NBCU’s Jeff Shell Keeps Cards Close To Chest On Rumoured Netflix Ad Deal, Talks Up Apple News Partnership – Cannes Lions

described by Netflix as a “genre-bending series” that puts a “modern twist on Greek and Roman mythology, exploring themes of gender politics, power and life in the underworld.” “I’m absolutely thrilled to be making ‘Kaos,’ and I can’t think of a more exciting or dynamic team of people to bring everything to life. Georgi [Banks-Davies] and Runyararo [Mapfumo] are both visionary directors with pleasingly dark senses of humor — I’m delighted to be working with them both,” Covell said, according to Deadline, which first reported on the “Kaos” cast. “I believe I’m still in shock at the news that Hugh Grant has agreed to play Zeus — this was my dream.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterThe Netflix action-comedy series “Obliterated” from the creators of “Cobra Kai” has found its first two cast members, Variety has learned.Nick Zano and Shelley Henig are set to star in the series, which was picked up at Netflix in May after having originally been ordered to series at TBS.The show tells the story of an elite special forces team who thwarts a deadly threat to Las Vegas. After their celebratory party, filled with booze, drugs and sex, the team discovers that a bomb they deactivated was a fake.

Nick Zano (DC’s Legends of Tomorrow) and Shelley Hennig (Teen Wolf) are set as the leads of Obliterated, Netflix’s hourlong action comedy series from Cobra Kai creators Jon Hurwitz, Hayden Schlossberg and Josh Heald as well as Sony Pictures Television.

EXCLUSIVE: Alice Eve (Belgravia), Shelley Hennig (Unfriended) and Antonio Banderas (Pain and Glory) have signed on to star in Jon Keeyes’ thriller The Last Girl for Yale Entertainment, which will head into production in Ireland this summer.

Todd Spangler NY Digital EditorNetflix has made no secret that it would rely on third-party partners to roll into the ad-supported VOD space. Now word has emerged that Google and NBCUniversal are the top contenders to potentially land a coveted deal with the streamer to sell and serve ads for Netflix’s lower-cost plan with ads.Google and Comcast’s NBCU are both pursuing an exclusive pact with Netflix for the forthcoming ad-supported streaming package, the Wall Street Journal reported this week, citing anonymous sources.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV EditorStreaming outlet Fox Nation is already running the commercials its larger rivals say they want to sell.Big subscription-based streamers like Netflix and Disney+ have caught the attention of Madison Avenue with recent announcements about launching ad-supported tiers for their services. Fox Nation, a smaller streaming outlet that is part of Fox News Media, has quietly opened some of its selections for advertisers.Subscribers who recently streamed “Duck Family Treasure,” a new special that stars members of the Robertson family from the long-running series “Duck Dynasty,” likely saw something that people who binge-watch often don’t: commercials appearing in the bottom third of the screen while the action continued above them.

Netflix is giving fans a first look at their upcoming limited series, Keep Breathing!

EXCLUSIVE: Departing Netflix Director Of UK Scripted Chris Sussman is in talks to exec produce the fourth season of Apple TV+ comedy Trying, Deadline can reveal.

Michael Colton and John Aboud, creators of ABC comedy Home Economics, are doubling down with Lionsgate Television.

First debuting in 2019, The Umbrella Academy on Netflix has since scooped up a number of accolades, including six Emmy nominations. The streaming service also revealed that 45 million households had watched season one during its first month of release, becoming one of the most streamed series of that year in the process.

Netflix’s new scripted comedy Unstable has added 7 new cast members to its roster including series regulars Sian Clifford (Fleabag), Rachel Marsh (Head of the Class), Emma Ferreira (Transplant), and Aaron Branch (Kenan); and recurring stars Fred Armisen (Portlandia, Our Flag Means Death), Tom Allen (Barry), and JT Parr (Hawaii Five-O, Real Bros Of Simi Valley).

Lionsgate Chairman Kevin Beggs has said the studio is “working on a variety of projects” with 42, ramping up international productions and has put recent successes down to there being “a little more room at the broadcasters.” Beggs also defended Netflix following a period of lower-than-expected growth for the streamer but said it may need to be “more judicious and disciplined” going forwards.

Nicole Kidman, Zac Efron and Joey King have boarded an untitled romantic comedy for Netflix that Richard LaGravanese will direct.Netflix’s logline for the film reads “A surprising romance kicks off comic consequences for a young woman, her mother and her movie  star boss as they face the complications of love, sex, and identity.”LaGravanese, director of “Behind the Candelabra,” “PS I Love You,” “The Last Five Years” and “Freedom Writers” co-wrote the script with Carrie Solomon, who is also working on Margot Robbie’s “Ocean’s 11” prequel for Warner Bros.Producers include Joe Roth, Jeff Kirschenbaum and Alyssa Altman for Roth/Kirschenbaum Films, which worked on Netflix’s “Hustle” starring Adam Sandller Roth/Kirschenbaum Films is also working on “The Gray Man” starring Ryan Gosling and Chris Evans.Kidman has recently starred as Lucille Ball in “Being the Ricardos” (2021) as well as Hulu’s “Nine Perfect Strangers.” Efron most recently appeared in “Firestarter” (2022) and will appear in “The Greatest Beer Run Ever” to release later this year.King starred in “The Kissing Booth” trilogy of films for netflix, and she will appear in “The Princess” for Hulu and 20th Century Studios July 1 as well as “Bullet Train” Aug.

Netflix has set an all-star ensemble for its new untitled romcom as sources tell Deadline Nicole Kidman, Zac Efron and Joey King are set to star in the pic, with Behind The Candelabra writer Richard LaGravenese directing. LaGravenese co-wrote the script with Carrie Solomon while Joe Roth, Jeff Kirschenbaum and Alyssa Altman producing for Roth/Kirschenbaum Films.

Comcast poised to make a big move?The cable and media giant has missed out on some snazzy acquisitions in recent years, failing to outmaneuver Disney to buy the bulk of 21st Century Fox’s entertainment assets and falling just short of nabbing WarnerMedia. Losing out on the latter stunned Comcast CEO Brian Roberts and NBCUniversal CEO Jeff Shell, who were enmeshed in planning how WarnerMedia would be integrated into their operations until Discovery landed their prize.And the company has been looking at Electronic Arts, though it appears that efforts to acquire the game-maker have stalled.

EXCLUSIVE: Jeff Frost, a 15-year Sony TV veteran, is stepping down as President of Sony Pictures Television Studios, a post he has held for the past five years. According to sources, his departure was a mutual decision. With the TV studio coming off a banner year — hitting an all-time high of over 50 produced series and making waves at the 2021 Emmys nominations — I hear Frost felt it was time to leave and start a new chapter. Frost just shared his decision with his staff; Ravi Ahuja, Chairman, Global Television Studios, announced Frost’s departure in a company email. (You can read both in full at the bottom of the post.)