We could be seeing a lot more horror properties carrying the rather apt “Made by Spooky” label in the future. As Image Nation Studios, Made by Us, and Spooky Pictures unite to launch what they are calling the first “creator-first” horror label, Brandon Blake, entertainment lawyer at Blake & Wang P.A., takes a look.

Brandon Blake

Made by Spooky

Made by Spooky will be targeting what it is calling “digital native” horror talent, focusing primarily on original short-form content as well as long-form IPs and vertical serialized content. The so-called “creator economy” has come for Hollywood in a big way, and horror titles have been notable among them, especially as both Obsession and Backrooms broke out from that side of the internet. It and the projects it covers will be part of the existing co-production agreement between Image Nation Studios and Spooky Pictures.

As part of the initiative, they are hoping to find new voices and talent, and are hoping to introduce some fresh novelty to the genre, which has had an enduring part of viewers’ hearts since the pandemic.

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Impressive Footprint

Spooky Pictures and Image Nation have been working in partnership since about the same time, first coming together in 2020 with the release of Watcher. They have also worked together on Neon’s Hokum, The Plague, and the critically acclaimed Late Night with the Devil, so they have plenty of experience in backing winning horror IPs.

Made by Us also represents some of the novelest voices in horror at the moment. They recently entered a multi-year partnership with Dentsu Entertainment, also targeting original creator-led content, and have been active in TikTok co-productions for the vertical format.

It will be interesting to see if there is another Backrooms lurking among the projects Made by Spooky will be backing, of course, but it is always encouraging to see new initiatives targeting smaller creators and independent IPs.

Netflix and the cinema experience have never seen eye to eye, with the streamer preferring to keep its content on its platform. Does their decision to report on box office performance mean there’s a change in tactic coming? Blake & Wang P.A. entertainment attorney, Brandon Blake, takes a closer look.

Brandon Blake

Change in Strategy

Even when they have a hit on their hands, it’s rare to see Netflix indulge in anything more than mandatory award-season box office runs. Likely because for every hit, there is inevitably a flop to receive similar scrutiny. However, it’s been clear from the start that they anticipate La Bola Negra finding its niche in this awards season. It’s interesting that that film will also be where they start releasing more box office data. While the film is still opening to limited release, with just 4 screens, it will also include the longest theatrical exclusive window we’ve seen from them so far, at 47 days.

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A New Model, or a Coincidence?

This release has been carefully managed to not damage later streaming viewing. It’s pretty clear they are hoping that having a strong per-screen average will generate awards season buzz for the film. It’s still a notable change in tactics for the streamer, however.

We’ve seen their keenness on the theatrical model increase since their failed bid for Warner Bros. early this year. They have several strong releases in the works, including some IMAX releases and tentpoles like Narnia. With that in mind, it’s not hard to see La Bola Negra as their test case for reporting. A way to build new relationships (and screen access) with exhibitors, while courting a higher caliber of filmmakers than they’ve used before. Let’s also not lose sight of the fact that we have hit a plateau for streaming subscriptions, but they still need a growth vector. The cinema crowd may be exactly who they need.

As always, Netflix is playing its cards close to its chest. But it’s hard not to see this sudden swing towards more, and bigger, theatrical releases as a strategy shift, hoping to keep its reputation as the “king” of streamers, even as the streaming market itself starts to correct from the boom era.

As we head into the final quarter of the year, it’s time to check in on what’s sold from the fall festival circuit. Blake & Wang P.A. entertainment lawyer, Brandon Blake, has the summary so far. 

Brandon Blake 

Acquired During Festivals

Among films that actually sold during the festival itself, we have Honeymoon/Funeral, which played in the market at the Toronto International Film Festival, and will be distributed by Black Bear.  TIFF has actually seen several in-festival acquisitions this year, with TIFF Centerpiece entry, The Surgeon, going to Sony Pictures, even though we’ve seen a decrease in majors buying at festivals recently. 

