Innholdsfortegnelse for 11/30/2022 i Variety

Rocket Man, Dua Lipa and the next generation of musical superstars — this is what we have packed into the pages of our annual Hitmakers issue, which puts a spotlight on the artists, labels, executives, producers, publishers, sound mixers, engineers, managers and marketing mavens behind the year’s 25 most consumed songs. Variety’s mighty music team has taken Hitmakers, now in its sixth year, to new heights. The issue provides a 360 view of how the business actually works. From the first stirrings of beats and lyrics to the promotional campaigns and TV syncs that put a new (or vintage) tune over the top, we tell the tales of how huge hits were born. Whatever your earworms were, we’ve got the back-story on 2022’s signature platters, including Harry Styles’ “As It…

Jim Parsons (1) remembers when Ellen DeGeneres came out in 1997 with her now-iconic Time magazine cover, whose headline read, “Yep, I’m Gay.” “As much as it helped ultimately, it was also fucking scary as a gay person who wanted … a career for themselves, in the same road, in the same industry,” the actor tells me on this week’s “Just for Variety” podcast. While Parsons’ sexuality was an open secret in Hollywood for years, he didn’t come out until 2012. Before then, I remember his team making it very clear that he would not discuss his private life during interviews, even when he made his Broadway debut in 2011 playing a gay man in Larry Kramer’s AIDS play “The Normal Heart.” Now, he stars in “Spoiler Alert,” Michael Showalter’s…

On a chilly March evening in New York City, two friends were experiencing an unusual synchronicity. Onstage at Madison Square Garden, Dua Lipa was giving a capacity crowd the concert they’d waited two years to attend. Her pop masterpiece, “Future Nostalgia,” released just as the pandemic gripped the globe in March 2020, had the seemingly great misfortune of being a dance party album arriving at a time when no parties were allowed. But with bangers like “Levitating,” “Physical,” “Don’t Start Now” and the title track, it ended up being lockdown dance therapy, symbolizing what people would do again once they could: dress up, dance, flirt, sing along with strangers and enjoy the closeness of other humans at a time when we all wondered when, or even if, we could be…

ENGINEERS, MIXERS, PRODUCERS, SONGWRITERS ATL JACOB Producer Future’s “Wait For U” featuring Drake and Tems Amid a recent breakup, the lush vocals of Nigerian singer Tems on her 2020 song “Higher” called to producer Jacob in an emotionally resonant way — one that inspired him to build out the vocal chop that has since become the addictive backbone of Future’s “Wait For U,” complemented by a Drake guest verse. Jacob says he felt a premonition in the studio that the track would soar: “I was like, ‘I think it’s going to be our first No. 1.’ ” Good instincts, Jacob — it topped the Hot 100 in its first tracking week. AHMAD “BELLY” BALSHE Songwriter The Weeknd’s “Save Your Tears” The rapper and recording artist, and one of the Weeknd’s…

AS IS EVIDENT from his recent arena residency shows on both coasts, Harry Styles knows the value of a good band. But it’s not just a live thing; the pop superstar has had the wisdom to assemble a tight-knit group in the studio too. The blockbuster album “Harry’s House” and its ubiquitous lead single, “As It Was,” were (like the star’s previous album, “Fine Line”) largely the product of a core trio consisting of Styles, Kid Harpoon (aka Tom Hull) and Tyler Johnson. They form what is truly a working band, even if Hull and Johnson aren’t joining the pop idol out on the road. This chemistry is what spurred Variety to select Johnson and Hull as Hitmakers Songwriters of the Year. Hull and Johnson work together only on Styles’…

EBONIE WARD is used to being the only woman in the room. This was the case long before she gained prominence as the manager to hip-hop stars Future, Gunna and Flo Milli. Ward got her start in the business running her own men’s clothing boutique, Fly Kix ATL, which catered to local rap stars in Atlanta. From there, Ward used her connections in the high-end retail space to segue into music, joining Anthony Saleh’s Emagen Entertainment Group, longtime management home to Future, and working her way up to become the artist’s primary representative. “It has been a very delicate situation at times,” Ward says of being a female manager. “Anthony Saleh has been my ace and an anchor in my career. We would walk into a room, and they wouldn’t…

