The Town with Matthew Belloni

• What Is the HBO Brand in 2025? Part 1 With CEO Casey Bloys

  Matt is joined by Casey Bloys, chairman and CEO of HBO and Max content, to talk about the shifting strategies of the HBO and Max brand under the new leadership of David Zaslav and Warner Bros. Discovery, the challenges of being a “something for everybody” service, why they are no longer competing with Netflix, and why HBO is still the top choice for creatives (02:48). Matt finishes the show with an opening weekend box office prediction for the Marvel film ‘Thunderbolts*’ (26:52). For a 20 percent discount on Matt’s Hollywood insider newsletter, ‘What I’m Hearing ...,’ ⁠⁠click here⁠⁠. Email us your thoughts! ⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠ Host: Matt Belloni Guest: Casey Bloys Producers: Craig Horlbeck and Jessie Lopez Theme Song: Devon Renaldo Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

  --------  

  35:24
• Can Paramount Solve Its Impossible Trump Problem?

  Matt is joined by Bloomberg’s Lucas Shaw to discuss the latest twist in the saga of Paramount, '60 Minutes,' and Trump after the show's executive producer Bill Owens stepped down because he “felt he lost the independence that honest journalism requires.” Matt and Lucas look at how the '60 Minutes' drama complicates things for Paramount head Shari Redstone, who desperately wants the Paramount-Skydance merger to close, and what her options are as this endless saga continues (03:01). Matt finishes the show with a prediction about Taylor Sheridan’s future with Paramount and his relationship with Paramount executive Chris McCarthy (25:06).For a 20 percent discount on Matt’s Hollywood insider newsletter, ‘What I’m Hearing ...,’ ⁠click here⁠.Email us your thoughts! ⁠[email protected]⁠Host: Matt BelloniGuest: Lucas ShawProducers: Craig Horlbeck and Jessie LopezTheme Song: Devon Renaldo Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

  --------  

  33:28
• How the Oscars’ Best Stunt Category Will Work (and Why Stars Are Still Doing Their Own)

  Matt is joined by director and former stunt coordinator David Leitch (‘The Fall Guy,’ ‘Bullet Train,’ ‘Deadpool 2’) to discuss the newest category added to the Academy Awards: Achievement in Stunt Design, which will debut in 2028. David  explains how this came to be, the criteria by which the category will be judged, how CGI and AI have affected stunts, which stars still do their own stunts, and how stunt design has changed over the years (02:34). Matt finishes the show with an opening weekend box office prediction for ‘The Accountant 2’ (27:18). For a 20 percent discount on Matt’s Hollywood insider newsletter, ‘What I’m Hearing ...,’ click here. Email us your thoughts! [email protected] Host: Matt Belloni Guest: David Leitch Producers: Craig Horlbeck and Jessie Lopez Theme Song: Devon Renaldo Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

  --------  

  34:28
• Can Netflix Become a Trillion-Dollar Company?

  Matt is joined by LightShed media analyst Rich Greenfield to talk about Netflix’s latest earning reports and how it can accomplish its ambitious goals for the future. With Netflix being valued at about $450 billion and continuing to be profitable, they debate whether Netflix can reach its lofty goals of 410 million subscribers and becoming a trillion-dollar company by 2030 (02:32). Matt finishes the show with a prediction on how the new rule for Oscar voting will affect the results (26:03). For a 20 percent discount on Matt’s Hollywood insider newsletter, ‘What I’m Hearing ...,’ click here. Email us your thoughts! [email protected] Host: Matt Belloni Guest: Rich Greenfield Producers: Craig Horlbeck and Jessie Lopez Theme Song: Devon Renaldo Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

  --------  

  33:27
• How Did ‘Sinners’ Really Do This Weekend?

  Matt is joined by Bloomberg’s Lucas Shaw and Franklin Leonard, a film executive and founder of the Black List, to discuss the weekend box office performance of ‘Sinners’, the road it has to become profitable, and the revolving conversation around the special deal that director Ryan Coogler negotiated with Warner Bros. to make it. They also debate why the international numbers for ‘Sinners’ weren’t as strong, if race has anything to do with the type of media coverage the film has received, and if the type of deal that Coogler made is the end of the studio system or just hyperbole (04:04). For a 20 percent discount on Matt’s Hollywood insider newsletter, ‘What I’m Hearing ...,’ click here. Email us your thoughts! [email protected] Host: Matt Belloni Guests: Lucas Shaw and Franklin Leonard Producers: Craig Horlbeck and Jessie Lopez Theme Song: Devon Renaldo Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

  --------  

  35:26

More Society & Culture podcasts

Trending Society & Culture podcasts

About The Town with Matthew Belloni

The Town with Matthew Belloni: Podcasts in Family