Steve Pond's Blog, page 151

‘The Chi’ Season 7 Episode Release Guide: When Does the Drama Premiere?

“The Chi” Season 6 is heading back to screens with Season 7 of the Chicago-based drama.

Lena Waithe’s hit coming-of-age story, which is centered on a group of residents on the South Side of Chicago who end up linked together by a coincidence and are “bonded by the need for connection and redemption,” officially makes its return on Friday, giving fans even more action as longtime characters take on new responsibilites in Season 7.

The series was created and executive produced by Waithe under her Hillman Grad banner, and the show is executive produced by co-showrunners Justin Hillian and Jewel Coronel, and rapper, actor and producer Common.

Here’s everything you need to know about how to watch.

When does “The Chi” Season 7 premiere?

“The Chi” Season 7 premieres on Paramount+ with Showtime on Friday, May 16 at 9 p.m. EST/PST.

Are new episodes streaming?

Yes, new episodes will first premiere on Paramount+ with Showtime starting Friday, May 16. After their premiere, the episode will land on Showtime on Sundays, starting May 18.

“The Chi” Season 7 Episode Release Schedule:

Here’s the episode release schedule for Season 7 of “The Chi.” New episodes will first premiere on Paramount+ with Showtime starting Friday, May 16. After their premiere, the episode will land on Showtime on Sundays, starting May 18.

Season 7, Episode 1, “Black Friday” – May 16 and May 18Season 7, Episode 2, “The Fall Out” – May 23 and May 25Season 7, Episode 3, “More Life” – May 30 and June 1 Season 7, Episode 4, “Mother’s Day” – June 6 and June 8Season 7, Episode 5, “Safe Harbor” – June 13 and June 15Season 7, Episode 6, “Do The Chi Thing” – June 20 and June 22Season 7, Episode 7, “Unfinished Business” – June 27 and June 29Season 7, Episode 8, “A Bet It Is A Bet” – July 11 and July 13Season 7, Episode 9, “Last Respects” – July 18 and July 20Season 7, Episode 10, “Tha Block Is Hot” – July 25 and July 27Season 7, Episode 11, “Ready Or Not” – TBASeason 7, Episode 12, “Rebirth” – TBAWhat is Season 7 of “The Chi” about?

Here’s Paramount+’s official description: “In season seven, with Alicia at the helm, the pivotal women of ‘The Chi’ rise to reclaim their power. Yet, as loyalties are tested and new rivalries are stoked, it becomes clear that there’s only one crown and it will come at a heavy cost.”

Who is in the “The Chi” Season 7 cast?

The cast includes Jacob Latimore, Lynn Whitfield, Yolonda Ross, Shamon Brown Jr., Michael V. Epps, Birgundi Baker and Luke James. Kadeem Hardison, Chris Lee, Brett Gray, Rotimi, Jackie Long, Charmin Lee, Jill Marie Jones, and Daniel J. Watts return to guest star, alongside Hannaha Hall, Jason Weaver, La La Anthony, Vic Mensa, Kandi Burruss, Tai Davis, Rolando Boyce, Ahmad Ferguson, Cortez Smith, Genesis Denise Hale, Joel Steingold, Judae’a Brown, Zaria Imani Primer, L’lerrét Jazelle, and Brian Keys.

Watch the trailer

The post ‘The Chi’ Season 7 Episode Release Guide: When Does the Drama Premiere? appeared first on TheWrap.

‘Murderbot’ Release Guide: When Are New Episodes Out?

Apple TV+ continues to build out its already impressive library of sci-fi TV shows with “Murderbot.” The new comedy from showrunners Paul and Chris Weitz (“About a Boy”) joins “Silo,” “Foundation” and “Severance” as yet another high-concept, star-studded sci-fi offering from its streaming service. Whether or not it will experience the same level of success as those shows remains to be seen, but thanks to its comedic tone and decidedly inhuman protagonist, it seems primed to stand distinctly on its own even in today’s increasingly crowded TV space.

Here is how, when and where you can watch new episodes of “Murderbot.”

When does “Murderbot” premiere?

“Murderbot” premieres Friday, May 16.

How can I watch “Murderbot”?

The sci-fi series streams exclusively on Apple TV+.

When are new episodes released?

New episodes of “Murderbot” debut weekly on Fridays.

When do new “Murderbot” episodes come out?

Apple TV+ is sticking to its preferred release strategy with “Murderbot.” The series’ first two episodes both premiere on the same day. Its remaining eight installments will then be released one at a time through July 11. You can find the series’ full episodic release schedule below:

Episode 1, “Free Commerce” — May 16Episode 2, “Eye Contact” — May 16Episode 3, “Risk Assessment” — May 23Episode 4, “Escape Velocity Protocol” — May 30Episode 5, “Rogue War Tracker Infinite” — June 6Episode 6, “Command Feed” — June 13Episode 7, “Complementary Species” — June 20Episode 8, “Foreign Object” — June 27Episode 9, “All Systems Red” — July 4Episode 10, “The Perimeter” — July 11What is “Murderbot” about?

