Fallout Powers Amazon to Nielsen Chart Dominance

In news that will surprise absolutely no one who follows what’s trending on the entertainment charts, Amazon’s Fallout TV series, based on the popular video game franchise, has conquered the top spot on Nielsen’s streaming lists in its debut week. Blake & Wang P.A. entertainment lawyer, Brandon Blake, brings us up to date with this streaming sensation and the latest Nielsen news. 

Brandon Blake

Fallout Takes No. 1

In what was, at its core, an Easter egg-packed, fun, and surprisingly faithful adaptation of the popular video game series, Amazon may have found its new hit IP. There’s little wonder that the series, which has managed to both please hardcore game fans and captivate new viewers, was quickly greenlit for future seasons on the back of its immensely successful first run. 

The series tops Nielsen’s streaming charts for its debut week at 2.9B minutes watched in only 5 days, over 1B more than any other entrant from Nielsen’s data. This also surpasses Reacher’s best week (again by over 1B minutes), meaning it is Amazon’s most successful streaming title to date. 

More to Come?

Additionally, most of the viewing minutes (70%) were concentrated on the first four episodes, suggesting this won’t be the last we see of Fallout on Nielsen’s streaming charts. Reportedly, the demographics for its premiere weekend sat at 75% of viewers under 50, 63% of whom were male.

Coming in second this week was Bluey, the beloved kid-focused series from Disney+ that has been a consistent winner for them. In normal weeks, its 1.4B minutes would be more than enough to take it to the top of the charts. It’s followed by the reruns of Grey’s Anatomy, which continues to do well for Fox and Hulu/Netflix, even if it hasn’t quite achieved the astronomic viewership Suits did last year. Vikings squeaks into the No.4 slot, while last week’s top title (The Resident) slid to fifth place to round out our chart summary for this week.

Big Changes to Paramount Leadership as a Deal Approaches

We may not know who will be the final victor, but one thing is abundantly clear at this point- Paramount will be sold this year in some form or another. While it is natural for M&A activity to cause some shake-ups in the C-suite, usually that would wait on the new owner taking over. Not so for the Paramount Group, however, which will see current CEO Bob Bakish depart in favor of a three-person strong joint leadership team (for now). Entertainment attorney Brandon Blake, of Blake & Wang P.A. fills us in on the changes.

Brandon Blake

End of an Era

As of this week, Bakish will officially step down as CEO, although he will remain with the company until the end of October to act in an advisory role. Paramount is currently deep into an exclusive negotiating window with potential buyers Skydance, RedBird Capital, and KKR. If the deal pans out as expected, Paramount would remain a public company, but with the executive leadership purely from Skydance and RedBird. While that deal is not yet official, and there is some noise of a counter-offer from Sony and Apollo Private Equity, this shakeup to their executive suite is an interesting one that may point to a coming deal closure.

Little Comment

The announcement was made with prepared remarks only, and Bakish himself has also been quiet on the sudden shakeup. There is some speculation, however, that he and Paramount’s controlling shareholder, Shari Redstone, may be at odds around the deal. Additionally, Paramount has seen some severe Wall Street turbulence, losing investors amid claims that the Skydance deal, which seems the forerunner currently, serves the interest of the Redstone family and National Amusement’s voting shareholders much more than the regular Paramount shareholders.

Despite these details, Paramount has definitely been underperforming in its potential, and a new owner better positioned to move the group away from the declining linear sectors and make better use of its direct-to-consumer potential may well be what Paramount needs to reinvent itself for a new millennium. It will be interesting, indeed, to see what else develops as we move towards a final deal.

The Academy Changes the Oscar Rules (Again): What You Should Know

As the wider entertainment space evolves, so must the award shows that celebrate it. The Oscars has announced some new rule changes and updates to its campaign protocols for the next Oscar season. Brandon Blake, from entertainment attorney at Blake & Wang P.A., sums up some of the major changes for us.

