In the midst of the summer entertainment news doldrums, as Hollywood laments a fading (for now) box office, along comes Pixar with “Inside Out 2.” The sequel earned nearly $300 million in its opening weekend proving, once again, that all the industry really needs for audiences to head back to movie theaters is… well, movies. Meanwhile, after nixing an acquisition at the eleventh hour, Shari Redstone continues to keep Wall Street, the industry and potential suitors in suspense over whether she’ll sell Paramount Global. This will be the last episode of Showbiz Sandbox for the foreseeable future as we take an indefinite hiatus. Don’t unsubscribe as we’ll likely be back from time to time when news, festivals and events warrant. Thanks for listening for the past 15 years. ‘Inside Out 2’ So Feeling It With $724M WW – International Box Office https://deadline.com/2024/06/inside-out-2-global-international-box-office-second-week-records-1235978854/ ‘Inside Out 2’ Soars to Record $100M Second Weekend in U.S., Hits $724M Globally https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/inside-out-2-box-office-soars-to-record-100m-weekend-1235930446/ Why Southeast Asia Is Crying Over This Movie https://www.nytimes.com/2024/06/23/world/asia/make-millions-before-grandma-dies-crying.html The Outsiders, Stereophonic Win Top Honors at 2024 Tony Awards; Maleah Joi Moon, Jonathan Groff, Sarah Paulson Among Winners https://playbill.com/article/tony-awards-winners-2024 Michael Giltz’s Books Coverage for Parade https://parade.com/books/best-reads/author/michael-giltz Spotify to Pay Songwriters About $150 Million Less Next Year With Premium, Duo, Family Plan Changes https://www.billboard.com/business/streaming/spotify-songwriters-less-mechanical-royalties-audiobooks-bundle-1235673829/ Disney Set to Invest Up to $17B in Florida Parks Now That Fight With DeSantis Appointees Has Ende https://apnews.com/article/disney-world-desantis-board-5th-park-6901cca6c953c5316c2c92cd93341212

The general consensus among attendees was that, unlike last year, the 2024 Cannes Film Festival was not one of its strongest editions. Few of the selections made a huge impact and, indeed, there were a few titles that left festival goers scratching their heads. Yet, it seemed more indicative of a general malaise affecting the entire film industry rather than the Cannes itself. Indeed, some of those award prizes in Cannes are sure to make their way into the cultural conversation in the months ahead, including Palme d’Or winner “Anora,” from director Sean Baker and Jacques Audiard’s “Emilia Perez.” However, entries from Francis Ford Coppola, Kevin Costner and David Cronenberg mostly underwhelmed audiences and critics. Of course we also cover the week’s top entertainment headlines including the bundling of streaming services, the SXSW festival heads to London and the Department of Justice officially sues Live Nation for antitrust. Mary Frances Giltz 1929-2024 https://popsurfing.blogspot.com/2024/05/mary-frances-giltz-obituary.html Mary Frances Giltz – Her Story (1929-2024) https://popsurfing.blogspot.com/2024/05/mary-frances-giltz-her-story-1929-2024.html ‘Furiosa’ Opening Action Muted With $59M Global Debut; Why Didn’t It Strong-Arm The Marketplace? https://deadline.com/2024/05/furiosa-a-mad-max-saga-global-international-box-office-1235941482/ Box Office Meltdown: ‘Furiosa’ Edges Past ‘Garfield’ to Win Memorial Day With Worst No. 1 Opening in Three Decades https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/furiosa-box-office-garfield-worst-memorial-day-1235909084/ Sundance Selects 15 Cities To Make Bids For Festival’s Potential Move https://deadline.com/2024/05/sundance-festival-move-city-bids-1235927707/ New Jersey Approves Massive Studio Complex In Bayonne As State Pushes To Attract Production https://deadline.com/2024/05/new-jersey-greenlights-giant-studio-complex-attract-production-1235908606/ ‘Jeopardy!’ Expands to Streaming With Pop Culture Edition on Amazon https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/jeopardy-streaming-amazon-prime-video-1235898290/ Scarlett Johansson Says OpenAI Tried to Ink a Voice Deal, Was Rebuffed, Then Mimicked Voice Anyway https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/openai-pulls-chatgpt-voice-sounds-like-scarlett-johansson-1235904085/ Kendrick Lamar Lands Two Top 10 Songs With Drake Diss ‘Not Like Us’ at Number One https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/kendrick-lamar-number-one-not-like-us...

