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☆ Netflix Added More Than 9 Million Subscribers in First Quarter
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-18 | by ( Nicole Sperling | More About Nicole Sperling | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Netflix added 9.3 million subscribers in the first quarter of 2024, it announced on Thursday, outperforming analysts’ expectations and solidifying its status as the entertainment industry’s dominant streaming company. It also generated $2.3 billion in net income and its revenue was $9.3 billion, 15 percent higher compared with the same time last year. Netflix now has almost 270 million subscribers around the world. The streaming giant said its quarter was buoyed by audience interest in series such as “Griselda,” “3 Body Problem” and “Avatar: The Last Airbender.”Its ad-tier business, which is now a year old and offers subscribers a lower-priced option, grew 65 percent from last quarter. The company said that in the markets where the ad tier was available, 40 percent of new sign-ups chose that option.

Persons: Griselda, ” Organizations: Netflix

☆ Netflix Names Dan Lin Its Top Movie Executive
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-28 | by ( Nicole Sperling | More About Nicole Sperling | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Netflix said on Wednesday that the producer Dan Lin would replace Scott Stuber as the streaming company’s top film executive. Mr. Stuber was the head of Netflix Film for seven years before announcing last month that he would be leaving. During his tenure, he brought a bevy of Oscar-winning filmmakers to Netflix and helped the company push the rest of the entertainment industry into the streaming era. He will report to Bela Bajaria, Netflix’s chief content officer. “While I’ve been approached many times during my past 15 years at Rideback, I could truly never imagine leaving until Bela reached out with this incredible opportunity,” Mr. Lin said in a statement.

Persons: Dan Lin, Scott Stuber, Stuber, Oscar, . Lin, Bela Bajaria, I’ve, Bela, Mr, Lin Organizations: Netflix, Warner Bros, Rideback Productions Locations: Rideback

☆ Using A.I., Hollywood Agency and Tech Start-Up Aim to Protect Artists
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-30 | by ( Nicole Sperling | More About Nicole Sperling | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

This month, a fake ad for the cookware maker Le Creuset appeared on Facebook. Swift nor Le Creuset was involved in the promotion. “Vermillio starts to automate that process.”WME’s clients will now give their identifying digital data to Vermillio to be recorded and protected on the blockchain. Vermillio said it would then be able to track and authenticate images of the clients that appear online. WME and Vermillio said the partnership could also help compensate performers if studios wanted, for instance, to use A.I.

Persons: WME, ”, Chris Jacquemin, Creuset, Swift, Le Creuset, “, ” Mr, Jacquemin, “ Vermillio, Vermillio Organizations: Facebook

☆ Hollywood Agency Partners With Tech Start-up Over A.I. Protection
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-30 | by ( Nicole Sperling | More About Nicole Sperling | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Vermillio has created a platform, Trace ID, that could insulate WME clients from thefts of their likeness and intellectual property by using A.I. The partnership will also look for ways to use the technology to allow clients to monetize their likeness and image themselves. Even after a deal with SAG-AFTRA, the actors’ union, was ratified, some performers remained dissatisfied with the A.I. The contract, for instance, does not prohibit studios from populating screens with “synthetic fakes,” which can be created through A.I. A.I.-generated images also proliferate online, like the fake, sexually explicit images of Taylor Swift that appeared online last week.

Persons: WME, Vermillio, A.I, Taylor Swift Organizations: SAG

☆ Netflix’s Head of Film to Depart
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-22 | by ( Nicole Sperling | More About Nicole Sperling | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

News of Mr. Stuber’s departure came on the eve of the Oscar nominations. During his tenure, which began in 2017, Netflix has had eight films nominated for best picture, though a win in that category has proved elusive. “Scott has helped lead the new paradigm of how movies are made, distributed and watched,” Ted Sarandos, Netflix’s co-chief executive, said in a statement. “He attracted unbelievable creative talent to Netflix, making us a premiere film studio.”While Mr. Stuber’s slate of movies helped to boost Netflix’s business substantially, he often clashed with Mr. Sarandos over strategy. Mr. Stuber often tried to appease filmmakers by pushing for wider theatrical releases than Mr. Sarandos was willing to undertake.

