Crypto News: Freedom from sequels

Good morning, Pursuits newsletter subscribers, it's Jim Gaddy here in New York, and if you're in the US, happy early Independence Day and 4th of July weekend.

This time of year is is typically peak season for summer blockbusters, but if you feel as if every movie out there is one you've already seen, you're not alone.

Since 2020, 16 of the 20 highest-grossing releases have been sequels, prequels or their cousin, the reboot. I mean, look at this graph:

Source: BoxOfficeMojo

That doesn't even include Inside Out 2, which came out two weeks ago and is poised to cross the $1 billion box office mark this weekend. (That is, if the Quiet Place threequel doesn't steal too much share.)

There's more to come: Next month, a reboot of Twisters with Glen Powell, this generation's Bill Paxton, blows into town. Deadpool & Wolverine team up the week after that. A different Alien will arrive in August, another Joker in October and then we'll get a new Gladiator for the holidays. Even Beetlejuice gets resurrected this year. (Spoiler alert: He runs for president.)

Even House of the Dragon is back for Season 2. Click for our full review. Source: HBO

One movie out this weekend, however, epitomizes the kind of all-American theatrical indulgence that people envision when they ask: "Why don't they make movies like they used to?"

It's grand in scope. It's gorgeous. It's full of hard, gun-toting men and scrappy women just trying to survive out West against a backdrop of jaw-dropping scenery. It's inspired by the classic How the West Was Won, which starred John Wayne and Jimmy Stewart, two men whose love of God and country was never questioned. It's as subtle as a brick and aimed at the flag-waving, Yellowstone-loving heartland. Maybe best of all? Those snobby coastal media elites say it's terrible.

Helen Hunt and Bill Paxton from Twister are upcycled into Daisy Edgar-Jones and Glen Powell in Twisters. Illustration by Javier Jaén for Bloomberg Businessweek

And yet if the early returns are accurate, this is going to become one of the year's biggest flops.

Yes, I'm talking about Horizon, Kevin Costner's epic story of the many, many characters who populate the edges of the Civil War-era frontier. Truthfully, I've never really cared for most of ol' Kev's movies. In my mind, he's always been kind of a dweeb—the guy who describes a Madonna concert as "neat" or the type of person who gets spoofed in Robin Hood: Men in Tights

But I was not prepared for how vicious the reviews have been. Even conservative media outlets are calling his earnest love letter to American greatness a "bloated ego trip."

Costner as Hayes Ellison in Horizon: An American Saga. Source: Cannes Film Festival

I've seen it, and let's just say it's no Tin Cup. It is definitely not formulaic; in fact, it is the antithesis of formula. The title card tells us that this is merely "Chapter One" and, as such, it introduces all the characters with little rhyme or reason. One minute some men are talking about the best way to draw water out of the ground; in the next, a family recites Psalm 23 before blowing themselves to smithereens in order to avoid getting scalped.

But then that Lord of the Rings music swells as our hero gallops across snow-covered mountains into the frame (this comes an hour in, but all right) and for a moment, I felt like I was in the presence of some real, old-timey cinematic entertainment.

I don't understand the hate: It's a fine way to spend a 93F summer afternoon indoors. But I guess we already get enough incoherent rambling from aging baby boomers on the evening news.

While we're on the subject of reboots, I finally got around to watching Godzilla Minus One. I was expecting the usual Hollywood disaster fare, and I was so, so happy to be so wrong.

Emma Sofia in Cats: The Jellicle Ball. Photographer: Matthew Murphy

On Thursday, Pursuits boss Chris Rovzar took a group to see Cats: The Jellicle Ball, at PAC NYC, a gorgeous new arts center at the Ground Zero site in Manhattan. (Michael R. Bloomberg, founder and majority owner of Bloomberg LP, the parent company of Bloomberg News, is the chair and major donor.) The show transposes the world of Cats, the musical, into the Harlem ballroom scene. Rovzar gives it 8,000 stars.

