He calls himself our lucky underpants. I wouldnt quite go that far, but its can we find a role for Richard where you wont think oh, its the guy from The Stranger, it has to be something that he disappears into. Big, small, he doesnt care.Armitages second novel The Cut, following on from his thriller debut Geneva, will be published by Faber in August 2025, so perhaps hes been keeping busy at the keyboard instead of in front of the cameras. His name was also not among those announced for the second series of ITV action-thriller Red Eye.Run Away, which is adapted from the 2019 novel of the same name, will mark James Nesbitts third role in a Quay Streets Netflix Harlan Coben series. He first appeared in 2021s Stay Close as a detective sergeant investigating the disappearance of multiple men over several years, and later popped up as an art-loving crime lord in 2025s Missing You.Nesbitt will be joined in Run Away by Gavin & Staceys Ruth Jones, Good Will Huntings Minnie Driver, Gangs of Londons Lucian Msamati, Big Boyss Jon Pointing, Wolf Halls Ellie de Lange, Friday Night Dinners Tracy-Ann Oberman, Ted Lassos Annette Badland, Doctor Whos Ingrid Oliver, The Couple Next Doors Alfred Enoch, and more.The new series is filming now in and around Manchester and the North West. In excellent news for fans of these twist-filled, ludicrous yet addictive thrillers, the episode count for Run Away has gone back up to the usual eight, instead of the mere five they had for Missing You, which resulted in a rushed series with underdeveloped supporting roles.As usual, the action will be translated from the US to the UK, and though no official release date has been announced, we can expect this one to land on Netflix on January 1, 2026 in its traditional New Years Day binge slot.

Dr. Michael Robby Rabinavitch has to pee. The senior attending at Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Hospital played by Noah Wyle makes this announcement midway through the third episode of the Max medical drama The Pitt. Before he can get to the bathroom, however, he first has to oversee two simultaneous open-heart surgeries. Then must speak with a mother and father about their sons fentanyl overdose. Amid all that chaos he resolves to keep an eye on a fourth-year medical student at the learning hospital who just lost his first patient.By the time Robby finally unzips in front of a urinal hes interrupted yet again by Dr. Frank Langdon (Patrick Ball) who needs a cardiovert unstable AFib in North 1. The addendum that the systolics 90 is enough for Robby to abandon his urination mission altogether and rush out of the bathroom to more chaos. Things move pretty quickly in the emergency department at Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Hospital, which Robby calls The Pitt. And that goes not only for the shows characters, but its audience as well. Because like the great Fox espionage thriller 24 before it, The Pitt operates in real time or close to it.There is no ticking clock at the bottom of the screen on The Pitt but each of the shows 15 episodes is designed to roughly correspond to an hour spent during a 15-hour shift in the titular Pitt. The series follows a weekly release model and the three episodes released thus far are titled 7:00 A.M., 8:00 A.M., and 9:00 A.M. None of these episodes are precisely 60 minutes long but they come close enough in the 51-53-minute range. The real-time format is far from The Pitts only selling point. Starring ERs Wyle and created by former ER writer R. Scott Gemmill, the series is essentially a heightened version of the long-running NBC medical classic with an added prestige streaming sheen. In fact, The Pitt studio Warner Bros. Television was hit with a lawsuit from the Michael Crichton estate, which alleged that the show was a reworking of an ER spinoff. The Pitt is also one of the first post-Covid hospital dramas to use the pandemic as a thematic grounding rod. Dr. Robby still clearly bears the mental and physical scars of being an healthcare worker during that traumatic time.Still, its the real-time aspect that gives The Pitt its greatest competitive advantage over comparable TV properties. The pace of the show is quite simply relentless. Very rarely do Robby and his fellow doctors exit one scene to enter into a calmer one. Its early in the day in Western Pennsylvania and the emergencies continue to mount up. At one point the socially awkward former veteran affairs doctor Melissa Mel King (Taylor Dearden) steps outside for a breather only to be immediately met by a van tearing into the parking lot to dump off a gunshot wound victim.How realistic this confluence of emergencies is for one hospital is up for debate, though for whats its worth, many real-life healthcare professionals have commended the show for its accurate depiction of the doctor-patient dynamic and the deployment of proper medical jargon (see: cardiovert unstable AFib). But whats not debatable about The Pitts breakneck approach is that it works. In fact, through its first few episodes its already working better than the pioneer of the real-time TV season format.24 was not the first TV series or movie to utilize a running clock as a plot device. It was, however, the first to make the connection that there are 24 hours in a day and TV seasons of hour-long dramas tend to run in the 20-25-episode range, creating the opportunity for the mythical day-long televised experience (with commercials, of course). The idea for 24s format was so strong that it preceded the plot of the show itself. Creators Joel Surnow and Robert Cochran originally intended for their series to document the dramatic 24-hour period in advance of a wedding before shifting to an action concept featuring the head of the Counter Terrorist Unit racing against the clock to save his daughter.The thing about 24 though is that 24 hours is truly So. Many. Hours. The writers and producers of the series would invariably run into this realization time and time again. Of the shows eight proper seasons (outside of the TV movie 24: Redemption and spinoff 24: Live Another Day), only season 4 really attempted to follow one concurrent terrorist plot over the span of a full day to narratively messy results. The other seven seasons took the far more sensible approach of breaking their 24 hours into two distinct storytelling blocks: one in which Jack Bauer (Kiefer Sutherland) saved the day, and another in which he uncovered the real big bad behind the terrorist conspiracy.At only 15 hours, The Pitt appears to have learned the right lessons from its real-time progenitor just as its learned the right lessons from its medical drama forefathers. Viewers dont need to see a running clock to feel the tension, nor do they need a full 24-hour period to get the bit. Viewers need only consistent escalation and movement. Thus far, The Pitt has found a way to work with its gimmick rather than become beholden to it. By the time episode 4 opens at 10:00 A.M. Eastern Time, Dr. Michael Robby Rabinavitch will still have to pee. The tension of whether he makes it to the bathroom before the next emergency will have the same dramatic weight of Jack Bauer defusing a bomb.The first three episodes of The Pitt are available to stream on Max now. New episodes premiere Thursdays at 9 p.m. ET on Max.Join our mailing listGet the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox!

Hold on tight, spider-monkey.Thats right, LEGO is teaming up with Lionsgate to build a set based on the ever-so-popular (or infamous, depending on who you talk to) The Twilight Saga. One of the highest-grossing film franchises of all time, Twilight (2008) and its subsequent sequels have remained relevant in the pop culture eye despite the films 20th anniversary looming.More and more over the last few years, LEGO has based sets off popular brands and intellectual properties, focusing more on IP-driven products than ever before. Some of the groups most significant licenses include blockbuster franchises such as Star Wars, Harry Potter, Marvel, and Super Mario. But the Danish toymaker hasnt shied away from more niche exports, with sets inspired by lesser-known brands such as Tron, Trolls, and Horizon leading the pack. Even compared to those, is Twilight too outside the realm of normalcy for LEGO?The LEGO set, 21354: The Cullen House, was selected as the 62nd Ideas project to be made into an official productreleasing in early February for devotees across the globe. LEGO Ideas is a website where builders can pitch their own concepts for future sets, and fans can vote on the ideas theyd like to see made. Once a project hits 10,000 supporters, LEGO then officially considers it for production, with only a handful physically being made. There is obviously some level of demand for a LEGO Twilight set, but recent trends suggest LEGO could be overestimating its potential reach.Do Twilight fans and LEGO fans have a significant crossover? Moreover, will Twilight fans be willing to fork over $219.99 for a LEGO set of their favorite movie?Its clear Twilight aficionados still love their soapy teen romance with a vampiric twist. The film has experienced resurgences on streaming, and edits of iconic couples from the motion picture occupy a particular corner of TikTok, a la some popular Tumblr accounts circa 2010. Twilight fans are also no stranger to mass merchandising. From makeup lines like ColourPop to vinyl figures from Funko, there is no shortage of swag to buy from the saga. A LEGO set appears to be the logical next step.However, some recent LEGO offerings suggest the Twilight set might have an uphill battle when it comes to breaking through with the two brands respective audiences. In late 2021, LEGO released 10291: Queer Eye The Fab 5 Loft. Based on the long-running Netflix reality series of the same name, the Queer Eye set replicated the gangs iconic loft and some specific transformations from the series. While the product itself was expertly designed, it didnt sell. In fact, The Fab 5 loft was a shelf-warmer despite heavy discounts from most retailers. The set is worth less now than its retail, despite retiring at the end of 2022.Another peculiar LEGO release occurred in the spring of 2023, when the group extended its reach into K-pop. Another Ideas set, this time 21339: BTS Dynamite, witnessed a similar fate to Queer Eye before it. Despite being tied to one of the most prominent music groups in the world, the BTS set didnt sell. Even significant clearance couldnt traffic this set.Both Queer Eye and BTS are examples of LEGO overestimating how much crossover between fanbases there actually is. Yes, Queer Eye is a beloved reality show, and BTS is a cultural phenomenon, but their fans arent necessarily LEGO fans. In turn, these supporters clearly didnt want to shell out the $99.99 retail price for both of these set releases, even if the product was nicely designed. LEGO Twilight could be in danger of suffering the same fate. The Cullen House set is even more expensive than the aforementioned kits, ringing in at a grand total of $219.99. The price isnt unfair, seeing as the set contains over 2,000 pieces, but its a pretty penny to pay for an item thatll take up a significant amount of space. Perhaps Twilight supporters will turn out in droves for the upcoming release of 21354, but recent LEGO history suggests with another dust collector.You can preorder the LEGO Ideas 21354: Twilight The Cullen House online here.

As is the case with most hero shooters, the best character in Marvel Rivals is the one that you are most comfortable with in a specific situation. Winning in Marvel Rivals often means being willing and able to swap between various characters based on what your team needs at any given moment. As such, its important to learn as many characters as possible and to be ready to use them as needed.However, as Marvel Rivals season one update takes shape, were starting to see some heroes rise to the top of the games competitive meta by virtue of their high overall power level. While these rankings may shift slightly based on the situation and your skills, these are the best and worst characters in Marvel Rivals.Marvel Rivals: Every Strategist Ranked Worst to BestStrategists are commonly referred to as Marvel Rivals healers, though thats a simplification of the role. While they should primarily be judged based on their healing output capabilities, the best Strategists bring so much more to the fight.8. AdamAdam Warlocks awkward skill kit just cant keep up with the other support characters. His overall healing output is quite weak, and while his damage can catch enemies off-guard, Warlock is far too vulnerable to regularly contribute to the fight in that respect.Even Warlocks mass resurrection ability feels less valuable than it should be in a game like this. It requires exceptional positioning and timing if youre going to get the full value out of it. Even then, only being able to revive your teammates at partial health makes them easy targets in most scenarios.7. JeffNow that Jeffs war crime of an Ultimate ability has been nerfed, most players have fewer reasons to pick him. Jeffs weak damage output, awkward movements, and largely average healing output can make him a liability in a valuable role.In Jeffs defense, some top-tier players can use his unusual movements and sneaky attacks to frustrate and pick apart the enemy team. Most players will want to look elsewhere, though.6. RocketThere is quite a lot to love about Rocket, a character that shot up the rankings in Marvel Rivals first season. His resurrection station is invaluable, his healing output is top-tier, hes mobile, and his team-up ability with Punisher and Winter Soldier makes those already viable DPS characters even better. He can also get some useful damage if youre able to utilize his mobility.Rockets biggest weakness is his Ultimate ability. That short-range damage amplifier just cant compete with the other game-changing Strategist Ultimates. When the match boils down to trading Ultimates, Rocket is going to come up short most of the time. Still, hes invaluable to the right team (or triple Strategist compositions).5. LokiPlaying with a truly great Loki is a revelation. While a bad or mediocre Loki feels like theyre barely in the fight, a great Loki can stay alive most of the match, confuse the enemy team with his clones, save your squad with his powerful AoE heal ability, and deal a surprising amount of damage.What makes Loki viable on average is his incredible Ultimate. His ability to turn himself into any other character in the match and deploy their Ultimate almost immediately enables powerful swing scenarios that would otherwise be impossible to achieve. Hes certainly worth learning if you havent been learning him already.Join our mailing listGet the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox!4. Invisible WomanThe new Strategist on the block, Invisible Woman boasts one of the most well-rounded support kits in the game. Her Psionic Vortex ability can create distance while dealing damage while her telekinetic skills are surprisingly good at enabling quick kills (especially near the edges of a map). Her Ultimate, which generates a massive healing field that turns your allies invisible, is also one of the most effective support Ultimates as well as one of the most frustrating to deal with.Invisible Womans biggest weakness is her raw healing output. Its certainly not bad, but the limited range of her boomerang projectile and the static nature of her projected healing shields can lower her overall healing in the average match. She more than makes up for it elsewhere, though.3. MantisMantis kit revolves around a resource system. Her healing-over-time and damage buffs can only be deployed when she has sufficient resources. Those resources gradually refill somewhat slowly, but Mantis can automatically replenish them by landing a critical strike with her projectiles. Thankfully, Mantis always has access to her stun skill and a powerful Ultimate that greatly buffs her and her nearby allies total health while generating AoE heals.If you cant land headshots as Mantis fairly regularly, youre going to have a much harder time keeping your team buffed and healed. Its especially difficult to rescue a tank with Mantis slower heals if youre not regularly replenishing your resources. Most players will feel up to the task, but Mantis is best paired with someone who can fill those occasional heal gaps.2. Cloak & DaggerThe Dagger part of the Cloak & Dagger package is the best pure healer in Marvel Rivals. Few can match the raw healing output of her lock-on daggers, helpful healing bubbles, and projectile light veils that grant temporary healing boosts. Her recently buffed Ultimate also allows her to create a massive safe space/danger zone (depending on who is standing in it) that can save your team while forcing your enemies to retreat.Its the Cloak part of the equation that determines C&Ds overall power level. Cloaks debuffs and damage output can help pick off staggered foes, but learning when to sacrifice your healing abilities to transform into Cloak takes time. The wrong swap at the wrong moment can cost you a fight.1. Luna SnowAs the most aim-dependent Strategist, Luna Snows overall healing output is closely related to your ability to reliably target your teammates in the middle of a fight. If you cant do that, youre going to have a bad time as Luna.Otherwise, Luna is easily the best Strategist in Marvel Rivals. Her full kit offers an insane combination of stuns, attacks, and raw healing output, but its her Ultimate that makes her the terror of the game at the moment. It turns out that being able to make your team effectively invulnerable to most forms of damage for about 12 seconds is pretty good. Until that Ultimate is nerfed, were living in Lunas world.Marvel Rivals: Every Vanguard Ranked Worst to BestVanguards primarily serve as Marvel Rivals tanks. While that means that many of them are designed to protect their teams, some tanks are far more aggressive and bring the frontline to wherever they go. The absolute best Vanguards dictate the terms of a fight by creating space, absorbing punishment, and getting in sneaky amounts of damage.8. Captain AmericaWhile a great Captain America player is a lore-friendly terror to his enemies and a hero to his allies, most Captain America players will struggle to do much at all during most fights. His shield is easily broken, his damage output is inconsistent, and while hes incredibly mobile, its difficult for him to be nearly as aggressive as he needs to be due to his punishing cooldown management demands.Captain America is probably a few tweaks away from being an absolute menace. At the moment, though, hes a tough sell as a tank.7. Peni ParkerPenis ability to lay traps throughout the map makes her an incredible defensive Vanguard option. There are times when you are simply forced to go through or around Penis webs of death. Her mere presence is a risk that has to be accounted for, and her stun ability is one of the most consistently valuable CC abilities in the game.However, Peni is significantly less viable as an attacking Vanguard. Even a good Peni will struggle to push their team forward while laying traps and staying alive. As more and more players figure out Penis bag of tricks, she begins to feel like less of a threat and more of an annoyance.6. VenomMuch like Captain America, Venom is a mobile Vanguard who can easily wreak havoc behind enemy lines. Unlike Captain America, Venom has the sustainability required to survive his dives and get back to the safety of his team.Venoms biggest problem at the moment is his damage output. His awkward medium-range attacks can sometimes prevent him from being as aggressive and consistent as he needs to be while pursuing the enemy team. Even his Ultimate bolsters his survivability rather than compensates for his damage.At the moment, there are other diving Vanguards that can do more in the backlines.5. GrootA great Groot player can use this Vanguards walls to isolate targets, block paths, prevent damage, and generally reshape the map in your teams favor. On top of that, Groot boasts one of the better Vanguard Ultimates in the game and some surprisingly strong damage output.However, a bad or mediocre Groot player will use those same walls to do more harm to your team than the enemy squad. If those walls dont go up when and where they need to, your team will quickly be overwhelmed while the opposing squad thanks you for the free shields. The swings can be wild, but a great Groot is an asset.4. ThorThor can practically fly across the map while picking off enemies and granting himself invaluable health boosts. Hes a mobile melee menace. You dont know fear until you have a Thor hammering away at your head with the confidence of a Vanguard who knows he can get out of trouble as soon as it appears. As if that wasnt bad enough, Thor can also unleash a devastating barrage of projectiles at the temporary cost of his easily replenished resources.While Thors Ultimate is still quite bad (the God of Thunder deserves better), it at least offers him another escape option that forces enemies to scatter.3. MagnetoAs one of the only true shield tanks in Rivals, Magneto earns his keep simply by being able to block incoming damage by throwing up a barrier. More importantly, Magnetos ability to shield himself or project a shield on an ally is one of the best ways to either press an attack or escape a flank. His projectiles are also sneakily strong if youre able to use them at a moderate distance while tracking your enemies.Granted, Magneto is held back slightly by his slow movement speed and weak Ultimate. The former makes it tough for him to get back into the fight and the latter is far too finicky to be more than a situational annoyance. Hes still a true main tank option, though.2. HulkHulk is often banned at high levels of play due to his powerful team-up abilities. Even when hes by himself, a good Hulk will ruin your day with his generous leap abilities, strong shields, and devastating strikes. Hulk is the ideal dive tank; the kind that can get into and out of trouble while causing it all the while.While it takes time to learn Hulks movements (meaning he tends to get melted at lower ranks), great Hulk players can practically carry a team before using their Ultimate to unleash their final form and slam enemies into the ground like theyre playthings.1. Doctor StrangeAs the best overall solo tank in the game, Doctor Strange is also the best Vanguard in Marvel Rivals. His powerful shield is equally valuable on attack and defense, his projectiles are surprisingly strong, his ability to fly gets him out of trouble most tanks cant escape, and his Ultimate has the potential to help wipe a team every time he uses it.While great Strange players are separated by their ability to consistently create portals that transport allies or trap foes, he tends to be the best overall tank in every situation at any rank.Marvel Rivals: Every Duelist Ranked Worst to BestThe largest class in Marvel Rivals, Duelists are the games primary damage dealers. Despite their seemingly simple objective, their diverse designs often make them the most complicated characters in the game. Just dont assume the most complex Duelists are always the best.19. Black WidowThe only truly bad character in Marvel Rivals, Black Widow is a traditional sniper in a game not designed to support that role. The cover is too ample and the action is too fast for her to effectively pick off targets in time to change the fight.Black Widow either needs a massive damage boost or a rework to become relevant at any level of play. Well see which comes first.18. Scarlet WitchWhile shes one of the easier Duelists in Marvel Rivals, it doesnt take long to see through Scarlet Witchs illusion of power.Scarlet Witchs primary fire doesnt require much aim, but its easy to counter her flanks once you know how to look for them. Unfortunately, Scarlet Witchs other abilities cant compensate for that core deficiency, and her Ultimate is far too slow to be viable at anything other than the lowest levels of play.17. Iron FistIron Fists fast movements, quick strikes, and ability to lock on to a target make him a nightmare for new players. Even veterans can occasionally use Iron Fists aggressive style of play to generate some havoc at higher ranks.By and large, though, Iron Fist can be bested by even the slightest bit of cooperation. Its hard for Iron Fist to effectively deal with coordinating targets until he gets his Ultimate, which tends to be a problem as players quickly learn to work together.16. Black PantherBlack Panther is certainly capable of weaving his way in and out of a fight while picking off surprised enemies. His incredible agility and burst damage potential make him a sneaky favorite among those who favor diving damage dealers.Unfortunately, Black Panther is also a combo-dependent character who needs to be able to play a specific way to be effective. If his big combo is interrupted, he typically has to get out or die. Hes also cursed with one of the weakest overall Ultimates in the game at the moment.15. Spider-ManSpider-Man is undoubtedly the most difficult Duelist to learn and master in Marvel Rivals. The top Spider-Man players in the world are truly feared. They can pretty much go where they want and do what they want while causing enemy players to scramble and/or panic.The other 99% of Spider-Man players are often a detriment to their team. They will dive too deep, they will do little damage, they will die, and they will probably blame you for it. Those swings in viabilitypun intendedmake it hard to rank Spider-Man higher.14. Mister FantasticThough technically a melee character, Mister Fantastics outstretched arms are effectively projectiles that can double as sweeping strikes. Hes also one of the most durable Duelists in the game and even has an ability that allows him to eat quite a bit of damage before reflecting damage to the enemy team.Unfortunately, the rest of Mister Fantastics kit isnot great. Youll rarely find the chance to use his ability to grab enemies and slam them together, and his Ultimate arguably makes him weaker than he is in his base form. Mister Fantastic is just a bit too limited in a competitive meta.13. Squirrel GirlThere are times when Squirrel Girls ability to pepper an area with bouncing explosives makes her a feared damage dealer. Hey, it worked for Junkrat in Overwatch. Like Junkrat, Squirrel Girl can effectively lockdown a choke point while using her mobility and traps to stay alive long enough to be a menace.Unfortunately, Squirrel Girl struggles to adapt to situations that force her to do more than fill a confined area with explosives. Shes fine to have during the good times and a liability when things start to go sour. Even her recently buffed Ultimate still isnt quite good enough to turn the tide of a fight.12. Star-LordStar-Lord functions like Marvel Rivals version of Overwatchs Tracer. Despite his ability to fly, Star-Lord is supposed to get relatively close to enemies, shoot them down, get out of the fray, and do it all again. Its not until he triggers his powerful Ultimate that he can truly unleash death from above.If your aim and movements are less-than-perfect with Star-Lord, youre going to have a bad time. An inconsistent Star-Lord is too vulnerable and too weak to do more than tickle enemies before floating away to his death. He has a presence at higher ranks, though players skilled enough to use him well tend to favor other options.11. Iron ManIron Man could lose or gain a couple of spots on this list based on whether or not hes paired with a Hulk. With a Hulk, Iron Man gains a massive damage boost that makes it much easier for him to sneak behind a team and delete weaker targets.Without that boost, Iron Man has to be surprisingly accurate and incredibly evasive to effectively disrupt enemy strategies while getting picks and staying alive. Iron Mans nuclear bomb of an Ultimate can ignore even the best Strategist Ultimates, but you have to be confident in your ability to both quickly acquire and utilize that ability to get the most out of him.10. MagikMagik is a fascinating melee DPS character. Her kit revolves around her ability to use portals to move between short distances before unleashing sweeping strikes that launch enemies into the air. Shes basically a Devil May Cry protagonist in a hero shooter.Is that good? It really depends. Magik is as frustrating as any dive character in Marvel Rivals and generally more durable than most heroes in that pack. However, you have to know how to pick your spots, how to pull off various attack combos, and when to back out to get anything substantial out of her. She tends to be better than Black Panther and Spider-Man on average, though her ceiling may be slightly lower.9. Winter SoldierWinter Soldier is another weird DPS character. While he has a gun, its limited max ammo and precision shots often require you to rely on Buckys other, combo-oriented abilities. A good Bucky will hook players out of position, uppercut them into the air, and kill them with a little help from his team. If Bucky doesnt have a little help from his team (or misses his combos), then he can struggle to do more than chip away at high-health foes while waiting for his next attack window.Buckys Ultimate makes all those efforts worth it, though. If you kill an enemy with that diving strike (or shortly thereafter), your Ultimate will automatically be reset. From there, you can continue that combo as long as there is an enemy left to kill with that ability. When properly deployed, its one of the scariest Ultimates in the game.8. NamorNamor is defined by his ability to summon two (three if hes playing with Luna Snow) squids that function as auto-firing turrets. They can be attached to almost any surface and are especially good at targeting otherwise hard-to-hit flying and flanking characters.What makes those turrets incredibly powerful is the rest of Namors kit. His primary and special attacks can greatly increase the fire rate of his turrets while dealing quite a bit of damage on their own. Properly placed Namor turrets can tear through anything that Namor decides to focus on while disorienting the enemy team. His Ultimate is slightly weaker, though it can easily knock down enemies and leave them vulnerable to follow-up attacks.7. The PunisherAs a pretty standard guy with a gun character, The Punisher finds himself near the middle of these rankings. There is nothing especially exciting about his third-person shooter playstyle. If your aim is good, youll probably be an effective Punisher. If notwell, hes at least a character whos easy to understand and get better at.Generous learning curve aside, great Punishers have become fixtures at high levels of play. Punisher can upset even the best-laid plans with his raw damage output that tears through shields and sends tanks into hiding (especially when hes paired with Rocket Racoon). Hes not quite as dynamic as some of the other Duelists, but mechanically gifted players will find him to be wonderfully consistent and occasionally devastating.6. PsylockeMuch like Genji in Overwatch, Psylocke is meant to poke at characters from a distance before using her quick strikes to deliver devastating final blows. She also boasts a powerful Ultimate that can quickly eliminate any enemy within a sizeable zone of death.Unlike other flanking characters, Psylockes primary attacks are effective enough at moderate distances to allow her to pick her attack spots rather than entirely rely on that aggressive style of play. If your aim is decent and you know how to pick your targets, you can easily top the charts as Psylocke with minimal support.5. HawkeyeHawkeye was the absolute terror of Marvel Rivals at launch, though a recent update made him slightly less effective at greater distances. All that really means, though is that Hawkeye cant quite take over a high-level game as easily as he once could.Otherwise, Hawkeye is an incredibly dangerous sniper who is mobile enough to get where he needs to be and powerful enough to still kill many characters with a single shot. Yes, it helps if your aim is good, but Hawkeye can still pull off lucky shots at slightly shorter distances. His Ultimate is probably the weakest part of his kit, but its more of a nicety than a necessity.4. Moon KnightMoon Knights Ultimate ability just got a buff that verges on being broken. As it stands, his Ultimate ability almost instantly summons a swarm of explosives from the sky that deal lethal (or nearly lethal) damage to anything in their path. Its incredibly difficult to avoid and often swings a fight in Moon Knights favor.Outside of his Ultimate, Moon Knight is quite good at prowling the corners of a map and peppering enemies with help from his Ankhs, stationery objects that reflect Moon Knights attacks on nearby enemies. If those Ankhs arent destroyed, Moon Knight will win the fight. Even if they are, it doesnt take much for him to get quick kills and build towards his Ultimate.3. HelaThe other terror of Marvel Rivals launch, Hela was hit with a relatively minor nerf that made her only slightly weaker than before. Much like Hawkeye, she is still able to deliver devastating precision strikes from across the map that can melt through tanks and delete most everything else with a single shot.Unlike Hawkeye, Helas Ultimate is one of the best in the game. If your team cannot focus on Hela and shoot her out of the sky, her Ultimate will kill you or force your squad to run and hide in spots that will often leave them in a bad position.2. WolverineIf youre going to take the time to learn a slightly more complicated character, make sure it is Wolverine. Like other diving characters, Wolverine is looking to get into the backlines and terrorize isolated targets. Unlike other diving DPS heroes, Wolverine is surprisingly durable. That durability makes it much easier to trap enemies or simply chase them down and catch them in a storm of strikes.That combination of abilities makes Wolverine one of the most effective tank busters in the game. If Wolverine gets hold of a tank (much less a weaker character), that tank had better pray their team is quick enough to intervene and save them. Generally speaking, it takes a lot of coordination to defeat a Wolverine who knows how to hit his tackles, dives, and powerful Ultimate ability. Thats why hes often banned at higher ranks of competitive play.1. StormWhen Marvel Rivals launched, Storm was widely considered to be one of the worst characters in the game. Now, Storm is the best Duelist in Marvel Rivals. Storms base attacks deal a surprising amount of damage, are incredibly quick, and can hit multiple foes. Her alternate fire abilities allow her to easily finish weakened enemies, and her Ultimate is practically guaranteed to kill multiple targets if the other team doesnt use their support Ultimates to block it.It doesnt stop there. By simply existing, Storm can provide team-wide damage and speed buffs that turn the tide in otherwise even fights. Once you master her flight movements (its actually better to stay closer to the ground with her), youll find that Storm is often the top-performing DPS at every level of play.

