Following a rapturously received industry keynote on Thursday, veteran indie producer Ted Hope is the talk of the town in Locarno. Attendees on the ground are describing Hope’s ambitious and expansive speech as the much-needed “kick in the ass” Hollywood Execs needed to hear if cinema has any chance of becoming a much fairer and equitable industry.
Speaking with Deadline the morning after, Hope plays down his hype, saying he still gets nervous before presenting his ideas publicly. But he now sees provoking conversation around the state of the industry as an unofficial obligation.
“Someone once said to me, Ted, you like to say the things aloud that everyone else whispers about. And so I thought, yes, that’s my role,” he said, “I’m going to speak about what is only whispered.”
Hope’s keynote, titled Indie Films: 50 Years of Building The Wrong Thing, touched on several topics he has discussed before,...
Speaking with Deadline the morning after, Hope plays down his hype, saying he still gets nervous before presenting his ideas publicly. But he now sees provoking conversation around the state of the industry as an unofficial obligation.
“Someone once said to me, Ted, you like to say the things aloud that everyone else whispers about. And so I thought, yes, that’s my role,” he said, “I’m going to speak about what is only whispered.”
Hope’s keynote, titled Indie Films: 50 Years of Building The Wrong Thing, touched on several topics he has discussed before,...
- 8/4/2023
- by Zac Ntim
- Deadline Film + TV
Amazon Studios is the latest entertainment company to be hit by a round of layoffs.
Sources tell The Hollywood Reporter that Amazon’s Prime Video has reduced its workforce by 100 staffers across its technology team and other areas. Also impacted are a small number of MGM staffers who joined Amazon as part of its $8.5 billion acquisition of the storied film and TV studio.
“Like many businesses, we have been closely monitoring economic conditions and our organizational needs and have made the decision to adjust resources,” an Amazon spokesperson said in a statement to THR. “As a result, a small number of roles will be eliminated on some teams. We will be supporting impacted employees through this transition and thank them for the work they have done on behalf of our customers.”
The layoffs come as Amazon Studios, overseen by chief Jennifer Salke, who added MGM’s film and TV to her purview late last year,...
Sources tell The Hollywood Reporter that Amazon’s Prime Video has reduced its workforce by 100 staffers across its technology team and other areas. Also impacted are a small number of MGM staffers who joined Amazon as part of its $8.5 billion acquisition of the storied film and TV studio.
“Like many businesses, we have been closely monitoring economic conditions and our organizational needs and have made the decision to adjust resources,” an Amazon spokesperson said in a statement to THR. “As a result, a small number of roles will be eliminated on some teams. We will be supporting impacted employees through this transition and thank them for the work they have done on behalf of our customers.”
The layoffs come as Amazon Studios, overseen by chief Jennifer Salke, who added MGM’s film and TV to her purview late last year,...
- 4/27/2023
- by Lesley Goldberg
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Click here to read the full article.
Cinemas stocks got a boost Wednesday after a report that online retailer Amazon plans to spend 1 billion a year on theatrical film releases.
Bloomberg, citing unnamed sources, reported Amazon plans to release 12 to 15 movies in theaters, with the push into the local multiplex getting underway in 2023. Representatives for Amazon were not available for confirmation of the media report, which follows the e-commerce giant acquiring MGM Studios for 8.45 billion.
Amazon is thought to have eyed MGM for its vast film library, but attention is now turning to how the studio will be run under the e-commerce giant’s leadership, with an eye to continuing production of theatrical tentpoles.
Cinema stocks surged on news of the potential theatrical movie push by Amazon. Shares in Cinemark rose 1.47, or 12 percent to 13.74 in late afternoon trading on Wednesday. The world’s largest chain, AMC Theatres, saw its stock price rise by 40 cents,...
Cinemas stocks got a boost Wednesday after a report that online retailer Amazon plans to spend 1 billion a year on theatrical film releases.
Bloomberg, citing unnamed sources, reported Amazon plans to release 12 to 15 movies in theaters, with the push into the local multiplex getting underway in 2023. Representatives for Amazon were not available for confirmation of the media report, which follows the e-commerce giant acquiring MGM Studios for 8.45 billion.
Amazon is thought to have eyed MGM for its vast film library, but attention is now turning to how the studio will be run under the e-commerce giant’s leadership, with an eye to continuing production of theatrical tentpoles.
Cinema stocks surged on news of the potential theatrical movie push by Amazon. Shares in Cinemark rose 1.47, or 12 percent to 13.74 in late afternoon trading on Wednesday. The world’s largest chain, AMC Theatres, saw its stock price rise by 40 cents,...
- 11/23/2022
- by Etan Vlessing
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Click here to read the full article.
Sharon Tal Yguado, the former Amazon exec who helped to secure rights to Lord of the Rings for the streamer, is launching a new game studio called Astrid Entertainment.
With the company, the former Fox Network Group exec who sold The Walking Dead around the world will unite world builders and game developers to craft fantasy worlds that inspire and grow into large universes across different mediums.
Astrid recently secured a high seven-figure pre-seed investment from the likes of NetEase Games, Stardom and Tower 26, among others.
“I love developing rich worlds and watching millions of people engage and build communities around them,” the executive says. “We are seeing a new generation that wants something different. They enjoy walking into evocative worlds that give them freedom, let them hang out with their friends, explore, discover and create their own stories. I am incredibly lucky...
Sharon Tal Yguado, the former Amazon exec who helped to secure rights to Lord of the Rings for the streamer, is launching a new game studio called Astrid Entertainment.
With the company, the former Fox Network Group exec who sold The Walking Dead around the world will unite world builders and game developers to craft fantasy worlds that inspire and grow into large universes across different mediums.
Astrid recently secured a high seven-figure pre-seed investment from the likes of NetEase Games, Stardom and Tower 26, among others.
“I love developing rich worlds and watching millions of people engage and build communities around them,” the executive says. “We are seeing a new generation that wants something different. They enjoy walking into evocative worlds that give them freedom, let them hang out with their friends, explore, discover and create their own stories. I am incredibly lucky...
- 11/14/2022
- by Lesley Goldberg
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Click here to read the full article.
Amazon Studios is making a big change in its TV executive ranks.
Marc Resteghini, the head of series development and an eight-year veteran at Amazon, is leaving at e-commerce giant/streamer.
The executive who first joined Amazon’s drama team in 2014 when the streamer’s entertainment offerings were overseen by former head Roy Price, has played a major role in the company’s original, having developed and overseen production on such series as The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Jack Ryan, Patriot, The Summer I Turned Pretty, The Terminal List, Underground Railroad and Them, among others.
Sources say head of TV Vernon Sanders is restructuring his ranks after being tapped last year as the lone exec overseeing the TV team. With the restructuring, Resteghini’s job was eliminated and his duties will be doled out between the studio’s head of creative content Nick Pepper...
Amazon Studios is making a big change in its TV executive ranks.
Marc Resteghini, the head of series development and an eight-year veteran at Amazon, is leaving at e-commerce giant/streamer.
The executive who first joined Amazon’s drama team in 2014 when the streamer’s entertainment offerings were overseen by former head Roy Price, has played a major role in the company’s original, having developed and overseen production on such series as The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Jack Ryan, Patriot, The Summer I Turned Pretty, The Terminal List, Underground Railroad and Them, among others.
Sources say head of TV Vernon Sanders is restructuring his ranks after being tapped last year as the lone exec overseeing the TV team. With the restructuring, Resteghini’s job was eliminated and his duties will be doled out between the studio’s head of creative content Nick Pepper...
- 10/25/2022
- by Lesley Goldberg
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Click here to read the full article.
Amid the torrent of accusations leveled against powerful Hollywood men in the frenzied first few months of the #MeToo era, industry observers often shared the same jaded expectation. Short of arrest or indictment, the thinking went, the accused would be back on their feet after a brief time-out and a few memory-cleansing news cycles, carrying on with their careers unaffected. The dollar is king; Hollywood always forgets; etc.
This hasn’t happened. In fact, comebacks — if they materialize at all — are strikingly and significantly circumscribed. One of #MeToo’s greatest victories, at the practical level, has been its unrelenting administration of professional punishment.
Think about how few prominent individuals felled by sexual harassment or assault allegations in the post-Weinstein era have returned to an equivalent stature. The category excludes the likes of Jamie Foxx and Ryan Seacrest, whose denials of the allegations against...
Amid the torrent of accusations leveled against powerful Hollywood men in the frenzied first few months of the #MeToo era, industry observers often shared the same jaded expectation. Short of arrest or indictment, the thinking went, the accused would be back on their feet after a brief time-out and a few memory-cleansing news cycles, carrying on with their careers unaffected. The dollar is king; Hollywood always forgets; etc.
