Roku Laying Off Another 200 Employees, Cutting 6% of Workforce

The Anne Rice Cinematic Universe is potentially getting bigger.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Netflix said it would stage a “broad rollout” of its paid-sharing plan in the second quarter of 2023, including in the U.S. The streamer announced the news as part of its first quarter 2023 earnings report. As part of Netflix’s crackdown on customers sharing passwords with people outside their household, the company plans to start blocking devices (after a certain period of time) that attempt to access a Netflix account without properly paying. “In Q1, we launched paid sharing in four countries and are pleased with the results,” Netflix said in its Q1 letter to shareholders. “We are planning on a broad rollout, including in the U.S., in Q2.”

Roman Kemp's latest social media post came with a warning and an apology to his mum as she shared how he lost his clothes while taking a dip in a thermal rival while on holiday. The Capital FM DJ had been taking a well-earned break in Costa Rica when his personal disaster struck.

Tory voters should vote Labour at the next election if their candidate is best placed to beat the SNP, the leader of the Scottish Conservatives has suggested. Douglas Ross risked a split with Tory leader Rishi Sunak as he said people should “do what’s best for the country” to help loosen the nationalists’ grip on Scotland.

Owen Wilson is back, with brushes, as the longtime host of a beloved but fading Burlington, Vermont-based PBS instructional art show. Paint from IFC Films opens on 800+ screens.

More British artists than ever are taking advantage of the worldwide streaming boom, a new report from the BPI suggests, with 200 UK acts achieving over 200 million global streams in 2022.

What could the future possibly hold for an artist if they have grown too comfortable with success? If they have stayed put in that snug place of glory, but the times have moved on fast without them? These are the hefty considerations at the heart of “Paint,” a slight comedy that sadly embraces neither the worthwhile questions that surround its central premise nor the story’s dark humor potential.That’s too bad, because writer-director Brit McAdams’ narrative feature debut is rooted in a genuinely fascinating subject that apparently served as an inspiration for “Paint.” McAdam’s muse is Bob Ross, a real-life American public television mainstay of the ‘80s and ‘90s. Being the host of a successful PBS show called “The Joy of Painting” during that time, Ross built a loyal audience who loved and were mesmerized by his soothing voice, and even haunted by his creative process and ease with a brush, as Ross slowly created his art in front of curious eyes, narrating it softly and philosophically.

When Deadline featured Alexander Rodnyansky for its International Disruptors column back in 2021, the media mogul said he’d “had five lives” when looking back at his prolific media career which spanned documentary filmmaking, founding Ukraine’s first indie TV network 1+1, managing Russian media company CTC and producing indie films.

The White House has issued a statement condemning Russia’s detention of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich “in the strongest terms,” and is reiterating State Department warnings that U.S. citizens residing or traveling in Russia “should depart immediately.”

the Journal reported.Russia’s Federal Security Bureau, a successor to the Soviet KGB, accused Gershkovich of trying to obtain classified information. The agency claimed that “acting on the instructions of the American side, collected information constituting a state secret about the activities of one of the enterprises of the Russian military-industrial complex,” the Journal said.

Roku said today it plans to lay off 200 employees, or 6% of its workforce, as part of a restructuring plan as the drumbeat of staff cuts across the industry continues. Roku laid off 200 last fall on advertising woes and a challenging economy, both of which are still rocky.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Electronic Arts will cut 6% of its headcount, amounting to about 800 jobs, and reduce its office space, the company announced. The video game company, whose popular titles include “Madden NFL,” “EA Sports FIFA 23,” “Apex Legends” and “The Sims,” is restructuring to focus on “strategic priorities,” CEO Andrew Wilson said in a memo distributed to employees Wednesday. “As we drive greater focus across our portfolio, we are moving away from projects that do not contribute to our strategy, reviewing our real estate footprint, and restructuring some of our teams,” Wilson said in the memo.

EXCLUSIVE: Following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in late February 2022, Hollywood swore off the booming and lucrative box office territory, with the first studios, Disney and Warner Bros, respectively pulling their big movies out of the country, Turning Red and The Batman.

Scott Huver After starring in “Paint” as a Bob Ross-esque (but far more angry and tortured) paint instructor, Owen Wilson admits he’s warmed to finding his own sense of zen calm — not with watercolors and brushes, but with Crayolas. “When my boys were little, at restaurants I’d give them crayons and try to calm them down, but I think that maybe adults should be doing that, too,” Wilson told Variety at the premiere of the IFC film at the Ace Hotel on Thursday. ”I don’t know why we ever stop doing that, because there is something really nice about trying to create something.” “I guess there’s that Picasso quote: ‘I want to spend the rest of my life learning to paint like a child,’” he mused. “Not worrying about anything and just expressing yourself — that feels good.”

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Funko, less than a year after acquiring high-end collectibles brand Mondo, has wound down Mondo’s movie-poster business and let go several employees — including Mondo co-founders Mitch Putnam and Rob Jones, Variety has confirmed. Mondo, based in Austin, Texas, was founded in 2001 and was previously a subsidiary of indie theater chain Alamo Drafthouse before Funko’s deal to buy it last year for $14 million. Mondo had gained a strong following for its limited-edition screen-printed movie posters. Notable artists who worked with Mondo on its posters have included Olly Moss, Shepard Fairey, Ken Taylor and Kevin Tong. Sources said that Mondo’s vinyl records and collectibles businesses are intact.

Prince William laid a wreath at a monument dedicated to soldiers in Poland as part of a trip to meet Ukrainian refugees being helped in the Eastern European country. The Prince of Wales, 40, visited the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Warsaw on Thursday morning - echoing a royal engagement carried out by the late Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip, who did the same in 1996. William was greeted by a guard of honour and carried the assortment of flowers to the monument, spending around 10 minutes there before leaving.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Amazon may be laying off thousands of employees, but it’s still selling a ton of stuff — including streaming devices and connected TVs. The company said sales of Fire TV streaming devices and smart TVs have now surpassed 200 million units to date. Amazon, which doles out such stats selectively, previously announced a milestone of 150 million Fire TV devices sold in January 2022.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor After a strategic review, Amazon intends to lay off 9,000 more employees — on top of the 18,000 job cuts it previously announced, CEO Andy Jassy announced Monday. The latest round of cuts will mostly affect employees in Amazon Web Services (AWS), People, Experience and Technology (PXT), advertising and Twitch divisions, according to Jassy. The company’s senior management team expects to make final decisions on which jobs will be eliminated by “mid to late April,” the CEO said. “This was a difficult decision, but one that we think is best for the company long term,” Jassy wrote.

Amazon is laying off another 9,000 workers as job cuts in the tech sector expand at a time of growing economic uncertainty. It follows cuts last fall and early this year.