Based on a Hugo and Nebula Award-winning book series by author Martha Wells, “Murderbot” follows a self-hacking cyber security robot who is both appalled by human behavior and still drawn to protect its clients. When it is assigned to accompany a group of human scientists on a dangerous mission, it must learn to hide its newfound free will, even though all it really wants is to be left alone to watch its soap operas in peace.

Who is in the “Murderbot” cast?

“Murderbot” is led by “Big Little Lies” and “Succession” star Alexander Skarsgård, who plays its titular, humanoid android. The rest of the show’s ensemble cast includes Noma Dumezweni (“Presumed Innocent”), David Dastmalchian (“Late Night with the Devil”), Sabrina Wu (“Joy Ride”), Akshay Khanna (“Red, White & Royal Blue”), Tamara Podemski (“Outer Range”), John Cho (“Star Trek”), Clark Gregg (“Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.”), DeWanda Wise (“Jurassic World: Dominion”), Jack McBrayer (“30 Rock”), Anna Konkle (“PEN15”) and Tattiawna Jones (“Orphan Black: Echoes”).

Watch the trailer:

The post ‘Murderbot’ Release Guide: When Are New Episodes Out? appeared first on TheWrap.

‘The Chronology of Water’ Review: Kristen Stewart’s Expansive, Evocative Work of Cinematic Poetry

Actors turning to directing is nothing new, but it’s unlikely you’ve seen a performer’s directorial debut as boldly confident and emotionally precise as Kristen Stewart’s “The Chronology of Water.” 

Where other performers have stuck to what they were familiar with from past roles or even cast themselves in key parts for their first film behind the camera, Stewart does neither. This is no safe vanity project, but one of immense passion that she has been trying to get made for the better part of a decade. We can now be glad she did; this is a formally ambitious and raw vision that not only does justice to the acclaimed memoir of the same name by Lidia Yuknavitch, but becomes a distinct work all its own. Visually haunting, with disquieting snapshots of pain, abuse and addiction giving way to something approaching tentative tranquility, it’s a film that establishes Stewart as an exciting new filmmaker who we can only hope to see more of. 

This adaptation is raw in more ways than one — in that it reveals a raw nerve of emotion, but also because it is very much a first feature with Stewart feeling some things out. There are moments where it teeters on the edge of being blunt with the dialogue spelling things out more than it needs to or the direction overplaying its hand in how it keeps shifting the colors in a single scene. It’s less a biopic that follows a linear path and more one about embracing the connections that stick in our memories as we try to process what happened to us many decades later. The film does so via intense close-ups (rarely will you see an establishing shot be used), plenty of quick cuts, all-consuming sound design and visuals that plunge us into a more dreamlike state of being. It’s a film that isn’t afraid to disorient, even disturb, as the subject matter itself is often disorienting and disturbing. Similar to Yuknavitch’s writing, Stewart’s film is about understanding the pains of the past through art that openly and honestly reflects on all we carry with us.

Premiering Friday at the Cannes Film Festival, “The Chronology of Water” stars a never-better Imogen Poots as Lidia, a woman who turns to swimming and later writing as salvation from a childhood defined by abuse. We first get an understanding of this in the opening moments that pull us right into the character’s mind with voiceover narration and claustrophobic visuals. It’s potent work that explores her emotions with an ephemeral and evocative cinematic grammar from DP Corey C. Waters. Editor Olivia Neergaard-Holm (who previously cut this year’s body horror film “The Ugly Stepsister”) stitches it all together into something closer to psychological horror than a straight drama. It doesn’t do so in an exploitative way, as it still is attuned to character above spectacle, and instead finds small moments of grace amid the pain. 

Sometimes, these elements mix. The way Stewart reverentially captures the water, which we see in the excellent opening shot as a place of quiet peace before it is broken by someone cutting through it, establishes it as Lidia’s escape. But her escape can also be poisoned with abuses from her swim coach, her father. Even as Lidia later gets a swimming scholarship to compete at the collegiate level, poison finds a way of dripping through. Stewart captures that steady, painful tension with scenes that crashing into each other like the wake Lidia leaves in the water. It’s fearless filmmaking that isn’t afraid to challenge its audience.

Operating in complete synchronicity with Stewart, Poots embodies Lidia’s many complexities. Whether it is when she is staring down her abusive father with grim resistance or beginning to fall into addiction to cope with her trauma, her multifaceted performance hits all the notes it needs to. Even when playing opposite a drunken Jim Belushi, who gives an excellent turn as Yukanavitch’s late mentor and writing partner Ken Kesey, Poots never gets swept away. She’s an arresting, grounding emotional force who makes the big swings the film takes hit home. 

Through all of this, Stewart’s film is a work of art that, much like the memoir, is also about art as a way of healing. Her slow-burn treatment of the source material contends with how pain is a living, breathing history everyone carries with them. It’s not something that can be ignored, and not all poisons have easy antidotes. Stewart cuts into those themes with decisive and devastating care, showing how there can be a way to feel at home again in the water. It might take a lifetime — or as we see in Lidia’s story, many lifetimes within one. But that only makes it more essential for art to confront it in the first place.

The post ‘The Chronology of Water’ Review: Kristen Stewart’s Expansive, Evocative Work of Cinematic Poetry appeared first on TheWrap.