This hasn’t happened. In fact, comebacks — if they materialize at all — are strikingly and significantly circumscribed. One of #MeToo’s greatest victories, at the practical level, has been its unrelenting administration of professional punishment.
Think about how few prominent individuals felled by sexual harassment or assault allegations in the post-Weinstein era have returned to an equivalent stature. The category excludes the likes of Jamie Foxx and Ryan Seacrest, whose denials of the allegations against...
- 9/30/2022
- by Gary Baum
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Click here to read the full article.
For nearly two decades, Harvey Weinstein’s predatory tendencies were legend in Hollywood. And until a news organization could gather the sourcing and the courage to take on the mogul, that’s what they would remain. In 2017, 29-year-old NBC reporter Ronan Farrow was convinced he had the goods, with several of Weinstein’s victims willing to go on the record. Then his higher-ups held up the story. Undaunted, Farrow turned to The New Yorker. His feature for the magazine, along with an investigation by The New York Times, turned the whispers into fact and kicked off the #MeToo reckoning in October 2017. Farrow followed with exposés on Brett Kavanaugh, Leslie Moonves and Andrew Cuomo. Today, Weinstein is behind bars and many of Hollywood’s most powerful men have been held to account, several by THR’s Kim Masters, who has reported on allegations of...
For nearly two decades, Harvey Weinstein’s predatory tendencies were legend in Hollywood. And until a news organization could gather the sourcing and the courage to take on the mogul, that’s what they would remain. In 2017, 29-year-old NBC reporter Ronan Farrow was convinced he had the goods, with several of Weinstein’s victims willing to go on the record. Then his higher-ups held up the story. Undaunted, Farrow turned to The New Yorker. His feature for the magazine, along with an investigation by The New York Times, turned the whispers into fact and kicked off the #MeToo reckoning in October 2017. Farrow followed with exposés on Brett Kavanaugh, Leslie Moonves and Andrew Cuomo. Today, Weinstein is behind bars and many of Hollywood’s most powerful men have been held to account, several by THR’s Kim Masters, who has reported on allegations of...
- 9/29/2022
- by Rebecca Keegan, Moderator
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Click here to read the full article.
Unless otherwise noted, the accused denied some or all of the allegations against them.
2006 Tarana Burke
Activist Tarana Burke coins “Me Too” on MySpace.
2014
Oct. 17: Comedian Hannibal Buress’ riff about Bill Cosby resurfaces long-ignored rape accusations. An investigation of Cosby follows.
2016
July 21: Fox News chairman Roger Ailes is forced out amid allegations that he sexually harassed several women at the company.
Oct. 7: “When you’re a star, they let you do it” — The Washington Post publishes leaked Access Hollywood footage in which then-presidential candidate Donald Trump boasts of committing sexual assault.
2017 The Woman’s March of Jan. 21, 2017, set the stage for takedowns of alleged abusers like Matt Lauer.
Jan. 21: Millions of Americans take part in the Women’s March a day after President Trump’s inauguration.
March 19: Fox News ousts Bill O’Reilly following multiple harassment claims.
Oct. 5:...
Unless otherwise noted, the accused denied some or all of the allegations against them.
2006 Tarana Burke
Activist Tarana Burke coins “Me Too” on MySpace.
2014
Oct. 17: Comedian Hannibal Buress’ riff about Bill Cosby resurfaces long-ignored rape accusations. An investigation of Cosby follows.
2016
July 21: Fox News chairman Roger Ailes is forced out amid allegations that he sexually harassed several women at the company.
Oct. 7: “When you’re a star, they let you do it” — The Washington Post publishes leaked Access Hollywood footage in which then-presidential candidate Donald Trump boasts of committing sexual assault.
2017 The Woman’s March of Jan. 21, 2017, set the stage for takedowns of alleged abusers like Matt Lauer.
Jan. 21: Millions of Americans take part in the Women’s March a day after President Trump’s inauguration.
March 19: Fox News ousts Bill O’Reilly following multiple harassment claims.
Oct. 5:...
- 9/29/2022
- by Julian Sancton
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Click here to read the full article.
Judging from the trailer, or the poster, Zach Cregger’s Barbarian seems to follow a classic horror movie premise, updated for the tech age: A young woman checks in to an Airbnb in Detroit, only to find a man — and assorted terrors — waiting inside. But that’s just a fraction of the story.
Halfway through the film, which opened at No. 1 for the Sept. 9-11 weekend, writer-director Cregger abruptly cuts away from a gasp-inducing moment, jumping from dank Detroit to sunny L.A., where a hotshot actor played by Justin Long is cruising in a convertible without a care in the world. That is, until he gets a call from his agent telling him he’s been accused of sexual misconduct in The Hollywood Reporter.
“When I was writing, my dream was to use The Hollywood Reporter but it was one of those...
Judging from the trailer, or the poster, Zach Cregger’s Barbarian seems to follow a classic horror movie premise, updated for the tech age: A young woman checks in to an Airbnb in Detroit, only to find a man — and assorted terrors — waiting inside. But that’s just a fraction of the story.
Halfway through the film, which opened at No. 1 for the Sept. 9-11 weekend, writer-director Cregger abruptly cuts away from a gasp-inducing moment, jumping from dank Detroit to sunny L.A., where a hotshot actor played by Justin Long is cruising in a convertible without a care in the world. That is, until he gets a call from his agent telling him he’s been accused of sexual misconduct in The Hollywood Reporter.
“When I was writing, my dream was to use The Hollywood Reporter but it was one of those...
- 9/18/2022
- by Chris Gardner
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Global entertainment studio International Art Machine is venturing into India with a heavyweight slate fronted by A-listers Shekhar Kapur, Preity Zinta, Amish Tripathi, Dibakar Banerjee and Suparn S. Varma.
First up is “Shiva,” a series adaptation of Amish Tripathi’s bestselling Shiva Trilogy novels set in the land of Meluha, beginning with the first book “The Immortals of Meluha,” which will be directed by “Elizabeth” and “Bandit Queen” filmmaker Shekhar Kapur. Suparn S. Varma (Amazon Prime Video series “The Family Man” season 2) will serve as showrunner and will also direct.
Kapur said: “Amish’s Shiva Trilogy has been India’s great publishing sensation, crossing every age and class. It’s not just mythology, it’s modern storytelling at its best. Lending itself to a beautiful international series.”
Varma said: “The Meluha trilogy by Amish Tripathi is a genre-defining book and has become part of the pop-culture of the country. I...
First up is “Shiva,” a series adaptation of Amish Tripathi’s bestselling Shiva Trilogy novels set in the land of Meluha, beginning with the first book “The Immortals of Meluha,” which will be directed by “Elizabeth” and “Bandit Queen” filmmaker Shekhar Kapur. Suparn S. Varma (Amazon Prime Video series “The Family Man” season 2) will serve as showrunner and will also direct.
Kapur said: “Amish’s Shiva Trilogy has been India’s great publishing sensation, crossing every age and class. It’s not just mythology, it’s modern storytelling at its best. Lending itself to a beautiful international series.”
Varma said: “The Meluha trilogy by Amish Tripathi is a genre-defining book and has become part of the pop-culture of the country. I...
- 3/9/2022
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
Amazon Studios Reorg: Albert Cheng Becomes Full-Time COO, Vernon Sanders Now Solo Head Of Television
Exclusive: Amazon Studios’ longtime Chief Operating Officer Albert Cheng, who also has served as Co-Head of Television for the last three and a half years, will focus solely on his duties as COO going forward, with Co-Head of Television Vernon Sanders becoming Head of US/Global Television at Amazon Studios. The announcement was made this morning by Jennifer Salke, Head of Amazon Studios, in a companywide memo obtained by Deadline.
In the note Salke, stressing Amazon Studios’ commitment to being “inclusive home for talent”, revealed that the company’s content in 2022 is targeted to grow more than 70% year over year, with more than twice as many local Originals in 2022 vs 2021, and spoke of Amazon Studios’ planned expansion into new countries in Europe, Africa and South East Asia.
“With our next phase of growth ahead, it’s time for us to have a dedicated Chief Operating Officer, focusing completely on all...
In the note Salke, stressing Amazon Studios’ commitment to being “inclusive home for talent”, revealed that the company’s content in 2022 is targeted to grow more than 70% year over year, with more than twice as many local Originals in 2022 vs 2021, and spoke of Amazon Studios’ planned expansion into new countries in Europe, Africa and South East Asia.
“With our next phase of growth ahead, it’s time for us to have a dedicated Chief Operating Officer, focusing completely on all...
- 10/11/2021
- by Nellie Andreeva
- Deadline Film + TV
One of Amazon’s first entertainment executives is changing his relationship with the retail giant/streamer.
