Streaming Ads Poised to Shatter Routines at TV’s Upfront

Brian Steinberg Senior TV EditorCBS News’ venerable  “60 Minutes” is creating a time machine, of sorts.The long-running newsmagazine will be form the bulk  of a new channel at Pluto, the ad-supported streaming outlet that is, like CBS News, part of Paramount Global. The streaming channel is expected to launch sometime this year, Bill Owens, executive producer of the show, told staffers during a town hall meeting Thursday.“The channel will allow us to share our broadcast and historic archive with the wider world,” Owens told employees.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV EditorFox Corp. and NBCUniversal have started to write early deals in TV’s upfront market, a sign that networks and at least one large media buyer have started to come to terms on pricing that could govern the flow of millions of dollars of investment from Madison Avenue.Publicis Media, part of France’s Publicis Groupe, has started to wrap some business in this year’s market for advance advertising commitments, according to four executives with knowledge of current negotiations. These people noted that Publicis, which recently won the U.S.

Obi-Wan Kenobi” star Ewan McGregor slammed social media users who sent his co-star Moses Ingram hundreds of racist messages — calling them fake “Star Wars” fans.“I just wanted to say as the leading actor in the series, as the executive producer on the series, that we stand with Moses; we love Moses,” McGregor said in a video statement posted by the official “Star Wars” Twitter account Tuesday night. “And if you’re sending her bullying messages, you’re no ‘Star Wars’ fan in my mind.

Obi-Wan Kenobi” star Moses Ingram after racist backlash directed at her on social media.“We are proud to welcome Moses Ingram to the Star Wars family and excited for Reva’s story to unfold. If anyone intends to make her feel in any way unwelcome, we have only one thing to say: we resist,” they wrote in a rare statement.“There are more than 20 million sentient species in the Star Wars galaxy, don’t choose to be a racist.”The 29-year-old actress recently revealed that she received “hundreds” of racist messages on social media since the Disney+ series debuted on May 27.Messages the actress shared on her Instagram Stories include the use of the N-word and claims that she was a “diversity hire.”“You won’t be loved or remembered for this acting role,” one toxic fan wrote.“There’s nothing anybody can do about this.

“Obi-Wan Kenobi” last week, where she stars as Reva, the Inquisitor. Reva is obsessed with hunting down Obi-Wan to bring him to Darth Vader; apparently, she believes that she’ll get “what I’m owed” if she does.

Cara De La Hoyde was excited to show off her new teeth after embarking on a trip to Turkey to have them done.The 31 year old beamed whilst sharing glimpses of her bright white smile on Instagram Stories in a clip as she said: "I've got my new teeth. See you soon Nathan”, referring to her husband Nathan Massey. Cara spent the past few days also enjoying a break away without the two children she shares with Nathan, soaking up the sun as she looked forward to her dental treatment at Dental Centre Turkey.

Donald Glover is still being considered to play Lando Calrissian in a planned Star Wars spin-off series based on the character.That’s according to Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy, who revealed in a new interview with Total Film at Star Wars Celebration last week that she will “never say never” about recasting roles, after Glover played Lando in the flop Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018).An unnamed series centred on Lando, the character originated by Billy Dee Williams in Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back (1980), has been in development for a number of years. It was first announced to Disney investors as an “event series” in December 2020, with writer-director Justin Simien (Dear White People) attached to the project.Speaking to Total Film, Kennedy made reference to a new Vanity Fair interview that seemed to imply that the franchise had learned its lesson with Solo and would move away from stories featuring legacy characters recast with younger actors.“I never say never [about recasting].

Wrapping up the last bits of “Star Wars” celebration weekend, the content keeps flowing on Disney+. While we’ll get two Lucasfilm live-action shows this year, “Obi-Wan Kenobi,” airing now and “Andor” in late August, we’re also getting two animated series too.

, which arrives on Disney+ today. Ewan McGregor reprises his beloved role as Obi-Wan and Hayden Christensen returns as Anakin-turned-Vader for the first time since the 2005 film,, in this new limited series. Christensen’s epic comeback to the world of comes amid rumors that he’ll be making an appearance in  — another forthcoming  spinoff series.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV EditorTV’s “upfront” ad-sales market is starting to move — and earlier than expected.Just days after the networks wrapped glitzy programming presentations to Madison Avenue executives, Walt Disney Co. is said to have written some business with at least one major media buying agency, according to three executives familiar with recent discussions.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV EditorOne of the news industry’s worst-kept secrets is finally seeing the light of day.Jen Psaki, the White House Press Secretary who resigned from the role a few weeks ago, is slated to join MSNBC in the fall, where she will host a new streaming program that is expected to launch in the first quarter of 2023. She will also appear on NBC and during MSNBC’s special programming related to the 2022 midterm elections and the 2024 presidential election.

The “Star Wars” universe continues to expand on the small screen through Lucasfilm‘s many growing Disney+ shows. On the horizon later this summer, “Andor” centers on Diego Luna‘s Cassian Andor from “Rogue One,” exploring how his character became involved with the Rebellion.

Colin Cantwell, whose design work on the Star Wars spacecraft thrilled generations of moviegoers, died Saturday at his Colorado home. He was 90 and his death was confirmed by Sierra Dall, his long-time partner

Hollywood Reporter reported Sunday that Sierra Dall, Cantwell’s partner, confirmed that he died at his home in Colorado on Saturday.Cantwell designed the prototypes for the X-wing Starfighter, TIE fighter and Death Star.He also worked on films including “2001: A Space Odyssey,” “Close Encounters of the Third Kind” and “WarGames.”Cantwell was born in San Francisco in 1932. Before working on Hollywood films, Cantwell attended the University of California, Los Angeles, where he got a degree in animation.

Paralympian Dame Sarah Storey wants to change the lazy culture of driving children to school and reduce the risk to life posed by cars and congestion. The multiple time gold medalist was in attendance at Leigh Central and Sacred Heart primary schools in Leigh as they launched the School Streets scheme.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV EditorWhere do you take advertisers if you want them to make a big purchase? To a department store, of course.Paramount Global will take clients who attend its upfront Wednesday afternoon to an after-party in the structure on New York’s Madison Avenue that once housed the big Barney’s department store, one way to emphasize the shopping aspect of the event, in which big U.S. TV companies hope to sell the bulk of their commercial inventory for their next programming cycle.As part of the affair, Paramount has dressed up four windows of the former shopping plaza.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV EditorSofia Vergara will lend a hand as Spanish-language media giant TelevisaUnivision moves deeper into the world of streaming.The popular actor, recognized for her turns in ABC’s “Modern Family” and NBC’s “America’s Got Talent,” will create an animated series for the company’s new ViX streaming services, which has an ad-supported tier as well as a premium subscription level. Vergara will create and lend her voice to “Koati, The Series,” an original animated program based on the recent movie centered on a family of exotic animals who live in the rainforests of Latin America.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV EditorNot every marketer is likely to get its commercials on a new ad-supported version of Disney+.The popular streaming service — home to Marvel movies, the “Star Wars” series and hours of signature kids’ programming — is about to unveil a new ad-supported tier, part of a broader move by big entertainment companies like Disney to lure new subscribers to its broadband entertainment hubs with cheaper subscription levels. Indeed, the new option is one of the most-anticipated developments of the looming TV “upfront,” when TV networks try to sell the bulk of their commercial inventory for the next programming cycle.But Disney is being careful, according to two media buyers with knowledge of recent discussions between the company and advertising agencies, wary of overwhelming the streaming outlet with a glut of ads that might obscure the service’s family-friendly environment.