NFL buys out 10% of ESPN. That's it. That's the story.
It’s a bit light on today. About the only interesting news of consequence is the confirmation that the NFL is set to take a 10% stake in ESPN.
Neither party disclosed financial terms, but analysts have valued ESPN at between $25 billion and $30 billion, suggesting the NFL’s stake is worth approximately $2.5 billion to $3 billion.
The NFL has been partnered with ESPN since around 1987 and it always seemed unlikely that it would be making a move away from the sports channel, but it had been flirting fairly intensely with Netflix of late. This stake aligns the NFL’s future interests far more with ESPN, so I’d expect to see those googly-eyes take on a bit more focus as NFL “dances with the one that brought ya”.
More on the story is up at Mediaweek.
Meanwhile my eyes are firmly on what this means, if anything, for the ESPN on Disney+ trial underway in Australia. To my mind, it always felt that the underlying purpose of adding all that sport to Disney+ down under was to show commitment to the NFL and express capability that Disney can offer the NFL global scale.
News Desk
Netflix is rebooting TJ Hooker for a new movie which is said to be more comedic in tone. There’s no word if the great man himself, William Shatner, will have a role. Read: Variety
Netflix’s new Roald Dahl adaptation is an animated feature based on The Twits. Today the voice cast has been announced and… well, who cares. What is more interesting is that Talking Heads frontman David Byrne is penning three original songs for the film. Read: Dark Horizons
Fox streaming service Fox One will debut August 21. It will carry all of the Fox linear channels. Next day on-demand access to scripted shows will continue on Hulu. Read: TV Line
Matt Smith, from House of the Dragon and kids melodrama Doctor Who, will play a villain in the new Star Wars film Starfighter. Will he make the final edit this time? He reportedly filmed A LOT on the worst Star Wars film, Rise of Skywalker. Read: Deadline
Trailer Park
The new Noah Baumbach film Jay Kelly stars George Clooney, Adam Sandler, Laura Dern, and Billy Crudup. Holy crap. In is in theaters November 20 and on Netflix December 5.
Season 2 of My Life With The Walter Boys debuts on Netflix August 28.
Invasion returns to Apple TV+ August 22 for season 3.
That’s the newsletter for today.
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