Streaming services seem to have settled on engagement as the metric by which to measure the success of a series or movie or even the platform itself. However, the industry has yet to decide a method for how to measure and report such figures in a consistent way. Some services publish random viewership figures citing how many subscribers sampled specific programming without describing how that figure is calculated. This is becoming a big problem now that labor unions depend on reliable data to make sure studios, networks and streamers are keeping their end of the bargain when it comes to sharing profits for big hits. Of course we also cover the week’s top entertainment headlines including this year’s Tony nominations for Broadway shows, television producer Dan Schneider sues the filmmakers behind the “Quiet On Set” Documentary, and Madonna performs in Rio de Janeiro for more than 1.5 million fans. ‘The Fall Guy’ Expands To $65M WW, ‘Garfield’ Pounces On $22M In Early Offshore Bow https://deadline.com/2024/05/the-fall-guy-garfield-movie-global-international-box-office-1235904755/ ‘The Fall Guy’ Lands With $28.5M, ‘Phantom Menace’ Tops ‘Challengers’ for No. 2 https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/box-office-fall-guy-phantom-menace-1235890470/ Madonna Brings Massive Free Concert to Rio, Capping Celebration Tour https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/05/arts/music/madonna-free-celebration-concert-rio-brazil.html Dan Schneider Sues ‘Quiet on Set’ Producers for Defamation, Calls Nickelodeon Abuse Docuseries a ‘Hit Job’ https://variety.com/2024/tv/news/dan-schneider-sues-quiet-on-set-producers-defamation-1235988962/ Universal Music and TikTok Strike New Licensing Deal – Including ‘Improved Remuneration’ for UMG Artists and Songwriters https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/universal-music-and-tiktok-strike-new-licensing-deal/ TikTok May Be Banned in the US. Here’s What Happened When India Did It https://apnews.com/article/india-tiktok-ban-us-china-9ae5223bce78c56e5d22a1f2e86510f0 The Ghosts of India’s TikTok: What Happens When a Social Media App Is Banned https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20240426-the-ghosts-of-indias-tiktok-social-media-ban Live Nation Revenue Soars 21% in Record First Quarter https://www.billboard.com/business/touring/live-nation-revenue-soars-21-percent-record-first-quarter-1235672006/ Live Nation Says It’s Not “Legally Permissible” to Break Up the Company As DOJ Lawsuit Looms https://www.hollywoodreporter.

Two recent opinion pieces stirred up some heated debate in the book publishing business. One insists no one buys books anymore. The other says the proliferation of book roundup lists is a bunch of nonsense. One is very wrong, even when it’s right. The other is right, but for the wrong reasons. Michael is our book guy and in fact does book roundups every week! So let’s put him on the hot seat. Meanwhile, Nielsen recently overcame some technological hurdles and got cooperation from several new sources of streaming data. The result? A number of shows popped onto the streaming charts for the first time or with renewed force. The big beneficiary is Hulu, with Peacock a distant second. Of course we also cover the week’s top entertainment headlines including why Harvey Weinstein’s sexual assault conviction was overturned by a New York court, Taylor Swift’s latest album breaks all sorts of streaming records and an update on a potential acquisition of Paramount Global. Skadoosh!: ‘Kung Fu Panda 4’ Crosses $500M WW; ‘Challengers’ Widens Offshore Net; ‘The Fall Guy’ Starts Overseas Action https://deadline.com/2024/04/kung-fu-panda-4-milestone-the-fall-guy-challengers-godzilla-x-kong-dune-roundup-punishment-global-international-box-office-1235897903/ Zendaya’s ‘Challengers’ Hits Target