River may be one of the biggest acquisitions this year, going to Universal Pictures and Blumhouse Atomic Monster from the TIFF Midnight Madness for what’s estimated to be more than $10M after igniting a small bidding war. On the documentary side, Rapinoe, TIFF’s opening night documentary, landed at HBO Documentary Films. 

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The Before and After

A Day in the Life of Jo: Chapter Phaedra went to 1-2 Special from Venice Orizzonti, although it was actually picked up after its North American premiere at NYFF, if we want to be technical.

Then there’s Babies, which will be distributed by Roadside Attractions and Vertical, and which played in the TIFF Gala Presentation, although it was up for sale nearly a year beforehand. Elsinore, which played at both Telluride and TIFF, ultimately went to Focus Features, and may even see release late this year.  

Last, but certainly not least, Ink, a Netflix acquisition that played in competition in Venice, was also snapped up before the festival proper, where it played on the opening night. 

So far, it’s a small list, but it’s always good to see festival titles find their final distribution. Let’s hope there will be even more to report in the coming weeks. 

With the closure of the now-merged Warner Bros. Discovery and Paramount now fully greenlit by the courts and set to close by the end of this week, the speculation around what the merged entity will be called has also been answered. Brandon Blake, entertainment lawyer at Blake & Wang P.A., shares the final verdict. 

Brandon Blake 

Returning to (Ellison’s) Roots

Rather than opting for anything that celebrates the two legacy Hollywood studios themselves, David Ellison has opted to name the new entertainment juggernaut after his old company, Skydance. This is, of course, the original name of the production company that gave him his first entry into Hollywood. 

Of course, there’s plenty of corporate-level talk around what went into the final selection, including a promise of “bold, quality storytelling” and much made about how the merger will not rewrite history, but rather equip “these iconic studios with a more powerful engine.”

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Preserving Identity

Surprisingly, the new name choice is also being billed as a way to keep the distinct identities and legacies behind both studios, letting both live on as brands under the Skydance umbrella. It’s not entirely clear how exactly reducing them to brand level will do that, and will likely not woo those who still have trepidations about the merger. 

There’s also concern that, despite the terms of the antitrust settlement that cleared the last hurdle to the merger, we will still see massive job loss as the two studios combine. Especially considering that both companies have duplicate assets- two streaming platforms, two studios, and plenty of shared news and cable/broadcast stations. However, at least it has been confirmed that they will have to meet their promised 30 theatrical releases a year, at pain of fines. 

For many, this merger will be bittersweet, and the loss of two more of Hollywood’s iconic “big names.” But, for now at least, let’s hope to see something better rise from them coming together.

The bill that many in the industry hoped would pass has finally been signed into law by Governor Gavin Newsom. California will now offer post-production tax credits, as Blake & Wang P.A. entertainment lawyer, Brandon Blake, is here to share.

Brandon Blake

Bill AB 2319 Signed into Law

This new and standalone post-production tax incentive is another part of California’s broader plan to both revamp its tax incentive program and re-attract production to the state. The bill aims to reward those productions that carry out their post-production work in California. 

Although there is some provision under existing incentives for projects that shot in California to get post-production credits, this bill expands that to include productions where primary production took place elsewhere, but who want to handle their post work in California. Some local productions that did not qualify for the overall production tax credits should also qualify.

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$10M Fund

The post-production credit will kick off with $10M in funding, which is likely too low for an ongoing reserve, but comes as part of a rather difficult budget year for the state. From comments from Gov. Newsom, it seems that he is well aware the program will need further funds allocated in the future. 

In many ways, the bill passing is the conclusion of something that’s been underway since early 2025, when an open letter to the state about the LA film and recording industry first highlighted the decline in local filming and the need to do more on the post-production arm.

This bill, specifically, was introduced early this year by Assemblymember Schultz. Some of the bill’s language has been amended along the way, bringing the Motion Picture Editors Guild into the fray, with the California Post Alliance also a co-sponsor.

This brings the state’s incentive offerings more into line with rivals like New York and Georgia, which already have post-production incentives in place. Notably, several of the more productive international destinations, like Canada and the UK, also offer post-production incentives.

