Lexi Underwood, Sadie Stanley, Griffin Gluck, Lisa Yamada, KaDee Strickland, and Sean Blakemore in ‘Cruel Summer’ (Freeform/Frank Ockenfels)
It’s taken two years, but Freeform’s finally set a premiere date for the second season of Cruel Summer. Season one of the coming-of-age anthology series debuted in April 2021 and wrapped up in June 2021. Season two will launch on June 5, 2023.
The second season will kick off with the release of the first two episodes at 9pm ET/PT. Additional new season two episodes will air on Mondays at 10pm ET/PT.
The first season starred Olivia Holt, Chiara Aurelia, Michael Landes, Froy Gutierrez, Harley Quinn Smith, Allius Barnes, Blake Lee, and Brooklyn Sudano. Sadie Stanley, Lexi Underwood, Griffin Gluck, KaDee Strickland, Lisa Yamada, and Sean Blakemore star in season two, with Paul Adelstein and Braeden De La Garza appearing in recurring roles.
Bert V. Royal created the series, and Elle Triedman serves as executive producer and showrunner. Additional executive producers include Bill Purple, Tia Napolitano, and Iron Ocean Productions’ Jessica Biel and Michelle Purple. Cruel Summer‘s an eOne production.
Freeform released this description of season two:
“Set in an idyllic waterfront town in the Pacific Northwest, the next chapter of Cruel Summer follows the rise and fall of an intense teenage friendship. Approaching the story from three different timelines surrounding Y2K, the season twists and turns as it tracks the early friendship between Megan, Isabella, and Megan’s best friend Luke, the love triangle that blossomed, and the mystery that would impact all of their lives going forward.”
The first season scored the highest ratings of any original series on Freeform. Season one averaged 6.8 million viewers and was the highest-rated new cable drama among women ages 18-34.
The team helps out a victim of domestic abuse on CBS’s The Equalizer season three episode 15. Directed by Richard Lyons from a script by Rob Hanning and Vanessa Herron, episode 15 – “No Way Out” – will air on Sunday, April 23, 2023 at 8pm ET/PT.
Queen Latifah leads the cast as Robyn McCall. Season three also stars Tory Kittles as Detective Marcus Dante, Adam Goldberg as Harry Keshegian, Liza Lapira as Melody “Mel” Bayani, and Laya DeLeon Hayes as Delilah. Lorraine Toussaint returns as Viola “Vi” Marsette. Brett Dalton, Gabriel Sloyer, Chris Vance, and Stephen Bishop recur.
“No Way Out” Plot: Aunt Vi enlists the help of McCall and the team when she realizes her masseuse is a victim of domestic abuse. Also, McCall trains Dee on situational awareness and Dante goes against orders by chasing after the man who shot his friend Manny.
The Equalizer is a reimagining of the classic series starring Academy Award® nominee and multi-hyphenate Queen Latifah as Robyn McCall, an enigmatic woman with a mysterious background who uses her extensive skills as a former CIA operative to help those with nowhere else to turn. McCall presents to most as an average single mom who is quietly raising her teenage daughter. But to a trusted few, she is The Equalizer – an anonymous guardian angel and defender of the downtrodden, who’s also dogged in her pursuit of personal redemption.
Robyn’s clandestine work and her personal life collide when her smart and observant daughter, Delilah, and her aunt Vi, who lives with Robyn to help her balance life as a working mother, discover her secret career as a vigilante. While Robyn contends with uncertainty at home, she is joined in her pursuit of justice by Melody “Mel” Bayani, an edgy bar owner and sniper from Robyn’s past; and Harry Keshegian, a paranoid and brilliant white-hat hacker.
As Robyn aids the oppressed and exploited, she sometimes works with Marcus Dante, an NYPD detective who once sought to uncover her identity, but now respects the need for Robyn’s type of justice even as he often questions her methods.
Margaret and Todd face an explosive situation on CBS’s So Help Me Todd season one episode 18. Directed by Nick Gomez from a script by Stefanie Mah Woodburn, episode 18 – “Gloom and Boom” – will air on Thursday, April 27, 2023 at 9pm ET/PT.
Oscar winner Marcia Gay Harden stars as Margaret Wright, Skylar Astin plays Todd Wright, and Tristen J. Winger is Lyle. Madeline Wise plays Allison, Inga Schlingmann is Susan, and Rosa Arredondo stars as Francey.