With $15M Opening for No. 1 Finish https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/zendaya-box-office-challengers-opening-1235885369/ Michael Giltz’s Books Coverage for Parade https://parade.com/books/best-reads/author/michael-giltz Parade’s Best New Releases April 30-May 6 https://parade.com/books/best-reads/best-new-book-releases-this-week-2024-april-30-may-6 Paramount Considers Removing CEO Bob Bakish as Turmoil Over Sale Talks Deepens https://www.wsj.com/business/media/paramount-considers-removing-ceo-bob-bakish-as-turmoil-over-sale-talks-deepens-a48b0ec5 Writers Guild Of Canada “Overwhelmingly” Votes To Authorize Strike Action, CMPA Says “Labor Dispute Would Be Extremely Damaging” To Industry https://deadline.com/2024/04/writers-guild-canada-vite-authorize-strike-action-cmpa-1235894681/ Taylor Swift Makes Historic Debut at No. 1 on Billboard 200 With ‘The Tortured Poets Department’ https://www.billboard.com/lists/taylor-swift-tortured-poets-department-debut-number-one-billboard-200-chart/ For First Time in Decades, Vinyl Record Sales Surpass CDs and DVDs in Brazil https://apnews.com/video/brazil-music-anitta-d3cde6d835814a969f82793890c6605a The Elysian: No One Buys Books h...

Netflix first quarter earnings report showed growth in all areas from subscribers, to revenue and income. But with Netflix clearly dominating competitors and entering a mature market, the streaming giant will no longer provide subscriber figures on a regular basis. Instead, Netflix will concentrate on profit and the amount of time each of their 270 million subscribers spend viewing programming on their platform. Meanwhile, the long gestating sale of Paramount Global got a lot more interesting last week when Sony entered the picture with its own bid for the media conglomerate. Unfortunately, indie production house Participant Media was unable to find a buyer and abruptly shuttered. Of course we also cover the week’s top entertainment headlines including this year’s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees, Taylor Swift breaks her own sales records with the release of her album “The Tortured Poets Department” and the Sundance Film Festival may be in search of a new home. All The Records Taylor Swift’s ‘The Tortured Poets Department’ Has Broken (So Far) https://www.forbes.com/sites/mollybohannon/2024/04/22/all-the-records-taylor-swifts-the-tortured-poets-department-has-broken-so-far/ ‘Godzilla X Kong’ Storming Towards $500M WW As ‘Dune: Part Two’ Closes In On $700M https://deadline.com/2024/04/godzilla-x-kong-dune-japan-china-global-international-box-office-1235891070/ ‘Civil War’ Draws Blood to Beat ‘Abigail’ and Stay No. 1 With $11M Second Weekend https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/civil-war-box-office-drawing-blood-abigail-1235878317/ Justice Department to File Antitrust Suit Against Live Nation https://www.wsj.com/business/media/live-nation-justice-department-antitrust-lawsuit-ab98c268 Sundance Without Park City? Festival Exploring Options for 2027 and Beyond https://www.indiewire.com/news/festivals/sundance-film-festival-exploring-options-other-host-cities-2027-1234974957/ Hugh Grant Settles Privacy Case Against Sun Publisher https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-68834392 NMPA Accuses Spotify of ‘Attacking Songwriters’ as Streaming Service Changes How It Pays Out Mechanical Royalties in the US https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/nmpa-accuses-spotify-of-attacking-songwriters-as-it-changes-how-it-pays-mechanical-royalties-in-the-us/ Netflix’s New Film Strategy: More About the Audience, Less About Auteurs https://www.nytimes.com/2024/04/14/business/media/netflix-movies-dan-lin.html Netflix Adds 9.3M Subscribers In Quarter, Growing Its Lead in Streaming <a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.

