Ronan Farrow Strikes Again; H'Wood's Debt Problem; Dreamworks At 25, New THR Cover

What's news: Ronan Farrow talks about Harvey Weinstein, Matt Lauer, and his new book, entertainment giants grapple with debt, Dreamworks at 25, Apple lands the musical Christmas Carol, Gossip Girl's creators ink deals with CBS and Apple, Plus: Jeff Bridges shares his set photos. --Alex Weprin [The Hollywood Reporter]( [The Hollywood Reporter]( Today In Entertainment OCTOBER 09, 2019 What's news: Ronan Farrow talks about Harvey Weinstein, Matt Lauer, and his new book, entertainment giants grapple with debt, Dreamworks at 25, Apple lands the musical Christmas Carol, Gossip Girl's creators ink deals with CBS and Apple, Plus: Jeff Bridges shares his set photos. --Alex Weprin What's news: Ronan Farrow talks about Harvey Weinstein, Matt Lauer, and his new book, entertainment giants grapple with debt, Dreamworks at 25, Apple lands the musical Christmas Carol, Gossip Girl's creators ink deals with CBS and Apple, Plus: Jeff Bridges shares his set photos. --Alex Weprin Ronan Farrow Strikes Again [On the cover](: In his explosive new book, 'Catch and Kill,' Ronan Farrow delivers fresh details of secret payouts and how Matt Lauer may have played a role in the network’s decision to kill his 2017 Harvey Weinstein exposé. In his first interview about the book, Farrow speaks to Marisa Guthrie about Weinstein's pressure campaign, the personal toll it took on him, and more. +Weinstein's extensive efforts to kill Farrow's story: Weinstein contacted a number of NBC executives to try and kill the story, and to pursue business deals that could become conflicts. He engaged Ron Meyer about a home video and VOD deal. He also spoke frequently to NBC news chairman Andy Lack, MSNBC president Phil Griffin, and NBC News president Noah Oppenheim. He even reached out to Comcast CEO Brian Roberts, and Hillary Clinton's team (with whom Farrow was trying to secure an interview). Weinstein also huddled with an executive from American Media Inc., publisher of The National Enquirer, to try and find pressure points to apply on NBC to kill Farrow's story. They settled on Lauer. +New information: Farrow uncovers seven allegations of workplace misconduct by Lauer, and details for the first time the complaint that led to his firing. Farrow also believes that NBC News and MSNBC have blacklisted him from appearing on their shows, with only MSNBC's Rachel Maddow able to flout the ban. He claims that NBC stymied his ability to get accusers on the record by citing a potential legal claim of "tortious interference." +The personal toll: As the work consumed him, he says he neglected his relationship with partner Jon Lovett, the former Obama speechwriter and Pod Save America podcast co-host (to whom the book is dedicated). He also took efforts to shield his mother Mia Farrow from the extent of the threats he faced from the private intelligence firm Black Cube and Weinstein. Quote: "I exposed a lot of misconduct that burned bridges, and that's fine, I can take it," Farrow says. "Thankfully, because of the way the story went, I feel like I still have momentum where I can keep breaking stories." +Weinstein's reaction to NBC killing the story. "Farrow cites a phone call in which Griffin told Weinstein the story was not running as well as a call between Weinstein attorney David Boies and Lack during which Lack told Boies: 'We've told Harvey we're not doing a story. If we decide to do a story, we'll tell him.' Weinstein was ecstatic, boasting in his offices that he would also quash the rumored Times piece: 'If I can get a network to kill a story, how hard can a newspaper be?'" [The cover story](. +Five more things we learned from Farrow's book. From Farrow's interactions with Lisa Bloom, to Harvey Weinstein's relationship to former New York Governor George Pataki, here are some of the other notable moments from the book. [The list](. +Lauer penned an open letter about the allegations made in Farrow's book. [More](. +On NBC's Today show this morning, Savannah Guthrie and Hoda Kotb said that the fresh claims about Lauer were "shocking and appalling." [More](. +In the final "Black Cube Chronicles" piece for The New Yorker, Farrow delves into the secretive source inside the private intelligence firm that sent him the information