Executive producer Ridley Scott and director Kevin Macdonald are reuniting for Life In A Day 2020. YouTube Originals announced Scott, Macdonald, and executive producer Kai Hsuing are revisiting the concept first utilized in Life In A Day, requesting ordinary people from across the globe film themselves on Saturday, July 25th.
The original documentary was a collection of videos shot by people around the world on July 24, 2010. More than 80,000 videos were submitted resulting in a documentary considered “one of the biggest participatory feature film projects ever made.”
“Making the first Life In A Day was one of the most joyful and eye-opening experiences of my life. Contributors were generous enough to share often quite intimate moments from their lives as part of a huge, life-affirming, film-making experiment,” said director Kevin Macdonald. “I am thrilled, ten years later, that we are making Life In A Day 2020. In that time, how have we changed? How has our relationship to filming ourselves changed? And at this extraordinary turning point in history what are we hoping for in our future?”
Life In A Day 2020 will premiere at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival and on YouTube.
“We’re thrilled to be collaborating with YouTube again, a decade after Life In A Day premiered and captivated audiences at our festival,” said Tabitha Jackson, Director of the Sundance Film Festival. “Given the extraordinary current moment, I think it’s the perfect time to premiere this for a new edition of a work that so powerfully demonstrates the power of cinematic storytelling to reveal and celebrate our shared humanity.”
“Following the success of the 2010 documentary, this is an important moment to revisit this inventive film concept with Ridley and Kevin,” said Susanne Daniels, Global Head of Original Content for YouTube. “This project truly demonstrates the uniqueness of YouTube by showcasing the power of the human experience told through the eyes and cameras of individuals around the world.”
Details on Submitting Videos, Courtesy of YouTube Originals:
Ten years after YouTube’s groundbreaking and critically-acclaimed Life In A Day, and at an unprecedented moment in time, the renewed participation-based project asks the world to share what one day looks like through their personal camera lenses. On July 25, 2020, everyone is invited to capture and reflect the reality of our world over a 24-hour period. All footage must be filmed on July 25th only; participants will then have until August 2nd to upload their content to be considered for the final film.
Additional information and guidelines on participation can be found at lifeinaday.youtube.
Once submissions close, a 30-person team of multilingual reviewers stationed around the world will begin reviewing and translating submitted videos. The film’s three principal editors – Mdhamiri Á Nkemi (Blue Story, The Last Tree), Sam Rice-Edwards (Whitney), and Nse Asuquo (The Stuart Hall Project, The Jazz Ambassadors) – will then undertake an enormous post-production effort, working alongside director Kevin Macdonald to shape the film’s final narrative out of submitted footage.
Gillian Jacobs (Community) stars as a writer who returns to her old college and reunites with her former college professor Jemaine Clement (Flight of the Conchords) in I Used to Go Here, a SXSW selection that’s just released an official trailer. Kris Rey (Unexpected) wrote and directed the comedy which will be released in theaters and On Demand on August 7, 2020.
The cast of the Gravitas Ventures release also includes Hannah Marks (Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency), Kate Micucci (Gunfunkel and Oates), Jorma Taccone (Girls), Josh Wiggins (Giant Little Ones), and Forrest Goodluck (The Miseducation of Cameron Post). Andy Samberg, Akiva Schaffer, and Jorma Taccone – collectively known as The Lonely Island – served as producers.
The Plot:
“Following the lackluster launch of her debut novel, 35-year-old writer Kate Conklin (Jacobs) receives a welcome invitation from her former professor and old crush (Clement) to speak at her alma mater. With her book tour canceled and her ego deflated, Kate hopes that returning to her old college as a published author will give her the morale boost she sorely needs. Instead, she falls into a comical regression—from misadventures with eccentric twenty-year-olds to feelings of jealousy toward her former professor’s new favorite student.
Bittersweet emotion and awkward humor abound as Kate journeys through her past to redefine her future in this big-hearted fourth feature from writer/director Kris Rey.”
Gillian Jacobs and Jemaine Clement star in ‘I Used to Go Here’ (Photo Credit: Gravitas Ventures)
I don’t know about you but I’m so ready for a new season of The Boys. Amazon Prime Video just dropped the teaser trailer for season two of the twisted superhero series and it’s all that plus a bag of deliciously gory chips.
Season two will launch to Amazon Prime subscribers on September 4, 2020. The second season consists of eight episodes, with the series finale set for October 9th.
Returning cast members include Antony Starr as Homelander, Karl Urban as Butcher, Jack Quaid as Hughie, Erin Moriarty as Starlight, and Laz Alonso as Mother’s Milk. Karen Fukuhara is Kimiko, Dominique McElligott is Queen Maeve, Jessie T. Usher is A-Train, Chace Crawford is The Deep, Nathan Mitchell is Black Noir, and Tomer Capon returns as Frenchie.
Aya Cash joins the cast as a new Supe named Stormfront. Recurring stars in season two include Claudia Doumit, Goran Visnijc, Malcolm Barrett, Colby Minifie, Shantel VanSanten, Cameron Crovetti, PJ Byrne, Laila Robbins, and Giancarlo Esposito returning as Vought boss Stan Edgar.
The Boys Plot, Courtesy of Amazon Prime Video:
The Boys is a fun and irreverent take on what happens when superheroes – who are as popular as celebrities, as influential as politicians and as revered as Gods – abuse their superpowers rather than use them for good. It’s the powerless against the super powerful as The Boys continue on a heroic quest to expose the truth about The Seven, and Vought – the multi-billion dollar conglomerate that manages these superheroes and covers up all of their dirty secrets.
The even more intense, more insane season two finds The Boys on the run from the law, hunted by the Supes, and desperately trying to regroup and fight back against Vought. In hiding, Hughie, Mother’s Milk, Frenchie and Kimiko try to adjust to a new normal, with Butcher nowhere to be found.
Meanwhile, Starlight must navigate her place in The Seven as Homelander sets his sights on taking complete control. His power is threatened with the addition of Stormfront, a social media-savvy new Supe, who has an agenda of her own. On top of that, the Supervillain threat takes center stage and makes waves as Vought seeks to capitalize on the nation’s paranoia.
Netflix just released the official trailer for season two of the critically acclaimed comic book-inspired series, The Umbrella Academy. The new three-minute trailer features “Here Comes The End,” an original song from comic book creator/musician Gerard Way.
Commenting on the original song, Way said, “I was originally inspired to write this track when series one of The Umbrella Academy was being shot; by the time I finished it 2020 was in full swing, the world had taken a profound turn and the song was finished in a surreal new reality.”
Netflix has set a July 31, 2020 premiere date for season two.
Gerard Way wrote the comic book series, Gabriel Bá illustrated, and Dark Horse Comics is the publisher. Steve Blackman guides the series as showrunner and executive producer, with Way, Bá, Jeff F. King, Mike Richardson, and Keith Goldberg also executive producing.
Season two brings back Ellen Page (Into the Forest) as Vanya Hargreeves, Tom Hopper (Black Sails) as Luther Hargreeves, Emmy Raver-Lampman (Hamilton) as Allison Hargreeves, Robert Sheehan (Genius) as Klaus Hargreeves, David Castañeda (Switched at Birth) as Diego Hargreeves, Aidan Gallagher (Nicky, Ricky, Dicky, and Dawn) as Number Five, and Justin Min (Beerfest: Thirst for Victory) as Ben Hargreeves.
Yusuf Gatewood joins the cast as Raymond, Ritu Arya is playing Lila, and Marin Ireland is a newcomer named Sissy.
Details on The Umbrella Academy Season 2:
“On the same day in 1989, forty-three infants are inexplicably born to random, unconnected women who showed no signs of pregnancy the day before. Seven are adopted by a billionaire who creates The Umbrella Academy and prepares his “children” to save the world. Now, the six surviving members reunite upon the news of their father’s passing and must work together to solve a mystery surrounding his death. But the estranged family begins to come apart due to their divergent personalities and abilities, not to mention the imminent threat of a global apocalypse.
About Season 2: Five warned his family (so, so many times) that using his powers to escape from Vanya’s 2019 apocalypse was risky. Well, he was right – the time jump scatters the siblings in time in and around Dallas, Texas. Over a three year period. Starting in 1960. Some, having been stuck in the past for years, have built lives and moved on, certain they’re the only ones who survived. Five is the last to land, smack dab in the middle of a nuclear doomsday, which – spoiler alert! – turns out is a result of the group’s disruption of the timeline (déjà vu, anyone?).
Now the Umbrella Academy must find a way to reunite, figure out what caused doomsday, put a stop to it, and return to the present timeline to stop that other apocalypse. All while being hunted by a trio of ruthless Swedish assassins. But seriously, no pressure or anything.”
Fortunately for fans of the superhero series, The CW announced between episodes seven and eight that Stargirl will return for a second season. Meanwhile season one of the popular series continues with episode nine, “Brainwave.” Stargirl episode nine was directed by Tamra Davis from a script by Colleen McGuinness and will air on July 14, 2020 at 8pm ET/PT.
Brec Bassinger (Bella and the Bulldogs, School of Rock) leads the cast as Courtney Whitmore / Stargirl. The season one cast also includes Luke Wilson as Pat Dugan, Amy Smart as Barbara Whitmore, Trae Romano as Mike Dugan, Yvette Monreal as Yolanda Montez, Neil Jackson as Jordan Mahkent, and Anjelika Washington as Beth Chapel. Christopher James Baker plays Henry King Sr, Jake Austin Walker is Henry King Jr, Meg DeLacy is Cindy Burman, Cameron Gellman is Rick Tyler, and Hunter Sansone plays Cameron.
