SAG-AFTRA Accuses Studios of “Bully Tactics” as Talks Suspended; Ari Emanuel Slams Netanyahu, CAA; THR's 100 Greatest Film Books of All Time; 'Frasier' Review

[View on web]( [New reader? Subscribe]( October 12, 2023 What's news: Donna Langley says the studios will spend "as much time as it takes" in the bargaining room to get a deal with SAG-AFTRA. Beyoncé made an appearance at The Eras Tour premiere. The DGA is defending its deal after criticism on social media. UTA is undergoing another round of layoffs. Dan Harmon is keen on a Rick and Morty movie. Netflix has picked up Star Trek: Prodigy. Adobe says we shouldn't be scared of its new generative AI tools. — [Abid Rahman]( Do you have THR's next big story? Confidentially share tips with us at [tips@thr.com](. SAG-AFTRA Accuses Studios of "Bully Tactics" as Talks Suspended ►"Conversations are no longer moving us in a productive direction." On Wednesday night, the AMPTP declared that negotiations with SAG-AFTRA are suspended, given that the gap between the parties is “too great.” THR's [Katie Kilkenny]( reports that the AMPTP singled out the union’s proposal for casts to receive a cut of streaming platform revenue as “an untenable economic burden” that would cost more than $800m per year. Early this morning, SAG-AFTRA shot back, telling union members that the studios were using "bully tactics" and were intentionally misrepresenting the streaming proposals. [The story.]( —It was a good deal, honest guv. The Directors Guild is defending its latest three-year contract agreement with the AMPTP amid criticism on social media and, it claims, in the press. In an email message to members on Wednesday, the DGA decried “a number of recent news articles and social media posts misrepresenting the extraordinary gains we made.” The DGA has faced criticism from some vocal social media users, several of them writers, since it struck a tentative deal with studios and streamers on June 3. [The story.]( —More cuts. UTA is undergoing another round of layoffs. It is unclear how many staffers have been let go, though the latest cuts should impact less than 1 percent of UTA’s agents and employees, a source tells THR. The layoffs come amid the ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike and the recently concluded WGA strike, but, the source adds, are not directly because of the strikes. The agency also underwent staffing cuts in February. [The story.]( Ari Emanuel Slams Netanyahu, CAA at Conference ►Pulling no punches. Endeavor CEO Ari Emanuel appeared at Bloomberg’s Screentime conference and frankly discussed a wide variety of issues. Emanuel, one of the most high-profile Jewish executives in the U.S., addressed the Israel-Hamas conflict, describing Hamas as "heinous" and "terrorists", but he also heaped criticism at Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, calling the politician “morally corrupt.” Emanuel also weighed in on the state of Hollywood, and heavily criticized Endeavor’s competition at CAA, accusing the agency of being complicit in Harvey Weinstein’s crimes. “You’re sitting in a situation where Kevin [Huvane] and Bryan [Lourd] are to Harvey Weinstein, like, [Ghislaine] Maxwell was to Jeffrey Epstein. They were leading them to this man,” Emanuel said. [The story.]( —"I’m not relishing the thought of a summer season without a volume of films." Also speaking at the Bloomberg’s Screentime event on Wednesday was NBCUniversal Studio Group chairman and chief content officer Donna Langley. Declining to speak in specifics, the veteran Hollywood exec addressed the ongoing SAG-AFTRA negotiations, saying that the studio side will spend “as much time as it takes” in the bargaining room until the parties can reach a resolution. [The story.]( Israeli Filmmakers Talk Israel-Hamas Conflict ►"Many people contacted me because they feel that the world needs to know what’s going on." THR's Scott Feinberg spoke Golda filmmaker Guy Nattiv about his efforts to highlight the civilians ensnared in the Israel-Hamas conflict. In the aftermath of the Hamas' deadly attack on Saturday, Nattiv's Instagram account has become a principal source of information about the missing and the dead. [The interview.]( —"Benjamin Netanyahu is responsible for all of this." THR Roma's Damiano D’Agostino spoke to Waltz with Bashir director Ari Folman, and the veteran Israeli director didn't mince his words about the Israel-Hamas war. Folman pinned the blame for the dramatic escalation in violence and bloodshed in his country on Benjamin Netanyahu, claiming Israel's prime minister "overlooked everything" due to his ongoing fight with the Supreme Court. [The interview.]