Soman Chainani’s bestselling book series springs to life in Netflix’s The School for Good and Evil. The official trailer explains that this special academy trains heroes and villains, and is the origin of every great fairy tale story.
The huge ensemble cast features Charlize Theron, Kerry Washington, Patti LuPone, Sophia Anne Caruso, Sofia Wylie, Laurence Fishburne, Michelle Yeoh, Jamie Flatters, Kit Young, and Peter Serafinowicz. Rob Delaney, Mark Heap, Rachel Bloom, Earl Cave, Demi Isaac Oviawe, Freya Parks, Kaitlyn Akinpelumi, Holly Sturton, Emma Lau, Briony Scarlett, and Ally Cubb also star.
Additional cast members include Rosie Graham, Joelle, Chinenye Ezeudu, Oliver Watson, Ali Khan, Myles Kamwendo and Misia Butler.
Sofia Wylie and Sophia Ann Caruso star as BFFs Agatha and Sophie who are given the opportunity to study at the magical school. Discussing the relationship between these two characters with Netflix’s TUDUM, Wylie explained, “Both of the girls have strengths that complement each other. When one of the characters is faltering, the other is there to pick them up. And yes, while they might fight and argue, at the end of the day, they love each other!”
Caruso added: “I’m excited for viewers to see an example of friendship between two female protagonists [like Agatha and Sophie]. The movie is full of magic, but the real heart of it and the true magic is their love.”
Paul Feig directs and co-wrote the screenplay with David Magee. Feig, Joe Roth, Jeffery Kirschenbaum, Jane Startz, and Laura Fischer produce. Author Soman Chainani, Stephen Jones, Zack Roth, Chris Castaldi, and Patrician Riggen serve as executive producers.
Sofia Wylie and Sophia Anne Caruso in Netflix’s ‘The School for Good and Evil’
The Plot, Courtesy of Netflix:
In the village of Gavaldon, two misfits and best friends, Sophie (Caruso) and Agatha (Wylie), share the unlikeliest of bonds. Sophie, a golden-haired seamstress, dreams of escaping her dreary life to become a princess, while Agatha, with her grim aesthetic and offbeat mother, has the makings of a real witch. One night under a blood red moon, a powerful force sweeps them away to the School for Good and Evil — where the true stories behind every great fairy tale begin. Yet something is amiss from the start: Sophie is dropped into the School for Evil, run by the glamourous and acid-tongued Lady Lesso (Theron), and Agatha in the School for Good, overseen by the sunny and kind Professor Dovey (Washington).
As if navigating classes with the offspring of the Wicked Witch (Parks), Captain Hook (Cave), and King Arthur (Flatters) wasn’t hard enough, according to the Schoolmaster (Fishburne), only true love’s kiss can change the rules and send the girls to their rightful schools and destiny. But when a dark and dangerous figure (Young) with mysterious ties to Sophie reemerges and threatens to destroy the school and the world beyond entirely — the only way to a happy ending is to survive their real life fairytale first.
Loan Chabanol as Nora, Jessie T. Usher as Davon, and Embeth Davidtz as Amanda in ‘Tales of the Walking Dead’ season 1 episode 5 (Photo Credit: Curtis Bonds Baker/AMC)
Season one episode five of AMC’s post-apocalyptic anthology series Tales of the Walking Dead opens with Davon (Jessie T. Usher, The Boys) waking up from a blow to the head. The season’s penultimate episode is told in a non-linear style, so it’s a bit confusing to see this just-introduced character is handcuffed to a zombie who’s trying to attack him.
Davon experiences a brief flashback of a woman and some drawings on a wall. He grabs a prosthetic leg and begins to hit the zombie over the head with it.
It’s the dead of night as this is going down, and a little girl finds him. He asks for help, and she yells for her mom. It’s obvious she knows him as she yells, “Davon! It’s him! He’s here!” before running off.
Davon is oblivious to what’s happening (and so is the audience). The zombie wakes up, and he hallucinates the dead person calling him a murderer.
As Davon drags the zombie along, he continues to hallucinate. The zombie accuses him of doing this to her and says that’s why they’re looking for him. He briefly hides under an upturned tree and then continues walking with the zombie to a small boathouse. Unfortunately, he’s unable to get inside it.
He discovers a photo in his boot and keys on the zombie. “Who are you?” he asks, and the zombie responds, “897.” Davon keeps walking through the community, and the zombie says the numbers again, right as they stumble upon that address.
Davon has a flashback of two French Canadian women and of his leg being chopped off.
The story leaps backward seven weeks, finally allowing viewers to begin to piece together what’s transpired.
Two women rescue Davon, and he regains consciousness in bed to discover one of his saviors tending to the wound on his leg. He asks for his boot, and one of the women hands him the photo of his family that was inside of it.
Flipping back to the present, Davon and his zombie friend enter 897’s garage. There are pieces of flesh, blood, and his missing boot on the floor. The zombie begins to explain this is where he killed her as he experiences multiple, rapid flashbacks. He has a vision of the woman becoming a zombie and of her saying, “Sometimes murder is mercy.”
He’s done dragging the zombie around and grabs a hacksaw. He cuts off the zombie’s hand so that she’s no longer his shadow.
Davon carries the zombie inside and lays it on the table. He’s struck with another flashback of the women – Nora (Loan Chabanol) and pre-zombie Amanda (Embeth Davidtz) – along with himself and a teenage boy named Arnaud (Gage Munroe) sitting at that very table, enjoying a meal. Amanda explains her son, Arnaud, got the scar on his throat because he and his father went out too far beyond the wall. His father didn’t make it back.
After that fond memory, Davon smiles at the zombie and says, “Amanda, I’m sorry.”
