Paul Thomas Anderson’s “One Battle After Another,” “Sinners,” “Weapons,” “Frankenstein and “Wicked: For Good” led the 13th annual Make-Up Artists & Hair Stylists Guild Award nominations.

The films all three landed nominations apiece.

The makeup and hair team behind “One Battle After Another” was nominated in contemporary makeup and special makeup prosthetics. Arjen Tuiten, who was nominated in the latter category, used prosthetic pieces, contact lenses and dentures for Sean Penn’s Colonel Lockjaw in the film’s third act after he survives a horrific car crash.

For “Frankenstein,” Mike Hill, the film’s prosthetics artist, steered clear of the classic zombie, and used 42 prosthetic pieces to transform Jacob Elordi in Guillermo del Toro’s Creature.

Francis Hannon had her work cut out for her on “Wicked: For Good.” Aside from keeping Cynthia Erivo’s Elphaba green, she had to work with Mark Coulier to transform Jonathan Bailey into the...

James Cameron’s “Avatar: Fire and Ash” remained the dominant force at the China box office over the Dec. 26–28 frame, adding RMB166.4 million ($23.4 million) to lift its local cumulative total to RMB700 million ($98.6 million), according to Artisan Gateway.

Disney’s “Zootopia 2” held steady in second place, grossing $15.2 million in its fifth weekend. The animated sequel has now amassed $558.3 million in China, cementing its position as one of the market’s highest-grossing releases of the year.

Maoyan Movie’s new release “The Fire Raven” opened in third place with $2.8 million. Directed and written by Sam Quah, the crime thriller centers on a cold case involving the murder of a student in Duma City, with a witness and a police officer drawn into a wider web of corruption and retribution. The film stars Peng Yuchang, Alan Aruna and Chang Ning.

Romantic drama “Love Is Hard,” from Ncm Television, was at No.

Ryan Coogler appeared on the “Happy Sad Confused” podcast amid his ongoing awards season press tour for “Sinners” and revealed the original story plans for “Black Panther 2.” The director was well into development on the sequel to his Oscar-winning 2018 blockbuster when lead actor Chadwick Boseman died in August 2020 from colon cancer. Boseman’s tragic passing forced Coogler to completely overhaul the sequel into what would become 2022’s “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.”

Marvel fans wondering what Coogler originally planned for Boseman’s return finally have an answer as Coogler told “Happy Sad Confused” podcast host Josh Horowitz that his original “Black Panther 2” script focused on an adventure between Boseman’s T’Challa and the character’s 8-year-old son. Namor, played by Tenoch Huerta in “Wakanda Forever,” was still the main villain.

“The big thing with the script was a thing called the Ritual of 8 where a prince is 8 years old,...

It seemed back in 2018 that Tom Hiddleston’s time with Marvel had come to an end when Thanos killed Loki at the start of “Avengers: Infinity War.” But that was swiftly undone with “Avengers: Endgame” a year later thanks to the film’s time-traveling shenanigans.

Now 15 years since first making his Marvel debut in “Thor,” Hiddleston is still playing the Asgardian trickster, having reprised the role in the two-season Disney+ series “Loki” and again in the upcoming blockbuster “Avengers: Doomsday,” due out next December.

In a career-spanning interview with GQ, Hiddleston said his affinity for Loki stems from his love of redemption stories from his childhood. As a teen, he...

There remains one group we’ve yet to hear from when it comes to the best films of 2025: the directors who made them.

IndieWire reached out to our favorite filmmakers to celebrate the year in motion pictures. We gave them freedom to reflect on the year in cinema however they chose, and what follows ranges from traditional top 10 lists to personal reflections, with participants singling out their favorite performances, plays, and arthouse porn from the past.

The entries are as eclectic as the directors themselves. Not surprisingly, filmmakers loved many of the same movies that have dominated critics’ top 10 Lists: “One Battle After Another,” “Sinners,” and “Sentimental Value” being the most frequently mentioned titles.

But what remains the most eye-opening aspect of this exercise is their insights into the yet-to-be-discovered gems, titles from around the globe that didn’t get U.S. distribution, and genre titles that didn’t get the respect they warranted.

