Participant Shutting Down Operations After 20 Years: Film Studio Was Behind Oscar Winners ‘Spotlight,’ ‘Green Book’ (EXCLUSIVE)

Matt Donnelly Senior Film Writer As consumers turn apathetic toward information collecting online — and Washington cracks down on foreign-owned apps like TikTok — the urgency of data privacy and protection seems increasingly unavoidable in daily life. “Technically Optimistic,” a podcast from Laurene Powell Jobs’ Emerson Collective, seeks to address that in ways that don’t make the average listener’s eyes glaze over. “I’m trying to break this information down in a way that my mother-in-law would find interesting,” said Raffi Krikorian, host of the series which began a Season 2 rollout in April.

The Tribeca Festival has unveiled its reunions, retrospectives and talks series for the 23rd edition unspooling in June including a Storyteller Series with Judd Apatow, Andy Cohen, Kieran Culkin, Kerry Washington, Laverne Cox, Jon Batiste, and Michael Stipe.

James Gunn is shutting down a fan conspiracy theory that he always planned to remove Henry Cavill from the DCEU.

Zack Sharf Digital News Director Martin Freeman recently spoke to The Times of London about the backlash that erupted over his movie “Miller’s Girl” earlier this year. The erotic thriller opened in theaters in January and caused a stir on social media due to intimate scenes between Freeman and his co-star Jenna Ortega. The movie casts the “Wednesday” favorite as an 18-year-old student who is attracted to her writing teacher (Freeman) and attempts to start an affair with him.

Prince William reportedly backed his stepbrother Tom Parker Bowles' decision to counter Prince Harry's accusations about Queen Camilla, according to commentator Kinsey Schofield.

Gemma Atkinson has teased a 'big' new project she's been 'quietly working on' after shutting down rumours she was set to star in a hit rebooted show. The mum-of-two recently returned to her co-hosting job on Hits Radio following the end of her maternity leave.

When she announced she was leaving her role as a judge on “American Idol” while appearing on “Jimmy Kimmel Live” in February, Perry also teased new music in the works. “I mean, I love ‘Idol’ so much. … It’s connected me with the heart of America, but I feel like I need to go out and feel that pulse to my own beat,” she told Kimmel with a wink.When asked how her fellow judges Luke Bryan and Lionel Richie reacted to the news, she joked they’d find out that night and said, “They know that I have some things planned for this year.”“So, it’s going to be a very, very exciting year … for all popstar girlies!” she added.

Editors note: Filmmaker and producer Davis Guggenheim directed 2006’s An Inconvenient Truth featuring Al Gore. The film won the Oscar and helped put Jeff Skoll‘s social-impact-driven production company then known as Participant Media on the map, and also sounded an alarm about climate change that has become more pronounced since the film was released. In addition to documentaries, Participant was also responsible for Oscar Best Picture winners Spotlight and Green Book, and Steven Soderbergh’s Contagion, another timely topic. Guggenheim is a co-founder of Concordia Studio and most recently directed and produced Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie, which  won four Emmys including for Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Special.  He is the only person to direct and produce three distinct films ranking in the top 100 highest-grossing documentaries of all time (An Inconvenient Truth, It Might Get Loud, and Waiting for Superman). Here he penned a guest column for Deadline after learning Participant was shuttering. 

At first, I was shocked by the news that Participant Media was dying. Such an appealing company. Smart. Mindful. Vibrant. Forward-thinking. The producer of intelligent films like Spotlight and Green Book, with a distinctly progressive message.

Kourtney Kardashian isn’t letting any fans tear her down on her birthday!

Matt Donnelly Senior Film Writer End of an era, end of a business model, end of a gravy train, end of the world. There were plenty of mixed emotions this week in response to the closure of Oscar-winning production company Participant, and at the very least the industry has agreed something has come to an end.

EXCLUSIVE: Apple Studios has announced the three participants selected for its inaugural Directors Program, described as an inclusive, new initiative focused on expanding opportunities for mid-career directors across the U.S.

Matt Donnelly Senior Film Writer The Sundance Film Festival may kick the snow off its boots once and for all. The annual celebration of independent film announced on Wednesday that it is open for pitches from cities across the United States on becoming the new permanent home of the festival starting in 2027. Sundance has taken place in the luxury mountain haven of Park City, Utah since 1981 (except for two virtual years during the pandemic).

Filmmaker Steven Spielberg always moves fluidly from genre to genre, and perhaps there’s no better example than the recent 30th anniversary of 1993’s “Schindler’s List,” which was released the same year as the couldn’t-be-totally-different “Jurassic Park.” And so, coming off his grounded and very personal family drama, “The Fabelmans,” for his next film, Spielberg might be going back to the sci-fi genre again.

Viaplay shut its direct-to-consumer service in February, but the Scandi streamer is still active in the U.S.

UPDATED with more details: Financier and producer Participant is shuttering after 20 years. Founder Jeff Skoll alerted staff at 10:30 a.m. PT on Tuesday, Deadline has confirmed.

On Friday, Google began removing California news websites from some people’s search results. The move comes as a test of what would happen should the state Legislature pass a new law requiring the search engine to pay media companies for linking to their content.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Marco Mueller has been appointed artistic director of Italy’s Taormina Film Festival, which will have a top notch selection committee comprising British film curator and former London fest chief Sandra Hebron and former Cannes Directors’ Fortnight boss Edouard Waintrop. As anticipated by Variety, Mueller, who over the past decades has headed both the Venice and Rome fests — among several other events — is taking the reins of the storied Sicilian event that has had its ups and downs over the years. Held since the mid-1950s in the Sicilian resort known to U.S.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor After nearly nine years, Showtime‘s streaming apps are fading to black. The Showtime standalone service will be shut down on April 30, according to notices sent to subscribers. The end of Showtime’s streaming apps comes just less than a year after parent company Paramount Global integrated Showtime’s programming into the top-tier Paramount+ plan.

Matt Donnelly Senior Film Writer Paramount Pictures CEO Brian Robbins got cheeky about the sales talks surrounding his corporate parent Paramount Global. In a presentation to worldwide theater owners at the annual Las Vegas convention CinemaCon, Robbins got right to the point in his opening remarks about what’s next for his team.