He glances at a piano and remembers Nora teaching him how to play. She encouraged him to keep trying, and the flashback reveals there was an attraction between him and Nora. (A shadowy figure watched from behind.)
Davon begins to explore the house and makes his way upstairs. After tending to the wound on his head, he has yet another flashback when he spots a poster on the wall. (This episode is littered with flashbacks!) This time his vision shows him waking up in bed after being rescued and Nora and Amanda giving him glasses because his were broken. He finds out he’s in Maine and recalls telling these helpful strangers that he ran into an unfriendly man in the woods. He didn’t shoot the man, but the man shot him. He believes murder isn’t the only option, but Amanda disagrees. Amanda thinks sometimes murder is the only option.
A short leap back in time shows Davon clearly hearing a child repeatedly saying the same thing in French through a vent. He heads down to the basement to investigate and discovers a zombie child chained up down there. He has a flashback of stabbing it in the head and of Amanda coming down the stairs. She said, “Sometimes murder is mercy,” before placing a black hood over his head.
Back to another flashback, Devon is bringing Nora strawberries which makes her happy. She wanted some for her salad, even though Davon thinks adding them ruins the salad. There is some flirtation going on between the two.
Jessie T. Usher as Davon in ‘Tales of the Walking Dead’ season 1 episode 5 (Photo Credit: Curtis Bonds Baker/AMC)
And now to the present… Davon is tied up to a gravestone as the hood’s removed from his head. The angry mob calls him a murderer and wonders how he could do this to children. Even Nora is there, and she also believes he’s done something.
Arnaud steps forward and drops to his knees next to Amanda’s body, accusing Davon of killing his mother. Davon insists he didn’t do it and would only kill if he was forced to or if someone was trying to kill him. Arnaud weeps as he calls his mother a good, kind person who took care of everyone. Arnaud suggests Davon murdered her after she discovered what he did.
Davon still has no clue what’s going on and what they’re talking about.
The angry mob demands to know where the children are, and Davon continues to be confused. He admits he saw one boy, and then one by one they all begin to extend their hands, palms up. (It’s some sort of signal they use to vote.) Davon attempts to get Nora to tell him what’s happening as she drops to her knees in front of him. She begs him to say where he saw the boy, and he confirms it was in the basement.
They drag Davon to a van and sentence him to death for killing children. They order him to get into the van and reveal it will be crushed once he’s inside.
Davon’s memory seems to clear a little amid the chaos, and he pleads with them, again claiming he’s innocent. He thinks it was Amanda who killed the children, and if they do this to him, an innocent man will be put to death for murders he didn’t commit. That will make them all murderers.
He begs Nora for help as they toss him into the van. Once inside he has a flashback of drawings of boys, and that triggers a memory.
Davon recalls being in the basement and seeing boys chained up down there. Amanda found him there and told him he didn’t belong in the basement.
As the bulldozer is about to crush the van, Davon screams out that there’s a boy who’s still alive. Nora orders the execution be put on hold as Davon says the boy is her son, Garen. The execution is still moving forward, despite Nora’s plea for them to stop. The townsfolk think Davon’s lying to save himself.
As she and Davon continue to scream, the bulldozer begins to crush the van.
Nora tries to stop the man operating the bulldozer, and a fight breaks out. The angry mob is divided and fights amongst themselves as Davon sees Arnaud running away.
The next morning Davon returns to the boathouse that he couldn’t get into before and sees Arnaud entering it. He quietly peeks in the door and sees Garen chained up. Arnaud is lecturing Garen about how it was very bad of him to run away but he forgives him.
Arnaud tells Garen that whenever he was scared, his mom would give him a treat. Davon has a flashback of reading in his room when he heard the child through the vent. He visualizes going down to the basement and finding a boy chained up there who was repeating flavors over and over, just like Arnaud is doing to Garen right now. Davon remembers seeing Garen in the basement and trying to free the boy but being thwarted by Amanda who then knocked him out.
Garen got away and Amanda tried to stop him, but Davon fought her off. Davon then handcuffed himself to her so couldn’t go after Garen. They made it into the garage and during the struggle, she faceplanted into a bucket of acid. Her face melted and she died.
Right after she passed away, Arnaud hit Davon in the head with a tire iron.
We get caught up on all the events as we see Davon waking up and then carrying Amanda through the woods. He was looking for help before collapsing.
Snippets of scenes we’ve already been shown flow by, but now we see Garen is in them too. Garen was with Davon right before Davon passed out.
Davon enters the boathouse and confronts Arnaud with a wooden club. Arnaud is armed with a knife as he confesses he knew Davon would be a problem, but because of Nora he was allowed to stay. Davon is stunned and asks why he’s killing kids, and Arnaud reveals he’s saving them from growing up in the world that they now live in now. He parrots his mom and says, “Sometimes murder is mercy.”
Davon realizes Amanda knew what her son was doing. Arnaud gets upset that Davon is bringing up his mother.
Arnaud explains that, at first, Amanda didn’t know but then she caught him. She tried to save his first victim, but they realized they couldn’t let him go because he’d tell. They wound up leaving him in the woods. Apparently, Amanda wouldn’t do anything about it because Arnaud is her son and she’d almost lost him once. She didn’t want to lose him for good.
Davon and Arnaud have made it out of the boathouse and are in the nearby field. He can hear zombies beneath him and that distracts Arnaud just enough for Davon to hit him with the club. Davon then pulls back a piece of wood and exposes two zombie children who’ve been buried beneath it.
Davon screams Nora’s name over and over as Arnaud drops to his knees, begging Davon not to do this. He swears he’ll leave and never come back.
Garen walks outside as Nora and the others come running. Garen tells everyone what Arnaud’s been doing and Arnaud calls Garen a liar. Fortunately, no one believes Arnaud.
