CNN CEO Chris Licht Ousted; "Existential Fight" Looms If Actors Join Strike; The Rise of That Girl Lay Lay; Elliot Page Talks New Memoir; 'The Flash' Review

[View on web]( [New reader? Subscribe]( June 07, 2023 What's news: The shock PGA-LIV merger won't impact The CW's golf coverage. HBO has canceled Perry Mason after two seasons. Cuba Gooding Jr settled a rape lawsuit ahead of a civil trial. Bryan Singer is pitching a documentary on himself. Zack Snyder has made two cuts of his upcoming Netflix feature Rebel Moon. — [Abid Rahman]( CNN CEO Chris Licht Ousted After Tumultuous Year ►And just like that. CNN CEO Chris Licht will be departing the company after only a year. Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav confirmed the news to staff on Wednesday's editorial call. The decision follows a calamitous town hall with Donald Trump that drew negative headlines, declining linear ratings, and an Atlantic article that demoralized staff. CNN’s interim leadership will be Amy Entelis, the longtime head of talent and content development, head of editorial Virginia Mosely, programming chief Eric Shearling, and David Leavy, who was announced as the incoming COO last week. [The story.]( —No change. THR's [Lesley Goldberg]( reports that The CW’s coverage of LIV Golf won’t be impacted by the upstart league’s shock merger with the PGA Tour. The CW landed television rights to LIV Golf in January with a deal to air 14 events this year. The events have not performed well for the network, which recently drew the ire of golf fans after the network cut away from a close competition. [The story.]( —Last minute settlement. Just as a trial was to begin, it was revealed Tuesday that Cuba Gooding Jr. settled accusations that he raped a woman in a New York City hotel a decade ago, according to court records. The Oscar-winning actor had insisted through lawyers that his encounter with the woman was consensual after the two met at a nearby restaurant. The lawsuit sought $6m in damages. [The story.]( —Bold move. Bryan Singer is planning a documentary feature that would address the sexual misconduct allegations against him, and also chronicle his attempt to make a filmmaking comeback years after a career implosion. The scandal-plagued filmmaker, who was fired as the director of Queen biopic Bohemian Rhapsody, has remained out of the Hollywood spotlight following a damning 2019 expose in The Atlantic. [The story.]( "Existential Fight" Looms If Actors Join Strike ►"I voted yes on the strike authorization because actors have been getting the short end of the stick from streaming." Not since 1980 have Hollywood’s actors gone on strike against the major film and TV studios. But with SAG-AFTRA voting to authorize a strike by a nearly 98 percent margin, another historic labor action is possible over the thorny issue of streaming. THR's [Rebecca Keegan]( writes that as the performers union starts negotiations with the AMPTP, the threat of a wider work stoppage is already having a chilling effect on film and TV production. [The analysis.]( —"We set out to negotiate a contract that would build for the future." THR's [Katie Kilkenny]( reports that the DGA’s national board has approved the tentative deal top negotiators reached with studios and streamers on June 3. The group met on Tuesday prior to the broader membership getting full details of the pact on Wednesday. The union has positioned the deal with the AMPTP as "historic." [The story.]( That Girl Lay Lay and the Making of the Modern Child Star ►"I’m not going to lie. I went in there and told that man I wanted my own TV show." If there’s any sort of formula for child fame today, it’s rooted in social media. THR's Seija Rankin profiles singer, rapper, social media maven and actress Alaya High, aka That Girl Lay Lay, and looks at how her stratospheric rise is indicative of a new kind of child star. The self-made 16-year-old already runs her own multiplatform empire, only turning to Hollywood to unlock another level of success. [The profile.]( —Outrage. Infamy. Scandal. HBO has canceled Perry Mason after two (excellent) seasons. The series, a reworking of the classic courtroom show of the 1950s and ’60s starring Matthew Rhys as the title character, is produced by Robert Downey Jr.’s Team Downey. Perry Mason premiered in June 2020 to solid audience numbers, and Rhys would earn an Emmy nomination for his lead role. HBO renewed the series midway through its first season. [The story.]