Cuomo Serves CNN With $125M Arbitration Demand; 'Bachelor' Stars Reveal Biggest Regret, “Complicated” Path; Judd Apatow Signs Universal Overall Deal; 'Deep Water' Review

[View on web]( [New reader? Subscribe]( March 17, 2022 What's news: Chris Cuomo's exit from CNN is getting messier. Joe Buck and Troy Aikman are ESPN's star new signings. Amazon officially owns MGM. Kanye has been suspended by Instagram. Plus: Netflix is looking at more ways to bring password sharing to an end — [Abid Rahman]( Chris Cuomo Serves CNN With $125M Arbitration Demand ►"Calculated campaign." Former anchor Chris Cuomo is demanding $125 million from CNN following his termination from the cable news channel last year. In a demand for arbitration filed with the dispute resolution giant JAMS, Cuomo alleges that his firing was not justified and that former CNN president Jeff Zucker failed to abide by the terms of Cuomo’s contract "by failing to instruct CNN employees not to disparage Cuomo." In fact, the complaint alleges that there was a “calculated campaign to smear Cuomo and destroy his reputation” by some CNN staff. [The story.]( —Seismic. Joe Buck and Troy Aikman will depart Fox Sports for new roles at ESPN in a deal estimated to be worth $30 million annually for the duo. The play-by-play broadcaster and NFL analyst have signed a multiyear deal with ESPN, where they will take over the booth for Monday Night Football beginning Sept. 12. The move will see Buck leave his broadcast home of nearly 30 years. [The story.]( —Buck shot. Joe Buck's Big Day wasn't all about huge contracts, the Emmy-winning sportscaster was also revealed to be the Ram on Fox's reality singing competition The Masked Singer that aired on Wednesday night. Ram/Buck sang John Denver’s “Take Me Home, Country Roads” but it wasn't enough to save him and he was the season’s second contestant to be sent packing after Duff Goldman. [The story.]( —"It only took me 18 years to realize I should probably try to do that with the television studio, too." Judd Apatow is extending his relationship with Universal. The director, writer and producer has inked a multiple-year deal with Universal’s film and television studios. On the film side, Apatow has worked with Universal since his 2005 directorial debut, The 40-Year-Old Virgin. On the television side, Apatow has had a longtime relationship with HBO and has recently worked with Netflix. [The story.]( —Voting deadline looms. THR's awards analyst [Scott Feinberg]( updates his assessments of all 23 Academy Awards categories as we enter the final week of voting. [The Feinberg Forecast.]( Puppet Makers Rise Up Against the Puppet Masters ►"The job of the wrangler is eating shit and taking blame." Fascinating story from THR's Seth Abramovitch on the yawning divisions between, often prima donna, puppeteers and puppet wranglers. As the latter group pushes for unionization, craftspeople at The Jim Henson Company say they are treated as an underclass, subject to abuse and unsafe conditions. [The story.]( —It's official. Amazon has closed its $8.5 billion acquisition of MGM, officially bringing the film and TV studio into its fold. The landmark deal was first announced last May, with the company citing MGM’s vast library as driving the purchase. [The story.]( —Bullish future. Endeavor reported Q4 and full-year 2021 earnings Wednesday, with revenue hitting $1.5 billion in Q4, and a net loss of $16.7 million, after posting a profit of $64 million in the prior quarter. For the full year, Endeavor beat Wall Street expectations and its own guidance, hitting revenue of $5.1 billion, though it had a net loss for the year of $467.5 million. Notably, the company also released bullish 2022 guidance, with revenue expected to be between $5.2 billion-$5.45 billion, all without the recently sold Endeavor Content. [The results.]( —More time for Twitter feuds. Tesla and SpaceX founder Elon Musk will resign from the board of Endeavor. The company disclosed Musk’s departure in its annual report, saying that Musk’s resignation will be effective June 30. Endeavor will shrink its board from eight members to seven members once Musk resigns. [The story.]( —Comeback continues. Exhibition giant and Regal owner Cineworld has reported a narrowed 2021 pre-tax loss of $708 million after posting a 2020 loss of $3.0 billion due to the pandemic. The company also reported that revenue for the year jumped 112 percent to $1.8 billion from $852.3 million in 2020, which compared with $4.37 billion in 2019. Key releases helping the performance included No Time to Die and Spider-Man: No Way Home. [The results.]( Amy Berg on Why Evan Rachel Wood Doc Was So Challenging ►"I think it affected me more on this film because of the state of the world right now." THR's [Katie Kilkenny]( spoke to filmmaker Amy Berg about Phoenix Rising, the two-part documentary focused on Evan Rachel Wood’s claims of sexual abuse by rocker Marilyn Manson. The director discusses the second part of her HBO doc, which shows the lead-up to Wood going public with abuse allegations. [The interview.]( —"We know where hate and oppression lead." Gabrielle Union, star of Disney's diverse reboot of Cheaper By the Dozen, didn't mince her words about Florida's "Don't Say Gay" bill, the controversial legislation that is beginning to consume Disney management. Speaking at the premiere of the film in Hollywood on Wednesday, the topic is particularly personal for Union who is stepmother to husband Dwayne Wade’s transgender daughter Zaya. The family also owns a home in Florida where Wade played for the Miami Heat. [The story.]