The Alaskan Bush People family has sadly experienced a major loss, as Matt Brown was reportedly found dead at the end of May. His passing unfortunately marks the death of yet another notable reality star in the midst of the 2026 TV schedule. Now, Matt's brother, Joshua "Bam Bam" Brown, has spoken out in the aftermath of his passing. Bam Bam's candid reflection not only includes thoughts on his brother's life but also on how he and their family will remember Matt as time goes on.

It was TMZ that confirmed the death of Matt Brown, who was reported missing by his family members on May 27. Subsequently, there were reports of people having allegedly seen Brown's body floating in the Okanogan River. Matt's brother, Bear Brown, shared on TikTok that their brother, Noah, recovered Matt's body from a river, and he claimed there was a self-inflicted wound, suggesting he died by suicide. An official coroner's report has yet to be completed.

Matt was estranged from his siblings for the past handful of years due to his struggles with addiction and, when he was on Alaskan Bush People, he often butted heads with brother Bam Bam. In a lengthy Instagram post, Bam Bam, speaking on behalf of his family, paid homage to his brother, speaking to his creativity and strengths viewers might not have seen on TV:

Some of Matt Brown's skills were highlighted on episodes of Alaskan Bush People, which aired for 14 seasons between 2014 and 2022. For the most part, however, the Discovery series seemed to highlight Brown's apparent standing as the "black sheep" of the family as well as his desire to set off on his own and forge a path not linked to his relatives.

Alaskan Bush People also touched on Matt's struggles with addiction early on, and it ultimately led to him leaving the show in 2019. Matt remained estranged from the rest of the Brown family, and the family experienced a tragedy due to the death of patriarch Billy Brown's death in 2021. Bam Bam also mentioned Matt's struggles, as well as his father, as he continued his eulogy:

As someone who recently watched the first seasons of Alaskan Bush People, I agree that Billy Brown always believed in his children overcoming any adversity. It was part of why he thought they could live as a family out of the wilderness and why he put full faith in his children to execute the plans alongside him.

Bam Bam closed his address with an acknowledgement of Matt's past controversies. In 2020, Matt faced accusations of rape from a former assistant and manager, but a district attorney declined to prosecute him. Bam Bam noted that the family didn't wish to minimize those incidents while also paying homage to their brother:

Matt Brown's death notably comes months after brother Bear Brown suggested there was a chance that Discovery could bring back Alaskan Bush People for another season. However, since the conclusion of the series, the family has spread out across the nation and are seemingly living their own lives.

This tragedy marks the latest in the reality TV space, coming after the passing of Storage Wars star Darrell Sheets. Sadly, another Discovery alum, Deadliest Catch's Todd Meadows, died after falling overboard during a haul and drowning.

Bam Bam Brown's eulogy eloquently details his brother's life, serving as a nuanced take on a person he seemingly had a complex relationship with. It's lovely to see Brown eulogize his brother, and his discussion of Matt's abilities is a reminder for reality TV fans that the camera only tells part of the story.

CinemaBlend would like to offer its condolences to the Brown family and fans of Alaskan Bush People. Here's hoping they're able to heal following this troubling incident and honor Matt Brown as they can.

The cast and crew of Deadliest Catch – Discovery’s long-running series about crab fisherman – are mourning one of their own. It was reported this week that Todd Meadows, a deckhand on one of the boats featured in the show, died at the age of 25. Details on the exact circumstances behind Meadows’ death weren’t initially released. Now, however, some new information on the late crabber’s passing has been divulged. Not only that, but an investigation has been launched into the matter.

It was originally reported that Meadows died last week while filming the reality show (which is streamable with an HBO Max subscription). TMZ has now learned that Meadows fell overboard while working on the Aleutian Lady, which is captained by Rick Shelford. Said details come by way of the U.S. Coast Guard, which is currently analyzing the situation. The organization released a formal statement in which it detailed the tragic turn of events that led to the crew member’s death:

Meadows’ body was reportedly taken in by the Anchorage Medical Examiner's Office two days after it was recovered, and it was there that an autopsy was performed. As of now, Meadows’ body has been released by the examiner. In the aftermath of the situation, the Coast Guard is emphasizing its intent to look into this fatality:

An additional statement came from Discovery Channel, with a rep saying the brand was “deeply saddened by” Meadows’ passing and that employees’ “hearts are with his loved ones, his crewmates, and the entire fishing community during this incredibly difficult time.” Captain Shelford also responded by sharing a tribute to Meadows on Instagram and confirming that the crew was working on the Bering Sea when he died. Shelford shared photos of Meadows and praised him as both a fisherman and a father. Take a look:

Over the years, Deadliest Catch has emerged as a popular title under the Discovery umbrella and has even spawned spinoffs. Unfortunately, the show has also seen its share of deaths that took place on the job. There have also been several series alums who’ve died due to non-fishing-related circumstances like late star Tony Lara as well as Captain Blake Painter.

Historically, the Discovery+ streamable Deadliest Catch returns for a new season every year, which would theoretically mean the show has been filming for a new batch of episodes to debut sometime amid the 2026 TV schedule. It’s unclear as to whether Meadows’ death or the ongoing investigation will shift production in any way. Also, as mentioned by TMZ, it’s unclear if the cameras were actually rolling when the deckhand fell overboard.

I recently began watching Alaskan Bush People with my HBO Max subscription thanks to TikTok, and because the show is now on my algorithm, I'm pretty up to date on what the family is up to now. I was bummed, however, to see there haven't been new episodes since 2022, and I assumed it was cancelled. Fortunately, a new update from Bear Brown clarified the situation and has encouraged me that we'll see new episodes at some point.

Bear Brown is still exploring the Alaskan wilderness, though these days he's doing so on his own social media platforms. Despite that, he's also wondering if the Discovery series will return, and shared the latest on what he knew about the situation with his followers on TikTok:

It's good to hear that there's still a chance we could see the Brown family return with more episodes of Alaskan Bush People, though I'd have to question what that would look like. After all, many of the children now have their own families, and family patriarch Billy Brown passed away in 2021. Whatever a return would look like, I'm almost sure it wouldn't involve the whole crew jumping on a ship and running through the woods.

If Discovery does bring the reality series back, however, Bear Brown has confirmed he'd be up for joining. He has one condition, but given the current reality-television climate, I don't think it'd be a big ask. As he put it:

Part of the reason Discovery may have Alaskan Bush People in limbo is the litany of controversies surrounding the Brown family in recent years. Eldest child Matt Brown had rape allegations lodged against him, and Bear Brown was arrested for domestic violence against his now ex-wife. There have also been concerning statements made by Rain Brown alleging she was sexually assaulted by her brother Noah, which the latter responded to in a TikTok video.

With Bear Brown being the only source giving updates on the fate of Alaskan Bush People, we'll have to wait and see what Discovery decides to do with the reality series. I think it's a long shot to speculate that the show will be part of the 2026 TV schedule, given all the drama between them. It's possible there could be a tell-all or reunion special recapping all their struggles since the show.

It's also worth noting that many of the children now have families of their own, and I don't see all of them packing up their lives and moving out to the Alaskan Bush. While Bear seems eager to get back to doing the show, I'd have to wonder how the rest of his siblings feel about the idea of seeing it return.

Until we get word on whether it's cancelled or getting new episodes, Alaskan Bush People episodes are available to stream over on HBO Max. I'm about halfway through the series as we speak, and might even get through every episode before the end of the year.

Shark Week is that time of year when viewers will tune into Discovery in droves to learn about sharks and/or see scientists have fun with them, a la Dancing with Sharks with Tom Bergeron in the 2025 TV schedule. Forrest Galante is a regular contributor, and he was back with the latest Alien Sharks installment this year, but that wasn’t all on Discovery for July 2025. He also hosted a new three-part series called Animals on Drugs. According to Galante when speaking with CinemaBlend, he has a lot more animals in mind to continue for a second season.

I tuned in for the three episodes of Animals on Drugs, which all aired on Discovery on July 28 and are available streaming now with an HBO Max subscription. As somebody who was always fascinated by the tale of Pablo Escobar’s cocaine hippos in Colombia and a regular viewer of Forrest Galante’s attempts to find alien sharks each year (even when orcas pose a problem), the show was a natural fit for me. When I spoke with the host, he explained what sets Animals on Drugs apart and makes it important beyond a somewhat sensationalist title:

With Discovery airing all three episodes back-to-back-to-back in one night and the show having such an incredibly specific premise, I really assumed that Animals on Drugs really had to be a one-and-done series. After all, how many animals could there really be that are so specifically affected by pharmaceuticals with enough evidence to make up a full special?

Well, according to Forrest Galante, there are a lot more animals that could fit the bill for future seasons of Animals on Drugs. He said:

I’d known about the cocaine hippos from other documentaries, but meth gators and drunk bears were new to me! I won’t go too deeply into what happens with Forrest Galante’s efforts to learn more about how these species are affected by human pharmaceuticals, but I will say that there’s one segment of the meth gator episode that would have been too much for me to be part of in real life even if I was an alligator aficionado.

Galante didn’t list the sixteen species that he could cover in future seasons of Animals on Drugs, but sadly, there are apparently a lot. (Fun fact: Discovery aired a Shark Week special called Cocaine Sharks a couple years ago, also available streaming now on HBO Max.)

This year’s installment of Alien Sharks proved that he definitely hasn’t run out of sharks to cover in his recurring series of specials focusing on very specific, lesser known shark species that are often in danger from human encroachment. With 2025’s Alien Sharks: Death Down Under taking him to the waters of Australia and involving the host injecting himself with shark venom, I had to ask: is it ever hard to find a new angle for a series of species? He explained:

If you missed the wild ride of Shark Week 2025 or Animals on Drugs, you’re in luck with them all available on HBO Max. I went in not knowing what to expect from Animals on Drugs, interested but not really expecting that there could be more than those three species so affected by human pharmaceuticals that a full Discovery special could be focused on them. That just goes to show what I knew about… well, animals on drugs! Perhaps Galante will have the chance to cover more of those sixteen species he has in mind.

Discovery's Shark Week has been delivering seven days of shark-filled TV every summer for more than thirty years now, but this summer of the 2025 TV schedule really stands out on the shark front thanks to the 50th anniversary of Jaws. The anniversary was almost exactly one month before Shark Week familiar face Paul de Gelder took the screen for his How to Survive a Shark Attack special, so I seized my opportunity during Discovery's press day to ask for his take on the beloved film that did not quite accurately portray great white shark behavior.

Shark Week couldn't have recruited a better leading man for How to Survive a Shark Attack than Paul de Gelder, as he quite literally has survived a shark attack. He lost a hand and a leg after being attacked by a bull shark, and he put his knowledge to use in this particular Discovery special. When I spoke with de Gelder for Shark Week 2025, which kicked off with Tom Bergeron's Dancing with Sharks (to mixed reactions from viewers), he weighed in on how Jaws has affected popular opinions about sharks:

It sounds like Paul de Gelder would agree with CinemaBlend ranking the nightmare-inducing Jaws as one of the best horror movies of all time! He pointed out that the world was a very different place back in 1975, and director Steven Spielberg himself shared his regret that Jaws led to the mass killing of real-life sharks (which are much more functional than the movie's great white). Nowadays, as the attack survivor pointed out, it's very important to tell reality from fiction when it comes to these animals.

None of this is to say that Paul de Gelder believes that most Jaws fans don't discern reality from fiction, since there are more resources in 2025 than 1975... although he did admit that there's one way that sharks really aren't helping themselves when it comes to their reputations. He went on:

As an annual viewer of Shark Week who also loves Jaws to the point of once watching it while en route to an ocean beach vacation, I love Paul de Gelder's take on sharks as "a pretty bad PR client." While shark attacks on humans are quite rare, they make very big headlines when they do happen, and Jaws immortalized the idea of a rogue shark going on a killing spree.

But if de Gelder could go from being attacked by a bull shark to promoting shark protection and conservation year after year on Shark Week, surely we can all go the extra mile to remember that Jaws is fiction, shark attacks being rare is the reality, and we can definitely just enjoy "one of the best movies ever made."

If you missed Paul de Gelder's How to Survive a Shark Attack when it aired on Discovery, you can stream it now with a Max subscription as well as other Shark Week installments of 2025. This was only one of several specials featuring de Gelder this week, with others including Air Jaws: The Hunt for Colossus, Black Mako of the Abyss, and the upcoming Bull Shark Showdown on July 25. Shark Week will wrap this year on July 26.

Shark Week is a highlight of the 2025 TV schedule for some but, historically, there always seems to be a program within the Discovery block that rubs viewers the wrong way for one reason or another. Unfortunately, that happened right off the bat this year, thanks to a particularly kooky show. A number of fans tuned in to see Tom Bergeron host Dancing with Sharks, and many subsequently took to social media to negatively sound off on this wild crossover of sorts involving Dancing with the Stars.

DWTS fans have hoped for years that Bergeron would return to the ABC dance competition. However, I'm not quite sure Dancing with Sharks was quite what those devotees had in mind. The special features shark handlers dancing around sharks and using bait to entice them to emulate popular dance moves as well. After the special kicked off the week-long celebration of sharks on Discovery, many on X weren't impressed. Check out some of the responses down below:

• This is a very disappointing way to open Shark Week. This should have been on Thursday at 10pm as a super bonus extra episode.You know what drives ratings and what people want from SharkWeek and this is not it. Some new findings on megladon, showing some 'ghost sharks' , literally anything but this. - @Aaro444
• Bad. Like objectively bad. - @SJmedic911
• I think this episode is making fun of these majestic creatures. - @GuinJudie
• You may want to consider firing whoever made the decision to put this ridiculousness on for Shark Week. Boring. Stupid. Worst start to shark week ever. So sad. - @Mimi202215
• Absolutely STUPID. can't this program leave reality TV behind and go back to science? Just abject moronic drivel tonight. - @Dandelow

Collectively, the online response to Dancing with Sharks was overwhelmingly negative, with numerous comments echoing the opinions expressed above. It feels like this program was a misstep in trying to appease the fans who tune in every year to see more shark content, and less stunt programming to promote the event.

Over the years, Discovery has added somewhat unconventional shows to the Shark Week programming, of course. There was, for instance, the network's odd decision to debut a special called The Real Sharknado a few years back. Also, be aware that before Mike Tyson took on Jake Paul in a boxing match, he also went toe-to-toe with a shark in another weird special produced for the programming block.

Good or bad publicity, maybe the goal of Dancing with Sharks was to help signal the return of Shark Week, which features hours of new programming on the carnivorous fish in primetime every night. Those without cable can also use an HBO Max subscription to keep up with the fun and learn the latest about some of the biggest great white sharks around.

Continue to tune into Shark Week on Discovery as new shows premiere all week, beginning at 8:00 p.m. ET. I'm expecting more of the science, sensational shark footage, and wild survival stories to be on the way later this week. Also, in the aftermath of Dancing with Sharks, it's fortune for the sharks that -- unlike Dancing with the Stars -- they won't have to compete week after week.

Discovery's most jaw-dropping week of the year has arrived in the 2025 TV schedule, with the 37th annual Shark Week kicking off on July 20. Viewers can look forward to an assortment of great whites, bulls, hammerheads, makos and more beyond the usual heavy-hitters, but the week-long celebration of sharks is kicking off with a special that's the first of its kind: Dancing with Sharks. None other than former Dancing with the Stars host Tom Bergeron is on board, and returning Shark Week host Kinga Philipps spoke with CinemaBlend about why he was the perfect pick even when a DWTS mirrorball trophy isn't involved.

Dancing with Sharks is the first installment of Shark Week 2025, airing on Sunday, July 20 at 8 p.m. ET on Discovery, followed by the latest entry in the fan-favorite Air Jaws series. Tom Bergeron is on board to host as five divers face off with underwater routines with sharks as their partners. Species include hammerheads, tigers, and nurse sharks with their own kinds of dance moves. (If you're a Shark Week regular, you likely have a good guess about which one of those three options is probably the least dangerous underwater dance partner!)

Fans will have to tune in to see what it takes for a competitor to actually come out on top, but TV journalist and Shark Week returnee Kinga Philipps spoke with CinemaBlend during Discovery's press junket for the seven-day event. She shared why Dancing with Sharks is a strong choice for the very first show of this week's entire lineup:

Apparently, Discovery isn't being sensationalist by releasing a show called Dancing with Sharks, and there genuinely will be shark dancing! And just like it was fitting to bring in Olympic great Michael Phelps for a special about shark swimming speed, who better to appear in a show about dancing sharks than Tom Bergeron himself?

While Tom Bergeron has had a long and prolific career, he's likely best known for his years hosting America's Funniest Home Videos and of course Dancing with the Stars. Now that the controversy surrounding his exit from DWTS has cooled down, he's bringing his dance hosting talents to a program with much more unruly performers than just the celebs strutting their stuff. Kinga Philipps, who made history as the first female Shark Week host in 33 years, shared what Bergeron brings to Dancing with Sharks:

Bergeron wasn't only a good fit for Dancing with Sharks because he earned so many fans via Dancing with the Stars, and I found it sweet to hear that he brought such a great energy to a project that's so different from what he's worked on before. I haven't watched every episode of America's Funniest Home Videos when he was the host, but I'm pretty confident that none of them involved dancing sharks!

When I noted to Kinga Philipps that there's clearly a reason why Tom Bergeron had decades' worth of fans before joining Shark Week, she responded "Exactly!" and confirmed that "it's all tried and true" because he's "a great guy." For an early look at Bergeron's return to hosting a dancing TV show (of sorts), check out the clip below:

If nothing else, Tom Bergeron was able to dress down more for Dancing with Sharks than his usual suit, tie, and pocket square from DWTS. Tune in to Discovery on Sunday, July 20 at 8 p.m. ET to check out Dancing with Sharks as the very first special of Shark Week 2025. Of the species showcased in the clip, I know I'd pick a nurse shark if I had to deliver an underwater dance routine, but I'll be happier to watch from the comfort of my land-locked couch when it comes to this production.

Shark Week will continue with new specials in the primetime hours through Saturday, July 26. It just remains to be seen if any records will be broken this year like what Shark Week 2024 with John Cena accomplished. You'll also have the option to watch post-primetime with an HBO Max subscription.

Like so many people in June 2023, I was glued to coverage of the OceanGate Titan submersible after disaster struck the five-man crew en route to the Titanic wreckage. Two years after their tragic deaths, Titan: The Oceangate Submersible Disaster hit the 2025 Netflix schedule, and I was really interested in learning more about what happened. Then I discovered a second documentary on the implosion, and it affected me even more, especially because of one truly chilling moment.

The story of the Titan disaster played out like a real-life nightmare in 2023: On June 18, the doomed submersible descended into the Atlantic Ocean carrying OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush, Titanic expert Paul-Henri Nargeolet, businessmen Hamish Harding and Shahzada Dawood, and Dawood's 19-year-old son Suleman. Until these documentaries hit the 2025 movie calendar, I didn’t realize how much it led to the ultimate implosion that killed all five, and the option available with a Max subscription has been especially hard to shake.

Two Documentaries On The 2023 Titan Submersible Implosion Are Streaming Now

Implosion: The Titanic Sub Disaster was the first of the two released, airing May 28 on the Discovery Channel and streaming on Discovery+ and HBO Max. Netflix (which boasted several great documentaries in 2024) then released its own Titan implosion documentary a few weeks later on June 11 — Titan: The Oceangate Submersible Disaster. Watching Netflix’s Titan doc was unnerving, to be sure, but it was footage from Discovery’s Implosion that really shook me.

Actual Audio Of The Suspected Implosion Chilled Me To My Core

Both documentaries feature past interviews with Stockton Rush, as well as some who worked for him and those running the U.S. Coast Guard’s investigation. Implosion: The Titanic Sub Disaster, however, puts more focus on the Titan’s final voyage and implosion. In fact, it even plays a clip in which you can hear what is suspected to be the implosion.

Not only do we hear the bang that occurred just over 90 minutes after the Titan began its dive — as if that weren’t unsettling enough — we also see Stockton Rush’s wife’s reaction to the noise. Wendy Rush served as the director of communications for OceanGate, so she was running comms for her husband’s dive — the company’s 88th.

In footage shown to investigators over a laptop on the Implosion documentary, she’s speaking to a colleague when they hear a noise that investigators described as sounding like a door slamming. Wendy looks up and says:

There’s a nervous smile on her face, and then she apparently received what would be the Titan’s final message, reporting they’d “dropped two weights,” with investigators doing that math for how long it takes sound to travel through water. To that point, Wendy Rush had received a ping from her husband’s sub every 5 to 10 seconds, but nothing else would come from the Titan.

One mark of a good documentary, in my opinion, is how much actual footage there is of the subject in question, as well as credible sources who were directly involved. Both Implosion: The Titanic Sub Disaster and Titan: The OceanGate Submersible Disaster (streaming with a Netflix subscription) have both of those in spades, but to hear the alleged moment that the craft’s carbon-fiber hull imploded was something I was not expecting, and honestly, it’s not something I’ve been able to get out of my head.

The Coast Guard investigators seemed shocked, too. After they watched the footage a couple of times, Jason Neubauer wiped his eyes as he said:

That portion of the documentary may have been the most tense for me, but I was really taken aback by Implosion overall.

There Was Some Overlap Between The Two, But I Thought Implosion: The Titanic Sub Disaster Was More Impactful

Both the Implosion documentary on Max and Netflix’s Titan: The OceanGate Submersible Disaster used footage of OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush; they both included testimony from the ongoing Coast Guard investigation, as well as interviews with several former OceanGate employees to make their point.

In both cases, their point seemed to be that this was a preventable disaster, not an accident. Stockton Rush ignored warnings from multiple people; he took steps to ensure he was not hindered by safety regulations; he fired people who tried to blow the whistle; and he very likely knew such a tragedy was all but inevitable. Still, he pressed on, accepted hundreds of thousands of dollars from each passenger and put civilians (including a teenager) in his sub.

While The OceanGate Submersible Disaster on Netflix focused a lot on the company’s chain of command, showing how employees came to work for Stockton Rush and how and why they eventually left, The Titanic Sub Disaster featured the experiences of many who had been a part of previous dives.

That included Discovery Channel host Josh Gates, who had planned to feature the submersible on Expedition Unknown. However, when everything went wrong on their dive, Gates said he felt it would be irresponsible to promote what Stockton Rush was doing, and the episode was scrapped.

It also had the harrowing recollection of a safety diver, who became emotional as he recalled helping 19-year-old Suleman Dawood into the sub. And as for actual footage from June 18, 2023, we watch — for 15 uninterrupted seconds — an aerial shot of the Titan descending for the last time.

Watching Both Documentaries Gives A Fuller Picture Of The Titan Disaster

Even though I liked the documentary that can be streamed on HBO Max better, I still recommend watching the Netflix one as well. It’s interesting to see how each filmmaking crew approached the event, especially because — as previously mentioned — they used some of the same footage and talked to some of the same people.

In fact, watching both back-to-back made for a more well-rounded experience, because they also each include many aspects not covered in the other. My recommendation is to watch both (starting with Netflix’s Titan: The OceanGate Submersible Disaster) if you are interested in learning more about what went wrong on — and leading up to — that fateful day two years ago. But if you only have time or interest for one, make it Implosion: The Titanic Sub Disaster on Discovery+ and Max.

How To Watch The Handmaid’s Tale Season 6

Watch The Handmaid’s Tale Season 6: Preview

Eight years on, and the enslaved Handmaid’s of Hulu’s dystopian drama are laying down their wings to take arms against the totalitarian government of Gilead. And a vengeful June Osbourne (Golden Globe-winner Elizabeth Moss) is leading the charge as her journey comes to an explosive close – though, praise be, sequel series The Testaments has just begun production! Read on below for how to watch The Handmaid’s Tale final season online and 100% free with SBS On Demand and from anywhere.

The Handmaid’s Tale was the unmissable TV series of 2017. Based on Margaret Atwood’s Booker Prize-nominated 1985 novel, the adaptation followed the lives of “Handmaids," the subjugated female subjects of the fictional Republic of Gilead. In a world devastated by environmental crises, these women – the few still able to get pregnant – are forced into “natal slavery” for their male Commanders so that they can bear children for their infertile wives.

The dark drama took a match to the cultural zeitgeist. Touching on timely themes of female autonomy and resurgent fascism, it garnered plenty of awards acclaim, including the Emmy award for Outstanding Drama Series, and secured trophies for both Moss (Mad Men) and Ann Dowd as the indomitable Aunt Lydia. And critics heaped it with almost universal praise. The New York Times gushed that it was “unflinching, vital and scary as hell,” while The Herald (Ireland) effused that it “succeeds spectacularly on every level.”

It may have lost its initial urgency after five seasons, but June’s journey and Moss’s performance remain as compelling as ever. Despite escaping into Canada, anti-refugee sentiment and extremist support for Gilead meant June’s life remains in danger. After multiple attempts on her life, and once more separated from her husband Luke (O-T Fagbenle) last season, we saw June flee the country clutching baby Nichole and seeking refuge in Hawaii. But whose path should she cross on the way but Serena's (Yvonne Strahovski), her former enemy and occasional ally.

Returning alongside Moss for one last hurrah are series OGs Samira Wiley as Moira, Madeline Brewer as Janine, and Max Minghella as Nick Blaine, just a few individuals looking to tear the regime down. War is inevitable as the resistance grows. Mayday is ready to kill Gilead’s most extremist Commanders, which includes one new character played by Josh Charles (We Own This City), who forebodingly declares that Gilead must “hold these terrorist rebels to account.”

Will our Handmaids find themselves on The Wall? Or might June and her allies finally bring Gilead’s reign of terror to an end? Catch every last episode with the following viewing guide, which explains how to watch The Handmaid’s Tale Season 6 and stream the explosive final season free from anywhere in the world.

How to watch The Handmaid’s Tale final season online for free in Australia

Praise be! The hit drama returned on April 8, and those in Australia can watch The Handmaid’s Tale Season 6 online for free with new episodes dropping at 2pm AEST on Tuesdays on SBS On Demand at the same time as its US release.

A trio of episodes were made available at debut, with weekly single episodes now following until the finale on May 27.

It's easy to stream The Handmaid’s Tale with SBS On Demand. There are no membership fees to consider: simply sign-in, or create an account by providing a few personal details (name, email address, DOB, etc.) and voila! You can enjoy the latest Handmaid’s drama right away.

Abroad? Use a VPN using the instructions below to access SBS On Demand like you would at home.

How to watch The Handmaid’s Tale final season online from anywhere

If you're an Australian citizen on vacation or working overseas, you can still watch The Handmaid’s Tale Season 6 online just as you would at home.

While services like SBS On Demand block access from IP addresses outside of the the country, there's a handy piece of software called a VPN that can change your IP address to make it look like you're accessing streaming services from any country in the world.

For example, Aussie citizens overseas can subscribe to a VPN, join an Australian-based server and access their subscription from anywhere in the world, just like they would back home.

How to use a VPN to unblock streaming services:

1. Choose your ideal VPN and install – our go-to recommendation for unblocking is NordVPN, costing from $3.99 a month with its 2-year plan

2. Connect to a server – for SBS On Demand, for example, you'll want to connect to a server based in Australia.

3. Go to the stream you wish to access - for The Handmaid's Tale Season 6, head to a service like SBS On Demand.

How to watch The Handmaid’s Tale final season online in the US

US viewers can watch The Handmaid’s Tale final season exclusively on Hulu. The first three episodes dropped on April 8, with new episodes dropping every Tuesday at 12am PT / 3am ET.

There are a variety of Hulu subscriptions to chose from. Firstly, you can opt for one of its on-demand only plans, which comes with a 30-day free trial to new members. Thereafter, you’ll pay $9.99 a month for its ad-supported plan, or $18.99 a month to go commercial free.

An Aussie looking to watch The Handmaid’s Tale while away from home? Use a VPN to access your SBS On Demand account from anywhere.

How to watch The Handmaid’s Tale Season 6 online in Canada

Those in Canada can now watch The Handmaid’s Tale Season 6 from April 8 through Crave. Three episodes were made available at debut, with new episodes being uploaded every Tuesday now.

Crave plans start from CA$9.99 a month (+tax) with three plans to choose from. Upgrade to Crave Standard at CA$14.99 per month and get four simultaneous streams. However, the CA$22 Premium plan offers the best value. It’s the only option with no adverts, and lets you stream live TV channels and download content to watch on the go. You can also save month by signing up for an annual plan, each of which offer 12 months for the price of 10.

Aussie abroad? Simply download a VPN and connect to SBS On Demand like you would back home, regardless of where you’re currently located.

Where To Watch The Handmaid’s Tale Season 6 online in the UK

It’s been confirmed! UK fans will be able to catch the Handmaids’ final stand against Gilead on both Channel 4’s free streaming service and Prime Video.

Amazon have confirmed the season will premiere on May 3, 2025, likely to have a simultaneous release on Channel 4, too, though this has yet to be confirmed.

As mentioned, Channel 4 is 100% free to use. Simply head to Channel 4, create an account with your email address and a UK postcode (e.g. SW1P 2TX) and watch The Handmaid's Tale Season 6 for free. You'll also find the previous five seasons here available to stream.

Alternatively, in the UK an Amazon Prime subscription costs from £8.99 a month. That's after a 30-day free trial! You'll also be able to enjoy other benefits like free next day delivery and Amazon Music.

Currently out of the country? VOD platforms like Hulu and SBS On Demand are regionally-restricted, so you’ll need a VPN to watch The Handmaid’s Tale Season 6 to access your home services while abroad.

How To Watch The Handmaid's Tale Season 6 In New Zealand

Those in New Zealand can watch The Handmaid's Tale Season 6 simultaenously with its US release through streaming service Neon TV.

This is a paid for service, starting from $12.99 a month, with a choice of two plans to subscribe to. You can also save 16% by prepaying for a year upfront.

The Handmaid’s Tale Season 6 Trailer

The Handmaid’s Tale Season 6 Episode Release Schedule

Episode 1: "Train" – Tuesday, April 8

"June's unyielding spirit and determination pull her back into the fight to take down Gilead; Luke and Moira join the resistance; Serena tries to reform Gilead."

Episode 2: "Exile" – Tuesday, April 8

"June tries to settle in another community; Serena seeks a sanctuary; Luke and Moira take a big risk."

Episode 3: "Devotion" – Tuesday, April 8

"June struggles to save her loved ones; Commander Lawrence welcomes diplomats to New Bethlehem; Aunt Lydia searches for Janine."

Episode 4: "Promotion" – Tuesday, April 15

"June disrupts the rebels' plans; Commander Lawrence gains power and influence."

Episode 5: "Janine" – Tuesday, April 22

Episode 6: "Surprise" – Tuesday, April 29

Episode 7: "Shattered" – Tuesday, May 6

Episode 8: "Exodus" – Tuesday, May 13

Episode 9: "Execution" – Tuesday, May 20

Episode 10: "The Handmaid's Tale" – Tuesday, May 27

The Handmaid’s Tale Season 6 Cast

• Elisabeth Moss as June Osborne
• Yvonne Strahovski as Serena Joy Waterford
• Madeline Brewer as Janine Lindo
• Ann Dowd as Aunt Lydia Clements
• O-T Fagbenle as Luke Bankole
• Max Minghella as Commander Nick Blaine
• Samira Wiley as Moira Strand
• Amanda Brugel as Rita Blue
• Bradley Whitford as Commander Joseph Lawrence
• Sam Jaeger as Mark Tuello
• Ever Carradine as Naomi Putnam
• Natasha Mumba as Danielle
• Victoria Sawal as Tyler
• Amanda Zhou as Vicky
• Carey Cox as Rose Blaine
• Josh Charles as TBC

How To Watch Naked And Afraid Season 18

Watch Naked And Afraid Season 18: Synopsis

The wildly entertaining Discovery Channel series has returned! Shedding their clothes and turning their back on society for three long weeks, we’ll (mostly) see a new group of savvy survivalists fend for themselves in some of the world’s most extreme environments – contending with predators, exposure to the elements, and just sometimes, their infuriating partner. So, drop everything and find out below how to watch Naked and Afraid Season 18 and stream every episode from anywhere.

Debuting in 2013, Naked and Afraid provides contestants with a frankly insane challenge of human ingenuity and resilience. It’s certainly not one for the faint of heart. Each episode follows two stark naked strangers left alone in unforgiving terrain. From humid, snake-infested jungles to freezing tundra, they’re forced to source their own shelter, food, and water while avoiding venomous reptiles, heat stroke, and grizzly bears looking to raid their protein supplies. Only after they’ve endured 21 days, concluding with an arduous bare-foot trek to their extraction point, will they be declared victorious.

Season 18 will feature some fearless new contestants boasting some huge (though tastefully pixelated!) cojones. Having already scaled Mount Kilimanjaro, Mandy, joined by her partner Jonny, will make history as the show’s first bilateral amputee, as they enter the snake-infested jungle of Belize. Meanwhile, series stars Steven Lee Hall Hr. and Laura Zerra will aid two nude amateur survivalists in adapting to Kentucky’s punishing backwoods. One installment will even involve a purportedly haunted Mayan jungle, where a four-person tribe will live on a site once used for human sacrifice. Spooky!

Do they have what it takes to survive? Find out with our guide below, which breaks down how to watch Naked And Afraid Season 18 online, and stream episodes from anywhere.

How to Watch Naked And Afraid Season 18 online in the US

Get ready to get wild! Naked and Afraid Season 18 will air on the Discovery Channel from Sunday, March 9 at 8pm ET/PT. We'll get a two-episode premiere, followed by one installment a week thereafter. Not got cable? You can watch Naked and Afraid Season 18 online the next day (on Mondays) through either Max or Discovery Plus streaming services.

For cord-cutters, there are heaps of options to watch Naked and Afraid and stream the Discover Channel show live or on-demand:

Philo is one of the cheapest OTT options. It’s just $28 a month, includes channels like the Paramount Network and MTV, and provides new members a 7-day free trial.

There’s also Sling TV. It doesn’t serve up a free trial, alas, but it does offer 50% off your first month. You'll want the Sling Blue plan for the Discovery Channel live stream, charged at $50.99 after your first month, costing just $25.50.

If you can wait until the next day, Max and Discovery Plus will individually upload new episodes of Naked and Afraid every Monday. In the US, Discovery Plus offers a 7-day free trial for those new to the service, after which time you’ll pay either $5.99 a month (for the ad-supported plan) or $9.99 for the ad-free option.

Alternatively, Max subscriptions are a bit pricier but provide tons of quality content. The basic plan is $9.99 billed monthly, with the option to upgrade and ditch the ads, download content, and stream in 4K Ultra HD quality. You can also save up to 20% by selecting an annual plan. Alternatively, you could get Max as a part of one of the Disney Plus bundles.

How to watch Naked And Afraid Season 18 from anywhere

If you're a US citizen on vacation or working overseas, you can still watch Naked And Afraid Season 18 online just as you would at home.

While services like Max block access from IP addresses outside of the US, there's a handy piece of software called a VPN that can change your IP address to make it look like you're accessing streaming services from any country in the world.

For example, US citizens overseas can subscribe to a VPN, join a US-based server and access their subscription from anywhere in the world, just like they would back home.

How to use a VPN to unblock streaming services:

1. Choose your ideal VPN and install – our go-to recommendation for unblocking is NordVPN, costing from $3.99 a month with its 2-year plan

2. Connect to a server – for Max, for example, you'll want to connect to a server based in the US

3. Go to the stream you wish to access - for Naked and Afraid, head to a service like Discovery Plus or Max.

How to Watch Naked And Afraid Season 18 online in Canada

Those in Canada will want a subscription to Discovery Plus to watch Naked and Afraid Season 18 online. Episodes land on the platform from Monday, March 10, the day after their live US broadcast.

Not yet subscribed to Discovery Plus? There are two membership options: the ad-supported tier, billed at CA$5.99 per month (plus tax), or the ad-free option at $8.99 and which lets you to download shows to watch offline too.

How to watch Naked And Afraid Season 18 online in the UK

There’s no official UK release date for Naked and Afraid Season 18. However, past seasons of the show have released weekly on the Discovery Plus UK platform – though a few weeks after their US premiere. Those in Blighty should expect, then, for new episodes to arrive towards the end of March, but we’ll update you here once we get more information.

A basic Discovery Plus sub costs just £3.99 in the UK. That’ll serve up content from the likes of Discovery, Quest, Really, Animal Planet, and HGTV. Meanwhile, sports afficionados might want to opt for the £30.99 a month option, which will let you watch thrilling UEFA Champions League games, boxing, motorsports, and lots more besides.

A US viewer traveling in the UK? If you want to connect to a streaming service like Max while out of the country, simply download a VPN and get access to the same great content you’d watch back home.

Can I watch Naked And Afraid Season 18 online in Australia?

There’s no word on when Aussie viewers will be able to watch Naked and Afraid Season 18 online. The Discovery Channel is available through Foxtel, but there’s been no announcement of an imminent release. And sadly, Discovery Plus – the streaming service owned by Warner Bros. Discovery – isn’t currently available in Australia.

An American citizen abroad? Simply purchase a VPN to connect to your streaming service of choice and watch your favorite TV shows and movies from anywhere.

Naked And Afraid Season 18 Trailer

Until now, the one connection I could make between Robot Chicken and 90 Day Fiancé is that they're both available to stream with a Max subscription. Now, they'll soon have more in common this summer as the long-running Adult Swim series will celebrate its 20th anniversary on the 2025 TV schedule in a pretty unique way. The 90 Day shows will get some love alongside other Discovery-owned favorites for a wild stop-motion special.

In the Robot Chicken Self-Discovery Special that'll debut over the summer, the series will go meta with its parody sketches in ways that few fans probably expected to ever see. The installment will highlight 90 Day Fiancé and other television mainstays like Shark Week, Food Network shows like Guy's Grocery Games, and we might see an ice road trucker or two. I didn't expect this when I originally wrote a list of Robot Chicken specials that need to happen, but I'm still very excited to see it.

Robot Chicken Calls On "The Nerd" To Explore Reality TV

The Nerd, the bespectacled recurring character in Robot Chicken, is trying to find himself in this latest special. As WBD revealed, he'll do so by appearing on reality television shows and likely having a bunch of misfortune along the way. Given that Naked And Afraid once showcased contestants eating elephant poop, it'll be a challenge for the Adult Swim series to top some of the legitmate wackiness these reality shows have already shown us.

There's a lot of potential here, especially when it comes to 90 Day Fiancé. I would love to see The Nerd appear on every spinoff in a whirlwind romance and become one of the married 90 Day couples who split up. Not to judge him too harshly, but I see him as the type that might get taken advantage of by a foreigner looking to start a new life in the United States.

Which Reality Stars Will Lend Their Voices To Robot Chicken?

