CrossTalk Entertainment Report: Hollywood’s Record Summer, Emmy Season Heats Up
and Fall TV Takes Over

Summer may unofficially be over, but the entertainment world is showing no signs of slowing down. Hollywood is coming out of a historic theatrical season, television is beginning its annual fall takeover, awards season is already producing surprises, and some of the biggest names in movies and music are preparing for major September moments.

From the box office to the Emmys, the VMAs to WWE, here is the latest edition of the CrossTalk Entertainment Report.

Hollywood Just Finished a Historic Summer

After years of questions about whether audiences would ever completely return to movie theaters, Hollywood just received one of its strongest answers yet.

Domestic ticket sales between May 1 and Labor Day reached approximately $4.76 billion, edging past the previous summer record established in 2013. There are important qualifiers — including higher ticket prices and a slightly longer summer calendar — but the overall message for the theatrical business is difficult to ignore: major movies are once again generating major crowds.

Leading the charge has been Spider-Man: Brand New Day, which remained No. 1 domestically over Labor Day weekend for an incredible sixth consecutive weekend. The film collected approximately $23.7 million over the four-day holiday period and has now climbed past $923 million domestically. Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey remained another enormous force, sitting near $589 million domestically after Labor Day while continuing to perform extraordinarily well internationally.

Even Coyote vs. Acme, a movie that once looked destined never to reach theaters at all, has found an audience, finishing third over Labor Day weekend and adding another chapter to one of Hollywood's strangest comeback stories.

Now comes the question that always follows a blockbuster summer: can Hollywood keep the momentum going into the fall?

One of the first major tests arrives this week.

Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman Bring Back Practical Magic

Nearly three decades after the original became a cult favorite, Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman are officially returning as Sally and Gillian Owens in Practical Magic 2.

The sequel opens in North American theaters on September 11, with Bullock and Kidman joined by Joey King, Lee Pace, Maisie Williams, Xolo Maridueña, Dianne Wiest and Stockard Channing. Susanne Bier directs the sequel, which once again centers on the Owens family's supernatural history and the curse surrounding its generations of women.

It is exactly the kind of release Hollywood has increasingly embraced — a recognizable property driven heavily by nostalgia, but with enough new characters to potentially introduce the franchise to another generation.

And after Spider-Man and The Odyssey dominated the end of the summer, Practical Magic 2 gets the first real opportunity to announce that the fall movie season has arrived.

The Emmys Are Suddenly One of September's Biggest Stories

Television's biggest awards are next.

The 78th Emmy Awards will air live Monday, September 14 at 8 p.m. ET on NBC, with Peacock streaming the ceremony. Law & Order: SVU star Mariska Hargitay will host.

The night's headline battle appears to be forming around The Pitt and Pluribus in drama, while Hacks and surprise contender Widow's Bay could battle for comedy supremacy. The Pitt enters the ceremony as the most nominated program with 25 nominations, while Hacks set a comedy record with 24 nominations for its fifth and final season.

But the awards race has already begun.

During the Creative Arts ceremonies held September 5 and 6, Widow's Bay emerged as an unexpected powerhouse by winning eight Emmys, while The Pitt and Pluribus each collected four. Hargitay herself has already won two Emmys this year for the documentary she directed about her mother, Jayne Mansfield.

That makes Monday night's ceremony considerably more interesting than it appeared only a few weeks ago. Instead of simply watching established favorites collect trophies, there is now legitimate uncertainty surrounding several major categories.

Awards season has officially begun.

Fall Television Is Arriving Fast

The television calendar is also beginning its transition out of summer programming.

September 9 brings the second season of Peacock's The Paper, along with Apple's new thriller Last Seen, HBO Max's documentary Band of Brothers: Legacy, and Netflix's Tyler Perry's Why Did I Get Married Again?, which reunites Perry with Taraji P. Henson and Jill Scott.

And that is only the beginning.

Network television will begin rolling out its traditional fall programming over the next several weeks while streaming services continue operating on their own year-round schedules. That increasingly makes September less of a single "premiere week" and more of a month-long battle for viewers.

NBC's entertainment rollout includes The Traitors: New Blood, an all-civilian spinoff of the Peacock hit, beginning September 17. Meanwhile, many major returning broadcast and streaming series are preparing new seasons as the fall schedule fills up.

The interesting trend continues to be how little separation now exists between "television" and "streaming." Audiences no longer simply choose between ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox. They're choosing between those networks, Netflix, Peacock, Hulu, Disney+, HBO Max, Apple TV, Paramount+ and Prime Video — often on the same night.

The competition for attention may be more intense than ever.

Reality TV Isn't Taking the Fall Off

Reality television remains one of the industry's most dependable programming engines, and Bravo is loading up its fall calendar.

The Real Housewives of New York City returned for Season 16 on September 8. The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City follows September 16, the new Still Flipping Out premieres September 28, and The Real Housewives of Potomac returns October 11. Below Deck Mediterranean, The Real Housewives of Orange County, Next Gen NYC and Watch What Happens Live are also part of Bravo's current rotation.

Meanwhile, Big Brother 28 has reached the portion of the game where every competition and alliance suddenly becomes more important. CBS entered this week with only eight houseguests remaining and alliances beginning to fracture as the season moves toward its endgame.

Reality programming has become particularly valuable because viewers don't simply watch the episodes anymore. The shows generate clips, podcasts, social conversations, live feeds and online debates that continue long after an episode ends.

In today's entertainment economy, that engagement can be nearly as important as the initial television rating.

Daytime Television Prepares for Its Own Awards Night

The soap world has plenty happening away from the nightly primetime battle as well.

The 53rd Daytime Emmy Awards are scheduled for October 30, and the nominations show an interesting mix of longtime daytime institutions and one of the genre's newest success stories.

The Young and the Restless leads CBS' daytime dramas with 18 nominations, while Beyond the Gates earned an impressive 15 nominations in its first year of eligibility. General Hospital received 13, with Days of Our Lives and The Bold and the Beautiful also represented throughout the competition.

One of the night's biggest honors will belong to Genie Francis.

The longtime General Hospital star will receive the Daytime Emmys' Lifetime Achievement Award, recognizing a career approaching five decades in daytime television. Francis first joined General Hospital as Laura in 1977 and became part of one of the most famous couples in television history alongside Anthony Geary's Luke Spencer.

It is a fitting reminder that although the television business around them has transformed dramatically, soaps remain one of the medium's longest-running storytelling traditions.

Music Turns Its Attention Toward the VMAs

The next major music awards spectacle is also approaching.

The 2026 MTV Video Music Awards will air Sunday, September 27, beginning at 7:30 p.m. ET on CBS and Paramount+. Voting remains open in several major categories. Video of the Year includes nominees such as Ariana Grande, Bruno Mars, Madonna, Sabrina Carpenter and Taylor Swift.

One particularly notable announcement arrived Wednesday: Nirvana will receive the Video Vanguard Award, recognizing the band's enormous impact on music, MTV and popular culture. The timing carries some historical symmetry — September 9 marks the anniversary of Nirvana's first VMA appearance in 1992.

The VMAs have spent years evolving from a traditional awards ceremony into something closer to a pop-culture event, and this year's combination of current superstars and legacy recognition appears designed to continue that formula.

The Entertainment World Continues to Remember Dolly Parton

Music is also still processing the loss of one of its defining figures.

Dolly Parton died August 25 at age 80, prompting tributes from musicians, actors and fans around the world. In the weeks since, stories about Parton's generosity, songwriting and influence have continued to emerge, while artists including Beyoncé, Reba McEntire, Kacey Musgraves and Keith Urban have publicly honored her legacy.

Parton's influence extended far beyond country music. She became a film star, entrepreneur, philanthropist and an American cultural figure whose appeal crossed generations and genres.

Entertainment constantly races toward whatever comes next, but some losses deserve more than a single news cycle. Parton's career is one of them.

WWE Heads South of the Border

In sports entertainment, WWE is beginning a major stretch centered around Mexico.

Following Monday's Raw, where Liv Morgan retained the Women's World Championship against Stephanie Vaquer, Bayley made a surprise return and Money in the Bank qualifying continued, WWE is now turning its attention toward a significant run of international events.

Friday's SmackDown from Mexico City is already loaded. CM Punk is scheduled to defend the Undisputed WWE Championship against Sami Zayn, while Chelsea Green will defend the Interim WWE Women's Championship against Nia Jax. Cody Rhodes is also scheduled to appear following his loss to Randy Orton at Sunday Night's Main Event.

The stretch continues with Triplemanía 34 events and a Mexico City edition of Raw on September 14. WWE also announced eight additional Raw and SmackDown dates across the United States for November and December.

With WWE, AAA and Money in the Bank storylines beginning to intersect, September could become a significant month for the company creatively as well as internationally.

CrossTalk Final Take

If there is one theme running through entertainment right now, it is momentum.

Movie theaters just closed their biggest nominal summer ever. Spider-Man: Brand New Day and The Odyssey became genuine event movies. Practical Magic is returning nearly 30 years later. Television is entering Emmy week while simultaneously beginning another crowded fall season. Reality television remains everywhere. Daytime is preparing to celebrate both its newest successes and one of its great legends. WWE is expanding its international footprint. And the VMAs are preparing to put music back at the center of pop culture later this month.

September traditionally marks a reset for the entertainment industry.

In 2026, it feels more like somebody simply pressed fast-forward.

This is the CrossTalk Entertainment Report — covering the stories, shows, movies, personalities and moments driving the entertainment world.