DirecTV And Fox Reach Carriage Renewal, Averting Blackout

AMC Networks is throwing everything it’s got at Anne Rice’s Mayfair Witches.

Argentina defeated France in a heated World Cup final on Sunday that topped Thanksgiving weekend’s U.S. vs. England match to become the most-watched men’s World Cup telecast in English-language television history.

EXCLUSIVE: Sex Education producer Eleven is embarking on its next project, a TV series adaptation of up-and-coming creative duo Oliver Taylor and Dillon Mapletoft’s stage show Fix My Brain.

Super sub Ali Crawford netted a quick-fire double to send the 398 travelling St Johnstone fans crashing from their seats in the Highlands.

Brittney Griner is grateful to be home!

France and Argentina are advancing to the World Cup finals after two semi-final matches that have now become the most-watched Men’s World Cup semi-finals on English-language television.

Taking a look ahead to 2023, Gower Street Analytics is projecting global box office to hit $29B, repping a 12% gain on 2022 should this year remain on track for approximately $25.8B. The London-based firm estimates 2022 receipts stood at $23.6B as of December 10. 

Shares rocketed higher in early trading as new data showed inflation slowed more than expected last month after a string of aggressive interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve meant to tamp down an overheated economy.

Strange as it may seem, the Oscar for Best International Feature tends to go to movies that are universal rather than geographically specific. Last year’s winner Drive My Car spoke more about mankind’s default setting to loneliness than it did about the specifics of relationship dynamics in modern Japan, just as the Danish drunks in 2021’s Another Round got hammered in a way that was relatable to boozers in every country from Albania to Zambia. Maybe the Academy feels that real life is better left to docs, but a 2015 win for the harrowing Second World War drama Son of Saul suggests that the door is always open. And after a year that saw the whole world reeling from Vladmir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, this might be one of those years that addresses the fact.

EXCLUSIVE: Allison Wallach has been promoted to oversee unscripted programming for Fox.

U.S. basketball champion Britney Griner has been released by Russia in a prisoner swap and is now in U.S. custody.

Back to in-person attendance for the first time since 2020, the Sundance Film Festival is leaning into its independent roots with a timely 2023 line-up that examines the Russian invasion of Ukraine, conflict in Iran and the dangers of technology, as well as documentaries on author Judy Blume, Michael J Fox, Brooke Shields and the Emperor of Rock’n’Roll himself, Little Richard. 

A potentially awkward run-in. Machine Gun Kelly‘s ex-girlfriend Sommer Ray reportedly crashed a party he was playing — and sat near his fiancée, Megan Fox.

An emotional Will Smith revisited Oscar night with Trevor Noah on Monday by explaining what drove him to slap Chris Rock in front of millions of viewers.

EXCLUSIVE: Nickelodeon’s Rock Island Mysteries creators Matt Cooke and Vince Lund are forging an animated feature with UK indie Threewise Entertainment and a groundbreaking training initiative.

A few days before the expiration of a carriage deal with DirecTV, Fox Corp. is warning viewers of its networks about a potential blackout as the companies continue to negotiate.

Sunday’s 2022 World Cup opener between hosts Qatar and Ecuador drew an average of about 3.2M multi-platform viewers for Fox Sports.