Elaine Low
@elainelow
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Reporter @TheAnkler writing Series Business, a newsletter about the 📺 industry. Ex-Variety, Business Insider, Investor’s Business Daily. elaine @theankler .com
Los Angeles, CA
Joined October 2008
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New year, new newsletter. Every Monday starting Jan. 22, I’ll be working on SERIES BUSINESS, dedicated to the TV marketplace. Part of what I’d love to do is help answer your burning questions about the biz, so email me at Elaine[at]
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@mingpdynasty
Hi Ming, I’m a reporter
@Variety
and would very much so like to speak with you about your experience. Please feel free to DM me or email at elow(at)Variety(dot)com.
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Exclusive: Netflix is only studio to take stance on new abortion law in Georgia:
$NFLX Ted Sarandos: We have many women working on productions in Georgia, whose rights, along with millions of others, will be severely restricted by this law.” (1/3)
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@angryasianman
That’s some high-effort racism. Somebody had to go out and buy all those hats
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Spotted Jennifer Garner on the Fox picket line this afternoon. Not pictured: the enormous stack of Fresh Brothers pizzas she brought to the striking writers.
#writersstrike
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NEW from
@TravClark2
: "Three former Blue Sky staffers with knowledge of meetings between Disney and Blue Sky leadership teams told Insider this week that Disney leadership took issue with some queer elements of 'Nimona,' particularly with a same-sex kiss"
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It’s reopen day for Disney World, as COVID cases surge in Florida. The
#DisneyWorld
ride staff I spoke to feel confident about the park’s safety measures. The epidemiologist I spoke to does not. Reopening is “irresponsible” and a “terrible idea,” she said.
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Sarandos: “Should it ever come into effect, we’d rethink our entire investment in Georgia.”
In the industry, talk of a boycott grows. Georgia, a massive film/TV hub outside LA/NY, says it was home to 92,000 jobs in ‘18, aka a $9 bil+ econ impact from production. (3/3)
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Sarandos: “It’s why we will work with the ACLU and others to fight it in court. Given the legislation has not yet been implemented, we’ll continue to film there, while also supporting partners and artists who choose not to.” (2/3)
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4/ Plans are already changing: Georgia has been rejected as a film site for Amazon Studios/
@reedmorano
’s The Power and Kristen Wiig/Annie Mumulo’s new project.
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Have I been swanning about the house as
#AgentCarter
all afternoon? MAYBE.
But when everything feels terrible, there’s something to be said for relishing the little joys where you can get them, even if it feels a little silly.
#ComicConAtHome
#SDCC
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NEW: What does the $1 billion
#RingsOfPower
mean for Amazon Studios? To put it in Tolkien-ese, the co has not yet closed its fingers, Gollum-like, around its preciousss: a major watercooler show that lures global viewers en masse. $AMZN
#LOTRonPrime
#LOTR
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Shane Gillis and friends appear to have a special affinity for mocking Asians, for whatever reason*.
*Reason being that historical perception is Asians and Asian Americans can be mocked without backlash. Punching Down 101.
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JUST IN: Writers Guild’s latest update to members (at the end of an anxious week)
#wgastrike
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Folklore feels like mid-aughts college-era heartbreak and an iPod full of Death Cab and the Postal Service, the kind of album you listen to when you want to lean in to the ache of life
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6/ “It’s hard to wake up every day feeling like I’m growing up in my mother’s generation,” says veteran producer Lori McCreary, former Producers Guild of America pres and Revelations Entertainment CEO.
Read the full story via
@MattDonnelly
@GeneMaddaus
:
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5/ The Georgia locals in the industry I spoke to reported growing anxiety. The bustling job market has been good to them there. Most noted they didn’t support the law. Some were concerned about how it would impact TV series’ decisions to return for another season.
