Amazon MGM Studios Head Of Worldwide Production & Post Tim Clawson To Step Down

EXCLUSIVE: Felicity Jones is set to star in Michael Showalter’s holiday comedy Oh. What. Fun. for Amazon MGM Studios, joining Michelle Pfeiffer, Chloë Grace Moretz and Dominic Sessa.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Last week, Amazon Studios/Prime Video senior VP announced that Chris Brearton was leaving Amazon “to pursue a new opportunity outside the company.” Now we know what that opportunity is: Brearton, who had most recently served as vice president of Prime Video Studios Corporate Strategy at MGM+ and MGM Alternative Television, has joined indie media company AGBO as a partner. At AGBO, he will join company leaders Anthony and Joe Russo (the directors who co-founded the company in 2017) and partner Donald Mustard.

EXCLUSIVE: Justin Lin has come aboard to direct Stakehorse for Amazon MGM Studios from a script penned by Justin Piasecki. Hidden Pictures’ Todd Lieberman and Alex Young will produce, with Lin producing through his Perfect Storm Entertainment banner and Piasecki executive producing.

EXCLUSIVE: Mary Connelly will be departing as executive producer and co-showrunner of The Jennifer Hudson Show at the end of daytime syndicated talk show’s current second season. The daytime veteran is leaving The Jennifer Hudson Show‘s producer Warner Bros. Unscripted Television/Telepictures, her studio home of more than two decades, to pursue new projects. She made the announcement to the show’s staff and crew earlier today.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Chris Brearton is exiting Amazon MGM Studios after a long career at MGM to pursue other opportunities, the company announced on Wednesday. In a memo to staff, Amazon Studios and Prime Video senior vice president Mike Hopkins revealed that Brearton “has decided to leave Amazon to pursue a new opportunity outside the company.” Brearton had most recently served as vice president of PVS Corporate Strategy at MGM+ and MGM Alternative Television.

While Amazon MGM Studios didn’t take the stage at CinemaCon, they did meet with exhibitors and key press to strut their future theatrical slate, in particular they showed off ten minutes of the Dwayne Johnson and Chris Evans’ movie Red One. While we agree to keep mum about the details of the Santa Claus rescue movie, let’s just say the originally conceived for Prime Video title is definitely meant for theatrical, which is where it’s going on Nov. 15; the only wide release currently on that weekend.

Emily Longeretta More changes are coming at “Chicago Med.” Co-showrunners Diane Frolov and Andy Schneider will exit the show at the end of the current ninth season. “We were honored to be chosen by Dick Wolf to run ‘Chicago Med’ and have tremendously enjoyed our association with Wolf Entertainment and Universal Television. We love ‘Chicago Med’ and have devoted all our creative energies to it, but after nine seasons we feel it’s time for us to move on and explore other possibilities,” the pair said in a statement on Tuesday.

Missy Elliott has announced details of her first ever headline tour for North America later this summer.Today (April 8), the history-making musical polymath unveiled the dates for the ‘Out Of This World’ tour, which will start in Canada this July. She also revealed that she will joined by longtime friends and frequent collaborators Ciara, Timbaland and Busta Rhymes.“This is an incredible time in my life as I am experiencing so many milestone ‘firsts,’” Elliott said in a statement.

EXCLUSIVE: David Ayer’s Levon’s Trade has started principal photography on location in London with Jason Statham (Fast & Furious franchise) joined in the cast by David Harbour (Stranger Things), Michael Peña (Narcos: Mexico), Jason Flemyng (Boiling Point) and Arianna Rivas (The Harvest).

Actors’ Equity President Kate Shindle has announced that she will not seek re-election when her nine-year tenure ends May 23.

EXCLUSIVE: Reese Witherspoon is revisiting one of the signature titles in her acting resume, taking it to a new medium. Witherspoon and her Hello Sunshine company are behind Legally Blonde spinoff TV series inspired by the popular film franchise that are in development at Amazon MGM Studios, sources tell Deadline.

Amazon MGM Studios has closed a three-year first-look film deal with Jake Gyllenhaal’s Nine Stories following the rousing success of his movie on Prime Video, which was the most watched original movie for the studio ever with 50 million global viewers in the pic’s first two weeks.

Brent Lang Executive Editor Fresh off the release of “Road House,” Amazon MGM Studios has closed a three-year, first-look film deal with Jake Gyllenhaal’s Nine Stories. Under the pact, Amazon MGM Studios will have first dibs on narrative features that the actor’s production company makes. The deal includes theatrical, as well as streaming releases.

EXCLUSIVE: True Detective star and World Boxing Council middleweight champ and Independent Spirit nominee Kali Reis has boarded Amazon MGM Studios’ upcoming thriller Mercy opposite Chris Pratt, Rebecca Ferguson and Annabelle Wallis. The pic is looking to roll cameras this spring for an August 15, 2025 theatrical release.

A councillor who appeared before a court after being caught drink driving says he won't resign. Matt Bryan, an independent Cheshire West and Chester councillor, was hauled before magistrates this week after pleading guilty to drink driving.

Katcy Stephan Ryan Gosling and Apple Original Films exec Jessie Henderson have launched General Admission, a production company with the objective to collaborate with world class filmmakers to create bold theatrical and streaming events within all genres. In introducing their new venture, the duo has signed a three-year first-look film deal with Amazon MGM Studios. Under the pact, Amazon MGM Studios will have a first look on narrative features, some of which Gosling will star in, that General Admission intends to produce for both theatrical and streaming.

Deadline already told you two years ago that 2 was happening with Paul Feig back in the director’s chair and Blake Lively and Anna Kendrick starring, but today Amazon MGM Studios has made it official that the movie is a go and with the original cast members returning, read Henry Golding, Andrew Rannells, Bashir Salahuddin, Joshua Satine, Ian Ho, and Kelly McCormack.

EXCLUSIVE: After coming together at warp speed over the past month, Deadline hears that the Imagine Entertainment package After the Hunt from screenwriter Nora Garrett has landed at Amazon MGM Studios with Julia Roberts attached to star and Luca Guadagnino on board to direct.

Cynthia Littleton Business Editor Audible Inc. has pacted with its sibling Amazon MGM Studios unit to develop TV series based on a slew of podcasts and other original audio-only content featuring such notables as Kerry Washington, author James Patterson, “Suits” creator Aaron Korsh and more.

Naman Ramachandran Artistic director Hussain Currimbhoy and several programmers have stepped down ahead of this year’s edition of Hot Docs, North America’s largest documentary festival. Festival director Heather Haynes will now lead the programming department. A statement from the Toronto-based event said: “Hot Docs has announced that Hussain Currimbhoy stepped down from his role as Artistic Director on March 20th due to personal reasons.