Chris Hardwick's Blog, page 200

Matt Reeves Explains Where Batman Was During the Events of THE PENGUIN

The Penguin has ended its run on HBO in spectacular fashion, leaving us all wondering what’s next in the criminal careers of Oz Cobb and Sofia Falcone. But one question remains for fans of The Batman spin-off series—where was the Dark Knight? During the events of The Penguin, not only do we never see Batman on screen, he’s not even mentioned once. All the audience gets is a Bat-signal lighting up the sky at the very end of the final episode. Well, The Batman director and The Penguin executive producer Matt Reeves has an answer, which he told the folks at Digital Spy. Here’s what he said about Batman’s conspicuous absence in The Penguin:

This was a time of great turmoil in the city, it’s literally the week after what happened [in The Batman]. Much of the city is in desperation, so police can’t get everywhere, there’s crime everywhere, it’s a very, very dangerous time. [Batman’s] out there trying to grapple with the aftermath of everything that happened, which to some degree he blames himself for.

HBO/Warner Bros.

In short, in the fallout of the Riddler destroying the sea walls and flooding the city, Bats had his hands full. He simply wasn’t paying close attention to the mafia war going on in the wake of Carmine Falcone’s death. Reeves also reminded fans that The Penguin all takes place mere weeks after the events of The Batman. Remember, The Batman began on Halloween, and lasted roughly through early November, when the Gotham City elections were taking place. The Penguin takes place after that, but clearly before winter sets in. Regardless, Oz Cobb and Batman will come face to face again. Only this time, it will happen on the big screen. Colin Farrell has already confirmed that he will appear in The Batman – Part II, which will arrive in 2026.

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You Can Pretend You’re a GLADIATOR While Staying the Night in the Roman Colosseum

Online vacation rental service Airbnb recently announced that users can book the Colosseum in Rome as their newest experience. Yes, you read that right. 16 lucky guests will get to have an after-dark experience in the Roman Colosseum essentially. The offering is in partnership with Paramount Pictures for Ridley Scott’s upcoming film, Gladiator II. The best part is that you get it for free if selected.

Airbnb

The experience is titled “” and is hosted by Lucius, humorously referencing Paul Mezcal’s character Lucius Verus in the film. However, despite being an Airbnb, you actually can not stay the night at the Colosseum. That is obviously a major bummer, but what is more important, sleep or fulfilling your gladiator destiny?? As the listing reads, “The Colosseum is a place of combat, not of rest. By decree of the Emperor, no guest shall stay the night.”

So what exactly will someone do during their experience? It begins by descending into the Hypogeum, which is the underground chamber of the Colosseum. Here, you’ll get suited up in armor, according to the description on the . The armor matches the type of gladiator you are: murmillo, thraex, provocator, retiarius, or contrarete.

Airbnb

Once decked out, guests watch seasoned gladiators fight and study their techniques as they will take part in battle very soon, but not before feasting…kind of. Guests will enjoy a spread akin to a charcuterie board with grapes, pomegranates, almonds, and walnuts.

Fueled with measly fruit and nuts, guests train for gladiator combat and face off against each other. “A summa rudis—your referee—will ultimately determine your fate. May you taste the sweetness of glory with infestus pollex and join the ranks of victorious gladiators since time immemorial,” says the website.

Airbnb

The experience is part of Airbnb’s Icons program, which launched in May. Icons are a collection of experiences based on fictional properties and real-life celebrities. Previous Icons experiences have included “Step into X-Men ’97” and “Drift off in the Up house.”

“Icons take you inside worlds that only existed in your imagination—until now,” said Brian Chesky, Airbnb co-founder and CEO. “As life becomes increasingly digital, we’re focused on bringing more magic into the real world. With Icons, we’ve created the most extraordinary experiences on Earth.

Airbnb

Guests have the option to book one of two three-hour experiences on Nov 27, similar to a normal Airbnb booking, except you’ll need to answer a question about why you want to go. The experience itself will take place on May 7 and 8, 2025.

