Ankler Agenda

The (seeming) finale of the Paramount sale drama brings closure to some questions but raises more. How is David Ellison’s promise of a rejiggered tech stack going to stem linear TV losses? Where is the additional $3 billion in revenue he is projecting coming from? And wait, is that Jeff Shell? Sean McNulty, Richard Rushfield and Elaine Low break down the next phase of the drama to come. Also: how...

HBO and A24 are two of the only Hollywood brands left that signal prestige. But for better or worse, both are now leveling up — or is it down? Sean McNulty, Elaine Low, and Richard Rushfield break down HBO’s incorporation of Max’s upcoming tentpole Warner Bros. IP series, like the Harry Potter and Green Lantern adaptations, and A24’s massive investment round led by Josh Kushner. Also: what’s selli...

What’s the one common trait across every studio executive with greenlight power? They’re all old enough to remember the launch of the first Mac. And what they give the go-aheads to on their film slates shows it (looking at you, St. Elmo’s Fire sequel). Sean McNulty, Elaine Low and Richard Rushfield break down what remake fever means to the box office, why Paramount and AMC stocks are the opposite...

Over four decades, legendary director, writer and Oscar-winning producer Ed Zwick built an enviable body of work, from acclaimed films (Courage Under Fire, Legends of the Fall) to zeitgeisty TV series (Thirtysomething, My So-Called Life). Ankler CEO Janice Min spoke to Zwick about his best-selling memoir, Hits, Flops, and Other Illusions, a page-turner that’s packed with revealing stories about wh...

It feels like 2019 all over again — for a lucky few, that is. The Night Agent creator Shawn Ryan this week inked an eight-figure overall with Netflix, the latest in a flurry of recent announcements bucking the slash-and-burn trend in overall deals and first looks. Sean McNulty, Richard Rushfield and Elaine Low discuss who is getting these deals (and not), how Paramount can turn around four straigh...

The state of careers in entertainment is shifting radically. As a new college major takes over the industry, the latest class of graduating seniors also is being told by their screenwriting and film professors, “Nope, find another line of work.” But how do these shifting tides impact those already mid-career? The team talks about Elaine Low’s new Salary Confessions series, where one development ex...

Maypocalypse Now just came to a close, ending with the worst box office since 1995. The timing happens to coincide with Paramount’s uncertain future as Sean McNulty, Richard Rushfield and Elaine Low talk through the current state of play — and best and worst case scenarios. Meanwhile, in TV land, the team dive into Elaine’s stunning interview with a big name TV studio exec who, anonymously, explai...

At the Cannes Film Festival, the active buyers’ market and (largely) applauded indies had everyone in the market, from haute couture hangers-on to cinema’s swells, feeling festive says Claire Atkinson. But back in L.A., an early June gloom has descended, with Sean McNulty, Elaine Low and Richard Rushfield talking movies’ early signs of a summer bummer — and a release calendar that looks like it’s...

Hollywood descended upon New York City this week for the Upfronts, the traditional TV showcase, to promote almost everything but as sports, live events and movies dominated the stage and star power. The crew breaks it down while Richard Rushfield and Sean McNulty dive into Hollywood’s new, possibly misguided belief that sports will save Hollywood. For more entertainment news, subscribe to The Ankl...

Earnings season has been a rough go as Disney, Paramount, Fox and Warner Bros. Discovery deliver their Q1 results. And if you thought “Sports Hulu” was a surprise, just wait for the new bundle of Disney+, Hulu and . . . Max?! Sean McNulty dives into Disney and Warners tepid earnings, their new streaming bundle, and the urgency in joining forces. Plus: Do you have to be from an Ivy League school to...

What to do in this moribund market? Elaine Low outlines TV writers’ post-strike challenges — including the rickety staffing ladder — while our new Dealmakers columnist Ashley Cullins dives into the deterioration of the overall deal — and her news that Amazon and Apple are presenting new terms to industry agents and lawyers that sound a lot like . . . backends! (Remember those?) Plus: Peter Kiefer ...

Reacher, The Terminal List and Jack Ryan may not win Emmys, but Dad TV has become a juggernaut for a TV business desperately needing one. Entertainment Strategy Guy joins Sean McNulty to break down the truth behind Prime Video’s Dad TV crown, streaming’s corresponding Mom TV — and what the abundance of both mean for prestige TV. Also: the crew on the state of Peacock after Comcast’s earnings call;...

