Hollywood
‘Inside Llewyn Davis’ tops National Society of Film Critics Awards
MUMBAI: The National Society of Film Critics, made up of 56 of America’s most distinguished writers on film, on4 January, Saturday voted Inside Llewyn Davis the Best Picture of 2013 at its 48th annual awards voting meeting.
The Society, using a weighted ballot system, held the meeting at the Elinor Bunin Munroe Center as guests of the Film Society of Lincoln Center.
With four wins, Inside Llewyn Davis led the awards. Oscar Isaac, who plays the struggling folk singer in the film, won the group’s award for best actor. In addition to Best Actor, it also won the Best Direction (Joel and Ethan Coen), Best Cinematography (Bruno Delbonnel), and Best Picture.
Other winners included Best Actress to Cate Blanchett for Blue Jasmine, Best Supporting Actor to James Franco for Spring Breakers, Best Supporting Actress to Jennifer Lawrence for American Hustle, Best Foreign Language Film to Blue Is the Warmest Color and Best Non-Fiction Film to Joshua Oppenheimer for The Art of Killing.
Hollywood
Iger’s final act: Disney boss wraps up epic saga with a new captain at the helm
After 15 turbulent years, two stints in the c-suite, and billions spent on blockbuster acquisitions, Bob Iger is stepping away from the Magic Kingdom.
CALIFORNIA: The 75-year-old chief, hailed as one of the most transformative leaders in modern media, officially hands over to former parks chief Josh D’Amaro on 18 March. And this time, he’s getting the succession right.
Iger’s legacy glitters with big bets and epic wins: the $7.4bn Pixar buy, $4bn Marvel swoop, and the colossal $71bn 21st Century Fox deal. He dragged Disney into the streaming age, fought off activist investor Nelson Peltz, and saw off a political scrap with Florida governor Ron DeSantis.
But it hasn’t all been pixie dust. The forced return of Iger in 2022—after the short, shaky reign of successor Bob Chapek—tarnished an otherwise stellar run.
Now, D’Amaro takes the wheel with a streamlined leadership team and Disney firing on all cylinders. The firm’s streaming business is in the black, theme-park attendance is soaring, and five global films have hit $1billion at the box office in the past two years. Not bad for a firm that was on the ropes just months ago.
D’Amaro’s first move? A slick reorg under new president and chief creative officer Dana Walden, folding film, tv, streaming and gaming into one punchy unit. Sean Shoptaw, heading up the gaming division, now reports directly to Walden—bringing Fortnite and Epic Games collaborations closer to Disney’s creative heart.
Iger isn’t sailing off into the sunset just yet. He’ll keep busy with Angel City FC, the women’s football club he owns with his wife. And as Ann Mooney Murphy of Stevens Institute predicts: “A guy like that never truly retires.”
One era ends. Another begins. And the House of Mouse bets big on a future beyond the king.