Steve Prinz, who joined Amazon in 2012 and helped the company enter the scripted originals space under former head Roy Price, is stepping down from his current role overseeing the company’s first-look and overall deals for one of his own.
The former development exec has inked his own first-look feature film and television deals and will work with Amazon to create new projects for the SVOD platform. As part of the pact, Prinz will board Amazon’s Paper Girls and the upcoming second season ...
Steve Prinz, who joined Amazon in 2012 and helped the company enter the scripted originals space under former head Roy Price, is stepping down from his current role overseeing the company’s first-look and overall deals for one of his own.
The former development exec has inked his own first-look feature film and television deals and will work with Amazon to create new projects for the SVOD platform. As part of the pact, Prinz will board Amazon’s Paper Girls and the upcoming second season ...
- 8/17/2021
- The Hollywood Reporter - Film + TV
One of Amazon’s first entertainment executives is changing his relationship with the retail giant/streamer.
Steve Prinz, who joined Amazon in 2012 and helped the company enter the scripted originals space under former head Roy Price, is stepping down from his current role overseeing the company’s first-look and overall deals for one of his own.
The former development exec has inked his own first-look feature film and television deals and will work with Amazon to create new projects for the SVOD platform. As part of the pact, Prinz will board Amazon’s Paper Girls and the upcoming second season ...
Steve Prinz, who joined Amazon in 2012 and helped the company enter the scripted originals space under former head Roy Price, is stepping down from his current role overseeing the company’s first-look and overall deals for one of his own.
The former development exec has inked his own first-look feature film and television deals and will work with Amazon to create new projects for the SVOD platform. As part of the pact, Prinz will board Amazon’s Paper Girls and the upcoming second season ...
- 8/17/2021
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Exclusive: ScreenHits TV, an aggregation platform designed for the current era of streaming abundance, is adding to its executive roster as it expands in key global territories.
Joe Lewis, former comedy and drama chief at Amazon Studios, is joining the company’s advisory board, as is former WarnerMedia and Disney Emea distribution executive Humphrey Black.
Mariano Kon will take on the new role of Gm and VP, Content & Business Development, for ScreenHits TV in the Latin America market. He has served in senior network posts in the region, including as VP & Gm of Programming and Production for A&e Channel. Other previous positions include Gm of Claxson’s Infinito Channels and of Argentinian streaming platform Cont.ar.
Lewis has been steering his own production company, Amplify Pictures, since leaving Amazon Studios in 2017 amid a large-scale reset of the tech giant’s streaming leadership. Roy Price, who led the studio from its inception,...
Joe Lewis, former comedy and drama chief at Amazon Studios, is joining the company’s advisory board, as is former WarnerMedia and Disney Emea distribution executive Humphrey Black.
Mariano Kon will take on the new role of Gm and VP, Content & Business Development, for ScreenHits TV in the Latin America market. He has served in senior network posts in the region, including as VP & Gm of Programming and Production for A&e Channel. Other previous positions include Gm of Claxson’s Infinito Channels and of Argentinian streaming platform Cont.ar.
Lewis has been steering his own production company, Amplify Pictures, since leaving Amazon Studios in 2017 amid a large-scale reset of the tech giant’s streaming leadership. Roy Price, who led the studio from its inception,...
- 7/13/2021
- by Dade Hayes
- Deadline Film + TV
Major corporations, celebrities and other prominent figures signed on to a two-page ad opposing “any discriminatory legislation or measures” that restrict eligible voters from having “an equal and fair opportunity to cast a ballot.”
Netflix, UTA, CAA and ViacomCBS were among the media and entertainment companies to sign the ad, which comes amid concerns over the impact of voting legislation in Georgia, Texas and other states. Also signing were tech companies including Amazon, Alphabet, Apple, Facebook, Pinterest, Reddit and Salesforce, as well as live event businesses Live Nation Entertainment and Jazz Lincoln Center.
The ad featured the headline, “We stand for democracy.” “Voting is the lifeblood of our democracy and we call upon all Americans to join us in taking a nonpartisan stand for this most basic and fundamental right of all Americans.”
Among the individuals who signed the ad was James Murdoch, the CEO of Lupa Systems. His brother,...
Netflix, UTA, CAA and ViacomCBS were among the media and entertainment companies to sign the ad, which comes amid concerns over the impact of voting legislation in Georgia, Texas and other states. Also signing were tech companies including Amazon, Alphabet, Apple, Facebook, Pinterest, Reddit and Salesforce, as well as live event businesses Live Nation Entertainment and Jazz Lincoln Center.
The ad featured the headline, “We stand for democracy.” “Voting is the lifeblood of our democracy and we call upon all Americans to join us in taking a nonpartisan stand for this most basic and fundamental right of all Americans.”
Among the individuals who signed the ad was James Murdoch, the CEO of Lupa Systems. His brother,...
- 4/14/2021
- by Ted Johnson
- Deadline Film + TV
By any estimation, the Woody Allen business looks like it’s in terrible shape. The 85-year-old filmmaker was further ostracized by the industry when “Allen v. Farrow,” the four-part HBO series from directors Kirby Dick and Amy Ziering, resurrected sexual assault allegations leveled against him by his daughter Dylan Farrow. Now, as the finale of “Allen v. Farrow” reverberates, some may assume that Allen has no path forward to keep making movies.
He does, of course. Pushback won’t faze him — he’s got a decade of it under his belt — nor will box-office ignominy, as his career has more of that than success. What about an entertainment industry that’s actively hostile toward financing the small, specific, not-inexpensive dramas that he makes? That’s irrelevant: While he’s intractable about the movies he makes, Allen appears to be infinitely flexible when it comes to financing and — perhaps more than...
He does, of course. Pushback won’t faze him — he’s got a decade of it under his belt — nor will box-office ignominy, as his career has more of that than success. What about an entertainment industry that’s actively hostile toward financing the small, specific, not-inexpensive dramas that he makes? That’s irrelevant: While he’s intractable about the movies he makes, Allen appears to be infinitely flexible when it comes to financing and — perhaps more than...
- 3/17/2021
- by Eric Kohn
- Indiewire
After less than a month in the job, Brad Schwartz has exited as chief content officer of Amazon-owned digital audio platform Audible after a two-year-old sexual harassment and gender bias lawsuit resurfaced.
The personnel move was confirmed to Deadline by sources familiar with the situation after Bloomberg initially reported the news. Schwartz was not named as a defendant in the lawsuit, which was dismissed.
In June, Schwartz had stepped down as president of PopTV to make the move to Audible, where he started June 15.
The company has made a concerted move in a showbiz direction, setting an array of projects involving A-list stars and creators. But it reconsidered the hire of Schwartz despite his proven track record after questions emerged from employees about details contained in the legal complaint. Amazon as a company is also just a couple of years removed from upheaval in its studio unit, starting in...
The personnel move was confirmed to Deadline by sources familiar with the situation after Bloomberg initially reported the news. Schwartz was not named as a defendant in the lawsuit, which was dismissed.
In June, Schwartz had stepped down as president of PopTV to make the move to Audible, where he started June 15.
The company has made a concerted move in a showbiz direction, setting an array of projects involving A-list stars and creators. But it reconsidered the hire of Schwartz despite his proven track record after questions emerged from employees about details contained in the legal complaint. Amazon as a company is also just a couple of years removed from upheaval in its studio unit, starting in...
- 7/13/2020
- by Dade Hayes and Dino-Ray Ramos
- Deadline Film + TV
Ted Hope had quite a ride at Amazon Studios. Early on, when the independent producer (“Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind”) saw the digital culture shifts coming to Hollywood, he landed as head of Amazon Original Movies in 2015, where he became the consigliere to successive studio heads who relied on his counsel and support. Today came the news that he would be leaving the job to return to his old routine.
“I came to realize Ted is a producer through and through,” said Amazon studio chief Jennifer Salke in an email to Amazon Studios staffers today. “And that now is the right time for both him and the studio to make a change.”
The news has been a long time coming. Many in Hollywood questioned how long Hope would last inside the Silicon Valley shopping behemoth, but it took five and a half years for Hope to finally make the...
“I came to realize Ted is a producer through and through,” said Amazon studio chief Jennifer Salke in an email to Amazon Studios staffers today. “And that now is the right time for both him and the studio to make a change.”
The news has been a long time coming. Many in Hollywood questioned how long Hope would last inside the Silicon Valley shopping behemoth, but it took five and a half years for Hope to finally make the...
- 5/28/2020
- by Anne Thompson
- Indiewire
Ted Hope had quite a ride at Amazon Studios. Early on, when the independent producer (“Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind”) saw the digital culture shifts coming to Hollywood, he landed as head of Amazon Original Movies in 2015, where he became the consigliere to successive studio heads who relied on his counsel and support. Today came the news that he would be leaving the job to return to his old routine.
