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How ‘The Traitors' saved its season with a killer cliffhanger

How ‘The Traitors' saved its season with a killer cliffhanger

Welcome to Screen Gab, the newsletter for everyone who's 100% faithful — to the reality competition 'The Traitors.'
In this week's newsletter, Screen Gab editor Matt Brennan shares his thoughts on the U.S. edition's recently concluded third season, streaming recommendations for your weekend and more.
Must-read stories you might have missed
Justin Baldoni's tumultuous road to the center of a Hollywood scandal: The actor-director built a career blending his Bahai values and storytelling. Now allegations involving Blake Lively and 'It Ends With Us' threaten his image.
'The White Lotus' critiques luxury tourism while also promoting it with partnerships: HBO's anthology is a class satire that skewers high-end tourism, but for Season 3, it also has served as an ad for luxury travel with partnership and marketing deals.
Vincent D'Onofrio breaks down the 'Daredevil: Born Again' reunion we've all been waiting for: Back as Wilson Fisk in 'Daredevil: Born Again,' the actor discusses returning to 'Daredevil,' how the diner reunion came together, Fisk's marriage counseling and more.
Conan O'Brien navigates the Oscars through song, dance and awards: The comedian and former late-night host led the ceremony replete with musical numbers and nods to L.A., filmmaking and the current political climate.
Recommendations from the film and TV experts at The Times
'Toxic Town' (Netflix)
Self-dealing politicians rewarding cronies; nervous whistle-blowers; riled up mothers taking on the government; and a selfless lawyer sticking with a case across decades: All inform this splendidly executed, fact-based, four-hour U.K. drama. Written by playwright and screenwriter Jack Thorne, most recently known for 'Harry Potter and the Cursed Child,' it's based on the Corby toxic waste case, in which a cluster of birth defects were associated with the careless removal and transportation of waste from decommissioned steel mills. There's something inherently dramatic, suspenseful, enraging and exciting about the material — it's not the first time we've seen this sort of legal drama, and it's an especially good time to add another to the list. But what takes the series to a higher level is the work of a great cast, including Jodie Whittaker (you know her, the 13th Doctor), Aimee Lou Wood (currently seen on 'The White Lotus'), Robert Carlyle ('The Full Monty'), Rory Kinnear (so many things) and Brendan Coyle (Mr. Bates of 'Downton Abbey,' not nearly so nice here). Even in small scenes, they animate the personal story inside the political. — Robert Lloyd
'With Love, Meghan' (Netflix)
Will I be harvesting my own honey in this lifetime? No. Do I often comment on the beauty of an egg yolk? Honestly, in this economy, maybe I should. But I have spent an afternoon fashioning giant bows out of pink plastic table cloths from Dollar Tree for affordable Galentine's Day decor (thanks for the tip, TikTok!) and, in my head, I am Ina Garten's West Coast bestie. I fear I am the target audience for a celebrity lifestyle series like 'With Love, Meghan.' Domestic doyennes like Garten and Martha Stewart certainly bring more genuine knowledge and skill to the format, but while there is nothing groundbreaking about this Netflix offering — it's too well-tailored, too beige and too precious — there's still something fascinating in observing the former 'Suits' star-turned-monarchy defector make a balloon arch or assemble tea bags with bath salts. Maybe it's the joy she has in doing it, sometimes leaving the viewer with the same look of dumbfound curiosity and wonder that guest Mindy Kaling has seeing the host make star-shaped cucumber sandwiches for an imaginary children's party. Or maybe it's the fact that her doing it enrages people. I'm not a hate-watcher: It's the distraction I need. Plus, as someone who will find any excuse to host so I can make themed invites on Canva, the overly curated content that is 'With Love, Meghan' is definitely my vibe. Who doesn't dream of making beeswax candles, topping naked cakes with berries and writing on labels with picture-perfect penmanship? — Yvonne Villarreal
