Anthony Mackie is Ready to Soar in “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier”

Anthony Mackie has been donning the metal wings as Falcon since his first appearance in the Russo Brothers’ Captain America: The Winter Soldier in 2014. He’s now appeared in six films as Sam Wilson, aka The Falcon, but now, at long last, Mackie’s finally poised to be the title character in Marvel’s upcoming Disney+ series The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. The series, directed by Emmy-award winner Kari Skogland, features Mackie’s Falcon and Sebastian Stan’s Winter Soldier,...

Makeup Artist Angie Wells on Remaking Carey Mulligan in “Promising Young Woman”

Writer/director Emerald Fennell’s Promising Young Woman delivers a deliciously punchy twist on the revenge narrative. Carey Mulligan stars as Cassie, short for Cassandra, which happens to be the name of the priestess in Greek mythology who was cursed to speak true prophecies that were never believed. Mulligan’s Cassie, however, is a woman who eschews speaking prophecies for becoming them. She’s on a personal mission, fueled by a tragic event in her past, to teach every would-be date rapist a lesson they’ll never forget...

“Thunder Force” Trailer Reveals Melissa McCarthy & Octavia Spencer’s Superhero Film

One of Netflix’s big releases this year is the Ben Falcone written and directed Thunder Force, starring Melissa McCarthy and Octavia Spencer as estranged childhood best friends who band together to take on a surfeit of supervillains. The superstar duo was on hand on The Ellen Show where the trailer for their upcoming comedy appeared, giving us a glimpse of what they’ve got cooking here.

You’ll note right from the jump that the Thunder Force trailer is going to create a Pavlovian response in superhero film fans...

Makeup Artist Laini Thompson on Helping Transform Andra Day Into Billie Holiday

For Billie Holiday’s listeners, her music is eternal, but her life story may be less so. Directed by Lee Daniels, The United States vs. Billie Holiday (now streaming on Hulu) envelops itself in both aspects of the star’s biography, opening on Billie (Andra Day) on stage, glamorous, impeccable, and singing “Strange Fruit,” the most political ballad in her oeuvre. Eerie and heartbreaking, “Strange Fruit” was first published in 1937 as a poem by Russian-Jewish schoolteacher Abel Meeropol,...

“Snowfall” DP Tommy Maddox-Upshaw on Transforming Memory Into Light & Optics

Season 4 of the FX drama Snowfall opens on antihero Franklin Saint (Damson Idris) imploring CIA agent Teddy (Carter Hudson) to help him keep local gang rivalries in check. Tensions are getting out of hand in mid-1980s Los Angeles, even if Franklin, erudite and unassuming, appears as on top of his own drug-related dealings as ever. Far and near, the show’s other characters are going through upheavals of their own. Teddy’s machinations in Mexico go off the rails in part due to trouble with an Israeli gangster,...

“Game of Thrones” Actress Indira Varma Joins “Obi-Wan Kenobi” Disney+ Series

These are not the droids you’re looking for, but this is the kind of news you want to hear about Disney+’s Obi-Wan Kenobi series. The long-gestating live-action spinoff featuring Ewan McGregor as the younger Kenobi finally seems to be cruising in hyperdrive. Deadline broke the news that Game of Thrones alum Indira Varma has joined the show. Varma was excellent as Ellaria Sand in Thrones, starring in 13 episodes as the formidable head of the Sand Snakes,...

“Lovecraft Country” Creator Misha Green on Confidence and Taking Risks in Hollywood

Name a vocation and Misha Green has probably done it. And if not in her own lifetime, then through the lives of the characters she creates.    

“My sister just reminded me the other day, she was like, ‘You actually got into UCLA for acting,’” Green said. “And I was like, ‘Oh yeah, that’s RIGHT!’”

But ultimately, it was a life behind the camera that Green preferred. She decided to study television and film at New York University and a few years later landed her first industry job as a staff writer for FX’s Sons of Anarchy...

Netflix Reveals First Look at Their New Superhero Series “Jupiter’s Legacy”

Netflix just released the first proper look at their upcoming superhero series Jupiter’s Legacy, which centers the superpowered children of famous superheroes (hence the “Legacy” in the title) and is based on Mark Millar and Frank Quitely’s graphic novels. The series looks at what the second generation of superheroes have to live up to—and overcome—as they take the reigns of responsibility from their parents. This new teaser gives us a glimpse of our main characters, showing us their transformation from the pages of Millar and Quitely’s graphic novels to the screen...

Writer/Director Anna Kerrigan & Jillian Bell on Making the Modern-Day Western “Cowboys”

A stirring, “stay with you” drama about family, tolerance, and rescue, Cowboys centers on the disparate reactions from newly separated parents Sally and Troy (Jillian Bell and Steve Zahn) upon learning their child, Joe (newcomer Sasha Knight), is transgender. While Sally remains in denial, Troy is determined to allow Joe to live authentically and runs off with him into the wilderness of Montana, with authorities not far behind. Ann Dowd plays the detective assigned to the case, unraveling the family’s complicated dynamics...

Golden Globes 2021: Chadwick Boseman, Chloé Zhao, “Nomadland,” “The Crown” & More Win Big

Tina Fey and Amy Poehler hosted the bi-coastal, virtual 78th annual Golden Globes last night, wringing some laughs and joy out of a very unusual setup, following a very sad, unusual year.

