When John Singleton’s Boyz N The Hood hit theaters in the summer of 1992, there was a huge amount of controversy surrounding the movie, which today can be streamed with a Netflix subscription. Looking back, it's clear there was some inherent racism in the moment, but there was actually some real violence that occurred at a handful of showings. The news took that and ran with it, ratcheting up the rhetoric around the dangers of rap music, especially gangsta rap, which was already scaring the shit out of suburban America.

For me, a 16-year-old suburban kid, that was all I needed to hear to want to see the movie badly. What I expected, and what the movie is, are two totally different things.

The Media Breathlessly Reported On Violence At Screenings

In the great Netflix documentary about Dr. Dre and Jimmy Iovine, The Defiant Ones, Iovine talks at one point about how scared Interscope Records was making suburban white folks. Between Dr. Dre’s The Chronic and Nine Inch Nails’ The Downward Spiral, Interscope was hammering two sides of the musical spectrum that were upending norms. In the midst of that came Boyz N the Hood.

It was easy for the local and national news to issue urgent dispatches about the fear of gang violence at the movie’s screenings. Black directors and Black voices in Hollywood were hardly the norm; we basically had Spike Lee, Mario Van Peebles, and not many others at the time, until Singleton came along with this masterpiece. The media, never ones to shy away from fear-mongering, played up the scattered examples of violence at the theaters showing Boyz N The Hood, and America – specifically white America – recoiled. I was all in.

I Expected An N.W.A. Song On The Big Screen, But That Isn’t What I Got

For me, well, I loved Dre’s earlier work with Ice Cube and company in N.W.A. I would blast that as I drove my own suburban neighborhood, feeling, well, defiant. When I heard about Boyz N the Hood, starring Ice Cube himself, I knew I had to see it. All the talk of gang violence at the theater made me believe even more that I was going to see one of Cube’s rap songs come to life on film.

Anyone who has seen the movie, which I think is one of the best movies of the ‘90s, knows it is not an N.W.A. song come to life. It doesn’t glamorize drug dealing or gang life (not that N.W.A. lyrics really do, either, but in my naive ears, they did). It speaks bluntly and honestly about “what’s goin’ on in the hood,” as Cube’s character Doughboy explains in the final scene. It’s a powerful statement about life in South Central L.A. and neighborhoods like it around the country, as well as the importance of being a strong father in the face of adversity.

It is an incredible movie, with powerful performances from Laurence Fishburne, Ice Cube, Cuba Gooding, Jr., and the rest of the cast, that includes actors like Regina King, Nia Long, Morris Chestnut, and Angela Bassett. It’s nothing like another movie about drug dealers of the era, New Jack City, which I also love. Boyz N the Hood has far more important things to say, even if the media ignored it in favor of more salacious news surrounding it.

There’s nothing quite like the first time, right? While I’m sure a lot of people have discovered (or will soon) their favorite film among the 2025 movie schedule releases, very, very few of us will ever know what it’s like to win an Academy Award. However, Oscar winner Regina King has just compared the feeling to something that far more humans have probably experienced, and that, my friends, is smoking weed for the first time.

What Did Regina King Say About Winning An Oscar Feeling Like Smoking Weed?

While she had long been known for memorable roles in films like Boyz n the Hood, Jerry Maguire, Friday, Ray, Miss Congeniality 2, and more, it was the 2018 film If Beale Street Could Talk that turned Regina King into one of the few Black actors to win an Oscar. The former child star, who started acting at about 9 and had her first taste of fame as a teenager on the hit comedy 227, might now be on the short list of people who know what that feeling is like, but she’s made it easier for (some) of the rest of us to understand it.

When speaking to host Kelly Ripa on her Let’s Talk Off Camera podcast, the One Night in Miami director was asked about the experience of winning her Academy Award, and after discussing how her mom was sitting next to her and they both took a deep breath after her name was called, she described her “surreal” feelings, which…well, I’ll just let Ms. King explain:

Well, we’ve heard Jeffrey Wright call Oscar campaigning a “grind,” Michelle Yeoh note that she felt “acceptance” due to her win, and Jamie Lee Curtis say her win left her “very, very moved,” but I don’t think anyone has ever equated any of the Oscar process to getting high for the first time. Look at Regina; she’s just out here making firsts happen all over the place!

OK, admission from your friendly neighborhood writer, here: I’ve never smoked weed so I can only theoretically get what she’s talking about. I do completely understand that having your name announced as a winner on the live Oscar broadcast must be an odd feeling, though. As the social justice-leaning Watchmen series star (who’s also won four Primetime Emmys) noted, even though she and everyone else in her category had been working for many years at that point, it’s unlikely that anyone took their nominated role specifically to get an Oscar.

And yet, it’s also probably a moment that many in the industry have dreamt of having since they were kids, or young in their careers at least. So, to have such a dream come true would, understandably, be amazing, but also kinda weird to the point where none of it would seem completely real. King continued:

King also explained how her senses seemed heightened in the moment, and said that she felt she could “hear the hairs on my arms” stand on end, which is a totally wild thing to go through. Luckily, the star also noted that she “can fully remember” much of what she experienced on that night, and, hopefully, she’ll get another shot at such an event some time soon.

HBO doesn't have a monopoly on prestige television, but they are the king of it. The network loves to work with the same people who have proved they have what it takes to make great shows. That includes many of the same great actors who appear on more than one show. Some of these actors have appeared in three or four (or more) shows over the years, but for this list, we're sticking with at least two, usually the ones they are best known for. Actors like Wendell Pierce, Cynthia Nixon, and many more.

Wendell Pierce - The Wire And Treme

Wendell Pierce first broke out as the best-dressed detective in the Baltimore Homicide Unit on The Wire. Pierce's character, Bunk Moreland, appears in every episode of the show. A couple of years after The Wire ended in 2008, the show's creator returned to HBO with Treme, and it was a natural fit to include Pierce, who is a New Orleans native, in the cast.

Carrie Coon - The Gilded Age And The White Lotus

2025 was a huge year for Carrie Coon on HBO. Not only did she return for Season 3 of The Gilded Age as the determined high society lady, Bertha Russell, but she also killed it on the third season of the anthology series The White Lotus. She stole the show with her monologue in the final episode of that show, while continuing to dominate New York society in the 1880s in The Gilded Age.

Steve Buscemi - The Wire And Boardwalk Empire

Steve Buscemi's first appearance on HBO came when he joined the cast of The Sopranos as Tony Blundetto, Tony Soprano's cousin, in Season 5 of the legendary peak TV-era show. He wasn't on the show long, but a couple of years later, he played a much bigger role on Boardwalk Empire. He played the fictional mob boss Nucky Thompson in the period piece created by Sopranos writer Terrance Winter.

Evan Rachel Wood - True Blood And Westworld

Evan Rachel Wood started her career as a talented child actor and made her first appearance on HBO as a recurring character in True Blood. She made an even bigger splash on the network as one of the main characters in Westworld. Wood also appeared in the miniseries Mildred Pierce on HBO.

Alexander Skarsgård - True Blood And Big Little Lies

Alexander Skarsgård is a true HBO regular. His first show for the network, the limited series Generation Kill, aired in 2008 and he returned to the network that same year as a series regular in the vampire hit True Blood. While still starring on that show, he made a one-off appearance in the series finale of Eastbound and Down. He was a main cast member on Big Little Lies, playing a very dark character (and earning an Emmy in the process), before he took on a notable guest-starring role in Succession, earning two more Emmy nominations.

Sydney Sweeney - Euphoria And The White Lotus

Sydney Sweeney burst onto the scene alongside her castmates in the teen drama Euphoria on HBO in 2019 and in 2022, she also appeared in Season 1 of The White Lotus. She earned not one, but two Emmy nominations that year, one for each show.

Edie Falco - Oz And The Sopranos

The HBO show Oz was an early entry in the "peak TV era" from the network, running for six seasons in the late 1990s and early 2000s. The cast of Oz was stacked and included Edie Falco as Officer Diane Whittlesey. That isn't the show she is most famous for on the network, of course. As Falco's time was coming to a close, she landed the role of a lifetime as Carmela Soprano in The Sopranos, and her amazing performances earned her three Emmy awards.