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DUNE: PROPHECY Stars Reveal Their DUNE Origin Stories and the Series’ Epic Scope

From the Great Houses of the Duniverse to the fascinating women of the Sisterhood, Dune: Prophecy is taking us to brand new corners of Dune‘s world. At Dune: Prophecy‘s New York City premiere, Nerdist had the pleasure of talking to the cast of this epic series, including two actors who bring to life characters never before seen in the franchise. Edward Davis plays Harrow Harkonnen, a man not quite content with his lot in the world who hopes to elevate his House to its former glory. Meanwhile, Faoileann Cunningham plays Sister Jen in the show. Jen is a fierce acolyte of the Sisterhood who has a lot of bark but hides an emotional core beneath. Davis and Cunningham shared with Nerdist how they embarked on their Dune journeys and where we might see their characters go.

HBO

Nerdist: How did you first get introduced to Dune? What’s your Dune origin story?

Edward Davis: I think my first introduction to Dune was maybe the Lynch film, but I watched it as an infant and found it completely impossible to understand. I have revisited it, and I think it’s amazing, but, of course, like a lot of people, my first main introduction was the first Denis Villeneuve film. I think it’s incredible.

Faoileann Cunningham: I was just saying, I got given the book for Christmas literally the year before I got cast. The universe was talking to me. My mom actually has a very good family friend who gave me a First Folio kind of edition; it was some kind of special edition. It has images in it and it comes in a fancy box. It sits next to my bed in Ireland.

HBO

How would you define your Dune: Prophecy character in a sentence or two?

Davis: So Harrow Harkonnen’s journey is one from lowly, insecure, squashed baron with no status to someone who starts to find his place in the world, his power, the way he can manipulate people, how he can be devious. He basically discovers what it is to be a Harkonnen, I think.

Cunningham: Complicated. That’s it, one word. Complicated.

Edward, how does your character’s house and family lineage impact him in Dune: Prophecy?

Davis: Well, the Great Houses in Dune‘s universe are so important. Everyone’s vying for the status of their own house, but I think Harkonnens more than anyone because they’re so low status at this stage. They’ve been, as they see it, wrongly branded as war criminals, and they’re desperate to reinstate their name. And I think just the efforts you make to become part of society again, to be one of the movers and shakers in this world—that’s what makes you a Harkonnen. It’s that kind of fighting for your reputation, basically.

HBO

And Faoileann, how does being a part of the sisterhood really influence Sister Jen’s trajectory?

Cunningham: I think she is grappling with a lot of new information and a lot of new ways of thinking about the world, and she is just asking a lot of questions and hoping to get real answers.

Can you tell us a little bit about your favorite scene in Dune: Prophecy?

Davis: One of my favorite scenes to film in Dune: Prophecy is a scene in episode four, which is in the Harkonnen apartment. And you get really down to sort of nitty-gritty family stuff, and it becomes domestic, and it’s just so good. It’s like an opportunity to act with some incredible actors. It was funny. It’s just great stuff to do.

HBO

Cunningham: It was really cool to get to film these huge epic scenes and then equally incredible to be in a bunk bed with someone having a really intimate conversation. And I feel like, as an actor, that really helped me to grow. I had to radapt very quickly. Sometimes, you could be on the edge of a cliff filming some really intense training scene, and then suddenly, you’re in a much more personal setting, having to be really, really vulnerable. That breadth of acting was amazing to do.

HBO

Dune: Prophecy premieres on Max on November 17.

Editor’s Note: Dune: Prophecy is a Legendary Entertainment production. Nerdist is a subsidiary of Legendary Digital Networks.

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Get an Exclusive Look at THE ART OF FUTURAMA Book’s Concept Art and Sketches

Good news, everyone! This week The Art of Futurama: A Visual History of Matt Groening’s Cult Classic Animated Series hit store shelves. It features never-before-seen concept art, original drawings, a preface from Groening himself, and behind-the-scenes commentary from those who have helped bring the beloved cartoon to life over the last 25 years. But you don’t need Fry to deliver your copy to see what Futurama treasures await readers. Nerdist has an exclusive inside look at The Art of Futurama.

