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Star Wars Celebration 2023 Studio Panel
Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy onstage (Kate Green/Getty Images)

Disney’s “Star Wars” boss may not be stepping down after all

The latest trilogy made money, but some fans have tired of the constant deluge of “Star Wars” content since Disney’s 2012 acquisition.

Yesterday, reports spread at light speed about the impending departure of Kathleen Kennedy, Lucasfilm’s longtime president. However, according to CNN, which spoke to sources familiar with the matter, that is in fact not the case — or at least, there’s nothing formal to announce right now.

Since becoming president in 2012, Kennedy has been at the helm for all of the “Star Wars” releases under Disney — and there have been a lot — after the entertainment giant acquired Lucasfilm in the same year. Under her leadership, the brand has had mixed reviews.

Theres certainly been some commercial success, with the latest major trilogy of movies raking in more than $4 billion at the global box office, even as fan reviews of the movies have tapered off. Indeed, the average IMDB rating for the original set of movies was 8.5 — a bar that’s proven hard to meet for the later productions, with the latest release, “The Rise of Skywalker,” the lowest rated of the nine main franchise movies. Once inflation has been taken into account, it’s also one of the weaker commercial efforts.

Star Wars franchise visualized
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But while the box office figures are important, Disney has really been sweating the “Star Wars” assets on the merchandise front as new TV shows like “The Mandalorian” and stand-alone movies like “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story” have given fans more reasons to part with their money. Sales of Baby Yoda dolls and the like have helped Disney rake in a cool $1 billion in merch sales alone last year, according to analysis from The Hollywood Reporter. “Star Wars” remains the perfect example of the Disney content money machine: create beloved characters in a rich universe that are merch-friendly, spin-off-friendly, and theme-park-ride-friendly. Tick, tick, tick.

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Saleah Blancaflor

Prediction markets show “One Battle After Another” leads in Oscar race for Best Picture

It’s finally Oscars week — and with voting officially closed, all that’s left to do is count the ballots and wait to see who wins this Sunday night. 

This year, the acting categories have been the most interesting to watch, especially the showdown between “Marty Supreme” star Timothée Chalamet and “Sinners” actor Michael B. Jordan for Best Actor. While Chalamet was long the favorite, Jordan has caught up and overtaken him after winning the Actor Award.

(Event contracts are offered through Robinhood Derivatives, LLC — probabilities referenced or sourced from KalshiEx LLC or ForecastEx LLC.)

But perhaps the most exciting race of all is for Best Picture. Out of the 10 nominees, the two at the top are Paul Thomas Anderson’s “One Battle After Another” and Ryan Coogler’s “Sinners,” both of which are studio releases from Warner Bros. Discovery

Which will win the top prize seems to be split among award pundits and experts. As of Monday afternoon, Gold Derby still has “One Battle After Another” as the front-runner with odds of 76.87%. AwardsWatch, AwardsRadar, and Numlock Awards are also still predicting that “One Battle After Another” will take the statue for Best Picture.

On the other side, reporters from some major trade publications like Variety’s Clayton Davis and The Hollywood Reporter’s Scott Feinberg predict that “Sinners” will take the top honor.

Odds in the prediction markets currently show that “One Battle After Another” is still ahead of “Sinners,” with the former priced in at 75% while the latter is priced at 23%.

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Saleah Blancaflor

Prediction markets show Jordan catching up to Chalamet following Actor Awards

The Screen Actors Guild hosted its Actor Awards on Sunday, with the film awards closely monitored ahead of the Academy Awards. The Best Supporting Actor and Actress races remain suspenseful as Sean Penn (One Battle After Another) and Amy Madigan (Weapons) took home the Actor Awards in those respective categories, shifting the odds in both markets predicting who’ll take home the Oscar.

(Event contracts are offered through Robinhood Derivatives, LLC — probabilities referenced or sourced from KalshiEx LLC or ForecastEx LLC.)

But the most exciting race is for Best Actor. Several award pundits and experts predicted that Marty Supreme star Timothée Chalamet was a lock for the Actor Award despite his loss at the BAFTA Film Awards the previous weekend. But a few suggested that either Blue Moonlead Ethan Hawke or Michael B. Jordan could receive the honor instead. And thats exactly what happened when the Sinners star was announced as the winner.

While some have pointed out that the Actor Awards arent a reliable signifier for who will win the Oscar (Demi Moore and Chalamet received the SAG honors last year, but didn’t win the Oscar), it certainly puts Jordan at a higher advantage and makes the Best Actor race closer than its ever been. Chalamet previously had a higher lead in the prediction markets, but markets are now pricing in a 49% chance he takes the Oscar while Jordan’s odds have risen to 40%.

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