Latest news with #Studios
Hypebeast
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Hypebeast
Official 'Peacemaker' Season 2 Trailer Hints at Multiverse Madness and Personal Demons
Summary John Cena's Christopher Smith is back, and the world is about to get a whole lot Studios, co-run byJames Gunn, unveiled the highly anticipated official trailer forPeacemakerSeason 2 at San Diego Comic-Con today. The footage confirms the show will debut onHBO Max(now Max) on Thursday, August 21, 2025, promising a wild ride through parallel dimensions and deeply personal demons. The trailer immediately plunges viewers into Peacemaker's new reality, where he seemingly discovers a 'better' parallel dimension. This isn't just about a new costume or a happier love life with Emilia Harcourt (Jennifer Holland); it's a world that subtly mirrors his own, offering a tempting escape from the baggage of Season 1. However, this newfound peace is short-lived. The idyllic parallel universe quickly proves to have its own dangers, including giant monsters. More critically, the trailer introduces Rick Flag Sr. (Frank Grillo), head of A.R.G.U.S. and father of the late Rick Flag Jr., who is hellbent on vengeance against Peacemaker. This dynamic sets up a central conflict, with Flag Sr. determined to shut down the dimensional rift that Peacemaker has stumbled into. Series creator James Gunn emphasizes that Season 2 will see a different Peacemaker. He's 'dealing with the demons he uncovered from the first season and trying to deal with them, and the world is not accepting him the way he is.' This growth (and potential regression) is central to Gunn's vision, as Smith grapples with his misguided quest for peace at all costs while trying to reconcile his past with a newfound sense of purpose. The ghost of his racist father, Auggie (Robert Patrick), will also haunt him, like a 'sour Obi-Wan Kenobi.' The Season 2 narrative reportedly takes place approximately a month after the events of DC Studios'Supermanfeature film, further integrating Peacemaker into the broader DC Universe continuity. Returning cast members include Danielle Brooks (Leota Adebayo), Freddie Stroma (Vigilante), Steve Agee (John Economos), Jennifer Holland (Emilia Harcourt), and Dee Bradley Baker (Eagly). They are joined by new additions like Sol Rodriguez and Tim Meadows, adding fresh faces to the chaotic ensemble. With James Gunn having written all eight episodes and directing three, including the premiere,PeacemakerSeason 2 promises to deliver the same unhinged humor, emotional depth, and explosive action that made its first season a fan favorite. The trailer, set to the tune of Ozzy Osbourne's 'Road Going Nowhere,' assures fans that this season will be as fun as it is pivotal for Peacemaker's journey.
Time of India
4 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
UK's ITV half-year comes in ahead on advertising beat, shares rise
British broadcaster ITV said its first-half performance beat forecasts, boosted by better-than-expected total advertising revenue, and strong content demand at its Studios business, pushing its shares higher. ITV is Britain's biggest free-to-air commercial broadcaster, with two divisions, Media and Entertainment, which includes its broadcast channels and streaming service ITVX, while Studios makes content such as 'The Devil's Hour' for Amazon Prime Video, and 'Run Away' for Netflix. Shares in ITV traded up 9% in early deals, hitting their highest for a year, after it said it was on track to meet targets, and had outperformed in a tough advertising market, given the comparison against the same period last year when the Men's Euros soccer tournament sent revenues soaring. "We've been able to mitigate a softer market," CEO Carolyn McCall told reporters on Thursday. ITV was also positive on the cost outlook, saying it had found an additional 15 million pounds ($20.4 million) of permanent non-content cost savings for this year, and added it would spend 1.23 billion pounds on content in total in 2025, lower than the 1.25 billion pounds previously guided. ITV has for some time been the subject of takeover speculation. In April, reports said it could sell its Studios business or merge it with a rival. "We won't comment on any of the speculation that has been going on for, I don't know, years," McCall said. "This whole sector, everyone talks to everyone, and everyone is talking to everyone. And you know that the board will keep all options under review." The group posted total advertising revenue (TAR) down 7% for the first six months, beating a consensus forecast for a fall of 8%. At ITV Studios, where profits will be weighted to the second half due to the timing of high-margin sales such as Rivals season 2 for Disney+, the company said its outlook was unchanged after revenues grew 3% in the first-half.
Daily Mail
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
The shock casting method show bosses use to select Love Island contestants has been revealed
The shock casting method used by Love Island bosses to select contestants for the show has been revealed. It's been reported that ITV execs have admitted to using artificial intelligence as part of the casting process for the reality TV show. After the cast of the 2025 series was revealed earlier this year, fans were quick to mock the newbies as 'clones' of the previous stars, with the likes of Megan Forte Clarke being compared to 2019 islander Maura Higgins. And now The Sun reports that automated technology has been used to whittle down the thousands of applicants for the show. Speaking as ITV announced its half-year results, ITV chief executive Dame Carolyn McCall shared: 'We will use AI in any way we can to make what we do more efficient. 'And a great example of that for me from (ITV) Studios is they're using a tool where it's a smart editing assistance and it's about speed and quality. And they used it for Love Island and casting this year.' She added that the team 'rated it eight out of ten'. Meanwhile, an ITV spokesperson confirmed to MailOnline that AI was not directly used to make casting decisions, but rather to edit hundreds of hours of footage into highlight reels for the team to watch. They shared: 'It simply assists with the editing of audition tapes during the casting period. 'We get thousands and thousands of applications every year and we hold face to face auditions. 'When we get to the stage of narrowing it down to hundreds of prospective Islanders and we want to share audition highlights on a reel with the ITV commissioning team, to support the casting decision, we use the software (Quickture along with an Adobe editing programme) to edit the hundreds of hours of footage into highlight reels.' They added that the process means the casting team can 'spend more time researching' and looking for more prospective Islanders. It comes as Love Island fans have hit out at show bosses during Thursday's episode after they were left unimpressed by how Shakira Khan was given the 'villain edit'. Prior to the episode airing, It was reported that the 22-year-old threatened to quit the ITV2 dating show over the situation with Harry. A source told The Sun: 'She went to the beach hut and asked to leave the villa. 'The duty of care team were able to help her through her emotions and she decided to stay.' In the latest episode of the ITV show, the infamous Grafties returned - where contestants are shown clips on a big screen that either revive past drama or highlight hilarious moments that most of the villa hadn't seen before. The nominees for the Best Double Act award were Dejon and Helena, Toni and Shakira, and Helena and Meg. During the clips, Toni and Shakira were seen talking negatively about Meg, following movie night. After watching the gossip on the big screen, Meg said she felt that Shakira and Toni were 'fake to her face,' prompting Toni to fire back: 'So are you. You act like you never say a bad thing about anyone.' Next came Helena and Meg's clip, which, in contrast, highlighted their blossoming friendship in the villa. Toni and Shakira went on to win the award, with Shakira saying: 'We said what we said, it was after Movie Night. 'I don't know why it's so surprising, we had a scrap that night.' It comes after Love Island fans have hit out at show bosses during Thursday's episode after they were left unimpressed by how Shakira Khan was given the 'villain edit' during the Grafties Fans are now calling out show bosses for giving Shakira the 'villain edit' during the game Fans are now calling out show bosses for giving Shakira the 'villain edit' during the game. They raged on X: 'If they hurt Shakira anymore I'm literally going to stay for the credits, note down each producers name and HUNT THEM DOWN,' 'The producers convincing Shakira to stay in the villa so she could get attacked at the grafties is just evil #LoveIsland,' 'The fact we've seen Shakira be so sad, open & vulnerable recently. And now the producers are gonna paint her out to be bad with the Grafties, and make her feel even worse :(( i don't wanna watch,' 'Look at the clip they used for Meg and Helena vs the one they used for Shakira and Toni, and tell me again with a straight face that there isn't a clear agenda,' 'Why are the producers giving Shakira and Toni this bad edit!'
Telegraph
6 days ago
- Business
- Telegraph
AI is used to cast Love Island
Artificial intelligence has been used to help casting in Love Island, it has been revealed. Dame Carolyn McCall, ITV 's chief executive, has suggested that use of the technology will increase as it has helped 'productivity gains' in the television industry. Speaking as the company announced its half-year results, she said: 'We will use AI in any way we can to make what we do more efficient. 'And a great example of that for me from [ITV] Studios is they're using a tool where it's a smart editing assistance and it's about speed and quality. 'And they used it for Love Island and casting this year,' she added. The popular reality dating series, launched in 2015, sees around 100,000 applications from members of the public for every season. It follows a group of contestants – known as the Islanders – who have to try and find love in the villa while avoiding elimination. It has become a ratings juggernaut for ITV since its launch. A spokesman for the company later explained that generative AI does not make any Love Island casting decisions, but is used to edit hundreds of hours of footage into highlight reels for members of the team to then watch. Dame Carolyn told members of the media that this 'productivity gain means that they can go and do other things, which is really, really good'. A spokesman for ITV added that AI 'simply assists with the editing of audition tapes during the casting period'. They explained: 'We get thousands and thousands of applications every year and we hold face to face auditions. 'When we get to the stage of narrowing it down to hundreds of prospective Islanders and we want to share audition highlights on a reel with the ITV commissioning team, to support the casting decision, we use the software to edit the hundreds of hours of footage into highlight reels. 'It means that the casting team can then spend more time researching and finding more prospective Islanders.' 'Latest round of cost-cutting' Announcing its latest results on Thursday, ITV said it had stepped up cost-cutting plans again following a slump in half-year profits. The broadcaster said it was slashing costs by another £15 million, on top of £30 million previously announced, with spend on content being trimmed. The group flagged using technology among efforts to drive the latest round of cost-cutting. It comes a week after Netflix said it had used the controversial technology in the production of one of its TV shows for the first time. Ted Sarandos, Netflix's co-chief executive, said visual effects were created by generative AI, which produces videos and images based on human-inputted prompts, in one of its original series titled The Eternaut. It was used to create a scene of a building collapsing in the Argentine science-fiction show. Mr Sarandos explained the technology had allowed the show's production to finish the scenes at a lower cost and 10 times faster than if they had used traditional special effects tools. The use of generative AI remains controversial in the entertainment world, however, with politicians and creatives fighting to protect artists' copyright amid concerns that AI will create content using others' work without their consent.
South Wales Guardian
6 days ago
- Business
- South Wales Guardian
AI used to aid Love Island casting process, ITV boss says
Speaking as ITV announced its half-year results, Dame Carolyn McCall said the broadcaster uses AI in many ways. 'We will use AI in any way we can to make what we do more efficient,' she told members of the media. 'And a great example of that for me from (ITV) Studios is they're using a tool where it's a smart editing assistance and it's about speed and quality. 'And they used it for Love Island and casting this year. 'So that productivity gain means that they can go and do other things, which is really, really good.' Love Island has been a huge ratings hit for ITV since its launch in 2015, with each series receiving around 100,000 applications from members of the public. A spokeswoman for ITV later explained that generative AI does not make any decisions during the Love Island casting process, but is used to edit hundreds of hours of footage into highlight reels for members of the team to then watch. 'It simply assists with the editing of audition tapes during the casting period,' she said. 'We get thousands and thousands of applications every year and we hold face to face auditions. 'When we get to the stage of narrowing it down to hundreds of prospective Islanders and we want to share audition highlights on a reel with the ITV commissioning team, to support the casting decision, we use the software (Quickture along with an Adobe editing programme) to edit the hundreds of hours of footage into highlight reels. 'It means that the casting team can then spend more time researching and finding more prospective Islanders.' Announcing its latest results on Thursday, ITV said it had stepped up cost-cutting plans again following a slump in half-year profits. The broadcaster said it was slashing costs by another £15 million, on top of £30 million previously announced, with spend on content being trimmed. The group flagged using technology among efforts to drive the latest round of cost-cutting.
