It has been over three years since Marvel Studios branched out into the world of television, telling the stories of characters from across the Marvel Cinematic Universe in a new medium. The grand experiment has evolved in some fascinating ways in the time since, resulting in Internet-breaking projects like WandaVision and Loki, as well as the forming of the Marvel Spotlight banner for more standalone projects like Echo. This week, during Disney's Upfronts presentation, Marvel Studios unveiled new release dates or windows for its next three live-action shows -- Agatha All Along, Daredevil: Born Again, and Ironheart. In the process, these announcements revealed the return of the Marvel Television label, which was previously used as the standalone production company behind projects like Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and the "Defendersverse" of shows.

While speaking with ComicBook about the recent Season 1 finale of X-Men '97, Marvel Studios Head of TV, Streaming, and Animation Brad Winderbaum explained the decision to resurrect the Marvel Television label, and how it could help future projects be more accessible to audiences.

"We want to make sure that Marvel stays an open door for people to come in and explore," Winderbaum revealed. "On the heels of Endgame, I think there was, maybe, a little bit of an obligation to watch absolutely everything in order to watch anything. As you know, as a comics fan, they're designed to just pop in, find something that you like, and use that to enter you into the universe, and then you can explore and weave around based on your own preferences. So part of the rebranding of Marvel Studios, Marvel Television, Marvel Animation, even Marvel Spotlight is to, I think, try to tell the audience, 'You can jump in anywhere. They're interconnected but they're not. You don't have to watch A to enjoy B. You can follow your bliss. You can follow your own preferences and find the thing you want within the tapestry of Marvel.'"

What Is the Next Marvel Television Show?

The next live-action Marvel Television project is expected to be Agatha All Along, which will debut on Disney+ with a two-episode premiere on Wednesday, September 18th. In addition to Kathryn Hahn reprising her WandaVision role of Agatha Harkness, the cast of Agatha All Along will include fellow WandaVision alums Deborah Jo Rupp as Sharon Davis and Emma Caulfield Ford as Sarah Proctor. New cast members will include Joe Locke, Aubrey Plaza, Ali Ahn, Maria Dizzia, Sasheer Zamata, and Patti LuPone. Agatha All Along will be directed by head writer Jac Schaeffer, as well as Gandja Monteiro. Marvel Studios' Kevin Feige, Louis D'Esposito, and Brad Winderbaum serve as executive producers on the series.

"I know a little bit, but I can't say anything," Caulfield told ComicBook in a previous interview. "I can't tell you what to expect, because that would reveal something. I know little, just enough to keep me in the right zone. I think it's all going to be really fun. I haven't seen [Kathryn Hahn] yet. I really love her. She's just the best, effortlessly cool."

The first season of X-Men '97 is now in the books, culminating an epic animated journey for fans of the Marvel Universe. The series is just one of several titles under the Marvel Animation banner at Marvel Studios, with projects like returning series What If...? and new series Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man and Eyes of Wakanda on the horizon. Earlier this week, Marvel Television announced release windows or dates for some of its upcoming live-action offerings, including Agatha All Along, Daredevil: Born Again, and Ironheart. Those announcements did not include the aforementioned projects from Marvel Animation -- but we might have a better idea of what's next on the docket.

While speaking with ComicBook about the recent season finale of X-Men '97, Executive Producer and Marvel Studios Head of TV, Streaming, and Animation Brad Winderbaum revealed that the upcoming third season of What If...? could be the next Marvel Animation show released, without confirming an exact release date or window.

"What If...? Season Three is -- that might be the one that comes out next, in terms of animation," Winderbaum revealed. "That is the culmination of a trilogy. We're actually close to completing that one, and it really feels like you've gone through this amazing emotional experience with Uatu, in a way that's... What's great about The Watcher is that he presents himself as uncaring, and cold, and just an observer, but he cares more than everybody [and] anybody. That is on full display in that third season."

What Will What If...? Season 3 Be About?

Early looks at What If...? Season 3 were released shortly after the show's sophomore season wrapped in late 2023, confirming that Sam Wilson / Captain America (Anthony Mackie) Monica Rambeau (Teyonah Parris), Bill Foster / Goliath (Laurence Fishburne), Bucky Barnes / Winter Soldier (Sebastian Stan) and Alexi Shostakov / Red Guardian (David Harbour) will all factor into the episodes in some way. Additionally, ComicBook previously exclusively confirmed that America Ferrera will join the cast as Agent Morales.

"She's great," writer and executive producer AC Bradley said of Ferrera. "I'm so glad she is getting her flowers when it comes to Barbie, because -- I shouldn't say this, but hey, I no longer work at Marvel -- Barbie was my favorite movie of the year, my favorite superhero movie, because Barbie's a hero. And, so is America. That was the best. So, we're so happy that she was willing to come in, and do this part in this random episode of What If...?. She was so lovely about it."

The first season of X-Men '97 is now available to stream exclusively on Disney+. If you haven't signed up for Disney+ yet, you can try it out here.

The Safe Man has been realized into a fully fleshed out story. Nearly two decades after it was published anonymously in The Secret Society of Demolition Writers, Michael Connelly expanded his short story into a feature-length audiobook on Audible. The Lincoln Lawyer author reunited with longtime collaborator Titus Welliver (Bosch) and Jack Quaid (The Boys, Oppenheimer) to bring The Safe Man to listenable life. While the story, one which interweaves Connelly's familiar mystery and suspense flavors while dabbling into some supernatural elements, is currently exclusive to the audio format, there are aspirations to bring it to live-action.

"That's the hope," Connelly told ComicBook when asked if there are plans to turn The Safe Man into a film or television series. "The pyramid gets skinnier and skinnier at the top, so it's a tough thing to go the distance. But yes, we're definitely in discussions about that. Now that this is out, we'll definitely move forward with that."

Connelly is no stranger to turning his works into motion-pictures, as The Lincoln Lawyer has been made into both a feature film and Netflix series while his recurring leading character detective Harry Bosch is the centerpiece of the Bosch television program.

With The Safe Man existing under the umbrella of Audible, an Amazon company, there is a direct pipeline to Prime Video.

"Audible has a branch that is kind of like a way of delivering this to Prime, and hopefully they'll be interested in it," Connelly continued. "We'll see how it does on Audible first, and then we'll go from there."

The Safe Man also has the luxury of already existing with a stacked cast. Should a live-action adaptation move forward, Connelly noted it would be "amazing" to bring the likes of Welliver and Quaid back to portray their characters on camera.

"If we could get all these people, it would be pretty amazing," Connelly said. "They're all extremely talented and they're all in-demand people. I kind of scratched my head a little bit at how we got them. I think that was the power of Titus, to tell you the truth, to get some of the people that we got. It was kind of a case of, 'Well, if Titus is doing it, then yeah, I want to be part of that.' That worked for us on this level, and hopefully it would work again on live-action."

The Safe Man is available now on Audible.

Between the rise of attention being paid to streaming platforms and the coronavirus pandemic taking a major toll on movie theaters, the past few years have been full of unexpected developments when it comes to how movies are both made and also released. The Strangers: Chapter 1, for example, was originally developed as an experience that would likely have been released directly to the streaming market, though producer Courtney Solomon confirmed that the excitement from studio Lionsgate allowed the project to pivot to earn a theatrical release. In addition to the creative components of the project, the studio was also confident in that filming three slasher films in a sprawling production would be vastly different from attempting to film three major blockbusters. The Strangers: Chapter 1 is in theaters now.

"On the filming side of it, [Lionsgate said], 'Okay, make the giant movie, we understand that they'll be three parts.' When we went into it, we didn't know the first one was gonna be a theatrical movie," Solomon confirmed to ComicBook. "That's not how we went into it, because in the world we live in, so many places where you can put a movie out, streaming, everything else, nobody was really worried. And it wasn't like we were spending $800 million a movie, so that wasn't the biggest concern, either. So all the business and the numbers of everything, whichever way it might have gone, worked out."

He continued, "We were fortunate that once they liked the creative and we presented them a pretty detailed treatment, they let us go ahead and make the movie and they were very supportive, and that was great. As they saw the first cut of the first movie and then we went on further, they were like, 'Okay, this is a theatrical movie, we're good.' And we're like, 'Yay! That's good.'"

Understandably, Solomon, the rest of the filmmakers, and audiences would prefer if the upcoming second and third chapters also earned theatrical releases, with the producer confirming the fate of those films will likely be dependent on how this first chapter performs financially.

"So now, I guess, obviously, it depends on how we do, they're business people," the producer pointed out. "The hope is that they'd love to bring out these next two movies at the same size that they brought out this movie ... Thankfully, we don't have the most giant mountain to climb like a lot of these movies do these days, on that side of it. We feel confident and they feel very good, but you never know which way it's gonna go, right? That's life."

He added, "It was a smart way of doing it, in so much as, we just looked at it from a fan satisfaction point of view. We want to tell this story, the only way we can tell it is as this giant thing, it will, in fact, be three parts. 'Let's figure out economically, for you guys, how that works, great, you're covered.' Now, we'll do our job and hopefully the audience will get to see it in the best possible way."

The Strangers: Chapter 1 is in theaters now. Stay tuned for updates on The Strangers: Chapter 1 and The Strangers: Chapter 2.

Are you hoping the rest of the trilogy is released theatrically? Contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter or on Instagram to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

One element about 2008's The Strangers that set it apart from its peers is that our main characters are going through a tense time in the wake of a rejected marriage proposal, putting the audience in an uncomfortable situation right from the start. With The Strangers: Chapter 1, however, the script called for a different type of dynamic between Maya and Ryan, played by Madelaine Petsch and Froy Gutierrez, respectively. Rather than merely being an arbitrary change, the cast addressed what made this spin on the familiar formula so compelling to them as performers. The Strangers: Chapter 1 is in theaters now.

"I watched the 2008 version when it first came out, and I was 14, so I didn't really understand adult relationships, but I was always a little frustrated by, 'Why are they fighting in the middle of this chaos?'" Petsch shared with ComicBook. "And so when I got the ability to jump into this, I was like, 'How cool would it be if they are just genuinely so in love and happy?' There were still obvious miscommunication issues, as every couple has, but that was very important to me and I was very excited to see that on the page."

While this first chapter makes some tweaks to the original concept, the upcoming The Strangers: Chapter 2 and The Strangers: Chapter 3 won't entirely deviate from expectations, with Petsch also addressing the balance of shedding more insight into the antagonists while also keeping their origins shrouded in secrecy.

"It's really integral to the original story that you don't know why they're doing it or who they are, that's what makes it so scary, so I think we dance a fine line of never really giving you all of it, but giving you a small taste of it," the actor expressed. "Because, otherwise, it's not as bone-chilling anymore if you know exactly what's going on and why and who they are."

The movie is described, "From master director Renny Harlin (Cliffhanger, Die Hard 2, The Exorcist: The Beginning) comes a new trilogy of terror. In Chapter I, Madelaine Petsch (TV's Riverdale) stars as a young woman starting a new life with her fianc?. Suddenly, during a road trip stop in a remote vacation rental in the woods, they become the prey of a mysterious gang of masked strangers who attack without warning or reason. What begins as a fight to stay alive becomes one woman's journey of courage and cunning in this horror series bridging three compelling films."

The Strangers: Chapter 1 is in theaters now.

What did you think of this change to the original story? Contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter or on Instagram to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

George Miller has some thoughts on which shot was his favorite from Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga. The movie set in the Mad Max Universe is a prequel, featuring the origin story of Charlize Theron's Furiosa. Anya Taylor-Joy takes on the role of a young Furiosa in the flick, where she's joined by Chris Hemsworth's villainous Dr. Dementus. Prolific filmmaker George Miller is behind the camera on Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, and while he admits it's hard to decide on which of his shots is his favorite, he does note one that sticks out to him.

ComicBook spoke to George Miller about Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, where he was asked if there were any shots that he held in high regard. "My response to that is not so much one shot.... it's a little bit like asking me, or a composer or songwriter, what's your favorite note or favorite chord?" Miller said. "It's in conjunction with the others around them. That the experience is offered to the audience. As you're making the film, there's a little competition and you say to yourself, 'Oh that's my favorite shot. Oh no, it's been replaced by this one."

He added, "There's one that when I saw it, even when we were shooting... when Dementus is on foot, running away towards the end, and he's running into the mist. And then you hear a rumble, and you're not sure if it's score or what. Then you realize it's the vehicle that Furiosa's in. Just as it creeps into frame, he disappears into the mist and then reappears again. That's the shot where I saw it, I thought, 'That works elegantly. That tells the story very well."

Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga's Rotten Tomatoes score revealed

The Rotten Tomatoes score for Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga came out two days ago, and at that time, the movie had a Rotten Tomatoes score of 87% critics rating after 30 reviews. You can check out what some of the critics are saying below:

"Furiosa is a fine prelude to that mighty arc. Its initial rattling gradually gives way to the robust and satisfying purr of Miller, despite everything, making it work," Richard Lawson (Vanity Fair) shared.

"Furiosa is such a thrilling ride, packed with set pieces that are a masterclass in staging action, that it's a little sad when the plot veers towards the events of the previous movie - because we know that's where the ride ends," Liz Shannon Miller (Consequence) explained.

"You soon reach the point where you're sick of sand, sick of explosions, sick of off-puttingly sadistic violence, and sick of thunderous drums bashing away on the soundtrack, and yet the film keeps piling on more and more and more of them," Nicholas Barber (BBC.com) wrote.

Set more than a decade before the events of Mad Max: Fury Road, Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga explores how Furiosa was kidnapped from her home in the Green Place of Many Mothers by the treacherous Warlord Dementus and his Biker Horde. As Dementus and Immortan Joe vie for control of the wasteland, Furiosa must survive every challenge in front of her as she seeks vengeance against her kidnappers on her way to return home.

Mad Max creator George Miller returns to direct Furiosa, which stars Anya Taylor-Joy, Chris Hemsworth, Tom Burke, Nathan Jones, Angus Sampson, and Quaden Bayles. Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga releases in theaters on May 24th.

A new era of Doctor Who has officially begun, and the return of the beloved sci-fi series definitely isn't pulling any punches. The latest season, which revolves around the adventures of the Fifteenth Doctor (Ncuti Gatwa), has already played off of the character's connection to Gallifrey and the Time Lords, which were shaken up massively by the controversial "Timeless Child" reveal. While speaking to ComicBook about the new season of Doctor Who, returning showrunner Russell T. Davies revealed that he has always been intrigued by the idea of The Doctor being the last of his kind, and was more than happy to work with the canon laid out before his return.

"For those who might not know the history while I was not working on the show: Gallifrey was brought back to life and then destroyed again," Davies explained in our interview, which you can check out above. "I think that kind of says it's inevitable, and I like that fact. I like the phrase 'The last of the Time Lords.' It makes him legendary, makes him unique. It makes him scary in some ways, and makes him precious. So it's a phrase I'm very fond of. If I hadn't been able to use it, I simply wouldn't have used it and he would have said 'I'm an adventurer and a philosopher and a traveler.' There are many more adjectives to apply to The Doctor, so that wouldn't have worried me. But I don't think he would have gone home often."

What Is Doctor Who's New Season About?

From Disney+ and the BBC, this season of Doctor Who follows the Doctor and Ruby Sunday through infinite adventures across time and space in the TARDIS. From the Regency era in England to war-torn futures, the duo champion the forces of good while encountering incredible friends and dangerous foes.

Guest stars on the new season of Doctor Who will include Aneurin Barnard, Anita Dobson, Yasmin Finney, Michelle Greenidge, Jonathan Groff, Bonnie Langford, Genesis Lynea, Jemma Redgrave, Lenny Rush, Indira Varma and Angela Wynter. Doctor Who is produced by Bad Wolf, with BBC Studios for Disney Branded Television and BBC. Under the creative vision of Davies, the additional executive producers include Phil Collinson, Joel Collins, Julie Gardner and Jane Tranter. The new season features episodes directed by Ben Chessell, Jamie Donoughue, Julie Anne Robinson and Dylan Holmes Williams.

Doctor Who airs new episodes on Fridays at 7pm ET on Disney+, followed by a debut on BBC iPlayer at 12am GMT on Saturdays, and a broadcast premiere on BBC One later that day. If you haven't signed up for Disney+ yet, you can try it out here.

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Dune: Part Two has become something of a phenomenon over the past few months, with the film earning rave reviews, a hearty box office haul, and plenty of online chatter. The film, which continues Denis Villeneuve's adaptation of Frank Herbert's iconic books, is chock-full of moments that stuck with audiences -- and apparently, with some of its crew as well. While speaking to ComicBook about the recent home release of Dune: Part Two, cinematographer Greig Fraser shared the scenes from the film that he himself is the most fond of.

"I love the sandworm riding sequence, to be frank with you," Fraser explained in our interview, which you can check out above. "It changes on a week to week basis. I love that sequence. Love, love, love that sequence. But I think, at the moment, the sequence that I'm loving is the end of the film. I'm loving Chani's journey. At the end of the film, I'm loving her silent walk to the sand dune, her thumper. I love her journey at the end. That's a beautiful little moment. And the other thing I love as well -- you asked for one, but I'm giving you three -- is Jessica's journey, while she's talking to Alia. There's a time she's walking in the sietch where she's kind of talking to Alia, and she's kind of talking to herself. [She] really sounds, a little bit, like a crazy person. She's talking about converting the weak minds, and she comes across a family who are a little bit scared of her. And the push in on Rebecca is one of my favorite shots in the film, too. I mean, as far as acting goes, it is supreme acting that her eyes shift at a certain point in the film. So I love that."

Will There Be a Dune 3?

As fans of Herbert's books know, the grand narrative of Dune extends far beyond the events of the first book, which has led to a lot of speculation about whether or not Dune: Messiah could become the franchise's next film. Villeneuve has teased that a script for Dune: Messiah exists, and that he is focusing on telling the best possible distillation of the source material.

"I'm working on four different screenplays -- I know that Dune: Messiah will be one of them, I don't know if it will be the next or the second next," Villeneuve shared in an interview earlier this year. "My job was to try to keep the spirit of Frank Herbert alive as much as possible -- the whole meaning of Dune becomes clear with Dune: Messiah."

