All posts tagged: nbcuniversal

Comcast to Split Into Two via Spin-Off of NBCUniversal, Including Sky

Comcast to Split Into Two via Spin-Off of NBCUniversal, Including Sky

Published by Daniella Wilson

Comcast plans to separate into two independent publicly traded companies through a tax-free spin-off of NBCUniversal and Sky, the company said on Monday. “Upon completion of the transaction, Comcast shareholders will own shares in both Comcast and NBCUniversal, creating two focused industry leaders, each with significant scale, strong financial profiles and distinct strategic opportunities,” it said. “The proposed separation reflects Comcast’s track record of positioning its businesses to compete and win in rapidly changing markets,” it said. “As technological innovation, consumer behavior and competitive dynamics continue to reshape both media and communications, Comcast’s board and management team believe each company will be better positioned to pursue its own strategic priorities, invest for growth and create long-term shareholder value as independent entities.” Brian L. Roberts will continue to be actively involved in the leadership of Comcast and NBCUniversal, working in partnership with the CEOs of both companies. Mike Cavanagh will be the CEO of NBCUniversal and Comcast’s former CFO Michael Angelakis will become the CEO of Comcast, following completion of the separation and in the interim will …

Universal’s Landmark U.K. Resort Gets a Name, £5B in Investment

Universal’s Landmark U.K. Resort Gets a Name, £5B in Investment

Published by Daniella Wilson

Construction is set to soon start on Universal‘s U.K. theme park and resort, which will create 28,000 jobs and boost the British economy by nearly £50 billion ($67bn). In details released to The Hollywood Reporter on Wednesday, Comcast NBCUniversal is confirmed to invest over £5 billion ($6.7bn) in the newly-named Universal United Kingdom Resort throughout its five-year construction, as well as an additional £1 billion ($1.3bn) in capital investment over its first 10 years when finally open — which is expected to be in 2031. The U.K. government will invest another £1.3 billion in regional and local community infrastructure, the department for culture, media and sport (DCMS) has said, “to ensure the park can operate successfully.” This will include improved transport links for local residents and visitors from across the U.K. and abroad. The deal between the British government and Comcast is one of the largest-ever investments in the U.K. tourism sector, boasting nearly 20,000 new jobs during construction and a further 8,000 jobs in operation. It is also the brand’s first major destination in Europe. …

BravoCon Sets 2027 Return, Bravo Fan Fest in Charleston Fall 2026

BravoCon Sets 2027 Return, Bravo Fan Fest in Charleston Fall 2026

Published by Daniella Wilson

BravoCon will make its grand return in 2027, but before then, the network has planned a one-day fan event in Charleston, South Carolina. Bravo Fan Fest Charleston will be held on Oct. 24 in the location home to Southern Charm and Southern Hospitality. Attendees can enjoy live stage programming and panels, immersive experiences, themed activations and intimate photo opportunities with Bravo stars. Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen will also tape four shows leading up to the event, including back-to-back tapings on Oct. 22 and 23. North Charleston Performing Arts Center will be the home for all the Fan Fest festivities. Bravo did not announce an official date for BravoCon, though the shift to the event taking place in 2027 follows the recent rollout for the event; the most recent BravoCon was held in November 2025 in Las Vegas, following the 2023 fan convention. The news was announced by Andy Cohen Monday during NBCUniversal’s upfront presentation. While the official talent list has not yet been unveiled, Bravolebrities from shows including the Below Deck franchise, …

Access Hollywood Canceled by NBC with Karamo and Steve Wilkos

Access Hollywood Canceled by NBC with Karamo and Steve Wilkos

Published by Daniella Wilson

NBCUniversal will no longer produce first-run syndicated TV programming, ending production of shows like Access Hollywood, Access Live, Karamo and The Steve Wilkos Show in a major strategic shift for the company. Karamo and Steve Wilkos have both completed production, with the new episodes that have been taped airing through the summer. Access Hollywood and Access Live will continue production through the summer before ending their run. “NBCUniversal is making changes to our first-run syndication division to better align with the programming preferences of local stations,” said Frances Berwick, Chairman of Bravo & Peacock unscripted for NBCUniversal, in a statement. “The company will remain active in the distribution of our existing program library and other off-network titles, while winding down production of our first-run shows. These shows have provided audiences with great talk and entertainment content for many years and we’re very proud of the teams behind them.” Access Hollywood has been in production for nearly 30 years, with its first episode airing in Sep. 1996. Mario Lopez, Kit Hoover, Scott Evans, and Zuri Hall are the show’s …

NBCUniversal and Contractor Rehire Union Janitors, Averting Protest

NBCUniversal and Contractor Rehire Union Janitors, Averting Protest

Published by Daniella Wilson

The drums were ready. So were the signs, the horns, the purple shirts and the protestors. Enough to fill three school buses, which before the protest at noon dropped off picketers who joined many more arriving on their own. But on Thursday, NBCUniversal and its subcontractor ABM Industries averted a major protest from janitors by rehiring more than 100 that their union claimed had been unjustly laid off at the beginning of the week. And so a demonstration staged by Service Employees International Union-United Service Workers West (SEIU-USWW) at Studio City’s South Weddington Park that originally was intended to shame the major entertainment company became instead a celebration of the deal. Negotiations between NBCU, ABM and the union continued nearly right up until the protest’s noon start time. After pumping the crowd up in the park, with 10 Universal City Plaza looming in the backdrop, union president David Huerta delivered the news to his members in Spanish that the parties had agreed that janitors could be rehired and would receive backpay. “They knew the workers …

