‘Babylon 5’ Animated Movie in the Works, Series Creator J. Michael Straczynski Says

Jordan Moreau Like many projects in early production during the writers strike, the upcoming “Game of Thrones” spinoff “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: The Hedge Knight” has paused its writers room, author George R.R. Martin revealed in a new blog post Monday. The prolific author, most known for his ongoing “A Song of Ice and Fire” novels that inspired HBO’s hit shows “Game of Thrones” and its spinoff “House of the Dragon,” also made announcements about his other TV shows, like AMC’s “Dark Winds” Season 2. “I am not in LA, so I cannot walk a picket line as I did in 1988, but I want to go on the record with my full and complete and unequivocal support of my Guild,” he wrote.

Jordan Moreau SPOILER ALERT: This interview contains spoilers for Season 4, Episode 5 of “Barry,” now streaming on HBO Max. Last week’s episode of “Barry” ended on one of the show’s most bizarre cliffhangers: Barry (Bill Hader) and Sally (Sarah Goldberg) appeared to be several years older and living in a house in the desert with a young son. The HBO show has toyed with flashbacks and dream-like sequences before, and Sunday’s newest episode didn’t reveal what was going on until the final minutes… …and it’s a time jump into the future! The end of last week’s episode actually moved ahead eight years, during which Barry and Sally have evaded public recognition after he escaped prison. They’re living under brand-new identities, Clark and Emily, and raising their son, John. Barry, newly religious and peaceful, homeschools John but is too afraid to teach him how to play baseball because of the sport’s violence. Sally wears a brunette wig, dons a Southern accent and works at a rinky-dink diner, where she gets sexually harassed by a biker.

A group of top showrunners met today to discuss the WGA strike – a day after it emerged the studios told writer/producers were not excused from producing duties during the labor action.

As if movie fans needed another reason to be wary of new Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav: Deadline reports that the CEO told the hosts of the CNBC show “Squawk Box” that “a love for working” will be what ultimately ends the current WGA writers’ strike.

Angelique Jackson The American Black Film Festival (ABFF) has announced the lineup for this year’s Talks Series, headlined by 2023 festival ambassador Lena Waithe. The 27th edition of the festival will be held June 14-18 in Miami Beach, followed by a virtual program June 19-25 on ABFF Play. On Thursday, June 15, the Emmy-winning writer, producer and actor will sit for an intimate one-on-one conversation, billed as “The Lena Waithe Effect,” where she’ll recount her journey in the entertainment industry. In addition to Waithe, the series of conversations and panels also features: “That’s Our Business,” a candid conversation with Tabitha Brown and her husband Chance Brown; a panel discussion with TV One Networks’ Kirk and Tammy Franklin (“The One”) and LisaRaye McCoy (“Asking for a Friend”); a look behind-the-scenes of Bounce TV’s “Act Your Age” starring Kym Whitley and Yvette Nicole Brown; a celebration of hip-hop’s 50th anniversary with the Xfinity Original Series “Hip House”; and the WBD Access Music Supervisor Panel featuring Morgan Rhodes (“The Color Purple”) and Carolyn Owens (“Cherish the Day”).

unable to reach a deal in contract negotiations with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers before Monday’s contract expiration. Picketing began in New York City and Los Angeles on Tuesday.The strike involves a long list of concerns that the writers want Hollywood studios to address, from the low pay involved in writing streaming series to reining in “mini-rooms” used to skirt contractual pay practices to addressing the use of artificial intelligence.When asked about what it would take to find common ground and resolve the writers’ strike, Zaslav replied “a love for the business and a love for working.”“We all came into this business because we love storytelling, we want to entertain and when we’re at our best we get a chance to have an impact on the culture,” he said. “Almost all of us got into this business with a lot of sacrifice in order to be part of that journey and so that’s what’s gonna bring us together.” Zaslav’s comments on the strike come as Warner Bros.

The summer box office season has officially begun with the release of Marvel Studios’ “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3” which made $17.5 million from Thursday preview screenings. That figure is slightly above the $17 million earned by “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Warner Bros. Discovery chief David Zaslav weighed in on CNN’s controversial decision to host a live town-hall format Q&A with former President Donald Trump — defending the decision as needing to represent “both sides.” “The U.S. has a divided government. We need to hear both voices,” Zaslav said, speaking Friday on CNBC’s “Squawk Box” when asked about Trump’s scheduled May 10 appearance on CNN. “Republicans are on the air on CNN, Democrats are on the air… When we do politics, we need to represent both sides. I think it’s important for America.” Zaslav continued about Trump, “He’s the front-runner — he has to be on our network. We’re happy he’s coming on there.”

