Clint Flops; Harvey Gripes; Hallmark Mea Culpa; 'Watchmen' Finale; 'Top Gun 2' Trailer

What's news: Clint Eastwood's Richard Jewell disappoints, NBCUniversal unveils Steve Burke's successor, Cineworld strikes a $2.1 billion deal to buy Cineplex, Harvey Weinstein gripes, Hallmark's mea culpa. Plus: Two new THR roundtables debut today. --Alex Weprin [The Hollywood Reporter]( [The Hollywood Reporter]( Today In Entertainment DECEMBER 16, 2019 What's news: Clint Eastwood's Richard Jewell disappoints, NBCUniversal unveils Steve Burke's successor, Cineworld strikes a $2.1 billion deal to buy Cineplex, Harvey Weinstein gripes, Hallmark's mea culpa. Plus: Two new THR roundtables debut today. --Alex Weprin What's news: Clint Eastwood's Richard Jewell disappoints, NBCUniversal unveils Steve Burke's successor, Cineworld strikes a $2.1 billion deal to buy Cineplex, Harvey Weinstein gripes, Hallmark's mea culpa. Plus: Two new THR roundtables debut today. --Alex Weprin [Clint's 'Jewell' Disappoints] Clint's 'Jewell' Disappoints ►Box office: Jumanji: The Next Level dominated the box office this weekend, beating expectations with an estimated haul of $60.1 million. Overseas, Jumanji 2 earned another $85.7 million (the pic began rolling offshore last weekend) to unseat Frozen 2 and finish Sunday with a foreign tally of $152.2 million and $212.8 million globally. --Heading into the weekend, both Black Christmas and Richard Jewell were expected to open in the $10 million range, if not higher. Instead, Richard Jewell only took in $5 million despite an A CinemaScore, making it the second-worst nationwide opening ever for a pic directed by Clint Eastwood behind Bronco Billy, which posted a first weekend gross of $3.7 million nearly four decades ago in 1980, not adjusted for inflation. Black Christmas — timing its opening to Friday the 13th — opened to an estimated $4.4 million. --Frozen 2 placed second behind Jumanji with $19.2 million, while Knives Out was third with $9.3 million. [The numbers](. +Clint Eastwood's Richard Jewell derailed by apathy, not controversy. Year after year, Eastwood's loyal fans, many of them older, have shown up in solid enough numbers even on opening weekend, Pamela McClintock writes. But not this time, as Hollywood — and particularly Warner Bros. — struggle to stop midrange, adult dramas from getting iced. Nor did an eleventh-hour controversy seem to hurt or help the pic. "Usually controversy, whether good or bad, helps. It didn't seem to here," says one executive close to the movie. [The analysis](. +Frozen 2 blazes past $1 billion globally. The animated film is the sixth Disney release of the year to do so and the eighth title of 2019 thus far. Both ranks are records. Once again directed by Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee, Frozen 2 has grossed $366.5 domestically and $666 internationally for a worldwide tally of $1.032 billion. The family film first hit theaters on the weekend before Thanksgiving. [The story](. +Also: Tom Cruise's [new Top Gun: Maverick trailer]( debuts ... Where Jumanji [can go]( after Next Level... How Black Christmas [caps a standout year]( for women in horror. Breaking overnight: Regal owner Cineworld to acquire Canada's Cineplex for $2.1 billion. The combined entity would be one of the world's largest cinema companies with over 11,200 screens globally. The proposed deal is for $1.65 billion in cash, plus debt. The company that last year acquired U.S. cinema powerhouse Regal said it would add Cineplex to expand its brands to include Regal, Picturehouse and Cinema City. It called the Canadian market "stable and attractive." [The story](. ^Awards box office: Parasite feasts on Golden Globe, SAG noms. South Korean filmmaker Bong Jong Ho's drama slipped less than 10 percent — compared to 30 percent the previous weekend — grossing $633,500 from 306 cinemas to land at No. 13 and cross the $20 million mark domestically for indie distributor Neon. Parasite is now days away from becoming one of the top 10-grossing foreign-language films of all time at the U.S. box office despite not having played in more than 603 cinemas at its widest point. [The story](. ►Hollywood's gender-parity pledges: A status report. From the 4 percent challenge to 5050 by 2020, THR charts the industry's progress on its recent commitments to equality, from CAA to the Academy. [The chart](. ►California's tax credit luring Hollywood shoots outside L.A. Ever since California revamped its tax credit program in 2015 to include additional incentives, the state has seen a rise in filming outside Los Angeles. In turn, productions in the program have spent more than $130 million across 19 counties outside the city. [The