Ankler Agenda

When Endeavor went public in 2021, the agency pulled out all the stops to present itself as innovators and a disruptor — the kind of terminology Wall Street loves from tech companies. But, as it often goes with the media companies that try the same tack, “investors never fully bought it,” says David Lidsky, who joins to evaluate Endeavor’s recent decision to go private again. Also: Sean McNulty and Elaine Low discuss the culmination of Disney’s proxy war, and Peter Kiefer joins to break down his story on Silicon Valley’s new ideology around AI and why Hollywood should pay attention. Also, we’ve been nominated for a Webby Award, vote for us here by April 18th!Transcript here. For more entertainment news, subscribe to The Ankler here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hollywood is filled with, er, colorful personalities. The one of the moment: Michael Kassan, the former MediaLink connector-in-chief now in dueling lawsuits with UTA. David Lidsky joins to reveal The Ankler’s investigative reporting into Kassan’s curious legal and financial history, including a $3.3m IRS tax lien taken out on his Beverly Hills home the week before he went to war with UTA. Also: Elaine Low on TV workers’ struggles as unemployment outpaces series cutbacks, and Richard Rushfield on the current studio merger landscape.Transcript here. For more entertainment news, subscribe to The Ankler here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Wall Street likes surefire bets — growth companies that deliver predictable returns for infinite quarters. But in Hollywood, “you’re in the failure game,” says Richard Rushfield. Yet when the alchemy works, hits power the industry. Still studio leaders are mired in machinations to appease investors, often with disastrous results: a studio for sale (Paramount); activist investors (Disney); and open jobs at Netflix and NBCU that have almost nothing to do with creativity. Despite it all, when Sean McNulty and crew evaluate the upcoming box-office slate, they find cause for hope. After all, Ankler Rule No. 1: this is a business of hits.Transcript here. For more entertainment news, subscribe to The Ankler here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

One of the most plum jobs in entertainment historically has been that of the creative exec. But now, with data informing programming choices more than ever, and advertisers hungry for user information, Elaine Low examines how the job market is revealing those shifted priorities through the lens of the two most storied legacy studios, Disney and Warner Bros. Discovery (while sharing a peek at Amazon Studios). Meanwhile, Sean McNulty lays out the current streaming advertising landscape, and Richard Rushfield opines on the lingering puzzles from the Oscars.Transcript here. For more entertainment news, subscribe to The Ankler here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Richard Rushfield assessed the State of the Industry this week, and we have questions: Why is there reason for hope? Why is Netflix suddenly so into sports? What are its live TV ambitions? Is there really no superhero fatigue? Or do we just need better superhero movies, as Disney's Bob Iger says? Will the Oscar telecast be less than four hours? And will anyone watch? As always, Sean McNulty and Elaine Low join Richard to answer these questions and more, including perhaps the biggest one of all: Who will Richard be wearing at the Academy Awards on Sunday?Transcript here. For more entertainment news, subscribe to The Ankler here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week featured two huge film jobs finding their man: Netflix and Disney. Over at Netflix, seasoned producer Dan Lin is set to replace Scott Stuber, and Disney promoted David Greenbaum from Searchlight head to Disney Studios head. Do these moves mean a return to more original fare? “There’s reason for hope,” says Richard Rushfield. “I mean, normally when you get these kinds of announcements, it’s like, ‘Ok, well, another person like that to a different person like that.’ But these are people you’re genuinely excited to see what they might do, so go figure.” Also: the crew discusses the Paramount and Endeavor earnings calls, and what the takeaways were from the whole earnings slate.Transcript here. For more entertainment news, subscribe to The Ankler here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As Warner Bros. Discovery chief David Zaslav pours money into reconstructing Robert Evans’ legendary estate, a far more daunting reconstruction awaits: his company. On Friday, WBD had its Q4 earnings report, and it wasn’t pretty. Zaslav’s company missed on both earnings and revenue, and the stock went down roughly 12 percent. The crew looks at what WBD’s head honcho's plan to remedy the disaster. Also: Richard Rushfield breaks down his five-part field guide for how to navigate Hollywood types, and Elaine Low gives an update on the upcoming IATSE negotiations.For more entertainment news, subscribe to The Ankler. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The gods of Hollywood never give with both hands. Just ask Paramount who, in one week, delivered a record-shattering Super Bowl and Jon Stewart’s triumphant return. But currently for sale, the debt-laden studio within days was laying off three percent of its workforce — roughly 800 staffers — and Warren Buffett shed a third of his stock in the company. The team weighs in on what appears to be a shortage of interested buyers, why, and what happens next. Also: Elaine Low on how to read the TV tea leaves from her chat with FX chief John Landgraf.For more entertainment news, subscribe to The Ankler. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Disney CEO Bob Iger dropped one bombshell after another this week: a new ‘sports Hulu’ with Warner Bros. Discovery and Fox, a gaming splurge, and, yes, of course, news about Taylor Swift. As the Q4 earnings call revealed, theme park revenue continues to lead, as linear TV profits sunk, and streaming and the movie studio suffered nine-figure losses. What does it all mean? Elaine Low, sitting in as host of this week’s podcast, also shares her findings on where the jobs are (and aren’t) around the TV industry; Peter Kiefer joins to break down his big stories on the drama behind L.A.’s private school scene and the spiraling doc market. Transcript here.For more entertainment news, subscribe to The Ankler.Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A film executive with a TV metabolism. Relationships with top talent. A culture fit in a challenging company. If you can manage all three, you might have a shot at the Netflix film chief role recently vacated by Scott Stuber. There’s lots of names in competition, but more reasons for boss Bela Bajaria to be picky. “If you judge power in film by how much you can green light, there’s no film job that’s even close to this,” says Richard Rushfield. Also: Elaine Low on the new reality in the unscripted space, and Peter Kiefer delves into Westwood’s historic Fox theater’s new ownership group, led by none other than Jason Reitman. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices