President <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/joe-biden" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Joe Biden</a> has reportedly turned to Hollywood director Steven Spielberg for political “strategy” as he campaigns for re-election against former President Donald Trump. 
Spielberg, known for directing hit films like “ET” and “Raiders of the Lost Ark,” has been giving Biden advice on messaging for the Democratic National Committee in August. The news was first <a href="https://puck.news/newsletter_content/what-im-hearing-spielbergs-biden-project-aris-payday-ellison-vs-apollo/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a> by Puck and <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2024-election/steven-spielberg-providing-strategy-biden-campaign-rcna149612" target="_blank" rel="noopener">confirmed</a> by NBC News. 
“Starting a few months ago, Spielberg has participated in multiple strategy sessions on how to best tell the president’s story, his accomplishments, and his vision for a second term,” Puck reported. “Spielberg is a big Biden fundraiser, of course, and his friend and former DreamWorks business partner Jeffrey Katzenberg is a chair of the Biden campaign.&#8221;
Spielberg has been a big supporter of Biden, has been a major Democratic donor for years, giving millions to Democratic candidates and PACs. In December, he <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2024-election/biden-launches-hollywood-fundraising-blitz-tap-star-power-strikes-rcna128868" target="_blank" rel="noopener">attended</a> another fundraising event for Biden with other Hollywood stars including Rob Reiner and Barbara Streisand. 
The Biden campaign is currently working to organize another fundraiser with Hollywood notables in Los Angeles featuring both Biden and former President Barack Obama. 
The fundraiser, being scheduled for June, is set to be hosted by Katzenberg and actor George Clooney, Axios <a href="https://www.axios.com/2024/04/25/biden-obama-fundraiser-democrats-los-angeles" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a> on Thursday. Biden previously attended a New York fundraiser alongside Obama and former President Bill Clinton that raised $26 million. 
The Biden campaign has a massive cash advantage over Trump, who has been bogged down with legal troubles. However, the Trump campaign and the Republican National Committee have posted strong numbers in recent months. 
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The Trump campaign and the RNC <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-rnc-posts-impressive-fundraising-haul-in-march-but-remain-far-behind-bidens-war-chest" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a> a March fundraising haul of $65.6 million, giving the former president $93.1 million cash on hand as he attempts to catch up to the Biden campaign, which had $192 million at the end of the same time period. 
While Biden continues to dominate with fundraising, Trump boasts a polling lead nationally and in seven major battleground states, according to the <a href="https://www.realclearpolling.com/elections/president/2024/battleground-states">RealClearPolitics</a> average. Recent polling shows that much of Biden’s struggles relate to his handling of the economy and the border, top issues for American voters.

2024 TCM Classic Film Festival Day 2 – Friday

Biden Turns To Steven Spielberg For Messaging Strategy As Poll Numbers Lag

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<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/tom-hanks-says-with-ai-he-could-die-and-his-performances-can-go-on-and-on-and-on" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tom Hanks</a> and <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/steven-spielberg-regrets-removing-guns-from-e-t-that-was-a-mistake" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Steven Spielberg</a>&#8216;s next WWII miniseries, &#8220;Masters of the Air,&#8221; has finally gotten an air date after over a decade of delays.
Originally announced by HBO back in 2013, the show is set now to release on January 26, 2024, with a two-episode debut and will continue with one episode per week until March 15 on AppleTV+, the <a href="https://www.militarytimes.com/off-duty/military-culture/2023/10/05/spielberg-hanks-wwii-series-masters-of-the-air-gets-premiere-date/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">MilitaryTimes</a> reported.
&#8220;Masters of the Air&#8221; is a nine-episode miniseries based on Donald L. Miller&#8217;s book by the same name, which follows American bomber pilots of the Eighth Air Force&#8217;s 100th Bomb Group, who repeatedly risked flying at 25,000 feet in daylight to conduct &#8220;perilous bombing raids over Nazi Germany, dealing with frigid temperatures, lack of oxygen and sheer terror,&#8221; the official logline read, per <a href="https://deadline.com/2023/10/masters-of-the-air-premiere-date-world-war-ii-drama-austin-butler-photos-trailer-1235564915/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Deadline</a> magazine.
&#8220;It portrays the psychological and emotional price paid by these young men as they helped destroy the horror of Hitler&#8217;s Third Reich,&#8221; it added. &#8220;Some were shot down and captured; some were wounded or killed. And some were lucky enough to make it home. Regardless of individual fate, a toll was exacted on them all.&#8221;
&#8220;&#8216;Masters of the Air&#8217; is a salute to the brave men of the 8th Air Force, who, through their courage and brotherhood, helped defeat Nazi Germany in World War II,&#8221; executive producer Gary Goetzman said. &#8220;Tom and Steven have always wanted to visualize cinematically what our author Don Miller has called this &#8216;singular event in the history of warfare.&#8217; We’re thrilled that Apple TV+ has given us the opportunity to combine the efforts of so many talented people, on-screen and behind the camera, to tell this important story.&#8221;
Oscar nominees Austin Butler and Barry Keoghan will star in the miniseries, which is the third WWII series from Hanks and Spielberg, after &#8220;Band Of Brothers&#8221; and &#8220;The Pacific.&#8221;
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HBO originally announced the project back in 2013, but a series of delays and budget considerations saw the series dropped. Years later, Apple TV+ picked up the project, but the COVID-19 pandemic and restrictions caused further delays, causing it to be shelved once again in 2020.