Everything you need to know about the film or TV series everyone's talking about
As a reality fan who generally avoids competition series, the occasional 'Top Chef' or 'Project Runway' excepted, I approached Peacock's Emmy-winning 'The Traitors' with a fair amount of skepticism: If I didn't find 'Survivor' castaways or 'Big Brother' house guests compelling, what could I possibly see in a glorified game of Mafia?
Three seasons into the U.S. edition, hosted by Alan Cumming at a sumptuously appointed highland castle, I'm eating Scottish crow. Though the money-earning 'missions' remain a snooze, the real game play, in which a super-majority of 'faithfuls' try to sniff out the traitors in their midst, has proved highly addictive. I'd even go so far as to call the format's confrontational roundtable meetings, where cast members lob accusations, sow confusion and 'banish' their brethren, better television than a 'Housewives' reunion. And, unlike a contrived season of Bravo's shady flagship, 'The Traitors' has already shown the capacity to course-correct.
After all, the current season of 'The Traitors U.S.,' which concluded Thursday, seemed destined to be plagued by its ham-fisted start. A trio of reality-competition 'gamers' joined the proceedings midstream; a spate of entertaining but feckless contestants were eliminated early on; and unprecedented levels of traitor-on-traitor bickering threatened to derail their usual gleeful scheming. But 'The Traitors' is all about trust, and I should have trusted that the format would come through as it always has. With the emergence of 'Big Brother' veteran Danielle Reyes as the season's anxious anti-heroine, diabolically plotting to steal the prize money despite heavy suspicions of her loyalty, the series steered itself back on course — and set up one of the best reality-TV cliffhangers in recent memory.
I won't spoil the outcome of last night's finale by telling you whether Reyes, who we last saw locked in a life-or-death tie at the roundtable, lived to betray another day. I'll simply say that 'The Traitors' has my loyalty because it can turn on a dime, or a knife in the back. I guess I'll be checking out the Australian version in the offseason. — Matt Brennan
A weekly chat with actors, writers, directors and more about what they're working on — and what they're watching
A little bit 'Succession,' a little bit 'Goodfellas' and a whole lot of funny, 'Deli Boys' (Hulu), the first Asian American / Pacific Islander-centered series from Disney's Onyx Collective brand, leaves no viewer expectation unturned. From the surprisingly bloody pilot on, creator Abdullah Saeed's tale of polar-opposite brothers (Asif Ali and Saagar Shaikh) who inherit a very different family business from the one they planned on defies convention; stay tuned in particular for 'Never Have I Ever's' Poorna Jagannathan playing deliciously against type as a crime syndicate consigliere. Showrunner Michelle Nader stopped by Screen Gab recently to discuss what's so 'radical' about its depiction of Pakistani Americans, what she's watching and more. — Matt Brennan
READ MORE: 'Deli Boys' is a quirky and smartly written crime comedy
What have you watched recently that you're recommending to everyone you know?
'Sly Lives: aka The Burden of Black Genius' on Hulu. Questlove directed this documentary and it's a beautiful exploration of Sly and his singular talent.
What's your go-to comfort watch, the film or TV show you return to again and again?
My comfort watch is 'Seinfeld' [Netflix]. I have specific episodes that I watch for certain feels. But in general Season 4 is my go-to.
The Pakistani American community at the heart of 'Deli Boys' has often been erased or villainized in Hollywood film and television. What blind spot or misconception were you most adamant about avoiding or combating with this series?
Abdullah was very intentional about making a show about a family. Not just a Pakistani family. They are Pakistani and illustrate the richness of their culture but that wasn't the goal of the series. That is the radical new perspective.
Between 'Deli Boys,' your ABC sitcom 'Shifting Gears' and the projects you've got in development, you've got to have a hectic schedule. What's your go-to convenience store (or other) snack when you are stressed?
My favorite snack is a glass of orange wine.