Given the brand synergy here, it wouldn't be surprising to me to learn Robot Chicken enlisted the help of 90 Day Fiancé stars and others to bring this special to life. I know cast members like Big Ed Brown hoped to get on Saturday Night Live with their reality fame, so I could definitely see him signing up to lend his voice to Robot Chicken as one of the more prominent stars of the brand.

Then again, he's hinted he might be done with 90 Day Fiancé in recent months, so perhaps they found someone else to lend their voice.

Beyond 90 Day Fiancé, I also have some high hopes for some Food Network stars to lend their voices to the reality-themed special. Guy Fieri is undoubtedly someone on my shortlist, and I think maybe Ree Drummond would be my second choice.

Also, I'd love to see Dr. Pimple Popper star Sandra Lee in the special, though I shudder to think just how gruesome a scene Robot Chicken could make with that premise. More splatter than the show's horror parodies.

There's no shortage of avenues Robot Chicken can go with the bulk of WBD reality shows. While its dedicated viewers may be more used to specials that skew toward fandoms like The Walking Dead, Star Wars, and other major franchises, this feels like a good opportunity for the show to spread its wings and possibly capture a new audience.

Look out for more updates on the Robot Chicken Self-Discovery Special as we move closer to its summer premiere on Adult Swim. I can't be the only one shocked that this parody series is already 20 years old, and I wonder if I should start looking into my investments more closely to prepare for my imminent retirement.

Warning! The following contains spoilers for the Naked And Afraid: Last One Standing Season 2 episode "Dung Deal." Read at your own risk!

Naked And Afraid: Last One Standing is back for Season 2, and while some are sad they can't follow along with a Max subscription for the time being, this season might be worth a cable subscription. I guess it's all a matter of perspective, as readers will have to decide how they feel about watching contestants devour seeds nestled in the poop of an elephant. If that interests you, then the latest episode had that in spades. 

There was once a time when the grossest part of Naked and Afraid was the idea of not showering for weeks of living nude in nature. That's old hat, and now that money is on the line for Last One Standing, the ante must be upped. In a world where some people miiiight agre to chew seeds they plucked out of elephant dung for a guaranteed $100,000 payday, these contestants did it as a challenge without any guarantees that they'll be going home with any prize money. 

Specifically, each group of contestants had to gather twenty mopane seeds from elephant dung and use them as bait for a bird trap. While it doesn't seem as though eating was the required method, Fernando Calderon said it was the quickest way to crush the seeds up enough so that they could be used as bait for birds. He also added what I thought was my favorite comment from the segment: "They taste how you would imagine." 

And while I'm sure Survivalists had their eyes on that $100k grand prize, there was something possibly more tantalizing for the winners' stomachs. Ostrich eggs, which make for great food when you're on a show like Naked And Afraid: Last One Standing, were awarded to the competition winners. To think people would go to such lengths over eggs, I can't imagine how they'd react if you showed them a mouth-watering food movie in the midst of this or presented them with the alternative of tackling one of Adam Richman's failed Man v. Food challenges. Even Super Size Me would feel like Top Chef-level cuisine.

What might be the most impressive part of the segment was that no one opted out of the challenge, and that no one got sick. Sure, there was retching and the occasional gag, but everyone knew there was a job to do, and they wanted those ostrich eggs. I would've been vomiting all over the place if it were me, so more power to them. 

If this is the kind of thing Naked And Afraid: Last One Standing is getting up to in Episode 2, I may have to rethink what I have planned in terms of the 2024 TV schedule. With Season 2 coming to major streamers after a delay, I would suggest those interested do the same because who knows when another reality show will be able to convince contestants to chow down on poop seeds in such a manner? 

Naked And Afraid: Last One Standing airs on Discovery on Sundays at 8:00 p.m. ET. Use a Hulu subscription to catch up on recent seasons of the flagship series for an idea of what to expect from the spinoff competition series, or just go in blind and let the chips fall where they may. 

Discovery's Shark Week (now also streaming with a Max subscription) may be all about showcasing the animals, but some especially prolific hosts have become legends of the annual shark celebration. One such host is Paul de Gelder, whose story as a conservationist has a surprising start: a bull shark attack in Sydney Harbor in 2009 that cost him an arm and a leg. Now, fifteen years later, de Gelder will be featured in five specials for Shark Week in the 2024 TV schedule, and Great White Serial Killer: Sea of Blood was on the docket on July 8. De Gelder spoke with CinemaBlend about the special and some concerns he has from Jaws' legacy among fans.

Great White Serial Killer: Sea of Blood is the second of Paul de Gelder's five Shark Week 2024 specials, and it followed a team of attack investigators traveling to a fishing village in Mexico after a slew of fatal incidents, including one just weeks before their arrival in the Sea of Cortez. They discovered a new great white shark hot spot, and it was up to them to figure out a way to protect the lives of the fishermen as well as the sharks. About halfway through the special, de Gelder agreed with fellow investigator Brandon McMillan that the scenario is like Jaws, "sadly with the vigilantes that want to kill the monster."

Jaws is of course one of the most iconic horror films of all time, down to John Williams on the soundtrack, with a rogue great white shark attacking and devouring people. It's a great movie, but not one that truly represents great white behavior. Following one of the attacks in the film, locals reacted by killing any sharks they could catch. When I spoke with Paul de Gelder about Shark Week 2024 and the threat of vigilantism against sharks in Great White Serial Killer, he shared whether he's noticed Jaws impacting the public's perception of sharks in a negative way, saying:

According to de Gelder, Jaws' legacy isn't necessarily that it scared everybody away from the water for good, but rather interested many people in sharks. The potential problem is when the line isn't drawn between fact and fiction as a reminder that sharks are not in fact movie monsters with vendettas. Anybody who watches Shark Week each year probably doesn't need this particular lesson, though! Steven Spielberg also spoke out about reactions to Jaws that affected real-life sharks.

Great White Serial Killer: Sea of Blood was more somber than many other Shark Week specials, even including the production that ultimately embraced the "terrible idea" of filming world famous orcas. Paul de Gelder opened up about filming in the Sea of Cortez so soon after a fatal shark attack occurred there, saying:

As viewers saw, this special devoted time to the loved ones of the fisherman who died due to great whites as well as the investigation into the sharks themselves, and the end result was a shark cage that may be able to help the people in the village continue with their ocean livelihoods without risking their lives... or the lives of the sharks by extension. De Gelder went on:

We can only hope that the efforts of Paul de Gelder and Co. have truly helped the community in Mexico. It was be nice if Shark Week 2025 could follow up and check in with how they're doing a year later, but that doesn't often happen on Discovery's sharkiest week of the year.

If you missed Great White Serial Killer: Sea of Blood when it aired on Discovery on July 8, you can find it streaming now on Max. Shark Week will continue on Discovery until the final special of the year airs on Saturday, July 13 at 9 p.m. ET, so keep tuning in!

Mike Rowe started his career as a narrator and host for things like CD-ROM trivia before breaking into the TV game. He picked up some local TV gigs where he started narrating a segment called “Somebody’s Gotta Do It.” It was a popular concept, and Rowe would later turn the idea into the longer form series you may know as Dirty Jobs. While Rowe was proud of the show when it hit the TV schedule, he opened up about how it actually took quite a few years before the show blew up – and for his career to see an uptick in the process. 

In a wide-ranging interview, Mike Rowe got candid about the “prophetic” vision he had that led to a career in becoming an expert on the skills gap in the States. He said that he’d seen companies from the seventies on take hands-on work out of schools, creating what he calls a “giant gap in the workforce.” The popular interview host got right to the point about what he saw happening in the U.S. that led to the creation of his hit Discovery show, which began airing in 2003 and later become one of the best shows on Max and other streamers.

In effect, he clarified to Reason Magazine he'd had the vision to land on the path he did. And when things started going south with the economy following the housing crisis in '08 Dirty Jobs was already there to show people that the "pr campaign" for college may have stretched us thin in other ways.

Not that he seemingly didn’t enjoy crawling “through sewers” and teaching audiences about other interesting things many people in society might never have thought about otherwise. And it propelled his career forward in ways he himself may never have imagined.

This didn’t happen overnight, however. Mike Rowe has said he had to "shake people" in the past to get them to pay attention to essential workers who are out of the spotlight. So, it took some time for Dirty Jobs to start being recognized as a widely known reality show. And the secondary effect the sudden fame and popularity had meant that Rowe became an expert of sorts on a whole variety of labor topics.

Ultimately Dirty Jobs was cancelled in 2012 before getting revived for Discovery plus (and those with a Max subscription). While Rowe said he’s not taking “a giant victory lap” for being correct about the direction he believed American society was heading, he did note that it allowed him to put together the mikeroweWORKS Foundation and help young people who aren’t sure college is a direction they want to go in to find vocations. 

I personally can remember the first Dirty Jobs episode I ever watched, in which Mike Rowe taught me that the job doesn’t end when construction companies are finished working. In that episode, he shared how road crews pour concrete and over time that hardens in the drum. Then a “chipper” has to go in and clear the concrete out of that drum so work can begin anew. 

Call me naive, maybe, but I’d never even thought about that concept as a job before. I think there are a lot of people who saw an entirely different side of the world after Dirty Jobs broke big, and it's certainly a series that has had a lasting impact in a lot of ways, shapes and forms.

Conventional wisdom tells us that there is a time to reap, and a time to sow. Streaming services seem to be doing both at the moment, as they’re sowing the seeds for future price increases that are happening down the line. With Disney+ subscription holders feeling that pinch in the coming weeks, it looks like Netflix is also reportedly raising its prices yet again. Furthermore, one of the younger streaming players on the 2023 TV schedule landscape is looking to grab themselves some more cash as well.

Netflix’s Upcoming Price Increase Is Still A Bit Of A Mystery

The Wall Street Journal (via The Verge) has apparently picked up on word that after the SAG-AFTRA actor’s strike ends, the streaming pioneer will be raising its prices yet again. While there are no reports as to how much the increase will be, or when it’ll take effect, the U.S. and Canada are the first two markets that will be hit by this mysterious new roll out. 

It’s an announcement that comes at a time when some subscribers might have a little more money to invest in the company. As Netflix’s DVD rental service closed last week, those who were still embracing its physical media roots might not be resistant to this undefined reality. 

This is even in the face of the company’s password crackdown policy, which apparently hasn’t slowed its financial growth in the slightest. Perhaps this was also the inspiration for fellow digital content provider Discovery+ to get in on the price hike bandwagon. 

A Discovery+ Price Hike Has Just Been Announced

While we don’t know exactly how much of an increase is to be expected from Netflix, we do know the details behind Discovery+’s upcoming price increase. The company issued a recent press release stating that effective immediately, its rates in the US and Canada are also going up for new subscribers.

U.S. and Canadian subscribers to the ad-free Discovery+ service will now be paying $8.99 in local currency, as opposed $6.99. Meanwhile, U.S. ad-lite subscribers will not see an increase, but Canadian users will now be paying $5.99 CAD, as opposed to $4.99 CAD. 

Existing Discovery+ subscription holders in either country should expect these increases to kick in effective November 2nd. Along with this news came the following statement on the new subscription increase, and its intended mission:

All of the uncertainty surrounding the Netflix increase might be with us for the remainder of the SAG-AFTRA actors strike. Which means this might be a good time to check out what’s new on Netflix, as that future, undefined price increase may need to be justified by some. In the meantime, we’ll just have to keep our ears and eyes open for whatever word comes down from the big red N, and how much it’s going to cost to keep following what’s happening on Love is Blind.

Alas, another year of Shark Week action is coming to an end on Discovery after celebrating its 35th anniversary in 2023 with Aquaman’s Jason Momoa as host. As usual, I tuned in to as much of the shark programming as possible over the seven days, and was even able to speak with experts including Dr. Austin Gallagher, Forrest Gallante, and Tom “Blowfish” Hird during a Discovery press event. As a lifelong Shark Week fan, it was all I could have asked for… especially since I was finally able to pose a question that I’ve had for quite some time, and I got the answer I was hoping for.

Dr. Austin Gallagher led the team on two standout specials of Shark Week 2023, including the “Belly of the Beast” production that started out the seven days of documentaries (and delivered a downright cinematic finale) as well as “Monster Mako: Fresh Blood” that made the argument for which species of shark is most powerful. The special that focused on mako sharks involved Gallagher going on a daring dive down into an underwater kelp forest, with visibility low and odds of encountering a shark high. The sequence reminded me of something I’ve wondered for many years of watching Shark Week: how exactly are the divers having perfectly clear conversations with each other while underwater in dive gear? 

Now, could I have Googled to find the answer to this question during a previous Shark Week? Sure, but there’s nothing like getting an answer straight from the source, and Dr. Austin Gallagher was happy to explain the kelp forest sequence and how he remained in communication with his fellow diver. He explained: 

The focus during Shark Week is of course on the sharks, so the specials generally don’t spend a ton of time focusing on the gear of the divers when there are decoys and domes and cages to show off. Of course, these kinds of masks weren’t exactly available in the early days of the Discovery event, which I wasn’t even alive to watch 35 years ago! Dr. Gallagher continued to explain the masks for communication:

Dr. Gallagher noted that he worked with fellow diver Liv Dixon for the kelp forest sequence in “Monster Mako,” who he also works with for the Beneath the Waves non-profit that promotes ocean health, protecting threatened species, and working towards climate change solutions. Protecting sharks and spreading awareness about the ocean is always a running theme throughout Shark Week’s seven days of aquatic action, even if the specials themselves can be very different. 

Even though Forrest Galante and the “Alien Sharks” crew encountering the world’s most famous shark-hunting orcas could hardly be more different from Tom Hird’s “Cocaine Sharks” show that created special shark cocaine, they had the message of the importance of conservation in common. On the whole, Shark Week 2023 was a pretty fun week of productions that leaves me ready to pencil the 2024 event into my calendar as soon as Discovery announces the dates. 

If you missed any of Shark Week and/or just want to check out some of the specials that I’ve mentioned, you can find them streaming now with a Max subscription.

Spoilers ahead for Shark Week 2023's "Monster Mako: Fresh Blood" special on Discovery.

Discovery is the place to be every summer for a week full of shark action, and 2023 is the 35th anniversary of Shark Week. The first few days of this year's event covered everything from orcas as great white serial killers to how shark cocaine was made for a Florida experiment, but "Monster Mako: Fresh Blood" looked at two large species in a new light. Great whites and makos were compared throughout the special, and Shark Week expert Dr. Austin Gallagher spoke with CinemaBlend to expand on "Monster Mako" comments about which species is more powerful.

In this special, Dr. Austin Gallagher and his team were on the hunt for some massive mako sharks that are big enough to feed on seals and sea lions, like the closely-related great white sharks. Any regular Shark Week viewer who was tuning in before Jason Momoa came on as host for 2023 likely knows that makos are known for their speed and breaching ability; what about their size in the waters off California? 

Well, the scientists and divers were able to get the samples they needed to prove that some makos are indeed big enough to eat seals and sea lions, and "Monster Mako" ended after making the statement that "Many believe, pound for pound, the mako is the most powerful shark in the ocean." When I spoke with Gallagher at the Shark Week 2023 press junket, he elaborated and explained the importance of spreading awareness:

Mako sharks may not be quite as blockbuster famous as great whites thanks to the Jaws franchise (which had an affect on real sharks that Steven Spielberg regrets) or even the megalodon that is – sorry, fans of The Meg – long extinct, but specials like "Monster Mako" raise awareness about the species. The special also made the point that it's tricky to fish for makos in a way that doesn't apply to great whites, as makos can breach all the way out of the water and onto a boat if they're hooked via rod and reel. 

"Monster Mako" aired just days after Dr. Austin Gallagher's first special in Shark Week 2023, called "Belly of the Beast: Feeding Frenzy," which ended in a harrowing great white sequence that he shared "plays out just like a movie." When I asked about finding the focus for the mako production, he explained how the two were different:

Of course, trying to find particular kinds of sharks in a vast ocean doesn't have a guaranteed success, and species have been facing different kinds of threats in recent years. This notably includes orcas, with the two most famous shark-killing killer whales even making appearances in Shark Week 2023 despite seeming like a "terrible idea" to one expert. Makos face a different kind of threat, as Dr. Gallagher continued:

Dr. Austin Gallagher and Shark Week showed viewers just how makos can be considered the most powerful sharks in the ocean even compared to great whites, and that's something to take note of. In fact, if you want to revisit "Monster Mako: Fresh Blood," you can do so already with a Max subscription.

Plus, the Shark Week action isn't over yet. The event continues on Discovery on Friday, July 28 with "Tropic Jaws" at 8 p.m. ET, "Deadly Sharks of Paradise" at 9 p.m., and "Haunting at Shark Tower" at 10 p.m. before the week of specials ends on July 29. 

Spoilers ahead for the "Cocaine Sharks" special of Shark Week 2023 on Discovery. 

Discovery is celebrating the 35th anniversary of Shark Week in the 2023 TV schedule with everything from a harrowing great white encounter that felt straight out of a film to some cameos from the orcas who are decimating the shark population in South Africa. "Cocaine Sharks" involved an investigation into the reports of cocaine bales being dumped into shark-infested waters off of Florida, which involved dropping some "shark cocaine" into the ocean. Shark behaviorist Tom "The Blowfish" Hird was down in the water for the special, and he opened up to CinemaBlend about the experiment and experience. 

A project called "Cocaine Sharks" airing just months after the Cocaine Bear movie released might sound like a horror film set in the ocean, but the Shark Week special combined a fun approach to a bizarre topic with serious scientific issues. Driven by reports of sharks being fueled by cocaine dumped in the waters off of Florida, Tom Hird went down to the Keys to try and figure out what actually happens when sharks interact with that drug. With no shortage of shark species in those waters and experiments never done before, there was plenty of action to fill the hour after the team created their shark version of cocaine. 

Naturally, a Shark Week team couldn't very well gather thousands of pounds of real cocaine and dump them into the ocean to test a hypothesis, so they had to figure out something that could serve the same purpose to sharks without upsetting the ecosystem or doing any harm to people and animals. The end result was a substance made out of highly concentrated fish powder that was determined to be the closest stimulus to cocaine, which could be packaged up into bales and bait bombs for testing on sharks. 

The shark cocaine certainly affected them, as they ranged from erratic to agitated to downright feisty, with some even going into full hunt mode after being exposed despite no prey present. The result was Tom Hird in some tricky situations underwater surrounded by frenzied sharks, including a too-close-for-comfort encounter with a hammerhead. When I spoke with the shark behaviorist during the recent Shark Week press junket, I asked how aware he was of his surroundings while underwater and whether there were any surprises when he reviewed the footage, and he shared: 

Plenty of different kinds of sharks showed up during the different stages of the "Cocaine Sharks" experiment, including lemon sharks, hammerheads, bonnetheads, and even some tigers. Tom Hird was right in the middle of these shark cocaine-fueled creatures, and I can confidently say that I was perfectly happy to be watching from the comfort of my couch instead of by his side in the Florida waters! The Blowfish continued:

Tom Hird very clearly had fun with the "Cocaine Sharks" experience, and seemed down to expand the experiment in the future by the end of the special. Given that Shark Week 2023 (hosted by Aquaman star Jason Momoa) was trying something new with this special, I asked Tom Hird what he hoped that viewers would take away from "Cocaine Sharks" after it aired. He explained:

While the special was fun and even lighthearted in the approach to figuring out truth from rumor about the stories of cocaine-fueled sharks in the Florida Keys, it also has an important message: what goes in the water not only affects the creatures that live there, but will eventually affect humans as well. Shark cocaine isn't going to cause people any trouble since it's just fish powder, but that's not going to be the case with everything dumped in the ocean. 

