Inside Sony's 'Madame Web' Collapse; Sam Mendes to Direct 4 Beatles Biopics; Disney Set to Profit From Licensing Renaissance; Latest Berlin Reviews

[View on web]( [New reader? Subscribe]( February 20, 2024 What's news: Verve has parted ways with CEO Bill Weinstein. Walmart is acquiring the smart TV maker Vizio. Jon Stewart addressed the backlash to his Biden criticism. The BAFTAs will look into a security breach caused by a YouTube prankster. — [Abid Rahman]( Do you have THR's next big story? Confidentially share tips with us at [tips@thr.com](. Inside Sony's 'Madame Web' Collapse ►Forget about a new franchise. The trailer buzz was worrisome, advance ticket sales anemic. Then last week, the critic reviews were awful. Almost inevitably, Madame Web bombed at the box office after that lead in. THR's [Pamela McClintock]( and James Hibberd write that the flop is wiping out Sony's entire plan for a new movie series, as the studio becomes the latest superhero studio in need of a pivot. [The analysis.]( —Agency shake-up. Literary agency Verve has parted ways with CEO Bill Weinstein. No reason was given by the agency, although the decision “was made after thoughtful deliberation by Verve’s leadership and approved by Verve’s board and owners,” according to the email announcing the ouster. Some sources have said the move could be financial; the agency was hit hard during the strikes last year, and by the knock-on contraction in television. The company rebuffed acquisition overtures from Gersh last summer. [The story.]( —"We are taking this very seriously and don’t wish to grant him any publicity by commenting further." The BAFTAs have responded to reports that a social media prankster joined the Oppenheimer team onstage as they accepted the best film prize at Sunday’s awards. The man, whom the British Academy did not name, was “removed by security” after he took the stage with Oppenheimer writer-director-producer Christopher Nolan, producers Emma Thomas and Charles Roven and actor Cillian Murphy. [The story.]( —Roku on the rocks. Despite solid Q4 earnings growth, growing engagement on the streaming platform to 80m active accounts, Roku’s stock tumbled more than 20 percent a day after the Feb. 15 earnings announcement. THR's [Caitlin Huston]( writes that the tech firm faces increasing competition on the streaming ad side, as Netflix and Disney grow ad tiers and Pluto and Tubi offer free services, and may get a new rival on the smart TV-manufacturer front. [The analysis.]( —About that rival... In a major move into the connected TV space, the retail giant Walmart is acquiring the smart TV maker Vizio in a deal that values the company at $2.3b. The deal, if completed, would instantly make Walmart a major player in the streaming TV wars, which counts Roku, Samsung and tech giants Amazon, Google and Apple among its competitors. [The story.]( —Market makers. THR's [Rebecca Sun]( has the scoop on Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival launching a film market. The LALIFF Film Market will make its debut with the festival’s 2024 edition, which will take place May 29 to June 2. On offer to sales agents and buyers in attendance will be a catalog of U.S. Latino films in post-production available for acquisition and distribution. The market will be part of a suite of new initiatives under Latino Film Institute CEO Axel Caballero, who was hired in October. [The story.]( Sam Mendes to Direct 4 Beatles Biopics For Sony ►Here comes the Sam! Some good news for Sony, the company has teamed with Brit filmmaker Sam Mendes for The Beatles — four theatrical films, each told from the perspective of a different band member. The project will see Apple Corps. and The Beatles – Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, and the families of John Lennon and George Harrison – offer up the Fab Four's full life story and music rights for a scripted film series. Oscar-winner Mendes will direct the four theatrical feature films, with Sony aiming for a 2027 release. [The story.]( —Expect more of this. The first streaming-exclusive NFL playoff game between the Kansas City Chiefs and Miami Dolphins on Peacock helped drive the biggest day on streaming platforms that Nielsen has ever measured. The ratings provider’s monthly profile of TV use for January shows a 3.7 percent uptick in January compared to December, and total time spent watching TV was the highest in four years, excluding the pandemic lockdown months of March and April 2020. [The ratings.]( —Ending strong. The finale of True Detective: Night Country drew the season’s largest first-night audience, ending well above where the season began. Sunday’s closing episode of Night Country brought in 3.2m cross-platform viewers (for the first airing on HBO, two replays later in the night and streaming on Max), the biggest night one tune-in of the six-episode season. The previous week’s installment had 5m viewers over three days after being released on Max two days early on Super Bowl weekend. [The ratings.]( Disney Set to Profit From Licensing Renaissance ►Library advantage. Disney is “set to be the big winner in the licensing renaissance” as Hollywood giants look to make revenue from their content beyond using it on their own streaming services, according to a new study. "Disney trumps all the other major studios with its ownership of powerful licensable content, owning more than double that of its rivals," research firm Ampere Analysis explained in a report published Monday. [The report.]( —"Getting taken in by somebody who’s a good actor and a manipulator." Boy Meets World stars Danielle Fishel, Rider Strong and Will Friedle have addressed their former friendship with season five guest star Brian Peck, who was later convicted of child molestation. Speaking on the Pod Meets World podcast, the actors sat down with family therapist Kati Morton to discuss "the difficult subjects of grooming, childhood sexual abuse and their effects on victims." [The story.]( —What an arc. Former Disney Channel star Bridgit Mendler is now a CEO. The actress, who rose to fame for her roles in Disney’s Good Luck Charlie and Wizards of Waverly Place, is now a founder and CEO of the Los Angeles-based startup Northwood Space. Mendler founded Northwood along with her husband, Griffin Cleverly, and engineer Shaurya Luthra in October 2023. The former actress announced on X on Monday that the organization has now received $6.3m in funding. [The story.]( Stewart Reacts to 'Daily Show' Backlash ►"I have sinned against you." Jon Stewart isn’t walking back his criticism of President Joe Biden last week during his The Daily Show return. If anything, Stewart kind of doubled down during his second episode Monday night, before spending the bulk of his opening segment tearing into old foe Tucker Carlson and his recent Russia propaganda tour. [The recap.]( —Halo effect. Stewart’s return to The Daily Show on Feb. 12 posted strong ratings — and may have helped the rest of the week’s episodes, as well. It’s an exceedingly small sample size, but the numbers for the three shows hosted by Jordan Klepper after Stewart’s inaugural show improved substantially on The Daily Show’s recent average. [The ratings.]( —"I hope they change their mind." The 11th season of Last Week Tonight With John Oliver premiered on HBO Sunday night — but not on YouTube on Monday morning. Per both HBO and Oliver, the premium cable outlet is now holding back segments from the show for a few days after episodes premiere. That’s a change from past practice, when people could watch the show’s main story on YouTube the morning after an episode aired. Oliver sounded displeased with the change in a post on X on Monday afternoon. [The story.]( —"We are prepared to offer you $1m a year for the rest of your life, if you simply agree to leave." About Sunday's episode of Last Week Tonight, Oliver closed the show by making Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas a lucrative, seemingly genuine, offer to quit his job, or as the host declared, “get the f*** off” the court. The host had another rundown of Thomas' recent financial scandals. [The recap.]( Kate Berlant Is Ready to Be Used by Hollywood ►"For the love of God, will someone just let us make a TV show?" After closing out the three-city run of her beloved one-woman play, KATE, actress and comedian Kate Berlant talks to THR's Seija Rankin about her future — and she hopes it includes her own TV show. [The interview.]( —"I didn’t expect much when the movie came out. So I’m just really happy and flattered, and I’m very inspired to act again soon." THR's [Brian Davids]( spoke to rising star Liza Soberano about her new film, Lisa Frankenstein. After moving from California to the Philippines as a child, the actor discusses making her way back to the U.S. and arriving on set of the Zelda Williams feature just days after sending in a self tape. Warning: Spoilers! [The interview.]