ESPN Hosts Investors To Dispel Concerns About Cord Cutting And Competition
Posted on Thursday April 17, 2014

Disney’s dumping a lot of data about ESPN this afternoon to ease Wall Street fears that the company’s cash cow could face leaner times due its rising costs and new competition from channels led by Fox Sports 1. CEO Bob Iger kicked off today’s investor meeting in Bristol, Conn vowing that he’s “going to continue to invest” in ESPN which he sees as core to his strategy to build brands and franchises. Disney doesn’t break out financial numbers for the channel, but he noted that the company’s pay TV networks account for 32% of its revenues — and 56% of its operating income. President John Skipper and other ESPN execs say that the channel can continue to score: Few pay TV customers have cut the video cord, and those who opt out typically do so for financial reasons — not because they reject the programming. Execs add that ESPN has become a household name like Apple, Google, CocaCola, and Disney. Some 88% of Americans know ESPN, putting it ahead of the Olympics (83%) and Nike (81%). Even with new competition, the portfolio of channels including ESPN2 and ESPNews continues to grow. They say that ESPN is impervious to DVR ad skipping because 71% of its telecast hours are live and 96% of its viewing is live. That’s a contrast with the four major broadcast networks where 58% of their prime time ... Read More »

Fox Buys Pitch For Its ‘Chronicle’ And ‘Fantastic Four’ Star Michael B. Jordan
Posted on Thursday April 17, 2014

EXCLUSIVE: Fox has closed a deal for Men Who Kill, a pitch by T.J. Fixman that will be developed as a star vehicle for fast rising Michael B. Jordan. The tone of the film is an international Bad Boys and it gives the studio another project with Jordan, who comes off his breakout role in Fruitvale Station and heads into the Fantastic Four reboot after previously starring in the Fox sleeper Chronicle. After starring as a teen in the iconic TV series The Wire and Friday Night Lights, Jordan is making the transition to adulthood among a handful of young actors vying to be in the next generation of bankable leading men. This is the first action thriller vehicle being developed specifically for Jordan, who is separately attached to play Apollo Creed’s grandson in a new version of Rocky that will re-team him with Fruitvale Station writer/director Ryan Coogler. Greg Berlanti is producing and Kenny Goodman will be exec producer, with Fox exec Mike Ireland overseeing. WME reps the scribe and Jordan. Latter is also repped by Goodman at Schiff Co,  and Gregory Slewett at Bloom. Fixman is also repped by Jeff Silver and Slewett and Berlanti by Patti Felker.

Gravitas Snags ‘I Am I’ Starring Jocelyn Towne & ‘Big Bang Theory’s Simon Helberg
Posted on Thursday April 17, 2014

Gravitas Ventures has acquired drama I Am I starring Jocelyn Towne, Big Bang Theory‘s Simon Helberg, Kevin Tighe, Jason Ritter, and James Morrison. Towne makes her directorial debut with the pic, which she also wrote, about a woman (Towne) who meets her estranged father at her mother’s funeral. Realizing he suffers from memory loss and thinks he’s still a young man she pretends to be her mother to get to know him. Towne and Co. raised over $100K on Kickstarter for the project, which is produced by Jennifer Dubin and Cora Olson for Present Pictures and executive produced by Towne and Helberg. The married collaborators premiered their second film together, We’ll Never Have Paris, at SXSW while producers Dubin and Olson have Chris Denham’s Preservation debuting this month at Tribeca. Gravitas is plotting a June 13 NY/LA theatrical release preceded by a digital release via Vimeo On Demand May 13. Gravitas’ Melanie Miller and Nolan Gallagher negotiated the deal with Dubin and Olson from Present Pictures on behalf of the filmmakers.

Hot TV Teaser: ‘Lindsay’ Finale On OWN
Posted on Thursday April 17, 2014

Lindsay Lohan‘s rehab docu for OWN is coming to a close Sunday with a two-part wrap-up. Watch here:

Academy Sets 2015 Oscar Nominations Date For Jan. 15; Governors Awards Nov. 8
Posted on Thursday April 17, 2014

The 2015 Oscars date was set last year by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences when they announced the 2014 date, which shifted a week owing to a conflict with the Closing Ceremony of the Sochi Olympics. New today are dates for the nominations announcement — Thursday, January 15 — which gives voters about five weeks before final ballots are due February 17. The past couple of years members had six weeks to see everything and cast their ballots. The Governors Awards are set for November 8. Here is this season’s timeline:

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and the ABC Television Network today announced the dates for the 87th Oscars. The Academy Awards presentation will air live on ABC on Oscar® Sunday, February 22, 2015. Key dates for the Awards season are: Saturday, November 8, 2014 The Governors Awards Wednesday, December 3, 2014 Official Screen Credits and music submissions due Monday, December 29, 2014 Nominations voting begins 8 a.m., PT Thursday, January 8, 2015 Nominations voting ends 5 p.m., PT Thursday, January 15, 2015 Oscar nominations announced Monday, February 2, 2015 Oscar Nominees Luncheon Friday, February 6, 2015 Final voting begins 8 a.m., PT Saturday, February 7, 2015 Scientific and Technical Awards Tuesday, February 17, 2015 Final voting ends 5 p.m., PT Sunday, February 22, 2015 87th Academy Awards begins 7 p.m., ET/ 4 p.m., PT