TheWrap’s 2026 Grill conference brought together some of the biggest names in entertainment for a day of conversation, connection and plenty of star power.
Held Sept. 30 at the DGA Theater in Los Angeles, TheGrill 2026 convened more than 300 industry leaders, executives, creators, entrepreneurs and innovators to discuss the forces reshaping Hollywood, from AI and streaming to theatrical exhibition, dealmaking and the future of the creator economy.
The day featured conversations with entertainment heavyweights including Paramount’s Chief Legal Office Makan Delrahim, AMC Entertainment CEO Adam Aron, California Attorney General Rob Bonta, filmmakers and producers behind some of the year’s biggest movies and executives from across the media and technology industries.
Take a look inside TheGrill 2026, from the stage to the networking floor and the cocktail reception, in the photos below.
Scenes from the morning of TheGrill 2026 at the Directors Guild of America.
TheGrill attendees check-in at the Directors Guild of America.
Badges were printed out for each attendee at TheGrill with information helping people connect and network.
TheGrill attendees chat over breakfast before panel presentations start.
Attendees were treated to some free goodies with check-in including a mini power bank.
Baked goods, fruit and yogurt parfaits were accompanied by a selection of coffees and teas at TheGrill before panels started.
TheWrap’s Founder and Editor-in-Chief Sharon Waxman shares opening remarks at TheGrill 2026.
Sharon Waxman
Sharon Waxman and CEO Shira Lazar share insights from TheWrap’s AI Creator Day in a panel called “The Wrap-Up: What We Learned at AI Creator Day.”
Sharon Waxman, Jason Robins, CEO & Co-Founder, DraftKings and Harry Sloan, Chairman & CEO, Eagle Equity Partners LLC at the “Prediction Markets and DraftKings: How Trading and Betting Rewrote the Value of an Audience.”
Jason Robins and Harry Sloan
Jason Robins and Harry Sloan
California Attorney General Rob Bonta at the “Spotlight: California Attorney General Rob Bonta” panel.
Sharon Waxman, Founder & Editor-in-Chief, TheWrap and California Attorney General Rob Bonta at the “Spotlight: California Attorney General Rob Bonta” panel.
Sharon Waxman and Rob Bonta
Sharon Waxman and Rob Bonta
Rob Bonta, California Attorney General at “Spotlight: California Attorney General Rob Bonta” panel.
Rob Bonta, California Attorney General
Rob Bonta, California Attorney General outside the greenroom at TheGrill.
Rob Bonta, California Attorney General and Sharon Waxman, Founder & Editor-in-Chief of TheWrap.
Rob Bonta, California Attorney General and Eduardo Acuna, CEO, Regal Global Entertainment and Adam Fogelson, Chair, Lionsgate Motion Picture Group.
Sharon Waxman, Founder & Editor-in-Chief, TheWrap; Adam Aron, Chairman & CEO, AMC Entertainment; Adam Fogelson, Chair, Lionsgate Motion Picture Group and Eduardo Acuna, CEO, Regal Global Entertainment onstage during “The New Box Office Boom: Inside Theatrical’s Best Year Since the Pandemic” panel.
Eduardo Acuna, CEO, Regal Global Entertainment onstage during “The New Box Office Boom: Inside Theatrical’s Best Year Since the Pandemic” panel.
Adam Aron, Chairman & CEO, AMC Entertainment onstage during “The New Box Office Boom: Inside Theatrical’s Best Year Since the Pandemic” panel.
Adam Fogelson, Chair, Lionsgate Motion Picture Group onstage during “The New Box Office Boom: Inside Theatrical’s Best Year Since the Pandemic” panel.
Olivia Ferney, Content Creator, Luxury Travel & Event Expert onstage during the “Creator Capital: Navigating the Future of Media presented by City National Bank” panel.
Jo Cronk, Co-CEO, Whalar onstage during the “Creator Capital: Navigating the Future of Media presented by City National Bank” panel.
Kim Larson, Managing Director & Head of Creator and Gaming Team, YouTube onstage during the “Creator Capital: Navigating the Future of Media presented by City National Bank” panel.
Marie-Josée Cantin Johnson, SVP, Strategy, AgilLink & Exactuals, Entertainment & Sports Banking, City National Bank onstage during the “Creator Capital: Navigating the Future of Media presented by City National Bank” panel.
