After years of anticipation, This Is Spinal Tap‘s sequel is finally in production. Filming has officially gotten underway on the sequel starring the original members of Spinal Tap: Christopher Guest as Nigel Tufnel, Michael McKean as David St. Hubbins, and Harry Shearer as Derek Smalls.
Rob Reiner returns to direct the long-awaited mockumentary sequel and will reprise his role as documentarian Martin “Marty” DiBergi. “I recently spoke to Marty DiBergi who said that he was more than happy to take a sabbatical from his position as a visiting Professor’s Assistant at the Ed Wood School of Cinematic Arts to once again document Spinal Tap to ensure their place in the pantheon of Rock and Roll,” joked Reiner.
The film, which is shooting in New Orleans, will feature cameos by Sir Elton John, Sir Paul McCartney, Questlove, Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood. Castle Rock Entertainment’s Rob Reiner, Michele Reiner, and Matthew George are producing, with Castle Rock financing the project. Derrick Rossi and Christopher H. Warner are on board as executive producers.
According to Castle Rock’s press release announcing the start of production, the sequel finds “England’s loudest and most punctual band, reuniting for one final concert” after a 15-year hiatus.
The original mockumentary was released in March 1984 and grossed $4.7 million over its theatrical run. Its box office numbers don’t reflect the cult status it eventually achieved, with the National Film Registry adding it to their collection of films deemed “culturally, historically, and aesthetically significant.”
The sequel was announced in 2022 and had been targeting a 2024 release to coincide with the original film’s 40th anniversary. The start-of-production announcement did not confirm if 2024 is still the release target.
Jimmy Kimmel did a fantastic job with the 2024 Oscars opening monologue, touching briefly on politics but mostly focusing the jokes around this year’s nominees. Kimmel called out Greta Gerwig’s Oscar snub, this year’s Oppenheimer nomination being a new “high” in Robert Downey Jr’s career, and compared Emma Stone playing an adult woman with the brain of a child to the woman who gave the rebuttal to the State of the Union address. Kimmel’s monologue ended with a standing ovation as he brought Teamsters & IATSE members onto the stage, thanking them for standing with the WGA and SAG-AFTRA during last year’s strikes.
The 2024 Oscars was fast-moving, fun, and easily one of the best Oscar broadcasts in years. Highlights of the ceremony included a naked John Cena, a haunting performance by Billie Eilish and Finneas O’Connell, and Emily Blunt (Oppenheimer) and Ryan Gosling (Barbie) co-presenting a tribute to stunt performers. (Is a stunt category finally in the works?) Director Mstyslav Andriyovych Chernov delivered a moving speech while receiving the Best Documentary Film Oscar for 20 Days in Mariupol, and, on a lighter note, the much-anticipated performance of Barbie‘s “I’m Just Ken” led by Ryan Gosling didn’t disappoint. We could all feel the Kenergy.
Allowing Oscar-winning actors to salute this year’s nominees in each of the acting categories instead of playing clips was a smart choice, as the nominees were obviously touched by these personal introductions. Da’Vine Joy Randolph kicked off the night with an incredibly touching Best Supporting Actress win, Cillian Murphy dedicated his Best Actor win to the peacemakers everywhere, while Messi, the scene-stealing dog from Anatomy of a Fall, did a great job of representing all furry and feathered thespians.
Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer topped the list of the 2024 Oscar nominees, receiving 13 nominations, followed by Yorgos Lanthimos’ Poor Things with 11, Martin Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon with 10, Greta Gerwig’s Barbie with eight, and Bradley Cooper’s Maestro with seven. The final tally found Oppenheimer emerging on top with seven wins, including Best Picture, Best Director (Christopher Nolan), Best Actor (Cillian Murphy), and Best Supporting Actor (Robert Downey Jr).
Winners were announced during the 96th Academy Awards ceremony held at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood on Sunday, March 10, 2024. The broadcast aired live on ABC, beginning an hour earlier than usual.