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‘Somebody hug me!' 7 Emmy hopefuls on staying calm, hitting their marks and more
‘Somebody hug me!' 7 Emmy hopefuls on staying calm, hitting their marks and more

Los Angeles Times

timean hour ago

  • Los Angeles Times

‘Somebody hug me!' 7 Emmy hopefuls on staying calm, hitting their marks and more

The Emmys' limited series/TV movie acting categories have come to represent some of the best and most-talked-about shows on television, and this year's crop of contenders is no exception. The seven actors who joined the 2025 Envelope Roundtable were Javier Bardem, who plays father, victim and alleged molester Jose Menendez in Netflix's 'Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story'; Renée Zellweger, who reprises her role as the British romantic heroine in 'Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy'; Stephen Graham, who co-created and stars in 'Adolescence' as the father of a teenage boy who commits a heinous murder; Jenny Slate, who plays the best friend of a terminally ill woman in FX's 'Dying for Sex'; Brian Tyree Henry, who portrays a man posing as a federal agent in order to rip off drug dealers in Apple TV+'s 'Dope Thief'; Elizabeth Banks, who takes on the role of an estranged sibling and recovering alcoholic in Prime Video's 'The Better Sister'; and Sacha Baron Cohen, who appears as the deceived husband of a successful filmmaker in Apple TV+'s 'Disclaimer.' The Times' news and culture critic Lorraine Ali spoke to the group about the emotional fallout of a heavy scene, the art of defying expectations and more. Read highlights from their conversation below and watch video of the roundtable above. Many of you move between drama and comedy. People often think, 'Drama's very serious and difficult, comedy's light and easy.' Is that true? Banks: I think the degree of difficulty with comedy is much higher. It's really hard to sustainably make people laugh over time, whereas [with] drama, everyone relates to loss and pining for love that's unrequited. Not everybody has great timing or is funny or gets satire. Henry: There's something fun about how closely intertwined they are. In my series, I'm playing a heroin addict running for my life, and I have this codependency with this friend … There's a scene where I've been looking for him, and I'm high out of my mind, and I find him in my attic, and all he's talking about is how he has to take a s—. And I'm like, 'But they're trying to kill us.' You just see him wincing and going through all these [groans]. It is so funny, but at the same time, you're just terrified for both. There's always humor somewhere in the drama. Banks: There's a reason why the theater [symbol] is a happy face/sad face. They're very intertwined. Renée, with Bridget Jones — how has she changed over the last 25 years and where is she now with 'Mad About the Boy'? Zellweger: Nobody's the same from one moment to the next, one chapter to the next and certainly not from one year to the next. It's been a really interesting sort of experiment to revisit a character in the different phases of her life. What I'm really grateful for is that the timing runs in parallel to the sort of experiences that you have in your early 20s, 30s and so on. With each iteration, I don't have to pretend that I'm less than I am, because I don't want to be the character that I was, or played, when she was 29, 35. I don't want to do that, and I certainly don't want to do that now. So it was really nice to meet her again in this place of what she's experiencing in the moment, which is bereavement and the loss of her great love, and being a mom, and trying to be responsible, and reevaluating what she values, and how she comports herself, and what's important and all of that, because, of course, I relate to that in this moment. Stephen, 'Adolescence' follows a family dealing with the fallout of their 13-year-old son being accused of a brutal murder. You direct and star in the series. What was it like being immersed in such heavy subject matter? Did it come home with you? Graham: We did that first episode, the end of it was quite heavy and quite emotional. When we said, 'Cut,' all of us older actors and the crew were very emotional. There were hugs and a bit of applause. And then everyone would be like, 'Where's Owen?' [Cooper, the teenage actor who plays Graham's character's son]. 'Is Owen OK? Is he with his child psychologist?' No, Owen's upstairs playing swing ball with his tutor. It was like OK, that's the way to do this — not to take myself too seriously when we say, 'Cut,' but when I am there, immerse myself in it. Let's be honest, we can all be slightly self-obsessed. My missus, she's the best for me because I'd phone her and say, 'I had a really tough day. I had to cry all day. My wife's died of cancer, and it was a really tough one.' She goes, 'The dog s— all over the living room. I had to go shopping and the f— bag split when I got to Tesco. There was a flat tire. They've let the kids out of school early because there's been a flood. And you've had a hard day pretending to be sad?' Bardem: I totally agree with what Stephen says. You have a life with your family and your children that you have to really pay attention to. This is a job, and you just do the job as good as you can with your own limitations. You put everything into it when they say, 'Action,' and when you're out, you just leave it behind. Otherwise, it's too much. Certain scenes, certain