Kim Masters at THR asks a reasonable question: Nobody ever gets fired in Hollywood, so why was Peter Rice fired?

Sure, some may look to the idea that with CEO Bob Chapek's contract up within a year and his tenure in the top job being, well, less than a success, that Rice was fired in a move to eliminate a potential successor. But word from within Disney was that Rice was difficult to work for. Two of his biggest crimes within the Disney culture:

  1. He siphoned money from other budgets to promote TV shows like Only Murders in The Building, Dopesick, and Abbott Elementary.
  2. His British mannerisms made him seem aloof to other executives.

What a bastard. Good riddance to bad rubbish.

As is often the case with Masters, she has a very smart, on point comment hidden in the article. RE: Rice's replacement Dana Walden, now a potential successor to Chapek:

How does “the first woman CEO of Disney” sound to the board?
No One Is Fired in Hollywood, So Why Was Disney’s Peter Rice?
After the baffling ouster of the Disney content chief, CEO Bob Chapek may be thankful that he has a respected — and feared — exec in Dana Walden to put to rest any backlash from his creative partners.
The Hollywood ReporterKim Masters

Australian TV broadcast networks feeling blue?

Just a thought I had while reading this Australian TV ratings report from TV Tonight...

On Tuesday kids cartoon Bluey scored 464,000 viewers during a daytime screening. That is higher than most primetime shows. An additional 309,000 viewers tuned in for an evening replay. The rest of the night was dominated by what dominates most Australian TV schedules nowadays: Reality TV shows. But look at how lousy these numbers are: 572 thousand metro for MasterChef Australia, which won the night. Political affairs show 730 did 481,000, Celebrity Apprentice 416,000, Big Brother 356,000...

I was thinking about this diminishing viewership last night as I pressed play on the first episode of Netflix's Iron Chef revival series in which Aussie chef Curtis Stone (no stranger to an Australian MasterChef audience) faced off against a challenger. I opted for Iron Chef over an episode of The Floor is Lava. No wonder local networks are struggling to find an audience. They're all programming tired reality format shows against each other while also competing with similar content on streaming platforms like Netflix.

There's nothing that feels a bit more fresh and original to attract viewers? What are these networks doing to actually excite viewers? That's a rhetorical question because the answer is obviously nothing.

Tart casting

Jerry Seinfeld's new Netflix movie about the creation of the Pop Tart has announced its cast. And it's a huge who's who beast of a film. Lead actors are Melissa McCarthy, Jim Gaffigan, Amy Schumer, Hugh Grant, and James Marsden, but in supporting roles: Jack McBrayer, Tom Lennon, Adrian Martinez, Bobby Moynihan, Max Greenfield, Christian Slater, and Sarah Cooper.

It doesn't start filming until towards the end of the year. That's a lot of Pop Tart breakfasts* between now and the time we see this film...

Melissa McCarthy, Amy Schumer and Hugh Grant to Star in Jerry Seinfeld’s ‘Pop-Tart’ Movie
Jerry Seinfeld is cooking up an A-list ensemble to star in “Unfrosted: The Pop-Tart Story,” a movie about the creation of the popular breakfast treat. Melissa McCarthy, Jim Gaffigan, Am…
VarietyRebecca Rubin
  • Swagger has been renewed for a second season by Apple TV+. Read: thefutoncritic
  • Billy Crystal is coming to TV in the new Barry Levinson drama series Before. Read: THR
  • Apple TV will be the exclusive home of Major League Soccer in the US. Read: Apple
  • Seven Spider-Man movies will be streaming on Disney+ from tomorrow in the UK, Japan, Australia, and select other territories. They are part of a deal with Sony that will also deliver further content from Sony's film and TV library. Fingers crossed that they dust off Mad About You, which I've only ever seen buried deep in the retro library on CTV's streaming service in Canada. Read: Dark Horizons
  • ITV has announced 9000 hours worth of free tV content will be available on upcoming UK streamer ITVX. Read: Radio Times
  • Raffaele Annecchino, a superstar exec within Paramount Global who runs their international division, has gone on leave "effective immediately". Hrmmm. Ok. Read: THR
  • Three new Avatar: The Last Airbender movies are in the works. Read: Deadline

No release date yet for the Sylvester Stallone Paramount+ show Tulsa King from Taylor Sheridan.

Musical feature Bye Bye Bunny is coming soon to HBO Max.

No date yet for Netflix's Roald Dahl's Matilda The Musical.

Harry Styles stars in new Amazon Prime Video film The Policeman. November 4.

Maggie debuts July 6 on Hulu.

Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin debuts July 28 on HBO Max.

The Rehersal is the new TV show by Nathan Fielder. It is a bit mysterious. Less so now that this teaser exists:

A new trailer for Amazon Prime Video's big budget Chris Pratt action show The Terminal List. It's due July 1.

July 6 is the launch date for YA Netflix film Hello, Goodbye, and Everything In Between.

Beauty debuts June 29 on Netflix.

A gifted young Black woman struggles to maintain her voice and identity after she's offered a lucrative recording contract, setting off a fierce battle between her family, the label, and her closest friend to determine who will guide her as she makes the journey to become a star. Starring Niecy Nash, Giancarlo Esposito, Gracie Marie Bradley and Sharon Stone, BEAUTY is written by Lena Waithe and directed by Andrew Dosunmu.

That's it for today. Tomorrow, it's another day with another newsletter. That's how it works.