Back to Glen Powell: if you're into movies like School of Rock or Dazed and Confused, cue up Hit Man.

Jeremy Allen White as Carmen "Carmy" Berzatto. Source: FX

People really don't like this new season of The Bear. (And by people, we mean an actual chef.)

We're in the middle of Copa America fever, but since I don't usually watch soccer unless the USA is playing, I checked in with Pursuits photo editor Leonor Mammana. Her father was Argentine, so she's a rabid fan of La Albiceleste. She went to see them in their victory over Chile at MetLife stadium this week, and I was curious to hear what it was like:

How far in advance did you buy tickets for the game on Tuesday?
Two months.

Did you have good seats?
Yes. Section 106, row 17. Nice and close. I figured if I was going to pay that much for it, I may as well be close.

How is the food there, or were you solely focused on the game?
100% focused on the game. We got a water and a very gross soft drink at the half because my throat was sore from screaming.

Lionel Messi has been giving us a further display of his US box-office power. Photographer: CHRIS ARJOON/AFP

What was the crowd like? Mostly Argentine? Curious Americans?
The crowd was 85% Argentina fans. Majority Messi fans—not an insignificant amount of Miami Messi jerseys.

Were the fans in the US more subdued than a typical match?
People were ECSTATIC to see Messi. Every time he came close to our side of the pitch, every phone went up and there was a roar.

Is there a chant that only real fans will know?
I truly cannot. Are you in the office?

Yes. Does that matter?
[silence]

All right, let's move on. How many hours of sleep did you get that night?
Less than six. I woke up before my alarm and my child, which is the cruelest of fates.

So no food, gross drinks, and little sleep … would you do it again?
I will do it again! If they make it to the next round, I may fly out to a match.

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Bloomberg Businessweek's new redesign is out! Before the Olympics begin in Paris next month, our editor-in-chief Brad Stone and Paris correspondent Angelina Rascouet sat down with Bernard Arnault, the head of LVMH and, on any given day, the richest man in the world.

Featured in Bloomberg Businessweek, July 2024. Subscribe now. Photographer: Ruven Afanador for Bloomberg Businessweek

If you've ever bought a Louis Vuitton bag or a bottle of Moet or Veuve Clicquot or Dom Perignon, or if you've ever stayed at a Cheval Blanc or applied Fenty makeup, or coveted a piece of clothing from Dior or Celine or Marc Jacobs or Fendi, or admired a piece of jewelry from Bulgari or a watch from Tag Heuer, you're living in a world that Arnault created.

He didn't invent conspicuous consumption, of course.

But thanks almost exclusively to him, as the story details, luxury is now the universal obsession of shoppers on Shanghai's Nanjing Road, Milan's Via Monte Napoleone and Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills. It compels the tourists who flock to LVMH stores on the Champs-Élysées in Paris and Fifth Avenue in New York.

He has dressed royals and presidents, supermodels and celebrities. Perhaps more than anyone else, he's made the clothes and accessories that signify status among the global elite—and project a bit of their insecurity, too. Read the rest here.

Billionaire Arnault Said to Join Race for Signa's Venice Hotel

The Latest Wine News From Napa Valley and LVMH Champagne

Paris Delays Seine Opening Ceremony Rehearsal Amid Rainy Weather

The Best New Rosé Wines Aren't From France

LVMH Buys High-End Swiss Clock Manufacturer L'Epée 1839

LVMH Is Buying One of the Most Famous Restaurants in Paris

Beginning on July 10, the Green team here at Bloomberg is hosting a festival that assembles some of the planet's foremost collaborators, activists and innovators to lead the way towards a new climate era. There's also a separate Restaurant and Bar Series featuring some great chefs and awesome food. Head over to learn more.

New for subscribers: Free article gifting. Bloomberg.com subscribers can now gift up to five free articles a month to anyone you want. Just look for the "Gift this article" button on stories. (Not a subscriber? Unlock limited access and sign up here.)