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Made on a humble budget of $38 million, Zach Cregger‘s Weapons is already hurtling towards breaking even with $5.7 million in preview earnings and $25 million to $30 million collection on the opening weekend (Variety). Anything beyond the break-even point of $38 million will immediately count toward profit for the Josh Brolin suburban horror.

Despite being deeply embedded in the horror category, Cregger isn’t afraid of his film being too saturated for the genre. Instead, Weapons embarks on a journey to terrorize its audience with the story of 17 missing schoolchildren who simply vanish into the night for no reason, sending the townspeople scrambling for answers.

Zach Cregger’s Weapons Aims to Dominate the Box Office on Its Opening Weekend Weapons (2025) [Credit: Warner Bros. Pictures]

For a movie with such a limited production budget and barely any marketing, Weapons has done incredibly well in its preview earnings and projected box office collection. At this rate,...

From one of the biggest movies of the year to an animated comedy revival more than a decade in the making and the Season 2 debut for one of Netflix’s all-time most popular shows, there are some major titles in the new movies and shows streaming this weekend — but there are some lesser-known gems among the bunch too, including A24’s latest winning feature film debut and a killer clown horror-comedy based on an Award-winning book.

Here’s your guide to the best new shows and movies to stream this weekend.

Peggy, Connie and Hank in “King of the Hill.” (Hulu) “King of the Hill” Season 14 (Hulu)

“King of the Hill” returns to TV screens with a new season for the first time since 2008. The beloved animated sitcom from Mike Judge and Greg Daniels ran for 12 years from the late 90s to the late 2000s, a comfort show and cultural staple of the era,...

If you open up a dictionary and turn to the page containing the word 'ubiquitous', then rumour has it you'll actually just find a picture of Pedro Pascal smiling back at you. By anyone's standards, the Chilean-American actor has had quite the 2025, impressing on screens both big and small with star turns in The Last Of Us Season 2, The Fantastic Four: First Steps, Materialists, and — imminently — Ari Aster's Eddington. And, according to Deadline, Pascal has no plan to pump the brakes anytime soon, as the in-demand actor is now in talks to lead Tony Gilroy's next movie, Behemoth!

With Tony Gilroy having enjoyed his own pretty remarkable year thanks to the release of his critically acclaimed — and several-time 2025 Emmy Awards nominated — Andor Season 2, all eyes have been on the veteran filmmaker's next move. And while precious little is known about the secretive plot of Gilroy's Searchlight Pictures bound Behemoth!

This article contains spoilers for "Weapons."

"Weapons," the latest horror feature from writer/director Zach Cregger, is a masterclass in manipulation — in more ways than one. Cregger's prior film (his first as a solo filmmaker), "Barbarian," was a movie that was very clever in its misdirection, leading audiences to believe one thing was happening when it wasn't, and hiding what was actually happening from people until the proverbial trap was ready to be sprung. Given the general rapturous response to that movie, Cregger must have been aware that his follow-up would be under heavy scrutiny for any big twists and turns from the start, something which "Barbarian" didn't have to deal with. As such, Cregger has built "Weapons" around the very idea of an unsolved mystery. In other words, both the film's characters and the viewing audience are asking the same central question: what happened to 17 particular children who left...

Exclusive: Following a busy 2025 that included an Emmy nominated performance and a Marvel Studios movie, Pedro Pascal isn’t looking to slow down as he is in talks to star in the Searchlight Pictures pic Behemoth! from writer-director Tony Gilroy. Searchlight recently came on to the project which Gilroy will write and direct. While the deal is not closed, sources say Pascal wants to do it and things are headed in the right direction.

Plot details are vague at this time but Gilroy has said in interviews that the film revolves around a cellist. Gilroy would also produce with Sanne Wohlenberg. The film is set to begin principal photography this fall in Los Angeles, with release plans to be announced at a later date.

Pascal is coming off a hugely successful summer, with A24 and Celine Song’s Materialists, A24 and Ari Aster’s Eddington and Marvel’s Fantastic Four: First Steps.

Paranoia is exploited to control us. Movies are groomed to flatter us. And trauma has been twisted to make us blame ourselves. How can we make sense of our lives? The two film-makers try to navigate the chaos

Ari Aster’s new movie, Eddington, pits Joaquin Phoenix against Pedro Pascal as men with conflicting takes on how to get their small town through the crisis of Covid. It’s also a film about the contemporary political crisis in the US and the influence of technology on our lives.

Adam Curtis’s latest documentary series, Shifty, covers similar themes but through the lens of British life in the Thatcher years of the late 1970s to early 1990s. This era, he argues, put in place a substantial shift in power away from the individual and the nation state, changes that are still playing out today.

Pedro Pascal is quickly becoming one of Hollywood's biggest stars and most in-demand actors. This year alone has been remarkable for Pascal, beginning in April with his return as surrogate father figure Joel Miller in HBO's The Last of Us season 2, a performance that earned him a second Emmy nomination for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series.

This summer alone, Pascal has starred in two A24 movies, Celine Song's romantic comedy Materialists and Ari Aster's neo-Western Eddington. In his biggest role yet, Pascal made his MCU debut as Reed Richards/Mister Fantastic in The Fantastic Four: First Steps. Pascal was actually set to star in another movie this summer, though he exited the role early in pre-production.