moments stay with you because we work with what we are. But I think it doesn't make you a better actor to really stay in character, as they say, for 24 hours. That doesn't work for me. It actually makes me feel very confused if I do that. On the show 'Monsters' I tried to protect Cooper [Koch] and Nicholas [Alexander Chavez], the actors who play the children, because they were carrying the heavy weight on the show every day. I was trying to make them feel protected and loved and accompanied by us, the adults, and let them know that we are there for them and that this is fiction. Because they were going really deep into it, and they did an amazing job. Elizabeth, in 'The Better Sister,' you portray Nicky, a sister estranged from her sibling who's been through quite a bit of her own trauma. Banks: I play a drunk who's lost her child and her husband, basically, to her little sister, played by Jessica Biel. She is grappling with trauma from her childhood, which she's trying not to bring forward. She's been working [with] Alcoholics Anonymous, an incredible program, to get through her stuff. But she's also a fish out of water when she visits her sister, who [lives in a] very rarefied New York, literary, fancy rich world. My character basically lives in a trailer park in Ohio. There's a lot going on. And there's a murder mystery. I loved the complication … but it brought up all of those things for me. I do think you absolutely leave most of that [heaviness] on set. You are mining it all for the character work, so you've got to find it, but I don't need to then infect my own children with it. Sacha, you have played and created these really gregarious characters like Ali G or Borat. Your character in 'Disclaimer,' he's not a character you created, but he is very understated. Was that a challenge? Cohen: It took me a long time to work out who the character was. I said to [director] Alfonso [Cuarón], 'I don't understand why this guy goes on that journey from where we see him in Act 1.' For me it was, how do you make this person unique? We worked a lot through the specificity of what words he uses and what he actually says to explain and give hints for me as an actor. A lot of that was Alfonso Cuarón saying, 'Take it down.' And there was a lot of rewriting and loads of drafts before I even understood how this guy reacts to the news and information that he believes about his wife. Jenny, 'Dying for Sex' is based on a true story about two friends. One has terminal cancer, and the other — your character — supports her right up until the end. Talk about what it was like to play that role in a series that alternates between biting humor and deep grief. Slate: Michelle Williams, who does a brilliant job in this show, her energy is extending outward and [her character] is trying to experiment before she does the greatest experiment of all, which is to cross over into the other side. My character is really out there, not out there willy-nilly, but she will yell at people if they are being rude, wasteful or if she feels it's unjust. [And she's] going from blasting to taking all that energy and making it this tight laser, and pointing it right into care, and knowing more about herself at the end. I am a peppy person, and I felt so excited to have the job that a lot of my day started with calming myself down. I'm at work with Michelle Williams and Sissy Spacek and Liz Meriwether and Shannon Murphy and being, like, 'Siri, set a meditation timer for 10 minutes,' and making myself do alternate nostril breathing [exercises]. Brian, many people came to know you from your role as Paper Boi in 'Atlanta.' The series was groundbreaking and like nothing else on television. What was it like moving out of that world and onto other projects? Henry: People really thought that I was this rapper that they pulled off the street from Atlanta. To me, that's the greatest compliment … When I did 'Bullet Train,' I was shocked at how many people thought I was British. I was like, 'Oh, right. Now I've twisted your mind this way.' I was [the voice of] Megatron at one point, and now I've twisted your mind that way. My path in is always going to be stretching people's imaginations, because they get so attached to characters that I've played that they really believe that I'm that person. People feel like they have an ownership of who you are. I love the challenge of having to force the imaginations of the viewers and myself to see me in a departure [from] what they saw me [as] previously. Because I realize that when I walk in a room, before I even open my mouth, there's 90 different things that are put on me or taken away from me because of how I look and how I carry myself. Javier, since doing the series are you now frequently asked about your own opinions on the Menendez case? The brothers claim their father molested them, and that is in part what led to them murdering their parents. Bardem: I don't think anybody knows. That's the point. That was the great thing about playing that character, is you have to play it in a way that it's not obvious that he did those things that he was accused of, because nobody knows, but at the same time you have to make people believe that he was capable. I did say to Ryan [Murphy] that I can't do a scene with a kid. Because in the beginning, they do drafts, and there were certain moments where I said, 'I can't. It's not needed.' The only moment that I had a hard time was when [Jose] has to face [his] young kid. It was only a moment