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How TRUE DETECTIVE: NIGHT COUNTRY Directly Connects to Season 1

In True Detective‘s first season Matthew McConaughey’s Rust Cohle told detectives about his estranged father, Travis. He said the two had once lived together in Alaska and his pops died there long ago of leukemia. Only, the police found no evidence Travis Cohle ever had cancer. Now we know we should have believed Rust. True Detective: Night Country confirmed the ghost who located those frozen bodies was Rust’s dad, who died in the ice before leukemia could kill him. But that connection is more than just a fun Easter egg. Travis Cohle’s spirit might be helping to finally resolve the very same case Rust worked on in the show’s first season. That swirling symbol connecting two murder cases in Ennis, Alaska is the same symbol associated with the Tuttle Cult in Louisiana. And that very same family is funding the Tsalal Arctic Research Station.

The Connection Between Rust and Travis CohleHBO

True Detective: Night Country‘s second episode confirmed Rust’s unsubstantiated season one statements about his dad. Travis Cohle did live and die in Alaska. One day, many years ago, he went out into the ice after learning he had a fatal form of leukemia. He preferred to end things on his own terms rather than succumb to cancer. That wasn’t the end of his story, at least not according to Fiona Shaw’s Rose Aguineau. She claims to see ghosts, same as many others in Ennis, and she told Trooper Navarro (Kali Reis) that her dead lover’s spirit has been visiting her for years.

It’s not clear if Rose really sees Travis’s actual ghost or if people who live on the edge of the world see figments of the darkness. What does matter is that she believes she followed Travis’s spirit out into the cold to find something she seemingly knew nothing about. Out in the ice, Travis did a strange, silent dance before pointing to the frozen corpses of the Tsalal Station men. Without Rose, and possibly the dead Travis, the scientists might still be missing in the tundra.

HBO

Rust Cohle said he and his dad “never really liked each other.” The son also described his father as a “survivalist” with “some very f***ing strange ideas.” Travis didn’t have the highest opinion of his boy, either. He apparently thought his son had “no loyalty” after Rust left the cold of Alaska to move back to the warmth of south Texas. But despite their differences, the strange, cerebral Rust—with his unusual outlook on life and existence—and his estranged dad were clearly a lot alike. The episode also revealed another major connection between both the Cohle boys and the show’s first and fourth seasons. Even across time, distance, and death, the Cohles are trying to expose the same cult.

The Swirling Logo at the Center of True Detective Seasons One and FourHBO

True Detective: Night Country‘s second episode reintroduced an important, ominous symbol that dates back to the show’s pilot.

Chief Liz Danvers (Jodie Foster) learned that four days after the brutal murder of his secret girlfriend Annie K, Tsalal Station’s Raymond Clark got the same tattoo Annie had. The tattoo artist said the currently missing and assumed alive Clark was emotional after she completed the work. While that (along with Annie’s missing cell phone in his possession) implicates Clark in Annie’s death, the symbol has far bigger meaning than anyone person.

HBO

Rose said that ancient, crooked swirl is older than Ennis and maybe even the ice itself. It now connects to the town’s two investigations. One of the Tsalal station employees discovered in the snow had it drawn on his forehead. And it was prominently displayed in Clark’s spooky secret trailer, which looked like an outpost of season one’s Carcosa where so many victims met their end. A victim of the Yellow King’s followers is also where that logo first appeared on True Detective.

Murder victim Dora Lange had that exact, unexplained symbol on her back in True Detective‘s first episode ever. Her case was the origins for the entire series. It then appeared many more times in the show’s first year. It even made a reappearance in season three, which also had connections to season one.

HBO

The swirling symbol directly connects to season one’s Tuttle Family Cult. The group of pedophiles worshiped the “Yellow King” and sacrificed children. Detectives Rust Cohle and Martin Hart investigated their heinous crimes. However, the the government and the press dismissed the detectives’ efforts to expose the powerful and politically connected cult.

The truth might finally come out now, though, because Night Country just made the Tuttle’s prime suspects in multiple murders again.