Sally Field, Jennifer Lawrence, Michelle Yeoh, Emma Stone, Charlize Theron, and Jessica Lange as Stone receives the Best Actress Oscar at the 2024 Oscars (Disney/Frank Micelotta)
2024 Oscars – The Nominees and Winners
Best motion picture of the year
• “American Fiction” Ben LeClair, Nikos Karamigios, Cord Jefferson and Jermaine Johnson, Producers
• “Anatomy of a Fall” Marie-Ange Luciani and David Thion, Producers
• “Barbie” David Heyman, Margot Robbie, Tom Ackerley and Robbie Brenner, Producers
• “The Holdovers” Mark Johnson, Producer
• “Killers of the Flower Moon” Dan Friedkin, Bradley Thomas, Martin Scorsese and Daniel Lupi, Producers
• “Maestro” Bradley Cooper, Steven Spielberg, Fred Berner, Amy Durning and Kristie Macosko Krieger, Producers WINNER • “Oppenheimer” Emma Thomas, Charles Roven and Christopher Nolan, Producers
• “Past Lives” David Hinojosa, Christine Vachon and Pamela Koffler, Producers
• “Poor Things” Ed Guiney, Andrew Lowe, Yorgos Lanthimos and Emma Stone, Producers
• “The Zone of Interest” James Wilson, Producer
Performance by an actor in a leading role
• Bradley Cooper in “Maestro”
• Colman Domingo in “Rustin”
• Paul Giamatti in “The Holdovers” WINNER: • Cillian Murphy in “Oppenheimer”
• Jeffrey Wright in “American Fiction”
Performance by an actor in a supporting role
• Sterling K. Brown in “American Fiction”
• Robert De Niro in “Killers of the Flower Moon” WINNER: • Robert Downey Jr. in “Oppenheimer”
• Ryan Gosling in “Barbie”
• Mark Ruffalo in “Poor Things”
Performance by an actress in a leading role
• Annette Bening in “Nyad”
• Lily Gladstone in “Killers of the Flower Moon”
• Sandra Hüller in “Anatomy of a Fall”
• Carey Mulligan in “Maestro” WINNER: • Emma Stone in “Poor Things”
Performance by an actress in a supporting role
• Emily Blunt in “Oppenheimer”
• Danielle Brooks in “The Color Purple”
• America Ferrera in “Barbie”
• Jodie Foster in “Nyad” WINNER: • Da’Vine Joy Randolph in “The Holdovers”
Achievement in directing
• “Anatomy of a Fall” Justine Triet
• “Killers of the Flower Moon” Martin Scorsese WINNER: • “Oppenheimer” Christopher Nolan
• “Poor Things” Yorgos Lanthimos
• “The Zone of Interest” Jonathan Glazer
Best animated feature film of the year WINNER: • “The Boy and the Heron” Hayao Miyazaki and Toshio Suzuki
• “Elemental” Peter Sohn and Denise Ream
• “Nimona” Nick Bruno, Troy Quane, Karen Ryan and Julie Zackary
• “Robot Dreams” Pablo Berger, Ibon Cormenzana, Ignasi Estapé and Sandra Tapia Díaz
• “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse” Kemp Powers, Justin K. Thompson, Phil Lord, Christopher Miller and Amy Pascal
Adapted screenplay WINNER: • “American Fiction” Written for the screen by Cord Jefferson
• “Barbie” Written by Greta Gerwig & Noah Baumbach
• “Oppenheimer” Written for the screen by Christopher Nolan
• “Poor Things” Screenplay by Tony McNamara
• “The Zone of Interest” Written by Jonathan Glazer
Original screenplay WINNER: • “Anatomy of a Fall” Screenplay by Justine Triet and Arthur Harari
• “The Holdovers” Written by David Hemingson
• “Maestro” Written by Bradley Cooper & Josh Singer
• “May December” Screenplay by Samy Burch; Story by Samy Burch & Alex Mechanik
• “Past Lives” Written by Celine Song
Achievement in cinematography
• “El Conde” Edward Lachman
• “Killers of the Flower Moon” Rodrigo Prieto
• “Maestro” Matthew Libatique WINNER: • “Oppenheimer” Hoyte van Hoytema
• “Poor Things” Robbie Ryan
Achievement in costume design
• “Barbie” Jacqueline Durran
• “Killers of the Flower Moon” Jacqueline West
• “Napoleon” Janty Yates and Dave Crossman
• “Oppenheimer” Ellen Mirojnick WINNER: • “Poor Things” Holly Waddington
Best documentary feature film
• “Bobi Wine: The People’s President” Moses Bwayo, Christopher Sharp and John Battsek
• “The Eternal Memory” Nominees to be determined
