I want all of them:
@danescentral We have some real life Scooby Doos in this bunch 🥹💕 #GreatDanes #FindingHomes #FYP #scoobydoo
Here’s A BUNCH OF TV News
Warner Bros. Discovery is taking a hatchet to Turner Classic Movies channel. Yesterday they revealed TCM’s general manager, Pola Chagnon, was fired after 25 years with the company. And soon after that announcement, they confirmed that “TCM’s senior vice president of programming and content strategy Charles Tabesh, vice president of studio production Anne Wilson, vice president of marketing and creative Dexter Fedor and TCM Enterprises vice president Genevieve McGillicuddy” would all be leaving the company. This is understandably causing great consternation among film buffs and grandmas everywhere.
When I wrote this back in January, I was filled with hope for the future of @tcm — It was evident to me that the hosts were cautiously optimistic and were choosing to believe the goodwill and verbal support Zaslav and higher ups gave them.https://t.co/1SJ3i1dWsy
— Maureen Lee Lenker (@themaureenlee) June 21, 2023
But Zaslav and his team were, it seems, just telling us what we wanted to hear all the while plotting to dismantle one of the most meaningful and accessible sources of film history out there.
— Maureen Lee Lenker (@themaureenlee) June 21, 2023
Anne Wilson, who conceived of every shoot; and Charlie Tabesh, the senior programmer who is responsible for the rare films TCM screens and its very identity as a network from its monthly themes to its Star of the Month.
— Maureen Lee Lenker (@themaureenlee) June 21, 2023
David Zaslav can sit at Jack Warner's desk and renovate Bob Evans' house all he wants. He doesn't love movies or TCM. He doesn't even know what movies his own studio released (we all saw it in action at the film festival).
— Maureen Lee Lenker (@themaureenlee) June 21, 2023
He made this story, my reporting, and the hosts look foolish with his choices today. Because he hoodwinked all of us.
— Maureen Lee Lenker (@themaureenlee) June 21, 2023
And I send so much love to all of those still working for the network who I know will do their best to keep things afloat with a reduced team no matter how much the cards are stacked against them.
— Maureen Lee Lenker (@themaureenlee) June 21, 2023
The world is becoming less and less interested in preservation of these national treasures and our cultural history. It's one of our more important historical artifacts and TCM has done a wonderful job cataloging the history, providing context, and stressing the significance.
— Blake (@PopcornNMovie) June 21, 2023
The CASABLANCAs and CITIZEN KANEs will still be accessible, of course, but this morning I watched a DVR'd TCM broadcast of LOVE HAS MANY FACES, a campy Lana Turner/Cliff Robertson melodrama from 1965. Without TCM, where do movies like that go?
— kayleigh hearn (@ronchronchronch) June 21, 2023
Goddamn you Zaslav. You couldn’t just leave this one alone? https://t.co/9JIYZ35lsy
— Patton Oswalt (@pattonoswalt) June 21, 2023
Current mood of the @tcm fanbase. #TCMParty pic.twitter.com/Ny7NTQRZ85
— Elise (@TeamRickandIlsa) June 21, 2023
And in short: Fuck David Zaslav. Again. For like, the 50th fucking time already.
Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorsese, and Paul Thomas Anderson have organized an emergency phone call today to Zaslav about the layoffs — that’s how concerned filmmakers are about what Warner Bros. Discovery has planned.
Vanity Fair suggests that this move at TCM might be related to The Flash being a box office flop this past weekend — the idea being that one Warner Bros. Discovery property had to make up for the failure of another — but based on everything Zaslav has shown us so far, he’s been looking to milk every penny he can out of every channel under his control, and I’m sure TCM has been on his radar or a while now.
Warner Bros. Discovery is also considering licensing original HBO series to Netflix because David Zaslav is an idiot who DOES NOT UNDERSTAND OR APPRECIATE THE VALUE OF HBO. Reportedly, HBO veterans pushed back, but Zaslav don’t care. He’s all about that short-term profit, who cares if he has to burn down the reputation and legacy that HBO has built over the past 50 years?
And listen, it’s not like HBO hasn’t licensed shows before — they have — but not in a long while. And this move reeks of being made by someone who resents and disrespects HBO’s prestige brand. Zaslav is a reality buffoon who doesn’t appreciate old films or quality television and it’s not wrong for people to regard these moves with suspicion.
given the debt load and Zas' quest for cash, this was perhaps inevitable. still, shocking. Sarandos has been trying to get his hands on HBO programming since the dawn of the streaming era. Every past steward of the HBO brand outright rejected the idea https://t.co/EqVFTX7mpO
— Felix Gillette (@felixgillette) June 21, 2023
They’ve launched their new slogan:
“MAX, the one to watch for HBO, which Netflix also has, so one of two, really, but we have Toddlers & Tiaras, which is almost The Wire, right? *sweats* Right?” pic.twitter.com/lYMWmYW9WR
— Jeff Ewing 🎬 (@ReelJeffEwing) June 21, 2023
Ryan Murphy is looking to leave Netflix for Disney. Disney!
Netflix has recently adjusted its viewership matrix, and now Wednesday is its most-viewed English-speaking series, topping Stranger Things 4. However, Squid Game remains its most-viewed series.
This long article about Taylor Sheridan, the creator of Yellowstone, is a good read. Some of the interesting tidbits in it include the fact that Yellowstone first landed at HBO, where they rejected the idea of Kevin Costner starring in it and told him that if he could get Robert Redford to agree to star, they’d greenlight it. So Sheridan convinced Redford to star in it, only to have HBO respond that they wanted a “Robert Redford type.”
