☕ Flop era

Why Marvel‘s in a major slump... November 10, 2023 [View Online]( | [Sign Up]( | [Shop]( [Morning Brew]( PRESENTED BY [AT&T Connected Car]( Good morning. As that dry winter air sets in, a friendly reminder to set up your ChapStick infrastructure before it’s too late: One at your desk, one by your bed, one in your backpack, one in your car, and one you tuck into your puffer coat pocket for the day you inevitably lose all of them. —Molly Liebergall, Cassandra Cassidy, Matty Merritt, Adam Epstein, Neal Freyman MARKETS Nasdaq 13,521.45 -0.94% S&P 4,347.35 -0.81% Dow 33,891.94 -0.65% 10-Year 4.637% +13.1 bps Bitcoin $36,620.17 +2.77% Disney $90.34 +6.91% *Stock data as of market close, cryptocurrency data as of 11:00pm ET. [Here's what these numbers mean.]( - Markets: We almost had it all. A ninth straight day of gains for the S&P 500 would have been its longest streak since 2004. Things were looking good early on Thursday, but it all changed when Fed Chair Jerome Powell said he’s “[not confident]( policymakers have done enough to curb inflation. That renewed fears of more interest rate hikes and, crushingly, ended stocks’ hot streak. But it was a heckuva run. - Stock spotlight: While all that went down, Disney shares [surged]( after it beat earnings estimates and got great news that the Hollywood actors strike was ending.  ENTERTAINMENT [Marvel may be in its flop era]( [Brie Larson in The Marvels]( The Marvels/Disney In its version of Marc by Marc Jacobs, Marvel’s The Marvels, the company’s latest and [reportedly far from greatest]( installment in its cinematic universe, hits theaters today. It’s projected to be a spectacular flop by Marvel’s lofty standards: The film reportedly cost $250 million and is only expected to pull in $75 million–$80 million this weekend. That’d continue an underwhelming streak for the once-dominant Disney brand. What went wrong? A report from [Variety]( details a hot mess at Marvel, especially in its preproduction decision-making. Scripting oversights allegedly led to four weeks of reshoots for The Marvels. And it doesn’t sound like the plot will save the day: The New York Times’s review of this 33rd MCU film is titled “[You’ve Seen This Movie 32 Times Before]( The Marvels is one of several problems at Marvel Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania disappointed at the box office in February, and now potential sequels and spinoffs are in jeopardy as star Jonathan Majors—on whom Marvel was relying for the next phase of the MCU—faces domestic violence charges. The movie’s CGI was considered [embarrassingly bad]( likely because Marvel executives moved up its release by more than four months, sending visual effects artists scrambling. Marvel’s VFX workers voted to unionize in September, citing 14-hour workdays and no overtime. And that’s not all: - Marvel released 10 movies in the past two years (upping its 2010s output of one to two annually) and [drastically expanded]( its TV offerings, prompting Disney CEO Bob Iger to admit they had done too much too quickly. - One Marvel show, She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, premiered with numerous CGI gaffes—despite costing $25 million for one episode, which was more than an episode of Game of Thrones in its final season. Souring on superheroes: Some worry that Marvel has oversaturated the genre and forced people to lose interest in superheroes in general. Recent releases from rival studio DC like Shazam! Fury of the Gods, The Flash, and Blue Beetle all floundered at the box office, too.—ML   PRESENTED BY AT&T CONNECTED CAR [The open roads are calling]( [AT&T Connected Car]( There’s tranquility in traveling in the comfort of your own car. And you can make your road trips even more peaceful with [AT&T In-Car Wi-Fi](. For as little as $10/month, you can stream, text, or listen to your favorite book. Tap into the possibilities and get the most out of your car with [AT&T In-Car Wi-Fi](. No matter where you’re headed, it’ll help you keep yourself and your passengers entertained the whole ride. Take AT&T In-Car Wi-Fi on your next fall road trip. See if your car [qualifies for a free trial](. WORLD [Tour de headlines](#) [Joe Manchin]Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images Sen. Joe Manchin won’t run for reelection in 2024. The moderate Democrat from West Virginia made his intentions known in a [video]( posted on X. Instead of running for a fourth term, the 76-year-old said he will travel the US “to see if there is an interest in creating a movement to mobilize the middle and bring Americans together.” Manchin, who was the deciding vote for last year’s landmark Inflation Reduction Act, has refused to rule out a [third-party run]( for president in 2024 as the nominee for No Labels, a centrist political group for the “politically homeless.” Manchin’s