launch its rebranded Max streaming service on May 23, plans to focus on family-friendly content. “The more people that use it in the family, the more engaged people are, the broader the offering, the lower the churn,” Zaslav noted.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter “Yellowstone” is officially coming to an end, with the final episodes of the megahit Paramount Network series’ fifth season set to launch in November. In addition, an untitled sequel series has been ordered and will debut on Paramount Network and Paramount+ in December. The announcement comes after months of speculation that Kevin Costner would be leaving the series, reportedly over his desire to focus on the epic two-part Western feature “Horizon,” which would have seriously impacted his availability to film “Yellowstone.” “’Yellowstone’ has been the cornerstone on which we have launched an entire universe of global hits – from ‘1883’ to ‘Tulsa King,’ and I am confident our ‘Yellowstone’ sequel will be another big hit, thanks to the brilliant creative mind of Taylor Sheridan and our incredible casts who bring these shows to life,” said Chris McCarthy, president & CEO of Showtime and MTV Entertainment Studios.

Max brand name on May 23, the entertainment giant revealed it had added 1.6 million streaming subscribers during the quarter for a total of 97.6 million globally.The direct to consumer division reported a profit of $50 million, a $704 million year-over-year improvement on a pro forma combined basis. Revenue for the segment fell 2% year over year to $2.455 billion, including $2.165 billion in distribution revenue, $103 million in advertising revenue and $185 million in content revenue.

Charna Flam Max has shared the trailer for its upcoming documentary “Bama Rush,” which follows the social media phenomenon that grew out of University of Alabama students documenting their sorority recruitment experience. The feature length documentary will premiere on Warner Bros. Discovery’s merged HBO Max-Discovery+ streaming platform Max on May 23.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter “One Piece” creator Eiichiro Oda offered fans an update on the upcoming Netflix live-action series based on the popular manga. “I’ve been working with Tomorrow Studios and Netflix for quite some time now,” Oda wrote in a letter posted online. “Even though they understand each of the characters, we obviously come from very different cultures so, when it comes to entertainment, we have different codes, skill sets, and aims. Sometimes it could be frustrating for both sides. It felt like, ‘We’re all trying to get to the same place so how come we’re not on the same wavelength?’ there was even a time when I thought, ‘Is a foreign production even possible?!’

Zack Sharf Digital News Director As Warner Bros. gears up to release “The Flash” in theaters this summer, many moviegoers are wondering how star Ezra Miller’s history of legal troubles and alleged abuse might impact the release and press tour. The film’s production designer, Oscar winner Paul Austerberry (“The Shape of Water”) isn’t sweating it. During a recent interview with CBC, Austerberry said “people will forget” Miller’s history when the film releases. As reported by the CBC: “Austerberry says he’s not too concerned about how the stories surrounding Miller will affect the film. ‘People will forget that,’ he said, noting that Miller did a superb job playing the titular hero as two distinct characters, which required production to shoot the film in ‘two different chunks,’ with Ezra switching roles every few days.”

Joe Otterson TV Reporter The behind-the-scenes world of professional wrestling was infamously closed off to the public for decades, frustrating fans who craved a glimpse of what their favorite performers were really likeoutside the ring.That all changed with the internet and social media. And now, the industry is peeling back the mystique further via a slew of docuseries about pro wrestling’s biggest stars and aspiring grapplers.WWE has a slate of four shows with A&E, including “WWE Rivals” and “WWE’s Most Wanted Treasures.” Meanwhile, Vice TV is releasing Season 4 of the series “Dark Side of the Ring” on May 30. Also in the mix, Apple TV+ recently aired the docuseries “Monster Factory,” named after the famed pro wrestling school in New Jersey where it takes place, and TBS began airing the All Elite Wrestling show “AEW: All Access” in March.Evan Husney, co-creator and executive producer of “Dark Side of the Ring,” says the pro wrestling doc boom is finally happening because the WWE “controlled the narrative for so long.” Only now are fans getting to see things from other perspectives.“[WWE] controlled all the documentaries that were being put out,” he says. “When we came along with our first season, it was the first time on television in a while that you had seen a sort of journalistic approach and different looks at behind-the-scenes stories and controversies on that large of a scale.”Also driving the wrestling docuseries explosion: nostalgia.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer With major cost-saving initiatives in effect at Disney, Warner Bros. Discovery, Netflix, Amazon, Paramount and more mega media companies and economic uncertainty on Wall Street, the content spend free-for-all is definitely over. Today, the focus is turning to scalable franchises that work for in a multiplatform media world where Hollywood will get the biggest bang for more limited bucks. According to Perkins Miller, CEO of media company Fandom, the financial focus for the next 18 months should be on mining IP and franchises for all their worth. “My view is that, you don’t want to stifle innovation, I think creativity is incredibly important and you want to see that breakout show that is interesting or that movie that was greenlit because the story was so remarkable that it breaks the mold,” Miller said on the latest episode of Variety‘s “Strictly Business” podcast. “And I wouldn’t suggest that anybody should stop those kinds of activities. I think that are important, obviously, from a creative standpoint. But from an economic one, which is the question you’re asking, what is the most economically smart thing to do, I think the most economically smart thing to do is to focus on franchises and figure out your scaled production against them.”

