Strike: Biden Calls for "Fair Deal"; CBS Un-Cancels 'SWAT'; Nicolas Cage Back for 'Lord of War' Sequel; 'Class of '09' Review

[View on web]( [New reader? Subscribe]( May 09, 2023 What's news: Amazon Studios has launched a syndication unit. CBS has canceled True Lies and East New York. HBO's GOT spinoff A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: The Hedge Knight has paused production. The upcoming Please Don't Destroy movie will no longer have a theatrical release and willl head to Peacock. — [Abid Rahman]( Strike: Biden Calls for "Fair Deal" ►Presidential approval. President Joe Biden weighed in on the WGA strike on Monday. Giving remarks before a White House screening of the Disney+ series American Born Chinese, Biden told the crowd (which included some Disney execs) that “I sincerely hope the writers strike in Hollywood gets resolved, and the writers are given a fair deal that they deserve as soon as possible.” [The story.]( —Closed for the duration. George R.R. Martin confirmed that the writers' room has shut down for the recently announced Game of Thrones series A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: The Hedge Knight. In a blog post Sunday, Martin noted the greenlit series has paused due to the stoppage. GOT prequel House of the Dragon is still forging ahead, however, as its season two scripts are written. [The story.]( —"Due to the division in our community at this time." The planned American Film Institute tribute to Nicole Kidman has been postponed due to the strike. The AFI confirmed that the AFI Life Achievement Award: A Tribute to Nicole Kidman event won't be happening as scheduled on June 10. There’s no word yet on a new date. [The story.]( CBS Reverses Course, Un-Cancels 'SWAT' ►Stay of execution. CBS' SWAT will live for one more season after the network reversed course on canceling the series. Three days after announcing the police drama would end with its sixth season, which wraps on May 19, the network on Monday picked up a seventh and final season that will run for 13 episodes. [The story.]( —Executed. Staying with CBS, the network has, for the moment at least, opted to cancel its last two remaining bubble shows, True Lies and East New York, both of which ran a single season. True Lies, a reboot of the film of the same name, will air its series finale May 17, while procedural East New York will wrap May 14. [The story.]( —Can't be a good sign. Universal's upcoming film from Please Don’t Destroy — the comedy trio that broke out online before being picked up by Saturday Night Live to produce the show’s digital shorts — will debut on Peacock on Nov. 17. It is unclear why the project was moved to the streamer. The untitled film was initially planned for a theatrical release on Aug. 18, but that date will now be taken over by R-rated dog comedy Strays. [The story.]( Cage Back for 'Lord of War' Sequel ►🎭 Finally! 🎭 Nicolas Cage and Bill Skarsgård are set to star in Lords of War, the sequel to Andrew Niccol's excellent 2005 film Lord of War. Cage is reprising his role as arms dealer Yuri Orlov, and Skarsgård on board to play his son, Anton. The film tells the story of Anton trying to top his father as they come into conflict. Vendome Pictures is producing with Niccol back to write and direct. [The story.]( —🎭 Okie dokie 🎭 Matthew McConaughey is set to star in The Rivals of Amziah King, a crime thriller written and directed by The Vast of Night helmer Andrew Patterson. Plot details are being kept under wraps, but McConaughey will play the title role of Amziah King in the feature, which is set in the remote areas of Oklahoma. Black Bear Pictures and Heyday Films are producing the upcoming feature, with international pre-sales kicking off at the Cannes film market next week. [The story.]( —🎭 Later dater 🎭 Emma Roberts is set to star in the new comedy Hot Mess. TV director Katie Locke O’Brien (Ghosts) will helm in her feature debut from a script by Gabrielle D’Amico. In the film, the American Horror Story star will play a woman whose personal life implodes on a TV dating show, and then has to take the ultimate walk of shame back to her hometown. [The story.]( Amazon Launches Syndication Unit ►Everything old is new again. Amazon Studios is launching a syndication business for its original series and films. The new business, Amazon MGM Studios Distribution, will look to sell streaming originals ranging from The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel to The Tomorrow War to other outlets. Chris Ottinger, who has led MGM’s distribution team for more than a decade, will lead the unit, which will also continue to sell MGM library titles including the James Bond and Rocky/Creed franchises. [The story.]( —That balcony fight. With three episodes left in the series, Succession ended its latest episode, "Tailgate Party," with a major blowup. Star Matthew Macfadyen, speaking after the episode on the official Succession podcast, unpacked what happened and discussed the conversation between Tom and Shiv that can never be taken back. Warning: Spoilers! [The story.]