Marvel Studios By Jaron Pak Feb. 27, 2025 4:00 pm EST This article contains spoilers for “Captain America: Brave New World.” “Captain America: Brave New World” may have been Sam Wilson’s (Anthony Mackie) first feature-length foray as Captain America in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but it also felt an awful lot like a sequel to 2008’s “The Incredible Hulk.” That strange outlier of the otherwise interconnected MCU feels different, doesn’t quite fit, and in many ways was left behind for years. Even its titular character was recast as Edward Norton’s moody, skulking Hulk was abandoned for Mark Ruffalo’s more upbeat, chummy Avengers alternative. The fourth “Captain America” film flipped the script by integrating Sam’s first world-saving adventure as Cap into a continuation of multiple storylines that directly connected to that second-ever
Category Archives: ENTERTAINMENT
Feb
The CW This article contains a discussion of addiction. Based (very loosely) on Cecily von Ziegesar’s book series, “Gossip Girl” started its run on The CW in 2007 and, in the hands of Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage, let us into the exclusive world of a bunch of uber-wealthy Manhattan teenagers, all of whom were played by beautiful twenty-somethings. The whole story begins with the return of the troubled but beautiful socialite Serena van der Woodsen (Blake Lively), who ran away to boarding school in Connecticut after some sort of traumatizing life experience before the show’s narrative began — and when she does come back to New York, she tries to start fresh. Unfortunately for her, that’s not an option thanks to one conniving, unhinged troublemaker: Georgina Sparks, played to perfection by
Feb
To paraphrase and/or completely misquote Karl Marx: History repeats itself first as documentary, then as a mid-budget survival thriller. “Little Dieter Needs to Fly” was adapted into “Rescue Dawn.” “The Rescue” was adapted into “Thirteen Lives.” And now, in that strange tradition, an incident that was first expressed through interview testimony and harrowing surveillance footage has been smoothed into a simple but suspenseful genre exercise, as Alex Parkinson adapts his 2019 documentary “Last Breath” into a mid-budget survival thriller of the same name. Creatively redundant? Perhaps. But some things are so unbelievable that they only seem to make sense as a Hollywood (or Hollywood-adjacent) movie, and the gap between fact and fiction can occasionally be too wide to cross without a middle-man to help launder the truth. The story of
Feb
Gossip Girl alum Blake Lively has joined in the ongoing tributes for her co-star Michelle Trachtenberg, whose death was confirmed this morning. The actress was found unresponsive in her New York City home and pronounced dead at the age of 39. Lively posted a lengthy statement to her Instagram Story in remembrance of the actress, who played Georgina Sparks alongside Lively’s Serena van der Woodsen on the late 2000s CW teen soap. “This is the first day I met Michelle,” Lively captioned a still of them in Gossip Girl. “She was electricity. You knew when she entered a room because the vibration changed. Everything she did, she did 200%. She laughed the fullest at someone’s joke, she faced authority head on when she felt something was wrong, she cared deeply
Feb
Kanye West Keep Me Out of Bhad Bhabie’s Beef With Alabama Barker … I Talked to Travis!!! Published February 26, 2025 6:28 AM PST Kanye West doesn’t want to be in the middle of controversy … this time. The 21-time Grammy winner is adamant he is not willingly involved in Bhad Bhabie ‘s dispute with Alabama Barker , calling it an “A.I. beef” after BB used his voice on a diss track. Ye’s Tuesday night Instagram explanation came shortly after the “Hi Bich” hitmaker posted a clip of an alleged remix of her new “Ms. Whitman” diss track that includes a verse by him. “Ms. Whitman” already samples KW and Ty Dolla Sign ’s song “Carnival” … but without Ye’s voice. Waiting for your permission to load TikTok Post. Kanye
Feb
NBC By Jaron Pak Feb. 26, 2025 10:00 am EST “The Office” featured a ton of guest appearances along with its core set of recurring characters. Some of these started as guests and moved into full-time roles, like Ed Helm’s Andy Bernard. Others made a brief appearance and were out, like Will Ferrell’s Deangelo Vickers. And then there were those who rode the line for a while, like Rashida Jones’ Karen Filippelli. Karen arrives in season 3 as Jim Halpert’s new love interest. She follows him to Scranton when the Stamford branch closes, and spends the rest of the season becoming a regular fixture of the show. The sweet, sincere nature of Karen’s character helps her get along with the group, both in Stamford and Scranton. As far as audiences are
Feb
By Chris Snellgrove | Published 26 seconds ago For better or for worse, Disney mostly has the market cornered when it comes to animated musicals, so if you don’t love the musical stylings of films movies like Frozen or Moana, you’re out of luck. Once upon a time, though, a different studio altogether put out one of the best animated musicals in film history, one that has only grown more popular in the last few years. The movie is The Road to El Dorado, and you can now stream this quirky comedy for yourself on Netflix. The Road To El Dorado On Netflix If you’ve never seen The Road to El Dorado, you may need to know what it’s all about before firing up your Netflix account. This film is
Feb
Longtime MSNBC host Rachel Maddow sounded off during a Monday night broadcast of “The Rachel Maddow Show” on the network’s major line-up changes, which saw the exit of anchor Joy Reid. “Joy Reid’s show, ‘The ReidOut,’ ended tonight. And Joy is not taking a different job in the network. She is leaving the network altogether and that is very, very, very hard to take,” Maddow said. “I am 51 years old. I have been gainfully employed since I was 12. I have had so many different types of jobs you wouldn’t believe me if I told you. But in all the jobs that I have had, in all of the years I have been alive, there is no colleague for whom I’ve had more affection and more respect than Joy