Abrams ComicArts

Matt Groening’s new book from Abrams ComicArts is a Futurama feast. This deluxe hardcover book is a first for the show. It explores the development and history of the popular sci-fi animated series.

It covers the making of the series’ first seven years at Fox, which began in 1999. But it also includes insight into every installment via “brand-new content, never-before-seen concept art, sketches, developmental work, and a complete episode guide.” Many of those drawings also come with commentary from Groening, showrunner David X. Cohen, and producer Claudia Katz. Cohen also provides an introduction and Katz wrote the book’s foreword.

Abrams ComicArts

Fans will find 176 pages of colorful artwork when they take their copy for an intergalactic spin. But we have a sneak peak at a few of those pages right here. These sneak peeks include designs and sketches that were used to create some of the show’s most famous moments and episodes. They also provide an idea of the kind of commentary readers will encounter on each page. This book promises to give even the most dedicates viewers new ways to appreciate the show.

Click To View Gallery Abrams ComicArts Abrams ComicArts Abrams ComicArts Abrams ComicArts

“When the show premiered on March 28, 1999, it was heralded as one of the best-looking shows on television,” writes Katz in her forward. “This book is a tribute to all the talented artists who helped mold, build, and shape the beautiful, stunning, epic and (twenty-five years later) ever-expanding Futurama Universe.”

It’s also a tribute to this show’s enduring legacy. Multiple cancellations at multiple networks haven’t been able to stop it. Now viewers will get a chance to both eread and see why.

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When Does DUNE: PROPHECY Take Place? Here’s a Complete Yet Brief DUNE Universe Timeline

Denis Villeneuve’s Dune movies brought Paul Atreides’ story to the screen, but the story of the Kwisatz Haderach actually started millennia before he was even born. The Bene Gesserit worked for ten thousand years to bring about a super being who could guide humanity towards a better path. Now HBO’s Dune: Prophecy will show us those early days when the Sisterhood first put their long term plans in motion.

And yet, not even going back that far tells the whole tale. Dune‘s history is much longer than our own. How far back does it go and what is the state of the universe at the start of the show? To help you understand what’s going on, why, and when, here’s a simplified timeline to help you understand Dune: Prophecy.

Warner Bros. Discovery

Note: Dune‘s timeline uses the founding of the Space Guild as its reference point. BG stands for “Before Guild” and AG stands for “After Guild.”

11200 BG (The year 1960) Human space travel begins.

5000 BG Humans bring sandtrout to the waters of Arrakis, beginning both the long-term desertification of the planet and the creation of spice mélange.

Related:

Everything You Need to Know About Arrakis from Dune
What You Need to Know About Dune‘s Sandworms

Warner Bros./Legendary Pictures

2500 BG Formation of the Old Empire (a.k.a. Old Imperium) which exists for more than 2,000 years.

2100 BG Founding of the Landsraad, a political body representing all the Great Houses

1400 BG Scientists discover spice mélange on Arrakis. Centuries later humans learn it can be used to enhance cognitive ability, which ultimately allows for the folding of space, a technique that makes fast intergalactic travel possible.

Related: What Is Spice in Dune and Why Is It Important?

201-108 BG During the Butlerian Jihad humans wage war on the “thinking machines” and Titans (a type of human cyborg) that had come to dominate the galaxy and enslave much of mankind.

Warner Bros./Legendary Pictures

88 BG Battle of Corrin sees the final defeat of thinking machines. The political leader of the human forces, Viceroy Faykan Butler, changes the family name to Corrino and becomes the first Padishah Emperor, establishing the Corrino Empire originally based on Salusa Secundus. The Landsraad rises to prominence under the new Emperor.

