The embargo for reviews of the new Netflix competition series Wonka’s Golden Ticket doesn’t lift for a few more hours and I’ll have more to say tomorrow.
But I want to highlight one aspect of the show which really got in my way of enjoying the series. The show includes a number of nods to the original movie, including some very familiar scenes and props.
However, for whatever reason, Netflix executives and/or producers decided to use AI to recreate the voice of the late Gene Wilder, who played “Willy Wonka” in the 1971 film Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory.
Even though the voice was created with the permission of his Wilder’s family, the net effect veers between unsettling and creepy. The voice is used as narrator and sometimes also speaks with the contestants. The AI-created voice sounds about 80 percent like Wilder, which is just close enough to frequently remind you that is a computer-generated voice.
I understand that Wilder is closely associated with the role. But given that he died 10 years ago, I can’t help thinking that fans of the original film would have been fine with a substitute.
I Am Beginning To Understand The Attraction Of QVC
In 2024, John Battagliese joined QVC as a program host, bringing his theater background and conversational style to live shopping television.
In 2024, Battagliese joined QVC as a program host, bringing his theater background and conversational style to live shopping television. He has since expanded into entertainment interviewing and digital content, including Chit Chat with John Batt, which highlights LGBTQ+-owned businesses and their stories. In 2026, he launched Cart Blanche, a QVC+/HSN+ talk-and-shopping series featuring celebrities, comedians and other pop-culture personalities. The show reflects Battagliese’s long-standing interest in talk television and his goal of connecting entertainment, conversation and commerce.
I recently had the opportunity to speak with John via Zoom call, and the conversation was wide-ranging and a lot of fun.
You can check out the entire interview on Forbes, but here is an excerpt to check out:
You talk about liking to have conversations, and I’m the same way. When I’m interviewing someone, I could talk to them for hours because I’m genuinely interested.
Is there someone you’d like to have on your show purely for yourself? Someone where you think, “I want to talk to this person for half an hour or an hour and really find out about them,” even if the rest of the audience doesn’t necessarily care?
Battagliese: Oh my gosh, there are so many people. That’s hard to pick because I jump from genre to genre.
And to go back to your point about finding the right guests, we’re really discovering that there’s a nostalgia around QVC. When people see someone like Matt Rogers or Heather McMahan, they’re like, “Oh, I know that from my grandma watching it. I’m in.”
And then there are the bloopers—the viral moments. We’re now entering the zeitgeist in a way that I’ve been dreaming about. This is a landing spot where we can comment on that.
We can talk about the wig blooper. I had a blooper the other day that one of the RuPaul’s Drag Race queens was commenting on. I was like, “My life is made.”
That’s what I want: the intersection of pop culture and QVC. That’s how you stay viable as we move further into social selling.
As far as a dream guest, my mind keeps going to people from the past. I wish I could sit down with Dolly Parton or Regis.
I’ve been rereading Regis’ book, and he was such a huge part of why I wanted to do this.
But if you had to pick someone who’s around now—and I get it, you don’t want to leave anyone out and have someone say, “What do you mean, you don’t want to talk to me?”
Battagliese: What do you mean, you don’t want me? Oh my gosh. I’m sweating.
I would love to talk to people who are building careers in this new space. The person I’m thinking of right now is Trixie Mattel. Trixie has such a huge audience and has built an incredible career from a reality show, including millions of followers, brands and makeup deals.
What’s interesting is that she’s not our traditional customer. But if we’re moving into live social selling on TikTok, Instagram and other platforms, those are people who spend money and fall in love with brands.
And I think that’s what QVC has always been.
That’s where I keep being the squeaky wheel: If we tap into the next generation and the people they love, in the way Joan Rivers once connected with viewers, we can have them for life.
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Judge In Paramount-State AGs Case Schedules Hearing on Settlement Terms
There are times when I wish I was a lawyer and this is one of those moments.
In an order issued Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Araceli Martinez-Olguin granted the motion to vacate the hearing about Paramount’s previous motion to require the states (and the WGA) to post $1.88 billion bond to cover the company's financial losses in the event it prevailed in court. That hearing had been scheduled for Thursday, September 24th.
But the judge also said in a filing that she had some "outstanding questions" about the settlement, which requires her approval before it takes effect:
Before the Court is a motion to enter consent decree and dissolve stipulation not to close. Dkt. No. 243. Therein, the parties additionally request the Court vacate the hearing on Paramount’s motion to modify the stipulation and order to not close to require bond, presently set for September 24, 2026. The Court GRANTS the joint request to vacate the hearing on Paramount’s motion but does not yet rule on the remainder of the motion to enter consent decree and dissolve the stipulation not to close.
