FRI: HOCUS POCUS cast returning for a sequel
DISNEY+ has just 17% of NETFLIX's revenue / The New TV & Movies this weekend / Soderbergh pic gets TRIBECA premiere
Mornin! This is Sean McNulty and here’s the Hollywood + Media news to know on FRIDAY May 21, 2021.
Where thankfully the town mostly (and finally) ran outta gas yesterday… with just a few things to note before moving onto the Weekend TV & Movie preview.
But one thing that I’m guessing never runs outta gas… is Steven Spielberg’s boat. Errr yacht. Errr superyacht. Which can be yours for the budget friendly price of $155 Million. But just make sure you can still afford to fill up the tank - it holds 77,000 gallons of gas. And - comes with a complimentary treadmill. 👏
Just putting this button here if you wanna help a boat-less brotha out:
📽 THE SILVER SCREEN
“Hocus Pocus” getting sequel with original cast at DISNEY+
Basic plot details: 3 young women re-conjure up the Sanderson witches of Bette Midler, SJP and Kathy Najimi - hey I mean go with what works.
Will hit DIS+ next Fall. Anne Fletcher (“The Proposal”, “The Guilt Trip”) directing. /Variety
Soderbergh’s next HBOMAX movie getting big TRIBECA Fest premiere
1950’s movie called “No Sudden Move” centers on small time crooks hired to steal a document… but soon have to figure out who put them up to it when things go awry.
Don Cheadle, Benicio del Toro, David Harbour, and Jon Hamm among the star-power here. Will premiere outdoors at The Battery on Fri June 18. Movie hits HBOMAX on July 1. /Deadline
ALSO IN MOVIES
AMAZON buys “Everybody’s Talking about Jamie” from DISNEY FOX. Adaptation of the hit UK musical about a teen who dreams of becoming a drag queen will drop globally on PRIME Fri Sept 17. Price not disclosed. /Variety
📺 THE TV SET
2 HBO Casting notes:
Kathleen Turner joins Woody Harrelson / Justin Theroux WATERGATE limited series “The White House Plumbers”. Will play a foul mouthed lobbyist, and when the project is run by the folks behind “Veep”… that’s saying something. 🤬. /Variety
Juliette Binoche joins limited series adaptation of true-crime docuseries “The Staircase”, starring Toni Collette, Colin Firth and Rosemarie DeWitt. /Deadline
APPLE TV+ orders dystopian future series from Graham Yost (“Justified”) starring Rebecca Ferguson (“Dune”, “M:I 7”)
Called “Wool”, 10 episodes, based on a best-selling book trilogy where a community of people live in an underground silo, in a highly regulated society.
Morten Tyldum (“The Imitation Game”) directing, produced by AMC Studios. /THR
ALSO IN TV
AMAZON renews “Wheel of Time” for 2nd season as season 1 wraps production. Fantasy series stars Rosamund Pike and is set in a world where magic exists, but only women can use it. Based on a series of books. No premiere date as of yet. /Deadline
💻 THE MEDIA BIZ
AT&T will have to pay DISCOVERY $1.8 Billion if it backs out of the deal
Wait? AT&T back out of a commitment to someone? Never. DISCOVERY would have to pay $720 Million if they pull out. If it falls apart due to the government… everyone walks away and has to write a really nice note to Jason Kilar. /Variety
ALSO: New WARNER DISCO CEO David Zaslav has been granted $190 Million in stock options over 8 years as part of this deal. AT&T shareholders almost fell out of their chairs just a few months ago when Jason Kilar got $48 Million in options vesting over 4 years. /WSJ
David Zaslav has made over $659 Million in compensation over the past 10 years. 🤑
SNAPCHAT has paid $130 Million to 5400+ creators using SPOTLIGHT (their TIKTOK ripoff) over 6 months
SNAP has been paying out a pool of up to $1 Million a day to the users who get the most engagement (emphasis on up to: 6 months = 180 days-ish, so looks like they’re about $50 Million short. Nice PR headline at the Nov launch though 👏 ).
ALSO… they’re discontinuing said $1 Million thing as of June, and just awarding “millions per month” going forward. /Variety
ALSO ALSO: SNAP now has over 500 Million monthly active users globally (MAU), 280 Million daily (DAU). That’s above PINTEREST and TWITTER, but behind TIKTOK.
SNAP “reaches” 90% of 13-24 year olds in US, UK. /CNBC
DISNEY+ has 50% of NETFLIX’s subscriber count, but only 17% of its revenue
Juuuust gonna media geek out on ya for a minute 🤓 - by all means just yell “Shut up Nerd!” and scroll down to the trailers.
But I did a dive into DISNEY & NETFLIX’s first quarter numbers for a look beyond the subscriber numbers you always see reported, to see just how far apart the 2 businesses are.
Basically, when it comes to making money… DISNEY+ has a long road ahead to match NETFLIX’s business and profit/break even point. So, click the headline above or here for a better understanding of where DISNEY+’s business is at from an actual revenue POV in mid 2021. /The Wakeup
ALSO IN MEDIA
“CBS This Morning” moving to Times Square studio this Fall. Across the street from “GMA” and in the former home of “TRL” - really hope Diddy sends over pizza like the old days. 🍕 /Variety
US based TIK TOK competitor TRILLER signs new licensing deal with world’s largest music label UNIVERSAL MUSIC GROUP. UMG pulled their music in Feb when TRILLER boldly told UMG something to the effect of “we don’t think we need an agreement to use your music”, to which UMG replied… well actually we couldn’t make it out over the laughter. /Variety
🏦 STOCK NOTES:
SNAPCHAT up almost 6% on their new user #s, and new shopping tools presentation.
DISCOVERY dropped another 4%
VIACOM up 4.6%
But LIONSGATE kinda winning the week, up another 4% yesterday to $18.54. It started the week at $14.98, up about 23% in 4 days.
👩💻 THE FSS FEED:
(new Stuff to Watch this weekend)
FRIDAY:
IN THEATERS:
IFC “The Dry” - Eric Bana hit Aussie movie. Guy goes back to his drought-stricken hometown to attend a funera, opening up a decades-old wound around the unsolved death of a teenage girl.
FOCUS FEATURES “Final Account” - Documentary about the last people in Hitler’s Nazi state.
ALSO: “F9” hits China where it already made $9 Million in Thursday night sneaks, and is tracking for a $160 Million opening weekend. Also hits other countries in the Far East plus Russia.
STREAMING:
NETFLIX “Army of the Dead” - Zack Snyder mercenaries attempt a heist in a zombie-riddled Vegas. Watch or Add to your List here
AMAZON PRIME “P!NK: All I Know So Far” documentary - Watch or Add to your List here
AMAZON PRIME “Solos” - Anthology series about what it means to be human. Watch or Add to your List here
HULU “MODOK” - MARVEL adult animated comedy, all 10 eps go up today. Watch or Add to your List here
APPLE TV+ “Trying” Season 2 - 8 eps, dropped weekly. Watch or Add to your List here
APPLE TV+ ”1971: The Year That Music Changed Everything” - 8 part docuseries from the team behind the Amy Winehouse and Senna documentaries. Watch or Add to your List here
APPLE TV+ “The Me You Can’t See” - Docuseries on mental health from Oprah and Prince Harry, all episodes up today. Watch or Add to your List here
SPECTRUM ORIGINALS “The Bite” - 6 episode deadly virus hits NYC show from Robert & Michelle King (“The Good Wife”) with Audra McDonald, Taylor Schilling and Stephen Pasquale, watch on Spectrum OnDemand
ON TV:
HBO “Pause with Sam Jay” - Variety show premieres at 9p
“Bill Maher” off again this week as they update Covid protocols.
SATURDAY:
PGA CHAMPIONSHP on CBS
SNL - Anya Taylor Joy and Lil Nas X season finale
SUNDAY
PGA CHAMPIONSHP on CBS
CBS “NCIS: New Orleans” - Series Finale at 10p
FOX “Duncanville” - Season 2 premiere (2 episodes) at 8:30p
NBC “The Billboard Music Awards” at 8p
SHOWTIME “The Chi” - Season 4 premiere at 9p
SHOWTIME “Black Monday” - Season 3 premeire at 10p
SHOWTIME “Flatbush Misdemeanors” - New Series premiere at 10:30p
HBO “In Treatment” - New season with Uzo Aduba premieres at 9p with 2 episodes
NETFLIX “Master of None” - Season 3, special Sunday drop… Watch or add to your List here
If you were forwarded “THE WAKEUP”… Hit Subscribe Now and get your very own email Weekdays by 830am EST (note: it won’t be addressed to your name. I don’t have Morning Brew money)
And just putting this here if you know someone who would dig it:
🎥 TRAILER HOUSE
HULU “Love, Victor” Season 2 trailer. Premieres Fri June 11.
DISNEY+ “The Mysterious Benedict Society” trailer. YA show based on the popular book series starring Tony Hale. Premieres Fri June 25.
🎧 PLAYING ME OFF
As it’s gonna be 90 degrees here in NYC this weekend… and WEEZER not only has the #1 album this week, but is also going on tour with GREEN DAY and FALL OUT BOY starting at the end of July (tix on sale now here), lets put you in the mood for warmer days ahead:
If you need new tunes:
Hope your AC system passes it’s test this weekend ya’ll! Email me anytime - just reply to this email, or connect here on LINKED IN.
-Sean McNulty
@theseanmac on TWITTER or also here on CLUBHOUSE or on IG @TheWakeupNews