Paramount+’s animated Star Trek series, Star Trek: Prodigy, has been renewed for a second season after posting the best viewership numbers of any original animated series on the streaming service. Season one kicked off on October 28, 2021 and will take a short break after its upcoming November 18th episode. The remaining episodes of the first half of season one will begin airing on January 6, 2022.
Season one’s second half, consisting of 10 new episodes, will arrive in 2022.
The animated series’ voice cast includes Kate Mulgrew (Hologram Kathryn Janeway), Brett Gray (Dal), Ella Purnell (Gwyn), Rylee Alazraqui (Rok-Tahk), Angus Imrie (Zero), Jason Mantzoukas (Jankom Pog), Dee Bradley Baker (Murf), John Noble (The Diviner), and Jimmi Simpson (Drednok).
Kevin Hageman and Dan Hageman developed the series and serve as showrunners and executive producers. Director and executive producer Ben Hibon is a co-showrunner. Additional executive producers include Alex Kurtzman, Heather Kadin, Aaron Baiers, Katie Krentz, Rod Roddenberry, and Trevor Roth.
The series is produced by CBS Studios’ Eye Animation Productions, Nickelodeon Animation Studio, Secret Hideout, and Roddenberry Entertainment.
The Plot, Courtesy of Paramount+:
Star Trek: Prodigy is the first Star Trek series aimed at younger audiences, and follows a motley crew of young aliens who must figure out how to work together while navigating a greater galaxy, in search of a better future. These six young outcasts know nothing about the ship they have commandeered – a first in the history of the Star Trek franchise – but over the course of their adventures together, they will each be introduced to Starfleet and the ideals it represents.
ABC’s first batch of performers confirmed for the 2021 American Music Awards includes six-time AMA winners BTS and AMA winner Megan Thee Stallion. They’re expected to perform their chart-topping collaboration “Butter” during this year’s star-studded broadcast, marking the televised world premiere performance of the single.
BTS previously performed on the 2020 AMAs and is competing this year in the Artist of the Year, Favorite Pop Song, and Favorite Pop Duo or Group categories. Megan Thee Stallion is up for three AMAs this year including Favorite Trending Song, Favorite Female Hip-Hop Artist, and Favorite Hip-Hop Album.
This year’s AMA nomination leader Olivia Rodrigo will take the stage for the first time. And two-time AMA winner Bad Bunny is returning to the AMA stage to perform “Lo Siento BB:/.”
Cardi B will make her hosting debut with the 2021 American Music Awards. The show will be broadcast live from Los Angeles on Sunday, November 21st at 8pm ET/PT (tape-delayed on the West Coast).
The AMAs are voted on by fans, with voting still open via TikTok.
About the American Music Awards:
“Nominees are based on key fan interactions – as reflected on the Billboard charts – including streaming, album sales, song sales and radio airplay. These measurements are tracked by Billboard and its data partner MRC Data, and cover the time period Sept. 25, 2020, through Sept. 23, 2021.”
Christina Ricci as Misty, Steven Krueger as Ben Scott, Samantha Hanratty as Teen Misty, Tawny Cypress as Taissa, Jasmin Savoy Brown as Teen Taissa, Juliette Lewis as Natalie, Sophie Thatcher as Teen Natalie, Melanie Lynskey as Shauna, Sophie Nélisse as Shauna, Ella Purnell as Teen Jackie and Warren Kole as Jeff Sadecki in ‘Yellowjackets’ (Photo credit: Brendan Meadows/SHOWTIME)
It is everyone’s worst fear: a plane crash — in a remote wilderness — for 19 months. In the new drama series Yellowjackets, a female championship soccer team, known as the Yellowjackets, are rescued 19 months after their plane crashed in a remote frozen wilderness. Those 19 months were literally Hell on Earth. The teens would be tested to the brink of their abilities to survive and it left scars in their psyche that would begin to slowly erupt 25 years later when the buried sins of their past would be resurrected.
There is a saying that “you cannot escape your past” and, in Yellowjackets, that is the curse for those who survived those brutal 19 months.
Humans are born innocent and free but, as our lives unfold, the choices we make throughout our lives is what determines our ultimate fate. For the Yellowjackets survivors, their individual and collective choices during those 19 months haunts them. Terror is an emotion you feel when you are powerless and, for each of them, the secret of how they survived terrorizes them, as one day the prices for the sins of their past will need to be paid.
From the harrowing true story of the Donner Party to the fictional televised series of Lost, stories of survival after an airplane crash invokes a visceral reaction because it makes your hair stand on end and you can just feel the chills crawling down your spine. Being cut-off from the civilized world that we live in which has phones and internet for communication, cars for transportation, homes with electricity and running water, and grocery stores to provide sustenance, human nature reverts to its base instinct of doing anything and everything to survive — and because survival in the wilderness triggers the most base instincts to survive, first and foremost, food is essential. Cannibalism is a horrifying concept in our civilized world, but when cut-off from all that makes humans civilized, the base instincts of survival take over.
In the 1955 book The Lord of the Flies by William Golding, it illustrated how easily a group of teen boys adopted an almost animalistic behavior in response to such a predicament.
Everyone says that they would never resort to cannibalism to survive. But one would never really know until they were actually put in that situation. Yellowjackets dares to share the story of teen girls who were placed in a survival situation and they did everything they felt they had to survive. It is half a story of the harrowing circumstances and choices that those girls made to survive, and half the aftermath after they were rescued.
For a time, it is easy for one to deny and try to forget those 19 terrifying months. Some will rewrite their survival in their minds in order to cope with who they had become. Some will turn to substance abuse to aid in forgetting the unforgettable. And some will embrace their awakened inner-beast and use that ruthlessness to carve out a new life for themselves in society. But the choices that each makes only placates and buries the truth for a time.