To address certain outstanding questions regarding the factual and legal underpinnings of the parties’ proposed consent decree, as well as the implementation of the proposed consent decree, the Court SETS a hearing for 11:00 a.m. PST on September 24, 2026. The hearing will take place via Zoom.
Does this new hearing mean anything? Well, that’s why I wish I had some legal experience. I have been told tonight by several people that this type of hearing is not normal, but it is to be expected in a case with a lot of details to hash out. On the other hand, I heard from someone else who argued it was a HUGE deal. Hopefully, I’ll have a better handle on it tomorrow after I speak to a few people during normal business hours.
Odds & Sods
I wrote a review of the new NBC series Line Of Fire. As well as the new MGM+ series American Hostage.
The microseries Finding Hope premieres today on the vertical TV platform vertTV. Here is a look at the trailer. And here is the official logline: “The new microseries follows Dr. Emily Harper (Jodi Sweetin), a successful big-city medical specialist who returns home after her father (Richard Karn), the small town’s beloved doctor, falls ill. When Emily steps in to try to save his struggling clinic, she finds herself unexpectedly thrown back together with a past romance (John Brotherton). Just as their old flame begins to reignite, her ex-boyfriend arrives with a tempting offer to return to the life she left behind, forcing her to choose between the life she always wanted and the love her heart never forgot.
Who Is Martin Mull? premieres Wednesday, October 7th on Netflix. Here is a first look at the trailer and here is the official logline: “Musician, cult comedian, unlikely TV fixture, and acclaimed painter, Martin Mull spent his life reinventing himself, and this star-studded documentary from directors Bob Saget and Neil Berkeley traces that restless journey in his own words and through friends including Steve Martin, Tom Waits, and David Alan Grier.”
Season two of Rage premieres Friday, October 9th on HBO Max. Here is a first look at the trailer.
Netflix has renewed Crew Girl for a second season.
Season two of Vampirina: Teenage Vampire premieres Tuesday, October 6th on Disney. Here is a first look at the trailer.
The documentary Clown Panic premieres Monday, October 12th on Hulu. Here is a first look at the trailer. And here is the official logline: “Ed Perkins directs this documentary on the 2016 killer clown sightings, which began with children’s reports in a small South Carolina community and grew into a nationwide panic and media frenzy.”
Norm: The Tale of Norm Macdonald premieres Friday, October 16th on Netflix. Here is a first look at the trailer. And here is the official logline: “Judd Apatow directs this close-up portrait of the deadpan stand-up and Saturday Night Live legend, from his time anchoring Weekend Update to his lasting influence as a comedian’s comedian.”
It Turns Out That, Yes, Ari Emanuel Is A Bit Of A Tool
Ari Emanuel was a founding partner in the Endeavor Talent Agency, which merged with the William Morris Agency in 2009. He's currently the executive chairman of TKO Group Holings, which owns the UFC and WWE.
Emanuel has an outsized reputation in the Hollywood and has been the inspiration for several memorable fictional characters, including Bob Odenkirk's character Stevie Grant on The Larry Sanders Show, and Ari Gold, played by Jeremy Piven on the HBO television show Entourage.
He is also someone with a long-standing relationship with Donald Trump. Which might be part of the reason why he gave this answer during an interview conducted by NPR's Steve Inskeep. He was asked about how the Paramount-Warner deal "brings multiple sources of TV news, including CNN, under one owner"
It’s easy to picture a scenario in which aliens invade the Earth and begin rounding up humans to work in death factories. And Emmanuel would be sitting in his office arguing that someone is going to have to create entertainment to keep the prisoners occupied in the off-hours. And now that the Aliens control the Earth’s resources, they’re going to be able to pay top dollar for the work of his clients.
What’s Coming Tonight And Tomorrow
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 23RD, 2026:
Brothers Series Premiere (Apple TV)
Knowledge Keepers (PBS)
The Love Hypothesis (Prime Video)
Wonka’s Golden Ticket Series Premiere (Netflix)
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 24TH, 2026:
A Different World Series Premiere (Netflix)
American Horror Story Season Thirteen Premiere (FX)
Go Deep: The DeSean Jackson Story (Prime Video)
Learning To Fly (Prime Video)
Shaque: Trust No One (Netflix)
Spidey and the Avengers: Halloween Team-Up! (Disney Jr.)
Teen Moms: Baseball Series Premiere (Paramount+)