With Paramount’s pending legal battle with a range of state Attorneys General being one of the final hurdles to its pending merger with Warner Bros., they will no doubt be keen to bring legal actions to a close as soon as possible. Especially as their promised ticking fee for delays in the regulatory approval processes will kick in from the start of October. Blake & Wang P.A. entertainment lawyer, Brandon Blake, shares some news on the matter.

Brandon Blake

Talks Set for End of October

Despite some acrimonious back-and-forth words traded in the press, Paramount and the California Attorney General, Rob Bonta, are now set to meet for 2 days at the end of October to explore a potential deal. This could settle the pending state lawsuit challenging the merger bid. 

The US Magistrate overseeing the matter, Judge Thomas Hixson, has set a date mid-week for both sides to settle on dates. The talks will also include the WGA. 

Not a Done Deal, Yet

The talks will only be introductory, so that doesn’t mean we will automatically see a full resolution. Still, this case has become a major sticking point for the deal, and Paramount, at least, has much incentive to try to resolve remaining issues before the trial date, which is set for next year. After all, that promised ticking fee is starting to tick up quite loudly now. 

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Bonta, on the other hand, has been clear that he will only accept structural remedies. In this case, that will likely mean selling off parts of the combined business. To date, Paramount’s concessions have been purely behavioral, as we saw with their pledge to release at least 30 theatrical films with 45-day windows for the next three years. 

This is certainly the most progress we’ve seen towards settlement so far. With at least a month’s worth of accumulated ticking fees behind it by the time talks start, we may see more willingness to negotiate from Paramount, particularly, on the matter.

With a Toronto Film Festival lineup rich in premieres for movies that bowed at Cannes and Sundance, it’s a bit of an odd fall for festival titles, with far fewer premiere sales titles arriving without distribution in place. However, with TIFF’s first dedicated market and plenty of other festivals ahead, entertainment lawyer at Blake & Wang P.A., Brandon Blake, looks at the state of sales so far. 

Brandon Blake

Festival Acquisitions

Among the titles that sold at the festivals themselves, we have River, going to Focus Features and Blumhouse Atomic Monster, which sold from TIFF’s Midnight Madness lineup. The deal is expected to cross the $10M mark, and seems a solid pick to, perhaps, be the next Obsession. 

There’s also the docu-drama Rapinoe, tracing the career and life of US Women’s National Soccer star Megan Rapinoe. It was the opening night documentary at TIFF, and went to HBO Documentary Films for North American TV and streaming rights, at least. 

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Pre-Festival Acquisitions

Among titles that sold before their TIFF screenings, Babies went to Roadside Attractions and Vertical. This comedy, which showed in the TIFF Gala Presentation, centers around parenthood and prospective parenthood, and has Seth Rogen, who is having a strong year. The film is expected to release in early 2027, and was sold almost a year in advance of its premiere date. 

Elsinore, which went to Focus Features, played at both Telluride and TIFF this year. Centering on the life of Ian Charleson and his work around the AIDS epidemic, the film is already dated for release in late November this year. 

Netflix will also be bringing us Ink later this year, which played in competition at Venice as the opening night film, and covers the rise of The Sun tabloid newspaper. Netflix, however, doesn’t have the worldwide rights for the film, so we may see it as both a commercial and awards release.  

Let’s hope to see many more added to this list as we get deeper into the fall festival season.

Support for a proposed federal tax credit program and production subsidy is already building throughout Hollywood. The question now is whether it will remain a hope and promise, or if we will see the momentum continue, as Blake & Wang P.A. entertainment attorney, Brandon Blake, examines.

Brandon Blake

Growing Support

With both film and TV production domestically having dropped in recent years, the industry itself is keen for government support, and has been for several years now.

While it likely won’t entirely offset the cost savings in shooting internationally, it could do a lot to bring bigger-budget projects back to America. Now we’ve seen some further Presidential support for the idea as well; it’s hoped that something concrete will finally come of it. 

