Animation cuts at Netflix / SAG-AMPTP talks stall / "Found" scores on Peacock / "Golden Bachelor" hits 9M views

Plus today's calendar, Disney+ films move to VOD, new "South Park" special, "The Curse" and "Candy Cane Lane" trailers, and more

Inside Streaming For October 12, 2023

Happy Thursday, Streaming readers! A stark reminder this morning that, though the WGA has ratified its new contract, the Hollywood strikes are not yet actually over. It's hard to believe that, after all we've been through across the last several months, AMPTP is once more returning to its old playbook and stonewalling SAG-AFTRA. The apparent core issue, a 2% profit-sharing agreement that would cost all of these companies a few billion collectively over the next three years, can't possibly be worth continuing to push back any and all productions featuring union actors, can it? CAN IT?! We'll keep you posted on any new developments. Thanks for reading Inside Streaming! Lon p/lon-harris

1 Netflix announced plans to restructure its animation division, including some planned job cuts. Two films that were currently in pre-production have also been canceled. More: No specifics on the job losses have yet been reported; more news will likely follow in the coming weeks. According to Variety, Netflix is currently seeking new deals with third-party animation producers and studios to keep a consistent output of new content on the platform. The previously unannounced film "Escape from Beverly Hills" will go back on to the open market. Netflix grabbed the animated project "Tunga" in an auction in 2019; the film, from Zimbabwe-born creator Godwin Jabangwe, will remain at Netflix but return to the development phase. The streamer released a trailer for the upcoming animated comedy "Leo," featuring Adam Sandler as a 74-year-old lizard who lives in a Florida classroom; it debuts on November 21.

2 Negotiations between actors guild SAG-AFTRA and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) have stalled, less than two weeks after being restarted. In a statement, the AMPTP declared the negotiations "suspended" and said the conversations "are no longer moving us in a productive direction." More: In a statement of their own, SAG-AFTRA accused AMPTP of employing "bully tactics" and working "the same failed strategy they tried to inflict on the WGA." According to Deadline, revenue sharing for successful streaming shows remains a key current point of contention; actors are demanding around 2% of a show's potential profits, which the studios and streamers have termed an "untenable economic burden." The AMPTP estimates the actors' 2% request would be valued at around $2.4 billion over the course of a three-year contract, or more than $800 million per year.

