The Ankler Podcast
Listen in as The Ankler team and industry insiders break down Hollywoodâs latest business headlines, power struggles and trends shaping the future of entertainment. theankler.com
Hollywoodâs DEI Cave-in; Post-Fires Leave L.A. Debate
As President Trump seeks to banish diversity, equity and inclusion, Disney buried its initiative this week, and Amazon continues to âevolveâ its own. Sean McNulty, Elaine Low, Richard Rushfield and contributor Nicole LaPorte dive into whether Hollywood was ever committed to the cause â as Nicole says, âthe erosion of DEI here has been going on for a quite a whileâ â and how to tell a real pronouncement from a fake one. Plus: How the L.A. wildfires have fueled a real estate frenzy while TV workers debate whether to flee the city altogether.
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Inside #StayinLA; Two Minutes with Bob Iger; SpinCo Woe
Disney started its latest earnings call with an uncharacteristically terse Bob Iger avoiding a trio of unpleasant topics: linear TV, declining Disney+ subscriber totals and Donald Trump. What wasnât said spoke volumes, but a few messages rang clear: film keeps churning out hits, ESPN has good/less good news, and the streaming division is firmly in the black. Meanwhile, SEC filings paint a bleak start to the future SpinCo, and a look inside the do-or-die #StayinLA movement. Sean McNulty, Elaine Low and Richard Rushfield break it all down.
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A Dire Sundance, Indie Peril & the Creator Incursion
Just two deals and Sundance is almost over? Ouch. Richard Rushfield, on the ground at the fest, gives his report on indie malaise and how to fix it. Plus: Sean McNulty, Elaine Low and Richard on Peacock and NBCUâs troubling Q4, and Netflixâs showy 2025 slate, while Natalie Jarvey, author of the new Like & Subscribe newsletter, on why Hollywood absolutely should âwork withâ the creators upending entertainment.
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'Creators Should Be in Charge': Sean Evans, Rhett & Link
Natalie Jarvey, author of Like & Subscribe, Ankler Media's new newsletter about the creator economy, speaks with YouTube stars Sean Evans, host of Hot Ones, and Rhett McLaughlin and Link Neal â aka Rhett & Link, hosts of Good Mythical Morning. With 40 million subscribers between them, these digital innovators unpack the opportunities â creative, collaborative and financial â that come with betting on themselves. "If we can be even a small part of the story of another creator taking back something that they initiated and then taking the reins and leading, thatâs the type of story that we love and we want to champion," says...
The New Showbiz: Hollywood, Creators, & Brands
The entertainment industry for years turned its nose up at brand-backed film and TV, but in a disrupted Hollywood scrambling for new business models and fresh voices, the tide is turning. Natalie Jarvey, the writer of Like & Subscribe, Ankler Media's new standalone newsletter about the creator economy, moderates a discussion with four top stakeholders â Oscar-winning producer Dan Cogan (âIcarusâ), Adobe Chief Brand Officer Heather Freeland, creator Jordan Howlett and UTA Entertainment Marketing Co-Head Julian Jacobs â about how marketers, filmmakers and creators are collaborating on innovative and meaningful storytelling. âEverybody loves a good story, and brands are aligning with that in a lot of interest...
Hollywoodâs New Trick to Screw Writers
Who loves doing free work? No one. Who loves getting free work? The studios. âIf-comeâ deals â where a writer develops a show under contract but only sees money if the show sells â are on the rise post-Writers Guild strike and have led to a new âinvoluntary servitude,â even among big-name scribes. Ashley Cullins joins Sean McNulty, Elaine Low and Richard Rushfield to outline whatâs happening and whoâs fighting back. Plus: Katey Rich breaks down Oscar nominations, and Elaine shares the state of the unscripted market.
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L.A. Production Spiral. Trump to the Rescue?
Can Jon Voight save Hollywood? Probably not. But President Trumpâs announcement that the Midnight Cowboy, Mad Max (Mel Gibson) and Rocky (Sylvester Stallone) would be his âspecial envoysâ in L.A. on the eve of his inauguration followed the latest report on L.A.âs continued production exodus. Sean McNulty, Elaine Low and Richard Rushfield dissect the numbers and where the industry is heading in 2025. Plus: How is Gen Z outfoxing studio and streaming marketers? Matthew Frank explains.Â
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âAn Intense Couple of Daysâ
âEverybody was feeling really optimistic going into this year,â says Elaine Low â and while there are encouraging signs for Hollywood, from new business models to a return to the fundamentals, she and Richard Rushfield tell Sean McNulty about friends who have lost homes, Richardâs memories of growing up in Pacific Palisades, and Elaineâs anxiety over suddenly preparing a go-bag. On a lighter note: They also dissect their night at Netflixâs WWE Raw premiere â with Richard announcing whom heâll be fighting at the next WrestleMania.
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Tales From the â90s: How New Line Dominated the Decade
For the capstone of his Hollywood Stories series exploring the 1990s â an era of explosive creativity and innovation in the entertainment industry â Richard Rushfield talks to two execs who helped New Line Cinema become the movie studio of that golden moment. Mike De Luca is today the co-chair and CEO of Warner Bros. Motion Picture Group, but in the â90s he was the head of production at New Line, a powerful role he stepped into at the tender age of 27. Richard Brener started as a temp at New Line in 1995 and never left, working his way up to run the studio...
Lively vs. Baldoni: Lawsuits! ExposĂŠs! Rumors!

Blake Lively alleges a full-on smear campaign aimed against her. Justin Baldoni claims the star of his It Ends With Us used the New York Times to destroy his reputation. Sean McNulty, Elaine Low and Richard Rushfield discuss the fallout of the feud heard round the world, the YouTube journalist roped into the ruckus, and why Richard boils it all down to typical Hollywood bluster. Plus: The crew breaks down how animation and IP defined the 2024 box office.
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