Yellowjackets dares to see where the survivors ended up 25 years later, and it is not as idyllic, peaceful, or as each hoped. It strains their psyches and inner-selves leaving them frayed and brittle. Thus, it was only a matter of time before one of them snapped.
Sophie Thatcher, Pearl Amanda Dickson, Jane Widdop, Jasmin Savoy Brown, Liv Hewson, Sophie Nélisse, Courtney Eaton, and Ella Purnell in ‘Yellowjackets’ episode 1 (Photo credit: Paul Sarkis/SHOWTIME)
During a special Q&A panel during the 2021 Summer Tour for the Television Critic’s Association, the cast and producers of Yellowjackets candidly shared what it was like for them to bring this “ticking-time-bomb” tale of the burden and toll that buried secrets take on survivors years later. When asked what was the appeal of tackling such damaged characters thrown into such extreme circumstances was like, they shared:
MELANIE LYNSKEY [adult Shauna]: “I honestly just was so excited to read something that was so different. You read a lot of things that are different, for the sake of being different or trying to be edgy. There was a genuine sort of edge to this. There was something very tense in the writing, and I really loved [that] it was so female-centered. Every single one of the women was so well drawn and interesting . . . . They were all unique individuals. . . . I really loved how the story really got to the heart of female relationships. . . . It was really complicated and really ground in something that I believed in my heart. . . . It has been a topic that I’ve been really fascinated in exploring.”
SOPHIE NELISSE [teen Shauna]: “I think we felt very scared, and it really helped us get into our characters’ bodies and motions. . . The [teens] are kind of put in a situation where you get to know yourself on a deeper level . . . . I think we have all imagined what it would be like to be facing a life and death situation, and it brings out the worst in us, but also the best in us. I think it is that conflict that is really interesting. We all think we know ourselves, until we are put in this situation. Just to see how far these women will go, and how they have to rely on each other but are also kind of against each other, is just a very interesting thing to do. I loved my character . . . . I loved how kind of shy she is. She is an introvert. She is kind of a spectator and the observer. But then inside of her a slow burn, that will develop as the show goes on, and you can see how she’ll start to speak for herself and have a voice and find her voice.”
JULIETTE LEWIS [adult Natalie]: “I am always interested in dichotomies or contrasts and all these multilayered problems within a human being. I just loved the way my character is, on the surface, faking her way through life . . . . [She had] single-purposed mission to go home and find out a few things. . . . I have always been attracted to what I call the ‘primal energies’ and ‘high stakes’ genre or dramas . . . . That is so fun. . . . I always had this empathy as a kid for hardship in others. And when I would look at people and imagine their worlds, I just had a sensitivity, oddly, to pain and emotionality. I don’t know why, but I had it in myself. . . . It is a transference.”
SOPHIE THATCHER [teen Natalie]: “It was a really immersive experience. . . . There was just like this adrenaline-rush that all of us had. For Natalie, I really just admire her grit and her resilience, and how from the very beginning she just remains true to herself, and her lack of filter. It is been interesting, within these past four months I have found myself trying to incorporate a lot of those qualities into who I am. And it is cool, because I get to live — like half of my time is living that on camera — it is empowering.
And I think that says a lot about the script and how rich and complex Natalie is. She is incredibly layered. She has this sensitivity that is not really brought out until a couple episodes in. And I don’t think anybody was expecting that side. She has so much lightness in her that she is really hiding and masking. She is a teenager. But she is really, really complex. And she has made a profound impact on me, which is rare.”
CHRISTINA RICCI [adult Misty]: “I felt like a character, like this, who is so socially inept and so emotional and emotive, but unable to really mold those emotions to fit with other people and to be socially successful. Once that person is an adult and they are thrown out there, and the pressures of — and unprotected by childhood and sort of the structure of school and all that sort of stuff, and parents, what happens to them.
And I feel like my Misty is sort of the Misty who has been squeezed and punished by life — from the time that they were rescued until we see her. So my image is more sort of that functioning, getting through with the passive-aggression and the artifice. Because I feel like artifice is something you learn as a coping mechanism in adulthood. So that is sort of my thing. If you take young Misty and you just like squeeze and punish her for years, and what comes out? And I decided it was passive-aggression.”
SAMANTHA HANRATTY [teen Misty]: “She is such a fun role to play. I think it is so nice on Episode 2 [that] we get to see kind of this little glimpse. Because then it even shows more of an arc of like who she was, who she is, and then who she has become. It is definitely somebody who has been bullied, and everything that is who she is, and wants to be accepted and wants people to like her so badly. To constantly be hit with rejection over and over again. But she is such almost like an optimistic like, ‘No, I’m not going to let it get me down. I am not going let it get me down.’
It is just fun to see when it does start to break her. . . . [After the crash] for the first time ever, she is hearing people talk behind her back, and it is not a negative thing. It is a positive thing. And it is thrilling and exciting, and she has purpose. Then she makes a decision to continue that purpose for as long as she can. And yeah, I don’t think that she feels bad about it. It is exciting and it is liberating and thrilling.”
ELLA PURNELL [teen Jackie]: “What I like about Jackie is that it is all ‘front.’ You don’t see that. Nobody knows that. Her peers don’t see that until [later]. The stark contrast between Jackie is social standing between Episode 1 and Episode 2 is amazing. I loved playing it. I think that when you take these kids out of the society that they’re in . . . . Who is the popular one? Who is the nerd? They are all athletes. But that kind of hierarchy system that they’ve created and participated in. And you put them in this unbelievable life or death scenario. . . . You can surprise yourself in so many different ways, because the true essence of who you are comes out.
