One fateful day in 1997, when Dan Scharf was a young attorney working as a public defender in Northern California, he spotted a job listing he thought might change his life. SAG in L.A. was looking for a lawyer. He typed up a rsum, stuffed it in a mailbox and crossed his fingers. And he might have even gotten a...

Universal Music Groups planned $775 million acquisition of Downtown Music Holdings, the parent company of independent distributors Fuga and CD Baby, could face European Union (EU) scrutiny after the Dutch regulator made a referral request for a competition inquiry. The European Commission, the main executive body of the EU, has not announced any official decision on the topic though. Universal...

Last month, shortly before Silver Lake completed its $25 billion deal to take Endeavor private, Carl Icahn disclosed that he had acquired a massive stake in Endeavor. By appearances, it was an unusual buy. Endeavor had been trading above the $27.50 per share stockholders were slated to receive as part of the deal for most of the past year. He...

Alison Asaro and Asheley Dean have been named Partner at Yorn Levine. Derek Reynolds has joined the firm as Senior Counsel. Asaro, whose clients list includes Graham Yost and Ramy Youssef, has been with the firm for six years. Dean, who joined the firm in 2022 from studio business affairs, advises clients that include Chris Rock, Snoop Dogg and Sanaa...

This year, the MTV Video Music Awards will air on CBS? Yes, the September 7, 2025 MTV VMAs will still air on MTV as per usual, but an expansion of the awards shows regular live simulcast finally brings Paramount Globals broadcast network CBS and its streaming service Paramount+ into the mix. (The 2024 VMAs were made available next-day on Paramount+.)...

Teamsters leaders are leveraging a relationship with the Trump administration to push for worker protections in the Paramount-Skydance merger as the future of one of Hollywoods legacy studios hangs in the balance. The unions general president and head of its entertainment division met with Federal Communications Commission chairman Brendan Carr on Monday to raise concerns about the corporate marriages potential...

Podcast host Amanda Hirsch has signed with WME for representation in all areas. Hirsch is the host of the podcast Not Skinny But Not Fat, in which she has interviewed celebrities such as Kim Kardashian, Brooklyn Peltz Beckham, Ryan Reynolds, Kristen Stewart, and Nikki Glaser. The podcast, which covers pop culture, celebrity gossip and reality TV recaps, has amassed a...

A snapshot of production levels in Los Angeles shows a steep decline in soundstage occupancy over the past two years, highlighting the plunge in filming in the region. Seventeen studios that operate the majority of stages in L.A. posted average occupancy rates of 63 percent last year, down from 69 percent in 2023, according to the new report from FilmLA,...

There will be a changing of the guard atop Vanity Fair, one of the flagship publications in the Cond Nast portfolio. Vanity Fair editor-in-chief Radhika Jones told staff Thursday that she plans to leave the publication in the spring. Those of you who know me well know that I can be a little restless, once a mission is accomplished. And...

Comedy artistNaomi Watanabehas signed with UTA and Brillstein Entertainment Partners for representation in all areas. The comedian, actor, voice actor, model and fashion icon is looking to expand on the international stage in English-speaking film, TV, comedy and elsewhere by nabbing U.S.-based representation. Watanabe debuted as a comic in Japan in 2007 and quickly made waves with her lip-synching impersonations...

Dr. Phils media company Merit TV has named Ken Solomon as its new president and CEO. The former CEO of Tennis Channel, Solomon says that he and Dr. Phil (his full name is Phil McGraw) go back decades, and yes, they are tennis partners. Solomon left the Tennis Channel last year, he had been serving in an advisory role to...

A federal judge denied Universal Music Groups request to delay discovery in Drakes defamation lawsuit over Kendrick Lamars Not Like Us, on Wednesday, allowing the Gods Plan rappers team to ask for documents UMG had called highly commercially sensitive, such as Lamars record deal. UMG had filed a request to delay the discovery process back in March, stating that the...

Spotify is introducing a suite of new tools, as the audio giant makes a larger commitment to its advertising business. The new tools include the ability for advertisers in the U.S. to use generative AI to create scripts and voice overs in Spotifys Ads Manager for the first time, as well as new programmatic offerings and measurement tools for advertisers...