Jeff Shell Exits NBCU After "Inappropriate Relationship"; 'Succession' Star Reacts to That "Kill List"; CinemaCon Opens to Upbeat Box Office Forecasts;

[View on web]( [New reader? Subscribe]( April 24, 2023 What's news: More layoffs at Disney will begin this week. SAG-AFTRA has publicly backed the WGA over possible strike action. Former DWTS judge Len Goodman has died. The Super Mario Bros. Movie soared to $872m at the global box office. — [Abid Rahman]( Shell Exits NBCU After "Inappropriate Relationship" ►Shock departure. NBCUniversal CEO Jeff Shell is departing the company following an investigation into misconduct involving an "inappropriate relationship." Parent company Comcast and Shell jointly announced the news Sunday in a statement that noted the two have mutually agreed on the decision. He’ll depart effective immediately. "I had an inappropriate relationship with a woman in the company, which I deeply regret," Shell said in his own statement. "I’m truly sorry I let my Comcast and NBCUniversal colleagues down." [The story.]( —"It is long past time." The SAG-AFTRA National Board has publicly backed the Writers Guild of America amid its ongoing negotiations with studios and streamers. The performers’ union voted unanimously Saturday on a resolution expressing solidarity, saying it is time for “employers in our industry to step up and make meaningful changes.” [The story.]( —Dragon fire. Disneyland and other Disney parks are temporarily suspending fire effects like those used in the Fantasmic live show after an animatronic dragon caught on fire at the California park on Saturday night. The fire took place during the final showing of the 30-minute park experience, Disneyland officials told THR. Emergency crews responded to the scene around 11 p.m. after a dragon prop caught fire. [The story.]( —More pain. THR's [Alex Weprin]( reports that another round of layoffs at Disney will begin this week, and it will impact every corner of the company. Sources say the latest round will begin today and continue through Thursday, and will include cuts at Disney Entertainment, ESPN, Disney Parks, Experiences and Products and elsewhere, impacting employees in California, New York, Connecticut and elsewhere. The frontline operations roles at Disney’s theme parks and hotels are not expected to be impacted. [The story.]( 'Succession' Star Reacts to That "Kill List" ►"I’m going to miss the excellence." For THR, Josh Wigler talks to Succession star Peter Friedman, the actor who plays Frank, about episode five of the final season of the HBO hit. The actor unpacks the season thus far, including Frank’s relationship with the ascendant Kendall, and shares some war stories from working with the likes of Brian Cox, Jeremy Strong and more. Warning: Spoilers! [The interview.]( —"A wonderful, warm entertainer who was adored by millions." Len Goodman, the hugely popular former judge on both Strictly Come Dancing in the U.K. and Dancing with the Stars in the U.S., has died. He was 78. Goodman’s agent confirmed the news, saying that he had died at a hospice on Saturday “peacefully, surrounded by his family.” He had been suffering from bone cancer. [The obituary.]( —"I said a stupid thing. It was a mean thing to do." Matthew Perry has decided to turn his words into actions regarding his negative comments about Keanu Reeves in his memoir, Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing. After previously apologizing for the passages that reference the John Wick actor, Perry said at the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books on Saturday that he is removing Reeves’ name from future editions of the book. [The story.]( —"Your short-term memory goes and my eyesight is pretty rubbish now." THR's man in London [Alex Ritman]( has the scoop on Ken Loach heading into retirement, probably. The veteran British filmmaker, who turns 87 in June, spoke to Alex about his latest feature, The Old Oak, that is premiering in Cannes this year. Loach acknowledged that at his age, "realistically" it would be hard to direct another feature film. [The story.]( Wahoo! CinemaCon 2023 Opens to Upbeat Forecasts ►On the up. CinemaCon, the annual gathering of theater owners and Hollywood studios in Las Vegas, opens today and attendees will have some good news and optimistic forecasts to chew over. Global box office revenue in 2023 could now hit $32b instead of a projected $29b, according to leading analytics firm Gower Street. The London-based outfit revised its 2023 projection upwards after the astounding performance of The Super Mario Bros. Movie, which continues to shatter records. [The story.]( —Wintendo. Super Mario Bros. remained a monster at the multiplex in its third weekend as it crossed the $400m mark domestically and $800m globally to finish Sunday with a remarkable cume of $871.8m. It easily won the weekend race in North America with an estimated $58.2m from 4,350 theaters for a domestic cume of $434.3m through Sunday. Overseas, it earned another estimated $70.7m for a foreign total of $437.5m. Coming in a strong No. 2 at the domestic box office was Warner Bros.' new supernatural offering Evil Dead Rise, the fifth installment in the cult series created by Sam Raimi. The movie opened to an estimated $23.5m from 3,402 theaters, ahead of expectations and on par with the likes of recent horror hit Cocaine Bear. THR's [Pamela McClintock]( writes that Evil Dead Rise was initially intended to go straight to Max, but WB switched course as part of its overall focus on theatrical, a mandate handed down when WBD chief David Zaslav took office. [The box office report.]( —Japan's moment. Anime sensation The First Slam Dunk dominated the competition at China’s theatrical box office over the weekend, racking up a four-day opening win worth $56m, while Super Mario Bros. brought in $2m for a distant fourth place. Toei's First Slam Dunk has received wild acclaim across China’s major movie rating platforms, including a stellar 9.2 from fan community Douban and 9.4 on ticketing apps Maoyan and Taopiaopiao. It’s expected to clear $100m before its China run is complete. [The China box office report.]