decision likely hurts Democrats’ chances of maintaining their narrow majority in the Senate. Israel agrees to four-hour daily humanitarian pauses in fighting. [The pauses]( started Thursday in northern Gaza, according to the White House, which said Israel would announce each four-hour window at least three hours in advance to allow civilians to flee from its military assault on Hamas. In a rare criticism of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, President Biden told reporters that the pauses should have come [sooner](. He also pushed for multiday stoppages instead of hourslong ones and said there’s currently “no possibility” for a formal cease-fire. Biden backs unionization efforts at Tesla and Toyota. Following the historic contracts between the United Auto Workers and the Big Three automakers, President Biden said he supports the group’s [attempt to unionize]( workers at the two companies. UAW President Shawn Fain wants to parlay the gains made from UAW’s strike against the Big Three to target nonunion manufacturers, including Tesla and Toyota. Biden met with Fain last night at an event in Illinois to celebrate the reopening of a Stellantis plant and the union’s new contracts. SPORTS [The cheating scandal rocking college football]( [Michigan Wolverines coaching staff on the sideline]( Icon Sportswire/Getty Images Stealing a sign from mile marker 420? Tired. Stealing a sign at a college football game? Wired. Tomorrow, Michigan will face Penn State in the Wolverines’ biggest game of the season so far. But the real intrigue is off the field, where the [NCAA is investigating]( former Michigan recruiting analyst Connor Stalions for allegedly traveling around the country to scout future opponents at games. Why is this a scandal? Unlike in the NFL, college football players can’t have radios in their helmets to receive the plays from their coaches. So, in order to relay calls, coaches hold up what are essentially giant poster boards with secret meanings. While it’s common for teams to research their opponents’ signs by watching publicly available game footage, it’s illegal to scout them live and in person thanks to a 1994 NCAA bylaw intended to prevent an advantage to wealthier schools with larger staffs. For Michigan’s alleged tomfoolery—believed to be committed mostly by Stalions and a group of budget 007s with iPhones—there’s a price to pay: The Big Ten Conference could move to [suspend head coach]( Jim Harbaugh or withhold lucrative TV and bowl game revenue from the school, per CBS Sports. Going forward…it’s still unclear what action the NCAA will take when it finishes its investigation. But the fiasco has resurfaced questions about allowing college football to use radio systems, which would eliminate the use of signs altogether. Michigan alleged that [other teams]( cheat, and warned that punishing the school or its staff would set a precedent the NCAA doesn’t want.—CC   TOGETHER WITH WALMART BUSINESS [Walmart Business]( Office = stocked. Work smarter with the best office essentials from [Walmart Business](. No more stressing the small details—from shipping and packing materials to pens and pencils, Walmart Business has your back. And with same-day delivery, your team can focus on doing what you do best. [Get started](. LABOR [Strikes ran the summer]( [Actors on picket line during strike.]( Jose Perez / Bauer-Griffin/Getty Images We will be subjected to the Wonka press tour. The actors union reached a [tentative deal]( Wednesday night with the studios to end the 118-day strike—the longest in the union’s history, which shut down Hollywood for months alongside a writers strike that ended in September. What little we know about the deal so far hints that the actors are getting significant pay bumps and AI regulation. But entertainment CEOs weren’t the only ones facing walkouts this year. Here’s what workers won during hot strike summer: - The United Auto Workers reached a deal with carmakers that included 30% pay bumps for most workers. - The largest healthcare strike in US history got Kaiser Permanente workers a 21% pay increase over four years and a $25/hour minimum wage in California and $23 elsewhere in the US. Workers didn’t even have to walk off the job: Just the [threat of strikes]( also led to pay and benefit bumps. - UPS delivered $175,000 salary and benefit packages to avoid a massive service disruption. - American Airlines agreed to increase pilot pay by over 46%. - And 25,400 members of the Culinary Union will receive pay raises from MGM Resorts in Las Vegas. Big picture: With Ws for workers piling up, some economists argue unions might be the key to [reducing]( wage inequality.