15 Celebrities You Didn’t Realize Lived So Long

Sometimes, we see a movie (usually an old one) and wonder what the life of that person must have been. Well, those actors might have been young in that film, but they continued on with their lives, often without us even noticing. A full life can be lived out of the spotlight.

Their careers may have peaked years before their deaths, creating the impression that they were gone long before they actually were. These celebrities all lived remarkably long lives, often spending decades beyond the period when most people stopped seeing them regularly on screen.

Olivia de Havilland

Best remembered for Gone with the Wind and her classic Hollywood career, Olivia de Havilland lived to the age of 104. She spent decades as one of the last surviving stars from Hollywood’s Golden Age.

Kirk Douglas

Kirk Douglas was already a screen legend by the 1960s, yet he lived until 2020 at age 103. Many younger movie fans were surprised to learn he survived well into the twenty-first century.

Bob Hope

Bob Hope’s career stretched across vaudeville, radio, film, and television. Although many associate him with mid-century entertainment, he lived to 100, passing away in 2003 after a lengthy retirement.

George Burns

George Burns seemed old even when he was young. The comedian and actor reached age 100, remaining active in entertainment far longer than most of his contemporaries.

Mickey Rooney

A major child star in the 1930s and 1940s, Mickey Rooney remained active for decades and lived to 93. His lifespan connected some of Hollywood’s earliest years with the modern era.

Zsa Zsa Gabor

Known for her glamour and celebrity status more than any single role, Zsa Zsa Gabor lived to 99. She spent many years largely out of the spotlight before her death.

Betty White

Although remembered for The Golden Girls, Betty White’s television career began in the 1940s. She remained beloved into her late nineties and narrowly missed her 100th birthday.

Norman Lloyd

Norman Lloyd appeared in films directed by Alfred Hitchcock and worked throughout television history. He lived to 106, making him one of the longest-lived performers in Hollywood history.

Christopher Lee

Known for Dracula, Saruman, and Count Dooku, Christopher Lee continued acting into his nineties. Many fans forget he lived to 93 and remained professionally active almost until the end.

Don Rickles

The legendary insult comic entertained audiences for generations. Even though his fame peaked decades earlier, Rickles continued performing and making appearances until his death at age 90.

Ernest Borgnine

From Marty to The Wild Bunch, Ernest Borgnine built an impressive career before living to 95. He remained a familiar face on television and in films for decades afterward.

Angela Lansbury

Many remember Angela Lansbury from Murder, She Wrote, but her career began in the 1940s. She lived to 96 and continued working on stage and screen for much of her life.

Carl Reiner

Carl Reiner shaped American comedy as a writer, actor, and director. Despite being associated with much earlier eras of television, he lived until 2020, reaching the age of 98.

Mel Brooks

Mel Brooks belongs on this list simply because many people forget he is still with us. The comedy legend was born in 1926 and has outlived many of his famous contemporaries.

Dick Van Dyke

Dick Van Dyke became a household name in the 1960s, yet he remains active well into his nineties. His longevity continues to surprise audiences who associate him with much earlier television eras.

Toy Story 5 Box Office Suggests Sequel Scarcity Is Still a Good Thing

Thirty-one years since Buzz and Woody first went to Infinity and Beyond, it’s safe to say that Pixar still has a friend in me. And you. Also that family down the street. Plus, now that we mention it, multiple generations of moviegoers. Which is pretty impressive when we haven’t seen a Toy Story movie since 2019—a time before Disney+, streaming wars, and the pandemic.

Even so, the studio estimates from the Father’s Day weekend are in, and according to the latest data, Toy Story 5 just grossed $160 million stateside and a total of $312 million worldwide. That’s the best opening for any Toy Story movie ever, and the second best for Pixar by either measure—with Incredibles 2 earning $183 million domestically in 2018 and Inside Out 2 grossing $384 million worldwide in 2024. Furthermore, it’s the biggest opening weekend in 2026 so far, toppling The Super Mario Galaxy Movie’s also impressive $132 million domestic bow back in April.

Cumulatively, this is a big win for Pixar and Disney, which has somewhat commercially struggled this decade, particularly in terms of original movies and/or quasi-original movies that still attempted to rely on Toy Story IP like 2022’s Lightyear. And yet, I cannot help but notice that barring the Lightyear space oddity, Toy Story 5 is the first real movie about these characters in seven years.

With the exception of a handful of short films starring Forky and Bo Peep that were released on Disney+ back when Toy Story 4 was new and Disney+ was launching, the brand has remained relatively dormant, at least onscreen, all while multiple generations of children, parents, aunts and uncles, and even grandparents kept the flame alive via theme park visits, holiday merchandise, and by passing the older movies on to the next era of kids.

This phenomenon of keeping a beloved billion-dollar IP scarce is a rarity in the 2020s, to the point of seeming almost quaintly old-fashioned. Which also means it creates a curious juxtaposition when compared to other brands that were also grossing $1 billion-plus per entry back in 2019, including Disney contemporaries like Marvel, which in the same year saw Avengers: Endgame and Captain Marvel clear $1 billion (and $2.5 billion in the case of the one with Iron Man), and Lucasfilm’s Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, which pocketed another cool $1 billion despite a divisive audience reception.

Speaking anecdotally, it became tempting to reminisce about “back in my day” when noticing the hard pivot from a time where audiences waited years between installments to our modern 2020s reality with the market being flooded by a glut of Marvel, Star Wars, and DC projects across multiple platforms and streaming services. Marvel particularly, and despite studio head Kevin Feige’s reluctance, increased production to the point of having a new movie, streaming series, or TV special (and sometimes several) in every fiscal quarter of 2022 and 2023. And at this point, there are more Disney+ Star Wars shows than there are movies when you count the animated series.

Five years ago, it was an open question whether Disney and its contemporaries were over-saturating the market with the short-term gains won by this abundance of product buttressing the streaming services. Meanwhile the handful of IPs kept behind relative lock and key—your James Bonds, your Mission: Impossibles, and, yes, Pixar franchises like Toy Story—were looking creaky in a modern context where we’ve seen three Minions movies, two Marios, and three different actors play Batman since Toy Story 4.

But looking at the Toy Story 5 numbers, another tale seems to be unfolding. Perhaps the best way to keep audience excitement high for a business strategy built around “event” films is to keep the idea of a new installment feeling like an actual event. With the exception of Toy Story 2, which came out four years after the original film in the ’90s, none of the sequels made in the 21st century have arrived in less than half a decade. In fact, Toy Story 5 and its seven-year gap is relatively short when compared to the 11-year gap between Toy Story 2 and Toy Story 3. And each film has shown minute care and dedication on the part of Pixar’s army of artists. Wherever Toy Story 5 ranks on your personal scale for the series, co-writer and co-director Andrew Stanton has been working with these characters since he co-wrote and helped design the original 1995 movie.

The patience and attention to detail in the film is palpable, with the filmmakers, like the audience, treating the movies akin to sacred ground. And the studio has been rewarded for that slow-walk with a movie that just opened like the 2010s never ended. There might be a lesson in these toys’ ongoing story.

House of the Dragon: Tom Bennett on the Ulf Moment That Explained Everything

This article contains spoilers for House of the Dragon season 3 episode 1.

Midway through the House of the Dragon season 3 premiere, Rhaenyra, Alicent, and the Dance of their Dragons all take a back seat for a bucolic moment of peace in the Riverlands where freshly-minted dragonriders Addam of Hull (Clinton Liberty), Hugh the Hammer (Kieran Bew), and Ulf (Tom Bennett) are gathered to keep a watchful eye out for Prince Aemond and his dragon Vhagar.

The trio is clearly bored with the assignment as, unbeknownst to them, Aemond currently has better things to do than aimlessly fly around Westeros now that he sits the Iron Throne in his missing brother’s stead. So Ulf, the most talkative among them, does what he does best and begins to speak. Without so much as a “hey, I’m about to reveal some real shit here” warning, Ulf proceeds with the details of his devastating backstory.

“Never knew my mother. Same as most of the gutter rats. Was kicked about more than a mongrel dog. Wished for death more days than I wished to live. There was this priest from Essos – fancied me, paid me coin to do things. He said I had king’s blood. That I was born for a purpose. I liked that story. So I owned it. Ulf the dragonseed. That red cunt was right!”

With one relatively brief monologue, delivered superbly from Tom Bennett, Ulf suddenly becomes one of the more compelling characters on House of the Dragon and a much more layered version than the one presented in George R.R. Martin’s source material Fire & Blood. As has been well-established, Martin’s book is presented as a historical tome written by “modern day” Westerosi maesters and therefore offers little about the true motivations of the major players of the era, let alone the B-teamers like Ulf and company.

Not only does this tragic account of Ulf’s upbringing help explain some of his cynical mindset and self-destructive behaviors, it also ties him in more closely to the Game of Thrones canon. The priest he mentions is undoubtedly a red priest of R’hllor a.k.a. the sect of crimson sorcerers that Melisandre of Asshai belongs to. In hindsight, Ulf’s backstory feels so integral to his character that it would seem impossible to portray the boorish dragonseed without having access to it.

Thankfully, Bennett had all the access he needed. That’s because, before shooting his first scene on House of the Dragon‘s “Cock Inn” tavern set back in season 2, Bennett was approached by series showrunner Ryan Condal with a revealing document.

“Ryan took a sheet out of his folder and gave it to me,” Bennett tells Den of Geek and other outlets during a press roundtable. “He said ‘I’ve already written this, but I think it might be useful to you now. It’s kind of a monologue of yours.’ I read it and was like that’s so generous, because this really does inform everything. Like this here is your origin story. Now I can hang everything else off that.”

Bennett’s early knowledge of Ulf’s childhood imbues the moment with a gravitas that his scene partners were happy to play off of.

“It was useful for me as well because within that scene he’s revealing so much and being so honest, and then he asks Hugh about himself and Hugh chooses not to tell him anything,” Bew says.

“I was in awe of Tom as he just disappeared as Ulf in the scene, and it’s a particular way I’ve never seen Ulf before,” Liberty adds. “I started to see the humanity in him and kind of understand his perspective and why he is the way he is. And then a couple of takes later I had to obviously be professional and be Addam within the scene. But honestly, it caught me off guard how good he was. genuinely.”

It’s amazing the things you find out about your friends when waiting for a massive she-dragon that never comes.

New episodes of House of the Dragon season 3 premiere Sundays at 9 p.m. ET on HBO and HBO Max, culminating with the finale on August 9.

House of the Dragon Stars Break Down Season 3’s Battle of the Gullet

This article contains spoilers for House of the Dragon season 3 episode 1.

So-named for the narrow stretch of ocean between Driftmark and Dragonstone upon which it’s fought, the Battle of the Gullet is the biggest engagement in the Dance of the Dragons Targaryen civil war and remains one of the bloodiest sea battles ever fought in Westeros. And House of the Dragon has never been shy about making sure we all know it’s coming.

The second season finale of HBO’s Game of Thrones prequel put all the relevant players for the battle in motion. The Triarchy ships, led by flamboyant Lyseni commander Sharako Lohar (Abigail Thorn) and the reserved Ser Tyland Lannister (Jefferson Hall), were en route to Westeros to break the Velaryon fleet’s blockade of King’s Landing. That, combined with plenty of between-seasons teases, made it clear that conflict was imminent. Little did we know, however, just how imminent it would be.

The House of the Dragon season 3 premiere concludes with the Battle of the Gullet and it’s every bit as bloody and chaotic and promised. During a press table junket with a handful of other outlets, Den of Geek spoke to some of the skirmish’s key players about bringing a naval spectacle to life. Here is what we learned.

As one might expect, the Battle of the Gullet was a big logistical undertaking for the series. Showrunner Ryan Condal previously revealed that the shoot took multiple weeks and involved the creation of a full-scale model of Corlys Velaryon’s ship The Queen Who Never Was and a massive water tank. That attention to detail extended to lessons in the history of naval warfare for the actors.

“There was a gentleman there who I guess was an expert in historical nautical stuff. He would give us all these phrases to say. And yet my one disappointment actually was that there wasn’t a [steering] wheel. It’s just a stick that you have to sort of do that with,” Corlys Velaryon actor Steve Toussaint says, miming the pulling of a whipstaff.

While the experts were helpful in teaching Toussaint and his sailors about “starboard,” “larboard,” and various masts and knots, it turns out that a lot of that training immediately goes out the window in the heat of battle.

“You forget everything,” Alyn of Hull actor Abubakar Salim says. “It is literally just about survival. Is that person trying to kill me? I’ve got to kill them before they kill me. So that was a real fascinating thing to experience to – especially the way it was filmed and choreographed. It showed a very human side and a very ugly side to what battle is, no matter where it is.”

To further illustrate the point about the brutality of war – whether in land or sea – Salim expounds upon the experience of Alyn killing Sharako Lohar.

“Abigail is a force of nature. She was so great and so fantastic work with. But it was dark, man, like we went into a dark place. Originally we had choreographed this really cool fight. What ended up happening though was it just turned into this primal exhaustion. I drown her to her last breath and rather than have her last breath be snatched by the sea, I stab her in the neck. It was cruel.”

Of course, the Battle of the Gullet isn’t just naval warfare as both sides in the Dance of the Dragons have flying dragons and are eager to use them. Queen Rhaenyra’s eldest son and heir Jacaerys Velaryon (Harry Collett) enters the fray on the back of his dragon Vermax and is joined by his cousin/bride-to-be Baela Targaryen (Bethany Antonia) and her dragon Moondancer. If the presence of two dragons circling around battling ships weren’t chaotic enough, a third dragon arrives – the untamed Sheepstealer ridden by Baela’s sister and novice dragonrider Rhaena (Phoebe Campbell).

While the presence of Rhaena at the Gullet represents a diversion from George R.R. Martin’s Fire & Blood source material (something George famously loves), it does help explain how Jace’s dragon is taken down by the Triarchy’s ships. It’s not only that their sailors are particularly adept with Scorpion crossbows, it’s that Jace is understandably distracted by the introduction of an unfamiliar dragon who seems to be a foe. Rhaena’s inability to control Sheepstealer leads to Vermax and his rider being dragged down to the watery depths and killed. This makes Jacaerys actor Harry Collett the only Gullet combatant to experience the battle from both the air and the water. That combination led to a funny misunderstanding on set.

