Latest news with #TomEllis
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
TV Industry Scam Exposed: Fraudster Reported To FBI & UK Cybercrime Agency After Posing As Well-Known British Producers And Demanding Thousands Of Pounds From Writers
EXCLUSIVE: A scammer has been reported to both the FBI and UK cybercrime agency after posing as well-known TV executives and asking writers to send them up to £2,500 ($3,300) to help get their scripts developed. Deadline has seen evidence of at least half a dozen British writers who have been contacted by a person pretending to be UK producer Charlotte Walls on the Stage 32 networking platform, asking them to submit ideas, sign an NDA and then pay a 'refundable facilitation fee' of between £2,000 and £2,500. More from Deadline Disney Slack Hack Suspect Pleads Guilty In Deal With Feds; Could Get 10 Years Behind Bars For 2024 Attack Eriq La Salle To Direct First Episode Of CBS' 'FBI' Offshoot Series 'CIA' Starring Tom Ellis 'FBI' Offshoot 'CIA' Starring Tom Ellis Ordered Straight-To-Series By CBS For 2025-26 Season The scammer also posed as another high-profile UK producer, who wished to remain nameless, and approached writers asking for money. In all, we are told by Stage 32 that around 100 messages were sent to UK creatives on the platform and about 25 people responded. Working with one writer, Anette Martinsen, we have tracked down what we believe to be the scammer's name, bank details and bank address. This information has been reported by Stage 32 to the FBI and by Martinsen to UK Action Fraud, a national reporting center for fraud and cybercrime that passes reports to the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau, which then decides whether to refer to local police forces for investigation. We are aware of at least one other report of the same scammer to Action Fraud. 'Action Fraud can confirm that it received a report on 30 May 2025 and it is currently being assessed by the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau (NFIB) at the City of London Police,' said a spokeswoman. Stage 32 founder Richard Botto told us the scam is a 'copy or extension of the same scam that has infiltrated Facebook, Instagram, Reddit, LinkedIn and X over the last three years.' He said Stage 32 'believes we have identified the perpetrator of this scam and are working with Action Fraud and the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center in an effort to bring them to justice.' How it works Using a VPN to create a Stage 32 account from a foreign IP address, the scammer sets up fake profiles and impersonates producers like Catalyst Global Media's Walls. They then send writers a message like the one in the above image asking if they are interested in submitting material. If they respond saying they are interested, the scammer sends over a set of terms that say, 'Should your project be identified as a strong candidate for development, we will proceed under a formal Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA).' Following the signing of the NDA, the scammer says it requires a 'refundable facilitation fee' of varying amounts between £2,000 and £2,500, which 'serves as a demonstration of mutual commitment to advancing the project into early development and securing access to critical production infrastructure and strategic resources.' The scammer goes on to note that while this fee 'may not be customary in every production arrangement,' 'it is important to clarify that most professional producers and consultants charge substantial fees for their involvement.' 'We fully understand that some creators may be seeking informal feedback or free evaluations,' it adds. 'However, we wish to be transparent: our team invests significant time, resources, and professional leverage into every project we undertake.' We are not aware of anyone who has fallen victim to the scam and Stage 32's Botto told us 'to the best of our knowledge, no one sent this 'producer' any money.' Some writers told us they smelled a rat quickly due to the payment demand and the even stranger stipulation to sign an NDA simply to get a script into development. Others realized that the email address the scammer supplied was different to the company's email address on its website. The scammer pretending to be Walls, for example, was using a Gmail account. 'Most people contacted recognized the scam, notified us, and the offending accounts were deleted and the IP's and emails blocked immediately,' Botto said. Martinsen went along with the scam to see what she could uncover. Having agreed to the scammer's 'terms' and signed a fake NDA, she was asked swiftly to send a £2,000 payment to a person called Agnieszka Falkowska, who banks with Barclays and whose bank address is listed in Peterborough, South England. When Martinsen didn't respond, she was quickly chased up and told that Agnieszka Falkowska works in the accounts department at Catalyst Global Media, although no such person in the Catalyst accounts team exists. At this point, Stage 32 was notified and contacted both the FBI and Action Fraud. We are aware of at least one other person who has also reported the name Agnieszka Falkowska and these same bank details to Action Fraud. Deadline has contacted the Gmail address the person calling themselves Agnieszka Falkowska was using and we have not received a response. Martinsen said 'something didn't feel right' when she was contacted by the scammer via the fake Walls profile on Stage 32 about a comedy script she was developing titled In The Spotlight. 'I talked to my friend Gina Lyons from Gobby Girl Productions who suspected it was a scam too,' Martinsen told Deadline. 'I feel disappointed as you can imagine as it is tough being an older woman in the TV and film industry and I was of course hoping to get In the Spotlight made with a well respected company.' When Deadline contacted Walls last week to tell her she was being impersonated on Stage 32, Walls was mortified. 