International Insider: Huw Edwards Scandal; ‘Squid Game’s Endgame; Olympics Week One
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Huw Edwards Scandal
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Dramatic scenes in the courtroom: There was an audible gasp in the packed Westminster Magistrates courtroom when ex-newsreader Huw Edwards, being seen in public for the first time in almost a year, pled guilty to three counts of making indecent images of children, including seven incidences of the most serious count involving minors. Max arrived at the court early doors to see a media throng gather for what was undoubtedly one of the most high-profile court appearances of the year. Edwards came in through the front, appearing to remain calm and wearing dark sunglasses, and our man had to do a double take as he walked right past Edwards aside his lawyer once they had entered the building. Most had only expected the former chief BBC news anchor to read out his name and address and his pleas were met with shock. His lawyer and the prosecution subsequently gave short statements summarizing their arguments and Edwards will now be sentenced on September 16. He’s out on conditional bail until then and in the meantime, due to “volatile” protests that took place outside the courthouse, it was agreed that Edwards’ full address would not be read out and he will be allowed to move between houses during the bail period. The fall from grace of a man who was trusted to lead the BBC’s general election coverage and announce the death of the Queen has been simply remarkable. He finds his life and career in tatters, and could be facing a lengthy prison spell. Read more about what went on in court here including more information on the charges.
Difficult questions, partial answers: Since the news about Edwards being charged broke at the start of this week, the BBC has been bombarded with media queries over why the newsreader was allowed to keep his job for five months after being arrested in November 2023. The BBC had kept schtum prior to the hearing but finally broke its silence Wednesday afternoon to admit that it had in fact been aware of his arrest. It was at pains to stress that, had he been charged before April, he would have been dismissed immediately, but no charges had been brought and this situation was being balanced with the “significant risk to his health.” Reminder: Edwards stopped working for the BBC last summer after allegations were published in The Sun that he had paid thousands of pounds to a young person for sexually explicit images. Those allegations have nothing to do with the charges he answered to in court yesterday. The timing here couldn’t be worse for the BBC, coming just a week after it revealed Edwards earned his biggest pay packet in five years, while the ripples of the Strictly Come Dancing scandal are still being felt. It came as little surprise that DG Tim Davie dodged a Today radio program invite yesterday morning. Questions remain over how much the BBC knew, what processes were and are in place and whether it will now seek to claw back some of the ￡200,000 ($255,800) that Edwards earned during the period after his arrest.
Lisa meets Tim (again): Those questions will be led by new UK Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy, who spoke with Davie on the phone yesterday afternoon. When Deadline questioned Davie last week over relations with the new Labour government at a press conference, he confidently responded that he had already met with “Lisa” (first name terms) and felt the level of government involvement with the BBC would now be “appropriate.” This second meeting, however, will have taken an uncomfortable turn, with Nandy asking difficult queries and seeking reassurances that BBC processes are fit for purpose. She has since called on Edwards to hand back his pay. She sought the meeting almost immediately after delivering her first set piece speech in Manchester, which was attended by BBC execs alongside those from Channel 4 and some of the biggest U.S. studios. Nandy used her speech to say the “spirit of our new government” is reflected in the nation’s ￡170B creative industries, which includes film and TV. Not sure where Davie’s spirits will have been at once that uncomfortable meeting ended.
‘Squid Game’s Endgame
I ‘Squid’ you adieu: Three years after its release, there remains nothing that compares to Squid Game. It remains Netflix’s biggest original series ever and has propelled K-drama to a sphere it had never reached before. Red Light, Green Light and Sugar Honeycombs have been burned into the psyches of millions (and the nightmares of millions more). Anticipation for Season 2 of the Korean survival drama has been building all year and this week it was revealed it will launch on December 26… I’ll enjoy some grizzly death with my leftover Christmas turkey, then. But bigger news than the launch date was the somewhat unexpected announcement that Squid Game will end with Season 3, which has been filming back-to-back and will be released much faster than the gap between the first and second. Creator Hwang Dong-hyuk penned a note titled, ‘The real game begins,’ saying the events that took place after Squid Game first launched had been “unimaginable,” and that he was “thrilled to see the seed that was planted in creating a new Squid Game grow and bear fruit through the end of this story.” We journalists tend to shrivel up at the “I’m thrilled” quote trope, but in this case, my own excitement matches that of Hwang.
‘Game’ recognize game: A few stats… Squid Game launched on September 17, 2021, and clocked 1.65 billion viewing hours over the next 28 days. It reached 111 million Netflix accounts and was the streamer’s first series to surpass 100 million members at launch. In Netflix’s most recent What We Watched data dump for the July-December 2023 period, the show was still charting in the top 60 most-watched TV show on the service, clocking up another 117.1 million total hours and 14.1 million views. In short, it’s the kind of hit streaming services are built on. Probably no surprise, then, that Squid Game was cited by Ampere Analysis as a driving factor behind the rising demand for South Korean content. According to Ampere’s study, titles from the country have experienced a 35% uptick in ‘frequent viewing.’ Sounds like we’re all ready to return to the world’s scariest game.