breaking the story wide open. [The story](. ^Hollywood's debt problem. Stephen Galloway explores the increasing reliance by media and entertainment giants to use debt to finance their growth. "It was getting out of control there for a while," one investment banker tells Galloway. Many major companies have an order of magnitude more debt than cash on hand, though they still have assets that could be used to pay down the debt if they so chose. The big question for these companies is whether their margins make the debt unwieldy. Quote: "If a company appears to have a high amount of debt, it may be just fine servicing it," says Scott Abrams, a professor at USC's Marshall School of Business. "While Netflix may not have the hard assets [of Comcast and AT&T], the company can service its debt due to today's low interest rates — and it will be fine as long as it continues to improve its operating margins." [The story](. +In other business news: Lionsgate weighs spinning off Starz. It's understood a corporate spinoff of the premium channel is one strategic option under consideration at Lionsgate, although picking the right market conditions is thought to be a key concern, Etan Vlessing reports. No decision has yet been taken, as the studio has in part been reacting to outside calls from Wall Street players looking to unlock hidden value at Starz. [More](. +Also: John Malone's Liberty Latin America has acquired AT&T's Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands operations for $1.95 billion in cash as Liberty Global's spin-off company expands in the region. [More](. ►Apple lands Will Ferrell and Ryan Reynolds' A Christmas Carol. Coming out on top of a bidding war, Apple is in final negotiations to pick up Will Ferrell and Ryan Reynolds’ musical reimagining of the Charles Dickens classic The two A-listers will be starring in the piece that is set to be directed by Sean Anders and John Morris. The writing-directing team previously worked with Ferrell on the two Daddy’s Home comedies. [The story](. Ronan Farrow Strikes Again [On the cover](: In his explosive new book, 'Catch and Kill,' Ronan Farrow delivers fresh details of secret payouts and how Matt Lauer may have played a role in the network’s decision to kill his 2017 Harvey Weinstein exposé. In his first interview about the book, Farrow speaks to Marisa Guthrie about Weinstein's pressure campaign, the personal toll it took on him, and more. +Weinstein's extensive efforts to kill Farrow's story: Weinstein contacted a number of NBC executives to try and kill the story, and to pursue business deals that could become conflicts. He engaged Ron Meyer about a home video and VOD deal. He also spoke frequently to NBC news chairman Andy Lack, MSNBC president Phil Griffin, and NBC News president Noah Oppenheim. He even reached out to Comcast CEO Brian Roberts, and Hillary Clinton's team (with whom Farrow was trying to secure an interview). Weinstein also huddled with an executive from American Media Inc., publisher of The National Enquirer, to try and find pressure points to apply on NBC to kill Farrow's story. They settled on Lauer. +New information: Farrow uncovers seven allegations of workplace misconduct by Lauer, and details for the first time the complaint that led to his firing. Farrow also believes that NBC News and MSNBC have blacklisted him from appearing on their shows, with only MSNBC's Rachel Maddow able to flout the ban. He claims that NBC stymied his ability to get accusers on the record by citing a potential legal claim of "tortious interference." +The personal toll: As the work consumed him, he says he neglected his relationship with partner Jon Lovett, the former Obama speechwriter and Pod Save America podcast co-host (to whom the book is dedicated). He also took efforts to shield his mother Mia Farrow from the extent of the threats he faced from the private intelligence firm Black Cube and Weinstein. Quote: "I exposed a lot of misconduct that burned bridges, and that's fine, I can take it," Farrow says. "Thankfully, because of the way the story went, I feel like I still have momentum where I can keep breaking stories." +Weinstein's reaction to NBC killing the story. "Farrow cites a phone call in which Griffin told Weinstein the story was not running as well as a call between Weinstein attorney David