Stephen Colbert Jokes That Instead of Canceling Child Food Programs, ‘Republicans Can Eat a D–‘ | Video

Stephen Colbert got a little blue during his monologue on Thursday’s “The Late Show” thanks to his disagreement with Republican policies.

But Colbert offered a compromise to Republicans if they’d back down from one of those policies, joking that in exchange, “they can eat a d—.”

“Republicans are trying to give Trump a gift before his big birthday parade, a budget that would cut Medicaid to finance tax cuts for billionaires,” Colbert said, elicitin boos from the audience.

“If this bill is passed, experts estimate that in the next 10 years, 8.6 million fewer Americans will have health care coverage. I for one, look forward to the pharmaceutical ads,” Colbert continued. At this point he turned to another camera, and the screen displayed a logo that said “rubbing some dirt on it.”

“No health care? Ask your doctor about rubbing some dirt on it. Side effects include getting dirty, and death,” Colbert said.

“There’s also going to be cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program,” he continued. “Republicans have proposed limiting nutrition aid to only US citizens and green card holders. Or counterpoint, hear me out. What if we keep giving food to all the hungry children and to make up for that Republicans can eat a d—?”

“How about that?” Colbert added. “You know what? In fact, let’s be generous. They can eat a bag of d—s.” Well ok then.

Watch the whole monologue below:

The post Stephen Colbert Jokes That Instead of Canceling Child Food Programs, ‘Republicans Can Eat a D–‘ | Video appeared first on TheWrap.

Chris Hayes Chuckles at the Possibility Qatar’s Gift Jet Made a ‘Sucker’ Out of Trump | Video

MSNBC’s Chris Hayes had a good chuckle on Thursday night’s episode of “All In” when he briefly touched on the topic of Donald Trump’s acceptance of an expensive luxury jet as a personal gift from Qatar.

That gift of course violates the U.S. Constitution, but as Hayes noted there’s a strong chance it also makes a big “sucker” of Trump — because it turns out the government of Qatar has been trying to unload it for years.

Hayes began the segment by talking about Michael Jordan’s former Chicago home, a massive, bespoke mansion he’s been trying to sell since 2013. Jordan finally sold it late last year, for $20 million below asking price, and Hayes explained why.

“Now this actually happens with really rich people’s homes all the time, because when you have limitless funds, like Michael Jordan, you can build yourself a home that is very specific to your tastes and identity,” Hayes said. “Easy to see why Michael Jordan would want his jersey number 23 welded on his front gate. But why would anyone else want that? Does anyone else need a full sized Michael Jordan themed basketball court in their home with the names of his children inscribed on the center ring? Or, for that matter, does your average multi multi millionaire want a putting green with Jump Man themed flags?”

“Most people with the money to buy a super expensive house, one that expensive, will just build their own mansion with their own decor,” Hayes continued. “They don’t need Michael Jordan’s hand me downs.”

This segued into the discussion of the $400 million private jet from Qatar, which Hayes joked is “the Michael Jordan’s house of private planes.”

“It was initially designed back in 2012 for the former Qatari Prime Minister. but it sounds like the expensive jet was just more trouble than it’s worth,” Hayes said before quoting a recent Forbes report that said, “while many have speculated the Qataris have offered trump the luxurious plane to curry favor with the famously transactional president, there may be a simpler rationale, they just don’t want it anymore.”

Hayes quoted more from the report: “The Royals have failed to sell the plane, which was put on the market in 2020… giving it away could save Qatar rulers a big chunk of change on maintenance and storage costs. Making Trump happy would be an added bonus.”

“See, it turns out no one wanted to buy Qatar’s hand-me-downs, with Forbes, noting the massive, highly customized planes with idiosyncratic interior decorating are not easy to sell,” Hayes continued. “One aerodynamics expert telling the outlet, quote, ‘the market is incredibly illiquidfor a jet like this.'”

“In fact, the planes are so difficult to get rid of that one aviation blog actually called it way back in 2020,,” Hayes said, quoting the blog verbatim: ‘I can’t imagine Qatar will find a buyer for this plane. So one has to wonder who this 747-8 will be gifted to.'”

“Well,” Hayes said with a smile, “looks like Qatar finally found a sucker to pawn it off to.”

Watch the full clip below:

The post Chris Hayes Chuckles at the Possibility Qatar’s Gift Jet Made a ‘Sucker’ Out of Trump | Video appeared first on TheWrap.

‘Grey’s Anatomy’ Boss Breaks Down That Explosive Season 21 Finale Cliffhanger, Meredith’s Surprising Decision

Note: This story contains spoilers from “Grey’s Anatomy” Season 21, Episode 18.

“Grey’s Anatomy” ended Season 21 with a heart-stopping finale cliffhanger, leaving the fates of a good chunk of the Grey Sloan doctors hanging in the balance.

Episode 18, titled “How Do I Live,” followed the aftermath of Jo (Camilla Luddington) and Link’s (Chris Carmack) wedding. Tensions rose significantly after Jenna (Piper Perabo), the mother of a young patient of Amelia’s (Caterina Scorsone), sequestered her, Simone (Alexis Floyd) and Lucas (Niko Terho) in an OR and forced her to operate on her daughter while threatening to blow it up with a gas tank.

