Steve Pond's Blog, page 65
August 5, 2025
Fox Unveils Pricing, Aug. 21 Launch Date for Streaming Service Fox One
Fox Corporation’s upcoming direct-to-consumer streaming service Fox One will launch on Aug. 21. The streamer will cost $19.99 a month.
Fox One is designed for the cord-cutting market.
More to come …
The post Fox Unveils Pricing, Aug. 21 Launch Date for Streaming Service Fox One appeared first on TheWrap.
Fox Sees 17% Revenue Gain for Fiscal Year Led by Super Bowl, Political Ads and Tubi Growth
Fox Corporation saw a 17% revenue gain in fiscal year 2025. This surge compared to 2024 was due to Fox airing the Super Bowl, political advertisements and the growth of Tubi. The company reported its fourth quarter earnings on Tuesday. Executive chairman and CEO Lachlan Murdoch noted that the company’s growth around revenue, adjusted EPS and free cash flow all set records for Fox.
The company also announced a $5 billion increase to its share repurchase authorization as well as an increase in its semi-annual dividend to $0.28 per share ahead of its earnings call.
Throughout the year, affiliate fees increased by 5% due to 7% growth in the Television segment and 3% growth in the Cable Network Programming segment. That cable surge is notable. Most of Fox’s competitors report losses on the increasingly shrinking cable battleground. Advertising revenue also increased by 26% during the year due to Fox airing Super Bowl LIX, higher political advertising revenues and Tubi’s continued digital growth. Other revenues increased 47% during the year thanks to higher sports sublicensing revenues.
As for Tubi, the streamer had an especially strong fourth quarter. Advertising revenues in the Television division increased 3% year-over-year to hit $21 million, which was largely driven by Tubi.
Here are the key results:
Net Income: $719 million, a 125% improvement compared to the fourth quarter of 2024. Net income for the year was $2.29 billion, a 48% increase compared to fiscal year 2024.
Earnings Per Share: $1.27 adjusted, a roughly 41% year-over-year increase compared to $1.01 expected by analysts surveyed by Yahoo Finance.
Revenue: $3.29 billion, up 6% year-over-year compared to $3.11 billion expected by analysts surveyed by Yahoo Finance for the quarter. Revenue for the fiscal year was $16.3 billion, a 17% increase compared to 2024.
Adjusted EBITDA: $939 million, a 21%% year-over-year increase. Adjusted EBITDA for the year was $3.62 billion, a 26% increase compared to fiscal year 2024.
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Last quarter Fox really benefited from the Super Bowl bounce. This quarter better reflects the company’s forward-looking investments, including Fox One, its direct-to-consumer streaming service that was announced in May. Fox also launched its AI-driven OneFOX media platform in May.
More to come …
The post Fox Sees 17% Revenue Gain for Fiscal Year Led by Super Bowl, Political Ads and Tubi Growth appeared first on TheWrap.
August 4, 2025
Stephen Colbert Jokes That Among Other Trump Era Changes, the Smithsonian Says ‘the Vietnam War Was Started by Jimmy Kimmel’ | Video
On Monday’s “The Late Show,” Stephen Colbert had an amusing response to news recently about some Orwellian changes made to an exhibit at the the Smithsonian Institution — and it involved zinging one of this late night TV colleagues.
“You know something? No, you don’t, because things cannot be known anymore. What you thought you knew is just history, especially history, because the Smithsonian has now removed Trump from the impeachment exhibit in the American History Museum,” Colbert said at the top of his monologue.
“Oh, now you care what’s in the American History Museum. Where was that enthusiasm when dad worked so hard to plan the family trip to DC?” Colbert joked after the audience booed that news.
“Here’s here’s what happened: the Smithsonian has a long standing exhibit on presidential impeachment. It’s got the Watergate file cabinet, whatever Andrew Johnson did bad, a bunch of Bill Clinton sex stuff, non-Epstein edition. In 2021, after the whole Trump-sent-a-mob-to-storm-the-Capitol thing, they added a label that included content about Trump’s two impeachments, but then, according to an insider last month, they removed the label as part of a ‘content review, following pressure from the White House.”
“That kind of pressure explains why the Smithsonian exhibit on the 1960s now says that the Vietnam War was started by Jimmy Kimmel,” Colbert joked.
Now for its part, the Smithsonian says the removal of that information had nothing to do with pressure from the White House, and it over the weekend that the material about Trump will be restored.
Colbert continued, “now that the Trump impeachments have been yanked, the exhibit says only three presidents have seriously faced removal. Come on, if you’re if you’re going to completely make up presidential history, make it fun, like this.”
At this point, Colbert turned to a different camera where he was in the center of a cartoony carboard drawing and under a sign that said “Presidential Fun Facts,” and said, “Zachary Taylor’s favorite meat was squirrel. It used to be a delicacy, but we don’t eat it now because of woke.”
Watch the whole monologue below:
The post Stephen Colbert Jokes That Among Other Trump Era Changes, the Smithsonian Says ‘the Vietnam War Was Started by Jimmy Kimmel’ | Video appeared first on TheWrap.
Voice of America Director Fired After Refusing Demotion and Reassignment
Voice of America director Michael Abramowitz has been fired after he refused a demotion that would have also required him to relocate, his attorneys said in a court filing Monday.
In a letter included in that court filing, John Zadrozny, senior adviser at the U.S. Agency for Global Media told Abramowitz he has been given 30 days notice he will be terminated, effective Aug. 31. The letter specifically cited Abramowitz’s refusal to accept the demotion and relocate, which Zadrozny characterized as a disciplinary issue.
Abramowitz’s lawyers are already seeking a partial summary judgment in the matter and submitted news of his being fired to the court as part of that effort. They are asking for a court ruling by no later than Aug. 29, two days before his termination takes effect.
Abramowitz informed VOA staff in late July, in a letter he also shared on Linkedin, that his lawyers were filing court challenges to Trump administration efforts to remove him from his job.
“I wanted you to be aware that my lawyers have filed a motion in federal court today challenging efforts by USAGM to remove me as director of Voice of America. They believe USAGM’s action is plainly illegal. I can’t say much about the details of the case beyond what is laid out in the court filing. But I do want to stress that this action is not about me personally but about preserving the rule of law and fulfilling VOA’s vital mission of delivering fact-based news and information about America to the world,” he wrote.
His firing comes amid the Trump administration’s much larger attack on press independence, as well as its efforts to shutter VOA entirely along with affiliated networks including Radio Free Europe.
Abramowitz has fiercely opposed those efforts, including a lawsuit filed in March after the Trump administration attempted to illegally shut down VOA.
Hundreds of VOA staffers were fired in June, leaving the outlet with just 200 employees, a mere 15% of the headcount it had before Trump assumed office in January.
The post Voice of America Director Fired After Refusing Demotion and Reassignment appeared first on TheWrap.
Taylor Kitsch Says He Will Not Return for ‘Friday Night Lights’ Revival Despite Being Asked: ‘I’m Not Going Back’ | Video
“Friday Night Lights” is coming back, but the Panthers will have to play on without Taylor Kitsch in their corner.
At a press event for “The Terminal List: Dark Wolf,” TheWrap asked the series star about the upcoming “Friday Night Lights” revival for Peacock. Kitsch, who played Dillon Panthers Fullback Tim Riggins in the original series, said he was aware of the show.
Even though he was asked to come back, however, audiences will not see Kitsch take the field any time soon.
“I have to ask you about ‘Friday Night Lights,'” TheWrap told Kitsch.
“The 19-year anniversary or something, is that what you’re talking about?” Kitsch asked.
“I’m talking about the creative team from the original ‘Friday Night Lights’ is coming together with Peacock,” TheWrap clarified.
“With [EP and showrunner Jason] Katims?” Kitsch asked.
“Yeah, for a new ‘Friday Night Lights’ reboot,” TheWrap said. Kitsch shook his head. “Have you heard anything about it?”
“Yes,” Kitsch replied. “I was asked to do it. Umm, yeah, I’m not going back. No.” You can see the exchange in the post below.
#TaylorKitsch confirms he won’t be returning for the new Friday Night Lights project — but he’s focused on something bigger: building a healing space for veterans and those battling addiction in Montana. pic.twitter.com/hyFvCeDxKF
— TheWrap (@TheWrap) August 5, 2025
TheWrap learned in November of 2024 that “Friday Night Lights” would return to Peacock for a revival series with original series showrunner Jason Katims attached. Peter Berg, who developed the original series, is also attached to the reboot project, which Brian Grazer and Kristen Zolner of Imagine Entertainment will be executive producing.