Davon calls Arnaud a murderer and addresses the townspeople. “You would’ve killed me. Do you even care? Would you have regretted it when Arnaud killed another one of your children and then you realized that it wasn’t even me?”
Davon tells them they don’t have to live like this. There is still life out there. There is still hope.
Nora isn’t swayed by Davon’s powerful words and slaps Arnaud in the face. One by one the others run up and hit or kick Arnaud.
As Arnaud is being dragged toward the hole, he tries one last time to blame Davon. The men dragging him toss him in with the two zombie boys he killed. He dies a fitting death, being bit by those he murdered.
The most confusing episode of the season ends with Davon walking away and saying in French, “I will see.”
Daniela Nieves (Save Me) and André Dae Kim (Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, Locke & Key) star in Peacock’s Vampire Academy series, based on the bestselling books by Richelle Mead. Premiering on Thursday, September 15, 2022, Vampire Academy is set at St. Vladimir’s Academy, an institution populated by vampires – including the moroi (vampire royalty) – and guarded by dhampirs (half-human/half-vampires). Nieves stars as Lissa Dragomir, the last surviving member of the royal Dragomir bloodline. Kim plays Christian Ozera, a member of vampire royalty whose parents willingly turned into Strigoi (evil vampires).
Fans of Richelle Mead’s books know what to expect from Christian and Lissa’s relationship, while newbies only need to know Christian’s a bit of a bad boy and Lissa’s well respected among the royals. Teamed up for interviews at the 2022 San Diego Comic-Con, Daniela Nieves and André Dae Kim discussed getting into their characters, the source material, and wearing fangs.
Daniela Nieves as Lissa Dragomir and André Dae Kim as Christian Ozera in ‘Vampire Academy’ (Photo by: Peacock)
Daniela Nieves and André Dae Kim Interview:
How much did you know about Vampire Academy before signing on to star in the series?
Daniela Nieves: “Not much. Personally, for me, I feel like I hadn’t even heard of the books before I did it. I just really went into it seeing the sides, the way they were, and the relationships between Rose and Lissa and Christian and Lissa. I just kind of did my take on it. And then after that, I realized it was a book series.
(Laughing) So, I got the book series, read them…I binged the first book in two days. I was obsessed, and I was like, ‘Oh my god, this story of friendship and this vampire world is so incredible.’ I’m so happy to be a part of it.”
André Dae Kim: “I was the same way. It was kind of a general audition and after booking the show I read the first book. I was like, ‘Okay, now I’m a fan. That’s great.’ And now I get to work on this show and be a fan at the same time. So, yeah, it was the same for me.”
Daniela Nieves: “And it was crazy too because after we booked it, I think we all started really feeling like, ‘Oh wait, this is like a thing.’ It got released that we got cast and I was like, ‘Oh, yeah, no big deal.’ And then soon there were like 50 edits of us with like, ‘Dragomir this…,’ and us making out.”
André Dae Kim: “Our faces photoshopped.”
Daniela Nieves: “I was like, ‘Oh, wow, these fans really love these books.’ It just feels like a responsibility and an honor to be like, wow, we are the ones representing that.”
André Dae Kim: “A little bit of a motivation to keep the essence of those characters while we are training.”
Was there anything that was really creepy where you were like, “Now wait a minute – that’s just pushing it too far,” from the fans?
Daniela Nieves: “Oh my god, you know what’s so funny is that we had this scene one time… I wasn’t in it, but I heard about the story and it cracked me up. Jen (Kirby) who plays Alberta, she’s absolutely brilliant, and she had her first scene with the Strigoi. The Strigoi are like the evil vampires and our makeup team that was run by Ana Lozano – who is amazing as well – they really intricately made them so scary that while we were on set it was like, ‘Okay, action!’ and she (jumped) and goes, ‘That’s quite scary, isn’t it?’ She started laughing and she couldn’t get through it because they were just so creepy and scary in person.
They had these black teeth, with the fangs and the red bloodshot eyes, and they are swinging at you too as they are trying to kill you…in the show. So, I’d say the Strigoi were like really scary.”
André Dae Kim: “Were you talking about the show or the fan art?”
Both.
Daniela Nieves: “Oh, like something creepy from the fan art. Oh my god.”
André Dae Kim: “Do you remember that fan edit that we got that was like deep fakes of our faces with the movie – the Vampire Academy movie? That wasn’t creepy; that was so weird to see our faces rendered onto other people. I was like, ‘How do people do that? It’s so crazy.’”
Daniela Nieves: “Or like people would – because obviously in the books she’s blond – so people would photoshop blond hair on me, but it just didn’t suit me at all. It’s like I know y’all want me to be blond so bad, but it just doesn’t look good.’”
‘Vampire Academy’ stars Sisi Stringer, Kieron Moore, Daniela Nieves, and André Dae Kim at the San Diego Comic-Con (Photo by: Todd Williamson/Peacock)
Andre, you’ve been a part of big franchises before. How intimidating is it to be a part of something with a built-in established fan base?
André Dae Kim: “Yeah, it’s an established world too which can be scary, and I felt that way with Star Trek as well. There’s a core fanbase, there are established rules to this world, and coming in as like a newcomer can feel a little bit intimidating. But I’ll give full props to not only our cast but to our writing team Julie (Plec) and Marguerite (MacIntyre) as well because they absolutely made us feel so comfortable and so much like we had a place to be here, to play, but also to collaborate as well. So whatever nerves I had after meeting those two were just wiped away. And after meeting Daniela I was like, ‘Oh good, I’m in good hands.’”
