With Stranger Things coming to an end with the highly anticipated fifth season, which recently reached the halfway mark of filming, the Duffer Brothers have moved forward full steam ahead with their next big project — The Boroughs.
The show’s main players have been cast. The series, created by Jeffrey Addiss and Will Matthews (The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance), has been compared to Stranger Things to varying degrees.
For everything we know about The Boroughs, read on.
When will The Boroughs come out?
The supernatural mystery series will arrive May 21. First look photos of the series were revealed along with this news of the main cast in character.
Alfred Molina, Denis O’Hare in ‘The Boroughs’
Courtesy of Netflix
Alfre Woodard in ‘The Boroughs’
Courtesy of Netflix
Geena Davis as Renee in ‘The Boroughs’
Clarke Peters in ‘The Boroughs’
Courtesy of Netflix
Bill Pullman in ‘The Boroughs’
Courtesy of Netflix
Carlos Miranda in ‘The Boroughs’
Courtesy of Netflix
Alice Kremelberg in ‘The Boroughs’
Courtesy of Netflix
Alfred Molina in ‘The Boroughs’
Courtesy of Netflix
Jena Malone as Claire Cooper in ‘The Boroughs’
What is The Boroughs about?
According to the show’s summary, it is set in an idyllic retirement community where a group of ragtag residents team up to stop a big bad from stealing time.
“While the heroes in The Boroughshave a few more years on them than the kids from Stranger Things, they are a similarly lovable bunch of misfits,” The Duffer brothers said when the series was announced. “We can’t wait for you to join them on an adventure that is at turns scary, funny, and deeply touching.”
Who is in The Boroughs cast?
The first six main stars announced for the project were Alfred Molina, Geena Davis, Alfre Woodard, Bill Pullman, Clarke Peters and Denis O’Hare.
Davis will play Renee; Molina will play Sam; O’Hare will play Wally; Woodard will play Judy; Pullman will play Jack and Peters will play Art.
Next, Jena Malone, Carlos Miranda, Seth Numrich and Alice Kremelberg were cast in the show. Malone will play Claire; Miranda will play Pax, Numrich will play Blaine and Kremelberg will play Anneliese.
Who else is behind The Boroughs?
Ben Taylor (Sex Education) will exec produce and direct multiple installments of the eight-episode drama, including the pilot.
Long before he became the music director of the Louisville Orchestra and the incoming artistic and executive director of the Ojai Music Festival, Abrams, who turns 39 on Wednesday, was a 9-year-old clarinet student kvelling from his first time hearing the San Francisco Symphony live. It was an all-Gershwin program led by the orchestra’s new conductor, Michael Tilson Thomas. Abrams dashed off a 10-page fan letter to him.
To Abrams’s surprise, a response landed in his family’s mailbox a week later, on official San Francisco Symphony letterhead.
“Thank you for your friendly note,” Thomas’s reply began. “Obviously Mozart and Beethoven are big favorites of yours. Have you listened to any 20th-century composers, like Stravinsky or Prokofiev or Bartok?”
Thomas, who died on April 22 at 81, was a master of genial introductions like this. To many in the Bay Area and beyond, his multi-pronged career — as a conductor, musical explainer, composer, pianist and local luminary — was nothing less than a mold for a 21st-century life in the arts.
His tenure at the San Francisco Symphony, from 1995 to 2020, made the bristling modernism of Antheil and Ives legible through his recurring American Mavericks festivals. He also founded the New World Symphony, an academy in Miami Beach, Fla., that introduced young musicians to the rigors of working in an orchestra. On television, he hosted the “Keeping Score” series on PBS, offering a spy hole into the context and backstage preparation behind repertoire classics.
“Those are some of my greatest memories, actually, watching those,” said the multifaceted violinist Alexi Kenney, 32, who grew up in Palo Alto, Calif., and recently moved to San Francisco. “His educational side was huge for me.”
Thomas’s impact on younger generations of musicians is most palpable through New World, many of whose 1,300 alumni now play in professional orchestras. And he launched many an international career, as an early champion of artists like the pianist Yuja Wang, the director Yuval Sharon and the soprano Julia Bullock, who was still a Juilliard student when he invited her to sing “Somewhere” in “West Side Story” with the San Francisco Symphony.
“He wanted,” Bullock said, “to take a chance on me.”
Thomas set a standard for the role music directors could play in their cities. He lived in San Francisco, sharing a handsomely appointed mansion in Pacific Heights with his husband, Joshua Robison, who died in February. It was common to see them walking their poodles through the nearby Marina District, or hobnobbing with local politicians like Nancy Pelosi and Kamala Harris. During his tenure, the San Francisco Symphony collaborated with members of the Grateful Dead and Metallica, bands with a Bay Area vintage.
“Sitting in Davies Hall next to a bunch of Deadheads reeking of cannabis — it certainly felt different, like something in the culture had changed,” said the composer Samuel Adams, who grew up in Berkeley, with the eminent composer John Adams as his father.
The day Thomas’s death was announced, several Bay Area landmarks, including Coit Tower, lit up in his signature blue, and, unusually for a classical musician, the San Francisco Giants observed a moment of silence.
“M.T.T. was our guy for 25 years,” said the cellist and content creator Nathan Chan, using the widely adopted nickname made from Thomas’s initials. “As a young musician in the Bay Area, I got to experience a consistency of leadership from him that everybody who grew up there will never forget.”
San Francisco had long been ready for a leader like Thomas. Its orchestra had been polished enough by previous music directors to stand alongside other great American ensembles by the time he took over. But he and his Los Angeles counterpart, Esa-Pekka Salonen, went the extra step of fashioning their institutions into cultural labs of sorts, without shorting artistic quality.
“The symphony was not a fixer-upper institution,” Abrams said, “but it was primed for international recognition if it could do something dramatic and different.”
And Thomas — a child of the theater, through his grandparents and parents — knew drama. As a young cellist, Oliver Herbert was awed by Thomas’s semi-staged productions of “Bluebeard’s Castle,” “Peer Gynt” and “Boris Godunov.” Today, Herbert, 28, produces multimedia recitals as part of his ongoing professional studies program in Kronberg, Germany.
“I think Michael is a big part of the reason,” he said, “why I allow myself to think creatively about the concert experience.”
With the rise of YouTube, Thomas was one of the first major conductors to harness its power as a creative and pedagogical tool. He founded the YouTube Symphony Orchestra, which accepted international auditions and produced concerts that were livestreamed to an audience in the tens of millions.
That project brought Mason Bates, the composer of “The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay” at the Metropolitan Opera this season, to wider renown. His compositions “The B-Sides” and “Mothership” were performed by the YouTube Symphony Orchestra. Bates credits Thomas with bringing his music “to a national audience,” which, he said, led to a commission from Santa Fe Opera for his first opera, “The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs.”
“I mean, this is the guy that premiered ‘Short Ride in a Fast Machine,’ which is one of the most performed new pieces by a living composer,” said Bates, referring to a short work by John Adams. “He gave me specific musical feedback, which not a lot of conductors do.”
In recent years, he sought Thomas’s counsel while composing “Kavalier & Clay.” Bates has also been working to adapt his “Philharmonia Fantastique” — an animated introduction to the symphony orchestra — into a children’s exhibition, and he said that his quest to find creative, immersive ways to reach young audiences bears Thomas’s stamp.
“Michael has been the model for me of how an artist in 21st-century America can bring the deep experience of classical music to everybody,” Bates said.
In his final chapter, Thomas returned, again, to working with young people. He was appointed a distinguished professor of music at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music in 2024, at a time when his public appearances dwindled following a diagnosis of aggressive brain cancer a few years earlier. At the school, he led readings with the student orchestra, coached chamber groups and gave one-on-one private lessons with especially promising students.
The arrangement, made at Robison’s urging, was mutually beneficial, said the school’s president, David Stull. Thomas would remain intellectually active, and students would have the chance to learn from someone who had shaped San Francisco’s musical culture.
“He knew that he needed to rest and conserve his energy, but he wanted to work,” Stull said. “We’re the last generation to work with him.”
Since Thomas’s death, Abrams has spent time dwelling over Thomas’s letter. It’s framed in his bedroom in Louisville, where he lives full time — yet another way in which he has followed in his mentor’s footsteps.
Abrams has also returned to a detail at the end of “Viva Voce,” Thomas’s 1994 as-told-to memoir written with the British music journalist Edward Seckerson. In it, Thomas describes getting a palm reading abroad.
The fortune teller told Thomas that he wouldn’t start doing the thing he’d be remembered for until his 50s, he recalled. He was 49 and on the eve of his move to San Francisco.
“Whatever it is,” Thomas said, “it’s about to happen.”
Welcome toFiscal Spotlight, a special monthly round up of projects—at all stages of production—working their way through Film Independent’sFiscal Sponsorshippipeline. Enjoy!
‘If it bleeds, it leads’ is a news maxim for a reason. The more brutal, shocking and violent a story is, the more eyeballs it will get. The event itself is attention-grabbing, but the aftermath is usually lived out away from the spotlight– whether it’s a system that has little hope of ever changing, a brave deed that ends up being punished, or a life destroyed by senseless violence.
The great value of documentary is that it gives these types of stories a more sustained life. We can live with these people for more than the few minutes it takes to read a story or watch on the evening news (or these days, social reel) and see the nuance and humanity. These three longform investigations shine a light on the forgotten and look to make an impact that’s long-overdue.
In Not So Far Away Places, a Russian activist goes undercover to expose the cruelty of the Russian prison system. Blowback follows whistleblowers, years after the news organizations that breathlessly covered their stories have moved on, and how the ‘whistleblower’ reputation has followed them and affected their careers and relationships. The Dark Narcisist follows a mother of two murdered children, as she confronts the failed system that let their father murder them before he killed himself.
Through Fiscal Sponsorship, independent filmmakers and media artists gain access to nonprofit funding, helping bring their unique visions to life. These projects embrace diversity, push creative boundaries, and showcase the power of independent storytelling. Want to explore the full lineup of sponsored projects? Head over to our Sponsored Projects page and take a look!
Keep reading to learn more, including how you can support these projects.
NOT SO FAR AWAY PLACES
Project type: Nonfiction Feature Project status: Development Cowriter and Codirector: Renato Borrayo Serrano Cowriter and Codirector: Yulia Vishnevets Producer: Milana Christitch
About the Project: In-depth immersion into the Russian prison repressive machinery shot from the subjective perspective of a human rights activist, working undercover to confront the totalitarian system from within.
Meet the Filmmakers:
Renato Borrayo Serrano — Codirector Berlin-based documentary filmmaker telling intimate human stories while exploring how individual lives are shaped by wider struggles over power, justice, and dignity. His films have screened and won awards at major international festivals, including CPH:DOX, Hot Docs, Sundance, DOC NYC, Krakow IFF, Shanghai IFF, DOK Leipzig, Docudays UA, and others. His feature documentary Life of Ivanna (2021) won the Zurich Film Festival’s Grand Prix for Best Documentary, alongside numerous additional awards. As a cinematographer, he worked on the Netflix acquisition Skywalkers: A Love Story, which premiered at Sundance (U.S. Documentary Competition) and screened at Tribeca before receiving an IMAX theatrical release in the United States.
Yulia Vishnevets — Codirector Berlin-based journalist and documentary filmmaker, director of over 20 non-fiction films. She has worked as a reporter and photographer in various media. From 2013 to 2014, she reported for Deutsche Welle in Germany. Since 2015, she has been a staff documentary maker for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and Current Time TV in Russia. Her feature: Hey! Teachers! was screened at IDFA, Krakow, and received several international accolades. In September 2022, she was detained while filming an anti-war demonstration in Dagestan, spent 5 days in prison, and had to leave Russia at risk of further criminal prosecution.
About the Project: Blowback begins with a simple premise: the system isn’t broken, it’s working as designed. The film follows whistleblowers who expose wrongdoing and are punished for it—not just to silence them, but to send a message. Beyond the headlines, it turns to the aftermath: what it takes to survive, and who you become, after telling the truth.
Meet the Filmmaker:
Brooks Harris — Director/Executive Producer Brooks Harris is an award-winning filmmaker and founding partner of PURGATORY, a production company focused on character-driven documentary storytelling. Her work is grounded in journalism, with a focus on access, narrative precision, and stories that examine power and its consequences. She most recently served as an Associate Producer on Breath of Fire, a documentary series that premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in partnership with Vanity Fair, where she contributed to story development and production. Her additional credits include projects for Amazon, Hulu, and Disney+, where she has worked across development, field production, and post to help shape premium non-fiction series.
Project type: Nonfiction Feature Project status: Development Director/Producer: Trish Ward-Torres
About the Project: Following the murder/suicide of brothers River (15) and Jet (13) by their father Shan Collins, mother Kerrith McDowell, a nurse practitioner, confronts the many institutional failures within the mental health and law enforcement systems in Raleigh, North Carolina that cost her sons their lives even though she was uniquely positioned to seek help from within these failed systems.
Meet the Filmmaker:
Trish Ward-Torres —Director/Producer (PGA, DPA, WIF, FEME) Trish Ward-Torres is a director/producer whose work examines the modern human condition. For more than two decades, she has helped shape award-winning nonfiction and narrative films, often centered on navigating failing systems. Ward-Torres most recently served as Senior Vice President of Documentary at Participant, where she was a Supervising Producer on films including In Waves and War, Food Inc 2 and All the Beauty and the Bloodshed. Earlier, she worked at Netflix overseeing studio partnerships with FOX, NBCUniversal, Miramax, and PBS, following Producer roles at Lionsgate/CBS, Disney Studios, DreamWorks Animation and MTV.
Learn more about Fiscal Sponsorship, including its benefits and eligibility requirements by visiting our website. See which projects are currently being supported via our Sponsored Projects page.
Film Independent Artist Development promotes unique independent voices by helping filmmakers create and advance new work. To support our work with a donation, pleaseclick here. Become a Member of Film Independent here.
A lawyer representing a Quebec man convicted of fomenting hatred against Jews is asking for a retrial, arguing the judge was biased against his client.
The case involving Gabriel Sohier-Chaput was heard Wednesday at the Quebec Court of Appeal in Montreal. Sohier-Chaput was not physically present.
Quebec court Judge Manlio Del Negro sentenced Sohier-Chaput in September 2023 to a year and three months in jail followed by three years’ probation. The accused appealed both the guilty verdict and the sentence.
Sohier-Chaput’s lawyer, Antonio Cabral, told the panel of three Court of Appeal justices that Del Negro’s judgment may have been affected by news media headlines at the time about antisemitism.
When he filed the appeal, Cabral also argued the trial judge erred in his analysis of Sohier-Chaput’s credibility as a witness by comparing the defendant to Machiavelli and implied — without citing any concrete evidence — that he had rallied his readers to the “virus of hate.”
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At the Court of Appeal, Cabral said Sohier-Chaput’s first trial lawyer, Hélène Poussard, dropped the case after tense interactions with Del Negro. He says the judge “undermined her credibility as a lawyer” and did not seriously consider the defence’s arguments.