And I think what is interesting for Jackie — it is flight or fight or freeze. And Jackie is a freeze person. As much as she wants to take control, as much as she wants to rally the troops, she cannot get her body and her legs and her brain to move. And that is something beyond your control at this very tender age. I think that is extremely frustrating for her — that she doesn’t know where she stands. She loses her footing. She has no idea who to be out here. Whether she picks that up or doesn’t pick that up throughout the rest of season, you will find out.”
TAWNY CYPRESS [adult Taissa]: “I would say practicality is her strong point. She is definitely most comfortable at the helm. And as far as the genres go, she seems to have her entire life together. Everything is on the up and up, and then of course the mysteries start happening, and all of the sudden we are in a completely different feeling for the show. . . . It is always fun to play people who crack a little bit. Like when she had the scene with Shauna in the pilot. You can see that she is not the one in charge. And that drew me to her. Because it is easy to play somebody powerful, but it is more fun to play somebody who just thinks they are powerful.”
JASMIN SAVOY BROWN [teen Taissa]: “I think that is one of Taissa is strongest points — but also weaknesses — is this incredible competence and this incredible brain and ability to see the world for what it is. Because that offers solutions, but it doesn’t offer a lot of comfort, at least not on a deeper emotional level. Tawny and I — I’m a nerd for the Enneagram, so I did a lot of Enneagram research and presented her with what I think Taissa is Enneagram Number is, and everything that means — and we discussed that. It was a really good tool for me, and she is a very practical person.”
ASHLEY LYLE [Executive Producer/Showrunner]: “It is about how these girls were able to really work together as a group, and then to see how that might really start to fall apart and shatter over the course of a season. And as I think Sophie Nélisse said: the circumstances bring out both the best and the worst in them.”
KARYN KUSAMA [Director]: “[The] larger question that the series is asking, which is: What are human beings capable of? To go from keggers and carpools and winning a soccer match in high school, to something so extreme that is meant to happen — and 19 months later, it begs the question of: what are people capable of?”
Ultimately, that is what terrifies us most. The question of: what are you capable of? What would you do to survive? The answer to these questions haunts everyone. Human beings are capable of anything and everything. That is the horror stories that we see each and every day in the news and throughout history. Survival drives us to the brink of our humanity. Is it human to strive to survive — no matter what the cost? Emotionally? Physically? Mentally? Ethically and morally? The secondary question then becomes: can you live with it? That answer is even more scary. For many, the answer is: No. And then for some, the answer is: Yes. Think about it: What would you do? And can you live with it? These are the nightmares we contemplate and live with. To live is to survive, but only as far as you can live within the aftermath.
Yellowjackets is a 10-episode series, which premieres on Sunday, November 14, 2021 on Showtime. Yellowjackets was brought to screen by co-creators, co-executive producers and co-showrunners Ashley Lyle and Bart Nickerson along with co-executive producer and co-showrunner Jonathan Lisco, and executive producer/director Karyn Kusama. The series stars Melanie Lynskey, Tawny Cypress, Christina Ricci, Juliette Lewis, Sophie Nélisse, Jasmin Savoy Brown, Sophie Thatcher, Sammi Hanratty, and Ella Purnell.
The team is called to handle a crisis at a cable news station on CBS’s S.W.A.T. season five episode six. Directed by Cherie Dvorak from a script by Sarah Alderson, episode six – “Crisis Actor” – will air on Friday, November 12, 2021 at 8pm ET/PT.
The season five cast is led by Shemar Moore as Daniel “Hondo” Harrelson. Alex Russell stars as Jim Street, Jay Harrington plays David “Deacon” Kay, Lina Esco is Christina “Chris” Alonso, Kenny Johnson is Dominique Luca, David Lim is Victor Tan, and Patrick St. Esprit stars as Commander Robert Hicks.
David DeSantos recurs as Rodrigo Sanchez and Rochelle Aytes recurs as Nichelle.
“Crisis Actor” Plot: When armed gunmen storm the set of a controversial cable news show that promotes conspiracy theories, the team races to prevent a hostage situation from escalating on live TV. Also, Chris supports Street as he prepares for his mother’s funeral.
Series Description, Courtesy of CBS:
Inspired by the television series and the feature film, S.W.A.T. stars Shemar Moore as a former Marine and locally born and raised S.W.A.T. sergeant, tasked to run a specialized tactical unit that is the last stop in law enforcement in Los Angeles. Torn between loyalty to where he was raised and allegiance to his brothers in blue, Daniel “Hondo” Harrelson strives to bridge the divide between his two worlds. However, Hondo is forced to question his professional identity when he is demoted from Squad Leader after going public to expose racial corruption within the LAPD.
The other members of Hondo’s elite S.W.A.T. unit include David “Deacon” Kay, an experienced S.W.A.T. officer and dedicated family man who always puts the team first; Christina “Chris” Alonso, a skilled officer and the team’s canine trainer; Dominique Luca, an expert driver who gets them in and out of high risk situations; newlywed Victor Tan, who started in the LAPD Hollywood Division and uses his confidential informants in the community to help the team; and Jim Street, the team’s cocky newest member. Responsible for the management of all Metro Division S.W.A.T. units is Commander Robert Hicks, a senior LAPD official with the Special Operations Bureau.
With Hondo no longer leading the charge, these dedicated men and women face an uncertain future as they bravely put themselves at risk to protect their community and save lives.
Kevin Costner in ‘Yellowstone’ season 4 episode 2 (Photo Courtesy of Paramount Network’s Social Media)
Paramount Network’s Yellowstone season four episode two finds John (Kevin Costner) taking chances with his recovery by saddling up and going for a ride, alone. Kayce (Luke Grimes) spots him riding off and is shocked, wondering if his dad’s trying to die.
Kayce follows him into the woods and finds John soaking in a hot spring, and John claims he’s just following his doctor’s orders. Kayce can’t help but smile as John points out the doctors also said he wasn’t supposed to drive but never mentioned riding a horse. John won’t back down when Kayce tries to get him to behave and declares if he dies on the ride back that’s just the way it goes.
Kayce starts to strip to join his dad for a soak, unwilling to let him ride home alone. They banter good-naturedly about their wounds and Kayce says, “If you die on the way home I’ll bury you next to Lee and then I’ll sit on your grave and I’ll tell you I told you so.”
After a few lighthearted moments, John changes the mood by revealing Beth thinks Jamie’s behind the attack. Kayce doesn’t think anyone would work for Jamie. Plus, Jamie only leased the land for the airport because he was trying to keep the ranch together. No, Kayce’s sure Jamie is still seeking his dad’s approval in his own twisted way.
Kayce believes it was the white supremacist militia and John wonders how many of them are still alive. John tells Kayce to ask Jamie for the warrants to take down the ones that remain. If he doesn’t issue them, then they’ll know where he stands.
John calls Kayce a good man. (You’ve got that right, John.) John doesn’t mince words and confirms they’re going to kill everyone left in the militia.
And speaking of Jamie (Wes Bentley), our least favorite Dutton is out on a ranch listening to a realtor try and sell him the place, complete with cattle, pens, furniture, etc. The kids who inherited it are putting it up for sale, and Jamie talks over the pros and cons of the purchase with his birth dad, Garrett (Will Patton). Garrett believes it’s time Jamie got out of John’s shadow and Jamie decides to move forward with the purchase.
Digging is halted on the Dutton Ranch when a skull is found along with other artifacts.
Series newcomer Jacki Weaver puts in her first appearance as Caroline Warner, CEO of Market Equities. She’s unhappy with what’s happening with the Montana project and asks Ellis what happens now that relics have been dug up. Construction will be halted until the remains are dated and all artifacts are removed by archaeologists. It’s unknown how long the project will be shut down.
Ellis assures Caroline the violence against the Duttons had nothing to do with Market Equities. Caroline doesn’t fully believe that and suggests they stop playing rough and start concentrating on the money angle. (She’s taking a kinder, gentler approach.) She believes she can get Thomas Rainwater to negotiate if enough money’s involved.
Caroline and Ellis meet with Thomas Rainwater (Gil Birmingham) at the dig, and Caroline proposes they’ll allow Thomas to continue building his casino by rescinding the Cease-and-Desist order. Plus, Market Equities will even fund the build. Caroline explains their funding would mean they have input on what’s built, and what they want built is a casino that caters to wealthy visitors. “Build a casino that is a destination unto itself,” says Caroline, suggesting 5-star accommodations and world-class chefs.
Her vision of his casino would make his reservation incredibly wealthy. All he has to do is back off and let them build their airport. After she walks off, Thomas tells Mo that Caroline’s making promises she can’t keep.
A visit from horse trainer Travis (played by series creator Taylor Sheridan) has all the ranch hands in a good mood. Even Rip (Cole Hauser) is in a great mood and shocked Travis has brought him a wedding present.
John’s focusing on his legacy and tells Rip and Kayce he wants to have Travis ride for them. That should help expand their brand outside of the valley and make everyone aware of Yellowstone Dutton Ranch. Rip agrees Travis is a winner but says he’ll f*ck everybody. However, if he works for them, he’ll be true to the Yellowstone.
John approaches Travis with his plan and Travis explains it’ll take millions to do exactly what John wants. “When people think of horses, I want them to think of the Yellowstone,” says John.
Travis offers to build John a team that will wind up making John lots of money. Of course, it’ll cost millions to get off the ground. Kayce’s leery of putting out that much money, but John believes this is their best option if they want the ranch to survive.
Beth (Kelly Reilly) is summoned to a meeting with Bob Schwartz (Michael Nouri) and one of his minions to go over her severance package. Beth’s game is on a whole other level and instead of listening to their demands, she issues some of her own after reminding Bob he threw her family to the wolves. Beth suggests Bob retire and or else she’ll take everything from him.
Bob warns she shouldn’t try and pick a fight with a bear, believing he’s the bear since his firm owns the land next to the Yellowstone. Beth informs him he only co-owns the land. “You’ve got to read the fine print, Bob. I’m the bigger bear,” says Beth, making a dramatic exit.
Jimmy (Jefferson White) is finally discharged from the hospital with instructions his movements will be restricted to minimum walking and no physical exertion unless supervised. Plus, he has to wear a brace all the time. The doctor’s already spoken to the ranch and they’re sending a car to pick him up.
Sheriff Haskell (Hugh Dillon) shows up at the ranch with Carter (Finn Little), the boy Beth made friends with at the hospital. He got picked up trying to rob a store and claimed Beth’s his guardian. She’s shocked he said that but once she sees his bruised face, she allows him to stay.
Later that evening she’s waiting outside the cabin for Rip with beer and news she made Hamburger Helper but with tuna. Apparently, she had no idea Tuna Helper exists so she used Hamburger Helper, and Rip decides the best option is to go to town for dinner.
Beth casually drops the news there’s a kid inside the house who likes the tuna dish. When Rip asks about him, Beth says, “I think he might be our kid, baby.”
Rip briefly goes inside to talk to the kid but immediately turns around to grill Beth instead. Beth believes Carter is Rip 20 years ago. After all, they pretty much had the same upbringing. Beth puts it on Rip to tell Carter to leave – if that’s what he decides.
Rip decides to do just that and tells Carter to get his stuff and leave. Carter walks off into the night and Rip waits 20 seconds or so before following him. He thinks Carter will try and rip off the cars on the ranch and drags him back inside the house. Rip orders the kid to stay on the couch and swears he’s going to stay up all night watching him so he doesn’t steal anything. Tomorrow he’ll take him into town and leave him there.
After Beth says her goodnights, Rip takes Carter to a basement and points out where he can sleep. Rip’s rough with the boy and not in the least bit sympathetic to his plight.