“Following a devastating hurricane, a rag tag high school football team and their damaged, interim coach make an unlikely bid for a Texas High School State Championship becoming a beacon of light for their town,” a logline for the new show reads.
It is unclear who, if any, of the original cast will return to the new “Friday Night Lights,” which focuses on a new story with new characters. Kitsch saying that he was asked shows that at least one actor from the original series has been approached for the revival.
The post Taylor Kitsch Says He Will Not Return for ‘Friday Night Lights’ Revival Despite Being Asked: ‘I’m Not Going Back’ | Video appeared first on TheWrap.
‘Midnight Rider’ Director Randall Miller Sues DGA to Overturn Lifetime Ban
Randall Miller, the director who pled guilty to involuntary manslaughter after the death of a camera assistant on the set of his film “Midnight Rider,” has sued the Directors Guild of America to overturn his 2022 ban from the union which effectively prevents him from directing any movie with guild talent.
Miller served a year in prison in Georgia after camera assistant Sarah Jones was killed by an oncoming train while the “Midnight Rider” crew was shooting on a bridge without permission in 2015. The DGA suspended Miller for a year in connection to the incident.
In 2021, Miller was charged with violating the terms of his 10-year probation, which included a ban from directing, by directing the film “Coffee Wars.” According to the lawsuit obtained by TheWrap, the terms forbade Miller from “serving as a director, first assistant director or supervisor with responsibility for safety in any film production.” Miller argued that he interpreted this as allowing him to direct as long as the responsibility of on-set safety was delegated to others.
While a judge ruled in favor of Miller, who avoided further jail time, the DGA held a disciplinary hearing accusing the filmmaker of conduct “prejudicial to the welfare of the Guild.” As the lawsuit states, all 27 members of the guild’s Western Directors Council voted to ban Miller for life in May 2022.
The lawsuit accuses the DGA’s move to expel Miller of being in bad faith and out of public pressure from the below-the-line union IATSE, of which Sarah Jones was a member. It also accuses DGA leadership of manipulating a vote by the Ethics Committee on whether to recommend Miller’s expulsion to the Western Directors Council. Miller claims that he was told by a whistleblower that the five members of the Ethics Committee voted unanimously in favor of him staying in the DGA, but four of them changed their votes after meeting with union leaders.
“The harm caused by the DGA’s actions toward Miller, marked by deceit and an abuse of process, has been catastrophic to his professional reputation and continues to hinder his job prospects,” the lawsuit states. “Miller has not been able to direct any project since ‘Coffee Wars.’”
The DGA did not immediately respond to TheWrap’s request for comment.
The post ‘Midnight Rider’ Director Randall Miller Sues DGA to Overturn Lifetime Ban appeared first on TheWrap.
Megyn Kelly Says VP Harris’ Colbert Interview Reminds Her of Elle Woods in ‘Legally Blonde’: ‘All Classic Kamala’ | Video
Megyn Kelly was reminded of Elle Woods from “Legally Blonde” watching Kamala Harris’ interview on “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.”
On Monday’s episode of “The Megyn Kelly Show,” the host was struck by the similarities between the former presidential candidate – who was on the late night show promoting her upcoming book – and the iconic movie character played by Reese Witherspoon. She said the entire interview felt “all classic Kamala.”
“This is what I find interesting about her,” Kelly said. “It’s how empty she is. The only time she really gets animated is when she talks about race, abortion, or herself. Truly, I’m a connoisseur now of this woman’s commentary, and those are the three things that really light her up, and the giggling about when she gets to herself. ‘I call them my baby nieces, like, that’s something special about me. I have this term of endearment about my two nieces. You see, I put the word baby in front of them … That’s what I do. That’s my thing.'”
She added: “And then she gets equally animated when she gets to her stupid AirPod choice … It’s ridiculous. She comes alive on the subject of ‘Me.’ Reminds me of this gal from ‘Legally Blonde.'”
Kelly then played a brief clip from the film showing Woods shouting “Me!” in the Harvard halls.
That Harris did her first major interview since the election with Colbert likely only added fuel to Kelly’s fire. The SiriusXM host has tirelessly gone after Colbert since CBS announced his show was canceled and coming to an end in May 2026.
