"Dark Tower" series / DC Studios blueprint / Apple's "Presumed Innocent" / Ortega had COVID for "Wednesday" dance

Plus today's calendar, "Witcher" showrunner on Cavill exit, "Monarch" canceled, "Farha" backlash, and more

Inside.com Part of   Network December 08, 2022

Flanagan "The Haunting of Hill House" and "Midnight Mass" vets Mike Flanagan and Trevor Macy have acquired the rights to author Stephen King's "The Dark Tower" fantasy novels. Earlier this week, the duo's company, Intrepid Pictures, signed a new overall deal with Amazon, moving over from their previous home at Netflix. More: The "Dark Tower" rights were apparently acquired by Interpid prior to signing the Amazon deal; multiple networks and streamers will have a chance to bid on the project. The novels are set in an alternate universe, and center on a warrior known a gunslinger who's searching a dystopian wasteland for a fabled building that's said to be the nexus of all universes. Flanagan -- who previously directed the King adaptations "Doctor Sleep" and "Gerald's Game" -- told Deadline he envisions a five-season series, with two standalone films as follow-ups. Flanagan also says he's in touch with Steven King about his plans for the adaptation. Intrepid's final Netflix original series -- "The Fall of the House of Usher" -- premieres in 2023. VARIETY

The Hollywood Reporter provided some insights into the future plans of new DC Studios heads James Gunn and Peter Safran. The duo will apparently present their blueprint for the next phase of DC Comics adaptations to Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav next week. More: According to multiple sources who spoke with THR, Gunn and Safran passed on director Patty Jenkins' proposal for a third "Wonder Woman" film, as it didn't fit in with the rest of their outline. Though it's unclear whether or not budget played a factor in the decision, star Gal Gadot earns $20 million per film as Wonder Woman, while Jenkins would have received $12 million for the project. THR further suggests that Gunn and Safran may shut down the "Snyderverse" franchise entirely, no longer pursuing new projects with any of the characters initially cast by director Zack Snyder ahead of the flims "Man of Steel," "Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice," and "Justice League." Cavill recently cameoed as Superman in the Dwayne Johnson starrer "Black Adam," which THR says is now unlikely to get a sequel; a somewhat contradictory Deadline post suggests that "Black Adam" could still turn a profit and launch a franchise. Momoa may also remain in the DC family, even if he no longer plays Aquaman; THR suggests the actor could be recast as a different DC character, the intergalactic bounty hunter Lobo. HOLLYWOOD REPORTER

DAILY CALENDAR THURSDAY, DECEMBER 8 DOOM PATROL: The superhero comedy-drama series -- based on the DC Comics team -- returns to HBO Max for a fourth season on Thursday, in which the team unexpectedly travels into the future. Brendan Fraser, Matt Bomer, Diane Guerrero, April Bowlby, and Jovian Wade co-star. [HBO Max] SOUTH SIDE: The comedy series takes in daily life in the Englewood neighborhood of Chicago, and co-stars Sultan Salahuddin and Kareme Young as best friends who work as furniture repo men. Bashir Salahuddin co-created the series with Diallo Riddle and co-stars as Officer Goodnight. It's back for a third season. [HBO Max] THE REAL HOUSEWIVES OF MIAMI: The Peacock-exclusive reality series -- spun off from Bravo's "Real Housewives" franchise -- is back for a fifth season, featuring cast members Alexia Nepola, Larsa Pippen, Lisa Hochstein, Guerdy Abraira, Julia Lemigova, and Nicole Martin. The first four Season 5 episodes debut today. [Peacock] A MIRACLE BEFORE CHRISTMAS: Original holiday fantasy romance starring LeToya Luckett as a relationship therapist with an answer to everyone's marriage problems but her own. Thankfully, this Christmas, she's getting a little help from an angel (Keith David). [BET+] LOOKISM: Original anime series from Studio Mir ("DOTA: Dragon's Blood"), based on the comic by Park Tae-joon. The story centers on an outcast high school student who develops the ability to transform into a taller and more attractive version of himself, giving him new insight into society and its double standards. [Netflix] IN BROAD DAYLIGHT: THE NARVARTE CASE (A PLENA LUZ: EL CASO NARVARTE): Spanish-language true-crime documentary feature examining the murders of five people in the Narvarte neighborhood of Mexico City in 2015, which ultimately led to allegations of police corruption. Alberto Arnaut Estrada ("Hasta Los Dientes") directed. [Netflix] THE ELEPHANT WHISPERERS: Tamil-language documentary short about an indigenous couple in South India -- Bomman and Bellie -- who take in and care for an orphaned elephant named Raghu. [Netflix] SOLO AMOR Y MIL CANCIONES: Original Disney+ concert special featuring singer-songwriter Tini, commemorating the 10th anniversary of the Disney Channel series "Violette," in which she starred. Jorge Blanco, Cande Molfese, and Mechi Lambre also make appearances. [Disney+] THE BAD GUY: Darkly comic crime series from Italy, starring Luigi Lo Cascio as Nino Scotellaro, a dedicated Sicilian prosecutor who has spent his career fighting the Mafia. After he's accused of actually being a criminal himself, Nino will have to bend the law in order to prove his innocence and exact his revenge. [Amazon] GREATEST HOLIDAY COMMERCIALS COUNTDOWN 2022: The CW special looks back at 12 iconic holiday-themed commercials, with some international entries making their American TV debuts. [CW]

