Theater Owners Slam Disney Over 'Black Widow' Release Plan; 'Space Jam 2' Opens Strong With $32M; THR Critics' 20 Best Cannes Films

[View on web]( [New reader? Subscribe]( July 19, 2021 What's news: CNN is launching a subscription streaming service early next year. Despite dodgy reviews and a roasting on Twitter, Space Jam 2 opened ahead of expectations at the box office. Bourdain doc director reveals why Asia Argento is not in the film. Plus: THR's critics pick their 20 best films from Cannes and Nic Cage says he's surprised by the positive reviews for his latest feature Pig — [Abid Rahman]( Theater Owners Blast Disney ►"Simultaneous release is a pandemic-era artifact." In a searing statement, the National Association of Theatre Owners blasted Disney for making Black Widow available simultaneously in the home and on the big screen, saying the decision undercut the tentpole’s box office potential and promoted piracy. NATO didn’t mince its words, saying that Black Widow suffered a “stunning collapse in its second weekend in theatrical revenues,” in addition to dropping an unprecedented 41 percent from Friday to Saturday during its opening over the July 9-11 frame. [The story](. —The King on and off the court. Space Jam: A New Legacy, starring LeBron James, beat holdover Black Widow to top the chart with a better-than-expected domestic debut of $31.7 million from 3,956 theaters. Heading into the weekend, Warner Bros. expected Space Jam 2 to open in the $20 million range in North America, writes THR's [Pamela McClintock](. That would have been a problematic start for a movie that cost a reported $150 million to make. The film instead was buoyed by an A- CinemaScore and an ethnically diverse audience. [The box office breakdown](. —Better late than never. CNN has officially announced its subscription streaming service, CNN+, saying that it will launch in the first quarter of 2022. [The story](. —Sponsors bailing on the Olympics? Huge news out of Japan with Toyota, a top corporate sponsor for the Tokyo Olympics, pulling all of its Games-related TV commercials in the country, with CEO Akio Toyoda and other senior execs also passing on the chance to attend the opening ceremony. Seems like Toyota is reading the room, with the Olympics and the IOC incredibly unpopular in Japan right now. [The story](. —"My blood's trying to kill me." Blink-182 bassist-singer Mark Hoppus elaborated on his cancer diagnosis during a recent Twitch livestream, revealing he has stage 4 lymphoma cancer. [The story](. Bourdain Doc Sets Pandemic-Era Record ►Fast start. Morgan Neville's much talked about Roadrunner: A Film About Anthony Bourdain did big business in its box office debut over the weekend, scoring the biggest weekend opening for a doc — or any specialty film — during the pandemic era. Roadrunner grossed an impressive $1.9 million from 927 locations. [The story](. —Elephant in the room. Members of Bourdain’s inner circle spoke with the filmmakers behind Roadrunner, with one notable missing person — Bourdain’s girlfriend Asia Argento. THR asked Neville why Argento wasn’t interviewed for the film. [The story](. —Bourdain flashback. THR looks back to the time when Bourdain, 43 at the time, went from anonymous best-selling chef to TV traveller and global superstar with 2002's A Cook’s Tour. [The story.]( Daytime Emmys 2021 ►Zac Efron, Emmy winner. The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences continued handing out its Daytime Emmy Awards on Sunday. This weekend, the organization presented statuettes in the children’s & animation and lifestyle categories in two live-streamed events. [The winners list.]( —Emergency alerts on Netflix? Will your favorite Netflix show be interrupted with screeching noises and then urgent news from the nation’s leaders sometime in the future? That’s a possibility Congress could soon hear about when the FCC reports on the feasibility of making streaming services adopt the Emergency Alert System. [The story.]