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Good morning, readers! Here’s the news you need to know to start off your week:
- Paramount-WBD Will Become “Skydance”
- “A Different World” Already Renewed For Season 2
- Say Hello To Yet Another Streaming Service
‘Tis (almost) the season! Cynopsis is gearing up for our annual Holiday Programming Guide – dropping on Nov. 4 and delivered straight to all Cynopsis and Streamlined subscribers. If your network has holiday programming airing from Nov. 4 through Jan. 1, please send your listing to janetdilauro@gmail.com, alyssa@cynopsis.com and victoria@cynopsis.com no later than Oct. 23 with the subject line: Holiday Guide.
To be included, programs must be listed by date, title of program, and start times, in the following format:
Thursday, Nov. 19: Network Name: My One Christmas Wish at 9 a.m., Paper Angels at 11 a.m., 12 Days of Giving at 1 p.m.
Holiday-related programs only! A confirmation email will be sent following each submission (if you don’t receive a confirmation email, please resubmit).
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| In The News |
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James Gunn
Never a slow day over at Paramount – if it’s even called that anymore. In today’s Paramount-Warner Bros. news:
- Paramount Skydance CEO David Ellison declared Friday on X that the combined company name will be shortened to just Skydance.
- And the job cuts are coming already. Warner Bros. film division leaders Mike De Luca and Pam Abdy will not be joining the megamerger, two sources familiar with the matter told Puck. Instead, expect Paramount Motion Picture Co-Chairs Josh Greenstein and Dana Goldberg to remain at the helm at the new media behemoth’s film division, sources say.
- But it’s not all doom and gloom for other head honchos on the Warner Bros. side. James Gunn and Peter Safran will continue to oversee production for DC Studios content. Unlike De Luca and Abdy, this duo has had a direct conversation with Ellison about their future at the new company, Skydance.
- In any case, investors might not be so happy with Paramount right now. According to Bloomberg, the company saw its loans and bonds weaken just hours after issuing $52 billion more of debt to fund the acquisition deal.
It’s not just you. Book adaptations are huge in Hollywood right now, reports TheWrap, beating out other major sources of existing IP like comics, video games and franchise extensions. In television, IP might only represent 13.8% of new shows, but it captures 37.5% of audience demand.
Forget roses – will you accept this cease and desist? Warner Bros. Television, which produces “The Bachelor” for ABC, is challenging Fox Nation for riding the franchise’s coattails with its new faith-based dating series.
- “The Vow,” which stars former host of “The Bachelor” Chris Harrison, has cheekily alluded to the other dating competition series in its marketing materials. The most recent teaser refers to Harrison as “the bachelor:” and uses copious amounts of red rose imagery, including a scene where Chris Harrison tosses a flower aside and remarks that “Roses fade.”
- Two days after the teaser launch, Warner Bros. TV sent a cease-and-desist letter to Fox Nation and Lionsgate Alternative Television, arguing that the promotion “improperly capitalizes on WB’s intellectual property and goodwill in the franchise.”
- As of this writing, the teaser is still live on YouTube, and Fox Nation’s legal representation disputes the idea that Warner Bros. has any copyright standing regarding roses or “the words ‘The Bachelor’ when used colloquially to describe a single man.”
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| Partner content |
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| New & Returning Series |
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For sneak peeks, check out Cynopsis Trailer Park.
Shine Iberia, part of the Banjay Entertainment web, announced a new season of “MasterChef Junior” is coming to Disney+ in Spain starting Dec. 18.
Disney also announced a new animated series at San Diego Comic-Con Málaga in Spain, called “Messi and the Giants.” The series will premiere on Disney Channel in the US and Disney+ globally sometime next summer.
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| Partner content |
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| Today’s Premieres |
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Acorn TV: “Signora Volpe” Season 3
CBS: “FBI” Season 9 at 8 p.m.; “CIA” Season 2 at 9 p.m.; “Harlan Coben’s Final Twist” Season 2 at 10 p.m.
Crunchyroll: “Hello, I Am a Witch and My Crush Wants Me to Make a Love Potion!”; “So What’s Wrong with Getting Reborn as a Goblin?”; “Psyren”
CW: “Private Eyes West Coast” at 8 p.m.; “Law & Order Toronto: Criminal Intent” Season 4 at 9 p.m.
