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‘The emotional power of the movie was really pretty extreme’ Universal Pictures Perhaps more than other genres, horror tends to function as a direct reflection of our broader emotional baseline as a culture. In an interview with /Film’s Jacob Hall, Cargill himself talked about how releasing “Sinister” at the height of the goodwill of the Barack Obama presidency allowed them to pursue “real problems” and motivated audiences to crave “that feeling of dread and be knocked out of their comfort zone....

The Crown Is At Its Best (And Worst) When Dealing With Royal Outsiders Netflix By Shania Russell/Nov. 19, 2022 3:35 pm EST The appeal of “The Crown” has never been limited to the glitz and glamor of the royal family. While the series certainly delivers on the promise of a glossy costume drama about a stuffy British monarch, its biggest strength has always been its effective approach to storytelling. Episodes of “The Crown” thankfully abandon the streaming TV refrain of being “more like a ten-hour movie” and instead deliver self-contained episodes that certainly connect, but are also a full meal on their own....

The Daily Stream: Inside The World’s Toughest Prisons Is An Empathetic View Of Life Behind Bars Netflix By Danielle Ryan/Oct. 8, 2022 2:00 pm EST The series: “Inside the World’s Toughest Prisons” Where you can stream it: Netflix The pitch: Host Raphael Rowe knows a thing or two about life behind bars. After being convicted and sentenced to life in prison in the U.K. for a murder he didn’t commit, he decided to start researching law and criminal justice....

Someone didn’t watch ‘How to Train Your Dragon’ HBO Max The whole scene is shot like a horror movie, set during a raging storm in the middle of what appears to be nighttime (or is it very clear and light out? Ya burnt!) as Lucerys realizes he is not alone in Storm’s End, but Vhagar and Aemond are already there. Director Greg Yaitanes truly makes us feel as afraid as Lucerys, because we know how dangerous a bloodthirsty anime villain like Aemond can be, especially for the nephew who took his eye....

The Surreal Laurel And Hardy Comedy That (Apparently) Inspired The Sopranos HBO By Lee Adams/Sept. 4, 2022 5:30 pm EST Sometimes great movies and TV shows have the most unlikely sources of inspiration. Nick Park and Aardman Animations’ masterpiece “Chicken Run” was based on John Sturges’ classic POW adventure “The Great Escape,” while “Logan” director James Mangold pitched the film as “‘Little Miss Sunshine” with Wolverine and Charles Xavier (via Empire)....

The Twister Sequel Will Touch Down In Summer 2024 Warner Bros. By Valerie Ettenhofer/Dec. 20, 2022 6:23 pm EST Last week, we learned that a “Twister” sequel is in the works at Universal, and Amblin may have found a director. This week, the project continues to pick up speed, as we’ve caught wind of its release date: according to Variety, “Twisters” is set to touch down on July 19, 2024....

There’s A Simple Answer To The Question ‘Why Are The Simpsons Yellow?’ Disney By William Bibbiani/Nov. 9, 2022 1:34 pm EST There are perhaps no bigger stars in television history than Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, and Maggie Simpson. They’ve been an indelible constellation in the pop culture firmament for over 30 years, appearing in over 700 episodes of television, not to mention video games, T-shirts, and Butterfinger commercials. Yes, it’s no wonder that when Chris Martin of Coldplay famously sang, “Look at the stars, look how they shine for you,” he also felt the need to clarify that “they were all yellow....

What we know about Renfield so far Universal Pictures So what’s the big deal about “Renfield” in the first place, you ask? Well, ever hear of those misbegotten plans for a new franchise of Universal monsters, dubbed “The Dark Universe”? Seriously, they had a neat little logo and photoshoot and everything! Those plans promptly imploded in spectacular fashion once the Tom Cruise-starring “The Mummy” also, similarly, imploded in spectacular fashion upon release in the summer of 2017....

‘I don’t have any big opinions about the royal family’ Netflix Debicki tells the publication, “I don’t have any big opinions about the Royal Family. That’s an advantage here, right?” She was asked if she knows any of them, to which she says, “No,” and then, “Maybe I never will now. Prince Harry seems fun.” She adds that she doesn’t follow the news about them at all and said the Daily Mail makes her “nauseous....

Everyone’s striving for the seat of power HBO There are a couple of different layers to this idea. In Daenerys’ case, her pursuit of the Iron Throne blinded her to the world and the morals that once guided her ambitions. Even though she never actually sat on the throne, her drive for power became a corrupting force. But here’s a big difference: when we catch up with her ancestors in the prequel series, the Targaryen dynasty is at the peak of its power....

