News Analysis India

Tag: Netflix

  • Jennifer Aniston, Adam Sandler talk about ‘Murder Mystery 2’ injuries

    By IANS

    LOS ANGELES: Hollywood actor Adam Sandler, who has done some impressive action sequences in ‘Murder Mystery 2’, underwent hip replacement surgery not long after he and his co-star Jennifer Aniston wrapped the follow-up to their original ‘Murder Mystery’ comedy.

    Ordinary couple, extraordinary adventure.Adam Sandler and Jennifer Aniston star in Murder Mystery 2. Premieres March 31! pic.twitter.com/38Q6EwEOyF
    — Netflix (@netflix) March 8, 2023
    “My god damn hip, I had to change that at the end of the movie,” Sandler told ‘Variety’ on Tuesday at the film’s premiere at the Regency Village Theatre in Los Angeles.

    “I had been doing so many movies in a row. I did ‘Spaceman’ and I was hanging in a harness all the time. I kept saying, ‘something’s going on with my hip, man. I’m in trouble’. And then during this and this other movie I did I was like, ‘yeah, I definitely gotta x-ray that thing’, and we were in trouble.”

    Even though ‘Murder Mystery 2’ director Jeremy Garelick described some of Sandler’s work as ‘Tom Cruise kind of stuff’, the funny man insists he’s not looking for a part in a ‘Mission: Impossible’ flick.

    “Everything’s scary at 56 years old,” Sandler said.

    “You never know what the hell you’re gonna get up from. I’m sluggy, man. My body hurts. Jennifer is in good shape. I didn’t think I needed to get in shape before the movie but then when we were shooting, I was like, ‘man, I should have gotten in shape’.”

    It certainly didn’t look like anything was wrong before he hit the carpet for interviews. Sandler spent about 30 minutes signing autographs for most of the fans who lined almost two blocks across the street from the premiere.

    “I gotta try to do as many as possible because I don’t want someone getting mad that I didn’t sign theirs but I signed others,” he explained.

    Even if Sandler praised Aniston for being in “good shape”, the ‘Friends’ star said she injured herself during her last day of shooting.

    “I had a back injury about three years ago and it got really pissed off when I was in the harness,” Aniston said.

    “It was literally the last thing I shot. It was one of those things where you wake up the next day or two days later and you’re like, ‘wow, that got bad’.”

    ‘Murder Mystery 2’ is coming to Netflix on Friday.

    LOS ANGELES: Hollywood actor Adam Sandler, who has done some impressive action sequences in ‘Murder Mystery 2’, underwent hip replacement surgery not long after he and his co-star Jennifer Aniston wrapped the follow-up to their original ‘Murder Mystery’ comedy.

    Ordinary couple, extraordinary adventure.
    Adam Sandler and Jennifer Aniston star in Murder Mystery 2. Premieres March 31! pic.twitter.com/38Q6EwEOyF
    — Netflix (@netflix) March 8, 2023
    “My god damn hip, I had to change that at the end of the movie,” Sandler told ‘Variety’ on Tuesday at the film’s premiere at the Regency Village Theatre in Los Angeles.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); });

    “I had been doing so many movies in a row. I did ‘Spaceman’ and I was hanging in a harness all the time. I kept saying, ‘something’s going on with my hip, man. I’m in trouble’. And then during this and this other movie I did I was like, ‘yeah, I definitely gotta x-ray that thing’, and we were in trouble.”

    Even though ‘Murder Mystery 2’ director Jeremy Garelick described some of Sandler’s work as ‘Tom Cruise kind of stuff’, the funny man insists he’s not looking for a part in a ‘Mission: Impossible’ flick.

    “Everything’s scary at 56 years old,” Sandler said.

    “You never know what the hell you’re gonna get up from. I’m sluggy, man. My body hurts. Jennifer is in good shape. I didn’t think I needed to get in shape before the movie but then when we were shooting, I was like, ‘man, I should have gotten in shape’.”

    It certainly didn’t look like anything was wrong before he hit the carpet for interviews. Sandler spent about 30 minutes signing autographs for most of the fans who lined almost two blocks across the street from the premiere.

    “I gotta try to do as many as possible because I don’t want someone getting mad that I didn’t sign theirs but I signed others,” he explained.

    Even if Sandler praised Aniston for being in “good shape”, the ‘Friends’ star said she injured herself during her last day of shooting.

    “I had a back injury about three years ago and it got really pissed off when I was in the harness,” Aniston said.

    “It was literally the last thing I shot. It was one of those things where you wake up the next day or two days later and you’re like, ‘wow, that got bad’.”

    ‘Murder Mystery 2’ is coming to Netflix on Friday.

  • Jennifer Aniston on wearing Manish Malhotra’s dress in ‘Murder Mystery 2’: It was beautiful 

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: Hollywood star Jennifer Aniston says she had a gala time gorging on Indian food and donning a “beautiful” lehenga by Indian fashion designer Manish Malhotra for her upcoming film “Murder Mystery 2.”

    Aniston, who enjoys a huge fan following in India courtesy of her hit 1990s sitcom “Friends,” wore an ivory-coloured chikankari lehenga designed by Malhotra for an Indian wedding sequence in the Netflix movie.

