SAG-AFTRA debates AI protections / Hotstar sets cricket record / "Young Sheldon" to end / "What If...?" Season 2 teaser

Plus today's calendar, "Nowhere" tops Netflix international charts, Apple teases "The New Look," Netflix Cup winners, and more

Inside Streaming For November 15, 2023

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Good afternoon and thanks for opening today's Inside Streaming brief! I started watching FX's "A Murder at the End of the World" on Hulu last night and I'm enjoying it so far. I am perplexed, however, by the sudden MASSIVE interest in Agatha Christie-style whodunnit stories. At first, I assumed it was just the runaway success of Rian Johnson's "Knives Out" that was encouraging so many ensemble locked-room mystery films and shows all of the sudden, and I'm sure that's partly true. Unlikely that Peacock's "Poker Face" would have come together if Johnson weren't coming off a rousingly successful detective franchise. But with Branagh regularly releasing new Poirots, and offbeat takes like Sam Rockwell's "See How They Run" regularly hitting theaters, we're in the midst of a full Christie-ssance and I'm not sure any one project can take full credit. Regardless, "Murder at the End of the World" is another worthy entry in the genre, with Emma Corrin's amateur sleuth cracking a case while staying at a billionaire's creepy, isolated Iceland resort. After two episodes, I recommend it! Lon p/lon-harris

1 In a chat with Variety, two members of SAG-AFTRA's national board explained their "no" votes on the guild's proposed new contract with studios and streamers. Shaan Sharma and Anne-Marie Johnson were two of at least 8 dissenters to the new deal on the 80-member SAG-AFTRA board; both said they had multiple reservations but were chiefly concerned about AI protections. More: SAG-AFTRA has not yet released the full contents of the agreement; an 18-page summary was distributed to members on Sunday. The deal permits studios to create "digital doubles" using AI, so long as actors consent and receive compensation; the contract also does not restrain studios from training AI systems on film and TV performances to create original "synthetic" actors. Johnson told Variety "there should be no AI," and "only human beings" should perform in TV shows and films. Sharma expressed concerns over "significant loopholes" in the contract's language regarding the use of AI. SAG-AFTRA executive director and chief negotiator Duncan Crabtree-Ireland explained to members that "there has never been a time when we have been able to successfully just block technology from advancing."

2 53 million concurrent viewers watched a cricket match between India and New Zealand on Disney's Hotstar service on Wednesday, setting a new record. The previous record of 44 million simultaneous viewers was also set by the Disney-owned platform earlier this year, on a different cricket match. More: This gives Disney Hotstar a significant lead over Viacom18's JioCinema, its chief rival in Indian cricket streaming; matches on JioCinema have peaked at 32 million concurrent viewers. Disney is currently streaming the ICC World Cup at no cost for mobile-only viewers, giving it a significant boost. Disney is reportedly considering a spinoff of its Indian business, though CEO Bob Iger said earlier this month that the company "would like to stay" in the market.