Zach Cregger Explains Why Pedro Pascal Exited Weapons

Director Zach Cregger explains why Pedro Pascal exited his new horror movie, Weapons. Written and directed by Cregger, who made his buzzy...

“Weapons” (2025) is a potent, precise breed of psychological terror that makes no apologies for itself. Between its creative storytelling structure and its truly shocking ending, it is a film that is intended to initiate conversations. Zach Creggar’s previous film, “Barbarian,” was a clever satire of toxic relationships within the horror genre, whereas “Weapons” is a subversion of suburban horror that carefully weaves its scares into a nuanced character study.

Creggar shows an outstanding clarity within his vision, as the tone of “Weapons” can switch between darkly hilarious, utterly terrifying, and completely bizarre on a moment’s notice without ever feeling inconsistent. Given the complexities that will surely make “Weapons” even more fascinating upon a second watch, it’s safe to say that Creggar has joined the likes of Jordan Peele, Ari Aster, Robert Eggers, and Mike Flanagan as one of the true trailblazers of modern horror.

“Weapons” opens with...

Josh Brolin has recently crossed over into the horror territory with Zach Cregger’s new suburban nightmare, Weapons; however, the actor finds remnants of the works of the Coen Brothers in the film.

It is understandable why the veteran actor would find it seemingly difficult to shed his Western identity after working in the genre so extensively throughout his career, but in this case, Brolin may just have a point. Even at the outset, Weapons has a lot more to offer in the way of the wild chaos that comes with the spurs and cowboy genre than slashers and the Scream Queen culture. Let’s find it how.

Josh Brolin Compares Zach Cregger To the Coen Brothers, and He’s Not Wrong Josh Brolin and Julia Garner in Weapons (2025) [Credit: Warner Bros. Pictures]

Much like how Jerry Lundegaard’s kidnapping plot goes uncontrollably out of hand, or Llewelyn Moss steals millions...

Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite (2019) created history at the 92nd Academy Awards, becoming the first foreign-language film to win Best Picture, along with its other three wins- Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, and Best International Film. It also became the first South Korean film to win the highest prize at the Cannes Film Festival- the coveted Palme d’Or. If you have seen Parasite, you know there isn’t quite a film like the genre-defying, thrilling saga of two families, distinguished by class structures, coming together under the same roof. For those who haven’t seen it, still get prepared to be floored.

A succinct review would be the words of fellow Academy Award-winning director of films like Babel, Birdman, and The Revenant, Alejandro G. Inarritu, who has said how” […] Instead of preaching to us, pointing fingers or predictably, mass shooting oligarchs and corporate monarchs, Bong Joon Ho, sometimes using metaphors...

Writer and director Ari Aster tells some seriously disturbing stories about deeply dysfunctional families in his films, and it's almost enough to make audiences wonder what's going on with his own family. After all, this is a man who made one of the most unsettling short films out there with the incest horror "The Strange Thing About the Johnsons" and has gone on to make feature films almost exclusively about damaged families. In an interview on Wtf with Marc Maron, Aster opened up and revealed that while his family isn't nearly as unstable as the ones he depicts onscreen, his father did have some strong criticism for him after his biggest flop. In fact, Aster's father told him that maybe he should stop writing his own movies. Ouch. 

The flop in question was Aster's intentionally divisive and confrontational dark comedy "Beau is Afraid," which starred Joaquin Phoenix as the titular Beau,...

It's been 15 years since three-time Academy Award winner James L. Brooks directed a feature film, and now for the first time since 2010's How Do You Know, there's a new movie from the director of Terms of Endearment on the way.

The first trailer for Ella McCay, starring Emma Mackey, Jamie Lee Curtis, and Woody Harrelson, has dropped, giving us our first look at the upcoming dramedy.

What's it about?

The film is centered around Ella (Mackey), who has just been elected governor but who is also still dealing with the family drama. In particular, there's her father (Harrelson), who has reentered her life with word of a new love in his life.

Who else is in it?

Backing Ella up is her aunt, played by Curtis. Also in the cast are Ayo Edebiri, Jack Lowden, Kumail Nanjiani, Rebecca Hall (in what appears to be a relatively small role) and Broadcast News alum Albert Brooks.

Since 2019, Joaquin Phoenix has been compensating for the success of Joker by starring in one flop after another: C’mon C’mon, Napoleon, Beau Is Afraid, Joker: Folie à Deux, and Eddington. Despite big names being attached to each of these films, their shocking box office performance proves that a fancy label cannot guarantee a big draw every time.

Phoenix’s latest outing only drives home that point further, considering the decorated cast of Eddington that includes Pedro Pascal, Emma Stone, and Austin Butler, with director Ari Aster at the helm of the A24 black comedy Western.

Here are all the 5 films that Phoenix has starred in since the record-breaking, billion-dollar phenomenon, Joker.

1. C’mon C’mon (2021) Joaquin Phoenix in C’mon C’mon (2021) [Credit: A24]

Released during the pandemic, Mike Mills’ endearing black-and-white drama about the “tenuous but transformational relationship” between a man (Joaquin Phoenix) and his nephew on their trip from LA to New York failed to become a crowd-pleaser.

Normally, winning an Oscar can take an actor's career to the next level. They're likely to get the cream of the offers, at a higher price than others. For someone like Joaquin Phoenix, who was already established in Hollywood and in contention for the biggest gigs, the only remaining evolution was monetary. He was reportedly paid $20 million to return as the titular character in last year's Joker: Folie à Deux, the sequel to Joker, for which he won his first Academy Award. However, the film infamously tanked with both critics and audiences. To make matters worse, Phoenix was coming off of a string of flops; he needed Joker 2 to work. It didn't; nor has his latest, Eddington.

Released only a couple of weeks ago, the black comedy Western has lost most of its theaters at the domestic box office. In its third weekend, the movie was playing in only around 500 locations,...

We’re diving into the hottest films trending on IMDb for the first week of August 2025. From action-packed blockbusters to chilling thrillers and nostalgic sequels, there’s something for everyone grabbing attention right now.

This week’s lineup features fresh releases and a few surprises, with genres spanning comedy, superhero adventures, and intense dramas. Let’s break down the 15 most popular movies that have viewers buzzing, starting from the bottom of the list to the top.

15. Eddington (2025) A24

A tense drama set in May 2020, ‘Eddington’ unfolds in a small New Mexico town where a sheriff-mayor standoff sparks chaos. Starring Joaquin Phoenix, Emma Stone, and Austin Butler, this Ari Aster-directed film blends raw emotion with unsettling stakes. Its 2-hour-28-minute runtime keeps audiences gripped with its dark, layered storytelling.

14. Materialists (2025) A24

This romantic drama follows a love triangle in New York City, starring Pedro Pascal, Chris Evans, and Dakota Johnson.

Ari Aster has quickly established himself as a major force in modern cinema. He wrote and directed Hereditary and Midsommar, two of the best horror movies of the 2010s. He's since followed them with Beau Is Afraid and Eddington, a bit of a pivot, yet they still carry his trademark dark humor, some violence, and, of course, dark themes.

For video game fans, some of Aster's works can remind them of popular games. They can run the gamut from action to pure horror, with others more psychological to fit his motif. They can be big games or smaller ones, which also suits Aster's mixing of different budget scales. For fans of Aster and his filmography, these 10 video games can be a good way to feel the same scares. 

Weird West

Aster's latest movie, Eddington, is a "neo-Western" with some satire to go with the thrills. That's why Weird West may work,...

Friday Pm: A bit of a calm spell before the Freakier Friday-Weapons double bill happening next weekend with Fantastic Four: First Steps eyeing around $12M today for a $40M-$45M second weekend, which gets it close to $200M+ or $198M on the low-end. On the low-side that’s a -66% decline in the vicinity of Captain America: Brave New World (-68%), but harder than Thunderbolts* (-56%) which indicates the front-loaded rush to Marvel’s first family. The pic is booked at 4,125 theaters.

Marvel / © Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures / Courtesy Everett Collection

DreamWorks/Animation’s The Bad Guys 2 playing at 3,852 sites is doing slightly better than the 2022 original with a $9M first day (which includes previews) and a $22M 3-day.

Paramount’s The Naked Gun, knock on wood, looking alright with $6M Friday, and a $16M 3-day at 3,344. Excellent exits as we told you last night, and reviews, which are...

Netflix’s next genre-bending series, starring Toni Collette and Taskmaster’s Mae Martin, has finally set a premiere date, set for this fall, after months of keeping fans in suspense. Titled Wayward, the eight-episode series marks Collette’s highly anticipated return to the horrorverse after Ari Aster’s critically acclaimed Hereditary. It is created by Martin, who is widely known for winning Season 15 of Taskmaster and receiving a BAFTA nomination for their work on the Channel 4/Netflix comedy series Feel Good.

As announced on Thursday, July 31, Wayward will debut on Netflix on Thursday, September 25. The streamer also released a teaser, giving a glimpse at Collette’s chilling role as the series whisks you to Tall Pines, “a bucolic town with secrets that are anything but pretty.” In addition to creating and starring in the drama, Martin is the co-showrunner and executive producer alongside Ryan Scott.

In Wayward, Collette portrays Evelyn Wade,...

UK-Ireland box office was up 3% in July 2025 on 2024, with year-on-year takings now up for eight of the last nine months.

July 2025 revenue came in at £107.4m, 3% up on £103.8m in July 2024. The year-to-date is now £639m, 15% ahead of 2024; although back to 1% behind 2023, when the Barbenheimer phenomenon boosted July takings.

Universal’sJurassic World Rebirthroared with £30.3m in the month – ahead of the three big titles from July last year,Despicable Me 4(£28.3m),Deadpool And Wolverine(£25.5m) andInside Out 2(£16.3m).

UK-Ireland July 2025 top 10 RankTitle (origin)DistributorRelease dateJuly totalTotal 1 Jurassic World Rebirth(US) Universal 4/7/25 £30.3m £30.3m 2 Superman(US) Warner Bros 11/7/25 £23m £23m...