How True Detective: Night Country Connects to Season One’s Yellow King CultHBO

Officer Peter Prior tracked down the organization funding the Tsalal station. The real funding, hidden behind a shell company, comes from Tuttle United. That mega-corporation does “everything” from glass and tech to video games, palm oil, and cruise liners. That information bored Chief Danvers, but not longtime viewers who know the Tuttle as a cult of pedophile child killers who wear scary animals masks as part of their rituals. In addition to their unnatural swirl, they also put handmade crowns of leaves, twigs, and antlers on their victims. They also made dolls to represent their heinous crimes. (That was another motif that appeared in the show’s third season, also centered around a child’s murder).

Danvers and Navarro found similar dolls, crowns, drawings, and the cult’s swirling symbol in Clark’s trailer. That inside of that frightening home in the snow wouldn’t have looked out of place in Louisiana where Cohle and Hart almost died in season one’s finale.

HBO

That finale was the end of their story, but the two detectives never truly closed their case. They stopped a single murderer, but the Tuttle Family Cult never answered for their crimes. Now that same cult is funding strange, impossible work involving ancient microbes at an unusual research station at the far end of the world. It’s a place where men went out running naked in the snow and a cult’s logo adorns the wall of a potential killer’s secret home. It’s also a place where the ghost of Rust Cohle’s dad—whose corpse also brought Evangeline Navarro and Rose Aguineau together—was seen walking the ice locating the dead. And it’s a place that intimately connects True Detective‘s first and fourth seasons.

Maybe time really is a flat circle. If it is, it would contain all the evil in the world, from Louisiana to Alaska. Fortunately that means it also contains all the same detectives trying to do something about that evil. Them and their dead dads.

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

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New JURASSIC WORLD Movie Brings Back Original JURASSIC PARK Writer

If Jurassic Park has taught us anything over 30 years, it’s that you can’t keep prehistoric monsters down. No, seriously, don’t even try it never works. That’s also true in a very different way of big-time, money-making movie franchises. So it’s only fitting a new report says Universal has plans for another Jurassic World movie. But while the sixth film in the series brought back the original movie’s stars, the seventh is bringing back its original screenwriter. David Koepp, who penned both the scripts for the 1993 classic that brought dinosaurs to life and its 1997 followup Jurassic Park: The Lost World, is already working on the next new installment in the Jurassic World universe.

Universal Pictures

The Hollywood Reporter says Universal Pictures is “deep” in development on another dinosaur fim. Koepp, the person responsible for writing Jurassic Park‘s two best scripts, is writing the new movie. The apparently top-secret project is reportedly far enough along in the process that Universal not only likes the current script’s “shape,” it believes the film could hit theaters in 2025. That’s ambitious, especially since a director is not yet attached.

As for the plot, no specifics are known yet about this new Jurassic World movie. Only that the film will explore a “new” Jurassic era and a new story. This installment will almost certainly launch a whole new trilogy. We’d also bet the film will start with a new title. (Our official prediction is Jurassic Planet.)

Universal Pictures

Koepp isn’t the only veteran returning. Jurassic World trilogy producer Frank Marshall is also back for more prehistoric fun. As is series alum Patrick Crowley. And Steven Spielberg, who directed Koepp’s two previous scripts, will also serve as an executive producer on this new Jurassic World movie via his Amblin Entertainment.

And, no matter the story, if the movie is a big enough success, we expect some old stars to come back for later installments, too. Just like dinosaurs and this franchise, they always do.

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THE BAD BATCH Final Season Trailer Reveals Asajj Ventress’ Return

The boys of Clone Force 99 are back for one final battle, as Lucasfilm has released the trailer and airdate for the final season of Star Wars: The Bad Batch. This Dave Filoni-created spinoff of The Clone Wars will drop its last fifteen episodes on February 21, with the first three episodes of season three releasing all at once. New episodes will then air weekly on Wednesdays, with the finale dropping on May 1. The crew is back to rescue Omega from the clutches of the Empire. But the big reveal is the stinger at the end of the trailer. Watch The Bad Batch season three trailer below, and then we’ll talk about that big surprise.