Aidan Gillen - Game Of Thrones And The Wire

Petyr "Littlefinger" Baelish in Game of Thrones is one of the great TV villains of all time, and the character was played brilliantly by Aidan Gillen. It wasn't Gillen's first major role on HBO, as that came a few years earlier when he played the ambitious politician Tommy Carcetti on the final three seasons of The Wire.

Cynthia Nixon - And Just Like That And The Gilded Age

itsCynthia Nixon has been a staple on HBO for decades now, starring as Miranda Hobbes in And Just Like That... and it's predecessor. She's also one of the stars of the incredible period drama The Gilded Age as the spinster-turned-wealthy widow Ada Forte, née Brook.

Michiel Huisman - Game Of Thrones And Treme

Treme, which ran for four seasons on HBO, had a whole host of actors who were HBO regulars. Michiel Huisman, who played the musician only known as "Sonny" on the New Orleans-based show, was also starring in a little show called Game of Thrones at the same time on the network, playing Daario Naharis.

Michelle Monaghan - True Detective And The White Lotus

It must be incredibly rewarding for any actor to have the opportunity to star in two anthology shows on HBO. Michelle Monaghan knows exactly how it feels. She first starred in Season 1 of True Detective and, more recently, was part of the stellar cast of Season 3 of The White Lotus.

Michael K. Williams - The Wire And Boardwalk Empire

The late Michael K. Williams left behind an incredible legacy at HBO. He was, of course, one of the most incredible TV characters of all time as Omar Little on The Wire, and he followed that up with a great turn as a gangster in 1920s New Jersey in Boardwalk Empire. Those weren't his only appearances on the network. He popped up in a one-off scene on The Sopranos in 2001, then later in the miniseries The Night Of. His final television credit before his tragic death was on the HBO show Lovecraft Country.

Alexandra Daddario - The White Lotus And True Detective

Before earning an Emmy nomination for her great turn as newlywed Rachel Patton in Season 1 of The White Lotus, Alexandra Daddario had a recurring role on another HBO anthology series, True Detective, during its first season. She even had a cameo early in her career in The Sopranos.

Murray Bartlett - The White Lotus And The Last Of Us

It's easy to see why The White Lotus was such a monster hit when it aired its first season, with Murray Bartlett stealing the show as the hotel manager who gets caught in a serious downward spiral as the show goes on. He's hilarious and heartbreaking at the same time. Later, he was cast in "Long, Long Time," one of the most beloved episodes of The Last of Us, as Frank, the deceased lover of Bill, played by Nick Offerman. While it was only one episode, it was so good that we had to include it here. Bartlett was also a regular cast member on the HBO show Looking.

Danny McBride - Eastbound And Down And The Righteous Gemstones

What is there to be said about Danny McBride's various sitcoms on HBO? After making his name in supporting roles in movies like Pineapple Express and Tropic Thunder, he arrived on HBO in the now-legendary Eastbound and Down. His next hit for the network was Vice Principals alongside Walton Goggins, and then as Jesse Gemstone on The Righteous Gemstones.

Clarke Peters - The Wire And Treme

It's hard to believe that The Wire is one of those shows that never won an Emmy. That goes double for the excellent cast, including the great Clarke Peters, who played Lester Freamon in all five seasons of the show. Like some of his co-stars on the show, he also appeared in Treme on HBO.

Jeanne Tripplehorn - The Gilded Age And Big Love

Jeanne Tripplehorn is a veteran actor whose career stretches back to 1992's Basic Instinct. She was a big part of Big Love on HBO as Bill's only legal wife in the show about polygamy in Utah. Tripplehorn also starred in a recurring role on The Gilded Age as a disgraced high society outcast who happens to be one of the kindest characters on the show. She was also nominated for an Emmy for her role as Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis in Grey Gardens on HBO.

Jeffrey Wright - Westworld And Boardwalk Empire

Jeffrey Wright is one of the best actors of his generation, and he's had an opportunity to show off just how great he is in multiple HBO shows. First, he won an Emmy for his role in the miniseries Angels in America. Later, he had a recurring role on Boardwalk Empire, before his fantastic turn on Westworld, for which he was nominated for three more Emmys, but sadly didn't win one. In 2025, he reprised his voice role in The Last of Us video game in the HBO adaptation.