“I came to realize Ted is a producer through and through,” said Amazon studio chief Jennifer Salke in an email to Amazon Studios staffers today. “And that now is the right time for both him and the studio to make a change.”
The news has been a long time coming. Many in Hollywood questioned how long Hope would last inside the Silicon Valley shopping behemoth, but it took five and a half years for Hope to finally make the...
“I came to realize Ted is a producer through and through,” said Amazon studio chief Jennifer Salke in an email to Amazon Studios staffers today. “And that now is the right time for both him and the studio to make a change.”
The news has been a long time coming. Many in Hollywood questioned how long Hope would last inside the Silicon Valley shopping behemoth, but it took five and a half years for Hope to finally make the...
- 5/28/2020
- by Anne Thompson
- Thompson on Hollywood
Producer deal to start on June 2.
Ted Hope is stepping down as Amazon Studios movies co-head and has signed a multi-year, first-look producing deal with the streaming giant.
Hope will consult on several films planned for release in 2020 and produce select projects on the upcoming development slate. His producing deal starts on June 2.
Matt Newman and Julie Rapaport expand their roles as co-heads of the Original Movies team, reporting to head of Amazon Studios Jennifer Salke, who said the group would be “in good hands as they continue their collaborative leadership.”
The division’s recent films include Late Night, Brittany Runs A Marathon,...
Ted Hope is stepping down as Amazon Studios movies co-head and has signed a multi-year, first-look producing deal with the streaming giant.
Hope will consult on several films planned for release in 2020 and produce select projects on the upcoming development slate. His producing deal starts on June 2.
Matt Newman and Julie Rapaport expand their roles as co-heads of the Original Movies team, reporting to head of Amazon Studios Jennifer Salke, who said the group would be “in good hands as they continue their collaborative leadership.”
The division’s recent films include Late Night, Brittany Runs A Marathon,...
- 5/28/2020
- by 36¦Jeremy Kay¦54¦
- ScreenDaily
Producer deal to start on June 2.
Ted Hope is stepping down as Amazon Studios movies co-head and has signed a multi-year, first-look producing deal with the streaming giant.
Hope will consult on several films planned for release in 2020 and produce select projects on the upcoming development slate. His producing deal starts on June 2.
Matt Newman and Julie Rapaport expand their roles as co-heads of the Original Movies team, reporting to head of Amazon Studios Jennifer Salke, who said the group would be “in good hands as they continue their collaborative leadership.”
The division’s recent films include Late Night, Brittany Runs A Marathon,...
Ted Hope is stepping down as Amazon Studios movies co-head and has signed a multi-year, first-look producing deal with the streaming giant.
Hope will consult on several films planned for release in 2020 and produce select projects on the upcoming development slate. His producing deal starts on June 2.
Matt Newman and Julie Rapaport expand their roles as co-heads of the Original Movies team, reporting to head of Amazon Studios Jennifer Salke, who said the group would be “in good hands as they continue their collaborative leadership.”
The division’s recent films include Late Night, Brittany Runs A Marathon,...
- 5/28/2020
- by 36¦Jeremy Kay¦54¦
- ScreenDaily
Amazon Studios motion picture executive Ted Hope is stepping down from his role under chief Jennifer Salke, Variety has learned.
The official word from within Amazon is that Hope left by choice, and will transition out with a multi-year first look producing deal at the streamer. He brought deep indie street cred to the fledgling division when it formed. However, many of the films he championed, oversaw, and helped acquire suffered poor results at the box office and received a mixed critical reception.
A replacement for Hope is unlikely as his colleagues Julie Rapaport and Matt Newman will absorb his duties, according to a memo from Salke sent to staff on Thursday congratulating the pair on their “expanded roles.”
In the early days of Amazon’s original movies program, Hope was involved in mounting successful acquisitions like the Academy Award nominated “The Big Sick” and Oscar winner “Manchester By the Sea.
The official word from within Amazon is that Hope left by choice, and will transition out with a multi-year first look producing deal at the streamer. He brought deep indie street cred to the fledgling division when it formed. However, many of the films he championed, oversaw, and helped acquire suffered poor results at the box office and received a mixed critical reception.
A replacement for Hope is unlikely as his colleagues Julie Rapaport and Matt Newman will absorb his duties, according to a memo from Salke sent to staff on Thursday congratulating the pair on their “expanded roles.”
In the early days of Amazon’s original movies program, Hope was involved in mounting successful acquisitions like the Academy Award nominated “The Big Sick” and Oscar winner “Manchester By the Sea.
- 5/28/2020
- by Matt Donnelly
- Variety Film + TV
The wait for a new project from Wong Kar-wai is going to get longer as the South China Morning Post reports that the director’s Amazon series “Tong Wars” has been cancelled. Sources close to the director told the Post that “Tong Wars” has been “canceled for some time” and never started production. Additionally, Wong’s long-in-the-works feature film “Blossoms” is reportedly being put on hold indefinitely because of the coronavirus outbreak in China. “Blossoms” was going to be filmed on location in Shanghai where the story is set. IndieWire has reached out to Amazon for comment.
Amazon announced in September 2017 that it would be going into production on the series “Tong Wars,” directed by Wong Kar-wai and written by Paul Attanasio. At the time of the announcement, Amazon Studios’ then-president Roy Price said in a statement, “It’s a very compelling show and a prime example of a period...
Amazon announced in September 2017 that it would be going into production on the series “Tong Wars,” directed by Wong Kar-wai and written by Paul Attanasio. At the time of the announcement, Amazon Studios’ then-president Roy Price said in a statement, “It’s a very compelling show and a prime example of a period...
- 2/18/2020
- by Zack Sharf
- Indiewire
Predator or prey? Victimizer or victim? Rapist or philanderer?
These questions are at the heart of the closing arguments of the Harvey Weinstein trial and how the 12 member jury answers them will play a critical role in deciding whether or not the former movie mogul goes free or spends the rest of his life behind bars. What has emerged from two days of summations are starkly different portraits of Weinstein. They have also made it clear that not only is Weinstein on trial, but the #MeToo movement is being put to the test.
In fact, Donna Rotunno, the lead attorney for Weinstein, has gone so far as to label her client “the target of a cause and a movement.” It is, Rotunno argued this week and in a series of media appearances, a social justice push that has enabled women to evade responsibility for their actions, allowing them to retroactively...
These questions are at the heart of the closing arguments of the Harvey Weinstein trial and how the 12 member jury answers them will play a critical role in deciding whether or not the former movie mogul goes free or spends the rest of his life behind bars. What has emerged from two days of summations are starkly different portraits of Weinstein. They have also made it clear that not only is Weinstein on trial, but the #MeToo movement is being put to the test.
In fact, Donna Rotunno, the lead attorney for Weinstein, has gone so far as to label her client “the target of a cause and a movement.” It is, Rotunno argued this week and in a series of media appearances, a social justice push that has enabled women to evade responsibility for their actions, allowing them to retroactively...
- 2/14/2020
- by Brent Lang and Elizabeth Wagmeister
- Variety Film + TV
John Lynch is exiting his post as head of production and operations at Amazon Studios, an individual with knowledge of the situation told TheWrap.
Lynch had been with the company since 2012 but notified the staff about his departure on Friday. A spokesperson for Amazon declined to comment.
In June, head of marketing and distribution Bob Berney left the company following the expiration of his four-year contract. And in 2018, Jason Ropell left his post as head of motion pictures — he was replaced by Ted Hope, Julie Rapaport and Matt Newman. Roy Price exited in late 2017, at which point Jennifer Salke stepped in to run film and TV operations.
Also Read: Amazon Studios' Jennifer Salke and AMC's Sarah Barnett on Developing a Diverse Film and TV Slates | Video
Amazon Studios’ releases this year include “The Report,” “The Aeronauts,” “Late Night,” “Brittany Runs a Marathon,” “Seberg” and “Honey Boy,” some of which are getting awards buzz.
Lynch had been with the company since 2012 but notified the staff about his departure on Friday. A spokesperson for Amazon declined to comment.
In June, head of marketing and distribution Bob Berney left the company following the expiration of his four-year contract. And in 2018, Jason Ropell left his post as head of motion pictures — he was replaced by Ted Hope, Julie Rapaport and Matt Newman. Roy Price exited in late 2017, at which point Jennifer Salke stepped in to run film and TV operations.
Also Read: Amazon Studios' Jennifer Salke and AMC's Sarah Barnett on Developing a Diverse Film and TV Slates | Video
Amazon Studios’ releases this year include “The Report,” “The Aeronauts,” “Late Night,” “Brittany Runs a Marathon,” “Seberg” and “Honey Boy,” some of which are getting awards buzz.
