Netflix drops Meyers film / "Mandalorian" S3 viewership / Del Toro's "Frankenstein" to Netflix / "Willow" canceled

Plus today's calendar, McConaughey & Harrelson reunite, "League of Their Own" Season 2, YouTube TV Multiview, and more

Inside.com Part of   Network March 15, 2023

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Nancy Meyers Netflix canceled development on a new romantic comedy feature from famed writer/director Nancy Meyers. The film was set to star Scarlett Johansson, Owen Wilson, Penelope Cruz, and Michael Fassbender, but the streamer ultimately balked at the proposed $150 million budget. More: According to Deadline's sources, Netflix set the budget at a maximum of $130 million, while Meyers was fighting for $150 million. $80 million of the budget would go to so-called "above the line" talent, mostly to pay actors' salaries. The film went under the working title "Paris Paramount," and centers on two filmmakers and former lovers who begrudgingly reunite for a new movie project. It's still possible Meyers could shop the film around and ultimately bring it to a new studio or streamer. As a writer/director, Meyers' films include "What Women Want," "The Holiday," and "It's Complicated"; this would be her first new film since "The Intern" in 2015. DEADLINE

According to numbers from Samba TV, viewership of the Season 3 premiere of "The Mandalorian" on Disney+ trailed the Season 2 debut, along with the "Obi-Wan Kenobi" pilot. Samba estimates that the first new episode of "The Mandalorian" this year was viewed by around 1.5 million US households. More: For comparison, Samba reported that 2.14 million US households watched Ewan McGregor's return in the premiere of "Obi-Wan Kenobi," while 2.08 million US homes tuned in for the "Mandalorian" Season 2 premiere. Samba collects data from 3 million households and 25 million TVs across the US. The first two episodes of "The Mandalorian" Season 3 are now streaming on Disney+. THE DIRECT

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DAILY CALENDAR WEDNESDAY, MARCH 15 TED LASSO: The critically-acclaimed series -- a two-time Best Comedy winner at the Emmys -- returns for its third (and possibly final?) season this week. Jason Sudeikis stars as an American college football coach who switches sports and countries to lead English soccer club AFC Richmond. Season 3 will focus on Ted's new rivalry with his former assistant, Nathan (Nick Mohammed). Hannah Waddingham, Jeremy Swift, Phil Dunster, Brett Goldstein, Brendan Hunt, and Juno Temple co-star. [Apple TV+] SUPERMAN & LOIS: The DC Comics superhero drama series returned to TV for a third season on Tuesday night; new episodes hit the app and website on Wednesdays. Tyler Hoechlin and Elizabeth Tulloch co-star as Clark Kent and Lois Lane, who move back to the rural community of Smallville, Kansas, with their sons Jonathan (Michael Bishop) and Jordan (Alex Garfin).  [CW] GOTHAM KNIGHTS: Debut DC Comics-inspired action drama series, about a group of young heroes who join forces to protect Gotham after the death of Bruce Wayne. Oscar Morgan, Navia Robinson, Fallon Smythe, Tyler DiChiara, Olivia Rose Keegan, and Anna Lore co-star. [CW] TURNING THE TABLES WITH ROBIN ROBERTS: The chat series features "Good Morning America" vet Robin Roberts speaking with various female celebrities about their lives and careers. It's back for a second season. [Disney+] KIFF: Debut animated series from Disney Channel about the adventures of a young optimistic squirrel (Kimiko Glenn) and her best friend, a sweet and mellow rabbit (H. Michael Croner). The first six Season 1 episodes come to Disney+ today. [Disney+] FIREBUDS: The animated Disney Junior series follows the adventures of a fire engine and his young friends, who help first responders out on rescue missions. Four new Season 1 episodes hit Disney+ today. [Disney+] MONEY SHOT: THE PORNHUB STORY: Documentary feature chronicling the development and history of the wildly popular pornographic website, with a focus on its role in various censorship and sex trafficking scandals, and its overall impact on the adult film industry. [Netflix] THE LAW OF THE JUNGLE (LA LEY DE LA SELVA): Debut Spanish-language reality series from Mexico in which a group of 12 strangers are abandoned together in the jungle, and must decide whether to work together or sabotage one another's efforts to survive. The winner walks away with 2 million pesos. Yolanda Andrade hosts. [Netflix] FLUX GOURMET: 2022 dark comedy from writer/director Peter Strickland ("In Fabric"), about a group of performance artists who extract unsettling sounds from various foods in a process known as "sonic catering." Fatma Mohamed, Asa Butterfield, Gwendoline Christie, and Makis Papadimitriou co-star. [Hulu] MY FAMILY: Thriller series from Japan about a wealthy and prominent married couple whose daughter is kidnapped. Ultimately, they decide not to involve the police, and to pursue the investigation themselves. Kazunari Ninomiya and Mikako Tabe co-star. [Hulu] VH1's COUPLES RETREAT: In this reality series, famous couples work through their real-life issues with help from life coaches and relationship experts. Michael Blackson and Rada Cheang co-host. Season 2 aired last summer on VH1 and hits Paramount+ today. [Paramount+]