Daniela Nieves: “Same here with meeting him. And, yeah, Julie and Marguerite obviously have done this and they are really great at what they do. I think having that was like a breath of fresh air and they definitely had a vision too. It was just incredible to be along for the ride and see it as well as an actor and be like, ‘Oh my god that’s what this is going to look like! What? This is the church that you guys picked out?!’ They really created a whole world top to bottom which was incredible.”
So how were the teeth?
Daniela Nieves: (Laughing) “I didn’t have to use the teeth too much, but I do use them a little bit. They were really interesting. The mold was that gummy disgusting thing, like when you make retainers – it was that. They just molded it to my canines.
There were a couple of different options, sizes, sharpness, and trying to decide what it would look like. And, ultimately, we went with really sharp options at the end and Julie really helped me with how to do the bite and how to tilt in a way that really looks good on camera and everything. And then when we finally got the final teeth, I guess it was a little too sharp and my feeder was like, ‘Hey just a little less…just a little less pressure.’
I was like, ‘Oh my god am I puncturing you and you’re bleeding out here?’
She was like, ‘No, no, no. It’s fine. It’s fine, just a little less.’
So, I definitely learned how to bite properly so for season two I will do it better.”
André Dae Kim: “You know what? I haven’t gotten a chance to show off my teeth, but I will say the teeth in the show look amazing.”
The vampires have special powers, including the ability to make fire. How do you visualize that and act as though you’re using your characters’ powers?
André Dae Kim: “That’s the great part about working on this show. I really wanted to have a little bit of agency over the magic. I didn’t want it to be just a set motion of set things, so there were scenes that were like everything that I envisioned now in the scene gets played out in the CGI.
I got to play with the fire, I got to throw it up in the air, I get to catch it, and I get to do stuff like that. And it was all allowed by Julie and Marguerite to play around with. I had a little bit of experience like you said with Star Trek and Locke and Key on working with things that weren’t actually there, which can be a little bit difficult because you’re expecting something to be there in front of you and you have to pretend like it is when it’s not. But it’s so much fun. There’s no kid who doesn’t grow up wanting to be a superhero shooting movies. It was a dream come true.”
Daniela Nieves: “I think the elements too…we have this whole selection of (elements) and I think Jeff and them created and showed us the different moves. We created moves for each element and all this stuff. Lissa doesn’t really get to play too much with her elemental magic because she’s not great at it, so I guess that’s part of it. But he (pointing at Andre) did a great job with really owning the fire and making us believe that he really is so good with fire, which is a whole thing of Christian’s is that he’s so amazing at fire. But yeah, it was a lot of fun.”
André Dae Kim: (Laughing) “I’m not like a pyromaniac or whatever. I just really thought about it.”
The two-minute trailer for Paramount+’s 11 Minutes documentary series opens with Country music fans enjoying the 2017 Route 91 Harvest Music Festival in Las Vegas before their joy was erased by a mass shooter. Using interviews with concertgoers, cellphone footage, and other videos, 11 Minutes recalls the horrific mass shooting and its aftermath.
The four-part docuseries was directed by Emmy and Peabody-winning director Jeff Zimbalist (Momentum Generation, The Two Escobars) and features the very first in-depth interview with Jason Aldean. The Country music star was actually on stage when the shooting began.
“When I turned around, my bass player was just looking at me like a deer in the headlights. And my security guy was on stage at that point, telling me to get down, waving me off the stage,” recalled Aldean.
Aldean admits to feeling survivor’s guilt. “It’s hard not to feel a little guilty. I mean, those people were there to support us,” said Aldean.
The documentary is executive produced by Susan Zirinsky, Terence Wrong, Stu Schreiberg, Jeff Zimbalist, and Ashley Hoff. Hoff was one of the concertgoers who was forced to flee as the bullets flew.
“As I ran out of that field, I believe I witnessed some of humanity’s greatest moments … I’ve gotten to hear from many fellow survivors, some of the strongest, bravest, most resilient people I’ve ever met,” stated Hoff.
“It’s important that people know the truth out of respect for those we lost, out of those who were injured, those who are still mentally and physically scarred … that everybody’s spirits and legacies remain intact. That friendships made that night in those 11 minutes were made for a reason,” said SiriusXM radio host and festival emcee Storme Warren.
Warren added: “The story, to me, wasn’t about a shooter. It was about people helping each other.”
11 Minutes is timed to air during the week of the shooting’s fifth anniversary. The shooting took place on October 1, 2017 and the four-part documentary premieres on September 27, 2022 on Paramount+.
Paramount+ released the following description of the documentary:
“The documentary highlights first-person narratives of officers from the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police force, trauma teams at Sunrise Hospital, and concertgoers who all experienced the trauma of this mass-casualty event. Using never-before-seen police bodycam footage and 200 hours of cell phone video, 11 Minutes lets viewers accompany heavily armed officers on a hair-raising mission, as step-by-step they approach the shooter’s hotel room on the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay.
At the heart of 11 Minutes are miraculous stories of survival as ordinary people undertake extraordinary acts to help strangers. The series investigates the legacy of the 11 fateful minutes of gunfire as subjects ask crucial questions about lone-wolf violence, prevention and the humanity that transcends.”
The Rookie: Feds, premieres on September 27, 2022 with an episode titled “Day One.” Niecy Nash-Betts’ character Simone Clark was introduced over two episodes of The Rookie season four, and season one episode one focuses on Simone joining the FBI’s Los Angeles office.
In addition to Niecy Nash-Betts, the season one cast includes Frankie R. Faison (White Chicks) as Christopher “Cutty” Clark, James Lesure (Las Vegas) as Carter Hope, Britt Robertson (Big Sky) as Laura Stensen, Felix Solis (The International) as Matthew Garza, and Kevin Zegers (Transamerica) as Brendon Acres.
Season one episodes air on Tuesdays at 10pm ET/PT.