What Is Dune: Part Two About?

Dune: Part Two explores the mythic journey of Paul Atreides as he unites with Chani and the Fremen while on a warpath of revenge against the conspirators who destroyed his family. Facing a choice between the love of his life and the fate of the known universe, he endeavors to prevent a terrible future only he can foresee.

The big-screen epic Dune: Part Two includes Timoth?e Chalamet, Zendaya, Rebecca Ferguson, Josh Brolin, Austin Butler, Florence Pugh, Dave Bautista, Christopher Walken, Stephen McKinley Henderson, and L?a Seydoux, with Stellan Skarsg?rd, Charlotte Rampling, and Javier Bardem. Denis Villeneuve directed from a screenplay he co-wrote with Jon Spaihts based on Frank Herbert's iconic novel.

Dune: Part Two is available now on Digital and on 4K UHD.

Dune: Part Two is the biggest movie of 2024 so far, and it will soon be heading to Max. ComicBook has gotten the chance to chat with many folks who worked on the film, which is currently up on Rotten Tomatoes with a 92% critics' score and a 95% audience score. In honor of the movie's upcoming 4K release, ComicBook spoke with editor Joe Walker about the film. One big moment from the project that came up was the duel between Paul Atreides (Timoth?e Chalamet) and Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen (Austin Butler).

"Roger [Yuan], the stunt coordinator, and the actors sort of developed a really - there's a lot of meaning that goes into those fights," Walker explained. "They aren't just scraps. They have the energy of scraps, but there's continuity. In fact, the moment where he looks down and sees the knife in his guts, that's kind of a reference, isn't it? I think to Gurney, one of the initial scenes of Dune 1. There's always a kind of - the character is baked in - the sort of different fighting styles in opposition. And you know, the adeptness of Paul to adapt as a person, which is his survival. He adapts to the desert, and so does his fighting style."

"In the case of that [scene], they shot it, I think, over about four or five days, and I think two cameras at a time with the kind of dawn lighting going on. And, of course, the entire cast save the Baron are there, so there's a lot to cut to that sort of amplifies and ramps up the drama of the story, and not least Paul and Chani and the kind of access between them that Feyd tramples upon," he continued.

"[Director Denis Villeneuve] always kind of pays me the most enormous compliment that an editor can get, which is if something works perfectly, he doesn't change it. We change things that aren't working a lot until they work. But in the case of Paul and Feyd's fight, that was pretty much what I showed him in Hungary, a week after he shot it. We were jumping up and down saying ... 'We've got a great ending'"

Dune: Part Two is now available on Digital and on 4K UHD. Stay tuned for more from our interview with Joe Walker.

Thelma the Unicorn is coming to the streaming screen. Based on Aaron Blabey's fan-favorite children's book series, Thelma the Unicorn tells the tale of the titular pony's (Brittany Howard) efforts to become a world-famous singer, which accelerate dramatically after she accidentally disguises herself as a unicorn. Netflix wasted no time in adding top talent to the animated adaptation, bringing in Jared and Jerusha Hess (Napoleon Dynamite, Nacho Libre) to pen the script. Jared also occupied one-half of the director's chair, sharing that title with Lynn Wang.

"They were working with Netflix for about a year, I believe, before I came on, just working on script and working on story and writing and stuff like that," Wang recalled to ComicBook when asked about her production timeline on Thelma the Unicorn. "Once they got to a place where they felt like it was in a pretty solid form where we could kind of take it and start putting visuals to it, that's when I came in. I had just come off of show running for Unikitty! at Warner Brothers, which is another unicorn property. I was primed for this one."

Thelma the Unicorn represents Wang's feature film directorial debut. Prior to this project, Wang had worked on numerous animated television installments in a variety of different roles, from character designing on Spongebob Squarepants to guest directing an episode of Teen Titans Go!. While this movie was a bit of new territory for Wang, she praised the Hesses for welcoming her in with open arms.

"I think it is always hard to have someone come in and who has opinions and thoughts of their own on something that they've already been working on, but they've been so great at welcoming me in," Wang mentioned. "I mostly worked with Jared on the day to day, and then Jerusha would come in at crucial moments to help write and give notes during specific times in the pipeline. Those two people are so nice and so sweet and they're just ready to hear any idea and throw spaghetti against the wall."

Some of those ideas are inspired by the some of the most cherished films in both the animated and live-action space.

"I love Chris and Phil Lord's movies. I think they are really high energy and super funny. And also when they hit emotionally, they really hit emotionally. Stuff like Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs was my general influence," Wang detailed. "For Thelma specifically, we had musical biopic influences from A Star is Born. We also had Sing Street, which is really fun and also high energy and also big emotions. Then of course, I think Jared's own library of work. His movies like Nacho Libre and Napoleon Dynamite really showcase how silly and funny he can be, but then are also grounded in human emotions and human wants. I think all of that went into Thelma."

Wang also had the luxury of a stacked vocal cast behind Thelma the Unicorn. Beyond Brittany Howard in the titular spot, the ensemble features iconic comedic voices like Zach Galifianakis, Fred Armisen, Will Forte, and Jon Heder.

"They're such pros at what they do, and this is a comedy of course, and so they're like comedy geniuses," Wang applauded the ensemble. "Jared's really good friends with a lot of them, which I think also really helps to make the recording room feel casual, which I think is always really conducive to comedy."

It might not be long before that ensemble is back in the booth either. Blabey has multiple Thelma the Unicorn stories in his archive, meaning there is framework for sequels should Netflix pursue it.

"I hope so," Wang said of a possible Thelma the Unicorn 2. "That would be amazing to get the team back together."

Thelma the Unicorn hits Netflix on May 17th.

Michael Connelly is expanding into a new medium. The critically-acclaimed author of classic novels like The Lincoln Lawyer and Blood Work has penned dozens of stories throughout his multi-decade career and is now venturing into the audio space, partnering with Audible for The Safe Man.

"I'm trying to hit all the bases, I guess you'd say," Connelly told ComicBook. "As a storyteller, I'm kind of fascinated of trying many different things. I did a couple of True Crime podcasts, and I have to say it is a streamlined way of getting a story out there. You get an idea and within weeks, if not days, you can get it going. I have a daughter who graduated from film school and a partner in my television production business, and they came to me and said, 'We were wanting to look at doing one of these audio dramas and what do you got?'

"I did a couple of kind of do-it-yourself podcasts. I actually recorded them in my garage. I felt like that wasn't the best delivery system. It was broken up by ads and things like that," Connelly added. "Eventually, I went to Audible and it was kind of a change of life to see how easy it was to tell an uninterrupted story through their platform. When we came up with this idea of let's do this fictional major production of an Audible audio drama, it was really a no-brainer."

What Connelly had was a standalone short story called The Safe Man, a tale that existed outside his fleshed out Harry Bosch world that teetered into some other-worldly elements that had been absent from much of Connelly's prior works. Taking place in the Florida tropics, The Safe Man chronicles a horror author hiring a man to open an antique safe in his home which results in something sinister being unleashed in the process.

"I've always been kind of partial to the one time I stepped out of the lanes that I'm known for of detective stories. I wrote a semi-detective story that had a supernatural angle to it," Connelly recalled. "I thought that would lend itself pretty well to a cool sound design and telling the story in an audible format. They gave me some time to expand the story, which has quite more stuff in there than was in the short story, that's for sure. I did that pretty quickly, and then they took it and ran with it."

The Safe Man reunites Connelly with his longtime collaborator Titus Welliver, the star of Bosch, a television series that adapts various Harry Bosch novels from Connelly's archive.

"It takes about seven months to make the Bosch show, and then the actors have five months off. No one wants five months off. I think when they have a lot of momentum going in their professional career, they're all looking for other things to do," Connelly noted. "So I was the guy kind of whispering at the corner, 'Hey, now that you're done Bosch, are you interested in telling this story?' It started with Titus and then Titus could reach out to a lot of actors that he knows. Through him, we got some other really great talent to be involved in this."

While The Safe Man dips into both a new genre and storytelling medium for Connelly, the audiobook will have plenty of traces of what Connelly is best known for.

"If you like Harry Bosch or Lincoln Lawyer, you're going to get into a mystery that someone cannot let go and is going to start looking into," Connelly teased. "There's some cop stuff, there's detective stuff, there's a putting together of a puzzle, but it does have this other dimension to it, a dimension of what happens to us, where we come from and where we go when we pass. These are eternal questions that never get into my books, but I've carried for a long time. This story is somewhat inspired by something that happened to me a long time ago. It's still an extension of what I'm known for, but his is a whole new front for me and I'm quite excited about it. I think people who have been riding with me through my stories for a long time will not be disappointed."

The Safe Man is available now on Audible.

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes was released in theaters last week, and the new installment to the long-running franchise is up on Rotten Tomatoes with an 81% critics score and 79% audience score. ComicBook recently had the chance to chat with members of the W?t? FX team who were behind the film's VFX, including Visual Effects Supervisor, Erik Winquist; VFX Producer Danielle Immerman; and Animation Supervisor, Paul Story. They addressed the movie's big deaths and spoke about some of the shots in the film they were most proud of. Turns out, one big moment in the film was almost a little different. Warning: Spoilers Ahead!

"There was a shot they delivered very late in the game because we had to rip it out of their hands, was Raka's - well spoiler territory - but Raka's last words when he is in the river," Winquist explained to ComicBook. "Just because of this relentless pursuit of excellence, the whole team didn't want to let that shot go. There was this, 'No, no, we can make the water better.' I'm like, 'Guys, [director Wes Ball] was happy with it three days ago.' 'No, no, no.' They just did version after version after version. I'm like, 'All right, all right, all right, stop. You put one more brushstroke on this, it'll ruin the paintings. It's beautiful, it's amazing. Just let's let it be over now.' There was that."

During the W?t? team's audience Q&A that same day, they also revealed Raka's final words kept being rewritten, which also contributed to the shot's delay.

"But to the point of Raka and the river ... there were a number of things in the script that were like, 'Whoa, red flag. We're going to have to need to figure this out,'" Winquist shared with the crowd. "The character in the river, we had to basically sort out the notion of thin film water sheeting off of digital characters for [Avatar: The Way of the Water]."

"But the requirements of that story were very different than ours," he continued. "The water work in this movie was all about the chaos and the scariness of it. The dark, the dirty, all of the sediment in the river, all of the debris flooding in at the end, and there was a lot of additional work that our R&D team, who worked directly with our effects artists on this to make sure that this is a heavy moment, like Raka's last lines, 'Together strong,' seeing all the water sheet off of his face. That was a big push, and that went out the door the last week of the -"

"Well, they did rewrite his line," Immerman added.

"Three times," Winquist confirmed.

"So that shot was done a number of times. Beautifully," Immerman continued.

"Not to completion," Winquist clarified. "But yeah, it was a big concern."

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is now playing in theaters. You can learn more about W?t? FX here.

Angelo Dawkins has seen nothing but success since linking up with Montez Ford. The two began tagging together on the NXT live event circuit in 2016 and officially debuted on NXT TV the following year as the Street Profits. Together, Dawkins and Ford established themselves as one of the black and gold brand's most popular acts, eventually ascending to become NXT Tag Team Champions in 2019. That reign would only last a recognized 88 days as the Street Profits were main roster bound by that fall. Within the next calendar year, Dawkins and Ford had captured the top tag prize on both WWE Monday Night Raw and WWE SmackDown.

While the duo seem to have everything figured out today, it was a long journey finding their identities. This was the case for Dawkins especially, as he cycled through gimmicks for four years before finding himself with the Street Profits.

One of those gimmicks was as a "hype man" for blossoming star Sasha Banks. Banks would make her way to NXT TV and cement herself as a cornerstone of the entire company's women's division, capturing every title within WWE before exiting in 2022.

"Yeah, a little bit," Dawkins told ComicBook when asked if he still sees traces of his and Banks's early selves into the Angelo Dawkins and Mercedes Mon? of 2024. "Obviously you still keep stuff that you've done when you first started, especially when you start to find yourself a little bit more. You go back to the well a little bit. 'Oh, I did this. I'm going to tweak it a little bit, but I'm going to still keep it like that in a way.' I see it a little bit."

Both Dawkins and Banks are largely different competitors today than who they were a decade prior. Banks, now wrestling as Mercedes Mon? for AEW, still retains much of "The Boss" from the developmental days but has evolved the character into being a "CEO."

"Dog, I keep forgetting about them days. I be seeing some of those promos pop up randomly on Twitter," Dawkins continued. "Now it's just like, 'Oh snap. Dang, I forgot. I definitely did do that (laughs).'"

Dawkins most recently competed on this past Friday's WWE SmackDown, falling to Tama Tonga in a first round King of the Ring match. Mon? is set to challenge for the AEW TBS Championship on Sunday, May 26th at AEW Double or Nothing.

The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are getting in on the multiverse craze with a "Turtle-Verse' style crossover in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Saturday Morning Adventures. The twelfth issue of IDW Publishing's all-ages series concluded with an exciting final page, which saw the series' Turtle protagonists, based on the 1987 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles cartoon, drawn by the omnipotent Mister Ogg into a contest with a dream team of Turtles from various iterations of the TMNT series, including Leonardo from Kevin Eastman and Peter Larid's original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comics, Donatello from the 2003 cartoon series, Michelangelo from the CG-animated 2012 television series, Raphael from Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and Jennika from IDW's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles timeline.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles fans are likely eager to find out how the story turns out in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Saturday Morning Adventures #13, which goes on sale on May 22nd. ComicBook had the chance to ask some questions of writer Erik Burnham and artist Sarah Myer. Here's what they told us about the epic Turtles crossover (minor spoilers may follow):

First, how did you choose which Turtles from each reality to use?

Erik Burnham: The whittling down started by asking if every iteration was on the table. All of the versions that appeared on TV were open to use, which meant we didn't need to make any pitches for the movie versions (the live-action designs from the 1990s or Michael Bay-produced films, the 2007 CG movie, or the recent Mutant Mayhem) because the TV series gave us three very different worlds to play with right there. I didn't know if Nickelodeon would have been open to allowing any of the movie versions, but since we already had three very distinct designs (and I wanted to include Mirage representation, bringing us to 4) it wasn't something we had to stress over. The alternates were covered! Raph from Rise of the TMNT was chosen first because he had the most distinct size and design. 2012 Mikey was chosen because... I liked 2012 Mikey. Mirage's Leonardo and 2k3 Donatello just felt like the right choices... and we also included one of IDW's contributions to the lore, Jennika. She is a mutant ninja turtle, she's been around for a while, and she's a curveball. Something our guys would not have expected. Yes, some fans noted that that makes it 5:4 and wondered if we would call that imbalance out (we--or rather, Raph--sure did)! It felt like the right mix. I was almost tempted to ask for a bit with the Red Sky designs, but we got a LOT going on in this issue as is, no sense going meta with different designs of the exact same characters.

It was interesting that you turned what many would consider one of the sillier aspects of the '87 Turtles - that they never really use their weapons as weapons - into an almost philosophical difference between them and their more aggressive counterparts. Can you talk a bit about how you came upon that theme?

EB: The '87 TMNT show seemed to have had stricter rules with Standards and Practices over the weapons--that's speculation on my part, but considering Michelangelo's nunchucks went away midway through season 4, I think I might be onto something. And though we don't fully shy away from our Turtles using their weapons, they surely aren't going to be using them to the extent or in the same way that the Mirage or IDW versions do. Any character from those universes or one with a window to the Multiverse (from all-powerful characters like Ogg to interdimensional time travelers like Renet to those that can tap into the collective unconscious like Creepy Eddie) would have that perspective, so it makes sense to bring it up. I like the challenge of finding ways to take down the bad guys without just violence, and it's a thing that fits this version of the Turtles well and is fun to contrast with everything else. Looking for a way to make it feel character-based as much as anything is a thing Team SMA has been looking to do from go.

I loved the little metatextual, Easter egg-like nods, be it the use of different TMNT logos or Raphael joking about Leo's dialog. Were there any ideas for references that didn't make it in, or ones that did make it in that you think fans may not notice?

Sarah Myer: I had an absolute blast drawing from the script- there are a lot of great easter eggs mentioned for my reference whenever I open a TMNT SMA script and I look forward to it always, but for this particular arc and issue it was especially fun. The fourth wall breaking that the '87 show is known for gets taken to a new level in this issue with Michelangelo literally getting thrown through the panels after being punched by Rise Raph due to being duped by 2012 Mikey; that's a sentence I never thought I'd be able to say in context for an actual thing that I had the privilege to draw as opposed to a fever dream, but here we are. There are a few visual nods to famous Mirage TMNT shots with Raphael and Mirage Leo, too. I got such a kick out of drawing our cameos which Erik mentioned; I decided to give us banners which implies we are the ONLY ones rooting for the Turtles in a sea of Ogg fans with a little Ninja Rap nod.

EB: One of the things I love about working with Nickelodeon on this particular project is how much fun we get to have--the different logos were one thing, in particular, we giggled over. But make no mistake, everything we sneak in for readers isn't really snuck in--it's approved the same as everything else... In fact, some of my favorite suggestions for visual gags, easter eggs, and meta punchlines, both in this story and in this series have come from Nickelodeon! We're all working to live up to the spirit of this corner of the franchise and include everything we can from the wider Turtles universe that makes sense, so a TON of ideas get thrown around by all parties through the process, which means anything that didn't make the cut was usually replaced by something better, leaving me to forget whatever the original, non-used gag was! I will say, I was happy Sarah got us into the Ogglympics crowd. Tickets must've been insane.

Sarah, tell me a bit about drawing the various Turtles. Was there a particular challenge to ensuring they look like they came from their respective realities, with all their different styles?

