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New month, new drops, and TheWrap is here to give you the best of what’s coming to Paramount+ this March.

Whether you’ve seen them before, have them on repeat or are first-time viewing they’re worth putting on you watch list. While Paramount+s list of new films in March stretch way beyond these seven titles, TheWrap wanted to point your attention to best ones on its lineup.

Check out our picks for the best new movies on Paramount+ in March 2025 below.

“A League of Their Own” (Columbia Pictures) “A League of Their Own” (1992)

To kick off Women’s History Month, we had to start our list with a film that highlights the story of women in professional baseball. In Penny Marshall’s “A League of Their Own,” a group of women step up to plate and join an all-female baseball team after men head off into battle in World War II.

Saturday Night Live has been pushing boundaries for nearly five decades, delivering sharp, outrageous, and sometimes questionable humor that leaves audiences laughing, or gasping. From political satire to celebrity impersonations, the show thrives on skirting the edge of controversy.

And while cast members have endured awkward moments, few can claim to have been personally blindsided quite like Scarlett Johansson, thanks to her husband, Colin Jost.

Colin Jost and Michael Che on SNL Weekend Update | Credits: NBC

Jost, a master of dry wit and awkward charm, found himself delivering a joke so risqué that it made his wife momentarily consider fainting. But was it really that bad? Considering SNL’s history of eyebrow-raising humor, this was just another day at 30 Rock.

Scarlett Johansson’s stunned reaction to Colin Jost’s joke Scarlett Johansson in Lucy | Credit: Universal Pictures

During the infamous joke swap segment on Weekend Update, Colin Jost found himself...

Last week, Suits LA had a rocky start with an episode that didn't quite match what viewers expected from a Suits spinoff. Luckily, the second episode, "Old Man Hanrahan," makes great strides as it builds on the drama and characters introduced in Episode 1. The episode doesn't have any celebrity cameos, but it does dig deeper into the stories of the two fictional actors introduced so far.

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Suits LANot Yet RatedDrama2/5Release DateFebruary 23, 2025NetworkNBCWritersAaron KorshCast

Stephen Amell Ted Black

josh mcdermitt Stuart Lane

Creator(s)  Aaron Korsh Powered by

ExpandCollapse Ted and Kevin Dig Deeper Into Lester's Story

In Episode 1, Ted Black (Stephen Amell) went against his morals by agreeing to take a criminal law case. Actor Lester Thompson (Kevin Weisman) was accused of murdering his partner the night their new film opened.

Out of many stars who headlined blaxploitation genre movies in the ‘70s, Billy Dee Williams and Richard Pryor were just a few enduring talents who managed to crossover into mainstream cinema. Williams had the Clark Gable-like heartthrob status that attracted female fans. Pryor was an edgy stand-up comedian who spoke the truth about the black experience in America. Both stars found themselves taking a unique performance turn in the 1973 thriller Hit!

The latest episode of Swat season 8 saw the team tackling a kidnapping case after a little girl went missing in front of her house. With very few leads to go on, one team member risked everything to find the girl before it was too late.

After a little girl named Gracie went missing, the team searched for her with the only lead to go on being a white vehicle with partial plates. In ruling out three vehicles, the team discovered one belonged to a man who appeared to be out of town. However, his neighbor Steve Owens appeared to give Zoe weird vibes as he answered questions she and Deacon had.

Her gut told her something was off and she convinced Deacon to question him further. Zoe thought she heard a child whimpering, but it was a dog. She did find food items that were the same kinds of food Gracie liked to eat.

When Tom Hanks took the stage late during last night's 50th anniversary celebration of "Saturday Night Live," he appeared to be headed into somber territory. The lights were dimmed to blue, his tone was reverent and, as he worked into his prepared comments, the subject one that hits so very close to home for the show's alumni and friends. "As we celebrate the achievements of the past 50 years," he said, "We must also take a moment to honor those we've lost. Countless members of the 'SNL' community taken too soon." Hanks paused briefly for effect, then continued. "I'm speaking, of course, about 'SNL' characters that have aged horribly."

No comedic institution can last 50 years without finding the third rail on occasion. For "SNL," a sketch comedy series both emerged from and tore apart 1960s counterculture humor, jolting viewers with gasp-inducing gags that seemed to fly under...

During a time when people can’t stop talking about cancellation in comedy, “Saturday Night Live” took a bold stance during its 50th anniversary special. The three-hour broadcast included an “in memoriam” for all of the questionable characters the NBC behemoth has broadcast over its five decades.

Tom Hanks introduced the segment, teeing it up as a moment to “honor those we’ve lost.” “I’m speaking, of course, about ‘SNL’ characters and sketches that have aged horribly,” Hanks added, earning a launch from the studio audience. “But even though these characters, accents and let’s just call them ‘ethnic’ wigs were unquestionably in poor taste, you all laughed at them. So if anyone should be canceled, shouldn’t it be you, the audience? Something to think about.”