Julia MacCary editor Warner Bros. has dropped the first official trailer for the highly anticipated sci-fi epic sequel “Dune: Part 2.” In 2021’s “Dune,” Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet) ventured to Arrakis, the universe’s most dangerous and sandiest planet, to ensure his family and people’s future as evil forces exploded in conflict. The Denis Villeneuve drama, based on Frank Herbert’s novel, was nominated for 10 Academy Awards and won six.  In the sequel, Atreides teams up with Chani (Zendaya) and the Fremen to exact revenge on those who destroyed his family, and he must juggle his love life with the fate of the universe at stake. The trailer shows Paul riding the back of a massive sand worm on the deserts of Arrakis while Chani and the Fremen cheer him on.

Long live the fighters! Paul Atreides’ fantastical journey from young aristocrat to religious messiah/warlord is about to come to an epic crescendo in “Dune: Part Two.” The upcoming sequel is the second half of Denis Villeneuve‘s adaptation of the iconic Frank Herbert novel. Warner Bros.

EXCLUSIVE: The BBC has defended plans to film an American Idol-style acting competition series after performers compared the format to The Hunger Games.

WWE CEO Nick Khan said Wednesday the company isn’t imapcted by the WGA strike that started yesterday.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter Xilam Animation will serve as animation studio on Zack Snyder’s upcoming Netflix series “Twilight of the Gods.” The series was originally announced in 2019. Little is known about the plot other than it will ancient Norse mythology. The voice cast includes: Sylvia Hoeks, Stuart Martin, Pilou Asbaek, John Noble, Paterson Joseph, Rahul Kohli, Jamie Clayton, Kristopher Hivju, Peter Stormare, Jamie Chung, Lauren Cohan, and Corey Stroll. The series does not yet have a premiere date. Xilam’s animation services on the animated series will include lay-out, colour BG, animation and compositing. The studio’s past credits include the Oscar-nominated feature “I Lost My Body” as well as shows like “Oggy and the Cockroaches,” “Zig & Sharko,” and “Chip ‘n’ Dale: Park Life.”

Writer-comedian Adam Conover, creator and host of Adam Ruins Everything and member of the WGA Negotiating Committee, had been outspoken on social media in the run-up to the guild’s talks with AMPTP, the collective bargaining representative of the major Hollywood studios.

Clayton Davis Senior Awards Editor Writer and comedian Adam Conover blasted David Zaslav, the Warner Bros Discovery CEO, during an interview with CNN on Tuesday, a company Zaslav also oversees. “David Zaslav, the CEO of Warner Bros. Discovery, the parent company of the network I’m talking to you on right now, was paid $250 million last year, a quarter of a billion dollars,” Conover said during his interview with CNN correspondent Sara Sidner. “That’s about the same level as what 10,000 writers are asking him to pay all of us collectively, alright. So I would say if you’re being paid $250 million — these companies are making enormous amounts of money. Their profits are going up. It’s ridiculous for them to plead poverty.”

Selome Hailu Back-to-back airings of “Succession” and “Barry” as both shows progress through their fourth and final seasons continue to bring in strong numbers for HBO on Sunday nights — and now, Season 2 of “Somebody Somewhere” is contributing to that roster. With Episode 6, “Succession” hit a series high for the fourth time this season: 2.7 million viewers, up 7% from the 2.6 million viewers who tuned into Episodes 4 and 5. Season 4 debuted with a then-series high of 2.3 million viewers, before dipping to 2 million with Episode 2 and jumping back up to 2.5 million with Episode 3. These statistics are reported by Warner Bros. Discovery based on a combination of Nielsen’s measurement of linear airings on HBO and first-party data regarding streams on HBO Max.

The CW has confirmed that it is going on a date with FBoy Island and its female spinoff FGirl Island.