• “Four Daughters” Kaouther Ben Hania and Nadim Cheikhrouha
• “To Kill a Tiger” Nisha Pahuja, Cornelia Principe and David Oppenheim WINNER: • “20 Days in Mariupol” Mstyslav Chernov, Michelle Mizner and Raney Aronson-Rath
Best documentary short film
• “The ABCs of Book Banning” Sheila Nevins and Trish Adlesic
• “The Barber of Little Rock” John Hoffman and Christine Turner
• “Island in Between” S. Leo Chiang and Jean Tsien WINNER: • “The Last Repair Shop” Ben Proudfoot and Kris Bowers
• “Nǎi Nai & Wài Pó” Sean Wang and Sam Davis
Achievement in film editing
• “Anatomy of a Fall” Laurent Sénéchal
• “The Holdovers” Kevin Tent
• “Killers of the Flower Moon” Thelma Schoonmaker WINNER: • “Oppenheimer” Jennifer Lame
• “Poor Things” Yorgos Mavropsaridis
Best international feature film of the year
• “Io Capitano” Italy
• “Perfect Days” Japan
• “Society of the Snow” Spain
• “The Teachers’ Lounge” Germany WINNER: • “The Zone of Interest” United Kingdom
Achievement in makeup and hairstyling
• “Golda” Karen Hartley Thomas, Suzi Battersby and Ashra Kelly-Blue
• “Maestro” Kazu Hiro, Kay Georgiou and Lori McCoy-Bell
• “Oppenheimer” Luisa Abel WINNER: • “Poor Things” Nadia Stacey, Mark Coulier and Josh Weston
• “Society of the Snow” Ana López-Puigcerver, David Martí and Montse Ribé
Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original score)
• “American Fiction” Laura Karpman
• “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” John Williams
• “Killers of the Flower Moon” Robbie Robertson WINNER: • “Oppenheimer” Ludwig Göransson
• “Poor Things” Jerskin Fendrix
Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original song)
• “The Fire Inside” from “Flamin’ Hot”
Music and Lyric by Diane Warren
• “I’m Just Ken” from “Barbie”
Music and Lyric by Mark Ronson and Andrew Wyatt
• “It Never Went Away” from “American Symphony”
Music and Lyric by Jon Batiste and Dan Wilson
• “Wahzhazhe (A Song For My People)” from “Killers of the Flower Moon”
Music and Lyric by Scott George WINNER: • “What Was I Made For?” from “Barbie”
Music and Lyric by Billie Eilish and Finneas O’Connell
Achievement in production design
• “Barbie” Production Design: Sarah Greenwood; Set Decoration: Katie Spencer
• “Killers of the Flower Moon” Production Design: Jack Fisk; Set Decoration: Adam Willis
• “Napoleon” Production Design: Arthur Max; Set Decoration: Elli Griff
• “Oppenheimer” Production Design: Ruth De Jong; Set Decoration: Claire Kaufman WINNER: • “Poor Things” Production Design: James Price and Shona Heath; Set Decoration: Zsuzsa Mihalek
Best animated short film
• “Letter to a Pig” Tal Kantor and Amit R. Gicelter
• “Ninety-Five Senses” Jerusha Hess and Jared Hess
• “Our Uniform” Yegane Moghaddam
• “Pachyderme” Stéphanie Clément and Marc Rius WINNER: • “WAR IS OVER! Inspired by the Music of John & Yoko” Dave Mullins and Brad Booker
Best live action short film
• “The After” Misan Harriman and Nicky Bentham
• “Invincible” Vincent René-Lortie and Samuel Caron
• “Knight of Fortune” Lasse Lyskjær Noer and Christian Norlyk
• “Red, White and Blue” Nazrin Choudhury and Sara McFarlane WINNER: • “The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar” Wes Anderson and Steven Rales
Achievement in sound
• “The Creator” Ian Voigt, Erik Aadahl, Ethan Van der Ryn, Tom Ozanich and Dean Zupancic
• “Maestro” Steven A. Morrow, Richard King, Jason Ruder, Tom Ozanich and Dean Zupancic
• “Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One” Chris Munro, James H. Mather, Chris Burdon and Mark Taylor
• “Oppenheimer” Willie Burton, Richard King, Gary A. Rizzo and Kevin O’Connell WINNER: • “The Zone of Interest” Tarn Willers and Johnnie Burn
Achievement in visual effects
• “The Creator” Jay Cooper, Ian Comley, Andrew Roberts and Neil Corbould WINNER: • “Godzilla Minus One” Takashi Yamazaki, Kiyoko Shibuya, Masaki Takahashi and Tatsuji Nojima
