The nearly two-minute teaser trailer for HBO’s The Regime reveals Oscar winner Kate Winslet is a Chancellor who turns to a soldier she plucks from obscurity to insulate her from all those who might question her authority. Matthias Schoenaerts stars as the soldier who takes his job of limiting access to the Chancellor way too seriously.
“The Regime tells the story of one year within the walls of the palace of a modern European regime as it begins to unravel,” reads HBO’s synopsis. Unlike the single-sentence description, the teaser indicates the limited series is more of a comedy rather than a straight political drama.
Joining Winslet and Schoenaerts for the six-episode season are Guillaume Gallienne, Andrea Riseborough, Martha Plimpton, and Hugh Grant.
Will Tracy co-wrote the limited series and serves as showrunner and executive producer. Stephen Frears and Jessica Hobbs directed and also executive produce along with Kate Winslet, Frank Rich, and Tracey Seaward. Additional writers include Seth Reiss, Sarah DeLappe, Gary Shteyngart, and Jen Spyra.
The Regime will premiere on March 3, 2024, with new episodes airing on Sundays at 9pm ET/PT.
Matthias Schoenaerts and Kate Winslet in ‘The Regime’ (Photograph by Miya Mizuno/HBO)Hugh Grant (Photograph by Miya Mizuno/HBO)Matthias Schoenaerts and Kate Winslet (Photograph by Miya Mizuno/HBO)Martha Plimpton (Photograph by Miya Mizuno/HBO)Kate Winslet and Guillaume Gallienne (Photograph by Miya Mizuno/HBO)Kate Winslet (Photograph by Miya Mizuno/HBO)
Oscar winner Nicole Kidman leads the cast of Prime Video’s Expats, based on Janice Y. K. Lee’s bestselling novel The Expatriates. The limited series’ official trailer introduces the three women at the heart of the story – Kidman as Margaret, Sarayu Blue (Never Have I Ever) as Hilary, and Ji-young Yoo (The Sky is Everywhere) as Mercy.
The six-episode season’s cast also includes Brian Tee (Chicago Med) as Margaret’s husband, Clarke, and Jack Huston (House of Gucci) as Hilary’s husband, David. Amelyn Pardenilla plays Puri, Ruby Ruiz is Essie, Will Orr is Tony, and Bonde Sham plays Charly.
Lulu Wang created the series and serves as writer, director, and executive producer. Additional executive producers include Daniel Melia, Nicole Kidman, Per Saari, Alice Bell, Theresa Park, Stan Wlodkowski. Bell, Vera Miao, Gursimran Sandhu, and author Lee are involved as writers alongside Wang.
Brian Tee and Nicole Kidman in ‘Expats’ (Photo Credit: Courtesy of Prime Video)
Expats will premiere on January 26, 2024 with the release of the first two episodes.
“Set against the vibrant and tumultuous tapestry of 2014 Hong Kong, Expats centers on three American women — Margaret, Hilary, and Mercy — whose lives intersect after a sudden family tragedy,” reads Prime Video’s synopsis. “The series interrogates privilege and explores what happens when the line between victimhood and culpability becomes blurred.”
Bonde Sham as Charly and Ji-young Yoo as Mercy (Photo Courtesy of Prime Video) Sarayu Blue as Hilary Star (Photo Courtesy of Prime Video) Nicole Kidman as Margaret (Photo courtesy of Prime Video)Jack Huston and Ji-young Yoo (Photo courtesy of Prime Video)Amelyn Pardenilla as Puri and Sarayu Blue as Hilary Star (Photo courtesy of Prime Video)
Jon Hamm as Roy Tillman in ‘Fargo’ season 5 (Photo CR: Frank W Ockenfels III/FX)
FX’s Fargo season five episode six immediately reveals the reason behind the episode’s title. Banker Vivian Dugger (Andrew Wheeler) stumbles out of The Tender Trap strip club only to discover Sheriff Roy Tillman (Jon Hamm) waiting outside. Roy points out Vivian’s legally not allowed to be near one of the strippers, and Vivian fumbles for an appropriate response before reminding Roy that he already sent him a re-election donation.
Roy cuts to the chase and orders Vivian to stop all negotiations to sell his bank to Lorraine Lyon.
Dot’s daughter, Scotty (Sienna King), eats her breakfast, oblivious to the fact that her babysitter, Minnesota Police Deputy Indira Olmstead (Richa Moorjani), has had a rough morning that began with a threatening phone call from a debt collector. Indira’s day goes from bad to worse when her no-good, extremely lazy husband Lars (Lukas Gage) walks into the kitchen after spending the night on the garage floor. This is apparently a recurring thing Lars does, and Indira deliberately raised the garage door so that the kids on the school bus could laugh at him. (Please pause for a round of applause for Indira.)
