FIRST LOOK
http://www.eonline.com/news
ON TELEVISION (MONDAY 8/14/23)
HULU: Solar Opposites (Premiere)
TLC: 90 Day: The Last Resort (Premiere) at 9pm
FOX: Crime Scene Kitchen (Finale) at 9pm
The WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes have made an “immediate impact” on the share of ad spending, according to Guideline. June 2023 marked the third lowest month in nearly seven years for proportion of spend against new entertainment programming (20.9%) versus repeat entertainment programming (79%), the lowest dip in share since the pandemic. How might this impact Upfront buying? “We can expect to see a shift in favor of Upfront buying – but it may be less pronounced,” said Guideline’s Darrick Li, VP, North America Media Owners. “Advertisers will want to have (more) flexibility to tap into unsold inventory and/or place their investments closer to the air date in order to mitigate risk tied to a short runway of new content. As a result, we may see media owners respond amicably, as this would give them a better understanding of the reach and target audience composition of their programming – which would ultimately be reflected in ‘Scatter Premium’ pricing.”
(Source: Cynopsis)
Back to the strikes…After meeting with the AMPTP on Friday, the writers’ guild informed members it had received a counterproposal from producers and will respond this week. The WGA’s message was scant on details. “Sometimes more progress can be made in negotiations when they are conducted without a blow-by-blow description of the moves on each side and a subsequent public dissection of the meaning of the moves,” said the WGA. “That will be our approach, at least for the time being, until there is something of significance to report, or unless management uses the media or industry surrogates to try to influence the narrative.”
(Source: Cynopsis)
SAG-AFTRA granted waivers to select series and films under an interim agreement. Under a new film and TV contract, members “may work on these productions without being in violation of the strike order.” Projects on the list include Angel Studios’ “The Chosen,” Apple TV+ series “Tehran,” and revival “Beyond Belief: Fact or Fiction.”
(Source: Cynopsis)
Producers Guild presidents joined the SAG-AFTRA picket line in Los Angeles and New York last week. PGA Presidents Stephanie Allain and Donald De Line, as well as SAG-AFTRA National Executive Director and Chief Negotiator Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, and WGA Board Member Marjorie David, took to the picket line at Amazon Studios in Culver City and Warner Bros. Studios in Burbank. The Producers Guild said in a previous statement that it “stands with SAG-AFTRA as its members make the difficult decision to strike against the studios, companies, and streamers that make up the [Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers].”
(Source: Cynopsis)
Jodie Sweetin was “very surprised” to learn her upcoming film, “Craft Me a Romance,” had been sold to Great American Family. Sweetin told People, “I am disappointed, but in keeping with my mission of supporting the LGBTQ+ family, any potential or future money made from this sale will be donated to LGBTQ+ organizations.” Sweetin’s former “Full House” co-star and current GAF chief creative officer Candace Cameron Bure drew backlash last year after telling The Wall Street Journal she believes the network “will keep traditional marriage at the core.”
(Source: Cynopsis)
The production company behind “Fleabag” is onto its next project at the BBC. “Dinosaurs,” starring co-creator Ashley Storrie, as well as David Carlyle, Lorn Macdonald and Danny Ashok, follows an autistic woman in her 30s living with her sister and best friend. The series has started filming in Scotland and will air on BBC Three and BBC Scotland.
(Source: Cynopsis)
Season four of Bravo’s “The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City” kicks off Tuesday, September 5 at 9p. Excommunicated ex-Mormon Monica Garcia joins the returning Housewives.
(Source: Cynopsis)
“James Martin’s Spanish Adventure” will air on ITV in the fall and be launched to buyers at Mipcom as planned despite recently surfaced allegations of bullying, reports Deadline. A formal complaint in 2018 accused Martin of “repeated incidents of inappropriate, intimidating and bullying behavior” on “James Martin’s Saturday Morning.” Last month, “Spanish Adventure” producer Blue Marlin said, “lessons have been learned which have been discussed with members of the team and with ITV.”
(Source: Cynopsis)
Are Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg closer to duking it out? “Not holding my breath for Elon,” posted Zuckerberg on Threads, responding to X (formerly Twitter) owner Musk’s announcement that he and Italy’s Prime Minister and Minister of Culture had agreed on an “epic location” for a brawl. (Not at the Colosseum, and not in Rome, clarified Minister of Culture in Italy Gennaro Sangiuliano.) Musk also said the fight would not be overseen by the UFC, but rather by his and Zuckerberg’s organizations – a statement contested by Zuckerberg. “When I compete, I want to do it in a way that puts a spotlight on the elite athletes at the top of the game,” he said on Threads. “You do that by working with professional orgs like the UFC or ONE to pull this off well and create a great card.”
(Source: Cynopsis)
Discovery’s “Expedition Unknown” was the #1 unscripted cable series among M25-54 on Wednesday nights at 9p, averaging a 0.7 Live+3 rating across the demo. Airing through July 12, the eight-episode season was the highest-rated in three years, increasing 14% over the prior season and securing the second consecutive year of viewership growth.
(Source: Cynopsis)
Spain’s Women’s World Cup match between Spain and Netherlands delivered 1.777 million viewers Thursday on Fox, making it the second-most-watched non-US quarterfinal match ever on US English-language television.
(Source: Cynopsis)
Since the premiere of “Barbie Dreamhouse Challenge” on July 16, the series has attracted nearly 12 million viewers across HGTV, discovery + and Max. On air, it averaged a .54 Live+3 rating among A25-54 and a .81 among W25-54, increases of 72% and 99%, respectively, over the prior six weeks. The Sunday, August 6 finale delivered the season’s best performance with a .56 A25-54 and .81 W25-54 Live+3 rating, up 33% and 40% over the prior six weeks.
(Source: Cynopsis)
POWERBALL
Today’s Jackpot is $215 million.
Powerball is played in 43 states.
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WEEKEND BOX OFFICE
Barbie – $33.7 million
Oppenheimer – $18.8 million
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem – $15.8 million
Meg 2: The Trench – $12.7 million
The Last Voyage of the Demeter – $6.5 million
(Source: Box Office Mojo)