MYER: As a fan of TMNT since the '87 show and through the different iterations afterward, it was such a bucket list item checked off and a dream come true to draw these different versions in the same issue. I'm gonna put in a little shameless plug for a piece of fan art I did a few years ago in which I drew different versions of Donatello. Back when I drew that, I had no idea I was technically getting in some early practice for this issue. But it's one thing to draw the different iterations for a personal piece and another entirely to draw them for a specific comic story which understandably needs to be approved by IDW and Nickelodeon, and that challenge was incredibly fun for me. I guess one of the challenges was figuring out exactly how tall in relation to making each of the iterations; the proportions of, say, the Mirage Turtles, look pretty close to how the '87 versions were adapted height-wise, but there's a lot more muscle definition and slightly more sinewy limbs to the Mirage look, for example, that might make them appear taller if I wasn't careful about the size relationship when drawing the scenes with Raphael and Mirage Leo. The 2003 turtles are short compared to April and Casey in their show, in about the same height gap as the '87 turtles are to their April. But Turtles Forever (2009), for example, made the '87 turtles appear much shorter than 2003. But a roughly 5'0" 1987 Donatello looks less bulky and muscular than a probably-about-5'0" 2003 Donatello, ignoring that the '03 Turtles did grow taller in the later seasons. And even after determining which size relationship to go with, then there are those practical comic storytelling decisions such as panel layout to fit some of these actions in, plus room for speech balloons, etc. And I loved the chance to place lots of spot blacks and drop shadows as well as screentones in any shot of Mirage Leo.

Outside of work, just in general, I love analyzing different animators' and artists' styles in my favorite cartoons and animation characters (Ask me at a con about Fred Moore's Mickey Mouse vs Andreas Deja or the Australian unit for episodes of Darkwing Duck for example, and I might never stop talking) so it felt like I got the incredible opportunity to really explore that further in drawing these different iterations. I personally found maybe... Rise? to be the most challenging to draw but it's really cool to analyze the curve strokes and strong lines present in those designs! I found myself drawing way more from the elbow and shoulder whenever I had to draw Rise Raph to get those big, sweeping line arcs for his poses. As an aside, there's a whole world of "How bulky are each iteration's shells? Are there carapace bridges in the x or y version?" that I could ramble about, and happily so, but maybe another time. And it's important to keep in mind that this particular meeting of the different turtles is in a different dimension from the '87 turtles' NYC. It's not like Jennika suddenly pops up within their NYC. So when you think about THAT possibility, that would have been a different curveball. This story was solely the other iterations appearing as they appear, rather than those different turtles being translated INTO the 1987 universe. For example, it wasn't like the 2012 "Manhattan Project" episode situation where there was a translation of 2012 characters into the 1987 Fred Wolf cartoon style (or one of them, anyway!). If there were any changes needed to the art, with these characters and this franchise, I did and still do get star-struck. I don't just get to change a line or two on any character, it's THESE characters. Any challenge in this job is an absolute privilege, and I would not have it any other way.

Having delivered one Turtle-verse style story, what are the chances we see a follow-up down the line? Or are such crossovers, as Ogg says, too much paperwork?

EB: They can be a trick, but I'd love to be involved in a crossover with more of the Turtles, without any of the shenanigans used in this story, because I love writing that kind of interaction. It'd be great to see the dynamics of a lotta Leos or mixing and matching the teams. I honestly don't know when or if such an opportunity will arise, but I'm up for it if asked!

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Saturday Morning Adventures #13 goes on sale May 22nd.

• Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Saturday Morning Adventures #13
• (W) Erik Burnham (A/CA) Sarah Myer
• The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles have beaten Mr. Ogg's first game, but he's too genre-savvy to give up that easily! With two more challenges to go, there's still enough time for him to make a comeback. The good guys may always win, but the scheming trickster from Dimension Z has found a catch: what if the Heroes in a Half-Shell aren't the only good guys in the room? The games continue in part two of "The Ogglympics!"
• In Shops: May 22, 2024
• SRP: $3.99

MAJOR SPOILERS For Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes in this ARTICLE and VIDEO!

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes had some "wonderful days" at the box office during its opening weekend - and one of the early breakout stars of the film is Freya Allan, who has one of the most dynamic roles in the film as "Nova." Nova is the lead human character - a girl that ape leads Noa (Owen Teague) and Raka (Peter Macon) take under their wing as they journey to save Noa's tribe from the imperial hand of Proximus Caesar (Kevin Durand).

Of course, the biggest twist in Kingdom is that "Nova" is actually "Mae," an elite-trained operative from a settlement of militarized humans who have retained their intelligence and are rebuilding the technological infrastructure of Earth. Mae's mission ends with that militant camp of humans reactivating satellite communications so that isolated pockets of humans can organize and regroup.

During the press tour for Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, Freya Allan revealed an interesting source of inspiration for how to play her role as "Nova" in the film: childhood games of pretending to be a dog. While that may at first seem like a reference to playing one of the Proto-Humans featured in Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, it's a much deeper psychological roadmap, on how to pull off a crucial deception.

"I think the main thing I lent on was almost like this deer in headlights to the way she looks at the apes and looks at things. The physicality being quite kind of like small, and like a wood loose... and then she comes out of that," Allan said, explaining Mae's progression in the film. "You know, the feral humans had a kind of specific design of running, and you can very much see that she's still running like a human runs - there's like little Easter eggs where you go 'Okay wait. Something's off there, she's not matching up to them.' So it was about striking a balance, like that."

Allan found that pulling off the Nova/Mae turn in Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes took her back to a very specific childhood place:

"It was scarily like close to what I was like as a child. I spent tons of time out in the woods just pretending to be a dog. So uh basically just tapping back into that. [Laughter]"

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is now playing in theaters.

WWE's developmental brand is getting a new home this fall. In November 2023, WWE announced that it had inked a deal with The CW to migrate NXT to the network in October 2024. The CW represents the third different network to air the white and gold show, as NXT first aired on SyFy during its time as a competition series in 2010 and returned to cable in 2019 on the USA Network in an effort to go head-to-head with AEW Dynamite. Over the past five years, NXT has cemented itself as a legitimate ratings draw, leading to The CW to fork over a nine-figure contract for five years of its programming.

The CW has been in the market for wrestling content for some time. It was reported in 2023 that The CW had pursued Ring of Honor programming prior to its talks with WWE for NXT, but owner Tony Khan passed on it in favor of shopping ROH with AEW as one big package in 2024. Weeks before the NXT deal materialized, reports circulated that the National Wrestling Alliance was set to bring NWA Powerrr to The CW. A controversial segment on a pay-per-view broadcast was said to have restructured the deal, which now has NWA Powerrr airing on The CW App.

When October comes around, both the NWA and NXT will be under The CW banner. Speaking to ComicBook while promoting Billy Corgan's Adventures in Carnyland, NWA owner Billy Corgan responded to the idea of an NWA and NXT crossover.

"I would love that. With NXT coming [to The CW], we respect that. WWE is a huge, huge company. We've seen recently where they are reaching out to some independents," Corgan said. "They worked recently, of course, with TNA. I would love to work with the WWE but we don't sort of thinking on it in the sense like we're waiting for the phone to ring, but I would love to work with them."

WWE has embraced the greater wrestling world since the Triple H regime took power. TNA Knockouts Champion Jordynne Grace wrestled at WWE Royal Rumble. Shinsuke Nakamura competed in a one-off match for Pro Wrestling NOAH. Karl Anderson was able to finish his NJPW commitments, including a match at NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 17, while on an active WWE contract.

"I've certainly interacted with them through the years, both before I was in wrestling and then of course, now being in wrestling," Corgan said of his relationship with WWE. "They've always treated me great. I have nothing bad to say about them. They're a class organization through and through as far as how they treat people like myself. My experience has been so positive. I have nothing but good feelings towards them."

Billy Corgan's Adventures in Carnyland is now streaming on The CW App.

Doctor Who's new era has officially begun, with Ncuti Gatwa stepping into the role of the Fifteenth Doctor in last weekend's two-episode premiere. The new episodes already included some interesting elements, including a huge musical influence in "The Devil's Chord," a 1960s-set episode where Fifteen and Ruby Sunday (Millie Gibson) meet The Beatles and help save music from Maestro (Jinkx Monsoon). While speaking to ComicBook about the new season of Doctor Who, Gatwa and Gibson shared that they definitely weren't prepared for the musical elements.

"I could have never foresaw when I was cast as The Doctor that we'd be singing and dancing to the Goblin King," Gatwa revealed.

"Totally," Gibson echoed. "People were like, 'Oh, that will be fine. We'll be in a cozy little audio room with a cup of tea, a mic, auto tune. All the greatest surroundings.' But no, we did it live. They were like, 'Right. So we're gonna do a take now and you're gonna sing it properly.' And we're like, 'What?' So yeah, that was pretty insane. I'm just glad we can hold a tune because I don't know what they would have done. It wasn't included in the audition briefs, so I don't know what they would have done."

Why Does Doctor Who Have Musical Numbers?

As returning Doctor Who showrunner Russell T. Davies also told ComicBook, the musical numbers of the new season were a natural progression for the show itself.

"I was heading in that direction anyway," Davies explained. "I've got to say, in audition, we never asked [Ncuti] to sing. We never checked that out. And had he not been able to sing or dance, we would have found a way around that. I said, 'Look at the man.' I mean, no wonder we didn't ask. 'Of course he can sing and dance, he can do anything.' I never doubted that for a second. It's just something I want to do because I always want Doctor Who to feel every emotion, and for it to resonate with the viewers at home in every single way, and want to be the most memorable show you'll watch on television that week. And part of that is music. I mean, imagine not having a great soundtrack on Doctor Who, it would just be slightly less a show. So I worked with for many years on Doctor Who and almost every other job I've ever had, with Murray [Gold], because I think he's so magnificent and he's so in tune with me and he writes such good tunes. Other people might write beds of atmospheric, incidental music, he writes tunes. He's been heading towards writing songs in Doctor Who for a long time, in fact. He's independently gone and written his own songs, when David Tennant first became The Doctor. In 'The Christmas Invasion', and the happy ending of that episode, there's a great big song playing that Murray just went and wrote it over the soundtrack. That was the soundtrack. So he's always loved it. So maybe I'm just slow to follow, but I think it's just pushing the show into a bigger sensory experience, in every sense.'

What Is Doctor Who's New Season About?

From Disney+ and the BBC, this season of Doctor Who follows the Doctor and Ruby Sunday nthrough infinite adventures across time and space in the TARDIS. From the Regency era in England to war-torn futures, the duo champion the forces of good while encountering incredible friends and dangerous foes.

Guest stars on the new season of Doctor Who will include Aneurin Barnard, Anita Dobson, Yasmin Finney, Michelle Greenidge, Jonathan Groff, Bonnie Langford, Genesis Lynea, Jemma Redgrave, Lenny Rush, Indira Varma and Angela Wynter. Doctor Who is produced by Bad Wolf, with BBC Studios for Disney Branded Television and BBC. Under the creative vision of Davies, the additional executive producers include Phil Collinson, Joel Collins, Julie Gardner and Jane Tranter. The new season features episodes directed by Ben Chessell, Jamie Donoughue, Julie Anne Robinson and Dylan Holmes Williams.

Doctor Who will return with new episodes on Fridays at 7pm ET on Disney+, followed by a debut on BBC iPlayer at 12am GMT on Saturdays, and a broadcast premiere on BBC One later that day. If you haven't signed up for Disney+ yet, you can try it out here.

Note: If you purchase one of the awesome, independently chosen products featured here, we may earn a small commission from the retailer. Thank you for your support

Dune has now inspired two modern-day blockbusters, which have earned legions of fans through their distinct type of storytelling. Led by director Denis Villeneuve, both Dune and Dune: Part Two have narratively and aesthetically used Frank Herbert's books as a jumping-off point for something extraordinary. While speaking with ComicBook about the upcoming home release of Dune: Part Two, production designer Patrice Vermette elaborated on his approach towards the film's worlds, which he previously compared to being a literal architect using the blueprints of the source material.

"I always have a similar approach, even though most of the time besides Dune, it's not really world building," Vermette explained in our interview, which you can check out above. "Although, it's world building even on a smaller scale for smaller movies, because it's always about having a storytelling approach. How can we support the story? It's about making decisions. The setting, how can it support the narrative arc of a character? Where does that character come from? Where is that character going in the future? I approach a production design like that. We are a storyteller, just like costume designers are also storytellers, because we are there to inform the viewer beyond what is said."

What Is Dune: Part Two About?

Dune: Part Two explores the mythic journey of Paul Atreides as he unites with Chani and the Fremen while on a warpath of revenge against the conspirators who destroyed his family. Facing a choice between the love of his life and the fate of the known universe, he endeavors to prevent a terrible future only he can foresee.

The big-screen epic Dune: Part Two includes Timoth?e Chalamet, Zendaya, Rebecca Ferguson, Josh Brolin, Austin Butler, Florence Pugh, Dave Bautista, Christopher Walken, Stephen McKinley Henderson, and L?a Seydoux, with Stellan Skarsg?rd, Charlotte Rampling, and Javier Bardem. Denis Villeneuve directed from a screenplay he co-wrote with Jon Spaihts based on Frank Herbert's iconic novel.

Will Dune: Messiah Happen?

As fans of Herbert's books know, the grand narrative of Dune extends far beyond the events of the first book, which has led to a lot of speculation about whether or not Dune: Messiah could become the franchise's next film. Villeneuve has teased that a script for Dune: Messiah exists, and that he is focusing on telling the best possible distillation of the source material.

"I'm working on four different screenplays -- I know that Dune: Messiah will be one of them, I don't know if it will be the next or the second next," Villeneuve shared in an interview earlier this year. "My job was to try to keep the spirit of Frank Herbert alive as much as possible -- the whole meaning of Dune becomes clear with Dune: Messiah."

Dune: Part Two is available now on Digital and on 4K UHD May 14th.

The Dune films have become bonafide hits, with fans already wanting to see more of the franchise's epic interplanetary battles. Luckily, there have been early rumblings about a third Dune film happening at Warner Bros., potentially adapting some of the events of Frank Herbert's next novel, Dune: Messiah. While speaking with ComicBook about the upcoming home release of Dune: Part Two, editor Joe Walker confirmed that a Dune: Messiah film is still in its early stages, but that he is excited by the possibility of working on that film.

"Look, I never take it for granted that I'm going to be back," Walker explained in our interview, which you can check out above. "I hope I am. I don't know, I haven't read the script and it's still being worked on, I'm sure. And I love the fact that [director] Denis [Villeneuve] will keep his cards close to his chest until he's ready, because it spoils something to talk about something before it's there. I'm very excited about what Paul becomes in that story. And I love the idea of basically trying to assassinate somebody who's seen everything in advance. I can't comment too much about it, but I just know it will be just a brilliant thing to go back into that world."

Will Dune: Messiah Happen?

As fans of Herbert's books know, the grand narrative of Dune extends far beyond the events of the first book, which has led to a lot of speculation about whether or not Dune: Messiah could become the franchise's next film. Villeneuve has teased that a script for Dune: Messiah exists, and that he is focusing on telling the best possible distillation of the source material.

"I'm working on four different screenplays -- I know that Dune: Messiah will be one of them, I don't know if it will be the next or the second next," Villeneuve shared in an interview earlier this year. "My job was to try to keep the spirit of Frank Herbert alive as much as possible -- the whole meaning of Dune becomes clear with Dune: Messiah."

What Is Dune: Part Two About?

Dune: Part Two explores the mythic journey of Paul Atreides as he unites with Chani and the Fremen while on a warpath of revenge against the conspirators who destroyed his family. Facing a choice between the love of his life and the fate of the known universe, he endeavors to prevent a terrible future only he can foresee.

The big-screen epic Dune: Part Two includes Timoth?e Chalamet, Zendaya, Rebecca Ferguson, Josh Brolin, Austin Butler, Florence Pugh, Dave Bautista, Christopher Walken, Stephen McKinley Henderson, and L?a Seydoux, with Stellan Skarsg?rd, Charlotte Rampling, and Javier Bardem. Denis Villeneuve directed from a screenplay he co-wrote with Jon Spaihts based on Frank Herbert's iconic novel.

Dune: Part Two is available now on Digital and on 4K UHD May 14th.

You can watch many original films on Hulu these days, and one of the newest releases to hit the streamer is Prom Dates. The coming-of-age comedy follows two best friends as they scramble to find prom dates the night before the big event. The movie stars Julia Lester and Antonia Gentry, who are best known for playing Ashlyn in High School Musical: The Musical: The Series and Ginny in Ginny & Georgia, respectively. ComicBook recently had the chance to chat with Prom Dates producer, Hartbeat's Luke Kelly-Clyne, who spoke about casting Lester and Gentry, and the choice to have the Tony-nominated Lester sing poorly.

"I was, yeah," Kelly-Clyne confirmed when asked if he was part of the Prom Dates casting process. "So we and our partners at American High were really involved, and Hulu was of course a guiding light for us in terms of what kind of talent they were looking for and what worked for their audience and all of that, but really it was collaborative between Hartbeat, American High and Hulu."

"And when we saw Julia Lester's audition tape, we were like, 'Okay, that's Hannah. No brainer.' It was one of those things where we immediately knew," he continued. "Obviously, she had had a bunch of success in the High School Musical space and then Into the Woods. She was getting a Tony nom and we were like, 'Oh, this is such a cool, surprising choice.' And then Antonia Gentry, we were fans of hers from Ginny & Georgia and thought, 'Hey, what about a little bit of a raunchier turn, and would she do it?' And luckily she was willing to take the swing."

We then brought up how Lester has an awkward song at the end of the movie, and wondered if there were any discussions about whether or not they should let her showcase her real singing chops.

"I love that you asked this question because not everybody knows this unless you watched all of the credits, but the song at the end of the movie, 'When You Were Young,' is sung by Julia, so that is her sort of like, 'Okay, let me show off my pipes moment.'"

Kelly-Clyne also spoke about comedy legends John Michael Higgins (Pitch Perfect) and Chelsea Handler (Chelsea Lately) being in Prom Dates.

"Yeah, it's funny. I mean, obviously with every role you have a list of folks just depending on availabilities and all of that, but they were very much at the top of our list for both of these roles," Kelly-Clyne said of Higgins and Handler. "And we got lucky with both that they had some time to come play around in Syracuse for a bit. And what's so funny is both roles, I think Chelsea's role is even a little bit smaller than John's in terms of screen time, but what I'm hearing from people after they see the film is calling out specific moments from those characters. And so, they did a whole lot with a very little bit of screen time."

