Santa Cruz mayor: Ryan Coonerty secures early lead

Lookout Santa Cruz - Tue, 06/02/2026 - 20:57

Longtime Santa Cruz politico and UC Santa Cruz politics lecturer Ryan Coonerty has taken a comfortable early lead in the crowded, five-person Santa Cruz mayoral race. After the first vote update at 8:15 p.m. Tuesday, Coonerty had 54% of ballots counted, or 3,019 of 5,947 votes. 

After Coonerty, Ami Chen Mills has 16% of the votes cast (902 ballots), Gillian Greensite has 12% (682 ballots), Chris Krohn has 8.6% (474 ballots) and Joy Schendeldecker has 8.5% (466 ballots). 

A candidate needs a simple majority (50% of the total votes cast plus 1) in order to win the election. If no candidate reaches that threshold, the top two vote-getters head to a run-off election in November.

Watching the results from home with his family, Coonerty said he was feeling good and tired.

“I’m grateful to have strong support,” he said. “But I still think there’s lots of votes to count.”

Incumbent Fred Keeley chose not to seek reelection after serving one four-year term.

Over the past two decades, Coonerty served as a Santa Cruz city councilmember, mayor and county supervisor. Recently, he’s worked as an advisor to San Jose mayor and California gubernatorial candidate Matt Mahan

Greensite worked as head of rape prevention education at UC Santa Cruz for 30 years, and is a longtime environmentalist who has pushed back against the city on numerous occasions. For example, she was involved in a lawsuit against the city when it tried to change its heritage tree ordinance. 

Krohn has served two separate terms on the Santa Cruz City Council, with his first stint running from 1998 to 2002. During his second term, Krohn was recalled along with fellow councilmember Drew Glover in March 2020. He was also an educator in UCSC’s environmental studies program. 

Chen Mills is a community advocate and writer and ran for District 3 county supervisor in 2022. She’s also been a leader in the anti-Flock Safety camera movement. 

Schendledecker is an operations manager for local homeless shelter programs and has also had several unsuccessful campaigns for local offices. In 2022, she ran for mayor, losing to Keeley. In 2024, she ran for the District 3 seat on the Santa Cruz City Council, losing to incumbent Shebreh Kalantari-Johnson. 

Candidates for Santa Cruz mayor: (top row from left) Ami Chen Mills, Ryan Coonerty, (bottom row from left) Gillian Greensite, Chris Krohn, Joy Schendledecker. Credit: Kevin Painchaud / Lookout Santa Cruz

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Santa Cruz City Council: Newsome, Golder jump to early leads in District 4, 6 races

Lookout Santa Cruz - Tue, 06/02/2026 - 20:51

Incumbents Scott Newsome and Renee Golder have taken early leads over challengers Hector Marin and Gabriella Noack, respectively, in the race for Santa Cruz City Council Districts 4 and 6 after the county clerk released the first round of primary election results at 8:15 p.m. Tuesday. Newsome had received 58.1% of the vote in District 4 (470 of 929 votes cast) and Golder had received 71.7% of the vote in District 6 (703 of 1,092 votes cast).

“We’re happy to be here. We look forward to the community response,” Marin’s campaign manager, Dave Tannaci, told Lookout at a watch party at Rosie McCann’s on Pacific Avenue. Newsome, Golder, and Noack did not immediately return Lookout’s request for comment.

Newsome is a UC Santa Cruz lecturer and has served one term on the council following his 2022 election victory. He had prevailed over Marin and another challenger, Greg Hyver, to represent District 4, covering downtown and part of the Westside bounded by High Street to the north and Bay Street to the west.

Marin is an English language development and special education classroom aide at Santa Cruz’s Harbor High School. He is running for city council for the third time in the past three election cycles.

Newsome has pointed to successes in building affordable housing throughout the district, protecting residents of the St. George Residences in downtown Santa Cruz from major rent hikes, securing more than $13 million in relief and recovery funding following the 2024 winter storms that damaged and partially collapsed the Santa Cruz Municipal Wharf, and various transportation improvements as some of the main reasons voters should support him for a second term.

Marin has focused his campaign on the high cost of living, and strives to bring transparency and inclusivity to the dais. He wants to work directly with residents to address the city’s most pressing issues, ease requirements for fully affordable housing projects, reduce red tape and push for rent stabilization.

