EXCLUSIVE : Howard Swartz , who has overseen hundreds of hours of Shark Week programming, is exiting Warner Bros Discovery to take up a new role at Banijay Americas -owned Stephen David Entertainment . Swartz, who was SVP of Documentaries and Specials for WBD’s Factual Networks and Streaming, becomes EVP Development at the company known for series including Men Who Built America and American Playboy. He will oversee development of SDE’s documentary, nonfiction series and specials and report to founder and CEO Stephen David. In addition to Shark Week, Swartz also worked on WBD’s natural history slate including Serengeti as well as the Donald Trump documentary Unprecedented, Viagra: The Little Blue Pill That Changed the World , and anthology strand Undiscovered . Prior to his latest stint at Discovery, Swartz was EVP Production and Development at British production company Arrow Media. Before that he was VP Production and Development at Discovery … [Read more...] about Shark Week Chief Howard Swartz Leaves Warner Bros Discovery To Join Stephen David Entertainment
Different seasons by stephen king
Paramount+ International Rollout Could Have Been Speedier But Marco Nobili “Proud”
Paramount+ is well ahead of its target to greenlight 150 non-U.S. originals by 2025 but international boss Marco Nobili wishes the streamer could have rolled out quicker. Addressing Series Mania this afternoon, Nobili said “if I could have accelerated our rollout then I would have” when questioned on how he would have done things differently over the past two years. “But you have to balance these things out,” he countered. “Sometimes staggering a launch proves to be the right recipe. If you show audiences the window you can get straight out the gate but could compromise on show quality.” Nobili added: “We could maybe have done an even faster rollout but looking back it was a challenge and we are proud of how it has worked out.” Paramount+ is now live in dozens of territories around the world and is well ahead of its target to greenlight 150 originals by 2025, Nobili revealed. He said half of streaming’s forecasted 8% growth over the next five years will come from … [Read more...] about Paramount+ International Rollout Could Have Been Speedier But Marco Nobili “Proud”
Tony Award Nominations: ‘Mean Girls,’ ‘SpongeBob’ And ‘Harry Potter’ Lead New Crop; ‘Angels,’ ‘Carousel’ Top Revivals
This morning’s Tony Award nominations favored the familiar, with Mean Girls and SpongeBob SquarePants leading the field with 12 nods apiece. The American debut of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child paced new plays with 10 nominations, and the revival of Angels in America had a strong showing with 11 nominations, most in Tony history for a play. (See the full list below.) Other shows posting impressive tallies included The Band’s Visit , with 11 nominations going to the original musical based on a 2007 Israeli film. An acclaimed revival of Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Carousel also scored 11 nominations, including one for Renée Fleming, who is better known for her career as one of the opera world’s most venerable stars. Lincoln Center’s posh reboot of My Fair Lady garnered 10 nominations, and the Denzel Washington-starring revival of Eugene O’Neill’s The Iceman Cometh received eight. Frozen , the latest Disney adaptation to head to Broadway , joining The … [Read more...] about Tony Award Nominations: ‘Mean Girls,’ ‘SpongeBob’ And ‘Harry Potter’ Lead New Crop; ‘Angels,’ ‘Carousel’ Top Revivals
Destry Allyn Spielberg’s Directing Debut Will Be ‘Please Don’t Feed The Children’; ‘Downton Abbey’s Michelle Dockery Starring
EXCLUSIVE : Michelle Dockery is set to star in Destry Allyn Spielberg ’s directorial debut, Please Don’t Feed the Children. The elevated genre feature film will begin production late April in New Mexico. Scripted by Paul Bertino, the psychological thriller is produced by Jason Dubin and his Perry Street Films, Josh Kesselman and Michael Hagerty. In Please Don’t Feed the Children, after a viral outbreak ravaged the country’s adult population, a group of orphans heads south in search of a new life, only to find themselves at the mercy of a deranged woman harboring a dangerous secret. Spielberg, daughter of The Fabelmans helmer, will do this film before the one on which she originally expected to make her feature debut, Four Assassins (and a Funeral) . The latter, a Kingsman- meets- Knives Out meets- Succession -style script by Ryan Hooper that made the 2021 Black List , will percolate a bit longer but is still in the works from Basil Iwanyk & Erica … [Read more...] about Destry Allyn Spielberg’s Directing Debut Will Be ‘Please Don’t Feed The Children’; ‘Downton Abbey’s Michelle Dockery Starring
‘Chicago P.D.’: Jesse Lee Soffer Reveals He Almost Made A Sneaky Cameo In Directorial Debut
Jesse Lee Soffer has returned home to NBC ’s Chicago P.D. but not as Jay Halstead. Instead, he’s making his debut as a director in tonight’s episode “Deadlocked.” The actor announced in late August his 10-season run on the Dick Wolf drama would conclude, making his final appearance on October 5. News followed weeks later that he would reunite with the cast and crew in the director’s chair. “Deadlocked” is the continuation of “The Ghost Inside Of You” which aired on February 15. “This was the perfect episode for me to direct,” Soffer told Deadline during a recent interview. “I love this episode because it was like a throwback episode to old-school PD with Voight [Jason Beghe] going off the rails, Man on Fire kind of stuff, vigilante stuff, and living in the gray area off the books. That’s the story we’ve been telling, especially the foil between Halstead and Voight, for so long—it’s something I really know deeply. So to get to do that kind of story with Jason was really … [Read more...] about ‘Chicago P.D.’: Jesse Lee Soffer Reveals He Almost Made A Sneaky Cameo In Directorial Debut
Erik Lomis Dies: Veteran MGM Distribution Chief Was 64
Extremely devastating news: MGM and United Artists Releasing distribution boss Erik Lomis died suddenly Wednesday at his home in Santa Monica, we have learned from sources. No details were provided in regards to his death. He was 64. Lomis was a towering figure behind many filmmakers’ hits including those from Quentin Tarantino, Paul Thomas Anderson, Adam McKay, Sylvester Stallone, Ryan Coogler, David O. Russell, Lee Daniels and Tom Hooper to name a few, and most recently Michael B. Jordan with Creed III . In the wake of Amazon’s purchase of MGM, Lomis, who made the jump, becoming an entrusted consigliere to Amazon Studios head Jennifer Salke as the streamer looks to capitalize on more big-screen hits. Lomis gave Amazon a big taste of the box office with its first theatrical hit Creed III, which opened to more than $100 million worldwide and is currently grossing to $225M-plus at the global box office. It was Lomis’ bold decision to move Creed III out of … [Read more...] about Erik Lomis Dies: Veteran MGM Distribution Chief Was 64
‘The Prom’ Review: Broadway Comedy Razzle-Dazzles Small Town Bigotry
Your prom probably didn’t have a glorious gaggle of Broadway troupers and their trunk loads of self-regard and narcissism gumming things up for your rite of passage – more’s the pity – but in some ways I’d guess Broadway’s musical The Prom isn’t so unlike the one you lived through way back when. The build-up was more fun than the event, right? Inspired by an actual event – and the inspired is apt – The Prom is the latest razzle-dazzle show-biz love fest from director and choreographer Casey Nicholaw, who applied the same glitz and show-biz glitter to Mean Girls, Aladdin and, more to the point here, Something Rotten! , that great mash-up of the Bard and Broadway. Comparisons won’t do The Prom much good – Something Rotten it isn’t, but it tries. The Prom begins with a first-act of laughs and a demolition of the type of delicious Broadway monsters who can drop Carrie the Musical jokes with the timed precision of a Fosse broken doll walk. The premise … [Read more...] about ‘The Prom’ Review: Broadway Comedy Razzle-Dazzles Small Town Bigotry