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A despotic leader reigning with absolute power. A crackdown on investigative reporters. A government consisting only of ardent loyalists. Federal agents with access to the bank records and personal information of private citizens. Journalists critical of the regime who are harassed, threatened and face possible legal action.

What country are we talking about here?

If what happens in Julia Loktev’s intimate and in-depth 5 ½ hour documentary My Undesirable Friends sounds familiar, you may be surprised to learn that it’s not, in fact, about the United States since the start of President Donald Trump’s second term, but about Russia back in 2021.

It was then that Loktev followed several reporters in the months leading up to the invasion of Ukraine, chronicling the last vestiges of an anti-authoritarian resistance that fell apart when the war broke out. Highly informative and a bit exhausting, this incisive look at journalism in a dying...

At nearly five-and-a-half hours — further divided into five massive chapters — Julia Loktev’s “My Undesirable Friends: Part I — Last Air in Moscow” is less like typical docu-journalism, and more akin to Tolstoy’s “War and Peace.” The first volume in a two-part series about independent reporters, it lays out its twists and turns early on: At some point during its runtime, Russia will launch a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Capturing this war and its consequences was never Loktev’s intent, but the film’s evolution is a vital part of its text.

What began as a piece about Loktev’s friends and colleagues being branded “foreign agents” by the Russian state evolves in real time. It’s even forced to switch protagonists at one point, owing the mounting logistical challenges caused by the ongoing conflict. While Loktev intended to work with a professional cinematographer, she would end up shooting much...

Earlier this week, the internet was abuzz with excitement as we got our first proper look at the return of Ben Affleck's autistic hitman Christian Wolff in The Accountant 2. And now, having had our appetite for more digit-based danger whetted by the sight of Affleck and on-screen brother Jon Bernthal being reunited in Gavin O'Connor's long-gestating sequel, today Amazon and Warner Bros. dropped the real payload — the first full trailer for the upcoming financial thriller. We've run the numbers and we think it adds up to an inbound banger from O'Connor and writer Bill Dubuque, but check out the trailer for yourself below and see what you think;

Now that's a trailer! Christian Wolff is back and neurospicy as ever; J.K. Simmons' U.S. Treasury investigator Ray gets whacked and leaves a message on his arm reading 'Find the accountant'; and Christian and his mercenary brother...

As demonstrated by Chilli in the "Relax" episode, sometimes we all forget how to just hang loose and let go. Whether you're one of her younger fans or one of the millions of grownups who have given in to the Bluey craze, the show's mellow and low-stakes theming makes it one of the most relaxing shows on streaming.

With the recent developments surrounding Bluey's future at Disney, many fans are brushing up and re-watching their favorite blue heeler, but it doesn't always have to be a massive binge session. Take a load off and enjoy some of our favorite relaxing Bluey episodes.

"The Beach"

Doesn't it always feel like every successful animated series has a beach episode? Tons of people enjoy lying out in the sun and enjoying the waves, and the Heelers are no different. Why not enjoy the surf with this episode in the background?

The plot...

Kentucky country artists Tyler Childers and Sturgill Simpson will headline the Oregon-based FairWell Festival. More than 30 artists will descend on Redmond for the two-day music event, including Sierra Ferrell, Dwight Yoakam, Koe Wetzel, Cody Jinks, Flatland Cavalry, Ludacris, Tanya Tucker, Treaty Oak Revival, Wyatt Flores, and Charles Wesley Godwin.

The festival takes place on July 18 and July 19. Presale tickets are available, with general sale tickets available on Friday at 10 a.m. Pt.

Featured on Rolling Stone’s 2023 Best Country and Americana Albums list, Childers’ Rustin in the Rain includes seven...

While Young Frankenstein had to spend money on monster makeup and vintage props, and Blazing Saddles no doubt had to hire horses and horse-poop cleaner-uppers, Mel Brooks’ 1987 Star Wars spoof Spaceballs ended up being his most expensive movie up until that point — by quite a lot.

In a vintage clip that was recently shared online by Today, Brooks sat down for an interview with film critic and mustache enthusiast, Gene Shalit, just weeks before Spaceballs hit theaters. And the very first question concerned reports of the inflated budget. “How come Spaceballs cost more than all of Mel Brooks’ other movies put together?” Shalit asked.

“There was a mistake made somewhere,” Brooks joked. “It was supposed to be $2.2 million, but somebody put the point after the second 2 and suddenly it was $22 million. They gave it to us so we spent it. Mostly we spent it on limos. Everybody loves a limo.

Mufasa: The Lion King has set its Digital, 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray, and DVD release date. I didn’t think anyone was really demanding this prequel, but it has grossed $653 million, so I’m sure there are plenty out there eager to add it to their collections. The film will be available on Digital through Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV, and Fandango at Home on February 18th and on 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray, and DVD on April 1st.

Here’s the list of bonus features included. The press release states that content may vary by product and retailer.