Challenger Gabriella Noack speaks during Lookout’s May 7 candidate forum as District 6 incumbent Renee Golder listens. Credit: Kevin Painchaud / Lookout Santa Cruz

Golder is the principal of the Westside’s Bay View Elementary School and the incumbent in District 6, which covers the lower Westside, the westernmost part of the upper Westside and part of the UC Santa Cruz campus. She is the Monterey Bay representative of the board of directors of the League of California Cities, where she has pushed state lawmakers to stop changes to building codes, and has also advocated for more workforce housing.

Noack is a graduating UC Santa Cruz senior, and has worked as a volunteer peer tutor, a volunteer teacher at the Watsonville jail and co-facilitating a technology program at local nonprofit Barrios Unidos that aims to teach vocational technology skills to people who were previously incarcerated. 

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Letters

Good Times Santa Cruz - Tue, 06/02/2026 - 20:46

Readers weigh in on education and intelligence, rail transit, data center impacts, EPA coal ash protections and praise for Street Talk.

Mayoral race: Coonerty leads a field of five in early count

Santa Cruz Local - Tue, 06/02/2026 - 20:32

Five candidates are vying for Santa Cruz Mayor in the June 2 election. (Amaya Edwards — Santa Cruz Local/CatchLight Local)

.scc-row:hover { background-color: #eee; } Last county update: 6/2/2026 8:15:00 PM
Santa Cruz City Council, Mayor (vote for 1)CandidateTotalAmi Chen Mills902 (16.17%)Ryan Coonerty3,019 (54.13%)Joy Schendledecker466 (8.36%)Gillian Greensite682 (12.23%)Chris Krohn474 (8.50%)Write In34 (0.61%)

 

Note: This story will be updated as vote counts are released. See all results.

SANTA CRUZ >> Ryan Coonerty was leading a crowded field for Santa Cruz Mayor in preliminary results, with 54.13% of the vote as of 8:21 p.m. on June 2.

“I’m really grateful to have this much support, and have all the people who volunteered over the last six weeks to help me get there,” Coonerty said Tuesday night. “I still think there are a lot of votes to count,” he added. “I don’t think it’s close to being over yet.”

His four opponents trailed in early results:

  • Ami Chen Mills had 16.17% of the vote.
  • Gillian Greensite had 12.23%.
  • Chris Krohn had 8.5%.
  • Joy Schendledecker had 8.36%.

In Santa Cruz Local’s voter guide, the five candidates offered different visions for tackling housing, homelessness and other local issues.

If no candidate secures more than 50% of the vote, the top two vote getters will advance to a runoff in the November general election. 

Results will be updated multiple times tonight and throughout the week, and must be finalized by July 2. Follow our election results page for the latest news.

Questions or comments? Email info@santacruzlocal.org. Santa Cruz Local is supported by members, major donors, sponsors and grants for the general support of our newsroom. Our news judgments are made independently and not on the basis of donor support. Learn more about Santa Cruz Local and how we are funded.

Learn about membership Santa Cruz Local’s news is free. We believe that high-quality local news is crucial to democracy. We depend on locals like you to make a meaningful contribution so everyone can access our news. Learn about membership

The post Mayoral race: Coonerty leads a field of five in early count appeared first on Santa Cruz Local.

District 4 County Supervisors race: Nuñez takes early lead over Hernandez

Santa Cruz Local - Tue, 06/02/2026 - 20:30

Three candidates are vying for the District 4 seat on the Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors. From left to right, Elias Gonzales, Felipe Hernandez and Tony Nuñez. (Contributed)

.scc-row:hover { background-color: #eee; } Last county update: 6/2/2026 8:15:00 PM
Santa Cruz County Supervisor, District 4 (vote for 1)CandidateTotalFelipe Hernandez917 (34.79%)Tony Nuñez1,309 (49.66%)Elias Gonzales385 (14.61%)Write In25 (0.95%)

Note: This story will be updated as additional vote counts are released. See all results.

WATSONVILLE>> Tony Nuñez is leading the race for the District 4 seat on the Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors, over Incumbent Felipe Hernandez. 

Nuñez has 49.66% of the vote in preliminary results as of 8:15 p.m. Tuesday. Hernandez has 34.79%, and if neither wins more than 50% of the vote, they will face off in the November general election.

