Category: News

Muppets Haunted Mansion (Disney+ special) — After several Muppets-themed Christmas offerings, it’s about time that we’ve received a spooky installment, and let’s face it, more Miss Piggy is always a good thing. Gonzo takes center stage here while attempting to survive the evening in (according to the synopsis) “in the most grim grinning place on Earth.” The special’s actually inspired by all four of the Disney Haunted Mansion attractions that are scattered around the globe, and three original songs (“Rest In Peace,” “Life Hereafter” and “Tie The Knot Tango”) will surface, along with plenty of celebrity cameos along with the all-star Muppets cast.

Madame X (Paramount+ movie) — In this concert documentary, Madonna takes viewers on tour with her (from way back in January 2020, so pre-pandemic, obviously) all the way to Lisbon, Portugal. Her set included 48 onstage performers, including other musicians and dancers, and she’s here to share her vision with the rest of the world. Her statement on the film points towards reaching out to fans “at a time when music is so deeply needed to remind us of the sacred bond of our shared humanity.”

And in case you missed it…

Squid Game: (Netflix series) — This Korean show’s on track to be the streamer’s most-watched show ever and has been topping the charts in 90 countries in counting. It’s not real stuff, but the show tells the story of hundreds of desperate contestants who play a deadly survival game, all to win billions of prize money, at the best of… who? (That aspect is mysterious until you watch.) The consequence of losing the games-within-the-games is certain death, and people truly can’t get enough of the premise or the show’s execution (pun fully intended), along with a blistering critique on capitalism.

Here’s some regularly scheduled programming:

Nancy Drew (Friday, CW 9:00pm) — Season 3 begins with Nancy working to unravel the mysterious death of a young man during Horseshoe Bay’s annual Harvest Carnival.

SNL (Saturday, HBO 11:29pm) — Kim Kardashian West (is she still using the West? who knows) hosts with musical guest Halsey.

The Equalizer (Sunday, CBS 8:00pm) — Queen Latifah’s McCall wants out, but she gets pulled back in (like The Godfather III, sort of!) when a detective-client comes calling.

The Walking Dead (Sunday, AMC 9:00pm) — This zombie-apocalypse universe’s flagship series returns for one final rodeo with two spinoffs (Fear The Walking Dead, The World Beyond) still in motion, so it’s time to wrap this puppy up before the various shows’ timelines begin to intersect. This week, it’s stormy in Alexandria and Meridian’s fending off a herd.

Scenes From A Marriage (Sunday, HBO 9:00pm) — It’s season-finale time for this Oscar Isaac and Jessica Chastain-starring miniseries remakes Ingmar Bergman’s 1970s project original as directed by HBO regular Hagai Levi with a contemporary spin, including all of the love, hatred, desire, monogamy, marriage, and divorce that one would expect. Considering the Isaac-Chastain chemistry on hand, it’s a remake worth perusing.

Buried (Sunday, Showtime 9:00pm) — This limited true-crime series details the story of Eileen Franklin, who suddenly experiences a decades-old memory of witnessing her childhood best friend get raped and murdered. This realization leads to the case of Susan Nason being reopened after stumping police for almost 20 years.

The Walking Dead: The World Beyond (Sunday, AMC 9:00pm) — Season 2 begins with an episode called “Koneskans,” which translates to “Consequences” in Haitian Creole. This week, the group’s attempting to cover tracks while, elsewhere, unfamiliar surroundings greet some outliers.

American Rust (Sunday, Showtime 10:00) — Jeff Daniels can swing between being comedic and dramatic, and in his new Showtime series, American Rust, he’s decidedly the latter and latest star to take on a complicated cop role after Kate Winslet’s turn in Mare of Easttown. And notably, Bridges’ new role is also set in Pennsylvania and unravels a murder. This week, an anonymous eyewitness sets Harris in motion while an old partner pays him a visit, and Lee’s looking for some professional advice.

Nuclear Family (Sunday, HBO 10:00) — This three-part documentary series sees filmmaker Russo-Young get extremely personal to examine the true nature of family. The story launches in the late 1970s with Ry and Cade being brought up by two lesbian mothers, only to have an unexpected lawsuit rattle the family’s world.