• “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3” Stephane Ceretti, Alexis Wajsbrot, Guy Williams and Theo Bialek
• “Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One” Alex Wuttke, Simone Coco, Jeff Sutherland and Neil Corbould
• “Napoleon” Charley Henley, Luc-Ewen Martin-Fenouillet, Simone Coco and Neil Corbould
The promo for CBS’s SWAT season seven episode six, “Escape,” shows Dominique Luca’s life is in danger. The trailer poses the question: “Will one heroic act be his last?” The answer will be revealed on episode six, directed by Hanelle Culpepper and airing on Friday, March 15, 2024 at 8pm ET/PT.
Shemar Moore leads the cast as Daniel “Hondo” Harrelson, Jay Harrington stars as David “Deacon” Kay, David Lim is Victor Tan, Rochelle Aytes is Nichelle Carmichael, and Patrick St. Esprit is Robert ‘Bob’ Hicks. Kenny Johnson recurs as Dominique Luca and Alex Russell recurs as Jim Street.
“Escape” Plot: After a prison transport van overturns, Hondo and the team hunt down three female fugitives, including a serial killer on the verge of a rampage. Also, with Annie’s return to work, Deacon struggles to maintain a work life balance, and Luca does his best to teach Kelly to drive.
Inspired by the television series and the feature film, S.W.A.T. stars Shemar Moore as a former Marine and locally born and raised S.W.A.T. sergeant tasked to run a specialized tactical unit that is the last stop in law enforcement in Los Angeles. Torn between loyalty to where he was raised and allegiance to his brothers in blue, Daniel “Hondo” Harrelson strives to bridge the divide between his two worlds.
Pyper Braun as Alice in ‘Imaginary’ (Photo Credit: Parrish Lewis / Lionsgate)
At first glance, it would seem as if Blumhouse’s new horror movie Imaginary is just another killer doll movie along the lines of Child’s Play or Annabelle. And after a watch, that’s pretty much what it is. But with a few twists.
Imaginary is about a children’s book author/illustrator named Jessica (DeWanda Wise from Jurassic World Dominion) who moves into her childhood home with her husband, Max (The Walking Dead’s Tom Payne), and his two girls, the teenaged Taylor (Monarch’s Taegen Burns) and the younger Alice (Desperation Road’s Pyper Braun). Lonely in her new place, Alice immediately makes an imaginary friend named Chauncey who takes the form of a cute little teddy bear. But there’s more to Chauncey than meets the eye – and he has history with Jessica.
Directed by Jeff Wadlow (Fantasy Island, Truth or Dare) from a screenplay he wrote with Greg Erb and Jason Oremland (the pair who wrote Playmobil: The Movie and Monster High: The Movie), Imaginary evokes both the wonder of childhood naïveté and the horrors that can come from it. It leans heavily on a lot of the same age-old horror tropes as every other Blumhouse movie, but it also brings some freshness to the game. The uncertainty as to whether or not Chauncey is, in fact, real or whether he is just a figment of Alice’s (and, by extension, Jessica’s) imagination is a key component of the story. The plot is full of surprises, and they keep coming even after the audience thinks that they’ve got it all figured out.
It’s no wonder that Imaginary is being billed as “from the producers of Five Nights at Freddy’s and M3GAN.” It deals with much of the same subject matter. Not only does Imaginary feature the coming alive of a kid’s toy, but it also confronts dealing with grief and childhood trauma on both the child and adult side. Everyone in the movie seems to be damaged, and that’s what makes them vulnerable to Chauncey and his deviousness. Some of this damage is left unexplored, which leads to the characters feeling a bit hollow, but that’s nothing new with horror movies.