“These results are still very early results. We’re pleased with the initial results,” Hernandez said on Tuesday night. “There are more than 50% of the ballots still to be counted, so we’re taking nothing for granted and look forward to every vote being counted. I’m optimistic moving forward.”

The third candidate in the race, Elias Gonzales, trailed with 14.61%.  The preliminary results will be updated multiple times Tuesday night, and must be finalized by June 30. 

District 4 of Santa Cruz County includes most of Watsonville and surrounding areas of South County. Results will be updated multiple times tonight and throughout the week, and must be finalized by July 2. Follow our election results page for the latest news.

Questions or comments? Email info@santacruzlocal.org. Santa Cruz Local is supported by members, major donors, sponsors and grants for the general support of our newsroom. Our news judgments are made independently and not on the basis of donor support. Learn more about Santa Cruz Local and how we are funded.

Learn about membership Santa Cruz Local’s news is free. We believe that high-quality local news is crucial to democracy. We depend on locals like you to make a meaningful contribution so everyone can access our news. Learn about membership

The post District 4 County Supervisors race: Nuñez takes early lead over Hernandez appeared first on Santa Cruz Local.

The Editor’s Desk

Good Times Santa Cruz - Tue, 06/02/2026 - 20:28

Santa Cruz Pride and VegFest bring color, community and compassion to the weekend, while local news looks at hospital access, battery safety and wildfire resilience.

Incumbents Newsome, Golder lead in preliminary results for Santa Cruz City Council

Santa Cruz Local - Tue, 06/02/2026 - 20:22

Hector Marin, left, is challenging incumbent Scott Newsome for Santa Cruz City Council District 4 in the June 2 election. (Contributed)

.scc-row:hover { background-color: #eee; } Santa Cruz City Council, Mayor (vote for 1)CandidateTotalAmi Chen Mills902 (16.17%)Ryan Coonerty3,019 (54.13%)Joy Schendledecker466 (8.36%)Gillian Greensite682 (12.23%)Chris Krohn474 (8.50%)Write In34 (0.61%)Santa Cruz City Council, District 4 (vote for 1)CandidateTotalHector Marin334 (41.29%)Scott Newsome470 (58.10%)Write In5 (0.62%)Santa Cruz City Council, District 6 (vote for 1)CandidateTotalGabriella Noack271 (27.62%)Renée Golder703 (71.66%)Write In7 (0.71%)

 

Note: This story will be updated as additional vote counts are released. See all results.

SANTA CRUZ >> Santa Cruz City Councilmembers Scott Newsome and Renee Golder were leading in early election results Tuesday night.

In his bid for reelection to District 4, Newsome garnered 58% of the vote as of 8:15 p.m. June 2. His challenger, Hector Marin, trailed with 41% of the vote.

In her bid to remain District 6 councilmember, Golder secured 71% of the vote as of 8:15 p.m. June 2. Her challenger, Gabriella Noack, trailed with 27% of the vote.

Results will be updated multiple times tonight and throughout the week, and must be finalized by July 2. Follow our election results page for the latest news.

District 4

District 4 includes Downtown and Beach Flats. Newsome was elected in 2022 from a field of four that included Marin, who garnered more than 34% of the vote.

Marin and Newsome described their plans to tackle Santa Cruz’s biggest issues for Santa Cruz Local’s voter guide. Here’s a quick look at how they differ:

IssueScott NewsomeHector MarinWhat would you do to address the housing affordability crisis?
  • Ensure buildings with expiring rent restrictions stay affordable.
  • Direct money to eviction protection programs.
  • Reduce the annual allowable rent hike.
  • Create a city office to mediate conflicts between renters and landlords.
What would you do to address the acceleration of housing developments?
  • Change local housing policies to accommodate neighbor feedback, within limits of the law.
  • Continue affordable housing development.
  • Hold more community town halls with developers and neighbors.
  • Protect downtown venues with historic value.
What policies would you try to enact in regard to homelessness?
  • Increase shelter capacity.
  • Ensure access to homeless day services.
  • Replace homeless day services and create a year-round warming center.
  • Consider new business taxes to pay for homelessness services.
  • Increase enforcement of camping ban.
How would you address road safety?
  • Focus transportation funding on improvements for bikes and pedestrians.
  • Create a dedicated fund for street safety improvements.
  • Advocate for expanded and improved roads throughout District 4, particularly in Beach Flats.
  • Create a pilot program to close Pacific Avenue to cars on Saturday nights.
What would you do to spur more public engagement?
  • Continue responding to constituent emails and calls.
  • Hold town halls if residents request them.
  • Hold regular town halls and community events like block parties.
How would you address racial equity and inclusion?
  • Continue routing federal money towards a community center in Beach Flats.
  • Continue encouraging diverse applicants to city advisory boards.
  • Advocate for a fund to combat disinvestment in the Beach Flats neighborhood.
  • Connect with Spanish-speaking constituents.

