Today’s Finale
TLC: 90-Day Fiance: The Other Way

IN THE NEWS

Yet another survey points to the willingness of consumers to pile on more streaming subscriptions. New data from Leichtman Research Group based on a sample of 1,990 households, shows 78 percent have a subscription to Netflix, Amazon Prime or Hulu, up from 69 percent in 2018 and 52 percent in 2015. More than 55 percent now subscribe to one service in that category, up from 43 percent in 2018 and 20 percent in 2015. In other findings:
* At least 82 percent of households have at least one of the newer streaming launches including Disney+, HBO Max and BET+, while 49 percent have three or more.
* 40 percent of adults stream an SVOD service every day, up from 30 percent in 2018 and 16 percent in 2015.
* Younger adults are the most active streamers; A18-44 account for 63 percent of daily SVOD users.

With an increased focus on media since the 2018 acquisition of Time Warner, AT&T is exploring selling its DirecTV business, according to the Wall Street Journal. AT&T acquired DirecTV in 2015 for $49 billion, more than twice what the business is likely to fetch today. Potential suitors include Apollo Global Management, which reportedly expressed interest in the satellite TV unit last year, and Patinum Equity, sources told the WSJ.

Former Bachelorette Rachel Lindsay is joining Extra when the entertainment news show launches season 27 on Tuesday, September 8. Lindsay has served as a special correspondent for Extra since 2019.

NBA playoffs resumed Saturday, three days after players walked out in response to the police shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wisconsin. The league and players union announced initiatives to fight social injustice and racial inequality, promote voting access and advocate for police reform. Advertising that promotes social justice during broadcasts was included in the initiatives.

PointsBet is the new official sports betting partner of NBC Sports, part of a multiyear partnership between NBCUniversal and PointsBet. NBC Sports will provide PointsBet with multiplatform media and marketing avenues across its portfolio that includes NBC Olympics, the Golf Channel, NBC Sports Regional Networks and the Olympic Channel.

LA news anchor Jeff Michael, let go from KCBS-TV in May as part of a newsroom layoff, is suing the station. Michael alleges KCBS-TV breached its agreement with him and discriminated against him because of heart and stress issues. KCBS-TV said the layoffs were the result of the pandemic and “the ongoing and transformative changes in the news industry,” and that Michael’s claims were “entirely without merit.”

Byron Allen and Entertainment Studios’ $10 billion racial discrimination lawsuit against Charter Communications is proceeding, following a Federal District Court ruling in Allen’s favor. The US Supreme Court had ruled in March that the media mogul needed to provide evidence to support his claim. “Charter will continue to lose this case, and I am going to make an example of them for all of America to see, because structural racism will not be tolerated,” said Allen.

Netflix canceled a virtual preview event, which had been scheduled for today, for the movie Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom. One of the stars of the film, Chadwick Boseman, died August 28 at age 43, after a four-year battle with colon cancer. “Chadwick was a superhero on screen and in life, and it’s impossible to imagine working at the level he has while valiantly battling his illness. His legacy as a person and an artist will inspire millions,” said Ted Sarandos, Netflix Co-CEO and Chief Content Officer.

Limited series Women of the Movement, which chronicles the story of Mamie Till Mobley, who sought justice for her son who was murdered in the Jim Crow South, is in the works at ABC. Exec-produced by a consortium including Jay-Z, Jay Brown and Tyran ‘Ty Ty’ Smith of Roc Nation, Will Smith and James Lassiter of Overbrook, and Aaron Kaplan, Dana Honor and Michael Lohmann of Kapital Entertainment, the series is slated to debut in 2021 and will comprise six episodes focusing on the mother who devoted her life to seeking justice for her son Emmett Till. Writer/director Gina Prince-Bythewood will direct the first ep.

The CW is developing drama series The Pretenders, from Damon Wayans Jr.’s Two Shakes Entertainment. The project focuses on a seemingly normal suburban family that in fact is composed of individuals in the Witness Protection Program who’ve been placed together to provide safe cover for three of the program’s assets who are unrelated minors. Brandon Zuck will write and exec produce.

Fox is at work on an animated X-Files comedy spinoff. Currently titled The X-Files: Albuquerque, the project centers on an office of misfit agents who investigate cases that are too ridiculous for Detectives Mulder and Scully to mess with. Original X-Files creator Chris Carter is onboard to exec produce, with Rocky Russo and Jeremy Sosenko attached to write and exec produce.

Nicolas Cage will exec-produce and voice the lead character in crime thriller Highfire, in development at Amazon and based on the novel by Artemis Fowl author Eoin Colfer. Davey Holmes is adapting the story, about an erstwhile ruler of dragons, current shack dweller in Louisiana’s Honey Island Swamp, who develops an unlikely friendship with a human teen.