And now was acknowledged the presence of the Red Death. He had come like a thief in the night. And one by one dropped the revellers in the blood-bedewed halls of their revel, and died each in the despairing posture of his fall. And the life of the ebony clock went out with that of the last of the gay. And the flames of the tripods expired. And Darkness and Decay and the Red Death held illimitable dominion over all.So finished the party to end all parties in The Masque of the Red Death, one of Edgar Allan Poes greatest short stories, this about a cloistered group of elites who thought they could live free from consequence and the world outside their walls. Yet like nature, decay, and all other unwanted realities, the Red Death cannot be thwarted by prince and privilege, fiats and decadence. Its a lesson humanity seems doomed to repeat, so why not do it all again in a big splashy A24 horror movie starring Sydney Sweeney?!News of exactly that came Tuesday afternoon when DeadlineThe Plague. However, it is reported A24 wants the film to shoot later this year and that it will be a wildly revisionist and darkly comedic take on the short story.The words wildly and revisionist leave a lot of leeway about what this film could be, however the union of A24 and current It Girl Sweeney certainly shows promise. It was after all A24s partnership with HBO that made Sweeney a star on Euphoria, which is still expecting a third season. Since then Sweeney has gone on to do awards-nominated work in the likes of The White Lotus and Reality, and has produced her own hits, including another indie horror chiller from last year, Immaculate. It is on the last count that the material shows a lot of potential in 2025. After all, the Gothic horror aesthetic appears to be swinging back into popularity, and there is something incredibly Gothic about Poes original tale.While Edgar Allan Poe lived in 19th century America, his sense of literature was defined by an older sensibility. Hence like so many of his tales, 1842s The Masque of the Red Death is set in the Middle Ages where a proud and arrogant Prince Prospero invites a thousand lighthearted nobles of similar opulence and power into a walled abbey. It is there they intend to outlast the arrival of the Red Death (the bubonic plague in all but name) in style and grandeur. While the serfs are left to die outside, the nobles and their retinue will dine at an elaborate masquerade ball in ornately decorated rooms. Nonetheless, Death himself comes in human form to walk amongst them.The story has been adapted multiple times before, most famously by Roger Corman in a kitschy but amusing Vincent Price movie from 1964. That film took the medieval setting of the short story but not much else. It also added a bit of Satan worship and an overt insinuation that Prosperos shindig was devolving into an orgy.We dont know if the new film will get so lurid, or even if it will be a period piece, albeit the recent success of Robert Eggers pot-committed remake of NosferatuMasque revisionist might tease it will be a modernization (similar to how the story was adapted as just one episode in Mike Flanagans Fall of the House of Usher on Netflix in 2023). However, we think it might mean something a bit more fun such as Prospero now being a princess who invites the most debauched into her castle of frivolities.The greater appeal to the story is how timely it feels nearly 200 years after it was written and about 700 years after it was set. The 21st century just lived through a global pandemic that left millions dead, and yet some of the leaders who fiddled while it worsened are newly rewarded with power as they, in turn, attempt to rewrite history.Despite going through a plague, many still think money, power, and dishonesty can shield themselves from the horrors of the natural world or the suffering of others. They insist theyll just build the wall higher.It is in this vein, Sweeney makes a lot of sense considering she already starred in last years Immaculate, a film that was the first in what turned out to be a series of pro-choice horror movies about men trying to control womens bodies in a post-Roe v. Wade America. Bringing that same pointed and scathing sensibility to Poes already incredibly sardonic tale about a royal who thinks he can buy his (or her) way out of meeting the Grim Reaper couldnt arrive at a better moment.

Nothing is of its own explanation, Adrien Brodys Lzl Tth muses in The Brutalist when asked why he became an architect. Its a cryptic comment, but Tth gives a slightly fuller context when he adds, Is there a better description of a cube than that of its construction? There was a war on, and yet it is my understanding that many of [my buildings] remain there, still in the city my buildings were devised to endure such erosion.It is safe to say director and co-writer Brady Corbet feels some affinity with Tth given the monumental nature of The Brutalist, a film that relies very much on the old ways of film constructionbe it with VistaVision cinematography or a roadshow-like storytelling format, complete with an intermission. And yet, it is the newest tool Corbet utilized which is putting the movie in a spot of controversy on the eve of Oscar voting particularly in an industry where artificial intelligence has become a dirty word.After The Brutalists editor Dvid Jancs revealed AI was used to enhance certain elements of the performances of Brody and co-star Felicity Jones during post-production, Corbet (and presumably The Brutalists studio A24) felt the need to release a statement clarifying how an artificial voice generator app called Respeecher was discreetly employed.Adrien and Felicitys performances are completely their own, Corbet said in a statement to the press. They worked for months with dialect coach Tanera Marshall to perfect their accents. Innovative Respeecher technology was used in Hungarian language dialogue editing only, specifically to refine certain vowels and letters for accuracy. No English language was changed. This was a manual process, done by our sound team and Respeecher in post-production. The aim was to preserve the authenticity of Adrien and Felicitys performances in another language, not to replace or alter them and done with the utmost respect for the craft.The press statement feels like a clarification on Jancss previous comments to Red Shark News, where the Hungarian editor praised Brody and Jones performances and accents, but added they wanted to perfect [the dialogue in Hungarian] so that not even locals will spot any difference. The statement also feels like swift damage control as the Oscar race appears poised to enter its homestretch, and The Brutalist is widely seen as a frontrunner, including by us, for a host of Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Actor.Indeed, The Brutalist has been declared the best film of the year by a number of critics groups and voting organizations, including the Golden Globe Foundation, which awarded the movie Best Picture Drama. However, with the nominating ballots in, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is poised to finally announce the nominees on Thursday morning. In other words, this is a fairly inopportune moment for a narrative to emerge that could stumble a perceived frontrunner.Already social media is lit up with cinephiles and movie buffs who all seem to have a strong opinion, one way or the other, about whether the revelation about The Brutalist should be disqualifying, as one user with 14,000 likes on X put it. Another called it a disgrace when it was also revealed in Red Shark NewsThe Brutalist because the filmmakers didnt have the money or the time to shoot them. That tweet was also seen by over 400,000 users.It remains to be seen whether actual Academy voters and veterans of the industry will share the umbrage that social media does over even the slightest hint of AI, but there is no denying the controversy reveals a new battlefield in awards season. Just how much AI-enhancement is acceptable in either a performance or a film when evaluating artistic achievement? That the question is mostly being posed around The Brutalist also adds a layer of irony unto itself since one of its biggest Oscar rivals, Emilia Prez, has also been revealed to have used AI tool Respeecher in order to enhance the singing of Karla Sofia Gascn, whose eponymous character belted notes outside of Gascns natural vocal range in the musical.In terms of The Brutalist, however, the arising debate acts as a snapshot for an industry at an obvious crossroads in terms of technologies and values. To date, critics have celebrated The Brutalist for its old-fashioned aesthetics and ambitionswith the film running at a dizzying 214 minutesas well as its ability to achieve that level of craft and sprawling scope on a budget of $10 million. Of course as even the films editor has conceded, with such limited resources new technologies like AI became useful in making ends meet.Even so, artificial intelligence remains a third rail in an industry that came to a halt for about six months in 2023 after actors and writers went on strike partially to extract guarantees from studios and streaming services that their work would not be replaced by AI. While compromises were made, AI remains an economic tool of the future. But how much creatives who view it as an existential threat might be willing to see it that wayparticularly creatives within the industryis yet to be determined.The Brutalist was not the first film of 2024 to use AI in the margins of post-production. An even lower-budgeted indie, Late Night with the Devil, utilized AI to create some of the title cards seen on the fictional late night TV show at the center of that film. Meanwhile venerated auteur George Miller much more remarkably used the technology to blend the facial features of stars Anya Taylor-Joy and Alyla Browne when the latter played Taylor-Joy as a child. Do the enchantments take away from Brownes impressive performance or the power of the movie?Join our mailing listGet the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox!We imagine these debates will continue to be negotiated in the industry for years to come, and The Brutalists Oscar campaign might become one of the most visible flashpoints for that discussion, if for no other reason than the film is perhaps more vulnerable than previous Oscar frontrunners like Oppenheimer and Everything Everywhere All at Once.The Screen Actors Guild shockingly snubbed The Brutalist a nomination in their equivalent of the Best Picture category, the Outstanding Performance by a Cast award. It would seem the film is vulnerable with some types of voters, including actors who if the striking SAG rank and file are any indication, might be reticent about awarding what they perceive to be an acceptance of AI in the larger industry.With that said, we still would peg The Brutalist as the frontrunner in Picture and Director, and Brody the frontrunner for Best Actor. And whether they win or lose, we suspect Corbet has an eye on the films longevity lasting past Oscar night. Like Lzls buildings, this is a work meant to withstand the erosion of humanitys cyclical upheavals and conflicts. That includes awards season PR hit jobs.

While 2025 might be a new year, it will have plenty of familiar names. Reboots and remakes will fill the screen, with filmmakers taking a different look at properties and stories told before.That might sound dire. But before you start complaining about Hollywoods lack of ideas, just take a look at this list. Sure, there are a few obvious plays for IP dollars, but for the most part, the 2025 reboot and remake slate is full of exciting updates to Superman and the Fantastic Four, as well as compelling updates to classic Universal monsters.The names might be familiar, but for a lot of these movies, the ideas are all new.Wolf Man (Jan 17)At its heart, the werewolf myth is about the beast lurking within an otherwise civilized person. The externals might change from 1941 to now, but the concept still has weight. Thats especially true when its Aussie Leigh Whannell exploring the idea, as he does with Wolf Man.A true modern horror master, who co-created the Saw and Insidious series with James Wan and directed the excellent update The Invisible Man, Whannell strips the story down to its essentials. Wolf Man stars Christopher Abbott and Julia Garner as a parents of a young girl (Matilda Firth), who get trapped in a rustic farm house, just in time for the father to undergo a lycanthropic transformation. You can read our review of the film here.Disneys Snow White (March 21)Rachel Zegler is one of our most exciting young talents, an endlessly charismatic performer and wonderful singer. But, man, does she star in some stinkers. For every West Side Story and The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songs and Snakes, theres Shazam! Fury of the Gods or Y2K.At first glance, Disneys Snow White seems to be one of the latter, in no small part due to the nightmare inducing CG Seven Dwarves. That said, the screenplay is co-written by Greta Gerwig and director Marc Webb gave us superhero movies most exciting romantic couple in The Amazing Spider-Man, so maybe theres hope yet. Even if it fails, at least we know Zegler will be charming as ever.The Wedding Banquet (April 18)Unlike most of the entries on this list, The Wedding Banquet remake comes less from a desire to cash in on name recognition and more of a desire to retell a moving story. Although director Ang Lee would go on to make hits such as The Life of Pi and Brokeback Mountain, his 1993 sophomore feature gets far less attention.Driveways and Fire Night director Andrew Ahn hopes to correct that with his update of The Wedding Banquet, co-written by Lees frequent collaborator James Schamus. Bowen Yang stars as a gay man who makes a deal with his lesbian friends (Kelly Marie Tran and Lily Gladstone) to help him masquerade as straight for the sake of his family. Hopefully, Ahn can retain some of the gentleness in Lees original, while finding its own unique voice.Lilo & Stitch (May 23)Between the two Disney remakes of established properties, Lilo & Stitch offers viewers the most hope. First of all, the original movies creative force Chris Sanders returns to voice Stitch, so at least his voice is involved in the process. Second, its directed by Dean Fleischer Camp, who made the excellent Marcel the Shell With Shoes On films.That said, Lilo & Stitch is still a big budget Disney remake, which means that it covers the exact same ground as the original film. An escaped alien lands on Hawaii, where he befriends young Lilo (Maia Kealoha) and her older sister Nani (Sydney Agudong), while avoiding mad scientist Dr. Jumba Jookiba (Zach Galifianakis) and Agent Pleakley (Billy Magnussen), as well as social worker Cobra Bubbles (Courtney B. Vance). Will Sanders and Camp find enough new approaches to justify the new Lilo & Stitch? Well find out this May.Join our mailing listGet the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox!How to Train Your Dragon (June 13)Why should Disney have all the fun? Thats what Dreamworks was thinking when they watched millions of dollars pour into the House of Mouse for updates of Aladdin and Beauty and the Beast. And so, Mason Thames of The Black Phone becomes the new Hiccup, appearing alongside a more realistically rendered Toothless in the live action How to Train Your Dragon.Some positive points lurk around the production of How to Train Your Dragon. Its directed by Dean DeBlois, who made the original Lilo & Stitch and How to Train Your Dragon with the aforementioned Chris Sanders. Furthermore, it has a fun cast, with Nick Frost and Peter Serafinowicz joining the cast and Gerard Butler reprising his role as Stoick the Vast. Superman (July 11)The new DCU by James Gunn and Peter Safran carries over some elements of the previous shared universe, but theyll make a notable change when it comes to the first superhero. Superman presents a bold new look on the Man of Steel, by which we mean a more traditional, optimistic, and hopeful look at a character who was a glowering grump under previous management.Written and directed by Gunn, Superman stars David Corenswet as the Man of Tomorrow, who we meet in a world already filled with superheroes and already known to Lois Lane (Rachel Brohansan) and Lex Luthor (Nicholas Hoult). Its not clear how Gunn will make Supes standout in this stuffed story, but hes never let us down before and, if the triumphant trailer is any indication, hes not about to let us down now.Animal Farm (July 11)All Animal Farm adaptations are created equal, but some are more equal than others. The latest animated version of George Orwells famous anti-Stalinist allegory comes from Andy Serkis, the reliable stop-motion performer and sometime director. Serkis came up with a story treatment with Rupert Wyatt, director of Rise of the Planet of the Apes, which led to a screenplay by journeyman comedy filmmaker Nicholas Stoller.Thats an odd bunch for a story about the animal overthrow of a farm turning into a dictatorship. Theres no word yet on the castwill Serkis be performing all of the animals?but the July 11th release date is still in place. Thats not a lot of time if Serkis wants to improve upon the 1954 and 1999 adaptations of the novella, neither of which impressed audiences.The Smurfs Movie (July 18)Do kids today even care about the Smurfs? Heck, do most parents even care about the Smurfs? Created by Belgian cartoonist Peyo, the little blue forest dwellers were regulars on the screen in the 1980s, but outside of some crass star-studded movies in the 2000s, the Smurfs havent been important parts of pop culture.Still, Nickelodeon hopes that the concept has enough inherent charm to draw eyes on their new version in The Smurfs Movie. And if that fails, theyve got big famous names to lend their voices, including Rihanna as Smurfette alongside Nick Offerman, Natasha Lyonne, Dan Levy, and more. No word yet on who is playing who, but were guessing Offerman is Papa Smurf, Levy is Vanity Smurf, and Lyonne is, uh, Raspy Smurf? Be honest, you dont know if there really is a Raspy Smurf, and neither does anyone else.The Fantastic Four: First Steps (July 25)Not content to let DC have all the fun, Marvel will be matching Superman with their own course-correcting revival of seminal and oft-misunderstood heroes. The Fantastic Four: First Steps brings Marvels first family to the big screen, hoping to shake-off not just the bitter taste left behind by the bland mid-2000s movies and the misguided 2015 film, but also the general disinterest in superhero movies.First Steps takes a bold approach, set in an alternate 1960s where the FF are science stars as much as they are superheroes. When the Silver Surfer (Julia Garner) announces the coming of Galactus (Ralph Ineson), the Fantastic FourPedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Joseph Quinn, and Ebon Moss-Bachrachtry to save their world and their family. The film has six credited screenwriters, never a good thing, but director Matt Shakman proved his chops with WandaVision, still the best Marvel TV series.The Naked Gun (August 1)A reboot of The Naked Gun has been in development for decades, and often looked like a lost project, which may have been a good thing. Its hard to imagine anyone other than Leslie Nielsen playing clueless cop Frank Drebin and anyone other than prime Jim Abrahams and the Zucker brothers producing. The impeccable deadpan of the original films, and the six-episode series Police Squad! that inspired it, have rarely been seen elsewhere.That said, the projects settled on a pretty solid team, with none other than Liam Neeson in the role of Frank Drebin and Paul Walter Hauser as Captain Ed Hocken. Some reports have listed Neesons character as Frank Drebin Jr. (full body condoms are only 87% effective) and the full title as The Naked Gun 4 1/4: Law of Toughness, which would make this less a reboot and more a legacy sequel. But a full on reboot means we can forget about the transphobic stuff from the third film and, you know, OJ Simpson, so maybe thats better anyway. As long as we get Rex Harrison as Abraham Lincoln, well be just fine.The Bride! (September 26)Perhaps the boldest entry on this list comes from Maggie Gyllenhaal and her Bride of Frankenstein riff The Bride!. Gyllenhaal resets the 1935 film about Dr. Frankenstein creating a mate for his monster in 1930s Chicago, with Jessie Buckley as a murdered woman who becomes the Bride and Christian Bale as the Monster.Gyllenhaal has described her movie as a musical inspired in part by Bonnie and Clyde, and has hinted at some social relevance. Thats a lot to put on a monster movie, and The Bride! is just Gyllenhaals second film behind the camera. But she has a strong cast to help her out, including Penlope Cruz, Peter Sarsgaard, and Annette Bening.The Running Man (November 7)The best remakes are those that improve upon bad films with good ideas or stray closer to the source material in an adaptation. We might get both with Edgar Wrights take on The Running Man, a novel that Stephen King published under the pen name Richard Bachman. The Running Man spawned a delightful Arnold Schwarzenegger movie about contestants in a glossy futuristic game show, which served as (very light) satire about the TV industry.Wright has a chance to hew closer to Kings original idea, an exploration about public participation in totalitarian regimes. Hes off to the right start by casting the much less muscled Glen Powell in the lead, along with Katy OBrien as a fellow contestant, who tries to survive the game for a cash prize. Throw in Josh Brolin as the evil producer and Colman Domingo as the shows host, and Wright has all the right ingredients for a compelling update that stands on its own.Anaconda (TBA)1997s Anaconda remains a favorite of the so bad its good crowd, who celebrate the creature feature for its cheesy plot, its clunky CG, and an unhinged performance by Jon Voight. So its not much of a surprise that the reboot The Anaconda would approach the material with tongue firmly in cheek.Anaconda stars Jack Black and Paul Rudd as members of a circus troupe who get lost in the rainforest, where theyre bedeviled by a giant snake. Tom Gormican, who blessed the world with fantastic Nicolas Cage and Pedro Pascal memes with The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent, directs this remake, which means Anaconda may not descend into self-satisfied snark.Bugonia (TBA)If the name Bugonia doesnt ring any bells, thats because the story its retelling was originally called Save the Green Planet!. And if that doesnt ring any bells, its because Korean cinema wasnt quite as big in the West back in 2003, when Save the Green Planet! was released.Regardless, Bugonia is Y0rgos Lanthimoss take on the material, which means one thing. Well, it means a couple things, as hell be once again pairing with Emma Stone and Jesse Plemons, the former of which plays a powerful CEO kidnapped by the latter and his brother. But it also means that Bugonia will be very, very weird, perhaps even outdoing the Korean original.Frankenstein (TBA)2025s third update of a classic monster comes from the maestro himself, Guillermo del Toro, who finally gets to finish his long-in-production take on Frankenstein. Unlike Wolf Man or The Bride!, it seems like del Toros Frankensteins will play the story more or less straight, perhaps staying even more faithful to the Mary Shelley novel than the Universal film.Del Toro has cast Oscar Isaac as Victor Frankenstein, Jacob Elordi as the Monster, and Christoph Waltz as Dr. Pretorious, Victors mentor who drives him to complete his experiments in overcoming death. Familiar as that may sound, del Toros sure to infuse the story with some of his bizarre romance, resulting in something special.

When we first saw Cameron Diazs film debut in The Mask, audiences had a response not unlike that of Jim Carreys green-skinned protagonist. Okay, maybe we werent quite so aroused, but our eyes did practically pop out of our sockets. And with good reason. After all, Diaz is a tall, striking blonde who looked every bit like the model turned actress she was.Given her high profile beginning, it might sound weird to describe any Cameron Diaz performance as overlooked. Not only does Diaz fit well within traditional leading lady roles, but she has a knack for comic timing and a lack of ego that led to big performances in Theres Something About Mary, The Sweetest Thing, and Annie. Yet there have been several movies in which Diaz puts in admirable, exciting work, only to get overshadowed by her co-stars. No one comes away from My Best Friends Wedding, Being John Malkovich, or even Charlies Angels talking about how Cameron Diaz stole the show. But if they look closer at what shes doing, theyll find a gifted comic actress putting in a nuanced performance, often more complicated than those who got all the praise.My Best Friends WeddingFor the 1997 romantic comedy My Best Friends Wedding, Diaz takes the most unenviable of roles. She plays the other woman, the romantic rival to the movies lead, played here by Julia Roberts at the height of her popularity. Surely, Diazs character will be evaporated in the light of Roberts smile and the audience would hate her.Yet writer Ronald Bass and director P.J. Hogan do just the opposite in My Best Friends Wedding, making Roberts food critic Jules a self-satisfied jerk who wants to ruin the wedding of her best friend Michael (Dermot Mulroney) and his fiance Kimmy (Diaz). The inversion only works because of the complexity that Diaz brings to her nice-girl character. In one of the movies standout scenes, Jules weaponizes her knowledge that Kimmy hates to sing and suffers from stage fright. Jules takes Michael and Kimmy to a karaoke bar, and while the former cant control his excitement over getting the chance to sing with his best friend again, the camera stays on the latter after Jules and Michael rush off. We see Kimmy frozen in fear, a fear that continues even as she tries to get over her anxiety and support Michael in his fun.The usually indomitable Diaz has never looked smaller than when a microphone gets shoved in front of her and shes forced to sing the Bacharach and David number, I Just Dont Know What to Do with Myself. She shrinks even more after reaction shots of Jules. Diaz, like us, spots the slight grin on Roberts face that her plan is working. She also sees Michael slightly disgusted that his bride-to-be cannot share in an activity he loves.And yet, Kimmy soldiers on, singing over shouts of you suck through fumbled lines and flat notes. The commitment eventually wins over the crowd, and they begin cheering for each other even her off-key moments. And the next time the camera cuts to Jules, it pans over to Michael, looking now at Kimmy not with disgust, but with awe, fully impressed at the womans bravery and commitment.As funny and wonderful as the moment is, it works not just because we see the bitter Jules hoisted on her own petard. It works because Diaz doesnt overplay Kimmys hand. Even when shes won back Michaels affection and the crowds support, Diaz doesnt let Kimmy become her: a striking, beautiful, confident woman. She stays in character, and lets Kimmys face go flush, lets her sometimes hunch in embarrassment, lets a little bit of the anxiety remain in the corners of her smile.Its an incredibly complex supporting performance, one that never overshadows the excellent work that Roberts is doing with her complex Jules. In fact, it enhances Jules as a character by making Kimmy a real and vulnerable person, not just an unbeatable sweetheart.Being John MalkovichCameron Diaz is a consummate romantic comedy star, and she is always great in them. Unfortunately, some of her most ineffective performances have come when she attempts different genres, none worse than her disastrous turn in Martin Scorseses Gangs of New York.For that reason, people often disregard her appearance in the 1999 Spike Jonze art film, Being John Malkovich. John Cusack gets praise for committing to the part of Craig Schwartz, a bitter puppeteer who finds a portal into the mind of actor John Malkovich. Catherine Keener gets praise for her steely take on the object of affection for Craigs affection Maxine Lund, who uses Craig to get access to the portal. And of course Malkovich gets praise for playing himself as an air-headed, arrogant actor.Join our mailing listGet the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox!None of those accolades make their way to Diaz. Diaz plays Craigs wife Lotte, a pet-lover disdained by her husband. With her mussed hair and shapeless grey sweatshirts, Diaz too often gets dismissed as one more attractive actor trying for superficial gravitas by playing ugly, unconvincingly. But Lotte is much more than the frumpy woman at home. When Lotte enters the portal into Malkovich, its not the allure of power or fame that impresses her. Its the feeling of being in the right body, its the feeling of being identified as a man.Lotte emerges from the exit from Malkovichs mind (near the New Jersey Turnpike) gleeful and childlike, jumping up and down in euphoria. As she rides away in the car with Craig, Diaz keeps the expression of confusion and joy on her face. Lotte has finally found her place.The contrast between Diazs performances as Lotte before and after the Malkovich revelation help make sense of her part in the movies first act. What so many dismissed as nothing more than a pretty actor trying to look not-pretty was, in fact, Diaz playing a trans man still identifying as a woman. The flatness and falseness in her behaviors were not mistakes but correct choices for the character. They relayed the truth of Lotte as a person who could not be who she actually was.Charlies AngelsUnlike Being John Malkovich, 2000s Charlies Angels seems like the ideal Diaz vehicle. A big flashy update of a cheesy show from the 1970s, directed with TV commercial slickness by McG, Charlies Angels was all about pretty ladies doing action sequences in tight, low-rise pants.To be sure, thats exactly what Diaz delivers as team leader Natalie Cook. Sure, Natalie might have a PhD from MIT, and she might test fighter jets for the U.S. Navy, but that doesnt prevent her from driving a speed boat in a gold bikini or disguising herself as a bearded man next to her partner Alexs (Lucy Liu) vampish corporate trainer.Charlies Angels has no qualms about being all about eye candy and over-the-top stunts, but its generally the side characters who get the attention. While new revelations of Bill Murrays bad behavior get released to this day, his deadpan approach to handler Bosley remains a fan favorite. Clips of Sam Rockwell and Crispin Glover in supporting turns make the rounds on social media whenever someone finds out that such idiosyncratic actors showed up in such a nakedly commercial film. Even among the leads, Drew Barrymore and Liu get singled out while Diaz gets taken for granted.But of the three Angels, Diaz best embodies the movies aesthetic. She leans into the sexiness, appearing in almost every scene with leather pants and tops designed for maximum cleavage. And she embraces the cheese, tripping and falling, letting herself be laughed at as a nerd onscreen and to show off that shes part of the joke. She even excels in the conspicuously fake action sequences, allowing just enough of a smirk when she performs Matrix-style kung fu in a climactic battle with a villain played by Kelly Lynch.Watching Charlies Angels feels like a watching a car accident waiting to happen. At any second, the movie could veer too far into the male gaze and make the movie feel leery and gross. The action sequences fall just on the right side of cheap, as if the poor digital effects are a choice instead of the result of incompetence and age. The rambling plot could become confusing and annoying instead of a solid scaffolding to hang the movies showcase scenes upon.The thing holding it all together is Diaz, who understands the movies tone and commits to it. If she ever looked a bit too uncomfortable, if she ever gave less than 100 percent in a fight sequence, then the entire thing would fall apart. Like Cyclops, Leonardo, and other great pop culture leaders, Natalie Cook gets dismissed as boring when shes in fact reliable, all thanks to Diaz.