Del Toro, Isaac, Garfield, Goth According to Deadline, Oscar-winning filmmaker Guillermo del Toro's next live-action project will likely be a remake of "Frankenstein" for Netflix. Andrew Garfield, Oscar Isaac, and Mia Goth are all in early talks to star in the film. More: Del Toro is apparently still working on the script, so no formal offers have yet been made to talent, but all the actors have expressed strong interest. Netflix declined to comment on the Deadline story. Del Toro has long discussed a desire to adapt the classic Mary Shelley novel; no additional details about his specific plans were made available. Isaac also signed on this week to star in the crime thriller "Helltown" for Amazon, from "All Quiet on the Western Front" filmmaker Edward Berger. DEADLINE

Disney+ declined to renew the "Willow" spinoff for a second season. The series served as a direct sequel to the 1988 fantasy film from director Ron Howard. More: The show was not a mainstream hit but was well received by critics, with an 83% score on Rotten Tomatoes. "Willow" is among the non-"Star Wars" properties controlled by Disney's Lucasfilm division. Warwick Davis reprised his lead role from the film as the heroic sorcerer Willow Ufgood; Ellie Bamber, Ruby Cruz, Erin Kellyman, Amer Chadha-Patel, and Tony Revolori co-starred. DEADLINE

Woody Harrelson and Matthew McConaughey signed on to co-star as fictionalized versions of themselves in a new comedy series for Apple TV+. The pair previously co-starred in the critically-acclaimed first season of HBO's "True Detective." More: The new show comes from "The Big Door Prize" creator David West Read, and finds McConaughey, Harrelson and their families living together on a Texas ranch, putting their long-time off-screen friendship to the test. Read, McConaughey, and Harrelson are all onboard as executive producers for Skydance Television. Read's "The Big Door Prize" recently screened at the SXSW Festival, and hits Apple TV+ on March 29. VARIETY

Amazon's TV adaptation of the 1992 film "A League of Their Own" will conclude with a four-episode second season. The renewal announcement followed months of negotiations between producer Sony and Amazon over the show's licensing fees. More: "League of Their Own" Season 2 will be rebranded as a "limited series"; series regulars will also sign new deals to return for the final four episodes. Showrunners Will Graham and Abbi Jacobson will both return for Season 2; Jacobson also co-stars along with D'Arcy Carden, Chante Adams, Melanie Field, and Kate Berlant.  The duo have been working on the project since 2018 and received the blessing of original director Penny Marshall prior to her death. On Twitter, Graham pushed back against a media narrative that the show had a "small" or "niche" audience. HOLLYWOOD REPORTER

YouTube TV introduced a new feature allowing users to watch up to four pre-selected streams at once. The option, known as "multiview," will become available for select users in the US this week, exclusively on televisions. More: Though the feature is not practical for watching most kinds of TV content, it's ideal for live sports, such as the NCAA March Madness tournament, allowing fans to keep up with multiple games simultaneously. At launch, multiview will only be available for sports content, though YouTube says it's "exploring" other potential uses. If available, users will find multiview streams in the "Top Picks for You" section of their YouTube TV app; eligible users will receive an email alerting them to the new feature. TECHCRUNCH

Netflix released a trailer for "Chupa," an upcoming family fantasy film from writer/director Jonás Cuarón. Evan Whitten stars as Alex, a shy 13-year-old from Kansas who befriends a mythical chupacabra cub during a trip to visit relatives in Mexico. More: Demián Bichir co-stars as Alex's lucha libre champion grandpa, while Christian Slater plays a villainous scientist who's hunting the creature for his own selfish purposes. Jonás Cuarón is the son of Oscar-winning filmmaker Alfonso Cuarón and co-scripted his dad's film "Gravity." "Home Alone" and "Harry Potter" vet Chris Colombus is also onboard the film as an executive producer. "Chupa" hits Netflix on April 7. GIZMODO

QUICK HITS End the madness of manual expense reporting with Divvy. Take a demo of Divvy and get a college basketball jersey of your choice.* "All Quiet on the Western Front" director Edward Berger will produce a drama series for Netflix based on author Christopher Reich's "Simon Riske" novels, about the exploits of a freelance industrial spy. A new Amazon docuseries follows two-time NBA champion J.R. Smith as he pursues a college education and a newfound passion for golf. A federal judge threw out a defamation suit brought by retired police officer Andrew Colborn against Netflix's "Making a Murderer" docuseries; Colborn claimed the series had falsely accused him of planting evidence, subjecting him to "worldwide ridicule." Comedian John Mulaney's third stand-up special -- "Baby J" -- comes to Netflix on April 25. Charity Lawson -- who recently exited the current season of "The Bachelor" -- will return as the lead in this summer's "The Bachelorette" Season 20. According to Bloody Disgusting, "Fast & Furious" franchise vet Nathalie Emmanuel signed on to star in John Woo's Peacock remake of his own classic 1989 film "The Killer," alongside Omar Sy. "Game of Thrones" vet Jeremy Podeswa signed on to direct the pilot of Amazon's upcoming sci-fi spinoff series, "Blade Runner 2099." Netflix ordered a three-part docuseries about the manhunt for the brothers behind the Boston Marathon bombing. In a new interview with Variety, "You" star Penn Badgley says his comments about declining to shoot sex scenes got "blown out of proportion" and questions why Netflix split Season 4 into two halves. HBO announced physical media releases for the first season of "The Last of Us"; the show hits digital VOD platforms on April 11 and comes to 4K Ultra HD, Blu-Ray, and DVD on July 18. Ready to grow your business through influencer partnerships? Get the visual guide to the essential stages.* *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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