Marie-Josée Cantin Johnson, Jo Cronk, Kim Larson, and Olivia Ferney
Olivia Ferney, Content Creator, Luxury Travel & Event Expert Jo Cronk, Co-CEO, Whalar; Marie-Josée Cantin Johnson, SVP, Strategy, AgilLink & Exactuals, Entertainment & Sports Banking, City National Bank and Kim Larson, Managing Director & Head of Creator and Gaming Team, YouTube
Roger Cheng, Managing Editor, Business & PRO, TheWrap and Will McIntosh, President, Digital Platforms & Ventures, Versant onstage during “Building Beyond the Core: The New Business of Media”
Roger Cheng and Will McIntosh
Kevin Goetz, Founder & CEO, Screen Engine/ASI onstage during the “Transforming Audience Insights in the Age of AI” panel.
Todd Terrazas, Co-Founder, AI on the Lot & FBRC.ai at “The Future of Filmmaking: A New Production Model for Hollywood” panel.
Eliza McNitt, Filmmaker, Writer & Director during “The Future of Filmmaking: A New Production Model for Hollywood” panel.
Jason Zada, Founder & Chief Creative Officer, Secret Level in “The Future of Filmmaking: A New Production Model for Hollywood” panel.
Ori Winokur, Head of Music & Entertainment Partnerships, Artlist in “The Future of Filmmaking: A New Production Model for Hollywood” panel.
Todd Terrazas, Co-Founder, AI on the Lot & FBRC.ai; Eliza McNitt, Filmmaker, Writer & Director: Jason Zada, Founder & Chief Creative Officer, Secret Level; and Ori Winokur, Head of Music & Entertainment Partnerships, Artlist during “The Future of Filmmaking: A New Production Model for Hollywood” panel.
Guests enjoy lunch at TheGrill.
Guests network over lunch and attend table discussions with TheWrap’s senior reporters.
Steve Pond, Executive Editor, Awards, TheWrap with attendees discussing Fall Movies.
Sharon Waxman, Founder & Editor-in-Chief, TheWrap.
Kayla Cobb, Senior Reporter, TheWrap and Sharon Waxman, Founder & Editor-in-Chief, TheWrap at The Creators table during the networking lunch with table topics led by Wrap journalists.
Tess Patton, TV Business Reporter, TheWrap discusses Microdramas with attendees during the networking lunch with table topics led by Wrap journalists.
Jeremy Fuster, Box Office/Labor Reporter, TheWrap in conversation about box office during the networking lunch with table topics led by Wrap journalists.
Roger Cheng, Managing Editor, Business & PRO, TheWrap at the AI table during the networking lunch with table topics led by Wrap journalists.
Drew Taylor, Senior Writer, TheWrap in conversation with attendees about Movie Production during the networking lunch with table topics led by Wrap journalists.
Attendees during the networking lunch with table topics led by Wrap journalists.
Ori Winokur, Head of Music & Entertainment Partnerships, Artlist and Todd Terrazas, Co-Founder, AI on the Lot & FBRC.ai at the VIP Lunch hosted by Artist.
VIP Lunch hosted by Artist.
VIP Lunch hosted by Artist gift bags.
Sharon Waxman, Founder & Editor-in-Chief, TheWrap and Makan Delrahim, Chief Legal Officer, Paramount Skydance speak onstage during the “Spotlight: Paramount Chief Legal Officer Makan Delrahim” panel.
Makan Delrahim, Chief Legal Officer, Paramount Skydance speaks onstage during the “Spotlight: Paramount Chief Legal Officer Makan Delrahim” panel.
Sharon Waxman and Makan Delrahim
Makan Delrahim, Chief Legal Officer, Paramount Skydance inside the greenroom.
Makan Delrahim, Sharon Waxman and Yves Bergquist, AI Researcher, Entertainment Technology Center, USC inside the greenroom.
Makan Delrahim, Chief Legal Officer, Paramount Skydance and Sharon Waxman, Founder & Editor-in-Chief
John Kulback, Partner, Loeb & Loeb LLP onstage at “The M&A Gold Rush in Media: Who’s Next?” panel.
Erik Hodge, Partner, Raine onstage at “The M&A Gold Rush in Media: Who’s Next?” panel.
Ross Gerber, CEO & President, Gerber Kawasaki Wealth & Investment Management onstage at “The M&A Gold Rush in Media: Who’s Next?” panel.
Roger Cheng, Managing Editor, Business & PRO, TheWrap; Erik Hodge, Partner Raine; John Kulback, Partner, Loeb & Loeb LLP, and Ross Gerber, CEO & President, Gerber Kawasaki Wealth & Investment Management onstage at “The M&A Gold Rush in Media: Who’s Next?” panel.