( —"Nothing will be the same again for us." Amid the Israel-Hamas conflict, Israeli presence at MIPCOM is expected to be drastically reduced this year. Around 70 Israelis have been accredited for the Cannes TV market, and MIPCOM has yet to establish how many will remain at home this year. But few if any are expected to fly to Cannes for the Oct. 16-19 festival. [The story.]( Dan Harmon Teases 'Rick and Morty' Movie, Future Plans ►"My philosophy would be to just take a Rick and Morty adventure, and spend a bunch of extra money on it and make it 90 minutes long." THR's [Lacey Rose]( reports that Dan Harmon is very keen on bringing Rick and Morty to the big screen. There’s no outline yet, much less a script, but he did have one serious conversation with folks at Warner Bros. Harmon also revealed he had also spoken to Rick and Morty fan Zack Snyder in the past about making a movie of the animated series. [The story.]( —Safe landing. Star Trek: Prodigy, the animated kids show that was canceled at Paramount+ with its second season still midway through production, has found a new home. Netflix has scooped up both the previously aired first season and has committed to airing the sophomore run once that completes production. Season one will stream later this year, with the second batch due in 2024. [The story.]( —Heading north. Chocolat filmmaker Lasse Hallström is set to direct The Darkness, a series from CBS Studios, Iceland's Truenorth and Stampede Ventures. Based on the best-selling thriller series by Icelandic author Ragnar Jónasson, the drama follows Detective Inspector Hulda Hermannsdóttir who investigates a shocking murder case amid her own personal traumas. Oscar nominee Lena Olin is set to star in the six-part English-language series that will start shooting in Iceland later this year. [The story.]( —"Don’t be afraid of [AI], especially for the video editing community." As Adobe rolled out a string of new generative AI-driven tools, CEO Shantanu Narayan promised "accountability, responsibility and transparency." Following the wide release of its Firefly generative AI tech last month, Adobe used its annual Max event to introduce new AI-driven features for its creative software, such as Photoshop, Illustrator and Express. It also highlighted in the keynote its text-based editing tool in Premiere Pro. [The story.]( —Suit filed. Indie production shop The Exchange, also known as BOS Entertainment, is suing Wonderfilm for breach of contract related to their partnership on Harvey Keitel and Tyrese Gibson-starrer Hard Matter, which appears to be stuck in limbo for failure to pay a VFX vendor. The lawsuit filed on Tuesday arrives in the wake of an investor in the movie accusing Wonderfilm of swindling it out of more than $5m. [The story.]( Stars Come Out for 'Eras Tour' Premiere ►"The perfect capture of what this show was like for me." THR's [Kirsten Chuba]( reports that Taylor Swift made a movie star appearance at the world premiere of her The Eras Tour concert film on Wednesday at The Grove’s AMC Theatre. Hundreds of fans lined the theater entrance, trading friendship bracelets and singing Swift’s hits as she stopped for selfies with many of them. Stars including Beyoncé, Rachel Zegler, Maren Morris, Simu Liu, Julia Garner, Mariska Hargitay and Adam Sandler were among the attendees. [The story.]( —ICYMI. Due to ferocious demand, The Eras Tour film will start singing at the box office a day earlier than expected. Swift revealed that the film will hold early screenings on Thursday in North America — likely at 6 p.m. — as well as during the day on Friday. She also noted that additional showtimes have been added throughout the weekend. All tickets should be available for sale by Thursday morning at 10 a.m. [The story.]( —The rose still smells sweet. The Golden Bachelor continues to capture viewers’ hearts. After a solid on-air premiere and a strong showing over three days of delayed viewing and streaming, the ABC series’ momentum continued across additional days. After a week of multi-platform viewing, the Sept. 28 series premiere for Golden Bachelor hit 9m viewers, more than double its initial audience of 4.36m, and almost quadrupled its rating among adults 18-49, going from 0.62 to 2.46. [The ratings.]