THR Critics on 'Succession' Endgame; Cheech and Chong Biopic In the Works; BAFTA TV Noms; 'Yellowjackets' S2 Review

[View on web]( [New reader? Subscribe]( March 22, 2023 What's news: NBC's Smash is heading to Broadway. James Patterson signs a first-look deal with Skydance TV. Jon Spaihts will write the Gears of War movie. Anne Hathaway and Michaela Coel will topline David Lowery's next film. Eddie Redmayne will star in Sky/Peacock's The Day of the Jackal series. — [Abid Rahman]( 'Succession' Sets Up Its Endgame ►The end is nigh. With the fourth and final season of Succession dropping this week, THR's TV critics Dan Fienberg and Angie Han take a spoiler-free and bittersweet look at the start of the HBO series' last hurrah. [The critics’ conversation.]( —Finally! THR's [Mia Galuppo]( has the scoop on a Cheech and Chong biopic being developed at Hidden Pictures. Todd Lieberman’s banner is partnering with iconic comedians Cheech Marin and Tommy Chong, Underground, and Five All in the Fifth Entertainment on the feature that will tell the origin story of the cult duo. Kristian Mercado, who most recently made his feature debut with If You Were Last, will direct from a screenplay by Danya Jimenez and Hannah McMechan. [The story.]( —🤝 First-look deal 🤝 Best-selling author James Patterson is moving his TV deal. Patterson, who had been based at Entertainment One, has signed an exclusive first-look pact with Skydance Television, under which he’ll adapt a number of books for the studio including Women’s Murder Club, Michael Bennett, Private and the upcoming Jane Smith and Holmes, Miss Marple and Poe. The new pact extends the author's relationship with Skydance, for whom he’s already adapting Cross as an Amazon/Freevee series. [The story.]( —Scribe found! Jon Spaihts is set to write the script for Netflix’s upcoming Gears of War movie. Based on the phenomenally popular Xbox video game franchise, the Gears of War live-action adaptation, will be followed by an adult animated series at the streamer. Spaihts, who co-wrote Dune Part One and Part Two with Denis Villeneuve, was also behind the screenplays of Doctor Strange, Prometheus, Darkest Hour and Passengers. [The story.]( Gladiators Are Back: Hollywood Readies 3 Rival Projects ►Are we ready to be entertained? It seems swords-and-sandals are en vogue again, with three separate projects involving Roman gladiators in the works. THR's [James Hibberd]( runs through the trio of epics, that includes a sequel to Ridley Scott's Gladiator and prestige shows at Peacock and Starz. [The story.]( —🎭 Taking shape 🎭 THR's [Borys Kit]( has the scoop on Rashida Jones joining Kate McKinnon to star in Andrew Stanton's a sci-fi drama In the Blink of An Eye. Colby Day wrote the script for the Searchlight Pictures feature that focuses on three intersecting storylines. Jones’ character is an anthropology professor who is taking care of her dying mother. [The story.]( —🎭 What a matchup 🎭 Anne Hathaway will star opposite I May Destroy You phenom Michaela Coel in Mother Mary, an “epic pop melodrama” that David Lowery is directing for A24. Lowery also wrote the script for the feature which tells the story of a fictional musician (Hathaway) and her relationship with an iconic fashion designer (Coel). The project brings Lowery back into the A24 fold after the filmmaker’s 2021 hallucinatory fantasy The Green Knight and 2017’s A Ghost Story. [The story.]( —🎭 Baby-faced assassin 🎭 Eddie Redmayne is set to look through the crosshairs of one of the most famous fictional assassins in the upcoming TV adaptation of The Day of the Jackal. The Oscar, Tony and BAFTA winner will play the Jackal himself in the Sky/Peacock original series, based on the Frederick Forsyth thriller and subsequent award-winning 1973 film adaptation of the same name from Universal. Redmayne will also executive produce. [The story.]( 'Swarm' Star Leaned on Faith, Friends and Therapy For Killer Role ►"I couldn’t be limited by a fear of what people were going to think." For THR, Demetrius Patterson spoke to Swarm star, social media darling and birthday girl Dominique Fishback about what it took to climb into (and out of) the darkness of her character in the buzzy Amazon show. Fishback also shares her interpretation of the ambiguous ending. Warning: Spoilers! [The interview.]( —Zava is here. THR's [Rick Porter]( recaps the second episode of Ted Lasso’s third season, that puts the title character on the sidelines for much of its running time, focusing instead on Rebecca (Hannah Waddingham), Roy (Brett Goldstein) and a couple new additions to the AFC Richmond locker room, including a certain Zlatanesque star player. Warning: Spoilers! [The recap.]( —"The truth shall set you free." Shazam! star Zachary Levi waded into controversy on Tuesday, after a report circulated that Black Adam star Dwayne Johnson blocked characters from his film showing up in a post-credits scene in Levi’s Shazam! Fury of the Gods and also nixed a potential Levi cameo in Black Adam. In an Instagram story, Levi shared a post mentioning the report, and added his own pithy commentary. [The story.]( —"It takes a great deal out of me to make a film." Todd Field experienced major success with the Oscar-nominated Tár, but he doesn’t expect to helm another feature anytime soon. In a new interview, the filmmaker discussed the difficulty he feels when making a film, which led him to state that he doesn’t foresee directing another one, although he admitted he could potentially change his mind. [The story.]