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Exclusive: Amazon MGM Studios’ The Big Sick and The Idea of You filmmaker Michael Showalter is back with the theatrical streaming studio for an untitled pop movie inspired by Cyrano de Bergerac.

Showalter will direct the untitled Cyrano Pop movie, which Andrea Seigel will write based on a Cyrano de Bergerac-type story by her and Showalter about a behind-the-scenes songwriter in the world of pop stars.

Catherine Davis of Nine Lives Entertainment, John Davis of Davis Entertainment, and Showalter and Jordana Mollick of Semi-Formal Productions are producing. Emily Crook is overseeing the project for Semi-Formal.

Seigel Amazon MGM Studios

Showalter and Mollick’s Semi-Formal recently signed a multi-year first-look deal with Amazon MGM for narrative features. Showalter’s latest film, The Idea of You, starring Anne Hathaway and Nicholas Galitzine, became Amazon’s most successful romantic comedy debut. His upcoming projects include Amazon’s Oh. What. Fun., a holiday comedy starring Michelle Pfeiffer,...

Let's be honest: Taylor Sheridan's "Tulsa King" (one of his few shows that the creator doesn't actually write) would barely work without its star, Sylvester Stallone, if at all. The fish-out-of-water gangster drama is built around the Rocky Balboa legend, and it's hard to imagine anybody else being as formidable as Sly is as Dwight Manfredi, the old-school Mafioso who's sent to Tulsa, Oklahoma, by his New York crime boss after finishing a 25-year prison sentence without snitching or betraying any of his associates. Given more as a demotion and punishment than anything else, Dwight isn't exactly happy with the cards he's been dealt — considering what he's done and endured for his crime family — but he's also resourceful enough to improvise a plan and start setting up new criminal operations in a city that hardly has a pulse compared to his hometown in the Big Apple. Before you know it,...

Today, Wondery announce Don’t Cross Kat, a gripping new true crime miniseries hosted by acclaimed Brazilian journalist and storyteller Chico Felitti. Based on the hit Brazilian podcast A Coach, Don’t Cross Kat follows one woman’s journey to find her missing best friend who has fallen under the dangerous influence of a modern-day online guru. The series debuts on Wondery+ on March 17 and everywhere you get your podcasts weekly starting March 31.

Don’t Cross Kat joins a growing lineup of podcasts from Wondery that explore the dark underbelly of human behavior and online influence, including Fed Up, Scamfluencers, and Scam Factory. In this latest series, listeners are introduced to Kat Torres, an influencer who is wealthy, stunning, and unafraid to flaunt it. Her posts about witchcraft and “alien baths” attract millions of followers, but as her audience grows, so do the dark secrets behind her fame. When one...

Exclusive: I May Destroy You producer Various Artists Limited (Val) has landed its latest BBC project, a drama series about a family holiday to Greece that turns into a nightmare.

Val is currently casting on Two Weeks in August, which comes from The Shrink Next Door writer Catherine Shepherd. ITV Studios is producing in association with and selling worldwide.

Two Weeks in August tells the story of a woman who goes on holiday with her family and friends to rediscover joy in her life. Zoe begins to act on her deepest desires and the holiday she hoped for becomes a reckoning for a group of adults who refuse to grow up. But when they discover they are trapped on the island, and become faced with real life-or-death situations, the group soon turn on each other to find out who is to blame.

Val is on a hot streak with the BBC,...

Exclusive: Bunny Levine (Thelma), Dree Hemingway (Starlet), and Connie Shi (Law & Order) lead cast of Omi, a Jewish body possession comedy, which has wrapped filming in Los Angeles.

Making her feature directorial debut is Emily Lerer (Shameless), from a script by Adam Lebowitz-Lockard (The Shrink Next Door), who also stars as Matt, an impulsive millennial mensch who gets possessed by the spirit of his dead Yiddish grandma, Omi (Levine), after popping the question to his shiksa girlfriend, Christina (Hemingway). In order to pull off the Jewish exorcism of the century, Matt and Christina enlist the help of Rabbi Louise (Connie Shi) and friends (played by Jonathan Fishman and Dalia Rooni).

Rounding out the cast are Shane Paul McGhie (Deputy) as Troy, Brooks Wheelan (Saturday Night Live) as Brian, Tess Paras (Crazy Ex-Girlfriend) as Lauren, Morgana Shaw (Hit Man) as Ms. Walker, Paul Urcioli (Thanks For Sharing) as Boss, with Ken Lerner...

Apple TV+, arguably the most underrated streaming service of them all, will be free to use to celebrate the new year. The streamer houses several acclaimed titles, including Silo, Severance, and Shrinking, among many others, but now those who have yet to watch them will be able to do so at no cost. At the start of 2025, several new seasons of Apple TV+'s flagship shows will arrive on the platform, as well as other lesser-known television shows.

Apple announced on their social media accounts that all Apple TV+ content will be streaming for free on January 4-5, 2025. The company had been promoting a forthcoming announcement for the past couple of days, teasing that big news was headed for their streaming platform. It turned out that it will be free to use this weekend, and it seems the deal includes everything currently available in the Apple TV+ library. The timing is no coincidence,...

