WEBVTT - Daily Variety – Box Office: Why ‘Chainsaw Man’ Cleared a Path at the Turnstyles; Lucca Comics & Games Brings Cosplay to Medieval Italian Town

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Daily Variety, your daily dose of news and

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<v Speaker 1>analysis for entertainment industry insiders. It's Monday, October twenty seventh,

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<v Speaker 1>twenty twenty five. I'm your host, Cynthia Littleton. I am

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<v Speaker 1>co editor in chief of Variety alongside Ramin Setuda. I'm

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<v Speaker 1>in La He's in New York, and Variety has reporters

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<v Speaker 1>around the world covering the business of entertainment. In today's episode,

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<v Speaker 1>in our box Office segment, Variety's Rebecca Rubin hacks through

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<v Speaker 1>the receipts generated by chainsaw Man this weekend, it's an

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<v Speaker 1>anime world, people, and we'll hear from Nick Vivarelli in Rome.

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<v Speaker 1>He's about to go cover a comic fan convention that's

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<v Speaker 1>bigger than San Diego Comic Con and it's held in

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<v Speaker 1>a medieval Italian town about fifty miles west of Florence.

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<v Speaker 1>But before we get to that, here are a few

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<v Speaker 1>headlines just in this morning that you need to know.

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<v Speaker 1>The prolific Taylor Sheridan is sad up to make a

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<v Speaker 1>move to NBC Universal with a big new film and

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<v Speaker 1>TV deal. Sheridan has been based at Paramount ever since

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<v Speaker 1>the Yellowstone phenomenon took off his TV deal will have

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<v Speaker 1>to wait nearly three years until his obligations to Paramount

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<v Speaker 1>are over. His movie deal with NBC Universal starts next year.

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<v Speaker 1>Owen Gleiberman is raving about Song Sung Blue. Variety's chief

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<v Speaker 1>film critic, loves the performances by Kate Hudson and Hugh

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<v Speaker 1>Jackman in the film about two performers in a Neil

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<v Speaker 1>Diamond tribute act. Song Sung Blue comes from director Craig

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<v Speaker 1>Brewer and Focus Features. Hudson, of course, is one of

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<v Speaker 1>Variety's Power of Women honorees this year. We will shower

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<v Speaker 1>her with kudos at our event on the evening of

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<v Speaker 1>October twenty ninth. John Dickerson will leave CBS News at

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<v Speaker 1>the end of this year. Dickerson is high on the

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<v Speaker 1>list of the best journalists in this country. I can't

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<v Speaker 1>wait to see what he does next. All of these

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<v Speaker 1>stories and so much more can be found on Variety

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<v Speaker 1>dot com. Right now. Now we turn to conversations with

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<v Speaker 1>Variety journalists about news and trends in show business. If

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<v Speaker 1>it's Monday, we're talking box office with Rebecca Rubin, our

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<v Speaker 1>senior film and media reporter. Rebecca gives us the lowdown

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<v Speaker 1>on what has been an unpredictable October for the box office.

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<v Speaker 1>Rebecca Rubin, thanks for joining me, Thank you for having me. Well,

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<v Speaker 1>another interesting weekend at the box office, a couple of sleepers,

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<v Speaker 1>a couple of disappointments. Let me start by asking you,

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<v Speaker 1>when you sat down to prepare for this box office weekend,

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<v Speaker 1>did you think that the anime movie Chainsaw Man would

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<v Speaker 1>be number one?

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<v Speaker 2>Heading into the weekend? There was a sense that if

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<v Speaker 2>anything was able to break out, it was going to

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<v Speaker 2>be Chainsaw Man. And that is because anime has been

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<v Speaker 2>enjoying a theatrical hot streak with another movie Sony Crunchy

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<v Speaker 2>row Banner released called Demonslayer. That movie became a huge

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<v Speaker 2>hit and is now the highest grossing anime film ever.

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<v Speaker 2>And so this is the second consecutive number one hit

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<v Speaker 2>for Sony's Crunchy role. And so just given the appeal

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<v Speaker 2>right now of anime, there was a sense that this

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<v Speaker 2>had potential to become a sleeper hit, not quite on

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<v Speaker 2>the scale of Demons Layer, but at least a solid

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<v Speaker 2>number one.