The hostage situation caught the attention of Meredith (Ellen Pompeo) — who was in the premises with the intention of selling off her shares of the hospital to fund her burgeoning Alzheimer’s research. In typical Meredith fashion, she ended up in the OR herself and helped diffuse the situation to get her coworkers and family to safety. On top of that, Amelia successfully operated on the child and Jenna revealed that the gas tank had been empty from the start, just as police went in to arrest her. Meredith then decided not to sell her shares, but instead return to Seattle as a general surgeon for the summer.

Alexis Floyd and Piper Perabo in “Grey’s Anatomy.” (Disney/Anne Marie Fox)

All seemed to be returning back to normal, until Jenna’s husband revealed the gas tank was indeed full and could still blow up any second. We last see Lucas running toward the OR floor to warn everyone, as Jules (Adelaide Kane), Monica (Natalie Morales) and Bailey (Chandra Wilson) get ready to perform surgeries. We also see Link — who had just learned Jo’s twins to come are girls — working on a surgery of his own before we find Meredith leaving the hospital, just in time for the gas tank to explode and leave a hole in the hospital for fans to think about all summer long.

“We like to throw everything at the wall and put everyone in danger. It’s really fun and torturous to the fans,” showrunner Meg Marinis told TheWrap of the cliffhanger. “There will definitely be consequences to this explosion, just to who and how will be determined when everyone tunes in [this fall.]”

Catastrophe aside, the episode also left us with plenty of romantic drama to watch unfold in Season 22. After performing medical history on Nora (Floriana Lima), Teddy (Kim Raver) decided to choose herself and leave Owen — at least for the moment. Earlier in the day, Ben (Jason George) learned Teddy was not going to recommend him to continue with the surgical program, and pulled off one more impressive save on what would have been his last day. But we last saw him running toward the building after the explosion, so who knows what his future holds next season.

For the interns-turned-residents, Jules confronted Winston (Anthony Hill) about him icing her out of his service. He admitted to having a crush on her, but she admonished him for letting that get in the way of her education (Marinis teased more of that will be explored next season). And after surviving the hostage situation, Simone and Lucas seemed determined to try their relationship again — but that was until Simone learned her hookup from the night before is one of the new class of interns (played by a charming Trevor Jackson).

Read below for more from Marinis about the eventful Season 21 finale, and what comes next. This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

TheWrap: This felt like one of these huge “Grey’s” episodes where the stakes are high and people are really in danger. What inspired this tense ending for the season?

Meg Marinis: As someone who was helping run the show, it’s always a dream to come up with another one of those episodes. We’re also fans and everybody remembers those event-like episodes — the shooting, the plane crash, the bomb in the body cavity episode. We can’t do those all the time because then they wouldn’t feel as iconic and special, but to be able to say, “OK, we haven’t done it in a while, let’s do it.”

We have had this storyline of a hostage-like situation floating around the writers room for a few years now. And we decided to pair it up with the impossible cases that Amelia was taking on. And we wanted it to feel very spontaneous. This wasn’t something premeditated, because we didn’t want this woman to feel like a criminal. She’s doing something terrible, but we wanted it to come out of all of her emotion and her devastation and worry for her dying little girl.

Piper’s performance was amazing in this episode. Our goal was that we should feel sick when the police come in to arrest her. You’re so happy that the little girl might be OK, and you’re so happy that our doctors are OK. But I wanted it to feel heartbreaking to see that woman get handcuffed. She is a villain, but there’s a very complicated emotional dynamic going on there.

I also didn’t want to have a gun. It felt too similar to the shooting episode. And also, I just don’t love seeing it on TV in a type of show where you don’t see it all the time.

Piper Perabo in “Grey’s Anatomy.” (Disney/Anne Marie Fox)

Will everyone come out alive from this cliffhanger?

We don’t know, and when I say, “We don’t know.” I mean y’all don’t know.

Obviously, [the gas tank] didn’t take the whole hospital down. But it did blow a hole on the side of the hospital. It was a big explosion … there will definitely be consequences to this explosion, just to who and how will be determined when everyone tunes in [this fall.]

The episode saw Meredith come back with plans to sell her shares of the hospital to fund her research. But then she decides to double down on her time at Grey Sloan after getting involved in the hostage situation. What does this mean for Ellen and Meredith for Season 22?

We’re still very invested in the storyline about her Alzheimer’s research, because it’s what’s canon to the show — the disease and her relationship with it, especially with where we took it this year with the discrepancy (in research between male and female test subjects), who gets research dollars and where it’s directed to — so we’ll continue to explore that.

But also, I was missing seeing her in the operating room and seeing her interact with patients and their family members — which specifically came out after the finale and the Lena Waithe storyline. Those interactions help inspire and motivate Meredith to keep going with her research, so we’ll continue to go into that more.

I miss seeing Mer teach, and we’ve got this great class of residents that we’re invested in, and she’s the one who chose them. So hoping to see her involved in more things like that. Then also we’ll check in on Boston a couple of times, and hopefully continue that great relationship between her and Nick as well.