War hero Vorian Atreides pushes for the exile of Faykan’s younger brother, the “coward” Abulurd Harkonnen, beginning the millennia-long feud between Atreides and Harkonnen.Raquella Berto-Anirul founded the Sisterhood of Rossak—forerunner of the Bene Gesserit—from the remnants of the Sorceresses of Rossak. The group begins preserving mankind’s genetic heritage to secretly breed better leaders.Dr. Mohandas Suk established the all-new Suk Medical School.

Related:

Who Are the Bene Gesserit in Dune?
What Is Dune‘s Kwisatz Haderach?
Who Are the Mentats in Dune?

68 BG Founding of the Order of Mentats, a group of “human computers” used to replace the forever outlawed thinking machines.

26 BG Birth of Valya Harkonnen (played by Emily Watson on Dune: Prophecy)

10 BG Valya joins the Sisterhood of Rossak

HBO

1 BG/1 AG The Foldspace Shipping Company renames itself the Spacing Guild, co-created by Emperor Roderick Corrino. It monopolizes space travel and commerce.

Founding of House Atreides in response to the growing influence of the recovering House Harkonnen.

9 AG Javicco Corrino (played by Mark Strong on Dune: Prophecy) becomes Emperor following the death of his father Roderick.

Attila Szvacsek/HBO

Related: Everything We Know About Dune: Prophecy

Roughly 27 AG Start of the present day story on Dune: Prophecy, 116 years after the end of the Great Machine Wars.

Related:

A Glossary of Important Terms in Dune
How to Pronounce Everything in Dune

Ten Thousand Years of Corrino Rule A reliance on spice and the covert work of the Bene Gesserit keep the galaxy in a kind of long-term stasis.

Warner Bros./Legendary

10175 AG Birth of Paul Atreides

10191 – 10193 AG Events of Dune, covered (though slighly condensed) in Denis Villeneuve’s films.

Editor’s Note: Dune: Prophecy is a Legendary Entertainment production. Nerdist is a subsidiary of Legendary Digital Networks.

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WEDNESDAY Season Two Adds Lady Gaga to Its Cast

One of the biggest moments of Wednesday season one was undoubtedly when our favorite Addams family member, played by Jenna Ortega, did her infamous dance. That clip did numbers and even caused a couple of songs to go viral. Outside of “Goo Goo Muck,” Lady Gaga’s “Bloody Mary” got some shine over a decade later thanks to a video mashup of it alongside Wednesday’s smooth moves. Now, in an interesting turn, Lady Gaga will star in Wednesday season two in some capacity. 

Warner Bros./DC/Netflix

According to Entertainment Weekly, the details about Lady Gaga’s Wednesday role are not known but she’s apparently filming in Europe. This is great news for Ortega, who previously expressed her desire to have Gaga Thee Mother Monster in this spooky series.

“I’m sure Netflix would love that,” Ortega told Variety in 2023. “I think Mrs. Thornhill and Wednesday had this weird mentor relationship or kind of understood each other in a certain way, so, if Lady Gaga were to be a part, I think it would have to be two monsters that understand each other.”

Like Christina Ricci’s character, we can assume that Lady Gaga will play someone we’ve never met before versus an Addams family member. It would be fun for her to be a strange cousin from the Frump side of the family. She certainly feels like she could be related to Morticia.

We will have to wait and see if Netflix gives us an announcement about Gaga’s involvement in Wednesday season two.

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DUNE: PROPHECY EP Teases a Villain that Echoes Paul Atreides and Having a Harkonnen in Charge

At Dune: Prophecy‘s NYC premiere, Nerdist was excited to chat with executive producer Jordan Goldberg about what’s to come in the new chapter of the franchise. Among other things, Goldberg discussed the appeal of Dune: Prophecy, what it brings to the table, and its heroes and villains. Strap in for a show whose hero, Valya Harkonnen, is all hard edges, and its villain, Desmond Hart, echoes Paul Atreides himself.

You can check out everything Goldberg had to tell us about the series below.

