As reported by The Verge: “Behind the scenes, Netflix scrambled to minimize public backlash by suppressing the film in search results prior to its release. It removed ‘Cuties’ from the ‘coming soon’ and ‘popular searches’ categories and excluded it from queries for ‘cute.’ It then adjusted its algorithm so searches for the film would not surface ‘steamy / sexual titles’ or kids’ movies.” According to internal documents reviewed by The Verge, Netflix said in its own words that it was dealing with the “Cuties” backlash by “suppress[ing] promotion and related search queries....

In the trailer, it appears as if Oh’s character is in a relationship with a professor played by Jay Duplass, who also happens to be at the root of their university’s latest scandal. As Oh’s new department chair tries to navigate a path forward for the school as well as her close friend and employee, events push her into thinking she was brought in as a patsy — someone to blame when the PR problems become insurmountable....

The New York Times reported that Netflix executives were allegedly told that an ad-supported platform will be released in the last three months of 2022. Additionally, the internal memo cited an accelerated plan to limit password-sharing among subscribers, which the streamer has already addressed with a test $2.99 sharing fee program in Chile, Costa Rica, and Peru. “Yes, it’s fast and ambitious and it will require some trade-offs,” the Netflix memo read, as reported by the Times....

Per The Wall Street Journal, Netflix plans to expand the Preview Club, which currently has roughly 2,000 subscribers in the United States, to include over 10,000 users globally. This expansion will reportedly occur early next year. According to the story, Netflix test audiences have already resulted in alterations to films like Adam McKay’s “Don’t Look Up” and shows like “The Sandman.” “Don’t Look Up” was dinged by subscribers who previewed the film for being “too serious,” leading to McKay making changes to the film to emphasize its comedic bent....

The currently untitled documentary is set to debut its first footage at a Hall H panel at San Diego Comic-Con moderated by Kevin Smith this month. But today, the film’s producers at Legion M have begun accepting non-binding reservations that allow fans to be the first to know when investment opportunities become available. The film is directed by Alexandre O. Philippe, the filmmaker who unpacked Hitchcock’s “Psycho” shower scene frame by frame with the documentary “78/52” and most recently premiered “Lynch/Oz,” about David Lynch’s enduring obsession with “The Wizard of Oz,” at Tribeca....

In a new interview with Rolling Stone, Cage spent plenty of time reflecting on his most iconic roles, but was eager to discuss future projects. The actor expressed hope that his comedic turn in “Massive Talent” could lead to him making more comedies like “Raising Arizona,” but also revealed another genre he’s itching to try. “Right now, I’m excited that the comedy is back on the menu. It hasn’t been there for, gosh, 15 years....

A video essay released by the New York Times Opinion section Saturday attempts to convince Trump to stop his flailing and concede. The minute-and-a-half-long video, titled “You Can Do This, Donald Trump,” outlines the long history of Americans meeting defeat with grace. From little leaguers to Richard Nixon, Chai Dingari’s video illustrates just how unprecedented Trump’s rejection of losing really is. Watch the video below. The video opens with shots of famous winners: Regina King’s 2019 Oscar win....

HBO Max’s synopsis for “One Perfect Shot” states that “each episode arms one acclaimed director with an arsenal of visual tools to pull back the curtain on their most iconic shots. Using state of the art technology, the directors will literally enter each shot, walking through the scene in 360 moments that allow viewers to join an immersive exploration of moviemaking. Filmmakers will share their obstacles, challenges, lessons, and triumphs as they detail how they created their crowning cinematic achievements....

That show of Academy support buttresses Jane Campion’s Western noir as the Oscar frontrunner. Can Netflix finally score a Best Picture win? The streamer has come a long way since its last best shot for a Best Picture statuette, “Roma.” Last year another craft-friendly film, David Fincher’s “Mank,” scored mentions in 10 categories and wound up with just two craft wins. “The Power of the Dog” will perform far better, but its fate depends on how its rivals fare in the next five weeks of campaigning....

Updated February 11: The sound Oscar nominees — “Belfast” (Focus Features), “Dune” (Warner Bros.), “No Time to Die” (MGM/UA), “West Side Story” (20th Century/Disney), and “The Power of the Dog” (Netflix) — provide a range of imaginative soundscapes that connect to the personal stories in fresh ways. However, the sonic power and complexity of Denis Villeneuve’s “Dune” is going to be hard to beat. Its great achievement is creating a grounded reality that is both innovative and believable....