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The initial trial was marked by debates between the prosecution and the defence over what facts about the Holocaust and Nazi ideology needed to be established by an expert witness and which ones were so well known the judge could accept them without further evidence.
On Wednesday Cabral read a court transcript of an exchange between Poussard and Del Negro in which the judge told the lawyer to “stop speaking” and that she was “out of line” after sheattempted to argue that the number of Jewish people killed in the Holocaust was not known.
Cabral said Poussard was simply answering Del Negro’s questions without being able to consult her client and that the exchange proves the judge’s contempt for the lawyer and the defendant.
The three justices repeatedly asked Cabral if that exchange should be taken separately from Del Negro’s guilty ruling, a decision Cabral admitted came after careful reflection. They also asked both the defence and Crown whether the exchange was relevant to the final verdict in the case.
Crown attorney Xavier Lyonnais told the panel that Sohier-Chaput was found guilty beyond all reasonable doubt and that the Crown’s proof was substantial. He said one “difficult exchange” should not be the basis of a new trial.
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During sentencing, Del Negro had called Sohier-Chaput a “hate influencer” who represented a continued risk to society because he hadn’t grasped the seriousness of his actions or the harm he had caused.
Sohier-Chaput had testified that his writing was meant to be satire, with the use of irony and exaggeration to offend and attack political correctness. Del Negro rejected those arguments, considering them insincere, opportunistic and lacking credibility.
Sohier-Chaput was a prolific writer for online neo-Nazi sites like the Daily Stormer — named after the Nazi-era propaganda newspaper Der Sturmer — between 2016 and 2017.
In an agreed statement of fact, Sohier-Chaput had admitted to writing between 800 and 1,000 articles under the pseudonym “Charles Zeiger.” However, the trial hinged on a single article presented as evidence saying that 2017 would be the year of “non-stop Nazism, everywhere” and mocking a Holocaust survivor.
Del Negro ruled the wording and content of the article was intended to foment hatred against Jewish people.
Both the Crown and defence had jointly suggested he serve three months in jail, but Del Negro flatly rejected that recommendation because he worried it would trivialize the crime.
The Court of Appeal justices said they would deliberate and render their decision at a later date.
More companies are laying off employees, with AI cited as a reason
Freshwords is reducing its headcount by 11%
Coinbase is cutting its employee count by 14%
Artificial intelligence is being referenced as the cause of more job losses as two more companies join the list of tech companies laying off employees in 2026.
Freshworks has announced it will trim 11% of its workforce, or about 500 jobs, as the company addresses routine work with AI and automation.
Coinbase is also set to lay off around 14% of its workforce, or 700 jobs, as the company moves towards becoming ‘AI-native’.
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Layoffs near 100,000 in 2026
Layoff tracker Layoffs.fyi places the total number of tech job layoffs at 93,294 so far in 2026.
Speaking to Reuters, Freshworks CEO Dennis Woodside said the workforce reduction was due to the company seeing routine work being reduced by AI and automation.
“Over half our code is written by AI,” he said, adding that the company’s use of automation had cut down on the “rote work that technology can take care of.”
Coinbase pointed to market factors and AI as the joint causes behind its workforce reduction, with CEO Brian Armstrong issuing a blog post explaining the reasoning behind the decision. “We are adjusting early and deliberately to rebuild Coinbase to be lean, fast, and AI-native,” Armstrong said.
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Stefon Diggs Back To Work Fresh Off Not Guilty Verdict
Published
Stefon Diggs can focus on his day job now that a jury found him not guilty of attacking his personal chef … and he did just that hours after his trial ended on Tuesday … heading to the gym for a late-night sweat sesh.
Diggs’ attorney, Mitchell Schuster, told reporters his client’s goal is to get back on an NFL roster … adding anyone would be “lucky” to have him join their team.
“People have to stop targeting professional athletes and trying to extract money,” Schuster said outside the Dedham courthouse. “They have a target on their back.”
As we previously reported, Diggs shed tears as the verdict was read … as he maintained the alleged incident never happened.
The trial was a nightmare for Jamila Adams … and the prosecution even admitted that much in closing arguments, when Norfolk Assistant District Attorney Drew Virtue said the chef was “argumentative, avoidant and difficult” during her testimony.
“Was Ms. Adams a perfect witness? No,” Virtue said … adding he was hoping the jury would look past that and focus on her side of the alleged incident.
The jury only needed about an hour and a half before finding Diggs not guilty … and he can now get back to football.
Vishal Vashishtha says his realistic performance in Netflix show Glory comes from mastering the Haryanavi dialect.
Vishal sought realism and feels the show turned out decent.
If you’ve watched Glory, one thing becomes clear pretty quickly – Vishal Vashishtha has really lived his part rather than just performed it. The show, currently streaming on Netflix, has been getting a steady positive response, and a lot of that credit goes to how grounded and believable Vishal feels on screen.
A big reason behind that realism is the Haryanavi dialect used in the series. It’s not just there for effect; it shapes the tone of the character. Talking about how he worked on it, Vishal admitted that it was something he took very seriously from the start. He shared, “Getting the dialect right was necessary and very important for me also. I mean, why would I want to do it any other way? I aim for the perfect thing. I mean, of course, you aim for 100, you aim for 120, and then maybe you reach like 70, 80, which is something.”
He explained that memorising lines wasn’t the real challenge. “Getting the words right, pronouncing them right, wasn’t the difficult part. But I think every dialect, every language has a different breath to it, it has different pauses to it. Whatever phrase you are saying in it, it will be said in a situation, in a tonality. All those things are important which gets the flavour out. Otherwise, you can remember the words and speak any language.”
The actor also spoke about the support he had on set, especially from the dialect coach. “In this situation, the biggest help was Kamal sir, who was on set, our dialect coach. So I used to run to him as soon as I used to arrive on set. He used to come to my van, and we used to discuss the day’s scene. Then, even on set, while we are in the scene, he used to come and give me these little anecdotes.”
He added that it became a continuous learning process during the shoot. “I used to go to him, give me a new word, give me a new tone. I feel there can be something over here. So we collaborated on the language a lot, and Kamal sir was a big help.”
Vishal kept his expectations grounded while talking about the final output. “I think we have put out a very decent product, and people will like it. I will see it soon. Once I’ve seen it, then only I can say, but I think we’ve done a decent job.”
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Earlier this year, Marvel fans got some exciting news when Wonder Man was officially renewed for a second season.
Debuting last year on Disney+, the series introduced audiences to Simon Williams, played by Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, a struggling actor who secretly has superpowers.
Over the course of the first season, Williams forms an unlikely friendship with Trevor Slattery, portrayed by Ben Kingsley, reprising his roles from Iron Man 3 and Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings.
Image: Disney
“Aspiring Hollywood actor Simon Williams is struggling to get his career off the ground. During a chance meeting with Trevor Slattery, an actor whose biggest roles may be well behind him, Simon learns legendary director Von Kovak is remaking the superhero film ‘Wonder Man,’” the series synopsis reads.
“These two actors at opposite ends of their careers doggedly pursue life-changing roles as audiences get a peek behind the curtain of the entertainment industry.”
Why the Show Was Renewed
With its renewal, Wonder Man joins Loki and Daredevil: Born Again as one of the few Marvel live-action series to earn a second season.
According to Marvel’s head of streaming, Brad Winderbaum, the show’s dedicated fanbase played a major role in that decision.
Photo: The Hollywood Reporter
“If you look at the history of television, there’s a lot of shows that got green lit for second and third seasons because the fan base believed in it and the people behind the scenes believed in it. It definitely did well,” he said on the Escape Pod Podcast.
Abdul-Mateen Weighs In
Also weighing in on the renewal was Abdul-Mateen, who noted that the series held a special place for him.
Image: Disney
“Yeah, this one was special. I usually distance myself from the work after it comes out and from the conversation. I think that’s my healthy way of interacting with that feedback loop. But Wonder Man was a bit different because it was so special for creatives, for artists, for people with dreams,” he said.
“So I really did enjoy participating, sort of peripherally, in the conversation about the show. It touched a lot of people, and that was something I was really proud to be a part of. I’m happy that we got a season two, and I’m excited to share what we have in store.”
Image: Disney
As always, be sure to check back with MickeyBlog. We will continue to update you on all the latest Marvel news.
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There’s a little-known fourth film in Christopher Nolan’s take on Batman, and it’s actually even better than The Dark Knight. Christopher Nolan created three of the best superhero movies ever with his Batman trilogy: Batman Begins in 2005, The Dark Knight in 2008, and The Dark Knight Rises in 2012. The Dark Knight, in particular, is widely credited as the best Batman movie ever made and even one of the best movies ever in general.
The thing is, Nolan’s take on Batman inspired a spinoff film that can be considered the fourth movie in the Dark Knight franchise. The in-betweequel doesn’t get nearly as much recognition as the other chapters in the series, but it’s arguably even better than The Dark Knight. A big reason it’s so often overlooked is that it was an animated anthology that took place between Batman Begins and The Dark Knight, and because Nolan only consulted on the film instead of being directly involved.
Released in 2008, Batman: Gotham Knight features six different but interconnected Batman stories animated by Japanese and South Korean animation studios. Each of the six tales tells a different story from Bruce Wayne’s earliest days as Batman, just after the events of Batman Begins. The segments are all loosely connected and chronicle Batman’s efforts to take down Gotham’s organized crime as well as villains like Scarecrow, Killer Croc, and Deadshot. Most importantly, it has a few significant advantages over The Dark Knight.
Batman: Gotham Knight Blends Christopher Nolan’s Realism With Comic Book Accuracy & Beautiful Animation
Batman chases Deadshot through an industrial lookin tunnel in Batman: Gotham Knight
The beauty of Batman: Gotham Knight is that it combines two of the absolute best aspects of both The Dark Knight and most of the Batman comic books: grounded and gritty realism and a larger-than-life quality about the character. Like The Dark Knight, Gotham Knight is a very realistic story. Bruce gets hurt, he doesn’t perform any impossible feats of strength, and even his villains are fairly realistic. Most of the movie follows Bruce fighting the mob, and everything about it feels grounded and plausible.
Batman: Gotham Knight also, however, dares to go a bit bigger than The Dark Knight did. It dives further into Batman’s source material, bringing more outlandish villains like Killer Croc and Deadshot to life. The film also dives heavily into Batman’s reputation as a stalker of the night and a fearsome protector of Gotham. Gotham Knight even plays around with perspective and memory, taking more risks than The Dark Knight ever did.
Both of these elements, the realism and the legend, come together in Batman: Gotham Knight‘s animation style. All six segments have a clear layer of grime to them, as was the style in 2008. Everything from the characters to Gotham itself feels real and lived-in, which brings it aesthetically in line with The Dark Knight trilogy as a whole. Gotham Knight also, however, has more than enough beauty to elevate the movie beyond mere realism.
Each shot of Gotham Knight feels like a panel straight out of a comic book. So much care and creativity went into every single frame of this film, and the sheer passion the various animation studios had for Batman and for the story Christopher Nolan was telling drips through every second. Batman: Gotham Knight is a visual marvel, which is really just the cherry on top of an already fantastic Batman film.
Batman: Gotham Knight Is A Better Batman Movie Than The Dark Knight Is
Vampire Batman with glowing eyes in Batman Gotham knight
What really sets Batman: Gotham Knight apart and makes it better than The Dark Knight is the fact that it’s simply a better Batman movie. There are only a handful of movies in general that can legitimately claim they’re better than The Dark Knight. The movie is great from top to bottom, and it only has a handful of easy-to-ignor flaws. That being said, while The Dark Knight is a masterpiece, it’s not the best Batman movie out there.
Christopher Nolan’s dedication to grounding Batman and the more outlandish aspects of a comic book superhero worked tremendously well to make The Dark Knight a great action movie, but it somewhat undermined the film as a Batman movie. Batman is a larger-than-life figure, and his exploits are larger than life as well. Batman: Gotham Knight understands this core feature of Batman as a character, and it’s much more faithful to Batman as a result.
The secret fourth movie in Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight series is exactly how a new movie should be made without ruining the trilogy’s legacy.
The Dark Knight trilogy touched on Bruce’s mental status, his reasoning for becoming Batman, and how Gotham viewed Batman, but it wasn’t really the focus of any of the movies. Batman: Gotham Knight, however, tackled these issues head-on, and it gave Batman fans one of the most complete and faithful understandings of the character that has ever been put to screen.
Batman: Gotham Knight feels like a much better representation of what Batman is than The Dark Knight did. Some of the film’s shorts, particularly Have I Got a Story for You and Crossfire, give a glimpse into how the average people of Gotham view Batman. It also dives deep into what really drives Bruce, the willpower required to be Batman, and the utter devotion he has to Gotham and its people. As far as Batman movies go, few are better than Batman: Gotham Knight.
Build A Rocket Boy, the studio responsible for 2025’s infamous MindsEye, has reportedly laid off more than 170 employees in the last week. This is the third time the studio has laid off staff in the past year.
The report comes from Kotaku, which cites sources indicating that approximately 170 staff members have been let go, bringing the studio’s developer count down to around 80.
The reports are seemingly confirmed by LinkedIn posts from multiple members of staff who are now looking for work. Similar messages were shared by community managers with the MindsEye community in Discord. The affected staff range from level designers and audio designers to QA analysts and the social team.
This comes mere weeks after the April 28 release of MindsEye Update 7.1, which included the new Blacklisted mode, a parody of what BARB claims were real-life attacks against the studio and its debut game.
“That work has taken far longer than expected, but it has now resulted in overwhelming evidence of organized espionage and corporate sabotage affecting MindsEye. Because this matter is moving toward prosecution, we cannot share the full details publicly yet,” Gerhard said at the time.
Early in April, Gerhard stated that a MindsEye update would “share some of the evidence of the sabotage with the community.” Blacklisted is that update, but it seemingly didn’t change the community’s opinions or the studio’s fate.
MindsEye launched on June 10, 2025, landing a painful 39 Metacritic score on PC. Steam reviews for the game are overall Mixed, but recent reviews are Mostly Positive.
The Resident Evil trailer dropped this past week, hinting at what audiences can expect from the new horror movie when it debuts on September 18. There has been a huge amount of speculation surrounding the film, which is the latest project from celebrated horror director Zach Cregger.
The Whitest Kids U’Know alumnus burst onto the horror scene after a long career in comedy with the 2022 hit Barbarian, which he followed with the Oscar-winning 2025 smash Weapons. Because both of his breakout horror titles featured original stories, him taking on a video game adaptation for his third feature in the genre was something of a surprise.
Additionally, Resident Evil is far from a respected film franchise. In fact, not a single one of the previous seven live-action installments has earned Fresh scores on Rotten Tomatoes (they range from 2004’s Resident Evil: Apocalypse at 18% to 2017’s Resident Evil: The Final Chapter at 38%).
Before the trailer premiered, the question remained: Would 2026’s Resident Evil be a generic franchise movie or a Zach Cregger movie? From the looks of things, it is very much going to be the latter, giving it the potential to become the best movie in the franchise.
Resident Evil’s Trailer Shows Promise
Naturally, the trailer reveals that the movie features many of the trappings that anyone familiar with the Resident Evil franchise might expect, including hidden tunnels, the undead, and a variety of mutant creatures that pose a threat to the movie’s protagonist, Bryan (Weapons alumnus Austin Abrams).