CinemaCon, the annual gathering of cinema operators in Las Vegas, was filled with anxiety this year thanks to a lack of wide releases due to the recent labor strikes. However, most Hollywood studios showed up with a few movie stars to hawk an increasing number of big titles due later in the year and into 2025. As well, technology companies introduced some exciting new advances in projection and image quality. In all, the conference pointed toward better days ahead for movie theaters. In even better news, it looks as if the many behind-the-scenes craft people who work on films and television shows may not go on strike like the writers and actors did last year. The International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) appears to be having very positive negotiations with Alliance of Motion Picture Television Producers on a new contract. Of course we also cover the week’s top entertainment headlines including how Disney won its shareholder battle, the winners of this year’s Writers Guild Awards and CBS whips up a new streaming news service. ‘Godzilla X Kong’ Roars Past $436M WW; ‘Kung Fu Panda 4’ Tops $450M; Latest ‘Detective Conan’ Huge In Japan https://deadline.com/2024/04/godzilla-x-kong-kung-fu-panda-4-detective-conan-china-japan-global-international-box-office-1235885714/ ‘Civil War’: Red States and Blue States Set Aside Their Differences for Alex Garland’s Movie https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/civil-war-red-states-and-blue-states-1235875216/ IATSE Has “Cautious Optimism” About General Negotiations With Studios As Union Aims To Finalize Craft-Specific Issues This Week https://deadline.com/2024/04/iatse-general-negotiations-cautious-optimism-studios-craft-specific-issues-done-1235886109/ American Federation of Musicians Ratifies New Deal With Studios https://deadline.com/2024/04/american-federation-of-musicians-ratifies-deal-studios-1235873942/ CBS News Plans Streaming Overhaul With New ‘Whip-Around’ Program https://variety.com/2024/tv/news/cbs-news-streaming-overhaul-whip-around-1235965338/ Vince McMahon Sells $311 Million In Stock to TKO and Endeavor In Buyback https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/business/story/2024-04-08/vince-mcmahon-sells-back-311-million-in-tko-stock-to-endeavor Book Summaries and Other Knock Off Books Proliferate https://www.theguardian.com/books/2024/apr/07/we-may-lose-ability-to-think-critically-at-all-the-book-summary-apps-accused-of-damaging-authors-sales ‘We May Lose Ability to Think Critically at All’: The Book-Summary Apps Accused of Damaging Authors’ Sales <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/books/2024/apr/07/we-may-lose-ability-to-think-critically-at-al...

The monstrous global box office opening of “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire” may have been a surprise to film critics or anyone paying attention to industry tracking in advance of its release, but it surely proves that if you put movies in movie theaters, audiences will show up. Especially if those theaters offer premium auditoriums like IMAX. Even “Oppenheimer” opened well in Japan over this past weekend, becoming filmmaker Christopher Nolan’s biggest debut. Meanwhile, the Walt Disney Company and the State of Florida have made overtures toward settling their recent legal disputes. As we predicted, despite the battle in the court of public opinion, it will all come to nothing. Of course we also cover the week’s top entertainment headlines including Paramount Global’s ongoing financial woes, the discovery of some new Marvin Gaye music and how vinyl records are outselling compact discs. ‘Godzilla X Kong’ Reigns With $194M Worldwide Bow; ‘Dune 2’ Rises To $626M & ‘Oppenheimer’ Opens In Japan https://deadline.com/2024/03/godzilla-x-kong-the-new-empire-china-global-international-box-office-1235871670/ ‘Godzilla x Kong: New Empire’ Roars to Monstrous $80M Box Office Opening, $194M