Watch the full clip below:

In Memoriam #SNL50 pic.twitter.com/8aUmE6nHgy

— Saturday Night Live – SNL (@nbcsnl) February 17, 2025

The segment started...

It’s a new year and there are already a host of incredible physical media releases from some of our favorite labels. It really is an embarrassment of riches and given what has been previewed for the next few months, we’ll be eating very well indeed.

But let’s get into the very best home video releases of January 2025!

New Line Cinema “Seven” 4K

2025 is finally the year that some of David Fincher’s masterpieces make their way to 4K. “Fight Club” is in the works for later this year and “Panic Room” and “The Social Network” (which had previously only been available in one of the ultra-expensive Columbia Pictures box sets) are hitting in February. “Seven,” whose new 4K transfer was previewed at the TCM Festival last year, finally makes its way to home video. And while some have taken issue with the new image, which saw Fincher...

Richard Pryor was more than a comedic icon of the ‘70s and ‘80s. He revolutionized the stand-up scene by not only reflecting on the struggles of everyday life as a Black man in America, but by also making his personal life an open book without limits. Though there have been countless documentaries and stalled attempts at producing a biopic to explore his history off the stage, Pryor gave a glimpse of his world in 1986’s Jo Jo Dancer, Your Life is Calling.

“He’s the best ever,” Eddie Murphy once told Playboy about his idol, Richard Pryor. “There’s no one who’s ever brought the theatrics that Richard brings to his comedy. Anyone who tells you he’s into comedy and doesn’t think Richard is the best comedian who ever existed doesn’t know what he’s talking about. Pryor is better than anyone who ever picked up the microphone and started telling jokes. Nobody can fuck with him.”

Growing up, there was no one Murphy looked up to more. And while they say you shouldn’t meet your idols, it was all love the first time Murphy met Pryor. “When I was on a fucking plane coming from Georgia, Richard Pryor was on the plane. That’s when I first met him,” Murphy told The New York Times last year. The young comic gave Pryor a copy of his...

A live-action film adaptation of the video game “Clair Obscur: Expedition 33” is in the works before the game even launches.

Variety has learned exclusively that game developer Sandfall Interactive is teaming with Story Kitchen to develop a film version of the game, which will be published by Kepler Interactive. The game is due to be released on April 24 on Xbox, Playstation, PC, Steam, and Epic. It was recently showcased on Xbox Developer Direct and was featured on DualShockers’ Top 10 Most Anticipated Indie Games of 2025 as well as the cover of “PC Gamer” and “Edge Magazine.”

“We’re thrilled to collaborate with Sandfall Interactive to bring the rich, immersive world of ‘Expedition 33’ to the big screen,” said Story Kitchen founders Dmitri M. Johnson & Mike Goldberg. “The game’s compelling narrative and complex characters provide a solid foundation for a cinematic experience that will resonate with both gamers and moviegoers alike.”

“Clair...

The late, great David Lynch obviously gave us so many wonderful films over the course of his career. I mean, the guy literally turned a failed ABC TV pilot with no surviving costumes or sets into a movie that some have hailed as the greatest film of the 21st century.

Probably one of his more underrated works was 1997’s Lost Highway, the film that dared to ask: what if O.J. Simpson was a saxophone-playing Bill Pullman, and he briefly had the ability to shape-shift? At the very least, it’s the only movie in history to use “Two Thumbs Down” from Siskel and Ebert as a selling point in its marketing campaign.

Lost Highway is especially notable for comedy fans, because it featured Richard Pryor’s final screen performance. Pryor plays Arnie, who owns the auto shop that employs Pete – the young man who may or may not be some...

Jo Jo Dancer, Your Life is Calling, spine #1247, is now available on 4K in the Criterion Collection.

Known for his edgy stand-up comedy and his over-the-top film performances in movies like Stir Crazy, Superman III and See No Evil, Hear No Evil, Richard Pryor took on his most daring and personal work with the semi-autobiographic Jo Jo Dancer, Your Life is Calling. Mixing comedy and drama, Pryor wrote, produced, directed and starred in the story that held a mirror to his life, highlighting his struggles with addiction and his womanizing lifestyle.

Jo Jo Dancer, Your Life is Calling plot

Following a near-death experience, successful comedian Jo Jo Dancer has an out-of-body experience that allows his to watch and experience the highs and lows of his life. From childhood to fame, Jo Jo watches, helpless to intervene as he makes poor choice after poor choice.

The review

Pryor’s directorial debut...