Tommy Lee Jones is arguably one of the best actors ever, especially when it comes to playing no-nonsense dealers of justice. Therefore, it's quite fitting that his 2005 directorial debut, "The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada" (or "Three Burials"), is a Western that harbors a strong moral code. The film isn't exactly as well-known as other all-time great Westerns, but it received a perfect score from Roger Ebert, and that carries some weight.

"Three Burials" sees Jones portray a ranch hand by the name of Pete Perkins. After his best friend, the eponymous Melquiades Estrada (Julia Cesar Cedillo), is shot by a Border Patrol agent (Barry Pepper), Pete kidnaps the assailant,...

After a year like 2025, quite a few of us might feel like we need therapy, and there's great news — the incredible Apple TV series "Shrinking" is back with more TV therapists than you can shake a stick at. The show, which comes from co-creators Bill Lawrence, Jason Segel, and Brett Goldstein, takes a hilariously dark look at how therapists might often need help themselves, and the trailer for the upcoming third season is a great reminder of just how incredible this series really is. Not only do we get to see unconventional therapist Jimmy (Segel) try to find love for the first time after the death of his wife just...

“Tron: Ares” will park its light cycle at Disney+, as the movie arrives on the streamer on Jan. 7.

The science-fiction film is the third in the “Tron” franchise, following the 1982 original and its 2010 sequel, “Tron: Legacy.” It focuses on a powerful AI being called Ares that travels from the eponymous digital program into the real world. Jared Leto stars as the personified AI alongside Greta Lee, Evan Peters, Jodie Turner-Smith, Hasan Minhaj, Arturo Castro, Gillian Anderson and Jeff Bridges, who reprises his role as protagonist Kevin Flynn from the previous two movies. The film was directed by Joachim Rønning.

Disney released “Tron: Ares” in theaters on Oct. 10, 2025. It opened to $60 million at the global box office, toppling its competitor “Roofman,” which opened that same weekend. However, it dropped precipitously in its second week, when its No. 1 spot was usurped by “Black Phone 2.”

In total, “Tron: Ares” grossed $142 million at the worldwide box office,...

The Oscars finally decided they will honor stunt performers starting in 2028, and what a road it was for Hollywood's fall guys. What did it take to finally earn such recognition? Well, aside from sometimes literally giving their lives as a result of their perilous work, as was the case with the James Caan Western struck by tragedy, these dedicated performers have suffered all manner of injury throughout the history of filmmaking. Take actor and stuntman Charles Jarman, who was knocked out during the filming of the pencil trick scene in "The Dark Knight." In fact, Jarman lost consciousness a full three times (that he recalls!) from having his head slammed...

Rob Reiner, who tragically died along with his wife Michele earlier this month, will be remembered for making unforgettable movies that touched generations of viewers. And one of the best and most lasting is 1987’s “The Princess Bride,” a fairytale farce about true love that turned leads Robin Wright and Cary Elwes into household names.

This week, Elwes — who was in his early 20s when he played Westley, the dashing but often hapless hero of the film — joined his co-stars and many of Reiner’s other collaborators and colleagues in paying tribute to the filmmaker, actor, and philanthropist known for titles like “Stand by Me” and “When Harry Met Sally.” Like many who spoke out after the couple’s alleged murder, Elwes described Reiner’s warm personality and graciousness on set, something that often set him apart from other big names in the industry, as well as his willingness to...

2025 is almost over, and honestly? This year was a doozy. Also, as a holiday, let's be frank about New Year's Eve: It's one of the most over-hyped nights of the year. You can, if you want, go out that night and blow a bunch of money on champagne and Uber rides ... or, if you want, you can put together a cozy movie marathon with these five picks.

Realistically, the movies I've assembled here can be watched on New Year's Eve or New Year's Day, or you can start on Eve and wrap it all up throughout Day. Whatever floats your boat. So why these movies? First, there has to be...

Sitcoms have been around for long enough that the world of entertainment is rife with lost classics and underrated gems. One particular show that belongs firmly in the latter category is MTV's "Zach Stone Is Gonna Be Famous." Well-regarded by critics and viewers alike, this fun 2013 comedy series offers plenty of surprises — including an appearance by none other than Milana Vayntrub herself. Vayntrub, who's known for her role as Lily in the AT&T commercials, pops by in a guest star role as a character named Felcia in the fifth episode of the show's first and only season --"Zach Stone Is Gonna Get Wild."

