The Nerdist

Quick Take

• Lanterns co-creator Damon Lindelof admitted he won’t be a part of season 2, but a writers’ room has already formed and is formulating ideas.
• Lindelof confirms there was never any plan to resurrect Hal Jordan (Kyle Chandler) in season one, but acknowledges Hal’s many deaths and resurrections in the pages of DC Comics.
• Nerdist’s take: Even if it’s just as Hal’s “Halogram” form, we think the next season of Lanterns needs to include Kyle Chandler in some form. Otherwise, the name Lanterns is pointless.

Lanterns just dropped its season one finale, and we believe it largely stuck the landing. The series, which was a grounded take on the Green Lantern comics mythology, won over critics and audiences alike. In fact, the series has averaged around 19 million viewers per episode, which is huge. Now, series co-creator Damon Lindelof, known for Watchmen, The Leftovers, and Lost, has revealed to Collider (via IGN) that there are “writers who are working on ideating on Season 2.” It seems, however, that neither Lindelof nor Tom King will have any involvement with a potential season 2.

I can only tell you that everybody in the Season 1 room, inclusive of the writers who are working on ideating on Season 2, felt like even though we knew that it was going to be emotionally devastating and/or disappointing and maybe even frustrating, that the worst possible schmuck-baity thing that we could do is show you a pilot where Hal Jordan was definitively dead, and then try to walk it back and say, ‘Oh, he was a clone’ or ‘He’s only mostly dead’ in the Princess Bride vernacular.

HBO Max/DC Studios

Having said all that, Lindelof is keenly aware that in the comics, Hal Jordan has been dead before. Lindelof said, “I do not know anything about the creative (for season 2). And I wouldn’t want to hamstring those writers in any way for what future storytelling mechanisms they could indulge in. Knowing what the comics have done with Parallax — and Hal, I think, has died at least three or four times over the course of the canon, and celebrating everything that Kyle did in his performance to get the audience to fall in love with Hal.”

Nerdist’s Take: Even if Hal Jordan Remains Dead, Lanterns Season 2 Needs to Figure Out How to Utilize Kyle Chandler

Even if Hal is DEAD dead, we think Kyle Chandler is such a huge part of the appeal for the series, it would be criminal not to utilize him somehow. We definitely think there’s a way to bring the Halogram back, despite whatever Sinestro said in the season one finale. And, after all, this show is called Lanterns, plural. Unless this is about to be a John Stewart/Guy Gardner team-up show, Hal will need to be a part of it. Or they may introduce another Green Lantern to co-star with Aaron Pierre. We’ll have to wait and see, but we certainly hope HBO Max doesn’t drag its feet in greenlighting season 2. What deserves a greenlight more than the show about dudes whose power is green light? Come on, HBO, it’s a sign.

Eric Diaz is a staff writer at Nerdist and a Swiss Army knife of fandoms. Eric loves DC, Marvel, horror movies, and even Star Wars and Star Trek equally.

The post LANTERNS Season 2 Is Already Being Written, Says Co-Creator appeared first on Nerdist.

Quick Take

• Prime Video has revealed the first images for its upcoming show Bloodaxe.
• The series co-creater Michael Hirst was also behind Vikings, but Bloodaxe is not a spinoff of that franchise.
• This gorgeous batch of images promises a vikings show with everything we could want: incredible costumes and production and warriors in search of bloody glory.

We want the same thing from every TV show. We want good writing, good acting, good production, and a good story. But when it comes to shows about vikings we have a few more demands. We want/need to see crazed warriors waging war with magnificent weapons in a quest for glory. And based on the first batch of photos from Prime Video‘s upcoming series Bloodaxe that’s exactly what we’re going to get from this epic tale.

Click To View Gallery Prime Video Prime Video Prime Video Prime Video Prime Video

Prime Video has released the first ten stills from Bloodaxe, the new series from showrunners and writers Michael and Horatio Hirst. Michael Hirst was also behind Vikings, but this new series is not a spinoff or related in anyway to his previous one. This is a new tale of Norse heroes. But what exactly do these images portend? (Besides that the show will look incredible?) What do these gorgeously clad attractive people want? Here’s the official synopsis from Amazon:

In Season One, Bloodaxe chronicles the rise of one of history’s most famous Norse raiders, Erik Bloodaxe (Xavier Molyneux), and his formidable wife Gunnhild, Mother of Kings (Jessica Madsen). As they fight for the throne of Norway, the land is torn apart by fierce rivals, shifting loyalties, and bloody betrayals. With war looming and chaos consuming the kingdom, drawing in the ruthless Kings of other Scandinavian countries, and even a powerful English ruler, the stage is set for a thundering, cataclysmic, compelling and utterly magical new Norse Saga.

Click To View Gallery Prime Video Prime Video Prime Video

The series also stars Karlis Arnolds Avots, Levi Miller, Rod Hallett, Alina Tomnikov, Sisse Marie, Rune Temte, and Jesper Christensen. Season one will feature eight episodes, but we know we are guaranteed to get more. Prime Video has already ordered a second season, which is the best sign possible that Bloodaxe will truly deliver everything we want from a TV show about vikings.

Mikey Walsh is a staff writer at Nerdist. You can follow Mikey on Bluesky at @‌burgermike. And also anywhere someone is ranking the Targaryen kings.

The post New Prime Video Series BLOODAXE Shares First Images appeared first on Nerdist.

Quick Take

• Marvel Comics is joining with WEBTOON to create a new app for digital comics, effectively replacing Marvel Unlimited, which has existed since 2007. It launches in November.
• The new Marvel Comics app will showcase more than 35,000 digital comics, Pull List features, and more new features. It will also include Star Wars comics and comics based on Twentieth Century Films IP.
• There will be a Base Tier for $9.99/month (plus tax) or $69.99/year (plus tax). The Ultimate Tier will be $12.49/month (plus tax) or $99.99/year (plus tax), and feature comics as early as 30 days after print release.
• Nerdist’s take: Whether or not this new app is better than Marvel Unlimited remains to be seen, but it will feature comics not previously on the old app, which is a plus.

How fans will access their favorite Marvel Comics titles digitally is about to change. Ahead of this week’s New York Comic Con, Marvel and WEBTOON have announced that they are joining forces to create a new Marvel Comics app. Revealed via Marvel’s official site, we’ve learned that this new app will launch on November 16. The new Marvel app will showcase more than 35,000 digital comics, Pull List features, and new issues as early as 30 days after print release. This replaces the Marvel Unlimited app, which shutters in December. Here’s what Marvel’s David Abdo had to say about their new digital home:

We know that there is a large audience of readers who are looking to experience comics digitally, and there is no richer library than Marvel Comics. We’re excited to partner with WEBTOON, industry leaders in the space, to create a new app that can continue to grow and evolve with the way readers discover and experience comics.

Marvel/WEBTOON

The new pricing adds a Base Tier at three months after print, for $9.99/month (plus tax) or $69.99/year (plus tax). The Ultimate Tier will be $12.49/month (plus tax) or $99.99/year (plus tax) with comics just 30 days after print. However, folks who already have the Marvel Unlimited app might want to act fast. That’s because subscribers must create a WEBTOON account, then repurchase a membership, and import their existing libraries before Marvel Unlimited ends. Discovery tools include a cover-scroll browser, personalised recommendations, and character and creator pages as well.

Nerdist’s Take: Many Will Miss Marvel Unlimited, But This New App Will Seemingly Have More Options than the Old One

The catalogue on the new app covers Marvel Universe, Star Wars, and 20th Century Studios titles like Alien and Predator. Other comics from the Disney portfolio will arrive at a later date. For those who prefer to read their comics digitally, this will be an adjustment. But the addition of other titles previously unavailable through the older app will likely make this worth it. Marvel fans can pre-register now at Marvel/WEBTOON and claim a limited-time founding member price of $59.99 (plus tax) for their first year of Ultimate Annual.

Eric Diaz is a staff writer at Nerdist and a Swiss Army knife of fandoms. Eric loves DC, Marvel, horror movies, and even Star Wars and Star Trek equally.

The post Marvel and WEBTOON Launch New Digital Comics App This Fall appeared first on Nerdist.

Quick Take

• Sam, the spirit of Halloween from the cult horror classic Trick ‘r Treat, returns in a new animated short, thirty years after he first appeared in a cartoon short film called Season’s Greetings.
• Sam’s creator Mike Dougherty directs his creation from his university days in the first of many new animated shorts called Hello October: from Sam.
• Hello October: from Sam is the first of many new Sam-centric shorts, artwork, and merchandise that is part of the new Sam: The Soul of Halloween website.
• Nerdist’s take: While we all wait for Trick ‘r Treat 2, we now know Sam will have a new home for lots of new projects for the character.

Ever since the horror-comedy Trick ‘r Treat arrived in 2007, the character Sam, the Spirit of Halloween, has become the mascot of spooky season. With some competition from Jack Skellington and Michael Myers, of course. But despite multiple announcements for Trick ‘r Treat 2 over the years, we still haven’t seen the return of Sam. But that’s all about to change. We’ve learned via Dread Central, that Sam’s creator, Michael Dougherty, has released the first short film in his month-long Sam: The Soul of Halloween celebration. This has inaugurated the brand-new Sam website. You can watch Dougherty’s new Sam animated short, Hello October: from Sam, below:

The Sam: The Soul of Halloween website showcases new shorts, artwork, and merchandise, beginning at the start of October. And this goes all the way through October 31. Dougherty first invented Sam for his animated short Season’s Greetings back in 1996. It’s long been available on the Trick ‘r Treat DVD and Blu-ray releases, and can be found online. Now, he has invited different creatives to interpret that version of Sam in their own unique way. All while sticking to Sam’s original incarnation in Dougherty’s animated short, which he made as a student at NYU.

Mike Dougherty

All of this suggests that Mike Dougherty now has regained the rights to the character of Sam independent of the Trick ‘r Treat franchise. Although we must point out that we can’t confirm this for sure. So while we all wait for another Trick ‘r Treat film, we’ll see Sam appear in other short-form projects. As the site says, “Sam is a celebration of everything we love about Halloween: glowing jack-o’-lanterns, crisp autumn air, costumes and candy, superstitions and ghost stories, and all the things that go bump in the night.” That all sure sounds delightful to us, because we love the little guy. Long live Sam.

Eric Diaz is a staff writer at Nerdist and a Swiss Army knife of fandoms. Eric loves DC, Marvel, horror movies, and even Star Wars and Star Trek equally.

The post TRICK ‘R TREAT’s Sam Returns in Several New Halloween Shorts appeared first on Nerdist.

Quick Take

• The directors of the new Star Trek film, John Francis Daley and Johnathan Goldstein, revealed two important decisions they’ve made regarding their upcoming movie.
• The upcoming Star Trek won’t have any legacy characters from any previous incarnation of the franchise. In addition, they’ve confirmed it won’t take place in the alternate “Kelvin” timeline from the previous three J.J. Abrams-produced films.
• The two directors also confirmed that their Star Trek will take further along in the future than where we left off. We assume they mean further along in time than the last Star Trek feature film, and not Starfleet Academy, which takes place in the 32nd Century.
• Nerdist’s take: We’re thrilled Star Trek isn’t leaning into nostalgia or legacy casting for its big screen reboot, although we hope the one legacy that continues is a starship named Enterprise.

The Star Trek franchise, at least on TV, is pretty much over. Paramount+ will release the remaining episodes of Strange New Worlds and Starfleet Academy next year. But after that, there are no more Trek shows in production. However, Paramount does have a new Trek movie in development, directed by the Dungeons & Dragons duo of John Francis Daley and Johnathan Goldstein. But we’ve almost no details about what the movie will cover, or when in the Trek timeline it takes place. But in an interview with Empire Magazine (via Comic Book Movie), the directors did drop two major elements their movie won’t include.

Paramount Pictures

When asked about their concept for the film, Daley said, “No legacy characters, nobody that you’ve met before.” Goldstein then added that their Star Trek film will take place in “A different time, not a different timeline per se, but it’s a little further in the future. Sort of a different timeline.” Daley quickly corrected his directing and writing partner and said, “Well, not the Kelvin timeline. It’s not the J.J. [Abrams] timeline.” These are both big revelations about what Paramount has planned for their iconic sixty-year-old franchise.

Paramount Pictures

Most of the existing thirteen Star Trek films have some tie to the overall legacy of the franchise. Even the J.J. Abrams 2009 reboot brought back Leonard Nimoy as the elder Spock. Thus, tying the film to what Star Trek fans knew and loved. But this would be the first Star Trek movie without ties to any previous cast we already know. However, not having this take place in the Kelvin timeline indicates this takes place in the “classic” universe we’ve followed for six decades.

Nerdist’s Take: We Hope the Only Legacy the New Star Trek Movie Has Is a Starship Named Enterprise

Pushing things into the future means we’ll likely pass by the era of the Enterprise-G, seen at the end of Picard season three. That’s the Enterprise commanded by Captain Seven of Nine. It could be several decades, or even several hundred years after her era. And we think this is pretty exciting. We actually hope the only legacy aspect we see in the new Star Trek is that the starship the events take place on is called Enterprise. Everything else being new and different is what we hope to see.

Eric Diaz is a staff writer at Nerdist and a Swiss Army knife of fandoms. Eric loves DC, Marvel, horror movies, and even Star Wars and Star Trek equally.

The post New STAR TREK Film Won’t Use Legacy Characters or Kelvin Universe appeared first on Nerdist.

Quick Take

• LEGO has announced three new Batman sets ahead of this year’s New York Comic Con.
• The new LEGO Joker Wall Art is a challenging 3D recreation of 2011’s Detective Comics #880.
• LEGO’s new 217-piece Arkham Batman Batmobile and the 672-piece Batman Returns Batmobile & Duck sets are designed for youngsters to celebrate the iconic superhero car.

Like the Caped Crusader keeps an eye on Gotham, our sacred duty is to keep an eye out for ever more ways to celebrate the iconic superhero. And ahead of this year’s New York Comic Con LEGO is giving fans three new ways to continue building a personal shrine to all things Batman. The company has announced three new sets from the world of the Dark Knight. These LEGO sets honor two of the best things about Batman: his legendary car and his greatest villain, Joker.

LEGO

The LEGO Group doesn’t just want to let you build a new Batman collectible for your home. They want to add some style to your manor. The first of the company’s three new DC Batman LEGO sets is The Joker Wall Art. It’s a recreation of 2011’s Detective Comics #880. This challenging 1,849-piece 3D set ($169.99) is bulging with hidden details. With an 18+ recommendation, it’s also geared for older collectors who will appreciate the secrets waiting to be unlocked in this intense visage of the Joker.

LEGO

With the Clown Prince of Crime on hand, you’ll need ways to catch him, and LEGO’s two new Batmobiles will help you do that. The 217-piece LEGO Arkham Batman Batmobile ($29.99) and the 672-piece Batman Returns Batmobile & Duck ($59.99) will let younger fans get in on the little plastic brick superhero fun.

Both LEGO Batmobile sets also unlock the Golden Red Brick in LEGO Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight. That will let you add a gold theme for both your characters and vehicles in the game. The Batman Returns Batmobile & Duck set also gets you the game’s Batman Returns Batmobile Batcave Prop. Suck on that, Oswald.

LEGO

All three DC Batman LEGO sets will go on sale when the calendar turns. They’ll be available at LEGO.com, LEGO Stores, and major retailers starting January 1, 2027. You don’t have to wait that long to pay for yours, though. You can already pre-order all three sets now. While you wait for yours to arrive we’ll keep an eye out for ever more ways to celebrate the superhero who keeps a Bat-eye on Gotham.

This post has affiliate links, which means we may earn advertising money if you buy something. This doesn’t cost you anything extra, we just have to give you the heads up for legal reasons. Click away!

Mikey Walsh is a staff writer at Nerdist. You can follow Mikey on Bluesky at @‌burgermike. And also anywhere someone is ranking the Targaryen kings.

The post LEGO Reveals 3 New Batman Sets: Creepy Joker Wall Art & Batmobiles appeared first on Nerdist.

Quick Take

• Two of the fiercest competitors in the streaming world have found a way to work together. Disney+ will soon start licensing several well-known titles to Netflix.
• Among the titles licensed will be all five Ice Age movies, Percy Jackson and the Olympians, and several classic TV shows like Arrested Development.
• Nerdist’s take: Despite being each other’s biggest competition in the streaming world, this news proves that anyone in entertainment can call a truce if it means making more money.

Two of the biggest competitors, if not the biggest competitors, in the world of streaming are Netflix and Disney+. But competitors or not, they can bury a hatchet if they can make some coin. Variety is reporting that Disney has made a deal with Netflix to license a metric ton of its titles to them, and some of these are very well-known properties associated with the House of Mouse. This includes all five Ice Age movies, Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Pixar titles like Elio and Soul, and catalog series from the Disney vaults like Felicity, Arrested Development, and Scandal.

Disney+/Netflix

As the original report states, Netflix has an unrivaled subscriber base of 325 million households. That is almost the equivalent of every person in the United States. Disney sees this as a chance to get its films and television series in front of a lot more eyeballs. And as a strategy, it makes sense. If people fall in love with the Pixar films they watch on Netflix, for example, they might want even more Pixar in their diet and get a Disney+ subscription. Disney makes money from Netflix, and Netflix gets to add to its already massive catalog of titles. At least, temporarily. Most of these Disney titles have a shelf life on the streaming giant.

Nerdist’s Take: Even Between the Fiercest Competitors, Money Talks, and Always Trumps Anything Else

The availability of these titles will vary from region to region. We imagine North America won’t get some of the bigger titles, which will remain as Disney+ exclusives. Especially titles from some of their bigger IP, like Walt Disney Animation Studios and Pixar. From what we can tell, there are no Marvel Studios or Star Wars titles in this batch, but that could always change in the future. After all, in Hollywood, money talks very loudly. And if they can turn a profit from those films finding a home on Netflix, it’ll happen. We expect the rollout for Disney titles on Netflix to start happening over the next few months.

