Good afternoon Insiders, the clocks have gone back, but we move forwards. Max Goldbart here taking you through the week’s headlines. Sign up here.

Doctor… Who?

No Disney regeneration: One of this decade’s splashiest industry deals came to an abrupt end this week, as Disney confirmed what we’d all been waiting for and killed its Doctor Who co-production pact with the BBC after just two seasons, having spent circa-£150M ($200M) on the sci-fi series thus far. Deadline had teased this happening as long ago as last summer, and the reality, per our deep dive this week, was that Disney appeared to have regretted signing on the dotted line not long after it did so in 2022. At that time, the streamers were splashing the cash as they looked to beef up their platforms to take on the might of Netflix, but the open check book era ended as quickly as it began, as Bob Iger re-took the Disney reins and started scaling back. The show never quite rated for Disney+, neither did it garner awards buzz, and the period has also collided with something of a “woke” backlash as MAGA politics seeped into commissioning at the very top, which may have had an impact on a series that unashamedly places diversity front and center. All in all, Doctor Who is a quintessentially British show that was maybe not quite primed for a mainstream American Disney audience. For now, the BBC needs to carve a new path for The Doctor, one that will see its budget slashed by at least half unless it can find a new American partner, amid question marks over how long showrunner Russell T Davies will remain in the saddle (he is penning an Xmas special for 2026 but no news yet on further seasons). Keep an eye on this one – it’s been quite the ride in the TARDIS.

Israel Shut Out From Doc Fest

IDFA sparks debate: The International Documentary Festival Amsterdam (IDFA) stoked debate this week over its decision to exclude Israeli state-backed organizations and films from every aspect of its 2025 edition amid growing international condemnation of Israel’s military campaign in Gaza. The event – which is the biggest documentary festival in Europe, if not the world – is the first major film festival to make such a move. It marks a blow for Israel’s mainly left-leaning documentary community, which has found itself increasingly isolated on the world stage following the launch of a boycott pledge in September, which has since been signed by close to 2,000 high-profile figures from the film world. IDFA’s new Artistic Director, Isabel Arrate Fernandez, told Deadline that the decision to bar Israel state funded orgs and films was not tied to that pledge, but rather in keeping with the festival’s new ‘Principles and Guidelines’. The decision has been greeted with dismay by many Israeli documentary professionals who point to their tradition of documenting and critiquing Israel’s mistreatment of Palestinians, as well as the efforts of Benjamin Netanyahu’s government to shut them down. “We will continue to make films, even if we have to film them on our cell phones and screen them in our living rooms,” Michal Weits, the Artistic Director of IDFA-barred festival DocAviv, told Deadline.

Steve Coogan’s Settlement

“Defamation David and Goliath”: In the world of entertainment, truth and fiction often blur. When this results in a courtroom battle, the public (and press) tends to pay attention. Following on from the high-profile Baby Reindeer suit (still to be resolved), headlines came Monday when Steve Coogan’s Baby Cow and Pathé paid “substantial damages” to a university professor who accused them of defaming his character in a pic about the search for King Richard III’s remains. A title card has also been added to The Lost King’s credits noting the portrayal of Richard Taylor is fictional. Taylor said representation of him and his behavior towards Philippa Langley (played by Sally Hawkins) in the movie was damaging. Coogan and co had to pay out, but the film’s creator and star was adamant that he didn’t really do anything wrong, as he pointed out in a Guardian op ed that the film has barely been altered and that potential star witness Langley was too ill to attend court. These fallouts are always interesting to follow as they raise questions around poetic licence, fictional representation and that good old fashioned “based on a true story” disclaimer that we audiences are oh so familiar with. Taylor’s action and Coogan’s response could set a precedent for many a movie to come.

Japanese Animation Goes Big

“New Cool Japan Strategy”: Good news for Japanese animation this week as our Asia expert Liz Shackleton brought news of record revenue. Last year, Japan’s animation industry grew by 14.8% to hit a whopping ¥3.8TR ($25BN), a mighty figure for an industry that has long punched well above its weight with fans from all over the world. Encouragingly, the report from the Association of Japanese Animations found that much of the rise came from overseas markets, which accounted for 56% of the total. Overseas revenue for Japanese animation first overtook local in the early pandemic era, colliding with global streaming platforms starting to accelerate distribution of Japanese anime overseas. Japan’s government is positioning anime and related media as a core industry under its ‘New Cool Japan Strategy’, setting a rather ambitious target of reaching ¥20TR ($130B) by 2033. 

Paramount Layoffs

Never painless: We all know that M&A is never painless. This week, pain hit the newly-minted Paramount-Skydance, as around 1,000 employees were let go – mainly in Hollywood – a move that will likely impact international over the coming weeks. Few departments were spared, with staffers let go across news, movies, TV and back office. As Insider goes to press, the international fallout is beginning to be felt. Along with 100 layoffs in the U.S., CBS News is closing its bureau in Johannesburg, and its Race & Culture Unit – established in 2020 following the killing of George Floyd – is being eliminated. Meanwhile, we revealed last night that Lisa Kramer, the LA-based President, International TV Licensing at Paramount Global Content Distribution, will exit. The popular distribution executive was a mainstay at international markets and will be sorely missed. Long-serving SVP, Comms, Jennifer Weingroff, and Tony Augi, finance head for the distribution business, have also been let go. Paramount-Skydance wasn’t the only one making deep cuts. Amazon MGM Studios and Fifth Season have also initiated redundancy programs, as has North Road in London, with international president Jan Frouman exiting. With the spotlight on a Warner Bros. Discovery sale and Netflix throwing its exploratory hat in the ring, there could be more pain to come as media giants continue to synergise.

The Essentials

🌶️ Hot One: Quentin Tarantino has landed his biggest role in nearly 30 years in feature Only What We Carry opposite Simon Pegg, Sofia Boutella and Charlotte Gainsbourg.

🌶️ And another One: Rita Ora and Ella Purnell are leading the voice cast of Harald Zwart’s animated viking girls adventure ViQueens.

🤖 New column klaxon: Jake is penning Rendering, reporting at the intersection of AI and showbiz alongside our regular TechLine newsletter. First up is paranoia in the UK, where there are still no industry-agreed AI guardrails in performer contracts.

🎤 The big interview: Jesse sat down with ProSiebenSat.1’s Henrik Pabst to discuss the battle facing Europe’s TV giants.

🎮 Getting immersive: Dan Brown’s The Da Vinci Code is being turned into an experiential event.

🏛️ StudioCanal’s day in court (again): The French studio settled a copyright lawsuit with How to Kill Your Family author Bella Mackie a few weeks after the Paddington-Spitting Image debacle.

📽️ Reopening: Vancouver’s historic Park Theatre is to reopen with new owners and investors including Sean Baker and Mike Flanagan.

🇮🇸 Shakespeare meets ‘Game of Thrones’: Iceland’s Fury from Una helmer Benedict Andrews is to depict one of the most turbulent periods in Icelandic history.

🤝 Done deal: Banijay completed what it said is the “largest acquisition in its history” by splashing $3.5B on a betting firm.

🏕️ Fest in focus: Diana went behind the scenes of the American French Film Festival.

🌴 AFM: Plenty more American Film Market news has been breaking this week ahead of the event next month.

🍿 Box office: Family movie Kangaroo has become the highest-grossing Australian film of the year to date at the local box office, per Nancy.

International Insider was written by Max Goldbart and edited by Jesse Whittock. Melanie Goodfellow contributed.