🎬 Studio Bigwigs Have Entered the Chat

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Whether you're a seasoned subscriber or a new arrival, we're thrilled to have you here. Twice a week, on Mondays and Thursdays, we'll deliver the most important industry scoops directly to your inbox.

🎞 Here’s what’s on the reel today:

• Closeup: Strike Update 🪧

• Streaming Giants Nudge Towards Ad Tiers

• SAG Strike Impacting Global Industry

• New York Union Coalition Cheers For Bills Against AI

• BBC and TikTok Team Up

• National Cinema Day

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

• Release Radar: What to watch this weekend

• Video Village 📀

• Martini Shot 🍸

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

MOST STREAMED THIS WEEK

Studio Bigwigs Have Entered the Chat
🪧The Latest in the Dual Strike 🪧

It’s been about a week and a half since the major studios (represented by the AMPTP) and the WGA got back to the negotiating table.

As per the WGA’s August 11th update, the details of these negotiations have been kept quiet… until a few days ago when the AMPTP released all the details of their latest counter offer in a press release. Find the complete document 👉 here 👈.

Here are some of the points included in the AMPTP’s latest counterproposal:

• Compensation Enhancement 📈: The AMPTP promises "significantly" increased wages along with boosted residuals for high-budget streaming content.

• Future Showrunners' Pathway 🎬: They're proposing a new structure, focusing on nurturing writers to become the next generation of showrunners. This would ensure specific employment durations and require at least two mid-level writers, chosen by the current showrunner, to be involved in the production process.

• Employment Duration Guarantee 🔐: Writers in development stages can expect a minimum employment duration of 10 weeks, offering a sense of job security.

• Transparency in Viewership 📊: The AMPTP plans to share detailed viewership metrics, specifically the total hours each title racks up on streaming platforms.

• Equitable Rights and Compensation 🤝: If any part of a script leverages GAI-produced material, writers can be assured that their compensation, recognition, and rights will remain unaffected.

WGA Speaks Out: Not Here to Play Games

As it turns out, this release by the AMPTP followed unexpectedly on the heels of a meeting between the WGA, AMPTP leadership, and major studio CEOs. Among the power players present were Bob Iger from Disney, David Zaslav of Warner Bros. Discovery, and Netflix's Ted Sarandos.

The WGA attended this meeting with hope, anticipating that the big names were genuinely looking to set the industry wheels back in motion. Yet, the atmosphere soon thickened with the AMPTP and studio bigwigs staunchly defending their counterproposals. In response, the WGA highlighted the counter's "limitations, loopholes, and omissions", asserting that these failed to guard writers from the deep-seated threats that initially sparked the strike.

The drama escalated post-meeting when, a mere 20 minutes after the talks concluded, the AMPTP publicly released the details of the latest counterproposal, described above. WGA expressed their frustration through a memo, criticizing the AMPTP and studio heads for their swift proposal summary release, accusing them of a divisive agenda:

No further negotiation meetings are inked onto the calendar. 📅 The industry sits on the edge of its seat, awaiting an official update from the WGA. As always, we’ll keep you posted with the latest regarding the situation. 👀

Streaming Giants Nudge Us Towards Ad Tiers 🍿📺 The streaming landscape is shifting, and here's the latest trend. Major platforms like Disney, Netflix, and Paramount are subtly recalibrating their subscription models. While the costs of ad-free tiers are rising, those with ads are staying relatively stable. This strategy is making the ad-supported plans more financially appealing to consumers. Interestingly, these platforms earn more from the ad-tiers than the ad-free ones. Research indicates that around 60% of viewers are open to an ad-supported model if it offers a savings of $4 to $5 monthly. It's a delicate balancing act: ensuring profitability while catering to consumer preferences in a rapidly evolving market.