At the end of the trailer, we hear a voice very familiar to fans of The Clone Wars. It’s Nika Futterman as Asajj Ventress, former dark side warrior and apprentice to Count Dooku. She went through quite the character arc in the series, starting seemingly as pure evil. But when Dooku betrayed her at Darth Sidious’ command, she became a bounty hunter and occasional reluctant ally to the Jedi. Now, Ventress never died on-screen in The Clone Wars, but a story arc meant for the show became a canon novel, Dark Disciple by Christie Golden. In that book, Ventress fell in love with rogue Jedi Quinlan Vos and sacrificed herself to save him from Dooku. But as her official entry in the Star Wars databank now says, “That wasn’t the end of Asajj’s story…” Bad Batch supervising director Brad Rau said the following in regards to her apparent death.

Lucasfilm

We don’t want to spoil anything, but want fans to know that any new storytelling with Ventress will align with the events of Star Wars: Dark Disciple.”

Lucasfilm

Ventress has grown her hair out and is wielding a yellow lightsaber. It seems her days fighting with the crimson sabers of the Sith are long behind her. But during these times when Jedi are hunted, sporting any kind of lightsaber is asking for trouble. It would be interesting if she joined the Bad Batch as a bounty hunter, in an effort to rescue Omega from Mount Tantiss. That’s the mysterious mountain base that houses the Emperor’s hidden experiments. Speaking of the Emperor, it looks like he’ll have a bigger role to play as well this season. We can’t wait to find out what happens to our favorite Clone squad. The Bad Batch returns for one last fight on February 21.

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Live-Action AVATAR Teases New Scenes Not Shown In THE LAST AIRBENDER Cartoon, More Azula

Netflix’s upcoming live-action Avatar: The Last Airbender series will embrace its role as an adaptation. And that means the series will not just purely retell a story already in existence. Instead, it will reimagine its source material to create the best new story possible. In a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly, showrunner Albert Kim revealed Netflix’s live-action adaptation of Avatar: The Last Airbender (ATLA) won’t be a one-to-one match with the original animated series that people know and love. Instead, it will take the story threads at its disposal and make something all its own. An idea that he further detailed in a recent interview with SFX magazine.

Adapting, Remixing, and Evolving Avatar: The Last Airbender Series From Cartoon to Live-ActionNetflix

Entertainment Weekly notes that in the live-action Avatar: The Last Airbender series, “some events will have a strict one-to-one adaptation, while others will be remixed.” And Kim expands on the idea, sharing, “We don’t start the show the way the animated series starts… That was a conscious decision to show people this is not the animated series.” Additionally, he offers, “We had to sometimes unravel storylines and remix them in a new way to make sense for a serialized drama… So I’m very curious to see what’ll happen in terms of reaction to that.”

Nickelodeon/Netflix

Meanwhile, SFX magazine notes that “Netflix’s Avatar: The Last Airbender series will bring certain events from the original series’ lore to life for the first time.” And that Kim specifically shared an example, revealing that “The original series never shows the Fire Nation attacking the Southern Air Temple, and that’s something we do see in our version.”

Additionally, Kim reveals that main character Zuko’s sister and an antagonist of the series Azula will feature much more heavily in the first season of the live-action series than she did in the Avatar: The Last Airbender cartoon. Kim notes that he and the writers “had the advantage of knowing a lot of things that are ahead” and “We play to that. We know how big a character Azula becomes in the series, so we had the benefit of hindsight in fleshing out her character and being able to tell a story with her in it in season 1.”

Change Can Be Scary, But It Can Also Be GoodNetflix

These changes only make sense because, of course, the live-action ATLA has eight hour-long episodes to tell its tale, whereas the animated series had a much different format in play. And, as Kim rightly notes, knowing the whole story this time around can serve to make some fascinating alterations. But these evolutions might still come as a surprise to long-time fans. Still, even if the live-action series will alter the course of some Avatar: The Last Airbender stories, it definitely feels like the right choice for this adaptation.

While the idea of unraveling and remixing might sound scary to some, to me, it sounds exciting. The Avatar: The Last Airbender animated series already told its story. We do not need to retell it in the exact same way. Allowing live-action ATLA to make smart changes and bring some novel story into the mix will give a true reason for bringing the series to a new medium. But happily, Kim also notes, “All of our writers are also fans of the original, so they drew upon their own personal experiences and the things that they love the best. We made sure to include all those in the show.”

Fingers crossed your favorite details made the cut.

Avatar: The Last Airbender releases on Netflix on February 22, 2024.

