Category: News

T.I.’s former landlord claims the Atlanta rapper is not only responsible for extensive damages to a California rental home but refuses to pay for the repairs, which total up to $77k.

In legal documents obtained by Radar Online, Farzin Fazeli, the rapper’s former landlord, claims he is responsible for at least $127k in damages done to a rental home in Encino, California.

Fazeli argues that T.I., whose real name is Clifford Harris, merely “handed over a $50,000 deposit to cover the extensive damages but avoided paying the outlying $77,182.65.”

“The damages arise from a significant number of alterations done to the property that were done either without knowledge or some limited knowledge, but all with the agreement that the house would be placed back to how it was when it was originally leased,” the lawsuit reads.

The damaged property includes a projector, the pool house floor, a kitchen pantry door, drywall, ceiling damage, and more.

Fazeli also noted that the rapper leased out the property in July 2020 and that “he gave him a 60-day notice to vacate the property in June 2022.” However, T.I. allegedly only paid rent through August and moved out by the end of the month.

The landlord is suing not only for breach of contract but he asked the court to award him more than $77,000 to force T.I. to cover his legal fees. Ouch.

But Tip isn’t the only one in the Harris family facing legal troubles. His 18-year-old son, King, was arrested this past September for not wearing a seatbelt in Atlanta. The rapper eventually responded to the incident via Instagram, noting he spoke to his son and admitted he has tried to steer him in the right direction because of his personal experience, but says he will have to learn on his own.

“[I] got a small request,” T.I. said in the video. “Stop hitting me and getting in my comments, telling me what to tell King, okay? I know my son. Think I ain’t spoke to my son? Think I ain’t told my son, his mama, and his grandmama? His a** [is] going to prison if he g*ddamn keeps [this] up. His a** [is] going to prison. Ain’t no way around it.”

Despite going from rags to riches in a relatively short span of time, Cardi B has remained pretty in touch with her roots. She’s been known to comment on inflation, reflect the population’s fears and fancies, and respond to fans’ questions and criticisms with the same unabashed honesty that earned her thousands of fans, even before “Bodak Yellow” took off in 2018. Cardi was again prompted to respond earlier this week when she warned her followers that the depressed economy was looking a lot like a recession.

“We going through a recession…..Merry Christmas,” she wrote ominously on Twitter. When a commenter snarked “says the rapper worth 40 million,” Cardi retweeted the reply to set the record straight. “I’m worth more then that and guess what?” she clapped back. “If I don’t save ,work and budget I could lose it too! What makes you think that no matter how much money you got you can’t lose it all if you don’t manage your money correctly.I too have bills,responsibilities and people I have to help.”

Fans chimed in to back her up, remembering performers who previously lost their riches and pointing out that “net worth” doesn’t exactly equate to money in the bank. Still, there were also those who picked up the thread of criticism, pointing out how the recession would affect her long after it did the majority of people. Check out some of those responses below.

Cardi B is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Last night, December 21, a two-hour special called Homeward Bound: A Grammy Salute To The Songs Of Paul Simon aired on CBS in celebration of the star. A lot of that time was dedicated to performances by a variety of artists paying tribute to Simon, including the Jonas Brothers, Dave Matthews, Stevie Wonder, Garth Brooks, Trisha Yearwood, Eric Church, Rhiannon Giddens, Susanna Hoffs, Little Big Town, Dave Matthews, Brad Paisley, and more.

The performances are all electrifying and classy, staying true to Simon’s smooth sound. The Jonas Brothers made “50 Ways To Leave Your Lover” their own with their beautiful harmonies. About performing, Joe Jonas said in an interview on the Grammys site: “How do you say no? It’s such an honor to perform any Paul Simon song, but to also be amongst some of these amazing fellow musicians who are here tonight and to perform not only for Paul in the room but for loving fans that you can obviously see these people have waited hours to see some of these people perform. We’re really lucky and grateful to be here.”

Watch their performance above, and watch performances by Dave Matthews, Brad Paisley, Sting, and Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood below.

Homeward Bound: A Grammy Salute To The Songs Of Paul Simon is currently available to stream on Paramount+.

On Wednesday evening, millions of Americans gathered around their preferred streaming device to hear Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelensky deliver an impassioned plea in which he asked the U.S. for as much help as we could give him in keeping Vladimir Putin’s mitts off his country. Tears were shed and many in the room were clearly left feeling emotional as a result of the historic visit — well, the people who weren’t being classless by refusing to clap or calling Zelensky a “welfare queen.” Tucker Carlson, meanwhile, went in a bit of a different direction — and, oh man, did he sound like an a**hole.

Zelensky has spent the last 10 months physically fighting for his country, and showing the world that David can trump Goliath. (David, by the way, can also trump Trump.) But here’s the sartorial snark the guy whose bow tie collection was once estimated to be worth $1.5 million let spill out of his mouth:

“The President of Ukraine showed up at the WH dressed like the manager of a strip club and started to demand money. Amazingly, no one threw him out.”

Someone’s Putin’s puppet!

As for Zelensky’s speech? As Mediaite reports, Fox News’ new Fashion Police officer was pretty meh on that, too. And brought up the president’s attire again (which, by the way, are the fatigues he’s been wearing since his country has been at war with Russia):

“As far as we know, no one’s ever addressed the United States Congress in a sweatshirt before, but they love him much more than they love you.”