Below Deck alum hits NBCUniversal with 0m lawsuit over ‘hostile work environment rife with sexual harassment’

Below Deck alum hits NBCUniversal with $850m lawsuit over ‘hostile work environment rife with sexual harassment’

Published by Daniella Wilson

Get the latest entertainment news, reviews and star-studded interviews with our Independent Culture email Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Emile Kotze, who starred on season three of Below Deck in 2015, is suing NBCUniversal for $850 million, accusing Bravo’s parent network of perpetrating a “coordinated campaign of exploitation, harassment, and deceit.” Now 34, Kotze was 23 when he joined as a professional deckhand on the popular reality series, which follows the behind-the-scenes drama of a crew working aboard a luxury superyacht. In an amended complaint filed in New York federal court in October and obtained by The Independent, the South African reality star alleged that NBCUniversal “promised him a benign, career-enhancing experience on a documentary-style program, but instead subjected him to a hostile work environment rife with sexual harassment, manipulation, and dangerous conditions — all engineered for television ratings.” Most notably, Kotze claimed that producers “orchestrated” a showmance between him and co-star Raquel “Rocky” Dakota, even though he initially expressed …

‘Traitors’ Star Colton Underwood Finally Faces His Dark ‘Bachelor’ Past

‘Traitors’ Star Colton Underwood Finally Faces His Dark ‘Bachelor’ Past

Published by Sam Flores

What I would say is, unfortunately, a lot of closeted men end their life by suicide. That easily could have been me. I could have been part of that statistic. Instead, I’m here. I will have a lot of sadness and shame about things that I did in my past, and I will have to live with that for the rest of my life. That is on me 100%. Even going through this six years later, [The Traitors] was my favorite show I’ve ever done. I didn’t really expect people to draw a line from how I showed up and played Traitors to my past, but that happened. Unfortunately, now I have to relive what happened six years ago with my husband and with my kid, as a father. As somebody who’s changed so much, to see things pop up on social media and to hear certain things—it’s challenging, right? That was such a traumatic time for a lot of people. It’s something I’m gonna always sort of have to own moving forward. There are …

NBCU’s Donna Langley Says ‘Decency Is a Superpower’

NBCU’s Donna Langley Says ‘Decency Is a Superpower’

Published by Daniella Wilson

The star-studded BAFTA Film Awards 2026 ceremony in London on Sunday also put a spotlight on Donna Langley, chair of NBCUniversal Entertainment and the first British woman to run a major Hollywood studio. The top executive, born and raised on the Isle of Wight in the U.K., took to the stage to receive the British Academy’s highest honor, the BAFTA Fellowship, to a standing ovation before highlighting cinema’s power to bring people together. “We are … facing moments of change and disruption today,” Langley said. “And my hope is that those of us who help tell stories for a living continue to find inspiration to make popular art that carries over into people’s everyday lives — that helps us understand the world a bit better and to see each other a little more clearly… and reminds us that decency is a superpower.” Langley also shared that her parents helped her “see differences as a strength and not a weakness.” She continued: “As my career has progressed, I’ve come to believe that the most meaningful part of …

Peacock’s 2026 Winter Olympics Ratings Are Golden

Peacock’s 2026 Winter Olympics Ratings Are Golden

Published by Daniella Wilson

Peacock is having a moment. NBCUniversal’s streaming platform is having its biggest week to date, fueled by some of the biggest sporting events on the planet in the Super Bowl and The Winter Olympics. The latter has already racked up its best streaming performance ever, with the majority of the 17-day event still to come. Through Wednesday, Peacock (and other NBCUniversal digital outlets) have amassed 6.3 billion minutes of viewing of the Milan Cortina Olympics. That’s more than the combined total for the previous two Winter Olympics in 2018 and 2022 — though Peacock did not yet exist in 2018, with streaming coming mostly through NBC apps. NBCU’s streaming numbers are already up more than 60 percent from the entirety of the 2022 games, a gap that will only grow over the final week-plus of these Olympics. Peacock has dedicated live streams for every event in the competition during daytime hours in the U.S., plus its Gold Zone show that offers live looks to multiple sports at once. All that coverage has contributed significantly to …

Why Universal Orlando Didn’t Use Stars for Its Super Bowl Ad Campaign

Why Universal Orlando Didn’t Use Stars for Its Super Bowl Ad Campaign

Published by Daniella Wilson

Universal Destinations and Experiences’ 2026 Super Bowl spot aims to transform guests and how they experience the Florida parks. ​Dubbed “Lil’ Bro,” the 60-second in-house Super Bowl LX ad will air on Peacock and NBC just before the Feb. 8 NFL Halftime Show, showcasing Universal Orlando Resort as a week-long vacation destination of four parks, 11 hotels, the entertainment complex Universal CityWalk Orlando, and more.  ​“We were inspired by the transformative moments that can happen at the resort,” says Alice Norsworthy, President, Global Marketing, Universal Destinations & Experiences, about this year’s spot. “People are stepping away from the stress and pressure of the world and immersing themselves in the stories and characters they love. As they do that, they connect in real life with the people they care about. So we put those two things together — the transformation of our destination and the transformative experience you can have in our parks.” ​Developed in partnership with Lucky Generals and directed by Ben Quinn at Superprime, “Lil’ Bro” features a sibling rivalry that begins with tossing …