Matlock cast member fired for sexual harrassment, Netflix launches TV gaming, and RIP TiVo
Matlock supporting actor David Del Rio has been fired from the show following an investigation into a sexual harassment claim from co-star Leah Lewis. He was escorted off the set and his character will be written off. Read: Deadline
All involved likely regret this publicity photo for the show:
Netflix is launching games on your TV
A few years after launching video games on the Netflix app on hand-held devices, Netflix subscribers will now be able to play a selection of games on their TV (using a phone as a controller).
Netflix is launching (and please note, these are their descriptions, not mine):
LEGO® Party! – Square off against your friends in the ultimate LEGO party game. Compete in hilarious minigames and hunt for gold through themed Challenge Zones.
Boggle Party – Race against the clock to find words (the longer, the better) in a jumbled-up letter grid. Play solo or make it a party with up to eight players.
Pictionary: Game Night – Draw ‘til you drop — or one of your friends guesses what you’re sketching — in this hilarious and fast-paced spin on Mattel’s classic group game.
Tetris Time Warp – Time-travel with friends to different eras of Tetris, from the 1984 original to the classic Gameboy version. Can you warp your way to a top score?
Party Crashers: Fool Your Friends – One person at this party secretly has no idea what everyone else is talking about. Figure out whose clues are fishy to unmask the crasher.
The games will not be available in all countries at launch, but there are plans to roll them out globally. I’d assume it’s a licensing issue as they’re all branded games.
RIP TiVo
Iconic PVR manufacturer TiVo has stopped producing PVRs as of a week and a half ago. It issued a statement to Cord Cutters News:
“As of September 30, 2025, TiVo stop selling EDGE DVR products, including hardware and accessories, both online and through agents. TiVo, and its partners, no longer manufacture TiVo DVR hardware, and our remaining inventory is now depleted.”
Apparently the company is planning to move on as a software-focused business.
While TiVo defined the PVR experience in the US, we never really saw much of an impact here in Australia. It launched locally in 2008, but by that stage, a lot of the market of people looking for PVR tech had already invested in hardware like Beyonwiz and weren’t looking to replace it with a $700 alternative. I’d also suggest that by 2008, that was really around the tail-end for the need for PVR hardware with consumers shifting online for TV consumption within the next five or so years.
Apparently it moved around 20,000 units in the first year, but within a few years local partner Seven exited the business and by 2018 TiVo completely exited the country, rendering the auto-recording capability of the hardware useless.
I’m sure some of our ABW readers in the US will wipe away a small nostalgic tear for the end of TiVo.
News Desk
Fox has invested in digital business Holywater. It operates My Drama (it produces vertical video, many of which are microdramas), My Passion (a digital book publisher), and My Muse (which does vertical video created by gen AI). Read: Deadline
David Ellison appeared on stage at Bloomberg;s Screentime conference where he wouldn’t comment on an acquisition of Warner Bros Discovery. He did say he wants to make more, not less content. Read: THR
When asked about buying WBD at the same Screentime conference, Netflix co-CEO Greg Peters said that Netflix is a builder and not a buyer. Read: Variety
Netflix’s other co-CEO Ted Sarandos appeared in Rome to announce it will team with the Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia (CSC) national film schoolto refurbish and reopen Rome’s Cinema Europa theatre. Read: Deadline
ITVX Premium is now on Prime Video in the UK as a subscription add-on. Read: World Screen
Not to be confused with the Netflix reality show, Sony Pictures Television and Hasbro Entertainment are shopping around a scripted series based on board game Clue. Read: Deadline
Trailer Park
New Vince Gilligan (Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul) series Pluribus debuts on Apple TV+ Nov 7.
The most miserable person on Earth must save the world from happiness.
A Knight of The Seven Kingdoms debuts on HBO Max Jan 18.
A century before the events of Game of Thrones, two unlikely heroes wandered Westeros … a young, naïve but courageous knight, Ser Duncan the Tall, and his diminutive squire, Egg. Set in an age when the Targaryen line still holds the Iron Throne, and the memory of the last dragon has not yet passed from living memory, great destinies, powerful foes and dangerous exploits all await these improbable and incomparable friends.
Death By Lightning is a four-part event show debuting on Netflix Nov 6. It stars Michael Shannon, Matthew Macfadyen, Nick Offerman, Betty Gilpin, Bradley Whitford, and Shea Whigham.
The story of James Garfield, who rose from obscurity to become America’s 20th President - and Charles Guiteau, the man who assassinated him.
Elsbeth returns for season 3 on CBS Oct 12.
Duolingo is launching an anime series for some reason on its YouTube channel starting Oct 13.
Squid Game: The Challenge returns for season 2 on Nov 4.
Mayor of Kingstown returns Oct 26 on Paramount+ for season 4.
Tales of The Ninja Turtles returns for season 2 on Paramount+ in December.
The Mighty Nein debuts on Prime Video Nov 19.
The Mighty Nein follows a group of fugitives and outcasts, bound by secrets and scars. But when a powerful arcane relic known as “The Beacon” falls into dangerous hands, they must learn to work together to save the realm and stop reality itself from unraveling.
The Vince Staples Show returns Nov 6 on Netflix for season 2.
Breathless returns Oct 31 on Netflix for season 2.
That’s the newsletter for today.
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