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@naanking
Not to mention that so many of us work right up until we pop just to save what few precious mat leave weeks we're able to take
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Gillis indicates in a 2016 interview cited in a
@TIME
story that he deliberately targets Asians in his comedy act because that’s what his audience responds to. (via
@andrewrchow
, h/t
@RonnieCho
)
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10+ months of: no in-person school, no daycare, no nanny, no family babysitting (no household mixing!), both of us routinely working in the middle of the night after the kids go to bed
In sum, I do not need to see Instagram pics of your reckless fucking vacation or house party
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"Women, 18 to 118, when it is time to vote, please do so in your own self-interest. It's what men have been doing for years... which is why the world looks so much like them." - Michelle Williams
#GoldenGlobes
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Still thinking about
#ShangChi
. Hard to overstate how wild it is that we have a Marvel superhero who takes his shoes off before going in the house and anglicized his Chinese name and has an Asian Am BFF who gets called “American Girl” by Asian dads. The cultural specificity!!
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WOOF. You guys.
#Mulan
being released on Disney Plus on Sept. 4 for $29.99. Also,
#DisneyPlus
now has 60.5 million paying subscribers as of last month. $DIS
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NEW: Layoffs are a grim reality in journalism. But for the writers who joined a Hollywood studio flush with tech money, stability finally seemed in reach.
“We were sold this false fantasy,” said one staffer who was laid off from Netflix. “We got scammed.”
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NEW: Fran Fine, Maxwell Sheffield and the gang are back.
@frandrescher
and the cast of
#TheNanny
are reuniting for a virtual table read of the pilot, which will be posted on Sony Pictures TV's YouTube page in one week on April 6.
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Exclusive: Rapper, producer and songwriter Missy Elliott will receive MTV’s Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award on Aug. 26 at the 2019 VMAs, Variety has learned, where she will perform live at the awards show for the first time in 16 years.
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NEW
#PayUpHollywood
story: I spoke with over a dozen writers' assistants and script coordinators. Here's what they told me about the union, alleged punitive measures from studios, and 30-cent-an-hour raises. 1/
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Through Woody Allen’s spokesperson—his sister, producer Letty Aronson—he and Soon-Yi Previn call HBO docu “Allen v. Farrow” a “hatchet job,” say they were given days to respond. But AvF producer Amy Herdy told Variety that they started reaching out in 2018
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On top of the 150 full-time Netflix staff laid off today and 70 animation studio roles that were cut, 60-70 contractors working on Netflix's social media & publishing channels were let go — incl from Strong Black Lead, Golden, Con Todo and Most. $NFLX
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Holiday season hot take: the new Camila Cabello cover of “I’ll Be Home for Christmas” is actually very good and sentimental and one of the best post-2000 Xmas song covers since Michael Buble’s album
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A small comfort is seeing folks outside the Asian Am community call out the idea that an immigrant story is somehow not American. Growing up, it felt like explaining Asian Americanness was a fringe endeavor that wasn’t worth being taken seriously
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For those of us who engage in the precious weeknight ritual of shouting at the TV screen and pretending to click imaginary buzzers, losing Alex Trebek is like losing a family member.
#Jeopardy
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I asked Drescher and Crabtree-Ireland if federal mediators will continue to be part of the union-studio talks.
He said the studios “didn’t even let the mediators sit in their room like our committee did,” says it was “cynical ploy” for extension.
#SAGstrike
@TheAnkler
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DEAL: Historic Hollywood dual strikes end as SAG-AFTRA approves a deal for a new three-year TV/film contract, ending a 118-day strike.
#sagstrike
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“What satisfaction are these perpetrators getting from hitting women, Asians, the elderly? They need to be held accountable. What can we do as a community to prevent these horrible crimes?”
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New: Our latest on
#PayUpHollywood
, with
@WillHMThorne
: Assistants are fired up online, but in person, many fear professional retaliation for speaking up. Here are just a few of the showrunners who are choosing to advocate for their support staff. 1/
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Renting out a theater mid-pandemic so 20 of us could safely watch the first Marvel movie that speaks ABC? Hell yeah
(It came to $16.70 per person; if you’re worried about being in a crowded theater rn, highly recommend)
#ShangChi
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Netflix’s Tudum assertively recruited writers from full-time jobs at traditional media with $60-$85/hr pay and 40-hour weekly contracts. That was appealing to reporters who had been through several layoffs before at other outlets.
“I was ready to rest,” said one staffer. 4/
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We're honestly still debating unpaid internships? What is this, 2012 Tumblr?
