Americas

‘Like cutting up a Picasso’: AI microdrama edit of Neighbours worries actors and crew

• AI will help re-edit Neighbours footage into mobile-first mini episodes.
• Former cast and crew say consent and context need consideration.
• The companies say editors will review the work and no performances will be generated.

Fremantle and US-based RoseBerry Media plan to use AI to help re-edit footage from the former Australian soap Neighbours into short vertical episodes for mobile viewers. The project is intended to introduce the series to new audiences, but former cast and crew members have raised concerns about consent…

What was the first video game soundtrack to go platinum in America?

• NBA Livestyle 2003 was the first platinum video game soundtrack in the US.
• The eight-track CD passed one million sales by spring 2003.
• It featured Busta Rhymes, Snoop Dogg and other hip-hop artists.

NBA Live 2003’s companion soundtrack, NBA Livestyle 2003, became the first video game soundtrack certified platinum in the United States. Its success showed how a game’s built-in audience could help licensed music reach listeners and sell as a separate release. Released in October 2002, the eight-track CD featured…

Cate Blanchett Warns Against “Unthinking Certainty” as She Accepts Japan’s Praemium Imperiale

• Blanchett received Japan’s Praemium Imperiale in Tokyo.
• She described doubt as a starting point for creative work.
• The award includes 15 million yen, just under US$100,000.

Cate Blanchett accepted Japan’s Praemium Imperiale for theatre and film at a ceremony in Tokyo, using her remarks to defend doubt as an essential part of creativity. She said uncertainty enables questioning, connection and change, and argued that her own doubts help her listen and find meaning in…

Anduril says BlueChip will meet US domestic-content threshold in 2027

• Anduril now promises 65 per cent US-made components at launch.
• The BlueChip laptop is due in 2027.
• The Buy American threshold rises to 75 per cent in 2029.

Anduril now says its BlueChip laptop is expected to meet the US Buy American Act’s domestic-content threshold when it launches in 2027, a more specific commitment than the company gave earlier this week. The pledge matters because major computer brands do not currently make laptops entirely in the…

‘The Mosquito Bowl’ Review: Football Heroes Take to the Battlefield in Peter Berg’s Emptily Macho WWII Epic

• Peter Berg’s film follows four football stars who became Marines.
• The review finds its central characters thinly drawn.
• The 1944 Mosquito Bowl game is less striking than the battle scenes.

The film follows four college football players who joined the US Marines after the attack on Pearl Harbor and later served in Guadalcanal during the Second World War. The review argues that director Peter Berg turns their story into a loud, macho war epic that seeks emotional weight…

Ryan Phillippe’s 2-Part ‘Taken’ Replacement Officially Takes Over Streaming

• Both *One Mile* films top Paramount+’s US movie chart.
• Ryan Phillippe plays a father pursuing his kidnapped daughter.
• The two chapters were released 24 days ago.

Both chapters of Ryan Phillippe’s action thriller *One Mile* are currently the top two films on Paramount+ in the US, an unusual case of a simultaneously released two-part story dominating the same chart. The streaming success gives the films renewed visibility as a back-to-back alternative for viewers seeking…

Dangerous driving charges, welfare row and Microsoft climate pressure

Christopher Cockell faces six charges over a fatal A61 crash. Kemi Badenoch warns rising welfare costs put Britain at risk, while investors urge Microsoft to explain how it will meet its 2030 climate targets.