Netflix's $24B Slide; Will Smith vs. Will Smith; Streaming Price Points Poll; WGA Election

What's news: Netflix keeps up its slide. Plus: Facebook's $5 billion fine, Ang Lee previews Gemini Man, the Writers Guild prepares for a key election and Americans share how much they want to pay for streaming services. — Erik Hayden July 24, 2019 What's news: Netflix keeps up its slide. Plus: Facebook's $5 billion fine, Ang Lee previews Gemini Man, the Writers Guild prepares for a key election and Americans share how much they want to pay for streaming services. — Erik Hayden Netflix's Wall Street Woes Long week: Netflix's disappointing quarter reported last Wednesday has caused the streaming darling to shed more than $24 billion in value in six days as the stock has sunk 15 percent, Paul Bond writes: + Netflix's largest fall in recent days came last Thursday when the stock dropped 10 percent, knocking $17 billion from its market capitalization. + The bright side: Longtime holders of Netflix stock have profited mightily as its shares have surged 3,300 percent in less than nine years, but analysts don't expect anything near that sort of return going forward, and the heavy volume of trading over the past nine days suggests many [investors are cashing in.]( + Offers even cheaper plan in India. Netflix on Wednesday launched its mobile-only plan for India at a price below expectations. The plan costs $2.90 per month, less than the $3.63 suggested when Netflix was testing out the plan back in March. [Details.]( Meanwhile... — "Justice Dept. ratchets up antitrust scrutiny of Big Tech." "The probe will take into account 'widespread concerns' about social media, search engines and online retail services. Its antitrust division is seeking information from the public, including those in the tech industry," [the AP reports.]( Elsewhere in TV... ► HBO's operating income grew slightly to $573 million in the second quarter, even though subscription revenue declined "due to lower domestic linear subscribers." (A specific figure wasn't disclosed). [AT&T earnings.]( ► Lifetime plans Epstein, R. Kelly projects. The network plans a follow-up to Surviving R. Kelly as well as a doc that will look into how Epstein used connections to allegedly shield predatory behavior. Titled [Surviving Jeffrey Epstein](. ► HBO's Big Little Lies finishes with series-high viewership. The finale drew just under 2 million viewers — 1.98 million, to be precise. It passed the season one finale (1.86 million) as the show's most-watched hour for its [first airing.]( ► Amazon swaps in Janelle Monáe for Julia Roberts. The actress-singer will take over the leading role in the Sam Esmail drama Homecoming for season two. Roberts only had a one-season deal for[the series.]( ► Netflix's When They See Us dominates African American film critics' TV honors. Ava DuVernay's acclaimed limited series about the Central Park Five case will collect four of ten total awards. [Full list.]( ^New survey: How much are Americans willing to pay for streaming services? Ideally, $21. And how much awareness is there for Netflix competitors like HBO Max?. [THR/Morning Consult poll results + charts.]( ► Showtime's The L Word revival adds to cast. Olivia Thirlby Fortune Feimster, Lex Scott Davis and Sophie Giannamore have been tapped to guest on Generation Q, the eight-episode revival series debuting [in the fall.]( ► O’Dell Beckham Jr. launches production company. The NFL star has formed ITN Productions, part of a pact with Brent Montgomery’s Wheelhouse Entertainment, to develop unscripted programming [for TV.]( ► Dick Wolf's company makes key exec hire. Former CBS exec David Brownfield will be executive vp programming at Wolf Entertainment, with oversight of all the company's scripted programs like NBC's Law & Order: SVU [and more.]( ► Michele Fazekas, Tara Butters hire ABC Studios exec. The duo have hired Juan Alfonso as head of TV for their eponymous production company. Alfonso worked with Fazekas and Butters on their series Agent Carter. [Statement.]( NBCUniversal expects to rake in $1.2B+ for 2020 Olympics. Dan Lovinger, executive vp ad sales, NBC Sports Group, said the network is pacing "significantly ahead" of its sales goals compared to Rio, but he would not disclose the total ad dollar target [for Tokyo.]( Ang Lee's Big Bet Will Smith vs. young Will Smith: Director Ang Lee showed off what might arguably be among the emotive and realistic CG humans ever created in Hollywood during a preview Tuesday of Gemini Man. Carolyn Giardina writes: + Higher frame rates: Directors such as Lee and James Cameron are exploring the potential of employing frame rates higher than 24fps in movie production to take advantage of capabilities such as the ability to create a smoother 3D image. + "Will is twice as expensive," Lee quipped during the presentation. He also discussed directing CG Smith's performance, saying "the biggest problem is Will is a much better actor today than he was 30 years ago." [At the preview.]( Elsewhere... ► Malaysian film industry looks past 1MDB scandal. A new government-appointed film chief is working to boost transparency and revamp the incentive scheme at the country's Iskandar Malaysia Studios. [Full report.]