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INVINCIBLE Season 2 Part 2 Sets Its Release Date

Ready for more of Prime Video’s Invincible? We bet you are because after a long wait for season two, only the first half of the season (four episodes) aired in November 2023. But luckily, fans won’t have to wait too much longer for the rest of season two. Invincible season two, part two, has officially set its Prime Video release date. The second half of the season will air this March. Four more episodes of Invincible are waiting just around the corner for us.

Blood, explosions, tension in the air. The teaser for Invincible season two, part two, is incredibly short, but it does manage to convey all of these ideas effectively. We left our heroes in quite a bind when the first half of season two aired late last year. And it looks like part two of Invincible‘s second season will pick up right where things left off (blood trail and all). We’d expect no less from this deliciously gory animated series.

But, ultimately, what this teaser gives us is a confirmation of Invincible season two, part two’s release date. New episodes of Invincible will premiere on Thursday, March 14. The last four episodes of season two will drop weekly. That’s not too far away now, especially when you hold it up against the last wait Invincible fans had to wait.

Prime Video

We don’t yet know any more about these upcoming episodes. No episode titles, synopses, or anything else has been released for season two’s later chapters. But hopefully, Prime Video will soon release a fuller teaser for the second part of Invincible season two, and we’ll have something to buzz over. For now, we guess we’ll have to sit in a pool of our blood and hope the Viltrumites don’t attack us before March. Invincible season two (part two), here we come.

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CONSTELLATION Trailer Sets Up a Space Conspiracy Thriller with Spiraling Drama

As the list of streaming services continues to get longer, many of these platforms are having to find a niche in an overcrowded market. Netflix is leaning heavily into documentaries and delightfully messy reality TV shows while Apple TV+ is digging deep into its sci-fi bag. The latter found recent success with shows like For All Mankind, Silo, and Foundation and now it is hoping to continue that with Constellation, an upcoming series starring Noomi Rapace that has one super intense trailer. 

We love a good psychological thriller, especially one with some possible conspiracy drama. It makes us question everything we see onscreen. And, if there’s an unreliable narrator, the story goes to a whole new level. Alongside its trailer, the synopsis for Constellation reveals that we will get all that and more in this series. 

Created and written by Peter Harness (“Wallander,” “The War of the Worlds”), “Constellation” stars Noomi Rapace as Jo – an astronaut who returns to Earth after a disaster in space – only to discover that key pieces of her life seem to be missing. The action-packed space adventure is an exploration of the dark edges of human psychology, and one woman’s desperate quest to expose the truth about the hidden history of space travel and recover all that she has lost.

Apple TV+

The Constellation trailer certainly gives us a peek into Jo’s spiraling life on Earth. What truths will she reveal? How can she keep herself and her family safe? What, exactly, did Jo see in space that is causing her to have a mental breakdown? We won’t have to wait long to get those answers.

What Is the Release Date for Apple TV+’s Constellation Series?Apple TV+

Constellation will run for eight episodes, with the first three debuting on Apple TV+ on February 21. That’s just enough to hopefully hook fans into its narrative. We know we feel hooked into Constellation just based on its trailer. The remaining five episodes will be released weekly every Wednesday leading up to the finale on March 27.

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RIPLEY Trailer Introduces Andrew Scott as the Legendary Conman

Some characters are so bad they’re good, and that is especially true of the infamous Tom Ripley. Author Patricia Highsmith’s charming and sophisticated conman without a conscience has long fascinated readers and viewers alike. Now he’s set to return to screens again in Netflix’s Ripley. And the show’s first trailer introducing Andrew Scott’s con artist killer has us prepared to excuse all of his crimes.

A beautiful and ominous setting? A world-class leading man? And an origin story for a truly memorable character? This trailer for Netflix’s new eight-part limited series has everything. That includes the Academy Award-winning writer of Schindler’s List behind it. The show comes from writer-director Steven Zaillian (The Irishman). Here’s the show’s official synopsis from Netflix:

Tom Ripley (Andrew Scott), a grifter scraping by in early 1960s New York, is hired by a wealthy man to travel to Italy to try to convince his vagabond son to return home. Tom’s acceptance of the job is the first step into a complex life of deceit, fraud and murder. The drama series is based on Patricia Highsmith’s bestselling Tom Ripley novels.