LIZZO KNOWS ahitwhen she hears one. In January, the artist’s fourth studio album, “Special,” was almost complete after three years of recording — but it was missing a lead single. “We knew we had a brilliant body of work but felt that we were missing one final song for the album,” says Brandon Davis, exec VP and co-head of pop A&R at Atlantic Records. The singer had been working with her longtime collaborator Ricky Reed, as well as rising producer Blake Slatkin, on the project, but the two hitmakers had never been in the studio together. So when it came time to make the collection’s final song, Davis figured, why not organize a meeting of the minds? “Lizzo was like, ‘If you guys make something that sounds like a hit,…

SYNCS HAVE LONG beenapowerfultoolforexposurewhen it comes to songs. There’s Lizzo’s “Truth Hurts” in the Netflix movie “Someone Great” and Apple’s use of Jet’s “Are You Gonna Be My Girl” for an iPod ad. Lord Huron added a legion of teens to their fan base after “The Night We Met” landed key placement in “13 Reasons Why,” and the Fray’s “How to Save a Life” may forever be linked to “Grey’s Anatomy.” These songs not only made for big movie and TV moments but found continued life after the peak of the projects that featured them had passed. As a teen, Amy Coles’ big music moment came by way of MTV’s “The Real World,” when she heard Semisonic’s “Closing Time.” “That was the first time I remember being aware of a…

MUSIC FOR SCREENS Nov. 29 - Dec. 1…

It takes a special pair of eyes and ears to produce a large-scale live music event for television. That was the sentiment shared by a group of industry pros who gathered to trade notes and talk shop for the Music for Screens session called The Power of Live: How TV Has Elevated Music Performances. Rickey Minor, whose long list of credits as music director include the Academy Awards, the Grammys, the Kennedy Center Honors and more, regaled the group with his story of changing the time signature (slowed from 3/4 to 4/4) on “The Star Spangled Banner” to allow Whitney Houston more time to stretch out when she performed the national anthem in January 1991 at Super Bowl XXV in Dallas. Fellow panelists Adam Blackstone (2022 Super Bowl Halftime Show),…

How important is fan service for composers when coming into established worlds created by other composers? This is just one topic leading composers in the field of the fantasy genre will discuss as they head the conversation in the Fantasy Music Roundtable conversation (presented by ASCAP) during Variety’s Virtual Music for Screens Summit. Ramin Djawadi (“House of the Dragon”), Simon Franglen (“Avatar: The Way of Water”), Natalie Holt (“Loki,” “Obi-wan Kenobi”), Anne Nikitin (“Fate: The Winx Saga”) and Bear McCreary (“The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power”) come together to share why they love the genre and the first films that caught their interest growing up — “E.T: the Extra Terrestrial” proved to be very influential. Composing music for an already established world — one that audiences know…

MUSIC FOR SCREENS Nov. 29 - Dec. 1 Grammy and Oscar winner Dernst “D’Mile” Emile II was at an awards show when he received a call from Grammy winner Jazmine Sullivan’s manager asking for him to come on board to write an original song for “Till,” from Orion and United Artists Releasing. His song “Stand Up” powerfully captures the spirit of the harrowing true story of Mamie Till Mobley (played by Danielle Deadwyler) and her relentless pursuit of justice after her 14-year-old son, Emmett Till (Jalyn Hill), is lynched in 1955. As for the film’s score, during Variety’s Music for Screens Summit, “Till” director and co-writer Chinonye Chukwu says she talked to composer Abel Korzeniowskiabout “thecolorsIsee when I hear the music,” and Korzeniowski translated her vision into music. The word…

Variety executive editor of music Shirley Halperin profiled Ebonie Ward and Amy Coles and curated our exhaustive Hitmakers edition: “I start working on the Hitmakers list in June; while people are kicking into gear for summer, I’m already winding down the year!” In March, deputy music editor Jem Aswad was at Madison Square Garden watching Dua Lipa perform “Cold Heart” when he realized Elton John was probably playing the same song five miles away at Barclays Center. Therein lies a tale, he thought. Distracting himself from the countdown to Record Store Day Black Friday, senior music writer and chief music critic Chris Willman talked with Hitmakers Kid Harpoon and Tyler Johnson and Rock and Roll Hall of Famers Pat Benatar and Neil Giraldo. Photographer Peggy Sirota captured Elton John and Dua…

EXECUTIVE SHUFFLE John Matts has been appointed chief financial officer at Hallmark Media, where he will lead the development and execution of short- and long-term finance strategies. Prior to joining Hallmark, he was CFO for the Golf Channel at NBCUniversal. Courtney Sexton has been named executive VP of documentary film and TV at Participant Media. She spent the past nine years at CNN Films, where she was senior VP. Earlier in her career, Sexton helped Participant launch the docu division during her eight-year run. Dana DeSanto has been appointed senior VP of sales and marketing at 1895 Films, where she will oversee partnerships and branded content and focus on short-form expansion. She had served as VP of marketing and network partnerships for the Smithsonian Channel. Steve Carlston has been tapped senior…