Boies and Lack during which Lack told Boies: 'We've told Harvey we're not doing a story. If we decide to do a story, we'll tell him.' Weinstein was ecstatic, boasting in his offices that he would also quash the rumored Times piece: 'If I can get a network to kill a story, how hard can a newspaper be?'" [The cover story](. +Five more things we learned from Farrow's book. From Farrow's interactions with Lisa Bloom, to Harvey Weinstein's relationship to former New York Governor George Pataki, here are some of the other notable moments from the book. [The list](. +Lauer penned an open letter about the allegations made in Farrow's book. [More](. +On NBC's Today show this morning, Savannah Guthrie and Hoda Kotb said that the fresh claims about Lauer were "shocking and appalling." [More](. +In the final "Black Cube Chronicles" piece for The New Yorker, Farrow delves into the secretive source inside the private intelligence firm that sent him the information breaking the story wide open. [The story](. ^Hollywood's debt problem. Stephen Galloway explores the increasing reliance by media and entertainment giants to use debt to finance their growth. "It was getting out of control there for a while," one investment banker tells Galloway. Many major companies have an order of magnitude more debt than cash on hand, though they still have assets that could be used to pay down the debt if they so chose. The big question for these companies is whether their margins make the debt unwieldy. Quote: "If a company appears to have a high amount of debt, it may be just fine servicing it," says Scott Abrams, a professor at USC's Marshall School of Business. "While Netflix may not have the hard assets [of Comcast and AT&T], the company can service its debt due to today's low interest rates — and it will be fine as long as it continues to improve its operating margins." [The story](. +In other business news: Lionsgate weighs spinning off Starz. It's understood a corporate spinoff of the premium channel is one strategic option under consideration at Lionsgate, although picking the right market conditions is thought to be a key concern, Etan Vlessing reports. No decision has yet been taken, as the studio has in part been reacting to outside calls from Wall Street players looking to unlock hidden value at Starz. [More](. +Also: John Malone's Liberty Latin America has acquired AT&T's Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands operations for $1.95 billion in cash as Liberty Global's spin-off company expands in the region. [More](. ►Apple lands Will Ferrell and Ryan Reynolds' A Christmas Carol. Coming out on top of a bidding war, Apple is in final negotiations to pick up Will Ferrell and Ryan Reynolds’ musical reimagining of the Charles Dickens classic The two A-listers will be starring in the piece that is set to be directed by Sean Anders and John Morris. The writing-directing team previously worked with Ferrell on the two Daddy’s Home comedies. [The story](. [Byron Allen v. Comcast] Byron Allen v. Comcast ►The Supreme Court race case that could reshape bias lawsuits. While the TV mogul Byron Allen alleges racism in refusing to license his niche channels, U.S. businesses worry that a win for him during the new high court term would increase legal costs and hurt their reputations, Eriq Gardner writes. The Trump administration is supporting Comcast, led by CEO Brian Roberts, telling the high court there may be repercussions for other federal anti-discrimination laws too. In fact, Solicitor General Noel Francisco has requested the opportunity to participate in the Nov. 13 oral hearings. [The story](. +In other legal news: A former CBS employee claims that she was discriminated against because she's a Mexican citizen and fired in retaliation for complaining about it, according to a lawsuit filed in New York federal court. [More](... The man accused of brutally killing TV producer and director Barry Crane in his Hollywood home back in 1985 pleaded not guilty to the charge on Tuesday, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney's office. [More](. ►CAA has signed Francis Ford Coppola. Coppola’s next project is his longtime passion project Megalopolis, about a New York master architect and city planner who seeks to realize his utopian vision. CAA Media Finance will help the film find financing and also will represent the sale of its distribution rights. [More](. ^Gossip Girl duo Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage unveil historic CBS Studios, Apple TV deals. In a Creative Space interview with THR's Lesley Goldberg, the pair discuss their multiple TV deals, their new Hulu limited series Looking For Alaska, and the forthcoming Gossip Girl reboot for HBO Max. Quote: "I don't think it's going to be a meditative version of Gossip Girl. It's a tone poem," Savage says. "If it's more explicit, that's something that we've talked about and haven't really come up with a solid take on. Like, can they swear? Maybe there will be some nudity. We haven't really figured it out." [The interview](. Elsewhere in TV... --Ratings: Fox's 911 recorded its third straight [strong ratings performance]( Monday, beating NBC's The Voice in adults 18-49 to claim the night's top spot... The first set of seven-day ratings for the fall [shows big gains]( for several first-year broadcast series.... --MSNBC and The Washington Post [have been awarded]( the fifth television debate of the 2020 Democratic primary process. --Daniel Fienberg reviews [The CW's Nancy Drew](. --Peter Weber, the next star of ABC's The Bachelor, [suffered an injury](to his face during production on the upcoming season of the reality dating franchise. --The CW has [ordered more episodes]( of All American after record premiere ratings. --Here's Aaron Couch's[full report](from the El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie premiere... A "Breaking Bad Experience" [will open]( in Los Angeles later this month. Byron Allen v. Comcast ►The Supreme Court race case that could reshape bias lawsuits. While the TV mogul Byron Allen alleges racism in refusing to license his niche channels, U.S. businesses worry that a win for him during the new high court term would increase legal costs and hurt their reputations, Eriq Gardner writes. The Trump administration is supporting Comcast, led by CEO Brian Roberts, telling the high court there may be repercussions for other federal anti-discrimination laws too. In fact, Solicitor General Noel Francisco has requested the opportunity to participate in the Nov. 13 oral hearings. [The story](. +In other legal news: A former CBS employee claims that she was discriminated against because she's a Mexican citizen and fired in retaliation for complaining about it, according to a lawsuit filed in New York federal court. [More](... The man accused of brutally killing TV producer and director Barry Crane in his Hollywood home back in 1985 pleaded not guilty to the charge on Tuesday, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney's office. [More](. ►CAA has signed Francis Ford Coppola. Coppola’s next project is his longtime passion project Megalopolis, about a New York master architect and city planner who seeks to realize his utopian vision. CAA Media Finance will help the film find financing and also will represent the sale of its distribution rights. [More](. ^Gossip Girl duo Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage unveil historic CBS Studios, Apple TV deals. In a Creative Space interview with THR's Lesley Goldberg, the pair discuss their multiple TV deals, their new Hulu limited series Looking For Alaska, and the forthcoming Gossip Girl reboot for HBO Max. Quote: "I don't think it's going to be a meditative version of Gossip Girl. It's a tone poem," Savage says. "If it's more explicit, that's something that we've talked about and haven't really come up with a solid take on. Like, can they swear? Maybe there will be some nudity. We haven't really figured it out." [The interview](. Elsewhere in TV... --Ratings: Fox's 911 recorded its third straight [strong ratings performance]( Monday, beating NBC's The Voice in adults 18-49 to claim the night's top spot... The first set of seven-day ratings for the fall [shows big gains]( for several first-year broadcast series.... --MSNBC and The Washington Post [have been awarded]( the fifth television debate of the 2020 Democratic primary process. --Daniel Fienberg reviews [The CW's Nancy Drew](. --Peter Weber, the next star of ABC's The Bachelor, [suffered an injury](to his face during production on the upcoming season of the reality dating franchise. --The CW has [ordered more episodes]( of All American after record premiere ratings. --Here's Aaron Couch's[full report](from the El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie premiere... A "Breaking Bad Experience" [will open]( in Los Angeles later this month. [Dreamworks At 25] Dreamworks At 25 As Dreamworks celebrates a quarter-century of game-changing movies about beloved characters from Shrek to Toothless — amid "a lot of pain" through ownership shifts — Rebecca Keegan reports that filmmakers are expanding their canvas ("taking a genre and twisting it") and the studio leans hard into TV's global animation boom. Quote: “[Dreamworks founder] Jeffrey [Katzenberg] is the most disciplined, the most relentless driver of the limit between the movie and the audience,” says Guillermo del Toro, who would participate in test screenings for features he was consulting on, like Rise of the Guardians and Kung Fu Panda 2. “He said to me, ‘Watch the squirm meter. If a kid starts squirming, we’ve got to know why we lost his attention or her attention.’ ” [The story](. +How How to Train Your Dragon revolutionized animation filmmaking. Carolyn Giardina writes that "DreamWorks' award-winning trilogy made advancements with every episode, most recently the rendering software MoonRay, which made the Hidden World glow." [More](. +In an exclusive excerpt from the $25,000 book celebrating Dreamworks' anniversary, Cameron Diaz writes about her bond with the character Princess Fiona, from the Shrek franchise. [The excerpt](. Elsewhere in film... --Clint Eastwood's latest movie, Richard Jewell, will have[its world premiere]( at AFI Fest. --Netflix and the Silvio Berlusconi-led Mediaset [announced their new film partnership]( Tuesday in Rome, outlining the first five movies of what will be a seven picture deal. -- Documentary Liberty: Mother of Exiles is "ultra relevant," the [filmmakers tell THR](. --Joker and when physical disability [is the punchline](. ►Here comes PlayStation 5. Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO Jim Ryan told Wired the Playstation 5 will be released in time for the holidays next year. "It's nice to be able to say it," Ryan told Wired. "Like a giant burden has been lifted from my shoulders."[More](. +Also: Former Bungie CEO Harold Ryan launches new game studio development company, ProbablyMonsters. [More](. +In other gaming news: Irvine-based Blizzard Entertainment, the video game developer and publisher behind such franchises as World of Warcraft and Overwatch, has suspended professional Hearthstone player Chung “Blitzchung” Ng Wai from its Grandmasters tournament events, the highest league in the game’s competitive scene, after he made comments supporting protestors in Hong Kong. [More](... Tencent's Timi Studios and publisher Activision broke mobile gaming industry records with the launch of Call of Duty Mobile last week, [securing more than]( 100 million downloads. ►The Dude steps behind the camera: Jeff Bridges shares personal photos from film sets. The actor has starred in more than 80 films such as True Grit, Tron and Seabiscuit— and snapped thousands of behind-the-scenes photos on nearly all. Now a new book featuring his Widelux images is heading to stores: "You've got to do something between shots." [An exclusive look](. An ex-ICM Partners agent [has sued]( for defamation over a defecation rumor... In more legal news: Reality television stars Todd and Julie Chrisley [have settled]( allegations that they failed to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars in income taxes to the state of Georgia... Director Luc Besson [appeared on]( French television Tuesday night, defending himself in the wake of a rape claim made by Belgian-Dutch actress Sand Van Roy in May 2018.... From the magazine: Tributes to Diahann Carroll. [Kerry Washington](: "There would be no Olivia Pope without her"... [Shonda Rhimes]( on casting her childhood idol in Grey's Anatomy... [Taraji P. Henson](: "She just blew me away"... [Billy Dee Williams]( remembers his classmate: "She was like sunshine"... In honors: Gwen Stefani [will receive]( the Fashion Icon Award at the 2019 People's Choice Awards on E!... The European Film Academy [has announced]( the six nominees for this year's FIPRESCI Prize for European Discovery... Renee Zellweger [will be honored]( with