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Happy Friday, readers! Here’s the news you need to know as you wrap up your week:
- Xbox Is Breaking Into The TV Biz
- Apple TV’s “Stick” Scores A Season 2
- Violet Bridgerton Is Getting Her Own Spinoff Prequel
Speaking of wrapping… Don’t forget the Holiday Guide! Please send your Holiday Guide listings (from between Nov. 4 to Jan. 1) to janetdilauro@gmail.com, alyssa@cynopsis.com and victoria@cynopsis.com no later than October 23 with the subject line: Holiday Guide.
To be included, programs must be listed in the following format:
Thursday, November 19: Network Name: My One Christmas Wish at 9a, Paper Angels at 11a, 12 Days of Giving at 1p.
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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Everything is TV now. Xbox announced a new TV and film division aptly named XP, a reference to video game lingo that means “Experience Points.”
- Leading the new XP division as president is Kayleen Walters, head of Xbox-owned Mojang Studios. Maria Angelidou-Smith will take over as CEO of Minecraft and Mojang. Both will report to Xbox CEO Asha Sharma.
- The news closely follows yet another round of layoffs at Xbox following Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard, when more than 260 positions were cut in the Halo Studios division last month.
- For Xbox, XP represents new monetization opportunities. For one, it “formalizes” sponsor and brand partnerships as a key investment area for Xbox, according to Sharma’s staff memo on Thursday outlining the changes.
- The Takeaway: It’s no secret that Xbox wants to use advertising to rake in more revenue. While the exact ad revenue shares between Xbox and its content partners are not yet clear, what’s more certain is the fact that advertising creates a high-margin revenue line for companies that launch an ads biz – and brands will often pay a pretty penny to reach engaged users in TV environments.
US District Judge Timothy J. Kelly announced plans to rule on Donald Trump’s ban on CNN, MS Now and Politico by Tuesday. In the meantime, the temporary block that has allowed journalists to continue their work on White House grounds will continue – although CNN and Politico have still been restricted from travel on Air Force One in recent weeks.
Well, that was fast. After a two-day decline, shares in Skydance rebounded on Thursday – coincidentally after co-CEOs David Ellison and Ynon Kreiz, along with other executives from the company, rang the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange that morning.
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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.
Owen Wilson in Apple TV’s “Stick”
Apple TV released the trailer for “Stick” Season 2, which premieres the first two of 10 episodes Nov. 4. The series stars Owen Wilson (“Loki”) and Peter Dager (“WITS Academy”) as a former pro golfer and his protégé.
“The Wolves of Real Estate: The Alexander Brothers,” a three-part documentary series about a trio of luxury real estate moguls who assaulted women in Miami and New York for more than a decade, is coming to Peacock Oct. 25.
Paramount+ set a premiere date for the British workplace comedy “It Gets Worse,” created by and starring Leo Reich. Episode 1 of the A24-produced series premieres in the US Nov. 6.
“The Altruists,” Netflix’s eight-part limited series about Sam Bankman-Fried (Anthony Boyle) and Caroline Ellison (Julia Garner), released a first-look trailer Thursday. The series premieres Nov.19.
Would you watch an AI-generated Harry Houdini? Fox Nation sure hopes so. A three-part series, “Houdini: Back from the Dead,” will premiere on the streaming service starting Oct. 14.
Emmy Award-winning documentarian Johnny Harris will release his next series, “The Human Element,” directly to YouTube Nov. 7.
HBO released a trailer for Season 2 of its original series “City of God: The Fight Rages On,” set to premiere this fall.
Food Network unveiled a season-long holiday programming slate kicking off Nov. 2 with “Holiday Baking Championship,” followed by the premiere of “Harry Potter: Wizards of Baking” Nov. 4.
Paramount+ dropped an official trailer and key art for “A Course Called Ireland,” a six-part documentary travel series loosely based on the book by bestselling author Tom Coyne, who co-stars in the series alongside Bill Murray (“Saturday Night Live”). The show premieres Oct. 25.
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| Partner content |
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| Today’s Premieres |
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CBS: “Sheriff Country” Season 2 at 8 p.m; “Fire Country” Season 5 at 9 p.m.; “Boston Blue” Season 2 at 10 p.m.
Crunchyroll: “A Certain Dark Item”; “Firefly Wedding”
Discovery: “Rocky Mountain Wreckers” at 9 p.m.
Lifetime Movie Network: “Dancing With the Devil” at 8 p.m.
Netflix: “Haunted Hotel” Season 2; “Is It Cake? Halloween” Season 2; “Take Charge of My Heart”
OWN: “Mothers & Daughters: Town Apart With Iyania Vanzant” at 9 p.m.
Paramount+: ”Avatar: Seven Heavens”
PBC: “Great Musicians Of Our Time” at 10 p.m.
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| SATURDAY’S PREMIERES |
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CBS: “48 Hours” Season 40 at 10 p.m.
Crunchyroll: “Horror Collector”; “Paw & Palaces”; “The Vermillion Mask”
Great American Family: “A Second Chance Christmas” at 8 p.m.
Hallmark: “The Spirit of Halloween” at 8 p.m.
Lifetime: “The Monster She Married” at 8 p.m.
Netflix: “100 Days of Deception”
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| SUNDAY’S PREMIERES |
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Bravo: “The Real Housewives of Potomac” Season 11 at 8 p.m.
Crunchyroll: “Ace of the Diamond”; “Full Clearing Another World Under a Goddess With Zero Believers”
HBO: “The Pet Cemetery Murders: A Ghost Story” at 9 p.m.
