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Tag: warner bros.

  • Werewolves May Get Their Purge On in Jonathan Liebesman’s Wolf Night

    Werewolves May Get Their Purge On in Jonathan Liebesman’s Wolf Night

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    If you’ve ever wanted a movie about werewolves that also comes with some social commentary wrapped inside, your needs could possibly be sated in the near future with an upcoming movie.

    Prepping the Sandworm Scenes in Dune: Part Two

    Per Deadline, filmmaker Jonahtan Libeseman—best known for Battle: LA and the 2014 live-action Ninja Turtles film—is drawing attention with his next project, Wolf Night. According to the outlet, the screenplay from April Maguire and Will Honley is being explicitly billed as “District 9 by way of The Purge—but with werewolves.” Does that mean it’ll be a found footage movie set in a city populated by lycans? Will werewolves have free reign of a city during a full moon, at which point anybody who isn’t one is completely screwed? Not a clue in the slightest, but it sounds interesting and potentially cool as hell.

    Wolf Night is being headed up by production company Platinum Dunes, whose horror resume includes the actual Purge franchise, reboots of classic horror flicks like Friday the 13th and Texas Chainsaw Massacre, and Paramount’s A Quiet Place series. Deadline says “multiple studios” are interested in this film, though no particular one was identified as a likely frontrunner. With a premise like that, it could easily wind up at any studio, from Universal to Paramount or even Warner Bros. (Hopefully not that last one.)

    Either way, here’s hoping it gets snatched up—beyond its cool elevator pitch, it’d be nice to have some more mainstream werewolf movies alongside all the demons and vampires we get at a reliable clip. Other than Universal’s reboot of The Wolf Man, there’s supposed to be Larry Fessenden’s Blackout, both of which are expected to release later this year.

    [via Fangoria]

    Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.

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    Justin Carter

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  • Actor Will Forte says completed

    Actor Will Forte says completed

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    A verdict seems to have been reached in the case of “Coyote vs. Acme,” the Warner Bros. Discovery courtroom comedy based on the popular Looney Tunes character. 

    The movie will likely never come out, lead actor Will Forte said in a statement on social media Thursday.

    Originally slated for a theatrical release last July, the film was reportedly shelved in November last year, according to Deadline. 

    Democratic Rep. Joaquin Castro of Texas alleged last year that the hiatus was part of a wider pattern of shelving films for tax breaks. 

    “The [Warner Bros. Discovery] tactic of scrapping fully made films for tax breaks is predatory and anti-competitive,” Castro wrote on social media in November.

    Following fan and industry outrage over the film’s unceremonious fate, Netflix, Amazon and Paramount screened the film and “submitted handsome offers,” none of which were accepted, The Wrap reported earlier this month. 

    “When I first heard that our movie was getting ‘deleted,’ I hadn’t seen it yet,” Forte wrote, addressing the film’s cast and crew. “So I was thinking what everyone else must have been thinking: this thing must be a hunk of junk. But then I saw it. And it’s incredible.”

    The SNL alum referenced the movie’s high score among test audiences, and he lamented the studio’s decision to bring the project to a premature end.

    Red Carpet Premiere & Party For Peacock's New Comedy Series "MacGruber"
    Will Forte attends the premiere “MacGruber” in Los Angeles, California, in December 2021.

    Leon Bennett / Getty Images


    “The people who paid for this movie can obviously do whatever they want with it,” Forte wrote, adding, “It doesn’t mean I have to like it … Or agree with it.”

    “Please know that all the years and years of hard work, dedication and love that you put into this movie shows in every frame,” he concluded.

    Based on a satirical 1990 New Yorker article by Ian Frazier, the film stars Forte and John Cena alongside the animated Wile E. Coyote, who is suing the Acme Corporation over oft-backfiring products with which Coyote attempted to capture the Road Runner in the classic Looney Tunes cartoons.

    “Mr. Coyote states that on occasions too numerous to list in this document he has suffered mishaps with explosives purchased of Defendant,” reads the humor piece, written in the style of a court docket.

    This is the third time Warner Bros. Discovery has axed a film in its final stages, with “Scoob! Holiday Haunt” and “Batgirl” being trimmed off the studio’s balance sheet in 2022.

    “As the Justice Department and @FTC revise their antitrust guidelines they should review this conduct,” Castro wrote in his November social media post. “As someone remarked, it’s like burning down a building for the insurance money.”

    Rishikesh Rajagopalan

    Rishi Rajagopalan is a social media associate producer and content writer for CBS News.

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  • Batman Beyond Shouldn’t Have to Beg for a Movie

    Batman Beyond Shouldn’t Have to Beg for a Movie

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    Earlier in the week, My Dad the Bounty Hunter creator Patrick Harpin and Yuhki Demers, a visual artist on Sony Animation’s Spider-Verse films, revealed their concept art for an animated Batman Beyond movie they’re trying to get made. They’re both fully aware nothing might come of this, and talks are still happening. But it didn’t stop said art from going viral, both because it looks really cool, and also because it’s Batman Beyond, a fan-favorite character who’s always felt like he’s within spitting distance of a big bat-break.

    If you work in a creative field, you likely have to pitch something to your boss before actually starting on it. That’s particularly true in animation, and that’s doubtful to change anytime soon. But there’s something ugly, for lack of a better word, in seeing Harpin and Demers have to publicly rally for support to prove their project’s “worthy” in this way to WB. It wasn’t that long ago that we learned the studio’s executives, led by Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav, are likely going to cancel Coyote vs. Acme without really considering any of the deals offered to them, or having actually seen the film. The people in charge of WB seem very anti-art in a way that makes this all come off as rather cruel, especially when folks have been so vocal about their love for Batman Beyond over the years.

    Legacy superheroes have become so widespread nowadays, but Terry McGinnis was an early example of that working to great success. Separate from their love of Batman: The Animated Series, fans have had an affection for 1999-2001 animated series Batman Beyond and Terry’s exploits as the Batman of Neo-Gotham. It wasn’t just that the show was offering a new take on the Dark Knight, it was also really good and not just coasting off the novelty of a teenager in a high-tech Batsuit. And while he briefly showed up in Justice League Unlimited, DC didn’t make any active moves to continue Terry’s story, and largely closed the book on him after JLU revealed he was Bruce’s son.