The following morning, Rip drives Carter into town, pissed the boy “puppy dogged” Beth. He winds up pushing the kid out of the truck before they even make it to town. Carter flips him off as Rip drives away.
Rip’s barely 100 feet down the road when he throws it in reverse. Carter says he’s never going back to a foster home and Rip suggests he ask him for a job. Carter asks but doesn’t actually have any skills. Rip tests him by sending him off into a field to retrieve a plastic bag. The boy runs the entire way, which seems to impress Rip.
Rip warns Carter that if he takes him back to the ranch and he steals anything, he’s gone.
Back at the ranch, John and Kayce watch Travis and others work the horses. John’s impressed and agrees when Travis suggests additions to the team.
Rip introduces Carter to John as their new stable boy. John’s not sure he’s okay with this, even though it was Beth’s suggestion.
Lloyd delivers Jimmy to the ranch and John points out he broke his word. Jimmy promised not to get back in the ring and he did, and now he’s not useful. John’s done watching over Jimmy, but he won’t fire him because he promised his grandfather he’d take care of him. Instead, they’re sending Jimmy off with Travis. If Travis can’t make a cowboy out of him, he wasn’t meant to be one.
Once Carter’s done for the day Rip attempts to drop him off in the bunkhouse. However, as soon as they step in the drinking and bad language make Rip change his mind. (We’re treated to Ryan Bingham singing “The Other Side” during the short scene in the bunkhouse.) Instead, Rips brings Carter back to his house and Beth’s pleasantly surprised to see the kid.
Beth’s attempted Hamburger Helper with actual hamburger for dinner, and Rip compliments the meal. Beth thinks she might have actually figured out cooking as Carter stuffs his face. Rip points out this is making Beth happy and Beth does in fact seem content.
The following morning Carter thinks he’s in trouble because John beat him to the barn. John assures him he’s not and is happy the kid is the first one up and working. Carter reveals Rip taught him the trick is to never think you deserve it, and John agrees but adds that you have to try to anyway.
Kevin Costner stars in ‘Yellowstone’ season 4 episode 1 (Photo Credit: Paramount Network)
Paramount Network’s Yellowstone season four episode one picks up immediately after the devastating events of the season three finale. Season three ended with John Dutton riddled with bullets, Beth possibly blown up, and Kayce under attack in his office. After an excruciatingly long wait, season four episode one – “Half the Money” – begins with John (Kevin Costner) watching birds circle above as he lays on the side of the road. John’s scrawled details about the van as well as the direction it’s heading in the dirt.
A crow lands nearby but quickly flies off as Rip (Cole Hauser) roars up in his truck.
The action switches to Kayce’s office as he’s engaged in a ferocious gun battle. Kayce (Luke Grimes) takes out two of his assailants and tells Monica over the phone to get to the bunkhouse. Donning his bulletproof vest, Kayce appears unscathed and grabs the guns from the dead attackers. He heads into the lobby, ready to fire again. He emerges from the building just as law enforcement arrive.
Kayce calls Rip and tells him to gather everyone at the ranch, and Rip delivers the news John’s been shot multiple times. Rip doesn’t think John will make it and tells Kayce to look for a blue two-tone van.
Kayce makes arrangements to send a care flight to meet Rip since John won’t survive an hour drive to the hospital.
Meanwhile, Beth (Kelly Reilly) is bloody and torn up but alive. She manages to walk out of her office building and even has the strength to ask for a cigarette from a bystander, in a pure Beth move. She pulls in a deep draw as an officer tries to help her.
Beth looks ready to rip someone apart piece by piece.
Monica (Kelsey Asbille) is racing with Tate (Brecken Merrill) to the bunkhouse when she’s attacked by a man in a clown mask. She’s dropped her gun and is fighting for her life when her attacker gets the upper hand. She’s just about to be shot when Tate takes out the attacker with a shotgun.
Monica and Tate run toward the field and meet Lloyd (Forrie J. Smith) heading into the house. He reiterates that she needs to get to the bunkhouse and she takes off running again.
Kayce and multiple squad cars spot the van and Kayce slams into it with his truck, leaps out, and opens fire. A gun battle between Kayce, the sheriffs, and a handful of attackers breaks out and thousands of rounds are fired.
The attackers are shot but so is Kayce! He sinks slowly to the ground, with blood staining his shoulder area.
Rip drives like a bat out of hell to meet up with the helicopter in a field, all while begging an unconscious John not to die on him.
Monica and Tate make it to the bunkhouse and discover the ranch hands are under attack but are dishing out better than they receive. They string one attacker up as Mia (Eden Brolin) screams for Jimmy. She finds him unconscious in the center of the ring.
Hours later, night falls and Rip arrives back at the ranch. Lloyd gives him an update and Rip orders him to get rid of all the dead bodies. He spots smoke in the distance and realizes the attackers burned down his place.
And 14 minutes in we finally get the season four opening credits! Wow, that was an incredibly explosive first act.
A flashback takes us to Yellowstone Dutton Ranch in March 1893. James Dillard Dutton (Tim McGraw) and two young boys are riding the land when they spot a cluster of Native American teepees. James rides out to meet with the Native Americans and discovers one of the people at their camp speaks English.
The English-speaker asks if they can bury his father on this land since he was born there. James grants him permission and offers food for the people and their horses. (Tim McGraw’s soon to be seen reprising this role in the Yellowstone prequel, 1883.)
Over at the hospital, John disconnects himself from the machines and wanders into the hallway. The nurses are shocked as is Beth who walks up at just that moment. She’s mostly healed – there’s a large, angry scar across her cheek – and John’s got a nice beard going, so a significant amount of time has passed. John demands to know who else was hurt. When he asks who they lost, Beth asks him to define “lost.”
