Drew Barrymore Deletes Video Defending Show Return; Ashton Kutcher Exits Anti-Abuse Group; WGA Cancels Showrunner Meeting; TIFF Reviews

[View on web]( [New reader? Subscribe]( September 16, 2023 What's news: Steve Martin responds to his Little Shop of Horrors co-star's accusations. ABC cancels The Wonder Years. Paranormal Activity is heading toward a live stage version. SZA's manager explains why he scrapped her planned VMAs performance. THR critics review top TIFF titles including Jodie Comer's The End We Start From. — [Ryan Gajewski]( Do you have THR's next big story? Confidentially share tips with us at [tips@thr.com](. Drew Barrymore Deletes Video Defending Talk Show Return ►"This is bigger than me." Drew Barrymore is explaining why she decided to return her talk show to production amid the ongoing WGA strike, telling critics in a now-deleted video that there's "nothing I can do or say in this moment" to make it OK. In a video statement posted to her Instagram, Barrymore reiterated the previous assertion from CBS Media Ventures that The Drew Barrymore Show will be returning in "compliance" with the WGA's strike rules despite backlash from the group's members. [The story.]( —"I have to object." Steve Martin is responding to accusations his Little Shop of Horrors co-star Miriam Margolyes made about the actor in her memoir. In a statement, Martin said he remembered their time on set differently, noting he took "extreme caution" when it came to filming the scene in which Margolyes said he actually hit her. [The story.]( —"I use the tools of standup comedy." Hasan Minhaj says "all my standup stories are based on events that happened to me" after a new profile in The New Yorker found that some of the details in his onstage anecdotes, like those featured in his Netflix stand-up specials, may have been made up. This includes a bit involving one of his children possibly being exposed to anthrax. [The story.]( Ashton Kutcher Resigns From Anti-Sex Abuse Group After Masterson Support ►"The character statement I submitted is yet another painful instance of questioning victims." Ashton Kutcher is stepping down from his leadership role at Thorn, the anti-human trafficking organization co-founded by the actor. He resigned as board chair in a message that cited Kutcher and partner Mila Kunis' character letter for convicted rapist and fellow That '70s Show star Danny Masterson. [The story.]( —Hoping to make a splash. THR's [Pamela McClintock]( reports that Kenneth Branagh's A Haunting in Venice has started off its North American box office run with $1.2 million in previews, just ahead of the last film in the Agatha Christie-inspired movie series and other adult-skewing titles including Ticket to Paradise. Haunting in Venice, from 20th Century Studios and Disney, is tracking for a $13 million to $15 million domestic launch. [The report.]( —"It's disrespectful." SZA's longtime manager Terrence "Punch" Henderson tells THR's [Mesfin Fekadu]( that MTV offered no clarity when asked about the singer's snub in the VMAs artist of the year category. Henderson explains why he eventually decided SZA wouldn't perform at the show. [The story.]( WGA Meeting With Top Showrunners Canceled as Negotiations to Resume ►"The good news is that they're meeting, and that's all anybody wants." THR's [Lesley Goldberg]( reports that Kenya Barris, Sam Esmail, Noah Hawley and Dan Fogelman were among a dozen showrunners set for an informational meeting with WGA leadership that will no longer take place as the guild and AMPTP head back to the bargaining table. [The story.]( —Not so wonderful news. The Wonder Years is coming to an end after two seasons on ABC. The decision to end the comedy series follows the 10-episode second season having aired its finale Aug. 16. ABC announced late last year that the season had been bumped to the summer. [The story.]( —Get ready for Paranormal Activity, the stage play. THR's [Borys Kit]( has the scoop on Simon Friend, the veteran producer who brought Life of Pi to Broadway, having picked up the license to Paramount's Paranormal Activity series with the intent of bringing it to London's West End via his Simon Friend Entertainment. Levi Holloway, who wrote the horror-tinged Broadway play Grey House, is on board to pen the stage adaptation, which is described as being in early development. [The story.]