Good morning: In today's edition of The Industry, we look at:
DeVito’s Comedy, Amazon’s Game, and an AI iceman.
Let’s go!
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I sat down with Danny DeVito at SXSW to interview him for his new film, Drag, from his production company, Jersey Films 2nd Avenue.
It’s the first feature he’s produced in over a decade. DeVito, of course, has stayed in the popular consciousness because of his mad dog performance across 16 seasons of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, but he is also one of the most prolific producers in Hollywood.
His credits are wild:
Pulp Fiction (1994)
Get Shorty (1995)
Gattaca (1997)
Erin Brockovich (2000)
Along Came Polly (2004)
Garden State (2004)
A Walk Among the Tombstones (2014)
At SXSW, he produced Drag along with his son Jake and daughter Lucy, who also stars in the film, opposite Lizzy Caplan, along with John Stamos.
DeVito discussed the ethos behind Jersey Films 2nd Avenue:
“We want to nurture independent films. We want to make more of them. I did a lot of them in the early days, and that was one of my precepts. And we’re going to continue that with Jersey Films 2nd Avenue. I was born on 2nd Avenue, by the way, in New Jersey, in Asbury Park. Just a little plug for Bruce Springsteen.”
During the interview, the DeVito family shared a constellation of film influences that have powered their company, honing in on Dr. Strangelove.
So it’s no shock that Drag has a rich lexicon of physical comedy. It’s a wild premise. And we’re really excited to see where it lands.
For More:
Full interview with Danny DeVito, Lucy DeVito, and Jake DeVito. Come for their family dynamic. Stay for the wisdom:
THE INDUSTRY TLDR
Amazon MGM is adapting The Game of Life with Sean Anders directing.
WME laid off 3% of staff.
California allocated $300M in TV tax credits for shows from Disney and HBO.
Sony’s Labubu movie added Steven Levinson as co-writer.
Jane Fonda will lead Lionsgate’s adaptation of The Correspondent.
Darren Star and David Schulner reteam w/ Netflix on romcom series Uncorked.
Sarah Pidgeon is in talks to join Amazon MGM’s Honeymoon with Harry.
Vice Studios secured global rights to adapt the Payday video game franchise.
Zach Galifianakis leads Netflix’s whimsical This is a Gardening Show.
SXSW 2026 crowned Wishful Thinking its Narrative Feature Competition winner.
Indie film As Deep as the Grave will use AI to create a digital likeness of Val Kilmer.
Michaela Coel will write and direct A24’s reimagining of Bloodsport.
Jason Bateman is directing Netflix’s The Cackling of the Dodos w/ Sam Rockwell.
Prime Video Germany struck a multiyear film deal with Leonine Studios.
THE INDUSTRY NEWS
Amazon takes us on a spin in The Game of Life. The lovable family board game, which saw your fortunes rise and fall with the spin of that fun little wheel, is getting the big screen treatment.
Here’s the team:
Dir: Sean Anders (Daddy’s Home)
Wri: Allan Loeb: Collateral Beauty
Prod Co: Chernin Entertainment (The Greatest Showman)
Prod Co: Hasbro (upcoming film versions of Clue, Monopoly)
Studio: Amazon MGM
No word on plot, but Anders came into Hollywood with some of the most original, zany comedies, writing Hot Tub Time Machine and We’re the Millers. If he can recapture that element of unexpected twists, it will be a perfect fit for this game of life.
3% of WME has been laid off. 30 folks at the top talent agency are out, including one of the top agents, Elizabeth Wiederseim (clients Colman Domingo, Leo Woodall, Winona Ryder).
The heads of WME stated:
“Our industry is undergoing profound change - from consolidation and shifting economics to new technology and evolving client needs.”