Renee Golder, left, is running for reelection against challenger Gabriella Noack in the June 2 election. (Contributed)

District 6

District 6 includes much of Westside and part of the UC Santa Cruz campus. Golder and Noak offered different views for the future of Santa Cruz in Santa Cruz Local’s election guide. Here’s a quick look at how they differ:

IssueRenee GolderGabriella NoackWhat would you do to address the housing affordability crisis?
  • Encourage owners of apartment buildings to convert units into condominiums.
  • Maintain the current level of support already available for renters.
  • Establish an elected rent board to enforce tenant protections.
  • Grant people undergoing eviction the right to legal counsel.
  • Consider tax initiatives to fund housing subsidies.
What would you do to address the acceleration of housing developments?
  • Urge the state to pause changes to building codes.
  • Build denser housing downtown while preserving single-family neighborhoods.
  • Open single-family lots to duplexes, triplexes and fourplexes.
  • Tax breaks for affordable housing.
  • Encourage fewer large market-rate buildings.
What policies would you try to enact in regard to homelessness?
  • Offer “a carrot and a stick” approach, offering shelter to those who need it and enforcing consequences for those who refuse.
  • Mandate treatment for people with substance use disorder or serious mental illness.
  • Stop encampment sweeps.
  • Open more shelters.
  • Incentivize a higher minimum wage.
How would you address road safety?
  • Continue progress on creating more bike lanes and other street improvements.
  • Consider long-term plans for traffic circles on Soquel Avenue.
  • Pay wheelchair users, cyclists and pedestrians to identify safety concerns.
  • Create distributed, rather than dense, housing development.
What would you do to spur more public engagement?
  • Continue holding town halls and responding to emails and phone calls.
  • Use open source technology for more residents to share opinions and ideas.
How would you address racial equity and inclusion?
  • Continue ensuring equity in city recreation programs.
  • Partner with organizations led by people of color like Barrios Unidos.

Questions or comments? Email info@santacruzlocal.org. Santa Cruz Local is supported by members, major donors, sponsors and grants for the general support of our newsroom. Our news judgments are made independently and not on the basis of donor support. Learn more about Santa Cruz Local and how we are funded.

Learn about membership Santa Cruz Local’s news is free. We believe that high-quality local news is crucial to democracy. We depend on locals like you to make a meaningful contribution so everyone can access our news. Learn about membership

The post Incumbents Newsome, Golder lead in preliminary results for Santa Cruz City Council appeared first on Santa Cruz Local.

California primary election 2026: Downballot statewide races

Lookout Santa Cruz - Tue, 06/02/2026 - 20:21

In addition to local races, Santa Cruz County voters had a variety of statewide races on their primary ballots. Here’s where you’ll find the latest on the governor’s race, and read on for stories from our content partners at CalMatters, the Associated Press and more, and get the latest tallies from the California Secretary of State here.

Top Democrats compete in wide-open primary for lieutenant governor Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis at the State of the State ceremony in March 2022. Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr. / CalMatters

Voting ends on Tuesday and voters are choosing between an unusually competitive roster of candidates for the No. 2 job in the state, an office few aspire to without one key disclaimer: It’s a step on their way to another job in politics.

The lieutenant governor wields little power beyond stepping in when the governor leaves the state. But it’s been used as a slingshot to the governor’s office before, by Gov. Gavin Newsom and former governor Gray Davis, and seeking the office is often a signal that its officeholder has higher political ambitions.

State Treasurer Fiona Ma, Newsom administration official Josh Fryday and former Stockton mayor Michael Tubbs are the leading Democratic candidates in a top-two primary that will send two candidates on to the November general election. Fryday, who heads volunteer programs for the state, has amassed the biggest treasure chest — nearly $4 million — and is backed by teachers unions and the governor.

Read more here from CalMatters.