- 11/15/2019
- by Beatrice Verhoeven
- The Wrap
John Lynch, the head of production and worldwide operations at Amazon Studios, is leaving the company, Deadline has confirmed. He had been in the post since 2012, according to his profile on LinkedIn.
Amazon declined comment, but it’s the latest departure on the streamer’s film side, now overseen by Julie Rapaport, Matt Newman and Ted Hope. Head of marketing and distribution Bob Berney exited in June following the expiration of his four-year contract.
Berney was hired in mid-2015 to oversee distribution and marketing for Amazon’s original films. Much has happened at the company since then, as Roy Price exited in late 2017, and Jennifer Salke was brought aboard in February 2018 to run both the film and TV operations after Jason Ropell exited last year.
Rapaport, Newman and Hope report to Salke.
Amazon’s film releases this year include The Aeronauts and The Report upcoming as well as Late Night.
Variety...
Amazon declined comment, but it’s the latest departure on the streamer’s film side, now overseen by Julie Rapaport, Matt Newman and Ted Hope. Head of marketing and distribution Bob Berney exited in June following the expiration of his four-year contract.
Berney was hired in mid-2015 to oversee distribution and marketing for Amazon’s original films. Much has happened at the company since then, as Roy Price exited in late 2017, and Jennifer Salke was brought aboard in February 2018 to run both the film and TV operations after Jason Ropell exited last year.
Rapaport, Newman and Hope report to Salke.
Amazon’s film releases this year include The Aeronauts and The Report upcoming as well as Late Night.
Variety...
- 11/15/2019
- by Patrick Hipes
- Deadline Film + TV
John Lynch is leaving Amazon Studios, the streaming service where he served as head of production and operations, Variety has learned.
Rumors began swirling earlier this week that Lynch was out at the company. Lynch has been with Amazon since 2012, according to his LinkedIn profile. Lynch notified staff of his departure on Friday. It’s unclear what led to his exit. A spokesperson for Amazon declined to comment.
Lynch isn’t the only high-ranking employee to leave Amazon Studios this year. In June, Bob Berney, a widely respected indie film executive, stepped down as head of marketing and distribution. The studio has yet to name a replacement. In 2018, Jason Ropell left as head of motion pictures. He was ultimately replaced by the tag team of Ted Hope, Julie Rapaport and Matt Newman.
The moves come as Amazon Studios is plotting a much different course on the feature film front than...
Rumors began swirling earlier this week that Lynch was out at the company. Lynch has been with Amazon since 2012, according to his LinkedIn profile. Lynch notified staff of his departure on Friday. It’s unclear what led to his exit. A spokesperson for Amazon declined to comment.
Lynch isn’t the only high-ranking employee to leave Amazon Studios this year. In June, Bob Berney, a widely respected indie film executive, stepped down as head of marketing and distribution. The studio has yet to name a replacement. In 2018, Jason Ropell left as head of motion pictures. He was ultimately replaced by the tag team of Ted Hope, Julie Rapaport and Matt Newman.
The moves come as Amazon Studios is plotting a much different course on the feature film front than...
- 11/15/2019
- by Brent Lang and Matt Donnelly
- Variety Film + TV
Billy Bob Thornton's starring vehicle at Amazon, Goliath has been a wild ride.
Today, the streamer announced the fate of the legal drama.
So, will there be another season featuring Thornton as Billy McBride?
The simple answer is yes.
The longer answer is yes, and you better enjoy it while it lasts because Goliath Season 4 will be the series' last.
Goliath Season 3 dropped on Amazon on October 4, 2019, and in a couple of words, it was bat-sh!t crazy!
During its latest season, Billy's dear friend Bobbi (Sherilyn Fenn) got sucked into a sinkhole in her vineyard thrusting him into the world of water rights in northern California.
Also starring Nina Arianda and Tania Raymonde, the season had some pretty terrific guest stars.
Dennis Quaid was at the center of the season's thrilling arc as a wealthy corporate farmer named Wade, and Amy Brennaman joined as Wade's sister, Diana.
Other...
Today, the streamer announced the fate of the legal drama.
So, will there be another season featuring Thornton as Billy McBride?
The simple answer is yes.
The longer answer is yes, and you better enjoy it while it lasts because Goliath Season 4 will be the series' last.
Goliath Season 3 dropped on Amazon on October 4, 2019, and in a couple of words, it was bat-sh!t crazy!
During its latest season, Billy's dear friend Bobbi (Sherilyn Fenn) got sucked into a sinkhole in her vineyard thrusting him into the world of water rights in northern California.
Also starring Nina Arianda and Tania Raymonde, the season had some pretty terrific guest stars.
Dennis Quaid was at the center of the season's thrilling arc as a wealthy corporate farmer named Wade, and Amy Brennaman joined as Wade's sister, Diana.
Other...
- 11/14/2019
- by Carissa Pavlica
- TVfanatic
Exclusive: Amazon has put in development Troll, a comedy from writer Lee Sung Jin (Undone), and Joe Lewis’ Amplify Pictures. Rhys Thomas (Documentary Now!) is attached to direct and executive produce.
Written by Lee, Troll is a comedy series about an eternal optimist, who refuses to give up on his dreams of being a world-renowned documentary filmmaker, despite living off gig economy apps and never actually making a documentary. After being bullied online, he finally sets out to make a film exposing his troll, only to stumble upon what might be a geopolitical conspiracy.
Lee executive produces with Thomas. Lewis, who is under a first-look deal with Amazon, produces via his Amplify Pictures.
Lee is currently a co-executive producer on Amazon’s Undone. His previous credits include Netflix’s Tuca & Bertie and HBO’s Silicon Valley. Lee’s FX pilot, Singularity, was directed by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg.
Written by Lee, Troll is a comedy series about an eternal optimist, who refuses to give up on his dreams of being a world-renowned documentary filmmaker, despite living off gig economy apps and never actually making a documentary. After being bullied online, he finally sets out to make a film exposing his troll, only to stumble upon what might be a geopolitical conspiracy.
Lee executive produces with Thomas. Lewis, who is under a first-look deal with Amazon, produces via his Amplify Pictures.
Lee is currently a co-executive producer on Amazon’s Undone. His previous credits include Netflix’s Tuca & Bertie and HBO’s Silicon Valley. Lee’s FX pilot, Singularity, was directed by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg.
- 9/22/2019
- by Denise Petski
- Deadline Film + TV
Woody Allen’s multimillion-dollar lawsuit against Amazon isn’t dead, but it is definitely wounded.
In a dense ruling released Wednesday on a motion by the Jeff Bezos-founded streamer to toss Allen’s February 7-filed complaint, a federal judge in New York firmly sliced off a good portion of the Oscar winner’s claims. “Amazon’s April 3, 2019 partial motion to dismiss is granted,” U.S. District Court Judge Denise Cote wrote in a ruling (read it here). “The plaintiffs’ fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth causes of action are dismissed, including the sole claim against Amazon Studios.”
All of which means Allen has essentially lost the ability to go after the Jennifer Salke-run studio over the Roy Price-instigated Multipicture Acquisition Agreement inked with his production company Gravier.
Already back behind the camera on his new Rivkin’s Festival film, the Manhattan filmmaker can still pursue the action on...
In a dense ruling released Wednesday on a motion by the Jeff Bezos-founded streamer to toss Allen’s February 7-filed complaint, a federal judge in New York firmly sliced off a good portion of the Oscar winner’s claims. “Amazon’s April 3, 2019 partial motion to dismiss is granted,” U.S. District Court Judge Denise Cote wrote in a ruling (read it here). “The plaintiffs’ fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth causes of action are dismissed, including the sole claim against Amazon Studios.”
All of which means Allen has essentially lost the ability to go after the Jennifer Salke-run studio over the Roy Price-instigated Multipicture Acquisition Agreement inked with his production company Gravier.
Already back behind the camera on his new Rivkin’s Festival film, the Manhattan filmmaker can still pursue the action on...
- 7/31/2019
- by Dominic Patten
- Deadline Film + TV
The future of Amazon Prime Video may end up fairly similar to the streamer’s e-commerce parent company: A store with something for every possible buyer.
Jeff Bezos’s Amazon mothership sells everything from paperbacks to groceries. And, in its day of panels at the Television Critics Association press tour, the streamer made news about both hardcore fantasy tentpoles and planned female-skewing projects. In an increasingly crowded and competitive marketplace, Amazon is the venue where genre fans can find dark Victorian allegory “Carnival Row” and a pricey “Lord of the Rings” adaptation — and it’s also the place for a lighter sort of escapism, with romance anthology “Modern Love,” the Heidi Klum/Tim Gunn reality series “Making the Cut,” and an untitled Blake Lively project set in the world of fashion. Lively now has an overall deal with Amazon, as do Lena Waithe, Connie Britton, and Forest Whitaker.
Amazon’s...