Last Week Tonight (Sunday, HBO 11:00) — John Oliver, baby.

Here’s some more streaming goodness for the weekend.

The Closer (Netflix comedy special) — Dave Chappelle’s stand-up comedy run with Netflix has been a lucrative one for both parties, and it’s sixth-and-final chapter time. Expect plenty of controversy and line-crossing (he defends J.K. Rowling and DaBaby, for example), as is customary for the man on the mic to deliver. And there’s no telling whether Chappelle and Netflix’s common goodwill (after CEO Ted Sarandos helped him receive The Chappelle Show license back, along with millions of dollars) will result in a re-upping of a deal beyond this installment, but for now, the comedian (with returning, Emmy-award winning director Stan Lathan) is closing things out.

Doom Patrol: Season 3 (HBO Max series) — DC’s struggling misfit superheroes are back for another round. Brendan Fraser has received plenty of raves for his fury-filled Cliff Steele/Robotman, but don’t count out the rest of the crew. There’s Matt Bomer as the bandage-wrapped Negative Man and Diane Guerrero as Crazy Jane, which is actually a role that requires Diane to play dozens of incarnations, including a very timely take on a Karen. This season, the sh*t hits the fan with a time machine.

Eli Roth Presents: A Ghost Ruined My Life: Season 1 (Discovery+ series) — Eli Roth has so much going on over at Discovery+ this month (following his recent real-life horror/Shark-Week film on the streamer) that one has to wonder… is he running the joint? It’s a valid question, but more to the point, this series present personal accounts on those who have survived feeling like they’re been dragged through hell and fought their way back. One woman suspects that her home’s a portal to hell, and an abandoned asylum appears to be ground central for an evil presence while a demon curse follows a Mexican-American woman who wants the truth about intergenerational hauntings.

Welcome to the Blumhouse: Madres/The Manor (Blumhouse films on Amazon Prime) — This week’s Hallowee-themed double dose follows a Mexican-American couple (in 1970s California) who are weathering a troubled pregnancy while being besieged by horrific visions, which might be part of a legendary curse. Then, a woman moves into a famous nursing home, where a supernatural force might be controlling all residents. Naturally, she’s unable to escape her confines, and no one believes her. This sounds like hell on earth.

Acapulco: Season 1 (Apple TV+ series) — Vacation-based shows are all the rage following The White Lotus and Nine Perfect Strangers, so get your next fix here with the story of a 20-something cabana boy in Acapulco’s most in-demand resort. Naturally, he discovers that the job is not all fun and games, given the demanding clientele and other demanding professional and personal circumstances. Get ready for a bilingual focus, too, with both Spanish and English coming in hot while the main character, Máximo Gallardo, also attempts to avoid temptations.

One of Us Is Lying — The New York Times bestselling novel comes to life when a group of give teens (the brain, the beauty, the jock, the criminal, yes, this sounds like a John Hughes imitation) go to detention, and one of them (the outcast) does not emerge. Hey, it happens. Was the death an accident? Not likely. Naturally, the four remaining students all become suspects, and all of them are looking sketchy. Again, it happens!

Jacinta (Hulu documentary) — Intergenerational trauma is real in this real-life story of what happens when a mother and daughter both end up in prison. This is no Orange Is The New Black take, and both women are attempting to battle their own addictions and other demons while doing time at the Maine Correctional Center. It’s bleak, but it’s a valuable watch with director Jessica Earnshaw shooting with a verité approach.

Sexy Beasts: Season 2 (Netflix series) — Well, no one expected this show to return so soon, so I guess that one could consider it a… force of nature? It’s a nightmare of a concept, and one can’t look away from the trainwrecky aspect of people going into hours of prosthetic work to go on a date. And I’m not sure, really, if these contestants find it more or less hurtful to be rejected without any consideration of looks? That’s either so much better or so much worse than the usual dating hell out there. Yet obviously, someone did this poor rabbit dirty. Will Rob Delaney return as well? Surely, he can’t let the bunny down.