“I was wearing Jace’s dragonriding gloves in the scene and they reacted with the water and made my hands blue,” he says. “When I came out of the water tank, the medic ran over to me because my hands were so blue she thought I had hypothermia. But it was just the dye from the gloves.”

In the end, the Battle of the Gullet claims countless lives including some big name characters like Jacaerys, Lohar, and Tyland. With two more seasons of war to come, those at the bottom of the Gullet might consider themselves the lucky ones.

New episodes of House of the Dragon season 3 premiere Sundays at 9 p.m. ET on HBO and HBO Max, culminating in the finale on August 9.

House of the Dragon Cast Discuss Season 3 Premiere’s Brutal Death

This article contains spoilers for House of the Dragon season 3 episode 1.

Rhaenyra Targaryen is no stranger to the vulgarities of war. The Queen in Dragonstone and claimant to the Iron Throne received an education in what war really costs before her war even truly began.

Back in the House of the Dragon season 1 finale, Rhaenyra lost her second son Lucerys when he and his dragon Arrax were devoured by his cousin Aemond’s dragon Vhagar on what should have been a relatively safe diplomatic mission. It’s a devastating loss, to be sure. But thankfully Rhaenyra still has a host of other sons including her eldest and heir Jacaerys Velaryon.

So, about that…

Jacaerys meets his end in House of the Dragon season 3 episode 1. And like his younger brother before him, he perishes whilst riding his dragon Vermax. Rather than being swiftly consumed by a bigger dragon, however, Jace and Vermax’s demises are more tragically drawn out.

When the Triarchy’s fleet of ships arrives in a narrow Westeros waterway known as the Gullet, Jace locks his queen/mother away in a room for her own safety and takes off on dragonback alongside his cousin/step-sister/fiancée Baela to protect Corlys Velaryon’s navy. Unfortunately, the Triarchy has developed a rather ingenious strategy of dealing with dragons, harpooning Vermax in mid-air and then dragging him down into the water where the beast known to the Westerosi as “fire made flesh” drowns. Jace doesn’t last much longer than his dragon as he is quickly lit up with arrows and killed.

While we do not yet get to see how Rhaenyra responds to her oldest child’s death, her portrayer Emma D’Arcy believes that the moment represents a point of no return.

“I think for Rhaenyra, Jace’s death is an insurmountable loss, honestly. It’s unprocessable,” D’Arcy tells Den of Geek and other outlets during a press roundtable. “But I think grief actually sometimes simplifies things. It offers her a sort of nihilism in that final part of the journey.”

House of the Dragon will certainly look a lot different onscreen without the presence of Harry Collett as the raven-haired, not-so-secretly bastard-born prince. It will also look different for the performers offscreen as the show careens towards its fourth and final season.

“The relationships that we have on the show and the friendships that we form are very real. They’re friends of mine. There is always a life imitating art aspect to a character death because we lose a company member and so those days have an atmosphere necessarily,” D’Arcy says of Collett’s departure.

For his part, Collett is taking things in stride.

“Maybe I’ll have to leave [the cast group chat]. Can you imagine? It’s a really dramatic ‘Harry left the group chat,'” he says with a laugh, then continues: “I was told what would happen in season 1, so I’ve been preparing for this. I’ll always be grateful for being on this show in the first place. Ultimately I’ve had the best time ever and I got to travel the world because of it.”

Collett is also aware that, if your character destined to die in a Game of Thrones story, they might as well do so in style – on the back of a dragon and shot through with arrows certainly fits the bill.

“What a great way to go! I’m glad it just didn’t get, you know, brushed under the carpet. It’s a really impactful episode and it’s been done amazingly. I’m very, very happy.”

New episodes of House of the Dragon season 3 premiere Sundays at 9 p.m. ET on HBO and HBO Max, culminating with the finale on August 9.

House of the Dragon Season 3 Episode 1 Review: Down the Gullet

This House of the Dragon review contains spoilers.

Am I losing my mind or are the drums in the House of the Dragon opening theme louder this season?

It’s possible that the audio on my aging iPad is shot or that the review screener HBO made available to critics was unfinished, but it really does sound to me as though the percussion in composer Ramin Djawadi’s iconic Game of Thrones intro music is faster, fuller, and more insistent. If the usual “duh nuh nuh nuuuhhs” were amplified for season 3, it would certainly make sense. Following a solid but frustratingly incomplete second season, House of the Dragon seems invested in making sure viewers know that the real action has finally arrived.

This is all to say that, yes, the House of the Dragon season 3 premiere is the “Battle of the Gullet” episode.

For those who have not read George R.R. Martin‘s source material Fire & Blood (or the countless articles about the subject on this website for that matter), the Battle of the Gullet is kind of a big deal. It’s one of the most consequential engagements of the Dance of the Dragons civil war that this show is depicting and the biggest naval battle in Westerosi history. Any episode of House of the Dragon that features the Battle of the Gullet will inevitably be reduced to “the Battle of the Gullet episode” in the cultural consciousness with little retroactive attention paid to the B-, C-, and D-plots.

The fact that House of the Dragon opts to open of its third season with the battle is bold. If done right, it has the potential to put some wind at the rest of the season’s back and imbue it with some much-needed energy. If done poorly… well, that would be a very tough look for a Game of Thrones property that has already been criticized by its creator and outshined by its fellow prequel.

Thankfully, House of the Dragon‘s Battle of the Gullet is not a tough look. It’s actually pretty great! HBO, showrunner Ryan Condal, and the rest of production clearly put real time and money into this momentous occasion and it shows. While the watery, smoke-filled melee doesn’t quite reach the same dramatic heights as Game of Thrones classics like the Battle of the Bastards or Blackwater, it’s a suitably epic and bloody affair that kicks the season off on a strong note.

A lot of that success comes down to the script’s (written by Condal) appreciation for the dual elements that make up the name of Martin’s saga*: fire and water. A naval battle is one thing. A naval battle featuring dragons flying is another thing entirely.

*Sure, it’s called “A Song of Ice and Fire” but what is water but if not ice not persevering?

As Condal noted in pre-season comments provided to the press, the Battle of the Gullet doesn’t look like the naval warfare viewers have grown accustomed to. Due to Westeros’ pre-gun powder Medieval-esque setting, there is no exchange of cannon fire here – only ships full of soldiers drifting close enough to board and then swinging swords. That reality makes the skirmishes feel bloodier and more intimate. The main combatants – Shorako Lohar (Abigail Thorn), Tyland Lannister (Jefferson Hall), Alyn of Hull (Abubakar Salim), and Corlys Velaryon (Steve Toussaint) – all have a lot more to do than gaze through nautical telescopes or spin steering wheels.* And they all end up overboard, with Lohar and Tyland dead and Alyn and Corlys unaccounted for.

*Of course, the Velaryon and Triarchy ships are operated by whipstaffs, not wheels. Toussaint noted his disappointment with not getting to play with a wheel in an interview with Den of Geek and other outlets.

For all the chaos on the waters of the Gullet, the skies above it are even more disorienting once Jacaerys Velaryon (Harry Collett) and Baela Targaryen (Bethany Antonia) arrive on dragonback to provide air support for the Velaryon fleet. Jace does so after literally locking his queen-mother Rhaenyra (Emma D’Arcy) in a room for her safety. That moment alone all but betrays that the Gullet was initially conceived as season 2’s conclusion as the “Rhaenyra wants to do stuff but can’t because she’s queen” was one of that season’s most consistent (and frankly frustrating) running bits. Still, it’s hard to argue that Jace wasn’t right to think of his mother’s safety considering the fate that befalls him…

Rhaena’s (Phoebe Campbell) arrival on the back of her untamed Vale dragon Sheepstealer is a deviation from Martin’s books in which another, more seasoned dragonrider commands Sheepstealer with ease. The fact that Rhaena’s inability to control Sheepstealer causes the confusion that leads to Jace’s death will likely annoy George R.R. Martin to no end (if he even got around to reading the script that is). But it’s also a solid narrative addition that continues the show’s shrewd exploration of the unpredictability of dragons.

Unlike the history books that recall major battles with reverent awe, House of the Dragon never loses sight of the fact that dragon warfare basically amounts to children flying around on nuclear warheads. The history books also don’t get to see what it looks like when a dragon is yanked down from the sky to the ocean to drown and its teenage rider lit up with arrows. But we do. And there’s nothing romantic about it. In fact, Jace’s ignoble end is one of the more striking images presented on the show yet.

While this premiere gets the most important thing, the Battle of the Gullet, right, the rest of the episode is hit-or-miss. The events presented – Aegon (Tom Glynn-Carney) and Larys (Matthew Needham) on the road, Alicent (Olivia Cooke) trying to ready King’s Landing for Rhaenyra’s arrival, Ser Criston Cole clearly wanting to die – are conceptually strong. The execution just often leaves something to be desired. A lot of it falls under “we’ve seen this before,” which makes sense given the episode’s likely status as a season 2 holdover, but it does rob the proceedings of some need momentum.

Gullet-included, this premiere operates at its best when presenting something wholly new to the mythos. This includes new characters like the wonderfully rowdy Northman Roderick Dustin a.k.a. Roddy the Ruin (Tommy Flanagan) and Alicent’s haughty and smell-averse brother Ormund Hightower (James Norton). It also includes some old characters revealing new tricks like Aemond’s (Ewan Mitchell) horrifying kissing of his mother on the lips and Ulf’s reveal of a tragic, fascinating backstory.

If House of the Dragon season 3 continues to allow its characters to behave in unpredictable, human ways that the history books can’t quite capture, then the drumbeat in the opener can be as aggressive as it wants to be.

New episodes of House of the Dragon season 3 premiere Sundays at 9 p.m. ET on HBO and HBO Max, culminating with a finale on August 9.

My Adventures with Superman Introduces a Very Different Green Lantern

This article contains spoilers for My Adventures With Superman season 3 episode 2.

Like most installments of the anime-influenced Adult Swim show, the third episode of My Adventures of Superman, “Mobile Toy Gundam,” features lots of DC Universe deep dives. Sure, we get Superman and his cousin Supergirl, as well as revised versions of classic villains Lex Luthor and the Toyman, and the introduction of the season’s big bad Cyborg Superman. We even see cosplayers dressed as members of the Teen Titans and the Challengers of the Unknown.

But as far as the My Adventures franchise is concerned, the most important character was the easiest to overlook. At the end of her keynote speech at a convention, Supergirl takes a question from a shy girl wearing an “s” stitched onto her blue shirt. The girl gives Supergirl the boost she needs, praising Kara for being a warrior and hoping that she can be just as brave some day. At the end of the statement, the shy girl tells the world her name: “Jessica Cruz.”

For most viewers, the name goes in one ear and out the other. But for comic fans, the name reveals that we just met the star of the sequel series, My Adventures with Green Lantern.

From Victim to Villain to Hero

You’d be forgiven for not recognizing the name Jessica Cruz, as she’s a relatively recent addition to the Green Lantern mythos. Long after the introduction of human Lanterns Hal Jordan, John Stewart, and Guy Gardner, to say nothing of deeper cuts like Simon Baz and Charlie Vicker, Jessica Cruz made her first proper appearance in 2014’s Justice League #31 by Geoff Johns and Doug Mahnke. An agoraphobe with crippling anxiety, Cruz was first chosen not to be Green Lantern, but to be Power Ring, the evil Green Lantern equivalent from the alternate reality Earth-3.

When Power Ring and his fellow members of the Crime Syndicate of America—including evil Superman Ultraman, the evil Batman known as Owlman, and the evil… uh, Lois Lane but also Wonder Woman sort of known as Superwoman—invaded our Earth, the Hal Jordan of Earth-3 died in the attack, leaving his ring to choose a new successor. The cruel ring forced Jessica into service, but she eventually found the strength to rebel, overriding the ring’s corruptive power and helping the heroes of our Earth repel the Crime Syndicate.

The feat was enough to capture the attention of the Guardians of the Universe, who recruited Jessica as a new member of the real Green Lantern Corps. Although she still struggled with doubts and occasional anxiety, Jessica’s unique perspective revealed new ways of using a Green Lantern ring, including getting her ring to call her “J-Bird” instead of the usual “Lantern Cruz.” And that’s adorable.

Since getting an official ring, Cruz has not only served alongside Simon Baz as one of two Green Lanterns on Earth, but she’s also been inducted into the Justice League. She briefly became a Yellow Lantern, the fear-based corps founded by the Green Lanterns’ greatest ally/enemy Sinestro. And currently, she serves as chief of Green Lantern Corps on the planet Oa.

Impressive as that record is, it seems like My Adventures with Superman and My Adventures with Green Lantern will take things back to basics. Voiced by Moana‘s Auliʻi Cravalho, the Jessica we meet clearly isn’t agoraphobic, but she is unsure of herself. Moreover, she already loves superheroes, especially Supergirl, and admires the Maid of Might’s willingness to fight for the powerless.

Dark Adventures With Superman

How will that connection to Supergirl play into My Adventures with Green Lantern? It’s not clear right off, but we can begin to guess, based on episode 2 alone.

At the end of “Mobile Toy Gundam,” Lex Luthor introduces Hank Henshaw’s new incarnation as Superman. Although Henshaw’s look is modeled after the Eradicator from ’90s Superman comics—a sentient Kryptonian machine who sometimes becomes lethal and violent—Henshaw is canonically the Cyborg Superman. Blaming Superman for the death of his family, Henshaw made himself look like Superman, plus a few Terminator-like enhancements, and tried to replace the Man of Steel after his deadly battle with Doomsday.

With the addition of Superboy later this season and John Henry Irons a.k.a. Steel’s introduction in previous episodes, Henshaw’s arrival as Cyborg Superman and the Eradicator completes the quartet of four new Superman who arrived in the Death of Superman story. Before that storyline ended with the return of Kal-El as the true Superman, Cyborg Superman revealed his evil intentions, destroying Hal Jordan’s home of Coast City. The event not only sent Jordan on a downward spiral, eventually turning him into the villain Parallax, but also Cyborg Superman as a permanent member of the Green Lantern rogues gallery.

Will Henshaw’s transformation in My Adventures With Superman mean trouble for Jessica, turning the shy convention-goer into the hero of My Adventures With Green Lantern? My might found out sooner than expected!

My Adventures With Superman releases new episodes every Saturday at midnight on HBO.