where Jose was mean to him. That's not in my nature. Henry: I discovered, while doing my series, 'My body doesn't know this isn't real.' There's an episode where I'm shot in the leg, and I'm bleeding out and I'm on all this different morphine and drugs and all this stuff, and I'm literally lying on this ground, take after take, having to mime this. To go through the delusion of this pain ... in the middle of the takes, it was just so crazy. I would literally look at the crew and say, 'Somebody hug me! Somebody!' Stephen, that scene where you confront the boys in the parking lot with the bike, I was just like, 'Oh, my God, how many times did he have to do that?' This kid gets in your face, and I was like, 'Punch the kid!' My heart went out to you, man, not just as the character but as you being in there. Graham: Because we did it all in one take, we had that unique quality. You're using the best of two mediums. You've got that beauty and that spontaneity and that reality of the theater, and then you have the naturalism and the truth that we have with film and television. So by the time I get to that final bit, we've been through all those emotions. When I open the door and go into [Jamie's] room, everything's shaken. But it's not you. It's an out-of-body experience and just comes from somewhere else. Bardem: Listen, we don't do brain surgery, but let's give ourselves some credit. We are generous in what we do because we are putting our bodies into an experience. We are doing this for something bigger than us, and that is the story that we're telling. What have been some of the more challenging or difficult moments for you, either in your career or your recent series? Zellweger: Trying not to do what you're feeling in the moment sometimes, because it's not appropriate to what you're telling. That happens in most shows, most things that you do. I think everybody experiences it where you're bringing something from home and it doesn't belong on the set. It's impossible to leave it behind when you walk in because it's bigger than you are in that moment. Banks: I would say that the thing that I worked on the most for 'The Better Sister' was [understanding] sobriety. I'm not sober. I love a bubbly rosé. So it really did bring up how much I think about drinking and how social it is and what that ritual is for me, and how this character is thinking about it every day and deciding every day to stay sober or not. I am also a huge fan of AA and sobriety programs. I think they're incredible tools for everybody who works those programs. I was grateful for the access to all of that as I was making the series. But that's what you get to do in TV. You get to explore episode by episode. You get to play out a lot more than just three acts. Stephen, about the continuous single shot. It seems like it's an incredibly difficult and complex way to shoot a series. Why do it? Graham: It's exceptionally difficult, I'm not going to lie. It's like a swan glides across the water beautifully, but the legs are going rapidly underneath. A lot of it is done in preparation. We spend a whole week learning the script, and then the second week is just with the camera crew and the rest of the crew. It's a choreography that you work out, getting an idea of where they want the camera to go, and the opportunity to embody the space ourselves. Cohen: That reminds me of a bit of doing the undercover movies that I do because you have one take. ... I did a scene where I'm wearing a bulletproof vest. There were a lot of the people in the audience who'd gone to this rally, a lot of them had machine guns. We knew they were going to get angry, but you've got to do the scene. You've got one time to get the scene right. But you also go, 'OK, those guys have got guns. They're trying to storm the stage. I haven't quite finished the scene. When do I leave?' But you've got to get the scene. I could get shot, but that's not important. Henry: There's a certain level of sociopathy. Slate: I feel like I'm never on my mark, and it was always a very kind camera operator being like, 'Hey, Jenny, you weren't in the shot shoulder-wise.' I feel like such an idiot. Part of it is working through lifelong, longstanding feelings of 'I'm a fool and my foolishness is going to make people incredibly angry with me.' And then really still wanting to participate and having no real certainty that I'm going to be able to do anything but just make all of my fears real. Part of the thing that I love about performance is I just want to experience the version of myself that does not collapse into useless fragments when I face the thing that scares me the most. I do that, and then I feel the appetite for performance again. Do you see yourself in roles when you're watching other people's films or TV show? Graham: At the end of the day, we're all big fans of acting. That's why we do it. Because when we were young, we were inspired by people on the screen, or we were inspired by places where we could put ourselves and lose our imaginations. We have a lot of t— in this industry. But I think if we fight hard enough, we can come through. Do you know what I mean? It's people that are here for the right reasons. It's a collective. Acting is not a game of golf. It's a team. It's in front and it's behind the camera. I think it's important that we nourish that. Henry: And remember that none of us are t—. Bardem: What is a t—? I may be one of them and I don't know it. Graham: I'll explain it to you later.