Jamie-Lynn Sigler - The Sopranos And Entourage

Jamie-Lynn Sigler occupies an interesting spot here. Of course, she's best known for her role as Meadow Soprano on The Sopranos. Her next role on HBO came in a role that was a fictionalized version of herself dating Turtle in Entourage.

Walton Goggins - Vice Principals And The White Lotus

Walton Goggins has been one of the hardest-working actors in Hollywood for many years, and in 2025, he really upped his profile with his fantastic performance in Season 3 of The White Lotus. It was his third major show on HBO after Vice Principals and The Righteous Gemstones.

Lena Headey - Game Of Thrones And The White House Plumbers

She played one of the greatest villains of all time on Game of Thrones, and Lena Headey returned to HBO in 2023 in the underrated miniseries The White House Plumbers, where she played Dorothy Hunt, wife of one of the Watergate burglars, E. Howard Hunt.

Pedro Pascal - Game Of Thrones And The Last Of Us

Like a lot of actors, Pedro Pascal put in a ton of work early in his career with one-off roles in every show you can imagine. Then, in 2014, he was cast as Oberyn Martell on Game of Thrones, and his career blew up. More recently, he's been breaking hearts on The Last of Us on HBO.

Indira Varma - Game Of Thrones And Rome

The Game of Thrones cast was absolutely stacked, including the great Indira Varma, who played Ellaria Sand in 13 episodes of the show. That wasn't her first time in an HBO show, however. In 2005, she starred as Niobe in two seasons of Rome, the incredibly underrated (and expensive to produce) historical drama created by John Milius.

Jim True-Frost - The Wire And Treme

Jim True-Frost's character in The Wire has one of the most interesting character arcs on a show full of great arcs. His performance as Roland Pryzbylewski was, like so many others on the show, nothing short of excellent. Like others on The Wire, True-Frost also starred in Treme. He even had a cameo in Boardwalk Empire as legendary lawman Eliot Ness.

Kim Dickens - Deadwood And Treme

Kim Dickens has a stellar television resume, and two jewels on that CV are both HBO shows. First, she was one of the main characters, Joanie, in Deadwood. Later, she starred on Treme.

John Hawkes - Deadwood And Eastbound And Down

The original cast of Deadwood was a bunch of heavyweights, including John Hawkes, who played Sol throughout the run of the show. A few years later, the versatile actor returned to HBO in a completely different kind of role as the brother of Kenny Powers in Eastbound & Down. Most recently, he put in a fantastic performance in Season 4 of the anthology series True Detective.

Rose Leslie - Game Of Thrones And The Time Traveler's Wife

The Time Traveler's Wife is one of the more under-the-radar shows in HBO history. Rose Leslie led the cast of the show that was canceled after one season, despite a passionate fanbase. Of course, Leslie first became a star on HBO as Ygritte on Game of Thrones.

Bobby Cannavale - Boardwalk Empire And Vinyl

Bobby Cannavale really made his name on HBO as the volatile gangster Gyp Rosetti in Boardwalk Empire, though his first gig on the network was in a small role on Six Feet Under. After Boardwalk Empire, he teamed up with the creators of Vinyl, starring in the lone season of the short-lived show.

Edi Patterson - The Righteous Gemstones And Vice Principals

The Righteous Gemstones and Vice Principals are two shows that were perfect for Edi Patterson. She's wonderful at playing quirky characters, fitting in great with the cast of both of those shows.

Domenick Lombardozzi - The Wire And Boardwalk Empire

Herc in The Wire is an obnoxious character that is hard to love, but Domenick Lombardozzi's performance charms everyone who watches the show. He repeated the feat later on Boardwalk Empire.

Regina King - Watchmen And The Leftovers

If anyone on this list needs no introduction, it's the great Regina King. She is a force of nature in everything she does, including two excellent HBO shows, The Leftovers and the one-and-done Season of Watchmen.

Michael Imperioli - The Sopranos And The White Lotus

Some people might remember Michael Imperioli as Spider in Goodfellas, but most will first know him as Christopher Moltisanti, Tony's frustrating nephew in The Sopranos. He returned to HBO in Season 2 of The White Lotus and once again reminded fans of the network how great he can be.

