The Town with Matthew Belloni

Matt is joined by Variety executive editor Shirley Halperin to look ahead to Sunday’s 2022 Grammy Awards. They forecast what we will see out of Kanye, whether this will be Olivia Rodrigo’s night, whether a Grammy win still matters to an artist's success, how Vegas as a venue will affect the show, and how streaming saved the music industry.Host: Matt BelloniGuest: Shirley HalperinProducer: Craig HorlbeckTheme Song: Devon Renaldo Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Matt is joined by WWE president Nick Khan to chat about the WWE as a media entity, including its deal with Peacock and whether a potential acquisition is looming. Nick talks about how the WWE wants to develop new wrestlers, changing the narrative of the sport, The Rock’s career, 'Wrestlemania,' and more.Host: Matt BelloniGuest: Nick KhanProducer: Craig HorlbeckTheme Song: Devon Renaldo Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It’s the morning after, and Bloomberg’s Lucas Shaw joins Matt to give a report on the 2022 Academy Awards. They discuss the fallout after the Will Smith–Chris Rock slap, the viewership spike after an all-time low in 2021, and if the modified show format was a success. Later, Matt and Craig review Matt’s past month of predictions.Host: Matt BelloniGuest: Lucas ShawProducer: Craig HorlbeckTheme Song: Devon Renaldo Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Live from inside the Dolby Theater at the Academy Awards, Matt and The Hollywood Reporter’s Scott Feinberg react to Will Smith slapping Chris Rock in the face onstage during the show.Host: Matt BelloniGuest: Scott FeinbergProducer: Craig HorlbeckTheme song: Devon Ronaldo Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Oscar math expert Ben Zauzmer joins the show to outline his Oscars prediction model and to forecast who his model believes are mathematically the most likely winners in each category. Later, Matt gives a prediction of his own on the 2022 Oscars.Host: Matt BelloniGuest: Ben ZauzmerProducer: Craig HorlbeckTheme Song: Devon Renaldo Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Matt is joined by author Mark Harris to discuss the Academy’s decision to cut eight categories from the live Oscars broadcast, and to debate whether or not the ceremony needs to be changed—and if so, how much? Later, Vulture’s Joe Adalian comes on to talk about Amazon hosting the Academy of Country Music Awards and whether awards shows can survive on streaming services.Host: Matt BelloniGuests: Mark Harris and Joe AdalianProducer: Craig HorlbeckTheme Song: Devon Renaldo Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Matt is joined by co-head and partner at WME Sports Josh Pyatt to discuss why broadcasters are seeing huge paydays, which streaming service needs NFL Sunday Ticket the most, what effect the Manning-cast will have on future broadcasts, why some athletes succeed in building an entertainment business while others fail, and more. Matt finishes the show with a take on NFL announcers.Host: Matt BelloniGuest: Josh PyattProducer: Craig HorlbeckTheme Song: Devon Renaldo Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Are the middlemen who have dominated Hollywood for decades in trouble? Matt is joined by Bloomberg’s Lucas Shaw to discuss the future for Hollywood intermediaries, the ongoing turmoil at Disney, and Rachel Zegler of 'West Side Story’ not receiving an invitation to the Oscars.Host: Matt BelloniGuest: Lucas ShawProducer: Craig HorlbeckTheme Song: Devon Renaldo Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Matt is joined by chief media analyst of Variety Intelligence Platform Andy Wallenstein to discuss Amazon’s $6.5 billion purchase of MGM Studios and what this means for Amazon's future in the movie and television industry, how this will affect Amazon prime members, and how this will play out in Hollywood.Host: Matt BelloniGuest: Andy WallensteinProducer: Craig HorlbeckTheme Song: Devon Renaldo Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Matt leads off with the bizarre news of movie theater chain AMC buying stock in a gold mine, as well as Discovery CEO David Zaslav’s 2021 pay package totaling over $240 million. Then, senior strategy analyst Julia Alexander joins the show to discuss Netflix beginning to curtail the ability to share a password with multiple users, and whether or not a streaming service like Netflix can produce a lasting movie franchise.Host: Matt BelloniGuest: Julia AlexanderProducer: Craig HorlbeckTheme Song: Devon Renaldo Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices