CBS Restructures Business Affairs, Allison Brightman and Jeeun Kim to Oversee All Brands

S.W.A.T is coming back for a sixth season.

Former Timeless star Malcolm Barrett has been tapped as the lead of the CBS comedy pilot The Hug Machine. Michaela Conlin and Allison Guinn also will star in the project, from Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist executive producer Sam Laybourne, Lonely Island’s Jorma Taccone and CBS Studios.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterWarner Bros. Discovery is not going with the “initial wordmark” revealed last June as its official logo.Variety has obtained a low-res copy of a new logo that is being circulated on internal memos at Discovery and WarnerMedia Friday, ahead of the expected close of the merger transaction later today.Discovery did not immediately respond to request for comment on the Warner Bros.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterSPOLER ALERT: Do not read if you have not yet watched “The We We Are,” the April 8 Season 1 finale episode of “Severance.”The Apple TV Plus drama “Severance” ended its first season with a truly big finale payoff for those who’ve patiently awaited answers to the workplace’s thriller many mysteries.Helly R’s (Britt Lower) Outtie is actually Lumon CEO Jame Eagan’s newly severed daughter, Helena Eagan, and she’s just revealed to a party full of Lumon shareholders the company is torturing its severed employees — despite Ms. Cobel’s (Patricia Arquette) desperate attempt to stop her.Mark Scout’s (Adam Scott) Innie has discovered Outtie Mark has a supposedly deceased wife named Gemma (Dichen Lachman) — who is really the very much alive Miss Casey — and shouted the news to a roomful of people at Devon (Jen Tullock) and Ricken’s (Michael Chernus) book party.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterChip and Joanna Gaines’ Magnolia Network will move under HBO’s purview upon the completion of Discovery’s acquisition of WarnerMedia, which will result in the launch of Warner Bros. Discovery Monday, Variety has learned exclusively.Allison Page, president of Magnolia, which is a joint venture between the Gaineses and Discovery, Inc., will report directly to HBO and HBO Max chief Casey Bloys.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterCrank up the defiant jazz: “Severance” has been renewed for Season 2 at Apple TV Plus.In the Ben Stiller-directed workplace thriller, Mark Scout (Adam Scott) leads a team at Lumon Industries, whose employees have undergone a severance procedure, which surgically divides their memories between their work and personal lives. This daring experiment in ‘work-life balance’ is called into question as Mark finds himself at the center of an unraveling mystery that will force him to confront the true nature of his work… and of himself.Along with Scott, “Severance” stars Patricia Arquette, John Turturro, Britt Lower, Zach Cherry, Dichen Lachman, Jen Tullock, Tramell Tillman, Michael Chernus and Christopher Walken.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterWarnerMedia CEO Jason Kilar announced Tuesday he is stepping down ahead of the completion of Discovery’s acquisition of the company, which is expected to occur April 11.“With the pending transaction with Discovery nearing close, now is the right time to share with each of you that I will be departing this amazing company,” Kilar said in a memo sent to WarnerMedia staff. “There are many feelings one could have in a moment like this, but for me there are none bigger, or more lasting, than the feelings of gratitude and love that I have for this team, this company, and this mission. I’ve never been more fulfilled professionally.

Kim Kardashian featured a few legendary supermodels in her latest Skims campaign.  On Monday, the 41-year-old shared images to social media posing alongside Tyra Banks, Heidi Klum, Candace Swanepoel and Alessandra Ambrosio in her "Fits Everybody" underwear collection.  "Ok so I wasn’t supposed to be in this Skims campaign but I stopped by and jumped in because it was too iconic," Kardashian captioned the images on Twitter.  Kim Kardashian featured four iconic supermodels in her latest Skims campagain. (Gotham/GC Images) Kardashian also uploaded a picture of the models, saying, "Introducing Tyra, Heidi, Alessandra and Candice wearing our signature SKIMS Fits Everybody collection."  Swanepoel, 33, and Ambrosio, 40, made their name in the modeling world by being two of the biggest stars in "Victoria Secret’s" angel history.

Wavelength, the Emmy-award winning film production company behind Feels Good Man, CUSP, and Sundance/SXSW favorite 32 Sounds, has announced a wave of new hires to support their exponential growth in the past year. The newest members of the Wavelength team include award-winning filmmaker Eric Mahoney as Head of Development and Roz Sedaghat as Head of Legal and Business Affairs. Both will work closely with Founder, CEO, and Executive Producer, Jenifer Westphal and President and Executive Producer, Joe Plummer as the company continues to expand to meet content demands.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterCBS’ Pete Holmes bowling sitcom “How We Roll” entered the broadcast comedy lane on Thursday with an impressive debut audience that landed it the No. 2 slot on the 2021-2022 broadcast season’s list of freshman comedy premieres ranked by viewership.In first place is “How We Roll’s” time slot lead-in, “Ghosts,” a critical darling that has already been renewed at CBS for Season 2.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer“Bridgerton” Season 2 was viewed for 193 million hours over its debut weekend, per Netflix’s newly released Top 10 rankings for the week of March 21-27. That impressive three-day viewership is a record-breaker, as “Bridgerton” Season 2 is now the most-watched Netflix English-language TV title in its premiere weekend in the streamer’s history.Naturally, the second season of “Bridgerton” landed in the No.

Marta Balaga As the German series industry continues to change rapidly, young filmmakers who decided to leave the country are coming back, ready to tell their stories.“I had to return and use my voice. That’s why my [production] company is called Third Culture Kids.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterAT&T CEO John Stankey’s pay for 2021 rose 18% over the previous year to $24.8 million, per the company’s SEC filing Tuesday.His base salary for the year was $2.4 million, with a non-equity incentive plan compensation of $6.88 million.

CBS announced today that Allison Brightman and Jeeun Kim, currently the executive VPs and co-heads of business affairs for CBS Entertainment and CBS Studios, will expand their responsibilities. As the new EVP and co-heads of business affairs for CBS, Brightman will focus on CBS Studios and CBS Media Ventures while Kim will oversee CBS Entertainment, CBS Sports and CBS News & Stations.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterChristina Ricci, the actress who played Wednesday in the iconic ’90s franchise “The Addams Family,” is returning to the universe by joining Netflix’s “Wednesday” series in a mystery role, Variety has learned.The live-action series from Tim Burton stars “You” and “Jane the Virgin” alum Jenna Ortega as Wednesday Addams. “Yellowjackets” star Ricci will not be playing an older version of the character for “Wednesday,” but further details about her character are being kept under wraps.The eight-episode series is described as a sleuthing, supernaturally infused mystery charting Wednesday Addams’ years as a student at Nevermore Academy.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer“Saturday Night Live” has set the lineup of hosts for its next batch of shows, tapping Jerrod Carmichael, Jake Gyllenhaal and Lizzo. While Lizzo will be pulling double duty as her own musical guest, Gunna and Camila Cabello will perform alongside the other two hosts.Per NBC, Carmichael will make his “SNL” hosting debut April 2. Carmichael’s new special, “Jerrod Carmichael: Rothaniel,” debuts April 1 on HBO.

Manchester United have officially announced the signing of Toby Collyer from Brighton.

EXCLUSIVE: Alice Eve (Belgravia) has been tapped as the lead of CBS’ drama pilot Early Edition, a gender-swapped reboot of the late-1990s series headlined by Kyle Chandler.