Month: March 2021

The streaming services, as a whole, did not falter throughout this pandemic, and in fact, some new and already successful ones popped up (HBO Max, Peacock), and another contender, Paramount+, launched earlier this week. As a result, Netflix is no longer always king of the streaming weekends, and this week, movies start to come back in a bigger way with Coming 2 America bringing us Eddie Murphy, Arsenio Hall, Wesley Snipes, and so much more incredible talent in a long-awaited sequel. More than any other gathering of selections, this solitary entry wins the weekend for Amazon Prime, but the game’s not over yet.

Netflix is bringing the quantity, but there’s a lot of quality out there elsewhere. Hulu’s got a new Frank Grillo action picture and the latest Snowfall episode; and Disney+ is bringing the WandaVision finale, along with an eye-popping adventure film that’s good for the whole family. Peacock isn’t sitting down and twiddling its fingers; instead, it’ll scare the pants off you with more Mr. Mercedes, and HBO Max has some fresh offerings as well. With that said, here’s the best of the best of this weekend’s streaming picks, and no matter what, you won’t be bored this weekend with TV.

Amazon Prime

Coming 2 America (Amazon Prime film) — The much-anticipated sequel is (according to our own Vince Mancini) a rare example of a comedy that lives up to the original with a bang-up job in the costume department to boot. The followup also, naturally, celebrates the much-heralded return of Eddie Murphy as King Akeem, who’s definitely got Arsenio Hall around as confidante while they travel from Zaumda to Queens, New York, to take things back to basics. More good news: James Earl Jones is back, and the film co-stars Wesley Snipes, Leslie Jones, Tracy Morgan, Louis Anderson, Jermaine Fowler, Bella Murphy, Rotimi, KiKi Layne, Nomzamo Mbatha, and Teyana Taylor.

Hulu

Boss Level (FX film) — Underappreciated action hero Frank Grillo stars as a former special forces agent who’s trapped in a not-so-wacky version of a Groundhog Day-esque time loop and forced to continuously relive his own murder. Sounds like a good time! Mel Gibson plays the government agent that Grillo’s hunting down in a race against the time loop, and the film also co-stars Naomi Watts, Ken Jeong, and Annabelle Wallis. The film’s one of many upcoming projects from Grillo and director Joe Carnahan’s War Party production company.

Snowfall: Season 4 Premiere (FX on Hulu) — The John Singleton-co-created series sees Franklin’s troubles move past the gang warfare and toward Cissy while revenge is the name of the game for Teddy and Gustavo. Franklin’s still aiming to regain control over his empire resisting an all-out war of drug violence in the mid 1980s, Reagan-era streets of America.

Disney+

Wandavision: Season Finale (Disney+ series) — Phase Four’s first official MCU entry is skillfully careening to a close after an emotional penultimate episode that promises a showdown between two powerful witches and some sort of cameo that’s been teased by (the possibly trolling) Paul Bettany. After this week, it’s all eyes forward to The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, so get your wings and vibranium-arm cosplay ready.

Raya and the Last Dragon (Disney+ film) — Kelly Marie Tran stars in this ambitious fantasy film with striking visuals about Kumandra, yet another world where humans and dragons coexisted together until the dragons sacrificed themselves to save the humans. Oh, this one’s gonna be a tear-jerker but sounds like it’s entirely worth it, especially after reemerging monsters inspire a warrior to find the last living dragon and repeat the path to victory. The film integrates mythologies from many Southeast Asian cultures and promises to be a soaring ride for all ages.

Paramount+ (Launching on Thursday, March 4)

The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run (Paramount+ movie) — Look for Keanu Reeves’ cameo in this irreverent animated adventure, which follows SpongeBob and Patrick, his starfish pal, looking to vindicate Mr. Krabs after he’s been framed for heisting King Neptune’s crown. In doing so, they must leave their Bikini Bottom refuge and make their way to Shell City in a journey that illuminates the power of friendship. In addition to the actual movie goodness, check out our “Rapid Fire” video with rapper 2KBaby as he looks to beat the buzzer in a quiz.

