Former AMC Networks CEO Josh Sapan’s 2021 Pay Rises 30% to $15 Million

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer“The Resident” has been renewed for Season 6 at Fox.The decision came down to the wire, with both “9-1-1” and “The Resident” without formal renewal announcements on Monday morning when Fox announced their 2022-2023 broadcast season slate. The network made their upfront pitch to advertisers later that same day.CLICK HERE to follow Variety’s coverage of Upfronts 2022Starring Matt Czuchry as Dr. Conrad Hawkins, the medical drama follows the doctors and nurses at Chastain Memorial Hospital as they face personal and professional challenges and fight for their patients’ health.Along with Czuchry, “The Resident” cast includes Bruce Greenwood as Dr.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterNBC drama “The Endgame” starring Morena Baccarin and Ryan Michelle Bathé has been canceled after one season, Variety has learned.Described as “a pulse-pounding high-stakes two-hander,” the series follows Elena Federova (Baccarin), a recently captured international arms dealer and brilliant criminal mastermind who orchestrates a number of coordinated bank heists throughout New York City for a mysterious purpose. Her antagonist is Val Turner (Bathé), the principled, relentless and socially outcast FBI agent who will stop at nothing to foil her ambitious plan. The heist drama ”reveals how far some people will go for love, justice and the most valuable commodity in the world: the truth,” per NBC.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterComedies and dramas traditionally make up a large portion of the broadcast TV landscape between September and May, but networks don’t deny the continuous draw of hit reality TV and competition shows. Each season, ABC, NBC, CBS and Fox, the so-called “Big 4” broadcasters, bring back old staples and add in new unscripted content in hopes of topping each other outside of their sitcoms and procedurals.While there could always be slight adjustments to season-long averages by the end of the traditional broadcast season in a few weeks, Variety has gathered Nielsen’s “most current” data through May 8 to rank ABC, NBC, CBS and Fox’s highest and lowest-rated unscripted series among adults 18-49. Below are the lists, which count 33 completed weeks of the soon-ending season.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterWhile measuring the success of broadcast series has largely been a job for the TV ratings among the advertiser-coveted adults 18-49 demographic, that total viewer tally is still powerful and not to be ignored.With the end of the 2021-2022 season fast approaching, Variety has looked at 33 weeks of complete Nielsen data from September to May to assess what the most and least-watched primetime scripted series have been across NBC, ABC, CBS and Fox.The below total viewer averages are season-long for each show and include persons over the age of 2, which is what Nielsen counts as a viewer. The totals are based on Nielsen’s “most current” data stream through May 8, which includes a week’s worth of delayed viewing where available. For the “most” list, it is ranked beginning with the top show.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterTelevisaUnivision CEO Wade Davis explained the key differences he sees in the strategy used for the company’s ViX streaming platform, which currently consists of a free, ad-supported tier and will add a subscription premium level later this year, and those utilized by larger streamers or ones who are looking to get into the hybrid model.“Our market is very different,” Davis said during the TelevisaUnivision Q1 call with analysts Wednesday. “Our audience, both in the U.S.

EXCLUSIVE: Shudder, AMC Networks’ streaming service for horror, and RLJE Films, a business unit of AMC Networks, have partnered on the newest Shudder Original Film, Destroy All Neighbors. From music-video and commercial director Josh Forbes and starring Jonah Ray Rodrigues (Mystery Science Theater 3000) and Alex Winter (Bill and Ted franchise) who also produce.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterThe traditional September to May broadcast TV season is coming to a close in a few weeks. Though there are still several finales left to air during that period, including the series closer for NBC’s tearjerker “This Is Us,” it’s pretty clear at this point what the highest and lowest rated shows are that have aired across the so-called “Big 4” broadcast networks throughout the 2021-2022 season.Keeping in mind there could always be slight adjustments to these season-long averages by the end of the month, Variety has sorted through Nielsen’s “most current” data through May 8 to rank ABC, NBC, CBS and Fox’s best and worst performers among adults 18-49.Below are the lists, which count 33 completed weeks of the soon-ending season. These ratings are averages across the shows’ respective seasons and based on a week’s worth of delayed viewing.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterCraig Dorfman’s New York-based talent management company Frontline Entertainment has been acquired by Three Six Zero.In acquiring Frontline Entertainment, Three Six Zero is gaining both Dorfman’s clients, including “Bel-Air” star Jabari Banks, and his management team, which will move in-house at the company. As part of the deal, Dorfman has been named a partner at Three Six Zero.Three Six Zero, founded by British businessman Mark Gillespie, has offices in Los Angeles, Miami and London, and represents a variety of talent in the music, film, television and digital content landscape, including Calvin Harris and BloodPop.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer“House of Gucci” and “Boardwalk Empire” star Jack Huston has joined AMC’s “Mayfair Witches” TV adaptation.Based on Rice’s “Lives of the Mayfair Witches” trilogy, AMC’s “Mayfair Witches” focuses on intuitive young neurosurgeon Dr. Rowan Fielding (Alexandra Daddario ) who discovers that she is the unlikely heir to a family of witches.

