Showbiz Sandbox 547: Is Netflix The New Kleenex?
June 29, 2021
With exclusive theatrical release windows having disintegrated during the COVID pandemic, new movies are being released through so many methods and on so many platforms that it has inevitably confused audiences how and where they can watch a film. Initially, most movie watchers turn to Netflix, assuming most or all titles will be available on the service. That a title might only be offered by another provider at a premium only makes it more puzzling where new releases can be found.
There is no question however about where you can find musician Bruce Springsteen these days. He just returned to Broadway for a limited run of his biographical concert where he opened to absolutely no grosses. None! We’ll explain the reason why.
Of course we also cover some of the week’s top entertainment headlines including how the Emmys will allow winners to drop the gender label, why the United Kingdom is putting Channel 4 up for sale and Quentin Tarantino confirms he’ll quit directing after his tenth film.
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Showbiz Sandbox 546: The Best Music You’ve Never Heard — 100 Flop Albums
June 22, 2021
Musician Sal Maida and music writer Mitchell Cohen have been thumbing through record store bins for decades looking for great albums. Now they’ve teamed up to write “The White Label Promo Preservation Society: 100 Flop Albums You Oughta Know,” a book that dives deep into great music which doesn’t make the usual “best of” lists but is definitely worth a listen. Plus, they recruited a lot of their friends like Marshall Crenshaw, Peter Holsapple and Jim Farber.
Kevin Feige may be in charge of Marvel Studios but is a little puzzled too about how to add up streaming numbers. He mentioned that since Nielsen doesn’t publish streaming viewership he doesn’t know how to tell if “WandaVision” or “Loki” are hits. Could this be true? We find it a bit unlikely that Disney is hiding such data from Marvel.
Of course we also cover some of the week’s top entertainment headlines including Amazon Studios plans for diversity, Roku claims the Quibi shorts are actually popular after all and the “Book of Mormon” musical may get a rewrite when it reopens.
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Showbiz Sandbox 545: Writer Paul Rudnick On The Royals, Romance And Rudin
June 15, 2021
When multi-hyphenate Paul Rudnick isn’t writing hit movies or award winning plays he is working on Broadway musicals with the likes of Elton John or busy writing novels. Rudnick joins us for a detailed and humorous conversation about his work and his latest novel, “Playing the Palace.”
We’ll also take a look at the final ratings figures for the primetime television season. Only four network shows increased in total viewers out of over 120 programs that aired during primetime. The numbers for key demographics don’t look much better.
Of course we also cover some of the week’s top entertainment headlines including how Sony Music is changing up how they pay royalties to artists, country singer Morgan Wallen returns to radio and North Korea bans all things K-Pop.
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Showbiz Sandbox 544: The Existential Crisis Facing Theatrical Movie Releases
June 8, 2021
Anne Thompson, the editor at large at IndieWire, believes “a lot of things have to go right for the two-hour movie theatrical release to endure.” Thompson said as much in an opinion column she recently wrote for the New York Times. In a detailed opinion column for the New York Times. In a detailed conversation she explains four key challenges movie theaters face as they revive their business after the pandemic, including whether North American box office will ever again reach $11 billion.
One theatrical release that is doing better than some expected is Disney’s “Cruella.” The live-action spin-off has been popular enough for Disney to release a fashion line inspired by the outfits Oscar winning costume designer Jenny Bevan created for the film. They probably should have told her first since the Costume Designers Guild is none too pleased.
Of course we also cover some of the week’s top entertainment headlines including the big winners at the BAFTA TV awards, how SpongeBob SquarePants is able to avoid paying taxes and the Russian comedy that is getting lots of local language remake love.
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Showbiz Sandbox 543: Amazon Grabs a Lion’s Share of MGM
June 1, 2021
In a move that had been rumored for weeks, Amazon became the first tech company to purchase a Hollywood movie studio in an $8.45 million deal. The acquisition will arm Amazon with over 4,000 movies like the Bond Franchise, “The Pink Panther” and “Robocop,” not to mention upwards of 17,000 television episodes. The real question is why did it take so long for a tech giant to buy a movie studio?
Meanwhile, a holiday weekend helped spark the post-pandemic North American box office as movies that were originally scheduled for release last year opened in theaters. Some new titles like “Cruella are also available on VOD at the same time. Is day-and-date releases hurting the box office prospects of such films?
Of course we also cover some of the week’s top entertainment headlines including the Academy Awards returns to its normal schedule, HBO Max is moving into Latin America and why “Friends” was censored in China.
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