The Last of Us delivered another series high on Sunday with 7.5M people tuning in across HBO and HBO Max. That’s a 17% increase from Episode 3’s audience of 6.4M, despite Sunday’s episode going head-to-head with the 65th annual Grammy Awards . This is the second week in a row that The Last of Us has had some big competition, after airing on HBO during the last half of the AFC Championship on the East Coast last week. The series has now grown its same-day audience every week since it debuted in January. Sunday night’s viewership was up 60% from the premiere episode’s same-day number. With the Super Bowl approaching this Sunday, The Last of Us fans are in luck, as the next episode drops on HBO Max in just a few days . The episode will debut on the streaming service on Friday at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT ahead of its HBO airing at in its usual Sunday spot (which conflicts directly with the Big Game). The series, which is based on the PlayStation game, takes … [Read more...] about ‘The Last Of Us’ Viewership Hits Another Series High With Episode 4 on HBO
Grand theft auto game series
‘Saturday Night Live‘: Pedro Pascal Spoofs ’The Last Of Us’ In Trailer For Apocalyptic Mario Kart Prestige Drama Series
Pedro Pascal raced through an apocalyptic version of Mario Kart during Saturday Night Live . The episode took notes from Pascal’s current HBO series The Last of Us with a fake trailer for another upcoming HBO prestige drama: Mario Kart . But instead of smuggling the potential cure to the zombie apocalypse across the United States, Pascal must smuggle Princess Peach through the ruins of Rainbow Road, the final course of the Special Cup in Super Mario. Pascal plays a hardened version of the iconic video game character, who has become cynical since Bowser took control of the kingdom. He’s willing to take on the job, but he warns that the journey won’t be easy. “Karting out here isn’t a game. If we’re going to make it, we’re going to need all the help we can get,” Mario says to Peach. He, of course, brings in Luigi for backup. The trailer teases that viewers will see “all your favorite wacky racers reimagined as complex, dramatic HBO characters.” That … [Read more...] about ‘Saturday Night Live‘: Pedro Pascal Spoofs ’The Last Of Us’ In Trailer For Apocalyptic Mario Kart Prestige Drama Series
Sky Seeking Next ‘Happy Valley’ As Content Boss Zai Bennett Teases Less Is More Approach
Sky is seeking inspiration from Happy Vall ey for its next hit show as programs boss Zai Bennett says the pay-TV giant is taking a ‘less is more’ approach to original content. Speaking at a Broadcasting Press Guild event this morning, Sky Studios Director of Original Drama Meghan Lyvers said conversations are taking place with producers about shows that have “an investigative spine with complicated, dysfunctional, flawed, human and relatable characters at the center,” evoking Happy Valley star Sarah Lancashire ’s Catherine Cawood. She responded “perhaps yes” when questioned if the next big Sky drama could be led by a Cawood-esque figure and talked up the way in which the BBC One/AMC+ sensation places an older woman front and centre of the story. A similar show, the Kate Winslet-starring Mare of Easttown, was launched by Sky and HBO in 2021 to critical acclaim. “There are always trends in terms of trying new shows and reaching new audiences but older women … [Read more...] about Sky Seeking Next ‘Happy Valley’ As Content Boss Zai Bennett Teases Less Is More Approach
‘The White Lotus’ Actor Eleonora Romandini Signs With Stride Management
EXCLUSIVE: Italian actress Eleonora Romandini , known in the U.S. for her role as Isabella, a concierge in HBO’s The White Lotus , has signed with Stride Management for representation. Romandini shares a SAG Award nomination for Best Ensemble in a Drama Series for her role as Isabella, the object of hotel manager Valentina’s (Sabrina Impacciatore) affection on Season 2 of The White Lotus , created, written, directed and executive produced by Mike White. A graduate of the 09 Academy in Milan in law, Romandini’s Italian series credits include RAI’s Il paradiso delle Signore and the short film Mythe Dior , directed by Matteo Garrone. She also appeared in the RAIUNO series Makari 2 directed by Michele Soavi. She was most recently seen on the film side in the Riccardo Milani-directed Corro da te and in Il grande giornio, directed by Massimo Venier. On television she was most recently seen in the series Il nostro Generale ( The General’s Men ) directed by Lucio … [Read more...] about ‘The White Lotus’ Actor Eleonora Romandini Signs With Stride Management
BBC Hit Drama ‘Happy Valley’ Has Tourists Flocking To Quiet Yorkshire Town
As millions of viewers in the UK prepare to sit down on Sunday evening for the grand finale – and last ever episode – of hit crime drama Happy Valley , one small town will have a special reason to toast the success of this massively popular and critically acclaimed show. With just 4,500 residents, Hebden Bridge is a pretty market town in West Yorkshire , long known for embracing alternative lifestyles and providing a sanctuary for those wanting to get off the beaten track. But in recent years, it has become best known as the location for many of the scenes shot in hit crime drama Happy Valley , the BAFTA-winning show written by Sally Wainwright and starring Sarah Lancashire as the brow-beaten but never defeated Sergeant Catherine Cawood. The show began in 2014, but fans have had to wait seven long years for the third and final series, which has lived up to all hopes and expectations, with UK fans now waiting with bated breath for Cawood’s final showdown with her … [Read more...] about BBC Hit Drama ‘Happy Valley’ Has Tourists Flocking To Quiet Yorkshire Town
