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Prominent industry insiders are gathering support for Oscar consideration for the documentary “We Will Dance Again,” which chronicles the horror that unfolded at Israel’s Nova International Music Festival on Oct. 7, 2023.

Producer Marc Platt, Sean Penn, music mogul Scooter Braun and former HBO and MTV documentary chief Sheila Nevins are voicing support for the film, produced by Sipur, Bitachon 365 in collaboration with MGM Television, Hscc and Susan Zirinsky’s See It Now Studios with BBC Storyville. “We Will Dance Again” has aired on the BBC Storyville plaform in the U.K. and on Israel’s Hot Channel 8. The 90-minute documentary, written and directed by Yariv Mozer and produced by Hscc’s Michal Weits, is available in the U.S. on Paramount+.

Platt, Braun and others are hosting an invitation-only screening for the documentary on Sunday on the Paramount Pictures lot. A survivor of the terrorist attack by Hamas...

After spending months talking about his long-nurtured dream project, Megalopolis, Francis Ford Coppola embraced the chance to depart from promo tour talking points.

Calling Megaloplis “a great adventure,” Coppola affirmed with a smile in accepting his DGA Honor on Thursday night, “I decided tonight I wouldn’t say anything I’ve been saying.”

After being given the award by his granddaughter, Gia, Coppola said he was delighted to spin yarns about “how the Director’s Guild was founded.” While he didn’t do so in linear fashion, the 85-year-old filmmaker had the audience in the palm of his hand as he recounted giants of cinema and his personal touchstones, paying tribute to masters like Billy Wilder, King Vidor and Samuel Goldwyn.

When he met Jean Renoir, Coppola recalled, the French filmmaker gave him a “beautiful smile” and shook his hand “like he was welcoming me to this profession that he loved so much.

Susan Zirinsky, the former president of CBS News and longtime executive producer of its news magazine 48 Hours, is behind Paramount+’s We Will Dance Again. The documentary, which streamed on Tuesday, takes a minute-by-minute, you-are-there approach to Hamas militants’ murder and abduction of Nova music festival attendees in Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. The attack, part of a wider armed incursion that killed nearly 1,200 people, led to the ongoing Gaza war.

Director Yariv Mozer explained to The Hollywood Reporter that the film’s narrative, told through interviews with surviving festivalgoers, relies on extensive use of graphically violent video material taken in real time — including footage retrieved from the assailants — “to be able to show how enormous the scale of this attack was and the brutality of these atrocities against people who couldn’t defend themselves.”

Zirinsky, who has also produced documentaries about 9/11 and the 2017 mass shooting in Las Vegas, agreed with Mozer’s rationale.

The Paramount+ documentary “We Will Dance Again” provides viewers with an uncensored, 360-view of Hamas’ Oct. 7 terrorist attacks in Israel that left 405 dead, 45 taken hostage and many more injured. The graphic depiction of the day gives a full glimpse into the terror inflicted on innocent Israeli civilians, international visitors (including several Americans), Nova Music Festival-goers and more.

Produced by See It Now Studios, the film debuted on the streamer Tuesday, almost a year after the atrocities that sparked the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza. Using Hamas’ GoPro film recordings, social media videos and victims’ recovered cell phone footage, the documentarian team behind “We Will Dance Again” attempted to give a total picture of what really happened.

Speaking at a Los Angeles screening at the Sherry Lansing Theatre on Thursday, the film’s director Yariv Mozer (“Golda’s War Diaries”) defended the graphic nature of the documentary as being necessary and impactful.

We Will Dance Again, a Paramount+ documentary about the Hamas militants’ mass killing and hostage-taking of music festival attendees in southern Israel — part of a larger attack that triggered the ongoing Gaza war — debuted Tuesday, just ahead of the first anniversary of the Oct. 7 massacre. Director Yariv Mozer’s immersive approach elides commentary. Instead, he sticks to harrowing testimony from survivors, buttressed by graphically violent video taken in real time, including footage retrieved from the assailants. “It’s events happening in front of your eyes,” explains the film’s producer Susan Zirinsky, who’s the former head of CBS News. “There is no exaggeration, no embellishment.”

Mozer spoke to The Hollywood Reporter about why he doesn’t see the project as political, when real violence is too much for viewers, and how international buyers are taking different approaches to the film.

What’s the genesis of the project?

On the 7th of October,...

Key Art for We Will Dance Again, streaming on Paramount+ 2024. Photo credit: Paramount+ Paramount+ has announced that the award-winning documentary We Will Dance Again a harrowing account of the October 7th Hamas terror attack on the Nova Music Festival, will premiere on September 24th. The film, which won two awards at Doc Edge in June, tells the stories of more than a dozen young festival-goers who found themselves in the midst of one of the deadliest terror attacks in Israel’s history. Their eyewitness accounts are interwoven with footage they filmed themselves and footage recovered from cameras worn by Hamas, creating a shocking and deeply moving portrait of survival and loss. Among those whose stories are featured in the documentary is American Hersh Goldberg-Polin. Tragically, Hersh was among the six hostages who were recently executed by Hamas. His struggle to survive is told through the stories of friends he went to the festival with,...

