Amazon's "The Rings of Power" / YouTube Originals shuts down / "Yellowjackets" finale viewership / "Our Flag Means Death"

Plus today's calendar, Apple TV+ "WeCrashed" trailer, "Outlander" Season 6, "White Lotus" adds to cast, and more

Inside.com Part of   Network January 19, 2022

Presented by

Amazon's Prime Video Middle-earth series will be titled "The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power." The streamer also released a teaser depicting the forging of the series' iconic One Ring. More: Co-showrunners JD Payne and Patrick McKay said they'd hoped to come up with a title that "could live on in the spine of a book next to J.R.R. Tolkien’s other classics." The series is set during the Second Age of Middle-earth, thousands of years before the events of director Peter Jackson's films, and will depict events including the forging of the rings, the rise of the Dark Lord Sauron, and the doomed kingdom of men known as Númenor. "The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power" debuts on September 2 on Prime Video. THE VERGE

"The Best Shape of My Life" YouTube announced plans to wind down its YouTube Originals division after six years. Moving forward, the company will produce original content exclusively for its Black Voices and YouTube Kids hubs. More: Earlier this week, Susanne Daniels, YouTube's head of original content, announced plans to exit the company in March. More than 2 million creators are currently enrolled in YouTube's ad revenue-sharing "Partner Program." YouTube started producing in-house original content as part of an overall attempt to launch a subscription streaming service, called YouTube Red. In 2018, the company started downsizing its slate of scripted films and shows, moving high-profile projects such as "Cobra Kai" and "On Becoming a God in Central Florida" to other streamers and networks. Recent unscripted YouTube Originals included Will Smith's fitness series "The Best Shape of My Life" and the documentary feature "Life in a Day 2020." VARIETY

A message from LOHIKA Web3: Why It Matters and How to Think About It in 2022. You may have heard about “Web3,” along with related technologies like blockchain, NFTs and smart contracts. What exactly is Web3? Is it the evolution of Web 2.0? Is it the future of the Internet? We don’t know all the answers, so invited a panel of experts who do. We’re hosting an online event with Capgemini AIE “Web3: Why It Matters and How to Think About It in 2022.” The panel: Raman Frey, Founder of Good People Dinners (moderator) Sheila Warren, Deputy Global Head at World Economic Forum Shane O’Flynn, Chief Engineering Officer at Marco Polo Network Willie Wang, VP Product and Engineering at Abra We will also discuss: How engineering leaders should approach recruiting for team building web3 applications Whether an NFT represents ownership of digital art or if there’s more to it What will happen between central banks asserting their control of fiat currencies and decentralized currencies erasing boundaries and national sovereignty Join us on February 10, 2022 at 10am PT / 1pm ET. Register Here

DAILY CALENDAR WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 19 TOO HOT TO HANDLE: The reality dating/competition series returns to Netflix for a third season today. Attractive singles live together in a lavish island house, under the watchful eye of digital monitor Lana, and risk elimination if they engage in any kind of physical contact. The winner takes home $200,000. [Netflix] THE PUPPET MASTER: HUNTING THE ULTIMATE CONMAN: Three-part true-crime series examining the case of Robert Hendy-Freegard, who scammed eight different victims out of over £1 million over the course of multiple decades by impersonating a British spy. [Netflix] EL MARGINAL: Crime drama series from Argentina, set among the inmates and guards of San Onofre prison. Juan Minujín, Nicolás Furtado, and Claudio Rissi co-star. Season 4 hits Netflix today.  [Netflix] JUANPIS GONZÁLEZ – THE SERIES: Comedy-drama series from Colombia about a wealthy and spoiled man-child whose grandfather challenges him to start living a more responsible life if he wants to inherit the family fortune. Star Alejandro Riaño originally introduced the character of Juanpis González on social media. [Netflix] HEAVENLY BITES: MEXICO: Spanish-language docuseries exploring popular dishes and unconventional culinary traditions from across Mexico. Memo Villegas narrates. [Netflix] THE WORLD ACCORDING TO JEFF GOLDBLUM: In his National Geographic docuseries, the iconic actor takes deep dives into the subjects that interest and intrigue him most. The second half of the show's second season -- featuring explorations of birthdays, backyards, and motorcycles -- hits Disney+ today. [Disney+] VETS ON THE BEACH: Docuseries from National Geographic following four veterinarians from all around the Australian coastline as they treat a variety of animals, from household pets to elephants, kangaroos, wallabies, and more. The first 2 seasons come to Disney+ today. [Disney+] THE END OF THE STORM: Documentary feature from filmmaker James Erskine ("Billie") taking an intimate, behind-the-scenes look at the Liverpool Football Club throughout its 2019-2020 Premier League-winning season. [Paramount+] ROY WOOD JR.: IMPERFECT MESSENGER: The comedian's 2021 Comedy Central stand-up special comes to Paramount+ today. Topics include the differences between ancestors and forefathers, celebrities using fame to dodge prison sentences, and why Leonardo DiCaprio is Black Americans' greatest white ally. [Paramount+] VAXXED NATION: 2021 documentary feature produced for Smithsonian Channel tracking Israel's response to the COVID-19 pandemic throughout 2021. In less than four months, the country vaccinated 57% of its population and pioneered vaccine passport technologies, allowing it to re-open considerably earlier than the rest of the world. [Paramount+] SEARCHING FOR SECRETS: Smithsonian Channel docuseries exploring the secret histories of major world cities. Season 1 includes looks at New York, San Francisco, London, Berlin, Paris, and Singapore. [Paramount+] AIR DISASTERS: The informational series from Smithsonian Channel features harrowing true stories about notable mishaps in the world of air transportation, examining what went wrong from the control room to the crash site. Season 16 hits Paramount+ today. [Paramount+] INSIDE HAMPTON COURT PALACE: Two-part docuseries exploring the royal palace at Hampton Court, a favored residence of King Henry VIII, located 12 miles from Central London on the River Thames. [Paramount+] BLAZE AND THE MONSTER MACHINES: The educational animated Nick Jr. series encourages kids to learn the basics of science, technology, and math while following the adventures of monster truck Blaze and his driver, AJ. Season 5 debuts on Paramount+ today. [Paramount+] DARWIN'S GAME: Anime series that originally aired on Japanese TV in 2020, centering around a group of teens who become trapped inside a mobile app that turns into an interactive game with deadly stakes. Season 1 comes to Hulu today. [Hulu] THE IRREGULAR AT MAGIC HIGH SCHOOL: Anime series based on the light novel by Tsutomu Satō from animation studio Madhouse. It's set in an alternate universe where magic and technology are intertwined and centers on siblings with a deadly secret who enroll in a high school for sorcerers. Season 1 debuts on Hulu today. [Hulu]