While writing “American Sports Story: Aaron Hernandez,” showrunner Stuart Zicherman had one thought about casting an actor to play Aaron Hernandez, the late NFL tight end who was convicted of murder in 2015 and later died by suicide in prison. “I remember thinking, ‘Oh, man, we’re never going to find someone to play this,’” Zicherman tells Gold Derby.

But any apprehension about building a show around Hernandez, a preternaturally talented athlete and budding star who made several grave mistakes in his life, fell away when Zicherman saw Josh Andres Rivera.

“In the audition process, we saw a lot of people performing the role and they could play the anger and they could play the darkness and they could play the murderous part of Aaron,” Zicherman says. “What we needed was somebody who could play the other side of it too. Someone who could play the funny, goofy Aaron — the sensitive and aspirational Aaron.

Anne Hathaway will star in the upcoming film adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s best-selling book “Verity.”

She will play Verity Crawford, a famous author who is unable to finish her thriller novel after a car accident leaves her badly injured and incapacitated. So her husband Jeremy offers a struggling writer named Lowen a huge sum of money to complete the remaining books in the series. Lowen accepts the gig but uncovers dark secrets in the process — including an unfinished manuscript that hints at chilling admissions about Verity and her family’s past — leaving Lowen to determine if Verity is a gifted fictionist or deranged psychopath. The roles of Jeremy and Lowen have yet to be cast.

Michael Showalter, who worked with Hathaway on this year’s rom-com “The Idea of You,” is directing the film for Amazon MGM. It will be released in theaters. Nick Antosca wrote the script after...

After the novel became a smashing bestseller, there were a lot of people waiting for the Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine movie adaptation. From author Gail Honeyman, Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine tells the story of Eleanor, a Scottish woman in her late 20s who is highly intelligent but socially awkward. Along with avoiding interacting with her colleagues, Eleanor spends her weekends in her apartment drinking heavily by herself. However, as she begins to confront some of the trauma of her past, the protagonist also learns to open up to those around her.

Released in 2017, the novel received high acclaim from critics and won the Costa Debut Novel Award. It also became a hit with the public, as over 2.5 million copies have been sold (via Harper Collins). Not surprisingly, it didn't take too long before that success caught the attention of Hollywood. The movie adaptation of Eleanor Oliphant is Completely...

10 Series to Check Out if You Loved the Menendez Brothers Series - Main Image

Monster may have covered the story of serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer first, and this year the season decided to focus on the true-crime story of Lyle and Eric Menendez, brothers who were convicted of murdering their wealthy parents with a shotgun.

The third season of the series is now set to tell the true story of serial killer Ed Gein with Sons of Anarchy actor Charlie Hunnam, but while fans wait for that to come out in a couple of years or so, there are some other true-crime dramas that are very well worth checking out if you got bitten by the true-crime bug.

American Crime Story Series

Before Monster was even a show, creator Ryan Murphy had another anthology series called American Crime Story that followed real-life crimes that became the center of huge scandals.

The Shrink Next Door is a psychological mousetrap led by Will Ferrell, Paul Rudd, and Kathryn Hahn. Based on true events, its a show about boundaries and the many ways they can be pushed in an unhealthy relationship. Marty (Ferrell) is a mild-mannered and nervous pushover just looking for someone he can trust to make him feel more in control. When he visits Dr. Isaac Ike Herschkopf (Rudd) for a therapy appointment, he is quickly appeased, but also quickly taken advantage of. Martys no-nonsense sister, Phyllis (Hahn), begins to notice whats going on between him and his therapist and does everything she can to warn him, but not before taking care of herself. The effects of Dr. Ikes problematic actions are detrimental not only to Marty, but to Marty's sister and coworkers, and to his other therapy clients. The Shrink Next Door delves into the repercussions of blurring the lines between professionalism and downright evil.

The leading podcast studio and publisher Wondery, an Amazon company, announced today an ad-sales representation and distribution deal for the popular fan-favorite sports podcast series, New Heights with Jason and Travis Kelce. Starting this month, the deal includes global distribution rights to all audio and video episodes of the podcast, New Heights’ back catalogue of all content, as well as rights to create international audio adaptations of the podcast for global audiences.

Timed to the upcoming NFL season, Wondery has exclusive rights to monetize and distribute audio and video podcast episodes. New Heights will continue to be available widely on all podcast services, including Wondery’s various distribution channels and on YouTube. The deal also includes ad-free listening on Wondery+, livestreams, and rights to develop, manufacture, license and distribute all merchandise based on New Heights, including new consumer products.

“We couldn't be more excited to team up with Wondery for...

FX has released the first trailer forAmerican Sports Story: Aaron Hernandez, the latest true crime series from Emmy winnerRyan Murphy(Glee,Monster). The series starsJosh Rivera (West Side Story) as Aaron Hernandez, the NFL star whose career imploded when he was convicted of murder. The event series premieres September 17 on FX, and will stream onHulu. The limited event series consists of 10 episodes, and chronicles the rise and fall of NFL superstar Aaron Hernandez, who played tight end for The New England Patriots alongside Tom Brady until his violent nature led him to murder.