Imaginary is an engaging and compelling little movie. At least, it is until the third act. The surprises do keep coming in the later stages of the film, but they’re brought about by heavy-handed exposition delivered by the stereotypical nosey neighbor (played by Betty Buckley from the original Carrie). When the twists are provided by verbal narration instead of visual imagery, they lose most of their punch. They’re still surprising, but there’s not as much impact.
That’s not the only problem with the movie’s climax. Like many horror movies, Imaginary takes a great premise and doesn’t quite stick the landing with it. It goes from a tense exercise in childhood paranoia (“is this bear really doing all of these things?”) to a full-blown alternate universe exploration movie (borderline Insidious territory). The movie’s plot gets too big for its own good, and Waddle and company have trouble reeling it back in.
For his part, Chauncey is a fun horror movie villain. Without spoiling anything, he’s a shape-shifter – he doesn’t just stay a cute little teddy bear for the whole movie. The way that Waddle presents him is very creepy, seemingly altering the bear’s facial expressions just enough to make the viewer wonder if the cute face is changing or if it’s all “imaginary.” There’s a subtlety to Chauncey that has the potential to make children afraid of teddy bears in the same way that Poltergeist made them afraid of clown dolls.
For what it’s worth, Blumhouse will keep on pumping out horror movies regardless of any and all misfires that they have. And Imaginary isn’t quite a misfire, but it’s not a direct hit, either. In the grand scheme of things, it will be remembered at best as a blip on Blumhouse’s radar, just another title on the resume in their quest for fright-flick domination.
GRADE: C+
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for some violent content, language, and drug material
Release Date: March 8, 2024
Running Time: 1 hour 44 minutes
The affable, karate-chopping, dumpling-loving panda Po is back for his next big challenge – to find and train his replacement – in DreamWorks Animation’s Kung Fu Panda 4, the latest addition to its animated film franchise. As the film opens, Po (voiced by Jack Black) is in the middle of taking down a new big baddie from the sea and saving some residents of the Valley of Peace. After triumphantly capturing the giant sea creature, Po is once again cheered and applauded.
Returning home to help his two dads, Ping (voiced by James Hong) and Li (voiced by Bryan Cranston), with their restaurant, Po hears about a new threat to the valley. A sorceress called The Chameleon (voiced by Viola Davis), because she’s a small lizard that can shapeshift into any creature, is determined to wreak havoc on the town. Before Po can even ask questions, he’s met by Master Shifu (voiced by Dustin Hoffman) who tells him he’s now ready to take the next step on his journey. “You will advance to Spiritual Leader of the Valley of Peace,” says Shifu, and that means he must pick a successor to become the new Dragon Warrior.
Po isn’t eager to retire as the protector of the valley and informs Master Shifu that Kung Fu is all he knows and he’s not ready to stop being a hero. However, Shifu insists that he work to find his inner peace and prepare to pick his replacement.
While Po is struggling with this new step, he encounters a sly, quick-witted thief – a gray fox named Zhen (voiced by Awkwafina) – attempting to steal his staff of wisdom. After capturing her, she offers to lead him to where the Chameleon is hiding so he can stop her from conquering the valley. Excited to have one last adventure and one last villain to defeat, Po takes Zhen up on her offer and the unlikely pair head out to stop the Chameleon.
Even with a strong voice cast and impressive CGI animation, Kung Fu Panda 4 is without a doubt the weakest installment in the film franchise, lacking the heart and humor of the first three films. It’s a loud and frantic film that replaces smart wit and humor with juvenile dumb jokes and slapstick. Worst yet, the film introduces nothing new and exciting to the series.
Jack Black once again impresses as the voice of Po, the Kung Fu warrior and protector of the Peaceful Valley. It’s hard to imagine anyone else ever being the voice of Po. Black has made him the goofy, kind, and lovable panda that the audience cheers on and laughs with.
Awkwafina voices Zehn, the sly fox who may or may not be a new ally to Po, and portrays her as a slick and mistrusting Artful Dodger. Unfortunately, this character isn’t that original or funny and is a terrible replacement for the Furious Five, who are missing in this adventure. Their absence is definitely felt. A big part of the success of the first three films was all the unique personalities of the five interacting with Po and eventually becoming his warrior buddies.