Lifetime: “Her Only Way Out” at 8 p.m.
MGM+: “Treasure Island” at 10 p.m.
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| Production |
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Ruth Gemmell in Netflix’s “Bridgerton”
“Bridgerton” matriarch Lady Violet is getting her own spinoff prequel series, Netflix announced Thursday. Violet is played by Ruth Gemmell (“Home Fires”) in the original series and Connie Jenkins-Greig (“Grace”) in the 2023 “Queen Charlotte” prequel. The new show will revolve around Violet’s courtship with the late Viscount Edmund Bridgerton, so it’s unclear whether either actor will star in the series beyond cameos.
See-Saw Films (“Slow Horses”) is teaming up with fellow Mediawan subsidiary Miraculous Corp on a live-action version of the hit animated franchise “Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir.” Writer Emme Hoy (“Sweetpea”) is attached to adapt the series.
Season 4 of Peyo Productions’ “The Smurfs” cartoon is currently in production, the company announced at MIPCOM this week. The new season will consist of 52 11-minute episodes, half of which will air in 2027 and the other half in 2028.
A+E Global Media is massively expanding its microdrama slate with three new original vertical films for the Lifetime mobile app, along with seven that were adapted from previous titles. The goal is to add new titles every two weeks, some of which will come from vertTV. A+E Global Media has also adapted nearly 200 existing TV series from its library for third-party distribution, including “Cold Case Files,” “Hoarders” and “Married at First Sight.”
Season 3 of “Odd Squad UK,” a children’s series following the adventures of kid agents investigating life’s oddities, is currently in production. The series is co-produced by Sinking Ship Entertainment and BBC Studios Kids & Family Productions. Fred Rogers Productions will handle distribution in the US.
Peacock is developing a new drama from “Good Girls” creators Jenna Bans and Bill Krebs. Called “Pimp,” the series is about a couple who turn to sex work as a way to reignite their marriage.
ABC ordered a pilot for an American adaptation of “Ludwig,” the BBC series about a puzzle maker who solves mysteries. The US version, “Rabbit,” is written by Megan Ganz and Humphrey Ker (“Mythic Quest”).
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| Coming Up |
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Nickelodeon’s 2026 Kids’ Choice Awards will air Nov. 14, featuring YouTuber and Grammy Award-nominated musician Alex Warren as host. TV shows “Wednesday,” “SpongeBob SquarePants,” “Stranger Things,” “Percy Jackson and the Olympians” and “Wizards Beyond Waverly Place” were represented among the nominations.
The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (NATAS) released the names of the Gold & Silver Circle Society inductees for this year’s 53rd Daytime Annual Awards, which will be streamed live on the NATAS YouTube channel Oct. 30. Honorees include Byron Allen, Patrika Darbo, Francesca James, Meredith Vieria, Stephen Brown and Rubin Ervin.
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| Sports Report |
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“The Land,” director Dan Fogelman’s upcoming family drama series about a soon-to-retire NFL coach, will debut its first two episodes on Hulu Feb. 15, just hours after the Super Bowl ends.
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| Distribution |
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Apple TV has acquired the US rights to “Dustfall,” an Australian crime drama series starring Anna Torv (“The Last of Us”). The series is due to premiere on ABC – meaning the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, not the American one – Oct. 11.
SVOD services Screambox and Dove Channel are now available on DirecTV, according to entertainment company Cineverse. The former is a hub for horror films and TV series like “Terrifier 2” and “Bedlam,” while the latter is a destination for romantic comedies like “Loving Every Minute” and “Life with Derek.”
Antenna TV will program two days of back-to-back marathons of “Sabrina the Teenage Witch” and “Bewitched” on Oct. 30 and Oct. 31 in celebration of Halloween.
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| Ratings |
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“Lanterns” is officially one of the top five most-watched HBO series launches of all time. The DC series ended its first season on Sunday with 10.5 million global viewers and 7.2 million US viewers, according to data from Nielsen and Warner Bros. Discovery.
Meanwhile, NBCUniversal’s decision to move “The Traitors” from Peacock to prime time with “New Blood” is paying off. The network’s internal data suggests that the series has brought more than 7 million cross-platform viewers to the franchise within the first two weeks, expanding its reach by roughly 45%.
“Jimmy Kimmel Live!” reached 2.66 million total viewers the week of Sept. 28, when it featured a week of live shows from Brooklyn Academy of Music’s Howard Gilman Opera House. The ratings represent a double-digit percentage growth in viewership compared with last year’s Brooklyn week.
“Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story” slightly edged out “Neagley” for most total minutes viewed during the week of Sept. 21, according to Nielsen’s Top 10 Streaming Originals List. Both premiered the week prior; Prime Video’s “Neagley” on Sept. 16 and Netflix’s “Lizzie Borden” on Sept. 17.
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| Friday Fun Fact |
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Last year, Utah bought more Halloween candy than any other state – 67% more than the national average, according to Instacart.
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Which of these four actors – Mark Hamill, Frank Langella, Jared Leto and David Dastmalchian – has not played Skeletor, the villain who first appeared in the “He-Man and the Masters of the Universe” cartoon?
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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How many years did the original “Law & Order” spend off the air before it was finally revived in 2022? 11 years
Congrats to: Phyllis McQuillan-MSG Networks/NYC; Rev. Mark Wajda/Clermont, FL; Susan Nessanbaum-Goldberg-M and S Entertainment/LA; Tom Moore-Kalt Productions/LA
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