WGA Leaders Talk Deal; Late Night Shows Set Return Dates; HBO Chief Says His Shows Won't Be Created by AI; 'Saw X,' 'Gen V' Reviews

[View on web]( [New reader? Subscribe]( September 28, 2023 What's news: SAG-AFTRA and the AMPTP will resume talks on Oct. 2. With the WGA strike over, studios are restoring their pacts with scribes and producers. James Gunn has confirmed 3 DCEU actors will appear in the new DCU. The world premiere of Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour film will take place in Hollywood. Netflix has renewed Alice in Borderland. — [Abid Rahman]( Do you have THR's next big story? Confidentially share tips with us at [tips@thr.com](. Michael Gambon 1940 - 2023 ►"I’m essentially playing myself, that’s all I’m doing." Michael Gambon, a protégé of Laurence Olivier and a giant of the British stage who portrayed Hogwarts headmaster Albus Dumbledore, apparently with little effort, in the final six Harry Potter movies, has died. He was 82. “The Great Gambon,” as Ralph Richardson once called him, died peacefully with his family by his side after suffering from pneumonia, the BBC reported, citing his widow and son. [The obituary.]( WGA Leaders Talk Deal, How Gains and Concessions Were Made ►"It’s been a very long road, and I’m proud of this membership for hanging in there." In an interview on Tuesday night, THR's [Katie Kilkenny]( spoke to the WGA's negotiating committee co-chair Chris Keyser and president Meredith Stiehm. The duo discussed turning points and sticking points in the talks, how the entrance of CEOs changed the conversation, and what the union will fight for next time around. [The interview.]( —"The contract will definitely be ratified." THR's [Lesley Goldberg]( reports that the WGA staged a “rock concert” — as one showrunner described it — on Wednesday night at the Hollywood Palladium as the guild celebrated its leadership and solidarity while outlining the deal points in its tentative Minimum Basic Agreement to its membership. The meeting opened with a minutes-long standing ovation for the negotiating committee and was followed by a video featuring scenes and interviews from the picket lines and from various rallies held throughout the past 148 days of the work stoppage. [The story.]( —"It’s a road map. People are going to study it like the Torah." In the wake of the WGA deal, Lesley asked writers for their thoughts on the tentative agreement. Many scribes saw the new three-year MBA as a blueprint for Hollywood’s future, particularly in the way it provided protections against the use of AI, data transparency, residuals tied to streaming success and guarantees for the minimum size of writers rooms. [The reaction.]( —Restarting talks. For the first time since SAG-AFTRA went on strike in July, the performers’ union and Hollywood studios and streamers have set a date to return to the bargaining table. The parties will meet on Oct. 2. The news was announced in a joint SAG-AFTRA and AMPTP statement Wednesday, the day that the WGA’s strike concluded. [The story.]( —Breaking it down. THR's [Rick Porter]( has an explainer on how the new streaming residual will work in the WGA's contract with the AMPTP. In brief, the success-based residual will pay writers of streaming series and movies a bonus if the equivalent of 20 percent or more of a streaming service’s U.S. subscribers watch it within three months of release. But there's a lot more to unpack. [The explainer.]( Late Night Shows Set Return Dates ►And we're back. With the WGA strike at an end, late night shows will be among the first to resume production. The four network talkers — ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel Live, CBS’ Late Show With Stephen Colbert and NBC’s Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon and Late Night With Seth Meyers — will all return to the air Monday, Oct. 2. HBO’s Last Week Tonight With John Oliver will precede them by a day, settling back into its usual Sunday night spot on Oct. 1. The five hosts jointly announced their returns on the Strike Force Five Instagram account. [The story.]( —Suspensions lifted. THR's [Lacey Rose]( and Lesley Goldberg report that on Wednesday, hours after the WGA’s strike officially ended, studio and streaming executives were busy making scores of calls to the scores of writers and producers whose deals were suspended during the five-month walkout. To that end, sources say Warner Bros. Television is lifting suspensions that were issued to top showrunners including Greg Berlanti, J.J. Abrams and others, effective Thursday. Other studios, have already started to lift their suspensions. [The story.]( —✊ Path to unionization ✊ IATSE and The Animation Guild (IATSE Local 839) announced on Wednesday that the National Labor Relations Board issued a direction of election that would allow production workers of Walt Disney Animation Studios to vote on whether to unionize under IATSE. In the absence of a federal government shutdown next week, the election will run from Oct. 10-31. [The story.]