2025 has barely begun but it already feels like a lot. Climate change-fueled wildfires continue to ravage Los Angeles and parts of Southern California while unease grips the news. A moment of transition on at least one side of the pond for our U.S. readers breeds apprehension, and the rest of the year can look foreboding if you pay attention to the headlines.Its times like these where its nice to have a comforting movie, a piece of escapism, that can lift a mood and maybe rally your outlook for the days and months ahead. Here are some suggestions we think might appeal to anyone feeling glum right nowRaiders of the Lost Ark (1981)The 1930s were definitely not simpler times. The Great Depression reached it deepest crater in the U.S. and fascism was on the march in Europe, culminating in the start of the Second World War. But the entertainments, from Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers musicals to old Saturday morning serials, could be thrillingly simplistic and reassuring. George Lucas resurrected that certainty with gusto by way of the Indiana Jones character, and Steven Spielberg made it timeless when he directed Indys first and best three movies in the 1980s, beginning with Raiders of the Lost Ark.A deliberate throwback to 30s serials and the boys adventure literature that inspired them, Raiders is the action masterpiece that set the standard for the modern blockbusters pacing as Harrison Fords archaeologist circumnavigates the world in search of the Ark of the Covenant. Oh, and along the way he punches, shoots, and otherwise brutalizes a bunch of book-burning, cult-worshipping Nazis while doing so. Which is nice.The Sound of Music (1965)For the magic of pure escapism, there is no genre more transportive or joyful than a musical done right. The soaring crescendo of a beautiful song, performed exquisitely by gorgeous talent, is the stuff of Broadway and Hollywood dreams. And you get all three inside of the first few minutes of Robert Wises The Sound of Music, the rare adaptation of a Broadway show that improves on the stage version. All of the classic Rodgers and Hammerstein songs are here, but in the movie Julie Andrews is belting the hills are alive right there atop the Austrian Alps!The unforgettable moment sets the stage for an epic 70mm spectacle that soars as Andrews wayward nun, Sister Maria, takes on the task of tutoring, caring for, and ultimately becoming a mother to seven precocious von Trapp children. The romance between her and the stern Captain von Trapp (Christopher Plummer) is simultaneously schmaltzy and swoon-worthy, and her aural lessons sweeping. Oh, and this loose adaptation of the real-life von Trapp familys flight from the Nazis after the goose-steppers took over Austria includes a third act where the von Trapps outwit a bunch of fascists and leave one overeager young brownshirt humiliated. These are a few of my favorite things.The Blues Brothers (1980)On days like this, its nice to know folks like Jake and Elwood Blues are out there. Brothers who on the right occasion can be tapped to go on a mission from God. It is their destiny to spread the gospel of good music, better vibes, and feel-good cinema around the globe. Ray Charles, James Brown, Cab Calloway, and a showstopping Aretha Franklin (to name but a few) are likewise on hand to drop some jazz and R&B standards in between comedy hijinks undertaken by John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd at the height of their cool.John Landis helms the first (and still best) film adaptation of an SNL sketch, which expands the concept of former castmates geeking out in sunglasses into an easygoing hangout movie where Aykroyd and Belushi slouch through the greater Chicago area. Along the way, they get a band together, piss off rednecks, and merrily lead local law enforcement through one of the greatest car chase sequences of all time. Wacker Drive might as well be renamed after them. Also, lest we forget, they happen to destroy a Neo-Nazi demonstration with the Bluesmobile, leading a couple of American fascists to chase them for the rest of the picture until the Blues boys trick the brownshirts into plummeting to their deaths. Good times all around.Read more Casablanca (1942)Pound for pound still the greatest movie made in Hollywoods Golden Age, Michael Curtizs Casablanca is a dizzying collection of all-time movie quotes courtesy of a screenplay by Julius and Philip G. Epstein, and Howard Koch. Heres looking at you, kid; everybody comes to Ricks; well always have Paris; of all the gin joints in all the towns in all the world, she walks into mine; round up the usual suspects; Louie, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship; play it [again], Sam. And more!But beyond a witty and wistfully romantic screenplay, Casablanca is still a sweeping WWII melodrama about the problems of three little people, one of whom (Ingrid Bergman) thought her husband was dead in a concentration camp when she met Rick (Humphrey Bogart), only to find the hubby (Paul Henreid) returned to her when theyre all trying to escape the jackboots in Vichy-controlled Morocco. Also released during the war, and at a time when the Nazis still occupied Paris and North Africa, there is a pang of raw, tangible emotion as the cast of largely expat Europeans, including French actress Madeleine Lebeau, sing the French national anthem, La Marseillaise, while drowning out the fascists at a nightclub. It will still put a lump in your throat to hear Lebeau shout, Vive la France! Vive la libert!The Producers (1967)Mel Brooks iconic movie musical about what might happen if you tried to make more money with a flop than you would with a hitand what could in turn happen if that flop became a smashThe Producers has faded into legend. Its a movie about every two-bit hustler and conmans worst fear: what if the bill came due? Zero Mostel and Gene Wilder make an iconic duo as the unscrupulous Broadway producers who try to schmooze, cast, and cajole their way into financial failure and instead end up in Sing Sing for their misdeeds. (Those were the days.)Join our mailing listGet the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox!The movie is best remembered though for making good on Mel Brooks lifelong pledge to make the world laugh at Adolf Hitler. The giggles we still get from Springtime for Hitler are proof he succeeded then and reassuringly now. Still, today you might get as much enjoyment out of Kenneth Mars aged Nazi raging at everyone laughing at his strongman idol.The Rocketeer (1991)Not a financial hit when it came out, Joe Johnstons The Rocketeer has stood the test of time as a bonafide cult classic due to its sincere optimism and sweet affability. We imagine one of James Horners most sentimental and Americana of scoresand this is the guy who won his Oscar for tearjerker compositions in Titanic!went a long to way cultivate that feeling. But the whole movie taps into earnest wholesomeness, perhaps even more so than its obvious Indiana Jones influences.This one adapts Dave Stevens 1980s comic book series of the same and conjures also the appeal of 1930s and 40s era comics and radio shows with its deliberately retro pulp hero in the art deco helmet and Golden Age Hollywood backdrop. There he battles Timothy Daltons pitch perfect Errol Flynn stand-in, who (surprise!) is actually a secret Nazi saboteur determined to steal Howard Hughes rocket. Luckily, all-American pilot Cliff Secord (Billy Campbell) and his best girl, movie starlet Jenny Blake (a va-va-voom Jennifer Connelly), stand in his way. They even get local wiseguy mobster Eddie Valentine (Paul Sorvino) in on the act. I may not make an honest buck, Sorvino seethes, but Im a hundred percent American. I dont work for no two-bit Nazi. Its a good sentiment.X-Men: First Class (2011)Another superhero movie thats a little more modern in setting and making, Matthew Vaughns X-Men: First Class feels strangely underrated these days. This might be because even in 2011, the superhero genre was pivoting to more outlandish interconnected fantasies. Yet one of the best things about First Class is that for all of its frothiness, it keeps one foot in something approximating the real-world, at least by way of 1960s Sean Connery James Bond movies.Set during the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962, First Class did the throwback to Marvel Comics glory days thing about 14 years before the upcoming Fantastic Four movie, and it did so with a real eye for detail when it came to imitating the pop culture of the era, if not the reality. It also is the best exploration of Charles Xavier and Magnetos frenemy-ship in any medium (here played young and maybe flirtatiously by James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender).It also features an absolutely badass moment where Fassbender turns Magneto into a full-fledged antihero. Doing his best Connery impression, the Holocaust survivor walks into an Argentine bar and happily speaks German with some of the locals before being asked what his parents names were by some older clientele. They didnt have a name, Fassender smiles. It was taken from them by pig farmers and tailors. He then shows the serial numbers tattooed onto his arm to men who claim to be hiding out in South America simply for farming and making clothes. What happens next is immensely satisfyingInglourious Basterds (2008)You probably heard we aint in the prisoner-takin business; were in the killin Nazis business, Brad Pitt purrs with a dubious yet wonderful Appalachian accent. And cousin, business is a-boomin! Such is the pure dopamine-thrill of the so-called Basterds, the titular men on a mission in Quentin Tarantinos sixth motion picture. But despite that pride of title placement, you shouldnt be deceived. Theyre merely an ornate decoration on top; frosting on the cake.Inglourious Basterds is really a wide ensemble of lives and stories intersecting in Nazi-Occupied France circa 1944. The film follows soldiers, undercover film critics, an ingeniously played S.S. officer from hell (Cristoph Waltz), and finally a Jewish woman (Mlanie Laurent) who escaped the murder of her family and now lives in plain sight as a gentile movie theater owner in Paris. It is a fantasy about the restorative power of cinema and the fleeting beauty of escapism. Still, its also about killin Nazis. Lots of em. And sometimes with a baseball bat.

Its a cruel time for new TV series that dont immediately hit. There are no participation awards or points for trying in the world of television commissioning; its succeed or die.Unfortunately for the UK shows below, they didnt win a big enough audience or enough plaudits to keep them going, and so their respective channels and streamers have ushered them onto the great TV ice floe and floated them off into the horizon. From raucous superpowers comedy Extraordinary on Disney+, to Happy-Valley-meets-Stranger-Things horror fantasy Passenger on ITV, here are the British TV series that wont be back for another round.Well keep this list updated, so check back for new entries as and when cancellation news is announced.DRAMAPassenger (ITV)Andrew Buchans dark mystery set in a small Yorkshire town was a fun combination of horror staples and drily Northern humour. The six-parter had a great cast led by Lokis Wunmi Mosaku, and told a twisting fantasy conspiracy story that drew on all kinds of horror influences. Its a shame to see it go unfinished.Shardlake (Disney+)Adapted from the popular series of Tudor-set crime mystery novels by CJ Sansom, Shardlake was the story of a 16th century lawyer corralled into doing Thomas Cromwells dirty work during the Reformation. The first four-part series starred Arthur Hughes in the title role, and was written by The Last Kingdoms Stephen Butchard based on Sansoms Dissolution the first of seven novels which now wont be seen on screen in this iteration.The Tower (ITV)Three series isnt a bad innings for a new UK crime drama, though The Towers procedural format meant that it could have gone on and on. It starred Game of Thrones and Upstart Crows Gemma Whelan as a detective sniffing out corruption on the force, and its 11 existing episodes are available to stream on ITVX in the UK.Renegade Nell (Disney+)Sally Wainwright, the creator of Happy Valley and Last Tango in Halifax, changed gears for this period-set fantasy which told the story of a rambunctious young woman in 18th century England who uses her mysterious super-strength to fight for the poor and oppressed. Renegade Nell was a lot of fun and precisely the kind of show that would once have been on BBC One on a Saturday teatime, but struggled to find its audience in the here and now.Everything Now (Netflix)Teen drama Everything Now was the story of Mia, a sixth former determined to catch up on everything teenage life has to offer after a long spell away from the world recovering from an eating disorder. It didnt connect with enough YA viewers to sustain a second series on Netflix.Constellation (Apple TV+)Doctor Who writer Peter Harness was behind this intriguing space mystery for Apple TV+. Unfortunately, the streamer declined to continue the story of astronauts who came back from space different, so thats the last well see of its complex scientific ideas, parallel timelines and creepy atmosphere.KAOS (Netflix)Netflix cancelled Greek myth series Kaos in record time (we wrote about it here), proving that big-budget, starry-cast, multi-location dramas with imagination in spades need to get popular fast or theres no future for them. With a top cast led by Jeff Goldblum and Janet McTeer, Charlie Covells imaginative, witty, meaningful series will live on in the hearts of fans.The Winter King (MGM+/ITVX)This historical action series based on a series of Bernard Cornwell novels didnt fare as well as its long-running brother The Last Kingdom (which was rescued from BBC cancellation by Netflix after series two). A fantasy drama revisiting the myths surrounding King Arthur, it starred Agents of SHIELDs Iain de Caestecker in the lead role, with Eddie Marsan in a cameo role as his father Uther. It aired in late 2023 in the UK and was announced as cancelled in September 2024.Join our mailing listGet the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox!COMEDYSet in a world where superpowers are the norm, Extraordinary tells the story of chaotic twentysomething Jen, her search for answers as to why shes still power-free, and her unpredictable flatmates dealing with their own special abilities. This rude, fun fantasy comedy did better than most of the shows on this list by making it all the way to a second series. A third however, isnt coming, which is a pity for such an imaginative and likeable series.The Completely Made-Up Adventures of Dick Turpin (Apple TV+)News broke this month that the second series of nonsense-history series The Completely Made-Up Adventures of Dick Turpin was being scrapped midway through filming after reports that lead Noel Fielding had not returned to set following the Christmas break. The Franchise (HBO/Sky)This satirical look at franchise movie-making from Jon Brown (Succession, Avenue 5, Dead Pixels), and produced by Armando Iannucci and Sam Mendes wont enter phase two. The show, which is set behind-the-scenes of a fictional superhero studio, hoped to skewer the excesses and egos of modern moviemaking, but failed to draw a big enough audience or enthusiastic enough reviews to follow its fake cast and crew into a second season.Time Bandits (Apple TV+)A Taika Waititi-produced new take on the classic 1980s Terry Gilliam kids adventure movie, this family-aimed series was plagued by production difficulties and never really took off, despite the efforts of a fun cast including Lisa Kudrow. It was cancelled after just one series.Avoidance (BBC One)Romesh Ranganathan confirmed on his and Tom Davis Wolf and Owl podcast that his BBC One comedy co-starring Jessica Knappett and Lisa McGrillis about a recently separated dad with no backbone wont be returning for a third series.

There are a lot of exciting new games coming to PC this year. Whether youve been waiting for Final Fantasy VII Rebirth or Spider-Man 2 to make the jump from PS5 or looking for a new cozy game like Tales of the Shire, theres something for almost every kind of PC gamer coming out this year. From big name franchises and sequels to hidden gems, weve put together a list of all the noteworthy games PC owners should check out in 2025.Final Fantasy VII RebirthSquare Enix Jan 23Final Fantasy VII Rebirth is the second game of a planned three-game arc that expands the story of the original Final Fantasy VII. The gameFinal Fantasy VII Remake, Rebirth seeks to transform the story that long-time fans of the series are familiar with for a new generation. The PC version comes with three tailored graphic presets to optimize your experience no matter your gaming setup.Star Wars Episode 1: Jedi Power BattlesAspyr Jan. 23Originally released for the PlayStation, Sega Dreamcast, and Game Boy Advance,Star Wars Episode 1: Jedi Power Battlesis getting a re-release for its 25th anniversary. This remastered version of the classicStar Warsgame brings back couch co-op mode, training rooms, bonus levels, and the arcade cheats and power-ups that made the original version so fun. In addition, the game will have 13 new playable characters, including Jar Jar Binks, and a lightsaber toggle that allows players to choose between the original lightsaber colors used in the game or more screen-accurate versions. No matter your age,Star Wars Episode 1: Jedi Power Battlesis sure to be a fun walk (or Force-powered jump) down memory lane.Spider-Man 2Insomniac Games Jan 30Spider-Man fans are in for a treat when Spider-Man 2 finally comes to PC this month. Our favorite neighborhood web-slingers Peter Parker and Miles Morales are back for another adventure, this time facing off against villains like Kraven the Hunter and Venom. In addition to the expansive map and updated traversal and combat abilities that came with the PS5 edition, the PC version promises a suite of enhanced features, including enhanced ray-tracing options to optimize the experience for PC players.Kingdom Come: DeliveranceIIWarhorse Studios Feb. 4Set in the Kingdom of Bohemia during the early 15th century,Kingdom Come: Deliverance IIfollows the story of Henry, a trusted diplomatic escort of the king who seeks revenge for his murdered family. In the games open-world Medieval setting, the player can guide Henry on daring adventures, forge alliances with a charismatic cast of characters, and engage in visceral real-time combat.Kingdom Come: Deliverance IIis a gripping action RPG perfect for anyone eager to step into an epic Medieval adventure.Civilization VIIFiraxis Games Feb 11Join our mailing listGet the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox!Arriving nearly a decade after the previous game,Civilization VIIpromises to be a revolutionary new chapter in this award-winning franchise. Similar to its predecessors,Civilization VIIis a turn-based tactical strategy game where you develop an empire across three distinct historic eras. With updated graphics and improved gameplay that includes updates to diplomacy mechanics, changes to production management, as well as other improvements, this evolution seems poised to bring this franchise into the next generation.AvowedObsidian Entertainment Feb 18Avowedis an action RPG set in the Living Lands of Eora, which was first introduced in Obsidians stellarPillars of Eternitygames. Its a vast region encompassing a variety of landscapes, from lush forests to rocky deserts. The player begins the game as an envoy from the Aedyr Empire who is sent to the Living Lands to investigate rumors of a spreading plague and a secret so dangerous it could destroy everything.The Envoy can use different combos of magic, melee weapons, and firearms to defeat dangerous enemies, and the choices they make affect the story. The player can also recruit various NPCs to join their party, up to two at a time, that can aid in accomplishing certain tasks. Though these companion NPCs unfortunately wont be available for romancing or smooching,Avowedstill looks like a world that will be easy to get lost in. We quite enjoyed our time with a preview build of the game last year.Monster Hunter WildsCapcom Feb 28The latest chapter in theMonster Hunterseries,Monster Hunter Wildsis set in the Forbidden Lands, an uncharted region long thought to be uninhabited. That is, until a boy named Nata is discovered near the border of these lands, on the run from a mysterious creature known as the White Wraith that attacked his people. As the player, you control The Hunter, one of the professional monster hunters tasked with searching for the White Wraith, charting the Forbidden Lands, and searching for Natas people.Monster Hunter Wildsdoesnt only have an intriguing story, however. The game also features new fighting moves and a wide variety of weapons and equipment that give you even more ways to use monsters and their environment to your advantage. Even if youre not familiar with the series,Monster Hunter Wildslooks to be a fun game for any fan of action RPG games.Suikoden I & II HD RemasterKonami March 6Konamis RPG series Suikoden is joining a long list of classic RPGs getting a fresh update for modern consoles. The Suikoden I & II HD Remaster will feature improvements to graphics and the art style, gameplay mechanics, and sound. Players will also now have the option to automate battles with a single button and play through combat at double-speed. Despite all of these updates, however, the developers are still striving to keep the original story and the charm of the colorful cast of characters that fans know and love intact.Assassins Creed: ShadowsUbisoft March 20Set inthe late Sengoku periodof feudal Japan,Assassins Creed Shadowsfeatures two playable protagonists: Naoe, a shinobi assassin, and Yasuke, a legendary samurai. Quests can be handled as either protagonist, with Naoe as the more stealthy and discrete approach and Yasuke as the charismatic warrior, useful for taking on several enemies at a time. The game encourages players to explore the open world gathering intel and building a network of spies ready to help usher Japan into a new era. Based onthe hands-off previewwe saw at SGF, this already looks like a worthy entry in theAssassins Creedfranchise.Tales of the ShireWt Workshop March 5New cozy game alert!Tales of the Shireis like ifStardew ValleyandAnimal Crossingtook a trip to the Shire ofLord of the Rings.The game lets players live out their dreams of spending time in the idyllic landscape of the Shire as they create their own character, decorate their own Hobbit hole, make friends in the community, and help the town flourish. We playedTales of the Shireat SGF and were impressed with the amount of care put into creating this version of the Shire. Even though the game isnt technically canon, there are still plenty of references and easter eggs forLord of the Ringsfans to find.AtomfallRebellion March 27Inspired by the real-life Windscale Fire nuclear disaster in Northern England, Atomfall is a survival-action game set five years after the event. In this alternate version of history, there are more mysterious and sinister forces at work behind the scenes, and its up to the player to explore the quarantine zone and uncover what truly happened at Windscale. As with any good post-apocalyptic survival game, you must learn how to craft items and weapons with what you can find in the environmenteither through bartering, ransacking, or straight up stealing. This fictional yet familiar world is full of mysticism and folk horror influences, creating the perfect eerie environment to explore.Fatal Fury: City of the WolvesSNK April 21The popular 90s fighting game franchiseFatal Furyis back after 26 years withFatal Fury: City of the Wolves. With 22 playable characters, including 17 familiar faces from previous games, and 3 different modes of gameplay, there are plenty of options for longtime fans and franchise newcomers alike to have a great time. Theres a single-player RPG mode, Episodes of South Town, as well as online modes that allow you to match with other players or clones generated by automatic AI technology that learns your play style.Double Dragon ReviveYukes Oct 23Another popular fighting game franchise set to return this year isDouble Dragon.This isnt the first modern-era sequel for this arcade-style beat em up franchise, but that doesnt mean we arent excited to see what this game has in store in 2025. With four playable characters, including brothers Jimmy and Billy Lee, modern 3D graphics, and an exhilarating belt-scroll action experience,Double Dragon Reviveseems like a fun merge of past and present gaming.Borderlands 4Gearbox Software TBDSet on the all-new planet of Kairos,Borderlands 4already looks like it will be an irreverent, chaotic timeas any goodBorderlandsgame should be. While we dont know a lot about the game thus far, Gearbox promises the games will deliver intense action and billions of wild and deadly weapons with its brand new planet and story. Youll get to control one of four new Vault Hunters seeking wealth and glory after crashing on Kairos and breaking free from the planets ruthless dictator, the Timekeeper. With the option to play solo or in co-op with up to three other players as well as free-form combat and exploration, there are plenty of opportunities to fight your way through the planet, and maybe even spark a rebellion in the process.Capcom TBDWith a mix of classic 2D and 3D style games, fans of classicCapcomarcade-style games have a lot to look forward to withCapcom Fighting Collection 2. Including titles such asCapcom vs. SNK,Capcom vs. SNK 2, Power Stone, Power Stone 2, Street Fighter Alpha 3 Upper,and more, this game is perfect for anyone looking to recreate the retro-gaming experience.Capcom Fighting Collection 2also includes an online play mode that allows you to play casual, ranked, and custom matches with other players across the globe. This game is also very beginner-friendly with training modes as well as adjustable difficulty settings and a customizable button layout that allows for one-button special moves in combat. So even if you arent an arcade legend, theres still plenty of fun to be had.DOOM: The Dark AgesBethesda Softworks TBDCue the heavy metal,DOOMfans, because the latest game in the franchise is coming to crush some demon skulls. A prequel toDOOM(2016) andDOOM Eternal,DOOM: The Dark Agestells the origin of the DOOM Slayer as the hero fights against the forces of Hell in a dark fantasy setting unlike anything weve seen from this franchise before. This single-player FPS not only allows you to crush combat scenarios with classic DOOM weaponry,The Dark Agesalso features new tools like a face-shattering flail, throwable Shield Saw, and yes, even a Mecha Dragon.Dune: AwakeningFuncom TBDSet on Arrakis, the most dangerous planet in the universe, Dune: Awakening is an open world survival MMO where you begin as a prisoner on the planet and must do what you can to survive the harsh, unforgiving landscape. Whether you band together with other players or go at it alone, your path is yours to choose, with a variety of skill specialties to choose from including Swordmaster, Bene Gesserit, Trooper, Mentat, and Planetologist. Dune: Awakening looks to be an exciting expansion of this universe, for both fans and newcomers alike. What we saw of the game last years Summer Game Fest certainly left us wanting more.Dying Light: The BeastTechland TBDAfter over a decade in captivity,Dying Lighthero Kyle Crane escapes into a changed world, though not necessarily for the better. Using not only the survival skills honed in the previous games, but also some new abilities that come from being experimented on, inDying Light: The Beast, youll once again play as Crane as he tries to help the survivors of Castor Woods and keep the ever increasing population of zombies at bay. This survival horror game also has a 4-player co-op feature if you want a little help to make it through the violent, zombie-filled nights.Elden Ring: NightReignFromSoftware Inc. TBDUnlikeShadow of the Erdtree, Elden Ring: NightReignis not DLC for the original game, but rather a standalone adventure set within theElden Ringuniverse. In fact, this game reimagines the games core design.NightReignfeatures a relentless environmental threat that changes from one playthrough to the next and is also set to include a 3-player co-op mode as well as new uniquely skilled heroes that are formidable on their own, but can create a powerful partnership when they unite as a team against the creeping night. If youve ever wanted to play a FromSoftware Soulslike with friends, nows your chance.FablePlayground Games TBDIts been over a decade since the last Fable game was released, and now the upcoming sequel is set to take us back to the fantasy world of Albion for the first time in a while. So far, the story seems to be focused on a former hero named Humphry and a young adventurer hes taken under his wing. Someone from his past has come back to haunt him and threatens Albions very existence in the process. While we dont know much else about Fables story or gameplay yet, this third-person action RPG already looks to be a welcome addition to the franchise.JudasGhost Story Games TBDFrom the creator ofBioShock,Judasis a single player narrative FPS set on a disintegrating starship. Playing as the mysterious and troubled Judas, you must navigate alliances, fight against foes, and do whatever it takes to escape. Whether youre a fan ofBioShockor just looking for a new and intriguing sci-fi game,Judasis definitely one to keep your eye on this year.Killing Floor 3Tripwire Interactive TBDThe co-op action horror FPS franchise thats fun for your entire squad of friends is back this year withKilling Floor 3. Made with Unreal Engine 5, this next-gen sequel looks to be full of the blood, gore, and heart-pounding action that fans have come to love. Playing as a member of the rebel group Nightfall, you and up to five teammates must fight against waves of zeds (bioengineered zombies) in order to save humanity.The Alters11 Bit Studios TBDThe Alterstells the story of Jan, a simple miner who crash lands on a hostile planet alone. Tasked with running a mobile base by himself, Jan soon realizes that he cant do this alone if hes going to survive. With the help of his ships quantum computer and a rare substance found on this planet, Jan is able to create clones of himself based on different life paths he may or may not have chosen in his past. While these clones are versions of him, they are also very different people with their own motivations, goals, and fearswhich means that they dont always get along. Its a very intriguing premise that makes for a unique sci-fi survival game that we really cant wait to play.Vampire: The Masquerade Bloodlines 2Paradox Interactive TBDIts been over 20 years sinceVampire: The Masquerade Bloodlineswas first released, and now werefinallyset to see the sequel this year. Just like its predecessor,Vampire: The Masquerade Bloodlines 2is an action RPG where you get to play as an elder vampire. As you fight and talk your way through modern-day Seattle, your choices matter. Whether you choose to rise through the ranks of vampire society or rail against it, your decisions influence the balance of power in the city and what becomes of it and the people within. Whether youre familiar with this franchise or looking to dip your toe into a new RPG,Vampire: The Masquerade Bloodlines 2looks like itll be a blood-sucking good time.Wuchang: Fallen FeathersLeenzee Games TBDA dark and fantastical Soulslike game,Wuchang: Fallen Feathersfollows Wuchang, a pirate who awakens with amnesia in the final years of Chinas Ming Dynasty. Its a chaotic time as a mysterious phenomenon known as Feathering has come to the land of Shu, causing mutations and an epidemic of plague and monsters across the land. Playing as Wuchang, you must fight your way forward using a variety of fighting styles, hidden weapons, ancient firearms, and even the power of Feathering itself to forge a path toward the truth, and hopefully uncover some of your own memories along the way.