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<v Speaker 1>Do you think that, like every major studio is going

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<v Speaker 1>to now scramble and try to develop an anime strategy,

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<v Speaker 1>or do you think that this is Sony's investment. Sony

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<v Speaker 1>has for a decade now really been investing in this

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<v Speaker 1>area in the US and Asia, and this is bearing fruit.

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<v Speaker 1>How do you think this will be read by Hollywood?

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<v Speaker 2>I would be surprised if there weren't some other studios

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<v Speaker 2>who were trained to cash in on this. But as

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<v Speaker 2>you said, Sony has really been cultivating this with crunchy

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<v Speaker 2>Roll for a while now. And there's a lot of

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<v Speaker 2>pedigree here because this movie, and particular chainsaw Man was

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<v Speaker 2>produced by a Japanese animation studio, so it's made by

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<v Speaker 2>people who are very intimately familiar with what resonates about

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<v Speaker 2>these properties. Chainsawmn and Demonslayer were extensions of popular anime

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<v Speaker 2>TV series and so there are deep roots here and

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<v Speaker 2>part of why there's fandoms that already exist.

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<v Speaker 1>I did, in fact, take in the Anime Expo in

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<v Speaker 1>July in downtown LA and it was mind blowing in

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<v Speaker 1>terms of opening my eyes to the depth of this

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<v Speaker 1>audience and the absolute passionate rabid fandom. I met people

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<v Speaker 1>that had flown in from out of the country, flown

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<v Speaker 1>in from Chicago, Atlanta, and downtown LA was just alive

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<v Speaker 1>with cosplay Rebecca. From that experience, I can guess who

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<v Speaker 1>the audience for Chainsaw Man was, but I never want

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<v Speaker 1>to assume who was the audience for this movie.

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<v Speaker 2>So nearly seventy five percent of crowds were male, and

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<v Speaker 2>about fifty percent were under the age of twenty five,

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<v Speaker 2>so it was definitely skewing a younger male demographic. But

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<v Speaker 2>what's notable about chainsaw Man being number one is that

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<v Speaker 2>it outpaced two movies from major studios. There's was Disney

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<v Speaker 2>in twentieth centuries, Springsteen biopic Delivered Me from Nowhere, and

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<v Speaker 2>Paramount's adaptation of the Colleen Hoover novel Regretting You, And

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<v Speaker 2>So I think that really just underscores how much tastes

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<v Speaker 2>are changing at the box office.

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<v Speaker 1>Clearly there's an event around these anime releases, Rebecca, are

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<v Speaker 1>you getting anecdotal info about is there a lot of

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<v Speaker 1>coseplay at these screenings or is there people bringing like

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<v Speaker 1>fun props and stuff.

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<v Speaker 2>I think what is really resonating here is similar to

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<v Speaker 2>superhero movies, where they and horror movies that are very

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<v Speaker 2>front loaded. All the fans want to come out on

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<v Speaker 2>opening weekend and watch something like this with communal experience.

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<v Speaker 2>That's what we're seeing with these anime features, and so

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<v Speaker 2>as a result, they are usually front loaded, they have

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<v Speaker 2>really big debuts, and then in subsequent weekends they'll have

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<v Speaker 2>steep drop offs. And I think that is speaking to

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<v Speaker 2>the fact that they all are agreing to go out

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<v Speaker 2>opening weekend, watch it together, and then maybe from there

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<v Speaker 2>rewatches they'll settle for a streaming day.

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<v Speaker 1>And of course, the other continuing trend that we've been

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<v Speaker 1>talking a lot about is imax. The large format screens

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<v Speaker 1>were a big component of the box office that Chainsaw

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<v Speaker 1>Man hacked off. So let's talk about the other big

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<v Speaker 1>story of the weekend of the movie that didn't exactly

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<v Speaker 1>open to impressive numbers. Deliver Me from Nowhere on Paper

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<v Speaker 1>Bruce Springsteen a critically beloved album, Jeremy Allen White super

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<v Speaker 1>red hot talent, but it did not bring in huge

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<v Speaker 1>crowds to begin with, What do you think's going on

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<v Speaker 1>with this movie?