The “Day One” Plot: Fresh out of the FBI Academy, Simone Clark arrives in Los Angeles and has her sights set on joining Matthew Garza’s newly formed special unit as they investigate the murder of a federal engineer. Garza’s squad includes Carter Hope, a promotion-hungry traditionalist, Laura Stenson, a talented agent in desperate need of a second chance, and Brendon Acres, a former actor who graduated from Quantico with Simone.
On the home front, Simone and Cutty’s father-daughter relationship is put to the test as their opposing opinions about law enforcement come to a head.
Niecy Nash-Betts stars in ‘The Rookie’ spin-off, ‘The Rookie: Feds’ (ABC/Raymond Liu)Niecy Nash-Betts and Felix Solis in ‘The Rookie: Feds’ season 1 episode 1 (ABC/Raymond Liu)Niecy Nash-Betts in season 1 episode 1 (ABC/Raymond Liu)Frankie Faison in season 1 episode 1 (ABC/Raymond Liu)Niecy Nash-Betts as Simone Clark in ‘The Rookie: Feds’ season 1 episode 1, “Day One” (ABC/Raymond Liu)
Scott “Kid Cudi” Mescudi co-created, executive produced, and lends his voice to the lead character in Netflix’s Entergalatic. The original animated special just dropped an official trailer and poster and confirmed a September 30, 2022 premiere date.
The voice cast also includes Jessica Williams, Timothée Chalamet, Ty Dolla $ign, Laura Harrier, and Vanessa Hudgens. In addition, Christopher Abbott, 070 Shake, Jaden Smith, Keith David, Teyana Taylor, Arturo Castro, and Macaulay Culkin lend their voices to the special.
Ian Edelman and Maurice Williams wrote the animated comedy, and serve as executive producers along with co-creator Kenya Barris, Karina Manashil, Fletcher Moules, and Dennis Cummings. Moules also directs.
Netflix released the following description of Entergalatic:
Scott “Kid Cudi” Mescudi and Kenya Barris join forces to present the television event Entergalatic, an original, immersive, animated story about a young artist named Jabari — voiced by Mescudi — as he attempts to balance love and success. Finding the latter brings Jabari a step closer to the former, when moving into his dream apartment introduces him to his new neighbor, photographer it-girl Meadow — voiced by Jessica Williams.
An explosion of art, music, and fashion, Entergalatic takes place in the only city that can handle all three: New York.
Julian Jones, Milly Alcock, and Fabien Frankel in ‘House of the Dragon’ season 1 episode 4 (Photograph by Ollie Upton / HBO)
HBO’s House of the Dragon season one episode four tests fans loyalty to #TeamRhaenyra and finally allows Alicent to show a little personality. Airing on September 11, 2022, “King of the Narrow Sea” focuses on key relationships and the politics of sitting on the Iron Throne. Episode four also serves to confirm what’s going on between Princess Rhaenyra and her uncle isn’t PG-rated.
Episode four begins with Princess Rhaenyra (Milly Alcock) listening to speeches delivered by elderly men and boys who are seeking her hand. She’s unimpressed, fidgety, and barely conceals a laugh as a young boy from House Blackwood attempts to win her over while being heckled by another potential suitor, a lord from House Bracken. (There’s no love lost between those two Houses.)
Swords are drawn and Rhaenyra leaves the room, all pretense at patience over as a fight breaks out between suitors. Blackwood emerges victorious.
Rhaenyra orders Ser Criston Cole (Fabien Frankel) to send instructions to ready the ship. She’s eager to return to King’s Landing and end this ridiculous pageant early.
On the ship, she seeks Criston’s opinion about how her father will take her dismissing all suitors and returning two months early. He declines to answer just as Daemon’s dragon, Caraxes, deliberately hits the ship before flying on to King’s Landing.
King Viserys (Paddy Considine) is seated on the Iron Throne as everyone gathers for the dramatic return of Prince Daemon. Princess Rhaenyra shadows Daemon (Matt Smith) as he approaches the King, and Daemon’s stopped by Lord Commander Ser Harrold Westerling (Graham McTavish) before he gets too close. Daemon presents his brother with a weapon to add to the throne.
Viserys wonders why he’s wearing a crown and Daemon explains he’s been named King of the Narrow Sea. “But I know that there is only one true King, Your Grace,” he says, kneeling. He gives his crown and the Stepstones to King Viserys.
Daemon confirms Lord Corlys Velaryon has returned home and there’s no one guarding the Stepstones.
Viserys accepts the crown and commands his brother to rise. They hug and all assembled applaud. Viserys admits the realm owes Daemon a great debt.
Later, a feast is laid out outside and the mood is festive. Viserys and Daemon joke about who was their mother’s favorite, with Viserys conceding he was never a great warrior. Princess Rhaenyra congratulates her uncle as Viserys and Daemon laugh at the Queen’s suggestion Daemon should view the new tapestries.
A few stern looks and a quick exchange indicate King Viserys isn’t happy Rhaenyra cut her tour short.
Rhaenyra separates herself from the celebration and Queen Alicent (Emily Carey) joins her for a quiet chat. They discuss the “tour” and Alicent reminds her that it’s rare for women to get a choice of who to marry. Rhaenyra says these men aren’t wooing her; they simply want her name and Valyrian blood. Still, Alicent thinks it’s romantic. Rhaenyra is cruel when she suggests it’s not romantic to be imprisoned in a castle and forced to squeeze out heirs.
Rhaenyra realizes her words have struck their mark and lightens the tone. She asks how angry her father is and Alicent admits he’s upset she shunned everyone after he arranged such a lengthy tour. Alicent confesses she doesn’t have many friends now, and Rhaenyra takes her hand and assures her she’s missed her too.
