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Return of the Jedi wasn’t just the end of a trilogy, it was the beginning of a new way of filmmaking.

During a panel at Star Wars Celebration in London, Star Wars creatives discussed the influence of this 40-year-old film on the most recent Star Wars projects.

“For all of our new films now, I always try to add that new component of something new,” said Lucasfilm executive creative director, Doug Chiang. “Star Wars design is very defined in terms of that box that George [Lucas] created but within that box, there’s a lot of freedom, and I love to push the envelope in terms of what that box is.”

When it comes to the look and feel of recent Star Wars projects, it’s obvious where much of their inspiration has come from. You only have to look at The Mandalorian and The Book of Boba Fett to see how influential Return of the Jedi has been on modern creative processes.

The reason? It’s all about building on what came before. “The thing I took away from it was just how many creatures, how many practical elements, how many of those moments George gave to me,” said ILM SVP creative innovation, Rob Bredow. “The other films have them, but Return has so much more – it was just an absolute treat to see all this work people have done.”

On a practical level, modern Star Wars projects have built upon the technologies used by those early innovators… and we were shown a pre-vis of the iconic Endor speeder bike chase, which was created by Dennis Muren, using Kenner action figures to plan out the sequence in its entirety.

“The technologies have advanced at hyperspeed since then,” said Bredow. “But the teams that did that work – we pulled some of the early creatives they did. They were using the latest technology.”

Of course, pre-vis techniques have come a long way. Today, The Mandalorian uses partial CG renders to plan out the action sequences. But in many ways, it’s the same, utilizing models to create a plan of how those scenes should look.

According to panel host Ming-Na Wen, who plays Fennec Shand on The Mandalorian, it helps actors get to grips with their scenes before they shoot.

“It’s the same techniques,” she said. “You’re trying to work out the story and then you’re trying to work out the techniques. It really helps us as actors to see how it’ll look on screen.”

The look is ultimately what it’s all about. One of the things The Mandalorian has long been praised for is how really feels like an old-school Star Wars project. That’s all down to Lucasfilm’s approach of building on the past.

“Norman Reynolds established the look,” said Chiang. “We’re building upon these legends. We’re trying to create images that live up to their legacy.”

Although film-making techniques have developed a lot since 1983, it’s Lucasfilm’s use of practical effects that really sings.

“They haven’t got a clue what they were doing. Every day was a new day for them. It was a time of invention and learning from your mistakes. A really innovative and creative time.”

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“Even to this day, we have our Grogu and that’s practical,” said Wen. “It lends itself to the realism of having someone or something there to react to. It just gives it content.”

Going back to when the likes of Phil Tippett were inventing the techniques used to bring Jabba and other creatures to life in Return of the Jedi, it was clearly an innovative time. “They haven’t got a clue what they were doing,” said Lucasfilm’s creature supervisor, Neal Scanlan. “Every day was a new day for them. It was a time of invention and learning from your mistakes. A really innovative and creative time. I find such huge inspiration from how brave they were. It is a really fascinating and wonderful period.”

Ultimately, modern Star Wars projects are looking to build out the galaxy far, far away, paying homage to the original trilogy as well as creating something new and unique. That couldn’t be more obvious than in The Book of Boba Fett.

“A lot of the fun we had was that we could build upon Return of the Jedi,” said Chiang. “It established such a lot of iconic places like Jabba’s palace… we had the opportunity to visit the kitchen, Boba’s bedroom, the hangar… We were basically building upon what we had seen and loved so much. I hope we get more opportunity to do more of that.”

Return of the Jedi returns to cinemas soon to celebrate its 40th anniversary. Want to read more about Star Wars? Check out who has been cast as Grand Admiral Thrawn in the upcoming Ahsoka series and get up to speed with everything that’s been announced at Star Wars Celebration so far.

Ryan Leston is an entertainment journalist and film critic for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter.

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Return of the Jedi wasn’t just the

Festivals

First_LOGO_Noir.png  
Parution Avril 2023

22,95€

 

Dans Totoro et moi, l’artiste Amaia Arrazola nous présente une biographie illustrée de Hayao Miyazaki, centrée sur l’univers du Studio Ghibli et sa filmographie. Elle revient sur sa direction artistique mais aussi sur les célèbres bandes originales et les personnages emblématiques du studio d’animation qui ont fait le succès de ses films : Mon voisin Totoro, Princesse Mononoké, Le Voyage de Chihiro, Le Château ambulant…

 

À travers 200 pages entièrement illustrées, Amaia analyse l’influence du Studio Ghibli sur la culture japonaise et, par extension, sur le monde : un style cinématographique lent et précieux qui a conquis des légions de fans et inspiré une multitude d’artistes. Découvrez toute la poésie et les secrets du phénomène Ghibli !

 

« J’ai découvert que le mot Totoro est sorti de la bouche d’une fillette qui essayait de dire « troll », 

que Mononoké est accompagnée d’esprits de la forêt appelés kodama, 

et que le voyage de Chihiro n’était pas imaginaire mais bien réel.

 

L’imagination d’Hayao Miyazaki m’a laissée bouche bée.
Je me contenterai de dire que c’est un génie et qu’il y a mille détails qui font 

que son œuvre est une MERVEILLE. 

 

Il vous suffira d’ouvrir ce livre pour le découvrir à votre tour! »

 

CP%20Totoro%20et%20moi_page-0002.jpg
 

 

Amaia Arrazola (née à Vitoria en 1984) a étudié la publicité et les relations publiques à l’université Complutense de Madrid et, pendant un temps, a travaillé comme directrice artistique dans le secteur publicitaire. En 2010, elle s’est installée à Barcelone pour entamer une carrière d’illustratrice indépendante. Depuis, elle a collaboré avec de nombreux clients (Vueling, Coca-Cola, Nike, Adidas, Uniqlo…), a participé à des festivals d’art urbain, a peint des fresques dans les alentours de Barcelone ou plus loin, a donné des conférences. En 2017, elle s’est rendue à Matsudo (Japon) grâce à une bourse artistique de Paradise Air. De cette résidence est né Wabi Sabi, un voyage au Japon (First, 2020), où elle retrace ses expériences nippones. En 2021, la maternité lui a inspiré La Météorite (First, 2022).

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  Parution Avril 2023 22,95€  Dans Totoro et moi, l'artiste Amaia Arrazola nous présente

Film

David Arquette admits seeing “Scream 6” wasn’t easy after his beloved Dewey character was killed off in the fifth installment of the horror franchise.

“It was hard for me to do it, but I also knew I wanted to see it,” the actor told me Thursday at the premiere of his new Peacock series, “Mrs. Davis,” at the DGA in West Hollywood. “I loved it.”

He continued, “It was sad. I had lots of FOMO.”

In a surprise twist in “Scream 5,” Dewey is done in by Ghostface. It takes place in a hospital after Dewey rescues the new protagonist, Tara Carpenter (Jenna Ortega). While Dewey has come close to death in the other movies, fans were shocked to see him finished off.

Soon after the release of “Scream 5,” Arquette talked to Variety about first reading Dewey’s death in the script. “I read it,” he said. “I put it down. I took a deep breath. It was sad. I mean, it’s something that I’ve been a part of for so long. So I had to process that.”

He also recalled filming the scene. “It was really difficult because it was during COVID, so it’s harder to have that connection with the crew because you’re not hanging out after work,” he said. “So I did the scene, I went to the hotel, and I just kind of sat with it. Then I packed up and left. It was a big portion of my life coming to a close and a lot to process.”

“Mrs. Davis,” a wacky action dramedy from creators Tara Hernandez and Damon Lindelof, stars Betty Gilpin as a nun who’s on a quest to find the holy grail while she’s also battling the forces of a mysterious AI.

Arquette plays Gilpin’s father, a magician who used his daughter when she was a young girl to con his audiences into thinking he actually could do magic tricks.

Arquette prepared for the work by studying with a magician in Nashville. “He showed me things like how to cut a deck of cards with one hand,” Arquette said. “I could barely do it. I have big clunky hands. I’m a horrible magician. But it was fun to learn and study some of the behind-the-scenes things.”

“Mrs. Davis” premiers on Peacock on April 20.

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David Arquette admits seeing “Scream 6” wasn’t

TV

TIME has released its 2023 class of 100 most influential people in the world, and one of those people is Bella Hadid, supermodel and Free Palestine activist. Judging by her long, heartfelt Instagram post, Hadid is feeling a lot of feelings about the honor. 

“In awe of this achievement, and being able to be recognized along side so many talented, hardworking and life changing people,” Hadid’s IG caption began, going on to praise the challenging work of other figures on TIME’s list, and acknowledge there’s still much to be done. “The truth is, to say I am anywhere near as influential as some of these big names, is a huge statement to make, but please know, I can feel the weight and understand my responsibilities within it,” she continued. “To be recognized for the work I’ve done, just makes me want to work harder to be a part of the change we want to see in this world.” Hadid vows to continue doing everything in her power to be a force for good in the world and to always stand up for what’s right.

Instagram content

This content can also be viewed on the site it originates from.

Supermodel Christy Turlington, the Bella Hadid of her day and a fellow humanitarian activist, was tapped for Hadid’s write-up in the magazine. “Bella Hadid is as good as she is beautiful,” Turlington wrote for TIME. “Behind that chiseled face, radiating from within her physical being, shines a lightness and vulnerability that she shares openly with nearly 60 million followers on Instagram…Within this new generation that has limitless potential to create positive change in the world, Bella holds unique power.”

Hadid made sure to give Turlington a special word of thanks in her post, writing, “To know that you, the queen of beauty, integrity, and kindness, have this to say about me means the world, and I have no words to describe how I feel that YOU took the time to write this tribute for me.”  

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TIME has released its 2023 class of

What to Watch

“No Way Out” – Aunt Vi enlists the help of McCall and the team when she realizes her masseuse is a victim of domestic abuse. Also, McCall trains Dee on situational awareness and Dante goes against orders by chasing after the man who shot his friend Manny, on the CBS Original series THE EQUALIZER, Sunday, April 23 (8:00-9:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network, and available to stream live and on demand on Paramount+*.

WRITTEN BY: Rob Hanning & Vanessa Herron

DIRECTED BY: Richard Lyons

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“No Way Out” – Aunt Vi enlists

Awards

“Abbott Elementary,” “Better Call Saul,” “Severance,” “Mo,” “Reservation Dogs” and “We’re Here” are among the entertainment nominees as the Peabody Awards’ board of jurors revealed 42 nominees for this year’s Peabodys in entertainment, arts, children’s/youth, podcast/radio, interactive & immersive, and public service. They join the 27 news and documentary nominees announced by Peabody earlier this week.

According to Peabody, the total of 69 nominees were culled from a list of 1,200 entries in those various categories; the final nods were chosen by a unanimous vote of 17 jurors.

PBS led all total nominees with 13, followed by HBO Max (6), Apple TV+ (4), Disney+ and FX (3 each), and ABC, Channel 4, Netflix, and Vice (2 each). 

Also on Thursday, Peabody revealed that Sundance Film Festival senior programmer Shari Frilot will be honored with the org’s first annual Visionary Award. The award “honors an individual whose groundbreaking body of work has shaped the forms, the creators, and the field of boundary-pushing interactive storytelling,” Peabody said. Frilot, who also serves as chief curator of New Frontier at Sundance, established the Sundance Online Film Festival in 2001 and also co-founded the first gay Latin American film festivals, Mix Brasil and Mix México, and also  introduced interactive digital art installation and immersive performance to the festival. 

The winners of the 83rd annual Peabody Awards will be announced on May 9 and then receive their honirs at a Los Angeles ceremony, on Sunday, June 11, at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel.

“From hilarious and heartfelt comedies to interactive and immersive stories that leverage technology to create gripping narratives, Peabody is dedicated to recognizing compelling stories across the media landscape,” said Jeffrey Jones, executive director of Peabody, in a statement. “We’re thrilled to nominate each of these remarkable pieces of media and to honor the forward-thinking Shari Frilot with our inaugural Visionary Award.”

Peabody noted that this year’s nominees focused on issues including the mental health crisis, mass shootings, indigenous representation, transgender rights and the war in Ukraine.

“After another groundbreaking year of storytelling, we are proud to honor some of the many compelling pieces of media that led us forward,” added Jones. “A reflection of the effort and talent of their creators, the nominees entertained, informed, and inspired, all demonstrating the immense power of a great story.”

Here are the remaining Peabody Award nominees:

ENTERTAINMENT

“Abbott Elementary” (ABC)

“A group of passionate Philadelphia public school teachers battle budget restrictions, a rival charter school, and their own (mostly) incompetent principal, forging friendships and an occasional love match in this sweet mockumentary sitcom from creator and star Quinta Brunson.”

Delicious Non-Sequitur Productions in association with Warner Bros. Television and 20th Television, a part of Disney Television Studios

“Andor” (Disney+)

“The ‘Star Wars’ franchise gets a new perspective, focusing on thief-turned-Rebel spy Cassian Andor’s journey to discover the difference he can make. Taking place during a time before the first ‘Star Wars’ film when a Rebel Alliance is forming in opposition to the fascist Galactic Empire, the series explores themes of Fascism and how resistance movements emerge from the strangling weight of authoritarian repression.”

Lucasfilm Ltd.

“Atlanta” (FX)

“Creator-star Donald Glover finishes his four-season masterpiece about a group of friends that includes rapper Alfred ‘Paper Boi’ Miles and his manager cousin, ‘Earn’ Marks, along with their friends Darius and Van. The final two seasons are particularly inventive as the characters find themselves in new situations and consider their relationships to each other and their hometown.”

FX Productions

“Bad Sisters” (Apple TV+)

“A blend of dark comedy and thriller from creators Sharon Horgan, Brett Baer, and Dave Finkel, ‘Bad Sisters’ follows the lives of the Garvey sisters, who are bound together by the premature death of their parents and a promise to always protect each other.”

Merman /ABC Signature in association with Apple

“Better Call Saul” (AMC)

“This ‘Breaking Bad’ prequel is much more than the sum of its parts, and that’s evident in its capstone season, which concludes the complicated journey and transformation of its compromised hero, Jimmy McGill, played perfectly by Bob Odenkirk, into criminal lawyer Saul Goodman.”

High Bridge, Crystal Diner, Gran Via Productions and Sony Pictures Television

“Bob’s Burgers” (Fox)

“This long-running, witty animated series is gentle and full of heart. Over its thirteen years on the air, ‘Bob’s Burgers’ has quietly depicted a truly progressive vision of a working class family, giving us both realistic and aspirational portraits of parenting life, teenage life, and queer life, as well as lessons of acceptance and resiliency.”

20th Television

“Documentary Now!” (IFC)

“Created by Fred Armisen, Bill Hader, Seth Meyers and Rhys Thomas, ‘Documentary Now!’ offers some comic relief in our documentary-saturated times, parodying the form with insightful sendups of ‘Grizzly Man,’ ‘The September Issue,’ ‘My Octopus Teacher’ and more, with every episode hosted by none other than Helen Mirren.”

Broadway Video

“Los Espookys” (HBO Max)

“Eccentric friends turn their passion for horror into a peculiar business—scaring people for a fee— in this bilingual series that weaves together elements of magical realism and the absurd to create a comedy like no other.”

HBO in association with Broadway Video, Antigravico and Mas Mejor

“Mo” (Netflix)

“The title character toggles among two cultures, three languages, and a pending asylum request while hustling to support his Palestinian family in Houston, Texas, in this dramedy co-created by star Mo Amer, based on his own life, and Ramy Youssef.”

A24

“Our Flag Means Death” (HBO Max)

“This is, indeed, a historical queer pirate rom-com. The series follows Stede Bonnet, a Barbadian aristocrat played by Rhys Darby, as he leaves his life behind to become a pirate, leads a crew, and falls in love with the notorious Blackbeard (Taika Waititi).”

HBO Max in association with Waititi, Human Animals and Dive.

“Pachinko” (Apple TV+)

“A sweeping American drama series based on Min Jin Lee’s 2017 novel, ‘Pachinko’ starts with an intimate story about forbidden love but widens out to include epic journeys among America, Japan, and Korea, encompassing no less than war and peace, love and loss, and triumph and reckoning.

Media Res / Blue Marble Pictures in association with Apple

“Reservation Dogs” (FX)

“The ‘Reservation Dogs’ teens continue to pursue their California dreams while struggling to mend their relationships with each other and facing down more grown-up problems, from dying loved ones to making a living, in the masterful second season of TV’s first all-Indigenous series.”

FX Productions

“Severance” (Apple TV+)

“This bold, topical sci-fi thriller series stars Adam Scott as Mark Scout, an employee at Lumon Industries, where employees have undergone a ‘severance’ procedure that surgically divides their memories between their work and personal lives. But he soon discovers a darker conspiracy behind this cutting-edge experiment.”

Fifth Season / Red Hour Productions in association with Apple

“Somebody Somewhere” (HBO Max)

“Bridget Everett created and stars in this quiet gem of a dramedy, which follows her character Sam through small-town Kansas life as she grieves her sister’s death and works a soul-deadening job, but also finds salvation in a new friendship with a fellow outcast, in the music they make together and in the community they find.”

HBO in association with Duplass Brothers Productions and Mighty Mint

“Sort Of” (HBO Max)

“This poignant comedy about nonbinary millennial Sabi, created by and starring Bilal Baig, turns in a second season that deepens relationships, widens Sabi’s world, and continues to deftly balance humor and pathos.”

HBO Max in association with Sphere Media and CBC

“The Patient” (FX)

“From ‘The Americans’ producer Joel Fields and creator Joe Weisberg comes this psychological thriller about a therapist (Steve Carell) held prisoner by his patient (Domhnall Gleeson), who reveals himself as a serial killer with a sincere desire to get better. Taut writing highlights the tense relationship between the two as themes of mental illness, personal responsibility, and religious morality are explored.”

FX Productions

“We’re Here” (HBO Max)

In this uplifting and timely reality series, three drag queens spread love and connection across small-town America through the art of drag, putting on shows with local drag enthusiasts, queer people, and allies, and changing lives along the way.

HBO in association with House of Opus 20 and IPC

ARTS

“Fire of Love” (Disney+)

“Miranda July narrates this dramatic documentary about the doomed relationship between obsessive French scientists Katia and Maurice Krafft and their shared passion for capturing spectacular imagery of stunning—and deadly—volcanoes.”

National Geographic Documentary Films presents A Sandbox Films Production / An Intuitive Pictures & Cottage M Production

CHILDREN’S & YOUTH

“El Deafo” (Apple TV+)

“’El Deafo’ uses unique sound design to take viewers inside the experience of a young girl named Cece (voiced by Lexi Finigan, who is also deaf) as she loses her hearing and finds her inner superhero in this animated series based on the graphic novel by Cece Bell.”

Lighthouse Studios in association with Apple TV+

“N*Gen: Next Generation Television” (Syndicated)

“Africa’s first science TV show for kids was filmed across Kenya, Nigeria, Tanzania, South Africa, and Uganda with the goals of promoting girls and women in STEM, increasing trust in science, boosting knowledge about climate and health, and giving people critical thinking tools to fight misinformation.”

Peripheral Vision International (Discovery Education, syndicated to 40+ platforms and broadcasters around the world, primarily in Sub-Saharan Africa)

PODCAST/RADIO

“Kabul Falling” (PRX)

“Afghans themselves tell the story of the Taliban’s takeover of Kabul in August of 2021 in this eight-part series.  Released one year after the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, the podcast documents the shockwaves that reverberated throughout the country as thousands of Afghans were forced to leave their lives behind for a hellish journey to survive.”

Project Brazen and PRX

“Nine days in a Michigan abortion clinic, as election looms” (Michigan Radio)

“As Michigan voters were about to decide whether to codify abortion and broad reproductive rights in the state constitution, Michigan Radio illuminated what was at stake. With a rare degree of access to the Northland Family Planning clinic, reporter Kate Wells guided listeners through every step of the abortion process and its emotional complexity.”

Michigan Radio

“Sold a Story: How Teaching Kids to Read Went So Wrong” (APM/Public Radio)

“Host Emily Hanford investigates a widespread method of teaching kids to read that was proven ineffective by scientists decades ago, but continues to hold sway over schools across the country because of the influential authors who promote it and the company that sells their work.”

American Public Media

“Still Newtown” (WSHU Public Radio)

“A portrait of a community coming together after unspeakable tragedy, this 11-episode podcast chronicles Newtown, Connecticut, twenty years after the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting left 20 children and 6 adults dead. From dealing with the overwhelming outpouring of stuff sent their way—letters, stuffed animals, donated clothing—to building a permanent memorial, ‘Still Newtown’ shows us what happens, in touching everyday detail, after the news trucks go home.”

WSHU Public Radio

“Stolen: Surviving St. Michael’s” (Spotify)

“Investigative journalist Connie Walker delves into her own family history and uncovers the trauma passed down through generations as part of one of Canada’s darkest chapters, the residential school system for indigenous children, showing the ways that personal secrets and national shame reinforce one another.”

Spotify & Gimlet Media

“Stories of the Stalked” (Audible)

“Artist, filmmaker and dancer Lily Baldwin hosts this six-part podcast in which she takes a true-crime approach to her own experience with being stalked, showing the terror of being relentlessly pursued by someone who claims to love you, the difficulty of reporting it to police, and the uncertainty of knowing when the ordeal is really over.”

Audible and Ventureland

“The Divided Dial” (New York Public Radio)

“’On the Media’ presents this thorough five-part series about how one side of the political spectrum came to dominate talk radio, and how one company, Salem Media Group, is launching a right-wing media empire.”

On the Media/New York Public Radio

“The Wealth Vortex” (publicintegrity.org)

“The second season of the podcast ‘The Heist,’ ‘The Wealth Vortex’ follows entrepreneur ReShonda Young’s efforts to address America’s longstanding racial wealth gap by opening the first Black-owned bank in the country in 20 years—and the many obstacles she faces along the way.”