The U.K. and Ireland box office delivered a robust performance in July 2025, generating £107.3 million ($142.3 million), a 3% increase on the same month last year (£103.8 million), according to Comscore. The year-to-date tally has now surpassed £639 million ($847 million) after 30 playweeks — running 15% ahead of 2024 and trailing just 1% behind 2023, the benchmark Barbenheimer summer.

Universal’s “Jurassic World Rebirth” dominated the month with a colossal $40.1 million, including a $16.4 million debut — the second-highest opening of the year behind “A Minecraft Movie” ($19.9 million) and ahead of “Bridget Jones: Mad About The Boy” ($16.3 million). Gareth Edwards’ reboot is now the fourth-highest grosser of 2025 so far, eclipsing “Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning” ($34.9 million) and trailing “Lilo & Stitch” ($48.8 million). It is already the fifth highest-grossing film in the “Jurassic” franchise, just behind “Jurassic World: Dominion” ($46.5 million).

Warner Bros.’ “Superman” soared into second place with $30.5 million, solidifying its place in the year’s Top 10 at No.6. The James Gunn...

Four-time Oscar-nominee Jennifer Lawrence is stepping up her acting game. If you think the Hunger Games actress has given it all, wait until you see her in the upcoming drama film, Die, My Love. It isn’t just the 2025 film, but Lawrence was announced in several other interesting films over the last couple of years.

According to critics, Lawrence delivered her best performance yet in Die, My Love, as a new mother dealing with post-partum depression. Her portrayal of the character’s deteriorating mental health would be a hard watch once the film hits the big screen. Lawrence’s role is going to be that good! Here’s all about her next movie and other upcoming movies.

Jennifer Lawrence Delivers Oscar-Worthy Performance in Her Next Movie Jennifer Lawrence as Grace in a still from Die, My Love | Credits: Mubi

Jennifer Lawrence plays Grace, whose nervous breakdown is exacerbated by her...

Ari Aster previously used the horror genre as a lens to examine dysfunctional family dynamics in Hereditary and break-up messiness in Midsommar. He then pivoted to the manic surrealism of Beau is Afraid, which immerses viewers in the title character’s perma-anxious mindset, generated by his mother’s domineering hold on his entire world. In Eddington, Aster pivots again, away from individual psychological portraits towards a more panoramic view of recent political history. Set in the eponymous fictional New Mexico town during the initial months of Covid, Eddington uses a contested election between its bar-owning neoliberal mayor Ted Garcia (Pedro Pascal) and […]

The post “Making a Movie is Just a Succession of On-Set Challenges”: Ari Aster on Eddington first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.

Ari Aster previously used the horror genre as a lens to examine dysfunctional family dynamics in Hereditary and break-up messiness in Midsommar. He then pivoted to the manic surrealism of Beau is Afraid, which immerses viewers in the title character’s perma-anxious mindset, generated by his mother’s domineering hold on his entire world. In Eddington, Aster pivots again, away from individual psychological portraits towards a more panoramic view of recent political history. Set in the eponymous fictional New Mexico town during the initial months of Covid, Eddington uses a contested election between its bar-owning neoliberal mayor Ted Garcia (Pedro Pascal) and […]

The post “Making a Movie is Just a Succession of On-Set Challenges”: Ari Aster on Eddington first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.

DC Studios/Warner Bros’ Superman from James Gunn is passing the $300 million mark at the domestic box office Thursday. It’s the first DC movie to cross that threshold since Matt Reeves’ The Batman pulled off the feat in 2022.

Overall, Superman is the ninth DC movie to cross the three-century mark at the U.S.-Canada box office after 2008’s The Dark Knight ($534.9M), 2012’s The Dark Knight Rises ($448.1M), 2017’s Wonder Woman ($412.8M), 2022’s The Batman ($369.3M), 2019’s Joker ($335.4M), 2018’s Aquaman ($335.1M), 2016’s Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice ($330.3M) and 2016’s Suicide Squad ($325.1M).

Superman has surpassed Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel ($291M domestic) and 2017’s Justice League ($229M), the latter co-starring Kal-El.

Related: The Movies That Have Made More Than $1 Billion At The Global Box Office

The new movie starring David Corenswet hit the threshold on its 21st day in theatrical release. Superman is pacing...

Netflix has unveiled the trailer for the new horror series Wayward starring Toni Collette. The streamer is known for its terrifying series, particularly those overseen by Mike Flanagan, and though the director now calls Prime Video home, Netflix is still looking to frighten audiences this fall.

The trailer for Wayward reveals a mysterious school of some sort, and it looks like there will be some strange goings-on. Collette makes an appearance as one of the school's officials, briefly popping in at the end of the trailer to deliver a devious smile. Check it out below:

In addition to the trailer, EW spoke with star Mae Martin, star, co-showrunner, and executive producer for Wayward, who revealed their inspiration for the series:

"As a teenager, my best friend got sent to a troubled teen institute. We grew up in Canada, and she was sent to the States. I was so shocked by...

What makes writer-director Judd Apatow exceptional is that he is one of the most comedically gifted creative forces in Hollywood, not because of how many laugh-out-loud classics he has delivered, but because of the consistent quality of his movies.