    Renowned Hollywood costume designer Debra Mcguire had picked the ensemble for the actor.

    Aniston, 54, described the dress, which took approximately three months to create, as a “beautiful” attire that was surprisingly heavy.

    “It was a beautiful, beautiful dress,” the actor told PTI in a virtual roundtable interview.

    Sandler, who was also part of the conversation, said Aniston “looked stunning” in the lehenga.

    “Thank you, sweetheart,” she responded to her co-star’s praise.

    “It was extremely heavy and I wasn’t expecting that. So much respect for all the beautiful women of India who have to not only wear it but dance their b**** off. We had a really good time,” she added.

    The new Netflix movie is the sequel to 2019’s “Murder Mystery,” which followed married couple Nick and Audrey Spitz who get caught up in a murder investigation on a billionaire’s yacht.

    Today we present to you – Jennifer Aniston in a lehenga pic.twitter.com/USty3YIgHn
    — Netflix India (@NetflixIndia) January 31, 2023
    “Murder Mystery 2” lifts off four years after the events of the first film in the comedy mystery franchise.

    Now, the Spitzes are full-time detectives struggling to get their private eye agency off the ground when they’re invited to celebrate the wedding of their friend the Maharaja (Adeel Akhtar) on his private island, a character introduced in the first film.

    But trouble follows the Spitzes again when the groom is kidnapped for ransom soon after the festivities begin, making each glamorous guest, family member, and the bride herself a suspect.

    Aniston and Sandler have previously worked together in the 2011 romantic comedy “Just Go with It.”

    Aniston said they shot the wedding scene for three days in Hawaii.

    The actors, who are real-life friends and share great chemistry on screen, were also completing each other’s sentences in the roundtable interview.

    “We had five days to shoot that scene,” she said, to which Sandler, 56, added, “And dance and eat Indian food.” “Food and be happy. But remember how long it took? We also shot it in Hawaii for three days,” Aniston continued.

    Sandler once again dished out a compliment to his co-star.

    “It was hot. You looked fantastic,” he said.

    The wedding scene, which comes at an important juncture in the film, directed by Jeremy Garelick, begins with festivities that involved many dancers.

    “The dancers were exquisite. It was so beautiful. It was gorgeous. So much fun,” Aniston recalled.

    “Murder Mystery 2”, penned by James Vanderbilt, sends Nick and Audrey Spitz on a high-stakes case that finally gives them everything they’ve ever dreamed of: a shot at their detective agency finally becoming successful and their long-awaited trip to Paris.

    Asked if a third part would follow in the franchise, Sandler said they are yet to take a call on that, but added that he would love to come to India someday.

    “I’ve never been to India. I would love to be there. My friends have been there. They show me pictures, and videos, it looks incredible. We’ll talk (about ‘Murder Mystery 3’) once that (topic) comes up, and we’ll figure it out. But that would be fun,” the actor said.

    Also starring Mark Strong, Melanie Laurent, Jodie Turner-Smith, John Kani, Kuhoo Verma, Enrique Arce, and Zurin Villanueva with Dany Boon, “Murder Mystery 2” will stream on Netflix from March 31.

    NEW DELHI: Hollywood star Jennifer Aniston says she had a gala time gorging on Indian food and donning a “beautiful” lehenga by Indian fashion designer Manish Malhotra for her upcoming film “Murder Mystery 2.”

    Aniston, who enjoys a huge fan following in India courtesy of her hit 1990s sitcom “Friends,” wore an ivory-coloured chikankari lehenga designed by Malhotra for an Indian wedding sequence in the Netflix movie.

    Renowned Hollywood costume designer Debra Mcguire had picked the ensemble for the actor.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); });

    Aniston, 54, described the dress, which took approximately three months to create, as a “beautiful” attire that was surprisingly heavy.

    “It was a beautiful, beautiful dress,” the actor told PTI in a virtual roundtable interview.

    Sandler, who was also part of the conversation, said Aniston “looked stunning” in the lehenga.

    “Thank you, sweetheart,” she responded to her co-star’s praise.

    “It was extremely heavy and I wasn’t expecting that. So much respect for all the beautiful women of India who have to not only wear it but dance their b**** off. We had a really good time,” she added.

    The new Netflix movie is the sequel to 2019’s “Murder Mystery,” which followed married couple Nick and Audrey Spitz who get caught up in a murder investigation on a billionaire’s yacht.

    Today we present to you – Jennifer Aniston in a lehenga pic.twitter.com/USty3YIgHn
    — Netflix India (@NetflixIndia) January 31, 2023
    “Murder Mystery 2” lifts off four years after the events of the first film in the comedy mystery franchise.

    Now, the Spitzes are full-time detectives struggling to get their private eye agency off the ground when they’re invited to celebrate the wedding of their friend the Maharaja (Adeel Akhtar) on his private island, a character introduced in the first film.

    But trouble follows the Spitzes again when the groom is kidnapped for ransom soon after the festivities begin, making each glamorous guest, family member, and the bride herself a suspect.

    Aniston and Sandler have previously worked together in the 2011 romantic comedy “Just Go with It.”

    Aniston said they shot the wedding scene for three days in Hawaii.

    The actors, who are real-life friends and share great chemistry on screen, were also completing each other’s sentences in the roundtable interview.

    “We had five days to shoot that scene,” she said, to which Sandler, 56, added, “And dance and eat Indian food.” “Food and be happy. But remember how long it took? We also shot it in Hawaii for three days,” Aniston continued.

    Sandler once again dished out a compliment to his co-star.

    “It was hot. You looked fantastic,” he said.

    The wedding scene, which comes at an important juncture in the film, directed by Jeremy Garelick, begins with festivities that involved many dancers.

    “The dancers were exquisite. It was so beautiful. It was gorgeous. So much fun,” Aniston recalled.

    “Murder Mystery 2”, penned by James Vanderbilt, sends Nick and Audrey Spitz on a high-stakes case that finally gives them everything they’ve ever dreamed of: a shot at their detective agency finally becoming successful and their long-awaited trip to Paris.

    Asked if a third part would follow in the franchise, Sandler said they are yet to take a call on that, but added that he would love to come to India someday.

    “I’ve never been to India. I would love to be there. My friends have been there. They show me pictures, and videos, it looks incredible. We’ll talk (about ‘Murder Mystery 3’) once that (topic) comes up, and we’ll figure it out. But that would be fun,” the actor said.

    Also starring Mark Strong, Melanie Laurent, Jodie Turner-Smith, John Kani, Kuhoo Verma, Enrique Arce, and Zurin Villanueva with Dany Boon, “Murder Mystery 2” will stream on Netflix from March 31.

  • Netflix renews ‘You’ for final season

    Express News Service

    Netflix has renewed the psychological-thriller series You for a fifth and final season. Penn Badgley is all set to return as Joe Goldberg alias Jonathan Moore for one more season. However, Sera Gamble, who has served as the showrunner for the first four seasons, will not be returning for the finale. 

    You is developed by Greg Berlanti and Gamble based on Caroline Kepnes’ Alloy books. Gamble is stepping down from the series to focus on other projects.

    Michael Foley and Justin W. Lo, who have executive produced seasons 1 and 2 of You respectively, will succeed Gamble as co-showrunners. Gamble will continue to remain an executive producer on the show. 

    The fourth season of You showed Penn Badgley’s Joe Goldberg living in London with a different identity by the name of Jonathan Moore. He eventually ends up obsessively falling for yet another woman by the name of Kate, who works as a director at an art gallery.

    Apart from Badgley, the cast of the series also includes Tati Gabrielle, Charlotte Ritchie, Tilly Keeper, Amy-Leigh Hickman, and Ed Speleers.

    4 seasons of You are currently streaming on Netflix. The makers of the series have not yet announced a release window for the fifth and final season. 

    (This story originally appeared on Cinema Express)

    Netflix has renewed the psychological-thriller series You for a fifth and final season. Penn Badgley is all set to return as Joe Goldberg alias Jonathan Moore for one more season. However, Sera Gamble, who has served as the showrunner for the first four seasons, will not be returning for the finale. 

    You is developed by Greg Berlanti and Gamble based on Caroline Kepnes’ Alloy books. Gamble is stepping down from the series to focus on other projects.

    Michael Foley and Justin W. Lo, who have executive produced seasons 1 and 2 of You respectively, will succeed Gamble as co-showrunners. Gamble will continue to remain an executive producer on the show. googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); });

    The fourth season of You showed Penn Badgley’s Joe Goldberg living in London with a different identity by the name of Jonathan Moore. He eventually ends up obsessively falling for yet another woman by the name of Kate, who works as a director at an art gallery.

    Apart from Badgley, the cast of the series also includes Tati Gabrielle, Charlotte Ritchie, Tilly Keeper, Amy-Leigh Hickman, and Ed Speleers.

    4 seasons of You are currently streaming on Netflix. The makers of the series have not yet announced a release window for the fifth and final season. 

    (This story originally appeared on Cinema Express)

  • ‘The Magician’s Elephant’ review: In pursuit of innocence

    Express News Service

    There’s something about elephants and the cinema. It is always warm to see the pachyderms sway in and out of the screens, and into the hearts of the audience. Close on the heels of the Indian documentary The Elephant Whisperers, which bagged an Oscar, Netflix is back with yet another film on the majestic beasts. The Magician’s Elephant, an animated feature, teaches love, bonding, belonging, and how magic is just around the corner if you believe in it.

    Based on a book by two-time Newbery Award winner Kate DiCamillo, the story is about a young orphan Peter (Noah Jupe), who is raised by a bitter but caring soldier who believes that his ward must learn of the hardships of the real world.

    One day, a chance meeting with a fortune-teller—who’s also the narrator of the story—changes Peter’s life. He finds himself in the midst of a mission—looking for his long-lost sister, Adele, who he was told had died. But in doing so, he first has to find an elephant, a rarity in the kingdom of Baltese.

    The pursuit leads to Peter being challenged to complete three seemingly impossible tasks. While one may think that these chores are easy-peasy for an adult, it is a child’s world that debut director Wendy Rogers creates, and hence the tasks appear difficult, to say the least.