The series explores the disparate strands of his identity, his family, his career, his arrest, and his legacy in sports and American culture. It is based on the podcast Gladiator: Aaron Hernandez and Football Inc., produced by The Boston Globe and Wondery. You can check out the new trailer for American Sports Story: Aaron Hernandez below.

Exclusive: Media Res, the company behind Apple series The Morning Show and Pachinko, is staffing up.

It has hired three new television executives: Mary Claire Manley, Ayesha Nadarajah and Megan Reid.

It is the latest hires for the Michael Ellenberg-run company following the appointment of former Max exec Sandra Dewey earlier this year.

The move also comes after Jeff Zucker’s RedBird Imi invested in the company earlier this year, funding its next stage of growth, including bolster its scripted business in the U.S. and internationally as well as building out its unscripted and film divisions.

Manley joins as SVP, Scripted Television, Nadarajah is VP, Nonfiction and Reid is VP, Scripted Development.

Manley was most recently SVP of Development at MRC where she spent the past five years overseeing and developing a slate of shows such as Chris Pratt’s The Terminal List with Amazon Studios as well...

Wondery, the leading podcast studio and network, is teaming up with Mills Entertainment, a leading producer and promoter of live entertainment experiences, for a multi-year collaboration to produce live tours based on Wondery’s critically-acclaimed podcast series. The first of the live experiences kicks off this fall with Wondery’s true crime collection Exhibit C, bringing the popular true crime podcast Dr. Death to the stage.

The live tour titled “Exhibit C Live Presents: Dr. Death - A Closer Look,'' begins in November 2024, diving into the unsettling true stories of medical malpractice and lapses of accountability brought to light by the acclaimed podcast. Pre-sale tickets will be available starting today, August 6 for Wondery+ subscribers, and to the general public starting on Friday, August 9. A full list of “Exhibit C Live Presents: Dr. Death - A Closer Look” tour dates and additional information including participating panelists and ticket availability can be found on the website.

Wondery, Amazon’s leading podcast and entertainment company, announced an exclusive distribution and ad-sales deal for the massively popular podcast, Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard. As part of the deal, Wondery and Armchair Expert will co-develop and produce two new podcasts for fans, and one livestream per year. Wondery will also have a first-look option for any additional new podcasts created by Dax Shepard.

Starting September 1, the deal includes rights to the Armchair Expert full back catalog of podcast content, distribution rights to RSS feed, launch video episodes for the first time, as well as rights to create translated versions of the podcast for Wondery’s global audience. In addition, new episodes of Armchair Expert will be available one week early and ad-free on Wondery+ exclusively for subscribers, prior to going wide. Wondery will also have exclusive rights to develop, manufacture and sell all Armchair Expert merchandise.

“I could not...

Netflix and Will Ferrell are partnering up for a new comedy series for the streaming platform. It's also setting a first for the accomplished actor, as this will be his first starring role in a scripted comedy series.

Per Netflix, the streamer has officially put in a 10-episode series order for the Ferrell-led series Golf. The series will see Ferrell in the lead role as a fictional golf legend. Ferrell co-created the series with Ramy Youssef and Josh Rabinowitz, and Youssef is also set to be featured with a role in the show. Rabinowitz and Youssef will serve as showrunners, and they are executive producing alongside Ferrell, Jessica Elbaum, and Alix Taylor for Gloria Sanchez Productions; Rian Johnson, Ram Bergman, and Nena Rodrigue for T-Street; and Andy Campagna for Cairo Cowboy.

Related Madame Web Becomes Big Hit on Netflix After Bombing in Theaters Here come all the people who missed...

Will Ferrell and Ramy Youssef are co-creating “Golf,” a comedy series set at Netflix, with Ferrell also set to star. Josh Rabinowitz also serves as co-creator.

Ferrell will play a fictional golf legend in the 10-episode series. Youssef will also appear onscreen in the series, but details regarding his character are being kept under wraps.

Youssef and Rabinowitz serve as showrunners, and executive produce alongside Ferrell, Jessica Elbaum and Alix Taylor for Gloria Sanchez Productions; Rian Johnson, Ram Bergman and Nena Rodrigue for T-Street; and Andy Campagna for Youssef’s Cairo Cowboy.

Ferrell is best known for his sevens seasons as a “Saturday Night Live” cast member and starring in films such as “Elf,” “Anchorman,” “Talladega Nights” and “Step Brothers,” having co-written the last three titles with Adam McKay. More recently, he has appeared in “Barbie,” “The Shrink Next Door” and “Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga.” Ferrell...

Netflix is ready to tee off with Will Ferrell.

In his first scripted TV comedy series, Ferrell will star in a scripted comedy series titled Golf. The streamer has picked up 10 episodes of the series, which is co-created by Ferrell, Ramy Youssef — who will also have an onscreen role — and Josh Rabinowitz (Babes, Ramy, The Carmichael Show).