Paramount+ will premiere We Will Dance Again on Sept. 24. The film documents the Hamas’ Oct. 7 terrorist attack at the Nova Music Festival last year.

The premiere date is tied near to the first anniversary of the attack that killed about 1,200 Israelis and took roughly 250 hostages. To retaliate against Hamas after the attacks, Israel launched an offensive military action in Gaza with considerable loss of life in the region.

The project from See It Now Studios features new interviews with more than a dozen survivors who were able to chronicle their harrowing experience to stay alive with exclusive cell phone footage. The doc also includes footage captured by other victims and Hamas ahead of the wider Israel-Gaza conflict.

“The human cost of the Hamas attack in Israel and the war that followed in Gaza has been catastrophic for both Israelis and Palestinians,” Susan Zirinsky, president of See It Now Studios, said in a statement.

Paramount+ will premiere its Oct. 7 documentary “We Will Dance Again” on Sept. 24. The film will feature interviews with survivors of the Hamas attack that took place at the Nova Music Festival.

“This film is a document of history, of one of the attacks that began on October 7th at 6:29 in the morning,” See It Now Studios president Susan Zirinsky said in a Thursday press release. “The human cost of the Hamas attack in Israel and the war that followed in Gaza has been catastrophic for both Israelis and Palestinians … it is a painful story of unfathomable tragedy, but also of bravery, sacrifice and heroism.”

Directed by Yariv Mozer, “We Will Dance Again” will include the experiences and anecdotes of those who attended the Nova Music Festival in 2023, with footage straight from survivors’ cell phones.

The official synopsis reads: “The Nova Music Festival was supposed to be a celebration of life,...

Phil Jones, who as a CBS News correspondent covered some of Washington’s most momentous political battles including Watergate and President Bill Clinton’s impeachment, has died. He was 87.

The network said that Jones died over the weekend in Florida. Watch a CBS News tribute reel below.

Jones began his career at an Indiana TV station before leaving to work at Wcco-tv in Minneapolis for seven years. He was one of the first local reporters to go to Vietnam, in 1965, and he later returned, according to the Indiana Journalism Hall of Fame.

He joined CBS News in 1969. He was recognized with an Emmy for his work covering Vietnam and, according to the network, was among the correspondents known as “Cronkite’s kids,” the team of reporters who were proteges to then-anchor Walter Cronkite.

Jones was present on the White House lawn as Richard Nixon resigned and left on Marine One,...

Francis Ford Coppola is among those being honored by the Directors Guild of America at its upcoming DGA Honors ceremony.

See It Now Studios President and former CBS News Executive Susan Zirinsky, Broadway Stages Founder Tony Argento along with its CEO & President Gina Argento, and film distribution company Criterion have also been selected as honorees for the event, which will be held at the DGA Theater in New York City on October 17.

“We are incredibly proud to celebrate the 25th anniversary of DGA Honors, and to recognize the accomplishments of visionary storytellers who have greatly influenced American culture through their tremendous contributions to film and television,” DGA President Lesli Linka Glatter said in a statement. “Our honorees have exhibited unparalleled dedication, creativity, and passion for our craft.”

In her statement she said Coppola has “made an indelible mark on cinema and inspired generations of Directors.”

“As Directors and members of the Directorial team,...

The 2024 Truth Seekers Summit, presented by Paramount+, took place last Thursday in New York City and was a significant event in the media industry. It focused on the art of documentary filmmaking and investigative journalism. Organized by Rolling Stone and Variety, the summit gathered an impressive roster of speakers, including notable journalists, documentarians, and public figures known for their commitment to uncovering the truth.

New York, New York – August 15: (L-r) Abby Phillip, Katy Tur, Tony Dokoupil, Yamiche Alcindor and Geoff Bennett speak onstage during the Variety and Rolling Stone...

Variety & Rolling Stone’s Truth Seekers Summit, presented by Paramount+, is dedicated to honoring those who prioritize the discovery of truth. Curated by the editors of Variety and Rolling Stone, the collection of panelists at this year’s annual summit showcased a remarkable lineup of documentary filmmakers, political journalists and overall advocates for justice. The event featured thought-provoking discussions and insights from renowned figures such as acclaimed documentary maker Alex Gibney, comedian and host Amber Ruffin, the tireless crusaders behind the “Unsolved Mysteries” series and many more.

Key moments included a panel of political correspondents and anchors comprised of Abby Phillip, Yamiche Alcindor, Katy Tur, Tony Dokoupil, and Geoff Bennett, who discussed the realities and hypocrisies of covering former President Donald Trump. CBS News President Susan Zirinsky also joined the conference to discuss the documentary “We Will Dance Again.” The event concluded with the presentation of the Truth Seekers Award to journalist E. Jean Carroll.