    The film is mounted through Peter’s eyes, though at times the story is also shown through the eyes of the elephant—literally, as the frame takes the shape of its eye. Both these lend a certain sense of innocence and wonder to the narrative. Aware of its target audience, the film also doles out life lessons like the importance of believing in oneself, love and faith, not to mention the connection one forges with other living beings.

    The animation keeps you enthralled, and the runtime of under 100 minutes is enough to butter the hearts of even the most cynical of watchers. The Magician’s Elephant is a rather safe watch, but perhaps a little more of fantasy would have turned it into the perfect warm and fuzzy film. 

    There’s something about elephants and the cinema. It is always warm to see the pachyderms sway in and out of the screens, and into the hearts of the audience. Close on the heels of the Indian documentary The Elephant Whisperers, which bagged an Oscar, Netflix is back with yet another film on the majestic beasts. The Magician’s Elephant, an animated feature, teaches love, bonding, belonging, and how magic is just around the corner if you believe in it.

    Based on a book by two-time Newbery Award winner Kate DiCamillo, the story is about a young orphan Peter (Noah Jupe), who is raised by a bitter but caring soldier who believes that his ward must learn of the hardships of the real world.

    One day, a chance meeting with a fortune-teller—who’s also the narrator of the story—changes Peter’s life. He finds himself in the midst of a mission—looking for his long-lost sister, Adele, who he was told had died. But in doing so, he first has to find an elephant, a rarity in the kingdom of Baltese.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); });

    The pursuit leads to Peter being challenged to complete three seemingly impossible tasks. While one may think that these chores are easy-peasy for an adult, it is a child’s world that debut director Wendy Rogers creates, and hence the tasks appear difficult, to say the least.

    The film is mounted through Peter’s eyes, though at times the story is also shown through the eyes of the elephant—literally, as the frame takes the shape of its eye. Both these lend a certain sense of innocence and wonder to the narrative. Aware of its target audience, the film also doles out life lessons like the importance of believing in oneself, love and faith, not to mention the connection one forges with other living beings.

    The animation keeps you enthralled, and the runtime of under 100 minutes is enough to butter the hearts of even the most cynical of watchers. The Magician’s Elephant is a rather safe watch, but perhaps a little more of fantasy would have turned it into the perfect warm and fuzzy film. 

  • Netflix’s ‘Formula One’ show slammed over tobacco advertising

    By AFP

    GENEVA: Netflix’s popular Formula One show is providing tobacco giants with a fast and effective marketing vehicle to swerve past bans on advertising their product, industry monitors said Wednesday.

    The behind-the-scenes Formula One streaming series “Drive to Survive” has been hugely popular on Netflix, which recently released the fifth season.

    But campaigners warn that beyond boosting the motor sport’s popularity, the show is also delivering into homes worldwide the branding of cigarette companies that sponsor F1 teams, including in countries where tobacco advertising is banned.

    In a fresh report, F1 industry monitor Formula Money and tobacco industry watchdog STOP charged that in just the fourth season of “Drive to Survive”, “a total of 1.1 billion minutes of footage streamed around the world contained tobacco-related content.”

    And half of all episodes during that season contained tobacco-related branding in the opening minute, according to the report, entitled: “Driving Addiction: F1, Netflix and Cigarette Company Advertising”.

    The product branding of Ferrari sponsor Philip Morris International (PMI) and McLaren sponsor British American Tobacco (BAT) has “heavily featured in the series, with extended plotlines following the teams’ drivers,” the report said.

    “Research suggests that PMI and BAT are reaching new audiences through the show, including people who don’t otherwise watch F1 races,” it added.

    Younger audiences

    Wednesday’s report showed that the viewers of “Drive to Survive” were younger than typical F1 audiences, and also suggested it had contributed towards significantly increasing viewership of F1 races beyond the Netflix series.

    “This increase in viewers means more people see the branding F1 sponsors place on the cars and livery,” it said.

    “Netflix has a responsibility to not deliver content that is promoting, even if it’s indirectly, cigarette company brands,” Jorge Alday of STOP told AFP.

    Netflix did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

    A global treaty has called for the elimination of all advertising for tobacco, the use of which the World Health Organization estimates kills more than eight million people each year.

    And the International Automobile Federation (FIA), Formula One’s governing body, has for two decades recommended against tobacco company sponsorship in the sport.

    The tobacco companies have since stopped advertising their traditional cigarette brands with F1, but have in some cases continued to push newer alternative products like e-cigarettes.

    “They live in this grey area around what is and what isn’t tobacco marketing,” Alday said.

    When contacted by AFP, the FIA said it “remains firmly opposed to tobacco advertising and continues to stand by its 2003 recommendations”.

    However, it said, “we are not in a position to interfere with the private commercial arrangements between the teams and their sponsors, or broadcast agreements.”

    Formula One meanwhile insisted that “all advertising is in line with applicable laws.”

    Advertising through historic footage

    Wednesday’s report found that PMI and BAT spent an estimated $40 million on F1 advertising in 2022.

    BAT’s Vuse e-cigarette and Velo nicotine pouch products “were the most prominent brands on the McLaren livery throughout the season,” the report said.

    It pointed out that branding for these products appeared at 13 out of 22 races, including at the Mexico City Grand Prix, despite Mexico’s strong advertising restrictions.

    PMI, one of the oldest and longest standing F1 sponsors, meanwhile scaled back its spending significantly last year.

    While it remained a Ferrari partner, its logos and designs no longer appeared on the team’s cars, the report found.

    When contacted by AFP, the company’s vice president of international communications Tommaso Di Giovanni insisted that the partnership between Netflix and F1 “has nothing to do with us,” insisting that it had discontinued product branding on cars and drivers’ apparel since 2007.

    Wednesday’s report meanwhile claimed that the tobacco giant, which has spent nearly $2.4 billion on advertising since it first entered the sport in 1971, continued to draw branding advantage from the Netflix series through historic footage.

    Report co-author Caroline Reid of Formula Money pointed out in a statement that a single “minute of historic footage featured five different cigarette brands, including PMI’s Marlboro.”

    GENEVA: Netflix’s popular Formula One show is providing tobacco giants with a fast and effective marketing vehicle to swerve past bans on advertising their product, industry monitors said Wednesday.

    The behind-the-scenes Formula One streaming series “Drive to Survive” has been hugely popular on Netflix, which recently released the fifth season.

    But campaigners warn that beyond boosting the motor sport’s popularity, the show is also delivering into homes worldwide the branding of cigarette companies that sponsor F1 teams, including in countries where tobacco advertising is banned.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2′); });

    In a fresh report, F1 industry monitor Formula Money and tobacco industry watchdog STOP charged that in just the fourth season of “Drive to Survive”, “a total of 1.1 billion minutes of footage streamed around the world contained tobacco-related content.”

    And half of all episodes during that season contained tobacco-related branding in the opening minute, according to the report, entitled: “Driving Addiction: F1, Netflix and Cigarette Company Advertising”.

    The product branding of Ferrari sponsor Philip Morris International (PMI) and McLaren sponsor British American Tobacco (BAT) has “heavily featured in the series, with extended plotlines following the teams’ drivers,” the report said.

    “Research suggests that PMI and BAT are reaching new audiences through the show, including people who don’t otherwise watch F1 races,” it added.

    Younger audiences

    Wednesday’s report showed that the viewers of “Drive to Survive” were younger than typical F1 audiences, and also suggested it had contributed towards significantly increasing viewership of F1 races beyond the Netflix series.

    “This increase in viewers means more people see the branding F1 sponsors place on the cars and livery,” it said.

    “Netflix has a responsibility to not deliver content that is promoting, even if it’s indirectly, cigarette company brands,” Jorge Alday of STOP told AFP.

    Netflix did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

    A global treaty has called for the elimination of all advertising for tobacco, the use of which the World Health Organization estimates kills more than eight million people each year.

    And the International Automobile Federation (FIA), Formula One’s governing body, has for two decades recommended against tobacco company sponsorship in the sport.

    The tobacco companies have since stopped advertising their traditional cigarette brands with F1, but have in some cases continued to push newer alternative products like e-cigarettes.

    “They live in this grey area around what is and what isn’t tobacco marketing,” Alday said.

    When contacted by AFP, the FIA said it “remains firmly opposed to tobacco advertising and continues to stand by its 2003 recommendations”.

    However, it said, “we are not in a position to interfere with the private commercial arrangements between the teams and their sponsors, or broadcast agreements.”

    Formula One meanwhile insisted that “all advertising is in line with applicable laws.”

    Advertising through historic footage

    Wednesday’s report found that PMI and BAT spent an estimated $40 million on F1 advertising in 2022.

    BAT’s Vuse e-cigarette and Velo nicotine pouch products “were the most prominent brands on the McLaren livery throughout the season,” the report said.

    It pointed out that branding for these products appeared at 13 out of 22 races, including at the Mexico City Grand Prix, despite Mexico’s strong advertising restrictions.

    PMI, one of the oldest and longest standing F1 sponsors, meanwhile scaled back its spending significantly last year.

    While it remained a Ferrari partner, its logos and designs no longer appeared on the team’s cars, the report found.

    When contacted by AFP, the company’s vice president of international communications Tommaso Di Giovanni insisted that the partnership between Netflix and F1 “has nothing to do with us,” insisting that it had discontinued product branding on cars and drivers’ apparel since 2007.

    Wednesday’s report meanwhile claimed that the tobacco giant, which has spent nearly $2.4 billion on advertising since it first entered the sport in 1971, continued to draw branding advantage from the Netflix series through historic footage.

    Report co-author Caroline Reid of Formula Money pointed out in a statement that a single “minute of historic footage featured five different cigarette brands, including PMI’s Marlboro.”

  • Netflix’s ‘Formula One’ show slammed over tobacco advertising

    By AFP

    GENEVA: Netflix’s popular Formula One show is providing tobacco giants with a fast and effective marketing vehicle to swerve past bans on advertising their product, industry monitors said Wednesday.

    The behind-the-scenes Formula One streaming series “Drive to Survive” has been hugely popular on Netflix, which recently released the fifth season.

    But campaigners warn that beyond boosting the motor sport’s popularity, the show is also delivering into homes worldwide the branding of cigarette companies that sponsor F1 teams, including in countries where tobacco advertising is banned.

