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Tag: John Cena

  • Five reasons to watch Matthew Vaughn’s Argylle this Friday

    Five reasons to watch Matthew Vaughn’s Argylle this Friday

    Mumbai: Spy, action, comedy, and a star-studded cast – the cocktail that promises to shake and stir your movie-watching experience is none other than Argylle. Directed and produced by the maestro Matthew Vaughn and scripted by the talented Jason Fuchs, this movie showcases an ensemble cast featuring heavyweights like Henry Cavill, Bryce Dallas Howard, Sam Rockwell, Bryan Cranston, Catherine O’Hara, Dua Lipa, Ariana DeBose, John Cena, and the iconic Samuel L. Jackson. The movie is set to release on 2 February 2024 in your nearest PVR INOX cinemas. If you’re still on the fence about diving into this cinematic adventure, here are five reasons that might just tip the scale.

    A star-studded cast that delivers

    Argylle boasts an ensemble cast that reads like a who’s who of Hollywood and beyond. Henry Cavill, known for his iconic portrayal of Superman, takes on the role of Argylle, the fictional secret agent at the heart of Elly Conway’s novels. Joining him are talents like Bryce Dallas Howard, Sam Rockwell, Bryan Cranston, Catherine O’Hara, Dua Lipa, Ariana DeBose, John Cena, and Samuel L. Jackson, each bringing their unique flair to the characters. The chemistry between this stellar cast promises to elevate the spy comedy genre to new heights, ensuring a memorable cinematic experience.

    Matthew Vaughn’s signature style

    Director and producer Matthew Vaughn, renowned for his work on ‘Kingsman: The Secret Service’ and ‘X-Men: First Class,’ brings his signature style to Argylle. Known for his ability to seamlessly blend action, humour, and stylish visuals, Vaughn is set to deliver a spy film that not only keeps you on the edge of your seat but also leaves you in stitches. With Argylle, expect visually stunning sequences, cleverly choreographed action, and a healthy dose of Vaughn’s trademark wit.

    Blurring the lines between fiction and reality

    The film’s unique premise adds an intriguing layer to the traditional spy genre. As Elly Conway’s fictional spy, Argylle, goes on a mission to uncover a global spy syndicate in her novels, the lines between fiction and reality begin to blur. When the covert actions in her books mirror those of an actual spy organisation, the characters find themselves caught in a web where the consequences of fiction spill over into reality. This innovative twist promises a fresh and exciting take on the spy genre, offering viewers an immersive experience that challenges the boundaries of storytelling.

    A unique blend of spy, action, and comedy

    Argylle promises to be a genre-bending film that seamlessly blends the elements of spy action and comedy. With Matthew Vaughn at the helm and an ensemble cast that excels in both dramatic and comedic roles, the film is set to deliver heart-pounding action sequences intertwined with laugh-out-loud moments. This unique combination ensures that Argylle caters to a diverse audience, offering an experience that is as entertaining as it is thrilling.

    A musical feast

    Adding a unique flavour to Argylle is the inclusion of global pop sensation Dua Lipa in the cast. Known for her chart-topping hits, Dua Lipa’s involvement in the film is bound to elevate the overall experience. Whether it’s through a musical score or perhaps a surprise musical performance within the film, Dua Lipa’s presence promises an auditory treat that complements the visual spectacle.

    If you’re a fan of the espionage world created by Matthew Vaughn, which skillfully blurs the line between fiction and reality, make sure not to miss the premiere of ‘Argylle’ this Friday at your nearest PVR INOX cinemas.

  • WWE Superstar Spectacle delights fans in Hyderabad

    WWE Superstar Spectacle delights fans in Hyderabad

    Mumbai: A sold out crowd of WWE fans descended on the Gachibowli Indoor Stadium in Hyderabad, India, on 9 September for WWE Superstar Spectacle – the first WWE live event to ever take place in the region, and the first show to take place in India since 2017.

    Some of the biggest WWE superstars of the modern day travelled more than 15,000km to perform for the WWE Universe in India, receiving rapturous applause and crowd participation.