Every year, I try to honor Black History by writing about something important that has occurred in the entertainment industry. And, I can’t think of any greater honor than winning the Academy Award.

Yes, there have been achievements in many different categories, including directing, writing, producing, scoring, etc, but today, my focus is going to be on Black actors.

Split amongst the Best Lead Actor, Best Lead Actress, Best Supporting Actress, and Best Supporting Actor categories, there have been a total of 23 Oscars doled out to Black performers. So, here are all 23 of them, chronologically ordered.

Hattie McDaniel - Gone With The Wind (1939)

The very first Black winner for an acting Academy Award, Hattie McDaniel won it for Best Supporting Actress with her portrayal of Mammy in Gone With the Wind.

And, even though it's a racial stereotype role, McDaniel's character was often the most sensible and attention-grabbing character on the screen. It's a landmark victory for Black people in cinema.

Sidney Poitier - Lilies Of The Field (1963)

One of Sidney Poitier’s best movies, Lilies of the Field, which is about a handyman who helps a group of nuns build a chapel, was actually Poitier’s second nomination for Best Lead Actor.

His first was for 1958’s The Defiant Ones, which was a movie that he mostly shared with Tony Curtis. Lilies of the Field, however, was a leading role purely for Poitier, and he ended up becoming the first Black Actor to ever win the award. Great stuff!

Louis Gossett Jr. - An Officer And A Gentleman (1982)

In this romantic drama that also stars Richard Gere, Louis Gossett Jr. plays a hard-nosed drill instructor who really challenges his cadets.

Before there was R. Lee Ermey in one of my favorite Kubrick films, Full Metal Jacket, there was Louis Gossett Jr. berating his troops. He was the first Black man to win a Best Supporting Acting trophy, and it was justly awarded. He’s really good in this.

Denzel Washington - Glory (1989)

Denzel Washington’s first Academy Award was a supporting one for his role as a private in the Civil War drama, Glory.

As both a leader to the men in his regiment, but also a soldier who must follow orders, Washington’s character shows the duality of a Black man in uniform. Him deciding to hold up the flag for the charge is one of the most iconic scenes in late ‘80s cinema.

Whoopi Goldberg - Ghost (1990)

An EGOT recipient (though, not the only one on this list), Whoopi Goldberg received a Best Supporting Actress Award for her role as the medium, Oda Mae Brown, in the hit Ghost.

The romance between Swayze and Moore’s character is what defines this film, but it wouldn’t be nearly as enjoyable without Goldberg’s humor, and seriousness when the moment calls for it.

Cuba Gooding Jr. - Jerry Maguire (1996)

For this sports comedy-drama, Cuba Gooding Jr. received a Best Supporting Actor award for his role as a cocky but steadfast wide receiver who wants to be shown the money.

Gooding Jr.’s performance is full of energy, and it makes this romantic comedy feel even sweeter when his and Tom Cruise’s characters share more than just a player and client relationship and actually become good friends.

Halle Berry - Monster's Ball (2001)

The only Black woman who has ever won Best Lead Actress, Halle Berry, took home the trophy for her role as a conflicted woman who takes on a relationship with the man who helped execute her husband.

Berry’s character is highly vulnerable, and the events of the movie are stressful beyond belief. Still, her character, as flawed as she is (everybody’s flawed in this film) weathered the storm, and earned Berry a Best Actress statue for her troubles.

Denzel Washington - Training Day (2001)

Washington’s second trophy came as the Best Lead Actor, for playing a cop in Training Day who definitely didn’t follow the rules.

Washington’s character was both charming and terrifying, often in the same scene. Say it with me, people: King Kong ain't got nothing on him!

Morgan Freeman - Million Dollar Baby (2004)

Morgan Freeman actually had a supporting role in two of Clint Eastwood’s best movies, those being Unforgiven, and Million Dollar Baby. And, both films won Best Picture.

However, it was in the latter film where Freeman picked up the Best Supporting Actor statue, for playing a grizzled former boxer and gym assistant. It’s a mostly quiet role, but a memorable one.

