'Where Is Wendy Williams?' Producers On Making of Doc; Walmart Tries Muscling In On Amazon; A Hopeful Sign for Mid-Sized Movies; 'The Gentlemen' Review

[View on web]( [New reader? Subscribe]( February 27, 2024 What's news: Ryan Gosling will perform "I'm Just Ken" at the Oscars. Sean "Diddy" Combs has been hit with a new sexual assault lawsuit. Netflix has picked up a comedy series from Shane Gillis. Sara Ramírez will not be returning for season three of And Just Like That. The Mandalorian & Grogu has landed $21.8m in California tax credits. — [Abid Rahman]( Do you have THR's next big story? Confidentially share tips with us at [tips@thr.com](. 'Where Is Wendy Williams?' Producers On Making of Troubling Doc ►"If we’d known she had dementia, no one would’ve rolled a camera." THR's [Lacey Rose]( spoke to Where Is Wendy Williams? producers Mark Ford and Erica Hanson as well as Lifetime’s Brie Miranda Bryant about the much-talked about and unsettling docuseries, and the trio reveal what they learned (and grew increasingly infuriated about) along the way. [The interview.]( —Tragic. For THR, Brande Victorian recaps the depths of Wendy Williams' isolation from her loved ones and the far-reaching parameters of her guardianship that are laid out in the second half of the four-part series. [The recap.]( —ICYMI. Two days before Where Is Wendy Williams? premiered, the former talk show host’s court-appointed caregiver filed a lawsuit against Lifetime parent company A+E Networks. Sabrina Morrissey filed the sealed lawsuit for injunctive relief on Thursday in New York County Supreme Court. The suit says that Morrissey — whose identity as the individual appointed by the court in 2022 to look after Williams had been unknown publicly and to Williams’ family — is "acting in her capacity as Temporary Guardian." [The story.]( Walmart Tries Muscling In On Amazon ►A streaming prizefight. THR's [Alex Weprin]( writes that Walmart's $2.3b deal to buy TV maker Vizio opens up a new front in the increasingly lucrative advertising space for retail and tech giants that are, in turn, spending big on content. [The analysis.]( —Mounting legal problems. Sean "Diddy" Combs has been hit with a new sexual assault lawsuit, this time by a producer who accuses the mogul of harassing and trafficking him. Rodney "Lil Rod" Jones, in a $30m lawsuit filed on Monday, alleges he was forced to engage in sex acts by Combs and solicit sex workers for him for over a year while he was working for the Bad Boy Records founder on his latest album. In a statement, a lawyer for Combs called the lawsuit "pure fiction." The complaint marks at least the fifth suit filed against Combs since November. [The story.]( —Fret not! Ryan Gosling will be “Kenough” at the Academy Awards. After rumors circulated on social media that the Barbie star would sing "I’m Just Ken" at the Oscars, which is nominated for best original song, a source close to the situation tells THR that Gosling is scheduled to perform the musical number. [The story.]( —Phew! Zendaya will also definitely be attending the 2024 Academy Awards. The Dune: Part Two actress is among the first crop of Oscar presenters announced by ABC on Monday morning. She’ll be joined by reigning performance winners Jamie Lee Curtis, Brendan Fraser, Ke Huy Quan and Michelle Yeoh. Additionally, Mahershala Ali, Nicolas Cage, Jessica Lange, Matthew McConaughey, Lupita Nyong’o, Al Pacino and Michelle Pfeiffer are set to appear. [The story.]( —"Creating distinct identities." The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ nearly 10,000 members each belong to one of 18 branches. One of those branches, the short films and feature animation branch, is about to become two, the organization announced on Monday. The move is the result of a vote by the Academy’s board of governors. It’s not yet clear what brought about the split, although members of the sizable feature animation community have long resented the fact that most, if not all, of the branch’s three governors have often been short filmmakers. [The story.]( Stewart Offers His Solution for Israel-Hamas Peace ►"No one seems to be incentivized to stop the suffering of the innocent people in this region." Jon Stewart opened his third return episode of The Daily Show by noting his first two episodes generated some controversy, so this week, for a change of pace, he decided to tackle the Israel–Hamas war. During the course of his monologue, Stewart offered a sincere idea for solving the crisis. [The recap.]