'I'm devastated to have been caught up in a scam like this and genuinely shocked,' she said. 'Writers are the lifeblood of our industry. It's more important than ever for people to be vigilant.' Another producer who has been impersonated and preferred to remain anonymous queried why these scammers are able to create fake profiles in the first place on platforms like Stage 32, and why they contacted so many writers before being caught. 'There must be a way to check,' said the producer. 'This is appalling. Our own reputations will end up being smeared and tarnished.' Botto said Walls' profile was 'deleted within two minutes, much to her satisfaction.' 'I speak frequently and repeatedly during my monthly Ask Me Anything broadcasts about how to protect yourself in this industry, including not to trust if a 'named producer' is writing to you in broken English or through a suspicious email address,' added Botto. 'As a writer, producer and actor myself who has been targeted by these scammers, I urge everyone to be vigilant and to do your due diligence.' Ellie Peers, General Secretary of the Writers Guild of Great Britain, said the guild's recent Is it a Steal? report, which found that 94% of writers who had paid to have their book published lost money, typically in the thousands, proves that 'there is no shortage of people wanting to exploit writers online.' 'If writers are asked to pay someone for something that they should themselves be paid for, that is always a red flag,' added Peers. 'This also shows the importance of always getting your writing contracts vetted by an expert before signing.' Another writer we spoke with pointed out that scams have become far more sophisticated and hard to spot in the age of AI, with platforms like ChatGPT able to easily replicate documents like contracts and NDAs. Spot the fraud: how to avoid getting conned Be on high alert if anyone is asking for money prior to a meeting and for work you have previously done for free (or have even been paid for in the past). If you haven't heard of them, search LinkedIn and other platforms for the person getting in contact in order to check their credentials. Contact the producers independently if you believe they are being impersonated. Check the email addresses you are being supplied and whether this matches up to the company email address on its website. Share concerns in forums or with industry friends. If you wish to contact the author of this article to supply further information or share your experience, please email: Best of Deadline 2025 TV Cancellations: Photo Gallery 2025 TV Series Renewals: Photo Gallery 2025-26 Awards Season Calendar: Dates For Tonys, Emmys, Oscars & More
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
FBI's CIA Spinoff Is A Go, And They Found The Most Devilish Leading Man I Can Think Of
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. Despite sending its first two spinoffs to the graveyard of shows canceled in 2025 — R.I.P. FBI: International and FBI: Most Wanted — CBS' G-Men franchise is growing larger thanks to the imminent arrival of the alphabetical offshoot previously titled FBI: CIA. Fans questioned the project's need to exist in place of the other established series, but it looks like all involved are feeling quite bullish about the new concept's chances, with two big updates cementing the spinoff's future. Network execs appear to have made a big call with the new project, with Deadline reporting that CBS is officially moving forward with a straight-to-series order for the drama offshoot, meaning it's now confirmed to be joining the mothership series during the Fall 2025 TV schedule. At this point, details are fairly few and far between, so it's not clear exactly how many episodes will be produced from the jump, and whether or not the option for more eps will be in place. But we do know that CBS may be cutting the FBI connective tissue out of the title to simply call the new drama CIA. The new show is the creation of David Hudgins (FBI: Most Wanted), Nicole Perlman (Guardians of the Galaxy), and former CIA officer David Chasteen. It'll follow two partners with opposing personalities, with one being an impulsive rule-breaking CIA officer, and the other being a meticulous rule-following FBI agent, who are assigned to work out of the CIA's New York Station, where they must work through their differences to catch and/or thwart dangerous threats. The initial CIA plan was to build it into FBI proper as a backdoor pilot, with the two main characters and a third lead meant to be introduced into one of the current season's installments. That plan was delayed and reconfigured a couple of times due to a lack of casting decisions, and then the backdoor pilot idea was avoided entirely in place of a straightforward order. No more casting delays now, though, at least when it comes to locking down the CIA officer side of the new show's duo. For that role, the Dick Wolf-produced drama has cast Tom Ellis, who is arguably best known for his years of portraying the devil himself across six seasons of Lucifer. (Which altered its ending and jumped to Netflix after Fox canceled it three seasons in.) Ellis will be portraying the less rigid member of the pair, and is described as being a fast-talking loose cannon. Both things that I can easily see the UK actor portraying without stretching his talents too far. Add in a heaping dose of "self-satisfied snark," and it's essentially Lucifer Morningstar with a badge. Interestingly enough, Tom Ellis was attached to CIA casting reports starting around February, and they seemed to dissipate after a month or so of negotiations. Apparently something changed behind the scenes that was positive enough to sway Ellis to sign on. And once he was confirmed to be on board, CBS was reportedly more eager to work out the series order details. Stay tuned for more casting details for the new CIA spinoff to learn who will be tamping down Tom Ellis' rambunctious behavior when the new show kicks off this fall on CBS.