Though the strikes ended, the fight around AI is far from over. Following the debut of her Dealmakers newsletter, new contributor Ashley Cullins joins to reveal her conversations with powerhouse entertainment lawyers and CAA, their behind the scenes maneuvering to protect Hollywood talent, and the agonizing Sophie’s Choice actors will face when deciding to allow AI replica rights (a choice the A-l...

There’s plenty of worry about AI writing scripts . . . but let’s see AI come up with a story about two billionaire families negotiating a complex sale of an iconic, troubled entertainment conglomerate — and wreaking havoc in their wake. Sean McNulty and David Lidsky weigh just what David Ellison’s buying, why every shareholder not named Shari Redstone is mad and what AI has to do with it. Speaking...

When Endeavor went public in 2021, the agency pulled out all the stops to present itself as innovators and a disruptor — the kind of terminology Wall Street loves from tech companies. But, as it often goes with the media companies that try the same tack, “investors never fully bought it,” says David Lidsky, who joins to evaluate Endeavor’s recent decision to go private again. Also: Sean McNulty an...

Hollywood is filled with, er, colorful personalities. The one of the moment: Michael Kassan, the former MediaLink connector-in-chief now in dueling lawsuits with UTA. David Lidsky joins to reveal The Ankler’s investigative reporting into Kassan’s curious legal and financial history, including a $3.3m IRS tax lien taken out on his Beverly Hills home the week before he went to war with UTA. Also: El...

Wall Street likes surefire bets — growth companies that deliver predictable returns for infinite quarters. But in Hollywood, “you’re in the failure game,” says Richard Rushfield. Yet when the alchemy works, hits power the industry. Still studio leaders are mired in machinations to appease investors, often with disastrous results: a studio for sale (Paramount); activist investors (Disney); and open...

One of the most plum jobs in entertainment historically has been that of the creative exec. But now, with data informing programming choices more than ever, and advertisers hungry for user information, Elaine Low examines how the job market is revealing those shifted priorities through the lens of the two most storied legacy studios, Disney and Warner Bros. Discovery (while sharing a peek at Amazo...

Richard Rushfield assessed the State of the Industry this week, and we have questions: Why is there reason for hope? Why is Netflix suddenly so into sports? What are its live TV ambitions? Is there really no superhero fatigue? Or do we just need better superhero movies, as Disney's Bob Iger says? Will the Oscar telecast be less than four hours? And will anyone watch? As always, Sean McNulty and El...

This week featured two huge film jobs finding their man: Netflix and Disney. Over at Netflix, seasoned producer Dan Lin is set to replace Scott Stuber, and Disney promoted David Greenbaum from Searchlight head to Disney Studios head. Do these moves mean a return to more original fare? “There’s reason for hope,” says Richard Rushfield. “I mean, normally when you get these kinds of announcements, it...

As Warner Bros. Discovery chief David Zaslav pours money into reconstructing Robert Evans’ legendary estate, a far more daunting reconstruction awaits: his company. On Friday, WBD had its Q4 earnings report, and it wasn’t pretty. Zaslav’s company missed on both earnings and revenue, and the stock went down roughly 12 percent. The crew looks at what WBD’s head honcho's plan to remedy the disaster....

The gods of Hollywood never give with both hands. Just ask Paramount who, in one week, delivered a record-shattering Super Bowl and Jon Stewart’s triumphant return. But currently for sale, the debt-laden studio within days was laying off three percent of its workforce — roughly 800 staffers — and Warren Buffett shed a third of his stock in the company. The team weighs in on what appears to be a sh...

Disney CEO Bob Iger dropped one bombshell after another this week: a new ‘sports Hulu’ with Warner Bros. Discovery and Fox, a gaming splurge, and, yes, of course, news about Taylor Swift. As the Q4 earnings call revealed, theme park revenue continues to lead, as linear TV profits sunk, and streaming and the movie studio suffered nine-figure losses. What does it all mean? Elaine Low, sitting in as...

A film executive with a TV metabolism. Relationships with top talent. A culture fit in a challenging company. If you can manage all three, you might have a shot at the Netflix film chief role recently vacated by Scott Stuber. There’s lots of names in competition, but more reasons for boss Bela Bajaria to be picky. “If you judge power in film by how much you can green light, there’s no film job tha...

Netflix’s head of film, Scott Stuber, stepped down from his post after seven years in a perfect ankling (meaning, it was unclear who left whom and why). That shocker was followed by one bombshell after another: a massive 10-year, $5 billion deal for WWE Raw in its first move into live sports, the most Oscar nominations out of any studio, and a record subscriber count reported on its earnings call....