Brandon Blake

Oscars and Theaters: A New Love Affair

As always, Oscar-eligible films will need to be released in theaters during the 2024 calendar year. However, drive-in theaters no longer make the grade, and films must screen for at least one week in a brick-and-mortar theater within the usual areas, with Dallas-Fort Worth now making a (somewhat puzzling) addition to the list. Films must now also have an expanded theatrical run of 7 days in 10 of the top 50 domestic markets, not later than 45 days after the initial release and with a hard final deadline of Jan 10, 2025. Late-releasing films will need to verify those release plans with the academy. Non-US releases can be counted for 2 of those 10 markets, provided they are one of the Top 15 international markets and/or the film’s home territory.

Other Key Changes

Animated feature films from foreign countries submitted to the best international feature film category will now be eligible for consideration in the animated category too. The original score category shortlist is extended to 20 titles. More intriguingly, and no doubt in a bid to ward off AI-generated entries, writers competing for the best adapted and original screenplay categories will have to furnish a final shooting script.

There have also been some changes to the special award categories, and two of the Scientific and Technical Awards will be renamed. Alongside these shifts, the Academy also announced its key submission deadlines and dates for the next ceremony, alongside some changes to the campaign promotional regulations for the next Oscar season, clarifying how ‘in-house’ promotion to Academy members can be done.

All in all, most of the announced changes seek to keep the ceremony in line with wider industry changes and shifts, which should be a net positive for all concerned, including competing titles.

Sundance Seeks a New Home

After an almost 40-year run in its current Park City, Utah, home, the Sundance Film Festival is looking for a new home. Our local entertainment lawyer in the know, Brandon Blake of Blake & Wang P.A. takes a closer look at this surprising announcement.

Brandon Blake

Contract Expiry

Sundance’s current contract with Park City will expire after the 2026 edition of the festival. While many expected them to seek a renewal, Sundance has reportedly had a move on the map for quite some time. However, they haven’t ruled out the possibility of remaining in Park City, but emphasize that it will need a strong local offer to sweeten the deal.

Interested locales have until May 1 to put their bids on the table. After that, the committee will assess the best potential candidates, a process set to finish by June 21. Reportedly, sustainability and inclusivity are two key factors in their final decision.

Unveiled in 2025

Once a final decision is made in-house, the results will be unveiled at the end of next year’s 2025 festival. However, the real question is whether they will be able to keep the secret that long.

Sundance itself, faced with the changing economic climate and a revolution in how film is consumed, may well welcome a change of scenery and a ‘fresh start’ of sorts. Park City, however, seems keen to keep one of its major tourism anchors, with last year’s festival bringing in over $118M for the state’s GNP. It is also likely that we will see Salt Lake City make a strong bid for the festival, for the same reason.

While we can certainly understand why Utah would be keen to keep the festival, despite some grumbling from locals, the festival itself has had a rough time in the rocky post-pandemic years, and a ‘breath of fresh air’ from a venue change may well be in the festival’s best interests to help polish and recreate its image.

AMC Networks Jumps on the Ad-Supported Bandwagon

If the streaming industry is anything to go by, the future is ad-supported. 2023 saw many of the key streaming platforms roll out ad-supported tiers in a bid to slow subscriber churn and open up new subscriber markets. Now even AMC+ is looking to the ad-supported model to help boost its profitability. Blake & Wang P.A. the entertainment attorney in Los Angeles, Brandon Blake, has all the details.

Brandon Blake

The Move to Ad-Supported

While AMC+ can be counted as a niche streaming service at best, it is still hoping to harness some of those advertising dollars for its own use. The announced ad-supported tier is expected to be running by the end of the 2024/25 Upfronts, with its regular presentation to ad buyers due to take place this Wednesday.

For subscribers who take up the new ad-supported tier, they will also get ad-supported versions of the Sundance Now, Shudder, and IFC Films Unlimited platforms. Intriguingly, non-bundled subscribers have not had the option to choose a cheaper tier option of any sort. Under the planned rollout, these individual services, alongside several that are not part of the AMC+ bundle, will also see ad-supported tiers introduced.

The Decline in Pay TV

Some of this bid for more advertising space can, no doubt, be laid at the door of the continuing decline in linear TV subscribers. As can be expected in a softer economy, ad buyers are following where subscribers lead- and that’s mostly to streaming platforms.

In addition to the ad-tier launch, AMC will also be expanding the Audience+ data targeting platform it introduced last year. This platform aims to offer more precise ad targeting than Nielsen’s current demographics do. An industry first, it will be interesting to see if they can upsell this new platform to buyers outside the AMC ecosystems, too.