Control Resonant Rethinks What’s Possible for Remedy’s Acclaimed Franchise

It’s been seven years since the acclaimed 2019 sci-fi game Control and Remedy Entertainment is back with the bold sequel Control Resonant. The sequel follows Dylan Faden, brother of the first game’s protagonist Jesse, who discovers an extradimensional entity has escaped from the secret government facility, the Oldest House, and has created a warped vision of Manhattan. After playing an early build of Control Resonant at Summer Game Fest 2026, we sat down with game director Mikael Kasurinen to talk about the upcoming sequel.

“I already knew early on that the first two games were going to be about the Faden siblings,” remarks Kasurinen about the sequel changing up protagonists as it continued the story. “It was a very natural thing to have the first one be about Jesse and the second one be about Dylan.”

While progressing the narrative, Control Resonant works just as well as a standalone experience and that distinction is clear right from the difference in gameplay and presentation between the two titles. Whereas Jesse relied primarily on firearms in addition to her paranatural powers in Control, Dylan is using melee weapons and his own powers as he explores a nightmarish vision of New York City. For Remedy, the shift in combat mechanics between games reflected its desire, since the first title, to make an action RPG as only the studio could do it.

“When you look at the first Control game, it was, in a way, a hack-and-slash, but with guns,” says Kasurinen with a laugh. “It was all about leaping in the middle of enemies, using your guns, but also your abilities and moving quickly. We didn’t want to create a shooter where you’re hiding behind corners and taking potshots at enemies. It was about more than that. It was about using these cool powers that you get in the experience and it sets up a fast-paced nature. That was always part of the Control DNA.”

Kasurinen observed that the gunplay in the original Control made players intuitively want to put some distance between themselves and enemies, something that the emphasis on melee combat in Control Resonant reverses. The early build that we played handles that change well, with Dylan darting from target to target and using a variety of attacks to deal damage with his shape-shifting weapon. Mastering these techniques, which didn’t take us long, turns Dylan into a paranatural murder machine, stacking up damage significantly as he flits between monstrous opponents.

That movement is bolstered by paranatural abilities that Dylan receives relatively early on in Control Resonant after escaping from the Oldest House. These powers are unlocked by venturing into cracks in reality, known as faults, and we received several new abilities in short order even in our early build. But in contrast to the bright and organized faults that Jesse experienced, Dylan’s faults are shadowy expanses with overgrown urban environments to traverse. This design difference is one that reflects the Faden siblings’ personalities along with Dylan’s underlying attempt to reestablish his humanity and connection after years of solitary confinement.

“It’s not an accident that the first game takes place in Oldest House, with a brutalist architectural style that’s all about form, simplicity, and things organized in a deliberate manner,” Kasurinen observes. “In Control Resonant with Dylan, it’s entering a world full of human chaos. Things are there as a consequence of the chaotic environments that we have in our everyday lives.”

In the Control Resonant demo, Dylan sets out to find his sister while defending New York from monsters escaping into his world, with his search driving the narrative forward. This follows a tease for the sequel contained in the DLC to Alan Wake 2, underscoring the shared universe elements between the two franchises. But while there is a level of interconnectivity, Kasurinen emphasizes that Control Resonant offers a fun and satisfying standalone experience, even for those who didn’t play the original 2019 game.

“We are very aware that we have this large universe but that makes it more important that every game that we do can stand on its own two feet. They each have their own story, premise, and you need to be satisfied with that package once you’re done with it. That’s absolutely necessary,” Kasurinen notes. “From a storytelling side, we don’t want it to feel like a massive puzzle that you can’t fully understand until you play all of the games.”

Just as Control rethought what was possible for a third-person shooter, Control Resonant takes those core sensibilities and boldly reinvents them through melee combat and a more expansive environment in a corrupted Manhattan. At the same time, the sequel is still so distinctly a Control game, maintaining the first game’s underlying aesthetic of “the strange colliding with the mundane” as Kasurinen puts it. With that in mind, the trappings are similar and the narrative foundation is present but Control Resonant completely defies expectations for what a direct sequel should be, continuing Remedy’s reputation as one of the most unique studios putting out refreshingly original games today.

“We think that it’s important that we stand out from the crowd. We’re a small studio. The worst mistake that we could do would be to just try and copy others,” Kasurinen declares. “At the end of the day, it is an action RPG where you are in New York using melee combat and cool abilities to fight monsters. Everybody will get that and anybody can grab a controller and start playing the game. And it’s a unique and fun game to play!”

Developed and published by Remedy Entertainment, Control Resonant releases September 24, 2026 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, PC, and macOS.

Minecraft Is Becoming Entertainment’s Most Unexpected Storytelling Tool

Do you think about me when you’re not playing? That’s a line spoken by eldritch terror AI character Verity in a two-part horror series by Minecraft content creator ThatMob. Verity, voiced by another Minecraft creator, JustWhispy, has taken the blocky sandbox game’s audience into increasing levels of fandom excitement.

ThatMob, or Mob, plays as himself, as the AI helper he downloaded, Verity, becomes increasingly creepy. Knowing intimate details about Mob’s life and daily routine outside when logged off, Verity isolates Mob from the NPCs in his game and becomes increasingly invested in obtaining all of Mob’s attention. Verity, who appears as a 3D smiling emoji, turns into a Slenderman-like apparition as Mob tries to escape his stiflingly unsettling presence. In a fashion reminiscent of Nikki from Obsession, Verity turns into a force of manic fixation that can’t be removed.

The series has now amassed 15.5 million views, marking the newest trend in Minecraft-based role-play and narrative short films. Minecraft was not designed to be a storytelling game. Originally, a sandbox experience that allows players to modify, create, and explore a blocky world of creatures, intricate buildings, and lore — players have taken to modifying the game into a Dungeons & Dragons-level storytelling platform. From scripted series and roleplaying communities and reality-TV-level social experiments to educational narratives and fan films, Minecraft is becoming one of entertainment’s most versatile storytelling tools.

Swedish programmer Markus “Notch” Persson, creator of Minecraft and founder of Mojang Studios, began developing the game in 2009. Inspired by the game Infiniminer, Persson wanted to use that block-based mining gaming structure in combination with isometric base-building mechanics to create a new game. Players are dropped into an algorithmically-generated world with no plot, no narrative, and no ending. The game is designed to give creators 100% control over their environment and experience — encouraging experimentation rather than limiting them with predefined narratives.

Since its launch in 2011, Minecraft has seen a storytelling evolution that has taken place primarily on YouTube. YouTubers have been creating scripted storytelling RPG-like content via Minecraft for well over a decade now. Minecrafter Jessica “Aphmau” Bravura is a trailblazer in the roleplaying Minecraft genre, having created iconic series like Minecraft Diaries, whose first season has accumulated 76.9 million views and the second 26.9 million views, and MyStreet with 39.1 million views.

The narrative popularity of roleplaying storylines has expanded into even more expansive lanes, giving rise to entire roleplaying communities like the Dream SMP. While ultimately the infamous community that took off in popularity during the global pandemic crashed hard, it doesn’t take away from the group’s impact on the storytelling genre.

Dream SMP showed Minecraft’s ability to simulate stories of wars, nation building, factions, eras in society, and global crises, making it “must-see-TV” for those chronically online in the early 2020s. Taking on an almost tabletop gaming feel, they created a balance between scripted and authentic content that opened the possibilities beyond traditional roleplaying.

This includes reality simulation content like YouTuber Ish’s “1000 Players Simulate Civilization: Rich & Poor,” which went viral in 2025. With over 45 million views, Ish created a social experiment by placing 1300 players in a world with two islands, one with a surplus of resources and another that was barren. The point was to see who people choose to be when faced with their circumstances, which is a rather fascinating and deep question for a Minecraft server. It was one of the most captivating and well-done pieces of entertainment of 2025.

Audiences follow these series like they would any other weekly episodic show schedule or major film release. The accessibility of Minecraft makes it enjoyable to both creators and viewers, and that aspect adds to its rise in creative popularity.

Creating an animated series or short film requires extensive software, equipment, and technical knowledge that can limit beginners. In Minecraft, there isn’t a need to be a master at Blender to create large-scale, highly detailed settings (like Backrooms creator Kane Pixels did). With the addition of mods, creators have developed interactive world maps whose immersion rivals Disney World. While Minecraft’s blocky visual nature is often seen as a limitation, it actually adds a lot to world-building.

Similar to books, Minecraft’s avatars’ lack of facial emoting allows audiences to fill in emotional gaps with imagination and “body language.” While emoting is still a new concept in Minecraft, the game’s reliance on vocal cues has made players defer to spoken communication to convey story. This has made viewers into active participants in the story, having to interpret and comprehend the activities happening in the gameplay.

This adds another element to the social relationship between creators and audiences, as Minecraft also relies on direct interaction — which has made it a profitable market for live streamers. Livestream viewers get the opportunity to influence player decisions live, contribute to theories and lore, and add an adaptability element when creators respond to viewers’ interests on the spot.

Minecraft has successfully made itself a combination of multiple platforms: a game, film set, animation tool, social platform, and even an archive.

Curating a truly independent experience for players, the newest entertainment shift is toward unique, smaller independent media instead of larger conglomerates. Traditional media relies on passive consumption, while in comparison, Minecraft relies on interaction.

As Gen Z and Alpha rise into the consumer sphere, fandom culture and the line between gaming and storytelling are blurring. They are accustomed to narratives that span multiple platforms and require participation. Minecraft stands not only as the introduction of that trend, but for some, it is the foundation of it.

Modders, shaders, and custom animations are pushing the platform to new limits every day. These innovators even inspired Mojang Studios to create Minecraft narrative content of its own, including its 2015 TellTale Games collaboration, Minecraft Story Mode, and its RPG Minecraft Dungeons, whose second installment releases in September.

Minecraft’s greatest strength is in its ability to blend audience participation and narrative structure. As the entertainment industry continues to look in that direction, Minecraft continues to provide a look at what the future of that landscape may look like.

For aspiring creatives, Minecraft serves as an accessible introduction to storytelling — allowing creatives to experiment with narrative techniques, world-building and audience engagement. The next generation of entertainers may very well get their start in a Minecraft world — building the future of storytelling one block at a time.

Spider-Man: BND Trailer Is the Clearest Confirmation of an X-Men Crossover Yet

This article contains possible spoilers for Spider-Man: Brand New Day.

To me, my Spider-Man! Okay, that’s not how the line goes. But for months now, fans have been speculating that at least one of Marvel’s Mighty Mutants would be making their MCU debut in Spider-Man: Brand New Day. Sadie Sink has long been rumored to play Jean Grey, the mutant telepath who serves as a founding member of the X-Men.

Notice the word “rumored,” because thus far, the identity of Sink’s character has not been revealed. However, Sink does appear for a few seconds in the latest trailer for Brand New Day, and she’s doing a lot of things that Jean Grey would do—especially if Jean had not yet enrolled in Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters.

The latest trailer reminds us that Peter Parker is in a bad way after the events of Spider-Man: No Way Home. With his Aunt May gone and his identity erased from the minds of everyone, including best friends Ned and MJ (Jacob Batalon and Zendaya), Peter is more alone than ever. He’s got villains like the Scorpion to deal with, played by a finally-returning and finally in-costume Michael Mando, and he seems to be going through some type of mutation. To make matters worse, he has to deal with Hand ninjas. Also, he has a Hulk, but not in a good way.

Amidst it all, Spidey seems to have been recruited by an organization run by a character played by Severance‘s Tramell Tillman to capture Sadie Sink’s character. Who is that character? Well, she’s wearing yellow and green and she has red hair. Also, she seems to be able to take over people’s minds, a lot like a certain mutant we know.

Or is it? When Jean Grey first debuted in 1963’s Uncanny X-Men #1, by Jack Kirby and Stan Lee, she possessed only telekinesis, the ability to move things with her mind. We certainly see her doing those things in the trailer, potentially even lifting vehicles. But the standout section of the trailer sees Sink’s character either controlling minds or potentially jumping from body to body, like the killer in the movie Fallen, which isn’t traditionally one of Jean’s original powers.

Jean doesn’t start showing telepathic abilities until X-Men #43 (1968). A decade later, Marvel retconned her origin to reveal that Jean has always been a powerful telepath, but Professor Xavier blocked out some of her abilities to prevent her from being overwhelmed (or to control her because, as we should all remember, Professor Xavier is a jerk).

That inconsistency in her power set may point to Jean playing a different character, perhaps the Spider-Queen—who controls and army of drones—or Shathra, the inter-dimensional monster who hunts people with spider-powers. Both characters come from around the time of the comic storyline The Other, which seems to be a major inspiration for Brand New Day, and both work as villains.

Yet, there are two things in the trailer that point away from those villains and toward someone who is misunderstood instead of evil. First, we see that the Punisher Frank Castle is helping this girl, possibly out of his own volition instead of mind-control. Second, Tillman’s character seems to be related to the Department of Damage Control, the MCU Homeland Security equivalent that has not been friendly to superheroes like Spidey or Ms. Marvel. So if Frank is for her, and Damage Control is against her, she’s probably a good egg.

Most importantly of all, if you watch the trailer with the subtitles on, you’ll see that the captions identity Tillman’s character as “Metzger.” That’s William Metzger, a very minor character introduced in 1999’s X-Men: Children of the Atom #1 by Joe Casey and Steve Rude. Metzger was an anti-mutant activist who gained traction in the U.S. government for a short time. While Marvel has no problem radically imagining minor characters from the comics (remember when Man-Thing’s girlfriend Ellen Brandt became an Extremis bomber in Iron Man 3?), the Metzger name seems telling.

So, to recap, the trailer shows a red-haired girl in yellow and green who can move things with her mind, has telepathy, scares Damage Control and an anti-mutant bigot in particular, and wins the support of Frank Castle. Sure sounds like Jean Grey is here, and the X-Men can’t be far behind.

Spider-Man: Brand New Day arrives on July 31, 2026.

Tribeca 2026: Everything We Saw

New York City is often a town of extremes. It can be too hot; it can be too cold. It can be too loud; and it can be painfully quiet on occasion. Yet there are times where it is absolutely perfect, and this June was no exception.