Milly Alcock and Matt Smith in ‘House of the Dragon’ season 1 episode 4 (Photograph by Ollie Upton / HBO)
Next, Rhaenyra has a private chat with Daemon and wonders about his real motivation for returning to King’s Landing. Daemon claims he needs the comforts of home, but Rhaenyra isn’t convinced that’s why he’s back. They compliment each other on maturing over the last four years, and Rhaenyra confesses she doesn’t like the idea of being sold off to whatever lord has the biggest castle.
Daemon smiles and reminds her there are worse things to be sold for. Plus, once she weds, she can do as she likes. It’s strictly a political arrangement. “You cannot live your life in fear, or you will forsake the best parts of it,” says Daemon.
Daemon comments on his dislike for his own wife and has no intention of impregnating her, noting a child probably wouldn’t grow in such a hostile environment.
The small council meets and Princess Rhaenyra is seated at the table with the men, a promotion from being just the king’s cupbearer. The topic is the Sea Snake’s continuing wounded pride over Lady Laena being passed over for Alicent. Grand Maester Mellos (David Horovitz) describes Lord Corlys as an overly proud man and thinks they should try to fix the slight. The Hand, Ser Otto Hightower (Rhy Ifans), interjects to reveal Corlys is working with the Sealord of Braavos. Corlys is offering a marriage between Lady Laena and the Sealord’s son.
If they wed, then that alliance with the Free Cities would mean King Viserys would need to seek his own marriage pact.
Elsewhere, Alicent tries to soothe her crying baby while Rhaenyra heads to bed, with her door guarded by Ser Criston.
Rhaenyra goes through a bag of clothes that have been left in her room and discovers a rolled-up note. It’s a map of her room with an X marking a spot on the wall next to her bed. She moves the furniture away and pushes open a secret door. She smiles and then disguises herself in the shabby clothes and a beanie from the bag.
She explores the secret passageway and discovers Daemon waiting for her. He’s wearing a cloak as they head off into the city. They walk among the townsfolk, some playing music, others having sex, and all having a good time. They’re unrecognizable and one man even calls Rhaenyra a boy as they make their way down the streets.
Meanwhile, Viserys bathes as Alicent orders his attendants to leave so she can see to her husband. He’s missing two fingers now and has other sores on his body that need caring for.
Back out on the streets, Daemon and Rhaenyra watch a play and hear the crowd boo when her name is mentioned as the heir. The crowd roars at the reenactment of Prince Aegon’s birth. An actress playing Rhaenyra sits on the throne (a toilet) as the narrator asks the crowd if they believe Rhaenyra would be a powerful queen or if she’d be feeble. Of course, the crowd answers feeble, and the narrator points out Aegon has two things Rhaenyra doesn’t: a conqueror’s name and a cock.
Daemon’s been observing Rhaenyra during this show. She claims not to care how the people feel, and her uncle advises her that she should if she expects to rule them someday.
They continue their stroll and Rhaenyra takes food without paying and runs off, enjoying the thrill of being incognito. Daemon follows, not bothering to run but at a good pace. Rhaenyra bumps into a member of the City Watch who recognizes her as the princess. He sends her on her way but not before advising her that next time she won’t be so lucky.
Daemon and Rhaenyra share a laugh as they continue to walk the streets.
The hour’s late when Viserys sends for Alicent. It’s apparent she doesn’t want to join him in bed. However, she does his bidding as an obedient queen.
Daemon takes Rhaenyra into a brothel, and she looks intrigued by all the naked people. He leads her into a room full of men and women having sex and explains this place is where people come to take what they want.
They continue to watch these strangers engaging in sex as Daemon says, “F**king is a pleasure, you see, for the woman as it is the man.” Daemon’s pleasure at the moment it seems would be to have sex with his niece.
They kiss as Daemon tells his beautiful niece that marriage is a duty, but “that doesn’t stop us from doing what we want and f**king who we want.” (Remember, the Targaryens have a history of incest, believing they need to keep their bloodline pure.)
The “marriage is a duty” point’s driven home by a shot of Alicent smiling at Viserys when he meets her eyes while having sex. When he looks away her smile quickly disappears, and her face becomes a blank slate once again.
Lust overpowers both Daemon and Rhaenyra, and they move into each other’s bodies. Daemon has his niece against the wall, back to him, as they give themselves over to their carnal feelings. (We all knew this was coming, right?) She turns around and stares into his eyes, playfully attempting to kiss him. Suddenly Daemon pulls away, pounds the wall next to Rhaenyra’s head, and leaves.
Rhaenyra’s confused as she clutches her shirt closed in front of her.
She hurries home, running past a young boy who falls into step behind her.
Alicent lies in bed staring at a rat on the bedpost while Viserys sleeps. The sheets are pulled back and the open sores on his back look painful and grotesque.
Rhaenyra makes it back to the castle and storms through the bedroom door past Ser Criston. He’s shocked to see her looking disheveled and she steals his helmet to keep him from alerting the lord commander. After she lures him into her room to retrieve his helmet, she shuts the door and kisses him. Criston stops her from taking off her shirt but allows her to lead him toward her bed.
Rhaenyra begins to remove his armor, starting with his arms. He won’t meet her eyes until she forces him to by bending down and staring into them, inches from his face. They kiss, and this time he remains still.
Rhaenyra continues to strip him of his armor. He’s conflicted and uncertain whether he should give in but, ultimately, the temptation and his urges are too strong to deny.
Criston stands before her naked, and Rhaenyra quickly loses her own minimal clothing. He’s gentle and slow as he places her on the bed. She rolls on top and is in ecstasy, and they continue making love while sitting up.