This, of course, is just...

Screenis running this regularly updated page with the latest film festival and market dates from across the world.

To submit details of or alter your festival dates, pleasecontact us herewith the name, dates, country and website for the event.

January

Palm Springs International Film Festival, US - January 2-12

Saint Augustine Film Festival, US - January 5-11

Dances With Films: New York, US - January 15-18

Belmont World Film’s Family Festival, US - January 17-19, 24-25

Sundance Film Festival, US - January 22-February 1

Fipadoc International Documentary Film Festival, France - January 23-31

Goteborg Film Festival, Sweden - January 23-February 1

International Film Festival Rotterdam,...

It's the end of an era for Netflix. After five full seasons spanning nearly a decade, "Stranger Things" is coming to an end. The streamer is rolling out the red carpet for the show's conclusion, as the "Stranger Things" series finale will be playing in movie theaters across the U.S. The hype is very real. Even though people could easily watch the episode at home when it drops on New Year's Eve, showings are sold out all across the country. That's impressive, but there's a pretty big caveat to acknowledge.

Ross Duffer, who co-created "Stranger Things" with his sibling Matt Duffer, recently took to Instagram to hype up the series finale's theatrical release.

The second season of HBO's "The Last of Us" put every character through the wringer. Surviving a post-apocalyptic world overrun by the infected is bad enough, but season 2 brought the worst of human impulses to the forefront, setting the stage for a climactic third season. While this upcoming season was greenlit back in April, co-showrunner Neil Druckmann stepped away three months later, leaving Craig Mazin in charge. This isn't the only major change that season 3 has to contend with, as Danny Ramirez, who played Manny in Season 2, will not be reprising this role in the upcoming season. Per Entertainment Weekly, Ramirez will be recast due to scheduling conflicts.

Ramirez is...

Disney’s Avatar: Fire And Ash has surged past $800m at the worldwide box office in less than two weeks and just crossed $100m in China, which has shown glimmers of promise again for Hollywood this year.

James Cameron’s sci-fi epic stood at $101.8m in the territory as of December 30, contributing more than one-sixth of the $577.2m international running total. The tentpole from 20th Century Studios has amassed $805.1m worldwide and $227.9m in North America.

Latest territory highlights put Avatar: Fire And Ash on $58.9m in France, $46.9m in Germany, $33.1m in South Korea, and $30.5m in the UK.

“Shark Tank” star Kevin O’Leary makes his acting debut in A24’s “Marty Supreme” alongside Timothée Chalamet, and one of his standout scenes involves spanking the Oscar-nominated actor with a ping pong paddle.

In the Josh Safdie-directed sports dramedy, O’Leary plays Milton Rockwell, a successful pen entrepreneur who is married to retired actress Kay Stone (Gwyneth Paltrow). After Chalamet’s aspiring ping-pong champion Marty Mauser becomes entangled with Kay, he realizes Milton could be his ticket to the world championship in Tokyo — but it comes with a humiliating price.

In an interview with Variety, O’Leary said that Chalamet had the option to sit out of the scene, but the 30-year-old actor insisted the film feature his real butt.

“When it came time to whack him, there was a stunt ass. There was a double,” O’Leary said. “[Chalamet] wouldn’t do it. He said he’ll do it himself.

The only thing that beats Yautja carnage is knowing that you can watch it any time, and that will soon be the case for "Predator: Badlands." In the wake of Dan Trachtenberg's sequel dominating the box office and radicalizing the "Predator" franchise, the film will make its way to digital in January 2026 before its eventual release on physical media formats the following month.

The latest installment of the long-running "Predator" saga, to be exact, will hunt its way onto Apple TV, Prime Video, and Fandango on January 6, 2026. However, the physical purists among us will have to wait an extra month before they can grab a copy on 4K Ultra Blu-ray and DVD.

Director Marcie Hume is responding to a claim that Corey Feldman was not aware of footage she shot for her just-released documentary about his life on his rock tour, “Corey Feldman vs. the World.”