With the Tribeca Film Festival in its 25th year, Robert De Niro’s pride and joy has added a lot of character to Lower Manhattan, especially in recent iterations during one of the city’s most glorious months. June is still springtime in the big city, and between sunny weather, Pride parades, and overdue New York Knicks victory laps in the NBA Finals, it’s a perfect time for a film festival that celebrates the fun, the festive, and sometimes the frightfully poignant in its narrative and documentary selections. This year, we were not able to cover everything in our hometown fest, but we saw enough to realize, as always, sometimes this city is just right.

Chris & Martina: The Final Set

The real ones—tennis fans who follow both the men’s and women’s tours from grass to clay and hardcourts all over the world—know the fierce rivalry between Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova is perhaps the greatest the sport has and will ever see. Chris & Martina: The Final Set definitively sets the record straight. This is one of the greatest stories in all sports, period, but not for the reasons you might think. Director Rebecca Gitlitz deftly uses archival footage of their on-court battles, which spanned three decades and 80 matches, and an eye-popping 60 finals, while chronicling their dueling recent bouts with cancer, and the off-court friendship that helped them persevere. – Chris Longo

Cotton Fever

When it comes to stories of addiction, audiences are often met with tales that focus on one or two characters. It’s a play of someone aiding their battles while the rest of the world revolves around them. With Cotton Fever, writer-director Daniel Blake Schwartz took his short, which was also based on his own life, and turned it into a rainbow of expression for a group of people, not just a singular human.

The film’s two stars, Kyle Gallner and Sosie Bacon (reunited after their time together in the horror film Smile), can be seen as the protagonists for easy breakdowns. Yet Cotton Fever is a tapestry of six main characters all dealing with the same troubles while finding themselves in startling different situations.

Cotton Fever is a film that bravely has both happy and sad endings, depending on how the viewer wants to dissect each character’s journey. There are no official answers handed to the audience, just honesty. – Matthew Schuchman

Doc Meets World

For television viewers of a certain age—specifically elder and mid-range Millennials—the 1990s were defined by a handful of shows. At the top of that list with a bullet is Boy Meets World, the funny and surprisingly tender coming-of-age dramedy that aired on ABC from 1993 to 2000. It represents a time of wonder and joy for many who grew up with it, as well as more complicated emotions for the folks who made it, including stars Rider Strong, Danielle Fishel, and Will Friedle.

All three have been on a bit of a reverie of late thanks to their podcast Pod Meets World, which sees the trio revisit the series episode by episode. And now that journey culminates in Doc Meets World, directors Chris Levitus and Zane Rubin’s curious snapshot of media navelgazing. On the one hand, the documentary is a kind of a testimonial of a culture and generation stuck in the past, with the actors returning to a series they spent much of their adult lives trying to put away. Conversely, their fans eagerly bask in the show again and again with their own children via rewatch parties, live podcast presentations, and even ‘90s nostalgia conventions.

Yet the movie represents a bit of healthy introspection and public therapy, too, for its three leads who are now ready to reconsider their youth with affection, some regret, and a newfound awareness of the culture and influences that shaped their lives. Ours too. – David Crow

Gail Daughtry and the Celebrity Sex Pass

Many folks think of Los Angeles as a kind of fairy tale Oz full of magical realms, folks of good cheer… and also relentless celebrity sex appeal. So leave it to David Wain and Ken Marino, the happily filthy minds behind good clean comedy fun like Wet Hot American Summer and Childrens Hospital, to give that contradictory fantasy uproarious life in Gail Daughtry and the Celebrity Sex Pass, a chipper, song in its heart remix of The Wizard of Oz, only with a lot more celebrities and sex.

Based on the purely nonsense premise of a Midwestern gal (a winsome Zoey Deutch) who discovers her fiancé slept with his celebrity crush because of the joking “pass” many couples have, Gail Daughtry follows its eponymous character and her sassy BFF (Miles Gutierrez-Riley) as they go to LA so she can get even by pursuing her girlhood crush from Mad Men days: Jon Hamm. And yes, he’s in the movie playing himself. As is John Slattery and a host of other celebrity cameos who all play folks shockingly empathetic and eager to help Gail on her quest, as well as riffs on her own Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Cowardly Lion (Slattery).

It’s maximalist absurdism comedy that cashes in a lot of favors and friendships on Wain and Marino’s part—be on the lookout for Paul Rudd, Elizabeth Banks, and Jennifer Aniston cameos, among others—making for a laugher that’s ridiculous, a little frisky, but pretty wholesome in the main. – DC

Humpty Dumpty X

Never in my life have I ever experienced something so inane and sloppy, yet in the same breath mindnumbingly brilliant as Humpty Dumpty X. Even if you are familiar with the turbulence behind the production of some people’s favorite movie of all time, American History X, nothing could prepare you for what History X and Dumpty X director Tony Kaye has in store in his official documentary about what “really” happened when he made his jump from commercial to feature film director.

For someone who wants audiences to be on his side, Kaye can’t help from shining a big bright light on himself. And I don’t mean the stage spotlight, but the big hot one that cops turn on during an interrogation. One minute he is humbling you with admissions of mistakes and missteps, followed immediately by him contradicting those statements. At times it clearly seems like he is in on the joke and playing into it, and at others it feels like he is completely clueless to the way anything in this world works.

The majority of the film is told through old camcorder footage from the time of his battle over control of American History X. He apparently recorded every moment. There are shocking revelations (though not intended for audiences to hear) from indie filmmaker Mike Figgis at the start of the film—which come after Tony plays full six-minute clips of commercials that made him famous. There is even a point where we are treated to footage of Kaye and Marlon Brando filming each other as they have a conversation. This is all punctuated by a follow up interview 20 years later with the head of TIFF while Kaye films the interview on an Arri Alexa, but the only footage we see is from a cell phone recording from behind the scenes.

I couldn’t have asked for a more absurd experience than what I got with Humpty Dumpty X. Trying to explain the madness in a few short paragraphs is almost impossible. And even worse, I can’t tell you if it is the single messiest documentary I’ve ever seen or the single most amazing.- Matthew Schuchman

Tim Blake Nelson at Tribeca 2026 — Photo by Nick Morgulis

The Leader

In its opening shot, The Leader is instantly recognizable. Sitting square in frame is Marshall Applewhite (Tim Blake Nelson), co-founder of the Heaven’s Gate cult that committed the largest mass suicide on U.S. soil. In a time when true crime documentaries are frequently hitting the number one spot on streaming service’s top 10 lists, The Leader offers a look at the infamous members of the cult through the lens of writer and director Michael J. Gallagher.

In a performance that expertly captures the film’s theme of the desire to belong, Vera Farmiga plays Marshall’s Heaven’s Gate co-founder, Bonnie Lu Nettles, who passed from cancer before the cult’s tragic end in 1997. With supporting performances by Jim Parsons and Grace Caroline Currey, The Leader accomplishes what it sets out to do: leave you unsettled and heartbroken over the members of Heaven’s Gate. – Emily Cappello

In Memoriam

There is perhaps no better way to capture the fleeting nature of fame than and the obsessive qualities it possesses than with the story of a dying actor who measures his importance in the adoration of his fans. In Memoriam shows Marc Maron in his first leading role as Langston Stanford, a somewhat has-been actor hellbent on making it into the Oscars’ “In Memoriam” segment after his recently diagnosed terminal cancer will soon take his life. Real-life Oscar nominee Lily Gladstone is a shining light as Langston’s end-of-life therapist Samantha, and Talia Ryder gives a moving performance as his estranged teenage daughter.

Writer and director Rob Burnett has managed to capture the age-old tale of the importance of family legacy versus the hollowness of celebrity with a freshness that is not just engaging but emotional. With colorful performances by Judy Greer, Sharon Stone, and a hilarious Justin Long, In Memoriam is likely to have viewers excited for what’s to come from Maron’s acting career, and will certainly have them checking in on their loved ones. – EC

The Long Haul

Grief comes in many forms. The Long Haul follows truck driver CJ (Margo Martindale) who 25 years later is still grieving her daughter’s murder and seeking comfort through constant movement on the road. Hell-bent on doing things her way, she is forced out of her usual routine when she takes a job with a young truck driver (Cole Sprouse) who is better at gaining social media followers than doing his actual job.

While CJ captures our attention from the moment she comes on screen, it’s her beautiful performance alongside Yalitza Aparicio that truly brings out the heart of the film. Ending with a brilliant and heartbreaking monologue as CJ faces her daughter’s killer, The Long Haul is a film that highlights the importance not just of forgiveness, but of resilience. – Emily Cappello

Sofia Boutella and Simon Pegg at Tribeca 2026 — Photo by Nick Morgulis

Only What We Carry

Sometimes a film succeeds on pure emotion. Sometimes it can succeed on the strength and camaraderie of its cast. The new film from Jamie Adams, Only What We Carry, definitely succeeds on both fronts.

Famed dancer Charlotte Levant (Sofia Boutella) seems to be stuck in a bit of a rut. Having an article released from her former choreographer and partner Julian Johns (Simon Pegg), doesn’t help. A specific line in Julian’s recent interview sticks like a thorn in Charlotte’s side. Along with her sister, Josephine (Charlotte Gainsbourg), Charlotte heads to face Jualian about what he said and their past. What follows is a weekend of discovery and soul searching between the group who are joined by Julian’s publisher John Percy (Quentin Tarantino)..

If you’re new to the films of Jamie Adams, Only What We Carry follows in his tradition of a script that outlines a structure, but a film built mainly from improvisation. Simon Pegg described the work in our studio as “a process of discovery… and that’s really exciting because you are uncovering the story as you’re making it.” It also leads to some very authentic scenes of characters just caught up in discussion.

With that said, the approach could be a little less fun for actors like Boutella, who are tasked with playing the “sour one” when every other character is full of exuberance. “I felt nuts, absolutely crazy,” she tells us. “I kept looking for the colors of our dynamic, but [Pegg] was just so nice.”

Like a modern day The Big Chill, Only What We Carry has a great number of highs and lows to wow audiences. And when you see it, be on the look out for that damn fog on Simon’s glasses. You’ll know what I mean once you see it.- MS

Ponderosa

David Lynch once famously said his films don’t make any sense, but “people get used to a film that explains itself 100 percent, and they turn off that beautiful thing of intuition.” Finding films that take this idea to heart and produce a worthwhile result are few and far between. But this year’s Tribeca Film Festival provided a gem that not only exudes this ideal, but wormed its way into my mind and nested there.

Ponderosa is a movie that best works without explanation before you see it, but on its surface, it revolves around Zeke (Jack Dylan Grazer), a quiet, somewhat introverted teen who is drifting through life. Zeke’s mother (Alexis Beldel in her return to the screen after a short hiatus) works at the aging restaurant Ponderosa to keep the two afloat. After stopping for a meal at said establishment, Zeke catches the eye of George (Bill Camp) who thinks he can offer young Zeke some guidance and stability.

The movie that commences will probably confuse some viewers, but that is done on purpose. During our chat, writer-director Rob Rice even explains that the film has “a traditional narrative structure, something to do with two characters having a conflict with each other.” But it is the one-sided conflict that creates some of Ponderosa’s greatest ambiguities and strengths. George as a character is frustrated with Zeke’s seemingly unending apathy. And watching Camp become exceedingly more unhinged because of it is brain candy. – MS

Stealing Magic

Few documentaries can play like an action thriller. Stealing Magic, from director Matthew Testa, follows a team of illusionists as they span the globe to track down the pirates responsible for the theft of the world’s greatest tricks. Yes, it sounds readymade for a thriller, and the film absolutely delivers on its incredibly exciting logline as Magician Andi Gladwin rallies a community keen on defending its intellectual property. I came for the magic but I left touched by the lengths these illusionists would go to protect not only their livelihood, but a profession intrinsically tied to their being. – CL

X-Men ‘97 Season 2

X-Men ‘97 hit comic and animation fans like a thunderbolt two years ago. While revivals of long dormant and beloved TV shows from the 1980s and ‘90s are a dime a dozen these days, X-Men ‘97 came rip-roaring out of the gates with the sincerity of the original Saturday morning cartoon that ran on Fox Kids from 1992 to 1997, but the audacity and ambition of an adult drama. Or for that matter a comic book melodrama. With more gusto and angst than 90 percent of live-action MCU movies, this was an animated series that captured the epic grandiosity of folks in colorful costumes grappling with the highs and lows of life, death, and powers approaching godhood.

The first two episodes that premiered on the last day of the Tribeca Film Festival carry on that tradition while rather bullishly adapting the kind of trenchant, lore-heavy timeline shenanigans that ultimately made X-Men comics so labyrinthine by the end of the 1990s. With at least three timelines in the episodes we saw—one with X-Men sent two thousand years into the future, another with a different group of heroes sent four thousand years into the Egyptian past, and one still based in 1997—there are competing factions, characters at different ages in their lives, and at least two off-shoots of the main team. And just wait until you see how the X-Force are introduced!

Through it all remains a sense of purpose that we are building to a moment of epiphany and revelation in these characters’ lives, which might be fitting since they are up against a biblical threat this season via Apocalypse. As X-Men ‘97 executive producer Brad Winderbaum told us at the premiere, “Apocalypse is an exciting character, [and I’m] so happy to bring him back to the screen. He represents, I think, a horrible future and destiny for the X-Men that they’re always trying to avoid. So he serves a very specific, and very awesome purpose.” – DC

The Best Shows to Watch After Widow’s Bay

There isn’t a show around that’s exactly like Widow’s Bay. Katie Dippold’s new Apple TV original has definitely struck a chord with audiences in 2026, maintaining a delicate balance between scares and chuckles and introducing us to instantly iconic characters like Tom, Wyck, Patricia, Rosemary, and Bechir. But there are shows out there that manage to do spooky small-town horror or silly supernatural shenanigans well enough to devote your time to as you wait for a second season of Widow’s Bay.

We’re going to assume you’ve already seen (or passed on) some of the bigger shows that Widow’s Bay’s humor and horror have been compared to, like Twin Peaks or The X-Files. Instead, we’re going to focus on some of the other series that may have slipped by you over the years.

The Chair Company

Isn’t it wonderful that television is once again embracing its wild, weird and wacky side? And right up there with Widow’s Bay in this endeavor we have The Chair Company, which combines comedy and surrealism in a way that no one else has quite managed. With one season available to binge on HBO Max and more in the offing, Tim Robinson and Zach Kanin’s bonkers story of a man who gets a promotion, falls on his ass during his big speech and then gets fixated on finding out why his chair broke is sublime, and you can now get in on the ground floor of what promises to be one of TV’s oddest conspiracy thrillers.