Eric Diaz is a staff writer at Nerdist and a Swiss Army knife of fandoms. Eric loves DC, Marvel, horror movies, and even Star Wars and Star Trek equally.

The post Disney to License Several High-Profile Titles to Netflix appeared first on Nerdist.

Quick Take

• There are plenty of TV shows and movies arriving this month; however, it is also a good time to snuggle up on the couch with a bewitching book.
• These eight books range from cozy mysteries to horror tales that will make your spine tingle.
• Get in the Game: If you’re a gamer, you will love these spooky horror games.

Do you feel that? It’s the crisp wind rushing by you as you crunch leaves under your boots. Well, that may not be the case for you, depending on where you live. Still, we welcome the arrival of October and all things cozy, scary, and pumpkin spice-fueled. There are plenty of TV shows and movies arriving this month; however, it is also a good time to snuggle up on the couch with a bewitching book (or three). It doesn’t matter if it’s a physical book or an audio adventure, reading is a great way to find some chill. And, this season, we have 7 cozy, witchy, and downright scary books that we recommend for your reading list. 

Disenchanted by Lucy Jane Wood  View this post on Instagram

A cozy witchy fantasy story is always a great move in October. Disenchanted is about a jaded witch who learns to embrace her magic when the town is cursed with a spell that brings fairy tales to life. And, for all you lovers out there, there is a dash of romance in the mix as well. 

She Haunts Me Still by De Elizabeth  Dutton

Curses, vampires, and academia all converge together in this book. Mallory heads to her mom’s alma mater to begin her theater studies and start a fresh chapter after a life of loss. Things are going well until a bloody spirit resurfaces and causes her to dig into her mother’s mysterious death. And, along the way, she finds a connection with Ezra, a fourth year student and director who may know some serious secrets. 

The Unknown by Riley Sager  View this post on Instagram

Many book lovers will recognize this popular author’s name. Riley Sager’s The Unknown is yet another hit, with a story that takes us to a creepy island. It is where women started disappearing 100 years ago… and it is happening once again. If you dig Widow’s Bay, you’ll probably like this book, too. 

Hear the Dead by Ann Dávila Cardinal  Sourcebooks Landmark

A retired punk rock photographer starts to unearth a long-standing mystery. She starts hearing the voices of murdered women she knew when she was young, leading to a journey filled with magical realism wrapped in a serial killer mystery. 

The Whisper by Chelsea Iversen  View this post on Instagram

Welcome to Whisper Ridge, where there’s a group of estranged friends who come back together years after their friend’s murder. They will have to deal with old wounds and confront witchy magic as they face their past and parse through the present. 

Please Enjoy Your Stay by Tara Goedjen  Atria/Emily Bestler Books

We love a gothic thriller. A true crime podcast reopens a case that is a very personal tragedy for Mia. She was the only eyewitness to her cousin’s murder, and the latest suspect is Mia’s aunt, a former true crime author. Mia goes on a journey of uncovering secrets and lies to get to the truth. 

Night of Madness by Ryan Douglass  View this post on Instagram

Anytime a book is described as “Saw Meets Willy Wonka,” it feels like a must-read. Ryan Douglass’ novel follows a band of teen influencers who compete in a horror-movie competition. The night turns into a full blown nightmare when they have to fight to stay alive for one twisty tale that will surely keep you on the edge of your seat.

This post has affiliate links, which means we may earn advertising money if you buy something. This doesn’t cost you anything extra, we just have to give you the heads up for legal reasons. Click away!

Tai Gooden is the Features Editor for Nerdist, a fictional villain apologist, and a horror aficionado who is forever waiting for her trip in the TARDIS.

The post 7 Cozy, Witchy, and Downright Scary Books to Read in October appeared first on Nerdist.

Quick Take

• The first season of Lanterns has come to a close, and now we have a much better idea about the Green Lantern future of both John Stewart and Guy Gardner.
• Lanterns ends with Guy Gardner still the official Green Lantern of Space Sector 2814, with John taking a power ring for himself, becoming an “independent contractor” Green Lantern.
• Nerdist’s take: We finally have a good explanation as to why Earth will have two Green Lanterns in James Gunn’s upcoming Man of Tomorrow. And we’re glad the DCU will have more than one Earth Lantern, just as in the comics.

For the entire first season of Lanterns, the series has built towards John Stewart (Aaron Pierre) taking on the role of Green Lantern. But as we learned in episode five, after feeling manipulated by the Guardians of the Universe, John rejected the power ring back in 2016. With Hal Jordan then imprisoned on Earth over the catastrophic events in Rushville, obnoxious gym teacher athletic director Guy Gardner (Nathan Fillion) receives the power ring. So does the series end with John still just an ordinary architect? Or does he become a proper Green Lantern at last? And what does that mean for Guy Gardner? The Lanterns finale has answers.

HBO Max/DC Studios Does John Stewart Become a Green Lantern?

In the final episode, John Stewart and the Halogram (Kyle Chandler) find a portal to another world that Hal had hidden in his storage space. On that destroyed and desolate planet, they find Sinestro hiding out. Turns out Noah Macon, revealed as a Manhunter, broke him out of prison. On that planet, Sinestro reveals he figured out a way to forge a new power battery on his own. John realizes he can use this new lantern to charge Hal Jordan’s nearly dead ring, essentially becoming an unauthorized Lantern. By the end of the episode, he does just that, becoming a Green Lantern at last.

HBO Max/DC Studios

John Stewart summons Guy Gardner to Rushville, to inform him that he has Hal Jordan’s old ring, and that he has a power battery with which to charge it. An infuriated Guy knows Stewart is stepping in on his official turf, but John informs him that he’s now a free agent. Guy will remain the official Green Lantern of Sector 2814, and the Guardians of the Universe’s operative. However, John Stewart will function as the Green Lantern of Earth alone, and is essentially operating under his own jurisdiction. John tells Guy to inform the Guardians of his decision, and seems extremely certain they won’t do anything to stop him.

DC Comics Does Lanterns’ Finale Have DC Comics Precedent?

Is there comic book precedent for a “free agent” member of the Green Lantern Corps? Actually, yes. The idea of “Honor Guard” members of the Green Lantern Corps has existed since 1981. These Honor Guard Lanterns operate without a space sector, and more or less function without reporting to the Guardians. They’re not limited to one space sector and have free rein across the cosmos. Also, Alan Scott, Earth’s first Green Lantern, is technically not a member of the Corps. Although the Guardians do acknowledge him as a Lantern, as his ring draws power from an energy source they created, he’s also a free agent, not tied to their rules. So John Stewart being an “independent contractor” Lantern has precedent in the pages of DC Comics.

Nerdist’s Take: We’re Thrilled Both John Stewart and Guy Gardner Will Wield Power Rings in the DCU Going Forward

So what does this all mean for the DCU? We know both John Stewart and Guy Gardner will appear in James Gunn’s upcoming Man of Tomorrow. This makes total sense, because if a world-ending alien threat like Brainiac arrives, both Green Lanterns would join in the fight. Does that mean we get an eventual Justice League with two Green Lanterns on it? It’s quite possible, and it’s certainly happened in the comics before. We’ll find out more when Man of Tomorrow hits theaters next year, and hopefully, in an eventual Lanterns season two.

All of Lanterns season one is currently streaming on HBO Max.

Eric Diaz is a staff writer at Nerdist and a Swiss Army knife of fandoms. Eric loves DC, Marvel, horror movies, and even Star Wars and Star Trek equally.

The post How LANTERNS Ends for John Stewart and Guy Gardner appeared first on Nerdist.

Quick Take

• The finale of Lanterns finally answered the central mystery: who killed Hal Jordan and more importantly, why?
• We learned through a series of flashbacks all of the events that led to Hal’s sad murder.
• But if you expected some kind of largescale cosmic reason, you might be surprised that it’s much more homespun.
• Nerdist Take: This turn of events really is the most tragic version. It wasn’t an alien bent on world domination, it wasn’t some larger conspiracy. It truly was love that did Hal Jordan in.

The first episode of Lanterns left us with a central mystery for in both 2016 and 2026. Naturally, like any good True Detective-inspired series, the earlier plot informed the later plot. But that meant for the next six episodes, we had knowledge that Hal Jordan (Kyle Chandler) would die, shot in the head. The penultimate episode found John Stewart (Aaron Pierre) using Hal’s ring (and the Halogram) to visit an alien world in search of the truth.

But the reality of how and why Hal died is a lot more tragic and moderately less cosmic than maybe we first thought. Spoilers abound.

HBO Max What Led to Hal Jordan’s Death?

Episode seven, “Dirt and Stars,” begins with a flashback to earlier in 2026. Sheriff Kerry Kane (Kelly Macdonald) picks Hal up as he leaves prison. The two then begin a very cute romance. Even as everyone in Rushville hates and despises Hal, Kerry makes it clear she to everyone in a restaurant that she likes him and appreciates he’s trying to make amends.

But Kerry is very much in the minority. One night, someone (or a group of someones) firebombs Jordan’s house and it seems he’ll die. However, he wakes up in the Macon slaughterhouse, with Kerry’s son Noah (Shea Pritchard) standing over him. He used Manhunter technology to rebuild Hal’s burnt flesh. And he knows how to use it because, as we soon find out, Noah himself is a Manhunter like his grandmother.