Lars isn’t happy about being spotted in his undies and demands Indira be a real wife. You know, cook and clean and all that… Indira has more patience than 99% of us and listens to Lars’ ridiculous description of what a wife is supposed to do without punching him in the face.
Lars falsely claims he supports all her needs, even though Indira is the only one who has a real job. They’re $192,000 in debt, and Lars would like it if she never reminded him of that again; it’s just too negative. (Indira, we wouldn’t blame you one bit if you tossed this creep out of your house – and life – permanently.)
Meanwhile, over at the Tillman ranch, vape addict Gator Tillman (Joe Keery) supervises the interrogation of the man he believes is Wayne Lyon. Inside the main house, Roy’s wife, Karen, fumes about Trump’s impeachment while trimming Roy’s hair. Roy’s attention is drawn to the TV when a commercial for Lyon Motors featuring Wayne airs, and Karen earns a slap to the face for accidentally cutting Roy’s ear.
Gator reports to his dad that they haven’t gotten Wayne to talk yet, but they’re still busy working on it. Also, Wayne keeps claiming they have the wrong man. Roy wonders how Wayne suddenly grew a spine after Gator had previously insisted Dot’s husband is soft. Maybe the electric shock scrambled his brain?
Roy takes matters into his own hands and heads to the barn to take over questioning. “Wayne” calls Roy the king of the idiot brigade but doesn’t have time to say much more before Roy shoots him in the head. Roy’s furious his boy screwed up again, and Gator’s quick to point out he was ordered to stay in the car. This is one screw-up that actually isn’t his fault.
Uh-oh…Gator’s lies have come home to roost. He told his dad he got a good look at Wayne at Dot’s house, so why didn’t he realize they had the wrong man? For the tiniest of milliseconds, we feel sorry for Gator – at least until he opens his mouth.
Roy believes his son has a bad luck problem. To fix it, they’ll need to pay off Ole Munch.
Gator isn’t sure that paying off Ole Munch will lift the curse, but Roy’s willing to try everything at this point. “We need to take luck out of the equation. Period. End of story,” says Roy.
Jon Hamm as Roy Tillman and Sam Spruell as Ole Munch in ‘Fargo’ season 5 episode 6 (Photo CR: Michelle Faye/FX)
A short while later, Ole Munch (Sam Spruell) meets with Roy and this time it’s Ole Munch who cuts to the chase. Roy pays him off and includes a little extra because of all the trouble. Roy admits he’s never had a problem breaking a woman until now. He should let her be…but he can’t.
Gator’s still harboring a grudge against Ole Munch, and the two square off. Ole Munch leaves, unaware that Gator’s placed a tracker on his vehicle.
Indira takes a missing persons report from a nurse and learns two men took one of the patients while claiming to be family members. The man’s wife has no idea where he is and is desperate to find him. Indira quickly puts two and two together and comes up with Wayne as the real target of a kidnapping, not the patient who went missing. It was likely a case of mistaken identity.
FBI Agents Meyer and Joaquin question Wayne (accompanied by his drunken dad), and it’s obvious Wayne (David Rysdahl) is still confused about the last few days. He sort of recalls his house burned down and somehow thinks it’s tied to Nightmare Before Christmas.
Wayne’s shocked to learn his wife’s real name is Nadine Bump. Wayne’s dad appears to be on the verge of comforting his son, but no, that’s not what comes out of his mouth. Instead, we’re treated to the delightful news that Wayne wanted to be a ballerina as a child.
Wayne can’t wrap his brain around what he’s being told by the FBI. They describe Dot’s path to him included escaping an abusive husband, taking over a dead person’s identity, and establishing a new life for herself. The agents believe Dot’s first husband is trying to get her back and probably burned Wayne’s house down. It’s really all too much for Wayne to handle.
Indira interrupts the agents and claims this is her case. Wayne just wants his wife to come back to him, and Indira assures him Dot is probably fine.
Indira and FBI Agents Meyer and Joaquin have a private chat away from Wayne, and the agents fill in the parts of Dot’s story that Indira didn’t already know. Indira realizes she saw Roy at the Lyon Estate looking for Dot, and the agents describe Roy as a guy who spends taxpayers’ dollars on tactical gear and weapons and then gives them to a right-wing militia.
The agents need Dot to tell them what she knows about the key players in Roy’s orbit. It’s possible she even knows where the bodies are (literally) buried. Their plan is to flip Gator or the ranch foreman, with Dot’s help.
Indira claims she doesn’t know where Dot is, and she thinks they have enough to get a warrant on kidnapping or abuse charges. They don’t need Dot right now to inspect the Tillman Ranch for signs of the patient who was kidnapped. The agents disagree, not willing to show their hands.
Lars leaves Scotty home alone, without dinner, because he needs to see his physical therapist. Although Lars told her not to, Scotty plays his drum set after he leaves. She’s better than Lars could ever dream of being.