Missing the spirit, humor, and creativity of the earlier films, as well as some beloved key characters, Kung Fu Panda 4 is a perfect example of a film franchise running out of steam and ideas.
GRADE: C
MPAA Rating: PG for mild violence, martial arts action, scary images, and some mild rude humor
Running Time: 1 hour 34 minutes
Release Date: March 8, 2024
Directed By: Mike Mitchell and co-directed by Stephanie Ma Stine
Jay and Sam really need Isaac’s help on CBS’s Ghosts season three episode five. Directed by Trent O’Donnell from a script by Kira Kalush, episode five – “The Silent Partner” – will air on Thursday, March 14, 2024 at 8:30pm ET/PT.
Rose McIver stars as Sam, Utkarsh Ambudkar is Jay, Brandon Scott Jones is Isaac, and Richie Moriarty is Pete. Danielle Pinnock plays Alberta, Asher Grodman is Trevor, Román Zaragoza is Sasappis, Rebecca Wisocky plays Hetty, and Devan Chandler Long stars as Thorfinn.
Also, it appears we’ll be welcoming back our favorite dead hippie this season. Apparently, Flower (Sheila Carrasco) didn’t get sucked off and instead has been trapped in a well on the property for a month! Also, the ghost count was upped by one freshly deceased spirit as Carol (Caroline Aaron), Pete’s ex, choked on a donut hole and died during Sam and Jay’s annual Halloween party. Hilarity, of course, ensued.
“The Silent Partner” Plot: A big investor backs out of Sam and Jay’s restaurant, leaving them to turn to the one ghost who has money – Isaac.
Ghosts is a single-camera comedy about Samantha (Sam) and Jay, a cheerful freelance journalist and up-and-coming chef from the city, respectively, who threw both caution and money to the wind when they decided to convert Woodstone Mansion, which Sam in inherited, into a bed & breakfast – only to find it was inhabited by the many spirits of deceased residents who now call it home.
The departed souls are a close-knit, eclectic group that includes a saucy Prohibition-era lounge singer (Danielle Pinnock); a pompous 18th-century militiaman (Brandon Scott Jones); an overly upbeat ‘80s scout troop leader (Richie Moriarty); a cod-obsessed Viking explorer from 1009 (Devon Chandler Long); a slick ‘90s finance bro (Asher Grodman); a sarcastic and witty native from the 16th-century (Román Zaragoza); and a society woman and wife of a 19th-century robber baron who is Sam’s ancestor (Rebecca Wisocky), to name a few. The opening of the B&B has been a source of intrigue, anxiety and curiosity among the spirits, but they will gladly put up with the commotion as long as they can continue to interact with a living inhabitant.
The final trailer for Netflix’s 3 Body Problem teases that “they” are coming and reveals the discovery in the ’70s of something called the “Wow” signal. There’s a lot going on in the final trailer, yet it still manages to pull off being as vague as possible. If you haven’t read Liu Cixin’s 3 Body Problem book trilogy, the trailer will hint at what’s in store without spoiling the experience.
Game of Thrones‘ David Benioff and D.B. Weiss and True Blood‘s Alexander Woo created the series and serve as writers, showrunners, and executive producers. Netflix’s Peter Friedlander, Vice President of Scripted Series, encouraged Benioff and Weiss to read the trilogy back in 2019, and both were immediately hooked.
“Making Game of Thrones was the greatest experience of our lives. But we spent 10 solid years living in that fictional world, so we wanted something that presented a new set of challenges on every level, and this story really does. It’s still genre storytelling — but under that large umbrella, it’s about as far away as you can get from what we’d just done on Thrones. That’s where both the excitement and the fear have come from; you’re doing something new, so you need to start over,” explained Weiss. “You can’t use the template that you used before and just plug new characters and dialogue and story into it. Even the tone is different; the look of it is different. Everything about this show is different.”
Discussing adapting Cixin’s bestselling trilogy, Benioff said, “This is a genre that’s pretty well-trodden, as fantasy was before George R.R. Martin started writing Games of Thrones — there had been thousands of fantasy books about dragons and magic, but George figured out a way to make it fresh. Part of that was coming up with really strong characters.
