Rihanna Opts for Cohesiveness Over Chaos for Halftime Show; 'Paddington' Filmmaker to Helm Sony's Fred Astaire Film; 'Magic Mike 3' Wins Super Bowl Weekend With $8.2M; 'You' Boss on the Killer Reveal of S4

[View on web]( [New reader? Subscribe]( February 13, 2023 What's news: Legendary Hollywood PR man Howard Bragman has died. James Cameron dominated the global box office this weekend with strong showings for Avatar 2 and a rereleased 3D version of Titanic. Naomi Ackie joins the cast of Justin Kurzel's Morning. The ADL has released a new report on the impact of Kanye 'Ye' West's antisemitic comments. — [Abid Rahman]( Review: Rihanna Opts for Cohesiveness Over Chaos ►"The camera was always in the right place at the right time." THR's chief TV critic [Dan Feinberg]( reviews The Super Bowl Halftime Show. Dan writes that some halftime shows are a wild mix of guest performances and scenery changes. Rihanna, without accompaniment, played the hits in a unified showcase that took advantage of the star's effortless magnetism. [The review.]( —Hint, hint. Rihanna performed well-known hits like “We Found Love,” “Where Have You Been,” “Diamonds” and “Work,” and even hinted she was pregnant during the performance, which had social media buzzing on Sunday. A rep later confirmed to THR that the superstar is indeed expecting. [The story.]( —"I feel like her vision was executed." THR's [Mesfin Fekadu]( spoke to Super Bowl Halftime Show executive producer Jesse Collins on how they pulled off that stunning performance. The TV producer revealed there was some pressure following last year’s epic, Emmy-winning halftime show with Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg and more, but working with Rihanna made the process easy. [The story.]( —"Does it matter? Does it matter? No. Thank you." Mesfin also spoke to Sheryl Lee Ralph after her performance of "Lift Every Voice and Sing" at the Super Bowl, with the Abbott Elementary star brushing off the chatter that she lip-synced. [The story.]( More ads and trailers from the Super Bowl... —The Flash [trailer]( —Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 [trailer]( —Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny [teaser]( —Creed III [trailer]( —Transformers: Rise of the Beasts [teaser]( —Super Bowl ad confirms [first U2 concerts in 4 years to christen MSG Sphere in Vegas]( —Disney100: [Super Bowl ad plugs company’s centennial celebration]( 'Paddington' Filmmaker to Helm Sony's Fred Astaire Film ►Stellar team. THR's [Borys Kit]( has the scoop on Paul King, the director of the two excellent Paddington movies, signing on to helm Sony Pictures’ untitled Fred Astaire drama that has Tom Holland attached to play the golden age film and dance star. The project has been percolating for several years and now has Lee Hall, who wrote the popular dance-centric drama Billy Elliot, rewriting the script by Noah Pink. Amy Pascal, Rachael O’Conner, Ben Holden and Josh Hyams are producing. [The story.]( —🎭 Rising star 🎭 THR's [Alex Ritman]( has the scoop on Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance With Somebody star Naomi Ackie joining the A-list cast of Morning, the upcoming sci-fi feature from Justin Kurzel. Announced last year, the film will also star Oscar and BAFTA winner Laura Dern and A Quiet Place's Noah Jupe, with Benedict Cumberbatch appearing in a supporting role. Cumberbatch and Dern also exec produce. [The story.]( —🎭 Getting close 🎭 Ben Stiller, Jesse Eisenberg and Sally Hawkins are all in negotiations to star in dystopian comedy The Semplica Girl Diaries. Submarine filmmaker Richard Ayoade has adapted the feature from George Saunders short story of the same name alongside the Booker Prize-winning American author. The casting would see Ayoade reunited with Eisenberg, who starred in his second directed feature The Double, based on Dostoyevsky’s novella. [The story.]( —Shipping news. Mike Colter has jumped on board Ship, the sequel to the original Lionsgate thriller The Plane. The followup to the surprise Gerard Butler hit, is set on a cargo ship and will focus on Colter’s character, the accused murderer and former French Legionnaire Louis Gaspare. Discussions with writers and directors are underway. Sales company The Veterans will shop Ship to buyers at the European Film Market in Berlin ahead of a schedule late 2023 shoot. [The story.]