As William Shatner prepares to (technically) go to space on the second flight of Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin rocket, the iconic TV actor entertained the crowd at New York Comic Con 2021 on Thursday with his apprehensions about the trip. While joking that he was initially going to turn down the space flight until he realized that he doesn’t have much going on these days, Shatner explained how he had hoped to be on the first Blue Origin mission, but he had to settle for the second launch instead. And while going to space is pretty amazing, the Star Trek actor didn’t quite appreciate how his participation was pitched to him. Via Mediaite:

“Then there was an old lady with them, and then there was a young lady,” he said as the crowd laughed. “So finally they came to me on the second thing, and they said, ‘Alright, how would you like to go up? You’ll be the oldest guy in space.’”

“I don’t want to be known as the oldest guy who went to space — I’m bloody Captain Kirk, for God’s sake!” Shatner, 90, exclaimed to a cheering crowd.

Jokes about his vanity aside, Shatner is looking forward to the mission. Although, he admitted to the crowd that he’s still trying to think of something profound to say during the flight. “I’ll try and think of something to suggest how deeply I feel about the experience of looking into the limitless distance,” he said.

Personally, we’d go with screaming “KHAN!” for the full 11 minutes, but you do you, Shatner.

(Via Mediaite)

It looks like we’re all getting to spend An Evening With Silk Sonic a lot sooner than previously thought. After the duo consisting of pop-funk megastars Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak declared their album delayed so they could touch up the “parts that need a little more… grease,” they made an abrupt about-face this afternoon, announcing the album’s title and moved-up release date, November 11, with a photo post featuring funk godfather Bootsy Collins.

The anticipation for their album has been sky-high ever since they released their groovy debut single as a group, “Leave The Door Open” in March of this year. Since then, they’ve performed the chart-topping throwback at the 2021 Grammys, the iHeartRadio Music Awards, and the BET Awards. Their second single, “Skate,” was released in July, advancing the retro-futuristic sound of “Leave The Door Open” and proving that the duo had even more funk in store for their fans.

Silk Sonic also joked about adding golden-voiced R&B singer H.E.R. to their roster and even created a jingle for SelvaRey Rum. Meanwhile, it looks like their full album will hit just in time for the holidays.

An Evening With Silk Sonic is due 11/12 via Atlantic Records. You can pre-save it here.

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

It’s been 18 months since Deontay Wilder stepped in a ring for an actual fight, more than double the longest layoff between bouts of his boxing career. The former WBC heavyweight champion has always been active, a fast riser through the heavyweight ranks knocking out anyone who dared accept his challenges, and has defended that title at least twice a year since earning the belt with a lopsided decision win over Bermane Stiverne in 2015.

For many fighters, an 18-month layoff would bring about concerns of ring rust, but Wilder thinks his oft-delayed trilogy fight with Tyson Fury was a blessing in disguise. It offered him the rare opportunity to take a step back and, in his words, reinvent himself as a fighter.

“Actually, it has been refreshing to have such a long layoff,” Wilder told Uproxx on a video call this week. “We’ve been optimistic about it. It’s benefited us to go into camp and really focus on things that we need to do. I know we had to stop and then get back in there, stop, then get back. So it’s been an emotional roller coaster, but I think it’s been great. It allowed me to spend even more time with my guys — I love my brothers, I love my team, I love my family. So, it’s been very refreshing for me, and I think I speak for all of us when I say we’ve had some our greatest times being together like we’ve been. Because we all been trapped in together, and it’s just been a learning process for us. It allowed me to be able to reinvent myself, rejuvenate, and become refreshed, and now I’m ready to reintroduce myself to the world as Deontay Wilder.”

After suffering the first loss of his professional career to Fury in their second fight — a TKO finish that still causes him to bristle at the mention of his corner throwing in the towel in the seventh round, even if objective observers largely agreed with that decision —Wilder has spent the last year and a half making some dramatic changes. Gone are his longtime trainers, the ones that threw in the towel in an effort to protect him. In steps Malik Scott, who once tasted the fury of Wilder’s vicious right hand in a knockout loss to the soon-to-be champ in 2014.

Wilder is coy about the differences we’ll see from him as a fighter. Ever the salesman, the Bronze Bomber says fans will have to tune in and see for themselves, but Scott has spoken in camp and during fight week about how Wilder is a more well-rounded boxer.