HBO Max/DC Studios

Despite agreeing to keep Noah’s secret (Kerry knows, but doesn’t know Noah knows), Hal follows the boy to a storage unit and finds the portal orb which transports him to the planet Ryut. Hal discovers it was Noah who broke Sinestro (Ulrich Thomsen) out of prison, as a means to forge Noah a lantern of his own that he might kill the Guardians himself. Hal then eats at the diner just as John arrives for the apology that never happened. This is why Hal begs John not to tell anyone he’s seen him. He doesn’t want Noah to know they spoke, lest the young Manhunter believe Hal snitched.

Who Killed Hal Jordan in Lanterns?

Hal knows what Noah is and finds Kerry at the football field to tell her. Kerry is at first worried that Noah will find out his own truth, but Hal tells her Noah is already well aware and making moves. He knows Noah is dangerous and that the Guardians and the entire Lantern Corp will eventually find him. He proposes they all three of them leave, perhaps to another planet, far from the watchful eyes of the green people.

But Kerry is in denial. She doesn’t want to believe Noah capable of going full Manhunter. She tells Hal that, when Zoe cut off her finger to save her from mobsters, she implanted Manhunter DNA into Kerry when making her a new finger. Kerry became pregnant, despite not having a partner. Noah was always more Zoe’s kid than her own, but Kerry grew to love him and want to protect him.

HBO Max/DC Studios

As Hal keeps insisting they need to leave, Kerry spins around and fires her weapon, hitting the former Green Lantern squarely in the forehead. Just as he says he loves her, too. Real bad timing. Kerry never wanted to kill Hal, just stop him from acting against Noah. But it was too late. Cleaning up the crime scene, Kerry then calls John and kicks off all the action of the 2026 storyline.

This turn of events really is the most tragic version. It wasn’t an alien bent on world domination, it wasn’t some larger conspiracy. It truly was love that did Hal Jordan in. Even more tragic is that Noah was prepared to take the full blame, just to protect his mom. As John says, that’s not programming; that’s love.

Could Hal Jordan Ever Return?

Anything is possible in comic book storytelling. Sinestro mentioned to the Halogram that he could bring Hal back to life “for real,” although this could have been merely a tactic to get free from the hell planet. That said, Hal Jordan died in the comics and came back. First as the host body for the Spectre, the literal spirit of vengeance. Then, he later went on a walkabout of sorts in the nether realms and return to proper life. So, never count a Green Lantern out.

Kyle Anderson is the Senior Editor for Nerdist. You can find his film and TV reviews here. Follow him on Letterboxd.

The post What Really Happened to Hal Jordan on LANTERNS? appeared first on Nerdist.

Quick Take

• The season finale of Lanterns had many questions to answer, and in our opinion, it successfully answered most of them.
• Viewers will find out who killed Hal Jordan (Kyle Chandler), and whether or not John Stewart (Aaron Pierre) takes the power ring, in a way that is emotionally gratifying and does not feel unearned.
• There were some dangling plot threads involving Sinestro that were not wrapped up in a satisfying way, so we definitely hope we get a second season of Lanterns.
• Nerdist’s take: We ultimately think the Lanterns finale stuck the landing, especially in terms of character arcs. But the way this show shies away from its comic booky elements is annoying, and we hope season two corrects that.

We all knew a show called Lanterns was coming on HBO based on DC’s Green Lantern comics, but no one saw it coming, if you catch our drift. No one foresaw this grounded take on DC Comics’ emerald space cops was going to be as compelling as it was, with acting and craftsmanship behind the scenes to rival the best of HBO’s “prestige television” greats, like True Detective. A series this show owed a great debt to, as much as any comic book. But with all episodes now behind us, did the Lanterns showrunners, along with the cast, stick the landing? We’re happy to say, they mostly did.

HBO Max/DC Studios

Episode eight of Lanterns had a lot to tie up in one hour. We needed resolution to the season-long “Who killed Hal Jordan?” mystery. We needed to see if John Stewart (Aaron Pierre) would take the power ring and become a true Green Lantern at last. And we needed to know if there were still remnants of the Manhunter threat in Rushville, ten years later. And on an emotional level, we needed to know if John Stewart would make peace with his destiny, and with Hal Jordan (Kyle Chandler). Or, should we say, the ghost of Hal Jordan in the form of the Halogram. And we’re happy to say that the episode mostly ties those threads up in a satisfactory fashion.

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The episode winds its way all over the Lanterns timeline, starting with Rushville in 2016, Hal’s release from prison in 2026, and right where the previous episode left off, with John and the Halogram interrogating Sinestro (Ulrich Thomsen) on the desolate alien world. Much of the lingering mysteries find resolution in a massive exposition dump by Sinestro while confined to a chair. This comes after a lengthy waterboarding torture sequence performed by John. This confession scene works to solve the various unanswered questions the audience had. If anything, this scene depicts a far more morally gray John than usual. It makes up for the standard “bad guy confesses everything” nature of it all. The writers turned it into a revealing character moment, instead of just a Scooby-Doo unmasking scene.

HBO Max/DC Studios

Of course, the questions the audience really cares about, who killed Hal, and whether John becomes a Green Lantern, find answers in a more emotionally gratifying way by the end of the episode. We won’t spoil the answers to the mystery here. We recommend just watching the episode. But we’ll say that it’s wrapped up with fantastically acted moments from Aaron Pierre, Kelly Macdonald, and, surprisingly, Shea Pritchard. The latter only just joined the series in the previous episode as the older Noah Macon. All three actors give their characters a nuance that no one was probably expecting from the “Magic Ring Superheroes” show. We think very few fans of the series are going to be unhappy about how things end for John Stewart.

HBO Max/DC Studios

As for what didn’t work, the plotline with Sinestro definitely remained dangling. This ties into the cosmic nature of the source material, something most of the writers are clearly less interested in. All signs indicate that a potential Lanterns season two will deal with some of these threads. And that takes the sting away a bit. But we still hate that some of that stuff did not receive a better resolution. The finale, and the whole series really, wasted great actors like Jason Ritter. We just don’t get why they cast them at all for such thankless roles. Laura Linney’s Guardian character felt like she needed one more moment, and we just didn’t get it. Those things were disappointing, to be sure.

Nerdist’s Take: Lanterns Season One Was an Incredible Character Study, But Season 2 Seriously Needs More Green Lantern Action

In the end, however, what made Lanterns season one great was how successfully it handled the story of two men, at the opposite ends of their lives and careers, facing their pasts and futures. When it came to its thematic elements and character arcs for its main cast, we think Lanterns succeeded in spades by its conclusion. And if this turns out to be the last episode ever, we’d still say we’re about 75% satisfied, which isn’t bad. But if there is a next time, and we certainly hope there is, we hope they mix in the weighty character stuff with a bit more actual Green Lanterning. We don’t think that’s an absurd request for a show called Lanterns.

All eight episodes of Lanterns are now streaming on HBO Max.

Eric Diaz is a staff writer at Nerdist and a Swiss Army knife of fandoms. Eric loves DC, Marvel, horror movies, and even Star Wars and Star Trek equally.

The post The LANTERNS Season Finale Mostly Sticks the Landing (Review) appeared first on Nerdist.

Quick Take

• The final episode of Lanterns’ first season ended with a handful of mysteries still up in the air, ones we hope an eventual season two of the show will answer.
• We have questions about the fate of Sinestro, John Stewart’s new power battery, the Manhunter that still exists, and a possible return for Hal Jordan.
• Nerdist’s take: We hope a potential season two of Lanterns addresses some of the bigger cosmic elements and mysteries, now that the character arcs for its leads are essentially tied up. And we really want more aliens.

Lanterns has ended its first season, or what we hope is just its first season. As of now, HBO Max has not officially announced a season two. But between the ratings and the critical buzz, all signs point to Lanterns getting another season. And we are certainly amped for that, because the end of season one certainly left a few questions up in the air that we still await answers to. Here are the top things we hope Lanterns season two address which the first season left unanswered. As always, spoilers for the whole season abound below.

What Happens to Sinestro?

The season ends with Thaal Sinestro (Ulrick Thomsen), the former Green Lantern who went rogue and killed a Guardian, busted out of prison by the Manhunter, Noah Macon. He’s retreated to the planet where, untold centuries ago, Manhunter Zoe once committed genocide with her fear toxin. John and the Halogram find him in a strange foundry there in the middle of a body of water, where Sinestro confesses to having forged a new lantern battery. Only this lantern was forged using elements found on that planet.

HBO Max/DC Studios

By the episode’s end, John Stewart leaves him on that little island on that barren world with no way out. He can’t swim across the water because the ocean is toxic. So what happens next? We can’t imagine that’s the end of Sinestro, as he’s such a major character in the Green Lantern mythology. Will he forge his yellow ring, and start up his own Sinestro Corps, just as in the comics? The ultimate fate of Sinestro has us the most curious about what season two might cover. He’s just too big a character to be “left for dead” on some remote planet.