Jeff Bezos’s Amazon mothership sells everything from paperbacks to groceries. And, in its day of panels at the Television Critics Association press tour, the streamer made news about both hardcore fantasy tentpoles and planned female-skewing projects. In an increasingly crowded and competitive marketplace, Amazon is the venue where genre fans can find dark Victorian allegory “Carnival Row” and a pricey “Lord of the Rings” adaptation — and it’s also the place for a lighter sort of escapism, with romance anthology “Modern Love,” the Heidi Klum/Tim Gunn reality series “Making the Cut,” and an untitled Blake Lively project set in the world of fashion. Lively now has an overall deal with Amazon, as do Lena Waithe, Connie Britton, and Forest Whitaker.
Amazon’s...
- 7/27/2019
- by Daniel D'Addario
- Variety Film + TV
The first teaser for Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan shows that Jack has definitely left his easy life behind a desk far, far behind.
So if you've been waiting for John Krasinski to go full-on action hero, Jack Ryan Season 2 seems to make your dreams come true!
In the second season of Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan, after tracking a potentially suspicious shipment of illegal arms in the Venezuelan jungle, CIA Officer Jack Ryan heads down to South America to investigate.
As Jack’s investigation threatens to uncover a far-reaching conspiracy, the President of Venezuela launches a counter-attack that hits home for Jack.
That attack leads Jack and his fellow operatives on a global mission spanning the United States, UK, Russia, and Venezuela to unravel the President’s nefarious plot and bring stability to a country on the brink of chaos.
In addition to Krasinski, the second season of the...
So if you've been waiting for John Krasinski to go full-on action hero, Jack Ryan Season 2 seems to make your dreams come true!
In the second season of Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan, after tracking a potentially suspicious shipment of illegal arms in the Venezuelan jungle, CIA Officer Jack Ryan heads down to South America to investigate.
As Jack’s investigation threatens to uncover a far-reaching conspiracy, the President of Venezuela launches a counter-attack that hits home for Jack.
That attack leads Jack and his fellow operatives on a global mission spanning the United States, UK, Russia, and Venezuela to unravel the President’s nefarious plot and bring stability to a country on the brink of chaos.
In addition to Krasinski, the second season of the...
- 7/27/2019
- by Carissa Pavlica
- TVfanatic
In accordance with Amazon’s shifting originals strategy, the studio is prioritizing blockbuster content designed for global audiences over unique visions from independent artists. Jennifer Salke, the head of Amazon Studios, took the stage Saturday morning with co-heads of television Albert Cheng and Vernon Sanders and announced “Too Old To Die Young,” “The Romanoffs,” and “Patriot” would not be moving forward at the studio.
Salke first addressed Nicolas Winding Refn’s 13-hour crime noir, which seemed to fly a bit under the radar on Amazon after its Cannes premiere.
“Yes, we were happy with the show,” Salke said. “I was texting with Nic Refn this week.”
While Salke said she did not expect to pick up another installment of the limited series, the two maintain a good relationship and Amazon took Refn’s core audience into consideration when marketing the show. A reporter asked why he didn’t see the...
Salke first addressed Nicolas Winding Refn’s 13-hour crime noir, which seemed to fly a bit under the radar on Amazon after its Cannes premiere.
“Yes, we were happy with the show,” Salke said. “I was texting with Nic Refn this week.”
While Salke said she did not expect to pick up another installment of the limited series, the two maintain a good relationship and Amazon took Refn’s core audience into consideration when marketing the show. A reporter asked why he didn’t see the...
- 7/27/2019
- by Ben Travers
- Indiewire
Five months after strutting out of the Sundance Film Festival with a bag full of splashy acquisitions, Amazon Studios has been thrown off balance by a box office losing streak and the departure of one of its top executives.
One of its highest profile Sundance buys, Mindy Kaling’s “Late Night,” has proven to be a painful failure. It has earned only $11.3 million in North America, where it’s been playing on over 2,000 screens for the past two weeks. That’s a poor result given that Amazon plunked down a hefty $13 million for domestic rights to the picture. What’s worse, the marketing budget on “Late Night” topped out at $33 million. Rival studios project that Amazon could lose roughly $40 million on the comedy’s theatrical run.
The impact of the flop was compounded by the news this week that Bob Berney, the division’s inaugural marketing and distribution chief, is...
One of its highest profile Sundance buys, Mindy Kaling’s “Late Night,” has proven to be a painful failure. It has earned only $11.3 million in North America, where it’s been playing on over 2,000 screens for the past two weeks. That’s a poor result given that Amazon plunked down a hefty $13 million for domestic rights to the picture. What’s worse, the marketing budget on “Late Night” topped out at $33 million. Rival studios project that Amazon could lose roughly $40 million on the comedy’s theatrical run.
The impact of the flop was compounded by the news this week that Bob Berney, the division’s inaugural marketing and distribution chief, is...
- 6/27/2019
- by Brent Lang and Matt Donnelly
- Variety Film + TV
Bob Berney will leave Amazon Studios after four years as head of theatrical distribution and marketing. His last day is June 28. Sources confirm that the decision was Berney’s, and comes at the end of an employment contract.
Berney has a long track record as creative marketer with an eye for finding quirky films with the capacity to reach a broader audience. His successes cross all genres, ranging from “Memento” to “My Big Fat Greek Wedding” to “Passion of the Christ.”
Much has changed at Amazon Studios since he joined in 2015, when Roy Price was in charge; a year later, Berney and Price appeared at CinemaCon in a full-fledged Caesar’s Palace presentation in which Berney told eager exhibitors: “All films we are acquiring are being released theatrically to play in your theaters.” Price added: “Customers want to see films in theaters, and filmmakers want their films in theaters. We are a filmmaker-driven studio.
Berney has a long track record as creative marketer with an eye for finding quirky films with the capacity to reach a broader audience. His successes cross all genres, ranging from “Memento” to “My Big Fat Greek Wedding” to “Passion of the Christ.”
Much has changed at Amazon Studios since he joined in 2015, when Roy Price was in charge; a year later, Berney and Price appeared at CinemaCon in a full-fledged Caesar’s Palace presentation in which Berney told eager exhibitors: “All films we are acquiring are being released theatrically to play in your theaters.” Price added: “Customers want to see films in theaters, and filmmakers want their films in theaters. We are a filmmaker-driven studio.
- 6/25/2019
- by Dana Harris
- Indiewire
Sources say veteran’s decision unrelated to disappointng box office of ‘Late Night’.
Bob Berney, the indie darling who served four years as head of marketing and distribution at Amazon Studios, is leaving the company.
Screen understands the move is voluntary and comes after the conclusion of a four-year contract that brought Berney from the relaunched Picturehouse, where he served as CEO, to Amazon Studios.
Berney’s team will report in the interim to Matt Newman, one of three senior executives who along with Ted Hope and Julie Rappaport reports to studio head Jennifer Salke.
According to sources veteran Berney...
Bob Berney, the indie darling who served four years as head of marketing and distribution at Amazon Studios, is leaving the company.
Screen understands the move is voluntary and comes after the conclusion of a four-year contract that brought Berney from the relaunched Picturehouse, where he served as CEO, to Amazon Studios.
Berney’s team will report in the interim to Matt Newman, one of three senior executives who along with Ted Hope and Julie Rappaport reports to studio head Jennifer Salke.
According to sources veteran Berney...
- 6/25/2019
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
Exclusive: Veteran indie distribution executive Bob Berney is leaving Amazon Studios, sources said. It was his decision and came at the end of his four-year contract, which just ended last week.
Berney was hired in mid-2015 to oversee distribution and marketing for Amazon’s original films. Much has happened at the company since then, as Roy Price exited, and Jennifer Salke was brought in to run both the film and TV operations, this after Jason Ropell exited last year.
Timing is coincidental but unrelated to the disappointing returns of the Nisha Ganatra-directed Late Night, which stars Emma Thompson and Mindy Kaling (who wrote it), and for which Amazon paid $13 million, the most ever paid in a U.S. rights deal for a film that premiered at the Sundance Film festival. After its first two weekends, the film has grossed $10.6 million domestically.
This was more about Berney wanting to move on,...
Berney was hired in mid-2015 to oversee distribution and marketing for Amazon’s original films. Much has happened at the company since then, as Roy Price exited, and Jennifer Salke was brought in to run both the film and TV operations, this after Jason Ropell exited last year.
Timing is coincidental but unrelated to the disappointing returns of the Nisha Ganatra-directed Late Night, which stars Emma Thompson and Mindy Kaling (who wrote it), and for which Amazon paid $13 million, the most ever paid in a U.S. rights deal for a film that premiered at the Sundance Film festival. After its first two weekends, the film has grossed $10.6 million domestically.
This was more about Berney wanting to move on,...