Netflix

Ripley also stars Dakota Fanning as Marge Sherwood and Johnny Flynn Dickie Greenleaf. It also features Elliot Sumner, Maurizio Lombardi, and Margherita Buy. And rounding out the cast is the great John Malkovich, who also played Tom Ripley himself in 2002’s Ripley’s Game. The series debuts on the streaming site this spring on April 4.

Scott is now the eight performer to bring the character from the page to the screen. The others to do so include Matt Damon in The Talented Mr. Ripley, as well as Alain Delon, Dennis Hopper, Jonathan Kent, Barry Pepper, and Ian Hart. If the show is anywhere near as good as this trailer we expect Scott’s Tom Ripley to be among the very best versions of a character who’s so bad he’s too good not to like.

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New STAR WARS Hoodies and Hats From RSVLTS Are Strong in the Force

The folks at RSVLTS have a whole new collection of Star Wars wear, this time focusing on hoodies and hats celebrating our favorite galaxy far, far away. This particular collection has apparel that pays tribute to Boba Fett’s very first animated appearance back in 1978, Jedi warrior Ahsoka Tano, the Mandalorian, and even the dreaded Death Star itself. You can check out some highlights from the new Star Wars RSVLTS collection down below:

RSVLTS“Summer Snips”RSVLTS

Just like the character herself, there’s nothing subtle about this fresh and floral design inspired by Ahsoka Tano’s signature lekku stripes and otherworldly skin markings. No matter what time of year, this brightly colored hoodie allows you to bring a little bit of summer, and a whole lot of Ahsoka swagger, to any occasion. This performance hoodie will set you back $75.00.

Boba Fett’s DebutRSVLTS

This colorful retro hoodie is an homage to the “Story of the Faithful Wookiee,” better known as the introduction to Boba Fett. This was originally part of the infamous Star Wars Holiday Special. Everyone’s favorite bounty hunter was designed and animated for this short based off of footage from a Lucasfilm test shot. Catch Boba Fett flying around and battling a beast with his sniper rifle all over this soft and stretchy hoodie. This performance hoodie is also $75.00

Battle of YavinRSVLTS

From Rebel to Empire, it’s all the tech you could ever want from a galaxy far, far away. The stylistic cool of the ’70s meets the modern flair of the hoodie on this dark and colorful glimpse into the past. Covered in the heads-up display schematics, data, and radars that helped the pilots attack (or defend) the Death Star over Yavin IV, this hoodie is all about screens, screens, and more screens. Don’t stare too long, make sure to give those eyes a break. Like the others, this one costs $75.00.

Click To View Gallery RSVLTS/Lucasfilm Lucasfilm/RSVLTS RSVLTS/Lucasfilm Lucasfilm/RSVLTS RSVLTS/Lucasfilm RSVLTS/Lucasfilm Lucasfilm/RSVLTS

There’s also a hoodie based on the Death Star, called “That’s No Moon,” and another honoring the Mandalorian, named “This is the Way.” There are also five new hats, in both “dad hat” and TLB (Tight Line Braid) styles. These are A New Hope, Tatooine Sunset, The Astromech, Far, Far Away, and Beep-Boop, a tribute to Artoo Deetoo. That one is also available in regular and sloped styles. You can check all these out in our gallery above. And to purchase these, be sure to head on over to RSVLTS’ official site.

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Marvel’s IRONHEART Disney+ Series Has Officially Concluded Filming

In 2020, Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige announced that Riri Williams, a.k.a. Ironheart, would spring to life from comic pages in her own original series starring Dominique Thorne. Ironheart will be part of Phase Five. While details about the series are still pretty scarce, Riri Williams’ comic history will provide its foundation. We finally met Riri “Ironheart” Williams in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, an appearance that set the stage for diving into her story.

Although it’s been a while since we last heard an update about the show, star Dominique Thorne has revealed that Ironheart has happily concluded filming. She notes, “Filming has concluded, indeed. I mean, I can say strap in, get ready. It will be a ride, much like they all are. It is an epic journey, and one that I’m very excited to share.”

Dominique Thorne teases ‘Ironheart’ : “Get ready… it’ll be a ride” | #Sundance pic.twitter.com/Ef1RIPuaaf

— Deadline Hollywood (@DEADLINE) January 19, 2024

We have our fingers crossed that we’ll hear more from Ironheart soon.