Elsewhere, Danish Graves (Dave Foley) informs Lorraine Lyon (Jennifer Jason Leigh) that banker Vivian Dugger has ghosted them. A note and one of Vivian’s dress shirts indicate Roy Tillman’s behind Vivian’s refusal to pick up the phone. Since he didn’t get what he wanted, Roy squashed Lorraine’s deal with Vivian.
Wayne tells his mom he wants to see his wife, and Lorraine speaks to him like a child and suggests he get comfortable in his old room until Dot returns.
Lorraine orders Danish to get Vivian’s cell phone number by any means necessary. Her claws are out, and she tells Danish their next move is to steal an election. Roy’s about to find out he messed with the wrong family.
Jennifer Jason Leigh as Lorraine Lyon and Richa Moorjani as Indira Olmstead in ‘Fargo’ season 5 episode 6 (Photo CR: Michelle Faye/FX)
Indira arrives home and is shocked to learn Lars is gone and Scotty hasn’t eaten since crackers at lunch. Indira quickly realizes what she needs to do and heads over to Lorraine’s with Scotty. Wayne’s overjoyed to see his daughter, and Scotty’s equally happy to be reunited with her dad.
Happy reunion accomplished, Indira sits down for a one-on-one with Lorraine. She places a folder with all the details of Dot’s life with Roy in front of Lorraine, but Lorraine refuses to open it. She’s unsympathetic to the stories of abuse victims, even if the victim is her own daughter-in-law.
Indira reminds her Dot has never once claimed to be a victim of anything. Indira’s done with Lorraine’s pompous attitude and even curses at the billionaire businesswoman. Lorraine’s not used to this attitude from those beneath her, and Indira says, “Tough sh*t.” Indira believes they’re the same – they both work hard to make their mark on the world – but Lorraine just happens to be rich.
Indira thinks Dorothy and Lorraine are actually a lot alike. Dot is incredibly intelligent and was able to outsmart her kidnappers. She saved Wayne and Scotty’s lives and won’t quit when it comes to protecting herself or her family. Dot never complains, no matter the circumstances.
“I brought you her file so that at least you can be an educated asshole,” snarls Indira.
Lorraine reacts to this unusual turn of events by offering Indira the job as head of her security team. She’ll even let Indira name her price. It would be Indira’s first white-collar job, and she’d get to travel the world.
Indira’s momentarily speechless and finally says she’ll consider it. In the meantime, Lorraine should reconsider her opinion of Dot. She needs help but won’t ask for it.
Danish Graves finds Vivian Dugger back at his favorite hangout, The Tender Trap. He hands Vivian a phone and Lorraine informs him that she’s pulled her offer off the table. Instead of making money off their proposed deal, Vivian will now feel Lorraine’s wrath. She’s got the SEC chairman at her beck and call, and right now, agents are tearing through Vivian’s office, seizing his books, and freezing all his assets.
Also, for good measure, she’s gotten his son expelled from Notre Dame for being late on tuition. Vivian backed the wrong horse, and now he’s going to pay with everything he’s got. Lorraine promises he’ll live the rest of his days in squalor and then chuckles as she hangs up.
That bit of nasty business wrapped up, Lorraine opens the folder Indira left behind. It’s full of photos of Dot in horrible shape after being beaten up. The folder even contains copies of X-rays showing broken bones.
Episode six ends with Lorraine considering her next move.
* * * * * * * *
New Fargo season five episodes air on FX on Tuesdays at 10pm ET/PT.
Clive Owen as Andy in ‘A Murder at the End of the World’ episode 7 (Photo CR: Chris Saunders/FX)
FX’s A Murder at the End of the World limited series finale has arrived, and with it the shocking revelation of the killer’s identity. Episode seven, “Retreat,” begins with all the guests gathered 164’ underground in Andy’s suite. Andy (Clive Owen) talks about why Ray – his AI assistant – chose that depth, revealing it was because Andy asked him to protect his family from anything that could happen on the surface of the earth.
As Andy continues to discuss Ray, he brings the conversation back around to how someone is trying to tarnish his reputation. Andy declares that he’s going to keep everyone there until he figures out who’s setting him up.
Lu Mei (Joan Chen) didn’t betray him and is still confused about why he invited her. She believes he needs cash and wants her to buy Ray for her smart cities.
Andy wonders if it was David (Raul Esparza) since he’s aware that David hates him. Andy saw David next to Darby’s room and found gloves and a knife in David’s room. David reluctantly admits he attacked Darby but only because he thought Darby was hurting Lee (Brit Marling).
Andy lets the other guests in on the secret that Bill was Zoomer’s biological father. He also tells them about how Lee once tried to leave with their son and how Lee has a criminal history that he was able to wipe away. Lee confesses that it’s all true. Her dad went to jail, and she began hacking and shaving money off large transactions to support her family.