If you’re already a fan of Robinson’s I Think You Should Leave style of comedy and enjoy shows with offbeat characters, The Chair Company might be for you. However, it’s worth noting that the show has been divisive for some, who’ve found it just too weird for its own good.

Round the Twist

This Australian curio from the early 1990s would never be made today! It’s essentially a show for kids, but you’ll definitely be asking yourself how anyone thought it was entirely appropriate for them.

Landing somewhere between The Adventures of Pete & Pete, The Twilight Zone and a fever dream, Round the Twist focuses on the boisterous Twist family, who move to a lighthouse in the town of Port Niranda and end up encountering a whole bunch of supernatural weirdness. Boasting a theme song that will never leave your brain and four seasons full of episodes that constantly push the boundaries of kids’ TV, Round the Twist is weird, funny, creepy, and utterly gross. Essential cult viewing for those who miss boundless imagination on a tight budget.

Midnight Mass

After a former venture capitalist kills a woman in a drunk-driving accident and ends up serving four years in jail for the crime, he returns to his hometown of Crockett Island looking for a fresh start. Unfortunately, a mysterious priest also arrives on the island around the same time, giving the town’s waning faith a shot in the arm but also harboring a dark secret that will affect everyone in the community.

Hamish Linklater plays this charismatic priest, Father Paul Hill. You may now also know him as Richard Warren, the founder of Widow’s Bay, who made a pact with a demonic entity to protect his colony through a first winter and doomed them to everything that followed. When Linklater was asked about taking the oddly similar acting roles, he told Decider that “You definitely worry that people will only think of you as a bad leader of a parish on a little fishing island, but then you start getting jealous, and you’re like, ‘I don’t want to see anybody else run a little haunted island better than me.’ So then you’ve got to defend your territory.”

If you haven’t seen Netflix’s incredible supernatural horror series Midnight Mass yet, now’s the time to see Linklater truly in his element.

Eerie, Indiana

Lasting just one season in the early 1990s, presumably down to NBC’s struggles to market a show starring kids with many grown-up themes, this cult horror series pre-dated Stranger Things by a few decades and was thus way ahead of its time. We follow teen Marshall Teller (Hocus Pocus star Omri Katz) who moves to the creepy town of Eerie, Indiana, and manages to meet Simon Holmes, one of the only (fairly) normal people living there. Together, he and his new friend have to cope with everything Eerie throws at them, including alternate dimensions and government experiments.

In its admirable efforts to satirize American suburbia by presenting its audience with a weird, atmospheric view of small-town life beyond the smiles and typically consumerist view of home-baked paradise, the world wasn’t quite ready for the vibes of Eerie, Indiana back then. But its kids were gonna love them.

Evil

Katja Herbers, Mike Colter, and Aasif Mandvi lead the cast of this odd drama series that managed to make it to four seasons on CBS and Paramount+, despite plummeting ratings.

It’s a hard one to sell to those wary of getting wrapped up in the more religious mysteries and monsters one might typically expect to find on the long-running Supernatural, but much like Widow’s Bay, Evil is also way funnier than you expect it to be. It definitely helps that the show’s villain, played by Lost‘s Michael Emerson, knows exactly what tone his evil flexing needs to strike as the series gets wilder and more ludicrous.

Unlike a few shows on this list, Evil certainly went out on its own terms, so this is one you’ll be able to complete if you’re not looking for an ongoing series.

Garth Marenghi’s Darkplace

Darkplace pretends to be a “lost” 1980s TV series created by a fictional horror author named Garth Marenghi (Matthew Holness). Marenghi says he wrote, directed, produced, and starred in this old supernatural medical drama set in Darkplace Hospital, a building above a gateway to hell. The parody show embraces all the classic elements of bad TV: godawful acting, continuity errors, hilarious special effects, nonsensical plots, and eyewatering dialogue. Between episodes, its fictional cast members also pop up in new interview segments, offering the kind of unself-aware commentary that will have you in stitches.

Somewhere between parody and affectionate tribute to supernatural horror telly, Garth Marenghi’s Darkplace bombed when it first aired but gained a keen cult following that appreciated its moxie and weird comedic style. There’s never been anything like it before or since, but you can now check out this groundbreaking British series on Peacock in the U.S.!

From

We’re gonna be real with you: From is light on laughter, but in terms of delivering a string of infuriatingly compelling mysteries, you won’t find a more dedicated show to sink your teeth into. Set in a seemingly inescapable U.S. town plagued by monsters that emerge at night, the people trapped in From’s terrifying bubble must unravel the secrets at the heart of its existence to stand any chance of leaving before they’re killed.

The cast of characters often gets altered by unexpected monster incursions, but as the show kicks off, we meet mainstay Boyd Stevens (Harold Perrineau), the self-appointed sheriff of the town, and the newly arriving Matthews family, who help us understand what is and isn’t possible going forward. Produced by the Russo brothers (Avengers: Endgame) and Lost director Jack Bender, From will reel you in and refuse to let go.

Gravity Falls

The only animated TV show on this list, Alex Hirsch’s Disney series Gravity Falls has definitely earned a spot as an easy, breezy, temporary Widow’s Bay replacement, following Dipper Pines (voiced by Jason Ritter) and his twin sister Mabel (Kristen Schaal), who get sent to hang out with their great-uncle Stan in the titular Oregon town, which just so happens to have enough mysteries, paranormal activities, and supernatural oddities to keep them busy for a while.

The show was critically acclaimed and influenced everything from Steven Universe to Rick and Morty, but it really hasn’t lost any of its edge or fun since it first aired. This is one you can watch with your kids, which we definitely wouldn’t recommend for the next show on this list.

Ash vs Evil Dead

Decades after the conclusion of Sam Raimi’s Evil Dead trilogy, Bruce Campbell returned to the role of Ash Williams in this violent, irreverent horror-comedy series, which sees Ash drawn back into the scourge of the Deadites as they launch a new campaign of terror.

Reluctantly stepping back into his iconic, chainsaw-wielding guise, Campbell’s Ash struggles to keep up with the younger people he has to team with in Ash vs Evil Dead, but this beloved series never really tries to modernize the often crass and horny Ash or take the Evil Dead subject matter too seriously, happy to lean into the over-the-top grossout violence of the films and the unique slapstick comedy that made the character work so well in the first place, making it a solid option to hop on after Widow’s Bay.

The series seemed to be constantly fighting for its life on the Starz network, but it managed to get three 10-episode seasons out there in the end. No small feat.

What other shows would you recommend to Widow’s Bay fans? Let us know in the comments!

The Best Underrated Slashers of the 1980s

You know Michael and Jason and Chucky and Freddy. But the 1980s weren’t just about these major franchises. After Halloween and Friday the 13th proved that studios could make a ton of money with a simple premise, and with the home video boom upping the demand for more and more content, the Greed Decade was filled with movies about groups of people getting picked off in increasingly absurd ways. And with a tried-and-true premise to work from, even the worst slasher movies end up being pretty watchable.

So if you want to see eccentric weirdos use everyday objects to off some of the dumbest people ever to appear on screen, then check out these 10 lesser-known slashics. But before we begin, let’s make a quick point of clarification. Generally, slashers are about a single person using a weapon to kill their victims. But we’ll use the fact that everyone agrees that A Nightmare on Elm Street is a slasher, even though Freddy’s glove is more of a prop than a tool of destruction, to stretch the boundaries a bit.

Happy Birthday to Me (1981)

First, let’s get this out of the way: the incredible kill depicted on the poster for Happy Birthday to Me isn’t nearly as cool in the actual movie. Yeah, someone gets stabbed in the face with a kabob poker, but it mostly happens off-screen. Still, it’s hard to complain, or frankly even notice, the oversight when you’re trying to keep track of Happy Birthday to Me‘s overly-complicated plot.

Happy Birthday to Me is sort of about Ginny Wainright (Melissa Sue Anderson of Little House on the Prairie), a member of the cool kids at her exclusive private school, a group dubbed the “Top Ten.” When members of the Top Ten start getting killed off, Ginny’s secret past gets revealed, with the help of the legendary Glenn Ford sporting an amazing leisure suit and medallion. Happy Birthday to Me doesn’t make much sense, but that only enhances its absurd pleasures.

Bloody Birthday (1981)

1981 was a big year for deadly birthday parties, as demonstrated by Bloody Birthday, released just a month after Happy Birthday to Me. Instead of making a Little House star into a killer, Bloody Birthday gets even more taboo, building around three murderous moppets. The three kids—played by Elizabeth Hoy, Billy Jacoby, Andy Freeman—were all born on the same day, under a solar eclipse. And as they approach their tenth birthday, the trio gets more and more murderous.

Unlike its fellow ’81 birthday flick, Bloody Birthday doesn’t worry itself with too much plot. Instead, it’s all about the fun of watching three absolute brats do horrible things to the people around them, and then whine when they get caught. Director Ed Hunt, who co-wrote the script with Barry Pearson, doesn’t push things too far beyond the bounds of good taste (this isn’t a Troma production). But one always gets the sense that something truly horrific is about to happen, making Bloody Birthday a twisted type of present to anyone who wants a sleazy slasher.

Student Bodies (1981)

Conventional wisdom would suggest that it takes more than a year for a genre to become popular enough to be parodied. But Halloween and Friday the 13th established the genre beats so clearly that writer/director Mickey Rose could already make Student Bodies in 1981.

Student Bodies stars Kristen Riter (not Jessica Jones) as Toby, a high school senior stalked by a killer known as the Breather. While Toby escapes his wrath, other teens aren’t so lucky, falling prey to paper clips, eggplants, and other unlikely objects that the Breather uses to dispatch them. Student Bodies has a broad sense of humor, and certainly leans more into comedy than horror. But it remains a fun time capsule of a genre that was ready for a take-down just a year into its mainstream existence.

Pieces (1982)

The slasher is essentially an American version of the Italian giallo, a genre that was itself a riff on Psycho and American pulp novels. Pieces further complicates things by adding a third nation, Spain, for a Spanish, Italian, and American co-production that’s a world-class mess. Directed by Juan Piquer Simón, who would go on to make the killer cephalopod movie Slugs, and written by Dick Randall and Roberto Loyola, Pieces is about a kid whose mother yells at him for putting together a nudie puzzle. So, when he grows up, that kid starts making up for lost time, by cutting women into puzzle pieces.

Believe it or not, the premise is the least weird part of Pieces. Each elaborate murder set-piece unfolds in absurd, lurid fashion, of course. But it’s everything else that boggles the mind, from ’80s big dummy Paul Smith as the world’s most pleased red herring to Christopher George and Lynda Day George as investigators, the latter of whom gives a profane line-reading for the ages.

Visiting Hours (1982)

Slashers may be an American phenomenon, but when it comes to the leanest, pluckiest entries in the subgenre, you have to head north. Canada has produced some real gems, such as 1982’s Visiting Hours, which takes the hospital setting of Halloween II and stretches it to feature length.

Directed by Jean-Claude Lord, who would later make the pleasing Terminator knockoff The Vindicator, and written by Brian Taggert, Visiting Hours stars the great Michael Ironside as Colt Hawker, a serial killer who gets his feelings hurt when commentator Deborah Ballin (Lee Grant) calls out his misogyny. After she survives his first attack, Colt follows Deborah to a hospital, where he plans to finish the job, killing a lot of other people—including Deborah’s boss, played by William Shatner—in the process.

The Mutilator (1984)

Many low-budget horror movies have multiple titles, changed up as the studio or distributor tries desperately to get people to pay attention to their movie. The Mutilator is no different, having originally been called Fall Break. Believe it or not, that safe, upbeat title actually fits much of the movie, which follows a bunch of college kids on a fall break trip to a beach house, and even begins with a sitcom-style theme song called, you guessed it, “Fall Break.”

Yet, in between the guileless good times, writer/director Buddy Cooper and co-director John S. Douglass insert scenes that definitely earn the title The Mutilator. The killer in The Mutilator dispatches his victims in cruel, slow-paced sequences that emphasize the suffering of victims (usually women in states of undress) who were goofing around just moments ago. The combination doesn’t make for a coherent film, but it does make The Mutilator a memorable movie, no matter what you call it.

Slaughter High (1986)

Fundamentally, all slasher movies go back to Psycho, which means that even the trashiest entry needs to have a psychological reason that the killer went nuts. In many ’80s slashers, that original sin involves a prank gone wrong, but few do it better than Slaughter High, written and directed by three people: Mark Ezra, George Dugdale and Peter Litten.

Are three heads better than one? Maybe not in terms of innovation, as Slaughter High follows a fairly rote plot. Ten years after a prank gone wrong kills one of their classmates, a group of young adults reconvene at their high school, only to be menaced by a slasher called the Jester. But one does get the sense of three guys egging each other on, as Slaughter High does contain some incredible death sequences and a truly gnarly shock ending.

Slumber Party Massacre II (1987)

To Detroit sports fans, the members of the Ilitch family, who own the Red Wings and the Tigers, are real-world villains. On the screen, the scariest Ilitch is Atanas Ilitch, who plays the rockabilly Driller Killer in the smart slasher Slumber Party Massacre II.

Like Amy Holden Jones, who directed the first film, Slumber Party Massacre II writer and director Deborah Brock uses a Roger Corman slasher movie to make a feminist film about women fighting a dangerous man. Where the first movie keeps things in the real world, Slumber Party Massacre II borrows a page from A Nightmare on Elm Street, making the Driller Killer a supernatural slasher who can pop out of anywhere to impale some woman on his guitar and then do a rock and roll number.

Death Spa (1988)

Okay, we’re stretching things a bit to call Death Spa a slasher. The culprit behind the deaths of various hardbodies at a trendy gym might be a ghost, it might be ’80s AI gone mad, or it might be a fitness nut who’s lost their mind. The script by James Bartruff and Mitch Paradise isn’t terribly clear, and director Michael Fischa cares too much about the shocking deaths and inexplicable romance scenes (did you know that celery is the most sensual of marsh plants?) to sort it out.

Yet, we still contend that Death Spa belongs on this list, because it features that most important quality of the genre: gratuitous death scenes involving unusual objects. Weight machines rip apart their users, spears launch from unexpected places, and, uh, a diving board comes undone. Okay, that last one isn’t great, but the others all more than justify Death Spa‘s status as a slasher and an under-appreciated great.