5 best new movies to stream this weekend on Netflix, Prime Video, Peacock, and more (June 7-8)
5 best new movies to stream this weekend on Netflix, Prime Video, Peacock, and more (June 7-8)

Tom's Guide

timean hour ago

  • Tom's Guide

5 best new movies to stream this weekend on Netflix, Prime Video, Peacock, and more (June 7-8)

The weekend is here, and the best streaming services are flooded with plenty of great new movies to beat the heat with. Which can make narrowing down what to watch a headache in and of itself. At the top of our weekend watchlist is 'Sinners,' one of the biggest hits of the year so far, arriving on premium video-on-demand streaming. Over on Netflix, you'll find Tyler Perry's newest high-stakes drama, "Straw," about a struggling single mother pushed past her breaking point. For even more thrills, Prime Video just got the Ben Affleck-led sequel "The Accountant 2." Meanwhile, if you're looking for other flavors of horror, Peacock has the razor-sharp satire "The Blackening," while Steven Soderbergh's "Presence," a cerebral twist on the haunted house genre, just landed on Hulu. So let's dive into all the best new movies to watch this weekend that just landed on streaming. For even more streaming recommendations, be sure to check out our round-up of all the top new TV shows you'll want to binge-watch. The box office success and pop culture phenomenon "Sinners" is now streaming. So if you missed Ryan Coogler's hit horror movie in theaters, now's your chance to catch it at home. "Sinners" stars Michael B. Jordan in a double role as enterprising twins Smoke and Stack, who leave their troubled lives in Chicago behind to start a juke joint in their small hometown in Mississippi. Rather than a welcoming committee, they discover a supernatural evil has taken root in their community, and it's leaching off the talents and energy of Black folks. This horror-thriller is a gripping, stylish ride packed with standout performances and an unforgettable musical score, making it an absolute must-watch for horror fans. Get instant access to breaking news, the hottest reviews, great deals and helpful tips. Buy or rent now on Amazon Tyler Perry's no stranger to heartwrenching dramas, and his latest, "Straw," follows a struggling single mother pushed to her absolute breaking point. Taraji P. Henson stars as Janiyah, whose day from hell just keeps going downhill. Just when it seems things can't get worse, she returns to her workplace to collect her final paycheck, only to walk into a deadly armed robbery. She survives, but when the bank refuses to cash her check to pay for her daughter's medicine, it proves to be her breaking point. With nothing left to lose, Janiyah takes a desperate stand, holding the bank and its occupants hostage. A bank teller (Sherri Shepherd) caught in the chaos begins to empathize with Janiyah's pain. Meanwhile, outside, Detective Raymond (Teyana Taylor) leads the negotiation, determined to bring the situation to a peaceful end and convinced that Janiyah isn't a criminal, but a mother stretched impossibly thin. But with tension rising and the odds stacked against her, it's hard to believe this day won't take an even darker turn. Watch it now on Netflix Ben Affleck returns as the money laundering Christian Wolff in the action thriller sequel "The Accountant 2," which just landed on Prime Video after racking up a respectable $100 million at the box office. Though its theatrical run hasn't been quite as stellar as 2016's "The Accountant," it's bound to be a hit on the streamer now that subscribers can check out all the heart-pounding thrills for no extra fee. After an old acquaintance is murdered, Wolff — a CPA who leads a double life cooking books for criminal organizations — must team up with his estranged mercenary brother Brax (Jon Bernthal) to uncover a deadly conspiracy. Their only lead is a cryptic message left behind: "Find the accountant." As the brothers work with U.S. Treasury Deputy Director Marybeth Medina (Cynthia Addai-Robinson) to crack the case, they find themselves in the crosshairs of a ruthless network of killers hellbent on making sure certain secrets stay buried. Watch it now on Prime Video 2025 has been a great year for horror films, but director Steven Soderbergh's "Presence" has proven to be one of the most divisive. It flips the traditional haunted house story on its head, shot from the perspective of the ghostly entity making things go bump in the night. The creative framing makes for a slower pace that focuses more on building tension and family drama than scares, but it's surprisingly impactful. "Presence" follows the Payne family — mom Rebekah (Lucy Liu), dad Chris (Chris Sullivan), and their teenage son (Eddy Maday) and daughter (Callina Liang) — who move into their dream house in the suburbs. While they appear to be the perfect nuclear family on paper, it's not long before cracks start becoming clear. When nightmarish events start unfolding, the parents must protect their children from forces beyond their understanding. Watch it now on Hulu If you like your horror with a healthy dose of humor, "The Blackening" is the perfect pick. This clever slasher-comedy follows a group of Black friends who head to a remote cabin to celebrate Juneteenth. While exploring the cabin's game room, they stumble upon a board game called "The Blackening," which features a racist caricature mascot on the cover and pieces that correlate to each member of the group. To their horror, they find themselves locked in while a "Saw"-esque broadcast explains that they must compete in "The Blackening," a trivia-based game on Black culture, if they want to survive. To make it through the night, they'll have to rely on their wits along with their deep knowledge of horror movie clichés. "The Blackening" is hilariously self-aware, poking fun at classic genre tropes while still delivering suspense and surprises. It feels like a cross between "Scary Movie" and "Get Out," offering up as many laughs as it does scares. Watch it now on Peacock