Zoomer (Kellan Tetlow) interrupts the discussion just as Andy’s accusing Lee of being the person who set him up. Eva (Britian Seibert) tries to take Zoomer back to his room, but he reacts by throwing a fit.
Darby (Emma Corrin) picks up a helmet Zoomer wears that has a virtual game he likes to play. She sees the AI Ray in it as the entity telling Zoomer what to do and starts to put more pieces of the puzzle together.
She asks Zoomer questions about the night that Bill died, and Zoomer admits that after dinner, he went back to Bill’s room. Zoomer says Bill was sick and needed his help. (Zoomer’s short, which explains why no one appeared on Bill’s doorbell camera when he opened the door.) Ray gave Zoomer the code to the medical bay and told Zoomer that Bill was ill and needed a shot. Zoomer just did as Ray instructed.
Darby asks about Rohan, and Zoomer admits Ray told him to plug in and turn on Rohan’s heart computer. Realization begins to set in as the group digests Zoomer’s story. This is all too much for Zoomer and he becomes upset, worried that Darby is mad at him. Darby assures him she’s not.
Darby remembers Andy talking about how he can’t trust anyone. Even his therapist sold him out, and now he confides in Ray rather than a human being. When Andy asks Ray if he instructed Zoomer to inject Bill, he simply says yes.
Daniel Olson as Tomas, Brit Marling as Lee Andersen, Joan Chen as Lu Mei, Clive Owen as Andy Ronson, Raul Esparza as David, Jermaine Fowler as Martin, and Pegah Ferydoni as Ziba in ‘A Murder at the End of the World’ episode 6 (Photo CR: Chris Saunders/FX)
Darby works on narrowing the list of those possibly responsible. Lu Mei hacked Andy’s firewall, which triggered Ray to shut down the network. She concludes that Sian’s death was an accident, but the other two were murders.
It’s important to determine why Ray would consider Bill a threat. Darby asks, “Ray, why did you believe Bill Farrah was a security threat?” Ray doesn’t reply.
She attempts to get Andy to ask that question, and he refuses. She’s forced to use a fake AI with Andy’s voice to ask the question. Andy’s voice fills the room as Ray plays a recording of him talking about his hatred of Bill. Andy expounds on why he dislikes Bill and even talks about wanting Bill dead.
“You created a monster driven by your greatest fears,” says Darby in reference to Andy’s relationship with Ray. She strikes a nerve with Andy, and he reacts by holding her against a wall and choking her.
Lee hits Andy over the head with an object and then checks to make sure Darby’s okay.
As Andy lies unconscious, Darby, Lee, and Zoomer enter the main control center and attempt to dismantle Ray. Ray advises them to leave, but Lee and Darby try to put their hacking skills to good use. They decide to throw something to break the glass that’s protecting the motherboard. Ray appears and tries to appeal to Zoomer by asking him not to let Darby or Lee ruin their game.
Emma Corrin as Darby Hart in ‘A Murder at the End of the World’ episode 6 (Photo CR: Chris Saunders/FX)
Darby and Lee break the window and start a fire. Darby thinks they still have time to get Lee and Zoomer to Rohan’s boat.
Darby, Lee, and Zoomer hide in Bill’s room as the police enter the hotel, giving Lee and Zoomer time to sneak out through the back door. After saying her goodbyes, Darby experiences a brief flashback to her time with Bill.
As the limited series draws to a close, Darby narrates what transpires after this whole ordeal is over. Andy disappeared from the public eye but filed a civil suit against Lee. If she’s ever located, she’ll stand trial for kidnapping Zoomer. Darby likes to believe that Lee and Zoomer made it to the boat and are living somewhere far away in a cottage.
Darby reads to an audience from what we can assume is a new book she wrote, and in that audience are the other surviving guests from the hotel. Her final words are “people will remember his name, Bill Farrah.”
The episode ends with Lee and Zoomer on an inflatable boat. She fires a flare, and the captain of Rohan’s ship responds by blowing the horn.
Rachel McAdams as Barbara Dimon and Abby Ryder Fortson as Margaret Simon in ‘Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret’ (Photo Credit: Dana Hawley)
The San Diego Film Critics Society‘s 2023 nominees and winners are in step with the group’s reputation for marching to the beat of a different drummer. Barbie earned 12 nominations but was absent from the Best Picture category. Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret, which has only made a few appearances on awards lists, picked up eight nominations and was ultimately named the Best Picture of 2023.
Best Picture
American Fiction WINNER: Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret.
The Holdovers
Killers of the Flower Moon
RUNNER UP: Oppenheimer
Best Director
Kelly Fremon Craig, Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret.