Can Sinestro Really Bring Hal Jordan Back to Life For Real? HBO Max/DC Studios

Speaking of Sinestro, when John Stewart is interrogating him, he suggests to the Halogram that if he can be freed and allowed to forge a new lantern, he can “Bring him back, for real.” Sinestro later says that once John charges his ring on the new lantern, Hal’s consciousness will be lost, and he won’t be able to bring Hal back. Of course, by the episode’s end, John does charge the ring. But we highly doubt the writers would leave that comment by Sinestro for no reason. Not unless it was something he could really do, or something they had plans to address. It’s also possible that Sinestro means he could bring Hal back as an undead Black Lantern. We don’t think that’s the plan, but season two must explain just what Sinestro meant by this. We all want more Kyle Chandler as Hal, so they better follow that up.

Will Noah Macon Succumb to His Manhunter Programming? HBO Max/DC Studios

At the end of the season, John essentially made the judgment call to not kill Noah Macon (Shea Pritchard), whom he now knows is a human-born Manhunter agent. He believes his human upbringing can counter any ancient programming the Guardians of the Universe instilled in his DNA. But it seems that Noah has a clear course for success in life. College sports parlayed into fame, parlayed into politics, then parlayed into eventually becoming President. James Gunn has said that the events of Lanterns would have larger ramifications on the DCU. Could it be they’re setting up Noah Macon as the DCU’s “Big Bad?” And if so, what does that mean for John, who could have ended this potential threat? We hope Lanterns season two at least touches on this possibility.

Will the Guardians Retaliate Against John Stewart For Taking Hal’s Ring? HBO Max/DC Studios

At the end of the episode, John tells Guy Gardner to tell the Guardians of the Universe he’s “Earth’s Green Lantern.” John tells Guy to tell them his bosses he won’t be following their orders. He’s essentially daring them to come after him and take the ring away, which he strongly suspects they won’t do. After all, he knows Guardian Lianna’s dirty little secret about the Manhunters. But there is more than one Guardian of the Universe out there. We don’t think John’s declaration as a rogue “independent contractor” Green Lantern likely sits well with all of that immortal race. And if that’s the case, we need to find out what kind of response they’ll have. Maybe we’ll actually see some other Lanterns show up in response.

Will John’s New Lantern Forged with Fear Water and Air Matter? HBO Max/DC Studios

By season’s end, John Stewart’s is using the lantern battery that Sinestro forged on that lost planet. A lantern that John noticed had yellow cracks in it, because Sinestro forged it on a world where fear toxin infused the air and water. Now, in the comics, this is how the fear entity Parallax took over the mind and body of Hal Jordan. This is not something that ever happened to John Stewart. But could Lanterns be flipping the script, setting up John for a Parallax turn? We don’t think they’ll veer that far from the known mythology. But there’s something up with John’s Sinestro-forged lantern, and we need to know what it’s all about.

Will We Ever See Aliens on this Green Lantern-Based Series?

Look, we love Lanterns. It’s one of the best character dramas of the year, and one of television’s best mysteries of the year as well. But aside from Sinestro, a dude in pinkish makeup, we didn’t see a single alien on this show. We might have had mentions of Mogo and Ch’p, but not a sign of anything non-human. Now that HBO has the normies hooked with Lanterns, we really hope we see some actual aliens on this series. We’re not saying the show needs to take place in outer space, but they’ve got to give us something in this regard.

All of Lanterns season one is now streaming on HBO Max.

Eric Diaz is a staff writer at Nerdist and a Swiss Army knife of fandoms. Eric loves DC, Marvel, horror movies, and even Star Wars and Star Trek equally.

The post The Major Questions We Still Have After the LANTERNS Finale appeared first on Nerdist.

Quick Take

• Baldur’s Gate 3 comics are coming from Dark Horse Comics and Wizards of the Coast.
• These comics will feature at least Astarion and Karlach.
• We don’t know too much about the plot of these Baldur’s Gate 3 comics, but we feel excited.

It’s a Baldur’s Gate 3 tie-in world, and we’re all just living in it. First, we heard a Baldur’s Gate 3 TV series is in the works. Then Astarion got his very own backstory novel. Now, Dark Horse Comics is teasing a “beautifully bloody new comic series” that promises a Dark Horse Comics and Baldur’s Gate 3 (Wizards of the Coast) will be collaborating. Yes, a series of Baldur’s Gate 3 comics are coming. So far, we know at least Astarion will be involved in these comics… and maybe even Karlach.

Dark Horse Comics What Will the Baldur’s Gate 3 Comics Be About?

At the moment, we don’t have any other news about the new Astarion, Karlach, Baldur’s Gate 3 comics or what they’ll be about. But we do kind of hope Astarion and Karlach can go on a joint journey. They’re a pretty fun pair, if we do say so ourselves. (But where’s Halsin?!)

At the moment, all Dark Horse Comics has to say is: “Hello, darling… A beautifully bloody new comic series is coming your way soon. Please stay tuned for the full announcement on Friday October 9 at #NYCC! 🗽 Dark Horse Comics x Baldur’s Gate 3.” So we’ll surely know more soon.

We Love the Artwork We See From the Baldur’s Gate 3 Comics So Far Dark Horse Comics

We do have some really gorgeous art from these new comics, though. Whatever adventures our party will go on in these stories, we know they are in well-drawn hands. Astarion is looking deliciously bloody, and might we say, more like Neil Newbon than ever. And Karlach’s gleaming eyes have us CAUGHT in her spell. Okay, we’re in and ready to say “Hello Darling,” “Hey Soldier,” etc. to these new adventures.

All These Tie-Ins Make Us Want to Play the Game Again

But it’ll probably be some time before these Baldur’s Gate 3 comics arrive in our hands. We guess in the meantime, we can revisit the original game and enjoy some of those great smooches. Baldur’s Gate 3 comics will bring Astarion and co. into a whole new medium, and we feel excited for that. But we’ll always love going back to the original story.

Rotem Rusak is the Editor-in-Chief at Nerdist. She is a great lover of the anti-hero and is always ready for a new ship to set sail. In her work, she likes to combine fandom passion with journalistic sensibilities. Follow her on Instagram.

The post BALDUR’S GATE 3 Comics Are Coming appeared first on Nerdist.

Quick Take

• Alison Mattingly’s queer horror short, Burning of a Family Tree, is screening now. This short is cathartic and scary.

Every queer person knows that if there’s a way out of a bad situation, you take it. But bad situations have a way of trying to pull you back in. And what’s truer horror than that? In a phenomenal new queer horror short, Burning of a Family Tree, the exact sensation of responsibility, yearning, anger, fear, and hope for catharsis many queer folks feel is distilled into 10 glorious minutes. All the while, the short weaves a compelling tale that brings an eerie new horror villain into the mix, promises deeper lore, and has you thinking, I could watch 80 more minutes of this. If you’re a queer horror fan, you won’t want to miss Burning of a Family Tree… And the good news is that it’s screening in film festivals now. Here’s more about the short and where you can watch it.

A release shares that the queer horror short, Burning of a Family Tree, is written and directed by Alison Mattingly. The short “follows non-binary protagonist, Eden Becker (Haven), who returns home to their estranged family after the death of their abusive father, Gerald. There, Eden discovers their family’s religious fanaticism has evolved into a cult-like nightmare, forcing them to confront their traumatic past…and their father’s reanimated corpse.”

Kilgore Productions

Burning of a Family Tree stars the incredibly talented Jack Haven (I Saw the TV Glow, Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma), as well as Robert Lewis Stephenson (Landman, Criminal Minds), Jonathan von Mering (The Pitt, The Holdovers), and Conn Barrett (It’s Florida, Man, The Legend of Resurrection Mary). The entire cast delivers compelling performances, making this queer horror short rich with the inner lives of its characters, even in only a handful of minutes. Every character is truly dimensional and we get a sense for all their different dimensions and relationships.

And it’s worth mentioning that in only 10 minutes, this short made me jump several times. It’s SCARY.

Kilgore Productions

Burning of a Family Tree had its World Premiere at Popcorn Frights Film Festival 2026 and will hold its LA Premiere at ScreamFest Horror Film Festival this October. Mattingly shares, “Playing at ScreamFest has long been a personal goal of mine as a filmmaker, and I’m beyond ecstatic to see that dream realized with, Burning of a Family Tree. Through Eden’s journey, my goal was to form a catharsis for not only myself, but all the trans and queer individuals in this country and across the world who have had to live under the terror of a looming monster like Gerald.” Mission accomplished with this queer horror short.

Kilgore Productions

You can also catch Burning of a Family Tree at the following film festivals and dates:

• Oct 5th (Block 3 @ 3:30p) – Chicago Horror Film Festival (Chicago)
• Oct 10th (Block 3 @ 3:00p) – ScreamFest LA (Los Angeles)
• Oct 16th (Scare Package Block @ 5:30p) – Seattle Trans Underground Film Fest (Seattle)
• Oct 15-18 (TBD Screening Block) – Nightmares Film Festival (Columbus, OH)

As we said, if you’re a fan of queer horror, you HAVE to get yourself to a screening of this short. For more information, you can follow the film’s social media account @BurningOfAFamilyTree.

Editorial Note: Alison Mattingly is employed by Legendary Digital Networks, of which Nerdist is a subsidiary.