Nov. 28 Gotham Awards Cipriani Wall Street, New York “Everything Everywhere All at Once” was the big winner at the 32nd annual event, taking home best feature as well as supporting performance for Ke Huy Quan. “Oftentimes it is in independent films where actors find their opportunities,” said an emotional Quan, a former child star who appeared in “Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom” and “Goonies.” “I was that actor.” “The Fabelmans” star Michelle Williams received a career tribute, as did Adam Sandler, who delivered a hilarious speech that he claimed was written by his daughters, Sadie, 16, and Sunny, 14. “While Daddy is with you tonight, we’re doing everything we’re not allowed to do when Daddy is home, like eat his Yodels or try on his Spanx or,…

How a sugar high in the studio led Dua Lipa to a global smash UA LIPA’S 2020sophomorealbum, “Future Nostalgia,” is loaded with dance-pop hits, but few have had the resonance of “Levitating.” One of two songs from the album to be certified quadruple platinum by the RIAA (along with “Don’t Start Now,” which was released a year earlier), “Levitating” has racked up a whopping 1.3 billion streams, 539,000 sales and an airplay audience of over 5 billion listeners, per Luminate. It was named Billboard’s No. 1 Hot 100 song for all of 2021, even though it peaked at No. 2 on the weekly chart. The song also remained in the Top 40 of the Hot 100 for more than a year, and in the Top 10 for 41 of those…

HIGH ON a hill in Echo Park, inside an unassuming house, lies a hit factory. Microphones, mixing decks and other equipment are everywhere, but the space is surprisingly homey. The main studio is centered on a giant Harrison 4032 solid-state recording console, while off in a different room is the battered Steinway that the proprietor of this enterprise —Ricky Reed, Grammy-winning songwriter and producer of tunes by Lizzo, Camila Cabello, Jon Batiste, Twenty One Pilots and Maren Morris — purchased from the L.A. studio Sound City. “All kinds of people played this piano — Fleetwood Mac, Elton John,” says Reed. “I think there was a Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers sticker on the bottom side, but I’m not sure it’s still there.” Yet the music that has brought us here…

SINCE FOUNDING Arthouse Entertainment in Los Angeles with business partner Stephen Finfer, Kara DioGuardi has approached her roster of songwriters, producers and artists with a laser focus on what she says the industry needs: “Good ole artist development.” Through Arthouse, which began as a publishing company for DioGuardi’s own song catalog, and her recently launched app, Briidge, the Grammy-nominated artist matches music creators based on their skill set, sound, location and personality, a human algorithm she sharpened while serving as a judge on “American Idol” in 2009 and 2010. Arthouse Music Publishing and Records, for which DioGuardi is CEO, has equity in tunes by Bruno Mars, Carrie Underwood, Katy Perry, Rihanna, Maroon 5, Justin Bieber, Halsey, Eminem, Florida Georgia Line and now Gayle, with the double-platinum Grammy-nominated “Abcdefu” finishing out…

BEFORE producer Robert Townsend chose Jesse Collins to write for the WB Network comedy “The Parent ’Hood” in 1997, the opportunities were few and far between for the former radio disc jockey. At thatpointinCollins’ life, hew as filing unemployment forms and pretending to take job interviews at Walmart and Chili’s. But Townsend saw potential in Collins. From that first break, doors opened for Collins, leading himtobecomeHollywood’s go-to curator of some of music’s biggest moments, from the Grammy Awards to this year’s much-lauded Super Bowl halftime performance. For these accomplishments and more, Collins has been selected as Vari ety’s Hitmakers Executive of the Year. “I’ve been really lucky to have an opportunity to work on some shows where we’ve been able to create some moments, and that’s a lot of…

Atlanta rapper Gunna, 29, has been incarcerated since May on RICO charges stemming, in no small part, from his lyrics. Fellow 300 artist Young Thug is also entangled in the charges, which, according to prosecutors, deem his Young Stoner Life record label a gang operation. Both have had to watch from afar as their collaborative hit single, “Pushin P,” surges up the charts. But active efforts from music industry heavyweights like 300’s Kevin Liles gives hope for their release, as legislation in California and New York puts strong restrictions on art as evidence. From a Georgia prison, Gunna wrote this letter to his manager, Ebonie Ward, praising her tireless efforts to keep the record alive while he’s away.…