Jamie Foxx - Ray (2004)

In one of the best music movies of all time, Jamie Foxx scored a much deserved Best Lead Actor award for his role as the famous blind musician, Ray Charles.

Foxx even had his eyes glued shut for the sake of authenticity. Anything for the craft, right?

Jennifer Hudson - Dreamgirls (2006)

Another EGOT recipient on this list, Jennifer Hudson, scored a Best Supporting Actress trophy in her VERY FIRST ACTING GIG!

It’s little wonder why though. Hudson’s portrayal of Effie White in Dreamgirls is powerful. Going from lead singer to starting all over again, Hudson did a “Supreme” job (Do you see what I did there?) in her very first role.

Forest Whitaker - The Last King of Scotland (2006)

Forest Whitaker’s best performance is by far his role as Idi Amin in The Last King of Scotland.

In a role that netted him a Best Lead Actor award, Whitaker is utterly terrifying, but also somewhat funny, in the way that only Whitaker can be.

Mo'Nique - Precious (2009)

After watching Mo’Nique as the abusive mother in Precious, it’s hard to watch her again in one of the best Black TV shows, The Parkers. It just seems like such a smoke screen.

Anyway, Mo’Nique was awarded a Best Supporting Actress trophy for this performance, and I haven’t looked at her the same way since.

Octavia Spencer - The Help (2011)

Though The Help hasn’t aged well, Octavia Spencer’s role as a maid who was fired for using a guest bathroom is still one of her best performances.

Spencer won Best Supporting Actress for a role where she got to take a dump in somebody’s pie. It’s a feel good film.

Lupita Nyong'o - 12 Years a Slave (2013)

In her career-defining role in 12 Years a Slave, Lupita Nyong'o plays a violently abused slave.

It is one of the most brutal (and likely most realistic) portrayals of slavery ever put to screen, and Nyong'o won a Best Supporting Actress Award for her performance.

Viola Davis - Fences (2016)

In this adaptation of a play in August Wilson’s Pittsburgh Cycle, Viola Davis plays a wronged but loyal wife.

The third EGOT recipient on this list, Davis should have several Oscars, but this is her sole win, and it’s in the Best Supporting Actress category.

Mahershala Ali - Moonlight (2016)

Though only in Moonlight for one act, Mahershala Ali’s performance as a caring drug dealer was so powerful that he won the Best Supporting Actor trophy.

It would be his first of two Academy Awards so far.

Regina King - If Beale Street Could Talk (2018)

In If Beale Street Could Talk, Regina King plays the mother of a young woman whose boyfriend has been convicted of rape, and she tries to convince the victim that it wasn’t him.

King won a Best Supporting Actress Award for her quiet, but searing performance.

Mahershala Ali - Green Book (2018)

In Ali’s second Best Supporting Actor win, the skilled performer played real-life pianist Don Shirley in this Best Picture winner.

Ali’s character in this film is completely different from that in Moonlight, but that sense of vulnerability still persists, which was worthy of the award.

Daniel Kaluuya - Judas And The Black Messiah (2020)

Playing the “Black Messiah,” Daniel Kaluuya portrayed the inspirational Fred Hampton in this riveting biopic.

He won Best Supporting Actor, beating out the “Judas” (Bill O’Neal) in this picture, played excellently by LaKeith Stanfield, who was also nominated.

Ariana DeBose - West Side Story (2021)

In this second adaptation of the famed musical West Side Story, Ariana DeBose won Best Supporting Actress playing Anita, who was portrayed by Rita Moreno in the first theatrical adaptation.

DeBose is absolutely magnetic in the role, firmly earning her win.

Will Smith - King Richard (2021)

Though the unfortunate slap is likely what many people remember most about this ceremony and Will Smith's award, his Best Lead Actor-winning turn really does deserve a second look.

Playing the tenacious father to Venus and Serena Williams, Smith definitely deserved the award for his work in the lauded film.

Da'Vine Joy Randolph - The Holdovers (2023)

And finally, the most recent winner, Da'Vine Joy Randolph, won Best Supporting Actress for her portrayal of a quietly grieving mother in The Holdovers.