Stay tuned for more from our interview with Luke Kelly-Clyne.

Dune: Part Two has easily been one of this year's biggest cinematic hits, with director Denis Villeneuve's vision for the franchise breaking records at the box office and earning critical acclaim. The epic film surprised audiences while bringing to life some grandiose sequences from Frank Herbert's source material. This included a handful of exterior scenes set on the Harkonnen home planet of Giedi Prime, which was rendered in a black-and-white aesthetic utilizing infrared technology. While speaking with ComicBook about the upcoming home release of Dune: Part Two, cinematographer Greig Fraser spoke about those Giedi Prime sequences, and revealed that they did create an interesting behind-the-scenes shift for him and his camera crew.

"It did massively, actually, for focus," Fraser explained in our interview, which you can check out above. "I'm not a scientist about this, but I do understand a little bit, but infrared focuses its beams at a different point in the camera to visible light. Because red, green, and blue, when they all focus together on a sensor is when you get a good image. But infrared, I believe, focuses deeper or closer. Somebody can probably correct me on that. I know that, for my focus puller, all the markings of lenses were wrong, they were all out. So he had to spend a lot of time prepping new focus points. Even then, because we were shooting with a three-dimensional 3D rig, like a stereo rig, if there was a small shift in the rig, it would change the focus. As you know, it's not a scene where [Feyd-Rautha]'s standing still. He's moving around a lot. So the focus was a massive, massive challenge on it."

Will There Be a Dune 3?

As fans of Herbert's books know, the grand narrative of Dune extends far beyond the events of the first book, which has led to a lot of speculation about whether or not Dune: Messiah could become the franchise's next film. Villeneuve has teased that a script for Dune: Messiah exists, and that he is focusing on telling the best possible distillation of the source material.

"I'm working on four different screenplays -- I know that Dune: Messiah will be one of them, I don't know if it will be the next or the second next," Villeneuve shared in an interview earlier this year. "My job was to try to keep the spirit of Frank Herbert alive as much as possible -- the whole meaning of Dune becomes clear with Dune: Messiah."

What Is Dune: Part Two About?

Dune: Part Two explores the mythic journey of Paul Atreides as he unites with Chani and the Fremen while on a warpath of revenge against the conspirators who destroyed his family. Facing a choice between the love of his life and the fate of the known universe, he endeavors to prevent a terrible future only he can foresee.

The big-screen epic Dune: Part Two includes Timoth?e Chalamet, Zendaya, Rebecca Ferguson, Josh Brolin, Austin Butler, Florence Pugh, Dave Bautista, Christopher Walken, Stephen McKinley Henderson, and L?a Seydoux, with Stellan Skarsg?rd, Charlotte Rampling, and Javier Bardem. Denis Villeneuve directed from a screenplay he co-wrote with Jon Spaihts based on Frank Herbert's iconic novel.

Dune: Part Two is available now on Digital and on 4K UHD May 14th.

Over the years, Chris Pratt has lent his talents to a wide array of projects, from Parks and Recreation to The Super Mario Bros Movie to the Jurassic World series. Following the release of last year's Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, which ended with a title card teasing that his character of Peter Quill / Star-Lord will return, fans have wondered if another Marvel Cinematic Universe appearance will be on the horizon. Additionally, with Guardians writer-director James Gunn now co-leading DC Studios, there have also been plenty of theories suggesting that Pratt could follow him to this new franchise. While speaking to ComicBook about his work on The Garfield Movie, Pratt argued that either option is equally likely, and that he could very well end up appearing in both superhero sagas.

"Well, it probably make more sense that I would be Star Lord again," Pratt said in our interview, which you can check out above. "But anything is possible, and especially with James over at DC. Maybe there's something that would be right over there. Maybe both. How about both? Let's do both. I think it's 100% both."

Is Chris Pratt Joining the DCU?

Gunn has already teased that a number of Guardians of the Galaxy cast members could end up joining the DCU, although no roles have been cast thus far. One popular fan theory has been that Pratt might play Michael Carter / Booster Gold, who is set to get his own exclusive Max series. In a 2023 interview with Rolling Stone, Pratt addressed that possibility, and admitted that he would be open to it in the right circumstances.

"If James thought I was right for it, then you know that I would have to consider it," Pratt explained at the time.

What Is The Garfield Movie About?

In The Garfield Movie, Garfield (voiced by Pratt), the world-famous, Monday-hating, lasagna-loving indoor cat, is about to have a wild outdoor adventure! After an unexpected reunion with his long-lost father - scruffy street cat Vic (voiced by Samuel L. Jackson) - Garfield and his canine friend Odie are forced from their perfectly pampered life into joining Vic in a hilarious, high-stakes heist. In addition to Pratt, The Garfield Movie features a star-studded voice cast that includes Samuel L. Jackson, Hannah Waddingham, Ving Rhames, Nicholas Hoult, Cecily Strong, Harvey Guill?n, Brett Goldstein, and Bowen Yang.

The Garfield Movie is directed by Mark Dindal (The Emperor's New Groove), from a screenplay by Paul A. Kaplan & Mark Torgove (Raising Hope) and David Reynolds (Finding Nemo). Producers on the film include John Cohen, Broderick Johnson, Andrew A. Kosove, Steven P. Wegner, Craig Sost, Namit Malhotra, and Crosby Clyse.

It's no secret that Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is a movie filled with visual effects. According to befores & afters magazine the film had only "38 shots in the entire movie" that had no visual effects, plus 33 minutes of its entire run time that entirely CGI. Speaking with ComicBook in a new interview, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes director Wes Ball not only confirmed this major percentage of the movie was all CGI, but also revealed another wrinkle about the movie. Though water appears throughout the film, Ball confirmed that no actual water is seen in the movie. Even when actors on set were being filmed in water, the water was replaced in post-production with CGI water. Ball revealed that they wouldn't have been able to manage this without the work done on Avatar: The Way of Water.

"We could not have done water if they hadn't done a major kind of R&D on Avatar: The Way of Water. And we took that and went further with it," Ball revealed. The filmmaker spoke further about the film's extensive use of CGI, something that he previously noted he never wanted to shy away from while promoting the movie.

"There's about 30 to 35 minutes minutes of full CG in the movie. I mean, everything is CG. That means every piece of bark, every leaf blowing in the wind is full CG. So that's new for this move, this franchise. There are sets we just could not build, it was not possible, we couldn't afford to do it, we didn't have time to do it. So I hope for the audiences it will just go right by them. They won't see that. But I'm really proud of some of that stuff where it's like you cannot tell this is all CG."

Ball revealed that the first ten minutes of the film were entirely CG, some of the film's night sequences as well. That in mind, he couldn't not sing the praises of WETA.

"It's fantastic what they do, man. And that's what I'm saying, like you're seeing the best visual effects work that, you know, at the top of their game, the best people in the business doing the best work they've ever done. And I wanna showcase that."

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes Cast

The cast for Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is anchored by Owen Teague (IT) as Noa, a young chimpanzee. He's joined in the film by Kevin Duran (Locke & Key) as Proximus Caesar, a powerful chieftan that has appropriated human technology; Travis Jeffery as Anaya; Lydia Peckham as Soona, a female chimpanzee and a friend of Noa. Neil Sandilands as Koro; Peter Macon as Raka; and Freya Allan (The Witcher) as Mae, one of the few human characters to appear in the movie

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is directed by Wes Ball and written by Josh Friedman and Rick Jaffa & Amanda Silver and Patrick Aison.

Director Wes Ball breathes new life into the global, epic franchise set several generations in the future following Caesar's reign, in which apes are the dominant species living harmoniously and humans have been reduced to living in the shadows. As a new tyrannical ape leader builds his empire, one young ape undertakes a harrowing journey that will cause him to question all that he has known about the past and to make choices that will define a future for apes and humans alike.

Planet of the Apes movie order explained

With the upcoming release of Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes there will officially be eleven movies in the Planet of the Apes franchise including:

• Planet of the Apes (1968)
• Beneath the Planet of the Apes (1970)
• Escape from the Planet of the Apes (1971)
• Conquest of the Planet of the Apes (1972)
• Battle for the Planet of the Apes (1973)
• Planet of the Apes (2001) - Tim Burton's standalone remake
• Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011)
• Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (2014)
• War for the Planet of the Apes (2017)
• Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes (2024)

Though allusions to the classic movies released in the 1960s and 1970s can be found in all of the modern Planet of the Apes movies, fans eager to dive into the upcoming Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes likely only need to watch th three movies made in the 2010s ahead of the film's release.

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is now playing in theaters, and the project is the latest to have a W?t? FX team working behind the scenes. ComicBook recently had the chance to chat with Visual Effects Supervisor, Erik Winquist; VFX Producer Danielle Immerman; and Animation Supervisor, Paul Story. During the interview, the W?t? team members spoke about Owen Teague's performance in the film and revealed how the previous trilogy helped the Kingdom production go more smoothly. We also asked Winquist, Immerman, and Story if there are any moments in the film they are especially proud of.

"For me, you spend so long designing the character, designing the process, and 'How is this all going work?'" Story began. "And for me, there's sort of one shot that came together. It's where Noa finds his dad and his eyes are welling up and he's sort of sitting over him. That was one of those early shots where it's like, 'Yes, this is going to work, this is Noa.' [Director Wes Ball] is on board and it's just one of those moments where you think, 'Yeah, it's one of my favorite shots,' because everything sort of just comes together, and it's going to work."

"A single shot, that's a really hard one to put my finger on," Winquist explained. "There's so many moments that just blew my mind. There's an early one when Noa wakes up from his dream when he's at the campfire, and he first sees Eagle Sun sitting there on the branch. Just the reality, both of how well that matches and how well you can see Owen in that performance, but also just how tactile and real it looked. It was just... I had to take a moment just to acknowledge that at some point in dailies like, 'Gang, let's just look at this for a second. This is what we're making together.'"

"But on a more selfish note, one that I'm really proud of for different reasons is, there's a shot you would've seen where the wave breaks over the rocks and we're out on the sea, we're looking back towards the beach ... We knew we needed something to get us to the beach, but there was never really a plan formulated to make that, and so we kind of had to make that happen. And there was a drone shoot that didn't quite get us what we needed for that one shot. And so two weeks later, my long-suffering wife, Rebecca, and I went back down to this beach on the southern end of New Zealand and I took my drone, and I shot that shot with just the two of us on this beach and now it's on IMAX screens."

"I'd say one of my favorite shots would be, I call it 'the shower curtain shot,' Immerman added. "It's where Sylva walks through the waterfall and the water's all coming off his face. I knew that that was, for an effects artist, that's like the coolest shot to own. And the guy that worked on it, he worked on it for a very good amount of time, but because he cared about it and he knew how cool it was, and it was a moment when you see it and you go, 'That's cool.' But, I mean, I love it all."

Stay tuned for more from our interview with the VFX team behind Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes. You can learn more about W?t? FX here.

Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga is heading to theaters later this month, and the film stars Anya Taylor-Joy as Furiosa, the role previously played by Charlize Theron in Mad Max: Fury Road. The movie also stars Marvel actor Chris Hemsworth as a new character, Dr. Dementus. ComicBook recently had the chance to chat with the duo, and we asked if they had anything nice to say about the Wasteland, the post-apocalyptic setting of the long-running franchise.

"If I had to give the Wasteland a compliment, I would say, 'You are very resourceful,'" Taylor-Joy replied. "I think we could all do with being more resourceful with our things and less wasteful."

"Absolutely," Hemsworth replied. "I read this book called The Comfort Crisis recently just about how, you know, we've been afforded such luxuries that we don't face adversity and challenges anymore, and therefore we become weaker and softer, and the problems that aren't really that problematic become far more dramatic and we don't know how to handle them. So being exposed to such harshness and diversity, there's a resilience that comes with that, and as we're supposed to be solving problems and moving forward. Not that I want to live in the Wasteland."

"Just to clarify," Taylor-Joy added with a laugh. "Don't want to go there. We're good here."

What Is Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga About?

You can read a description of Mad Max: Furiosa here: "As the world fell, young Furiosa is snatched from the Green Place of Many Mothers and falls into the hands of a great Biker Horde led by the Warlord Dementus. Sweeping through the Wasteland, they come across the Citadel presided over by The Immortan Joe. While the two Tyrants war for dominance, Furiosa must survive many trials as she puts together the means to find her way home."

In addition to Taylor-Joy and Hemsworth, the film also stars Tom Burke, Nathan Jones, Angus Sampson, and Quaden Bayles.

"When we wrote Mad Max, the task was to tell a story that was always on the run and to see how much the audience could pick up in passing," director George Miller previously explained to The AV Club. "That was one of the tricks of Mad Max: Fury Road, that there would be references to things of where she's from, why they're doing things, but it was always on the run. There were very few moments of quiet. We never explained how she lost her arm. We never explain what the actual Green Place Of Many Mothers was. We never explained the workings of the Citadel. So we had the screenplay virtually complete before we shot Fury Road, and we did it because it arose out of wanting to explain to everybody who Furiosa was--to Charlize when she took on the role, and to all the actors and the designers and everybody else working on the Citadel and so on. The feeling was, gee, this is a pretty good screenplay, and then I kept saying to myself, 'If Fury Road works, I'd really like to tell this story.'"

Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga is currently scheduled to be released in theaters on May 24th.

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is now playing in theaters, and the new film takes place hundreds of years after the events of the previous trilogy, which starred Andy Serkis as Ceasar. While Serkis does not appear in the newest installment, the actor did share advice for the new cast via Zoom. ComicBook recently had the chance to chat with some of the W?t? FX team members who brought Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes to life, and they compared Serkis' performance to that of Owen Teague, who plays Noa in the new film.

"The thing that helps a lot is Owen was a total fanboy for W?t?," Visual Effects Supervisor, Erik Winquist, explained. "So I think the opportunity to get to play this kind of role was a dream gig for him because he told me at some point he was like, 'One of the earliest movies I remember seeing was King Kong in 2005.' He was dressed up as Gollum two years for Halloween."

"His mom was telling me from the age of five or six, his parties were all about that," FX Producer Danielle Immerman added. "He's a huge Andy Serkis fan from being a child."

"So knowing that, it was pretty amazing to see Owen on a Zoom with Andy," Winquist added. "Because Andy generously gave his time one day while we were in 'Ape school' and essentially gave every actor 15 minutes of coaching - not just locomotion and their body mechanics - but also to help them find their voice because all of our characters are speaking in this one."

"And so that was hugely helpful for everybody to just get a sense of the techniques of acting, hearing it from somebody like Andy, and him being able to play that character that has so much gravitas to him," he continued. "'Where is he finding that from? Literally, where is his voice coming from in his body to make it resonate in that sort of way?'"

"I don't know if it's ever going to see the light of day - and [director Wes Ball] has referenced that he showed it to me a long time ago - Owen's audition tape for this. It was one of those moments where, as soon as Wes saw it, he's like, 'He's it. That's it. We're done.' But you can clearly see it. He's not playing, he's not imitating a chimpanzee, he's not playing an ape. He's just playing the truth of that moment and the thing, and it's everything that character needed to be. You really see the naivete come out and everything that he needed to be in that moment was just beautiful."

"Likewise, when Peter's audition tape [for Raka], it just happened that Owen is facing left to right, and Peter was facing right to left in their tapes. So Wes just literally cut [them together]... And they both chose the same scene for their audition. So he cut that together and there we go. There's this deep baritone Raka and this naive little kid who's scared of sitting around the campfire. It was just amazing."

Stay tuned for more from our interview with the VFX team behind Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes. You can learn more about W?t? FX here.

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is now playing in theaters, and the latest installment to the franchise is yet another entry that features stunning visual effects. The team behind the scenes included franchise newcomers as well as returning veterans such as Visual Effects Supervisor, Erik Winquist, who was previously nominated for an Academy Award for his work on Dawn of the Planet of the Apes. ComicBook recently had the chance to chat with Winquist alongside his W?t? FX team members, VFX Producer Danielle Immerman and Animation Supervisor Paul Story. During the chat, we asked Winquist what lessons he learned from working on the previous films, and how his history helped during the making of Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes.

"The characters are the most important part of all of this and just making sure that [director Wes Ball] was getting the performance that he was happy with," Winquist began.

"So before we started shooting, Erik, having worked on the previous movies, did almost like a tutorial if you will," Immerman explained. "And it was a video, a couple of minutes long and -"

"It was an hour long," Winquist corrected, which led to big laughs from everyone in the room. "It didn't feel like an hour when I watched it," Immerman assured him. "Did I sit there for an hour?" she jokingly wondered. "But it explains the whole process and why it's important to get a clean plate and why it's important to shoot it this way. And he got the director completely invested in the process."

"Well, by that point, Wes was already invested," Winquist continued. "It was all the other heads of department for the shoot we were about to do, and the actors. So because we had this wealth of information from the previous movies, I could literally just pull clips from those films of, 'Here was the final, it was everything that you saw in the movie. And here was what we started with and this is why we shot it this way.' And we could just walk through it. And so everybody could come away from this going, 'Oh, I understand why you're saying we need to do this now.'"

"On the first one, it was a little bit more of an antagonistic kind of experience, because the film crew had no idea why the hell you were asking them to do [certain things]. 'Why are you walking around with that wand?' All that kind of stuff. And so that really kind of greased the wheels to make the process [easier]. It really made everybody on the crew understand that we are absolutely the essential part of this process and if we don't get what we need, this film's not going to succeed. And so that was the biggest thing about doing that and it worked great. It just got everybody on a side."

Stay tuned for more from our interview with the VFX team behind Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes. You can learn more about W?t? FX here.

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is now playing in theaters, and the film's preview night set a new franchise record. The film is currently up on Rotten Tomatoes with an 81% critics score after 203 reviews. ComicBook's Spencer Perry gave the film a 4 out of 5, and called it "a grand time, and a worthy follow-up." This marks the ninth Planet of the Apes film since 1968, and it takes place hundreds of years after the events of the previous trilogy, which starred Andy Serkis as Ceasar. While Serkis does not appear in the newest installment, the actor did share some advice for the new cast via Zoom. ComicBook recently had the chance to chat with Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes star, Owen Teague, and he talked about following in Serkis' footsteps.