Rotem Rusak is the Editor-in-Chief at Nerdist. She is a great lover of the anti-hero and is always ready for a new ship to set sail. In her work, she likes to combine fandom passion with journalistic sensibilities. Follow her on Instagram.

The post BURNING OF A FAMILY TREE Is a Phenomenally Creepy Queer Horror Short, Screening Now appeared first on Nerdist.

Quick Take

• Eddie Murphy has signed on to star in his first scripted TV series, Mad Men creator Matthew Weiner’s new Peacock show The Chairman.
• No details about the series are known, but it comes from 01 Studios (Yellowstone, Landman, MobLand).
• While Murphy created two animated shows in the ’90s, this is his first real foray into television since he left SNL in 1984.

Eddie Murphy established his place in television’s Pantheon on Saturday Night Live. His meteoric rise then took him to the top of the box office as he quickly conquered the big screen. That’s where his career has primarily remained for more than 40 years. But that’s about to change. The comedy legend is returning to TV. Eddie Murphy will star in The Chairman, a new TV series at Peacock from Mad Men‘s Matthew Weiner.

NBC

Deadline reports Murphy has signed on to star in his first-ever scripted TV show. Weiner, best known as the creator and showrunner for Mad Men, is writing the series. He’ll also serve as an executive producer alongside Murphy. The show will come from 01 Studios (Yellowstone, Landman, MobLand) and Universal Television.

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No details about the TV show’s plot or premise are known. We know its star is up to the challenge of leading a drama, though. Over his four+ decades on the big screen Murphy has shown his acting chops countless times. In 2007, he also earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor for his stellar performance in Dreamgirls. (He lost to Little Miss Sunshine‘s Alan Arkin.) But if you ever needed proof that awards don’t always tell a complete story, just remember Eddie Freaking Murphy never won an Emmy while he was on TV for SNL. He claimed his first and only Emmy win in 2020. He took home the statue for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series after finally returning to Studio 8H to host.

While he has never starred on a scripted TV series, he did develop two animated shows in the ’90s. Murphy was behind Fox’s The PJs and CBS’s The Royal Family. The fact that Eddie Murphy has signed on to star on The Chairman is the best sign yet for the TV show. Is it even possible Weiner could ever create another show as good as Mad Men or The Sopranos, which he also wrote for and executive produced? That’s a tall order for any TV series. But then again, no other show has ever before convinced Eddie Murphy to be its star.

Mikey Walsh is a staff writer at Nerdist. You can follow Mikey on Bluesky at @‌burgermike. And also anywhere someone is ranking the Targaryen kings.

The post Eddie Murphy Stars in First TV Series, Matthew Weiner’s THE CHAIRMAN appeared first on Nerdist.

Quick Take

• Digger isn’t a musical, but it does have a massive twist.
• We break down Digger’s big twist, how it’s revealed, and what it means.
• Nerdist Take: Ultimately, Digger‘s twist presents us with two contrasting ideas, one about hope and one about despair.

There’s been a lot of chatter about Tom Cruise’s newest movie, Digger. After all, the trailers for Digger offered glimpses that left us befuddled but excited about the story that could unfold on our screens. In a couple of words, we thought the movie looked “real weird.” And we weren’t the only ones… Internet conspiracy theorists insist that Digger is actually a musical in disguise. Ultimately, Digger is NOT a musical, but it DOES have a twist. Let’s dig into what’s really happening in Digger, delve into what the twist of the movie is, and explain what it really means. As we said, Digger is not a musical, but…

Digger’s Twist Explained: Digger Is Actually a Play Warner Bros.

Surprise. Digger is actually a play. It’s a play within a movie! That is to say, Digger tells the story of a play rehearsal in a dystopian future where climate change, world war, unchecked greed, and oil drilling has wrecked the world. In the context of this reality, actors are putting on a parody play about the historical figure, Digger Rockwell, the man who destroyed the world. In the movie Digger, we see both sequences that take place in “the present” and “the past.” In the present, we follow actors living in a dystopia as they try to put on a play and survive. Then, we also see the play they are putting on about the past, as though we are the audience watching the play itself. But the play is screened to us as a movie, the trappings of the stage falling away.

In other words, we see Tom Cruise playing an actor who is playing Digger Rockwell in Digger. Whenever we see Tom Cruise as Digger, we are immersed in the world of the play about Digger Rockwell. That play is a parody history of the world the play takes place in. And whenever we see Tom Cruise break character, we flash to the present of that world, where Digger’s actions have destroyed life as we know it.

Digger‘s Two-Part Twist: First, We Learn Digger Is Actually a Play

Digger actually reveals its twist very cleverly. From the start, it’s clear that things aren’t 100% real in the “play” scenes of Digger, which run for quite a while before finally zooming out to reveal the backstage of a theater and that Tom Cruise is actually an actor playing Digger Rockwell. We see that Digger’s beloved cat is clearly an animatronic in the very first scene, for one thing. For another, visual cues like the overly picturesque and expansive view out of Digger’s window just LOOK fake. But at the start of Digger, it’s hard to know whether the movie was just aiming for something slightly surreal.

Digger doesn’t keep us in suspense too long, though, and very overtly reveals the first part of its twist. The camera pans out, and we find ourselves on the set of what we are told is a play. We follow Tom Cruise as he falls out of Digger Rockwell and into the actor who is playing Digger Rockwell. (Who is something of a drama queen.) And we get to peer into the behind-the-scenes world of the play being put on. The movie then flips between showing us the play and showing us the actors in between scenes.

Digger’s Two-Part Twist: Digger’s Play, Fossil Fools, Is a Historical Parody of Past Events That Actually Happened, It Is Being Performed in The Future/Present Warner Bros./Legendary Pictures

But the fact that Digger is a play is only a part of the movie’s twist. As the movie intercuts through the “play” sequences and the “behind-the-scenes” sequences, we start to understand that Digger‘s play is being put on in a very specific world. Namely, we learn that the play about Digger Rockwell, titled Fossil Fools, is actually a parody of historical figures and events that really happened in the world. The world in which the play is being put on is actually a dystopia wherein Digger Rockwell’s refusal to stop drilling for oil started a chain reaction that led to climate change, world war, and the overall destruction of the planet. The Fossil Fools play now parodically retells these historical events for an audience who has lived through them and their consequences.

Little clues throughout Digger hint at this twist, as it becomes clear the “past” play is converging with the present storyline. For example, as we see Digger digging the world into a deeper whole with melting icebergs and bombs, we hear about a “Category Six” hurricane, something that doesn’t yet exist in our world, but hints at immense climate catastrophe. And we see the actors using futuristic technology to communicate and perform the play. Ultimately though, it’s a very well-delivered monologue by Jesse Plemons’ mysterious character that reveals all to the audience.

It Is Actually Digger’s Nephew, Played By Jesse Plemons, Who Is Putting on The Play Warner Bros./Legendary Pictures

Surprise! Yes, another Digger twist: it’s actually the real Digger’s nephew, Eddie Rockwell, played by Jess Plemons, who is putting on the play in the first place. Plemons’ Eddie survived his family’s exile after the role they played in massive world destruction (although they were never technically punished) and his uncle’s suicide to come out on top. Eddie Rockwell seemingly took over the “Green Energy” company run by Digger’s sister and Eddie’s mother, Emma Rockwell, played by Sandra Hüller. Digger, of course, never cared about this “Green Energy,” just as Emma never truly cared that Digger was destroying the planet.

Either way, Plemons’ Eddie Rockwell saw the parody play Fossil Fools about his family and decided to turn the idea into something bigger, giving it funding and a major stage. He claims he applauded the play mocking his Uncle Digger. He saw how the play gave the audience catharsis and a place to put their feelings of pain, sadness, and anger. Eddie Digger wants the play to allow its audience to escape the horror of their lives, created by his Uncle, and find some kind of peace. And that’s why he’s put on the play in Digger. (Yeah, okay.)

Nerdist Take: Digger’s Play Both Promises Communal Catharsis Will Always Exist and Cautions That If We Don’t Take Action, We’ll All be Inert as the Rich Get Richer Warner Bros.

Ultimately, the Digger play twists highlight two contrasting ideas. First, obviously, Digger warns us that the stupid rich control our lives. And that even when they utterly tear down everything and make the world a living hell, they will escape true consequence. Digger Rockwell might have killed himself, but Eddie Rockwell was able to use his family’s fortune and status to not only survive, but thrive in a dystopia. He does a couple of nice things in Digger, like helping Digger’s actor to locate his daughter after she is lost in a hurricane, and insists on putting on the play Fossil Fools to give the masses catharsis. But instead, he could be using his money to actually help people.

At the end of Digger, we see every single person in the audience put on a high-tech gas mask before exiting. No doubt the people bought these gas masks from the Digger family, who forced them into this mess in the first place. Ultimately, Eddie Rockwell helps Digger’s actor save his daughter from a catastrophe his family helped cause and now profits from. The selfish rich continue to enact the actions of the selfish rich, and the cycle continues.

