Strictly Business

The newly appointed leader of one of Hollywood’s largest talent agencies sketches out his vision of the fast-changing entertainment landscape and what it means for the talent represented by his firm. 

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Scopely's senior vice president of publishing Eric Wood breaks down how the mobile gaming company has reached staggering success with "Monopoly Go" and plans for new acquisition "Pokemon Go."

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Variety hosts a conversation during the Cannes Lions festival with Michelle McGuire, principle and chief commercial officer of Converge by Deloitte, and Ruba Borno, VP, global specialists and partners for Amazon’s AWS. The two discuss how their companies are harnessing AI tools and data analytics to guide sports marketing expenditures for blue-chip brands. The pair reflect on how their experiences working together underscore that even the biggest corporate players need partners to help drive the AI productivity revolution.

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The president of Bell Media is a native New Yorker and veteran TV executive who took the reins of one of Canada’s largest media conglomerates in 2023. He’s determined to raise the company’s profile as player in global content and platforms.

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The founder and CEO of the production banner that delivers high-volume unscripted hits including "Dr. Pimple Popper" and "The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City" explains how he rose from humble beginnings to become a business owner. 

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Marketing veterans Angelique Hernandez and Jarell Thompson discuss their innovative venture Havas Play, which connects brands with online gaming communities and social media creators. From the talent management perspective, ARC Collective CEO Shab Azma explains how creators and expert influencers are making a living through brand deals, ecommerce and instructional courses.

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Strictly Business host Andrew Wallenstein offers a commentary on the new HBO movie “Mountainhead,” from “Succession” creator Jesse Armstrong, comparing the two productions and speaking to the film’s satirical take on AI and the moguls deploying the technology. 

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With 'The Minecraft Movie" in striking distance of the billion-dollar mark at the global box office, there's no better time to check in on the state of the videogame industry, with an emphasis on its intersection with Hollywood. Kaare Eriksen, author of a recent Variety Intelligence Report on these subjects, tackles everything from the shadow Trump-era tactics could cast over Nintendo's Switch 2 console to the shift of "Grand Theft Auto 6" to 2026.

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The executive director of the Peabody Awards and professor at the communications school at the University of Georgia explains the uniqueness of the Peabody Awards and its process. He also discusses the difficulties of categorizing content these days and how electronic media is meeting the challenge of covering Trump 2.0.

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In a rare roundtable interview, six senior leaders at CAA discuss the evolution of the agency and its leadership following the ICM Partners acquisition. The group discusses how the rise of social media has changed the game for clients and how the work of agenting has expanded along with the scale of the entertainment industry.

The participants are:

** Tiffany Ward (Managing Director and Scripted Television Agent)

** Jennifer Joel (Literary Agent and Co-Head of CAA Books)

** Lisa Joseph Metelus (CAA Board member and Head of Athlete Brand Strategy & Entertainment for CAA Sports)

** Maha Dakhil (Managing Director and Motion Picture Agent)

** Arleta Fowler (Digital Media Agent and Head of Digital Media Lifestyle Talent)

** Lara Sacket (Co-Head of Production Department)

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