3 DAILY CALENDAR THURSDAY, OCTOBER 12 FRASIER: Revival of the NBC comedy series, a spinoff of "Cheers" which aired for 11 seasons from 1993 and 2004. Kelsey Grammer reprises his most famous role as Dr. Frasier Crane, who returns to Boston to reconnect with his now-adult son Freddy (Jack Cutmore-Scott). Nicholas Lyndhurst, Anders Keith, Jess Salgueiro, and Toks Olagundoye co-star. [Paramount+] THE FALL OF THE HOUSE OF USHER: Limited horror drama series from "Midnight Mass" and "Haunting of Hill House" vet Mike Flanagan, loosely inspired by the writings of Edgar Allan Poe. Bruce Greenwood stars as the corrupt CEO of a pharmaceutical company who must confront his legacy when his children begin dying mysteriously. Carla Gugino, Mary McDonnell, Carl Lumbly, T'Nia Miller, Rahul Kohli, Kate Siegel, Henry Thomas, and Mark Hamill co-star. [Netflix] LEGO NINJAGO: DRAGONS RISING: The animated kids action-comedy series returns for the second half of its first season. It's about two very different teens who use their ninja powers to protect magical dragons. [Netflix] GOOD NIGHT WORLD: Debut anime series, based on the manga by Uru Okabe. It's about a family that's dysfunctional in the real world, but unknowingly forms an effective team in a virtual reality online game known as "Planet." [Netflix] DOOM PATROL: The superhero comedy-drama series returns for the second half of its fourth and final season, in which the unconventional team races against the clock to defeat the interdimensional deity Immortus and recover their stolen longevities. Diane Guerrero, April Bowlby, Joivan Wade, Michelle Gomez, Matt Bomer, and Brendan Fraser co-star. [Max] MONSTER INSIDE: AMERICA'S MOST EXTREME HAUNTED HOUSE: Original documentary profiling Russ McKamey, creator of the extreme backyard haunted house "McKamey Manor." The film examines McKamey's breakout success on social media along with the over-the-top intensity of his scare tactics. [Hulu] DALILAND: 2023 biopic from director Mary Harron ("American Psycho"), starring Ben Kingsley as surrealist painter Salvador Dalí. The film focuses on a period in the 1970s when Dalí was living in New York and Spain with his wife Gala (Barbara Sukowa), and relates his story from the POV of a young gallery assistant (Christopher Briney). It premiered at the 2022 Toronto International Film Festival. [Hulu] GWEN SHAMBLIN: STARVING FOR SALVATION: Made-for-TV movie, produced for the Lifetime Network, starring Jennifer Grey as the late Remnant Fellowship Church and Weigh Down Workshop founder. The film chronicles Shamblin's rise to prominence, and the circumstances surrounding her death in a May 2021 plane crash. Vincent Walsh co-stars. [Hulu] TRUE CRIME STORY: CITIZEN DETECTIVE: Debut true crime docuseries from SundanceTV and "RuPaul's Drag Race" studio World of Wonder, looking at ongoing investigations from the perspectives of amateur sleuths. Each episode profiles a different non-professional detective who's obsessed with cracking an unsolved case. [AMC+ / Sundance Now] WAKE: 2023 thriller film starring Shoniqua Shandai as a physics professor with severe narcolepsy, who lives in a high-tech, protective environment. When she believes that the woman she loves is in danger, she'll have no choice but to leave the safety of her home. J. Alphonse Nicholson, Parker McKenna Posey, and DeRay Davis star; Erik White ("Lottery Ticket") directs. [BET+] THE BLACK PHONE: 2022 supernatural horror film from co-writer/director Scott Derrickson ("Sinister"), based on the 2004 short story by Joe Hill. Mason Thames stars as a teenager who's abducted by a serial killer known as "The Grabber" (Ethan Hawke), and somehow uses a mysterious phone to communicate with his previous victims. Madeleine McGraw, Jeremy Davies, and James Ransone co-star. [Peacock] ALPHONSE: Debut French drama series, starring Jean Dujardin as a man in his 40s who discovers his true calling: to satisfy the wishes of any woman who crosses his path. Charlotte Gainsbourg, Nicole Garcia, and Pierre Arditi co-star. Director Nicolas Bedos has been arrested in his native France on charges of sexual assault, leading Amazon to quietly release this series in 240 territories this week. [Amazon]

4 According to NBC's internal figures, the procedural drama series "Found" had the network's most-watched Peacock debut of all time. "Found" has drawn about 10.5 million viewers across all platforms, linear and streaming, since its October 3 debut. More: The drama series now has an overall 1.9 rating among adults ages 18-49, a 376% increase over its network TV numbers alone. "Found" comes from "All American" vet Nkechi Okoro Carroll, and stars Shanola Hampton as a former kidnapping victim who now specializes in abductee rescues. Another recent NBC debut, cop drama "The Irrational," also had a sizable premiere on Peacock, grabbing 12.1 million viewers in its first 15 days online. "The Irrational" airs Mondays on NBC and hits Peacock the following day; "Found" airs Tuesdays and comes to Peacock on Wednesdays.

5 The series premiere of ABC's "Bachelor" spinoff "The Golden Bachelor" has been seen by 9 million total viewers since September 28. That's more than double is premiere night audience of 4.36 million. More: The "Golden Bachelor" premiere is now the franchise's most-watched episode since 2021. Streaming on Hulu and ABC's digital platforms accounted for about 3.5 million of those views; the first "Golden Bachelor" is now the most-streamed unscripted ABC episode in Hulu history. While this is a fairly typical performance for a scripted series, it's particularly strong in the reality genre, in which fans typically watch shows on the night they debut to avoid spoilers. ABC's promotional push for "The Golden Bachelor" frequently highlighted the show's streaming availability on Hulu, which may have boosted viewership.

