movies
Amazon MGM Studios Names Mandy Schaffer, Craig Muhlrad As Heads Of TV
Following up on the news that Dan Scharf is leaving as Head of Global Business Operations at Amazon MGM Studios, announced internally by Courtenay Valenti, Head of Film, Amazon MGM Studios, Peter Friedlander, Head of Global Television, Amazon MGM Studios, and Nicole Clemens, Head of International Originals, Amazon MGM Studios, Valenti and Friedlander have revealed Heads of BA appointments for their divisions.
Netflix’s Mandy Schaffer has joined the company as Head of Business Affairs, Global TV, and Amazon’s Craig Muhlrad has been named Head of Film Business Affairs.
Schaffer marks the latest veteran Netflix executive Netflix alum Friedlander has brought to Amazon MGM Studios. Schaffer joins Blair Fetter, Amazon MGM Studios’ Head of Worldbuilding & Genre Series, and Head of Unscripted TV Jenn Levy.
As revealed earlier today, the studio is decentralizing its BA team, instead going for three separate teams, each embedded within the Film, TV and International Originals studios, respectively.
Here are Schaffer and Muhlrad’s internal announcements:
Note from Peter Friedlander:
Team,
Please see below a note from Courtenay, Nicole and me outlining a new structure we will be utilizing for Business Affairs going forward – as well as the news that Dan Scharf will be departing Amazon. I wanted to take a moment to thank Dan for his partnership and contributions to our organization, and I know all of you will join me in wishing him well in his next chapter.
Per the other note, we will now have business affairs leaders embedded in our film, series and international teams, and with that in mind I’m pleased to share that Mandy Schaffer is joining Amazon MGM Studios as Head of Business Affairs, Global TV, reporting to me, starting June 8th.
Mandy was one of the longest-serving Business Affairs executives at Netflix, having spent nearly 12 years building and leading the function. Most recently, she served as VP, Head of Series Business Affairs for the U.S. and Canada, overseeing teams across Scripted, Animated, Nonfiction, and Live Sports. She joined Netflix in 2014 as part of the team behind the streamer’s earliest originals — including Orange is the New Black and House of Cards — and developed deal strategy and structure for all Netflix UCAN Original Scripted Series. Her ability to operate at the intersection of creative ambition and business strategy makes her an ideal addition to our leadership team.
Until Mandy’s start date, Julia Shapiro will report directly to me and serve as the primary point of contact for all TV Business Affairs matters. I’m excited to welcome Mandy to the team and look forward to the speed and alignment this new structure will bring to our series organization.
Peter
Note from Courtenay Valenti:
Dear Team,
Please see the below note that Peter, Nicole and I sent out earlier today regarding a change in the structure of our business affairs group going forward.
First, I want to express my deep gratitude to Dan. For over a decade, he has brought clarity to complexity, steadiness in moments of uncertainty, and a deep commitment to doing right by our teams, our talent partners, and our business. He will be missed and I wish him well.
As the note below details, we will now have an embedded business affairs team dedicated to film, and I’m pleased to share that Craig Muhlrad will lead that group as Head of Film Business Affairs, reporting directly to me. Craig has been an invaluable partner to us and I look forward to partnering even more closely.
Additionally, Bob Bowen, Worldwide Head of Music, and Michelle Ow, Head of Studio Ops & Strategy, will both move to report to me directly. Krista James, Head of Music Business Affairs, will now report to Bob. These leaders are incredibly important to us across the studios orgs and I’m excited to work more directly with them. Please reach out to me with any questions and I know you will all join me in congratulating Craig on this new role, and in thanking Dan for his years of service as we wish him the very best in his next chapter.
Best,
Courtenay
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movies
‘Icebreaker’ TV Show Adaptation News & Updates: Everything We Know
Another hockey book adaptation has entered the chat.
Netflix is currently building out its cast for the series adaptation of Hannah Grace’s Icebreaker book that kicks off the Maple Hill series. This in addition to their show The Sticks that is also currently in the works.
For everything we know about Netflix’s Icebreaker book adaptation so far, read on.
When will Netflix’s Icebreaker series adaptation come out?
A release date has not yet been set. The show has begun to assemble its cast.
Who will lead the Icebreaker show at Netflix?
Daisy Jelley (Poser, How To Have Sex) will portray Anastasia “Stassie” Allen, and Connor Simos (Subversion) will portray Nate Hawkins in the college hockey drama series.
Who else is in the cast of Netflix’s Icebreaker adaptation?
Gabriel Tierney (Rivals, Enola Holmes 2), Auliʻi Cravalho (Moana), newcomer and professional athlete Peter Berry, Chaneil Kular (Best of the Best, Sex Education), Devin Craig (Sex Lives of College Girls, Maize) and Aidan Shaw (We Were Liars, Heated Rivalry, Finding Her Edge) have joined the ensemble cast.
Tierney will play Aaron; Cravalho will portray Lola; Berry is Robbie; Kular will play JJ; Craig will portray Henry and Shaw is Russ.
What is Hannah Grace’s Icebreaker book about?
Stassie is a transfer athlete gunning for Olympic gold. Nate is the campus star chasing the NHL. When an accident forces their teams to share one rink, Anastasia Allen and Nate Hawkins collide—and discipline gives way to obsession, because the only thing more dangerous than wanting to win is wanting each other.
Who else is behind Netflix’s Icebreaker series?