—MM   GRAB BAG [Key performance indicators](#) [Map of the US]Francis Scialabba Stat: Honey, I shrunk the US population. According to the latest Census Bureau data, the US population is [projected to shrink]( by the year 2100, which would be only the second decline in the country’s history (the other occurred in 1918 due to the Spanish flu and World War I). Annual population growth rates have dropped from about 1.2% in the 1990s to just 0.5% today. The culprits: declining birth rates and an aging population. The US could even be topped by Pakistan or Nigeria as the third-biggest country by the middle of the century, per UN projections. The anticipated shrinkage means immigration will be [essential]( for any hopes of continued growth. And yet, the US is still growing faster than many other high-income nations, some of which, like Japan and Italy, are already losing population. Quote: “Wrote a song for this that I will share on my next stream.” Dan Clancy is just built different. The Twitch CEO revealed yesterday that he was [finally accepted]( into the livestreaming platform’s partner program, which is reserved for the most popular creators to share in the advertising revenue generated by their streams. Clancy failed on his first attempt to qualify, and because he’s a hip, music-playing CEO (and former theater major, which explains a lot), he never gave himself special treatment. Clancy’s streaming ambitions are considered part of his attempt to [charm top streamers]( who are upset with the increase in ads on the platform. Read: Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy are backing a new sports league that’s reinventing golf as high-energy, made-for-TV entertainment. ([Wired]( QUIZ [Chapped quiz]( [New Friday quiz image]( The feeling of getting a 5/5 on the Brew’s Weekly News Quiz has been compared to remembering not to say “you too” when your Uber driver says “have a nice flight.” It’s that satisfying. [Ace the quiz](. NEWS [What else is brewing](#) - [NWSL]( announced a new four-year, $240 million TV rights deal with ESPN, CBS, Amazon, and Scripps—the largest-ever broadcast deal for women’s sports. - [Humane]( a startup founded by two former Apple designers, launched its first product yesterday: an AI lapel pin that costs $699 and is meant to replace your smartphone. - [Omegle]( the popular anonymous video chat service, abruptly shut down after 14 years amid concerns over child safety. - [2023]( is “virtually certain” to be the hottest year in recorded history, according to an EU climate agency. - [JPMorgan]( is testing an AI application that can generate earnings summaries for every company it tracks. RECS [Friday to-do list] Watch: The first [trailer]( for World War II series Masters of the Air, Steven Spielberg’s long-awaited follow-up to Band of Brothers and The Pacific. Strike it rich: How to check if that [$2 bill]( you’ve kept in the back of a drawer for 15 years is actually worth more than $2. Explore: All national parks will be [free to visit]( tomorrow in honor of Veterans Day. Get a bigger boat: See where Jaws and Network rank on this list of the [top 100]( movies of the 1970s. Solving the lithium shortage: Demand for [lithium]( is projected to soar 20x by 2040, and today’s supply can’t meet that demand. EnergyX’s technology is changing that. [Invest in EnergyX]( *A message from our sponsor. GAMES [The puzzle section](#) Picdoku: Catch the autumn leaves before they all fall off the trees. [Play today’s Picdoku here](. Friday puzzle In a small village, 90% of people drink tea, 80% coffee, 70% whiskey, 60% gin. Nobody drinks all four. What percentage of people drink alcohol? SHARE THE BREW [Share Morning Brew]( with your friends, acquire free Brew swag, and then acquire more friends as a result of your fresh Brew swag. We’re saying we’ll give you free stuff and more friends if you share a link. One link. Your referral count: 0 [Click to Share]( Or copy & paste your referral link to others: [morningbrew.com/daily/r/?kid=4904f90a]( ANSWER Answer: Everyone drinks alcohol. [Here are some solutions](. Word of the Day Today’s Word of the Day is: tomfoolery, meaning “foolish or silly behavior.” Thanks to Rachel from Brooklyn and the dozens of other jokesters for the suggestion. Submit another [Word of the Day here](. ✢ A Note From AT&T Connected Car *Based on independent third-party data. Requires eligible car and wireless service plan. Additional restrictions apply. ✤ A Note From EnergyX This is a paid advertisement for EnergyX’s Regulation A+ Offering. Please read the offering circular at [(. Written by [Adam Epstein]( [Neal Freyman]( [Molly Liebergall]( [Cassandra Cassidy]( and [Matty Merritt]( Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up [here](. Interested in podcasts? - Check out ours [here]( [ADVERTISE]( // [CAREERS]( // [SHOP]( // [FAQ]( Update your email preferences or unsubscribe [here](. View our privacy policy [here](. Copyright © 2023 Morning Brew. All rights reserved. 22 W 19th St, 4th Floor, New York, NY 10011