Susan Zirinsky, a veteran of TV-news, has lately set her sights on new frontiers.

The former CBS News President and executive producer of “48 Hours,” has since 2012 led See It New Studios, a Paramount Global production shingle that works in documentaries and unscripted series. Some are tied to true crime and others aim to provide witness to major historical events.

“The streaming world has given us a platform to really expand and deal with things in a much more profound way. And we have a wide portfolio,” says Zirinsky, who notes she can devise projects for the CBS broadcast network, Paramount+ or even a platform owned by a rival. She spoke during a one-one-one chat during “Truth Seekers,” an annual conference that spotlights documentary production and unscripted programming under the auspices of Variety and Rolling Stone, presented by Paramount+.

One of her newest projects is “We Will Dance Again,” a...

Paramount+ announced today that the award-winning film We Will Dance Again, a shocking documentary about the October 7th Hamas terror attack on the international Nova Music Festival, will have a two-day theatrical run nationwide in partnership with Iconic Events Releasing.

The film will first open in Los Angeles at Laemmle Encino for a week-long Oscar-qualifying run beginning on August 23, ahead of the advanced event screenings on Friday, August 29, and Sunday, September 1, in select theaters across the country. The See It Now Studios Original Documentary will launch on Paramount+ exclusively in the U.S. this fall.

We Will Dance Again won two awards at Doc Edge in June, including Best International Editing and the In Truth We Trust category award.

The Nova Music Festival was supposed to be a celebration of life, love, and music for thousands of young people but became one of the first targets when Hamas launched the...

The fourth annual Truth Seekers Summit, presented by Paramount+ is only days away, live on August 15th from New York City. In celebration of the event, Rolling Stone and Variety are releasing their third annual Truth Seekers special issue for those who value journalism and documentary filmmaking.

The special issue will showcase interviews with some of the most distinguished professionals in the field. CNN foreign correspondent Clarissa Ward, known for her fearless reporting from conflict zones such as Ukraine and Gaza, shares her insights and experiences. Additionally, filmmaker Jamila Wignot...

Ahead of its exclusive streaming premiere on Paramount+ planned for this fall, the documentary We Will Dance Again examining Hamas’ October 7, 2023 attack on Israel has been slated for a two-day theatrical run nationwide in partnership with Iconic Events Releasing.

The film will first open at Laemmle Encino in Los Angeles for a week-long Oscar qualifying run beginning on August 23, ahead of advanced event screenings on Friday, August 29, and Sunday, September 1, in select theaters across the country. Watch a trailer above.

As recounted in the forthcoming documentary from director Yariv Mozer (The Devil’s Confession: The Lost Eichmann Tapes), the Nova Music Festival was supposed to be a celebration of life, love and music for thousands of young people but became one of the first targets when Hamas launched the deadliest terror attack in Israel’s history on October 7th of last year. Told through the eyes of more than a dozen survivors,...

Australia’s Nine Network has become the latest buyer of powerful Israeli doc We Will Dance Again about the Nova Music Festival.

The channel has scheduled the award-winning feature documentary to air October 7, marking the one-year anniversary of the tragedy.

Commissioned soon after October 7 by Bad Boys studio Sipur, We Will Dance Again tells the stories of more than a dozen survivors in their own words. The documentary pieces together their exclusive video footage with that of the perpetrators themselves and CCTV cameras, telling the story of innocent young people forced to fight for their survival in the breathtaking intensity of real time.

We Will Dance Again has already sold to Paramount+ in the U.S., co-producers BBC Storyville in the UK, Hot Channel 8 in Israel and Norway’s Vgtv. Fulwell 73 label Bitachon 365 and MGM Television also boarded the doc in March.

Distributor Osmosis Global struck the deal with Nine.

Today, Paramount+ announced the new docuseries Pd True will premiere with ten episodes exclusively on the service in the US on Tuesday, August 6. The gripping half-hour series takes viewers into moments of crisis in some of the biggest cases of our time, as told by the police officers who worked them.

Developed by See It Now Studios, the team behind the Paramount+ hits FBI True and Never Seen Again, Pd True features real, raw, and unfiltered stories shared between the men and women officers who worked shoulder-to-shoulder to solve shocking and even unthinkable crimes.

In each episode, they recount serial killings, mass shootings, crimes of passion and revenge, and more. Viewers may have seen the headlines and know the basics, but they’ve never heard them from the cops themselves, who had to sift through horrific crime scenes or carry out risky undercover assignments.

What got them through, they say,...

CBS will air 13 Days In Ferguson, a primetime special looking at the protests, riots and aftermath following the 2014 police shooting of young Black man, Michael Brown Jr., in Ferguson, Mo. The hour-long special will air Friday, August 9 at 10 p.m. Et/Pt on CBS and streaming on Paramount+. The special will air live and on demand on Paramount+ with Showtime. Paramount+ Essential subscribers will be able to watch it the day after the special airs.