Nightmare Beach (1989)

Given the slasher genre’s debt to giallo, it’s fitting that we end this list in Italy. Well, Italy’s version of Miami, specifically a Miami beach overrun by Spring Breakers. Directed by Umberto Lenzi, who also made the mondo film Cannibal Ferox and the inexplicable Evil Dead/Poltergiest rip-off Ghosthouse, Nightmare Beach has oodles of style, making it the coolest entry on this list.

Nightmare Beach mostly follows former football star Skip (Nicolas de Toth) and local bartender Gail (Sarah Buxton) as they investigate a series of murders conducted by a mysterious motorcyclist who kills people by enticing them to touch his bike. Throw in the always great John Saxon as a police chief with a dirty secret and an inappropriate but funny subplot about a young woman scamming local men, and Nightmare Beach is a perfect piece of slasher excess.

9 Photos of What it Looked Like to Watch Movies in the ’70s & ’80s

Unlike other forms of entertainment, watching movies feels like it hasn’t changed much across the years. After all, the level of interaction is minimal: you just have to sit and watch. Trends and technology change constantly with the times, however, and even something as simple as watching movies has shifted.

Nowadays, with streaming services and on-demand media, there is little in the way of waiting. There is also a consolidation of many devices into one; our smartphones work as communication devices, movie experiences and gaming consoles. Back in the 70s, and 80s, the story was far different.

Meeting The Queen

Celebrities are movie goers as well, and few are as famous as the English Royalty. Here, we see the lucky owner of a cinema being graced by the visit of the late Queen herself, on one of her very few outings.

3D Glasses

Movies made for 3D viewing were a thing back in the day, but you’d be surprised how far back. Even in the early 70s and late 60s, the technology was already being tested. It didn’t end up being the way to see films in the future, but it was a novelty that popped back up through the decades.

The Row

While not a lot of us go to the cinemas nowadays, those of us who do, we buy our tickets online. But back in the day, you had to get your tickets on location, sometimes waiting in a line for hours if the movie was popular enough.

Children At The Movies

Kids enjoy a good movie just like any adult, but they tend to be louder and more expressive than their elders. Here, we see the unfiltered joy of youth as they see a film, likely something child friendly, and with great comedic effect.

The Drive-In Theatre

Some movies were projected at night, outside, and the seats were people’s own cars. This practice fell off in the late 80s, but back in its heyday, it was the ultimate way to see a film.

The VHS Camera

Before the era of the smartphone, if you wanted to record something, you needed one of these large cameras. They recorded into a VHS, a magnetic tape that didn’t have as much room as our modern devices have today.

Japanese Ad

Being able to record on VHS was all well and good, but people also needed a way to watch those movies. This ad was for a VHS player, devices that you’d plug to your TV and enjoy all kinds of movies.

Panasonic VHS Player

An oddity of the times, this was a VHS player with a TV included. While nice to have an all-in-one device, it was hard to keep in one piece, and once VHS went out of fashion, so did this entire machine.

The Shiny New Poster

While movie posters are still a thing today, the craftsmanship that went into making the old ones is something lost to time. There was a certain magic to them, something this group thought of when they decided to immortalize a moment with a picture.

15 Details Movies Got Wrong

Movies are designed to entertain, not pass a history or science exam. Still, some factual mistakes become impossible to ignore once viewers notice them. It can be a tiny continuity error, bad science, or filmmakers deliberately bending reality because the truth would be less dramatic.

Audiences usually forgive a few inaccuracies, yet certain mistakes become legendary among movie fans, historians, scientists, and eagle-eyed viewers who love pointing them out online. From impossible explosions in space to historical timelines that don’t add up, these movies all got at least one notable detail wrong, whether accidentally or completely on purpose.

The Hurt Locker

Many military experts have criticized The Hurt Locker for its depiction of bomb disposal procedures. While tense and entertaining, several scenes bear little resemblance to how real explosive ordnance teams operate.

A Beautiful Mind

The film accurately portrays many aspects of John Nash’s life but omits some important details. Most notably, Nash’s auditory hallucinations were largely invented for the screen to visualize his mental illness.

Gladiator

The movie captures Roman spectacle well, but several historical details are inaccurate. Commodus was not killed in the Colosseum, and gladiatorial combat in the film is often exaggerated compared to historical evidence.

The Patriot

The film portrays British forces committing atrocities that resemble events from other wars more than the American Revolution. Historians have criticized it for heavily distorting the behavior of British troops during the conflict.

Enemy at the Gates

This World War II drama repeats the claim that Soviet soldiers were sent into battle without enough rifles. Historians generally agree the situation was far more complicated than the film suggests.

Armageddon

NASA scientists have joked for years about the movie’s scientific problems. Training oil drillers to become astronauts would almost certainly be harder than training astronauts to operate drilling equipment.

Pocahontas

Disney’s animated film transforms a complex historical story into a romantic adventure. The real Pocahontas was much younger than depicted, and there is no evidence of a romance resembling the movie’s central relationship.

The Imitation Game

The film brought Alan Turing’s story to a wide audience, but historians criticized it for portraying him as far more socially isolated and solely responsible for breaking Enigma than reality suggests.

Jurassic Park

The movie’s velociraptors are much larger than the real animal, which was closer to the size of a turkey. The dinosaurs were actually modeled more closely on Deinonychus, another raptor species.

300

Stylized visuals aside, the film takes enormous liberties with history. Spartan armor, Persian troops, and even the political situation are heavily exaggerated or altered for dramatic effect.

Pearl Harbor

Michael Bay’s film mixes real events with fictional romance, but historians have pointed out numerous inaccuracies in aircraft, timelines, and military procedures surrounding the attack and the Doolittle Raid.

Kingdom of Heaven

Ridley Scott’s historical epic takes major liberties with the life of Balian of Ibelin. The real Balian was an experienced nobleman and military leader, not a humble blacksmith who suddenly rose to prominence during the Crusades.

Gravity

The film is visually stunning, but its orbital mechanics are highly compressed for storytelling. Space stations shown close together are actually separated by hundreds of kilometers in different orbits.

Catch Me If You Can

The movie is based on Frank Abagnale’s own stories, but later investigations found that many of his claims about impersonating pilots, doctors, and lawyers were exaggerated or unverified.

U-571

The film depicts Americans capturing an Enigma machine from a German submarine. In reality, British forces captured key Enigma materials years before the United States entered the war, causing controversy when the movie was released.

The Strangest Things to Know About Aliens, According to Conspiracy Theorists

Extraterrestrial life is something that has fascinated people for as long as we’ve looked up to the sky, filling our imaginations and works of fiction with incredible ideas. These ideas are, of course, not something that can be proven, but that doesn’t stop people from believing in them with blind faith.

A lot of these theories have a tint of humor, but always remember that there are people out there, just like you and me, that actually believe in them. And who knows, some of these things are as hard to disprove as they are to prove, so the truth might still be out there.

Aliens Built the Pyramids

One of the oldest alien conspiracy theories claims extraterrestrials helped construct the pyramids of Egypt. Believers argue ancient humans lacked the technology, despite extensive archaeological evidence explaining how the structures were built.

The Greys Are Clones

Some UFO enthusiasts believe the classic large-eyed Grey aliens are not true extraterrestrials but biological drones or cloned workers created by a more advanced alien civilization to perform specific tasks.

The Moon Is an Alien Spacecraft

A persistent fringe theory claims the Moon is actually a gigantic artificial structure placed in orbit by extraterrestrials. Supporters often point to unusual interpretations of seismic data from Apollo missions.

Aliens Live Underground

According to some conspiracy theorists, extraterrestrials are not visiting Earth from distant planets. Instead, they supposedly reside in vast underground bases hidden beneath deserts, mountains, or remote regions.

The Hollow Earth Connection

Some believers combine UFO lore with Hollow Earth theories, claiming advanced alien civilizations inhabit enormous underground worlds beneath the planet’s surface and occasionally emerge through hidden entrances.

Reptilians Rule the World

Popularized by David Icke, this theory claims many world leaders are shape-shifting reptilian beings disguised as humans. The alleged extraterrestrial species supposedly manipulates humanity from positions of power.

Ancient Gods Were Aliens

Many conspiracy theorists argue that deities from ancient mythologies were actually extraterrestrial visitors. Stories of powerful gods descending from the sky are interpreted as misunderstood alien encounters.

Aliens Control Human Evolution

Some theories propose that extraterrestrials genetically altered early humans. According to believers, alien intervention explains humanity’s rapid intellectual development compared to other species on Earth.

The Black Knight Satellite

This famous theory claims an ancient alien satellite has orbited Earth for thousands of years. Supporters point to misidentified space debris and unusual radio signals as evidence.

Alien-Human Hybrids Walk Among Us

Abduction lore often includes claims that aliens are secretly creating human-alien hybrids. Some theorists believe these hybrids already live among the general population without attracting attention.

Men in Black Are Not Human

The mysterious Men in Black are often portrayed as government agents, but some conspiracy theorists claim they are actually aliens themselves, sent to intimidate UFO witnesses into silence.

Mars Once Hosted an Alien Civilization

Some UFO enthusiasts believe unusual formations photographed on Mars, including the famous Face on Mars, are remnants of a long-lost extraterrestrial civilization that once thrived on the planet.

Aliens Feed on Human Emotions

A particularly strange theory claims certain extraterrestrials harvest negative human emotions such as fear, anger, and suffering. Believers argue these emotions serve as a form of energy source.

Crop Circles Are Messages

While many crop circles have been admitted hoaxes, some theorists insist certain formations are genuine communications from extraterrestrials attempting to convey information through geometric patterns.

Extraterrestrials Have Secret Treaties with Governments

A longstanding UFO conspiracy claims world governments have entered into hidden agreements with alien visitors. In exchange for technology, authorities supposedly allow extraterrestrials to conduct secret activities on Earth.

15 ‘Comedy’ Actors With Some Serious Drama Chops

Not all actors have the necessary range to do multiple genres, with some focusing more on action while others stay in family friendly films. But we can all name at least a handful of performers who, through various movies, have shown to be able to do drama as well as comedy.

We also know multiple actors who we imagine can only do comedy, even though they have proven their worth on a few dramatic films. After all, you need serious skills to be a good comedian, and those skills tend to overlap when its time to bring tears of sadness instead of joy.

Robin Williams

Known primarily for his explosive comedy, Robin Williams proved his dramatic abilities in films like Dead Poets Society, Good Will Hunting, and One Hour Photo. His emotional range often surprised audiences expecting pure comedy.

Steve Carell

After becoming famous through The Office, Steve Carell earned widespread praise for dramatic performances in Foxcatcher, Beautiful Boy, and The Big Short, showing remarkable depth beyond awkward comedic characters.

Adam Sandler

For years, Adam Sandler was associated with broad comedies. Then performances in Punch-Drunk Love, Uncut Gems, and Reign Over Me demonstrated dramatic abilities that many critics felt had been underestimated.

Bill Murray

Bill Murray’s deadpan humor made him a comedy icon, but films such as Lost in Translation, Broken Flowers, and On the Rocks revealed a talent for nuanced dramatic performances.

Jim Carrey

Jim Carrey built his career on energetic comedy, yet dramatic roles in The Truman Show, Man on the Moon, and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind earned some of the best reviews of his career.

Whoopi Goldberg

Before becoming known primarily as a comedian and television personality, Whoopi Goldberg earned an Oscar nomination for The Color Purple, proving she could handle powerful dramatic material.

Mo’Nique

Best known to many viewers for comedy and stand-up, Mo’Nique stunned audiences with her performance in Precious, earning an Academy Award for her emotionally devastating role.

Will Ferrell

Will Ferrell is synonymous with absurd comedy, but films like Stranger Than Fiction and Everything Must Go showcased a quieter, more dramatic side that impressed critics and audiences alike.

Melissa McCarthy

Melissa McCarthy became a comedy superstar through films like Bridesmaids, yet her acclaimed performance in Can You Ever Forgive Me? demonstrated serious dramatic talent and earned an Oscar nomination.

John C. Reilly

Although many know him from comedies such as Step Brothers, John C. Reilly earned acclaim in dramatic films including Magnolia, Chicago, and The Hours, long before his comedy peak.

Jamie Foxx

Jamie Foxx started as a sketch-comedy performer on In Living Color before becoming one of Hollywood’s most respected dramatic actors, winning an Academy Award for portraying Ray Charles in Ray.

Eddie Murphy

Eddie Murphy dominated comedy for decades, but performances in Dreamgirls, Dolemite Is My Name, and Mr. Church reminded audiences that he possesses considerable dramatic ability as well.

Kristen Wiig

A standout performer from Saturday Night Live, Kristen Wiig expanded her reputation with dramatic work in films such as The Skeleton Twins, earning praise for her emotional and restrained performances.

Jason Segel

Known for sitcoms and comedies, Jason Segel surprised many viewers with dramatic turns in The End of the Tour and Dispatches from Elsewhere, proving he could excel outside comedy.

Bob Odenkirk

Bob Odenkirk spent years as a comedy writer and performer before earning acclaim as Saul Goodman in Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul, delivering some of television’s most compelling dramatic work.

10 Actors Who Made Especially Unique Contract Demands

Just because you can pay the salary of Hollywood’s most famous actors, doesn’t mean that you can hire them. They first need to be on-board with the project, and then you need to agree to any sort of outlandish demands they might make of you. And by agree, we mean adding it to their contract.

Some actors are very careful as far as how they are portrayed, no matter the character they are inhabiting. After all, they have an image to protect. That isn’t the only strange way a contract can be altered, however, since something as simple as a sport fixation can shift how your filming schedule adjusts to their needs.

Samuel L. Jackson

Samuel L. Jackson is an avid golfer, and his contracts reportedly include provisions allowing him time to play during shoots. Productions often arrange access to courses so he can get in rounds while filming.

Queen Latifah

After seeing several of her characters die in movies, Queen Latifah adopted a famous “no death” clause. She has joked that killing off her character means missing out on potential sequels.

Dwayne Johnson

Reports about the Fast & Furious franchise revealed that Dwayne Johnson negotiated limits on how badly his character could be beaten in fights. The arrangement was designed to protect his on-screen image.

Jason Statham

Jason Statham was also reported to have negotiated restrictions on how much punishment his characters could take in fight scenes. The unusual provisions became one of Hollywood’s more famous contract stories.

