Ted Sarandos Pulls Out of PEN America Gala Honoring Him Amid Writers Strike (EXCLUSIVE)

Matt Donnelly Senior Film Writer HBO’s buzzy new original series “The Idol” has been steadily building momentum on the road to its June 4 debut — including a lavish world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival, followed by one of the most talked-about afterparties on the Croisette. The show follows an embattled young pop star named Jocelyn (Lily-Rose Depp), recovering from a psychotic break after the death of her mother and hounded relentlessly by industry vultures that need her back on top. A sketchy Svengali named Tedros (Abel “The Weeknd” Tesfaye) appears in her life, promising artistic and sexual liberation and fame beyond her wildest dreams. “Euphoria” creator Sam Levinson steers the show with co-creators Tesfaye and Reza Fahim.

organization said in a statement.Established in 2008, the Television Academy Honors recognize “Television with a conscience,” per the official branding. This year’s recognized productions are “37 Words” (ESPN), “As We See It” (Prime Video), “Mo” (Netflix), “The Rebellious Life of Mrs.

Anna Marie de la Fuente Latin American companies have descended on the 60th LA Screenings, mindful of the ever-shifting panorama in content distribution and production.  The ongoing writers’ strike is viewed by some as a boon for international content. Take what Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos said at the company’s first quarter financials report presentation when the writers’ strike was looming: “If there’s a strike — and we want to work really hard to make sure we can find a fair and equitable deal so we can avoid one — but if there is one, we have a large base of upcoming shows and films from around the world.” “The global market is finally realizing that Latin America, with almost 700 million inhabitants that speak the same language, is a territory that has a huge penetration in terms of OTT and – still – pay tv subscribers,” says Mexico City-based Manuel Marti, Fremantle’s head of scripted development, Latin America. “At the same time, it has a long history of producing local content with a distinctive genre that’s slowly being embedded into American culture via the 62 million Latinos that live in the U.S.,” he adds.

EXCLUSIVE: Filming on Season 2 of the FX drama series The Old Man, starring Jeff Bridges, is being suspended. We hear the crew of the series, produced by 20th Television, were alerted this morning of the decision to stop after today’s shoot, completing Episode 204.

Hollywood talent agencies are getting into a cost-cutting mode amid a second industry work stoppage in three years. Many have implemented extra scrutiny/cuts in travel and expenses and some are also contemplating/planning temporary salary reductions.

Matt Donnelly Senior Film Writer Oscar winner Jennifer Lawrence and her producing partner Justine Ciarrocchi touched down at the Cannes Film Festival on Sunday to promote their label’s first ever documentary feature, “Bread and Roses” — a harrowing and emotional look at the lives of women in Afghanistan under Taliban rule. After two decades of American occupation, the nation fell once again to the insurgent group, which moved quickly to strip women of basic rights — simple freedoms like the ability to work, appear in public without a male chaperone and receive an education. “It all just collapsed and a matter of days,” Lawrence recalled to Variety. “I was watching this from America, where Roe v. Wade was about to be overturned. We felt helpless and frustrated with how to get these stories off of the news cycle and into people’s psyches. To help people be galvanized and care about the plight of these women.”

Meanwhile I hear folks at Late Night with Seth Meyers and The Late Show With Stephen Colbert will continue to be paid.Solidarity with WGA! https://t.co/RQwREipx2HAn unnamed source reportedly confirmed the show’s decision to the Huffington Post Tuesday. NBC didn’t immediately respond to TheWrap’s request for comment. The decision to halt payment for the show’s staff is essentially how NBC and Fallon signaled things might go back at the beginning of the strike. Following a public pressure campaign led in part by Kobos, NBC agreed to pay the staff for two weeks, and Fallon said he himself would pay for a third week. “I have a very good update! We ended up having our production meeting this [morning] too and @jimmyfallon was there,” Kobos tweeted on May 3.

“9-1-1” — as the ongoing WGA strike impacts productions industrywide.Reruns of “Abbott Elementary” airing back-to-back at 9 p.m. ET/PT Wednesdays are the only scripted show on the fall schedule.A source with knowledge of the decision making told TheWrap the goal was to present a strike-proof fall schedule ahead of the Disney/ABC upfronts presentation Tuesday.

EXCLUSIVE: Cocaine Bear filmmaker Elizabeth Banks has urged industry professionals to “hold the line” and support striking writers, particularly around issues such as the use of AI as her thriller Dreamquil, which explores the dangers of artificial intelligence, launches at the Canes Market.

This year’s Peabody Awards ceremony has been canceled “due to the ongoing uncertainty and meaningful challenges that exist industrywide,” according to a statement from the Peabody Awards organization. The June 11 awards would have been the organization’s first in-person ceremony since 2019, as well as the first time ever in its history that the Awards would take place in Los Angeles.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer Warner Bros. Discovery has asked talent not to appear in-person at their Wednesday upfronts presentation, so as not to put those individuals in a position where they need to cross the Writers Guild of America’s picket line amid the ongoing writers strike, Variety has learned. A source close to the situation says this choice was made by WBD out of respect for both the talent and the writers on strike. However, talent will be represented in other ways throughout the show, and the event will cover all parts of the WBD business operations. The original pre-strike plan had been for a robust lineup, including big WBD stars like Magnolia Network’s Chip and Joanna Gaines, but has been trimmed down since the strike went into effect May 2, when the WGA and Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers failed to ink a new contract.

WGA strike.“We are grateful for the contribution writers make to our company and respect their right to demonstrate it may take some time, but I know we will eventually get through this and the result will be a stronger foundation on which we can all move forward together,” Chairman of NBCUniversal Mark Lazarus said during the New York event. Unsurprisingly, the event scaled back on its celebrities, relying on more executives and reality TV stars to introduce its clips and segments.

2023 Tony Awards to air as scheduled on June 11 amid the ongoing writers strike. The Hollywood Reporter reported Friday that the telecast of theater’s biggest night will not air on CBS and stream on Paramount+ as originally planned.

In May 2020, two months into the production shutdown caused by the global pandemic, NBC acquired Canadian medical drama Transplant, which landed on the network’s Covid-impacted fall schedule. In December of that year, NBC picked up Season 2 of the show.

Ted Sarandos, who was set to receive the PEN America Visionary Award at the literary group’s gala next week in NYC, won’t be attending amid an ongoing strike and vigorous picketing on both coasts by the WGA.

Tony Gilroy is standing with the writers amid their strike.

HBO, Warner Bros. TV, NBCUniversal and other major struck studios will be suspending some first-look and overall deals amid the ongoing writers strike. Sources close to the situation tell Variety that Amazon will be sending letters out Monday notifying those affected. The studio does have some carveouts for creatives who are rendering producing services but non-writing. HBO is said to be making calls to alert the individuals, but formal letters have not been sent yet. On May 2, the Writers Guild of America (WGA) called for a strike after failing to ink a new deal with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP). Picketing quickly ensued in New York City, Los Angeles and Atlanta and several productions were shut down due to the strike.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media Reporter The American Film Institute has postponed its annual Life Achievement Award, which was set to honor Nicole Kidman, due to the ongoing writers strike. The indefinitely delayed tribute gala was scheduled for June 10 at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. “For nearly half a century, the AFI Life Achievement Award has convened artists and audiences in celebration of excellence in the art form,” the organization said in a statement. “Due to the division in our community at this time, AFI has decided to postpone this year’s event with the goal to offer a celebratory environment worthy of our recipient.” When she was selected for the accolade in November, AFI Board of Trustees chair Kathleen Kennedy said in a statement, “Nicole Kidman has enchanted audiences for decades with the daring of her artistry and the glamour of a screen icon. She is a force both brave in her choices and bold in each performance.”

 is the latest television series to pause production amid the ongoing writers' strike in Hollywood.On Saturday, the Duffer Brothers, the duo behind the series and showrunners of the Netflix hit, took to Twitter to announce that production on the show's fifth and final season would have to come to a halt due to the strike.«Duffers here. Writing does not stop when filming begins. While we’re excited to start production with our amazing cast and crew, it is not possible during this strike,» Matt and Ross Duffer tweeted.