Entertainment, led by eOne , bolstered sales at Hasbro last quarter, partly offsetting Covid-related supply chain bottlenecks that hit toy deliveries. Entertainment revenues surged 76% to $327 million and adjusted operating profit swung to $42 million from a $3.6 million loss the year before. The company cited television deliveries of Yellowjackets and The Rookie and Moonshine, as well as sales of Fear the Walking Dead among other scripted and unscripted programs. Film revenue grew behind Come from Away and Finch . Family brands revenue growth was highlighted by the delivery of My Little Pony : A New Generation to Netflix (debuted last month) and content deals for Peppa Pig and PJ Masks. Brian Goldner , who led the company’s successful charge into entertainment during his 13 years as CEO, including the key acquisition of eOne in 2019, passed away earlier this month from cancer at age 58. Goldner “transformed an almost 100-year-old toy company …
Mel Gibson Joins John Wick Prequel Series The Continental
Mel Gibson has joined the cast of John Wick prequel series The Continental as a character named Cormac. The Lionsgate Television produced three-night event will act as an origin story about the hotel-for-assassins, which has been heavily featured in the Keanu Reeves film franchise. In the movies the hotel is run by Winston Scott, played by Ian McShane, and it is through the eyes of a younger version of Winston that the story of the early years of the hotel will be shown. As of yet, there is no word on who will play the part, but there are a few details about the plot that have been released so far. The three part series will be set in 1975, in New York where Winston Scott is forced to face the past that he believed he had long since left behind. As he attempts to take control of the notorious hotel , which already has a reputation as a meeting place of the most dangerous criminals of the world, Winston must negotiate a course through the dark and deadly underworld of New …
Continue Reading about Mel Gibson Joins John Wick Prequel Series The Continental →
Twitter Hits 211 Million Daily Active Users In Q3; U.S. Ad Sales Jump 51%, Profits Hit By Litigation Charge
Twitter hit 211 million daily active user last quarter, up 13% from a year ago. In the U.S., daily active users stood at 37 million. Advertising was robust. Shares jumped nearly 4% in after-hours trading. Revenue of $1.28 billion was up 37%. Twitter sales are advertising based and saw U.S, total sales up 45% to $742 million and ad sales up 51%. That came despite headwinds in digital advertising from new Apple-iOS privacy settings that smashed Snap’s earnings last week and weighed on Facebook yesterday. Apple requires users to opt-in actively if it wants mobile apps to track them across other apps and websites. That makes if harder for advertisers to deliver targeted ads that have become a high-value piece of their business. Twitter, compared with some of its peers, depends more on brand advertising, which has taken less of of hit from the iOS change than direct response advertising. (Also unlike some of its peers, it hasn’t been dragged before Congress recently. …
Plimsoll Productions: ‘Hostile Planet’ Producer Boosts Sales By 65% In Pandemic-Impacted Year
EXCLUSIVE: Hostile Planet producer Plimsoll Productions has posted a 65% increase in sales to almost $70M (£50M) over the past year, defying the impact of the pandemic in the natural history space. Deadline understands the firm’s EBITDA has also nearly doubled to around the $14M (£10M) for the year to 31 August 2021. Bristol-based Plimsoll was acquired by UK private equity firm LDC in 2019 in a deal that valued the producer at around $110M (£80M). As production in the booming natural history space was hit by the financial and logistical impacts of Covid-19, Plimsoll saw the likes of Apple TV+’s Tiny World and ABC ’s Women of 9/11 released, while tying with ITV on the UK network’s return to natural history. Grant Mansfield’s outfit also acquired Andrea Jackson’s distributor Magnify Media. The company therefore posted a sales increase of around 65% to almost hit the $70M (£50M) mark, according to LDC. Mansfield said the news is “testament to [the team’s] …
Rebecca Damon Named Executive Director Of SAG-AFTRA’s New York Local; L.A. And New England Local Exec Directors Also Set
Rebecca Damon has been named executive director of SAG-AFTRA’s New York local – a paying staff job that will require her to give up her membership in the union. Damon, an actor and voice-over performer, had previously served as the union’s executive vice president and president of the New York local – both of which are non-paying positions. Damon replaces Jeffrey Bennett, who had been the New York local’s executive director and deputy general counsel. He moved up to general counsel when Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, who had been the general counsel, succeeded David White as national executive director. Two other local executive directors have also been appointed: Serena Kung in Los Angeles, and Jessica Maher in New England. They had previously served as interim local executive directors. Kung succeeds Ilyanne Morden Kichaven, who retired earlier this year after 20 years of service. “I am thrilled to appoint Serena, Rebecca and Jessica to these new roles,” …
‘A Quiet Place’ Video Game In The Works By Saber Interactive & Illogika
A Quiet Place is expanding beyond film as games publisher Saber Interactive and developer iLLOGIKA unveil plans for an upcoming video game set in the same universe as the Paramount horror film directed by John Krasinski. “The first official video game set in the terrifying A Quiet Place universe will deliver an original story and gameplay that captures the compelling suspense, emotion and drama for which the series if famous,” Saber Interactive’s announcement reads. In addition to Saber and iLLOGIKA, the games hails from Texas-based gaming company EP1T0ME Studios and Paramount Pictures Corporation. The game is set to release sometime in 2022 , but no additional details a have been revealed. “The A Quiet Place video game will let fans experience the tension of the films with a level of immersion they’ve never felt before,” said Hervé Sliwa, Creative Director at iLLOGIKA. “We’re excited to work with EP1T0ME and to team up with Saber Interactive to share this …
Continue Reading about ‘A Quiet Place’ Video Game In The Works By Saber Interactive & Illogika →
Google Parent Alphabet Rides Digital Ad Surge, With 43% Jump At YouTube Powering Strong Q3
Google parent Alphabet rode continued momentum in digital advertising in the third quarter, reporting total revenue of $53.6 billion in the quarter, not counting traffic acquisition costs. Earnings per share came in at $27.99, far ahead of analysts’ consensus expectation of $23.50 and up 71% from a year ago. The revenue figure cleared Wall Street’s bar by $1 billion. When not adjusting for traffic costs, revenue shot up 41% to $65.1 billion. YouTube ad revenue jumped 43% from the year-earlier period, reaching $7.2 billion. Search revenue climbed 44% to $37.9 billion. The earnings release comes in the midst of a series of quarterly financial disclosures from major tech players. Netflix got things started last week, while Twitter is reporting today and Amazon and Apple are due up on Thursday. Alphabet is approaching a market value of $2 trillion, with its shares reaching an all-time high of $2,936 over the summer. The stock closed today at $2,793.44, up a …
Assistant Director Who Gave Alec Baldwin Loaded Pistol Was Fired From 2019 Film Over Gun Incident
Dave Halls, the Rust assistant director who handed actor Alec Baldwin the loaded gun that killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins last week, had been fired from a movie set in 2019 over what producers are characterizing as the negligent discharge of a firearm. A producer for the film Freedom’s Path confirmed to Rolling Stone that Halls, who served as an assistant director, was terminated on the spot after a gun “unexpectedly discharged” on his watch. “I can confirm that Dave Halls was fired from the set of Freedom’s Path in 2019 after a crew member incurred a minor and temporary injury when a gun was unexpectedly discharged. Halls was removed from set immediately after the prop gun discharged. Production did not resume filming until Dave was off-site,” the producer said in the statement. “An incident report was taken and filed at that time.” At least one cast member on Rust says he had no idea he had been working around so many prop firearms with an assistant …
Ed Sheeran Brought ‘Shivers’ and ‘Bad Habits’ to NPR’s ‘Tiny Desk (Home) Concert’ Series
Ed Sheeran appeared on the latest installment of NPR Music’s Tiny Desk (Home) Concert series to perform a slate of songs from his upcoming studio album Equals , out Friday, October 29th. The singer’s five-song set featured the album’s two lead singles, “Bad Habits” and “Shivers,” which set the tone for his shift toward pure pop as he continues down the rabbit hole of “Shape of You.” He also made room for the previously released “Visiting Hours,” introduced with an anecdote about the song being inspired by losing a friend. Sheeran also premiered a new song during his set, the acoustic-driven “Overpass Graffiti,” and performed a cover of Foy Vance’s “Make It Rain.” His rendition was initially recorded in 2014 for the crime drama series Sons of Anarchy. The Tiny Desk (Home) Concert performance is one of the few in-person live promotions for Equals that Sheeran will be able to offer during release week now that he’s had to cancel a number of performances after testing …
Senators Propose Corporate Minimum Tax For Build Back Better Plan
Corporations that report more than $1 billion in profits would have to pay at least 15% in tax under a proposal that could end up in the Build Back Better Act, the cornerstone of President Joe Biden’s agenda. The backers of the proposal, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Sen. Angus King (I-ME) outlined some of the details on Tuesday as Democrats wrangle over how to pay for the Build Back Better Act, which would expand the social safety net and programs to combat climate change. Studios and media companies, along with lobbyists across industries, have opposed Biden’s proposal to raise the corporate tax rate , currently at 21%. But that tax hike plan appears to be dead, as Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ), is against increasing the corporate rate and rates on high income earners. Yet on Tuesday, she expressed support for the three senators’ proposal, saying that it “represents a commonsense step toward ensuring that highly profitable corporations — which …
Continue Reading about Senators Propose Corporate Minimum Tax For Build Back Better Plan →