10 Global TV Stories You Should Know: 01/14/2025
Here are the stories that should be on your radar
Here are the global TV and streaming television stories that should be on your radar for Tuesday, January 14th, 2025:
Tony Slattery Dies: Comedian, Actor & ‘Whose Line Is It Anyway?’ Star Was 65 (Deadline)
Tony Slattery, the comedian and actor best known for his improvizations on hit comedy show Whose Line Is It Anyway?, died today following a heart attack two days’ ago. He was 65. Slattery’s family confirmed his death to the BBC.
Netflix Acquires ‘Anuja,’ Oscar-Shortlisted Short Film Backed By Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Mindy Kaling And Guneet Monga Kapoor (Variety)
Directed by Adam J. Graves and produced by Suchitra Mattai, “Anuja” centers on the 9-year-old title character, who works in a back-alley garment factory with her older sister Palak. The narrative follows the young protagonist as she faces a decision that will impact both her future and her family.
Survey: 37% Brits Envisage No Terrestrial TV In 20 Years (Advanced-Television)
Research commissioned by Integrated Systems Europe (ISE) polled the nation to discover how Brits envisage everyday life in 20 years’ time, with 61 per cent believing that life will be unrecognisable from the way we live today. Half (49 per cent) think social media will be banned for under sixteens, while 37 per cent believe streaming services will bring the end of terrestrial TV.
NBC Sitcom ‘Superstore’ Opening African Outlet Through Showmax Remake (Deadline)
African streamer Showmax has ordered a local version of the NBCUniversal format show. Showmax’s will be a Zulu-language adaptation produced locally by Barkers Media, which is known for shows such as Killer Front Page, Shebeen Queens and How to Manifest a Man in association with Universal International Studios. Production is set to begin this year.
About Premium Content Tempted By Finnish ‘Guts’ From ‘Money Shot’ Creators: ‘It’s ‘Black Swan’ In The Snow’ (Variety)
News of APC’s pick-up on “Guts” comes as Paris-based Federation Studios, which handles international sales with Nordisk Film on “Money Shot,” has inked first distribution deals on “Money Shot” for France (Canal+), Lithuania and Greece.
France: Arcom Creates DTT Block For News Channels (Advanced-Television)
French media regulator Arcom has adopted a new numbering of national television channels broadcast on digital terrestrial television (DTT), in particular to take into account the upcoming arrival of the new CMI TV and OFTV services, authorised on December 11th, and the decision of Canal+ to stop its broadcast on TNT.
‘30,000,000 Yen’: ‘Breaking Bad’ DNA Mixed With Public Broadcasting Values Led To Creation Of Buzzy Japanese Thriller Series (Deadline)
NHK’s 30,000,000 Yen did not materialize by accident or with any serendipity, but was the result of months and months of development and a new writers room program inspired by a course at UCLA.
Saudi Arabia Chairs Arab Media Talks In Tunisia (Arab News)
The meeting was a key step toward unifying media efforts among member states, with a strategic vision focused on promoting Arab identity, shared values and keeping pace with global media developments in line with the needs of Arab societies, he said.
‘Big Boys’ Renewed For Third & Final Season At Channel 4 (Deadline)
Big Boys, one of Channel 4’s biggest comedies of the decade, has been renewed for a third and final season. The show from Jack Rooke and starring Derry Girls’ Dylan Llewellyn will see the gang enter their final year at Brent Uni, with all the ups and downs of dissertations, deadlines, dating and the devastating departure of Louis Walsh from The X-Factor.
Vodafone Qatar Launches New OSNtv Bundles (Broadband TV News)
The partnership will offer Home Fibre customers up to 170 channels that include OSNtv Movies Premiere, OSNtv One, OSNtv Movies Family, OSNtv Kids, OSNtv Yahala, regional and international favourites: Nickelodeon, Discovery Channel, CNN, Bloomberg, Sky News, and others including local channels and top Qatari local channels; and On-Demand access: an extensive library with up to 15,000 hours of top movies and series.