🎬 Netflix Taking Lionsgate?

👋 Good morning! Two guys are getting paid $50,000 each to watch every single World Cup game. The only catch is that Fox is making them do it from a glass cube in the middle of Times Square, basically a zoo exhibit for the species “man who really likes soccer.” The box is staged like a living room (couch, armchairs, a couple of TVs), so for the next six weeks they'll sit through all 104 games while tourists stop to watch them watch. It’s giving 'Truman Show,' but voluntary.

Happy Wednesday, and welcome back to The Dailies. We’ll make this quick—you’ve got coffee to drink and an industry to conquer. Here’s what you need to know… 👇

Add another to the M&A pile: Fox Corp. is paying $22B for Roku, the company whose streaming sticks and smart TV software act as the menu screen for 100M+ households worldwide. The combined company will become the third-largest player in U.S. TV by share of viewing. CEO Lachlan Murdoch called it a "defining moment." Some details:

A bit of a 180: Fox spent years insisting it didn't need a big streaming bet. After Rupert sold most of 21st Century Fox to Disney in 2019, Lachlan focused what was left on live sports and Fox News, dismissing the streaming arms race as a money pit. The Roku deal is his first big move since cementing control of the family empire last year. Investors weren't sold, sending Fox stock down roughly 15%.

The bigger picture: Owning the menu screen is a quietly powerful place to sit. Fox now controls the first thing 100M households see when they turn on the TV, meaning it can promote Fox One, Tubi, and Fox News in prime real estate while still collecting fees from Netflix and Disney to advertise there. It also gets viewing data on what those households actually watch, which means sharper ad targeting and more leverage in negotiations with studios and leagues.

From Paramount+ and Executive Producer Taylor Sheridan comes the record-breaking drama series THE MADISON. Michelle Pfeiffer shines in this epic drama about resilience, transformation and the family ties that bind. Variety proclaims, “Michelle Pfeiffer gives a powerhouse performance” in a show RogerEbert.com calls “rock-solid, gripping television.” For your consideration all categories including Outstanding Drama Series, Outstanding Lead Actress Michelle Pfeiffer, Outstanding Supporting Actor Kurt Russell, Outstanding Guest Actor Will Arnett and Outstanding Director Christina Alexandra Voros.

🔮 'Rocky Horror' is heading to the Sphere. The Las Vegas venue just announced that 'The Rocky Horror Picture Show' will take over its giant wraparound screen in 2027. It's the Sphere's second swing at a classic movie after 'The Wizard of Oz,' which leaned heavily on Google's generative AI to rebuild the 1939 original. Purists weren't thrilled, between the AI work and the roughly 30 minutes that got trimmed, which many felt was disrespectful to the original filmmakers' vision. The bet paid off commercially, though: 'Oz' has raked in more than $400M and over 3M tickets since last summer, or about $133 a seat. Suddenly, those decades-old library films are looking like untapped gold for studios willing to hand them to the Sphere.

🎭 The long-stalled NO FAKES Act is getting another shot in the Senate. To jog your memory, the bill would let people control AI-generated copies of their own voice and likeness, so they could block an unauthorized deepfake (and their heirs could do the same once they're gone). Lawmakers first floated it in 2023, but it kept stalling in Congress. Now it's back, reintroduced in May with bipartisan support and a coalition broad enough to unite SAG-AFTRA, the major studios, and even the AI giants like OpenAI and Google whose tools make the deepfakes possible. An open letter urging passage has already topped 16,000 signatures. Tomorrow, the Senate Judiciary Committee votes on whether to push it forward.

📵 The UK just banned social media for kids. Prime Minister Keir Starmer rolled out landmark legislation this week barring under-16s from Snapchat, TikTok, YouTube, Instagram, Facebook and X. If it clears Parliament, the rules would kick in early 2027. It also throws in blocks to livestreaming, AI chatbot restrictions, and possible curfews on infinite scrolling. The tech giants aren't thrilled, to say the least, arguing that blanket bans just shove kids toward the internet's sketchier dark corners. But there could be real ripple effects for Hollywood, especially if other countries pile on. Social media platforms are not only major rivals to the streamers for attention now, but also core infrastructure for trailers, content discovery, and talent promotion.

🛒 Rumors are swirling that Netflix wants to buy Lionsgate. A Semafor report yesterday floated the streamer as a suitor, though no offer is filed and Netflix insists it isn't interested. Shares jumped 14% regardless. With M&A heating up, Lionsgate's 20,000-plus title library ('John Wick,’ ‘Hunger Games') is an attractive target.

🏀 The 2026 NBA Finals were the most-watched since 1998. The Knicks-Spurs series averaged 20.6M viewers a game, double last year's audience and ABC's best Finals ever. Game 5 drew 24.5M and peaked at 33M as the Knicks won their first title in 53 years.

🏛️ DOJ staffers reportedly wanted to block the Paramount-Warner deal. Career lawyers reviewing it said they were leaning toward challenging the merger as anticompetitive, but leadership closed the probe before they could formally object. The deal was cleared late last week. California's AG may still challenge it.

⚽ Neymar is letting an AI company use his face. Chinese-owned FlareFlow is rolling out 16 World Cup-timed microdramas built around the Brazilian soccer star's likeness. It’ll be the first time a globally recognized star of this notoriety has licensed his face to AI.