Food Network: “Sweet Deceit” at 10 p.m.
TLC: “90 Day: Hunt For Love” Season 2 at 8 p.m.
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| Production |
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Alijah Kai, Maleah Joi Moon and Kennedi Reece in “A Different World”
Netflix is renewing its revival of “A Different World” for a second season. The first season recently premiered on Sept. 24.
CBS renewed two additional seasons of the popular competition reality show “Big Brother USA,” show host Julie Chen Moonves announced.
NBCUniversal’s Peacock greenlit a “Fast & Furious” TV show, continuing the legacy of the popular movie franchise. The project was first announced by star Vin Diesel (“I Am Groot”) during NBCU’s upfront event in May. While the exact title of the TV series remains undisclosed, NBCU is targeting a 2028 premiere date.
Sticking with Peacock, Eddie Murphy (“Saturday Night Live”) will be starring in “The Chairman,” the streamer’s upcoming drama series with “Mad Men” creator Matthew Weiner. Murphy is also executive producing the series, which is currently in production. This role marks Murphy’s first regular TV series role since he departed SNL in 1984.
The long-awaited second season of “The Watcher,” from Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan, will finally begin production in New York this fall. The Netflix series is based on a true story about a New Jersey family who received anonymous threatening letters after moving into their new home.
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| Sports Report |
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The NHL’s season opener on ESPN last week, which pitted the Florida Panthers against the Carolina Hurricanes, reached an average of 859,000 viewers – a 16% year-over-year spike compared with the league’s season opener in 2025.
Tony Romo is officially out at CBS Sports after nine years on the air. The NFL analyst and former quarterback was placed on leave in July after being arrested in Wisconsin for driving while intoxicated. J.J. Watt will remain in his current role as the network’s lead analyst, which he took over from Romo this year.
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| Distribution |
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Hemisphere Media Group is launching “TODO familia,” a free ad-supported TV channel specializing in Spanish-language family entertainment programming. The new channel is debuting this month across several distributors, including Dish Network and Sling TV.
Comcast spinoff Versant renewed a distribution agreement with Verizon that keeps the media company’s cable network portfolio available to Fios customers.
Despite owning its own streaming service, Disney is licensing a huge slate of Disney+ and 20th Television titles to Netflix, including Seasons 1-2 of “Percy Jackson and the Olympians,” Seasons 1-4 of “Will Trent” and Seasons 1-2 of “Tracker.”
Yet another streaming service, anyone? A new independent streaming service, Turnstr+, officially launched Friday. The platform is free and positions itself as a “creator-first” alternative to traditional TV and streaming services.
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| Executive Moves |
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Naomi Bulochnikov-Paul is joining Netflix as VP of series communications beginning Oct. 18. Bulochnikov-Paul hails from Disney.
Irish independent production company BiggerStage hired Leda Connaughton-Deeny as chief financial officer.
Rebecca Lowe is joining Netflix’s FIFA Women’s World Cup broadcast team for 2027. She previously covered the Premier League at NBC Sports and the 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup at Fox Sports.
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Name the disease that became a running joke on “House” (2004-2012) for never being the correct diagnosis, except for one episode – Season 4’s “You Don’t Want to Know” – when it actually was.
Email answers to Trivia@Cynopsis.com and include your name, company and city/state (don’t forget!). Only the first four correct responses from each time zone will be included.
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YESTERDAY’S TRIVIA ANSWER
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Which character from ABC’s “Once Upon a Time” (2011-2018) was inspired by Beast from “Beauty and the Beast,” the crocodile from “Peter Pan,” the fairy godmother from “Cinderella” and Carl Fredericksen from Pixar’s “Up,” in addition to the more traditional children’s tale that named him? Rumplestiltskin.
Congrats to: Rev. Mark Wajda/Clermont, FL; Luke Watson-Gripe and Subscribe/NYC; Wendy Holmes/Denver, CO; Susan Nessanbaum- Goldberg-M and S Entertainment/LA; Tom Moore-Kalt Productions/LA
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