story](. +California lures two relocating series, adds four new shows. Netflix's Special and Apple's Little America will film their second seasons in California, while Searchlight TV's The Dropout, Paramount's Grease, Endeavor Content's Nine Perfect Strangers and HBO's untitled Showtime Lakers Project also film in the state. [More](. Elsewhere in film... --Todd McCarthy reviews the [family animated film Spies In Disguise](. --How Little Women producer Amy Pascal[broke her ankle]( on the set. --How Elizabeth Banks and Donna Langley [formed a rare Hollywood alliance](: "We always were problem-solving together." --Fortnite [screened an exclusive scene]( from Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker for an in-game event. --Former Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly [wrote in an Instagram post]( on Friday that watching the film Bombshell "was an incredibly emotional experience" and if given the chance, she would have suggested edits. --How sound pros on Ad Astra, Avengers: Endgame and Rocketman [created "glorious but grounded"]( scenes... Editors on 1917, Bombshell and Marriage Story [reveal how](they created conflict... Clint's 'Jewell' Disappoints ►Box office: Jumanji: The Next Level dominated the box office this weekend, beating expectations with an estimated haul of $60.1 million. Overseas, Jumanji 2 earned another $85.7 million (the pic began rolling offshore last weekend) to unseat Frozen 2 and finish Sunday with a foreign tally of $152.2 million and $212.8 million globally. --Heading into the weekend, both Black Christmas and Richard Jewell were expected to open in the $10 million range, if not higher. Instead, Richard Jewell only took in $5 million despite an A CinemaScore, making it the second-worst nationwide opening ever for a pic directed by Clint Eastwood behind Bronco Billy, which posted a first weekend gross of $3.7 million nearly four decades ago in 1980, not adjusted for inflation. Black Christmas — timing its opening to Friday the 13th — opened to an estimated $4.4 million. --Frozen 2 placed second behind Jumanji with $19.2 million, while Knives Out was third with $9.3 million. [The numbers](. +Clint Eastwood's Richard Jewell derailed by apathy, not controversy. Year after year, Eastwood's loyal fans, many of them older, have shown up in solid enough numbers even on opening weekend, Pamela McClintock writes. But not this time, as Hollywood — and particularly Warner Bros. — struggle to stop midrange, adult dramas from getting iced. Nor did an eleventh-hour controversy seem to hurt or help the pic. "Usually controversy, whether good or bad, helps. It didn't seem to here," says one executive close to the movie. [The analysis](. +Frozen 2 blazes past $1 billion globally. The animated film is the sixth Disney release of the year to do so and the eighth title of 2019 thus far. Both ranks are records. Once again directed by Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee, Frozen 2 has grossed $366.5 domestically and $666 internationally for a worldwide tally of $1.032 billion. The family film first hit theaters on the weekend before Thanksgiving. [The story](. +Also: Tom Cruise's [new Top Gun: Maverick trailer]( debuts ... Where Jumanji [can go]( after Next Level... How Black Christmas [caps a standout year]( for women in horror. Breaking overnight: Regal owner Cineworld to acquire Canada's Cineplex for $2.1 billion. The combined entity would be one of the world's largest cinema companies with over 11,200 screens globally. The proposed deal is for $1.65 billion in cash, plus debt. The company that last year acquired U.S. cinema powerhouse Regal said it would add Cineplex to expand its brands to include Regal, Picturehouse and Cinema City. It called the Canadian market "stable and attractive." [The story](. ^Awards box office: Parasite feasts on Golden Globe, SAG noms. South Korean filmmaker Bong Jong Ho's drama slipped less than 10 percent — compared to 30 percent the previous weekend — grossing $633,500 from 306 cinemas to land at No. 13 and cross the $20 million mark domestically for indie distributor Neon. Parasite is now days away from becoming one of the top 10-grossing foreign-language films of all time at the U.S. box office despite not having played in more than 603 cinemas at its widest point. [The story](. ►Hollywood's gender-parity pledges: A status report. From the 4 percent challenge to 5050 by 2020, THR charts the industry's progress on its recent commitments to equality, from CAA to the Academy. [The chart](. ►California's tax credit luring Hollywood shoots outside L.A. Ever since California revamped its tax credit program in 2015 to include additional incentives, the state