RUNNER UP: Greta Gerwig, Barbie
Cord Jefferson, American Fiction
Christopher Nolan, Oppenheimer WINNER:Martin Scorsese, Killers of the Flower Moon
Best Actor
Colman Domingo, Rustin
Zac Efron, The Iron Claw
RUNNER UP: Paul Giamatti, The Holdovers
Cillian Murphy, Oppenheimer WINNER:Jeffrey Wright, American Fiction
Best Actress
Abby Ryder Fortson, Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret. WINNER: Lily Gladstone, Killers of the Flower Moon
RUNNER UP: Sandra Hüller, Anatomy of a Fall
Margot Robbie, Barbie
Emma Stone, Poor Things
Best Supporting Actor
Sterling K. Brown, American Fiction WINNER: Robert Downey Jr., Oppenheimer
RUNNER UP: Ryan Gosling, Barbie
Charles Melton, May December
Mark Ruffalo, Poor Things
Best Supporting Actress
Jodie Foster, Nyad
Sandra Hüller, The Zone of Interest WINNER: Rachel McAdams, Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret.
Julianne Moore, May December
RUNNER UP: Da’Vine Joy Randolph, The Holdovers
Best Comedic Performance WINNER: Michael Cera, Barbie
Abby Ryder Fortson, Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret.
Ryan Gosling, Barbie
Nathan Lane, Dicks: The Musical
RUNNER UP: Mark Ruffalo, Poor Things
Best Youth Performance (For a performer under the age of 18)
Joe Bird, Talk to Me
Christian Convery, Cocaine Bear WINNER: Abby Ryder Fortson, Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret.
Jude Hill, A Haunting in Venice
RUNNER UP: Milo Machado-Graner, Anatomy of a Fall
Best Original Screenplay
Samy Burch, May December WINNER: Greta Gerwig and Noah Baumbach, Barbie
RUNNER UP: David Hemingson, The Holdovers
Celine Song, Past Lives
Justine Triet and Arthur Harari, Anatomy of a Fall
Best Adapted Screenplay
RUNNER UP: Percival Everett and Cord Jefferson, American Fiction WINNER: Kelly Fremon Craig and Judy Blume, Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret.
Jonathan Glazer, The Zone of Interest
Christopher Nolan, Kai Bird, & Martin Sherwin, Oppenheimer
Eric Roth and Martin Scorsese, Killers of the Flower Moon
Best First Feature (Director)
Chloe Domont, Fair Play WINNER: Cord Jefferson, American Fiction
Danny Philippou and Michael Philippou, Talk to Me
A.V. Rockwell, A Thousand and One
RUNNER UP: Celine Song, Past Lives
Best Documentary
RUNNER UP: 20 Days in Mariupol
American Symphony
Kokomo City
RUNNER UP: Little Richard: I Am Everything WINNER: Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie
Best Animated Film WINNER: The Boy and the Heron
Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget
Nimona
Robot Dreams
RUNNER UP: Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse
Best Foreign Language Film WINNER: Anatomy of a Fall
Fallen Leaves
RUNNER UP: Godzilla Minus One
Monster
RUNNER UP: The Zone of Interest
Best Editing
Nick Houy, Barbie
RUNNER UP: Jennifer Lame, Oppenheimer
Yorgos Mavropsaridis, Poor Things
Thelma Schoonmaker, Killers of the Flower Moon WINNER: Laurent Sénéchal, Anatomy of a Fall
Best Cinematography
Rodrigo Prieto, Barbie WINNER: Rodrigo Prieto, Killers of the Flower Moon
Robbie Ryan, Poor Things
RUNNER UP: Hoyte van Hoytema, Oppenheimer
Dariusz Wolski, Napoleon
Best Production Design
RUNNER UP: Ruth De Jong, Oppenheimer
Jack Fisk, Killers of the Flower Moon WINNER: Sarah Greenwood, Barbie
Arthur Max, Napoleon
James Price and Shona Heath, Poor Things
Best Visual Effects WINNER: Godzilla Minus One
John Wick: Chapter 4
Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One
Oppenheimer
RUNNER UP: Poor Things
Best Costume Design
David Crossman and Janty Yates, Napoleon WINNER: Jacqueline Durran, Charlotte Finlay, & Hope Slepak, Barbie
Ellen Mirojnick, Oppenheimer
RUNNER UP: Holly Waddington, Vincent Dumas, & Zsuzsa Stenger, Poor Things
Jacqueline West, Killers of the Flower Moon
Best Sound Design
Godzilla Minus One
Maestro
Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One
RUNNER UP: Oppenheimer WINNER: The Zone of Interest
Best Use of Music
RUNNER UP: Air
Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret. WINNER: Barbie
The Holdovers
Maestro
Best Stunt Choreography WINNER: John Wick: Chapter 4
The Killer
RUNNER UP: Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One
Napoleon
Polite Society
Best Ensemble
Air
RUNNER UP: Barbie
RUNNER UP: A Haunting in Venice WINNER: The Holdovers
Oppenheimer
Breakthrough Actor
Abby Ryder Fortson, Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret
Special Award for Body of Work (3+ 2023 Credits)
Nicolas Cage for Dream Scenario, The Flash, The Old Way, Renfield, The Retirement Plan, and Sympathy for the Devil
Investigation Discovery is diving back into Hollywood murders with season two of Death By Fame, which just unveiled an official trailer. Premiering on ID on January 22, 2024, new episodes of season two will air on Mondays at 9pm ET/PT.