Kamp Koral: SpongeBob’s Under Years: Season 1 (Paramount+ series) — This accompanying prequel series (which landed on the Paramount+ launch day) follows 10-year-old Spongebob at his summer Kamp Koral, which really shakes up the kelp forest as underwater campfires are all the rage near Lake Yuckymuck.

Netflix

Biggie: I Got A Story To Tell (Netflix documentary): The Notorious B.I.G. gets the celebratory spotlight in this documentary that charts his journey from hustler to rap king. It’s an origin story fit for a legend, and although his lyrics were often autobiographical, this film’s rare footage, testimonies, and in-depth interviews will teach you plenty that you didn’t know about the Hip-Hop icon before hitting play. The documentary arrives in collaboration with Biggie Smalls’ estate while looking ahead to what would have been his 50th birthday and as a followup to his Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction. Sean Combs executive produces alongside Biggie’s mother, Voletta Wallace, and the film promises to reveal a side Christopher George Latore Wallace that’s never before been revealed to the public.

Pacific Rim: The Black (Netflix series): This animated series is as bonkers as the live action-ish films. There’s massive robots and Kaiju overrunning Australia, which renders the whole continent inhabitable. Amid the mayhem, two siblings search for their missing parents and basically embark upon their search by piloting a Jaeger, which is their only shot at survival. The only thing that’s missing here is an obvious ingredient: Charlie Hunnam.

Moxie (Netflix film): The streaming service is cranking out the movies (at least one per week) this year, and this series co-stars Amy Poehler as a mom with a rebellious past. That past ends up inspiring her daughter, Vivian (Hadley Robinson), to anonymously publish an underground zine (called Moxie) to expose wrongdoers at her high school. In the process, she inspires a full-on movement and revolution, which leads to a shift and power from the cliques and clubs to a better environment for all at the school. The film also stars Lauren Tsai, Patrick Schwarzenegger, Nico Hiraga, Sydney Park, Josephine Langford, Clark Gregg, Josie Totah, Anjelika Washington, Charlie Hall, Sabrina Haskett, Ike Barinholtz, and Marcia Gay Harden.

Murder Among The Mormons (Netflix limited series): Salt Lake City is struck by a series of fatal pipe bombs in 1985, and it’s easily one of the most shocking happenings in the history of the Mormon community. A criminal mastermind is to blame, and clues spring from early Mormon documents and diaries found scattered amid a rare document collection that’s in possession of one of the victims. This is a three-part miniseries and a true-crime documentary that digs into territory seldom seen for a genre that tends to focus on spooks and serial killers. Here, the main crimes in question went down in broad daylight, but as the episodes unfold, the darkness of what sparked these stunning killings slowly rises to the surface.

Peacock

Mr. Mercedes: Season 3 (Peacock series) — The crime-thriller series that’s based upon Stephen King’s best-selling Bill Hodges Trilogy continues from executive producer David E. Kelley and director Jack Bender. Viewers know that this series brings us a very different Holly Gibney (as portrayed by Justine Lupe) than the one we witnessed on HBO’s The Outsider (as played by Cynthia Erivo), and this season was co-written by Kelley and King. Settle in as the murder of a beloved local author (and American icon) becomes the focus of Hodges, Holly, and Jerome, who find that this case is much more complex than mere cold-blooded killing.

HBO Max

Persona: The Dark Truth Behind Personality Tests (HBO Max documentary) — Personality tests can be insightful, sure, but they can also reflect into doing more harm than good when they’re essentially applied out of context. Americans are obsessed with these things, so please enjoy this opinion-altering documentary.

Allen V. Farrow (HBO documentary series, HBO Max on Sunday) — This four part documentary series continues this weekend while digging into a notorious and still-raging scandal of what, exactly, happened with Woody Allen and his family. That includes daughter Dylan Farrow’s allegations of sexual abuse against her father along with Allen’s relationship with Farrow’s daughter, Soon-Yi, and the custody trial that grew especially ugly. In the aftermath, a sprawling family fractured, and that divide continues to this day with continuing disputes that revolve around the allegations.