Globally https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/godzilla-x-kong-new-empire-huge-box-office-opening-1235863501/ BBC Doc Looks At J-Pop Scandal, Says Near 1000 Men Came Forward to Discuss Abuse https://deadline.com/2024/03/johnny-kitagawa-johnny-and-associates-abuse-1235869618/ Paramount Debt Is Cut to Junk on Worsening Outlook for TV https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-03-27/paramount-debt-is-cut-to-junk-on-deteriorating-outlook-for-tv Collection of Unreleased Marvin Gaye Songs Found in Belgium https://www.theguardian.com/music/2024/mar/31/collection-of-unreleased-marvin-gaye-songs-found-in-belgium ​​Vinyl Records Outsold CDs for the Second Year Running https://www.popsci.com/technology/vinyl-sales-cds-2023/ Only 1 of the Top 20 Best-Selling Albums Globally Last Year Wasn’t by a K-Pop Act https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/seventeen-taylor-swift-top-20-best-selling-albums-globally-in-2023/ NBC News Ousts Ronna McDaniel After Staff Uproar, CAA Drops Ex-RNC Chair https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/politics-news/nbc-news-ronna-mcdaniel-contributor-1235860170/ Disney Ends Its Fight With DeSantis Over Resort Development https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/27/business/disney-desantis-florida-lawsuit.html

The way audiences watch television has changed radically over the past ten years, bet it when, where or how. Nielsen, long the king of TV ratings, is facing competition from upstarts like Comscore. With viewership on mobile and over-the-top devices not always being measured, advertisers are beginning to include social media awareness into account when determining the success of their marketing campaigns. Meanwhile filmmaker Jonathan Glazer’s Oscar acceptance speech for the movie “Zone of Interest,” in which he referenced the ongoing conflict in Gaza and Israel, has generated a lot of debate with nearly 1,000 industry professionals signing a petition denouncing his statements. Of course we also cover the week’s top entertainment headlines including this year’s IRA Awards, a controversial hire at NBC News and IMAX heads to the Paris Summer Olympics. ‘Kung Fu Panda 4’ Nears $300M Global; ‘Dune 2’ Closing In On $600M; ‘Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire’ Traps $16M+ In Phase 1 Overseas Bow https://deadline.com/2024/03/ghostbusters-frozen-empire-dune-part-two-kung-fu-panda-4-china-global-international-box-office-1235866885/ ‘Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire’ Scares Up Okay $45M Box Office Opening After All https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/ghostbusters-frozen-empire-box-office-opening-1235858952/ NBC Television Network’s Live Coverage of 2024 Paris Olympics Opening Ceremony to Make IMAX Debut https://celluloidjunkie.com/wire/nbc-television-networks-live-coverage-of-2024-paris-olympics-opening-ceremony-to-make-imax-debut/ Jonathan Glazer Open Letter Gets More Than 500 Additional Signatures Overnight https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/jonathan-glazer-open-letter-oscars-speech-additional-signatures-1235855540/ The 49th Ira Film Awards: Only a “Monster” Would Ignore These Movies http://popsurfing.blogspot.com/2024/03/the-49th-ira-film-awards-only-monster.html IRA’s List of the Top 100 Films Of The Silent Era http://popsurfing.blogspot.com/2024/03/the-iras-name-100-best-silent-films-of.html ‘The Elephant in the Room’: NBC’s McDaniel Hiring Sparks On-Air Criticism From One of Its Own https://www.politico.com/news/2024/03/24/ronna-mcdaniel-roils-nbc-i-think-our-bosses-owe-you-an-apology-00148719 Ex-RNC Chair Ronna McDaniel: Biden won 2020 Election ‘Fair and Square’ https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/mar/25/republican-national-committee-chair-ronna-mcdaniel-biden-2020-election NBC News Faces Growing Pressure as Its Journalists Rebel Against Ronna McDaniel https:/...

