Warner Bros has made it official that Barbie has collected the best previews of not only this summer, but of 2023 YTD with $22.3M, which bests Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3‘s $17.5M. It’s a great weekend for the house of Zaslav in the wake of The Flash stumbling previously this summer. All eyes are on the Warner Bros Discovery share price which as of this post is around $13.03 (-0.6%). Universal says Oppenheimer did $10.5M at 3,150 theaters.
Barbie’s cash includes the $1.1M from Wednesday previews at 500 locations. Even if you back those out, Thursday’s $21.2M are still the best of 2023. In all, Thursday previews were booked at 3,400 locations.
We had said from the beginning that Barbie was ahead of Little Mermaid in presales — well, she’s double what the fish brought in which was $10.3M (translating into a $96M 3-day). Early Rotten Tomatoes audiences scores show 90% for Barbie and 94% for Oppenheimer. Early PostTrak shows 4 1/2 stars for Barbie and a 79% definite recommend.
Oppenheimer's preview gross, as we told you last night, is in the range of superhero films and massive blockbusters like It Chapter Two which also posted a Thursday of $10.5M from showtimes that began at 5PM, a $37M Friday and wound up doing a $91M plus opening. However, preview math isn’t dollar for dollar in 3-day projections. >>>Surprising Demos For 'Oppenheimer' |
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| Deadline Exclusives & Originals | |
'Alien' Lands Overseas - FX’s Alien series has started production in Thailand but without its stars who are SAG-AFTRA members due to the ongoing strike. So far, Sydney Chandler is the only officially confirmed cast member, playing the female lead. Deadline can reveal that Alex Lawther, known for his starring role in Netflix’s young adult drama The End of the F*cking World, has been cast as the male lead, a soldier named CJ, with Samuel Blenkin (Black Mirror ) as another main character, Boy Kavalier, a CEO. Additional cast members include Essie Davis as Dame Silvia and Adarsh Gourav as Slightly. The deals for the actors were made well before the SAG-AFTRA strike. >>>An Equity Production
Amazon Studios Makes Changes - Amazon Studios has made changes to the US/Global content operations, with three executives in Laura Lancaster’s group, Kara Smith, Jon Wax and Andy Bourne, taking on new responsibilities. The announcement was just made internally in a memo by Amazon Studios’ Head of Television Vernon Sanders, Head of International Originals James Farrell, and Lancaster, Head of SVOD TV Development & Series, Co-Productions. >>> New Roles
'Dancing' Away - Lionsgate is pushing the theatrical releases of this August’s White Bird: A Wonder Story from filmmaker Marc Forster and next year’s Dirty Dancing sequel from director Jonathan Levine due to the dual WGA and SAG-AFTRA strike, we hear. >>>Their Landing Spots
Cable News Conundrum - Cable news was again a study in contrasts on Thursday: Fox News carried a big portion of Democratic presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s testimony before a House committee, while CNN and MSNBC did not. Kennedy’s candidacy — which seems to be embraced much more by the right than the left, and coverage on the news networks followed suit. >>>Analysis
‘Here Lies Love’ Broadway Review - Disco despotism isn’t exactly a new genre – Cabaret hinted at it, Evita made it clear, American Psycho, in its fashion, added a variation, all in service of social horrors offset by catchy tunes – but Here Lies Love, the rambunctious new immersive musical from David Byrne and Fatboy Slim, pushes the concept to an extreme that likely won’t be matched until someone has the bright idea to transform Party Monster into The Michael Alig Musical. >>> Greg Evans' Take |
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Cillian Murphy and Christopher Nolan are marking their sixth collaboration with Oppenheimer, the biographical epic about the titular complicated and brilliant physicist tasked with leading the Manhattan Project, the secret effort to create the atom bomb, and the moral and political struggles that followed. This is the first time Murphy, who plays Oppenheimer, is essaying a lead role for Nolan – “Finally!”, he enthuses. >>> Read The Interview |
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More News
⚖ The trial over Donald Trump’s withholding of classified documents is now scheduled to begin on May 20, 2024, meaning that the criminal case may play out in the midst of the presidential campaign. US. District Judge Aileen Cannon set the schedule for the proceedings in a court order on Friday, rejecting federal prosecutors’ request that the trial start in December, and Trump’s team call for delaying it until after the election.
