Good morning: In today's edition of The Industry, we look at:
Plan B’s initiative. Martin Scorsese’s happening. And a Jonty.
Let’s go!
If you enjoy today’s edition, please hit the like button or leave a comment.
Do you have a colleague who could benefit from reading The Industry?
If so, please forward them this email.
If you have been forwarded this email, subscribe here.
Brad Pitt’s Plan B wants to change the culture.
They did it with Moonlight, they did it with their recent Emmy-winning TV series Adolescence, and now they’re doing it with their micro-budget film initiative.
That’s a lightyear from where they started in 2001 when Pitt formed the company with his then-wife, Jennifer Aniston, and manager Brad Grey (who went on to become the CEO of Paramount).
Their first ventures were Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005) and The Departed (2006).
Pitt could have continued to pursue studio franchises and big-budget films as he did with acting, such as Paramount’s World War Z, but as a producer, his company zeroed in on indies:
Moonlight (2016)
The Last Black Man in San Francisco (2019)
Kajillionaire (2020)
Minari (2020)
Women Talking (2022)
Nickel Boys (2024)
Pitt stated:
“There’s such an investment of time and thought, I wanted to find stories that were more personal to me and that I believed I could add something to that was unique.”
Pitt has staffed his company with ultra-perceptive development executives who have a sharp eye for material. His producing partner, Dede Gardner, discovered Moonlight by encouraging the director, Barry Jenkins (who at that point hadn’t directed a feature in eight years) to send her his latest screenplay after running into him at a panel. That film went on to win Best Picture.
Continuing the trend is Plan B’s new hire for their micro budget division: Caddy Vanasirikul. She was formerly the head of Acquisitions & Production for The Exchange, where she picked up a number of ultra-low-budget indies from festivals like Monica (Venice) and We the Animals (Sundance).
First on Plan B's micro budget slate is Fernando Eimbcke’s Olmo. The director’s previous films (Duck Season, Lake Tahoe, Club Sandwich) have won awards at Cannes, Berlin, and Toronto.
Olmo premiered at Berlin and went on to play at TIFF, where I caught up with Eimbcke and producer Jeremy Kleiner (Co-President: Plan B).
Kleiner shared:
“Olmo is so unique, and it comes from such a genuine place that I think anyone in any country or language can understand it. I feel that there's something in terms of films made in the US that have a Spanish language element. I would like to see more of those films given the conspicuous absence of them.”
With Olmo and the new microbudget initiative, Plan B continues to amplify artists’ multicultural stories and give them a voice. We can’t wait to see how they open up new horizons of cinema as they go in the future.
For More:
Olmo is a coming-of-age tale that distinguishes itself with a minimalist realism so stark that it teeters on the absurd. Watch a clip here.
THE INDUSTRY TLDR
Martin Scorsese will direct What Happens at Night starring Leonardo DiCaprio & Jennifer Lawrence.
Lionsgate lays off 5% (50 staff).
Natasha Lyonne & Matt Berry co-create Force & Majeure for Sky/Peacock.
Amazon MGM orders two scripted series: Rally (tennis drama) & Lux (YA fantasy).
Peacock breakout The Paper moves to NBC primetime.
50 Cent developing Paid in Full series with Miramax.
Fifth Season signs first-look deal with Jonathan Levine (Nine Perfect Strangers).
Amazon MGM renews Andrew Mittman’s overall deal (Wednesday).
Jonathan Nolan’s Kilter Films hires Mariel Redlin as TV Production Exec.
WGA East elects Tom Fontana (Oz) as new president.
Seth Rogen guest stars in Nobody Wants This S2.
Justin Theroux & Darius Fraser join Apple’s Wild Things.
Tiffany Haddish leads crime thriller Motion.
Lorene Scafaria (Hustlers) directs A24’s Jonty, starring Jesse Plemons.
Tim & Eric duo tease new horror project.
The Conjuring writers Chad & Carey Hayes make directorial debut with Train.
BFI unveils £150M ($204M) 2026–29 strategy for UK cinema & talent.
Lithuania selects The Southern Chronicles as its Oscar entry.
Warner Bros. to cease operations in Japan. Toho-Towa will sub-distribute.
THE INDUSTRY NEWS
Martin Scorsese hath chosen his next film to direct. It’s not his Life of Jesus film or his Hawaiian crime thriller with The Rock, it’s:
What Happens at Night
Stars: Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Lawrence
Studio/Financier: Apple (in talks)
Studio/Development: StudioCanal
Writer: Patrick Marber (Closer, Notes on a Scandal)
Link to Source Material w/ synopsis
DiCaprio and Lawrence will play a married couple who travel to a Scandinavian hotel in hopes of adopting a baby. But something about the hotel is off, and they are thwarted at every turn. The entire thing sounds wonderfully Kafka-esque.
