Know What's Happening in Entertainment
Know What's Happening in Entertainment
Super Mario Galaxy film targets $200M+ opening weekend
Nintendo and Illumination are positioning the upcoming "Super Mario Galaxy" movie to open with more than $200 million domestically over the Easter holiday weekend. The strategy leans on the franchise’s multigenerational appeal and a family‑focused release window, with analysts citing the 2015 "Avengers: Age of Ultron" $191 million opening as a benchmark.
Also developing:
By the numbers: K-Love seeks FCC approval to acquire WFCC
Senator Adam Schiff is pushing a federal tax credit for film and TV production to counteract the exodus of U.S. projects to the United Kingdom, where incentives can cut costs by up to a third. The proposal enjoys bipartisan Senate support but still requires President Donald Trump's approval. The effort follows the expiration of the Section 181 deduction at the end of 2025, which previously allowed immediate write‑offs of $15‑$20 million in spend. Schiff argues the credit would restore competitiveness for American studios.
In this episode of Behind the Numbers, hosts Marcus, Ethan Kramer, and analyst Marissa Jones dissect YouTube’s ascent to the top of the media hierarchy, noting its $62 billion revenue haul that now eclipses Disney’s media business. They explore why YouTube’s...
Genius Sports unveiled its Moment Engine, a real‑time targeting platform that matches live‑sports data—such as player stats and scorelines—to addressable CTV, display and upcoming social inventory. Partnering with major ad exchanges, the tool lets brands trigger ads during high‑engagement moments...
Advertising M&A remains active despite the Iran‑related geopolitical shock, with advisors reporting no immediate slowdown in deal flow. Executives note that while negotiations are proceeding, larger transactions are being approached more cautiously due to heightened risk perception. Private‑equity firms are...
DMG Media has hired more than two dozen creators to run its creator‑led social channels, producing ten to twenty original videos daily across topics from football to youth issues. The in‑house model generates 250,000‑350,000 views per video, outpacing the Daily...
TikTok unveiled a new News Front showcase highlighting its two‑month‑old joint venture with USDS, promising richer storytelling formats and a more secure, creative advertising platform. The partnership is positioned to give advertisers advanced tools and stronger data protection. Meanwhile, Tennessee lawmakers...
Red Sea Global has launched ADRENA, a new adventure and entertainment district near its Shura Island resorts in Saudi Arabia. The complex boasts more than 20 land and water experiences, including the kingdom’s largest 215‑metre saltwater surf pool with 2.1‑metre...
Richard Colebourn has been named Regional Director for Europe for BBC News and the World Service, becoming the corporation’s most senior representative across Europe and Central Asia. He will oversee editorial and operational duties, including BBC News Russian, Ukrainian, and...
Movistar Plus+, Telefónica’s Spanish pay‑TV and streaming service, announced a restructuring that merges its rights‑acquisition function with the Global Partners management under the Business and Sports Management Division. The Partnerships Division will now report directly to Enric Rojas, who also oversees...
FCC Chairman Brendan Carr defended the $6.2 billion Nexstar‑Tegna merger, granting a waiver of the 39% national ownership cap. Governor Gavin Newsom and a coalition of state attorneys general have launched a political and legal offensive, calling the approval an outrage.
Sony and Honda have terminated development of the Afeela electric vehicle, ending a high‑profile project that would have combined PlayStation entertainment with autonomous driving. The joint venture cited Honda's decision to scale back its EV roadmap, and California reservers will...
The third Jumanji film, starring Dwayne Johnson, has been moved from Dec 11 to Dec 25, 2026, to capitalize on the holiday window. The shift pits the adventure comedy against Marvel's Avengers: Doomsday, Denis Villeneuve's Dune: Part Three, and Shah Rukh Khan's...
Fathom Entertainment confirmed that CEO Ray Nutt will step down and retire in late 2026 after a nine‑year tenure. Nutt will aid the board in finding a replacement, while the specialty distributor prepares for its next strategic phase amid a...
JPMorgan Chase has opened an $8 billion junk‑bond offering to finance a $55 billion leveraged buyout of Electronic Arts, the biggest LBO‑related high‑yield issuance of 2026. The deal, led by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, Silver Lake and Affinity Partners, tests investor...