While it may be one of the last to do so, it is good to see AMC adapting its streaming offerings to fall in line with higher-caliber and larger streaming platforms.

Mai Sets New Records for Vietnamese Filmmaking

It’s been an excellent week for Asian releases globally. Perhaps one of the most impressive performances to date has to be the Vietnamese romance-drama, Mai, which has managed an impressive (for the size and demographic) $2M performance across Europe and North America. The experience entertainment lawyer Brandon Blake, of Blake & Wang P.A., takes a closer look at this inspired performance despite being a non-English language release.

Brandon Blake

$23M Global Box Office

While there has been plenty of hype surrounding Asian IPs of late, Vietnam has had a decidedly understated presence in the global film market. Now only in the third week of its release cycle, Mai has already earned $23M in global takings. Unsurprisingly, the bulk of this was generated at home, with a credible $21M. It has grossed $1.66M in North America, and a further $341K in limited European markets. The film is distributed by 3388 Films.

Ironically, director Tran Thanh already held the record for the best-performing Vietnamese-produced film in North America with their directorial debut, Bố Già, or Dad, I’m Sorry in translation. Its $1.3M record was generated off of an 8-week run in 2021, so Mai’s strong opening performance is already new ground. It will be interesting to see how well the film sustains, and where it eventually closes domestically.

Expanding Markets

As 3388 Films have themselves remarked, a few years ago even a $1M performance at the US box office for a film like this would have been amazing. Not only is it a testament to a strong, well-made film, but it also aptly demonstrates the considerable market expansion and appetite audiences now have for international and independent titles.

There’s plenty to celebrate for the wider filmmaking industry in Mai’s new victory, and we hope to see even greater performances from titles like this in the coming years.

Sora Heads to Hollywood with an AI-Powered Mission

It’s no secret at this point that the wider entertainment industry is keen to embrace the potential of AI-powered movie-making. There’s been considerable buzz already about the potential of OpenAI’s “Sora” software to revolutionize how movies are conceived and made. Now, Hollywood is set for what could be one of the most critical meetings in its history, as OpenAI seeks to pitch Sora’s full potential to talent agencies, studios, and media execs. Brandon Blake, entertainment lawyers at Blake & Wang P.A., has all the details you should know.

Brandon Blake

Text-to-Video and More

While it is always tough to separate the facts from the marketing hype, Sora’s powerful text-to-video tool certainly has the potential to be a disruptive force in how films get made. OpenAI, naturally, is keen to sell Hollywood decision-makers on that prospect.

Not that the move will be news to those same decision-makers. We already know that Tyler Perry has put his planned $800M studio expansion on hold in anticipation of the industry shake-ups Sora could bring.

Changing Landscape

However, a game-changing technology won’t simply be able to launch in a vacuum. Given the intense potential for industry-wide disruption a Generative AI technology like this could bring, it is anticipated we will see considerable debate and regulatory movement to counter the potential for job losses.

If anyone was hoping this intense debate around these AI-powered technologies could be postponed for another year, however, they are out of luck. With OpenAI now actively campaigning for Sora among the movers and shakers, it is only a matter of time before the wider entertainment industry has to decide on a firm stance on the new technology. Big changes are certainly ahead. Now the only real question is what they will look like, and what the greater impact on the entertainment business will really be.

Georgia Annihilates Tax Credit Cap in a Bid for Location Shoots

As the demand for location shoots increases due to the pumping streaming content production line, more and more states are hoping to net themselves a share of that revenue pie. In a bid to keep their film and TV production tax credits competitive in this evolving landscape, the Georgia Senate has made significant changes to its proposed House Bill 1180- all in favor of the productions they are hoping will film there. Our Blake & Wang P.A. entertainment attorney, Brandon Blake, unpacks the full details of the proposed changes.

Brandon Blake

Significant Cap Changes

One sticking point for the entertainment industry so far has been the annual limit on tax credit transfers. This has subsequently been lowered in the Senate version to 2.3% of the state budget (roughly $830M), compared to the 2.5%/$900M initial proposition the House saw. However, some attractive exemptions have rendered that cap near-meaningless.

