The ‘Michael’ Phenomenon & WaPo’s New C.E.O.

Matt’s Summer Movie Forecast, D.C. House Flipping, Wall Street’s $6.4B Mistake

Welcome back to The Daily Courant, your afternoon guide to Puck’s best new reporting. Here’s what you need to know…

In the Room: The Washington Post’s quest to find a new publisher after the Will Lewis fiasco is sputtering to an end with the elevation of the company’s C.F.O. Dylan Byers scoops Jeff Bezos’s decision to install Jeff D’Onofrio as C.E.O. and publisher. [Read More]
Line Sheet: Estée Lauder is pulling Bobbi Brown from nearly every U.S. department store at the end of May. Rachel Strugatz reveals Lauder’s plan to resuscitate the O.G. “no-makeup makeup” brand. [Read More]
The Best & The Brightest: Conventional wisdom holds that Democrats will flip the House in November, but a mid-cycle flip scenario is quietly titillating Washington Democrats. Abby Livingston investigates whether an early Dem takeover might actually be a curse disguised as a gift. [Read More]
Dry Powder: In 2021, the buyout firm Thoma Bravo paid $6.4 billion for software company Medallia—and now it’s preparing to hand the keys to Blackstone, Apollo, and KKR while walking away from $5.1 billion in equity. Bill Cohan digs into one of the largest private-equity wipeouts in years. [Read More]
Wall Power: Painter Emma Webster was one of the most sought-after artists of the post-pandemic boom, but she’s never had a major solo show in New York until this week. Marion Maneker sits down with Webster to discuss her unusual process and her appetite for what she calls a “cutthroat” New York audience. [Inner Circle Exclusive]

Meanwhile, on the pods…

The Town: Matt Belloni and Scott Mendelson break down the most highly anticipated films of the summer and their box office potential. [Listen Here]
The Town: Matt is joined by Lionsgate boss Adam Fogelson to discuss the challenges of making Michael, why they took a chance on the film, and its successful box office debut. [Listen Here]
The Powers That Be: Peter Hamby connects with Leigh Ann Caldwell to chew over the Supreme Court’s latest blow to the Voting Rights Act before weighing in on the escalating tensions between John Thune and Mike Johnson. [Listen Here]

MEDIA

Dylan Byers

Teflon D’Onofrio

Months after another round of deep cuts and Jeff Bezos’s overdue jettisoning of Will Lewis, ‘The Washington Post’ is grappling with the harsh realities of rebuilding the brand—beginning with naming Lewis’s permanent successor.

FASHION

Rachel Strugatz

Searching for Bobbi Brown

In just a few weeks, Bobbi Brown, the original no-makeup makeup, will exit nearly every major U.S. department store to focus on Ulta and Amazon instead. Will the brand survive Estée Lauder’s attempted takeover of Puig? Or could it end up back in the hands of Brown, herself?

WASHINGTON

Abby Livingston

Johnson’s Margin Call

As the House Republican majority continues to dwindle, Hill insiders are contemplating something unprecedented: Could Democrats gain control of Congress before the midterms?

WALL STREET

William D. Cohan

Heavy Medallia

The highly levered software company is becoming a morality tale for this inflection point in the private-credit journey. How will Thoma Bravo, Blackstone, Apollo, KKR, and Antares Capital interpret this moment?

ART

Marion Maneker

Condition Report: Emma Webster

On the eve of her first real New York show, the L.A.-based artist explains her futuristic process, in which she uses 3D sculpting software, a V.R. headset, and the glitches of the natural world to create landscapes like no other.

HOLLYWOOD

Matthew Belloni

The 2026 Summer Blockbuster Confidence Ranking

It’s almost May, which means summer blockbuster season has officially begun. Matt welcomes back Puck’s Scott Mendelson to run through the most highly anticipated films of the summer, ranking each one by their box office potential and assigning confidence scores for each film.

HOLLYWOOD

Matthew Belloni

Michael’s Big Win, Reshoot Drama & Sequel Hurdles with Lionsgate’s Film Head

Matt is joined by Lionsgate film chair Adam Fogelson to talk about the success of Michael, the challenges of making the movie, why they took a chance on the film when many other studios passed, whether there will be a sequel and if it will engage with the allegations against Michael Jackson, Lionsgate’s recent hot streak, how they compete with major studios, and more.

WASHINGTON

Peter Hamby

Leigh Ann Caldwell

The Powers that Be Daily, Starring Peter Hamby

Is There Anything Left of the Voting Rights Act?

Leigh Ann Caldwell joins Peter to break down the Supreme Court’s recent blow to the Voting Rights Act, ruling that Louisiana must eliminate a majority-Black congressional district—which was quickly followed by Florida passing a new congressional map that could wipe out four sitting Democrats before the year is out. Then Leigh Ann weighs in on the escalating tension between John Thune and Mike Johnson, where the friction between the two chambers appears to have reached another crescendo.

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