Business & labor
Two strikes. Two agreements. A changed Hollywood.
Revisit the turning points of the 2023 writers’ and actors’ strikes, through the announcements that put the industry back to work.
The industry
behind the screen.
Studio announcements, labor milestones, and the difference between a promise and an outcome.
The business
Paramount and Skydance: the announcement
The July 2024 announcement offers a useful lesson in reading the difference between a deal being signed and a deal being completed.
The business
Barbenheimer: estimate versus final
Two openings became one cultural event. The numbers also show why a Sunday estimate, a weekend actual and a finished theatrical run should never be treated as the same result.
The business
The 2021 HBO Max experiment
The studio’s entire 2021 slate spent its first month in U.S. theaters and on HBO Max at once. The experiment changed windows, contracts and the meaning of a release.
Streaming
Quibi: format was not distribution
Quibi’s app disappeared in 2020, but its shows did not. Their second life on Roku separates a content format from the product built to distribute it.
The business
Maverick’s long theatrical runway
The sequel’s opening was large. Its months-long accumulation was the more revealing signal—and still did not mean the whole market had recovered.
Streaming
Why streaming charts are not interchangeable
A “view” can be a runtime-adjusted calculation, a chart can cover only televisions in one country, and a rank never reveals the distance between titles.
Box office / Field guide
What a box-office number actually tells you
Territory, time window and accounting basis matter more than the size of the headline.
THE LONG VIEW / 2020—2026
Open the timeline Every headline has a history.
FROM THE ARCHIVE
The shutdown year
Streaming, closed theaters, and a business forced to rethink its release calendar.
Explore 2020 ↗8
checked milestones
26research leads to review
FROM THE ARCHIVE
A complicated return
The archive follows the return to screens and stories that moved from public campaigns into courtrooms.
Explore 2021 ↗7
checked milestones
20research leads to review
FROM THE ARCHIVE
Back in the spotlight
Big-screen releases and closely watched legal proceedings shaped the research for this year.
Explore 2022 ↗5
checked milestones
8research leads to review
FROM THE ARCHIVE
An industry at a crossroads
Writers. Actors. Studios. The year’s labor story unfolded one dated announcement at a time.
Explore 2023 ↗10
checked milestones
25research leads to review
FROM THE ARCHIVE
Who owns the next act?
Awards, studio consolidation, and questions about images and authenticity.
Explore 2024 ↗8
checked milestones
21research leads to review
FROM THE ARCHIVE
The story keeps moving
The supplied research tracks business and cultural stories. These leads still need source review.
Explore 2025 ↗4
checked milestones
33research leads to review
FROM THE ARCHIVE
The unfinished chapter
Research leads run through September. Coverage is partial, and this is not a live news feed.
Explore 2026 ↗0
checked milestones
44research leads to review
DIG INTO THE RESEARCH
Full research library The business files.
Box Office Winners and Flops, Year by Year (2020–2025, Plus 2026 So Far)
87 draft notesRead the file ↗
Part 12: Box Office, Streaming, TV, and the Hollywood Business (2020 – 2026)
64 draft notesRead the file ↗
Part 16: Celebrity Brands, Money, Endorsements, and Crypto (2020 – 2026)
36 draft notesRead the file ↗