“Many of us have had very public cancelations and some were absolutely brutal,” she said after the news dropped. “And we didn’t invite all our friends to come cry on the set and say, ‘Poor poor her. Poor poor him. American democracy will not be the same.’ Some of us took it like professionals, then picked ourselves up, dusted ourselves off, and moved on with life. Is this how it’s going to be for the next year? Watching this crybaby try to play the victim that his show got cancelled? Grow up. It’s called television, you toddler.”
Watch the full show clip about Harris and the comparison to “Legally Blonde” above.
The post Megyn Kelly Says VP Harris’ Colbert Interview Reminds Her of Elle Woods in ‘Legally Blonde’: ‘All Classic Kamala’ | Video appeared first on TheWrap.
Trump to Announce LA28 Summer Olympics Task Force – Led by the President Himself
Donald Trump on Tuesday will sign an executive order to establish a federal Olympics task force ahead of the Los Angeles 2028 Summer Games, made up of members of the Trump administration and led by the president himself, TheWrap has confirmed.
This new effort is said to be an intergovernmental task force that will include several departments, including law enforcement, coordinating federal, state and local government agencies.
LA28 Chairperson and President Casey Wasserman expressed his “deep appreciation” for the president in a statement to TheWrap ahead of what he called “the largest and most ambitious” American Olympics to date.
“On behalf of LA28, I want to express our deep appreciation to President Trump and his Administration for their leadership and unwavering support as we prepare to deliver the largest and most ambitious Olympic and Paralympic Games ever hosted in the United States,” Wasserman said. “Since we secured this historic opportunity in 2017, President Trump has consistently recognized the magnitude of our responsibility in welcoming the world to Los Angeles.”
“The creation of this task force marks an important step forward in our planning efforts and reflects our shared commitment to delivering not just the biggest, but the greatest Games the world has ever seen in the summer of 2028,” the statement continued.
The proposed Olympics task force will be announced Tuesday with a selection of athletes and members of the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee to reveal the news. Casey Wasserman, president and chairman of LA 2028, met with Trump at Mar-a-Lago to discuss his commitment to bringing the games to L.A. following the president’s inauguration in January.
“We look forward to partnering with [Trump] and his administration to deliver a safe and successful Games our nation can be proud of,” Wasserman said of their meeting.
“These are America’s Olympics,” Trump told Wasserman, according to Axios. “These are more important than ever to L.A. and I’m going to be supportive in every way possible to make them the greatest Games.”
After quarreling with state and local leadership over ICE raids in June, Trump’s investment in the L.A. games could drive a greater wedge in his relationship with Gov. Gavin Newsom and L.A. Mayor Karen Bass. A task force of this manner is not completely unusual, but the federal government is typically involved in securing bids for the city not once the city has been chosen.
Trump’s crackdown on tariffs, immigration and travel bans may affect how the L.A. games fare on the world stage. The president ordered a travel ban on 12 countries this summer but made exemptions for Olympians, their coaches and relatives. Additionally, the president banned transgender athletes from women’s sports and successfully petitioned the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to change its rules for LA28 to comply with his demands.
LA28’s board of directors includes leaders from varying industries, including Olympian Allyson Felix, actress Jessica Alba, former Lakers owner Jeannie Buss and former CEO of DreamWorks Jeffrey Katzenberg.
The post Trump to Announce LA28 Summer Olympics Task Force – Led by the President Himself appeared first on TheWrap.
Marc Maron Believes Obama ‘Very Deliberately’ Decided to Say the N-Word on His 2015 Episode of ‘WTF’
Marc Maron continued the press rounds on Monday to promote his new HBO stand-up special, “Panicked,” and the final stretch of his beloved “WTF” podcast later this fall. Sitting with Will Arnett, Jason Bateman and Sean Hayes on this week’s “Smartless,” the podcast pioneer shared some behind-the-scenes details about his historic 2015 interview with then-President Barack Obama, memorably held in the confines of his Highland Park garage.
Reflecting on the politician’s use of the N-word during the interview while talking about how racism in the United States is alive and well, Maron said that it seemed Obama “very deliberately” stirred up a media firestorm by speaking so uncensored on the pod and remembered how the international press responded to his frankness.
“It was intense, and I just tried to, you know, we had to cover some politics up front because there were things unfolding, but then it was a fairly standard ‘WTF’ interview,” Maron said on “Smartless.” “And the funniest part about it was when he sat down, you know, I said, ‘So, you nervous?’ And he said something like, ‘If I was nervous about this, we’d all be in trouble.’”