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<v Speaker 2>I think the film is struggling because unlike some big

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<v Speaker 2>crowd pleasing musical biopics of recent years, like Bohemian Rhapsody,

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<v Speaker 2>which was about Queen, Rocketman which is about Elton John,

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<v Speaker 2>those were expansive looks at the entire career of these

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<v Speaker 2>musical acts, and that's not really what this movie is.

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<v Speaker 2>It doesn't play like the greatest hits of his career.

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<v Speaker 2>It's actually a more intimate look at the making of

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<v Speaker 2>his beloved but less commercial solo album Nebraska. I think

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<v Speaker 2>the result here is it's not the all audience film

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<v Speaker 2>that audiences have become used to expecting in the musical

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<v Speaker 2>biopick genre. It's gotten pretty decent reviews. It has a

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<v Speaker 2>B plus on Cinema score that signals that it could

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<v Speaker 2>stick around.

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<v Speaker 1>Curious to see if there's any regional trends here. I

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<v Speaker 1>would imagine that New Jersey would probably be the home

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<v Speaker 1>of probably the highest grossing theaters for this one, but

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<v Speaker 1>you never know.

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<v Speaker 2>I think that the comparison to A Complete Unknown is

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<v Speaker 2>actually a good one, because it was tracking a similar

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<v Speaker 2>start to that film, but a few differences, I would say, actually,

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<v Speaker 2>One is that Timothy Shalom has proven himself before that

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<v Speaker 2>to be a bankable draw in the Dune franchise in Wonka.

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<v Speaker 2>He really can get audiences to go to theaters. And

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<v Speaker 2>another thing is that Bob Dylan was a little more elusive.

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<v Speaker 2>He wasn't out there promoting the film. I think he

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<v Speaker 2>said he gave it a thumbs up and said he

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<v Speaker 2>liked the script. But nobody saw him during this period.

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<v Speaker 2>And a big difference here is that Bruce Springsteen has

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<v Speaker 2>really been out promoting this film. He's been at every

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<v Speaker 2>premiere alongside Jeremy Allen White, and if anything, it's making

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<v Speaker 2>the comparisons pretty tough because it's putting the real guy

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<v Speaker 2>right in your face. Something Just to note, A complete

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<v Speaker 2>unknown opened around December or on the holidays, and that's

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<v Speaker 2>a period of time where films can really out and

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<v Speaker 2>that's what happened with that.

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<v Speaker 1>Film, Rebecca. What else do anything else stand out to you?

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<v Speaker 1>Is significant about the box office this weekend.

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<v Speaker 2>The other major release is Regretting You, which is the

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<v Speaker 2>adaptation of Colleen Hoover's novel, and that opened above expectations

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<v Speaker 2>to twelve point eight million dollars. And if this film

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<v Speaker 2>manages to stick around, it's going to cement Colleen Hoover

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<v Speaker 2>as a major cinematic force. Of course, her novel It

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<v Speaker 2>Ends with Us was adapted last year by Sony and

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<v Speaker 2>that film stirred up a lot of drama with Blake

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<v Speaker 2>Lively and Justin Baldoni, but to his credit, it was

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<v Speaker 2>a huge winner at the box office, with nearly three

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<v Speaker 2>hundred and fifty million dollars worldwide. I don't see Regretting

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<v Speaker 2>You getting to those numbers, but it only cost a

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<v Speaker 2>modest thirty million, so it doesn't really need to get

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<v Speaker 2>anywhere near the three hundred to fifty million dollar mark

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<v Speaker 2>to count a six success. Hollywood is definitely leaning into

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<v Speaker 2>Colleen Hoover. Two of her other books, Verity and Reminders

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<v Speaker 2>of Him, are in the works at Amazon MGM and Universal.

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<v Speaker 2>They're both set to release next year, and so we

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<v Speaker 2>will see if the Colleen Hoover cinematic Universe is a thing.