Nerdist: For those who are already huge fans of the Dune universe, what do you think the biggest appeal of Dune: Prophecy will be?

Jordan Goldberg: I think the biggest appeal of Dune: Prophecy is that it’s going to give you an insight into the formation of the sisterhood, which then becomes the Bene Gesserit. And the fact that there’s a Harkonnen that’s leading that order, Valya Harkonnen, it’s going to be fun to watch.

Max

What about Valya being a Harkonnen really comes into play in Dune: Prophecy?

Goldberg: Well, we all know the Harkonnens are sort of evil and vile, and Valya Harkonnen has a hard edge, but she really is our protagonist. But, given the situation she finds herself in, she’s going to need that kind of evil and vileness.

Do you think there’s a softness to Valya despite her conniving ways?

Goldberg: Definitely. I think there definitely is. She’s very loyal to her sister. I think she actually does have very good intentions. She also wants to keep the Imperium together. Valya has found the family in the Sisterhood, and she wants to protect it at all costs.

Warner Bros./Max

Is there a new aspect of the Dune universe that this series is bringing to the forefront?

Goldberg: We have a story that advances into the present, and we meet some new characters. Our kind of antagonist is Desmond Hart, who’s got some Messiah-like vibes going for him. He’s really an echo of Paul Atreides, and he’s up to some really interesting things.

Tell us more about Desmond Hart.

Goldberg: What happens to Desmond Hart on Arrakis is a big part of the series. You find out in episode one there are some strange things you can’t account for with Desmond, and the question is, “Was it true or not?” And “What does it mean if it is true?”

Are there any other parallels between Dune: Prophecy characters and the characters from the Dune movies?

Goldberg: Well, we’ll see the Imperial family, we get to see the kind of pressure they’re under to constantly keep spice flowing, to keep the Imperium together. So you get to see that and what that will evolve to. You also get to see the great houses and their kind of own desires. And then the Harkonnen and Atreides feud is very much on display in our show.

Max

And how did you first get involved  with Dune?  What was your  Dune  origin story?

Goldberg: Before Dune: Prophecy, I worked with Allison Schapker on another show called Westworld, which also was a massive gambit, and we worked together, and when she said she was working on Dune, I immediately said, “Yes.” Because it’s Dune.

I remember as a teenager reading Dune, and it just kind of blew up my mind.

Dune: Prophecy premieres on Max on November 17.

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GAME OF THRONES Movie in Early Development, Confirms HBO Boss

Westeros is a big place, and yet it’s just a small part of George R.R. Martin’s larger world of A Song of Ice and Fire. His fantasy realm is massive, with countless heroes and villains spread out across both the world and millennia. All those people, places, dragons, and ice demons are why Warner Bros. can make as many Game of Throne spinoffs as it wants forever. Sometimes it seems like they are trying to do exactly that, but so far Martin’s world has only ever come to life on HBO. Now that might finally be changing. A new report says Warner Bros. Discovery is in “early development” on a potential Game of Thrones movie. And, happily for Game of Thrones fans, HBO has now confirmed this to be true.

HBO

Deadline‘s Matt Grober reports that Warner Bros. Discovery executives have had “preliminary discussions” on bringing a Game of Thrones story to the big screen. These discussions are very, very early, though. There are no specific ideas or creatives attached to the project, and studios talk about doing a lot of things that never make it past that stage, so this far from a guarantee. However, there’s a dragon-sized reason to believe it could happen. IP is king in modern cinema and Westeros is a very valuable franchise for WBD. That alone could make this happen.

HBO CEO Casey Bloys recently confirmed this report to be true, but again, the Game of Thrones movie is at a very early stage of existence. He revealed Warner Bros. are “going to develop idea… We’ll see if it’s good. We’ll read the scripts along with them. I think it could be fun and interesting. I mean, that’s the point of development, you see is there a story that’s worthy of being in theaters and a big spectacle? I think it would be fun.”