13 Days features Cedric The Entertainer, a St. Louis area native who grew up next to Ferguson, reuniting with his longtime friend, retired lead task force officer Captain Ron Johnson who led law enforcement efforts to defuse the violence that broke out following the shooting. The special also includes the first-ever sit-down discussion between Capt. Johnson and the victim’s father, Michael Brown, Sr.

“The story of Ferguson is the story of America,” says Cedric. “It...

Ten years after the historic police shooting of Michael Brown, Jr., CBS is taking a hard look at the Ferguson unrest with “13 Days in Ferguson.”

The primetime special will premiere on Aug. 9 at 10 p.m. Et on CBS and will also be able to stream on Paramount+. Subscribers of Paramount+ with Showtime will be able to watch the special live and on demand, while Paramount+ essential subscribers will be able to watch it the day after the special airs.

On Aug. 9, 2014, 18-year-old Michael Brown was killed by officer Darren Wilson in Ferguson, Mo., a suburb of St. Louis. What started as a series of protests in the wake of the killing quickly evolved into riots that led to tear gas being used and curfews being implemented by officers. This death lit the already tense powder keg between St. Louis law enforcement and the Black community.

CBS’ upcoming special will tell...

In a year—a critical election year, at that—where the concept of “truth” is tested daily, Rolling Stone and Variety have teamed up again to host the fourth annual Truth Seekers Summit, presented by Paramount+. Taking place on August 15th in New York City, the exclusive invitation-only event will celebrate the journalists, documentarians, creatives, and notable figures in the media and entertainment industry who honor the truth with every fiber of their being.

Featuring a range of keynotes and panel discussions, the Summit will focus on excellence in documentary storytelling,...

CBS News may be on the hunt for another newsroom honcho.

Ingrid Ciprian-Matthews, a veteran journalism executive who was named president of the Paramount Global news unit just last August, told staffers Wednesday morning that she planned to cede her role, opting instead to serve as a senior advisor for coverage of the 2024 presidential election over the next several months before leaving the company.

Shaking up the senior executive structure at a major news organization in the middle of an election year is highly unorthodox, but so too are the struggles of CBS News’ parent corporation. Paramount has agreed to a merger with Hollywood production studio Skydance Media, and top executives at the company and its new suitor have already indicated that a wave of cost cuts is in store.

During a short tenure as president of CBS News, Ciprian-Matthews presided over a new boost at “CBS Mornings,” which has...

The Paramount+ original documentary “Superpower,” co-directed by Sean Penn and Aaron Kaufman, is available to stream for free on the official Paramount+ YouTube channel. The documentary will be available in the United States and its territories, including Bermuda, free of charge for a year on the platform.

The documentary is centered on Ukraine’s fight to maintain freedom from Russia after Russia invaded and attacked Kyiv on Feb. 24, 2022. The film spans seven trips over a nearly two-year time frame, in which Penn conducted a series of interviews with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky and others.

The project, which started filming in late 2021, originally began as a piece on Zelensky and his rise from comedic actor to president. But, once the buildup of Russian troops on the border began, the documentary shifted tone. The film became a look at a wartime president and his country’s defense of freedom against the threat of invasion.

The Paramount+ original documentary Superpower, the once launched last year on Paramount + by co-directors Sean Penn and Aaron Kaufman, today begins airing on YouTube. All you’ve got to pay is attention. The deal allows audiences across YouTube’s massive footprint to watch the moving story centered on Ukraine’s fight to maintain freedom from Russia.

Superpower is a heart-wrenching glimpse into a country fighting for its freedom, featuring a series of intimate interviews done by Penn with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and others from seven trips over nearly a two-year period.

“Rarely do you get to be an eyewitness to history as (Sean) Penn did with President Zelensky in his bunker as Russian bombs exploded over Kyiv,” says Susan Zirinsky, President of See it Now Studios. “The film is so powerful and immersive because of Penn’s journey meeting families who have lost everything, bombed out apartments, schools...

Paramount+ has announced that the new six-part docuseries Mafia Spies, directed by Tom Donahue and produced by CreativeChaos in association with Danny Strong Productions and See It Now Studios, will premiere on the service on Tuesday, July 16 in the U.S. and Canada.

The series will be available on Wednesday, July 17, in the UK, Australia, Latin America, Brazil, France, Italy, Germany, Switzerland, and Austria. Mafia Spies is distributed by Paramount Global Content Distribution.

In Mafia Spies, viewers discover real-world spies, gangsters, honeypots, and mistresses that unravel a hidden conspiracy between the CIA and the Chicago mob to assassinate Fidel Castro at a critical time in the Cold War; President Kennedy made it known that there was no living with Castro with missiles 90 miles from American soil.