“Brainwave” Plot: DADDY DEAREST — Tensions rise among the JSA members after Courtney (Bassinger) suggests who she wants to recruit next to the team. Meanwhile, Barbara (Amy Smart) invites Jordan (Jackson) and his family over for dinner, and Henry Jr. (Walker) makes a surprising discovery about his father.
Season 1 Description, Courtesy of The CW
When Courtney’s (Bassinger) seemingly perfect life in Los Angeles gets upended with a move to Blue Valley, Nebraska with her mother Barbara (Smart), stepfather Pat (Wilson) and stepbrother Mike (Romano), she finds herself struggling to adapt to her new town and high school. But when Courtney discovers that Pat is harboring a major secret about his past, she ultimately becomes the unlikely inspiration for a new generation of superheroes.
Amanda Peet as Betty Broderick in ‘Dirty John: The Betty Broderick Story’ episode 7 (Photo by: Isabella Vosmikova/USA Network)
The end of episode six of USA Network’s Dirty John: The Betty Broderick Story found the judge ruling in Dan’s favor and Betty shopping for a gun. Episode seven, “The Shillelagh,” opens with Dan (Christian Slater) delivering a lecture to a class of law students. The topic is the definition of a statement of fact and how two people can perceive the same incident differently. He suggests a client’s truth is the ultimate truth because the job of a lawyer is to focus on their client’s perception of events.
Meanwhile, Linda (Rachel Keller) and her friends are busy giggling over Linda’s bachelorette party plans. They joke about Betty still leaving messages on Dan and Linda’s answering machine. Linda reenacts a message, using Betty’s language and calling herself “the whore.” She toasts to herself, quoting Betty, “Once a whore, always a whore.”
Linda’s friends are incredulous, unable to fathom how Linda puts up with Betty’s rage. Linda lightens the mood by singing “Chapel of Love.”
Betty (Amanda Peet) is home alone, the gun case open on the kitchen table. She’s writing her thoughts in her diary, talking about the dark tunnel Alice Through the Looking Glass fell down and how she doesn’t stand up for herself.
Another day finds Betty listening to her daughter describe the plans for Dan and Linda’s upcoming wedding, and she’s upset Dan’s planning on wearing formal morning dress after refusing to wear that at their wedding. She also learns Dan’s taking Linda to the Caribbean for their honeymoon. She thinks Dan’s just repeating what he did with her including the month of the ceremony and the morning dress.
Betty has her boys over and while they’re playing, they knock something over. Betty reacts quickly and picks it up. She then makes them promise if she shows them something, they’ll never handle it.
Later, Betty returns the boys to Dan’s and sends one up to fetch a dress from Tracy’s room. She waits in the doorway for only a moment before stepping inside, fully aware she’s not legally allowed to enter Dan’s house. She shuts the door behind her and spots a box of pink bachelorette shirts nearby. She snags one as well as a large pink envelope off the counter.
Her son retrieves the dress and she gives him a hug and kiss before taking off.
That evening Linda and Dan are going over seating arrangements for the reception when Linda discovers her invitation list is missing. She immediately blames the boys – who’ve entered the room asking about dinner – for letting their mom inside the house. Dan calms the boys down and assures Linda they won’t let Betty keep the stolen list.
Linda pouts and wants to know why Betty won’t leave them alone. Dan swears he’ll get the list back.
Betty’s busy using the list to make phone calls. She’s telling Dan’s friends and colleagues they’re not on the list in order to make them angry at Dan.
Dan takes a seat next to one of the boys on the couch and apologizes again for Linda’s behavior. He blames it on how women get stressed while they’re planning a wedding and need everything to go perfectly. The young boy confesses to his dad that his mom has a gun. He reveals Betty told them not to touch it and asks if it’s okay if she has it. Dan thinks she’s not keeping it a secret and told the boys so they would pass the news on to him.
Linda overhears the conversation and appears concerned.
Betty’s at her job at the preschool when she receives a phone call. No one is on the other end of the line so she hangs up.
The call was Linda checking to see if Betty’s home. Learning she’s not, she goes through Betty’s house looking for her list. She finds Betty’s diary and is reading a few entries when the maid arrives. Linda scurries out, claiming to be Betty’s friend who just dropped by to pick something up.
Betty returns home as the maid’s still cleaning. The maid explains a young blonde stopped by to retrieve something, but she’s unaware of what the stranger wanted. Betty looks concerned and then frantically searches for her diary. It’s missing.
Linda tries to show Dan what’s in Betty’s diary, but he doesn’t want anything to do with it. He chastises her for breaking the law by entering Betty’s place, and Linda bites back reminding him Betty always breaks into theirs.
Linda starts reading out loud from the diary and Dan stops her. He tells Linda to put it back where she found it – and he doesn’t care how she does that. She storms off, upset.
