less, some of us write more. I have absolutely nothing to do with business affairs, nothing at all. So, when that story broke [about star Claire Foy earning less than Matt Smith on The Crown], I was as horrified as the next person." David Shore: I'll probably make a phone call to Sony [the studio behind his show] to say, 'Hey, you're doing it right, right?' Because I literally don't know what my people are being paid and I'm counting on them to be responsible." [Full roundtable.]( + From treehouses to woolly socks: Scribes reveal their bizarre writing rituals. Find out about the hideouts, habits, coffee dosages and companions (three dogs, two cats) that help get the stories flowing. [Full story.]( TV upfront trends... Fewer ads and safer spaces: As the digital rebellion chips away at profits, the broadcasters are coming out swinging, pitching less commercials and better measurement — and swiping at recent Silicon Valley scandals — to secure $9 billion in ad sales. [Read more.]( The Roseanne effect... Networks double down on multicams: This upfront season, the Big Four broadcast networks are reinvesting in multicamera comedies a year after a wave of cancellations that left only a handful on the air. The news follows a pilot season that saw the genre explode, jumping to 16 orders compared with seven a year ago, with many expected to get the series pickup call. By the end of upfronts 2017, ABC, NBC and CBS had collectively ordered only four multicamera comedies to series. This year's tally, after only a handful of comedy pickups, has already matched that number with more expected. [Read more.]( NBC reacts to the Matt Lauer report... Division: NBC employees have been divided on the issue: Many thought the company should have outsourced the investigation, if only to neutralize any criticism. Others believed that an outside investigation can just as easily be window dressing since it is the company which ultimately decides what gets released publicly. What they're saying: “I thought to myself, this is really compelling and credible, imagine if it was from a third party,” says one former staffer. “As long as [NBC] employees see it as credible, that’s all that matters. The rest is just noise.” Adds a current NBC staffer, "I don’t feel like the investigation is not being taken seriously because it’s being run by NBC. Hiring a third party to investigate is often done for effect.” [Full story.]( Disney's new acquisition strategy... Giving up Sky? Bob Iger once called Sky a "crown jewel," but the realization is setting in that the Disney CEO may have to concede the European broadcaster so it can push through its deal to acquire much of 21st Century Fox before Comcast messes it all up, according to a source. Why it makes sense: Letting Comcast get Sky so that Disney could close on Fox is an arrangement that could work for both sides, given Comcast’s mission is to grow more rapidly overseas (which makes Sky a perfect fit) while Disney’s goal has more to do with total domination of the movie business and crushing Netflix. [Read more.]( Fox earnings... Mixed bag: 21st Century Fox came up short on earnings but slightly beat the expectations in the most recent quarter. Soft spot: The shrinkage in television is owed to the NFL, since last year Fox had the Super Bowl, plus there were declines in ratings for postseason games this time around. Also, Fox had three fewer NFL broadcasts during the quarter than it had last year. Film division: Filmed entertainment benefited from strong box office for The Greatest Showman, The Shape of Water and Maze Runner: The Death Cure, but the segment was hurt by lower worldwide syndication revenues at Fox's television production business. [Read more.]( AMC earnings... Up: The company [reported]( first-quarter earnings of $157 million, compared with $136 million in the year-ago period. U.S. distribution revenue grew 10.8 percent, but U.S. advertising revenue fell 8.8 percent amid lower The Walking Dead ratings and timing issues. The New York Times' new FX show... The Weekly: Following a bidding war, FX [scored]( the first-run North American rights to The Times’ weekly series, which marks both the publication’s foray into TV news and the network’s entry into the weekly news genre. FX has committed to a minimum of 30 episodes of the half-hour docuseries, which is set to premiere later this year. What it is: Produced by the New York Times and Left/Right, The Weekly is described as a narrative documentary news program that will bring to life one or two of The Times’ biggest and most important stories each week — similar to the way the Michael Barbaro-hosted podcast The Daily has taken a narrative approach to news. MSNBC handles Hugh Hewitt... You've been warned: MSNBC said it gave the morning show host a ["verbal warning"]( after learning a day earlier that he helped broker a meeting between EPA administrator Scott Pruitt and lawyers representing a California water district, which the network said is a "violation" of the company's standards. Ricky Gervais' new Netflix series... Scripted comedy: The prolific stand-up comedian and Office grad has set up a scripted comedy called After Life at Netflix. Gervais, who created the series, will executive produce, direct and star in the six-episode, half-hour comedy. [Details.]