    The results of WWE Superstar Spectacle included:

    Kevin Owens, Sami Zayn & Drew McIntyre defeated Indus Sher

    Natalya defeated Zoey Stark

    Gunther defeated Shanky

    Bron Breakker defeated Odyssey Jones

    Rhea Ripley defeated Natalya

    John Cena & Seth “Freakin” Rollins defeated Imperium

    Speaking of his time in India, WWE Legend John Cena commented, “Thank you for allowing me to be here tonight. You know, sometimes we feel something inside that grabs us emotionally. I’ve been imagining this moment right here for 20 years. I wanted to end tonight by saying this moment was far greater than I could ever have imagined.”

    WWE RAW, SmackDown and NXT airs LIVE weekly in India on Sony Sports Ten 1, Sony Sports Ten 3 (Hindi) and Sony Sports Ten 4 (Tamil/Telugu). Sony Sports Network is the broadcast home of WWE programming in India.

     

  • John Cena meets Rajesh Kaul and Karthi ahead of WWE Superstar Spectacle in Hyderabad

    John Cena meets Rajesh Kaul and Karthi ahead of WWE Superstar Spectacle in Hyderabad

    Mumbai: WWE today returns to Indian shores with a live event for the first time since 2017 with WWE Superstar Spectacle at the Gachibowli Indoor Stadium in Hyderabad.

    WWE Superstar Spectacle also marks the return of arguably the biggest WWE Superstar of his generation, John Cena, who has come to India to perform for the first time ever. The thirteen-time WWE world champion met Sony Pictures Networks India chief revenue officer – distribution & international business and head – Sports business Rajesh Kaul in Hyderabad ahead of the sold-out show. Cena and Rajesh Kaul interacted about WWE Indian fans, Cena’s return to the ring and his first visit to India with WWE.

    Cena also met celebrated actor and South superstar, Karthi who posed for pictures together ahead of the show. Karthi was also seen recently filming a secret project with WWE Tag Team Kevin Owens and Sami Zayne.

    Along with Cena, WWE Superstars such as Seth ‘Freakin’ Rollins, Jinder Mahal, Natalya, Drew McIntyre, Kevin Owens, Sami Zayn and ‘The Ring General’ GUNTHER have made their way to India to participate at the event as they look to put on an exciting showcase of matches.

  • SPSN to air ‘WWE SummerSlam 2021’ on 22 August

    SPSN to air ‘WWE SummerSlam 2021’ on 22 August

    Mumbai: Sony Pictures Sports Network (SPSN) is set to air “WWE SummerSlam 2021” starting 22 August, 5:30 a.m onwards. The wrestling show will be available on Sony Ten 1 in English, Sony Ten 3 in Hindi, Sony Ten 4 in Tamil and Telugu, and streaming live on SonyLIV.

    The “WWE Summerslam 2021” kick-off will begin at 4:30 a.m followed by the main event.

    “WWE SummerSlam 2021” will feature John Cena, battling the current WWE universal champion, Roman Reigns for the WWE universal championship belt. John Cena is a professional wrestler, actor, television presenter, New York Times best-selling author who has starred in Hollywood blockbusters like “The Suicide Squad”, “Fast & Furious 9” and more.

    SPSN has launched a campaign “John Cena Returns” to celebrate the comeback of the professional wrestler after a 15-month hiatus.

    “WWE SummerSlam 2021” will be attended by over 60,000 fans packing in Las Vegas’ Allegiant Stadium. The main event will also feature matchups from the WWE universe like Bobby Lashley against Goldberg for the “WWE Championship”, a triple threat match between Nikki ASH, Charlotte Flair, and Rhea Ripley for the “Raw Women’s Championship” and much more.

  • Ten Sports undisputed leader in sports TV viewership courtesy WWE

    Ten Sports undisputed leader in sports TV viewership courtesy WWE

    MUMBAI: Ten Sports has been dominating sports television ratings week after week with the only exception being when team India hits the lush green cricket field and another broadcaster is relaying it. That’s the only time when Ten Sports loses the top berth. 

    So what helps the channel garner such high ratings? In three powerful words, it’s the World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE).

    As per S-group (an analytical arm of TAM media research) analysis, Ten Sports is the leader in the sports genre with average weekly viewership of 28 GRPs in the last four weeks. The closest competitor this week was Sony Six, which garnered half the viewership.

     

     

    Ten Sports global CEO Rajesh Sethi and his programming team are the main reason behind that. Repetitiveness is the biggest enemy of quality content, it kills the flair and develops a scenario of same programme, different day. However, the smart programming strategy of Sethi and team has successfully managed to avoid that for over a decade now.