"Finding the truth of the character," Teague replied when asked what his top priority was when bringing the character Noa to life. "I mean, that's kind of where it all comes from, is just approaching him as you basically as you would a human. You just have this kind of extra layer of physical and vocal work that you do on top of that."

"But really, you know, figuring out where he's coming from emotionally and what drives him is the key," he added. "I mean, playing an ape kind of changes your perception of what being human is, I think. But one of the things that I learned about apes making it was that they can have the capacity to lie. They can be deceitful with each other. They're very political."

Owen Teague Talks Advice From Andy Serkis:

ComicBook also spoke with Teague earlier this year, and he talked more about his Zoom call with Serkis.

"Well, yeah, we met on Zoom. I think he was working or directing something at the time, so he couldn't actually come to Australia, which was a shame, but just the fact that we got to speak to him at all was amazing," Teague explained. "It was so valuable getting to talk to him. He's been one of my reasons for being an actor since I was six years old, so it was very surreal for me. But it was really good to talk to him about just how similar performance capture is to live-action work."

"His biggest thing was to approach this the same," he continued. "You're just acting. This is acting. You're putting on a costume of this physical character, but everything else remains the same, which was really helpful to hear because I think I'd kind of been neglecting that a little bit. Maybe I'd been putting too much emphasis on the physical side of it. So yeah, he was just lovely. He was so generous and he worked with all of us in groups and yeah, he's amazing."

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is now playing in theaters.

Chris Hemsworth has been one of the powerhouses of the Marvel Cinematic Universe for over the past decade, bringing Thor Odinson to life in a wide array of projects. Earlier this spring, footage of Deadpool & Wolverine screened at CinemaCon revealed an unexpected cameo from the actor, who appears in archival footage from Thor: The Dark World, with Wade Wilson / Deadpool (Ryan Reynolds) digitally inserted instead of Loki (Tom Hiddleston). While speaking to ComicBook about his work in Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, Hemsworth expressed his excitement towards having been included in Deadpool & Wolverine in such a surprising way.

"It's really cool," Hemsworth says in our interview, which you can check out above. "You kind of forget and be like, 'Oh, cool! I'm part of the team. They're talking about me!' when I'm not in it. I mean, that whole world is really cool to be a part of, and any time each other... I think it's what makes it all really cool is the interconnected nature of it."

What Is Deadpool & Wolverine About?

In Marvel Studios' Deadpool & Wolverine, Deadpool (Ryan Reynolds) will change the history of the Marvel Cinematic Universe with Wolverine (Hugh Jackman). The film also stars Matthew Macfadyen as Paradox, and Emma Corrin as Cassandra Nova, with the return of Deadpool alums Morena Baccarin as Vanessa Carlysle, Leslie Uggams as Blind Al, Karan Soni as Dopinder, Stefan Kapi?i? as Piotr Rasputin/Colossus, Brianna Hildebrand as Negasonic Teenage Warhead, Rob Delaney as Peter, and Lewis Tan as Shatterstar. Aaron Stanford is returning as Pyro from the X-Men film series, with Jennifer Garner rumored to return as Elektra Natchios.

Kevin Feige, Ryan Reynolds, Shawn Levy and Lauren Shuler Donner produce with Louis D'Esposito, Wendy Jacobson, Mary McLaglen, Josh McLaglen, Rhett Reese, Paul Wernick, George Dewey and Simon Kinberg serving as executive producers. Deadpool & Wolverine is written by Ryan Reynolds & Rhett Reese & Paul Wernick & Zeb Wells & Shawn Levy. Deadpool & Wolverine will be released exclusively in theaters on July 26th.

What Is Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga About?

Set more than a decade before the events of Mad Max: Fury Road, Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga explores how Furiosa was kidnapped from her home in the Green Place of Many Mothers by the treacherous Warlord Dementus and his Biker Horde. As Dementus and Immortan Joe vie for control of the wasteland, Furiosa must survive every challenge in front of her as she seeks vengeance against her kidnappers on her way to return home.

Mad Max creator George Miller returns to direct Furiosa, which stars Anya Taylor-Joy, Chris Hemsworth, Tom Burke, Nathan Jones, Angus Sampson, and Quaden Bayles. Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga releases in theaters on May 24th.

The season finale of X-Men '97 is coming next week, and fans are eager to find out how things will wrap up for their favorite team of mutants. Following in the footsteps of X-Men: The Animated Series, X-Men '97 has been showcasing a lot of great characters, including Magneto AKA Eric Lehnsherr. In X-Men: The Animated Series, the Master of Magnetism was voiced by David Hemblen who passed away in 2020. In the reboot, the iconic villain is voiced by Matthew Waterson. ComicBook's Phase Zero podcast recently did a spotlight episode featuring Waterson, and the actor talked about having big shoes to fill. He admitted that he was worried some fans would say he "destroyed" their childhood, but the reaction to the series has been incredibly positive. In fact, Waterson revealed he watches the show through fan reaction videos.

"The fan response has been unbelievable, because we've been making the thing for so long, and we are doing it in our own little cocoon, and we like what we're doing. But it's one of those jobs where, until it goes out into the ether, you have no idea," Waterson explained. "Are we just in a bubble and we're not sure, and we're wrong about this? Or are we right, and it's something that people are actually going to enjoy?"

"So being able to see people actually respond to it, and respond well, and the thing that I've never done before, but that I've been having a lot of fun is actually watching fan reaction videos to episodes," he continued. "I don't re-watch the episodes, I watch the fan reaction videos. And those are brilliant, because seeing people get really excited about individual things that they're picking up on, or seeing something happen, and they're like, 'I know what that is, oh, this is amazing,' is really, really fun. So that's actually been a part of it, that's been one of the parts of it that are the most enjoyable to me."

Matthew Waterson Explains How Fans "Shifted" His Understanding of X-Men:

"Well, one of the things that I was always aware of with X-Men was how allegorical the story was, and the characters were, and their situation was, and how much it represented any myriad of marginalized populations," Waterson explained. "So I understood, I knew that intellectually, but I have been in a fortunate position in my life. And I have not had to deal with that, by virtue of just who I was when I was born, the way I was born."

"And being involved in the show, which has such an incredible representation across the spectrum, of every spectrum in terms of the people who are making it, but then, interacting with fans and people who've seen it, and getting to see and to hear how it has landed with them, and how much, so many different people have sort of come up to me and said, 'This bit, and this bit, and that bit, is one of the first times that the X-Men that spoke to me, that I felt saw me, I've seen represented in, not just in one run of the comic books, but in a mass media representation.'"

"That's been incredible," he continued. "That's actually shifted how I understand it, and how I look at it, and what I understand that it means to other people. Like I said, I had the intellectual understanding, but it wasn't quite as clear to me emotionally, or in terms of empathy or sympathies. And it's becoming much more clear."

"So it sort of shifted my understanding of that, by the responses of people to it, which I had not experienced before. That was something that I didn't expect going in. I wasn't like, 'Oh, this is going to alter how I understand that other people need to see themselves and their situations represented in the media.' And it has. And that's been really, really cool," he added.

You can watch our interview with Matthew Waterson here. The season finale of X-Men '97 drops May 15th on Disney+.

Decades' worth of The Simpsons episodes being on Disney+ is an exciting enough reason to subscribe to the platform, but if that isn't enough, the streamer has become home to a number of original Simpsons shorts that allow stories to be told that would be otherwise more challenging in a proper episode. In the latest original short, "May the 12th Be With You," Marge Simpson collides with a number of beloved figures from the vast Disney library, embarking on a hilarious adventure in honor of Mother's Day. To celebrate the new short, which is available now on Disney+, ComicBook caught up with showrunner Al Jean by email to talk about the new story.

Disney+ describes the short, "It's Mother's Day and Marge Simpson joins the moms of Disney+ on a special holiday outing that turns into an epic galactic adventure filled with heroes, villains, and a surprising old friend."

As implied by the title, the premise is heavily connected to Star Wars and the galaxy far, far way, with Jean detailing of the development of the story, "We've always wanted to do a short at a Disney theme park and Mother's Day seemed the perfect day to do it."

Like previous shorts, this latest experience features dozens of cameos from all corners of the Disney library, from classics like Bambi to Lilo & Stitch to Pixar's more recent Soul. As far as getting all the characters into the short that he had asked for, Jean joked, "We got all we asked for although there may only be 99 dalmatians. A couple had scheduling conflicts."

With Disney+ and Hulu now being available not only as subscription bundles, but also by integrating Hulu content into the Disney+ interface, the ending of the short allowed for an exciting crossover with some adult-leaning figures, including The Family Guy's Stewie. Jean was particularly proud of bringing both Stewie and Seth McFarlane into the fold to voice the iconic character, confessing of his favorite cameo, "In this case, definitely getting Seth MacFarlane to voice Stewie at the grand finale."

Jean has previously expressed that one motivating factor in developing The Simpsons shorts is by looking at the tiles on the Disney+ platform that highlight major franchises, whether they be Marvel, Star Wars, or Pixar. With the Hulu integration and with cameos from the expanded Fox roster of characters, Jean weighed in on if this is paving the way for crossovers with Hulu originals like Only Murders in the Building or The Bear, to which the showrunner teased, "All possible but now and forever our heart and soul and intellectual property belong to Disney+."

One of the most exciting announcements about Disney+ in recent months was the reveal that Taylor Swift | The Eras Tour (Taylor's Version) would be the exclusive streaming on the service. With The Simpsons previously having offered a crossover with Billie Eilish and whether this means a Swift collab was in the works, Jean expressed, "I personally would love to see it. Billie was great. Also, who knows, maybe The Beatles?"

The Simpsons' "May the 12th Be With You" is streaming now on Disney+.

What did you think of the short? Contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter or on Instagram to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

Working on Outer Range has been a life-changing experience, according to star Isabel Arraiza. The second season of the Prime Video series starring Josh Brolin kicked off at the beginning of May, introducing even more mysteries and drama to the Abbott family. Isabel Arraiza portrays bank teller Maria Olivares in Outer Range, and when it comes to some of the weightier topics on the streaming series, she admits they've touched her on a spiritual level. There are a lot of unexplained phenomenons in the world, and Outer Range does a good job of addressing them in a real-world manner.

ComicBook spoke to Isabel Arraiza ahead of the Season 2 debut of Outer Range, where she was asked to speak on whether any of the show's time-travel theories have resonated with her. "I'm going to say that this whole experience, and I don't mean for it to sound trite, it's been life-changing, in the sense that it's opened up conversations inside me about philosophy and spirituality, that I don't think I'd otherwise have," Arraiza said. "I think I'm much more open to things that I can't explain. Just living in New Mexico and experiencing the nature of the show, but just living there... I'll tell you all the spooky stories from living there."

Arraiza then quoted Shakespeare to help get her point across. "There's a Shakespeare quote that explains it," she continued. "It escapes me right now, but there are things we cannot explain on Earth. They're all here. So there is something about that. Maybe there is something out there that we don't know what it is."

What is Outer Range Season 2 about?

Outer Range centers on Royal Abbott (Josh Brolin), a rancher fighting for his land and family, who discovers an unfathomable phenomenon at the edge of Wyoming's wilderness, in the form of a dark void. The mystery surrounding the enigmatic void on the west pasture of the Abbott family ranch deepens in Season Two, as Royal and his wife Cecelia (Lili Taylor) struggle to keep their family together in the aftermath of their granddaughter's sudden disappearance. The stakes have never been higher for the Abbotts, who now face threats on multiple fronts. Outer Range's second season propels its characters deeper into the void with profound and unforeseen circumstances that could shake the very foundations of time itself.

Led by Oscar-nominee Josh Brolin (Dune: Part Two), Outer Range features an ensemble cast of award-winning and breakout talent, including Imogen Poots (Baltimore), Lili Taylor (Manhunt), Tamara Podemski (Reservation Dogs), Lewis Pullman (Lessons in Chemistry), Tom Pelphrey (Ozark), Noah Reid (Schitt's Creek), Shaun Sipos (Reacher), Isabel Arraiza (The Little Things), Olive Abercrombie (The Haunting of Hill House), and Will Patton (Horizon: An American Saga). Outer Range comes from executive producers Charles Murray, Brad Pitt, Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner, Ernest McNealey, Josh Brolin, Tony Krantz, Heather Rae, and Jon Par?.

Outer Range Season 2 is now streaming on Prime Video.

A new season of Doctor Who arrives this weekend, carrying on the legacy of the BBC hit in some surprising ways. This includes the return of showrunner Russell T. Davies, who formerly worked on Doctor Who from 2005 through 2010. Naturally, Davies has been involved with an array of different Doctor Who episodes, many of which travel to different periods of time. While speaking to ComicBook about the new season, Davies revealed his personal fondness for this season's 1960s-set episode "The Devil's Chord", and also suggested that he should create future episodes in the 1970s and 1980s.

"There was an irresistible scene that I put into that Beatles episode, with the Doctor and Ruby running back to the Tardis, and they ran into a real police box by mistake," Davies explained in our interview, which you can check out above. "We ended up cutting that. Just good logistics. So why do we cut that? Why do we cut that? That's a great scene. And then they immediately step out and go 'Oh, wrong police box!" and they go to the real Tardis. Oh my God. Why did we ever cut that? I was mad. So it is fun. It's funny because The Beatles is like... The Beatles episode, they recorded their first album [in] February 1963. That's 10 months before the birth of Doctor Who, So we're just outside the lifeline, the timeline. But I know what you mean. I would happily do -- Oh, my goodness. I love to do a '70s episode. Oh, imagine an '80s episode of Doctor Who? Why haven't we done that?"

What Is Doctor Who's New Season About?

From Disney+ and the BBC, this season of Doctor Who follows the Doctor and Ruby Sunday nthrough infinite adventures across time and space in the TARDIS. From the Regency era in England to war-torn futures, the duo champion the forces of good while encountering incredible friends and dangerous foes.

Guest stars on the new season of Doctor Who will include Aneurin Barnard, Anita Dobson, Yasmin Finney, Michelle Greenidge, Jonathan Groff, Bonnie Langford, Genesis Lynea, Jemma Redgrave, Lenny Rush, Indira Varma and Angela Wynter. Doctor Who is produced by Bad Wolf, with BBC Studios for Disney Branded Television and BBC. Under the creative vision of Davies, the additional executive producers include Phil Collinson, Joel Collins, Julie Gardner and Jane Tranter. The new season features episodes directed by Ben Chessell, Jamie Donoughue, Julie Anne Robinson and Dylan Holmes Williams.

"At last, it's my great delight to unleash a whole new season of the Doctor and Ruby's adventures together," showrunner, executive producer, and writer Russell T. Davies said in a statement. "Monsters! Chases! Villains! Mysteries! And a terrifying secret that's been spanning time and space for decades. Don't miss a second!"

Doctor Who will return with new episodes on Friday, May 10th at 7pm ET on Disney+, with a two-episode premiere, followed by a debut on BBC iPlayer on Saturday, May 11 at 12am GMT, and a broadcast premiere on BBC One later that day. If you haven't signed up for Disney+ yet, you can try it out here.

Note: If you purchase one of the awesome, independently chosen products featured here, we may earn a small commission from the retailer. Thank you for your support

Ahmed Best is known for playing Jar Jar Binks and Kelleran Beq in the Star Wars universe, but that's not the only franchise the actor is involved in. Best also lent his voice to some popular video games, including The Last of Us Part II and Fallout 76. Both The Last of Us and Fallout have made the successful transition to television. The Last of Us is currently in production on its second season for HBO, and Fallout was recently renewed for a second season by Amazon's Prime Video. ComicBook recently had the chance to chat with Best at the grand opening of Bricks and Minifigs in Pasadena, California. In addition to talking about Star Wars, we also brought up Best's connection to the games, and wondered if he was interested in being a part of those shows.

"Nobody called me," Best revealed when asked about potentially making a cameo on either series. "I mean, I'll play anything. Last of Us II and Fallout were both very, very fun. And the people who do those games are just wonderful and build universes that are just fantastic. So I mean, I just wanted to make a cameo in either one of those 'cause I'm in the game. But I don't know, whatever they have out there in the world in either of those universes, I'm down."

What Is Popup Con?

We spoke to Best at Popup Con, a cool event he started a few years ago, and he explained how it came to be.

"So Popup Con actually started before the pandemic," Best shared. "I always wanted to do something primarily to look at small niche businesses. When it came to entertainment stuff, I grew up in comic book stores all my life. I grew up in toy stores all my life ... And I always loved the cultures that were around it. Every time I would go to a comic book store when I was a kid, it'd be all the same people ... You'd have all of these people who were so passionate, not just about what was in the store, but the store itself. It's something that I always really loved. And when big box stores came in, that kind of disappeared."

"The big conventions are cool, but sometimes it gets a little much," Best explained. "Sometimes it's very difficult to have the stamina to do all of them, and sometimes it gets kind of transactional, more transactional than I like. I kind of like the fact that you get to talk to people. I like the fact that you get to know people and you get a little bit of time. So I was like, 'Well, what if there was a con that would just pop up in these very niche mom-and-pop stores?' Especially things like comic book stores or video stores or Lego stores or toy stores, and it would be the people affiliated with the store, but you can also spend a little bit more time with people coming through, and that's when Popup Con comes."

Stay tuned for more updates about Star Wars, The Last of Us, Fallout, and more...

Star Trek: Discovery Season 5, Episode 7, "Erigah" debuted on Paramount+ on Thursday and it proved to be a momentous episode for new characters Moll and L'ak. [SPOILERS for the episode follow.] A previous Star Trek: Discovery Season 5 episode revealed that the mysterious L'ak is Breen, the first of his kind shown without their helmeted refrigeration suit in Star Trek's history. (The Breen first appeared in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine nearly 30 years ago. The apocryphal Star Trek novels universe revealed the Breen as a society of multiple alien species rather than a race unto itself.) Not only that, but L'ak is a member of the Breen royal family and a potential heir to the mantle of the deceased Breen emperor.

