Cordkillers 619: Your TV Is a Mall Now
Disney wants Disney+ to become a gateway to everything it sells, as streaming grows beyond television into games, sports, and experiences. Plus, Paramount makes concessions for its Warner Bros. Discovery deal, Roku and Amazon add more bundles, and an AI actor’s interview takes an unexpected linguistic detour.
This week on The FULL Experience: Battlestar Galactica (101 - "Saga of a Star World")
Next week: Battlestar Galactica (110 - “The Living Legend”)
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Supply Run
Disney’s streaming ambitions are getting bigger than television. With Adam Smith taking charge of Disney Entertainment’s direct-to-consumer business and former Character.AI CEO Karandeep Anand appointed as the company’s incoming CTO, Disney wants its app to connect entertainment, sports, games, and experiences.
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Search Party
Artificial makes the OpenAI saga look like a thriller. The dark, ominous teaser for Luca Guadagnino’s film turns the Sam Altman story into some unexpectedly spooky viewing.
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Hans Zimmer wants the new Harry Potter series to find its own musical identity. He says following John Williams is intimidating, but his goal is an original score rather than an imitation.
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The BBC is targeting a 2028–29 return for Doctor Who through a new production tender. The reported brief encourages fresh stories and monsters with less dependence on complicated existing lore.
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Daredevil: Born Again may be nearing its end. Deadline reports that the already-filmed third season, expected in 2027, will be the show’s last.
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Buried Treasure
Brian recommends Widow’s Bay.
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Tom highlights the iHeartRadio Music Festival concerts from Las Vegas, streamed on Disney+.
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Scanning the Horizon
Paramount’s proposed settlement with state attorneys general would impose conditions on its Warner Bros. Discovery acquisition, including more theatrical releases, additional U.S. production spending, and a board intended to protect CBS and CNN’s editorial independence. The settlement still requires court approval.
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AI performer Tilly Norwood unexpectedly switches to Cantonese during a recorded interview with Piers Morgan, then returns to English and apologizes. Her creators dispute descriptions of the moment as a malfunction.
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The bundle keeps coming back. Roku is expanding Premium Subscriptions with more than 30 U.S. bundle combinations, while Amazon has launched a $29.99 monthly package combining AMC+, STARZ, BritBox, PBS Masterpiece, and MGM+.
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Roku Labs will give U.S. viewers a place to try experimental apps, starting with weather, stocks, custom artwork, and scenic screensavers. Roku says the new hub is coming soon.
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VidCon is leaving Anaheim and joining LIONS as VidCon x LIONS Creators. Nashville becomes its North American home in fall 2027, with a presence at Cannes Lions earlier that year.
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Chatter
Listeners recommend Reacher and Lanterns, explain the challenges of multiview streaming, question the bargain between TV prices and privacy, identify the “Scanning the Horizon” sound bite, and weigh in on the show’s on-screen graphics.