     

    Close to 85 per cent of Ten Sports’ viewership comes from the telecast of WWE matches alone with a duration dedication of only 25 per cent.

     

     

    Sethi asserts, “Ten Sports Network has been the home of World Wrestling Entertainment in India since 2002. Over this period, WWE broadcast has evolved significantly with an increased focus to deliver quality to viewers. The broadcast delay from USA to India has completely been reduced. Ten Sports is now offering WWE RAW live in India. The initial inhibitions that the time difference will affect viewership numbers has been dispelled with very good ratings for the Live airing, which airs Tuesday mornings at 5.30 am India Time.”

     

    Ten Sports has sealed a five-year deal with WWE, which makes the fight sport their exclusive asset till 2019. Both Ten Sports and WWE came together in recent times to launch numerous on-ground initiatives to popularize the sport in India.

     

    “The new agreement between WWE and Ten Sports has seen a host of new initiatives taken by the broadcaster. New shows have been introduced with Ten Sports bringing popular show Main Event to India from January of this year. NXT, which brings the best action from upcoming WWE Superstars and Total Divas, a WWE reality show have been getting a major push from a marketing standpoint and not only existing viewers are taking to this programme but these shows are helping cater to new audiences,” adds Sethi.

     

    He further informs, “RAW and Smackdown, the established marquee shows of WWE continues to garner great ratings. With prime time airings getting ratings of almost 1 TVR, we can safely say that WWE has established itself as a leader in sports entertainment. These numbers are second only to LIVE India Cricket and WWE is closing this gap as well. Ten Sports reaches around 150 million households across the Indian sub-continent and garnering such ratings in a very diverse and unique market like India for an American product like the WWE speaks volumes to what Ten Sports has done over time to making this product acceptable at first to an Indian to now becoming a part of the viewer’s habit.”

     

    Ten Sports has started offering these flagship shows in shorter versions, including a customized one hour RAW programme called RAW Sunday Dhamaal.

     

    RAW Sunday Dhamaal is positioned as a weekend premier show with a local flavour tailor-made for the Indian audience. There has been a new studio designed solely for the show with popular faces anchoring the show. Bollywood is a religion in India and Raw Sunday Dhamaal has consistently been using Bollywood and top celebrities to engage fans and add a new flavour to the shows. This marriage between WWE and Bollywood has seen celebrities including Akshay Kumar, Varun Dhawan, Shraddha Kapoor in the RAW Sunday Dhamaal studios. WWE Superstar and 2015 Money In The Bank winner, Sheamus will also make an appearance on RAW Sunday Dhamaal soon.

     

    “WWE in other languages and a push on digital platforms is also priority for Ten Sports. Smackdown has launched in Hindi and this weekend airing is being well accepted by new viewers. With India being such a diverse market, Ten Sports is targeting a specific territory by territory approach to launching shows in different languages. Ten Sports and Zee Group, whose channels have a presence across 650 million households across the world will use group regional channels and will in due course, broadcast more WWE shows across multiple languages creating an increased affinity towards WWE. This approach will take WWE to the hinterlands wooing a new, non-traditional viewer base. On the digital front, VOD offerings on tensports.com along with leveraging social media from increased interaction and engagement with fans are the priority areas,” he informs.

     

    Fans selected through contests have been rewarded with the opportunity to not only interact with WWE superstars and divas but travel to watch WWE LIVE events across the globe.

     

    Further, as per the analysis carried out below, the viewership coming from WWE matches has been on an increasing trend for the past four years. From 5.7 GRPs in 2012, WWE obtains 9.2 GRPs per week in 2015. This analysis has been done for every 1000 minutes of WWE telecast so as to normalize the duration factor.

     

     

    The ad rate of a 10-second slot during normal WWE programming fluctuate between Rs 60,000 – 80,000 while for a Wrestlemania or Summerslam sometimes it touches Rs 1 lakh mark too informs a source closely dealing with WWE’s media planning.

     

    Baseline director & co-founder R Ramakrishnan feels that WWE is here to grow. “WWE is an evolving property, not only television viewership but licensing and merchandising will also grow. Live events will play a vital role in the growth. We saw Big Shaw and John Cena travelling to India and both Ten Sports and WWE will endeavor in launching several new initiatives. Credit must be given to Ten Sports for smartly handling the property over the years,” he opines.