    In a fresh report, F1 industry monitor Formula Money and tobacco industry watchdog STOP charged that in just the fourth season of “Drive to Survive”, “a total of 1.1 billion minutes of footage streamed around the world contained tobacco-related content.”

    And half of all episodes during that season contained tobacco-related branding in the opening minute, according to the report, entitled: “Driving Addiction: F1, Netflix and Cigarette Company Advertising”.

    The product branding of Ferrari sponsor Philip Morris International (PMI) and McLaren sponsor British American Tobacco (BAT) has “heavily featured in the series, with extended plotlines following the teams’ drivers,” the report said.

    “Research suggests that PMI and BAT are reaching new audiences through the show, including people who don’t otherwise watch F1 races,” it added.

    Younger audiences

    Wednesday’s report showed that the viewers of “Drive to Survive” were younger than typical F1 audiences, and also suggested it had contributed towards significantly increasing viewership of F1 races beyond the Netflix series.

    “This increase in viewers means more people see the branding F1 sponsors place on the cars and livery,” it said.

    “Netflix has a responsibility to not deliver content that is promoting, even if it’s indirectly, cigarette company brands,” Jorge Alday of STOP told AFP.

    Netflix did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

    A global treaty has called for the elimination of all advertising for tobacco, the use of which the World Health Organization estimates kills more than eight million people each year.

    And the International Automobile Federation (FIA), Formula One’s governing body, has for two decades recommended against tobacco company sponsorship in the sport.

    The tobacco companies have since stopped advertising their traditional cigarette brands with F1, but have in some cases continued to push newer alternative products like e-cigarettes.

    “They live in this grey area around what is and what isn’t tobacco marketing,” Alday said.

    When contacted by AFP, the FIA said it “remains firmly opposed to tobacco advertising and continues to stand by its 2003 recommendations”.

    However, it said, “we are not in a position to interfere with the private commercial arrangements between the teams and their sponsors, or broadcast agreements.”

    Formula One meanwhile insisted that “all advertising is in line with applicable laws.”

    Advertising through historic footage

    Wednesday’s report found that PMI and BAT spent an estimated $40 million on F1 advertising in 2022.

    BAT’s Vuse e-cigarette and Velo nicotine pouch products “were the most prominent brands on the McLaren livery throughout the season,” the report said.

    It pointed out that branding for these products appeared at 13 out of 22 races, including at the Mexico City Grand Prix, despite Mexico’s strong advertising restrictions.

    PMI, one of the oldest and longest standing F1 sponsors, meanwhile scaled back its spending significantly last year.

    While it remained a Ferrari partner, its logos and designs no longer appeared on the team’s cars, the report found.

    When contacted by AFP, the company’s vice president of international communications Tommaso Di Giovanni insisted that the partnership between Netflix and F1 “has nothing to do with us,” insisting that it had discontinued product branding on cars and drivers’ apparel since 2007.

    Wednesday’s report meanwhile claimed that the tobacco giant, which has spent nearly $2.4 billion on advertising since it first entered the sport in 1971, continued to draw branding advantage from the Netflix series through historic footage.

    Report co-author Caroline Reid of Formula Money pointed out in a statement that a single “minute of historic footage featured five different cigarette brands, including PMI’s Marlboro.”

    GENEVA: Netflix’s popular Formula One show is providing tobacco giants with a fast and effective marketing vehicle to swerve past bans on advertising their product, industry monitors said Wednesday.

    The behind-the-scenes Formula One streaming series “Drive to Survive” has been hugely popular on Netflix, which recently released the fifth season.

    But campaigners warn that beyond boosting the motor sport’s popularity, the show is also delivering into homes worldwide the branding of cigarette companies that sponsor F1 teams, including in countries where tobacco advertising is banned.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2′); });

    In a fresh report, F1 industry monitor Formula Money and tobacco industry watchdog STOP charged that in just the fourth season of “Drive to Survive”, “a total of 1.1 billion minutes of footage streamed around the world contained tobacco-related content.”

    And half of all episodes during that season contained tobacco-related branding in the opening minute, according to the report, entitled: “Driving Addiction: F1, Netflix and Cigarette Company Advertising”.

    The product branding of Ferrari sponsor Philip Morris International (PMI) and McLaren sponsor British American Tobacco (BAT) has “heavily featured in the series, with extended plotlines following the teams’ drivers,” the report said.

    “Research suggests that PMI and BAT are reaching new audiences through the show, including people who don’t otherwise watch F1 races,” it added.

    Younger audiences

    Wednesday’s report showed that the viewers of “Drive to Survive” were younger than typical F1 audiences, and also suggested it had contributed towards significantly increasing viewership of F1 races beyond the Netflix series.

    “This increase in viewers means more people see the branding F1 sponsors place on the cars and livery,” it said.

    “Netflix has a responsibility to not deliver content that is promoting, even if it’s indirectly, cigarette company brands,” Jorge Alday of STOP told AFP.

    Netflix did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

    A global treaty has called for the elimination of all advertising for tobacco, the use of which the World Health Organization estimates kills more than eight million people each year.

    And the International Automobile Federation (FIA), Formula One’s governing body, has for two decades recommended against tobacco company sponsorship in the sport.

