Lionsgate CEO Jon Feltheimer Believes In Netflix But Its “Pivot” Is Inevitable; For Starters, It Could Reconsider His ‘Knives Out’ Proposal

Lionsgate CEO Jon Feltheimer said the company is planning to unveil its plans for Starz by the late summer and close a deal by next spring as the process to monetize the premium channel and streamer moves forward.

Saturday Night Live saw one of its biggest exodus in last week’s season finale – with Deadline breaking the news that Kate McKinnon, Aidy Bryant and Kyle Mooney were leaving alongside Pete Davidson.

EXCLUSIVE: J.K. Simmons (Being the Ricardos), Jackie Earle Haley (The First Lady), Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje (Suicide Squad), Jessica De Gouw (The Secrets She Keeps) and Alice Lee (Brittany Runs a Marathon) have signed on to star alongside Mark Wahlberg and Halle Berry in the Netflix thriller Our Man from Jersey, from director Julian Farino (Ballers).

Squid Game creator Hwang Dong-hyuk has said the show’s second season will be released by the end of 2023 or 2024.The show’s first season broke records for Netflix when it was released last year, with co-CEO Ted Sarandos confirming a second season had been ordered back in January.In an interview with Vanity Fair, Dong-hyuk provided an update on the second season’s progress. The report reads: “Hwang is in the midst of final discussions with Netflix for a second season of Squid Game and anticipates that it could be out by the end of 2023 or 2024.”It states that Dong-hyuk has “about three pages’ worth of ideas that he plans to turn into a script”.Teasing the new season, he added: “Humanity is going to be put to a test through those games once again.

Zack Sharf “Squid Game” is coming back to Netflix for a second season, but fans of the smash hit drama series are going to have to wait well over a year for  new episodes. Series creator Hwang Dong-hyuk told Vanity Fair that he predicts the next batch of episodes won’t be ready for release until the end of 2023 at the earliest.

Wilson Chapman editorLess than a month after the highly anticipated “Top Gun: Maverick” flies into theaters, director Joseph Kosinski is reuniting with star Miles Teller for the Netflix sci-fi thriller “Spiderhead.”Based on the George Saunders short story “Escape From Spiderhead,” which was originally published in The New Yorker, “Spiderhead” stars Teller as a prisoner at the titular state-of-the-art penitentiary, designed by inventor Steve Abnesti (Chris Hemsworth). Located on a gorgeous island, the island offers its prisoners reduced prison sentences and good accommodations at a price; every inmate wears a surgically attached experimental device that administers mind-altering drugs in their brain.Although Abnesti is convinced that his work will save lives, the experiments he carries out on his patients begins to test the boundaries of free will.

“Top Gun: Maverick” (which also stars Teller), while Hemsworth will be pulling double duty this summer as his Marvel sequel “Thor: Love and Thunder” opens in theaters on July 8.“Spiderhead” is produced by Eric Newman, Chris Hemsworth, Rhett Rees, Paul Wernick, Agnes Chu, Geneva Wasserman, Tommy Harper and Jeremy Steckler.Watch the “Spiderhead” trailer in the video above.

Netflix employees should leave the company if they take issue with its programming, the streaming giant has said in an internal memo obtained ahead of its publication this week.Within the platform’s ‘Artistic Expression’ section of its corporate culture memo, which was due to be shared publicly on Thursday (May 19) although was obtained in advance by Variety, employees are advised that they should leave the company if they’re offended by the streamer’s “content breadth”.The anti-censorship drive comes months after Netflix aired Dave Chappelle’s controversial stand-up special The Closer, which prompted LGBTQ+ employees and supporters to walk out in protest over his transphobic and homophobic jokes.At the time Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos defended Chappelle, saying: “We don’t allow Netflix titles that are designed to incite hate or violence, and we don’t believe The Closer crosses that line.”Now, the ‘Artistic Expression’ of Netflix’s updated memo states: “Not everyone will like — or agree with — everything on our service.“While every title is different, we approach them based on the same set of principles: we support the artistic expression of the creators we choose to work with; we program for a diversity of audiences and tastes; and we let viewers decide what’s appropriate for them, versus having Netflix censor specific artists or voices.”The section concludes that employees’ “personal values” about what they consider “harmful” will not be taken into consideration.It continued: “As employees we support the principle that Netflix offers a diversity of stories, even if we find some titles counter to our own personal values. Depending on your role, you may need to work on titles you perceive to be harmful.