And being stuck in a hotel seems to be in vogue (see Crispin Glover’s new film Mr. K - trailer).
Scorsese is supposed to kick off production Jan 2026.
Lionsgate lays off 5% of staff (50 people). According to a memo, they’ve already laid off another 8% (80 people) this year.
The lion's share of the layoffs are coming to unscripted with subsidiary prod co’s Blackfin (Killer Inside: The Mind of Aaron Hernandez) and Pilgrim Media (Dirty Jobs) taking the hit.
CEO Jon Feltheimer stated:
“We separated Lionsgate and STARZ into independent standalone companies earlier this year, and we are continuing to monetize non-core assets, re-allocate our resources to growth areas of the business and reduce costs.”
This transition has been challenging, with their latest quarter showing losses in Studio revenue (down 5.9%), Motion Picture Segment revenue (down 23%), and studio profit (down 70%).
But we’re encouraged by two factors. First, they have a Michael Jackson biopic slated for April 2026. And second, their TV division saw a 20% rise in revenue and a 150% rise in profit.
Let’s hope they can turn it around.
Espionage meets eccentric comedy, which seems right up Natasha Lyonne’s alley. The Russian Doll actress, alongside Matt Berry (What We Do in the Shadows), is co-creating and starring in Force & Majeure for Sky. The show is described as “a retro-infused, playfully irreverent take on the classic TV action-adventure detective genre.”
Written by Monk producer Tom Scharpling, it’ll follow Lyonne as Jennifer Majeure, an American mercenary, and Berry as Thomas Force, a British art thief, who are recruited by a suspicious billionaire tasked with foiling the plans of some of Europe’s most nefarious villains.
The series from the UK giant is in its very early stages but expected to follow suit with their previous Lyonne collaboration, Poker Face, and land on Peacock for U.S. audiences.
Amazon MGM trifecta: 2 new series + 1 overall deal.
Rally (scripted series)
Studio: Amazon MGM & Universal TV
Showrunner: Julie Plec (CW’s The Vampire Diaries)
EP: Andre Agassi (one of the best tennis players of all time)
EP: Entertainment 360 (Prod Co: Apple TV+’s Stick), My So-Called (Prod Co: Prime’s We Were Liars)
Synopsis:
In an Elite tennis academy ambitious young players discover the loneliest sport in the world demands sacrificing the very connections that might be the only thing that makes winning feel worth it.
The idea comes from Entertainment 360’s founding partner, Guymon Casady.
Lux (scripted series)
Studio: Amazon MGM Studios
Showrunner: Brian Peterson (Smallville) and Kelly Souders (CW’s Beauty & the Beast)
EP: Premeditated Productions (Amazon’s Shield of Sparrows)
Synopsis:
Seventeen-year-old Katy Swartz, who moves to a small town in West Virginia, discovers that her neighbors and new friends, Daemon and Dee Black, are part of a powerful alien race hiding in plain sight.
Based on Jennifer L. Armentrout’s five viral fantasy novels: Obsidian, Onyx, Opal, Origin, and Opposition.
Peacock’s The Paper is coming to NBC. The show will premiere on primetime at 8:30 pm on Mondays, kicking off on Nov. 10th. This is a first for a Peacock streaming show to make the jump to its parent company, Comcast’s broadcast network.
And for good reason. The Paper has outperformed for Peacock, breaking into Nielsen’s top 10 one week with 9.3M hours watched. And it was much needed as Peacock as a streamer has been struggling. They’ve stayed flat at 41M subs and 1.2bn revenue during the six months spanning from Feb - Aug.
At the same time, NBCU is a welcome place for the Office spinoff show, The Paper. Back in 2021 NBCU purchased the rights back from Netflix for $500M after it aired on NBC from 2005 to 2013.
There’s apparently very little audience crossover between Peacock and NBC, so the show should drive a ton of engagement.
Tidbits:
Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson and Miramax are developing a Paid in Full series adaptation. Still in early stages, it has no writer or network yet attached. The original 2002 film, inspired by Harlem drug dealers, might not have necessarily been a box office hit, but it has slowly gained cult status. Still waiting on the greenlight, but it could be a big win for Curtis. Original Trailer here.
Amazon MGM renews Andrew Mittman’s overall deal. Mittman EP’d United Artists animated The Addams Family (2019) and The Addams Family 2 (2021). For Netflix, he EP’d Wednesday and produced Neon’s Sundance-acquired horror Together. He is the president of 1.21 Pictures.