    Comics-wise, Terry’s actually been doing fairly well for himself in the past decade, where he was weaved into the prime DC universe. In his recent solo runs, he’s crossed paths with more recent Batman mainstays like Damian Wayne and the Court of Owls, and he’s now at the point where he’s on his own now that Bruce is dead. Yet even with that, WB has never tried to give him a bigger presence outside of the comics: a live-acton Batman Beyond movie was junked several years ago, much like an animated one rumored in 2019. He hasn’t been revived via the animated movies that WB likes to put out three or four of every year, and he doesn’t even have a video game presence beyond being costumes for Bruce in the Lego or Arkham games.

    Outside of comics, WB has always handled Batman’s supporting cast oddly. Sometimes it puts embargoes on specific characters so there can’t be multiple versions; sometimes other characters can headline shows for about half a decade or be a supporting player in the story of another, bigger Batman character. The studio constantly overcomplicates itself for no real reason, and the same is true here—it loves Batman to death, and DC’s often been at its best when animated. Harpin and Demers’ hypothetical movie checks both those boxes, and gives audiences something they’ve never seen in theaters before: Batman being a detective in the cyberpunk future is a cool idea! And again, folks have been clamoring for more Terry for years.

    Image for article titled Batman Beyond Shouldn't Have to Beg for a Movie

    Image: Warner Bros. Animation

    In a sane universe, a Batman Beyond movie in a Spider-Verse art style would probably be out by now. But this WB is trying to burn money and stall for time ahead of a likely buyout, so we’re watching an interesting idea by a pair of creators more than eager to work on it be held hostage. Batman Beyond isn’t owed this just because Harpin and Demers asked, or even because he’s been around for 25 years. What he’s owed is a legitimate chance to have something with him move forward with people who care about the property at the helm. But the focus on the bottom line means WB will be making moves that are more dystopian than the actual dystopia of Gotham City 2049.

    Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.

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    Justin Carter

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  • CW Boss Claims Superman & Lois Died For James Gunn’s Man of Steel

    CW Boss Claims Superman & Lois Died For James Gunn’s Man of Steel

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    The CW’s Arrowverse was once the talk of the superhero town, and arguably DC’s more successful live-action venture in the 2010s. But in recent years, the network’s superhero outings have all been shuttered, with Superman & Lois standing as the last Arrowverse hurrah for one more season.

    Sean Gunn on Working With His Brother

    In a recent interview with TheWrap, CW’s entertainment president Brad Schwartz and overall company president Dennis Miller talked about keeping some shows from the old regime. Superman & Lois has apparently performed quite well in previous seasons, but it was allegedly Warner Bros.’ call to cap it at four seasons. “They don’t want a competing Superman product in the marketplace,” Schwartz explained, effectively laying the blame for the show’s end at 2025’s Superman: Legacy from James Gunn.

    This isn’t the first time the Arrowverse has been put in this position: WB asked Arrow’s creators to put in several Suicide Squad regulars like Deadshot and Amanda Waller in its show to get audiences used to them before their silver screen debut. The show was also apparently keen to do something with Harley Quinn, but those plans had to be junked once she was a principal lead in the film. Both Deadshot and Waller, along with Katana, were killed off or disappeared. The same was true of Deathstroke, who was a recurring character on the show: when it seemed like he’d be getting a solo movie (or be the villain in a planned solo movie for Ben Affleck’s Batman), Arrow’s Deathstroke had to walk into the mist, never to be seen again.

    It’s a weird situation DC has put the Arrowverse in, least of all because it let Grant Gustin’s version of the Flash stick around for Ezra Miller’s (possible) entire tenure as the Flash in the movies. Batman’s also been fairly exempt from this rule, since Gotham was on during Affleck’s Bat-tenure, and Robert Pattinson’s version is getting to co-exist with the evental Bats who’ll headline The Brave & the Bold.

    However, it’s also worth noting that the new CW regime is about saving (and eventually making) money lost by the old bosses. Schwartz even admitted when he and Miller came onboard, the network had “lost a lot of money.” And like WB Discovery, it’s in a penny-pinching move: Superman & Lois has had to dump several longtime series regulars and writers for its final season, and the episode count has been slimmed down from a standard 13-15 range to just 10. Schwartz similarly told TheWrap other veteran shows like All American and Walker will stick around on the network…as long as their budgets stay relatively the same.

    Either way, four seasons is a solid run for any show, and getting too long in the tooth has long been an issue with the medium (especially ones on this network). It’s not ideal, but at least Superman & Lois gets to go out on its own terms and deliver as much of an ending as it can.

    Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.

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    Justin Carter

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  • The Conjuring 4 Will Bring the Warrens Along for One Last Scare

    The Conjuring 4 Will Bring the Warrens Along for One Last Scare

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    Image: Warner Bros.

    Since 2013, Warner Bros.’ Conjuring movies has been going along with mainline installments and spinoffs for various villains of the Warren family. But all scary things must come to some kind of end, and the upcoming The Conjuring 4 is aiming to bring the mothership series to some kind of close.

    Who Wants DC’s Canceled Batgirl Movie? | New York Comic Con 2022

    Per the Hollywood Reporter, Michael Chaves has been brought on to direct the new film. All his previous films have been Conjuring offshoots such as The Curse of La Llorona and The Nun II, along with the previous mainline film, The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It. This new film, subtitled Last Rites, will once again feature Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga as Ed and Lorraine Warren as they deal with another supernatural problem only they can solve. Filming is expected to take place in the summer over in Atlanta.