How did a low-budget sci-fi show from the 1960s, one almost canceled after its second season, become one of the most important franchises of all time? Answers range from a rabid fan base that kept Star Trek alive after its second season to a network putting support behind a recognizable IP. But the truth is far more simple: Star Trek: The Original Series is really, really good.Like fellow 60s greats Doctor Who and The Twilight Zone, Star Trek used science fiction to comment on social changes and to wrestle with philosophical ideas. The show overcame its budget limitations to tell genuinely thrilling stories, and gathered an incredible cast, grounded by the endlessly charismatic William Shatner as James T. Kirk and the inscrutable Leonard Nimoy as Spock.Honestly, most of season one and two are good to great (also, theres a third season!) but these 20 episodes best demonstrate how Star Trek became the cultural force it is today.20. The Return of the Archons (Season 1, Episode 21)In this era of endless dystopian fiction, including the Purge series that drew inspiration from this episode, its hard not to roll your eyes at the premise of The Return of the Archons. Written by Boris Sobelman from a story by Gene Roddenberry (who usually revised/rewrote episodes) and directed by Joseph Pevney, The Return of the Archons sends the Enterprise to the seemingly utopian planet Beta III. Within the revery, however, lurks a dictator called Landru, who instates a period of lawlessness called The Red Hour.Despite its goofy premise, The Return of the Archons gets at a fundamental question about the lengths to which well go to participate in a society, even when theyre morally questionable lengths. The episode has an allegorical force that throws into question the very idea of utopia, which had already become a key aspect of Star Trek.19. A Piece of the Action (Season 2, Episode 17)To stretch budgets as much as possible, Star Trek would sometimes reuse sets from other shows, which didnt always fit the series sci-fi aesthetic. The series would explain the discrepancies by describing the planet as modeled on Earth culture, a hand wave that might annoy people if the episodes werent so much fun.Case in point, A Piece of the Action, written by David P. Harmon and Gene L. Coon and directed by James Komack. While searching for a long-lost ship, Kirk and Spock visit the planet Sigma Iotia II, which resembles 1930s Chicago. Before you can say You dirty rat, Kirk and Spock are in pinstripes and fedoras, matching wits with mob bosses. A Piece of the Action doesnt have the same high-minded ideals as many episodes on this list, but it does give Shatner and Nimoy the opportunity to show off their comedic chops.18. The Enterprise Incident (Season 3, Episode 2)Every Trekkie knows that TOSs third season pales in comparison to the first two. Still, there are a few gems in there, including the thrilling heist episode The Enterprise Incident, directed by John Meredyth Lucas and written by regular D.C. Fontana. In The Enterprise Incident, Kirk matches wits with the Romulan Star Empire on a secret Federation mission to steal a cloaking device (no Section 31 necessary).Its always fun to see Kirk play figurative three-dimensional chess with both his enemies and his crew. But the real pleasure of The Enterprise Incident comes from watching Spock deal with the clever Romulan Commander, played with menace and allure by Joanne Linville. The interactions further develop the connection between the Romulans and the Vulcans, while shining new light on Spocks internal conflict.17. The Galileo Seven (Season 1, Episode 16)We know were in for something special during the cold open to The Galileo Seven, written by Oliver Crawford and S. Bar-David and directed by Robert Gist, when a striking overhead shot shows the bridge from a new perspective. Even better is the introduction of the shuttlecraft that Spock and a small crew use to investigate a quasar, which will become a key part of Star Trek technology.External qualities aside, The Galileo Seven presents an excellent test of Spocks morals and of larger Federation ideals. Spocks logical approach to dealing with the giants his team encounters on an away mission results in the death of some crew people and conflicts with others. Add in some patented Scotty engineering, and we get a nuanced look at different skills and personalities working together.Join our mailing listGet the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox!16. A Taste of Armageddon (Season 1, Episode 23)Sometimes, hanging a lampshade on an absurd premise can undercut a story. Sometimes, it enhances the storys moral force, which is certainly the case with A Taste of Armageddon. Written by Coon and Robert Hamner and directed by Pevney, A Taste of Armageddon takes place on Eminiar VII, a planet constantly in a state of civil war. Instead of conducting their battles with weapons, their citizens run computer simulations to determine the outcome of battles. Citizens of the losing side willingly enter disintegration chambers to pay the cost of their defeat.Well, they do until the Enterprise gets destroyed during a fight, and Kirk refuses to sacrifice his crew. Kirks utter incredulity at the practice, matched only by the kindness and sincerity with which leader Anan 7 (David Opatoshu) defends his peoples methods, preserves the episodes allegory. Thanks to these performances, our own real-world wars look no more reasonable than the computer games Kirk detests.15. The Enemy Within (Season 1, Episode 5)Yes, William Shatner overacts. If that bothers you, then abandon trying to watch TOS at all. But if Shatners dramatic approach works as well for you as it does most Trekkies, then The Enemy Within is a treat. Written by sci-fi legend Richard Matheson and directed by Leo Penn, The Enemy Within introduces one of Star Treks most reliable plot devices, a transporter malfunction. In this case, the malfunction creates two Kirks, one weak and passive, the other aggressive and decisive.Too often, commenters distinguish the two Kirks on moral grounds, calling the passive one good and the aggressive one bad. But while the latter does, you know, attack Yeoman Rand, the episode really presents them as different parts of what makes Kirk the man he is and therefore not subject to such simple binaries. By eschewing these moral binaries, The Enemy Within establishes Kirk as a far more complex character than those often found on 1960s television, and gives Shatner space to give a couple of big, beautiful performances.14. Errand of Mercy (Season 1, Episode 26)The Klingons evolved drastically over the years, beginning as arrogant and manipulative aliens, portrayed by white guys with bronzer and fake mustaches, to the warrior class with ridged foreheads that well meet later on. Those haughty original Klingons made their debut in Errand of Mercy, led by the delightfully arch Kor (John Colicos).However, discussions of Klingon evolution too often forget how good the aliens first appearance really is. Written by Coon and directed by John Newland, Errand of Mercy, pits Kirk and Kor against one another, as the Federation and the Klingons try to get residents of the planet Organia to align with their respective sides. What follows is one of TOSs better anti-war episodes, a call for peace and understanding that goes even further than the ideal vision of the Federation.13. The Tholian Web (Season 3, Episode 9)The Tholian Web begins with a classic sci-fi mystery, in which the Enterprise discovers the missing starship Defiant, filled with the bodies of crew people who apparently killed one another. Worse, the extreme anger came from the Defiant getting trapped in an interphrase between dimensions, a shift that occurs with Kirk still on the ship. Even worse, aliens called Tholians see the arrival of the Enterprise as an act of aggression, and seek to attack the ship while Spock and McCoy work to retrieve the Captain.By season three, the crew had fully developed its rapport with one another, and thats particularly true of the primary trio of Kirk, Spock, and McCoy. That familiarity drives The Tholian Web, as Spock and McCoys established relationship gives weight to their search for Kirk, while each member of the crew plays their part to deal with the Tholians. In short, The Tholian Web finds the Enterprise at peak capability, with every member of its crew doing their jobs and doing them well.12. The Doomsday Machine (Season 2, Episode 6)For as much as Star Treks future gets described as utopian, its clear that Starfleet still has lots of problems. Case in point, The Doomsday Machine, written by Norman Spinrad and directed by Marc Daniels. Answering the call of the USS Constellation and rescuing the sole survivor Commodore Decker (William Windom), Kirk and crew learns of a gargantuan planet destroyera destroyer that soon threatens the Enterprise.Much of The Doomsday Machine deals with nuts and bolts sci-fi goodness, as Scotty and co. try to repair the Constellation while the Enterprise finds a way to escape. However, the drama comes from Deckers struggle with survivors guilt after the planet destroyer robbed him of purpose. Windom captures the mans despair and desperation, making for a memorable episode, one that leads to the excellent Next Generation novel Vendetta.11. Space Seed (Season 1, Episode 22)It would be understandable to describe Space Seed as a prequel to Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, given the way that film looms large in the franchises history. But theres a reason that Nicholas Meyer chose Khan as the TOS villain to bring back for a movie. Its because Space Seed is a really, really good episode of Star Trek.In Space Seed, the Enterprise recovers the USS Botany Bay and releases from suspended animation one of the people inside, the one-time warlord Khan Noonien Singh (Ricardo Montalbn). Immediately, Khan proves himself a threat, thanks to Montalbns incredibly charismatic take on a man who asserts his power in every situation, even charming the Enterprises historian (thats a job?) Lt.Marla McGivers (Madlyn Rhue). So compelling is Montalbns performance and the story by Carey Wilber and Coon that Khan would be a Star Trek great, even if Wrath of Khan never happened.10. Amok Time (Season 2, Episode 1)Like Space Seed, Amok Time often gets diminished to a one-sentence synopsis: the one where Spock gets horny. However, the mating drive known as pon farr is just one of the many aspects of Vulcaln lore that writer Theodore Sturgeon and director Joseph Pevney introduce in Amok Time.Driven mad by his need to mate, Spock returns to Vulcan to reunite with his betrothed TPring (Arlene Martel), only to discover that she has chosen another, which leads to ceremonial conflict. Although Amok Time leans hard into its pulpy depiction of the planet and its people, all involved play it straight, including Celia Lovsky as the matriarch TPau. Thanks to their dedication, Amok Time ends with Vulcan as a compelling place, giving the franchise a foundation for hundreds of interesting stories.9. Mirror, Mirror (Season 2, Episode 4)Like Tremaine and Harry Mudd, the Mirror Universe is a highly divisive TOS concept. Theres no in-between. You must either embrace the over-the-top nature of the tropes or you must skip the episodes altogether. Of the three concepts, the Mirror Universe wins out, thanks to the episode that introduced it, Mirror, Mirror by writer Jerome Bixby and director Marc Daniels.Much has been said about the central idea of Kirk, McCoy, and Uhura arriving in a universe filled with evil doppelgngers, including Spock with a goatee. Equally compelling, however, is the frame narrative around the Mirror Universe adventure, in which the Federation tries to broker a deal for Dilithium crystals from the Halkans. The Halkans refuse on the grounds that the Federation could use the crystals for war, a position supported by the Mirror Universe adventure, despite the episodes conclusion, making the organization more complex than often realized.8. The Corbomite Maneuver (Season 1, Episode 10)Like its contemporary Doctor Who, Star Trek understood its goofy looking aliens were part of the appeal, not a distraction. The Corbomite Maneuver from writer Jerry Sohl and directer Joseph Sargent features a humdinger of a weird alien in Balok, the figure who shows up on the Enterprise view screen as a representative of the First Federation. Of course, as well learn, that figure is just a puppet for the real Balok, a childlike entity portrayed by Clint Howard (voice dubbed by Walker Edmiston).In addition to the cool aliens, The Corbomite Manuever stands out for its demonstration of Kirk as a tactical master. As much as pop culture tends to remember Kirk as a brash womanizer (see Zap Brannigan from Futurama), the actual series depicts him as far more interested in matching wits than wooing ladies. Kirks cunning is on full display (as are Shatners pecs at the start of the episode, which does earn a Kif sigh) in The Corbomite Manuever.7. Arena (Season 1, Episode 18)If an intergalactic godlike being arrived and erased from existence all but one episode of Star Trek from existence, Arena might be the one to save. Obviously, Arena isnt the all-time best episode, but it does have most of Star Treks defining qualities. Weve got a cool rubber alien, weve got Kirk getting his shirt ripped up, and weve got, yes, a godlike being.However, as much as culture remembers Arena as the one where Kirk does the two-handed chop on the Gorn, the episode is more about peace and understanding than it is hand-to-hand combat. Writer Coon (working from a story by Fredric Brown) and director Pevney treat the face-off as a chance for the combatants to embrace their better instincts, to seek connection and communication, even in the face of an unknown danger.6. The Menagerie (Season 1, Episodes 11 and 12)As already discussed, Star Trek had a genius for reusing materials, but The Menagerie exceeds even the highest expectations. Instead of throwing out Where No Man Has Gone Before, the original pilot episode featuring Jeffrey Hunter as Captain Christopher Pike and Nimoy as a smiling Spock, Roddenberry reused the footage to add depth to the Vulcans story for The Menagerie.In The Menagerie, Spock comes to the rescue to his former Captain Pike, his active mind now trapped in an immobile body after a heroic sacrifice. Spock wants to take Pike back to the forbidden planet of Talos IV, resulting in a Starfleet court martial. In between reused footage of The Cage, showing Pikes initial meeting with the Talosians, The Menagerie uses a trial format to show Kirk and Spock at their best, cementing the bond that will become a highlight of the franchise.5. The Trouble With Tribbles (Season 2, Episode 15)Not everyone loves it when Trek gets goofy. But even those who hate Bride of Chaotica! or The Elysian Kingdom have to at least chuckle at The Trouble With Tribbles, written by David Gerrold and directed by Pevney. The episode introduces the infamous rapidly reproducing furballs, which help uncover a secret Klingon plotbut not before annoying everyone first.As is always the case with silly Trek, The Trouble With Tribbles wouldnt work without an incredibly game cast. The famous shot of the creatures dropping on Kirk gets a laugh because of Shatners reaction, somehow overdoing it even when standing still. The mess hall fight that breaks out between Starfleets and Klingons works because of the delicious haughtiness by the latters Captain, Koloth (William Campbell). Even if not every Trekkie loves episodes like The Trouble With Tribbles, everyone on screen seems to be having fun.4. Journey to Babel (Season 2, Episode 10)The joy of Star Treks vision of the future isnt limited to seeing people of different races and genders working together on a starship. Its also the steadfast belief that even aliens can learn to co-exist. Although those qualities become more pronounced in TNG and beyond, they have their roots in TOS, especially Journey to Babel, written by Fontana and directed by Pevney. The Journey to Babel features a Federation conference on the planet Babel, where the delegates discuss the potential inclusion of a new member planet.As its title suggests, Journey to Babel is all about differences and communication. The episode introduces the Tellarites and Andorians, two of the more important Trek species, as well as Mark Lenard and Jane Wyatt as Spocks parents Sarek and Amanda. Add in some quality McCoy grumpiness, and youve got everything great about Star Trek.3. The Devil in the Dark (Season 1, Episode 25)Of course, Star Trek puts an emphasis on logic and clear thinking. But to be a show about exploration and discovery, to be the sort of show that can feature an episode like Journey to Babel, it must fundamentally be about empathy and understanding. And few episodes demonstrate those qualities like The Devil in the Dark, the first episode to feature a Vulcan mind meld.The Devil in the Dark, written by Coon and directed by Pevney, has a fairly simple premise, in which the Enterprise investigates deaths at a mining facility. The investigations reveal a Horta, a hideous looking monster lurking in the caves. But instead of having Kirk and his men battle and defeat the Horta, The Devil in the Dark leads with empathy, having Spock mind meld with the Horta and discover its true purpose, that it merely reacts to the miners who attack it. The Devil in the Dark reminds viewers that understanding, and not conquest, is the true heart of discovery.2. Balance of Terror (Season 1, Episode 14)Before becoming franchise regular Sarek, Mark Lenard played a regal Romulan commander in Balance of Terror. Of course, one actor playing multiple characters will become a standard in Star Trek, even for people who arent Jeffrey Combs. But the connection here is even more powerful, given the big reveal of Balance of Terror, that the mysterious enemy Romulans look just like Vulcans.Written by Paul Schneider and directed by Vincent McEveety, Balance of Terror gives both viewers and Starfleet their first look at Romulans, as the Enterprise and a Romulan ship face off in the Neutral Zone. Against the pressures in their respective organizations, and within the racists on their ship, Kirk and the Romulan captain seek the most peaceful resolution, fully aware that a mistake could result in all-out war. Balance of Terror not only shows a refreshing angle on Kirks tactical genius, but also demonstrates that Treks commitment to empathy extends even to the enemy.1. The City on the Edge of Forever (Season 1, Episode 28)While Kirk was never the womanizer that hes reputed to be, one lady did manage to distract him from his true love, the USS Enterprise. That woman was Edith Keeler, the compassionate and crusading social worker played by Joan Collins. But as Spock tells Kirk in The City on the Edge of Forever, to save the future, Edith Keeler must die.On one hand, The City on the Edge of Forever plays like a standard time travel story, in which Kirk and Spock go back to 1930s New York City in pursuit of McCoy, who goes through a portal after being driven mad in an accident. But the central challenge posed by writer Harlan Ellison (with significant rewrites by an uncredited Coon and Fontana, among others) and director Pevney gets at a key Trek concept: the needs of the many outweighing the needs of the few. As Trek will do time and again, The City on the Edge of Forever shows the human weight of that ethos, forcing Kirk to choose the future over his heart, leading to one of the most striking climaxes in television history.

Last September, well before Halloween and a full four months out from Leigh Whannells reimagining of a Universal Monsters classic, The Wolf Man, we got our first look at Whannell and Blumhouse Productions new take on the famous werewolf. Supposedly.While a theme park performer visibly stood in front of a poster for this Januarys Wolf Man with a goofy-looking latex mask onpresumably it would seem scarier in the dark at Universal Studios Halloween Horror Nights for where it was intended it obviously wasnt the real deal Whannell and makeup artist Arjen Tuiten (Pans Labyrinth) designed for the finished film. Even so, the internet predictably bayed in anger. Thats not a wolf man! many seemed to cry. Its an old timey mountain man with really long hair and a bad dentist!Four months later, the howling is gone and we now know what Whannell and Tuiten actually made. Rest assured, it does not look like Halloween Horror Nights Deliverance reject. But its also safe to say that it is probably the most human-seeming werewolf weve had in decades, even by the virtue of the Wolf Man franchise. Sure, the original The Wolf Man of 1941 canonized the pop culture image of werewolves by having the upright Lon Chaney Jr. be buried underneath yak hair and prosthetic teeth, but even 85 years later it appears more elaborate than the minimalist creature in Whannells Wolf Man.By contrast, when Christopher Abbott steps into the shoes of the doomed protagonist in 2025s Wolf Man, he barely qualifies as a werewolf at all. The term is noticeably never used in the movie. Instead the creature is given a vaguely Indigenous folk origin, with mutterings about the Face of the Wolf being sprinkled into the screenplay. Indeed, the Face of the Wolf curse is suggested to be a mere disease that once transmitted needs neither full moon or silver bullets to be controlled.It simply turns Abbotts kindly father into a pitifully sick man who gnaws at his wounds like a dog in a trap. It is a deliberate departure, and we can attest anecdotally that the design has left a few colleagues (as well as this writer) underwhelmed. Reimagining the werewolf as a metaphor for sickness is well and good, but if you call your movie WOLF MAN, a certain level of furry iconography is expected. Abbotts lycanthrope, however, could just as easily be a poor bastard turning into an extra in the next Planet of the Apes.All of which raises the question of what exactly do viewers want from a big screen werewolf these days? Well, there are two schools of thoughtUniversal PicturesThe O.G. Bipedal WerewolfFew would argue John Landis An American Werewolf in London remains the gold standard for lycanthrope cinema. A shrewd and effective update of The Wolf Man for the Boomer generation, it made werewolves scary again and marked the 1980s as a golden age for sophisticated prosthetics in monster movies. And a lot of that success was achieved by Landis hiring his pal Rick Baker, a barely 30-year-old special effects makeup wunderkind, to design the beast. But as iconic as their hound from hell became, it was also a point of contention between the director and the makeup artist whod win an Oscar for the work.I wanted it to be a biped, and I was actually hoping for something a little more on the man side as well, Baker said in the Beware the Moon documentary about the making of the film. I always thought it was kind of interesting, that kind of combination of animal and person. But John said, No, four-legged hound from hell!It is easy to see why Baker was drawn to the image of a two-legged werewolf standing upright and covered perhaps in a mans tattered clothes. That is, after all, what werewolves had looked like onscreen since the beginning of movies.While the earliest silent film werewolf pictures have been lost to time and obscurity, the first widely seen film about a man turning into a beast came from Universal Pictures six years before the original Wolf Man. Yep, prior to Lon Chaney Jr., there was Broadway thespian Henry Hull and his rather unlikable doomed hero in The Werewolf of London.Released in 1935 near the tail-end of Universals first cycle of monster moviesit came out the same year as Bride of FrankensteinThe Werewolf of Londons eponymous beastie was designed by legendary makeup artist Jack Pierce, the same man who masterminded the looks of Karloffs Mummy and Frankenstein Monster. He also would get to utilize his original werewolf ideas on The Wolf Man, because in 1935 the classically trained Hull demurred sitting beneath such extensive makeup. Instead, he argued, audiences would want to see the human character (and actor) still beneath the wolf design. We imagine he and Leigh Whannell might have gotten along.Join our mailing listGet the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox!As a consequence, the werewolf in Werewolf of London has more in common with Mr. Hyde in various Jekyll and Hyde flicks. Hulls werewolf prowls the streets of London in an overcoat, scarf and hat, stalking women of the night like the spirit of Jack the Ripper returned. He even apparently retains the power of speech.Future generations of makeup artists affectionately refer to this werewolf design as the Elvis of Werewolves, and even have homaged it on occasionsuch as Josh Hartnetts throwback to the more man than wolf antihero in John Logans underrated Penny Dreadful. Largely however, the look was supplanted and forgotten after Pierces improvements in 41.While a staple of childhood nostalgia and Halloween decorations today, there is still something rather gnarly about Chaney in his full werewolf regalia in The Wolf Man and its various sequels. It also defined the look of a guy still in his clothes covered in so much fur that his face became completely unrecognizable. With a good actor, which on his sober days Chaney very much could be, the design might even become ferocious. There is in fact something quite wicked about the scene in the film where in appropriately dark shadows on a foggy soundstage, Chaney comes running full tilt at first Evelyn Ankers and then Claude Rains with a look of murder in his eyes. Perhaps more thrilling and amusing than scary, its still left an impression for a reason.Over the following 40 years, every cinematic werewolf in one way or another was an homage, imitation, or knockoff of what Pierce and Chaney did. Some of them are quite impressive in their own right, such as another real-life hellraiser in front of and behind the camera, Oliver Reed. He experienced a much more elaborate full body fur-job in Hammer Studios The Curse of the Werewolf (1961). A loose adaptation of Guy Endores underrated novel The Werewolf of Paris, the Hammer film draws on Medieval ideas of werewolfism being passed on through the blood and the sins of the father. Yet the design in the movie is pure Hollywood, if by way of the UKs Roy Ashton. The teeth are sharper, the face more animalistic, and the blood of his victims finally visible, but if you squint it could still just resemble Reed after a particularly bad bender.It was probably the best 20th century upgrade on Pierces standard, especially when compared to the cheaper designs in movies like I Was a Teenage Werewolf (1957) and the various Paul Naschy Wolfman knockoff movies from 1970s Spain. But they, along with cartoon shows like Scooby-Doo, also made the emphasis on the Man in Wolf Man kitschy by the 80s.Universal PicturesThe Four-Legged Hound from HellA four-legged hound from hell. With blazing eyes, its wolfen features are twisted and demonic. So reads John Landis screenplay for An American Werewolf in London. Its an image he first dreamed up as a teenager in 1969 while working on Kellys Heroes (1970), and its one that never left him all the way until he forced Rick Baker to accept theyre not doing the Wolf Man anymore.It was a shrewd choice. By the 80s, the bipedal werewolf was a costume that kids went trick r treating in. Yet in American Werewolf, not only did Landis and Baker dream up the greatest werewolf transformation of all time, but also an enormous beast who on four legs appeared like a rabid dog with red eyes so cruel it could turn Piccadilly Circus into a slaughterhouse. It was such a tremendous achievement that the Academy finally made Best Makeup and Hairstyling an official category at the Oscars, just so they could award Baker for his work. It also created a boom industry for prosthetic-heavy creature features.Ironically, it was also not the only groundbreaking werewolf movie of 1981. In fact, the werewolf transformation in The HowlingAmerican Werewolfs, likely much to writer-director Joe Dantes chagrin since he had hired Baker to design his werewolf effects during the years-long gap Baker waited for Landis to find financing for American. Ultimately, Baker awkwardly pulled out of The Howling and left his protege Rob Bottin to design that movies werewolves.In truth, they are closer to a hybrid of what became Pierce and Bakers calling cards. While still bipedal, Dante and Bottins werewolves stand upright at a towering seven feet. With enormous jutting snouts and long lupine ears, they are modeled after the Big Bad Wolf in Walt Disneys classic Three Little Pigs cartoon from 1933. Theyre every bit as terrifying to look at as Landis hound from hell.Still, the hound seemed to mostly win out in the short term. The 80s were subsequently filled with werewolf movies that tried to emulate the elaborate transformations of both 81 films to varying success. While some remained old-fashioned, such as the nostalgic throwback to Universal monsters in Waxwork (1988), or for that matter Baker and Landis work with Michael Jackson on the Thriller music video (which is still more of a werecat than wolf), more of them emulated the four-legged bestial excess of the era. This would include the first transformation in Neil Jordans The Company of Wolves from 1984 (the second transformation, meanwhile, saw characters turn into actual grey wolves).And when the prosthetics craze of the 80s eventually died down, werewolf movies of the 90s and 2000s continued to owe more to American Werewolf than Wolf Man. Even the purely CGI werewolves in Stephen Sommers kitschy Van Helsing spend more time on four legs than two and have a big (and strangely cuddly) cartoon wolfs head on top.There have been throwbacks that went the other way like the aforementioned 2010s TV series, Penny Dreadful. Similarly, Jack Nicholson landed a lot closer to Henry Hull than either Lon Chaney or Landis in Mike Nichols Wolf (1994), but that Baker design likely had more to do with just keeping Nicholsons moneymaker front and center.Baker did eventually get the chance to finally do his true, fullsteam ahead tribute to the bipedal Wolf Man in a literal remake of the 41 movie: 2010s The Wolfman, starring Benicio del Toro. Its not a perfect film, but Baker and del Toros epic monster design is a triumph, as well a tribute to Pierces design that is more ferocious and menacing looking in its bloody, long-clawed sophistication.And yet, audiences rejected it then. The 2010 Wolfman flopped for a variety of other reasons too, but more than a few online critics sniffed that compared to Bakers work on American Werewolf, the old school bipedal werewolf looked hokey. It won Baker another Oscar and today has its defenders (including this one), but the movies failure noticeably put a silver bullet in bipedal werewolves at a time when the creatures were more popularly seen as little better than big furry dogs in the all-CGI Twilight movie designs. Or they were turned into literal wolves, a la HBOs attempt to cash-in on the Twilight craze with the saucier True Blood.The Best of Both Worlds?Based on the mixed reception of Whannells Wolf Manpersonally I found it underwhelming, but our Joe George loved it!it seems unlikely that the film will change opinions about the antiquated nature of the bipedal werewolf. The film might achieve its goal of making the werewolf look purely like a man dying of a strange disease, but frankly, wed rather revel in Baker and del Toros update going hound-dog on London by gaslight.Be that as it may, we think the best looking movie werewolves emulate the sophistication of Landis hound from hell but retain some elements of the bipedal creature. American Werewolf is the lycanthrope masterpiece of 81, but the general monster designs in The Howling are honestly more fun. Similarly, movies that attempted to emulate both in the 21st century, such as Neil Marshalls Dog Soldiers and the first couple of Len Wiseman-directed Underworld flicks (more so the second one where they had a decent budget) look far cooler than the CGI nonsense of either Van Helsing or Twilight.Perhaps the best werewolves are the ones who are caught forever dead in the middle between man and beast?

