The Ankler
theankler.com
The Ankler
@theankler.com
Hollywood’s insider newsletter. Don’t eat lunch in this town without it. theankler.com | http://instagram.com/theankler
Director Chloé Zhao tells @kateyrich.bsky.social about building her creative mindset, from studying psychology and Greek mysticism to embracing a “volcanic” phase of ideas. She explains how that sparked her vision for 'Hamnet' and its transcendent finale: theankler.com/p/chloe-zhao...
November 25, 2025 at 8:23 PM
It's a Little Gold Men reunion! @jowrotethis.bsky.social and @kateyrich.bsky.social consider Timothée Chalamet's innovative awards strategy which may be shaped by not wanting a head-to-head with Leonardo DiCaprio. Watch Katey's full chat with Joanna, Mike Hogan & @rilaws.bsky.social: bit.ly/4ikAoLe
November 21, 2025 at 10:09 PM
Our Prestige Junkie Pundits think the best director race is basically set at the top, with Paul Thomas Anderson and Chloé Zhao appearing on 96 percent of ballots. The real suspense: who will claim the fifth spot
prestigejunkieafterparty.substack.com/p/reunion-my...
November 21, 2025 at 7:45 PM
SCOOP: Stephen Schwartz tells @robledonne.bsky.social that he and Winnie Holzman are already developing a new Wicked project. It isn’t a sequel to Glinda and Elphaba’s story but a separate idea that expands Oz in a new direction: theankler.com/p/more-oz-wi...
November 21, 2025 at 6:38 PM
Gen Z is the audience Hollywood depends on, yet 65 percent of their viewing is older library shows. @whitneyfriedlander.com speaks with showrunners and executives about why new 20-something comedies rarely break through and how creators are trying to reach them theankler.com/p/gen-z-is-h...
November 20, 2025 at 8:50 PM
Reposted by The Ankler
Today I noticed crows feet forming by my left eye.

Also today, @theankler.com ran my feature about the dearth of 20-something TV.

theankler.com/p/gen-z-is-h...
Gen Z Is Huge. Their TV Shows Are Tiny. And Hollywood Is Panicking
Showrunners Nahnatchka Khan, Ben Kronengold & Rebecca Shaw, and top execs, on the industry's most-wanted demo miss
theankler.com
November 20, 2025 at 8:31 PM
With Warner Bros. bids due today, Richard Rushfield breaks down how Trump’s favor, Ellison’s attendance at the MBS state dinner, Wall Street’s doubts about Netflix, and talk of Saudi involvement shape one of the biggest studio sales in years: theankler.com/p/trump-noos...
November 20, 2025 at 7:37 PM
Reposted by The Ankler
Scoop: Netflix considered a weekly drop for the final season of #StrangerThings before moving to a three-part holiday release for one of its signature hits. That and more this week for @theankler.com --> theankler.com/p/turkey-nfl...
Turkey, NFL & ‘Stranger Things’: Netflix Holiday Stunt Overrides Duffers’ Push for Weekly
SCOOP: What the creators wanted as industry insiders spill on the final-season strategy and the streamer’s new openness to moving beyond the binge
theankler.com
November 19, 2025 at 7:21 PM
The Ellisons bet big on Trump. Richard Rushfield tracks the fallout as layoffs, the Warners bid, and Epstein revelations collide with fresh political shifts. Early murmurs in town suggest the cost of that alliance may rise: theankler.com/p/the-elliso...
November 18, 2025 at 8:09 PM
Adult animation is one of the few parts of TV with real buyer interest. @elainelow.bsky.social speaks with agents and insiders about Netflix’s global push, Warner Bros.’ aggressive DC plans, Amazon’s expanding slate, and Fox’s search for a longer format series theankler.com/p/adult-anim...
November 17, 2025 at 10:55 PM
SCOOP: Hulu spent $100M on Kim Kardashian’s 'All’s Fair', paying its five leads an average of $350K per episode. Critics called it “a crime against television.” Viewers made it Hulu’s biggest launch in three years. @snoodit.bsky.social reports: theankler.com/p/100-millio...
November 12, 2025 at 7:56 PM
Reposted by The Ankler
#AllsFair, complete with its $100M price tag, is a fascinating case study in how to cut through in 2025. But is it all worth it? My column for @theankler.com --> theankler.com/p/100-millio...
$100 Million Hate-Watch: Inside Hulu’s ‘All’s Fair’ Trainwreck — and How It Turned Around
SCOOP: I have the budget, cast paydays and behind-the-scenes drama from Kim Kardashian's critically-savaged series that's gone ‘zero to hero’
theankler.com
November 12, 2025 at 6:57 PM
As theaters faced their worst October since the ’90s, Matthew Frank visited 58 movie theaters in 28 states to hear from the people keeping moviegoing alive.
The first edition of Crowd Pleaser, our @letterboxd.social x Ankler series, is here: theankler.com/p/ghosts-in-...
November 12, 2025 at 5:52 PM
At the Denver Film Festival, Gus Van Sant broke down the deceptively simple job of a director: keep moving, stay calm, and stay obsessed. He talked with @kateyrich.bsky.social and @chrisjrosen.bsky.social about leadership on set and his new film Dead Man’s Wire: theankler.com/p/gus-van-sa...
November 12, 2025 at 2:33 PM
Dramas once defined cinema. Now, they’re nearly extinct. @richardrushfield.bsky.social digs into the data and asks what happens when Hollywood trades human emotion for algorithmic risk avoidance
theankler.com/p/the-death-...
November 11, 2025 at 8:36 PM
Fifty million users. A $3 billion revenue goal. And storylines written in two weeks. @elainelow.bsky.social speaks with DramaBox execs on how the Disney-backed app is turning 60-second soap operas into a global business theankler.com/p/the-art-of...
November 10, 2025 at 10:27 PM
Reposted by The Ankler
It was a true pleasure and delight to sit down and talk about my new FAST & FURIOUS book with @theankler.com's @richardrushfield.bsky.social for this week's Rushfield Lunch! (I was too excited to eat, though I do drink an awful lot of water during the segment.) www.youtube.com/watch?v=rdBC...
The Rushfield Lunch: How the ‘Fast & Furious’ Laid the Groundwork for 25 Years of Hollywood
YouTube video by The Ankler
www.youtube.com
November 7, 2025 at 5:25 PM
David Ellison’s first 100 days at Paramount are in the books.
@richardrushfield.bsky.social breaks down the rhetoric, the layoffs, the checkbook hype and that wild bid for Warner Bros.
theankler.com/p/100-days-a...
November 6, 2025 at 8:23 PM
Reposted by The Ankler
New on @theankler.com: My scoop-filled Q&A w/ UCP chief Beatrice Springborn, who spills on #MrRobot's Sam Esmail tackling David Cronenberg’s 1983 cult fave 'Videodrome,' the Obamas & Yara Shahidi taking on 'The Trees' & the future of Seth MacFarlane's deal

