CNN Films has acquired Carville: Winning is Everything, Stupid, ahead of its world premiere at the 51st annual Telluride Film Festival. From director Matt Tyrnauer, the film chronicles 18 tumultuous months inside the 2024 election from the distinctive vantage point of one of the most influential, charismatic, and combative voices in the Democratic Party: James Carville. Produced by Altimeter Films, the film is set to release in theaters in the fall and will premiere Saturday, October 5, at 7pm ET on CNN.
“James Carville redefined the art of political consulting and has retained household name status since teaching the Democrats how to win again in the 1990’s,” said Tyrnauer. “While shooting this cinema verité film, he also emerged as a powerful change agent in the 2024 election, wielding his unique influence to upend the party’s nomination process. We are thrilled that CNN Films is as excited as we are to share the story of this American original with audiences–we can’t think of a better partner.”
“Matt artfully crafts the rich story behind James Carville’s humble beginnings in Louisiana to finding success after forty, revealing how he became one of the most significant forces in modern politics,” said Amy Entelis, executive VP of talent, CNN Originals and creative development for CNN Worldwide. “But the surprising heart of the film is James’ marriage to Republican strategist Mary Matalin. CNN Films is proud to bring audiences this unlikely love story which offers a glimmer of hope in our highly polarized times.”
Political luminaries including Bill Clinton, Al Hunt, Donna Brazile, George Stephanopoulos, Paul Begala, Mandy Grunwald, Reverend Al Sharpton, Mitch Landrieu, and Sidney Blumenthal trace the story of Carville’s rise from the bayou to the Beltway, culminating in his masterminding of Clinton’s stunning presidential upset in 1992. Carville’s biography is intercut with his present-day efforts to shape the Democratic Party landscape as an early evangelist to get President Biden to forgo seeking re-election–a move that put him at odds with the very establishment he helped build.
Interwoven throughout is the 30-year love affair between Carville and famed Republican operative Matalin. Featuring intimate interviews with the two and decades of rich archival footage from their lively appearances across broadcast news, Tyrnauer reveals how their union defies political tribalism, serving as a counterpoint to the gladiatorial nature of modern politics.
Carville: Winning is Everything, Stupid is produced by Susan McCue, Ryan Rothmaier, Graham High, Corey Reeser and Tyrnauer.
CNN Films holds television and SVOD rights for the U.S. and Canada. The film will stream on Max this fall.
The deal was negotiated by CNN group senior VP Stacey Wolf and WME on behalf of CNN Films and the filmmakers. Tyrnauer is represented by WME, Entertainment 360, and Frankfurt Kurnit Klein & Selz.
ESPN and other channels return to DirecTV with a new Disney deal after a nearly 2-week blackout
DirecTV announced Saturday it had reached a deal with Walt Disney Co. that will restore ESPN and ABC-owned stations to its service after a nearly 2-week dispute that blacked out those networks for millions of viewers across the U.S.
The end of the impasse came in time for sports fans to watch ESPN's slate of college football games on DirecTV. It also will ensure that ABC's telecast of the Emmy Awards on Sunday night will be available in more major markets where viewers subscribe to DirecTV's pay service.
ABC had been unavailable since Sept. 1 on DirecTV in several markets where the station is owned by Disney. Those were located in the San Francisco Bay Area; Fresno, California; New York; Chicago; Philadelphia; Houston; and Raleigh, North Carolina.
DirecTV's 11 million subscribers abruptly lost access to ESPN, the ABC-owned stations and other Disney-owned channels such as FX and National Geographic during the Labor Day weekend in a dispute over carriage fees and programming flexibility.
Some viewers were watching the fourth round of the U.S. Open tennis tournament when ESPN suddenly went dark and others were getting ready to watch a college football showdown between LSU and Southern California.
The impasse also kept the NFL's opening game of Monday Night Football off of DirecTV's service.
Financial details of Disney's new deal with DirecTV weren't disclosed as part of Saturday's announcement. DirecTV's payments to Disney will be based on "market-based" pricing, according to the announcement about the deal.
The agreement also will give DirecTV the ability to offer Disney's video streaming services a la carte as well as in its own bundled packages. DirecTV won the right to include ESPN's forthcoming direct-to-consumer... Read More