In Golf, Ferrell will play a fictional golf legend. Details on Youssef’s part are being kept under wraps though sources say the show isn’t a two-hander. (Netflix also stresses that Golf should be capitalized, though it’s unclear if it’s an acronym.)

Youssef and Rabinowitz, who previously teamed for Hulu’s critically praised comedy Ramy, will serve as showrunners and exec produce Golf alongside Ferrell, Jessica Elbaum and Alix Taylor for Gloria Sanchez Productions. Rian Johnson (Peacock’s Poker Face), Ram Bergman and Nena Rodrigue will exec produce for T-Street,...

Hulu has given a piot order to “Downforce” (working title), a comedy pilot written and executive produced by “Silicon Valley” writers Alec Berg and Adam Countee.

The official logline for “Downforce” reads, “When the heiress to a dynastic racing team is thrust back into the family business, she needs to make some hard choices about the future of the team and her family’s legacy.”

The pilot will be produced by ABC Signature, where Berg and Countee both have overall deals. Non-writing executive producers include Marty Bowen and Wyck Godfrey of Temple Hill as well as Daniel Ricciardo, Amy Solomon and Lionsgate Television.

Berg is best known for serving as showrunner and executive producer on “Silicon Valley,” which ran on HBO for six seasons from 2014 to 2019, and for co-creating HBO’s “Barry,” which concluded after four seasons in 2023. Earlier in his career, he joined “Seinfeld” in its sixth season as...

Hulu has given a pilot order to Downforce (working title) from ABC Signature.

Alec Berg and Adam Countee, who have overall deals at ABC Signature, will executive produce the comedy.

It’s about an heiress to a dynastic racing team who is thrust back into the family business. She needs to make some hard choices about the future of the team and her family’s legacy.

Non-writing EPs are Marty Bowen and Wyck Godfrey of Temple Hill Entertainment; Daniel Ricciardo, Amy Solomon; and Lionsgate.

Berg co-created Barry with Bill Hader. He also served as showrunner of the HBO comedy. His previous credits include Curb Your Enthusiasm and Silicon Valley.

Countee worked with Berg on Silicon Valley. He also co-executive produced The Shrink Next Door.

Today, Wondery, the leading podcast and entertainment company announced the release of Wondery Ad Analytics, a new ad measurement suite to increase transparency, performance, and measurement for podcast advertisers. With over 55 shows topping the Apple charts, Wondery has the most #1 global hits of any podcast studio and consistently delivers high-quality, conversation-inspiring content.

With Wondery Ad Analytics, Wondery is positioned to become a leading player in podcast ads measurement, directly addressing requests from advertisers for the types of products and services they want. This new measurement-as-a-service program gives advertising customers direct access to actionable campaign insights from trusted third-party providers. Wondery Ad Analytics includes six measurement products, and over a dozen third-party vendors, supporting US and non-us locales, making it one of the most comprehensive podcast ad measurement programs available in the industry including solutions for Brand Lift, Web Lift, Retail Traffic Lift, Offline Sales Lift, Brand Safety & Suitability, A/B experimentation and more.

[This story contains spoilers to the The Idea of You film on Prime Video.]

The Idea of You starts like any other romance movie: A boy and girl meet, fall in love, and maybe have a swoon-worthy ending. But what happens when the girl is a 40-year-old woman, the boy is a 24-year-old boy band member, and fame and public scrutiny bring obstacles to the journey that might’ve been leading to a happy ending?

The Idea of You centers on 40-year-old art gallery owner Solène Marchand (Anne Hathaway) who, after being forced to take her daughter and friends to Coachella after her ex-husband bails on the plans, unexpectedly meets Hayes Campbell (Nicholas Galitzine), British front man to the uber-popular boy band August Moon. Despite Solène being unfazed by the pandemonium and allure of the young singers, their meet-cute eventually turns into a steamy romance, but not without the hiccups of fame and attention that come as a result.

Exclusive: Dulé Hill and Sarayu Blue are set for key recurring roles opposite Ellen Pompeo and Mark Duplass in Orphan (working title), Hulu‘s eight episode limited series starring and executive produced by Pompeo.

Written by Katie Robbins, the drama series is inspired by the true story of a Midwestern couple, Michael and Kristine Barnett, played by Duplass and Pompeo, who adopt a girl with a rare form of dwarfism. But as they begin to raise her alongside their three biological children, questions emerge around her age and background, and they slowly start to suspect she may not be who she says she is. As they grow to believe their new daughter is a threat, she fights her own battle to confront her past and what her future holds, in a showdown that ultimately plays out in the tabloids and the courtroom.

Hill plays Brandon Drysdale, the detective investigating the...

True crimes and scandals have made for provocative entertainment for millennia, but the sheer amount of content these days means that even the best true story risks getting lost to obscurity unless it manages to dominate all platforms. Journalist, Marina Hyde, spoke on her podcast, The Rest is Entertainment, about the recent propensity for any story to become "a crime story, two warring documentaries, then a book, and then a kind of Netflix drama," referring specifically to the Elizabeth Holmes story that became The Dropout (and so on). Despite that, The Shrink Next Door is a true story on Apple TV+ that doesn't deserve to get lost in the crowd.

It seems unnecessary to say about one of the top three podcast publishers, but “Wondery Means Business” is the name of the first of six innovative marketing campaigns being pushed out by the Amazon company this year. Not that anybody doubts it. With 220 active shows, 72 million streams and more than 55 pods reaching No. 1 on Apple Podcasts, the studio known for such binge-worthy hits as Dr. Death and SmartLess is taking a new approach to its programming starting April 1, strategically timing the rollout of its most popular genres. “We are by no means abandoning the concept of one-show marketing,” says Bladimiar Norman, Wondery’s inventive head of global marketing. He adds he’ll be applying the tenets of his box office experience from working on franchises like Mission: Impossible and Star Trek to the audio business: “The primary goal here is to connect our IP to audiences and create fandom through experiences and moments.

Exclusive: After seeing his Amazon MGM romantic drama The Idea of You debut to glowing reviews on the closing night of SXSW, Michael Showalter has been set to reteam with the studio on Oh. What. Fun, a holiday comedy to star Golden Globe winner and Academy Award nominee Michelle Pfeiffer (French Exit).

In the film, Pfeiffer plays Claire Clauster, who organizes a special Christmas outing when her family forgets her in the shuffle. By the time they realize their mistake, she’s gone missing. Their Christmas is in jeopardy, but Claire has other plans.

Written by Showalter and Chandler Baker, the film is based on a short story from the latter that was originally published by Amazon Original Stories. Producers on the project include Showalter and Jordana Mollick via Semi-Formal Productions, as well as Tribeca Productions’ Berry Welsh & Jane Rosenthal (The Irishman), and...

A24 has struck a deal with UTA to produce scripted and unscripted television via the latter’s Civic Center Media banner.

The deal will see Civic Center Media given resources for development and production via A24, which is behind series such as Netflix’s Beef and HBO’s Euphoria.

UTA launched Civic Center Media in 2018 and is behind series such as Amazon’s The Terminal List, starring Chris Pratt, which is in pre-production on its second season along with a prequel series starring Taylor Kitsch, as well as Hulu’s The Great and Apple’s The Shrink Next Door.

The series were produced with MRC.

The deal will see the UTA and Civic Center produce scripted television as well as unscripted and documentary series.

UTA stressed that Civic Center Media will work with talent from all agencies and UTA will continue to work with all studios, with A24 similarly continuing to work with all agencies.

Melissa Moore’s autobiography Shattered Silence inspired the podcast Happy Face, and now the podcast is getting a Paramount+ streaming series adaptation! Annaleigh Ashford – whose credits include B Positive, American Crime Story, and Masters of Sex – has signed on to star in the series, with Michael Showalter on board to direct the first episode.

I mainly know Showalter from an actor in projects like The State and Wet Hot American Summer, but his TV directing credits include episodes of Search Party, Love, Grace and Frankie, In the Dark, The Shrink Next Door, The Dropout, and I Love That for You. He has also directed the feature films Spoiler Alert, The Eyes of Tammy Faye, The Lovebirds, The Big Sick; Hello, My Name Is Doris; and The Baxter.

Happy Face will see Ashford taking on the role of Melissa, who at age 15, discovered that her beloved father was the prolific serial killer known as “Happy Face.

Casey Wilson describes working with Tim Allen on The Santa Clauses as the worst experience she's ever had with a co-star. Allen was rude, never made eye contact, and everyone on set was walking on eggshells around him. Wilson shares an anecdote where Allen dropped his Santa cape on the floor and left, while his stand-in was much nicer to work with.

The Santa Clauses star Casey Wilson has revealed what star Tim Allen is like behind-the-scenes...and it doesn’t sound too good. Speaking on a recent episode of her Bitch Sesh podcast, Wilson, who plays an older version of Sara from the original movie, described working with Allen on the Disney+ series as “truly single worst experience I’ve ever had with a co-star ever.” See what else Wilson had to say about working alongside Allen below...

“Tim Allen was such a b---h. It was the truly single...

The critically acclaimed original true-crime series from Wondery, Dr. Death, will return in December with a new story of a doctor who deceived both the medical establishment and the patients who put their lives in his hands. In the fourth installment, Dr. Death: Bad Magic host Laura Beil returns to tell the story of Serhat Gumrukcu, a charismatic medic who said he was on the brink of curing some of the world’s deadliest diseases—all while hiding secrets about his criminal past. The fourth season will be available on Wondery+ starting December 4, and will be available on Amazon Music and everywhere you get your podcasts starting January 22.

Serhat Gumrukcu was acclaimed as a genius after his research promised groundbreaking treatments for the terminally ill. Excitement about the breakthrough made him rich—his biotech company reached a value of half a billion dollars. Meanwhile, Gumrukcu led a charmed life in Los Angeles,...