California chooses its next insurance watchdog amid wildfire crisis The charred remains of a house in Altadena on Feb. 8, 2025, after it burned during the Eaton fire. Credit: Jules Hotz for CalMatters

Californians finish voting Tuesday for who they think can best tackle one of the toughest jobs in the state: insurance commissioner. 

The commissioner is responsible for regulating the nation’s largest property insurance market that includes home and auto, plus health, pet, ride-hailing and life insurance, as well as workers’ compensation. 

But the hot topic in the past few years as wildfire risk has increased has been home and fire insurance. The next commissioner will face many challenges that include trying to balance property insurance availability with affordability. Some insurance companies that had stopped renewing policies or writing new ones in the past few years are now taking advantage of new regulations that allow them to use new tools in setting their rates. This generally means premiums will rise as the Insurance Department, headed by the commissioner, is likely to keep approving increases in homeowners’ insurance premiums.

Read more here from CalMatters.

Who will lead California schools? Voters choose next state superintendent Student teacher Mayela Covarrubias works with first-grade students at Peralta Elementary in Riverside. Credit: Kyle Grillot for CalMatters

A quiet primary race for state superintendent of public instruction is winding down Tuesday, with no clear front-runner emerging from a wide field of well-qualified candidates for California’s top schools job.

Ten candidates — including several legislative veterans — are vying for the opportunity to oversee the state’s 10,000 public K-12 schools during a tumultuous time. Schools are grappling with artificial intelligence in the classroom, budget uncertainty, declining enrollment, lackluster test scores and other challenges.

The job itself is also up in the air. Gov. Gavin Newsom in January proposed an overhaul of California’s school governance structure, with far fewer duties for the superintendent. Instead, the State Board of Education, an 11-member body appointed by the governor, and a newly appointed education commissioner would hold most of the decision-making power. The superintendent would act as more of a policy advocate.

Read more here from CalMatters.

Have something to say? Lookout welcomes letters to the editor, within our policies, from readers. Guidelines here.

The post California primary election 2026: Downballot statewide races appeared first on Lookout Santa Cruz.

Incumbent Monterey County Supervisor Glenn Church leads in early election results

Santa Cruz Local - Tue, 06/02/2026 - 20:20

Five candidates are vying for Santa Cruz Mayor in the June 2 election. (Amaya Edwards — Santa Cruz Local/CatchLight Local)

Monterey County Supervisor, District 2

Last Monterey County update: 8:08 p.m. June 2

Candidate Total Glenn Church 5,345 (71.79%) Ramon Gomez 2,100 (28.21%)

Note: This story will be updated as additional vote counts are released.

MONTEREY COUNTY >> Monterey County Supervisor Glenn Church had a sizeable lead with 71% in early election results 8 p.m. Tuesday. His challenger, Ramon Gomez, trailed with 28% of the vote. 

Preliminary election results will be updated throughout Tuesday night, and the following days as staffers process ballots. Final results must be certified by June 30. 

The two candidates described their positions on important local issues for Santa Cruz Local’s election guide. Here’s a quick look at how they differ:

Glenn Church

Ramon Gomez

Help economic development?
  • Continue support of the recently-formed Pajaro Business Group, which advocates for the needs of the business community.
  • Encourage apprenticeship programs and other opportunities for youth to learn about career paths.
Address wage theft from farm workers?
  • Connect local workers with state labor authorities.
  • Visit farms to educate workers about their rights.
Increase affordable housing?
  • Allow small apartment buildings on single-family lots.
  • Encourage smaller homes, which are “affordable by design.”
  • Consider building on county property.
  • Ensure affordable housing is also built on the Monterey Peninsula.
Prevent renter displacement?
  • Create a rental registry.
  • Find ways to punish highest-charging landlords.
  • Fund tenant legal organizations.
  • Do outreach about tenant rights.
Improve emergency response times?
  • Continue to advocate for more Sheriff’s deputies and faster ambulance response.
  • Allow response from Santa Cruz County ambulances.
  • Create an Inspector General to oversee the Sheriff’s Office.
Ensure equitable infrastructure funding?
  • Carry out investments under way for roads, parks and the renovated Porter-Vallejo mansion.
  • Create equitable funding formulas.
  • Prioritize a new plan for long-term development in Pajaro.
Expand health care access?
  • Expand Esperanza Care as quickly as possible.
  • Consider using a future hotel tax hike for large-scale expansion.
  • Consider locally-funded and state-funded methods for expanding health care access.
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Questions or comments? Email info@santacruzlocal.org. Santa Cruz Local is supported by members, major donors, sponsors and grants for the general support of our newsroom. Our news judgments are made independently and not on the basis of donor support. Learn more about Santa Cruz Local and how we are funded.