He later added that “the point” of Zelensky’s visit “was to fawn over the Ukrainian strip club manager and hand him billions more dollars from our own crumbling economy. It is hard, in fact, it may be impossible to imagine a more humiliating scenario for the greatest country on Earth.”

Does the Kremlin pay Tucker in rubles or testicle-tanning coupons?

(Via Mediaite)

Tyler The Creator sat down with Converse in Paris for the brand’s “All-Star Series” in June, and he harped on the importance of promoting your own work. “You mean to tell me that you’re gonna be passive with your own sh*t and just put it on your [Instagram] Story once?” he said, in part. “Are you f*cking crazy, bro? I’m still promoting my album that came out in June [2021].”

If a fan saw that and felt inspired, Tyler presented an opportunity to put his advice in motion today, December 22, on Twitter. He tweeted, “where are the young black: tailors, seamstresses, product developers, technical designers, pattern makers, designers. send resume to: [email protected] :dont send bullsh*t, no music, no wack ass graphics, no headshots, no fan art, straight to trash, serious inquiries only.”

The Golf Wang and Golf Le Fleur founder added, “if your email has nothing to do with clothing, going straight to trash don’t waste our time please.” Tyler also asked for examples of applicants’ work.

Last December, Tyler broadened Golf Le Fleur’s footprint in fashion by unveiling a fragrance, nail polish and luggage. His desire to bring in fresh perspectives and talented craftspeople for another round of tangible Le Fleur products isn’t surprising to anyone who has ever paid any semblance of attention to how Tyler, The Creator approaches art.

“What the f*ck is an NFT, bro?” Tyler asked toward the beginning of the aforementioned “All-Star Series” sit-down. “I bought a Mini Cooper three weeks ago — 1991 Rover Mini Cooper — just to put a f*cking bike rack on it to drive to San Pedro to ride my bike down the hills out there because it’s awesome. I’m really outside. What the f*ck is an NFT?”

He continued, “I paint at home. I play instruments. I know n****s who sculpt. I have a friend making me speakers by hand right now. What the f*ck is an NFT? … None of the examples that I’ve seen is, like, beautiful art. It’s a f*cking monkey in a Supreme hoodie.”

Tesla stock continued to plunge this week as Elon Musk’s management of Twitter continues to be a source of embarrassment for the once-revered electric car mogul. According to the Wall Street Journal, Tesla shares fell “sharply” on Thursday. The shock is now down 65% from the start of 2022.

Adding insult to injury, a self-driving Tesla car reportedly “triggered” an eight-car pileup in San Francisco last month. The revelation came to light this week, which obviously, Musk does not need right now. He really could’ve done without this latest headache. Via CNN Business:

The report states that the Tesla Model S was traveling at about 55 mph and shifted into the far left-hand lane, but then braked abruptly, slowing the car to about 20 mph. That led to a chain reaction that ultimately involved eight vehicles to crash, all of which had been traveling at typical highway speeds.

Tesla’s driver-assist technologies, Autopilot and “full self-driving” are already being investigated by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration following reports of unexpected braking that occurs “without warning, at random, and often repeatedly in a single drive.”

As CNN Business notes, the accident occurred “just hours” after Musk announced on Twitter that the self-driving feature was available to “anyone in North America who requested it.” However, drivers are repeatedly warned that the feature “may do the wrong thing at the worst time,” which are not exactly the words you want to see when handing over control of your two-ton motor vehicle to a software update. Case in point: The aforementioned pileup.

(Via CNN Business, Wall Street Journal)

Each week our staff of film and TV experts surveys the entertainment landscape to select the ten best new/newish movies available for you to stream at home. We put a lot of thought into our selections, and our debates on what to include and what not to include can sometimes get a little heated and feelings may get hurt, but so be it, this is an important service for you, our readers. With that said, here are our selections for this week.

10. (tie) Enola Holmes 2 (Netflix)

Thank goodness Henry Cavill didn’t sign on to play Superman again before filming this sequel, or there’d be another The Witcher-esque switcheroo in the works. Cavill is back, but more importantly, Millie Bobbie Brown returns as the sassy younger sister of Sherlock Holmes. One of the bigger plot finds roots in the real-life Bryant & May match factory atrocities, but somehow, the overall mood stays light. Enola sets up her own detective shingle and goes undercover, so you can only imagine what hijinks will ensue. Watch it on Netflix.

10. (tie) Weird: The Al Yankovic Story (The Roku Channel)

Weird: The Al Yankovic Story stars Harry Potter actor Daniel Radcliffe as “Weird Al” Yankovic, obviously. The fake biopic depicts the world’s premier polka-loving pop song parodist as a hard-drinking sex maniac, obviously. It also stars Evan Rachel Wood as Madonna, Quinta Brunson as Oprah Winfrey, and Rainn Wilson as Dr. Demento, obviously. Should you watch Weird: The Al Yankovic Story this weekend on the Roku Channel? Obviously.

9. Scrooge: A Christmas Carol (Netflix)

Well, guess what: Scrooge is back. In animated form. In a trippy new animated story that features the voices of people like Luke Evans and Olivia Colman. Which is… fine. It’s fine! There’s a reason this story has been told 800 times. People love it! Now, you could just watch The Muppet Christmas Carol instead, if you want. That’s an option. But this is here now, too. So there’s that. Watch it on Netflix.