Variety broke the news that, in the documentary, Feldman alleges that Corey Haim molested him. Feldman’s lawyers responded that the mention of molestation was not physical, but rather referred to Haim’s advances towards him. Feldman’s legal team also said he had “no knowledge of the production of this documentary or its release. He was not involved in the creative choices, characterization, or portrayal of his statements or others in the film.”

In a newly-released scene from Hume, Feldman grabs the camera and turns it around on the director, saying, “Two shot, here’s the deal: So Marcie’s on the bus with us, because Marcie is the documentarian who is making the film that you’re watching.

When George Clooney was preparing to make his Broadway debut appearing as CBS news correspondent Edward R. Murrow in “Good Night, and Good Luck,” he invited “60 Minutes” to sit in on rehearsals. As the cast gathered for their first read through, Clooney talked about the story’s prescience — though it’s set during McCarthyism in the 1950s, he saw parallels with the political pressure that news organizations face in the second Trump administration.

“When the other three estates fail — when the judiciary and the executive and the legislative branches fail us — the fourth estate has to succeed,” Clooney said. With that he pointed his finger directly at “60 Minutes'” cameras, which are owned by the same network that employed Murrow.

But Clooney feels that CBS has fallen short of its mission. In a new cover story with Variety tied to the release of his new movie, “Jay Kelly,” Clooney faults top law firms like Paul,...

"Saved by the Bell" debuted in 1989 as a revamped version of the short-lived sitcom, "Good Morning, Miss Bliss." The original Disney Channel series starred Hayley Mills as the titular teacher, but the studio quickly realized the kids were the main draw. Five months after the show's first and only season, it was retooled as "Saved by the Bell" and began airing on NBC. Mark-Paul Gosselaar (Zack Morris), Lark Voorhies (Lisa Turtle), Dustin Diamond (Samuel "Screech" Powers), and Dennis Haskins (Richard Belding) all moved over to the new series. 

"Good Morning, Miss Bliss" took place in Indianapolis, but "Saved by the Bell" was switched to the fictional Bayside High in Los...

Arden Cho and Ahn Hyo-seop, the voice actors who play love interests Rumi and Jinu in “KPop Demon Hunters,” will do their first-ever joint interview on “The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon.”

The episode will air on Jan. 12 at 11:35 p.m. on NBC before streaming on Peacock the next day. News of Cho and Hyo-seop’s sit-down with Fallon was announced in a teaser video NBC released on social media. In the video, a young girl approaches Fallon with a piece of paper, saying, “Excuse me, mister, I made this for you.” He takes the paper and sees a drawing of Rumi and Jinu with the actors’ names and the date of the episode written on it.

This isn’t the first time Fallon’s show has been the platform for a “KPop Demon Hunters” star. In October, the singing voices behind Rumi (Ejae), Mira (Nuna) and Zoey (Rei Ami...

"Stranger Things" might not be able to fix some of its plot holes, but creators Matt and Ross Duffer are prone to cleaning up its minor errors. That has remained the case with season 5, volume 2, with some fans noticing that a flaw in Holly Wheeler's (Nell Fisher) clothing has been edited out since the episodes first dropped, be it by the "Stranger Things" creative team or someone else.

The error in question originally occurred in "Chapter Seven: The Bridge," which sees Holly stuck in one of Vecna's (Jamie Bower Campbell) vine prisons. In the pre-edited blink-and-you-will-miss-it moment, an Under Armour logo is clearly visible under her clothing, and that's a problem.

George Clooney has a cold.

Other A-listers would call in sick, but Clooney, who is on his second round of steroids, is powering through. “My body isn’t up for a fight like it was when I was younger,” he says.

We’re sitting in an empty lounge at Ludlow House in downtown Manhattan to talk about his new movie, “Jay Kelly,” and the Oscar-winning star of “Michael Clayton,” “Up in the Air” and three “Ocean’s” films is sifting through a small fridge in search of sparkling water. His hair is mostly gray, his face slightly lined, but at 64, he’s still incandescently handsome in that effortless, Cary Grant-like way.

