Woody's Teen Lover Speaks; CBS News Void; 'Spider-Verse,' 'Mule' Win; Biggest Performances of the Year

What's news: Woody Allen's former teenage lover and Manhattan muse finally shares her story. Plus: Spider-Verse and The Mule's strong opening weekends, a lack of transparency at CBS News frustrates staffers and the best performances of the year. — Will Robinson [The Hollywood Reporter - Today In Entertainment]( December 17, 2018 What's news: Woody Allen's former teenage lover and Manhattan muse finally shares her story. Plus: Spider-Verse and The Mule's strong opening weekends, a lack of transparency at CBS News frustrates staffers and the best performances of the year. — Will Robinson ^Woody Allen's secret romance: Amid the #MeToo reckoning and Allen’s personal scandals, Babi Christina Engelhardt — who began an eight-year affair with Allen when she was 16 — looks back with mixed emotions on their relationship and its unequal dynamic, Gary Baum reports: + Meeting Allen: At 16, Engelhardt had caught Allen's gaze at legendary New York City power restaurant Elaine's. It was October 1976, and when Engelhardt returned from the ladies' room, she dropped a note on his table with her phone number. It brazenly read: "Since you've signed enough autographs, here's mine!" Soon, Allen rang, inviting her to his Fifth Avenue penthouse. + Time with Allen and Farrow: "There were times the three of us were together, and it was actually great fun," Engelhardt writes in her manuscript. "We enjoyed each other when we were in the moment. She was beautiful and sweet, he was charming and alluring, and I was sexy and becoming more and more sophisticated in this game. It wasn't until after it was done when I really had time to think of how twisted it was when we were together … and how I was little more than a plaything." + First time watching Manhattan: "I cried through most of the movie, the dawning of realization slowly settling in as my greatest fears crept to the surface," she writes in her memoir manuscript. "How could he have felt this way? How was our partnership not something more than just a fling? We had shared such a special bond right from the start, something magical, and now here was his interpretation of me and us on the big screen for all to see in black-and-white." [Full story.]( Eastwood's Draw Senior citizens fuel The Mule: Clint Eastwood's drug-runner drama scored a victory by appealing to America's heartland and decidedly older moviegoers. The Warner Bros. film opened to $17.2 million to land one of the top starts ever for a film helmed by Eastwood, Pamela McClintock reports: + Demographic breakdown: Senior ticket-buyers were much in evidence, with more than half the film's audience over the age of 50 (as a way of comparison, only 3 percent of ticket buyers to weekend-winner Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse were 55 and older). Moreover, 80 percent of those turning out to see The Mule were over the age of 35. + Star power critical: The Mule's appeal is more targeted, and older moviegoers, who don't always immediately show up on opening weekend, can sustain a movie in its subsequent weeks. "Clint's audience may be aging, but they still want to see him on the big screen. And they still want to hear what he has to say, and how he says it," says Jeff Goldstein, distribution chief for Warners. [Box office analysis.]( + Spider-Verse gives Sony another win: The pic [earned]( $35.4 million over the weekend, a December opening record for an animation film, surely thanks to its coveted A+ CinemaScore. * Mortal Engines bombs: Costing Universal and MRC at least $100 million to produce, Mortal Engines is a post-apocalyptic steampunk thriller that only drew $7.5 million. + Aquaman's reign continues: The Warners/D.C. pic has now [grossed over]( $260 million worldwide, including nearly $200 million in China alone. It opens domestically on Friday. Elsewhere in film... -> "Netflix’s Movie Blitz Takes Aim at Hollywood’s Heart." Scott Stuber's department is gearing up, Brooks Barnes reports: "Mr. Stuber’s operation is set up to supply 55 original films a year, including some with budgets as high as $200 million. Add in documentaries and animated movies, the number ... climbs to about 90. To compare, Universal, one of Hollywood’s most prolific traditional studios, releases roughly 30 movies a year." [[The New York Times](] ► OITNB star Yael Stone accuses Geoffrey Rush of sexual harassment. In an interview with The New York Times, Stone said that the Oscar-winning actor sent her sexually suggestive text messages, [spied on her]( while she was showering and exposed himself to her. ► Jeff Bridges to receive Cecil B. DeMille Award. The Globe winner and four-time nominee [will be honored]( along with Carol Burnett during the Jan. 6 telecast. -> Small theater chains worry about Paramount decrees' future. “They understand they have limited oxygen. Then they see the market is going to be disrupted by the withdrawal of the consent decrees that could make things worse for them.” [[Quartz](] ^Carey Mulligan joins Awards Chatter podcast: An actors’ actor who is just 33, but already has more than a decade of acclaimed stage and screen work under her belt, Mulligan discusses with Scott Feinberg on breaking out of period pieces, overcoming fears and her latest role in Paul Dano's Wildlife. [Listen]( | [Subscribe]( Musical notes... ► The five biggest musical moments of 2018. There were some highs, including soundtracks from films like A Star Is Born and Black Panther that captured the zeitgeist, and a cascade of head-scratching lows, including practically everything Kanye touched, Jonny Coleman writes. [Top five.]