WWE Not Impacted By WGA Strike, CEO Nick Khan Says, But “Hopeful” For Deal Soon; Talks Rights Renewals, Endeavor Merger

As the Writers Guild strike stretches into its fourth week, Michael Schur is feeling resolute.

Asked about the WGA strike at the Cannes Film Festival press conference Friday for Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, director James Mangold said, “No movie happens without a great script, and no great script happens without writers.”

Zack Sharf Digital News Director Lucasfilm chief Kathleen Kennedy showed support for the writers strike while attending the Cannes press conference for “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.” Kennedy has been a producer on the Harrison Ford-led franchise since its first installment. “When it comes to acknowledging the importance of writing, I think everybody up here has demonstrated that you can’t do any of this without great writing,” Kennedy said. “You can’t do any of this without great writing. All of us who create anything…I am in full support and I know most people are in full support of the writers getting what they deserve.” Kennedy said she’d like to see the strike resolved “in an environment where people can talk about what are some really complicated issues that are effecting the entire industry,” but it’s “going to take time.”

An unexpected consequence. Rachel Bilson claimed that she was recently fired from a job because of her comments about wanting to be “manhandled” by her sex partners.

The new, publicly traded company to be created by the planned merger of UFC and WWE will be called TKO Group Holdings, a reference to “technical knockout” in fighting sports. Wrestling also has a “total knock out” move.

John Travolta (Grease) and Katherine Heigl (Firefly Lane) have boarded the rom-com That’s Amore!, written and to be directed by two-time Academy Award winner Nick Vallelonga (Green Book), with Christopher Walken (Severance) also in talks to star.

Nick Mohammed, the two-time Emmy nominee for his co-starring role on Apple TV’s Ted Lasso, will make his U.S. live performance debut for one night only at New York’s Town Hall on Friday, June 2. The show will bring his “Mr. Swallow” alter-ego character to American audiences for the first time.

The Writers Guild and several of its prominent members, recognizing that other workers in the entertainment industry are being impacted by the ongoing writers strike, have pledged more than $1.7 million to provide them with financial assistances during the walkout, which is now in its ninth day.

As you have no doubt already heard, the WGA is on strike right now. Just over a week into it, this strike has already caused quite a few disruptions, with productions being halted and development coming to a standstill.

When are things not strange in Hollywood? Should we be surprised that there is always some industry or world crises crashing an awards season? Probably not, but it’s been quite a long time since a work stoppage affected the Primetime Emmy Awards. And, as we’ll discuss later, that means while writers form picket lines, actors and directors are still engaged in that Emmy nomination fight.

Fox CEO Lachlan Murdoch says Fox Corp. is in a good place despite the ongoing WGA strike given its mix of programming.

Kristin Dolan, who took over earlier this year as CEO of AMC Networks, said the company is “very well positioned” to manage through the WGA strike.

Nick Cannon is getting candid. The 42-year-old media mogul fires back at being called a «deadbeat dad» in a new interview while revealing his jaw-dropping annual salary. «I've been villainized,» Cannon tells the  regarding scrutiny over his many partners and kids.

in solidarity with the WGA, and MTV scuttled plans for red carpet interviews and an in-person ceremony in order to to avoid run-ins with picketers (and lack of talent willing to show up).The show that aired was largely made up of clips of memorable moments from past MTV Movie Awards ceremonies — everything from Jim Carrey accepting his award as Jim Morrison to Sacha Baron Cohen landing crotch-first into Eminem’s face after a “stunt gone wrong.” They even played Katy Perry and Snoop Dogg’s performance of “California Girl” from the 2010 show in full, just to fill some time.As for the awards themselves, nominees from each category were called and the winner then accepted in the form of a pre-recorded message.

Another TV shoot has been disrupted by striking writers, Michelle and Robert King’s supernatural drama for Paramount+ Evil, which has been filming its fourth season at Brooklyn Stages in Brooklyn.

“You make billions/pay us some!” striking Writers Guild of America members chanted on the street of New York today near where filming was going on for Showtime’s Billions.

Barely legal? Nick Viall was taken aback by how young his now-fiancée, Natalie Joy, was when they first met on social media.

Warner Bros Discovery’s hour-long earnings call with Wall Street analysts Friday morning included nary a mention of the WGA strike, unlike many other such calls in recent days.

unable to reach a deal in contract negotiations with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers before Monday’s contract expiration. The strike involves a long list of concerns that the writers want Hollywood studios to address, from the low pay involved in writing streaming series to reining in “mini-rooms” used to skirt contractual pay practices to addressing the use of artificial intelligence.

Chelsea Handler is standing with the WGA strike — “obviously.” The comedian told TheWrap as much during an interview promoting her “Little Big Bitch” comedy tour, which will see Handler headlining the the Red Rocks Amphitheater near Denver on May 10 for SeriesFest.“Obviously, I stand with the writers, absolutely, and the WGA,” Handler said. “It’s unfortunate that it has to come to this.”To Handler, sharing profits and offering better deals to writers seems like an “obvious move” for large corporations that “make tons of money.” “The trickle-down economics don’t necessarily work. So I think it’s the only fair thing to do, and hopefully it’ll be over sooner than later,” Handler said.The actor and writer also spoke about potentially taking over “The Daily Show” after Trevor Noah left the late-night show in December.