Paddy Considine and Rhys Ifans in ‘House of the Dragon’ season 1 episode 4 (Photograph by Ollie Upton / HBO)
Ser Otto’s awakened by a messenger sent by the White Worm. The boy who followed Rhaenyra speaks to Otto.
Daemon wakes in a bed in the brothel, with Mysaria standing above him. He asks if he’s her prisoner and she claims she’s his protector and that she’s not a common whore. The messenger boy interrupts and hands Mysaria (aka White Worm) money from Otto.
She tells Daemon to pay for the room on his way out.
The following morning Otto meets with King Viserys to share “discomforting” news about Rhaenyra. He reports the princess was in a pleasure house “engaged in behaviors unbecoming of a maiden” with her uncle. Viserys demands specifics and Otto spits out that they were seen coupling.
Viserys refuses to believe it and orders the messenger to be brought to him. Otto refuses to reveal his source and adds that several servants saw her leaving disguised as a page in the dark of night. Viserys is upset he had Rhaenyra spied upon and believes Otto so wants his own heir on the throne that he’s willing to destroy Rhaenyra’s reputation.
It’s only after Otto leaves that Alicent makes her presence known.
Ser Criston is uneasy in Rhaenyra’s presence as he explains he has a message from Queen Alicent.
Rhaenyra meets Alicent in the godswoods and Alicent demands to know what happened the previous evening. Alicent reveals her father accused Rhaenyra of f**king Daemon in a pleasure house.
Rhaenyra pauses and her lip quivers before responding, “That is a vile accusation.” (Rhaenyra’s quite the little actress.)
Alicent believes it’s possible since the Targaryens have queer customs. Rhaenyra begs her to believe she’s innocent and that she shouldn’t believe this gossip. Alicent reveals her father was told it happened and Rhaenyra is shocked. “To question my virtue is an act of treason,” says Rhaenyra.
Alicent admits she doesn’t know who told her dad and that she only overheard her father telling the King about what happened.
Rhaenyra explains she drank in several taverns and that although it was late, she remained with Daemon because he was her escort. They watched a show and went to a brothel, but Rhaenyra claims she was only a spectator. She adds that Daemon continued drinking and left her for a whore.
“I should have known better,” says Rhaenyra, adding, “Daemon never touched me.” Rhaenyra’s really laying it on thick and even swears upon the memory of her mother that nothing happened.
Alicent reminds her she needs to be careful with her reputation so that she doesn’t ruin everything. Rhaenyra claims she regrets what happened.
The Lord Commander and two members of the Kingsguard drag Daemon before King Viserys. Alone, Viserys asks about Rhaenyra and then delivers a swift kick while claiming Daemon defiled Rhaenyra. Daemon doesn’t think it matters since they did the same thing at Rhaenyra’s age.
Viserys doesn’t see it that way and Daemon, who should have kept his mouth shut, further enrages his brother by adding, “Better her first experience be with me than some whore.”
Viserys can’t believe Daemon ruined Rhaenyra. No lord will want her now, and Viserys suggests he should just disinherit her – just as he did Daemon. “I have spent a lifetime defending you, but your heart is even blacker than I thought,” growls Viserys.
Daemon reminds Viserys that when he offered up his crown, he promised he could have what he wants. He wants to marry Rhaenyra, in the tradition of their House. It doesn’t matter that he’s already wed; Aegon the Conqueror had two wives.
“You are no conqueror! You are a plague sent to destroy me!” says Viserys, holding his brother pinned to the floor and placing a blade to his neck.
Daemon promises to restore their House to its proper glory with Rhaenyra as his wife. Viserys believes Daemon lusts for the Iron Throne, not Rhaenyra. He orders Daemon to return to his wife and the Vale, and to be gone from his sight for good.
“As you wish, brother,” says Daemon to Viserys’ retreating back.
Later, Alicent asks if Viserys has talked to Rhaenyra and he admits he hasn’t. Alicent doesn’t think Rhaenyra is a liar but does believe Daemon lies more often than he speaks the truth. Viserys asks why Daemon would confess to this and Alicent believes he did so to further degrade his brother.
Whatever happened, Viserys is sure Rhaenyra isn’t innocent. Both she and Daemon are restless and chaotic. However, Alicent believes that because Rhaenyra swore to her that she’s still a maiden, then she is in fact still a virgin.
Paddy Considine and Milly Alcock in ‘House of the Dragon’ season 1 episode 4 (Photograph by Ollie Upton / HBO)
Rhaenyra’s the next to be brought before the King. (Ser Criston and Rhaenyra exchange a look before he shuts the door.) The conversation starts off calm and friendly, and they discuss Aegon the Conqueror’s dagger. It was Aenar’s before it was Aegon’s, and before that Viserys doesn’t know whose it was.
Before Aegon’s death, the Valyrian pyromancer hid his song in the steel. The fire makes the inscription appear and it reads: “From my blood come the prince that was promised. And his will be the song of ice and fire.”
Viserys reminds Rhaenyra that as his heir he’s given her the burden of this knowledge. That knowledge is larger than the throne, larger than her desires. Viserys doesn’t care about the truth; he cares that she’s damaged her reputation. Rhaenyra can’t believe that if she was a male, she could father bastards and no one would care. But as a woman, she’s not allowed to do what she pleases.
Despite what happened, King Viserys is not going to remove her as heir. He doesn’t want to sew further division. Instead, she’s to marry Laenor Velaryon, the son of the Sea Snake. Viserys calls her his political headache and with her wedding to Velaryon, the power of their Houses will be too strong for any force to want to take on.
Rhaenyra wonders what he’ll do about Ser Otto since he will do whatever it takes to put Aegon on the throne. Unity can’t be accomplished when The Hand is so self-interested. Viserys must know his daughter’s speaking the truth but seems blind to what The Hand is doing behind the scenes.