That is the evolution of Wilder that many have been waiting on. His knockout power has carried him to the top, but most believed he needed to be more diverse in his skills beyond that punishing right hand to stay there. Fury seemingly proved those questions right in the first two fights — although the right hand nearly bailed Wilder out in the first with a near-knockout in the final round — and now, it’s up to Wilder to show how much he’s truly been able to reinvent himself over the past 18 months.

Fury’s defensive skills and ability to dictate the pacing and spacing of a fight have posed problems for Wilder in the past, as Fury closes down his space to unleash that right hand and makes life awkward on him inside. We’ve heard promises of a greater commitment to the jab and body work from Wilder, but that’s all talk until we see it in action. Wilder knows that, too, which is why for all the appreciation he has for a lengthy layoff to refine his craft, Saturday night can’t arrive soon enough.

“We all have just been determined,” Wilder says. “We all have rededicated ourselves to this sport. We all have put in the hard work. Everyone has a part to play on this team, and everyone have played it very well. We’ve strived to be perfect, and we’ve strived to make perfect permanent. And, man, it’s just been a lot of joy, it’s been a lot of fun to work beside so many great men. And that’s why we just can’t wait. We’re looking forward to Saturday night, to finally get this over with. You know, I know how to speak for myself, [long sigh], it’s been a long journey for me, man. This has been one of the longest training camps, one of the longest journeys I’ve ever took in my life.”

The former champ has a sense of calm about him, something he says is attributed to the trust he has in the work he’s put in and the relationship he’s built with Scott. It’s a process that can take years for some trainers and fighters, but for Wilder and Scott, their previous relationship as opponents-turned-friends made it happen almost immediately when they started camp.

Some have posited that Wilder hired Scott to avoid hard critiques, while others have insisted Scott has Wilder’s ear enough to get him to believe he needs to make changes to shore up other areas of his craft. We’ll find out just how successful this partnership can be come Saturday night and whether the talk of a new and improved Wilder is anything more than that. Wilder, for his part, seems ready to be done with the talking portion of the proceedings, antsy to get to Saturday night. For the first time in a year and a half, he can do what he feels he was born to do: put on a show and be violent.

“We don’t usually get trilogies, and when we do get them, the fighters try to make the best of it,” Wilder said. “I’m sure me and Fury is gonna make the best of it. And I want it to be the best trilogy that’s ever happened in the history of boxing. I’m putting my life on the line. I’m putting my heart in it, my energy, my soul, just for that to happen. So stay tuned. It’s gonna be amazing.”

That ’70s Show was never a ratings giant, but it was popular enough to run for eight seasons (200 episodes!) and launch the careers of Ashton Kutcher, Mila Kunis, Laura Prepon, and Topher Grace. Fox even tried to start a That [Fill-In-The-Blank Decade] Show universe with That ’80s Show, starring a pre-It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia Glenn Howerton, but it only lasted one season.

Maybe Netflix will have better success with That ’90s Show.

Netflix has given a formal series green light to That ’90s Show, a followup to Bonnie Turner and Terry Turner’s hit That ’70s Show. Kurtwood Smith and Debra Jo Rupp will anchor the spinoff, reprising their roles as Red Forman and Kitty Forman, respectively. They will executive produce That ’90s Show alongside its creators, That ’70s Show alum Gregg Mettler, who serves as showrunner, Bonnie Turner and Terry Turner and their daughter Lindsay Turner.

The Wisconsin-set show takes place in 1995 and follows Eric (Grace) and Donna’s (Prepon) daughter, Leia, “who is visiting her grandparents for the summer where she bonds with a new generation of Point Place kids under the watchful eye of Kitty and the stern glare of Red. Sex, drugs, and rock ’n roll never dies, it just changes clothes,” the Deadline description reads. So, sex, drugs, and rock ’n roll wears JNCO jeans now?

Outside of Smith and Jo Rupp, no other That ’70s Show cast members have a current agreement to appear in the spinoff, but the expectation is that “a number of them” will. It’s also unclear who will provide the theme song. Might I suggest Weird Al?

(Via Deadline)

Charli XCX and 100 Gecs have both suggested, but not outright officially announced, that they have new albums not far off on the horizon. Now, thanks to a recent Twitter interaction, we now know a bit more about when both artists plan to drop their respective projects.

