Chris Hardwick's Blog, page 165

BREAKING: TikTok Shuts Down on January 19, Comes Back Up, Granted Temporary Extension After Supreme Court Upholds Law

TikTok swept into the social media landscape with an enviable force. It seemed to totally capture the hearts and minds of the youngest generations among us with its addictive platform that offers you short-form video after short-form video. Even millennials are not immune to TikTok’s wiles. For some, influences and artists alike, TikTok has also been a lucrative place to grow a business and make a living. But now, the TikTok ban threatens to outlaw TikTok from the US. The ban became an active law as planned, but TikTok is not yet exactly banned from the United States, although the January 20 date has come and gone. The Supreme Court left the ban in place, and TikTok shut down in the US for a period. But that wasn’t nearly the end of the story.

What’s been happening exactly? Here’s the current State of the TikTok ban Union.

Quick Links:

Latest Update on the State of TikTok in the United States: Is TikTok Banned? What Day Will the TikTok Ban Take Effect Now? The Supreme Court’s TikTok Ban Deliberations: The Supreme Court Upholds TikTok Ban What Does It Mean That TikTok Is Banned? Will the App Disappear? The Current Overall State of Affairs Regarding a TikTok Shut Down TikTok/NerdistLatest Update on the State of TikTok in the United States: Is TikTok Banned?

The Supreme Court upheld the TikTok ban, making it into a law that went into effect on January 19. Once the TikTok ban was officially going to be made legal, TikTok shut down for United States users on Saturday, January 18. Of course, it was not required to do this. However, TikTok did not stay shut down for very long and returned again on Sunday, January 19. The messaging around these shutdowns and returns felt quite suspiciously politically motivated.

On Tuesday, January 21, the new United States president had his first day in office. The president signed an executive order that allowed TikTok a 75-day extension and delays the implementation of the TikTok ban law by that amount of time. “In agreement with our service providers, TikTok is in the process of restoring service,” TikTok said in a post on X. It noted, the president “provide[ed] the necessary clarity and assurance to our service providers that they will face no penalties providing TikTok to over 170 million Americans and allowing over 7 million small businesses to thrive. It’s a strong stand for the First Amendment and against arbitrary censorship.” TikTok affirmed it hoped to remain available long-term in the United States. Note that if progress is made toward a sale, TikTok will have a 90-day extension that is a part of the terms set in the original law.

TikTok remains unavailable on Android and iPhone app stores but can be used by existing users.

Marvel Snap and CapCut Also Went Down in the TikTok Ban Mayhem

In addition to TikTok, the popular editing app CapCut, also owned by ByteDance, and the popular mobile game Marvel Snap also shut down. CapCut has since returned online as has Marvel Snap.

It seems that a subsidiary of ByteDance published Marvel Snap, but the game had not expected to be purged in the preparation for the TikTok ban. Developer Second Dinner noted that this shutdown of Marvel Snap had come as a surprise. “Marvel Snap is back online in the U.S.,” Second Dinner chief development officer Ben Brode shared on the official Discord for the game. “But to make sure this NEVER happens again, we’re working to bring more services in-house and partner with a new publisher.”

Worried users take note that Marvel Snap’s senior community manager Griffin Bennett revealed, “Second Dinner is committed to ensuring that all players are compensated for their lost time,” including for missing “time-based content, rewards, and missions.” 

What Day Will the TikTok Ban Take Effect Now?

TikTok received a 75-day extension from the president, which means the TikTok ban law will now go into effect on April 6, 2025. If progress is made toward a sale, TikTok could have until April 19, 2025 before it is banned.

The Supreme Court’s TikTok Ban Deliberations: The Supreme Court Upholds TikTok Ban, Putting the Nail in TikTok’s Coffin

On January 17, the Supreme Court did not strike down the TikTok ban after days of deliberations. That means there’s nothing technical to stop the TikTok ban from becoming law, effectively making the use of TikTok illegal, although the president has now delayed the date of the law taking hold. The Supreme Court unanimously voted to uphold the law, rejecting the idea that banning TikTok infringed on the right to free speech. That means the TikTok ban law will go into effect on January 19. We discuss in more detail below, but in broad strokes, much of the government signaled that it felt the app threatened a risk to national security as long as it is owned by the Chinese company ByteDance.

The Chinese embassy has criticized the ban, noting in a statement, “The U.S. has never found evidence that TikTok threatens U.S. national security, but it has used state power and abused national security reasons to unreasonably suppress it, which is not fair or just at all. The U.S. should truly respect the principles of market economy and fair competition, stop unreasonably suppressing companies from other countries, and provide an open, fair, just and non-discriminatory environment for companies from all countries to invest and operate in the U.S.”

What Does It Mean if TikTok Does Get Banned? Will the App Disappear?

But what will happen if the TikTok ban law goes into effect in full force in 75 or 90 days? Will the app simply disappear from our phones? It’s not likely to work like that. TikTok’s lawyer Francisco noted during the Supreme Court delibrations, “As I understand it, we shut down. What the act says is that all of the other types of service providers can’t provide service either. So essentially what they’re going to say is that, I think, ‘we’re not going to be providing the services necessary to have you see it.’ So it’s essentially going to stop operating. I think that’s the consequence of this law.”

While no one is sure what this means in full, essentially, it seems to mean that should the TikTok ban be completely upheld as designed by the law, new users will simply be unable to download TikTok. That will be because app stores, such as the ones that will let you download the app onto an iPhone or Android, will no longer be allowed to support or offer the TikTok app. Additionally, users who have already downloaded TikTok will not be able to download updates and bug fixes for the app or be able to improve the security features of their version of TikTok. This will eventually render the use of their current version of TikTok impossible, degraded, and dangerous, creating vulnerability on users’ devices and a poor user experience.

It’s possible the government could also order American internet service providers to block the TikTok website, but it seems this is a much more complicated tactic to take.

Of course, even after the ban, ByteDance could find a new non-Chinese owner for the TikTok app, which would theoretically lift the ban, returning users access to TikTok.

The Current Overall State of Affairs Regarding a TikTok Shut Down

On January 10th, the Supreme Court heard opening arguments in the case of the TikTok ban, and on January 17, they elected to up uphold the ban law. There’s a lot of legalese involved, but in short, TikTok and ByteDance argued that the TikTok ban/shutdown is unconstitutional because it violates the First Amendment rights of its 170 million users. While some Supreme Court justices acknowledged the truth of this, the opposition argument is that TikTok does not have to shut down, it simply needs to divest of its owner ByteDance. ByteDance’s ownership of TikTok is a concern to the United States government, which believes the company is using TikTok to spy on Americans for the Chinese government, as well as to spread Chinese-centric propaganda. Ultimately, the Supreme Court upheld the law and allowed the TikTok ban to take effect. But as we go into above, it’s not that simple.

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U.S. Signs ‘TikTok Ban’ Legislation to Force Sale, TikTok Sues Government in Response

You can still listen to the Supreme Court’s discussion about TikTok on YouTube via PBS NewsHour.

On April 24, 2024, President Biden signed the TikTok divest-or-ban bill into law, which also passed in Congress. Now, the new date for the TikTok ban to go into effect appears to be April 6, 2025. What exactly will happen to TikTok? Only time will tell.

Originally published on January 10, 2025.

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Ryan Gosling May Star in Shawn Levy’s STAR WARS Film

Lucasfilm has announced a metric ton of different Star Wars movie projects ever since The Rise of Skywalker hit theaters over five years ago now. Only The Mandalorian & Grogu has actually gone into production of those many announced films. One of those potentials was to be produced by Deadpool & Wolverine director Shawn Levy. We hadn’t heard much about it, until now. Via The Hollywood Reporter, we’ve learned Lucasfilm is fast-tracking Levy’s Star Wars to go into production soon. Not only that, they are circling Ryan Gosling as the lead. Maybe all those “Ken as a Jedi” cosplays we saw last summer were actually on to something.

Warner Bros.

As for what this Star Wars movie will be about, we honestly have no idea. Shawn Levy has been developing his Star Wars movie since around 2022 with Jonathan Tropper. Tropper collaborated with Levy on films such as This Is Where I Leave You and The Adam Project. The script has reportedly been coming together now for over a year. Levy is also producing the feature via his 21 Laps production company, along with Kathleen Kennedy and Lucasfilm of course. It’s possible this movie was just farther along than the potential Rey movie, or the “Jedi Origins” film that James Mangold has in the works.