( —✊ Another ballot win ✊ IATSE is well on its way toward representing video game workers. In a NLRB ballot count on Wednesday, workers from Workinman Interactive unanimously voted to join the Hollywood crew union, which made its first public foray into the video game space with an organizing campaign at the games studio. Workinman clients include Mattel, Nickelodeon and Disney. [The story.]( HBO Chief Says His Shows Won't Be Created by AI ►"I am holding out hope for, especially in an artistic endeavor, the need for soul and human stories." In light of the topic of AI roiling Hollywood, Casey Bloys, the chairman and CEO of HBO and Max Content, reiterated his stance that he never envisions using AI to create shows. Speaking at Vox Media’s Code Conference in Los Angeles on Wednesday, Bloys conceded that people were using AI as a prompt for ideas, but he didn't see the tech taking over, and he had no personal interest in working in an environment where it was used. [The story.]( —Hollywood’s AI compromise. A clearer picture of how studios intend to incorporate AI into the screenplay production apparatus is coming into view. THR's [Winston Cho]( writes that included in the WGA-AMPTP agreement were provisions placing guardrails around the use of generative AI that not only protect writers but also the studios, which are signaling they plan to pursue copyrights of works created in part by AI tools. The deal doesn’t bar the use of AI but restricts how it can be credited and utilized. [The analysis.]( —"Generative AI shouldn’t replace our creatives — not if we want quality content." Management consulting firm Bain & Co. has also weighed in on the AI debate in the entertainment industry. In a new report, the firm is advising Hollywood to spurn AI as a replacement for creative talent and instead focus in using the tech to "reduce budgets by pulling more of the production process up front and streamlining production and post-production." [The story.]( 'Killers of the Flower Moon' Exclusive First Clip ►Lily's moment. As awards season kicks into high gear, Apple has shared a first look at best actress hopeful Lily Gladstone in Martin Scorsese's Killers of the Flower Moon. In the clip, Gladstone goes toe-to-toe with Leonardo DiCaprio, playing recently returned war veteran Ernest Burkhart who is aggressively trying to court Gladstone’s Mollie. [The clip.]( —Will Travis show up? AMC Theaters plans a world premiere screening in Los Angeles for the Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour concert film on Oct. 11. There’s no word on whether Taylor Swift will walk the red carpet in Hollywood, or at which theater, but the gala screening will come two days before the concert film opens in over 100 countries on Oct. 13, starting at 6 p.m. local time. [The story.]( —Upped. On the heels of the huge box office success of Barbie, Robbie Brenner has been named president of Mattel Films. Brenner, whose previous title was executive producer of Mattel Films, joined the company in 2018 after a career as a successful independent producer with credits that include Dallas Buyers Club. Barbie, the toy brand's first release under Brenner, has gone on to gross over $1.4b at the box office, netting studio Warner Bros. its highest-grossing title, ever. [The story.]( —Exiting. Longtime Disney Entertainment distribution exec Ken Caldwell, who spearheaded distribution for eight of the top 15 domestic releases of all time, is retiring. Caldwell will leave Disney Entertainment at the end of the year, departing the role of executive vp and general sales manager of North American theatrical sales, a title he has held since 2019. Caldwell reports to distribution boss Tony Chambers, and his role will be backfilled. [The story.]( Gunn Confirms 3 Stars Who Will Continue in DCU ►"Nothing is canon until Creature Commandos next year." For anyone out there who might be confused about the future of DCU projects, James Gunn completely understands the challenge of keeping apprised on the latest developments. Gunn, who stepped in last year as co-head of DC Studios alongside Peter Safran, took to Threads on Wednesday to address fan questions about development for the new DC slate, and which actors will move over from the DCEU to his new DCU. [The story.]( —Drama free. Juilliard’s Master of Fine Arts in Acting program will become tuition-free for students starting in fall 2024. The four-year program will then be free in perpetuity thanks to $15m in existing scholarship funding, as well as a matching challenge grant from theater producer and Juilliard trustee Stephanie P. McClelland and her husband, Carter McClelland, a major gift from theater producer John Gore and gifts from the Jacques and Margot W. Kohn Foundation and several estates. [The story.]( —Yikes. X CEO Linda Yaccarino took the stage at the Code Conference on Wednesday shortly after Yoel Roth, former head of trust and safety at Twitter and things got painfully awkward. In the tense interview with CNBC’S Julia Boorstin, Yaccarino denied Roth’s comments that the social media company is not doing enough to stop harassment on the platform and demurred over a question over whether X will charge all users to use the platform. [The story.]