has seen a rise in filming outside Los Angeles. In turn, productions in the program have spent more than $130 million across 19 counties outside the city. [The story](. +California lures two relocating series, adds four new shows. Netflix's Special and Apple's Little America will film their second seasons in California, while Searchlight TV's The Dropout, Paramount's Grease, Endeavor Content's Nine Perfect Strangers and HBO's untitled Showtime Lakers Project also film in the state. [More](. Elsewhere in film... --Todd McCarthy reviews the [family animated film Spies In Disguise](. --How Little Women producer Amy Pascal[broke her ankle]( on the set. --How Elizabeth Banks and Donna Langley [formed a rare Hollywood alliance](: "We always were problem-solving together." --Fortnite [screened an exclusive scene]( from Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker for an in-game event. --Former Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly [wrote in an Instagram post]( on Friday that watching the film Bombshell "was an incredibly emotional experience" and if given the chance, she would have suggested edits. --How sound pros on Ad Astra, Avengers: Endgame and Rocketman [created "glorious but grounded"]( scenes... Editors on 1917, Bombshell and Marriage Story [reveal how](they created conflict... [Hallmark Mea Culpa] Hallmark Mea Culpa ►Hallmark CEO apologizes after removing Zola's same-sex commercials: "This was the wrong decision." Mike Perry, CEO of the company that owns Hallmark Channel and the eponymous greeting card company, issued the apology Sunday evening after drawing outrage on Saturday. --What spurred on the apology: Wedding planner website Zola said it would no longer run advertisements on the Hallmark Channel following the network's decision to remove four commercials that featured a same-sex wedding. The removal of the commercials followed petitions by conservative groups including One Million Moms and Lifesite that asked the network to not run films or commercials that featured the LGBTQ community. While cutting ads that featured same-sex weddings, the network continued to air two other Zola ads that did not. [The story](. --The apology: "The Crown Media team has been agonizing over this decision as we've seen the hurt it has unintentionally caused," Perry said in a statement. "Said simply, they believe this was the wrong decision. Our mission is rooted in helping all people connect, celebrate traditions and be inspired to capture meaningful moments in their lives. Anything that detracts from this purpose is not who we are. We are truly sorry for the hurt and disappointment this has caused. ... Across our brand, we will continue to look for ways to be more inclusive and celebrate our differences." [More on the apology](. ►Harvey Weinstein, facing criminal trial, gripes he's the "forgotten man." In an interview with the New York Post from a room in the luxury wing of a New York hospital, the disgraced movie mogul talks about his charity work, praises himself for getting Gwyneth Paltrow a big payday and shoots down speculation he is faking an illness to get sympathy. --In response to the interview, 23 women who came forward to allege Weinstein of sexual misconduct issued a statement: "Harvey Weinstein is trying to gaslight society again. He says in a new interview he doesn’t want to be forgotten. Well, he won’t be. He will be remembered as a sexual predator and an unrepentant abuser who took everything and deserves nothing... We refuse to let this predator rewrite his legacy of abuse." [The story](. ►NBCUniversal's Steve Burke successor becomes official. Burke will retire Aug. 14, and Jeff Shell will take over as NBCU CEO effective Jan. 1, reporting to Burke, who will move to the role of chairman, NBCUniversal. Upon Burke’s retirement in the summer, Shell will report directly to Brian Roberts, chairman and CEO of Comcast. [Details.]( ►NBC Sports president: 2020 will be "uniquely combustible" as Olympics, conventions collide. In a Creative Space interview Pete Bevacqua also addresses the lack of diversity in golf and Colin Kaepernick's attempted NFL comeback: "You couldn't escape it." [The interview.]