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<v Speaker 1>I cannot physically resist the opportunity to point out that,

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<v Speaker 1>as impressive as it Ends with Us was at the

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<v Speaker 1>box office, I have to believe that the legal fees

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<v Speaker 1>this movie has now generated have probably approached that and

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<v Speaker 1>probably will eclipse it by the time it is all over.

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<v Speaker 1>Let's just hope that the folks on Regretting You all

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<v Speaker 1>got along a whole lot better. Rebecca, what are you

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<v Speaker 1>looking forward? At the November box office?

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<v Speaker 2>So Thanksgiving should be pretty robust this year because Universal

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<v Speaker 2>has wicked for Good, which is the second half, of course,

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<v Speaker 2>of Wicked, and that is expected to be another huge blockbuster.

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<v Speaker 2>Zoo Topia to the first Utopia actually gross to billion dollars.

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<v Speaker 2>But since the beginning of this year, every theater owner

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<v Speaker 2>I have spoken to has said that is the movie

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<v Speaker 2>they are most excited for, and audiences just absolutely love

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<v Speaker 2>this property. I think it's been really big on Disney

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<v Speaker 2>Plus as well, and so I think that will probably

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<v Speaker 2>be another billion dollar winner for Disney. And then of

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<v Speaker 2>course Disney has Avatar three in December ahead of Christmas.

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<v Speaker 2>And look, the first two movies gross two billion dollars.

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<v Speaker 2>So I'm not going to be somebody who bets against

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<v Speaker 2>James Cameron.

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<v Speaker 1>Well, always so much to discuss and so much to watch, Rebecca,

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<v Speaker 1>thank you as ever, thanks for having me. Now we'll

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<v Speaker 1>hear from Nick Vivarelli, Variety's longtime correspondent and wrong he

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<v Speaker 1>talks about the colorful scene he's about to take in

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<v Speaker 1>at the Luca Comics and Games Invention in Luca, Italy.

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<v Speaker 1>Luca draws an annual crowd of about two hundred thousand attendees.

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<v Speaker 1>That's about sixty five thousand more Cause players than gathered

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<v Speaker 1>in San Diego this summer for comic Con. Nick Vivarelli,

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<v Speaker 1>our man in Rome, thanks for joining me.

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<v Speaker 3>Thank you, Cynthia.

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<v Speaker 1>Nick. You are off soon on one of the many

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<v Speaker 1>trips that you take for Forridy every year. You are

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<v Speaker 1>off to Luca, about a three hour train ride from Rome. Nick,

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<v Speaker 1>tell us what you're going to cover in Luca.

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<v Speaker 3>Yeah, Cynthia, I'm going to cover this event called Luca

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<v Speaker 3>Comics and Games, which is a comic con type event

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<v Speaker 3>that spans the gamut from comic books to video games

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<v Speaker 3>to movies and TV series. And it's a rather old event.

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<v Speaker 3>It's been around since nineteen sixty six, but they've evolved

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<v Speaker 3>from being a print comics convention into video games and

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<v Speaker 3>then fifteen years ago they launched a new section called

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<v Speaker 3>the Movie Area, and they developed close relationships with the

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<v Speaker 3>studios and the streamers. And this year one of the

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<v Speaker 3>highlights is going to be a special fandom event where

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<v Speaker 3>they're gonna talk about the upcoming fifth season of Stranger Things.

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<v Speaker 3>So the Duffer Brothers are going to be there and

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<v Speaker 3>not represents a coup for Luca.

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<v Speaker 1>It's a big deal. The Duffer Brothers started on the

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<v Speaker 1>cover of Variety earlier this month, and now the pr

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<v Speaker 1>campaign switches to Luca, Italy. Nick set the scene for us,

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<v Speaker 1>what is the environment in Luca.

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<v Speaker 3>Luca is sort of like a miniature Florence. So in

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<v Speaker 3>other words, it's a Renaissance gem. It's a medieval town.

