Author: SD

Paramount CEO David Ellison moved to allay concerns over the studio’s proposed merger with Warner Bros Discovery when he told CinemaCon attendees on Thursday morning that he was fully committed to the theatrical model. “I wanted to look every single one of you in the eye and say that once we combine with Warner Bros we’re going to make a minimum of 30 films across both studios,” the CEO said. “At Paramount we’ve already demonstrated since launching the new company eight months ago our ability to increase output, with 15 films for for 2026, up from eight in 2025. ”Every…

Warner Bros pulled out the stops in a sensory assault of a CinemaCon presentation on Tuesday afternoon that saw on-stage appearances from Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman – separately – as well as Zendaya, Sandra Bullock, Timothée Chalamet, Jason Momoa and two of the greatest living directors. It culminated with the opening seven minutes from Dune: Part Three. When motion picture group co-heads Michael De Luca and Pam Abdy assembled their key executives and brought up the house lights to applaud exhibitors after two-and-a-half hours at Dolby Colosseum, they were acknowledging a Goliath year at the box office and awards…

Cinema United president and CEO Michael O’Leary and Motion Picture Association CEO Charles Rivkin used CinemaCon’s state of the industry session on Tuesday to emphasise the promise of the film industry, while also addressing the challenges of consolidation, windows, and copyright theft. Year-to-date North American box office currently leads 2025 at the same stage by 23% according to Comscore, and analysts Gower Street have forecast 2026 global box office will reach $34.7bn, down slightly from their initial $35bn estimate due to a slow first quarter in China. “Theatre owners work every day to make their cinemas special, from reinvesting in…

More than 1,000 leading industry figures, including JJ Abrams, Denis Villeneuve, Kristen Stewart and David Fincher, have signed a letter expressing “unequivocal opposition” to Paramount’s proposed acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD). The letter, first published on Monday, April 13, by The New York Times, said the deal “would further consolidate an already concentrated media landscape, reducing competition at a moment when our industries—and the audiences we serve—can least afford it”. Later on Monday morning Paramount responded, saying in a statement: “This merger strengthens both consumer choice and competition, creating greater opportunities for creators, audiences and the communities they live and work…

An independent review commissioned by Bafta over the handling and broadcast of a racial slur by Tourette’s campaigner John Davidson during the Bafta Film Awards has found “a number of structural weaknesses in Bafta’s planning, escalation procedures and crisis coordination arrangements” but did not find “malicious intent on the part of those involved in delivering the event”. The review, conducted by Rise Associates, stated that “it would be wrong to describe the event as evidence of institutional racism, as this misses an important point. Institutional racism means that racial bias is built into systems, policies, and culture. In such systems, discriminatory outcomes…

For the first time in several years CinemaCon (April 13-16) attendees will descend upon Caesars Palace in Las Vegas in a relatively positive mood – despite the prevalence of debt loads and ongoing consolidation, specifically the impending Paramount-Warner Bros Discovery (WBD) merger. Buoyed by early box office successes, encouraging news on the Guilds’ contract negotiations, the emergence of Gen Z as a cinema-going class, and a bumper summer season on the near horizon there are certainly reasons to be cheerful. By the weekend of April 3-5 North American ticket sales led 2025 at the same stage by approximately 25%, thanks…

Universal’s romantic comedy You, Me & Tuscany and Studiocanal’s Scottish biopic California Schemin’ are the widest new releases in UK and Ireland cinemas this weekend. You, Me & Tuscany is opening in 510 locations. Halle Bailey stars as a young cook staying in an abandoned Tuscan villa who forms an unexpected romance with the owner’s cousin, played by Rege-Jean Page. Kat Coiro directs.  James McAvoy’s directorial debut California Schemin’ launches in 391 sites via Studiocanal. The Toronto premiere is based on the real story of two Dundee rappers who posed as Californians and secured a record deal. Screen Star of Tomorrow…

In this week’s episode of The Screen Podcast, the team reacts to this year’s Cannes Official Selection, which was unveiled by Thierry Fremaux and Iris Knobloch in Paris earlier today. Watch above or listen below. To download or subscribe to future episodes, search for ‘The Screen Podcast’, which is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Soundcloud  and YouTube. Breaking down the list of titles with host Wendy Mitchell are Screen’s editor-in-chief Matt Mueller and senior international critic Wendy Ide. The trio picks out the films they are excited about, plus some of the trends from this year’s list.  “My metric for an exciting Cannes line-up…

Embattled Paramount president Jeff Shell is exiting the company following a lawsuit and allegations over leaking inside information and owing crisis communication fees. Paramount confirmed the departure on Wednesday morning and said an internal review did not find that the executive had violated SEC disclosure rules, adding that Shell had “elected to transition from his positions as President of PSKY and a member of PSKY’s board of directors to focus on this lawsuit”. Shell is being sued by professional gambler R. J. Cipriani, who alleges that Paramount CEO David Ellison’s second-in-command leaked inside information pertaining to the $111bn merger with Warner…

Playtime has taken on international sales rights to Pierre Salvadori’s The Electric Kiss (La Vénus Electrique) ahead of its world premiere on May 12 as Cannes Film Festival’s opening night film. Set in Paris in 1928, the film stars Pio Marmai as a painter at the height of his fame who, after losing inspiration after the death of his wife, is tricked into believing he is communicating with his deceased spouse by his gallery owner. Vimala Pons, Gilles Lellouche and Anais Demoustier round out the cast. Salvadori penned the script with Benjamin Charbit and Benoit Graffin based on an original…