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3 DAILY CALENDAR WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 15 BRAWN: THE IMPOSSIBLE FORMULA 1 STORY: Four-part docuseries looking back at the 2009 Formula 1 championship, which was won by drivers Ross Brawn and Jenson Button, along with an independent Brawn GP team that was considered understaffed and underfinanced at the time. Keanu Reeves hosts and executive produced. [Hulu] TO CATCH A SMUGGLER: The National Geographic reality series follows along as Homeland Security officials attempt to halt the flow of contraband through America's border crossings, airports, and other points of entry. Season 6 aired earlier this year on cable and hits both Hulu and Disney+ today. [Hulu and Disney+] I'M YOUR FAN: THE PARTY CONTINUES (SOY TU FAN: LA FIESTA CONTINUA): Spanish-language romantic comedy series, serving as a follow-up to the classic 2010 series "I'm Your Fan." Martín Altomaro, Ana Claudia Talancón, and Juan Pablo Medina reprise their roles for the new episodes. [Hulu] DAVID HOLMES: THE BOY WHO LIVED: Inspirational HBO documentary profiling gymnast David Holmes, who was working as actor Daniel Radcliffe's stunt double on the film "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" when he accidentally injured his spine, causing paralysis. The film features intimate interviews with Holmes, as he learns how to live with his injuries, along with his family, friends and colleagues. Radcliffe makes appearances and executive produced. [Max] THE EXHIBIT: FINDING THE NEXT GREAT ARTIST: Reality competition series from MTV and the Smithsonian Channel in which 7 artists square off in a series of themed challenges for a shot at a $100,000 grand prize and a solo exhibition at the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden. Guest judges include Melissa Chiu, Adam Pendleton, Abigail DeVille, and Samuel Hoi. Season 1 aired earlier this year on cable and hits Paramount+ today. [Paramount+] DEAD SHOT: 2023 action film from the UK, inspired by the book "The Road to Balcombe Street" by Steven P. Moysey. Colin Morgan stars as a retired Irish paramilitary officer in the 1970s who witnesses the murder of his pregnant wife by a British soldier, then begins plotting his revenge. Aml Ameen, Mark Strong, and Felicity Jones co-star; "The Uninvited" vets Tom and Charles Guard co-wrote and directed. [Paramount+] BASKETBALL WIVES: The VH1 reality series is set among the wives, ex-wives, and girlfriends of professional basketball stars. Season 10 aired in 2022 on cable and co-stars Jackie Christie, Jennifer Williams, Malaysia Pargo, Angel Brinks, Brandi Maxiell, DJ Duffey, Brooke Bailey, and Brittish Williams. [Paramount+] THE CRUSADES: Indie coming-of-age comedy-drama feature about three friends from an all-boys private high school navigating the ups and downs of life and love over the course of one long weekend. Rudy Pankow, Khail Everage, Ryan Ashton, Indiana Massara, Nicholas Turturro, and Mike Starr co-star. [Paramount+] MATT RIFE: NATURAL SELECTION: The comic's first Netflix special was recorded at DAR Construction Hall in Washington DC. Topics include cancel culture, his love for senior citizens, and the "goat yoga" fad. [Netflix] FIRST WIVES CLUB: The BET+ comedy series is based on the 1996 film, and centers on three women whose friendships help them through particularly rocky divorces. Michelle Buteau, Jill Scott, Ryan Michelle Bathe, and Michelle Mitchenor co-star. The first three seasons hit Netflix in the US today. [Netflix] FEEDBACK (INFORMACJA ZWROTNA): First-year crime drama series from Poland, starring Arkadiusz Jakubik as an alcoholic former musician on a dark journey through the Warsaw underworld, and his own past, as part of the search for his missing son. The series is based on a novel by Jakub Zulczyk. [Netflix] THE GHOST AND MOLLY MCGEE: The Disney Channel animated series centers on the friendship between an enthusiastic, optimistic tween (Ashly Burch) and the grumpy ghost (Dana Snyder) who haunts her house. Four fresh Season 2 episodes come to Disney+ today. [Disney+] HAMSTER & GRETEL: The animated Disney Channel series centers on a teenage boy who's constantly drawn into conflicts after his younger sister and her pet hamster develop superpowers. Meli Povenmire, Michael Cimino, Beck Bennett, and Joey King co-star. Four new Season 1 episodes hit Disney+ today. [Disney+] MICKEY MOUSE FUNHOUSE: Animated Disney Junior series in which Mickey and his pals have fun in an enchanted talking playhouse, voiced by Harvey Guillén. 8 new Season 2 episodes come to Disney+ today. [Disney+] HARINA, EL TENIENTE VERSUS EL CANCELADOR: The Spanish-language cop comedy series from Mexico returns to Prime Video for a second season. Guillermo Villegas and Verónica Bravo co-star as mismatched, struggling cops who quickly get in over their heads. The characters were introduced in sketches on the comedy series "Backdoor." [Amazon]

4 The CBS comedy series "Young Sheldon" will come to an end after its upcoming seventh season. The final season debuts in February; the one-hour series finale is scheduled to air and stream on May 16, 2024. More: "Young Sheldon" is a spinoff of "The Big Bang Theory," which originally ran on CBS from 2007 to 2019; both shows stream on the Max platform in the US. Iain Armitage stars as a younger version of the brilliant but socially awkward future physicist Sheldon Cooper, the role portrayed by Jim Parsons in "Big Bang Theory." In total, Sheldon Cooper has been a popular TV character for 17 years now.

