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👋 Good morning and happy Valentine’s Day! Love is in the air—and so are deal memos—as the 75th Berlinale launched yesterday, running through Feb. 23. While the festival's rolling out the red carpet at Potsdamer Platz, buyers and sellers are already wheeling and dealing at the European Film Market, which runs parallel through Feb. 21 at the Martin-Gropius-Bau.

Welcome aboard the Dailies. As you sip your morning brew, we’ll get you caught up with the fast-paced world of Hollywood—no need to chase down a newsstand, we’ve got everything you need right here.

🎞 Here’s what’s on the reel today:

• Writers and Studios vs. AI

• Oscars Make Their Streaming Debut

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

• Video Village: The latest trailers

• Release Radar: What to watch this weekend

• Martini Shot 🍸

But first, it’s Friday, so let’s take a look at what people were watching this week… 👀

TOP STREAMED
📊 What U.S. audiences were watching this week…

CLOSEUP
🤝 Writers want studios to sue AI (and they might win)…

The same writers who were picketing studios in 2023 are now asking them to go to court—but this time as allies against AI companies. These writers have gone from fighting studios over AI guardrails to urging studios to be their champions against a bigger threat: AI companies using their work without permission.

Some developments:

• AI companies like Meta and Anthropic allegedly trained their models on thousands of TV scripts without asking

• The WGA discovered shows like ‘Leverage,’ ‘Grey's Anatomy,’ and ‘The Killing’ were in AI training databases

• Writer John Rogers got suspicious when ChatGPT, unprompted, perfectly outlined a ‘Leverage’ episode using his characters

• In December, the WGA fired off letters to Netflix, Disney, Warner Bros. and other studios demanding they take legal action

Why would studios join in the fight? Only studios can sue since they own the copyrights to these scripts—and they have billions of dollars worth of reasons to do so. These scripts are valuable IP that studios could either protect from AI companies or potentially license to them for training.

The game-changer: A federal judge just dealt AI companies a major blow in their favorite defense. Tech giants have been claiming "fair use"—a copyright law exception that lets people use copyrighted work without permission for things like criticism, teaching, or research. But a federal judge just rejected that defense in the industry's first major AI copyright case. For Hollywood, this is huge: AI companies can't just grab scripts and hide behind "fair use" anymore, potentially opening the door to massive damages.

But here's where it gets messy: While studios face pressure to sue AI companies, they're playing both sides of the fence. They're cutting AI deals (like Lionsgate partnering with Runway), having secret talks with OpenAI about their new Sora video tool, and even investing billions in AI companies. Amazon has backed Anthropic—the same company that may have trained on their scripts.

Looking ahead: This unlikely alliance could be the next big Hollywood shake-up. The WGA contract expires in 2026, and with this new legal precedent, studios face a choice: protect their valuable IP by suing AI companies and potentially securing lucrative licensing deals, or risk making this the centerpiece of another strike. Either way, it's clear AI is forcing traditional industry rivals to rethink old battle lines.

CLOSEUP
📺 The Oscars just killed linear TV’s last stand…

The Academy Awards, one of the final remaining holdouts of traditional TV, is making history this March. For the first time ever, Hollywood's biggest night will stream live on Hulu alongside its ABC broadcast. While that might sound like just another streaming deal, it's actually the final nail in linear TV's exclusivity coffin. The numbers tell the story:

• In 2024, 14 of Nielsen's top 50 broadcasts were exclusive to traditional pay TV (mostly sports on Fox and ESPN)

• By 2026, that number will drop to zero—every single top-viewed event will be available on standalone streamers

• Netflix has proved streamers are ready for live events, from the ‘Netflix Slam’ tennis exhibition with Nadal to the Jake Paul-Mike Tyson fight

• Tubi just scored 13.6M Super Bowl viewers on its stream alone (that's 10% of total viewers!)

Why it matters: Live events were supposed to be linear TV's secret weapon—the last thing keeping cord-cutters tethered to their cable boxes. It’s a thread that’s been unraveling for years, but 2025 marks the moment it might finally snap. Even ESPN and Fox, long-time streaming holdouts, are going all-in on direct-to-consumer options.

While networks aren't exactly dumping their traditional TV channels, they are completely changing how they use them. As Bob Iger told analysts last week, Disney's turned these declining channels into reliable revenue streams—cutting programming costs while still collecting cable fees to help fund their streaming future. It's less about saving linear TV and more about milking it during the transition.