Benioff continued, “The novels took science fiction and merged heavy, practical science with wildly imaginative spectacle, which is hard to do, but also feels new and fresh. We’re trying to do something similar with this adaptation; it’s the story of an impending threat, but it’s tethered by and centered around this core group of characters. A lot of people who said, ‘I don’t like fantasy,’ became big fans of Game of Thrones. And our hope is that we’ll get a lot of people who normally are not into science fiction to love 3 Body Problem.”
Joining Weiss, Benioff, and Woo as executive producers on the first season are Bernadette Caulfield, Rian Johnson, Ram Bergman, Nena Rodrigue, Qi Lin, Jilong Zhao, Xiaosong Gao, Lauren Ma, Brad Pitt, Jeremy Kleiner, Dede Gardner, Rosamund Pike, and Robie Uniacke. Directors include Derek Tsang, Andrew Stanton, Jeremy Podeswa, and Minkie Spiro.
The Plot: “A young woman’s fateful decision in 1960s China reverberates across space and time into the present day. When the laws of nature inexplicably unravel before their eyes, a close-knit group of brilliant scientists join forces with an unorthodox detective to confront the greatest threat in humanity’s history.”
The Cast: Bringing the adaptation to life are Jovan Adepo as Saul Durand, John Bradley as Jack Rooney, Rosalind Chao as Ye Wenjie, Liam Cunningham as Thomas Wade, and Eiza González as Auggie Salazar. Jess Hong plays Jin Cheng, Marlo Kelly is Tatiana, Alex Sharp is Will Downing, Sea Shimooka is Sophon, Zine Tseng is Young Ye Wenjie, Saamer Usmani plays Raj Varma, Benedict Wong stars as Da Shi, and Jonathan Pryce is Mike Evans.
The eight-episode season premieres on Netflix on March 21, 2024.
Maya Rudolph returns as Molly Wells, a billionaire divorcee who dedicates herself to doing good with her money, in the season two trailer for Apple TV+’s Loot. The trailer shows Molly’s all about getting in touch with herself this season, helping her friends and those in need, and reacting to the sudden appearance of Benjamin Bratt the way most single women would.
Michaela Jaé Rodriguez, Nat Faxon, Ron Funches, and Joel Kim Booster return for season two, with Bratt, Ana Gasteyer, and O-T Fagbenle guest starring. Series creators Alan Yang and Matt Hubbard write and executive produce the critically acclaimed comedy. Additional executive producers include Rudolph, Danielle Renfrew Behrens, Dave Becky of 3 Arts, and Natasha Lyonne.
Season two premieres on April 3, 2024 with the release of the first two episodes. New episodes will stream on Wednesdays.
Maya Rudolph and Joel Kim Booster in ‘Loot’ season 2 (Photo Credit: Apple TV+)
The Loot Season 2 Plot, Courtesy of Apple TV+:
Loot season two kicks off a year after Molly Wells (Rudolph) settles her very public divorce from tech billionaire John Novak (Adam Scott), and we find her thriving in her role as the head of her philanthropic organization, the Wells Foundation. Focused mainly on her charity work, Molly has sworn off any new relationships with men and embarks on a wellness journey. Fabulously single but not particularly independent, Molly keeps her trusty assistant Nicholas (Booster) by her side. He diligently caters to her every whim … and occasionally feeds her a kale smoothie spiked with gin.
Sofia Salinas (Rodriguez), the no-nonsense executive director of the Wells Foundation, continues to run things with compassionate efficiency, but her all-business ethos is thrown for a loop when she meets Molly’s charismatic architect friend Isaac (O-T Fagbenle). The bromance between Howard (Funches) and Nicholas also continues to flourish as they support each other in their endeavors both inside and outside the workplace.
Meanwhile, Arthur (Faxon) has moved past his feelings for Molly and has adopted a new devil-may-care attitude on life, a change encapsulated by a very lame leather bracelet. The Wells Foundation team, including Rhonda (Meagen Fay) and Ainsley (Stephanie Styles), must pull together as co-workers and friends as Molly strives to publicly live up to her promise of giving away all of her vast fortune.