Last Week Tonight: Season 8 Premiere (HBO Series, Sunday On HBO Max) — Everyone’s favorite sarcastic and satiric late-night host finally returned a few weeks ago (after blowing up 2020 and getting weird with sweet Adam Driver), and not a moment too soon. John Oliver will break down exactly what’s wrong with our society in a way that only he can do, and let’s hope that he brings back that award-winning hoodie, so we can all get fancy with him.

The Boy is back.

Though rumors about Certified Lover Boy have been swirling since 2021 began, the timeline has been a little jittery so far. Fans were sure Drizzy’s next album was going to drop a few weeks ago, but his producer 40 insists that although they’ve been working all through the pandemic, it’s going to be some time still — but within the next two months. Drake, rather infamously, has been recovering from a pretty severe knee injury, but that doesn’t seem to limit his mobility in the new video that dropped tonight, the “What’s Next” video that comes alongside the release of a new mixtape, Scary Hours 2, which is obviously the follow up to Scary Hours.

In the meantime, he’s also been busy relaunching the OVO Sound Radio Show with SiriusXM, notably moving the show away from its former home at Apple Music. Back to his imminent new album, for fans who are eager to trace Drake’s evolution from the early days of So Far Gone all the way up to the superstar he’s become, check out our timeline leading up to the release of Certified Lover Boy here. But if you’d rather hear more exasperated flexes and watch him take snowy night drives, check out the video above.

For the first time in nearly two years, we’ve received new music from Chance The Rapper. The Chicago native makes his return with his highly reflective single, “The Heart & The Tongue” and it comes with a music video that finds rapping the song in the many corners of his house as he looks to tackle the internal battles that he feels within. This issue is made clear with lines like, “My heart and tongue are fightin’ / My mind is undecided / It’s not like Trump and Biden / It’s more like it’s something private.”

The song is Chance’s first official single since he released his official debut album, The Big Day, which arrived after his impressive mixtape run with 10 Day, Acid Rap, and Coloring Book. Chance has also given fans a decent number of guest verses in the last two years, working with the likes of Vic Mensa, G Herbo, Justin Bieber, and Spillage Village.

While things over the past two years have been going well for Chance, the rapper recently found himself in a new battle with his former manager. In December, Pat Corcoran sued him for breach of contract in the amount of $3 million. At the end of last month, Chance filed a countersuit against Corcoran citing damages for breach of fiduciary duty, interference that led to the loss of business opportunities and profit, and breach of contract.

You can watch the music video for the song above.

Baby Keem gained nationwide attention back in 2019 thanks to his breakout hit, “Orange Soda,” which appeared on his Die For My B*tch project. Since then, the Vegas rapper has kept things rather quiet, with the most noise he made coming through an appearance he made in an ad for the launch of Kendrick Lamar and Dave Free’s media company, PgLang, as well as landing a spot on the 2021 XXL Freshman class. After bringing 2020 to somewhat of a quiet end, Baby Keem is back in action for 2021.

The Vegas rapper touches down with his new single, “No Sense.” On it, Keem tackles some tension that is present between him and his love interest. He questions her actions as a way to get under his skin while apologizing for his towards her. The single also arrives just a few days after he teased it in a brief video he shared on Instagram.

“No Sense” is also the follow-up to his November singles, “Hooligan” and “Sons & Critics Freestyle.” The former track also received a music video that presented the rapper as a silent figure beside a woman who rapped the lyrics to the song. On the latter track, he bragged about the new PgLang company. “We got Telfar bag, what’s your taste level on?” he raps. “Mine is pgLang, no, you didn’t hear wrong.” The new endeavor that’s headed by Lamar and Free was announced exactly one year ago with help from Jorja Smith and Yara Shahidi.

Listen to the new song above.