As for where and when this Star Wars feature takes place, that’s the biggest mystery. Does it take place in the era of the Republic, the Rebellion, or the Resistance? Of course, it could be hundreds (or even thousands) of years before or after the era of the Skywalker Saga. All we know is that Levy’s film won’t directly connect to the saga of Anakin, Luke, or Rey Skywalker. Hopefully, if Levy’s film actually does go into production, his film will propel us into a future for Star Wars way beyond anything we’ve seen before now.

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Greta Gerwig’s CHRONICLES OF NARNIA Movie Sets IMAX Release Date and Netflix Release Window

Move over Barbie Land, Greta Gerwig is set to tackle another intensely popular world, Narnia. According to The New Yorker, Gerwig “has a deal with Netflix to write and direct at least two films based on C. S. Lewis’ The Chronicles of Narnia.” This confirmation came straight from Gerwig herself, and recently, a deal with IMAX, shed some light on a release schedule for the first of the films.

Warner Bros./ Walt Disney PicturesWhen Will Gerwig’s Netflix Narnia Movies Begin to Release?

Greta Gerwig’s Chronicles of Narnia movie will head to IMAX, giving us a date for its initial release in theaters. Gerwig’s Chronicles of Narnia movie has set an IMAX release date of Thanksgiving Day 2026 where it will play for two weeks. That means Gerwig’s first Chronicles of Narnia movie will release in IMAX theaters on November 26, 2026. It will run until December 10th. Of course, this is a Netflix movie. So when can we expect the streamer to release Greta Gerwig’s Chronicles of Narnia? The trades indicate Netflix will release the film “during the Christmas period that year.”

In March of 2024, Gerwig herself shared with Deadline that the Narnia movies are in “the very early stages of pre-production in the UK.” The publication additionally adds that “Narnia more than likely won’t be ready to go before cameras until late this year or possibly early next. It’s yet to be determined, plus Gerwig has yet to appoint key department heads who will create the magical land where animals behave as equals with humans, witches wage war and dragons and horses fly.”

What Can We Expect From Greta Gerwig’s Narnia Movies? (Apparently, Rock and Roll)

For now, very little information is available about these new Greta Gerwig Chronicles of Narnia movie adaptations. We don’t know which parts of the series will get adapted or even in what format we’ll see them come to life. The Chronicles of Narnia received a big-screen adaptation in the 2000s, with The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, Prince Caspian, and The Voyage of the Dawn Treader all receiving live-action movies. However, the series did not take as well as hoped. (Although the movies did launch Ben Barnes, for which we appreciate them.)

Recently, we got a small but strange update on Greta Gerwig’s Chronicles of Narnia Netflix film. This new bit of information came from from producer Amy Pascal, who is working on the upcoming movie. Pascal revealed, Gerwig would bring to life “a very new take on Naria. It’s all about rock and roll.” We personally do not really remember rock and roll being a huge feature of any of the Chronicles of Narnia books, but hey, if Mr. Tumnus wants to get his shades on do a dance number, we’re not against it. Jadis the White Witch does have some pretty rocking vibes, we’ll give them that. And lions have been dancing and singing all over recently, so, okay, punk rock Aslan with a mohawk mane, here we came.

Could We See a Deeper Take on the Chronicles of Narnia?20th Century Studios

The idea of a Chronicles of Narnia movie done by Gerwig is a fascinating one. The books by C. S. Lewis are dense and heavily philosophical and religious. While the latest Narnia movies leaned more heavily into broad fantasy themes, a Gerwig-helmed Narnia series could get deeper and more existential. But for now, we’ll just have to imagine the possibilities and hope the movies do indeed come to pass. Long live Aslan, hopefully, he’s more than just a Ken.

Originally published on July 5, 2023.

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New Netflix Price Increases Have Arrived—Ad Tier Cost Increases to $7.99/Month

Let’s take a poll. Do you think Netflix costs enough per month? Did you raise your hand? Maybe both of them. Well, we sure did. But let’s welcome in 2025 with Netflix’s first (but probably not last) price increases for its subscription plans. Previous price hikes seemed to be designed to push people toward the streamer’s (at the time) new ad-tier plan. But now, not even Netflix’s ad-tier is safe from cost increases. How much did Netflix just increase its prices by? And which plans are impacted? Here’s everything you need to know about Netflix’s January 2025 subscription price increases.

NetflixEvery Netflix Subscription Plan Is Increasing in Cost in January 2025

Surprise, all three of Netflix’s current United States subscription plans will be hit by this latest price hike. Yes, Netflix is increasing the cost of every single one of its plans, both with and without ads. In summary, Netflix’s Standard with Ads plan will now cost $7.99/month. Netflix’s Standard Plan without Ads will now cost $17.99/month. Finally, Netflix’s Premium Plan will now cost $24.99/month.

Here’s a more detailed breakdown of the new pricing.

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Every Streaming Cost Increase In 2025: Discovery+ Kicks Off the New Year With a Price HikeHow much will Netflix’s Standard with Ads Plan Cost After These Latest Price Increases?

Netflix’s Standard with Ads plan will now cost $7.99/month. The Standard with Ads plan first came into play in 2022. And this is the first time a price hike at Netflix has impacted this ad-supported plan. Netflix’s Standard with Ads plan originally cost $6.99/month. But now, after these January increases in subscription plan costs, it has seen a price increase of one dollar per month.

How much will Netflix’s Standard (No Ads) Plan Cost After These Latest Price Increases?

Meanwhile, Netflix’s Standard Plan without Ads will now cost $17.99 a month, a sharp hike up from $15.49/month where it was before this increase. Netflix’s Standard Plan without Ads has increased in cost by a staggering $2.50/month. Phew! This is Netflix’s currently most popular plan, but we’ll see what happens to it after this change in pricing.

How much will Netflix’s Premium Plan Cost After These Latest Price Increases?

Netflix’s most expensive plan will also see another steep increase in cost. The Premium plan without Ads will now cost $24.99. This expensive plan was already costing subscribers $22.99/month, and now it has undergone a $2 increase.

Other Cost Increases Hitting Netflix in 2025Netflix

Straightforward subscription plan price hikes aren’t the only cost increases hitting Netflix. In addition, if a subscriber is subscribed to a plan without ads, the cost of adding an “extra member” to their plans will increase from $7.99/month to $8.99/month. The cost of adding an extra member to Netflix’s ad-supported plan remains unchanged at $6.99.

For the curious, Netflix’s Standard with Ads plan is currently the only ad-supported plan on Netflix. Netflix’s Standard with No Ads plan and Netflix’s Premium Plan are both ad-free options. But, among other things, support different amounts of devices. These tiers also differ in how many afformentioned “extra members” you can add to your account as part of Netflix’s password-sharing crackdownOpens in a new tab.

The Price Increases Start Coming, and They Don’t Stop Coming

All of these price hikes will kick into effect on January 21 for new customers. Exciting customers will see the changes reflected in the next billing cycle. These cost increases will impact those using Netflix in the U.S., Canada, Portugal, and Argentina.

As usual, Netflix had this to say about these latest price hikes, “As we continue to invest in programming and deliver more value for our members, we will occasionally ask our members to pay a little more so that we can re-invest to further improve Netflix.” So the song goes. And yet, ads are more intrusive than ever and shows just keep getting canceled. Hopefully we can call this Netflix’s first AND last price increase of 2025.

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TV Shows Canceled In 2025: Paramount+ Cancels FRAISER Revival After 2 Seasons of Reboot

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?

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.

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SONIC THE HEDGEHOG 4 Sets Release Date

Production companies sure take the mantra “Gotta go fast” to heart, don’t they? But here we are, on the cusp of the theatrical release of Paramount’s third Sonic the Hedgehog feature film and Variety reports the fourth film is already on the docket. And not too far away, either. Spring 2027 was the original timeline we were looking at for it, and now we know that Sonic the Hedgehog 4 will arrive on March 19, 2027. The family-friendly franchise has proven a massive hit for Paramount, coming after the first film’s disastrous initial teaser led to some tinkering in the design department. It’s proven a very good move.

Paramount

The first two films have a global box office take of just over $725 million worldwide and over $180 million in merch. That’s not nothing, especially for relatively small budgeted family films. Granted, neither was as successful as The Super Mario Bros., which alone raked in $1.3 billion. But hey, Sonic ain’t Mario. At any rate, the Sonic movies, plus Paramount+’s Knuckles spinoff series, have given Paramount and Sega plenty of franchise juice. Or rings? Whatever metaphor makes sense.

Sonic the Hedgehog 3 from director Jeff Fowler (who directed the first two as well) pits Sonic, Knuckles, and Tails against new enemy, Shadow the Hedgehog, as well as their ongoing nemesis Doctor Robotnik. Jim Carrey is back as the mustachioed, shout-prone Dr. Robotnik while Keanu Reeves assays the role of new villain Shadow the Hedgehog. Ben Schwartz, Colleen O’Shaughnessey, and Idris Elba are also back as Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles, respectively. It, too, saw quite a bit of excitement and success at the box office when it was released in December 2024. We’ll have to see if Sonic the Hedgehog 4 can keep the momentum going.

Originally published on December 19, 2024.

Kyle Anderson is the Senior Editor for Nerdist. He hosts the weekly pop culture deep-dive podcast Laser Focus. You can find his film and TV reviews here. Follow him on Instagram and Letterboxd.

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Every Streaming Cost Increase In 2025: Netflix Sets Major Price Hike Across Plans

We’ve had just about enough of streaming cost increases to last a lifetime. In 2024, we swear streamers were hiking the prices of their platforms once a week. Streaming was supposed to be the great disruptor of cable, bringing consumers more choice, a better experience, and lower costs. But in recent years, it seems like quality-of-life no longer matters for streamers, and they’d rather just tack on ads, price increases, and whatever else they can do to squeeze every last dime out of a consumer. With so many cost increases happening in streaming all the time, it can be hard to keep track of just how many are happening. But we’re here to help. This year, we’re keeping track of all the streaming cost increases and streamer price hikes that take place.

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New Netflix Price Increases Have Arrived—Ad Tier Cost Increases to $7.99/Month

We hope to report there are few to none, but we feel like that won’t be the case. We’ll keep this piece updated as streaming price increases come our way in 2025.

All the Streaming Price Hikes in 2025 1/21/2025 – Netflix Majorly Increases Cost of All Plans, Increases Price of Ad-Supported Plan for the First TimeNetflix

Netflix did not even wait until the second month of the year to increase its pricing. Beginning on 1/21/2025, the cost of all Netflix plans increased as follows:

Netflix’s Standard Plan With Ads increased by $1/month, going from $6.99/month to $7.99 per month.Netflix’s Standard Plan Without Ads increased by $2.50/month, going from $15.49/month to $17.99/month. Up until now this has been Netflix’s most popular plan. But it’s also been hit with one of the steepest price increases we’ve ever seen.Netflix’s Premium Plan Without Ads increased by $2.00/month, going from $22.99/month to $24.99/monthThe cost of adding an “Extra Member” to a plan will increase by $1/month, going from $7.99/month to $8.99/month for those subscribers on ad-free plans.

As mentioned, for new subscribers, this plan goes into effect on January 21, 2025. Existing subscribers will see these price hikes reflected in their next Netflix billing cycle.

1/7/2025 – Discovery+ Increases the Cost of its Ad-Free and Ad-Supported PlansDiscovery+

Seven days into 2025, we had our first streaming price increase. Discovery+ hiked its streaming costs for its ad-free and its ad-supported plans. If you’re subscribed to the streamer, here’s what you can expect. Beginning on 1/7/2025, Discovery+’s ad-supported tier increased from $4.99 to $5.99, a $1 price hike for the streamer. This is the first price hike the ad-supported Discovery+ tier has experienced since it’s launch in 2021. Meanwhile, Discovery+’s ad-free tier increased from $9.99 to $9.99, another 2025 increase of $1 per month. But it’s worth noting that in October 2023, the streamer increased its steaming costs from $6.99 to $8.99. That means in two years, the Discovery+ ad-free option increased by $3/month.

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Paramount Shuts Down Paramount Television Studios to Cut Costs

Those subscribed to Discovery+ will see the increased cost reflected in their next 2025 billing cycle or after February 7. Meanwhile, new customers will experience this change immediately.

How Many Streaming Price Increases Will We See in 2025?Max

We can’t wait to see which streamer increases its costs next. (Not.) But this piece does make us feel like we ought to place bets on just how many price hikes we’ll see this year. Over/under 20? We suppose only time will tell.

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DEXTER: RESURRECTION Adds Uma Thurman to Its Cast

Dexter will never die, apparently. The Dexter: Original Sin panel at SDCC gave fans the big news about Michael C. Hall’s return to narrate that prequel series about his early life. But wait, there’s more. There is yet another new sequel series, Dexter: Resurrection, that will have Michael C. Hall return to his infamous role yet again. Yes, we are also wondering how this will happen but we are along for the ride.

Miramax Films

In addition to Hall, Uma Thurman will have a starring role in Dexter: Resurrection. According to Deadline, she will portray Charley, the Head of Security for a mysterious billionaire named Leon Prater. Charley is a former Special Ops officer who worked for high-level private security jobs before taking on her position under Prater.

What Is Dexter: Resurrection About? Paramount+/SHOWTIME

There aren’t many details about Dexter: Resurrection at this time. According to Variety, it takes place in modern day and is a follow up to 2021’s Dexter: New Blood, which took place ten years after the original show’s events. This is very, very interesting considering Dexter literally died at the end of New Blood. The name of this new series is very on the nose, indeed. 

“We are thrilled to have the brilliant Michael C. Hall reprise his iconic role as Dexter Morgan in Showtime’s most successful series ever,” said Chris McCarthy, Paramount Global Co-CEO, about Dexter: Resurrection. “While Dexter: Resurrections will appeal to the tens of millions of longtime fans, Dexter: Original Sin will introduce a whole new generation of viewers into this iconic series by starting from the beginning, which is sure to satisfy existing audiences as well.”

What Is the Release Date for Dexter: Resurrection and Dexter: Original Sin?

Dexter: Resurrection will hit Paramount+ with SHOWTIME in summer 2025 after Dexter: Original Sin’s December 2024 release. 

Dexter: Original Sin Trailer Hits SDCC

Check out a young Dexter back in 1991 in this Dexter: Original Sin trailer: 

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Stand and Salute The New CAPTAIN AMERICA: BRAVE NEW WORLD Popcorn Bucket

Last summer, Marvel Studios ruled movie theater collectible popcorn buckets with their Deadpool & Wolverine buckets. (With some very stiff competition from the Dune popcorn bucket of course). Well, next month gives us our first Marvel Studios popcorn bucket of the year, when Captain America: Brave New World hits cinemas. Naturally, AMC Theatres designed this latest prop-quality bucket to look like Cap’s iconic vibranium shield. It features a whopping 300-ounce collapsible shield that snaps into action. Guests can also get a soft touch material Armor Cup and top it off with a lid, which also replicates the shield. You can check out the first images right here:

Click To View Gallery AMC Theatres AMC Theatres AMC Theatres

In addition, the folks at AMC Theaters will have a limited-time All-American and exclusive gourmet popcorn variety, called Firecracker Crunch. They’ve covered the popcorn in white fudge, with red and blue popping candy. It also contains a subtle raspberry flavor. “Firecracker” is an apt name, since we expect lots of fireworks when Sam Wilson’s Captain America, played by Anthony Mackie, and Harrison Ford’s Red Hulk finally throw down. Are we to guess that the raspberry represents the Red Hulk? We’re not sure, but we’ve decided that’s our official Captain America: Brave New World head canon.

AMC Theatres

We’re not sure if Captain America: Brave New World is getting any other popcorn buckets. But we would not be surprised if we get some Red Hulk Hands. The Hulk Hands became a huge selling toy back in the day, one that a lot of you probably reading this owned as kids. So some Red Hulk Hands as popcorn buckets would be an incredible homage to those toys of yesteryear. Sam Wilson’s wings would be cool too, although we’re not sure how that would work exactly. We’ll just have to wait and see if they surprise us with more. In the meantime, Captain America: Brave New World hits theaters everywhere on February 14.

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Hasbro Reveals Whole Roster of New Marvel Legends Figures

In the past few years, I’ve developed a problem. An obsession, really. I cannot get enough of Hasbro’s Marvel Legends figures. I’m specifically into the comic book-style characters, but it’s hard not also to appreciate the movie and TV versions of various Marvel heroes and villains. Luckily for people like me, and unluckily for our limited space and the fullness of our wallets, Hasbro releases dozens of figures every year. 2025 is already off to a great start with the latest Hasbro Pulse stream announcing a wave of “mini comics” figures as well as the last Spider-Man: No Way Home villain straggler and a fancy schmancy new line.

Hasbro

Let’s start with the mini comics figures, which have been animated in stop-motion form in the following video from Plastic Action. They each come with a tiny accessory of a comic book in which they appeared. That’s cute.

Rom the SpaceknightHasbro

The wave features an interesting mix of characters both brand new to the line and given different looks. From most exciting (to me) to least exciting, we start with Rom the Spaceknight. This is a very obscure character to people born after a certain time. Because it began life as a toy which Marvel subsequently published comics about, they didn’t own the character outright. This is the same thing that happened with Micronauts. Recently, Marvel acquired the rights to print omnibus and Epic Collection versions of both titles, which then means we get new toys also!

Adam WarlockHasbro

Next up in terms of exciting is Adam Warlock as he appeared in the pages of Jim Starlin’s eponymous series as well as his landmark Infinity Gauntlet saga. It’s a very rad classic look for Him. He even comes with the Infinity Gauntlet itself.

Daken, aka Dark WolverineHasbro

Now, we’ve had roughly 19 million Wolverine figures over the years, and like ten last year alone. So another Wolverine isn’t necessarily all that exciting. But this is dark Wolverine, aka Daken, Logan’s son who was a villain who then joined Norman Osborn’s Dark Avengers. That’s pretty cool, and you can see his tattooed arms, claw-machine-style claws, and rad haircut.

Ultimate Miles MoralesHasbro

It’s always awesome to see a Miles Morales figure, and between Spider-Verse and the Sony Spider-Man video games, we’ve gotten a few in the past few years. But this one is specifically an Ultimate version of Miles and he looks great. Very excited for this one.

Ultimate Iron ManHasbro

I haven’t counted, but if push came to shove, Wolverine and Iron Man would be tied for number two in amount of figures we get every year. (Spider-Man is undisputed number one.) The thing that gives Iron Man the edge often is that he has a wide variety of suit styles. For this wave, we get Ultimate Iron Man from the Ultimate universe and it’s a pretty singular suit, so that’s neato keeno swell.

BansheeHasbro

So, this is a character I love in his most iconic suit. Straight from the immortal Giant-Size X-Men #1 from 1975, we have Banshee in his green and yellow suit. The problem is it’s just a repaint of the blue and yellow ’90s suit we got from Marvel Legends a few years ago, and it even has the same two head sculpts. So, unless you absolutely need to recreate that original 1975 lineup, this will be one I probably pass on.

All of this wave will hit all mainline retailers including Hasbro Pulse and will go up for pre-order February 6 at 1pm ET.

X-Factor Jean GreyHasbro

Next up will be a Target exclusive in the U.S. To continue the line of retro-carded X-Men figures, we have a Jean Grey in her green and yellow X-Factor costume. This comes just after the blue and yellow X-Factor Cyclops went up for pre-order a few weeks ago.

Spider-Man: No Way Home ElectroHasbro

Slowly but surely Marvel Legends has released all of the villains we see in Spider-Man: No Way Home and the last of those is Jaime Foxx’s much-improved version of Electro. Hasbro always does a great job with actors’ face sculps and this is no exception. Tons of electricity effects and just an overall good look.

Maximum Spider-Man

And finally we have the opening volley for a brand new line for Hasbro Marvel Legends. The Maximum line will offer more accessories, more points of articulation, a more varied complement of hands and heads, and with it (likely) a higher price point. This seems to me like Hasbro’s attempt to compete with the higher-end figure companies like Bandai’s SH Figuarts and MAFEX. Even so, it’s an interesting move. For the first figure, we get, who else, but Spider-Man. This one with his ’90s McFarlane-drawn look.

Click To View Gallery Hasbro

Jean, Electro, and Maximum Spidey don’t have pre-order dates yet, but they’re expected some time this spring.

Kyle Anderson is the Senior Editor for Nerdist. He hosts the weekly pop culture deep-dive podcast Laser Focus. You can find his film and TV reviews here. Follow him on Instagram and Letterboxd.

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