Fifth Season has signed off on a first-look deal with Jonathan Levine’s (dir. Long Shot) production company Megamix (Amazon’s The Sticky). Levine directed both seasons of the Fifth Season’s hit series Nine Perfect Strangers on Hulu, making their new partnership only a matter of time. The 50/50 (2011) director will contribute to the studio’s film and television slate, including projects like Jason Momoa’s Chief of War and Jessica Chastain’s The Savant.
Mini Tidbit:
Graham King (Prod: The Departed) is producing Dead Drunk, a horror comedy from Josh Miller & Pat Casey (Sonic). Here’s the plot: A wine-tour turns deadly, and survival requires staying drunk.
After much speculation, Julia Roberts has confirmed a My Best Friend’s Wedding sequel is in the works with none other than her After the Hunt director, Luca Guadagnino (Challengers), expressing interest in helming the project. His involvement is not official.
Jonathan Nolan’s Kilter Films (Prod Co: Fallout, Westworld) brings on Mariel Redlin for TV Development as Production Executive. Previously, she served as VP of TV at Range Media. Her credits include Netflix’s new Jude Law, Jason Bateman series Black Rabbit.
The Golden Globe Foundation donates $3M to non-profits. $175K will go to the restoration of various films, including Napoleon (1927). A restored 7-hour version played at Cannes in 2024.
WGA East has elected Tom Fontana (Creator: HBO’s Oz) (former: VP WGAE) as president. Fontana succeeds current president Lisa Takeuchi Cullen (consulting producer: Law and Order SVU).
Renewals:
Disney+’s Daredevil: Born Again (for S3)
CBS’s The Visioneers With Zay Harding (for S2)
Trailers:
Apple Studios’ The Lost Bus
Limited theatrical release: Today
Satisfaction
Premiere: SXSW
US Sales Rep: UTA
International Sales Rep: Alief (Strawberry Mansion)
Focus Features Anemone
Release: Oct 3rd
This marks the return of Daniel Day-Lewis
Trafalgar Releasing/Sony Music’s Depeche Mode: M
Premiere: Tribeca
Release Oct 8th
HBO’s The Chair Company
Release: Oct 12
Star: Tim Robinson
Netflix’s The Diplomat (S3)
Co-star: Allison Janney
Release: Oct 16
Angel Studios’ I Was a Stranger
Release: Jan 2026
Starz’s Outlander (S8)
Release: Early 2026
Release Dates:
Universal‘s Reminders of Him
Release date pushed: February 6, 2026 → March 13, 2026
THE ACTOR SPOTLIGHT
In Susan Shopmaker, we trust.
That’s the casting director who discovered Dominic Sessa (The Holdovers breakout star) at a high school theater production.
Now Sessa, who signed with CAA, is tapping toes with the bigwigs in Now You See Me: Now You Don't. He stars alongside Morgan Freeman, Woody Harrelson, Jesse Eisenberg, Dave Franco, Isla Fisher, Rosamund Pike, Mark Ruffalo, and Daniel Radcliffe. And my god does he hold his own, even a part that could be construed as snarky Gen Z-dude.
But watch the trailer, and you see he handles it with magnetism.
Lionsgate releases on Nov 14th.
Seth Rogen continues to expand as a television force.
Fresh off Emmy wins for Apple TV+ comedy The Studio, he joins Netflix’s Nobody Wants This Season 2 in a guest role. Rogen’s recent TV dominance includes best actor, directing, writing, and series wins, tying the record for most Emmys earned by one person in a single night.
Though he always kind of flew under the radar, The Studio really proved Rogen had more range than you’d give the guy credit for.
The following actors have been cast in new projects:
Willow Smith
Teyana Taylor
John Boyega
Justin Theroux
Tiffany Haddish
Bert Kreischer
Projects they’re in hail from Apple TV, Sony, and Channel 4. See full casting details here.
INDIE FILMMAKER SPOTLIGHT
Lorene Scafaria’s new film is with A24.
You may know her name as she dabbled in post-apocalyptic fare, directing Seeking a Friend for the End of the World (2012) and co-starring in Coherence (2013).
But she made her name directing Hustlers (2019). A J-Lo starring film about strippers getting even with the system. The film's stylishness was only outweighed by its dramatic poignancy.
Her new film is Jonty. And it’s got a dream team situation going on:
Cast: Jesse Plemons & Cole Escola
Writer: Jesse Armstrong (Succession)
Prod Co: Square Peg (Ari Aster’s company)
Studio: A24
No word on plot, but the combo of all these elements makes me imagine some sort of stylish horror tilting film that lambasts the rich?
The idea of two guys as weird as Tim and Eric writing a horror movie both intrigues and frightens me.
Keep reading with a 7-day free trial
Subscribe to The Industry to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.