( —"[The court] might take him back [into jail] or leave him in limbo." Dissident director Mohammad Rasoulof, whose There Is No Evil won the 2020 Berlinale Golden Bear for best film, has been temporarily released from prison in Iran on medical grounds. There Is No Evil producer Farzad Pak confirmed Rasoulof’s release to THR. Rasoulof was released Saturday and is currently resting at his home in Tehran. The director’s lawyer told reporters that his incarceration has been suspended for two weeks. [The story.]( 'Magic Mike 3' Wins Super Bowl Weekend With $8.2M ►Without much help. Magic Mike’s Last Dance won Super Bowl weekend at the domestic box office with an estimated $8.2m, the lowest showing of the three films in the Channing Tatum franchise. However, Last Dance is playing in far fewer theaters — 1,550 cinemas is a modest number for a high-profile studio release — than the first two titles since it was made for streaming and not the big screen. THR's [Pamela McClintock]( writes that the box office always takes a hit because of the Super Bowl and Hollywood's studios generally avoid releasing event pics, or movies that target males. Overseas, Last Dance started off with $10.4m from its first 18 markets for a global start of $18.6m. Warner Bros. didn’t report numbers for Last Dance until Sunday — usually, grosses are visible throughout the weekend — a practice it also employed for House Party, which likewise pivoted and opened in theaters versus on HBO Max. A theatrical release puts more pressure on Tatum and director Steven Soderbergh since box office grosses are made public, while HBO Max viewing stats are generally not. [The box office report.]( —Cameron vs. Cameron. The other headline at the box office this weekend was the showdown between James Cameron’s two blockbusters, Avatar: The Way of Water and Titanic. Avatar 2 is still a formidable player at the box office, while a remastered 3D version of Titanic is being released in time for Valentine’s Day and in celebration of the film’s 25th anniversary. Avatar 2 took in $25.3m over the weekend to finish Sunday with a global cume of $2.214b. The 20th Century and Disney juggernaut is now only days away from overtaking Titanic, not adjusted for inflation. Avatar 2 would have achieved the milestone over Super Bowl weekend had it not been for the rerelease of Titanic, which grossed a tidy $22.3m globally to up its total cume to $2.217b. [The box office report.]( 'You' Boss on the Killer Reveal of S4 ►"Whodunnits are kind of up to each audience member." THR's [Christy Piña]( spoke to Sera Gamble, the creator of Netflix's You, about how she decided on season four Part 1's big bad, the importance of introducing a male friendship in Joe's life — and why he can never really change. Gamble also opened up on what comes next for Joe when You returns March 10 with Part 2. Warning: Spoilers! [The interview.]( —Real world impact. The Anti-Defamation League has released a report linking Kanye ‘Ye’ West’s antisemitic statements to real-world anti-Jewish sentiment on social media and in real-world physical spaces. Since October 2022, the ADL’s Center on Extremism has documented at least 30 antisemitic incidents that directly reference Ye and his public comments, including vandalism, banners with hate speech, targeted harassment and campaigns in support of the artist’s statements on college campuses. [The report.]( —🏆 "We wanted to represent and respect, but not impersonate" 🏆 Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis topped the feature competition at the 10th annual Make-Up Artists and Hair Stylists Guild Awards, winning a pair of awards for period make-up and period hair styling. Also on Saturday at The Beverly Hilton, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever collected the award for contemporary hair styling. Department head Camille Friend dedicated the award to the late Chadwick Boseman. [The winners.]