iWorld
Lionsgate Play acquires streaming rights to ‘The Father’
Mumbai: OTT player Lionsgate Play has acquired the digital rights to the Oscar-winning film ‘The Father’ which will begin streaming on 3 September.
Besides winning the Academy Award for ‘Best Actor’ and ‘Best Adapted Screenplay’, the film was recognised globally and bagged numerous awards and nominations across the Golden Globes, the BAFTAs, and many more.
Directed by Florian Zeller, the film features Anthony Hopkins, Olivia Colman, Mark Gatiss, Imogen Poots, Rufus Sewell and Olivia Williams in the lead. The film led to Hopkins’ sixth Oscar nomination and second win and also had success in the box office. It is co-written by Zeller and is based on his 2012 play ‘Le Pere’ with fellow playwright Christopher Hampton.
The story revolves around Anthony (Hopkins), a mischievous 80-year-old living alone who develops dementia. Anthony is unwilling to take help from his daughter Annie (Colman), who finds it difficult to stop by daily. Unwinding the reality, he begins to doubt his loved ones and struggles to accept his condition. The lead character Anthony battles to come to terms with the truth of his mental health condition that has clouded the lines between his past, present, and future.
“This is yet another feather in the hat, as we have stayed true to our promise of delivering high-quality premium content in India,” said Lionsgate, executive vice president, Amit Dhanuka. “The Father is an empathetic tale of an elderly person losing his memory, showcasing the real struggle of a person suffering from dementia. We hope that the film’s powerful storytelling helps our audiences find moments of hope and inspiration during these challenging times.”
iWorld
JioStar revenue hits Rs 9,784 crore as cricket fuels 22 per cent growth
A surge in digital viewership and sports dominance fuels a blockbuster quarter for the media giant
MUMBAI: JioStar is batting on a flat pitch. The media titan’s fourth-quarter results for the financial year 2026 reveal a business scaling new heights, propelled by an unprecedented appetite for premium sports and digital-first storytelling.
Gross revenue for the quarter soared by 22.15 per cent to Rs 9,784 crore, up from Rs 8,010 crore in the third quarter. Operationally, the momentum was equally strong; revenue from operations climbed 21 per cent to Rs 8,372 crore. These figures underscore the firm’s successful integration following the Reliance and Disney merger, creating a dominant force in the Indian market.
The annual performance has been nothing short of a spectacle. Full-year gross revenue reached a massive Rs 36,248 crore, while annual profit after tax hit Rs 3,210 crore. This rapid expansion reflects JioStar’s ability to capture and monetise the massive growth in India’s media consumption.
Cricket proved to be the ultimate growth engine. The ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 and TATA IPL 2026 delivered “record-breaking viewership” across both television and digital screens. The World Cup final alone drew a global peak concurrency of 72.5 million on JioHotstar, cementing its status as the nation’s premier streaming destination. On television, JioStar maintained a commanding 34.2 per cent viewership share, reaching a staggering 810 million viewers nationwide.
The digital numbers were just as impressive. JioHotstar averaged 500 million monthly active users, driven by consistent subscriber growth and innovative AI-led content discovery tools. These advancements are ensuring that JioStar remains at the cutting edge of the global “Race for Attention.”
With a firm grip on the country’s most valuable sporting rights and a rapidly growing digital footprint, JioStar is perfectly positioned for the future. It has built the ultimate content powerhouse—one that is ready to dominate the Indian living room for years to come.