Even though the early accidental leak of “Best Friend” had Saweetie upset one night, now that the song is actually out, fans are giving it the love it deserves. Aside from launching the “Bestie In A Tessie” contest to give away Teslas, Saweetie and Doja Cat’s ode to female friendship is popping off like it should. In fact, the song is so catchy that another rising female rapper, Stefflon Don, wanted to hop on a remix to add another character to the friend group, giving her a verse early in the track.

The British rapper is quickly earning fans on this side of the pond, adding bars to the song that flex with the best of them. Strangely enough, Stefflon isn’t the only other woman concerned with the “Best Friend” collaboration — Roc Nation duo Ceraadi also accused Saweetie and Doja of plagiarizing the videos concept for their track “BFF.” Well, at least having a third female rapper on the song makes those accusations less sticky. Check out the new version above and stay tuned for more from all three of these artists — any one of them could take over 2021 with the right hit. And it just might be “Best Friend.”

Anderson .Paak and Bruno Mars have both proven to be phenomenal artists in their respective fields, but sometimes, two good things are better as one, and that’s exactly what the two singers will look to show next. Anderson and Bruno announced last week that they would soon release an album together as Silk Sonic.

Outside of a confirmed appearance from Boosty Collins, details on the upcoming body of work are limited, but tonight the first single from the effort has arrived. “Leave The Door Open” is a groovy number that sees the duo promising to keep a spot in their lives open for a past lover. It comes with a match visual that finds Anderson and Bruno passionately playing the song in a studio.

The new track is the first piece of music from Anderson in a few months. The Cali-born singer was a bit busy in 2020 thanks to singles like “Jewelz,” “Cut Em In” with Rick Ross, and “Lockdown,” a track that was later remixed with help from Noname, Jay Rock, and JID.

Bruno, on the other hand, has been rather quiet for the last few years. His last album arrived in 2016 with 24K Magic, an effort that gave him six awards at the 2018 Grammys including Album of the Year, Record of the Year, and Song of the Year. His other releases since then include “Please Me” with Cardi B and “Blow” with Ed Sheeran and Chris Stapleton. Elsewhere, he’s also set to produce and star in music-centric Disney film.

Give the new single a listen above.

Bruno Mars is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Justin Bieber is on the cusp of releasing a new full-length album, Justice. This is his sixth album, including a Christmas record, and he’s been slowly but surely teasing a focused new sound with emotional singles like “Holy,” “Lonely,” and “Anyone,” before sharing the full tracklist last week. A pre-order for the album includes details on collaborators like Khalid, Dominic Fike, and The Kid Laroi, and tonight he’s sharing a brand new video for the track “Hold On.”

In the clip, Bieber plays a boyfriend going through the horrible process of watching his girlfriend get diagnosed with cancer. He cries with her, and with her father, as they face the diagnosis, and eventually begins to despair over the mounting medical bills that are piling up. In an effort to pay off the debt, eventually he decides to rob a bank and ends up getting shot by the cops in the process. While still bleeding from the gunshot wound, he makes his way to the hospital where his girlfriend is dying, and collapses against her. Very dramatic and cinematic return to form for Bieber here, and the song manages to oscillate between balladry and upbeat chorus without ever feeling forced. If the rest of his album continues in the vein of the early singles, Bieber has catapulted himself into another echelon as a pop star. Watch above.

Drake has never been one to make his fans wait long periods of time between projects. The last time the rapper went a full year without a full-length effort was in 2014 and while the wait for his upcoming sixth album, Certified Lover Boy may be longer than fans expected, it hasn’t been nearly as grueling as the wait some of Drake’s peers have left their fans to endure. Following Dark Lane Demo Tapes and a number of “leaks,” and guest features, Drake is back with more music, this time in the form of a new EP.

The rapper touches down with Scary Hours 2, the sequel to his 2018 effort that featured “Diplomatic Immunity” and his smash-hit, “God’s Plan.” Switching things up this time around, Drake drops a trio of songs with help from Lil Baby and Rick Ross. The former appears on “Wants And Needs” for a blunt request to keep them away from drama while Drake rekindles his decade-long chemistry with Rick Ross for “Lemon Pepper Freestyle.” The final track is “What’s Next,” a braggadocious anthem that sees relishing in the superstar spotlight.

The road to Certified Lover Boy hasn’t been as smooth as Drake might have hoped. It began with the release of “Laugh Now Cry Later” with Lil Durk last August. He later confirmed the album would drop in January 2021, but as the release date approached, he returned to say it would unfortunately be delayed. “I was planning to release my album this month but between surgery and rehab my energy has been dedicated to recovery,” he said in a post to his Instagram story. “I’m blessed to be back on my feet feeling great and focused on the album, but CLB won’t be dropping in January. I’m looking forward to sharing it with you all in 2021.”

A recent report from DJ Akademiks said the Certified Lover Boy would arrive within the next two months, but that remains to be seen.

Until then, you can listen to both songs here.

In 2016 and 2017, Drake dropped his Views and More Life albums respectively and a big part of the projects’ rollout, as well as the debut of fellow OVO artists and different acts from across the music world, was thanks to the Toronto rapper’s OVO Sound Radio show on Apple Music.

From the show’s start in the summer of 2015 to its eventual end in 2018, a number of artists would debut new music on the platform including Drake’s “Hotline Bling” and “One Dance.” Many even credit a 2016 set on the platform as the first time they heard Ella Mai’s music. Well, nearly three years after OVO Sound Radio stopped airing regular episodes, Drake announced that it would be making a return on Thursday night.

The rapper shared the news in a rare post on Twitter. “Going live tonight at 10:30pm EST with the return of OVO Sound Radio and the launch of our 24 hour station SOUND 42 a new experience on @SIRIUSXM” he said. A notable aspect of the announcement is that the radio show was moved from Apple Music to SiriusXM. It’s unclear why he opted to switch platforms but after nearly three years away from the radio show, Drake may have just felt like a change was in order.

The radio show’s launch arrives hours before the release of Scary Hours 2, his upcoming project that looks to hold fans over until the release of his sixth album, Certified Lover Boy.

You can read his post above.

Unlike some actors in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Paul Bettany does not have a reputation for spoiling things. But after a season of WandaVision it’s clear he can take credit for being one of Marvel’s biggest trolls. Spoilers incoming for WandaVision ahead of its Season 1 finale, so be careful ahead.

Bettany drew lots of rave reviews playing the synthetic humanoid Vision in Marvel’s first TV show on the Disney+ streaming platform, but he also raised some eyebrows when he teased working with someone later in the season that hadn’t been spoiled by casting news.

“There is one character that has not been revealed. And it is very exciting. It is an actor I’ve longed to work with all of my life,” Bettany told Esquire. “We have some amazing scenes together and I think the chemistry between us is extraordinary and fireworks on set.”

There were a lot of guesses from fans as the episodes rolled out weekly. In fact, it became a running subplot of sorts as fans tried to plot out what might happen on the show and who would appear in the final episode. But while some still expect the show’s final episode of Season 1 to have some surprises, the penultimate episode made some wonder if that mystery actor is actually… Paul Bettany.

The mid-credits reveal of WhiteVision made many people wonder if he was joking about facing off against himself in the final episode. And, as it turns out, Bettany admitted he was trolling fans all along. In an interview on Good Morning America, Bettay admitted that he was making a pretty clever joke. One he wasn’t sure people would be able to suss out when he dropped it all those months ago.

“You know when you think something is going to be funny and you say it and then you panic about it? That’s what I did,” Bettany admitted. “Fans started guessing who it might be. They were guessing people like Benedict Cumberbatch or Patrick Stewart. I was thinking, ‘God, that’s a good idea and they’re gonna be so disappointed when they find out it’s me.’”

Betttany, to his credit, was careful not to spoil anything else ahead of the final episode. And the mention of Cumberbatch, who plays Dr. Strange and many people have speculated will show up in the final episode, could even be a bit of additional subterfuge. But when asked if we should expect a battle between Agatha and Wanda, for example, he mostly made a facial expression and some noises that were not words. That seems inevitable, though, as is his own showdown with, well, himself.