( —"I had to really dig deep." Jada Pinkett Smith has opened up about having her alopecia diagnosis placed at the center of a major scandal after husband Will Smith slapped Oscars presenter Chris Rock following the comedian’s joke about her shaved head. In a new interview, Pinkett Smith was asked if she learned anything after having her autoimmune disease get such a public spotlight. “I learned a lot about detachment,” Pinkett Smith said. “And I learned a deeper beauty within myself, being able to let my hair go.” [The story.]( Howard Bragman 1956 - 2023 ►"LBGT warrior. Gentle giant." Howard Bragman, a public relations giant who helped guide all-star clients grappling with a dilemma while becoming an expert in crisis PR and a key advocate for LBGTQ rights, has died. He was 66. He most recently repped embattled talk show host Wendy Williams, but over the years his clients had also included Monica Lewinsky and Chaz Bono. Bragman also was known for helping closeted celebrities reveal their sexuality at a time when being “outed” could destroy a career. [The obituary.]( —"This is a huge loss." David Jude Jolicoeur, known widely as Trugoy the Dove and one of the founding members of the Long Island hip-hop trio De La Soul, has died. He was 54. No other information was immediately available. In recent years, Jolicoeur, had said he was battling congestive heart failure, living with a LifeVest machine affixed to his person. De La Soul was part of the hip-hop tribute at the Grammy Awards last week, but Trugoy was not onstage with his fellow bandmates. [The story.]( —TV veteran. Scott Satin, a longtime producer for shows such as Funny You Should Ask and Most Outrageous Moments, has died. He was 64. THR learned Satin died on Thursday following a years-long battle with progressive supranuclear palsy. The producer-writer-director began his entertainment career in the late ’80s with TV series such as Mathnet and Square One Television. Throughout the ’90s, he continued to work on projects like Hollywood Squares, The Keenen Ivory Wayans Show and Extreme Gong. [The obituary.]( —An Irish film industry legend. James Flynn, the Irish film producer, co-founder of Metropolitan Film Productions and co-producer on the Oscar-nominated The Banshees of Inisherin, had died. He was 57. Flynn died Saturday due to an unknown illness. His death comes amid a successful awards season for Banshees and the film’s Oscar run, with the Martin McDonagh-directed movie up for nine honors, including best picture. He also produced The Last Duel, Calvary, and the TV shows Vikings, Vikings: Valhalla and Kin. [The obituary.]( In other news... —Netflix’s new [releases coming in February 2023]( —Stephen “tWitch” Boss [remembered by loved ones at celebration of life service]( —[Kiernan “AKA” Forbes]( South African rapper, shot and killed at 35 What else we're reading... —Lucas Shaw writes that the new rules governing the Hollywood studios are a lot like the old rules [[Bloomberg]( —Salamishah Tillet writes that the Oscars and the Grammys thrive on the lie of meritocracy [[NYT]( —Ben Cohen profiles Broadway electrician Alan Lampel who has seen The Phantom of the Opera a whopping 13,000 times [[WSJ]( —Simon Hattenstone talks to All Quiet on the Western Front scribe Lesley Paterson who funded her 16-year Oscar dream by winning triathlons [[Guardian]( —Clarissa-Jan Lim looks at what happens to people who become viral social media content without their consent [[BuzzFeed News]( Today... Today's birthdays: Stockard Channing (79), Neal McDonough (57), Mena Suvari (44), Tony Dalton (48), Jerry Springer (79), Robbie Williams (49), Peter Gabriel (73), Jonathan Hensleigh (64), Kelly Hu (55), Sydney Chandler (27), Richard Tyson (62), Henry Rollins (62), Sophia Lillis (21), Andy Buckley (58), Donald Sumpter (80), Daniel Portman (31), [Ferdinand Kingsley]( (35), Hugh Dennis (61), Carolyn Lawrence (57), Ellen Bry (72), Hee-soon Park (53) Do you have THR's next big story? Confidentially share tips with us at [tips@thr.com](mailto:tips@thr.com?subject=). 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 © 2023 The Hollywood Reporter, a subsidiary of Penske Business Media, LLC. 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