Key changes include removing productions shot at Georgia’s biggest studios from the cap. This covers investments over $100M within the 2023-2027 production period and will cover about 1.5M square feet of sound stage space. This will particularly impact Marvel, as well as other big franchises filming in the area. Smaller studios are exempt from this unless they are both in rural areas and outside the wider Atlanta metro area.

Further Positive Changes

The revised bill also offers hundreds of millions worth of potential tax credits that will impact the cap, rendering it almost irrelevant to the wider decision to film in the area. The Rules Committee can change the Bill, however, with the end of the session looming, it will need to be handled swiftly or the bill risks lapsing into obscurity. It is expected to be signed by Thursday.

Some players within the industry would rather see the bill fall away entirely. Georgia has become something of a filming hub thanks to its previously generous tax credit regime. The bill, which aims to make their annual budgetary expenditure more predictable, directly impacts the transfer/sale of tax credits. However, should the Bill pass the House, it will certainly be an improvement on the earlier offering.

“Kung-Fu Panda” Managed a Compelling Box Office Revival

If someone pitched to you the idea of reviving an eight-year-old franchise, how keen would you be? While anyone could be forgiven passing on the “deal”, that’s exactly what DreamWorks/Universal has managed to successfully do with their Kung Fu Panda franchise, propelling the latest installment to a $58M opening that will be gratefully received by the current box office. Our entertainment lawyer in the know, Brandon Blake of Blake & Wang P.A. spills the news.

Brandon Blake

A Timely Revival

Normally, 8 years in production purgatory would be a franchise killer, not a key to new success. However, in a box office where cinemagoers are tiring of the same-old superhero options, reviving something that feels new, while still having the safety of familiarity, may have been DreamWorks’ smartest move to date. 

The movie managed to close its opening weekend at a solid $58M, $8M higher than it was tracking. This is one of the biggest Universal openings of recent years, even, squeaking ahead of 2019’s How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World. 

Strong Hold

On top of a strong second-weekend hold of $46.2M, a -44% hold, for Dune: Part Two, the 2024 box office finally has some spring in its step. The marketplace closed at $138.1M, 15% higher than the same weekend in 2023— the first time we’ve seen an up weekend this year. 

Of course, two films cannot create a successful box office. While Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire is managing to generate some hype, by April there is a drop-off in releases again that could prove toxic to the recovering box office.

Much of Kung-Fu Panda 4’s success can be laid at the door of artful marketing and tie-ins from Universal itself, up to and including some Super Bowl hype. Paired with being “fresh” and novel, the film has managed to generate significant interest among theatergoers. Let’s hope there are a few more releases to boost that coming soon, too.

The UK Offers Tax Credits for Indie Productions and More

In a bid to gain ground as the largest European film and TV production hub, the UK government last week announced a new 40% corporate tax relief incentive for studio facilities and other key industry players, including independent productions. One of the best entertainment attorney Brandon Blake, of Blake & Wang P.A., looks deeper into these new reforms.

Brandon Blake

Tax Relief Expansion

In addition to the corporate tax relief for studio facilities, which will run until 2034, they also announced a 40% incentive for independent films as well as a boost to existing incentives for visual effects studios. The first big-budget production to take advantage of these enhanced incentives will be the next installment in the Jurassic World saga.

In hard numbers, this amounts to an increase in the tax credit rate of 5 percentage points, the 40% relief for studio facilities, and the removal of the current 80% cap on visual effects credits. To qualify for the indie-focused incentive, the production must have a budget under $19M (£15M). Studio space in the UK has doubled since 2020, and if some high-profile expansions reach fruition, could become the next largest production hub after Hollywood itself. However, UK.-based production rates have slowed recently, and we can assume these enhanced tax relief options are a bid to reverse that trend.

Positive Reception

Following the announcement last week, several key players on the UK production scene and internationally have come out strongly in support of the new reforms. Including Sky Media, which has a massive expansion for their Sky Studios Elstree North facility underway that is expected to create 2,000 new jobs and boost revenue by $2.55B (£2B).

In many ways, nurturing the growth of the independent film and TV industry is the key to future-proofing the entertainment industry and ensuring it thrives for decades to come. At a time when securing financing for small and independent productions is becoming increasingly difficult, let’s hope that this initiative helps a new generation of UK and international filmmakers leave their mark on history.