Tom Hird also shared that there's "a phenomenal amount of caffeine in the oceans," and joked that it's probably the fault of "us Brits just drinking tea, to be fair." As an American chatting with the Brit, I had to mention the Boston Tea Party, to which The Blowfish responded:

Whether Discovery goes back to the stories of cocaine sharks in the future remains to be seen. Shark Week often revisits past investigations and experiments to dig a little deeper, and I wouldn't be shocked if this situation down in Florida is at the center of another special or two down the road. 

The Shark Week action continues on Thursday, July 27 on Discovery, with "Jaws in the Shallows" at 8 p.m. ET, "Monster Mako: Fresh Blood" with Dr. Austin Gallagher (whose "Belly of the Beast" got Shark Week 2023 off to an exciting start) at 9 p.m., and "Shark vs Snake: Battle of the Bites" at 10 p.m. You can also find Shark Week specials streaming with a Max subscription.

Spoilers ahead for Shark Week's "Belly of the Beast" TV special.

Shark Week has officially kicked off in the 2023 TV schedule, and the seven days of aquatic action couldn't have gotten off to a more exciting start than with "Belly of the Beast: Feeding Frenzy." The special sent Dr. Austin Gallagher down into a whale decoy while his team used (and gathered) data about the behavior of great white sharks off South Africa. The finale sequence was so harrowing that it felt right out of a blockbuster movie. Dr. Gallagher spoke with CinemaBlend about the special and the finale sequence!

After previously breaking down the threat of orca "serial killers" to the great white population in the waters off South Africa, Dr. Austin Gallagher shared his firsthand experience in the whale decoy as well as the finished product. When I noted that the finale felt like a film and asked if he was aware of what was happening at the time, he explained: 

Even though the massive great white shark attacking the whale decoy and all of the unexpected complications felt straight out of a movie, they certainly weren't scripted! The encounter with the shark fortunately came to a very happy ending with the scientists able to tag the creature, and that's not how a shark movie often ends. Dr. Gallagher continued:

Films like Jaws (which resulted in a decimation of the shark population that Steven Spielberg has said he regrets) and Jason Statham's The Meg may center on sharks, but the heroes are the humans who survive. While the great white of "Belly of the Beast: Feeding Frenzy" certainly posed a huge threat if something had gone wrong on a catastrophic scale, the encounter was a scientific success. 

Of course, the shark quite literally took the reins at one point and began to drag the vessels through the water. Dr. Gallagher shared his thoughts on what was happening while he was in the belly of the decoy whale:

Trying Earl the whale decoy in the waters off South Africa was clearly a successful experiment, even if the final tagging of Ray the shark went in some "insane" directions that the scientists couldn't have seen coming! All in all, I can see why "Belly of the Beast: Feeding Frenzy" was chosen as the special that would start out Shark Week this year. 

This is also a special year for Shark Week, and not just because Aquaman star Jason Momoa is host. Shark Week celebrates its 35th year on television in 2023, and the film-quality finale of "Belly of the Beast" proves just how far the event has come since 1988! This special also showed how orcas continue to be a huge threat to great whites, which Shark Week first explored in-depth – no pun intended – in 2022, with some gory footage of killer whales and great white sharks and challenges to the fan-favorite Air Jaws special. 

Shark Week 2023 has only just begun, and Night 2 of the shark-filled extravaganza on July 24 will deliver "Great White Fight Club" at 8 p.m. ET, "Monster of the Bermuda Triangle" at 9 p.m., and "Alien Sharks: Strange New Worlds" at 10 p.m. on Discovery. The specials will also be available streaming with a Max subscription.

Shark Week is on the verge of returning to Discovery Channel in the 2023 TV schedule for its milestone 35th year with host Jason Momoa, and the annual celebration of sharks is exploring new depths, making new discoveries, and taking new risks for the goal of learning more about the many species. The week will kick off with a special called "Belly of the Beast: Feeding Frenzy," which involves Dr. Austin Gallagher and his team trying something that had never been done before with white sharks... and facing the problem of a pair of "serial killer" orcas.

I spoke with Dr. Austin Gallagher, who has appeared many times on Shark Week over the years (including when Shaq faced his fears), during a recent press day for the Discovery event, and I asked him what about "Belly of the Beast: Feeding Frenzy" makes it a good way to start out Shark Week on July 23. He shared:

Longtime Shark Week viewers know that great white action is on the way for any special that visits South Africa, but "Belly of the Beast" won't be another installment of Air Jaws. Instead of a seal decoy, the team used a decoy whale carcass for the very first time to attract the sharks, and trying something new clearly paid off! That's not to say that Dr. Gallagher and his team will have an easy time tagging one of the "largest white sharks ever for Shark Week," and fans will have to tune in to Discovery on July 24 to see the whole story.

Of course, the Shark Week specials that visited South Africa in 2022 also explored the problem facing great whites, which is that orcas have learned to target these sharks, kill them, and devour their livers, which has massively reduced their numbers in the area. When I noted that situation that was documented last year, Dr. Gallagher shared whether viewers will see a different side in "Belly of the Beast" in 2023: 

Tragically for great white sharks, orcas have been living up to their popular name of "killer whales" off of South Africa and becoming what Dr. Gallagher dubbed "almost serial killers." Port and Starboard may have cute names, but what they're doing to great whites in the area isn't exactly adorable! The shark expert continued:

Orcas certainly aren't treated as a joke in Shark Week, but there have been plenty of killer whale memes floating around the internet in recent months as awareness spread about how intelligent the aquatic mammals really are. Shark Week goes the extra mile every year to remind viewers that sharks aren't human-killing machines like on Jaws and other films (which Steven Spielberg has said he regrets). Will "Belly of the Beast" give more awareness to the shark/orca situation? I asked Dr. Austin Gallagher that very question, and he explained: 

Fortunately for fans, the wait for Shark Week is nearly over. The seven days of shark action begins on Discovery with "Belly of the Beast: Feeding Frenzy" on Sunday, July 23 at 8 p.m. ET. It will be followed by "Jaws vs The Meg" at 9 p.m., "Serial Killer: Red Sea Attacks" at 10 p.m., and "Shark Week: Off the Hook" at 11 p.m. That's only the first night, so you'll want to keep tuning in for the full week! If you're not able to watch on Discovery, Shark Week will also be available streaming with a Max subscription.

2022 proved to be a somewhat tumultuous year for HBO Max, as it removed content from its service entirely, canceled multiple TV shows and scrapped the release of the (already filmed) Batgirl movie. And so far, 2023 is proving to be just as eventful for Warner Bros Discovery’s digital platform. In December, months after it was reported that the streamer would merge with Discovery+, it was rumored that the final product would receive a new name. Plans changed ever so slightly when it was later decided that latter would remain intact (much to reality TV fans' joy). Yet the mega-corporation has now confirmed the name change for the former while also revealing the rebrand date and more. 

What Is HBO Max Going To Be Called Moving Forward?

Warner Bros Discovery held a public event today, during which it confirmed that HBO Max will simply become Max, as previously rumored. The renamed service will hold onto the key content that its premium cable channel cousin has produced over the years. However, as noted by The Hollywood Reporter, it’ll also feature offerings from sister service Discovery+. And the refresh is happening fairly soon, as the powers that be announced that the official launch will occur on May 23.

This development is a further result of the high-profile merger between WB and Discovery, which was worth $43 billion and finalized in the spring of 2022. More immediately, this development comes on the heels of the young company upping the price of the Home Box Office’s streaming service. As it stands, the ad-less subscription costs $15.99 per month (which is an increase of a dollar from the previous price point), while the ad-supported tier remained at $9.99. Whether or not this rebrand and slew of content changes will encourage prospective customers to invest remains to be seen.

Why Is The Streaming Service Getting This Makeover?

Some may have been a bit surprised when they first heard that HBO Max would receive a new name. Many would surely argue that the brand is highly recognizable at this point. However, THR notes that Warner Bros. Discovery wants to open the floodgates and appeal to a larger swath of media consumers. Execs reportedly believe that some potential subscribers may have felt alienated by the well-known entertainment label, which is usually associated with substantial cash.

The corporation doesn’t appear keen on burying the Home Box Office’s powerful name in its entirety, though. JB Perrette – who serves as president and CEO of streaming and games at the media giant – appeared at today’s event and stressed that he and his colleagues are “preserving and protecting the most iconic trailblazing brand in entertainment.” He also commented on how they plan to handle the brand moving forward:

This is a major gamble if I’ve ever seen one but, if it pans out in WBD’s favor, Max could become a major power player in the entertainment business. It’s going to face stiff competition from the likes of Netflix and Disney+, however, as both of those services have carved out firm places for themselves.

It goes without saying that this marks a major new era for Warner Bros Discovery. Not only that, but it could have major effects on the streaming sphere moving forward. We’ll just have to wait and see how it shakes out but, until Max’s debut, you can still access content as per usual using an HBO Max subscription.

For quite a few months now, streaming audiences have been anticipating (both optimistically or pessimistically) the impending arrival of Warner Bros. Discovery’s previously confirmed streaming platform merger, which is set to franken-smash together its steadily popular HBO Max and Discovery+ services to better reflect the corporate merger that went down in 2021. But while those initial plans were geared around one single streaming entity to draw in customers, WBD execs have reportedly loosened up on that objective in a way that should make reality TV stars breathe a sigh of relief.

While Warner Bros. Discovery is indeed still moving forward with releasing a mash-up platform for online consumption, possibly under the name Max, it won’t actually be the sole home for streaming content. It looks like those with HBO Max subscriptions will be facing some changes, while everyone else who’s focused only on Discovery+ likely won’t need to deal with any change-ups whenever the merging occurs. According to Deadline, that service will remain available for current and new subscribers.

It appears as if pricing is the impetus behind this major tweak in the process, and in a way that actually appeals to consumers as opposed to the company itself. Initial reports cited worries about whether Discovery+ fans would balk on having to pay higher monthly prices for the paired-up service after growing accustomed to paying lower fees to stream content such as the 90 Day Fiancé franchise, tons of Magnolia shows from Chip and Joanna Gaines, and an array of paranormal-geared programming from Jack Osbourne, Eli Roth and more. Especially if the data shows that those audiences likely won’t dive hard into Team HBO’s scripted fare like The Last of Us or The House of the Dragon. 

After all, HBO Max currently sits right at $15.99 a month for ad-free plans, after having raised its prices to kick off 2023, while the ad-supported plan goes for $9.99. Considering Discovery+’s prices skew quite lower, at $6.99 (ad-free) and $4.99 (with ads), it’s understandable that WBD’s execs aren’t putting their full faith in customers being eager and willing to pay double or more for shows and movies they may have zero interest in. Granted, HBO Max has been introducing more and more Discovery+ content into its own library, but that’s not so much of a draw for those who already have access. 

Even beyond the changes that were made, it sounds like there’s still a blanketed concern that even consumers who DO want everything from Harley Quinn to Trixie Motel still won’t want to cough up more money for a combined platform. HBO Max already sits among the most expensive services out there, and even though the Warner Bros library is rife with mega-hits across film and scripted television, audiences who are far more engaged with reality TV fare likely wouldn’t pull out their wallets to throw money at. 

This decision is the latest in a line of surprising moves made by those at the head of Warner Bros. Discovery. We all remember the big content purge last year, which halted production on Batgirl and excised a bunch of original fare. (A move that inspired a mini-trend of out-of-nowhere cancellations from other streaming services.) The company has licensed out some of the content stripped from the service, such as Westworld, to other streamers like Roku and Tubi, while there are plans for a similarly focused FAST channel to be introduced later in 2023. 

With The Last of Us currently crushing the ratings game week in and week out across its first four episodes, Warner Bros. Discovery likely doesn’t need to worry too much about winning over the customers who are already there to watch such content. So I’m as interested as anyone to see how things shake out with Discovery+ maintaining its standalone existence once the combined platform is publicly available. 

90 Day Fiancé: The Other Way has already created a lot of conversation amongst fans, though it's not just the drama happening with new Season 4 cast that's causing a stir online. While some fans are talking about Daniele Gates and Yohan Geronimo's rough start or Jen Boucher's latest defense of Rishi Singh, the cord-cutting audience is up in arms for a whole other reason. It seems like the 90 Day Fiancé franchise stopped releasing episodes early on Discovery+, and those who subscribed are furious about it. 

Discovery+ subscribers have typically enjoyed watching new episodes of their favorite 90 Day Fiancé shows on Sunday mornings, hours ahead of the official premiere of the episode on TLC in primetime. For some reason, that trend has mysteriously stopped with the arrival of The Other Way Season 4, and the change hasn't gone unnoticed by quite a few who previously enjoyed it: 

It seems as though there are quite a few people out there who grew accustomed to seeing 90 Day Fiancé episodes early, and it's impacting their Sunday schedules. Now, instead of waking up and being treated to the messiest relationships on television, they have to wait until the evening like those of us who watch on TLC: 

Personally, I think it'd be too early in the morning to face some of the wild drama I've encountered from 90 Day Fiancé stars like Angela Deem and the like, but to each their own. There's a community of people who enjoyed watching the franchise first thing in the morning, and now they're being robbed of the ability to do that, thanks to the latest change by Discovery+. Some even say they are considering cancelling: 

Some fans are trying to get the streamer's attention by using their wallets and signaling their displeasure at the new situation. Some 90 Day Fiancé fans even posted pictures of their canceled subscriptions and the message that they won't return if early episode releases are gone.

While we can only speculate how or why this sudden and unexpected change happened, it is worth noting that Discovery+ may cease to be at some point later this year. Those with a Discovery+ and HBO Max subscription will see both services merged into a new service reportedly called "Max." So, for those who are dropping their subscriptions, there is likely only going to be more change to come. 

It might be important, however, for 90 Day Fiancé fans to make their hopes and expectations known ahead of the franchise's debut on the new Max service. Though it's unclear what offerings will be available on the new service when it launches in full, and some streamers have started pulling some legacy content in recent months. 

Regardless, seems like some subscribers want to make it known that the current way Discovery+ releases shows is not alright, and it's apparently not something that's just exclusive to the 90 Day-franchise.

A simple solution to stop all this outrage would be for Discovery+ to resume giving its subscribers early access to episodes of new episodes of 90 Day Fiancé and its spinoffs. Thus far, though, it doesn't seem like there's any sign of that happening or any word on if those days are gone. Subscribers may just have to wait and see what happens next Sunday, and if these first two weeks of The Other Way Season 4 were just a fluke. 

90 Day Fiancé: The Other Way Season 4 airs on TLC on Sundays beginning at 8:00 p.m. ET. For now, that seems to be the only time people get to see new episodes, but we'll see what happens in the coming weeks!

Though linear TV may always have its place in the world, streaming entertainment is the new normal, and will likely maintain that reign for the foreseeable future. But for all the advantages of having so many movies and TV shows at arm’s length, the potential downside is an overwhelming amount of content to sort through to find what’s most worthy of your time; Netflix’s new releases alone can be an intimidating batch to sort through. That’s where CinemaBlend comes in, as we’re curating a weekly rundown of the most anticipated new streaming movies and series, recent trending highlights and longer-lasting hits whose popularity can’t stop, won’t stop. 

Below you’ll find a smaller group of high-profile releases getting the spotlight, while a rundown featuring plenty of other recent highlights will be in the schedule lower down! 

What To Watch Streaming Highlights

From fantasy prequels to shirtless beach football to the Queen of Christmas, these streaming streaming highlights would keep anyone busy while wrapping presents and then later cleaning up all of that wrapping paper.

The Witcher: Blood Origin Season 1 (Netflix)

Release Date: December 25

Ahead of Henry Cavill’s final season heading up The Witcher, the dark fantasy’s first live-action spinoff is one of the more violent Christmas treats of the year. Starring Michelle Yeoh, Sophia Brown and Minnie Driver, The Witcher: Blood Origin takes place a full 1,000 years before the flagship’s timeline, and centers on a group of outcasts coming together to take on a seemingly undefeatable force.

Stream The Witcher: Blood Origin on Netflix!

2022 Back That Year Up Special (Peacock)

Release Date: December 23

Remember Kevin Hart and Snoop Dogg’s hilarious reaction show for the 2021 Summer Olympics? Swap out Snoop for Saturday Night Live mainstay Kenan Thompson, and replace athletics with the chaos that was the year 2022, and you have the recipe for Peacock’s year-end special, which will feature guests such as Nick Cannon, Roy Wood, Jr., Rob Gronkowski, and more.

Stream 2022 Back That Year Up on Peacock!

Strange World (Disney+)

Release Date: December 23

A throwback of sorts to Disney’s animated adventures of the late ‘90s, Strange World marks the first of the studio’s films with an LGBTQ+ lead character. It hit theaters in November 2022 to some critical praise, but somewhat surprisingly became one of Disney’s biggest box office bombs of the modern era. It could easily have far better success via streaming, where the controversial backlash won’t have as much influence.

Stream Strange World on Disney+!

Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (Peacock)

Release Date: December 23

While some viewers are still confused by the mystery of Glass Onion’s one-week-only theatrical release, Rian Johnson’s latest Benoit Blanc whodunnit is now here for anyone with a Netflix subscription to try and figure out in style. With a star-studded cast headed up by returning star Daniel Craig, the Knives Out sequel is the gift that keeps viewers guessing. 

Stream Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery on Netflix! 

Top Gun: Maverick (Paramount+)

Release Date: December 22

At long last, nearly seven months after it first flew into theaters, Tom Cruise’s latest generation-spanning blockbuster Top Gun: Maverick is available to stream ad nauseam with a Paramount+ subscription. Come for the fan-fave character’s humbled cockiness, and stay for scene-stealing turns from co-stars Miles Teller and Glen Powell, as well as the emotional return of Val Kilmer’s Iceman. 

Stream Top Gun: Maverick on Paramount+! 

Emily In Paris Season 3 (Netflix)

Release Date: December 21

Lily Collins’ romantic dramedy Emily in Paris has been a big enough hit for Netflix that the platform had previously granted it a two-season renewal, making it the somewhat rare show to debut new episodes without panicked worries about abrupt cancellations. (Not that Netflix hasn’t reversed renewals in the past.) So far, the fun and flighty Darren Star creation is earning the predestined renewal, having ousted Wednesday’s streak atop the service’s Top 10 TV Shows ranking.

Stream Emily in Paris on Netflix!

Jack Ryan Season 3 (Prime Video)

Release Date: December 21

John Krasinski may have already announced his impending exit as hero analyst Jack Ryan, but fans thankfully don’t have to worry about him being gone just yet. Prime Video debuted the highly anticipated third season going into Christmas Week, with a fourth season presumed to debut in late 2023 or early 2024.

Stream Jack Ryan on Prime Video!

Mariah Carey: Merry Christmas To All Special (Paramount+)

Release Date: December 20

The purported Queen of Christmas has been a holiday staple for decades now, but her go-to hit “All I Want for Christmas Is You” has almost always been enjoyed through audio means only. For those who aren’t lucky enough to check out her concert merriment in person, the CBS special Mariah Carey: Merry Christmas to All! makes for delightful and fancy-free fun, with appearances from Slick Rick, Drew Barrymore, the Radio City Rockettes, and more.

Stream Mariah Carey: Merry Christmas to All on Paramount+!