( —"Did you put your hand out when I was drowning?" Britney Spears on Friday called out the people closest to her who have failed to show support during the pop star’s conservatorship battle, yet have posted about her situation. [The story](. —Living high on the hog. After a string of not-so-favorable reviews in recent years, Nicolas Cage returns to critical acclaim in Neon’s Pig and the Oscar-winning told THR that the positive reception has been "a little surprising, but very nice." [The story](. —Decades in the making. The story of how a Native American film director, an iconic actor and the writer of Game of Thrones teamed for an AMC series based on the Dark Wind novels goes back decades and THR has all background. [The story](. Critics Pick 20 Cannes Favorites ►Best of the fest. THR's film critics choose the Cannes Film Festival films that stood out the most, including a Palme d'Or-winning French shocker, Wes Anderson’s latest vision, a revealing documentary about a Hollywood stalwart and more. [The selection.]( —Chaos! It all went pear-shaped at Cannes on Saturday after jury president Spike Lee accidentally announced the winner of the Palme d’Or at the start of awards night. Despite the admittedly hilarious disaster, the winner was Julia Ducournau’s wildly extreme fantasy drama Titane. The win made Ducournau only the second female winner of the Palme d’Or. [The full winners list](. —Oh Spike! Cannes jury president Spike Lee expressed regret for his closing ceremony faux pas: "I have no excuses. I messed up." [The story.]( —From Cannes to Venice. Pedro Almodóvar will open the Venice Film Festival. The Oscar-winning Spanish filmmaker’s latest feature Madres Paralelas will raise the curtain on the Lido on Sept. 1. [The story](. In other news... —TikTokers will be [ring announcers at WWE’s SummerSlam](. —[Scopely invests $50m]( across three European game studios. —Bill Ackman SPAC [drops deal for 10 percent Universal music stake](. —BAFTA-nominated McQueen filmmakers developing [high-end fashion doc series for Fremantle and Sky](. —YouTuber Jackie Aina buys [$6m Arcadia mansion](. —Cannes: Neon acquires North American rights to Directors’ Fortnight winner [A Chiara](. —Live Nation L.A. executive’s body identified as [victim of Florida condo collapse](. —Dish strikes AT&T [wireless network services deal]( worth at least $5b. —Romain Gavras teaming with Les Miserables filmmaker Ladj Ly on [Netflix film](. —Endeavor adds former Xerox CEO [Ursula Burns to board of directors](. —First positive COVID tests for [athletes in Olympic Village](. —Tokyo Film Festival partners with Amazon on [new award](. —From Seth Rogen to Jay-Z: [Stars crowd into the expanding weed market](. —Snoop Dogg on who should (and shouldn’t) [benefit from cannabis boom](. —Seth Rogen [explains how that surprise Paul Rudd massage]( in Vegas was "truly revealed." What else we're reading... —"Revealed: Leak Uncovers Global Abuse Of Cyber-surveillance Weapon" [[The Guardian]( —"How Much Would You Pay to Work With Reese Witherspoon?" [[Bloomberg]( —"Peppa Pig, a Pandemic Favorite, Has American Children Acting British" [[Wall Street Journal]( —"How The Streaming Wars Are Changing What You Watch" [[Los Angeles Times]( —"The White Lotus Satirizes Privilege. But It Has The Same Blind Spots As Its Guests" [[Los Angeles Times]( Today... ... in 1995, Paramount unveiled the high school comedy Clueless in theaters, where it would go on to gross $56 million stateside. Amy Heckerling’s film, which stars Alicia Silverstone, Stacey Dash and Brittany Murphy, would spawn a TV series and go on to become a cult classic. [The original review](. Today's birthdays: [Benedict Cumberbatch]( (45), Jared Padalecki (39), Anthony Edwards (58), Abel Ferrara (70), Saïd Taghmaoui (43), Kiyoshi Kurosawa (66), Atom Egoyan (61), Ramin Djawadi (47), Matthew Libatique (53), Nancy Carell (55), Campbell Scott (60) This email was sent to {EMAIL} by Penske Media Corporation. Please add email@email.hollywoodreporter.com to your address book to ensure delivery to your inbox. Visit the [Preferences Center]( to update your profile and customize what email alerts and newsletters you receive. Copyright © 2021 The Hollywood Reporter, a subsidiary of Penske Business Media, LLC. All rights reserved. 11175 Santa Monica Boulevard Los Angeles, CA 90025 [View in Browser]( | [Privacy Policy]( | [Your Privacy Rights]( | [Ad Choices]( | [Terms of Use]( | [Unsubscribe](