The idea of werewolves has existed since long before movies came along. The concept goes back to antiquity with ancient Greek historian Herodotus writing in the fifth century B.C. about a colony where settlers were transformed into wolves for several nights of the year; several centuries later the story of Greek King Lycaon turning into a wolf was passed down, becoming the root for the still-used psychological diagnosis of lycanthropy; and in the Middle Ages philosopher-saint Augustine of Hippo wrote as a matter of fact about how witches could cast spells that turned men into wolves.So yeah, werewolves have been around. But its safe to say so much of our modern conception of the furry hellhounds comes directly from the movies. In folklore the full moon was just one of the many ways a man or woman could be changed into a wolf; but in the movies it became the official doctrine, just as silver being the weapon of choice turned into the sanctioned way of dispatching the beasts. And no image associated with the critters has enjoyed greater cinematic appeal than the transformation.The sight of man morphing into beasta fleshy actor turning into one covered in furis among the great set pieces of horror, up there with the vampires seduction and a guy waving a chainsaw in a Texan sunrise. But not all werewolf transformations are created equal. Some are fun, others cheesy, and some have lasted in the popular imagination for going on a century. So without further ado, here are what we estimate to be the very best werewolf transformations.12. Van Helsing (2004)Like more than a few horror fans, we have mixed feelings about using CGI to create a werewolf transformation. Digital effects can at times be eerily immersive, especially when you dont notice them. Yet perhaps due to the unreality of a man transitioning into beast, computer-generated trickery seems a lot more obvious and spell-breaking, especially when compared to some of the best prosthetic wolf-outs.Nonetheless, we must give credit to writer-director Stephen Sommers for at least the big idea vision for the Wolfman transformations in Van Helsing. Like everything else in his movie, these scenes reach exceeds their grasp in terms of technology, with the movie looking more like a Scooby-Doo Saturday morning cartoon than a Universal Gothic horror, but at least in the case of the werewolfery, Sommers broke new ground.When Will Kemp and later Hugh Jackman fall beneath the sway of the full moon, neither just turns into a wolf by growing fur, fangs, and other fun stuff. Rather they rip off first their clothes and then their skin, tearing away their humanity to reveal the beast within. Its an impressive visualization. And for all the dated effects, Kemp and Jackman still sell the uncontrollable pain of the moment like addicts going through withdrawal.11. I Was a Teenage Werewolf (1957)There is not a lot that can be said about the special effects in I Was a Teenage Werewolf, because there barely are any. A 50s cheapie produced by Roger Cormans favorite distributor, American International Pictures, and released as part of a double-bill with Invasion of the Saucer Men, the film is what one might call functional.Still, theres something memorably crude and sinister about the big scene where Michael Landon turns into a werewolf onscreen. The effect is simply a dissolve between a shot of Landon without the makeup and another with it applied, but the sequence occurs as his teenage werewolf is watching a young woman in his high school perform gymnastics. Suddenly an innocuous all-American kid hears a bell go off in his ears and turns into a wolf before our, and more distressingly her, eyes. About 50 years before Sam Raimi drew a bright line between superpowers and puberty in Spider-Man, this cult classic C-movie did the same thing with more lascivious implications as a boy becomes a wolf and corners a girl.An appropriately 90s werewolf movie, Bad Moon follows a mother and son (Mariel Hemingway and Mason Gamble) who realize that moms brother, Uncle Ted (Michael Par), has returned from Nepal with more than just some good adventuring stories about meeting a wolf. The Stephen King-like setupwhich is actually based on a Wayne Smith novelprepares viewers for a proper domestic melodrama with a hairy supernatural climax, complete with a heroic dog saving its family.This popcorn finale is facilitated by a transformation sequence that mixes CG with practical effects. The body-warping digital trickery has aged poorly, and now better resembles a cutscene effect from a PS2 era video game. However, Par sells a menace that is still palpable in the moment beforehand as his estranged brother reveals his real toxic thoughts to his sister. There is something genuinely threatening about his laugh beneath practical fangs, even before his jawline goes crooked.9. The Wolfman (2010)Rick Baker dreamed of implementing 30 years of experience, as well as the toolkit of digital augmentation courtesy of CGI, while working on The Wolfman. He sought to match what he did as a young man on An American Werewolf in London. Alas, director Joe Johnston chose to go full CGI for the werewolf transformations, which visually made a poor match for the otherwise largely practical werewolf makeup job Baker designed, and which informed the rest of the picture.Join our mailing listGet the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox!Its a missed opportunity, but of all the CGI-heavy werewolf transformations of the last 25 years, The Wolfman is probably the best due to superb table-setting. In the centerpiece transformation where we get a good look of how Benicio del Toro gets his wolf on, he is tied to a chair and in a straight jacket while an auditorium of stuffed Victorian shirts scoff and guffaw at his pleas to kill him. If not, I will kill all of you! he cries. More laughter as the full moon slowly begins to rise. The subsequent changeover, with its cracked-bone sound effects and build-up to del Toro and Bakers (proper) werewolf ripping his tormentors to shreds, is the stuff of monster movie nirvana.8. Underworld (2003)The Underworld franchise is a strange one because it tapped into the zeitgeist idea of vampires versus werewolves before Twilight turned it into a YA phenomenon later in that decade, and it similarly realized Kate Beckinsale looked great fighting the undead right before she did Van Helsing. Yet the more money they got in sequels, the worse-looking the Lycans became. (Also the term Lycans always felt like a clunky studio note from an exec who thought werewolves sounded cheesy). In the first movie, though, the films relatively small budget for a Hollywood production led to a lot of visual innovation for the creature feature designs.Computer-generated imagery is definitely used to enhance the transformation scenes of when another future Twilight star, Michael Sheen, goes Lycan. And the same is true of Kevin Grevioux and his wonderfully baritone Raze. Luckily, most of the effects are achieved by practical creature designs where monstrous faces extend like an accordion, and their fingers crack with rapid speed and bone-snapping sound design. Its simple and effective, achieving these movies goal of everything looking early 2000s cool at all times. The same can apply to Scott Speedmans third act transformation as the hybrid between vampire and werewolf where his skin and eyes seamlessly turn onyx black while a snout digitally protrudes and sinks back in. Its nifty. Pity the franchise didnt know how to use this missing link between the species.Read more 7. Trick r Treat (2007)Well never fully understand why Michael Doughertys instant cult classic, Trick r Treat, was denied a proper theatrical release 18 years ago. But the anthological Halloween flick is still an October favorite for how it synthesizes everything you love about the spooky season into a low-tech but high-concept monster mash. Take the twist ending to the storyline starring Anna Paquin. Depicted as a shy and introverted wallflower next to her big sister (Lauren Lee Smith), Paquins Laurie looks vulnerable even before she dons a Little Red Riding Hood costume to attend a secret Halloween party in the woods.Viewers are encouraged to think theyre watching a vampire story, as a strange cloaked figure with fangs stalks Paquin into the wilderness. Instead we learn that this was a werewolf yarn all along when her predator (Dylan Baker) is captured and unmasked to be a pitiful serial killer with prosthetic fangs. Paquins growing teeth, however, turn out to be the real deal as she greets her unsuspecting date with the ominous taunt, Its my first time, so just bear with me.The party music turns to Marilyn Mansons Sweet Dreams cover, and all the pretty girls begin ripping off more than just clothes. Their flesh is also torn asunder, revealing fur and fangs beneath. Its probably influenced by Van Helsings idea of tearing through the skin to reveal the inner-monster, but even though its clearly done with prosthetic insert shots here, it immediately feels more visceral, unsettling, and frankly exhilarating as it turns the tired trope of the man preying on women on its head. Instead Paquin is the one with glowing pupils as she teases, My, my, what big eyes you have. Chomp.6. Fright Night (1985)Less of a transformation into a wolf than an agonizing one out of it, Stephen Geoffreys Evil Ed goes through one of the most painful looking metamorphoses this side of David Cronenberg. By tapping into the half-forgotten factoid that Dracula can also turn into a wolf in Bram Stokers 1897 novel, Tom Hollands campy throwback to Hammer horror classics, Fright Night, features newly turned vampire pal Evil Ed going through a really bad night.It begins when his white wolf is staked in the heart by a haphazard and cowardly vampire hunter (Roddy McDowall) and then goes flying over a suburban bannister. On the other side of that fall, McDowall finds a wretched creature caught somewhere between boy and beast, dying from its stake wound as it slowly reverts back into a crying and terrified child named Ed. Some of the prosthetic tricks used are obvious to the modern eye (like the fake floor beneath the quadrupedal body), but many of them are a showcase from a decade that marked a highpoint in movie monster prosthetics work. The exaggerated lupine features on Geoffreys heads are almost as pitiful as the actors own face as it slowly is revealed in later shots while still encrusted in a dying husk around his frame. Hes a tortoise trapped in a collapsed shell waiting to be put out of his misery.5. The Werewolf of London (1935)The very first werewolf movieor at least the first made in the U.S. and to survive 90 years laterUniversal Pictures original Wolfman flick would be eclipsed by the studios second stab at the material six years later. Nonetheless, this 1930s hair-raiser has the better transformation scene when Henry Hulls priggish professor discovers he is cursed by the bite of the werewolf. The scene in question has cozy Universal table-setting, as the cat in his study hisses at the rising danger in the room, warning Hulls stiff he is a monster before he knows it.The subsequent transformation is both rudimentary and still impressive. In order to create the illusion of Hull turning into a werewolf in a single shot, the panicked man rushes by a series of pillars outside his family home. As he passes each stone structure, he takes on more and more characteristics of a wolf. Obviously filmmakers stopped to apply makeup after he passed each pillar before combining it into a single shot, but its still a visually pleasing magic trick to behold, especially for its age. The makeup design of this werewolf, however, has always left me wanting.4. Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man (1943)While The Wolf Man (1941) might be the gold standard that codified almost everything we associate with a traditional werewolf story, it truthfully lacks a few of the motifs people misattribute to the film. For starters, nowhere in The Wolf Man is a full moon mentioned or seen (merely an autumn moon is needed to transform). Secondly, the transformation is only hinted at in the film as his legs are shown growing hair. Later dissolves are used to reveal poor Lon Chaney Jr.s face in repose after the werewolf is slain at the end.The sequels, however, correct these oversights, beginning with the best of them in Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man (1943). Beneath a retconned and beautiful full moon, a sleeping Chaney is jolted awake by a premonition of inescapable doom. The cursed man realizes the moon is up and in an extreme closeup from his hospital bed accepts with resigned eyes his fate. His face slowly grows the iconic Jack Pierce-designed werewolf fur and fangs. Its obviously done through many dissolves that combine shots of Chaneys face in various stages of makeup application (they even created a special pillow so the wrinkles in the sheets would not move). It still looks charming in the way a great haunted house decoration would in October, especially as the best version of Pierces design reaches maturation and turns to the camera to growl boo.3. The Company of Wolves (1984)With two distinctly different, eye-popping werewolf transformations, Neil Jordans dreamlike The Company of Wolves deserves more credit than it often gets. A childhood fairytale designed for an adult audience, the film is like a half-forgotten reverie caked in Freudian meaning. It likely was a personal one, too, for Angela Carter who co-wrote the screenplay with Jordan from her own short story of the same name. Jordan, however, adapts it with expressionistic wonderment in the main and 1980s creature feature grisliness in the transformation details.In the first transformation sequence, Stephen Rea plays a groom who returns to his brides years after abandoning her on their wedding night. Hes back to reveal there was always something wild beneath his kindly smile. He rips off his flesh not to unveil the beast, but to abjectly destroy everything humane and cultured which civilization has deceptively placed on him. Only as a skinless flayed man does he begin to transform into a dog.The better transformation, though, comes at the end when the films heroine Rosaleen (Sarah Patterson), who is Red Riding Hood by another name, finds her much older suitor at Grandmamas house. The teenage girl is attracted to the seductive nobleman (Micha Bergese) but is also rightly threatened by his worldly airs and their thinly veiled implications. Sure enough after she shoots him, the wolf within protrudes from beneath his skin like a Ridley Scott chestburster before exiting through his mouth. It is a tremendous and still eerily believable magic trick to the modern eye.2. The Howling (1981)Special effects makeup artist Rick Baker was originally supposed to design the werewolves in Joe Dantes The Howling but had to back out due to an older commitment to John Landis finally coming to fruition (more on that in a moment). But even if Dante couldnt work with wunderkind Baker, he still got the next best thing with Bakers protege who worked with the master on Star Wars, Rob Bottin. Ironically, Bottin would mastermind the second best werewolf transformation in movie history (after his mentors) in The Howling.Saved until near the very end of the picture, The Howlings big transformation sequence is absolutely terrifying because unlike most cinematic werewolves before or since, the films main big bad wolf is already a predator who delights in the transformation. There is a not-so-subtle threat of sexual violence and depravity to Robert Picardos Eddie Quist, a serial killer character who corners a journalist (Belinda Balaski) in a cabin in the woods. She is able to put some pain into him, but he comes back as a seven-foot tall, bipedal wolf that towers over her in the films most disturbing scene. Afterward, we witness how Eddie can transform into a wolf at will several more times, and he does so in front of Balaskis widower (Kevin McCarthy) and another woman who has to put the bad beast down (Dee Wallace).Part of the memorability of the transformation(s) stems from how long theyre drawn out. Each part of Picardos body seems to simmer and bubble, as if his bones have melted beneath the flesh and are about to burst in a boiling geyser. Yet the more nightmarish the imagery, the more the serial killer within the movie seems giddy, getting off on his pain and the anticipation of inflicting it on the other characters. Its genuinely horrifying, but like the protagonists youre almost frozen in shock and awe at the disgusting sight.1. An American Werewolf in London (1981)The other, and ultimately definitive, landmark werewolf movie of 1981 is John Landis An American Werewolf in London. A remake of The Wolf Man in all but name, it follows an American fish caught out in UK water. Whether it is the close-minded moors of rural southern England or the punk-ish streets of early 80s London, David Kessler (David Naughton) really doesnt belong here, even before he is damned to a brief and bloody lifet of werewolfism. The movie is both modern, complete with its revolutionary blending of self-ware humor and horror, and old-fashioned.Its famed transformation sequence blends both sensibilities into cinema legend. After unwisely ignoring the warnings of his best friends ghost (Griffin Dunne), who materializes to warn David of his curse, this poor schmuck is caught with his pants down and an NYU shirt on before he tears it into pieces while screaming bloody murder to the heavens. And thats before hes even visually begun to show signs of transformation.The brilliance of this transition is Landis and Baker brazenly chose to do it in a brightly lit room where darkness could not hide any of their tricks. Instead Baker innovated uncanny techniques that still deceive to this day as Naughton screams in equal parts horror and agony as his hand grows a foot longer in a single shot. As his face expands, and the sounds of Sam Cookes velvety Blue Moon cover drifts on, tonally indifferent to Davids anguished damnation as cinemas ultimate hellhound, the final effect of the movie is settled. This is all brutally terrifying and darkly funny.

Musician and filmmaker Dimitri Coats, guitarist for the punk supergroup OFF!, joined Talking Strange to discuss his punk rock sci-fi comedy feature film, Free LSD.Aaron: Who among the cast of musicians took to acting in a surprising way?Dimitri: That would have to be Keith. People would pull me aside and say, Hey, are you sure you know what youre doing? He has the lead role! And I would tell everybody, Look, I wrote this role for him; I know his strengths; I know his weaknesses; and I truly believe that he can do it! And something really remarkable happened in editing where we made him more reactionary His face and his eyes were so expressive, like a window into how he was feeling.Aaron: Knowing how he is as a performer on stage and then seeing this, it felt like two different people.Dimitri: Yeah, as we assembled his performance in the editing process, this kind of Forrest Gump quality started to emerge, and we were like, Oooo, thats great! This is working!Thats the thing about this film: we knew our fans would appreciate it, and maybe punk rock fans in general would appreciate it because of all the people who are in it and then we started thinking, What is somebody going to think thats coming at this completely cold and has no idea that theres actually a band called OFF! and that record exists?I am extremely proud of the outcome, and I think in some ways its a touching film. We didnt set out for it to be such, but there are times when its moving. And that was the psychedelia that we wanted.Watch Free LSDCat Footwear and DC have joined forces to unveil a limited-edition Batman-themed shoe collection called Built for the Knight.This Gotham City-inspired line merges Cat Footwearsdurabilitywith the iconic heroism of Batman, designed for those who tackle lifes everyday challenges head-on, whether at work or in the shadows of the city. Featuring two standout stylesthe Colorado Grader and the Intruder Galosheach pair in this collection pays homage to Batmans rich history with unique elements like the comic strip lining and the iconic Batman logo, making each shoe a badge of honor for fans ready to protect their own Gotham.Find out more at Cat FootwearJoin our mailing listGet the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox!Damon Wayans spoke about how he purposely got himself fired from Saturday Night Live by going off script.Wayans frustration bubbled up during a live sketch called Mr. Monopoly. He didnt feel that the sketch was strong, but after dress rehearsal, it was chosen above one of his own sketches, which was once again cut for time. I snapped. I just did not care, Wayan said.Read more at VarietyKorean action star Jang Hyuk is set to make his directorial and writing debut with action film Stop Stop Dark Cold.Jang Hyuk has played roles in films like Volcano High, The Swordsman, The Killer and Iris 2 as well as shows like Slave Hunters and Bloody Heart. Trained extensively in Jeet Kune Do, Jang will mark his directorial and writing debut with Stop Stop Dark Cold. [The film] is currently in the script development phase and is slated to begin production in mid-2025.Read more at DeadlineSeverance star Tramell Tillman is setting the record straight about his character on the Apple TV+ series and whether hell dance again.Like the rest of the world, Tramell Tillman is rewatching season one of Severance. As one of the stars of the hit Apple TV+ series Tillman plays Milchick, the supervisor of the severed employees of Lumon Industries he was, of course, there for all of it. But the shows unexpectedly long hiatus has been testing his memory, too, and he wanted to make sure he was prepared for all the questions coming his way during the press tour for the long-awaited season two premiere.Read more at The Hollywood Reporter

This article contains spoilers for the Silo season 2 finale.After a season full of building tension and mounting rebellion, the Silo season 2 finale not only gives us an incredible payoff that pushes the story forward toward season 3, it also provides the series first flashback to what this world was like before the silos. Staying true to Hugh Howeys books in the ways that matter, this season mostly concludes the story of the first book Wool while also weaving in threads of the second, expanding this world beyond the two silos weve seen thus far. While we did get a lot of answers to our pressing questions this season, we were also left with quite a few more in the aftermath of the finale.Heres everything that went down and the questions we hope will be answered more thoroughly in season 3.Who Are Helen and the Congressman in the Flashback?This section contains a few spoilers for the Silo book Shift.The final scene of the season takes us back in time, presumably to what humanity was like before the silos were built. We see a conversation take place between a Washington Post reporter named Helen (Jessica Henwick) and an unnamed Congressman played by Ashley Zukerman. According to Deadline, Zukermans Congressman is named Daniel, which is likely a substitute for the character Donald Keene in the books a freshman Congressman who is also from Georgia and is instrumental in the development of the silo program. Helen is also Donalds wife in the book, which makes sense given their somewhat flirty encounter in the show.Shift is a prequel to Wool, and tells the story of the formation of the silos and how Silo 1 has been monitoring them from a distance over the years with key personnel taking shifts through cryo sleep, including Donald Keene. If Zukerman is playing this key character from the book, he could be featured in a lot more than just flashbacks. Helen will also likely have an important role to play, as she is gifted a Pez dispenser by the Congressman, the same Pez dispenser weve seen circulating Silo 18 as a relic.The introduction of these characters is a big step in finally answering Silos biggest mystery why was humanity forced underground in the first place? I wont give away too much more of Shifts secrets, especially because we still dont know exactly how season 3 will weave these past and present timelines. Its doubtful theyll take us away from Silo 18 for too long, but theres a lot of important backstory in Shift still to cover before the series dives too far into the next book, Dust, and its likely that Helen and the Congressman will be at the center of it all.What Is the Silo Safeguard Procedure?Lukas (Avi Nash) quest to find the answers left by Salvador Quinn has finally come to a close as he emerges from the mysterious chamber at the bottom of Silo 18. He looks like hes seen a ghost, and is desperate to make his way to the top of the silo as fast as he can. Once he finds Bernard (Tim Robbins) he tells him that he learned about the Safeguard a way for some kind of outside force to kill everyone in the silo instantly if they deem the silo to be a threat. Its in that moment that Bernard realizes that all of his efforts to save the silo have been futile.While Juliette (Rebecca Ferguson) works to return home to Silo 18, Solo (Steve Zahn) discovers that each silo has something called the Safeguard Procedure in place that has the ability to pump some kind of poisonous substance into the silo from somewhere outside. While in his old apartment, Solo remembers that his parents were working to try to disable this in Silo 17 and tries to help Juliette find a quick way to stop it. Theyre on their way to investigate where the poison pump is in Silo 17, but Juliette has to leave quickly before theyre able to get any more answers.Does Juliette Make it Back to Silo 18?Juliette has been working all season toward making the journey back home to Silo 18. With the help of Solo and the youths of Silo 17, she manages to find a working suit. They try to find out as much as they can about the Safeguard Procedure, but sounds of an explosion in Silo 18 force Juliette to pack up and make her way back home as quickly as she can before they can investigate further.The suit works long enough to get her to the outside of Silo 18. Once there, she cleans the sensor with desperate haste, unfurling a message telling everyone inside that it is still not safe outside. She then makes it to the door and frantically tries to pry it open without success until it suddenly opens from the inside. As she descends down the stairs, she sees a fully-suited Bernard (Tim Robbins) with a gun. Having just learned about the Safeguard Protocol from Lukas, Bernard is ready to go out on his own terms.Juliette, however, isnt ready to give up so easily and she dives into the open door behind him before it closes. He tries to grab her, so the flames meant to cleanse the chamber of the dangers of the outside world dont burn them alive, but the door closes on both of them, seemingly trapping them inside. Hopefully the fact that the body of Juliettes suit was used by firefighters in Silo 17 will help her from fully burning to a crisp, but Bernard likely wont be so lucky when the show returns next season.Join our mailing listGet the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox!All 10 episodes of Silo season 2 are available to stream on Apple TV+ now.

Edward Lemuel is a kind, timid man. Or so it seems. For the first act of the 2024 black comedy, A Different Man, Edward tries his best to avoid attention. He sheepishly slides past the couch blocking his apartment door as new neighbor, the aspiring playwright Ingrid (Renate Reinsve) moves in. He moves through the city with his body bent forward and his arms crossed in front of him, as if shielding himself from some unseen attack. Even when he tries out for various acting gigs, he falls back and gets embarrassed, a quality that only earns him parts in tone-deaf corporate training videos about how to treat people with physical differences.Its easy to see why Edward would conduct himself in this manner. After all, he has neurofibromatosis, a condition that covers his face with deforming tumors. When a miracle treatment removes the tumors and reveals a conventionally handsome face in place of the one he had before, Edward initially behaves the same way, skulking down the street to a nearby dive bar and eyeing with suspicion everyone he passes, including his own reflection.Edward continues that nervousness when a noisy group of revelers burst into the bar to celebrate their favorite teams win. Theyre loud and crass and obnoxious, but instead of bullying Edward like he expected, they bring their shouting alongside him. And when Edward starts shouting along with them, the jerks welcome him into their throng, to the point that a flirtatious woman in the group makes out with him and even performs sex acts on him in the bars hideous bathroom.Edward discovers hes at home among the jerks. And because Edward is played by Sebastian Stan, we know immediately that is going to be a layered and complex jerk at that. In fact, few modern actors excel at portraying unlikable people quite like Sebastian Stan.Buckys Best When BadFor most people, the name Sebastian Stan immediately calls to mind Bucky Barnes, his hardluck superhero in the MCU. Bucky entered the Marvel franchise as Steve Rogers big and strong best pal, a guy who seems to die heroically during World War II only to return in modern day as the unstoppable assassin called the Winter Soldier. As seen in Captain America: Civil War, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, and the upcoming Thunderbolts*, Buckys story has been one of tragedy and redemption.Yet as popular as his character is, Stan has always seemed ill at ease in the role. He relies on a mop of shaggy long hair, its untamed tresses covering his eyes, to relate Buckys internal toil as the Winter Soldier. Bereft of that hairdo in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Stan charms when hes bantering with Anthony Mackie as Sam Wilson. But as soon as the two get separated, and he must convey Buckys regret and tentative hopes for acceptance, Stan loses his way. He appears inert on screen, trying and failing to make a creased brow and glower compelling.Popular as the part may be, Bucky hardly shows off Stan at his best. To best understand that, we can revisit Stans work from even before the MCU. The actors first break came playing rich kid Carter Baizen, an agent of chaos in the teen soap Gossip Girl; at the same time that he earned critical acclaim for his part as a jealous prince Jack Benjamin in the weird and wonderful Bible adaptation, Kings. Stan flounders when trying to portray a nice guy in the first half of Renny Harlins sublimely stupid The Covenant, but clicks into place when his character reveals his malevolent intentions in the films final act.These non-Bucky parts set the stage for Stans best work, in movies such as I, Tonya and the horror dark comedy Fresh, and the miniseries Pam and Tommy. In I, Tonya, Stan seems to pull a reverse of Chris Evans transformation in Captain America, apparently shrinking to a reedy wisp of a man to portray Jeff Gillooly, the terrible boyfriend to Margot Robbies Tonya Harding. The effect comes less from any CGI wizardry and more from the attitude Stan infuses in the character. He feels like a person who weighs just over 100 pounds, and whose sense of inferiority makes him at once too aggressive and too resigned. Hes a bitter, hateful man with an insufficient mustache.The horror film Fresh leans too far into ironic visuals and needle-drops to fully work, but Stan stands out as a man who literally preys on single women. In Fresh, Stan marshals his good looks and soft eyes to make his character Steve the type of guy who would attract women like protagonist Noa (Daisy Edgar-Jones). He makes those same features into something menacing and nefarious when he reveals his true intentions and starts dissecting her for literal meat.Its easy to see why fans would clamor for Bucky over Gillooly or Steve, but hes infinitely more engaged and interesting in the latter parts, even if the movies dont always match his skill.An Different, Unlikable GuyYes, Sebastian Stan portrayed real-life monster Donald Trump in 2024s The Apprentice, but his best villain performance of the year came in the A24 film A Different Man, written and directed by Aaron Schimberg. A Different Man follows Edwards life before and after he gets a miracle cure for his neurofibromatosis, which has left his face disfigured since birth. Edward sees himself as a completely different man, and even starts calling himself Guy Moratz and claiming that Edward died. But as Edward as Guy integrates better into society, his anger and bitterness intensifies.Join our mailing listGet the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox!That short description makes A Different Man sound like a movie about learning that beauty is only skin deep; that its what is inside that counts. But Schimberg has something more complex, and more cynical, in mind.Guys good looks allow him to become a high-powered real estate agent, successful with cash and women. Still, he keeps returning to the theater, and in particular to Ingrid (Renate Reinsve), a struggling playwright who once lived next door to Edward. Guy discovers that Ingrid has written a play about Edward and he desperately wants the part, to the point where he begins wearing a mask of the face he had removed.Schimberg heightens the irony not only by having Guy get angry at Ingrid for the condescending way she romanticizes Edwards life, literally describing his romance to her stand-in as a Beauty and the Beast story, but also by inserting a third person in the form of Oswald. Played by Adam Pearson, an actor who actually has neurofibromatosis, Oswald charms everyone, embodying the success that Guy thought impossible when he was Edward.To its credit, A Different Man makes all three members of this triad awful in their own ways, without making them inhuman monsters. Oswalds extremely extroverted behavior allows him to disregard the feelings of others and ignore the way that Ingrid fetishizes him, allowing her to center herself in a story thats not hers. That dyspeptic twist, meanwhile, gives Stan plenty of space to play a sour, soiled man. In one delightful sequence, Oswald joins Ingrid and the actors for an after dinner drink and impresses everyone with his upbeat personality. Schimberg cuts from shots of Ingrid and other women laughing historically at Oswald, fully unencumbered by his appearance, to shots of Guy, Stan letting a sneer quiver under his characters smile.As the film builds toward its traditional climax (before moving into extended, and frankly, unnecessary fourth and fifth acts), Guy becomes more erratic on stage. Stan shows no fear of incurring the viewers disgust as he stomps across the stage as Guy, bellowing as pieces of facial prosthetics plop from his face. Its hard not to hate Guy in that moment but, as with all of the characters in A Different Man, its hard not to relate to him either.A Despicable ManA Different Man works not just because it has unlikable characters, but because they feel real and well-drawn. And thats Stans real skill in being unpleasant onscreen. It takes courage for an actor as handsome and popular as Stan to play people that the audience is going to hate. No one would blame him if he kept bringing in money and fans by playing Bucky or similar roles. Say as Dwayne Johnsons partner in rescuing Santa Claus? So its even more impressive that Stan can imbue his onscreen jerks with humanity, making them real and relatable, even as they disgust us.As A Different Man shows, Stan excels at playing despicable men precisely because he plays them so real.A Different Man is now streaming on Max.