With its fractured narrative, complete with a gimmicky spectral figure guiding us through the proceedings, Jo Jo Dancer, Your Life Is Calling is Richard Pryor’s All That Jazz. Playing like a greatest hits collection of Pryor’s stand-up routines, it begins with the titular character freebasing his way into a hospital burn unit, features him pulling a starter pistol on the mafia, and shows him destroying his wife’s car when she threatens to leave him.

Jo Jo Dancer’s profession mirrors Pryor’s own, as does his backstory: The film was shot in Peoria, Illinois, Pryor’s hometown and the location of the brothel where both he and Jo Jo grew up. Columbia Pictures wouldn’t grant Bob Fosse’s wish to play All That Jazz’s Joe Gideon, but they let Pryor play himself, or “himself” as it were, creating a meta experience before meta was cool.

London is the new Atlanta, which was already the new L.A.

Los Angeles is seeing a big dip in production, but the problem is actually nationwide. Film production across the U.S. is down 26 percent compared to 2021, according to data from ProdPro. Though the overall market has cut back, the U.S. continues to be hit the hardest while our closest allies, Canada and the UK, have increased their spending and incentives.

Producers need tax credits, and a lot of the states in the states don’t have enough to go around. California’s annual incentive is $330 million, though Gov. Gavin Newsom wants to raise that to $750 million. New Jersey, New Mexico, and Nevada have ramped up their incentives. But even the most-welcoming places like Georgia, which has no cap on tax credits, is feeling the pinch to productions moving to London.

For indies, a tax credit is just a start.

Tj and Molly are headed for Splitsville on General Hospital. But while this iteration of Tj navigates the troubling emotions caused by the death of their surrogate baby, his original portrayer, Tequan Richmond, has been navigating an entirely different path. From 2012 to 2018, he played Tj Ashford, and he left because he got a starring role in Boomerang, a TV show sequel/reboot to Eddie Murphy’s 1992 comedy film of the same name. Now, he’s appearing in another sequel of sorts to a film by another famous comedian.

Millions Are at Stake

1985’s Brewster’s Millions starred iconic comedian Richard Pryor and the late comic John Candy. The film was based on the 1902 novel by George Barr McCutcheon and was a remake of the 1945 film starring Dennis O’Keefe. In it, Pryor plays Montgomery Brewster, a baseball player who stands to inherit $300 million if he can spend $30 million in a month, but...

There have been near countless retellings of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, including the classic 1951 film starring Alaistar Sim and the other classic film that exclusively stars Rich Little. But for comedy fans in the ‘80s, the best onscreen Scrooge wasn’t even named “Scrooge,” he was Frank Cross, as played by Bill Murray in Scrooged.

Scrooged hit theaters back in 1988, so obviously not every aspect of it holds up today. For example, in one scene, Frank’s brother James receives a VHS player for Christmas and amazingly doesn’t just toss it in the garbage. Also, several jokes seem more than a little iffy from today’s standpoint — like the racist running gag about Chinese restaurants serving up cat meat. Why didn’t three ghosts show up and convince the filmmakers to cut that material?

Another joke that doesn’t seem so great comes when Frank is about to...

In a sigh of relief to local film communities, Louisiana will not eliminate its tax credit for filming after the state’s Congress voted to lower the current cap instead of eliminate it.

The state will now allot just $125 million in tax credits to film and TV production, down $25 million from its prior level of $150 million. The Senate nearly unanimously voted to lower the cap on Friday, November 22 ahead of the current session of Congress ending next week, and the House, which had previously voted to eliminate the tax-credit program entirely, approved the new bill in a wide margin.

Landry had initially called for the film tax credit to be eliminated completely as part of sweeping tax reform in the state, but tax reforms will now move forward with the filming credit still intact.

Had the tax credit been eliminated, it would’ve been sunsetted by June 30. It would have...

On Tuesday November 19 2024, Vice broadcasts Black Comedy in America!

Richard Pryor Season 1 Episode 5 Episode Summary

The upcoming episode of “Black Comedy in America,” titled “Richard Pryor,” promises to be a compelling exploration of one of the most influential figures in comedy. Richard Pryor’s journey is marked by significant achievements, personal struggles, and a unique ability to blend humor with deep emotional experiences. This episode will delve into how Pryor’s groundbreaking performances changed the landscape of comedy.

Viewers can expect to see a mix of transformational moments from Pryor’s career. His ability to tackle serious topics with humor made him a trailblazer in the industry. The episode will highlight key appearances that showcased his talent and charisma, making audiences laugh while also making them think. It will explore how Pryor’s comedic style paved the way for future generations of comedians.

However, the episode will not shy away...

Vice TV’s Black Comedy in America turns its lens on the complicated legacy of Richard Pryor. This week’s episode is a look at the comedian’s influential yet turbulent journey, from his transformational stage presence to the personal struggles that both fueled and threatened his career. Pryor’s impact on stand-up is undeniable. He brought a raw, […]

Black Comedy in America: Richard Pryor...