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A Name and Support

What has already become known as “The Motion Picture, Television, and Entertainment Revitalization Act” has attracted bipartisan congressional support. It currently seems that it will be framed as a jobs initiative, and reportedly there is work underway to craft it. 

However, we’ve seen talk from the Office of the President about the industry before, then with a focus on tariffs for internationally produced movies, and that eventually fizzled out. In the meantime, we’ve even seen Marvel make the shift from Georgia to the UK, which is becoming something of a hub for similar tentpoles, bringing around $7.8B into their economy in 2025 alone.

So, for now at least, the focus needs to be on keeping this momentum going, and convincing key state and government parties to support the proposed bill and move it through the relevant hurdles. However, it is good indeed to finally see some high-level engagement with the matter, and we can only hope it pays dividends down the line as well.

It’s no Backrooms, but A24 has another hit heating up the indie box office to be proud of in its Anthony Bourdain biopic, Tony. Entertainment attorney from Blake & Wang P.A., Brandon Blake, shares the news.

Brandon Blake   

A Biopic Success

While biopics have not, historically, been a big market, we’ve seen the last few years deliver some stunning successes at the indie and general box offices. Tony explores Bourdain’s early years through a somewhat liberal lens, and appears to be expanding strongly. 

The film did well in limited release, earning $5M from just 1,652 screens, nabbing it the seventh-place spot on this weekend’s indie box office charts. The film initially opened in just 6 theaters, expanding to 37 last weekend, with a cume now over $6.6M since its debut.

While A24 hasn’t officially posted a budget for the film, it’s speculated to be less than $15M, so A24 must be happy indeed. 

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A Great Box Office Summer

A24 has had a great summer at the box office, with The Invite earning an impressive $25.5M and Backrooms proving to be a sleeper hit of proportions no one predicted, earning just short of $400M globally. They’ve had one semi-flop with The Death of Robin Hood, which brought in less than $10M, but otherwise, they have nothing to complain about. 

Sadly, Tony’s magic hasn’t rubbed off on its box office peers, however. The Rivals of Amziah King was flat over its second weekend, earning just $285,000 across 465 theaters. Spa Weekend, however, debuted to just over $3M from 2,009 domestic locations, and with a predominantly older audience, that could pick up further speed over the coming weeks.

Overall, however, the indie box office is continuing to see strong traction across a wealth of film types and demographics, both on wide and limited release, and it’s great to see this segment of the industry thriving. 

Nielsen has a set of enhancements and updates ahead for its TV ratings for the 2026-2027 season, including a change to how its monthly snapshot works across platforms, something that caused a slight controversy earlier this year. Blake & Wang P.A. entertainment attorney, Brandon Blake, shares what we know. 

Brandon Blake

New Measurements

Not only will there be a change to how they measure the total number of local TV users, but there will also be an update to the co-viewing measurement and more accurate weighting for their big data and panel areas. These tweaks will be rolled out from September, after approval by the Media Rating Council. 

Interestingly, it seems that neither Nielsen nor users are expecting the numbers to change much, at least for public release, but Nielsen still believes the product will emerge with greater accuracy than the present system.

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Delayed Changes

Many of these changes were actually slated for a February rollout, but client pushback led them to hold them over to the start of the new TV season. Concerns were mostly around the use of Advertising Research Foundation data (i.e., the DASH TV Universe Study), as the reset could have unfairly favored cable platforms, due to a lag in data collection. Reportedly, Nielsen has now addressed that lag to make the Gauge data more aligned with currency ratings for the ad rate industry. 

Naturally, it’s expected that, even with the changes, streaming will remain the dominant platform-of-choice for viewers, likely by a large margin. However, it’s hoped that bringing the DASH study data on board will set a more accurate baseline for legacy viewing, as well as streaming itself. 

Nielsen will also be enhancing its co-viewing measurement to bring in data from wearable devices it offers, and bringing in new data for better estimation for Spanish-language programming.  It will also introduce measures to account for Smart TV viewers who opted out of data sharing and add machine learning tools for tighter demographic data.