Strategy: Last News

Joshua Jackson is reflecting on the acting role that made him an overnight star.

And the new Academy post goes to … Meredith Shea.

Sophia Scorziello editor The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has named Meredith Shea as its chief membership, impact and industry officer. In the new position, she will oversee new member cultivation and outreach, awards administration, rules and regulations, membership branch structural changes, member and industry engagement, film festival and international strategies, talent development programs, and industry DEAI and sustainability efforts. Shea previously worked as an Academy executive for a decade. In her new role, Shea will report directly to Bill Kramer, Academy CEO. “We are thrilled to welcome Meredith back to the Academy in this leadership position. Her vast knowledge of the film industry and Academy membership, along with her commitment to building and nurturing a diverse and equitable global film community makes her a perfect professional for this new role,” says Kramer.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Plan B’s new owner Mediawan is pursuing its buying spree with the acquisition of a majority stake in the Emmy Award-winning company Submarine. The Amsterdam-based company develops and produces international scripted series and feature films and documentaries, and owns the largest animation studio in the Netherlands. Submarine’s film and series credits include the Emmy Award-winning documentary “Bellingcat: Truth in a Post-Truth World,” and the Netflix original production “Nobody Speak: Trials of the Free Press.” Most recently, Submarine produced Richard Linklater’s latest film “Apollo 10 1⁄2: A Space Age Childhood” for Netflix, and the Amazon Prime Video series “Undone” created by Kate Purdy and Raphael Bob Waksberg. Upcoming projects include the upscale drama series “The Kollective” written by “Gomorrah” and “ZeroZeroZero” showrunner Leonardo Fasoli and Maddalena Rvaglia; as well as “Safe Harbor” which is inspired by true events crime series and is created by Mark Williams (“Ozark”).

Audrey Schomer Note: This article is based on Variety Intelligence Platform’s special report “Generative AI & Entertainment,” available only to subscribers. The rapidly advancing creative capabilities of generative AI have led to questions about artificial intelligence becoming increasingly capable of replacing creative workers across film and TV production, game development and music creation. Talent might increasingly view and use generative AI in more straightforward ways as simply a new creative tool in their belt, just as other disruptive technologies through time have entered and changed how people make and distribute their creative work.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV Editor AMC Networks is the latest of the nation’s big TV companies to work to marry advertisers to viewers in a venue that breaks most of TV’s long-standing rules. The company, best known for cable networks like AMC, IFC and BBC America, expects to launch an ad-supported tier of its AMC+ streaming service later in 2023, according to Kim Kelleher, the company’s chief commercial officer. The new offering will feature a “light” ad load that executives say is in keeping with standards currently set at other services, but the intention is to help marketers weave themselves into and around programming in bespoke fashion, Kelleher says. “We will place ads in ways that are not disruptive, that are really thoughtful,” says the executive. “Some movies will have no ads. Some movies may have a mid-roll, or some will have a pre-roll. It’s not one-size-fits-all, and we get to be very careful” in how we place commercials in viewers’ streaming choices. AMC+ subscribers will get access to all content, no matter their choice, she adds. “It will be the same product on both tiers. We are not going to take series and movies people expect to watch and say that you only get them if you pay more,” she says. “We want this to be a great viewer experience.”

A cure for motor neurone disease (MND) could be "possible" as a charity launched by Doddie Weir unveils its five-year research strategy, a leading expert has said. The My Name'5 Doddie Foundation (MNDF), which was set by up in 2017 by the late Scottish rugby player, outlines how the charity will invest millions of pounds into research in pursuit of treatments and a cure for the debilitating disease.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor “Subscription fatigue” among consumers is only getting worse, making it even more challenging for direct-to-streaming video providers to retain customers, according to Deloitte’s latest Digital Media Trends survey. As streaming video competition continues to intensify, subscription growth rates across the industry have slowed — and churn rates have increased, according to the Deloitte’s 17th annual Digital Media Trends report. On average, U.S. consumers pay $48 per month for subscription-video services, Deloitte’s survey found. About half of those surveyed agreed that they “pay too much” for SVOD services, while about one-third said they intend to reduce their number of entertainment subscriptions.

Ian Blackford has denied the SNP faces a cash crisis amid reports the party's falling membership has stretched its finances to breaking point.