( On the festival circuit... ► Clean Up, White Blood, The Guilty claim top prizes at Macau. The seven-day event drew to a close with an award ceremony and a screening of Chinese director Zhang Yimou's Shadow. [Winners list.]( ► Berlin unveils changes to sold-out European Film Market. Only market badge holders [will have access]( to the EFM venues at the Martin Gropius Bau and Marriott Hotel for the first weekend of the February market, Scott Roxborough reports. For your consideration... ► Cold War wins big at 2018 European Film Awards. Pawel Pawlikowski’s black-and-white Polish drama [took home]( five trophies, including for best film and best actress for Joanna Kulig. ► The Sisters Brothers leads France's Lumiere Awards nominations. Oscar submissions Capernaum and Girl were nominated in the best foreign film category for the prizes handed out Feb. 4. [Full list.]( Honorees... ► Carol producers to receive BAFTA honor. Elizabeth Karlsen and Stephen Woolley, the prolific pair behind Number 9 Film, are [to receive]( the outstanding British contribution to cinema award at next year's BAFTA ceremony. ► Charlotte Rampling to receive honorary Golden Bear at Berlin. The British star [won]( Berlin's best actress Silver Bear for her performance in Andrew Haigh's 45 Years. From the stage... ► The best New York theater of 2018. Between angels and executioners, a pop Shakespeare rom-com and a brooding Bob Dylan tone poem, THR critic David Rooney examines this year's stage highlights. [Top 10.]( Once Upon a Deadpool features touching Stan Lee tribute. The moment happens as a post-credits scene from the PG-13 recut and shows photos of Lee through the years and snippets of an interview. The tribute ends with Lee's saying: ["Excelsior!"]( CBS News' Leadership Void Probe lingers: As the company investigates Leslie Moonves and Charlie Rose, and CBS This Morning's executive producer steps down, employees are expressing frustration and dismay at the lack of communication from corporate bosses and CBS News president David Rhodes, Marisa Guthrie reports: + No transparency: News division staffers who spoke to Guthrie have expressed frustration and dismay at the lack of communication from their corporate overlords and CBS News president David Rhodes. “There’s a lot of anger right now,” says one staffer. Another employee: “There is a fundamental lack of transparency. We’ve gone from one bad incident to another and no one’s in charge.” + Rhodes' defense: The president's allies argue that some of that anger is misplaced. The lack of closure from the investigations has been particularly frustrating, but out of Rhodes’ control, these sources contend. The first investigation began in March and was focused solely on the news division. It was then folded into the current and company-wide probes by other law firms, probes spurred by misconduct revelations involving Moonves. [Full story.]( Elsewhere in TV... ► Pauley Perrette, Sasha Alexander defend Michael Weatherly after sexual harassment claim surfaces. Weatherly's former NCIS co-stars [tweeted]( messages of support for the actor following reports of Eliza Dushku's accusation of him on the set of CBS' Bull. ► Fox News' membership approach for its streamer. "But in addition to the video and audio programming, Fox News is adding membership elements to the subscription service ... [including] physical tie-ins such as discounts on merchandise and access to live events and other in-person experiences hosted by the company." [[Digiday](] ► Miss Universe 2018 revealed. Catriona Gray of the Philippines [bested]( contestants from 93 other countries to claim the prize. From last night... ► Outlander producer on finally showing Frank's side of the story. Executive producer Maril Davis doubts Sunday's episode will win Frank many new fans but explains why it's important to the show. [Spoilers.]( ^SNL imagines life without Trump in It's a Wonderful Life spoof cold open: Alec {NAME} reprised his impression of Trump in the Christmas movie spoof, joined by a star-studded lineup including host Matt Damon, Robert De Niro and Ben Stiller. [Watch.]( + Pete Davidson briefly appears on SNL following disturbing Instagram post: The castmember introduced Miley Cyrus before her second performance on the show. Earlier on Saturday, Davidson wrote on Instagram that he [doesn't "want to be on this Earth anymore"]( before deleting his account. + SNL searches for next Oscars host in impression-filled sketch: Host Matt Damon played actors Chris Hemsworth and Matthew McConaughey, and Kate McKinnon appeared as Michelle Wolf and also closed out the sketch with a reprisal of her frequent Ellen DeGeneres impression. [Watch.]( + Trump labels show a "Democrat spin machine": "It is all nothing less than unfair news coverage and Dem commercials. Should be tested in courts, can’t be legal?" the president [tweeted]( on Sunday morning. Digital digest... ► Colin Kroll, co-founder of Vine and HQ Trivia, dies at 35. NYPD officials told THR that Kroll was dead on arrival due to an [apparent overdose]( early Sunday morning, but official reports have yet to confirm the official cause of death. ► Google details New York expansion. The $1 billion plan to renovate a building in Manhattan's West Village neighborhood will add 1.7 million square feet of office space and at least 7,000 jobs in the next decade, Douglas MacMillan reports. [[The Wall Street Journal](] ► "Facebook’s Version of YouTube Takes Shape." Sapna Maheshwari details the rise of Facebook Watch, behind its relationships with internet stars: "At the end of August, Facebook started to allow more pages to run ads on videos that were at least three minutes long. The number of Facebook pages that can run video ads has gone from about 3,700 on Aug. 1 to more than 23,000 this month." [[The New York Times](] Biggest exec departures of the year. From the fallout from Disney's massive Fox deal to changes at Viacom and the downfall of Leslie Moonves, these were the [14 biggest shot-caller departures](, Lesley Goldberg details. Performances of the Year Amazing actors: Between 2018's film and TV slates, there were a myriad of performances that wowed critics, including Oscars winners in their own series and unexpected film breakouts. + J.K Simmons, Counterpart: "There was nothing like it on television, as he brought to life two identical yet different characters, with different ways of walking, of breathing even, of handling news, of reacting in conversations and of doing battle," Tim Goodman writes. "It was a tour-de-force that went entirely overlooked. That's not just wrong, it's astonishing and it tells me voters never even saw it. Do better next time." [Best]([in]([TV.]( + Steven Yeun, Burning: "Yeun exudes a can’t-take-your-eyes-off-him charisma that’s menacing in its inscrutability (those yawns!), underplaying so shrewdly, with such expert modulation and sly humor, that you never stop trying to read the character," Jon Frosch writes. "Every time you think you have him figured out, he slips from your grasp, but rarely has not fully 'getting' someone felt so thrilling." [Best in]([film]([.]( What else we're reading... — "Rise in Unionization Clashing With Digital Publishing’s Business Struggles." Max Willens reports: "While managers at many publishers claim to be supportive of these moves, many complain privately that unions make it harder for them to reward top-performing employees; create distractions among staffers that slow productivity and make it harder for publishers to respond to changes in the business." [[Digiday](] — "If Aquaman Doesn’t Work, Blame James Wan." Dave Itzkoff talks to the director: "That was two strikes against my name and I’m thinking, am I in director’s jail? All the projects that were coming my way were just copycat projects that weren’t special for me. And so, I just held out." [[The New York Times](] — "The Actor Who Takes His Characters Home." Hannah Giorgis profiles Brian Tyree Henry: "Henry never envisioned that acting would be a viable career path. Early on, he noticed the entertainment industry’s lack of attention to the kinds of people whose interiority he knew best." [[The Atlantic](] — "Rain Man at 30: Damaging Stereotype or Positive Change?" Jay McCarthy explores: "Thirty years on, as the parent of a child with autism, I view the film very differently. I found watching it again unexpectedly moving, as I identified with Charlie’s journey from frustration and bewilderment to understanding. " [[The Guardian](] — "The Significance Behind the Movies That Pop Up in Roma." Keith Phipps explains: "It’s easy to see how it could get its hooks into the mind of a young Cuarón, and how he could use it as raw material for a richer, more kinetic film years later." [[Vulture](] What else we're watching... + "HBO's controversial Brexit, with Benedict Cumberbatch." [[HBO](] + "Hasan Minhaj skewers Amazon in faux holiday ad." [[Patriot Act](] + "Every Spider-Man in film & TV, explained by Kevin Smith." [[WIRED](] What's ahead this week... Monday: HBO's Bleed Out looks at the healthcare system. Tuesday: The Voice season finale on NBC... Netflix debuts Ellen DeGeneres stand-up special Relatable. Wednesday: Disney's Mary Poppins Returns arrives... Michelle Obama's Becoming book tour takes Brooklyn's Barclays Center... Survivor finale on CBS. Thursday: Timeless returns for two-part series finale on NBC... Murphy Brown wraps up on CBS. Friday: Warner Bros.' Aquaman swims into theaters... Paramount's Bumblebee sets off... STX unveils J.Lo's Second Act... Universal rolls out Welcome to Marwen... Antoine Fuqua examines Suge Knight in Showtime's American Dream/American Knightmare. From the archives... + Today in 1989: Fox debuted The Simpsons as its own stand-alone show with a Christmas special episode, "Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire Christmas Special," kickstarting the 30-season behemoth that's still running: "The animation is little better than what we get on Saturday morning cartoons. But, oddly enough, that generally works in favor of the show's satiric intent." [Flashback review.]( Today's birthdays: Nat Wolff, 24, Kiersey Clemons, 25, Katheryn Winnick, 41, Milla Jovovich, 43, Sarah Paulson, 44, Giovanni Ribisi, 44, Rian Johnson, 45, Claire Forlani, 47, Laurie Holden, 49, Peter Farrelly, 62, Bill Pullman, 65, Eugene Levy, 72. Enjoy reading this? Six days a week, look for Today in Entertainment in your inbox to stay up-to-date on the industry. Sign up for this newsletter (and others) at [THR.com/Newsletters](. Follow The News Is this email not displaying correctly? 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