This article contains spoilers for Severance season 2 episode 1.Like many workplaces in the post-Covid era, Severance season 2 looks to get its employees back in the office.Season 1s final hour The We We Are is a thrilling hour of television that features innies Mark S. (Adam Scott), Helly R. (Britt Lower), and Irving B. (John Turturro) triggering the Overtime Contingency to experience the outside world and uncover some shocking truths. By the time Helly learns that her outtie is the villainous Helena Eagan and Mark shouts shes alive! upon seeing a photo Gemma Scout a.k.a. Ms. Casey, its hard to imagine how the show could ever get back to its corporate setting again.And yet, back to the office season 2 must go. Not only is the Macrodata Refinement floor important to the satirical and visual language of this Apple TV+ sci-fi workplace thriller, but the sprawling, sterile halls of Lumon Industries are where the innies will most likely find the answers they seek. In speaking to Den of Geek prior to the release of season 2, Severance creator and showrunner Dan Erickson discussed the difficulties in re-establishing some sense of a status quo.We kind of blew up the world in season one, Erickson says. Its tough to get back to arguing over over group photos, pencils, and erasers. But we also knew that baked into the soul of the show is this character-based office comedy that satirizes the weirdness of the corporate world.Read more While Severance season 2 episode 1 Hello, Ms. Cobel doesnt yet reveal how Lumon convinced the outtie versions of Mark, Helly, Irving, and Dylan (Zach Cherry) to get back to work, it does present how Lumon is choosing to pitch the results of the innie rebellion. Mr. Milchick (Tramell Tillman) tells Mark that, like him, Helly and Irving both successfully made contact with the outside world. He goes on to say that theyve achieved international acclaim and become the faces of Severance Reform, even presenting a newspaper headline and image to prove that fact.Mark, not quite moved by the existence of a physical newspaper (nor should he be, says this journalist occupying an increasingly digital industry), requires more evidence. More importantly: he requires his friends back. Once the MDR team is finally reunited, Mr. Milchick pulls out the final stop in a form of a Lumon orientation video. Titled Lumon Is Listening, the cheerful claymation clip is narrated by the Lumon building itself* and runs through all of the bounteous reforms that the event known as The Macrodata Uprising encouraged. Severed employees will now have access to tasty new snacks, hall passes (its unclear to where), pineapple bobbing, and a playful mirror room. The video even concludes with the Lumon building thanking Kier for the MDR team. And Lumon wouldnt invoke its mighty founder Kier Eagan unless it were serious about these reforms, would it?*Though his name doesnt appear in the end-credits of the pre-release screeners journalists received, it sure does sound like that building is voiced by none other than Keanu Reeves. Apple TV+ didnt return a request for confirmation (and I stupidly didnt come to that realization before speaking with Dan Erickson and the rest of the cast) so.Per Erickson, Lumon choosing to co-opt MDRs rebellion and incorporating it into company lore was a predictable reaction to the events of season 1. Thats something that feels very true to how a company would respond to a whistleblower or an act of defiance like this that proved successful, he says.Just as the release of Severance season 1 was serendipitously timed to the arrival of a global pandemic that would fundamentally change workers relationship to work, so too does season 2 premiere to a rapidly-changing corporate landscape. In the wake of the 2024 U.S. presidential election (and in some cases in explicit response to it), several large companies have begun to cut diversity, equity, and inclusion programs, confirming many observers skepticism that they were sincerely deployed in the first place. If those Lumons ever were listening, they sure arent anymore.Join our mailing listGet the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox!While the real world provides no shortage of corporate quirks to comment upon, the upward trajectory of Severances plot may limit the shows approach to satirizing it all soon. Getting to the bottom of Lumons plans will mean that Mark and company have bigger fish to fry than pineapple bobbing and playful mirror rooms. Thankfully, the folks behind Severance are well aware of that ticking narrative clock.[Our plans] have tightened up a bit, Erickson says. I think we have a pretty good idea of how many seasons we want to go, which Im not going to say just yet. But were really trying to be intentional in how we approach this as a whole story.The first episode of Severance season 2 is available to stream on Apple TV+ now. New episodes premiere Fridays, culminating with the finale on March 21.

In mid-April 1999, production designer Christopher Hobbs lost a nights sleep to the creation of several enormous pyramid-shaped jellies. Each one contained over 150 packets of Rowntrees lime-flavoured jelly cubes, was topped with a single red cherry rigged to vibrate on demand, and naturally had been designed in homage to the work of Spanish surrealist sculptorJoan Mir.The jellies were to furnish a banquet table at Gormenghast Castle, a labyrinthine location from the mind of writer-artist Mervyn Peake which was being brought to life for a landmark BBC adaptation of the first two novels in his 1940s Gormenghast trilogy. They were one tiny background element in a web of painstaking design from theGormenghastart team. The sets were dotted with references to 20thcentury artists Max Ernst and Paul Klee, as well as filmmakers Luis Bunuel and Federico Fellini. Spot the painting, sort of thing, explained director Andy Wilson in this behind-the-scenes interview. We were trying to make an artists vision of the world.In that, the four-partGormenghastadaptation excelled. The castle sets, which filmed almost every sound stage at Shepperton Studios in the spring and summer of 1999, were rich with ideas, atmosphere and detail. From the soon-to-be-burned-down library to the attics, rooftops, hall of Bright Carving and cat room, watching the series was like touring a surrealist exhibition.Peopling that exhibition wereGormenghasts characters, oddities created by Peake in his absurdist satire on class, nobility and ritual. Castle cook Swelter, family childminder Nannie Slagg, brainless royals Cora and Clarice, Dr Prunesquallor and his long-necked sister Irma, as well as the ruling family Lord Groan Lady Gertrude, Lady Fuschia and the infant heir Titus were played by the cream of the British stage and screen. Christopher Lee, Celia Imrie, Zoe Wanamaker, Richard Griffiths, Stephen Fry, Spike Milligan the collected cast would fill every portrait frame hanging on the walls at BAFTA twice over.In what seemed like the only allowance made to mainstream appeal, the handsome Jonathan Rhys Meyers was cast in the lead role of Steerpike, the novels unbeautiful kitchen boy whose ascent through the castle threatens the old regime. (In fact, director Andy Wilson described Rhys Meyers as looking exactly like a Mervyn Peake drawing of Steerpike, so even his good looks turned out to have been instrumental in the overall goal of evoking Peakes vision.)With a high-calibre cast, beautiful costumes and a bigger budget than most BBC four-parters could dream of (reports ranged from 6 million to 10 million), as well as a pre-publicity campaign that saw Rhys-Meyers Steerpike on the front of magazines and the sides of buses,Gormenghastwas set to become a BBC Two drama showcase for the new millennium. And so it was, for episode one, drawing a healthy audience for the channel of 4.2 million. By the next episode though, that number had almost halved to 2.4 million, and dwindled from there. Despite praise for its design and cast, the adaptation was quickly labelled a flop.What made viewers turn away? The story, said some, and the unlikable characters. Then-ITV controller of network drama Nick Elliott described the adaptation as emperors clothes time when speaking toThe Guardianin 2000. There was no serious content in terms of narrative or people you take seriously enough to want to watch. I have to admit I turned off.One argument is that not enough had been done to soften Peakes spiky, satirical and lets face it, bizarre and slow, story for a broad audience that needed characters to root for. Steerpike was an antihero just as US prestige TV was being born, but unlike Tony Soprano or Stringer Bell, he came from the world of fantasy, a genre thats historically struggled to be taken seriously for adult audiences on UK television.The creators ofGormenghastseem to have had something of a hold-your-nose attitude to the fantasy genre themselves. As director Andy Wilson explained in this featurette. Theres no magic, theres no zapping, theres noStar Wars, theres no zap guns or poufs when people turn into frogs. Its all very realistic and the characters have a very realistic set of emotions.Thats one take on it. Another might be that Peakes cerebral satire of arcane ritual, child emperors and fusty passed-on tradition was neither realistic enough nor fantasy enough for its audience. Simply put, it fell between two stools and a pre-Game of Thrones TV audience didnt quite know what to make of it. Had there either been magic and zapping, or had the characters not felt as though theyd walked out of a queasily adult take on Alices Wonderland, perhaps viewers would have got it, but then of course, it wouldnt have beenGormenghast.BeingGormenghastseems to have been the adaptations real problem. Peakes ensemble characters may sound like theyre out of Dickens, but theres none of Dickens appealing sentimentality in play here. These characters are vain, greedy, stupid, self-serving and callously insane, as befits this class satire. AsDownton AbbeyandThe Crownhave shown, audiences love a ruling-classes drama, but they prefer nostalgic ones where the ruling classes are winsome and put-upon and trying their best to stem the tide of crude modernity. A royal family drama that starts with a labouring mother pushing out an infant and then demanding Bring him back when hes six and turning back to her albino raven and roomful of white cats isnt going to warm anybodys cockles about the good old days.Gormenghastwas very much not a good old days drama. It was weird and absurdist and political and loftily ambitious. Despite the relatively big budget and dedicated work from the art team, it still struggled to evoke the scope and depth of Peakes vast creation. Hoping for mainstream success with the first screen adaptation of these 20th-century-crisis novels was in all likelihood, a folly. The planned TV version announced in 2018 would probably have fallen at the same hurdles.Join our mailing listGet the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox!But what a folly the 2000 version was. Unsettling and visionary, it may not have won over audiences hearts and minds, but it stands as a monument to audacious artistry from the kind of creators who cared about every last detail on screen, from the castle walls to the banquet table jellies.

It seems like only yesterday that the Nintendo Switch released to huge acclaim, not only due to its game-changing hybrid functionality as both a handheld and home console but also its award-winning flagship titleThe Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, which was easily one of the very best games of the 2010s. A lots happened since the consoles March 2017 launch: both PlayStation and Xbox have released new consoles (themselves now well into the halfway point of their life cycles), theres now plenty of competition in the handheld gaming space the Switch shepherded, and Breath of the Wild has received an excellent sequel.Almost eight years to the day, Nintendo is ready to launch into the next era of the Switch. Of course that means a brand-new consolethe just announced Switch 2. That also means that the first couple of months of 2025 will be a bit weird for Switch owners looking for new games for their beloved platform.In essence, there isnt much on offer in terms of new first-party exclusives for the Switch at the moment, as Nintendo is understandably focusing on new games for the Switch 2 (which we should hopefully learn a lot more about very soon). That said, there is just enough still coming to the Switch to keep players satiated until the next Nintendo console drops.Here are the big Switch games you need to keep an eye on this yearDonkey Kong Country Returns HDJanuary 16There might not be much in terms of new whole new first-party experiences on the Switch early this year, but there are at least a few remasters of Nintendo titles to look forward to. The great Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze was ported over from the Wii U to the Switch in 2018 and now Wii hit Donkey Kong Country Returns is getting the HD remaster treatment. Bringing all the classic elements you expect from the Donkey Kong Country games, this platformer follows Donkey Kong (and Diddy Kong if you want to play this one with a friend) on a quest through nine worlds to retrieve their precious bananas from a group of evil Tikis. Along the way, expect mine cart levels, plenty of collectibles, and lots of surprises. Star Wars Episode I: Jedi Power BattlesAspyr January 23Originally released for the PlayStation, Sega Dreamcast, and Game Boy Advance, Star Wars Episode 1: Jedi Power Battles is getting a re-release for its 25th anniversary. This remastered version of the classic Star Wars game brings back couch co-op mode, training rooms, bonus levels, and the arcade cheats and power-ups that made the original version so fun. In addition, the game will have 13 new playable characters, including Jar Jar Binks, and a lightsaber toggle that allows players to choose between the original lightsaber colors used in the game or more screen-accurate versions. No matter your age, Star Wars Episode 1: Jedi Power Battles is sure to be a fun walk (or Force-powered jump) down memory lane.Civilization 7Firaxis Games February 6Arriving nearly a decade after the previous game, Civilization VII promises to be a revolutionary new chapter in this award-winning franchise. Similar to its predecessors, Civilization VII is a turn-based tactical strategy game where you develop an empire across three distinct historic eras. With updated graphics and improved gameplay that includes updates to diplomacy mechanics, changes to production management, as well as other improvements, this evolution seems poised to bring this franchise into the next generation.Tomb Raider IV-VI RemasteredAspyr February 14Join our mailing listGet the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox!Aspyr doesnt just port classic Star Wars games to current-gen console; the studios also been tasked with bringing back the original 3D Tomb Raider games as updated remasters on modern platforms. While Tomb Raider I-III got the remastered treatment last year, next up are The Last Revelation, Chronicles, and The Angel of Darkness in one jam-packed package. The updated visuals assure that these games look better than ever, but dont expect anything too drastically different from the versions you played in the 2000s in terms of gameplayalthough you do get the option to switch between classic and modern graphics and control schemes in these remasters. That should be more than enough for those fans who simply want to relive the classics as they were all those years ago.Suikoden I&II HD Remaster Gate Rune and Dunan Unification WarsKonami March 6The year of the remaster on the Nintendo Switchagain, we expect this to change as soon as the Switch 2 is unveiledcontinues with Konamis HD re-release of the first two games in the classic 90s RPG series Suikoden. Much like its contemporaries, these games feature turn-based combat and an epic fantasy tale about rebellion. During your quest, youll have to collect magic runes and recruit 107 companions to take down the corrupt Scarlet Moon Empire. If you already love Final Fantasy, try this excellent JRPG series next.Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive EditionMonolith Soft March 20Its hard to believe that its been a decade since the release of this Nintendo action RPG hit in which you get to explore a dangerous open world on giant mechs known as Skells. As a protector of the last remaining humans who managed to escape before Earth was destroyed, you and your companions are tasked with taming a new alien planet called Mira. Nintendo has confirmed this isnt just a simple re-release of the 2015 game, though. Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition will also bring newly added story elements, which makes this one worth picking up again!Tales of the Shire: A Lord of the Rings GameWt Workshop March 25New cozy game alert!Tales of the Shireis like ifStardew ValleyandAnimal Crossingtook a trip to the Shire ofLord of the Rings.The game lets players live out their dreams of hanging out in the idyllic landscape of the Shire as they create their own character, decorate their own Hobbit hole, make friends in the community, and help the town flourish. We playedTales of the Shireat SGF and were impressed with the amount of care put into creating this version of the Shire. Even though the game isnt technically canon, there are still plenty of references and easter eggs forLord of the Ringsfans to find.Capcom TBA 2025With a mix of classic 2D and 3D style games, fans of classic Capcom arcade-style games have a lot to look forward to with Capcom Fighting Collection 2. Including titles such as Capcom vs. SNK, Capcom vs. SNK 2, Power Stone, Power Stone 2, Street Fighter Alpha 3 Upper, and more, this game is perfect for anyone looking to recreate the retro-gaming experience. Capcom Fighting Collection 2 also includes an online play mode that allows you to play casual, ranked, and custom matches with other players across the globe. This game is also very beginner-friendly with training modes as well as adjustable difficulty settings and a customizable button layout that allows for one-button special moves in combat. So even if you arent an arcade legend, theres still plenty of fun to be had.Dragon Quest I & II HD-2D RemakeSquare Enix TBA 2025Game publishers havent always done a great job of preserving their own history, but Square Enix absolutely nailed it when it set out to remake the Erdrick Trilogy, the first three games in the classic Dragon Quest series. While Dragon Quest 3, which is chronologically the first title in the trilogy, was released last year, well get the second and third chapters of hero Erdricks story in a 2-in-1 package, with modernized visuals but the story and turn-based combat fans already love. If youve been waiting for the right time to play these three classic JRPGs, 2025 is the time.Metroid Prime 4: BeyondRetro Studios TBA 2025Metroid Prime 4: Beyond hasnt had the smoothest development journey over the last decade. Originally in development at Bandai Namco Studios, Retro Studios, the original creator of the Metroid Prime series, took over production in 2019 at the behest of Nintendo, which set the game back years. But despite the bumps in the road, Metroid Prime 4: Beyond looks like a spectacular return for the series. What weve seen so far from the trailers looks a lot like the classic Metroid Prime experiencelots of first-person blasting, morph ball action, scanning, and Space Pirates to take downbut with shiny new visuals and a new story, which we know will involve the bounty hunter Sylux, whos hellbent on taking down Samus once and for all.Pokmon Legends: Z-AGame Freak TBA 2025Pokmon Legends: Z-A asks the question of what would happen if you combined urban planning with Pokmon. The game is set in the fictional Lumiose City, where an urban redevelopment plan seeks to create a place where both people and Pokmon can thrive. While we dont know much about gameplay specifics just yet, this looks like itll be a fun and interesting entry in the franchise.Shovel Knight: Shovel of Hope DXYacht Club Games TBA 2025Shovel Knight fans, rejoice! An updated version of the original Shovel Knight game is on its way with some exciting new features, including 20 playable characters with unique playstyles. Shovel Knight: Shovel of Hope DX calls on you to embark on a quest to save Shield Knight, defeat the evil Enchantress, and take down her Order of No Quarter. The game stays true to its original retro look and platforming game style while also introducing an online multiplayer mode as well as the power of Rewind and Save States to pause the game and plot the best strategy to get through a level. Shovel of Hope DX has a lot to offer whether youre a long-time fan or a newcomer to the series.

Severance isnt the kind of TV show that invites fan engagementit practically demands it. Set in a world where individuals undergo a severance procedure to separate their home and work lives, Severance follows the innie employees on the severed floor of Lumon Industries. As the innies struggle through their 9-to-5 they confront all sorts of mysteries that an eager online audience is happy to follow along with. What is Lumons end game? Why is Kier Eagan deified? And most crucially: whats with all the goats? No one knows the answers yet but theyre damn sure going to try to find them. The Severance subreddit is filled with dedicated sleuthsand one visionary who proposed that Helly R. should poop her pants at the end of every work day to punish her outtie. While certainly appreciated, that level of fandom runs the risk of overwhelming the actual cast and crew making the show. Its one thing to share your conspiracy corkboard with fellow conspiracists, but should you be lucky enough to meet someone involved with the making of Severance, what do you say? Hint: you probably dont want to lead with that pants-pooping Reddit bit. Den of Geek caught up with much of the cast of Severance in advance of season 2s release on January 17 and asked about the ideal fan interaction. An example immediately sprang to Helly R. actress Britt Lowers mind. I was on an elevator once and a group of people walked in. Everyones sort of keeping to themselves, as you do on a public elevator. And then someone just said Were all going to be different when we leave this elevator. I thought it was such a clever, subtle way of letting me know that theyd seen the show.That right there is first ballot Fandom Hall of Fame stuff. Anonymous Severance elevator individual, please take your place in the annals of fan history alongside Jack Nicholson courtside at Lakers games and Stephen Colbert reciting Lord of the Rings facts. Elevators, of course, loom large on Severance. They are the terrifying liminal spaces between the outtie world and the innie world, as the severance chip takes hold immediately upon entering or exiting one. A fan having the wherewithal to make that association and share it with Lower on the spot speaks to Severance fans highly-engaged nature. I think our fans are like that, Lower says. Theyve given the show a new life by engaging with it in the way that they do. Its a conversation that the creators, the cast, and the crew of the show all appreciate.Theyre completing the show, Irving B. actor John Turturro adds. Theyre completing it with all their theories, with all their reactions. Thats the kind of show that it is. Its about discovery and asking questions.Thankfully, theres plenty more discovery (and elevators) to come. The first episode of Severance season 2 premieres Friday, January 17 on Apple TV+. New episodes debut on Fridays, culminating with the finale on March 21.

The words Back in Action are as much a promise as they are a title. After all, anyone who considers themselves a fan of Jamie Foxx or Cameron Diazand Netflixs algorithm clearly thinks there are a lot of us out therewill know theyve been away from screens for serious reasons. Its been almost two years since Jamie Foxx experienced a stroke that left him hospitalized and initially unable to walk. So seeing him dance, kick, and float across soundstages again is the kind of rare catharsis that even AI analytics can never genuinely quantify.While Diazs own reasons for stepping away from the screen were more voluntary, theyre no less significant. Since the performer chose to retire from acting after 2014s Annie, she has not appeared in a new film for more than a decade. Yet here she is again, back in action and dancing, kicking, and bantering with Foxx like no time has passed for either of them. (In truth, Diaz has told the press her off-screen friendship with Foxx is a key reason Back in Action marked her return to the movies.)The more outside knowledge you bring to the film, then, the more satisfying it is to see them doing their thing. Because otherwise one cannot help but wish they were doing it in something better than this anodyne, innocuous, and wholly disposable piece of fluff that was blatantly designed to be a second-screen time-waster.The films premise is easy enough to digest, even when youre looking at your phone during the many expository scenes: Diaz and Foxx are introduced in a sequence set fifteen years ago when they were still hot-shit spies at the CIA. They steal WMDs from terrorists and bad men, drink champagne on their own private planes, and survive said planes crash while barely sustaining a scratch. However, right before the aircraft went blasting into the Alps, the pair also learned Diazs Emily is pregnant, and her partner Matt (Foxx) is the papa. So they use the close call with oblivion to Irish-goodbye the spy game and fake their own deaths.Cut to the present and the pair are living a painfully recognizable form of suburban American normalcy. Matt coaches his daughters soccer team; Alice gets her kids ready for school and dreams of moms movie Mondays; and said youngins, teenage Alice (McKenna Roberts) and tween Leo (Rylan Jackson) think their parents are hopelessly lame. That might begin to change though after the olds go viral on TikTok by beating the clout out of some college twerps hitting on their underage daughter. They unfortunately end up back on the radar of old friends like CIA handler Chuck (Kyle Chandler) and bad mercenaries who want the MacGuffin they stole in that plane crash. Road trip hijinks ensue with the children in the back and on the way to MI6 grandmamas house.Back in Actions metaphor for a suburban midlife crisis through the prism of spy games and mirthful action movie clichs is not a new one. James Cameron made one of his frothiest (and perhaps most problematic) movies out of it in True Lies. In that one, it was Jamie Lee Curtis bored housewife who realized her hunky husband (Arnold Schwarzenegger) wasnt getting those muscles from selling computer monitors on the road. A little later, Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie fatefully sizzled up the concept in a double-header where it turns out the non-communicative spouses were both spooks for rival agencies in Mr. & Mrs. Smith.Back in Action tweaks the premise again. Husband and wife are still both spies, but now theyre aware of their shared history, even as theyve kept their past adventures secret from the kids. It is an amusing enough wrinkle for any parent whos ever realized their children believe Mom and Dad never had a life before they were bornand that old folks have always been lame. Director and co-writer Seth Gordon (Horrible Bosses, Baywatch) might not be reinventing the wheel, but plenty of entertaining studio comedies of yore, including Horrible Bosses, have started from less.Alas, Back in Action is less studio comedy than modern streaming content. The action is largely pedestrian and obligatory, lazily hanging on popular needle drops that range from Frank Sinatra to Etta James; the jokes and plot twists are obvious; and the overall effect ultimately being adequate. It is meant to be consumed but never experienced, and even the thrill of seeing Foxx and Diaz back in action fizzles quickly.Both actors who broke out in the 1990s and 2000sand spend much of this movie explaining to these Gen-Alpha youths that theyre not Boomershave a nice easygoing rapport, but never one youd mistake as romantic or sizzling. The pair come across like old college chums who still like to hit the pub once in a while. Its more work-wife and work-husband than the real marital thing, to use a term Gen-Xers wont be offended by.They just seem happy to be here and go through the paces and martial arts paces that is a far cry from what they were doing back in Charlies Angels or Miami Vice heyday, never mind Being John Malkovich or Collateral. Unfortunately, the paces the movie gives them so barely register a reaction that its remarkable how quickly the running time gets stolen from them by Glenn Close and Jamie Demetriou as an unlikely May-December pair of grandparents.There are moments of bemusement to be had from the leads, particularly whenever the film reuses the beat of them astonishing their kids by beating the stuffing out of bad guys time and again. Mom and Dad got moves?! Were sure plenty of real-life Gen-X and older Millennial parents will revel in the fantasy of showing the perpetually online generation how things were done back in the day before social media came along. But its all in service to a streamer that threw in this movies towel to the smartphone screen before a punch was ever rehearsed. In other words, on family movie night, this one is more for the olds. The kids can (and will) keep scrolling.Join our mailing listGet the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox!Its still nice to have Diaz and Foxx back, but next time lets hope they return for more than a Silicon Valley paycheck.Back in Action starts streaming on Netflix on Friday, Jan. 17.