Also at Amazon, the studio optioned rights to Ex-Mas, a comedy film from Chris Hazzard and Michael Fontana. Based on Kate Brian’s 2009 book, the feature is set on Christmas Eve and follows ex beaus who put aside their differences to hit the road in search of their younger brothers, who have taken off on a mission to save Santa from climate change.

Tia Mowry (The Game, Instant Mom, Sister, Sister) inked a three-picture deal with Lifetime to star in and produce three holiday movies for the net’s It’s a Wonderful Lifetime slate beginning next year. Mowry’s production company and exec Tiegen Kosiak are also in on the deal.

In addition to celebrating individual Top Women in Media the week of Oct 13th, Cynopsis is also recognizing two distinguished companies who champion women in media. We can’t wait to highlight Ampersand and Starz! Go check out the honorees and register to attend the virtual awards ceremony (it’s free!)

David Hudgins (Friday Night Lights) is onboard as the showrunner for the upcoming second season of FBI: Most Wanted at CBS. Hudgins also signed an overall deal with Universal Television, the show’s producer. He takes the baton from Rene Balcer, who ran the first season of the show.

Studio 100 Group and T&B Media Global are collaborating on CGI animated series FriendZSpace, aimed at K5-9. T&B Media Global and Flying Bark Productions will co-produce the comedy-adventure series, which tracks three kids dedicated to making friends with young alien beings.

NEW & RETURNING SERIES

MTV Studios and Quibi announced more episodes of Singled Out are headed to the short-form platform weekdays starting Monday, September 7. The series hooks up a new generation of love-seeking singles of all genders and orientations in 10 bite-sized episodes.

Amazon Original series Utopia, created, written and directed by Gillian Flynn, is scheduled to premiere Tuesday, September 15. Utopia is based on Dennis Kelly’s 2013 UK series of the same name and is about a group of comic-book nerds who come to believe a mysterious graphic novel may hold the key to saving the planet.

A new season of Great Performances: Now Hear This is headed to PBS on Friday, September 18 at 9p. The documentary miniseries, hosted by violinist and conductor Scott Yoo, merges music, storytelling, travel and culture, and returns with four new eps that look at works by Haydn, Schubert, Mozart, and Beethoven.

Season 2 of His Dark Materials is slated to debut in November. The cast will return and the action picks up after Lord Asriel has opened a bridge to a new world, and, distraught over the death of her best friend, Lyra follows Asriel into the unknown.

ABC comedy The Conners, back in production for its 19-ep new season, dropped a poster for season 3 that features the family wearing protective masks and the slogan: “Socially distant since always.”

STREAMING SCOOP

Roku stock hit an all-time high on Friday, closing up 7% to $172.85 after a bullish note from Deutsche Bank’s Jeffrey Rand. The analyst cited a survey that found 43% of CTV respondents said they had a Roku device, versus 35% for Amazon’s Fire TV and 27% for Apple TV.

Cinedigm and Canela.TV, the free ad-supported streaming channel for Hispanics, are in a partnership to bring MyTime Movie Network to Spanish-language speaking audiences. MyTime Movie Network offers curated content catering to women of all ages and has an audience upward of 20 million viewers.

COMING UP

ID this week unleashes Serial Killer Week. Among specials that air nightly at 9p is The 93 Victims of Samuel Little, airing tonight (August 31). “The fascination behind serial killers continues to be unmatched, with our viewers consistently asking for more,” says Henry Schleiff, group president of ID, Travel Channel, American Heroes Channel and Destination America. “We chose these cases not just because of these macabre monsters, or that each investigation is a self-contained mystery, but because each story will leave our viewers gripped to the screen until the final scene, when justice is ultimately served.”

Bin Laden’s Hard Drive, premiering on Nat Geo Thursday, September 10 at 9p, pieces together files from newly declassified hard drives taken from the compound where Osama bin Laden was killed to provide a roadmap into the mind of a mass murderer.

ADVERTISING & BRANDS

Black-owned marketing consultancy Think True has launched. Incubated by marketing agency On Board Experiential, Think True specializes in brand initiatives centered on engaging diverse and often marginalized communities. The consultancy is coming out of the gates with current OBE client JPMorgan Chase & Co. and its “Advancing Black Pathways” initiative. Think True also will be engaging with OBE clients Nike and Facebook.

Clear Channel Outdoor partnered with Tremor Video, a programmatic video and data-driven TV platform, to help brands amplify out-of-home reach and deepen consumer engagement. By integrating Tremor Video’s capabilities with RADARConnect, Clear Channel Outdoor can provide a coordinated OOH and all-screen video solution for advertisers.