Feb
Arriving on a busy blue carpet for a gray day at the beach, guests at the 2025 Indie Spirit Awards agreed: It’s time to Make the Movies Messy Again. Inside the ceremony tent, host Aidy Bryant put it perfectly when she said, “It’s been a great year for film and a bad year for human life.” Hundreds of the most important decision-makers and visionary artists championing creative independence today gathered in Santa Monica, California on Saturday to honor the best in boundary-breaking film and TV. “Anora” and “Baby Reindeer” won the most categories in several tight races, but the show’s main source of dramatic tension came from the countless news items surrounding a tough awards season. From fraught talk of cultural fascism to economic critiques of the entertainment industry, honorees
Feb
Mere Husband Ki Biwi, which crossed Rs 4 crore in the opening weekend, is targeting to match the lifetime net earnings of Loveyapa. It stars Arjun Kapoor, Rakul Preet Singh, and Bhumi Pednekar. Published on Feb 24, 2025 | 01:17 PM IST | 410 Picture courtesy: Jjust Music/YouTube Mere Husband Ki Biwi, directed by Mudassar Aziz, was released on February 21, 2025. Starring Arjun Kapoor, Rakul Preet Singh, and Bhumi Pednekar, the romantic comedy has been struggling at the box office. After an underwhelming opening weekend, Aziz’s helmer will have 55% drop in its collection. Mere Husband Ki Biwi Expecting 55% Drop On Day 4; Looks To Match Loveyapa Backed by Pooja Entertainment, Mere Husband Ki Biwi has been managing to sustain at the box office. Arjun Kapoor and Rakul Preet Singh-starrer
Feb
Sean Baker is mad as hell and he’s not going to take it anymore. For the last two decades, Baker has worked on the fringes of American cinema, sticking to his independent roots, but as his star rises to new heights with his Oscar frontrunner “Anora,” the writer/director is using his platform to call out the inequity he sees within the film industry and how it keeps creatives from achieving financial security. Upon accepting the award for Best Director at the 2025 Film Independent Spirit Awards, after offering his thanks to everyone who made “Anora” possible, Baker dedicated a chunk of his speech to acknowledging the struggle indie film is currently facing. Baker explained that he thinks it will only get better when those who control the financing system offer
Feb
The 56th NAACP Image Awards have begun. The ceremony, hosted by actor and comedian Deon Cole, is being broadcast live from the Pasadena Civic Auditorium, airing on BET and CBS. The theme for this year’s show is, “Our Stories, Our Culture, Our Excellence.” Queen Latifah was named the first winner of the evening, nabbing the outstanding actress in a drama series for her performance in “The Equalizer.” Meanwhile, Michael Rainey Jr. took home the Image Award for outstanding actor in a drama series for “Power Book II: Ghost.” In addition to announcing the 2025 winners, the ceremony is driving support for the Altadena, Pacific Palisades and Pasadena communities affected by the recent wildfires. Several Altadena residents received a standing ovation as they walked on stage. Multiple nominees of the 56th
Feb
In the land of K-dramas, where love stories unfold with heart-fluttering romance and impossibly perfect protagonists, a reality dating show is flipping the script – and winning hearts. I Am Solo, a show that feels more like a mirror to the messy, awkward and practical realities of modern romance, has become a cultural sensation in South Korea . First aired in 2021, the show has featured nearly 300 contestants over more than 180 episodes, and its popularity shows no signs of waning. Each series, seven men and seven women meet, date and decide if love is in the cards. It’s raw, clumsy and refreshingly real – qualities that have captivated viewers longing for something more grounded than the polished allure of Netflix’s Single’s Inferno or Channel A’s Heart Signal. “I
Feb
Sophie Giraud/Prime Tom Cruise who? Hulking action star Alan Ritchson has now played beloved antihero and skull-knocking machine Jack Reacher in more adaptations of Lee Child’s bestselling book series than the Reacher before him (who’s currently busy risking life and limb as a different beloved action hero), and judging by the reviews for “Reacher” season 3, it’s a role Ritchson was meant to play. The three-episode premiere of the Prime Video series’ latest season dropped on the Amazon-owned streaming service this week, and the response from fans and critics alike so far has been impressively positive. The season currently boasts a 97% Fresh Rotten Tomatoes score, meaning that 28 of the 29 RT-approved critics who previewed the season liked or loved it (it maintained a coveted 100% for quite a
Feb
As indie filmmakers from around the globe converge on California for the 40th Independent Spirit Awards, IndieWire — the voice of creative independence — is preparing for a groundbreaking day on the arrivals carpet in Santa Monica. The celebration from Film Independent will air at 5 p.m. ET on Saturday, February 22, but while fans wait for festivities to begin, they can meet IndieWire on the red (technically blue at the Spirits) carpet for informed interviews with many of the event‘s top honorees. Yes, for the first time in our nearly 30-year history, IndieWire is hosting a pre-show! We’ll talk with many of the presenters, nominees, and other artists making fearless magic at this critical time for storytelling, while we blaze a trail of our own. Powered by LiveU technology, our show