“My kids get sick with something; they’re fine in three days.” Clooney finds the water, pops it open and takes a swig. “I’m an old shit — it takes me forever!” He chuckles with that wry laugh...

The track record of quality for movies coming out of Blumhouse Productions is very hit or miss, yet they've been able to sustain their wins and losses by largely keeping budgets on the lower end of the Hollywood spectrum. The business model gives them the opportunity to rake in high profits for a project that may require some extra funds to get off the ground or to secure the rights to a dormant horror franchise. At the head of Blumhouse is its namesake CEO, Jason Blum, whose 15-year leadership has overseen the rise of movies like "Paranormal Activity," "Insidious," "Get Out," "The Purge," and, most recently, "Black Phone 2." The...

The "Avengers: Doomsday" teasers will continue to be released until ... well, until Marvel runs out of new footage that mysteriously keeps leaking onto the internet, apparently. After the studio finally dropped that first teaser featuring the return of Chris Evans as Steve Rogers exactly a week ago, it's officially the next Avenger's turn. Because Marvel Studios boss Kevin Feige's once-vaunted security has sprung a leak or two lately, we actually already knew the basic gist of this new "Doomsday" teaser after some videos made the internet rounds recently. Now, it's time for everyone to enjoy the visuals of the promo in pristine 4K as Marvel continues to keep the hype going.

The second “Avengers: Doomsday” teaser trailer has been released, and this time it focuses on Chris Hemsworth’s Thor.

The new teaser comes a week after Chris Evans’ Captain America was featured in the first “Doomsday” trailer that played during the previews of “Avatar: Fire and Ash” screenings. That first teaser revealed that Cap would return for “Doomsday” and that he surprisingly has a child. Similarly, the Thor teaser revolves around him praying to keep his adopted daughter, Love (who was introduced in 2022’s “Thor: Love and Thunder”), safe as he once again answers the call to battle.

The teaser starts out in a sunny, calm forest, similar to the idyllic farmhouse of the Captain America teaser. Thor prays to his late father, the Norse god Odin, for the strength to keep his new daughter safe as he presumably prepares to join the Avengers to take on Robert Downey Jr.’s Doctor Doom in “Doomsday.

Rusty plays a vengeful strip club owner, Rebel Wilson makes her directorial debut, plus new films starring Olivia Colman, Willem Dafoe and Tom Hiddleston

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As usual, the Australian film industry will deliver plenty of tasty cinematic treats in 2026, spanning a wide variety of genres and styles. Here’s 10 films to look out for.

It cannot be understated just how successful John Pasquin's 1994 Christmas comedy "The Santa Clause" was. Made for a middle-sized budget of $22 million, the film raked in an unexpected $190.5 million at the box office. Adjusted for inflation, that's over $400 million. Although a lighthearted, Disney-produced family movie, "The Santa Clause" had something of a dark premise. Tim Allen played Scott Calvin, a divorced dad who was looking after his young son on Christmas Eve. He then happened to catch Santa Claus (the real one) on his roof and startled the old elf, causing him to fall to his death. Calvin, following the instructions on a business card on Santa's person, puts...

Atresmedia Cine, the production powerhouse of Spanish broadcast network Atresmedia, has unveiled its 2026 release slate and plans to shoots 10 movies over next year.

That matters. Since 2001 when Spain first obliged local networks to invest 5% of revenues in European films and 60% of that in national productions, its two free-to-air TV operators, Atresmedia and Mediaset España, have not only become major production partners on a substantial number of the most significant films made this century in Spain via Atresmedia Cine and Telecinco Cinema but their network parents have put their weighty marketing muscle behind the movies.

The result has been to update for the better Spanish audiences’ view of local movies, dismissed since the Spanish Civil War through the ‘60s as “españoladas” – movies whose local reference and relevance did not compensate for second-rate production standards.

Even in a streaming service world, broadcast networks’ investment and marketing punch still count. Over 2025, Atresmedia Cine...

Adrift in the wind, the protagonists of Japanese director Momoko Seto’s French-produced 3D animated curio “Dandelion’s Odyssey” embark on an epic botanical journey into outer space and away from the tranquility of a planet that strongly resembles the Earth we know. After traveling through a black hole, they arrive on a different floating rock, where they face harsh elements and unexpected predators in order to resettle. The catch is that these cosmonauts landing in an undiscovered world are dandelion seeds tethered to delicate, umbrella-like structures, or pappi, comprised of numerous, fuzzy bristles.

