Natalie Portman at Cannes; Tony Gilroy Ceases Producing Work on 'Andor'; MTV News to Close as Paramount Slashes Workforce; 'Hypnotic' Review

[View on web]( [New reader? Subscribe]( May 10, 2023 What's news: It's magazine day! This week's cover star is the Cannes-bound Natalie Portman. The DGA begins its contract talks with the AMPTP today. Chris McCarthy's unit at Paramount Global is laying off 25 percent of its staff. Fox has canceled Fantasy Island. Jenna Ortega will star in Beetlejuice 2. — [Abid Rahman]( Natalie Portman at Cannes: "I Need to Leave the Drama for the Screen" ►On the cover. Ahead of this year's Cannes Film Festival, Natalie Portman talks to THR's [Rebecca Keegan]( about her new film, Todd Haynes’ May December, which premieres on the Croisette. The actor, producer and budding soccer mogul also opens up about "amoral art," her complicated feelings about Léon: The Professional filmmaker Luc Besson and the “heartbreaking” implosion of Time’s Up: "Mistakes are deadly for activism." [The cover story.]( Tony Gilroy Ceases Producing Work on 'Andor' ►"I discontinued all writing and writing-related work on Andor prior to midnight, May 1." Tony Gilroy has told THR's [Lesley Goldberg]( that he is no longer performing any non-writing duties for Andor, the Disney+ Star Wars show he created and runs. In a statement, Gilroy responded to criticism he received from a fellow Writers Guild member for performing such services during the WGA strike. Gilroy says he was not present on the show’s set and hasn’t been since the strike began May 2. [The story.]( —"We know there will be conflict." On the eve of the start of contract negotiations, THR's [Katie Kilkenny]( reports that top dealmakers for the Directors Guild of America told members that their 2023 talks with studios and streamers “are about more than our next contract.” Negotiation heads of the union representing 19,000 directors, unit production managers and stage managers, among others, addressed members in a video before they begin talks with studios and streamers on Wednesday. [The story.]( —Wait, what? Grammy-winning band Imagine Dragons took to the Netflix picket line on Tuesday to show its support for striking writers. Piano player Dan Reynolds and electric guitarist Daniel Wayne Sermon, new L.A. transplants from Las Vegas, performed “Radioactive” and “Whatever It Takes.” [The story.]( MTV News to Close as Paramount Slashes Workforce ►Signing off. Thirty-six years after MTV News was created to expand the stable of programming that defined the cable channel MTV, it is no more. MTV News was shuttered this week as part of larger layoffs at parent company Paramount Global. What launched as a single show in 1987 — The Week in Rock, led by correspondent Kurt Loder — eventually became a bona fide news outlet for Gen X and older millennials. [The story.]( —About those cuts. The Paramount Global unit led by Chris McCarthy laid off 25 percent of its domestic team on Tuesday. The reduction comes on the heels of integrating Showtime into McCarthy's cable and streaming purview, which will be consolidated into two functions going forward. There are “studios,” which now combine Showtime with MTV Entertainment Studios, and “networks,” which will merge nine separate teams into one portfolio group. The majority of the cuts are being felt by the latter group. [The story.]( —Comeback. In a video posted to his Twitter account with the line “we’re back,” Tucker Carlson said that he will be bringing “a new version of the show that we have been doing for the past six and a half years to Twitter.” The announcement suggests in no uncertain terms that the Elon Musk-owned social platform will play host to Carlson’s program — or at least a version of it — even as he navigates an acrimonious exit agreement with Fox News, which is being negotiated by attorney Bryan Freedman. [The story.]( —Bona fide hit. The Bridgerton franchise continues to be a huge draw for Netflix. The streamer’s debut of Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story was a runaway No. 1 among all titles on Netflix for the week of May 1-7. The prequel, created by Shonda Rhimes, drew 148.28m hours of viewing worldwide in the four days after its May 4 premiere, according to Netflix’s internal measurement. It reached the top 10 in 91 countries and ranked No. 1 in 76 of those. [The story.]