The L.A. Screenings 2026 schedules are set, and judging from the extended dates, this year, they promise more participants than previous years. Early indications of a good market came from the “Save the Dates” that studios sent to buyers as early as March 10, and the quickness of many indie distribution companies to book exhibition space just a few days after the SLS Hotel was announced as this year’s venue for the indies.
The studios will be welcoming buyers on their lots, while the independents will operate out of a new hotel, this time in Beverly Hills, strategically located between last year’s Hollywood venue and 2024’s Century City locale.
Paramount is set for Saturday, May 16 and Sunday, May 17 (with the 16th also including Latin America). NBCUniversal will screen May 16, 17, and 18, with the Latin American contingent at NBCU on May 17. Sony Pictures TV will have a presentation and an event on May 17 and its LatAm screenings on May 19. Warner Bros. Discovery will screen May 18 and 19. And Disney is screening on May 18, 19, and 20, with Wednesday, as usual, reserved for LatAm buyers. Distributor Fifth Season is inviting buyers to screen on May 17. Lionsgate is having its event on May 18. Amazon MGM is screening in the morning on May 15 and in the afternoon on May 18. Fox Entertainment will have its traditional party on the Fox studio lot on Sunday, May 17, and Argentina’s Telefilms has scheduled its traditional screenings and cocktail party for the evening of Saturday, May 16 at the SLS Hotel.
VideoAge’s printed and digital editions will be released during the Indie portion of the L.A. Screenings, which will start on Thursday, May 14, and run for two full days at the five-star SLS Hotel in Beverly Hills. This new venue was suggested to Isabella Marquez, the L.A. Screenings’ indies organizer, by Ramona Burns, a hotel expert who once served as a Sales director at the now closed InterContinental Hotel in Century City, which was a favorite of L.A. Screenings participants.
“I love this industry and want the best for exhibitors and buyers,” said Marquez. “We reached out to more than 20 hotels across Los Angeles to find the right setting to make L.A. Screenings a success.” Marquez also reported that the SLS Hotel has seven floors served by a four-elevator bank, and that both exhibition suites and tables are available. According to reports, many participants found last year’s L.A. Screenings hotel (The Roosevelt in Hollywood) to be insufficiently accommodating, and the previous venue, the Fairmont Century Plaza hotel in Century City, was considered too expensive.
The response for the new hotel has been described as phenomenal. In less than a week after the announcement of the new venue, all 45 hotel suites were sold out to international content distribution companies, and the initial 15 tables were expanded to 20. Among the exhibitors are: Disney Entertainment, NBCUniversal, Caracol Television, Inter Medya, Madd Entertainment, ATV, TV Azteca, Fremantle, Telefilms, and Record TV, reported Isabella Marquez, who added: “This year, the L.A. Screenings independents is also counting on the participation of 13 Korean companies brought by KOCCA, the South Korea Creative Content government agency. It is expected that, ultimately, the indie portion of the L.A. Screenings will have 60 exhibitors (versus 57 in 2025).
In terms of this year’s network upfront expectations, early predictions for the U.S. TV networks’ content output see ABC’s lineup emphasizing dramas, reality franchises, and medical procedurals. CBS is predicted to maintain its strength in procedural dramas and sitcoms. NBC, on the other hand, will lean toward sports and reality competitions, while FOX will blend sports, reality shows, and scripted content. Finally, The CW is expected to continue its shift toward reality, sports programming, and to reduce its scripted content.
Advertising across the TV landscape is increasing, but advertising agencies like Publicis are taking a beat because they fear that AI will impact their business. The Paris-based international advertising group lost one quarter of its stock value over the past year amid investors’ AI fears. This is despite the fact that AI is expected to improve Publicis’ profitability and increase its organic growth by 4.9 percent in 2026.
The advertising agency’s sector is also contracting after New York City’s Omnicom acquired fellow NYC firm Interpublic last year, while the British WPP is preparing a new strategy under the new leadership of Cindy Rose. In 2025, Publicis’ accounts generated $8.16 billion, while net profit reached $1.95 billion.
All in all, the studios are expected to screen a good amount of new content, mixing broadcast, cable and streaming output that might not bring new revelations on the road to Damascus, but will surely serve as indications to international content buyers of paths to follow to reach more TV audiences in their domestic markets.
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