    The tobacco companies have since stopped advertising their traditional cigarette brands with F1, but have in some cases continued to push newer alternative products like e-cigarettes.

    “They live in this grey area around what is and what isn’t tobacco marketing,” Alday said.

    When contacted by AFP, the FIA said it “remains firmly opposed to tobacco advertising and continues to stand by its 2003 recommendations”.

    However, it said, “we are not in a position to interfere with the private commercial arrangements between the teams and their sponsors, or broadcast agreements.”

    Formula One meanwhile insisted that “all advertising is in line with applicable laws.”

    Advertising through historic footage

    Wednesday’s report found that PMI and BAT spent an estimated $40 million on F1 advertising in 2022.

    BAT’s Vuse e-cigarette and Velo nicotine pouch products “were the most prominent brands on the McLaren livery throughout the season,” the report said.

    It pointed out that branding for these products appeared at 13 out of 22 races, including at the Mexico City Grand Prix, despite Mexico’s strong advertising restrictions.

    PMI, one of the oldest and longest standing F1 sponsors, meanwhile scaled back its spending significantly last year.

    While it remained a Ferrari partner, its logos and designs no longer appeared on the team’s cars, the report found.

    When contacted by AFP, the company’s vice president of international communications Tommaso Di Giovanni insisted that the partnership between Netflix and F1 “has nothing to do with us,” insisting that it had discontinued product branding on cars and drivers’ apparel since 2007.

    Wednesday’s report meanwhile claimed that the tobacco giant, which has spent nearly $2.4 billion on advertising since it first entered the sport in 1971, continued to draw branding advantage from the Netflix series through historic footage.

    Report co-author Caroline Reid of Formula Money pointed out in a statement that a single “minute of historic footage featured five different cigarette brands, including PMI’s Marlboro.”

  • Nancy Meyers to direct big-budget romance for Netflix

    Express News Service

    Nancy Meyers will be returning to the director’s chair for a new project which she will be writing, directing and producing for Netflix. Currently titled Paris Paramount, the film is likely to star Scarlett Johansson,  Penélope Cruz, Michael Fassbender, and Owen Wilson among others. 

    Paris Paramount will revolve around a budding writer-director who shares a professional and romantic partnership with her producer. After their break up, they’re forced to work together when they collaborate on a massive new project. Amidst the chaos of a star-studded movie production, they try to navigate their relationship. 

    Interestingly, the director Meyers had a similar relationship with Charles Shyer, a writer/producer/director. She married him in 1980, and they parted ways in 1999. This Netflix-Meyers project was announced early in 2022, and Jennifer Lawrence was initially in talks to star as the lead.

    However, she later departed from the project. Meyers will be making a comeback with Paris Paramount, as her last directorial was the 2015 film, The Intern. Some of Nancy Meyers’ best works include Private Benjamin, Baby Boom, The Parent Trap, The Holiday and It’s Complicated.

    Nancy Meyers will be returning to the director’s chair for a new project which she will be writing, directing and producing for Netflix. Currently titled Paris Paramount, the film is likely to star Scarlett Johansson,  Penélope Cruz, Michael Fassbender, and Owen Wilson among others. 

    Paris Paramount will revolve around a budding writer-director who shares a professional and romantic partnership with her producer. After their break up, they’re forced to work together when they collaborate on a massive new project. Amidst the chaos of a star-studded movie production, they try to navigate their relationship. 

    Interestingly, the director Meyers had a similar relationship with Charles Shyer, a writer/producer/director. She married him in 1980, and they parted ways in 1999. This Netflix-Meyers project was announced early in 2022, and Jennifer Lawrence was initially in talks to star as the lead.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); });

    However, she later departed from the project. Meyers will be making a comeback with Paris Paramount, as her last directorial was the 2015 film, The Intern. Some of Nancy Meyers’ best works include Private Benjamin, Baby Boom, The Parent Trap, The Holiday and It’s Complicated.

  • Nancy Meyers to direct big-budget romance for Netflix

    Express News Service

    Nancy Meyers will be returning to the director’s chair for a new project which she will be writing, directing and producing for Netflix. Currently titled Paris Paramount, the film is likely to star Scarlett Johansson,  Penélope Cruz, Michael Fassbender, and Owen Wilson among others. 

    Paris Paramount will revolve around a budding writer-director who shares a professional and romantic partnership with her producer. After their break up, they’re forced to work together when they collaborate on a massive new project. Amidst the chaos of a star-studded movie production, they try to navigate their relationship. 

    Interestingly, the director Meyers had a similar relationship with Charles Shyer, a writer/producer/director. She married him in 1980, and they parted ways in 1999. This Netflix-Meyers project was announced early in 2022, and Jennifer Lawrence was initially in talks to star as the lead.

    However, she later departed from the project. Meyers will be making a comeback with Paris Paramount, as her last directorial was the 2015 film, The Intern. Some of Nancy Meyers’ best works include Private Benjamin, Baby Boom, The Parent Trap, The Holiday and It’s Complicated.

    Nancy Meyers will be returning to the director’s chair for a new project which she will be writing, directing and producing for Netflix. Currently titled Paris Paramount, the film is likely to star Scarlett Johansson,  Penélope Cruz, Michael Fassbender, and Owen Wilson among others. 