Kim Raver, Jacqueline Mazarella and Floriana Lima in “Grey’s Anatomy.” (Disney/Anne Marie Fox)

Before the explosion and after making medical history, Teddy decides she’s officially done with Owen and seems to walk away from the marriage after a tumultuous few years. Are they officially done or will that carousel keep turning next season?

It’s hard, when you’ve got children between them, that anything is ever officially done. But I think we are interested in rediscovering who those characters are after maybe spending a little time apart.

What we saw in the finale is, there’s a lot of fear to be able to walk away from a marriage like this — they have children together, she’s his boss and that’s complicated, and they’ve been through war together. I don’t think they ever thought that they couldn’t figure out how to wade through these troubled waters. But I think when she saw that she could do the impossible with Nora’s surgery, I think she was like, “I’m going to be OK. I think I could do this too.”

So we’ll see the way that leaves them and, especially, we’ll see how the explosion changes that dynamic. There’s a lot of pain there to be explored.

Simone and Lucas end the season with a breakup and trauma, but seem to be willing to try again with their relationship. Until Simone realizes her hookup from the night before is a new intern played by Trevor Jackson. How does that set up things for next season, especially knowing Lucas was running toward the bomb?

That’s probably the first priority. That first thread that will need to be picked up is, where was Lucas when the explosion occurred?

Trevor Jackson is so great. He didn’t have that much to do in 17 and 18, but the little that he did was just perfect. That look that Simone has on her face in the locker room when she sees him walk in: priceless. And the arrogance that he responds with is even better.

He’s clearly not a scared intern. He’s coming here to play and he’s ready, I don’t think he cares at all about any drama that he’s caused. He feels like he deserves to be here and I don’t think he’s going to hide from any mess. We’ll definitely see him again.

Trevor Jackson in “Grey’s Anatomy.” (Disney/Anne Marie Fox)

Do you expect any more cast exits ahead Season 22?

We’re getting back into the writers room in a week, so that’s when we’re going to dive into the story. But that’s what’s so great about this show, things can always change. People go, they come back. Talk about a 22-season show. There’s a whole pool of people that can come visit, and it’s nice to bring them back for episodes, and we love who’s there every day too.

You juggled a lot of storylines this season, but it felt like everyone got their chance to shine in the OR and out. Which character are you excited to dive more into in Season 22?

I’m excited for all of them that I can’t pick one of my characters, they’re all great. I think it’s just going to really depend on what happens with this explosion, and who was directly and physically impacted. I’m also interested in the fact there’s a big hole in the hospital, and it clearly came from the OR floor. Surgery is such a huge part of our every day here at this hospital, so I’m interested in seeing the effect of that. How the hospital continues to function with a hole in it.

Will we return to the immediate aftermath of the finale or will there be a time jump?

We’re still in talks. However we do it, we’ll be able to see what happened in the immediate aftermath.

“Grey’s Anatomy” will return for Season 22 this fall on ABC.

The post ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ Boss Breaks Down That Explosive Season 21 Finale Cliffhanger, Meredith’s Surprising Decision appeared first on TheWrap.

‘Duster’ Release Schedule: When Do New Episodes of the Josh Holloway Show Come Out?

“Lost” star Josh Holloway re-unites with executive producer J.J. Abrams in “Duster,” a new series set in the 1970s about a getaway driver and the FBI agent (Rachel Hilson) who tries to convince him to inform on his crime boss (Keith David).

The series is from Abrams and LaToya Morgan, whose previous credits include “Into the Badlands” and “The Walking Dead.”

Here’s when and where to watch new episodes of the show that TheWrap’s Zaki Hasan called, a “rip-roaring new caper series.”

When does “Duster” premiere?

The series premieres with on Max on May 15. 

How can I watch “Duster”? 

“Duster” is available to stream only on Max. (Soon to be re-branded as HBO Max).

How may episodes are in Season 1 of “Duster”? 

The first season has eight episodes.

When are new “Duster” episodes released?

New episodes of “Duster” debut weekly on Max Thursdays.

When do new episodes come out?

The first episodes of “Duster” premieres on Max  on May 15. Subsequent episodes will then be released on a weekly basis every Thursday through July 3. 

What is “Duster” about?

Jim Ellis (Holloway) is a getaway driver for a crime syndicate run by Ezra Saxton (Keith David). Rookie FBI agent Nina Hayes (Rachel Hilson) has a personal stake in bringing Saxton down and she thinks Ellis is the key to his destruction. The series is set in Phoenix, Arizona in 1972

Who is in the “Duster” cast?

Besides Josh Holloway as Jim Ellis and Rachel Hilson as Nina Hayes, the series stars Keith David as Ezra Saxton, Asivak Koostachin as Awan, Camille Guaty as Izzy, Adriana Aluna Martinez as Luna, Benjamin Charles Watson as Royce Saxton, Sydney Elisabeth as Genesis Saxton, Greg Grunberg as Abbott, Corbin Bernsen as Wade Ellis, Gail O’Grady as Charlotte Dean-Ellis and Donal Logue as Sergeant Groomes. The cast also includes Sofia Vassilieva, Jasper Keen, Dan Tracy and Jamie Jung.