Yahoo
12-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Why Two FBI Shows (And The Equalizer) Actually Got Canceled, According To CBS
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. CBS seemingly added more entries than usual to the annual list of canceled and ending TV shows, which means the upcoming TV schedule will look quite different once the fall months arrive. More recently network canceled its two FBI spinoffs, and then followed up by pulling the plug on Queen Latifah's The Equalizer in early May. The decisions have left some fans in arms, and now they've been addressed by one of CBS' head honchos. Speaking at CBS' Fall TV schedule reveal event (via TVLine), the network's President of Entertainment Amy Reisenbach addressed the nature of the business while speaking to the cancellations of FBI: International and FBI: Most Wanted, neither of which cracked the Top 20 primetime shows by way of Live + 35 Day engagement. (Meanwhile, mothership drama FBI was #11.) Namechecking the latest tentatively titled spinoff, which boasts Lucifer's Tom Ellis in the lead role, Reisenbach said: Obviously we love working with Dick [Wolf] and we're so excited to be bringing CIA onto the schedule. have to be fiscally responsible, and ultimately those deals and the shows just weren't penciling out for us for an economic perspective. It's definitely true that network series' cast contracts tend to work more in the actors' favor as the seasons build up, and the sixth season usually marks negotiation time for such deals. As such, it's often when network execs go hardest on weighing the pros and cons of keeping a show on the air. FBI: Most Wanted was indeed at that point, with Season 6 set to wrap up on May 20, while FBI: International was only on for four seasons before the cancellation news. And despite not cracking the delayed-viewing Top 20 for all of TV, the dramas' total viewerships still handily beat out a lot of other primetime offerings, averaging around 6.5 million. Perhaps if both or either had been more of a draw for younger demographics, their fates could have changed. The past month has been rough for The Equalizer fans. First, the previously announced plan for a backdoor spinoff starring Bosch's Titus Welliver and Harlem's Juani Feliz went belly-up. Two days after the ep aired in mid-April, it was reported that CBS would not be moving forward with the follow-up project. Then, just a couple of weeks later, the news broke that The Equalizer wouldn't be moving forward with Season 6, despite Queen Latifah and others reportedly agreeing to take a salary cut to balance any budgetary issues. When addressing that particular decision, Amy Reinsenbach stated: It's never easy to end shows. We had a lot of options this year, and the schedule is really full. So we always have to look at all of our shows, look at the aggregate, the creative, where they are in their life cycle, what the finances look like, what the ratings are…. And we make those tough decisions. In the case of the Sunday night offering, ratings almost definitely played heavily into the cancellation decision, as The Equalizer's average nightly viewership shrank by nearly two million viewers, which isn't so easy to sweep away and feel confident while ordering new seasons. At this point, no plans are seemingly being made to shop The Equalizer or CBS' other canceled shows around to other networks, which is understandable. For now, they can all be streamed in full with a Paramount+ subscription.