“I’ve seen ‘The French Dispatch’ and I thought it was great,” said Wilson, who previously worked with Anderson on films including “Bottle Rocket,” “The Royal Tenenbaums,” “The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou,” and “The Grand Budapest Hotel,” among others, including a voice role on “Fantastic Mr. Fox.” Wilson said “The French Dispatch” is “so original and unique, and there’s sort of three main stories in there. I love them all,” he said, including “the one with Benicio [Del Toro] and Lea Seydoux....

On Monday, Wells Fargo downgraded Paramount’s stock (PARA) for the second time this month. The first time was October 4, when analysts downgraded PARA from “Underweight” (undervalued, so Buy) to “Equal Weight” (valued appropriately, so Hold) and its target price per share from a healthy $40 to just $19. This morning, Wells Fargo labeled PARA as “Overweight” (overvalued, so Sell) and chopped another $6 off its target price. So now Paramount is worth just $13 per share in the eyes of Steven Cahall’s team of researchers and number crunchers....

“They asked me if I wanted to [be] involved – [writer-producer Fran Walsh] and I – and I said, ‘That’s an impossible question to answer without seeing a script,’” Jackson said. “So they said, ‘As soon as we get the first couple scripts, we’ll send them to you.’ And the scripts never showed up. That’s the last thing I heard, which is fine. No complaints at all.” “In pursuing the rights for our show, we were obligated to keep the series distinct and separate from the films,” a spokesperson for the company said....

“‘Luca’ doesn’t even have a premium price next to it,” one staffer told Insider. “Does it make it lesser? It’s hard to grasp.” “We don’t want to be a title just on Disney Plus,” another staffer who is working on several upcoming Pixar movies added. “These movies are crafted for the big screen. We want you to watch these movies with no distractions, no looking at your phones.” Related How Iger May Do What Chapek Wouldn’t: Spin Off ESPN ‘Avatar: The Way of Water’ Grosses Lower than Expected $17 Million Thursday: What It Means Related Martin Scorsese’s Favorite Movies: 53 Films the Director Wants You to See Growing Number of Contenders Makes 2023 Best International Feature Race Less Predictable Several Pixar sources said Docter was not happy with Disney’s decision to move “Soul” onto Disney+ exclusively, although any fears about the transition were quelled by the movie performing well on streaming....

It’s a delightful reversal of fortune for Ryan, who is now president and CEO of streaming at Paramount. “We launched on April Fool’s Day in 2014,” he told IndieWire, “and lots of people thought we were indeed fools.” Pluto wasn’t, and FAST isn’t. With results like that, who needs subscribers? The coin of the realm is MAUs, otherwise known as Monthly Active Users. Pluto ended 2021 with more than 64 million monthly active users, according to Paramount financial reports....

“They don’t pretend to be news. It’s fictional — but it’s loosely based on the truth. Of course it’s not strictly accurate, of course,” Prince Harry said. “But loosely, it gives you a rough idea about what that lifestyle — what the pressures of putting duty and service above family and everything else — what can come from that.” Prince Harry continued, “I’m way more comfortable with ‘The Crown’ than I am seeing the stories written about my family or my wife or myself....

During an interview on “Love Your Weekend with Alan Titchmarsh” (via Today), Spencer said Americans have a tendency to take “The Crown” as fact, which he won’t stand by now that Diana is a prominent character. Spencer also rejected “The Crown” team’s request to film part of the new season at the Spencer family’s ancestral home in Northamptonshire, England. “‘The Crown’ asked if they could film at Althorp and I said obviously not,” Spencer said....

But their previous collaboration on the Asian-American rom-com hit proved to be a valuable springboard for transforming Washington Heights into a playground for each musical number. Only the amount of detail was staggering and a lot more complex, as they incorporated influences from the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, and Cuba. “One of the exciting ideas that Jon had for the whole movie, instead of having each number being variations on a theme, he wanted each one to have its own identity and its own look and feel,” Coates said....

“Subversion on a massive level, audience response, cause and effect on the screen, feeling the atmosphere in the theater change; we’ve talked about all these things,” Tarantino told Wright (via The Playlist). “[However], the talk show sequence in the ‘Joker’ encompasses all of these things on a profound level, a level that is over most viewers’ heads to tell you the truth.” The scene in question finds Arthur/Joker appearing as a guest on Murray Franklin’s late night talk show....

“I was so scared to do that,” Witherspoon said when naming “Wild” the biggest acting challenge of her career. “I had hypnosis, I was so scared. I was having panic attacks for three weeks before I started. There was the nudity, sexuality, and drug-use aspect, but also being alone on camera with no other actors. I hadn’t ever been alone in scenes for days and days. There were probably 25 days of the shoot where I had no other actor opposite me....