Persons: Scott Stuber, Oscar, Martin Scorsese, Spike Lee, Jane Campion, Alfonso Cuarón, Stuber’s, “ Scott, Ted Sarandos, Netflix’s, “, Stuber, Sarandos Organizations: Netflix, ., Mr

The union, SAG-AFTRA, which represents tens of thousands of actors, and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, which bargains on behalf of studios, reached the tentative agreement on Wednesday. It followed a bitter standoff that contributed to a near-complete shutdown of production in the entertainment industry. At 118 days, it was the longest movie and television strike in the union’s 90-year history. The actors’ strike, combined with a writers’ strike that started in May and was resolved in September, devastated the entertainment economy. Hundreds of thousands of crew members were idled, with some losing their homes and turning to food banks for groceries.

Persons: ”, Todd Holmes Organizations: SAG, Alliance, Television Producers, California State University, Northridge Locations: Los Angeles, Georgia , New York , New Jersey, New Mexico

☆ Getting Hollywood Back Up and Running Won’t Be Easy
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-09 | by ( Nicole Sperling | More About Nicole Sperling | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Daisy Edgar-Jones, the 25-year-old British actress with an increasingly crowded dance card, will soon experience just how complicated Hollywood’s rush to return to work is going to be. Now, with only weeks to finish the film for a planned release next summer, there’s no time to waste. That means Ms. Edgar-Jones will have to walk away from a role in a drama that Ron Howard is set to begin directing soon in Australia. He is set to portray Bob Dylan in James Mangold’s “A Complete Unknown,” beginning in March. Details on how Mr. Chalamet would juggle production of one movie and publicity for another are being worked out.

Persons: Daisy Edgar, Jones, Ms, Edgar, ”, Ron Howard, Chalamet, Bob Dylan, James Mangold’s “, Austin Butler Organizations: Warner Bros Locations: Oklahoma, Australia

One of the longest labor crises in Hollywood history is finally coming to an end. Upset about streaming-service pay and fearful of fast-developing artificial intelligence technology, actors joined screenwriters on picket lines in July. The writers had walked out in May over similar concerns. It was the first time since 1960, when Ronald Reagan was the head of the actors’ union and Marilyn Monroe was still starring in films, that actors and writers were both on strike. Brooks Barnes and Nicole Sperling reported from Los Angeles and John Koblin from New York.

Persons: —, Ronald Reagan, Marilyn Monroe, Brooks Barnes, Nicole Sperling, John Koblin Organizations: SAG Locations: Hollywood, Los Angeles, New York

☆ Actors’ Union Says It Receives ‘Last, Best and Final’ Offer From Studios
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-04 | by ( Nicole Sperling | More About Nicole Sperling | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The negotiating committee of the actors’ union, SAG-AFTRA, told its members on Saturday that it had received a “Last, Best and Final Offer” from the major entertainment studios as a strike that has brought much of Hollywood to a standstill continued for a 114th day. “We are reviewing it and considering our response within the context of the critical issues addressed in our proposals,” the negotiating committee said. They did not say when they would respond to the offer, which came after an hourlong video conference call that included top studio executives. The studios also offered the actors a new way to determine residuals for streaming programs based on performance metrics, and protections on artificial intelligence, including consent and compensation requirements. The studios also offered an increase to the pension and health funds.

Organizations: SAG Locations: Hollywood

For the most part, people in the entertainment world could trust that they were on the same political page. That changed abruptly with the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel. There was no flood of support on social media from celebrities. “I’ve always just thought I was in this little bubble and everyone’s supportive and it’s L.A. and no big deal. Jewish writers reacted with horror to the guild’s refusal to condemn the attacks on Israel.

Persons: ”, Barry Schkolnick, —, ” Jonathan Greenblatt, Jeremy Steckler, “ I’ve, It’s, ’, Marc Guggenheim, Sharon Brous Organizations: Hollywood, Democratic, “, Writers Guild of America, Defamation League, Israel, WGA, Peace Locations: Israel, Hollywood, America, United States, Palestine, Ikar, Los Angeles

☆ After Outcry, Writers Guild Tries to Explain Silence on Hamas Attack
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-24 | by ( Nicole Sperling | More About Nicole Sperling | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +5 min

They also noted that other major Hollywood unions had issued statements condemning the attack. “I hope this letter goes a long way to sort of calming some of it down,” said Mr. Gordon, who signed the open letter to the guild. He will change his guild membership status to “financial core,” according to his letter. Under that designation, he will still receive the contract benefits earned by the guild but he will no longer be able to vote or attend any guild meetings. “If one cannot condemn, clearly, and without reservation, what Hamas perpetrated, one’s moral compass is absent, not broken.”