Testament to the ingenious character design and astute writing behind the peculiar project (the screenplay is by Seto and Alain Layrac) is that the faceless heroes emote far more than one would ever expect from inanimate vegetation. Imbued with distinct physical attributes, the four seeds exhibit enough personality for audiences to understand their role in the group.

Some filmmakers have achieved a level of authorship so high that their name promises a certain type of movie, and for the most part, the film delivers. This goes beyond just auteur theory into the realm of branding; folks like Wes Anderson, Quentin Tarantino, and Guillermo del Toro have been so consistent in their output that it stands to reason fans of their prior films will enjoy their new works. Then there are auteur filmmakers who are recognizably their own artists, yet their movies are all over the place in terms of their reception. This describes Guy Ritchie pretty well, for while the man who made his debut with the...

This article contains spoilers for "Marty Supreme."

'80s synth band Alphaville may have yearned to be "Forever Young," but you know what never gets old? Fighting to the death about differing interpretations of art. That's what cinema is all about, Charlie Brown.

Maybe it stands to reason that the recently-released "Marty Supreme" would end up becoming such a flashpoint moment just as 2025 draws to a close. The Josh Safdie-directed film asked (demanded?) us to endure weeks of increasingly escalating marketing stunts, from that ominously orange blimp invading the skies over Los Angeles to its leading man scaling the Las Vegas Sphere like some kind of miniature King Kong.

This article contains spoilers for "Heated Rivalry" and "The Long Game."

Unless you've been living under some enormous hockey puck recently, you've probably at least heard of "Heated Rivalry," the hit Crave series (on HBO Max stateside) that became one of the year's biggest sensations in the last month of 2025. So what can we expect from season 2 of the series, which has already been greenlit and will continue following the original queer romance novel series "Game Changers" by New York Times Bestseller, Rachel Reid?

As creator and showrunner Jacob Tierney recently told The Hollywood Reporter in an interview, Reid's book "The Long Game" will serve as the source material.

Bucking 2025 global cinema theater results that in many key markets that look set to at least edge up or come in flat when compared to 2024, total box office in Spain plunged 8% in 2025 to €453 million ($534.5 million), made off 65 million admissions, Comscore Movies Spain announced Tuesday.

Overall Spanish box office returns for 2024 were already 22% below a pre-covid 19 average over 2017-19, the weakest performance of Europe’s big five markets.

Of 2025’s biggest hitters in Spain, Disney’s “Lilo & Stitch” topped its box office charts, grossing €24.7 million ($29.1 million), followed by “Jurassic World Rebirth” (€18.8 million: $22.2 million).

Spain’s biggest – indeed only – blockbuster, was “Father There Is Only One 5,” the final installment of Santiago Segura’s family comedy saga, punching €13.4 million ($15.8 million). The franchise’s films have topped Spanish film charts in five of the last seven years.

“It’s been a frustrating year. Looking at first half results, which were up 3% on...

A screening tour, a New Year’s re-release, a documentary, an incoming director’s cut … will we ever be rid of this historic misfire?

At first, it appeared to end with a whimper. After decades of talk, Francis Ford Coppola’s forever-gestating dream project Megalopolis debuted in movie theaters in fall 2024, and promptly flopped at the box office, grossing a paltry $14m worldwide against a budget around $120m, much of which was put up by Coppola himself. Not even a series of splashy Imax presentations, including some with a live-actor element, could entice more than a relative handful of curious cinephiles out of the house to witness Coppola realize his...

There is an obvious upside to becoming an advertising character for a major corporation. If you're the face of a long-running, frequently airing campaign, you could find yourself pulling down somewhere between $1 million and $2 million per year for not a lot of work. The additional upside should be that you'll have plenty of time to lend your considerable talents to film and television work, but there is a catch: sometimes, audiences can't see past the character who pops up on at least one of their screens every single day.

The good news is that, typically, these actors are in high demand for voice work. This has been the case for Stephanie Courtney,...