( —Overall deal news. ABC Signature is bringing Oscar- and Emmy-nominated writer Tony McNamara in-house. The creator of Hulu’s The Great, who most recently penned Disney’s live-action Cruella, has signed a two-year overall deal to create, develop and supervise projects with the Jonnie Davis-led TV studio. [The story.]( —Changing of the guard. Sunshine Sachs celebrates its 30th anniversary this year, and tied to this landmark the Hollywood PR giant's founders Ken Sunshine and Shawn Sachs have set new leadership and changed the firm's name to Sunshine Sachs Morgan & Lylis. The name change reflects the promotion of partners Keleigh Thomas Morgan and Heather Lylis to co-presidents of the firm. [The story.]( 'The Bachelor': Clayton & Susie Reveal Biggest Regret, "Complicated" Path ►"There's so much more of the picture that nobody will ever know." THR whisperer [Ryan Gajewski]( spoke to Clayton Echard and Susie Evans about that wild finale to The Bachelor. After a turbulent season on the ABC dating series, the couple reveal how they're handling public responses to their rekindled romance. [The interview.]( —Put the phone down. Kanye West has been suspended from Instagram for 24 hours after the rapper posted a slur targeting The Daily Show host Trevor Noah. West was reacting to Noah addressing the contentious divorce between the Donda artist and Kim Kardashian. During a Tuesday segment of his show, Noah described the rapper’s harassment of Kardashian and her new boyfriend Pete Davidson as “terrifying to watch.” [The story.]( —Can Pete sue Kanye? In a guest column for THR, Daniel Novack and Tanvi Valsangikar write that Kanye West's recent claymation decapitation of Pete Davidson is most likely protected by the First Amendment, despite all the social media uproar. [The guest column.]( —Password sharing looks doomed. Netflix is testing out a new fee structure that will allow subscribers to add up to two additional users outside of their households. The feature is first rolling out in Chile, Costa Rica and Peru. Last year, Netflix said it would begin cracking down on password sharing, though the feature was given a limited rollout and has not been made permanent as yet. [The story.]( Review: 'Deep Water' ►"Even slow-burn requires actual heat." THR's chief film critic [David Rooney]( reviews Adrian Lyne's Deep Water. The Brit director returns after a 20-year absence to the familiar territory of high-gloss adultery and its fallout in this Patricia Highsmith adaptation, starring former couple Ben Affleck and Ana de Armas, premiering on Hulu. [The review.]( —"Smart, breezy fun." THR TV critic [Angie Han]( reviews HBO Max’s Minx. The 1970s Los Angeles-set series follows a feminist (Ophelia Lovibond) and an adult magazine publisher (Jake Johnson) as they team up to launch the first erotic title for women. [The review.]( —"More intimate and emotional than 'inspirational.'" THR's John DeFore reviews Rosa Ruth Boesten's Master of Light. Winner of the fest's top non-fiction prize, the filmmaker's debut doc introduces George Anthony Morton, a fine artist whose career was born during a decade in prison. [The review.]( —"Access and good timing don't guarantee much depth." John also reviews Casey Neistat's Under the Influence. One YouTuber profiles another in Neistat's doc on David Dobrik. [The review.]( In other news... —Barry [season 3 teaser trailer released by HBO]( —[HBO releases trailer for new cop drama]( from The Wire creator David Simon —Brian Cox, Edie Falco, Lisa Kudrow and Dean Norris [join New Line comedy]( —Good Trouble shocker: [Star Maia Mitchell exits]( —Steve McQueen, Tilda Swinton, Miky Lee [to be honored at Academy Museum gala]( —International Documentary Association [voluntarily recognizes staffer union]( —Leonardo DiCaprio, Mark Ruffalo, Scarlett Johansson [sign petition urging bank to stop financing Canadian gas pipeline]( —Queer Eye star [Antoni Porowski to receive Champion Award at GLSEN gala]( —Why Frasier co-creator [pledged $5m to save Palm Springs’ Plaza Theatre]( What else we're reading... —50 years after Network’s release, Anderson Cooper, Aaron Sorkin, Bryan Cranston, and Adam McKay on why we’re all still mad as hell [[VF]( —In-depth interview with Evan Rachel Wood who says that revealing Marilyn Manson was her alleged abuser brought her "freedom" [[The Cut]( —Broke oligarch Mikhail Fridman claims sanctioned Russian billionaires have no sway over Putin [[Bloomberg]( —Critic James Poniewozik on the absolute batshit joy of HBO Max's Raised by Wolves (it's good!) [[NYT]( —Phil Hoad on why RyÅ«suke Hamaguchi’s Drive My Car should win the best picture Oscar [[Guardian]( Today... ...in 2000, Julia Roberts and Steven Soderbergh brought Erin Brockovich to theaters. The film went on to claim five Oscar nominations at the 73rd Academy Awards and a best actress win for Roberts. [The original review.]( Today's birthdays: [John Boyega]( (30), Grimes (34), Kurt Russell (71), Rob Lowe (58), Morfydd Clark (33), Gary Sinise (67), Mark Boone Junior (67), Lesley-Anne Down (68), Natalie Zea (47), Brittany and Cynthia Daniel (46), Gina Holden (47), Patrick Duffy (73), Coco Austin (43), Pattie Boyd (78), Mathew St. Patrick (54), Mark Pellington (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. 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