Showbiz Sandbox 386: Keeping Up With Hollywood Sex Scandals Becomes A Full Time Job
October 30, 2017
October has been a particularly horrific month for Hollywood this year, and not just because of the run up to Halloween. After a record setting September, North American box office dropped to a ten year low in October as major releases failed to attract audiences. Then there was the flood of industry-wide sexual harassment claims, an ongoing story with no end in sight.
What started with egregious allegations against indie-mogul Harvey Weinstein has led to actors and actresses coming forward with more stories of harassment, including one against two-time Oscar winner Kevin Spacey, who has been accused of making sexual overtures to a 14-year-old boy over 30 years ago.
Meanwhile, the publishing industry has some good news about book sales and we’ll explain why lists announcing the best books of 2017 have already been compiled by trade publications, two months before the year is over.
Of course we also cover the week’s top entertainment news including how the Disney Channel is introducing a gay storyline, a virtual reality project wins a special Oscar and the latest Star Trek series will get a second season.
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Showbiz Sandbox 328: Pokémon Finally Brings Augmented Reality to Life
July 11, 2016
After endless hype everyone is finally getting a chance to experience virtual reality and augmented reality in the best way possible; by playing a game. Pokémon Go was an instant hit when it launched recently for mobile phones. It’s literally and figuratively a game-changer and the first of what’s sure to be many new products making clever use of AR.
Meanwhile, for the first time in years, the Chinese box office is not just slowing down, it’s shrinking. Hollywood movies are dominating the market but that hasn’t stopped the Chinese government from loosening the reins to let in more Hollywood movies just to sell more tickets.
In fact, the deal limiting the number of imported films into China to 34 per year ends in 2017. As Hollywood goes back to the negotiating table with the Chinese government, they will not only be pushing to get more movies into the country, but also a bigger piece of the box office, which is presently limited to 25%, though is often less.
Of course we also cover the week’s top entertainment news including why season seven of “Game of Thrones” is going to be delayed, how music streaming services have surpassed 55 million paid subscribers and the three leads of the Broadway sensation “Hamilton” have taken their final bow.
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Showbiz Sandbox 228: The Dish On That Disney Deal With Dish
March 11, 2014
After months of rancorous public and legal battles with television networks over their ad-skipping Hopper technology, U.S. satellite provider Dish Network reached a landmark retransmission consent agreement with the Walt Disney Company. The deal calls for Dish to disable bypassing commercials for three days after a show originally airs. In return Dish is getting the rights to provide Disney’s networks via the Internet for any future IP-television offering they might develop.
Meanwhile, the city which has become known for producing movies and television shows is under siege. Not from a foreign invader, but rather Los Angeles (and California) is suffering from what is known as “runaway production” thanks to tax incentives being offered in other states and countries.
Austin Texas has also been invaded over the past week by attendees at the annual South by Southwest festival. Neil Young marked the occasion by announcing Pono, his long awaited high-def music player, along with its accompanying store filled with digital tracks for audiophiles.
Of course, we also cover the week’s top entertainment news stories including Sandra Bullock’s giant “Gravity” payday, television networks start premiering their shows in summer and why time-shifting made HBO’s “True Detective” a huge hit.
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Showbiz Sandbox 150: Is George Lucas A Schmuck?
June 4, 2012
Last week legendary filmmaker George Lucas announced he would be stepping down as the head of Lucasfilm and hired veteran producer Kathleen Kennedy to head up the company that bears his name. With Lucas retiring what will happen to his blockbuster franchises such as “Indian Jones”? Will we finally get a restored version of the original “Star Wars” trilogy on Blu-Ray?
Rather than retire after his long, successful run heading up Warner Bros., Alan Horn will step in as chairman of Walt Disney Studios. Many industry insiders wonder if the executive who oversaw the “Harry Potter” series will have a creative role in what is perceived to largely be a babysitting position.
The Tony Awards will be held this weekend and we give you the lowdown on who has the best shot at taking home Broadway’s top honor.
We also cover the week’s top entertainment headlines, including a new king of late night television, Oprah’s new book club and why Hollywood and Silicon Valley should work together to stop piracy.
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Showbiz Sandbox 143: “Mommy Porn” Is Hollywood’s Hot New Trend
April 2, 2012
Hollywood studios spent this past week waging a bidding war for a book derived from fan fiction stories on “Twilight” websites. Universal Pictures wound up paying an estimated $5 million for E.L. James’ “Fifty Shades of Grey”, an erotic novel that has become a best selling phenomenon despite only being published as an e-book. Producers now must figure out how to handle the graphic sexual content found in titles the media has dubbed “mommy porn”.
Last week also marked the merger of SAG and AFTRA, the unions representing actors. Members of both groups overwhelmingly voted to join forces to create the largest bargaining group in Hollywood. Only time will tell if presenting a united front will give the thespians more power to negotiate better contracts.
Meanwhile, the popular music streaming service Spotify has decided to allow unlimited free listening indefinitely. While this is good news for music fans, how will Spotify, which has yet to turn a profit, pay increased licensing fees to all the record labels?
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