The doctors put him back to sleep and Beth’s furious. He’s been in a coma and wasn’t expected to wake up, and now they’ve knocked him out again. The doctor explains he has a blood clot that could kill him and they need him to remain under sedation.
After stepping outside, Beth bonds with a 14-year-old boy whose father is dying in the hospital and helps him through the hardest moment of his young life.
Elsewhere, a drunken jerk is giving a casino worker a hard time when he inadvertently reveals he was part of the group that planned the attack on John Dutton. He claims to have put the team together that took John down. The man either doesn’t know or doesn’t care that this exchange is being caught on camera.
Mo and his men haul the man into a private room and learn his name is Checkers (Brad Carter). He was booted from the military and served time, and Thomas Rainwater (Gil Birmingham) dubs him “The Great White Hopeless.” Thomas laughs when Mo says Checkers claims to have put together the hit on the Duttons. However, his mood shifts when Mo points out the wad of cash Checkers came in with. It’s more than a drug dealer would have on him.
Thomas suggests Mo use any force necessary to get all useful info from Checkers. “Do it the way we used to do it. Do it the way our grandfathers did,” says Thomas.
Checkers is taken to an isolated area and tied up. He’s then dragged behind a horse, screaming. Mo finally stops and demands info on the hit on the Duttons. Mo confirms Checker’s dead whether he talks or not, but if he tells what he knows he’ll go quicker. If not, Mo might be forced to go after his family, too.
Back at the ranch, it appears life is getting close to normal once again. Rip tells Lloyd that John’s expected home that day and he wants everything to look like business as usual.
John prepares to leave the hospital with Beth’s assistance, and she swears she never doubted he’d pull through. (She throws everyone else under the bus.)
They stop as they pass by Jimmy’s room and watch as he goes through some rehab. He can’t grip a ball, and John asks Beth what happened. She promises it’s on the long list to discuss later.
John’s loaded into an ambulance and has a police escort back to the ranch. There are officers posted at the ranch’s gate and they move aside to allow the procession through.
The EMTs lug John, still strapped to a gurney, up the stairs and into Jamie’s old bedroom. He’s furious there’s a hospital bed and equipment in the room and orders Beth to get rid of it. She won’t and reminds him it was part of the condition of his release from the hospital.
A way-too-peppy nurse named Maggie introduces herself and John looks completely over all this fuss.
After everyone leaves him alone for a minute, John manages to make it to the bathroom, shave, and then go downstairs. Maggie tells him to go back to his room and he fires her.
Kelly Reilly stars in ‘Yellowstone’ season 4 episode 1 (Photo Credit: Paramount Network)
John and Beth have a chat outside and she reveals they’ve moved into the foreman’s house since the cabin burned down. Beth suggests they only talk about victories today and they’ll discuss their defeats tomorrow.
Their chat’s interrupted by Kayce emerging in full camouflage from the woods. He looks exhausted and explains to John that he’s hunting whatever’s hunting them. John’s upset no one will tell him the full story, and Kayce pulls his shirt away from his shoulder to show the scar left by the shootout.
“They came after all of us and we beat them,” says Kayce.
Kayce assures his dad everyone they sent is dead, but they still need to find out who’s behind the attack.
Beth stops by Jamie’s office as he’s on the phone with Roarke. She tosses a rat trap at her big brother and then a baseball before demanding he look her in the eyes. She’s waited two months for their dad to come home and reminds him he never visited John once. Jamie (Wes Bentley) claims he did call every day, and Beth indicates she believes he was involved in the attack.
“I’m going to kill you but when I do it, I’m not going to farm it out like you, you f**king coward. I’m going to do it myself,” declares Beth.
His first evening home John makes it out to the bunkhouse and it’s obvious everyone is happy to see him. He apologizes for what they went through and thanks them for fighting back. He promises he’ll never forget they protected the ranch and his family.
John assures them they can stop worrying about fighting and get back to just being cowboys. He pops open a beer and declares that the only thing that can kill him is him.
John passes out beers and prepares to engage in a little gambling with the ranch hands. He’s fine if they take his money or want to talk trash. He can handle it.
The episode’s title finally comes into play when Beth has a discussion with a random stranger in a bar. She doesn’t feel the woman is standing up for herself to her husband and reminds her she has “all the p*ssy and half the money.”
The stranger laughs and admits she’s never thought of it that way. When her husband returns from the restroom, she takes Beth’s advice and stands up for herself.
Beth returns home to snuggle in bed with Rip. She wants to sleep in, but he’s got something to do in the morning. Beth tries to get her way but Rip admits what he has to do is “something bad.” Still, there is apparently time for a little lovemaking.
As the sheet pulls away, we see the massive scarring on her back from the bomb blast.
We don’t have to wait long to find out what Rip had planned for the day. Roarke (Josh Holloway) is fishing in the stream when Rip shows up with a cooler asking if it’s his. Roarke doesn’t know who Rip is but seems suspicious as Rip approaches.
Rip opens the cooler and tosses a rattlesnake at Roarke’s face. Roarke runs off in pain from the bite as Rip calmly follows him through the woods. When Rip catches up Roarke’s foaming at the mouth and barely alive. Rip watches as the life drains from his body, acknowledging his death with a “good riddance.”
Rip retrieves the cooler and leaves Roarke alone in the woods.
Since Netflix released Colin in Black & White on October 29, 2021, the six episode limited series has been among the streaming service’s most popular content. Created by Emmy Award winner and Oscar nominee Ava DuVernay and ex-NFL quarterback/activist Colin Kaepernick, the binge-worthy drama concentrates on Kaepernick’s formative years.
Jaden Michael stars as Colin in high school with Mary-Louise Parker and Nick Offerman co-starring as Colin’s adoptive parents, Teresa and Rick Kaepernick. The real Colin appears throughout the six-episode series as the narrator, sharing pivotal moments from his life in and out of the world of sports.