Persons: ”, Meredith Stiehm, Michele Mulroney, Betsy Thomas, Jerry Seinfeld, Eric Roth, Amy Sherman, Palladino, Maisel, “, Howard Gordon, Gordon, Dan Gordon, “ Wyatt Earp, Mr, Gordon’s, pusillanimous Organizations: Writers Guild of America West, The New York Times, Toronto Locations: Israel, Ukraine, Polish

☆ Writers Guild Faces Backlash for Not Condemning Hamas Attack
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-23 | by ( Nicole Sperling | More About Nicole Sperling | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +3 min

Just weeks after the Writers Guild of America displayed solidarity by ending a monthslong strike and voting overwhelmingly in favor of a new contract with the major entertainment companies, the union is being roiled by a fight over its lack of a public statement condemning the Hamas attack on Israel. On Oct. 15, eight days after the attack, a group of screenwriters signed an open letter to the Writers Guild asking why it had not issued a statement condemning the attack. The letter now has more than 300 signers, including Jerry Seinfeld, Amy Sherman-Palladino (“The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”) and Gideon Raff (“Homeland”). Later Friday, Meredith Stiehm, the president of the Writers Guild of America West, sent an email to members who had inquired about the lack of a response. “For these reasons, we have decided not to comment publicly.”Calls to the union on Monday were not returned.

Persons: Jerry Seinfeld, Amy Sherman, Palladino, Maisel, Gideon Raff, ”, Meredith Stiehm, “, ” Jonathan Greenblatt, Maha Dakhil, Israel, Dakhil, Bryan Lourd, Natalie Portman, Tom Cruise, Reese Witherspoon Organizations: Writers Guild of America, Writers Guild, The New York Times, Defamation League, Hollywood, Creative Artists Agency, The Times Locations: Israel

☆ Strong First Weekend for ‘Killers,’ but Taylor Swift Was Still No. 1
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-22 | by ( Nicole Sperling | More About Nicole Sperling | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Martin Scorsese’s “Killers of the Flower Moon,” opened this weekend in over 3,600 theaters to an estimated $23 million in the United States and Canada. “Killers” marks the largest theatrical release for Apple Studios, which will return to the box office at Thanksgiving with the Ridley Scott epic “Napoleon” and again in February with the spy caper “Argylle.”(Its strong showing didn’t get it bragging rights for this weekend’s box office. 1 spot for the second week in a row went to “Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour,” which cost $15 million. It earned an estimated $31 million for a total of $129.8 million — a boon for AMC Theatres Distribution’s first release.) Mr. Scorsese filmed the movie in Oklahoma and cast a number of Osage in the film.

Persons: Martin Scorsese’s, ”, Leonardo DiCaprio, DiCaprio, Robert De Niro, Ridley Scott, Napoleon ”, “ Taylor Swift, Scorsese Organizations: Apple Studios, AMC Theatres, Paramount Pictures, Osage Locations: United States, Canada, American, Oklahoma, Los Angeles , New York, San Francisco, Oklahoma City, Tulsa

☆ Actors and Hollywood Studios to Restart Negotiations
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-21 | by ( Nicole Sperling | More About Nicole Sperling | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The major entertainment studios and the union representing tens of thousands of striking actors will return to the negotiating table on Tuesday, less than two weeks after talks were suspended because the sides remained far apart on significant issues. The restart of negotiations was announced in a joint statement on Saturday from the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, which bargains on behalf of the studios, and SAG-AFTRA, the actors’ union. On Oct. 9, the Writers Guild of America ratified its new contract and there had been hope that a new deal with the actors would follow. The strikes have been devastating financially for many, both within and outside the industry. But an agreement with the actors would mean getting back to work without losing the entirety of the fall television schedule or having next summer’s moviegoing season upended.

Persons: —, Donna Langley, Ted Sarandos, Robert A, David Zaslav — Organizations: Alliance, Television Producers, SAG, Netflix, Walt Disney Company, Warner Bros, Writers Guild of America Locations: California

☆ Apple’s New Film Strategy Debuts With ‘Killers of the Flower Moon’
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-20 | by ( Nicole Sperling | More About Nicole Sperling | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The box office results for Martin Scorsese’s new film, “Killers of the Flower Moon,” will be revealed on Sunday and analyzed by reporters and industry insiders. It is teaming up with Paramount Pictures to release the three-and-a-half-hour R-rated film in 3,621 theaters. But “Killers of the Flower Moon” won’t reach its streaming service, Apple TV+, for at least 45 days. During Thanksgiving weekend, Sony Pictures will work with Apple to release Ridley Scott’s “Napoleon,” starring Joaquin Phoenix. In February, Apple is joining forces with Universal Pictures to release the spy caper “Argyle” in theaters around the country.