( ^Broad City and Pen15: A group chat about the "pain" and "pressure" of making TV. In a conversation with THR's Bryn Elise Sandberg, Broad City's Ilana Glazer and Abbi Jacobson share insights with Pen15's Maya Erskine and Anna Konkle on working as part of a partnership: "It's such an intense mirror." [The conversation](. The TV world was rocked by another controversial decision over the weekend... ►Orlando Jones says he was fired from American Gods. Jones says he was fired from the Fremantle-produced Starz series in September, alleging that new showrunner Charles Eglee decided his character was sending "the wrong message for black America." A spokesperson responded by saying "Mr. Jones’ option was not picked up because Mr. Nancy, among other characters, is not featured in the portion of the book we are focusing on within season three." [The story](. ►On Saturday Night Live: Trump impeachment dominates the Christmas dinner conversation [in the cold open](... Colin Jost [appeared in]( fiancé Scarlett Johansson's Avengers-themed monologue... There [was a parody]( of Marriage Story about Kellyanne Conway’s relationship with her husband George Conway... The [rest of the sketches](... Elsewhere in TV... --Netflix [has renewed]( Special, the Emmy-nominated shortform comedy series based on O'Connell's memoir, for a second season. --Critic's Notebook: Against the odds, The Conners [became comfort TV](. --The who's who of Asian American media [gathered at the Beverly Hilton]( on Saturday night to celebrate the casts and crews of The Farewell and Fresh Off the Boat. --About last night: Mr. Robot [sets up]( shocking series finale with three simple words: "Who are you?"... Watchmen season finale: Damon Lindelof [breaks down]( that all-powerful ending. Hallmark Mea Culpa ►Hallmark CEO apologizes after removing Zola's same-sex commercials: "This was the wrong decision." Mike Perry, CEO of the company that owns Hallmark Channel and the eponymous greeting card company, issued the apology Sunday evening after drawing outrage on Saturday. --What spurred on the apology: Wedding planner website Zola said it would no longer run advertisements on the Hallmark Channel following the network's decision to remove four commercials that featured a same-sex wedding. The removal of the commercials followed petitions by conservative groups including One Million Moms and Lifesite that asked the network to not run films or commercials that featured the LGBTQ community. While cutting ads that featured same-sex weddings, the network continued to air two other Zola ads that did not. [The story](. --The apology: "The Crown Media team has been agonizing over this decision as we've seen the hurt it has unintentionally caused," Perry said in a statement. "Said simply, they believe this was the wrong decision. Our mission is rooted in helping all people connect, celebrate traditions and be inspired to capture meaningful moments in their lives. Anything that detracts from this purpose is not who we are. We are truly sorry for the hurt and disappointment this has caused. ... Across our brand, we will continue to look for ways to be more inclusive and celebrate our differences." [More on the apology](. ►Harvey Weinstein, facing criminal trial, gripes he's the "forgotten man." In an interview with the New York Post from a room in the luxury wing of a New York hospital, the disgraced movie mogul talks about his charity work, praises himself for getting Gwyneth Paltrow a big payday and shoots down speculation he is faking an illness to get sympathy. --In response to the interview, 23 women who came forward to allege Weinstein of sexual misconduct issued a statement: "Harvey Weinstein is trying to gaslight society again. He says in a new interview he doesn’t want to be forgotten. Well, he won’t be. He will be remembered as a sexual predator and an unrepentant abuser who took everything and deserves nothing... We refuse to let this predator rewrite his legacy of abuse." [The story](. ►NBCUniversal's Steve Burke successor becomes official. Burke will retire Aug. 14, and Jeff Shell will take over as NBCU CEO effective Jan. 1, reporting to Burke, who will move to the role of chairman, NBCUniversal. Upon Burke’s retirement in the summer, Shell will report directly to Brian Roberts, chairman and CEO of Comcast. [Details.]( ►NBC Sports president: 2020 will be "uniquely combustible" as Olympics, conventions collide. In a Creative Space interview Pete Bevacqua also addresses the lack of diversity in golf and Colin Kaepernick's attempted NFL comeback: "You couldn't escape it." [The interview.]( ^Broad City and Pen15: A group chat about the "pain" and "pressure" of making TV. In a conversation with THR's Bryn Elise Sandberg, Broad City's Ilana Glazer and Abbi Jacobson share insights with Pen15's Maya Erskine and Anna Konkle on working as part of a partnership: "It's such an intense mirror." [The conversation](. The TV world was rocked by another controversial decision over the weekend... ►Orlando Jones says he was fired from American Gods. Jones says he was fired from the Fremantle-produced Starz series in September, alleging that new showrunner Charles Eglee decided his character was sending "the wrong message for black America." A spokesperson responded by saying "Mr. Jones’ option was not picked up because Mr. Nancy, among other characters, is not featured in the portion of the book we are focusing on within season three." [The story](. ►On Saturday Night Live: Trump impeachment dominates the Christmas dinner conversation [in the cold open](... Colin Jost [appeared in]( fiancé Scarlett Johansson's Avengers-themed monologue... There [was a parody]( of Marriage Story about Kellyanne Conway’s relationship with her husband George Conway... The [rest of the sketches](... Elsewhere in TV... --Netflix [has renewed]( Special, the Emmy-nominated shortform comedy series based on O'Connell's memoir, for a second season. --Critic's Notebook: Against the odds, The Conners [became comfort TV](. --The who's who of Asian American media [gathered at the Beverly Hilton]( on Saturday night to celebrate the casts and crews of The Farewell and Fresh Off the Boat. --About last night: Mr. Robot [sets up]( shocking series finale with three simple words: "Who are you?"... Watchmen season finale: Damon Lindelof [breaks down]( that all-powerful ending. [Two THR Roundtables] Two THR Roundtables ►"The camera writes": The Cinematographer Roundtable. Six leading lensers — including César Charlone, Roger Deakins, Caleb Deschanel, Natasha Braier, Rodrigo Prieto and Robert Richardson — speak with Carolyn Giardina about how to shoot an eight-and-a-half-minute take, when to create a digital sun and the shots that make movie magic: "We had to be invisible." --Prieto: "For Marty [Scorsese], the camera "writes" in a way. Every camera angle has a meaning to it. If the camera moves or doesn't, there is always a reason for that... Also, he thought that this [Irishman] should be like a home movie, but not Super 8 or grainy 16 or handheld. So how do you do a home movie if you don't do any of those things, right? (Laughter.) But then that's how I thought to emulate still photography of the '50s and '60s and the emulsions of those different eras." --Deakins: "The longest take [in 1917] was about eight and a half minutes, pretty long, and the camera is always moving. There were some very complex setups. The whole key to it was preproduction. I think we actually came in under schedule — which is probably the first film I've ever been on, apart from a Coen brothers movie, that's been under schedule — because we were so prepped." [The roundtable](. +The videos: Deakins, Deschanel and Richardson speak about their latest films. [Watch](. And: Charlone, Braier and Prieto share their thoughts on filmmaking. [Watch](. ^The Animation roundtable: Jennifer Lee, Josh Cooley, Dean DeBlois, Jill Culton and Jinko Gotoh join the conversation on finding the right voice talent, progress on the diversity front and why there’s never been a better time to put an imaginative spin on reality. --Gotoh: "When we went out to sell the film [Klaus] in 2016 [Netflix's animation unit wasn't] in place. We actually sold it to an executive in original features. The executive looked at us and said, 'You know, you guys are the experts. Just go make this movie.' Sergio had a small studio in Madrid at the time, and we literally had to build a studio to make this movie. It's been a bit of a Wild, Wild West kind of situation. But Netflix is so supportive of the creative process, and they have just been a tremendous support in getting this movie done." --Lee: "I think it's about intent. I mean, we don't create animation to make realistic worlds. We want believable worlds, worlds that transport you. There is always a style to what we do that takes you beyond the realism of our lives. And the goal of Lion King, I mean it's from an animated film and there is no question of the difference. I think it's the intent — wanting to enjoy creating a sense of realism out of real animals. And emoting them in a way that is again going toward realism. But I am madly in love with animation, and there is no expression like the animated expression. And it's hard to do. Every single thing in our worlds is created from nothing. It's all imagination coming to life. That's what makes animation animation." [The roundtable](. +The podcast: The full conversation from The Hollywood Reporter's 2019 Animation Roundtable is now available as a special episode of THR's Behind the Screen podcast. Recorded Sept. 26 at the Warwick in Hollywood, the guests are Jennifer Lee, Dean DeBlois, Jill Culton, Jinko Gotoh and Josh Cooley. [Listen](. +The videos: The filmmakers behind Toy Story 4 and Frozen 2 talk about the process for creating the films. [Watch](. And: The filmmakers behind Abominable, How to Train your Dragon: Hidden World and Klaus discuss