Watch the “Duster” trailer

The post ‘Duster’ Release Schedule: When Do New Episodes of the Josh Holloway Show Come Out? appeared first on TheWrap.

‘Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage’ Boss Breaks Down That Finale Twist, New Dynamic for Season 2

Note: This story contains spoilers from “Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage” Season 1, Episode 22.

Montana Jordan’s Georgie took one step closer to becoming the tire magnate depicted in “The Big Bang Theory” in the “Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage” Season 1 finale, as he bought the tire shop from Mandy’s dad, Jim (Will Sasso).

The change was set up in the season’s penultimate episode, which saw Jim considering a potential sale of the store, citing that Georgie Sr. (Lance Barber) was younger than him when he died. While Jim considered an offer from his rival, Georgie steps up in the finale with an offer to buy the shop — a choice that EP Steve Holland said comes out of Georgie’s “youthful confidence.”

“He just jumps in and believes he can do it,” Holland told TheWrap, adding that there’s a bit of Georgie in Jordan, himself, as the “Young Sheldon” actor jumped into multicamera production for the spinoff series without hesitation.

“Georgie just feels like he can jump into something and work really hard at it [and] he can succeed,” Holland said. “I don’t think this will always hold true [but] so far, life has taught him that.”

Jessie Prez as Ruben and Montana Jordan as Georgie in “Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage” (Sonja Flemming/CBS)

Ruben (Jessie Prez) jumps in to provide the rest of the offer with Georgie, marking an unprecedented sign of trust after seeing Ruben grumble about Georgie’s seniority at the tire shop due to his familial relationship with Jim. Holland noted the shift came out of a desire to weave in work stories with what’s going on at home for Georgie and Mandy (Emily Osment).

With Georgie and Ruben, who Holland said “don’t necessarily love each other that much” becoming business partners, Holland teased a new dynamic going into Season 2, full of opportunities for stories. This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

TheWrap: Mandy has been keeping this secret about her ex-boyfriend being her new boss, which really riles Georgie up. Why is it something he’s struggling to get past?

Steve Holland: It was more than just that she’s working with her ex, it was the fact that she had been doing it and keeping it from him that makes him less OK with it. Georgie is young — he doesn’t have nearly as much experience in life and in relationships as Mandy — and I think that might be a little bit of an insecurity for him. As much as we play Georgie as being driven and responsible and mature, he’s still 20. He’s still pretty young and not super experienced at life and relationships, and his jealousy felt real.

As they fight about it, Georgie’s age seems to be something that Mandy uses against him and Georgie is particularly sensitive to. Do you see that as a hallmark in their relationship or will it shift over time?

I think it’s always going to be a part of their relationship. 11 years is a pretty big age gap, especially where they’re at in life. The interesting thing about their relationship and those two actors who have that actual age gap in life, is they don’t look like it. You have to almost remind the audience sometimes that there’s this age gap here, because when you see them together, they look like a great couple — it doesn’t look like one of them is so much younger than the other.

Emily Osment as Mandy and Christopher Gorham as Scott in “Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage” (Sonja Flemming/CBS)

What challenges might they Georgie and Ruben face as they start out running the shop?

I think they’re both getting into this thing over their heads. I think Georgie is brash and full of confidence, but he’s never run a big business before, and he and Ruben don’t always get along. Ruben probably feels, rightly, [that] he should be the senior partner. He makes the joke about it in the finale, but he’s got more experience. He’s working on his degree and he doesn’t take Georgie very seriously, so I think there’s going to be a lot of fun opportunities for conflict there.

Georgie says with the deal he makes they won’t be moving out anytime soon. Will they stay at Mandy’s parents home for all of Season 2 and the foreseeable future?

Certainly moving forward in Season 2. It’s always a trick — in sitcoms, especially multicam, you have to keep a little bit of the status quo. We want to keep our characters living [under] the same roof and at some point, why would they still live there? This seemed like a good opportunity to acknowledge that — there’s a reason they’re still going to be living here.

This season you had a good balance of seeing Mandy’s family alone while also incorporating Georgie’s family, whom we know so well. Is that about the balance you want to have moving forward?

I think so. I think we felt like at the end of the season, we had found a really good balance where I think we really got to use the “Young Sheldon” characters a good amount. It felt right, but it always felt like, at least to us, that the show was still “Georgie and Mandy’s First Marriage,” and the show really centered around that. And when we found opportunities to use Meemaw, Missy and Mary, that it was sort of in support of this show, but it felt right. They feel like they’re a part of this world. And obviously those actors are great and those characters are fantastic, so it’s really fun to use them and get to bring them back in. I feel like this was a pretty good balance when we use them fairly often.

What was it like bringing everyone back for that Mother’s Day episode?

Really, really fun. One of the great things in having Mary on the show is that her and Audrey really don’t get along, so it’s always fun to throw the two of them into a room together and just watch the sparks fly.

The series introduced two new characters in Ruben and Connor. What’s it been like developing them across Season 1?

One of the interesting things about this first season is that we had a core cast that we knew — most of them were from “Young Sheldon.” Ruben and Connor were the two new characters that we really had to figure out. It was actually really fun going into this season with those two actors and figuring out these characters. [With] Connor, I think we really got to lock in on who he was about halfway through … and it was really fun to get see him to a point where he could carry storylines. Ruben was a little trickier, because, yes, he’s great, but most of the stories didn’t seem to live at the tire store. That was one of the thoughts of having him buy into the store — it’ll be a great way to bring this actor we love more into these stories.