WWII military

Tom Hanks And Steven Spielberg’s Next WWII Series To Finally Air After Over A Decade Of Delays

Tom Hanks And Steven Spielberg's Next WWII Series To Finally Air After Over A Decade Of Delays

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Actor <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/will-smith">Will Smith</a> said he almost turned down his iconic role in the sci-fi action comedy “<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/movies">Men in Black</a>” until executive producer <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/steven-spielberg">Steven Spielberg</a> went to great lengths to convince him to take it.
The 54-year-old said he was initially ready to reject the role because he’d starred in “Independence Day” the year before and didn’t want to make two alien-focused movies in a row. But he quickly changed his mind due to Spielberg’s persistence.
“In the heyday, the ten movies I made at the top of my career, [former manager James Lassiter] was choosing the films,” Smith said during a recent appearance on Kevin Hart’s “Hart to Heart” talk show, per <a href="https://www.insider.com/will-smith-steven-spielberg-men-in-black-helicopter-2023-8">Insider</a>. 
“He just had an eye. I didn’t want to make ‘Pursuit of Happyness.’ I didn’t want to make ‘Ali.’ And [Lassiter] picked ‘Men in Black.’ I kind of understood ‘Men in Black’ a little bit but I didn’t want to make ‘Men in Black.’ That was the next year after ‘Independence Day.’ So I didn’t want to make two alien movies back to back.”
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“Steven Spielberg sent a helicopter for me to talk to me,” the actor continued. “I was in New York. It landed at his house. And, like, he had me at hello. And it was the first time I ever had lemonade with carbonated water. You can’t say no to that.”
“He said the coldest sh**,” Smith went on. “He said, ‘Tell me why you don’t want to make my movie…’ And he was the producer. And he put the ellipsis at the end, it was the dot, dot, dot. If he had continued, he would have said, ‘Joker, you know I made &#8216;Jaws,&#8217; right? You know I made &#8216;E.T.&#8217;”
Ultimately, Smith starred in the movie as Agent J, opposite Tommy Lee Jones as Agent K. They portrayed members of a top-secret organization established to control alien activity on Earth. The two agents were tasked with undermining a plot by an intergalactic terrorist who arrives to destroy the planet.
“Men in Black” was a critical and commercial success, raking in $589 million worldwide following its July 1997 release. The popularity of the original film inspired the creation of three more movies.

Will Smith And Tommy Lee Jones In ‘Men In Black’