Learn about membership Santa Cruz Local’s news is free. We believe that high-quality local news is crucial to democracy. We depend on locals like you to make a meaningful contribution so everyone can access our news. Learn about membership

The post Incumbent Monterey County Supervisor Glenn Church leads in early election results appeared first on Santa Cruz Local.

Street Talk

Good Times Santa Cruz - Tue, 06/02/2026 - 19:09

Who’s your dream celebrity governor, and what’s their alter ego?

Ancient to the Future

Good Times Santa Cruz - Tue, 06/02/2026 - 18:53

Santa Cruzans continue to embrace Ayurveda, the ancient Indian wellness system that views health as deeply personal and rooted in balance.

Summer Swirls

Good Times Santa Cruz - Tue, 06/02/2026 - 18:51

Bouchaine Winery’s 2024 Vin Gris of Pinot Noir is a pale-pink Napa Valley Carneros wine made for warm days, friends and summer sipping.

Freedom 250 Fest

Daily Kos - Tue, 06/02/2026 - 16:59

A cartoon by Keef Knight. Related | One-hit blunder: America 250 musicians are dropping like flies…

Source

Categories: Political News

Prime Video Halts Development on New STARGATE Revival Series

The Nerdist - Tue, 06/02/2026 - 16:36

Sci-fi franchises that start with the word “Star” sure tend to have a long shelf life. Obviously, there’s Star Wars and Star Trek, but folks often forget there is also Stargate. Recently, Amazon MGM Studios announced that a new Stargate series was making its way to Prime Video. But according to Variety, those plans are now very much on the back burner. Martin Gero, who was a writer on the long-running series Stargate SG-1 and Stargate: Atlantis, was going to spearhead the revival. But now, Amazon has decided that Gero’s plans were not welcoming enough to non-Stargate diehard fans.MGM Television

Stargate began as a 1994 movie starring James Spader and Kurt Russell, and became a modest hit. It never got a direct sequel, but it inspired the hit series Stargate SG-1. That show ran for 10 seasons and starred Richard Dean Anderson, Michael Shanks, Amanda Tapping, and Christopher Judge. Then came yet another spinoff series, Stargate Atlantis, which then ran for five more seasons between 2004 and 2008. Stargate Universe followed in 2011, and then an animated series. Since that time, there were two direct-to-video Stargate movies, and most recently, the web series Stargate Origins in 2018. And then, there are all the video games, novels, and comic books.

Amazon maintains that they are still looking for ways to explore the franchise, and hopefully, revive it properly. But much like Hulu’s executives said that their canceled revival of Buffy the Vampire Slayer required too much knowledge of the previous series, it may be that Amazon wants to use the familiar Stargate name and discard the rest. Which would be a shame to its legion of loyal fans out there. Maybe they choose to revive it first as a movie on Prime Video, before committing to another series. In any event, it seems the wait for a new Stargate project is now longer than anyone previously believed. But one day, we are certain those intergalactic portals will open up once more.

The post Prime Video Halts Development on New STARGATE Revival Series appeared first on Nerdist.

Categories: Nerd News

TOMB RAIDER: LEGACY OF ATLANTIS Delayed to 2027

The Nerdist - Tue, 06/02/2026 - 16:29

Back in December, we learned Amazon was wasting no time in making new Tomb Raider games. Or, at the very least, remaking old ones. Tomb Raider: Legacy of Atlantis will be the second game to remake the 1996 original Tomb Raider. While the initial announcement said the game would debut in 2026, today during Sony’s State of Play, we learned the game’s release date. It’s not this year, it’s next. February 12, 2027 to be exact. Still, we did get a trailer for the game and it…sure looks like a PS5 update of the original. If you wanted to see Lara Croft run from dinosaurs on modern hardware, this is your guy.