( —"She has always protected me." Stylist Law Roach is clearing the air about him and Zendaya once and for all. In a recent appearance on Emily Ratajkowski’s podcast High Low, Roach revealed that when Zendaya found out he was retiring after seeing his since-deleted Instagram post where he announced it, she reached out to him and offered to help him in any way she could. [The story.]( BAFTA TV Awards 2023 Noms ►🏆 Spreading the love 🏆 The 2023 BAFTA TV Awards nominations saw a broad selection of shows being recognized. BBC/AMC comedy-drama This is Going to Hurt and BBC police drama The Responder lead the pack of nominees with six nods each, closely followed by Apple TV+ shows Bad Sisters and Slow Horses, Netflix’s The Crown and BBC/Amazon Western The English with five. [The nominations.]( —Still got it. Andrew Lloyd Webber's long-running musical The Phantom of the Opera reported the highest gross in its 35-year-old history in the week ended March 19, bringing in just over $3m across eight performances. This is the first time the production has grossed more than $3m in one week and bests even its holiday grosses, typically the highest time for any show, when it played nine shows in one week. [The story.]( —One step closer. A musical adaptation of the NBC television series Smash is now slated to open on Broadway in the 2024-2025 season, producers Robert Greenblatt, Neil Meron and Steven Spielberg said Wednesday. The production has tapped Tony winner Susan Stroman as its director. Shaiman and Wittman, the composers of Hairspray, are writing the score, which includes new material. [The story.]( —On the move. The American Film Market has a new home. The Loews, the iconic hotel in Santa Monica that since 1991 has provided shelter for thousands of film buyers and sales execs has now closed for major renovations. As such, organizers of AFM have found new lodgings for their annual deal-making get-together in the Le Meridien Delfina at 530 Pico Blvd. [The story.]( —Last minute deal. Post Malone has settled a copyright suit from a musician alleging he co-wrote 2019 hit “Circles” but was denied credit and compensation, according to a court document filed on Tuesday. Terms of the deal weren’t disclosed. The court was informed of the agreement during jury selection. The trial was set to feature witnesses playing instruments on the stand before it was settled. [The story.]( TV Review: 'Yellowjackets' S2 ►"The gap between the highlights and lowlights widens further." THR's chief TV critic [Dan Fienberg]( reviews season two of Showtime's Yellowjackets. The series starring Melanie Lynskey, Christina Ricci, Juliette Lewis and many more returns for more '90s-set survival adventures and present-day mysteries. [The review.]( —A refresher. With season two of Yellowjackets almost upon us, THR's [Jackie Strause]( rounds up the five biggest questions heading into the psychological horror and coming-of-age show’s March 24 return. [The burning questions.]( In other news... —Oliver Stone [releases trailer for his pro-nuclear energy movie, Nuclear Now]( —Vanessa Hudgens [to explore her Filipino heritage in travel doc]( —Netflix [expands finance programming with How to Get Rich]( —Fremantle [launches high-end documentary label Undeniable]( —The [best music festivals of 2023]( —Sophia Anne Caruso [signs with Gersh]( —Stylist and fashion creator [Tina Leung signs with CAA]( —[Ric de Azevedo]( King Family singer and Private Benjamin producer, dies at 75 What else we're reading... —Sarah Lyall talks to Matthew Macfadyen who reveals his mixed feelings about the end of Succession [[NYT]( —Lucy Knight has the brutal and shocking true story of Bambi (it's not a story for the faint-hearted) [[Guardian]( —Nia Prater, Matt Stieb, and Benjamin Hart have rather helpfully gathered together all the texts from the Dominion lawsuit that Fox News didn't want outsiders to read [[Intelligencer]( —Melissa Korn reports on the unraveling of the U.S. News & World Report college rankings [[WSJ]( —David A. Graham believes that wokeness has replaced socialism as the great conservative bogeyman [[Atlantic]( Today... ...in 1985, Tri-Star unveiled the PG-13 pop musical The Last Dragon, featuring a soundtrack that included Stevie Wonder and Smokey Robinson, in theaters nationwide. [The original review.]( Today's birthdays: Reese Witherspoon (47), Dominique Fishback (32), Nicole Holofcener (63), Nick Robinson (28), Constance Wu (41), William Shatner (92), Anne Dudek (48), Cole Hauser (48), Tania Raymonde (35), Matthew Modine (64), [Keegan-Michael Key]( (52), Will Yun Lee (52), Kandyse McClure (43), Daisy Haggard (45), Tiffany Dupont (42), Andreas Pietschmann (54), Lizzie Brocheré (38), Heather Lind (40), Fanny Ardant (74), Eric Roth (78), Iben Hjejle (52), Steve Toussaint (58), Jeremy Clyde (82), Lena Olin (68), Kidada Jones (49) Ruben Igielko-Herrlich, the co-founder of the marketing firm Propaganda GEM who as a leader in product placement oversaw major brand integrations in Hollywood, has died. He was 62. [The obituary.]( 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. 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