FilmHedge Closes $100 Million in Debt Financing to Lend for Movie, TV Production

More than two years after Todd and Julie Chrisley were charged with several counts of bank and wire fraud, tax evasion and conspiracy, the Chrisley Knows Best stars’ trial is underway.

UTA has upped 26 colleagues to partners, representing more than 15 divisions and corporate functions.  This marks the largest partner class announced in UTA’s 31-year history.

Forget breaking the sound barrier: Tom Cruise just flew past a major career milestone.

Justin Timberlake is $100 million richer. On Thursday, it was revealed by The Wall Street Journal that the singer reached a music-rights deal valued at more than $100 million to Hipgnosis Songs Capital, a fund backed by private equity firm Blackstone.

Oscar-nominated cinematographer Rachel Morrison’s feature directorial debut Flint Strong has moved from Universal to MGM, with Brian Tyree Henry (Atlanta) coming aboard to star, Deadline can confirm. Henry joins an ensemble that also includes Ryan Destiny and Oluniké Adeliyi, as previously announced.

EXCLUSIVE: Hallmark Movies & Mysteries is set to begin production on a movie adaptation of Katie Lee Biegel’s bestselling debut novel Groundswell. Beigel, a popular Food Network host, will serve as executive producer on the project and will make a cameo appearance.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media ReporterWhen “Top Gun: Maverick” takes flight in North American theaters on Friday, ticket sales for the oft-delayed tentpole may break through the stratosphere.Thanks to stellar reviews and a healthy dose of nostalgia, Paramount and Skydance’s star-spangled action film — starring Tom Cruise as a fighter pilot who feels the need for speed — is expected to generate a blockbuster $85 million to $100 million over the weekend. Through Memorial Day on Monday, domestic box office receipts could fly as high as $130 million.

The judge in the Johnny Depp-Amber Heard defamation trial rejected the actor’s effort to reject his $100 million counterclaim.

Todd Spangler NY Digital EditorWhat if Bruce Wayne wasn’t an orphan — would there still be a Batman? And how would the superhero be different if Wayne were a Black man, instead of the rich white scion of one of Gotham’s elite families?Variety recently spoke with Winston Duke, star of “Batman Unburied,” the original podcast drama from DC/Warner Bros. exclusively on Spotify, and series creator and executive producer David S. Goyer about reimagining one of comic-dom’s most famous characters.“I really had no idea what to expect in terms of the reception of it,” Goyer says.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorLil Nas X will be honored at the long-awaited 51 st annual Songwriters Hall of Fame Gala next month with the Hal David Starlight Award, which recognizes “gifted young songwriters who are making a significant impact in the music industry via their original songs.”Nas, a Sony Music Publishing writer, joins previous honorees Drake, Taylor Swift, Halsey, Sara Bareilles, Ed Sheeran, Imagine Dragons’ Dan Reynolds, John Legend, Alicia Keys, Benny Blanco, John Mayer and others. The award, created in 2004, was named in honor of SHOF chairman emeritus Hal David for his support of young songwriters.The ceremony, the first since 2019, is slated for Thursday, June 16 at the Marriott Marquis Hotel in New York City.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau ChiefIndonesian firm MSV Studio is well underway on production of “Ajisaka: The King and the Flower of Life,” the first of three hugely ambitious animated films it will work on this year.MSV Studio is the animation division of MSK Pictures, which itself is part of the larger, Indonesia-based Amikom Group. Since 2015, Amikom says it has invested $20 million into the research and development of computer animation technology.

HBO Max has scrapped its plans for a live-action Wonder Twins film, based on the DC characters of the same name, Deadline can confirm.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterThe planned “Wonder Twins” live-action movie at HBO Max is no longer going forward, Variety has learned.The news comes just over a month after it was announced that KJ Apa and Isabel May had been cast in the lead roles in the DC film as the titular twins. It also arrives in the wake of the Warner Bros.-Discovery merger and Discovery boss David Zaslav’s pledge to cut approximately $3 billion in costs at the newly merged company.

Echo,” a new MCU series starring Alaqua Cox, has begun production, Disney has announced.The series is a spinoff of last year’s Disney+ Marvel show “Hawkeye,” which featured the debut of Cox as Maya Lopez. Created by David Mack and Joe Quesada in 1999 as a supporting character for the superhero Daredevil, Maya Lopez, aka Echo, is a deaf Cheyenne woman with Olympic level athletic skills and the ability to perfectly copy people’s movement. In “Hawkeye,” the character was depicted as the leader of the Tracksuit Mafia, a gang of criminals working under Wilson Fisk (Vincent D’Onofrio).

Todd Spangler NY Digital EditorCandle Media, the next-gen media roll-up play run by ex-Disney execs Kevin Mayer and Tom Staggs, announced the acquisition of ATTN:, a media company that produces short-form news content for Gen Z and millennial audiences.Financial terms weren’t disclosed. According to a source familiar with the pact, Candle Media is paying about $100 million for ATTN: in cash and stock; the deal could be worth up to $150 million with additional earn-out provisions.

Angelique Jackson United Talent Agency has announced 54 promotions across more than 20 divisions.“As UTA continues to expand and thrive, we are consistently impressed by our colleagues’ work ethic, collaborative spirit and resilience,” said UTA co-President David Kramer. “This is a group who has demonstrated thought leadership, outstanding performance and commitment to our company, and we are looking forward to seeing what they do in their new roles.”The promotions encompass employees at various levels of the company, in multiple offices and departments, including audio, brand studio, comedy touring, corporate services, digital talent, endorsements & voiceover, finance & accounting, fine arts, Heartland, human resources, independent film, information technology, IQ, Klutch Sports, motion picture literary, music, publishing, talent, television literary, unscripted television, MediaLink and UTA Speakers.

UTA said Monday that it has promoted 54 staffers across its more than 20 divisions, bringing the total number of promotions at the agency to more than 100 over the past year.