This article contains spoilers for Severance season 1.Hello dedicated employee. Its been awhile since we last saw you. Read more The first season of Apple TV+s successful sci-fi drama Severance premiered its final episode on April 8, 2022. By glancing at the calendar on your desk, you may have noticed that todays date isa long time after that. Yes, it took Severance creator/showrunner Dan Erickson and company more than a couple years to produce a second season of their complicated workplace thriller. While the wait was undoubtedly worth it (see review above), the delay means many viewers likely need their memories jogged on the events of season 1 prior to watching season 2. Thats hopefully where we come in. Like any good corporate orientation document, the following recap is designed to address both the broad and specific beats of the show. The first few sections will provide reminders about the series sci-fi concept and background lore, while the latter sections will get into the nitty-gritty plot points of the finale. That all make sense? Doesnt matter. Lets begin. What Is The Severance Procedure?Who doesnt want to separate their home life from their work life? Well, on Severance, you can! Thanks to the innovative severance procedure developed by biotech company Lumon Industries, an individual can have a chip inserted into their brain that will bifurcate their consciousness between when theyre at work and when theyre at home. The chip works spatially so a persons perspective will split upon entering a designated building or room. Ones work self has no knowledge of the outside world while ones home self has no idea what they do for work. Theoretically its a perfect application for highly sensitive work. Employees cannot leak state or company secrets if they dont know them.Of course, all science fiction technology has consequences. In the case of the severance procedure, its the creation of two separate individuals in one body. Severed workers on the floor, dubbed innies, have a severe case of eternal sunshine of the spotless mind. Possessing only the vaguest sense of how the outside world works, they quite literally live to work. They wake up when their outie arrives to work and then never fully check out for the day. While their outie goes home, eats a meal, watches some TV, and sleeps, innies simply come right back to work the moment they leave it. What Work is Macrodata Refinement Doing?Severance follows four severed employees on Lumons own Macrodata Refinement floor: Mark S (Adam Scott), Helly R (Britt Lower), Irving B (John Turturro), and Dylan G (Zach Cherry). Note that they are given only an initial for a last name as a full last name is a right reserved for outies (Mark Scout, Helly Riggs, Irving Bailiff, Dylan George). In addition to the usual office tasks of visiting the coffee station, watching orientation videos, and taking the occasional field trips to other departments (more on that later), the majority of the MDR departments daily work consists of sitting in front of computer terminals and refining data.What that means in this context is being presented with a screen full of numbers, hovering a cursor over them, and then dragging those numbers into a folder once compelled to do so. When will they feel compelled to do so? Theyll know. As Mark S explains to Helly R: Each category of numbers feels a certain way on sight. In addition to being a wonderful satire of work (truly who cant relate to staring at numbers on a computer all day until they feel somethinganything) its clear that Lumon Industries is Up to Something with this seemingly menial task. Of the MDR employees, Mark S, Irving B, and Dylan G have largely drank the Kool-Aid on the importance of their work. Helly R, however, acts as a sort of audience cypher to reveal how strange and discomfiting this all is. Brought to the MDR floor as its newest member in the series first episode, Helly refuses to get used to her life as an innie. She spends much of the season trying to devise a way off the floor into freedom and is constantly foiled along the way by her outie who continually returns to work. She even goes so far as to attempt suicide by hanging before waking up the next day back in the office. Guiding the MDR workers through this are their bosses Mr. Seth Milchick (Tramell Tillman), and upward-striving middle manager; and Harmony Cobel (Patricia Arquette), an icy executive behind a desk. Cobel is known to Mark in the outside world as his doddering older neighbor Mrs. Selvig. Theres also the floor counselor, an enigmatic woman named Ms. Casey (Dichen Lachman). Join our mailing listGet the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox!Who Is Petey and What Is Reintegration? Mark S is the only MDR character whose outie life is glimpsed consistently throughout the season. We see that he took a job with Lumon on a severed floor after the devastating loss of his wife, Gemma, in a car accident. His only family consists of his sister Devon (Jen Tullock) and her doofy husband Ricken (Michael Chernus) Eventually, however, Mark is contacted by an old work friend Petey (Yul Vazquez) who attempts to enlist him in a struggle against Lumon.Once innie Marks best pal on the MDR floor, Petey quit his Lumon job and underwent a dangerous medical procedure known as Reintegration, designed to reconnect his severed personas once again. Performed by ex-Lumon scientist Dr. Reghabi (Karen Aldridge), the surgery is experimental, vague, and ultimately not very successful. Petey experiences its reality-bending side effects and eventually dies, succumbing to Reintegration Sickness. Before all that though, he is able to successfully convince outtie Mark that something rotten is going on at Lumon. Outtie Mark makes a connection with Dr. Reghabi (Karen Aldridge), who kills Lumon operative Graner (Michael Cumpsty) and gives Mark his access card for use later. He also gains a hand-drawn map of the severed floor from Petey before he dies. What Is Lumon Industries Up To and Who Is Kier Eagan?A lot of background lore about Lumon Industries and its mysterious creator is revealed throughout season 1. Lumon is described as one of the worlds biggest biotech companies, founded by Kier Eagan in 1865. For much of its existence, Lumon developed products like topical salves, soaps, and ethers before eventually creating the revolutionary severance chip. The culture inside Lumon is one of a cult of personality around Kier Eagan. The town that Lumons headquarters reside in is even named Kier.Lumon employees pepper their language with phrases like Praise Kier and when someone dies they are said to be sitting with Kier now. His taming of the four tempers is the stuff of company legend. Various rituals within Lumon represent each of the four tempers: Woe, Frolic, Dread, and Malice. Early on in season 1, the MDR team is taken on a field trip to the Perpetuity Wing, which is essentially a museum exhibit detailing the major moments of Kiers life. His writings and experiences are considered the core of Lumons corporate philosophy. Oil paintings throughout the MDR offices depict important moments from Kiers life, such as the courtship of his wife Imogene. Kiers descendent Jame Eagan is the current CEO of Lumon Industries and looms as a big bad over the proceedings.What Are The Other Departments at Lumon Industries?In addition to Macrodata Refinement, a couple other departments are introduced on the severed floor in Severance season 1. The first is the Optics & Design team, led by Burt Goodman (Christopher Walken), who are largely tasked with producing the beautiful propaganda regarding Kier Eagans mythos. MDR initially views O&D with distrust but the two teams eventually grow closer with Burt and Irving even developing a romantic relationship.Another department within Lumon deals with the raising of goats for an unknown purpose. Mark and Helly learn of this fact when they come across a room full of goats with a man bottle-feeding one. You cant take them yet, theyre not ready, the man says. Thats the only clue that we have to the goats existence though the shows producers have insisted we will discover what the department does in season 2.The severance procedure is even put to use outside of the severed floors within Lumon. At one point, Marks sister Devon discovers that her friend Gabby underwent the procedure so that she wouldnt have to remember the trauma of childbirth, instead sending her innie off to endure it in a special birthing suite. What Is The Overtime Contingency Plan?All of the sleuthing throughout season 1 leads to an important discovery for the innies. At one point, Mr. Milchick is able to wake up innie Dylan G in the outside world so that he can locate a card he stole. The experience is partially designed to intimate Dylan but all it really does is reveal to him that his outtie has a family and that its possible for innies to experience the outside world. After bringing this knowledge to his friends at MDR, the team resolves to put Peteys map and Graners keycard to use to trigger this technology known as the Overtime Contingency. Since Dylan already experienced the outside, he volunteers himself to commandeer the contingency from the inside. He leaves his waffle party (a Kier-themed orgy) early and enters into a control room to wake up Mark S, Helly R, and Irving B on the outside. The season 1 finale deals with what they all discover. Big Reveals From the Severance Season 1 FinaleInnie Mark awakens at a house party and immediately refers to Mrs. Selvig by her Harmony Cobel name, tipping her off that the innies are loose. She and Milchick spring into action to end the Overtime Protocol. Before Milchick successfully overpowers Dylan and halts the process, here is what the innies find outHelly R Is Helena EaganHelly comes to at a swanky Lumon gala and learns that her outtie is none other than Helena Eagan daughter of Jame Eagan and heir to the Lumon throne. Helena underwent severance to promote the procedure and built support for its mass legalization. Before Helly goes back offline, she is able to take the stage for her keynote address and tell a stunned audience that innies are being tortured and hate their lives. Irving Has Been Investigating LumonIrving awakes to a dingy and sad apartment where he is surrounded by evidence of his outties military service and his talent for painting. One painting in particular, that of a black hallway with a light at the end, appears to hold major Lumon significance. He immediately rushes out into the world to use an employee directory to track down Burt Goodman. Unfortunately he discovers that Burt seems to already be in a happy relationship. Marks Wife Gemma Is Ms. CaseyAfter innie Mark accidentally ruins everything by misidentifying Mrs. Selvig (but honestly, he really stood no chance. The moment he achieves awareness hes mid-hug with Selvig/Cobel. What are the odds?!?), he reveals to Devon that he is his innie self. More importantly: he eventually finds a photo of outtie Marks wife Gemma and recognizes her as severance floor counselor Ms. Casey. Just as the Overtime Protocol is about to be cut, innie Mark yells out Shes alive! to Devon and the rest of the party. And thats where things stand when Severance season 2 begins.All nine episodes of Severance season 1 are available to stream on Apple TV+ now. The first episode of Severance season 2 premieres Friday, January 17 on Apple TV+. New episodes debut on Fridays, culminating with the finale on March 21.

Following months of rumors and leaks that unveiled a whole lot about the console before the company could make an official announcement, Nintendo has finally confirmed what the Switch 2 looks like and even teased some of its key features and improvements as well as at least one of its games.The timing of the announcement itself, which arrived in the form of a snappy 2-minute trailer, had leaked earlier this week as well, but the video turned out to be more of a teaser for a bigger Nintendo Direct broadcast that is poised to fully show off everything the new console has to offer on April 2, 2025. The console is slated to release later this year. Check out the video below.The Switch 2 will of course keep the same form factor as its predecessor as well as its hybrid functionality, which means youll still be able to use the console as both a handheld device as well as docked to your TV. The video also confirms that at least a few of the rumors and leaks that have hit the internet in the past few months are in fact true, down to the 2 added to the Switch logo. Lets quickly break a few key things down about Nintendos next consoleConfirmed Nintendo Switch 2 Details and Improvements First up, the obvious: the larger display. While the exact dimensions of the screen werent revealed in the video, there have been reports (via IGN) that were looking at an 8-inch display, up from the 6.2-inch on the original Switch model and the 7-inch on the current OLED model. Rumors have also persisted that the Switch 2 will release with an LCD screen, not the more vibrant OLED panel that some gamers would have hoped for. Of course, with specs and performance currently unconfirmed, its likely weve not learned all there is to know about the Switch 2s display. Next, the new Joy-Cons, also larger, which should help make playing in handheld mode a little more comfortable. There are two other updates to note: 1) gone are the annoying rail connections, replaced by a seemingly magnetic snap-on connection that looks so much easier to use; and 2) you can also use the Joy-Cons as mice, although how Nintendo plans to implement this new functionality into the gaming experience remains to be seen. Overall, these are the upgrades that have us the most excited so far. Theres one other detail to note regarding the Joy-Cons: theres a new button! Nintendo has added a mysterious C button to the right Joy-Con (the square button all the way on the bottom). What this button actually does is anyones guess but IGN points to speculation that it might have something to do with more intuitive group chat functionality. Back in 2017, Nintendo used the then-upcoming The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild to show off what the original Switch could do. This time around, Nintendo has gone with what seems to be a new Mario Kart gamepresumably the long-rumored Mario Kart 9! You may be wondering why Nintendo went two console generations with just one Mario Kart game in the first place, but the answer is actually pretty simple: Mario Kart 8, particularly the Deluxe port for the Switch, sold incredibly well. In fact, its the best-selling Nintendo game of all time if you dont count Wii Sports, which came bundled with the Wii. The Switch 2 will allow you to play games on physical cartridges and digitally. As previously reported, it will also feature backwards compatibility, meaning youll be able to play most of your Switch library on the new hardware, although Nintendo warns that certain games may not be supported on or fully compatible with the Switch 2.Rumored Nintendo Switch 2 Specs Of course, theres a lot we still dont know about the Switch 2, questions that will hopefully be answered in April as well as at the Nintendo Experience events planned in the Spring and Summer for anxious fans who want to be the first to check out the new console in person. In the meantime, we only have rumors and leaks to go on when it comes to what is actually powering the new Switch console. What specs are we talking here?Nintendo hasnt revealed anything on that front, but leaked concept images of the Switch 2 and an alleged specs list released in September (via VGC) could provide some clues. Again, its important to note that this is all unconfirmed rumor at the moment, although the leaked images themselves seem to be the real thing after todays announcement. The leak also correctly stated that the Switch 2 would have an 8-inch display, snap-on controllers, and two USB-C ports.According to the rumored specs list, the Switch 2 will boast 12 GB of RAM, a major improvement from the 4 GB memory offered by its predecessor, as well as 256 GB internal SSD storage, up from 32 GB in the original Switch.Join our mailing listGet the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox!Separately, Digital Foundry has previously speculated that the console is using a custom NVIDIA processor and a GPU based on the graphics companys RTX-30 Series cards, which would make the Switch 2 a much more powerful machine than its predecessor. Earlier this month, the outlet also dug up a patent from Nintendo seemingly confirming the Switch 2 will use AI upscaling tech to get games to render up to 4K resolution while keeping game sizes down, similar to the way NVIDIAs DLSS tech works. Essentially, games with 4K textures are too big to fit into a 32 GB Switch cartridge, but using upscaling technology is a way around that, allowing the Switch 2 to punch above its weight in terms of visuals. There has been lots of speculation around how Nintendos take on DLSS will actually work and if it will open the door for even more ambitious games on the new console. Speaking of whichRumored Nintendo Switch 2 GamesTechnically, there are zero games announced for the Switch 2 at this time, although were going to say its fairly safe to assume a new Mario Kart game is coming to the console. As far as Mario Kart 9 goes, the big thing teased in the Switch 2 announcement video is that the game will support 24-person races for the first time in the series history, up from 12 in previous entries. That should make for an even more chaotic time.There have been plenty of other games rumored for the Switch 2, including ports of Final Fantasy VII Remake and Rebirth, Assassins Creed Mirage and Shadows, Halo: The Master Chief Collection, and Metal Gear Solid Delta. Again, none of these games are confirmed by Nintendo at the moment.It also seems likely that upcoming first-party Nintendo games, such as Metroid Prime 4: Beyond and Pokemon Legends: Z-A, will release on both the original Switch and its successor. Both games are currently slated for 2025.Nintendo Switch 2 Release Date and PriceThis is where things get tricky. Nintendo didnt announce a release date for the Switch 2 in the first promo, instead teasing a more fleshed-out Nintendo Direct event in April. That said, in-person Nintendo Experience events designed to give fans around the world a first look at the new console are scheduled all the way to at least June 1, meaning its highly unlikely the Switch 2 will hit shelves before then. In other words, we could be looking well into June or later before Nintendos new console actually releases. Nintendo hasnt given any indication as to what a Switch 2 will cost when it hits stores later this year. The original Switch launched at a very competitive $299 in the US, while the upgraded Switch OLED model released at $349.

Try as it might, science has yet been able to answer one of humankinds most pressing questions: What is the best Saturday Night Live sketch of all time?Even the most ardent SNL fans will acknowledge that the long-running TV institution has turned in more dud sketches than classics over the years. Thats just to be expected from a show that churns out around 200 sketches a season for 50 seasons. Still, when a good SNL sketch hits, it really hits. And among those good sketches deemed classics, one has to stand out as the best of the best. In the third episode of the new Peacock docuseries SNL50: Beyond Saturday Night, producers decide to hone in on one candidate. Folks, I have a fever. And the only prescription is you watching the More Cowbell sketch right now. First airing on April 8, 2000 as part of season 25 episode 16 Christopher Walken/Christina Aguilera, the sketch that came to be known as More Cowbell depicts a fictional version of the band Blue yster Cult as they struggle to incorporate the correct amount of cowbell into their hit song Dont Fear the Reaper. The sketch not only proved itself to be an immediate hit but also achieved an impressive staying power years later, with fans constantly annoying host Christopher Walken by requesting more cowbell.Featuring interviews with the involved cast members (with one notable Horatio Sanz-sized exception), SNL employees, and even members of Blue yster Cult, SNL: Beyond Saturday Night episode 3 More Cowbell presents one of the deepest looks at an SNL sketch ever presented. In the process we learn quite a bit about what goes into the making of a classic. Here are the most important things to know about More Cowbell.More Cowbell made it all but impossible to listen to the song Dont Fear the Reaper without hearing the consistent percussion rumbling away in the background. The writer and star of the sketch, however, picked it up early on. In SNL50: Beyond Saturday Night, Will Ferrell describes his memories of listening to the song as a kid on the car radio and being struck by the cowbell. Its the perfect calibration of loud enough but not too loud. Its really kind of impotent in the background. I had the thought, even as a kid, what is the life of the guy playing the cowbell?That memory led him to place Dont Fear the Reaper on an idea board in his SNL office and eventually develop the final concept. An early version of the sketch was intended to be performed as part of an episode hosted by Norm Macdonald but it was eventually cut. It got a second chance during the April 8, 2000 episode that featured Christopher Walkens fourth time hosting. The Original Name of the Sketch Was Recording SessionLongtime SNL aficionados (and regular listeners of The Lonely Island and Seth Meyers Podcast) know that SNL sketches are often given deliberately boring names. Thats because, before the writer of a sketch gets the opportunity to make an audience laugh, they have to make their writing peers laugh at the table-read. Spoiling the joke in the title is antithetical to that mission. Thats why the sketch we now know as More Cowbell is technically officially titled Recording Session.The Cowbell Was Almost a WoodblockIn addition to receiving a fake-out name, the early drafts of More Cowbell had one major differencethere was no cowbell to be seen or heard! Instead, the instrument played by Will Ferrells Gene Frenkle was a woodblock as thats what Ferrell originally interpreted it as. And funnily enough, he may have had it right the first time. No one involved in the recording of the Blue yster Cult song can remember for sure who played the instrument on the track and their opinions differ on whether it was a cowbell or a woodblock. Gene Frenkle Isnt Real But Bruce Dickinson IsSpeaking of Blue yster Cult, the band does not have a dedicated cowbell/woodblock player named Gene Frenkle. While that is purely a Will Ferrell invention, his Gene Frenkle does look like BC lead vocalist Eric Bloom. In fact, all of the cast resembles actual Blue yster Cult members as seen on the cover of a compilation album, just playing the wrong instruments. Chris Kattan is playing lead guitar like Buck Dharma but is dressed like drummer Albert Bouchard. Jimmy Fallon is playing drums like Bouchard but is dressed like guitarist/keyboardist Allen Lanier. Similarly, Christopher Walkens producer character, Bruce Dickinson is a real person, but he had nothing to do with the original production of Dont Fear the Reaper. Instead, he was a manager at Columbia Records whose name was listed as reissue producer on Blue yster Cults greatest hits compilation. Its kind of a funny-sounding name. That was the extent of my research: the back of a CD cover, Ferrell says in the doc. Join our mailing listGet the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox!The Dress Rehearsal Version Was FlatBefore the final version of the show airs live on Saturday night, SNL does a dress rehearsal of its planned sketches in front of a live test audience. The dress rehearsal for More Cowbell didnt indicate in any way that the sketch would go on to become a hit. I think it was kind offine, Ferrell says with a grimace in the doc. Walken opted for a more subdued Bruce Dickinson performance in the dress rehearsal, undoubtedly saving his energy for the aired show. Ferrell was also noticeably less physical. Additionally, the sketch was slotted for Stage 1 in Studio 8H, which is known among the cast as Shit-Can Alley, The Death Corner, and Coffin Corner due to its positioning to the far left of the audiences eyeline. All in all, it was looking fairly bleak for More Cowbell. But the end restful was an instant classic, due in no small part to Walkens amped up performance. Christopher Walken, for air, upped his game. It was almost like he was doing an impersonation of Christopher Walken, Jimmy Fallon says. The Best of Will Ferrell DVD Gave Cowbell (and Cowbells) a Second LifeIts hard to even conceive of it now, but back in 2000 Saturday Night Live faced the same predicament that most television did. Outside of the lucky few who taped it live, it was impossible to rewatch an episode on-demand. Thats why the More Cowbell sketch didnt fully take off until the release of Saturday Night Live: The Best of Will Ferrell DVD in 2002. Indeed thats where I first watched it.In the doc, Ferrell and the rest of the cast discuss the explosion of popularity of the sketch following the release of the DVD. The sketch played on the video board before Mississippi State football games and Ferrell got to play cowbell live with bands like Red Hot Chili Peppers and Queens of the Stone Age. The biggest fan of More Cowbell, however, may have been cowbells themselves. SNL50: Beyond Saturday Night catches up with Ranco Cowbells owner John Karpi to discuss his pride at the companys product being used as the featured cowboy in the sketch. To be a manufacturer of cowbells at that time. Wow, we were superstars. All four episodes of SNL: Beyond Saturday Night are available to stream on Peacock now.

Legendary filmmaker David Lynch has sadly passed away at the age of 78, as announced by his family in a Facebook post. The director began making movies in the 1960s, when he was an art student who wanted to see his paintings move, and went on to become one of the most recognizable and beloved auteurs in cinema history, a filmmaker who enjoyed remarkable success, given his idiosyncratic work.Because Lynchs work was so personal, it has long been difficult for critics and fans to reach a consensus regarding which is his very best work. Every single one of his movies and TV series has value, and each one strikes different people in different ways. Indeed, even this writer finds himself changing his own personal ranking from time to time.Like Lynch himself, his works are impossible to categorize and, thus, near impossible to rank, but weve given it a go in order to celebrate this masters illustrious career. Were looking back at both his movies and the TV series hes created but have not included the short films this time around. Of course, the list will change again and again, like a dream within a dream.13. Inland Empire (2004)Without question, Inland Empire has its amazing moments. Laura Dern gives a fearless, raw performance as an actress who cannot maintain the line between herself and her character. Lynch is joined by some of his best collaborators, including Harry Dean Stanton, Justin Theroux, and Grace Zabriskie, and gets supporting takes from Jeremy Irons and Mary Steenburgen.Despite containing some of Lynchs most powerful images, Inland Empire is also shot on digital video, which flattens the compositions. Furthermore, the three-hour opus covers a lot of familiar ground for Lynch, making it an interesting exercise, but not a satisfying film.12. On the Air (1992)Without question, there are those who absolute love On the Air, Lynch and Mark Frosts sitcom follow-up to Twin Peaks. For this more obscure project, the duo brings along several members of the Twin Peaks cast, including stars such as Miguel Ferrer and Ian Buchanan, as well as writer Robert Engels and director Lesli Linka Glater. Unsurprisingly, On the Air has a similar tone to Twin Peaks well, it has a similar tone to the comedic sections of Twin Peaks.On the Air chronicles the making of The Lester Guy Show, a 1950s variety program starring the arrogant Lester Guy (Buchanan), which becomes a ratings hit after bumbling starlet Betty Hudson (Marla Rubinoff) captivates the audience. Only three episodes of On the Air made it to air in 1992, and only seven were ever made at all before ABC pulled the plug. This ones not for everyone, but for those who love Lucy and Andys hijinks in Twin Peaks, On the Air is a lot of fun.11. Lost Highway (1997)As much as hes embraced by the avant-garde, Lynch is, at his heart, an affable Midwesterner. So theres a bit of a disconnect in Lost Highway, which drips with late 90s cool. Lost Highway takes Lynchs fascination with doubles into a new direction, with Bill Pullman as a sax player whose doppelgnger might murder his bombshell wife (Patricia Arquette), who looks identical to the mistress of powerful mobster Mr. Eddy (Robert Loggia).The noir trappings give Lynch new avenues to explore his pet themes, making for the directors sexiest (but not most sensual) film. Robert Blake gives Lynch the best depiction of evil this side of Twin Peaks Bob, known only as the mystery man. However, the hipness of Lost Highway often feels overdone, especially with a terribly miscast Pullman trying to convey an edge he simply lacks.10. Hotel Room (1993)The HBO anthology series Hotel Room is hard to classify, simply because of its an odd production. Created by Lynch and Wild at Heart producer Monty Montgomery, Hotel Room tells short stories about the strange happenings within room 603 of the Railroad Hotel. Lynch and Montgomery hoped to produce a full season of standalone episodes, but only a single anthology movie aired on HBO, consisting of three stories.The middle entry directed by James Signorelli is passable at best, but the first and third sections, both directed by Lynch, have merit. The first is an intense and stagy bit about two older men (Freddie Jones and Harry Dean Stanton) with a mysterious connection and the sex worker (Glenne Headly) they fight over. The third is outstanding, a tense and unexplainable conversation between a married couple (Crispin Glover and Alicia Witt) during a power outage. The two segments are fine slices of Lynch storytelling, if a little too underdeveloped to stand up with his best work. Join our mailing listGet the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox!9. The Elephant Man (1980)The Elephant Man is truly the outlier in Lynchs filmography. A tony biopic about a tragic figure, starring respected actors Anthony Hopkins and John Hurt, The Elephant Man seems more like an Oscar play than the sophomore film of an experimental filmmaker.However, Lynch works several of his characteristic elements into the movie. The black and white photography, industrial imagery, and dream sequences involving John Merricks (Hurt) mother all make The Elephant Man a strange mixture of traditional biopic and Lynch weirdness.9. Dune (1984)One would think that Denis Villeneuves excellent and more faithful adaptations of the Frank Herbert novel would only make Lynchs infamously uneven Dune look even worse. However, the modern blockbusters have had the opposite effect. For everything that Villeneuve does right, theres a monochromatic domestication to his vision of Arrakis and its warring houses. It feels like a place where people named Paul and Jessica live, not the home of Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen, Liet Kynes, or Chani.Whatever its shortcomings, the David Lynch Dune feels otherworldly. Even when the most bumpkin actor of all time Everett McGill is playing Fremen leader Stilgar, Lynch surrounds him with oddities, such as Patrick Stewart charging into battle with a pug in his arms or the most disgusting Baron Harkonnen imaginable. Its an off-putting film, one poorly suited to launching a sci-fi franchise. But it is unique and unexpected, and that deserves praise.8. Wild at Heart (1990)Wild at Heart is Lynch at his most excessive, in both his pure romanticism and his bizarre visuals. Based on the novel by Barry Gifford, Wild at Heart stars Nicolas Cage and Laura Dern as Sailor and Lula, whose unadulterated love makes them outcasts to the rest of the world. Wild at Heart goes all the way, and Cage and Dern are very much up to the task, giving vulnerable, raw performances.That said, every single person in Wild at Heart goes just as far. Crispin Glover shows up as aman obsessed with Christmas, Derns mother Diane Ladd covers her entire face with lipstick, and Willem Dafoe gleefully plays the most upsetting person ever captured on film. And somehow, the whole thing plays as a tribute to The Wizard of Oz, which either makes Wild at Heart more wonderful or more disturbing, depending on your tolerance for extremes.Eraserhead put Lynch on the map, thanks to the midnight screenings of the late 1970s. To this day, Eraserhead contains some of Lynchs most indelible images, such as the puffy cheeked woman in the radiator and an indescribable bird-like baby. With its black and white photography and emphasis on industrial landscapes, its no wonder that so many see Eraserhead as an aggressive outsider classic.However, too much attention to the edgy elements can distract from Eraserheads fundamentally empathetic core. Eraserhead captures the feeling of a young man unsure about the responsibilities of adulthood, as seen in Jack Nances bemused stare and Charlotte Stewarts emotional breakdowns. This film set the tone for all of Lynchs work to follow, at once shocking and moving.6. Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me (1992)Even today, its easy to see why so many rejected Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me when it first debuted at Cannes. The prequel movie leaves unresolved the cliffhanger at the end of the series and, in fact, does away with the comedic and romantic parts of the show (along with most of the cast) for a harrowing look at the last week in the life of Laura Palmer.Yet, Fire Walk With Me deserves praise for the way Kyle MacLachlans reluctance to participate in the film drove Lynch to ideas about doppelgangers and doubles, which became the focus of his next couple of films. Best of all, Fire Walk With Me makes Laura into a proper character, not just the tragic pretty girl that everyone talks about and mourns in the series. Sheryl Lee gives a virtuoso performance as the doomed Laura, finding surprising notes of heroism in her character, without sacrificing the horror of her last days.5. The Straight Story (1999)On the surface, The Straight Story sounds like the most unlikely entry in Lynchs filmography. Its a G-rated movie for the Walt Disney Company, based on the inspirational true story about an elderly man who travels across the Midwest on a riding lawnmower to see his dying brother one last time.The Straight Story might lack sinister owls or horrific doubles, but it is Lynch through and through. Written by Lynchs frequent collaborator Mary Sweeney and John Roach, The Straight Story stars Richard Farnsworth as Alvin Straight, who makes the 240-mile trek to see his brother Lyle (Harry Dean Stanton). The Straight Story finds Lynch using his experimental techniques to underscore the weight of the years accrued by these elderly men, anchored by an outstanding performance by Farnsworth.4. Twin Peaks (1990-1991)In a better world, Twin Peaks would be number one on any Lynch ranking. The series could have been the perfect avenue for Lynch and Frost to explore their unique interests. Although the series purports to follow FBI Special Agent Dale Coopers (MacLachlan) investigation into the murder of Laura Palmer (Lee), it is in fact an exploration of the eccentricities of a small northwestern logging town.Twin Peaks has its moments of surreal horror, especially the infamous Red Room and the backwards-talking Man from Another Place (Michael J. Anderson). But its also an ongoing parody of soap operas and features moments of unironic teen romance, slapstick comedy, and more. When Lynch and Frost were at the helm, Twin Peaks combined these elements into something amazing. When they stepped away, leaving the reigns to Harley Peyton and Robert Engels, Twin Peaks became a parody of itself, which accounts for its lower ranking here.3. Blue Velvet (1986)Blue Velvet begins with a shot of a pleasant suburb, complete with a man watering his lawn. When the man has a heart attack, the camera follows him as he collapses, and then continues into the dirt, where it holds on the creepy crawlies lurking below the well-maintained yards. A lesser filmmaker would have stopped there, thinking that the suburbs are weird is enough of a statement, even 30 years after John Cheevers best stories.But Lynch goes farther in Blue Velvet, using its Neo Noir tropes to portray innocence lost and innocence never present. Good boy Jeffrey (MacLachlan) returns to his hometown and connects with his one-time love (Dern), only to get pulled into a mystery involving an alluring torch singer (Isabella Rossellini) and her abuser (Dennis Hopper). The scene of a nude Rossellini running outside and screaming at the void goes far beyond Blue Velvets opening shot, cementing Lynchs status as one of cinemas most important voices.2. Twin Peaks: The Return (2017)Ill see you in 25 years, Laura tells Agent Cooper in the 1991 finale of Twin Peaks. The fact that Twin Peaks: The Return only misses that promise by one year speaks to how special, and unexpected, the series is. On one hand, The Return does indeed follow-up on the original series, bringing back nearly every cast member (the retired Michael Ontkean and Michael J. Anderson declined to show up), but also exploring issues of aging, nostalgia, and unresolvable dread.The Return features moments of fan service, including a long-awaited kiss between Big Ed (Everett McGill) and Norma (Peggy Lipton), Bobby (Dana Ashbrook) remembering his late fathers advice, and confirmation that James (James Marshall) was always cool. But it also intentionally frustrates the audience, both by keeping Cooper out of almost all of the series, replacing him with the brain dead Dougie, and completely undercutting the idea that Cooper could ever save Laura. All together, The Return feels like the coda of Lynchs work, a celebration of everything that makes him so weird and moving.1. Mulholland Drive (2001)First of all, we have to acknowledge that Mulholland Drive can be explained pretty easily. It doesnt take much to unravel the mystery of starry-eyed ingnue Betty (Naomi Watts), her doppelgnger Diane, her new friend Rita (Laura Harring) and Ritas doppelgnger Camilla. The blue box, the incompetent hit man, heck, even the spooky figure behind Winkysall of that fits into a coherent explanation.But anyone who worries about explaining Mulholland Drive is missing the point. Mulholland Drive stands as the ultimate statement on the power and peril of the movies, and Lynch fills the film with moments that operate best on an emotional and ineffable level. To explain the depths of feeling that the otherwise flighty Betty conjures during her audition or the slow dread of the cowboy who meets director Adam Kesher (Justin Theroux) is to limit them. Instead, more than any of Lynchs other works, Mulholland Drive exists as a feeling and a dream, something that stays with you, even in the waking world.