Amanda Peet as Betty Broderick and Steven Culp as Bakter FKA Bibb in ‘Dirty John: The Betty Broderick Story’ episode 7 (Photo by: Isabella Vosmikova/USA Network)
Betty’s hauled into court because Dan’s accusing her of taking their wedding invitation list. Her attorney (Stephen Culp) demands to know if she took it and she claims not to even know what they’re talking about. Her attorney argues on her behalf that it’s a baseless accusation. The judge, however, takes Dan’s side – again – and will allow Dan to withhold payments until she gives it back or explains where it is.
Betty’s attorney begs her to explain what’s going on and she finally takes the list out of her purse and hands it over. When she returns home, her diary is right inside the door. She imagines Linda and Dan laughing as they read what she’d written over the past months.
Linda and Dan meet with a security company, worried Betty might try and ruin the wedding. Linda believes Betty might even try to ruin the supplies as they’re being delivered. They admit they haven’t heard any specific rumors of what Betty has planned, but Linda confesses Betty has joked about shooting them.
Dan and Linda confirm Betty has a gun. Dan also confirms he hasn’t installed a security system at the house. He assures the security guard that he should be able to handle Betty if she shows up to cause trouble.
Betty’s friend Karen wants to plan a trip out of town or something to keep Betty’s mind off the wedding. Betty doesn’t want to go anywhere on that day and instead would like to buy herself an expensive watch engraved with Dan and Linda’s wedding date. Karen plans to come over on Sunday – the wedding day – to keep Betty company.
Betty buys herself a happy anniversary cake.
Karen meets with another friend of Betty’s and describes what Betty told her about wanting to buy a watch. They’ve bought pagers they’ll use to keep each other in the loop as to Betty’s whereabouts on the wedding day. They work out a code – 666 is a heads-up number that something might be wrong. A 911 page from Karen will mean she can’t find her and to give Dan a warning Betty’s on the loose.
Dan confirms to a friend there will be security guards at the wedding. He doesn’t seem overly concerned and tells his friend to stop worrying, even though his friends think Betty has a hit list. He’s sure all Betty cares about is money so she won’t kill him since he’s her source of income.
The guests arrive on April 22, 1989, and Betty’s at home with Karen. They look through old photo albums and Betty wonders if Karen feels sorry for her. Karen doesn’t and believes Betty is strong enough to handle life on her own.
Linda and Dan return from their honeymoon and Linda changes the answering machine message. The court had ordered Dan to get his girlfriend off the machine, but Linda points out now she’s his wife. The order no longer applies. Obviously, all she’s doing is poking the bear.
Betty meets with her therapist and he describes her children – who live a luxury lifestyle – as “in crisis.” He wants her to help them and herself by getting them home.
The boys are over for the weekend and she explains she may be moving to a smaller condo. They make her feel better about their possible new living arrangement by revealing their friends have bunk beds in a shared room. She suggests the next weekend they come she’ll take them looking for a place.
When one of the boys points out they won’t be with her for a while, Betty tenses up. Dan and Linda will be taking them to Indiana for the Notre Dame vs USC football game. Betty’s mood noticeably darkens.
On the day of the game Betty watches the action on the gridiron at a bar. She tells a friendly lady she’s sitting near that she met her ex-husband in South Bend in 1965. Betty then reveals her husband left her for his secretary and is now at the game with her plus their kids. She becomes emotional as she talks about Dan having a great time with his new wife at the place they met and fell in love. Betty wonders what Dan’s friends’ wives think about Dan being with some young chick.
A few days later, Betty puts in an unexpected appearance at a restaurant where three of her friends are having lunch. They’re shocked to see her and she pulls up a seat at the table, uninvited. They ask how she’s doing and she reveals Dan and Linda are going to the Greek Isles and want the boys to be left at their place with the housekeeper instead of with her. This means she’ll have to beg a judge to let her be her sons’ mom for two weeks. She’s livid, and her friends don’t engage in the conversation. Instead, they look uncomfortable as she rages on about Dan and Linda.
Betty meets with her attorney and learns Dan’s refusing to discuss custody. The attorney shares a letter from Dan complete with transcripts of recent answering machine messages. Dan also claims Betty’s committed 20 separate acts of contempt since the judge’s last ruling. He threatens Betty with another jail sentence.
Betty curls up in bed with Dan’s letter playing over and over in her head.
Betty’s daughter is over visiting her mom and after a heated discussion, she storms off – leaving her purse on the table. Betty fishes out her daughter’s keys and puts them in her pocket.
Linda and Dan have dinner out with a friend and they’re absolutely giddy over their trip to the Greek Isles. They reveal their next vacation will be to Australia and their friend’s overjoyed. But then they drop a bombshell – the Australia trip may have to wait because they’re hoping to add a new member to their family!
Linda’s absolutely bubbling over with excitement about the idea of having a child.
November 4, 1989. Betty has lunch with a friend and is distracted as the woman describes her son’s Halloween costume. Betty reveals Dan had said she could take them trick or treating but then they called and canceled. She confides this wasn’t her first Halloween without them, but it will probably be the last time they want to go out trick or treating since they’re getting older.
Betty looks defeated and depressed, and she asks her friend if Linda’s pregnant. The woman claims not to know anything about Dan and Linda’s relationship.
Her boys are over for the weekend and as they do dishes, one of her boys says his friend invited him to Disneyland this weekend but he said no. He turned his friend down because if he went, he couldn’t see his mom. She begins sobbing and he asks her not to cry again, suggesting she does this a lot. She blames her emotions on lack of sleep and he suggests she should get some.
Fully dressed, she lays on top of her bed and doesn’t close her eyes. A while later she rises, unaware her son has crawled into bed with her.
She walks through her house in the dark, with only the kitchen light on. Betty retrieves the keys she stole from her daughter’s purse and gets into the car. She realizes she’s going over the edge but doesn’t stop. Instead, she takes her gun from her purse and enters Dan’s home.
A short while later she begins calling friends, waking them from their sleep, and confessing what she did.
Friends swing by Dan’s house, believing this is a prank. Her daughter explains Betty doesn’t know if Dan’s dead and told her it was dark and she heard Dan talking to her.
Tracy calls her dad’s house and no one answers.
Betty rings up her father but doesn’t stay on the phone.
Betty finally returns home and her daughter, Jenny, plus the friend from HALT are with her. The friend explains that no matter what happened to Dan, the truth is Betty went to his house and fired a gun. She suggests Betty turn herself in and get a criminal lawyer to help her with the police.
As the friend’s talking, Betty and her daughter are staring at each other without speaking.
Next we see Betty in the passenger seat of her friend’s car. Her new attorney arrives, introduces himself, and confirms Dan and Linda are dead.
The scene shifts to Linda and her new attorney standing in front of the judge. Betty’s charged with two counts of first-degree murder. She pleads not guilty and requests a jury trial. Due to the seriousness of the charges, Betty is remanded into custody.
The episode ends with Betty, now in jail attire, being locked in a cell.
A scene from ‘Wizards,’ the final chapter in the ‘Tales of Arcadia’ trilogy (Photo Courtesy of Netflix)
DreamWorks Animation’s Wizards will premiere on August 7, 2020 on Netflix. The third chapter in Oscar winner Guillermo del Toro’s Emmy Award-winning series, Tales of Arcadia, will wrap up the trilogy which kicked off with 2016’s Trollhunters followed by 2018’s 3Below.
In addition to announcing the premiere date for Tales of Arcadia‘s final chapter, Netflix also confirmed the Wizards voice cast and plot details.
Returning voice cast members include Colin O’Donoghue (Once Upon A Time) as Merlin’s apprentice Douxie; Emile Hirsch (Once Upon A Time…In Hollywood) as Jim; Lexi Medrano (Trollhunters) as Claire; Charlie Saxton (Hung) as Toby; Steven Yeun (The Walking Dead) as Steve, and David Bradley (Harry Potter) as Merlin. Lena Headey (Game of Thrones) is back as Morgana; Fred Tatasciore (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles) is Aaarrrgghh!!!; Clancy Brown (Billions) is Gunmar, Diego Luna (Narcos: Mexico) is Krel; Mark Hamill (Star Wars) is Dictatious; and Kelsey Grammer returns in his Emmy Award-winning role as Blinky.
Joining the cast for Wizards are Alfred Molina (Frozen II) as Douxie’s shape-shifting familiar Archie, Stephanie Beatriz (Brooklyn Nine-Nine) as troublemaker troll Callista, James Faulkner (Game of Thrones) as legendary ruler of Camelot King Arthur, and John Rhys Davies (Lord of the Rings) as Galahad.
Guillermo del Toro created the series and executive produces. Marc Guggenheim and Chad Hammes also executive produce, with Chad Quandt and Aaron Waltke co-executive producing.
The Plot:
“Following Trollhunters and the second series 3Below, Wizards marks the final chapter in the trilogy that brings together the three disparate worlds of trolls, aliens and wizards. In the newest installment, wizard-in-training Douxie (O’Donoghue) and the heroes of Arcadia embark on a time-bending adventure to medieval Camelot that leads to an apocalyptic battle for the control of magic that will determine the fate of these supernatural worlds that have now converged.”
Episode nine of Netflix’s Ozark season three starts off right where episode eight ended. Ben (Tom Pelphrey) is in the backseat of a cab rambling on and on. He’s going back and forth between laughing one second and then crying the next. He ends his rambling monologue by asking the cab driver how his day is going.
Marty (Jason Bateman) pays Ruth (Julia Garner) a visit to find out if Ben’s there. She’s in too deep with Ben and yells at Marty for putting Ben in the hospital. She doesn’t seem to understand that he’s “sick” (as Marty labels it). Ruth’s not hearing any of that and accuses him of putting Ben in the hospital because he embarrassed him at his charity gala.