This film speaks to me as a teacher, yes, but also as a parent. I can thankfully only imagine the pain that her character Is going through.

That’s all of them! We’ll see if Zoe Saldaña, Colman Domingo, or Cynthia Erivo pick up a trophy at the 2025 Academy Awards.

Acting and directing are two very different skills, and for someone to be able to do both is a mark of a hard-working and talented person. It doesn't always work out for actors, but it's remarkable how often it does. Here are 32 such examples of great actors who became great directors as well. 

Clint Eastwood

Clint Eastwood's career has lasted an unbelievable eight decades. He started humbling with small roles in the '50s and as the decades have gone on, he's only gotten bigger and bigger. After directing his first movie, 1971's Play Misty for Me, he's gone on to helm a remarkable 39 more and has won 2 Best Director Oscars, for 1993's Unforgiven and 2005's Million Dollar Baby.

Ron Howard

Ron Howard has been in the lives and living rooms of Americans since he was just a kid as an actor on The Andy Griffith Show. He went on to star in Happy Days in the 1970s before directing his first low-budget film, Grand Theft Auto, in 1977. He's since gone on to direct such classics as Splash, Apollo 13, A Beautiful Mind, and many others. 

Bradley Cooper

If the start of Bradley Cooper's directing career is any indication, you can expect huge things. So far, the actor-turned-director has only helmed two movies, A Star Is Born and Maestro and both have been nominated for Best Picture Oscars. Not a shabby record. 

Penny Marshall

Penny Marshall got her first big break on the sitcom The Odd Couple but became a household name as Lavern in Lavern & Shirley. She didn't stay in TV though, instead, she started directing and made two of the most beloved Gen X movies of all time, Big and A League of Their Own. 

Ben Affleck

Ben Affleck might not have been the first actor you picked to become a director, but his stellar career as an actor is matched by his work as a director. In fact, though he's never won an acting Oscar (something that should be remedied), he did win Best Director for Argo. 

Robert Redford

By the time Robert Redford directed his first movie, Ordinary People, in 1980, he was already one of the most legendary film stars ever. The second half of his career is as known for his directing as it is for his acting, with movies like Quiz Show and A River Runs Through It.

Jon Favreau

Jon Favreau's acting career started humbling with supporting roles in movies like Rudy and PCU. After he wrote and starred in Swingers, his star shined a little brighter. That was only the beginning though. Favreau has the honor of directing the movie that launched the most successful film franchise of all time, the Marvel Cinematic Universe, with Iron Man and its sequel. He's since moved on to Disney live-action remakes with The Lion King and The Jungle Book. Oh, and he also directed one of the most beloved holiday movies ever with. Elf.

Mel Gibson

The controversial career of Mel Gibson began with a small movie that made huge waves in his native Australia. Mad Max made him famous and by the late late-'80s, he was one of the biggest stars in the world. He then moved into directing and reached his pinnacle early with Braveheart for which he won Best Director. 

Richard Attenborough

As an actor, Richard Attenborough starred in massive hits across generations with movies like The Great Escape and Jurassic Park. As a director, he helmed some of the best biopics of all time, like Gandhi, A Cry Freedom, and Chaplin as well a the legendary war flick, A Bridge Too Far. 

Regina King

Regina King's directorial career is only getting started, but judging by her first movie, One Night In Miami, the future is bright. So far, the Academy Award-winning actress has mostly directed TV shows, but you can be sure more films will be coming her way.

Denzel Washington

What can we say about Denzel Washington that hasn't already been said? He's a living legend at this point, as a multiple Oscar winner and recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom. He's also one heck of a director with movies like Fences and The Great Debaters.

John Krasinski

John Krasinski became part of our collective family as Jim on The Office. Who would have thought from that role, his career in Hollywood would reach the point that he is a major power player? Now that he's moved into directing, the sky is truly the limit. The first movie Krasinski directed, The Hollars, made for a humble beginning, but his second, A Quiet Place established him as a force to reckon with and it's since become a franchise.

Elizabeth Banks

Elizabeth Banks might not have been an actor you'd have guessed would go into directing, like others on this list, but she has in a big way. She has shown she can direct blockbusters like Pitch Perfect 2 and indie darlings like that one about the bear who indulges in some, uh, white powder he finds, and goes on a rampage.