That lineage catches up with Moll and L'ak in "Erigah." With L'ak badly wounded, the couriers are forced to allow themselves to be taken into Federation custody. That's when the L'ak's uncle, the Breen Primarch Ruhn, comes calling, hoping to resolve his blood debt on L'ak. L'ak takes desperate measures to find a means of escape for himself and Moll. He perishes as a result.

ComicBook spoke to Elias Toufexis, who plays L'ak, about his time on Star Trek: Discovery. Here's what he had to say:

Can you tell me what kind of conversations you had about L'ak and the Breen with Star Trek: Discovery's creative team? Did you get into it with writers and producers about how Breen culture informs the character?

Elias Toufexis: Only in the sense that I already knew everything about it because I'm a giant DS9 fan. I don't know if I talked to you about this before, but when I got the concept art was the day, I went to get the plaster mold put on my face, that try not to panic thing, and right before I get poured into a plastic cast, I asked for some concept art to see if they had anything about L'ak. And they showed me a picture and I said, "What race is he?" And they said, "He's the Breen." And my first instinct was to say, "The Breen don't take their helmets off." And they said, "Oh, you know about that?" And I said, "Yeah, I know everything about Deep Space Nine."

I was very excited because the first thing I thought was, "Oh, I'm going to make history, I'm going to make history. The first face you see as a Breen is going to be me" and that was very exciting. And then we talked about the Breen and their culture and stuff, and they get into it more in Discovery than, they were more mysterious in Deep Space Nine. We talked about that and the hierarchy and where L'ak fits in directly. But in terms of historically, I kind of already knew everything because I'm a big Star Trek nerd.

Was there any worry on your part -- and maybe this is a question better suited for the writers -- but when you're dealing with someone as mysterious as the Breen, there's always the possibility that if you dig deeper, you could demystify them an inadvertently making them less cool afterward. Was there any worry for you on that end?

Nah, it was really cool for me. I think Leonard Nimoy said it once unless that meme is lying, but Leonard Nimoy said -- I don't remember what he said about canon, but basically, he said, "Canon is important, but don't let it limit you." And canon is important, but you have the Breen from Deep Space Nine. This is, what is it, 800 years later or even more, a lot of centuries later. And why not? If you're going to tackle something and make it interesting, just being a fan, I was excited about it. I don't care about stuff like that, just whatever tells the best story. I never really even thought about it.

Maybe it's also today's culture of the way TV and movies are now, they do demystify a lot of things that we grew up loving, but it's part of what they're doing now. These things have to last 30, 40, 50 years, these Star Trek shows, so I suppose you could always invent more stuff, but you also can demystify or explain stuff that has happened before, and, as a fan, I think it's great.

What can you tell me about what sets L'ak apart from the other Breen? It's clear he fell for Moll and it's clear he was unhappy with his uncle, the Primarch. Was he, in your mind, already dissatisfied with his place among the Breen or was it Moll that set him on this path?

I think Moll set him on the path of freedom, but he was never happy with his place in the family. I played him like, I didn't invent what happened to his father or anything like that, but there was a little bit of Hamlet in him. Like, "My uncle" and "I don't want to be this prince. I just want to do what I want to do," and "I want to contemplate my own life and these guys are forcing this thing on me." And everyone's saying, "You should do this, and you should do this." I mean, it's your classic character. It's your prince, princess, whomever, who does not want to be in the royalty, wants to be normal, whatever normal is for Breen. But that's what he wanted.

And then when he met Moll, not only did he fall in love with her, but it ended up being a way out for him also. I don't think, initially, that was his plan. He just found Moll, fell in love, and thought, "Well, if we can keep this up, it gives me at least some freedom inside of my life that I don't like." And then when Moll invites him to leave or escape with her, he doesn't have a lot of time to debate. But that decision, I think, is one that he would've made even if he had the time because she represents love and freedom, which is what they're chasing throughout the whole season.

Hearing you say, "whatever normal is for a Breen" makes me now want to know what the most mundane Breen life might look like

Yeah, is it all military? I didn't discuss if there are average Breen. Are there Breen that work 9-to-5 and are there Breen grocery stores where the Breen work? I have no idea.

What's a Breen restaurant like?

Yea, what do they eat? And I remember thinking, because as an actor I often find when I do a scene, I think I do this unconsciously, but I'll find a breathing pattern for whatever I think the energy of the scene needs. But I was doing it once and I was going, "Do the Breen even have lungs? Am I breathing, really breathing, here? What do I do?" So those are the type of things, you set it and forget it when you're working in a fantasy or sci-fi like Star Trek.

Your decision to breathe has now made it canon that the Breen breathe.

There you go. We breathe. I don't know how they form their lungs or if they have one big lung, or whatever, I don't know.

Is there a singular moment, a souvenir, or something from your tie on Star Trek: Discovery that stands out to you as codifying it? Was it that moment when you realized you were playing Breen?

It depends on who you're asking. If you're asking Elias, the fan of Star Trek, then there were plenty. It was when I figured out I was playing Breen. It's when I showed up on -- I had heard through rumor that we were going to be on the Enterprise, the ISS, when I was shooting the first episode, because they keep a lot of stuff from actors until the very last minute, and I got so excited, and then just showing up on that. I know it was technically the Strange New Worlds set. I could have gotten to visit it anytime I wanted to because while I was shooting in Toronto, I'm sure I could have organized that, but the fact that I was working on it and being on the ship and all that kind of stuff, that freaked me out as a fan.

If I look at it as an actor, all I really wanted was to make sure audiences empathize with L'ak and Moll. That was my goal from the beginning. It was our goal, I should say, Eve and me. We wanted to make sure that, not that murder is ever justified or violence or anything, but what they were doing was justified, and if Starfleet would just get off their backs, and if Breen would get off their back, everything would be fine. But in order to escape it, they had to do some pretty rough things.

But what I really, really wanted, the thing I was really focused on I guess is the best way to say it, is trying to make sure that the audience empathized with both Moll and L'ak. And I say that because Eve and I really worked together. I can't think of this as singular. I can never really think of L'ak on his own, I always think of Moll and L'ak. What is our story? I know they both have their separate pasts that come together, but for me, it was always, what is their story together? As long as that comes through, that their love comes through, that was important, and that you empathize with them.

L'ak makes a sacrifice in this episode. In that moment, do you feel like he knew that he was making that sacrifice, or do you think he thought he was also getting out and miscalculated?

I played it as a bit of both, to be honest with you. I played it as, "This could go very wrong, but I'm willing to make that sacrifice. But maybe I'll be okay." That was how I played it. Maybe that's too middle-of-the-road. Maybe I should have made a stronger decision either way., but I definitely played it like, "I'm going to do this. It's very risky. I could die, but at least she'll get away. But maybe it won't. Maybe I'll be fine, and then she'll beam me aboard." It wasn't the greatest plan. His idea to distract them is a great plan, but it's like, "Go steal a shuttle and then beam him aboard." That's why I like that she goes, "That's it?" And he says, "Well, I mean, what else? You got a better idea?"

But yeah, I played it like he knew it could happen and he was willing to make that sacrifice. But it wasn't an outright sacrifice, or at least you hoped it wouldn't be.

Last question I have for you: If you got to pull the whole Jeffrey Combs routine, and came back as a different character, is there a particular species you would like to get to inhabit on a return trip to the Star Trek Universe?

It's true, I would have to be a different species, right? I've already been a man and I've been a Breen. I mean, there's so many. I would love to be a Klingon, of course, everyone wants to be a Klingon. I guess I can't be any sort of thing that you see my face, so Vulcans and Romulans are out.

A Gorn. Except the Gorns are all CG now. No, I'm going to performance-capture a Gorn. That's what I'll do, I'll performance-capture the first Gorn that has a long conversation with somebody in Star Trek outside of that "Arena" episode. That's what I want. I want to play the first Gorn.

Star Trek: Discovery Season 5, Episode 7 is streaming now streaming on Paramount+.

The penultimate episode of X-Men '97's first season was released this week, and it was another big one for Magneto AKA Eric Lehnsherr. In X-Men: The Animated Series, the Master of Magnetism was voiced by David Hemblen who passed away in 2020. In the reboot, the iconic villain is voiced by Matthew Waterson. ComicBook's Phase Zero podcast recently did a spotlight episode featuring Waterson, and the actor talked about some of Magneto's biggest moments of the season in addition to stepping into the role.

"There is definitely pressure, and there's definitely some stress," Waterson admitted. "One of the things that was really nice, in talking with Meredith [Layne] and Bo [DeMayo] and Jake [Castorena] and everybody, as we were working through it, they said, 'The end of the original series has this big shift, with where Charles goes, and the decision that Eric makes at the end of it, in order to try and help his friend.'"

"They said, 'There's this big shift, and we're continuing through that with how we go into this new season, with the decisions and the choices, and the things that Eric is trying to do. So that makes for a shift in his overall outlook,'" Waterson recalled.

"'So what we're really looking at is trying to make sure that if somebody sits down and watches the show from '92 to '97, and they just bowl straight into this one, that it doesn't sound like a totally different person, but there should be some little difference in him, because his whole outlook is kind of shifting, or at least, he's trying to shift it. So we want the voice to sound like the same person, but maybe that they're coming at things from a slightly different aspect.'"

"And that helps take a little bit of the pressure off me," Waterson explained. "Because following somebody like David, who did such a phenomenal job, and is so beloved, there is a stress to that. And there's always, you have to reconcile yourself to, 'In an ideal world, a third of the people love what I do.' A third of the people are like, 'Eh, it's fine.' And only a third of the people are saying, 'You've destroyed my childhood, and I will forever hate you.'"

"So the hope is, if you can get those first two-thirds to be bigger than two-thirds, and that last one to be smaller than a third, then that's kind of successful. And fortunately, it seems like people on the whole have responded really positively, which has been lovely, and has been a huge weight off. Because following David was always going to be a pretty daunting task."

You can watch our interview with Matthew Waterson here. The season finale of X-Men '97 drops May 15th on Disney+.

Dead Boy Detectives is finally streaming on Netflix, and the new show marks the first spinoff of The Sandman. The show is currently up on Rotten Tomatoes with a 93% critics score and 87% audience score, and fans are eager to find out if the show will be getting a second season. Showrunners Steve Yockey and Beth Schwartz have already shared that they have plans for Season 2, and ComicBook recently spoke to some of the show's cast about their hopes for the future. While chatting with the creatives behind Dead Boy Detectives, we brought up the bonus episode of The Sandman that was released as a surprise on Netlifx after the show's first season. We asked the showrunners and cast if they had any bonus episode ideas for Dead Boy Detectives and they shared some creative answers. This week, we got the chance to chat with another Dead Boy actor, Jenn Lyon (Esther Finch) and she shared her own ideas for an Esther-centric episode.

"Well, she's been alive for hundreds of years, so I would love to see a montage of, 'Who's Esther in the '20s? Who is she in the '30s? Where does she live? How does she move?' I just think that would be really interesting because right now she's doing her best to blend in," Lyon explained. "She sticks out a little. She's got a bum leg and a smoking problem, but for the Pacific Northwest, it's not that weird."

"But I would love to see how she navigated the world in terms of different relationships with the power dynamics between men and women in the '20s. How did she have to behave before women's lib? Did she have to pretend to be a different way than how she is now? I don't know. I think that would be really dope," Lyon continued. "In a 1940s silhouette with a jaunty hat. Give it to me!"

Warning: Spoilers Ahead! Considering things didn't end too well for Esther in the first season of Dead Boy Detectives, we asked Lyon if she thinks it's possible for the character to return in a potential second season.

"She's immortal," Lyon pointed out. "And I think that means, I don't know Latin, but I think it means you can't die," she joked. "We'll see. I mean, look, Lilith's pretty mad. But she also tricked me, so I sort of had to find the loophole, so I don't think I can really be blamed."

Dead Boy Detectives is now streaming on Netflix.

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is being released in theaters tonight, and the new film is already a hit with critics. The movie is currently up on Rotten Tomatoes with an 82% critics score after 113 reviews. ComicBook's Spencer Perry gave the film a 4 out of 5, and called it "a grand time, and a worthy follow-up." As folks gear up for the movie's theatrical release, some fans are already looking forward to the movie's physical media release. The DVD will include a "raw" version of the film, which will feature the actors in their motion capture suits. ComicBook recently spoke with director Wes Ball who talked about the highly-anticipated cut.

"I'm a fan of VFX," Ball began. "The trend right now seems to poo-poo VFX work, and I celebrate it. I think it's a tool like anything else. I think the work that these artists do - these storytellers do - should be appreciated more. Yeah, sure, there's bad VFX out there. There bad photography out there too, and we don't kind of rail on cameras, you know what I mean? It's just a tool to tell a story, and I think people will be blown away to see how these movies are created."

"I think there's this kind of mystique behind them, like there's a button that you say 'make ape' or 'make human' or 'make VFX,' 'make pretty.' It doesn't work that way. It's an incredible amount of craft and hard work and dedication that I think we should honor. There's a lot of people that work on these movies on the visual effects side of things," he continued.

"That's not to say that all the onset guys, my production designer, and my DP, and all these guys, too. I mean, everyone should be kind of celebrated for their contribution on a movie like this. And I think just the visual effects component is a key of these movies. It would not be possible without them. So I wanna show people just what it is that is done on these movies, and I think the magic still exists because you look at it, and you're like, 'Oh my God, how is that possible?' That still exists. I don't know, for the geeks that like this stuff, they're gonna love it, I think."

What Is Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes About?

You can read a description of the film here: "Director Wes Ball breathes new life into the global, epic franchise set several generations in the future following Caesar's reign, in which apes are the dominant species living harmoniously and humans have been reduced to living in the shadows. As a new tyrannical ape leader builds his empire, one young ape undertakes a harrowing journey that will cause him to question all that he has known about the past and to make choices that will define a future for apes and humans alike."

The cast for Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is anchored by Owen Teague (IT) as Noa, a young chimpanzee. He's joined in the film by Kevin Duran (Locke & Key) as Proximus Caesar, a powerful chieftain that has appropriated human technology; Travis Jeffery as Anaya; Lydia Peckham as Soona, a female chimpanzee and a friend of Noa. Neil Sandilands as Koro; Peter Macon as Raka; and Freya Allan (The Witcher) as Mae, one of the few human characters to appear in the movie

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes opens in theaters on May 10th.

Thanks in large part to their success with Scream and Scream VI, directors Tyler Gillett and Matt Bettinelli-Olpin (collectively known as "Radio Silence," along with producer Chad Villella) earned the exciting opportunity to develop the horror-comedy Abigail, putting their signature spin on the world of classic Universal Monsters. While the premise of a vampire being unleashed in a gothic mansion might seem familiar on paper, the pair enlisted a talented ensemble of performers to deliver their razor-sharp and hilarious dialogue while also injecting buckets of blood to make for an experience that not only honors vampire classics but also puts an entirely fresh spin on the premise. Abigail is now available to watch at home exclusively on digital platforms from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment.

In Abigail, after a group of would-be criminals kidnap the 12-year-old ballerina daughter of a powerful underworld figure, all they have to do to collect a $50 million ransom is watch the girl overnight. In an isolated mansion, the captors start to dwindle, one by one, and they discover, to their mounting horror, that they're locked inside with no normal little girl.

ComicBook caught up with the pair to dive deeper into the movie, talking about their musical selections, Easter eggs, and future projects.

WARNING: Spoilers below for Abigail

ComicBook: First things first, you both have to set the record straight: how did that Danzig song end up in this movie? I feel like you get a lot of Misfits songs in movies, and when you have Danzig, typically the go-to is "Mother" or something like that. So how did you land on getting "Blood and Tears" in Abigail?

Matt Bettinelli-Olpin: So we had recorded that dance with just this rock version of "Swan Lake" because we knew we wanted it to be something more energetic and we knew that, at some point, we'd have to find a song, but that whole dance sequence actually was a work in progress. We decided to do it like, what, Tyler, a week before we shot it?

Tyler Gillett: It was scripted originally as one line of action. "Sammy dances."

Bettinelli-Olpin: She spins around his dead body.

Gillett: Over Peter's dead body as Joey and Frank run in. And we were like, "Well, what if it was a full-on music video?"

Bettinelli-Olpin: So when we got into the edit, it was, how quickly can we start trying songs and figure out what's the right vibe here?

Gillett: We had the beats per minute, right?

Bettinelli-Olpin: It had to be in that area. And, giant lifelong Danzig fan and Misfits fan here, it was the first song we tried. It's the right tempo, it's the right pace. It has that macabre, '50s prom vibe and I basically came in with what, Tyler, 20 songs? And it was like, "All right, let's listen to these." And that was the first one, me, Tyler and Mike, our editor listened to and we all went, "Yeah, that's pretty great."

Gillett: But it was like, "That's pretty great, but we'll beat it. We'll beat this. We will find something that'll beat it."

Bettinelli-Olpin: We never thought in a million years people would let us put a Danzig song in this movie, including Danzig. We had no idea if Danzig would let us put a Danzig song in this movie. So anyways, long story short, we then tried every other song ever written and kept coming back to how much we loved "Blood and Tears," and, at the end of the day, the studio got behind it, Danzig gave it his blessing.

Gillett: And when Matt says we tried everything, it was like [George Michael's] "Careless Whisper" at one end of the spectrum and King Diamond's "Abigail" at the other end of the spectrum. Those were the guardrails when we were searching for a track for that. And yeah, man, Danzig for the win. We say that it's amazing to us that the best inside jokes are the ones that ultimately make it across the finish line, and that's one of them. We were like, "There's no f-cking way. There's no way 'Blood and Tears'..."

Bettinelli-Olpin: There's no way.

What's awesome is, if you just type in "Abigail Danzig song," it's a lot of people on Reddit being like, "What song is that?" Because you didn't choose one of the more obvious Danzig songs

Gillett: Love that. We love that sh-t, though. That's our aim with music, is that it feels familiar and it feels timeless and like, "Oh yeah, I think I've heard that," but you haven't. And so it gets you excited to explore and to dig in and to learn about new artists. That's always the aim for us. We get pitched, "Put in the pop song, put in the top 40 song, what's that version?" And we always try, right? Because it'd be great if one of those songs worked for a number of reasons, but it's funny, we've found that our tone has an allergy to that in a weird way. It's very strange.