The Season 1 finale of Showtime's "Yellowjackets" brought in 1.3 million viewers across all platforms, more than doubling viewership since the series premiere. "Yellowjackets" averaged more than 5 million weekly viewers, making it the most-watched first-year Showtime series since "Billions" in 2016. More: "Yellowjackets" already ranks as the second most-streamed Showtime series of all time, behind only "Dexter: New Blood." The show centers on a championship high school girls soccer team in the 1990s who find themselves trapped in the wilderness following a plane crash; episodes cut between the characters' harrowing survival story and their adult lives in the present day. The series has already been renewed for a second season. DEADLINE

A message from RAMP Dear CFOs of America, We’re sorry that shopping for a corporate credit card has become a game of trying to find the best bonuses and perks.  Most business credit card companies offer rewards designed to make you spend more. Ramp offers a finance automation platform designed to save you time and money—for free. Benefits of traditional cards: Useless points with confusing multipliers Benefits of Ramp: Unambiguous 1.5% cashback 20x higher limits so you have the runway to scale your business Insight into macro spending trends Access to powerful finance automation software that saves you time on expense management, bill payments, and accounting No fees of any kind Get started in minutes, issue cards in seconds, and save hours each month so you can focus more on strategy and worry less about savings. Try for free - claim a $250 Bonus

"Our Flag Means Death" NEW TRAILERS OUR FLAG MEANS DEATH: Historical adventure-comedy series from creator and showrunner David Jenkins ("People of Earth") and filmmaker Taika Waititi, relating the true story of Stede Bonnet, a wealthy English landowner who gave up his cozy aristocratic life to become a "gentleman pirate." "Flight of the Conchords" vet Rhys Darby stars as Bonnet; the cast also includes Waititi as the pirate Blackbeard, along with Kristian Nairn, Joel Fry, Nat Faxon, Leslie Jones, and others. Waititi also directed the pilot, which arrives in March. [HBO Max] OUTLANDER: The time-hopping romance series -- based on the Diana Gabaldon novels -- returns for its sixth season on March 6. It follows the adventures of British Army nurse Claire Randall (Caitríona Balfe) who is magically transported from the year 1945 back to the 1740s, where she meets and falls in love with Scottish warrior Jamie Fraser (Sam Heughan). Sophie Skelton, Richard Rankin, Mark Lewis Jones, Jessica Reynolds, and Alexander Vlahos co-star in the new season, which finds Claire and Jamie embarking on new lives in colonial North Carolina. [Starz] WECRASHED: Eight-episode limited series tracking the downfall of workspace-renting startup WeWork, which at one point was valued at $47 billion. Jared Leto and Anne Hathaway co-star as founder Adam Neumann and his wife, Rebekah; Kyle Marvin, America Ferrera, and O-T Fagbenle round out the cast. The series is based on the podcast "WeCrashed: The Rise and Fall of WeWork." It debuts on April 22. [Apple TV+] LA GUERRA CIVIL: Documentary feature chronicling the 1990s rivalry between boxers Oscar De La Hoya and Julio César Chávez, which highlighted the cultural divide between Mexicans and Mexican-Americans on opposite sides of the border. The film is the documentary directorial debut of actor Eva Longoria Bastón, and will screen at this year's Sundance Festival before hitting the DAZN streaming service later this year. [DAZN]

