Showbiz Sandbox 529: Hollywood Grapples With Cancel Culture

February 16, 2021

Whether it’s sexual misconduct, misogynistic behavior or social media missteps, the careers of numerous entertainment industry figures have recently been upended after allegations of their moral misbehavior surfaced. The repercussions are impacting every part of the industry, from the upper echelons of the French film industry to the rose ceremony on “The Bachelor.” Agencies, studios and record companies are now left to decide whether to jettison stars that have become tainted.

Meanwhile, one year after China closed movie theaters to contend with a growing coronavirus epidemic, the country is showing the world how to revive the cinema business. Apparently all it takes is a few blockbusters to get audiences back into the very theaters many had predicted would never reopen.

Of course we also cover some of the week’s top entertainment headlines including how the cast of the “Umbrella Academy” got a raise, Disney continues to add subscribers to its streaming service and why Dave Chapelle’s old show is back on Netflix.
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Showbiz Sandbox 334: Music Streaming Wars Heat Up Over Exclusive Releases

September 6, 2016

The competition between Apple Music and Spotify for subscribers has been cutthroat over the past year. Now comes word that Spotify may be retaliating against artists working with Apple. We’ll take a look at how exclusive new releases have raised the stakes in the ongoing battle for streaming music supremacy.

We also explain why it’s time everyone stopped discussing how abysmal North American summer box office was. After all, 2016 box office and attendance is actually up over the previous year, which had record earnings.

And in what might be a case of the pot calling the kettle black, China is questioning whether Universal’s acquisition of DreamWorks Animation breaks its antitrust regulation.

Of course we also cover the week’s top entertainment news including how Jackie Chan will be awarded an honorary Oscar, Frank Ocean makes history by topping the Billboard charts with a self-released album and Baz Lurmann’s “Moulin Rouge” is being turned into a musical.

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