8. Disenchanted (Disney Plus)

Amy Adams returns in her breakout role, but she’s a princess who actually isn’t having as much fun as she imagined would be the case. Giselle is still married to Robert (Patrick Dempsey), and they’re still searching for their fairy tale. Maya Rudolph climbs onboard for a semi-evil role as a villain of suburbia, and this is all very G-rated material again because c’mon, Disney. The story will be as charming as always, but the real attraction is James Marsden’s returning Idiot Prince. Basically, I just want the Idiot Prince to get plowed down at every opportunity again. Watch it on Disney Plus.

7. Bullet Train (Netflix)

Bullet Train is chaos. Bloody, funny, frivolous, superficial chaos. Nothing and everything happens in this film about a group of assassins all vying for a briefcase that may just offer the biggest payload of their respective careers thus far. It’s jam-packed with action — the fast-paced, tightly-choreographed kind that gives you whiplash if you stare too long – and with a cast of A-listers, the best of which being Aaron-Taylor Johnson and Brian Tyree Henry, who play a pair of Brit brothers constantly bickering on the job. It’s got enough twists and surprises to keep you entertained plus Brad Pitt unironically sporting a bucket hat for its two hour runtime. It’s just plain fun. We wish there were more movies like it out there. Watch it on Netflix.

6. Spirited (Apple TV Plus)

Apple TV+ is getting into the Christmas movie game with this musically inclined re-telling of that classic Dickens tales. Ryan Reynolds plays the modern-day Scrooge here, a guy named Clint Briggs who doesn’t take his holiday haunting lying down. Will Ferrell plays the Ghost of Christmas Present who’s determined to inject a bit of cheer into the proceedings no matter how many musical numbers and tap-dancing solos it takes. As far as Charles Dickens adaptations go, you could do a lot worse. Watch it on Apple TV Plus.

5. The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special (Disney Plus)

In the mood for some space-related superhero business this holiday season? Great! Why not?! Here we have the Guardians of the Galaxy — Chris Pratt, Pom Klementieff, Kevin Bacon a little bit — doing a bunch of Christmas things, for you, all month long. Is it kind of cute and sweet? Sure. Would we pay decent money to have our own lil Groot decorated like a Christmas tree? Of course. Would it be fun if they made a movie next year where Hulk had to take over for Santa due to an emergency? It’s worth considering. But for now, there’s this. Watch it on Disney Plus.

4. Reno 911! It’s A Wonderful Heist (Comedy Central)

The Reno 911! gang is back, ringing in the holidays with a nod to It’s A Wonderful Life, decaying shopping malls, and American weirdness. Not to oversell, but this laugh-until-your-face-hurts special once again proves that Tom Lennon, Niecy Nash, Wendi McLendon-Covey, Kerri Kenney-Silver, Cedric Yarbrough, and company are operating at the top of their game as a collective. Watch it on Comedy Central.

3. Pinocchio (Netflix)

Guillermo del Toro made a stop-action version of the classic “liar puppet becomes a real boy” story and guess what: it’s great! Smart people are saying it’s the best Pinocchio since the first one, which is both high praise and a decently sick burn on the other version that just came out a few months ago. Either way! Feels like a fun one to watch with the family over the holidays. It’s definitely better than, like, talking. No one wants to do that. Let the adorable wooden puppet fill the air with his sweet journey toward being a human. Watch it on Netflix.

2. Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (Netflix)

Daniel Craig returns as Benoit Blanc with a whole new cast of potential murdermakers to relish. Dave Bautista as a scantily clad social media sensation is only one of the ensemble highlights, and the endless buffet of cameos can not be stopped, nor do the story’s twists feel gratuitous or implausible. Instead, the film dances through mischief and swings bigger and better with a series of bewitching wrinkles and knots that will make you forgive the runtime. In fact, you’ll barely notice the passage of time because this film is fun and cerebral and makes perfect sense when all is revealed. Also, one of the greatest TV murder detectives in history makes a (bittersweet) cameo, for crying out loud. Netflix really should have run with a longer theatrical window, but at least it’s streaming for Christmas. Watch it on Netflix.

1. Top Gun: Maverick (Paramount Plus)

That loud whooshing sound you heard this summer could have been one of two things: the sound of jet engines blasting out of movie theaters around the country or the sound of massive crowds rushing into and out of those same theaters to hear those jet engines in Top Gun: Maverick. The sequel to the original movie — released over 35 years later, which is kind of wild — picks up right where the first left off, in spirit if not chronology, with Tom Cruise and a bunch of new hotshot pilots (Miles Teller and Glen Powell leading the way) taking back to the skies and talking trash and sometimes riding motorcycles. It is a lot of fun and better than it has any right to be and one of the first real-deal, must-see movie theater movies we’ve had in a while. It was nice to get one of those again. Let’s do it again in another 35 years when Tom Cruise is… uh, 95 years old. He’ll probably still be up for it. You will, too. Don’t lie. Watch it on Paramount Plus.

Each week our staff of film and TV experts surveys the entertainment landscape to select the ten best new/newish shows available for you to stream at home. We put a lot of thought into our selections, and our debates on what to include and what not to include can sometimes get a little heated and feelings may get hurt, but so be it, this is an important service for you, our readers. With that said, here are our selections for this week.

