7 – Breaking News & Latest Updates 2026
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Streaming

Established streaming industry leaders like Netflix and Amazon are facing more competition than ever. Now legacy entertainment giants are in the game with their own subscription services, like Peacock, HBO Max, Paramount Plus, and the Disney Plus / Hulu / ESPN Plus bundle, while Apple TV Plus attacks around the edges. Meanwhile, the rise of ad-supported free platforms like Roku Channel and Pluto TV has attracted enough attention that Plex, YouTube, and Amazon’s Freevee are trying to get a chunk of the action too.

Richard Lawler
Richard Lawler
CBS pulls back on Only in Monroe takedown notices.

Variety reports on why early uploads of Stephen Colbert’s post-The Late Show endeavor were pulled, citing copyright complaints from Paramount/CBS. A statement from the company says it was because it financed and produced the episode with Colbert, which was eventually published on his YouTube channel, but it has now “decided to waive further enforcement of this standard industry practice until additional review.”

Terrence O'Brien
Terrence O'Brien
Byron Allen apparently wants to turn Buzzfeed into a free streaming TV app.

Why? Who knows. But he acquired a majority stake in the outlet. Allen envisions “geofenced” local news and “premium content using AI” (whatever that means) powered by tech from another service he invested in, LocalNow. He also apparently thinks that Johna Peretti is doing a “great job.”

I have a new go-to browserI have a new go-to browser
David Pierce
Stevie Bonifield
Stevie Bonifield
Google says it hasn’t cut off updates for most old Chromecasts.

9to5Google reported Friday morning that a Nest support page had been updated to say that nearly all Chromecast devices except for the most recent one that was released in 2022 were no longer receiving critical security updates. Later, the page changed back and once again shows all Chromecasts except the 1st gen version are still getting critical updates.

Now, Google Home senior product manager Sahana Mysore tells The Verge that “A support article update incorrectly indicated deprecation of software support for legacy Chromecast devices,” and the current version is accurate.

Update: Added response from Google.

A screenshot of a Google Nest support page
A screenshot of a Google Nest support page
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The support page, before the update (with our highlights added)…
Screenshot: Google
Charles Pulliam-Moore
Charles Pulliam-Moore
I’m sorry, Avatar. You may be confused.

There is no war in Ba Sing Se in the new trailer for season two of Netflix’s live-action Avatar: The Last Airbender series. But there are plenty of action shots showing off how much more intense the elemental bending will be when the season premieres on June 25th.

Emma Roth
Emma Roth
Now you can link your Hulu profile to Disney Plus.

You can bring over your Hulu watch history, watchlist, and recommendations to Disney Plus if you subscribe to both services. This comes as part of Disney’s plans to create a unified streaming app, though the company tells Variety it has “no current plans” to get rid of the Hulu app.

Image: Disney
‘It’s in the air’: Apple TV’s hottest new shows explore different sides of OnlyFans

With Margo’s Got Money Troubles and Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed, there’s a trend brewing on Apple’s streaming service.

Andrew Webster
Jay Peters
Jay Peters
Netflix has signed a multi-year deal with the directors of the recent Super Mario movies.

Michael Jelenic and Aaron Horvath will “develop animated series and films exclusively for Netflix, with first-look rights for live action projects,” according to a press release. Their latest film, The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, debuted in April.

The Mandalorian and Grogu should have been a season of TV

The new Star Wars movie isn’t strong enough to get the franchise back on track.

Charles Pulliam-Moore
Charles Pulliam-Moore
Charles Pulliam-Moore
In brightest day, in blackest night.

While the first teaser for HBO’s upcoming Lantern series felt a little to grounded, the new one actually gives us a pretty good look at how Hal Jordan’s superpowers are going to look on the small screen.

Charles Pulliam-Moore
Charles Pulliam-Moore
Iron Lung is coming home to YouTube.

Following its surprisingly successful theatrical run, Markiplier’s Iron Lung adaptation is set to make its YouTube streaming debut on May 31st.

Fighting Trump will make or break Disney’s new CEO

It’s time for Josh D’Amaro to lock in.

Charles Pulliam-Moore
Emma Roth
Emma Roth
Netflix will host the NFL’s first “Thanksgiving eve” game.
  • Season opener in Australia: 49ers vs. Rams
  • Thanksgiving eve: Packers vs. Rams
  • Two Christmas Day games
  • Week 18
Charles Pulliam-Moore
Charles Pulliam-Moore
VisionQuest finally has a release date.

It’s been a while since we heard anything new about Disney’s Agatha All Along followup, VisionQuest, but Disney has just pegged the series for an October 14th premiere.

Andrew Webster
Andrew Webster
“I feel like I used to have a parakeet.”

The new extended scene from episode 4 of Pluribus doesn’t include any major revelations, but it is an entertaining three minutes of Rhea Seehorn tripping out.

Andrew Webster
Andrew Webster
Returning, Ahsoka is.

Star Wars is making its long-awaited return to theaters with The Mandalorian and Grogu next week, but the galaxy far, far away still has a home on streaming. Disney announced that season 2 of Mando spinoff Ahsoka will premiere in early 2027. That’s more than three years removed from when the show debuted.

Charles Pulliam-Moore
Charles Pulliam-Moore
Pandora will burn on Disney Plus this summer.

During its annual upfront presentation today, Disney announced that Avatar: Fire and Ash will stream on Disney Plus beginning June 24th.

Emma Roth
Emma Roth
“The Netflix Effect.”

Netflix launched a new website in an attempt to highlight the impact of its films and TV shows over the past decade. Some stats shared by the streamer say Netflix contributed $325 billion to the global economy and created over 425,000 jobs for actors, writers, directors, researchers, and VFX artists.

Jess Weatherbed
Jess Weatherbed
Amazon is making a Fourth Wing TV series.

Prime Video hasn’t mentioned how many episodes its ordered to adapt the Rebecca Yarros dragon-riding romantasy novels that are so widely beloved by BookTok, but Meredith Averill (The Haunting of Hill House, Locke & Key) will serve as showrunner and executive producer. An expected release date also hasn’t been announced yet.

Charles Pulliam-Moore
Charles Pulliam-Moore
There’s a new Westworld on the horizon.

Though HBO’s Westworld has come and gone, Deadline reports that Warner Bros. has tapped Jurassic Park screenwriter David Koepp to pen the script for a new Westworld movie that probably won’t have much to do with the show.

Andrew Webster
Andrew Webster
A whole lot of Fast and Furious.

During NBC Universal’s upfronts presentation, Vin Diesel made a surprise announcement: not only is Fast and Furious coming to TV, it’s somehow getting four different spinoff series. There are no other details right now, but the show will be streaming on Peacock whenever they do come out.

Joanna Stern is not a robot, but she lived with them
Play

The journalist and author of I Am Not a Robot on her year living with AI and starting a new media company.

Nilay Patel
Netflix may have finally figured out games

The new TV-based games feel right.

Andrew Webster
Andrew Webster
Andrew Webster
“What is your worst fear?”

There’s a lot of sci-fi streaming this summer, but if you’re looking for something a little more intense, there’s always the latest iteration of Cape Fear. If nothing else, Javier Bardem looks appropriately terrifying in the new trailer, which should make it worth checking out when it starts streaming on June 5th.

Emma Roth
Emma Roth
Warner Bros. Discovery posted a $2.9 billion loss this quarter.

The $2.8 billion breakup fee paid to Netflix makes up most of this loss, but it also includes $1.3 billion in other expenses related to its merger with Paramount. As noted by CNBC, Paramount agreed to cover the hefty termination fee, “but the cost lives on WBD’s books until the close of the deal.”

Richard Lawler
Richard Lawler
Fubo’s subscriber numbers dropped once football season ended.

Fubo TV’s earnings seem to show the impact of the NFL, as the Q2 subscriber count dropped from 6.2 million at the end of 2025 to 5.7 million three months later, which is fewer than the 5.9 million subscribers it had at the same time last year. Still, revenue was up one percent.

And in AI news, an assistant is in the works for Roku, Apple TV, and mobile this fall:

The Company is developing an AI Assistant that will enable customers to search their DVR’d content for sports on the Fubo platform through casual conversation (rather than voice commands).

Emma Roth
Emma Roth
Disney says it makes more money from streaming than linear TV.

Josh D’Amaro, Disney’s new CEO, says in the company’s Q2 2026 earnings report that he expects the “shift from linear toward streaming to continue.” Operating income from Disney’s streaming business, which includes Disney Plus and Hulu, jumped to $582 million over the past few months, marking an 88 percent increase year over year.