With the Season 2 green light, what have you already started brainstorming or throwing around for next season to explore?

We’re going to actually get a little bit of a break, and then we’ll be back in a few weeks to start the room up and start talking about what next season is. We spoke with Chuck [Lorre] about it a little bit when we were moving into this finale, and what that could mean for next season, so just in the broadest strokes, but we really haven’t dug down into it yet.

Lots of viewers of “Young Sheldon” might not have watched “The Big Bang Theory.” What are you finding for this spinoff — do you think it’s a lot of the “Young Sheldon” fans following?

My guess is that it’s a lot of “Young Sheldon” fans following, but I would have thought that about “Young Sheldon,” that it was mostly “Big Bang” fans following. For “Young Sheldon,” things changed when it went to Netflix — it found a whole new audience and a younger audience, especially, that hadn’t seen “Big Bang Theory.” There’s history with these characters, but we really want the show to be an open invitation and not require people to feel like they have to have done the homework of other shows to come to it. I think you can come to this without knowing those other shows, and I don’t think you’ll be lost.

Have you talked about how long you would want the show to go for?

We’re just enjoying it. It feels to us like it’s a show that’s got legs and can go on. It’s not a premise show that’s going to run out of story. It’s a relationship show, and there’s always stories in relationships. I hope it runs forever — is that too much to ask for?

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

“Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage” Season 1 is now streaming on Paramount+.

The post ‘Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage’ Boss Breaks Down That Finale Twist, New Dynamic for Season 2 appeared first on TheWrap.

9 Shocking Moments From the ‘9-1-1’ Season 8 Finale

Note: This story contains spoilers from “9-1-1” Season 8, Episode 18.

The Season 8 finale of “9-1-1” found the closeknit team of the 118 on the verge of breaking up in the aftermath of the death of their captain Bobby Nash (Peter Krause).

The two-parter began with a building collapse that forced everyone to put aside their differences and work together. Fortunately, the life and death emergency helped repair the rift between Bobby’s widow Athena (Angela Bassett) and Chim (Kenneth Choi), while one-time inseparable BFFs Buck (Oliver Stark) and Eddie (Ryan Guzman) also seemed to patch things up.

Here are the most shocking moments from Thursday night’s episode, plus a few much-needed joyful ones.

Eddie (Ryan Guzman, with Aisha Hinds, right), prepares to return to El Paso in the Season 8 finale of “9-1-1” (Disney/Ray Mickshaw)Buck and Eddie decided to leave the 118

When Eddie returned to Los Angeles for Bobby’s funeral, it wasn’t clear if he was staying or going back to El Paso, Texas. He didn’t tell best friend Buck, who is subletting his house, that he’d gotten an offer to join a station in El Paso, leading to a blow-up between the two.

At the beginning of “Seismic Shift,” Eddie had taken the El Paso job and was getting a send-off from his LA crew. Meanwhile, a visibly dejected Buck — still reeling from Bobby’s death — said he had put in for a transfer to a new station since the 118 was now “just a number.”

Sam Roach as Graham, Angela Bassett as Athena Grant on “9-1-1” (Disney/Ray Mickshaw) Athena and Chim were trapped with no way out after a building collapse

Athena was already on the scene to settle a laundry room dispute between Graham (Sam Roach), the former Cart Cop from Episode 8 earlier in the season and two of his neighbors. She was outside in her patrol car when an explosion rocked the building. She rushed inside to find Graham and his neighbor Donnie pinned under rubble in the laundry room. She sent Donnie’s uninjured girlfriend out to get help. She found Chimney, who opted to go with her, even though Hen (Aisha Hinds) offered to go his place since Athena still blamed Chim for Bobby’s death. Another jolt from the unstable rubble sealed off their exit, trapping them and the two injured men.

Eddie (Ryan Guzman) comes to the rescue in the Season 8 finale of “9-1-1” (Disney/Christopher Willard)Eddie saved the day

Eddie and son Christopher (Gavin McHugh) were about to head to the airport when Chris alerted him to a news report about the building collapse. Earlier, as part of his farewell to the 118, he was given his helmet and turnouts to take with him to El Paso. Sure enough, he put them on and rushed to the scene where his help was very much needed. Buck, Ravi (Anirudh Pisharody) and an injured resident were stuck on a higher floor with no way out and the structure growing increasingly unstable by the second. Eddie overrode Captain Gerrard’s too-slow ladder rescue plan and busted out a hook launcher, setting up a zip line that let all three evacuate the crumbling building.

Oliver Stark, Sam Roach and Angela Bassett on the Season 8 finale of “9-1-1′” (Disney/Christopher Willard)Graham pulls a Bobby

Graham, who still had the use of his arms, had been helping save Donnie’s life by keeping pressure on Donnie’s rapidly bleeding wound and later by administering a Lifepak when Chim wasn’t able to reach the patient himself.