Ben shows up in the cab at Ruth’s place and also yells at Marty. He warns Marty he and Wendy can go f**k themselves – he’s done with them. He also lets it be known that he told “that lawyer lady to do the same,” stating this BS is over right now.
Ben reveals he told Helen’s daughter just exactly what her mother really does for a living. Marty and Ruth go into panic mode, realizing that what Ben just did is going to get him killed. Marty demands Ruth get Ben out of town immediately.
Wendy (Laura Linney) is on the phone with the hospital, angry they just let her brother free without speaking with her. She abruptly ends the call when she spots Helen (Janet McTeer) through her window.
Instead of telling Wendy what Ben has done, Helen goes with the “have you spoken to him” approach. Wendy hasn’t heard from him and is still wondering why a judge would rescind the order. Marty calls to inform Wendy her brother messed up and went to Helen’s, and Wendy lets him know Helen is there. He tells Wendy to try her best not to react. He continues by letting her know Ruth went to Darlene to get Ben out and Ben went straight to Helen’s. He also lets her know Ben told Erin everything.
After hanging up with Marty and while trying to hold it together, Wendy lies and claims Marty went to Ruth’s and no one was there.
Charlotte (Sofia Hublitz) and Jonah (Skylar Gaertner) pull up on their boat and find a freaked-out Erin (Madison Thompson). She questions them about what their parents do for a living, what her mom does for their parents, and if their uncle just got released from a mental hospital. Charlotte turns the questioning around and asks what she’s talking about. Erin reveals their uncle just came to her house and told her that her mom works for a Mexican cartel.
Rather than lie, Jonah tells Erin their parents own and operate shell companies while Charlotte tries to get him to stop. Charlotte then lets Erin know her entire life is about to get blown out of the water, but she cannot tell anyone about it. If she needs someone to talk to about it, she can talk to them.
Next, Nelson (Nelson Bonilla) shows up at Ruth’s trailer looking for Ben. Meanwhile, Ruth and Ben seek refuge at Darlene’s. Ruth explains she has to go back to the casino to make sure everything seems normal. This situation is just temporary until they can get passports so they can leave the country.
Although it’s not his decision at this point, Ben says he doesn’t want to leave the country. Ruth yells at him that he’ll leave the country if she tells him to.
Darlene (Lisa Emery) takes Ben to get him settled in while Ruth thanks Wyatt (Charlie Tahan) for helping with this. During their conversation, he admits he’s in love with Darlene and points out to Ruth that she’s in love with Ben. She tries to deny it.
Wendy, Marty, and Helen are all at the Byrdes’ house, ostensibly waiting for word on Ben. Marty tries to tell Helen they can call her if Ben shows up but she claims she doesn’t mind waiting. After Wendy tries to offer Helen something to eat, Helen grows impatient and demands to know where Ben is. Wendy attempts to calm the situation, suggesting she’ll speak with Erin and convince her Ben was lying. Then, she’ll get her brother out of the country.
Just then the kids show up and Erin starts screaming at her mom that she’s a liar. Wendy attempts to talk to Erin and convince her Ben is insane and makes up stories all the time. She tries to reassure the teen her mother is not a lawyer for a drug lord. Jonah stops his mother from continuing. Erin tells her mom she can’t even look at her and she’s going home, packing her stuff, and leaving.
Marty does his best to play peacemaker, assuring Helen they’ll fix this. Helen says they’ve been doing too much of trying to fix things lately and it’s her turn to fix things. With that, she leaves.
Marty asks the kids to give him and Wendy a moment alone but they refuse and take their seats. Jonah wants to know where Ben is and Marty reveals he’s with Ruth. Jonah tries to talk his mom and dad into leaving and starting over with Ruth and Ben. Wendy says they can’t do that and begins listing things they need to do, such as get money out of the mausoleum and get Ben a passport so he can leave the country. Jonah asks why he has to leave and Wendy, straight to the point, replies, “Because he f**ked up.”
Ben and Wyatt are sitting down eating when Ben confesses he messed up. Wyatt lets him in on the fact that Ruth is in love with him. Ben admits he loves her as well. He’s asking a 19-year-old for advice, wondering if he should go tell Ruth how stupid he is. Wyatt says he shouldn’t. Ben then suggests he can call Helen and fix things. Wyatt reminds him Ruth brought him here so he would not leave.
Nelson shows up at the casino and waits in the parking lot.
Marty talks to Sam about pushing money one last time and Sam seems scared. Marty won’t take no for an answer and walks away.
Sam is back inside the casino when he spots Agent Maya Miller (Jessica Frances Dukes). He gets spooked and walks away.
Ben, of course, does not listen to Wyatt and shows up at the casino. Nelson follows him in.
Sam barges into Marty’s office, warning he cannot do this anymore and knows Miller is on to him. As he’s panicking, Marty spots Ben on the security cameras. Marty then spots Nelson and runs out.
