Disney Rehires Gunn; 'Flash' Shocker; DeGrasse Tyson Returns; TV Ratings Long View

What's news: Ezra Miller's plan to keep his role as The Flash. Plus: Disney rehires James Gunn, Neil DeGrasse Tyson is returning to TV and critics pick the best films of SXSW. — Erik Hayden [The Hollywood Reporter - Today In Entertainment]( March 16, 2019 What's news: Ezra Miller's plan to keep his role as The Flash. Plus: Disney rehires James Gunn, Neil DeGrasse Tyson is returning to TV and critics pick the best films of SXSW. — Erik Hayden 'Flash' Shocker Developing: In a bid to keep himself involved as the Scarlet Speedster, actor Ezra Miller is taking a hands-on approach to The Flash, Borys Kit reports: + Ezra Miller is taking a stab at writing the script for the Warner Bros. project. He has teamed up with Grant Morrison, the acclaimed comics author, to pen a draft that could determine if he stays on as star, playing crimefighter Barry Allen. + The script could be submitted to the studio as early as next week. But there could be a lot riding on it. If Warners chooses against Miller's take on the hero, the actor could part ways with the project. [Full story.]( Elsewhere in film... ► Disney rehires James Gunn. After he had been fired for old offensive tweets, Marvel had never undertaken a search and had gone back to Gunn and made a deal in secret to direct Guardians of the Galaxy 3, according to insiders. [Details.]( ► Blumhouse's The Hunt finds one of its stars. Ike Barinholtz has joined the politically charged action-thriller from screenwriters Damon Lindelof and Nick Cuse. [Left vs. right thriller.]( ► MPAA criticized over R-rated anti-abortion movie. Filmmakers of Pure Flix's Unplanned argue that there is no profanity, gore, violence or anything else associated with a movie receiving a ["Restricted" rating.]( ► Keira Knightly thriller to close San Francisco film fest. Gavin Hood’s political film Official Secrets has been selected to serve as the closing-night film at the festival, which runs [April 10-23.]( ► Cinema Guild nabs The Wandering Soap Opera. The late Chilean master Raul Ruiz's 1990 unfinished film was completed by his widow Valeria Sarmiento and premiered in Locarno in 2017. It will get a [theatrical release.]( [Q&A:]( Justin Baldoni talks about the personal story behind directorial debut Five Feet Apart. New reviews... + [The Art of Self-Defense]( — "Jesse Eisenberg plays a mugging victim who wants to learn karate in Riley Stearns' offbeat film." + [Captive State]( — "John Goodman and Ashton Sanders star in Rupert Wyatt's sci-fi thriller about the aftermath of an alien invasion." + [Never Grow Old]( — "Emile Hirsch and John Cusack star in Ivan Kavanagh's Western about an outlaw who takes over a frontier town." **Plus: Hollywood Reporter critics pick the [best films of SXSW.]( Tim Burton to get career honor in Italy. He'll be honored with the career excellence award in person at the 64th edition of the David di Donatello honors, Italy's top film awards ceremony. [Details.]( TV's Long View A common complaint about TV ratings in the era of big data goes something like, "Why does everyone rely on a relatively small and antiquated Nielsen sample when set-top boxes can collect so much more information?" Rick Porter writes: + It's true: There are some 60 million set-top boxes connected to cable and satellite systems, and a lot — though by no means all — of them can return data on who's watching which shows to the providers. + The users of those set-top boxes, however, are not representative of the country of the whole, a [new Nielsen study]( found. Not only have the number of households using broadband only or over-the-air signals risen by a lot in recent years, but also relying on only on set-top box data would significantly undercount African-Americans and Hispanics and young-adult viewers.[Full column.]( Elsewhere in TV... ► Fox, Nat Geo bring back Neil deGrasse Tyson. The astrophysicist has been accused of inappropriate behavior by three women, but the networks say they're ready to put StarTalk and Cosmos back on [their schedules.]( ► Warner Bros. TV signs Arrow showrunner. Beth Schwartz, who oversees The CW's longest-running comic-book series, has signed an exclusive multiyear deal with the studio. She will create and develop [new projects.]