Jennifer Garner‘s children just don’t like her movies.

"Two "Survivor" contestants" left Fiji with something more valuable to them than a cash prize. Matt Blankinship and Frannie Marin clicked almost immediately after meeting for the first time as members of the Soka tribe in the first episode of "Survivor 44." They quickly formed an unbreakable alliance, which blossomed into a romantic relationship that has remained strong since the show ended. "Yeah, we're still dating," Blankinship told Entertainment Weekly following his exit from the show.

Pep Guardiola says that Erling Haaland needs care around the clock to ensure he is fit to play every week.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Former Shudder chief Craig Engler and The Cartel, the production and finance company behind “Creepshow” have teamed up to launch Shiver Studios, a new genre company with plans to make and finance up to 10 horror films a year. Based in Los Angeles, Shiver Studios will focus on a theatrical-first approach, looking to ride the recent trend of indie horror hits such as Shudder’s release of micro-budget hit horror feature “Skinamarink,” directed by Kyle Edward Ball. Prior to his departure from Shudder Engler oversaw production of “Skinamarink” which has grossed $2 million in theaters on a budget of $15,000.  The overall plan is for Shiver to follow its theatrical releases with a TVOD, SVOD, AVOD, linear and physical windowing strategy, working with partners that include both streamers and traditional distributors, the nascent studio specified in a statement.

Jordan Moreau Universal’s latest monster movie, the blood-sucking “Renfield,” is sinking its teeth into the domestic box office with $900,000 from 2,750 theaters in Thursday previews. It expands to 3,375 locations on Friday. This modern take on Dracula won’t be able to drive a stake through the heart of last week’s box office champion, “The Super Mario Bros. Movie.” The animated, family-friendly video game adaptation will get another high score at the box office this weekend, with an expected $58 million to $66 million in its sophomore outing. “Renfield,” starring Nicolas Cage as Dracula and Nicholas Hoult as his lowly servant, is projected to make just $10 million in its opening weekend. Considering the horror-comedy carries a $65 million price tag, it’s not a great start to its run. It will also have to battle the fellow R-rated horror “The Pope’s Exorcist,” which opened to $850,000 in previews and is also on track to earn $10 million this weekend. The upside to the Sony horror movie, starring Russel Crowe as the Vatican’s lead exorcist, is that it only cost the company $18 million.

The morning of the Cannes lineup press conference is often described by movie journalists as ‘Christmas for arthouse film-lovers’. Yesterday was no different, with fest head Thierry Frémaux returning in his role as Santa to dole out gifts to a bevvy of expectant industry and writers.

South Ayrshire Council will miss the 2025 deadline to transform its vehicle fleet from petrol and diesel to electric.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor German film and TV distribution and licensing company Telepool, which is owned by Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith’s Westbrook, is moving into lead producing movies and series, its CEO Yoko Higuchi-Zitzmann tells Variety exclusively in her first interview since joining the company in January. Munich-based Telepool is celebrating its 60th anniversary on Wednesday, and although it has a barrel-load of experience in selling, distributing, licensing, financing and co-producing movies and series, this shift into initiating and lead producing represents a significant step for the company. It also forms part of Westbrook’s broader strategy for international expansion, which – in part – lay behind its acquisition of Telepool in December 2021.

The story of one of the most influential players in NBA histroy will be released in theaters and via Apple TV+ this summer.

Even Kim Kardashian‘s kids have their moments!

A showmance brewed this season on Survivor and we’ve just learned that the couple is now dating in real life!

Marcelo Cajueiro Wondery, Amazon’s premium podcast studio, announced April 13 at Rio de Janeiro’s Rio2C, Latin America’s largest creativity and innovation event, a slate of upcoming Portuguese-language titles with Brazilian podcasters for Amazon Music. “Historias da Firma,” a spin-off of storyteller Deia Freitas’ “Nao Inviabilize,” will be exclusive on Amazon Music. Freitas’ new podcast will feature weekly episodes of 10-15 minutes with funny, absurd anonymous stories that happened to employees in Brazilian companies. Chico Felitti, creator of podcasts “A Mulher da Casa Abandonada” and “Ateliê,” is developing a new true crime podcast with Wondery, which will be first available on Amazon Music.