Disney/Marvel Studios

Here’s everything you need to know about Ironheart. 

Title

The series title is Marvel Studios’ Ironheart. 

Ironheart‘s Plot

Ironheart will focus on Riri Williams, a brilliant Black girl inventor who creates a high-tech metal suit like Iron Man’s. As we discover in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Riri is a 19-year-old MIT student who is “running” a homework business. Oh, and she also builds a vibranium detection machine that puts her in the path of Namor, the leader of a underwater nation who is willing to kill her to protect his people. Of course, she’s alive and well at the end of the film and heading back to Massachusetts… for now. Right now, there are no solid details about the show. But it is possible that the show will bounce between her native Chicago and MIT, where MJ and Ned also happen to be.

Behind the Scenes 

Playwright, poet, and Snowpiercer writer Chinaka Hodge will lead the show’s writing team as a head writer. According to Deadline, Sam Bailey and Angela Barnes will direct the series. In addition, Proximity, Ryan Coogler’s production company, will serve as one of the show’s producers. Coogler is also onboard the series as an executive producer alongside Kevin Feige. Ironheart finished filming in November 2022.

Marvel StudiosIronheart‘s Cast

Dominique Thorne will take on the leading role of Riri “Ironheart” Williams in the MCU. She will be joined by Anthony Ramos of Hamilton and In the Heights fame, who will play The Hood. This Is Us mainstay Lyric Ross will portray Riri’s best friend. In the comics, Riri’s BFF Natalie died way before she became an iron hero but lived on through N.A.T.A.L.I.E. This AI program takes her friend’s form and they work together much like Stark and J.A.R.V.I.S. did. It remains to be seen if this friend will be alive, appear in flashbacks, or operate as AI in the series. Or, perhaps it is not Natalie at all but rather a new character.

Other cast members include Manny Montana, Alden Ehrenreich, Zoe Terakes, Shakira Barrera, Jim Rash, Shea Couleé, Regan Aliyah, Rashida “Sheedz” Olayiwola, Sonia Denis, Paul Calderón, and Cree Summer.

A new Marvel filing with the U.S. Copyright Office Public Records System also reveals that Sacha Baron Cohen will appear in Ironheart as “Mystery Man.” Very mysterious indeed.

Marvel Comics/Marvel StudiosIronheart‘s Release Date

The Disney+ series doesn’t have a release date yet.

Originally published on March 1, 2022. 

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BMW Testing Humanoid Robots That Look Like a Sci-Fi Disaster Come to Life

You know how we all have those movies we’ve seen roughly 8,000 times on basic cable despite the fact they’re not anything special? Well one of mine is 2004’s I, Robot starring Will Smith. It’s not bad, and it’s not great, it’s just a totally fine film. A totally fine film I just happen to know every word of for no good reason. At least there was no good reason until now. All those viewing could finally pay off because I’ll know how to handle a potential problem mankind might soon face. BMW is now testing all-purpose humanoid robots at a plant in South Carolina, and these creepy machines look like they came right out of a sci-fi horror film.

California-based AI robotics company Figure has announced a new commercial agreement with BMW Manufacturing. The company’s autonomous humanoid robots are heading to BMW’s Spartanburg, South Carolina manufacturing facility. The partnership (which we first learned about at The Verge) will see the futuristic/dystopian machines “enable the automation of difficult, unsafe, or tedious tasks throughout the manufacturing process.” In their press release the companies say these robots will allow “employees to focus on skills and processes that cannot be automated, as well as continuous improvement in production efficiency and safety.”

Sure. Minus all the human jobs these robots could potentially replace, this sounds great for workers. Yeah….

The arrangement includes a multi-stage rollout. Phase one will see Figure identifying “initial use cases to apply” its robots in the automotive production process. Only then will the machines be used at the BMC facility. The two companies also have plans to “jointly explore advanced technology topics such as artificial intelligence, robot control, manufacturing virtualization, and robot integration.”

Figure

And I have plans to watch I, Robot again. Not because I actually fear a robot uprising. AI is not actually a threat to us at this point and almost certainly not anytime soon. No, I will watch it again just in case. I’d hate for humanity to end because I needed to see it for the 8,001 time.

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