According to Deadline, actor Jake Gyllnehaal is in talks to star in a new Apple TV+ series based on the Scott Turow novel "Presumed Innocent." Prolific writer/producer David E. Kelley ("The Undoing") scripted the adaptation and will serve as showrunner on the series. More: J.J. Abrams' company Bad Robot and Warner Bros. TV will produce the series for Apple. The novel was published in 1987 and previously inspired a 1990 film starring Harrison Ford; that version is available for rent on VOD but isn't streaming on any subscription service currently. The story centers on a Chicago prosecutor who is charged with his colleague's murder. This would mark Gyllenhaal's first major TV role. DEADLINE

"Wednesday" dance scene In an interview with NME, "Wednesday" star Jenna Ortega revealed that she was suffering from COVID while performing the show's breakout hit dance scene. Ortega made the revelation to NME back in November, but it got a lot of attention this week on social media after being repeated in Variety. More: Ortega claims she woke up feeling sick that morning, and performed the scene -- receiving medicine between takes -- as she awaited her COVID test results. Once a positive COVID test was confirmed, Ortega was then removed from set; she said she did not have time to shoot multiple versions of the dance, and feels that she could have improved the sequence a bit. MGM, the studio behind "Wednesday," told NME that the entire process followed strict COVID protocols. The dance scene itself -- set to The Cramps' "Goo Goo Muck" -- has gone viral on TikTok and triggered a massive boost in popularity for the song on Spotify. GIZMODO

"The Witcher" showrunner Lauren Hissrich spoke with TechRadar about actor Henry Cavill's decision to exit the series after three seasons. Liam Hemsworth will take over the lead role as monster hunter Geralt of Rivia in Season 4. More: A Change.org petition calling for Cavill's return -- somehow -- already has 275,000 signatures. Hissrich told TechRadar she understands the angry and confused fan reactions, but hopes that they'll give the new episodes a chance, adding "it's a big deal for us, too." The limited prequel series "The Witcher: Blood Origin" arrives on Christmas Day while Season 3, featuring Henry Cavill's farewell episodes, is expected to release sometime next year. TECHRADAR

Fox canceled the musical drama series "Monarch" after a single season. Though the series premiere was Fox's most-watched over the past three years, the series struggled to attract a consistent audience over the next nine Season 1 episodes. More: "Monarch" was produced during the pandemic, and was originally slated to launch in January 2022 before being delayed until the fall. The show centered on a family of popular country music artists, and starred Susan Sarandon, Trace Adkins, Joshua Sasse, Anna Friel, and Beth Ditto. "Monarch" was the first live-action Fox series to be entirely produced in-house, and fully owned by the company, since the sale of 20th Television to Disney. DEADLINE

A low-budget period drama feature from Jordan, "Farha," has triggered a backlash now that it's streaming on Netflix. Israel's outgoing finance minister Avigdor Lieberman condemned the movie and argued that it was intentionally produced to incite violence against Israeli soldiers. More: "Farha" centers on a 14-year-old girl -- the title character -- living in a Palestinian village in the year 1948, during the early days of the Israel-Palestinian conflict. Much of the criticism centers on one scene, in which Farha witnesses Israeli soldiers killing a Palestinian family, though some suggested the overall story invites a false comparison between Farha and Anne Frank hiding from the Nazis during WWII. The film was an international hit on the festival circuit after premiering in Toronto. Jordan has selected "Farha" as its submission for this year's best international feature Oscar. A petition calling for Netflix to pull the film was posted online within hours of its Netflix debut. Jewish author and photographer Laura Ben-David tweeted that the film is "anti-Israel" while Israeli model Nataly Dadon argued that it stokes anti-Semitism and called on her followers to boycot the streaming platform entirely. Filmmaker Darin J. Sallam told The Hollywood Reporter that the film is entirely based on real memories and historical anecdotes she heard from friends and family members. HOLLYWOOD REPORTER

QUICK HITS FINAL DAY to invest in the startup giving MILLIONS of people access to vacation rental ownership. Become a reAlpha shareholder before midnight tonight!* Actor and comedian Jerrod Carmichael will host the 80th Golden Globe Awards, airing on NBC and streaming on Peacock on January 10.  HBO released a quick teaser for the second season of the mystery drama series "Perry Mason," premiering on March 6. In an interview with The Ankler, former "Grey's Anatomy" writer and producer Elisabeth Finch admitted -- months after the original story broke -- that she had publicly lied for many years about suffering from a rare form of bone cancer. Netflix dropped a trailer for the UK thriller series "Treason," starring "Daredevil" vet Charlie Cox as a young MI6 chief whose career is threatened by the return of a Russian spy with whom he shares a complicated history; the series hits Netflix in the US on December 26. Actors Henry Winkler, Lance Reddick, and Cheech Marin will make guest appearances on the second season of Amazon's adult animated fantasy series "The Legend of Vox Machina." HBO Max canceled the Issa Rae-produced reality series "Sweet Life: Los Angeles" after two seasons. The first four episodes of the sci-fi drama series "Mrs. Davis" -- about the clash between a nun (Betty Gilpin) and a powerful artificial intelligence -- hit Peacock on April 20. New data from market research firm Parks Associates found that 65% of surveyed users preferred watching ad-supported streaming services to linear TV content. Taking care of yourself matters, and BetterHelp connects you to a therapist within 48 hours, without having to leave home. Get 25% off your first month.* *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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