2020-03-26 The Hollywood Reporter

THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER 54 MARCH 26, 2020

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TA LE N T

James Adams

Schreck Rose

CORNELL LAW SCHOOL

A theater major, New York-based Adams has a soft

spot for actor clients who look for behind-the-cam-

era opportunities — like Jack Ryan star and A Quiet

Place Part II director John Krasinski, who struck a

landmark first-look TV deal with Amazon Studios.

Meanwhile, Rashida Jones will star in and executive

produce Kenya Barris comedy Black Excellence for

Netflix, where client Natasha Lyonne’s Russian Doll

has been renewed.

Please reboot M *A* S * H

TA LE N T

Karl Austen

Jackoway Austen

HARVARD LAW SCHOOL

Austen’s longest-standing client, Matt Reeves, is

directing The Batman while his shingle, 6th & Idaho,

expanded its Netflix deal to include TV projects.

Meanwhile, Seth MacFarlane moved from Fox to

Comcast in a five-year, $200 million deal and Norman

Reedus signed a $90 million holding deal with AMC

for his role in the Walking Dead Universe.

We’ve hit peak content when “I’m pretty sure it’s

already here. Now it’s even hard to watch the pilots

of everything.”

LITIGATION

Jill Basinger

Glaser Weil

UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN LAW SCHOOL

While Basinger often keeps her clients out of the

press, the litigator, who represents both accus-

ers and the accused on #MeToo issues, continues

to battle a very public rape lawsuit against client

Russell Simmons. In 2019, she also sued Celine Dion

on behalf of ICM, which claims the “My Heart Will Go

On” singer failed to pay commission on a $500 mil-

lion deal.

If I could eat only one food forever, it’s “Really

good mashed potatoes. When shit hits the fan, who

doesn’t want really good mashed potatoes?”

LITIGATION

John Berlinski

Kasowitz Benson Torres

UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN SCHOOL OF LAW

Berlinski knows where to dig on the profit partici-

pation front. In 2019, he helped Bones stars Emily

Deschanel and David Boreanaz achieve a landmark

win against Fox, and he’s now representing Gaumont

Television’s former chief Katie O’Connell Marsh in

a lawsuit that claims she’s been shorted millions in

profits from series including Narcos and Hannibal.

Please reboot Hart to Hart

TA LE N T

Jeff Bernstein

Jackoway Austen

HARVARD LAW SCHOOL

Bernstein reps one of the biggest female stars in

town, Margot Robbie, closing a deal for her to star in

David O. Russell’s latest feature. He also extended

the film and TV deal of her production company,

LuckyChap, with Warner Bros. Elsewhere, Hilary

Swank will star in and executive produce Away, while

Tessa Thompson renegotiated her Westworld deal.

We’ve hit peak content when “The streamers start

paying significantly less than they are now.”

CORPORATE

Daniel Black

Greenberg Traurig

GEORGE WASHINGTON SCHOOL OF LAW

Black is a go-to for brands looking to branch out

Adams

Austen

Basinger

Berlinski

Bernstein

Black

He points out that a global pandemic is

triggering simultaneous industrywide

shutdowns, whereas strikes are usually

one union at a time and natural disas-

ters like wildfires are local. “We are

going to have to figure it out day by day.”

Even before most productions made

the decision to delay filming, talent was

hesitant to show up to set. One actress

shooting an indie movie was said to

have felt so uncomfortable doing so

that she raised concerns with produc-

ers — but they couldn’t call off filming

because their insurance would only

cover a shutdown if it was government-

ordered or an individual on set tested

positive for the virus. Though one attor-

ney suggests someone in the actress’

position could try and claim a disability

if he or she felt vulnerable to being

infected, an insider says they came to a

compromise: It’d be a closed set, a body

double would be used and everyone

would stay at least 6 feet away from her

at all times — the recommended dis-

tance to avoid spreading the virus.

As productions began to shut down

in mid-March, many agents, manag-

ers and lawyers received an influx of

calls from their clients, all asking the

LAWYERS GRAPPLE WITH AN UNPRECEDENTED CRISIS AND THE IMPACT ON DEALS:

‘IT’S GOING TO BE A F—ING MESS’ By Bryn Elise Sandberg

In late February, the biggest concern

facing the industry was the threat of a

strike as writers and studios prepared

to enter heated contract negotiations.

But, in recent days, that great unknown

has been displaced by a global pandemic

that’s brought Hollywood — and society

at large — to a screeching halt. Says

lawyer Jamie Feldman, who works with

Steven Soderbergh: “It now feels like

all the time we’ve spent talking about

the WGA and the ATA and the potential

strike issues was just rearranging deck

chairs on the Titanic.”

As COVID-19 sweeps the globe, its

domino effect is becoming increasingly

evident in Hollywood. Offices have emp-

tied as studios, agencies and law firms

transition to remote work, major events

and festivals including SXSW have been

canceled and dozens of productions

have been suspended. In the midst of

it all, dealmakers are having to coun-

sel clients through an unprecedented

moment of unrest.

“This has to be the most devastating

example of a true force majeure event

Hollywood has ever had,” says attor-

ney Lev Ginsburg, who reps Timothée

Chalamet and director Colin Trevorrow.

‘Am I Going to Get Paid During the Pandemic?’

10fea_lawyers1-17_L [P]{Print}_53606986.indd 54 3/25/20 10:34 AM