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👋 Good morning! Meta's is reportedly offering Hollywood A-listers millions to lend their voices to AI projects. Imagine Awkwafina as your digital assistant or Dame Judi Dench narrating your day. But it's not all smooth sailing—negotiations are hitting snags as stars push for tight controls while Meta seeks broader rights.

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🎞 Here’s what’s on the reel today:

• Snyder's 'Rebel Moon' Cuts

• 'Skibidi Toilet' Goes Hollywood

• Last Looks: 👀 Bite-sized scoops on developing stories/projects

• Video Village: The latest trailers

• Martini Shot 🍸

But first, let’s take a look at what happened at the box office this past weekend!

LAST WEEKEND’S
🎟️ BOX OFFICE BREAKDOWN 🎟️

1. 🦸‍♂️ Deadpool & Wolverine: Held the top spot with $97M domestically in its second weekend, bringing its domestic total to $395.6M and global haul to $824.1M. It's now the biggest R-rated movie ever in the U.S. and is eyeing global records. IMAX showings are contributing significantly, bringing in $64.5M globally.

2. 🌪 Twisters: Stayed strong at #2 with $22.6M in its third weekend. Its domestic total now stands at $195.5M, with $274.4M globally. Interestingly, it's proving profitable mainly due to U.S. performance.

3. 🎭 Trap: M. Night Shyamalan’s latest thriller opens with a modest $15.6M domestically and $20M globally. It hit tracking, but C+ CinemaScore doesn't bode well for $35M budget film.

4. 🟡 Despicable Me 4: $11.2M (5th weekend), $313.9M domestic, $752.2M global. Solid -23% drop, minting money on $100M budget.

5. 🌈 Inside Out 2: $6.7M (8th weekend), $626.8M domestic, $1.5B global. Still strong with -22% drop, summer's biggest hit.

6. ✏️ Harold and the Purple Crayon: $6M opening, $9M global. A- CinemaScore, but struggling with $40M budget.

7. 🔪 Longlegs: $4.14M (4th weekend), $66.9M domestic, $79M global. Another good hold at -39%, profitable on "under $10M" budget.

8. 🤫 A Quiet Place: Day One: $1.4M (6th weekend), $137.4M domestic, $259M global. -55% drop, $67M budget.

9. 🍺 Daaru Na Peenda Hove: Earns $615.7K domestically in its debut, catering to a niche audience with limited screenings.

10. 🚓 Bad Boys: Ride or Die: Hanging in the top 10, adds $600K (9th weekend), totaling $192.9M domestically.

The weekend box office totaled approximately $169.5M domestically, down 1.9% compared to the same frame in 2023. While recent heavy hitters like ‘Inside Out 2,’ ‘Twisters,’ and ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ have injected life into the box office, 2024's still trailing 2023's total haul by a hefty 19%. The industry is split on the outlook for the remainder of the year:

• The optimists point to upcoming releases like ‘Beetlejuice Beetlejuice,’ ‘The Wild Robot,’ and ‘Joker: Folie à Deux’ as potential drivers of a Q4 rebound.

• The pessimists note that fewer films are crossing the $100M domestic threshold, and even strong recent performances haven't closed the gap with 2023.

Netflix just dropped Zack Snyder’s director’s cuts of ‘Rebel Moon,’ and they’re a far cry from your average extended addition. These R-rated space operas were part of the plan from day one, with Netflix backing Snyder's vision both creatively and financially. But forget your typical "few extra scenes" deal—we're talking about two hours of new footage that transform these films into what Snyder calls "alternate realities" of the originals. It's not just longer; it's grittier, more satirical, and packed with character depth that would make Darth Vader emote. The simultaneous production of PG-13 and R versions, complete with separate VFX work, is a clever strategy that turns one film into a content multiverse, offering wildly different experiences for different audiences. It's a savvy move to squeeze multiple income streams out of a single property, potentially doubling viewer engagement and giving Netflix more bang for their buck.

The bizarro YouTube sensation ‘Skibidi Toilet’ might be making a splash in Hollywood. For the uninitiated (read: anyone over 15), ‘Skibidi Toilet’ is a fever dream of singing toilet heads battling TV-headed cyborgs that's racked up a mind-boggling 17B views on YouTube. It's like if David Lynch directed a Pixar movie after binging on energy drinks and LSD. Michael Bay and Adam Goodman are flushing out plans to bring this phenomenon to the big screen, potentially mixing live-action with animation in a style they're dubbing "John Wick meets District 9." It's the latest example of studio execs capitalizing on pre-existing audiences in our IP-obsessed era, with this particular goldmine spawned by a Alexey Gerasimov, a then 23-year-old creator from Georgia (the country, not the state). Gerasimov's 11-second video uploaded in Feb. 2023 exploded into a cultural phenomenon. If successful, this could be a golden ticket to luring Gen Alpha off TikTok and into cinemas. Welcome to 2024, where yesterday's viral video is tomorrow's tentpole franchise.

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Development 🗒️

• Tom Blyth and Emily Bader will star in Netflix’s and 3000 Pictures’ adaptation of ‘People We Meet On Vacation,’ based on Emily Henry’s bestseller. (more)

• Matt Berry and Gabriel Leone join the cast of Prime Video’s ‘Citadel’ for S2. (more)

• The ‘Star Wars: Lando’ series has been shelved despite being well into development (more)

• Eric Stonestreet will star in and executive produce the comedy series ‘Home Team’ for Prime Video, alongside Austin Winsberg, Jason Belleville, and Peyton Manning. (more)

• Leah McKendrick is set to write and direct an untitled monster movie for Atomic Monster and Universal Pictures. (more)

• Warner Bros. Discovery is shutting down its Boomerang streaming service on Sept. 30. (more)

• Danny and Michael Philippou’s next horror movie ‘Bring Her Back’ has wrapped filming. (more)

• Emile Hirsch is set to star in the indie horror film ‘Woozy,’ directed by Joey Bicicchi and produced by Keith Kjarval. (more)

• Netflix is developing a spiritual procedural drama from Terrence Coli, Rabbi Steve Leder, and Aaron Kaplan’s Kapital Entertainment. (more)

Business 🤝

• AMC Entertainment posted a Q2 loss due to a slow spring box office, but results matched Wall Street estimates. (more)

Other News 🚨

• BAFTA introduces a new Children’s and Family Film award and expands theatrical screening requirements for Best Film eligibility. (more)

• The unemployment rate rose to 4.3% in July, with the entertainment and media sectors experiencing significant job cuts, including a loss of 3,500 jobs in movies and sound recording. (more)