“Gloom and Boom” Plot: When a stranger with a bomb appears at the law firm demanding Margaret reverse her efforts to free her client on death row or the bomb will detonate, Margaret and Todd must rely on their legal and detective skills to untangle the crime, uncover the intentions of the bomber, and save everyone at the firm.
Marcia Gay Harden and Skylar Astin star as razor-sharp, meticulous attorney Margaret Wright and Todd, her talented but scruffy, aimless son whom she hires as her law firm’s in-house investigator. As the black sheep of the well-heeled Wright family, Todd is a laidback, quick-thinking, excellent former private detective who fell on hard times after his flexible interpretation of the law got his license revoked. Margaret’s penchant for excellence and strict adherence to the law is at complete odds with Todd’s scrappy methods of finding his way through sticky situations: by the seat of his wrinkled pants.
When Todd inadvertently teams with his mother on a case, she’s surprised to find herself duly impressed by – and proud of – his crafty ability to sleuth out information with his charm and his wide-ranging tech savvy. At last, Margaret sees a way to put her son on a “suitable” path to living an adult, financially solvent life she approves of, and she asks him to join her firm. Todd agrees since it means getting his license back and once again doing the job he excels at and loves.
Mother and son working together is a big first step toward mending their fragile, dysfunctional relationship, and they may even come away with a better understanding of each other at this pivotal point in their lives. But whether Todd and Margaret will be able to accept each other for who they are is another case entirely.
Stephen Curry in ‘Stephen Curry: Underrated,’ coming in July 2023 to Apple TV+ (Photo Credit: Apple TV+)
Director Peter Nicks’ Stephen Curry: Underrated will get a limited theatrical release on Friday, July 21, 2023. The Apple Original Films and A24 documentary will also be available to stream on Apple TV+ on July 21st.
Nicks, two-time Oscar nominee Ryan Coogler, Erick Peyton, Sean Havey, Ben Cotner, and Marissa Torres Ericson produced the documentary on the popular nine-time NBA All-Star and Golden State Warriors point guard. Emily Osborne, Sev Ohanian, and Zinzi Coogler served as executive producers.
Apple TV+ offered this description of the documentary:
“Stephen Curry: Underrated is the remarkable coming-of-age story of one of the most influential, dynamic, and unexpected players in the history of basketball: Stephen Curry. This feature documentary — blending intimate cinéma vérité, archival footage, and on-camera interviews — documents Curry’s rise from an undersized college player at a small-town Division I college to a four-time NBA champion, building one of the most dominant sports dynasties in the world.”
Underrated currently sits at 100% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes following its premiere at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival.
Alon Moni Aboutboul reprises his role as Pavel Novikoff on CBS’s FBI: International season two episode 18. Directed by Avi Youabian from a script by Hussain Pirani, episode 18 – “Blood Feud” – will air on Tuesday, April 18, 2023 at 9pm ET/PT.
Season two stars Luke Kleintank as Special Agent Scott Forrester, Heida Reed as Special Agent Jamie Kellett, Carter Redwood as Special Agent Andre Raines, Vinessa Vidotto as Special Agent Cameron Vo, and Eva-Jane Willis as Europol Agent Megan “Smitty” Garretson.
Yuriy Sardarov guest stars as Sergei Diatchenko.
“Blood Feud” Plot: The Fly Team jumps into action to protect Forrester when a Russian hitman seeks revenge on him. Also, Raines is sent into a tailspin when someone close to him is taken.
FBI: International Series Description, Courtesy of CBS:
FBI: International is the third iteration of the successful FBI brand that follows the elite operatives of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s International Fly Team. Headquartered in Budapest, they travel throughout Europe with the mission of tracking and neutralizing threats against American citizens wherever they may be, putting their lives on the line to protect the U.S. and its people. The Fly Team’s Special Agent Scott Forrester, their accomplished and dedicated leader, puts his missions ahead of his personal life and is often accompanied by his trusty Schutzhund dog, Tank.
Second in command is Special Agent Jamie Kellett, a heroic and fearless investigator – and her extensive network of informants is a powerful resource. Special Agent Andre Raines shines in the field and makes good use of his accounting background in tracking criminal enterprises’ moving money; and Special Agent Cameron Vo, a competitive West Point grad who excels at interrogation and strategy. Newly embedded with the Fly Team is Megan “Smitty” Garretson, a streetwise Europol agent with an extensive undercover background who liaises with each host country they inhabit.