We have some possible renewals/greenlits based on the new CA Tax credit allocations:
HBO’s Rooster (for S2)
67 days filming in CA
$56.4M qualified spending
$21M CA tax credits
HBO’s How To Survive Without Me (greenlit)
141 days filming in CA
$95.6M qualified spending
$21M CA tax credits
Here’s a quick breakdown of how much each studio was allocated:
Disney
$128.8M across 5 series (4x 20th Century including Stewie, 1x ABC)
HBO
$51.5M
Apple
$21.3M for an untitled series
Netflix
$10.3M for A Hundred Percent (S1)
In total, nearly $300M was allocated across 16 projects.
Tidbits:
Vice Studios has secured global rights to adapt the long-running Payday video game franchise. The first-person shooter follows a crew of robbers executing chaotic bank heists. It’s a natural fit for a studio already fluent in violent crime worlds.
Emily in Paris show creators, Star and David Schulner, are sticking with Netflix for their new romcom series Uncorked. The show will follow a self-sabotaging winemaker who goes to Napa to both strengthen her legacy and finally find love. From Emily, to the pinnacle female show, Sex and the City, it’s safe to say Star knows a thing or two about crafting compelling and aspirational women.
Sony’s Labubu movie adds Steven Levenson (Dear Evan Hansen, Fosse/Verdon, Masters of Sex) as co-writer. He’s an interesting writer who can move from sappy and heartfelt to salacious and biting. Paul King (Paddington) will direct.
Obits:
The man who brought Bosch to the screen, Eric Overmyer, has died at the age of 74. The writer-producer adapted and produced the detective series, which would go on to become Prime Video’s longest-running original (2014-21). Later, he co-created the continuation series Bosch: Legacy, which was also beloved for its three-season run.
Amazon MGM Studios’ longtime Head of Business Affairs, Sam Semon, has died after a battle with cancer. With former senior executive positions at NBCUniversal, CBS Studios, and Gaumont Television, Semon took pride in celebrating original international scripted content across film and TV.
Renewals:
TBS’ Impractical Jokers (for S13)
Prime’s Cross (for S3)
Trailers:
Sony’s Spider-Man: Brand New Day
Release: July 31
Netflix’s Keep Sweet: Pray and Obey
Release: April 8
Lionsgate’s Beast
Cast: Russell Crowe, Luke Hemsworth
Release: April 10
My NDA
Premiere: SXSW 2026
Producer: Elizabeth Woodward (founder of Willa. The Voice of Hind Rajab)
Sales rep: Cinephil (The Act of Killing)
First look:
Wild Horse Nine
Wri/Dir: Martin McDonagh (Three Billboards, Seven Psychopaths)
Cast: John Malkovich, Sam Rockwell, Steve Buscemi
Netflix’s Nemesis (series)
Showrunner: Courtney A. Kemp (Power Book)
Netflix’s Lord of the Flies (series)
Release: May 4
Release dates:
Peacock’s The Five-Star Weekend
Star: Jennifer Garner
Release: July 16
Netflix’s Million Dollar Secret (S2)
Release: April 15
Disney’s Incredibles 3
Release: June 16, 2028
Disney’s Lilo & Stitch 2 (live action)
Release: May 26, 2028
THE ACTOR SPOTLIGHT
Every once in a while, Zach Galifianakis does something wonderful.
First, it was Alan on The Hangover who had the intelligence of a seedling but a heart of gold. Then it was Between Two Ferns, where he got everyone from Natalie Portman to Obama to Bradley Cooper to give him the side eye.
Now he has a gardening show on Netflix: This is a Gardening Show.
He brings his whimsical folly to sustainable food. The trailer feels like one grand adventure. It has the possibility to be a more profound and sillier version than some of the rote adventure/travel shows of recent years. Not naming any names.
Tidbits:
The star of FX’s Love Story, Sarah Pidgeon, is in talks to join Honeymoon with Harry, an Amazon MGM Studios adaptation of Bart Baker’s popular 2012 novel. Pidgeon, who has recently been in the spotlight for her portrayal of Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy, chronicling her whirlwind romance with JFK Jr., will now play the recently deceased fiancée to Jake Gyllenhaal’s cranky character, who is forced to take his honeymoon with his prickly father-in-law, played by Kevin Costner. Filming will start next month in Sydney.