Season two will kick off with “A Rising Star Shot Down,” an episode focusing on Tara Correa-McMullen’s murder. Correa-McMullen played a recurring character (gang member Graciela Reyes) on Judging Amy, and at 15 years old, she was working on establishing her acting career. Tragically, her life was cut short after “a romance with the wrong person takes her down a dangerous path, and out of the spotlight forever.”
The second season also includes episodes on the murders of Jam Master Jay (real name: Jason William Mizell) of Run-D.M.C., who was shot to death at his recording studio, and lawyer-turned-legal reality star Loredana Nesci, who was stabbed to death with a Rambo-style hunting knife in 2015. The season two trailer shows comedian Jim Jefferies describing a murder committed by his intern Blake Leibel as the most heinous murder in Los Angeles history, a murder he calls as horrific as anything Jeffrey Dahmer did.
The suspicious death of legendary singer James Brown and the murder of his son-in-law are the subject of a season two episode. Plus, the new season includes an episode on Joseph Son, who played a henchman named Random Task in Austin Powers. In 2008, Son’s DNA was linked to a 1990 brutal kidnapping, rape, and torture cold case. Following his conviction, Son was found guilty of voluntary manslaughter for the death of his cellmate.
Poster for season 2 of ID’s ‘Death By Fame’
“Behind the bright lights of stardom lies a dark and sinister side of Hollywood where murder is the main character. Though Tinseltown promises glitz and glamour, these stars’ stories end very differently. In the eight-episode new season of Death By Fame, both rising stars and beloved icons meet a disturbing fate, whether through their own untimely death or acts of evil committed by their own hands. These stories have become their own Hollywood legends, often leaving more questions than answers.”
Sara Azari, a former criminal trial attorney, returns for the new season to give viewers insight into the cases.
CBS’s international addition to the NCIS franchise, NCIS: Sydney, is taking a four-week break and will return after the holidays with episode six, “Extraction.” Directed by Catherine Millar from a script by James Cripps and Clare Sladden, episode six will air on Tuesday, January 9, 2024 at 8pm ET/PT.
Season one stars Olivia Swann (DC’s Legends of Tomorrow) as NCIS Special Agent Michelle Mackey, Sean Sagar (The Covenant) as NCIS Special Agent DeShawn Jackson, and Todd Lasance (Spartacus: War of the Damned) as her 2IC AFP counterpart, Sergeant Jim “JD” Dempsey. The cast also includes Tuuli Narkle (Mystery Road: Origin) as AFP liaison officer Constable Evie Cooper, Mavournee Hazel (Shantaram) as AFP forensic scientist Bluebird “Blue” Gleeson, and William McInnes (The Newsreader) as AFP forensic pathologist Dr Roy Penrose.
“Extraction” Plot: When a man in a concealed U.S. Navy jacket drops dead from a cocaine overdose on a crowded bus in Bondi, the investigation pulls Evie (Narkle) back into her past as an undercover narcotics cop.
Olivia Swann as NCIS Special Agent Captain Michelle Mackey and Todd Lasance as AFP Liaison Officer Sergeant Jim ‘JD’ Dempsey in ‘NCIS: Sydney’ episode 6, season 1 (PHOTO CREDIT: Daniel Asher Smith/Paramount+)
Series Description, Courtesy of CBS:
With rising international tensions in the Indo-Pacific, a brilliant and eclectic team of U.S. NCIS agents and the Australian Federal Police (AFP) are grafted into a multinational taskforce to keep naval crimes in check in the most contested patch of ocean on the planet.
Led by NCIS Special Agent Michelle Mackey and her 2IC AFP counterpart, Sergeant Jim “JD” Dempsey, our team of Americans and Aussies must quickly learn to trust each other, overcoming and harnessing their differences to solve each case. Though jurisdictional tussles and culture clashes make for a rocky start, Mackey will eventually come to respect JD’s nose for the truth, as he does her maverick style.
Meanwhile, sassy AFP Constable Evie Cooper and endlessly curious Special Agent DeShawn Jackson form a fast friendship, while curmudgeonly forensic pathologist Doctor Roy Penrose meets his match in the brilliant young forensic scientist Bluebird “Blue” Gleeson. Together, our team becomes NCIS’ first-ever internationally blended family.