Luke Grimes as Jake and Ellie Kemper as Helen in ‘Happiness for Beginners’ (Photo by Barbara Nitke / NETFLIX)
Netflix has released the first official photos from the upcoming film adaptation of Katherine Center’s bestselling novel Happiness for Beginners. Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt‘s Ellie Kemper and Yellowstone‘s Luke Grimes star in the comedy premiering on July 27, 2023.
Kemper and Grimes are joined by Nico Santos, Blythe Danner, and Benjamin Cook. Shayvawn Webster, Esteban Benito, and Julia Shiplett also star.
Describing her attraction to the project, Kemper told Netflix’s Tudum she believed it “was such a well-told story of one woman’s experience in getting to know herself better.” Kemper added, “I was immediately excited about the prospect of playing a woman whose outlook on life, when we first meet her, isn’t so sunny. I’ve played a lot of optimistic rubes, and Helen was neither.”
Vicky Wight adapted Center’s book and directs. Wight also serves as a producer along with Geoff Linville and Berry Meyerowitz. Author Katherine Center, Jeff Sackman, and Larry Greenberg executive produce.
Happiness for Beginners marks Wight’s second adaptation of a Center novel. She also wrote and directed The Lost Husband, based on Center’s 2013 novel, starring Leslie Bibb and Josh Duhamel.
“Katherine is the perfect novelist when it comes to adaptation because she’s hands off,” said Wight in a Tudum interview. “She understands that the novel can’t go word-for-word on-screen, so she’s very supportive about the process of reshaping the story while keeping the integrity of her source material.”
Esteban Benito as Mason, Ellie Kemper as Helen, Gus Birney as Kaylee and Julia Shiplett as Sue (Photo by Barbara Nitke / NETFLIX)
The Plot, Courtesy of Netflix:
Helen (Kemper) has always lived her life as far from the edge as possible. Finding herself newly divorced and a little lost, Helen decides she needs a reset and signs up for the “Adventure of a Lifetime!” The adventure is a backcountry survival course hiking the Appalachian Trail with a group of oddball strangers.
From the beginning, Helen’s plan to be the best hiker is tested, and she finds more than just herself in the wilderness. Based on the wildly popular novel by Katherine Center, Happiness for Beginners reminds us that sometimes you have to get lost before you’re found.
Blythe Danner as Gigi, Aaron Weiner as Mike, Ellie Kemper as Helen and Alexander Koch as Duncan (Photo by Barbara Nitke / NETFLIX)Ellie Kemper as Helen and Luke Grimes as Jake (Photo by Barbara Nitke / NETFLIX)Luke Grimes as Jake (Photo by Barbara Nitke / NETFLIX)Ben Cook as Beckett, Nico Santos as Hugh, Ellie Kemper as Helen, Luke Grimes as Jake and Shayvawn Webster as Windy (Photo by Barbara Nitke / NETFLIX)Shayvawn Webster as Windy, Nico Santos as Hugh, Luke Grimes as Jake, Gus Birney as Kaylee, Julia Shiplett as Sue, Esteban Benito as Mason, Ellie Kemper as Helen and Ben Cook as Beckett (Photo by Barbara Nitke / NETFLIX)
Original CSI star Eric Szmanda continues his guest-starring run on CBS’s CSI: Vegas with season two episode 19. Directed by Pam Veasey from a script by Craig O’Neill, episode 19 – “Dead Memories” – will air on Thursday, May 4, 2023 at 10pm ET/PT.
The second season stars Paula Newsome as Maxine Roby, Marg Helgenberger as Catherine Willows, Matt Lauria as Joshua Folsom, and Mandeep Dhillon as Allie Rajan. Ariana Guerra plays Detective Serena Chavez, Lex Medlin is Beau Finado, and Jay Lee is Chris Park.
“Dead Memories” Plot: When wrongly accused former suspect Gene Farrow (J.P. Manoux) enters the Crime Lab covered in blood, wielding a cleaver and looking for Allie Rajan, the CSI team investigates his peculiar story about a macabre party with a fatal ending.
