Hollywood
Gone Girl to release in 2014, Frankenstein pushed to 2015
MUMBAI: The Ben Affleck starrer Gone Girl has got a release date of 3 October 2014 while 20th Century Fox’s Frankenstein gets a date of 16 January 2015.
rankenstein will see Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe opposite James McAvoy.
Frankenstein was to open on 17 October 2014 with McAvoy playing Frankenstein and Radcliffe playing Igor. Instead it has decided to release Gone Girl with Affleck and Rosamund Pike in October along with animated family film Book of Life on 17 October.
Fox is working with Regency on Gone Girl, which is under production. Based on a novel by Gillian Flynn it is about a couple who move from a city to a small town and then the wife goes missing.
Hollywood
David Zaslav could net up to $887m as Warner Bros Discovery sells up
Media mogul strikes gold as Paramount Skydance deal triggers massive windfall
NEW YORK: While the average office worker might hope for a nice clock and a round of applause upon leaving, David Zaslav is looking at a slightly more substantial parting gift. The chief executive officer of Warner Bros Discovery is positioned to receive a windfall of up to $887 million following the company’s blockbuster $110 billion sale to Paramount Skydance.
In a twist of corporate fate that feels scripted for the big screen, the deal marks the finale of a high-stakes bidding war. It comes after Netflix, once the frontrunner, decided to exit stage left and abandon its pursuit of the HBO Max parent company.
While most people receive a standard final paycheck, the filing released on Monday suggests Zaslav’s exit package is built a little differently. If the deal closes as expected in the third quarter of 2026, the numbers break down like this:
The cash out: A severance package of $34.2 million, covering his salary and bonuses.
The equity: $115.8 million in vested shares he already owns.
The future fortune: A massive $517.2 million in unvested share awards, essentially “future stock” that turns into real money the moment the ink dries on the merger.
Perhaps the most eye-catching figure is the $335 million earmarked for tax reimbursements. However, this particular pot of gold has an expiration date.
The company noted that these reimbursements are tied to specific tax-code rules that significantly decline as time passes. If the deal hits a snag and drags into 2027, that tax payout drops to zero. With hundreds of millions on the line, the chief executive officer likely has every incentive to ensure the closing process moves at double-speed.
