| | | | What's news: Beyoncé has revealed new music and news on a followup to Renaissance. Kanye "Ye" West dropped a bizarre Yeezy ad during the Super Bowl. The Emmy Awards are heading back to their regular place on the calendar. A3 Artists Agency is shuttering. ABC has renewed Abbott Elementary for a fourth season and confirmed a The Golden Bachelorette spinoff. — Abid Rahman
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Usher Brings Boundless Energy to Halftime Show ►"Were the Super Bowl being held anywhere else, you’d say that it was perhaps too much." THR's chief TV critic Dan Feinberg reviews The Super Bowl Halftime Show. Dan writes that Usher (with a little help from friends Alicia Keys, H.E.R., Ludacris and the Southern University Marching Band) "put on the best one-man Super Bowl halftime since Bruno Mars a decade ago and Beyoncé the year before that." The review.
—ICYMI (somehow). Taylor Swift celebrated Travis Kelce's Super Bowl win with several long embraces on the field at Allegiant Stadium on Sunday night. During the presentation of the Vince Lombardi Trophy, Swift was seen standing next to Kelce’s mom, Donna, as he spoke with CBS Sports broadcaster Jim Nantz. She was seen smiling and clapping as the Chiefs’ tight end first busted into a few lines of Elvis Presley’s song "Viva Las Vegas." The story.
—Non-ad ad. Scandal-plagued Kanye “Ye” West bought airtime during Super Bowl LVIII to promote his fashion line, Yeezy. The half-minute spot looks like it was shot on West’s cell phone, and he appears to be riding in a vehicle, talking directly into the camera. However, not all Super Bowl viewers saw the commercial, as the spot didn’t air in all markets. It’s unclear exactly where it aired. The story.
—Get excited. On Super Bowl Sunday, Beyoncé revealed new music on her website and on social media, and in a Verizon ad. The new music is Part 2 of her acclaimed 2022 Renaissance album, which has long been rumored to be a trilogy. As part of the announcement, two songs dropped on Tidal: “Texas Hold ‘Em” and “16 Carriages.” The Verizon ad found her at a lemonade stand (a nod to her 2016 album of the same name), following several playful takes on her name: “Barbey,” a nod to Barbie, and “BOTUS,” saying she’d be the first female president. The story.
—Finally. Ahead of the Super Bowl, CBS revealed it would stream Billy Joel’s 100th concert at Madison Square Garden on April 14 at 9 pm ET/PT. The two-hour special, titled The 100th: Billy Joel at Madison Square Garden — The Greatest Run Of All Time, marks the first time a Joel concert will air on a broadcast network. It will be filmed at his March 28 show, and will also be available to stream live and on demand on Paramount+. The story.
About those Super Bowl trailers...
—20th Century's Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes
—Universal's Wicked
—Universal's Twisters
—Universal's Despicable Me 4
—Marvel's Deadpool & Wolverine |
Nolan Wins First DGA Gong ►🏆 Oppy FTW 🏆 Christopher Nolan took home the top prize at the Directors Guild of America Awards on Saturday night, earning his first DGA Award for Oppenheimer. Past Lives director Celine Song won the Michael Apted Award for first feature. In the TV categories, The Last of Us' Peter Hoar won for directing the acclaimed third episode of the HBO drama, “Long, Long Time,” The Bear creator Christopher Storer won for directing the Hulu comedy series and Lessons in Chemistry’s Sarah Adina Smith won for directing the Apple limited series. The winners.
—🏆 Saltburn love 🏆 Poor Things, Oppenheimer and Saltburn won Art Directors Guild Awards in the categories for fantasy, period and contemporary live action features, respectively, at the 28th ADG Awards, which were handed out Saturday. Other winners included Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, The Last of Us and Taylor Swift's "I Can See You." The winners.
—Return to normalcy. The Emmy Awards are heading back to their regular place on the calendar. ABC will air the 76th awards on Sept. 15 — exactly eight months after the delayed 2023 ceremony. The 75th Emmys were pushed back during dual strikes by writers and actors, meaning there will be two Primetime Emmy ceremonies in the 2024 calendar year. The story.