Over the span of its 50-year run, Saturday Night Live has played host some of the most talented comedic performers in American TV history. Equally as impressive as SNLs roster of cast members, however, is the list of folks who tried out for the show and failed to make the cut. Why is it that so many successful comedic figures couldnt crack the rotation on SNL? It turns out that not even the people in charge of the auditions fully know why.Theres a lot of people I brought in and thought I cant believe were not hiring that person,' Marci Klein, SNL Head of Talent from 1995-2012, says in the new Peacock docuseries SNL50: Beyond Saturday Night.Produced by Morgan Neville and released a month in advance of the official observance of SNLs 50th anniversary, SNL50: Beyond Saturday Night is a fascinating watch. Three of the docuseries four episodes dive into SNL specifics (including a behind-the-scenes peek at the writing process of a 2024 episode, an oral-history of More Cowbell, and an autopsy of what went wrong with season 11). But episode 1 Five Minutes takes a broader look at the most important five minutes of every SNL cast members journey: their audition.Footage of SNLs audition process is frequently hard to come by. Aside from an SNL 40th anniversary compilation and Will Ferrells iconic tryout, viewers dont often get to see video of successful SNL auditions, let alone the ones that ended in disappointment. SNL50: Beyond Saturday Night provides viewers with a privileged look at both. In addition to the auditions of SNL heavy-hitters like Amy Poehler, Fred Armisen, Kristen Wiig, and more,NOTE: While each of these entries is accompanied by a YouTube video embed to break up the textual monotony, only the Jim Carrey, Kevin Hart, and Stephen Colbert sections contain footage from their respective auditions as those have been previously released. Footage from the remaining auditions can be found around the 18:30-mark of SNL50: Beyond Saturday Nights first episode.Jim CarreyOf all the people who stopped by the Studio 8H audition stage, Jim Carrey looms large as the one that got away. Not only did the elastic performer become one of the biggest comedy stars at the box office, but he proved his sketch chops by becoming part of the cast of In Living Color. His audition, while raw, contains plenty of hints of the excitement to come like his rendition of a baby-armed post-nuclear Elvis. Jennifer CoolidgeJennifer Coolidge was so funny. But I couldnt get anybody to get it, Klein says in SNL50: Beyond Saturday Night. Jennifer Coolidge is indeed very funny but it probably takes longer than a five-minute audition to fully connect with her laidback comedic style. Thankfully, SNLs loss on this one was the worlds gain. Coolidge had a successful career in Christopher Guest mockumentaries before joining HBOs The White Lotus and winning an Emmy award. Shes also a popular impression for current SNL cast members and hosts.Kevin HartBefore he became one of the most successful stand-up comedians and movie stars of his era, Kevin Hart was just a young background actor in Judd Apatow projects trying to make his way in the world. His path led him to an SNL audition, which he kind of killed! Unfortunately his rendition of a man who had a spinal fusion didnt connect with the panel. Mindy KalingMindy Kaling has made a name for herself as both a comedic performer and writer in TV series like The Office and The Mindy Kaling Project. Based on that dual experience, one would imagine that she would be a perfect fit for SNL. Still, the audition panel didnt vibe with her audition for whatever reason. In the one bit we see in SNL50: Beyond Saturday Night, the Massachusetts-native is wearing a Boston Red Sox hoodie and playing a character from New England. Perhaps the show felt it had already hit its Masshole quota in the wake of Jimmy Fallon and Rachel Dratch Boston Teens sketches. Donald GloverNow the ultimate multi-hyphenate as writer/producer/actor/stand-up/director/Grammy-winning musical artist, Donald Glover a.k.a. Childish Gambino got his start in television comedy. Hell, he got his start in television comedy on SNLs own home turf of NBC! While a writer on 30 Rock (and just before he got his breakout role as Troy Barnes on Community), Glover attended a rare mid-season audition for SNL, which was looking for a regular Barack Obama impersonator. While his Obama impression apparently didnt pan out (the show chose Fred Armisen a white performer already in the cast ), he did uncork a killer Chris Rock impression in which he complained about an influx of vampires in New York City. Jordan PeeleAlso brought in to audition for the role of SNLs Barack Obama impersonator was then-Mad TV star Jordan Peele. Thanks to its subsequent deployment on Peele and Keegan-Michael Keys own sketch show Key & Peele, we know that said Obama impression was a good one. And SNL agreed! They reportedly were prepared to give Peele the job but Fox refused to let him out of his Mad TV contract. Oh well, Peele decided to settle for becoming a generational horror filmmaker instead by creating Get Out, Us, and Nope. In SNL50: Beyond Saturday Night, we get a look at the non-Obama portion of Peeles audition. It contains a hilarious impression of a Starbucks barista from the hood who is adamant that a customer requested a caramel mint mocha latte.Join our mailing listGet the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox!Stephen ColbertThe Late Show host Stephen Colbert is the only non-SNL cast member that SNL50: Beyond Saturday Night invites on to watch footage of his own failed audition. I was hoping Id never see this, Colbert says right before the clip plays. His concern is unwarranted as the young Stephen Colberts audition is very good! He plays a waiter who is nauseated by the mere thought of food and has to hold back vomit while reading the days specials. Henry ZebrowskiHenry Zebrowski never got a chance to be a star on Saturday Night Live but he is very much the start of the first episode of SNL50: Beyond Saturday Night. There was a guy named Henry Zebrowski who did his audition, Lindsay Shookus says. Three minutes in he came out from behind the wall and he was completely naked. It was such a shock. Im not even sure what he did at that point. He was the naked guy and he didnt get hired. Not because he was naked. We then get to see Henry in all naked glory. Zebrowski did just fine without SNL, enjoying a long career as a sketch comedian and getting a supporting role in Martin Scorseses The Wolf of Wall Street. Currently he is one of the hosts of paranormal/true crime podcast Last Podcast on the Left and a co-owner of the Last Podcast Network. All four episodes of SNL: Beyond Saturday Night are available to stream on Peacock now.

Warning: contains a banishment spoiler for The Traitors series 3, episode 7Not looking in the ugly mirror is a basic rule for maintaining self esteem. Wherever yours hangs (mines in my in-laws downstairs bathroom), that harshly lit, unnaturally magnifying surface that only ever reflects back sagging jowls, baggy pores and surprise eyelid hairs is one to avoid. Slip past it and keep up the illusion that your face is still the same one from your graduation photos instead of the melted-wax, double-chinned imposter who gurns up at you from your Facetime screen like Gollum in a toilet.Itd be straightforward if ugly mirrors only hung in caf loos and bookshop stairwells. They dont. Theres at least one in your home right now, and if its anything like mine, its playingThe Traitorson BBC One and reflecting the ugliest truth of all: man, we are clueless.The Traitorsshows that not only are we clueless, but, more unflattering than that, wethinkthat were clever. Wise is the man who knows that he knows nothing? Well, delusional is the Faithful who knows 100% that one of their fellow players is a Traitor.To recap for the holdouts who refuse Reality TV like a hunger striker refuses a sandwich (piously and without prospect of joy):The Traitorswelcomes 25 contestants to a castle in Scotland where Claudia Winkleman toys with them in fingerless gloves. Three are secretly selected as Traitors and convene each night to choose which of the remaining Faithful to murder/leave a note for saying theyve been murdered. The Faithful have to sniff out the Traitors in the nightly roundtables after which everybody votes on who to banish from the castle. The Traitors have to do whatever they can form alliances, misdirect, and sow suspicion about Faithfuls not to get caught.In the most recent episode, a Traitor was successfully banished, and the Faithful reacted like chimps in a blood frenzy. The chap whod petitioned for the Traitors removal leapt up, slapped his hands on the table and jumped around shouting I did it! I did it! Day one! Day one! Come on! Comeon! From the train! On that train!Here, its useful to know that the contestants arrive on the show via train. Crucially though, in light of the man celebrating having pinpointed a Traitor as far back as the train, is that there are no Faithfuls or Traitors on that train. The roles arent assigned until after they reach the castle. What hes celebrating is having had a random hunch early doors, and that hunch, just as randomly, turning out to have been right. Its stupid, and its also how the entire thing works.The Traitorsmay as well be named Confirmation Bias Castle because every 100%, dead-on conviction the Faithful have about whos a Traitor is a guess shored up by nonsense. Somebody blinks at the wrong time theyre a Traitor. Somebody looks down at the wrong time Traitor. Somebody is too nice, or too rude, or too loud, or too quiet, or too anything Traitor, Traitor, Traitor.Have your name mentioned at all, in fact, and youre a Traitor. The same cynical engine that keeps pumping existing-IP franchises into cinemas because we all flock to stuff weve seen and heard before, drives the Faithfuls accusations.Once a name takes hold in a group, reasons are found to stand in for evidence in a post-rationalisation free-for-all. Faithfuls suspicions go from 0 to 60 in seconds until theyre willing to stake their survival in the game on what can only ever be a stab in the dark. Bonded groups convince themselves of how right they are, and how Faithful they are. Nobody talks about guesses, only what theyknow. Theyre convinced that their groundless theories, based on nothing but social bonds and post hoc fallacy, are fact.Its striking how attached players get to their hunches. Even when new evidence presents itself, theyll ignore or deny it to suit the version of events theyve already decided on. Even after being proven wrong when a banished player reveals themselves to have been Faithful, they still nurse suspicions and try to justify their wrongness.Join our mailing listGet the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox!Its not a pretty reflection, but like that waxy-faced jowly one in the ugly mirror, its also the unfortunate truth.The Traitors pantomime of conviction based on affiliation, and guesses dressed as fact, is exactly how we all do it too. Ever read a headline and filed it mentally away, but not bothered to investigate further? Thats Livi seizing on Freddies name and choosing him as her hill to die on. Ever formed a trust attachment to somebody based solely on proximity? Thats the Faithful crossing their fingers that OG player Leon had survived the episode six game instead of latecomers Fozia and Alexander. Ever been absolutely sure of something but subsequently proved wrong, and then done it again and again and again? Thats the players almost every episode.The Traitorshas developed into ingenious television thats precision-engineered to captivate its audience. Its both a brilliant TV distraction and a high-camp laugh. In these post-expert, alternative-fact, disinformation-rife days though, its also getting harder to squint away from the unflattering reality it reflects.The Traitors series three airs at 9pm on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays on BBC One and iPlayer.

Whether youre eagerly awaiting the release date of the sequels to Death Stranding and Ghost of Tsushima or looking for some hidden gems like Tales of the Shire and The Alters, there are a lot of exciting and noteworthy games slated to come out on the PS5 this year. We know it can be challenging to keep up with release dates in the ever-fluid video game landscape as new titles are announced and others are shifted around to accommodate production schedules.To help keep things straight, weve put together a handy little guide of the upcoming games that PS5 owners should keep an eye on in 2025.Star Wars Episode 1: Jedi Power BattlesAspyr Jan. 23Originally released for the PlayStation, Sega Dreamcast, and Game Boy Advance, Star Wars Episode 1: Jedi Power Battles is getting a re-release for its 25th anniversary. This remastered version of the classic Star Wars game brings back couch co-op mode, training rooms, bonus levels, and the arcade cheats and power-ups that made the original version so fun. In addition, the game will have 13 new playable characters, including Jar Jar Binks, and a lightsaber toggle that allows players to choose between the original lightsaber colors used in the game or more screen-accurate versions. No matter your age, Star Wars Episode 1: Jedi Power Battles is sure to be a fun walk (or Force-powered jump) down memory lane.Kingdom Come: Deliverance IIWarhorse Studios Feb. 4Set in the Kingdom of Bohemia during the early 15th century, Kingdom Come: Deliverance II follows the story of Henry, a trusted diplomatic escort of the king who seeks revenge for his murdered family. In the games open-world Medieval setting, the player can guide Henry on daring adventures, forge alliances with a charismatic cast of characters, and engage in visceral real-time combat. Kingdom Come: Deliverance II is a gripping action RPG perfect for anyone eager to step into an epic Medieval adventure.Civilization 7 Firaxis Games Feb 11Arriving nearly a decade after the previous game, Civilization VII promises to be a revolutionary new chapter in this award-winning franchise. Similar to its predecessors, Civilization VII is a turn-based tactical strategy game where you develop an empire across three distinct historic eras. With updated graphics and improved gameplay that includes updates to diplomacy mechanics, changes to production management, as well as other improvements, this evolution seems poised to bring this franchise into the next generation.Monster Hunter Wilds Capcom Feb 28The latest chapter in the Monster Hunter series, Monster Hunter Wilds is set in the Forbidden Lands, an uncharted region long thought to be uninhabited. That is, until a boy named Nata is discovered near the border of these lands, on the run from a mysterious creature known as the White Wraith that attacked his people. As the player, you control The Hunter, one of the professional monster hunters tasked with searching for the White Wraith, charting the Forbidden Lands, and searching for Natas people. Monster Hunter Wilds doesnt only have an intriguing story, however. The game also features new fighting moves and a wide variety of weapons and equipment that give you even more ways to use monsters and their environment to your advantage. Even if youre not familiar with the series, Monster Hunter Wilds looks to be a fun game for any fan of action RPG games.Assassins Creed ShadowsUbisoft March 20Join our mailing listGet the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox!Set in the late Sengoku period of feudal Japan, Assassins Creed Shadows features two playable protagonists: Naoe, a shinobi assassin, and Yasuke, a legendary samurai. Quests can be handled as either protagonist, with Naoe as the more stealthy and discrete approach and Yasuke as the charismatic warrior, useful for taking on several enemies at a time. The game encourages players to explore the open world gathering intel and building a network of spies ready to help usher Japan into a new era. Based on the hands-off preview we saw at SGF, this already looks like a worthy entry in the Assassins Creed franchise.Tales of the ShireWt Workshop March 5New cozy game alert!Tales of the Shireis like ifStardew ValleyandAnimal Crossingtook a trip to the Shire ofLord of the Rings.The game lets players live out their dreams of spending time in the idyllic landscape of the Shire as they create their own character, decorate their own Hobbit hole, make friends in the community, and help the town flourish. We playedTales of the Shireat SGF and were impressed with the amount of care put into creating this version of the Shire. Even though the game isnt technically canon, there are still plenty of references and easter eggs forLord of the Ringsfans to find.Fatal Fury: City of the WolvesSNK April 21The popular 90s fighting game franchise Fatal Fury is back after 26 years with Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves. With 22 playable characters, including 17 familiar faces from previous games, and 3 different modes of gameplay, there are plenty of options for longtime fans and franchise newcomers alike to have a great time. Theres a single-player RPG mode, Episodes of South Town, as well as online modes that allow you to match with other players or clones generated by automatic AI technology that learns your play style.Double Dragon Revive Yukes Oct 23Another popular fighting game franchise set to return this year is Double Dragon. This isnt the first modern-era sequel for this arcade-style beat em up franchise, but that doesnt mean we arent excited to see what this game has in store in 2025. With four playable characters, including brothers Jimmy and Billy Lee, modern 3D graphics, and an exhilarating belt-scroll action experience, Double Dragon Revive seems like a fun merge of past and present gaming.Borderlands 4 Gearbox Software TBDSet on the all-new planet of Kairos, Borderlands 4 already looks like it will be an irreverent, chaotic timeas any good Borderlands game should be. While we dont know a lot about the game thus far, Gearbox promises the games will deliver intense action and billions of wild and deadly weapons with its brand new planet and story. Youll get to control one of four new Vault Hunters seeking wealth and glory after crashing on Kairos and breaking free from the planets ruthless dictator, the Timekeeper. With the option to play solo or in co-op with up to three other players as well as free-form combat and exploration, there are plenty of opportunities to fight your way through the planet, and maybe even spark a rebellion in the process.Capcom TBDWith a mix of classic 2D and 3D style games, fans of classic Capcom arcade-style games have a lot to look forward to with Capcom Fighting Collection 2. Including titles such as Capcom vs. SNK, Capcom vs. SNK 2, Power Stone, Power Stone 2, Street Fighter Alpha 3 Upper, and more, this game is perfect for anyone looking to recreate the retro-gaming experience. Capcom Fighting Collection 2 also includes an online play mode that allows you to play casual, ranked, and custom matches with other players across the globe. This game is also very beginner-friendly with training modes as well as adjustable difficulty settings and a customizable button layout that allows for one-button special moves in combat. So even if you arent an arcade legend, theres still plenty of fun to be had.Death Stranding 2: On The Beach Kojima Productions TBDThe long-awaited sequel to Hideo Kojimas Death Stranding is finally set to be released this year. This sci-fi adventure is will once again follow Sam (Norman Reedus) as he tries to reconnect the world outside of the UCA and save humanity from extinction. If the trailer above is any indication, it looks like fans are in for another surreal adventure that doesnt totally make sense but that is engaging all the way through. With creepy fetus cutaways, a talking, sentient marionette companion, an electric guitar that shoots lightning, sword wielding robots, and so much more, we are absolutely seated for whatever Death Stranding 2: On the Beach has in store for us.DOOM: The Dark AgesBethesda Softworks TBDCue the heavy metal, DOOM fans, because the latest game in the franchise is coming to crush some demon skulls. A prequel to DOOM (2016) and DOOM Eternal, DOOM: The Dark Ages tells the origin of the DOOM Slayer as the hero fights against the forces of Hell in a dark fantasy setting unlike anything weve seen from this franchise before. This single-player FPS not only allows you to crush combat scenarios with classic DOOM weaponry, The Dark Ages also features new tools like a face-shattering flail, throwable Shield Saw, and yes, even a Mecha Dragon.Dying Light: The Beast Techland TBDAfter over a decade in captivity, Dying Light hero Kyle Crane escapes into a changed world, though not necessarily for the better. Using not only the survival skills honed in the previous games, but also some new abilities that come from being experimented on, in Dying Light: The Beast, youll once again play as Crane as he tries to help the survivors of Castor Woods and keep the ever increasing population of zombies at bay. This survival horror game also has a 4-player co-op feature if you want a little help to make it through the violent, zombie-filled nights.Elden Ring: NightReign FromSoftware Inc. TBDUnlike Shadow of the Erdtree, Elden Ring: NightReign is not DLC for the original game, but rather a standalone adventure set within the Elden Ring universe. In fact, this game reimagines the games core design. NightReign features a relentless environmental threat that changes from one playthrough to the next and is also set to include a 3-player co-op mode as well as new uniquely skilled heroes that are formidable on their own, but can create a powerful partnership when they unite as a team against the creeping night. If youve ever wanted to play a FromSoftware Soulslike with friends, nows your chance.Ghost of Yotei Sucker Punch Productions TBDSet 300 years after Ghost of Tsushima, Ghost of Yotei follows a new samurai, Atsu, on her quest for revenge in 17th century Japan. We dont know much about her story yet, but with a new mountainous setting to explore, Ghost of Yotei already looks like it will be just as visually stunning as its predecessor, if not more so. This is Sucker Punchs first game built specifically for the PS5, which means this new setting and playable protagonist will also likely come with new mechanics and weapons built to make this game as fun and epic as possible.Grand Theft Auto VI Rockstar Games TBDTwelve long years after GTA V hit shelves, Grand Theft Auto VI is finally supposed to arrive this year. Promising to be the biggest, most immersive evolution of the Grand Theft Auto series yet, GTA VI will be set in the fictional state of Leonida, home of Vice City. This game will feature the franchises first female protagonist since 2000, Lucia, and her partner in a Bonnie and Clyde-inspired scenario.Indiana Jones and the Great CircleMachine Games TBDAfter debuting on the Xbox Series X/S and Game Pass last year, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle is set to make its way to the PS5 sometime this year. Set in 1937 betweenRaiders of the Lost ArkandThe Last Crusade, the player will dive into Indys world of exploration, puzzle solving, and action as they race to stop enemy forces from uncovering an ancient power connected to The Great Circle. As the titular archaeologist and action hero, youll travel the globe, forge alliances, and, of course, use Indys signature whip. Whether youre a long-time fan or just looking for your next fun action-adventure game,Indiana Jones and the Great Circlelooks like it will be a cinematic, action-packed experience.Judas Ghost Story Games TBDFrom the creator of BioShock, Judas is a single player narrative FPS set on a disintegrating starship. Playing as the mysterious and troubled Judas, you must navigate alliances, fight against foes, and do whatever it takes to escape. Whether youre a fan of BioShock or just looking for a new and intriguing sci-fi game, Judas is definitely one to keep your eye on this year.Killing Floor 3 Tripwire Interactive TBDThe Co-op action horror FPS franchise thats fun for your entire squad of friends is back this year with Killing Floor 3. Made with Unreal Engine 5, this next-gen sequel looks to be full of the blood, gore, and heart-pounding action that fans have come to love. Playing as a member of the rebel group Nightfall, you and up to five teammates must fight against waves of zeds (bioengineered zombies) in order to save humanity.The Alters 11 Bit Studios TBDThe Alters tells the story of Jan, a simple miner who crash lands on a hostile planet alone. Tasked with running a mobile base by himself, Jan soon realizes that he cant do this alone if hes going to survive. With the help of his ships quantum computer and a rare substance found on this planet, Jan is able to create clones of himself based on different life paths he may or may not have chosen in his past. While these clones are versions of him, they are also very different people with their own motivations, goals, and fearswhich means that they dont always get along. Its a very intriguing premise that makes for a unique sci-fi survival game that we really cant wait to play.Vampire: The Masquerade Bloodlines 2 Paradox Interactive TBDIts been over twenty years since Vampire: The Masquerade Bloodlines was first released, and now were finally set to see the sequel this year. Just like its predecessor, Vampire: The Masquerade Bloodlines 2 is an action RPG where you get to play as an elder vampire. As you fight and talk your way through modern-day Seattle, your choices matter. Whether you choose to rise through the ranks of vampire society or rail against it, your decisions influence the balance of power in the city and what becomes of it and the people within. Whether youre familiar with this franchise or looking to dip your toe into a new RPG, Vampire: The Masquerade Bloodlines 2 looks like itll be a blood-sucking good time.Wuchang: Fallen Feathers Leenzee Games TBDA dark and fantastical Soulslike game, Wuchang: Fallen Feathers follows Wuchang, a pirate who awakens with amnesia in the final years of Chinas Ming Dynasty. Its a chaotic time as a mysterious phenomenon known as Feathering has come to the land of Shu, causing mutations and an epidemic of plague and monsters across the land. Playing as Wuchang, you must fight your way forward using a variety of fighting styles, hidden weapons, ancient firearms, and even the power of Feathering itself to forge a path toward the truth, and hopefully uncover some of your own memories along the way.

Wolf Man begins with a father and son on a hunting trip in which the latter decides to share with his boy some advice about the way of the world. Dying isnt hard. Its the easiest thing in the world, the dad (Ben Prendergast) warns his son Blake (Zac Chandler). At every minute its closing up behind you. Given the intense warning, and the cold distance in papas eyes, its no surprise that when we again meet the adult Blake (Christopher Abbott) 30 years later, hes living not in the Oregon wilderness of his father, but in San Fransisco. Nor is it a surprise that the otherwise kindly Blake gets way too intense about warning his daughter Ginger (Matilda Firth) to be safe.That early juxtaposition seems to signal Leigh Whannells intentions for the Blumhouse update of Wolf Man. Weve been trained by modern horror movies to read every tooth and claw as allegory for some social ill, to expect scary movies to lecture us about trauma with each slashers attack. While Whannell elegantly married scares and substance into his reimagining of The Invisible Man, he doesnt overburden Wolf Man with thematic concerns. Outside of an occasional clunker line about daddies accidentally scarring their kids when trying to protect them from scars, Wolf Man doesnt devote undue time to its ideas about parents passing their trauma onto kids.In fact, Wolf Man eschews most expectations viewers bring to it. Wolf Man follows Blake as he takes his wife Charlotte (Julia Garner) to his late fathers home. Hes there in equal measures to work through his feelings about his estranged dad and to repair his strained marriage. No sooner do they arrive outside the wooded homestead, however, than the family is attacked by a beast that seems to walk on two legs. The attack leaves Blake wounded and acting strangely toward his wife and daughter.From that description, you might think you know what Wolf Man is, especially if youve seen other werewolf movies and Whannells previous directorial outings, Upgrade and The Invisible Man. You expect Blake to turn into a werewolf and terrorize Charlotte and Ginger, with Whannell depicting the conflict with the visceral imagery and flashy camera moves he used earlier.Those things do happen in Wolf Man, but not at all in the way viewers expect. Whannell keeps his camera largely still until the end of the first act, the first bit of bravado occurring when the family tries to escape their moving truck, overturned by the creatures attack. And yes, Wolf Man has an impressive transformation sequence, the highlight of every werewolf movie going back to the overlapping dissolves on Lon Chaney Jr.s face in 1941s The Wolf Man.Instead of a single sequence, the transformation happens slowly in Wolf Man with Blake changing a little bit at a time over the films second act. Make no mistake, the practical effects impress just as much as the great Jack Pierce makeup in 1941 or Rick Bakers work in 1981s An American Werewolf in London. But Wolf Man takes the time to keep focused on the loss of the man instead of just celebrating the coming of the wolf.Abbott uses his natural puppy-dog eyes to convey Blakes loss of self as his body changes, his sharp teeth and extended jaw robbing him of the ability to speak. Whannells most impressive camera moves come when he swings it around from Charlotte, talking to her husband in recognizable English, to Blake, hearing her voice as muffled gibberish but seeing her with heightened lights and colors.As these moves suggest, the horror of Wolf Man comes first in the loss of communication and connection within a family unit. The opening scenes establish Blake as a caring father, a man desperate to avoid the mistakes of his own dad, and he and Charlotte as both sad about the spark theyve lost. The family wants to come together and find new ways of connecting, and Blakes transformation steals forever that possibility.For some viewers, the emphasis on tragedy will disappoint. Although Whannell proves as adept as ever with blocking and composition, tension comes second to character work. And while Whannell got his start as a writer, co-creating the Saw and Insidious universes with fellow Aussie James Wan, dialogue was never his strong suit. Not even an assist from co-writer Corbett Tuck can prevent Whannell from having the characters occasionally declare their feelings or the movies themes, as when Charlotte just looks at the camera and says she has trouble connecting with her daughter.For that reason, stripping Blake of his speech abilities helps the movie overall, as it gives Abbott, Garner, and Firth space to communicate through facial expressions and body language. Blake looks increasingly helpless the more lupine he becomes while Garner lets Charlotte slump in defeat and desperation, even as she needs to be strong for her daughter.Moreover, the focus on family drama grounds Wolf Man in the classic Universal tradition. Most of the great Universal Monsters were tragic heroes, romantic figures who lamented the way their otherness separated them from society. The horror came less from, say, Frankensteins Monster lumbering toward a townsperson than from the way they would shriek in fright, forcing him into the threat they feared.Join our mailing listGet the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox!Blake follows in the footsteps of those greats, which creates an interesting dynamic for the chase sequences that make of the movies third act and underscore the central theme without having to shout it. We understand that Blake may prove his father correct. He taught his family that the world is fundamentally dangerous, a terrifying thought that echoes far longer than even the most bone-chilling howl.Wolf Man opens in theaters on Friday, Jan. 17. Learn more about Den of Geeks review process and why you can trust our recommendationshere.