Will Smith Almost Turned Down ‘Men In Black’ Until Spielberg Sent A Helicopter

Will Smith Almost Turned Down 'Men In Black' Until Spielberg Sent A Helicopter

Will Smith

<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/steven-spielberg">Steven Spielberg</a> said he saw firsthand some of the challenges <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/drew-barrymore">Drew Barrymore</a> experienced during childhood but couldn’t do much to intervene.
The 76-year-old filmmaker recalled what it was like having Barrymore on the set of his cult classic science-fiction film, “<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/movies">E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial</a>” (1982), when she was just seven years old. The actress said in an interview published in <a href="https://www.vulture.com/article/drew-barrymore-show-profile.html">Vulture</a> that Spielberg was “the only person in my life to this day that ever was a parental figure.” 
The Academy Award winner eventually became Barrymore’s godfather after declining her request that he step in as her dad. Her birth father, the late actor John Drew Barrymore, was abusive and an alcoholic, the outlet noted.
Spielberg didn’t shatter the little girl’s illusion that E.T. was real and not just a robot. He even said to have kept operators on hand so Barrymore could eat lunch with her “co-star.” 
“I didn’t want to burst the bubble,” Spielberg said of keeping up the ruse. “So I simply said, ‘It’s okay, E.T. is so special E.T. has eight assistants. I am the director, I only have one.”
The article also noted how Spielberg would tell Barrymore to remove her bright red lipstick when she showed up on set. The actress previously described her <a href="https://variety.com/2023/film/news/steven-spielberg-helpless-drew-barrymore-et-robbed-childhood-1235634964/">tumultuous</a> childhood, which included using marijuana when she was ten and snorting cocaine at 12. Barrymore did her first stint in rehab at 12 years old.
“She was staying up way past her bedtime, going to places she should have only been hearing about, and living a life at a very tender age that I think robbed her of her childhood,” Spielberg told the publication. “Yet I felt very helpless because I wasn’t her dad. I could only kind of be a consigliere to her.”
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Barrymore also spent time with Spielberg and his family “on weekends; he gave her a cat she named Gertie and took her to Disneyland and Knott’s Berry Farm.”
During the same interview, Barrymore spoke about her tumultuous relationship with her mother, Jaid Barrymore. The actress accused tabloid outlets of twisting her words when they reported that Barrymore was looking forward to her mom’s death, as The Daily Wire previously <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/drew-barrymore-scolds-tabloids-for-claiming-she-cannot-wait-until-her-mom-is-dead">reported</a>.

On the set of E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial

Steven Spielberg ‘Felt Helpless’ Seeing Drew Barrymore ‘Robbed Of Her Childhood’

Steven Spielberg 'Felt Helpless' Seeing Drew Barrymore 'Robbed Of Her Childhood' 

Drew Barrymore

Movies

This article is adapted from today’s Morning Wire Afternoon Update. To listen to the podcast version, click <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/podcasts/morning-wire" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.
Alleged Docs Leakers Appears In Court
The 22-year-old Air National Guardsman accused of leaking classified documents appeared in court this week for his detention hearing. Jack Texiera’s attorneys asked the judge Thursday to allow the defendant to be released to his father’s home to await trial. The Justice Department wants to keep him detained. The judge said he will issue his decision at a later date.
Elizabeth Holmes Wins Sentencing Appeal
Convicted fraudster and Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes was set to begin her 11-year prison sentence on Thursday, but it has been <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/court-approves-disgraced-theranos-founder-elizabeth-holmes-appeal" target="_blank" rel="noopener">delayed</a> due to a last-minute appeal. Her legal team filed the appeal Tuesday, which has automatically pushed back the start of her sentence by up to a month.
Down Syndrome Barbie
Toymaker Mattel has unveiled a new “Down syndrome Barbie doll.” In a statement, Mattel <a href="https://www.wesa.fm/2023-04-25/mattel-unveils-a-barbie-with-down-syndrome#:~:text=%22Our%20goal%20is%20to%20enable,accepting%20world%2C%22%20McKnight%20said." target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a>, &#8220;Our goal is to enable all children to see themselves in Barbie, while also encouraging children to play with dolls who do not look like themselves. Doll play outside of a child&#8217;s own lived experience can teach understanding and build a greater sense of empathy, leading to a more accepting world.&#8221; The Barbie franchise has come under fire in the past for portraying women in an unrealistic way.
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Spielberg Regrets Edits
During a Times 100 Master class on Tuesday, legendary filmmaker <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/steven-spielberg">Steven Spielberg</a> said he regrets <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/steven-spielberg-regrets-removing-guns-from-e-t-that-was-a-mistake" target="_blank" rel="noopener">editing out firearms from his classic</a> film, “E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial.”
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<iframe loading="lazy" title="A Hollywood Masterclass with Steven Spielberg | 2023 TIME100 Summit" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/CCB6NTM9ST4?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
The director also criticized the modern trend of remaking old films and rewriting books to appease modern audiences.
&#8220;Nobody should ever attempt to take the chocolate out of Willy Wonka! Ever! And they shouldn’t take the chocolate or the vanilla, or any other flavor out of anything that has been written,” he said. “For me, it is sacrosanct. It’s our history, it’s our cultural heritage. I do not believe in censorship in that way.”
South Korean President Nails Rendition Of  “Bye-Bye Miss American Pie”
And, at the state dinner held at the White House Wednesday evening, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol surprised international guests with a rendition of Don McLean’s 1971 hit “Bye-Bye Miss American Pie” 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
South Korean president Yoon Suk Yeol grabbed a mic and sang the Don Mclean classic “American Pie” to an astonished audience at the White House state dinner.
“I had no damn idea you could sing,” Biden told his counterpart. <a href="https://t.co/MIYlQuZvwk">https://t.co/MIYlQuZvwk</a> <a href="https://t.co/uFhJBymKEP">pic.twitter.com/uFhJBymKEP</a>
— The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) <a href="https://twitter.com/washingtonpost/status/1651573016810119168?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 27, 2023</a></blockquote>
Yoon was in town to announce the Washington Declaration and discuss how to strengthen the alliance between the U.S. and South Korea. Afterward, Biden gave his South Korean counterpart an acoustic guitar signed by the American Pie Singer himself.
To listen to the audio version of this podcast, <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/morning-wire/id1576594336" target="_blank" rel="noopener">click here</a>. And for more in-depth discussion of the biggest stories of the day, listen to the latest full episode of Morning Wire every morning.