6 Some movies that were removed from Disney+ over the summer have now re-appeared on a la carte video-on-demand services. Several of the titles, including the original coming-of-age sci-fi adventure "Crater" and the 2022 remake of "Cheaper by the Dozen," are now available to rent or purchase on Amazon Prime Video. More: On Amazon, the former Disney+ films cost $3.99 to rent or $19.99 to purchase. Other titles making the jump to Prime Video and other VOD platforms include "Artemis Fowl," "Better Nate Than Ever," "Flora & Ulysses," "Stargirl" and sequel "Hollywood Stargirl," "The One and Only Ivan," "Timmy Failure: Mistakes Were made," and "Wolfgang."

7 The next "South Park" special -- titled "Joining the Panderverse" -- hits Paramount+ on October 27 in the US and Canada. Based on a released synopsis, the episode centers on Cartman having disturbing, possibly prophetic dreams and will satirize AI apps. More: A teaser also features the familiar characters of Cartman, Kenny, Butters, and Stan re-imagined as adult women. This is the fifth "South Park" special to be released on Paramount+; the full line-up of the regular series is streaming on Max. Comedy Central has renewed "South Park" through 2027, which will mark its 30th season.

8 QUICK HITS Discover ideal customers with BiglySales.com's data segmentation and AI-powered Outreach.* Showtime released a full trailer for "The Curse," the new dark comedy series featuring Nathan Fielder, Emma Stone, and Benny Safdie; the series debuts November 10 on Paramount+ with Showtime. Amazon dropped a full trailer for the holiday comedy film "Candy Cane Lane," debuting on December 1; Eddie Murphy stars as a dad who joins forces with a pushy elf (Jillian Bell) to win his neighborhood's home decorating competition. The DC animated holiday special "Merry Little Batman" hits Amazon Prime Video on December 8 in the US; the story finds Bruce Wayne's son Damian forced to take on the mantle of Batman and defend Wayne Manor from cooks on Christmas Eve. Director James Burrows -- a veteran of both "Cheers" and the original "Frasier" series -- returned to direct the first two episodes of the revival; he spoke to Deadline about making a "seamless" return to the franchise. A planned movie reboot of "The Rocketeer" is still in development for Disney+, with David Oyelowo attached to star; "Sylvie's Love" filmmaker Eugene Ashe has reportedly been brought in to take a pass on the script. Hulu acquired two new holiday films produced by Nicely Entertainment, both of which will debut on November 1; "A Christmas Frequency" stars Denise Richards as a morning radio host who goes on dates with listeners to save her show, while "Reporting for Christmas" stars Tamara Feldman as a journalist who falls for a toymaker. CBS Studios will produce the English-language thriller series "The Darkness," based on novels by Ragnar Jonasson, along with Icelandic studio Truenorth; Lena Olin stars as Detective Inspector Hulda Hermannsdottir while Oscar nominee Lasse Hallström ("What's Eating Gilbert Grape") will direct. The CW ordered two new scripted series set to premiere in Fall 2024; "Wild Cards" centers on a cop and con woman who become a crime-solving duo, while "Sight Unseen" stars Dolly Lewis as a homicide detective who returns to the job after being diagnosed as clinically blind. A new survey from Piper Sandler found that more US teens prefer watching YouTube over Netflix; it's the first time YouTube has topped Netflix in the report, which is published twice annually. Roku announced the original holiday film "How to Fall in Love by the Holidays" starring Teri Hatcher, along with the five-part romantic workplace comedy series "The Holiday Shift." Sony's Crunchyroll settled a class action privacy lawsuit for $30,000; the service was accused of releasing personally identifiable subscriber information to third-party companies, including Facebook. "Community" star Joel McHale responded to Chevy Chase's comments about working on the ensemble NBC comedy series, telling People magazine that "he stopped hurting my feelings in 2009." The Cord SDK saved product teams at monday.com, BILL, and ThoughtSpot 12 months of developer time and $100,000s.* *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 Lon Harris

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