A giant in the world of podcasting needs a “sonic signature.”

So when the prolific publisher Wondery decided it was time to brand its product by establishing an unforgettable signature, its leaders hired the creative-design firm, Made Music, behind the iconic static-screen clip that opens every HBO show. Wondery CEO Jen Sargent recalls that the branding exercise in 2018 helped the company fine-tune its vision of what Wondery podcasts should deliver to listeners.

“Imagine six or seven of us sitting in a room and asking ourselves, ‘Does this sound like wonder to you? Does this sound like wondering?’” recalls Sargent.

The efforts proved to be time well spent. Since Wondery’s launch in early 2016, podcasting as a medium has seen its listener base skyrocket. Wondery has blossomed into one of the largest producers of popular, recurring podcast series including “SmartLess,” a freewheeling conversation hosted by actors Jason Bateman, Sean Hayes and Will Arnett.

A24 has won yet another major bidding war.

This time, the indie studio outbid stiff competition for the rights to turn true-crime podcast The Girlfriends, from iHeartPodcasts and Novel, into a television series. The weekly podcast, which launched in the summer, tells the real-life story of a group of women who band together to put a murderous ex behind bars. And though details of the TV version are being kept under wraps, Michael Showalter and his Semi-Formal Productions are already attached.

Showalter, who’s on a hot streak with a string of recent successes across TV (The Dropout) and film (The Eyes of Tammy Faye), is set to direct, with Semi-Formal partner Jordana Mollick executive producing. She’ll be joined by fellow EPs Conal Byrne, Will Pearson and Carrie Lieberman of iHeartPodcasts, and Julia Bromberg and Neil Krishnan of Novel.

The news comes as the broader IP market has only...

Exclusive: Canada’s Waterside Studios, pod network Curiouscast and UK-based podcast producer Blanchard House are teaming up.

Waterside and Curiouscast have signed a multi-podcast deal with Blanchard House and the agreement will comprise for podcast titles that will be adapted for TV after their audio launches.

The first from the pact is Black and Blue: Behind the Badge, a true crime podcast centering around the experiences of Black officers in what one of them calls “the biggest gang in America”: law enforcement.

Presented by journalist Seren Jones, it follows the story of Michael Morrison. Synposis reads: “After joining the police force to serve and protect, he faces racism, violence and hostility. Michael’s life in policing will make him question everything he thought he knew about justice, community, and himself. This is a story about being torn in two. Torn between being a police officer and being Black. Can...

“Only Murders in the Building” Season 3 contains a cast of heavy hitters joining the staple trio of Steve Martin, Martin Short and Selena Gomez. Each addition drives this season’s murder mystery, particularly Paul Rudd’s Ben Glenroy, whose second and certain death earns him consideration on the murder podcast.

Also entering the puzzle this season is Meryl Streep as aspiring actress Loretta Durkin, who auditions and gets cast in the role of The Nanny by Oliver himself in his new play. All her life she has been waiting to hear the words he says to her after she finishes her monologue. Ben Glenroy brings some interesting people along with him — mainly his manager and adopted brother Dickey (Jeremy Shamos) and his cameraman Tobert (Jesse Williams). Kimber (Ashley Park) acts in the play as well.

Here’s a complete “Only Murders in the Building” Season 3 cast and character guide:

Steve...

News

Top BBC news anchor Yalda Hakim has jumped ship to Comcast-owned Sky. She is set to join Sky News as lead world news presenter. Her start date has not yet been confirmed.

At the BBC Hakim is a chief anchor for BBC News where she also hosts “The Daily Global with Yalda Hakim.” At Sky News she will host a new prime-time show focused on international news.

“I am honored and excited to be joining Sky News as lead world news presenter,” said Hakim. “I have long admired Sky for its smart, fearless and world-class reporting. At a time when global media must work harder than ever to earn the confidence of our viewers, I look forward to giving my all as part of one of the most talented and accomplished news teams anywhere.”

David Rhodes, executive chair of Sky News Group, said: “We’re so excited to...

The Hotel Transylvania 4 cast contains a plethora of star names, with many bearing little resemblance in real life to their monstrous character counterparts. The fourth film in its respective franchise, Hotel Transylvania: Transformania, was released exclusively on Amazon Prime Video in January 2022 with several of Hotel Transylvania 4's main characters recast from the previous movies in the franchise. Hotel Transylvania 4 sees Dracula consider selling the eponymous hotel that forms the backdrop of the first three Hotel Transylvania movies before a mishap with a Monster Ray turns the vampiric patriarch and his cohort into humans.

His human nephew Johnny is also turned into a giant green dragon, leading the Dracula clan on a quest to South America in an effort to revert themselves to their original forms. The form-swapping fun does not end with Hotel Transylvania. The movie saw several of its core voice cast change hands, as...

Will Ferrell is eyeing another role from the sports world after the Winning Time fallout with director David O. Russell's John Madden biopic. Madden was an NFL coach who never had a losing season while working as the head coach of the Oakland Raiders from 1969 to 1978, during which time he secured the franchise's first Super Bowl title. After stepping away from coaching, he became a prominent broadcaster and video game star with his series of Madden games, which are still being made today.

According to Deadline, Russell, the five-time Oscar nominee known for Silver Linings Playbook and American Hustle, is set to direct a biopic based on Madden's life for Amazon and MGM. Ferrell, who has several sports-related films under his belt, is said to be circling the lead role, with the film focusing on Madden's life after he stepped away from coaching. The biopic is from a Black...

Exclusive: Will Ferrell is in huddling to star as the NFL’s John Madden in Madden, a theatrical feature to be directed for Amazon/MGM by five-time Oscar nominee David O. Russell (American Hustle), multiple sources tell Deadline.

Amazon had no comment.

The project has been percolating for some time. It is based on a Black List script by Cambron Clark, and Russell had been doing a rewrite when everything stopped with the writer’s strike.

A Prime Video Sports Original, Madden tells the story of one of the larger-than-life personalities to grace an NFL sideline. All Madden ever wanted was to be a head coach and he was one of the best ever. After winning the Super Bowl, the stress of the job began to destroy him. It forced him away from his dream job, and the film focuses on his friendship with Oakland Raiders owner Al Davis, and...

From Wondery and Bloomberg – the creators behind the award-winning The Shrink Next Door – comes the new six-episode podcast Spellcaster: The Fall of Sam Bankman-Fried, launching May 22. Hosted by Bloomberg crypto and tech reporter Hannah Miller, Spellcaster: The Fall of Sam Bankman-Fried takes listeners on the unbelievable ride of young crypto billionaire Sam Bankman-Fried, who quickly gained fame and fortune from celebrities and world leaders before his business empire came crashing down. The first two episodes will debut on May 22 on Wondery+ and the Bloomberg Terminal, and will be available on Amazon Music and everywhere you get your podcasts starting June 5, with new episodes released weekly on Mondays. Prime members can listen ad-free on Amazon Music starting June 5.

With a promise to change the world, Sam Bankman-Fried created Ftx and set up the crypto exchange to be unconventionally run by himself and his college friends. What could go wrong? Through Ftx,...

Exclusive: Amy Adams (Arrival), Paul Rudd (Ant-Man franchise) and Tessa Thompson (Creed franchise) have closed deals to star in The Invite, a comedy based on Cesc Gay’s Goya-winning 2020 Spanish film Sentimental, to be directed for FilmNation Entertainment and Permut Presentations by Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris, multiple sources tell Deadline.

FilmNation had no comment.

The film tells the story of Joe (Rudd) and Angela (Adams), who after 15 years of marriage, find that their relationship is in a rut. Desperate to have a conversation that isn’t focused on their marital woes, Angela invites their boisterous neighbors, Kayla (Thompson) and Shane, over for cocktails. Joe, irritated at having to engage with this disruptive couple, plans to use the occasion to confront them; however, both he and Angela get far more than they bargained for as sparks fly and they discover Shane and...

Exclusive: Gloria Sanchez Productions has promoted Alex Brown to Head of Film and hired Alix Taylor as Head of Television.

The L.A. based-pair will now oversee all development and production for the company, across film and television, reporting to principals Will Ferrell and Jessica Elbaum.

Brown comes to her new role following three years as a feature producer for Gloria Sanchez. Among her most recent credits as an exec producer for the company is the improvisational ensemble comedy Theater Camp, starring Molly Gordon, Ben Platt and Noah Galvin, which was acquired by Searchlight Pictures out of this year’s Sundance Film Festival. Gordon and Nick Lieberman directed the title, based on a same-name 2020 short, from their script written with Platt and Galvin.

Other recent credits for Brown as an EP include an Untitled Sister Comedy, starring Sandra Oh and Awkwafina, for Hulu; Todd Haynes’ May December, starring Natalie Portman...

Will Ferrell is set to star in a golf comedy series from Rian Johnson. One of the most famous funny men alive, Ferrell is known for an array of iconic comedies including Elf, Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, and Step Brothers – many of them from Adam McKay. On the other hand, Johnson is known for writing and directing the divisive Star Wars: Episode VIII - The Last Jedi and the detective whodunits, Knives Out and Glass Onion, both of which were nominated for Academy Awards for Best Screenplay.

Now, Ferrell and Rian Johnson are teaming up to develop a golf comedy series. Deadline reports that the series is inspired by and similar in tone to one of Will Ferrell's best movies, Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby. Ferrell is set to star, while Johnson is attached to the series as an executive producer.

Will Ferrell's New Show Continues...

Exclusive: In what is shaping up to become one of the biggest TV comedy packages to hit the marketplace in awhile, Will Ferrell & Jessica Elbaum’s Gloria Sanchez Productions and Rian Johnson & Ram Bergman’s T-Street have teamed up to develop a comedy TV series as a starring vehicle for Ferrell, I have learned.

No one would comment but I hear the series revolves around a professional golfer who becomes the face of a controversial new league competing with the PGA.