Yesterday, 100 Gecs took to Twitter to declare, “the album will be coming early 2022.” As if that wasn’t exciting enough, Charli then replied to the tweet, “Same. Ish,” indicating that she too is dropping an album at or around early 2022.

Charli and the many Gecs have formed a working relationship over the past couple years. In early 2020, 100 Gecs and Rico Nasty remixed their song “Ringtone” and brought Charli and Kero Kero Bonito into the fold. A couple months later, Charli returned the favor with her single “Claws,” which she made in collaboration with 100 Gecs’ Dylan Brady.

Charli and 100 Gecs have both been busy in recent times. Charli is fresh off a Tonight Show performance of “Good Ones,” which bore a lot of similarities to her recently released video for the track. Meanwhile, 100 Gecs are performing the first concert of their fall tour tonight in Oakland, California.

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

The new documentary detailing Justin Bieber’s massive New Year’s Eve performance in 2020, the Michael Ratner-directed Justin Bieber: Our World, is officially out today on Amazon Prime. After an exclusive screening in Las Vegas last night as part of Justin Bieber & Friends, The Vegas Weekender presented by Pollen, the documentary is now streaming on Amazon Prime.

And for all the Beliebers out there, the documentary doesn’t disappoint. It’s an excellent mix of footage from his performance last New Year’s Eve — which marked a return to the stage after a nearly three-year hiatus since the Purpose tour — and the lead up to planning the show during last year’s pre-vaccine, COVID-19 reality. There’s also plenty of self-shot footage of Bieber and his new wife Hailey as they settle into their brand new relationship as husband and wife.

One of the topics that comes up during one of their early morning walks? Justin’s preferred timeline for when the coupe starts having kids of their own. On the day of the big show, as he’s detailing his plans for the rest of the coming year, Justin tells a surprised Hailey he’s ready to start having kids. “Do you have an intention for 2021?” his wife asks, which kicks off a very personal response from the pop star.

“My intention for 2021 is to continue to set goals and have fun while doing them. Make sure I put my family first… and hopefully we squish out a nugget,” he finishes with a mischievous look. “Uh – in 2021!?!” Hailey responds. “The end of 2021? We start trying?” He responds. “I don’t know… maybe,” the person who would actually have to bear the child understandably says. “We shall see.” The cute exchange starts around the 1:11 mark for fans who want to check it out for themselves.

And for those with Amazon Prime, you can check out the whole documentary here.

So, what legendary media property does Blade Runner 2049 and Arrival director Denis Villeneuve have his eye on after he wraps up his ongoing Dune saga? If you guessed Star Wars, Star Trek, or any other star voyaging affair, you might be surprised to hear that’s not the case. While the director has certainly made a name for himself creating sci-fi hits, it turns out Villeneuve is actually interested in pursuing a project a bit more… grounded. Something shaken, not stirred.

In a recent appearance on Josh Horowitz’s Happy Sad Confused podcast (via IndieWire), Villeneuve shared he would “deeply love” a take at none other than the James Bond franchise, explaining to Horowitz he’s been a fan of the character since childhood. Considering current 007 director Cary Fukunaga’s run with the series’ just wrapped up with No Time to Die earlier this month, there might not be a better time for Villeneuve to voice his “massive affection” for the character, as talks have begun as to who will replace both Fukunaga and lead star Daniel Craig.

“Frankly, the answer would be a massive yes,” Villeneuve responded. “I would deeply love one day to make a James Bond movie. It’s a character that I’ve been with since my childhood. I have massive affection for Bond [..] I don’t know if such a thing would happen, but it would be a privilege. That would be pure cinematic joy.”

However, cinematic joy aside, Villeneuve also admitted the idea of taking on the 007 series following Daniel Craig’s departure is a bit intimidating, stating that as “one of the biggest Bond fans,” he found what Craig brought to the series’ “unmatchable.”

“It would be a big challenge to try and reboot it after what Daniel did. What Daniel Craig brought to Bond was so unique and strong and honestly unmatchable. He’s the ultimate James Bond. I can’t wait to see Cary’s movie. I’m very excited. I’m one of the biggest Bond fans.”

