No. 1Box office
'Other Mommy' edges 'Verity' for UK and Ireland box office top spot
Universal's horror film "Other Mommy" opened at No. 1 in the UK and Ireland with £1.97 million ($2.66 million). That beat Sony's "Verity" by just £33,263. "Verity" took £1.94 million in its second weekend and now stands at £7.3 million. Paramount's "Heart of the Beast" was third with $1.1 million, and "Resident Evil" was fourth with $1 million, for $17.1 million in total. Aaron Sorkin's "The Social Reckoning" debuted fifth with $840,538. Friday brings wide openings including Disney's "Whalefall", "The Influencer Project", "Hadestown: The Musical" and Paramount's "Street Fighter".
Why it mattersYou get a clear read on what's winning screens now and which new releases are about to crowd them.
Full story at Variety →No. 2TV
'High Potential' gets post-Super Bowl slot on ABC and Disney+
ABC will air an episode of "High Potential" after Super Bowl LXI on Feb. 14, 2027, and it will also stream on Disney+. The network announced it in a promo with star Kaitlin Olson during Monday Night Football. It won't be the season three premiere, and no premiere date has been set. The season is due early next year as part of ABC's midseason lineup. Season two averaged 16 million cross-platform viewers over 35 days, third among network shows excluding live sports. The last scripted show after the game, CBS's "Tracker" in 2024, drew 18.44 million viewers.
No. 3Industry
UK creative industries get official whistleblowing portal for abuse and harassment
The Creative Industries Independent Standards Authority (CIISA) has launched a portal where UK film, TV, music and theatre workers can report concerns about abuse, harassment and discrimination. Reports are confidential, and people who come forward may get extra legal protection under whistleblowing law, even if they signed NDAs. A soft launch in June brought in around 30 reports as of 1 October, and CIISA expects more. The first-stage service is meant to build a picture of behaviour across the sector, not act on individual cases. As an industry-funded body, CIISA's chair Helena Kennedy says it needs the sector's full backing.
Why it mattersYou should know there's now a recognised, confidential route for raising concerns, and what it can and can't do yet.
Full story at Variety →No. 4Music
BTS and BIGBANG lead 2026 MAMA Awards nominations
BTS earned five nominations, including artist of the year, best male group and album of the year for "ARIRANG". BIGBANG got four, plus four more across solo projects by Taeyang and G-Dragon. Seven acts also landed five each, among them aespa, ATEEZ, IVE and LE SSERAFIM. G-Dragon won artist of the year in 2025. First-round fan voting is open, and the song of the year nominees are still to come. The ceremony runs Nov. 20-21 at Kyocera Dome Osaka and will stream worldwide on Mnet Plus.
Why it mattersYou get the early shape of K-pop's biggest awards race, with fan voting already open.
Full story at Billboard →No. 5Festivals
Marion Cotillard named Marrakech Film Festival jury president
Oscar winner Marion Cotillard will preside over the jury at the 23rd Marrakech International Film Festival. Her jury will choose the Étoile d'Or winner from the first and second features in the international competition. Cotillard won the Best Actress Oscar in 2008 for "La Vie en Rose", the first acting Oscar for a French-language performance. She says she has attended the festival since its early days. She is currently filming Emmanuelle Bercot's "The Enraged". The festival runs Nov. 20-28, 2026.
Why it mattersYou can mark a high-profile jury lead for a festival focused on emerging filmmakers.
Full story at Deadline →No. 6Unscripted
Indian unscripted formats are gaining global traction, led by streamers
India's unscripted producers are moving from importing formats to exporting them, helped by streamers building for scale and eventual advertising. Netflix's "Lock Upp", made by Balaji Telefilms, hit 50 million viewing hours within three weeks. It began in 2022 on MX Player and ALTBalaji before Netflix acquired and retooled it. Prime Video's "Alliance" is the first international remake of a Talpa Studios format. The BBC has acquired Prime Video's Indian "The Traitors" for iPlayer. Netflix isn't confirming plans to franchise "Lock Upp", but says there is a lot of internal interest in it.