the Santa Barbara International Film Festival's American Riviera Award, the festival announced Tuesday... The Hollywood Film Awards [has unveiled]( another group of honorees for its 2019 awards ceremony, including Shia LaBeouf, Taron Egerton, Cynthia Erivo and Olivia Wilde... Casting roundup: Daveed Diggs, one of the stars of Hamilton, is [in final negotiations]( to join the lineup of Disney’s live-action remake of The Little Mermaid as Sebastian... Jay Williams [has inked]( a multiyear extension with ESPN/ABC and will co-host NBA Countdown, The Jump and also the morning show Get Up... Revolving door: Michael Bloom, head of unscripted programming at TNT and TBS,[is exiting](his post for a production deal... Shopify Studios [has signed]( development partnerships with Abso Lutely Productions and JASH, both founded (in part) by Tim Heidecker and Eric Wareheim... Former Patriots star Rob Gronkowski [is joining]( Fox Sports as an NFL analyst... John Wick spinoff Ballerina [has landed]( Len Wiseman as is director... Amazon Studios [has inked]( an overall deal with Little Marvin and his production company Odd Man Out... Charles Martin Smith is [set to direct]( A Gift From Bob, the Christmas-themed sequel to the 2016 A Street Cat Named Bob... ViacomCBS [has named]( DeDe Lea to run government relations... What else we're reading... --"The China cultural clash" [[Stratechery](] --"Amazon held its first big ad conference last week, luring about 400 people to Seattle" [[CNBC](] --"Ty Burrell on Saying Goodbye to Modern Family and Finding the ‘Perfect’ Follow-up Job" [[Ad Week](] --"Is this the end of makeup tutorials?" [[Business of Fashion](] From the archives... On Oct. 9, 1992, Warner Bros. released Under Siege. Set on the USS Missouri, an actual battleship that was decommissioned six months before the film's release, the film revolved around a terrorist plot to take control of the ship and sell off its nuclear arsenal. [The Hollywood Reporter's original review](. Today's birthdays: Guillermo Del Toro, 55, Bella Hadid, 23, Chris O’Dowd, 40, John O’Hurley, 65, Sharon Osbourne, 67, Tony Shalhoub, 66. Dreamworks At 25 As Dreamworks celebrates a quarter-century of game-changing movies about beloved characters from Shrek to Toothless — amid "a lot of pain" through ownership shifts — Rebecca Keegan reports that filmmakers are expanding their canvas ("taking a genre and twisting it") and the studio leans hard into TV's global animation boom. Quote: “[Dreamworks founder] Jeffrey [Katzenberg] is the most disciplined, the most relentless driver of the limit between the movie and the audience,” says Guillermo del Toro, who would participate in test screenings for features he was consulting on, like Rise of the Guardians and Kung Fu Panda 2. “He said to me, ‘Watch the squirm meter. If a kid starts squirming, we’ve got to know why we lost his attention or her attention.’ ” [The story](. +How How to Train Your Dragon revolutionized animation filmmaking. Carolyn Giardina writes that "DreamWorks' award-winning trilogy made advancements with every episode, most recently the rendering software MoonRay, which made the Hidden World glow." [More](. +In an exclusive excerpt from the $25,000 book celebrating Dreamworks' anniversary, Cameron Diaz writes about her bond with the character Princess Fiona, from the Shrek franchise. [The excerpt](. Elsewhere in film... --Clint Eastwood's latest movie, Richard Jewell, will have[its world premiere]( at AFI Fest. --Netflix and the Silvio Berlusconi-led Mediaset [announced their new film partnership]( Tuesday in Rome, outlining the first five movies of what will be a seven picture deal. -- Documentary Liberty: Mother of Exiles is "ultra relevant," the [filmmakers tell THR](. --Joker and when physical disability [is the punchline](. ►Here comes PlayStation 5. Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO Jim Ryan told Wired the Playstation 5 will be released in time for the holidays next year. "It's nice to be able to say it," Ryan told Wired. "Like a giant burden has been lifted from my shoulders."