“When Vir Das hears an American comedian talk about being “canceled,” he can only laugh.

“Every time an American comedian complains about getting canceled, I’m like: ‘Grab a flight to India, just let me show you something,’ ” says the Indian stand-up comedian and actor.

Three years ago, Das got a taste of cancel culture, Indian style. His “Two Indias” routine, performed at the Kennedy Center in Washington on Nov. 12, 2021, in which he pointed to the absurd contrasts in his home country — “I come from an India where we worship women during the day and gang rape them at night” — triggered a furious backlash. Politicians from India’s ruling Bjp party accused him of defaming the nation and filed criminal charges. He got bombarded with death threats.

“I had seven criminal complaints filed against me, was being charged with sedition and defaming India on foreign soil,” Das recounts in his latest Netflix special,...

In season 1, episode 5 of Black Comedy in America titled “Richard Pryor,” the groundbreaking life and career of one of the most influential comedians in history are explored in depth. Richard Pryor’s trailblazing journey in the world of comedy is a story of transformation, blending moments of joy and laughter with deep personal struggles. The episode shines a light on how Pryor’s raw, unapologetic humor broke barriers and changed the way comedy was approached, especially for Black performers in America.

Viewers will get an intimate look at Pryor’s journey through addiction, tragedy, and the triumphs that came from his vulnerability on stage. The episode reflects on how he managed to mix pain with humor, creating a legacy that resonates to this day. Pryor’s comedy, at once honest and bold, continues to inspire and shape modern entertainment. Don’t miss this compelling look at the life of a...

South Korea is one of the world’s hottest markets for exports across the entertainment spectrum, from K-pop stars to movies and TV shows to social media content creators and webtoons.

But South Korea also has some work ahead to further open up its content marketplace to outside investment and larger partnerships with media and entertainment giants in the U.S. and other territories. That was one of the key takeaways from the U-Knock: International Content Investment Forum 2024, held Nov. 7 in Las Vegas and sponsored by South Korea’s Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the state’s Korea Creative Content Agency.

The gathering brought together producers, distributors, investors and technology firms to discuss the turbulent state of the global content industry and how South Korea can continue to keep its sector growing at a fast clip. The aim is to help state officials and business leaders “build lasting...

In the many movies, TV shows and documentaries that peer into Black America, Hollywood often leans heavy on how African Americans used music to communicate and push through decades of highs and lows in the country they call home.

But Black people love to laugh, too! Laughter is a thread that runs just as deep as music in the tapestry of the Black American cultural experience, and now a 10-part docuseries on Vice TV continues to look at that phenomenon and how it resonates with Black Comedy in America.

The third episode of the series hosted by comedians Tiffany Haddish, Chris Spencer and Ryan Davis, which aired Tuesday night, looks at the impact of classic Black ‘70s sitcoms such as The Jeffersons, Good Times, Sanford and Son and Different Strokes, among others. The episode not only focuses on how those ground-breaking sitcoms paved the way for future shows like Black-ish or Insecure,...

As movie fans are likely well aware, the Criterion Collection is the home video company that distributes prestige editions of some of the greatest films ever made, plus Armageddon. Cinephiles love Criterion so much that they’ll even wait for several hours in the rain just to climb into the back of a van that resembles one of their office’s storage closets.

Criterion recently announced their latest batch of additions to the collection, and it includes a fairly surprising title: a 4K restoration of 1986’s Jo Jo Dancer Your Life Is Calling.

As we’ve discussed before, Jo Jo Dancer is essentially an experimental Richard Pryor biopic that was co-written and directed by Pryor. He also stars as his fictional surrogate who, in the film’s opening moments, nearly burns to death, not unlike Pryor, after freebasing cocaine.

Jo Jo’s soul departs his burned body as it struggles to survive,...

Liam Payne, who rose to fame as a member of chart-topping British boy band One Direction, has died after falling from a hotel balcony in Buenos Aires. He was just 31 years old.

Payne died Wednesday evening, CNN reports, with several witnesses saying he fell from a third-floor balcony at the CasaSur Palermo Hotel in the Palermo neighborhood of Buenos Aires. Authorities are still investigating the nature of Payne’s death.

More from TVLineR.I.P., Liam Payne: Britain's Got Talent Postpones Auditions to Mourn One Direction Band Member's DeathNicholas Pryor, of Port Charles, 90210 and Risky Business, Dead at 89: 'He Was an Actor's Actor'Ron Hale,...

Britain’s Got Talent, the ITV talent show judged and created by The X Factor‘s Simon Cowell, is postponing auditions to mourn the loss of One Direction’s Liam Payne.

