Actors on strike / Iger staying on as CEO / Disney's India business / "Drive to Survive" effect

Plus today's calendar, FDA looking into Prime Energy, "Gen V" hits Amazon in Sept., and more

Inside Streaming For July 13, 2023

Well, it has actually happened. Both Hollywood's actors and writers are on strike this week for the first time in over 60 years, presenting major obstacles to all of the studios' big plans for their new bespoke streaming platforms. Companies like Netflix and Disney -- with robust international divisions -- will likely have a slightly easier time than their more conventional studio counterparts, but without creatives coming up with new concepts and talent to put in front of the cameras, every platform is going to start feeling the squeeze soon. Just comes down now to who can hold out the longest, career actors and writers waiting on their next paycheck, or streaming executives running dangerously low on fresh content that doesn't feature Chef Gordon Ramsay... Enjoy today's issue. We're back tomorrow with the weekend calendar and a new chart. Lon p/lon-harris

1 Negotiations between acting union SAG-AFTRA and Hollywood studios did not result in a new contractual agreement, making a strike the most likely outcome. SAG-AFTRA's previous three-year contract expired on June 30. More: With the Writers Guild (WGA) already striking, this will be the American entertainment industry's largest labor-related shutdown in 63 years. SAG-AFTRA represents 160,000 TV and film actors. SAG-AFTRA President Fran Drescher called the studio's offers at the bargaining table "insulting and disrespectful," and suggested they were not negotiating "in good faith."

2 Bob Iger will continue to lead The Walt Disney Company as CEO through 2026, two years longer than he was expected to serve in the position. Upon returning to the CEO job in 2022, Iger initially suggested he planned to stay no longer than two more years. More: Disney shares remained essentially unchanged following the announcement. Iger and the Disney board will apparently continue the search for a potential successor over the next several years. In an interview with CNBC on Thursday, Iger suggested Disney will slow down on developing new Marvel Studios and Lucasfilm content, after flooding the market and diluting the brands. Also during the CNBC "Squawk Box" appearance, Iger suggested that striking actors and writers were "not realistic" in their expectations; the comments proved controversial on social media.

3 DAILY CALENDAR THURSDAY, JULY 13 FULL CIRCLE: Six-episode limited crime drama series reuniting writer Ed Solomon and director Steven Soderbergh, who previously collaborated on the HBO Max crime thriller "No Sudden Move." Zazie Beetz stars as a federal agent investigating a botched kidnapping who uncovers a larger conspiracy; Timothy Olyphant, Claire Danes, Dennis Quaid, Jharrel Jerome, and CCH Pounder co-star. [Max] PROJECT GREENLIGHT: A NEW GENERATION: Reboot of the classic HBO docuseries, in which contest winners are given a budget to develop and produce their feature film debuts. The new season featured an all-female line-up of competitors for the first time, and follows the production of Meko Winbush's winning film, "Gray Matter." Issa Rae, Kumail Nanjiani, and Gina Prince-Bythewood serve as mentors. [Max] GRAY MATTER: This sci-fi drama is the feature debut of filmmaker Meko Winbush, the winner of the new "Project Greenlight" season. Mia Isaac stars as a young girl who inherited superhuman abilities from her mother (Jessica Frances Dukes) that have made them both a target. [Max] ELI ROTH PRESENTS: A GHOST RUINED MY LIFE: The unscripted Travel Channel series features personal stories from people who claim to have experienced traumatic run-ins with the supernatural. Season 2 aired last year on cable and hits Max today. [Max] SURVIVAL OF THE THICKEST: Debut comedy-drama series from co-creators Michelle Buteau and Danielle Sanchez-Witzel ("New Girl"), based on Buteau's memoir of the same name. She also stars as Mavis Beaumont, a plus-size woman rebuilding her life after a painful breakup. Tone Bell, Tasha Smith, and Christine Horn co-star. [Netflix] SONIC PRIME: Animated action-fantasy series based on the video game franchise, in which Sonic becomes trapped in Shatterverse, containing alternate reality versions of all of his friends. Season 2 debuts today on Netflix. [Netflix] PUSS IN BOOTS: THE LAST WISH: 2022 animated adventure film from DreamWorks, serving as a direct sequel to the 2011 film "Puss in Boots," which was spun off from the "Shrek" franchise. The film follows the swashbuckling cat fugitive (Antonio Banderas) on a quest to restore the first eight of his nine lives. Salma Hayek Pinault, Harvey Guillén, Florence Pugh, Olivia Colman, Ray Winstone, John Mulaney, and Wagner Moura co-star. [Netflix] BURN THE HOUSE DOWN: First-year mystery-thriller series from Japan, starring Mei Nagano as a young woman who accepts a job as a housekeeper for a wealthy family as part of an elaborate plan for revenge. Kyoka Suzuki co-stars. [Netflix] DEVIL'S ADVOCATE (MUHAMIAT ALSHAYTAN): Arabic-language legal drama series from Kuwait, about a determined lawyer who agrees to defend a football star accused of murdering his wife, in spite of considerable public outcry. Haya Abdel Salam, Ali Kakule, Ali Kakooli, and Noor Al-Dulaimi co-star. [Netflix] THE JEWEL THIEF: Feature true-crime documentary profiling infamous thief Gerald Blanchard and the two dedicated Winnipeg detectives who trailed him around the globe, featuring insights and recollections from Blanchard himself. Landon Van Soest ("Good Fortune") directed. [Hulu] PRETTY PROBLEMS: 2022 indie comedy starring Britt Rentschler and Michael Tennant as a bored couple in a rut who get invited on an unexpectedly wild, unhinged weekend getaway by some new, affluent friends. Rentschler and Tennant also co-wrote the script; Kestrin Pantera ("Mother's Little Helpers") directed. [Hulu] IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF KILLERS: True-crime docuseries from the UK, in which hosts Emilia Fox and David Wilson revisit unsolved murder cases utilizing the latest in forensic and criminal science technology. Season 2 aired earlier this year in the UK and hits BritBox in the US today. [BritBox]