The big winners this year included the late, great Chadwick Boseman, who was awarded for Best Actor in a Drama for his sizzling performance in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom. Chloé Zhao had a major night, taking home the Best Director award (in a year that featured three female nominees in the Director category) and seeing her Nomadland win Best Motion Picture,...

New “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier” Teaser & Images Hype Marvel’s Next Series

The last few days have brought a lot of exciting news about Marvel’s next big Disney+ series The Falcon and The Winter Soldier, and we’ve compiled it all together for you for a little Friday feast. There’s a new, action-packed teaser. There’s a bevy of new photos. And, there’s the reaction from assorted critics who have gotten a sneak peek at the series. All of this combines into some excellent pre-release hype. If you were only marginally interested in the series,...

Writer/Director Tiller Russell on his Real-Life Crime Drama “Silk Road”

Writer/director Tiller Russell was ideally suited to take on the crime thriller Silk Road. As the director of The Last Narc and Netflix’s Night Stalker: The Hunt for a Serial Killer, Russell is no stranger to looking squarely at the darker corners of the human soul. For Silk Road, which was inspired by David Kushner’s Rolling Stone article “Dead End on Silk Road: Internet Crime Kingpin Ross Ulbricht’s Big Fall,”...

The First Teaser for Zack Snyder’s “Army of the Dead” is Here

Most of the buzz around Zack Snyder these days has been about his upcoming Justice League refresh. Snyder’s second crack at DC’s biggest superhero film has understandably garnered a lot of attention, but he’s got another big movie coming out for Netflix, and it’s worth paying attention to. Behold, the first teaser for Snyder’s zombie flick Army of the Dead, which mashes two beloved cinematic genres into one epic—it’s a zombie heist movie.

Army of the Dead imagines what would happen if a zombie outbreak occurred in Las Vegas,...

Your Official “Spider-Man 3” Title is Here

And now we have an official title for Spider-Man 3, and it turns out, one of those fake titles we wrote about this morning was closer to the truth than we realized. Tom Holland, Jacob Batalon, and Zendaya all shared absurd titles on social media, but the one Holland offered was somewhat close to reality. So no, Spider-Man: 3 is not Spider-Man: Phone Home, but it is…Spider-Man: No Way Home. ...

“Star Trek: Picard” Director Hanelle Culpepper Charts a Diverse Path in Hollywood

America had its eyes locked on Mars this past week as the NASA rover, Perseverance, landed on the red planet and sent color photos back to Earth. It’s an optimistic step in space exploration that may expand human understanding of the Milky Way, but things don’t rest so peacefully in the galaxy on the first season of Star Trek: Picard.

The latest critically acclaimed series in the Star Trek franchise follows a synthetic attack on Mars that set the planet ablaze and propelled former admiral Jean-Luc Picard (Sir Patrick Stewart) into retirement...

First “Spider-Man 3” Images Revealed—Along With Absurd Titles

We’ve got our first look at the still-untitled Spider-Man 3 (more on the title in a moment), revealing the dynamic trio of Peter Parker (Tom Holland), Ned Leeds (Jacob Batalon), and MJ (Zendaya). The follow-up to Spider-Man: Far From Home is set to be the biggest film in the Tom Holland-led trilogy yet.

We’ve shared all the news up to this point that has made Spider-Man 3 sound like something director Jon Watts and his writers Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers have been dreaming about for years...

“Minari” Editor Harry Yoon on Shaping the Film He Was “Born to Edit”

Minari is a moving portrait of a young family setting out on a new life in the Ozarks. It will invite you in with its photography (the work of Lachlan Milne) and production design (by Yong Ok Lee), pull at your heartstrings with its “sensitive and uplifting” score, and keep you wholly absorbed in the world of the Yis thanks to masterful editing by Harry Yoon.    

Yoon spoke to us about how he approached cutting this film,...

Writer/Director Jon Alston on His Impactful and Timely Short “Augustus”

Although it’s a short film, director Jon Alston’s Augustus tackles a monumental subject: human rights and the centuries-long injustice and racism faced by the Black community. Alston, a former record-setting linebacker in the NFL, served as an executive producer as well, along with the film’s writer and lead actor, Ayinde Howell.

The film plays from the point of view of Frederick Douglass, the noted abolitionist who escaped slavery. As Douglass suffers from nightmares depicting the death of his son,...

Daniel Kaluuya on Honoring Fred Hampton’s Legacy in “Judas and the Black Messiah”

Daniel Kaluuya is such a comedian it’s hard to imagine he’s made a career out of acting in some of the most profound dramas of the past five years—a fact that he too, seems to frequently forget.

“A lot of times it surprises me,” Kaluuya said. “I was driving around LA and I saw myself on a poster and I was like, ‘Oh sh*t!’ I thought I was just acting and I’m on a poster! I just forget...

How the DP & Production Designer Behind “The United States vs. Billie Holiday” Met the Moment

It’s not often there’s a Golden Globe nomination for an African American actress playing a famous blues or jazz singer. This year, there are two of them.

One is for Viola Davis, going chop-to-chop with the late, great Chadwick Boseman in the Netflix adaptation of August Wilson’s Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, playing the titular character. The other is for singer and actress Andra Day, also playing “titular” in Hulu’s The United States vs...