—Legendary lineup. The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame has named 15 acts spanning pop, hard rock, hip-hop and R&B as nominees for induction in its 2024 class. The nominees for 2024 are Mary J. Blige, Mariah Carey, Cher, Dave Matthews Band, Eric B. & Rakim, Foreigner, Peter Frampton, Jane’s Addiction, Kool & the Gang, Lenny Kravitz, Oasis, the late Sinéad O’Connor, Ozzy Osbourne, Sade and A Tribe Called Quest. Honorees will be announced in April, with the annual induction ceremony set for the fall. The story.
—Settlement. A lawsuit aimed at the Sofia Vergara-starring Netflix show Griselda has been settled. In documents obtained by THR on Friday, the counsel of the family of the late Griselda Blanco dismissed the complaint with prejudice. The settlement comes weeks after the actress and the streamer were sued over the miniseries, in which Vergara portrays the Colombian drug lord, who was killed in 2012. Blanco's family claimed they did not authorize Netflix to use their “image, likeness and/or identity” and wanted to block the six-part show from airing on Jan. 25. The story.
—Bold move. A3 Artists Agency is shuttering. A3 COO Todd Quinn informed staff in an email Friday, writing, "The decision was not made lightly and comes after extensive analysis. Despite our best efforts, we find ourselves unable to continue operating in a sustainable manner." Final paychecks will be sent to staff on Monday, which will be its final day of operations. According to a source, the decision to pull the trigger was made unilaterally by chairman Adam Bold on Friday afternoon and caught agency CEO Robert Atterman and president Brian Cho by surprise. The story. |
Peak TV Is Officially Over ►It's so over. FX CEO John Landgraf, the man who coined the term “Peak TV” in 2015, released his network’s annual research on the volume of U.S.-produced scripted original series for 2023, and the numbers are in line with what the industry had anticipated. The total number of broadcast, cable and streaming shows (made for adults) clocked in at 516, down a whopping 14 percent from the 600 comedies and dramas produced in 2022. Landgraf revealed the Peak TV data Friday during his time at the Television Critics Association’s winter press tour. The numbers.
—"It was flabbergasting." The Bachelor producers froze Saturday when asked at a TCA panel about why the franchise seemingly has a hard time handling racial issues. Bachelor producing trio Jason Ehrlich, Claire Freeland (both newcomers) and franchise veteran Bennett Graebner were asked about why former star Rachel Lindsay and Matt James were both critical about how the franchise talks about race. The story.
—It's official. At TCA on Saturday, ABC revealed that The Golden Bachelorette will be the latest spinoff in its long-running dating franchise. The new series will launch this fall following the success of the inaugural season of The Golden Bachelor, which aired the finale of its Gerry Turner-led run in November. Additionally, the network announced that The Bachelorette has been renewed for its 21st season, which is scheduled to air in the summer. Cast details for both series are set to be revealed at a later date. The story.
—No-brainer. ABC's Abbott Elementary has been renewed for a fourth season. The news was announced by co-star William Stanford Davis (aka Mr. Johnson) on Saturday at TCA, where he was a surprise guest during ABC’s time before the press corps. Disney Television Group president Craig Erwich also announced renewals for Celebrity Family Feud and Jeopardy Masters, as sources say Dancing With the Stars will also return for its 33rd season. The story.
—More Meredith. THR's Lesley Goldberg has the scoop on Ellen Pompeo featuring in more episodes of Grey’s Anatomy’s upcoming 20th season than expected. The actress will appear in at least four episodes of the strikes-shortened season, with the possibility for more. As previously announced, Pompeo was not expected to have much — if any — of an onscreen role in the drama’s landmark 20th season. Pompeo was reduced from series regular to recurring after signing on to produce and star in a limited series for Hulu. The story.
—Arizona surprise. Also popping back to Grey Sloan during season 20 of Grey's will be Jessica Capshaw. The actress, who spent 10 seasons playing Dr. Arizona Robbins from 2009-2018, is returning to reprise her role and will be joined by Alex Landi, who returns as Dr. Nico Kim, and franchise newcomers Natalie Morales and Freddy Miyares as guest stars in the milestone season of the Shonda Rhimes-produced medical drama. The story.