Get more streaming recommendations with our weekly What To Watch newsletter.

10. (tie) Wednesday (Netflix)

Yes, Rob Zombie and Tim Burton are all up in the goth-nostalgia resurrection this fall, but while Zombie veers into wild kitsch, Burton decided to reinvent his character’s mission a bit while creating a “eight-hour Tim Burton movie.” Call it a passion project, of course, while Catherine Zeta-Jones and Luis Guzmán step in as Morticia and Gomez, respectively, and Jenna Ortega slides into view as the title character. Don’t expect a typical reboot feel. Rather, Wednesday is on some missions here, and the show justifies its existence as a separate entity.

Watch it on Netflix

10. (tie) Dead To Me (Netflix)

How do you end a show the “right” way? Do you try to say something profound, pay off longtime viewers with fan service, or end with a shocking twist? For Dead To Me‘s just-released final season, the answer is an emphatic yes to all of the above as creator Liz Feldman delivers a triumphant close, leaning on the otherworldly onscreen chemistry of stars Christina Applegate and Linda Cardellini as they lead us through the twisty chaos of the show’s central story while dealing with heavy matters of life, family. love, and death before ending on high with a tear and a tease.

Watch it on Netflix

10. (tie) Slow Horses (Apple TV Plus)

The first season of this spy drama was a trip. There were twists and turns and Olivia Cooke from House of the Dragon, and at one point Gary Oldman’s character farted himself awake. It was a pretty good time, even if it got dark at times. If you worked your way through season one, it’s time to dive in again. If not, it’s a great time for a binge. You have lots of options, is the point.

Watch it on Apple TV Plus

9. Harry & Meghan (Netflix)

The Royal family can’t be thrilled about this docuseries that follows not too long after The Crown (fictionally) made Prince Charles look like the pettiest of future kings. This Netflix project follows up on Meghan Markle’s allegations of not-so-great treatment from the Windsors and Prince Harry’s decision to essentially put half a world between all of them. So get ready for all of the controversy to spill forth and for Piers Morgan to probably blow a few fuses in the aftermath.

Watch it on Netflix

8. The Witcher: Blood Origin (Netflix)

The days of a grunting, leather-clad Henry Cavill are numbered since he will depart the franchise’s building after the flagship series’ Season 3, but this limited prequel series takes things back to where it all began. Watch for the inception of the first Witcher prototype, over 1200 years Geralt’s monster-killing tour of the Continent. Michelle Yeoh portrays Scian, an elven swordmaster whose ferocious reputation may precede her, and expect plenty of swordplay and axe swinging. And Jaskier, too? I sense another banger coming.

Watch it on Netflix

7. Doom Patrol (HBO Max)

Brendan Fraser’s back as the eternally frustrated disembodied brain inside of a robotic body. It is his finest performance (yes yes, we know there’s Oscar chatter elsewhere), and he’s backed up by Diane Guerrero as many iterations of Crazy Jane, along with Matt Bomer as Negative Man, April Bowlby as Elasi-Girl, and Jovian Wade as Cyborg. DC’s misfit superheroes are facing what might be certain doom, but at least some of them other than Fraser’s Cliff got to have a collective orgasm already.

Watch it on HBO Max

6. Kindred (Hulu)

Okay, here’s what we have going on: FX and Hulu have made a live-action series based on Olivia Butler’s 1979 science fiction novel, and it follows a woman who has dreams of writing and uproots her entire life to move to Los Angeles to follow that dream, and then things happen and she ends up getting ripped back and forth through time for various terrifying adventures. It’s a lot, and it’s definitely an ambitious undertaking, which is always to be applauded. Fans of Butler’s writing and science fiction and the general concept of time travel could do way worse than to give this one a shot.

Watch it on Hulu

5. 1923 (Paramount Plus)

As wild as it feels to say “there’s now a cowboy show that stars Harrison Ford and Helen Mirren that serves as a prequel to a massively popular Kevin Costner show where he runs a ranch and sometimes murders happen there,” that is really what is happening here. We swear. It’s going to be on television and on the internet and everything. The future is a lot weirder than any of us expected, less so in a “flying cars and robots” way than, like… this. It’s not a bad thing. Just really wild

Watch it on Paramount Plus

4. Emily in Paris (Netflix)

Don’t even try to resist this series if you’re even slightly predisposed to enjoy primetime soap-opera king Darren Star’s work. This season, Emily Cooper isn’t as unsophisticated as in previous years, but she’s still less so than Sex and the City‘s Carrie Bradshaw, which says a lot. Emily’s French still isn’t great, and she’s effortlessly conquering her professional world, but the charm of this silly show cannot be denied. Her romantic attraction to Hot Chef Gabriel also isn’t great, since they’re dating other people, but I surrender to the madness anyway. Bring on the dirty-skillet controversy, please.

Watch it on Netflix

3. Mythic Quest (Apple TV Plus)

It’s easy to think of Mythic Quest, now in its third season, as Rob McElhenney’s “other” show, but that would be a mistake. Yes, sure, he’s best known for the incredibly long-running Always Sunny, which is fair because that show rules. But this one is great, too. It’s sweet and mean and funny and everything a workplace comedy — this time in a video game studio — should be. No television show did a better job of grasping the pandemic while it was still new and really scary, too. Do not miss this because you relegate it to second-tier Mac status. This is the good stuff, too.