Pay your interns, they can't eat prestige.
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Writers and producers, you might want to read this one.
Per multiple agency docs
@natjarv
and I read, here’s what Netflix wants from creators in 2022: a female ‘Jack Ryan,’ a new ‘New Girl,’ or a fresh riff on ‘The Voice’ — and please, no ‘sad coms’
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Despite being promised editorial freedom, certain topics — anything that courts controversy — were off limits for Tudum writers, such as the arrest of “Cheer” S1 star Jerry Harris, who pled guilty to sex crimes involving minors. 3/
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lol at me, an LA idiot, for slathering on sunscreen before stepping outside and remembering that I am in New York and it is raining
(Paramount picket)
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Hi Deadline. This is the second time in three weeks you’ve followed a story that we at
@TheAnkler
broke first. Credit where it’s due, yeah?
@DeadlineNellie
Apple Suspends Deals With Producers, Including Natalie Portman & Adam McKay
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NEW: The first installment of Hollywood Salary Diaries, a project I have long wanted to do to provide pay transparency and insight into the careers of entertainment industry workers
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The WGA-DGA statement on the Max credit changes that called writers and directors “creators” (left) and Warner Bros. Discovery’s response (right)
#writersstrike
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“Once we unionized, my medical expenses went down from about $10,000 a year to $300 a year,” said WA Olga Lexell, who has Hashimoto's thyroiditis. “I went to see my doctor, where my co-pay used to be $65 under the studio plan, and it was only $5. And I cried. I was so floored.”2/
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What constitutes a success for Prime Video is hard to say — but former Amazon Studios execs gave us a little bit of an idea. Like Bilbo rousing a dormant Smaug, the co is looking at how many inactive Prime users will be reawakened by
#RingsOfPower
. $AMZN
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Laid off Tudum writers tell me Netflix had an unclear strategic vision, no clear metrics for success and a veneer of editorial independence that devolved into “glorified content marketing.” The execs in corporate seemed to be “throwing spaghetti at the wall,” said one staffer. 2/
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John Mulaney is returning to
#SNL
on Feb. 29, having rescheduled his Toronto show on Feb. 28 on the orders of Lorne, per his IG:
"I think considering the state of affairs that this country is in, the need for John is greater in New York right now"
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Yesterday we listened to several of Gillis’ podcasts, where he roundly mocked Muslims, the LGBTQ community and other groups. But the Asian material seemed to outpace the other stuff.
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DEAL: the Writers Guild and Hollywood studios and streamers have reached a tentative agreement on Day 146 of the
#WGAstrike
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NEW: The folks at
#PayUpHollywood
and other orgs have created a relief fund for assistants amid the coronavirus-induced shutdown, raising over $100k, thanks to big matches from
@GBerlanti
,
@julieplec
,
@shondarhimes
,
@clmazin
,
@johnaugust
and others.
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Excited to finally be able to talk about this: I’m joining
@TheAnkler
as a staff reporter, where I’ll continue to cover the business of Hollywood. Looking forward to working with the incomparable
@janicemin
and
@richardrushfield
; I start March 13!
ICYMI: Our New Hire; Writers' Reckoning; the VF Profile
What's new and our recent best
theankler.com
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It’s happening: SAG-AFTRA has issued a strike order against the studios. SAG-AFTRA President Fran Drescher: “The eyes of labor are upon us.”
#SAGstrike
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At a town hall,
#PayUpHollywood
leaders shared that of 1,100 assistants surveyed:
*62.8% earn less than $50,000 pre-tax
*47% have been assistants for 3+ years, 21% for 5+ years
*67.2% have to work an extra job to survive
The latest via
@WillHMThorne
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In an unusual move, Netflix, Amazon, Hulu, HBO, Starz and other Hollywood players are using their corporate social media accounts to take a stand and support
#BlackLivesMatter
amid the protests decrying the death of
#GeorgeFloyd
at the hands of the police
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"They simply will not address the core issues we have repeatedly advocated for from the beginning...we will now proceed with a nationwide strike authorization vote to demonstrate our commitment to achieving the change that is long overdue in this industry"
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Here's where we are on this wild streaming ride:
Amazon Prime Video: 150 mil subscribers
Netflix: 61 mil (U.S.), 106 mil (int'l)
Hulu: 30.4 mil
Disney Plus: 28.6 mil
CBS All Access + Showtime: 10 mil
HBO Now: 8 mil
Next up to bat: HBO Max, Peacock.