Arise Sir Stringer Bell!

Idris Elba is set to receive a knighthood in the U.K. after the star led the list of names in the 2026 new year honors.

Despite coming after another busy year for the actor, in which he — ironically — played both the U.S. president and British prime minister in “House of Dynamite” and “Heads of State,” respectively, Elba is being recognized for his charity work, notably an anti-knife crime campaign and the Elba Hope Foundation he set up alongside his wife.

Another top honor went to comedian, writer and actor Meera Syal, best known for groundbreaking TV show “The Kumars at No 42,” who becomes a dame for services to literature, drama and charity.

Meanwhile on screen, Cynthia Erivo is appointed an MBE (Member of the British Empire), with the “Wicked: For Good” star saying it was “an honor I could never have thought would happen.

Idris Elba, Cynthia Erivo and longtime former BFI communications executive Tina McFarling are among the UK film and TV luminaries who have been recognised for their service to the industry in the UK’s 2025 New Year Honours list.

Elba, an OBE, receives a knighthood in recognition of his “exceptional contributions to entertainment and tireless efforts in youth empowerment and social justice”.

The actor earned Bafta nominations for Mandela: Long Walk To Freedomand TV’s Luther, and has directed features including Yardie.

His activism has seen him champion the ‘Don’t Stop Your Future’ campaign against youth violence and knife crime,...

From Stanley Tucci’s imperious tech titan to Lex Luthor’s distractingly hot CEO and Elon Musk-esque blowhards, films this year took us inside the billionaire mindset

Between the slash-and-burn US government reboot led by a dank meme fan and the relentless pushing of AI by venture capital-backed blowhards, 2025 has felt like peak obnoxious tech bro. Fittingly, jargon-spouting, self-regarding digital visionaries also became Hollywood’s go-to baddies this year in everything from blockbusters to slapstick spoofs. Spare a thought for the overworked props departments tasked with mocking up fake Forbes magazine covers heralding yet another smirking white guy as “Master of the Metaverse” or whatever.

With such market saturation,...

This year, there are two films vying for the best international feature film Oscar which are set in Iran, following a group of people, mostly strangers to each other, traveling in a van with a person that they may have to bury in the desert.

One is Jafar Panahi’s Palme d’Or-winning “It Was Just an Accident,” which the Iranian regime would never consider submitting for the Academy’s consideration. Panahi is legally embattled at home for his outspoken criticisms of the government. The thriller is instead representing France. The other title with that shared premise is “Cause of Death: Unknown,” Iran’s official entry, by writer-director Ali Zarnegar, a filmmaking debut from a seasoned screenwriter which could have garnered him deserved international attention under a different set of circumstances, but did not make the category’s shortlist.

Though inevitably overshadowed, “Cause of Death: Unknown” is by no means a toothless state-sanctioned selection,...

Journalist Don Ng’s debut feature raises interesting questions about the asylum experience – but his film is too sentimental and superficial to truly answer them

This is a film made with the best of intentions – and it has some good insights into the loneliness and isolation of seeking asylum in the UK. But there are a few too many sentimental moments to properly work as social-realism, or anything close to convincing drama, which is disappointing given its creator, Don Ng, is a journalist-turned-director making his feature debut. It’s set in London, where Bosco (a sensitive performance by Yiu-Sing Lam) has arrived from Hong Kong fleeing the government’s crackdown on political freedom,...

Cary Elwes, who starred in Rob Reiner’s 1987 fantasy classic “The Princess Bride,” released a statement on Instagram Monday night in remembrance of the director and his wife, Michelle Singer, who were found dead in their Brentwood home on Dec. 14.

“Enough time has passed that I can finally put my grief into words,” Elwes wrote in the caption of his post. “I was 24 when I first met Rob Reiner on ‘The Princess Bride.’ And from that very first meeting I fell in love with him. I was already a fan of his work so meeting him in person was a dream come true. As we began spending more time together I knew this was someone I wanted in my life.”

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Elwes recalled that the first thing he noticed about Reiner was that he “wore his heart on his sleeve,” and “always tried to find the best in people.