Not many filmmakers have the ability to peel off the self-indulgence that comes with a big-screen affair. With comedy features, directors feel the need to make a script somehow burst at the seams with gags, jokes, and side-stitch, which is often force-fed to the audience.

However, Judd Apatow not only dismantles that notion but also redefines his work by going back to the basics. The filmmaker tastefully takes a magnifying glass to the dysfunctional circles of society filled with potheads, manchilds, socially inept adults, and middle-aged screw-ups, all connected by a single red thread of dysfunctional behavior and emotional immaturity.

Here’s a list of all the Judd Apatow films that he has directed,...

Praise Eywa! The new issue of Empire is nearly here, bringing a major dispatch from Pandora. Or, more accurately, James Cameron’s headquarters, where Avatar: Fire And Ash is entering its final stages. You can read all about the next chapter in the saga in the September 2025 issue – pre-order yours here – which hits shelves on Thursday 31 July.

For now, here’s a sneak peek inside.

Avatar: Fire And Ash

Ready for another all-out Na’vi epic? Empire joins James Cameron at Avatar HQ for two full days, watching him as he brings his next sci-fi behemoth into being. Plus, we speak to Jake Sully himself, Sam Worthington, and incoming villain Varang, Oona Chaplin, as the Avatar story gets ready to explore.

Spinal Tap II: The End Continues

Turn it up to 11: Spinal Tap are back in a long-awaited sequel mockumentary. Empire interviews the full band – David St. Hubbins, Derek Smalls,...

Ari Aster says his father offered blunt feedback after the punishing theatrical run of Beau Is Afraid: maybe direct the next project, but “let someone else write it.” The three‑hour nightmare comedy cost about $35 million and sold only $12.3 million in tickets, leaving backer A24 nursing an estimated $35 million shortfall. Appearing on Marc Maron’s podcast, the filmmaker admitted that advice “might have been right,” yet also confessed he would now trim the film’s exhausting final hour.

Instead of handing his keyboard to a collaborator, Aster doubled down: he wrote and directed Eddington, a Covid‑era western satire that bowed in Cannes competition on 16 May 2025 and reached U.S. cinemas 18 July.

Festival reaction was polarised—applause for its political bite countered by complaints of narrative drift—setting the tone for Stateside reviews. The picture carries a reported $25 million budget and draws on a marquee ensemble of Joaquin Phoenix, Emma...

If you ask Ari Aster’s dad, the “Hereditary” director should leave screenwriting to someone else.

During a recent appearance on the “Wtf with Marc Maron” podcast, Aster said his father suggested he stick to directing only after his 2023 film “Beau Is Afraid” underperformed at the box office.

“When ‘Beau Is Afraid’ flopped, my dad did tell me, ‘Uh, maybe you shouldn’t write the next one,’” Aster said. “He might’ve been right.”

Despite the advice, Aster wrote his follow-up feature, “Eddington,” which is currently in theaters. A24 and Aster are hoping for a win from the small-town dramedy starring Joaquin Phoenix and Pedro Pascal after “Beau” grossed $12 million worldwide against a $35 million budget.

Aster said he was “pretty sad” about the poor critical and commercial reception of “Beau,” but added that a few stray messages of support helped him deal with the disappointment.

“I was pretty sad that it was,...

The list of suspects is growing bigger for the sophomore season of Apple TV+’s crime drama, Presumed Innocent, as Deadline reveals that Jack Reynor is the latest to join the cast. The Midsommar star, who was recently revealed to be leading Lee Cronin’s upcoming take on The Mummy, will appear in the series opposite Rachel Brosnahan, who is still up in the clouds thanks to the massive success of James Gunn’s Superman. From what we know so far about the next set of episodes, the title will follow an anthology format, meaning there won’t be any crossover from the debut installment, which featured leading performances from Jake Gyllenhaal, Ruth Negga, Lily Rabe, and more.

The debut season of Presumed Innocent followed the familiar path of Scott Turrow’s 1987 bestselling novel of the same name and marked the second time the story received an on-screen telling, the...

Ari Aster is known for making family dramas turned, well, horrific, but the auteur recently experienced some family drama of his own. After Aster’s third film “Beau Is Afraid” was a box office flop, Aster’s father suggested that he solely direct instead.

“When ‘Beau Is Afraid’ flopped, my dad did tell me, ‘Uh, maybe you shouldn’t write the next one,’” Aster said during the “Wtf with Marc Maron” podcast. “He might’ve been right.”

However, the director did write his next film, “Eddington,” which is now in theaters. As for his mom, Aster added, “She’s very supportive. I think, you know, certain things she likes more than others … I’m lucky in that sense.”

“Beau Is Afraid” had an estimated budget of $35 million; the A24 film grossed only a third of that at the box office.

“I was pretty sad that it was, like, so maligned,...

A24 this morning debuted the first trailer for Eternity, a romantic comedy starring Elizabeth Olsen (His Three Daughters), Miles Teller (The Gorge), and Callum Turner (Masters of the Air), which is slated to hit theaters this November after world premiering at the Toronto Film Festival.

Directed by David Freyne, the film is set in an afterlife where souls have one week to decide where to spend eternity. Our protagonist, Joan (Olsen), is faced with the impossible choice between the man she spent her life with (Teller) and her first love (Turner), who died young and has waited decades for her to arrive.

Oscar nominees Trevor White and Tim White produced under their Star Thrower Entertainment banner. In addition to directing, Freyne co-wrote alongside Pat Cunnane, whose original script appeared on the 2022 Black List. We were first to report on the project, which also stars John Early, Olga Merediz, and Da’Vine Joy Randolph,...

Audiences looking to relive the messy, violent, paranoid emotions of mid-2020 America need look no further than Ari Aster’s “Eddington.” The Covid-era western, currently in theaters, marks Aster’s fourth film with A24 — and his fourth feature overall.

But according to Aster’s dad, he should’ve stopped writing after his third.

With his “Eddington” press run winding down, Aster visited the “Wtf with Marc Maron” podcast to speak with the comic and actor about his latest film and career. Around an hour into the podcast, conversation turned to “Beau Is Afraid,” Aster’s divisive third feature.

The film, which uses abrasiveness and discomfort as weapons in a three-hour odyssey of anxiety, performed poorly at the box office and saw mixed results critically. Near the end of the podcast, Maron asked Aster what his mother thought of his work, considering films like “Beau” and “Hereditary” in particular examine dark attachments between mother and child.

After the success of Hereditary and Midsommar, Ari Aster struggled to find an audience with Beau Is Afraid. The film, which starred Joaquin Phoenix as the mild-mannered but paranoia-ridden main character, was a box-office bomb for A24. Now, two years later, Aster is reflecting on how the film was received and what he might have done differently.

“I was pretty sad that it was so maligned,” said Aster on Marc Maron’s Wtf Podcast. “It was a bummer. It lost money. Critically, I wouldn’t say it was reviled, there’s just no consensus whatsoever. I would say, now I hear about it more and more, it’s sort of being reassessed.“

Aster continued, “There are things that I would do differently if I did it now. While I was making it I was really excited about how exhausting the film was. It was supposed to be exhausting, and that...

Pedro Pascal might be the only actor alive who’s legally allowed to be in three movies at once without violating some sort of cloning law. Walk into a cinema right now and there’s a good chance you’ll be greeted by not one, not two, but three Pedro Pascal posters stacked side by side like he owns the place. A viral clip on social media even shows the trio proudly displayed in one theater lobby. One Facebook user summed it up best: “Bro working off 60 hour weeks.” Another added, “The dude is Working Ot.” No lies detected. At 50, Pascal is racking up screen time like it’s a competition—currently starring in The Materialist, Ari Aster’s Eddington, and The Fantastic Four: First Steps. And let’s not forget, he’s already booked for next year with both The Mandalorian and Grogu and Avengers: Doomsday. That’s six franchises if you’re counting,...

Pedro Pascal is 2025's most popular actor. He's had multiple projects this year alone, which culminated with his debut in the MCU as Reed Richards in The Fantastic Four: First Steps.

As it has happened with multiple artists before, overexposure leads to criticism. Anne Hathaway went through this, as well as Jennifer Lawrence, Sydney Sweeney, and more. Following his press tour with The Fantastic Four: First Steps, the actor found himself surrounded by backlash, especially when it came to his close friendship with co-star Vanessa Kirby. In a new post on X, fellow MCU star Simu Liu, who will co-star with both of them in the upcoming Avengers: Doomsday, slammed the "manufactured hate" Pascal is currently getting.

manufactured hate for someone simply because they’re experiencing a moment of extreme visibility (ie a press tour they’re contractually obligated to do) is really fucking boring.— Simu Liu (@SimuLiu) July 26, 2025

In response to his future co-star,...

Ari Aster’s “Eddington” is here.

The movie, which pits a small-town sheriff (Joaquin Phoenix) against his mayor (Pedro Pascal), set during the early days of the global pandemic, is fierce and raw. Considering this is from Aster, the director of “Midsommar,” “Hereditary” and “Beau is Afraid,” it is also confrontational and strange and deeply funny, with the action set at the precipice of the complete breakdown in communication that accompanied lockdown. (Indiewire called it “the first truly modern American Western.”)

And if you come out of “Eddington” looking for more offbeat westerns to watch, we’ve got seven that should fill that void nicely.

Paramount “Bad Company” (1972)

In the 1960s and 1970s, there was a slew of what were referred to as “acid westerns” – westerns that were set in the distant past but that embraced the counterculture of the period, including, of course, recreational drug use. (Hence the “acid” in “acid western.

Sony Pictures Classics saw a nice opening and a no. 10 spot at the domestic box office for Oh, Hi! on a weekend with a wide selection of indie films to counter-program The Fantastic Four: First Steps and other studio holdovers. Bollywood crowd pleaser Saiyaara was at no. 9 in week 2. Pete Davidson-starring The Home topped $1 million.

