The MSNBC name is about to be phased out. Early Monday, as the news brand preps for a future separated from NBC News, the cable TV stalwart unveiled a new name, logo and acronym-driven identity: MS NOW, meaning My Source for News, Opinion and the World. The shift retires a name that was christened in 1996 with the launch of...

Taylor Sheridan and Paramount Pictures are expanding their production footprint in Texas. Hillwood has partnered with Sheridans SGS Studios and Paramount Television to open a 450,000-square-foot filming hub in a bid to lure large-scale productions to the state. The development marks whats believed to be the largest operating studio facility in Texas, amplifying the increasingly international battle to host Hollywood....

Two of Netflixs most valuable players may be heading to Paramount. Matt and Ross Duffer are eyeing an overall deal at the studio, The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed. The Duffers became name-brand creators when the first season of Stranger Things bowed in 2016 and has since become a crown jewel for the streaming service. The move would reunite them with...

Newly-solo Starz released its second quarter financials on Thursday, with revenue down and a swing to an operating loss. Starz saw overall revenue fall to $319.7 million, against a year-earlier revenue line of $347.6 million. The standalone company posted an operating loss at $27 million, against a year-earlier operating income of $10.1 million. Following a split from Lionsgate, Starz saw...

Paramount Pictures has countersued the cousin of a writer on Top Gun: Maverick, who alleges he co-wrote the screenplay, opening another front in the legal battle over alleged copyright infringement in the writing process for the film. In a lawsuit filed on Wednesday in California federal court, the studio alleges Shaun Gray deliberately hid his role in penning key scenes,...

Chord Music Partners, the Universal Music Group-backed music acquisition company, has secured an investment from Searchlight Capital partners, the companies announced on Thursday. Neither Chord nor Searchlight disclosed financial details of the investment such as how much Searchlight invested or how much of a stake in Chord it now owns, saying only that the deal will accelerate the Companys growth...

In 1954, the Writers Guild of America formed to bring screenwriters, TV and radio writers under one union umbrella. A few decades later, the labor group expanded its purview by adding animation primetime writers. In three, five or 10 years, could vertical (i.e., iPhone-sized content) writers, YouTubers and other content creators be next? Thats the vision presented by multiple candidates...

Paw Patrol studio Spin Master has promoted Marc De Vellis to executive vp and president of the toy makers Digital Games Creative Centre. Spin Master, which makes popular toy brands like Paw Patrol and Bakugan that have had successful big and small screen adaptations, has digital game brands like Toca Boca and PikNik, which together draw 58 million digital players...

Shares in newly-minted Paramount Skydance are nearing meme darling status on the heels of closing a merger between the storied Hollywood studio and David Ellisons Skydance, and then unveiling a deal with UFC and parent TKO to make Paramount+ the new streaming home to UFC events in the U.S. Paramount Skydance stock has displayed wild price swings this week typical...

SAG-AFTRA members have settled a lawsuit against the union health plan over a data breach that exposed their personal information. Lawyers for the actors on Tuesday told the court that theyve reached a settlement of this dispute, in principle. The terms werent disclosed. The proposed class action accused the SAG Health, a trust established to provide health benefits to members,...

Paramount Skydances top executives arent looking to follow moves by NBCUniversal and Warner Bros. Discovery to spin off their companys cable channels into a separate entity. That should not, however, be taken to mean that theyre just fine with the status quo. Theres no question that [cable is] a super challenging business, George Cheeks, chairman of TV media at the...

Shari Redstone may have sealed the deal on an $8 billion Paramount Global merger with Skydance Media, but her holding company, National Amusements, may now face a flurry of legal challenges. A major shareholder of Paramount stock has filed a class action lawsuit over the companys merger with Skydance, the first of whats expected to be several complaints involving the...

Drake is looking for ammunition in his defamation lawsuit against Universal Music Group over Kendrick Lamars Not Like Us. In a discovery bid, Drake, born Aubrey Graham, urged the court to force UMG and chief executive Lucian Grainge to turn over the labels contract with Lamar, as well as information relating to allegations of domestic violence and other crimes committed...