However, it also showcases the fact that Zach Cregger is still very much playing into his strengths as a horror filmmaker, in a way that should make this new installment in the franchise feel very different from any of the Resident Evil movies that came before it.
Bryan Is a Proper Zach Cregger Character
One of the directorial trademarks that Cregger has developed during his brief but impactful time dabbling in the horror genre is a strong sense of character. While his first two movies have had compelling horror premises, the scares that they deliver are built upon a sturdy foundation of well-rounded, often quirky, characters.
Essentially, every person who appears on-screen in Barbarian and Weapons, no matter how minor their role, is compelling and dimensional. This is what has allowed both movies to be divided into chapters that have new characters step into the spotlight to showcase a completely different perspective on the ongoing storyline.
Currently, it is unknown if Cregger will continue that chapter-based, perspective-hopping storytelling approach in Resident Evil. However, the footage that has so far been revealed from the anticipated 2026 movie reveals that the character of Bryan has much more going on than merely running away from mutants and zombies. The majority of the teaser is devoted to a somber phone call he places to a romantic partner with whom he has a strained relationship, highlighting the fact that the character’s emotional journey will be just as important to the movie as the horror that befalls him.
Zach Cregger Is Harnessing His Greatest Strength
From the very first moment, the Resident Evil trailer proved that Zach Cregger is harnessing his greatest strengths as a horror filmmaker in the new movie. Even within the framework of his first big-budget franchise movie, he has found a way to tap into the same primordial domestic fears that made Barbarian so powerful.
Both Barbarian and Weapons have a nightmarish bedtime story quality, capitalizing on sequences that tap into audiences’ core childhood fears. He effortlessly captures the feeling of being home, alone, in the dark. In a Zach Cregger movie, nothing is scarier than the unknown that is hidden inside the familiar: what is lurking on the other side of closed doors, what could be casting that unfamiliar shadow, what lies in the murky darkness of a basement, and so on. The Resident Evil teaser pounces on those same fears with wicked glee.
‘Resident Evil’ (2026)Credit: Sony Pictures Entertainment
As much as the mutant monsters (and, presumably, the franchise’s iconic Umbrella Corporation) are propelling the horror of Resident Evil, the teaser editor knows that what is truly terrifying about Zach Cregger’s movie is all contained in the opening shot of Bryan walking up to an eerily empty, isolated house.
Bryan has found himself in a place that should feel domestic and comfortable, but is instead completely upsetting and wrong. Its empty coziness implies that this was once a cheery home, perhaps quite recently, but now something has gone terribly wrong. This sequence’s focus on windows and doorways, portals through which evil can intrude upon the comfortable domestic world, cements the fact that Cregger’s sensibility is still firing on all cylinders.
Resident Evil Promises to Be Zach Cregger’s Most Expansive Movie Yet
While Resident Evil is clearly harnessing Zach Cregger’s domestic sensibility, the video game adaptation is also giving him his biggest canvas ever. While the trailer largely takes place in the seemingly abandoned home and on its grounds, clips from other sequences show a much bigger world around the Barbarian-esque enclave.
‘Resident Evil’ (2026)Credit: Sony Pictures Entertainment
This includes shots of Bryan exploring the aforementioned system of tunnels and running down a city street full of parked cars as bodies fall from the windows above him. Given the franchise’s action-oriented origins, it seems likely that there will be quite a few more moments like these in the full feature.
This will allow the director to continue to expand his scope from the more insulated environments that he has so far brought to the screen in his horror movies. While Weapons already presented a story on a much broader scale than Barbarian (which primarily took place in a single house and the neighborhood around it), that movie was still set in a small town with a limited pool of characters and locations from which it could draw.
It ultimately remains to be seen exactly what Zach Cregger makes of his reported $80 million budget (which makes Resident Evil more than twice as expensive as Weapons). However, the brief glimpse that the teaser has given implies that he has spent it wisely, expanding his vision to incorporate more monsters, more scare sequences, and splashier setpieces, without ignoring the fact that horror is often at its most potent when it takes place in small, intimate moments that impact well-drawn, sympathetic characters.
Add gray jeans to the ever-growing list of denim trends worth trying, no matter the season. We’ve been seeing lots of fashion pros ditching classic blue, black, and white jeans in favor of this versatile hue, and it makes sense. The color is neutral enough to work with almost any piece in your closet while giving the look a style-forward edge that calls to mind the grunge aesthetic of the ’90s.
Gray jeans have the potential to become a key piece in your year-round wardrobe, summer included. They don’t steal the spotlight—but they do instantly add dimension to a look. Whether you want to dress in a minimalist way or go for the full maximalist, you never fall into a style rut with gray jeans.
Whether you prefer stone gray, steel gray, or another shade entirely, here are some gray jean outfit ideas to try in summer 2026.
Gray baggy jeans + a fitted top
Valentina Frugiuele/Getty Images
Sometimes the simplest look is also the coolest. With a pair of barrel or loose-fitting gray jeans, all you really need to complete the look is a simple tank top, T-shirt, or vest to continue the cool-girl vibe. Much like how a black turtleneck balances out your winter outfits, a fitted top will help the relaxed fit of the jeans look more put together. Also, given that gray feels softer than edgy black jeans, go for accessories like black boots or heels for a hint of attitude.
Disney Plus and Hulu are both launching new Perks programs that offer subscribers discounts, digital freebies, and sweepstakes in an effort to stand out from the streaming competition.
The Disney Plus Perks program is available now in the US, with an international rollout planned later this year. Offers include a six-month DashPass membership from DoorDash, discounted stays at Walt Disney World, and savings when you shop from Adidas or Funko, along with rotating contests. Hulu is launching its own loyalty scheme on June 2nd. Details on that are still to come, but it will include offers from companies including Microsoft, Pure Green, and LG, with new perks dropping weekly over the summer.
To take advantage of the perks you simply have to be a subscriber to either streaming service, and you’ll get access to both programs if you subscribe to one of the company’s Disney Plus and Hulu bundle plans.
Disney Plus first introduced Perks last year with a handful of contests and early access ticket offers, but the new program has been expanded substantially to what Disney calls an “always-on” array of bonuses.
Albert Pintó, a director on Netflix global blockbusters “Money Heist,” “Berlin” and “Nowhere” is re-teaming with producer Álvaro Ariza at Esto También Pasará, Sony Pictures Entertainment Iberia and Film Factory on “Lions in Winter” (“Leones en invierno”), described as a “high voltage thriller.”
Now in post-production, the film marks a follow up to their joint picture “Barren Land,” release in 2025.
Luis Zahara, star of “Barren Land” and Rodrigo Sorogoyen’s The Beast,” will lead an all-star Spanish cast in “Lions of Winter.”
“Lions in Winter” is produced by Ariza, a producer alongside Gutiérrez on both big Spanish breakout “Undercover,” a Goya best picture winner which has grossed €9.7 million ($11.3 million) in Spain, and “Un funeral de locos,” which scooped €3.0 million ($3.5 million) at Spanish theaters.
Gutiérrez – also behind all Spanish No. 1 movies at the Spain’s box office in every year from 2019 to 2026 save for 2023, thanks in large part to the “Father There Is Only One” film saga – will serve as executive producer on “Lions in Winter.”
Sony distributes in Spain. Film Factory will bring “Lions in Winter” to market at next week’s Cannes Film Festival.
Written by Juma Fodde, best known for his screenplays for Gustavo Hernández, such as on “The Whisper” and “Lobo Feroz,” “Lions in Winter,” “Lions in Winter” begins with a tragic crime, whose perpetrator attempts to hide his tracks, including his relationship to people in power and organized crime. The father of the victim – his daughter – who thought he had left behind a life marked by violence, decides to seek justice on his own, crossing red lines from which there is no return.
“If there is anything more dangerous than a father defending his children, is a father who no longer has any children to defend,” the film’s logline runs.
“This is an ambitious and highly demanding bet. Every day of the shoot was a challenge, action sequences which pushed us to the limit and a character-driven story inviting reflection,” said Ariza. “I had to have the best team and cast, and be accompanied by Albert Pintó. Without him, I would have thought twice about making the film.
‘Lions in Winter is, above all, a thriller diving deep into the most unsettling: the different ways of confronting loss and and an uncomfortable truth that silence always finds a crack to pass through,” Ariza added. “The film doesn’t look for easy answers, but tackles a persistent idea: Violence, however much it seems justified, only engenders more violence.”
Pintó added: “‘Lions in Winter’ is, when I comes down to it, a film about morning and violence, the weight of the past and the impossibility of crossing certain lines without suffering harm. A film which looks squarely at broken, imperfect and deeply human characters, and asks an uncomfortable but key question: When we reach the worst moment in our lives, are we really the person we think we are?”
“Lions in Winter” also stars Roberto Álamo (“God Save Us”), Luis Callejo (“The Captive”) José Manuel Poga (“Burning Body”), Inma Cuesta (“The Bride”), María Romanillos (“Olympo”) and Amaia Aberasturi (“Akelarre”). It also features in special collaborations Ana Wagener (“The Invisible Guest”), Irene Escolar (“La Ruta”), Nicolás Furtado (“Bandidos”) and Jordi Molla (“Bad Boys II”).
The film is produced with the participation of Prime Video, RTVE and CreaSGR, in association with Mogambo, and the support of Comunidad de Madrid, the Madrid regional government, and the ICAA Spanish film agency. It shot for seven weeks in Madrid and the Canary Islands.
Released last year, “Barren Land” grossed €1.6 million ($1.9 million) and gleaned some positive reviews. This energetic and vibrant thriller from Cadiz stands out both for its formal brilliance and its careful portrayal of a change of guard in the trafficking underworld,” Spanish film-TV publication Fotogramas announced.
First and foremost, dermatologists recommend strict sunscreen and broad-spectrum SPF protection for antiaging. An antiaging serum, like “a retinoid or retinol, comes in second and can promote collagen production and increase cell turnover,” says Claire Wolinsky, MD, a board-certified dermatologist based in NYC. An antiaging moisturizer used in tandem with these products can help create more youthful-looking, plumper skin.
If you’re over 60, supporting skin integrity, hydration, and collagen while being mindful of increased sensitivity is of utmost importance, says Dendy Engelman, MD, a board-certified dermatologist in New York City. “At home I recommend using a gentle retinoid if tolerated, paired with rich, barrier-repairing moisturizers, antioxidants, and daily sunscreen to protect against further damage. Hydration is key as mature skin tends to be drier and more prone to irritation.”
“Fine lines and wrinkles are a natural part of aging and are due to the decrease in collagen levels in the skin,” says Anar Mikailov, MD, a board-certified dermatologist and the cofounder of Skintensive, which makes skin care products. Collagen is a naturally occurring protein that gives skin its structure, strength, and elasticity—the less of it you have, the more your skin starts to show signs of aging. “Not only does collagen degrade over time, especially under chronic UV exposure (a reminder to wear your sunscreen), our skin also produces less and less collagen as we age.” The amount of collagen and elastin your body produces starts to decline sometime around your late 20s, which means that as you get older, fine lines will eventually start to settle into deeper wrinkles.
By the time you hit your 40s, “there are noticeable signs of loss of collagen, the descent of facial fat pads, and deepening of wrinkles on the upper face, and uneven pigmentation appears due to broken blood vessels and sun spots,” Brian Hibler, MD, board-certified dermatologist at Schweiger Dermatology Group in New York City, previously told Glamour.
What ingredients actually work in an antiaging cream?
There’s no one-size-fits-all for the “best” antiaging skin care routine; it’s all about finding what works for you and aligns with your preferences. That said, there are a few ingredients Dr. Mikailov recommends you look for in your formulations.
Retinyl and retinol: Vitamin A derivative that promotes elastin and collagen production; reduces the appearance of fine lines, wrinkles, and pores; improves signs of sun damage, hyperpigmentation, dark spots, and uneven skin texture
Bakuchiol: A gentle retinol alternative that stimulates collagen; safe for pregnant and nursing women
Vitamin C: A potent antioxidant that protects against environmental stressors that cause visible signs of skin aging while also brightening skin and evening discoloration
Peptides: Amino acids that stimulate collagen production
Hyaluronic acid: A powerful humectant famous for its ability to hold up to 1,000 times its weight in water
Antiaging creams can work, but expectations matter. “Antiaging skin care can improve texture, tone, and pigmentation, especially with consistent use of ingredients like retinoids and antioxidants. However, they can’t replace in-office procedures like Botox,” says Dr. Wolinsky.
For at-home treatments, the dermatologists we spoke with recommend combining retinol with antioxidants and peptides to get the best results. “Retinoids are at the top of the list for their ability to accelerate cell turnover and stimulate collagen production, which can visibly soften fine lines and improve skin texture over time. They’re one of the few ingredients with consistent, long-term data support,” says Dr. Engelman. Pair an over-the-counter or prescription-grade tretinoin with plumping ingredients like peptides (to produce more collagen and elastin) plus a vitamin C serum to protect against UV and pollution. “Finally, add hydrating and barrier-supporting ingredients such as ceramides and hyaluronic acid to keep the skin smooth, plump, and resilient, which improves the look of fine lines and allows for better tolerance of stronger actives,” Dr. Engelman says.
Are there ways to fill wrinkles without Botox?
Yes, there are several noninvasive ways to improve fine lines and wrinkles, according to the dermatologists we spoke with. “Regular use of topical retinol and peptide creams can help over time, and in-office treatments like microneedling or laser resurfacing can further boost collagen production,” says Hope Mitchell, MD, a board-certified dermatologist and founder of Mitchell Dermatology. Even without procedures, she recommends daily sun protection and a strong skin care routine (featuring a good cleanser, moisturizer, eye cream, and SPF 30): “The combination can go a long way in maintaining smooth, youthful skin.”
We tested antiaging creams by evaluating their ingredients, texture, and overall efficacy. Our testers ranged from 30 to 60 in age and had a variety of different skin types and skin concerns including acne, sensitive, and mature skin. The best products had dermatologist-recommended ingredients like hyaluronic acid, collagen, ceramides, and antioxidants to combat fine lines and wrinkles in addition to dark spots and dullness.
The ones we loved also had lightweight textures that our skin simply drank up, from gel-cream formulas to thick occlusive finishes that dried down quickly without leaving our skin feeling sticky. The ones that made the cut were efficacious and did a great job of minimizing fine lines around our eyes (11’s on forehead or crow’s feet) or wrinkles around our nose and mouth. Our skin was left looking plump, hydrated, and glowing after consistent use.
Ryan Turner, MD, board-certified dermatologist at Turner Dermatology in NYC and founder of TRNR Skin
“The Fast and the Furious,” the 2001 film that launched the Universal Pictures franchise, is set to screen at the Cannes Film Festival to mark its 25th anniversary.
The film will play at the Grand Théâtre Lumière on May 13 at 11.45 p.m. The Midnight Screening will be attended by stars Vin Diesel and Jordana Brewster, producer Neal H. Mortiz, and Meadow Walker, the daughter of the film’s late star Paul Walker.
