Hollywood
Angie-ficent!
MUMBAI: “Let us tell an old story anew,” Janet McTeer’s voice echoes as a revision to the old fable opens. Given the rather stodgy characters in the 1959 Walt Disney classic Sleeping Beauty, the character of Maleficent is by far, the most interesting; which makes her perfect fodder for a revisit.
The concept of retelling the classic Sleeping Beauty from the antagonist’s point of view is intriguing but the film itself is a visual feast.
All’s well for the young and beautiful fairy Maleficent till a boy Stefan stumbles into the forest where she lives and wins her heart. However, ambition takes its toll and Stefan leaves Maleficent only to return for worse – cutting off her wings. Having lost her wings and her faith in love, a shattered Maleficent resolves to seek revenge at any cost and destroy Stefan and his newly minted empire.
Comparisons with Disney’s 1959 film are inevitable, especially in the first half which includes scenes reminiscent of the old film, making the storyline and development of Maleficent’s character rather anomalous. However, as malevolence tries to redeem itself through maternity, right from the expose of Aurora to the curiosity of first love to Maleficent exposing her most vulnerable side in the final climactic event, Linda Woolverton’s screenplay shines through in the second half.
Academy Award winner Angelina Jolie (Girl, Interrupted) is mesmerising as Maleficent; malevolent but motherly when required. Elle Fanning brings her own vivacity to Aurora while Sharlto Copley as Stefan makes the Queen of Evil look sunnier in comparison. After reprising a Dolores Umbridge whom fans love to hate in the Harry Potter franchise, Imelda Stanton’s turn as pixie is the surprise package.
After winning many a golden statuette for production design, Academy Award winner Robert Stromberg makes a stellar directorial debut with Maleficent, coupled with a gripping score by Emmy Award winner James Newton Howard.
It’s possible you’ll continue to hum Lana Del Rey’s rendition of Once upon a Dream long after leaving the movie theatre!
Hollywood
Paramount Skydance posts $8.15bn in Q4, warns of ‘below Wall Street estimates’ Q1 growth
Linear TV drag offsets subscriber gains and price rises at Paramount plus
LOS ANGELES: Paramount Skydance forecast first-quarter revenue below Wall Street expectations, blaming a continued slide in its legacy television business even as it predicts robust growth in streaming this year.
The David Ellison-led group said revenue for the first three months of 2026 would land between $7.15 billion and $7.35 billion, narrowly missing analysts’ expectations of $7.36 billion, according to data from LSEG. The outlook underscores the structural strain facing traditional broadcasters as audiences abandon pay TV for on-demand platforms.
Paramount Skydance struck a confident note on streaming, pointing to subscriber growth and price increases at Paramount plus as key drivers. The platform ended 2025 with 78.9 million paid subscribers and expects further gains this year, helped by the addition of the Ultimate Fighting Championship to its exclusive lineup.
The company’s fourth-quarter results reflected the same fault lines. Total revenue edged up to $8.15 billion, just above estimates, while its TV Media unit posted a 5 per cent fall to $4.71 billion, hit by weaker advertising and declining affiliate fees. Paramount expects further softness in the segment this year, broadly in line with industry-wide pay-TV headwinds.
By contrast, filmed entertainment revenue jumped 16 per cent, largely due to the consolidation of Skydance licensing into the group’s accounts.
Investor attention, however, remains fixed on the corporate chessboard. Paramount Skydance described its bid for Warner Bros Discovery as an “accelerant” to its long-term strategy, though it declined to comment further on the talks.
Warner Bros Discovery’s board is weighing whether Paramount’s revised $31-a-share offer for the entire company tops a competing $27.75-a-share proposal from Netflix for its streaming and studio assets. The contest centres on prized film and television libraries housing franchises such as Harry Potter and Game of Thrones.
(Note: The cover image is AI-generated and is for representational purposes only.)