Oh, Hi! debuted at $1.13 million on 866 screens, The bleakly comedic look at modern dating was written and directed by Sophie Brooks and stars Molly Gordon, Logan Lerman, Geraldine Viswanathan and John Reynolds. It follows nice runs for SPC of Jane Austen Wrecked My Life ($1.9 million domestic) and Don’t Let’s Go To The Dogs Tonight, still in theaters and looking at an estimated $62k on 83 screens in week 3 for a cume of $446k.

Saiyaara from Yas Raj Films USA powered to a cume of $3.24 million in week 2, according to Comscore, after the Bollywood romance by...

Update: 2025/07/27 13:01 Est By Lukas Shayo

The Fantastic Four: First Steps Comes In Under Expectations As Superman Claims An Early Lead

This article was originally written Saturday Am and has been updated Sunday Pm with up-to-date box office projections (in bold), a full chart, and further analysis.

The Marvel Cinematic Universe's The Fantastic Four: First Steps has already taken its first steps towards box office success. The latest Marvel movie, First Steps, reintroduces Marvel's first family and comes just two weeks after the DC Universe shocked the box office with Superman's impressive debut. Marvel hopes to match DC's success after a slow post-pandemic trajectory.

The box office has been dominated recently by summer blockbusters after a relatively slow start to the year. James Gunn's Superman, Ari Aster's Eddington, and the ever-present dinosaur epic Jurassic World Rebirth have been ruling the summer. A few other scattered projects have also been released,...

Despite starring in The Fantastic Four: First Steps, the number one movie in the world right now, Pedro Pascal couldn’t move the needle in the favor of Ari Aster’s Eddington. The satirical black comedy still hasn’t passed the $10 million mark at the domestic box office after 10 days of release. To make matters worse, the star-studded film found itself being outperformed by a Bollywood movie that’s playing in 1,800 fewer theaters. Headlined by the Oscar-winning Joaquin Phoenix, whose career spiral we’ll discuss in a moment, Eddington also features the massively popularEmma Stone and Austin Butler in supporting roles.

But their combined star power wasn’t enough to make up for Aster’s typically divisive filmmaking. Even his breakout hit, Hereditary, earned a dreaded D+ grade on CinemaScore, while his last film, Beau is Afraid, grossed just around $10 million worldwide against a reported budget of $30 million. Eddington, which...

The suits at Marvel are no doubt breathing a sigh of relief this weekend, as Fantastic Four: First Steps has finally broken the studio’s recent streak of underwhelming box office openings. While its $118 million debut isn’t quite the juggernaut it would have been during Marvel’s peak—Ant-Man & the Wasp: Quantumania opened to $120 million just three years ago and was considered a disappointment—it’s still a welcome rebound after Captain America: Brave New World ($88 million) and Thunderbolts ($75 million). We expected it to open lower in our predictions. That said, it does fall slightly short of James Gunn’s Superman, which opened two weeks ago to $125 million.

Still, it’s a major win for Marvel’s First Family, whose cinematic track record has been less than stellar. The original 2000s Fantastic Four films debuted to $56 and $57 million respectively, while the ill-fated 2015 reboot sputtered out with just $25.6 million. This...

For the third time this month, a new movie has debuted with over $100 million at the domestic box office. Marvel’s The Fantastic Four: First Steps couldn’t match Superman’s performance from a couple of weeks ago, but it lived up to expectations and capitalized on positive reviews and an enthusiastic audience response. The Fantastic Fourgrossed just under $120 million in its first three days of release at the domestic box office, which isn’t as high as some of Marvel’s past films have gone in their debut weekends, but it’s certainly a lot better than both Captain America: Brave New World and Thunderbolts* from earlier this year. The Fantastic Four has already overtaken the entire $56 million lifetime haul of Josh Trank’s 2015 Fantastic Four reboot, and the $116 million domestic haul of Ryan Reynolds’ equally ill-fated Green Lantern movie. Reynolds, of course, bounced back with the Deadpool franchise,...

That unforgettable fight scene in Eddington, where Joe (Joaquin Phoenix) storms Ted’s (Pedro Pascal) party and gets slapped mid-Katy Perry anthem, almost looked and sounded very different. Yep, you heard it right. Turns out, Ari Aster, the creator behind the movie, originally wanted Jay-Z and Alicia Keys’ Empire State of Mind to soundtrack the chaos.

Imagine that the New York anthem is blaring in a dusty New Mexico mayoral face-off. Aster admitted in an interview with Roger Ebert,

We weren’t able to secure the rights, and I really wasn’t expecting to, because it’s such a huge song, but then we spent a lot of time experimenting with different songs in that scene, and “Firework” just fit.

Honestly? It is perfect. The irony of Ted losing his mind over a pop power ballad makes the moment even more delicious.

Jay-Z’s Billboard-Smashing Anthem Almost Scored Eddington...

Ever since Ari Aster’s deliciously horrifying “Midsommar” forever traumatized us, its Og inspiration, “The Wicker Man,” has also found a new life, or dare I say, “reincarnation.” The 1973 Pagan-themed horror is very much recognized amongst the genre aficionados anyway, and Midsommar’s popularity has only resulted in adding a handful number of members to the cult over the last three years.

I saw the movie many years ago without even having some basic knowledge, thanks to my habit of experiencing movies without having any kind of preconceived notion. A recent re-watch, thanks to this assignment, has, of course, allowed me to process things with far-developed sensibilities, both life and movie-wise.