( —🏆 Progressive selections 🏆 On Tuesday, the Peabody Awards announced the winners in the 35 categories honoring the most compelling and empowering stories released in broadcasting, streaming, and interactive media during 2022. Notable winners include FX’s Atlanta and AMC’s Better Call Saul, which earned their second Peabody Awards after both series won for their first seasons. [The winners.]( Inside the Battle to Save 'SWAT' ►"It became a game of chicken." CBS made a surprise U-turn earlier this week when it uncanceled police drama SWAT. THR's Lesley Goldberg reports that fraught renewal negotiations between CBS and Sony Pictures Television came to a head as the network looked to cut costs and the production company strived to stop bleeding money on the series. [The story.]( —Moving forward. CBS has picked up to series three of its four pilots, handing out formal orders to the Kathy Bates-led Matlock reboot, The Good Fight spinoff Elsbeth starring Carrie Preston, and the father-son comedy starring Damon Wayans and Damon Wayans Jr. that is now titled Poppa’s House. The three shows are the first scripted series orders at the network for new entertainment president Amy Reisenbach. CBS, like other broadcast networks, drastically reduced the volume of pilot orders this year. [The story.]( —One and done. The CW has opted to cancel the prequel to the network’s Walker reboot, Walker: Independence, after a single season. The series starring Katherine McNamara was the last of The CW’s bubble shows from CBS Studios. The news came mere minutes after the Jared Padalecki-led Walker was renewed for an abbreviated 13-episode fourth season at the Nexstar-controlled network. [The story.]( —So long and farewell. Fox has canceled its drama series Fantasy Island after two seasons. The end for the series comes a day after its second-season finale aired. Created and run by Elizabeth Craft and Sarah Fain, Fantasy Island is a sequel to and update of the 1977-84 ABC series that starred Ricardo Montalban. [The story.]( 'Lady on Fire' Star Quits Cinema Over French #MeToo Indifference ►Powerful act. French actress Adèle Haenel, the star of Portrait of a Lady on Fire, has announced her retirement from the movie business, saying the complacency and indifference of the French industry to the #MeToo movement is behind her decision. In a letter published on media news site Télérama on Tuesday, Haenel she wanted to use the public declaration of her retirement from the film business as a way to call out the “general complacency” within the French industry “vis-à-vis sexual aggressors.” [The story.]( —Updated complaint. Jonathan Majors appeared virtually in New York Criminal Court on Tuesday for a status conference in connection with assault and harassment charges as the DA introduced new details in the complaint, which the actor’s attorney alleged was part of a “witch hunt” against the Loki star. A judge said Majors must continue to abide by the full stay-away order for protection, which includes no contact with the woman who accused him. [The story.]( —Suit dismissed. Evan Rachel Wood will not have to face defamation claims from Marilyn Manson accusing her of manufacturing a conspiracy to portray him as a serial abuser who has sexually assaulted several women. In a tentative ruling adopted by the court on Tuesday, a Los Angeles Superior Court judge tossed claims against Wood under a law providing for the dismissal of suits arising out of protected speech. [The story.]( Jenna Ortega to Star in 'Beetlejuice 2' ►🎭 It's happening 📅 Warner Bros. has carved out a Sept. 6, 2024, release date for Beetlejuice 2, the long-gestating sequel to Tim Burton’s 1988 feature that starred Michael Keaton as the titular ghost with the most. The film will reunite Burton with his Wednesday star Jenna Ortega, who sources say will play the daughter of Lydia, the character played by Winona Ryder in the first installment. Keaton is expected to return as well, and the feature has a script from Wednesday creators Alfred Gough and Miles Millar. [The story.]( —🎭 The first of them 🎭 THR's [Borys Kit]( has the scoop on Pedro "Daddy" Pascal signing up to star in Weapons, the newest movie project from the filmmakers behind the surprise horror breakout Barbarian. The Last of Us star is the first actor to be attached to the project, although character details were not revealed. New Line is behind the feature, which has a script written by Zach Cregger, the actor/comedian turned moviemaker who is also sitting in the director’s chair. [The story.]( —🎭 We need to talk about Kevin 🎭 Kevin James is set to star in the new action comedy Guns Up, playing an ex-cop and family man who moonlights as a mob henchman. Edward Drake, director of Amazon thriller Broil, will direct Guns Up from his own screenplay. Production is set to start in June. [The story.]