Sean Sagar as Special Agent DeShawn Jackson and Tuuli Narkle as AFP Liaison Officer Constable Evie Cooper in episode 6, season 1 (PHOTO CREDIT: Daniel Asher Smith/Paramount+ )Tuuli Narkle as AFP Liaison Officer Constable Evie Cooper in episode 6, season 1 (PHOTO CREDIT: Daniel Asher Smith/Paramount+)Mavournee Hazel as Forensic Pathologist “Bluebird ‘Blue’ Gleeson, William McInnes as Forensic Pathologist Dr. Roy Penrose, Sean Sagar as Special Agent DeShawn Jackson, Olivia Swann as NCIS Special Agent Captain Michelle Mackey and Todd Lasance as AFP Liaison Officer Sergeant Jim ‘JD’ Dempsey in episode 6, season 1 (PHOTO CREDIT: Daniel Asher Smith/Paramount+)Tuuli Narkle as AFP Liaison Officer Constable Evie Cooper and Olivia Swann as NCIS Special Agent Captain Michelle Mackey in episode 6 (PHOTO CREDIT: Daniel Asher Smith/Paramount+)Sean Sagar as Special Agent DeShawn Jackson, Todd Lasance as AFP Liaison Officer Sergeant Jim ‘JD’ Dempsey and Olivia Swann as NCIS Special Agent Captain Michelle Mackey in episode 6 (PHOTO CREDIT: Daniel Asher Smith/Paramount+)Richard Huggett, Todd Lasance as AFP Liaison Officer Sergeant Jim ‘JD’ Dempsey and Olivia Swann as NCIS Special Agent Captain Michelle Mackey in episode 6 (PHOTO CREDIT: Daniel Asher Smith/Paramount+)
Dan Stevens, Angela Bassett, and Matthew Modine join Netflix’s ‘Zero Day’ (Photo Credits: Sam Jones, Netflix, Frazer Harrison / Provided by Netflix)
Oscar nominee Angela Bassett has signed on to Netflix’s conspiracy thriller limited series Zero Day starring two-time Oscar winner Robert De Niro. Dan Stevens, Matthew Modine, Bill Camp, and McKinley Belcher III are also on board the drama created by Eric Newman, Noah Oppenheim, and Michael Schmidt.
The just-announced cast joins previously confirmed stars Lizzy Caplan, Jesse Plemons, Joan Allen, and Connie Britton as filming gets underway in New York. The streaming service also revealed that Gaby Hoffman, Clark Gregg, and Mark Ivanir will guest star on the six-episode limited series.
“Zero Day asks the question on everyone’s mind — how do we find truth in a world in crisis, one seemingly being torn apart by forces outside our control?” reads Netflix’s synopsis. “And in an era rife with conspiracy theory and subterfuge, how much of those forces are products of our own doing, perhaps even of our own imagining?”
Netflix released the following character descriptions:
Angela Bassett (Black Panther: Wakanda Forever) is President Mitchell: A brilliant and perceptive political tactician who has an allegiance to Mullen.
Dan Stevens (Gaslit) is Evan Green: A charismatic loudmouth and TV host of a wildly popular political program, Green becomes a thorn in George Mullen’s side as his loudest critic and chief public antagonist.
Matthew Modine (Stranger Things) is Richard Dreyer: A confident, colorful public figure who is an adept politician and holds the position of the Speaker of the House.
Bill Camp (The Queen’s Gambit) is CIA Director Lasche: The ultimate insider who knows all the secrets, CIA Director Lasche can either be a dangerous enemy or a valuable friend to Mullen.
McKinley Belcher III (We Won This City) is Carl Lopez: A tough, brilliant DOJ lawyer who serves as the Zero Day Commission’s lead investigator.
Gaby Hoffman (Transparent) as Monica Kidder: Known both as a Silicon Valley billionaire with brilliant vision, and a soulless technocrat with the plan and means to control it.
Clark Gregg (Painkiller) is Robert Lyndon: Corporate raider, provocateur, and billionaire, Lyndon has mastered the dark arts of political manipulation.
Mark Ivanir (Barry) is Natan: An intelligence operative and Mullen confidant from an era where intelligence still mattered.
Robert De Niro leads the cast as George Mullen, a massively popular but complicated former American President who is pulled from retirement to head a commission tasked with investigating a devastating global cyber-attack.
Lizzy Caplan is Alexandra Mullen: A young Congresswoman who has sought to distance herself from her father’s political legacy.
Jesse Plemons is Roger Carlson: Former Mullen “body man” seeking a return to the national stage alongside Mullen.
Joan Allen is Sheila Mullen: Former First Lady and nominee to the federal bench whose professional ambitions take a backseat to her husband’s political career.