While fictional, the story would inevitably draw parallels to the controversial Liv Golf startup. It also evokes one of Ferrell’s signature movies, Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby. The series is in a similar tone, I hear, bringing Ferrell back to the sports arena he also explored in Blades of Glory and Semi-Pro.

Ferrell and Elbaum executive produce for Gloria Sanchez; Johnson and Bergman executive produce alongside...

The Late Late Show with James Corden has set its guests for its final broadcast. Harry Styles and Will Ferrell will take a seat on the couch joining Corden for the show’s last episode on Thursday, April 27, wrapping up the CBS late-night series’ eight-year run.

Ben Affleck, Bryan Cranston, Tom Cruise, Josh Gad, Jennifer Garner, Brett Goldstein, Kate Hudson, Allison Janney, the Kardashian family, Mila Kunis, Seth Meyers, Billy Porter and Sharon Stone are among the show’s guests joining Corden in the final weeks.

During one of Styles’ early appearances on The Late Late Show in December 2015, he lost a game of “Tattoo Roulette” and received a tattoo of the show’s logo on his arm.

Back in 2019, Ferrell performed a sketch, originally written for Styles, that was cut for time on SNL.

In it, a group of girls at the mall, played by Aidy Bryant, Cecily Strong,...

From Apple TV+’s Shrinking and The Shrink Next Door to Hulu’s The Patient, current television is saturated with portrayals of therapy. All of these shows have a lot in common: big-name leads, dark humor, and a lot of patient-therapist boundary-crossing. So why all of this content now? The answer likely lies in the similar saturation of therapy and mental health discourse on social media, in pop culture, and in everyday life. A whole new arena of comedy has been unlocked in recent years, as the topic of therapy lends itself well to fresh and shocking humor. On the flip side, the completely vulnerable nature of therapy makes it an apt tool for horror, as if opening up to a stranger is not scary enough. But the secret superpower of therapy-related television is that it is inherently poignant, and therefore will always have a layer of depth that other shows might not.

Kathryn Hahn's best roles have been getting better and better since she first appeared as friend and colleague to Kate Hudson's Andie Anderson in How To Lose A Guy In Ten Days. Hahn may have started out playing many best friends and supporting roles, but she has undoubtedly grown into leading actress material. In recent years, Hahn has played the lead character in HBO's Mrs. Fletcher, voiced Paige Hunter in the animated comedy, Central Park, and brought Rabbi Raquel Fein to Amazon's Transparent. Hahn's wide range has been made abundantly clear and her filmography is a testament to her diversity as an actor.

Kathryn Hahn continues to build an incredibly impressive career for herself after years of smaller roles. She was part of the star-studded murder mystery cast of Glass Onion in 2022 and received her own MCU show with Agatha: Coven of Chaos following her fan-favorite breakout in WandaVision.

On Wednesday night, entertainment heavyweights like Netflix co-ceo Ted Sarandos, Spotify exec Bill Simmons, and comedians and actors Tiffany Haddish and Travon Free gathered at République Los Angeles for dinner with Bloomberg Media CEO M. Scott Havens.

The dinner was a celebration of sorts for Bloomberg, which is forging a larger presence on the West Coast as it seeks growth opportunities. The company is pursuing an expansion in video content and building out a development office in L.A. to help it do so. It’s also launching a new live event based on its Screentime newsletter, betting that it can establish an event footprint in Hollywood.

The dinner was “a chance to meet a lot of the movers and shakers in the business and to say, ‘We’re here and we want to talk to you, we want you to come to our events, we want to interview you,...

ABC has placed a pilot order for Ellie Kemper’s “Drop Off” (working title).

The series serves as the American adaptation of the British comedy “Motherland.” Variety exclusively reported the adaptation news earlier this week. The show was previously set up at Hulu by Lionsgate.

“Julia (Ellie Kemper) is a working mom for whom nothing is working so she goes looking for her village. With the help of new friends Calvin and Liz, Julia discovers she just might succeed at balancing work and parenting from time to time. This is a comedy for anybody who’s dropped their kids at school, breathed a sigh of relief…then realized it’s Sunday,” reads the official logline.

Kemper executive produces alongside Sharon Horgan, Clelia Mountford, Stacy Greenberg, Kira Carstensen for Merman Television. Paul Feig, Dan Magnante through Feigco Entertainment. Holly Walsh and Helen Serafinowicz also executive produce. Michael Showalter serves as an executive producer and director.

Independent TV and film studio MRC has named Jenna Santoianni its president of television.

MRC CEO Scott Tenley made the announcement Tuesday morning. Santoianni will oversee MRC’s current programming, its development slate, joint ventures, production partnerships, operational unites, business, legal affairs and production finance. She is expected to begin this week.

“Jenna is an incredibly talented television executive with invaluable high-level experience and knowledge of all aspects of the industry, including development, production and packaging,” Tenley said in a press release. “With sharp creative instincts, Jenna’s strength is her commitment to fostering a collaborative internal culture along with an impressive track record for producing groundbreaking and compelling series. She is that rare entrepreneurial leader who can help deliver the successful growth of our television slate for years to come.”

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