    Interestingly, THR notes that Conjuring 4 will be the final entry in the main series. What that means for the remainder of the Conjuring universe is up in the air: James Wan, a key creative for the whole enterprise, has taken his Atomic Monster banner over to Blumhouse. (Fellow collaborators like Gary Dauberman, David F. Sandberg, and Akela Cooper have either joined Wan or are focusing on their own projects.) A Conjuring TV show was announced back in April 2023, but it’s entirely possible that WB quietly gave it the axe between then and now. It’s doubtful Last Rites will mark the complete end of The Conjuring altogether, but it would allow WB to take a few years off and retool the franchise with some new creative staff on hand.

    Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.



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    Justin Carter

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  • Homeless camps in Sacramento cleared for Leonardo DiCaprio movie filming

    Homeless camps in Sacramento cleared for Leonardo DiCaprio movie filming

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    (FOX40.COM) — Parts of Downtown Sacramento look clearer than usual as officials remove homeless camps from Cesar Chavez Park amid scheduled filming for a new movie starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Teyana Taylor.

    Over the past few weeks, Warner Bros film crew has been spotted throughout the area working on a movie referred to as the “BC Project.” Although “Notice of Filming” signs were plastered throughout Downtown Sacramento in advance, the area has not been fully camera-ready.

    Homeless camps are prevalent near Cesar Chavez Park, where some movie-filming is being done. The City of Sacramento officials took action for the film crew and placed notices on tents on Friday that advised campers they have to pack up and leave within 24 hours.

    “Six tents were noticed in the filming area,” said City of Sacramento spokesperson, Tim Watson. “Through outreach and engagement from city resource coordinators, people in the area were offered connection to services and placement at the city’s Roseville Road campus.”

    Watson said that four campers accepted the city’s offer.

    Sacramento Homeless Union President Crystal Sanchez said the city’s latest move is just another instance of the City of Sacramento discriminating against the unhoused population. She addressed the producers of the film in a prepared statement:

    “We hope they take a minute and understand the crisis of homelessness and that the film has notably harmed some folks trying to survive this homeless crisis. We ask that the producers are cognizant of the City of Sacramento’s harmful action and would hope they address it with them.”

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    Veronica Catlin

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  • ESPN, Fox and Warner Bros. teaming up to create a new sports streaming service

    ESPN, Fox and Warner Bros. teaming up to create a new sports streaming service

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    ESPN, Fox Corp. and Warner Bros. Discovery said on Tuesday they are joining forces to launch a streaming sports service. 

    The platform will include offerings from at least 15 networks and all four major professional sports leagues. The paid service is scheduled to debut this fall via a new app, although subscribers will be able to bundle it with Disney+, Hulu and Max, according to a statement from Warner Bros. Discovery. 

    Each company will own a one-third stake in the joint venture, the statement said.

    The plans come amid increased competition in the business of streaming sporting events, with industry giants including Amazon and Netflix recently striking deals to add sports content for their streaming customers. In announcing the new venture, Walt Disney-owned ESPN, Fox and Warner Bros. said the new platform would provide access to thousands of high-profile sporting events, from NFL games to Formula 1 racing. 

    With viewers’ attentions split between TV, cable, streaming services and social media platforms, sports programming remains a draw, experts note.

    “Sports rights remain the only investment that guarantees a steady supply of must-see content and will therefore likely remain a key part of any streamer’s growth strategy,” analysts with investment advisory firm MoffettNathanson Research said in a recent report.

    The new platform will include games from the NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL, WNBA, NASCAR and college sports, including the men’s and women’s NCAA basketball Tournament, as well as golf, tennis and the FIFA World Cup. It will include offerings from 15 TV and cable networks: ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN+, ESPNEWS, ESPNU, SEC Network, ACC Network, ABC, FOX, FS1, FS2, Big Ten Network, TNT, TBS and truTV.


    Plans in the works for local professional sports on Amazon Prime

    01:49

    “The launch of this new streaming sports service is a significant moment for Disney and ESPN, a major win for sports fans and an important step forward for the media business,” Disney CEO Bob Iger said in a statement. “This means the full suite of ESPN channels will be available to consumers alongside the sports programming of other industry leaders as part of a differentiated sports-centric service.”

    The announcement of the bundle also comes as ESPN and Warner Bros. Discovery are preparing to enter negotiations to renew their NBA rights, which expire at the end of next season. ESPN has also been searching for strategic partners as it prepares to launch a direct-to-consumer product in the next year or two.

    The companies said that more details would be released later, including pricing.

    —With reporting by the Associated Press.

    Aimee Picchi

    Aimee Picchi is the associate managing editor for CBS MoneyWatch, where she covers business and personal finance. She previously worked at Bloomberg News and has written for national news outlets including USA Today and Consumer Reports.

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  • Disney, Fox and Warner Bros. team up to launch new sports streaming service

    Disney, Fox and Warner Bros. team up to launch new sports streaming service

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    Walt Disney Co.’s ESPN, Fox Corp. and Warner Bros. Discovery Inc. are teaming to create a joint sports streaming service.

    The as-yet unnamed service, which could be available as early as the fall and offer a sort of Hulu model for sports, comes amid an explosion in sports-streaming rights and audiences.

    The service would essentially be a skinny bundle of the companies’ linear channels, including ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, SECN, ACCN, ESPNEWS, ABC, Fox, FS1, FS2, BTN, TNT, TBS, truTV, as well as the ESPN+ streaming service.

    “The launch of this new streaming sports service is a significant moment for Disney
    DIS,
    +2.73%
    and ESPN, a major win for sports fans, and an important step forward for the media business,” Disney Chief Executive Bob Iger said in a statement late Tuesday. “This means the full suite of ESPN channels will be available to consumers alongside the sports programming of other industry leaders as part of a differentiated sports-centric service.”

    Added Warner Bros.
    WBD,

    CEO David Zaslav: “This new sports service exemplifies our ability as an industry to drive innovation and provide consumers with more choice, enjoyment and value and we’re thrilled to deliver it to sports fans.”

    Each company will own one-third of the platform, according to Disney, in a deal reminiscent of the original Hulu, which started off as a joint venture between ABC, Fox and NBCUniversal.

    The service will have a new brand with an independent management team, and will be available to bundle with Disney+, Hulu and Max subscriptions.