- 6/25/2019
- by Mike Fleming Jr
- Deadline Film + TV
Sharon Tal Yguado has stepped down as head of genre programming at Amazon Studios, TheWrap has learned.
No reason was given for Yguado’s departure, and Amazon declined to comment. A replacement has not yet been named.
The executive, who first joined the studio in 2017 to oversee event programming, was briefly elevated to lead all of the studio’s scripted TV efforts in the months following the departure of former studio boss Roy Price and Joe Lewis.
Also Read: Amazon On Pace to Spend $7 Billion on Content in 2019
She shifted back to her focus on genre programming, including the upcoming “Lord of the Rings” series, under the new leadership of Jennifer Salke and co-heads of TV, Albert Cheng and Vernon Sanders. Her areas of oversight included hour-long dramas in science fiction, fantasy and supernatural.
Yguado was said to have been instrumental in securing the rights to the series, which was...
No reason was given for Yguado’s departure, and Amazon declined to comment. A replacement has not yet been named.
The executive, who first joined the studio in 2017 to oversee event programming, was briefly elevated to lead all of the studio’s scripted TV efforts in the months following the departure of former studio boss Roy Price and Joe Lewis.
Also Read: Amazon On Pace to Spend $7 Billion on Content in 2019
She shifted back to her focus on genre programming, including the upcoming “Lord of the Rings” series, under the new leadership of Jennifer Salke and co-heads of TV, Albert Cheng and Vernon Sanders. Her areas of oversight included hour-long dramas in science fiction, fantasy and supernatural.
Yguado was said to have been instrumental in securing the rights to the series, which was...
- 5/3/2019
- by Reid Nakamura
- The Wrap
Updated with Tal Yguado’s statement: Sharon Tal Yguado is stepping down as Amazon Studios’ Head of Genre Drama after more than two years. The studio is expected to continue to have a dedicated genre executive with a replacement Tbd.
Tal Yguado joined Amazon Studios under its previous regime in January 2017 and was tasked with building a slate of big scope, big event genre series — hourlong science fiction, action, fantasy and horror series.
Only months into her tenure, Tal Yguado became the top scripted programming executive at Amazon Studios following the ousters in fall 2017 of Amazon Studios head Roy Price and his top lieutenant Joe Lewis. She was then named interim head of scripted programming for Amazon Studios, a position she held for the next several months.
Tal Yguado stayed on after Jennifer Salke joined Amazon Studios as new head in spring 2018. Salke subsequently named Vernon Sanders and Albert Cheng co-heads of television.
Tal Yguado joined Amazon Studios under its previous regime in January 2017 and was tasked with building a slate of big scope, big event genre series — hourlong science fiction, action, fantasy and horror series.
Only months into her tenure, Tal Yguado became the top scripted programming executive at Amazon Studios following the ousters in fall 2017 of Amazon Studios head Roy Price and his top lieutenant Joe Lewis. She was then named interim head of scripted programming for Amazon Studios, a position she held for the next several months.
Tal Yguado stayed on after Jennifer Salke joined Amazon Studios as new head in spring 2018. Salke subsequently named Vernon Sanders and Albert Cheng co-heads of television.
- 5/3/2019
- by Nellie Andreeva
- Deadline Film + TV
Executive worked on company’s deal to acquire television rights to The Lord Of The Rings.
Amazon Studios head of genre programming Sharon Tal Yguado is leaving her job at the streaming platform, according to multiple trade press reports.
Amazon Studios did not comment on the reports, or on whether Tal Yguado will be replaced.
Tal Yguado joined the streamer just over two years ago as head of event series, leading a separate division and reporting to then Amazon Studios head Roy Price, who was ousted from the company later in 2017 amid sexual harassment allegations.
She was tasked with taking...
Amazon Studios head of genre programming Sharon Tal Yguado is leaving her job at the streaming platform, according to multiple trade press reports.
Amazon Studios did not comment on the reports, or on whether Tal Yguado will be replaced.
Tal Yguado joined the streamer just over two years ago as head of event series, leading a separate division and reporting to then Amazon Studios head Roy Price, who was ousted from the company later in 2017 amid sexual harassment allegations.
She was tasked with taking...
- 5/3/2019
- by John Hazelton
- ScreenDaily
After a two years on the job, Sharon Tal Yguado is leaving Amazon Studios.
Yguado was hired in January 2017 to oversee genre programming under former Amazon Studios head Roy Price in a direct mandate from CEO Jeff Bezos to find the streamer and retail giant its version of Game of Thrones. In the months that followed, Yguado — a former Fox International Studios exec who was key to the global launch of AMC's The Walking Dead — wound up heading genre, comedy and drama after Price and his comedy/drama exec Joe Lewis were ousted. She was then relegated back to her role ...
Yguado was hired in January 2017 to oversee genre programming under former Amazon Studios head Roy Price in a direct mandate from CEO Jeff Bezos to find the streamer and retail giant its version of Game of Thrones. In the months that followed, Yguado — a former Fox International Studios exec who was key to the global launch of AMC's The Walking Dead — wound up heading genre, comedy and drama after Price and his comedy/drama exec Joe Lewis were ousted. She was then relegated back to her role ...
Amazon has filed a limited rebuttal to a lawsuit from Woody Allen, who has accused the streaming service of dropping him due to the #MeToo movement.
Amazon’s lawyers argue that Allen has become a “pariah” in the film industry. But the motion to dismiss, filed Tuesday in federal court in New York, seeks to throw out only four of Allen’s eight claims, leaving the heart of his complaint untouched.
Amazon distributed Allen’s last two films, “Cafe Society” and “Wonder Wheel,” establishing the streamer as a significant player in the distribution world. In 2017, under the stewardship of Roy Price, Amazon agreed to a four-picture deal with Allen, under which the director was to receive minimum guarantees of at least $68 million, according to the suit.
The first film under the agreement, “A Rainy Day in New York,” was completed in 2018. But by that point, the #MeToo movement was underway,...
Amazon’s lawyers argue that Allen has become a “pariah” in the film industry. But the motion to dismiss, filed Tuesday in federal court in New York, seeks to throw out only four of Allen’s eight claims, leaving the heart of his complaint untouched.
Amazon distributed Allen’s last two films, “Cafe Society” and “Wonder Wheel,” establishing the streamer as a significant player in the distribution world. In 2017, under the stewardship of Roy Price, Amazon agreed to a four-picture deal with Allen, under which the director was to receive minimum guarantees of at least $68 million, according to the suit.
The first film under the agreement, “A Rainy Day in New York,” was completed in 2018. But by that point, the #MeToo movement was underway,...
- 4/4/2019
- by Gene Maddaus
- Variety Film + TV
Amazon Studios boss Jennifer Salke sidestepped addressing Woody Allen’s $68 million lawsuit against the streamer at the TCA in February, but the Jeff Bezos-founded company’s lawyers were pretty blunt today.
While not calling for a full dismissal of the self-described “pariah” director’s big bucks February 7th filed complaint over the cancellation of his Roy Price instigated multi-film deal with Amazon yet, attorneys Robert Klieger and his Hueston Hennigan Llp colleagues are determined to cripple the matter Asap.
“Understood in the broader context, Allen’s actions and their cascading consequences ensured that Amazon could never possibly receive the benefit of its four-picture agreement (despite already having paid Allen a $10 million advance upon signing),” asserts the defendants’ motion to dismiss the fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth causes of action in Allen’s nearly two month old suit.
After revitalized accusations of Allen’s alleged decades old sexual misconduct with...
While not calling for a full dismissal of the self-described “pariah” director’s big bucks February 7th filed complaint over the cancellation of his Roy Price instigated multi-film deal with Amazon yet, attorneys Robert Klieger and his Hueston Hennigan Llp colleagues are determined to cripple the matter Asap.
“Understood in the broader context, Allen’s actions and their cascading consequences ensured that Amazon could never possibly receive the benefit of its four-picture agreement (despite already having paid Allen a $10 million advance upon signing),” asserts the defendants’ motion to dismiss the fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth causes of action in Allen’s nearly two month old suit.
After revitalized accusations of Allen’s alleged decades old sexual misconduct with...
- 4/4/2019
- by Dominic Patten
- Deadline Film + TV
It was close to midnight when Amazon Studios chief Jennifer Salke got the text. The company had failed in its quest to acquire “Brittany Runs a Marathon,” a body image dramedy that captivated Salke when she saw it at Sundance. A sales agent on the project messaged her to say that a competitor offered a higher number, and unless Amazon stepped up significantly with its bid, the company would be out of the running. But Salke would not budge on the price, and collapsed into bed defeated.
Then she remembered her pitch meeting with “Brittany” writer-director Paul Downs Colaizzo, who a day earlier said his father worked at an Amazon fulfillment center in Missouri. She looked him up on the company phone directory, screen-grabbed his profile and sent it back to the sales agent asking, “Doesn’t this count for a few million?”
