The Town with Matthew Belloni

Latest Episodes:

Will Smith’s Comeback and the Butts-in-Seats Star Ranking Jun 11, 2024

Show notes

Matt is joined by Bloomberg’s Lucas Shaw to discuss Will Smith’s return to box office stardom after the success of ‘Bad Boys: Ride or Die’ and if this marks the official return for Will Smith as one of Hollywood's most dependable theatrical movie stars. They then discuss which movie stars can reliably open an original movie in theaters, and whether directors are more bankable than actors (03:01). Matt finishes the show with a prediction about the NBA Finals ratings (25:18).

For a 20 percent discount on Matt’s Hollywood insider newsletter, ‘What I’m Hearing ...,’ click this link: puck.news/thetown

Email us your thoughts! thetown@spotify.com

Host: Matt Belloni

Guest: Lucas Shaw

Producers: Craig Horlbeck and Jessie Lopez

Theme Song: Devon Renaldo

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The Science of Green-Lighting Movies Jun 07, 2024

Show notes

Matt is joined by Joshua Lynn, the president of Piedmont Media Research, to discuss the research studios use to determine what people want out of their movies and how to give it to him. Before the movie is green-lit, studios use research to know if people want a new tornado movie, or a biopic about Robert Oppenheimer, or how Denzel Washington will elevate a project's box office potential (02:43). Matt finishes the show with a prediction about Netflix’s stock price (25:32).

For a 20 percent discount on Matt’s Hollywood insider newsletter, ‘What I’m Hearing ...,’ click this link: puck.news/thetown

Email us your thoughts! thetown@spotify.com

Host: Matt Belloni

Guest: Joshua Lynn

Producers: Craig Horlbeck and Jessie Lopez

Theme Song: Devon Renaldo

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Is Netflix Fumbling Ads? Jun 05, 2024

Show notes

Matt is joined by ad industry insider Michael Kassan to discuss the newest frontier in streaming: advertising! Michael and Matt take a look specifically at Netflix and give their report card on the streamer's initial push into the ad space. They also look more broadly at the streaming ad ecosystem and wonder whether the influx of live events as well as the Great Rebundling of services will help kick-start the ad market (03:04). Matt finishes the show with an opening-weekend box office prediction for the fourth installment in the 'Bad Boys' franchise, 'Bad Boys: Ride or Die' (26:00).

For a 20 percent discount on Matt’s Hollywood insider newsletter, ‘What I’m Hearing ...,’ click this link: puck.news/thetown

Email us your thoughts! thetown@spotify.com

Host: Matt Belloni

Guest: Michael Kassan

Producers: Craig Horlbeck and Jessie Lopez

Theme Song: Devon Renaldo

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The 2024 Summer Concert Tour Draft Jun 03, 2024

Show notes

Matt is joined by Bloomberg’s Lucas Shaw for the first summer concert tour draft (02:34). They each draft four musical acts that will be touring this summer, which will be judged based on the gross totals for the tours. Similar to the box office draft, Matt and Lucas will each give the other an opposing tour as well. To finish off the show, Matt welcomes back producer Craig from his trip and makes a prediction on which bid will win over Shari Redstone for Paramount (23:50).

For a 20 percent discount on Matt’s Hollywood insider newsletter, ‘What I’m Hearing ...,’ click this link: puck.news/thetown

Email us your thoughts! thetown@spotify.com

Host: Matt Belloni

Guest: Lucas Shaw

Producers: Craig Horlbeck and Jessie Lopez

Theme Song: Devon Renaldo

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

TV Viewers Are Getting Old. Do Advertisers Care? May 31, 2024

Show notes

Matt is joined by Wall Street Journal reporter Isabella Simonetti to discuss an article she wrote that focuses on the older ages of television viewers and how it has affected advertisers (03:35). They go through how the pitches to ad buyers have shifted, the age gap between people who consume traditional linear TV and streaming, whether age demographics are still used, the growing acceptance of older casts on TV, and whether linear TV is beginning to age out. Matt finishes the show with a prediction about the distribution of 'The Apprentice,' which highlights Donald Trump’s rise during his business career (19:50).

For a 20 percent discount on Matt’s Hollywood insider newsletter, ‘What I’m Hearing ...,’ click this link: puck.news/thetown

Email us your thoughts! thetown@spotify.com

Host: Matt Belloni

Guest: Isabella Simonetti

Producer: Jessie Lopez

Theme Song: Devon Renaldo

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The Memorial Day Box Office Meltdown May 28, 2024

Show notes

Matt is joined by Bloomberg’s Lucas Shaw to discuss the terrible Memorial Day box office weekend (02:36). They discuss the potential fallout from the disastrous weekend and the repercussions of May’s disappointing box office results, as well as debate whether studios will look to release fewer movies. Then, Matt finishes off the show with a prediction about Warner Bros. Discovery's NBA broadcasting rights (25:24).

For a 20 percent discount on Matt’s Hollywood insider newsletter, ‘What I’m Hearing ...,’ click this link: puck.news/thetown

Email us your thoughts! thetown@spotify.com

Host: Matt Belloni

Guest: Lucas Shaw

Producer: Jessie Lopez

Theme Song: Devon Renaldo

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Everyone Hates Ticketmaster, but Is It a Monopoly? May 24, 2024

Show notes

Matt is joined by Puck’s Eriq Gardner to discuss the U.S. government's monopoly lawsuit against Ticketmaster and Live Nation (02:58). They briefly go through the history of the Ticketmaster–Live Nation merger, what lead to the eventual lawsuit, why concert prices won’t go down even if the two companies split, whether this lawsuit is just a PR attack against Ticketmaster, what impact this could have on the secondary markets, what a broken up Ticketmaster–Live Nation would look like, and more. Matt finishes the show with a prediction for this weekend’s holiday box office (27:00).

For a 20 percent discount on Matt’s Hollywood insider newsletter, ‘What I’m Hearing ...,’ click this link: puck.news/thetown

Email us your thoughts! thetown@spotify.com

Host: Matt Belloni

Guest: Eriq Gardner

Producer: Jessie Lopez

Theme Song: Devon Renaldo

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Scarlett Johansson Vs. OpenAI: Does She Have a Case? May 22, 2024

Show notes

Matt is joined by Greenberg Glusker partner and entertainment litigator Aaron Moss to discuss the situation between Scarlett Johansson and OpenAI (03:38). They discuss what rights were possibly implicated, talk about the different routes she can take if she decides to file a lawsuit, and compare previous similar cases to determine if she could win. Matt finishes the show by making a prediction on the future of the CW Network (26:01).

For a 20 percent discount on Matt’s Hollywood insider newsletter, ‘What I’m Hearing ...,’ click this link: puck.news/thetown

Email us your thoughts! thetown@spotify.com

Host: Matt Belloni

Guest: Aaron Moss

Producer: Jessie Lopez

Theme Song: Devon Renaldo

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A War Is Coming Over Hollywood Pay May 20, 2024

Show notes

Matt is joined by Bloomberg’s Lucas Shaw to discuss why Netflix, Apple, and other streaming platforms are looking to change how they pay actors (03:25). After years of paying big up-front checks with no back end, streamers are looking to balance out their ballooning budgets by better aligning pay with performance. They debate why this change is happening now, how advertisements on these platforms could bring about more transparency, and whether this new model could actually work. Matt finishes the show with predictions on Kevin Costner’s ‘Horizon: An American Saga’ and Francis Ford Coppola’s ‘Megalopolis’ (24:36).

For a 20 percent discount on Matt’s Hollywood insider newsletter, ‘What I’m Hearing ...,’ click this link:puck.news/thetown

Email us your thoughts! thetown@spotify.com

Host: Matt Belloni

Guest: Lucas Shaw

Producer: Jessie Lopez

Theme Song: Devon Renaldo

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

NFL on Netflix, and Big Tech’s TV Upfronts Takeover May 16, 2024

Show notes

Matt is joined by media analyst Rich Greenfield to give out their biggest takeaways from the TV up-fronts, including Netlifx’s three-year deal with the NFL, YouTube’s impressive viewership data, Amazon’s slew of splashy announcements, and why this year might mark a turning point in media (02:20). Matt finishes the show with a discussion of the newest ‘Wicked’ trailer and the future of two-part movies (24:55).

For a 20 percent discount on Matt’s Hollywood insider newsletter, ‘What I’m Hearing ...,’ click this link:puck.news/thetown

Email us your thoughts! thetown@spotify.com

Host: Matt Belloni

Guest: Rich Greenfield

Producers: Craig Horlbeck and Jessie Lopez

Theme Song: Devon Renaldo

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices