Chris Hardwick's Blog, page 153

TV Shows Canceled In 2025: All the Major Series We’ve Lost So Far

TV show cancellations have been a part of life for as long as TV has. But recently, it seems like more and more series are getting canceled left and right. In fact, in 2025, the first cancellation of the year came a mere three days into January. And we’re pretty positive that as the 2024-2025 TV season airs on, more and more shows will fall victim to this dark fate. If you love TV, it’s a rough world out there. Of course, not all TV shows ending in 2025 are necessarily canceled TV shows. Some, like Strangers Things, are merely coming to a much-deserved conclusion. But for most series, that’s a fate they can only dream of. Here is a list of all the TV shows canceled or ending in 2025 that we think Nerdist‘s fans will want to know about. We’ll keep this article updated as more 2025 cancellations inevitably roll in throughout the year.

Lucasfilm/Netflix/HBOParamount+ Cancels Fraiser Reboot in January 2025Paramount+

Fraiser ran for 11 seasons on NBC, lasting from an unbelievable 1993 to 2004. But its recent reboot did not achieve the same glory. Paramount+ canceled the Frasier reboot on January 17, 2025, after two seasons. While the producer of the Kelsey Grammer-led series, CBS Studios, shares it remains committed to the series and plans to shop the show around to other platforms, Paramount+ has officially elected to reject a third season of the revival.

The Frasier revival starred Grammer as Frasier Crane, the character he originated on NBC’s Cheers and then brought to even greater life on the spinoff Fraiser. The Fraiser reboot was meant to shed light on the character’s later life and his return to Boston, where he was looking to fulfill some of his still-held dreams. The official synopsis shares, “Frasier has re-entered the building! The psychologist is back in Boston with new challenges to face and an old dream or two to finally fulfill.“

Obviously, Paramount+ hoped to recapture some of Fraiser’s former magic in this revival, but alas, this tale has ended with two seasons and a cancellation.

Other TV Shows Ending or Canceled in 2025Disney Channel

Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur: Season 2, part 2 will air in 2025 after the unexpected cancellation of the show.

Disney+

Andor: Andor’s second and final season will air on April 22. This was a planned ending.

HBO

The Franchise

The first axe to fall in 2025 fell on The Franchise. In fact, HBO canceled the TV show on January 3, 2025—right at the top of the new year. The superhero movie satire series aired its first season in 2024, but unfortunately, it will not receive a season two to continue its hijinx. The logline for the now-canceled TV show shares, “A hopeful crew finds themselves trapped inside the dysfunctional, nonsensical, joyous hellscape of franchise superhero moviemaking” and “the series shines a light on the secret chaos inside the world of superhero moviemaking, to ask the question — how exactly does the cinematic sausage get made? Because every f*ck-up has an origin story.” But alas, the light will shine no longer.

An HBO spokesperson shared of the cancellation: “We’re so grateful to have had the opportunity to work with the tremendously talented team behind The Franchise, especially Sam Mendes, Jon Brown, Armando Iannucci, and this hilarious ensemble of actors. While we won’t be moving forward with another season, we look forward to collaborating with all of them in the future.”

Hulu

The Handmaid’s Tale: The Handmaid’s Tale season six will air in 2025. This TV show ending feels largely planned, and creator Bruce Miller is working on a spinoff series, The Testaments.

Netflix

Cobra Kai: Cobra Kai will end on February 13 with season six, Part 3/The Finale Event. The 2025 ending of this canceled TV show was termed “bittersweet” by the creators but wasn’t wholly sudden.)

Squid Game: Fans of Squid Game felt surprised to see it return for a season two, let alone a season three. However, Netflix renewed the series for both. But season three of Squid Game will mark the planned ending of the show. It will release in 2025.

Stranger Things: Stranger Things‘ final season, Stranger Things 5, has been a long time coming. This TV show and its very planned ending will release sometime in 2025.

Peacock

Bel-Air: Peacock renewed Bel-Air for a fourth and final season in 2024, marking the end point of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air reboot. It feels like the ending of the series will come in 2025… But will it bring Will Smith with it?

Hysteria!: The Peacock horror/thriller series set in the Satanic Panic will not live to see another day. Peacock canceled the ’80s set series after only one season.

Prime Video

Good Omens: Good Omens was always planned to end after three seasons. However, after allegations against Neil Gaiman came to light, Prime Video shifted the ending of the series from a full season to one 90-minute episode.

Originally published in January 2025.

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Mackenyu Joins ASSASSIN’S CREED SHADOWS & Other February Entertainment News

It’s the second month of the year, and the news has just begun to come in earnest. Here are some entertainment news tidbits that dropped in February.

Mackenyu Joins Assassin’s Creed Shadows

Live-action Netflix One Piece‘s Roronoa Zoro and well-known Japanese martial arts movie star, Mackenyu is making his video game debut. Mackenyu will be lending his voice to Assassin’s Creed Shadows, where he’ll portray Gennojo, “a charming individual who crosses path with Naoe and Yasuke while they are tracking a crucial target.” Additionally, a release notes, “Players can recruit him in the Shinobi League to aid in their fight against the forces of corruption that are rampant across the land. Mackenyu will be doing both the Japanese and English voice over for this character. “

UbisoftUbisoft

We have no doubt Mackenyu will absolutely slay in this Assassin’s Creed Shadows role.

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AMC Increases A-List Price By $3/Month, But Also Increases Weekly Movies From 3 to 4

We feel used to streaming price increases. But now, our subscription to the actual movies is also going up, and we don’t like it. That’s right—if you’ve been using AMC Stubs A-List to see your weekly quota of movies, you’re about to shell out quite a bit more each month. AMC Theaters will soon increase the cost of its Stubs A-List membership by $3/month. There are certain rewards that come with this price increase, but, still, we must protest everything becoming more expensive.

The word price increases as it relates to Netflix, AMC, or the cost of eggs now gives us hives.

RELATED ARTICLE

Every Streaming Cost Increase In 2025: Netflix Sets Major Price Hike Across PlansHow Much Will AMC A-List Cost After the Price Increase?

But, regardless of woes, here are the facts about how the cost of AMC A-List will soon change. Beginning on May 7, AMC’s A-List will cost $27.99/month in all AMC theaters nationwide or $25.99/month in every location other than New York and California. The current/previous cost of the plan was $24.95/month for all AMC theaters and $22.95/month for every location other than those in California, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, and Massachusetts. Regardless of how you butter the popcorn, that’s a pretty steep monthly increase for AMC A-List. In fact, if a streamer were to do it, we would call it obscene.

DisneyAMC A-List Will Offer One Additional Weekly Movie In Addition to the Price Hike

AMC WILL, however, increase the amount of movies that its A-List members can watch in a week in addition to increasing A-List’s costs. After the AMC A-List price increase, members will be able to watch four movies per week instead of three. For some, this might make a big difference, although seeing four movies a week might be a bit of a challenge for most. Additionally, AMC has lowered its age requirement for A-List, noting that moviegoers ages 13 and up can now subscribe to A-List. Remaining in play is the best perk of A-List, which allows members to get tickets for IMAX and Dolby movies at no extra cost. If that offering were to ever be abandoned then we’d have trouble for sure.

Please Let Us Live!

We would just like to see someone announce a price decrease for once! Can you imagine how much love they would receive? Be brave!

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Jack Quaid Is Trapped in the “Movie Closet” With MORBIUS, MADAME WEB, and Other Spider Flops

Jack Quaid is no stranger to comic book roles, thanks to playing Hughie in The Boys, and the Man of Steel himself in My Adventures with Superman. And while he may be keen to star in many comic booky projects, he’s been smart enough to steer clear of anything to do with Sony’s live-action Spider-Man Universe. Quaid recently threw shade at both those films, and the trend of every celebrity showing off their amazing film taste by visiting the Criterion Closet. You can watch him get trapped in this pseudo-Criterion Closet with nothing but Sony Marvel films in this Instagram sketch from Josh Horowitz of the Happy Sad Confused podcast.

In the bit, Quaid discovers what he thinks is the Criterion Closet is actually just “the Movie Cabinet.” As he goes through their selection, he realizes there are nothing but Sony Spider-Verse flops there. Movies like Morbius, Madame Web, and Kraven the Hunter. Actually, a bootleg DVD of Kraven, which has yet to release on home video. All of this leads to a rather hilarious meltdown over Morbius. Which is a film we’re glad to see is still such a potent punchline nearly two years later. Will the reputation of Marvel Comics’ Living Vampire ever recover from Jared Leto? Poor Michael Morbius. You deserved so much better.

Happy Sad Confused/YouTube

The funniest thing about this whole thing is that Jack Quaid actually is a part of Sony’s Spider-Verse. Only, he’s part of the excellent animated Spider-Verse, not the crappy live-action version. The one that actually has a Spider-Man (or 50) in it. Quaid actually voiced the Peter Parker of Earth-65, the best friend of Spider-Gwen. We see him in an extended flashback where he becomes that Earth’s version of the Lizard in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. Far better to have on your IMDB than Morbius or Madame Web, Mr. Quaid. You chose wisely.

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Connecticut Wants Theaters to Tell You When the Movie Actually Starts

One lawmaker in Connecticut is sick of the trailers and long pre-movie shows. He does not come to the movies for magic, sorry Nicole Kidman, I still love you and your AMC ad. On January 21, a state senator proposed a bill that would mandate cinemas to include the actual start time of a film in addition to the usual time that includes the pre-movie trailers, according to a report in The Register Citizen.

AMC

It should be noted that at least on the AMC app, it tells you to “please allow approximately 20 extra minutes for pre-shows and trailers before the show starts.” So, personally, I already operate with the idea that I have a couple extra minutes to make my way to the theatre. 

“It seems to be an abuse of people’s time. If they want to get there early and watch the promos, they can. But if they just want to see the feature, they ought to be able to get there just in time for that,” State Sen. Martin Looney told The Register Citizen. “I got a couple of calls from constituents who said that they went to the theater a few times and the feature did not start for a considerable period of time after the advertised starting time. It does seem to me that people are, in effect, a sort of captive audience watching the advertising before they get to see the feature they came to see.”

Jon Seidman

I understand Senator Looney’s frustration, but it is not that deceiving, especially when everyone already knows what going to see a movie at the theatre entails. Frankly, it would be more strange to watch a movie without all the adverts, trailers, and pre-shows. It’s a package deal and how theatres make money.

I know everyone hates ads, but that’s what pays businesses to keep them open. If everyone just skipped them, then the advertisers and distributors would have no incentive to pay theatres to run them. The Register Citizen talked to local theatre owners about how this bill would negatively impact their cinemas. Anyway, remember to support your local theatres!

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LORD OF THE RINGS Fans Have Spent Years Recreating Middle-earth on MINECRAFT

It’s easy to say you’d love to to really visit Middle-earth. It’s a wondrous place full of natural beauty and amazing architecture. But you know what else it has? Darkness. And orcs. And a whole lot of warfare. Whose to say you’d even survive a day there let alone an entire vacation? Fortunately there are plenty of ways to safely wander through J.R.R. Tolkien’s fantasy world. You can read his books or watch Peter Jackson’s films. Or you can explore Middle-earth via the most popular video game ever, because The Lord of the Rings fans have spent years building it in Minecraft.

Minecraft Middle Earth began its massive undertaking way back in October 2010. It’s now “one of the longest running Minecraft building communities” going. It’s also one of our favorites. Its members have spent years building, virtual brick by virtual brick, Tolkien’s fantasy land on a gigantic map. It measures 29,000 by 30,000 blocks. That’s equivalent in size to Dallas, Texas.

With all that space, time, and energy, members have meticulously recreated the different locales and signature spots of the fantasy realm, capturing both Middle-earths natural beauty and man/elf/dwarf-made wonders.

Minecraft Middle Earth

Those digital recreation includes replicas of iconic Minecraft Lord of the Rings spots both big and small like Minas Tirith, Dol Amroth, Osgiliath, Isengard, Rohan, Moria, Rivendell, Lothlorien, Helm’s Deep and more.

And by “more” we mean more than we can count, including places that are barely mentioned in the books.

Remember how we said you might not want to actually visit Middle-earth cause of all the war and death? Well with Minecraft Middle Earth you actually can just walk into Mordor. It really is that simple.

Minecraft Middle Earth has been around a long time, but it’s better than ever. Creators can now make more detailed buildings, both inside and out, than they could when this project began. But even after all this time there’s still more of Tolkien’s world left to build.

And so long as they keep building it we’ll keep coming back. It might be a digital way to visit Middle-earth, but it’s still the safest way to travel there.

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Sam Wilson’s Complete MCU Journey From Falcon to Captain America

Captain America: Brave New World sees Anthony Mackie’s Sam Wilson wielding the shield. This political thriller pits his Captain America against Harrison Ford’s General Ross, who has a powerful new alter ego, the Red Hulk. That’s a sentence that would have melted the brains of comic book fans 20 years ago, which makes you appreciate just how far Sam has come since his Marvel Cinematic Universe debut. He may have started out as Steve Rogers’ running buddy, but he went on to become the Falcon, fight space aliens with the Avengers, and eventually inherit his friend’s mantle to become the new Captain America. With this new Captain America film hitting theaters soon, now’s a great time to recap of Sam Wilson’s entire MCU history.

This summary also acts as a watch guide if you want to rewatch all of the Falcon’s exploits.

Marvel StudiosCaptain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)

“On your left.”

Sam Wilson first appeared in the MCU as an innocuous, good-humored man going for a jog around Washington, D.C. who got repeatedly lapped by super soldier Steve Rogers. However, comic book fans knew he was destined to soar to great heights. The character of Sam Wilson was created by Stan Lee and Gene Colan in 1969. He made history as the first-ever Black American superhero in mainstream comics. Wilson first appeared in Captain America #177 in a team-up with Steve Rogers, who inspired him to become a costumed crime fighter, and thus the Falcon was born.

When Wilson first met Rogers in the MCU, he was a former US Air Force pararescueman who became a trauma counselor for veterans. The two bonded over the challenges that come with adjusting to civilian life after going to war. And just like that, a legendary partnership began. 

Having made a trustworthy impression, Rogers sought refuge with Wilson while on the run from Hydra with Natasha Romanoff, the Black Widow. Though Sam was traumatized by the loss of his fellow pararescueman Riley during his time in the Air Force, he rose to the occasion when Rogers revealed that S.H.I.E.L.D. was infested with Hydra sleeper agents who were about to enact their master plan. “Dude, Captain America needs my help. There’s no better reason to get back in,” Wilson said.

Wilson volunteered to help take down Hydra with a little help from the prototype “EXO-7 Falcon” winged jetpack he used in the Air Force. Outfitted with his Falcon gear, Wilson fought alongside (and high above) Rogers and Romanoff as they battled Hydra and the Winter Soldier. Complicating matters, the Winter Soldier was revealed to be Bucky Barnes, Steve’s old best friend who was brainwashed into becoming a ruthless killing machine. 

Knowing that Wilson and Barnes will eventually become best frenemies, it’s almost funny looking back at how they first met. They clashed atop a Helicarrier and immediately tried to kill each other. Barnes ended the fight by breaking off one of Wilson’s wings and kicking him off the flying ship. Getting grounded didn’t take Wilson out of the fight against Hydra, however. He cut off the murderous rampage of Hydra agent Brock Rumlow in the Triskelion, saving the lives of the World Security Council members. Then he engaged Rumlow in hand-to-hand combat. The fight wasn’t going so well for Wilson, so it’s fortunate that a Helicarrier cut their bout short by crashing into the building. He was forced to jump for his life into a moving helicopter, proving that even without his gear the Falcon is never afraid to fly.

With Hydra thwarted and S.H.I.E.L.D. disbanded, Wilson pledged to help Rogers locate Barnes, who disappeared after the Helicarriers went down. Wilson went from living an unassuming life to fighting an evil organization alongside Captain America, Black Widow, and Nick Fury, forever changing the trajectory of his future and kicking off his superhero career as the Falcon.

Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)Marvel Studios

The second Avengers movie saw Wilson make two short yet important appearances. The first comes during the party at Avengers Tower. Wilson catches up with Rogers and tells him he’s still searching for Barnes despite all of his leads going nowhere. “I’m very happy chasing cold leads on our missing person’s case. Avenging is your world, and your world is crazy,” he told Rogers.

Wilson shows up again during the Age of Ultron post-credits scene. The Avengers roster was shaken up after their costly battle with Ultron. Rogers puts together a new team of heroes featuring Black Widow, War Machine, Vision, Wanda Maximoff, and the Falcon. Notably, this is the first time Wilson dons a wingsuit with prominent red elements, giving it a more comic book-accurate look. This is a landmark moment for Wilson because he’s now an official member of the Avengers.

Ant-Man (2015)

During the events of Ant-Man, Scott Lang is forced to steal an important piece of technology from an old Stark Industries warehouse. But once he arrives, he’s flabbergasted to see the facility is now being used as the new base of operations for the Avengers. Lang sets off a perimeter alarm and is greeted by none other than Wilson, fully suited up as the Falcon.

Despite Lang’s good intentions for needing to steal the tech, Wilson moves to capture him and a chase across Avengers Compound ensues. Lang is able to get the best of Wilson by shrinking down small enough to slip into his flight suit and destroy its circuitry. Wilson is scuffed up from the incident but is mostly embarrassed for losing to Ant-Man, of all people, saying, “It’s really important to me that Cap never finds out about this.”

Captain America: Civil War (2016)Marvel Studios

Captain America: Civil War kicks off with the Avengers in the middle of a mission to stop Crossbones and his goons from stealing a biological weapon in Lagos, Nigeria. During the fighting Wilson utilizes a flying drone he affectionately calls Redwing, a nod to his sidekick bird he shares a telepathic link to in the comics. Despite the best efforts of Wilson and his teammates Rogers, Maximoff, and Romanoff, there’s a tragic incident of major collateral damage and loss of life. This leads to severe consequences for the Avengers.

General Ross spearheads a new set of UN-mandated laws called the Sokovia Accords that forces superheroes to submit to government oversight, but the issue divides the heroes. Wilson vocally opposes the idea and naturally sides with his friend Rogers. A clash of ideals and super powers ensues with Tony Stark’s pro-Accords group. Making matters even messier, Barnes has resurfaced and is on the run after being framed for murdering the King of Wakanda.

The conflict escalates and comes to a head at an airport in Germany. The two sides suit up and battle it out across the tarmac, with Wilson reluctantly teaming up with Barnes and getting webbed up by Spider-Man, remarking, “Is that stuff coming out of you?!” When Rogers and Barnes make their escape in a plane, War Machine ends up taking friendly fire from Vision after Wilson dodges an attack mid-air. Instead of flying away, Wilson lands to check on Rhodey out of concern for his fellow hero. He pays for his good deed by getting knocked out by Stark and sent to the Raft prison along with Barton, Maximoff, and Lang. 

When Stark shows up at the Raft in need of intel on Rogers’ whereabouts, Wilson agrees to tell him on the condition that Stark go “alone and as a friend.” After Stark and Rogers resolve their grievances like gentlemen (blasting and bashing each other nearly to death), Rogers breaks Wilson and the others out of prison. 

This whole ordeal was the first time Wilson’s morals and character were truly put to the test. He showed nothing but loyalty and bravery, not to mention compassion, despite the consequences.

Avengers: Infinity War (2018)

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Wilson’s heroic exploits had been relatively grounded up until this point. However, Avengers: Infinity War took things to an unimaginable level. Ever since the prison breakout at the Raft, Wilson, Rogers, and Romanoff were operating underground as fugitives. That all changed when the Children of Thanos were sent to secure the Infinity Stones on Earth, starting with the Mind Stone on Vision’s forehead. When Vision and Maximoff were attacked by Proxima Midnight and Corvus Glaive, it was Wilson, Rogers, and Romanoff who came to the rescue. The heroic trio fought together like a well-oiled machine, with Wilson launching missiles and landing jetpack-boosted dropkicks on the alien henchmen and sending them running. 

With stakes higher than ever, Sam Wilson and company decided to come out of hiding and take a wounded Vision to Avengers Compound. There, they reunited with Rhodey and Bruce Banner. It wasn’t long before they took Vision to Wakanda for repairs. This is where the Avengers and the armies of the Black Panther made their stand against Thanos’ army of monstrous alien Outriders. Wilson teams up with War Machine to unleash an aerial assault of bullets and explosives. We see Wilson deploy a trio of Redwing drones that have astonishingly lethal capabilities.

Despite giving it their all, the heroes of Earth fall to Thanos once he makes his grand entrance and claims the final Infinity Stone. With a snap of Thanos’ fingers, Wilson turns to dust along with half the beings in the universe. For now, the Falcon’s wings were clipped, but this isn’t the end of his story.

Avengers: Endgame (2019)

After five years, the Avengers who survived the Blip managed to miraculously resurrect everyone snapped away by Thanos. The celebration was short-lived thanks to a time-traveling Thanos unleashing his army on Avengers HQ. After a brutal battle against the Mad Titan, Rogers was the last man standing, which teed up Wilson to make the most epic return of all time.

“Cap, it’s Sam. Can you hear me? … On your left,” he radioed into Rogers’ comms, signaling his return along with all of Earth’s mightiest heroes. Sam Wilson stood next to Rogers as he bellowed his “Avengers assemble!” rallying cry and flew into battle against the alien horde. He did his part in protecting Hawkeye during the Infinity Gauntlet hand-off sequence, taking down a lumbering behemoth the size of a cave-troll by impaling it with his wings. In the end, Stark sacrificed himself to rid the universe of Thanos once and for all.

After attending a lakeside funeral ceremony for Stark, Wilson joined Banner and Barnes in taking measures to send Rogers on a mission to return the Infinity Stones to their proper place in time. To their surprise, Rogers returned as an elderly man sitting on a bench. Rogers gave Wilson his shield and some words of encouragement before passing onto him the mantle of Captain America.

The Falcon and the Winter Soldier (2021)Marvel

While Rogers had every confidence in Wilson’s ability to take on the mantle of Captain America, the U.S. government had other ideas. After Sam Wilson decided to donate the shield so it can be part of the Captain America memorial exhibit at the Smithsonian, he is shocked and dismayed to see the government give it to U.S. war hero John Walker and name him the new Captain America. Deep down, Wilson didn’t think he was worthy enough of Cap’s legacy to wield the shield himself. But his decision to give up the shield resulted in the government tarnishing that legacy and using it for their own agenda.

A dark secret comes to light when Wilson reteams with Barnes to track down the Flag Smashers, a group of terrorists who are somehow juiced up on Super Soldier Serum. Tracing the origin of the new serum leads to aged war veteran Isaiah Bradley. He tells Wilson that during the war he was given the serum and turned into a super soldier. While Steve Rogers became a hero adored by the public, Bradley was secretly imprisoned and experimented on by the government and Hydra for three decades. Given what America did to him, Bradley is adamant there should never be a Black Captain America. It’s this disturbing revelation that forces Wilson to interrogate the legacy of Captain America and, ultimately, decide to redefine it for himself.

Going up against the enhanced Flag Smashers made Wilson struggle with whether he should take the Super Soldier Serum to gain super strength, speed, and endurance. Walker becomes a cautionary tale when he winds up taking the serum himself. After watching his partner get killed in battle, Walker goes into a rage and chases the Flag Smasher responsible into public before murdering him with the shield. This bloody act is filmed by civilians for the world to see, turning the public perception of Captain America into one of brutal violence. After hearing the true plight of the Flag Smashers, considering what happened to Bradley, and watching Walker tarnish the legacy of his friend Steve Rogers, Wilson finally decides to reclaim the shield and become the new Captain America. But he chooses to not take the serum because he wants to be Cap in his own way.

Marvel Studios

With Sam Wilson officially becoming the new Captain America, he passes the mantle of the Falcon on to his U.S. Air Force partner Joaquin Torres. Wilson goes back home to Louisiana to spend time with his family and train to throw the shield. Barnes gives him a new Vibranium-lined Captain America costume, courtesy of their Wakandan friends the Dora Milaje.

The conflict with the Flag Smashers comes to a tragic end. The Flag Smashers take the members of the Global Repatriation Council (GRC) hostage because they are planning to forcibly relocate people displaced by the Blip. Wilson, dressed in his new red, white, and blue superhero costume, flies to the rescue. Despite his best efforts, Wilson isn’t able to reason with the leader and she’s shot to death in the heat of battle. With the GRC saved, Wilson implores them to not forcibly relocate the millions of people displaced by the Blip but to provide them with the help they need from the governments that are supposed to protect them.

Finally, Wilson takes Bradley and his grandson Eli to the Smithsonian for a special surprise he’s arranged. He walks them through the Captain America exhibit and shows them a newly made statue of Bradley and a display that tells his story and honors him as a hero.

“Now they’ll never forget what you did for this country. Never,” a teary-eyed Wilson tells Bradley, who embraces him in thanks.

Captain America: Brave New World (2024)Marvel Studios

Captain America: Brave New World releases in the US on February 14. While we don’t know the particulars yet, we do have a good idea of what to expect as Sam Wilson headlines his first film as the new Cap. He appears to be fighting a battle on multiple fronts, with Ross smashing things as the Red Hulk, Sidewinder shooting everything up, and the Leader lurking in the shadows. We also see Torres in action as the new Falcon and the return of Isiah Bradley. We’ll have to wait to see what happens in this next chapter for Sam Wilson.

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THE MONKEY Popcorn Bucket Is Guaranteed to Creep You Out

Usually, we get popcorn buckets from big studio movies, like a Deadpool & Wolverine or Dune. But for the first time ever, indie studio NEON is partnering up with the AMC Theatres to bring fans a collectible popcorn bucket. This one is certain to creep you out, whether you see the movie or not. The new prop-quality collectible popcorn vessel for Osgood Perkins‘ latest horror film The Monkey is eerily similar to the classic wind-up toy at the center of the movie’s plot. The 85-ounce bucket has arms that you can move up and down to beat his little drum. You can check out images of this ultra-creepy popcorn bucket below:

AMC Theatres

Osgood Perkins delivered a satisfying old-school horror movie last year with Longlegs, starring Nicolas Cage. Now, he’s adapting this classic Stephen King short story, in a film produced by horror master James Wan. The Monkey was first collected in the 1985 anthology Skeleton Crew. In this story, twin brothers find a mysterious wind-up monkey toy. Not long after, several shocking deaths tear their family apart. 25 years pass, and the cursed monkey toy begins a new killing spree. This forces the estranged brothers to put an end to the monkey’s evil once and for all. These vintage toys were always creepy, we’re genuinely shocked it took this long for a proper horror movie about one.

AMC Theatres

Weird fun fact: The toy monkey itself bangs drums instead of cymbals like in Stephen King’s original story, because Disney owns the rights to the one clashing cymbals because of the Toy Story franchise. Who knew? The Monkey stars Theo James, Tatiana Maslany, Elijah Wood, Christian Convery, Colin O’Brien, Rohan Campbell, and Sarah Levy. It officially hits theaters everywhere on February 21. The Monkey popcorn bucket comes with a large popcorn for $44.99+tax at your local AMC Theatres.

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Guessing Roles for Christopher Nolan’s THE ODYSSEY Cast: Who Plays Who in the Movie?

Christopher Nolan has made some pretty epic films, but his next movie will literally be one of the most famous epics in history. He’s taking a world-class cast around the globe to bring Homer’s The Odyssey to the screen. We already know a lot of the actors who will star in the big-budget blockbuster. We also know all of the characters in Homer’s epic poem. What we don’t know is who will play who in the cast of The Odyssey. That is to say, what roles are going to which actors remains a mystery. Who will play Athena and Circe? Telemachus and Tiresias? The Suitors? Conversely, just who will Zendaya play in The Odyssey? These are our best guesses for which parts the incredible cast of Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey will play in the film.

Matt Damon as Odysseus20th Century Fox

After multiple supporting roles in his films, Matt Damon seems poised to finally lead one of Christopher Nolan’s movies. And that means he’ll become the second member of Danny Ocean’s crew to play Odysseus on the big screen. (George Clooney played Ulysses Everett McGill in O Brother, Where Art Thou?) Odysseus is cunning, brave, and a great warrior, a role right in Matt Damon’s wheelhouse. If Matt Damon plays Odysseus in Christopher Nolan’s Odyssey, we’ll be very happy about it.

Anne Hathaway as PenelopeNeon

We couldn’t play “Who Plays Who in The Odyssey” without casting Penelope. Odysseus’ loyal wife is just as cunning and brave as her husband. She’s also great at hiding her true intentions. She spends years tricking her suitors into thinking she’s vulnerable enough they can take advantage of her without realizing she’s delaying marrying any of them. It’s a part that requires both a softness and a sternness that are equally believable, and Oscar-winner Anne Hathaway is the perfect actress to play Penelope.

Tom Holland as TelemachusApple TV+

Odysseus’ son Telemachus is almost the co-protagonist of The Odyssey. He sets out on his own journey to find his long-missing father. Telemachus is young yet motivated and noble. He’s also only 20 in Homer’s epic poem, and the baby-faced Tom Holland still looks right for the part. It’s also a part that requires a star that won’t look out of place next to his famous parents, and Holland certainly qualifies. If Christopher Nolan does cast Tom Holland as Telemachus, we bet Holland’s The Crowded Room hair may make a reappearance.

Lupita Nyong’o as CirceMarvel Studios

One of the best, most memorable characters in all of The Odyssey is the enchantress goddess Circe. She transforms Odysseus’ men into pigs, keeps them there for a year, and is absolutely alluring the whole time. She’s one of the best, most interesting witches in all of literature, and a role like that deserves one of the best, most interesting performers in Hollywood, like Oscar-winner Lupita Nyong’o. She would make for an amazing Circe actress in Christoper Nolan’s movie.

Benny Safdie as PolyphemusUniversal Pictures

Polyphemus is the big, dumb, man-eating cyclops son of Poseidon who “No Man” blinds to escape the giant’s cave. Odysseus’ hubris after pulling off this daring plan is what leads to his ten years lost at sea. Polyphemus is both unintentionally funny and intimidating. He’s also a huge presence, both literally and figuratively, in the story, and Benny Safdie proved in Nolan’s Oppenheimer why he’s the only member of this cast we can see playing this part in The Odyssey.

Himesh Patel as AeolusUniversal Pictures

The Greek god of the winds has a small but important role in The Odyssey. He helps Odysseus by gathering all the winds of the sea into a sack, with the exception of the one wind the King of Ithaca needs to get home. When Odysseus’ paranoid men open the sack right when they can see Ithaca’s shores, sending them back to Aeolus, the God realizes Odysseus is cursed by the gods and refuses to help him again. Patel would excel in the role of a kind figure who also knows when to get out of a stronger god’s way.

Robert Pattinson as The Ghost of AchillesNetflix

Achilles didn’t survive the Trojan War, but Homer found a way to bring him back for the sequel anyway. (Imagine the reaction on epic poem message boards in Ancient Greece? They must have been furious about all the “fan service” in The Odyssey.) Odysseus speaks with the greatest of Greek warriors in the underworld, where Achilles says he hates being dead. Who would be better to play a handsome, ethereal, moody hero in Nolan’s film than Robert Pattinson? The actual Achilles wouldn’t do as good a job. He’d also be way harder to work with.*

Samantha Morton as Anticleia USA

Speaking of ethereal figures, The Walking Dead‘s Samantha Morton should literally be cast as a walking dead in Nolan’s The Odyssey film. Her performance as a precog in Minority Report is why we think she should appear in the underworld as Odysseus’ mother, Anticleia. She might seem too young to play the dead mother of Ithaca’s King, but ghosts can look whatever age they like in Hades.

Bill Irwin as LaertesFX

Odysseus’ other parent is still very much alive (and in danger) in The Odyssey, and Laertes seems like the perfect part for veteran actor Bill Irwin. Laertes might be frail at this point in his life, but he’s still a figure with gravitas because he’s more than just Odysseus’ dad. He was also one of the famed Argonauts who helped Jason get the Golden Fleece. Bill Irwin has played a lot of roles in his long career, and it would be great to see him cast as this one in Nolan’s The Odyssey movie.

Zendaya as CalypsoWarner Bros.

Would it really be something to watch Tom Holland’s real-life fiancée keep his movie dad as a sex slave for seven years? Yes. But that doesn’t mean Zendaya isn’t the best choice to play the famous nymph from the island of Ogygia. Calypso needs to be so enchanting and so beautiful that we understand why Odysseus doesn’t exactly fight as hard as he should to get home much sooner. Being trapped on an island with Zendaya would make that easy to figure out.

Elliot Page – HermesNetflix

The god tasked with forcing Calypso to release Odysseus (by order of Athena) is the messenger of Olympus, Hermes. The trickster god and protector of travelers also warned Odysseus about Circe and gave him a herb that kept Odysseus safe from the witch’s pig potion. It’s a fun role that requires someone who looks as swift and lithe as the wind, and that’s why Elliot Page is our guess for who will play him from all the options in The Odyssey‘s cast.

John Leguizamo as EumaeusPrime Video

John Leguiazamo can play any role, and while we could easily see him as one of the annoying Suitors eating and drinking Penelope out of house and home, we think he’d be just as good in a very different role. And that’s why we think he could be cast as Eumaeus, The Odyssey‘s swineherd who is also a dear friend of Odysseus. Eumaeus spends years trying to protect Penelope and Telemachus before helping Odysseus defeat the Suitors. Leguizamo would be eminently believable doing all of that.

Jon Bernthal as AntiousMarvel Studios

Everything we said about John Leguizamo is also true about Jon Bernthal. He can play just about any type of character, including someone dashing that we’d like to see choke on his own arrogance. So we think he’ll be cast to play a character we hate the instant they open their smug mouth in The Odyssey, Antious. He’s the most loathsome of Penelope’s many Suitors, and Bernthal would eat in the role. We’d love to see him make us detest Antious.

Charlize Theron as AthenaNetflix

…..Who else could even believably play the Greek goddess of war and wisdom? Are we sure Charlize Theron isn’t actually Athena? The Greek gods did like to come down and disguise themselves as human. Maybe Odysseus’ protector and champion has slowly been bidding her time as an Oscar-winning actress for this exact opportunity to play herself in a movie.

Is that a wild guess? Maybe, but you can’t put anything past Athena. Or Charlize Theron. And until we find out who everyone in Christoper Nolan’s The Odyssey cast is actually playing, we won’t.

The Odyssey Movie Cast Is Epic, and Guessing Who Will Play Who Is a Monumental Quest 20th Century Fox/Netflix/Wikimedia Commons

And so, you’ve come to the end of our own epic screed. Who will play who in Christoper Nolan’s cinematic take on one of our favorite stories? We’ll all soon find out. But in the meantime, we quite like our casting choices for The Odyssey and very much enjoyed the long journey of penning them all down. We hope you did, too.

*Iliad joke.

The post Guessing Roles for Christopher Nolan’s THE ODYSSEY Cast: Who Plays Who in the Movie? appeared first on Nerdist.

ANOTHER SIMPLE FAVOR Starring Blake Lively and Anna Kendrick Premiere Announcement

South by Southwest Conference and Festivals announced big news for their festival’s opening screening this year. Another Simple Favor, the sequel to director Paul Feig’s A Simple Favor, will premiere at the South by Southwest Film & TV Festival on March 7 at the Paramount Theatre in downtown Austin. Like the first film, Another Simple Favor stars Blake Lively and Anna Kendrick.

Amazon MGM Studios

The film will follow the same protagonists from the first film, Stephanie Smothers and Emily Nelson, played by Kendrick and Lively, respectively. Smothers and Nelson reunite in Capri, Italy, due to Nelson’s wedding to a wealthy Italian businessman. The plot description says: “Along with the glamorous guests, expect murder and betrayal to RSVP for a wedding with more twists and turns than the road from the Marina Grande to the Capri town square.” The film also brings back Henry Golding of Crazy Rich Asians fame, reprising his role as Sean Townsend.

The film is directed and produced by Feig, who is most known for Bridesmaids and Ghostbusters. He also created the cult classic television show Freaks and Geeks. Of course, to me, a girl in her early twenties, Feig is most recognizable as Mr. Pool from Sabrina the Teenage Witch.

“I couldn’t be more thrilled to be back at my favorite festival in the world where we successfully launched Bridesmaids and Spy, and I cannot begin to say how honored I am to have our film opening it all,” said Feig. “I’ve avoided making sequels to any of my films but these characters were just too much fun not to revisit. So, to be able to have Anna, Blake, Henry, Andrew, Michele, Elizabeth, Alex and myself watch our film with the great SXSW audience is a bucket list event I’ll be able to check off March 7th and move playing drums for Dwight Yoakum’s band up to the top slot.”

Lionsgate

Laura Fischer is also producing, with executive producers Jennifer Booth, Jessica Sharzer, and Marco Valerio Pugini involved as well. Booth is well known for being a La La Land producer and Vice President of Marvel Studios’ physical production. Sharzer penned both A Simple Favor and its successor.

If you can’t make it to SXSW, don’t fret. Another Simple Flavor will launch globally May 1 on Amazon Prime Video.

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