The next 12 months will be huge for the international entertainment landscape, with certain changes on several fronts. Here, our overseas team makes some bold predictions for 2025.
A new entertainment giant is born
“The Traitors” Season 3
Peacock
The story of international mergers and acquisitions in 2024 has undoubtedly been Acquisition of All3Media by RedBird IMI. Although this deal will continue to make headlines as the new owner’s strategy is refined, a trio of Traitors The super-indie’s biggest rivals are widely rumored to be in the market. ITV, Fremantle and Federation Studios are all thought to be looking for buyers, merger or investment opportunities over the coming months and so 2025 could be the year we see the birth of a another giant of the size of Banijay-Endemol Shine, or will see another RedBird IMI dive into the content market. More details will surely be available soon, but it’s no surprise to wonder why consolidation is on the minds of these entertainment giants. The market continues to contract under difficult circumstances and it is more difficult than ever to achieve big successes. M&A brokers will be rubbing their hands with glee.
Elon Musk‘s X will be banned from a European country
Elon Musk ended 2024 in a rather different place than where he started it. By the end of the year, he had been appointed head of Donald Trump’s new Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), was set to donate wealth to disruptive political parties like Reform UK, was forced to to pay a $5 million fine to lift a suspension on X in Brazil and criticized Australia’s proposed social media ban for under-16s. At the time of writing, the The European Commission finalizes its investigation in X for violating the new Digital Services Act. So this year looks like it could be the year an EU country takes action and imposes a total ban on the controversial platform. With both Berlin and leader of Venice Alberto Barbera by abandoning X, we wonder what ramifications this could have for the world of European festivals?
Internationalization of American awards and a cruise on the Croisette?
Image: FRANCK FIFE/AFP via Getty
We just saw a record number of Golden Globe nominations for films from Cannes and Venice, while five of the 10 Best Picture Oscar nominees in 2024 debuted at Cannes and Venice. The internationalization of American taste and American awards continues apace (and as a result, are we in a lull for major American studio films?). Could we see six films from Cannes and Venice get Best Picture nominations this year? It’s not out of the question. Meanwhile, speaking of Cannes, Tom Cruise took Top Gun: Maverick on the Côte d’Azur to launch the film’s phenomenal box office. Cruise is a big fan of the festival and Thierry Frémaux is always on the lookout for Hollywood royalty. Could we see Cruise return to Cannes with the next installment of Mission Impossible, which will be released in May right at the end of the festival? We haven’t heard that this is planned yet, but it sure would be fun. Who wouldn’t want to see a cruise on the Croisette?!
A 2025 Breakout series will come from a Spanish studio
A look at Netflix’s list of most-watched shows highlights the popularity of Spanish-language drama series. Spain has an enviable film and television pedigree and a long history of making great films and series. Today, some of the country’s biggest actors are branching out into English-language series. Mediapro has created a new studio in the United States and Canada with projects of 24 showrunner Evan Katz, John Turturro and several others. The Spanish branch of French production giant Banijay wants to produce fiction in English. Secuoya, who has a huge studio complex near Madrid and also performs his own shows, has long drawn up plans to expand his English abilities. Everything points to a big English hit… from Spain.
Sky Facing existential questions
It was time for Sky to be the disruptor. Fast forward a few decades and it seems more disrupted. The combined threat of competition from deep-pocketed US streamers and the huge spend required to retain top-tier sports rights means Sky is being tested. She ended her drama activities in Germany, although she had some original hits in the UK, such as The Day of the Jackal And The Auschwitz tattooist. It retained HBO content, but only non-exclusively, and time is running out on this high-profile deal. Comcast has its work cut out for it to stay relevant in the brave – and brutal – new world of television. and with its owner transferring its assetsexistential questions will arise in 2025.
Qatar: The Gulf State will set up a cinema game
Image: John Phillips/Getty Images for the Ajyal Film Festival
Qatar looks set to up its film game in 2025 with the announcement of the new Doha Film Festival starting in November 2025, replacing the locally focused Ajyal family event. Qatar’s glitzy filmmaking momentum petered out when Doha’s Tribeca Film Festival was shuttered after four editions, but there are signs the country is moving backward amid expectations the new festival will or closer to the Red Sea Film Festival of Saudi Arabia. Local actors are also picking up the pace, with Doha-based production house Katara Studios recently unveiling a series of four feature films, including a thriller billed as the country’s first commercial film. At the same time, the beIN Media group from Qatar will also be in the spotlight with the release of Bridget Jones: Boy Crazy on February 14, 2025, which is co-financed by Miramax in which it holds a majority stake. Meanwhile, rumors abound that a movie incentive is about to be revealed.
An AI drama will be made…and it might not be too bad
Depending on who you talk to, rumors about the major impact of AI on the entertainment industry have either been greatly exaggerated or greatly under-exaggerated. But could 2025 be the year this growing and invasive technology creates its first watchable drama? The merits of Sora, OpenAI’s video generator, are increasingly discussed in 2024, and the program has just been expanded to the public nine months after a tour in Hollywood. Proponents of AI have always emphasized that it can work in tandem with human creativity, but some remain deeply skeptical. Technology’s influence on the next generation of shows and films could well increase several notches in 2025.