At the same time, we do see that Digger‘s play does bring a rare moment of entertainment and community to the people forced to live in this horrible world. And in a sense, Digger the movie does the same in ours. Entertainment will always be important. We’re glad communal catharsis can exist into dystopia. But frankly, we’ll take the first lesson more to heart. Let us not allow ourselves to fall into the future Digger paints in the first place.

Final Thoughts: Even Though Digger Isn’t a Musical, We Feel Like the Internet Got it Right on This One

My favorite conspiracy theory right now is that Digger is secretly a musical and they’re desperately trying to hide it in the marketing pic.twitter.com/JORNZ0iqib

— Jason Pargin, author of John Dies at the End, etc (@JasonKPargin) September 10, 2026

Our final thoughts on Digger? We have to give it to the internet on this one. Digger is not a musical, but really, aren’t a play and a musical practically the same thing? Same genre anyway. We feel like the internet got it right and called the Digger twist! But that also speaks, we suppose, to how Tom Cruise and the rest of Digger‘s actors successfully played their parts as if they were in a play. They managed to get the sense of theater across even in snippets of the trailer without context. Job well done by all!

Digger is now in theaters.

Rotem Rusak is the Editor-in-Chief at Nerdist. She is a great lover of the anti-hero and is always ready for a new ship to set sail. In her work, she likes to combine fandom passion with journalistic sensibilities. Follow her on Instagram.

The post DIGGER’s Twist, Explained—Not a Musical, But… appeared first on Nerdist.

Quick Take

• CEO David Ellison announced the launch of his mega-studio Skydance with a video that opens with footage from Titanic.
• The Titanic was an “unsinkable” ship built by overconfident rich guys that vey famously crashed and sank on its maiden voyage.
• Some people think this video is a bit of very funny, unaware foreshadowing, but that’s only true if you understand metaphors.

The fight against Paramount’s monopolistic, job-destroying purchase of Warner Bros. Discovery is over. After a judge brushed aside the final formal objection to the mega-merger, the two companies will formally come together early next week. We now know the uber-corporation will go by the name Skydance. While many both inside and outside of the industry aren’t happy about any of this, CEO David Ellison continues to promise this deal will be good for creatives and consumers alike. To share his excitement he took to social media to share an optimistic message likely written by AI that also featured an accompanying video. Skydance’s first introduction to the world opens with footage from Titanic, a film about an opulent ship built by overconfident executives that is famous for crashing and sinking.

What once was the peak, is now just the beginning.

Paramount and Warner Bros. shaped over a century of culture. By combining them, we aren't rewriting history — we're equipping these iconic studios with a more powerful engine. Together, we are Skydance: a creative-first home for… pic.twitter.com/uInLRY3IrE

— David Ellison (@ellisonskydance) October 2, 2026

Yes! It makes perfect sense to announce this new company with a clip from Titanic. The movie won so many awards for Paramount! It’s one of the most beloved and popular films of all time. Titanic is exactly the type of IP Skydance should highlight.

Now, as you might remember (don’t feel too badly if you don’t, it happened more than one hundred years ago!), Titanic is based on a very real event. See, what had happened was that a bunch of rich guys built a ship even God couldn’t sink. Then the company’s CEO demanded it travel full speed through a field of ice during its maiden voyage so it could set a meaningless record. Instead, it struck an iceberg and sank, killing roughly 1,500 people. There are, like, one or two books about this otherwise forgotten maritime incident.

Paramount

But, again, Titanic won like a million Oscars and Skydance could win like a million Oscars! That’s all that matters here. There’s obviously no meaning behind making us mentally connect this merger of Warner Bros. and Paramount with the Titanic. This is NOT some kind of accidental foreshadowing made without an ounce of self-awareness. Just like there’s nothing any of us can ever learn from history. The past is over, you know? Full steam ahead! is what I always say. Because I lack critical thinking skills.

For some reason, though, a few silly gooses thinking launching your new company by tying it to the launch of the f***ing Titanic is symbolic of what awaits this entire Skydance endeavor. I can’t imagine why, but in fairness, we should hear from both sides.

— 🎃 Ryan S. Pumpkins 🎃 (Any Questions?) (@ryanwritesgood.bsky.social) 2026-10-02T16:44:19.511Z

— Jameson (@jamesonstarship.bsky.social) 2026-10-02T16:41:44.565Z

— Logan Hard (@loganhard.bsky.social) 2026-10-02T16:35:26.376121Z

— King of the Suburbs (@jamesbaumann.bsky.social) 2026-10-02T16:23:33.313Z

With the merging of these two iconic companies, Skydance is ready to soar into the future!

— Ken Tremendous (@kentremendous.bsky.social) 2026-10-02T15:59:39.244Z

….Hey…..wait. IS there a possible connection between this controversial new Skydance studio and the Titanic? Is this an ominous sign, one that lacks all self-awareness, about the fate of unchecked hubris? Some seem to think so.

But not me. I’m all in on this creative-first ho. I mean, what can go wrong? Skydance isn’t a ship like the Titanic. It’s not like it can literally hit an iceberg and sink, you know? It’ll be totally fine, and you have my guarantee as someone who doesn’t know what “metaphor” means.

Mikey Walsh is a staff writer at Nerdist. You can follow Mikey on Bluesky at @‌burgermike. And also anywhere someone is ranking the Targaryen kings.

The post Skydance Launches with Footage of Overconfident Ship Famous For Sinking appeared first on Nerdist.

Quick Take

• The 2020s have been a weird decade but we have gotten a lot of great horror movies and shows out of it.
• We love to be frightened but we also like when horror tosses in some funny one-liners and reactions.
• To celebrate Nerdoween, we are highlighting 13 funny quotes that we love from these recent shows and films.

If there’s one genre that’s excelling in the 2020s, it is horror. We’ve gotten quite a few film and television gems, both from well-known franchises and original stories. Sinners and Weapons even scored big at the Oscars, showing that horror is truly an artform worth recognition. And while we love the more macabre elements of the genre, there’s nothing like a line that makes us giggle in the midst of gasping. So, in honor of Nerdoween, here are 13 funny horror movie and TV show quotes from the 2020s that made us genuinely laugh out loud. 

RELATED ARTICLE

Michael B. Jordan and Ryan Coogler’s SINNERS Oscar Wins Are Huge for Horror “I think I shat myself.” -Delta Slim, Sinners (2025)

Sinners has its share of hilarious moments in the midst of a very intense main plot. Stack’s sarcastic “Nah, we cousins.” found lots of social media fame, but we think that Delta Slim’s very real declaration that he felt like he’d pooped his pants is just as funny. It’s also a very real reaction to have after seeing someone you know turn into a bloodthirsty monster. Delroy Lindo’s delivery is perfection, as is Michael B. Jordan’s bewildered reaction. 

“Why, I’m Pennywise, your dancing daddy!” – Pennywise, IT: Welcome to Derry (2025)

Pennywise has never been a serious being, and that’s exceptionally true in IT: Welcome to Derry. Season one took us back to 1962 to see what terrors this dancing clown would unleash on a group of unsuspecting kids. He delivers a lot of great lines, but the best one of the season is when he addresses Ingrid, calling himself her dancing daddy. It’s hilarious in such a mean-spirited way. 

“Nope.” -Otis Haywood, Nope (2022) NBCUniversal

Otis Haywood’s deadpan single word is what we are all thinking when we spot something suspect. And the fact that it is the title of the film makes it even funnier. Oftentimes, we gripe when characters do incredibly boneheaded things, so it is kinda refreshing to see one onscreen who has the same vocal reaction that we do as the viewer. 

“Negroes at Applebee’s cooking pasta? Oh my god, this is so offensive!” – Allison, The Blackening (2023)

This horror comedy gem is packed with lots of jokes from pretty much every character in the film, including the killers. For those who aren’t familiar, The Blackening is about a group of college friends who reunite on Juneteenth weekend to play spades and turn up. Things go awry with a killer with a blackface mask forces them to play a game to prove their Blackness and possibly survive. Allison reading one of the deadly game’s answer choices about what the NAACP stands for and her subsequent disgust makes us cackle every time. 

“Jingle bells, jingle bells, this place f**king smells.” – Dennis, Terrifier 3 (2024) 

We will admit it. The Terrifier franchise isn’t our typical cup of horror tea. But we cannot deny that Art the Clown is scary AF and that the films do have some nice layers of humor. Dennis puts a spin on a typically cheery song, and it became a line that many fans have used in TikTok videos. 

RELATED ARTICLE

ABIGAIL Overdelivers on Its Premise With a Wildly Entertaining Vampire Story “I f**king hate ballet.” -Frank, Abigail (2024)

What happens when you kidnap a rich ballerina for ransom, only to discover that she’s a vampire? A very bad night, that’s what. But it is what the unlucky criminal adults get. Frank is absolutely over Abigail’s s**t and gives us this humorous one-liner. 

“F**king help me!” – Justine, Weapons (2025)  Warner Bros.

Poor Justine. Being a schoolteacher who becomes ostracized by her community after almost her whole class disappears has to be hard. What’s even harder is legit screaming for help just like we would and getting absolutely none. It’s not funny for Justine, but the way she says it makes us laugh for sure. 