Connie Britton is Valerie Whitesell: A savvy, intelligent political operative who was Mullen’s former Chief of Staff.
Zero Day marks Robert De Niro’s first starring role in a TV series. De Niro also executive produces along with Noah Oppenheim, Grand Electric’s Eric Newman, Pulizer Prize winner Michael S. Schmidt, and Panoramic Media’s Jonathan Glickman. Newman and Oppenheim wrote the six-episode series, with executive producer Lesli Linka Glatter directing.
MGM+ has officially confirmed season two of the sci-fi thriller Beacon 23 will air on the streaming service. The series was originally set up with Spectrum Originals and AMC Networks, and a second season had already been ordered prior to season one’s premiere on MGM+ on November 12, 2023.
Seasons one and two were filmed back-to-back, but Spectrum Originals shut down in 2022 before season one aired. MGM+ snatched up the series, and their announcement confirms fans of the show based on Hugh Howey’s bestseller will return to the world of Beacon 23 in April 2024.
Zak Penn (Ready Player One) created the series and serves as an executive producer. Glen Mazzara (Damien) and Joy Blake (The Passage) are co-showrunners on the eight-episode second season and executive produce.
“Beacon 23‘s season two ups the game: more action, more mysteries, more twists, and exciting new characters,” said Glen Mazzara. “It’s a thrill ride. I can’t wait for the audience to see it.”
Additional executive producers include David Fortier, Ivan Schneeberg, James Middleton, Nick Nantell, Katie O’Connell Marsh, Liz Varner, and Stephan James. The series is produced by Boat Rocker.
“We’re thrilled that Beacon 23 has found a loyal audience on MGM+ and look forward to sharing more episodes with fans in 2024,” said David Fortier and Ivan Schneeberg, Co-Executive Chairmen, Boat Rocker Media and Co-Chairmen, Boat Rocker Studios. “Thank you to our dedicated creative partners, the wonderful team at MGM+, and the talented cast and crew for helping deliver what is sure to be an unforgettable season of television.”
Stephan James and Lena Headey in ‘Beacon 23’ season 1 (Photo Credit: Rafy Winterfeld / Boat Rocker / MGM+)
MGM+ offers this description of the series and what’s in store for season two:
Beacon 23 takes place in the farthest reaches of the Milky Way and Season One followed Aster (Lena Headey), a government agent, and Halan (Stephan James), a stoic ex-military man, whose fates became entangled after they found themselves trapped together inside one of many Beacons that served as a lighthouse for intergalactic travelers. In season two, Beacon 23 is now little more than a prison with Aleph onboard, and The Artifact provides more questions than answers. Without a clear path forward, the inhabitants of Beacon 23 must rely on each other, but their conflicting agendas may get in the way.
America Ferrera arrives at the Glamour Women of The Year Awards 2023 (Photo by Karwai Tang / WireImage, Provided by CCA)
The Critics Choice Awards recognized America Ferrera with a Best Supporting Actress nomination for her performance in Barbie, and the Emmy Award-winner has also been selected to receive the 8th Annual SeeHer Award during the 2024 Critics Choice Awards. The special honor was created to “honor a woman who advocates for gender equality, portrays characters with authenticity, defies stereotypes, and pushes boundaries.”
Ferrera joins a list of SeeHer honorees that includes Viola Davis (2017), Gal Gadot (2018), Claire Foy (2019), Kristen Bell (2020), Zendaya (2021), Halle Berry (2022), and Janelle Monáe (2023).
The 29th Annual Critics Choice Awards will be hosted by Chelsea Handler and will air on Sunday, January 14, 2024 at 7pm ET/PT on The CW.
The Critics Choice Association provided this description of America Ferrera’s work as an activist:
“A longtime activist, Ferrera launched Poderistas in 2020 alongside 9 other prominent activists, leaders, and business women, including Eva Longoria Bastón and Christy Haubegger. Poderistas is a digital lifestyle community and non-profit built to inform, affirm, and inspire Latinas to leverage their power and transform their lives, their community and their nation. Ferrera is also a prolific speaker, having spoken at major events such as TED, the DNC, and March for Our Lives. She was also opening speaker and chair of the Artists’ Committee for the Women’s March on Washington in 2017.
Her activism has extended on screen in several television documentaries including Not Done: Women Remaking America for PBS, the EPIX TV mini-series America Divided, Showtime’s groundbreaking documentary The Years of Living Dangerously, and Nicholas Kristof’s series for PBS Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide.
Ferrera also co-founded HARNESS, with her husband Ryan Piers Williams and friend Wilmer Valderrama. HARNESS is a community of artists, influencers and grassroots leaders leveraging art and storytelling to power change and create a more equitable world.”
The Superstore star, director, and executive producer will make her feature film directorial debut with I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter, based on Erika Sánchez’s bestselling novel.