Amazon Praises Video As Key Driver Of Prime; 2022 Content Spend, Including Music, Hit $16.6 Billion
UPDATED with content spend stats from annual report: Giant Amazon said its total expenses for video and music came to $16.6 billion last year, up from $13 billion in 2021. Video and music expense includes licensing and production costs associated with content offered within Amazon Prime memberships, and costs associated with digital subscriptions and sold or rented content, according to the company’s latest annual report that followed fourth quarter financials yesterday. On an earnings call Thursday, CFO Brian Olsavsky noted that Amazon spent $7 billion on originals, live sports and licensed content in 2022, up from $5 billion the year before. It’s unclear if those figures include all worldwide video content, which is increasingly central to Amazon’s strategy in driving membership for Prime, the biggest loyalty program in the world and the beating heart of the company. Amazon (which acquired MGM last year for $8.5 billion in cash) carefully evaluates its return on … [Read more...] about Amazon Praises Video As Key Driver Of Prime; 2022 Content Spend, Including Music, Hit $16.6 Billion
Sugar Ray Leonard Signs With Artists First
EXCLUSIVE : Artists First on Friday announced its signing of boxing Hall of Famer, Sugar Ray Leonard . Leonard enjoyed an elite, 20-year career in the ring before being inducted into the International Boxing Hall Of Fame in 1997, winning three National Golden Gloves titles, two Amateur Athletic Union championships and the 1975 Pan-American Games crown. He first got into boxing at age 14 and turned professional after winning a gold medal at the 1976 Olympic games, in a last-ditch effort to help his family with medical bills incurred from his father’s hospitalization with meningitis. Leonard won his first professional fight at age 20, then going on to defeat some of the greatest boxers of the modern era, from Wilfred Benetiz to Roberto Duran, Thomas Hearns and Marvelous Marvin Hagler, from whom Leonard won the world middleweight title. His boxing career also saw him win world titles in the welterweight, junior middleweight, super middleweight, and light heavyweight division, … [Read more...] about Sugar Ray Leonard Signs With Artists First
Super Bowl Commercials 2023: Watch Ads With Melissa McCarthy, Bryan Cranston, Serena Williams, Danny McBride And More
Super Sunday is upon us — and with it, Madison Avenue’s annual spending spree, which has seen the Big Game’s Hollywood quotient rise noticeably in recent years. Celebrity product pitches date back to the days of leather helmets, of course, but in the increasingly rare air of the Super Bowl they have started to overtake the left-field breakouts of the past by the likes of Puppy Monkey Baby or beer-loving frogs. With Fox’s telecast commanding a peak level of more than $7 million for 30-second spots, producers and brands again are banking on stars in a big way. Super Bowl LVII , a contest in Arizona between the Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs , will feature commercials starring Will Ferrell , Melissa McCarthy, Miles and Keleigh Teller and Sylvester Stallone, among others. Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul reteam as their Breaking Bad characters to plug Popcorners . Brian Cox joins a roster of A-list athletes for a riff on Caddyshack , and Alicia Silverstone leads a … [Read more...] about Super Bowl Commercials 2023: Watch Ads With Melissa McCarthy, Bryan Cranston, Serena Williams, Danny McBride And More
Eagles Fans Get Two-Hour School Delay Day After Super Bowl LVII
Getty Win or lose, some Eagles fans won't have to stress about waking up early for math class the day after the Super Bowl ... 'cause one school district has already implemented a two-hour delay in honor of the big game. The Gloucester City School District in South Jersey announced its plans to have a late start on Monday, Feb. 13 .. allowing kids and teachers to either celebrate -- or mourn -- the result of the game a bit longer before hitting the hay. "It is a rare and special time for families to watch our local professional football team compete in the Super Bowl," school superintendent Sean Gorman said about the decision. "We feel that it's important to give students and staff the opportunity to enjoy the game with the families and still attend school and work the next day safely and well-rested." FYI, Gloucester City is located in Camden County in New Jersey ... and is located about 12 minutes from Lincoln Financial Field in Philly, where the Eagles play … [Read more...] about Eagles Fans Get Two-Hour School Delay Day After Super Bowl LVII
Kyrie Irving Dropped By Nike Amid Controversy Over Highlighting Antisemitic Movie – Update
UPDATED with latest: Nike on Friday night became the latest company to distance itself from Brooklyn Nets guard Kyrie Irving , saying it will “suspend our relationship” with the all-star guard. The shoe brand also said it would not move forward with launching its latest line of Irving-branded shoe, the Kyrie 8. “At Nike, we believe there is no place for hate speech and we condemn any form of antisemitism,” Nike said in a statement this evening, per the AP . “To that end, we’ve made the decision to suspend our relationship with Kyrie Irving effective immediately and will no longer launch the Kyrie 8.” The move comes after Irving on Thursday night gave a more definitive apology about the impact of posting a link to a movie that espouses disproven anti-Semitic tropes. That wasn’t fast enough for the Nets, though. who suspended him for “no less than five games” earlier in the day for a failure to “unequivocally say he has no antisemitic beliefs.” Earlier in the day, … [Read more...] about Kyrie Irving Dropped By Nike Amid Controversy Over Highlighting Antisemitic Movie – Update