Hollywood
‘Walker Texas Ranger’ star Chuck Norris to make TV movie for CBS
MUMBAI: Martial arts star Chuck Norris who got a fair amount of visibility through the television series Walker Texas Ranger will reprises his role as Texas Ranger Cordell Walker in a TV movie for US broadcaster CBS.
In India the series used to air on Star World. The television series ran for eight seasons in the US.
In the new TV movie called Walker, Texas Ranger: Trial By Fire which has begun production in Dallas, Texas series stars Sheree J. Wilson (Alex Cahill), Judson Mills (Francis Gage) and Clarence Gilyard (James Trivette) also return for the movie in which Walker must try to find a teenager who is on the run from a dangerous crime syndicate, and also clear an innocent colleague who is framed for murder. Janine Turner plays a forensics expert.
A missile guidance component inadvertently falls into the hands of a 13-year-old boy who becomes the target of a crime syndicate determined to recover it. When Walker (Norris) responds to a message left by the boy’s father asking for help, he goes to their home and discovers that the father has been brutally murdered. The boy shows up while Walker and Gage (Mills) are at the murder scene and, when they attempt to remove him from the house, they are also attacked. The boy manages to escape but remains the target of the men whose only mission is to recover the key component which gives missiles 100 percent accuracy in hitting a target.
Meanwhile, forensics expert Kay McCord (Turner) is investigating the murder of a woman who she saw leave a local bar with Ranger Rhett Harper (Andre Kristoff). Though Harper fervently denies any knowledge of the crime, D.A. Alex Cahill (Wilson) is forced to arrest him. Walker believes in Harper’s innocence and vows to help clear his name.
Hollywood
UK watchdog CMA to probe Warner Bros-Paramount merger deal
Phase 1 review to assess competition risks as industry voices opposition
LONDON: The Competition and Markets Authority is set to launch a preliminary investigation into the proposed $110 billion merger between Warner Bros Discovery and Paramount, marking the first formal regulatory step in assessing the deal’s impact on competition.
The UK watchdog has initiated a consultation process with industry stakeholders, inviting comments until April 27. This phase, known as a Phase 1 review, will evaluate whether the merger could harm competition across the film and television sectors, both of which play a significant role in the UK economy.
“We expect to launch our phase 1 investigation in the coming weeks,” said Competition and Markets Authority spokesperson, in an emailed statement to Reuters. “The film and TV industries contribute billions to our economy, so it’s important we assess whether deals between studios may harm competition.”
The proposed transaction, which also involves Skydance Media, would bring together two of Hollywood’s largest studios, combining extensive content libraries and potentially reshaping the global entertainment landscape.
Following the initial assessment, the regulator will decide whether to escalate the matter to a more detailed Phase 2 investigation, which typically involves deeper scrutiny of market dynamics and competitive risks.
The deal is already facing growing resistance from within the creative community. More than 1,000 industry professionals, including Jane Fonda, Mark Ruffalo and Ben Stiller, have publicly opposed the merger, warning it could reduce opportunities, limit storytelling diversity and place further strain on an industry still adjusting to rapid change.
As regulators begin to weigh the implications, the proposed merger is shaping up to be a defining test of how far consolidation can go in a media industry already in flux.
