Last month during MIPCOM, many regulars at the Cannes TV market noticed more American accents on the Croisette than usual. They weren’t wrong: A batch of small to mid-sized U.S. unscripted producers had made the journey across the Atlantic to find new business that simply hadn’t been necessary before the ongoing market contraction began hitting budgets and reducing their revenues. “The Americans were back for the first time in a while,” says one international exec reflecting on the week.
Indeed they were. “We were excited to come to the market,” says Kim Woodward, co-founder of 60 Days In producer Lucky 8 after attending for the first time.
The company is known for Netflix series Unlocked: A Jail Experiment and A&E’s 60 Days In, Nat Geo’s long-running To Catch a Smuggler and new spinoff To Catch a Smuggler: Tropical Takedown, and has a number of newer shows in with streamers and networks. However, market realities mean cable and streamer orders alone simply won’t cut it.
“As a U.S. production company, we have been focused on working with client collaborators through full-on work-for-hire deals, but as clients are facing greater and greater budget issues, we want to be able to offer solutions,” says Woodward.
There’s simple logic to the strategic shift to the international market, which many are making: People need work to survive this period. >>>Continuing Market Correction |
|
| Deadline Exclusives & Originals |
|
'Star' Turn - In a bidding situation, HBO has landed one of the highest profile comedy packages to hit the marketplace in a while. Titled Kansas City Star, the half-hour project is headlined and executive produced by Kaley Cuoco and created and executive produced by the Hacks trio of Lucia Aniello, Paul W. Downs and Jen Statsky. >>>Series Order Expected McQueen Revelation - Oscar-winning filmmaker Steve McQueen is revealing today that two years ago he was diagnosed with prostate cancer and underwent a procedure to remove the tumor. Thankfully, the filmmaker is now “fully recovered and fully functional,” he tells Deadline's Baz Bamigboye. The knight of the British realm is making a speech today to UK lawmakers at the House Of Commons to launch a new campaign for charity Prostate Cancer Research. >>> 'Blitz' Delay
The 'Doctor' Is In - Ryan Murphy’s cruise ship medical drama Doctor Odyssey has amassed 16.5M cross-platform viewers in the 35 days since it debuted, according to Disney. That includes the original broadcast premiere on ABC, as well as linear encores, Hulu, Hulu on Disney+ and digital platforms. >>>Up 299% Over Live + Same Day
In Brief - Paradigm launches The Sports Group division... UTA signs Laura Piani |
|
Ryan Reynolds joins Deadline for this week’s edition of The Actor’s Side where he details all the twists and turns that led to Deadpool & Wolverine — including one early idea of turning it into a Sundance-style indie film.
Reynolds also talks about a follow-up project he is currently writing -- not about Deadpool or Wolverine, but with new characters for him and Hugh Jackman in a reteaming with their director Shawn Levy. >>>Watch The Interview |
|
Lady Gaga is set to appear in the second season of Wednesday on Netflix, sources tell Deadline. A sped-up version of Gaga’s 2011 song “Bloody Mary” went viral when fans of the series paired it with a clip of Jenna Ortega dancing. Details of Gaga’s role remain unclear.
Exclusive
Andrew Lewis Caldwell (The Matrix Resurrections) has joined the recurring cast of Spider-Noir, the upcoming MGM+ and Prime Video live-action series based on the Marvel comic Spider-Man Noir.
Exclusive
Filmmaker Kelly Reichardt has rounded out an impressive cast for The Mastermind, her period art heist film for Mubi. The nine additions include Hope Davis (Succession), Bill Camp (Joker), Gaby Hoffmann (Transparent), Amanda Plummer (Pulp Fiction), Eli Gelb (Broadway’s Stereophonic), Cole Doman (Gossip Girl), Javion Allen (Gray Matter), Matthew Maher (Air) and The Penguin breakout Rhenzy Feliz. |
|
More News
🏰 Disney stock shot up 8% in early trading this morning after the company reported strong earnings for the July-to-September quarter. The film studio and streaming operation both saw benefits from Deadpool & Wolverine and Inside Out 2. Disney+ added 4.4 million core subscribers in the quarter, topping 120 million.
🍛 Along with quarterly earnings, Disney announced this morning it has completed an $8.5 billion deal to form a joint venture in India with Reliance Industries and a new media giant in South Asia.
📺 Craig Melvin will become the new co-anchor of NBC’s Today, following the departure of Hoda Kotb in January.
😆 Satirical news site The Onion has won the bidding for the assets of Alex Jones‘ InfoWars. Jones has been forced to sell the property after a defamation judgment in favor of the families of the victims of the Sandy Hook shooting massacre.
👀 Donald Trump nominated Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) to serve as Attorney General, a surprise pick that will please the president-elect’s MAGA allies but may prove to be a flashpoint in the confirmation process.
🚦 Hulu has handed a Season 3 renewal to Reasonable Doubt, its original legal drama series from Onyx Collective, produced by 20th Television, a part of Disney Television Studios, and executive produced by Raamla Mohamed, Kerry Washington and Larry Wilmore. Additionally, Mohamed, the series’ creator and showrunner, has signed an overall deal with 20th TV, Deadline can reveal exclusively. 🔥 Denzel Washington is revealing that a same-sex kiss was cut from Gladiator II. "I actually kissed a man in the film but they took it out...I think they got chicken,” Washington said in an interview. “I kissed a guy full on the lips and I guess they weren’t ready for that yet. I killed him about five minutes later. It’s Gladiator. It’s the kiss of death.”
🐘 Republicans will retain control of the House of Representatives with a razor-thin majority in the next Congress. |
|
Obituaries
🕯️ John Peaslee, a longtime comedy writer best known for his work on Coach and According to Jim, died November 11 of natural causes at his Sherman Oaks, CA. home. He was 73. 🕯️ Ted Olson, the conservative attorney who formed an unexpected alliance with a liberal counterpart to mount a legal challenge to overturn California’s ban on same-sex marriage, Proposition 8, has died. He was 84. 🕯️ Hollywood & Media Deaths In 2024: Photo Gallery & Obituaries |
|
On the Radar
Fri - Mike Tyson-Jake Paul fight
Sat - Deadline Contenders Film: Los Angeles; Charli xcx hosts SNL
Tue - Fox Corp. annual shareholder meeting |
|
Fit For A King - Pedro Pascal and Paul Mescal look on as Denzel Washington meets King Charles III at the Royal Film Performance and Global Premiere of Gladiator II. |
|
|