( —🎭 Monsters incoming 🎭 Matilda: The Musical star Alisha Weir will star in Universal’s untitled monster movie being directed by Radio Silence, the filmmaking collective behind the recent Scream films. Weir joins Scream star Melissa Barrera in the feature project, which will be directed by Radio Silence’s Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett. [The story.]( —🎭 Busy, busy 🎭 In demand Melissa Barrera has secured another feature project and is set to lead the cast of The One, described as an “erotic nightmare” set within the confines on the reality dating show, which Riley Keough is set to produce. The film, from writer-director duo Kevin Armento and Jaki Bradley, will see Barrera star alongside Nicolas Hoult and Lana Condor. [The story.]( —🎭 Child's play 🎭 Jason Isaacs has joined Oscar winner Vanessa Redgrave and Freida Pinto in the upcoming family feature The Boy at the Back of the Class, based on Onjali Q. Rauf’s acclaimed children’s book, which has sold over half a million copies in the U.K. since it was first published in 2018. Stephen Herek directs. [The story.]( —🎭 Country boys 🎭 Game Night star Billy Magnussen is set to make his feature directorial debut with the survival thriller The Ridge. Magnussen will also star in the film alongside Lamorne Morris, Chace Crawford and Jordan Firstman. Written by Mike Anderson, John Clavier and Will Lowell, The Ridge follows Dez, a sensitive city dweller who travels to Wyoming with his friends to meet his fiancé’s brother. [The story.]( Film Review: 'Hypnotic' ►"Distracting enough, if less than mesmerizing." THR's chief film critic [David Rooney]( reviews Robert Rodriguez's Hypnotic. Ben Affleck, Alice Braga and William Fichtner star in a brain-bending thriller about a detective grieving his abducted daughter in a world of warped reality constructs. [The review.]( —"The band isn't ready for primetime." THR's chief TV critic [Dan Fienberg]( reviews Disney+'s The Muppets Mayhem. Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem, everybody's favorite Muppet classic rock sextet, take center stage in the new 10-part variety comedy featuring Lilly Singh as the human lead. [The review.]( In other news... —Netflix [releases first trailer for Sarah Snook thriller Run Rabbit Run]( —Conor McGregor [attempts unlikely UFC comeback in Netflix’s McGregor Forever trailer]( —Never Have I Ever [highlights fallout from S3 cliffhanger in final trailer]( —TV ratings: [10.9m U.S. viewers watch King Charles III’s coronation]( —Dolly Parton [to release first rock album]( —Robert De Niro [confirms birth of baby, now father of seven children at 79]( —Immersive [Disney Animation experience coming to Los Angeles in June]( —Hollywood Park [unveils first residence, The Wesley, with views of SoFi Stadium]( —Harmony Korine [to get Locarno Festival honor]( —Disney [tech vet named VP of Engineering Society SMPTE]( What else we're reading... —Kalhan Rosenblatt explains what Bluesky is and why celebrities and journalists are flocking to the Twitter alternative [[NBC News]( —With social media already roasting the CGI in The Little Mermaid, Stuart Heritage wonders if the live-action remake will be the most horrifying film since Cats [[Guardian]( —Kathryn VanArendonk writes that all them newfangled ways to watch Yellowstone are a mess [[Vulture]( —AFC Richmond's head of football operations Leslie Higgins is the secret MVP of Ted Lasso, so says Shivani Dubey who talked to the actor who plays the character, Jeremy Swift [[Daily Beast]( —Charley Grant reports that ChatGPT is causing a stock-market ruckus as investors race to assess whether it is an "iPhone moment" [[WSJ]( Today... ...in 1996, Warner Bros. unveiled the Helen Hunt and Bill Paxton disaster thriller Twister in theaters. The film went on to nab two Oscar nominations, for sound and visual effects. [The original review.]( Today's birthdays: Kenan Thompson (45), [Jim Abrahams]( (79), Bono (63), Noah Hawley (56), David Mackenzie (57), Andrea Anders (48), Odette Annable (38), Stephen Berra (50), Bea Santos (33), Hrishitaa Bhatt (42), Scott Walker (42), Hugo Silva (46), Gabrielle Walsh (34), Judson Mills (54), Adrian Scarborough (55), Paige O'Hara (67), Sally Phillips (53), Todd Lowe (46), Dallas Roberts (53), Erik Palladino (55) 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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