HBO

This is not the first time someone has wanted to bring A Song of Ice and Fire to theaters. At one point, Game of Thrones showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss wanted to finish their hit show with theatrical films. Warner Bros. and HBO wouldn’t let them. (Without checking my notes, I think that went just fine so no reason to talk about the end of Game of Thrones ever again.) But obviously making a standalone movie (or movies) is very different from abandoning the television format for films.

If the studio does go forward with a Game of Thrones spinoff movie, the big question will become, “What will it be about?” and “what story will they tell?” Good luck guessing. The possibilities in Westeros and beyond are as endless as they have been for all the possible spinoff shows HBO has tried developing, too. That said, we have a few suggestions ourselves.

Originally published on November 1, 2024.

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New Cast Revealed for Live-Action AVATAR: THE LAST AIRBENDER Season 2

Season one of Netflix’s live-action Avatar: The Last Airbender series was a great success. And we’re very excited to know that season two of the series is well underway. Although it might be some time before we see a new trailer or imagery from the series, Netflix has revealed some other fun information. We now officially have some new live-action casting information for important characters from Avatar: The Last Airbender season two. First up, our new friends from the Earth Kingdom. Book Two of Avatar: The Last Airbender is “Earth,” after all. But maybe we’ll see new season two cast information from other Avatar: The Last Airbender kingdoms and nations soon as well. For now, we’ll get inspired by what’s been revealed so far.

You can take a look below to see who has joined in the fun.

New Earth Kingdom Characters Cast for Avatar: The Last Airbender Season 2Netflix

Here is the full list of new characters joining us in the second season of live-action Avatar.

Chin Han (Mortal Kombat, Skyscraper) plays “Long Feng” Hoa Xuande (The Sympathizer, Top of the Lake: China Girl)  as “Professor Zei”Justin Chien (The Brothers Sun, The Great Leap) as “King Kuei”Amanda Zhou (Spinning Out, The Handmaid’s Tale) plays “Joo Dee”Crystal Yu (Doctor Who, Good Omens) plays “Lady Beifong”Kelemete Misipeka (Sons of Thunder, ) plays “The Boulder”Lourdes Faberes (The Sandman, Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre) as “General Sung”Rekha Sharma (Yellowjackets, Battlestar Galactica) as “Amita”

Of particular interest are, of course, Long Feng, a devious villain in Avatar: The Last Airbender‘s cartoon, who heads up Ba Sing Se’s secret police, the Dai Li, in the animated Nickelodeon series. Long Feng has fickle loyalties and a lot of self-interest. We bet he’ll be causing trouble for the Gaang sooner rather than later.

Professor Zei, meanwhile, is the head of the anthropology department in Ba Sing Se, whose ambition led to trouble in the animated series when he recklessly disrespected Wan Shi Tong’s Library. Wan Shi Tong already made one appearance in Avatar: The Last Airbender season one, speaking to Aang in the Spirit World. So perhaps we shall see him again.

Nickelodeon/Netflix

Finally, Joo Dee is the face of Ba Sing Se’s dangerous denial of war, waylaying the Avatar and his friends from their mission in the most genial way possible. We’re sure we’ll see Amanda Zhou’s grinning face making its way into the meme-verse before long.

Others cast include Toph’s mother, Lady Beifong; The Boulder, who is a wrestler Toph handily defeats in the ring; General Sung, an Earth Kingdom official; and King Kuei, the Earth King. Especially interesting is the season two casting of a brand new character Avatar: The Last Airbender‘s world, both live-action and cartoon, Amita. Avatar did introduce several new characters in season one. But we’ll have to wait and see exactly who Amita is.

Avatar: The Last Airbender recently revealed the casting of one of its most important season two characters, Toph. And so, it really feels like momentum is building for the next chapters of the series. We’re excited to meet all these new faces and to soon learn more about where the show will go.