Watch: Sydney Sweeney says 'Cassie is crazy' in 'Euphoria' Season 3
Watch: Sydney Sweeney says 'Cassie is crazy' in 'Euphoria' Season 3

Yahoo

time2 hours ago

  • Yahoo

Watch: Sydney Sweeney says 'Cassie is crazy' in 'Euphoria' Season 3

June 6 (UPI) -- Actress Sydney Sweeney is teasing Season 3 of Euphoria. She portrays Cassie in the HBO series, which premiered in 2019. She talked about filming the upcoming third season on The Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon Thursday. "Cassie is crazy," she said. "Oh, she's even worse. She's even worse." Fallon then showed an image of the star in an apparent wedding dress, but Sweeney said she could not provide additional details about whether or not her character will tie the knot. Zendaya, Maude Apatow, Eric Dane, Alexa Demie, Jacob Elordi, Storm Reid, Hunter Schafer and Dominic Fike starred in Season 2. The actress, 27, also stars in the upcoming Apple TV+ thriller Echo Valley opposite Julianne Moore. "You know, when I first read the script, I was completely blown away by how Brad [Ingelsby], the writer, just wove in all of these crazy turns that I didn't even expect, and usually, I'm pretty good at figuring it out, and I did not see this coming," Sweeney told Fallon. "Claire, my character, shows up at her mom's doorstep, played by Julianne Moore, covered in blood," she added, describing the film. "And what follows is a endless amount of twists and turns that kind of show how much and how far a mother would go for her daughter." Domhnall Gleeson and Kyle MacLachlan also star in the film, which arrives on the streamer June 13. On Wednesday, Sweeney attended the New York premiere of Echo Valley. She wore a strapless, red corseted dress.

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