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Legendary filmmaker <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/steven-spielberg">Steven Spielberg</a> disagrees with remaking <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/hollywood">old films</a> and rewriting books to appease modern audiences.
The 76-year-old director admitted that he regrets updating his classic <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/movies">film</a>, “E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial,” in 2002, twenty years after it debuted in theaters in 1982.
The movie’s original cut includes a scene of police officers chasing young kids with firearms. Spielberg chose to edit the guns out for the 20th-anniversary release of the film, replacing the weapons with walkie-talkies.
“That was a mistake. That was a mistake,” Spielberg said at the Time 100 Summit Tuesday. “I never should have done that because ‘E.T.’ was a product of its era. No film should be revised based on the lenses we now are, either voluntarily or being forced to peer through,” he said.
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“‘E.T.’ was a film that I was sensitive to the fact that the federal agents were approaching kids with firearms exposed and I thought I would change the guns into walkie-talkies. Years went by and I changed my own views,” Spielberg told the audience.
“I should never have messed with the archive of my own work, and I don’t recommend anybody really do that,” he said. “All our movies are a kind of measuring – a signpost of where we were when we made them, what the world was like, and what the world was receiving when we got those stories out there. So I really regret having that out there.”
The conversation led to Spielberg expressing his disagreement about editing Roald Dahl’s books to remove “offensive” language.
“Nobody should ever attempt to take the chocolate out of Willy Wonka! Ever! And they shouldn’t take the chocolate or the vanilla, or any other flavor out of anything that has been written,” he said. “For me, it is sacrosanct. It’s our history, it’s our cultural heritage. I do not believe in censorship in that way.”
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It was announced in February that several of Dahl’s books would be updated. The Roald Dahl Story Co. acknowledged it had worked with Inclusive Minds, which monitors children’s literature for inclusion, diversity, and accessibility, as The Daily Wire previously <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/famed-childrens-author-roald-dahls-books-altered-in-massive-woke-effort">reported</a>.
In March, &#8220;Goosebumps&#8221; series author R.L. Stine said he never approved apparent changes that were made to some of his children’s books, which Scholastic said was done in service of mental health. 
“When re-issuing titles several years ago, Scholastic reviewed the text to keep the language current and avoid imagery that could negatively impact a young person’s view of themselves today, with a particular focus on mental health,” Scholastic said in a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/goosebumps-author-says-woke-publisher-edited-his-books-without-his-knowledge">statement</a>.

Steven Spielberg Regrets Removing Guns From ‘E.T.’: ‘That Was A Mistake’

Steven Spielberg Regrets Removing Guns From 'E.T.': 'That Was A Mistake'

Film director Steven Spielberg knows a thing or two about extraterrestrials — he did, after all, direct the 1982 blockbuster &#8220;E.T.&#8221;
And he knows a thing or two about UFOs — he did, after all, direct &#8220;Close Encounters of the Third Kind.&#8221;
For the record, a close encounter of the first kind is when someone sees something unusual in the sky but it leaves no evidence, according to Ohio State University astronomer J. Alan Hynek. &#8220;The Second Kind: A UFO leaves some physical trace: burns on the ground or broken branches,&#8221; WYTV <a href="https://www.wytv.com/home/close-encounters-of-the-1st-2nd-and-3rd-kind/">reported</a>. &#8220;The Third Kind: You make contact with a U.F.O, you see some alien pilot aboard one or other life form.&#8221;
People experience close encounters of the first kind all the time — even more, it seems, nowadays. And Spielberg has some theories about UFOs and extraterrestrials.
“I’ve never seen a UFO,” Spielberg said in an interview on “The Late Show with Steven Colbert,&#8221; <a href="https://www.the-sun.com/news/7559820/steven-spielberg-ufo-conspiracy-theory-aliens/">according</a> to The Sun. &#8220;I wish I had! I’ve never seen anything I can’t explain. But I believe certain people who have seen things that they can’t explain.&#8221;
&#8220;I think what has been coming up recently is fascinating, absolutely fascinating. And I think the secrecy that is shrouding all of these sightings and the lack of transparency… I think there is something going on that just needs extraordinary due diligence,&#8221; the director added.
Spielberg went on to pontificate about interstellar life.
“I don’t believe we’re alone in the universe. I think it’s mathematically impossible that we are the only intelligent species in the cosmos. I think that’s totally impossible. At the same time, it also seems impossible that someone would visit us from 400 million lightyears from here — except in the movies, of course — unless it figures out some way of jumping the shark, so to speak, and getting here through wormholes,&#8221; Spielberg said.
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While Spielberg doesn&#8217;t think any being in the universe has yet mastered faster-than-light travel, the idea that humans could have figured out time travel is more in the realm of possibility. Then he dropped an out-there theory.
“The most optimistic thing I feel about these things we see in the skies, that the Army and Navy and Air Force are recording on their gun cameras, is that what if they’re not from an advanced civilization 300 million lightyears from here?” he said. “What if it’s us, 500,000 years in the future, that is coming back to document the second half of the 20th century and into the 21st century because they’re anthropologists? And they know something we don’t quite know yet that has occurred, and they’re trying to track the last hundred years of our history.”
Colbert jumped in to note that according to Spielberg&#8217;s theory, humanity on Earth would at least have survived 500,000 years.
“Yes, we survive,” he said. “Or at least a certain percentage of us survives that allows future generations to flourish.”
The views expressed in this piece are the author’s own and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.
Joseph Curl has covered politics for 35 years, including 12 years as White House correspondent for a national newspaper. He was also the a.m. editor of the Drudge Report for four years. Send tips to josephcurl@dailywire.com and follow him on Twitter @josephcurl.

Director Steven Spielberg poses with E.T. at Carlo Rimbaldi studio in April, 1982 in Los Angeles, California.  (Photo by

Steven Spielberg Drops Bizarre UFO Conspiracy That Aliens Could Be Time-Traveling Earthlings

Stephen Colbert

Three-time Academy Award-winning director <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/steven-spielberg">Steven Spielberg</a> recently admitted that he doesn’t regret turning down the chance to work on “<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/harry-potter">Harry Potter</a>.”
The 76-year-old Hollywood mainstay could have been part of the successful franchise based on the best-selling books, but he says he chose time with his family instead. 
Spielberg <a href="https://variety.com/2023/film/news/steven-spielberg-ss-rajamouli-rrr-the-fabelmans-video-1235519008/">told</a> &#8220;RRR&#8221; director S.S. Rajamouli that the first &#8220;Harry Potter&#8221; installment was one of many films he turned down when his children were young. The “<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/movies">Jaws</a>” director says he made the right choice.
&#8220;There were several films I chose not to make,&#8221; Spielberg said while promoting the release of his semi-autobiographical film, “The Fabelmans,” in India. &#8220;They offered me &#8216;Harry Potter&#8217; and I chose to turn down the first &#8216;Harry Potter&#8217; to basically spend the next year and a half with my family, my young kids growing up.&#8221;
&#8220;So, I sacrificed a great franchise — which today looking back I&#8217;m very happy to have done — to be with my family,&#8221; he continued.
&#8220;Kate [Capshaw] and I started raising a family and we started having children,&#8221; Spielberg continued. &#8220;The choice I had to make in taking a job that would move me to another country for four or five months where I wouldn&#8217;t see my family every day.&#8221;
He went on to say that his family often came along to make big-budget films overseas throughout his career, like when they all moved to Poland for four and a half months while filming the Oscar-winning drama &#8220;Schindler&#8217;s List.&#8221; 
The first and second movies in the franchise, “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone” (2001) and &#8220;Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets” (2002), were both directed by Chris Columbus.
Spielberg has seven children total (one is his stepchild). 
The award-winning director previously spoke about turning down the “Harry Potter” franchise, saying his kids didn’t necessarily agree with that decision.
&#8220;I just felt that I wasn&#8217;t ready to make an all-kids movie, and my kids thought I was crazy. And the books were by that time popular, so when I dropped out, I knew it was going to be a phenomenon,&#8221; he <a href="https://www.digitalspy.com/movies/a359082/steven-spielberg-on-harry-potter-my-kids-thought-i-was-crazy-to-quit/">told</a> Digital Spy in 2012.

2022 TCM Classic Film Festival Opening Night 40th Anniversary Screening Of “E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial‚Ä¶” – Arrivals

Steven Spielberg Says He’s ‘Very Happy’ He Turned Down ‘Harry Potter’ Franchise To Spend Time With Young Family

Steven Spielberg Says He's 'Very Happy' He Turned Down 'Harry Potter' Franchise To Spend Time With Young Family

Harry Potter

Hollywood director Steven Spielberg complimented Tom Cruise at Monday&#8217;s Academy Awards luncheon, telling him that his film “Top Gun: Maverick” may well have saved Hollywood.
“Top Gun: Maverick” has <a href="https://www.boxofficemojo.com/release/rl2500036097/?ref_=bo_yld_table_1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">grossed</a> $1.48 billion worldwide since its release in May 2022. Other films did well in 2022; “<a href="https://www.boxofficemojo.com/releasegroup/gr1700221445/?ref_=bo_ydw_table_3" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Jurassic World: Dominion</a>,” which opened in June, has raked in over $1 billion worldwide; “<a href="https://www.boxofficemojo.com/releasegroup/gr535450117/?ref_=bo_ydw_table_4" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness</a>” and “<a href="https://www.boxofficemojo.com/releasegroup/gr101863941/?ref_=bo_ydw_table_5" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Minions: The Rise of Gru</a>” took in almost $1 billion since their releases in May and July, respectively. “<a href="https://www.boxofficemojo.com/releasegroup/gr1943818757/?ref_=bo_ydw_table_1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Avatar: The Way Of Water</a>,” which opened in December, outdid them all, earning over $2.2 billion worldwide.
&#8220;You saved Hollywood’s ass, and you might have saved theatrical distribution,&#8221; Spielberg told Cruise, &#8220;Seriously, ’Maverick’ might have saved the entire theatrical industry.&#8221;
https://twitter.com/marisatomay/status/1625403462635626497
Cruise insisted that his film be released in theaters rather than on streaming services, which have burgeoned since the COVID pandemic.
The two men have worked together on two films: “Minority Report” and “War Of The Worlds.”
“Top Gun: Maverick” is nominated for best picture, along with “All Quiet On The Western Front,” “Avatar: The Way of Water,” “The Banshees Of Inisherin,” “Elvis,” “Everything Everywhere All At Once,” Spielberg’s semi-autobiographical “The Fabelmans,” “Tar,” Triangle Of Sadness,” and “Women Talking.”
“The pandemic created an opportunity for streaming platforms to raise their subscriptions to record-breaking levels and also throw some of my best filmmaker friends under the bus as their movies were unceremoniously not given theatrical releases,” Spielberg told <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2022/11/09/movies/steven-spielberg-the-fabelmans.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The New York Times</a> in December. “They were paid off and the films were suddenly relegated to, in this case, HBO Max. The case I’m talking about. And then everything started to change.”
“I think there has to be a concerted effort on the part of movie directors to demand that the streaming services footing the bill for most of these films give their movies a chance to be exhibited theatrically and not just in four theaters to qualify for awards. It’s going to have to come from all of us — the WGA [the Writers Guild], the DGA [the Directors Guild], and eventually the academy,” he declared.
“Certain movies are perfectly suitable to the iPad or the living room. So the decision that executives and executives like myself at Amblin Partners have to make is: Do we consign this movie to a streaming service or this other movie to a four- or six-week theatrical window? &#8230; We don’t want these chains to file Chapter 11. We want theaters to stay open,” he concluded.

