No "Batgirl" on HBO Max / "Gray Man" drops to #2 / Pompeo joins Hulu series / "Atlanta" S4 trailer

Plus today's calendar, "First Kill" canceled, Moss joins "The Veil," "Everybody Still Hates Chris," "Game of Thrones" Con, and more

Inside.com Part of   Network August 03, 2022

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WB Discovery no longer plans to release the feature film "Batgirl," starring Leslie Grace as the DC Comics superhero, on HBO Max or in any other format. The company also canceled plans for an animated "Scooby Doo" holdiay special and quietly pulled six HBO Max original films from the platform, in what were likely cost-cutting maneuevers. More: Variety reported that WB Discovery no longer plans to produce high-cost original films specifically for HBO Max, and hoped to take a tax write-off on both the "Batgirl" and "Scooby Doo" projects. "Batgirl" stars Grace, Michael Keaton, J.K. Simmons, and Brendan Fraser; "Bad Boys for Life" and "Ms. Marvel" vets Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah directed. Both the "Batgirl" and "Scooby Doo" projects were greenlit by the previous WarnerMedia regime -- led by Jason Kilar and Ann Sarnoff -- which was more focused on beefing up the HBO Max service. Both films were apparently very close to completion; the budget on the "Batgirl" film had apparently ballooned to around $90 million. HBO Max original films that no longer appear on the platform include "Moonshot," "Superintelligence," "The Witches," "An American Pickle," "Locked Down," and "Charm City Kings." A planned remake of the classic '90s comedy "House Party" was also scheduled for release on July 28 but has been pulled from the HBO Max calendar. VARIETY

"Purple Hearts" The heavily-promoted action-thriller "The Gray Man" dropped out of the top spot on Netflix's domestic "Most Watched Movies" chart after just 8 days. The low-budget military romance "Purple Hearts" replaced "The Gray Man" at #1. More: "The Gray Man" stars Ryan Gosling and Chris Evans as dueling CIA operatives, and comes from "Avengers: Endgame" directors Joe and Anthony Russo; Netflix reportedly spent $200 million on the project. According to Netflix, "The Gray Man" was viewed for about 88 million hours worldwide during its first weekend online, the fifth-highest opening ever for a Netflix original film.  Netflix has already announced a "Gray Man" sequel and a spin-off project. 2021's "Red Notice" -- starring Dwayne Johnson, Ryan Reynolds, and Gal Gadot -- spent 12 days in the #1 spot in the US, and remained in the Top 10 for 11 weeks. INDIEWIRE

