Samwise Film & TV Marketing Newsletter
Friday, August 28, 2026
Coyote vs. Acme Finally Opens After Three-Year Studio Limbo
Warner Bros. Discovery's Coyote vs. Acme opens in theaters today after a turbulent three-year journey. WBD CEO David Zaslav shelved the live-action/animated Looney Tunes comedy in November 2023 to claim a $30 million tax write-off, sparking immediate industry and public outrage. After WBD permitted the filmmakers to seek alternate distributors, Ketchup Entertainment acquired the rights in March 2025 and now brings it to audiences. Directed by Dave Green and starring John Cena and Will Forte, alongside Lana Condor, the film's survival represents a rare victory for completed films facing studio shelf decisions.
Netflix's The Whisper Man Premieres Today With De Niro and Adam Scott
Netflix premieres The Whisper Man today, adapting Alex North's bestselling psychological thriller for the screen. Starring Robert De Niro, Michelle Monaghan, Adam Scott, and Michael Keaton, the film is helmed by New Zealand director James Ashcroft with a screenplay by Ben Jacoby and Chase Palmer. Produced by AGBO, the Russo Brothers' studio, the story follows a widowed crime writer whose investigation into a child abduction draws him toward his estranged detective father and an unsolved case linked to a convicted serial killer. Netflix positions the film as a flagship late-summer original.
Sources: The Hollywood Reporter
Netflix Drops Unabomber Trailer Starring Jacob Tremblay and Russell Crowe
Netflix has released the official trailer for Unabomber, its feature film chronicling Ted Kaczynski's transformation from a 16-year-old Harvard prodigy to America's most infamous domestic terrorist. Jacob Tremblay plays the young Kaczynski subjected to controversial psychological experiments by Professor Henry Murray (Russell Crowe), while Shailene Woodley portrays the FBI agent leading the eventual manhunt. Directed by Janus Metz, the film debuts on September 25, 2026, well ahead of awards season. The trailer campaign signals Netflix's prestige positioning for the title, with the Kaczynski story generating intense cultural conversation in recent years.
Danny Ramirez Joins Miami Vice '85 Alongside Michael B. Jordan and Austin Butler
Joseph Kosinski's Miami Vice '85 continues its rapid-fire casting with Danny Ramirez joining Michael B. Jordan (Crockett) and Austin Butler (Tubbs) in an undisclosed role. Written by Dan Gilroy, the period crime drama revisits the iconic franchise in its original 1985 Miami setting. Recent weeks have seen Camila Morrone, Whitney Peak, and Alden Ehrenreich added to the ensemble, signaling production is approaching its start date. The accelerating cast assembly suggests Universal is treating the project as a major franchise reinvention, building on the commercial legacy of Michael Mann's 2006 film.
The Dog Stars Opens Wide to Soft Tracking Despite $110M Budget and A-List Cast
Ridley Scott's The Dog Stars opens today across 3,300 theaters including 120 IMAX screens, but faces a challenging debut after a 36% Rotten Tomatoes score and tracking projections as low as $8–11 million for the opening weekend — underwhelming for a film with a reported $110 million budget. Critics have noted the near-absence of a marketing campaign despite a cast featuring Jacob Elordi, Josh Brolin, Margaret Qualley, and Guy Pearce. The post-apocalyptic survival thriller from 20th Century Studios arrives at summer's end competing against Spider-Man's fifth frame and Coyote vs. Acme.
Box Office — Currently in Theatres
| # | Title | Release Date | Weekend | Cumulative |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Spider-Man: Brand New Day | Jul 28 | $39.0M | $854.9M |
| 2 | Insidious: Out of the Further | Aug 21 | $25.1M | $25.1M |
| 3 | The Odyssey | Jul 14 | $19.7M | $539.3M |
| 4 | PAW Patrol: The Dino Movie | Aug 11 | $9.2M | $35.5M |
| 5 | The End of Oak Street | Aug 11 | $8.8M | $37.7M |
| 6 | Mutiny | Aug 21 | $7.7M | $7.7M |
| 7 | Tony | Aug 4 | $5.0M | $6.7M |
| 8 | The Fast and the Furious (re-release) | Aug 21 | $3.2M | $148.3M |
| 9 | Spa Weekend | Aug 21 | $3.1M | $3.1M |
| 10 | Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma | Aug 4 | $1.9M | $3.6M |
| 11 | The Magic Faraway Tree | Aug 21 | $1.3M | $1.3M |
| 12 | Toy Story 5 | Jun 15 | $1.1M | $477.9M |
| 13 | Minions & Monsters | Jun 27 | $0.75M | $182.0M |
| 14 | The Brink of War | Aug 11 | $0.66M | $4.5M |
| 15 | Moana (2026) | Jul 7 | $0.48M | $125.7M |
| 16 | Six: The Musical Live! | Aug 11 | $0.40M | $4.5M |
| 17 | One Night Only | Aug 4 | $0.30M | $11.3M |
| 18 | The Rivals of Amziah King | Aug 11 | $0.29M | $1.8M |
| 19 | Hot Spot | Aug 21 | $0.20M | $0.20M |
| 20 | The Invite | Jun 22 | $0.20M | $25.5M |
Source: Box Office Mojo · Weekend Aug 21–24 estimates
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Curated by JD · samwise.agency
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