Showbiz Sandbox 526: Hollywood Reshuffles 2021 Blockbusters

January 26, 2021

The coronavirus pandemic continues to wreak havoc throughout the film industry. With most movie theatres around the world currently closed due to COVID, Hollywood studios have delayed almost all of their major releases into the latter half of this year. There is even talk that the Cannes Film Festival will move from May to sometime in July.

Unlike cinemas, streaming media companies are currently thriving, with Netflix surpassing 200 million subscribers worldwide. Despite all of the competitors entering the marketplace, the company set a record high stock price after announcing they won’t need to borrow any additional money to fund new content.

Of course we also cover some of the week’s top entertainment headlines including the new “High School Musical” generates a chart-topper, Viacom changes up its streaming strategy and Spotify ventures into audiobooks.

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Showbiz Sandbox 369: When the Punishment Doesn’t Fit the Comedy

June 5, 2017

Kathy Griffin and HBO’s Bill Maher learned first-hand last week just how easy it is to cross the line wherein one’s jokes and antics go from being humorous to offensive. But after apologies are issued and near-term financial repercussions are suffered, should the careers of boundary pushing comedians really come to an end because of one regrettable mistake?

Meanwhile with Apple introducing a ton of new hardware at its Worldwide Developer Conference, the company is actually reaping more rewards from its content business. In fact, last quarter Apple earned more from selling content than most media conglomerates earned during the same period.

We’ll also tell you why the beloved radio DJ who helped discover acts such as the Sex Pistols and the Ramones is leaving his weekly show after 40 years. (Hint: It wasn’t his decision.)

Of course, we also cover the week’s top entertainment news including journalist Megyn Kelly’s anticipated return to television, a non-English single tops the Billboard charts and big name musical acts hold a benefit pop concert to raise money for victims of a terrorist attack in Manchester.

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Showbiz Sandbox 63: Mel Gibson Wishes It Were All A Dream

July 19, 2010

Christopher Nolan’s highly anticipated film “Inception” jumped to the top of the North American box office upon release. The follow-up to the director’s blockbuster “The Dark Knight” has some critics buzzing about a Best Picture Oscar nomination.

Academy Award nominations are the least of Mel Gibson’s problems. After being caught on tape screaming obscenities and death threats at his ex-girlfriend, the actor and filmmaker should be happy if his next film,“The Beaver”, simply makes it into theaters.

A number of important court decisions were handed down this past week having to do with First Amendment rights. These include a ruling about “fleeting epithets” and whether broadcasters can be fined for airing them. An appeals court told the Federal Communications Commission their definition of “indecency” was too vague and may encroach on the freedom of speech.

We go over all the week’s top entertainment headlines during Big Deal or Big Whoop, including why the R.I.A.A. has spent $17 million suing music fans only to collect $391k, whether Tom Cruise will be cast in “Mission Impossible IV” and e-book sales outpacing those of real books on Amazon. Read more

Showbiz Sandbox 61: Andrew Garfield Fills Spider-Man’s Reboots

July 5, 2010

That “Twilight Saga: Eclipse: wound up at the top of the box office over the Fourth of July holiday weekend with $280 million worldwide was not a big shock, however the casting of Andrew Garfield to play Spider-Man in the next installment of the franchise came as a surprise. Entertainment journalist Michael Giltz has been following the 26-year-old actor for several years, but the selection of the unknown had most industry insiders searching for his resume.

In all likelihood the next “Spider-Man” film will be shot in 3D though the format is not a guarantee of box office gold. Just ask M. Night Shyamalan whose “Last Airbender” had a disappointing opening despite being converted to 3D in post-production. Film critic Roger Ebert was not alone in trashing the film.

This week also saw Larry King announce his retirement from the nightly talk show he’s hosted on CNN for 25 years. King’s program has been slipping in ratings recently, as have late night talkers hosted by Jay Leno and David Letterman. But viewership continues to grow on cable television, not to mention on Hulu which will begin offering monthly subscriptions for expanded content offerings.

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