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DAILY CALENDAR WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 3 RESERVATION DOGS: The FX comedy-drama series from co-creators Sterlin Harjo and Taika Waititi returns today to Hulu for its second season. Devery Jacobs, D'Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai, Lane Factor, and Paulina Alexis co-star as four Indigenous teens living on a reservation in rural Oklahoma. Sara Podemski, Elva Guerra, Zahn McClarnon, Dallas Goldtooth, and Gary Farmer co-star. [Hulu] LIGHTYEAR: Animated sci-fi adventure film from Pixar, spun off from the "Toy Story" franchise, and featuring Chris Evans as the voice of the human astronaut Buzz Lightyear. In this original adventure, Buzz finds himself marooned along with a small crew on a hostile alien world. Keke Palmer, Peter Sohn, Taika Waititi, Dale Soules, James Brolin, and Uzo Aduba co-star. [Disney+] MARVEL STUDIOS ASSEMBLED: THE MAKING OF MS. MARVEL: The latest edition of Disney+'s behind-the-scenes docuseries centers on the making of the MCU spinoff series "Ms. Marvel," starring newcomer Iman Vellani as super-powered teen Kamala Khan. [Disney+] BELLE: Animated sci-fi fantasy film from Japanese writer/director Mamoru Hosoda ("Mirai"), inspired by the classic fairy tale "Beauty and the Beast." It centers on a seemingly ordinary high school student (Kaho Nakamura) who becomes a well-known singer within a virtual meta-world, then sets out to determine the identity of a mysterious beast and criminal. [HBO Max] CLUSTERF**K: WOODSTOCK '99: Three-episode music docuseries from British filmmaker Jamie Crawford ("The Interrogator"), looking back at the disastrous Woodstock '99 festival, which infamously descended into arson, violence, and sexual abuse. (NOTE: This is not connected to HBO's 2021 film about the same event: "Woodstock: Peace, Love, and Rage.") [Netflix] BUBA: Prequel film spun off from the German-language Netflix series "How to Sell Drugs Online (Fast)," centering on the drug dealer Buba (Bjarne Mädel). Believing that positive developments in his life will only lead to greater tragedy, Buba and his brother Dante (Georg Friedrich) studiously avoid success. That is, until he meets a charming tattoo artist (Anita Vulesica) and falls in love. [Netflix] GOOD MORNING, VERÔNICA: Crime drama series from Brazil, based on the novel by Ilana Casoy, starring Tainá Müller as a police clerk who begins investigating cases involving abused women on her own after witnessing a suicide. Season 2 premieres on Netflix in the US today. [Netflix] DON'T BLAME KARMA! (¿QUÉ CULPA TIENE EL KARMA?): Spanish-language romantic comedy film from Mexico starring Aislinn Derbez as Sara, who sets out to determine if bad luck really is the cause of all of her misery after her younger sister and high school crush get engaged. Renata Notni, Gil Cerezo, and Miriam Chi Chim co-star. [Netflix] ENDLESS NIGHT: French-language YA fantasy-drama series from Belgium about a group of teens who recreationally use an experimental sleep clinic drug, allowing them to experience immersive dreams while still awake. The cast includes Ayumi Roux, Hanane El Yousfi, Salif Cissé, Chiny Thybaud, and Théo Augier. [Netflix]

Ellen Pompeo announced plans to star in and produce a Hulu limited series, based on the true story of Ukrainian-born Natalia Grace and her adopted US family. Pompeo will scale back her on-screen role in the 19th season of "Grey's Anatomy" to make time for the Hulu project. More: Grace's parents claim that, though they believed they were adopting a 6-year-old girl, she was in fact a mentally disturbed and violent adult woman; the case has drawn comparisons to the horror film "Orphan." In 2019, Grace's adopted parents -- Kristine and Michael Barnett -- were charged with neglect for allegedly abandoning Natalia; it was believed at the time that the girl suffered from a rare form of dwarfism. The series will be written and created by "The Affair" vet Katie Robbins; it has been in development for a year and a half, and is based on Michael Barnett's personal story. Pompeo will appear as Meredith Grey in just eight episodes of "Grey's Anatomy's" upcoming 19th season, though she'll continue to narrate the medical drama each week. DEADLINE

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"Atlanta" Season 4 premieres on September 15 on FX and comes to Hulu the following day. The new trailer sees Earn (Donald Glover), Paper Boi (Brian Tyree Henry), Darius (LaKeith Stanfield), and Van (Zazie Beetz) returning to Georgia after spending Season 3 on a European tour. More: Season 3 of "Atlanta" debuted earlier this year, following an extended hiatus. The show closes its run with Season 4; at the Television Critics Association's press tour earlier this year, co-creator Glover said he feels the show "ends perfectly." Season 3 has been nominated for three Emmy Awards this year, including Lead Actor in a Comedy Series for Glover, Directing in a Comedy Series for helmer Hiro Murai, and its cinematography. PEOPLE

Netflix canceled the teen vampire drama series "First Kill" after just one season. The series starred Sarah Catherine Hook and Imani Lewis, and came from executive producer Emma Roberts. More: "First Kill" peaked at #3 on Netflix's domestic Most Viewed TV chart on its first week of release, back in June; it spent just one week in the Top 10. The series cleared 100 million hours viewed in its first 28 days of release, but according to unnamed Netflix insiders, it didn't demonstrate the "staying power" of comparable hits. The series was based on a story by Victoria "V.E." Schwab and was adapted by "The Punisher" vet Felicia D. Henderson. Hook starred as an amateur vampire who falls for her first intended victim (Lewis), a girl who coincidentally is descended from a family of vampire hunters. DEADLINE