IT WAS TAKEN as a given that the“Top Gun: Maverick” soundtrack would deliver a worldwide hit. But instead of Lady Gaga’s emotional end-credits track “Hold My Hand,” the smash ended up being “I Ain’t Worried,” the whimsical OneRepublic tune that comes during a volleyball scene in the middle of the movie. That helped make “Worried,” a Tik-Tok phenomenon before it was a belated radio and streaming sensation. You’ve had whistle-based hits not just with OneRepublic; as a writer-producer, you worked with the Jonas Brothers on “Sucker.” Clive Davis once told me that the best songs in the world, you can whistle the melody. I think that stuck in my brain, “Well, Clive told me! Whistles always work.” OneRepublic has had three hits with whistling. But we just had a meeting…

EMILIO MORALES Publishing Director, Rimas Publishing Bad Bunny’s “Me Porto Bonito” and “Titi Me Preguntó” Morales managed the “nuances and intricacies of all contributors” on Bad Bunny’s “Un Verano Sin Ti” album — consisting of artists on the rise and global favorites, from Rauw Alejandro to Chencho Corleone. The rest, he says, was “a very organic process. … We have the benefit that the label and publishing divisions can work seamlessly together,” referencing the indie publisher’s relationship with Rimas Entertainment and its legal department. Morales’ team also put a spotlight on producers Súbelo Neo and Lennex in an attempt to “give fans and audiences another way to connect with the people behind the song.” LILLIA PARSA Senior VP of A&R, Universal Music Publishing Group Lizzo’s “About Damn Time,” The Kid…

After this year’s blackout, the 80th annual Golden Globes Awards ceremony will return to NBC’s airwaves, along with a streaming option via Peacock, on Jan. 10. In 2021, the Hollywood Foreign Press Assn., which is made up of journalists from Europe, Latin America, Asia, the Middle East, and Africa, faced intense scrutiny from Hollywood insiders over the lack of diversity seen within its membership. A revamp took place behind the scenes, with the HFPA adding 103 voters and doubling the size of the unit that oversees the awards. Next year, the group is poised to come back strong, though it will be interesting to see what type of response the town — and the world — shows to the event and its organizers. “Only a truly collaborative process could have…

Music supervision is much more than just placing needle drops in film, TV shows and video games. Even a two-second wedding scene requires the work and involvement of a music supervisor. The Music Supervisors in the Spotlight panel at Variety’s Music for Screens Summit sees Jen Malone (of “Euphoria” and “Wednesday” fame) and Jen Ross (whose work was displayed on “Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist”) break down the process of curating musical moments. Ross and Malone are joined by Madonna Wade-Reed of “All-American”; Lauren Mikus from “Everything Everywhere All at Once” and “Only Murders in the Building”; andRichRobinson, exec VP of global synchronization and media original music for Warner Chappell Music. An important issue facing music supervisors is the fight to unionize. Music supervisors at Netflix, who are seeking representation by IATSE,…

Billy Porter is three decades into a career he was repeatedly told would never happen. A Black, queer artist with a booming voice and indelible screen and stage presence, Porter has ascended to extraordinary heights by defying those expectations. “It’s been a wild, unexpected, glorious ride to get to this place of knowing and living what was possible then to what is possible now,” he tells Variety. “Who I am now was an impossibility then.” Now a Grammy, Tony and Emmy-winning legend, the 53-year-old will be honored on Dec. 1 with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The “Kinky Boots” and “Pose” star was surprised by news of the honor, even if his collaborators aren’t. “It’s only right for his name to be etched in history for people…

Age: 24 Hometown: Compton, Calif. Turning point: His 2020 car accident was a “wake-up call.” The message: “Stop playing [around].” Steve Lacy is one of those feelgood-about-music-again success stories, so it’s no wonder he just picked up four Grammy nominations, including record and song of the year for his multiweek No. 1 pop smash “Bad Habit,” as well as recognition for best progressive R&B album for his full-length breakout, “Gemini Rights.” (He’d surely be a leading contender for new artist, too, if he hadn’t been disqualified for previously getting a Grammy nom as a member of the group the Internet, when he was just 17.) Variety spoke with him while he was bypassing a couple of tour dates to accept a last-minute invitation to be on “Saturday Night Live.” •…