Lee Byung-hun, known internationally for “Squid Game” and “No Other Choice,” has been cast in the lead role of “Nambeol” (working title), a martial arts action film set in the early Joseon Dynasty that will mark the feature directing debut of veteran DP Lee Mo-gae. Hive Media Corp. is producing.
The story centers on a unit of nine soldiers – drawn from across the military hierarchy – dispatched to Tsushima Island to bring home Koreans taken prisoner by Japanese pirate groups. The title draws on a historical term for a southward military expedition. The narrative is fictional but rooted in a documented period of instability during the early Joseon era, when the new dynasty faced relentless pirate incursions along its southern coastline and was compelled to answer them through a combination of military campaigns and negotiation.
Lee Mo-gae brings an extensive list of Korean genre credits to his debut feature as director. His work behind the camera spans “A Tale of Two Sisters” (2003), “The Good, the Bad, the Weird” (2008), “I Saw the Devil” (2010), “Asura: The City of Madness” (2016), “Hunt” (2022), “12.12: The Day” (2023) and “Exhuma” (2024).
Lee will play Im Eok, the taciturn, battle-hardened commander of the warrior unit at the heart of the rescue operation.
For Lee, the film represents a third outing with Hive Media Corp. The pair previously worked together on “Inside Men” (2015) and “The Man Standing Next” (2020).
Hive Media Corp.’s recent output includes “Gonjiam: Haunted Asylum” (2018), “Deliver Us from Evil” (2020), “12.12: The Day” and the Disney+ series “Made in Korea.”
Shooting on “Nambeol” is expected to get underway in the latter half of the year.
Jimmy Kimmel once again took aim at Donald Trump’s obsession with building a ballroom, joking the president didn’t need one as he’s “already holding a lot of balls.”
The late night host sounded off on the president’s ballroom project during Tuesday’s monologue for “Jimmy Kimmel Live!,” where he noted that Trump has been pushing the construction “bigly” following the White House Correspondents’ Dinner shooting.
“I think I know why. Originally, he said it would cost $200 million and would be financed by private donors,” Kimmel said. “Then the price tag doubled to $400 million, which he said would still be paid for by private donors. Then yesterday, Republicans in the Senate pushed a bill that would allocate a billion dollars of taxpayer money to go toward this project.”
He continued: “According to the chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, the money would be used for security features only, not for the ballroom itself. And the White House, of course, disagrees with that. After saying he and his teet sucklers would pay for it personally, Team Trump now wants us to foot the bill, which is now five times what he said it would be.”
After Kimmel quipped that Trump “loves to dance,” he highlighted that the project is not popular with the American public.
“Only 28% of Americans supported him illegally knocking the White House down in the middle of the night to build this,” Kimmel noted. “And that was before we found out we’d be paying for it.”
The comedian then put on display the many times Trump promised that the ballroom would be built using zero taxpayer dollars.
Before moving on, Kimmel doled out his biggest zinger: “But I don’t get it. Why does he need a room to hold balls? He’s already holding a lot of balls. He’s holding JD Vance’s balls. He’s got Lindsey Graham’s balls. He’s holding the balls of almost every Republican in Congress.”
This comment prompted a big round of applause from Kimmel’s studio audience. Watch the monologue in its entirety above.
“Jimmy Kimmel Live!” airs weeknights at 11:35 p.m. ET on ABC.
Stephen Colbert roasted Pete Hegseth after the Secretary of Defense refused to “confirm or deny” whether the U.S. had “kamikaze dolphins” as a secret weapon amid the Iran war.
The late night host weighed in on the viral comment from Hegseth during Tuesday’s monologue for “The Late Show,” where he joked that he wasn’t convinced by the Secretary of Defense’s non-answer during the earlier press briefing.
“Well, then clearly we have kamikaze dolphins,” Colbert said. “We strapped porpoises with high explosives and then depressed them sufficiently that they’re willing to ram ships in exchange for the promise of herring.”
He added: “What do you think about that, Flipper?”
At this moment, the “Late Show” editors cut to a dolphin whistling in response, with the subtitles reading, “That’s f–ked up.”
“I agree,” Colbert noted as the studio audience erupted into laughter. “We’ve got suicidal dolphins.”
Colbert also took a moment in his monologue to warn his parent company, Paramount Skydance, on how the Iran war might impact the pending Warner Bros. merger.
“There are reports of the U.S. and Iran exchanging fire. And today, for the second day in a row, Iran hit the UAE with drones and missiles,” Colbert explained. “That is dangerous. Not just to [Middle East] peace but to my parent corporation, because Paramount’s bid to buy Warner Brothers relies on $24 billion in Gulf funds, including the L’imad Holding Company, which is run by the crown prince … of the UAE.”
He added: “This war could endanger the future UAE approved version of HBO with the hot ‘Euphoria’ reboot, ‘Obey Your Parents.’”
Watch Colbert’s monologue in full above.
“The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” airs weeknights at 11:35 p.m. ET on CBS.
The Sheffield DocFest has revealed its 2026 industry program, completing the lineup for its 33rd edition, which is taking place June 10-15, with a promise to “combine urgent global issues and conversations with the practical realities of working in documentary today.”
Events will cover topics ranging from conflict reporting, citizen journalism, inclusivity, accessibility and environmental sustainability to the evolving role of AI and political suppression.
Among a broad lineup of speakers, Nevine Mabro, the BBC’s new head of doc strand Storyville, and Fiona Campbell, the BBC’s director of factual, will discuss their commissioning strategy, while Academy Award-nominated directors Maite Alberdi (The Mole Agent, The Eternal Memory) and Sara Dosa (Time and Water) will give masterclasses. “A behind-the-scenes look at Power: The Downfall of Huw Edwards,” a docudrama for U.K. broadcaster 5, is also planned.
This year’s industry lineup for documentary makers consists of 41 sessions, including ones focused on craft on live pitches, as well as the return of the popular Marketplace and Talent Meetings.
“We are creating a unique space where the artistry on screen directly informs the vital industry dialogues of today,” said Raul Nino Zambrano, creative director of Sheffield DocFest. “From deep-dive sessions on activism and emerging technologies to our dedicated Production Hub, we are ensuring that our industry delegates are not just observers, but active participants in the shifting landscape of global documentary storytelling.”
Added Mimi Poskitt, managing director at the fest: “Sheffield DocFest has always been a center for dazzling creativity, but we are also immensely proud of the role the festival plays in facilitating the business of the industry, whether that’s procuring funding, making deals, or finding the right co-production partners. From our Meetmarket and the vital discussions generated by our highly-targeted expert industry and craft sessions, to welcoming key delegations from across the world, as well as new initiatives bringing the broader factual community together, such as our inaugural Production Hub, we continue to build on this role.”
Take a look at select sessions set for the Sheffield DocFest industry program 2026 below.
Human Rights Film Festivals: From Grassroots to Global (and Back Again) “Human rights film festivals are facing growing political pressure and shrinking support. This session explores how grassroots and established models can learn from each other.” Speakers: Brenda Dankar (Co-Founder, Freedom Film Network – Malaysia) Anna Har (Co-Founder, Freedom Film Network – Malaysia) Julie Nederkoorn (Movies That Matter – The Hague, Netherlands) Fourth speaker to be announced Moderator: Heather Haynes (Documentary Consultant & Programme Consultant for Sheffield DocFest)
Silenced: How Power Adapts to Suppress Women “As women speak out, power pushes back. Three urgent documentaries explore the legal, cultural and systemic forces working to silence women across the world.” Speakers: Jen Robinson (Human Rights Lawyer, Subject of Silenced) Bàrbara Mestanza (Director, Filthy) Gabriela Díaz Arp (Director, Matinino) Sophie Argent (Solicitor & Co-Founder of Creators Counsel)
Goalhanger Greenroom Session: How Ideas Become Podcasts “A behind-the-scenes look at how podcast ideas are developed and commissioned – from the team behind Goalhanger’s shows.” Speakers: Nicole Logan (Executive Producer, Goalhanger) India Dunkley (Producer, Goalhanger)
Beyond the Algorithm: The Rise of YouTube Documentary “As audiences shift away from legacy media, YouTube is becoming a powerful, and deeply contested, space for documentary storytelling. But what happens to truth when we rely on platforms built for engagement?” Speakers: Ben Zand (Investigative Filmmaker, Journalist and Founder of Zandland) Andrii Kotliar (Producer, Time Machine Maidan – Babylon’13) Additional speakers to be announced. Moderator: Marianna Spring (BBC Disinformation and Social Media Correspondent)
From Headline to Screen: When Real Stories Become Drama “A behind-the-scenes look at Power: The Downfall of Huw Edwards, and the ethical, creative and legal tightrope shaping sensitive, high-stakes storytelling.” Speakers: Guy Davies (Commissioning Editor, Factual, 5) Paul Testar (Commissioning Editor, Drama, 5) Mark Burt (Writer) Louise Kentleton (Factual Producer).
When Mother’s Day rolls around, you might choose to watch a classic tear-jerker like “The Joy Luck Club” or “Steel Magnolias.” If you’re not up for an ugly cry, maybe you opt for a frothy musical like “Mamma Mia!” Then there is, or course, the most obvious choice of all, Garry Marshall’s 2016 ensemble “Mother’s Day.” In this era when women’s rights are under threat, I choose to watch Kathleen Turner as the murderess suburban mama Beverly Sutphin in John Waters’s classic 1994 dark comedy “Serial Mom.”
During a time when shiny-haired tradwives in flowy dresses are attempting to turn motherhood into some sort of sacred blessing devoid of challenges, Beverly feels pretty relatable. She’s a matriarch who has had it, which is an emotional state that many of us can relate to. She is done playing nice and adhering to the role of the perfect perky housewife. Existing in a pre-internet world, Beverly didn’t have access to mom groups that meet to let out primal screams. There were no Reddit threads to assure her that mom rage is real, and even OK (as long as you’re not actually killing anyone). Like so many of our mothers and grandmothers, Beverly was expected to tidy her painfully perfect bob, dust off her apron and deal with whatever life threw at her. Instead of keeping her mouth shut, though, this little lady becomes a homicidal Parent Teacher Association mom who murders when she’s mad.
If you’re not familiar with the film (available on demand), it’s a parody of the true-crime genre. Beverly is a pearl-clutching, fruitcake-baking pillar of motherhood, but if you chew gum, wear white shoes after Labor Day or say anything bad about her husband or children, she might just beat you to death with a leg of lamb or skewer your liver with a fireplace poker. When hubby leaves for work and the kids head to school, Beverly entertains herself by making obscene prank calls to her neighbor Dottie Hinkle (the Waters regular Mink Stole). The calls are hysterical, but I also felt bad for poor Dottie until a flashback reveals that Beverly has a reason for torturing the woman. One day at the supermarket, Dottie steals a parking spot just as Beverly is about to pull in. If a neighbor did that to me, I wouldn’t go into full-on harassment mode, but it’s fun to live vicariously through Beverly. Sure, she’s committing a misdemeanor through these calls, but blatantly stealing a parking spot is rude! Give the woman some slack.
Beverly’s earnest, clueless dentist husband is played by Sam Waterston, an actor with one of the most sincere and sympathetic visages in cinema. Her kids, the boy-crazy Misty (Ricki Lake) and the horror movie obsessive Chip (Matthew Lillard), playfully roll their eyes at their mom’s fastidiousness, but they do find it a little creepy that she has no problem violently smashing a fly on the breakfast table and leaving the blood and guts exposed. Beverly teaches her children manners like, “Don’t say hate, dear.” She views recycling as a pious activity. She’s acting a little strange lately, but a serial killer? Their mother? Never.
Waters (“Pink Flamingos, “Hairspray,” “Cry Baby”) thinks “Serial Mom” is his best film, and when I spoke to him on the phone in April, he said his mother agreed. My own mom, who happened to be a blonde suburban housewife herself, also loved “Serial Mom.” Maybe it’s because she liked to read true-crime stories and watch the crime show personality Nancy Grace on TV, and Beverly’s fictional rampage provided a humorous alternative to the depravity surrounding actual serial killers. Or maybe my mom related to Beverly. She did cart four children to doctor’s appointments and dance class and soccer practice, while still managing to cook dinner every night. She probably got fed up from time to time too. The character reminds me a little of Elizabeth Olsen’s portrayal of Candy Montgomery, who was accused of killing a woman with an ax, in “Love & Death.” The two have similar blonde bobs helmeting their deeply disturbed heads. Despite their acts, you’re meant to feel for both women, at least a little bit. There’s only so much a multitasking a mother living in a patriarchal society can take some days. You make enough snacks, you might snap.
Were Waters to direct a sequel set in the present, he said that Beverly would be a hacker, exacting her revenge online.
“If anybody didn’t treat her daughter properly, Beverly would find their porno searches and send them to their parents,” he said.
In the movie, Waters pokes fun at the overlap between criminality and celebrity. A nosy neighbor might be horrified by what Beverly has done, but in the culture at large she becomes a symbol of women asserting themselves and raining hellfire on the systems that oppress them. When Beverly is finally arrested, Chip and Misty go full Hollywood, talking to agents about a mini-series (starring Suzanne Somers, who plays herself), and selling Serial Mom merch outside the courthouse. When Somers talks to reporters during the trial, she hails Beverly as a “feminist heroine.” If Beverly were a real person, you can bet that Netflix and HBO Max would feverishly churn out riveting documentaries about her bloodthirsty, salacious ways.
I’m not condoning murder as a means to push back on repression, but I do relate to one of the Serial Mom stans at the courthouse merch table who asks the author of a tell-all book about Beverly, “Could you sign it to a future serial mom?” Or the one who adds, “I feel like killing a couple people myself.” Unlike Beverly, I’m pretty sure that they don’t mean it literally. When her well-intentioned but dopey husband tries to uncover the reason for his wife’s sudden thirst for revenge, he says, “Beverly I’ve read all about this. Is it … menopause?” He whispers the M-word as if saying it too loud will unleash an army of meat cleaver-wielding middle-age moms. It’s a line that I didn’t get as a teenager, when I first saw “Serial Mom,” but watching it again it suddenly became the funniest moment in the movie. I like to think that it was lines like this that my own mom related to as well.
Some of Beverly’s crimes are so realistic that it might be hard to find the humor, which was Roger Ebert’s main gripe about the film. It’s over-the-top to grab a leg of lamb and kill a woman who was rude to your kid, but maybe a little too close to home to watch her running over Chip’s math teacher with her car. In Beverly’s defense, though, the teacher said that Chip’s horror movie fixation was unhealthy, and asked if there were problems at home. When Beverly clutches her pearls, the teacher says, “Well you’re doing something wrong.” Tell me that wouldn’t make you feel just a little bit murderous.
“She was a really protective mother, and she stuck up for all the right things,” Waters said. “She just went too far. I mean, you wish your mother would stick up for you, but maybe not that much.”
Beverly Sutphin isn’t real. Rooting for her doesn’t mean you’re a depraved lunatic. It just means you deeply understand that moms in this country need a freaking break, and not just once a year on Mother’s Day.