Full-Length Sing-Along – Sing along with your favorite songs while watching the movie with on-screen lyrics. Finding Milele: The Making of Mufasa: The Lion King – Join visionary director Barry Jenkins and the cast of Mufasa: The Lion King on an epic journey to create a brand-new chapter in the story of The Lion King.

Many fans rebelled when Ryan Seacrest joined Wheel of Fortune as the new host. On top of the fans who didn’t think he could replace Pat Sajak, others just hated Ryan as a person. Of course, none of these people knew him; many just knew him from the TV shows he appeared on. Now, people are speaking out and defending him based on who he is and what he does.

Here is a look at the real Ryan Seacrest and what people are saying about him.

Wheel Of Fortune: Touching Video Is Shared Of Ryan Seacrest With A Fan

A video of Ryan Seacrest talking with a young fan was shared on Instagram. In the video, a young girl in a wheelchair was sharing a story with Ryan as he knelt down and listened to her. The story was about how her dad would joke around and yell out...

Another day, and another pernicious movie-related rumor has been making the rounds. This time, word began to buzz that 20th Century Studios was "considering" the idea of bringing back acclaimed actor and franchise star Sigourney Weaver to reprise her legendary role as Ellen Ripley in the still-unconfirmed sequel to "Alien: Romulus." This latest report came courtesy of scooper Daniel Richtman (also known by his social media handle DanielRPK) in a recent Patreon post exclusively available to subscribers, claiming that the powers that be were looking into the use of widely prevalent de-aging technology in order to make this version of Ripley period-accurate, as "Romulus" took place roughly 20 years after the events of the original "Alien" movie.

Well, consider this rumor squashed. No less an authority than "Romulus" director and co-writer Fede Álvarez confirmed as much in a post made on X (the website/app formerly and still popularly known as...

It’s a big day for the Alien franchise, with Fede Alvarez’s Alien: Romulus officially receiving an Oscar nomination this morning for Best Visual Effects. But that wasn’t the only Alien news for today, as rumors began swirling earlier this afternoon that Alvarez and company are looking to bring Sigourney Weaver’s Ellen Ripley back to the screen for the sequel to Romulus.

The rumor originated from scooper Daniel Richtman. He writes, “For the next Alien movie, they’re considering bringing back Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) using de-aging technology.”

Is there any truth to the rumor? Well, Fede Alvarez himself has taken to Twitter to completely debunk the report. “Fun gossip,” he responds to the rumor. “But not true at all.”

We do know that Alvarez and co-writer Rodo Sayagues are indeed developing a sequel to Alien: Romulus, with the film expected to center on the two survivors of...

The Alien: Romulus sequel gets an exciting new update from director Fede Alvarez, who teases a change in direction. Coming seven years after Alien: Covenant, the latest installment in the Alien franchise follows a young crew as they encounter a Xenomorph aboard a derelict space station. Alien: Romulus reviews were positive from critics and the movie was a box office success, leading to confirmation that Alvarez is in the early stages of working on a sequel.

During a recent interview with Empire, Alvarez provides an update on his Alien: Romulus sequel, revealing that the next movie will differ from the 2024 hit in some key ways. According to the director, audiences can expect the next film to take the franchise into some new territory. Though the sequel will be a departure in some ways, Alvarez does suggest that Cailee Spaeny's Rain and David Jonsson's Andy will be returning. Check...

Robert De Niro pulls double duty for his latest crime drama in the trailer for The Alto Knights, a new film from director Barry Levinson focusing on the story of the real-life gangsters Vito Genovese (De Niro) and Frank Costello (De Niro).

Goodfellas screenwriter and Oscar nominee Nicholas Pileggi wrote the script for The Alto Knights, which stars Robert De Niro as Vito Genovese and Frank Costello, two Italian Americans who head two New York-based crime families in the mid-20th century. Reports about their reign show that in 1957, Genovese tried to assassinate Costello, resulting in Costello exiting the mob to recover from his injuries and distance himself from “the life.”

In the Alto Knights trailer, Vito Genovese does not approve of how Frank Costello runs his family. Genovese says Costello is fooling himself if he thinks he can present himself as an upstanding citizen while running a shadowy organization behind closed doors.

Tom Cruise skipping the Oscars felt like the ultimate mic drop. Back in the day, Cruise delivered a knockout performance that had critics buzzing and fans raving, comparing him to legends like Dustin Hoffman. But when it came time for the Academy to give credit where it was due, they completely fumbled the ball.

Dustin Hoffman and Tom Cruise in Rain Man (1988) | Credits: Star Partners II, Ltd.

Cruise had every right to feel overlooked, and his absence from Hollywood’s biggest night makes perfect sense. After all, why show up for an industry that didn’t show up for him?

When the Academy overlooked Tom Cruise: A snub too big to ignore Dustin Hoffman and Tom Cruise in Rain Man (1988) | Credits: Star Partners II, Ltd.