Bettinelli-Olpin: I know we can talk about other things too, but we love this subject because we spend a ton of time on tracks.

Gillett: Let's not, let's just talk about Danzig.

Bettinelli-Olpin: But one of our touchstones for soundtracks is Pump Up the Volume because it's like all those great songs, but they're not the popular songs. I found so much music through that movie when I was a teenager, early teens, and I think it's trying to emulate something like that, where it's not just hits.

Gillett: Matt is not a teenager anymore.

Bettinelli-Olpin: I'm also not a teenager, believe it or not.

See, this is why we all had to record this conversation so that Matt is on record saying, "I'm not a teenager." I know that when you were talking about this movie, doing some interviews, some outlets ran with one quote from one of you guys saying how every scene was filmed with a horror perspective and then filmed with a more comedic perspective, resulting in some blogs saying, "Abigail has two completely different versions out there." Could you shed a little bit more insight on that?

Gillett: I mean, that's obviously the amplified version of that. I do think that you could cut any scene in any of our movies in one of those very narrow lanes, and I think it's our job to figure out how to make those things intersect and play well together. So I don't think it's necessarily that there's a comedy version or a straight horror version filmed. It's that what we film, it's a big enough net that it catches all of that stuff and that you can tailor the movie very simply into either of those tones. I think that what's fun to us is finding a way to mix them and make that mix something that's very unexpected and surprising. So it's sort of true, but also, I think it's really just about how we calibrate what the movie is in the edit. It's not like, "Hey, we're going to do the funny take, but then we're going to do the serious take." Those flavors are just very alive in everything, and it's really just about being selective.

Bettinelli-Olpin: Guardrails and calibration.

Gillett: Yeah, in the edit and putting those guardrails in place.

It sounds to me like you're saying movie blogs exaggerated isolated pieces of interviews to generate more traffic?

Bettinelli-Olpin: You didn't hear that here.

Gillett: Let's not go down that path.

I know Melissa [Barrera] had expressed, obviously she loves the movie, is super excited about the movie, but she expressed a little bit of disappointment about the ending where she doesn't get to go full vampire, and one version of the script she gets to go full vampire? So speaking to the ending, how many different versions were there? Was there one early on where she goes full vampire?

Bettinelli-Olpin: I don't remember that.

Gillett: She never turned. There was an ending, at one point, where it was Abigail and her dad watching Joey and her kid from afar, and it was very implied, like Abigail saying, "I think I would like a little brother," kind of a thing. And it was like, "Well, this is clearly going down this path," but I think that's as close as it ever got to her being...

Bettinelli-Olpin: I know Melissa got some teeth made for fun, but I don't think she ever actually got them.

Gillett: No, I don't think so. I don't think so.

Well, you should mail them to her. I don't think they will fit either of you.

Bettinelli-Olpin: We don't have them.

Gillett: We should have had teeth. We were like, "F-ck, why didn't we get fitted for teeth?"

Bettinelli-Olpin: We got fitted for those tutus, but not the teeth.

It's funny because my touchstone when Dracula shows up, I'm like, "Oh, it's that guy from Stoker." That's the thing that I recognized him from. Apparently he's on some TV show that the guy from The Guest [Dan Stevens] was also in.

Bettinelli-Olpin: Oh, yeah, Downton Abbey. "The Guest guy." The Downton Abbey guys.

Was there ever a point where, even just on paper, you speculated about some other people who you considered playing Dracula or was he literally the first and only name you went to?

Bettinelli-Olpin: It's funny, I feel like we went through so many versions of what that character could be because there were so many versions of the script that had different personifications of him and how he came through and how big and small that role was.

Matthew [Goode] did not have to audition because we are mega fans, specifically, of his portrayal of Robert Evans in The Offer. It's like a 10 out of 10, if you haven't seen it. But when he said he'd do it ... Sometimes you're looking for something and then, at a certain point, it's like it fits the box and you go, "Oh, my God, there it is. That's it." And as soon as he said he was in or was interested or his name came to us, I don't really remember how that exactly happened, but we immediately went, "Oh, my God, he would be f-cking perfect." And then in our opinion, he nailed it and is.

Gillett: We needed somebody to ... The way that they carry themselves actually to bring a level of mystery and nuance to what that character is instead of this just big, brute force. There's something very graceful and ethereal and strange about how Matthew looked in the teeth and the costume. And I think it implies so many interesting little pockets of history and story that exist off-screen. I mean, look, I think what being a talent like him is, right? You bring that sense of it, feeling lived in, even if you're on-screen for a minute and 40 seconds or whatever that scene actually is, it was really wild to watch that come together. It's such a short amount of time, but so important and so essential to the end of the movie.

So that wasn't ever a bargaining chip with Danzig to get the song, like, "Oh, and you can be Dracula for this movie,"?

Bettinelli-Olpin: Oh man.

Tyler: Hair whip.

Bettinelli-Olpin: I'd love that version, not going to lie.

When you said "big, brute force," I was like, "Oh, well that rules out Danzig." I think with Dan being named Adam Barrett [after filmmakers Adam Wingard and Simon Barrett], with the portrait of Henry's [Czerny] character from Ready or Not, and the song in the opening being an homage to the original Dracula, there's some Easter eggs in there. Are there ones that are so deeply buried that you're like, "How has nobody figured this out yet? Or how has nobody discovered this?" that now with the movie being out on VOD--

Bettinelli-Olpin: Available on a TV.

Available at home now.

Gillett: Available on screens that are not theater screens.

Bettinelli-Olpin: On a smaller screen.

With it being available on Apple Watches, is there an Easter egg that you are waiting to be discovered?

Bettinelli-Olpin: Well, there's the one that I was going to go to because I think, for us, it's really fun because we have the Henry portrait in the background, and then we also have Larry Fessenden, horror Icon, who did the voice of the DJ in an anthology we did a few years ago called Southbound. He reprised his role as the DJ, and you can hear him during the game room scene where they all get to know each other. So you can hear that same voice, it's so distinct and it just does something if you know the other movie.

Gillett: Then I think there's the Bela Lugosi license plate on Abigail's chauffeured car. The other license plates are the published date of the original Dracula. We love that, there's something so fun to us whenever there's a choice like that that needs to be made, why not make it cool and special and fit the puzzle? The math of what the movie is.

Bettinelli-Olpin: It's not an Easter egg because it became a big part of the movie, but to your point about making choices, that's what And Then There Were None was. We were just trying to think of, "What's a book...," and we were like, "Well, this is basically And Then There Were None."

Gillett: And you get the [Agatha] Christie story.

Bettinelli-Olpin: Let's just call it what it is.

The other one, though, is that I don't think anybody's caught because it's only a couple of frames in the movie, is the truck that Angus [Cloud] drives behind to hide from the cameras is Harker Farms, and it's got a bunch of garlic. Harker is the character from the original [Dracula].

I've got to ask you about Escape from New York. Guys, what's going on? Last time I talked to you, it was, "Well, we're focusing on our original Dracula vampire movie." That's out of the way. What's the latest, are you guys still involved in it?

Gillett: We are not, unfortunately. I think titles like that have been around for a while, and I think they've tried to get that out of the blocks a few times. I think it's just ultimately a tricky rights issue thing. There's a clock on it and we just weren't in a position to make the clock, ultimately. But who knows? I think, in hindsight, it feels crazy that we would think that we'd, post-Scream, step into a John Carpenter franchise.

Bettinelli-Olpin: Psychotic.

Gillett: You never know, but we know that there's still interest in it, and we've had a few conversations about it, but we're not attached in the official capacity.

Well, that'll just free you up for Abigail 2. Or Devil's Due Part 2.

Gillett: There you go.

Bettinelli-Olpin: That's what we've been waiting for.

I know you've just been biding your time. You've just been doing these studio wins here and there just to be able to come back to Devil's Due. I knew it.

Gillett: Yeah, let's blow some wind into that sail. That's the right one, for sure.

Abigail is now available to watch at home exclusively on digital platforms from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity. You can contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter.

A new era is almost on the horizon for Doctor Who, with the first season led by The Fifteenth Doctor (Ncuti Gatwa) kicking off very soon. This newest batch of episodes, which are spearheaded by returning showrunner Russell T. Davies, have already promised some unexpected elements. This includes some surprising connections to the world of music, with an episode even involving The Beatles. While speaking with ComicBook about the new season, Davies argued that leaning into music felt like a natural fit for Doctor Who, especially in the show's current evolution.

"I was heading in that direction anyway," Davies explained. "I've got to say, in audition, we never asked [Ncuti] to sing. We never checked that out. And had he not been able to sing or dance, we would have found a way around that. I said, 'Look at the man.' I mean, no wonder we didn't ask. 'Of course he can sing and dance, he can do anything.' I never doubted that for a second. It's just something I want to do because I always want Doctor Who to feel every emotion, and for it to resonate with the viewers at home in every single way, and want to be the most memorable show you'll watch on television that week. And part of that is music. I mean, imagine not having a great soundtrack on Doctor Who, it would just be slightly less a show. So I worked with for many years on Doctor Who and almost every other job I've ever had, with Murray [Gold], because I think he's so magnificent and he's so in tune with me and he writes such good tunes. Other people might write beds of atmospheric, incidental music, he writes tunes. He's been heading towards writing songs in Doctor Who for a long time, in fact. He's independently gone and written his own songs, when David Tennant first became The Doctor. In 'The Christmas Invasion', and the happy ending of that episode, there's a great big song playing that Murray just went and wrote it over the soundtrack. That was the soundtrack. So he's always loved it. So maybe I'm just slow to follow, but I think it's just pushing the show into a bigger sensory experience, in every sense.'

What Is Doctor Who's New Season About?

From Disney+ and the BBC, this season of Doctor Who follows the Doctor and Ruby Sunday nthrough infinite adventures across time and space in the TARDIS. From the Regency era in England to war-torn futures, the duo champion the forces of good while encountering incredible friends and dangerous foes.

Guest stars on the new season of Doctor Who will include Aneurin Barnard, Anita Dobson, Yasmin Finney, Michelle Greenidge, Jonathan Groff, Bonnie Langford, Genesis Lynea, Jemma Redgrave, Lenny Rush, Indira Varma and Angela Wynter. Doctor Who is produced by Bad Wolf, with BBC Studios for Disney Branded Television and BBC. Under the creative vision of Davies, the additional executive producers include Phil Collinson, Joel Collins, Julie Gardner and Jane Tranter. The new season features episodes directed by Ben Chessell, Jamie Donoughue, Julie Anne Robinson and Dylan Holmes Williams.

"At last, it's my great delight to unleash a whole new season of the Doctor and Ruby's adventures together," showrunner, executive producer, and writer Russell T. Davies said in a statement. "Monsters! Chases! Villains! Mysteries! And a terrifying secret that's been spanning time and space for decades. Don't miss a second!"

Doctor Who will return with new episodes on Friday, May 10th at 7pm ET on Disney+, with a two-episode premiere, followed by a debut on BBC iPlayer on Saturday, May 11 at 12am GMT, and a broadcast premiere on BBC One later that day. If you haven't signed up for Disney+ yet, you can try it out here.

Note: If you purchase one of the awesome, independently chosen products featured here, we may earn a small commission from the retailer. Thank you for your support

A new season of Doctor Who is just around the corner, with Ncuti Gatwa's tenure as The Fifteenth Doctor fully kicking off this weekend. Gatwa, whose work includes beloved projects like Barbie and Sex Education, is the latest actor to step into the iconic role of The Doctor -- but it sounds like he isn't worried about the potential high standards of fans. While speaking to ComicBook.com about his work on the new season, Gatwa teased that his iteration of The Doctor will have a "fresh energy."

"It does take a bit of the pressure off, because it was very much that we stepped into a new era," Gatwa explained in our interview, which you can check out above. "[Showrunner] Russell [T. Davies] is back, and it's like there's a whole fresh energy running through it. So even in terms of, The Doctor is a lot more kind of joyful than we've seen before. So it feels like there's a fresh energy running through it. So I'm just gonna ride with that and hope that nobody holds me up to sixty years of expectation."

What Is Doctor Who's New Season About?

From Disney+ and the BBC, this season of Doctor Who follows the Doctor and Ruby Sunday nthrough infinite adventures across time and space in the TARDIS. From the Regency era in England to war-torn futures, the duo champion the forces of good while encountering incredible friends and dangerous foes.

Guest stars on the new season of Doctor Who will include Aneurin Barnard, Anita Dobson, Yasmin Finney, Michelle Greenidge, Jonathan Groff, Bonnie Langford, Genesis Lynea, Jemma Redgrave, Lenny Rush, Indira Varma and Angela Wynter. Doctor Who is produced by Bad Wolf, with BBC Studios for Disney Branded Television and BBC. Under the creative vision of Davies, the additional executive producers include Phil Collinson, Joel Collins, Julie Gardner and Jane Tranter. The new season features episodes directed by Ben Chessell, Jamie Donoughue, Julie Anne Robinson and Dylan Holmes Williams.

"At last, it's my great delight to unleash a whole new season of the Doctor and Ruby's adventures together," showrunner, executive producer, and writer Russell T. Davies said in a statement. "Monsters! Chases! Villains! Mysteries! And a terrifying secret that's been spanning time and space for decades. Don't miss a second!"

Doctor Who will return with new episodes on Friday, May 10th at 7pm ET on Disney+, with a two-episode premiere, followed by a debut on BBC iPlayer on Saturday, May 11 at 12am GMT, and a broadcast premiere on BBC One later that day. If you haven't signed up for Disney+ yet, you can try it out here.

Note: If you purchase one of the awesome, independently chosen products featured here, we may earn a small commission from the retailer. Thank you for your support

Dead Boy Detectives is currently streaming on Netflix, and fans of the series have been taking to social media to praise their favorite characters and plead with the streamer for a second season. The show is based on the comics by writer Neil Gaiman and artists Matt Wagner and Malcolm Jones III, and ComicBook previously talked to some of the show's stars about bringing their characters to life. This week, we had the chance to chat with Jenn Lyon, who plays the evil (but lovable) witch, Esther Finch. During the interview, Lyon spoke about her inspiration and the fan reactions to her character.

"Freeing, because I think the best evil is casual," Lyon said when asked if balancing a character who is both fun and evil is a challenge or freeing. "You know what I mean? If somebody's too sinister, you're like, 'Well, they're about to get me,' but if it means nothing to them, it's scarier to me."

"I am always 100% stealing from Madeline Kahn, Judy Holliday," she added when asked about her inspirations. "It's not even that they played witches, they are actresses that I love. Parker Posey in Blade Trinity. When she came in - because she's playing the queen of the vampires - I think any other actress would've been like, 'Oh, it's you Blade,'" Lyon said in a menacing voice. "And this bitch came in and was like, 'Hey,'" she imitated in a disinterested voice. "It floored me."

"Well, the babies - they're full grown adults - in the cast [have shared reactions]," Lyon explained when asked about fan reactions to Esther. "I'm not on social media anymore, for almost two years, so they send me stuff, especially Josh [Colley] who plays Monty, the crow. He's just the sweetest baby. He'll send me stuff and it'll be like, 'Esther is mother,' and it'll be somebody that's made a weird little TikTok, and it makes me feel good."

During the chat, Lyon also recalled an interesting day on set...

"Doing fantasy and sci-fi stuff, you're just using your imagination so hard and hoping that it works out," Lyon explained. "Whenever I had to be up on that - we called it the funeral pyre - but I never got burned on it. But I'm over the water and bleeding and there's a blood rack, and it's the coldest that it's ever been in Canada. And the makeup lady kept having to squeeze blood in my mouth because when they would yell action, I had to blood drip out and act like I was seeing a big head rise out of the water."

"But you can't even hear the director. They have wind machines going, too, and you're like, 'I hope this is what they want. I have no idea what it looks like.' And then they would yell, 'Cut,' and the director would yell something and you wouldn't hear it. You'd be like, 'Yeah, I'm going to do it.'"

"It's sweet," she added when asked about the taste of the fake blood. "It's chocolatey, kind of, but very sticky ... It kind of stains you in a weird way. All your undergarments, if you happen to wear a little bra you liked that day, you didn't use a show bra, that's it for you. RIP your bra."

Stay tuned for more from our interview with Jenn Lyon.

A new season of Doctor Who is on the horizon, as fans only have to wait just a few days to see the adventures of the Fifteenth Doctor (Ncuti Gatwa) and Ruby Sunday (Millie Gibson). The pair's Doctor-companion dynamic has already been teased in the 2023 holiday special, and there's definitely a lot of intrigue around how they're rapport will evolve over the season. In an exclusive interview with ComicBook, Gibson teased that she views Ruby and Fifteen as "the bestest of friends."

"Besties! Honestly, the bestest of friends," Gibson said in our interview, which you can check out above. "I like to think of them as twin flames, as of recent, because they're connected on so many levels. Very platonic and I think what's beautiful is that their love just grows and they're very protective of one another. They're very on equal ground, and sometimes it's more like a damsel in distress thing, but actually, they're both looking out for the damsel, which is nice. Or the underdog, which I love."

What Is Doctor Who's New Season About?

From Disney+ and the BBC, this season of Doctor Who follows the Doctor and Ruby Sunday nthrough infinite adventures across time and space in the TARDIS. From the Regency era in England to war-torn futures, the duo champion the forces of good while encountering incredible friends and dangerous foes.

Guest stars on the new season of Doctor Who will include Aneurin Barnard, Anita Dobson, Yasmin Finney, Michelle Greenidge, Jonathan Groff, Bonnie Langford, Genesis Lynea, Jemma Redgrave, Lenny Rush, Indira Varma and Angela Wynter. Doctor Who is produced by Bad Wolf, with BBC Studios for Disney Branded Television and BBC. Under the creative vision of Davies, the additional executive producers include Phil Collinson, Joel Collins, Julie Gardner and Jane Tranter. The new season features episodes directed by Ben Chessell, Jamie Donoughue, Julie Anne Robinson and Dylan Holmes Williams.