     

    WWE is one of the very few American sports, which is widely spoken about in India. Kids start with WWE card games and then gradually with age change to Playstation and X-box. After United States and United Kingdom, India is the largest market for WWE. Khali’s induction in the sport has already raised the bar and got more people talking about the sport India.

     

    Overall World Wrestling Entertainment has a lot of room for growth and Ten Sports will certainly leave no stones unturned to generate as much revenue as they can from the sport.

  • WWE surpasses half a billion social media followers

    WWE surpasses half a billion social media followers

    MUMBAI: WWE has eclipsed half a billion fans through its global social media platforms, further cementing its position as one of the most-followed brands in the world.

     

    WWE’s Facebook page has more fans than the NFL, ESPN, Marvel, Google and UFC, and WWE superstar John Cena is the No.1 most followed active American athlete on Facebook with more than 36 million likes.

     

    On Twitter, @WWE has more followers than MLB, Disney, Sony and Pepsi and according to Klout, is the No. 1 most influential brand on Twitter. 

     

    On Instagram, WWE’s fastest-growing platform, @WWE has more followers than ESPN, HBO, NHL and Gatorade. With nearly five billion video views on YouTube in the past year alone, WWE is the No. 1 Sports channel ahead of the NBA, MLB, NFL, NHL, ESPN and NASCAR.

     

    WWE’s Social Media Snapshot:

    • Facebook: 354 million total likes, including 98 million new likes, an increase of 38 per cent year-over year.

    • Twitter: 108 million total followers, including 18 million new followers, an increase of 20 per cent year-over-year.

    • Instagram: 26 million total followers, including 25 million new followers, an increase of 2,955 per cent year-over-year.

    • YouTube: 6.2 million total subscribers, including 2.8 million new subscribers, an increase of 82 per cent year-over-year.

     

    Earlier this year, WWE won awards for Overall Social Media Excellence and Social Media Dream Team at the 2015 Cynopsis Sports Media Awards and 2015 Cablefax Digital Awards, respectively. WWE’s 12 social media platforms include Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, Snapchat, Periscope, Google+, Vine, Foursquare, Tumblr, Pheed and Pinterest.

  • WWE’s PPV ‘Elimination Chamber’ this Sunday

    WWE’s PPV ‘Elimination Chamber’ this Sunday

    MUMBAI: The next pay-per-view (PPV) on the WWE calendar is the Elimination Chamber event set to take place on this Sunday. This showcase features a cage match, complete with pods and countdowns and, really, just the final stop before WrestleMania.

     

    Another reason that makes this PPV a historic one is – the fact that it represents the final PPV that will ever take place before the launch of the WWE Network.

     

    So with just a few days remaining for the final PPV, here is what one could expect to see this Sunday.

     

    Elimination Chamber WWE world heavyweight championship match (Randy Orton vs. John Cena vs. Sheamus vs. Daniel Bryan vs. Cesaro vs. Christian)

     

    Cena, Sheamus, and Bryan all qualified by way of a disqualification win on Monday Night Raw over The Shield. Cesaro and Christian got in by winning qualifying matches over Dolph Ziggler and Jack Swagger respectively on Friday Night SmackDown later that same week. Orton is currently running the gauntlet with matches against all of these opponents. He has his work cut out for him as he faces his final opponent in Shemus today Monday Night Raw after losing to Bryan, Cena, and Cesaro and with the lone pin-fall win over Christian.

     

    The Shield vs. The Wyatt Family

     

    The disqualification win for Cena, Sheamus, and Bryan came by way of The Wyatt Family interfering in the match with The Shield. So in return for some retribution Roman Reigns, Dean Ambrose, and Seth Rollins demanded a match with the Wyatts. After a staredown on Raw this past week it has gone onto build this match as the fight to know the best team in the WWE.

     

    Batista vs. Alberto Del Rio

     

    “The Animal” has been unleashed and is all set to take center stage at WrestleMania XXX, but his road to the big stage has a small roadblock in the face of Alberto del Rio. Del Rio represents a former champion who can present a mostly credible opponent to catapult “The Animal” to his big title match at WrestleMania 30. The match was booked after Batista beat Del Rio to pulp on Raw and Triple H tried to calm him down by giving him the match.

     

    Big E vs. Jack Swagger for the Intercontinental Championship

     

    A Fatal 4-Way was randomly booked on SmackDown this past week that featured Swagger defeating Kofi Kingston, Rey Mysterio, and Mark Henry to earn top contender status.