Persons: Martin Scorsese’s, Leonardo DiCaprio’s, Ridley Scott’s “ Napoleon, ”, Joaquin Phoenix Organizations: Apple Studios, Paramount Pictures, Apple, Sony Pictures, Universal Pictures

☆ Netflix Adds 9 Million Subscribers in Third Quarter
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-18 | by ( Nicole Sperling | More About Nicole Sperling | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Netflix added nine million subscribers in the third quarter and saw a year-over-year increase in revenue despite strikes by Hollywood writers and actors that brought the entertainment industry largely to a standstill. Netflix’s revenue hit $8.5 billion in the quarter, the streaming company said in an earnings announcement on Wednesday, up 8 percent from the same time last year. Netflix also said that it was raising the monthly subscription price for its premium ad-free service in the United States from to $22.99 from $19.99. The premium service can be used on four devices at one time. The monthly price for the standard ad-free service, which can used on two devices at once, will stay at $15.49.

Persons: ’ Organizations: Netflix, Hollywood Locations: United States, United Kingdom, France

The actors’ union offered congratulations to the Writers Guild of America, which represents more than 11,000 screenwriters, in a statement on Sunday night, adding that it was eager to review the tentative agreement with the studios. Neither SAG-AFTRA nor the studio alliance immediately responded to requests for comment on Monday. “The deal that the Writers Guild and the studios struck economically could have been worked out in May, June. Discovery said this month that the impact from the labor disputes would reduce its adjusted earnings for the year by $300 million to $500 million. Additionally, share prices for other major media companies like Disney and Paramount have taken a hit in recent months.

Persons: “, ”, Bobby Schwartz, Quinn Emanuel, we’ve, —, Gavin Newsom Organizations: Writers Guild of America, Alliance, Television Producers, Hollywood, Writers Guild, SAG, Gov, Warner Bros, Discovery, Disney, Paramount

The DVD business destroyed competitors like Blockbuster and altered the viewing habits of the public. Once Netflix began its streaming business and then started producing original content, it transformed the entire entertainment industry. Even before the strikes, streaming had rendered DVDs obsolete, at least from a business perspective. In comparison, Netflix’s streaming revenue for the same period reached $6.5 billion. (One hundred people at Netflix still work on the DVD side of the business, though most will soon be leaving the company.)

Persons: Catherine Deneuve Organizations: Blockbuster, Netflix Locations: Hollywood, Fremont , Calif, Trenton, N.J, Dallas, Duluth, Ga, Anaheim

☆ A Full Day of Negotiations but No Deal in Hollywood Writers’ Strike
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-21 | by ( Nicole Sperling | More About Nicole Sperling | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Top Hollywood executives joined negotiations between striking screenwriters and the major entertainment studios for the second straight day on Thursday, leading to hope on both sides that a work stoppage in its fifth month could be nearing an end. Discovery; Donna Langley, the chief content officer of Universal Pictures; and Robert A. Iger, Disney’s chief executive, took part on Thursday. They were joined by representatives of the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, which bargains on behalf of entertainment companies, and from the Writers Guild of America, which represents more than 11,000 television and film writers. The writers’ strike — along with one by Hollywood actors that began on July 14 — has essentially shut down the majority of the entertainment industry. The financial damage done to the industry and the many ancillary businesses that depend on it has been significant.

Persons: Ted Sarandos, David Zaslav, Donna Langley, Robert A, — Organizations: Hollywood, Netflix, Warner Bros, Universal Pictures, Alliance, Television Producers, Writers Guild of America Locations: Los Angeles

The Writers Guild of America, which represents more than 11,000 television and film writers, and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, which bargains for studios, have not held talks for three weeks. “This was the companies’ plan from the beginning — not to bargain, but to jam us,” guild leaders said shortly afterward. The studios have rejected that demand, but it is a position supported by many Writers Guild members, including numerous showrunners. “We’re just always trying to see if there are any ways anybody can help.”Behind the scenes, however, frustration among elite Writers Guild members has been mounting. Mr. Murphy set up a financial assistance fund for idled workers on his shows and committed $500,000 as a starting amount.