The reality star announced the news during her final performance of “Chicago” on Sunday. Leavitt has played tap-dancing murderess Roxie Hart in the Broadway revival since February. TMZ published a video of the moment, in which a Broadway castmate shows Leavitt a newspaper mid-scene. Leavitt, in character as Hart, points to the headline and reads aloud: “Whitney Leavitt announces she’s leaving ‘The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives.’” The audience is heard hollering and cheering.
Leavitt followed the big reveal with an Instagram video Tuesday morning and assured fans that, although the forthcoming season will be her last, she would still appear in Season 5 of the Hulu series.
“It’s honestly so crazy to me looking back on this journey, because I had been trying to get into theater, film, way before ‘Secret Lives’ even came into my life,” she said. “The reality show just fell into my lap organically and I said yes to it. It’s definitely not the path that I had envisioned in my mind to get to where I am today, but I wouldn’t change a thing. I have experienced so much with this group of women, and through that process, I have also learned so much about myself.”
Leavitt continued, saying that the “Mormon Wives” had been through so much together, including more extreme highs and lows than audiences have seen. “No matter what happens with our relationships, that is something that will always be a part of our life, that will always be a part of my life, and I wouldn’t change a thing.”
“The times I’ve walked away from ‘MomTok,’ it came from a place of anger and frustration,” she continued. “But this time, it’s significantly different, because I’m leaving with gratitude. I feel content. I feel like this is a chapter that’s closing in my life, and honestly, I believe that’s how it was always meant to be. I’m so grateful for ‘The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives.’ It’s gotten me where I am today. It’s given me the opportunities that you all have seen. But I’m ready. I’m ready for the next chapter. And I cannot wait to share with you guys what’s next.”
Much like her “Chicago” character, Leavitt’s place in the spotlight has come with less-than-favorable tabloid fodder. She told “Oprah Daily” that, although she doesn’t fully agree that she’s a series “villain,” she’s embraced her on-screen persona. She’s been candid about being a “very ambitious woman” and using “Secret Lives” as a launchpad for a career in Hollywood — and this isn’t the first time she’s departed the show.
“I had walked away from the show,” she told Gayle King about her brief hiatus after Season 2. “I wasn’t enjoying it anymore. I left the show, and then they were almost midway through the season, and I got a call from the producers, and they said, ‘If you come back, we know that you really want this opportunity to go on “Dancing With the Stars,” but the only way that you would get this opportunity is to come back and film.’”
Last year, Leavitt partnered up with pro dancer Mark Ballas and competed on Season 34 of “Dancing With the Stars.” She was eliminated in the semifinals, finishing in sixth place, but her “Cell Block Tango” performance impressed casting directors of the long-running Broadway production. One thing led to another, and the reality star was headed to Broadway.
Although Salt Lake City may not be known for the excitement synonymous with the Big Apple, Leavitt has plenty of drama to keep her busy back in production on “Mormon Wives.”
The show hit pause in March amid a series of domestic violence investigations involving stars Taylor Frankie Paul and her on-again, off-again partner Dakota Mortensen. The Salt Lake County district attorney’s office announced in mid-April that it would not be filing charges against Paul, and shortly after, the Hulu series said it would resume filming Season 5.
In the comments section of Leavitt’s Instagram video announcing her departure, Paul wrote, “You will be missed. Chase those dreams my girl. I’m excited to see your next chapter.”
Naturally, the focus of Daredevil: Born AgainSeason 2’s finale is the conflict between Matt Murdock and Wilson Fisk. The rivals can’t seem to quit each other, and New York City falls apart as a result. In the background, though, another plot thread grows that has major implications not only for the Disney+ series but the MCU as a whole, as it potentially teases the birth of yet another Avengers team.
Throughout Born Again‘s sophomore outing, Benjamin Poindexter, aka Bullseye, works to redeem himself. He didn’t appreciate how Vanessa Fisk manipulated him into killing Foggy Nelson and landing in jail, so he takes her off the board for good. However, Matt doesn’t think killing the mayor’s wife will save Bullseye’s soul. Instead, Daredevil sends his old enemy on another mission: saving the governor of New York.
Marvel Studios
Bullseye passes his test with flying colors. But he doesn’t head for greener pastures in the Season 2 finale. The last fans see of Bullseye, he’s taking a flight none other than Mr. Charles, who’s been a thorn in everyone’s side this season.
Marvel Studios
Of course, Charles’ big claim to fame is bringing Jessica Jones back into the fold by attacking her at her home and recruiting her husband, Luke Cage, for his shady business.
Marvel Studios
While Charles keeps his real agenda close to the vest, Jessica reveals that he’s not stopping with Luke and actively searching for superpowered individuals. That’s something his boss, MCU frequent flyer Valentina Allegra de Fontaine, also knows a thing or two about.
Marvel Studios
Without outright confirming it, Born Again teases that another metahuman team is about to assemble. The easy theory is that it’s just another version of the Thunderbolts, ready to fight only for themselves and whoever’s cutting the biggest check. However, Charles and Valentina may have something else in mind for their new toys, especially if the comics are anything to go on.
Valentina Allegra de Fontaine Could Be Preparing To Unleash The Dark Avengers On The MCU
Marvel Studios
Valentina spent the entirety of Thunderbolts* trying to save her own skin. The government was ready to expose her illegal schemes, and only something huge could throw it off the scent. That’s where the Thunderbolts came in. After protecting NYC from The Void, the former freelance mercenaries were introduced to the world as the New Avengers. Unfortunately, Valentina’s win was short-lived, as Yelena Belova made it clear she was working for them, not the other way around.
Clearly, Valentina isn’t someone who’s willing to pass the baton. With that in mind, her next logical move would be to set up a failsafe by building a team capable of standing against the New Avengers or anyone else who gets in her way.
Despite never appearing in the movies, Luke and Bullseye are no slouches, being as formidable as anyone on the New Avengers not named Sentry. And that’s not all the two Netflix-born characters have in common.
Marvel Comics
In the pages of Marvel Comics, Norman Osborn filled a power vacuum by forming the Dark Avengers, made up of former villains. Bullseye earned a spot on the initial roster, dressing up as Hawkeye to put the public’s mind at ease. Norman couldn’t keep a lid on the situation, though, and the Dark Avengers were eventually disbanded after a failed siege on New Asgard.
Years later, Luke volunteered to watch over a new iteration of the team. His tenure as the Dark Avengers’ leader wasn’t particularly notable, but the MCU could make up for that by handing him the keys. After all, it’s hard to imagine Luke taking orders from Bullseye or any other anti-hero that wants to learn the value of teamwork.
It could take years to learn what Charles and Valentina are actually up to, since the MCU isn’t quick about paying off teases these days. But Born Again Season 3 is sure to peel back the curtain a bit, with Luke already confirmed to appear alongside Jessica and his fellow Hero for Hire, Danny Rand.
And if the Dark Avengers are in the cards for Luke and Bullseye, there’s a good chance they join the growing list of Netflix characters to make the jump to the big screen, getting to share the stage with the likes of Daredevil and Punisher.
DC Studios’ Man of Tomorrowconfirmed its seventh villain based on a set photo shared by director James Gunn on social media. The highly anticipated sequel to 2025’s Superman will feature an unexpected alliance between David Corenswet’s Superman and Nicholas Hoult’s Lex Luthor, as they team up to face the impending arrival of Brainiac on Earth. Aside from Brainiac’s sinister presence and Luthor’s duality, Man of Tomorrow will also feature supporting antagonists in the background, such as Rick Flag Sr. (who revealed his evil side in Peacemaker Season 2) and The Engineer.
DC Studios co-CEO James Gunn shared a new behind-the-scenes photo from the set of Man of Tomorrow, showcasing a director’s chair and a white sculpted bust that confirms the inclusion of Superman villain Mr. Handsome in the upcoming sequel, with the caption, “We’re live.”
Mr. Handsome will be the seventh DCU villain to join the Superman sequel, alongside Lex Luthor, Brainiac, and Rick Flag Sr.
DC Studios
Mr. Handsome had a memorable role in Supermanas a loyal ally of Lex Luthor in the pocket universe prison that he controls. Gunn confirmed that Lex Luthor created Mr. Handsome in a petri dish when he was just 12 years old, making him his first attempt to create a human.
DC Studios
Mr. Handsome is deemed the only entity in the world for whom Lex feels genuine affection, which makes his return in Man of Tomorrow not surprising.
It remains to be seen how Mr. Handsome fits into the 2027 DCU movie, but it’s possible that he was also sent to prison because Lex’s pocket dimension was seemingly shut down by the government at the end of the first film.
Given that there is a “Mr. Handsome Fan Club” present in the sequel, it’s reasonable to assume that Lex might have indulged his paternal pride by engineering a captive audience for his favorite creation. Lex might have lured other prisoners into fawning over Mr. handsome, turning the grotesque, scary being into an object of mandatory adoration.
Man of Tomorrow has already begun filming and will arrive in theaters on July 9, 2027.
Every Confirmed Villain In Man of Tomorrow
Lex Luthor
DC Studios
Lex Luthor is positioned as a complex anti-hero who teams up with Superman out of necessity in Man of Tomorrow.
There is a strong chance that Luthor will likely betray Superman at some point in Man of Tomorrow, but he might have to wait until Brainiac gets defeated to ensure that the cosmic threat is gone.
The fact that Superman and Lex Luthor are forced to join forces underscores Brainiac’s god-like power, making him a true big bad that needs to be dealt with before its too late.
Brainiac’s main modus operandi involves shrinking entire cities, botting them as trophies before destroying the rest. This is on top of his near-limitless intelligence, overwhelming physical power, and access to advanced technology.
Vengeance basically consumed Rick Flag Sr. after he learned that Peacemaker killed his son during the events of The Suicide Squad, leading to him trapping Christopher Smith alone in the Salvation planet at the end of Season 2. This shift cemented his antagonistic turn, setting the stage for his villain role in the Superman sequel.
The Engineer
DC Studios
Following her impactful debut in 2025’s Superman movie, The Engineer is confirmed to return in Man of Tomorrow.
While her role in the plot is still being kept under wraps, there is a strong chance that she will agree to join sides with the heroes in the fight against Brainiac, considering that Lex already has an alliance with Superman.
Sydney Happersen is a scientist loyal to Lex Luthor and now, Rick Flag Sr.
As one of the brilliant minds under the Lexcorp umbrella, Sydney’s return in Man of Tomorrow makes sense, mainly because it is an all-hands-on-deck situation with the arrival of Brainiac.
It will be interesting to see how Sydney interacts with Mister Terrific and the other members of the Justice Gang because they will be forced to work together to save Earth and humanity.
In DC Comics, Maxima viewed Superman as her only genetically compatible partner, setting the stage for her rivalry with Lois Lane. While she could begin her journey as someone who gets manipulated by Brainiac, Man of Tomorrow could possibly turn her into a hero due to her history of being a Justice League member.
Grand Theft Auto VI no doubt had a big production budget, but just how much did the game cost to make? Neither developer Rockstar nor parent company Take-Two has disclosed a number, but Take-Two boss Strauss Zelnick has now commented on the matter, saying “it was expensive.”
He said this in an interview with Business Insider, which also quoted unnamed industry analysts who said GTA 6’s budget could be as much as $1.5 billion.
Speaking to Bloomberg, Zelnick said his company has the “most amazing creative teams” and that Take-Two management insists that its creatives “pursue their passions,” even if it’s expensive.
EXCLUSIVE:Epicentre Films has acquired French rights to Mexican director Bruno Santamaría Razo’s Six months in a Pink and Blue Building ahead of its world premiere in Cannes Critics’ Week.
The deal was secured by Paris-based Luxbox which is handling international sales.
Set in Mexico City in the early 90s, the film follows the young protagonist Bruno.
As he turns 11, his growing feelings for his best friend Vladimir clash with the sudden announcement that his father has HIV. Like in salsa songs, his family tries to sing and dance their pain away. Thirty years later, Bruno films and reimagine the memory of what he could not quite perceive as a child.
The film, which is Santamaría Razo’s features directorial debut, won four awards at Films In Progress Cinélatino Toulouse before being selected to compete at Cannes Critics’ Week.
“We immediately felt this was a natural fit for Épicentre Films,” said Corentin Sénéchal, Director of Distribution at Epicentre Films, describing the work as “a film of great sensitivity and precision, where childhood is rediscovered through the lens of adulthood.”
The company’s slate includes recent distribution slate includes Ungrateful Beings by Olmo Omerzu, Justa by Teresa Villaverde and Tereza Nvotová’s upcoming drama Father.
Six Months In A Pink & Blue Building is produced by Mexico’s Ojo de Vaca Productora (Mexico) in coproduction withDesvia Films (Brazil) and Snowglobe (Denmark).
Epicentre first connected with the film when it was presented as a work in progress at Cinelatino Toulouse.
“Their enthusiasm and expertise in queer cinema, as well as their experience distributing Latin American films—such as recently A Poet—make them a perfect match for a film like Six Months in a Pink and Blue Building,” said Santamaria Razo.
In Latvia, the name Ulya is a bit like the sporting equivalent of Bono in many parts of the world. No last name needed for people to know who you are talking about! If you are not in the know yet, it is the name of legendary Latvian basketball player Uļjana “Ulya” Semjonova. Now, Ulya, a biographical drama directed by Latvian director Viesturs Kairišs that is inspired by her life, is set to world premiere in the Cannes Film Festival‘s Un Certain Regard section, bringing her story to the world.
The film follows an athlete’s journey from a rural life and feeling awkward about her unusual height and confused about her identity to basketball stardom. Latvian actor Kārlis Arnolds Avots – you may have seen him in January or Soviet Jeans – portrays the athlete and co-wrote the script with Livia Ulman and Andris Feldmanis. The cinematography was handled by Wojtek Staron.
The producer is Guntis Trekteris of Ego Media, with Ieva Norviliene, Pille Rünk and Malgorzata Staron serving as co-producers. B-Rated International is handling sales.
“Her unusual height troubles her family, who wonder if there’s a place for her in the world,” reads a synopsis for Ulya, which starts in 1964, meaning Soviet Union-era Latvia. The fact that she grows up in an Old Believers community, which follows old religious practices of the Russian Orthodox Church as they were before reforms in the mid-17th century, also puts her outside of society’s norms. The Old Believers have sometimes been compared to the Amish. But when basketball coaches see her class photo, she is called to Latvia’s capital, Riga, to join a famous basketball team, but she continues to struggle. “Accepting herself, she faces a choice: hide or aim to be the best basketball player in the world.”
THR can now reveal two exclusive clips from the black-and-white film that provide sneak peeks at the story of someone coming to realize that their life will never be quite “normal.”
The first exclusive clip from Ulya takes us right into a training session for the basketball team. Whether you have good or bad memories of sports during your school time, this scene drives home that size may not be all that matters. And it shows just how different the young woman looks and feels. Running is not an option! Watch the first clip here.
The second exclusive clip from the movie shines a spotlight on some of the future sports star’s religious upbringing in an Old Believer family. Will she choose basketball as her new faith? Check out the second exclusive scene from Ulya here.
Would you believe me if I told you that cigarette jeans are the best of two classic jean styles in one chic package? It’s true. Imagine a hybrid between mom jeans and skinny jeans, the perfect flattering combo to project an impeccable style.
Cigarette jeans first became popular in the 1980s as an alternative to the wide-leg designs of the 1970s. As the name suggests, they are characterized mainly by their slightly slim fit, which hugs the legs to create a cigarette-like silhouette.
Neil Mockford/Getty Images
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Now, this jean fit is popping back up. Brands such as Diesel, Coach, and Bally have showcased their updated versions on the runway, from washed-out designs to indigo-blue classics. Fashionable celebrities like Bella Hadid, Dakota Johnson, and Amanda Seyfried have also embraced the trend.
But what should you wear your cigarette jeans with this summer? Here are five looks you can put together using what’s already in your closet—or if not, shopping from our selections below.
In December, Hulu announced a premiere date for the reunion of the sitcom Malcolm in the Middle. Today, the streamer released a new trailer for the four-episode revival series called “Malcolm in the Middle: Life’s Still Unfair.”
In the trailer, we see Malcolm as an adult, living his best life…until being reunited with his chaotic family.
How to Watch Malcolm in the Middle: Life’s Still Unfair
The revival will premiere on April 10, 2026. You’ll be able to watch with Hulu and Hulu on Disney+ in the US and Disney+ internationally.
You can watch the original Malcolm in the Middle series now on Hulu and Hulu on Disney+.
About the Malcolm in the Middle Revival
Here’s the official synopsis from Hulu: After shielding himself and his daughter from his family for over a decade, Malcolm is dragged back into their orbit when Hal and Lois demand his presence at their 40th anniversary party.
The revival stars Frankie Muniz as Malcolm, Jane Kaczmarek as his mother Lois, Bryan Cranston as his father Hal, Chris Masterson as his eldest brother Francis, Justin Berfield as his older brother Reese, and Emy Coligado as Francis’ wife Piama.
With some of the most fearless (and, said lovingly, weirdest) programmers in North America preparing yet another stacked spread for this summer, genre devotees should have plenty to feast their eyes on in Montreal come July. The Fantasia International Film Festival is furiously gearing up for its 30th anniversary edition, and the long-running cinematic showcase in Québec has just unveiled its first wave of titles — with the full programming lineup expected in the coming weeks.
Fantasia Fest 2026 will run from July 16 to August 2 as audiences return to Concordia Hall and the J.A. de Sève cinemas, with additional screenings at Cinéma du Musée. Expect packed theaters as diehard attendees sweat it out together for another slate of movies that will blend selected filmmakers’ eclectic international tastes through a core sensibility that’s universally unhinged.
Leading the announcement is Agnieszka Smoczyńska’s “Hot Spot,” a detective story set in a world governed by sentient A.I., where a murder investigation exposes cracks in the system itself. With Noomi Rapace in the cast and a berth in the Cheval Noir Competition, it’s a major contender with strong early buzz.
On a very different wavelength, Jenn Wexler returns to the festival with “The Last Temptation of Becky,” the latest chapter in the cult-favorite franchise. Lulu Wilson’s ferocious antihero is now a CIA agent, squaring off against a modern-day Nazi played by Neil Patrick Harris, with Wexler once again leaning into maximalist violence and pitch-black humor.
Also, Fantasia continues its love affair with high-concept time experiments through Makoto Ueda’s directorial debut, “You Are the Film.” Its premise — two characters separated by distance, but interacting through a movie screen — arrives with strong word of mouth after picking up audience honors on the broader festival circuit.
The main competition also includes Kasper Kalle’s “No Rest for the Wicked,” a Danish period piece that blends gothic romance with bloodsucking creature horror against the backdrop of the Faroe Islands — and Yeom Ji-oh’s “The Eyes,” a promising, visually inventive South Korean take on the Spanish thriller “Julia’s Eyes,” following a woman investigating her sister’s death while simultaneously losing her sight.
North American filmmakers are bringing plenty of their own off-kilter energy, too. Harrison Atkins’ “Sour Minnows” plays with perception and paranoia after a strange encounter fractures a young man’s sense of reality, while Casey Walker’s “Home Bodies” traps its characters inside a tightly controlled domestic environment even as it begins to unravel. For something more grounded but no less intense, Harrison Houde’s “Tight Lettuce” digs into addiction and family ties with a mix of humor and devastation.
More selections from across the globe continue to highlight the festival’s broad range, with Giddens Ko’s “Kung Fu” drawing exciting new, large-scale martial-arts fantasy storytelling out of Taiwan. Plus, from Japanese YouTuber Koichi, “Captured!” blends influencer culture with supernatural chaos, and Yu Nakamoto’s “Break Free” follows a yakuza enforcer who stumbles into viral fame through dance, and Yusuke Iwasaki’s “Anymart” turns a convenience store into a pressure cooker for capitalist dread.
Elsewhere, the festival announcement ventures into more bizarre territory with Michael Gabriele’s “Unholy Night” aiming for holiday carnage, while Andrea Corsini’s “Ferine” channels grief into something more primal and predatory. Edwin’s “Sleep No More” dives into demonic workplace horror, while Tim Riedel’s “Ancestral Beasts” explores intergenerational trauma through a supernatural lens.
The festival’s documentary and thriller offerings round out this first programming announcement. Nick Taylor’s “Rubberhead: The Life & Monsters of Steve Johnson” examines the legacy of a legendary practical effects artist, while Akira Nagai’s “Suzuki=Bakudan” delivers a tense, twisty crime story about a man claiming he can sense bombings before they happen.
If there’s a unifying thread in this first wave, it’s a fascination with control — over bodies, systems, and even narrative itself. More titles are still to come. But for now, Fantasia’s 30th anniversary is already shaping up to be a landmark event you won’t want to miss. Read official first-wave fest synopses here.
At the beginning of the year, explosive North West beats started popping up on my Instagram feed via Babyxsosasnippets, then about a month later she was officially on the roster of Gamma, the music distribution company currently in the business of rehabilitating the image of her pops, Kanye West. Now, the 12-year-old has rapped and produced an entire EP, North4Evr, which absorbs digicore sounds—ezcodylee’s punk-inspired electric guitars on “#North4ever,” Slayr’s maximalism on “W0ah”—into her state of family-approved, pre-teen rebellion. “D!e” is the one that grabbed my attention immediately because of the intensity of her bitcrushed emotions and the out-of-thin-air Jersey club breakdown. North’s heavy distortion and fast-shifting ideas ultimately reminds me of better stuff, though, like the chaotic hilarity of skaiwater’s “Rain” and the improvisational whimsy of Lucy Bedroque’s “ultraviolet.” North’s take on this anarchy is too fine-tuned and stainless, how I imagine rage rap-inspired k-pop would go down.
For born-to-be-wild entertainment that rolls in on two wheels, check out the remarkable biker horror western The Iron Door, directed by Garrett Patten and written by Bentley Britton, Dustin Little, Aaron Sauerland, and Tiziano Tucci. Zach (Casey Deidrick) is a biker who runs a repair shop with his fellow biker buddy Chris (Brock O’Hurn). Zach has acquired his dead dad’s journal, which chronicled his father’s terrible obsession with trying to find a lost family fortune in the desert. Long ago, Zach’s great-grandfather, Johnny Lang (John D. Michaels), had come out west with his pregnant wife, Alice (Sarah Lieving), to find gold. Due to a tragic event involving Johnny’s golden skull rings, the Lang family ends up being put under a witch’s curse by a vengeful Bruja (Clara Rodriguez).
Alice gives birth to a hideous monster baby, which Johnny eventually abandons to die. Johnny’s gold claim ends up being stolen out from under him, so he secretly mines the gold from it and squirrels it away in a hidden cave. All the gold he stole is somewhere in one of the huge rocky outcroppings in the desert, locked behind an iron door. Zach and Chris jump on their bikes to head out into the desert, with Chris bringing along his old lady, Layla (Brooke Chamberlain). All three start their search for the iron door, not knowing of the horrors that await on the way…
Director Patten hits the right notes right away with how his old-west storyline segues into the modern biker world of the main narrative. While morally and professionally opposite, cowboys and bikers fit oddly together in American pop culture. Starting with the outlaw label, bikers tend to embody the lawless “wild west” style that captured the American imagination as a cowboy archetype. Patten knows how to direct both, as The Iron Door excels as both a western and a biker movie. There are some great motorcycle riding sequences that harken back to the best of Easy Rider. The western scenes ring true to the gritty desperation that fuels the freedom of living on the fringes of civilization.
“…the Lang family end up being put under a curse by a vengeful Bruja.”
It is the biker/western hybrid structure that elevates the horror elements of The Iron Door to greater heights. The witchcraft angle works perfectly, generating an omnipresent dread that slithers throughout the picture. The great thing about witchcraft in movies is that there is no way to measure the boundaries of the horror threat. You literally never know what can be coming at you. Rodriguez steals the show with her turn as the ultimate desert witch; she is one scary actress. She has the classic spark of terror that in the last century would have landed her on the cover of Famous Monsters of Filmland magazine.
There is also a Treasure of the Sierra Madre feel in The Iron Door, with the gold representing obsession and death more than riches and prosperity. The door itself is a great film visual, as that iron door sitting on the side of a mountain is a magnet for mysteriousness. The only missteps that keep The Iron Door from being an instant classic are too much of the horror ingredient in the soup. The mutant offspring part of the western storyline was unneeded and should have been left out. It diluted the excellent witch resonance that spanned both time periods in the film. It is also irrelevant, as all the mutant monster stuff happened in the Old West.
The worst part of the desert mutant offspring element is that it is overly familiar to audiences. With all the countless versions and rip-offs of The Hills Have Eyes that have come out, everyone knows all about that desert mutant jazz. It bleeds away some of the biggest appeal of The Iron Door: its uniqueness. There is also the unfortunate prop choices of the gold skull rings belonging to Michael’s gold prospector character. It is impossible to believe the two swap-meet biker skull rings were crafted back in the old west. Also, the mid-credit sequence is a misfire and doesn’t add anything. None of these faults is a deal breaker, though. The Iron Door is an excellent indie ride into the darkness of the New West. It is well worth catching, even if you need to saddle up and look for it.
The veteran CFL receiver announced his retirement Tuesday night via social media. The 33-year-old native of Vernon Hills, Ill., played nine seasons with the Calgary Stampeders (2016-18), Edmonton Elks (2019) and Toronto Argonauts (2021-25), winning three Grey Cups.
“I have felt the highest this game has to offer and I have felt what it’s like to lose it all,” Daniels wrote “But through every setback I found perseverance. I found gratitude.
“Nothing in life is ever promised. And through my faith I can see clearly now that God was preparing me for what was about to come. Things may not always happen when or the way you want them to — but he is always right and he is always right on time. I came out the other side grateful. Grateful to be on a team. Grateful to compete. Grateful for every single day I got to play this game.”
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The six-foot, 203-pound DaVaris Daniels didn’t divulge what might lie ahead for him.
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“As one chapter closes I step into what’s next carrying everything this game gave me — character, perspective, resilience and a gratitude for life that I never could have found any other way,” he said.
Before coming to the CFL, Daniels spent time in the NFL with the Minnesota Vikings and New England Patriots in 2015.
Daniels came by his football acumen honestly. His father Phillip Daniels, was a defensive end in the NFL for 15 seasons with the Seattle Seahawks (1996-1999), Chicago Bears (2000-2003) and Washington Redskins (2004-10).
After retiring as a player, the elder Daniels spent time in Washington’s front office before getting into coaching. He earned a Super Bowl ring in 2018 as an assistant with the Philadelphia Eagles and was the defensive line coach last season with the Grey Cup-champion Saskatchewan Roughriders.
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He’s currently in the same role with the Ottawa Redblacks.
The former Notre Dame star appeared in 125 career regular-season games, registering 444 catches for 6,609 yards and 43 touchdowns. Daniels best CFL season was in 2022 with Toronto when he had a career-best 61 catches.
The following season, Daniels recorded his only 1,000-yard receiving campaign (1,009).
Daniels was the CFL’s top rookie in 2016 while with Calgary. His Grey Cup wins came with the Stampeders (2018) and Toronto (2022, 2024).
“To the city of Calgary — you brought me back to life when I needed it most and I will never forget that,” he said. “To the city of Toronto — thank you for embracing me and making me feel at home.
“To my teammates, my family and every single fan who rode with me through this journey — I felt every bit of your support and I am deeply grateful. And above all, thank you to God for never letting me quit.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 5, 2026.
Seven candidates for California governor crowded a CNN debate stage in East Los Angeles on Tuesday, spending much of the two hours sparring and strategizing to gain an upper hand in a race that still remains fluid.
One of the few moments where the contenders didn’t interrupt each other or throw out attack lines came when they were asked about their plans to save Hollywood, as the industry grapples with a production flight to other states and countries.
Co-moderator Elex Michaelson noted that some of the candidates have come out with plans calling for unlimited tax credits to film and TV productions, rather than the $750 million currently allotted.
Asked if she also supports such open ended credits, former Rep. Katie Porter said she did, criticizing past leaders for complacency, and adding, “It’s a competition we can and must win. We have the most talented workforce. We have the best higher education system. But we do have to be competitive.”
Former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa called the gubernatorial race an “existential election for Hollywood.” While he also backed an unlimited tax credit, he said “it needs to be above and below the line.”
“The notion too many people in Sacramento believe it should just go to camera operators and make up people. It has to go to everyone,” he said.
Other candidates did not answer, as Michaelson moved on to another question.
With CNN’s national audience, the two-hour event was the largest exposure yet for the gubernatorial field, and the candidates seemed well aware of it. Most peppered their answers with biographical details and accomplishments, while focusing their attacks on rivals with an eye to disrupting the latest poll positions.
The top two finishers in the June primary will go on to the November election, regardless of party.
Based on recent polls, the leading candidates include Republican Steve Hilton, the former Fox commentator, who has consolidated some support on the right following his endorsement from Donald Trump; and Democrat Xavier Becerra, the former secretary of health and human services, who has had a quick rise at or near the top following the exit of Rep. Eric Swalwell from the race.
As such, Becerra in particular found himself the a frequent focus of attacks from Democratic rivals, starting with San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan, seeking to break through the field.
“There’s a lot of talk on this stage, but we should be honest,” Mahan said. “The experience we hear from Secretary Becerra didn’t lead to better outcomes. That led to 85,000 migrant children who were lost. More fraud in our health care system.”
Villaraigosa also attacked Becerra, linking him with a pay scandal involving his former chief of staff, who plead guilty last year to a count of conspiracy to commit bank and wire fraud.
Becerra seemed better prepared to try to deflect the attacks than in past debates, defending his record as HHS secretary and insisting multiple times that he was “not involved” in the scandal, noting that he was not named in the indictment.
“I think everyone’s invoking my name,” Becerra said. “It’s nice to hear my name quite a bit.”
He added, “I will tell you this: Distorting the facts in your quest to be governor is never good, but using Trump lies to try to damage your opponents is worse.”
Villaraigosa also spent a portion of his time focused on Hilton and the other Republican on the stage, Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco.
As Hilton blasted one party Democratic rule in the state, Villaraigosa asked, “How can you say that Democrats have it wrong when you can’t admit that Donald Trump lost the 2020 election?”
Steyer also was a target, having spent more than $130 million so far on his campaign, per the New York Times. Although he has staked out some of the most progressive policy positions in the field, he is the sole billionaire in the race.
Even Hilton took a swipe. “You pay the lowest tax rate of anyone on this stage,” he said.
Steyer ignored the remark, and said, “I’m going to go after the oil companies, make them pay for their pollution and have a windfall profits tax. I am going to drive down costs for working people.” He also said that he would vote for a wealth tax if it made the November ballot, the only candidate to do so.
One of the more unusual moments of the debate came when co-moderator Kaitlan Collins asked Bianco about his criticism of Hilton.
Collins noted, “You have called him ‘unethical and dishonest’ and said that he is trying to ‘manipulate Californians’ and ‘swindled his way into the Republican side.’”
Bianco denied that he used the word “swindle.” After Collins said that it was a quote he gave to The Atlantic, Bianco continued to deny it. When she read through the full context of the quote, he said, “I probably did say that. I didn’t use the word ‘swindle,’ whatever it was. But that context, I will agree with you 100%.”
“So you did say the quote?” Collins asked.
“Sure,” Bianco said.
Becerra and some of the other Democrats tried to position themselves as best prepared to stand up to Trump, who is deeply unpopular in the state. Mahan said that “we don’t need more MAGA values, but we also don’t need more of the same.” For her part, Porter just came out and said, “Donald Trump sucks.”
That said, amid all of the arguing on stage, Porter did try to present herself as above the fray.
“I can’t believe that on a stage with 30 minutes of interrupting and bickering and name calling and shouting and disrespect for everyone up here who’s stepping into public service that anyone wants to talk about my temperament,” she said, a reference to video that surfaced last year in which she was caught berating a staffer. She apologized for it, but the incident has hung over her campaign.
“You were actually interrupting them, too,” Bianco said. “I don’t know why you want to act like you weren’t.”
The U.S. Commerce Department’s national standards agency will run tests on new artificial intelligence models from Google, Microsoft and Elon Musk’s xAI before they are released, in a step toward greater oversight of Silicon Valley by the Trump administration.
Netflix’s The Diplomat helicoptered into LA for a glitzy gala at the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts.
The show brought out its stars as part of special FYSEE LA screening. Deadline was on site to capture the drama and dig deeper into the creative process behind the political thriller.
As part of the latest episode of On the Go with Deadline, we caught up with stars Keri Russell, Rufus Sewell, Allison Janney, Bradley Whitford, Ali Ahn and Ato Essandoh as well as creator Debora Cahn, who opened up about the challenges of writing a political series in challenging times and how she was able to pull of a big West Wing reunion.
“We call this season the split,” said Cahn. “Everything is splitting apart and everything is reconfiguring itself. The status relationships all flip flop, and we’re putting Kate in a position that she’s extremely uncomfortable in, which is where we like to have her.”
Keri Russell, who plays Kate, the U.S. Ambassador to the UK, spends much of this season frustrated by her husband Hal, who is now the Vice President of the United States. “What’s new? I mean, this guy is a lot of trouble, you know what? I mean, he’s a lot to handle. He’s putting himself and me and the country in a big predicament, and we’re gonna have to clean it up,” she said.
Allison Janney, who plays Grace Penn, who is now President, said, “It’s a pretty exciting thing to get to do as an actress, to say that I’m playing the President of the United States. However, the reality of the situation for Grace Penn is it’s not an easy jump into President of the United States. It’s a very tumultuous presidency she walks into, but it’s a lot of fun to get to know everything that I’ve done and get behind the choices I make as Grace, and then not tell anyone.”
Bradley Whitford, Janney’s former West Wing co-star who now plays First Gentleman Todd Penn, joked that the pair need more range. “We did laugh one day waiting for a motorcade because for many years, we’ve shot Presidential stuff, and said to Allison, ‘We have no f*cking range, like we’re waiting for another motorcade.”
In a new interview, Letterman said he didn’t believe CBS‘s reason for cutting the late-night talk show, calling the network “lying weasels.”
“He was dumped because the people selling the network to Skydance said, ‘Oh no, there’s not going to be any trouble with that guy. We’re going to take care of the show. We’re just going to throw that into the deal. When will the ink on the check dry?’ I’m just going to go on record as saying: They’re lying,” Letterman told The New York Times.
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The comedian doubled down and added, “Let me just add one other thing. They’re lying weasels.”
Letterman said that he was in “disbelief” when he found out the late-night show he had founded was canceled. Although he noted that CBS doesn’t “share the books” with him, he thinks that “all of television seems to have been nicked by digital communication and streaming platforms,” adding, “TV may be not the money machine it once was. On the other hand, what about the humanity for Stephen and the humanity of people who love him and the humanity for people who still enjoyed that 11:30 respite?”
The Stephen Colbert-hosted late-night show will end on Thursday, May 21. Taking over The Late Show will be Byron Allen’s Comics Unleashedstarting on Friday, May 22.
Late-night legend David Letterman is once again coming to the defense of Stephen Colbert, whose “Late Show” comes to a close later this month after CBS announced in July 2025 that the historic program was ending for good. While the network maintains the maneuver was a “financial decision,” Letterman told The New York Times that he’s not buying that rationale.
“He was dumped because the people selling the network to Skydance said, ‘Oh no, there’s not going to be any trouble with that guy. We’re going to take care of the show. We’re just going to throw that into the deal. When will the ink on the check dry?’” Letterman told NYT journalist Jason Zinoman. “I’m just going to go on record as saying: They’re lying. Let me just add one other thing, Jason. They’re lying weasels.”
When CBS announced Colbert would be pulled off the air, Paramount, CBS’ parent company, was in the process of being acquired by David Ellison’s Skydance. At the time, the deal was awaiting final approval from the FCC, and by proxy, President Donald Trump, a vocal hater of Colbert and the late-night genre. The timing of the cancellation led some, like Letterman, to speculate that Paramount and CBS cancelled “The Late Show” to appease the Trump administration and ensure the Skydance merger would go through legal scrutiny.
Letterman joined “The Late Show” as host in 1993 and stepped aside for Colbert to take his place in 2015.
This isn’t the first time Letterman spoke out in support of his successor. Shortly after news broke of “The Late Show’s” cancellation, Letterman said in an interview posted to his YouTube channel that he thought the decision was “pure cowardice.”
“They did not do the correct thing,” he added. “They did not handle Stephen Colbert — the face of that network — in the way he deserves to have been handled.”
In a pivotal moment, however, Daniel chose to protect BB Urich, who had been leaking Kingpin’s plans to the public.
At first, it appeared that Daniel was leading Urich to her demise as he tried to bring her to an apartment where Buck lay in wait. Ultimately, however, he returned BB’s phone and told her to run.
Photo: Also Nerdist
He then enters the apartment alone, where he tussles with Buck before the latter kills him with a single shot.
That, however, is not how the scene was originally filmed.
The Original Ending
In an interview with Variety, showrunner Dario Scardapane revealed that, initially, Daniel survived the encounter.
Photo: Nerdist
“The way that it would have gone is that he stayed in the Fisk administration,” he says. “He goes in to resign and the new interim mayor is like, ‘I’m not taking your resignation. I’m going to keep you close because I don’t trust you.’”
For his part, Buck would have lied to Kingpin to spare Daniel’s life.
Source: Marvel Studios
“Buck had to face up to Fisk, but he doesn’t admit it,” Froushan tells Variety. “He lies to Fisk’s face, basically, and says, ‘I killed him,’ but obviously he doesn’t.”
The Change
Long after the scene was filmed, Scardapane was watching the episode in the editing room when he realized the story felt unearned.
Photo: Marvel
Keeping Daniel alive, he determined, “was kind of meh and a non-story… Sometimes the arc is built in and you’re extending it a little too far. Like, wait a second. He and Buck, in their twisted friendship, both had to be true to who they were. That’s the last moment because everything afterwards seemed kind of like a weird, lame coda that didn’t pay off.”
Eventually, Scardapane reworked the scene in editing and had Buck kill Daniel. The final result was exactly what the team had hoped for.
Photo: Threads
“In the editing room, we’re like, ‘We should try this,’” Scardapane says. “They mocked it up really fast, and you could have heard a pin drop in the editing room after that, like it is at the end of the episode.
Then, he had to break the news to Gandolfini.
“I was like, ‘Dude, I’ve got the worst news,’” Scardapane recalled. “And he’s like, ‘I know exactly what you’re gonna say, and it’s the right choice.’ He felt in that moment that there’s no way he’s getting out of that apartment. It was funny because there were scenes shot of him after that moment, and it really feels like we’re telling the wrong story here. I think it’s a testament to how much we all love him, that we knew this character probably should not survive but we just couldn’t bring ourselves to do it.”
Spoiler Alert: This article contains spoilers for Daredevil: Born Again Season 2.Daredevil: Born Again Season 2 has concluded, and the finale featured some game-changing moments that will alter the course of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. After an epic court case and showdown that finds the citizens of New York taking a stand against Wilson Fisk, the final episode of Born Again Season 2 sets up the biggest change for Daredevil’s status quo. Kingpin has been exiled from New York City. However, Matt Murdock must reveal his secret identity to the world, which forces him to pay the price for his years as a vigilante.
Combined with the tease of more cast members of The Defenders returning, the conclusion of Daredevil: Born Again Season 2 will have major ramifications for Season 3 of the series and the MCU. The Season 2 finale teases a potential revival of Jessica Jones, more returning heroes from the Netflix series, adaptations of famous Daredevil comic runs, potential connections to Spider-Man: Brand New Day, and even a follow-up to Thunderbolts*. Here are the biggest ways Daredevil: Born Again Season 2 impacts the future of the MCU.
Matt Murdock is Under Arrest At the End of ‘Daredevil: Born Again’ Season 2
Marvel Comics
The most shocking moment in the Daredevil: Born Again Season 2 finale is Matt Murdock revealing his identity as Daredevil to the court and, therefore, the world. Instead of Wilson Fisk using Murdock’s secret identity as leverage, Matt Murdock opts to take away Kingpin’s biggest trump card to help bring him to justice. By revealing his identity, Matt Murdock effectively had his own “I am Iron Man” moment. Unlike Tony Stark, Murdock won’t walk free, as the episode ends with police arresting the lawyer for his vigilante actions. The season’s final moments show Matt Murdock behind bars.
The character has been imprisoned a few times in the comics. The most notable moment, and the one the series is likely drawing from, is “The Devil in Cell Block D” by writer Ed Brubaker and artist Michael Lark, which encompassed Daredevil vol. 2 #82 to 94 from 2006 to 2007. The second time Matt Murdock went to prison was in Chip Zdarsky’s 2020 to 2021 run about the character. Given that Born Again Seasons 1 and 2 combine elements from the Daredevil runs by Brian Michael Bendis and Charles Soule, it makes sense that Season 3 would follow their respective successors, Ed Brubaker and Chip Zdarsky.
The Kingpin is Out of New York (For Now)
Disney+
Speaking of Ed Brubaker’s run on Daredevil, Born Again Season 2 seems to be setting up an adaptation of his storyline “Return of the King” for Season 3. That plotline, published from April to September 2009, begins with Wilson Fisk in Spain attempting a new life with a single mother and her two children. However, his brief attempt at a quiet life is cut short when the Ninja organization, the Hand, and the villain, Lady Bullseye, kill the mother and her children.
Daredevil: Born Again Season 2 ends with Daredevil defeating Wilson Fisk, and he decides to leave New York City. Now that he has lost everything, from his wife Vanessa to his power, Fisk is last seen standing alone on a beach. As Matt Murdock sits in prison, Wilson Fisk walks free but alone. If Born Again Season 3 adapts “Return of the King,” we can expect Fisk’s exile from New York City to be short-lived. With The Hand set to appear in Spider-Man: Brand New Day, the ninja organization could target Wilson Fisk, leading up to his return to New York City, sporting a drastically new look.
Will Someone Take Over the Mantle of Daredevil?
Marvel Comics
Both times that Matt Murdock went to prison, someone continued his Daredevil legacy, and potentially cast doubt on the people of New York if Murdock really is a crime fighter. During Ed Brubaker’s run, it was none other than fellow member of the Defenders, Danny Rand/Iron Fist. In Chip Zdarsky’s run, Elektra, Matt Murdock’s former lover turned assassin, held this role. Iron Fist seems like the obvious candidate for Born Again Season 3, given thatIron Fist star Finn Jones has been spotted filming the next season. Meanwhile, Elektra actress Elodie Yung has teased that she hopes to return to the MCU, so the door could be open for her to take on the mantle of Daredevil.
There is also one big question: Will New York City need a Daredevil? The season finale finds Angela del Toro (Camila Rodriguez) once again using the White Tiger amulet to fight alongside Daredevil and Jessica Jones. Will she continue her uncle’s legacy as the White Tiger? Jack Duquesne (Tony Dalton), who goes by the moniker of Swordsman, disappears midway through Born Again Season 2 after an impressive fight. He could potentially return as one of New York’s new heroic figures. Along with the returning Defenders, New York City might not have a Devil in Hell’s Kitchen for a bit.
The Return of Luke Cage (and the Defenders?)
Netflix
Ever since Krysten Ritter was confirmed to return as Jessica Jones for Daredevil: Born Again Season 2, many speculated about if and when fellow Defenders Luke Cage and Iron Fist would return. While the eventual reveal of the team’s reunion might have been spoiled thanks to on-set photos, it certainly didn’t make the moment of Luke Cage (Mike Colter) standing in the door to meet Jessica Jones and his daughter, Danielle Cage, any less impactful.
The previous two episodes of Born Again established that Luke Cage had been recruited by Mr. Charles to do missions overseas. He is now home alongside Jessica Jones and his daughter, Danielle. Will Luke Cage fill the role of mayor after Wilson Fisk, as he did in the comics? Or is he about to set up his Heroes for Hire business alongside his good friend Danny Rand/Iron Fist (Finn Jones)? Those questions will be answered when the two characters return in Daredevil:Born Again Season 3.
Jessica Jones Opens Alias Investigation for Business Once More
Disney+
Daredevil: Born Again Season 2 ends with Jessica Jones seemingly reopening her private eye practice, Alias Investigations, in what appears to be the same building from the original series. The series seems to suggest that Jessica Jones might have put her life as a detective aside when she got pregnant with her daughter Danielle, whom she shares with Luke. Now, with Matt Murdock/Daredevil in prison, she seems to be willing to step back into her life.
Ritter teased that she has spoken with Marvel Studios about continuing Jessica Jones’s story. It’s unclear if that would be its own standalone revival (Jessica Jones: Born Again?), a Marvel One-Shot, or just in Daredevil: Born Again Season 3. Since the MCU’s in-universe timeline of Jessica Jones Season 3 (2018) and Daredevil: Born Again Season 2 (2027) spans around nine years, there are a lot of gaps to fill, including when she and Luke Cage finally decided to settle down.
