Spider-Man Chases an Opening Record, Wonder Man Gets Canceled, and Hollywood Keeps Casting
Spider-Man: Brand New Day chases an Avengers: Endgame opening record, Disney+ reverses course on Wonder Man, and the week brings fresh casting, awards, celebrity, and media-business news.
The big screen
The July 27-August 2 window ends with Spider-Man chasing an all-time opening record and The Odyssey still refusing to sink. Weekend grosses below are Saturday estimates; final Sunday actuals were still pending.
1. Spider-Man: Brand New Day is chasing Endgame
Spider-Man: Brand New Day posted $168 million in U.S. first-day and preview grosses, topping Avengers: Endgame's $157.4 million mark. Its three-day opening was still estimated at $325 million-$350 million-plus, close enough to put Endgame's $357.1 million domestic record in play. Either way, it is already Sony's biggest domestic opening and well ahead of Spider-Man: No Way Home's $260.1 million start.
2. The Odyssey is still sailing toward $500 million
Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey was tracking to a $51 million third weekend, down 43%, for a domestic total of about $395.5 million. Deadline says that would be Nolan's strongest third frame and puts a $500 million finish within reach.
Franchise and TV news
3. Disney+ cancels Wonder Man after renewing it
Marvel's Wonder Man is out after one season at Disney+, despite a previously announced Season 2 renewal. The eight-episode launch drew 618 million viewing minutes in its first week and ranked No. 8 among streaming originals, but that early Nielsen showing did not save it.
4. Outer Banks lines up its final fan farewell
The fifth and final Outer Banks season is leaning into chaos: a new trailer wrecks another piece of Poguelandia and teases a crown that might bring the dead back. Netflix will hold its cast event in Los Angeles on August 15, then drop the full season on August 20 with a Tudum livestream.
5. Dermot Mulroney is leaving Chicago Fire
Dermot Mulroney will wrap up Chief Dom Pascal's story early in Season 15 of NBC's Chicago Fire, sources close to production tell Deadline. The season premieres October 7, and Mulroney becomes the second confirmed cast departure this week after original cast member Joe Miñoso.
6. Samara Weaving is Marvel's Emma Frost pick
Samara Weaving is reportedly Marvel Studios' choice to play Emma Frost in Jake Schreier's new X-Men movie, after testing against several candidates. Marvel had no comment, so the casting is not official yet; the film's script is being written by Lee Sung Jin and Joanna Calo.
7. Vin Diesel gives Fast Forever a very big compliment
The eleventh and final Fast & Furious movie, Fast Forever, is set for March 17, 2028, while the 2001 original returns to theaters August 21 for its 25th anniversary. Vin Diesel says Mike Leslie's script is the best he has read in decades and that he is still crying over it, which is either heartfelt or the most Fast way possible to sell a finale.
Stars, awards, and the business
8. Vincent Pastore, The Sopranos' Big Pussy, dies at 80
Vincent Pastore, best known as Salvatore "Big Pussy" Bonpensiero on The Sopranos, died August 1 at 80. His death is believed to be from natural causes and was not under investigation by the medical examiner, according to Deadline; his career also included Goodfellas, Shark Tale, and frequent TV guest roles.
9. Michael J. Fox gets the Emmys' Bob Hope honor
The Television Academy will give Michael J. Fox its 2026 Bob Hope Humanitarian Award during the September 14 Primetime Emmys. The five-time Emmy winner is also nominated this year for Shrinking, while the Michael J. Fox Foundation has supported more than $3 billion in Parkinson's research.
10. Disney is selling its A+E stake to Hearst
Disney is selling its 50% stake in A+E Global Media to co-owner Hearst in an all-cash deal believed to be worth more than $1 billion, Deadline reports. The transaction is still being finalized; A+E owns the A&E, History, and Lifetime networks, making this a notable retreat from Disney's traditional-TV portfolio.
11. Ben Affleck wins $1 million for his Congo charity
Ben Affleck and Jeopardy! champion Jamie Ding won the million-dollar prize on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? for Affleck's Eastern Congo Initiative. They used Jimmy Kimmel as the Ask-the-Host lifeline and a Phone-a-Friend before trusting Kimmel's answer on the final question.
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