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RED ONE Delivers a Mediocre Christmas Gift Meant for No One

Red One sounds like a fake 30 Rock movie. “Chris Evans must save Christmas by helping Santa’s bodyguard The Rock navigate the hidden mythological world to find the kidnapped and totally ripped St. Nicholas played by Oscar-winner J.K. Simmons.” The film’s aggressively terrible trailers make it look even more absurd than it sounds. And yet, Red One isn’t bad. (I know!) The problem is that it’s not any good, either. (I know.) It is a thoroughly mediocre movie. It will disappoint you if you see it in theaters but prove totally acceptable to watch on a plane. How did a film with a competent director, legitimate Hollywood stars, and some exciting sequences end up being “fine” at best? Because it has no idea who it’s actually for. It’s a genre mishmash, a heartfelt action-comedy Christmas movie, too vulgar for kids but not mature or funny enough for adults.

There are some easy-to-like elements of Red One. Simmons’ Santa is extremely lovable, wise, and grounded. It’s the actor’s second worthy entrant to the list of cinema’s best Old Saint Nicks. Dwayne Johnson also gives one of his better recent performances as the super serious E.L.F. Callum Drift. He’s the retiring head of Santa’s security team who lost his Christmas spirit even before his boss’ kidnapping. Red One isn’t especially humorous, but that’s not The Rock’s fault. His understated performance finds a great balance between funny and intense. So while he looks as though he’s playing the same character for the hundredth time, he’s not.

Game of Thrones‘ alum Kristofer Hivju, unrecognizable under some very impressive makeup, also shines as the dark lord of the season Krampus. Kiernan Shipka and Lucy Liu also both make compelling cases for why each should be in way more movies, even though Red One doesn’t exactly give either of them the most fleshed out characters ever written. The film also features some very good action scenes, including a high-speed chase through the North Pole that is big in scope yet easy to follow. There’s also a long fight sequence with magical killer snowmen that works way better than it probably has any right to. And director Jake Kasdan manages to never let things get too angry or saccharine.

Amazon MGM Studios

There are actually very few things to hate about Red One. The issue is there are a whole lot of things that fall totally flat. Chris Evans isn’t bad, but the script doesn’t give him much to work with. He plays the uncaring, cynical Jack O’Malley, a role perfectly suited for Evans sardonic-yet-charismatic side. The problem is that Jack is supposed to be funny and the movie isn’t. Its comedy and tone is seemingly aimed at 11-year-olds and no one else. It’s too sharp for younger kids and too dull for anyone older. Very rarely do jokes or bits elicit actual laughs. Usually Red One‘s humor garners the worst kind of reaction, the kind where you stoically think, “Oh….that’s funny.”

Some of that comes from the movie’s use of mythological creatures and deep Christmas lore. The script never elevates any of its best ideas past “clever” to anything inspired or genuinely humorous. It’s all just….fine. It’s fine. But what’s not fine is that while this sounds like a totally acceptable family movie, it definitely won’t be for every family, especially those with younger kids. There’s a ton of bloodless fighting (so many fights!), and some of the more notable terms used include “dickhead” and “asshole.” And there are many more moments where it feels like characters were originally supposed to use even stronger language but those terms got cut at the last second. (That’s done as an intentional gag one time.)

Amazon MGM Studios

The result is a movie always at odds with itself. It’s as if it’s holding itself back from what it actually wants to be. Red One feels like it wanted to be a movie for adults, but ultimately decided it also needed to appeal to kids. It wants to be holiday fare everyone of every age can enjoy. Instead it feels like it’s for no one, like a fancy dish made without any spices so kids can still eat it.

Red One would have been better off embracing its 30 Rock movie-ness. But it’s neither stupid or silly enough to be dumb fun nor smart enough to be legitimately good. So while it’s better than getting coal in your stocking, it’s the type of gift you’ll want to return for store credit.

Red One ⭐ (2.5 of 5)

Red One releases on November 15, 2024.

Mikey Walsh is a staff writer at Nerdist. You can follow him on  Bluesky at @burgermike. And also anywhere someone is ranking the Targaryen kings.

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