Tom Cruise gave a career-defining performance in Rain Man, effortlessly holding his own alongside Dustin Hoffman’s Oscar-winning turn. Although Hoffman’s portrayal of an autistic savant earned universal praise,...

Exclusive: Oscar winner Dustin Hoffman, André Holland, Alison Brie and Tom Sturridge are leading Alex Vlack’s feature directorial debut, the drama The Revisionist.

The production, written by Vlack, is currently shooting in Louisville, Ky.

In The Revisionist, Elise, a successful novelist, does what so many writers do: she manipulates and transforms the people in her life into the characters she needs for her story. As she blurs the line between fiction and reality, her world descends into secrets, lies, and outright betrayal. The project is an exploration of the psychological lengths to which a writer will go to achieve their art.

Pic is also produced by Vlack along with Arielle Elwes, Veronica Radaelli, Zachary Spicer, Fiona Robert and Sophia Robert. Vlack’s previous work includes directing and executive producing the documentary Still Bill about soul legend Bill Withers.

Cassian Elwes serves as EP along with Paul Robarts, Andy Steinman,...

From Oasis and Aerosmith to Elvis Presley and William Shatner, artists of all stripes just love to cover the rock & roll ur-text of the Beatles. But only a select few succeed in honoring the source material, making it uniquely their own, and creating something worth hearing. Add Lucinda Williams to that short list. On her new album Lucinda Williams Sings the Beatles From Abbey Road, the Americana royal known for her hard-edged, poetic songwriting interprets a dozen Beatles songs, wrapping her idiosyncratic voice around well-known standards like “Let It Be” and “Something,...

With a nickname like the Dark Knight, it’s no wonder that Batman is often considered one of DC Comics’ most melancholy heroes. From his reputation as a brooding loner to his traditional darker color scheme, Bruce Wayne is, in many ways, one of fiction’s greatest emo boys.

Throughout his decades of history, Wayne has proven on more than one occasion just how much of an edgelord he can really be. And while this list can’t possibly cover every aspect of Bruce’s decades-long goth phase, the entries below are some of Batman’s greatest emo moments that fans won’t want to forget.

Brooding In The Rain Superman’s Pal: Jimmy Olsen #5 by Matt Fraction, Steve Leiber & Nathan Fairburn

Some of Bruce’s most resonant iconography features the Dark Knight perched upon a rainy rooftop in Gotham, but Superman’s Pal: Jimmy Olsen #5 by Matt Fraction, Steve...

Warning: Spoilers for The JoJoLands, Chapter 20Jojo's Bizarre Adventure part 9 is finally revealing how its protagonist's Stand ability works, and it's safe to say that there's never been another Joestar with a Stand quite like it. Jodio's Stand, November Rain, is extremely unique in terms of how it operates, and will require a clever user to perform at the full extent of its power.

Jodio's Stand, November Rain, is a non-humanoid Stand, looking like a giant four-legged spider-like creature, which has the ability to pour down rain upon anything directly below it. Jodio can control the power of the rain, making it fall hard and fast, or light and slow, depending on what he wants to do with it. The rain effect has gotten some use so far in the series, deflecting the trajectory of objects flying through the air, or delivering a powerful blow. He can protect a certain area around him,...

American Idol seasons 21 and 22 contestant Jayna Elise made it to the Top 12 of season 22, and she's been very busy with her music career ever since. Jayna first appeared on American Idol season 21, during which she was not only known for her incredible vocals, but her immense kindness. When Adin Boyer, who has autism, didn't have a group, she and her duet partner, Summer Joy, welcomed him with open arms. Jayna also became Fire's impromptu duet partner when Kaya Stewart left her without a partner when she abruptly withdrew from the competition due to illness.

Although she didn't make it past the Final Judgment of Hollywood Week in American Idol season 21, Jayna returned for season 22, during which she made it to the Top 12. She impressed everyone with her phenomenal renditions of "Confident" by Demi Lovato, "My All" by Mariah Carey, "All I Wanted" by Paramore, "I Have Nothing" by Whitney Houston,...

A major reveal about the planet Yvaga is likely going to be devastating in the sequel to Alien: Romulus. Alien: Romulus was directed by Fede lvarez, and served as an Alien movie that newcomers to the franchise didn't have to have a wealth of knowledge about the complicated series to enjoy. At the beginning of Alien: Romulus, viewers are introduced to Rain, a worker on Jackson's Star Mining Colony whose goal is to get herself and her adopted brother off-world and to Yvaga III.

Rain is played by Cailee Spaeny, and her adopted brother, Andy, who is actually a Weyland-Yutani-designed android reprogrammed by her father, is played by David Jonsson. In addition to Spaeny and Jonsson, most of Alien: Romulus' cast of characters are all brand-new to the Alien series. However, all the other characters die during the horrific events of Alien: Romulus, and Rain and Andy are...

Following their highly successful “Summer of ’99” reunion tour, Creed kicked off their fall “Are You Ready?” tour on Saturday night (November 2nd) in Oklahoma City. The evening featured support from 3 Doors Down and Mammoth Wvh, both of whom will be on board for most of the outing.

Singer Scott Stapp and company opened their 15-song set at the Paycom Center with “Bullets” off 2001’s Weathered, but then surprised fans with a performance of that album’s “Freedom Fighter” for the first time since 2002.

Get Creed Tickets Here

Favorites like “Torn,” “Are You Ready?,” and “My Own Prison” also highlighted the early part of the set. As he did during the summer tour, guitarist Mark Tremonti gifted a fan with a guitar at the end of “What If.” This time around, it was a young girl named Justice who had been watching the show while perched on her dad’s shoulders.

The ending of Netflix's Beauty in Black has viewers questioning whether Amber Reign Smith's Rain died in the final episodes.

Released on October 24, this series tells the story of an exotic dancer who applies to work at a successful haircare brand, leading to drama via a trafficking scheme.

Beauty in Black is led by stars such as Terrell Carter and developed by Tyler Perry, adding to Perry's list of intense adventures brought to the streaming world over the last few years.

Read full article on The Direct.

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This post contains major spoilers for Marvel's "Alien: Romulus" #1.

Director Fede Álvarez brought the "Alien" franchise back to life with this year's "Alien: Romulus." It was the first entry in the franchise in seven years following the commercial disappointment that was Ridley Scott's "Alien: Covenant" in 2017. But Álvarez didn't shy away from touching on Scott's prequels in his film, nor did he shy away from making direct connections to Scott's original 1979 horror/sci-fi masterpiece "Alien." Now, a new comic that serves as a prequel to Álvarez's film makes even more connections to Scott's '70s classic, shining a light on the fate of the first Xenomorph that terrorized the crew of the Nostromo.

Marvel's "Alien: Romulus" #1, written by Zac Thompson and illustrated by Daniel Picciotto, serves as a direct prequel to the events of the film of the same name.

Seventeen is kicking off their U.S. tour!

The K-pop group kicked off their much-anticipated Seventeen [Right Here] World Tour In U.S. on Tuesday (October 22) at Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Ill.

After two sold-out shows in Goyang, Korea in front of 58,000 audience members, Seventeen returned to the U.S. stage for the first time in over two years in Chicago. The show sold out on the first day of the presale!

Seventeen delivered a 3-hour set packed with 22 songs from their discography including “Super,” “God of Music,” and “Adore U,” starting with a special rendition of “Fear,” representing their past struggles, moving into “Fearless,” symbolizing their resilience, and ending with “Maestro,” a “testament to their growth into global stage dominators,” per a release.

Keep reading to find out more…

This theme ties into their latest album Spill The Feels, which reflects the band’s transformative journey from helplessness to hope. Live...

Mr. Crocket is a Hulu horror film with an outstanding cast of veteran actors and newcomers alike. The new film contends with the best horror movies on Hulu, offering a unique take on the genre for the Halloween season. Set in 1993, the film is centered around a villainous children's show host, the titular character, who emerges from television sets to kidnap children and murder their parents. Mr. Crocket plucks a boy named Major away from his living room and brings him into a demonic realm, forcing his mother to set out to get him back.

The new Hulu horror movie is directed by Brandon Epsy, an up-and-coming filmmaker whose credits so far include short films and an episode of Bite Size Halloween. Despite his inexperience with feature films, Epsy established an engaging, unique aesthetic for Mr. Crocket that utilized retro visuals to embrace its 1990s VHS tape feel. The film...

The legacy of Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt can almost be considered predestined in Hollywood – so powerful is their impact on the industry today. However, the problem with legends is that there can only be one of them at a time. And the world will never settle for knocking either Pitt or Cruise off the pedestal to raise the other.

Interview With the Vampire feat. Brad Pitt, Kirsten Dunst, and Tom Cruise [Credit: Warner Bros.]

The newer generation with actors like Jacob Elordi, Timothée Chalamet, and Austin Butler have a long way to go before elevating themselves to the level of Cruise and Pitt. Fortunately, once in a blue moon, actors like Leonardo DiCaprio and Matt Damon waltz into the scene and launch themselves off with a bang which automatically propels them to god-tier fame among the fans.

The Subtle Art of Pitting Leo DiCaprio Against Matt Damon Matt Damon and...

History unfolds with on-the-ground immediacy in director Julia Loktev’s first feature since 2011’s The Loneliest Planet, as well as her second nonfiction work after 1998’s Moment of Impact. Running five-and-a-half hours and split into five chapters, My Undesirable Friends: Part I—Last Air in Moscow chronicles the hardscrabble efforts and eventual exile of a group of young Russian journalists who work for the independent news channel TV Rain.

“The world you’re about to see no longer exists,” Loktev narrates in the first scene. For there was no way to know, when filming commenced in 2021, that she would be in a prime position to observe the Vladimir Putin-instigated invasion of Ukraine, in addition to the draconian crackdown that followed on any and all dissenting voices. Not that the situation for reporters refusing to toe the party line was sunshine and moonbeams beforehand. Much of the documentary’s first...

There’s no doubt that Heavy Rain is one of the best action-adventure titles back from the golden days of gaming. It’s a critically acclaimed title where gamers must make various choices that end up shaping the story. It brought a strong narrative and a set of unique characters to the table back then.

Heavy Rain is back on the radar. (Quantic Dream)

Without countless releases in the genre over the years, Heavy Rain lost to time. However, the game is once again witnessing an upsurge in popularity due to its unique antics that have captured the attention of modern-generation gamers.

Heavy Rain’s Viral Clip Prove Why its a Top-Tier Game Heavy Rain features a hilarious chase scene. (Image via Quantic Dream)

Well, Qtes, or quick-time events, are quite a heated topic within the gaming community. Some believe they are poorly implemented and ruin immersion in a game that’s been carefully crafted.

Tom Cruise is blessed with a skillset unlike any other. The actor’s career since the early 80s has only ever been on the rise, without fail, and Cruise has only become more unstoppable with age. The global fascination that comes with his name is indicative of his status as one of the last true movie stars and it is because of that star persona that his career has turned into a timeless legacy.

Tom Cruise [Credit: Warner Bros. Pictures]

However, for every great man’s climb to the top, there were a dozen others who were passed over or rejected along the way to make room for the star. In Tom Cruise’s case, the rejection was parried over to his contemporary, Charlie Sheen. Despite being the son of Martin Sheen and his inherent familiarity with the studio system, the second-generation Hollywood actor failed to make his mark as a...

On Tuesday, October 8, 2024, at 9:00 Pm, Fox will air Season 1 Episode 3 of “Murder in a Small Town,” titled “A Chill Rain.” This episode takes viewers back to the quiet town of Gibson, where life is about to take a dark turn. Zoe Strachan, a local resident, faces an unexpected visit from her estranged brother, Benjamin. He arrives with alarming news, claiming he is in financial trouble. Their reunion is filled with tension, as years of family conflict bubble to the surface.

Things escalate when a dead body matching Benjamin’s description is found in the area. Detective Alberg steps in to investigate the shocking murder. The small-town atmosphere becomes charged with fear and suspicion as Alberg navigates the community’s secrets. As he pieces together clues, viewers will witness how the past influences the present and how family ties can lead to deadly consequences.

“A Chill Rain” promises to be...

Lady Gaga Drops ‘The Joker’ Song from Harlequin Album for Joker: Folie a Deux - Main Image

Everyone was waiting to see what Todd Phillips was cooking when he cast Lady Gaga as Harley Quinn in Joker: Folie a Deux, and so far, it looks like she’s going to make for one original ‘Lee Quinzel.’

The movie is said to be a ‘jukebox musical’ which means it would be featuring covers of existing songs (like Illumination’s Sing franchise). With every musical, there’s always expected to be a companion album, and Gaga had just dropped the tracks online.

The Joker by Lady Gaga

Probably at the very top of the soundtrack list of the Harlequin album is the song ‘The Joker’ which can be heard here:

Though some may think that this is an original song written for the movie, it’s actually a cover of The Joker by Shirley Bassey.

Anna Nemzer, former journalist at exiled Russian news network TV Rain, offered a word of warning today — don’t ignore “unpleasant” political signs. That comes from someone with firsthand knowledge of the aftershocks.

“All countries are different, and we have a lot of countries under dictatorships, under authoritarian regimes. But we also have democratic countries with very unpleasant signs. And if we can share something of our experience, it would be don’t ignore unpleasant signs — they definitely become something more important and bigger than just signs. It won’t pass,” she said after American filmmaker Julia Loktev’s multi-part documentary My Undesirable Friends: The Last Air In Moscow screened for press at the New York Film Festival ahead of its official world premiere.

The doc follows a group of young journalists, mostly women, reporting writing, producing and delivering the news as the regime of Russian President Vladimir Putin grows increasingly repressive,...

It’s been 16 years since Christine Jeffs’ last feature, the seriocomic Amerindie sleeper “Sunshine Cleaning,” with Amy Adams and Emily Blunt. Her new feature “A Mistake” hews back to her 2001 debut, “Rain,” in that it is set in her native New Zealand and adapts its script from a Kiwi author (in this case Carl Shuker’s fifth novel). Though not a knockout, the director’s return affirms her knack for intelligent adult drama, here hinging on issues of medical ethics and bureaucracy — Elizabeth Banks plays an Auckland surgeon whose reputation and career are threatened when a patient dies after what had been anticipated as a routine procedure. Quiver Distribution is releasing the Tribeca-premiered film to 100+ U.S. theaters this Friday.

The distractingly named Elizabeth Taylor (Banks) is a highly regarded specialist, woken from a nap during one long night-shift by an emergency: A patient previously discharged as having minor ailments...

Astro Bot contains hundreds of cameos from different games available on PlayStation. These cameos include major hits like The Last Of Us and Uncharted, popular indies like Octodad: Dadliest Catch and Journey, and older titles like Patapon and PaRappa the Rapper. This sort of fan service is great for longtime gamers and has been a major factor in its success.

Few games have as big an impact on Astro Bot as the God of War franchise, though. God of War plays such a major role in Astro Bot that there is an entire Hero Level themed around the series, called Bot of War. Just as you search for ravens in God of War, you can hunt down eight ravens in Bot of War to get your hands on the Eyes Of The All-Father trophy.

How To Unlock Bot Of War Planet How To Get Boy & Dad Of Boy

Before you...

It’s annoying that Days of Our Lives spoilers for the week of 9-09-24 feature so much of Connie, but it could be good news.

When stories get close to being wrapped up, they suddenly get overexposed, featuring the characters involved every day until resolution.

Spoilers feature Connie trying to hold onto Melinda, Jada becoming suspicious, and Paulina trying desperately to get Rafe to wake up and tell her who stabbed him. If this story follows the usual pattern, it’s almost done!

(Peacock/Screenshot)

The Connie Story Has Gotten Out Of Hand It Needs To End As Soon As Possible

Connie began as a minor character who was an annoying Li fangirl and obsessed with true crime, only for her to turn out to be the latest unhinged Salemite to go on a killing spree.

That’s overdone on Days of Our Lives to begin with, and now...

After starring in Red Riding Hood and Evil Dead, Shiloh Fernandez has continued to work in the indie-film world. He jumped to TV for a pair of episodes on Euphoria, Netflix’s Gypsy, and even a Tremors movie. He joined the cast of Continue from director Nadine Crocker, which made its initial debut in 2022. Continue makes its way into theaters on September 6th, and will also be available via digital platforms.

Fernandez and Crocker spoke before he agreed to take on the role. Relatedexclusive: Simon Whiteley Discusses the Origins of The Matrix Digital Rain, Zack Snyder, and Mimlacode

Early on, Crocker knew that Fernandez was a fit. “She sent an offer to my team early. You know what was really special about this particular offer, was not only the incredible script but she wrote me a personal letter.” The note contained more intricate details about Crocker’s connection to the work,...

In our current franchise-dominated landscape, it's hard to imagine an actor having the brass to insist their character be killed off. But that's what living legend Sigourney Weaver did when she made 1992's "Alien 3," reasoning that her "Alien" heroine — the plucky blue-collar space trucker turned badass Xenomorph slayer Ellen Ripley — had endured more than her fair share of bad luck by that point. She would backtrack on that five years later for "Alien: Resurrection," intrigued by the idea of reprising not the Ripley we knew and loved, but a hybrid alien/human clone with her own quirks and personality (not to mention a killer behind-the-back basketball shot). Weaver would then come precariously close to reprising Ripley proper for Neill Blomkamp's scrapped "Alien 5," a sequel that, in a stunt similar to the one David Gordon Green's "Halloween" pulled, planned to ignore the prior two sequels by taking the...

Alien: Romulus has shaken up the typical franchise formula with a younger cast than usual, but exactly how old is Cailee Spaenys character Rain supposed to be in the movie? Whereas the Alien films usually revolve around space truckers or space marines (or just straight-up astronauts exploring the cosmos), Alien: Romulus revolves around a bunch of orphaned kids working dead-end jobs at a mining colony. In a bid to escape to a brighter future on a sunnier planet, they fly to the Renaissance research station to collect the cryosleep pods they need for their journey.

Spaeny leads the cast as Rain Carradine, the movies stand-in for original franchise star Ellen Ripley, opposite David Jonsson as her reprogrammed android brother, Andy. The Alien: Romulus cast is rounded out by rising stars Archie Renaux, Isabela Merced, Spike Fearn, and Aileen Wu. These characters are younger than the average Alien movie protagonists, but...

The 1988 film Rain Man featured Tom Cruise alongside Dustin Hoffman, in a groundbreaking portrayal of autism that captured the hearts of audiences and critics alike. However, despite the film being a huge success, the marketing team initially struggled with how to promote a movie that delicately navigates such a sensitive topic.

Tom Cruise and Dustin Hoffman in a still from Rain Man | Credit: United Artists

Cruise later recalled the struggle of the marketing team in a 2017 interview, sharing that they had no idea how to promote the film, due to its unconventional title and the challenge of conveying the film’s concept.

Tom Cruise Reflected on the Challenges of Promoting Rain Man

Directed by Barry Levinson and starring Tom Cruise and Dustin Hoffman, Rain Man follows two brothers on a cross-country journey while exploring the realities of living with a mental illness.

Rain Man | United Artists

While it was a huge hit,...

Actor Mel Gibson has won two Academy Awards for his direction despite being more commercially successful as an actor. However, Gibson might just have had a shot at winning an Oscar for acting had he accepted one role in one of the most critically acclaimed movies starring Tom Cruise.

Tom Cruise and Dustin Hoffman starred in 1988’s Rain Man (Credit: MGM).

Tom Cruise starred in the 1988 comedy-drama film Rain Man, which was a box office hit and even won several Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Actor for Dustin Hoffman. However, Hoffman’s role was initially offered to Gibson, who turned it down. On the other hand, Cruise was equally good in the movie but got snubbed by the Academy.

Rain Man Almost Starred Mel Gibson Along With Tom Cruise

The 1988 comedy-drama film Rain Man, directed by Barry Levinson, starred Dustin Hoffman and Tom Cruise in the lead roles.

Warning! Major spoilers ahead for the Alien: Romulus ending.

Director Fede Alvarez compares the Offspring in Alien: Romulus' ending to the demon that rises from hell at the end of his Evil Dead remake. Both the Offspring and "The Abomination" were approached in a similar way, he reveals. Alvarez has developed a talent for including surprise "fourth acts" in his movies, and the Alien: Romulus ending has been a major highlight of the film.

Alien: Romulus director Fede Alvarez compares the ending of his new film to that of his 2013 Evil Dead remake, explaining how the two are very similar. Starring Cailee Spaeny in the lead role, Alvarez's entry in the Alien franchise follows a younger crew as they attempt to survive a Xenomorph aboard a derelict space station. Though the Alien: Romulus reviews are positive as a whole, the ending, in particular, has proven to be a highlight as...

Warning! Major spoilers ahead for the Alien: Romulus ending.

Disney executives were apprehensive about the Offspring sequence in Alien: Romulus and worried that it was "too much." Disney's apprehension affirmed to director Fede Alvarez that it was the right decision, and he pushed to keep it. Alien: Romulus' ending with the Offspring is one of the best and most surprising parts of the film, and it serves as the perfect callback to 1979's Alien.

Alien: Romulus director Fede Alvarez addresses the film's ending and the final Xenomorph form that caused some pushback from Disney. Taking place between the first two installments in the Alien franchise, Alvarez's new film follows Cailee Spaeny's Rain and her young companions as they face off against a Xenomorph aboard an abandoned space station. Although there's plenty of Xenomorph action throughout the film, the Alien: Romulus ending kicks things into high gear by featuring Isabela Merced's character,...

For “Alien: Romulus,” director Fede Álvarez was able to make the iconic Xenomorphs and Facehuggers even more badass than in Ridley Scott’s masterful “Alien” (1979). And he did so even while adhering as closely as possible to H.R. Giger’s original designs (with minor exceptions for heightened emphasis) since his re-imagining takes place between “Alien” and “Aliens” (1986) on an abandoned research station.

Álvarez also shot as much as he could practically in camera, relying on suits, animatronics, and puppets from Legacy Effects. This was part of the tactile vibe, and it was key for the actors to have creatures to play against and react to. Thus, the physical effects (supervised by Alec Gillis) worked seamlessly with the fast-moving, action-packed VFX (production supervised by Eric Barba).

“It’s really when the Facehuggers or the Xenos have to move in ways that a puppet, or a guy in a suit, or animatronic Xeno couldn’t,...

Warning! Spoilers ahead for Alien: Romulus.

Alien: Romulus director Fede Alvarez and producer Ridley Scott defend the film's digital resurrection of a deceased actor. Taking place between Alien and Aliens, Alvarez' new installment in the long-running franchise follows Cailee Spaeny's Rain as she and a young crew encounter a Xenomorph aboard a derelict space station. Alien: Romulus reviews have been generally positive from critics, but the film has caught flack online for its decision to digitally recreate the original Alien star Ian Holm, who passed away in 2020, for the role of Rook, a villainous AI synthetic.

In a recent interview with LA Times, both Alvarez and Scott defend Holm's visual effects resurrection in Alien: Romulus. Check out their comments below:

Alvarez: We were not trying to do what cant be done, which is to reproduce that persons talent as an actor, because this is another character. The...

This article contains spoilers for both Alien: Romulus and Alien: Isolation.

It’s a green, blinking box. Yet every time it appeared in the background of Alien: Romulus, a cold chill went down the spines of possibly millions of viewers, including this writer. That’s because if you ever played Alien: Isolation, Creative Assembly’s relentless survival horror game from 2014, those proverbial telephone boxes are the stuff of nightmares and lingering trauma.

Appearing in more than one scene during Fede Alvarez’s love letter to the larger Alien franchise, these “registration points,” or emergency telephone booths, are littered throughout the Renaissance Space Station in Alien: Romulus. You can see one in a scene where Cailee Spaeny’s Rain and Archie Renaux’s Tyler discuss how best to circumnavigate a hallway filled with facehuggers. The emergency comm-links also appear when Andy (David Jonsson) explains to the humans that they’re going to need pulse rifles.

