Hollywood
Bella Thorne & Kyra Sedgwick set for thriller Big Sky
MUMBAI: The star of Disney Channel’s about-to-end Shake It Up continues her march into more mature material. Having joined the indie Home Invasion earlier this year, Bella Thorne has now signed on along with Kyra Sedgwick as the leads in Manis Film’s thriller Big Sky.
The English language debut by Jorge Michel Grau, who helmed the original Spanish language chiller We Are What We Are, features Thorne as Hazel and the former The Closer star as her protective mother Dee. On their way to a desert facility to help the teen deal with her paralysing agoraphobia, the two find themselves attacked by gunmen and Hazel has to fight her own demons for the duo to survive.
Frank Grillo, who starred in End of Watch, Zero Dark Thirty and will be in upcoming CaptainAmerica: The Winter Soldier plays the male lead in the film along with Les Miserables’ Aaron Tveit. Randy Manis, Matthew Salloway and Christina Papagjika are producing. Christine Vachon is executive producing for Killer Films with Jeffrey V. Mandel of TBD Syndicate and AKA pictures’ Clayton Young. Ricky Tollman is co-producing.
AKA pictures – a subsidiary of Benaroya Pictures – is co-financing Big Sky. Having finished Warner Bros’ The Familymoon with Adam Sandler and Drew Berrymore earlier this summer, Thorne is next set for Disney’s Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day.
With The Closer having wrapped on TNT last year, Sedgwick is scheduled to appear on the big screen in the upcoming Kill Your Darlings, Reach Me and Gren Wells’ The Road Within.
Hollywood
Disney sells out ad slots for 98th Oscars broadcast
Strong demand for live events turns the Academy Awards into a global, multi-platform marketing moment
NEW YORK: Hollywood’s biggest night has also become one of advertising’s hottest tickets. Disney has sold out all advertising inventory for the 98th Oscars, underscoring the growing demand from brands eager to ride the cultural wave of major live events.
The sell-out marks the sixth consecutive live tentpole success for Disney Advertising. The streak includes last year’s 97th Oscars, the 59th Annual CMA Awards, and Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve with Ryan Seacrest, signalling strong appetite among marketers for moments that bring audiences together in real time.
For advertisers, the Oscars are no longer just a single night of glitz and gold statues. Disney’s “Content Everywhere” strategy has expanded the awards show into a sprawling, multi-platform brand playground spanning linear television, streaming, social media and digital content.
“Live continues to be one of the most powerful ways for brands to connect with engaged audiences at scale, and the Oscars represent the very best of culture, creativity and community,” said Disney Advertising SVP, entertainment and streaming solutions John Campbell. He added that the company has reshaped the show’s commercial potential into a connected experience that stretches well beyond the broadcast.
Brands such as Mazda, Pfizer and Volkswagen of America are tapping into Disney’s wider ecosystem, appearing across original content segments including Know Your Movies on Hulu and Critically Acclaimed on Disney+. Partnerships also extend to social media through TikTok Pulse Premiere and to custom brand storytelling created by Disney CreativeWorks.
The result is what Disney calls the “Oscars Everywhere” approach. Rather than a few high-profile ad breaks, advertisers now find themselves woven through a series of moments before, during and after the ceremony.
These include On The Red Carpet at The Oscars, a live pre-show syndicated across major local markets and streamed nationwide, and the After the Oscars Show, which keeps the conversation going once the final award has been handed out.
This year’s sponsors include Rolex, returning for its ninth year, and Burger King, which joins the Oscars advertiser roster for the first time. Other brands in the mix include Disney Cruise Line, Dunkin’, Eli Lilly and Company, Eucerin, Intuit TurboTax, L’Oréal, McDonald’s, Microsoft, Miebo, Paris Baguette, Peacock, Starbucks, State Farm, Toyota and Verizon.
The 98th Oscars will take place on March 15, 2026, at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood. The ceremony will be broadcast live on ABC and streamed on Hulu, reaching audiences in more than 200 territories worldwide.