theankler.com/p/beatrice-s...
Beatrice Springborn’s Bet: A ‘Flexible Model’ to Win Talent, Outsmart Streamers & Go Global
SCOOP: Universal Content Productions’ chief reveals projects with Yara Shahidi, the Obamas, Sam Esmail, Matt Charman — and the state of Seth MacFarlane’s overall
theankler.com
November 5, 2025 at 7:26 PM
Listen up, #medianerds: @seanmcnulty.bsky.social breaks down WBD's Q3 earnings, from its linear TV apocalypse to its studio successes. Plus, what's in it for the main contenders like Paramount or Netflix if they bid for Warners? theankler.com/p/wbd-q3-mov...
☀️WBD Q3: Movies Can’t Save Terrible Linear TV Biz
WBD falls to a net loss as cable money evaporates - a look at the 3-year WBD 💰changes says it all
theankler.com
November 6, 2025 at 7:23 PM
In 2025, just 17 of the top 100 films were directed by nonwhite filmmakers. @richardrushfield.bsky.social examines how Hollywood’s talk of change gave way to complacency and what that means for the stories audiences see on screen theankler.com/p/hollywoods...
November 4, 2025 at 8:26 PM
[email protected] analyzes what Zohran Mamdani’s policies could mean for New York’s creative class, from union support and higher corporate taxes to housing costs and film incentives that keep productions local: theankler.com/p/zohran-mam...
November 4, 2025 at 7:39 PM
This year’s Oscar race is a generational face-off. Gen Z is breaking through with potential nods for Hamnet and Frankenstein, millennials dominate directing, and Gen X is holding tight to its power... for now. @kateyrich.bsky.social sees who’s winning the long game: theankler.com/p/oscar-show...
November 3, 2025 at 9:46 PM
Inside Warner Bros., the mood is “quiet panic.” @snoodit.bsky.social reports on how staff are bracing for another ownership change, what David Ellison’s bid could mean for jobs, and why “business as usual” doesn’t feel so usual anymore: theankler.com/p/warner-bro...
October 29, 2025 at 11:03 PM
Reposted by The Ankler
Breaking: Netflix has won a big bidding war for a hostage thriller starring Adam Driver and from Peter Craig (Top Gun: Maverick) and the Emmy-winning director of #Adolescence. More details coming shortly in this week's column for @theankler.com.
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October 29, 2025 at 5:01 PM