"At last, it's my great delight to unleash a whole new season of the Doctor and Ruby's adventures together," showrunner, executive producer, and writer Russell T. Davies said in a statement. "Monsters! Chases! Villains! Mysteries! And a terrifying secret that's been spanning time and space for decades. Don't miss a second!"

Doctor Who will return with new episodes on Friday, May 10th at 7pm ET on Disney+, with a two-episode premiere, followed by a debut on BBC iPlayer on Saturday, May 11 at 12am GMT, and a broadcast premiere on BBC One later that day. If you haven't signed up for Disney+ yet, you can try it out here.

Note: If you purchase one of the awesome, independently chosen products featured here, we may earn a small commission from the retailer. Thank you for your support

The Spiderwick Chronicles is now streaming on The Roku Channel, and the new series has a big connection to some fan-favorite shows such as Agents of SHIELD, She-Hulk: Attorney At Law, The Last of Us, and more. All of those series feature costumes from costume designer Ann Foley. ComicBook recently had the chance to chat with Foley, who spoke about some of the costumes in Spiderwick in addition to her excitement about the upcoming second season of The Last of Us. During the interview, we brought up Foley's Marvel history, and we asked if there are any other MCU characters she'd like to work with.

"I've got a couple of different answers to that," Foley teased when asked about Marvel. "I was always interested in Spider-Gwen, really interested in her. And then I got to tell you, I'm really excited for Fantastic Four. I'm not going to lie, anything to do with Pedro [Pascal]. I have been following this project for years ... I worked on [the 2005 movie as an assistant costume designer], that was my first foray into the Marvel Universe ... so there's a special place in my heart for that film, and I really can't wait to see what Marvel does with it. I actually could go on and on. I can't wait for Deadpool 3, I'm so excited. That would be fun."

What Is The Spiderwick Chronicles About?

In Roku's The Spiderwick Chronicles, the Grace family moves from Brooklyn, New York, to their ancestral home in Henson, Michigan: the Spiderwick Estate. Helen makes the move with her 15-year-old fraternal twin boys, Jared and Simon, and her older daughter, Mallory. Shortly after moving to the Spiderwick Estate Jared discovers a boggart and realizes that magical creatures are real. The only one to believe him is his great-aunt Lucinda, who implores Jared to find the pages of her father's field guide to magical creatures and protect them from the murderous Ogre, Mulgarath.

The cast of The Spiderwick Chronicles includes Joy Bryant, Lyon Daniels, Noah Cottrell, Mychala Lee, Jack Dylan Grazer, Christian Slater, and Alyvia Alyn Lind. The series is showrun by Aron Eli Coleite, with executive producers including Coleite, Kat Coiro, Tony DiTerlizzi, Holly Black, Ellen Goldsmith-Vein, Jeremy Bell, D.J. Goldberg, Julie Kane-Ritsch, and Grace Gilroy.

The Spiderwick Chronicles is now streaming on The Roku Channel.

Thanks to their major successes with both 2019's Ready or Not and 2022's Scream, directors Tyler Gillett and Matt Bettinelli-Olpin landed the coveted gig of directing a revival of John Carpenter's Escape from New York, though in the years since they joined the project, they have since parted ways. The pair cite the limited timelines and rights issues to move forward on that project, along with their own schedules, that saw the timeframe close for possibly jumping onto the revival. The directors' most recent effort, the vampire-comedy Abigail, is now available to watch at home from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment.

When asked by ComicBook if the duo were still developing the project, Gillett confirmed, "We are not, unfortunately. I think titles like that bounce around for a while and I think they've tried to get that out of the blocks a few times. I think it's just ultimately a tricky rights issue thing. There's a clock on it and we just weren't in a position to make the clock, ultimately. But who knows? I think, in hindsight, it feels crazy that we would think we would, post-Scream, step into a John Carpenter franchise. You never know. There's still interest in it and we've had a few conversations about it but we're not attached in any official capacity."

While the directors, who are collectively known as "Radio Silence" (along with producer Chad Villella), offered updates on the project in 2023, there's been little information released in recent months about the status of the project. Having also confirmed they were taking a backseat with the upcoming Scream 7, Radio Silence have yet to announce what their next directing project will be.

In Abigail, after a group of would-be criminals kidnap the 12-year-old ballerina daughter of a powerful underworld figure, all they have to do to collect a $50 million ransom is watch the girl overnight. In an isolated mansion, the captors start to dwindle, one by one, and they discover, to their mounting horror, that they're locked inside with no normal little girl.

Abigail stars Melissa Barrera (Scream franchise, In the Heights), Dan Stevens (Gaslit, Legion), Kathryn Newton (Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, Freaky), William Catlett (Black Lightning, True Story), Kevin Durand (Resident Evil: Retribution, X-Men Origins: Wolverine), and Angus Cloud (Euphoria, North Hollywood) as the kidnappers and Alisha Weir (Roald Dahl's Matilda the Musical, Darklands) as Abigail.

Abigail is now available to watch at home from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment. Stay tuned for updates on the future of the Escape from New York reboot.

Are you disappointed the filmmakers are no longer attached to the project? Contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter or on Instagram to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

Reginald the Vampire is dialing up the darkness in Season 2. Launching in Fall 2022, SYFY's bloodsucking series spotlighted Spider-Man: No Way Home star Jacob Batalon in the titular role, capturing the charm and quip of the Johnny B. Truant novels that it is based on. While Reginald the Vampire's sophomore installment will retain the vibrant energy of the first season, it has been noted that the next batch of episodes will get a little more serious.

"I feel like we were all shocked as actors to see how dark it gets and how deep it gets," Batalon told ComicBook. "But I think it just is the natural progression of our story. We just wanted to really raise the stakes."

Those stakes come in the form of angels. Reginald the Vampire Season 2 brings in Balestro (Garfield Wilson) and Uriel (Max Montesi) as beings from above sent down to Earth to destroy who bear fangs.

"There's all these things you have to deal with when you're fighting the angels. It's just another level," Batalon continued. "We were allowed to show what we could do with the first season and now that we have more space to play in things, we can show where things could end up with this season."

Outside of the action, Reginald the Vampire will continue dissecting who Reginald is from a personal standpoint as he attempts to navigate his life as a vampire.

"There's deeper meanings to relationships that you have to deal with as well as a vampire," Batalon noted. "In terms of Season 2, it's really just how we defeat the angels after we've basically turned over a new leaf."

Last fans saw, Reginald was struggling to pass the Assessment, a test that determines whether or not a prospective vampire can continue as one. The vampires in charge were divided on the matter, specifically Angela (Savannah Basley), as she took issue with Maurice (Mandela Van Peebles) making Reginald into a vampire.

Despite how he's treated, Reginald remains putting the greater good first.

"I feel like you'll watch his growth from a bit afraid to take the stance to really becoming the hero of the day in Season 2," Batalon teased. "It's something he has to learn to accept. We sort of see him do it in the first season, but now it's really on his shoulders again. It's really just like the natural progression for Reginald."

Reginald the Vampire Season 2 premieres on Wednesday, May 8th at 10 PM ET on SYFY.

Ahmed Best first played Jar Jar Binks in Star Wars: The Phantom Menace, which was re-released in theaters over the weekend for its 25th anniversary. It was announced this weekend Best is returning to the role of Jar Jar with a twist in LEGO Star Wars: Rebuild the Galaxy, but it's not the only character Best is hoping to revisit. He also played Jedi Kelleran Beq in Jedi Temple Challenge and Star Wars: The Mandalorian. ComicBook recently got to chat with Best in honor of May 4th, and we asked where he'd like to see Kelleran pop up next.

"I keep putting this out there. I want to do a Jedi John Wick as Kelleran Beq," Best shared. And I don't even need to say any words. I just want to do two hours of lightsabers and people in the way. I really want to do something like that because the fight that I did for Mandalorian is 1/10th of 1% of what I could do. And there's so much more."

"I was just talking about this, the style that influences Kelleran Beq is from Filipino martial arts, and nobody really knows very much how deep those arts are," he continued. "Most of the Jedi are Japanese Samurai influenced, but the Filipinos beat the Samurai and they beat the Spanish. The way they move, the style that they move, and the weapons that they use are revolutionary. It's so much so that a lot of what Bruce Lee does in Jeet Kune Do is influenced by Filipino martial arts. So I really want that to be highlighted through some kind of Jedi story."

What Is Popup Con?

We spoke to Best at Popup Con, a cool event he started a few years ago, during the grand opening of Bricks and Minifigs in Pasadena, California.

"So Popup Con actually started before the pandemic," Best shared. "I always wanted to do something primarily to look at small niche businesses. When it came to entertainment stuff, I grew up in comic book stores all my life. I grew up in toy stores all my life ... And I always loved the cultures that were around it. Every time I would go to a comic book store when I was a kid, it'd be all the same people ... You'd have all of these people who were so passionate, not just about what was in the store, but the store itself. It's something that I always really loved. And when big box stores came in, that kind of disappeared."

"The big conventions are cool, but sometimes it gets a little much," Best explained. "Sometimes it's very difficult to have the stamina to do all of them, and sometimes it gets kind of transactional, more transactional than I like. I kind of like the fact that you get to talk to people. I like the fact that you get to know people and you get a little bit of time. So I was like, 'Well, what if there was a con that would just pop up in these very niche mom-and-pop stores?' Especially things like comic book stores or video stores or Lego stores or toy stores, and it would be the people affiliated with the store, but you can also spend a little bit more time with people coming through, and that's when Popup Con comes."

Stay tuned for more from our interview with Best.

Tiffany Stratton has surged since joining the main roster. After competing in the titular battle royal this past January at WWE Royal Rumble, Stratton joined the WWE SmackDown locker room and immediately solidified herself as one of the brand's top talents. She competed in the Women's Elimination Chamber Match the following month, eliminating former multi-time champion Naomi in the process. This past weekend, Stratton challenged for the WWE Women's Championship at WWE Backlash. All this success comes on the back of her NXT run, which saw Stratton hold the NXT Women's Title for 107 days and headline a premium live event against Becky Lynch.

While Stratton furthers herself as a unique competitor in the larger wrestling world with every passing week, there are some that draw parallels between her and AEW star Mariah May. Most of these comparisons aren't complimentary either, as fans have accused each woman of copying the other's look, despite the fact that the only aspect they have in common is their blonde hair.

"Obviously it's annoying," Stratton told ComicBook. "Just because we have the same colored hair does not mean we look alike or we're stealing each other's gimmicks or styles."

These comparisons are nothing new for Stratton. The former NXT Women's Champion noted that she also sees fans group her with other blonde WWE wrestlers.

"I get compared to so many other people. Trish Stratus. Charlotte Flair. Honestly, I think everyone is on their own path," Stratton continued. "I think Mariah May is amazing. I think she's such a great wrestler. She's gorgeous. It can be annoying for sure, but I feel like wrestling fans are going to be wrestling fans and say everyone's always a copy of this person or this person's imitating this person. It's nothing new to be honest."

"I don't mind at all. I think Tiffany's great. I think she's a superstar," May said in a prior interview. "She's great in the ring. I love her gears. She's a sweetheart. We've spoken before. At the end of the day, there can be multiple blondes. We all love Barbie. We all love the divas. If you think about our age group, we came up on Total Divas and Nikki Bella and stuff, so yes, we're going to look like Barbie dolls, but we're also some of the greatest wrestlers."

May competes on AEW Dynamite tonight at 8 PM ET on TBS. Stratton can be seen on WWE SmackDown, airing every Friday at 8 PM ET on FOX.

Across its first season, X-Men '97 has been remixing the Marvel mythos to great effect. That has especially been the case for Magneto (Matthew Waterson), who has had some poignant and surprising moments throughout the episodes thus far. With X-Men '97 existing in its own place in the Marvel multiverse, and occasionally featuring cameos from other animated Marvel characters, fans have wondered if and how certain crossovers could become a reality. In an exclusive interview with ComicBook's Phase Zero podcast, Waterson revealed which Marvel crossovers he would most like to explore with Magneto -- and went so far as to argue that his character probably could have stopped Thanos from snapping his fingers and destroying half the universe in 2018's Avengers: Infinity War.

"I mean, there are the obvious ones. If you're looking in terms of what Marvel has been doing recently, there's fun ones. Magneto might have been an interesting addition into the Thanos thing, because the glove is metal. Magneto might have been able to solve that relatively quickly. I don't know what it was actually made out of. It looked metal. So, there's things like that, where you can have a lot of fun with it, starting to say, 'To what extent does this person's powers actually give them an ability to manipulate whatever that is? What could you do with that, or what can you do with this?' The interactions between Magneto and Wolverine have always been so much fun, because Wolverine has such a 'I don't care' attitude. And then, Magneto is always just looking at him, going, 'I can literally disassemble you, because you're made of what I manipulate.' That's always been a fun interaction, going through the entire first series, and even in the movies, and in comics, and everything like that."

"The person in the X-Men IP that I've always really, really liked, and just found fascinating, is Sebastian Shaw. He's already been in the show a little bit. I think that there's a lot of fun, just because of his personality, and the way his powers work and things like that. I think there's a reason why, in a lot of the comics, he's gone in and out as a major force on both sides. I've always just found that character fascinating. So that's one where, if there was more stuff coming up that interacted with him, yeah."

"Could Magneto have just solved Endgame much more quickly? Obviously, narratively and dramatically, is not as useful, [since] it's like, 'Oh, we're all fighting this thing. There's this one guy who just [uses his powers once] and it's done, negates it. But yeah, there's a lot of fun things that you can go, 'Ooh, how will that work?'"

Is X-Men '97 Renewed for Season 2?

Work has already begun on a sophomore season of X-Men '97, which was already renewed by Marvel Animation prior to the show's premiere.

"We're working on season two. But we haven't started yet. I know a little bit of the storylines and characters," co-composer Taylor Newton Stewart explained in a recent interview. "It's always upping the ante. I mean, it's pretty intense what happens. Yeah, immediately when I was told, I was just like, 'Oh my gosh, what's happening? This is incredible.' So, just as a fan alone, I am very excited."

New episodes of X-Men '97 debut on Wednesdays exclusively on Disney+. If you haven't signed up for Disney+ yet, you can try it out here.

We're just a few episodes away from the Season 1 finale of X-Men '97, after the Marvel Animation series has delivered plenty of surprises. One of the most grandiose character arcs of the season has been Magneto (Matthew Waterson), whose role as a newfound ally of the X-Men has gone into some complicated territory. That included an epic sequence in X-Men '97's second episode, in which Magneto is put on trial at the United Nations, only to get the upper hand and convey his pro-mutant message to the world. In an exclusive interview with ComicBook's Phase Zero podcast, Waterson shared his insight on Magneto's speech to the U.N., and the key turning point it signifies for the character.

"I can't say enough about the stuff that I've got to do in this whole series," Waterson revealed in our interview. "I mean, Magneto being who he is, gets to talk a decent amount, and gets to make a pretty good argument for his point of view. Initially reading that scene, and reading through that speech, that was one that we tweaked a lot. We went back to that in additional recordings, because they would decide to change just a line or a word. And every single time, we would read it and think, "This is phenomenal, this sounds great." They would come back and change, sometimes just one line, or one word, and you would go, 'Oh, okay. Oh no, that's better. That hits harder. It's more cutting, it's more succinct, it's more emotionally rich.' We kept working on, "How do we get more into it?' Those sorts of things, that was just fun. The whole speech is so good and is so cutting, in that it's not a plea, and it's not a defense. 'This is why this happened, and I'm willing to take responsibility for my part of it, but I'm not letting you off the hook, for the bits of it that are your responsibility.'"

"Going into where that scene goes to, leading to, what I still think, is one of the coldest and most terrifying threats that I've ever heard made is really, really cool," Waterson continued. "To get to do that speech, and then to have it go into that bit, where you see him struggling so much to maintain what he has promised Charles that he would do, and the outlook that he's promised, that he would take. And still going, 'Let's be clear, it's not that I can't do what I've always done. I'm choosing not to. And if you push me far enough, I can change my mind.' And the way that that whole thing was put together, and the way that it was written, and then once I saw what the directors and animators had done, it worked so well. So it was a blast to get to do. And it was really amazing to finally get to see, once it was all realized, what it looked like when everybody else had put their parts into it, and when the Newton Brothers music was in there and everything, it all added to it. It made me look way better, which was great for me."

Waterson also argued that the U.N. scene essentially encapsulates the mission statement of X-Men '97's first season, especially now that mutant-human relations have been complicated by the Genosha massacre.

"They put the overall mission statement of the show in the second episode, coming out of one of the characters when everybody -- not just watching the show, but everybody in the show was focused on it, because this was Magneto on trial at the United Nations," Waterson explained. "Everybody on the planet in the world, at the time, was focused on watching [and wondering] 'How is this going to go?' Because half of them see him as a threat, and half of him see him as a potential savior. What is laid out in that speech is really an ideal distillation of what the show is trying to say. And I am not better with words than the writers, so I can't do better justice than that. But that idea of, 'Like it or not, we all live in the same place, and we don't have a choice about that. So rather than trying to figure out ways to separate ourselves, when we're never going to be able to do that, we need to figure out how to work together. And that doesn't mean ironing out any differences or anything that we don't recognize, or aren't naturally comfortable with. That means everybody is different. Let's figure out how to take people for what they are, and not try and make them fit into our idea, or our model, or our wish for the way the world might be.'"

Is X-Men '97 Renewed for Season 2?

Work has already begun on a sophomore season of X-Men '97, which was already renewed by Marvel Animation prior to the show's premiere.

"We're working on season two. But we haven't started yet. I know a little bit of the storylines and characters," co-composer Taylor Newton Stewart explained in a recent interview. "It's always upping the ante. I mean, it's pretty intense what happens. Yeah, immediately when I was told, I was just like, 'Oh my gosh, what's happening? This is incredible.' So, just as a fan alone, I am very excited."

New episodes of X-Men '97 debut on Wednesdays exclusively on Disney+. If you haven't signed up for Disney+ yet, you can try it out here.