Persons: ”, Alexi Hawley, Scott Gimple, ” Steve Levitan, “, “ We’re, Ryan Murphy, Chris Keyser, Murphy Organizations: Guild of America, Alliance, Television Producers, Union, Writers Guild, Fox Studios, Guild Locations: Los Angeles

☆ Telluride Film Festival Goes On, Despite Anxiety Over Strikes
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-04 | by ( Nicole Sperling | More About Nicole Sperling | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Majestic vistas, burbling brooks and sanguine festival goers are the hallmarks of the Telluride Film Festival, a showcase for the most prestigious films of the year. But no amount of natural beauty can overcome the low-level of anxiety that coursed through this mountain town over Labor Day weekend. With dual strikes raging in Hollywood — the writers’ strike just hit four months — no one wants to appear out of step with these unprecedented times. “It was hell getting here,” Julie Huntsinger, the executive director of the Telluride Film Festival, said in an interview. Unlike most film festivals, Telluride is more of a viewing than sales opportunity — though some filmmakers do attend in search of distribution partners.

Persons: ” Julie Huntsinger, don’t, ’, didn’t Organizations: Telluride Film, Labor Locations: Hollywood, Telluride

☆ ‘Strays’ Stumbles at Box Office Without Its Stars’ Promotion
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-20 | by ( Nicole Sperling | More About Nicole Sperling | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

When selling a movie about raunchy talking dogs, it helps to have some star power to get moviegoers into seats. And “Strays,” which opened Friday, has it — at least on the screen. “Strays,” which had a budget of $46 million, is one of four movies that opened widely across the country this weekend. (The studio’s previous R-rated comedy that paired raunchy material with family-friendly characters, “Good Boys,” opened in 2019 to $21 million. “Cocaine Bear,” also from Universal, had a far more robust opening, $23 million, back in February.)

Persons: Will Ferrell, Jamie Foxx, Randall Park, Isla Fisher, Dylan Dreyer, Australian Shepherd, “, ” Organizations: Universal Pictures, Universal Locations: Australian

☆ Confusion in Hollywood as Some Productions Are Allowed to Continue
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-09 | by ( Nicole Sperling | More About Nicole Sperling | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

When you’re making an independent film every second counts. Ash Avildsen had six days of filming left on his low-budget biopic “Queen of the Ring” — including a climactic scene involving a majority of his cast — when the actors’ union went on strike on July 14. If Mr. Avildsen could not receive an interim waiver from SAG-AFTRA, as the union is known, to continue filming, the project was likely to fall apart. The logistical and financial challenges of sending the cast and crew home and then trying to assemble them again after a strike would be too much for the shoestring production. “It was maniacally stressful,” said Mr. Avildsen, who wrote and directed the film, about Mildred Burke, who became a dominating figure in women’s wrestling in the 1930s.

Persons: Ash Avildsen, ’, Avildsen, ”, Mildred Burke, “ Organizations: SAG, Alliance, Television Producers Locations: Louisville, Ky

☆ To Keep TV Shows Afloat, Some Networks Are Cutting Actors’ Pay
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-31 | by ( Nicole Sperling | More About Nicole Sperling | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Being a regular cast member for four years has given him financial security and made him a star in his native Nigeria, where the show is wildly popular. But Mr. Akinfemi and 10 of his castmates were told this year that the only way the half-hour show was going to get a fifth season was if budgets were cut. How the actors were paid was going to change. Instead, Mr. Akinfemi and his castmates would be reclassified as recurring cast members. “It was a bit surprising, for all of 10 seconds,” Mr. Akinfemi said in an interview before SAG-AFTRA, the actors’ union, went on strike.

Persons: Bob Hearts Abishola ”, Akinfemi, Billy Gardell, Bob, Folake Olowofoyeku, Abishola, Mr, ” Organizations: CBS, Akinfemi, SAG Locations: Nigeria

☆ Judge Rejects Johnson & Johnson’s Effort to Limit Talc-Related Liabilities
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-30 | by ( Nicole Sperling | More About Nicole Sperling | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

For the second time this year, a court has ruled against Johnson & Johnson’s effort to use a bankruptcy case to limit its exposure to tens of thousands of lawsuits that claim its talcum powder products caused cancer. The plaintiffs claim that the company knew for decades about the risks linked to its talc products, including its signature baby powder. The company created a subsidiary, LTL Management, in 2021 as a maneuver to shield itself from the talc litigation. It proposed that the subsidiary, which had filed for bankruptcy, pay $8.9 billion to resolve all the claims against it. But on Friday, Judge Michael Kaplan of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of New Jersey, said LTL’s bankruptcy case must be dismissed because the lawsuits did not put the company in “imminent or immediate financial distress.” Earlier this year, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit in Philadelphia dismissed the first bankruptcy effort for the same reason.

Persons: Johnson, Michael Kaplan Organizations: LTL Management, U.S, Bankruptcy, District of, U.S ., Appeals, Third Circuit Locations: District of New Jersey, Philadelphia

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