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<v Speaker 3>It has beautiful ramparts, it has beautiful churches, it has towers,

0:13:55.080 --> 0:13:59.680
<v Speaker 3>it has cobble stone lined streets, so it's a very

0:14:00.120 --> 0:14:03.120
<v Speaker 3>picturesque of medieval type of environment. I think they have

0:14:03.200 --> 0:14:07.800
<v Speaker 3>actual dungeons that they use for immersive experiences connected to

0:14:07.880 --> 0:14:11.120
<v Speaker 3>dungeons and dragons. What you see when you go there

0:14:11.200 --> 0:14:15.800
<v Speaker 3>during this event is just thousands of cos players sort

0:14:15.840 --> 0:14:19.920
<v Speaker 3>of lining the streets, and they held parades and they mingle,

0:14:20.000 --> 0:14:23.400
<v Speaker 3>and they the line up for all kinds of gadgets

0:14:23.400 --> 0:14:26.920
<v Speaker 3>that are given out and for premieres. It's a very

0:14:27.000 --> 0:14:29.400
<v Speaker 3>vibrant experience within a medieval setting.

0:14:29.840 --> 0:14:34.400
<v Speaker 1>The juxtaposition sounds at Taylor made for cosplay and imagination

0:14:34.720 --> 0:14:38.560
<v Speaker 1>and fantasy, and is Luca of a destination in that way.

0:14:38.960 --> 0:14:40.920
<v Speaker 1>The organizers picked Luca for a reason.

0:14:41.040 --> 0:14:45.720
<v Speaker 3>Cities in Tuscany like to create events. Comics have always

0:14:45.760 --> 0:14:48.920
<v Speaker 3>been really big in Italy. Italy has always been a

0:14:48.920 --> 0:14:52.920
<v Speaker 3>big consumer of comic books, but also producer of comic books,

0:14:52.920 --> 0:14:56.040
<v Speaker 3>so it was a very smart choice to go that route.

0:14:56.160 --> 0:14:59.720
<v Speaker 3>They were immediately aware of the importance of being international,

0:15:00.120 --> 0:15:03.600
<v Speaker 3>so over the years they forged close rapport with especially

0:15:03.600 --> 0:15:06.240
<v Speaker 3>with Japan and the whole manga world.

0:15:06.480 --> 0:15:10.560
<v Speaker 1>Talk about fandom upon fandom upon fandom, and they.

0:15:10.520 --> 0:15:13.800
<v Speaker 3>Like to develop the idea of community. Community is a

0:15:13.800 --> 0:15:18.320
<v Speaker 3>buzzword for them, a sort of mantra. So they basically

0:15:18.320 --> 0:15:22.640
<v Speaker 3>went from the print comic books into the video game world,

0:15:22.960 --> 0:15:27.320
<v Speaker 3>and then they veered into the scripted content of different types.

0:15:27.640 --> 0:15:32.119
<v Speaker 3>You know, obviously movies, but TV shows and horror films,

0:15:32.680 --> 0:15:35.720
<v Speaker 3>and so they were able to ride this wave of

0:15:35.760 --> 0:15:39.080
<v Speaker 3>the cosplayers. I think the cosplayers played a really big

0:15:39.200 --> 0:15:40.520
<v Speaker 3>role in how they've evolved.

0:15:41.080 --> 0:15:44.480
<v Speaker 1>How many people are attending this typically in recent years.

0:15:44.760 --> 0:15:49.400
<v Speaker 3>So they've reached an average attendance they cite at two

0:15:49.480 --> 0:15:53.280
<v Speaker 3>hundred thousand. The bulk of it are Italians, but it

0:15:53.640 --> 0:15:56.640
<v Speaker 3>does drop people from other parts of the world. And

0:15:56.680 --> 0:16:01.120
<v Speaker 3>they also have a huge online a community, especially in

0:16:01.160 --> 0:16:05.600
<v Speaker 3>the video game realm, so they organize big video game

0:16:05.640 --> 0:16:08.880
<v Speaker 3>tournaments that I know are participated by people from all

0:16:08.880 --> 0:16:09.560
<v Speaker 3>over the world.

0:16:09.840 --> 0:16:12.240
<v Speaker 1>Nick is there anything else you'll be looking for.

