Category: media

“The prominent fall events, all positioned six weeks from each other, [will] collaborate rather than compete in a spirit of post-pandemic solidarity. The statement announcing this alliance provides scant details of what concrete form it will take. … But what appears clear is there will be a truce when it comes to the usual frenzied jockeying for world premieres.” – Variety

“In the lawsuit led by the National Association of Theatre Owners of New Jersey, naming Gov. Philip Murphy and New Jersey’s health commissioner, …, the plaintiffs” — which include AMC, Cinemark, and Regal — “argue that because churches and retailers have been allowed to open in the state, the movie theaters should be permitted to reopen as well.” – NPR

On June 12, the U.K.-based cinema giant had called off its planned $2.1 billion takeover of Cineplex, which would have created one of the world’s largest cinema companies with more than 11,200 screens globally. Cineplex, as a once friendly takeover attempt has hit the rocks, claimed that Cineworld “breached its contractual obligations and its duty of good faith and honesty.” – The Hollywood Reporter

TikTok — which is owned by Beijing-based startup ByteDance — has been repeatedly criticized by US politicians who accused the short-form video app of being a threat to national security because of its ties to China. They allege that the company could be compelled to “support and cooperate with intelligence work controlled by the Chinese Communist Party.” – CNN

“Avatar: The Last Airbender … first ran from 2005 to 2008 on Nickelodeon, and swiftly made a name for itself as a politically resonant, emotionally sophisticated work — one with a sprawling but meticulously plotted mythos that destined the show for cult-classic status. Last summer, after Game of Thrones flubbed its finale, fans and critics held up Avatar as a counterexample: a fantasy series that knew what it wanted to be from the beginning.” – The New Yorker

Blockbuster, it turns out, ended up doing a very good job of fighting back against Netflix and might well have won, but it made some fundamental mistakes that ended up dooming its future. – Recode

There were LMM handwritten lyrics, a Daveed Diggs improv that added a lot to TJ’s character, and oh so much more. – Vulture

Why? Money. Also, Tom Cruise had a chat with the minister. “We want the industry to bounce back and exempting small numbers of essential cast and crew from quarantine is part of our continued commitment to getting cameras rolling safely again.” – Variety

A “synthetic actor” called Erica “has been cast in b, a $70 million science-fiction movie … about scientists who create an AI robot named Erica who quickly realize the danger of this top-secret program that is trying to perfect a human through a non-human form. Variety caught up with the filmmakers [Tarek] Zohdy and [Sam] Khoze to discuss b.” – Variety