their films. [Watch](. The Writers Guild of America [will honor]( TV comedy veterans Merrill Markoe and Paula Pell at the 2020 WGA Awards in February... Quentin Tarantino's Once Upon a Time in Hollywood [continued receiving awards]( recognition this weekend, with the 1969-set film picking up three trophies at the 2019 California On Location Awards on Sunday... The week ahead... --TV: ABC will air another edition of Live in Front of a Studio Audience Wednesday at 8 pm. The Voice has its season finale on NBC Tuesday, Survivor and The Masked Singer end their seasons Wednesday. The Witcher debuts on Netflix Friday. [More](. --Film: Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker opens in theaters Thursday night. Also: Cats. ►THR's 21 memorable Christmas moments in film. While it can be tough to pick a favorite, THR has gathered the 21 most memorable Christmas moments on film, dating back to the 1946 black-and-white classic It's a Wonderful Life. [Watch](. Why the DOJ is investigating Live Nation. Attorneys for Live Nation CEO Michael Rapino notified the DOJ in November, multiple sources tell Billboard, that it was looking into buying Rival, a Los Angeles-based primary ticketing and technology company launched in 2018 by former Ticketmaster CEO Nathan Hubbard. The DOJ is now reviewing that potential deal as part of its larger probe into Live Nation's compliance with a consent decree governing its decade-old merger with Ticketmaster. [The story](. Obituaries: [Anna Karina](, the French New Wave starlet who rose to international acclaim in films directed by her then-husband Jean-Luc Godard, has died. She was 79... Composer, conductor and electronic music pioneer [Gershon Kingsley](, who wrote the top 10 hit "Popcorn" and played a pivotal role in popularizing the synthesizer sound, died Dec. 10 in New York. He was 97... [Rosa Porto](, founder of Porto’s Bakery and Café chain in Southern California, died Friday. She was 89... [Chuy Bravo](, a Mexican-American actor best known for being Chelsea Handler's sidekick on the former E! show Chelsea Lately, has died. He was 63.... What else we're reading... --"Tech giants race for streaming deals, but Twitch remains king" [[NY Times](] --'Controversial YouTuber PewDiePie will take a break from the platform, saying he's feeling 'very tired'" [[CNN Business](] --"Did Taylor Swift start a feud with capitalism?" [[Vanity Fair](] --"Boris Johnson threatens BBC with two-pronged attack" [[The Guardian](] --"Column: Farewell to the immense, disappointing Newseum" [[LA Times](] From the archives... + Today in 1987: Fox unveils James L. Brooks' Broadcast News in limited release. The film went on to earn seven nominations at the 60th Academy Awards ceremony, including best picture. [Original review.]( Today's birthdays: Benjamin Bratt, 56, Flo Rida, 41, J.B. Smoove, 54, James Mangold, 56, Lesley Stahl, 78. Two THR Roundtables ►"The camera writes": The Cinematographer Roundtable. Six leading lensers — including César Charlone, Roger Deakins, Caleb Deschanel, Natasha Braier, Rodrigo Prieto and Robert Richardson — speak with Carolyn Giardina about how to shoot an eight-and-a-half-minute take, when to create a digital sun and the shots that make movie magic: "We had to be invisible." --Prieto: "For Marty [Scorsese], the camera "writes" in a way. Every camera angle has a meaning to it. If the camera moves or doesn't, there is always a reason for that... Also, he thought that this [Irishman] should be like a home movie, but not Super 8 or grainy 16 or handheld. So how do you do a home movie if you don't do any of those things, right? (Laughter.) But then that's how I thought to emulate still photography of the '50s and '60s and the emulsions of those different eras." --Deakins: "The longest take [in 1917] was about eight and a half minutes, pretty long, and the camera is always moving. There were some very complex setups. The whole key to it was preproduction. I think we actually came in under schedule — which is probably the first film I've ever been on, apart from a Coen brothers movie, that's been under schedule — because we were so prepped." [The roundtable](. +The videos: Deakins, Deschanel and Richardson speak about their latest films. [Watch](. And: Charlone, Braier and Prieto share their thoughts on filmmaking. [Watch](. ^The Animation roundtable: Jennifer Lee, Josh Cooley, Dean DeBlois, Jill Culton and Jinko Gotoh join the conversation on finding the right voice talent, progress on the diversity front and why there’s never been a better time to put an imaginative spin on reality. --Gotoh: "When we went out to sell the film [Klaus] in 2016 [Netflix's animation unit wasn't] in place. We actually sold