Film and TV Briefing: Friday 21 August 2026
Welcome to this week’s round-up of news, commentary and industry announcements that you may have missed from the past week.
If you are looking for advice in relation to any of the issues mentioned, please do not hesitate to get in touch.
In the news
Actress Hayden Panettiere dies aged 36 (BBC News)
Johnny Depp in discussions to reprise his role as Jack Sparrow in the ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ franchise (The Guardian)
Cast of Sam Mendes’ Beatles film recreate the Abbey Road album cover as filming starts (The Guardian)
BBC announces the trailer and release date for the third series of ‘Vigil’ (Royal Television Society)
Olivia Colman joins season 6 of ‘Only Murders in the Building’ (Variety)
Charles De Gaulle biopic has proven to be a surprise summer hit (The Guardian)
Study finds 4,500 jobs at risk in LA County if Paramount-WBD merger closes (Screendaily)
The Beatles and Universal Music have come together for a major licensing/merch deal (Variety)
John McVay, former Pact CEO, joins AI skills platform AIMICI (Screendaily)
ADHD charity lodges Ofcom complaint over Channel 4 documentary (BBC News)
Features and commentary
Visual effects legend Rick Baker on why AI will never replace expert design (The Guardian)
Can the $4bn box office summer momentum continue into Autumn? (Variety)
The gore won’t be enough to save the director’s cut of the ‘X-Files: I Want to Believe’ (The Guardian)
Industry announcements
70th BFI London Film Festival announces the films selected for its Official Competition (BFI)
Legal updates
Disney and ABC sue US media regulator for launching early licence renewal on Trump’s instructions (BBC)
Cinema United backtracks on Paramount-Warner Bros. merger and calls for settlement (The Hollywood Reporter)
