After a nearly four-year run, Lionsgates leader of inclusion and diversity efforts at its film division is stepping away from the role and pacting with the studio for a producing deal. Kamala Avila-Salmon who left Facebook to join Lionsgate as its Motion Picture Groups head of inclusive content in October 2020 is launching her own banner, Kas Kas Productions. In...

Warner Bros. Discovery is making a big bet on live experiences like theme parks, studio tours, themed exhibitions and retail, creating a new division meant to capitalize on that opportunity. The new division is called Warner Bros. Discovery Global Experiences, and will encompass both owned and operated experiences like its studio tours or exhibitions, as well as licensed entertainment, like...

WMEs Brandt Joel met by Zoom with agents in the motion picture and talent departments to apologize for and clarify the comment that he posted and then removed from an unofficial WME WhatsApp group chat, a source with knowledge of the situation tells The Hollywood Reporter. Joel found himself at the center of scandal on Sunday, when his incendiary text...

Around 40 Hollywood writers have joined a hotel union boycott of two Los Angeles hotels, the Cameo Beverly Hills by Hilton and the Beverly Hills Marriott. The Good Place creator Mike Schur, Emily in Paris writer and co-executive producer Grant Sloss, The Simpsons writer and executive producerIan Maxtone-Graham and Abbott Elementary supervising producer and writer Brittani Nichols are among the...

Warner Bros. Discovery may have sold (or more accurately given away) its stake in The CW two years ago, but the company is trying to bring back one of the broadcast networks hallmarks: A tonnage of output for the WB TV studio. At a Bank of America conference Wednesday, WBD CFO Gunnar Weidenfels said that when Channing Dungey adds oversight...

Former South Carolina Governor, United Nations ambassador and presidential hopeful Nikki Haley is getting into the communications business, joining the public relations and crisis communications firm Edelman as vice chair of its EGA division. EGA is Edelmans Global Advisory consultancy focused on public and government affairs. She will join another new hire, former Democratic Senator Max Baucus, who also served...

On September 14, the $2.3 billion Sphere in Las Vegas will see its 160,000 square foot curved LED screen teleport the 20,000 or so guests to different worlds, with the mixed martial arts giant UFC set to take over the venue for what will be the Spheres first ever live sporting event. According to UFC CEO Dana White, the idea...

As SAG-AFTRAs video game strike continues, the AAA developer Lightspeed LA has signed an interim agreement with the labor group that will allow it to continue working with union performers. By signing the pact, the five-year-old developer can finish its work on its first project, the dystopian open-world game Last Sentinel, and work with SAG-AFTRA performers on future titles. Lightspeed...

Disney is striking back at DirecTV following the satellite TV providers call with media and analysts Tuesday, in which the company outlined its position in the carriage dispute. As a result of the dispute, many of Disney channels including ABC and ESPN went dark for millions of DirecTV customers on Sept. 1, amid the U.S. Open and ahead of the...

As Live Nation contends with the Department of Justice lawsuit seeking to break up the company, CFO Joe Berchtold expressed optimism about the suit and the future of the business. I expect were going to prevail, Berchtold said at a Bank of America conference Wednesday. I dont expect were going to have major changes to how we operate through the...

A year after its carriage dispute with The Walt Disney Co. made headlines, Charter Spectrum has inked another new deal with a different company, but one that furthers its goal of merging the worlds of streaming and linear paid TV. The cable company on Wednesday said that it had inked a multiyear deal with AMC Networks, which owns AMC, IFC,...

Casey Wassermans sports and talent representation empire is expanding further into the creator space. The moguls Westwood-based firm Wasserman has acquired Dan Levitts Long Haul, a management company founded in 2013 that counts several well-known basketball culture creators as well as YouTube and gaming clients on its roster. As part of the deal, all 10 members of Long Hauls staff...

Walking around ESPNs sprawling campus in Bristol, Connecticut, visitors will find the sports giants mission statement at almost every turn. On walls, in windows, in the cafeteria: Serving sports fans. Anytime. Anywhere. Its a humble slogan for the biggest brand in sports media, and arguably one of the biggest brands in all of sports, but ESPN chairman Jimmy Pitaro argues...