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Last year’s NBCUniversal upfront was hindered by Hollywood strikes and former ad sales chief Linda Yaccarino leaving for Twitter/X days before the event. This time around, things were wickedly different.
With entertainment talent back on the table for NBCU’s Monday event from Radio City Music Hall, Jimmy Fallon opened things up by parodying Beyonce’s “Texas Hold ‘Em,” the company showcased an exclusive look at the first Wicked trailer, and Seth Meyers roasted Yaccarino for her move to Twitter.
“NBC is launching a new adventure series called Destination X,” Meyers said. “Destination X was originally titled The Linda Yaccarino Story.”
Ahead of the show, ad sales chief Mark Marshall told ADWEEK he was looking forward to bringing back talent for a “traditional” upfront after last year’s event, which brought on the challenges of last-minute changes and Marshall having to unexpectedly close things out with 72 hours’ notice.
“I would say, other than my wife and daughter who were in the crowd last year, everyone will be much more excited to see celebrities as opposed to me,” Marshall told ADWEEK. “I will play a smaller role—thankfully.”
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Here are the highlights from NBCU’s start to upfront week:
A ‘Wicked’ introduction
NBCU showcased the first official Wicked trailer during its event, which will go live online later in the week. Throughout the trailer, stars Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo showcased classic moments from the Broadway musical, including Erivo receiving a certain iconic witch’s hat. Donna Langley, chairman and chief content officer at NBCUniversal Studio Group, noted the movie would receive an “enormous” push.
Throughout the presentation, the company brought out big names to introduce its latest content and announcements, including Kevin Hart and Taraji P. Henson promoting Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist; Snoop Dogg and Michael Bublé announcing they’d be joining Season 26 of The Voice as coaches; and Kenan Thompson, Bowen Yang and Heidi Gardner talking about Saturday Night Live’s upcoming 50th anniversary, which is getting a three-hour special in February.
The event was more about streaming and less about the fall lineup than upfronts have been in the past; however, NBC’s recently announced fall schedule received a section, with Zachary Quinto touting medical drama Brilliant Minds; Telemundo also had a moment thanks to a Sed de Venganza promo.