💰 NBCU wrapped up one of the most unusual upfront ad seasons in history this week, managing to secure cash commitments comparable with last year’s record haul. The upfront has been a complex undertaking for all major media players, dragging on through June and most of July. “We’ve ended this year’s negotiations with total cash commitments roughly in line to last year,” said Mark Marshall, Interim Chairman, Global Advertising and Partnerships, NBCU, in a statement provided to Deadline. “This year, advertising commitments were driven by sports, Peacock, tentpole events, premium content, advanced, digital & data driven advertising, Hispanic, and experiential marketing.”
📺 Vanna White signed a new deal to return as host of ABC’s Celebrity Wheel of Fortune, which involves a significant salary increase, we hear. No decision yet for White on the syndicated mothership Wheel of Fortune, as her contract runs through 2024. Host Pat Sajak announced in June that he planned to retire from the syndicated game show after its upcoming 41st season.
🎟️ AMC Entertainment is dropping Sightline, a controversial variable pricing program for seating it announced earlier this year. The giant theater chain said today that after a pilot in three locations, it saw little or no increase in patronage of cheaper front row seating, despite a modest price reduction for the seats.
🚦More Christina on the Coast and Christina in the Country are coming to HGTV. The Warner Bros. Discovery channel has picked up new seasons of both docuseries starring real estate expert and designer Christina Hall. Christina on the Coast will return for Season 5 with 12 new episodes, and Christina in the Country received a six-episode Season 2 order. Both are slated to premiere in 2024. |
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Trending  Suits, the USA Network legal drama that was released on Netflix/Peacock on June 17, led all shows on Nielsen’s weekly streaming top 10 with 2.3B minutes viewed. Almost half of that viewing is attributable to Season 1. It was the first time in nearly four months that any title broke the 2 billion minute threshold, last achieved by The Night Agent, for the week of March 27-April 2.
🔻 New subscribers to YouTube Premium will be paying $2 more a month after the service quietly raised its rate to $13.99. The platform initiated the changes for new subscribers without making an announcement, but listing the new rate on the Premium website. |
| OBITUARIES
🕯 Tony Bennett , the legendary singer whose long career enjoyed a resurgence that extended into his 90s, has died. Bennett was 96. His publicist confirmed his passing, according to the AP. Bennett battled Alzheimer’s disease, but even after that diagnosis, he continued to perform, including a memorable series of final concerts in New York in 2021 where he was joined by Lady Gaga. An album with Gaga won two Grammy awards. His career over a 70-year span suffered its ups and downs, particularly as musical tastes changed, but Bennett enjoyed a late resurgence in the 1990s. With over 70 albums, he won 19 Grammys, many of them late in life. 🕯 Carlin Glynn, the Tony-winning star of Broadway hit The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, died July 13 from complications of dementia and cancer. She was 83 and her death was confirmed by her daughter, actress Mary Stuart Masterson. Masterson posted the news about her mother on Instagram. 🕯 Hollywood & Media Deaths In 2023: Photo Gallery & Obituaries |
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On the Radar
Fri - U.S. Women's first World Cup match; Barbie & Oppenheimer open; Lionel Messi's MLS debut
Sun - The Open concludes at Royal Liverpool Golf Club
Tue - Spotify, Snap and Alphabet earnings; CNBC and Boardroom's Game Plan conference in LA
Wed - Mattel and Meta earnings |
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Mario's Kart - Despite the lack of studio promotion or star power due to the Sag-AFTRA strike, Comic-Con still kicked off yesterday with a colorful show of cosplay. |
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