Despite music industry pledges of equality and inclusion in recent years, the coveted “carve-out” — an employment deal that allows executives to continue to work and profit from side hustles, such as managing an artist — remains mostly out of reach for women in high-ranking positions. The list of male executives with such sweetheart deals is a long one, but often it’s a senior A&R hire who’s likely to come in with a big management client on the side. Gordan Dillard, who recently joined Capitol Music Group as executive VP of A&R and artist development, is a prime example, as he continues to manage Doja Cat (signed to RCA) via SalXCo. “A&R has always been the straightest line to the C-suite,” says a top female executive. “For years, women were…

It’s the most wonderful time of the year to watch holiday movies. Here, we ask Hollywood stars to name their fave films to view as they roast chestnuts on an open fire and wait for Santa to come down the chimney. “The Nightmare Before Christmas” (1993), “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” (2000) “I’m just a weirdo. I love weird Christmas movies.”Jodie Turner-Smith “The Muppet Christmas Carol” (1992) “I think Dickens plus Kermit is impossibly great. And Michael Caine, of course. I love the Muppets so much. I always think of myself as one of the two old men on the balcony.”Luca Guadagnino “Die Hard” (1988) “Obviously the ultimate Christmas movie. It’s not controversial at all to say that. It’s not Christmas until he falls from the top of the tower,…

ONE SONG stood out this year, reaching every quadrant of demographic and culture. It will be what we remember as great about music when we think back to 2022. That song, of course, is Kate Bush’s “Running Up That Hill,” resurrected from 1985 to help save an upside-down world in Netflix’s “Stranger Things.” But when it comes to sheer omnipresence, even Bush couldn’t quite compete with Harry Styles’ “As It Was.” On our list of the 25 most consumed songs of the year (some of which were nominated for Grammys), there were holdovers from 2021, including Glass Animals’ “Heat Waves,” and 2020, Dua Lipa’s “Levitating.” There were Spanish-language smashes, not ably Bad Bunny’s two inclusions. Plus there are fresh faces we’re confident will stick around, like Gayle and Zach Bryan;…

IN EARLY 2021, LaFlare and Kaine traveled to Hawaii with Dr. Luke and Theron Thomas for a writing camp. Though the group had already penned seven or eight songs that day, something stuck about the idea that would become “Big Energy.” When it came time to think of lyrics, the team looked to social media trends for inspiration. “‘Big dick energy’ was super popular going around on Twitter at the time, so we were like, ‘We need to capitalize and make this a moment for everybody,’” Kaine says. Meanwhile, LaFlare devised a melody for the track’s lush backing vocals — but little did she know that her voice would stay on the recording through its final version. “I was like ‘Wait, that’s me on the song?’” she says. “I didn’t…

IN “MY MIND & ME,” the title track of Selena Gomez’s Apple TV+ documentary, she sings, “If somebody sees me like this, then they won’t feel alone now.” The power ballad is intended to be a message of empathy to anyone who is struggling with mental health. “That’s what I feel I am meant to do,” Gomez says. “Just to be able to say, ‘Hey, I know what that feels like — I hate that feeling — and I see you.’” Directed by Alek Keshishian, “Selena Gomez: My Mind & Me” chronicles six years of the former Disney child star’s life as she battles depression and anxiety — and goes public with her bipolar diagnosis. The film features the singer-actor in states of emotional distress as well as dealing with…

LEWIS AND PEGUES First heard “Wait For U” in the studio right after Future recorded his verse. Pegues says it was the obvious single for “I Never Liked You.” “We got with our amazing team and started planning to have everything lined up prior to release from marketing to radio to video,” Lewis says. The foresight set the track up to debut at No. 1, a feat that was buoyed, in particular, by a music video that knowingly winked at Future’s public image, the pair notes. “There was already a surge of renewed awareness on the internet around him outside of the music,” says Pegues. “We had a strong sense that the song would capitalize on that awareness. In the video, he is referred to as the ‘toxic king.’ Future…

WHEN OMAR Apollofinished recording “Evergreen (You Didn’t Deserve Me at All),” the 25-year-old did not expect it to become his first charting single. “I never thought it was going to be the song,” he says. “It meant so much to me, but I never imagined it would resonate the way it has.” For one, it was the last puzzle piece to the singer’s full-length debut album, “Ivory,” and it was also the song that took the most time to complete. Apollo’s musical prowess is on full display on “Evergreen” as he fluctuates from whisper to bellow, singing of unrequited love over sophisticated R&B runs. Lyrically, it’s as vulnerable a confession as one could make, but it shouldn’t be mistaken for a cry for help; instead, it’s an effort to make…