( —Doubling down. Zack Snyder is preparing for a Rebel Moon universe. In a new interview, the filmmaker revealed why the $166m Netflix project has been split into a two part feature and also that there will be two cuts of the movie available to stream, with the director’s cut going longer. The first cut will explore the fantasy adventure in a way "that anyone can enjoy and watch," while the other cut will be focused on adults and Snyder’s super fans. [The story.]( —Somebody finally used Google. Captain America 4 has a new moniker. Marvel Studios revealed Tuesday that the fourth Captain America installment — and the first to feature star Anthony Mackie as the lead — is now called Brave New World. Last July, the studio had announced the film was to be subtitled New World Order. Brave New World comes on the heels of the events of Avengers: Endgame and the Disney+ series The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. [The story.]( ABC Defeats Vaccine Suit From Fired 'General Hospital' Star ►Big win. ABC has defeated a lawsuit from Ingo Rademacher over his dismissal from General Hospital for refusing to get the COVID-19 vaccine. In December 2021, the actor sued the network, claiming it refused to accommodate his religious objections. A judge sided with ABC, which said that Rademacher’s opposition to the vaccine was grounded in health reasons rather than his religious beliefs. [The story.]( —Decision to watch. South Korean auteur Park Chan-wook has set up his first project with Netflix. The Decision to Leave filmmaker will co-write and produce the period thriller War and Revolt. Set during Korea’s Joseon dynasty, the story takes place during the chaos of war, taking viewers on a gripping journey through the lives of two childhood friends turned adversaries. The feature, starring Gang Dong-won, will be directed by Kim Sang-man. [The story.]( —"All it’s done is look up all the synopses of Black Mirror episodes, and sort of mush them together." With the adverse effect of technology at the center of the hit series Black Mirror, creator Charlie Brooker decided to test AI technology for himself. In a new interview, Brooker revealed that he “toyed around with ChatGPT a bit” while writing the latest season of the anthology series, but the results were terrible. [The story.]( How Elliot Page Made the Journey to Tell His Story ►"I have this new ability to sit with myself." THR's Seija Rankin spoke to Elliot Page about his much-talked about new memoir, Pageboy. The book tracks pivotal moments in the actor’s life, from childhood in Nova Scotia and a simultaneously successful and tumultuous entrée into Hollywood to his coming out as gay, and then later trans, on a public stage. [The interview.]( —"When a bunch of white guys say a person of color is difficult, I tend to assume that there’s a lot more to that story." The set of Fox’s Sleepy Hollow had “grueling” working conditions, confusion and “creative floundering” among its leadership, and disparate treatment between its white male and Black female lead, according to Maureen Ryan's new book Burn It Down. Ryan reveals that stars Tom Mison and Nicole Beharie "did not want to have a whole lot to do with each other" and that co-star Lyndie Greenwood was brought in as a potential replacement for Beharie. [The story.]( —"It just became too silly." Chris Hemsworth says that the criticism of MCU movies by his directing heroes is “super depressing,” and shares that the mixed reviews behind Thor: Love and Thunder may have been a result of the film’s team having “too much fun.” In a new interview, the Aussie actor opened up about life after a 22-string of movies since his appearance in the first Thor. Part of that conversation focused in on how Marvel films have been received and discussed within the industry over the last two decades. [The story.]( 'Vanderpump Rules' EP Talks Final Reunion Episode ►"There are revelations and developments that left even our heads spinning." THR's queen of chat [Jackie Strause]( spoke to Vanderpump Rules boss Alex Baskin about how the "Scandoval" timeline evolves in the final reunion episode. The executive producer goes behind the scenes of the three-part reunion that has captivated audiences ahead of the big "twist" revelation, which happened after they finished filming and is set to rock the Bravo-verse. [The interview.]