Center for Public Integrity and Transmitter Media

“This American Life: The Pink House at the Center of the World” (This American Life)

“On the day the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, public radio’s seminal storytelling program had exclusive access inside the clinic at the center of the legal case, Mississippi’s last abortion clinic, showing what happened as patients and staff received the news.”

This American Life

INTERACTIVE & IMMERSIVE 

“ContraPoints” (YouTube)

“Through her YouTube channel, ContraPoints, Natalie Wynn defies the reductive quality that rules most of the internet, developing a following of more than 1 million subscribers by producing long, beautifully produced video essays that dissect trending topics and social phenomena. From ‘Canceling’ to ‘Cringe,’ ‘Incels’ to J.K. Rowling, Wynn explores all sides of an argument, treating different perspectives with equal parts seriousness and shade.”

Natalie Wynn

“Coronavirus in the Classroom” (The New York Times)

“As schools weighed how to reopen safely during the pandemic, The New York Times worked with engineering experts to visualize the flow of air inside a New York City classroom, designing an augmented reality experience to show how improved ventilation could help reduce exposure to coronavirus.”

The New York Times

“Life is Strange: True Colors” (PC, Xbox, PlayStation, Stadia)

“’Life Is Strange: True Colors’” is a game that follows a 21-year-old, bisexual Asian-American woman, Alex Chen, who has spent the last eight years in foster care and is investigating her brother’s death. Largely about grief and trauma, the game is also joyful, affirming the true importance of empathy through Alex’s supernatural ability to sense and manipulate others’ emotions.”

Deck Nine Games & Square Enix External Studios

“Lucy and the Wolves in the Walls” (Oculus Rift, Oculus Quest)

“Through the endearing and earnest narrative of Lucy and her quest to find the source of mysterious happenings in her house, this wonderful interactive VR fable based on the book by Neil Gaiman and Dave McKean, which continues in Lucy’s extended life across platforms, invites us along to explore the fine line between imagination and reality and reminds us of that liminal space of possibility that we occupy as children.”

Fable Studio, Third Rail Projects, Sound+Design, Story Studio & Experiences

“Motto” (motto.io)

“This interactive novella designed for mobile uses thousands of tiny videos to tell the thousand-year tale of a kindhearted spirit named September, resulting in an experience that’s part ghost story, part scavenger hunt.”

National Film Board of Canada, AATOAA

“Reeducated” (Oculus, Mobile, Desktop)

“China’s systemic detention of Uyghurs and other minorities is well-documented, but there exists no photographic evidence from inside the camps, which limits journalistic coverage. This New Yorker VR project combines the testimony of three brave survivors, hand-drawn illustration, and immersive video technology, showing the conditions inside prison cells, classrooms, torture rooms, and a makeshift operating room, and illuminating the atrocities of harrowing life.”

The New Yorker

“The Uncensored Library” (Minecraft)

“Meticulous and artistically-rendered, this Minecraft build serves as a monument to press freedom and an innovative back door for censored content. Because Minecraft is often freely accessible in countries where other media is blocked, more than 20 million gamers in 165 countries have been able to access information about threats to press freedom in their own countries as well as censored articles from independent journalists from oppressive countries such as Saudi Arabia, Russia, Mexico, Egypt, and Vietnam.”

Media.Monks, Reporters without Borders, DDB Germany

“Un(re)solved” (PBS)

“Drawing on more than two years of reporting, thousands of documents, and dozens of first-hand interviews, this ‘Frontline’ multiplatform investigation of lives cut short examines a federal effort to grapple with America’s legacy of racist killings through the Emmett Till Unsolved Civil Rights Crime Act.”

Frontline (PBS) with Ado Ato Pictures and StoryCorps

“Unpacking” (Steam)

“This zen puzzle game transforms the mundane experience of unpacking items out of boxes after a move into an extraordinary storytelling device, allowing the player to get to know the main character at an intensely intimate and personal level without ever seeing her over 21 years of her life and eight different moves.”

Witch Beam Games & Humble Games

PUBLIC SERVICE

“Frontline: American Reckoning” (PBS)

“A powerful and compelling examination of America’s ongoing struggle with systemic racism and social injustice through the lens of an unsolved 1960s murder reveals an untold chapter in the Civil Rights Movement. With rarely seen footage from more than 50 years ago, the program illuminates the urgent need for meaningful change and reckoning with our nation’s past while highlighting one family’s search for justice.”

Frontline (PBS) with Retro Report

“Frontline: Putin’s Attack on Ukraine: Documenting War Crimes” (PBS)

“Exclusive and harrowing evidence of war crimes committed by Russian soldiers in Ukraine’s Kyiv suburbs, unearthed by ‘Frontline’ and The Associated Press, can be traced up the chain of command to one of Russia’s top generals—and might help build a case against Russian President Vladimir Putin in court.”

Frontline (PBS) with The Associated Press

“Frontline: The Power of Big Oil” (PBS)

“The fossil fuel industry has sowed doubt about climate change in America and stalled climate policy, even as scientific evidence grows more certain, all as part of a concerted effort, as documented by this three-part series.”

Frontline (PBS)

“Rising Against Asian Hate: One Day in March” (PBS/WNET)

“This hour-long documentary reveals how, in the aftermath of the 2021 spa killings of 6 women of Asian descent, the Asian American community in Atlanta came together to fight back and to contend with a racial reckoning in the courts, in the voting booth, and in the streets.”

Repartee Films, LLC, PBS, CAAM

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“Abbott Elementary,” “Better Call Saul,” “Severance,” “Mo,”

Music

Christine and the Queens appeared on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert last night night (February 23). Wearing—and dramatically shedding—a pair of angelic wings, he performed an gut-wrenching rendition of “To Be Honest,” a single from his forthcoming LP Paranoïa, Angels, True Love. Watch it happen below. 

Redcar, a Chris alter-ego, released Redcar les adorables étoiles (prologue) last year. The new LP, attributed to Christine and the Queens, features guest spots from Madonna and 070 Shake and production from Mike Dean.

Read the track review of “To Be Honest.”

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Christine and the Queens appeared on The

Docs

Anyone who owns an animal will tell you they can be unpredictable sometimes. Handlers might have the patience to work with them on set, but they should still learn how to manage them during filming. 

Here are a few mistakes you can easily avoid when working with animals that you may or may not have dealt with before.

1. Avoiding Substitutes

Human actors sometimes have stunt doubles, and animals can also benefit from them. Consider using a replica or CGI in some shots to create your desired image. While it might be a bit more work, it can help save time when you cannot get an animal to cooperate with your filming schedule.

You shouldn’t avoid substitutes or doubles just because they can be tricky. Sometimes, it’s better to only include the animal in close-up shots.

2. Not Hiring Animal Experts

Don’t even consider skipping out on having animal professionals on the set with you. Animals require a lot of work, and you must ensure the location doesn’t pose any risks. An animal welfare adviser can help you determine the hazards on your set that might cause problems. A veterinarian should be present if the animal has an active role to ensure its welfare and safety.

An on-site trainer can help you control some animals that might be hyperactive or only there for background scenes. Some may be entranced by cords and want to chew through them, which could lead to electrical burns or electrocution and damage your equipment. An expert will be able to prevent any injuries from occurring on set.

3. Having Inadequate Transportation

 Adequate transportation is vital. Don’t assume everything will be handled without you unless someone tells you they’ll take care of everything. You must have accurate documentation of who is transporting the animals to and from the location and when they’re moving around. It’s the best way to keep track of your animal actors.

You also need to budget for transportation. For example, horse hauling rates can be up to $3 per mile, which can greatly affect your budget if you plan to feature several horses in your film. Factoring in animal transportation before filming begins is the best way to ensure you have enough money for everything you want to feature in your movie. When working with animals, you must be prepared for anything.

4. Ignoring Sanitation Methods

Animals make messes just like humans. However, you should follow proper sanitation methods when they’re in close contact with the cast and crew. Animals can pass zoonotic diseases to people because certain viruses mutate to pass their genetic material on, which means you must be careful when handling them, especially if they’re sick. 

Clean and thoroughly disinfect spaces an animal occupies, especially if livestock is involved. Taking some time to deep clean can save you and your cast and crew from a potential sickness. Use virus-killing disinfectants, and if you’re renting a space to use, leave it as clean as you found it.

5. Not Preparing Months in Advance

One major thing you should consider is how long it takes to fully train the animals. You should start well beforehand if they must be trained for something specific. People need several tools to train a dog, which are some of the easiest animals to teach.

More stubborn creatures may take longer, so you should schedule weeks or months of training if you need an animal actor to do something specific. You don’t want a half-trained animal showing up to the set confused and frightened.

6. Not Having a Caretaker for the Animals

Hire an animal caretaker during the filming process. They should know all about how to handle the specific animal. They need to be on set to give the animal water and food, as well as clean up after them. They should also be responsible for providing them with breaks from a potentially stressful environment.

Make sure everyone who comes in contact with the animal knows their responsibilities. You can also keep records of anything that happens on set while animals are present. This will allow you to review your processes and ensure everything goes as smoothly as possible. Having eyes on animals while filming can also ensure they have support at all times and aren’t left alone somewhere, like in a vehicle.

7. Allowing Nonworking Animals on Set

You may want an animal-friendly set, but mingling pets with working animals could be challenging. You don’t know if they’ll get along, and it might be too much for your cast and crew to keep up with in a potentially hazardous area. Unless the animal is working or serving a purpose on set, you should aim to leave all pets at home. 

It can be challenging to say no to cute pets in the workspace, but it’s safer for them to remain home. If you want to see cuddly creatures, watch a film that features animal companions instead. There’s a place for sweet pets, but when you’re working, you must focus on the task at hand.

Work Alongside Your Animal Actors

Animals have feelings, too, so they should be looked after well during the filming process. You have to make certain allowances for them and understand that they sometimes may be unwilling to work. As long as you have procedures in place regarding care and cleaning, you should have a pleasant filmmaking journey with an animal star.

Expect the unexpected when working with animals, and plan to work around any obstacles you encounter. The results will make your efforts well worth it.

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Global

This is the shocking moment a 220-pound shark sank its teeth into a snorkeller, leaving her with a grizzly six-inch wound on her side in the Maldives. 

Carmen Canovas Cervello, 30, was diving at Vaavu Atoll in the island paradise nation with a pal when the eight-foot-long nurse shark lunged at her and clamped its jaws around her side.

Dramatic footage shows the creature circling the bikini-clad tourist before it suddenly turned and attacked her. 

Amazingly, the woman decided to jump back in for a second dip immediately after she cleaned the wound left by the disgruntled nurse shark.

Cervello and friend Ibrahim Shafeeg, 37, an underwater photographer who captured the astonishing footage, had been swimming freely with the school of sharks for over 45 minutes before disaster struck.

Carmen Canovas Cervello, 30, who works as a nurse, found a set of shark teeth lodged into her side, leaving her with a gruesome bite mark

Cervello had been taking a dip in the ocean off the coast of the Maldives with friend Ibrahim Shafeeg, 37, an underwater photographer who captured the astonishing footage

Cervello had been taking a dip in the ocean off the coast of the Maldives with friend Ibrahim Shafeeg, 37, an underwater photographer who captured the astonishing footage

Cervello was left with a gaping six-inch wide wound after a 220-pound nurse shark lodged its teeth into her

Cervello was left with a gaping six-inch wide wound after a 220-pound nurse shark lodged its teeth into her

Cervello was left with a horrific would after the eight-foot-long nurse shark lunged at her and clamped its jaws around her side while she was diving in the Maldives

Cervello was left with a horrific would after the eight-foot-long nurse shark lunged at her and clamped its jaws around her side while she was diving in the Maldives

In the shocking footage, it appeared one shark decided that they were too close for comfort and showed its dominance by clamping its teeth down on Cervello’s shoulder and upper back.

Even though it was only for a brief moment, the determined creature left a sizable mark of around six inches in diameter on the diver’s body.

Mr Shafeeg captured the shocking attack unexpectedly as he was filming the sharks around him with his GoPro camera.

Both Mr Shafeeg and Ms Cervello immediately jumped out of the water to check the damage inflicted on her shoulder and back by the bite-happy creature.

Once out of the water near the Dhiggiri resort in Vaavu Atoll, the pair cleaned the wound while examining how severe it was.

Despite the attack, the daredevil duo felt as though the wound was given by the sharks as a warning for getting too close, as they believed the bite as only a minor injury that could have easily been a lot worse.

Amazingly, within seconds, the unfazed pair decided they would dive right back into the shark-infested waters once again to resume their diving experience.

Cervello didn’t feel as though she needed to seek any medical help or treatment, so the pair decided to continue snorkelling and diving with the sharks for days, leaving the bite to heal for itself.

Nurse sharks are common in the Vaavu Atoll region of the Maldives, as it is a common place for the sharks to seek food from the different tourist attractions surrounding the area.

Cervello didn't feel as though she needed to seek any medical help or treatment, so the pair decided to continue snorkelling

Cervello didn’t feel as though she needed to seek any medical help or treatment, so the pair decided to continue snorkelling

Somewhat amazingly, the woman decided to jump back in despite being left with the awful teeth-marked wound

Somewhat amazingly, the woman decided to jump back in despite being left with the awful teeth-marked wound

Ibrahim Shafeeg captured the shocking attack unexpectedly as he was filming the sharks around him with his GoPro camera

Ibrahim Shafeeg captured the shocking attack unexpectedly as he was filming the sharks around him with his GoPro camera

If provoked, nurse sharks can inflict a life-threatening bite due to their extremely sharp teeth and strong jaw

If provoked, nurse sharks can inflict a life-threatening bite due to their extremely sharp teeth and strong jaw

Nurse sharks are usually non-aggressive and have been known to swim away when approached. But if they are provoked in any way, their bite can be life-threatening due to their extremely sharp teeth and strong jaw.

According to reports before 2022, there were around 51 provoked and five unprovoked attacks from nurse sharks.

This was the first time Cervello had received a shark bite, but that hasn’t stopped the pair from diving head-first into the dangerous waters once again to experience being so up-close and personal with the sharks in their natural habitat.

‘We were in the shark bay at Vaavu Atoll diving with nurse sharks,’ Shafeeg said.

‘We decided to do a free dive trip to shark bay and snorkel inside a group of sharks there.

‘There were around ten nurse sharks, from 198-pounds to 220-pounds and over three metres wide.

‘After the shark bite, we thought nothing major about it as it was only a minor injury so we cleaned the wound and continued snorkelling at the same spot again.’

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Trending

Shonda Rhimes is to be presented with a BAFTA Special Award at a tribute event in New York next month.

The Shondaland CEO, whose credits include Grey’s Anatomy, Bridgerton and Scandal, will receive the award that is given to people who have made a “significant, inspiring and outstanding contribution to film, games and TV.” At the New York event on May 3, she will partake in a fireside chat and cocktail reception, marking the first BAFTA U.S. in-person award presentation since the Covid-19 pandemic.

“Shonda’s trailblazing work has captured our hearts and inspired audiences around the world,” said BAFTA North America Board Chair Kathryn Busby. “We are honored to be presenting a BAFTA mask to such a deeply respected and admired artist.

BAFTA Chair Krishnendu Majumdar added that Rhimes has “built the foundation and platform to launch global careers.”

In mega-hits Grey’s Anatomy, Private Practice and Scandal, Rhimes is the first woman to have achieved the 100-episode milestone with three different shows.

In 2017 she launched Shondaland and struck an unprecedented exclusive agreement with Netflix, which has spawned royal smash Bridgerton and the likes of Inventing Anna about Anna Delvey. Many similar agreements with top talent have been struck since.

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Tech

Spotify is targeting radio broadcasters with its latest product update that will make it easier to covert radio shows into on-demand podcasts and offer a new source of ad revenue on existing content.

Beginning Thursday, Spotify’s “broadcast-to-podcast” technology will be fully integrated into Megaphone, the podcast ad tech and hosting platform that Spotify acquired in late 2020. The radio-to-podcast conversion technology itself comes from the Australian podcasting platform Whooshkaa, which was purchased by Spotify in 2021.

Using Megaphone, publishers will be able to input the URL to a live stream of their broadcasted content and automatically have a podcast created from that programming, according to Emma Vaughn, Spotify’s global head of advertising business development and partnerships. The “broadcast-to-podcast” tech will identify ad marker locations, giving publishers the opportunity to remove the ads that were originally aired on the live version of the program and dynamically insert new ad spots in their place, resulting in more revenue.

Companies using “broadcast to podcast” can continue to sell their own ad inventory or, in the near future, do so through the Spotify Audience Network, the audio giant’s ad marketplace.

“These publishers obviously have a ton of content that they create. The libraries are massive, [but] they don’t always have a full podcast operation that’s set up, [so] creating podcast-only content might not make sense for them,” Vaughn told The Hollywood Reporter. “That’s where ‘broadcast to podcast’ comes in because it’s seamless and allows them to join the ecosystem.”

As part of the initial rollout, publishers like Fox Corp. — which has an existing advertising and distribution deal with Megaphone for its Fox Audio Network — will use the conversion technology to create on-demand podcast versions of the broadcaster’s radio programming, though Vaughn said the goal is to attract publishers and broadcasters around the globe that “previously weren’t able to access Megaphone and access the podcast ecosystem.”

The executive also noted that converting radio programming into podcasts could give radio broadcasters a better chance at expanding their reach to Gen-Z listeners.

“More and more people are listening to content via these digital channels,” Vaughn said, “so it’s going to be able to bring some of this broadcast content that was maybe more isolated to a certain type of demographic to the Spotify demographic and to these young audiences that they haven’t been able to capture before.”

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Spotify is targeting radio broadcasters with its

Video

A paltry $12 million take for the smash animated hit means the industry’s hopes for a boost from the country’s reopening seem quashed for now

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A paltry $12 million take for the

Entertaintment

Welcome to the 209th episode of TV’s Top 5, The Hollywood Reporter’s TV podcast.

Every week, hosts Lesley Goldberg (West Coast TV editor) and Daniel Fienberg (chief TV critic) break down the latest TV news with context from the business and critical sides, welcome showrunners, executives and other guests, and provide a critical guide of what to watch (or skip, as the case may be).

During this week’s episode, we look at the Warner Bros. Discovery investor presentation for Max and are joined by Friend of the 5 Josh Wigler to discuss the game-changing episode of Succession. Here’s how the episode plays out:

1. Headlines

Dick Wolf, a This Is Us duo, Stranger Things, Ziwe, Kim Kardashian and The Resident lead the week’s top industry headlines.

2. Hello, Max

Warner Bros. Discovery execs gathered in Burbank, California, this week to unveil the new name and the larger plans for HBO Max, which in May will become just “Max.” This segment looks at the news that was unveiled — a new Game of Thrones spinoff, another Big Bang Theory chapter and, the week’s biggest news: a Harry Potter live-action TV series. With controversial creator J.K. Rowling attached, this segment largely focuses on all things Potter.

3. Max’s nuts and bolts

After examining the programming strategy, this segment looks at the nuts and bolts of Max: how much it will cost, the changes to the service and much more.

4. Succession spoiler alert!

Spoiler warning: HBO’s Succession delivered the show’s biggest blow in the third episode of its fourth and final season. Friend of the 5 Josh Wigler, who is expertly covering the show for THR.com and Post Show Recaps, joins us to discuss how [spoiler’s] death changes everything for the Emmy-winning drama.

5. Critic’s Corner

As usual, every episode ends with Dan’s thoughts on what to watch (or skip) this weekend. This week, he weighs in on Apple’s The Last Thing He Told Me, Amazon’s The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, HBO’s Barry, Hulu’s Am I Being Unreasonable and Freeform’s Single Drunk Female.

Hear it all now on TV’s Top 5. Be sure to subscribe to the podcast to never miss an episode. (Reviews welcome!) You can also email us with any topics or Mailbag questions you’d like addressed in future episodes at TVsTop5@THR.com.

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Movies

At 50, Toni Collette is thriving, picking roles that are meaningful to her and never letting herself be defined by the industry with career choices that range from drama to comedy, horror and everything in between — and she delivers in spades.

So how does it feel to be at this stage of her career? “F–king fantastic,” she replied without missing a beat.

Collette stars in the fiercely funny comedy “Mafia Mamma” as Kristin Balbano Jordan, a people-pleasing housewife in need of change when her son goes off to college, her marriage falls apart and her job means having to listen to misogynistic men.

When she is notified of her estranged grandfather’s death in Italy, she goes to attend the funeral — and hopefully spark an “Eat, Pray, Love”-style romantic adventure — but soon discovers the family “business” is organized crime and she has to take over, per her grandfather’s wishes.

Speaking in a virtual interview, Collette said she loves stories about change, and people learning to live better lives and respect themselves.

“We’re not here for very long, but making the movie for me I’ve never had so much fun. It was just profoundly joyous and I’ll never forget it. Rome will always be in my heart … It’s just one of the most magical, elating experiences of my life; it was a total high.”

“Mafia Mamma” is in many ways an empowering, feminist comedy, and the actor dives right in and adds colour to the role, drawing many laughs. Collette’s Kristin goes on a journey of finding and accepting herself while discovering an inner strength she didn’t know she had.

The actor has always known she had a certain amount of internal strength, noting it was perhaps more self-love “and allowing myself to enjoy life, not being so hard on myself, not trying to control things, just listening and allowing things to happen and noticing opportunities.”

“I think we all have a certain amount of personal power and strength. But I think, as women, it’s not always encouraged. We’re born into this patriarchal world and things have not been equal. We’re trying to balance things out now. We’ve made some headway, but there’s still a long way to go.”

The Golden Globe and Emmy winner has been in the industry for more than three decades and has worked on herself, noting, “It’s not comfortable sometimes because you have to face all kinds of truths and you really have to know yourself, the good, the bad and the ugly. And when you do that work, that’s where you do find strength.”

It’s what makes her speak her truth today, unlike her younger self.

“I’m 50 now. I made my first film when I was 17 years old and the industry has changed. I’ve changed and I like myself and I accept myself. So when I’m in situations that don’t sit right, I feel fine about speaking up. I remember being so nervous about speaking up. I just always assumed that everybody else knew better when I was in my late teens and in my 20s,” she said.

There’s a moment in the film when Collette’s character says, “I inherited an opportunity to fulfil my purpose … I inherited me.” The Australian-born actor could relate to that moment, calling it a pinnacle of the movie.

“I really love that little speech … We’re all so hard on ourselves. We always think someone else knows better, or that we should do better or we should strive to achieve. No, we shouldn’t. All we have to do is stop and be with ourselves and accept ourselves and that’s the most important thing. Your life will be so much happier if you can do that.”

This film marks the second time Collette worked with director Catherine Hardwicke. The first was “Miss You Already” in 2015. Collette said the director never forces ideas on anyone and her thinking is unique.

“The way that she tells stories is just … there’s nobody like her, she is authentic and she is wild, endlessly creative and very exciting to work with. It just makes you feel like you can go for it and try anything. It’s very inspiring.”

This project won’t be their last together, she added.

Collette, who earned an Oscar nomination in 2000 for “The Sixth Sense,” has taken risks with her career, taking a wide range of roles, like the fierce mother in “Hereditary” and the wellness guru in Rian Johnson’s ”Knives Out.”

She began her career in the early ’90s, getting acclaim for her performance in the 1994 comedy “Muriel’s Wedding.” Soon after that film, she was offered another very similar to role, but she’s glad she didn’t do it.

“Because the minute you start doing that, people just assume it’s all you can do. And unwittingly I set myself up for a career of diversity. I think any artist needs to have that freedom. I really think any actor worth their salt should be able to play anything.”

Her experience has made her appreciate where to draw the line when it comes to work-life balance.

“When I was younger, I would just fling myself into anything, just jump in and go for it. And you do things that are dangerous, that are emotionally kind of destructive and exhausting. But as I get older, I just protect myself more.”

For example, unless it’s crucial to wrapping a film, she generally says no to coming in early as she needs the preparation time, and time to cuddle her kids and get a proper night’s sleep, which ultimately benefits the film.

“I know, at this point, my career isn’t gonna go away. There’s such a beautiful, safe sense of gratitude in that. I am so lucky to be in this position. And so now I’m lucky to be able to choose the types of roles I work on.

“This film is just a beacon of light; to be able to put that out into the world knowing that I will help make people feel good is such a good feeling. And I want to do more of that. Every film, no matter the genre, has a different purpose and I really only try to work on things that are meaningful to me. To really make people laugh and feel good is one of the best things I could do.”

When it comes to the future of female actors in Hollywood, Collette is hopeful.

“It’s been incredible, even in my time, to watch the differences and the changes that are taking place, because there weren’t as many really complex, meaty, female roles. They just weren’t. The types of stories that are being told, the types of people that are being seen and represented, it’s all changing.”

“Mafia Mamma” is in theatres Friday.

Marriska Fernandes is a Toronto-based entertainment reporter and film critic. She is a freelance contributor for the Star’s Culture section. Follow her on Twitter: @marrs_fers

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Latest News

Lisa Marie Presley’s ex-husband Michael Lockwood, a guitarist and music producer, has been granted legal guardianship of their twins, allowing him to represent the girls amid an ongoing battle for Presley’s multi-million-dollar trust.

The ruling was delivered Thursday after Judge Lynn Healey Scaduto considered Lockwood’s petition to be appointed the guardian ad litem (a court-appointed representative of a child’s best interests) of the former couple’s 14-year-old twins Harper Vivienne Ann Lockwood and Finley Aaron Love Lockwood.

According to People, Lockwood’s lawyer, Scott Rahn, said his client is “ready, able and willing to protect their interests.”

When Scaduto asked if Lockwood had any preexisting relationships with the other parties involved in the dispute, Rahn said, “Lockwood has a good, collegial, familial relationship with all of the parties involved. He is not only legally bound but also morally bound to protect [the twins’] interests.”

Lawyers representing Priscilla Presley, who initiated the dispute, and Lisa Marie’s actor daughter, Riley Keough, who is the sole executor, did not object to the request.

The next hearing in the trust saga is scheduled for May 16.

Lockwood filed to be appointed the guardian ad litem in March, two months after Lisa Marie, who was the only child of Elvis and Priscilla Presley, died after suffering cardiac arrest. Both Harper and Finley signed forms consenting to Lockwood being appointed to represent them at the time.

“There is no conflict regarding appointment because the proposed guardian is not a beneficiary of the trust instrument at issue,” Lockwood said.

In 2016, Lisa Marie amended her will, naming her two eldest children, Riley and son Benjamin Keough — from her first marriage, to Danny Keough — as co-executors. She filed to dissolve her 10-year marriage to Lockwood that same year.

After her breakout role in Steven Soderbergh’s Starz series “The Girlfriend Experience,” Riley Keough has gone on to star in the film “Zola” and, most recently, earned critical acclaim for her portrayal of a Stevie Nicks-inspired musician in the Prime Video miniseries “Daisy Jones & The Six.”

Benjamin died by suicide in 2020, leaving Riley Keough as sole executor of Lisa Marie’s estate, which includes the 17,552-square-foot Graceland mansion and a 15% stake in Elvis Presley Enterprises.

In the weeks following Lisa Marie’s death, her mother (and Keough’s grandmother), Priscilla Presley, asked a judge to invalidate the 2016 amendment that swapped Presley and Barry Siegel (Lisa Marie’s former manager) as co-trustees of the trust, with Riley and Benjamin Keough. She argued her daughter’s signature could have been forged and that she should have been informed of the change in executor, if the amendment was legitimate.

In January, Lockwood told People, “We are all reeling from the sudden passing of Lisa Marie Presley, the mother of my two beautiful twin daughters Harper and Finley. Nothing prepares us for such an unexpected tragedy. It is incomprehensible.”

“The most important thing to me at this time is to take care of my daughters, making sure they always feel safe and loved,” he added. “Both of them have incredible spirit and they will carry our family’s legacy on for the rest of their lives. Since they were born, Harper and Finley have brought me profound joy and I remain devoted to them. We ask for privacy at this incredibly difficult time.”

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Lisa Marie Presley’s ex-husband Michael Lockwood,

MCU

Deadpool 3 added two more returning characters, including a Fox X-Men hero.

The cast of Deadpool 3 continues to grow ahead of production, with Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine already confirmed to return along with franchise fan favorites Dopinder and Blind Al.

This comes as Ryan Reynolds’ Deadpool finally makes his way into the MCU to play with characters in that universe, including two Loki stars who will apparently appear in the Shawn Levy-directed threequel.

The returning icons come alongside two newcomers in Succession‘s Matthew Macfadyen and The Crown‘s Emma Corrin who will appear in unknown roles.

Deadpool 3 Brings Back Key Characters

An exclusive report from Deadline revealed two stars from the first two Deadpool movies will now be reprising their roles in the MCU for Deadpool 3.

Stefan Kapicic will return as the major X-Men hero Colossus while Morena Baccarin makes a comeback as Wade Wilson’s fiancée Vanessa.

Kapicic’s Colossus marks the second Fox X-Men character to be confirmed for the threequel after Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine.

20th Century Fox

Baccarin commented on her potential Deadpool return just weeks ago claiming that, although there were talks about the possibility, it “may or may not work out,” but clearly a deal with Marvel Studios has since been reached.

Vanessa’s death at the hand of a criminal was at the center of Deadpool 2, although the Merc with the Mouth later used Cable’s time travel device to return to the past and save her.

Vanessa Deadpool Monica Baccarin
20th Century Fox

The full cast of Deadpool 3 as announced so far can be seen below:

  • Ryan Reynolds – Deadpool
  • Hugh Jackman – Wolverine
  • Stefan Kapicic – Colossus
  • Morena Baccarin – Vanessa
  • Karan Soni – Dopinder
  • Leslie Uggams – Blind Al
  • Matthew Macfadyen
  • Emma Corrin
  • Owen Wilson – Mobius (Rumored)
  • Tara Strong – Miss Minutes (Rumored)

Deadpool 3 Gets Ready for Production

The latest update from Ryan Reynolds revealed production should begin just before the summer, with Collider having recently shared a report claiming Deadpool 3 will begin filming in London this spring. As the springtime season concludes on June 21, the cameras should be rolling within two months.

In the weeks and months leading up to production, more plot details and castings, both in terms of familiar faces and Marvel newcomers, ought to become apparent. 

The news that Deadpool’s non-superhero companions and several X-Men heroes will be coming back makes it apparent this will still be a follow-up to that world, even with it now walking the line into the MCU. Perhaps Deadpool 3 will even serve as a bookend to the Fox world ahead of the long-awaited X-Men reboot.

With so many returning players on the table, one can only wonder which other Fox X-Men and Deadpool characters may be on the table for a comeback. 

Domino actress Zazie Beetz already hinted at a potential return, and with so many of her Deadpool 2 co-stars now announced for the threequel, her involvement continues to appear more likely than ever, schedule permitting.

Deadpool 3 hits theaters on November 8, 2024.

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DCU

Shazam! Fury of the Gods director David F. Sandberg responded to a round of fan criticism hurled in his direction regarding his choices for the DCU sequel.

Shazam 2 had more than its fair share of issues upon its release, underperforming immensely at the box office while only earning a 51% rating on Rotten Tomatoes – a rating that didn’t live up to the original Shazam!.

Sandberg even admitted during the sequel’s theatrical run that he “knew what the box office tracking was looking like,” not feeling too shocked to see the financial numbers not living up to expectations.

He’s also offered his own feelings of surprise to see such negative reviews, although he recently showed that he’s not afraid to address that negativity head-on when necessary.

Shazam 2 Director Tackles Fan Harassment

Shazam! Fury of the Gods director David F. Sandberg responded to a couple of harassing comments from fans on Twitter after his work on the DCU sequel.

One fan asked why Sandberg was “ruining [his] movie” after posting a video of a scene using a double for Jack Dylan Grazer’s Freddy, with Sandberg simply saying he enjoyed discussing his process:

“I like talking about filmmaking and how and why things were done”

Warner Bros.

Another viewer complained about Sandberg “[including] a scene from the first movie,” which was reshot for the sequel with the Shazam family‘s new costumes.

“Y tf did you include a scene from the 1st movie at all, u idiot? U know what takes even less time? Not refilling a scene u already have… just 2 make it look worse… Plus the sheer stupidity of including a scene from the 1st movie anyway. If we want 2 see that scene we’ll watch the 1st movie. So your excuse is, we didn’t make him fly because I knew I was a shitty director….? Weird flex.”

Sandberg took the funny route with this comment, admitting how much this decision upset some fans:

“Sure does make some people quite upset though. Never flash back to a previous movie!! If the audience wanted to see that they’d watch the previous movie!!”

The director responded to another comment about the suits that noted how “all the 2019 suit fans…have appeared,” making it clear that he just wanted to “try something new” and not do “the same old thing again:”

“Not at all. I don’t think the old suits were bad, I mean they were based on my specifications after all. But why not try something new rather than doing the same thing again. Like the hood was cool but we weren’t going to use it so let’s try a design without it.”

Shazam, Shazam 2
Warner Bros.

Sandberg also explained that he’s putting a video on hold for some time that he’d announced on April 6, not wanting “to deal with whatever bullshit and misinterpretations” that come as a result:

“I think I’ll hold off on publishing this video for a bit. I just don’t feel strong enough to deal with whatever bullshit and misinterpretations I’m sure will come of it. Sorry for the tease. But check out ‘Shazam 2,’ out now on digital. And here’s a clip for now:”

Shazam 2 Director’s Struggles With New Superhero Sequel

Although Sandberg didn’t get much support in promoting his movie from Warner Bros. on occasion, he’s had plenty of other challenges from the fan side of things as well.

This also isn’t the first time fans have complained about deepfake concerns, as other commenters had problems with part of how Wonder Woman‘s cameo in the Shazam! sequel was filmed. 

With Shazam 2 already fast approaching the end of its theatrical run as well, these comments are likely to keep coming towards Sandberg, although the director has taken the criticism in stride as he enjoys the fruits of his labor in the DCU again.

Shazam! Fury of the Gods is now available for purchase digitally. 

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Comics

PlayStation and Square Enix have shown off 20 minutes of gameplay from Final Fantasy XVI, highlighting combat and world exploration. The State of Play focused on the combat of Final Fantasy XVI, some of the story and side content, and the massive Eikon fights.

This new video showcased the real-time action combat, which is relatively new for the franchise. Snippets of Clive, the main character, fighting enemies on the ground were shown, as well as the battles where you control the Eikon, the massive summons in the game. The action is all in real time and Clive will learn a ton of different abilities and attacks from the different Eikons in the world, allowing players to adapt the combat to their own playstyle. These abilities can be found in a massive skill tree, which allows you to reset those abilities at any time and even let the game pick your abilities for you.

Now Playing: Final Fantasy XVI – 25 Minute Gameplay Breakdown | State of Play

The massive Eikon versus Eikon fights can play out in a number of different ways, with one shown featuring a third-person shooting sequence and others feeling similar to an all-out wrestling match. Square Enix said that each Ekion battle would feel unique and be based around the specific Eikons fighting.

To explore the world, players can travel to different locations via a world map, which will be updated with new and evolving areas as the game progresses. Square Enix said that players can use the map and travel at any time, allowing similar freedom to a fully open-world game.

Square Enix showed off Cid’s Hideaway, a special area unlocked later in the game, where players can buy new weapons and armor, make improvements at the blacksmith, and train in a special area, where you can earn a high score on a global leaderboard. This area is also where you pick up a number of side quests and have access to a full list of available quests. A Hunt Board allows a Moogle to provide information about special monsters you can bounty hunt for rewards.

Square Enix shared some details about the game and its structure, including that the game is split largely into three periods in Clive’s life: his teens, 20s, and 30s. There will be a flashback sequence, showing how Clive came to control an Eikon. As previously announced, any squad members that join Clive will fight independently in combat, so players will only need to focus on controlling one character, although the dog companion can be given general directions.

It was revealed that Japanese musical artist Kenshi Yonezu composed the main theme for Final Fantasy XVI. Square Enix said it would have even more information to share before launch. You can read more about the combat changes and the transition to an action RPG in GameSpot’s preview of Final Fantasy XVI. Preordering the game from Target can also get you a $10 gift card. Final Fantasy XVI releases on June 22 on PlayStation 5.

The products discussed here were independently chosen by our editors.
GameSpot may get a share of the revenue if you buy anything featured on our site.

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Festivals

After weeks of speculation, Cannes Delegate General Thierry Frémaux confirmed Thursday morning that Sam Levinson’s Euphoria follow-up The Idol will screen out-of-Competition at the festival.

Frémaux said he expects to see lead actor and co-creator Abel Tesfaye, who performs music as The Weeknd, on the Croisette for the premiere alongside co-star Lily-Rose Depp. The Starboy singer, Frémaux said, is a regular at the festival and has often traveled incognito to screen films playing in Competition.

While announcing the title, Frémaux also described the HBO project as a “movie that could become a series.” The description was a mistake due to a mix-up in the French-English translation. The Idol is indeed a TV series, per HBO’s official promo materials. Sources can’t confirm how many episodes will screen at the fest, but previous series such as David Lynch’s Twin Peaks screened two episodes for the festival audience.

RELATED: Cannes Chief Thierry Frémaux Talks Scorsese’s Competition Invite, “Magnificent” Johnny Depp, Lineup Additions & A Jean-Luc Godard Tribute: Q&A

Co-created by Levinson, Tesfaye, and Reza Fahim, The Idol is set against the backdrop of the music industry in Los Angeles. The show follows a female pop singer who starts a romance with an enigmatic L.A. club owner who is the leader of a secret cult.

In addition to Tesfaye and Depp, the cast includes Suzanna Son, Troye Sivan, Moses Sumney, Jane Adams, Dan Levy, Jennie Ruby Jane, Eli Roth, Rachel Sennot, Hari Nef, Da’Vine Joy Randolph, Mike Dean, and South Korean artist Jennie Kim. Organizers have yet to confirm whether Kim will be in attendance at Cannes, but the 27-year-old, best known as a member of the mega-popular band Blackpink, would be a huge Gen-Z focussed attraction for the fest. 

Character details are being kept under wraps, but HBO has dropped a series of enigmatic trailers teasing the series. Early last year, Deadline also reported that the show underwent a creative overhaul, with series director Amy Seimetz exiting.

RELATED: New Cannes President Iris Knobloch Hails “Return To Theaters” In Maiden Speech

As Deadline reported at the time, the crux of the issue appeared to be that Tesfaye felt the show was leaning too much into a “female perspective”, according to sources, with co-star Lily-Rose Depp’s character rather than his own. 

Joe Epstein serves as showrunner and writer on the series. Levinson, Tesfaye, Fahim, Epstein, Ashley Levinson, Kevin Turen, Bron Studios’ Aaron L. Gilbert executive produce. Mary Laws, who has written on Succession and Preacher, writes and co-exec produces. The Weeknd’s manager Wassim “SAL” Slaiby and creative director La Mar C. Taylor also co-exec produce.

This year’s Cannes Film Festival runs May 16-27.

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After weeks of speculation, Cannes Delegate General

Film

BRAM STOKER’S DRACULA [1992] – Official Trailer (HD) | Now on 4K Ultra HD

In terms of pure acting caliber on this list, no one comes close to Gary Oldman. He’s a master of the craft and a true chameleon in his ability to make a character feel lived in. As a result, his turn as Count Dracula in Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1992) is the most layered of portrayals. For the most part, actors have chosen to focus on a particular side of Dracula, his cunning, his evil, his isolation, his romantic nature, his warrior’s drive. Yet, Oldman manages to seamlessly blend all of those aspects, shifting depending on what the scene requires. He’s the greatest warrior, the greatest lover, and the greatest monster—the ultimate villain. All of that evidenced in Oldman’s reading of the line “I have crossed oceans of time to find you.” It’s sensual, heartbreaking, and frightening all at once. He’s a creature in total control yet on the verge of losing it. He’s a fascinating mixture of paradoxes, and ever-shifting not only thanks to Oldman’s brilliant performance but also thanks to Greg Cannom, Michele Burke, and Matthew W. Mungle’s Oscar-winning makeup effects.

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BRAM STOKER’S DRACULA [1992] - Official Trailer

TV

[This story contains major spoilers from the fourth episode of Yellowjackets season two, “Old Wounds.”]

In the latest episode of Yellowjackets, there’s an argument over divine intervention or coincidence in the 1996 storyline. The Yellowjackets soccer team and their fellow survivors are starving in the wilderness, and they argue over young Lottie’s (Courtney Eaton) role in the game that has — and hasn’t — materialized in order for them to be able to eat and survive winter.

The teammates who believe that Lottie has developed some sort of powers during their time out in the wilderness argue that the bear and flock of birds that showed up at their cabin door were fateful occurrences, brought on by their newfound spiritual leader and her blood sacrifices. The dissenters to Divine Lottie counter that those events were coincidences, and balk at the opinion that Natalie (Sophie Thatcher) and Travis (Kevin Alves) can’t find any meat because they won’t let Lottie “bless” their hunts.

The two sides of this argument represent the larger question Yellowjackets is asking. When unpacking the loaded events of the first two episodes of season two with The Hollywood Reporter, showrunners Ashley Lyle, Bart Nickerson and Jonathan Lisco distilled the Jackie feast down to being about the battle between faith and pragmatism. “We’re really interested in the unexplained. And I think that whether or not everything happens for a reason or is completely random is one of the greatest questions that humanity has asked of the universe around us,” said Lyle. “Are things happening for a reason? Is there some sort of divine purpose or supernatural purpose? Or is it a confluence of events that are lining up in such a way as to result in certain consequences? People are constantly trying to find order and meaning in the unexplained. And particularly, when it comes to the bad things that happen to you.”

Sophie Thatcher as teen Natalie and Courtney Eaton as teen Lottie.

Kailey Schwerman/SHOWTIME

The debate in the fourth episode, “Old Wounds,” prompts Natalie to pitch a hunting contest between herself and Lottie, which sends the pair out in the wilderness looking for a kill. Both women come back empty-handed, but not for lack of trying. Natalie finds the white moose she spotted last episode frozen in water by his antlers; despite their hardest efforts, they can’t pull him out and the animal slips into the water. And Lottie returns frostbitten, after passing out and hallucinating.

They both agree they failed. Neither proved their point. And even Lottie offering her own blood as a sacrifice while out on the hunt bore nothing fruitful.

Right? Wrong. Because, that’s when Javi shows up — and the faith vs. pragmatism debate is relevant once again.

A still from YELLOWJACKETS Season 2.

The symbol used by Lottie in the wilderness.

Kailey Schwerman/SHOWTIME

For a refresher, Javi (Luciano Leroux), Travis’ younger brother, has been missing since the “Doomcoming” episode of season one, on his own in the wilderness for more than two months and presumed dead. But when Van (Liv Hewson) and Taissa (Jasmin Savoy Brown) head out in the woods to track down the trees with the Lottie symbol that “other Tai” has been finding while sleepwalking, the final tree is the exact location where Javi returns and runs into the pair.

All of this, meanwhile, plays out while the present-day storyline follows adults Natalie (Juliette Lewis) and Lottie (Simone Kessell) in their own separate attempts to excavate their trauma. Natalie road trips with Lisa (Nicole Maines) for a visit to the latter’s estranged mother and Lottie visits her therapist to divulge about her recent, disturbing visions related to the wilderness. When Lottie returns to her cult compound, she offers what appears to be her first blood sacrifice in quite some time.

Below, Lewis and Kessell spoke to THR about some of the burning questions raised in these first four episodes, as viewers wait to see more from the newly returned Javi and the now-reunited Taissa and Van (played by Lauren Ambrose).

This season sees the survivors starting to make their way towards Lottie. So far, Natalie is on the cult compound and adult Misty (Christina Ricci) is on her way. Simone, do you think Lottie has the answers?

Simone Kessell: I think Lottie would like to think she has the answers. But she kind of unravels herself. We all end up sort of with the duality of the past and the present. We’re there to find out some answers, and then it all kind of goes pear-shaped. I mostly work with Juliette for the first five episodes. We got to play and do some amazing work. We fell in love. And then [after episode five] it takes a new life and goes from there. Everything moves forward.  

Was there one question you had as a season one viewer that you put to the writers about playing Lottie?

Kessell: You mean like the whole Antler Queen or the symbols? I remember saying, “What is the Antler Queen? Is it a symbol, is it a metaphor, is it real?” And I remember them going [no answer].

Lewis: All of the above.

Kessell: It can kind of be anything that we deem it to be. There was so much about Lottie being the Antler Queen. But really now, we’ve distilled it into the fact that the Antler Queen is a part of all of us, and she really was something that kind of kept these women going to survive in the wilderness. That was my interpretation of it. I had so many questions, but I was trying to play it cool.

Juliette, how did reading more about the relationship between young Nat and young Lottie help you approach your scenes together in season two?

Lewis: Earlier on in the first season, the creators mentioned family or a dysfunctional family, or people who survive a horrific event, and how you go right into these roles. There’s a connection. Even my best friend — we didn’t do horrible things in the woods, but I’ve known her since I’m 9 and years will go by, and there’s a permanent connectivity on a cellular level. I analyze it like our bodies were growing at that time. We’ve gone through all these adventures and time periods. And what’s interesting about the writing is that it’s never about one thing. So even if it becomes adversarial, there’s an affinity that is underneath.

Because I kept asking myself, “Why isn’t Nat leaving?” If she’s done with her and saying snappy things. But it’s because she’s not just one thing. She’s concealing her confusion, her search for truth, her desperation to trust. But she doesn’t; she can’t. It’s all this conflicting stuff that makes it interesting. And it’s because of their history in the woods where they did have really warm, amazing bonds together.

Kessell: They have a sisterhood and you can love your sister and want to [strangle] your sister. But you’ll always go back and have Christmas with them.

What do you think would have happened if Lottie’s followers hadn’t barged into Nat’s hotel room in the season one finale?

Lewis: Oh my God, she would have shot herself. She’d be in the high heavens. That’s horrifying. But that was the trajectory of that darkness. They call it circling the drain. In that first season, that is a real personality that has nowhere to go. It’s just brick wall. And then the murder of her only functional but totally toxic love relationship [with Travis], that was her big love bond; it was really sad. So if they hadn’t barged in, I think that trigger would have been pulled.

Kessell: Then that answers what you’re saying. Even though she bucks at the idea of being at Lottie’s compound, she still stays because something inside of her knows that we saved her and she has a place. Like, where else would you be? As unsettling and uncomfortable as that is, it then moves into a different direction yet again.

I was wondering myself why Natalie stays.

Lewis: I wonder if the audience will figure out what they think. There were a few versions. I would have liked a bridge episode of a little bit more of a fight, and then she stays. But I don’t know. That kind of person… I can’t explain, but they don’t know themselves.

Courtney Eaton spoke to THR at the beginning of the season and said that Lottie has “an energy that draws people to her even if she doesn’t know how to process it.” Simone, how did you work with Courtney to shape adult Lottie, coming in after a full season?

Kessell: I wanted to understand the essence of Courtney, rather than the character. I wanted to see her in the flesh and in a way I could understand her, so I could give an honest portrayal. [They] created the characters from the pilot. So, she already created it. But then we completely recreated the present-day Lottie, that she’s come out of the darkness and into the light. I think with a lot of spiritual healers, perhaps gurus, people in these positions, they’re all wearing a mask. It’s all a performance. She’s created this character for herself in order to hide from the pain and the past. What we see is the Lottie with this love and light and these caftans and her silk-flowing dresses and her impeccable everything, her detail — it’s all an act. So I got to create a few Lotties. The one that’s in front of everyone is performing. But then behind closed doors, she’s completely different. And i think she keeps Natalie there because it reminds her of that, and having Natalie there then starts bringing out the truth.

So they are as good for each other as bad for each other, which again I think takes it back to a sisterhood.

Interview edited for length and clarity.

Yellowjackets releases new episodes weekly on Fridays for Showtime subscribers and airs on cable Sundays at 9 p.m. Keep up with THR‘s Yellowjackets season two coverage and interviews.

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[This story contains major spoilers from the

What to Watch


The Sullivan and Ross situation is about to come to a head, and it won’t be fun when it does.


They threw a few twists and turns at us during Station 19 Season 6 Episode 14 as it was an installment that covered the full spectrum of emotions from one storyline to the next.


Travis officially conceded, and the shocking love triangle between him, Andy, and Eli imploded as quickly as it showed up; Sullivan may bail, Jack collapsed, and Marina is still pulling off their latest rendition of a slow burn.


In a surprising turn of events, the shocking love triangle they introduced after Travis and Eli’s steamy hookup is over as quickly as it was presented to us.


We spent much of the hour waiting for that moment when the two friends realized they were somewhat involved with the same guy. And we got some classic Vic amusement when she pieced things together and then attempted to get both her best friends to drop Eli like a bad habit.

Assisting Visitors -tall - Station 19 Season 6 Episode 14


Fortunately, the situation didn’t cause any real issues or stir up tension between Andy and Travis. It was abundantly clear that Travis never would’ve done anything had he known, and Andy recognized that she had shut Eli down. They had no official promise or exclusivity because they hadn’t even started anything.


Eli didn’t come out of this looking too hot, and the downside to this arc is that he managed to escape any conversation with either of them to address the fact that he knew they were friends and had jumped from one person to the next.

Congratulations, Mr. Montgomery, you’re the next mayor of Seattle.

Eli


It was such a dick move on Eli’s part. His ability to go the whole installment without ever facing a consequence or having significant conversations with either Travis or Andy about his thought process or feelings was disappointing.


Travis was practically giddy for a bit, and Andy was excited about the opportunity to start dating again. And Eli didn’t give either of them anything about the personal aspect of his relationships. He only focused on getting the council member to concede before Travis took it all, unofficially taking Seattle’s mayor role.

Andy at the Stove -tall - Station 19 Season 6 Episode 14


We didn’t get much of Eli’s personal feelings about anything until he expressed his outrage that Travis conceded and opted to leave the fight for mayor up to the council member with actual experience in all of this.


Eli was livid, but at least Travis negotiated a job for him, whether Eli processed that information or not.


The only nitpick about Travis conceding is that it was too risky to pull something like that without knowing if the other guy would actually win.


The whole point was for them not to keep splitting the Progressive vote so that one of them would stand a chance against Dixon.


But who was to say that Travis wasn’t infinitely more popular than the other guy, thus defeating the purpose of giving that honor to someone who is lesser known or popular?

In the Lead -tall - Station 19 Season 6 Episode 12


The scary thing with this maneuver is it could still pave the way for a Dixon win. Politics are always unpredictable in that manner.


However, Travis got deep into the trenches of this election before it hit him that he’s not cut out or prepared for any of this. He definitely was overdue to come to his senses about this.

Did you think I wasn’t going to fine out that I wasn’t going to notice that you took a job on the other side of the state? Or did you do this just to punish me?

Sullivan


Travis was never prepared for what the job entails, and he loves being a firefighter too much to try to be mayor. They poured a lot into this storyline to cast aside now, but there was no way it could continue either when Travis showed no genuine desire to win and freaked out the moment he essentially did.


He made the right call in conceding to the more experienced person who deserved it.

Theo's Leadership - Station 19


Do you know what Jack deserved? A conclusion to his story.


He took such a hard fall when that call came in, and he slipped on the food someone from the other shift left on the before.


He cracked his head well, and it was annoying that he’s a first responder with some medical training who spends most of his days around other first responders and EMTs, and he didn’t consider telling someone about his fall and head injury.


Why are men like that?


He was feeling sick for his entire shift, his behavior getting worse by the second, and he still didn’t want to get checked out for what was likely a concussion.

Worried About Family - Station 19 Season 6 Episode 9


It was such an odd storyline that they worked on, especially for them to avoid revisiting or concluding it. And it felt like they didn’t know what to do with Jack as a character.


But it did lead to the fire at the station, and Theo’s blowup was offputting. He knows that no one would intentionally set the station house kitchen on fire, yet he accused Andy of that anyway.


Theo has gotten so out of hand that he must spend quality time with Diane. When did he get like this, and what specifically prompted it?


Theo’s attitude is horrible; it’s killing the team’s morale for different reasons than Beckett’s.

Heavy is the Head -tall - Station 19 Season 6 Episode 14


Why does it feel like he’s had a total personality change? His reaction to the fire in the kitchen was out of this world.


He and Andy going back and forth about her being insubordinate were enough to make one want to scream. Andy hasn’t given Theo any reason to imply that she’d undermine him just for the hell of it or was intent on disrespecting him as a leader.


Theo going so far as to imply that Andy purposely set a fire at the station to make him look bad was unfathomable. Theo’s paranoia about Andy came out of the blue almost as quickly as his poor attitude, and I hope we get to the bottom of why.


He’s not a fun captain, and the irony of those feeling he’d be the least controversial is that he has this batch of people wishing that Andy or Sullivan was in charge instead.

Tension Between Theo and Vic -tall - Station 19 Season 6 Episode 11


Everything they thought they were getting with Theo dissipated with this man who keeps second-guessing his own choices, with a chip on his shoulder and something to prove at every turn.


But what continues to be the agitating aspect of Theo these days is how he speaks to Vic. He’s been horrible to her for a while now, and it’s a far cry from the man who was so doting and loving with her before.

The answer to anything in this country is not more guns.

Carina


He’s rude, condescending, biting, cold, and perpetually irritated with her very presence. Vic has done nothing to deserve this treatment, and she’s as blindsided as we are about his behavior.


She was trying to play mediator and smooth things over, and he cut her down to size for even approaching him. For Vic’s sake, Theo needs to get his act together and understand why he’s been like this. If only he’d communicate.

Bickering with Andy -tall - Station 19 Season 6 Episode 7


It was so satisfying when Andy finally went off on him, calling him out for his behavior and telling him that Ross did offer her interim captain before settling for him.


He needed to know that Andy wasn’t jealous or out to get him; if anything, she’s been one of his biggest cheerleaders. The realization that he wasn’t the first choice humbled him real quickly.


Andy and Theo were so close when she was at the other station, so it’s disappointing that he’s been treating her this way or implying that she has ulterior motives or is somehow out to get him.

Bickering with Vic -tall - Station 19 Season 6 Episode 7


That particular paranoia for him stood out enough for me to start wondering if they’re entertaining some form of mental health issue with Theo, too.


Something is going on, and we need to know what it is. But for now, he’s serving as interim captain at a time when he feels least cut out for it, and it’s not faring well for the rest of the team.


Sullivan’s bitterness over the whole ordeal is more intense because he’s watching Theo flail in this position. He knows he would’ve been better cut out for it, and he spent most of the hour expressing his hurt and frustration that he wasn’t considered.


Even the others were wondering the same, whether it was Jack or Andy.

Little Bitter -tall - Station 19 Season 6 Episode 13


Sullivan and Ross got to talk through some things when he finally addressed how he felt about her passing him over, and their love story is just so complicated.


Sullivan is throwing a temper tantrum right now, and it’s unfair to Ross. He was the one who said he could support her through all of this, wait for her however long he had to, and understand the importance of their relationship staying under wraps for the sake of her career.

Maya: I know this is not a first-date conversation, but you are my conscience.
Carina: And that’s why you trust your partner. They mirror the best parts of you.


They’ve gone over all of this, so for him to be in his feelings this much and act like a child, taking things out on her when he knows why she did what she did, is ridiculous.


And Ross has every reason to be annoyed that Sullivan keeps acting as if their inability to be together only affects him.

Ross Rules - Station 19 Season 6 Episode 11


She has just as much at stake here and is missing out as much as he is. Yes, it benefits her career, but she’s hurting too. Sullivan said he could do this and handle it, and now he’s proving that he can’t, and that has to be disappointing for Ross.


You could tell how much this was getting at both of them because they weren’t even as cautious as usual about their relationship and staying away from each other.


The awkwardness of Jack interrupting them that one time was palpable.


Sullivan seeking out potential jobs on the other side of the state was a slap in the face to Ross when he didn’t even tell her he was considering that.

Sullivan's Advice -tall - Station 19 Season 6 Episode 9


Their relationship issues are overdue to come to a head, but you want them, especially Ross, to get out on the other side of this unscathed. You just want this woman to be happy.


When she expressed how much she loves Sulivan and wants to marry him and everything, you felt how much this was eating away at her and how deeply invested she is in this relationship.


They’re not just in a happy fling; it’s the real deal for them. And they deserve to be free.


So there has to be a way for them to use this blackmail situation to their advantage and still find happiness. Neither of them is prepared for the storm coming their way now that Dixon is set on exposing them.

Put In a Hard Place -tall - Station 19 Season 6 Episode 11


Maya confiding in Carina about the blackmail was a great step for her, especially when she acknowledged that Carina is her conscience.


Although she reached out to the union and left some messages before doing all that, this opportunity challenged her a bit.


But ultimately, she didn’t want to get the position again with such sordid, underhanded means. It’s a mark of her growth and the work she’s been doing.


She shared everything, and the photos with Andy, though, and she’s unable to control what Andy does with all of this entail.

Back on the Grind -tall - Station 19 Season 6 Episode 11


Andy was livid when she learned that Sullivan had been lying about Ross to her this whole time. And she feels like he’s jeopardized the whole house with his actions.


But it almost felt like Andy channeled all of her anger about Eli, the Travis situation, putting out a literal dumpster fire, and more into getting angry about this.


Did she expect Sullivan to tell her the truth about something like this? Can she understand why it’s so sensitive?


Now Maya and Andy have to devise a game plan, which will likely consist of giving Ross a head’s up because regardless of how either of them feels about all of this, I doubt they’ll want to screw Ross over.


Amid all of this drama, Maya nearly forgot about her first date with Carina, and it was one worth remembering between the food they missed out on because of the fire and getting that call to help Pam.


What were the odds that Carina would have to go deliver Pam’s baby along with Maya?


Maya was purely jealous when she heard that Carina went out for drinks with Pam and that she considered Pam a new friend.


Maya’s comeback about knowing all of Carina’s friends was funny.

Taking Space - Station 19 Season 6 Episode 9


It was a surprise that Maya didn’t expose herself as Carina’s wife. And Pam not overtly flirting with Carina in front of Maya as she did before was a missed opportunity.


It was an exciting call because we had the high stakes of getting the baby positioned right and delivering them in such a difficult setting, along with the arm extraction component.

Andy: If I had known what Theo would be like as a captain, I would’ve taken the job myself.
Jack: Ross offered you the job?
Andy: Don’t repeat that.


And we also had the fun of Sullivan and Ross on the scene trying to work together amid their fight with Maya stewing over Carina’s bond with the patient. Ben is still in his feelings, understandably so, because he’s worried about people coming after Bailey and his family.


Maya and Carina’s date didn’t go according to plan, but they could do another one.

Hugs For Carina -tall - Station 19 Season 6 Episode 9


Like Andy, what their doing is definitely weird, but I like it. It feels nice to see them build their relationship back up slowly and bask in this stage of just getting to know each other again.


They’re getting the chance to nurture their relationship, nice and slow, giving it a chance to blossom into something healthy and beautiful with this fresh start they have.

Did you think I wasn’t going to fine out that I wasn’t going to notice that you took a job on the other side of the state? Or did you do this just to punish me?

Sullivan


Who knew a married couple going back to the basics of dating again would be this sweet? They’re both having so much fun with it, too.


Over to you, Staton 19 Fanatics. What does the future hold for Ross and Sullivan? Was that the last we saw of Eli? What is Theo’s deal? Sound off below.


You can watch Station 19 online here via TV Fanatic.

Jasmine Blu is a senior staff writer for TV Fanatic. She is an insomniac who spends late nights and early mornings binge-watching way too many shows and binge-drinking way too much tea. Her eclectic taste makes her an unpredictable viewer with an appreciation for complex characters, diverse representation, dynamic duos, compelling stories, and guilty pleasures. You’ll definitely find her obsessively live-tweeting, waxing poetic, and chatting up fellow Fanatics and readers. Follow her on Twitter.

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The Sullivan and Ross situation is about

Awards

Anne Perry, the prolific crime novelist, died at a Los Angeles hospital on Monday, her literary agent Meg Davis confirmed to the New York Times. Perry was 84.

Perry, who was born as Juliet Marion Hulme, served five years in prison after being convicted of murdering her best friend Pauline Parker’s mother Honorah Rieper alongside Parker when they were just teenagers in 1954. Perry was just 15 years old and Parker was 16 at the time.

In 1994, Perry’s past came to light when director Peter Jackson based his film “Heavenly Creatures” on Perry’s story. Perry was played by Kate Winslet, who was making her onscreen acting debut in the film. Melanie Lynskey starred as Parker. “Heavenly Creatures” would end up being nominated for Best Original Screenplay.

Kate Winslet, left, and Melanie Lynskey in “Heavenly Creatures.” (Miramax)

Perry’s first novel “The Cater Street Hangman,” was published in 1979. The crime novel is the first in a series which centers on the Victorian husband-and-wife team of Thomas and Charlotte Pitt. Perry would write about 30 more books in the series which ended with 2016’s “Murder on the Serpentine.”

In 2017, Perry started a second series “21 Days” centered on the Pitt’s son, Daniel.

According to Perry’s website, her books have gone on to sell more than 26 million books worldwide. In 1998, Perry was selected by The Times of London as one of its 100 Masters of Crime of the past century, alongside authors Agatha Christie, Raymond Chandler, Dashiell Hammett and Arthur Conan Doyle.

In addition to “Heavenly Creatures,” there’s a 2009 German documentary about Perry titled “Interiors” and a bestselling 2012 biography, “The Search for Anne Perry,” by Joanne Drayton.

Perry is survived by her brother, Jonathan Hulme.

Celebrity Deaths in 2023: Hollywood Stars We’ve Lost This Year (Photos)

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Anne Perry, the prolific crime novelist, died

Music

A glance at the chart history for 5 Seconds of Summer is like peering into the record books for a champion athlete, at their very prime.

The Sydney-formed pop-rock outfit landed three consecutive No. 1 albums on the Billboard 200 chart – with their self-titled debut LP from 2014, Sounds Good Feels Good in 2016 and Youngblood from 2018. It’s a feat that made 5SOS the first Australian act to bag three crowns on the Billboard 200, and it extended their record as the only band to top the Billboard 200 with their first three studio albums.

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The streak ended when CALM went to No. 2 in the U.S. in 2020, though it debuted at No. 1 in the U.K., for 5SOS’s second leader there. Then, 5SOS dropped in 2022, giving the band a third U.K. crown, a No. 2 peak in the U.S. and the lads’ fifth No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Album Sales. On Australia’s ARIA Chart, they’ve gone a perfect five-for-five.

If you’re the type to keep score, that’s a lot of action.

Luke Hemmings, Calum Hood, Michael Clifford and Ashton Irwin will hope to add another notch on the charts with The Feeling of Falling Upwards – Live from The Royal Albert Hall, which rolled out at midnight.

Clocking in at nearly 70 minutes, and 17 tracks, 5SOS’s latest collection was recorded at the iconic Royal Albert Hall in London, a venue the chaps busked outside of when they first moved to the U.K., with the ambition to write their debut album. How things have changed.

The live performance captures reimagined versions of songs from across their catalog, accompanied by a 12-piece string orchestra and a 12-strong gospel choir.

The Royal Hall set is the band’s second live LP in a decade, following 2014’s LiveSOS.

The 5SOS live experience doesn’t end there. South America dates on the 2023 trek The 5 Seconds of Summer Show kick off July 20 in Buenos Aires, Argentina, with North America set to follow from early August.

Stream 5SOS’s The Feeling of Falling Upwards – Live from The Royal Albert Hall below.

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Docs

Global warming. Climate change. Glaciers melting down. Temperatures rising. Wildfires. Pollution. Deforestation. Rapid urbanization. These environmental concerns are currently in talks across channels and podiums. Activism to promote ecological preservation and conservation is on the rise, wherein the likes of Greta Thunberg have taken to protests and backlashes against industrial policies. Nations meet to discuss the issue and pledge to reduce emissions and fuel consumption. Laws are made to take on-road traffic on an electric route.

But what good have these years of talks and activism brought? What change have they inspired in the general public? What tangible impact has everyone brought to the world’s climate front altogether? Tackling this worrisome challenge is director Daniel Goldhaber’s second feature, How To Blow Up A Pipeline. Screenwriters Ariela Barer, Jordan Sjol, and Goldhaber depict how an unusual and more striking strategy to bring light to such discussions may be more pragmatic than just words.

How To Blow Up A Pipeline depicts a retaliation against an unserviceable response to global environmental preservation cries. And it takes a bunch of despaired commoners to come together to have the authorities hear their pleas with a literal bang. The film borrows from Andreas Malm’s book of the same name, but to call it an adaptation would not be proper. Malm’s work is academic, a non-fiction documentation and argument that sabotage and property destruction could be a logical way of furthering environmental and climate protection. It’s a call back to Snowpiercer, who argued that sometimes, a hard reset to the world might be the only manner in which to preserve life. This tries to bring forth a message along the same lines – it’s time for a new kind of environmental justice.

“…despaired commoners to come together to have the authorities hear their pleas with a literal bang.”

But Goldhaber adds a whole lot of drama to Malm’s non-fiction work by giving it a fictional but quite relatable plot with a substantial focus on the characters. The story focuses on a dynamic group of individuals led by friends Xochitl (Ariela Barer) and Theo (Sasha Lane). The group comprises individuals who have lost to the climate crisis. Some have lost loved ones, others have lost land or even their way of life. As global activism falls on deaf ears, Xochitl (while it’s hard to point a lead of the movie, if you got to, it will be her) comes up with a plan to blow up an oil pipeline to send out a message.

While introducing the characters, Goldhaber gives his story an emotional and political angle. At first, it feels like a rise of vigilantism against climate destruction caused by corporate greed and consumerism. But the filmmaker and cinematographer Tehilla De Castro revitalize this significant motive into a nicely choreographed and intense heist. That’s where How To Blow Up A Pipeline bridges the gap between being an allegory and an entertaining thriller.

The narrative takes inspiration from Reservoir Dogs. The film goes back and forth, intercutting to introduce you to all the characters, preceded by a title card that mentions each of their names. Goldhaber might not have intentionally made it an ode to Tarantino, but those vibes are felt increasingly as pressure to accomplish the next-to-impossible task starts agonizing the group.

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Global warming. Climate change. Glaciers melting down.

Global

Ontario’s police watchdog says it’s investigating after a man was seriously injured during a police interaction over a reported stolen delivery truck.

On Thursday morning, the Special Investigations Unit said a man allegedly stole a vehicle in Whitby.

Durham Regional Police officers pursued the driver for some time but were unable to catch him.

A short time later, in Toronto, the SIU said a crash happened involving the man in the stolen vehicle at Neilson Road and Finch Avenue.

The man had fled the area on foot. The SIU said officers from Durham, Toronto and York regions searched for the driver.

Read more:

SIU investigating after 15-year-old shot with ‘less-lethal’ shotgun in Toronto

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He then allegedly stole a Purolator truck and stopped in the Brimley and Ellesmere road areas and attempted to flee again, the SIU said.

That’s when an officer used a stun gun, more commonly known as a taser, on the man.

A 33-year-old man was arrested but also taken to hospital with serious injuries.

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The SIU is an independent agency that investigates the conduct of Ontario police officers in incidents that cause serious injury, death or alleged sexual assault.


A photo of the Purolator truck reportedly stolen on April 13, 2023.

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Jennifer Lawrence has expressed her extreme contentment with the decision not to postpone her nuptials with Cooke Maroney, now her husband. In 2019, while Lawrence was filming her newest film, Causeway, she had the epiphany that she began to identify with her character’s anxiety with long-term commitments.

She elaborated on this concept in an interview with the New York Times published on Wednesday. The discussion was titled “When You Don’t Fully Know Yourself, You Have No Idea Where to Put Yourself.” After that, I met my future husband, who told me to “put myself here.” I thought That seemed reasonable, but what if it isn’t?

Later on, the actress from “Silver Linings Playbook” concluded that she had been suffering from commitment anxiety the entire time she was working on the movie, but she hadn’t been aware of it at the time. Later, she explained, she returned, and now that she is settling down with her husband to have a family, she is glad she stayed.

I’m relieved that I didn’t have a nervous breakdown, call off the wedding, and flee the country since I’ll never be defeated!

In October 2019, Lawrence, who is 32 years old, wed Maroney in a ceremony attended by many famous people in Newport, Rhode Island. Her wedding to the art gallery director took place in the historic mansion at Belcourt of Newport, which was attended by many famous people, including Adele, Kris Jenner, and Emma Stone.

The sequined neckline of the actress’s wedding dress by Dior, which had its hotel room in the days preceding the big day, was only seen in paparazzi images. The Joy actress never publicly published photos of her wedding dress. Maroney, on the other hand, decided to wear a traditional tuxedo.

A little boy named Cy was born to Lawrence and her husband early this year. The fact that Lawrence and Maroney were an item was first reported by Page Six in June of 2018.

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Jennifer Lawrence has expressed her extreme contentment

Tech

An update to Outlook in March 2023 saw Microsoft fix a couple of known bugs in the email client, as well as introduce some new features, tweaks, and revisions. But now, the new version is bugged.

According to a Microsoft support page (opens in new tab), there are some mailbox, calendar, and sharing issues plaguing Outlook. The company has a temporary fix for now, but it’s nothing we couldn’t have thought of ourselves.

Affected users are those with Outlook Version 2303 (Build 16227.20212), and it’s specifically the desktop version that’s causing Microsoft engineers headaches at the moment.

Outlook access issues

The team is currently saying that users may be experiencing issues relating to the following:

  • Add or access the group mailbox
  • Add or access the group calendar
  • Add, remove, or edit group members
  • Change mail items, such as marking as read, archive, or moving email to other folders

It’s unclear what has caused Outlook to stop working, but Microsoft promises that a team is looking to get it fixed. As a warning to those who think they are immune, the company explains:

“Some affected users may also notice that impact self-resolves after some time, although impact may also reoccur at a later time.”

To keep track of the issue, tenant admins can monitor incident EX540503 in the Service Health Dashboard, but for immediate relief, users are being instructed to use Outlook Web Access (OWA) in order to access the Groups feature.

There is a more comprehensive remedy, but it involves manually downgrading to build 16130.20332. The support article details how users can go about that, but it’s best left to IT admins rather than all workers themselves to tackle.

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An update to Outlook in March 2023

Video

Glen Powell, who played audience favorite Hangman in last summer’s “Top Gun: Maverick,” will co-star alongside “Why the Crawdads Sing” star Daisy Edgar-Jones in “Twisters.”

The Universal Pictures release, which will be co-financed by Warner Bros., will arrive in theaters on July 19, 2024. and will be a direct sequel to Jan De Bont’s 1996 blockbuster “Twister.”

Lee Isaac Chung (“Minari”) will helm from a screenplay by Mark L. Smith (“The Revenant”), with Frank Marshall and Pat Crowley producing.


“Twisters” will be overseen for Universal by executive vice president of production Sara Scott and creative executive Jacqueline Garell will oversee for Universal Pictures. Ashley Jay Sandberg will oversee for Kennedy/Marshall.

The original film, starring Helen Hunt, Bill Paxton, Cary Elwes and a then-mostly unknown Phillip Seymour Hoffman, kicked off the 1996 summer movie season with a bang, earning a near-record $41 million in its debut weekend and then another $37 million in weekend two.

The disaster adventure film, penned by Michael Crichton, would eventually earn $242 million in North America and $494 million worldwide on a $90 million budget.

Regal Cinemas to Reopen Former Arclight Theater in Pasadena

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Glen Powell, who played audience favorite Hangman

Entertaintment

EXCLUSIVE: Simon Andreae has resigned as the Chief Executive of Fremantle UK with immediate effect, Deadline can reveal.

In a message to staff, Andreae said he was stepping down after three years at the Too Hot To Handle producer to “focus on my health, my family, and a smaller portfolio of projects.”

He added: “As some of you know, I’ve had some challenges to my health along the way and this has led to me taking some time out recently.”

Andreae was named CEO of Fremantle UK in 2020 after the American Idol giant fully acquired his production outfit Naked for £4.8M ($6M). He founded Naked in 2015.

Reporting to Fremantle CEO Jennifer Mullin, he has overseen a unit that generates hundreds of millions of dollars of revenue and is famed for hits including Britain’s Got Talent and The Responder, the BAFTA-nominated Martin Freeman series.

Andreae has held several senior positions in the television industry on both sides of the Atlantic. He worked as Channel 4’s Head of Science and Education for three years, and later joined Discovery as Senior Vice President of Development and Production. He served as Fox’s Alternative Entertainment chief, replacing Mike Darnell, but exited after a rocky year-and-a-half tenure.

Simon Andreae’s email to Fremantle staff:

Dear all, I want to share with you that I decided to step down today from my role as Fremantle UK CEO.

I’ve enjoyed a wonderful eight years in the Fremantle family, first helping grow Naked from a start up into one of the most successful unscripted producers in the UK, and latterly having the privilege to support and expand the whole roster of best-in-class FMUK labels. As some of you know, I’ve had some challenges to my health along the way and this has led to me taking some time out recently. Now, after thirty straight years on the frontlines of television production, I’ve decided to step back and take some time to focus on my health, my family, and a smaller portfolio of projects.

I’d like to thank everyone at Fremantle and wish you every success.

With all good wishes,

Simon

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EXCLUSIVE: Simon Andreae has resigned as the

Movies

The Best Movie And TV Weddings Of All Time

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The Best Movie And TV Weddings Of

Latest News

German film and TV distribution and licensing company Telepool, which is owned by Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith’s Westbrook, is moving into lead producing movies and series, its CEO Yoko Higuchi-Zitzmann tells Variety exclusively in her first interview since joining the company in January.

Munich-based Telepool is celebrating its 60th anniversary on Wednesday, and although it has a barrel-load of experience in selling, distributing, licensing, financing and co-producing movies and series, this shift into initiating and lead producing represents a significant step for the company. It also forms part of Westbrook’s broader strategy for international expansion, which – in part – lay behind its acquisition of Telepool in December 2021.

Higuchi-Zitzmann seems ideally suited to the task as she has worked for several leading German film and TV companies, giving her experience in both distribution and production. Most recently, she served as the managing director of Pantaleon Films, whose founders include German star Matthias Schweighöfer, before which she held leading roles at Studio Hamburg Production Group and Constantin Film. Her credits include RTL Television’s premium series “Herzogpark,” and StudioCanal international box office hit “My Blind Date With Life.”

Ko Yada, CEO of Westbrook, says: “We are thrilled to have found a leader who shares in our mission of connecting people through globally resonant storytelling. Yoko brings to Telepool over 25 years of experience — at some of the most respected companies in the industry — driving content production and distribution on a global scale.”

Asked how he sees Telepool and Westbrook working together in the future, he says: “As Telepool’s CEO, Yoko will work to further strengthen the bridge between the two companies, maximizing Westbrook’s presence in the global content marketplace. She’ll lead the expansion of Telepool’s development and production capabilities, and further extend Westbrook’s reach in European markets, helping us to build a leading, independent global content studio.”

Higuchi-Zitzmann sees the main advantage of being owned by Westbrook as being the “creative exchange.” She adds: “I am in production meetings every week with my excellent production colleagues at Westbrook. And it’s not only about strategy, it’s about specific projects. So, for example, if I discover a great novel in Germany, which could be something for a U.S. star, just to give you an example, I don’t have to knock at the door of the agent of a superstar, I call my colleagues, because they have direct access to the talents. So, this is a huge advantage. And also, we are exchanging know-how, creativity, scripts, ideas, and at a very high level.”

Telepool stands on five major pillars, Higuchi-Zitzmann says. The first pillar is international film sales and TV distribution through Global Screen, headed by Julia Weber. Its recent titles include movies “The Amazing Maurice,” “School of Magical Animals,” “My Sailor, My Love” and “The Conference,” and series “Davos,” which launches next week at MipTV.

“The Amazing Maurice”
Courtesy of Viva Kids

The second pillar is comprised of licensing in Germany, led by Julia Müntefering, and theatrical distribution in Germany, led by Matthias Remmele. The recent theatrical release of “The Amazing Maurice” garnered more than 250,000 admissions in the territory. Telepool has recently closed a development deal with Millennium Media, with the first film set as “Hellboy” reboot “The Crooked Man,” starring “Deadpool 2” star Jack Kesy, and directed by Brian Taylor (“Crank”). These films will strengthen still further Telepool’s licensing and distribution pipeline in Germany.

The third pillar is home entertainment distribution in Germany through Telepool’s EuroVideo label, led by Daniela Pander and Kevin McDonald. EuroVideo just had a number one in Germany with crime comedy “Guglhupfgeschwader.”

The fourth pillar is the TV licensing business for Switzerland, which is led by Philippe van Doornick.

Production is the fifth pillar, which is “the most interesting in the future,” Higuchi-Zitzmann says. “We started doing co-productions a few years ago and would like to expand to include our own production together with Westbrook, which is a powerful production company. My goal as CEO, with Westbrook, is to move into more production from next year.”

“Davos”
Courtesy of Global Screen

Higuchi-Zitzmann says she is actively looking for projects to lead produce now. For example, one of her executives recently recommended a best-selling British novel, which could be adapted as an English-language series, and she is now pursuing the rights. At present such projects could either be produced through Westbrook, or by one of Telepool’s band of co-producing partners, but she also intends to set up a production unit within the company, which would allow it to produce films and series in-house.

Higuchi-Zitzmann identifies production as a growth area for Telepool. “By creating your own IPs and brands and scripts, you can stand out in the film and TV industry. I have a huge network of the best directors, showrunners and actors, international and in Germany, and through Westbrook I have this network also in the U.S.A., with first-class creatives. So, we are in a good position in the market to grow our co-productions and in the long run to start our own productions.”

Telepool recently signed a deal with Syrreal Entertainment to co-produce action-packed thriller “Don’t. Get. Out! 2,” following the worldwide smash they enjoyed with “Don’t. Get. Out!” The new movie will be shot this fall, with the talented young director Tini Tüllmann attached. Syrreal is headed by Christian Alvart and Sigi Kamml, the team behind the hit Netflix show “Dogs of Berlin.”

Talking about what Telepool can offer producers with strong projects who are looking for a co-producing partner, she says: “We have one of the best world distribution companies in Europe, but also we are very strong in the local market with our experienced team at German-speaking licensing. We have been in this business for 60 years, and so the advantage is all the people [in the industry] have known us for many years, and we know how to finance a project from A to Z. And many producers have good ideas but not the network we have.”

So, what attributes have allowed Telepool to survive and thrive for 60 years? “I think it is the quality of the projects and the quality of the people,” Higuchi-Zitzmann says. “It’s very simple, but you have to be consistently quality driven.”

She is keen to pay tribute to the Telepool executives who have come before her. “I wouldn’t be here with such a successful leading distribution company if I could not build on the work of my predecessors, like Dr. Thomas Weymar, André Druskeit and Jan Frouman, but also former deputy managing director Marc Gabizon,” Higuchi-Zitzmann says. “This is really important for me because I am now representing, together with [managing director] Kevin McDonald, a successful company that my colleagues have built over 60 years. So, I’m very grateful about that.”

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German film and TV distribution and licensing

MCU

New set photos have emerged from Marvel Studios‘ Wonder Man production, showcasing a new look at Iron Man 3 and Shang-Chi star Ben Kingsley‘s return to the MCU.

Funnily enough, despite Wonder Man actively filming, Marvel themselves have not yet acknowledged its existence with a formal announcement. It’s similar to when the studio wouldn’t confirm Black Widow as one of its upcoming films despite it having already been deep in production.

While fans wait for more official updates about the upcoming MCU series, new set photos can give audiences a new glimpse of what’s to come.

Trevor Slattery is Back in Wonder Man

Marvel Studios

Marvel Studios’ Wonder Man started production in Los Angeles, and some new set photos show Iron Man 3‘s Ben Kingsley back as Trevor Slattery.

The images don’t reveal all too much, but they do see Slattery dressed up and looking quite dapper. Perhaps he’s gotten a role of a lifetime?

The Wild Journey of Trevor Slattery

The last time Trevor Slattery was seen, he had just gone through a fantastical battle in another dimension against a dark evil. Before that, he had been a failed actor imprisoned for his part in a terrorist scheme for over a decade—Trevor Slattery has had quite the journey.

While Marvel Studios has mostly avoided talking about Wonder Man, Ben Kingsley himself offered up some words about his return. The actor previously noted that he hopes to “constantly surprise and refresh.”

Kingsley will join a big-time cast, with Yahya Abdul-Mateen II leading the charge as Simon Williams, alongside Demetrius Grosse, who will be playing Eric Williams, also known as the Grim Reaper.

Additionally, actors Werner Herzog, Bob Odenkirk, and Ed Harris are all rumored to be circling roles in the Disney+ series.

Wonder Man does not currently have a release window, although it could debut sometime in 2024 or 2025.

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DCU

As a human race, our history is absolutely brimming with stories of the paranormal and unknown, and it has long been a source of not only terror, but of great interest to many. These historical settings provide a rich background to explore both modern and ancient horrors, and typically elevate a film far beyond the normal trappings of present-day-set horror.


While there are a number of great films by acclaimed directors that could have made it onto this list – including A Field in England, The Awakening, and The Devil’s Backbone – these films were selected for their incredible ability to not only keep us up at night, but transport us to a time that is vastly different from our own. If you’re looking for a break from the modern-day slashers and ghost pics, here are ten of the best historical fiction horror movies for you to check out.

RELATED: Best Horror Movie Actors of All Time

10 Crimson Peak

Universal Pictures

Guillermo del Toro is the master of gothic fantasy and horror (his name will be popping up again on this list). One of his more recent offerings was the period horror film Crimson Peak, which has gone criminally under seen in the years since its release.

The film has an all-star cast, including Mia Wasikowska, Tom Hiddleston, Jessican Chastain, and Charlie Hunnam. The story is set in early 20th century England, and follows aspiring author Edith Cushing (Wasikowska), who travels to a mysterious and remote gothic estate in Cumberland with her new husband Thomas Sharpe (Hiddleston) and his sister Lucille (Chastain). But after moving into this new mansion, Edith begins to experience a number of ghostly visions, leading her on a winding and deadly investigation into the mansion’s horrific past.

One of del Toro’s biggest strengths as a director is his lavish set design and impeccable control of atmosphere, and Crimson Peak has no shortage of both. While the film’s story has been criticized for being weaker than some of his other movies, Crimson Peak is absolutely gorgeous and a trip worth taking.

9 Bram Stoker’s Dracula

The 1992 Gothic horror Bram Stoker's Dracula
Columbia Pictures

Francis Ford Coppola’s 1992 film Bram Stoker’s Dracula is a wonderfully lush gothic horror drama, and is perhaps one of the best adaptations of the classic novel ever to hit the big screen.

The 1897-set tale is as old as time, and follows London solicitor Jonathon Harker (Keanu Reeves) as he leaves his young fiancée Mina (Winona Ryder) and he travels to Transylvania to arrange the mysterious Count Dracula’s real estate acquisitions. However, upon arriving at the ancient manor, the Count (portrayed by Gary Oldman in one of his best performances) finds a picture of Mina, and becomes convinced that she is the reincarnation of his past love, Elisabetha. He traps Jonathon in his castle, and travels to England to find his believed long-lost love.

While Keanu Reeves’ performance is often mocked and ridiculed (and to an extent, it’s justified – that accent is rough), the film is nevertheless an impactful and resoundingly beautiful watch. The notoriously-meticulous Coppola impeccably recreated Victorian-era London, resulting in a truly beautiful movie.

8 Sleepy Hollow

Johnny Depp as Ichabod Crane in Sleepy Hollow
Paramount Pictures 

Another gothic supernatural horror film from the mind of Tim Burton, Sleepy Hollow is loosely based on the famous Washington Irving short story from 1820. The movie, set in 1799, stars Johnny Depp as police constable Ichabod Crane, who is sent from New York City to the small township of Sleepy Hollow to investigate a series of brutal decapitations. The locals believe the mysterious culprit to be the undead apparition of a headless mercenary from the Revolutionary War who rides at night on his eponymous black horse in search of his forever-missing head. While these claims seem far-fetched at first, Crane comes to find there may be more truth to the legend than he initially believed.

Burton’s knack for the macabre really shines in Sleepy Hollow. Originally designed to be a low-budget slasher film, Burton boarded the project and brought with him a much larger budget and fanciful production design. The film ended up being a wonderful success, and it’s easy to see why; its atmosphere is impeccably crafted, and makes for perfect viewing any time of the year, but especially during the chilly Halloween season.

7 Apostle

Apostle
Netflix

Gareth Evans – the action director behind The Raid and its explosive sequel – stepped a bit out of his comfort zone in 2018 with the release of the period folk horror film Apostle.

The film takes place in 1905, and follows Thomas Richardson (Dan Stevens), a British man who travels to a remote Welsh island inhabited by a mysterious cult to rescue his sister, who has been kidnaped and held for ransom by the leader, Malcolm Howe (Michael Sheen). Posing as a potential convert, Richardson quickly becomes entangled in the convoluted politics of the secretive cult, learning the island is overseen by a mysterious woman known only as The Goddess, who possesses supernatural abilities that protect the island and its inhabitants.

Taking a lot of inspiration from films like Silent Hill and The Wicker Man, Apostle is a compulsively-watchable trip to a terrifying past that gradually builds to an explosive (and satisfyingly gruesome) third act that’s one for the books. The set design, cinematography, evocative music and sound design, and strong acting from all players involved make for a positively wild horror adventure.

6 Brotherhood of the Wolf

Brotherhood of the Wolf
Metropolitan Filmexport 

Christophe Gans’ French historical action horror movie Brotherhood of the Wolf has largely gone overlooked here in the United States in the years since its release in 2001, but it’s more than worthy of your attention.

The film is set in 1764 during the French Revolution and is loosely inspired by the famous legend of the Beast of Gevaudan. The story is focused around knight Gregoire de Fronsac and his Iroquois companion Mani, who have been dispatched by the King to investigate the vicious – and possibly supernatural – murder of hundreds of innocent people by an unknown creature in the county of Gevaudan.

While the “real” monster at the heart of this story is most likely a wolf (or pack of wolves), Brotherhood of the Wolf goes wild with the mythos to create a really fun, genre-bending movie, combining horror, historical drama, and both martial arts and swash-buckling action. While the movie may be on the bloated side (144 minutes!), this trip to historical France is certainly one worth taking.

RELATED: Best French Horror Movies of the 20th Century, Ranked

5 Ravenous

Robert Carlyle in Ravenous
20th Century Fox

When Antonia Bird’s historical cannibal film Ravenous was released into theaters in 1999, it failed to make back much of its admittedly modest $12 million budget. But in the decades following its failed theater run, the film has developed a…well, ravenous cult following. (Sorry).

The movie takes place in California during the Mexican-American war, and follows Second Lieutenant John Boyd (Guy Pierce), a soldier whose cowardice in action results in his exile to Fort Spencer, an isolated military post deep in the heart of the Sierra Nevada. Shortly after his arrival, a stranger by name of Colqhoun arrives at the fort looking for help. He tells the horrific story of how his traveling party became trapped in the snow for three months, and resorted to cannibalism to survive. Boyd and Private Reich – another unfortunate soul stationed at the fort – organize a search party to investigate Colqhoun’s claims, and come face-to-face with previously unimaginable horrors.

Ravenous combines cannibalism and Wendigo mythos to make a bloody commentary on Manifest Destiny and America’s propensity for brutal expansionist policies. But more than that, it’s just a hell of a lot of fun. The film, which features some stellar production design and special effects, is perhaps most well-known for its unique score, which is unusually quirky for an otherwise grim picture. The film’s clashing tone is one of its most polarizing aspects, but give it a shot, and it may become your new favorite cult film.

4 The Lighthouse

Image from movie The Lighthouse 2019
A24

How does one begin to describe The Lighthouse, Robert Eggers’ incredible follow-up to his equally impressive debut feature? It’s a horror pic, a psychological thriller, a survival film, and even a comedy. You wouldn’t be wrong to think those genres sound at odds with each other, but Eggers’ masterful direction somehow manages to bring together all of those disparate elements into a feature that is wholly unique.

The Lighthouse takes places exclusively on a small island home to a lighthouse, set sometime during the close of the 19th century. The film centers around two lighthouse keepers (aka wickies); there’s the old, hardened captain (Dafoe) and the mysterious rookie (Pattinson). When the two men – who are already at odds with each other – become trapped on the island by a nasty, seemingly never-ending storm, tensions escalate to explosive and violent levels as they both lose control of their sanity.

Shot in stark black-and-white and filmed in a 1.19:1 Academy aspect ratio, The Lighthouse is visually sumptuous. Coupled with the great performances from both Pattinson and Dafoe, who carry the film on their shoulders, and an incredible score by Mark Korven (who also composed The Witch), Eggers’ second feature cemented him as a genre auteur to watch.

3 Bone Tomahawk

Kurt russell starring in the 2015 film Bone Tomahawk
RLJ Entertainment

Director S. Craig Zahler is a director worth watching. His last two films, Brawl in Cell Block 99 and Dragged Across Concrete are tough-as-nails crime thrillers that feel ripped straight out of the 1970s. But his debut film, Bone Tomahawk, is a gritty, no-frills horror western that’s worth checking out.

Set in the 1890s, Bone Tomahawk kicks into gear following the abduction of three people from a small township by supposed “troglodytes,” inbred cannibals that hide out in the most desolate, barren region of the desert. Sheriff Franklin Hunt (played impressively by Kurt Russell) forms a small posse of men – including Deputy Chicory (Richard Jenkins), hot shot John Brooder (Matthew Fox), and the husband of one of the abducted townspeople, Arthur O’Dwyer (Patrick Wilson) – to hunt the monsters responsible for the crime.

What follows is a grim journey into the darkest recesses of the American West, tinged with an undercurrent of pitch-black comedy that Zahler has become known for. The filmculminates in a truly shocking third act, which features perhaps one of the gnarliest on-screen kills to ever be committed to celluloid. While Bone Tomahawk may not be for the faint of heart, this is a horror picture worth watching.

2 Pan’s Labyrinth

Pan's Labyrinth
Warner Bros. Pictures

We all knew that Guillermo del Toro’s beautifully-crafted and equally-terrifying Pan’s Labyrinth was going to make it on this list. Not only is it perhaps del Toro’s best movie, it’s also one of the best period fantasy-horror movies released…well, ever.

Pan’s Labyrinth takes place during the summer of 1944 in the years following the Spanish American War, during the “Francoist” period, when the country was ruled over by the brutal fascist dictator Francisco Franco. The story centers around Ofelia, a ten-year old girl whose pregnant but ill mother marries Captain Vidal, a sadistic man who has been assigned by the government to hunt down critics and dissenters of the regime. To escape the brutality of her real world and seek a cure for her mother’s illness, Ofelia escapes into a mysterious fantasy world overseen by an equally-mysterious faun, who promises her the gift of immortality if she completes three tasks.

There’s a beauty inherent to this film that just needs to be seen to be believed. Everything from its lush cinematography, grim but beautiful special effects, and sensitive direction elevate it above anything else in the genre or del Toro’s expansive film catalog.

1 The Witch

Anya Taylor-Joy in The Witch
A24

Robert Egger’s debut feature The Witch (or if you prefer, The VVitch) is a folk horror movie released by A24 in 2015. The “New England Folktale” was a massive get for A24 out of the Sundance Film Festival, and arguably heralded in the wave of so-called “elevated horror” that the indie film company has become well known for.

The movie is set in 1630s New England – the dawn of America as we know it. The story centers around a family of English settlers expelled from their Puritan settlement over a religious dispute. There’s the patriarch William (Ralph Ineson), his wife Katherine (Kate Dickie) and their four children; Thomasin (Anya-Taylor Joy), Caleb, twins Mercy and Jonas, and newborn Samuel. The scruffy family make a home on the outskirts of the New England woods, which hosts an unsettling evil presence. When baby Samuel abruptly and unexplainably disappears under Thomasin’s watch, she becomes a pariah, and suspected of being a witch who sold her baby brother to the Devil himself. From there, things descend into madness.

The Witch is arguably one of the most meticulously researched – and flat-out entertaining – historical horror movies released in a very long time. There’s so much to admire about the film, from the luscious cinematography to the fantastic acting (especially from Taylor-Joy, who broke out in a big way after this movie). Not to mention the meticulously-recreated period setting and dialogue, which is nothing short of transportive. If you haven’t checked this movie out yet, then what are you waiting for?

RELATED: Best A24 Horror Movies, Ranked

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As a human race, our history

Comics

Just one month before release, the Suicide Squad Kill The Justice League game being developed by Rocksteady has been delayed. This comes from an official announcement on the company’s Twitter account, which can be read below.

Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League Delayed to 2024 Just One Month Before Release

“We have made the tough but necessary decision to take the time needed to work on getting the game to be the best quality experience for players. Thank you to our amazing community for your continued support, patience, and understanding. There is much more to share in the months ahead, and we look forward to seeing you in Metropolis next year.”

This delay comes shortly after a report from Bloomberg citing that the game was going to be delayed into late 2023, but it seems Suicide Squad has slipped even further than that. In 2022, the game was delayed to Spring 2023, so it’s been kicked down the line a few times now.

Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League will now launch on February 2, 2024. This marks a nine-month delay for the game. After seeing roughly 15 minutes of gameplay from Suicide Squad during February’s State of Play, fans were left wondering if this game was going to fulfill their Suicide Squad desires. The team seems to be taking the time to actively work on the game and address some of the feedback.

Between leaked battle pass screens to the tired fans of live-service games, Rocksteady was caught between a rock and a hard place when it came to Suicide Squad and delivering on fan expectations of the studio. Only time will tell what the final product looks like, but we’re going to have to wait a while longer to see.

Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League will launch on February 2, 2024.

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Just one month before release, the Suicide

Festivals

How do you TikTok? 

From short films that captivate in 60 seconds to behind-the-scenes glimpses into the filmmaking process, TikTok has become a dynamic platform for filmmakers to share their creativity, connect with audiences, and build a community of film enthusiasts.

As the landscape of content creation continues to evolve, filmmakers are finding innovative ways to leverage the power of TikTok to showcase their work, promote their films, educate aspiring filmmakers, collaborate with fellow creators, and engage with their audience like never before.

In this article, we’ll explore the exciting and diverse ways in which filmmakers are using TikTok to create, promote, and connect with their audience, uncovering the unique opportunities that this popular social media platform offers to the world of filmmaking.

Let’s dig in. 

Table of Contents

What Makes TikTok Useful For Filmmakers? 

How to Make Short Films on TikTok 

One thing we haven’t seen enough of on the platform is filmmakers trying to use it for storytelling. Making short films on TikTok can be a fun and creative way to tell stories, share your ideas, and connect with others.

Here are some steps to get you started:

  1. Plan your story: Just like any other film, start by planning your story. Decide on the genre, characters, setting, and plot. Keep in mind that TikTok videos are limited to 60 seconds, so your story needs to be concise and engaging.

  2. Write a script: Once you have a clear story idea, write a script. Keep it short and simple, and focus on visual storytelling. Use captions, text overlays, and other visual elements effectively to convey your story within the time limit.

  3. Gather your props and costumes: Depending on your story, you may need props and costumes. Gather all the items you’ll need in advance to save time during filming.

  4. Find a suitable location: Choose a location that fits your story and has good lighting. TikTok videos are typically filmed in a vertical format, so consider the framing and composition of your shots accordingly.

  5. Set up your equipment: You don’t need professional equipment to make a TikTok short film. A smartphone with a good camera and a tripod or stabilizer can work just fine. Make sure your phone is charged and has enough storage space.

  6. Film your scenes: Start filming your scenes according to your script. Experiment with different angles, shots, and transitions to create visual interest. Use TikTok’s editing tools, such as cuts, transitions, and effects, to enhance your video.

  7. Add music and sound effects: Music and sound effects can enhance the mood and atmosphere of your short film. Choose appropriate music and sound effects that complement your story and add them to your video using TikTok’s audio library or by importing your own.

  8. Edit and finalize: Once you have filmed all your scenes, it’s time to edit your video. Use TikTok’s built-in editing tools to trim and arrange your clips, add captions or text overlays, and adjust the timing. Preview your video and make any necessary adjustments before finalizing it.

  9. Share and promote: Once you’re satisfied with your short film, share it on TikTok and promote it using relevant hashtags, engaging captions, and by tagging relevant users or communities. Collaborate with other TikTok creators to reach a wider audience.

  10. Engage with your audience: Respond to comments, messages, and feedback from your viewers. Use TikTok’s features, such as duets and stitching, to interact with your audience and create more engagement.

TikTok content is constantly changing and evolving. However, you can easily search for TikTok short films on the TikTok app or website using relevant hashtags and keywords, or by browsing through popular TikTok accounts that focus on short films. Here are some popular hashtags related to short films on TikTok that you can search for:

  1. #TikTokShortFilm
  2. #ShortFilm
  3. #FilmFestival
  4. #IndieFilm
  5. #FilmCommunity
  6. #Storytelling
  7. #FilmTikTok
  8. #Filmmaking
  9. #FilmDirector
  10. #TikTokFilmChallenge

By using these hashtags or keywords in your search, you can find a wide variety of short films on TikTok created by talented creators from around the world. Remember to always credit and respect the original creators and enjoy watching the diverse range of short films that TikTok has to offer!

Summing Up How Filmmakers Are Using TikTok 

The world of filmmaking TikTok is a strange and beautiful place where you can flourish as a creative. Hopefully, you take what you learned here and find ways to showcase your projects on TikTok and build an audience that will celebrate you throughout your filmmaking career.

If you’re a filmmaker or a film lover, don’t forget to explore the possibilities that TikTok has to offer and join the vibrant film community on the platform. Keep creating and happy TikTok filmmaking.      

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How do you TikTok? 

Film

Breaking News: Watch the exploits of Suniel Shetty in Hunter Tootega Nahi Todega, for free

In a guerilla marketing move, Amazon miniTV and Suniel Shetty have come together to goad viewers to watch Hunter Tootega Nahi Todega for free!      

Hunter- Tootega Nahi Todega is streaming live and exclusively on Amazon miniTV within the Amazon Shopping App, and on Fire TV, for free.

Who grudges a free lunch? And there are free lunches on offer, if you know where to find them. The demand for freebies is a universal trait, and Indians are no exception. With most subscription-based services coming with a hefty price tag, many people struggle to afford the cost of frequent movie theatre trips or multiple streaming subscriptions. So, how do they manage to watch their favourite content? Many resort to downloading free versions from platforms like Telegram and Torrents.

Recognising this trend, Amazon miniTV seized the opportunity to make people aware of their free entertainment service and create a buzz by bringing back the legendary action star – Suniel Shetty, in the recently released series, Hunter Tootega Nahi Todega. Using his famous dialogue from the series, “Rokna Hai Toh Thokna Padega,” with a twist, the actor breaks the link and asks audiences to access the show without any cost. Taking a unique approach, when the users click on the links for movies/series were surprised with a video message from Suniel Shetty as Assistant Commissioner of Police Vikram, urging them to break free from illegal downloads and watch quality content for free, on Amazon miniTV.

Hunter – Tootega Nahi Todega features Suniel Shetty as ACP Vikram Sinha, Esha Deol as Divya (Freelance Journalist), and Rahul Dev as Police SHO Hooda. The cast of the series also includes Barkha Bisht, Karanvir Sharma, Mihir Ahuja, Teena Singh, Chahat Tejwani, Siddharth Kher, Gargi Sawant, Smita Jayakar, and Pawan Chopra.

Amazon miniTV is home to a cherry-picked collection of fresh, incredible and engaging stories and titles across multiple genres, ranging from web-series, award-winning short films, comedy shows to expert videos on tech. These include popular titles like Physics Wallah, Rafta Rafta, Case Toh Banta Hai, Sixer, Gray, Ishq Express, Udan Patolas, Yatri Kripya Dhyan De, Crushed, Gupt Gyaan, Uljhe Hue, Clean, Sorry Bhaisaab, Adulting, Shimmy, Transistor, Tech with Rajiv Makhni among others. Amazon miniTV’s content has received a lot of love from fans and the industry. Physics wallah was rated as one of the top 5 web series in 2022 by Ormax; our short film Shimmy won the People’s Choice Award for Best Actor and Critic’s Choice Award for Best Actor (Pratik Gandhi); Clean won best short film at IWM Buzz Awards 2022; Yatri Kripa Dhyan De was adjudged the best short film by Indian Television Academy; as our most loved high school drama Crushed was nominated at the 2022 Filmfare OTT Awards, to name a few.

Amazon miniTV is present on Amazon’s shopping app. Just download the Amazon shopping app, click or search for ‘miniTV’ to view from thousands of titles available. Want to watch on the big screen? Then visit www.amazon.in on your laptop and click on Amazon miniTV or on Fire TV.

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Breaking News: Watch the exploits of

TV

NBCU and Sky owner Comcast has invested in James Murdoch’s Bodhi Tree Systems, which in turn is becoming a key player in a new-look Viacom18.

Comcast-owned company NBCUniversal Media has paid an undisclosed amount for a shareholding in Bodhi Tree, which former Fox CEO Murdoch launched with ex-Star and Disney India Chairman Uday Shankar launched last year. The Competition Commission of India approved the investment on Wednesday.

Bodhi Tree has used some of this to finance a minority shareholding in Indian media group Viacom18, which is now under a new shareholding structure, following the completion of a planned partnership with Mukesh Ambani’s conglom Reliance Industries and Paramount Global that completed yesterday.

In effect, the trio has merged locally to create a major TV and films player. Notably, Reliance’s streaming and pay-TV service JioCinema integrated into TV channels and streaming operator Viacom18. JioCinema owns the rights to the massively popular Indian Premier League (IPL) cricket, after Viacom18 outbid competitors at an auction last year.

The complicated set of financial transactions have left Viacom18’s new shareholding structure that sees Reliance owning nearly 51% and Paramount just under 49%, with Bodhi Tree taking 0.11%.

However, Bodhi Tree is taking a far more important role than that suggests. Firstly, it will take a 17.8% share of convertible preference shares (effectively shared that can later be turned into ordinary shares or cash at a later date) and Shankar has taken a seat on the Viacom18 board. Reliance owns the other convertible shares.

If all the shares are diluted, Reliance owns 60.4%, Bodhi Tree takes 13.1%, Paramount 13% and TV18, another company ultimately owned by Reliance, taking the other 13.5%.

Last year, Bodhi Tree committed to raising 13,500 crore ($1.6BN) for investment in Viacom18, which at the time was majority owned by Indian manufacturing and media giant Reliance.

Viacom18 will have access to around $1.9BN in cash for growth, with about two-thirds coming from Reliance and the other third from Bodhi Tree, which counts the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA), the sovereign wealth fund of the State of Qatar, among its investors. A report suggests Bodhi Tree will now approach more investors to raise the rest of cash committed to Viacom18.

Murdoch, son of Fox Corp owner Rupert, was CEO 21st Century Fox between 2015 and 2019, but left when it was sold to Disney. He was also Chairman of Sky, having previously been CEO, but exited in 2018 when Comcast acquired the European pay-TV business. He later left his father’s News Corp operation and has since turned his attentions to investing in new businesses, initially through his Lupa Systems and later Bodhi Tree, when he united with Shankar.

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NBCU and Sky owner Comcast has invested

What to Watch


By Greta Bjornson

We’ve all seen Drew Barrymore’s kooky side on her hit daytime talk show, but we can’t forger that the successful host was an established actress long before she was feeling Katherine Hahn’s bare legs at 9 a.m. While she’s been building an impressive IMDb since the ’80s, one of Barrymore’s more recent roles is among her best: playing a suburban mom with a taste for blood in Netflix’s canceled-too-soon sitcom, Santa Clarita Diet. Barrymore stars as a real estate agent who shocks her family when she essentially turns into a zombie. It’s a horror comedy with a sweet family side, and it’s not one to miss.

Photo: Everett Collection

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By Greta Bjornson We’ve all seen Drew Barrymore’s kooky

Awards

The Peabody Awards announced on Thursday the nominees in the entertainment, arts, children’s/youth, podcast/radio, interactive/immersive and public service categories, celebrating stories released in broadcasting and streaming media during 2022. The nominees in documentary and news categories were announced on April 11.

Among the entertainment nominees are Emmy winners Abbott Elementary, Atlanta, Bob’s Burgers and We’re Here, along with new series like Andor, Bad Sisters, Mo, Pachinko and Somebody Somewhere.

Shari Frilot has also been named the winner of the first annual Visionary Award, which honors an individual whose groundbreaking body of work has shaped the forms, the creators and the field of boundary-pushing interactive storytelling. Frilot is the senior programmer of the Sundance Film Festival & Chief Curator of New Frontier at Sundance, where she established the Sundance Online Film Festival in 2001 and introduced cinematic installations and performances to the festival’s Frontier section, before founding the New Frontier. She also co-founded the first gay Latin American film festivals, MIX BRASIL and MIX MÉXICO, as well as introduced interactive digital art installation and immersive performance to the festival. 

“From hilarious and heartfelt comedies to interactive and immersive stories that leverage technology to create gripping narratives, Peabody is dedicated to recognizing compelling stories across the media landscape,” said Jeffrey Jones, executive director of Peabody, in a statement. “We’re thrilled to nominate each of these remarkable pieces of media and to honor the forward-thinking Shari Frilot with our inaugural Visionary Award.”

PBS leads the total nominees with 13, followed by HBO/HBO Max with six, Apple TV+ with four, Disney+ and FX with three each, and ABC, Channel 4, Netflix and Vice receiving two each.

The winners of the 83rd annual Peabody Awards will be announced on May 9 and then celebrated on Sunday, June 11, at a ceremony at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel in Los Angeles. This will be Peabody’s first in-person ceremony since 2019, as well as the first time ever in its 83-year history that the awards ceremony will take place in Los Angeles.

See the full list of nominees below, including descriptions from the Peabodys.

Entertainment

Abbott Elementary

A group of passionate Philadelphia public school teachers battle budget restrictions, a rival charter school, and their own (mostly) incompetent principal, forging friendships and an occasional love match in this sweet mockumentary sitcom from creator and star Quinta Brunson.

Delicious Non-Sequitur Productions in association with Warner Bros. Television and 20th Television, a part of Disney Television Studios (ABC)

Andor

The Star Wars franchise gets a new perspective, focusing on thief-turned-Rebel spy Cassian Andor’s journey to discover the difference he can make. Taking place during a time before the first Star Wars film when a Rebel Alliance is forming in opposition to the fascist Galactic Empire, the series explores themes of Fascism and how resistance movements emerge from the strangling weight of authoritarian repression.

Lucasfilm Ltd. (Disney+)

Atlanta

Creator-star Donald Glover finishes his four-season masterpiece about a group of friends that includes rapper Alfred “Paper Boi” Miles and his manager cousin, “Earn” Marks, along with their friends Darius and Van. The final two seasons are particularly inventive as the characters find themselves in new situations and consider their relationships to each other and their hometown.

FX Productions (FX)

Bad Sisters

A delicious blend of dark comedy and thriller from creators Sharon Horgan, Brett Baer, and Dave Finkel, Bad Sisters follows the lives of the Garvey sisters, who are bound together by the premature death of their parents and a promise to always protect each other.

Merman / ABC Signature in association with Apple (Apple TV+)

Better Call Saul

This Breaking Bad prequel is much more than the sum of its parts, and that’s evident in its capstone season, which concludes the complicated journey and transformation of its compromised hero, Jimmy McGill, played perfectly by Bob Odenkirk, into criminal lawyer Saul Goodman.

High Bridge, Crystal Diner, Gran Via Productions and Sony Pictures Television (AMC)

Bob’s Burgers

This long-running, witty animated series is gentle and full of heart. Over its thirteen years on the air, Bob’s Burgers has quietly depicted a truly progressive vision of a working class family, giving us both realistic and aspirational portraits of parenting life, teenage life, and queer life, as well as lessons of acceptance and resiliency.

20th Television (FOX)

Documentary Now!

Created by Fred Armisen, Bill Hader, Seth Meyers, and Rhys Thomas, Documentary Now! offers some comic relief in our documentary-saturated times, parodying the form with insightful sendups of Grizzly Man, The September Issue, My Octopus Teacher, and more, with every episode hosted by none other than Helen Mirren.

Broadway Video (IFC)

Los Espookys

Eccentric friends turn their passion for horror into a peculiar business — scaring people for a fee — in this bilingual series that weaves together elements of magical realism and the absurd to create a comedy like no other.

HBO in association with Broadway Video, Antigravico and Mas Mejor (HBO Max)

Mo

The title character toggles among two cultures, three languages, and a pending asylum request while hustling to support his Palestinian family in Houston, Texas, in this dramedy co-created by star Mo Amer, based on his own life, and Ramy Youssef.

A24 (Netflix)

Our Flag Means Death

This is, indeed, a historical queer pirate rom-com. The series follows Stede Bonnet, a Barbadian aristocrat played by Rhys Darby, as he leaves his life behind to become a pirate, leads a crew, and falls in love with the notorious Blackbeard (Taika Waititi).

HBO Max in association with Waititi, Human Animals and DIVE (HBO Max)

Pachinko

A sweeping American drama series based on Min Jin Lee’s 2017 novel, Pachinko starts with an intimate story about forbidden love but widens out to include epic journeys among America, Japan, and Korea, encompassing no less than war and peace, love and loss, and triumph and reckoning.

Media Res / Blue Marble Pictures in association with Apple (Apple TV+)

Reservation Dogs

The Reservation Dogs teens continue to pursue their California dreams while struggling to mend their relationships with each other and facing down more grown-up problems, from dying loved ones to making a living, in the masterful second season of TV’s first all-Indigenous series.

FX Productions (FX)

Severance

This bold, topical sci-fi thriller series stars Adam Scott as Mark Scout, an employee at Lumon Industries, where employees have undergone a “severance” procedure that surgically divides their memories between their work and personal lives. But he soon discovers a darker conspiracy behind this cutting-edge experiment.

Fifth Season / Red Hour Productions in association with Apple (Apple TV+)

Somebody Somewhere

Bridget Everett created and stars in this quiet gem of a dramedy, which follows her character Sam through small-town Kansas life as she grieves her sister’s death and works a soul-deadening job, but also finds salvation in a new friendship with a fellow outcast, in the music they make together and in the community they find.

HBO in association with Duplass Brothers Productions and Mighty Mint (HBO Max)

Sort Of

This poignant comedy about nonbinary millennial Sabi, created by and starring Bilal Baig, turns in a second season that deepens relationships, widens Sabi’s world, and continues to deftly balance humor and pathos.

HBO Max in association with Sphere Media and CBC (HBO Max)

The Patient

From The Americans producer Joel Fields and creator Joe Weisberg comes this psychological thriller about a therapist (Steve Carell) held prisoner by his patient (Domhnall Gleeson), who reveals himself as a serial killer with a sincere desire to get better. Taut writing highlights the tense relationship between the two as themes of mental illness, personal responsibility, and religious morality are explored.

FX Productions (FX)

We’re Here

In this uplifting and timely reality series, three drag queens spread love and connection across small-town America through the art of drag, putting on shows with local drag enthusiasts, queer people, and allies, and changing lives along the way.

HBO in association with House of Opus 20 and IPC (HBO Max)

Arts

Fire of Love

Miranda July narrates this dramatic documentary about the doomed relationship between obsessive French scientists Katia and Maurice Krafft and their shared passion for capturing spectacular imagery of stunning — and deadly — volcanoes.

National Geographic Documentary Films presents A Sandbox Films Production / An Intuitive Pictures & Cottage M Production (Disney+)

Children’s & Youth

El Deafo

El Deafo uses unique sound design to take viewers inside the experience of a young girl named Cece (voiced by Lexi Finigan, who is also deaf) as she loses her hearing and finds her inner superhero in this animated series based on the graphic novel by Cece Bell.

Lighthouse Studios in association with Apple TV+ (Apple TV+)

N*Gen: Next Generation Television

Africa’s first science TV show for kids was filmed across Kenya, Nigeria, Tanzania, South Africa, and Uganda with the goals of promoting girls and women in STEM, increasing trust in science, boosting knowledge about climate and health, and giving people critical thinking tools to fight misinformation.

Peripheral Vision International (Discovery Education, syndicated to 40+ platforms and broadcasters around the world, primarily in Sub-Saharan Africa)

Podcast/Radio

Kabul Falling

Afghans themselves tell the story of the Taliban’s takeover of Kabul in August of 2021 in this eight-part series. Released one year after the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, the podcast documents the shockwaves that reverberated throughout the country as thousands of Afghans were forced to leave their lives behind for a hellish journey to survive.

Project Brazen and PRX (PRX)

Nine days in a Michigan abortion clinic, as election looms

As Michigan voters were about to decide whether to codify abortion and broad reproductive rights in the state constitution, Michigan Radio illuminated what was at stake. With a rare degree of access to the Northland Family Planning clinic, reporter Kate Wells guided listeners through every step of the abortion process and its emotional complexity.

Michigan Radio (Michigan Radio)

Sold a Story: How Teaching Kids to Read Went So Wrong

Host Emily Hanford investigates a widespread method of teaching kids to read that was proven ineffective by scientists decades ago, but continues to hold sway over schools across the country because of the influential authors who promote it and the company that sells their work.

American Public Media (APM/Public Radio)

Still Newtown

A portrait of a community coming together after unspeakable tragedy, this 11-episode podcast chronicles Newtown, Connecticut, twenty years after the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting left 20 children and 6 adults dead. From dealing with the overwhelming outpouring of stuff sent their way — letters, stuffed animals, donated clothing—to building a permanent memorial, Still Newtown shows us what happens, in touching everyday detail, after the news trucks go home.

WSHU Public Radio (WSHU Public Radio)

Stolen: Surviving St. Michael’s

Investigative journalist Connie Walker delves into her own family history and uncovers the trauma passed down through generations as part of one of Canada’s darkest chapters, the residential school system for indigenous children, showing the ways that personal secrets and national shame reinforce one another.

Spotify & Gimlet Media (Spotify)

Stories of the Stalked

Artist, filmmaker, and dancer Lily Baldwin hosts this six-part podcast in which she takes a true-crime approach to her own experience with being stalked, showing the terror of being relentlessly pursued by someone who claims to love you, the difficulty of reporting it to police, and the uncertainty of knowing when the ordeal is really over.

Audible and Ventureland (Audible)

The Divided Dial

On the Media presents this thorough five-part series about how one side of the political spectrum came to dominate talk radio, and how one company, Salem Media Group, is launching a right-wing media empire.

On the Media/New York Public Radio (New York Public Radio)

The Wealth Vortex

The second season of the podcast The Heist, “The Wealth Vortex” follows entrepreneur ReShonda Young’s efforts to address America’s longstanding racial wealth gap by opening the first Black-owned bank in the country in 20 years — and the many obstacles she faces along the way.

Center for Public Integrity and Transmitter Media (publicintegrity.org)

This American Life: The Pink House at the Center of the World

On the day the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, public radio’s seminal storytelling program had exclusive access inside the clinic at the center of the legal case, Mississippi’s last abortion clinic, showing what happened as patients and staff received the news.

This American Life (This American Life)

Interactive & Immersive

ContraPoints

Through her YouTube channel, ContraPoints, Natalie Wynn defies the reductive quality that rules most of the internet, developing a following of more than 1 million subscribers by producing long, beautifully produced video essays that dissect trending topics and social phenomena. From “Canceling” to “Cringe,” “Incels” to J.K. Rowling, Wynn explores all sides of an argument, treating different perspectives with equal parts seriousness and shade.

Natalie Wynn (YouTube)

Coronavirus in the Classroom

As schools weighed how to reopen safely during the pandemic, The New York Times worked with engineering experts to visualize the flow of air inside a New York City classroom, designing an augmented reality experience to show how improved ventilation could help reduce exposure to coronavirus.

The New York Times (The New York Times)

Life is Strange: True Colors

“Life Is Strange: True Colors” is a game that follows a 21-year-old, bisexual Asian-American woman, Alex Chen, who has spent the last eight years in foster care and is investigating her brother’s death. Largely about grief and trauma, the game is also joyful, affirming the true importance of empathy through Alex’s supernatural ability to sense and manipulate others’ emotions.

Deck Nine Games & Square Enix External Studios (PC, Xbox, PlayStation, Stadia)

Lucy and the Wolves in the Walls

Through the endearing and earnest narrative of Lucy and her quest to find the source of mysterious happenings in her house, this wonderful interactive VR fable based on the book by Neil Gaiman and Dave McKean, which continues in Lucy’s extended life across platforms, invites us along to explore the fine line between imagination and reality and reminds us of that liminal space of possibility that we occupy as children.

Fable Studio, Third Rail Projects, Sound+Design, Story Studio & Experiences (Oculus Rift, Oculus Quest)

Motto

This interactive novella designed for mobile uses thousands of tiny videos to tell the thousand-year tale of a kindhearted spirit named September, resulting in an experience that’s part ghost story, part scavenger hunt.

National Film Board of Canada, AATOAA (For Mobile devices, www.motto.io)

Reeducated

China’s systemic detention of Uyghurs and other minorities is well-documented, but there exists no photographic evidence from inside the camps, which limits journalistic coverage. This New Yorker VR project combines the testimony of three brave survivors, hand-drawn illustration, and immersive video technology, showing the conditions inside prison cells, classrooms, torture rooms, and a makeshift operating room, and illuminating the atrocities of harrowing life.

The New Yorker (Oculus, Mobile, Desktop)

The Uncensored Library

Meticulous and artistically-rendered, this Minecraft build serves as a monument to press freedom and an innovative back door for censored content. Because Minecraft is often freely accessible in countries where other media is blocked, more than 20 million gamers in 165 countries have been able to access information about threats to press freedom in their own countries as well as censored articles from independent journalists from oppressive countries such as Saudi Arabia, Russia, Mexico, Egypt, and Vietnam.

Media.Monks, Reporters without Borders, DDB Germany (Minecraft)

Un(re)solved

Drawing on more than two years of reporting, thousands of documents, and dozens of first-hand interviews, this FRONTLINE multiplatform investigation of lives cut short examines a federal effort to grapple with America’s legacy of racist killings through the Emmett Till Unsolved Civil Rights Crime Act.

FRONTLINE (PBS) with Ado Ato Pictures and StoryCorps (www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/unresolved/)

Unpacking

This zen puzzle game transforms the mundane experience of unpacking items out of boxes after a move into an extraordinary storytelling device, allowing the player to get to know the main character at an intensely intimate and personal level without ever seeing her over 21 years of her life and eight different moves. 

Witch Beam Games & Humble Games (For Desktop devices, Steam)

Public Service

FRONTLINE: American Reckoning

A powerful and compelling examination of America’s ongoing struggle with systemic racism and social injustice through the lens of an unsolved 1960s murder reveals an untold chapter in the Civil Rights Movement. With rarely seen footage from more than 50 years ago, the program illuminates the urgent need for meaningful change and reckoning with our nation’s past while highlighting one family’s search for justice.

FRONTLINE (PBS) with Retro Report (PBS)

FRONTLINE: Putin’s Attack on Ukraine: Documenting War Crimes

Exclusive and harrowing evidence of war crimes committed by Russian soldiers in Ukraine’s Kyiv suburbs, unearthed by FRONTLINE and The Associated Press, can be traced up the chain of command to one of Russia’s top generals—and might help build a case against Russian President Vladimir Putin in court.

FRONTLINE (PBS) with The Associated Press (PBS)

FRONTLINE: The Power of Big Oil

The fossil fuel industry has sowed doubt about climate change in America and stalled climate policy, even as scientific evidence grows more certain, all as part of a concerted effort, as documented by this three-part series.

FRONTLINE (PBS) (PBS)

Rising Against Asian Hate: One Day in March

This hour-long documentary reveals how, in the aftermath of the 2021 spa killings of 6 women of Asian descent, the Asian American community in Atlanta came together to fight back and to contend with a racial reckoning in the courts, in the voting booth, and in the streets.

Repartee Films, LLC, PBS, CAAM (PBS/ WNET)

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Kelly Clarkson Releases 2 Fiery Songs, Hints Secrets and Insecurity May Have Led to Brandon Blackstock Divorce | Entertainment Tonight
































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BAKHMUT, Ukraine  — 

The Russian infantrymen slinked back and forth in twos and threes to a house in one of this embattled city’s devastated neighborhoods, ferrying ammunition, an automatic grenade launcher and a heavy machine gun ahead of a planned attack.

Hidden in a high-rise, a pair of Ukrainian soldiers watched it all on a feed from the consumer drone they were piloting.

One of the pilots, whose military nickname is Liova, trained the camera on a pair of soldiers next to the house.

“I see two … moving,” said the other pilot, who calls himself Tezka, speaking into a chat server.

In a basement a few miles from the house, commanders from the 251st Battalion studied the drone feed. They barely seemed to notice the steady beat of incoming fire or the bup-bup-bup of a barrage of rockets — even when one landed close enough to shake the floor.

The battalion’s mortar commander, who goes by the name Zeus, called up the GPS coordinates of the house on a tablet, pressed a drop-down menu to select a weapon and ordnance type and put the information into a ballistic calculator. Switching between his smartphone and an encrypted radio, he instructed soldiers at another location to dial in their 82-millimeter mortar.

A Ukrainian battalion’s mortar commander, who goes by the name Zeus, communicates coordinates and adjustments to his team.

(Nabih Bulos / Los Angeles Times)

“Time to target, 32 seconds,” one responded. The drone watched overhead: The first shot went wide.

Zeus stared at the screen. This time he ignored the ballistic calculator and eyeballed the adjustment.

A direct hit.

The long fight for Bakhmut has been block-by-block, house-by-house savagery grinding up men, materiel and masonry. But backing it is a parallel sort of combat, one that juxtaposes 19th and early 20th century weapons such as artillery and mortars with 21st century consumer tech — drones, messaging apps, teleconferencing services, satellite internet terminals, cloud-synced mapping software.

An hour after the attack on the house, the Russians were in retreat. Another round took out their cache of explosives. Through the drone, Tezka saw one soldier wounded, another tending to him, while three more brought a stretcher.

An aerial frame of a city with smoke rises from burning apartment buildings

Smoke rises from burning buildings in March in Bakhmut, the scene of heavy battles in the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine.

(Libkos via Associated Press)

Zeus spoke into an encrypted radio. The mortar fired again, and the soldiers disappeared in a puff of smoke.

The men in the command center cheered as they watched the carnage unfold. One soldier lost his helmet as he crawled and then limped. Another staggered away. A third blast bloomed near them as they escaped, leaving behind at least four dead and one wounded.

On Thursday, Russia’s Defense Ministry announced that its forces had encircled Bakhmut. Earlier in the week, Yevgeny Prigozhin, the Russian oligarch whose mercenary group Wagner spearheads the campaign on the city, said his fighters controlled 80% of Bakhmut. Ukrainian officials denied both claims but did not specify how much of the city remains under their control.

Outnumbered and outgunned, Ukrainian forces have mounted a fierce defense by utilizing tools both primitive and new.

They have achieved some success. In a batch of classified documents leaked to social media in recent days, a U.S. government assessment characterized Russia’s advances in Bakhmut during the second half of last year as “sluggish,” with its forces advancing an average of just 1.7 miles each month. The Times could not verify the authenticity of the document.

Still another document, based on the state of the battle on Feb. 25, quoted a Ukrainian military commander saying his forces had only one path to resupply. In recent weeks, the front appears to have stabilized, even as Ukrainian forces prepare for the worst. Three miles outside Bakhmut, near the village of Kalinina, they were digging trenches for a new defensive line in case they had to pull out.

Helping keep Ukraine in the fight is its aerial surveillance, which relies mostly on quadcopter drones made by the Chinese company DJI, including models available for under $1,500 at Walmart or Amazon.

Far from just flying drones, the 18 pilots who make up the battalion’s air reconnaissance team also assist other units navigate the city and evacuate the injured. More than two-thirds of the team has been wounded in action.

The pilot’s day begins before dawn with breakfast from whatever supplies the brigade can smuggle in. A chunk of moldy bread. Some salo pig fat or oatmeal.

Under a faint lightbulb in the basement, they pack the drones, 20 batteries, cable and antenna, a Starlink terminal and enough food to last their 12-hour shift. They don bulletproof vests and carry their assault rifles, then step out for their stealth run to one of their positions, which must be above ground to maintain signal.

Ukrainian drone pilots known as Liova and Tezka prepare their equipment in Bakhmut.

Ukrainian drone pilots known as Liova and Tezka prepare their equipment in Bakhmut.

(Nabih Bulos / Los Angeles Times)

“You feel exposed, every minute, every day, every morning,” said Tezka, who is 36 with an earring and a professorial mien. He worked in IT and built drones before the war.

Once in position, the pilots rotate the drones in and out of air while they change the batteries. They have to collect them quickly: The shelling is ceaseless, and some of Bakhmut’s few remaining residents have stolen the drones when they land.

Drones have also been shot down. But a bigger danger is the Russian army’s electronic warfare abilities, which dwarf Ukraine’s. In other parts of the country, pilots have jury-rigged drones to drop munitions on their enemies. But because Bakhmut’s area is small and Russian jamming powerful and constant, the drone wouldn’t get a chance to get close enough.

On the other hand, that can also be an advantage, said a 30-year-old pilot who goes by the name Makarena and worked in copyrighting before the war. “We’re camouflaged because there’s so much signal interference it’s hard for them to identify the direction we’re flying from,” he said.

Tezka was tinkering with so-called kamikaze drones that fly into their target and detonate, like the Iranian drones Russia has deployed to devastating effect in Ukraine. One evening, he took out a small quadcopter he was working on. It could fly more than 40 mph with a brick of plastic explosive attached to its belly, but he still needed to perfect the detonator mechanism.

Like others in the battalion, Tezka was part of the Territorial Defense Forces, a civilian volunteer force originally employed to man checkpoints and defend local areas. That changed in June when military commanders expanded the force’s remit to bolster army troops.

A member of Ukrainian aerial reconnaissance monitors the situation on a remote controller

A member of the Ukrainian aerial reconnaissance monitors the situation in Bakhmut in February.

(Taras Ibragimov / Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images)

Tezka and the rest of the 251st were deployed to Bakhmut more than a month ago, supporting other units — including other drone pilots — in an increasingly desperate defense. That they were now fighting in the war’s longest and bloodiest campaign reflected the government’s strategy: Saving its top troops — trained and equipped by Western allies — for a do-or-die counteroffensive expected to begin soon, while throwing whatever it had left to prevent a Russian advance.

But in the meantime the 251st was tired, the tension of being constantly hunted by the Russians’ barrage wearing on them.

“What was my worst moment in this war?” said Liova, 29, whose wife is due to give birth to a daughter in May. “Every morning, because the circle around us is closing.”

Exacerbating their exhaustion was frustration with continuous ammunition shortages. To avoid wasting ammo, targets had to be big enough and suspected enemy positions confirmed by multiple sources to warrant launching attacks.

Makarena remembered a time he watched a Ukrainian squad get cut down by a heavy machine gun emplacement he had detected but was never attacked because it hadn’t been confirmed.

The drone-and-mortar warfare plays out not just within the urban hellscape of Bakhmut, but also in the bucolic east Ukrainian towns and villages on its flanks, mostly abandoned and ruined, where Russian troops and mercenaries push for control of entrances into the city.

Off a country road some seven miles away, a crew oriented a French mortar in the direction of Russian troops battling to capture one of the main highways into the city.

Members of Ukraine's 251st Battalion air reconnaissance unit en route to their position in Bakhmut.

Members of Ukraine’s 251st Battalion air reconnaissance unit en route to their position in Bakhmut.

(Nabih Bulos / Los Angeles Times)

“They’re doing everything to seize control,” said Sensei, a 42-year-old commander in the 3rd Mortar Brigade. The crew let loose one round, then after consulting a drone operator, adjusted aim and shot again. The men moved quickly back into hiding to avoid detection.

The fight continues at night. Back at the 251st’s command center, a commander named Volodymyr remained fixated on the drone feed, his eyes red from hours of watching. On a thermal image of Bakhmut, one spot glowed brighter than the others — the site of an earlier artillery attack. Just before midnight, after almost 18 hours on station, he finally turned away and walked the few steps to a line of mattresses arrayed against the wall to lie down.

Barely six hours later, Liova, Tezka and Makarena picked up their backpacks. Keeping 15 feet between one another in case of shelling, they emerged from the basement and scanned the corner for enemies, assault rifles at the ready.

They sprinted across the street, turned down a street, and disappeared into the chaos of the blighted city.

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BAKHMUT, Ukraine  —  The Russian

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Kelly Clarkson54th Annual ACM Awards, Arrivals, Grand Garden Arena, Las Vegas, USA - 07 Apr 2019


Kelly Clarkson poses for a photo before the NFL Honors award show ahead of the Super Bowl 57 football game, in Phoenix Super Bowl Honors Football, Phoenix, United States - 09 Feb 2023


Singer Kelly Clarkson arrives for the NFL Honors award show ahead of the Super Bowl 57 football game, in Phoenix Super Bowl Honors Football, Phoenix, United States - 09 Feb 2023

Image Credit: Rob Prange/Shutterstock

No divorce lawyers are needed: Kelly Clarkson was ready to discuss what was “mine” in the first song off of Chemistry, her upcoming album — while also addressing feelings in second song “me” (both dropped at the same time). Considered her “divorce album,” since it’s her biggest body of work since her split from her now ex-husband, Brandon Blackstock, Chemistry promises to cover “the arc of an entire relationship. With “mine,”  the song Kelly, 40, dropped Friday (Apr. 14), she started with the end of love, and the feeling of a broken heart.

“You know I question every motive, everythin’ you say/Thought with you maybe my heart wasn’t meant to break/Can’t believe I let you in, I can’t believe I stayed/As long as I stayed, yeah,” she crooned on the first track. “I hope one day someone will take your heart and hold it tight/Make you feel like you’re invincible deep inside/And right when you think that it’s perfect, they cross a line/And steal your shine like you did mine,” she says in the song, seemingly believing karma will take course with her ex.

On “Me,” she gave fans more insight about her own experience in the marriage — but asserts her independence. “Buried myself into somebody else/Shut out some parts of me, did it so casually/I guess I needed that to be able to step back/I lived my life without me, I never allowed me to,” she said in the extremely personal song. “I don’t need somebody to hold me/Don’t need somebody to love me,” she then asserts.