THE LIST of artists who benefited from Future’s Midas touch reads like a veritable who’s who of hiphop: Megan Thee Stallion, Dreezy, Hit-Boy, Earthgang, NAV and Don Toliver are just a few of the talents to team with the Atlanta rapper this year. In January, Future combined forces with Gunna and Young Thug for the former’s single, “Pushin P,” an anthem that delved into the triumvirate’s playground of sex, money and drugs. The tune debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 at No. 7, and waves of fans tapped into the trend, incorporating Apple’s blue “P” emoji into Instagram captions. (It lands at No. 17 on 2022’s most-consumed songs.) “Making history with my brothers is priceless,” Future says. While the year would offer multiple opportunities for Future to work with past…

WITH THE FEMALE rap renaissance in full bloom, it’s only right the self-proclaimed Queen of the South ruled the charts this year. Thanks to “Big Energy,” the lead single off her second studio album, “777,” 23-year-old Alyssa “Latto” Stephens celebrated milestones like her first Top 20 hit on the Hot 100 and the longest-charting solo female rap song. “Every time they tell me a new accomplishment, I be wanting to fact-check that shit,” Latto says of the record, which also helped her make history as the first solo female rapper to have a No. 1 song at Pop, Rhythmic and Urban radio. “It’s something new every day. It just feels back-to-back, nonstop right now.” Latto’s been on the verge of breakthrough success since she first gained her footing as the…

WHEN Ariana Grande hopped on a remix of “Save Your Tears” in April 2021, it boosted the Weeknd track’s on-demand streams to new heights. Here’s how the two compared each quarter in 2022. MIKE HORTON Exec VP, Republic Records Drake’s “Jimmy Cooks” featuring 21 Savage The first rule of a Drake record? Leave the credit to the world’s biggest rapper. “The song took on a life of its own, and we essentially followed its lead,” says Horton of the single from Drake’s June album, “Honestly, Nevermind.” “After it became a favorite on DSPs, we aggressively, yet strategically, focused on radio.” Those “classic” Drake bars and 21 Savage’s “perfect counterpoint” guest vocals, as Horton describes the track, sent the song to No. 1. “Drake replaced himself [on the Hot 100 chart]…

THAT LIL NAS X spentallof$30topurchasethebeatfor“Old Town Road” has become the stuff of music-industry legend. As the story goes, a 19-year-old Dutch trap producer, Kiowa Roukema, who goes by YoungKio, built the beat from a sample of Nine Inch Nails’ “34 Ghosts IV.” He posted it to BeatStars, a marketplace for buying and selling sounds, where Lil Nas X purchased it. While BeatStars, which launched in 2008, doesn’t allow creators to see who buys their beats, YoungKio had his producer tag embedded in the file and was able to identify it as his own. The 2018 song ended up a Billboard No. 1 hit that went on to register sales of 1.8 million units and streams north of 3.4 billion. “BeatStars is where songs are made,” says the company’s CEO, Abe…

Michael Giacchino is Variety’s Composer of the Year. His recent resume includes four of the top-10 highest-grossing movies of 2022 as well as the biggest box office film of 2021, and he has now branched out into directing as well. “Spider-Man: No Way Home” grossed nearly $805 million; add up the numbers from this year’s “Jurassic World: Dominion,” “The Batman,” “Thor: Love and Thunder” and “Lightyear” and Giacchino-scored movies have made more than $2 billion domestically just during the past 12 months. The winner of an Oscar (“Up”), Emmy (“Lost”) and three Grammys (including “Ratatouille”) can now add “director” to his resume, having made the widely praised and hugely popular “Werewolf by Night,” a one-hour special for Marvel that debuted in October on Disney+. (He scored it too.) In a…

FILM REVIEW Director: Joel Crawford With: Antonio Banderas, Salma Hayek Pinault, Harvey Guillén More than a decade after “Shrek” prequel/spinoff “Puss in Boots,” the flamboyant feline is up to his old tricks — but has yet to meet the computer-animated ogre whose party he’s destined to crash in “Shrek 2.” As that series wore on, the “Shrek” franchise took on so many popular side characters that by the fourth outing, there was hardly room left to swing a cat. Puss was one of the few tagalongs rich enough to warrant his own origin story. Now, director Joel Crawford goes dark, bringing the fearless hero face to face with his own mortality. By forcing Puss to contemplate his priorities, the sequel more than justifies its existence while paving the way for…