SAG-AFTRA Strike Impacting Global Industry 🌍🎭 The SAG-AFTRA strike is resonating on a global scale. British Equity is expressing solidarity with SAG-AFTRA, warning against U.S. roles being recast with UK actors. 🇬🇧 Productions like Apple TV+'s 'Silo' and Disney+'s 'Andor' have halted in the UK, and local crews are facing challenges. Paul Fleming, Equity's boss, stressed the possibility of ongoing disruption and the urgent need for fair negotiations, including considerations for AI. 🤖

New York Union Coalition Cheers for Bills Limiting AI in Film 🗽🤖 Big applause from the New York Film and Television Union Coalition for two bills aimed at limiting AI's role in film and TV production! 🎬 The goal? To keep robots from taking over human jobs. These unions, including SAG-AFTRA, WGA East, and others, have been fighting hard against the displacement of workers by AI since their strikes began earlier this year. 🤖❌ They're all about embracing the "inherent value of human creative expression." The DGA's new contract even has special rules for using Generative Artificial Intelligence (GAI). They believe in the potential of AI to improve lives, but not if it means kicking humans to the curb in the creative process.

BBC and TikTok Team Up To Find Talent🌟📺 The BBC is joining forces with TikTok to scout out the next big names in TV! They're putting together a "content lab" that'll give 100 TikTok users a crash course in becoming TV stars and growing their online presence. But here's the twist: just five months ago, the BBC was telling journalists to delete TikTok over security concerns. 😲 Now they're embracing it with open arms.

🎬 $4 Tickets on National Cinema Day, Aug. 27 🍿Mark your calendars for Aug. 27, the second annual National Cinema Day, because thousands of theaters across the U.S. are dropping ticket prices to just $4 for any movie, any format. 🎫 The Cinema Foundation, in partnership with the National Association of Theatre Owners, is behind this awesome event, and they're building on last year's success.

• Summer box office revenue may hit $4B thanks to Barbenheimer. (more)

• Netflix announces four new productions as it ramps up its Australia originals slate. (more)

• Netflix greenlights ‘Einstein and the Bomb’ and John Boyega-narrated WWII doc series. (more)

• Disney+ unveils first look at Keanu Reeves in Formula 1 series ‘Brawn.’ (more)

• ‘And Just Like That’ gets renewed for S3 at MAX. (more)

• Sean Penn reveals details and trailer for his Ukraine-Russia war documentary ‘Superpower.’ (more)

• ‘Upload’ S3 gets premiere date at Prime Video. (more)

• Time Studios is searching for a new CEO as the interim co-heads of the company exit. (more)

• Louis Theroux unveils a Sky feature documentary ‘Tell Them You Love Me.’ (more)

• The ‘Frasier’ sequel series from Paramount+ is set to premiere on October 12. (more) 

• Bill Burr’s directorial debut ‘Old Dads’ is set to premiere on Netflix on October 20. (more)

• Dave Bautista and Jason Momoa team up for new film, ‘Wrecking Crew.’ (more)

• More allegations of picket-busting emerge at NBCUniversal campus. (more)

• Sofia Coppola reveals Presley estate turned down using Elvis music for ‘Priscilla’ (more)

• Sophia Coppola’s ‘Priscilla’ acquired by Mubi for International Distribution (more)

• ‘Priscilla’ gets SAG-AFTRA interim agreement ahead of Venice Film Festival premiere (more)

• The Anti-Defamation League defends Bradley Cooper’s prosthetic nose in upcoming Leonard Bernstein biopic, ‘Maestro.’ (more)

• ‘Barbie’ IMAX release set for this fall with new post-credit footage. (more)

• ‘The Exorcist: Believer’ unveils a new poster. (see here 👈)

• ‘Napoleon’ unveils a new poster. (see here 👈)

• ‘The Creator’ unveils a new poster. (see here 👈)

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What to watch this weekend? 👀

THEATRICAL 🎥

• Gran Turismo: A struggling, working-class gamer, a failed former race car driver, and an idealistic motorsport exec risk it all to take on the most elite sport in the world.

• Golda: Focuses on the intensely dramatic and high-stakes responsibilities and decisions that Golda Meir faced during the Yom Kippur War.

• Bottoms: Two unpopular queer high school students start a fight club to have sex before graduation.

• The Hill: The remarkable true-life story of Rickey Hill's improbable journey to play Major League Baseball.

STREAMING 📺

• Trap Jazz: (Hulu) Atlanta musicians behind some of the biggest names in music embark on an uncertain journey into the spotlight.

• Vacation Friends 2: (Hulu) A couple who meets up with another couple while on vacation in Mexico, see their friendship takes an awkward turn when they get back home.