    “We’re pumped,” Fox
    FOX,
    +0.55%
    CEO Lachlan Murdoch said. “We believe the service will provide passionate fans outside of the traditional bundle an array of amazing sports content all in one place.”

    More details, including pricing, will be announced later.

    Prominently missing from the deal are Comcast Corp.
    CMCSA,
    -1.00%    ,
    which owns NBCUniversal and its sports lineup that includes NFL football and the Olympics, and Paramount Global
    PARA,
    -0.21%    ,
    which owns CBS — which carries the NFL and college football, among other sports.

    The new service will showcase thousands of high-profile sporting events and include all four major sports leagues — the NFL, NBA, MLB and NHL — as well as college football and basketball, golf, tennis, cycling, soccer and UFC.

    Shares of Disney were down 1% in extended trading Tuesday, while Fox shares jumped 6% and WBD gained 3%.

    Mike Murphy contributed to this report.

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  • Supergirl Found: Milly Alcock to Play Heroine in James Gunn’s DC Movies

    Supergirl Found: Milly Alcock to Play Heroine in James Gunn’s DC Movies

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    Warner Bros.‘ Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow is taking flight with House of the Dragon star Milly Alcock, The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed. She will star in the feature as Kara Zor-El, the cousin of Superman. 

    Alcock screen-tested for DC Studios bosses James Gunn and Peter Safran last week, along with Meg Donnelly, who was also in contention for the role. The character is expected to appear in a DC Studios project (or two) before her solo adventure, but it’s unclear if that project will be Gunn’s Superman: Legacy, which begins filming this spring, or another DC movie or show. Supergirl is moving like a speeding locomotive and it’s possible the feature could be shooting in the fall, if Warners soon finds a director. Ana Nogueira is penning the script.

    Alcock broke out as the younger version of Rhaenyra Targaryen in season one of HBO’s House of the Dragon, a spinoff of Game of Thrones. Now, she enters the comic book realm, with the new feature partially inspired by the Tom King and Bilquis Evely miniseries of the same name.

    “Milly is a fantastically talented young actor, and I’m incredibly excited about her being a part of the DCU,” Gunn wrote on social media Monday. “Yes, I first became aware of her in House of the Dragon but I was blown away by her varied auditions and screen tests for #Supergirl” He added that she embodied the character as envisioned by comic book writer King, comic book artist Evely and screenwriter Nogueira.

    Gunn and Safran have said this is not the Supergirl audiences are used to. She will stand in contrast to her hopeful cousin, Superman. As Gunn told reporters in late January 2023: “We will see the difference between Superman, who was sent to Earth and raised by loving parents from the time he was an infant, versus Supergirl, raised on a rock, a chip off of Krypton, and who watched everyone around her die and be killed in terrible ways for the first 14 years of her life and then come to Earth.”

    In the comics, Supergirl dates back to Action Comics No. 252. Created by Otto Binder and Al Plastino, the character is Superman’s cousin from Krypton. Faye Dunaway starred in the 1984 Supergirl film, while Melissa Benoist played the hero on the CW for six seasons from 2015-21. Sasha Calle starred as the character in the film The Flash.

    Woman of Tomorrow is part of Chapter 1 in DC’s slate from Gunn and Safran. The slate also includes the Batman feature The Brave and the Bold and a TV series starring Viola Davis as her Suicide Squad character Amanda Waller. 

    Alcock is repped by CAA, Curtis Brown Group and Goodman Genow.



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    Aaron Couch

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  • I Can't Stop Listening To This Song From Saltburn

    I Can't Stop Listening To This Song From Saltburn

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    By now, you should have seen Saltburn. One of the most viral moments of 2023 came at the very end of the year when Emerald Fennell’s film hit Amazon Prime Video. Starring two of Hollywood’s favorite leading men, Jacob Elordi as Felix and Barry Keoghan as Oliver, the movie is both appalling and captivating. I describe it as like watching a car accident: the events taking place so vile that you can’t help but stare at the damage.

    And forget about the infamous bathtub scene (the only thing I knew to expect from the film) or even the graveyard scene (the thing I did not expect in my wildest dreams)…I’m constantly replaying one scene: the final one where Oliver Quick has finally overtaken the estate and can dance around naked. By this point in the movie, my jaw had permanently resided on the floor…but this scene made me want to get up and dance too.

    It’s thanks to Sophie Ellis-Bextor’s 2001 song “Murder On The Dance Floor”, which is having a spike in popularity similar to Kate Bush’s 1985 hit “Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God) after playing in Stranger Things. On New Year’s Eve alone, “Murder On The Dance Floor” had its biggest streaming date on Spotify with 1.5 million plays and entered the Global Spotify Chart for the first time at no. 130.

    In the week after
    Saltburn’s theater release on November 22, streaming increased over 360% for the song and 340% for Ellis-Bextor’s Read My Lips album. It was a song that perfectly juxtaposed the dark message behind the film- which was riddled with comic relief and short, witty quips to satirically add to the mood.

    “Murder On The Dance Floor” should be on everyone’s playlist this week…For more
    Saltburn-related music, check out Amazon Prime’s “Saltburn: Official Playlist” on Spotify!

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    Jai Phillips

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  • Disney Makes LeFou Available For Public Use Decades Before Copyright Expires

    Disney Makes LeFou Available For Public Use Decades Before Copyright Expires

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    BURBANK, CA—Announcing the Beauty And The Beast character was available for public use as of Jan. 1, 2024, Disney CEO Bob Iger confirmed Tuesday that the company was relinquishing the rights to LeFou decades before the film’s copyright expired. “Go ahead, put LeFou in whatever silly slasher films you like—we do not care for him, and we never have,” said Iger, who called upon DreamWorks, Warner Bros., or “whoever the fuck” to go ahead and use the character in whatever creative projects they like. “If you want to use LeFou, we won’t sue you. So go on. You have my word. Technically, the copyright isn’t until 2086, but we hate that little shit. Just promise you won’t try to make him look cool because he’s not cool—he fucking sucks.” At press time, Iger added that anyone who tried to touch Lumière would be fucking dead.