Looking ahead: When the industry's “biggest night” ditches TV exclusivity, you know the game has changed for good. The Oscars couldn't wait until its ABC deal ends in 2028—they needed streaming now to stay culturally relevant. As viewers continue cutting the cord, expect more "traditional" TV tentpoles to make similar moves.

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LAST LOOKS
Film Development 🗒️

• Margaret Qualley, Josh Brolin, and Guy Pearce join Jacob Elordi in ‘The Dog Stars,’ Ridley Scott’s upcoming post-apocalyptic drama. (more)

• Diablo Cody is producing ‘Forbidden Fruits,’ Meredith Alloway’s feature directorial debut, based on Lily Houghton’s play. (more)

• Kelly Rowland and Method Man will lead Amazon MGM’s rom-com ‘Relationship Goals.’ (more)

• Will Gluck will direct ‘One Night Only,’ a unique sex comedy from Universal based on Travis Braun’s 2024 Black List-topping script. (more)

• Sosie Bacon will lead ‘Brett,’ an R-rated comedy-horror. (more)

• Vertical has acquired ‘My Mother’s Wedding,’ starring Scarlett Johansson, Sienna Miller, and Emily Beecham. (more)

• Jacob Elordi’s ‘The Narrow Road to the Deep North’ has been acquired by Sky, Max, and NBCUniversal ahead of its Berlinale premiere. (more)

TV Development 🗒️

• Bill Nighy is in talks to lead ‘Clifftops,’ a BBC drama from Hugo Blick. (more)

• Taylor Lautner will star in and executive produce ‘Taylor Lautner: Werewolf Hunter,’ a self-aware action-comedy series at Amazon MGM Studios. (more)

• Scott Free is developing a TV series adaptation of Candice Fox’s thriller ‘High Wire’ for Apple TV+. (more)

• Netflix is developing ‘The Forgotten Realms,’ a live-action ‘Dungeons & Dragons’ series from Shawn Levy, Drew Crevello, and Hasbro. (more)

• Jeremy Strong will star in Netflix’s ‘The Boys From Brazil,’ a Peter Morgan-led TV adaptation of the 1978 Nazi conspiracy thriller. (more)

• John Lithgow is in final talks to play Dumbledore in HBO’s upcoming ‘Harry Potter’ series, set to debut in 2026 or 2027. (more)

Renewed & Canceled ✅ ❌

• ‘Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power’ is renewed for S3 at Prime Video. (more)

Business 🤝

• Hutch Parker Entertainment has signed a producing deal with Sony Pictures. (more)

• Former WBD exec Andrew Cripps is in talks to lead Amazon MGM’s new international distribution division, set to launch in 2026. (more)

Other News 🚨

• Super Bowl LIX shattered records, generating $800M in ad sales for Fox and Tubi, with commercials costing $8M each. (more)

RELEASE RADAR
📅 What to watch this weekend?

🎥 THEATRICAL

• Captain America: Brave New World: Anthony Mackie leads his first MCU film as Sam Wilson.

• Paddington in Peru: Third installment in the ‘Paddington’ franchise.

• Armand: Norwegian thriller-drama starring Renate Reinsvet.

• Becoming Led Zeppelin: Documentary about the legendary rock band.

📺 STREAMING

• The Gorge: (Apple TV+) Sci-fi horror starring Miles Teller and Anya Taylor-Joy.

• Yellowjackets: (Paramount+ with Showtime) Hit survival thriller returns for S3.

• The White Lotus: (HBO) Dark social satire moves to Thailand for S3.

🏆 AWARDS SEASON

• 78th BAFTA Awards: David Tennant hosts Britain's biggest film awards live from London's Royal Festival Hall. Streams Sunday at 2pm ET/11am PT. Download your printable ballot here. 👈👀

🔮 BOX OFFICE PREVIEW

'Captain America: Brave New World' aims to dominate the Valentine's/Presidents Day frame with $80-90M ($95M four-day), while adding $110M internationally. 'Paddington in Peru,' already sitting pretty with $104M overseas, targets $15-17M for the holiday weekend. Combined, they should push the overall marketplace past $120M—giving 2025 its first big box office weekend.

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VIDEO VILLAGE
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MARTINI SHOT
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