While at the core, both “The Wicker Man” and “Midsommar” bear pretty much similar tasting fruit, the former has a much more straightforward narrative. That is natural, given it breathed the air back in the seventies, where terms like...

Micheal Ward, the British actor known for his roles in Netflix series Top Boy and Steve McQueen’s Small Axe, has been charged with two counts of rape and three counts of sexual assault.

London’s Metropolitan Police announced the charges on Friday. The alleged offenses relate to one woman and are reported to have taken place in January 2023.

Ward, 27, is due to appear at Thames Magistrates’ Court in London on August 28.

Scott Ware, the Met detective leading the investigation, said: “Our specialist officers continue to support the woman who has come forward – we know investigations of this nature can have significant impact on those who make reports.”

Ward has been dropped by UK agency Olivia Bell Management. When Deadline contacted the agency on Friday, an employee said: “We no longer represent him.” His U.S. agent is CAA.

Ward first earned widespread recognition for his leading role in the Netflix series Top Boy.

Micheal Ward, the BAFTA-winning star of “Top Boy,” “Small Axe” and “Eddington,” has been charged with rape and sexual assault.

The 27-year old has been charged with two counts of rape and three counts of sexual assault by the Metropolitan Police, according to the BBC. Variety has reached out to Ward’s reps for comment.

The alleged offenses relate to one woman and, according the police, are reported to have taken place in January 2023.

“Our specialist officers continue to support the woman who has come forward – we know investigations of this nature can have significant impact on those who make reports,” said Detective Superintendent Scott Ware, whose team is leading the Met’s investigation.

Ward will appear at Thames Magistrates’ Court on Aug, 28.

Ward broke out on Rapman’s cult film “Blue Story” and Netflix hit “Top Boy” in 2019 and won the BAFTA Rising Star award the following year. In...

British actor Micheal Ward, star of Top Boy and more recently, Ari Aster’s Cannes-debuting film Eddington, has been charged with rape.

London’s Metropolitan Police confirmed on Friday that the 27-year-old actor from Cheshunt, Hertfordshire has been charged with two counts of rape and three counts of sexual assault. The offences relate to one woman, the force added, and are reported to have taken place in January 2023.

Ward will appear at Thames Magistrates Court in London on Thursday, Aug. 28.

“Our specialist officers continue to support the woman who has come forward,” said detective superintendent Scott Ware, whose team is leading the Met’s investigation. “We know investigations of this nature can have significant impact on those who make reports.”

Catherine Baccas, deputy chief crown prosecutor for Cps London South, said: “Having carefully reviewed a file of evidence, the Crown Prosecution Service has authorised the Metropolitan Police to charge Micheal Ward,...

Directed by Marcel the Shell with Shoes On's In his review for Collider, Aidan KelleyDean Fleischer Camp, Disney’s live-action Lilo & Stitch recently became Hollywood's biggest movie of the year so far, officially breaking the billion-dollar boundary and becoming Hollywood's first of the year to do so, following in the footsteps of China's near-$2 billion hit Ne Zha 2. Now available to watch from the comfort of your own home on PVOD platforms such as Amazon Prime and Apple TV, Lilo & Stitch's long run at the box office is finally slowing down, although not without still hitting a few more milestones.

One such milestone, hit thanks to another recent weekend haul of $1.5 million domestically, is officially doubling the total US gross of another big-name franchise, namely Guy Ritchie's Sherlock Holmes. Released in 2009, the movie, which starred Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law as the titular Sherlock Holmes and Dr.

Don’t tell Joaquin Phoenix he’s not a star. The Oscar winner recently appeared on Theo Von’s “This Past Weekend” podcast (via Entertainment Weekly) during his “Eddington” press tour and remembered a director telling him on set early in his career that all he would ever be is simply a “character actor.” Phoenix’s co-star at the time compared him to a higher-profile actor, to which the director butted in and shot down the comparison.

“It’s kind of code for like, ‘You can’t really, like, you’re never going to really get there, but you’ll work,'” Phoenix said of the director’s “character actor” dig at him. “And that fucking pissed me off.”

But Phoenix added, “I ultimately appreciate it because it made me go like, ‘Well, how do I find that way? Like, how do I find more?'”

The actor would go...

David Laub, the former head of Metrograph Pictures, is joining Neon as SVP Marketing and Publicity, a newly created position in which the exec will focus on marketing, publicity and awards.

Laub will work closely with Ryan Werner, Neon’s new President of Global Cinema.

Laub had been head of Metrograph Pictures since February 2024. During his run, he acquired and released such films as India Donaldson’s feature debut Good One, which played both Sundance and Cannes and was on more than 100 year-end top 10 lists; Cannes selection Santosh, which was on the shortlist for this year’s International Feature Oscar; and the lauded Venice prize-winner April by Dea Kulumbegashvilli.

Laub previously had spent close to nine years at A24, where he worked in all aspects of film distribution including marketing, publicity, acquisitions and exhibition. He oversaw a slate of films for the company that included Charlotte Wells’ Oscar nominee Aftersun,...