But when they were able to clear away the debris trapping Graham, they saw there was a piece of rebar that had punctured his stomach. He explained he didn’t tell them how seriously he was wounded because he figured he was already a goner so he should focus on saving Donnie. Chim and Athena were staggered to realize this was the exact same scenario that played out when Bobby deciding to sacrifice himself to save Chim.

Kenneth Choi as Chimney on “9-1-1” (Disney/Christopher Willard)
Chim saved Graham (and kind of saved himself too)

Haunted by how similar the laundry room cave-in and Graham’s sacrifice was to how Bobby died, Chim staunchly refused to let Graham die on his watch. “Not today,” he vowed. With the help of the rest of his team, they were able to get their patient to the hospital alive and well.

Angela Bassett in the Season 8 finale of “9-1-1” (Disney/Ray Mickshaw)Athena decided to sell the house she and Bobby were building

In a previous episode, Athena’s kids assumed she was going to sell the house she and Bobby were building to replace the one that burned down. She assured them she was still set on living there, even without Bobby. But when the house was finished, Athena walked away from it, keeping only a group photo with Bobby and Chim that Karen (Tracie Thomas) had given her earlier. Athena watched a younger couple walk into the open house with a bittersweet smile before she drove away.

Chimney (Kenneth Choi) gives a moving speech to the 118 in the Season 8 finale of “9-1-1” (Disney/Ray Mickshaw)Chim refused to let the 118 fall apart

Hen had already turned down the chance to become the station’s new captain, but Chim made a hell of a great case why he should get the job with a moving speech that no one should leave the 118.

“Nobody is transferring out and nobody is staying in Texas. This is our firehouse. This is the 118 and it’s not just a number, it’s us,” he said after grabbing Eddie’s phone to stop him from booking a flight to El Paso.

He told Buck, “You’re right, things are never gonna be the same again, because the Cap is gone. But leaving won’t change that. It won’t make you feel any less sad. It just means that you’ll be sad all alone.”

Chim went on to say the team is Bobby’s legacy. “So we can miss him, and we can mourn him, and we can even curse his name, but we are not going to disrespect him by throwing away what he built right here. So you hang up your turnouts, you hit the showers, you go home and you get some rest, because we are all going to see each other on our next shift, right here, together, understood.”

An impressed Hen responded, “Copy that Cap. I mean, Chim.”

Jennifer Love Hewitt, Kenneth Choi and Angela Bassett in the Season 8 finale of “9-1-1” (Disney/Christopher Willard)Some characters got a happy ending, but not Buck

Chim and Maddie (Jennifer Love Hewitt) had their baby and named him Robert Nash Han to honor the fallen captain. Athena cradled the newborn in her arms and told him, “Hi, Bobby.” Meanwhile, Hen and Karen were finally able to officially adopt Mara (Askyler Bell).

Eddie and Chris finished unpacking their belongings from Texas, but Buck was already looking for a new place to live. When a realtor asked why he was moving from his previous residence, he replied, “It wasn’t really mine. I was just subletting.”

“9-1-1” will return for Season 9 this fall on ABC. Episodes are now streaming on Hulu.

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Tiffany Haddish Admits She Slept Through ‘Sinners’: ‘I Was Tired, I’m Successful!’ | Video

Tiffany Haddish did not make it all the way through “Sinners.”

While appearing Wednesday on “Late Night with Seth Meyers,” Haddish broke down her dating life to the host and the roster she had changed up since they last spoke. Host Seth Meyers asked if she likes going to movies on dates and that’s when she admitted to not making it through one of the biggest movies of 2025.

“I do love going to the movies but I can only do movies like in the daytime and it has to be an exciting movie,” she said before leaning in close and whispering. “I don’t know if you know this about me but I fall asleep a lot. If we’re catching a 9 o’clock show just know I’ll probably be asleep by 9:45, and I snore and that’s a problem.”

Haddish added that the most recent movie she didn’t make it through was in fact Ryan Coogler’s “Sinners.”

“I hate to say this, I fell asleep at ‘Sinners,'” she said. “But I was tired, I’m successful. I went on one date and I was with my date and we was watching the movie and I dozed off and then I woke up and there were vampires everywhere.”

Although Haddish fell asleep during “Sinners,” there are plenty of people tuning into it. Coogler’s musical vampire film raked in an estimated domestic total of $216 million after four weekends in theaters. It also pulled off a feat no original film has accomplished in eight years: $200 million in the U.S. and Canada.

Buzz for the film has been through the roof since it released. TheWrap reviewer William Bibbiani called the movie “a bloody, brilliant motion picture.”

“Ryan Coogler finds within the vampire genre an ethereal thematic throughline; and within the music genre a disturbing, tempting monster,” he wrote. “Stunningly photographed, engrossing cinema — epic to the point where it seemingly never ends, which is undeniably indulgent, but no great sin. This is a film about indulgence, the power indulgence wields and the dangers indulgence invites into our lives. It’s a sweaty, intoxicating, all-nighter of a movie, and its allure cannot be denied.”

You can watch the full “Late Night with Seth Meyers” interview in the video above.

The post Tiffany Haddish Admits She Slept Through ‘Sinners’: ‘I Was Tired, I’m Successful!’ | Video appeared first on TheWrap.