Watch it on Apple TV Plus

2. Fleishman Is In Trouble (Hulu)

I hear what you’re thinking here. The title of this show doesn’t sound particularly fascinating. Maybe it even sounds a little bit pretentious. Yet this show’s actually a satiric little jaunt that turns marriage-divorce drama on its head. Jesse Eisenberg plays the dude whose wife, played by Claire Danes, leaves him and then quite literally leaves the building. He’s suddenly in the midst of parenting and awful dating experiences, and all of this wouldn’t be as fascinating if Eisenberg wasn’t so good at being awkward. He’s flanked by Lizzy Caplan and Adam Brody (there are worse companions out there) while trying to find his way.

Watch it on Hulu

1. Abbott Elementary (Hulu)

The first season of Abbott Elementary was a feel-good network sitcom that caught a massive wave of popularity and won a bunch of Emmys in a time when feel-good network sitcoms are kind of not supposed to do that. Credit for this goes to creator and star Quinta Brunson, who realized that an underfunded inner-city public school was exactly the right place to show us people with good hearts working inside a system that can be cold. Kind of like Parks and Recreation but in Philadelphia. The second season is underway and does not appear to be missing a beat. This is basically a miracle, all around.

Watch it on Hulu

The RX is Uproxx Music’s stamp of approval for the best albums, songs, and music stories throughout the year. Inclusion in this category is the highest distinction we can bestow and signals the most important music being released throughout the year. The RX is the music you need, right now.

On “Uh Uh,” the fifth song from Young Dolph’s first posthumous album, Paper Route Frank, he asserts, “You will never meet another real one like me.” Truer words, unfortunately, were never spoken.

Not to get all melodramatic, but the spooky prescience on display in that boastful bar stings all the more when contrasted with the wealth of material Dolph’s perhaps final testament offers. He wasn’t really a rapper who was obsessed with death — rather, he seems obsessed with life. For many, if not most trap rappers, the specter of death seems to haunt every bar, whether it’s a vaunted flex or hushed confession of wrongdoing. They keep all those choppers around for a reason.

It never really seemed like that with Dolph. Sure, he’d casually toss off the obligatory threats and warnings to opps or ruminate on the passing of loved ones. But throughout his catalog, he was always more concerned with living in the moment, taking it all in, and planning for the future. Practically the only time he mentions his own death here is on “Always,” and even then, he’s more concerned with the guestlist at his funeral and being casket clean than he is with the “how” and “why” he departed. It’s a gut check, nonetheless.

I’ve written before about how tricky the prospect of completing rappers’ posthumous albums can get, and I’m not interested in rehashing those arguments here. But Paper Route Frank represents perhaps the best-case scenario for such an endeavor. This sounds like Dolph, like something he’d make, from the beat choices down to the sequencing and the relatively sparse features list — which consists mainly of Paper Route Empire signees like Big Moochie Grape, Key Glock, and Big Snupe Bandz, and fellow trap elder statesmen 2 Chainz and Gucci Mane.

It’s easy to observe a thread of maudlin in albums finished after an artist’s death — especially sudden, violent ones like Dolph’s. Perhaps, because of Dolph’s relentlessly motivational persona, he just never recorded all that much melancholy material, or maybe the friends and family involved in this album’s creation just knew he wouldn’t have wanted such a project to get bogged down with introspection and paranoia. Still, it’s hard not to get choked up when he tag-teams with Key Glock for perhaps the last time on “That’s How” or passes the torch to his other PRE proteges on “Infatuated With Drugs.”

It’s the album closer, “Get Away,” that throws into sharpest contrast everything that Dolph really was as a rapper though. He declares that he’s “sick of rappin’,” but we all know that within months of announcing his retirement, he was right back in the studio, perhaps recording this very song. It’s when he juxtaposes being “sick of countin’ millions” with his aspiration to trade those “Ms” in for “Bs” that it becomes clear that all this moody reflection is just lyrical exercise. He’s not ready to stop just yet. He’s just ready to elevate his game and step up to a higher plateau of success.

The worst thing about closing Paper Route Frank on these contemplations is knowing he had all the tools and time in the world to see his ambition through — right up until he didn’t. The next level was right around the corner. Despite half a decade in the rap business — an eternity to many — he still had further to go. If he was stuck in a rut, it was only until the next flash of inspiration struck, energizing him for the next go-around.

Paper Route Frank is out now on Paper Route Empire.

As more and more streaming services opt to put their movies directly online instead of, say, in the movie theaters, the choices for home viewers are becoming very hard. With hundreds of titles across every streaming service, it’s no wonder cable was such a hit all those years ago! They just decided what movie you were going to watch at any given time, and now we have choices. With the power of choice, comes the power of trying to sort through what’s actually worth watching.

When it comes to Disney+, you’ve got a lot of options. There’s various Star Wars content, Pixar classics, and, of course, the extensive Marvel catalog. But only some of these movies are the best of the best. If you’re looking to settle in with a worthwhile flick, here are the 25 best movies on Disney+ as of this very moment.