[More](. +Also: Former Bungie CEO Harold Ryan launches new game studio development company, ProbablyMonsters. [More](. +In other gaming news: Irvine-based Blizzard Entertainment, the video game developer and publisher behind such franchises as World of Warcraft and Overwatch, has suspended professional Hearthstone player Chung “Blitzchung” Ng Wai from its Grandmasters tournament events, the highest league in the game’s competitive scene, after he made comments supporting protestors in Hong Kong. [More](... Tencent's Timi Studios and publisher Activision broke mobile gaming industry records with the launch of Call of Duty Mobile last week, [securing more than]( 100 million downloads. ►The Dude steps behind the camera: Jeff Bridges shares personal photos from film sets. The actor has starred in more than 80 films such as True Grit, Tron and Seabiscuit— and snapped thousands of behind-the-scenes photos on nearly all. Now a new book featuring his Widelux images is heading to stores: "You've got to do something between shots." [An exclusive look](. An ex-ICM Partners agent [has sued]( for defamation over a defecation rumor... In more legal news: Reality television stars Todd and Julie Chrisley [have settled]( allegations that they failed to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars in income taxes to the state of Georgia... Director Luc Besson [appeared on]( French television Tuesday night, defending himself in the wake of a rape claim made by Belgian-Dutch actress Sand Van Roy in May 2018.... From the magazine: Tributes to Diahann Carroll. [Kerry Washington](: "There would be no Olivia Pope without her"... [Shonda Rhimes]( on casting her childhood idol in Grey's Anatomy... [Taraji P. Henson](: "She just blew me away"... [Billy Dee Williams]( remembers his classmate: "She was like sunshine"... In honors: Gwen Stefani [will receive]( the Fashion Icon Award at the 2019 People's Choice Awards on E!... The European Film Academy [has announced]( the six nominees for this year's FIPRESCI Prize for European Discovery... Renee Zellweger [will be honored]( with the Santa Barbara International Film Festival's American Riviera Award, the festival announced Tuesday... The Hollywood Film Awards [has unveiled]( another group of honorees for its 2019 awards ceremony, including Shia LaBeouf, Taron Egerton, Cynthia Erivo and Olivia Wilde... Casting roundup: Daveed Diggs, one of the stars of Hamilton, is [in final negotiations]( to join the lineup of Disney’s live-action remake of The Little Mermaid as Sebastian... Jay Williams [has inked]( a multiyear extension with ESPN/ABC and will co-host NBA Countdown, The Jump and also the morning show Get Up... Revolving door: Michael Bloom, head of unscripted programming at TNT and TBS,[is exiting](his post for a production deal... Shopify Studios [has signed]( development partnerships with Abso Lutely Productions and JASH, both founded (in part) by Tim Heidecker and Eric Wareheim... Former Patriots star Rob Gronkowski [is joining]( Fox Sports as an NFL analyst... John Wick spinoff Ballerina [has landed]( Len Wiseman as is director... Amazon Studios [has inked]( an overall deal with Little Marvin and his production company Odd Man Out... Charles Martin Smith is [set to direct]( A Gift From Bob, the Christmas-themed sequel to the 2016 A Street Cat Named Bob... ViacomCBS [has named]( DeDe Lea to run government relations... What else we're reading... --"The China cultural clash" [[Stratechery](] --"Amazon held its first big ad conference last week, luring about 400 people to Seattle" [[CNBC](] --"Ty Burrell on Saying Goodbye to Modern Family and Finding the ‘Perfect’ Follow-up Job" [[Ad Week](] --"Is this the end of makeup tutorials?" [[Business of Fashion](] From the archives... On Oct. 9, 1992, Warner Bros. released Under Siege. Set on the USS Missouri, an actual battleship that was decommissioned six months before the film's release, the film revolved around a terrorist plot to take control of the ship and sell off its nuclear arsenal. [The Hollywood Reporter's original review](. Today's birthdays: Guillermo Del Toro, 55, Bella Hadid, 23, Chris O’Dowd, 40, John O’Hurley, 65, Sharon Osbourne, 67, Tony Shalhoub, 66. [Image] [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Instagram]( [LinkedIn]( Is this e-mail not displaying correctly? [View it in your browser.]( ©2019 The Hollywood Reporter. 5700 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90036 All rights reserved. OCTOBER 09, 2019 [UNSUBSCRIBE]( [MANAGE PREFERENCES]( [PRIVACY POLICY]( [TERMS OF USE](