Newsmax reported a 10.7% revenue increase to $189.3 million for 2025, driven primarily by a 17.3% rise in broadcast earnings. Carriage fees from cable, satellite and streaming partners jumped 20.2% to $14.9 million, boosting advertising revenue 16.7% to $104.3 million. In contrast, the...
Scoop: I obtained Business Insider's internal subscription figures for the last several years—and the data shows that not only is the digital outlet struggling to grow its subscriber base, but that it is actually sliding backwards.
In this episode, Senator Adam Schiff discusses a proposed federal tax credit aimed at halting the exodus of film and TV production from Los Angeles. He explains that a 15% baseline credit, stacked on top of state incentives, would make...
The counterargument is stronger. * Blaming Wall Street's infamous "streaming multiple" ignores every studio executive who convinced themselves that they could go from creative executives to tech executives in the blink of an eye w/o a background in DTC... they...
Will the new indie distributor make it to CinemaCon? hard to say. @thewrap @elmayimbe reports that the two top execs Megan Colligan and Ben Carlson have left amid reports of a cash crunch. https://t.co/nKEXo2sOCd https://t.co/jw7X7RJqK1
FCC Chair Brendan Carr defended the FCC’s approval of the $6.2 billion Nexstar‑Tegna merger, arguing it supports a healthy, thriving local broadcast TV market. He also detailed an ongoing enforcement action against Disney’s ABC station for not filing the required equal‑time...
Tom Hanks to Star in Baseball Movie With Bad Bunny and Colman Domingo Eyed for Roles; Sony Leads Bidding War for Marielle Heller Project (EXCLUSIVE) https://t.co/H4I3iJKnnD via @variety
Austrian broadcaster ServusTV will cease streaming Formula 1, MotoGP and other premium sports on the joint platform Joyn, moving all live rights to its own service ServusTV On from 1 January 2026. Joyn will retain only the on‑demand library without live sports. The shift...
Studio N CEO Mikyung (Michelle) Kwon told Variety that Western studios are beginning to grasp the commercial value of webcomic properties after a string of successful adaptations on Netflix, Disney+ and Crunchyroll. The Korean studio cites Emmy nominations and record‑breaking box‑office...
The Chicago Cubs Spanish-language broadcast returns to TelevisaUnivision’s TUDN Radio Chicago on WPPN‑FM 106.7 HD2, covering every home game starting with the 2026 season. The deal revives a partnership that began in 2009 after a 14‑year hiatus. Veteran announcer Miguel Esparza will handle...
In this episode Greg Wasserman dives into the world of podcast networks, exploring how they form, operate, and differ—from creator‑driven collectives to media‑backed enterprises. He shares insider perspectives on the pros and cons of joining a network, offering practical blueprints...
Fubo, majority‑owned by Disney, has secured a deal with Spectrum SportsNet LA to live‑stream every Los Angeles Dodgers game in the 2026 season. The agreement covers more than 140 regular‑season contests, pre‑ and post‑game shows, and the network’s “Backstage: Dodgers” series....
South Korean esports organization Dplus Kia has announced a partnership with global gaming‑chair manufacturer AndaSeat to co‑develop a line of co‑branded chairs and fan merchandise. The collaboration blends Dplus Kia’s design and lifestyle branding with AndaSeat’s ergonomic engineering, marking the...
Amaze Holdings launched a Creator Commerce Media Platform to monetize its first‑party commerce and audience data. Built on its new demand‑side platform, the service offers four high‑margin products—DSP audience segments, subscription data SaaS, data‑driven brand activation, and enterprise creator‑intelligence tools....
Three major studios are bidding on "The Comebacker," a baseball‑themed drama that reunites Tom Hanks with director Marielle Heller. The film, based on a Dave Eggers short story and scripted by Heller, follows a major‑league pitcher whose life changes after...
TikTok for Business launched the “Watch it. Love it. Want it.” campaign to promote its expanding in‑app shopping experience. The platform reported a 40 % year‑over‑year increase in search activity, with billions of daily queries, and one in four users searching...
Sandbox VR, the location‑based virtual reality operator, announced it has reached $300 million in lifetime sales. The company now runs more than 80 venues across five continents and 13 countries, a rapid expansion since its 2016 launch. This milestone underscores growing...
QMS reported a 9% rise in audience across its City of Sydney digital street‑furniture network during the 2026 Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras, with interstate viewership up 16%. The Oxford Street precinct saw a 23% overall increase and a...