Trevor Howard

British actor Trevor Howard reportedly insisted on a clause allowing him to skip work whenever major cricket Test matches were being played. His love of the sport apparently outweighed filming schedules.

Kate Mara

Because of her family’s deep ties to professional football, Kate Mara reportedly included provisions allowing her time away from work if her family’s team reached the Super Bowl.

Will Smith

Industry stories have long claimed that Will Smith closely protects his on-screen image. Various reports describe script approval expectations and requirements designed to maintain the specific type of character he prefers to portray.

Keanu Reeves

While filming The Devil’s Advocate, Keanu Reeves reportedly accepted a reduced salary so the production could afford to cast Al Pacino. It’s an unusual example of a star using contract negotiations to help secure another actor.

Tom Cruise

Tom Cruise is known for negotiating extensive producer authority on many of his projects. His contracts often grant him significant involvement in creative decisions, marketing, and stunt work, a level of control few actors receive.

Robin Williams

Robin Williams became known for requiring productions to hire homeless individuals as extras or crew members on many projects. Reports indicate this expectation appeared in numerous contracts later in his career.

I Will Find You Ending Explained: What Really Happened to Matthew?

This article contains spoilers for I Will Find You

Netflix’s latest Harlan Coben thriller series has finally arrived on the streamer, and it’s full of the kind of twists and turns you’d expect from one of the author’s compelling stories.

In I Will Find You, we meet David Burroughs (Sam Worthington) who is serving a life sentence for the murder of his son Matthew, a crime he didn’t commit. All the facts lined up for the prosecution during David’s trial, including DNA evidence and a key witness who claims to have seen him bury the murder weapon, but it’s still clear that David has been wrongly imprisoned.

When his ex-sister-in-law, Rachel Mills (Britt Lower), suddenly comes to visit him in prison five years after his sentencing, David is surprised. He assumes that everyone in the family hates him, including his ex-wife, Cheryl Dreason (Erin Richards). But Rachel used to be a respected reporter, and she has stumbled across something astonishing.

It turns out that an old college friend of Rachel’s recently visited Six Flags in Springfield, and Matthew appears to be in the background of one of the images she captured there. David doesn’t really know what to make of the photo, but he spots a birthmark on the boy’s cheek. It’s the same birthmark Matthew had.

Let’s break down what really happened to David’s son in I Will Find You and how the series ends.

Did Someone Really Kill Matthew?

David suspects that Matthew is still alive and well, but he knows there is only so much he can do with this information from his prison cell. When threatening forces find out that David and Rachel have started poking around, David is attacked in prison, and it’s clear that someone out there doesn’t want him and Rachel investigating the crime further.

David voices his concerns to the prison’s warden, Philip Mackenzie, who looks out for him because he’s old friends with David’s ex-cop father. Mackenzie takes David’s suspicions about Matthew’s death seriously and visits David’s family in Boston, along with his son Adam, who is David’s best friend and an acting police sergeant. Mackenzie also tells Adam about the photo of Matthew, and the pair embark on a plan to break David out of prison so he can try to figure out what really happened to his son. They’re successful, and David and Rachel begin their frantic investigation into Matthew’s questionable death.

We also meet Hayden Payne (Milo Ventimiglia) Rachel’s wealthy ex-boyfriend. He’s the son of Payne Foundation heiress Gertrude Payne (Madeleine Stowe) and still has strong feelings for Rachel, but she’s moved on. Still, the pair remain close friends and confidants, so Hayden helps Rachel and David as much as possible in their quest to uncover the truth about Matthew.

Rachel and David soon discover that the key witness at David’s trial was paid to say she saw David burying a bloody baseball bat in the woods near his home, but it was his father who actually buried it, assuming that David had accidentally killed Matthew during a night terror and wanting to protect him.

DNA at the crime scene was also altered to appear to be Matthew’s. In fact, the DNA belonged to Martin, a dying child who vanished from a Swiss orphanage run by the Payne Foundation three weeks before Matthew was supposedly killed. A further DNA test proves that it wasn’t Matthew’s body that was found at the scene. Matthew is very much alive.

Why Was Matthew Taken?

When David and his wife Cheryl first tried to have a baby, they struggled to conceive. Cheryl began to lose hope that she could have a child with David, so she looked into the possibility of using donor sperm and visited a fertility clinic behind David’s back.

David suggests that the donor from the fertility clinic, Berg Reproductive, was the one who may have kidnapped Matthew and set David up, having decided to snatch his biological child back from David and Cheryl. Luckily, the clinic is part of Payne Medical Group, and that means Hayden has access to its files. But when David, Cheryl, and Hayden get to the clinic, they discover that Cheryl is not in Berg’s files. Hayden then recalls that five years previously, Berg had fired a doctor whom they suspected was impregnating his own patients, suggesting the doctor (or the Payne Foundation) may have wiped the archives clean to cover up the scandal.

David and Rachel track the doctor in question down, but find out that he was not responsible for impregnating Cheryl, as a woman performed the procedure. Cheryl reveals that she would not have been impregnated by the donor sperm regardless, because the day after she went to Berg, she discovered that David had already gotten her pregnant with Matthew.

Cheryl also reveals that her file likely isn’t missing at Berg. She used Rachel’s name in her dealings with them so that David didn’t find out she was pursuing a sperm donor, which means the donor must have known Cheryl used Rachel’s name at the clinic. Rachel puts two and two together and realizes that Hayden is the one who interfered with the procedure, donating his sperm so Rachel would get pregnant with his child and they could get back together. Hayden became dangerously obsessed with Rachel and thought that the donor procedure was successful. Believing that Cheryl, not Rachel, then gave birth to his biological son after receiving his donor sperm, he sought to get him back, with deadly consequences.

What Happens to Everyone in the End?

Rachel receives some missing photos from the Six Flags shoot on the day Matthew was spotted there, proving that Hayden was with him. We find out that Hayden was definitely the one who kidnapped Matthew the night he was “murdered,” believing he was his son, and has been raising Matthew as his own ever since, renaming him Theo. Hayden’s wealthy mother helped cover up the crime, but she discovered that Matthew wasn’t Hayden’s biological child and kept this knowledge from him, understanding his dangerous obsession with Rachel and wanting Hayden to believe that he did the “right” thing and didn’t just kidnap a random child who had nothing to do with him.

Rachel uses the knowledge that Hayden is obsessed with her to manipulate him, arriving at his mother’s sprawling estate before he can escape with Matthew. David and Sarah Greer, a member of the FBI’s Fugitive Task Force, also arrive at Gertrude’s estate, and they ambush Hayden, who explains that he tried to forget about Matthew, but once he’d seen him at Rachel’s family’s Fourth of July party, he couldn’t let it go. He tries to defend using little orphan Martin to get away with the crime, saying he would have died anyway, but Rachel tries to convince Hayden that he’s simply not well.

Rachel then tells Hayden the truth: that Matthew isn’t his biological son and that his mother lied to him about the DNA results. Hayden flies into a rage, killing his mother, shooting David, and trying to leave with Matthew. David, Rachel, and Sarah stop him, with Sarah eventually shooting Hayden dead in front of Matthew.

David’s conviction is overturned, and he is reunited with Matthew, who is confused but trying to become part of the family again. Rachel writes a book about David and Matthew; Cheryl has a new baby with her second husband, Ronald; Adam becomes a private investigator after losing his job as a police officer for helping David escape from prison; and Sarah becomes the head of the Boston Fugitive Task Force. The entire family reunite at David’s father’s funeral, with David assuring us that no matter what happens, he’ll always find his way back to Matthew.

All episodes of I Will Find You are streaming on Netflix now.

Everyone’s a Big Fan of the Spider-Man: Brand New Day Trailer’s Web Tornado

It was a busy day for Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man on the World Wide… internet.

After the official “Spider-Man Movie” social accounts sprung to life with some conspiracy corkboarding from Ned Leeds, we knew that news was soon to arrive. And arrive that news did with an announcement that pre-sale tickets for the latest Spider-Man film were now available along with the release of several new posters. Missing from the initial round of excitement, however, was a new trailer. That struck some as odd given that the last bit of footage released from Spider-Man: Brand New Day was more than three months old – basically an eternity in Marvel time.

But then 3 p.m. ET/12 p.m. PT rolled around and, like a concentrated web blast to the face, the second official Spider-Man: Brand New Day trailer splattered across the internet. Give it a look below in its full glory.

This clip provides the most coherent rundown of the plot of Sony and Marvel’s fourth Spidey collaboration yet. Of course, there’s a lot we already knew going in. As the conclusion of Spider-Man: No Way Home promised, Peter Parker (Tom Holland) is anonymous once again, with not even Ned (Jacob Batalon) or MJ (Zendaya) remembering him. If that weren’t isolating enough, his powers are now acting up. His eyes go black during a fight against Mac Gargan a.k.a. Scorpion (Michael Mando). His mechanical web-shooters are destroyed as seemingly organic web-shooters develop in their place. As Peter usually does when confused and alone, he seeks out a mentor in the form of one of the MCU’s many useful adults. This time it’s Bruce Banner’s turn (Mark Ruffalo), who Peter hopefully notes has “found a way to suppress mutated DNA, right?”

Midway through the trailer though is the inciting twist… and it’s a big one. Some sort of psychic bomb has gone off in New York City, perhaps coinciding with the arrival of Sadie Sink as a hooded figure (*cough* Jean Grey *cough*). Suddenly, passersby on the street know the contents of Peter’s mind, apparently possessed by the aforementioned blast. Spider-Man has gone from anonymous to exposed. What’s more: a line from Trammel Tillman’s still-unnamed character suggests that he’s the only one immune to whatever just happened – though Frank Castle a.k.a. the Punisher (Jon Bernthal) seems to be doing fine as well.

There is a lot, and we mean a lot to unpack here. We will do that unpacking in the weeks leading up to and coinciding with Spider-Man: Brand New Day‘s July 31 release. For now, however, we would be remiss if we didn’t point out a particularly rad moment from the trailer.

Ahem… WEB TORNADDOOOOOOOOOOO!

When battling multiple Hand ninjas near the trailer’s conclusion, Peter puts his evolving powers to good use. He drops down from the ceiling and shoots webbing as rapidly as he can while spinning, forming a literal tornado of goo around him, which easily ensnares all the ninjas. As you might imagine, the introduction of the web tornado was very welcome on social media.

Spider-Man making a web tornado is the coolest thing ever oh my god, this movie has the sauce pic.twitter.com/1pmKo1rHJS
— Jack (-_•) (@captaincupkick) June 17, 2026

A FREAKIN WEB TORNADO?!? 10/10 SPIDER-MAN MOVIE🕷️🕸️ pic.twitter.com/z9pjjOTjXq
— Cris Parker (@3CFilmss) June 17, 2026

rahhhh i love how peter creates a web tornado with his new powers! it looks absolutely peak dude 🥹pic.twitter.com/bGqE0S8lv3
— jude ☀️ (@slkmorales) June 17, 2026

While Spider-Man has developed all sorts of novel “web constructs” through his lengthy journey in Marvel comics, the notion of a web tornado appears to be brand new… or at least we can’t recall the term turning up in the canon. The fact that this very old spider can still learn some new tricks bodes well for Peter’s battle against whatever Brand New Day throws his way.

Spider-Man: Brand New Day arrives in theaters on July 31, 2026.

How Minions Went From Facebook Slop to Hollywood’s Box Office Heroes

The newest addition to the Despicable Me cinematic universe, Minions and Monsters, is set to open a record-breaking Annecy Film Festival on Sunday. More than 18,000 festival attendees will have the opportunity to begin their week-long film screening spree with some of big-screen animation’s most recognizable characters: the Minions.

Minions, the bright yellow pill-shaped comedic relief sidekicks who made their on-screen debut in 2010’s Despicable Me, are now the heart of a seemingly never-ending multimillion dollar franchise. So how did Illumination’s poster children make it to the top spot? The answer is far more nuanced than the Minions’ crowd-pleasing antics and inoffensive art design; they are vessels for some of the studio’s best storytelling.

For most of their early years, Minions were mostly recognizable from their abundance in trenches of Facebook meme culture. Images of a mischievous Minion smiling and posing innocently under phrases like “Exercise? I thought you said extra fries!” were the peak of Minion iconography following the release of the first Despicable Me.

After 2013’s Despicable Me 2, a film where the Minions were much more central to the plot, the brightly colored creatures began to move toward the driver’s seat of the Despicable Me franchise. They got their own movie, simply titled Minions, just two years later, which explored the origins of the Minions (who are millions of years old, according to the film).

Minions made over $1.1 billion at the global box office, and earned more than both Despicable Me and Despicable Me 2 in its opening weekend ($115 million compared to $56 million and $83 million, respectively). The Minions sequel, Minions: Rise of Gru, although not crossing the $1 billion mark at the global box office, made the most domestically of any film in the Despicable Me franchise at over $370 million.

Despite neither Minions movie achieving the same positive critical reception of the first two Despicable Me films, they have scored higher than both Despicable Me 3 and 4 on IMDb, Metacritic, and Letterboxd. Additionally, their huge numbers at the box office hint at more than just success for a kids movie.

Gen Z fans have rallied behind the Minions, joining ranks with parents who don’t know what to do with their kids over the summer. Both Despicable Me 1 and 2 are some of the first movies many Gen Z fans saw in theaters when they were young, and the Minions movies have capitalized on that nostalgia factor. The Rise of Gru is the best example of this; it took Gru, the central protagonist who kicked off Despicable Me’s success, and crossed his villain origin story with the globe-trotting journeys of the Minions. The central intersection, while providing an engaging narrative to unite Gru with his iconic sidekicks, also jumps on all the things Gen Z fans who remember the first film in the franchise fondly want to see on the big screen. Gru’s character arc, which focuses on his outsider status and frequent victim of both bullying and emotional neglect, are things many Gen Zers can empathize with.

Some Gen Z support for the franchise is most certainly intended to be ironic or humorous. A quick scroll through the Minions Instagram account will showcase many users commenting internet slang familiar to younger fans and jokes attempting to feign eagerness to see the next Minions film. Even the Facebook memes that serve as the origin of Minion cultural hegemony have evolved into the strange online humor characteristic of Gen Z content creators; instead of “Exercise? I thought you said extra fries!”, Minion memes now are just a grainy photo where a less-than-happy looking Minion stares blankly at the camera, or even a Minion being crucified (“Grucified,” according to TikTok users).