Based on the book Mafia Spies: The Inside Story of the CIA, Gangsters, JFK, and Castro by Thomas Maier (Masters of Sex), this action-packed...

Paramount+ has announced the June 18 premiere of Chopper Cops, an all-new docuseries that takes viewers into the cockpit of an elite Florida police team of helicopter pilots as they attack crime from the skies.

They’re just north of Disney World, but to the men and women of the Marion County Sheriff’s Department, the 1,600 square-mile area they patrol is no fantasy. Marion County’s highways, forests, and suburban neighborhoods are crime scenes for more than 7,000 felonies a year. But with a jurisdiction larger than the state of Rhode Island, ground units find it impossible to have eyes everywhere.

With 10 half-hour episodes, Chopper Cops showcases the Marion County Sheriff’s Department’s secret weapon: state-of-the-art helicopters manned by elite police pilots. Known as Air One, these chopper cops operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and are equipped with high-tech infrared cameras and augmented-reality mapping capabilities that allow police on...

Paramount+ has landed We Will Dance Again, a documentary about Hamas’ Oct. 7 terrorist attack at the Nova Music Festival.

The project from See It Now Studios features new interviews with more than a dozen survivors, who recorded their experience throughout the attack, and exclusive footage. The doc also includes eyewitness accounts from those survivors, as well as footage captured by other victims and Hamas.

“The human cost of what happened on October 7th in Israel, and the war in Gaza, has been catastrophic. We can’t tell everyone’s story. This film is about innocent young people, forced to fight for their survival,” Susan Zirinsky, president of See It Now Studios, said in a statement. “It is a painful story of unfathomable tragedy, and also of bravery, sacrifice and heroism.”

Yariv Mozer directed We Will Dance Again, which was originally announced the week after the attacks took place. His other...

A documentary on Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack at the Nova Music festival in Israel, titled We Will Dance Again, will be released on Paramount+ this fall. The film will be “told through the eyes of more than a dozen survivors, many of whom videotaped their experiences as the massacre unfolded,” including “footage captured by both the victims and Hamas,” a press release states.

“The human cost of what happened on October 7th in Israel and the war in Gaza has been catastrophic. We can’t tell everyone’s story. This film...

Paramount+ has announced that the three-part docuseries Pillowcase Murders will premiere exclusively on the service beginning Tuesday, May 14.

Directed by true-crime filmmaker Randy Ferrell, the series reveals how an unknown serial killer, Billy Chemirmir, preyed upon the residents of high-end retirement communities and left a trail of death and devastation in his wake.

When dozens of women enjoying their golden years unexpectedly died at Senior Living Communities across the Dallas area, authorities classified the deaths as natural causes. No one suspected that a cold-blooded serial killer posing as a maintenance man was targeting one of the most vulnerable populations: elderly women.

Pillowcase Murders unravels how Chemirmir operated undetected for nearly two years, exploiting a demographic that’s often forgotten.

Over the three episodes, the series uncovers the shocking oversights and security failures that allowed the killer to pursue his reign of terror unimpeded. The victims’ families felt doubly tormented – at...

Netflix has set “Rather,” the documentary about veteran journalist Dan Rather’s landmark career in news for an May 1 April 24 premiere on the streamer. (The date has now been changed to reflect Netflix’s decision to move the launch by a week.) The feature utilizes the story of Rather’s life on television to also explore the evolution of broadcast journalism, the troubles a free press now faces, along with the slide of American society from hard-fought advances in social justice and democratic freedoms.

Frank Marshall directed “Rather,” which comes from Wavelength and Original Productions, in association with Anchor Entertainment and The Kennedy/Marshall Company. The doc first premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival last June.

Related: Dan Rather Says He’s Never Been Angry About His CBS Firing. But a New Documentary Restores Some Justice to His Lengthy Career

With unrestricted access to Rather, the film takes on the highs...

From books and docuseries to podcasts and big-screen thrillers, true-crime tales are everywhere. Much of it is thinly researched retreads of well-worn cases and subjects that feel exploitative in the end.

“Born in Synanon” is none of those things. The four-part documentary, directed by Geeta Gandbhir, that premiered in December on Paramount+, is a richly detailed look at the evolution of the California-based cult from the 1960s through its demise in the early 1990s. The storytelling is enhanced by a wealth of high-quality film footage of the inner workings of a group that began as a sober-living program but descended into the madness of a cult. And the perspective could not be more intimate. “Born in Synanon” follows Cassidy Arkin, whose parents were prominent members when she was born in 1974, as she tries to make sense of the community that surrounded her for the first six years of her life.

Zee-Sony Merger Back On Track

The merger of Zee Entertain Enterprises and Sony’s Indian arm looks to be back on track after an order banning Punit Goenka from managing the new entity was lifted yesterday. The merger of Zee and Culver Max Entertainment was given the go-ahead in August, but the merger has run into several problems. The India Securities and Exchange Board had barred Goenka and his father, Zee founder Subhash Chandra, from the boardrooms of listed companies for a year over allegations of insider trading. However, the Securities Appellate Tribunal has overturned that decision, paving the way for the $10B merger to go ahead and for Goenka to resume his role as MD and CEO of Zee. Sony and Zee have been planning the union for over two years now.