Thailand’s government is pushing to host the region’s first Disneyland within the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) Capital City, designating about 2,700 rai—comparable to Shanghai’s park—for the project. Deputy Prime Minister Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn has written to Walt Disney’s new CEO and highlighted...
Abe’s Audio has hired former ARN chief strategy officer Lauren Joyce on a project basis, branding her role as a “Gun For Hire.” The partnership aims to accelerate new client partnerships and steer the company’s next growth phase through high‑impact...
The Miami Marlins have signed a multi‑year broadcast and streaming agreement with Audacy, designating Sports Talker WQAM‑AM/FM as the team’s new flagship across South Florida. The partnership replaces WINZ‑AM 940, whose nighttime power is being reduced, and restores the Marlins...
Spotify and a coalition of major record labels have filed for a $322 million default judgment against Anna’s Archive, accusing the shadow library of scraping millions of music files from Spotify’s platform. The lawsuit also seeks a permanent injunction to force...
America250 has appointed iHeartMedia as the official audio partner for the United States’ semiquincentennial, streaming July 3‑4 festivities via the iHeartRadio app and over‑the‑air broadcasts. With more than 800 radio stations, iHeartMedia can reach roughly 90% of Americans each month, promising...
#ProjectHailMary has been playing out like Dune 2, another recent March sci-fi epic. Take a look at opening week numbers: D2 vs PHM: WKND | $82.5M | $80.5M MON | $7.3M | $7M TUE | $8.2M | $9.4M WED | $6.7M | $6.7M THU | $6.4M...
How's that cable-cutting looking now? 🤦🏼♂️ Netflix Hikes Prices Again, Impacting All Plan Tiers https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/netflix-price-hike-2026-all-plans-1236548184/
Anna M. Gómez, the sole Democratic FCC commissioner, issued a public dissent on the Nexstar Media Group‑TEGNA merger after Media Bureau Chief Erin Boone approved the deal with rule waivers. Gómez criticized Chairman Brendan Carr and the Trump‑era leadership for politicizing...
At @theinfluencerleague , we take outbound pitching very seriously. We do not pitch for volume, and definitely not for funsies. If a client says they want to work with a dream brand, we build the strategy to make that happen,...
NEW: The Nex Playground is a rare success story in the video game industry right now. They're a hit with families. They're building up tiny 1st-party teams. Game budgets are low. Only problem is RAM. They just had to raise...
Sublime revealed their first new album in nearly three decades, "Until the Sun Explodes," set for release on June 12 through Atlantic Records. The record, featuring frontman Jakob Nowell, marks a rare comeback for the iconic ska‑punk band and launches...
FWIW: The state AGs' lawsuit attempting to block the @NXSTMediaGroup-@TEGNA merger is under the care of Chief U.S. District Judge Troy L. Nunley, whose office is located in the Robert T. Matsui U.S. Courthouse in Sacramento. https://t.co/oNkplxefAw
Me explaining to my students what 1980s record label radio promotion staff did to get records played. https://t.co/g5x6wSsjEC
GatesAir has taken its AirWatch365 managed‑service platform global, adding the Edge Gateway appliance that links FM, DAB and TV transmitters to a 24/7 NOC. The service, delivered through the GatesAir Care program, aggregates telemetry, alarm data and analytics in a...
I think Matt Jarbo needs to focus more on getting his YT views to remotely matchup with his subs An abysmal subs-to-view ratio How is this even possible https://t.co/rDcCyleDML
The Needle column dissects NBA versus MLB television ratings, showing that when only exclusive national telecasts are considered, the NBA averages 2.7 million viewers and MLB 2.6 million – a razor‑thin gap. While MLB’s regional broadcasts inflate its daily audience, the NBA...
Nintendo's latest pricing data shows physical Switch 2 titles retailing up to 30% higher than their digital counterparts, highlighting a consumer move toward cheaper, instantly delivered games. The trend reshapes how marketers plan promotions and inventory for Nintendo's ecosystem.
USSI Global has opened its Media Transport Solutions Lab in Melbourne, Florida, offering a platform‑agnostic environment to test alternatives to the FCC’s C‑Band media transport. The lab lets broadcasters, MSOs and network operators configure and re‑configure satellite, IP and cloud...