( —"This woman really was a heavyweight of discernment and represented growth from beyond humble beginnings." THR's [Tyler Coates]( spoke to Diane Lane about the fourth episode of FX/Hulu's Feud: Capote vs. the Swans. The actress discusses playing the unfiltered socialite Slim Keith, her betrayal, and what the real swans would say about the show. Warning: Spoilers! [The interview.]( Film Review: 'My New Friends' ►"A misfire from a gifted auteur." THR's Jordan Mintzer reviews André Téchiné's My New Friends. The latest feature from the 80-year-old French director (Wild Reeds, My Favorite Season) premiered in Berlin’s Panorama sidebar and stars Isabelle Huppert. [The review.]( —"Chimneys will be swept." THR's chief film critic [David Rooney]( reviews Dag Johan Haugerud's Sex. The first part of a planned trilogy on sex, dreams and love, Haugerud’s candid look at constricting gender roles centers on two friends spurred by different experiences to readjust their sense of self. [The review.]( —"Structurally messy but oddly haunting." David reviews Nelson Carlo de los Santos Arias' Berlinale competition entry Pepe. The Dominican director weaves together documentary and fiction as a megaherbivore (one of Pablo Escobar's 'cocaine hippos') looks back on being a stranger in a strange land. [The review.]( —"To die for." THR's Leslie Felperin reviews Matthias Glasner's Berlinale competition entry Dying. Life, death and everything in between are there in Glasner’s competitor for the Golden Bear, which features Lars Eidinger, Corinna Harfouch, Lilith Stangenberg and Ronald Zehrfeld. [The review.]( In other news... —Civil War trailer: [New footage of Alex Garland’s American apocalypse]( —Regina King [fights to make a difference in Shirley trailer]( —Fremantle [to buy Asacha, owner of Death in Paradise, The Sea Beyond producers]( —Banijay [buys stake in Akala's Immovable Studios]( —Jenny Slate [to release her second book in October]( —Raquel Welch's [most cherished items are heading to auction]( ​​​What else we're reading... —Lanre Bakare talks to Jamaican linguist Dr. Joseph Farquharson who worked on Bob Marley biopic One Love and how he tried to avoid another Cool Runnings [[Guardian]( —SNL used to be a movie star factory, but the show hasn't effectively produced a new comedy lead in years, writes Sean L. McCarthy, who looks into the reasons for the slowdown [[Daily Beast]( —Zoe Guy unravels the Hugo Awards scandal that has led to claims that the Chinese government censored votes against the likes of Neil Gaiman, R. F. Kuang, Xiran Jay Zhao, and Paul Weimer [[Vulture]( —Constance Grady writes Jon Stewart is as funny as ever, but the world has changed around him and that it is "hard to avoid the sense that he’s delivering a coda to a golden age that ended long ago" [[Vox]( —Using his letters, Anton Troianovski goes inside Aleksei Navalny’s final months amid brutal prison conditions [[NYT]( Today... ...in 1963, Orson Welles’ adaptation of Franz Kafka’s The Trial hit theaters in New York. The film, described by Welles at the time as the best film he'd ever made, starred Anthony Perkins, Jeanne Moreau, Romy Schneider and Elsa Martinelli. [The original review.]( Today's birthdays: Rihanna (36), Olivia Rodrigo (21), Mike Leigh (81), Trevor Noah (40), Jason Blum (55), Miles Teller (37), Chelsea Peretti (46), Brenda Blethyn (78), Jay Hernandez (46), [Lili Taylor]( (57), Cindy Crawford (58), Jennifer O'Neill (76), Zoe Winters (39), Ric Roman Waugh (56), Anthony Head (70), Lauren Ambrose (46), Andrea Savage (51), Tracy Spiridakos (36), Daniella Pineda (37), Ron Eldard (59), French Stewart (60), David Herman (57), Anjli Mohindra (34), Imogen Stubbs (63), James Wilby (66), Michael Zegen (45), Louis Ferreira (57), Sandy Duncan (78), Majandra Delfino (43), Peter Strauss (77), Jack Falahee (35), Jay Hayden (37), Ray Nicholson (32), Rodney Rowland (60), Ron Yuan (51), Kimiko Gelman (58), Andrew Shue (57), Bronson Webb (41) Tom Priestley, the British film editor whose work assembling the dueling-banjos sequence and hellish “squeal like a pig” attack in John Boorman’s Deliverance landed him an Oscar nomination, has died. He was 91. 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