It clearly didn’t move forward at HBO and when Sheridan asked what the problem was, an executive told him: “… it just feels so Middle America. We’re HBO, we’re avant-garde, we’re trendsetters. This feels like a step backward.” And now, Paramount is counting all those steps backward straight to the bank while HBO is airing … The Idol.
Here’s a reminder of other shows HBO passed on, like dumb idiots. I will never understand how they let Mad Men and Breaking Bad slip through their fingers.
Meanwhile, 1883, which premiered on Paramount+ is currently airing on Paramount Network where it is a big hit. Which isn’t a surprise? The Yellowstone audience is a cable network audience, not a streaming audience. Give them more Yellowstone content on cable and they will come, duh.
They are already planning Saturday Night Live‘s 50th anniversary celebrations which won’t happen until next year.
Marvel used AI to create the opening credits to Secret Invasion BECAUSE OF COURSE THEY DID, THEY’RE MARVEL.
Maya Hawke has mixed feelings about Robin having a girlfriend in Stranger Things season five because she doesn’t want that story to take away from her friendship with Steve. And as the TV person who has made it almost my entire personality to defend platonic relationships, I completely support this.
The Bear returns late tonight — and this is a reminder: if you love The Bear, you should check out Shameless, if you didn’t watch it back in the day. Jeremy Allen is staggeringly good in that series, too, as Lip, easily the best, most complicated, and heartbreaking character in a show filled with complicated, heartbreaking characters. I had my problems with Shameless, but one of the main reasons I stuck around was Lip. Well, Lip and Kev and V.
Back in 2007, Kanye West filmed a pilot for a comedy series about his life that was supposed to be inspired by Curb Your Enthusiasm and Arrested Development. It was called A Little Inappropriate, and it has found its way online recently. It’s … not Curb Your Enthusiasm. Still better than The Idol, though.
Oh my God, even Oreo is dunking on The Idol.
finally some good news
— OREO Cookie (@Oreo) June 15, 2023
(and yes, I meant that pun, 100%)
Renewals
- Nine Perfect Strangers has been renewed for a second season on Hulu.
- Sorry, I Didn’t Know has been renewed for a fourth season on ITV.
Cancellations
- High School Musical: The Musical: The Series will end on Disney+ with season 4.
- Looks like Barons might have been canceled at The CW after four episodes. It’s being replaced with Nancy Drew reruns. Here’s an idea: maybe they should have just renewed Nancy Drew instead of canceling it with all the rest of their shows?
In Development
- The Quiet Tenant has been acquired by Blumhouse to be adapted for television.
- Bad Surgeon: Love Under the Knife has been set at Netflix.
Casting News
- Dan Stevens is replacing Justin Roiland on Solar Opposites on Hulu.
- Lisa Rinna has joined the cast of American Horror Stories.
- Evelyn Lozada is rejoining Basketball Wives on VH1.
- Geraldo Rivera is out at The Five on Fox News.
Morning, it’s official, I’m off @TheFive. My last scheduled show appearances are Thursday and Friday June 29th and 30th. It’s been a great run and I appreciate having had the opportunity. Being odd man out isn’t always easy. For the time being, I’m still Correspondent at Large.
— Geraldo Rivera (@GeraldoRivera) June 21, 2023
Mark Your Calendars
- Hip Hop Treasures debuts on A&E on August 12.
- Five Star Chef will premiere on Netflix on July 14.
- The Deepest Breath premieres on Netflix on July 19.
- Fifteen-Love is coming to Prime Video soon.
- Captain Fall will debut on Netflix on July 28.
- Mini Reni will premiere on Magnolia Network, Max, and Discovery+ on June 25.
- Brandi Carlile: in the Canyon Haze – Live from Laurel Canyon will premiere on HBO on July 1.
- American Born Chinese will air two episodes on ABC, Hulu, YouTube, and Roku on June 24.
- NewsNation will host a town hall with Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on June 28.
- Titanic Sub: Lost at Sea will air on June 22 on Channel 5 in the U.K. Counting down to TMZ’s inevitable episode.
R.I.P.
Larry Myers, Jr., Star of My 600-Lb. Life
WATCH THIS
Secret Invasion: Nick Fury and his team race against time to save Earth from the shapeshifting alien Skrulls in this new series. Series premiere. Disney+
L.A. Fire & Rescue: This new docuseries from the producers of Chicago Fire offers a look inside the workings of the Los Angeles County Fire Department. Series premiere. 7 p.m., ABC
The Stroll: A history of New York’s Meatpacking District as told by the transgender sex workers who lived and worked in the area, and how the violence, policing, and gentrification that took place in the 90s led to a new push for transgender rights. Premiere. 8 p.m., HBO
The Bear: The second season of the tense, dark little comedy(?) begins streaming at 11 p.m., if you just can’t wait. Season premiere. FX on Hulu
WEDS. | 7:00 | 7:30 | 8:00 | 8:30 | 9:00 | 9:30 |
ABC | Judge Steve Harvey (new) |
The Wonder Years (new) |
Abbott Elementary (repeat) |
The $100,000 Pyramid (repeat) |
CBS | Ghosts (repeat) |
Ghosts (repeat) |
The Price Is Right At Night (repeat) |
CSI: Vegas (repeat) |
CW | Nancy Drew (new) |
Riverdale (repeat) |
Local |
FOX | MasterChef (new) |
Gordon Ramsay’s Food Stars (new) |
News/Local |
NBC | LA Fire and Rescue (new) |
Chicago Fire (repeat) |
Chicago P.D. (repeat) |
One thought on “TCM is about to become Warner Bros. Discovery’s latest victim.”