War of the Worlds New York City Premiere – Outside Arrivals

‘You Saved Hollywood’s A**’: Spielberg Praises Cruise For ‘Top Gun: Maverick’

Spielberg Praises Cruise For ‘Top Gun: Maverick’

Box Office

Tom Cruise

The original model used for E.T. from the cult classic 1982 <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/movies">film</a> sold at auction last weekend for $2.56 million.
The mechatronic model of the beloved alien from <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/steven-spielberg">Steven Spielberg</a>&#8216;s “E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial” was among 1,300 <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/hollywood">Hollywood</a> artifacts auctioned off at Julien&#8217;s Auctions&#8217; &#8220;Icons and Idols: Hollywood&#8221; event in partnership with Turner Classic Movies, per <a href="https://www.npr.org/2022/12/20/1144332719/et-auction-mechatronic-model-sold">NPR</a>.
According to the description, the model includes 85 points of movement and features E.T.’s signature extended neck that helped bring the alien to life. The design of this character earned Italian special effects artist Carlo Rambaldi his third Academy Award for visual effects in 1983.
Since there was no modern-day CGI when &#8220;E.T.&#8221; was made, twelve animators used the model to create the alien’s facial expressions and motion, as The Daily Wire originally <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/original-e-t-prop-goes-on-sale-for-astronomical-amount">reported</a>.
&#8220;One of the rarest and most remarkable pieces of Hollywood memorabilia ever to come to auction, Julien&#8217;s is honored to present one of the actual, last surviving, authentic animatronic E.T.&#8217;s used during the making of the beloved and cherished blockbuster film E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial, which captured the hearts of audiences across the world,&#8221; the auction <a href="https://www.juliensauctions.com/about-auction?id=432">website</a> wrote of their headline piece.
&#8220;We all kind of regard him as a living breathing organism, he&#8217;s a real creature, I think for me, in my experience, he is the eighth wonder of the movie world,&#8221; Spielberg said, according to the auction site.
Rambaldi supposedly chose for E.T. to have a long neck as an &#8220;empathic&#8221; way for him to relate to humans. The design was modeled after the artist’s personal paintings, NPR noted. Rambaldi&#8217;s original model of E.T. that was used for character concept visualization sold previously at auction for $125,000.
“We could not be more honored than to work with the family of Carlo Rambaldi, caretakers of one of the most incredible pop culture figures in the history of Hollywood – E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. Rambaldi was a pioneer in the field and his artistry brought unreal characters to life in a way that has never been replicated with modern-day visual effects,” Executive director of Julien’s Auctions Martin Nolan echoed.
Other items from the 1982 movie sold as well, including the Kuwahara BMX bike used in the movie by a stunt rider. That piece went for well above the expected amount, TMZ <a href="https://www.tmz.com/2022/12/19/et-the-extra-terrestrial-original-mechatronic-model-sold-sells-auction-2-5-m/">reported</a>, snagging $115,200.

Carlo Rambaldi

Original E.T. Model From Spielberg’s Film Sells At Auction For Massive Amount

Original E.T. Model From Spielberg's Film Sells At Auction For Over $2 Million

Director <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/steven-spielberg">Steven Spielberg</a> said he regrets the impact his iconic movie “<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/movies">Jaws</a>” had on the shark population. 
The 76-year-old Hollywood veteran made his feelings known during a recent interview with the BBC <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m001g8m4">podcast</a> Desert Island Discs. Spielberg was 27 when he made “Jaws” in 1975 and said he looks back with mixed emotions on how popular the movie became.
“I truly and to this day regret the decimation of the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/sharks">shark population</a> because of the book and the film. I really, truly regret that,” the filmmaker said. “That’s one of the things I still fear. Not to get eaten by a shark, but that sharks are somehow mad at me for the feeding frenzy of crazy sport fishermen that happened after 1975.”
Author Peter Benchley, who wrote the book “Jaws,” previously expressed similar sentiments and has spent time advocating for the protection of sharks, BBC <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-33049099">reported</a>. 
&#8220;Knowing what I know now, I could never write that book today,&#8221; Benchley said of creating a revenge-seeking shark. &#8220;Sharks don&#8217;t target human beings, and they certainly don&#8217;t hold grudges.&#8221;
“Jaws” is a cult classic thriller that follows a team of individuals hunting a man-eating great white shark terrorizing a summer resort town. It stars Roy Scheider as police chief Martin Brody, Richard Dreyfuss as a marine biologist, and Robert Shaw as a professional shark hunter. The film was mostly shot in Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts. It won three Academy Awards and numerous other accolades.
Spielberg blames himself and the popularity of “Jaws” for the decline in shark populations, but Paul Cox, chief executive of the Shark Trust in the United Kingdom, said that this explanation is “giving the film far too much credit.”
“The cases of shark population decline are very clearly fisheries overfishing,” Cox said, per <a href="https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/steven-spielberg-regrets-jaws-influence-shark-population-200258278.html">The Guardian</a>. 
Cox did say he’s happy Spielberg is discussing the issue and bringing attention to it, however. 
“For someone with his celebrity to be addressing the challenge of communicating about sharks in a more positive way is very welcome,” he continued. 
The Shark Trust executive said “Jaws” resonates with fans because of the mystery surrounding sharks. “It’s a natural fear we have of the unknown. The sea, the marine environment, still has a lot of unknowns,” he explained.