( —Exit Che. Sara Ramírez, who played the controversial character Che Diaz on Max’s Sex and the City offshoot And Just Like That for its first two seasons, will not return for the upcoming third season. Sources caution that while scripts are still being written, there’s always a potential for Ramírez to pop in for an episode. A month ago, Ramírez shared a post in which they seemed to allege that AJLT introduced Che — the franchise’s first nonbinary character — as a way not to be inclusive but rather as “performative” lip service toward the LGBTQIA2S+ community. [The story.]( —In demand. Comedian Shane Gillis has struck a deal for his first scripted series: a Netflix workplace comedy set in an auto repair shop. The streamer has ordered six episodes of Tires, which is based on a pilot concept Gillis had previously posted on YouTube. Gillis serves as an executive producer, writer and co-creator of the show, which will premiere on Netflix on May 23. Tires also stars Chris O’Connor, Kilah Fox and Stavros Halkias and has guest appearances by Andrew Schulz. [The story.]( —Next up. Disney+ has revealed the release date for the next title on its growing slate of Japanese anime. The hitman series The Fable, based on the best-selling manga of the same name, will launch worldwide on the streaming service on April 7. The show is the latest anime title released via Disney’s partnership with Japanese publishing powerhouse Kodansha, the home of some of Japan’s most iconic manga IP, including titles like Akira, Attack on Titan and Ghost in the Shell. [The story.]( —New home. A long-developing comic book series starring Diego Boneta has found a home at Amazon Prime Video. The streamer has ordered El Gato, based on the comic El Gato Negro by Richard Dominguez. Boneta will play the title character in the thriller, a man who finds himself at the center of a vast conspiracy when he discovers his father was a 1970s vigilante, “El Gato.” The project was initially set up at Apple TV+ more than four years ago, with Boneta attached. [The story.]( —Heading to North Carolina. Amazon Prime Video has handed out an eight-episode, straight-to-series order for The Runarounds, a music drama that follows a post-high school band as they try to make it big. The series, from the creators of Netflix’s drama Outer Banks, is not a spinoff of that show, but it does feature the same group — The Runarounds — that was previously featured in a season three episode of the hugely popular young adult drama on Netflix. [The story.]( A Hopeful Sign for Mid-Sized Movies ►We are so back, Part I. Berlin’s European Film Market was the first big test of the post-strike indie film market. Execs were cautiously optimistic ahead of EFM, reporting a “flood” of big, star-stocked projects. THR's [Scott Roxborough]( reports that coming out of Berlin, the mood has shifted from “cautiously” to just plain optimistic as EFM showed there’s a global appetite for star-driven, non-franchise titles in the $20m to $50m range, as buyers pounced on projects starring Margot Robbie, Will Smith and Dave Bautista. [The analysis.]( —We are so back, Part II. The number of feature films receiving tax credits to shoot in California are on the rise, with some productions spending big bucks to nab major incentives along the way. Led by The Mandalorian & Grogu, five studio projects were selected to participate in California’s Film and TV tax credit program, the state’s film office announced on Monday. The Lucasfilm title will get $21.8m in tax credits, becoming just the fifth movie in the history of the program to get at least $20m. [The story](. —Dropped. A joke from the new Mean Girls which Lindsay Lohan pushed back against appears to be missing from at-home versions of the film. The movie musical version of the film, which began as the beloved 2004 movie starring Lohan and then went to Broadway before making its way back to the screen this year, became available on digital platforms last week after its theatrical debut in January. The film featured a cameo from Megan Thee Stallion telling Cady Heron (Angourie Rice) that “Y2K fire crotch is back.” [The story.]( Disney's Live-Action Film Boss Exits ►Studio shake-up. Sean Bailey, the producer turned executive who has overseen Disney's live-action division for almost 15 years, is exiting the studio. In his place, David Greenbaum, who ran Searchlight Pictures with Matthew Greenfield, will take over in a newly created role of president, Disney live action and 20th Century Studios. Greenbaum will report to Disney Entertainment co-chairman Alan Bergman. Steve Asbell continues to oversee 20th Century Studios as president while Greenfield takes sole oversight of Searchlight as president. [The story.]