Lemonada Media is joining Stitcher podcast advertising network Midroll. The move aligns the year-old podcasting company with other Stitcher titles and opens up Lemonada’s series slate to more than 800 brands for sponsorship potential.

CASTING

Nick Robinson is in as male lead opposite Margaret Qualley in Netflix dramedy series Maid… Ayo Edebiri has been cast as Missy in Netflix animated series Big Mouth; she replaces Jenny Slate, who’s voiced the character since season 1… Gus Birney (The Mist) and Dylan Gage (PEN15) landed series regular roles opposite Courteney Cox and Greg Kinnear in Starz horror-comedy pilot Shining Vale.

TLC was the top network on cable the week of August 17 among W18-49/18-34, and No. 2 among W25-54 in Live+3. Its series 90 Day Fiance: Happily Ever After and The Other Way were the top 2 shows on cable that week among W25-54/18-49/18-34 (excluding sports and news).

In the fourth week of August, ID was the No. 1 cable network in Total Day for W25-54 and achieved its highest Total Day average audience (P2+) in 22 weeks. In Prime for the week, ID garnered its highest A25-54 audience in 12 weeks and ranked in the top 10 cable networks) for W25-54.

Paramount Network’s Yellowstone season 3 finale breaks more records in its Live+3 viewership. With 10.7 million viewers in Live+3, the third season is the most-watched original telecast on basic cable since November 2018.

Broadcast Nielsen Ratings for Thursday, August 27
Show, P2+ 0000s, (A18-49)
ABC: Holey Moley 2.61 (0.4), To Tell the Truth 2.63 (0.4) Republican National Convention 2.25 (0.4)
CBS: Big Brother 4.01 (1.0), Love Island 1.69 (0.4), Republican Convention 1.34 (0.2)
CW: Mysteries Decoded 0.86 (0.2), Penn & Teller: Fool Us 0.73 (0.1)
FOX: MasterChef 0.83 (0.2), MasterChef 0.72 (0.2)
NBC: The Wall 2.84 (0.4), Law & Order: SVU 2.10 (0.3), Republican Convention 1.84 (0.3)
Telemundo: Exatlon Estados Unidos 1.23 (0.3), Cennet 1.17 (0.3), Decision 2020: Trump 0.80 (0.2)
Univision: Rosa de Guadelupe 1.03 (0.3), Medicos Linea de Vida 1.34 (0.4), Destino 2020 0.93 (0.3)
Source: Nielsen live + same day time period averages

EXECUTIVE MOVES

Changes are afoot at Warner Bros Animation and Cartoon Network Studios. Sam Register, president of Warner Bros Animation, is adding oversight of Cartoon Network Studios. Cartoon Net chief content officer Rob Sorcher, who served as head of Cartoon Network Studios, will segue into an overall production deal with Warner Bros Television Group. Former Nickelodeon and Universal Kids exec Amy Friedman will take over Sorcher’s network programming duties as senior adviser. And Ed Adams, EVP/GM of Warner Bros Animation, expands his responsibilities to serve both studios alongside Register.

WOW! Unlimited Media is undergoing a reorg. Fred Seibert resigned from his position as a director/chief creative officer of WOW!, as well as CEO of Frederator, effective November 27, 2020. Seibert will continue to work with the company as an independent producer. Michael Hirsh, WOW! CEO, will take on the leadership of Frederator, serving as its CEO, and Neil Chakravarti, COO of WOW!, will become COO of Frederator.

IN MEMORIAM

David S. Cass Sr., an in-demand stunt coordinator in the ‘80s and ‘90s who turned to stunt directing later in his career, died August 28 of complications from cancer. He was 78. Cass alternated between acting parts and stunt work, beginning with the 1963 John Wayne film McLintock! Other stunt work credits include Smokey and the Bandit Part 3, Knight Rider 2000 and Walker, Texas Ranger.

Answer to Our Last Trivia Question
Dabney Coleman played an obstetrician in which sitcom? That Girl. Kudos to: Gerry Bixenspan-TV Marketing Inc./NY; Synda Kollman-Charter Marketing Group/Boca Raton, FL; Charles Lore/NY; Kevin Weist-Sideways Hat Songs/NY-NJ; Paul Blutter-Walk and Talk Production Rentals/Burbank; Ken DuBow-Bob’s Your Uncle/LA; ????David Westberg-SAG*AFTRA Credit Union/Burbank; John Ferlazzo/London

Today’s Trivia Question
What was Dolly Parton’s first appearance on television? (Email [email protected] with your answer and be sure to include your name, company, city and time zone. Unofficial rules: a limit of four answers per time zone.)