Either way, it’s safe to say a Denis Villeneue James Bond movie is still quite a ways out if one were to happen. As of right now, the director is keeping busy working on the second part in his adaptation of Frank Herbert’s Dune, which — if the first film does well enough — should hit theaters sometime in the next couple of years. While the director originally wanted to release both Dune Part I and Dune Part II at the same time, Warner Bros. and Legendary have apparently kept their feet firmly down with the director, stating they wanted to see the success of the first film before signing off on the second. The first Dune film is scheduled to release in theaters and on HBO Max on October 22.

We love Brendan Fraser, don’t we folks? After vanishing from the public eye in the mid-2010s due to, he believes, being backlisted from the industry after speaking out about an alleged sexual assault, The Mummy actor is back in a big way.

He’s on Doom Patrol. He’s in the new Steven Soderbergh movie. He’s in the new Martin Scorsese movie. And he’s in the new Darren Aronofsky movie, The Whale, as a “reclusive English teacher suffering from severe obesity who attempts to reconnect with his estranged teenage daughter for one last chance at redemption.”

Fraser told Unilad that the A24 film, which is based on Samuel D. Hunter’s play of the same name, is “gonna be like something you haven’t seen before. That’s really all I can tell you. Check it out when it comes out next year.” Fraser plays the 600-pound teacher (the role involves “a lot of make-up and prosthetics”), with Hong Chau (Watchmen) as his best friend and Sadie Sink (Stranger Things) as his daughter. Just a reminder: Mickey Rourke was nominated for an Oscar for starring in an Aronofsky movie — could Fraser be next?

One thing’s for sure: he’s going to give 110 percent.

(Via Unilad)

If you weren’t already convinced that Dave Grohl’s new book The Storyteller was a worthy read, the chapter he just shared about the time when he met Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr in London is here to sway you. Entitled “Entering Valhalla,” Grohl posted the excerpt in his “Dave’s True Stories” blog and it’s far less of a #humblebrag than it is a tale of sheer childlike joy.

As the story goes, Foo Fighters had just played a show at London’s Wembley Arena when Dhani Harrison (the son of late Beatles drummer George) introduced himself to Grohl backstage and invited the band to attend a tribute show for his father that he was putting together at the Royal Albert Hall the following week. Among the concert’s performers were legends in Eric Clapton, Ravi Shankhar, Tom Petty, and Jeff Lynne. As fate would have it, the Foos had that night off on their tour. So Grohl and the band happily accepted the offer to attend as guests.

At the show, Grohl explains that he got extremely emotional when Ringo Starr played “Photograph”:

“As if the previous hour hadn’t already been the most life affirming jolt to my soul, Ringo’s presence and this song in particular struck an unpredicted chord within me. Here was a man, generously withholding his own grief of losing a dear friend and bandmate, spreading love and joy by sharing the most healing force in time of mourning: Music.

I realized that I had been trying to do the exact same thing since that cold, cloudy morning of April 5th, 1994. The day that Kurt Cobain died.

I sang along at the top of my lungs.”

Grohl then goes on to talk about how they settled into an empty VIP Lounge, which soon became very much not empty as the show’s performers slowly trickled in. There was Ravi Shankhar “sitting in the corner eating a plate of Indian food all by himself,” the “fifth Beatle” George Martin, and then the big payoff, when Grohl meets Paul McCartney for the first time:

“What happened next will forever remain a blur. I don’t recall exactly how Paul and I were introduced, what was said, or how long we talked, but I do remember putting on my best ‘this is not the most incredible thing ever to happen to me’ face while trying to keep from making a fool of myself. I think I may have tried the ‘So, are you guys on tour at the moment?’ line, but who knows. I was beside myself, having an out of body experience, living a moment that will surely be revisited in my final hours. I would not be standing there that night, much less writing this today, if it weren’t for this man. Like so many who have made lives as musicians, his music had been a teacher when I needed instruction. A friend when I felt alone. A father when I needed love. A therapist when I needed guidance, and a partner when I needed to belong.”

There are other factoids in the story that might be lost on the casual fan. Like when Grohl mentions his “old friends” Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers and how he nearly joined the band after Nirvana came to an end. But more than anything, it’s refreshing to read his recollection of how giddy he was that night meeting The Beatles. Rock stars: They’re just like us!

The Storyteller: Tales Of Life And Music is out now.