Showbiz Sandbox 626: Will Disney’s Big Wager On Sports Betting Pay Off?
August 15, 2023
Though Disney had previously dismissed the idea of venturing into sports betting, saying it didn’t fit the company’s image, the media giant signed a billion dollar agreement this week with a little known online gambling company. The move comes as Disney’s linear television revenue is declining with no end in sight and losses for its streaming service continue to mount. Will ESPN Bet help bolster Disney’s balance sheet?
Meanwhile the dual writers and actors strikes continue though the AMPTP held what was reportedly a productive conversation with the Writers Guild over the past week. Hollywood will need to get comfortable with holding labor negotiations since more of its workers are opting to unionize.
Of course we also cover the week’s top entertainment headlines including why Paramount is selling publishing giant Simon & Schuster, India has one of its biggest box office weekends of all time and why you might not want to work for Lizzo anytime soon.
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‘Barbie’ Sails Past $1.18B Global, ‘Oppenheimer’ Closing In On $650M, ‘Meg 2’ Tops $250M & ‘Gran Turismo’ Starts Early Overseas Engines
https://deadline.com/2023/08/barbie-oppenheimer-gran-turismo-meg-2-global-international-box-office-1235475535/
‘Barbie’ Takes Fourth No. 1 as ‘Last Voyage of the Demeter’ Sinks at Box Office
https://www.thewrap.com/barbie-last-voyage-demeter-box-office/
Rajinikanth’s ‘Jailer,’ Sunny Deol’s ‘Gadar 2,’ Chiranjeevi’s ‘Bhola Shankar,’ Akshay Kumar’s ‘OMG 2’ Create Indian Box Office History
https://variety.com/2023/film/asia/rajinikanth-jailer-sunny-deol-gadar-2-chiranjeevi-bhola-shankar-india-box-office-1235695378/
Twilight of the Serial Killer: Cases Like Gilgo Beach Become Ever Rarer
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/06/nyregion/serial-killers-gilgo-beach-rex-heuermann.html
Pixar President on ‘Elemental’s’ Unlikely Box Office Rebound: ‘This Will Certainly Be a Profitable Film’
https://variety.com/2023/film/news/pixar-elemental-box-office-rebound-1235691248/
Marvel’s VFX Workers Have Moved to Unionize—and It’s a Huge Deal for Hollywood
https://www.wired.com/story/marvel-vfx-unionization-big-deal/
‘Suits’ Continues To Dominate Nielsen Streaming Top 10; ‘Bluey’ Records First Billion-Minute Week
https://deadline.com/2023/08/nielsen-streaming-ratings-suits-netflix-peacock-bluey-the-summer-i-turned-pretty-1235459890/
Six Takeaways from Disney’s Quarterly Earnings Call
https://www.npr.org/2023/08/09/1192746089/disney-earnings-call
Disney Shrinks Streaming Losses to $512M, Ups Cost-Cutting Goal From $5.5B
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/disney-earnings-streaming-1235559975/
What the Sale of a Major American Book Publisher Means for Authors, the Industry — and You
https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/books/story/2023-08-08/what-the-sale-of-a-major-american-book-publisher-means-for-authors-the-industry-and-you
The Sales Numbers on Books by Supreme Court Justices
https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/bookselling/article/92922-the-sales-numbers-on-books-by-supreme-court-justices.html
ESPN Shoves Barstool From Penn Sports-Betting Pact and Back to Founder Dave Portnoy
https://variety.com/2023/tv/news/espn-sports-betting-barstool-penn-1235691255/
Johnny Hardwick Dies: ‘King Of The Hill’ Dale Gribble Voice Actor Was 64
https://deadline.com/2023/08/johnny-hardwick-dead-king-of-the-hill-1235459599/
Clarence Avant, Mighty Engine Behind Black Superstars, Dies at 92
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/14/arts/music/clarence-avant-dead.html
Shelley Smith, Super Model Turned Actress, Dies at 70
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/shelley-smith-dead-model-turned-actress-1235562340/
Tom Jones, Half of Record-Setting ‘Fantasticks’ Team, Dies at 95
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/12/theater/tom-jones-dead.html
Rodriguez, Singer Whose Career Was Resurrected, Dies at 81
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/09/arts/music/sixto-rodriguez-dead.html
Robbie Robertson, Master Storyteller Who Led the Band, Dead at 80
https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/robbie-robertson-dead-the-band-1234803234/
Robbie Robertson, 1943-2023
https://burnwoodtonite.blogspot.com/2023/08/robbie-robertson-1943-2023.html
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