Abraham, DiMarco, Hollander, and Richardson Oscar-winner F. Murray Abraham joined the cast of HBO's "The White Lotus" for Season 2. He'll co-star as Bert Di Grasso, an elderly man traveling with his son Dominic (Michael Imperioli) and grandson Albie (Adam DiMarco). More: Season 2 will move the action to a new resort and feature a (mostly) new line-up of characters; Jennifer Coolidge will reprise her role as Tanya McQuoid from Season 1. Haley Lu Richardson ("Unpregnant") joined the cast as Portia, a young woman traveling with her boss, who may or may not be McQuoid. "The Night Manager" vet Tom Hollander also signed on for the new series as English expat Quentin, who's vacationing with friends and his nephew. Creator Mike White will return to write and direct all of Season 2's episodes. DEADLINE

"Strange New Worlds" Paramount+ renewed two of its "Star Trek" series -- "Discovery" and "Strange New Worlds" -- for additional seasons. In an unusual move for the streamer, the upcoming spin-off "Strange New Worlds" received a Season 2 renewal prior to the debut of its first season. More: "Star Trek: Discovery" was renewed for a fifth season; Season 4 returns from hiatus on February 10. "Strange New Worlds" Season 1 will debut on May 5. The new series follows the exploits of the USS Enterprise under the command of Captain Christopher Pike (Anson Mount), prior to the original series and the ascent of Captain James Kirk; Rebecca Romijn and Ethan Peck co-star as Number One and Science Officer Spock. Paramount also announced the return of the "Trek" spin-off "Picard" for its second season on March 3; this will give the streamer a new live-action "Star Trek" episode to debut each Thursday night through the summer. HOLLYWOOD REPORTER

QUICK HITS The #1 play to earn blockchain game is free to get started. Sign Up for Splinterlands now to get daily airdrops and earn tokens for every win.* Director Guillermo del Toro's latest film -- a remake of the classic film noir "Nightmare Alley" -- will stream on both HBO Max and Hulu beginning on February 1. French actor Gaspard Ulliel, who co-stars in Marvel's upcoming "Moon Knight" series for Disney+, died on Tuesday at age 37 following a tragic ski accident. Tyler Perry's "A Madea Homecoming," his first appearance as the beloved, brash grandma character since her "retirement" in 2019, hits Netflix on February 25. A series adaptation of comedian Chelsea Handler's memoir "Life Will Be the Death of Me" is in development at Peacock; Universal Television acquired the rights to the book back in 2019. Wolf Blitzer will host a traditional evening newscast with a "sleek, modern twist" for CNN+. Disney named Joe Earley, the former executive vice-president of marketing and operations at Disney+, as the new President of Hulu. Discovery+ ordered the three-part true-crime docuseries "Uprooted," re-examining the 1986 death of 19-year-old Keith Warren; this will be the first long-form project for production company NowThis, best known for its short-form social media content. The long-running PBS Kids animated series "Arthur" will wrap up after 25 years with a four-part series flashing forward in time to show the characters as adults. HBO Max greenlit the film "Pretty Big" from co-writer and director Tina Mabry ("Queen of the South"); it's based on the true story of the Pretty Big Movement dance company, which welcomes performers of all body shapes and sizes. Following the runaway success of "Squid Game" last year, Netflix plans to release 25 new original films and series from Korea in 2022.  CBS canceled the legal drama "Bull" after six seasons. Former Scott Free Productions president Kevin Walsh signed a new multi-year deal to produce films and TV shows for Apple TV+. Netflix added two new mobile games to its iOS and Android apps: "Arcanium: Rise of Akhan" and "Krispee Street." Startup Filmhub raised a $6.8 million seed round; the company works with independent filmmakers who wish to stream their work without forfeiting ownership. The Paley Center for Media announced the line-up for its annual Los Angeles television festival, including panels dedicated to "This Is Us," "Superman & Lois," "Black-ish," "Hacks," "Cobra Kai," "Emily in Paris," and the "NCIS" franchise; the event will be held in person in 2022 for the first time in three years. Demand Gen Chat is a podcast for B2B marketers, by B2B marketers. No fluff, just the hottest takes on driving revenue from today’s marketing leaders.* *This is sponsored content

Lon Harris is the writer and editor of Inside Streaming and was the very first person to ever write an Inside newsletter. He lives in Los Angeles, California, and also writes about TV and film for Fandom, Screen Junkies, Rotten Tomatoes, Gamma Ray and others. Plus he has a Game of Thrones podcast called "Casterly Talk" and competes on The Movie Trivia Schmoedown as "The Professor." Editor Jonathan Harris is a writer for Inside.com. Previously, he wrote for The Huffington Post, TakePart.com, and the YouTube channel What’s Trending.

Register for Lohika Re:think virtual event to learn what is Web3 and why it matters in 2022.

Go from 5 to 1. Click here to try Ramp for free and get a $250 bonus.

Click to Share ➞

767 Bryant St. #203, San Francisco, CA 94107 Copyright © 2022 Inside.com

Did someone forward this email to you? Head over to inside.com to get your very own free subscription! You received this email because you subscribed to Inside Streaming. Click here to unsubscribe from Inside Streaming list or manage your subscriptions.