( ► Cinedigm buys streaming platform for $60 million. The cash and stock deal for Future Today expands Chris McGurk's digital media company Cinedigm in the streaming space in India and China. [Details.]( [Quoted:]( "Was it too much? Absolutely. But is The Bachelor the poster child for overkill? Absolutely." — ABC reality chief Rob Mills on the show's marketing this season. ^Syfy's Wynonna Earp: the fight to save the cult hit. IDW Publishing, the company that owns the rights to the show (both the comic and the TV series), is struggling to find the capital to justify filming a promised fourth and fifth season. [Details.]( ► HBO's Leaving Neverland dropped on Russian state TV. The explosive documentary detailing allegations of child sex abuse against Michael Jackson had been due to air in two parts late Friday and Saturday. [Details.]( ► The CW casts Freddie Prinze Jr. in pilot. He is joining the channel's Nancy Drew pilot, becoming the latest former teen/young-adult star to take on a parental role at the network. It would be his first live-action regular role [since 2010.]( ► NBC sets Golden Globes air date. The network and the Hollywood Foreign Press Association said that the honors will air Jan. 5, 2020. As they have the past two years, the awards will air the first Sunday [in January.]( L.A. Power Dining hot spot: Bistro Jolie. A strip mall French spot in Bel Air is a rare addition to a rarefied land. Chef Cody Dickey (previously at the Malibu Beach Inn's billionaire-catering Carbon Beach Club) melds Provence and the Riviera in a low-stakes fashion. [Review.]( "Everybody's Doing It" Admissions fallout: Parents and counselors say it's common practice for parents at elite schools to pay for a doctor’s diagnosis that allows their children extra test taking time, whether they need it or not, Scott Johnson and Peter Kiefer write: + "There are high school students who have legitimate learning challenges and who honestly need these accommodations," says Evelyn Alexander, a certified educational planner based in L.A., "It’s insulting to people who truly do need the extra time, it’s just horrible." [Story.]( + Netflix's Fuller House drops Lori Loughlin. The actress won't return for the show's final season in the fall after being indicted in a college admissions bribery case. [Hallmark also.]( + "How the college admissions scandal can produce some good." Producer Peter Samuelson argues that any scholarships or income from fines be redirected to underprivileged students — especially those in the foster care system. [Column.]( What else we're reading... — "'All hands on deck' to pull New Zealand video." Alexandra Bruell reports: "Ad buyers say the scramble to pull videos of the mosque shootings shows the need for relentless attention." [[Wall Street Journal](] — "America needs Ellen DeGeneres." James Parker writes: "The daytime superstar is itching to try something new. But her brand of kindness is more necessary than ever." [[The Atlantic](] — "Hollywood’s Disney-Fox freakout." Nicole Sperling writes: "With the biggest entertainment merger in a lifetime about to close, anxiety is running high on the Fox lot and beyond." [[Vanity Fair](] — "Is Spotify suing songwriters?" Chris Leo Palermino notes: "Why all the big streaming companies are appealing a ruling that would force them to pay more to songwriters." [[Vulture](] — "Can radio tastemaker KCRW adapt to a podcast world?" Randall Roberts writes: "the broadcaster is powering down its subterranean studios and moving into a new building, the $38-million KCRW Media Center." [[Los Angeles Times](] On late night, last night... + "Monologue: price of admission." [[Bill Maher](] + "Ice T gets into real-life true crime." [[Tonight Show](] + "Being a TV cop didn't get Donnie Wahlberg out of a ticket." [[Late Show](] Today's birthdays: Paul Schneider, 43, Alan Tudyk, 48, Judah Friedlander, 50, Lauren Graham, 52, Gore Verbinski, 55, Isabelle Huppert, 66, Erik Estrada, 70. Follow The News Is this email not displaying correctly? [View it in your browser.]( ©2019 The Hollywood Reporter. 5700 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90036 All rights reserved. [Unsubscribe]( | [Manage Preferences]( | [Privacy Policy]( | [Terms of Use]( March 16, 2019