    Goofy Beats Ron DeSantis To Death With Crowbar

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  • Gigantism: What a Merger Between Warner Bros. and Paramount Would Mean

    Gigantism: What a Merger Between Warner Bros. and Paramount Would Mean

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    It wouldn’t be the holiday season in Hollywood without a little deal chatter. This time, it’s Warner Bros. Discovery and Paramount Global that have set tongues wagging. Leaders for the two media giants met this week, people familiar with the talks said, to discuss a potential merger that would create an entertainment, news, and sports titan.

    Ever since the 2021 merger of WarnerMedia and Discovery created the debt-ridden Warner Bros. Discovery, media observers have speculated that the company would be a prime candidate to combine with—or even sell to—a rival. And Shari Redstone essentially hung a “For Sale” sign on Paramount’s front door after news leaked that, according to Puck’s sources, she was working with bankers to explore a deal with Skydance Media, the David Ellison–run company behind the recent Mission: Impossible films.

    The timing of the late December deal talks, which Axios first reported took place Tuesday at Paramount’s Times Square Headquarters, is notable. Warners CEO David Zaslav met with Paramount CEO Bob Bakish for several hours and discussed, among other things, a potential merger. The talks kick-start what will be a busy 2024 in Hollywood as every major media company seeks to shore up their businesses amid the dual threat of a collapsing cable business and an increasingly powerful tech incursion.

    There are a whole host of reasons that a deal between Warners and Paramount would make sense. The combination of their streaming services, Max and Paramount+, could give them the scale needed to take on Netflix. They could also merge their cable television portfolio—including channels like MTV, Nickelodeon, HGTV, and Food Network—to negotiate better terms with carriers like Comcast and Charter. Their sports businesses are also complementary, as are their CBS and CNN news operations.

    Each business also brings a piece of the puzzle that the other is lacking. Warner Bros. Discovery could take advantage of aligning with a broadcast network like CBS, which would also give it a foothold in the coveted NFL sports rights space. And Paramount would benefit from Warners’s robust international operations.

    But though Zaslav has spoken with Redstone about a potential merger, the people familiar said, there are no guarantees a deal will happen. Any combination of such large media companies would presumably face regulatory scrutiny, for one. And because of a complicated tax law, Warner Bros. Discovery would likely take a big hit on any deal that occurs before the two-year anniversary of its earlier merger, The New York Times reports.

    Investors don’t seem too excited about the potential deal, likely because it would saddle the combined company with significant debt. Warners’s shares closed Wednesday, December 20, down nearly 6%, while Paramount shares were down around 2%. In the early afternoon on Thursday, Warners’s shares were trading down another 4%, while Paramount’s were down 1%. The talks could also shake the trees on other potential partners for both companies. CNBC reports, for instance, that NBCUniversal could be drawn into the fray as a jealous suitor.

    Two years after taking the helm at Warner Bros. Discovery, Zaslav has aggressively paid down debt and turned the streaming division profitable, moves that have made it possible for the company to go hunting for deals that could benefit its overall business. But to get the company to that point he has made some unpopular decisions and infuriated workers at many levels of the industry, including conducting widespread layoffs and canning several highly anticipated upcoming projects, all while doing what some perceived as tone-deaf elbow-rubbing with stars.

    A deal between Warner Bros. Discovery and Paramount would help both companies weather what could be a tough period of transition for Hollywood. But it would also almost certainly lead to more layoffs and more contraction in an industry already broken down by media moves of the past few years.

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    Natalie Jarvey

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  • Warner Bros. and Paramount Just Met to Discuss a Possible Mega Merger | Entrepreneur

    Warner Bros. and Paramount Just Met to Discuss a Possible Mega Merger | Entrepreneur

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    In a meeting that’s shaken the media world, Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav and Paramount CEO Bob Bakish had lunch at Paramount’s Manhattan headquarters today to discuss a possible merger, according to multiple sources.

    Zaslav is also said to have met with Shari Redstone (daughter of Sumner), who owns Paramount’s parent company, National Amusements Inc (NAI).

    The landmark deal would create a news and entertainment colossus—but there would also be some challenges.

    Warner Bros/Paramount would be a “behemoth with an awful lot of debt. There’s no question about it,” William Cohan, Puck News Founding Partner, told Yahoo Finance.

    Related: What’s the Deal With These ‘Snowball’ and ‘Avalanche’ Debt Repayment Methods? Here’s How to Know Which One Is Right For You.

    Why the merger?

    Paramount Global, known for its movie studio and TV network CBS, has substantial debt ($15 billion) and needs to make a strategic move to compete with monster companies such as Netflix and Disney. Conversely, Warner Bros. Discovery needs to make a big play following its 2022 fusion of Warner Media and Discovery. Under Zaslav’s leadership, the company has been meticulous in cutting costs and making money. For example, its streaming operations have turned profitable. But Warner Bros. Discover is still $43 billion in debt.

    According to reports, Warner Bros. Discovery is also in talks with Comcast’s NBCUniversal.

    Stock market reacts

    Wall Street did not appear to be impressed with the talks.

    Warner Bros. Discovery’s shares ended down 5.7%, falling another 1.4% in after-hours trading. Meanwhile, Paramount’s stock rose initially during the first hours of the news, but dropped 1% by the end of the day.

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    Jonathan Small

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  • ‘Wonka’ Star Calah Lane on Swimming in Chocolate With Timothée Chalamet and Teaching Him Dance Moves

    ‘Wonka’ Star Calah Lane on Swimming in Chocolate With Timothée Chalamet and Teaching Him Dance Moves

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    Calah Lane is relishing her life of pure imagination after starring alongside Timothée Chalamet in Warner Bros.‘ anticipated holiday release Wonka.

    The musical, which hit theaters Friday, features the 14-year-old actress as Noodle, a hard-working but underprivileged orphan who has never tasted chocolate until she ends up in the same boarding facility as Chalamet’s dessert-adoring Willy Wonka. Depicting the early years of the character who originated in Roald Dahl’s 1964 novel Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, director Paul King‘s movie also stars Hugh Grant, Olivia Colman and Keegan-Michael Key.

