Game planning for Paramount; The accidental ‘Apprentice’ financier

As David Ellison’s Skydance merger with Paramount begins, studio executives have been given some serious incentives to stick around through the transition process. Matt Belloni and Lucas Shaw examine the latest happenings at the studio.  Then, Kim Masters wraps a two-part conversation between The Apprentice writer Gabriel Sherman and Briarcliff Entertainment founder Tom Ortenberg. Sherman shares how billionaire Trump supporter Dan Snyder helped finance the project without reading the script… And he also shares how Snyder was bought out of the project once he saw an early screening and realized that the film was far too critical for his taste. Plus, Ortenberg reflects on the death threats he’s encountered over the years due to his propensity for distributing controversial movies.