Motion Picture: Lionsgate Predicts Massive AI Savings, Dan Lin Details Netflix's Approach to Theatrical Releases

Jeymes sameul - Jeff Spicer / Stringer

Action/Thriller/Sci-fi: Lionsgate enlists filmmaker Jeymes Samuel as the director for their Streets of Rageadaptation. The film will be penned by Sonic the Hedgehog duo writers Pat Casey and Josh Miller, building on an earlier draft of the screenplay by Derek Kolstad. The action game franchise began as a popular video game series in the 1990s and has sustained strong sales. Erin Westerman, president of the Lionsgate Motion Picture Group, released a statement claiming: “Our partners and we at Sega knew that Streets of Rage demanded a bold filmmaker. Jeymes Samuel’s visceral and explosive style — not to mention his signature use of unforgettable music — is perfect for audiences both familiar with and new to the series. We are so excited for how he will bring his own memorable take to this beloved video game IP.”

Antoine Fuqua - Gerome Defrance

Drama: Netflix has paused pre-production on its untitled Antoine Fuqua Hannibal epic starring Denzel Washington in the titular role. “The film was planned to shoot later this year in Italy, but insiders now say things have been put on pause so that producers and the studio can figure out the budget. Insiders add that both sides are working to get the movie back on track and that the hope is the movie still could move forward at Netflix.” The production team has been prepping over the past couple of weeks at Netflix, meeting with the actors who will make up the rest of the cast alongside Washington. Fuqua and his crew were already scouting locations in Italy. When “certain issues arose that still needed to be addressed, both sides agreed it was best to halt pre-production and get things in a good place that the studio and producers agreed on.”

Dan lin - FRAZER HARRISON

Industry: Dan Lin at Netflix confirms that Greta Gerwig’s Narnia will have a theatrical release. However, Lin clarifies that this is an exception to the rule at Netflix and that the streamer has no plans to work with filmmakers who want a theatrical release. Lin stated, “There is a group of filmmakers who still want theatrical. Those are filmmakers that we’ve accepted we just won’t work with.” Lin took over the reins from Scott Stuber back in November of 2024. Among his plans for the company, Lin commented that he wants to spend more money on fewer better 

“Netflix’s theatrical strategy, or lack thereof, was a major point of contention when the streamer was in the running to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery. Before the streaming giant dropped out of the bidding war, leaving Paramount as the winner, co-CEO Ted Sarandos said that Warner Bros.”

Industry workers rail against the Paramount Skydance-Warner Bros. Discovery merger at town hall, claiming “it’s the death of a great American Industry.” The tension was high at an opposition-filled gathering of Hollywood workers, union officials, and a current FCC commissioner on Saturday in Beverly Hills. The ruckus was over the planned Paramount Skydance-Warner Bros. “With some arguing that the mega-merger, on top of other recent challenges in the business, would mean the “death of Hollywood.” Earlier this week, “California, New York and other state attorneys general are preparing a lawsuit to block the merger after California attorney general Rob Bonta previously promised to look into the deal.” 

However, many Hollywood insiders aren’t holding their breath for the lawsuit to persevere. At the town hall, one woman who identified as a producer but didn’t reveal her name lamented, “A domino fell during the pandemic. Another fell during the writers’ strike. If Paramount merges with Warner Bros., it may be the final domino that knocks everything down,” she said. The main fear is that another mega merger could result in thousands of layoffs and remove a “key buyer” in the industry. Another television writer who spoke at the meeting also warned that this could be the death of the entertainment industry. He stated that he had a project in development with CBS Studios that slowed down once the Paramount-Warner Bros. merger was announced. He has had to make a career pivot this year. “If this merger goes through, this will be the death of our industry, I believe,” he said. 

On Paramount-Skydance’s end, a spokesperson from the company released a statement saying, “Opposing this deal means opposing expanded consumer choice, new opportunities for creators and workers, and greater competition throughout the creative ecosystem—the opposite of what antitrust law is meant to achieve. It also means giving entrenched incumbents like Netflix an advantage they do not deserve. We will continue to fight against any attempt to derail a deal that plainly benefits consumers, creators, and the industry as a whole.” Tension is at an all-time high in Hollywood as a dreary storm cloud hangs over the city. The mood is down at the town hall with one actress/comedian commenting, “As someone who tries really hard to keep people positive and motivated and inspired and empowered and, ‘Let’s keep going, let’s keep doing it, I am starting to feel… Do you know what I mean? The hard. And it’s getting hard for me to keep others inspired. And I don’t like that.” 

FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez, the sole democrat left at the FCC, tried to encourage the audience by bringing up last year’s Jimmy Kimmel fiasco where ABC pulled the late-night show from the air but later reinstated it due to massive backlash. Gomez insisted, “I know it’s exhausting; I’m exhausted,” she said. “Every day I’m speaking out about some new horror that this administration is doing, particularly on the First Amendment. I’m exhausted. But it’s not time to be tired. It’s time to get inspired because your voices really do matter.”

Lionsgate’s Michael Burns claims AI will save the company “tens and tens of millions of dollars a year.” Thus, adding another massive cause for concern among entertainment workers. In addition to the cost efficiencies, which studio heads and creatives alike have been going on about as of late, Burns even included “AI firms as “wild-card” candidates to one day buy Lionsgate, long considered a ripe acquisition target.” The Lionsgate VP stated, “all the stuff we’re doing in the world of AI, which is with our movies, specific shots, previewing the movie, figuring out how to budget.” AI, he added, “is going to save us tens and tens of millions of dollars a year.” To put things into perspective, Lionsgate’s film and TV studio business took in more than $3 billion in the most recent fiscal year, according to SEC filings. But the rich could always stand to get richer in the eyes of corporate heads. On the creative front, there is a lot of sensitivity regarding the guardrails of AI and copyrighted materials. “The Writers Guild and SAG-AFTRA managed to strike contract renewals with the AMPTP in recent months, averting a repeat of the strikes in 2023 that were fueled in part by AI anxiety. Still, considerable uneasiness remains about protection and guardrails for artists.”