Olympics Week One
Biles ahead of the rest: In the U.S., week one of the Olympics has been all about a certain Simone Biles, whose heroics in the gymnastics have led to huge audiences across NBC, Peacock and other digital platforms, as Katie Campione reported on Wednesday. Ad revenues for NBCUniversal were also set for record levels, per Dade Hayes. No wonder Hollywood was out in force to support Biles and her Team USA gymnastics cohort, with Nicole Kidman, Keith Urban, Spike Lee, Serena Williams and Natalie Portman all in attendance for the team final event. Biles was, of course, one of the stars of the Olympics we identified before the Games began. Another in that list, swimmer Léon Marchand, has had the local fans in raptures after delivering two golds in the pool. His success is certainly part of the developing narrative of events, which is in turn getting Olympics European broadcaster Warner Bros Discovery pretty excited. The Burbank-based entertainment giant claimed the first two days of events (not including the rain-drenched Opening Ceremony) drove more unique streaming viewers on its platforms than the entirety of Tokyo 2020 (held in 2021, thanks Covid).
Trump, DJs & E.Coli — the controversy: It feels like for every nugget of Olympics glory broadcast, there’s been a bout of controversy elsewhere to remind us we live in a divided world. Republican candidate Donald Trump did not waste much time before calling the Opening Ceremony, held along the banks of the River Seine, “a disgrace.” This was due to a set-piece that many have claimed was a satire of The Last Supper featuring drag queens. Quizzed whether a similar segment might appear at the LA ’28 opening during his second potential presidency, he said, “We won’t be having a Last Supper, as portrayed the way they portrayed it the other night.” Just imagine if it happened. A lawyer for DJ Barbara Butch, who appeared in the scene, said she has been “the target of an extremely violent campaign of cyber-harassment and defamation,” as vitriol cut through the celebratory atmosphere developing in Paris. Full House alum Jodie Sweetin was among those defending the performance, whose Artistic Director Thomas Jolly clarified that it was inspired by Greek mythology, not Leonardo da Vinci’s Renaissance painting of Jesus and his disciples. There were more obvious gaffes elsewhere, such as South Korea being called North Korea during the Opening Ceremony, South Sudan having the wrong anthem played before a basketball game, a Eurosport commentator getting removed after a making a sexist remark, and the triathlon almost not going ahead due fears athletes might contract E.coli from a very green and grim-looking Seine. Seriously, it has been a lot. Find our full 2024 Olympics coverage here.
Immigrant Story
Otherworldly: I spoke with the founders of The Immigrant, a boutique Spanish-language producer punching above its weight. Camila Jiménez and Silvana Aguirre’s company, named to represent its editorial focus on the ‘Other,’ has thoughtful, quietly ambitious series in with Disney+ and Prime Video, and has become a key supplier of unusual stories to Spanish-language streamer ViX. They talked about working with creatives such as Javier Fesser and Jimena Montemayor, why buyers are “operating out of fear,” and also addressed whether minority owner Fremantle will exercise a right to move into a majority position. With Spanish-language content so hot right now, this Q&A provides insight into how the Central and South American markets differ to Spain and how smart indies can make a big impact, even in a challenged global industry.
The Showreel Sexter
Unsolicited: Our International Investigations Editor Jake this week brought with him the story of Ryan Kirwan, a 33-year-old actor-turned-showreel producer who had built a solid business after the Covid-19 pandemic filming scenes for Hollywood hopefuls. However, Kirwan used his success to find ways of sending female clients unsolicited pictures of his body. Jake spoke with six women, whose stories were eerily similar despite being largely unknown to each other. The Metropolitan Police in the UK confirmed it is investigating Kirwan following complaints from two women, and his business has shut down. The filmmaker didn’t deny the allegations and Jake’s report notes he has spent weeks apologizing to those who have accused him of cyberflashing — a criminal offense in the UK. He acknowledged “actions that are extremely out of character” and said his behavior was the result of spiralling drug addiction and poor mental health. It’s a shocking but important read, which does include unsettling themes. The article can be found here.
The Essentials
??? Hot One: A Breaking Baz West End special started the week off with news Sigourney Weaver, Tom Hiddleston and Hayley Atwell have joined a Shakespeare season directed by Sunset Boulevard‘s Jamie Lloyd.
??? Also Hot: Christopher Eccleston and Thomas W. Gabrielsson have joined Cold War biopic Whispers of Freedom.
??? More heat: Gillian Anderson will front a Channel 4 adaptation of Louise Kennedy’s Trespasses.
?? Agents: Tons of movement in the UK agenting space over the past week, most relating to YMU — exclusives from Max and I here, here, here and here.
?? Reindeer revelation: Jake revealed Netflix has admitted the real-life Martha was not convicted of stalking, as the series, which claims to be a ‘true story’ suggests.
?? Axed: Sally Wainwright’s outlaw drama Renegade Nell at Disney+, per Max.
?? Box office: Mega-money for Deadpool & Wolverine, which blasted past $500M global on Tuesday and will continue to balloon.
?? In competition: Films from Edward Berger, Gia Coppola and Mike Leigh are in the Official Selection for the San Sebastián Film Festival.
??? Signed: London National Theatre Artistic Director Indhu Rubasingham, by CAA, per our U.S. theater guru Greg Evans.
? Football crazy, football mad: An eleventh-hour deal saw DAZN and BeIN Sports secure Ligue 1 soccer rights in France.
?? Trailer: For Sweetpea, the buzzy Sky and Starz drama series starring Fallout‘s Ella Purnell.
Max Goldbart contributed to this week’s Insider
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