WBD Merger Under Fire; 'Mario' Levels Up at Box Office; Netflix Cancels 'Sex/Life'; Hong Chau Talks 'Showing Up'

[View on web]( [New reader? Subscribe]( April 08, 2023 What's news: Damson Idris joins Brad Pitt's Formula One film. Model Sara Ziff sues Disney and alleges she was raped by a former Miramax executive. Paul Cattermole of the British pop group S Club 7 dies at 46. Blumhouse's Night Swim moves up its release date. — [Ryan Gajewski]( WBD Merger Under Fire From Lawmakers ►"WBD's conduct amounts to a de facto 'catch and kill' practice." Nearing the one-year anniversary of Discovery and AT&T's WarnerMedia merger, four Democrats in Congress are calling for the Department of Justice to reassess the deal. The group, including Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Rep. Joaquin Castro, say it has harmed workers and led to reduced programming choices for consumers. In a letter to the Justice Department's top enforcers, the lawmakers claim that the merger has enabled Warner Bros. Discovery to "adopt potentially anticompetitive practices." [The story.]( —Full speed ahead. Snowfall lead Damson Idris will star with Brad Pitt in Apple's Formula One racing movie. The filmmaking team behind Top Gun: Maverick is reuniting on the project, with Joseph Kosinski set to direct, as well as produce alongside Jerry Bruckheimer. Ehren Kruger, one of the writers on Maverick, will pen the screenplay. [The story.]( —A new legal fight. Model Sara Ziff is suing Harvey Weinstein, Miramax, Disney and others, alleging that she was raped by former Miramax executive Fabrizio Lombardo. She says that Lombardo tricked her into a hotel room meeting and assaulted her in 2001. [The story.]( —"He will outsmart you and trap you." The animated corner of the Star Wars Universe created by Dave Filoni is being transferred into live action with the Lucasfilm Disney+ series Ahsoka. THR's [Borys Kit]( reports that this was hammered home at the Ahsoka panel held Saturday at Star Wars Celebration, which climaxed with the reveal that Lars Mikkelsen, the Danish actor who voiced the popular villain Grand Admiral Thrawn from Filoni’s 2014 series, Star Wars: Rebels, would be reprising the role for the new series. [The story.]( 'Super Mario Bros.' Heading for Huge Five-Day Opening ►Just peachy. THR's [Pamela McClintock]( reports that Illumination and Universal’s Nintendo video game adaptation The Super Mario Bros. Movie grossed $55 million at the Friday box office for a five-day domestic debut of $195 million or more, well ahead of expectations. The mega-opening includes a projected $137 million for the three-day weekend, which would pass up Finding Dory ($135.1 million) to rank as the second-best start of all time for an animated film behind Incredibles 2, not adjusted for inflation. And overseas, Super Mario looks to start off with $173 million for a $368 million start, the top showing ever for an animated title. Elsewhere, Ben Affleck's drama Air is picking up steam. [The story.]( —Making a splash. Universal is moving up the latest feature from Atomic Monster and Blumhouse, Night Swim. The movie that stars Wyatt Russell and Kerry Condon will now hit theaters in the first week of January. [The story.]( —"I'm a real Rumpelstiltskin character, let's be honest — I'm a bit of a Muppet." For THR's Awards Chatter podcast, Scott Feinberg interviews Poker Face star Natasha Lyonne. She discusses child stardom, her years away from the business due to addiction, and her remarkable run over the past decade with Netflix's Orange Is the New Black and Russian Doll followed by her acclaimed new Peacock series. [The podcast.]( 'Sex/Life Canceled at Netflix ►Life is over. Netflix has canceled its drama series Sex/Life after two seasons. The decision comes five weeks after the show's second season debuted — and three weeks after star Sarah Shahi signed on to star in Judgement, a legal drama in contention for next season at ABC. Shahi said in a recent podcast interview that she felt she "did not have the support" on season two that she did on season one. [The story.]( —Ariana did the thing. THR's nicest man [Chris Gardner]( reports that Ariana DeBose recently hit the London Palladium stage for a one-night engagement that saw her perform the BAFTA rap that set social media ablaze. The show included T-shirts, totes and posters emblazoned with rap lyrics like "Angela Bassett did the thing." [The story.]( —"We are truly devastated by the passing of our brother Paul." Paul Cattermole of the British pop group S Club 7 has died, months before the band was set to go on tour to celebrate its 25th anniversary. He was 46. [The obituary.]( Hong Chau Talks 'Showing Up' and 'The Whale' ►"There are all sorts of degrees of success." THR's [Brian Davids]( interviews Hong Chau about starring in Kelly Reichardt's film Showing Up. The Oscar-nominated The Whale performer discusses working with Michelle Williams, in addition to receiving support from Sandra Oh after opening up about challenging experiences following the release of Downsizing. [The interview.]( —"It's changed my life." THR's Chris Gardner talks to star Rachel Brosnahan and executive producers Amy Sherman-Palladino and Daniel Palladino at the PaleyFest event for The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. The fifth and final season of the Emmy Award-winning Prime Video series launches April 14. [The story.]( This Week's Must Reads ►THR's top 50 films of the 21st century. Over the course of a few months, several Zoom meetings, and countless emails, six THR film critics came together to hash out, and rank, what they consider the greatest films since 2000. The picks include Black Panther, Brokeback Mountain and Get Out. [The list.]( —"No vision for what an Amazon Prime show is." THR's editor-at-large [Kim Masters]( takes an inside look at Amazon Studios following its recent big swings. Current and former company execs, showrunners and agents describe it as a confusing and frustrating place to do business. The story includes surprising facts about such high-profile series as Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power. [The story.]( —"The Trump reality show continues to dominate the national conversation." THR's Frank Scheck weighs in after former President Donald Trump's 34 felony counts put him at the center of the political universe yet again. Scheck examines the Trump campaign hawking T-shirts featuring fake mug shots of its beleaguered leader for a $47 donation. [The story.]( —"This is going to turn into a broader public policy issue." THR's [Winston Cho]( and [Carolyn Giardina]( explore whether stars should register their AI likeness. The CEO of firm Metaphysic has submitted his own AI likeness for copyright registration — but the legal territory is far from settled so far. [The story.]( In other news... —Amazon Studios to provide $50K finishing [fund for Latino independent filmmakers]( —Francesca Cappucci, former entertainment [reporter at KABC-TV, dies at 64]( What else we're reading... —Ben Sisario writes that live music is roaring back, but fans are reeling from sticker shock [[NYT]( —Washington Post critics pick 2023's best TV shows so far, including The Last of Us and The Mandalorian [[WaPo]( —Liam Gaughan explains why Ben-Hur is the ideal movie to rewatch this Easter weekend [[Collider]( —Following the much-debated NCAA tourney, Mia Berry explores the trash talk that continues drawing attention to women's basketball [[Andscape]( —Alastair Sooke examines whether young people are right to shun Picasso's work amid a backlash over his misogynistic behavior [[Telegraph]( Today... Today's birthdays: Patricia Arquette (55), Robin Wright (57), Sung Kang (51), Katee Sackhoff (43), Taylor Kitsch (42), Paola Núñez (45), Dean Norris (60), Emma Caulfield Ford (50), Ana de la Reguera (46), Evan Mock (36), Levy Tran (40), Gabriella Wilde (34), Allu Arjun (41), Sadie Calvano (26), Craig Mazin (52), Skai Jackson (21), Matty Healy (34) Jacques Haitkin, who served as the cinematographer on the first two Nightmare on Elm Street movies, has died. He was 72. [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. 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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