JFK Doc Set For Channel 5/Paramount+

UK network and its stablemate Paramount+ have ordered...

The documentary JFK: What the Doctors Saw offers a behind the scenes look at the day President John F. Kennedy was shot as his motorcade was traveling through Dealey Plaza in downtown Dallas, Texas. The documentary will premiere on Paramount+ on November 14, 2023, just days ahead of the 60th anniversary of JFK’s assassination.

Barbara Shearer (Loving Elvis) directed and serves as an executive producer with Jacque Lueth, Bill Garnet, and Lucky Elephant Media’s Adam Somer, Cheryl Leib, Joseph Leib, and Joseph Marvel. See It Now Studios’ Susan Zirinsky and Terence Wrong also executive produce along with Guy Davies.

Poster for ‘JFK: What the Doctors Saw’ (Photo Credit: Courtesy of Paramount+)

Paramount+ released this description of the documentary:

“The film reveals startling medical observations about JFK’s wounds when seven doctors who were in the Parkland Hospital ER reunite to discuss a day none of them can forget. In never-before-seen footage from this reunion,...

Paramount+ has dropped a trailer for the hard-hitting, two-part docuseries “Crush” that premieres on the streamer October 17 ahead of the first anniversary of the devastating crowd catastrophe in Seoul, South Korea that unfolded on October 29 of last year. Watch the trailer above.

“Crush” is described as “a spine-tingling account of what happened when a Halloween night of celebration turned into a nightmare.” More than 100,000 mostly young revelers who were packed like sardines into the narrow bar-lined alleyways of Seoul’s trendy Itaewon neighborhood became trapped in a mass panic. The toll was astonishing: 159 people, including two American students studying abroad, suffocated in the ensuing bedlam and died. Nearly all of those who perished were in their twenties.

From the co-producers of “11 Minutes,” the four-part docuseries about the mass murder at the Route 91 Harvest Music Festival in Las Vegas,” “Crush” tells the tale of the Seoul tragedy in an immersive style,...

Paramount+ just released the trailer for Painkiller: The Tylenol Murders, a five-part documentary series that takes a deep dive into the 1982 Tylenol murders. The docuseries premieres on October 10, 2023 and examines the tragic deaths of seven people in Chicago after they purchased bottles that contained pills laced with poison.

The seven innocent victims ranged from 12 (Mary Kellerman) to 35 years old. Three of the unfortunate victims were members of the same family.

Nurse Helen Jensen discovered the thread between the victims, and it was determined someone had opened the packaging, injected captures with cyanide, and then resealed the bottles. The discovery forced stores across the U.S. to remove Tylenol from their shelves, and Johnson & Johnson initiated a recall of all Tylenol capsules.

The FBI and multiple law enforcement agencies investigated, but the person or persons responsible was never apprehended.

‘Painkiller: The Tylenol Murders’ poster (Photo Credit: Courtesy of Paramount+)

The Plot,...

Today, CBS announced the first five episodes of FBI True. This docuseries takes viewers into some of the most significant and astonishing cases in FBI history through the eyes of the agents who were there.

FBI True will debut on CBS Tuesday, October 3 and is available to stream on Paramount+.

FBI True pulls no punches as the agents share emotional stories. They relive the heart-stopping moments of their most significant cases, revealing new details of how they foiled major criminal and terrorist plots.

Each week, FBI True introduces audiences to courageous agents who took significant personal risks in the line of duty. Each episode focuses on a single case or two cases where agents had to make hair-trigger decisions where lives hung in the balance.

The docuseries is from executive producers Craig Turk’s Thinking Hat Productions, Anne Beagan’s Anne Beagan Productions, and Shawn Efran’s Efran Films Canada.

Sean Penn’s documentary Superpower, which follows an embattled Ukraine’s fight against an invading Russia and interviews president Volodymyr Zelensky, will debut on Ukrainian TV today.

The Fifth Season film will premiere the same day on Ukrainian broadcaster Inter as the feature documentary starts streaming in the U.S. on Paramount+. The day-and-date release will include other Ukrainian airdates on major channels Ntn, Mega and Sonce.

The documentary, co-financed with Vice Studios, chronicles Ukraine’s fight for freedom from invading Russian military forces and is directed by Hollywood actor and activist Penn and Aaron Kaufman. Superpower includes Penn conducing intimate interviews with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky and others during seven trips to Ukraine over a two-year period.

Besides centering Zelensky as a wartime president, the documentary also explains how the conflict started, the stakes as it continues into a second year for the war and who remain the key players.

Superpower, Sean Penn and Aaron Kaufman’s doc about Ukraine’s fight for freedom, is getting a launch in the war-torn Eastern European country today.