    Lane, who earned a Critics Choice nomination for her breakout role, grew up in Fort Worth, Texas, and first showed an interest in performing when her mother filmed her belting out a Michael Jackson hit at age 2. After that, she landed a supporting part in a production of Annie at age 4 and later appeared on Kidding, Hollywood, This Is Us and Family Reunion, in addition to a pair of Jimmy Kimmel Live! episodes on which she sang background vocals.

    The actress tells The Hollywood Reporter that she had only seen Tim Burton’s Johnny Depp-led Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005) prior to her audition and assumed that it was the first Wonka movie, having not been aware of the 1971 film Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory that starred Gene Wilder. As it happened, she didn’t even realize what she was getting into when she first threw her hat in the ring.

    “I got an audition, and I had no idea it was even for Wonka,” Lane recalls. “My name was Nutmeg. It said ‘Untitled Project,’ and I think Willy Wonka’s name was like Jimmy or something. I found out that it was for Wonka when I went to England for a screen test.”

    Lane first connected with Chalamet for a virtual screen test and then met him during a rehearsal after booking the part. The actress praises her co-star for making her feel at ease: “Sometimes it’s hard for me to get into character. When I watched him on set, I was like, ‘Wow, he can do this really, really, really good.’ And I kind of learned from that. But he’s very fun on set.”

    Calah Lane (hair: Tiffany Daugherty; makeup: ShaDara Holmes; styling: April Lim)

    Emily Malan

    The pair share frequent scenes together and got plenty of time to connect, including during a memorable musical number involving a giraffe and another trapped in gallons of liquid chocolate. The latter scene was first rehearsed in a brown lotion, and then later, the elixir contained actual chocolate.

    “Even though it was chocolate, they were like, ‘Please do not eat it,’” Lane remembers about the film’s team. It’s safe to say the liquid left a lasting impression in more ways than one: “My hands were yellow, and my feet were yellow, and it was really weird.”

    Speaking of chocolate, the role required consuming plenty of the confection. “I ate so much chocolate because we would do take after take after take,” she says. “It wasn’t bad chocolate, which was good because they actually had a chocolatier on set. There was so much detail in the chocolate, and it was so great. She made all the chocolates by hand.”

    Needless to say, Lane isn’t complaining. “I love chocolate, so I’ll eat 30,000 pieces if I could,” she quips. (Luckily, the role didn’t require putting away quite that much.)

    As for her career path, Lane, who continues her schooling from home, says she would enjoy trying an action role or possibly a Mean Girls-type high school project. And if she has another gig that requires singing and dancing, she would be more than capable, considering she even taught Chalamet some fleet-footed moves during their downtime.

    “I taught him the ‘Thriller’ dance,” Lane says proudly. “I’m the No. 1 fan of Michael Jackson. I know everything.”

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    Ryan Gajewski

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  • Rockstar Games forced to release GTA VI trailer after leak

    Rockstar Games forced to release GTA VI trailer after leak

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    Forget Marvel, Star Wars, Harry Potter or James Bond. None of the next installments of these popular franchises will likely hold a candle to the anticipation of a new Grand Theft Auto sequel slated to land sometime in 2025. 

    The first trailer for GTA VI, in which gamers live out their fantasies as denizens of the criminal underworld, dropped on Tuesday after a leak on social media prompted publisher Rockstar Games to move forward with the planned December 5th reveal. 

    Not even a day later and the topic already dominates the trending list on YouTube, with over 7 million likes and counting. The 62 million views prompted a sore Linda Yaccarino—still in damage control mode following Elon Musk’s car crash interview—to plead with Rockstar to embed the trailer on X rather than direct her audience away and onto Google’s rival streaming platform. 

    The fascination around the game is partly because it’s been a full decade since its landmark predecessor landed. When GTA V launched in 2013, the game obliterated sales records, needing just three days to cross the $1 billion threshold.

    It holds the record for the highest-grossing entertainment property of any kind—film, music or book—shipping 190 million units to date and still commands a price many years later between $20 and $30 depending on console generation. 

    “Grand Theft Auto VI continues our efforts to push the limits of what’s possible in highly immersive, story-driven open-world experiences,” promised Rockstar Games president Sam Houser in a statement, calling it the “biggest, most immersive evolution of the Grand Theft Auto series yet”.

    Rockstar, founded by Houser and his brother Dan 25 years ago this month, revealed little of the story other than it appears to center on a Bonnie & Clyde pair of small-time criminals.

    The scenery shifts from GTA V’s San Andreas, a microcosm of California, to the streets of Vice City, which served as neon-lit backdrop of the 2002 GTA installment by the same name. Given all the recent buzz around Miami as a new symbol of America’s wealth gap, Rockstar could hardly have picked a timelier setting for its protagonists’ fictional crime spree.

    ‘Dependent on the future success’

    Like any trailer, it should whet the appetite for the game’s arrival sometime in the next 13 to 24 months (if the predecessor is anything to go by, expect a release in autumn just in time for the holiday shopping season). 

    But it is little indication about the quality of the finished product, and there are big questions surrounding the next installment. 

    Two of the most important figures credited with the franchise’s chart-topping success moved on after GTA V launched. Lead writer Dan Houser, the creative brain behind the franchise and Rockstar’s co-founder together with brother Sam, left in 2020.

    Producer and game designer Leslie Benzies departed to found his own studio and is now working on a similar GTA-style game believed to incorporate blockchain elements from the crypto world.

    Landing another hit is crucial for Rockstar and its parent company Take-Two Interactive Software. A decade ago when it launched the previous installment, consolidated annual revenue almost doubled.

    “We are dependent on the future success of our Grand Theft Auto products,” Take-Two warned investors in its latest full fiscal year report. 

    Thanks to developers like Rockstar, CD Projekt Red and most recently Larian Studios, video games as a genre have long shed the stigma as a form of low art, becoming perhaps the major force in the entertainment industry. 

