Drama Emmy Predictions & Personal Picks: Can 'The Pitt' Pull Off an Upset Against 'Severance' & 'White Lotus'?

Happy Wednesday, gang!

A few days ago, A24 closed a $30 million deal for Dev Patel’s revenge-driven action-thriller The Peasant, which is described as a medieval “Braveheart meets John Wick,” but set in India in the 1300s. It actually sounds pretty cool for a period piece.

A24 has been on something of a spending spree lately, as I’m told that it is committing $45 million to Jeremy Saulnier’s Untitled Halloween Project, which I first told you about last week. I understand that Eli Bush (Lady Bird, Uncut Gems) recently came aboard as that film’s producer. He’s preparing for a huge fall thanks to not one, not two, but three A24 movies — Benny Safdie’s The Smashing Machine, Josh Safdie’s Marty Supreme, and the Sundance sensation If I Had Legs I’d Kick You starring Rose Byrne.

These moves come on the heels of A24 spending a reported $70 million (minimum) on Marty Supreme, which stars Timothee Chalamet and Gwyneth Paltrow, and is tipped to be a Best Picture contender.

One project that won’t be contending for Best Picture, or any awards, really, is Tom Segura’s new Netflix “comedy” series Bad Thoughts, which was a real slog despite a modest two-hour runtime. Granted, the last two episodes yielded a few laughs, but in general, this was an incredibly juvenile series featuring terrible writing and even worse acting. I actually thought it looked good, but now that I’ve seen it, Segura shouldn’t quit his day job as one of the world’s most successful podcasters and comedians.

Netflix should think about how to put some of the industry’s top comedians in the best position to succeed, as there’s another major comic the streamer is in business with who is stuck in the wrong vehicle, in my opinion. Instead of giving these guys millions of dollars to make whatever they want, they should pair them with real filmmakers and help turn them into reliable stars, like how Amy Schumer and Pete Davidson worked with Judd Apatow on Trainwreck and The King of Staten Island, respectively.

There’s actually an example of that very strategy in one of the items below — a major comic working with a real comedy director. I have no idea how it’ll turn out, but it can’t be worse than what I’ve seen on Netflix lately.

And that’s my little rant for the day…

This afternoon, you’ll read my first take on the Emmy race in all the major Drama categories, where an upset could be brewing… straight outta Pittsburgh.

You’ll also get a ton of Bits & Bobs, including news about Austin Butler’s new director, Madonna’s Netflix series, Andy Muschietti’s new movie, Alan Ritchson’s former manager, Michelle Yeoh’s latest action movie, Patrick Dempsey’s return to broadcast TV, and the trailer for Bob Odenkirk’s action-packed sequel Nobody 2.

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