Fifth Season, which shops the film, has coordinated a day-and-date release for the doc in Ukraine alongside its launch on Paramount+ in the U.S. today.

The film will screen on leading Ukrainian net Inter, before running on other channels including Ntn, Mega, and Sonce, as part of a plan to support the Ukrainian people in their struggle against Russia’s invasion.

Superpower is billed as “a heart-wrenching glimpse into a country fighting for its freedom, featuring a series of intimate interviews done by Penn with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and others from seven trips over nearly a two-year period.” Penn and Kaufman are co-directors.

It began as a light-hearted project about Zelenskyy’s unusual rise from comic actor to President. However, when Russian troops...

Sean Penn urged the White House to take a more aggressive approach toward arming Ukraine, telling a crowd at a screening of his film Superpower that those who are influencing U.S. policy “need to get out of the pure caution business.”

“I don’t mind being foolish in saying that I deeply believe, whether Democrat or Republican, if this was an issue that one of the parties chose to commit to, in arming Ukraine, that not only would it be a principal win, but it would be a political win. I think we are hungering for that kind of decisiveness,” Penn told CBS News’ Major Garrett.

“Caution has been very important, humanly and politically … But many times in emergencies, restraint is the enemy of action,” Penn added. “I think that there are influential people, perhaps influential with our president, who they themselves need to be encouraged to get out...

“Superpower,” the documentary feature film co-directed by Sean Penn and Aaron Kaufman and credits Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as its writer, will stream exclusively over Paramount+ in the United States beginning September 18. In chronicling Ukraine’s bloody and devastating war to maintain its independence from Russia, the film is described as “a heart-wrenching glimpse into a country fighting for its freedom” and features a series of intimate interviews conducted by Penn with Zelensky during seven trips made by Penn over the past two years. Watch the “Superpower” trailer above.

The movie documents the months before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, the hours leading up to the moment that Russian President Vladimir Putin launched rockets into Kyiv and the devastating aftermath that continues today. When filming began in late 2021, Putin’s invasion was just a looming and seemingly distant threat. Penn traveled to Ukraine to learn more about Zelensky,...

Sean Penn’s “Superpower,” the actor’s upcoming documentary about Ukraine’s fight to maintain its freedom from Russia, is set to premiere on September 18. The film will be available to watch exclusively on Paramount+.

Co-directed by Penn and Aaron Kaufman, the documentary features several interviews between Penn and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky over the production’s seven trips to the country over the past two years. The film chronicles the months before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the hours leading up to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s decision to launch rockets into Kyiv and the devastating aftermath.

“Superpower” has followed an unconventional road. Filming started in 2021, and at the time, the documentary was intended to be a deep dive into Zelensky, an actor and comedian who played a president on TV before becoming Ukraine’s actual president. But while Penn was filming in Kyiv, Russia’s army attacked the capital,...

The first trailer has been released for Sean Penn’s upcoming war documentary Superpower, which chronicles Ukraine’s battle for independence against an invading Russia.

The Oscar-winning actor and longtime political activist made seven trips to Ukraine during the past two years for the project, which was co-directed by Penn and Aaron Kaufman. Filming started months before the war began in late 2021, with Penn journeying to Ukraine to learn more about Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

The film includes Penn venturing to the battle’s front lines and captures the moment when the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv was first attacked by Russian President Vladimir Putin’s bombs in February 2022.

“We set out to tell a lighthearted tale of this comedic actor who had been elected president of Ukraine and instead became witness to a historic leader and his country’s war for freedom,” Penn said. “When you step into a country of such incredible unity,...

Wendy McMahon will take on sole duties leading CBS News and stations while adding oversight of the network’s domestic syndication business.

Her title will be president and CEO of CBS News and Stations and CBS Media Ventures. The appointment follows the announcement on Sunday that Neeraj Khemlani would step down from CBS News leadership and take a production deal with the network. He and McMahon were named presidents and co-heads of CBS News and stations in 2021, following a two year run of Susan Zirinsky leading the news division.

The network said that in the new role, McMahon will now lead all of CBS News’ broadcast and streaming operations, 27 local television stations in major U.S. markets, 14 local news streaming channels and CBS Media Ventures first-run syndication programming. She also will oversee content licensing to television stations and the division’s national advertising sales business.

After Khemlani announced his departure in a memo to staffers,...

Neeraj Khemlani is stepping down as the president and co-head of CBS News and Stations.

In a memo to staffers on Sunday, Khemlani said that he had signed a first look deal with the network to develop documentaries, scripted series and books for Simon & Schuster.

“It’s an opportunity that will allow me to write, report and develop stories that I’ve long wanted to pursue,” he wrote.

George Cheeks, the president and CEO of CBS Entertainment Group, said that he will update staffers soon with information about new leadership and structure for the news division. That may come as soon as Monday, and there is some speculation that Wendy McMahon, who was named president and co-head of CBS News and Stations in 2021, will take on a new or expanded role. Khemlani and McMahon were named to their posts in a restructuring that combined two divisions of the company.