Why The Iron Throne Looks Different In House Of The Dragon HBO By Jeremy Mathai/Aug. 16, 2022 3:48 pm EST Of all the memorable moments and iconography that “Game of Thrones” introduced to viewers during its (mostly) acclaimed run — awe-inspiring dragons, the disastrous Red Wedding, that majestic and towering Wall located up north — perhaps none measure up to the simple power of the constantly sought-after Iron Throne. As much as the series evolved into the kind of typical fantasy that involved zombies and end-of-the-world stakes, the early seasons were predominantly concerned with the nature of power and what kind of person would make for a good ruler … if such a thing even exists, of course....

Will The MCU Embrace Scarlet Witch’s Rich X-Men History? Marvel Studios By Shania Russell/Aug. 2, 2022 5:00 pm EST There will be spoilers ahead for “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.” Say what you will about Wanda Maximoff, but the lady sure knows how to put on an entertaining show. That time she psychically enslaved an entire town of people so that she could live out her fantasy of a happy TV sitcom life?...

Wonder Woman 3 Will Not Be Moving Forward Warner Bros. By Erin Brady/Dec. 7, 2022 8:13 pm EST If you think you have gotten used to the potential slate over at the newly-established DC Studios, think again. In a shocking bit of breaking news, The Hollywood Reporter has revealed that the previously-confirmed “Wonder Woman 3” will no longer be moving forward. According to insiders familiar with the situation, director Patty Jenkins had recently submitted her treatment for the film to DC Studios, but it was seemingly rejected due to it not aligning with the visions of newly appointed co-heads James Gunn and Peter Safran....

You People Trailer: Cultures Clash Hilariously As Jonah Hill Wants To Marry Eddie Murphy’s Daughter Netflix By Lex Briscuso/Dec. 5, 2022 12:21 pm EST Eddie Murphy. Jonah Hill. Here’s two comedians you usually don’t think of in the same sentence, but that’s about to change, because they have a new Netflix comedy coming out. Get ready for “You People,” and you can catch the first trailer right now to see if it seems up your alley....

Aftersun Trailer: One Of The Year’s Best Films Is A Nostalgic Trip Down Memory Lane A24 By Jeremy Mathai/Sept. 27, 2022 11:12 am EST At some point, every child has to grow up eventually and reconcile their memories of their parent with the reality of who they were as an actual person. This poignant, universal struggle is exactly what first-time feature filmmaker Charlotte Wells is attempting to dramatize in “Aftersun,” the buzzy new film produced by director Barry Jenkins and picked up by indie studio extraordinaire A24....

Events are reordered and more R-rated Searchlight Pictures In del Toro’s version of “Nightmare Alley,” the carnival barker Clem (Willem Dafoe) acts as a welcoming committee for Stan and the audience, inviting them to “come on in and find out” if the Geek (an unrecognizable Paul Anderson, of “Peaky Blinders”) is a man or beast. We get a similar spiel in the 1947 film, albeit with more old-fashioned costumes like a candy-striped barker’s jacket and leopard-skin strongman’s leotard....

Could She-Hulk Introduce Another Member Of The Hulk Family? Disney+ By Ben F. Silverio/Aug. 25, 2022 10:00 am EST (This article contains spoilers for the first two episodes of “She-Hulk: Attorney At Law.” Please proceed with caution.) In the pilot episode of “She-Hulk: Attorney At Law,” True Believers learned that Jennifer Walters got her Hulk powers in the Marvel Cinematic Universe during a car crash while on a road trip with her cousin, Bruce Banner....

Daniel Radcliffe Was More Excited To Work With Sandra Bullock Than Harry Potter’s Award-Winning British Actors Paramount Pictures By Matt Rainis/Oct. 28, 2022 4:53 pm EST The “Harry Potter” films featured a who’s who of great British actors. Being the closest thing the United Kingdom has had to a Marvel Cinematic Universe, it makes sense that it attracted talented performers of all sorts from the other side of the pond. Greats like Maggie Smith, Richard Harris, and Alan Rickman (who was not having a ton of fun while he was there) brought their huge talents to the wizarding world....

The curse of Best Picture Columbia Pictures Oftentimes, a film winning Best Picture at the Oscars is the worst thing for its reputation. Sure, it will always keep the film in the public consciousness, but it places an undo burden on a film to meet a certain expectation. Someone arriving at a Best Picture winner comes in with their arms crossed, waiting for it to prove its worth. It automatically becomes the barometer by which all other films of that year are judged, and if you prefer another film to that winner, the Academy becomes insane for choosing this subpar film over the obvious (to you) better one....

Gossip Girl Season 2 Review: Like She Never Left, The Reboot Maintains Its Season 1 Momentum HBO Max By Lex Briscuso/Nov. 28, 2022 12:59 pm EST It might seem like we’re taking the same ride we did in season 1, but season 2 of HBO Max’s “Gossip Girl” reboot doubles down on the things it does well and expands on those strengths to bolster its mean-girl vibe to new heights. It’s just as fun and flirts as much with rebellion and status as it ever was and did — even during the original 2007 series — and it effectively raises the stakes this season, which is really as much as you can ask of a show that is the epitome of entertainment for the sake of being entertained....