4 According to a report in The Wall Street Journal, Disney is reconsidering its presence in the Indian market, and may sell either a portion or all of its Star India business. The re-evaluation is apparently still in its early stages. More: According to WSJ, Disney executives have already met with at least one bank about offloading the costs of its Indian business while still allowing it to grow. Disney declined to comment on the report. Disney acquired Star India along with its purchase of 21st Century Fox assets in 2019; the package included the streaming platform Hotstar, along with around 60 local TV channels.

5 A record number of teams have entered this year's "F1 in Schools" competition, an indication of the growing global popularity of Formula One racing. Netflix's behind-the-scenes F1 docuseries "Drive to Survive" is frequently credited with expanding the sport's popularity worldwide. More: "F1 in Schools" founder Andrew Denford told Reuters "'Drive to Survive' has definitely helped the whole sport"; he said he's personally witnessed young people growing more excited about Formula One following the show's debut. To enter, school teams raise funds, draw up a business plan, and design their own model cars. The "F1 in Schools" finals are held during the run-up to Singapore Grand Prix weekend; 68 teams from 60 countries entered the competition.

6 The Food and Drug Administration plans to investigate Prime Energy, a beverage created and sold by YouTube stars Logan Paul and KSI (Olajide Olayinka Williams Olatunji). Democratic New York Sen. Chuck Schumer first raised concerns about Prime Energy, which contains nearly six times as much caffeine as a 12-ounce can of Coca-Cola. More: According to the company, Prime Energy is not intended for consumers under the age of 18. Nonetheless, Sen. Schumer has argued that it's marketed on social media toward minors, as both KSI and Logan Paul have young-skewing fanbases. According to FDA guidelines, healthy adults can consume up to 400 mg of caffeine per day; a can of Prime Energy contains 200 mg of caffeine.

7 "Gen V," a new spinoff of "The Boys" set at a college for superheroes-in-training, hits Prime Video in September. The series stars Jaz Sinclair, Chance Perdomo, Lizze Broadway, Shelley Conn, Sean Patrick Thomas, and Patrick Schwarzenegger. More: "The Boys" regulars Jessie T. Usher, Colby Minifie, and P.J. Byrne will reprise their roles for the spinoff series. "Agent Carter" vets Michele Fazekas and Tara Butters co-created the series and serve as showrunners. Satirical action-comedy "The Boys" -- based on comics by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson -- is set in an alternate reality where superheroes are corporate creations in the employ of Vought International.

8 QUICK HITS Combine traditional project management your docs, knowledge base, and AI.* Despite scoring two Emmy nominations this week, the musical comedy series "Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies" is currently unavailable to stream on any mainstream platform; it was released by Paramount+, then pulled from the platform shortly after the end of its first season. Disney shared the trailer for the final season of "High School Musical: The Musical: The Series"; all eight episodes will be available to stream starting August 9. Netflix released "Oxenfree II: Lost Signals," the company's first internally-developed video game; Netflix acquired Night School Studio, the team behind the original "Oxenfree," in 2021. "Gold Rush" reality franchise veteran Dakota Fred Hurt died Tuesday, around four months after being diagnosed with stage 4 brain cancer; he was 80. The full second season of the irreverent comedy series "This Fool" -- following a group of working-class friends from South Los Angeles -- hits Hulu on July 28. Amazon announced a new slate of Italian original shows and films, including a remake of the Australian drama "No Activity," and the comedy series "Gigolò per Caso," about a young man who discovers his father is a gigolo. Sharpen your mind in minutes a day with Brilliant. From AI to math and data science, their interactive lessons help you level up. Try it free today.* *This is sponsored content

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Lon Harris Writer 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." This newsletter was edited by Eduardo Garcia

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