    “Research has shown that Gen Z and Gen Alpha prefer gaming to any other form of entertainment—more than social media, more than watching television or listening to music, more than going to the movie theatre,” said Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav, who himself landed a hit with this year’s Harry Potter-themed Hogwarts Legacy game. 

    On Thursday the industry is set to celebrate its equivalent of the Oscars, with titles like Baldur’s Gate 3 and The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom hot contenders for the top prize as Game of the Year.

    Subscribe to the Eye on AI newsletter to stay abreast of how AI is shaping the future of business. Sign up for free.

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    Christiaan Hetzner

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  • ‘Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire’ Trailer Sees Epic Kaiju Team Up

    ‘Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire’ Trailer Sees Epic Kaiju Team Up

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    It’s a team-up for the ages, as we finally see Godzilla and Kong join forces to take down a ferocious foe in the first trailer for Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire.

    The latest feature film entry in Warner Bros./Legendary Entertainment‘s MonsterVerse follows the events of Godzilla vs. Kong (2021), where fans got to see the two apex kaijus finally fight for supremacy. From the trailer, The New Empire delves deeper into the mysteries of the Hollow Earth and the reveal of a Titan menace that will necessitate the alliance of Godzilla and Kong.

    Godzilla vs. Kong filmmaker Adam Wingard is back in the director’s chair, and returning cast members include Rebecca Hall, Brian Tyree Henry and Kaylee Hottle. Brit Dan Stevens, who worked with Wingard on the thriller The Guest (2014), joins the franchise as a lead in The New Empire.

    Other new castmembers include Fala Chen, Alex Ferns and Rachel House. The script comes from Terry Rossio, Simon Barrett and Jeremy Slater.

    The New Empire is the fifth feature in the MonsterVerse franchise and follows Godzilla (2014), Kong: Skull Island (2017), Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019) and Godzilla vs. Kong (2021). There have also been two television entries in the franchise, the anime series Skull Island (2023) released on Netflix and the live-action series Monarch: Legacy of Monsters (2023) released on Apple TV+.

    The New Empire was originally slated to hit theaters on March 15, 2024, but was moved to April 12, 2024.

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    Abid Rahman

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  • Disney, Warner Bros., Comcast, Paramount Global are the latest to pull ads from Elon Musk’s X

    Disney, Warner Bros., Comcast, Paramount Global are the latest to pull ads from Elon Musk’s X

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    Add Walt Disney Co. DIS, Warner Bros. Discovery Inc. WBD, Comcast Corp. CMCSA and Paramount Global PARA to the growing list of major brands pausing advertising on Elon Musk’s embattled X. Lions Gate Entertainment Corp. LGF.A also said it would be pulling ads, just as its Hunger Games prequel is hitting movie theaters. The media giants follow Apple Inc. AAPL and IBM Corp. IBM who halted marketing — and tens of millions of dollars a year — as Musk faces blowback over antisemitic abuse on his social media platform as well as his own comments.

    …

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  • Congressman Slams Warner Bros. for Canceling ‘Coyote vs. Acme,’ Calls for Federal Investigation

    Congressman Slams Warner Bros. for Canceling ‘Coyote vs. Acme,’ Calls for Federal Investigation

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    A congressman is calling for a federal investigation of Warner Bros. for its handling of Coyote vs. Acme.

    Texas Rep. Joaquin Castro took to X to blast the studio for its original plan to shelve the movie for a tax break.

    “The WBD tactic of scrapping fully made films for tax breaks is predatory and anti-competitive,” the San Antonio Democrat wrote. “As the Justice Department and revise their antitrust guidelines they should review this conduct. As someone remarked, it’s like burning down a building for the insurance money.”

    Warners has since reversed its decision amid industry backlash and decided to try and shop the film to other studios and streamers. But the studio previously went through with shelving movies for tax write-offs last year with the movies Batgirl and Scoob! Holiday Haunt.

    Castro has been vocal on antitrust issues in media and entertainment. In April, he called on the competition enforcers to reassess Discovery’s merger with AT&T’s WarnerMedia. This followed 30 members of Congress warning that the resulting competition vacuum would harm workers and consumers, as well as reduce diverse programming — which became a common criticism after the company canned its $90 million HBO Max film Batgirl, the first DC movie led by a Latina, for the tax write-off.

    In a letter to the Justice Department, Castro previously wrote that the deal enabled Warner Bros. Discovery to “adopt potentially anticompetitive practices,” including “product cancellations.”

    “The damage to content creators whose projects are cancelled in deep development and post-production cannot be overstated,’ stated the April 7 letter. “Such cancellations stain these projects, making them less appealing and marketable to other buyers — consumers will likely never be able to watch shows purchased then cancelled by WBD. WBD’s conduct amounts to a de facto ‘catch and kill’ practice, vastly limiting consumer choice.”

    Under current merger guidelines, a consideration of whether a deal is approved is if it will incentivize a company to “withdraw a product that a significant number of customers strongly prefer.” Castro, in his comments over the shelving of Coyote vs. Acme, could be alluding to the absence of competition in Hollywood that allows WBD to make unpopular moves without harm to its bottom line.

    The call for an investigation is the latest twist in the almost cartoon-like saga of the live-action/animation hybrid Coyote vs. Acme, which went from just another title on Warners’ slate to the most talked-about movie in Hollywood thanks to the studio’s initial effort to scrap the project.

    Unlike Batgirl and Scoob! Holiday Haunt, however, Coyote vs. Acme is entirely finished, and had a successful audience screening where its test scores were in the 90s. Supporters of the project applied pressure to the studio to change last week’s decision, with some creatives even canceling meetings with the company in protest. “I don’t know how you see the movie and then go, ‘That couldn’t happen to me,’” No One Will Save You filmmaker Brian Duffield previously told THR.

    Now the studio will now allow director Dave Green to shop the project, though it’s not yet clear what price Warner Bros. will set for the title given its potential value as a tax write off that would help offset the movie’s $70 million budget.