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5 Season 2 of the animated Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) series "What If...?" hits Disney+ on December 22. The streamer will release one new episode at a time over the course of nine consecutive nights. More: Jeffrey Wright narrates the series as The Watcher, who peeks in on various scenarios from across the multiverse. A number of MCU actors reprise their roles for the series, though no full Season 2 cast list is currently available. A teaser features glimpses of Nebula, Hela, Happy Hogan, Doctor Strange, and others.

6 The Spanish survival thriller "Nowhere" is Netflix's most-viewed non-English-language film of the year so far. According to the streamer's internal data, "Nowhere" has been viewed around 77.9 million times so far. More: Currently, "Nowhere" ranks as Netflix's second most-popular non-English film of all time, behind only Norway's "Troll." This past week, the film still scored around 1.6 million views; no other non-English film has ever received that level of viewership after seven weeks on Netflix. The film is the first project to emerge from Netflix's overall deal with Madrid production company Rock & Ruz, co-owned by producers Miguel Ruz and Jordi Roca; the duo previously developed the film "The Paramedic (El Practicante") for the streamer. "Nowhere" stars Anna Castillo as a pregnant woman who pays smugglers to sneak her out of a dystopian Europe, only to wind up trapped alone at sea in a lost shipping container.

7 The first three episodes of "The New Look," Apple's scripted drama series about fashion icons Christian Dior and Coco Chanel, hit the TV+ platform on February 14. Ben Mendelsohn and Juliette Binoche co-star on the fact-based series, which chronicles the birth of the modern fashion industry during World War II. More: The series was filmed entirely in Paris, and recreates the city as it appeared during the Nazi occupation. Maisie Williams, John Malkovich, Emily Mortimer, and Claes Bang co-star. Famed producer and musician Jack Antonoff is working on the series' soundtrack, which will feature a variety of contemporary artists, including Florence Welch, Lana Del Rey, Matty Healty, Nick Cave, Perfume Genius, and Antonoff's own group, Bleachers.

8 QUICK HITS Elevate your Kubernetes skills with this must-read resource for building cloud native applications. Get your Kubernetes Cookbook today.* Pro golfer Justin Thomas and Formula One driver Carlos Sainz won the first "Netflix Cup" livestreamed golf tournament, held Tuesday at the Wynn Golf Club in Las Vegas. The Global Cycling Network's streaming service, GCN+, will shut down on December 10, with most of its content moving over to Discovery+ and/or Eurosport; GCN is owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. Netflix dropped a trailer for "Pokémon Concierge," a debut stop-motion animated series set on a tropical island where Pokémon relax and unwind; the series debuts on December 28. Netflix renewed the reality makeover series "Queer Eye" for a ninth season; Jonathan Van Ness, Karamo Brown, Antoni Porowski, and Tan France will return for the new episodes, which will switch locations to Las Vegas. Paramount+ greenlit the six-part British drama series "Stags," about a group of friends throwing a bachelor party in South America that goes tragically wrong; production has already started on the series, which comes from "Bad Sisters" vet Daniel Cullen. Jon Hamm will star in a series adaptation of the podcast "American Hostage"; the series, which is currently in development at Sony, comes from "SWAT" and "The Night Agent" creator Shawn Ryan. The limited WWII scripted series "All the Light We Cannot See" was the #1 English-language series on Netflix for the second week in a row, according to the streamer's internal numbers; so far, the show has around 20 million total views on the platform. Amazon dropped a trailer for the animated DC Comics holiday comedy special "Merry Little Batman"; the Warner Bros. Animation special hits Prime Video on December 8. "May December," the new film from writer/director Todd Haynes ("Carol"), will compete in comedy/musical categories at this year's Golden Globe Awards; the film hits Netflix in the US and Canada on December 1. South Africa's Showmax streaming platform re-launches in February 2024 and will introduce a number of new tiers. *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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