Netflix recently hosted a Q&A for members of the Critics Choice Association with the cast and DuVernay. During the Zoom conference, DuVernay confirmed it was Kaepernick who suggested setting the limited series in high school. He believed that talking about his life foundationally would help viewers understand how he became who he is.
“It would be a way to enter into his story and his life at the least political time, when he was just a kid, so folks might be able to come into the heart of the story without all the trappings that are hot button issues,” said Ava, explaining that as they talked about the project she felt each of his stories would allow them to springboard into larger social issues. “We decided to make a pastiche, a collage, and weave this stuff together.”
During the Q&A, Jaden Michael provided insight into the casting process, the challenges of playing Colin Kaepernick, and what he hopes viewers will take away from Colin in Black & White.
On How He Became Involved in Colin in Black & White:
Jaden Michael: “I had no idea how to play football. I was not interested in team sports. I think when I was like five or six my mom put me into a soccer game and someone kicked me. My mom had a panic attack. She’s like, ‘Never again! You’re never doing team sports!’ But the audition process was very normal. Well, normal enough for Covid, I would say. We were in the middle of the pandemic and lockdown and I had to recruit my family to come and teach me how to play basketball and football so I could send in a tape for Ava and Aisha (Coley, casting director) to prove I was a little athletic at least.
I think there was like five or six auditions. Ava flew me out to California so we could Covid-safely audition together and so we could meet and discuss more about Colin. But it was a fairly normal experience – other than the fact it was for the role of Colin Kaepernick.”
On His Approach to Playing a Young Colin Kaepernick:
Jaden Michael: “It’s such a beautiful part of the show and Colin’s relationship with the rest of the world is his relationship with his parents. Before actually even getting the role, I spoke with Colin about his relationship with his family. In another project I had worked on I played an adopted child so I had a lot of context and research just as to how personal the adoption system can be for each child. I was very interested in learning how connected Colin felt with his parents.
It was sort of surprising for me at the time to know how deeply in love he was with his parents and how much he appreciated them for the effort that they put into raising him. For that reason, I really wanted to focus on that relationship and that love between the two white parents. And especially toward the end of the show Colin starts to come into his own and he gives his dad a little look before he leaves to college. It’s kind of like, you know, ‘I know you messed up, but I still love you.’ I think that embodies their relationship and his deep love for them.”
On the Most Daunting Aspect of the Project:
Jaden Michael: “I think it was definitely the fact that I’m sharing the screen with Colin. When you’re doing a biopic and you’re playing James Brown or Jackie Robinson in 42, you get a little bit of leeway as far as how creative you want to be because the audience can’t directly compare your performance with that of the real-life person. But when Colin is on screen and his mannerisms and his face movements and his personality is directly capable of being compared by the audience, it gets a little bit more difficult. But it’s a great challenge and I loved it.”
On the Impact of Starring in Colin in Black & White:
Jaden Michael: “It has completely changed my course of direction and the choices I make in my life. From a personal point of view, it has changed my connection with my roots. My mom is Dominican, but my father is Black and I was disconnected with that side of my roots. This show has given me a platform to more in-depth understand where I come from and what that means. So, from a personal level it has matured me and my understanding of myself.
And from a creative perspective it’s given me so many tools to use in the future and the ability to share stories that are more authentic and are more real – stories that I want to tell.
I also find that it’s given me an ability to tell the story of my people. I remember I was…not struggling…but I wanted to do the scene in episode three justice when I get pulled over. I had been in an altercation with police a few months before but I didn’t feel like it would connect me enough with the storyline and so I wanted to do more research on what it’s like to be confronted by police. I spoke with a friend of my mom’s who had several altercations with police, and he told me a story about where he was just in a Chinese restaurant getting his food and a few police officers just came in. They were clearly intoxicated and just started beating him. He was in the hospital for days trying to recover. No one was prosecuted for it; it was never brought up again. It was one of those situations that are just swept under the rug. I think that story really helped me connect with that moment and the knowledge that I can tell his story through the medium of film, and to tell the story of so many others like that is a gift that I don’t know how to express in words how meaningful it is.”
On What He Hopes Viewers Take Away From the Limited Series:
Jaden Michael: “I hope viewers can come to respect Colin for his sacrifice and for his bravery and courage to stand up for something greater than himself. I hope that the audience can take that away for themselves, just learning to trust their power, trust their Blackness, or trust their influence and be confident in their ability to positively influence change.”
Netflix celebrated “Stranger Things Day” with the unveiling of a new Stranger Things season four teaser trailer revealing Eleven and the Byers family have moved to California. So, yes, part of season four will take place in California – the final location to be revealed for the upcoming season.
The teaser is narrated by Eleven as she writes to Mike discussing her life in California and how much she’s looking forward to “the best spring break ever.” We see her walking through the hallways at school attempting to be nice but basically being ignored by her classmates. We’re also treated to clips of a roller rink, lots of gunfire, explosions, a creepy doll, and a pizza delivery. What we’re not treated to is the reveal of an actual season four premiere date.
Since this teaser is labeled 004/004, we can assume that means the next video we’ll receive will be the actual full trailer for season four. That trailer, hopefully, will let us know when the new season will launch.
Season four stars Millie Bobby Brown as Eleven, Winona Ryder as Joyce Byers, David Harbour as Chief Jim Hopper, Finn Wolfhard as Mike Wheeler, Noah Schnapp as Will Byers, Caleb McLaughlin as Lucas Sinclair, and Gaten Matarazzo as Dustin Henderson. Cara Buono is Karen Wheeler, Natalia Dyer is Nancy Wheeler, Charlie Heaton is Jonathan Byers, Joe Keery is Steve Harrington, Sadie Sink is Max, and Erica Sinclair returns as fan-favorite Priah Ferguson.