Kelly gave her fans a sneak peek at the song “Mine” on Apr. 4. She shared herself belting out the vocals into a mic in what appeared to be a home studio. “Someone’s gonna show you / How a heart can be used / Like you did mine,” she sings in the grayscale teaser, a video that was giving Adele‘s “Hello.” It was unclear what the song was going to sound like, but from the way Kelly sang, it didn’t seem like this was going to be a bubblegum-pop bop.

“The album is called Chemistry,” Kelly announced in a Mar. 26 Instagram video, “and it’s called Chemistry because I was trying to find a word — also, it might be one of the songs on the album — but I was trying to find a word that really described the whole thing. Cause I didn’t want everybody to think I was coming out with some just like, ‘I’m angry, I’m sad,’ just one or two emotions, you know? This album is definitely the arc of an entire relationship, and a whole relationship shouldn’t be just brought down to one thing. So, there’s, y’know — the good, the bad, and the ugly kind of thing going on it. Anyway, chemistry could be a sexy, cool, fun thing. But it could be very bad for you. So, that’s why I named it Chemistry.

(Rob Prange/Shutterstock)

Kelly and Brandon, 46, split in 2020 after nearly seven years of marriage. The break was not an amicable one, with the two hashing out who gets what, and a custody arrangement for their two kids. At the end of March, Kelly took a shot at Brandon – her former manager – and his father. Both are suing Kelly for $1.4 million in alleged unpaid commissions (and $5.4 million in future commissions.) Kelly has countersued, claiming Brandon and Narvel Blackstock were never licensed talent managers, and that they owe her all the money they made off of her career.

When covering the radio-friendly version of GAYLE‘s “abcdefu,” Kelly switched up the lyrics from “forget you and your mom” to “abcde forget you / and your dad / and the fact that you got half / and my broken heart/turn that s—t into art.”

“This is an important album,” Kelly told Variety in Sept. 2022. “I’m working on this in therapy: I have a hard time vocalizing what I’m feeling sometimes, so music is helpful for me. It’s just been really healing. I recorded the record quite some time ago.”

“I hadn’t really been working hardcore on an album until I needed to,” she added. “The whole divorce thing happened, and I needed to write it. And then I didn’t know if I was going to release it, because you can be very angry in that state of mind. So some of the songs, they definitely cover the gamut of emotions; there’s everything on the album. It’s almost like the arc of a relationship, because the beginning is so beautiful and so sweet, and then it evolves. And sometimes it doesn’t evolve how you want.”

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Merlyn and his magic tricks aren’t the only things that Aaron Sorkin cuts in his revival of Alan Jay Lerner’s book for the 1960 musical “Camelot.” Gone, too, is almost any sense of romance. This new incarnation of the classic but problematic tuner by Lerner and Frederick Loewe opened Thursday at LCT’s Vivian Beaumont Theater.

Upon once a time, Lerner’s book and lyrics for Loewe’s music told not one but two love stories. There was Guenevere, the reluctant princess who unknowingly falls in love with the king after a meet cute in the forest where Arthur is disguised as a commoner. And there was Guenevere, the queen who reluctantly falls in love with the dashing knight Sir Lancelot after butting heads with him repeatedly throughout Act 1. In Sorkin’s version, Guenevere (Phillipa Soo) is far too independent and liberated to fall in love with anybody. At the musical’s tragic conclusion, King Arthur (Andrew Burnap) now tells his queen that he has always loved her “for what it’s worth.” Guenevere, taken aback by the king’s casual use of the prepositional clause, admits that she has always loved him, too.

For what it’s worth, all this talk of love in the final scene came as news to me. For the preceding three hours, Guenevere had been so busy being a rebel that it wasn’t even a good bet she liked Arthur, much less loved him. And Guenevere was so pissed off at Arthur for siring an illegitimate child, Mordred (Taylor Trensch), that she finally bedded Lancelot (Jordan Donica) more out of spite than love.

Lerner’s book, based on T. H. White’s “The Once and Future King,” tells the story of a woman who admires one man as much as she loves him and lusts for another man as much as she loves him. Guenevere’s love for both men is never in doubt, not in the clunky 1967 “Camelot” movie starring Vanessa Redgrave or the embalmed “Camelot” revival starring Richard Burton (the original King Arthur) that I saw at Lincoln Center in 1980.

In the beginning, Sorkin’s new and spunky Guenevere is fun to watch, since it represents a major step forward artistically for Soo, who has always tended to be a little wan in her stage performances. Soo immediately emerges as defiant, and she is deliciously devious in getting what she wants with the beautifully sung “Take Me to the Fair,” by far this production’s most engaging scene. But between her sly seduction of three smitten knights and her initial escape into Arthur’s arms in the forest when she is determined not to marry the king, how much independence can one heroine flaunt without extinguishing any spark of romance?

In the original “Camelot,” after Lancelot kills Sir Lionel in a jousting contest and promptly brings him back to life, the arrogant French knight finally wins the admiration and love of Guenevere. In Sorkin’s “Camelot,” King Arthur partakes in that third match — and it is he who is “killed” and resurrected by Lancelot. Or as the king keeps telling anyone who will listen, “I wasn’t dead. I was unconscious.”

The more Arthur repeats the line the funnier it becomes. It also turns Arthur into something of a wimp. Lancelot has always been the alpha male of “Camelot,” but does that mean Arthur must be reduced to the omega male? In interviews, Sorkin has been quoted as saying he originally wanted to cut Arthur’s song “How to Handle a Woman.” Instead, he has trimmed it radically, even though the song more than ever goes straight to what’s wrong with the marriage between this particular king and queen.

Burnap delivers an extremely young Arthur, and he is amusingly conflicted in his many debates (too many debates, actually) with himself about honor and justice. The problem is, he never grows up to be a king in Act 2. It reminds me of that old debate regarding “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington”: Jimmy Stewart’s senator is so well-meaning but naïve that the government might be better off if the corrupt but competent politicians keep control.

Samuel L. Jackson and John David Washington to Star in August Wilson’s ‘The Piano Lesson’ at Netflix

Donica’s Lancelot is the male-stud prop who is trotted out in the second act to sing the song everyone wants to hear when you go to see “Camelot.” When he finishes his passionate delivery of “If Ever I Would Leave You,” it’s a surprise that Soo doesn’t ask him for a cigarette to light up.

Barlett Sher has directed definitive productions of “South Pacific,” “The King and I” and “My Fair Lady” at Lincoln Center Theater. Across the plaza, he has had much less success with unfocused productions of operas as varied as “Otello” and “The Tales of Hoffmann.” Those directorial assignments at the Met Opera show up in this “Camelot.” The grandeur of Arthur and Guenevere meeting in the forest is reminiscent of the Fountainebleau scene in Verdi’s “Don Carlo” where the prince and Elizabeth (another French emigree) also meet by chance. The vaulted, massive set design by Michael Yeargan (yet another Met Opera veteran) replicates that wintery moment, and for a while, it appears that this “Camelot” will take an intriguing detour to tell us what would have happen if Elizabeth had married Don Carlo and not ended up with his father, Philip, instead.

Sher’s direction is also a marvel when Sorkin’s book is at its messiest. Morgan Le Fey used to be Mordred’s aunt. Now, she is not only his mother (Camden McKinnon), she is also the major reason Guenevere stages a hissy fit over Arthur’s renewed contact with his old girlfriend. All of this pent-up sexual resentment is played out concurrently with Guenevere and Lancelot’s affair, because it is Arthur’s trip to see Morgan Le Fey to make amends that the two lovers are left alone to commit treason. Sher handles the dueling stories magnificently, but in the end, all the cross-cutting only emphasizes the subtext for Guenevere’s sleeping with Lancelot: It’s her revenge on Arthur. Love has nothing to do with it.

Much has been made of Sorkin getting rid of Merlyn (Dakin Matthews) after a brief scene and cutting all the magic tricks from “Camelot.” The result is that only one song has been lost. It’s when the enchantress Nimue sings “Follow Me” early in the first act. Otherwise, the score has been left pretty much intact. The original Lerner and Loewe score is why writers keep tinkering with the problematic book, but I’m not so sure that many of those songs aren’t part of the problem. “The Seven Deadly Virtues,” “Fie on Goodness” and “Guenevere” continue to cast a stodgy pall of second-rate operetta over the entire second act.

Once again, Lincoln Center Theater shows that it knows how to amplify a musical. The real singing voices and the real playing of 30 musicians in the pit can be heard. Marc Salzberg and Beth Lake’s sound design merely supports the music; it doesn’t replace the original sound. It’s ironic because when the Vivian Beaumont opened in 1965, the venue was lambasted as the acoustic nightmare of Broadway theaters. Today, it is the last refuge of experiencing Broadway musicals as they were meant to be heard.

‘White Girl in Danger’ Off Broadway Review: Or, Why Black Girls Just Wanna Be Bumped Off, Too

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British fashion designer Mary Quant, who popularized the miniskirt and is widely credited with creating the iconic 1960s fashion item, died Thursday, her family announced. She was 93.

Quant’s family said the fashion icon died  “peacefully at home” in Surrey, southern England, on Thursday. Additionally, they called her  “one of the most internationally [recognized] fashion designers of the 20th Century and an outstanding innovator.”

Tributes from around the world poured in to remember Quant. English Model Twiggy Lawson, who became a style icon during the era, paid her respects to Quart on Instagram.

“Mary Quant was such an influence on young girls in the late 50s early 60s,” Lawson wrote. “She revolutionised fashion and was a brilliant female entrepreneur. The 1960s would have never been the same without her. Condolences to her family, RIP dear Dame Mary.”

Quant is known for making the miniskirt popular among young women and launched one of the first global super brands which shaped a new era in fashion. The miniskirt, which was named after the Mini Cooper, was a defining staple of the Swinging ’60.

Quant quickly shot to the top of the fashion world which was around the same time The Beatles and Rolling Stones dominated the music world, and she was forever linked to the sexual revolution of the 1960s.

Born on Feb. 11, 1930, Quant was the daughter of schoolteachers, and she went on to study art education at Goldsmith’s College in London. She then grew interested in fashion and worked as an apprentice to a hat-maker before trying her own designs.

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British fashion designer Mary Quant, who popularized

Entertaintment

A new study published Friday by Screen Australia shows that the country’s on-screen television diversity has increased significantly in the past six years, but there remains more to be done.

“Seeing Ourselves 2: Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in Australian TV Drama” examined the diversity of the main characters in 361 scripted Australian TV and online dramas broadcast between 2016 and 2021. It compared that data with the Australian population and a previous report “Seeing Ourselves” published in 2016.

The new report shows that there is higher representation for First Nations people (7.2% of characters, compared with 4.8% in 2016), disabled people (6.6% from 3.6%), LGBTQI+ people (7.4% from 4.5%), and non-European people (16% from 6.9%).

“However, a number of Australia’s communities remain under-represented on-screen compared to population benchmarks and in particular disability representation remains critically low,” the report said.

The report looked at First Nations people, cultural background of non-First Nations people, disability, gender identity and sexual orientation, age and occupational status, and diversity in children’s drama.

“For Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to see ourselves represented on screen in shows such as ‘Mystery Road, ‘Total Control’ and ‘Black Comedy’ is powerful,” said Angela Bates, head of Screen Australia’s First Nations department. “This result shows good progress and it’s not by accident – it represents years of advocacy and consistent hard work to ensure our practitioners feel supported and are afforded opportunities in an industry that hasn’t always been accessible. It’s proof of what’s possible when we are empowered to tell stories from our perspective.”

Although 53% of the Australian population have Anglo-Celtic (British or Irish) ancestry, they represented 71% of main characters in the study. This is down from 82% in 2016, suggesting the TV industry has made efforts to increase the cultural diversity in the main characters. The share of non-European main characters (for example, those with Indian, Chinese or Middle Eastern ancestry) has more than doubled from 6.9% to 16%. However, this is still lower than the population benchmark of 25%. “So, there should be more characters who are: Indian, Chinese, Filipino and Vietnamese,” the report says. “There should also be more characters from European backgrounds who are not Anglo-Celtic, for example, characters who are German, Dutch or Italian.”

The rate of disability representation among main characters has increased, but from a low base. Disability remains very under-represented in TV drama (6.6%, up from 3.6% in the previous study) compared to the Australian population (18%). The report found that nearly three quarters of programs did not feature any disabled main characters, an improvement from the 90% reported in 2016. “This indicates that more work needs to be done so that disabled people are included as main characters in our screen stories,” the report said.

The gender of main characters was evenly split between women and men, similar to the Australian population. There were 13 characters who were transgender (0.4% of main characters) and five who are non-binary (0.2%), but there was no nationwide population benchmark for trans and/or gender diverse people against which to compare.

Representation of LGBTQI+ characters increased to 7.4%, up from 4.5% in 2016. This is still lower than the estimated 11% of Australia’s population who identify as LGBTQI+. The report found that 69% of programs did not feature any LGBTIQ+ characters, a slight increase from 73% in 2016.

The study found that Australian TV dramas tend to feature younger adults, with 62% of main characters aged between 18-44 years. There is under-representation of main characters aged under 12 (2.2% compared to population benchmark of 15%) and only 7% aged 60 and over, much lower than 23% of the population in this age group. Main characters in TV drama are more likely to have higher occupational status than the Australian population, suggesting a bias towards socioeconomic advantage on screens.

Children’s programs were found to have a higher level of cultural diversity than general drama. This increased since 2016 in terms of First Nations representation (9.1%) and characters from non-European backgrounds (22%). However, levels of disability (3.8%) and LGBTIQ+ representation (3.1%) are much lower among children’s titles compared to general TV drama titles.

“The wheels of change are in motion but there is a lot more work to do to achieve diversity on our screens that is both authentic and creatively and commercially fulfilling,” said Screen Australia CEO, Graeme Mason.

“This report provides international context in Part 3 by comparing similar research with the US, UK, Canada and New Zealand. While our on-screen results compare favorably with some of our peers on several metrics – such as our strong First Nations and women’s on-screen representation – other jurisdictions are ahead of the game in terms of taking action and implementing whole of sector strategies. We can learn from these countries as we look at ways to pick up the pace of change in our local industry.”

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A new study published Friday by Screen

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Indian director Anurag Kashyap’s Kennedy will be part of the Cannes Film Festival’s official sections. It will play under Midnight Screenings. This was announced today by Thierry Fremaux, the Festival Director, in Paris.

Kashyap has been a regular at Cannes. His Gangs of Wasseypur was screened at the 2012 Director’s Fortnight, which is an important sidebar of the 12-day event that begins on May 16.

“Bombay Talkies”, an anthology had Kashyap as one of the helmers. It was part of Special Screenings at the 2013 Cannes.

Kashyap’s thriller “Ugly” was also screened in the Directors’ Fortnight section at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival, and this was followed by Raman Raghav 2.0 in 2016 also in the Director’s Fortnight.

Besides Kennedy, the Festival will have the works of Martin Scorsese, Wes Anderson, Wim Wenders, Kore-eda Hirokazu and Todd Haynes. These filmmakers will premiere movies both in and out of competition, meaning only a select few will have a chance at capturing the Palme d’Or, the festival’s highest honour. All of these filmmakers are a familiar presence on the Croisette, having screened movies there before.

This time, Cannes will have more women directors – after being criticised for failing to give them adequate representation. There will be a record number of six films from women — including Alice Rohrwacher’s “La Chimera,” Jessica Hausner’s “Club Zero,” Catherine Breillat’s “Last Summer,” Justine Triet’s “Anatomie d’une chute,” Ramata-Toulaye Sy’s “Banel et Adama,” and Kaouther Ben Hania’s documentary’s “Olfa’s Daughters.”

The top Competition slot will have several Italian titles from auteurs like Nanni Moretti (“The Sun of the Future”), Marco Bellocchio (“Rapito”) and Rohrwacher, who was in competition before with “The Wonders” and “Happy as Lazzaro” which won the Jury Prize and the screenplay award, respectively.

The second most important section at Cannes A Certain Regard will showcase the works of emerging directors from all over the world, including a large delegation of films from the African continent, and a first film from Mongolia, Zoljargal Purevdash’s “If Only I Could Hibernate.” A Certain Regard will kick off with the French film “Le Règne Animal” by Thomas Cailley, whose feature debut “Les Combattants” won a few Cesar Awards.

Here is the full list:

COMPETITION

“Club Zero,” Jessica Hausner

“Asteroid City,” Wes Anderson

“The Zone of Interest,” Jonathan Glazer

“Fallen Leaves,” Aki Kaurismaki

“Les Filles D’Olfa” (“Four Daughters”), Kaouther Ben Hania

“Anatomie D’une Chute,” Justine Triet

“Monster,” Kore-eda Hirokazu

“Il Sol Dell’Avvenire,” Nanni Moretti

“La Chimera,” Alice Rohrwacher

“About Dry Grasses,” Nuri Bilge Ceylan

“L’Ete Dernier,” Catherine Breillat

“The Passion of Dodin Bouffant,” Tran Anh Hung

“Rapito,” Marco Bellocchio

“May December,” Todd Haynes

“Firebrand,” Karim Ainouz

“The Old Oak,” Ken Loach

“Perfect Days,” Wim Wenders

“Banel Et Adama,” Ramata-Toulaye Sy

“Jeunesse,”Wang Bing

UN CERTAIN REGARD

“Los Delincuentes” (“The Deliquents”), Rodrigo Moreno

“How to Have Sex,” Molly Manning Walker

“Goodbye Julia,” Mohamed Kordofani

“Crowra (The Burti Flower),” João Salaviza & Renée Nader Messora

“Simple Comme Sylvain,” Monia Chokri

“Kadib Abyad” (“The Mother of All Lies”), Asmae EL Moudir

“Los Colonos” (“The Settlers”), Felipe Galvez

“Augure” (“Omen”), Baloji Tshiani

“The Breaking Ice,” Anthony Chen

“Rosalie,” Stéphanie Di Giusto

“The New Boy,” Warwick Thornton

“If Only I Could Hibernate,” Zoljargal Purevdash

“Hopeless,” Kim Chang-hoon

“Terrestrial Verses,” Ali Asfari & Alireza Khatami

“Rien a Perdre,” Delphine Deloget

“Les Meutes,” Kamal Lazraq

“Le Regne Animal,” Thomas Cailley

OUT OF COMPETITION

“Killers of the Flower Moon,” Martin Scorsese

“The Idol,” Sam Levinson

“Cobweb,” Kim Jee-woon

“Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny,” James Mangold

“Jeanne du Barry,” Maiwenn

MIDNIGHT SCREENINGS

“Omar la Fraise,” Elias Belkeddar

“Kennedy,” Anurag Kashyap

“Acide,” Just Philippot

SPECIAL SCREENINGS

“Retratos Fantasmas,” (“Pictures of Ghosts”), Kleber Mendonca Filho

“Anselm,” Wim Wenders

“Occupied City,” Steve McQueen

“Man in Black,” Wang Bing

CANNES PREMIERE

“Le Temps D’Aimer,” Katell Quillevere

“Cerrar Los Ojos,” Victor Erice

“Bonnard, Pierre et Marthe,” Martin Provost

“Kubi,” Takeshi Kitano

Read all the Latest Movies News and Entertainment News here

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Indian director Anurag Kashyap’s Kennedy will be

MCU

An actor in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 may have just implied that the movie will include the death of Rocket Raccoon.

Guardians 3 will be director James Gunn’s final MCU installment before focusing all his efforts on his newly acquired DC Universe. His brother, Sean, is often more involved in Gunn’s movies than expected.

Many know Sean Gunn as Yondu‘s right-hand man, Kraglin. Additionally, though, he’s the stand-in actor for Rocket Raccoon, meaning he provides all of the movement for the character’s motion capture.

As a result, there are numerous scenes in the Guardians franchise that are a combination of Sean Gunn both standing and crawling around because he is playing both Kraglin and Rocket Raccoon. 

As he plans to leave that work behind him following Guardians 3, this may add another question mark to Rocket Raccoon’s MCU future.

Gunn Done as Rocket after Guardian 3

 

Many fans know by now that Kraglin actor Sean Gunn also lends his talents as the stand-in actor for Rocket Raccoon’s motion capture in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. 

While admitting to Empire Magazine that it’s “a lot harder” to play Rocket now that he’s older, he mentions the upcoming Guardians threequel will be his “swan song as Rocket,” indicating he’ll no longer be providing the motion capture work needed to bring the beloved Guardian to life. 

Director James Gunn has previously played coy when discussing Rocket’s possible death in Guardians 3, saying “that’s not how stories work” when a fan suggested Rocket could be kept alive by simply being sent away to an unknown place. 

The actor’s most recent comments may not come as a total surprise at this point, as Rocket’s death has already been a popular topic of discussion lately thanks to how the movie has been marketed. 

For instance, the film’s official plot explicitly states it will revolve around saving Rocket’s life, and many fans believe the trailers and promotional posters for Vol. 3 heavily imply the movie itself will be Rocket Raccoon’s MCU swan song.

Will Guardians 3 Bring the Death of Rocket? 

Granted, Sean Gunn’s departure from the Rocket character is partially due to his brother ending his MCU run with Guardians 3. Even still, it would certainly be the most full-circle moment one could ask for if Rocket Raccoon went out by sacrificing his life to save the Guardians, just as his friend once did for him.

Throughout the Guardians franchise, Rocket has evolved from a selfish bounty hunter to a caring, compassionate companion and comrade. Sure, he may gripe and groan, but he’s become more protective of his family than he is of himself.

Much of the promotional footage for the upcoming film implies that Rocket will have to face his past head-on, further leaning into the contrast that fans will see of Rocket before and after he became a Guardian of the Galaxy. 

Whether he’ll make it out alive is yet to be seen, but the end of the Guardians of the Galaxy franchise may bring about a permanent goodbye for the members that make up the cosmic group of heroes.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 will debut in theaters on May 5.

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