Even if it’s ironic, however, the support for the Minions ultimately maintains their position as a centerpiece in Hollywood’s collection of crown jewel animated franchises. A film with Minions in it guarantees success, and their proliferation both online and in theaters cements one truth: Minions won’t stop being summer blockbuster kingmakers any time soon.

Antoni Porowski On Why Food Is the Ultimate Human Connection

I’m an Englishman in New York, and last month I slipped across New York Harbor to Governors Island, less focused on its strategic position as a command post but more interested in cocktail making, award-winning pizza, and meeting Antoni Porowski to discuss his new series, National Geographic’s Best of the World with Antoni Porowski.

For Antoni, the best meal in the world isn’t necessarily served at a Michelin-starred restaurant — it might come from a grandmother’s kitchen, a tiny London pub, or a chef preserving generations of tradition. That philosophy drives the new National Geographic series blending celebrity travel, food culture, and deeply personal storytelling.

Den of Geek: What was it that interested you about weaving a more personal angle into the celebrity-meets-culinary world format?

Antoni Porowski: It was the pause I experienced internally when we started discussing the “best of the world.” lists. It’s such a huge statement to make because it’s so subjective. The best for one person could be a grandmother making tortellini she learned from her ancestors. For someone else, the best is a five-star hotel with butler service.

Where I found comfort was leaning into the human stories behind it. National Geographic and Two Four were incredibly supportive of that, and for me it’s the most interesting part — the people. That’s what I remember from trips.

If I try something delicious, I immediately want to know: “Who made this? What inspired them?” There’s always a deeper story there.

Whether it was meeting a young woman in Paris weaving a carpet that takes 10 years to complete, or chefs obsessing over perfecting roti in London, I’m fascinated by people who dedicate themselves completely to something. That kind of passion is relatable and inspiring.

Behind-the-scenes as Antoni Porowski helps to feed the Giant waterlily at Kew Gardens near London, UK, as seen in National Geographic’s Best of the World with Antoni Porowski. (National Geographic/John Wendle)

Have you always had that obsession with food?

Deep obsession. To quote my therapist, “If it’s hysterical, it’s historical.”

It comes from my parents. We’d be eating breakfast and already talking about lunch and dinner. If we went to a restaurant, we’d critique the dishes and talk about how to make them healthier, better, or more decadent.

Food was the equalizer in my family. It was our common ground.

Was there a particular experience during filming that surprised you or changed your perspective?

Absolutely. One of the places we visited in London was Tamil Crown, this amazing pub started by two friends — one British and one an Indian immigrant.

They asked themselves: what’s the most iconic British meal? The Sunday Roast. And then they reimagined it through Indian flavors. Yorkshire pudding with roti. Gobi 65 instead of cauliflower cheese.

At first it feels like, “You don’t mess with the Sunday roast,” right? But when you think about the history of the spice trade in England and Indian cuisine’s place in British culture, it actually makes perfect sense.

That was such a fun conversation to have because it shows how food traditions evolve naturally through history and migration.

England gets a lot of criticism internationally for its food. After filming there, what’s your verdict?

People need to stop with this idea that England doesn’t have good food because I genuinely don’t remember having a bad meal there.

You have brown sauce. Branston pickle. And the Sunday roast is perfect. It checks every box.

And honestly, the diversity of food in London is incredible. Some people have told me the best Indian food outside of India is in London, and I totally believe that. Also, you have Nando’s. What’s not to love?

National Geographic has a legacy tied to exploration and discovery. What does partnering with them mean to you?

It feels like a responsibility in the best way possible.

We had a National Geographic subscription growing up, and it was probably the only thing my parents never had to force me to read. I loved learning about archaeology, animal species, ecosystems — things I never would’ve encountered otherwise.

So it feels like a tremendous privilege. But at the same time, I want to stay authentic to myself. I’m basically a golden retriever or a kid at heart. I get genuinely excited by people and by diversity in all its forms.

I’m constantly trying to balance being myself while respecting the incredible legacy that is National Geographic.

In a fantasy world who would you love to travel with for an episode?

One of my favorite artists is Louise Nevelson, who was born in what is now Ukraine. She created these incredible wood installations using discarded materials from around New York’s Meatpacking District, and she inspired so many designers and artists I love.

I’d love to go to Budapest with her — not just for the food, but for the art and culture — to learn about her origin story and what inspired her creatively.

Pizza provided by – https://cutsandslicesnyc.com/
Cocktails provided by – https://doublechickenplease.com/

Best of the World with Antoni Porowski is available to stream on Disney+ and Hulu now.

Tomb Raider: Legacy of Atlantis Takes a “No Laras Left Behind” Approach

There hasn’t been a new Tomb Raider game since 2018’s Shadow of the Tomb Raider, closing out the action-adventure franchise’s Survivor Trilogy, providing the iconic protagonist Lara Croft with a more hardened origin story. The wait is finally over early next year with Tomb Raider: Legacy of Atlantis, a reimagining of the 1996 original game albeit completely revamped for modern gaming platforms and audiences. At Summer Game Fest 2026, we not only got the chance to play an early build of Legacy of Atlantis but talk to the creative team and Alix Wilton Regan, who stars as the new Lara Croft.

Like the 1996 classic, Legacy of Atlantis has Lara searching for a valuable relic in the ruins of a lost civilization deep within the Peruvian rainforest, with these tropical environments gorgeously realized in the build that we played. This includes plenty of puzzle-solving and acrobatic platforming as we climbed cliffsides and swung across ravines and rivers to advance deeper into the civilization. Though the premise and narrative are certainly familiar, Legacy of Atlantis is not just a high-definition reskin of the 1996 game or its previous remake in 2007’s Tomb Raider: Anniversary.

“We’re providing something that feels like an echo from the past but that we don’t feel handcuffed by,” explains Crystal Dynamics experience director Jeff Adams, observing that the game also has to take into account players who never witnessed the original title. “We’re able to make creative choices that enhance the experience because we do want to make something fresh. We want to make something that feels like it’s your first time playing it.”

Compared to the Survivor Trilogy, this is a much more visibly confident Lara Croft, bringing a wisdom and swagger to the proceedings, magnificently brought to life by Wilton Regan. This heightened expertise and competence is immediately apparent in the game’s combat mechanics, with Lara not only back to using her signature dual pistols but a pronounced acrobatic fighting style. Using something called “focus,” Lara can trigger a mechanic while in mid-somersault to temporarily slow down time and rapidly blast incoming enemies. This reflects the more seasoned adventurer that Lara has become since the Survivor Trilogy.

“We wanted combat to have a more deliberate place in the franchise,” notes Crystal Dynamics game director Raul Siqueira. “The Survivor Trilogy pushed combat in a certain direction which was very cool for what those types of games were. When we look at the personality for our game and the acrobatic Lara, where everything flows with what she does and she’s at the top of her game, we wanted that to not just be for show but have some meaning to it.”

Though Wilton Regan has portrayed plenty of action-oriented video game characters in beloved titles like Assassin’s Creed Origins and Dragon Age: Inquisition, the role of Lara Croft is a particularly special one for her. Adopting a “no Laras left behind” approach, Wilton Regan notes that her depiction is “a unified Lara” while also evoking the classic iteration from the original trilogy and Angelina Jolie’s two-movie take on the character.

“My Lara Croft is a highly experienced archaeologist and tomb raider with a wealth of knowledge and an entire history behind her,” Wilton Regan observes about her portrayal of the video game icon. “She’s very firmly rooted in her present and in her power as a highly intelligent, highly capable, and fiercely independent woman.”

With Legacy of Atlantis a reimagining of the original game, Wilton Regan similarly looked to the 1996 title for inspiration in her own performance. Struck by the line “I only play for sport,” Wilton Regan found the bit of dialogue “highly informative” in clueing her into who Lara Croft is at this point in her life and that she truly enjoys what she does. While respecting the more vulnerable Survivor Trilogy Lara, Wilton Regan approached the role taking into account that experience and confidence Lara now possesses, also looking to the Tomb Raider movies’ influence.

“It was a really interesting process because, when I auditioned, I actually auditioned with a lot of Angelina Jolie’s scripts from the movies, which told me a lot about which direction the creative team were going in,” Wilton Regan recalls. “They really did want to capture that sassy, confident character for Lara from the films – classic Lara.”

The game is the best-looking Tomb Raider in years, with everything from detailed environments and character models to pristine water effects and sweeping landscapes. For Flying Wild Hog art director Arek Tomaszewski, Legacy of Atlantis recognizes that everyone has their own memories of the franchise and its original game, including the creative team, and tries to reinvent them with modern sensibilities. That includes everything from puzzle-solving in Peruvian temples to harrowing showdowns with ravenous dinosaurs.

“Whatever we’re building, we need to build them in a way that they’re logically believable,” explains Tomaszewski. “We want you to feel like this is a place you’re discovering that’s believable. We’re trying to push our artists as much as we can so you can just look around and see how awesome it is.”

At the end of the day, Tomb Raider: Legacy of Atlantis doesn’t just feel like a slightly more balletic follow-up to Shadow of the Tomb Raider but both a celebration of the series’ roots and fresh jumping-on point for newcomers. The title is the first in two Tomb Raider games slated for a 2027 release, coming out ahead of Tomb Raider: Catalyst. If Legacy of Atlantis is any indicator, the franchise is in great hands for a bright future, instantly recognizable to longtime fans while reinvigorating its roots.

“We’re coming up on the 30th anniversary of the original game. We love that and want to celebrate that. This is the perfect time to bring this into the light,” declares Adams. “There is such a great opportunity here to take this, make it feel familiar for those who have played it before, but make it feel fresh for those who haven’t had a chance to love it yet. That’s the driving thing behind this. It’s the right time to make this come to life.”

Developed by Crystal Dynamics and Flying Wild Hog and published by Amazon Game Studios, Tomb Raider: Legacy of Atlantis releases February 12, 2027 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch 2, and PC.

Clive Barker’s Hellraiser: Revival Is Real and It’s Fantastic

If you’re a fan of horror games, you’ve probably seen targeted ads for Clive Barker’s Hellraiser: Revival since its official announcement in July 2025. The first video game adapting the Hellraiser horror movie series, not counting the franchise’s guest appearance in Dead by Daylight, Revival has kept its cards close to the chest since the project was publicly confirmed. Fortunately, we are happy to confirm that not only does the game exist but that we got to play an early build of it for ourselves at Summer Game Fest 2026.

This nightmarish vision of Clive Barker’s visceral horror story is brought to life by Saber Interactive, with the game’s protagonist, Aidan Lynch, trying to find his girlfriend after she’s taken by the extra-dimensional Cenobites, including their garish figurehead Pinhead. This quest unfolds from a first-person perspective as Aidan tries to find a way to follow the Cenobites into their hellish realm. The build of the game that we experienced unfolds in three distinctly different environments, each with their own aesthetics, tone, and gameplay mechanics while distinctly taking place within the familiar confines of a Hellraiser story.

The opening sequence within the SGF build for Clive Barker’s Hellraiser: Revival takes place in what appears to be a penthouse apartment run by a sado-masochist cult, which is right on-brand for Hellraiser. This segment was the weakest of the demo, not because of the gameplay or presentation, which were both fine, but because it played out like any number of horror-themed first-person shooters as we killed cultists while looking for a way to progress. The big innovation here was that we had something referred to as the Genesis Configuration in our possession, letting us telekinetically control blades and fire to dispatch enemies in addition to our conventional weapons.

Where the early build really took off was in its second segment, as Aidan enters the hellish dimension where the Cenobites hail from. Using the Genesis Configuration, we altered the layout of this world, rotating walls and playing with the physics of this otherworldly realm like a sinister version of Portal. The Hellraiser aesthetics were in full swing here, providing an unsettling environment that really made all this puzzle-solving and light platforming stand out for fans of the franchise.

This all led to the most horrific sequence in the entire demo, which saw Aidan venture into a facsimile of his home with his missing girlfriend Sunny. As we looped through this domestic setting, we not only witnessed increasingly disturbing visions and messages but learned more about the unhappy dynamic between the game’s core couple. There’s no way that this sequence was at least partially influenced by Hideo Kojima’s ill-fated horror game P.T. and its similar nightmarishly repeating corridor but Hellraiser: Revival makes the experience its twisted own with a hell of a punchline.

And that’s the big thing that I appreciated about Clive Barker’s Hellraiser: Revival, that throughout the diversity in gameplay and presentation it stays visibly and tonally true to Barker’s scary story. We didn’t get to have an extended meeting with Pinhead or other Cenobites like the Chatterer, and we can’t wait to see how they figure into the game itself, but they would definitely fit within the aesthetics of Hellraiser: Revival. No matter how action-driven or surreal the game gets, this is Hellraiser through and through, leaning into the gory violence and sado-masochistic erotica that the franchise is known for.

As for the gameplay, it handles well, even in the first-person combat sequences that started off this demo. Mechanically within its combat, the game feels closer to something like Half-Life or Deus Ex without coming off as dated as those early PC first-person shooters. The puzzle-solving and psychological sequences retain those broader gameplay sensibilities but within a much different tone and type of intensity that informs the experience; the urgency is there but not from readily facing a tangible enemy so much as an existential one.

Taking less than an hour to complete this demo, Clive Barker’s Hellraiser: Revival not only felt like a worthy video game adaptation of its fan-favorite property but a breath of fresh air for modern movie tie-in horror games. It feels like so many movie-inspired horror titles are overly derivative of Dead by Daylight, with games like The Texas Chain Saw Massacre and Evil Dead: The Game leaning into asymmetrical multiplayer experiences. By contrast, Hellraiser: Revival is a single-player experience that blends action and horror while taking full advantage of its source material visually and narratively.

For anyone who’s had Clive Barker’s Hellraiser: Revival preordered for months, we’re happy to confirm that the game is very much real and on track for its October release date, just in time for Halloween. And for any fan who’s worried that the game will be an echo of any number of asymmetrical horror games, we’re even happier to report that it’s very much its own franchise-appropriate experience. Doing its source material proud, Clive Barker’s Hellraiser: Revival is shaping up to become one of the standout horror games of the year.

Developed and published by Saber Interactive, Clive Barker’s Hellraiser: Revival will be released October 8, 2026 on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC.