Taylor Swift's grand experiment ] Photographer: Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images North America Taylor Swift has the No. 1 album in the U.S. with a record she first released in 2008. "Fearless (Taylor's Version)" is the first installment in her project to rerecord the six albums she released under her first record deal. Swift says she is doing this because she doesn't own the originals. She left Big Machine in 2019 and assailed its leader, Scott Borchetta, as well as Scooter Braun, who bought her label and then sold her first six albums to Shamrock Capital. Her campaign hasn't reduced interest in those records she doesn't own. The rereleases have boosted listenership of her past work, enriching the very people she is fighting. But, it does set an interesting precedent. Her rerelease scored the biggest debut week of any album this year, which is notable since rereleases are usually for hardcore fans, not the masses. Swift is, as usual, ahead of the curve. Artists are demanding more and more ownership, and Swift's success may embolden some of her peers to do the same. I don't think it will embolden everyone. Recording your old music is time-consuming and expensive. It also may not appeal to people who are happy with their initial work. But there is little doubt a few others will try this. But what I wonder – and what I don't know – is whether the demands for ownership in the music business will spread to Hollywood. Film and TV have been moving in the opposite direction, where a handful of small companies want to own everything. Securing ownership as a TV producer or a film director has never been harder, at least at the highest level. And yet you've got a lot of producers and studios who would like to own, and a new class of digital creator that wants ownership or control as well. Warner Bros. is ruling the box officeThe No. 1 movie in the U.S. is "Godzilla vs. Kong" for the third weekend in a row. Warner Bros. has dominated the box office so far this year, bailing out theaters with its plan to release movies in theaters and on HBO Max at the same time. The irony is rich on this one. Theaters bemoaned Warner Bros.' decision as the end of their business. Warner Bros. swore they would thank them when the time came. Right now, looks like Warner Bros. was right. The ArcLight is closing – until someone buys itThe owner of Pacific Theatres and ArcLight Cinemas said it would not reopen the cinemas, a psychological blow to the movie business just as it appeared things were getting better. Though this is a relatively small chain, ArcLlight operates the nicest theater in the heart of Hollywood, while Pacific operates two other high profile Los Angeles theaters – the theaters at the Grove and Americana malls. Most people in the film business believe someone will buy some or all of these locations. Potential buyers include a rival chain like Cinemark, a streaming service/studio like Netflix or a wealthy cinephile like Megan Ellison. Smart money is on another chain, unless it's sold piecemeal. Scott Rudin will 'step back' from his Broadway workThe producer apologized for the abusive behavior detailed in a piece by The Hollywood Reporter's Tatiana Siegel. What does taking a break mean? Unclear. It could be an empty commitment, it could be a real commitment. But it is the first time his behavior, well-known in the industry for years, has caused him to do anything. Netflix dominates in South KoreaRemember when everyone talked about how much money Netflix lost? Well, not only is the company profitable around the world, it is profitable in South Korea for the first time. Experts project the service will grow to 5.3 million subscribers by the end of the year. Deals, deals, deals - Televisa agreed to sell its content assets to Univision, of which it is the largest shareholder. The two companies are attempting to create a Spanish-language media company large enough to compete in the global marketplace with Netflix, Disney and Amazon.
- Amazon is spending $465 million to produce the first season of "Lord of the Rings."
- Amazon also said it now has more than 200 million Prime customers. This will be cited as the number of people using Prime Video. It's not.
Weekly playlistSince I took a week off, I didn't get a chance to say anything about his DMX. X had my favorite voice of any rapper ever; his gravelly bark created the soundtrack to many of my favorite songs. This is one case where Spotify's "This Is" playlist is a great feature. It's been my go-to for two weeks running. Also, I used some of my free time to binge all of "Last Chance U: Basketball." Don't be put off if you don't like sports. This is a humanistic documentary for anyone who cares about team work, underdogs or second chances. | 
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