“You look like a tuna melt. No one’s gonna love you lookin’ like that.” – Chucky in Chucky (2021-2024)

Chucky has always been one of the more humorous slasher villains. You kinda have to have some funny elements when the killer is a doll, right? That remained the same in the Chucky series, which ran from 2021-2024. At one point, Chucky catches a glimpse of himself in the mirror and laments over his appearance. A tuna melt is certainly not an attractive sandwich, so he’s got a point. 

RELATED ARTICLE

CHUCKY Canceled After 3 Seasons, But Creator Says ‘He’ll Be Back’ “Apparently there’s no age limit for syphilis.” – Rosemary, Widow’s Bay (2026) Apple TV

Widow’s Bay is beloved by our entire staff, and it is certainly just as comedic as it is spooky. Mayor Tom Loftis has his hands full in every way, from old curses to his eccentric staff, including Rosemary. She says there will be no gossip from her but also declares that there’s no age limit on contracting this STD. While getting syphilis is no laughing matter, Rosemary’s delivery of this line and so many others absolutely are. 

“Well maybe you’re the killer… because that cut deep.” – Dewey Riley, Scream (2022) 

Dewey is not only beloved for his fierce devotion to Sidney and Gale, but also for the unintentionally funny things he says. He’s a grizzled old man in this fifth installment, which sadly ends up being his final round, but that doesn’t mean his feelings cannot be hurt. After Wes tells him that he could be the killer because he’s divorced and washed up, Dewey responds with this line, which is perhaps the funniest quote in this horror movie. 

“STAAAAYYYYYYYY!” – Nikki, Obsession (2026) Focus Features/Universal Pictures

Again, a one word quote that is incredibly funny. Obsession became one of the hottest horror flicks of 2026, packing a lot of dark humor into a rather bleak story about a guy who makes a wish for his crush to love him obsessively, and she does to a deadly and disturbing extend. Nikki’s angry command towards Bear, the film’s real villain, frightens us a bit but also makes us literally laugh out loud. 

“Great. We’re gonna be killed by Murder Barbie.” – Josh, Freaky (2020)

Freaky was, well, a freaky horror flick. A big ole serial killer man switching bodies with a high school girl, Millie, is pretty darn wild. And her friend Josh is both scared and perhaps a bit annoyed that he’s in this situation with “Murder Barbie” on his a**. 

RELATED ARTICLE

Get a Freaky Text? Don’t Worry It Was THE BLACK PHONE 2 “Your day f**king sucks.” -Ally, Heart Eyes (2025) Sony Pictures

Heart Eyes is one film that sadly flew under a lot of folks’ radars, but it is a really great addition to the horror comedy landscape. In it, we meet Ally and Jay, who are paired together for an ad campaign. They are mistaken for a couple on Valentine’s Day and become the target of the titular killer. Towards the end of the film, after a night of hell on Earth, Ally is inside a church and sees a statue of Saint Valentine, and tells it that this day f**king sucks. And yeah, it was a night that neither of them will forget. 

Tai Gooden is the Features Editor for Nerdist, a fictional villain apologist, and a horror aficionado who is forever waiting for her trip in the TARDIS.

The post 13 Funny Horror Film and TV Quotes From the 2020s appeared first on Nerdist.

Quick Take

• Jonathan Bailey is bringing a NSFW, steamy version of Dracula to our ears in a new audiobook from Audible.
• We have a few clips of Bailey and Ella Purnell recording their Dracula readings, and they are unbelievably sexy.
• Audible better release the full BTS recordings because we NEED them!

Oh my. As Jonathan Bailey says, Dracula is the ultimate creature of seduction… But we’re not sure we’ve ever seen him quite so STEAMY before. Jonathan Bailey is voicing Dracula in a new audiobook from Audible… But we have to say, we wish we could see the visuals for the entire recording. Because Bailey’s purring, panting, and cackling during his reading… Not to mention the way he keeps touching his body… is quite possibly one of the sexiest visions of Dracula we’ve ever seen… And we’ve seen many of them. We’d call it downright NSFW. Someone tell Jonathan Bailey that Dracula is classing literature… And Ella Purnell, please… don’t let us stop you from slurping up that apple.

First clip of Jonathan Bailey and Ella Purnell recording lines for Audible's audiobook adaptation of ‘DRACULA’. pic.twitter.com/8IrbtRGyYb

— DiscussingFilm (@DiscussingFilm) October 1, 2026

Okay, Audible, you’ve got us. We WILL be snagging this Dracula audiobook, which goes straight to downright filthy in less than a minute. Jonathan Bailey and Ella Purnell are BRINGING something beyond sexy to this version of the vampire tale. As we said, someone get us the full visuals of Bailey reading Dracula because we’ll be forever incomplete without them. And we kind of love the hint in the below featurette that there’s a lot of equal opportunity sexiness going around. Sounds like Purnell’s Lucy and Aimee Lou Wood’s Mina have a little bit of a flirtation going. Well, vampire tales have always been a hot bed for lesbianism, that’s for sure.

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For now, we have put a taste of Bailey’s Dracula and co. But Audible’s audio adaptation of Bram Stoker’s Dracula is available now. A release shares, “The immersive, full-cast audio experience reimagines the classic psychological thriller with an all-star English-language cast led by Jonathan Bailey (Wicked) as Dracula and Ella Purnell (Fallout) as Mina… Rounding out the stellar English cast are Aimee Lou Wood (The White Lotus) as Lucy, Louis Partridge (Enola Holmes) as Jonathan, David Jonsson (Industry) as Dr Seward, Lesley Manville (Phantom Thread) as Mrs Westenra, Johnny Flynn (Ripley) as Renfield, Francis Lovehall (A Thousand Blows) as Arthur, and Maggie Gyllenhaal (The Dark Knight) as Professor Van Helsing.”

Well, strap in, vamp lovers; this will be a fun one to sink your teeth into for sure. If you’d like to read along, you can also snag a of Dracula that you can keep on your shelf.

Rotem Rusak is the Editor-in-Chief at Nerdist. She is a great lover of the anti-hero and is always ready for a new ship to set sail. In her work, she likes to combine fandom passion with journalistic sensibilities. Follow her on Instagram.

The post Jonathan Bailey’s DRACULA Is NSFW-Levels of Steamy appeared first on Nerdist.

Quick Take

• Nicolas Cage, star of Spider-Noir and many terrible movies, compared the MCU and its aging stars in ridiculous costumes to professional wrestling.
• Cage made his comments about the MCU “becoming a well-funded and glorified WWE” at Fan Expo Dallas.
• Nerdist’s Take: Nicolas Cage might be throwing stones from his glass house, but he’s not wrong. He’s also not entirely right.

Oscar-winner Nicolas Cage currently has 131 acting credits on his IMDb page. That is four more than Robert De Niro, even though Cage started his onscreen career 16 years later. Not all of those 131 credits have exactly been top-notch outings. That’s, uh, being polite. We love Cage, but he’s made some pretty terrible films without a ton of artistic merit. So you would think if anyone in Hollywood would not throw stones at other actors’ choices it would be him. Instead, Cage gave the MCU a verbal body slam by comparing the franchise and its aging stars in “ridiculous outfits” to professional wrestling.

Prime Video

The 62-year-old Cage—whose own freaking live-action superhero show Spider-Noir was just canceled at Prime Video!—had some strong/curious/arguably hypocritical thoughts about the MCU during a recent appearance at Fan Expo Dallas. His comments, which we first learned about at The Playlist, aren’t exactly ambiguous. Here’s what he said:

I do say this with love. When I see these 50-plus and otherwise intelligent and remarkably gifted thespians putting on these ridiculous outfits and getting ready for the fight — let’s face it, it’s all cutting to the fight — it’s hard for me not to be reminded that the MCU is becoming a well-funded and glorified WWE.

Okay. Okay, let’s put aside the obvious issue of Nicolas Cage being the one to say this about the MCU so we can evaluate what he said. He’s sort of not wrong? The MCU features a lot of very talented older actors dressing up in elaborate/silly costumes for storylines that culminate in big showy fights. That is quite literally how professional wrestling works. But so what? Like the MCU, when done well, professional wrestling can tell amazing stories. It’s also not like any MCU actor can’t still do amazing work away from the franchise. Robert Downey Jr. won an Oscar for Oppenheimer in-between MCU stints.

Which also sort of proves Cage’s point about the MCU. What could these older actors do if so much of their time wasn’t dedicated to fighting super villains? I suppose they could make more movies like MADDEN.

Prime Video

Cage being the one to say this about the MCU obviously carries an element of someone in a glass house throwing stones. But in addition to having a point, he genuinely does seem to be saying this from a place of love.

Of course, so did Shawn Michaels when he superkicked Ric Flair into retirement….

You know what? That match featured two supremely talented older performers in ridiculous costumes. And it was incredible storytelling. If Avengers: Doomsday is as good as that match, Nic Cage’s MCU comments will be right, just not for the reason he meant.

Mikey Walsh is a staff writer at Nerdist. You can follow Mikey on Bluesky at @‌burgermike. And also anywhere someone is ranking the Targaryen kings.

The post Is Nicolas Cage Right to Slam MCU as ‘Well-Funded and Glorified WWE’? appeared first on Nerdist.