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Day 1 of the actors strike. SAG-AFTRA pres Fran Drescher and chief negotiator Duncan Crabtree-Ireland at Warner Bros.
Drescher on how long they can strike for: “We’re set up to go 6 months if we have to.” Then the crowd starts chanting, “The jig is up! The jig is up!”
#SAGstrike
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30
151
Murakami on Melrose has seen takeout orders drop 50% since the strike started on May 2. But owner Tomoko Bright brought California rolls, shrimp tempura rolls and spicy tuna crispy rice to striking writers at Paramount on Tuesday and is supportive of the
#writersstrike
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Superstore EPs:
“Linda wasn’t just hilarious, she was incredibly sweet, energetic and enthusiastic – working with her brightened everyone’s day. We’re lucky to have been a small part of her long career. The Superstore family won’t be the same without her.”
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You want to keep your local restaurants in business during all of this? Order direct.
The owner of
@ChiPizzaBoss
shared this nightmarish Grubhub invoice that will haunt me for days.
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#TheRingsOfPower
is the most expensive TV series ever created. But even in success, we’re unlikely to see something that big-budget again, say experts. The streaming wars are margin-slamming enough. Read our full story from me
@eugenekim222
&
@alisonbrower
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@nbcsnl
@sasimons
2/ In “Ep 146,” while talking about the Battle of Gettysburg, Gillis refers to soldiers yelling as “so gay," then uses the slurs “retard,” and “f-ggot." He and McCusker joke about “hot Southern boys” being raped during the Civil War, comparing it to “having gay sex in jail.”
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Amazon Studios has made a mark with shows like The Boys. But as
@RichLightShed
said, “There's no doubt that Amazon has had success. [But] they haven't had a culturally defining show. There has been no massive breakout where everyone is talking about it."
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@LizAlps
Assistants anonymously shared their horror stories at the cathartic town hall. "The Hollywood chain is broken," said one.
#PayUpHollywood
shared with
@Variety
that 72 assistants surveyed said that they've had *an object THROWN at them in the workplace*.
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New: The AMPTP, representing Hollywood’s major studios, reached out to the Writers Guild today to ask for a meeting this Friday to reopen negotiations. Here’s what was sent to WGA members.
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Trump on the Oscars, at a Colorado rally: "The winner is… a movie from South Korea! What the hell was that all about? We got enough problems with South Korea with trade. ... Can we get ‘Gone With the Wind’ back, please?”
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I talked to Disney World and
#Disneyland
workers for an inside look at how the theme parks are handling coronavirus prevention, and an epidemiologist for advice on whether it’s OK to go to
#disneyworld
, which reopens tomorrow. Hope you’ll read this one.
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52
131
Securing 60-hour work week guarantees is a big issue for WAs and SCs, not because of a love of long hours but bc without it, many would have trouble earning enough to pay rent. One SC: “The sad thing is that no one should have to work 60 hours or more to make a livable wage." 6/
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An extra point! This is like when you retake the SAT and score only slightly higher… worth it
Well composed shelf setup. Seasonally appropriate. One minor cord violation from a ten. 9/10
@elainelow
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Lexell, like many who spoke to
@Variety
, cite access to health insurance as one of the biggest benefits of unionizing under IATSE Local 871.