( —On the move. Disney+ exec Luke Bradley-Jones is set to join The Economist to speed up the iconic magazine’s pivot to becoming a digital-first global product. Bradley-Jones, most recently senior vp and general manager of Disney+ EMEA since Jan. 2020, helped launch the studio’s flagship streaming platform across Europe, the Middle East and Africa. He will remain at the streamer until this summer, before becoming president of The Economist. [The story.]( —"I am thrilled to be part of the work ahead." The Writers Guild of America East has named Sam Wheeler executive director after its previous staff leader, Lowell Peterson, announced his departure from the union last fall. Wheeler, currently the national executive director of the American Guild of Musical Artists, will start at the writers’ union on April 1. The union’s council announced the hire on Monday, saying that Wheeler’s appointment came after a "months-long search." [The story.]( Film Review: 'The Gentlemen' ►"A watered-down spinoff." THR's [Angie Han]( reviews Netflix's The Gentlemen. A spinoff of Guy Ritchie's 2019 movie, the show centers on an aristocrat (Theo James) who inherits his late father's estate — and with it, his late father's involvement in a marijuana business. [The review.]( —"An intimate epic set in the great outdoors." THR's Jordan Mintzer reviews Philippe Lesage's Who by Fire. The third feature from the Québécois director of Genesis and The Demons premiered in Berlin’s Generation 14plus section, where it received the international jury prize. [The review.]( —"Well-meaning but overwrought." Jordan reviews Brandt Andersen's The Strangers' Case. Lupin star Omar Sy headlines the feature debut of producer and activist Andersen, who adapted the story from his prizewinning short Refugee. [The review.]( In other news... —Kevin Costner breaks silence: [Reveals trailer for Western epic Horizon]( —Dora swings into [animated reboot action in trailer for Paramount+ series]( —Family [home of the so-called “Malibu Hillbillies” hits the market for $1.6m]( —Jodie Turner-Smith [speaks out on Joshua Jackson divorce]( —Zoe Lister-Jones [comes out by revealing new relationship after divorce]( —Telemundo [taps Gemma Garcia to lead news division]( —[Chris Gauthier]( Once Upon a Time, Smallville actor, dies at 48 —[Lynda Gravátt]( esteemed New York stage actress, dies at 76 —[Eddie Driscoll]( actor on The Last Ship, dies at 60 —[Charles Dierkop]( actor in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, The Sting and Police Woman, dies at 87 —[Jackie Loughery]( The D.I. actress and wife of Jack Webb, dies at 93 ​​​What else we're reading... —Philip Oltermann reports that Germany's culture minister Claudia Roth says she clapped only the Israeli film-maker, not his Palestinian colleague, at a Berlin Film Festival prize ceremony [[Guardian]( —Alexis Soloski looks into the innovative education services offered by ABC's Abbott Elementary to the roughly 150 kids who work on the show [[NYT]( —With big viewing figures for Suits and Young Sheldon, Josef Adalian considers whether Nielsen ratings really reflect what people want from streamers [[Vulture]( —Mark Savage reports on Pattie Boyd's recently revealed love letters that offer a glimpse on the love triangle between her, George Harrison and Eric Clapton [[BBC]( —With Joe Biden's poll numbers with progressives sinking, Caleb Ecarma writes that Michigan could be a big wake-up call for the president [[Vanity Fair]( Today... ...in 1992, Sony Pictures Classics held the premiere for James Ivory’s Howards End adaptation in New York. The film would go on to earn nine Oscar nominations at the 65th Academy Awards, winning three, including best actress for Emma Thompson, adapted screenplay and art direction. [The original review.]( Today's birthdays: Kate Mara (41), Timothy Spall (67), Josh Groban (43), Christopher Landon (49), Baltasar Kormákur (58), Rebecca Hanssen (30), [Ziwe]( (32), JWoww (38), Chilli (53), Eigil Bryld (53), Lindsey Morgan (34), Donal Logue (58), John Pyper-Ferguson (60), Li Bingbing (51), Noah Emmerich (59), Carmela Zumbado (33), Richard Coyle (52), Nikki Amuka-Bird (48), Charles Baker (53), Grant Show (62), Demi Singleton (17), Susan Yeagley (52), Jenny Boyd (33), Alba Rohrwacher (45), Heléne Yorke (39), Violet Brinson (20), Adetokumboh M'Cormack (42), Prakash Jha (72) Dan Wilcox, the Emmy-winning TV writer and producer whose work on the last four seasons of M*A*S*H included the acclaimed 1983 series finale that attracted a record 106 million viewers, has died. He was 82. [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. The Hollywood Reporter is a part of Penske Media Corporation. © 2024 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](