'Scary' B.O.; CBS-Viacom Nears; Netflix Land Grab; Epstein Autopsy; Teen Choice Awards

What's news: Hobbs & Shaw won the weekend, but Scary Stories almost delivered an upset, Viacom and CBS are thisclose to a deal, Jeffrey Epstein's autopsy results are "pending further information," Universal has pulled The Hunt. Plus: Inside Netflix's global expansion, and BTS takes a break. --Alex Weprin [The Hollywood Reporter]( [The Hollywood Reporter]( Today In Entertainment AUGUST 12, 2019 What's news: Hobbs & Shaw won the weekend, but Scary Stories almost delivered an upset, Viacom and CBS are thisclose to a deal, Jeffrey Epstein's autopsy results are "pending further information," Universal has pulled The Hunt. Plus: Inside Netflix's global expansion, and BTS takes a break. --Alex Weprin What's news: Hobbs & Shaw won the weekend, but Scary Stories almost delivered an upset, Viacom and CBS are thisclose to a deal, Jeffrey Epstein's autopsy results are "pending further information," Universal has pulled The Hunt. Plus: Inside Netflix's global expansion, and BTS takes a break. --Alex Weprin [A 'Scary' Surprise] A 'Scary' Surprise ►Box Office: While Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw won the weekend as expected, CBS Films', Lionsgate's and eOne's Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark gave the action flick a surprise run for its money. Hobbs & Shaw earned $25.4 million for the weekend, with Scary Stories drawing $20.8 million after topping Hobbs & Shaw [on Friday night](. Meanwhile, Dora and the Lost City of Gold placed fourth with $17 million, behind The Lion King, which earned $20 million. +The other new films to open this weekend, The Art of Racing in the Rain, and The Kitchen, underperformed, earning $8.1 million and $5.5 million, respectively. [The numbers](. +A slow August. August is always an unusual month for feature films. While there have been a handful of surprise breakouts in recent years (The Help, We're The Millers) that give hope to studios looking to break through in the otherwise slow month, that appears unlikely to happen this year. Paramount, Warner Bros. and Fox all had disappointing weeks at the box office (Racing in the Rain will be the penultimate film for Fox 2000, which is now owned by Disney), and no obvious breakouts on the horizon. +Quote: "Hobbs & Shaw looks like the only $100 million hit in August, and even that film is flying a bit under the radar," says box office analyst Jeff Bock of Exhibitor Relations. "Next weekend is for all-intensive purposes summer’s last gasp ... and odds are it will go out with a whimper." [The story](. ►Watch out for BTS: The K-pop group debuted their new behind-the-scenes documentary Bring the Soul: The Movie this weekend, and while its U.S. haul of $4.4 million was modest, it [pulled in $13 million globally](. Meanwhile, Big Hit Entertainment, the South Korean entertainment company behind BTS, announced that the group will [soon be taking]( an “official and extended period of rest and relaxation.” It will be the group's first big break since their 2013 debut. ►The Hunt has been called off. The satire thriller from Universal and Blumhouse, in which liberal elites hunt "deplorables" for sport, has been pulled from the release schedule. It had been set for a Sept. 27 debut. Last week Universal paused its marketing for the film in the wake of the shootings in Texas and Ohio. President Trump took aim at the film on Friday and over the weekend, tweeting that "the movie coming out is made in order to inflame and cause chaos. They create their own violence, and then try to blame others. They are the true Racists, and are very bad for our Country!" [The story](. Elsewhere in film... --The Hong Kong film industry [bows to Beijing's boycott](of Taiwan's Golden Horse awards. -- The stars and director of Brian Banks talk to Hilary Lewis [about releasing a film]( about a man falsely accused of rape in the #MeToo era. --BAFTA's casting award addition [draws](industry praise. --Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark and [the next generation]( of horror. --Comedian Sarah Silverman[revealed on Bill Simmons' podcast]( that she lost a role in an upcoming film due to a photo from her Comedy Central program that showed her in blackface. --Even The Angry Birds Movie 2 has some [political messaging](in it. A 'Scary' Surprise ►Box Office: While Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw won the weekend as expected, CBS Films', Lionsgate's and eOne's Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark gave the action flick a surprise run for its money. Hobbs & Shaw earned $25.4 million for the weekend, with Scary Stories drawing $20.8 million after topping Hobbs & Shaw [on Friday night](. Meanwhile, Dora and the Lost City of Gold placed fourth with $17 million, behind The Lion King, which earned $20 million. +The other new films to open this weekend, The Art of Racing in the Rain, and The Kitchen, underperformed, earning $8.1 million and $5.5 million, respectively. [The numbers](. +A slow August. August is always an unusual month for feature films. While there have been a handful of surprise breakouts in recent years (The Help, We're The Millers) that give hope to studios looking to break through in the otherwise slow month, that appears unlikely to happen this year. Paramount, Warner Bros. and Fox all had disappointing weeks at the box office (Racing in the Rain will be the penultimate film for Fox 2000, which is now owned by Disney), and no obvious breakouts on the horizon. +Quote: "Hobbs & Shaw looks like the only $100 million hit in August, and even that film is flying a bit under the radar," says box office analyst Jeff Bock of Exhibitor Relations. "Next weekend is for all-intensive purposes summer’s last gasp ... and odds are it will go out with a whimper." [The story](. ►Watch out for BTS: The K-pop group debuted their new behind-the-scenes documentary Bring the Soul: The Movie this weekend, and while its U.S. haul of $4.4 million was modest, it [pulled in $13 million globally](. Meanwhile, Big Hit Entertainment, the South Korean entertainment company behind BTS, announced that the group will [soon be taking]( an “official and extended period of rest and relaxation.” It will be the group's first big break since their 2013 debut. ►The Hunt has been called off. The satire thriller from Universal and Blumhouse, in which liberal elites hunt "deplorables" for sport, has been pulled from the release schedule. It had been set for a Sept. 27 debut. Last week Universal paused its marketing for the film in the wake of the shootings in Texas and Ohio. President Trump took aim at the film on Friday and over the weekend, tweeting that "the movie coming out is made in order to inflame and cause chaos. They create their own violence, and then try to blame others. They are the true Racists, and are very bad for our Country!" [The story](. Elsewhere in film... --The Hong Kong film industry [bows to Beijing's boycott](of Taiwan's Golden Horse awards. -- The stars and director of Brian Banks talk to Hilary Lewis [about releasing a film]( about a man falsely accused of rape in the #MeToo era. --BAFTA's casting award addition [draws](industry praise. --Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark and [the next generation]( of horror. --Comedian Sarah Silverman[revealed on Bill Simmons' podcast]( that she lost a role in an upcoming film due to a photo from her Comedy Central program that showed her in blackface. --Even The Angry Birds Movie 2 has some [political messaging](in it. [Deal, Or No Deal?] Deal, Or No Deal? As of this morning, CBS and Viacom have not announced their merger plans. Don't let that fool you into thinking there won't be a deal, however. +Final negotiations. The boards for both companies worked all weekend and "negotiated late into the night, trying to hash out a price for the long-awaited merger," [according to]( Bloomberg's Nabila Ahmed, Ed Hammond and Lucas Shaw. While many details of the merger have been approved, the price and a few small details remain sticking points. +The exchange ratio: [According to]( The Wall Street Journal's Ben Mullin and Dana Cimilluca, the exchange ratio for the merger will be between 0.59 and 0.60, which would represent "a small premium for CBS shareholders." +The board and leadership: Per Bloomberg, CBS would get 6 seats on the board, Viacom would get 4 seats, and National Amusements would get two. Strauss Zelnick, the CEO of Take-Two Interactive and interim CBS board chairman, would not continue in an executive role. As previously reported, Viacom CEO Bob Bakish would be CEO of the new company, while CBS CEO Joe Ianniello would be offered a job running the CBS-branded assets. +What's next? With negotiations so near to completion, a deal could be announced