Express Tribune
03-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Express Tribune
Queen Latifah starrer The Equalizer canceled after five seasons at CBS
CBS has officially canceled The Equalizer after five seasons, as confirmed by Variety. The show, led by Queen Latifah, was the last remaining bubble series at the network. Its season finale, scheduled for May 4, will now serve as the series finale. The cancellation follows a series of other recent CBS decisions, including the axing of the freshman multi-cam Poppa's House, along with FBI: International and FBI: Most Wanted. Additionally, a backdoor pilot for a potential Equalizer spinoff aired earlier this season but will not move forward. While the cancellation of The Equalizer may not be entirely unexpected, given its status as a bubble show in the previous season, it was co-produced by CBS Studios and Universal Television. This made it a less financially viable option for CBS, especially as the network has already greenlit several new shows for the upcoming season. These include a new addition to the FBI franchise starring Tom Ellis, the comedy pilot DMV picked up to series, and spinoffs for Fire Country and Blue Bloods. Previously, CBS also announced a pickup for Matthew Gray Gubler's drama Einstein, but that series has been pushed to the 2026-2027 season. In terms of renewals, CBS confirmed a two-season extension for the comedy Ghosts and additional seasons for Tracker and NCIS. The Equalizer was a reimagining of the 1980s series, with Latifah playing Robyn McCall, a former CIA operative who aids people in dire circumstances. The series also starred Tory Kittles, Adam Goldberg, Liza Lapira, Laya DeLeon Hayes, and Lorraine Toussaint. Developed by Andrew Marlowe and Terri Miller, it was based on the original series co-created by Richard Lindheim. The show's executive producers included Joseph C. Wilson, Queen Latifah, Debra Martin Chase, Shakim Compere, John Davis, John Fox, Loretha Jones, and Rob Hanning.
Scottish Sun
23-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Scottish Sun
Lucifer hunk lands lead role in new spin off series from hit crime drama
LUCIFER hunk Tom Ellis has landed a lead role in a new spin off series based on CIA agents. The new crime drama is called 'CIA' and is set in the "FBI" franchise. Advertisement 5 Tom Ellis is set to appear in a new spin of show called "CIA" Credit: Netflix 5 Tom is most known for his role in Lucifer, which aired for 6 seasons Credit: Alamy 5 The new CIA show is a spin off from the FBI franchise Credit: Getty Tom, 46, is best known for starring as Lucifer Morningstar in the hit series Lucifer, which was based on the DC Comics version of the Prince of Darkness. The Welsh actor starred in the show from 2015 to 2021, with Fox airing three seasons before Netflix picked it up and aired an additional three seasons. The new "CIA" drama is set to premiere during the 2025-2026 broadcast season. The official show description states: ''CIA' is a one hour crime drama centered on two unlikely partners – a fast-talking, rule-breaking loose cannon CIA case officer (Ellis), and a by-the-book, seasoned and smart FBI agent who believes in the rule of law.' Advertisement 'When this odd couple are assigned to work out of CIA's New York Station, they must learn to work together to investigate cases and criminals posing threats on U.S. soil, finding that their differences may actually be their strength.' Though Tom has taken one of the lead roles, the second lead role is still being decided. The show is written by Dick Wolf and David Hudgins, who are both executive producers alongside Nicole Perlman, David Chasteen, and Peter Jankowski. 'CIA' is produced by Universal Television in association with Wolf Entertainment and CBS Studios. Advertisement The news of the drama comes after it was announced that both 'FBI: Most Wanted' and 'FBI: International' had been canceled at CBS. 'FBI' is currently in the first season of the three-season renewal it received in 2024. Before starring in Lucifer, Tom was best known for starring in the BBC sitcom Miranda and also well known for playing Dr Oliver Cousins in EastEnders. In June 2019, Tom married his long-term girlfriend, American screenwriter and actress Meaghan Oppenheimer. Advertisement The pair tied the knot in a lavish ceremony at the Grassini Family Winery in Santa Ynez Valley, California. They began dating in 2015 and announced their engagement in 2018. Before that, Tom was previously married to EastEnders star Tamzin Outhwaite, who he married in 2006 in Somerset after meeting the year before through their mutual friend James McAvoy. They went on to have two daughters, Florence (born 2008) and Marnie (born 2012). Advertisement But in 2014, following revelations of Tom's infidelity, the couple divorced. Tamzin was left devastated after he confessed to a one-night stand while filming Gothica in the States in 2013. According to The Richest, Tom has a net worth of £6m. This is largely down to his work on TV. Advertisement It's estimated his Netflix earnings for Lucifer could be as high as £37,000 per episode. Tom is due to star opposite Sterling K. Brown in the upcoming Hulu limited series Washington Black. 5 Tom married actress Meaghan Oppenheimer in 2019 Credit: Getty 5 It's estimated Tom's earnings for Lucifer could have been as high as £37k per episode Credit: JOHN P. FLEENOR/NETFLIX
