Wednesday November 29, 2023

IN THE NEWS

“I won’t say that it was easy, but I’ve never second guessed the decision to come back, and being back still feels great,” said Disney CEO Bob Iger, asked during a company town hall if returning to his role a year ago was more challenging than he’d expected. As for where Disney’s linear assets stand, given his remarks in July that they “may not be core to the company,” Iger said entertainment head Dana Walden and ESPN chief Jimmy Pitaro have been “looking really hard at their businesses to make them more efficient, which we’ve done, and I believe that is obviously imperative to the future health of the business.”

Amid sexual assault lawsuits, Sean “Diddy” Combs is stepping down as chairman of Revolt Media. In a statement on Instagram, the company said, “While Mr. Combs has previously had no operational or day-to-day role in the business, this decision helps to ensure that Revolt remains steadfastly focused on our mission to create meaningful content for the culture and amplify the voices of all Black people throughout this country and the African diaspora.” Combs’ representatives labeled the claims “fabricated,” “falsely alleging misconduct from over 30 years ago and filed at the last minute,” and a “money grab.”

Banijay has unveiled a new division, Banijay Branded Entertainment. Overseen by Head of Branded Entertainment Business Development Carlotta Rossi Spencer, BBE is a dedicated division within the company. “Crafted stories. Passionately told…” Rossi Spencer said. “BBE embodies the Banijay spirit and reflects our ambitions to drive up our activity in the branded content space.”

Flavortown continues at Food Network. The company has inked a new multi-year exclusive deal with Guy Fieri that includes more “Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives,” as well as more episodes of “Guy’s Grocery Games” and “Tournament of Champions.” Fieri will also continue to take an active role in the development and production of his own series through his Knuckle Sandwich production banner while continuing to partner with the network and producers on new and existing series. “Recognized everywhere he goes, there is only one Guy Fieri,” said Betsy Ayala, head of content, food, at Warner Bros. Discovery. “One of the reasons we’re bullish about our television networks is because of the power of incredible talent like Guy,” said Kathleen Finch, Chairman and CEO, US Networks, Warner Bros. Discovery. “In addition to being a star on Food Network, Guy is a global phenomenon with millions of fans throughout the world and he’s an incredibly creative content producer as well.”

Cineflix Rights announced the streamers and broadcasters onboard for “So Long, Marianne.” The Leonard Cohen-inspired drama series follows the love story of the Canadian singer and poet, and his muse Marianne Ihlen, who inspired the titular song. Leading the cast is Alex Wolff, Thea Sofie Loch Naess, Anna Torv, Noah Taylor and more. The series will be available through ITVX in the UK, Cosmote TV and Star Channel in Greece, and Movies Best HD for Cypris. Additionally, ARD’s Fabfiction (NDR, SWR, WDR, Germany) has joined as a co-producer alongside the original co-producing partners NRK (Norway) and Bell Media’s Crava (Canada).

A limited series based on “On a Quiet Street” is in the works at MarVista. The Fox-owned studio behind “First Time Female Director” and Hallmark’s “The Way Home” has optioned the thriller for a limited series, in partnership with Canadian producer Neshama Entertainment. The novel by Seraphina Nova Glass tells the story of two female friends in an exclusive Oregon coast community.

Parmar Entertainment acquired the global rights to “Act Your Age.” The comedy special from Russell Peters, taped at Abu Dhabi’s Etihad Arena on November 23 – the comic’s last stop of his world tour – addresses issues including cancel culture, the current global geopolitical state and more.

“Peaky Blinders” meets “The End of the F***ing World” in a new series. Producer Caryn Mandabach (“Peaky Blinders”) will develop a historical drama series with Jonathan Entwistle (“End of the F***ing World”), titled “Civil Blood.” Set in 17th century England, the coming-of-age story follows a young woman in wartime, written by Cat Clarke and Michael Hirst, and based on an original idea by the duo with Dario Poloni. “This script has history, heart, family and war – all wrapped up in a pink attitude,” said Entwistle. “This is a period of history not often explored, and certainly not from this point of view.”

NEW & RETURNING SERIES

Ryan Reynolds’ Maximum Effort Channel has partnered with Nacelle Company and Fubo on a new docuseries. “Discontinued,” from the makers of “The Movies That Made Us” and hosted by Bruce Campbell of the “Evil Dead” franchise, explores products, phenomenons, and phrases that are gone but not forgotten, from Blockbuster Video to the Boeing 747. The 10-episode series is set to premiere on the Maximum Effort Channel on Fubo on Thursday at 8p before moving into its regular time slot at 9p every Wednesday, starting December 6. “Never did I think I would be able to combine my nostalgia for discontinued products with my nerd crush, film legend Bruce Campbell,” said Reynolds.

MTV’s “Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta” returns on January 9. Rap star Saucy Santana joins regular cast members in the new season focused on healing after last season’s division. The series premieres at 8p.