1923's First Two Episodes (Paramount+)

Release Date: December 18

Harrison Ford and Helen Mirren head up the latest entry in Taylor Sheridan’s expanding Yellowstone universe, and while the prequel 1923 may never eclipse its predecessor’s massive success, the new western drama reached more than 7 million viewers with its series premiere being simulcast across both streaming and linear TV. So don’t wait until the two-season spinoff is over to get invested, and hop on that horse posthaste. (Just make sure it’s not one of the Duttons’ horses.)

Stream 1923 on Paramount+! 

The Recruit Season 1 (Netflix)

Release Date: December 16

Hot off of his Black Adam heroics as Atom Smasher, actor Noah Centineo reteamed with his To All the Girls home of Netflix for a stereotype-bucking role in the action thriller The Recruit. The series follows a CIA lawyer that gets swept up into a dangerous situation involving the potential exposure of highly confidential information, and quickly rose to nearly the top of Netflix’s Top 10 list upon its arrival, so dive in before the ending gets spoiled for you on social media.

Stream The Recruit on Netflix!

Even More Shows And Movies To Watch This Weekend

When there's still a streaming itch that nothing listed above has managed to scratch, check out even more new and trending movies, TV shows and specials for your viewing pleasure. 

Here's hoping there are many options above that can sate your streaming urges. And for those looking head to what'll be available in the coming year, our 2023 TV premiere schedule and 2023 movie release schedule are one-stop shops for just such planning purposes. 

The continued progress following the HBO Max and Discovery+ merger has hit a rather interesting milestone. As we make our way out of the 2022 TV schedule, and look forward to the 2023 rollout of the new consolidated platform, one large question still looms: what’s the new service going to be named? Well, if the latest reports have anything to say, there’s a likely candidate, and it looks like neither entity is keeping its branding.

Brace yourselves folks, because CNBC has reported that “people familiar with the matter” have hinted that the name "Max" is apparently the new moniker for this unified service. While this marriage between HBO’s streaming evolution and Discovery’s array of networks and content is being called “BEAM” internally, that’s apparently not what’s being evaluated for public use by the powers that be. 

The name of this fantastic beast was bound to be an attention grabber, no matter what the result. That being said, it’s going to be very interesting to see how this potential new handle will be received by the masses. As of now, the still officially unnamed entity is set for a sooner-than-expected Spring 2023 rollout. 

This is just the latest of big HBO Max changes that have been brewing under Warner Bros. CEO David Zaslav. Along with the removal of specific Max Original content, and the infamous shelving of Batgirl and Scoob: Holiday Haunt, which was pretty much completed, Zaslav’s latest move is apparently due to international branding concerns. Since HBO isn’t a worldwide brand, and Discovery wouldn’t exactly cover the bill of goods, either, Max is apparently the simple and clean way forward. 

Last year’s big Warner Bros. merger united both wildly different services under one roof, the growing pains have been felt far and wide. However, the massive goal post that’s been in sight is the eventual rebranding and refining of this new streaming platform that’s waiting to make a proper debut. Going by the demographics that have been presented previously, the interlinking of these two streams would create a one-stop shop for all sorts of demographics. 

One would hope that either by the end of 2022, or at the very beginning of 2023, a final name will be unveiled for all the world to see. The former option might be better, if only so people know what to call the HBO Max/Discovery+ hybrid that they might be gifting people for the holidays. 

For now, you don’t have to worry about where to find your HBO Max subscription, as that platform and Discovery+ are still maintaining their individual platforms for the time being. Anything can happen between now and day one for this future unnamed service, so keep your eyes out for any new updates, as CinemaBlend will report them as they come.

While it’s true that not everyone loves the holiday season, and it can sometimes be difficult, even for those who do, to get into the spirit of the season, there’s no doubt that curling up to watch an uplifting Christmas movie can help one start to feel better about this gift-giving time of the year. And, it’s also true that we are being treated to more and more films that celebrate the season every year, with many channels and streaming services offering viewers dozens of Christmas movies on TV to help us feel all of the warm and happy holiday feelings we like to experience.

As usual, there were a number of new titles to get you in the mood in 2022, with several films in the form of upcoming Hallmark, Netflix, Lifetime, BET+, HBO Max, and other movies. Even better, fans got to see stars like Lacey Chabert, Candace Cameron Bure (who’ll be working with GAF going forward), her former Fuller House sister Jodie Sweetin, singer Ne-Yo, Freddie Prinze Jr., Justin Hartley, Vivica A. Fox, The Talk co-host Amanda Kloots, and many, many more! So, without further ado, let’s get into the 2022 Christmas movie schedule! 

October 2022 Premieres

As usual, the early bird catches the worm…or, in this case, the first one out of the gate with new holiday movies nabs the viewers. Well, Hallmark came in hot with Christmas cheer, as the first network/streamer to have a holiday premiere.

Friday, October 21
Noel Next Door - Hallmark - 8 p.m. EST

Saturday, October 22
We Wish You a Married Christmas - Hallmark - 8 p.m. EST
Destined at Christmas - Great American Family (GAF) - 8 p.m. EST
We Need a Little Christmas - Hallmark Movies & Mysteries - 9 p.m. EST

Sunday, October 23
A Kismet Christmas - Hallmark - 8 p.m. EST

Friday, October 28
A Cozy Christmas Inn - Hallmark - 8 p.m. EST

Saturday, October 29
Jolly Good Christmas - Hallmark - 8 p.m. EST
Catering Christmas - GAF - 8 p.m. EST
Christmas Bedtime Stories - Hallmark Movies & Mysteries - 9 p.m. EST

Sunday, October 30
Ghosts of Christmas Always - Hallmark - 8 p.m. EST

November 2022 Premieres

Once there was a good start on Christmas movie season, even more films debuted for the 2022 TV schedule to suit every type of holiday fancy, including a brand new Lindsay Lohan title. 

Thursday, November 3
A Wesley Christmas - BET+

Friday, November 4
Unperfect Christmas Wish - UPtv - 7 p.m. EST
A Magical Christmas Village - Hallmark - 8 p.m. EST

Saturday, November 5
Christmas in the Pines - UPtv - 7 p.m. EST
Lights, Camera, Christmas! - Hallmark - 8 p.m. EST
Merry Swissmas - Lifetime - 8 p.m. EST
A Royal Christmas on Ice - GAF - 8 p.m. EST
A Maple Valley Christmas - Hallmark Movies & Mysteries - 9 p.m. EST

Sunday, November 6
Christmas Masquerade - UPtv - 7 p.m. EST
All Saints Christmas - Hallmark - 8 p.m. EST
Well Suited for Christmas - Lifetime - 8 p.m. EST
Love At the Christmas Contest - GAF - 8 p.m. EST

Tuesday, November 8
The Claus Family 2 - Netflix

Thursday, November 10
Falling for Christmas - Netflix
The First Noelle - BET+
Christmas on Mistletoe Lake - Lifetime - 8 p.m. EST

Friday, November 11
Designing Christmas - Discovery+
A Christmas Open House - Discovery+
A Gingerbread Christmas - Discovery+
One Delicious Christmas - Discovery+
The Christmas Retreat - UPtv - 7 p.m. EST
In Merry Measure - Hallmark - 8 p.m. EST
The Dog Days of Christmas - Lifetime - 8 p.m. EST

Saturday, November 12
A Tiny Home Christmas - UPtv - 7 p.m. EST
The Royal Nanny - Hallmark - 8 p.m. EST
Reindeer Games Homecoming - Lifetime - 8 p.m. EST
A Merry Christmas Wish - GAF - 8 p.m. EST
Our Italian Christmas Memories - Hallmark Movies & Mysteries - 9 p.m. EST

Sunday, November 13
The Picture of Christmas - UPtv - 7 p.m. EST
Christmas at the Golden Dragon - Hallmark - 8 p.m. EST
Six Degrees of Santa - Lifetime - 8 p.m. EST
My Best Friend’s Christmas - GAF - 8 p.m. EST

Thursday, November 17
A Christmas Story Christmas - HBO Max
Christmas with You - Netflix
Christmas Party Crashers - BET+
Sweet Navidad - Lifetime - 8 p.m. EST

Friday, November 18
Spirited - Apple TV+
Inventing the Christmas Prince - Hallmark - 8 p.m. EST
A Country Christmas Harmony - Lifetime - 8 p.m. EST

Saturday, November 19
The Holiday Switch - UPtv - 7 p.m. EST
Three Wise Men and a Baby - Hallmark - 8 p.m. EST
Santa Bootcamp - Lifetime - 8 p.m. EST
Christmas At Pine Valley - GAF - 8 p.m. EST
Long Lost Christmas - Hallmark Movies & Mysteries - 9 p.m. EST

Sunday, November 20
Christmas Lucky Charm - UPtv - 7 p.m. EST
When I Think of Christmas - Hallmark - 8 p.m. EST
A Show-Stopping Christmas - Lifetime - 8 p.m. EST
My Favorite Christmas Tree - GAF - 8 p.m. EST
The Case of the Christmas Diamond - Ion - 8 p.m. EST

Thursday, November 24
Holly & the Hot Chocolate - QVC+
Holiday Harmony - HBO Max
A Christmas Mystery - HBO Max
The Christmas Clapback - BET+
Holiday Hideaway - BET+
The Sound of Christmas - BET+
The Noel Diary - Netflix
My Southern Family Christmas - Hallmark - 8 p.m. EST
Baking All the Way - Lifetime - 8 p.m. EST

Friday, November 25
The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special - Disney+
#Xmas - Hallmark - 6 p.m. EST
A Royal Corgi Christmas - Hallmark - 8 p.m. EST
Steppin’ Into the Holiday - Lifetime - 8 p.m. EST
Christmas at the Drive-In - GAF - 8 p.m. EST

Saturday, November 26
A Tale of Two Christmases - Hallmark - 6 p.m. EST
Haul Out the Holly - Hallmark - 8 p.m. EST
The 12 Days of Christmas Eve - Lifetime - 8 p.m. EST
I’m Glad It’s Christmas - GAF - 8 p.m. EST
Faith Heist: A Christmas Caper - Bounce - 8 p.m. EST
Time for Him to Come Home for Christmas - Hallmark Movies & Mysteries - 10 p.m. EST

Sunday, November 27
A Christmas Cookie Catastrophe - Hallmark - 6 p.m. EST
A Holiday Spectacular - Hallmark - 8 p.m. EST
A Christmas Spark - Lifetime - 8 p.m. EST
Candace Cameron Bure Presents: A Christmas…Present - GAF - 8 p.m. EST
Dognapped: Hound for the Holidays - Ion - 8 p.m. EST

Tuesday, November 29
Reindeer in Here - CBS - 9 p.m. EST

Wednesday, November 30th
Hip Hop Family Christmas Wedding - VH1 - 8 p.m. EST

December 2022 Premieres

This was the home stretch! But, rest assured that there were still plenty of new films (some of the “cheesy” romantic variety) to watch as you baked cookies, planned your Christmas dinner, and wrapped presents. 

Thursday, December 1
A Hollywood Christmas - HBO Max
Rolling into Christmas - BET+
Serving Up the Holidays - Lifetime - 8 p.m. EST

Friday, December 2
Hotel for the Holidays - Freevee
Christmas in the Wilds - UPtv - 7 p.m. EST
A Big Fat Family Christmas - Hallmark - 8 p.m. EST
Cloudy with a Chance of Christmas - Lifetime - 8 p.m. EST

Saturday, December 3
Christmas on the Slopes - UPtv - 7 p.m. EST
A Fabled Holiday - Hallmark - 8 p.m. EST
A New Orleans Noel - Lifetime - 8 p.m. EST
Christmas on Candy Cane Lane - GAF - 8 p.m. EST
The Holiday Stocking - Hallmark Movies & Mysteries - 9 p.m. EST

Sunday, December 4
Christmas on the Rocks - UPtv - 7 p.m. EST
Undercover Holiday - Hallmark - 8 p.m. EST
Merry Textmas - Lifetime - 8 p.m. EST
B&B Merry - GAF - 8 p.m. EST
The Search for Secret Santa - Ion - 8 p.m. EST
Fit for Christmas - CBS - 8:30 p.m. EST

Wednesday, December 7th
All I Didn’t Want For Christmas - VH1 - 8 p.m. EST

Thursday, December 8
A Miracle Before Christmas - BET+
Scentsational Christmas - Lifetime - 8 p.m. EST

Friday, December 9
Something from Tiffany's - Amazon
The Most Colorful Time of the Year - Hallmark - 8 p.m. EST
A Recipe for Joy - Lifetime - 8 p.m. EST
Big Box Christmas - GAF - 8 p.m. EST

Saturday, December 10
A Royal Christmas Match - UPtv - 7 p.m. EST
Christmas Class Reunion - Hallmark - 8 p.m. EST
Kirk Franklin’s The Night Before Christmas - Lifetime - 8 p.m. EST
A Prince for the Holidays - GAF - 8 p.m. EST
The Gift of Peace - Hallmark Movies & Mysteries - 9 p.m. EST

Sunday, December 11
Santa's Got Style - UPtv - 7 p.m. EST
The Holiday Sitter - Hallmark - 8 p.m. EST
Single and Ready to Jingle - Lifetime - 8 p.m. EST
A Belgian Chocolate Christmas - GAF - 8 p.m. EST
A Prince and Pauper Christmas - Ion - 8 p.m. EST
Must Love Christmas - CBS - 9 p.m. EST

Wednesday, December 14th
A New Diva’s Christmas Carol - VH1 - 8 p.m. EST

Thursday, December 15
A Blackjack Christmas - BET+
Record Breaking Christmas - Lifetime - 8 p.m. EST

Friday, December 16
Holiday Heritage - Hallmark - 8 p.m. EST
A Christmas to Treasure - Lifetime - 8 p.m. EST

Saturday, December 17
Sappy Holiday - UPtv - 7 p.m. EST
’Twas the Night Before Christmas - Hallmark - 8 p.m. EST
The Holiday Dating Guide - Lifetime - 8 p.m. EST
A Brush with Christmas Romance - GAF - 8 p.m. EST
Five More Minutes: Moments Like These - Hallmark Movies & Mysteries - 9 p.m. EST

Sunday, December 18
A Vintage Christmas - UPtv - 7 p.m. EST
Hanukkah on Rye - Hallmark - 8 p.m. EST
Wrapped Up in Love - Lifetime - 8 p.m. EST
The Art of Christmas - GAF - 8 p.m. EST
When Christmas Was Young - CBS - 8:30 p.m. EST

Wednesday, December 21
Fuhgeddabout Christmas - VH1 - 8 p.m. EST

Thursday, December 22
A Christmas Gift - BET+

Saturday, December 24
The Snowball Effect - UPtv - 7 p.m. EST

Sunday, December 25
Christmas in Wolf Creek, UPtv - 7 p.m. EST

Premier Date And Time TBD
Scrooge: A Christmas Carol - Netflix
Best. Christmas. Ever. - Netflix
That Christmas - Netflix
Reno 911!: It’s A Wonderful Heist - Comedy Central - December
A Nashville Country Christmas - Paramount Network - December

With all of these premieres on the Christmas movie schedule, you were sure to find something that appealed to you during pretty much every week toward the end of 2022! And, remember that many of these films will be playing during the festive season in late 2023, so you can check local TV listings for repeat airings that will be added to the 2023 TV schedule. As with 2021's list, be sure to bookmark this article, for more information when the holiday season rolls around again!

HGTV has given viewers who love watching shows about real estate and home renovations nearly an innumerable number of hits to enjoy all year long. Since 2016, that’s included Home Town, which follows married couple Erin and Ben Napier as they rehab houses in their small town of Laurel, Mississippi. Their series is so popular that it’s spawned several renovation show spinoffs, and fans can look forward to seeing more of them this year, but in a very unexpected way: they’ve made their own Christmas movie! And, after making the announcement, the Napiers got support from The Pioneer Woman and many more people.

How Did People Support Erin And Ben Napier After They Announced Their Christmas Movie? 

The Home Town: Ben’s Workshop host and his children’s book author wife took to Instagram to announce their newest venture, the Discovery+ Christmas movie, A Christmas Open House, which is set to hit the streaming service on November 11. Let’s take a look at the post, which has just enough holiday cheer in it to help you get into the mood!

The Home Town Takeover hosts are all smiles and winter-appropriate sweaters in the photo that accompanied their post, and standing in front of a very well-lit Christmas tree to really drive their news home. The streamer (which currently combines content from cable channels like HGTV, Food Network, TLC, and more) is sticking with the Christmas movie business after bringing its first one, Candy Coated Christmas, to holiday movie lovers in 2021. In fact, Food Network star Ree Drummond (who may be better known by the name of her cooking show, The Pioneer Woman) appeared in that movie and was one of the first to step up and congratulate the new movie stars, and said:

I’m pretty sure everyone who celebrates this holiday deals with the push/pull of when to get all of their decorations up, but if you’re at home watching a movie made to celebrate Christmas anyway, why not use it as an opportunity to pull out at least some of your seasonal finery, right? Of course, the Napiers' (who celebrated their youngest daughter’s first birthday not that long ago) home network and the streamer that will host their movie also came out to offer support:

HGTV: Home (movies!) for the holidays!

Discovery Plus: 🎶 It’s the moooooost wonderful tiiiiime of the year! 🎶

Seems like everyone’s excited, but if you’re not sold on this project just yet, wait until you hear the idea for the movie!

What Will Erin And Ben Napier’s Christmas Movie Be About? 

A Christmas Open House, while not one of the upcoming Hallmark movies focused on the special occasion, will feature the Napier’s playing Sarah and Henry Wright, who are, well, basically just movie versions of Erin and Ben, as “Henry is a master woodworker and custom furniture builder, and Sarah is an artist with an expertise in color and transformative design choices.” 

They will be working with Melissa (Katie Stevens), a property stager, and her former high school crush, David (Victor Rasuk), to renovate and create some custom pieces for Melissa’s family home before some rich prospective buyers are due to look at the property on Christmas Eve. And, if you know anything about the Christmas movies that populate the airwaves during the last months of the year, then you know that Melissa and David will be on a collision course with love as they work on her mom’s house.

Clearly, this is the perfect kind of movie for everyone’s favorite Home Town duo to appear in, so be sure to tune in on Friday, November 11 when the film debuts on Discovery+.

These days, Armie Hammer’s name doesn’t pop up in the news because of his professional endeavors, but rather for the controversies and scandals surrounding his personal life. Since the beginning of 2021, the actor recognizable from The Social Network and Death on the Nile has been hit with multiple sexual assault allegations, and earlier this month, the actor’s life and family history was explored in the Discovery+ docuseries House of Hammer. Elizabeth Chambers, Hammer’s ex-wife, as seen this docuseries and given her honest take about its content.

Elizabeth Chambers and Armie Hammer married in 2010 and have two children together, but they announced their separation in July 2020, roughly half a year before the allegations about Hammer surfaced. Chambers has moved with a new beau, but on the subject of House of Hammer, here’s what the TV personality said to E! News when asked if she watched the docuseries:

The House of Hammer trailer that premiered in August didn’t hold back with teasing how the docuseries would delve into the disturbing details that have come out about Armie Hammer for over a year and a half, including the explicit and sometimes cannibalistic text messages he sent to various women and having allegedly raped some of them. Courtney Vucekovich, one of Hammer’s former partners, even told a story where he supposedly left a note for her saying, “I’m going to bite the fuck out of you.” Additionally, House of Hammer covers the “disturbing details and sinister secrets” about the Hammer family “that money and power couldn’t hide forever.”as Jason Sarlanis, Discovery+’s President of Crime and Investigative Content, Linear and Streaming, put it. 