( ► Leading anime director feared dead in Kyoto attack. Yasuhiro Takemoto, co-director of feature The Disappearance, by Kyoto Animation, is feared to be among the 34 who died in the [arson attack.]( ► Amazon, StudioCanal plan Louis Wain. Benedict Cumberbatch and Claire Foy are set for the drama about a real-life Victorian painter, with Will Sharpe helming. The shoot begins in August [in London.]( ^Trailer watch: Taika Waititi plays Hitler in [Jojo Rabbit]( satire (Oct. 18) ... Focus unveils Harriet Tubman biopic [Harriet]( (Nov. 1) ... STX Entertainment bets on animated [Playmobil]((Aug. 30). ► Fox Animation rounds out Spies in Disguise. Reba McEntire and Rachel Brosnahan are joining the voice cast of the feature, led by Will Smith as the world’s most awesome spy. It hits theaters [on Dec. 25.]( ► FilmRise picks up Alex Wolff's directorial debut. The coming-of-age story, The Cat and the Moon, which the Hereditary actor directed and stars in, was nabbed with an eye for a theatrical release in 2019. [More.]( ► Jackie Chan, Arnold Schwarzenegger film gets release plan. The long delayed China-Russia fantasy film The Mystery of the Dragon Seal is finally headed to cinemas in the two countries. [But no U.S. date yet.]( ► Cineworld strikes new deal with Imax. The pact brings 15 new Imax screens with laser projection systems to Regal theaters across the U.S. The upgraded theaters will include immersive sound and plush rocker [seating.]( ► Fantasia Film Fest unveils honors. South Korea's political thriller Idol (Woo Sang) nabbed the Cheval Noir trophy for best feature and scored a best actor tie for Han Seok-kyu and Sul Kyung-gu. [Other winners.]( ► WGA West reveals officer and board candidates. The election will be members' first opportunity to signal en masse whether they want to stay the course in the fight against the major talent agencies. [The candidates.]( ► Alleged Disneyland fight participants charged. The Orange County District Attorney's Office on Tuesday said that multiple felonies and misdemeanors had been filed against numerous people after video of a large, brutal fight at Anaheim's Disneyland [went viral.]( A League of Their Own town plans Penny Marshall celebration. The director, who died last year, will be honored at the Sept. 13-15 event in Rockford, Ill., as plans for the International Women's Baseball museum will be [unveiled.]( Phil's Sunday Movie Night Joel Stein visits Phil Rosenthal: The pizza oven is from Mozza, his films are first-run, and the guests are A-listers like Amy Adams and Carl Reiner. Stein writes: + When Rosenthal bought his house in 2007, he made Sunday Movie Nights the center of his renovation plans. He had recently begged Nancy Silverton to let him invest in her upcoming restaurant Mozza. + The pizza night regulars are influential enough that studios have asked to preview movies here, often with the director or cast doing a Q&A; these screenings have included The Social Network, Chef, Coco and I, Tonya. [Story.]( What else we're reading... — "Stunning rebuke, historic $5 billion fine against Facebook." Tony Romm notes: "serious concerns emerged Wednesday that the punishments the government secured do not actually alter the way Facebook collects and monetizes its users’ data." [[Washington Post](] — "U.S. poised to approve merger of T-Mobile, Sprint." A triple-byline report: it "would create a third major U.S. wireless company with more than 80 million customers." [[Wall Street Journal](] — "Netflix is having a long, cruel summer." Mary McNamara notes: "The only thing Americans love more than a highly successful brand enterprise is a highly successful brand enterprise that stumbles." [[Los Angeles Times](] — "How two TV writers scored two series after years of struggle." Dan Hyman writes: "This month brings the debut of two very different shows by Bashir Salahuddin and Diallo Riddle." [[New York Times](] — "Motion smoothing is ruining cinema." Bilge Ebiri asks: "Filmmakers hate it. Viewers do, too. So why is it the default setting on almost every new TV in America?" [[New York](] — "How Orange Is the New Black changed TV." Alison Herman writes: "As one of Netflix’s flagship series comes to an end, it’s worth looking back on how it altered not only the way television is made - but how it is watched." [[The Ringer](] Last night on late night... + "Casey Affleck is Bat-Man!" [[Jimmy Kimmel](] + "Retta has a TV in almost every room of her house." [[Seth Meyers](] + "Tony Hale once ripped his pants during an audition." [[Stephen Colbert](] From the archives... + Today in 1998: On July 24, 1998, Saving Private Ryan stormed cinemas. Steven Spielberg's World War II drama went on to win five Oscars: "the visual masterwork finds Spielberg atop his craft." [Flashback review.]( Today's birthdays: Emily Bett Rickards, 28, Elisabeth Moss, 37, Anna Paquin, 37, Rose Byrne, 40, Patty Jenkins, 48, Jennifer Lopez, 50, Kristin Chenoweth, 51, Doug Liman, 54, Gus Van Sant, 67, Lynda Carter, 68, Michael Richards, 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]( July 24, 2019