Rodrigo Cortés's 2010 film "Buried" is a taut and stressful thriller that has maybe the smallest set of any film in history. The story follows a traveling American named Paul Conroy (Ryan Reynolds) who is knocked out and kidnapped while traveling in Iraq. The film begins when Paul regains consciousness inside a coffin, buried alive. He has nothing on his person except for a cigarette lighter and a mobile phone. He is contacted on the phone by his kidnapper, who tells him that he is being held in the coffin for ransom. Paul has to call whoever he can to arrange the ransom, but also whatever American investigators might be...

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Mark Wahlberg is one of Hollywood's biggest A-list actors, but a movie he made 20 years ago is finding new life on Netflix. Wahlberg remains a huge star with movies like "Uncharted" and the lowkey hit "Flight Risk" to his name more recently, but the movie in question is a gritty crime drama in the form of 2005's "Four Brothers." It is by no means one of his more discussed movies, but it has evidently captured quite a few fans two decades removed from its initial release.

As of this writing, "Four Brothers" is the fourth-biggest movie on Netflix, per FlixPatrol.

A lot of actors hate watching their own work. Adam Driver infamously walked out of an interview with NPR's Terry Gross after she played clips of his performance in "Marriage Story," and that's just a particularly dramatic example; hearing famous performers say they can barely stand watching themselves on-screen feels incredibly common at this point. That's why, ultimately, none of us should be all that surprised that Leonardo DiCaprio hasn't revisited "Titanic" in years.

During an "Actors on Actors" chat with Variety that paired DiCaprio with fellow Oscar winner Jennifer Lawrence — with whom he co-starred in Adam McKay's 2021 satire "Don't Look Up" — Lawrence, who starred in the dark...

Isaac Asimov's "Robot" novels and his "Foundation" books are set in the same universe. But just because two stories occupy the same space doesn't mean they actually impact each other. I remember reading through the books for both series for a while before I realized that they connected. But by the end of reading through both, the connection wasn't just clear. It was crucial.

If you're wondering how Asimov's two series tie into one another, I've highlighted five key areas where the crossovers are not just clear. They're super important, and these connections generally go in one direction: something starts in the "Robot" novels and eventually trickles through to the "Foundation" books.

Joe Rogan is the latest industry heavyweight speaking out against Donald Trump’s repeated attacks against Rob Reiner after the director’s tragic death. Trump alleged that Reiner’s death was “due to the anger he caused others” from being outspokenly anti-Trump. Reiner’s son, Nick, has been arrested in connection to his parents’ deaths.

“The Rob Reiner thing is not funny,” Rogan said on a recent podcast featuring comedian Shane Gillis (via Entertainment Weekly). “When you see it with no empathy, that’s when it’s hard to like. Listen, there’s no justification for what he did that makes any sense in a compassionate society. It’s no different than people that were celebrating when Charlie Kirk got shot. It’s the same kind of thing.”

“Imagine if Obama tweeted something about someone after they died in this way. That this person was a deranged person that hated Obama.

There was quite a bit of romance on "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine," with some pretty unusual couples that ended up being some of the franchise's best. Unfortunately, for every couple as perfect as Jadzia Dax (Terry Farrell) and Worf (Michael Dorn), several ill-advised pairings didn't work out. The character with the worst luck in love on all of "Deep Space Nine" was Major Kira Nerys (Nana Visitor), whose boyfriends had a habit of either dying tragically or being called to higher purposes. One proposed romance for her would have been even worse, however, as the show's writers were toying around with the idea of pairing her up with Cardassian...

In the seven months since I launched In Development, the same conversation kept showing up. Different people, roles, and career stages; powerful veterans and fresh rookies; same throughline.

I don’t know what’s going on, but this is weird, right? It’s not just me, is it?

No. It really is that weird. And no, it’s not just you.

This was the year that upended nearly every assumption about the business of storytelling. A year ago, the refrain was “Survive until ’25”; this year there’s no refrain because we realized rhymes don’t change anything.

All of which brings us to the last week of this pathological year and fresh hope for the new one. I’ll keep the predictions short, starting with the Tl;Dr: Since nothing stays weird forever, the real work can finally begin.

Movies will be made. Audiences exist. Talent is abundant. It’s...