Kanan’s evolution continues in its fourth season on STARZ. “Power Book III: Raising Kanan” has begun filming in New York, with season three is set to premiere Friday, December 1.

NESN’s multipart Boston Bruins Centennial docuseries debuts tonight at 8p. In commemoration of the team’s centennial year, the network is producing a four-part docuseries presented by Plymouth Rock, featuring interviews with all-time Bruins greats and fan favorites.

HGTV rings in the New Year with “Celebrity IOU.” Premiering Monday, January 1 at 8p and 9p, the series headlined by Drew and Jonathan Scott brings New Year’s cheer with eight new episodes. In the one-hour episodes, Hollywood A-listers surprise their friends and mentors with home renovations. The upcoming series spotlights guests Mayim Bialik, Sterling K. Brown, Rosario Dawson, Fran Drescher, Anna Faris, Regina Hall, Ray Romano and Zoe Saldaña.

COMING UP

“Legends of the Stagecoach” premieres on January 4. The one-hour INSP original special highlights the impact of the stagecoach on the Wild West. “‘Legends of the Stagecoach’ is not just a journey back in time,” said INSP EVP of Programming Doug Butts. “It’s a deep dive into the lives of unsung heroes who sat at the reins.” The show will make its primetime premiere at 8p.

CASTING

James Norton and Nikolaj Coster-Waldau star in “King and Conqueror.” From CBS Studios, the period drama series is based on Harold of Wessex (Norton) and William of Normandy (Coster-Waldau), and is set to begin production next year. Coster-Waldau will also direct an episode and will executive produce.

Donna Murphy jumps from “The Gilded Age” to “Dr. Wolf.” The Emmy and Tony winner will recur alongside Zachary Quinto in the NBC medical drama, portraying Muriel Landon. The series is inspired by the novels The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat and An Anthropologist on Mars by Oliver Sacks.

Jake Cannavale has been tapped to play Aaron Hernandez’ love interest in “American Sports Story.” In the new anthology series from Ryan Murphy exploring Hernandez’s identity, family, legacy and more, Cannavale will recur alongside Josh Andrés Rivera (Hernandez), Tony Yazbeck, Lindsay Mendez and Patrick Schwarzenegger (Tim Tebow).

“Alien” has added David Rysdahl as a recurring cast member. The actor will star in the FX prequel series; details of his character are currently under wraps.

GOING GLOBAL

“Squid Game: The Challenge” is now the most-streamed show in the UK. The Netflix reality show’s premiere episode reached nearly 2M viewers across five days, according to overnights.tv. Four additional episodes of the series also delivered more than 1 million viewers, with the second episode reaching 1.7 million viewers.

Mina Lefevre is the latest to join Alex Cooper and Matt Kaplan’s media company, Trending. The former Meta and MTV executive will serve as chief content officer of television, overseeing scripted and unscripted television content.

Paramount+ and Pluto TV have elevated two programming executives. Most recently EVP of content and business operations at Paramount Streaming for Paramount+, Jeff Grossman will serve as EVP of programming at Paramount+. Amy Kuessner, previously Pluto TV’s EVP of content strategy and global partnerships, is the new EVP of programming at the streamer. Both will report to Paramount Streaming President and CEO Tom Ryan.

Marianne Goode has joined Universal Studio Group as SVP of music creative services. “Marianne’s stellar reputation and expertise in the music industry is unparalleled,” said Mark Binke, EVP of production operations for UCP. “The USG series and NBCU networks require an adept expert to manage the vast scope of music services. Luckily, Marianne fits the bill perfectly.”

Vistar Media named Ross McNab as chief revenue officer. “Ross’s proven track record in driving revenue growth, his global perspective, operational insight and his positive, personable demeanor make him an ideal leader for our client teams,” said Michael Provenzano, CEO and co-founder of the global provider of programmatic technology for digital out-of-home.

Robin Schwartz is the new president of television at FilmNation. The television producer will oversee all aspects of development of production for the studio’s television slate.

Answer to Our Last Trivia Question
FYI was a rebrand of which network? The Biography Channel (or Bio). Kudos to: Sarah Law-TRP Research/Taunton, England, Justin Pierce-JP Consulting Group/LA, Gerry Bixenspan-TV Marketing Inc./New York, Rev. Mark Wajda/Clermont, FL, Matt Laramee-Southern New Hampshire University/Manchester, Brian Catterson-A+E Networks/New York, Steve Callahan-Screen Engine/ASI/LA, Lorrie Shilling/El Segundo, CA, Maggie Takei-Moore Media/Paducah, KY, Susan Nessanbaum-Goldberg-M and S Entertainment/LA

Today’s Trivia Question
Which sport did Charlotte participate in at school in Chicago in “Ozark” (2017-2022)? (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.)

Cynopsis Team