“Due to the tragic passing of Liam Payne, [Britain’s Got Talent] has decided to postpone today’s auditions in Blackpool,” ApplauseStore, which manages tickets for the show, wrote on X on Thursday. “We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause.”

More from TVLineOne Direction's Liam Payne Dead at 31Nicholas Pryor, of Port Charles, 90210 and Risky Business, Dead at 89: 'He Was an Actor's Actor'Ron Hale, General Hospital and Ryan's Hope Veteran,...

General Hospital’s Kevin Collins (Jon Lindstrom) recently announced the death of soap alum Nicholas Pryor, a prolific actor of soaps and films who died at the age of 89 from cancer. Pryor, who played Kevin’s father, Victor Collins on both General Hospital and Port Charles, died at his home in Wilmington, North Carolina.

General Hospital Spoilers – Jon Lindstrom’s Heartfelt Post To His Onscreen Father

General Hospital’s Lindstrom took to his Instagram account to share a heartfelt post concerning this onscreen father. Along with a photo, Lindstrom posted the following about his onscreen father. “It is my solemn task to announce the passing of the great Nicholas Pryor.

Nick was an Actor’s actor, and an exceptional friend. He passed on October 7, 2024, surrounded by loving family. Nick may be best known for his role as the father of [Tom Cruise] in [Risky Business], or as the same to...

Character actor Nicholas Pryor passed away from cancer at his home in North Carolina on October 7, 2024, at the age of 89. Pryor performed in films, television shows, and Broadway productions for over seven decades. His wife Christine Belford confirmed the cause of death.

Pryor displayed a wide range of roles throughout his long career. He appeared in iconic films like “Risky Business” and “Airplane!” in memorable parts. Born in 1935 in Baltimore, Pryor began acting on stage after studying at Yale University. He performed for the Oregon Shakespeare Festival and made his Broadway debut in 1957.

Pryor took on numerous roles in daytime soap operas from the 1960s onward. His first part was in the original cast of “Another World” in 1964. Much later, he portrayed Victor Collins on the spinoff series “Port Charles” from 1997 to 2002. Beyond soap operas, Pryor had a recurring role on “Beverly Hills, 90210” and guest starred in many other popular shows.

General Hospital‘s Jon Lindstrom announced that actor Nicholas Pryor died at age 89. He died of cancer at his home in Wilmington, North Carolina. Pryor portrayed Victor Collins, the father of Jon Lindstrom’s Kevin Collins, on Gh and its spinoff Port Charles.

Remembering An ‘Actor’s Actor’

Lindstrom shared a heartfelt and solemn Instagram post revealing that Pryor had passed. Alongside a photo of the late actor, Lindstrom remembered him writing, “It is my solemn task to announce the passing of the great Nicholas Pryor.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Jon Lindstrom (@jonlindstrom)

“Nick was an Actor’s actor, and an exceptional friend,” Lindstrom continued. “He passed on October 7, 2024, surrounded by loving family. Nick may be best known for his role as the father of [Tom Cruise] in [Risky Business], or as the same to [Robert Downey Jr] in [Less Than Zero]. He shared the...

Nicholas Pryor, who played a father to both Tom Cruise and to Robert Downey Jr. in “Risky Business” and “Less Than Zero,” died Oct. 7 of cancer in Wilmington, N.C. He was 89.

His agent, Susan Tolar Walters, said, “He was one of the nicest people I have ever met and he will be missed.”

The actor, whose career spanned seven decades, also portrayed the father of Kathleen Robertson’s character in “Beverly Hills, 90210” for 26 episodes from 1994-1997. From 1997-2002, Pryor starred on the “General Hospital” spinoff “Port Charles,” playing former spy Victor Collins. His career on daytime soap operas also included stints in “The Secret Storm,” “The Edge of Night,” “Love Is a Many Splendored Thing,” “All My Children” and “Another World.”

Some of Pryor’s other on-screen credits include “Halloween Kills,” “The Falcon and The Winter Soldier,” “The Outsider,” “Doctor Sleep,” “A Summer’s Day,” “Buster’s Mal Heart,...

Nicholas Pryor, the busy character actor who portrayed Tom Cruise’s father in Risky Business and Kathleen Robertson’s dad on Beverly Hills, 90210 during a career that spanned seven decades, has died. He was 89.

Pryor died Monday of cancer at his home in Wilmington, North Carolina, his wife, actress Christine Belford, told The Hollywood Reporter.

In a note to be delivered to THR after his death, he wrote: “Nicholas Pryor was enormously grateful to have been, for nearly 70 years, a working actor.”

From 1997-2002, Pryor played the former spy Victor Collins on the General Hospital spinoff Port Charles, culminating a long career in daytime soap operas that included stints on The Secret Storm, The Edge of Night, Love Is a Many Splendored Thing, All My Children and Another World.