Roger Cheng, Erik Hodge, John Kulback, and Ross Gerber
Roger Cheng, Erik Hodge, John Kulback, and Ross Gerber
Rameez Tase, Co-Founder & President, Antenna onstage at “The “New” New Fall Season” panel.
Rameez Tase
Networking break during TheGrill 2026.
Networking break during TheGrill 2026 .
David Permut, Producer, “The Invite” & “Being Heumann” and Rachel O’Connor, Producer, “Project Hail Mary” & “Spider-Man: Brand New Day.”
Ori Winokur, Head of Music & Entertainment Partnerships, Artlist at a networking break during TheGrill 2026.
Kayla Cobb, Senior Reporter, TheWrap and Mark Marshall, Chairman, Global Advertising & Partnerships, NBCUniversal speak onstage at “The Business of Big Moments in a Fragmented Media Landscape” panel.
Kayla Cobb and Mark Marshall
Kayla Cobb and Mark Marshall
Mark Marshall, Chairman, Global Advertising & Partnerships, NBCUniversal
Tess Patton, TV Business Reporter, TheWrap hosts the “Microdramas: Hollywood’s Next Big Story” panel.
Jana Winograde, Co-Founder and Co-CEO, aTwist speaks onstage at the “Microdramas: Hollywood’s Next Big Story” panel.
Nate Parker, CEO & Co-Founder, Mansa speaks onstage at the “Microdramas: Hollywood’s Next Big Story” panel.
Tess Patton, TV Business Reporter, TheWrap hosts the “Microdramas: Hollywood’s Next Big Story” panel.
David Oyelowo, Actor, Producer & Director and Mansa Co-Founder speaks onstage at the “Microdramas: Hollywood’s Next Big Story” panel.
Guy Shimoni, CEO & Co-Founder, Shortical speaks onstage during the “Microdramas: Hollywood’s Next Big Story” panel.
Tess Patton, TV Business Reporter, TheWrap; David Oyelowo, Actor, Producer & Director, Nate Parker, CEO & Co-Founder, Mansa; Guy Shimoni, CEO & Co-Founder, Shortical and Jana Winograde, Founder and Chief Creative Officer, aTwist & Founder and CEO, speak onstage during the “Microdramas: Hollywood’s Next Big Story” panel.
Nate Parker, David Oyelowo, Susan Rovner, and Guy Shimoni
David Oyelowo, actor, producer & director and Sharon Waxman, Founder & Editor-in-Chief inside the greenroom.
Photographer Steve Limones, Nate Parker, CEO & Co-Founder, Mansa and David Oyelowo, actor, producer & director at TheWrap’s Portrait Studio
David Oyelowo, actor, producer & director and David Permut, Producer, “The Invite” & “Being Heumann.”
Inside the greenroom at TheGrill 2026.
Yves Bergquist, AI Researcher, Entertainment Technology Center, USC at the “Zeitgeist Intelligence powered by AI: Finding the Signals in Pop Culture” panel.
Yves Bergquist
David Permut, “The Invite” & “Being Heumann” speaks during the “Producers Roundtable” panel.
Josh Peters, producer, “Josephine” speaks onstage during the “Producers Roundtable” panel.
Rachel O’Connor, producer, “Project Hail Mary” & “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” speaks during the “Producers Roundtable” panel.
Rodrigo Teixeira, producer, “Paper Tiger” speaks onstage during “Producers Roundtable” panel.
Susan Sprung, CEO, Producers Guild of America speaks onstage during the “Producers Roundtable” panel.
Susan Sprung, CEO, Producers Guild of America; David Permut, Producer, “The Invite” & “Being Heumann”; Josh Peters, Producer, “Josephine”; Rachel O’Connor, Producer, “Project Hail Mary” & “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” and Rodrigo Teixeira, Producer, “Paper Tiger” & “Furies” speak onstage during “Producers Roundtable” panel.
Josh Peters, David Permut, Rachel O’Connor, Susan Sprung, and Rodrigo Teixeira
Scenes from the networking cocktail reception.
TheWrap’s Founder and Editor-in-Chief Sharon Waxman at the networking cocktail reception.
Scenes from the networking cocktail reception.
Todd Terrazas, Co-Founder, AI on the Lot & FBRC.ai at the networking cocktail reception.
Scenes from the networking cocktail reception.
Scenes from the networking cocktail reception.
Scenes from the networking cocktail reception.
Emily Vogel, director of programing at networking cocktail reception.
Scenes from the networking cocktail reception.