( 'Reservation Dogs' Finale Caps an Unlikely and Magical Series ►"A series to treasure for everything that happened within it and everything that happened to make its existence even possible." With Sterlin Harjo's Oklahoma-set FX on Hulu series Reservations Dogs concluding its three-season run with a funeral, THR's chief TV critic [Dan Fienberg]( writes that the episode was an apt spiritual send-off with plenty of showcase moments for its fictional Indigenous community and its real-life ensemble. [The critic's notebook.]( —The people have spoken. Naked Attraction has surged to capture the top spot on Max streaming service’s “Most Popular” series list a week after its U.S. release. That’s pretty impressive for a 7-year-old British reality show that was added to Max with zero fanfare on Sept. 20. The dating series features singles who judge and eliminate nude prospective dates. The show features close-up, full-frontal nudity and plenty of graphic discussion, though no sex is shown. [The story.]( —It’s official. Netflix has renewed its hit Japanese sci-fi thriller drama Alice in Borderland for a third season. Following its second season debut in December 2022, the show became Netflix Japan’s most-watched title ever, even including anime titles. According to the streamer, Alice in Borderland made the Top 10 in over 90 countries, claiming the No. 1 spot in 17 of them, and clocked 200m viewing hours worldwide. [The story.]( TV Review: 'Saw X' ►"Sick and twisted, and those are the selling points." THR's Frank Scheck reviews Kevin Greutert's Saw X. Tobin Bell returns as Jigsaw who is back to his old grisly tricks in this latest installment of the venerable horror franchise. [The review.]( —"More fun before they had superpowers." Frank reviews Cal Brunker's PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie. The heroic canines from Nickelodeon's popular kids' TV series return for their second big-screen adventure, this time facing a new adversary voiced by Taraji P. Henson. [The review.]( —"Uneven but entertaining." THR's chief TV critic Dan Fienberg reviews Amazon Prime Video's Gen V. The team behind the hit vigilante series The Boys shifts its focus from the corporate world to the campus, tracking the subversive, frequently gross adventures of new potential heroes at a superpowered university. [The review.]( —"Too crazy to be true." THR film critic Jordan Mintzer reviews Xavier Legrand's The Successor. The César Award winner's second feature follows a rising fashion designer whose life unravels when he heads home to bury his estranged father. [The review.]( In other news... —Apple [releases first trailer to Matthew Vaughn’s spy romp Argylle]( —Netflix's Obliterated trailer: [An elite special forces team tries to save the world while intoxicated]( —Peacock's Wolf Like Me S2 trailer: [Isla Fisher, Josh Gad risk werewolf birth]( —Netflix drops [first looks trailers for animated series Tomb Raider, Devil May Cry and Blue Eye Samurai]( —Emma Stone and Nathan Fielder's [The Curse series gets first look teaser, launch date]( —Chris Stapleton, Dave Matthews, Brandi Carlile, H.E.R. [to perform at Rock & Roll Hall of Fame ceremony]( —Josh Glick [joins Brillstein Entertainment Partners]( —Moana producer [Osnat Shurer joins Baobab Studios]( What else we're reading... —William McCurdy talks to the Russians breaking the law to watch Barbie and other Hollywood movies [[Guardian]( —Felix Gillette writes that despite Rupert Murdoch's decision to step back from his empire, the mogul's final legacy has yet to be written [[Bloomberg]( —Matthew Ritchie looks at how the hugely successful 1990 rebrand of the Chicago White Sox logo was due largely to its adoption by West Coast rappers such as Ice Cube [[MLB]( —Madeline Leung Coleman's interview with Todd Haynes is chock-full of fascinating bits, including his burning desire to make a prestige drama about Sigmund Freud [[Vulture]( —Ben Protess, Jonah E. Bromwich and William K. Rashbaum look into whether a New York judge’s fraud ruling will dismantle the Trump Organization [[NYT]( Today... ...in 1979, Warner Bros. unveiled in theaters the comedy-mystery Time After Time, starring Mary Steenburgen and Malcolm McDowell. [The original review.]( Today's birthdays: Naomi Watts (55), Mira Sorvino (56), Hilary Duff (36), Sarah Wright (40), [Janeane Garofalo]( (59), Brigitte Bardot (89), Susan Walters (60), Maria Canals-Barrera (57), Pauletta Washington (73), Dita Von Teese (51), Hana Mae Lee (35), Kirsten Zien (33), Jerrika Hinton (42), Antonia Desplat (29), Moon Unit Zappa (56), Hannah Leder (37), Laura Cerón (59), Momona Tamada (17), Carré Otis (55), Sabina Gadecki (40), Leilani Sarelle (57) 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. 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](