( Alex Borstein Talks 'Marvelous Mrs. Maisel' Legacy ►"You can have more than one woman on a show, and they can all be like really well-defined." THR's [Christy Piña]( spoke to The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel star Alex Borstein about the fifth and final season of the Amazon Prime Video series. Borstein said she hoped the show's central female relationship between Midge and Susie "maybe alters TV landscape a little bit." [The story.]( —"I don’t think there’s a more dangerous way to dispose of Bud Light other than, of course, drinking it." John Oliver slammed Budweiser's capitulation in the face of a fierce right-wing backlash to its partnership with trans influencer Dylan Mulvaney. The Last Week Tonight host took particular umbrage with Budweiser's recent ad trying to reassert its heartland credentials, that he says even includes an oblique reference to 9/11. [The recap.]( —"I got kind of lucky that we found it." Ray Romano has revealed he had a stent put in his heart after having “90 percent blockage” in his main artery. In a new interview, the Everybody Loves Raymond star said he wishes he did do a few things differently years ago regarding his health. [The story.]( —"There is a double for a reason." Although some actors live for the thrill of doing their own stunts for projects, Elizabeth Olsen is not one of them. During Wednesday’s episode of The Late Show, the actress said she does most of her stunts in the MCU, but finds it to be a "waste of everyone’s time because a stunt double does it so much better." [The story.]( —"It all made me so anxious that I could barely do it." Jennifer Grey has opened up about the anxiety she faced during her appearance on the first season of Friends and how it hindered her from reprising the role later on. In a new interview, the Dirty Dancing star, who played Rachel’s former best friend and maid of honor, recalled initially being excited when she got the call for the show because she was such a fan, but the constant script changes left her with bad anxiety. [The story.]( 'Mrs. Davis' Explained by Creators and Star Betty Gilpin ►"What the f***?" A nun and a cowboy go on an epic quest for the Holy Grail in Peacock's new genre-bending series Mrs. Davis. THR's [Jackie Strause]( spoke to series co-creators Tara Hernandez and birthday boy Damon Lindelof along with lead star Betty Gilpin who unpack the wild ride for viewers after the first four episodes. Warning: Spoilers! [The interview.]( —"I have to care about Misty to play her, so I have a lot of love for her." Pulling double duty, Jackie also spoke to Yellowjackets pair Christina Ricci and Samantha Hanratty about the events of the season two episode, "Two Truths and a Lie." The stars, who play the adult and teenage Misty, discuss that brutal reveal that afflicts their character. Warning: Spoilers! [The interview.]( —"Ultimately, the audience is involved in the whole twin swap." And it's a hat trick from Jackie, as she also spoke to Dead Ringers showrunner Alice Birch and star Rachel Weisz about the critically acclaimed Amazon Prime Video adaptation of David Cronenberg's body horror classic. The duo unpack the ending, the post-credits reveal and where “Beverly” Mantle goes after that park bench. Warning: Spoilers! [The interview.]( Patti LuPone on Her 'Beau is Afraid' Role ►"I don’t come to this character thinking she’s a villain." In Ari Aster’s Beau is Afraid, Joaquin Phoenix plays a man on a quest of mythic proportions—to visit his feared mother, Mona, played the legendary Patti LuPone. THR's [Rebecca Keegan]( spoke to LuPone about crafting the memorable character together with Aster, and also dishes on what to expect from her upcoming performance as a Sicilian witch in Marvel’s WandaVision spinoff, and why she’ll never return to Broadway. [The interview.]( In other news... —Makers [of Nimona, Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget headed to Annecy]( —BMX star [Nigel Sylvester signs with WME]( —Sofia Richie [marries Elliot Grainge in France]( —Burning Man-inspired [outdoor art gallery Transfix opens in Las Vegas]( What else we're reading... —Lucas Shaw and Madeline Campbell have crunched the numbers and have a list of the popular TV shows on streaming [[Bloomberg]( —Iva Dixit writes that Netflix's strangely popular dating show Indian Matchmaking is reinforcing age-old prejudices [[NYT]( —In a fascinating excerpt from his new book Traffic, Ben Smith recounts how Disney's attempt to buy BuzzFeed a decade ago fell apart [[VF]( —Alex Kirshner recaps a wild weekend that saw business genius Elon Musk turn Twitter's blue check mark into a scarlet letter [[Slate]( —Forget AI, Jennifer Hiller reports on the big race to harness fusion energy between Jeff Bezos, Bill Gates, Marc Benioff, Peter Thiel and other billionaires [[WSJ]( Today... Today's birthdays: Shirley MacLaine (89), Damon Lindelof (50), Kelly Clarkson (41), [Aidan Gillen]( (55), Barbra Streisand (81), Cedric the Entertainer (59), Joe Keery (31), Rebecca Mader (46), Jack Quaid (31), Djimon Hounsou (59), Derek Luke (49), Eric Bogosian (70), Joséphine Jobert (38), Rory McCann (54), Eric Balfour (46), Sam Corlett (27), Jordan Fisher (29), Stacy Haiduk (55), Glenn Morshower (64), Eric Kripke (49), Viveca Paulin (54), Kehlani (28) Barry Humphries, the Australian entertainer whose gladioli-waving alter ego Dame Edna charmed and roasted celebrities, all with a Cheshire grin, outrageous eyewear, a “Hello, Possums!” greeting and a flurry of caustic wit, died Saturday. He was 89. [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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