    Paris Paramount will revolve around a budding writer-director who shares a professional and romantic partnership with her producer. After their break up, they’re forced to work together when they collaborate on a massive new project. Amidst the chaos of a star-studded movie production, they try to navigate their relationship. 

    Interestingly, the director Meyers had a similar relationship with Charles Shyer, a writer/producer/director. She married him in 1980, and they parted ways in 1999. This Netflix-Meyers project was announced early in 2022, and Jennifer Lawrence was initially in talks to star as the lead.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); });

    However, she later departed from the project. Meyers will be making a comeback with Paris Paramount, as her last directorial was the 2015 film, The Intern. Some of Nancy Meyers’ best works include Private Benjamin, Baby Boom, The Parent Trap, The Holiday and It’s Complicated.

  • Lesli Linka Glatter to direct Robert De Niro’s first TV series ‘Zero Day’

    By Express News Service

    We had earlier reported that Robert De Niro will be starring in a Netflix limited series titled Zero Day. The series’ story was pitched by  Eric Newman and Noah Oppenheim. The latest news is that Lesli Linka Glatter will be directing this series. 

    Robert De NiroThe plot details of Zero Day have also been revealed. A political thriller, the official logline of the series reads, “Zero Day asks the question on everyone’s mind — how do we find truth in a world in crisis, one seemingly being torn apart by forces outside our control?

    And in an era rife with conspiracy theory and subterfuge, how much of those forces are products of our own doing, perhaps even of our own imagining?” 

    De Niro’s character is of a former President of the United States, who is looped in to help solve this national conundrum. His role in Zero Day will mark the two-time Oscar Winner’s first starring TV role. 

    Director Glatter has previously directed Mad Men and Homeland. Homeland falls into the same genre as Zero Day and had a successful run with 8 seasons.

     Robert De Niro will also executive produce the series along with starring as the lead. There’s no release date set for Zero Day, and it isn’t known when production will begin. 

    We had earlier reported that Robert De Niro will be starring in a Netflix limited series titled Zero Day. The series’ story was pitched by  Eric Newman and Noah Oppenheim. The latest news is that Lesli Linka Glatter will be directing this series. 

    Robert De NiroThe plot details of Zero Day have also been revealed. A political thriller, the official logline of the series reads, “Zero Day asks the question on everyone’s mind — how do we find truth in a world in crisis, one seemingly being torn apart by forces outside our control?

    And in an era rife with conspiracy theory and subterfuge, how much of those forces are products of our own doing, perhaps even of our own imagining?” googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); });

    De Niro’s character is of a former President of the United States, who is looped in to help solve this national conundrum. His role in Zero Day will mark the two-time Oscar Winner’s first starring TV role. 

    Director Glatter has previously directed Mad Men and Homeland. Homeland falls into the same genre as Zero Day and had a successful run with 8 seasons.

     Robert De Niro will also executive produce the series along with starring as the lead. There’s no release date set for Zero Day, and it isn’t known when production will begin.
     

  • Lesli Linka Glatter to direct Robert De Niro’s first TV series ‘Zero Day’

    By Express News Service

    We had earlier reported that Robert De Niro will be starring in a Netflix limited series titled Zero Day. The series’ story was pitched by  Eric Newman and Noah Oppenheim. The latest news is that Lesli Linka Glatter will be directing this series. 

    Robert De NiroThe plot details of Zero Day have also been revealed. A political thriller, the official logline of the series reads, “Zero Day asks the question on everyone’s mind — how do we find truth in a world in crisis, one seemingly being torn apart by forces outside our control?

    And in an era rife with conspiracy theory and subterfuge, how much of those forces are products of our own doing, perhaps even of our own imagining?” 

    De Niro’s character is of a former President of the United States, who is looped in to help solve this national conundrum. His role in Zero Day will mark the two-time Oscar Winner’s first starring TV role. 

    Director Glatter has previously directed Mad Men and Homeland. Homeland falls into the same genre as Zero Day and had a successful run with 8 seasons.

     Robert De Niro will also executive produce the series along with starring as the lead. There’s no release date set for Zero Day, and it isn’t known when production will begin. 

    We had earlier reported that Robert De Niro will be starring in a Netflix limited series titled Zero Day. The series’ story was pitched by  Eric Newman and Noah Oppenheim. The latest news is that Lesli Linka Glatter will be directing this series. 

    Robert De NiroThe plot details of Zero Day have also been revealed. A political thriller, the official logline of the series reads, “Zero Day asks the question on everyone’s mind — how do we find truth in a world in crisis, one seemingly being torn apart by forces outside our control?

    And in an era rife with conspiracy theory and subterfuge, how much of those forces are products of our own doing, perhaps even of our own imagining?” googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); });

    De Niro’s character is of a former President of the United States, who is looped in to help solve this national conundrum. His role in Zero Day will mark the two-time Oscar Winner’s first starring TV role. 

    Director Glatter has previously directed Mad Men and Homeland. Homeland falls into the same genre as Zero Day and had a successful run with 8 seasons.

     Robert De Niro will also executive produce the series along with starring as the lead. There’s no release date set for Zero Day, and it isn’t known when production will begin.