Cordkillers Episode 588: What's the Tilly Tax?

🎬 MAIN STORY 🔥 Hollywood vs. ByteDance AI What Happened Irish filmmaker Ruairi Robinson generated a 15-second Brad Pitt/Tom Cruise fight scene using ByteDance’s Seedance 2.0 from a two-line prompt. Disney and Paramount Skydance sent cease-and-desist letters. MPA CEO Charles Rivkin demanded ByteDance “immediately cease its infringing activity.” Japan’s AI minister Kimi Onoda launched a probe to protect anime/manga IP. ByteDance says it’s “strengthening safeguards.” Industry Reaction Rhett Reese (Deadpool writer): One talented individual will soon be able to create a Hollywood-level movie solo. SAG-AFTRA negotiating a “Tilly tax” on fully AI-generated actors. Tools still clunky: Darren Aronofsky’s AI historical doc reportedly took weeks to produce minutes of usable footage. Robinson response to backlash: “Should I be killed for typing 2 lines and pressing a button?” DATA POINT Pulp Fiction co-writer Roger Avary says traditional financing is “impossible.” Launched AI banner General Cinema Dynamics → now has three features in production. Why This Matters We’ve moved from theoretical AI threat to: Active legal confrontation Union taxation proposals International government probes The “garage filmmaker beats studio system” narrative just got real. 🎯 Angle: Is this Napster 1999 or YouTube 2006? 💰 AD BREAK Patreon.com/cordkillers 🏈 TV + STREAMING DATA BLOCK Super Bowl Viewership 124.9M average viewers (down from 127.7M) Peak: 137.8M (2nd quarter) Halftime: 128.2M (down from Kendrick Lamar’s 133.5M record) 3.3M Spanish-language viewers (record) Puppy Bowl: 5.3M (best since 2018, +20%) Streaming Debuts The Muppet Show (Disney+/ABC): 7.58M multiplatform in 8 days. Young Sherlock trailer (Prime Video): 223M views in 7 days — platform record. 🎯 Angle: Live TV down slightly, but cross-platform ecosystem strong. 🎭 REBOOTS / FRANCHISES Scrubs reboot premieres Feb 25 on ABC, next day on Hulu. White Lotus S4 adds Sandra Bernhard (stacked cast). Jason Momoa starring in Helldivers (Nov 10, 2027). BTS concerts streaming in theaters April 11 & 18. MST3K Kickstarter with RiffTrax crew reunion. Apple acquired full IP rights to Severance from Fifth Season (similar to Silo takeover). 🎯 Angle: IP consolidation + nostalgia monetization machine continues. 📈 INDUSTRY MOVES AMC Networks Now makes more revenue from streaming than cable. 10.4M subs across AMC+, Shudder, Acorn TV. Roku “Biggest quarter ever” for premium subscription adds. Centralized login bundle model gaining traction. Less emphasis on ads this quarter. Wheel of Time AI Expansion iwot Studios + Framestore launching AI asset platform. Animated film, live-action movie, AAA game in development. 🎯 Angle: IP owners building AI-native ecosystems. 🏢 CORPORATE WARFARE Activist investor Ancora (small WBD stake) backs Paramount Skydance’s hostile takeover offer. Bloomberg: WBD considering reopening negotiations after rejecting 9th offer. Legal positioning already anticipated. 🎯 Angle: Streaming wars evolving into acquisition wars. ⚡ LIGHTNING ROUND (Rapid Hits) Sandra Bernhard joins White Lotus S4 Helldivers movie dated BTS theater streams Young Sherlock record trailer MST3K Kickstarter Apple absorbs Severance AMC revenue crossover Roku subscription surge