Warning: Major Spoilers lie ahead for Alien: Romulus!

Fede lvarez connects Alien: Romulus to Prometheus and Alien: Covenant, bridging the prequels and originals with new xenomorph mythology. Romulus brings back the black goo from Prometheus and creates a human-xenomorph hybrid, offering better answers to the origin of the iconic sci-fi creatures. While the fates of Michael Fassbender's David and Katherine Waterston's Daniels remain unknown, lvarez and co-writer Rodo Sayagues are finally delivering on the promise of the Alien prequels.

Though initially presented as a back-to-basics story for the franchise, director Fede lvarez breaks down Alien: Romulus' surprise connections to Resurrection and Prometheus. Co-written by lvarez and frequent collaborator Rodo Sayagues, Romulus is situated between the first two movies in the franchise, with the central characters going to a deserted space station whose scientists had recovered the remains of the xenomorph from the U.S.S. Nostromo in the original film.

In space, no one can hear you spoil the latest "Alien" movie. Be warned, this article discusses major spoilers from "Alien: Romulus."

After well over 40 years of seeing the "perfect organism" in all its various forms on the big screen, including a convoluted origin story covered in both of Ridley Scott's divisive prequels "Prometheus" and "Alien: Covenant," it was fair to wonder how another franchise installment like "Alien: Romulus" (read /Film's review) could possibly make the dreaded Xenomorph scary again. Every possible facet of the sentient mechanical-biological weapon seemed to have been explored by now, from its flawless introduction in the 1979 original to the introduction of the queen in "Aliens" to the animal hybrid of "Alien 3." So, what was left for director Fede Álvarez to explore this time around?

Luckily for us all, "Romulus" goes back to the franchise's roots (according to many of the early reactions to...

This article contains spoilers aplenty for Alien: Romulus and the whole franchise.

“I admire its purity,” a robot says during an infamous scene in Alien. Ian Holm’s synthetic science officer is of course referring to the “organism” (or “xenomorph” as Aliens later defines it). However, this line of dialogue has gone on to be cherished by science fiction fans all over the world as a metaphor for the original, sleek, and mysterious 1979 movie that started it all.

It would seem director Fede Alvarez and his Alien: Romulus co-writer Rodo Sayagues would agree. Their new seventh entry in the mainline Alien franchise is a love letter to nearly everything that came before. That is definitely seems to be the case with the many callbacks, homages, and easter eggs to the original Ridley Scott film. However, Alien: Romulus also includes nods, winks, and allusions to every other proper film in the series…...

Recent American movies seem obsessed with franchises, however their relationship with them is not as simple as it might seem.

Desperate to both engage a fresh new audience while pleasing an older obsessive fan base the reboots, re-imaginings, sequels and prequels of the last few years play a tricky game of trying to please all the people all of the time and very often completely failing.

What disparate legacy film series from Halloween to Rocky to Beverly Hills Cop to Top Gun to Friday 13th to Star Wars and many more share is years if not decades between instalments. There is also a desire with all of these from the production companies for you to view each new entry as simultaneously a shiny stand alone slice of entertainment and a call back filled fest that joins all the dots you were once desperate to connect.

Obviously the above is impossible...

It’s been over four decades since Ridley Scott terrified audiences with his sci-fi masterpiece Alien. The film launched a beloved franchise exploring humanity’s battle against a perfect killing machine. While later installments have delivered more action or philosophy, director Fede Alvarez aims to recapture that original scare-in-space feel.

Alvarez made his name remaking cult classics like Evil Dead with a modern edge. For Alien: Romulus, he draws from the tough, working-class characters of the first two films. Set between them, Romulus centers on miners trapped in contractual bondage on a moon gone murky from pollution. Our heroine Rain toils away, dreaming of the stars with her android brother Andy.

When Rain and friends discover an abandoned station drifting above the moon, they hatch a risky plan to hijack it. Little do they know the station harbors its own nightmare—outmates left drifting with ravenous aliens aboard. Can Rain...

Plot: Seeking to escape their grim fate as indentured workers for Weyland-Yutani on a lifeless rock, a group of young colonists scavenge an abandoned space station, only to discover a terrifying secret that threatens to pick them off one by one – or worse.

Review: As far as this critic is concerned, there are two perfect Alien movies: the first and the badass James Cameron sequel. I tend to flip-flop between which one I prefer (it usually depends on the one I saw most recently), but both films are among the most perfectly conceived and executed blockbusters of all time—the sequels, though- well, are a mixed bag at best. There have been interesting ones (Alien 3), terrible ones (Alien: Resurrection and the Avp movies) and frustrating ones (the Ridley Scott prequels), but until now, there have been no outstanding ones. As such, the fact that director Fede Alvarez was able...