Update: Netflix confirmed season four will premiere next summer. They also revealed the season four episode titles:
“The Hellfire Club”
“Vecna’s Curse”
“The Monster and the Superhero”
“Dear Billy”
“The Nina Project”
“The Dive”
“The Massacre at Hawkins Lab”
“Papa”
“The Piggyback”
A Look Back at Stranger Things, Courtesy of Netflix:
A love letter to the ‘80s classic genre films that captivated a generation, Stranger Things is a thrilling drama set in the seemingly normal Midwestern town of Hawkins, Indiana. After a boy vanishes into thin air, his close-knit group of friends and family search for answers and are pulled into a high-stakes and deadly series of events. Beneath the surface of their ordinary town lurks an extraordinary supernatural mystery, along with top-secret government experiments and a dangerous gateway that connects our world to a powerful yet sinister realm. Friendships will be tested and lives will be altered as what they discover will change Hawkins and possibly the world — forever.
Stranger Things 2: It’s 1984 and the citizens of Hawkins, Indiana are still reeling from the horrors of the Demogorgon and the secrets of Hawkins Lab. Will Byers has been rescued from the Upside Down but a bigger, sinister entity still threatens those who survived.
Stranger Things 3: It’s 1985 in Hawkins, Indiana, and summer’s heating up. School’s out, there’s a brand new mall in town, and the Hawkins crew are on the cusp of adulthood. Romance blossoms and complicates the group’s dynamic, and they’ll have to figure out how to grow up without growing apart. Meanwhile, danger looms. When the town’s threatened by enemies old and new, Eleven and her friends are reminded that evil never ends; it evolves. Now they’ll have to band together to survive, and remember that friendship is always stronger than fear.
The teaser trailer for season two of HBO’s The Righteous Gemstones finds the dysfunctional televangelist family ready to launch Gemstones on Digital Demand (GODD), a 24-hour on demand sermon service. The teaser also reveals Jesse Gemstone is stepping up his game and declaring himself the logical choice to lead the family after Eli Gemstone retires.
Season two will premiere on January 9, 2022 with the release of the first two episodes of the nine episode season. Subsequent episodes will air on Sundays at 10pm ET/PT.
Returning series stars include Danny McBride as Jesse Gemstone, Adam Devine as Kelvin Gemstone, Edi Patterson as Judy Gemstone, John Goodman as Eli Gemstone, and Cassidy Freeman as Amber Gemstone. Tony Cavalero is Keefe Chambers, Tim Baltz plays BJ, Skyler Gisondo is Gideon Gemstone, and Greg Alan Williams stars as Martin Imari.
Walton Goggins will reprise his recurring role as Baby Billy Freeman. Additional returning recurring guest stars include Jennifer Nettles as Aimee-Leigh Gemstone, Jody Hill as Levi, Valyn Hall as Tiffany Freeman, Kelton DuMont as Pontious Gemstone, and Gavin Munn as Abraham Gemstone.
Newcomers to the weird world of The Righteous Gemstones include Jason Schwartzman as Thaniel Block, Eric Roberts as Junior, Eric Andre as Lyle Lissons, and Jessica Lowe as Lindy Lissons.
Danny McBride created the series and serves as writer, director, and executive producer. Directors Jody Hill and David Gordon Green also executive produce season two along with John Carcieri, Jeff Fradley, and Brandon James.
Adam Devine, John Goodman, Edi Patterson, Danny McBride, and Cassidy Freeman in ‘The Righteous Gemstones’ season 2 (Photograph by Ryan Green/HBO)
ABC’s The Good Doctor season five will return from a two-week break with an episode directed by Prison Break‘s Sarah Wayne Callies. Season five episode six – “One Heart – was written by April Fitzsimmons and David Renaud, and will air on Monday, November 15, 2021 at 10pm ET/PT.
The cast of season five features Freddie Highmore as Dr. Shaun Murphy, Antonia Thomas as Dr. Claire Browne, Hill Harper as Dr. Marcus Andrews, and Richard Schiff as Dr. Aaron Glassman. Christina Chang plays Dr. Audrey Lim, Fiona Gubelmann is Dr. Morgan Reznick, Will Yun Lee is Dr. Alex Park, and Paige Spara stars as Lea Dilallo.
Episode six guest stars include Rachel Bay Jones, Derek Webster, Crystle Lightning, Shalev Snitz, and Patricia Issac.
“One Heart” Plot: Dr. Shaun Murphy and Dr. Alex Park must grapple with a life-and-death decision and decide between saving one patient over another. Meanwhile, Dr. Morgan Reznick goes a little too far in her attempt to win Salen’s favor.
The Good Doctor Description, Courtesy of ABC:
Dr. Shaun Murphy (Highmore), a young surgeon with autism and savant syndrome, continues to use his extraordinary medical gifts at St. Bonaventure Hospital’s surgical unit. As his friendships deepen, Shaun tackles the world of dating for the first time and continues to work harder than he ever has before, navigating his environment to prove to his colleagues that his talents as a surgeon will save lives.
Freddie Highmore and Will Yun Lee in ‘The Good Doctor’ season 5 episode 6 (ABC/Jeff Weddell)Fiona Gubelmann and Rachel Bay Jones in season 5 episode 6 (ABC/Jeff Weddell)Shalev Snitz and Will Yun Lee in season 5 episode 6 (ABC/Jeff Weddell)Crystle Lightning and Shalev Snitz in season 5 episode 6 (ABC/Jeff Weddell)Freddie Highmore in season 5 episode 6 (ABC/Jeff Weddell)Fiona Gubelmann and Rachel Bay Jones in season 5 episode 6 (ABC/Jeff Weddell)Derek Webster and Noah Galvin in season 5 episode 6 (ABC/Jeff Weddell)