it to an executive in original features. The executive looked at us and said, 'You know, you guys are the experts. Just go make this movie.' Sergio had a small studio in Madrid at the time, and we literally had to build a studio to make this movie. It's been a bit of a Wild, Wild West kind of situation. But Netflix is so supportive of the creative process, and they have just been a tremendous support in getting this movie done." --Lee: "I think it's about intent. I mean, we don't create animation to make realistic worlds. We want believable worlds, worlds that transport you. There is always a style to what we do that takes you beyond the realism of our lives. And the goal of Lion King, I mean it's from an animated film and there is no question of the difference. I think it's the intent — wanting to enjoy creating a sense of realism out of real animals. And emoting them in a way that is again going toward realism. But I am madly in love with animation, and there is no expression like the animated expression. And it's hard to do. Every single thing in our worlds is created from nothing. It's all imagination coming to life. That's what makes animation animation." [The roundtable](. +The podcast: The full conversation from The Hollywood Reporter's 2019 Animation Roundtable is now available as a special episode of THR's Behind the Screen podcast. Recorded Sept. 26 at the Warwick in Hollywood, the guests are Jennifer Lee, Dean DeBlois, Jill Culton, Jinko Gotoh and Josh Cooley. [Listen](. +The videos: The filmmakers behind Toy Story 4 and Frozen 2 talk about the process for creating the films. [Watch](. And: The filmmakers behind Abominable, How to Train your Dragon: Hidden World and Klaus discuss their films. [Watch](. The Writers Guild of America [will honor]( TV comedy veterans Merrill Markoe and Paula Pell at the 2020 WGA Awards in February... Quentin Tarantino's Once Upon a Time in Hollywood [continued receiving awards]( recognition this weekend, with the 1969-set film picking up three trophies at the 2019 California On Location Awards on Sunday... The week ahead... --TV: ABC will air another edition of Live in Front of a Studio Audience Wednesday at 8 pm. The Voice has its season finale on NBC Tuesday, Survivor and The Masked Singer end their seasons Wednesday. The Witcher debuts on Netflix Friday. [More](. --Film: Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker opens in theaters Thursday night. Also: Cats. ►THR's 21 memorable Christmas moments in film. While it can be tough to pick a favorite, THR has gathered the 21 most memorable Christmas moments on film, dating back to the 1946 black-and-white classic It's a Wonderful Life. [Watch](. Why the DOJ is investigating Live Nation. Attorneys for Live Nation CEO Michael Rapino notified the DOJ in November, multiple sources tell Billboard, that it was looking into buying Rival, a Los Angeles-based primary ticketing and technology company launched in 2018 by former Ticketmaster CEO Nathan Hubbard. The DOJ is now reviewing that potential deal as part of its larger probe into Live Nation's compliance with a consent decree governing its decade-old merger with Ticketmaster. [The story](. Obituaries: [Anna Karina](, the French New Wave starlet who rose to international acclaim in films directed by her then-husband Jean-Luc Godard, has died. She was 79... Composer, conductor and electronic music pioneer [Gershon Kingsley](, who wrote the top 10 hit "Popcorn" and played a pivotal role in popularizing the synthesizer sound, died Dec. 10 in New York. He was 97... [Rosa Porto](, founder of Porto’s Bakery and Café chain in Southern California, died Friday. She was 89... [Chuy Bravo](, a Mexican-American actor best known for being Chelsea Handler's sidekick on the former E! show Chelsea Lately, has died. He was 63.... What else we're reading... --"Tech giants race for streaming deals, but Twitch remains king" [[NY Times](] --'Controversial YouTuber PewDiePie will take a break from the platform, saying he's feeling 'very tired'" [[CNN Business](] --"Did Taylor Swift start a feud with capitalism?" [[Vanity Fair](] --"Boris Johnson threatens BBC with two-pronged attack" [[The Guardian](] --"Column: Farewell to the immense, disappointing Newseum" [[LA Times](] From the archives... + Today in 1987: Fox unveils James L. Brooks' Broadcast News in limited release. The film went on to earn seven nominations at the 60th Academy Awards ceremony, including best picture. [Original review.]( Today's birthdays: Benjamin Bratt, 56, Flo Rida, 41, J.B. Smoove, 54, James Mangold, 56, Lesley Stahl, 78. [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. 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