As Elizabeth Chambers explained, with the right people by her side, she decided to watch House of Hammer, and while it was a difficult experience for her, it was important for her to watch it. Regarding whether anything in the docuseries surprised her, Chambers stated:

Ahead of House of Hammer’s premiere, Armie Hammer was reportedly trying to “trying to prepare himself as much” as he could for the docuseries, but was also looking to “move forward as much as possible emotionally speaking and in terms of his career.” Although he and Elizabeth Chambers are no longer together they have reportedly been co-parenting their son and daughter together in the Cayman Islands, and over the summer, it was reported that Hammer was working at a resort selling timeshares to help support his family. 

The fallout of the allegations directed at Armie Hammer led to the actor dropping out of several projects, including the Jennifer Lopez-led romantic comedy Shotgun Wedding and the Taika Waititi-directed sports drama Next Goal Wins, with Josh Duhamel replacing him on the former and Will Arnett replacing him on the latter. CinemaBlend will continue passing along information concerning what’s going on with the actor both personally and professionally.

As one of the more prolific and expansive reality TV franchises of the past two decades, Deadliest Catch remains a big draw for Discovery and its viewers, and is in the midst of airing its 18th season, while the spinoff Deadliest Catch: Bloodline wrapped its third season in June. In a bit of disturbing news, one of the stars from both, fisherman Josh Harris, has been fired from the series after reports resurfaced pointing to Harris’ 1999 arrest stemming from allegations that he’d raped a four-year-old girl the year before. 

Josh Harris was the subject of an allegation-filled report from Factz.com, which laid out the disturbing details tied to a 1998 crime and Harris’ 1999 arrest. (The renewed attention to the case is possibly the result of a since-deleted Reddit post about the case that was shared in late August.) And now, according to Radar.com, the Discovery series has officially cut ties with Harris, whose father Phil Harris was the O.G. captain on Deadliest Catch ahead of his death in 2010.

Here’s how a Discovery representative put it:

It’s unclear at this point whether episodes will be re-cut to remove Harris from the footage, or if the upcoming episodes pointed their focus elsewhere beyond the fisherman and his boat, the Cornelia Marie. As well, it’s unknown how these developments will play into the potential future of the Bloodline spinoff, and whether or not former episodes will be edited at all for repeats and for streaming with a Discovery+ subscription.

Content warning for those sensitive to the topic of sexual assault.

Josh Harris was accused of the digital, vaginal and oral rape of a four-year-old girl who was said to be the daughter of a deckhand and family friend. The rape dates back to July 1998, when Harris would have been around 15 or 16. Semen and blood stains were found at the scene at the time, and the girl was apparently quoted in the official affidavit referring to her and Harris' genitals as their "pee-pees." 

Due to DNA processing delays, Harris wasn’t formally arrested until 1999. The future reality star reportedly pleaded to lesser charges — Assault 4 and immoral communication with a minor — and served nine months. Also, as part of his sentencing, Harris reportedly took part in a psychosexual exam. 

It’s no secret that the Deadliest Catch franchise has been connected to quite a few unfortunate incidents over the years. Back in 2015, former producer Joseph McMahon was shot to death outside his apartment, and that was the same year that star Tony Lara died of a cardiac arrest. Three years later, former Captain Blake Painter passed away, while 2020 saw the deaths of deckhand Mahlon Reyes and fisherman Nick McGlashan. 

Jake Harris, brother of Josh and son of Phil, is also a former cast member, and one whose life took a hard left turn after his father’s death. He’s had publicized substance abuse problems, and was arrested for a DUI in Washington in 2021. 

As Discovery+’s new show House of Hammer has now been unveiled, the three-part docuseries is about to show the world more details from within the Armie Hammer drama that unfolded in 2020. Even Hammer himself is reportedly “trying to prepare” for the stories that are being told in this deep dive into his personal life, as well as his family’s legacy. One of the first bombshells has hit, as former partner Courtney Vucekovich shared a biting story in the very first episode.

Courtney Vucekovich’s Relationship With Armie Hammer, And The Moment(s) She Felt The Romance Turn

House of Hammer’s debut installment, entitled “Love Bomb,” introduces the story of how entrepreneur Vucekovich and the Call Me By Your Name actor engaged in a long-distance relationship. As the Discovery+ series tells us, the two met “in passing” at a bar toward the end of 2019, which turned into a mutual following on Instagram. June of 2020 allegedly saw Armie Hammer starting to make things personal, by DM’ing Courtney Vucekovich; she says this then led to the two being in constant contact. 

Vucekovich’s story continued to unfold in July 2020, as she was taking a planned vacation out of her home state of Texas. It was over Fourth of July things really started getting "weird," as she alleged: 

After a month of lengthy phone conversations, and the titular love bombing that Hammer had reportedly lavished upon Courtney Vucekovich, she was candid about what happened next. 

It's been reported in the past that Hammer had been engaging in a cannibalism fetish for some time, but the entrepreneur didn't know this. The romance happened before Armie Hammer faced sexual abuse allegations, but the biggest bombshell between the two happened when he reportedly left a "bite" note for her. 

The Moment Courtney Vucekovich Discovered Armie Hammer’s Note

While Courtney Vucekovich was on her vacation in the Hamptons, the actor actually visited her apartment in Dallas, as noted above. This development spurred a heated text conversation where she tried to get him to leave, to which he replied, “Going in. Nothing you can do to stop me.” Upon returning home, Courtney reportedly found a note (pictured above), which she discussed further along in her interview: 

According to House of Hammer, Armie Hammer and Elizabeth Chambers split publicly six days after this bombshell note was read. While the full story wasn’t quite out there, it would seem that the beginning of the end of Hammer’s time in the limelight was in play. Though this isn’t where the story between Armie and Courtney Vucekovich ends, as a trip to Los Angeles became an opportune time for the two would-be love birds to finally meet, which only gave Vucekovich more stories to tell.   

Should you want to watch the entirety of the docuseries, all three episodes are now available to stream for Discovery+ subscribers. Though you might want to check out the House of Hammer trailer beforehand, in case you need a heads up as to what to fully expect. Expect a lot of bombshells of this ilk, though. 

When the House of Hammer trailer dropped, information about not only Armie Hammer but his family came to light. In the trailer, two of Hammer’s exes plus one of Hammer’s family members speak out about how corrupt the Hammer family is. The trailer also directly address the rape and battery accusations filed against Hammer. With the release of the show around the corner, a source close to Armie Hammer has explained how Hammer is reportedly feeling ahead of the release. 

The House of Hammer trailer goes into extreme detail about the alleged claims that Hammer engaged in sexual misconduct during his marriage and sent cannibal-themed texts. Along with texts, there are voice memos and photos showing the women with Hammer. The show premieres next week and sources explained to ET that Hammer is allegedly trying to prepare for what is to come. 

Since the allegations against the actor have come to light, Hammer has been recast in multiple films. Shotgun Wedding was set to star Jennifer Lopez and the actor. He has now been replaced by Josh Duhamel in that film. The CMBYN star was also set to appear in Taika Waititi’s film Next Goal Wins and has been replaced by Will Arnett. 

It’s more recently been reported that Hammer is now selling timeshares in the Caymans. Despite being the great-grandson of Armand Hammer, an oil tycoon, the actor is is not on the “family payroll” and has been working to support his two children and ex-wife. 

Armie Hammer reportedly went into a treatment program in June. He spent months in rehab in Florida and then went back to his home in the Caymans. Allegedly, Robert Downey Jr. helped pay for six months of rehab when the actor needed it. It has also been reported that Downey is giving him financial support as well. According to the source,  the actor is also now sober. 

The trailer for House of Hammer shows the actor's exes Courtney Vucekovich and Julia Morrison sharing their past relationships with Hammer. Along with his exes, Casey Hammer, the star's aunt, appears in the trailer talking about how the history of the family is corrupt and dark. She said in the trailer: 

The trailer being released felt like a “huge step back” for Armie Hammer, the source said. They said that having this issue in the public again and having a family member involved in the series has made this a difficult time the actor as the release nears.  

House of Hammer will air in three parts on Discovery+. The episodes will drop on September 2, more information about it can be found on the 2022 Fall TV Schedule. 

“My name is Casey Hammer, and I’m about to reveal the dark, twisted secrets of the Hammer family.” So ends the trailer for House of Hammer, a chilling tell-all documentary that is coming to Discovery+ that appears ready to pull back the curtain on decades of abuse and psychological warfare waged by members of the Hammer family, including The Social Network star Armie Hammer himself. This is so much worse than the seemingly embarrassing rumors of him working for a resort in the Caymans. Hammer’s victims, as well as Armie’s estranged aunt, sat for interviews that look to capture multiple stories of abuse spanning decades. And now you can get an idea of what’s to come by watching this lengthy and disturbing trailer.

Allegations of disturbing text messages sent by Armie Hammer started circulating in 2021, when Vanity Fair broke news that the Death on the Nile co-star sent sexually explicit messages to his estranged wife, Elizabeth Chambers, that might have been intended for someone else. The rumors only escalated when a woman shared screenshots that the actor reportedly sent her that spoke to his interest in cannibalism, a fact that is corroborated in the trailer for House of Hammer.

The trailer for the upcoming Discovery+ documentary features exclusive interviews with Courtney Vucekovich and Julia Morrison, former exes of Armie Hammer. The former was repeatedly linked to Hammer when the scandal of his text messages made the rounds, even when Iron Man star Robert Downey Jr. was supposedly stepping in to try and get Hammer some help. And the most disturbing moments in the House of Hammer trailer is when these ladies show their phones to display the messages – or play the audio of the actor’s voice – that link him directly to several chilling messages. 

But the documentary doesn’t stop there, according to Jason Sarlanis, President of Crime and Investigative Content, Linear and Streaming, who had this to say ahead of the House of Hammer arriving on Discovery+ in September.  

The docuseries is going to feature exclusive revelations from Armie’s aunt, Casey Hammer, and multiple survivors of Armie’s alleged abuse. It will begin streaming on the service on September 2

A star of the racing series Street Outlaws: Fastest In America has died. Forty-one-year-old Ryan Fellows died in a car wreck that occurred over the weekend when filming in Las Vegas for the series. Discovery released a statement regarding Fellows' passing and paid condolences to the family and friends of the driver. 

The accident that took Ryan Fellows' life occurred early on Sunday morning, during the eighth out of nine races planned for the filming. TMZ reported Fellows was driving a gold Nissan 240z, and lost control of the vehicle near the finish line. The vehicle rolled and caught on fire, and people on the scene were unable to get him out of the car in time. Filming shut down for the day after the accident, and Discovery released a statement acknowledging Street Outlaws' familial loss. 

Ryan Fellows is survived by his wife Liz as well as his eighteen-year-old son Josiah and ten-year-old daughter Olivia. A GoFundMe is circulating the internet in order to help the family memorialize his life, as well as help the family with costs after his unexpected passing. The GoFundMe hopes to hit a goal of $50,000 and is already past the $10,000 mark as of Monday afternoon. 

The original Street Outlaws first launched on Discovery back in 2013 and has inspired a handful of spinoffs over the years. Fastest In America is a spinoff in which eight of the fastest race teams in America compete for a chance to win $100,000. The show premiered in 2020 and most recently was airing new episodes in March of 2022.

This tragedy is only the latest car accident for Street Outlaws in 2022. TMZ reported stars JJ Da boss and Tricia Day were both involved in a serious car accident in separate vehicles back in January. The accident was serious enough that Day noted on Facebook back in April they'd only been walking on their own since March. Day also noted during the video that they often talk about the risks of their profession and that each day is not a given. Their crash was later shown on Street Outlaws: America's List, as well as the aftermath. 

Crashes are not uncommon in Street Laws as Distractify noted a number of drivers for the series past and present have had bad accidents while racing and while filming for the series. Racing in the franchise definitely has some risks, and after this latest accident, one might wonder if it'll impact safety protocols for the flagship show and its spinoffs. Perhaps it will help prevent another tragedy in the future, and help the crew for the series remain as safe as possible while filming the currently planned projects, as well as any new shows down the road. 

CinemaBlend would like to offer its condolences to the family and friends of Ryan Fellows and wish them the best during this troubling time. 

Things have become very uncertain over at HBO Max across the last few days and nobody is quite sure what will happen next. We’ve seen the highly anticipated Batgirl movie canceled (even though filming on the movie was already completed). We’ve also seen shows canceled, and even streaming exclusive programs removed from HBO Max. It’s gotten fans of other programming on HBO Max nervous and in some cases angry, as has happened to some members of the fanbase for Kaley Cuoco's Harley Quinn animated series. 

Harley Quinn is a show featuring more than its share of violence and screaming, and maybe the residual effect of that is why so many fans of the show are already getting upset at the mere idea that something bad could happen? What is confirmed is the idea that Harley Quinn could be canceled or even be removed from HBO Max has certain people on Twitter livid.

The Harley Quinn series was originally created for the DC Universe streaming service and ran there for two seasons. After that, fans were likely already a bit concerned when DC Universe was folded into the new HBO Max service, but it was eventually confirmed the show would get a third season there. While the show’s popularity has not seemed to slow, currently it's hard for some fans to feel their favorites are safe on HBO Max.

The purchase of Warner Bros. by Discovery has begun to seal real repercussions just in the last few days. The news that the Batgirl movie had been canceled surprised a lot of people, but was reportedly part of a “strategic shift” regarding the relationship between DC and HBO Max. Of course, since we don’t really know what that means yet, it has to be considered that anything under the DC umbrella that is an HBO Max exclusive could also be strategically shifted out of existence. Still, not every existing DC property is being axed, as we know Peacemaker Season 2 is still happening.

With additional rumors that animation is also about to see cuts at Warner, I can see how these Harley Quinn fan reactions started. It’s almost certainly true that we haven’t seen the last big change on HBO Max. Some fans are likely going to be disappointed. The only question is: Which shows and movies are going to get the ax before the chopping is done?

With the news that some shows that were made as exclusives for HBO Max are being removed from the service, there’s the possibility of something even worse happening to Harley Quinn. It’s one thing if the decision is made to stop making new episodes of the show. It will come to an end at some point, that’s inevitable. But it’s something else entirely if fans find themselves unable to watch the episodes that do exist in the future, which is at least theoretically possible. 

This whole situation is clearly off-putting and there’s so much we don’t know yet. What is clear is that nothing is entirely safe. Anything could happen, so fans of Harley Quinn, and everything else under the WB banner, will be watching very closely in the weeks and months to come.

Shark Week 2022 is going strong, with everything from the latest edition of Air Jaws going full Top Gun in South Africa to the Impractical Jokers team risking life and limb underwater. An upcoming special won’t be luring the sharks up to breach the surface or taking a quick dip. Shark House sends one man below with a mission to live on the ocean floor after things get “a little gory” with great whites and orcas. Shark Week executive producer Jeff Kurr opened up to CinemaBlend about how Shark House made it happen. 

Dickie Chivell, a Shark Week familiar face who has already appeared in Jeff Kurr’s Air Jaws this year, is at the center of the action after he “decides to live on the bottom of the ocean in a shark house,” filmed in South Africa. Chivell isn’t just heading down into the deep for the novelty of living with sharks, however, but because time may be running out with the species in his area. The executive producer explained: 

Jeff Kurr previously explained that “great whites have been under siege in South Africa for about the last six or seven years” because of orcas “ripping them open and eating their livers,” and shared why the Air Jaws team was in fact extremely lucky to find their breaching great whites before the orcas arrived. Although that special this year didn’t show any orca footage, Shark House will tell the story of what the killer whales have been doing to the sharks. 

Viewers should prepare for a little bit of goriness with Shark House, but what’s Shark Week without a little bit of gore in service of natural history footage? Jeff Kurr continued:

Dickie Chivell’s Shark House mission is to live on the ocean floor for seven days, which certainly sounds like an ambitious goal. Viewers who watched Air Jaws: Top Guns just a few days ago saw that it was much more of a struggle to find big sharks to bring to the surface than in the earlier days of Shark Week. Luckily, Jeff Kurr’s preview reveals that viewers can look forward to a “happy ending” with an encounter for Chivell. 

Shark House airs on Thursday, July 28 at 9 p.m. ET on Discovery. It will be a big night of action all around, with Tracy Morgan Presents: Sharks! with Tracy Morgan at 8 p.m., which will team the 30 Rock alum with experts to identify some especially crazy and ferocious sharks. Monster Mako Under the Rig releases at 10 p.m. to follow a mysterious group of maverick makos, and Tiger Queen is at 11 p.m. to explore the concentration of female tiger sharks in one place as well as the question of where the males are. 

Shark Week 2022 has been a big year for great white specials, in addition to Shark House and Air Jaws. The very first night told a story about a dangerous encounter with a great white in a new format, and a special about a “serial killer” kind of great white managed to solve a tragic mystery with innovative technology. Of course, Shark Week can only last for so long before wrapping for the year, so take a look at our 2022 TV premiere schedule for what’s on the way to TV after the week-long Discovery event.

Spoilers ahead for The Impractical Jokers Shark Week Spectacular in Shark Week 2022.

Shark Week is underway on Discovery, and while fans expect wild stories about serial killer sharks and celebrity appearances, I’m not sure anyone could have guessed what was coming with the latest goofy crossover. The Impractical Jokers Shark Week Spectacular was possibly the greatest culmination of laughs, pranks, and sharks in human history, and it was also maybe a little more dangerous than it looked. Following the special, Brian “Q” Quinn had all the love in the world for the shark expert who apparently saved him from losing a hand. 

News of the incident first surfaced on Twitter, when Q shouted out the expert for the special, Dr. Craig O’Connell. Q showed some love to O’Connell (whose Twitter handle is @TheSharkDoctor), and the doctor hilariously wasn’t humble in accepting it:

Now, it’s not surprising to hear that there was some element of danger during The Impractical Jokers Shark Week Spectacular with sharks in the mix, but to hear that Brian Quinn might’ve lost an appendage during his underwater excursion is pretty intense. And yet, Q confirmed that was the case, and that the hilarious special could've gone sour had the good doctor not been there: 

The moment might’ve happened when Brian Quinn went on his shark dive with Dr. Craig O’Connell and was hit by a shark. After the hit, Q started to wave his arms around to make a silly gesture to the camera. During that moment, a shark came up to Q from behind, but Dr. O’Connell knocked it away by hitting its snout. Not long after, he instructed Q to keep his hands tucked closer to his body, possibly because his hand motions attracted the shark to him. 

Luckily, everyone came out of the encounter no worse for wear, including Sal Vulcano, who faced his fear of sharks. Vulcano’s bravery, paired with James Murray’s (Murr) efforts to decipher dolphin language, resulted in a comedic special that also felt educational. Brian Quinn gave props to Dr. Craig O’Connell for keeping up with the jokes and rolling with the shenanigans as they came: 

Is this the beginning of a beautiful partnership? Obviously, the Impractical Jokers are still working to fill the shoes of Joe Gatto after he left the show, and have invited actors like Eric Andre to fill the void and even comedians like David Cross, who hates prank shows. Fans suggested bringing back Dr. O’Connell as a guest star on the TruTV series, and Brian Quinn wasn’t against it: 

I’ll look forward to any future collaborations between Dr. O’Connell and the Impractical Jokers crew. Given the number of guests they welcome on the show for pranks, I believe we'll see him again. If they can justify having a pro wrestler on the program, I feel like a shark expert wouldn’t be too hard to get for an episode, especially if they’re doing something by the water. We’ll just have to wait and see, and be thankful that Q has all of his body parts after swimming with sharks. 