Pryor recurred on Fox’s Beverly Hills, 90210 as A. Milton Arnold, the chancellor of California University and father of Robertson’s Claire Arnold,...

Port Charles star Nicholas Pryor has died at the age of 89. The actor was known for playing Tom Cruise‘s dad in Risky Business, a memorable passenger on Airplane!, and more roles in addition to his years on the General Hospital spinoff as Victor Collins. Pryor’s Port Charles costar, Gh‘s Jon Lindstrom, announced his death on October 8 on Instagram, saying that Pryor died “surrounded by loving family” on Monday, October 7. A cause of death was not shared. Lindstrom plays Kevin Collins in General Hospital and reprised the role in Port Charles. Pryor played his father. “It is my solemn task to announce the passing of the great Nicholas Pryor. Nick was an Actor’s actor, and an exceptional friend. He passed on October 7, 2024, surrounded by loving family,” Lindstrom wrote in his Instagram tribute, which features a black-and-white headshot of Pryor. View this post on Instagram A post shared...

Nicholas Pryor, who is best known to TV fans for his roles on Beverly Hills, 90210 and the General Hospital spinoff Port Charles — but who for many will always be the Risky Business dad or that Airplane! passenger — died on Oct. 7 while “surrounded by loving family.” He was 89.

A cause of death has not yet been shared.

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Pryor’s Port Charles son, Jon Lindstrom,...

What can we say about Chevy Chase on his 81st birthday that we haven’t already said before?

Here’s the good news: We don’t have to say it. After decades of burning down every bridge in sight, it was no problem to find 81 burns to light the candles on his cake. Below is a birthday portrait of the man of the hour, courtesy of the co-workers, directors and other unfortunates who’ve worked with Chase over the years.

1 Will Ferrell

“The worst (SNL) host was Chevy Chase.”

(Live From New York: The Complete Uncensored History of Saturday Night Live)

2 Buck Henry

“I thought Chevy shouldn’t have left (SNL). I thought it was really stupid.”

(Live From New York: The Complete Uncensored History of Saturday Night Live)

3 John Carpenter 4 Director Kevin Smith

“Chevy went on to claim he invented every funny thing that ever happened in the history of not just comedy,...

Late-night talk shows have done away with one custom of Johnny Carson’s Tonight Show — the tradition of guests sticking around on the couch to steal attention from whoever’s being interviewed. Makes sense, but we lost the uncomfortable interactions that happen when two comics like Richard Pryor and Chevy Chase share the same stage.

It was Pryor’s turn for the spotlight when he came out to promote a comedy special. But Chase, sitting next to him after plugging his own special airing on the same night, couldn’t keep to himself. When Pryor did a bit about bringing slides to view with Carson, Chase kept sticking his head into the frame — and into the joke.

As for Pryor’s special? He was in the middle of telling Carson all about it when Chase interrupted him mid-joke.

“May I say that I have seen Richard’s special?” he asked.

Allison Williams has proven herself to be one of the most exciting performers working today with several iconic roles in movies and TV across her relatively brief career. From her breakout role as Marnie Michaels on HBOs Girls to being dubbed a new scream queen due to her success in the horror genre, Williams has consistently confounded audiences' expectations and proved her hidden, often underappreciated talents. With equal skills as a comedic and dramatic performer, when given the right material, Williams has truly excelled with some highly effective performances.

In her role as Rose Armitage in Get Out, Williams gave an extraordinary performance in one of the best horror films of all time and has continued to gain acclaim in this genre in subsequent films like The Perfection and M3GAN. Williams television credits have also been impressive, with memorable performances in Netflixs A Series of Unfortunate Events and an effective...

For comedy fans of a certain age, watching VHS copies of the 1982 concert film “Richard Pryor: Live on the Sunset Strip” until the tape fell off of the spools was a rite of passage. Until Eddie Murphy‘s “Raw” dethroned it later in the 1980s, it was the most successful stand-up special of all time, and understandably so; marking Pryor‘s return to the stage after the freebasing accident that almost killed him, it was not only hilarious but revealing and poignant — the passage toward the end of the film in which Pryor personifies his crack pipe and acts out his own struggles with it is one of the most potent depictions of addiction ever put on screen.

The problem is that those VHS copies, as well as the blurry transfers on cable television where “Sunset Strip” was a staple for years, captured the greatness of Pryor’s performance but...

Richard Pryor movies were exceptionally popular in the 1970s and 1980s, but that was a problem for TV networks — the comedian’s foul-mouthed jokes were hilarious in theaters but could cause a station to lose its license if broadcast over the public airwaves. That’s why it was common practice to dub R-rated comedies with darns for damns, hecks for hells and fudge for even more profane punchlines. And for at least one Richard Pryor movie, the 1987 comedy Critical Condition, the comedian’s voice was filled in by Full House’s Uncle Joey.