Jade Halley Bartlett (Road House, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Miller’s Girl) created and executive produced the series. Amanda Lasher (Gossip Girl, The Bold Type, Togetherness) serves as showrunner, writer and excutive producer. Grace also executive produces along with Alex Cooper, Matt Kaplan and Mina Lefevre for Cooper’s Unwell Productions.
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movies
Cindy Holland Leaving Paramount Ahead Of WBD Merger
One of the biggest executive questions about Paramount following its pending acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery — who will lead streaming — may have been answered.
Cindy Holland is leaving Paramount where she was Chairman of Direct-To-Consumer since the Skydance-Paramount merger having served as an advisor to Skydance CEO David Ellison prior to that. She announced her departure in a company memo, which you can read below.
The move leaves HBO’s Casey Bloys as the likely streaming head of the combined Paramount-WBD.
“Cindy is one of the most exceptional executives in our industry — a force of nature whose impact on Paramount over the past year has been significant,” Paramount CEO David Ellison said. “Under her leadership, P+ reached new heights, Pluto TV underwent its most significant transformation in a decade, and we strengthened our content and sports portfolio – all while the business exceeded the ambitious goals we set. Just as importantly, she built an exceptional team and a strong foundation for the future. Cindy has been a trusted partner to me and so many others, and I couldn’t be more grateful for her leadership, her relentless drive and everything she’s done for our company.”
Here is Holland’s memo:
When I joined David’s team in January 2025, we proceeded to set three goals: i) advise on the Warner Bros. Discovery acquisition, ii) integrate and transform Paramount+ & revive Pluto TV, and iii) build an unparalleled team in this industry. In just over 12 months, I’m proud to say we accomplished all three and it’s been a joy to work closely with all of you.
Together with the Product team, we drove significant strategic and organizational change across DTC — building a new foundation for growth on both services, while investing in greater depth and breadth of programming and delivering strong revenue, profit, and subscriber growth for the division.
As David readies for the next phase of his vision, we’ve discussed my role and the future of the combined businesses. David is optimizing for HBO stability as we move into this next chapter, and I fully support that. I know this team has the leadership and expertise to manage through the transition and the next phase of the company, and to this end today will mark my last day here.
As I reflect on my time here and all that we’ve built together in this short time, what stands out most to me is this team. I have never been more proud of a group of people. What we’ve accomplished together is remarkable — landing quarter after quarter while navigating extraordinary uncertainty and change with resilience, focus and ambition. We grew Paramount+ to an all-time subscriber high, delivered the best retention in the service’s history, and drove double-digit growth in both engagement and revenue. We built an extraordinary content pipeline, greenlighting more than 40 new and returning series and setting all-time records with Landman, the most-watched series in Paramount+ history, and Dutton Ranch, the service’s biggest original series debut ever. We transformed live sports into a powerful streaming growth engine, securing landmark agreements with UFC and Zuffa Boxing and expanding our WNBA and UEFA Champions League rights – with UFC Freedom 250 becoming the largest-ever audience for an exclusive live event on Paramount+ and UFC 329 setting a new platform record for peak concurrent streams for an exclusive live event. And we undertook Pluto TV’s biggest product transformation in a decade, dramatically increasing registered viewing and VOD consumption while delivering strong financial performance across the business. These are extraordinary accomplishments – but what makes me proudest is how we achieved them: together, with an unwavering commitment to our audiences, our creative partners and one another.
I joined Paramount because I believe in these businesses, and because I believe wholeheartedly that the combination of Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery serves the best interests of artists and audiences worldwide. I’m looking forward to seeing what you all accomplish together in this next, momentous chapter.
Cindy
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movies
New ‘South Park’ Takes On Data Centers And The Billionaires Who Build Them
While President Trump was holding a press conference at the White House this morning and extolling the AI-related work of Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, Anthropic’s Dario Amodei and SpaceX’s Elon Musk, a promo for tomorrow night’s South Park episode dropped. It was less salutary.
Here’s the logline for Episode 6 of Season 29: “Butters is unhappy with the data centers that the billionaires are building in our backyards.”
The clip opens with an X-Pest exterminator guy ringing the doorbell at Butters’ home.
“I understand you’ve got some billionaires in your back yard,” he says.
“Yeah, there’s more of these stupid billionaires every day!” replies Butters.
The first image from the episode (see it above) shows Butters in what appears to be his back yard with the X-Pest exterminator guy, who has strapped on his tank of poison and has his sprayer wand at the ready.
The topic of data centers is a hot one across the country and especially in Hollywood, where unions and workers worry about job displacement and writers and directors express concern over what it might do to their art.
Among the biggest players in the data center land rush is, of course, Oracle CEO and Paramount-WBD deal financier Larry Ellison. South Park airs on Comedy Central, which is owned by Paramount. As in the past, the show’s creators are seemingly not afraid to bite the hand that feeds them.
Mark Ruffalo and others have decried the introduction of “really profoundly scary technology” into Hollywood and how AI might impact media outlets soon to be owned by Ellison and his son David.
“Larry is a classic Oligarch,” wrote Ruffalo. “They are crushing workers and consolidating the wealth of the world for their own power and concentrated dominance.”
Paramount, for its part, responded by accusing Ruffalo of using “antisemitic tropes” in his argument, especially when linking the Ellisons’ studio acquisition to Oracle’s work with the Israeli military.
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