Netflix has a message for all of its employees who may not agree with the content it is making…

walk out in protest over his anti-trans and homophobic jokes. At the time, Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos sided with Chappelle and now he’s doubled down by telling employees that if anyone is going anywhere, it should be them.As various outlets have reported, the Netflix Culture memo includes a new section called “Artistic Expression,” which declares the streamer will not “censor specific artists or voices” even if employees consider the content “harmful.” “Not everyone will like — or agree with — everything on our service,” the Artistic Expression section states.

Every year around this time – Saturday Night Live’s finale is May 21 – the rumor mill starts as to how the venerable comedy variety series will look next year.

wokeworkers to bed. In light of internal dissension triggered by productions like Dave Chappelle’s chaotically controversial stand-up special, Netflix has reportedly issued a shady missive to its disgruntled staffers, underscoring that the streaming behemoth values the “artistic expression” of its content creators over each employee’s personal thoughts, beliefs and lifestyles. And any worker who doesn’t like it can ’Flix off. “As employees we support the principle that Netflix offers a diversity of stories, even if we find some titles counter to our own personal values,” read the memo, titled “Netflix Culture — Seeking Excellence.”“Depending on your role, you may need to work on titles you perceive to be harmful,” the communiqué continued.

Norm Macdonald is going to have a last laugh.

Robbie Praw, VP of Stand-up and Comedy Formats at Netflix, announced on Monday that the streamer will be showcasing highlights from the 11-day “Netflix Is a Joke: The Festival” stand-up comedy event held in Los Angeles, including Pete Davidson riffing on Kanye West’s bizarre social media onslaught, Amy Schumer telling a joke she wasn’t allowed to do at the Oscars, and David Letterman commenting on the recent attack on Dave Chappelle.The month-long comedy rollout begins with “The Hall: Honoring the Greats of Stand-Up,” on May 19, which has John Mulaney paying tribute to Robin Williams, Dave Chappelle on Richard Pryor, Chelsea Handler on Joan Rivers and Jon Stewart to George Carlin. The remaining programs are as follows:Also coming up is a Gabriel “Fluffy” Iglesias special filmed in front of Netflix’s largest-ever audience at a sold-out Dodger Stadium.“These shows represent some of the best work we’ve done at Netflix, with the best comedic talent on the planet. We’re so grateful to everyone who performed, helping to create the biggest comedy festival in U.S.

Netflix has announced a June 10 premiere date for A Tribute To Bob Saget, a celebration of the comedian and actor’s life in comedy with his friends and family. The date was unveiled as part of the Netflix Is A Joke festival.

Netflix’s hit K-drama Squid Game made surprise appearances at locations around London today, ahead of the BAFTA TV Awards.The show, which premiered on the streaming platform last year, was nominated for two categories at tonight’s (May 8) ceremony – International and Virgin Media’s Must-See Moment for its “red light, green light” game.Before the event kicked off, the ominous, red-clad figures surprised fans across London, popping up at landmarks including Buckingham Palace and Piccadilly Circus. The three costumed guards posed for selfies and recreated The Beatles’ iconic album cover at Abbey Road.Other locations visited by the anonymous guards included Embankment Bridge, Southbank and the Royal Festival Hall.

Nick Vivarelli International CorrespondentReed Hastings made the trek to Rome to open Netflix’s new Italian headquarters in an elegant building just off the Via Veneto of “La Dolce Vita” fame — and the Roman rain gods made sure they knew he was there.Menacing dark clouds interspersed with flashes of sunlight had hovered over the hour-long outdoor presentation of a rich slate of Netflix Italian originals, headlined by a high-end series adaptation of classic Italian novel “The Leopard.” Yet the weather had somehow held up.Right until, that is, a minute after Hastings took the stage.“To start [in Italy] with this facility, with all the creators that we have today, is such an honor, especially as I feel the first drop of rain,” said Netflix’s founder and co-CEO. As it gradually began to pour, Hastings reminisced about the fact that 20 years ago, when his wife and children moved to Rome while he remained in the U.S.

A Netflix shareholder has sued the streamer for violating securities law after slowing subscriber growth led to a sharp decline in the company’s stock price.

After Dave Chappelle was knocked to the ground during his Netflix Is a Joke festival set, his attacker has since been identified and arrested.

Dave Chappelle was attacked on stage after a person interrupted his performance at the Netflix Is a Joke festival in Los Angeles.