as soon as today, or early Tuesday morning. Of course, given how they have proceeded so far, further delays seem entirely possible. ►Outrage after Jeffrey Epstein's suicide. The FBI, the Department of Justice inspector general, and the U.S. Attorney's Office are all investigating the circumstances around Epstein's death, including how he was able to kill himself after reportedly attempting suicide last month. [The story](. +Jeffrey Epstein autopsy results are "pending." The New York City medical examiner's office said in a statement yesterday that the results of his autopsy are "pending further information." The statement also said that Epstein's representatives requested that Dr. Michael Baden observe the autopsy. [More](. +Dr. Baden is a well-known media personality. He has served as New York City's chief medical examiner, and was on Congressional Select Committees that investigated the assassinations of President Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr. He is also a Fox News contributor, and was the host of the long-running HBO docuseries Autopsy, which aired 9 seasons between 1994-2008. He also served as an expert witness for OJ Simpson's defense team in his 1995 murder trial. ►The Teen Choice Awards: Fox aired the awards show last night, which included Taylor Swift receiving the Icon Award. You can find the [full list of winners here](. +Swift used her acceptance speech to talk about gender inequality. [More](. Elsewhere in TV... --HBO Max has [snagged U.S. rights]( to a comedy called Starstruck from comedian Rose Matafeo and Avalon Television. --Daniel Fienberg [reviews]( AMC's The Terror: Infamy. --The creators of Netflix's GLOW [discuss the show's season 3 cliffhanger]( with Jackie Strause, and how it could set up a potential season 4. --Season 3 of Netflix's The Crown will debut Nov. 17. --Spoiler alert: A star of HBO's Succession [breaks down]( the season two premiere bombshell. --President Trump [lashed out]( at HBO host Bill Maher on Twitter over the weekend. Deal, Or No Deal? As of this morning, CBS and Viacom have not announced their merger plans. Don't let that fool you into thinking there won't be a deal, however. +Final negotiations. The boards for both companies worked all weekend and "negotiated late into the night, trying to hash out a price for the long-awaited merger," [according to]( Bloomberg's Nabila Ahmed, Ed Hammond and Lucas Shaw. While many details of the merger have been approved, the price and a few small details remain sticking points. +The exchange ratio: [According to]( The Wall Street Journal's Ben Mullin and Dana Cimilluca, the exchange ratio for the merger will be between 0.59 and 0.60, which would represent "a small premium for CBS shareholders." +The board and leadership: Per Bloomberg, CBS would get 6 seats on the board, Viacom would get 4 seats, and National Amusements would get two. Strauss Zelnick, the CEO of Take-Two Interactive and interim CBS board chairman, would not continue in an executive role. As previously reported, Viacom CEO Bob Bakish would be CEO of the new company, while CBS CEO Joe Ianniello would be offered a job running the CBS-branded assets. +What's next? With negotiations so near to completion, a deal could be announced as soon as today, or early Tuesday morning. Of course, given how they have proceeded so far, further delays seem entirely possible. ►Outrage after Jeffrey Epstein's suicide. The FBI, the Department of Justice inspector general, and the U.S. Attorney's Office are all investigating the circumstances around Epstein's death, including how he was able to kill himself after reportedly attempting suicide last month. [The story](. +Jeffrey Epstein autopsy results are "pending." The New York City medical examiner's office said in a statement yesterday that the results of his autopsy are "pending further information." The statement also said that Epstein's representatives requested that Dr. Michael Baden observe the autopsy. [More](. +Dr. Baden is a well-known media personality. He has served as New York City's chief medical examiner, and was on Congressional Select Committees that investigated the assassinations of President Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr. He is also a Fox News contributor, and was the host of the long-running HBO docuseries Autopsy, which aired 9 seasons between 1994-2008. He also served as an expert witness for OJ Simpson's