“It’s been incredible,” she said. “Honestly, if we hadn’t unionized, I don’t know that I would still be working in this industry.” 3/
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19
126
Thousands will lose insurance from the changes to the SAG-AFTRA health plan, incl. an actor whose son is getting physical therapy after cancer, and seniors whose eligibility requirements are now further out of reach. I spoke to ~20 members for this column
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The framing of this headline as being "against" the industry is a real choice
IATSE is gearing up for a possible strike against the film and television industry, which would be the first industry-wide strike in the union’s history
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Arguably the most convincing fib that corporations sell employees is that the workplace is a family. But sometimes, beyond the artifice of rah-rah corporate loyalty, real bonds form. Talked to the
#Superstore
exec producers and cast about the lovely finale
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22
129
Drew Carey’s tab at Bob’s Big Boy, where he is paying for all WGA writer meals, has grown to nearly $600,000 during the
#wgastrike
, the restaurant’s marketing manager tells me. There’s a “Thank you, Drew” guestbook that writers can sign on their way out
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NEW: Netflix famously loves data. So I asked former Netflix execs to break down how data impacts their decision to buy/produce a TV show or film, and how they work with (and sometimes butt heads with) Netflix's content analysts. $NFLX
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Just in: Hollywood’s major studios and the actors union will get back to the negotiating table on Tuesday.
#sagstrike
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130
Not that anyone asked, but a tip for journalists starting out: Getting the scoop and being first is important and thrilling, but if you're reporting sad news -- say, layoffs -- remember that these are human stories you're telling and tell them accordingly.
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Netflix has hired an impressive array of journalists from Allure/Refinery29/etc to run its fan site Tudum. Graydon Carter calls Netflix mag Queue "propaganda in magazine form," but the former journos working at $NFLX say they're well paid and mostly happy
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124
So! After two-and-a-half years, I’m leaving Variety. This week was my last. Like any ‘90s kid who’d watched too many rom-coms set at a bustling glossy, I’d always wanted to write for a magazine. Grateful to have covered the issues, shows and people changing the industry
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Biden: “This is not dissent. It’s disorder. It’s chaos. It’s bordering on sedition. And it must end, now... I call on President Trump to go on national television now, to fulfill his oath, to defend the constitution, and demand an end to this siege.”
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And just a few minutes ago, a joint statement on the
#wgastrike
was issued from the studios’ recently hired crisis PR firm, The Levinson Group:
“The WGA and AMPTPT [sic] have reached a tentative agreement.”
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124
New:
#SNL
has canceled Morgan Wallen's performance after TikToks surfaced of the country singer partying maskless in a crowded bar and house party in Alabama the weekend prior.
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118
.
@MissyElliott
, a five-time Grammy Award winner and the first female hip-hop artist to be inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame, has sold more than 30 million records worldwide, thanks to hits like “Work It,” “Get Ur Freak On” and “WTF (Where They From).” 2/
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117
NEW: Disney Plus now has 73.7 million subscribers as of early October -- major numbers. Today, incidentally, marks the 1-year anniversary of
#DisneyPlus
being on the market
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Read these replies. Especially if you’re an employer or policy maker who has never had to experience postpartum life firsthand. Good perspective.
Tweet me your postpartum stories. Did you have paid leave? Did your partner? If so, how long? What was it like for you? And what was it like when your partner had to go back to work before you? There’s a big election coming up. Your stories matter.
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What many in Hollywood are ready to say aloud: The institution is imbued with white supremacy and a patriarchal structure that offers unequal advantages. But can a town built on exclusivity truly commit to inclusion?
@Variety
cover by me &
@angelique814
:
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wild when Apple TV+ upsetting Netflix to become the first streamer to win a Best Picture Oscar isn't the thing we're all gonna be talking about tomorrow
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@cashleelee
Great story. They cut Anybody Have a Map, To Break in a Glove AND Good for You?? The Evan part of the musical didn’t sit well but the parenting part hit close to home, especially that opening number!
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The
#RingsOfPower
are a major bet, backed by Bezos himself. But Amazon Studios didn’t always have such grand ambitions, according to one former exec there.
#LOTR
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“Emerald City” showrunner and “Avatar 2” writer
@Josh_Friedman
has had to engage with a studios’ business affairs’ units over the issue of support staff rates. 13/
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This is not a “sitcoms are going away, forever” story that pops up every few years. But this *is* a story about how streaming has warped the traditional TV comedy landscape. 1/
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Lady Whistledown has confirmed the rumors:
#Bridgerton
is coming back for Season 2. And it’s Lord Anthony’s time to shine, gentle readers
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Boy, here’s a mouthful.
@AnandWrites
to
@Alisha__g
in the NYT In Her Words newsletter on whether toxic masculinity is incompatible with crisis management...
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