( —"I’ve been talking to her today and she’s fighting." Mary Lou Retton’s daughter and her Dancing with the Stars pro partner Sasha Farber have given updates on the former Olympic gold-medal gymnast’s health amid her recent hospitalization. Retton’s daughter McKenna Kelley took to Instagram Wednesday writing, "Mom is in the ICU and continues to fight. She is getting incredible medical care!" [The story.]( —"This was a necessary book for me to write: a way to take charge of what happened, and to answer violence with art." Salman Rushdie has a memoir coming out about the horrifying 2022 attack that left him blind in his right eye and with a damaged left hand. The book, Knife: Meditations After an Attempted Murder, will be published April 16. [The story.]( THR's 100 Greatest Film Books of All Time ►Best of the best. THR’s list of 100 must-read books about film — determined by a jury of 322 Hollywood heavyweights including Steven Spielberg, David Zaslav, Liza Minnelli and Ava DuVernay — proves there’s one topic the supposedly reading-averse industry can’t get enough of: itself. [The list.]( —Full transparency. If you're wondering who the 322 voters were exactly, click the link to see the full list of the directors, actors, producers, executives, documentarians, animators, composers, agents, journalists, film critics, academics and authors of film books who cast a vote. [The list.]( —A little insight. A few of the industry heavyweights who cast ballots to help determine THR’s list of the 100 greatest film books of all time agreed to share some words about a film book that they especially treasure. Check out the recommendations from actor Alec {NAME}, marketing exec Terry Press, Sony studio chief Tom Rothman and actor Robert Wagner. [The recommendations.]( TV Review: 'Frasier' ►"A mediocre extension." THR's [Angie Han]( reviews Paramount+'s Frasier. The reboot of the classic NBC sitcom follows Kelsey Grammer's titular psychiatrist to Boston, where he takes a new job at Harvard and tries to reconnect with his firefighter son. [The review.]( —"A smart wedding of style and substance." THR's [Sheri Linden]( reviews Signe Baumane's My Love Affair With Marriage. With a voice cast led by Dagmara Domińczyk, the New York-based Latvian filmmaker delves into traditional gender roles, the biochemistry of romance, and recent Eastern European history. The review. In other news... —Leo trailer: [Adam Sandler’s animated lizard helps kids navigate challenges of growing up]( —South Park [to tackle AI for next event special, releases teaser]( —Zac Efron, Jeremy Allen White [plagued by family tragedy in trailer for wrestling drama The Iron Claw]( —Tom Hardy [teams with Scott Snyder for futuristic comic Arcbound]( —UTA [signs Locke & Key and Wynonna Earp producer IDW Entertainment]( —Dates [announced for the 2024 TCM Classic Film Festival]( —[Keith Giffen]( comic book writer-artist behind Lobo, Blue Beetle and Rocket Raccoon, dies at 70 What else we're reading... —Sean L. McCarthy feels that the Strike Force Five podcast co-hosts made Jimmy Fallon the punchline [[Daily Beast]( —Lorraine Ali writes that a new war in the Middle East is making longtime users of Twitter acutely aware of the damage that Elon Musk has wrought on the digital public square [[LAT]( —Sara Morrison talks to author Tom Wheeler about the "Digital Gilded Age" we are living in currently, and what we can learn from the last time wealth and power was so concentrated in the hands of the few [[Vox]( —With EA launching EA Sports FC 24 to great fanfare, Mark Milian and Cecilia D’Anastasio look at whether the new game franchise can thrive without the FIFA branding [[Bloomberg]( —Becca Caddy answers the question we all want answered: Why do superheroes wear spandex? [[Inverse]( Today... ...in 1960, John Sturges‘ star-studded 128-minute western The Magnificent Seven hit U.S. theaters, eventually becoming one of the iconic films of the genre. [The original review.]( Today's birthdays: Hugh Jackman (55), Jimmy Chin (50), Joseph Kahn (51), Josh Hutcherson (31), [Hiroyuki Sanada]( (63), Kathryn Boyd Brolin (36), Lin Shaye (80), Tony Cavalero (40), Iris Apatow (21), Deborah Foreman (61), Ferdia Walsh-Peelo (24), Brian J. Smith (42), David Threlfall (70), Susan Anton (73), Kate Beahan (49), Grace Johnston (43), Richard Price (74), Ninja Thyberg (39), Lidia Vitale (51) Jeff Burr, the horror specialist who directed Vincent Price in one of his last movies and entries in the Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Puppet Master, Pumpkinhead and Stepfather franchises, has died. He was 60. [The obituary.]( 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. 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