( —Open to offers. Paramount is exploring a sale of the CBS Broadcast Center in New York City. The complex on West 57th street, which spans an entire city block, serves as the headquarters for CBS News, and its studios produce shows like HBO’s Last Week Tonight, various syndicated TV shows, a number of CBS News and CBS Sports programs and other fare. [The story.]( —"Gripping and disturbing." MGM+ will examine one of America’s most notorious serial killers in a four-part documentary series. The cable outlet and streamer has picked up Psycho: The Lost Tapes of Ed Gein, directed and executive produced by James Buddy Day. The series comes from Roots Productions and Day’s Pyramid Productions. Gein has been the subject of numerous documentaries and served as inspiration for villains in the movies Psycho, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre and Silence of the Lambs. [The story.]( —🎭 Big screen debut 🎭 Jake Paul, the social media personality and Disney Channel star turned professional boxer, is set to make his feature film debut in a combat sports drama backed by Mandalay Pictures and Wonder Street. Paul will star in the untitled feature as a small-town youth rising to international fame as a pugilist. [The story.]( Film Review: 'The Flash' ►"Delivers, even if it falls short of the hype." THR's chief film critic [David Rooney]( reviews Andy Muschietti's The Flash. The stand-alone superhero action-adventure, the final film in the DCEU before it is rebooted as the DCU, features Ezra Miller and Michaels Keaton and Shannon reprising canonical roles, with newcomer Sasha Calle as Supergirl. [The review.]( —"Runs out of ideas before it can achieve its Only Murders in Mar Vista aspirations." THR's chief TV critic [Dan Fienberg]( reviews Peacock's Based on a True Story. Kaley Cuoco and Chris Messina play an unfulfilled West Los Angeles couple who decide to turn their lives around by interviewing a serial killer for a podcast in this comedic thriller. [The review.]( In other news... —Tiffany Haddish, Sam Richardson [investigate murder at wedding in The Afterparty S2 trailer]( —Rachel Sennott, Ayo Edebiri [start a High School fight club in Bottoms trailer]( —Unicorn Academy [trailer offers colorful first look at Spin Master adaptation]( —Zouk LA [nightclub to open in collaboration with SBE in 2024]( —Nike’s RTFKT [signs with CAA]( —Titmouse New York [workers unanimously ratify first union agreement]( What else we're reading... —With the streaming model seemingly broken, Josef Adalian and Lane Brown consider the state of the TV landscape and the horrors fast approaching the industry [[Vulture]( —Horatia Harrod (great name) interviews Black Mirror creator Charlie Brooker about the new season, the art of satirizing TV, avoiding Elon Musk and NFTs [[FT]( —In what should be a surprise to no one, Sara Fischer reports that the data shows Succession drew outsized media coverage that was disproportionate to reader interest [[Axios]( —In a wonderful piece, Charles Pulliam-Moore writes that Across the Spider-Verse’s greatest feat is the way it takes Spider-Man’s fandom to task [[Verge]( —Sean Ingle reflects on the rather depressing PGA-LIV golf deal, believing it is a "gigantic victory for sportswashing" [[Guardian]( Today... ...in 1985, the Goonies hit the big screen. The 109-minute film, featuring a story by Steven Spielberg and exec produced by Kathleen Kennedy and Frank Marshall, has earned lasting popularity years after its release. [The original review.]( Today's birthdays: Tom Jones (83🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿), Bill Hader (45), Karl Urban (51), Liam Neeson (71), Iggy Azalea (33), Anna Torv (44), [Michael Cera]( (35), Daniel Scheinert (36), Dave Filoni (49), James Ivory (95), Larisa Oleynik (42), Emily Ratajkowski (32), Helen Baxendale (53), Bear Grylls (49), Aaron Pierre (29), Judie Aronson (59), Lyndon Smith (34), Tom McCarthy (57), Dean DeBlois (53), Dave Navarro (56), Colleen Camp (70), William Forsythe (68), Kim Rhodes (54), Poppy Drayton (32), Mini Anden (45), Francis Magee (64), Amy Nuttall (41), Saara Chaudry (19), Amanda Leighton (30), Adam Nagaitis (38), Cathy Baron (41), Adam Buxton (54) Astrud Gilberto, the Brazilian singer, songwriter and entertainer whose off-hand, English-language cameo on "The Girl from Ipanema" made her a worldwide voice of bossa nova, has died at age 83. [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. All rights reserved. 11175 Santa Monica Boulevard Los Angeles, CA 90025 [View in Browser]( | [Privacy Policy]( | [Your Privacy Rights]( | [Ad Choices]( | [Terms of Use]( | [Unsubscribe](