CSI: Vegas, the sequel to the Network’s global hit CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, returns for a second season in Las Vegas – the city where it all began. Amidst the neon lights and long shadows, dark threats continue to lurk in Sin City. Maxine Roby leads her brilliant team of Crime Scene Investigators – Joshua Folsom, Allie Rajan, Detective Serena Chavez, Chris Park, and Beau Finado – as they use science to solve baffling cases. Catherine Willows returns to help the CSIs face off with a dealer of death who is planning to beat the odds in Las Vegas.
This combined force will deploy the latest forensic techniques to do what they do best – follow the evidence – in order to preserve and serve justice in Sin City.
Dylan Walsh returns to guest star as Mayor Chase on CBS’s Blue Bloods season 13 episode 18. Directed by Ralph Hemecker from a script by Jack Ciapciak and Peter D’Antonio, episode 18 – “Family Matters” – will air on Friday, April 21, 2023 at 10pm ET/PT.
The cast is led by Tom Selleck as Frank Reagan, Donnie Wahlberg as Danny Reagan, and Bridget Moynahan as Erin Reagan. Will Estes stars as Jamie Reagan, Len Cariou is Henry Reagan, Sami Gayle is Nicky Reagan-Boyle, Marisa Ramirez plays Det. Maria Baez, and Vanessa Ray is Officer Eddie Janko.
“Family Matters” Plot: Danny and Baez investigate a case of grand larceny tied to feuding crime families when the gifts are stolen during a mob wedding. Also, Frank clashes with Mayor Chase (Walsh) when an influx of immigrants arrive in the city; Erin questions whether her district attorney campaign is compromising her day job; and Eddie enlists Jamie’s help to bust a drug dealer responsible for fentanyl overdoses in order to comfort a grieving grandfather (Larry Manetti).
Blue Bloods is a drama about a multi-generational family of cops dedicated to New York City law enforcement. Frank Reagan is the New York Police Commissioner, and heads both the police force and the Reagan brood. He runs his department as diplomatically as he runs his family, even when dealing with the politics that plagued his unapologetically bold father, Henry, during his stint as chief.
A source of pride and concern for Frank is his eldest son, Danny, a seasoned detective, family man and Iraq War vet who on occasion uses dubious tactics to solve cases with his partner and new mother, Detective Maria Baez. Erin, the middle daughter, is a New York assistant D.A. who serves as the legal compass for her siblings and father, while also pursuing a run for district attorney. Jamie is the youngest Reagan, a Harvard Law graduate and the family’s golden boy.
Unable to deny the family tradition, Jamie decided to give up a lucrative future in law and follow in the family footsteps as a cop. He’s found a friend and ally in his wife, Eddie, who keeps him on his toes, and has very different reasons than the Reagans for joining the police force.
Season one of CBS’s True Lies continues with episode eight, “Honest Manipulations.” Directed by Mary Lou Belli from a script by Kathryn Price and Nichole Millard, episode eight airs on Wednesday, April 19, 2023 at 10pm ET/PT.
Steve Howey stars as Harry and Ginger Gonzaga stars as Helen. The season one cast also includes Erica Hernandez as Maria, Omar Miller as Gib, Mike O’Gorman as Luther, Annabella Didion as Dana, and Lucas Jaye as Jake.
“Honest Manipulations” Plot: Omega Sector has a new mission to manipulate the girlfriend of a hedge fund CEO in an attempt to collect sensitive data about the company to determine if they have been responsible for major catastrophes and loss of human life.
True Lies follows Harry Tasker (Howey), a first-class international spy for U.S. intelligence agency Omega Sector, and his wife, Helen (Gonzaga), a language professor bored with her daily routine, who makes the shocking discovery that her seemingly ordinary husband is leading an extraordinary double life.
With the secret out, Omega recruits Helen, who impresses everyone with her formidable skills (thanks to Tae Bo and yoga), and she joins Harry and his team of top-notch operatives, embarking on covert missions around the globe and an exhilarating life of danger and adventure – all while keeping their adventures a secret from their children. The renewed bond between them adds much-needed sizzle to the Taskers’ emotionally distant marriage and upends the top-secret world of Omega Sector.
But, as Harry says, if you’re going to save the world, you might as well do it for the ones you love.
Renfield’s a fun, albeit lightweight, take on Dracula and his bug-eating minion, lifted by the entertaining performances of Nicholas Hoult and Nicolas Cage. There are exploding heads, an ample smattering of blood, guts, and gore, and the creative use of disembodied arms as weapons. But for all its onscreen carnage, this R-rated horror comedy is really just a campy good time, forgettable yet enjoyable enough while it lasts.
It’s a no-brainer to cast Nicolas Cage as Dracula, and the Oscar-winning actor sinks his teeth into the role with a joyous, demented glee. Very seldom is Renfield’s Dracula viewed as an actual threat to humanity, despite the film’s simple plot which suggests Dracula is positioning himself as a god who desires to be worshipped by his food source.
The film sets up the relationship between the Count and Robert Montague Renfield via black and white footage, with Cage and Hoult recreating Bela Lugosi and Dwight Frye’s encounter in the 1931 classic horror film. That setup makes perfect sense when you consider Renfield director Chris McKay (The Tomorrow War, The LEGO Batman Movie) views this film as a direct sequel to the original.
Renfield’s convinced to give up his life as a husband, father, and real estate lawyer to become Dracula’s servant and familiar. However, after nearly 100 years of trapping meals (i.e.humans) for his master, Renfield’s ready to get out from under the narcissistic creature of the night’s thumb.
But how does a servant of evil shake off the chains binding him to a bloodsucking monster? By seeking advice from others caught up in unhealthy co-dependent relationships.
Renfield joins a support group and although his dilemma is in no way similar to his fellow attendees, he’s able to pick and choose applicable pieces of wisdom. With a newfound sense of self, Renfield manages to rent an apartment, choose a wardrobe that wasn’t in style in the ’30s, and at least momentarily refrain from inflicting bodily harm on innocent humans. As for the not-so-innocent…what’s the harm in ridding the earth of those tormenting his self-help group friends?
While on a quest to capture one of his friend’s oppressors, he accidentally gets caught up in a drug deal involving local mobster Tedward Lobo (Ben Schwartz) and the Lobo crime family. He also manages to insert himself into a deadly fight between the only decent cop on the New Orleans police force (played by Awkwafina) and the Lobo mob.
Of course, Dracula’s not about to release his servant just because Renfield’s had a change of heart about his circumstances and wants to make amends for past bad deeds. Dracula isn’t used to not commanding Renfield’s full attention and reacts like a petulant child. If Renfield won’t furnish him with busloads of cheerleaders and other tasty treats, he’ll find others willing to do his bidding and help further his quest for world domination.
Nicholas Cage’s performance is exactly what you’d hope a Cage as Dracula performance would be. Unfortunately, the Prince of Darkness is just the supporting player in this horror comedy. The title is Renfield – not Dracula. But when Dracula’s off the screen, Renfield misses his presence. Now that we’ve gotten a taste of Cage as the Count, it’s obvious he deserves to be the titular character in more horror than comedy-skewing sequel.
Nicholas Hoult does a terrific job making Renfield a sympathetic and likable guy, despite his decades of fetching innocent victims for his master to suck dry. Hoult plays Renfield as tortured and remorseful, yet somehow still kind of sweet and earnest. Renfield does what he’s told, but that doesn’t mean he likes it. His struggle to break free of Dracula’s grasp is surprisingly touching, as is the relationship he forms with Awkafina’s Rebecca the cop and the self-help group.
Renfield, with supernatural skills enhanced by the consumption of bugs, takes on cops, mobsters, and a wide assortment of thugs in exceptionally gruesome fight scenes. The body count is probably among the highest of any Dracula film, but that’s due to Renfield and not his bloodsucking boss.
Renfield focuses on the psychological impact of being part of a toxic, co-dependent relationship, which sounds rather heady. It’s not. Screenwriter Ryan Ridley and director Chris McKay never let things get too serious, and they’ve packed the cast with actors who can pull off the absurdity of Dracula’s familiar seeking help with an unhealthy employment situation. (Ghosts’ Brandon Scott Jones is a standout as the self-help group’s leader.)
Renfield could have benefited from more Nicholas Cage and less police drama. Toss in a few more scenes of Cage and Hoult facing off, and you’ve got something special. Still, at a swift 93 minutes, Renfield’s a fun enough romp that won’t tax your brain.
GRADE: B-
MPAA Rating: R for some drug use, language throughout, bloody violence, and some gore