( Elsewhere in TV... ► Netflix inks SVOD deal for Greg Berlanti-produced Lifetime drama: The streaming giant has [closed]( a licensing deal for the Warner Bros. Television-produced drama You, starring Penn Badgley and Shay Mitchell. The licensing deal includes second-window rights in the U.S. and first-run international for the Lifetime drama. ► Kate Walsh joins Netflix's Umbrella Academy: The actress has booked a recurring role on the streamer's forthcoming series, [joining]( an impressive cast that includes Ellen Page, Mary J. Blige and Tom Hopper. ► Outlander forever: Starz has [renewed]( the Ron Moore drama, based on Diana Gabaldon's best-selling book series, for seasons five and six. ► Eugenio Derbez's Lionsgate TV deal: Days after Overboard hit theaters, star and producer Eugenio Derbez is setting his sights on TV with a multiyear [pact]( that'll have him create and produce English- and Spanish-language series for Lionsgate as well as streaming platforms. ► Chef Roy Choi to host PBS food show about "broken systems in our environment": The culinary guru who inspired Jon Favreau's Chef will [explore]( issues ranging from water access to food waste on Broken Bread, slated for broadcast on KCET, DirectTV and Dish Network in early 2019. 'Infinity War' vs. Everyone A pair of newcomers will likely be no match for the Avengers film at the box office this weekend, writes Pamela McClintock: Infinity War will have no trouble staying No. 1 in its third weekend. The only question is by how much. Domestically, the superhero tentpole could pull in another $60 million over Mother's Day weekend. Overseas, Avengers debuts Friday in China, its final major market, where it's expected to do substantial business. The competition: The Melissa McCarthy-starring Life of the Party hopes to open in the same range as Tammy, also directed by Ben Falcone. That film debuted to $21.6 million in summer 2014, followed by $23.6 million for their film The Boss in April 2016. The Will Packer-produced, Gabrielle Union thriller Breaking In likewise hopes to see a boost from Mother's Day. The film is tracking to open in the mid-teens, but there's plenty of room for upside. [Full story.]( + Life of the Party, reviewed: "Life of the Party, like The Boss and Tammy, was directed by Ben Falcone, McCarthy’s husband, and co-written by him and McCarthy. In all of these you can feel McCarthy doing the heavy lifting, with a lame script that gets sappy about the heroine’s second chances," writes Caryn James. The takeaway: "Bland and predictable." [Full review.]( News from Cannes... Deals: Miramax [takes]( Guy Ritchie's Toff Guys.... Oprah Winfrey [leads]( voice cast of John Legend's VR short Crow: The Legend.... Felicity Jones [leads]( voice cast for animated family film Dragon Rider.... Nicolas Cage will [star]( in action film Kill Chain.... [See all the deals.]( Julianne Moore on a "traumatic" year in the film industry: "Because of our unity and solidarity we feel the ability to manifest change," the actress said as she was joined onstage by festival director Thierry Fremaux. [Read more.]( Blockchain buzz: Can it become an industry game changer? The Croisette is buzzing about how the new technology could radically alter everything from the way movies are funded to how consumers access content. [Full story.]( Lars von Trier's producer: "I'll stop slapping asses." The Danish director's business partner Peter Aalbaek Jensen offered that as his response to recent anti-harassment guidelines drawn up at Zentropa. [Read more.]( Extra! Download the THR day three Cannes daily, featuring interviews, features, deals and report on selfie-ban scofflaws. [Download.]( Meet Lantern Capital... Who are they? They're the buyer of Harvey Weinstein's once-storied film venture: Lantern Capital, a Dallas-based private equity firm best known for acquiring distressed businesses such as car dealerships, a zinc recycling plant and luxury resorts. Co-founders Andy Mitchell and Milos Brajovic, who are strangers to the entertainment business. Rather, in the parlance of the financial world, they are turnaround experts who target ailing companies with the goal of turning them into viable, ongoing concerns. Their track record: In all, Lantern boasts about $2 billion in assets, and its goal is to turn companies around then exit them in three to five years, but insiders say TWC, its first foray into media, could mark a departure in that regard. [Read more.]( TriStar's racial horror thriller... Infidel: TriStar Pictures has [picked up]( the rights to Infidel, a horror comic from former DC/Vertigo editor Pornsak Pichetshote and artist Aaron Campbell. Michael Sugar (Spotlight, 13 Reasons Why) will produce. Plot: Described as a haunted-house story for the 21st century, the comic centers on an American Muslim woman and her multiracial neighbors, who find themselves living in a building haunted by strange creatures that seemingly feed on xenophobia. Annette Bening goes Marvel... New role? The four-time Oscar nominee is [joining]( Brie Larson in Captain Marvel, Marvel Studios’ first female-led feature film. Details on Bening’s character are being kept hidden deep in the Kree Empire, but "scientist" is said to be in her job description. Elsewhere in film... ► John Green's Hulu adaptation: Hulu has picked up Green's 13-year-old novel Looking for Alaska, about a young boy who enrolls in boarding school, as an eight-episode limited series from Josh Schwartz. [Details.]( ► David Gordon Green does Friday Night Lights? The director is in final talks to [direct]( Universal Pictures' reimagining of Friday Night Lights, inspired by the original book that spawned the 2004 Universal film and the subsequent Emmy-winning NBC series that ran from 2006 to 2011. Brian Grazer will produce for Imagine Entertainment. ► Vince Vaughn, Zazie Beetz join Kristen Stewart's Against All Enemies: The duo [join]( Stewart, Yvan Attal and Stephen Root in the upcoming political thriller's ensemble cast. ► Rick Moranis joins Netflix's SCTV reunion documentary: After some uncertainty, the comedy legend will [join]( his old castmates in Martin Scorcese's An Afternoon With SCTV after all. ► Isle of Dogs heading to Saudi Arabia: The Wes Anderson stop-motion animated feature is due for [release]( in the country, where previously films featuring dogs had been banned. Mel Gibson's unlikely new advocate... Ari Emanuel? Emanuel took a hard-line stance against and fired his then-WME client Mel Gibson after the actor's 2006 arrest following an alcohol-fueled, anti-Semitic and sexist tirade. Now, more than a decade later, sources say that the Endeavor CEO has been advocating for Gibson in recent deals.... [Full story.]( Tapper's New Novel CNN star and Hellfire Club author Jake Tapper talks to Andy Lewis about that new novel, plus USC film school, secret societies and why the Clintons still "owe Monica Lewinsky an apology." On Monica Lewinsky handling her notoriety: "I talked to her a few weeks ago. I think she’s handled it incredibly — and what she went through, the Clintons owe her an apology. They treated her poorly. She had legal bills. It is amazing to me how much, when there is a scandal like this, how much the man is able to dust himself off and move on with his life and the woman is stuck like a mosquito [in amber]. How unfair that is." On dropping out of USC's film school: "I loved film and I’m a big film buff. I found myself sitting in film studies class listening to the Clarence Thomas hearings, not paying attention to what they were saying about lighting or whatever. That made me realize that I don't belong here and I belong back East. "I didn't have the love of the industry. I wasn't psyched to get a job opening letters and answering phones and working my way up in the industry. It took me years to realize I wanted to be in journalism. I do sometimes wonder if I stayed at USC and finished the program." [Full Q&A.]( In other news... NewFronts takeaways: Why digital put the spotlight back on TV — and what's after the pivot to video. [Read more.]( Spotify's new rule: The streaming service removes R. Kelly's music from playlists, citing new hate content and hateful conduct policy. "When an artist or creator does something that is especially harmful or hateful, it may affect the ways we work with or support that artist or creator." [Read more.]( What else we're reading... — "Why I revealed that Tom Brokaw harassed me." Former NBC journalist Linda Vester pens an essay on her experience. [[Washington Post](] — "Georgina Chapman on life after Harvey Weinstein." Jonathan Van Meter writes: "Our meeting, in her soon-to-be ex–town house that her soon-to-be ex-husband recently sold, was meant to be the moment when Chapman would finally, publicly address for the first time what happened." [[Vogue](] — "Fates of TV shows tied up in merger mania." Joe Flint writes: "The possibility of new ownership at Fox, Viacom, CBS and other broadcast networks could spark changes in programming strategy." [[Wall Street Journal](] — "The ever-youthful Carol Burnett talks about her show with kids on Netflix." Lorraine Ali interviews the comedy legend. [[Los Angeles Times](] — "He gives Atlanta anxiety. And that's a good thing." Leigh-Ann Jackson writes: "Hiro Murai, the show's primary director, channeled David Lynch, the Coen brothers and Alice in Wonderland to create an intense second season." [[The New York Times](] What else we're seeing... + "Michelle Wolf pokes fun at WHCD reactions." [[Late Night](] + "Samantha Bee rips into former Full Frontal guest Eric Schneiderman after allegations." [[Full Frontal](] + "Why New York City's Estela brings Barack Obama to the table." [[Where Hollywood Eats/THR](] From the archives... Today in 1996: Warner Bros. unveils Twister in theaters. From THR's review: "While the special effects are clearly the star of this masterwork, the storyline itself, although predictable, is crisp and full of heart. Director Jan De Bont's pacing is symphonic, orchestrating emotional moments, humor and then crescendoing to sheer terror." [Full review.]( Today's Birthdays: Kenan Thompson, 40, Jon Ronson, 51, Bono, 58, Donovan, 72. Follow The News Is this email not displaying correctly? [View it in your browser.]( ©2018 The Hollywood Reporter. 5700 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90036 All rights reserved. [Unsubscribe]( | [Manage Preferences]( | [Privacy Policy]( | [Terms of Use]( May 10, 2018