When Bateman suggested Obama appeared “forthcoming” during the sit-down, Maron admitted he was “forthcoming enough” but can get “wonky” if the conversation skews too political.
“He’s a genuine person. What he was was very disarming and very candid-seeming and willing and thoughtful,” the host said. “But what was interesting was it was better to do a personal interview with him, because he is kinda wonky, and if you get into politics it can get a little long and we only had an hour. So we were able to kind of do it.”
Maron then zeroed in on the headline-making quote from the interview that had the president saying the N-word live on the mic.
“And then for some reason he chose, I’m sure very deliberately, to say the N-word on my show,” he said. “He was like, you know, ‘Racism isn’t over just because you can’t say the N-word,’ and he said it, so that got, you know, a flurry of international news. So I had to deal with news crews in front of my house. But my producer was very calculating in terms of the press we did — he’s a very smart guy. We didn’t engage with any of them. We just did Chris Hayes and Terry Gross and that was it.”
The comedian then joked: “And I don’t hear from Obama at all, he’s got my number, but I feel weird texting him.”
Obama’s full quote from June 2015 went as followed: “Racism, we are not cured of it. And it’s not just a matter of it not being polite to say n—-r in public. That’s not the measure of whether racism still exists or not. It’s not just a matter of overt discrimination. Societies don’t, overnight, completely erase everything that happened 200 to 300 years prior. The legacy of slavery, Jim Crow, discrimination in almost every institution of our lives, that casts a long shadow and that’s still part of our DNA that’s passed on.”
Maron defended the president’s use of the word back in 2015, telling CBS, “As a comic, it wasn’t that jarring to me. But to frame it correctly, he said the n-word to talk about using the n-word and what that implicates. It was a broader statement about racism.”
The original “WTF” promotion to the interview highlighted the hour-long episode as a “conversation about college, fitting in, race relations, gun violence, changing the status quo, disappointing your fans, comedians, fatherhood and overcoming fear.”
Listen to Maron’s full “Smartless” interview in the embed below, and you can revisit his 2015 interview with Obama here.
The post Marc Maron Believes Obama ‘Very Deliberately’ Decided to Say the N-Word on His 2015 Episode of ‘WTF’ appeared first on TheWrap.
HBO Max Pokes Fun at Accidentally Streaming ‘The Gilded Age’ in Spanish: ‘But for Real, Lo Siento’
HBO Max had a few palabras humorísticas for confused viewers after it accidentally streamed the Spanish language dub of the latest episode of the hit period drama “The Gilded Age.”
“But for real,” the streamer’s official account said, “lo siento. #LaEdadDorada”
But for real, lo siento. #LaEdadDorada https://t.co/PwNgfYLHkd pic.twitter.com/1L6BoCSLla
— HBO Max (@hbomax) August 4, 2025
Many viewers of “The Gilded Age” (or “La Edad Dorada,” as HBO Max called it) went on the social media platform themselves Sunday night to share their confusion — and make sure it wasn’t just their TVs that were bugging. Fans soon learned that they were part of a widespread problem, with series stars like Carrie Coon and Louisa Jacobson dubbed over by their Spanish-speaking counterparts.
Some viewers were confused by the show’s apparent departure, believing the Spanish speaking to be part of in-universe canon. Others started rolling with the audio glitch, relying on English subtitles to supplement the performance dubs. Coon herself acknowledged the error on X, asking, “Did everyone like my accent? in Spanish.
¿A todos les gustó mi acento?#GildedAgeHBO #BerthaRussell
— Carrie Coon (@carriecoon) August 4, 2025
HBO is no stranger to Sunday night errors. During the final season of “Game of Thrones,” the network inadvertently aired an episode of the fantasy drama with a Starbucks cup visible in one of the shots. The third episode of the premiere season of “GoT” spinoff “House of the Dragon” went on HBO before a character’s green screen fingers were edited out of the shot to portray his missing digits.
Maybe some viewers will be firing up Duolingo ahead of next week’s episode, you know, just in case.
The post HBO Max Pokes Fun at Accidentally Streaming ‘The Gilded Age’ in Spanish: ‘But for Real, Lo Siento’ appeared first on TheWrap.
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