—Same, same but different. Disney+ has renewed Goosebumps, the series based on R.L. Stine’s beloved book series, for a second season but with a twist: it will be turned into an anthology series. The sophomore season will feature an entirely new story, cast and setting. The show’s creative team, including showrunner Hilary Winston (Community), will return. The story. |
Worst Super Bowl Weekend Box Office in Decades (Outside of COVID) ►Argylle ekes out a "win." The Super Bowl sacked the domestic box office this weekend as revenue fell to historic lows due to the weekend-long frenzy over Sunday’s showdown, and an ongoing winter slowdown in major Hollywood studio titles. THR's Pamela McClintock writes that combined ticket sales clocked in at an estimated $40m, the worst showing for Super Bowl weekend in more than three decades outside 2021, when many theaters were still closed because of the COVID-19 crisis, according to Comscore. The box office report.
—One last rite. THR's Borys Kit has the scoop on Michael Chaves closing in on the gig to direct New Line's The Conjuring 4. Chaves, who helmed the previous installment, 2021’s The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It, as well spinoff The Nun II, is in negotiations to helm what is being eyed as the fourth and final outing of the horror franchise. David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick, who co-wrote the third installment with franchise creator James Wan, penned the screenplay. Wan is producing with Peter Safran. The story. |
TV Review: 'Shōgun' ►"Deeply respectful, if a bit chilly." THR's chief TV critic Dan Fienberg reviews FX/Hulu's Shōgun. Nearly 45 years after the Richard Chamberlain miniseries, Justin Marks and Rachel Kondo bring us back to 17th-century Japan for a refocused take on the source material, starring Hiroyuki Sanada, Cosmo Jarvis and Anna Sawai. The review.
—"Mediocre, but acceptably Reacher-lite." Dan reviews CBS' Tracker. Starring Justin Hartley, Jeffrey Deaver's reward-seeking loner leaps to the small screen in a new procedural that launched in the coveted post-Super Bowl slot. The review. In other news...
—Talk to Me wins big at Australian Academy Awards, Margot Robbie honored as trailblazer
—Bluey Book Reads YouTube series to feature Kylie Minogue, Eva Mendes, Jenna Fischer
—Santa Barbara Film Fest: Robert Downey Jr., Lily Gladstone and Billie Eilish among those feted
—The hottest new hotels and restaurants in Palm Springs right now
What else we're reading...
—The press tour for Madame Web has been going viral for all the wrong reasons, and Helen Holmes writes that it is down to how unbothered star Dakota Johnson seems to be about the film [Daily Beast]
—With the discourse over Tracy Chapman's "Fast Car" reaching ridiculous levels, Alex Abad-Santos looks at how the song has triggered so many songwriting “experts” online [Vox]
—Roland Kelts reflects on Toho's Godzilla Minus One and how the film speaks to Japanese anxieties about American abandonment [Atlantic]
—David E. Sanger reports that Trump's latest unhinged remarks about NATO could push Europe to go it alone [NYT]
—Liyan Qi has a fascinating piece on how China miscalculated with its infamous One Child Policy and is now facing a demographic collapse [WSJ]
Today...
...in 2010, 20th Century Fox released Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief in theaters. Directed by Chris Columbus, the film was the first live-action adaptation of Rick Riordan's popular Percy Jackson book series and was followed by a sequel in 2013, before being rebooted as a Disney+ series in 2023. The original review.
Today's birthdays: Darren Aronofsky (55), Christina Ricci (44), Josh Brolin (56), Katy O'Brian (35), Iko Uwais (41), Tara Strong (51), Lochlyn Munro (58), Jesse Spencer (45), Michael Ironside (74), Christine Elise (59), Angus Sampson (45), Tanaya Beatty (33), Sarah Lancaster (44), Jennifer Stone (31), Anna Hopkins (37), Alex Meneses (59), John Michael Higgins (61), Georgina Reilly (38), Raphael Sbarge (60), Chynna Phillips (56), Joanna Kerns (71), Jesse Hutch (43), Maud Adams (79), Park Bo-young (34), Katherine Barrell (34), Clare-Hope Ashitey (37), Zach Grenier (70) |
| Hank Bradford, the clever stand-up comic who performed a half-dozen times on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson before serving a five-year stint as head writer on the program, has died. He was 88. The obituary. |
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