You read that right — producers brought in Dave Coulier and his impression skills to help scrub Critical Condition clean of profanity. Oprah herself couldn’t believe it when she asked Coulier if he would “do Richard Pryor for me.”

How did a nice young actor like Coulier get a job as the voice of America’s premier Black comic?...

When “Boulevard Nights” opened in early 1979, it was one of several major studio films — along with “The Warriors,” The Wanderers,” and “Over the Edge” — to take on gang violence as its primary subject. After the movies inspired a handful of violent incidents at theaters, Paramount doubled down on the marketing of Walter Hill‘s “The Warriors” and turned it into a box office hit; unfortunately for “Boulevard Nights” director Michael Pressman, Warner Bros. went in the opposite direction and pulled their film from the venues where violence had broken out, essentially abandoning the movie.

“Warner Bros. said, ‘We’re very proud of this movie, don’t get us wrong,'” Pressman told IndieWire, “‘but we’re not about to risk lawsuits.'” Over the years, however, “Boulevard Nights” has found the audience it always deserved via repertory screenings (it’s a perennial favorite at Quentin Tarantino’s New Beverly Cinema...

Tis the season to be filthy rich, if Brewster can only spend all that money. The long-in-production follow-up to the late Richard Pryor and John Candys vastly underrated comedy classic Brewsters Millions has officially wrapped production, and the sequel will drop just prior to the holidays on December 5. Brewsters Millions: Christmas is not only a BET+ Original, but its truly a family affair, starring both Pryors real-life daughter, Rain, and his son, Richard Pryor Jr.

While Pryor, Jr. admits his isnt a large part in the new Brewsters Millions story, the iconic comedians son will be portraying the same character (Monty Brewster) his father did in the 1985 movie, which came out in theaters nearly 40 years ago. Pryor Jr. said (via Deadline):

As the son of Richard Pryor, I was so proud to have the opportunity to step into the shoes, although briefly of the unforgettable character [Montgomery] Monty Brewster. Truly...

Exclusive: The BET+ Original film Brewster’s Millions: Christmas is set to premiere on December 5, it has been revealed as production wraps.

The character of Montgomery Brewster was famously portrayed by Richard Pryor in the 1985 comedy Brewster’s Millions, based on the George Barr McCutcheon novel of the same name. Pryor’s son Richard Pryor Jr. will take on the role in the BET+ project with Rain Pryor starring as Opal.

Romeo Miller and China Anne McClain

Brewster’s Millions: Christmas follows Morgan Brewster (China Anne McClain) as she embarks on a unique and challenging journey to inherit her uncle Montgomery’s fortune before Christmas. As Morgan and her companions navigate the delightful chaos of the holiday season, they discover the true meaning of love, faith, and family through the act of giving rather than receiving.

The film also stars Romeo Miller as “Andrew,” Telma Hopkins as “Mrs. Brewster,” Tequan Richmond as “Big...

Conan O’Brien was blown away by Gene Wilder's chemistry with Richard Pryor in movie comedies like Silver Streak and Stir Crazy. Did Wilder feel it too? Boy, did he. “I don’t want to be shocking,” Wilder told Conan in 2005, “but it’s a little bit like a sexual chemistry.”

“Look, it’s true,” Wilder argued after the audience’s amused reaction. “You see someone and you say, ‘I really am attracted to that woman, right?’ And someone says, ‘But why her? That girl is much prettier. She’s taller, she’s shorter, she’s fatter, she’s slimmer. Why that one?’ I don’t know.”

Pryor, in other words, was the right one for Wilder. “When Richard and I did our first scene, some magic happened. What they call chemistry,” Wilder explained. “He improvised. I used to improvise in class but not in front of the movie camera.

Richard Pryor gave Eddie Murphy a hard time later in his career — right? At least, that’s the story The New York Times’ David Marchese tried to confirm with Murphy in a recent podcast interview. Murphy vehemently disagreed. “No, he didn’t,” insisted the Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F star. “Bill Cosby gave me a hard time.”

When Murphy was hitting it big on Saturday Night Live and the movies, Cosby was arguably still the bigger star. The Cosby Show was “TV’s biggest hit in the 1980s,” said TV Guide, arguing that it also breathed new life into the dying sitcom format. Cosby should have been a comedy elder statesman, but from the sound of things, America’s Dad didn’t appreciate the competition from the upstart Murphy.

Ostensibly, clean comic Cosby disapproved of Murphy’s liberal use of profanity in his stand-up act, but “it wasn’t so...

