Cinema News: Wide Shot: Hollywood’s new year

December 30, 2025 | View in browser

collage of the WB tower, Disney CEO Bob Iger, and AI actress Tilly Norwood

By Samantha Masunaga

Staff Writer

I'm Samantha Masunaga. I write about the business of Hollywood's movie studios, and I'll be bringing you The Wide Shot each week.

It's been a turbulent year in Hollywood, to say the least.

2025 began with the devastating fires in Altadena and Pacific Palisades, which destroyed the homes of many in the industry and stymied production and livelihoods for others.

Then there were the ups and downs of the theatrical box office — alternately swinging between dire and promising in the span of a few months.

And, of course, there were the big industry shakeups. Just in this year, we saw the completion of the Paramount-Skydance merger followed by Paramount's initial bid to buy Warner Bros. Discovery, and then the potential acquisition of Warner Bros.' studios, HBO and HBO Max by Netflix.

About the only thing I can predict with certainty is that 2026 is going to be a busy year. And as we look ahead into the new year, here are a few storylines we'll be following — and a few of my own guesses.

What happens with Warner Bros.?

It's no surprise that the Warner Bros. deal is at the top of the list. Expect this saga to continue playing out in 2026, as all players involved continue to push for their desired outcome. Though Netflix and Warner's boards have approved the deal, it still needs shareholder and regulatory approval, which is far from assured.

Paramount has already made a direct appeal to Warner's shareholders, and the David Ellison-led company is clearly not giving up without a fight. David Ellison's dad — the tech billionaire and Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison — is backing his son's bid and is friendly with President Trump, who previously indicated a preference for the Paramount offer, though he has recently made complimentary remarks about Netflix Co-Chief Executive Ted Sarandos.

After Warner's board dismissed Paramount's $30-a-share bid as inadequate and opaque, Larry Ellison upped the ante, personally guaranteeing $40.4 billion in equity needed for Paramount's proposed takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery.

Paramount says Warner shareholders should tender their shares by Jan. 21.

A win by either bidder would fundamentally change Hollywood and raise antitrust concerns, experts say. It could also make the already bleak jobs situation in the film and TV business even more difficult.

The Magic Kingdom will have a new leader

Walt Disney Co. is expected to name its new chief executive in early 2026, drawing to a close the most-speculated-about succession decision in Hollywood.

With current CEO Bob Iger's second retirement looming, the stakes are high for the next Mouse House chief. Disney has already gone through the succession process once, but the company's board ended up firing Bob Chapek in 2022 and reinstating Iger.

Josh D'Amaro, Disney's theme parks and experiences chief, is viewed by many insiders as the leading contender, though other internal candidates are also said to be in the mix, including Dana Walden, co-chairman of Disney Entertainment, who is in charge of television and streaming; Alan Bergman, co-chairman of Disney Entertainment, who oversees movies; and ESPN chief Jimmy Pitaro.

Whoever takes over Disney will have to navigate a changed landscape in Hollywood (particularly once the Warner deal is completed), as well as the uncertain future for the theatrical box office, the ongoing challenges of linear TV and looming concerns about artificial intelligence.

AI's role in Hollywood

Speaking of AI, debate over its role in the entertainment business will continue to be a hot-button topic into the new year.

In 2025, we saw fierce discussion about AI-generated composite Tilly Norwood, as well as a growing number of lawsuits or cease-and-desist letters from studios against AI companies, including Midjourney and Character.AI, for alleged copyright infringement violations.

After rattling many Hollywood executives over his company's aggressive use of copyrighted images and likenesses, Sam Altman's Open AI earlier this month reached a major licensing deal with Disney to use more than 200 characters in its text-to-video tool, Sora. Under the deal, Disney also agreed to invest $1 billion in the AI startup.

Not everyone was thrilled with the announcement. A group of prominent filmmakers and actors have launched a new coalition that aims to advocate for the rights of creators amid the growing AI industry. With labor discussions coming up next year between studios and the Hollywood unions, expect AI to be a front-burner issue, much as it was during the strikes by writers and actors in 2023.

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More Saudi money?

This year, we saw the re-emergence of Saudi Arabia as a key funding source for Hollywood.

As The Times recently reported, the kingdom's sovereign wealth fund was involved in several of the biggest Hollywood deals this year, including Paramount's bid for Warner Bros. Discovery, the leveraged buyout of video game giant Electronic Arts Inc. and former Lionsgate executive Erik Feig's new Arena SNK Studios.

It's a stark turnaround from just a few years ago, when many in the creative community shunned the authoritarian country after the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

Given Hollywood's shaky finances these days, more Saudi investments will likely flow into U.S. entertainment and sports arenas in the coming year. Already, major studios are looking to grow their footprint in the Middle East — Disney plans to build a new theme park in Abu Dhabi while rival Universal is also eyeing a possible project in Saudia Arabia.

A return to normalcy at the 2026 box office?

After a tough 2025, it should be a stacked lineup at the box office next year, as I reported Monday.

There's a slew of potentially big blockbusters slated for release, including Sony Pictures' "Spider-Man: Brand New Day," Legendary Entertainment and Warner Bros.'s "Dune: Part Three," Christopher Nolan's "The Odyssey," Disney and Marvel Studios' "Avengers: Doomsday," Universal Pictures' "The Super Mario Galaxy Movie" and Disney and Pixar's "Toy Story 5."

That's giving industry analysts and studio insiders hope that next year could be a big year for theatrical revenue. It'll also be a bit of a litmus test — can big superhero movies still bring out crowds like they used to? Will favorite franchises like "Toy Story" find continued success?

I'm also interested in how movies like "The Devil Wears Prada 2" perform — this year, I heard a constant refrain that female audiences are still underserved, with few big movies geared toward women. Can the Meryl Streep and Anne Hathaway-led movie, along with others like "Wuthering Heights," finally start making the promises made after "Barbie" a reality? We'll have to wait and see.

Stuff We Wrote

Film shoots

Number of the week

North Hollywood-based Western Costume Co. has sued Kevin Costner and the production companies behind his western anthology "Horizon: An American Saga," alleging unpaid costume fees and damage to some of the clothing used during the filming of the second episode.

The costume house is seeking about $440,000, including legal fees, my colleague Stacy Perman reported.

This lawsuit is just the latest legal problem for Costner and his intended four-part western saga.

So far, only "Chapter 1" has released in theaters and on HBO Max, though it was largely panned by critics. "Chapter 2" premiered at the Venice International Film Festival, but has not been released in theaters.

Finally ...

I know it's after Christmas, but I had to share this story from my colleague, Sonja Sharp, about how the Grinch exploded in popularity and what that says about our uncertain times.