Ruth is talking to Ben when Marty rushes up and says Nelson is downstairs. He needs Ben to follow him. After Ben and Ruth confess their love for each other, Ben follows Marty out.
Marty calls Wendy to instruct her to rent a car and meet them somewhere as he and Ben get on a boat and take off.
As Marty and Ben wait for Wendy to show up, Ben starts talking about all the stuff Marty has had to deal with over the years because of him. He asks Marty if he’s sure that he can’t fix this. Marty confirms he can’t, insisting they will kill Ben and their entire family. Just then Wendy shows up to pick up Ben.
A short while later, Ben and Wendy sit in a parking lot eating and talking. Ben begins to cry and tells Wendy how sorry he is. He wonders how they got here and suggests Helen’s daughter would have figured it out on her own eventually. Wendy informs him that wouldn’t have happened because Helen’s smart.
Back at the Byrde home, the kids question Marty during dinner about what’s going on with their mom and Ben.
Ruth is followed home by Nelson and she assures him Ben isn’t there. When Nelson doesn’t speak, she says, “I wanted to ask you a question about my dad. Did he suffer at the end when you shot him?” Nelson still sits there, wordlessly.
Back in the parking lot, Wendy’s asleep in the minivan she rented when Ben takes that opportunity to sneak out and leave. The next morning Wendy is awakened by a police officer knocking on her window. The policewoman informs her she’s there because of Ben. Ben reported he’s in danger of being killed by Omar Navarro. Wendy explains her brother is not well and was just released from a mental hospital. The cop believes her and warns them to be careful.
After the officer leaves, Wendy yells at Ben who only seems to be making the situation worse.
Marty uses his laptop to show Helen that Wendy is on her way to Kansas City to meet with donors. Helen doesn’t buy it because she believes their charity is dead in the water due to Marty’s brother-in-law.
Sam attempts to talk to Ruth about Agent Miller, but he should know better. He’s not going to get any sympathy from Ruth and she yells at him to just do what Marty asked.
Helen is still at Marty’s house but now she’s arguing on the phone with her ex. Because of what Ben told Erin, her ex will get both the kids now. Helen angrily informs Marty, “Just to be clear, Ben doesn’t have to die because he told Erin. Ben has to die because Erin won’t be the last person he tells.”
Ben doesn’t understand the severity or dangerousness of his situation at all, no matter how many times he’s told what can happen. While Wendy is gone, he calls Helen and attempts to say he’s sorry. She’s asking for his location when Wendy yanks the phone away and ends the call. Wendy demands to know who he was talking to and when he confesses it was Helen, Wendy loses it. She’s enraged and asks if he’s trying to get her family killed. Wendy once again explains this is not a game and orders him to get in the car.
Wendy then calls Marty. She’s crying as she admits she can’t fix this. Ben is never going to listen and she doesn’t know what she’s going to do. After she ends the call, she turns to look at Ben who’s crying and slapping himself in the face. Wendy embraces her brother and asks, multiple times, where she can take him. Through tears he says Knoxville. He knows some people there. Plus, they have good hospitals.
Agent Miller goes through the casino’s earnings and realizes they’re up 19%. She calls Marty right away, seeming to know exactly what he’s doing by increasing the profits. She reveals it’s interesting they are up that much because that’s enough to get her warrant extended. She calls Marty a game player and while this will keep her there, they are not going to be friends.
Wendy and Ben stop at a gas station and Ben goes in before his sister. He purchases something before Wendy does and leaves to go wait in the car. Wendy asks the cashier if he just bought a phone and the cashier confirms he did. Wendy gets back in the car and doesn’t say anything to him about the phone.
Later, they relax as they eat dinner at a restaurant. They talk about their childhood and Wendy asks what he wants in five years. He says Ruth, a house, and a job. He asks her the same question in return. She says the same as him. Wendy gets up and tells him she’ll be right back, but then leaves the restaurant.
She looks at her brother one last time through the window before getting into her car and leaving. As she’s driving, she calls Marty, crying. She tells him she didn’t know what to do. Just then we see Nelson pull into the parking lot of the restaurant. Ben comes out and sees him while Wendy, who’s still on the phone but now down the road and out of sight, pulls over and asks Marty what she should do. She asks if she should go back and stop him. Marty replies by begging her to come home.
The episode ends with Wendy on the side of the road sobbing uncontrollably.
The critically acclaimed Oscar-winning short film Hair Love has inspired a new animated series coming to HBO Max. Young Love, based on writer/director Matthew A. Cherry and Sony Pictures Animation’s Hair Love, has been greenlit for a 12 episode season.
Cherry created the series and will serve as showrunner on the first season along with Carl Jones (The Boondocks, Black Dynamite).
“I am beyond excited to continue telling the story of Stephen, Angela and Zuri and further explore the family dynamics of a young Black millennial family we established in our short film Hair Love as an animated series,” said Cherry. “Couldn’t ask for better partners in Sony Pictures Animation and HBO Max in helping us get Young Love out to the world.”