Shark Week is swimming along on Discovery, with new specials beginning each night at 8:00 p.m. ET. After Saturday, be sure to check out the new shows to see what else is coming to television in the coming weeks as we inch ever closer to the fall season. 

Air Jaws is back on Shark Week with a new Discovery special that will try to capture footage of breaching great white sharks in a different way than viewers are used to after all these years. Called Air Jaws: Top Guns, Shark Week familiar faces Dickie Chivell and Andy Casagrande are on the search this time around. According to executive producer and creator Jeff Kurr, however, the Air Jaws team got extremely lucky when it came to "battling" the killer orcas this year. 

A recurring theme in Shark Week in recent years has been the problem of orcas hunting great white sharks, resulting in a massive drop in great white numbers. According to Kurr, the orca issue resulted in the team having to create the Air Jaws storyline this year around the species also commonly known as “killer whales.” He explained: 

In the early years of Air Jaws (with the first Discovery special in what would become a popular series airing in 2001), the sharks were much easier to find, including the well-known great white known as Colossus. Jeff Kurr pointed out that as much as great white sharks are almost at the top of the food chain, they don't stand a chance against orcas the way that they do against other animals. (R.I.P. seals.) 

The executive producer previewed that Dickie Chivell and Andy Casagrande do get an impressive breach in Top Guns, but they were very lucky “considering what the white sharks are up against.” The orcas obviously cause huge problems for the sharks, but what about the filming crew trying to capture the breaches in South Africa? Jeff Kurr revealed:

The Air Jaws team has been “battling with the orcas,” according to the EP, but the timing worked in their favor for this year’s special. If they had been just a little bit later in coming to Mossel Bay, they might have had a severe shortage of sharks to film, and Chivell and Casagrande wouldn’t have gotten the breaching shot that they did. The Top Guns special could have been very different from what viewers get to see on July 25. Kurr continued:

Great whites are facing many problems, and Shark Week is able to spread awareness to issues facing sharks like pollution and overfishing. Spreading awareness about orcas destroying white shark populations isn’t something that can save them, however, so – as Jeff Kurr said – ”hopefully” the sharks are able to survive. 

Air Jaws has been one of the key parts of Shark Week for more than twenty years now in spreading awareness about great whites, and helping to change their reputation after the Jaws film franchise. You can find Air Jaws: Top Guns on Discovery on Monday, July 25 at 8 p.m. ET, so tune in for more great white action.

Of course, the species can be found across Discovery’s week of shark-filled programming. In fact, Jeff Kurr’s Great White Open Ocean aired as part of the very first night of Shark Week 2022 to tell the story of his friend's too-close-for-comfort encounter with a very large great white. Great White Serial Killer: Fatal Christmas airs right after Top Guns, and found a new way to solve a tragic mystery. 

All things considered, Shark Week pulled out all the stops this year, including Noah Schnapp of Stranger Things appearing in the Stranger Sharks special, the Jackass team returning for their second (and fortunately less bloody) special, and the Impractical Jokers crew coming to Shark Week as well. For some viewing options following the end of Shark Week, check out our 2022 TV premiere schedule.

Shark Week is back on Discovery with the 2022 slate of new specials, and that means the returns of some fan-favorite series like Air Jaws and Great White Serial Killer. This year’s edition of Great White Serial Killer is called Fatal Christmas, and will tell the story of a surfer who died off the shore of California on Christmas Eve in 2021. Executive producer Jeff Kurr spoke with CinemaBlend and shared what to expect with how the special solves a tragic mystery. 

Great White Serial Killer: Fatal Christmas will see great white shark attack investigators using forensic evidence and eyewitness reports to try and connect the dots about what happened and answer the question of what shark killed the surfer. Viewers will have to tune in to see the journey, but executive producer Jeff Kurr spoke about his work in the franchise and how investigators cracked the case, saying:

Shark Week has been going strong and growing since its debut in 1988, but using satellite technology to solve the mystery of the killer shark is something that likely couldn’t have been achieved even as recently as a few years ago. Fatal Christmas will deliver some answers about what happened on Christmas Eve 2021, but that wasn’t the only goal in this investigation. Jeff Kurr continued:

Jeff Kurr certainly has the Shark Week experience to vouch for when shows are especially amazing, as he has been part of Discovery’s week of shark programming for decades. He also has no fewer than four specials airing this year. Great White Open Ocean was a cinematic special that followed his friend’s “miraculous” story of survival against all odds, and Air Jaws: Top Guns will bring in two of Shark Week’s most familiar faces to try and make history. Shark House will make the fourth of Kurr’s specials in 2022. 

Be sure to tune in to Discovery on Monday, July 25 at 9 p.m. ET to catch Great White Serial Killer: Fatal Christmas as the latest installment in that deadly Shark Week series. It will be a night packed with must-see shark action, starting with Stranger Sharks (featuring Stranger Things actor Noah Schnapp) at 7 p.m. and continuing with Air Jaws: Tops Guns back in South Africa on the search for breaching great whites at 8 p.m. ET to lead into Great White Serial Killer. The final special of the night will be Rise of the Monster Hammerheads at 10 p.m. ET with researchers searching for answers about two legendary great hammerheads.

For some more viewing options now and in the not-too-distant future, be sure to take a look at our 2022 TV premiere schedule, and check back with CinemaBlend for more coverage of Shark Week 2022 on Discovery. You can find more shark content streaming on Discovery+, which is also the home of many true crime series and documentaries.

Shark Week is officially back on Discovery for 2022, with plenty of new shark-filled specials packed into primetime for the next several days. One of those specials is the latest installment in the long-running and fan-favorite Air Jaws series, which began in 2001 and has followed teams of researchers and photographers traveling to South Africa to photograph great white sharks breaching the surface of the water. This year’s is called Air Jaws: Top Guns, and creator and executive producer Jeff Kurr explained why Shark Week embraced Top Gun this time around. 

Top Gun is of course one of the iconic films of the 1980s that has stood the test of time, and may or may not be why many fans can burst into a rendition of “Great Balls of Fire” and/or “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feeling” at the drop of a hat. Top Gun: Maverick finally hit theaters earlier this year, so the timing couldn’t be better for a Shark Week special embracing the theme. But how does that work for Air Jaws? Speaking with CinemaBlend, Jeff Kurr explained:

Goodness gracious, fans are in for something new this year with Air Jaws: Top Guns! Andy Casagrande and Dickie Chivell may not exactly be Tom Cruise and Miles Teller, and photographing sharks is about as far from dogfighting in the sky as can be, but they are some of the standouts of Shark Week year in and year out, so who better to take the reins of Air Jaws to try and outdo the originals? Whether or not they succeed, the special should definitely be interesting, and Kurr’s preview reveals that they caught something spectacular on camera in South Africa. He continued:

The technology for Shark Week certainly has advanced over the years, and Air Jaws will be taking full advantage of that. Casagrande and Chivell undoubtedly needed all the advantages they could get, since – as fans saw in previous years of Shark Week – orcas have been killing a lot of the great whites on the coast of South Africa, so finding breaching sharks has become harder.

So, what are Andy Casagrande and Dickie Chivell like as partners, and will viewers get some Top Gun vibes from their dynamic as well as the format of the special? Everybody will have to wait until the special airs on July 25 to find out whether Casagrande or Chivell truly is a Maverick, but EP Jeff Kurr promised that they’re “funny” and “have great energy” together. He also had a long history with both before bringing them into Air Jaws in this new way, as he shared: 

Andy Casagrande has been all over Shark Week for many years, so his origin coming at least partly from a shark song is a fun bit of trivia. As for Dickie Chivell, he and Kurr actually collaborated on another special for Discovery’s 2022 shark celebration, called Shark House and airing on Thursday. Kurr continued:

Luckily, the wait for Air Jaws: Top Guns is almost over. The latest Air Jaws installment of Shark Week premieres on Monday, July 25 at 8 p.m. ET on Discovery, following the Stranger Sharks special featuring Noah Schnapp of Stranger Things fame at 7 p.m. The night continues at 9 p.m. with Great White Serial Killer: Fatal Christmas, also produced by Jeff Kurr.

With Tops Guns and Fatal Christmas just one night after Great White Open Ocean tells the story of one man’s shark attack survival with a new format, Shark Week 2022 is opening strong when it comes to great white sharks. That may not be great news for any seal fans, but Shark Week always tends to be a bad time for seals! For some more viewing options now and in the coming weeks, check out our 2022 TV premiere schedule.

Shark Week returns to Discovery for the 34th year starting on July 24, and the first night will deliver a special that explores one man’s one-of-a-kind survival story after an encounter with a great white shark in a format that fans – whether they’re tuning in for the first time or have been watching for three decades now – haven’t experienced before. Shark Week veteran, executive producer, and Air Jaws creator Jeff Kurr spoke with CinemaBlend to open up about the special, called Great White Open Ocean.

Great White Open Ocean is one of the three specials that open the first night of Shark Week this year, and it’s going to be something that viewers won’t want to miss, based on what Jeff Kurr previewed about what’s in store. It will also be a special that has a personal connection for the producer, as it involves an incident with a friend and what happened in the aftermath. Kurr previewed:

Anything that qualifies as “the most spectacular sequence in Shark Week history” has to be must-see, after all that the Discovery event has already aired going back to 1988, including everything from the fan-favorite Air Jaws specials to celebrity appearances (including the Jackass gang last year), famous athlete participation (like Michael Phelps proving if he was faster than a shark), and much more. 

Fortunately, Great White Open Ocean is a story about Jimi Partington’s recovery after his “miraculous” survival without a scratch, as well as the initial incident. Jeff Kurr elaborated about how the special will dive into what followed that encounter with the 16-foot great white, saying:

Anybody willing to dive back in with great whites after a terrifying encounter is bound to have a thrilling story; in Jimi Partington’s case, viewers will see him survive another near-death experience before the end of the special, but they’ll have to tune in on Sunday night to see the details of his journey.

If everything that Jeff Kurr shared with CinemaBlend about Great White Open Ocean sounds different from what Shark Week fans might normally expect from Discovery during its most shark-filled week of the year, there’s a good reason for that. He explained a key way that it stands out, and his hopes for how viewers react:

The world premiere of Great White Open Ocean airs on Sunday, July 24 at 10:30 p.m. ET on Discovery as one of the specials to kick off the very first day of Shark Week 2022. The night starts out with Great White Battleground at 8 p.m. ET and continues with Jackass Shark Week 2.0 (featuring the cast of the Jackass franchise for the second time) at 9 p.m. ET. 

Jeff Kurr has three more specials airing as part of the 2022 event on Discovery as well, including the newest installment of Air Jaws with a Top Gun bent on Monday night. It should be a great week for fans of the event… although probably not a great week for seals, as usual! Stay tuned to CinemaBlend for more Shark Week coverage, and check out our 2022 TV premiere schedule for some more upcoming viewing options.

Thanks to complicated rights agreements and a neverending influx of new content, change is a constant on pretty much every single streaming service. It’s why we devote entire columns to what’s coming and going from the major platforms, but some recent alterations to HBO Max’s lineup have fans wondering whether larger changes are afoot. It looks like they’re probably right, though what exactly that means is very uncertain.

The online chatter started when some users began noticing some animated content from Cartoon Network disappearing from the service including Final Space. Later, other users discovered some TNT and TBS shows disappeared too including Chad and Snowpiercer. This struck users as odd considering those programs air on networks Warner Bros/ HBO Max own, and many took to social media to ask what happened. HBO Max responded but in a generic way on social media, which was highlighted by Pop Culture…

What’s specifically going on with any of the aforementioned missing shows is unclear. There are a lot of reasons random content disappears from a service, and there’s not always a larger agenda behind it. Just because TNT has the rights to broadcast a specific show on television doesn’t necessarily mean they have the rights permanently to include it in its parent company’s streaming service. 

That being said, there is clearly a lot of smoke here, and that smoke has only gotten thicker and more noticeable since Vulture dropped an extensive write-up late last month on long-term plans for HBO Max. Sources told the outlet those within the company are expecting big changes for the platform as it merges with Discovery. Everything from a name change to a complete reshaping of its theater distribution model are reportedly on the table.

The outlet claims David Zaslav, the executive tapped to run the new combined streaming service, is a big believer in the theatrical window. We’ve already seen one DC movie that was planned to go straight to streaming cancelled, and there’s reportedly a new directive that any movie intended to be straight to streaming should have a budget of less than $35M and even those could hit theaters for 45 days before appearing on the service.

I’m not sure anyone outside a few key people know exactly what the plan moving forward will be, but I think it’s pretty obvious change is going to come when HBO Max and Discovery+ combine into one platform. Whatever follows will have a ton of content appealing to a wide range of people, and between reality shows, HBO prestige content, Warner Bros movies and more, it may not make sense to be so HBO centric in either the name or the marketing. More importantly, it also may not make sense to keep all of the content on the streaming service at all times. Just as Disney splits its content between Disney+, Hulu and ESPN+, as well as the various networks it owns, we may see some level of that with Warner Bros Discovery too. 

As a society, we seem to have an odd obsession with true crime. For a genre that would appear on the surface to have a very niche audience able to stomach it, the fandom is instead growing. There is no shortage of true crime shows, and even those who don't like horror movies can often still tell you facts about some of the most gruesome crimes and real-world serial killers out there. But as the true crime genre evolves, so does our underlying understanding of its source material, such as the notion of the "one-and-done" killer. These are murderers who kill only once and then continue living among us like nothing ever happened. They don't escalate into the infamous killers like the John Wayne Gacy's or Ted Bundy's that we see portrayed on Netflix. 

Unravelled: Once A Killer explores the concept of these one-and-done-killers and how DNA genealogy plays an important role in cracking two decades-old murder cases. The five-part podcast series now also has a two-hour special companion piece that you can watch on Discovery+. I had the chance to sit down with the creators of Unravelled: Once A Killer, Alexis Linkletter and Billy Jensen, to talk true crime and ask some burning questions about serial killers and those who hide among us in plain sight. Here's what Linkletter, who also executive produces the show, had to say about one of the biggest misconceptions people have about serial killers:

Well that's... unsettling. It was okay when these boogeymen were lurking in the dark because at least we all knew exactly what to look for, i.e. a creepy guy in a clown costume, right? Not so, I'm afraid. It appears that some killers, for whatever reason, strike only once and then sink right back into their regular lives to never kill again and often never being caught. Thankfully, some criminal profiling techniques we've seen portrayed in popular police procedural shows have evolved over the years, and more of these types of killers are being brought to justice using DNA evidence. 

So while we sit around and cross our fingers for the next Mindhunter season to finally happen, hopefully the real-life crimefighters are putting in the work to learn how to continue to keep us safe. I, for one, can't wait to see what new kinds of villains their work helps bring to the big screen. (Because we true crime fans are weird, remember?)

Speaking as a passionate true crime fan, Discovery+ has quickly risen to one of my favorite streaming services. In addition to the tons of true crime content on Discovery+,  the platform also feeds my need for paranormal and travel shows, as well as boasts a wide-enough array to please any reality television fan. So don't hesitate in signing up for the streaming service, and stay safe out there. 

When Henry Cavill debuted as Superman in Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel back in 2013, many of us imagined the actor embodying the role for years to come. However, Cavill has only since reprised the role in 2016’s Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and 2017’s Justice League. Are we ever going to see our much-awaited Man of Steel 2? A new Warner Bros. shakeup is offering up the latest information about the character’s future. 

WarnerMedia is now owned in part by Discovery Communications after a $43 billion deal with AT&T, making current Discovery CEO David Zaslav in charge of the combined companies to be called Warner Bros. Discovery. With the massive studio under new management, we’ve learned a bit about some of the early goals for the future of the DCEU. 

As Discovery executives become part of the development of DC films moving forward, they reportedly believe “top-shelf characters'' such as Superman “need to be revitalized,” per Variety. In this report, it's said the major issue the new WarnerMedia management has is the DC movies’ lack of “coherent creative and brand strategy.”

Zaslav is reportedly looking for candidates to fill a position within WarnerMedia similar to Marvel Studios’ Kevin Feige that could keep the “different factions at DC working more harmoniously” as well. Over the past few years, the DCEU has run amuck in tone, with projects ranging from the more family-friendly Aquaman and Shazam! to more tonally-dark visions in Joker and The Batman. It sounds like Discovery is going to help the DCEU become more like a multiverse again. 

Where does that leave Man of Steel 2? For years, Henry Cavill has shared his love for playing Superman and interest in returning to flesh out his character further. However, his version was very much tied to the SnyderVerse, which the filmmaker is moving on from as he develops other projects, such as his coming sci-fi epic Rebel Moon.

It's also worth mentioning that in early 2021, word came in about a Superman movie in the works from J.J. Abrams' Bad Robot Production company. The project, which has been described as a "reboot," was being written by Ta-Nehisi Coates, leading to theories that the movie would feature the first Black Superman in a DC movie. 

This new report shows that Superman is high on the mind of executives as WarnerMedia enters a new chapter. We’d expect to see another movie about the Kryptonian given this source’s comments, but “revitalized” could mean many things, including a complete overhaul of the character without Henry Cavill. That certainly seems like that'll be the case if Ta-Nehisi Coates' Superman movie gets off the ground.

There’s also specific mention of Todd Phillips’ Joker and Margot Robbie’s Harley Quinn as “shining” examples of ways DC Comics “can and should” be implemented in feature films. Looks like there could be some change in strategy moving forward, but Discovery is very aware of what has worked. Superman being a key name added into the fold could get interesting as Warner Bros Discovery begins to develop more projects. 

Until then, we’ll be thinking about all the incredible directors that could helm a Man of Steel sequel and getting ready for the many upcoming DC movies headed our way. 

Streaming platforms are the prime way for viewers to have massive libraries of content at their fingertips at all times, and the competition between the various services is fierce. Soon, two streamers are going to combine, so the time has never been better to check out the best shows on HBO Max and Discovery+ to see all that will be offered when they merge. 

With free trials, you'll gain access to original shows like The Flight Attendant, Peacemaker, and And Just Like That on the HBO streamer, with 90 Day Bares All as part of the 90 Day Fiancé franchise, Ghost Adventures, and much more on the Discovery option. First things first: here’s what you need to know about the two streaming services combining for one massive library of TV shows and movies. 

Why HBO Max And Discovery+ Are Combining

Discovery has merged with AT&T’s WarnerMedia and will become Warner Bros. Discovery in April, putting it under the same parent company as HBO and HBO Max. Instead of keeping Discovery+ and HBO Max separate or following in the footsteps of services like Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+ to offer a bundle, HBO Max and Discovery+ will simply combine.

Details are still scarce about what exactly the combined service will deliver or when it will be ready for subscribers, according to Variety, but Discovery+ currently costs $4.99/month with ads or $6.99/month for ad-free. HBO Max is a bit pricier, at $9.99/month with ads or ad-free for $14.99. For those who decide to try out the platforms, however, they can do so at no cost with free trials. 

How To Get A Free HBO Max Trial

A free trial for HBO Max provides access to some fan-favorite classic shows – including the full run of Game of Thrones, Sex and the City, and The Big Bang Theory – as well as some ongoing originals, such as The Flight Attendant (which soon returns for Season 2) and Euphoria. Those interested actually have options from AT&T for a three-month trial as well as a full subscription lasting beyond that initial period. 