1. The Incredibles

Year: 2004
Starring: Craig T. Nelson, Holly Hunter, Samuel L. Jackson
Genre: Family, Action-Adventure
Rating: PG
Runtime: 116 minutes
Director: Brad Bird
Trailer: Watch here

It’s hard to go wrong with any early-ish entry in the Pixar lexicon, though The Incredibles is still a top-tier film. If you’re tired of all of that Marvel bloat that’s been going around, The Incredibles is a perfect solution for anyone who wants to watch some lowkey-superhero fun. Craig T. Nelson and Holly Hunter voice Mr. and Mrs. Incredible, a couple of supers who used to dabble in some crime fighting. Now, they are just regular old parents juggling three kids… who also have powers. In order to stop a new threat, they must band together as superheroes AND as a family to protect the city. It probably makes your family get-together look pretty tame.

Watch it on Disney+

2. Avengers: Endgame

Year: 2019
Starring: Chris Evans, Robert Downey Jr., Mark Ruffalo
Genre: Superhero, Action-Adventure
Rating: PG-13
Runtime: 185 minutes
Director: Anthony Russo, Joe Russo
Trailer: Watch here

Every time The Avengers meet with the most powerful beings in the galaxy, they end up beating them and going out for dinner after because they are just that good. But Endgame proved that sometimes, superheroes don’t survive, and things can get dark before they get better again. After Thanos snaps half of the world from existence, The Avengers have to scramble to try to get the universe back into its place, but not before facing deadly consequences.

Watch it on Disney+

3. The Lion King (1994)

Year: 1994
Starring: Jonathan Taylor Thomas, Matthew Broderick, James Earl Jones
Genre: Family, Musical, Animated
Rating: G (but it should be PG-13, honestly)
Runtime: 93 minutes
Director: Roger Allers, Rob Minkoff
Trailer: Watch here

To address the elephant and lion in the room, yes, there is a 2019 live-action rendition of The Lion king and yes, Beyonce is in it. It is also on Disney+ so you are welcome to watch that one, but if you are looking for something with a little more dancing and a little less like a nature documentary, the original is the way to go!

Watch it on Disney+

4. The Empire Strikes Back

Year: 1980
Starring: Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher
Genre: Science Fiction, Action-Adventure
Rating: PG
Runtime: 128 minutes
Director: Irvin Kershner
Trailer: Watch here

You could go with any Star Wars title here, but we all know that this is the one you want to watch, right? The third film in the iconic series, The Empire Strikes Back follows the aftermath of the destruction of the Death Star, as the Imperial forces hunt the Rebel Alliance, which includes Princess Leia, Han Solo, and the cuddliest guy in the galaxy, Chewbacca. How will they make it out of this one?

Watch it on Disney+

5. Up

Year: 2009
Starring: Ed Asner, Christopher Plummer
Genre: Family, Drama, Animated
Rating: PG
Runtime: 96 minutes
Director: Pete Docter
Trailer: Watch here

Up is a Pixar staple because it checks off all of the boxes that make a hit children’s movie: a cute little kid, a lovable animal sidekick, and a dead adult. The opening sequence is not for the faint of heart (or for anyone who has elderly people in their life) but the heartwarming tale of a young boy and his grumpy neighbor really does tug at those emotions. Plus, it has one of the best Pixar soundtracks, so even if you don’t enjoy the movie, you’ll get some great music out of it.

Watch it on Disney+

6. Thor: Ragnarok

Year: 2017
Starring: Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston
Genre: Action-Adventure, Superhero, Comedy
Rating: PG-13
Runtime: 132 minutes
Director: Taika Waititi
Trailer: Watch here

There are a lot of Marvel movies for you to enjoy on Disney+ (over 20) but only one has Cate Blanchett, and that one is Thor: Ragnarok. Thor is once again fighting to protect his home planet of Asgard, though he has to find that pesky little hammer first, as he’s been imprisoned across the galaxy. It happens!

Watch it on Disney+

7. Toy Story

Year: 1995
Starring: Tom Hanks, Tim Allen
Genre: Family, Comedy, Animated
Rating: PG
Runtime: 84 minutes
Director: John Lasseter
Trailer: Watch here

At one point or another, everyone thought that their toys came to life whenever they left the room, right? Though you probably never expected that they would have the familiar voice of Tom Hanks. Toy Story is the first movie in one of Disney’s most beloved franchises, and it’s always a good watch, whether it’s your first or fortieth view. Andy’s favorite toy, Woody, feels threatened when a shiny new toy joins the gang, and the duo set out on their own adventure after accidentally being given away. It’s also one of those rare Disney stories that get even better with its sequels.

Watch it on Disney+

8. Deadpool 2

Year: 2018
Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Josh Brolin, Zazie Beetz.
Genre: Superhero, Comedy
Rating: R
Runtime: 121 minutes
Director: Devid Leitch
Trailer: Watch here

This may or may not be the movie that required Disney+ to establish their parental controls, but we’ll never really know. What we do know is that Ryan Reynolds fought pretty hard to get his raunchy superhero movie on the streamer, and it worked! In this second installment, Wade Wilson joins forces with another familiar team of supers, though not too familiar, because they don’t have all of those rights. Isn’t Hollywood amazing?