“It’s a privilege to continue our partnership with Matthew Cherry, who has a gift for tapping into meaningful stories that touch our hearts. I personally can’t wait to collectively laugh and cry with the Young family,” stated Karen Rupert Toliver, executive vice president of creative for Sony Pictures Animation and Hair Love producer.
Blue Key Entertainment’s Monica A. Young (producer of Hair Love) and Lion Forge Animation’s David Steward II and Carl Reed will executive produce.
“Hair Love struck a chord that is still resonating deeply with audiences of all ages,” said Billy Wee, SVP, Original Animation, HBO Max. “Matthew and Sony Animation’s creative voices are a welcomed addition to the HBO Max family and we can’t wait to bring this joyous story to the world.”
The Young Love Plot, Courtesy of HBO Max:
“Hair Love centers around the relationship between an African-American father, his daughter Zuri, and the most daunting task a father could ever come across – doing his daughter’s hair for the first time. The short resonated with people everywhere, especially fathers who found themselves in similar situations.
The all-new animated series Young Love expands on the family introduced in Hair Love. Filled with comedy and heart, Young Love is an honest look into the world of the Young family – including millennial parents Stephen and Angela, their daughter Zuri and her pet cat Rocky – as they juggle their careers, marriage, parenthood, social issues, and multi-generational dynamics all while striving to make a better life for themselves.”
Two-time Oscar winner Hilary Swank (Boys Don’t Cry, Million Dollar Baby) stars in Netflix’s new sci-fi drama, Away. The streaming service just debuted a short first teaser along with character descriptions and a batch of first-look photos for the series created by Andrew Hinderaker.
In addition to Hilary Swank, season one stars Josh Charles, Talitha Bateman, Vivian Wu, Mark Ivanir, Ato Essandoh, and Monique Curnen.
Hinderaker, Jason Katims, Matt Reeves, Edward Zwick, Adam Kassan, and Jeni Mulein serve as executive producers. Jessica Goldberg is the season one showrunner and also executive produces.
Away is set to premiere on Friday, September 4, 2020.
The Away Plot and Character Descriptions, Courtesy of Netflix:
“From Executive Producer Jason Katims, the Netflix series Away is a thrilling, emotional drama on an epic scale that celebrates the incredible advancements humans can achieve and the personal sacrifices they must make along the way. As American astronaut Emma Green (Swank) prepares to lead an international crew on the first mission to Mars, she must reconcile her decision to leave behind her husband (Charles) and teenage daughter (Bateman) when they need her the most.
As the crew’s journey into space intensifies, their personal dynamics and the effects of being away from their loved ones back on Earth become increasingly complex. Away shows that sometimes to reach for the stars, we must leave home behind.”
Emma Green (Hilary Swank) – Emma Green is an American astronaut and former Navy pilot. She is the commander of the first mission to Mars. She is a headstrong, empathetic and highly intelligent astronaut and leader. She is married to Matt Logan, a chief engineer at NASA. Emma and Matt have a 15-year-old daughter, Lex.
Matt Logan (Josh Charles) – Matt Logan is a NASA engineer whose wife Emma Green is commanding the first mission to Mars. He faces the already enormous challenges of dealing with the mission from home, while trying to raise their teenage daughter on his own.
Alexis “Lex” Logan (Talitha Bateman) – 15-years-old Lex is the daughter of astronauts Emma Green and Matt Logan. Like her father, Lex is supportive and proud of her mother’s three-year mission. She struggles with coming of age while her mother is on the mission and her father faces his own struggles.
Misha Popov (Mark Ivanir) – Misha Popov is a Russian cosmonaut and engineer on the mission to Mars alongside Emma Green. The most experienced member of the crew, Misha doesn’t lack for ego, but secretly struggles with the personal sacrifices he made to get to space.
Kwesi Weisberg-Adebayo (Ato Essandoh) – Kwesi Weisberg-Adebayo is a British citizen from Ghana. Kwesi (pronounced Kway-Si) is good-humored, modest, and a man of deep faith. He’s a world-renowned botanist and carries with him the hope of growing life on Mars.
Ram Arya (Ray Panthaki) – Ram Arya is an Air Force fighter pilot from India. While the other astronauts are forced to reckon with their attachments to earth and their families, Ram is quite alone in the world.
Lu Wang (Vivian Wu) – Lu Wang is a chemist and astronaut representing China. She is intelligent and pragmatic but below her focused exterior, she has a complex personal life. She is married with a young son.
Melissa Ramirez (Monique Curnen) – Melissa Ramirez is a former astronaut who is Emma’s Crew Support Astronaut. Her job is to be Emma’s Liaison To Earth. Melissa gave up her own career as an astronaut to support her special needs child, but she is there for Emma and her family. She takes care of Lex in Matt and Emma’s absence.