Customers who choose DIRECTV STREAM CHOICE from AT&T will get HBO Max included for three months as part of the monthly fee of $89.99 (plus taxes), which already provides access to 90+ channels and regional sports networks. There are also options from the company that include an HBO Max subscription at no additional cost: the AT&T FIBER internet and AT&T UNLIMITED ELITE wireless plan. Although the HBO Max perk can be modified or terminated at any point, the free subscription via these AT&T packages is for the $14.99/month ad-free version. 

How To Get A Free Discovery+ Trial

Discovery+ is the home of more than 55,000 episodes of upwards of 2,500 classic, current, and original shows from channels that include HGTV, Food Network, TLC, ID, Animal Planet, Lifetime, and of course Discovery Channel, among others. For customers looking to get a free trial of the streaming service, there are actually two options. 

For a 7-day free trial, potential subscribers can simply head over to the Discovery+ home page and follow the instructions to select either a free week of the ad-free $6.99/month option or the $4.99/month option with ads. The trial is only available to new users, so any current subscribers won’t be able to take advantage of the deal. Still, it’s a pretty straightforward way to get a taste of what Discovery+ has to offer without any cost. 

As for the other way to get a free trial, consumers will have to head over to Verizon.  Six months of free access to Discovery+ comes along with select plans, including by switching to Verizon Unlimited and upgrading to Verizon Unlimited. Consumers who already have Unlimited aren’t out of luck, either, as all they need to do is add Discovery+ to their existing account. The free subscription lasts for six months, after which the cost is $6.99/month. 

While that’s obviously not quite as good of a deal as the first six months at no added cost, the Discovery+ subscription is cheaper than other streaming services, including Netflix (which semi-regularly bumps up its price), Disney+, and even HBO Max. 

All things considered, there are some options for trying out HBO Max and Discovery+ before the streaming services officially merge moving forward. No date for the merge has been announced just yet, so trying them out separately is the best way to gauge whether or not you’ll be interested in getting both for the price of one down the line. If you want a look at the shows that will soon come to HBO Max and Discovery+ (as well as those that have already premiered this year), be sure to check out our 2022 TV schedule. 

Occasionally, there’s a picture taken on the Internet of two celebrities that is super confusing when when you first see it. Like that time Modern Family’s Ed O’Neill saw Britney Spears in an airport and snapped a quick photo. Or that other time Brie Larson snuck into a MET Gala photo with a whole bunch of Kardashians. It happened again this month when Aquaman 2 star Jason Momoa shared a post after hanging out with none other than American Pickers’ Mike Wolfe. The reality TV star even shared a sweet response after the hangout went down. 

After the See star and his History channel brother hung out, Mike Wolfe did confirm what was suspected from our sleuthing when the original post broke: the two will be working together in some capacity for Jason Momoa’s new show On The Roam. That project is a previously announced travel show that the actor had been out and about working on in recent weeks. Mike Wolfe confirms it will be antique motorcycles that will bring the two men together for the big TV crossover event. Here’s his sweet post:

Jason Momoa has been a man known for carving his own path for a long time. He’s a superhero who doesn’t like to work out like other superheroes, preferring formats like rock climbing to traditional gym environments. When Aquaman 2 wrapped filming, he spent some time out in nature, enjoying the Hawai’ian environment and the communities built there. But it’s still unexpected to see him hanging out with a History Channel star, that is until you have the context, so I’m really glad Wolfe shared more details here, and I’m also just excited about how excited both men seem to have been about getting to hang out. 

Context matters. Seeing Ed O’Neill with Britney Spears is way better when the actor himself admitted to Ellen DeGeneres that he “didn’t know it was her” when she asked for a photo at the airport. Brie Larson told the story about her MET Gala adventure as well, joking on her own Instagram, ‘I needed to go to the bathroom and ended up famous.’  In the Momoa and Wolfe case, one thing both men have in common are old things. Momoa has rebuilt classic cars in the past, including restoring an old school Mustang for  his now-ex Lisa Bonet. 

With that in mind, On The Roam seems like an obvious fit. Without it, is just looks like a DC star hanging out with a reality TV star in Nashville for unclear reasons. Again, nice to get some clarification here.

In another post, Jason Momoa admitted that filming on On The Roam has wrapped and shared more details about a special guitar and more. While there may not be any more random or viral posts about On The Roam coming out of left field anymore, the good news is that this  means we should be able to see this American Pickers-oriented crossover hopefully sooner rather than later. 

Jason Momoa has already gone to “extraordinary” places to meet cool people for On The Roam, and when the docuseries eventually premieres, it will be heading straight to Discovery and its streaming off-shoot discovery+. Though now I’m sort of hoping we’ll get another Momoa/Wolfe collaboration down the line, maybe even on Pickers next time. Particularly given Mike Wolfe has not fully cemented another partner… 

YouTube stars have been making the leap from the online space to terrestrial television for years now. Some stars have forged credible careers in film and television, while others have only been able to dip their toes into Hollywood. Unfortunately, Good Mythical Morning hosts Rhett and Link have been in the latter category for a while... that is until now. A decade after their last television show was canceled, the viral comedy duo are making an on-brand return to the small screen.

Rhett McLaughlin and Link Neal will headline and produce a new series for the Food Network, according to Variety. The show, entitled The Taste Buds with Rhett and Link, will feature the childhood best friends exploring the history and people behind some of the U.S.’s favorite food brands. And the project is moving right along, as the comedy duo reportedly wrapped up production on the upcoming series recently. The entertainment network couldn’t contain its excitement over its partnership with the YouTubers, with its president, Courtney White, saying:

The network is betting big on Rhett and Link’s humor and appeal translating to its audience, as the culinary series will premiere on both Food Network and streaming platform Discovery+ as part of the merger between Discovery Communications and the channel. It appears the duo’s success with “Good Mythical Morning” caught the food-oriented channel’s attention in a big way, which isn't surprising. The channel yields over 17 million subscribers and has amassed millions of views.

The new series isn’t the YouTube stars’ first attempt at transitioning from Internet creators to bonafide television stars. In 2007, they headlined the internet clip show Online Nation for The CW alongside fellow internet personalities Stevie Ryan and Joy Leslie. But ultimately, the show was cancelled after four episodes. The duo made another attempt at network television with the food travel series Rhett & Link: Commercial Kings for IFC in 2011. The docuseries was canceled after ending its ten-episode run.

This new project is further proof that traditional television is seeking to harness the power and popularity of viral stars for more straightforward content. YouTube has become increasingly important to viewers, as reports show that they watch the platform more on their TVs than on any other device. In short, Food Network has made a shrewd move that could pay off in a significant way.

It should be noted that line between the Internet and Hollywood has been blurring for years, as celebrities like Will Smith and Ryan Reynolds have launched successful YouTube channels. Even Matthew McConaughey joined the fold in 2021 with a solid start to his channel. 

As Rhett and Link leap to television, more stars could likely emerge from the video streaming platform. Food Network might want to scour YouTube for more new talent, as there are plenty of great cooking channels out there. 

While you wait for more news on that front, you can see what else is premiering on television in 2022 by browsing CinemaBlend's 2022 TV schedule. And hopefully, The Taste Buds with Rhett and Link will land a premiere date soon.

90 Day: The Single Life’s latest tell-all really threw some curveballs at viewers, though few were as surprising as the news that Colt Johnson and his best friend-turned-wife Vanessa Johnson were separated. While non-Discovery+ subscribers who don’t have access to the show might be taken aback by sudden troubles between the two, they may not be so surprised after learning the reason behind the two’s separation. In short, Colt’s mother, Debbie Johnson, played a heavy hand in the split. 

Vanessa Johnson revealed she’s no longer living with Colt, and the change was as recent as three weeks before the 90 Day: The Single Life tell-all special. Vanessa said she moved out due to Debbie Johnson’s constant reliance on her son, which then caused him to neglect her needs. This got especially hard when Vanessa suffered a miscarriage and added to the tension. Vanessa admitted during the tell-all that Debbie wasn’t aware the couple was even expecting at the time. During the special, she also shared her mother-in-law’s reaction to the miscarriage and how the subsequent drama impacted their relationship:

Colt and Vanessa weren’t living together at the time of the taping though, based on the things that were said in the 90 Day: The Single Life tell-all, the two aren’t headed to divorce just yet. Ultimately, Vanessa needs a change in the dynamic of Colt and Debbie and for her and her partner to possibly get a house of their own. It may also take some effort on Debbie’s behalf to step aside and perhaps learn to not be so reliant on her son, especially when he’s trying to start a family of his own. 

90 Day Fiancé fans are well-aware of Colt Johnson’s latest drama, as every ex he’s had in the franchise thus far pointed to problems with Debbie (who always seems to be present at the worst times). Larissa Dos Santos Lima had quite a few fights with Debbie, as did Jess Caroline. It’s worth noting though, that Vanessa also played a big factor in the collapse of those relationships and Debbie often noted that she got along with Vanessa in ways she didn’t with the other women. Time will tell if the two will resolve their issues or if this relationship goes down the same way as Colt’s other ones.

90 Day: The Single Life is available to stream on Discovery+. As subscribers eagerly awaiting the next part of the tell-all, they should check out other new shows coming this season and perhaps find a new favorite to obsess over.

Chip and Joanna Gaines have created a significant TV empire, which now includes the Magnolia Network (a joint partnership with Discovery). Previously known as Diy Network, the HGTV offshoot thrived with programming aimed at those who love do-it-yourself-related programming. Recently though, one of the channel’s new shows, Home Work, has found itself on the receiving end of some significant backlash. The program has since been removed and, now, series stars Andy and Candis Meredith are speaking out amid the controversy. 

Home Work made its digital debut on Discovery+ this past Wednesday, the same day as the network’s relaunch, though the show was ultimately pulled on Friday. This move came after a number of the series’ clients alleged that their homes had been damaged during the renovations. As of this writing, at least three homeowners have leveled allegations at Andy and Candis Meredith via social media. In the wake of the claims, the TV couple also took to Instagram to release a lengthy joint statement: 

The new series saw the two stars renovating homes around different places within the state of Utah. The specific allegations aimed at the two claim that there was lack of communication from both as well as unsafe working conditions, insufficient work, and continuously expanding budgets, among other things. In their statement, the Meredith’s went on to say that they “adamantly deny” the claims, saying that they have not “stolen money from these clients” and asserting that they’ve used licensed contractors. The couple later went on to say that they’ve received threats as a result of the situation:

The couple also thanked those who’ve shown support for them and stated that they will continue to defend themselves from “the very small group of people who are upset with us.” Check out their full statement in the post below:

Chip and Joanna Gaines have yet to publicly comment on the matter, as news of Magnolia’s decision came from network president Allison Page, via a statement shared with Deadline. The Gaines’, who rose to prominence through Fixer Upper, have been putting a lot of work into the Magnolia Network rebrand. Since it was first confirmed in 2019 that they’d be getting their own network, the two have spoken extensively about their plans, even amid a major delay. This includes their desire to provide a diverse array of programming (while also addressing past criticisms). They also seem to be dedicated to establishing a TV network in the age of streaming.

As of right now, it would seem that Home Work has just been removed from the programming schedule, and Magnolia has yet to officially confirm if the show is cancelled. Viewers can likely expect a formal announcement on the series’ fate sooner rather than later.

Streaming heavyweights like Netflix, HBO Max, and Hulu offer a wide variety of content available for subscribers, including outstanding documentaries. But even though these platforms release dozens of great titles every year, it’s not really their main focus. But don’t worry because there are different options for people looking for the best streaming service for documentaries that have near-limitless possibilities

Services like Curiosity Stream, Discovery+, and Mubi are just three options that offer hundreds, if not thousands, of documentaries and docuseries about all kinds of topics ranging from true crime to deep space and everywhere in between. Here are just a few...

Curiosity Stream

If you watch enough documentaries on YouTube, you are bound to come across an ad for Curiosity Stream. This happened to me and I decided (after multiple ads during my late-night documentary binge sessions) to pull the trigger. All I can say is WHOA. The massive library of titles about everything from science to history and nature to technology (and more) is impressive to say the least, and you will have no problem finding a way to lose track of time. Feature length documentaries, short videos, and extensive series all ready to be watched.

You may be thinking that a service like Curiosity Stream would cost a pretty penny, but in terms of streaming services, it’s one of the cheapest. A standard HD subscription runs $2.99 per month (or $19.99 with a one-year commitment) and the premium 4K will cost you $9.99 per month (or $69.99 annually). Also, Curiosity Stream is available on most streaming and mobile devices.

Check out Curiosity Stream.

Mubi

The streaming service Mubi is more geared towards cinephiles than any other platform on this list, but this doesn’t mean it doesn’t have a great selection of documentaries. The 139 (and counting) titles that call Mubi home aren’t your typical educational documentaries (though they are eye-opening) and include Tree of Life director Terrence Malick’s Voyage of Time (which is narrated by Brad Pitt) to Thom Anderson’s nearly three-hour visual essay Los Angeles Plays Itself about how Hollywood has depicted the “City of Angels."

There are two options when it comes to a Mubi subscription, with the only difference being the price. You can either pay $10.99 each month or make a one-time annual payment of $83.88, which equals out to $6.99 per month. You can watch all the documentaries (and world cinema) on most streaming and mobile devices.

Check out Mubi.

PBS Documentaries (Amazon Prime Channel)

PBS has long been home to some of the best documentaries on television, especially the long-running Frontline series and the various Ken Burns films about baseball, national parks, and just about every modern war. If you grew up with PBS but think you can no longer access those great titles without cable or a TV antenna, you’re in luck because there’s a PBS Documentaries channel on Amazon Prime that gives you access to hundreds of titles from yesterday and today.

The PBS Documentaries channel on Amazon costs $3.99 per month and is added on top of your Amazon Prime subscription. This also means you can access the channel on any device that supports Prime Video, which is pretty much all of them.

Check out PBS Documentaries on Amazon.

Kanopy

Kanopy is a streaming platform that has a little bit of everything, but one of the best features of the service is its extensive library of documentary films (nearly 7,900 in total). With Kanopy, you can sort documentaries by subject, director, supplier, language, and even public performance rights in case you were wanting to show a movie at a large gathering. The subjects include politics, religion, human rights, science, and just about everything imaginable.

Another great thing about Kanopy is the fact that it’s a completely free streaming service for the consumer that is funded through licensing fees from libraries across the United States. This means that if you have an active library card there’s a good chance you stream documentaries (and tons of movies) on Kanopy right now.

Check out Kanopy.

Discovery+

There are plenty of reasons why adding a Discovery+ subscription to your collection is a great idea, but for the sake of this story we’ll just focus on the documentary offerings. There are scores of riveting true crime documentaries, science specials, and food series, but all pale in comparison to the platform’s selection of titles from the Planet Earth series. If you are a fan of David Attenborough’s soothing narration and stunning visuals of the natural world, Discovery+ is the place to go.

There are two different subscription options for Discovery+: an ad-free version that will cost you $6.99 per month and an ad-supported model that runs $4.99 per month. Both offer the same content and all the bells and whistles offered by the platform, one just doesn’t have any commercial breaks. The service is available on pretty much every streaming service, smart TV, browser, and mobile device as well as modern Xbox consoles.

Check out Discovery+.

Magellan TV

Magellan TV is another streaming service that provides subscribers with thousands of documentaries covering a range of topics. With space documentaries, exploration of the human spirit, and even a venture into the dark side, there is a staggering amount of content to choose from. Magellan even puts together playlists of titles based on those topics that will send you down the rabbit hole. There are even multiple articles published each month that provide additional information about a lot of the titles.

In terms of pricing, there are several options to choose from. There is the annual plan that costs $59.88 (or $4.99 per month), a quarterly plan at $17.97 ($5.99 per month), and the base monthly subscription of $6.99 per month. The first two options come with a 14-day free trial while the cheaper plan has a 7-day trial run. Magellan TV works on most streaming devices and mobile phones.

Check out Magellan TV.

YouTube

And then there is YouTube, which has a staggering amount of documentaries, and this massive library only seems to get larger by the day. These original documentaries, called YouTube Originals, consist of titles like Tom Petty: Somewhere You Feel Free, the crowd-sourced retrospective Life in a Day 2020, and the detail-rich Coachella: 20 Years in the Desert, to name only a few. There is also a seemingly endless list of the documentaries (both short-form and feature length) from other creators that include everything from multi-part true crime investigations to well-researched videos about the life and death of amusement parks.

Best of all, it doesn’t cost a penny to watch these documentaries (both YouTube Originals and other videos) if you don’t want to add another streaming service to your collection. However, there is YouTube Premium ($11.99 per month) for those who don’t want to deal with ad breaks or like watching videos offline.

Check out YouTube.

These are just some of the great streaming services for documentaries, as the number of platforms continues to grow every day. If you want to escape the world after watching hours upon hours of non-fiction stories, take a look at all the 2022 movies slated to open in theaters.

It was only a short while ago that headlines related to Johnny Depp and Amber Heard dominated the news, first due to their high profile divorce and then due to the lawsuits the Pirates of the Caribbean actor filed in the wake of an opp ed his ex had written. A lawsuit in the U.S. is still ongoing, though a lawsuit in the U.K. has wrapped. Interest has been high from fans of both actors throughout this process, leading to a new documentary on Discovery+ that aims to weigh in on both sides. Subsequently, an old pal of Depp’s and a lawyer involved in one of the suits have revealed some thoughts that will be a part of the upcoming doc.  

The new look into Amber Heard and Johnny Depp’s personal lives will be called Johnny vs. Amber. The two-part documentary has a somewhat unique format in that one part looks into what happened between the former couple from the Depp POV and the other part looks at what happened through a Heard-oriented lens. Now, we’ve heard from people with different points of view on this same matter.

Johnny Depp’s Old Buddy Speaks Out

In a clip obtained by LAD Bible, Johnny Depp’s ex-bandmate – from the 1980s – spoke out about the actor’s former relationship with Vanessa Paredis (with whom he shares two children, Lily-Rose and Jack), as well as his perceptions of Depp’s relationship with Heard. To note, he says he’s never met the Aquaman actress, but has built his perception through his years of knowing Depp. 

In a video recording for  Johnny vs. Amber, Bill 'Beano' Hanti alleged that Amber Heard drove Depp to “insanity,” including “drinking and drugging.” He also said in the clip from the streaming service: 

Previously, Bill 'Beano' Hanti was in the band The Kids with Depp and made his opinion about Amber Heard clear, though he did also say they do not have a personal relationship. 

What The Libel Case In The U.K. Argued

In the same report about the documentary, a lawyer involved with representing NGN, the company that owns The Sun, talked about what it was her job to prove when the libel case was brought by Johnny Depp himself to the U.K. courts. If you can remember, The Sun had alleged in an article that Depp was a “wife beater.” Depp did not agree the characterization was factual and sued for libel. He ultimately lost the case in court and subsequently exited the Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them franchise. 

The lawyer, Sasha Wass, also spoke for the documentary and said that her job was to “prove a pattern of abusive behavior.” Per Johnny vs. Amber, the lawyer noted: 

Discovery+ only announced the upcoming documentary last month, though it comes as Amber Heard and Johnny Depp are still involved in a defamation lawsuit in the U.S. The actress has made attempts to get the suit from Depp dismissed over the course of this year, but the latest reports indicate the suit and countersuit Heard filed are continuing to move forward. Even the likes of Elon Musk -- who previously challenged Depp to a "cage fight" -- and others could eventually become a part of this legal matter.