The CW has laid off several employees across its publicity and program development teams, Variety has learned. A source close to the situation tells Variety that just over two dozen employees have been affected in this round of reductions. The individual says that the decision was made as the network focuses more one sports, unscripted […]

Bobby Flay has signed a new exclusive multiyear deal at Food Network. As part of his new pact with the Warner Bros. Discovery-owned cable channel, Flay will take on active role in the development and production of his own series through his Rock Shrimp Productions, and new episodes of Flay’s primetime culinary competition series “Beat […]

AMC Networks saw U.S. ad sales drop 10% to $133 million in Q3, but a slight increase in streaming subscribers from 11.6 million to 11.8 million. The media company revealed the results in its third-quarter 2024 earnings report Thursday. AMC Networks’ streaming platforms include AMC+, Acorn TV, Shudder, Sundance Now, ALLBLK and HIDIVE. Those digital […]

SPOILER ALERT: This story contains spoilers for Thursday’s “Confessions” episode of ABC’s “9-1-1.” Following this week’s episode of “9-1-1,” Buck (Oliver Stark) and Tommy (Lou Ferrigno Jr.) are no longer sitting in a tree. The hour started with the young couple celebrating their latest monthly anniversary and ended in their breakup, after Buck found out […]

Dropout’s “Very Important People” has a very important list of guest stars for Season 2. That starts off with Anna Garcia (“Superstore”), who plays “Zeke Aaron McKinley,” fourth grader who was turned into a rock formation after making a wish. Also set to appear this season: Comedians including Nicole Byer, Chris Redd, Bobby Moynihan, John […]

Nexstar ad sales were up 22% from July 1-Sept. 30 ahead of the presidential election, the TV station giant reported in its third-quarter 2024 earnings Thursday. The company also said that its broadcaster the CW once again narrowed its losses in Q3, this time down by $36 million, though the total remaining loss was not […]

Warner Bros. Discovery reported its third-quarter 2024 earnings results Thursday. The July 1-Sept. 30 period concluded with WBD’s HBO, Max and Discovery+ boasting more than 110 million global subscribers, while box office sales fell 40% when compared to last summer’s blockbuster “Barbie.” Direct-to-consumer sales rose 9% to $2.6 billion. Distribution was up 8%, ad sales 51% and content […]

Take-Two Interactive has sold its “Tales of the Shire” developer Private Division. The video game publisher revealed the deal in its fiscal 2025 second-quarter earnings results Wednesday. The company did not disclose who it sold the studio to and what the sale price was. “We recently made the strategic decision to sell our Private Division […]

In a grand mahogany kitchen just outside London, there’s Harry Potter magic at work. Pots are steaming, whisks are whirring and the air is thick with sugar. In one corner, shelves are stacked with glass jars full of treats, not unlike those you might find in Honeydukes, the popular candy store in the “Harry Potter” […]

Ice Spice and Snoop Dogg gave a surprise performance in Times Square on Friday that was also live streamed to Epic Games’ massive multiplayer online game “Fortnite.” The event was revealed in real time to everyone present at the New York City landmark location, with Snoop Dogg and Ice Spice performing in person as the […]

Amazon reported its third-quarter 2024 earnings, revealing ad sales rose 19% year over year. Wall Street forecast earnings per share (EPS) of $1.14 on $157.2 billion in revenue, according to analyst consensus data provided by LSEG, formerly Refinitiv. Amazon reported diluted EPS of $1.43 on $158.9 billion in revenue. Analyst had expected $14.25 billion in […]

(Editor’s note: Variety’s interview with Sony Interactive Entertainment CEOs Hermen Hulst and Hideaki Nishino occurred on Oct. 16, prior to PlayStation’s Tuesday announcement it is shutting down Firewalk Studios and Neon Koi. SIE was unable to make studio business CEO Hulst available for additional comment or to clarify his previous comments about layoffs in this […]

Magic: the Gathering has unveiled two new cards from its upcoming “Foundations” set and Variety has the exclusive first look at the preview images from Hasbro’s Wizards of the Coast. Releasing Nov. 15, Magic: the Gathering Foundations is a set primarily intended to make the long-running tabletop card game accessible to new audiences, even as […]

“Call of Duty: Black Ops 6” has set new opening day and weekend launch records for the 20-plus-year-old franchise with its Oct. 25 release, according to Microsoft Gaming. Per data released by the Xbox owner Wednesday, “Black Ops 6” was the biggest “Call of Duty” three-day opening weekend ever in terms of total players, hours […]

Electronic Arts is rethinking its approach to its long-running, free-to-play first-person shooter “Apex Legends” following soft monetization results for the live-services game’s most recent update and changes to its Battle Pass offering. “In the quarter, Season 22 of ‘Apex Legends’ launched with significantly more new features for casual and seasoned players alike, including more modes, […]

“The Sims 4” added more than 15 million players over the past year, Electronic Arts reported Tuesday in its latest quarterly earnings report, just ahead of the life-simulation game’s release of its new “Life & Death” expansion pack Thursday. The video game publisher also touted that it expects its “Madden” and “College Football” franchises to […]

“Disney Dreamlight Valley” revealed its roadmap through Summer 2025 during a developer showcase Tuesday, unveiling the Gameloft-made video game’s second paid expansion and as well as the upcoming the free game updates. During the event, Disney and Gameloft also announced that the Gold Edition of “Disney Dreamlight Valley” (a bundle that offers the base game,”A […]

“Happy Hunting” filmmaker Joe Dietsch has launched Montreal-based video game startup Wolf Haus Games. The studio opens with more than $4 million Canadian dollars (approximately $2.9 million USD) in funding from “PUBG” developer Krafton Inc. and venture capital fund Lifelike Capital. With the new influx of cash, Wolf Haus Games will be able to launch […]

Disney and Epic Games have revealed their next big collaboration as part of the Mouse House’s $1.5 billion investment in the gaming company. Launching Tuesday, “ESPN Football Island” is an addition to Epic’s popular online game “Fortnite” that Disney advertises as a way to gamify the sports network’s slogan of “serving sports fans anytime, anywhere.” […]