None other than two-time Oscar winner Jane Fonda is set to lead Lionsgate’s hot adaptation of The Correspondent. The story follows a retired lawyer revising her past through a series of deeply personal letters, forcing her to confront long-buried grief and guilt. It’s the kind of introspective, character-driven material that Fonda long excels in, like her unforgettable role as a disillusioned military wife in Coming Home (1978).
Mini Casting Tidbits:
Gabriel LaBelle
Patti LuPone
Plus the full Scooby-Doo cast
All those casting tidbits and more here.
FESTIVALS
SXSW 2026 Narrative Feature Competition winner:
Wishful Thinking, a surrealist relationship comedy, pits Lewis Pullman (Thunderbolts*) and Maya Hawke (Do Revenge) against each other as a volatile couple who discover their complicated state has supernatural consequences.
Full list of winners here.
INDIE FILMMAKER SPOTLIGHT
Michaela Coel, the Emmy-winning creator of HBO’s I May Destroy You, is taking on her most unexpected project yet. Coel will write and direct a reimagining of cult martial-arts classic Bloodsport for A24.
Although it lasted only one season, Coel’s critically acclaimed series is an unconventional and devastating coming-of-age story that follows a recently assaulted woman trying to rebuild her life as she navigates surviving her trauma.
Coel’s take on Bloodsport promises a similarly character-focused approach, emphasizing personal growth over pure action spectacle. Where the 1988 original celebrated Jean-Claude Van Damme’s physical prowess, Coel seems poised to explore what drives her characters to fight and the cost of ambition and survival, making the martial-arts story as much about the human journey as the combat.
I May Destroy You - Trailer
Bloodsport (1988) - Trailer
Only Jason Bateman could make finding a dead body feel like a dark comedy masterclass.
The Ozark director is helming The Cackling of the Dodos, a new dark comedy feature starring Sam Rockwell and Woody Harrelson, continuing his hot streak with Netflix.
The wrong place, wrong time story follows a small-town farmer who discovers a corpse in a grain bin.
Bateman is, perhaps, best known for his sharp, deadpan comedy and impeccable timing as the straight man, but he also has a masterful touch with darkness as seen in the disturbing four-season run of Netflix’s Ozark, which he starred, wrote, produced, and earned a DGA nomination for.
With the all-star team assembled and a title like that, how could this not be fun?
The dodos are sadly not at all a reference to Arrested Development’s iconic bird dance. (clip).
Mini Tidbits:
Val Kilmer is getting resurrected from the dead for an AI-generated role? We have thoughts.
Karyn Kusama (Dir: Jennifer’s Body) is directing Amazon Prime Video’s Life is Strange series. Kusama is attached to direct the first two episodes of the live-action adaptation of the Life is Strange game series, which follows a photography student who uses her time-travelling ability to investigate a fellow student’s disappearance in Oregon.
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
French studio Gaumont is diving into provocative territory, with its U.S. arm optioning Opus, financial journalist Gareth Gore’s explosive exposé on the secretive Catholic group Opus Dei. The potential series is centered on the collapse of Spain’s largest bank, which sparked Gore’s exposé that completely removed the veil of Catholicism, uncovering startling corruption.
Prime Video in Germany has made a multi-year deal for Leonine Studios (The Housemaid) movies. Under the new deal, Amazon streaming services in Germany and Austria will take all films from the theatrical slate of Leonine Studios, including Hollywood blockbusters like the John Wick franchise and Hunger Games - Sunrise on the Reaping (2026). Older films like Asterix and Obelix (2023) and The Expendables (2010) are also part of the deal.
ON THIS DAY
1964. Sean Connery’s first day of shooting Goldfinger.
Written by Gabriel Miller, Madelyn Menapace, and Tony Jaeyeong Jeong.
Editor: Gabriel Miller.
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