Showbiz Sandbox 635: Deciphering Hollywood Hits and Misses
October 17, 2023
Hollywood studios often try to camouflage the success or failure of their movies. Sometimes they claim a film is unprofitable, yet go on to make several sequels, as Nu Image did with the “Has Fallen” franchise. Other times a studio insists a movie is a modest box office hit despite paying hundreds of millions for the underlying property, as with Universal Pictures’ recent “The Exorcist: Believer.” It many not matter to moviegoers, but it does to those with profit participation.
There is no denying that Taylor Swift’s “Eras Tour” concert film is a huge success after its weekend in cinemas around the world. Though it didn’t live up to early box office forecasts, its opening was three times bigger than any concert movie in history. It became the highest grossing such film of all time in North America after just three days.
Of course we also cover the week’s top entertainment headlines including the latest on the actors’ strike, some questions over Spotify’s audiobook offering and Microsoft finally completes its acquisition of Activision Blizzard.
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‘Taylor Swift: Eras Tour’: Swifties Drop Everything Now For Concert Pic’s Global Opening, Shelling Out $123M+
https://deadline.com/2023/10/taylor-swift-eras-tour-global-international-box-office-1235574038/
Taylor Swift Box Office: ‘Eras Tour’ Opening Lowered to $92.8M but Still Belts Out Record Numbers
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/taylor-swift-eras-tour-box-office-opening-1235618828/
2,000+ Top Producers Sign Petition To Drop Second “P” From AMPTP, Part Of Larger Push To Address Inequities
https://deadline.com/2023/10/producers-petition-change-amptp-name-hollywood-labor-1235567984/
Directors Guild to Members: Our Contract Deal Was Good, Too
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/directors-guild-defends-deal-social-media-criticism-1235615979/
SAG-AFTRA Alleges ‘Bully Tactics’ as Studios Suspend Negotiations
https://variety.com/2023/biz/news/sag-aftra-talks-suspended-1235752709/
How SAG-AFTRA Talks Collapsed: ‘I Was Taken Completely By Surprise,’ Union Chief Says
https://variety.com/2023/biz/news/sag-aftra-talks-collapse-streaming-residual-1235753971/
What’s Really Inside the Hollywood Writers’ Deal?
https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/story/2023-10-07/wga-amptp-contract-annotation
Now What? The Five Crises Confronting a Post-Strike Hollywood
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/lists/writers-actors-strikes-end-hollywood-crises/the-kids-prefer-tiktok/
Microsoft’s $69 Billion Activision Blizzard Acquisition Finally Approved
https://www.forbes.com/sites/qai/2023/10/16/microsofts-69-billion-activision-blizzard-acquisition-finally-approved/?sh=30e0fb38554b
How Microsoft Turned the Tide in Its Regulatory Fight Over Activision
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/10/13/technology/microsoft-activision-antitrust-regulators.html
NFL Pondering Possibility of Playing Super Bowl in London
https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/38658609/nfl-pondering-possibility-playing-super-bowl-london
Sony’s Access Controller for the PlayStation Aims to Make Gaming Easier for People With Disabilities
https://apnews.com/article/sony-playstation-access-controller-disabled-disability-21372e0f969372e2e7836c1e7d111e31
Spotify’s New Audiobook Streaming Could Have ‘Devastating Effect’, says Society of Authors
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2023/oct/11/spotify-audiobook-streaming-devastating-effect-authors
The Exorcist: Universal Made One Massive Mistake With the Horror Franchise
https://movieweb.com/the-exorcist-mistake-with-horror-franchise/
‘Exorcist: Believer’ Gets Horrifying Reviews After Studio Gambled $400 Million for Rights
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/exorcist-believer-reviews-trilogy-400-million-1235608583/
Gerard Butler & ‘Olympus Has Fallen’ Producers Settle $10M Profits Battle
https://deadline.com/2023/10/producers-petition-change-amptp-name-hollywood-labor-1235567984/
Piper Laurie, Three-Time Oscar Nominee Who Starred in ‘Carrie’ and ‘The Hustler,’ Dies at 91
https://variety.com/2023/film/news/piper-laurie-dead-carrie-1235756354/
Keith Giffen, Comic Book Artist and Writer, Dies Aged 70
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2023/oct/12/keith-giffen-comic-book-artist-and-writer-dies-aged-70
This Is the Most Famous Punch Batman’s Ever Thrown
https://www.polygon.com/23569816/batman-best-punch
Phyllis Coates, the First Lois Lane on Television, Dies at 96
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/phyllis-coates-dead-lois-lane-superman-1235616582/
John Tilley, Independent Film Executive Who Helped Bring Pedro Almodovar Films to U.S., Dies at 75
https://variety.com/2023/film/news/john-tilley-dead-independent-film-executive-1235751441/
Suzanne Somers, Star of ‘Three’s Company,’ Is Dead at 76
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/10/15/obituaries/suzanne-somers-dead.html
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