Will Jessica reconnect with her adopted sister, turned killer vigilante Trish Walker (Rachel Taylor), who is currently serving time on the Raft alongside President Thaddeus Ross/The Red Hulk, Samuel Sterns/The Leader, and Baron Zemo? How does being a mother change Jessica’s job? That is plenty of material to explore here.
A ‘Thunderbolts’ Sequel Tease?
Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
When Luke Cage returns, he tells Jessica Jones he found someone to take his place for Mr. Charles on these seemingly black-ops international missions: Bullseye. With Mr. Charles working for Valentina Allegera de Fontainne, and Daredevil: Born Again Season 2 taking place close to the events of Thunderbolts*, there are a lot of questions about Luke Cage, along with Bullseye’s relationship with Mr. Charles and Valentina.
The most exciting possibility seems to be that Valentina is building a second team of characters to do her dirty work in the shadow of The New Avengers. Now that Valentina can’t control The New Avengers, it makes sense that she would form a new team to follow her commands. This new team could be designed to be foes for The New Avengers and possibly replace them… the Dark Avengers maybe? Bullseye’s status as a member of The Dark Avengers in the comics lends weight to this theory.
That sounds like an exciting sequel tease for Thunderbolts* and wouldpit this New Avengers team vs a shadowy team recruited by Val that is more aligned with the Suicide Squad-like pitch that many expected Thunderbolts* would be. The storyline could unfold after Avengers: Secret Wars, and could also connect the street-level Disney+ series to the feature films.
Daredevil’s Future in the MCU
Disney/Marvel Studios/Courtesy Everett Collection
Daredevil: Born Again Season 3 is currently filming and is expected to air on Disney+ in March 2027. Even though it will be released after Spider-Man: Brand New Day and Avengers: Doomsday, it’s expected to take place before the events of both films. While they are set in December 2028 within the MCU timeline, Born Again Season 2 is set in October 2027. However, thanks to the news that Born Again Season 2 has half the ratings of Season 1, Season 3 could be the series’ final outing.
The next MCU release is The Punisher: One Last Kill, a Marvel Special Presentation scheduled for May 12, 2026. The Punisher, who was absent from Daredevil: Born Again Season 2, will also return in Spider-Man: Brand New Day, which will be released on July 30. The teaser trailer for Spider-Man: Brand New Day spoiled the ending of Born Again Season 2, as it featured Sheila Rivera (Zabryna Guevara) as the mayor of New York City, giving Spider-Man the key to the city.
The season finale of Born Again, featuring Matt Murdock in prison now, could give new meaning to the fight scene in the Brand New Day trailer of Spider-Man fighting The Hand in a prison. Does this mean that Matt Murdock/Daredevil will have a cameo in Brand New Day? Since Charlie Cox previously had a cameo as Murdock in Spider-Man: No Way Home, and Peter Parker knows his former lawyer is Daredevil, he might want to seek out his help. Even though Daredevil’s role in the upcoming movie isn’t confirmed, it certainly feels like a real possibility now following the end of Born Again Season 2.
The CEO of Hitman studio IO Interactive has assured players that the Switch 2 version of 007 First Light will be released eventually, and that he’ll do everything in his power to ensure it runs well.
007 First Light is set for release on May 27 on PS5, Xbox Series X/S and PC, but the Switch 2 version – which was originally set to release alongside the others – has now been delayed to later in the summer.
In an interview with The Game Business, Hakan Abrak was asked how things were going with the Switch 2 version, and whether it was “doing a Borderlands 4“.
“What did Borderlands do?” Abrak asked. He was then informed that the Switch 2 version of Borderlands 4 was indefinitely delayed back in September 2005, just days before its release, and there’s been no sign of it in the eight months since.
“No, no, no,” Abrak replied. “It’s running. It’s running on Switch [2]. We must just admit that we want to make sure that it’s as good as… I don’t want to hear ‘oh, it wasn’t a good version, blah blah blah’, so we just, to be completely honest, we need a bit more time to get it where we want it to be.
“And, you know, we said summer, it’s probably going to be late summer, right? But we’re going to get it out.”
Abrak was then asked how the Switch 2 version of Hitman: World of Assassination has gone down since it was released as a launch game for Nintendo‘s system.
“I think the first experience we had on Switch was actually the cloud solution we did way back, which was, I think, a bit of an experiment,” he replied, referring to the 2021 cloud streaming version of the game on Switch.
“If I’m going to be completely honest with you, I think a lot of Switch games did not adopt that service on that platform back then. But getting Hitman out on Switch 2, natively running, has been a much better experience, both for the games and also our standard for what we want to have running on it.”
Referring to Nintendo 64 classic GoldenEye, he added: “Bond has a special place on that platform, on Nintendo. And I promise I will do everything – and I can do quite a lot in IO’s context, being the CEO as well! – I’ll do everything to get that out in great shape.”
VGC recently went hands-on with 007 First Light and first impressions were positive, calling it “a game of the year contender, and maybe the best Bond game yet”.
Eugene Mirman knows what you’re thinking. Last we heard from the “Bob’s Burgers” star a little more than a month ago, he had just been in a terrible car crash that had engulfed his car with flames. It looked pretty gnarly. But yet, here he is on the phone, promoting his new comedy special “Here Comes the Whimsy” — premiering May 5 on YouTube. How is he back on the promo circuit so soon?
“I know, I obviously went through an insane accident,” he told Variety. “For the first few days, people didn’t know it was me! But I am doing really good. I was injured, but not nearly as much as probably the images that were out there in the world potentially made it seem. So I’m doing not bad. I was just at the Lego store for ‘May the Fourth’ with my son, looking at Star Wars Legos. So I’m back in life.”
Mirman joked that this is hopefully his “only near-death experience. I guess I would say I’m doing pretty good considering how insane it was.”
Mirman sustained serious injuries and was transported to a hospital after crashing into the Bedford Toll Plaza on New Hampshire’s F.E. Everett Turnpike on March 31. As his car burst into flames, he was pulled from the wreckage by a group of witnesses including a state trooper on the security detail of New Hampshire governor Kelly Ayotte, who happened to be nearby.
Mirman said he doesn’t remember the accident. “I don’t know what happened or caused it, though I am trying to figure out or do anything I can for myself to avoid anything like that,” he said. “Mostly I’m sort of happy to be here.”
That also means he hasn’t looked at footage of the accident, other than brief images of his face next to the car on fire. “What you’re describing sounds awful, and yeah, I don’t have an interest in seeing that,” Mirman said. “I remember certainly being in the ambulance andseeing a little bit of fire. I don’t know exactly when it started. I know that obviously the vehicle was was quite engulfed in flames, but I wasn’t burned myself — which is obviously incredibly lucky. The amount I feel fortunate is huge. But I haven’t watched the videos, and I’m not interested yet. I don’t know if there’ll be a time when I’m 78 and like, ‘oh, you know what? I should really look up all those videos to see how truly traumatized I should I should be moving forward!’”
Mirman said he wound up breaking his wrist, some ribs and suffering a concussion, which is probably why he doesn’t remember the accident. “It was a huge accident, but in the big picture, I’m sitting and doing an interview a month later, so I’m okay,” he said.
The comedian, who voices middle child Gene Belcher on “Bob’s Burgers,” was scheduled to do a recording session for the animated series the day after the accident, which was postponed. But by the following week, he was ready to get back to work.
“Fox and Disney, everyone reached out,” he said of the support he got from the show and its producers. “But the next week I got to record, and recently I was in LA and got to record in studio. I have a guess of what the images they saw were, and I’m sure they were terrifying. And I feel bad that everyone was put into an emotional place of being so concerned. Ultimately, I’m just so incredibly thankful to be OK.”
And that brings us to “Here Comes the Whimsy,” his first new comedy special in a decade. “Here Comes the Whimsy” previously premiered on the comedy streaming service Veeps, and now will get much wider distribution via YouTube.
Mirman noted that during those years he took some time off from touring due to, of course, the pandemic, but also after his first wife passed away from cancer. “Life changed in certain ways,” he said. “But I adored standup. The truth is, I really adore the whimsy of stand up. I do kind of thrive in the silliness of stuff. And not that I don’t have anecdotes, and you’ll get some new things. But I think so much of what I love is these sort of absurd takes everyday things.”
As pandemic restrictions loosened, Mirman did some short tours and began working on material for “Here Comes the Whimsy,” which as described in the special’s logline, features the comedian’s “trademark playful spirit to reveal a series of mild grievances through anecdotes from fatherhood, insights from travel, dress-code trauma, rental car disputes, and more.”
To promote the special, and its accompanying album recording, Mirman’s team also came up with some whimsical items: “We made a lot of sort of very silly packages,” he said. “I made bags of flour that I drew a face on and put a little speaker on that has me saying something silly. You could buy that. We sold packages where I would write someone’s obituary in advance, and they could use it whenever they want. So we kind of coupled these weird gift packages with the vinyl and the special and different things.”
Mirman, whose other credits include “Flight of the Conchords,” “Delocated,” “Archer,” “Broad City,” “Last Week Tonight With John Oliver,” “Inside Amy Schumer,” and “Confess, Fletch,” is back out doing standup. That means he’s also deciding whether his recent accident — and the headlines it generated — will make their way into his act.
“I will probably do stand up about this. It would be probably odd to not mention it,” he said. “I’m going to be doing stand up in the coming weeks, and I’m sure I’ll talk about it and try to work out material. Ultimately, that’s what comedians do. It is funny to be like, ‘I’ll hopefully turn this near death experience into 15-20 great minutes!’ Or four extraordinary minutes. We’ll find out!”
Watch “Eugene Mirman: Here Comes the Whimsy” on YouTube below:
Barry Diller is weighing in on CNN and is open to buying the news organization before it’s too late to salvage.
During an appearance at The Wall Street Journal’s Future of Everything Festival, Diller made the bold claim about the news network.
“Absolutely, I would do it tonight and tomorrow night,” he said, according to TWSJ. “Before they ruin it any further. Hopefully, before it’s extinct, which, I mean, it’s not gonna be.”
Diller added that CNN is “so ripe” for innovation and noted that they have invested in becoming a digital property, but he thinks it needs more investment in its on-air programming.
“So how they do that and navigate also running the surviving businesses…I don’t know,” he said.
CNN is currently owned by Warner Bros. Discovery, with Paramount agreeing to buy and merge the company in an $81 billion deal. If the merger goes through, Diller noted that the cuts will be a “savage process.”
Diller is familiar with restructuring and layoffs, as his Interactive Corp. (IAC) is renaming itself People Inc. and making drastic cuts.
“We’re transitioning the necessary staff of IAC into the corpus of People,” Diller wrote in a memo to staff on April 28. “That will significantly reduce our overhead.”
The layoffs are expected to affect several dozen corporate staffers, generating $40 million in annual run-rate cost savings, the company estimates.
In the memo, Diller also said, “I plan to continue to do what I have done here for years as Chairman and Senior Executive—be an advisor, instigator, stimulus, and sometimes irritant to the process. I will also continue to oversee our MGM investment.”
OpenAI is making it easier for advertisers to buy ads in ChatGPT with a self-service ads platform, new partners, measurement tools, and bidding options.
The AI giant’s self-service ads manager is now available in beta to U.S. advertisers, according to a blog post on OpenAI’s website. Brands can also buy ads through new adtech partners, Pacvue and Kargo. StackAdapt, which ADWEEK previously reported on, was also included in the announcement.
“Conversational AI is the most significant new channel since the rise of retail media, and brands need more than a native UI to compete. They need the automation, control, and cross-channel attribution that drive real performance at scale,” Melissa Burdick, president and cofounder of Pacvue, said in a statement.
While going to Walt Disney World on a weekday rather than a weekend is usually a safe bet for a smoother time in the parks, that was absolutely not the case at Hollywood Studios on Monday when the Star Wars fans came in droves for May the 4th. As guests went to Galaxy’s Edge on the pop culture holiday, many suggested the space was actually at capacity.
I’ve never been more inspired to skip a Disney day. Just take a look at this guest’s photo of the view:
The Courtyard Is At CAPACITY!!!!! pic.twitter.com/sM7zTP0yeCMay 4, 2026
The force is strong… perhaps too strong. Galaxy’s Edge is a spacious section of Walt Disney World’s Hollywood Studios, but everyone looks like they are all squished together with nowhere to move. What’s especially wild about this sight is apparently there was no special programming at Galaxy’s Edge.
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Star Wars fans just all seemed to want to gather on the franchise’s holiday. One guest called it “unbearable” while sharing this video:
I am pretty sure Galaxy’s Edge was at Capacity tonight..I am sure this is why Star Wars Events won’t come to WDW as it’s almost unbearable to navigate through. pic.twitter.com/irh6xeQkRHMay 5, 2026
It’s tradition for Star Wars fans to gather at Galaxy’s Edge and raise up their lightsabers together, but it perhaps got a little too popular this year. In one conversation happening over on Facebook, an alleged cast member said that they would absolutely close off the land’s entrance to more guests should they reach capacity.
While we don’t know if that happened for sure, it certainly seems like that may have happened on Monday. Here’s another account of Star Wars Day at WDW’s Galaxy Edge:
I’ve never seen this many people inside Galaxy’s Edge 😳. #MayThe4th pic.twitter.com/bJx81fcoqYMay 4, 2026
Changes aside, the big showout for Star Wars Day shows that the fandom remains active and excited to spend the holiday at Hollywood Studios where it really can feel like you’re living in a Star Wars movie. It’s too bad that the new version of Smuggler’s Run inspired by The Mandalorian & Grogu doesn’t come out until May 22.
We’ve been thinking about how Disney perhaps missed an opportunity by not tying May the 4th to ticket sales for the latest of upcoming Star Wars movies since The Mandalorian & Grogu comes to theaters on May 22, but Hollywood Studios certainly got an increase in business! We’ll have to see how Star Wars fans show out for the first big-screen Star Wars movie since 2019 when it hits theaters then.
Jordan Peele’s Monkeypaw Productions has laid off 3 staffers from the development team, TheWrap has learned.
The company will maintain a staff of four.
According to the Hollywood Reporter, which first reported the news, “Peele wants to be take a more hands-on involvement in the development of projects.”
Since the 2017 release of his breakout feature debut “Get Out,” which won him an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay, Peele has become one of the most prolific filmmakers and producers through Monkeypaw, releasing the acclaimed horror films “Us” in 2019 and “Nope” in 2022.
Monkeypaw produced “Him,” which was released last year and bombed at the box office.
In his review of the film, TheWrap’s William Bibbiani wrote, “‘Him’ lacks the fascinating characters, the misdirection, the carefully stretched out suspense, and the thoughtfulness that makes a spider web movie work. You learn about as much from the movie as you do from the trailer, and the trailer is free to watch and saves you a lot of time. Kudos to Marlon Wayans for bringing his A-game, but almost everybody else gives this game away.”
Peele’s next movie as director has been stuck in development hell as the untitled project was initially scheduled to be released in Dec. 2024, but then the project got pushed to 2026, then taken off the schedule entirely. Peele is continuing to develop his follow-up to his 2022 film “Nope,” which will be the fourth of his directorial career. Like his past works, it will be a horror thriller, but plot details are being kept under wraps.
‘Resident Evil’ (2026)Credit: Sony Pictures Entertainment
