David Ellison’s Skydance Media explores buying Paramount Global

David Ellison’s Skydance Media explores buying Paramount Global

Shari Redstone, president of National Amusements and Vice Chairman, CBS and Viacom speaks at the WSJTECH live conference in Laguna Beach, California, U.S. October 21, 2019.  Mike Blake | Reuters David Ellison’s Skydance Media and its financial backers are exploring a deal to take private all of Paramount Global, people familiar with the matter told … Read more

‘Barbie,’ ‘Oppenheimer’ biggest best picture box office

‘Barbie,’ ‘Oppenheimer’ biggest best picture box office

Movie posters for “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” are pictured outside the Cinemark Somerdale 16 and XD in Somerdale, New Jersey, in 2023. Hannah Beier | The Washington Post | Getty Images “Barbenheimer” strikes again. It’s no surprise that Warner Bros.’ “Barbie” and Universal’s “Oppenheimer” were among the 10 best-picture nominees announced Tuesday for this year’s Academy … Read more

Meta’s retreat from news accelerated in 2023, leaving media scrambling

Meta’s retreat from news accelerated in 2023, leaving media scrambling

Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Facebook, testifies remotely as Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., watches during the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing “Breaking the News: Censorship, Suppression, and the 2020 Election,” in Washington, Nov. 17, 2020. Bill Clark | Reuters Mother Jones CEO Monika Bauerlein has had a front-row seat in recent years to watch Facebook upend the … Read more

5 things to know before the stock market opens Monday

5 things to know before the stock market opens Monday

Here are the most important news items that investors need to start their trading day: 1. Record run The S&P 500 closed at a record high on Friday. Now Wall Street will find out if the good times can last. The Federal Reserve has so far managed to curb inflation without tipping the U.S. economy … Read more

What Wall Street wants to see from Hollywood in 2024

What Wall Street wants to see from Hollywood in 2024

Picture Alliance | Picture Alliance | Getty Images It’s the third act of the streaming wars. That’s the time a hero, seemingly beaten and broken, rises up and saves the day. But Wall Street is worried that hero may never come for Hollywood. Legacy media companies including Disney, Warner Bros. Discovery, Comcast and Paramount Global … Read more

What’s ahead for franchises, theaters

What’s ahead for franchises, theaters

Timothee Chalamet stars in Warner Bros.’ “Dune.” Warner Bros. Mean girls, Spider-Women and sandworms will headline the 2024 box office — and they’ll have to do some heavy lifting. The March 1 release of “Dune: Part Two,” the delayed and much-anticipated follow-up to Denis Villeneuve’s 2021 science fiction epic is expected to attract hordes of … Read more

Barbie, Oppenheimer, Taylor Swift: 2023’s most important films

Barbie, Oppenheimer, Taylor Swift: 2023’s most important films

Movie posters for “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” are pictured outside the Cinemark Somerdale 16 and XD in Somerdale, New Jersey, 2023. Hannah Beier | The Washington Post | Getty Images Call 2023 an explosive comeback at the box office. There were blonde bombshells, in “Barbie,” actual bombs, in “Oppenheimer,” and small-budget blockbusters — each of them … Read more

Migration could boost Universal dominance over Disney

Migration could boost Universal dominance over Disney

Universal and Illuminations latest animated film centers on a family of ducks who decides to leave the safety of a New England pond for an adventurous trip to Jamaica. However, their well-laid plans quickly go awry when they get lost and wind up in New York City. Universal Disney dropped the animation crown. Universal has … Read more

Warner Bros., Paramount merger talks may draw out NBCUniversal

Warner Bros., Paramount merger talks may draw out NBCUniversal

Let’s say you have a crush on two people and you find out one of them may like you back. Do you just start dating that person, or do you find out what the other person thinks, too? That’s where Warner Bros. Discovery finds itself today. The company has held preliminary merger talks with Paramount … Read more

Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom marks end of era for DC

Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom marks end of era for DC

Jason Momoa stars as Arthur Curry, aka Aquaman, in Warner Bros.’ “Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom.” Warner Bros. Discovery Stick a trident in it. “Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom” opens Friday, marking the final installment in Warner Bros. Discovery’s DC Extended Universe film franchise and likely Jason Momoa’s final turn as the titular hero. The … Read more