The task force turns their attention to murdered indigenous women on CBS’s FBI: Most Wanted season five episode four. Directed by Jean De Segonzac from a script by Wendy West, episode four – “Hollow” – will air on Tuesday, March 12, 2024 at 10pm ET/PT.
Season five stars Dylan McDermott as Supervisory Special Agent Remy Scott, Roxy Sternberg as Special Agent Sheryll Barnes, Keisha Castle-Hughes as Special Agent Hana Gibson, Edwin Hodge as Special Agent Ray Cannon, and Shantel VanSanten as Special Agent Nina Chase.
“Hollow” Plot: The Fugitive Task Force heads upstate to assist in a search for missing and murdered Indigenous women and hunt down the serial killer responsible. Meanwhile, Barnes struggles to find time to bond with her wife.
From Emmy Award winner Dick Wolf, FBI: Most Wanted is a high-stakes drama that focuses on the Fugitive Task Force, an elite unit that relentlessly pursues and captures the notorious criminals on the Bureau’s Most Wanted list. The team’s charming but formidable leader is Supervisory Special Agent Remy Scott, who started his career in the New York FBI field office before rising through the ranks of the Bureau in Philadelphia and Las Vegas.
The team includes Special Agent Sheryll Barnes, a former NYPD detective and forensics expert who is raising two young children with her wife; Special Agent Hana Gibson, a gifted millennial computer whiz with a sharp wit and mad hacking skills; Special Agent Ray Cannon, who is a former New Orleans cop-turned-junior detective and worked Violent Crimes in Albany after following in his retired FBI agent father’s footsteps.
The newest member of the Fugitive Task Force is well-seasoned Special Agent Nina Chase who, most recently, worked assorted cases with the New York office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Originally from the Houston field office where she specialized in undercover work, Nina is a standout agent who is skilled with cars and has a penchant for driving fast. Always in the field and always on the run, FBI: Most Wanted is a weekly adrenaline shot about the thrill of the chase.
New emotions are introduced and old emotions are suppressed in the official trailer for Pixar’s Inside Out 2. The trailer was accompanied by details on the new characters joining the fun inside Riley’s head for the sequel.
Maya Hawke as Anxiety: A bundle of frazzled energy, Anxiety enthusiastically ensures Riley’s prepared for every possible negative outcome.
Ayo Edebiri as Envy: Envy may be small, but she sure knows what she wants. She’s perpetually jealous of everything everyone else has, and she’s not afraid to pine over it.
Adèle Exarchopoulos as Ennui: Ennui couldn’t care less. Bored and lethargic with a well-practiced eye-roll, Ennui adds the perfect amount of teenage apathy to Riley’s personality when she feels like it.
Paul Walter Hauser as Embarrassment: Embarrassment likes to lay low, which isn’t easy for this burly guy with a bright blush-pink complexion.
The newcomers join returning voice cast members Amy Poehler as Joy, Lewis Black as Anger, Phyllis Smith as Sadness, Diane Lane as Riley’s mom, and Kyle MacLachlan as Riley’s dad. Mindy Kaling and Bill Hader voiced Disgust and Fear in the original film, however, Liza Lapira is taking over as Disgust and Tony Hale voices Fear in the sequel.
Additional voice cast members include Lilimar, Sumayyah Nuriddin-Green, Grace Lu, Yvette Nicole Brown, Sarayu Blue, Flea, Ron Funches, Dave Goelz, and James Austin Johnson. Bobby Moynihan, Frank Oz, Paula Pell, Paula Poundstone, John Ratzenberger, Kendall Coyne Schofield, June Squibb, Kirk Thatcher and Yong Yea also lend their voices to the animated sequel.
“Disney and Pixar’s Inside Out 2 returns to the mind of newly minted teenager Riley (Kensington Tallman) just as headquarters is undergoing a sudden demolition to make room for something entirely unexpected: new Emotions! Joy, Sadness, Anger, Fear, and Disgust, who’ve long been running a successful operation by all accounts, aren’t sure how to feel when Anxiety shows up. And it looks like she’s not alone,” reads Pixar’s synopsis.
Inside Out 2, directed by Kelsey Mann, will open in theaters on June 14, 2024.