The headlines coming out of CBS News will soon be guided by a new executive.

Neeraj Khemlani, who arrived at the Paramount Global unit in 2021 to oversee CBS News and local stations along with Wendy McMahon, is leaving his role running the unit that produces “60 Minutes,” “CBS Evening News” and “Face The Nation,” among other programs. Khemlani told CBS News staffers Sunday that he has decided to exit and will instead pursue a new multi-year first-look deal with CBS that has him developing content including books for Simon & Schuster, documentaries and scripted series.

Many senior news executives and anchors sign contracts for three years or more. Khemlani has during a two-years-plus tenure helped to rework CBS News’ morning programming; eliminate divisions between the linear news staff and CBS News streaming operations; bolster its investigative unit; and inject new talent into the famously insular division, including Robert Costa, Natalie Morales and Cecilia Vega.

Katie Spikes, a veteran producer for 60 Minutes, has died after a long battle with cancer, CBS News said.

Spikes, who was 53, died on Tuesday.

She was at the network for three decades in a number of producing roles, including as senior story editor. She was tasked with many high-profile guest bookings, ranging from former President Barack Obama to Olympic gold-medal swimmer Michael Phelps. She also was behind 60 Minutes profile last year of Tony Bennett, which showed how the singer, despite suffering from Alzheimer’s disease, could still perform. Bennett died last week.

60 Minutes executive producer Bill Owens said, per CBS News, “She was the relentless positive energy that everyone sought out. Smart, funny, hardworking, and a genius friend and mentor. I valued Katie’s opinion because she wasn’t afraid to take the other side of an argument and always had impeccable taste.”

Susan Zirinsky, senior executive...

The Paramount+ purge continues.

Inside Amy Schumer and Kevin Williamson’s Tell Me a Story are among the latest titles to be removed from the Paramount Global-owned streaming platform. The moves, which were expected after last week’s erasure of Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies, Star Trek: Prodigy, The Game and Queen of the Universe, come the same day that the conglomerate officially unveiled Paramount+ With Showtime.

Other titles that are being deleted from the service include Dave Grohl’s docuseries From Cradle to Stage, Ghislaine: Partner in Crime (the doc from former CBS News president Susan Zirinsky), the LeBron James-produced film Fantasy Football (which was picked up as part of Brian Robbins push for younger-skewing content) and family musical Snow Day.

Nickelodeon fare was hit especially hard with the removals of series including All In With Cam Newton, Allegra’s Window, Becca’s Bunch, Bella and the Bulldogs,...

After a year of questionable decisions from streaming services that involve password sharing, app overhauls, advertisement tiers, removal of content and so on, the bubble is somewhat bursting as companies look to regain profitability through the purging of shows. It was not long ago that news broke about the streaming platform, Paramount+, canceling a number of projects, including Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies, Star Trek: Prodigy, The Game and Queen of the Universe. Not only is the streamer canceling these movies and shows, but they’re removing the titles from the application as well to reap the benefits of a content write-down.

Deadline now reports that more shows have been put on the chopping block over at Paramount+. One of the bigger names that is getting purged is the return of the sketch comedy show Inside Amy Schumer, which had returned to continue its run with a fifth season in six years.

Inside Amy Schumer returned to Paramount+ after six years for its fifth season – a season that Paramount was hoping could score an Emmy nomination to compete against the likes of SNL and Last Week Tonight with John Oliver.

However, Emmy voters hoping to take a last minute watch on Paramount+ before tonight’s voting deadline will have been disappointed after it was one of the latest titles to be scrapped from the streaming service.

Paramount+ has purged a phalanx of programming today including a number of original series, original movies and Nickelodeon content.

The low-profile move comes after Paramount revealed last week that it was canceling and scrapping four series: Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies, Star Trek: Prodigy, The Game and Queen of the Universe.

Inside Amy Schumer is joined by From Cradle to Stage, a docuseries directed by former Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl and based on his mother’s book,...

With a running time of 96 minutes, Frank Marshall’s Rather, a documentary about the life and times of Dan Rather, is premiering at this year’s Tribeca Film Festival opposite Luke Korem’s Milli Vanilli, a 106-minute documentary about the life and times of Milli Vanilli. I know that both documentaries exist in their own vacuums and the comparison is apples to rutabagas, but I’m still confident in saying this: A definitive documentary about Dan Rather is going to require more time to properly tell its story than a definitive documentary about Milli Vanilli.

In its home stretch, Rather mentions that for a young generation weaned on social media, Dan Rather is an amusingly cantankerous Twitter truth-teller, but those new fans have very little awareness that he was once a revered (and briefly disgraced) journalist and broadcast nightly news anchor. Leaving aside that those Rather-adoring whelps similarly don’t...