defense team in his 1995 murder trial. ►The Teen Choice Awards: Fox aired the awards show last night, which included Taylor Swift receiving the Icon Award. You can find the [full list of winners here](. +Swift used her acceptance speech to talk about gender inequality. [More](. Elsewhere in TV... --HBO Max has [snagged U.S. rights]( to a comedy called Starstruck from comedian Rose Matafeo and Avalon Television. --Daniel Fienberg [reviews]( AMC's The Terror: Infamy. --The creators of Netflix's GLOW [discuss the show's season 3 cliffhanger]( with Jackie Strause, and how it could set up a potential season 4. --Season 3 of Netflix's The Crown will debut Nov. 17. --Spoiler alert: A star of HBO's Succession [breaks down]( the season two premiere bombshell. --President Trump [lashed out]( at HBO host Bill Maher on Twitter over the weekend. [Netflix's Global Reach] Netflix's Global Reach ►Netflix's global real-estate grab. As Netflix has expanded its service around the world, it has been growing its physical presence accordingly. Scott Roxborough and Alex Ritman dig into the global expansion, which includes studios in London, Toronto, New York, Mexico, New Mexico, and Madrid, and high-priced office space in Tokyo, Seoul, Sydney, Singapore, and elsewhere. "In short, whether it’s on a soundstage in Mexico or in a boardroom in Mumbai, Netflix is exporting its 'disrupter' corporate ethos on a global scale." [The story](. +Netflix has also been pushing the boundaries of technological innovation in Hollywood. Netflix's desire for 4K content led to the ARRI camera company releasing a new model that some in the industry refer to as "The Netflix Camera," Carolyn Giardina writes. The company also has its hands in developing editing software, and pioneering new forms of content such as the interactive programming it has released in recent months. "The company is having a penetrating impact not only on which content is made and how it is distributed and consumed, but also on the very tech that creates it." [More](. ►Twitter gaming engagement on the rise. 2019 is shaping up to a record-breaking year for gaming content and conversation on Twitter, Patrick Shanley reports. Esports events, as well as news-driven events like Tyler "Ninja" Blevins' move from Twitch to Mixer have helped gaming-related tweets grow by 20 percent year-over-year. +It's global, too. "The U.S. has been the country that seems to be tweeting the most about gaming, but in the past year we’ve actually seen Japan grow and take the No. 1 spot. That’s something we’re digging into, but it really speaks to how gaming is global," says Rishi Chadha, head of gaming content partnerships at Twitter. [The story](. +In other digital news: The books of JD Salinger [will be released]( in a digital format for the first time. The week ahead... --In TV: Netflix's drama Mindhunter drops its second season on Friday. AMC's The Terror: Infamy debuts tonight at 9. Other season debuts this week include AMC's Lodge 49, TruTV's Adam Ruins Everything on Tuesday, VH1'a Black Ink Crew on Wednesday. HBO debuts the comedy The Righteous Gemstones next Sunday. The season three finale of Hulu's The Handmaid's Tale streams Wednesday. --In film: The Angry Birds Movie 2 premieres Wednesday. On Friday Richard Linklater's Where'd You Go Bernadette opens. Also opening Friday: Good Boys, and Blinded By The Light. --Woodstock: Thursday marks the 50th anniversary of the iconic music festival. Obituaries: [Piero Tosi](, the Italian costume designer who collaborated with director Luchino Visconti on The Leopard and Death in Venice and was the first of his craft to receive an honorary Oscar, has died. He was 92... Legendary comic book artist [Ernie Colón]( has died of cancer. He was 88... [Danny Gordon Taylor](, an animation specialist who earned an Oscar nomination for his efforts on the Hugh Jackman-starring Real Steel, has died. He was 69... Singer-songwriter [David Berman](, leader of indie bands Silver Jews and Purple Mountains, has died, according to Purple Mountains' label, Drag City Records... What else we're reading... --"Netflix needs to grow, but it’s sacrificing great original series to do so" [[The Verge](] --"YouTube’s Susan Wojcicki: 'Where's the line of free speech – are you removing voices that should be heard?'" [[The Guardian](] --"America's Got Talent, the television juggernaut no one knows how to stop" [[Washington Post](] --"Seth MacFarlane has quietly become one of Hollywood’s major political donors" [[LA Times](] --"One bad headline cost him his job at ESPN. The priesthood brought healing" [[Sports Business Daily](] Today's birthdays: Michael Ian Black, 48, Bruce Greenwood, 63, Cara Delevingne, 27, Casey Affleck, 44, Maggie Lawson, 39, Yvette Nicole Brown, 48. Netflix's Global Reach ►Netflix's global real-estate grab. As Netflix has expanded its service around the world, it has been growing its physical presence accordingly. Scott Roxborough and Alex Ritman dig into the global expansion, which includes studios in London, Toronto, New York, Mexico, New Mexico, and Madrid, and high-priced office space in Tokyo, Seoul, Sydney, Singapore, and elsewhere. "In short, whether it’s on a soundstage in Mexico or in a boardroom in Mumbai, Netflix is exporting its 'disrupter' corporate ethos on a global scale." [The story](. +Netflix has also been pushing the boundaries of technological innovation in Hollywood. Netflix's desire for 4K content led to the ARRI camera company releasing a new model that some in the industry refer to as "The Netflix Camera," Carolyn Giardina writes. The company also has its hands in developing editing software, and pioneering new forms of content such as the interactive programming it has released in recent months. "The company is having a penetrating impact not only on which content is made and how it is distributed and consumed, but also on the very tech that creates it." [More](. ►Twitter gaming engagement on the rise. 2019 is shaping up to a record-breaking year for gaming content and conversation on Twitter, Patrick Shanley reports. Esports events, as well as news-driven events like Tyler "Ninja" Blevins' move from Twitch to Mixer have helped gaming-related tweets grow by 20 percent year-over-year. +It's global, too. "The U.S. has been the country that seems to be tweeting the most about gaming, but in the past year we’ve actually seen Japan grow and take the No. 1 spot. That’s something we’re digging into, but it really speaks to how gaming is global," says Rishi Chadha, head of gaming content partnerships at Twitter. [The story](. +In other digital news: The books of JD Salinger [will be released]( in a digital format for the first time. The week ahead... --In TV: Netflix's drama Mindhunter drops its second season on Friday. AMC's The Terror: Infamy debuts tonight at 9. Other season debuts this week include AMC's Lodge 49, TruTV's Adam Ruins Everything on Tuesday, VH1'a Black Ink Crew on Wednesday. HBO debuts the comedy The Righteous Gemstones next Sunday. The season three finale of Hulu's The Handmaid's Tale streams Wednesday. --In film: The Angry Birds Movie 2 premieres Wednesday. On Friday Richard Linklater's Where'd You Go Bernadette opens. Also opening Friday: Good Boys, and Blinded By The Light. --Woodstock: Thursday marks the 50th anniversary of the iconic music festival. Obituaries: [Piero Tosi](, the Italian costume designer who collaborated with director Luchino Visconti on The Leopard and Death in Venice and was the first of his craft to receive an honorary Oscar, has died. He was 92... Legendary comic book artist [Ernie Colón]( has died of cancer. He was 88... [Danny Gordon Taylor](, an animation specialist who earned an Oscar nomination for his efforts on the Hugh Jackman-starring Real Steel, has died. He was 69... Singer-songwriter [David Berman](, leader of indie bands Silver Jews and Purple Mountains, has died, according to Purple Mountains' label, Drag City Records... What else we're reading... --"Netflix needs to grow, but it’s sacrificing great original series to do so" [[The Verge](] --"YouTube’s Susan Wojcicki: 'Where's the line of free speech – are you removing voices that should be heard?'" [[The Guardian](] --"America's Got Talent, the television juggernaut no one knows how to stop" [[Washington Post](] --"Seth MacFarlane has quietly become one of Hollywood’s major political donors" [[LA Times](] --"One bad headline cost him his job at ESPN. The priesthood brought healing" [[Sports Business Daily](] Today's birthdays: Michael Ian Black, 48, Bruce Greenwood, 63, Cara Delevingne, 27, Casey Affleck, 44, Maggie Lawson, 39, Yvette Nicole Brown, 48. [Image] [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Instagram]( [LinkedIn]( Is this e-mail not displaying correctly? 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