House of the Dragon” will continue in the U.K. despite the U.S. writers’ strike. A source close to production tells Variety that scripts on the hit show have been done for some time, and that filming on the second season won’t be affected. The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers ended contract talks with the Writers Guild of America on Monday night, hours before the contract expiration deadline. The WGA responded by calling for a strike to begin on Tuesday. Under strike rules, WGA members working internationally must down tools on any project that falls within the union’s jurisdiction if there’s active writing work taking place. As such, a number of U.S. projects filming in the U.K. could be affected by the strike — it’s just a matter of how extensively such a disruption will impact the production overall.

Warner Bros. Discovery is lighting the lamp with its first round coverage of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs across TNT and TBS.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Snap took the wraps off new advertising initiatives at its 2023 NewFronts presentation for marketers in New York — including revealing a new test of sponsored links in My AI, which can deliver ads based on a user’s conversation with the chatbot. The company, which averaged 383 million daily active users in Q1, last month announced the rollout of the artificial intelligence-powered My AI chatbot to all Snapchat users. While it’s still early days, Snap says My AI has the potential to deliver more relevant content and experiences across the app — and execs told NewFronts attendees the company is experimenting with sponsored links in My AI.

EXCLUSIVE: Tye Sheridan (The Tender Bar) has closed a deal to star alongside Jude Law and Nicholas Hoult in AGC Studios‘ crime thriller The Order from director Justin Kurzel (Assassin’s Creed, Macbeth), which is heading into production in Alberta, Canada on May 11th.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter Pro wrestling legend Chris Jericho is set to star in the upcoming UPtv original movie “Country Hearts,” Variety has learned exclusively. The film, which will premiere this fall, follows “the daughters of country music and rock & roll royalty who find themselves at a crossroads, torn between following their dreams of performing or helping their father run their up-and-coming horse breeding business,” per the official description. “Between old flames, new love, best friends and family – they’ll all need the strength of each other to face the next steps.” Along with Jericho, the cast for the film also includes Lanie McAuley, Katerina Maria, Brendan Morgan, Jeff Irving, Craig Strickland, David Pinard, Michelle Nolden, Genevieve Fisher, Roy Lewis, Lara Amersey, Greg Ellwand, Bebsabe Duque, Celine Bauwmans, and Neil Whitely. A sequel, “Country Hearts Christmas,” has been greenlit already.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter “Dancing with the Stars” is coming back to ABC for Season 32, Variety has confirmed with sources. The move to bring the reality competition series back to the broadcast network comes after the show aired one season exclusively on streamer Disney+.

walked off the job Monday night in the entertainment industry’s first strike in 15 years, after the union and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers failed to reach a deal.WGA said the decision to strike was made after six weeks of negotiations with the umbrella organization that is representing Netflix, Amazon, Apple, Disney, Discovery-Warner, NBC Universal, Paramount and Sony. But it’s the studios themselves where writers and supporters will carry signs and march. Picketing it set to take place from 1 p.m.

unable to reach a deal in contract negotiations with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers.The guild has shared an infographic that outlines the $773 million in combined salary that eight major Hollywood studio CEOs made in 2021. They include Endeavor CEO Ari Emanuel ($308.2 million), Warner Bros.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media Writer The Writers Guild of America West will begin picketing Tuesday afternoon outside of Netflix, Amazon, Disney, Warner Bros., and the other major studios in Los Angeles, after a strike was called on Monday night. The Writers Guild of America East, based in New York, put out a schedule for the “first two weeks of picketing,” which will begin on Tuesday at the Peacock NewFront on 5th Avenue. The WGAE also plans to picket outside Netflix headquarters in New York on Wednesday. The WGA called a strike Monday night, after the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers announced that negotiations had concluded for the day without a deal. The current three-year contract expires at midnight on Monday.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter Sydney Chandler has been cast as a lead in Noah Hawley’s “Alien” series currently in the works at FX, Variety has learned. Plot and character details are being kept under tight wraps on the project, which was first announced in December 2020. The only detail that has been confirmed is that the show will take place on Earth in the not-too-distant future. The role brings Chandler back to FX, as she previously made her network television debut in the cabler’s 2022 limited series “Pistol” from Danny Boyle, which told the story of the legendary band The Sex Pistols. Chandler starred in the series as Chrissie Hynde of the Pretenders. Chandler’s other credits include the film “Don’t Worry Darling” and the Facebook Watch series “SKAM Austin.” She is also set to appear in the upcoming Apple series “Sugar” opposite Colin Farrell.

EXCLUSIVE: This month’s upfronts in New York City, where the networks pitch their fall lineups to advertisers, would be the target of WGA East picketing if negotiations fail to reach an agreement on a new film and scripted TV contract. The Writers Guild contract talks with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers are entering their final day today, with the guild’s current contract set to expire tonight at midnight PT.