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Happy Easter and Passover — and it looks like there’s one more thing to celebrate this weekend as the WGA and AMPTP reach a tentative four-year agreement. The deal, struck after just three weeks of negotiations, still needs guild approval and member ratification, but the relief across Hollywood is palpable — a rare bit of good news after a brutal stretch for the workforce.

That strain was front and center in one of our biggest stories of the week. Elaine Low’smillennials edition of her Disappearing Ladder series struck a nerve with subscribers — and sparked a heated debate on our Instagram (@theankler). Gen X, you’re next! Reach out to Elaine if you’ve got insights.

Lesley Goldberg also made a splash this week with her sharp take on Peter Friedlander’s quiet — too quiet? — tenure as Amazon’s global head of TV. Six months in, the respected exec has yet to signal a strategy and the “mystified” town is getting restless. See also: Lesley’s scoops on The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power and a RoboCop series greenlight.

The week’s other big talker? Gen Z “hipsters” are on the town puffing cigarettes. Degen Pener hit the clubs to understand what’s happening:

Reminder: The Ankler is at NAB Show (April 19–20) in Vegas with exclusive programming in the Media and Entertainment Theater that includes MS NOW anchors Jen Psaki and Ari Melber with top exec Marcus Mabry; JB Smoove; YouTuber and Iron Lung filmmaker Mark Fischbach (aka Markiplier), Akela Cooper and Atomic Monster’s Michael Clear; CEOs from Funko, MicroCo and Asteria; and showrunner Eric Robles. Stay tuned for more big names. Bonus: Ankler readers get $60 off a show pass with code ANKLER26.

Now, ICYMI: even more stories that had the industry buzzing — and subscribing — this week:

• Ashley Cullins talks to CAA’s Roeg Sutherland, UTA’s Rena Ronson, Gersh’s Jessica Lacy, Bleecker Street CEO Kent Sanderson and more about 2026 budgets, buyers — and an unexpected opportunity:

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• As streaming’s Battleground Britain welcomes a new entrant, Manori Ravindran takes you inside WBD’s bet that mass IP can outperform local storytelling — while Netflix, Amazon and Disney double down on local:

• Plus, Lesley weighs Supriya Ganesh’s exit from The Pitt and why it sent fans into code red, along with April’s Emmy-contender pile-up:

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• With an exclusive excerpt from Arsenio Hall’s memoir, The Optionist’s Andy Lewis recounts how the late night host was squeezed in the early ’90s by Paramount, Black stars and the NAACP — each demanding the “right” amount of Blackness on his pioneering talk show:

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• On her Prestige Junkiepodcast, Katey Rich gauges next year’s Oscar hopefuls. Two among them: The Odyssey and Dune: Part Three, both of which star Robert Pattinson and Zendaya — who find themselves in a never-ending promo cycle with this weekend’s A24 rom-com The Drama:

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• Sean McNulty names some familiar names as the beleaguered Paramount president appears headed for the exit:

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• Natalie’s revealing interview with Chernin Group partners Greg Bettinelli and Maureen Sullivan revealed what drives their bets on creator-led businesses and where they see the next opportunities:

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• Elaine and Sean debate which generation really has it worst in today’s business — and whether boomers are to blame:

• Mike Judge and Alec Berg join Elaine to dissect how their iconic 2010s HBO comedy, Silicon Valley, nailed its prescient takes on AI and Big Tech:

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• Monday Morning Quarterbacks: It was a good run for Warner Bros., but Sean and Christopher Rosen analyze how — following a dismal debut for The Bride! and last weekend’s flop They Will Kill You, the heater is over:

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