Anne Rice’s Mayfair Witches has found its Lasher. Jack Huston (House of Gucci) has been tapped to play the series regular role in the AMC Networks series. Lasher is one of Rice’s most mysterious and sensual characters — a powerful, shape-shifting entity who has been bound to the Mayfair witches for hundreds of years. Huston joins previously announced series regulars, including Alexandra Daddario (Dr. Rowan Fielding), Harry Hamlin (Cortland Mayfair) and Tongayi Chirisa (Ciprien).

leaned into censoring certain users and content in the months leading up to his resignation.How things have already changed.Dorsey is among a new group of investors being floated by Elon Musk, the free-speech champion massing billions to complete his purchase Twitter, to participate as an investor in his private version of the company, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing from Thursday.The more than $7 billion in new money includes 19 investors, some of whom are current Twitter shareholders – including Larry Ellison, Sequoia Capital, Qatar Holding, and Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Bin Abdulaziz Alsaud of Saudi Arabia. Equity commitments range from $1 billion (Ellison) on down to $5 million (Honeycomb Asset Management).It wasn’t immediately clear how the $7 billion would fit into the standing $44 billion offer that Musk made for the company, which was accepted late last month.

AMC Networks hit 9.5 million streaming subs for the first quarter of 2022, up from just over 9 million sequentially and in a newly antsy streaming world recommitted to its long-term goal of 20-25 million subs by 2025.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterAMC Networks ended its first quarter of 2022 with 9.5 million streaming subscribers.The new figure, revealed along with the rest of the company’s Q1 financial results on Thursday, is in line with the projection CFO Christina Spade gave in February. At that time, Spade said she expected AMC Networks add 400-500,000 streaming subscribers by the end of March, after reaching more than 9 million subs at the end of 2021.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterThe 2021-2022 broadcast TV season is coming to a close, and CBS is ready to declare an early total viewers victory. The broadcast network said Tuesday they are poised to win their 14th consecutive season in terms of overall audience size.“The strength and depth of our core CBS series, the top new comedies and dramas on television, our iconic alternative programming, world-class sports franchises, plus the finest news program in the history of television, provided us with the power to surge to the top of the broadcast landscape for the 14th consecutive season.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer“Jackass” is heading back to the small screen, with a new series from the original creators in the works at Paramount+ after to the immense popularity of “Jackass Forever.”“Based off the success of ‘Jackass Forever,’ we’re working with the creators to continue the partnership with a new series, bringing even more ridiculous antics straight to Paramount+,” Paramount Global CEO Bob Bakish said Tuesday during the company’s Q1 earnings call Tuesday.“Jackass Forever,” the fourth film in the long-running franchise, debuted at the top of domestic box office in February with a better-than-expected $23.5 million. The film included classic cast members such as Johnny Knoxville, Steve-O, Chris Pontius, Dave England, Wee Man, Danger Ehren and Preston Lacy, as well as several new faces, including Rachel Wolfson, Sean “Poopies” McInerney and Jasper Dolphin.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterParamount+ and Showtime topped a combined 63 million subscribers at the end of the first quarter, Paramount Global revealed Tuesday. From that new total, 6.8 million are Paramount+ sub additions from Q1.That’s up from the combined 56 million subscribers that the company reported the streamers hit by the end of 2021.

Matt Blank, interim CEO of AMC Networks, made just shy of $7 million in total compensation in 2021, according to a proxy filing with the SEC.

EXCLUSIVE:  Verve has inked 3x Oscar-nominated filmmaker, producer and former Focus Features Features CEO James Schamus in all areas.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterPeacock ended the first quarter of the year with 28 million monthly active accounts (MAAs) and 13 million paid subscribers, Comcast revealed along with its Q1 earnings results Thursday.That total is up from the 24.5 million Comcast reported for the streamer’s end of 2021 figure. During Q1, Peacock streamed Super Bowl LVI and the Beijing Winter Olympics, along with debuting splashy titles like “Bel-Air,” its dramatic take on the ’90s classic “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air,” Jennifer Lopez’s theatrical-and-streaming release “Marry Me,” and “Tiger King” scripted series “Joe vs.