Steven Spielberg In ‘Jaws’

Steven Spielberg Said He Has ‘Regret’ Over Impact Of ‘Jaws’ On Sharks, Afraid They Are ‘Mad’ At Him

Steven Spielberg Said He Has 'Regret' Over Impact Of 'Jaws' On Sharks, Afraid They Are 'Mad' At Him

animal rights

Sharks

The original “E.T.” model is up for sale, but its price tag could get all the way up to $3 million for the lucky winner who takes home the beloved item at an upcoming auction.
The original prop from the 1982 classic film “E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial” is being sold in the Icons and Idols: Hollywood auction, which <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2022/nov/01/et-model-from-1982-film-expected-to-fetch-3m-at-auction" target="_blank" rel="noopener">lines</a> up with the 40th anniversary of the movie this year. The auction will be held in December and is put on by Julien’s Auctions and Turner Classic Movies (TCM). Julien’s Auctions said the item could get up to the $3 million mark.
“We are thrilled to continue the 40th anniversary party for ‘E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial,’ and the genius of Steven Spielberg can never be celebrated enough,” Pola Changnon, general manager of TCM, <a href="https://nypost.com/2022/11/01/you-can-own-the-original-e-t-but-it-will-cost-you-a-fortune/?utm_campaign=SocialFlow&amp;utm_medium=SocialFlow&amp;utm_source=NYPTwitter" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a>.
“This auction truly runs the spectrum of film history, from the classics to the modern era, and Julien’s is yet again making these unbelievably rare items accessible to film lovers everywhere,” Changnon added.
The model was <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/carlieporterfield/2022/11/01/ets-new-home-mechanical-alien-model-from-spielberg-film-is-up-for-sale/?sh=28f5ea3b3bb3" target="_blank" rel="noopener">used</a> for the movie’s main character, an alien who comes to earth from outer space and enters the lives of a small town family. It consists of an aluminum mixture and has 85 mechanical areas of movement. Since there was no modern-day CGI at the time, for the filming, twelve animators used the model to depict the character’s facial expressions and motion.
It was made in 1981 by Carlo Rambaldi, an Italian special effects designer, who received an Oscar for Best Visual Effects for his part in the film’s operations in 1983. Director Steven Spielberg once said Rambaldi was “E.T.’s Gepetto,” similar to the fictional maker of Pinocchio. The movie was nominated for a total of nine Academy Awards and won four of them.
“We could not be more honored than to work with the family of Carlo Rambaldi, caretakers of one of the most incredible pop culture figures in the history of Hollywood – E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. Rambaldi was a pioneer in the field and his artistry brought unreal characters to life in a way that has never been replicated with modern-day visual effects,” Martin Nolan, executive director of Julien’s Auctions, said.
Additional &#8220;E.T.&#8221; items up for sale are an initial model created for Spielberg to see and sign off on, and several original mechanical blueprints. Three Marilyn Monroe dresses are also up for auction, as well as products from films like “Titanic,” &#8220;Iron Man 2,” “Risky Business,” and more.

C28163F5-9648-4D69-9CE9-13E86049221C_1_201_a

Original ‘E.T.’ Prop Goes On Sale For Astronomical Amount

Original 'E.T.' Prop Goes On Sale For Astronomical Amount Of Up To $3 Million In Auction

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