In what Rolling Stone magazine has dubbed ChatGPT for music, a new service called Suno is trying to democratic music by using artificial intelligence to allow anyone to create a hit song. With no need to learn how to play an instrument or sing, the latest advances in generative AI are creating tunes with a few text prompts that are indistinguishable from those created by trained musicians. The creators of Suno aren’t saying what content was used to train their AI. That is probably why the European Union is passing legislation to regulate the use of AI, requiring developers to provide a list of copyrighted material used to train their technology. Of course we also cover the week’s top entertainment headlines including why Neil Young’s music is back on Spotify, Iranian filmmaker Ashgar Farhadi wins his plagiarism case and Roman Polanski is headed back to court. ‘Dune: Part Two’ Nears $500M Global, Dusting 2021 Movie; ‘Kung Fu Panda 4’ Punches In At $177M As Rollout Expands https://deadline.com/2024/03/dune-part-two-milestone-kung-fu-panda-china-global-international-box-office-1235860696 ‘Kung Fu Panda 4’ Dethrones ‘Dune 2,’ Mark Wahlberg’s ‘Arthur the King’ Lacks Bite https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/box-office-kung-fu-panda-4-dune-part-two-lead-weekend-1235854014/ A New Publisher Promises Authors ‘the Lion’s Share of the Profit’ https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/05/books/publisher-authors-equity.html Asghar Farhadi Fully Cleared of ‘A Hero’ Plagiarism Allegations by Iranian Court https://variety.com/2024/film/global/asghar-farhadi-cleared-iranian-court-plagiarism-a-hero-1235940549/ Neil Young Says His Music Is Returning to Spotify https://www.billboard.com/business/streaming/neil-young-music-returning-spotify-1235631717/ A ChatGPT for Music Is Here. Inside Suno, the Startup Changing Everything https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/suno-ai-chatgpt-for-music-1234982307/ European Union Passes ‘World First’ AI Legislation That Would Safeguard Copyrighted Music https://www.billboard.com/business/business-news/european-union-ai-legislation-laws-copyrighted-music-passes-1235631846/ Karaoke Inventor Shigeichi Negishi Dies at 100 https://www.npr.org/2024/03/15/1238840404/karaoke-inventor-shigeichi-negishi-dead Byron Janis, One of the Great Pianists of the 20th Century, Dies at 95 https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/music-news/byron-janis-dead-pianist-1235854358/ Dan Wakefield, Multifaceted Writer on a Spiritual Journey, Dies at 91

As expected, “Oppenheimer” dominated the 96th Academy Awards winning seven categories including Best Actor, Best Picture and, for Christopher Nolan, Best Director. “Barbie” only picked up a single trophy for Best Original Song. Anne Thompson, Indiewire’s Editor-at-Large attended this year’s Oscar ceremony and joins us to describe what it was like to be in the room where it happened. Meanwhile, a recent Supreme Court ruling ending affirmative action based college admissions has led to a reverse discrimination lawsuit against CBS by a script coordinator of the show “SEAL Team.” The outcome could determine whether it becomes the first of many more such legal actions. Of course we also cover the week’s top entertainment headlines including how the BBC is going all in on the streaming service BritBox, the launch of a new author driven publishing house and Kanye West’s latest album tops the charts despite not being on streaming services. ‘Rust’ Armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed Guilty of Involuntary Manslaughter https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/rust-armorer-hannah-gutierrez-reed-guilty-manslaughter-rcna142136 ‘Dune: Part Two’ Rises To $367.5M Global; ‘Kung Fu Panda 4’ Kicks Off With $80.5M WW As Early Overseas Play Begins https://deadline.com/2024/03/dune-part-two-kung-fu-panda-4-china-global-international-box-office-1235852214/ ‘Kung Fu Panda 4’ Lands Victorious $58.3M U.S. Opening; ‘Dune 2’ Nears $370M Worldwide https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/kung-fu-panda-4-box-office-near-record-opening-1235846564/ Oscars 2024: Final Predictions in 23 Categories https://www.indiewire.com/awards/predictions/2024-final-oscar-predictions-anne-thompson-1234960948/ Who Came Out Ahead at the Oscars, from ‘Oppenheimer’ to Jimmy Kimmel and Ryan Gosling https://www.indiewire.com/awards/industry/oscars-2024-who-came-out-ahead-oppenheimer-jimmy-kimmel-ryan-gosling-1234963438/ Electronic Arts Cancels Upcoming ‘Star Wars’ Game, Plans to Cut More Than 650 Jobs https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/digital/video-game-giant-ea-layoffs-1235839026/ ITV Sells Stake in Britbox International to BBC Studios for £255M https://www.theguardian.com/business/2024/mar/01/itv-sells-stake-britbox-international-bbc-studios-itvx Three Publishing Veterans Form a New House, Authors Equity https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/publisher-news/article/94507-three-publishing-veterans-form-a-new-house-authors-equity.