I do love that, while Amazon, Crystal Dynamics, and Flying Wild Hog, clearly understand the need to ground such a realistic looking game in some kind of reality, Lara Croft still raids tombs in wholly unrealistic fashion. What kind of archaeologist is she? The updated graphics are stunning, we can see the DNA of that polygonal platformer in there. Lara Croft even still does her trademark (and wholly unnecessary) slow gymnastics dismount on all climbing. It was formative for kids 30 years ago. While a lot of the more recent games have given Lara human antagonists to shoot up, the first game had her fight…dinosaurs. Here we get to see updated, feathered varieties. Because science.

Amazon Game Studios

The December announcement also said a second, fully original Tomb Raider game, Catalyst, was on the way for 2027. That one will likely come out later in the year, if not totally move to 2028.

Kyle Anderson is the Senior Editor for Nerdist. He hosts the weekly pop culture deep-dive podcast Laser Focus. You can find his film and TV reviews here. Follow him on Letterboxd.

The post TOMB RAIDER: LEGACY OF ATLANTIS Delayed to 2027 appeared first on Nerdist.

Categories: Nerd News

Squishmallows, dentures, and an ‘I Heart Hot Dads’ bag: Uber has found thousands of items left in robotaxis

TechCrunch - Tue, 06/02/2026 - 16:25
Even in a future of robot taxis, someone still has to return the things passengers leave behind.
Categories: Nerd News

Justice Department scraps Trump’s $1.8B ‘compensation’ fund

Daily Kos - Tue, 06/02/2026 - 16:00

The Trump administration is scrapping plans to create a $1.8 billion fund meant to compensate allies of the Republican president, the Justice Department’s top official said Tuesday in retreating from a program that faced setbacks in the courts and a fierce political backlash that had threatened to stall key elements of the White House agenda. “We are not moving forward with the fund, period,”…

Source

Categories: Political News

CBS sacrificed its legacy to save Trump’s fragile ego

Daily Kos - Tue, 06/02/2026 - 16:00

For almost 100 years, CBS has been one of the most well-known and respected news media brands in the United States. But since the start of President Donald Trump’s second term, the brand and its parent network have lost respect, influence, and esteem as they’ve bent to Trump’s will. While the right has often lashed out at media that doesn’t parrot the company line, the targeting of CBS…

Source

Categories: Political News

New Book Tells How a Lost Spielberg UFO Film Became E.T.

The Nerdist - Tue, 06/02/2026 - 15:52

Steven Spielberg has had a long association with aliens. One that continues to this day, with the upcoming Disclosure Day. In 1977, his Close Encounters of the Third Kind became a massive hit. And it transformed how the world perceived UFOs and alien contact. After its success, Spielberg planned to continue this theme with a darker alien tale, a horror film titled Night Skies. But eventually, the terrifying tale evolved into the cuddly classic E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial. Now, author Max Evry, author of A Masterpiece in Disarray: David Lynch’s Dune, takes readers on a new journey in his book Stranded on Earth: How Night Skies Became E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. Evry’s new book even has a cool new trailer, which you can watch below:

Evry’s book is part film history and part investigative chronicle. It follows Spielberg’s fascination with UFOs and extraterrestrial storytelling from his teenage feature Firelight in the ’60s through 1977’s CE3K. The book covers the ambitious production of Night Skies, a sci-fi horror film that gradually evolved into E.T. Thanks to extensive research and new interviews with Spielberg collaborators, Evry uncovers the creative chaos, studio politics, abandoned concepts, and radical rewrites that transformed a scary alien movie into one of the most beloved films of all time. Below is the book’s official synopsis:

For years, Night Skies has been an asterisk in the shadow of that era’s most popular movie. The story of this unmade project is just as fascinating as how E.T. itself came to be. My book explores both, and so much more. As with my book on David Lynch’s Dune, the deeper I dug, the bigger — and wilder — the story became.

1984 Publishing

The book also covers how elements of Night Skies morphed into another Spielberg project, Poltergeist. A film written and released the same year as E.T, and even filmed in the same neighborhood. Gremlins also contained elements of Night Skies, with one benevolent unearthly creature among an assortment of malicious ones. For fans of one of the most exciting filmmakers in Hollywood history, in the era when he was working at the peak of his powers, this is one read they’ll not want to miss.

Stranded on Earth hits bookstores and online retailers in October from 1984 Publishing.

The post New Book Tells How a Lost Spielberg UFO Film Became E.T. appeared first on Nerdist.

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