Watch it on Disney+

9. Black Is King

Year: 2020
Starring: Beyoncé Knowles-Carter
Genre: Music, Dance
Rating: TV-14
Runtime: 85 minutes
Director: Beyoncé Knowles-Carter
Trailer: Watch here

Black Is King is a mesmerizing visual and musical reimagining of The Lion King that centers on Black families and self-identity by using the themes and lessons from the classic 1994 animated film (and the 2019 remake, for that matter). Beyoncé uses stunning visuals and extravagant sets along with some special guests in order to create a powerful piece of art focused on family and community.

Watch it on Disney+

10. Monsters Inc

Year: 2001
Starring: John Goodman, Billy Crystal, Steve Buscemi
Genre: Comedy, Animated, Family
Rating: G
Runtime: 92 minutes
Director: Pete Docter
Trailer: Watch here

Mike and Sully are just a couple of well-meaning monsters who are trying to make an honest living by scaring children by jumping out from the inside of their closets. Who can’t relate? But after one of the kids gets lost in the monster world, the duo has to find a way to get her back safely before the other monsters want to use her for her screams. It might seem evil, but it’s very eco-friendly to use vocals to power a city!

Watch it on Disney+

11. Pirates Of The Caribbean

Year: 2003
Starring: Johnny Depp, Orlando Bloom, Keira Knightly
Genre: Fantasy, Action-Adventure
Rating: PG-13
Runtime: 142 minutes
Director: Gore Verbinksi
Trailer: Watch here

While the Pirates movies have a long, complex history, there is one positive thing that came from the franchise, which is that it brought the word “swashbuckling” back into the cultural consciousness. The movie that started it all, based on the iconic Disney ride of the same name, follows the eccentric pirate Jack Sparrow as he sets out to steal his ship back from a gaggle of ghost pirates who took it. Yo-ho! It’s a pirate’s life, after all.

Watch it on Disney+

12. Black Panther

Year: 2018
Starring: Chadwick Boseman, Michael B. Jordan, Lupita Nyong’o
Genre: Superhero, Action-Adventure
Rating: PG-13
Runtime: 138 minutes
Director: Ryan Coogler
Trailer: Watch here

In the first installment in the series, Chadwick Boseman plays the honorable T’Challa, a young king who is expected to rule the futuristic world of Wakanda after the death of his father. But when looming threats put their civilization in jeopardy, he has to rise to the occasion and protect his family as Black Panther. Boseman’s portrayal of the superhero is one that should not be missed, and the movie is even credited as a major turning point for Marvel.

Watch it on Disney+

13. Hamilton

Year: 2020
Starring: Daveed Diggs, Jonathan Groff, Lin-Manuel Miranda
Genre: Superhero, Action-Adventure
Rating: PG-13
Runtime: 160 minutes
Director: Thomas Kail
Trailer: Watch here

It’s been hard to escape the Hamilton frenzy over the last few years, and now that the iconic musical is on Disney+, it is much more accessible for everyone to watch. Plus you can have your own intermissions, which is great because it is nearly three hours long. Filmed in 2016, the smash hit tells the tale of Alexander Hamilton through a more modern lens, complete with great period-specific costumes and, of course, Lin-Manuel Miranda.

Watch it on Disney+

14. Wall-E

Year: 2008
Starring: Ben Burtt, Elissa Knight
Genre: Animated, Sci-Fi, Family
Rating: G
Runtime: 99 minutes
Director: Andrew Stanton
Trailer: Watch here

For a movie that has such little dialogue, Wall-E sure says a lot about modern society, mostly about how humans take advantage of every natural resource on the planet until it is barely surviving. But the little robot is so cute, so it’s okay! Pixar’s cautionary tale about planet earth and beyond not only features an adventurous cross-galaxy journey and a robot love story but it also has an original Peter Gabriel track. Those are the three elements of success.

Watch it on Disney+

15. Return Of The Jedi

Year: 1983
Starring: Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher
Genre: Action-Adventure, Sci-Fi
Rating: PG
Runtime: 136 minutes
Director: Richard Marquand
Trailer: Watch here

Every Star Wars movie is culturally significant in one way or another, and Return Of The Jedi is known for a few things, like being the last movie in the original saga, and tying up some of those loose ends regarding who is related to who. But the best part about episode six isn’t the monumental action scenes or the climactic conclusion — it’s the movie that brought Ewoks into the world. And that, alone, makes it work watching, in addition to all that galactic war.

Watch it on Disney+

16. Soul

Year: 2020
Starring: Jamie Foxx, Tina Fey
Genre: Family, Animated
Rating: PG
Runtime: 110 minutes
Director: Pete Docter
Trailer: Watch here

As with most Pixar movies, Soul has some pretty heavy themes juxtaposed with colorful animation and fun music, which makes it entertaining for kids and absolutely gutting for adults. Tina Fey voices 22, a cute little floating being who teams up with Joe, an upbeat jazz teacher as they head out on a quest in the fantastical Great Before to learn what makes a person’s soul their own.

Watch it on Disney+

17. Mary Poppins

Year: 1964
Starring: Julie Andrews, Dick Van Dyke
Genre: Family, Musical
Rating: G
Runtime: 143 minutes
Director: Robert Stevenson
Trailer: Watch here

We all know the saying, “a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down” which, in Mary Poppins, is taken very literally, as they are actually taking medicine, but it also encapsulates what makes this movie a classic: Marry Poppins encourages everyone to sprinkle just a little bit of positivity in their life to make all the icky parts better. And watching the movie just does that! Julie Andrews stars as the titular babysitter with a heart of gold and a bag that can carry just about anything.