Elisabeth Moss signed on for the lead role in the limited thriller series "The Veil" for FX and Hulu. Moss will also executive produce the series, which comes from "Peaky Blinders" creator Steven Knight. More: "The Veil" follows a cat-and-mouse game between two women as they travel from Istanbul to Paris to London; no word yet on who might co-star alongside Moss. Knight will write the series and executive produce. Knight also developed the recent adaptation of Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol" for FX, and he's currently at work on a series based on the novelist's "Great Expectations." Moss will continue to star in Hulu's "The Handmaid's Tale"; Season 5 of the dystopian drama arrives in September. HOLLYWOOD REPORTER

An animated reimagining of the family sitcom "Everybody Hates Chris" will air on Comedy Central and stream on Paramount+. The series is based on the teen years of comedian and actor Chris Rock; he'll return as both narrator and executive producer. More: The new series is titled "Everybody Still Hates Chris." The series comes from MTV Entertainment, which also recently ordered revivals of classic shows "Beavis and Butt-head" and "Daria." "South Park" and "Central Park" vet Sanjay Shah will serve as showrunner and wrote the pilot script. The original "Everybody Hates Chris" debuted in 2005 on UPN, and eventually moved over to The CW; it aired for four seasons in total. DEADLINE

The first-ever official "Game of Thrones" fan convention has been set for this December in Los Angeles. The convention was first announced a year ago, and set for Las Vegas, but was canceled due to COVID-related safety concerns. More: The event will take place at the LA Convention Center from December 9-11. A number of cast members plan to attend, including Kit Harington, Alfie Allen, Jack Gleeson, Kristofer Hivju, Kristian Nairn, Daniel Porman, Gemma Whelan, and Isaac Hempstead Wright. According to Variety, the event will feature immersive Westeros-themed exhibits, cosplay and trivia competitions, exclusive merchandise, and a dance party featuring Nairn as DJ. AV CLUB

QUICK HITS 2022 Capital Gains of $250K+ ? Unlock tax incentives and additional compounding potential. Learn How - Grab This No-Cost Investor Guide.* Actors union SAG-AFTRA and Netflix reached a tentative new agreement to replace their 2019 contract; it will now go to the National Board, and then the union's members, for approval. The Marilyn Monroe Estate defended the casting of Ana de Armas in the upcoming Netflix biopic "Blonde" after the actress received some online criticism, saying "she captures Marilyn's glamour, humanity, and vulnerability" in a statement. Netflix dropped a trailer for the live-action/animation hybrid "Lost Ollie," from "Kubo and the Two Strings" vet Shannon Tindle; the four-episode series arrives on August 24. A filmed version of "Heathers: The Musical" -- recorded on stage in London's West End -- debuts on Roku in September. The Verge looked into the explosion in popularity of "desk setup" and home office remodeling videos on YouTube. William Jackson Harper, Tom Pelphrey, Aml Ameen, Sarah Jones, and others joined the cast of Netflix's six-episode series adaptation of Tom Wolfe's 1998 novel "A Man in Full"; Jeff Daniels and Diane Lane will co-star. "Stranger Things" Season 4 failed to overtake "Squid Game's" all-time Netflix viewership record after its first 28 days on the site, with just 1.4 billion hours viewed vs. the Korean thriller's 1.7 billion. Endeavor Streaming and shopping startup AiBUY teamed on a new interactive e-commerce experience that can be added to streaming applications, making it easier to make purchases without interrupting a program. Get a FREE Trial Pack of Super Coffee's NEW Tasty Pastry flavors that contain 0g of sugar, 10g of protein, and 200mg of caffeine. Just cover shipping!* *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 Eduardo Garcia is a writer and editor based in New York. He is the author of "Things You Can Do," an illustrated book about climate action. Bylines in The New York Times, The Guardian, Slate, Scientific American, and others. In one of his previous lives, Eduardo worked as a Reuters correspondent in Latin America for nearly a decade.

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