Netflix is giving La Bola Negra, Spain’s Oscar entry for Best International Feature, a 47-day theatrical window and plans to issue its first Sunday box-office gross report. Inspired by an unfinished Federico García Lorca play, the award-winning drama follows three gay men across three interconnected eras.
Netflix fired chief content officer Bela Bajaria after a decade at the company and named former Walt Disney Company executive Peter Rice as her replacement. The abrupt leadership change atop Netflix’s film and television operation stunned executives and talent representatives across Hollywood.
Peter Rice will remain executive producer of the LA28 Summer Olympics Opening and Closing Ceremonies while starting his new job as Netflix’s chief content officer, LA28 chief Casey Wasserman confirmed.
Netflix has named former Disney and Fox executive Peter Rice as chief content officer, replacing Bela Bajaria after her decade at the streamer. Rice will oversee the company’s global content organization, including scripted and unscripted television, movies, live events and other programming, amid a wider restructuring.
Netflix Chief Content Officer Bela Bajaria is leaving the company one day after the streamer laid off approximately 1,000 employees. Bajaria joined Netflix in 2016 and became content chief in January 2023; former Disney executive Peter Rice is reportedly in line to replace her, though the succession is not confirmed.
Christy Carlson Romano says she was paid half of Shia LaBeouf’s salary despite their equal screen time as co-leads on Disney’s Even Stevens. She discusses the pay disparity and her family’s financial struggles in her memoir, Once Upon a Trainwreck: The Fall and Rise of a Child Star.
Bob Daly, former Warner Bros. chair and co-CEO, will step down as chair of the American Film Institute Board of Directors at its Oct. 21 trustee meeting, ending a leadership tenure that began in 2009.
Aaron Paul honored his late “Breaking Bad” co-star RJ Mitte by sharing Mitte’s mental health awareness video on Instagram and urging people struggling with sadness or uncertainty to speak up. Mitte, who played Walt Jr. on the AMC drama, died by suicide Oct. 12 at age 34.
Xavier Becerra’s 1,600-word Hollywood policy is drawing scrutiny for offering few concrete commitments to California’s film and television industry. AI-detection tool Pangram concluded the statement was entirely AI-written, but Becerra and his campaign firmly deny that artificial intelligence was involved.
Tony Gilroy says Andor’s success helped Disney take a chance on Behemoth!, his new Searchlight adult drama starring Pedro Pascal. Pascal plays a gifted cellist who returns to Los Angeles after 20 years away to care for his ill mother and confront the aftermath of a past relationship.
The Creative Industries Independent Standards Authority has launched a U.K.-wide portal for film, television, music and theater workers to confidentially report abuse, harassment, discrimination and other workplace concerns. CIISA says it will take steps to protect reporters’ identities, while some workers may qualify for protections under U.K. whistleblowing law.
Singer-songwriter and KPop Demon Hunters star EJAE was honored at Gyopo’s eighth annual Chuseok Benefit after earning a Golden Globe, Grammy Award and Oscar during the animated film’s awards-season run.
Shane Gillis drew renewed criticism during his third Saturday Night Live hosting stint after joking about how women dress at the gym. Schitt’s Creek star Dan Levy condemned the monologue as misogynistic and urged more men to speak out against such language.
Netflix content chief Bela Bajaria defended the streamer’s decision not to raise its failed $83 billion bid for Warner Bros. Discovery, citing financial discipline. After WBD sold to Paramount-Skydance for $110 billion, Netflix is refocusing on global programming and continued investment.
Leonine Studios CEO Fred Kogel sees the Skydance-led merger of Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery as an opportunity for Germany’s film and television industry despite added competition. He also expressed confidence in Skydance chief David Ellison’s goal of producing more than 30 movies annually.
The “Naruto” franchise is expanding with the “NARUTOxNINKŪ” crossover anime, supervised by Masashi Kishimoto and Koji Kiriyama, and Kishimoto’s newly announced manga “Shadow Rising.” Additional details about the manga are scheduled for Jump Festa 2027 in December.
Ava DuVernay closed the 2026 New York Film Festival with the world premiere of 14th, her Netflix documentary examining the 14th Amendment and political battles over its protections. DuVernay presented the film as an urgent warning about threats to American democracy.
Netflix has used AI across approximately 300 titles for tasks including previsualization, production design, editing and visual effects. “The Outlaws” director Kang Yoon-sung said AI-supported workflows could reduce a feature film’s production budget by 30% to 40%.
LaKeith Stanfield announced that “Molepeople,” a New York City tunnel horror film co-starring Ben Mendelsohn, will open in theaters Aug. 27, 2027. Directed by Rob Savage, the movie follows a man who discovers a twisted society in abandoned tunnels beneath the city.
Mattel appointed former Warner Bros. Discovery franchise executive Catherine Wood as general manager and global head of dolls. She will oversee the long-term vision, global strategy and business direction for Barbie, American Girl, Monster High, Polly Pocket and Mattel’s broader doll portfolio.
Production has begun in Paris on Bill Pohlad’s Miles & Juliette, starring Damson Idris as Miles Davis and Anamaria Vartolomei as Juliette Gréco. The film follows Davis’ transformative 1949 visit to Paris and his relationship with the French singer and actress.