( —"It was a list of one." The Morning Show's team spoke to THR's [Jackie Strause]( about casting Jon Hamm as a tech billioniare. Executive producers Kristin Hahn, Lauren Neustadter and Michael Ellenberg discussed orbiting the new season around the Elon Musk-like character. [The story.]( Latest TIFF Reviews: Jodie Comer's 'The End We Start From' and More ►"Takes a quiet, emotional approach to the end times." THR critic Jourdain Searles reviews Mahalia Belo's The End We Start From, which debuted at TIFF. Jodie Comer stars in the drama about a woman struggling to raise her child after catastrophic floods. [The review.]( —"A ferocious lead turn." THR critic [Angie Han]( reviews Anand Tucker's The Critic from Toronto. The thriller set in 1930s London stars Ian McKellen, Gemma Arterton and Mark Strong. [The review.]( —"Takes time to come into its fullest potential." Also at TIFF, Angie Han reviews Thomas Napper's Widow Clicquot. Haley Bennett and Tom Sturridge star in the champagne biopic. [The review.]( This Week's Must Reads ►Meet the nepo babies buying $3M L.A. "starter homes." For THR, [Hadley Meares]( reports that Presley Gerber and John Owen Lowe — the scions of Cindy Crawford and Rande Gerber, and Rob Lowe (respectively) — lead a next-generation home-purchasing spree in Los Angeles. [The story.]( —The pictures not seen in Oppenheimer. Thomas Doherty writes for THR that, after the public got a newsreel glimpse of what the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki did to the Japanese, the footage lay dormant for more than two decades — shaping how the U.S. population processed the use of the weapon. [The story.]( —Hollywood labor's opaque nemesis. During the double strike, the AMPTP — a studio bargaining coalition run by lawyers and located in a suburban shopping mall — has been portrayed by the WGA and SAG-AFTRA as a James Bond villain set on breaking their solidarity. THR's [Gary Baum]( and [Katie Kilkenny]( peek behind the curtain. [The story.]( —"Part of what we need is to create enough honesty in storytelling that allows people of diverse backgrounds in every sense." For THR, political journalist Keli Goff spoke to Vivek Ramaswamy. In a wide-ranging interview, the controversial GOP presidential candidate talks about his dislike of Legally Blonde, why he almost financed a remake of American History X and offers his view that racism is "not a top 50 problem in the United States." [The interview.]( —"More perfectly lit, frequently infuriating hijinks." THR's chief TV critic [Dan Fienberg]( reviews the third season of Apple TV+'s The Morning Show. Jon Hamm and Nicole Beharie appear alongside Reese Witherspoon, Jennifer Aniston, Billy Crudup and the rest of the company in the new season of the drama. [The review.]( In other news... —Halle Berry says she [didn't give Drake permission to use a photo]( of her getting slimed for his song cover —Jann Wenner says Black, female musicians [not articulate enough]( for his new book The Masters —Screen Gems president Steve Bersch [stepping down after 16-year Sony run]( —Hugh Jackman and Deborra-Lee Furness announce [separation after 27 years of marriage]( —[Events of the week]( Kering Foundation dinner, The Continental and more What else we're reading... —Nate Jones assesses eight TIFF titles directed by actors and whether any are actually good [[Vulture]( —Ben Child asks if the Aquaman sequel is a superhero movie out of time [[Guardian]( —Nadira Goffe writes that it's time to retire the Black woman hair trope in film and TV [[Slate]( —Alexandra Samuel explains why the pandemic has made it hard to know what Fridays are anymore [[WSJ]( —Jason La Canfora writes that after a lousy Week 1, NFL coaches are rethinking the preseason [[WaPo]( Today... …in 2011, FilmDistrict released Nicolas Winding Refn's Drive, starring Ryan Gosling and Carey Mulligan. [The original review.]( Today's birthdays: Alexis Bledel (42), Mickey Rourke (71), Amy Poehler (52), Nick Jonas (31), Jennifer Tilly (65), Molly Shannon (59), Max Minghella (38), Ed Begley Jr. (74), Toks Olagundoye (48), Madeline Zima (38), Fan Bingbing (42), Chase Stokes (31), Michael Mosley (45), Marc Anthony (55), Jayne Brook (63), Elena Kampouris (26), Belissa Escobedo (25) 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 The Hollywood Reporter. 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. The Hollywood Reporter is a part of Penske Media Corporation. © 2023 The Hollywood Reporter, LLC. 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