     

    All the action can be caught on Ten Sports – the official broadcaster of the WWE – in India.

  • WWE to boost consumer products business in India

    WWE to boost consumer products business in India

    MUMBAI: Sports entertainment company WWE today announced that it will launch a series of new consumer products throughout the country this year to better serve the fan base.

    WWE will roll out a new ‘Back to School‘ franchise beginning this month with licensees ‘My Baby Excel‘, ‘Only Kidz‘ and ‘Simba‘. The product line will feature bags, water bottles, stationery and lunch boxes. In addition, seven home video titles distributed by Excel Productions will hit retail this month featuring WWE Superstars – The Rock, Stone Cold Steve Austin and John Cena.

    These new product offerings add to the existing portfolio that includes WWE Power Slammers, launched with Mattel last month and the Slam Attax series of trading cards brought to market through WWE‘s partnership with Topps.

    WWE senior VP global consumer products Howard Brathwaite said, “WWE has increased our investment in India, adding resources to our consumer products team and strengthening our strategic partnership with local agent, Dream Theatre. We are poised to provide fans in India with an immersive brand experience for many years to come.”

    WWE programming can be seen in the country on Ten Sports. Additionally, the Indian market now represents 10 per cent of total fan ‘likes‘ on the WWE global Facebook page, making it second behind only the US.

  • Warner Bros. WWE Studios form tag team for Scooby Doo film

    Warner Bros. WWE Studios form tag team for Scooby Doo film

    MUMBAI: US film studio Warner Bros. and sports entertainment company WWE Studios, the film division of WWE, will co-produce a Scooby-Doo animated feature that will find Scooby and the gang solving a mystery at WrestleMania.
    WWE Superstars and Divas, including Triple H, John Cena, Kane and The Miz, will appear in animated form and lend their voices to the project. WWE chairman, CEO Vince McMahon will also lend his voice and appear in animated form.
    WWE Studios president Michael Luisi said, “We are excited to partner with Warner Bros. on this wonderful animated film. Kids and adults are going to enjoy seeing their favorite WWE Superstars in animated form join forces with an icon like Scooby-Doo to solve a mystery at the biggest pop-culture event of the year – WrestleMania.”
    When Shaggy and Scooby win tickets to WrestleMania, the entire gang travels in the Mystery Machine to WWE City to attend the epic event. However, when a mysterious ghostly bear appears and threatens to ruin the show, Scooby, Shaggy, Velma, Daphne and Fred work with WWE Superstars to solve the case.
    Warner Home Video executive VP, GM, TV Jeff Brown said, “Warner Bros. is thrilled to get into the ring with WWE Studios to bring fans an unprecedented animated adventure. We’re excited to leverage the WWE’s family-friendly brand and passionate fan base and integrate some of the most popular WWE Superstars and Divas within the Scooby-Doo gang.”

  • WWE opens 2007 with strong ratings in US

    WWE opens 2007 with strong ratings in US

    MUMBAI: World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) has announced that its TV ratings in the US started off this year in a positive manner. It achieved its highest household deliveries of the current season on both Monday Night Raw on USA Network and Friday Night SmackDown on The CW.

    On 1 January, Raw’s feature of John Cena versus Kevin Federline delivered 3,564,000 TV households, its highest performance of the season, and the largest household delivery since August 21, 2006. Raw it says was the number one primetime cable programme during the first week of the year among households, total viewers, Male Teens (M12-17) and Men 18-34. Raw also posted season high ratings among Males 6-11, Persons 6-11, Adults 18-49 and Adults 25-54.

    SmackDown on 5 January, 2007, delivered 3,371,000 TV households, its highest performance in nearly a year and the highest since joining the CW network. SmackDown WWE says was the number one primetime program on television Friday night among Male Teens (M12-17) and Total Teens (P12-17), and the top rated broadcast program among Males 6-11. SmackDown made CW the number one broadcast network among Males 6-11, Males 12-17, Males 12-34, Males 18-24, Males 18-34, Persons 6-11, Persons 12-17 and Persons 12-34.

    SmackDown posted its highest rating among total teens (persons 12-17) since June 23, 2005 and highest among female teens (females 12-17) since November 13, 2003. SmackDown also achieved its highest delivery of the season among Persons 12-34.