    Coyote vs. Acme follows the speechless and hapless Wile E. Coyote as he teams up with a lawyer (Will Forte) to fight the ACME corporation. Just like in the cartoons, Coyote buys ACME devices to try and kill Road Runner, but they never work properly, causing him to embark on a quest to take down the company instead.

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    James Hibberd

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  • Why Are People Outraged Over John Cena’s Canceled Looney Tunes Movie?

    Why Are People Outraged Over John Cena’s Canceled Looney Tunes Movie?

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    More than a year after the Warner Bros. Discovery merger ushered in the removal and scrapping of multiple HBO Max TV series and original films, including a $90 million Batgirl movie, the company is pulling the plug on yet another completed project. On Thursday, it was confirmed that Warner Bros. has canceled plans to release Coyote vs. Acme, a live-action and CG animation hybrid film starring John Cena that completed filming last year, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

    “With the relaunch of Warner Bros. Pictures Animation in June, the studio has shifted its global strategy to focus on theatrical releases,” a WB Motion Picture Group spokesperson said in a statement to the outlet. “With this new direction, we have made the difficult decision not to move forward with Coyote vs Acme. We have tremendous respect for the filmmakers, casts, and crew, and are grateful for their contributions to the film.”

    Based on the 1990 New Yorker humor piece written by Ian Frazier and adapted by Samy Burch— who also wrote Todd Haynes’s upcoming awards contender, May December—the film centers on Looney Tunes character Wile E. Coyote as he seeks legal action against Acme after the company’s products fail in his pursuit of the Road Runner. Costarring Will Forte and Lana Condor, the project was announced in 2020 and dated for theatrical release on July 21, 2023, before it was wiped from the calendar and replaced by Barbie.

    When Batgirl was shelved last year after advance test screenings, a Warner Bros. Pictures spokesperson blamed the move on “our leadership’s strategic shift as it relates to the DC universe and HBO Max.” But sources told Variety that Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav intended to take a tax write-down from the film, rather than spend an additional $30 million to $50 million to market it domestically. Coyote vs. Acme reportedly came with a $72 million price tag and had begun receiving high audience scores at early test screenings. Yet Warner Bros. leadership has apparently similarly balked at pouring any money into promoting the project for release. According to Deadline, the company is taking an estimated $30 million write-down on the production.

    While cutting losses by canceling projects is not a new strategy for Zaslav’s company, it’s surprising that Warner Bros. would choose to shelve a film that involves so much marquee talent. DC Studios cohead James Gunn produced the film and worked on its story; director Dave Green, who previously helmed 2016’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows, is developing a project at the company’s New Line Cinema division; and Cena stars in Max’s DC show Peacemaker, which is due to return for a second season. (Vanity Fair has reached out to a rep for the actor for comment.)

    “For three years, I was lucky enough to make a movie about Wile E. Coyote, the most persistent, passionate, and resilient character of all time,” Green posted on X, formerly known as Twitter. “I was surrounded by a brilliant team, who poured their souls into this project for years. We were all determined to honor the legacies of these historic characters and actually get them right. Along the ride, we were embraced by test audiences who rewarded us with fantastic scores. I am beyond proud of the final product, and beyond devastated by WB’s decision. But in the spirit of Wile E. Coyote, resilience and persistence win the day.”

    Composer Steven Price shared a snippet of the film’s score to social media, “as no-one will be able to hear it now, due to bizarre anti-art studio financial shenanigans I will never understand.”

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    Savannah Walsh

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  • Mortal Kombat 1’s New Microtransactions Are Scarier Than Its Fatalities [Update]

    Mortal Kombat 1’s New Microtransactions Are Scarier Than Its Fatalities [Update]

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    Mortal Kombat 1, NetherRealm’s newest entry in its three-decades-old fighting game series, continues its predecessors’ tradition of pulling gut-yanking, brain-pounding final moves, or Fatalities, to the delight of its gore connoisseur fans. But some of those fans are frustrated. MK1’s recent patch introduces seasonal Fatalities—cool, but you have to pay for them.

    The Week In Games: What’s Coming Out Beyond Mortal Kombat 1

    Is no body horror sacred? October 23 patch notes indicate NetherRealm issued a ton of gameplay and performance changes to its $70 game, like improved AI and more balanced combat, but it hid the less desirable details about the premium Halloween Finisher among them. It won’t actually make it to the game’s Premium Store until later this week, publisher Warner Bros. Games said on Twitter, but it seems likely that it’s the same themed Fatality Mortal Kombat leakers revealed in September.

    Leaked footage shows that, during the Fatality move, you slam a grimacing jack-o’-lantern over your opponent’s face and wait for bugs to slink out. Your enemy then doubles over and you pop their head off with a powerful kick, observing as it flies through space and slams into a front porch decorated for Halloween. The doorbell rings like you’re trick-or-treating, and blood waterfalls around the cracked pumpkin skull. “FATALITY,” the screen announces in vampire red.

    Update 10/27/2023 8:24 p.m. ET: The “Happy Halloween” fatality is now up for sale in Mortal Kombat 1‘s Premium Store. It’s price? A whopping $12 USD. Original story continues after the tweet.

    It looks like a fun move, and it’s October-ready, but fans stopped feeling as excited about it when they realized they’d have to pay extra for it.

    “Pretty bad new precedent set by the devs charging for Fatalities now, and if people pay for it then it will only get worse,” one Reddit user said. “Next they might start charging $0.10 every time we call out our [support fighter] Kameo.”

    “Why the hell did I pay for a [$110] Premium Edition […] yet NR has the cheek to try to force more paid content already?” a Twitter user responded to WB Games. “Greedy business practices before quality.”

    NetherRealm apparently hasn’t learned from its 2019 game MK11, which gained notoriety among fans for what Kotaku writer Mike Fahey called its “oppressive” grind, which encouraged players to spend thousands of dollars on in-game currency to avoid suffering through tedious amounts of gameplay to unlock rewards. MK1 is also offering a free Halloween Variant, a purplish, cobwebbed middle school dance, to the Cage Mansion Arena, but it doesn’t take the sting out of giving more money to a game you thought you already paid for.

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    Ashley Bardhan

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