Rhaenyra agrees to marry Laenor Velaryon but first, he must deal with Ser Otto.
Viserys summons Ser Otto and recalls the death of his healthy father, Baelon the Brave, Rider of Vhagar, Heir to the Iron Throne, five days after being named The Hand to King Jaehaerys. Baelon’s swift death opened up the position and Ser Otto stepped in.
Otto claims it was his duty to take on the position. Viserys’ tone turns accusatory as he acknowledges Otto taught him how to be king, but those five days are eating at him. In those five days, Otto went from being just another man in King Jaehaerys’ court to the second most powerful man.
“I wonder, how long did it take you to choose yourself over your King?” asks Viserys.
Viserys calls Alicent a calculated distraction placed there by Otto. Viserys describes Otto’s judgment as compromised and no longer aligning with the realm. Otto insists he’s loyal, but Viserys strips him of his title while saying, “The Crown and the realm both owe you a debt that can never be repaid.”
Viserys no longer trusts his judgment. Otto looks stunned.
The episode ends with Grand Maester Mellos paying Rhaenyra a visit to deliver a tea that will rid her of any unwanted consequences. The tea was brewed at King Viserys’ instruction.
The trailer for Marvel Studios’ first special presentation opens with a warning: “This Halloween you can’t escape the shock, the terror of Werewolf By Night.” The teaser premiered during the D23 Expo 2022 and provided the first good luck at Gael Garcia Bernal (Station Eleven) as the titular character, revealed in glorious black and white.
Laura Donnelly (Outlander, The Nevers) co-stars as Elsa Bloodstone who, in the closing seconds of the trailer, appears to be about to become a meal for a very hungry werewolf. Oscar-winning composer Michael Giacchino (Up) takes the director’s seat for his first major project after helming two shorts.
Werewolf By Night will premiere on Disney+ on October 7, 2022. In addition to announcing the premiere date and dropping the trailer, Marvel Studios released a still, a poster, and a photo from the D23 panel.
The official trailer for Disney+’s National Treasure: Edge of History series begins with Sadusky (Harvey Keitel), a familiar face from the National Treasure films, passing along a clue to a treasure of utmost importance. The tie-in to the Nicolas Cage-led action-adventure films doesn’t stop there as the series was created by Cormac Wibberley and Marianne Wibberley, screenwriters of National Treasure (2004) and National Treasure: Book of Secrets (2007).
The official trailer debuted during the D23 Expo 2022 accompanied by the announcement the series will premiere on December 14, 2022.
The Wibberleys and Jerry Bruckheimer, Jonathan Littman, Jon Turteltaub, and KristieAnne Reed executive produce. Writer Rick Muirragui and director Mira Nair also executive produce.
Disney+ released the following description of National Treasure: Edge of History:
The series focuses on a young heroine, Jess (Lisette Olivera), a brilliant and resourceful DREAMer who embarks on the adventure of a lifetime to uncover the truth about her family’s mysterious past and save a lost Pan-American treasure. During the panel, executive producers Cormac and Marianne Wibberley shared their vision for the reboot of the smash hit franchise and how incredibly thrilled they are to showcase this dream cast for the series, which also includes Academy and Tony Award-winning actress Catherine Zeta-Jones. It was previously announced that Justin Bartha will guest star in the series, reprising his role as Riley Poole.
In addition to Olivera, the series also stars Zuri Reed (Flatbush Misdemeanors) as Tasha, Jess’ ride-or-die friend who joins the treasure hunt but is forced to reevaluate her belief system to help her best friend; Antonio Cipriano (Jagged Little Pill on Broadway) as Oren, a lovable but self-obsessed goofball with an encyclopedic knowledge of conspiracy theories that attempts to win back Tasha’s affections; and Jordan Rodrigues (Lady Bird) as Ethan, Jess’ childhood best friend who has loved her since the day they met.
Jake Austin Walker (Rectify) plays Liam, a swoon-worthy struggling musician, with a permanent chip on his shoulder, who comes from a long line of treasure hunters; Catherine Zeta-Jones (Chicago) is Billie, a badass billionaire, black-market antiquities expert and treasure hunter who lives by her own code; and Lyndon Smith (Parenthood) plays FBI Agent Ross, a dogged investigator who begins to realize there’s a greater conspiracy at hand.
In the official trailer for Lucasfilm’s The Mandalorian season three we see Baby Yoda…I know his name’s Grogu but he’ll always be Baby Yoda to me…and his adopted dad heading off on new adventures. The Book of Boba Fett‘s best episodes included the little green dude, and by the end of that miniseries, Baby Yoda had chosen Mando over continuing his Jedi training, setting up the plot for season three.
The upcoming season’s trailer reveals Mando’s been booted from the Mandalorian and is anxious to prove he’s still worthy. The trailer teases lots of action, lots of bonding scenes between Baby Yoda and Mando, and the return of Bo-Katan.
Pedro Pascal returns to lead the cast in the title role. Katee Sackhoff reprises her role as Bo-Katan, Amy Sedaris is back as the scene-stealing Peli Motto, Giancarlo Esposito returns as Moff Gideon, Carl Weathers returns as Greef Karga, and Emily Swallow’s back as the Armorer. Dave Filoni, Jon Favreau, Rick Famuyiwa, Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy, and Colin Wilson executive produce. Karen Gilchrist and Carrie Beck are co-executive producers.
The trailer debuted during the D23 Expo 2022, with Lucasfilm releasing a brief synopsis for the upcoming season set to premiere in 2023 on Disney+. Lucasfilm also shared five new season three photos.
“In the third season of The Mandalorian, the Mandalorian and Grogu have been reunited and continue their journey through the lawless galaxy.”