0:16:11.920 --> 0:16:16.720
<v Speaker 3>The fact that venerated video game Japanese master Hideo Kjima

0:16:17.240 --> 0:16:19.240
<v Speaker 3>is going to be in Luca for the final stop

0:16:19.440 --> 0:16:23.600
<v Speaker 3>of his desk stranding too on the beach tour. That's

0:16:23.680 --> 0:16:26.800
<v Speaker 3>one of the exemplifications of the fact that Luca has

0:16:26.840 --> 0:16:30.560
<v Speaker 3>really become a prominent stop on the map when it

0:16:30.600 --> 0:16:35.440
<v Speaker 3>comes to launching ips or fandom related events.

0:16:35.760 --> 0:16:39.040
<v Speaker 1>That's a big name in video gaming for sure. Well, Nick,

0:16:39.120 --> 0:16:41.320
<v Speaker 1>make sure you take lots of pictures and give us

0:16:41.360 --> 0:16:44.200
<v Speaker 1>a real sense of the color as cause players stream

0:16:44.280 --> 0:16:48.440
<v Speaker 1>into this medieval town. Well forward to your reporting.

0:16:48.920 --> 0:16:50.920
<v Speaker 3>Chao Chao. Thank you, Cynthia.

0:16:56.320 --> 0:16:58.840
<v Speaker 1>As we close out today's episode, here's a few things

0:16:58.840 --> 0:17:03.560
<v Speaker 1>we're watching for. Comcast will report third quarter earnings on Thursday.

0:17:04.760 --> 0:17:07.840
<v Speaker 1>Variety Today is producing the first of three digital dailies

0:17:07.840 --> 0:17:10.840
<v Speaker 1>out of the Tokyo Film Festival, and later in the

0:17:10.880 --> 0:17:14.679
<v Speaker 1>week we'll be at the Thessaloniki Film Festival in Greece.

0:17:15.720 --> 0:17:19.480
<v Speaker 1>Do not miss Chris Willman's coverage of the Warren Zevon

0:17:19.640 --> 0:17:24.320
<v Speaker 1>tribute held in La on October twenty fourth. Ah it

0:17:24.440 --> 0:17:27.280
<v Speaker 1>sounds like it was a foot stomper, and of course,

0:17:27.320 --> 0:17:30.080
<v Speaker 1>in the hands of Chris Willman. It's a fantastic read,

0:17:30.160 --> 0:17:33.320
<v Speaker 1>even if you weren't there. Don't forget to buy your

0:17:33.359 --> 0:17:38.159
<v Speaker 1>tickets for Io Adebris and Don Chiedel headlining in a

0:17:38.160 --> 0:17:42.240
<v Speaker 1>Broadway revival of Proof directed by Thomas Cale. It opens

0:17:42.280 --> 0:17:46.440
<v Speaker 1>April sixteenth at the Booth Theater. Before we Go, Congrats

0:17:46.480 --> 0:17:50.560
<v Speaker 1>to Rebecca Glashow. She's been named CEO of Tribeca Enterprises,

0:17:50.760 --> 0:17:55.280
<v Speaker 1>succeeding the great Jane Rosenthal. Glashaw joins them from BBC

0:17:55.440 --> 0:17:59.800
<v Speaker 1>Global Media and Streaming. Rosenthal will shift to co chair

0:17:59.840 --> 0:18:05.960
<v Speaker 1>of Tribecca Enterprises alongside majority owner James Murdoch. Thanks for listening.

0:18:06.160 --> 0:18:09.200
<v Speaker 1>This episode was written and reported by me Cynthia Littleton,

0:18:09.480 --> 0:18:13.840
<v Speaker 1>with contributions from Rebecca Rubin and Nick Viverrelli sticks Nick's

0:18:13.880 --> 0:18:16.800
<v Speaker 1>hick Picks. Please leave us a review at the podcast

0:18:16.800 --> 0:18:19.560
<v Speaker 1>platform of your choice, and please tune in tomorrow for

0:18:19.640 --> 0:18:23.120
<v Speaker 1>another episode of Daily Variety and Go Dodgers