( —"That’s the absolute best version of that movie." The trailers to Rogue One: A Star Wars Story famously featured a number of scenes that never appeared in the final theatrical cut of the film. Given the troubled production, Star Wars fans have long wondered if perhaps a better edit might someday be released. Well, that isn't going to happen according to Tony Gilroy who directed the reshoots and punched up the script on the Gareth Edwards film. THR's [James Hibberd]( spoke to the Andor showrunner about all the unused footage for Rogue One and Gilroy couldn't have been more emphatic. [The story.]( Could Ed Sheeran's Copyright Win Change Music Lawsuits? ►"I still feel that it’s case-by-case, unfortunately." Last week, Ed Sheeran beat a lawsuit claiming that his hit song "Thinking Out Loud" stole key components of Marvin Gaye’s classic "Let’s Get It On." THR's [Mesfin Fekadu]( does a deep dive on what Sheeran's victory means for the future of music litigation and whether it might change the narrative of legal conflicts over songs following the major loss 'Blurred Lines' creators Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams experienced. [The analysis.]( —"I don’t release my music until I think it is great. Why would this be any different?" The Weeknd has revealed he chose to reshoot his controversial HBO series The Idol to adhere to the same standards he has for his music, but it came at a cost to his “health and home.” In a new interview, the "Blinding Lights" singer says he would be OK if his new headline-grabbing series is "fucking horrible." [The story.]( —"The superhero-obsessed little girl in me can’t believe it happened." There’s a cathartic scene in Guardians of the Galaxy 3 that features several characters dancing euphorically to the Florence + the Machine song “Dog Days Are Over.” On Monday, the British band's frontwoman Florence Welch posted a video of herself reacting to the scene, and she struggles to keep it together. [The clip.]( 'The Little Mermaid': First Reactions from Premiere ►"Charming, but incredibly spotty." Disney’s The Little Mermaid live-action remake had its premiere Monday, and the first reactions have hit social media. Early feedback is mixed with praise for stars Halle Bailey, Jonah Hauer-King, Melissa McCarthy and Javier Bardem but some viewers feeling the film felt disjointed. [The reaction.]( —"They’re not playing me." Disgraced Theranos CEO and convicted fraudster Elizabeth Holmes believes Amanda Seyfried isn’t really playing her in The Dropout, but rather a character she created. In a new, widely derided, profile in The New York Times, Holmes talked about creating "Elizabeth" who was known for her a look which consisted of red lipstick and black turtleneck coupled with a fake deep voice. In contrast, Holmes claimed that her new persona "Liz" was the real her. [The story.]( —"All my children are queer." Top drag stars, LGBTQ celebrities and allies of the queer community banded together Sunday to stage Drag Isn’t Dangerous, a telethon to raise money to combat anti-LGBTQ legislation. As anti-drag and anti-trans bills proliferate across the U.S., the telethon brought in more than $500,000 from 5,000 individual donors. Oscar-winner Marcia Gay Harden also appeared live, and revealed that her three queer children drove her to support the cause. [The story.]( Film Review: 'Class of '09' ►"Lacks the trademark FX edge or hook." THR's chief TV critic [Dan Fienberg]( reviews FX's Class of ’09. Kate Mara and Brian Tyree Henry play Quantico trainees in Tom Rob Smith's limited series, which features a time-jumping, AI-heavy twist. [The review.]( In other news... —Ed Sheeran [to perform at 58th Academy of Country Music Awards]( —Yara Shahidi [to be honored with Cameron Boyce Foundation Youth Empowerment Award]( —Shirley Halperin [joins Los Angeles Magazine as editor-in-chief]( —Teamsters Local 399[hires former Netflix senior counsel Kay Kimmel]( What else we're reading... —In a guest column, Dickinson creator Alena Smith writes that though the AI apocalypse is coming for Hollywood, we are already ruled by the robots [[VF]( —Stacy Perman reflects on the history of Hollywood, writing that the industry was built on the work of underappreciated writers like Raymond Chandler, William Faulkner and F. Scott Fitzgerald [[LAT]( —The always great Ed Zitron declares that the metaverse is dead [[Insider]( —Zachary Small and Rumsey Taylor look at how The Legend of Zelda changed video games forever [[NYT]( —Thompson Chau reports on the breakout success of Taiwanese comedy Marry My Dead Body, a rare openly gay film that tackles Asian taboos and reflects increasingly liberal attitudes in the region [[Nikkei Asia]( Today... ...in 1997, Luc Besson unveiled sci-fi actioner The Fifth Element in U.S. theaters, days after the film premiered as the opening-night title at the 50th Cannes Film Festival. [The original review.]( Today's birthdays: James L. Brooks (83), Glenda Jackson (87), Billy Joel (74), Rosario Dawson (44), Noah Centineo (27), J.A. Bayona (48), Chris Diamantopoulos (48), Candice Bergen (77), John Corbett (62), Mary Mouser (27), Sean Nelson (43), Julia Chan (40), Grace Gummer (37), Anna-Louise Plowman (51), Alley Mills (72), [Joe Carnahan]( (54), Daniel Franzese (45), Chuck Russell (65), Audrina Patridge (38), Gary Daniels (60), Jasmine Jobson (28) John Roland, who served as a reporter and anchor for Channel 5 in New York for more than three decades, died Sunday, a rep for Fox Television Stations announced. He was 81. [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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