Minutes later her phone rang. It was the film’s executive producer,...
Then she remembered her pitch meeting with “Brittany” writer-director Paul Downs Colaizzo, who a day earlier said his father worked at an Amazon fulfillment center in Missouri. She looked him up on the company phone directory, screen-grabbed his profile and sent it back to the sales agent asking, “Doesn’t this count for a few million?”
Minutes later her phone rang. It was the film’s executive producer,...
- 2/18/2019
- by Matt Donnelly
- Variety Film + TV
In an unprecedented Sundance Film Festival deal haul for a single distributor, Amazon Studios gave the clearest indication of its movie future by paying a record near $50 million for five films. The acquisition avalanche began with the fest’s first big pact for Late Night (record $13M for U.S. rights). Within a matter of days, Amazon bought Brittany Runs A Marathon ($14M for world rights), The Report ($14M for world rights), Honey Boy ($5 million) and One Child Nation. It might have gotten a sixth, the Festival Favorite Award-winning documentary Knock Down the House, which went for a record $10 million to Netflix. But the fit was wrong because the film’s heroine, freshman congresswoman Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez, was simultaneously bashing Amazon for its since-abandoned tax incentive-laden plan to build NYC headquarters near her congressional district.
“That may have been part of it, because we were engaged in that negotiation and then [the film] went elsewhere,...
“That may have been part of it, because we were engaged in that negotiation and then [the film] went elsewhere,...
- 2/18/2019
- by Mike Fleming Jr
- Deadline Film + TV
“I really can’t comment on anything about that,” Jennifer Salke said Wednesday when asked about the multimillion-dollar lawsuit Woody Allen filed against Amazon Studios last week.
“It predated me, and now that it is in litigation, I can’t make any comments on it at all,” the Amazon Studios boss added, also dodging responses to the fate of Allen’s completed but shelved Rainy Day in New York film at the center of the suit.
The film, starring Jude Law, Selena Gomez, Elle Fanning, Diego Luna, Liev Schreiber and Timothée Chalamet, was part of Allen and Amazon’s four-picture deal inked in 2017 kicked to the curb last year. The Oscar-winning director is now hoping to squeeze about $68 million in compensation out of Amazon for the scotched contract, which went south resurfaced amid allegations of Allen engaging in improper sexual conduct with his daughter Dylan Farrow decades ago.
NBC vet...
“It predated me, and now that it is in litigation, I can’t make any comments on it at all,” the Amazon Studios boss added, also dodging responses to the fate of Allen’s completed but shelved Rainy Day in New York film at the center of the suit.
The film, starring Jude Law, Selena Gomez, Elle Fanning, Diego Luna, Liev Schreiber and Timothée Chalamet, was part of Allen and Amazon’s four-picture deal inked in 2017 kicked to the curb last year. The Oscar-winning director is now hoping to squeeze about $68 million in compensation out of Amazon for the scotched contract, which went south resurfaced amid allegations of Allen engaging in improper sexual conduct with his daughter Dylan Farrow decades ago.
NBC vet...
- 2/13/2019
- by Dominic Patten
- Deadline Film + TV
Amazon has picked up a third season of “Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan.”
Amazon Studios head Jennifer Salke made the announcement at the Television Critics Association winter press tour on Wednesday.
Produced by Paramount Television, “Jack Ryan” was given a two-season order by Salke’s predecessor Roy Price in 2016. Season one premiered last year to primarily positive reviews — particularly for star John Krasinski, who plays the titular CIA operative.
“Compared with his rivals in the spy game, Ethan Hunt of ‘Mission: Impossible’ and Jason Bourne, Jack Ryan looks downright heroic in his ability to suit himself to a time in which automatic presumption that America is doing the right thing is on the decline,” critic Daniel D’Addario wrote in his review of season one’s first four episodes. He added, “Krasinski’s Ryan is fueled by data and by a willingness to listen, and he has goals in mind...
Amazon Studios head Jennifer Salke made the announcement at the Television Critics Association winter press tour on Wednesday.
Produced by Paramount Television, “Jack Ryan” was given a two-season order by Salke’s predecessor Roy Price in 2016. Season one premiered last year to primarily positive reviews — particularly for star John Krasinski, who plays the titular CIA operative.
“Compared with his rivals in the spy game, Ethan Hunt of ‘Mission: Impossible’ and Jason Bourne, Jack Ryan looks downright heroic in his ability to suit himself to a time in which automatic presumption that America is doing the right thing is on the decline,” critic Daniel D’Addario wrote in his review of season one’s first four episodes. He added, “Krasinski’s Ryan is fueled by data and by a willingness to listen, and he has goals in mind...
- 2/13/2019
- by Joe Otterson
- Variety Film + TV
Woody Allen is suing Amazon for $68 million claiming the streaming giant “backed out of” four movie deals due to a previous allegation of sexual assault against the director made by his daughter Dylan Farrow.
Allen, 83, has repeatedly denied the allegation.
“Amazon has tried to excuse its action by referencing a 25-year-old, baseless allegation against Mr. Allen, but that allegation was already well known to Amazon (and the public) before Amazon entered into four separate deals with Mr. Allen,” the lawsuit alleges according to court documents obtained by People.
The Blue Jasmine director claims Amazon refused to release his film A Rainy Day in New York,...
Allen, 83, has repeatedly denied the allegation.
“Amazon has tried to excuse its action by referencing a 25-year-old, baseless allegation against Mr. Allen, but that allegation was already well known to Amazon (and the public) before Amazon entered into four separate deals with Mr. Allen,” the lawsuit alleges according to court documents obtained by People.
The Blue Jasmine director claims Amazon refused to release his film A Rainy Day in New York,...
- 2/7/2019
- by Alexia Fernandez
- PEOPLE.com
Woody Allen has filed a $68 million lawsuit against Amazon Studios, which says that Amazon breached its contract by refusing to distribute his most recent film, and terminating a four-picture production and distribution deal without cause.
The lawsuit, which was filed Thursday in the Southern District of New York by Gravier Productions and Allen, claims that Amazon backed out to distribute his film, “A Rainy Day in New York,” in June after accusations resurfaced that he sexually molested his adopted daughter, Dylan Farrow, in August 1992. Allen has repeatedly denied the accusations and in the lawsuit calls them “baseless.” He now seeks $68 million in damages.
“Amazon has tried to excuse its action by referencing a 25-year-old baseless allegation against Mr. Allen, but that allegation was already well-known to Amazon (and the public) before Amazon entered into four separate deals with Mr. Allen–and in any event, it does not provide a basis...
The lawsuit, which was filed Thursday in the Southern District of New York by Gravier Productions and Allen, claims that Amazon backed out to distribute his film, “A Rainy Day in New York,” in June after accusations resurfaced that he sexually molested his adopted daughter, Dylan Farrow, in August 1992. Allen has repeatedly denied the accusations and in the lawsuit calls them “baseless.” He now seeks $68 million in damages.
“Amazon has tried to excuse its action by referencing a 25-year-old baseless allegation against Mr. Allen, but that allegation was already well-known to Amazon (and the public) before Amazon entered into four separate deals with Mr. Allen–and in any event, it does not provide a basis...
- 2/7/2019
- by Brian Welk
- The Wrap
Amidst continuing controversy over alleged sexual misconduct, turns out Woody Allen isn’t turning the other cheek to the end of his multi-million dollar and multi-picture deal with Amazon.
The Oscar winner today hit the studio division of the Jeff Bezos founded company with a $68 million dollar lawsuit over the cancelation of the four-film agreement and Amazon Studios killing distribution of his long completes and shelved A Rainy Day in New York movie.
“In June 2018, however, Amazon backed out of the deals, purporting to terminate
them without any legal basis for doing so, while knowing that its actions would cause substantial damage to Mr. Allen, Gravier, investors and the artists and crew involved in making the films, the breach of contract complaint filed by lawyers for Allen and his Gravier Productions on Thursday in federal court in New York states (read it here).
“Amazon has tried to excuse its action...
The Oscar winner today hit the studio division of the Jeff Bezos founded company with a $68 million dollar lawsuit over the cancelation of the four-film agreement and Amazon Studios killing distribution of his long completes and shelved A Rainy Day in New York movie.
“In June 2018, however, Amazon backed out of the deals, purporting to terminate
them without any legal basis for doing so, while knowing that its actions would cause substantial damage to Mr. Allen, Gravier, investors and the artists and crew involved in making the films, the breach of contract complaint filed by lawyers for Allen and his Gravier Productions on Thursday in federal court in New York states (read it here).
“Amazon has tried to excuse its action...
- 2/7/2019
- by Dominic Patten
- Deadline Film + TV
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