Watch it on Disney+

18. The Princess Bride

Year: 1987
Starring: Cary Elwes, Mandy Patinkin
Genre: Family, Romance, Comedy
Rating: PG
Runtime: 98 minutes
Director: Rob Reiner
Trailer: Watch here

Sure, Disney has a lot of princess movie options, but only one has a character named Humperdink, and that’s The Princess Bride. This charming tale is a non-traditional princess story that has gone down as a cult classic for its absurd bits and a cunning battle of wits. Westley, a very loyal farmhand, has to rescue his one true love, Buttercup, after she is forced to marry Mr.Humperdink. Buttercup Humperdink doesn’t roll off the tongue, does it? Luckily this one has a happily ever after.

Watch it on Disney+

19. Shang-Chi And The Legend Of The Ten Rings

Year: 2021
Starring: Simu Liu, Awkwafina, Michelle Yeoh
Genre: Superhero, Action-Adventure
Rating: PG-13
Runtime: 135 minutes
Director: Destin Daniel Cretton
Trailer: Watch here

Marvel shuffled into Phase Four of the MCU in 2021 with the introduction of Shang-Chi, a skilled martial artist portrayed by Simu Liu, who wishes to lead a normal life after leaving behind his darker superhero past that he was forced into as a child. After laying low for decades, Shang-Chi’s past catches up with him, and he’s forced to confront both his past and his destiny.

Watch it on Disney+

20. The Little Mermaid

Year: 1989
Starring: Jodi Benson, Christopher Daniel Barnes
Genre: Family, Animated, Musical
Rating: G
Runtime: 87 minutes
Director: John Muscker, Ron Clements
Trailer: Watch here

Mermaid Ariel dreams of a life above the sea, but that’s hard when you don’t have human legs and instead are half-fish. But it’s not impossible! The Little Mermaid is the classic cautionary tale of what can happen if you trade a part of yourself in order to date the handsome sailor with the cute dog. But, as it is a Disney movie, of course, it all works out in the end for Ariel and her various sea pals. The upcoming live-action remake will hit theaters next year.

Watch it on Disney+

21. Home Alone

Year: 1990
Starring: Macaulay Culkin, Joe Pesci, Daniel Stern
Genre: Family, Comedy
Rating: PG
Runtime: 104 minutes
Director: Chris Columbus
Trailer: Watch here

‘Tis the season to deck the halls and set a series of elaborate traps in your house just in case two very ignorant burglars try to rob you! Of course, little Kevin McCallister has a lot of fun trying to escape the bad guys after his parents accidentally leave him at the home… alone. See where this is going? It’s a holiday season staple!

Watch it on Disney+

22. Logan

Year: 2017
Starring: Hugh Jackman, Patrick Stewart
Genre: Drama, Superhero
Rating: R
Runtime: 139 minutes
Director: James Marigold
Trailer: Watch here

There was a time not too long ago when we all thought that 2017’s Logan would be the last time we would see Hugh Jackman don those piercing claws and grow out his unruly sideburns, though that’s not the case anymore. Still, the final chapter in Wolverine/Logan’s life is an unexpectedly dark drama that acts less like a superhero movie and more like a heartbreaking character study of an ailing man with a conflicting past.

Watch it on Disney+

23. Turning Red

Year: 2022
Starring: Rosalie Chiang, Sandra Oh, Ava Morse
Genre: Family, Animated
Rating: PG
Runtime: 107 minutes
Director: Domee Shi
Trailer: Watch here

Who among us didn’t have a hyper-fixation on a pop group when they were a teen? We’ve all been there! 13-year-old Mei is having some trouble adjusting to her teen years, and her mom is having an even harder time than she is. When Mei learns that she turned into a giant red panda when she gets too worked up, she and her friends plan a scheme to attend a concert against her mother’s wishes, and things turn messy. And red.

Watch it on Disney+

24. Cruella

Year: 2021
Starring: Emma Stone, Emma Thompson
Genre: Family, Drama
Rating: PG-13
Runtime: 137 minutes
Director: Craig Gillespie
Trailer: Watch here

Emma Stone stars as the notorious dog-hater Cruella de Vil in her early days as an aspiring fashion designer with an eclectic taste in clothes (and fur). Sure, of all the Disney villains, it seems a little strange to make an origin story about the only one to kill dogs, but you can look past that for some really great Emma Stone moments set during the London punk revolution.

Watch it on Disney+

25. The Game Plan

Year: 2007
Starring: Dwayne The Rock Johnson, Kyra Sedgwick
Genre: Family, Comedy
Rating: PG
Runtime: 116 minutes
Director: Andy Finkman
Trailer: Watch here

The Game Plan stars The Rock in one of his earlier movie endeavors as Joe Kingman, a hotshot football player who gets the surprise of a lifetime when the daughter he didn’t know existed shows up at his apartment. It’s the classic tale of “this tough guy might have a heart of gold after all” but Madison Pettis really shines as eight-year-old Peyton. The Rock is pretty good, too.

Watch it on Disney+