Eddie Murphy's lackluster directorial debut in Harlem Nights led to a career slump in the late 1980s. The film's disappointing box-office performance highlighted Murphy's reluctance to direct again. Despite the setbacks, Murphy's resilience and comeback performances in the 1990s solidified his box-office standing.

Like all bankable Hollywood stars who direct feature films, Eddie Murphy was given the chance to make his feature directorial debut because of his box-office drawing power, which was virtually unparalleled throughout much of the 1980s. Indeed, his uninspired feature directorial debut, the 1989 crime comedy film Harlem Nights, is emblematic of how he probably had too much power for his own good. By the late 1980s, the anarchic comedic presence that the actor displayed with his star-making performance in the 1982 buddy cop action comedy film 48 Hrs. was absent and replaced with cautiousness and predictability.

Like other box-office superstars who achieve a level of popularity...

It’s been 25 years since The Get Up Kids released their seminal sophomore album, Something to Write Home About. To commemorate the anniversary, the Kansas City emo legends have announced that they will reissue the album as an expanded deluxe edition.

Featuring newly remastered versions of the original songs and a second LP consisting of previously-unreleased demos (including the original four-track acoustic recordings by frontman Matt Pryor), the 25th anniversary deluxe edition of the album is set to arrive digitally on August 23rd and physically on September 20th via Polyvinyl Record Co.

Get The Get Up Kids Tickets Here

Today, along with the announcement, the band released the first-ever music video for the album’s beloved opening track, “Holiday,” featuring unearthed footage from the band’s tour in support of the release. “The biggest takeaway from watching this video is how young we were,” Pryor said in a statement. “It...

Mel Brooks has been a whirling dervish of comedic invention for over 70 years. Okay, he's slowed down a tad at the age of 97, but he just wrote and produced the long-awaited "History of the World, Part II" last year. You try doing that at the age of 96. How about you simply try living until 96? Until then, you shall marvel at this man's longevity and continued relevance.

That latter quality is perhaps the most remarkable aspect of Brooks' brilliance. We're constantly judging art produced prior to last week on the basis of how well it's aged. What was deemed open to ridicule or even just a slight ribbing in the past might now strike some as mean-spirited or downright offensive. And yet Brooks, who made films considered vulgar at the time of their release, is still considered an unimpeachable master of his craft. And his movies, especially the wildly provocative "Blazing Saddles,...

The theatrically released stand-up comedy movie has pretty much gone the way of the dinosaur, thanks to cable and streaming. Which is too bad, because big-screen stand-up releases allow viewers to laugh along with a crowd. Or, in some cases, sit in a prolonged, uncomfortable silence with a crowd:

Inarguably one of the biggest stand-up movies ever released was 1982’s Richard Pryor: Live on the Sunset Strip. But it was very nearly a disaster.

Live on the Sunset Strip was a comeback of sorts for Pryor, a return to the stage after he famously lit himself on fire in 1980 while freebasing cocaine. In his four-star review of the film, legendary critic Roger Ebert noted that Pryor was “clearly nervous,” but he eventually witnessed “the emergence of a Richard Pryor who is older, wiser, and funnier than before,” adding that “the last 50 or 60 minutes of this film are extraordinary.”

Live at the Sunset Strip,...

While the late Christopher Reeve gave one too many star-studded performances throughout his lifetime, perhaps his most well-known one to date is the Superman film series. Originally helmed by Richard Donner, the first two movies in the film series were true pieces of masterworks. However, the third one wasn’t quite up to the mark and even fared the least among fans and critics.

Christopher Reeve in his Superman film series. | Credit: Warner Bros. Pictures.

The reasons behind this failure were many. While Donner getting replaced midway with Richard Lester was one thing that led to the script facing a tumultuous fate, what further led to the film’s downfall were certain elements of this third installment. One of these troublesome elements was Richard Pryor’s casting in it as Gus Gorman, as Reeve himself admitted in his autobiography.

Christopher Reeve Feels Richard Pryor’s Casting Doomed Superman III

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Outgoing X-Men senior editor Jordan D. White reveals Havok was meant to remain a zombie in future comics. Havok was kileld in X-Men Dark and resurrected by Madelyne Pryor as the living dead, with White intending to keep him as a zombie in ongoing stories. However, as X-Men enters a new era, these plans have been abandoned, and Havok will instead become a government agent in new X-Factor series.

In a surprise reveal, the X-Men franchise's outgoing senior editor Jordan D. White has revealed plans to permanently kill Cyclops' brother Alex Summers, aka Havok. The plans wouldn't have just killed off the character however - he would have become an undead zombie, permanently continuing on in Marvel lore as one of the living dead.

The reveal comes in a recent interview with Aipt, where White reveals that he had plans to keep Alex as a zombie. Currently, Marvel is transitioning...