HBO, Max Marketing Team Hit With Layoffs

Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion are back together.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer Warner Bros. Discovery expects the ongoing Hollywood strikes to have a $300 million-$500 million negative impact on the company’s 2023 earnings.

It is possible that in his search for CNN’s next boss, Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav simply checked back through the news network’s archives. 

California Treasurer Fiona Ma has sent letters to the CEOs of seven Hollywood studios urging a return to the bargaining table with the WGA and SAG-AFTRA to end a months-long double strike that’s shut down much of the entertainment industry and is taking a major toll on the California economy.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer SPOILER ALERT: This interview contains spoilers through Episode 2 of “One Piece,” now streaming on Netflix. When Marc Jobst came on as director and executive producer of “One Piece,” Netflix and Tomorrow Studios’ adaptation of Eiichiro Oda’s iconic pirate manga, he had a clear connection to the gig early on, as he had directed multiple episodes of the high-seas drama “Black Sails.” That show, which ran for four season on Starz, features several of the ships that Netflix commandeered to refashion into the bright and colorful ones used in “One Piece.” While the series’ crew was handling that overhaul, Jobst (who has also directed episodes of “The Witcher,” and an episode of “Luke Cage” that was written by “One Piece” co-showrunner Matt Owens) was working to create an overall aesthetic for the “blue skies” adaptation of “One Piece” that also allowed for the natural incorporation of the manga’s darkest elements, including villain Buggy the Clown (Jeff Ward). Buggy is a nemesis that teenage aspiring pirate king Monkey D.

A slew of series from AMC Networks including Fear The Walking Dead, A Discovery of Witches and Killing Eve will stream on Max as part of an unusual digital arrangement.

ESPN is teaming up with Timbaland and Justin Timberlake!

Disability rights advocate Sophie Morgan, 38, has joined forces with Hollywood A-lister Reese Witherspoon.The Loose Women star has teamed up with Reese's company Hello Sunshine, which aims to empower women by telling their stories, in a collaboration with her Making Space Media, which amplifies voices in the disabled community. Speaking to The Mirror, Sophie described Reese as a “badass woman doing important things”.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer Chef and restauranteur Franco Noriega has landed his own cooking show at Food Network, “Hot Dish with Franco.” If you’re familiar with Noriega from his shirtless appearances on talk shows and clips shared on social media, you’ll get the double entendre reference here, as he’s widely known as the “naked Peruvian chef.” The half-hour daytime show will premiere Sept. 30 at 12 p.m. on Food Network.

CNN, whose brief foray into subscription streaming was snuffed out shortly after the close of the WarnerMedia-Discovery merger in April 2022, is officially getting real estate on Max.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter Patti Stanger has signed with Independent Artist Group (IAG) for representation, Variety has learned exclusively. She continues to be managed by Rob Lee of Mainstay Entertainment and is also repped by Darin Frank of Sloane Offer.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter HBO has set the premiere date for “The Gilded Age” Season 2. The series will return for its sophomore outing on Oct. 29 at 9 p.m.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer Chip and Joanna Gaines are ready to roll. The home renovation titans behind Magnolia Network are developing a roller dancing competition series for Max.

WGA leaders met face-to-face with key CEOs on Tuesday evening as executives sought to pitch the guild on their most recent contract offer in the hopes of ending the nearly four-month-old strike. Late Tuesday, the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers released details of the contract offer presented to the WGA on Aug. 11.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter “And Just Like That” has been renewed for Season 3 at Max. The news comes just ahead of the Season 2 finale, which is set to debut on Max on Aug. 24.

And Just Like That, the Sex and the City reboot, has been renewed for a third season!

The Chemical Brothers have teamed up with Beck on a new single called ‘Skipping Like A Stone’ – listen below.The song will appear on the electronic duo’s 10th studio album ‘For That Beautiful Feeling’, which is due for release on September 8 via EMI (pre-order/pre-save here).“The Chemical Brothers have a great predilection for exploration,” Beck explained of the collaboration in a statement.“They kind of sit in an unusual place between different eras of electronic music and DJ culture. It’s like they have one foot in multiple decades at the same time in a way that is utterly unique among their peers.”Tune in here:The Chemical Brothers – aka Tom Rowlands and Ed Simons – are set to release an official music video for ‘Skipping Like A Stone’, directed by their frequent collaborators Dom & Nic.“Working with the Chemical Brothers is a dream for any video director.

In the wake of large-scale staff reductions across Warner Bros Discovery that largely tailed off earlier this year, the marketing department at Max has now also experienced layoffs.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter “Painting with John” has been canceled at HBO after three seasons. Series creator and host John Lurie made the announcement via Twitter. “I am sorry to say that season 3 of Painting with John will be the last,” he wrote.

Jaden Thompson Hallmark Movies and the United States Air Force Thunderbirds have collaborated to produce the upcoming romantic film “Come Fly With Me,” set to premiere on Sept. 15 at 9 p.m. ET.