Greta Gerwig

Greta Gerwig is quickly becoming a voice of a generation. Her direction and writing of Barbie has been praised far and wide for its snappy dialog and heartfelt message. Gerwig's acting career started in the mid-'00s when she was mostly in smaller, supporting roles. Since moving into directing, she's become a huge star.

Jordan Peele

Key & Peele was a huge hit for Jordan Peele and Keegan-Michael Key, and made them both stars. No one expected Peele to turn to directing horror movies, but that's exactly what he did and we should all be grateful for it. With massive hits like Get Out, Nope, and Us, the future is bright for Peele and for all of us too, who will get to watch his work.

Rob Reiner

Though he had a leg up coming from a Hollywood family, Rob Reiner has staked out a claim all his own in the entertainment business. First as an actor on the hit show All in the Family, then as the director of some of the most loved movies of all time. Starting with his first movie, This is Spinal Tap, and running through the '80s and early '90s, he had an unbelievable run that included The Princess Bride, When Harry Met Sally, A Few Good Men, and Misery. Wow!

George Clooney

Not only is George Clooney one of the most bankable movie stars ever, he's also a fantastic director. His acting career is legendary and his directing career, while not quite at the level of his acting, is still fantastic. He's directed TV (Catch-22) and movies (The Boys In The Boat, The Midnight Sky, Good Night, and Good Luck, among others) and you can be sure there will be more from him.

Angelina Jolie

Angelina Jolie's directing career hasn't always gotten the best reviews, but I'd say her movies are very underrated. The talented actress has an eye for behind the camera as well, and movies like Unbroken and First They Killed My Father are powerful movies.

Billy Bob Thornton

Billy Bob Thornton's acting career came on as a slow burn to fame, but his directing career started with a band. His first film was a masterpiece called Sling Blade. he followed that up with the underrated All The Pretty Horse and a few others, though his pace has slowed over the last couple of decades. Let's hope he finds that directing bug again. 

Ben Stiller

There was a time in the '90s and '00s when it seemed like Ben Stiller was in every movie released. Not only was he working hard in front of the camera, he was killing it behind the camera as well. Starting really with Reality Bites, and moving on to great movies like the controversial but hilarious Tropic Thunder, and the Zoolander movies. 

Jodie Foster

The great Jodie Foster has been an acclaimed actor and star since her teenage years and of course, that talent has translated to directing. Though lately she's done mostly TV work like directing episodes of Black Mirror and Orange is the New Black, she's done a few movies too, like Little Man Tate and Money Monster.

Kevin Costner

In addition to being one of the biggest movie stars on the planet, Kevin Costner has never shied away from making epic films. Though he's only directed four movies in his career, they have all been big films. Starting with Dances With Wolves in 1990, he's since directed The Postman, Open Range, and 2024's Horizon: An American Saga.

Tim Robbins

The directing bug caught Tim Robbins in the early '90s and he directed a couple of great movies with Bob Roberts and Dead Man Walking. He's directed a smattering of movies and TV shows more recently, but he's mostly stuck to acting over the last few years. 

Sean Penn

Since the early 1980s, Sean Penn has been wowing moviegoers with his impressive acting chops and diversity. In the '90s he dipped his toe into directing with his first film, The Indian Runner and has directed a good handful of movies since, with his best being Into The Wild in 2007. 

Zach Braff

Acting-wise Zach Braff's big break came as a regular cast member of the hit sitcom Scrubs. As a directed, he burst onto the scene with his very first movie, Garden State in 2004. He's continued directing here and there over the last 20 years, including the great movie about getting older, Going In Style, and a few others, in addition to some TV work. 

Warren Beatty

In the 1970s, there was no bigger movie star than Warren Beatty. By the end of the decade, he had moved into directing as well, starting with 1978's Heaven Can Wait and continuing the '80s and '90s with acclaimed movies like Red and maybe his most remembered, Dick Tracy in 1990.

Diane Keaton

Diane Keaton is a force of nature. For decades she's been one of the best and most popular actresses in Hollywood, and though she's only dipped her toes into directing, mostly in TV, she's on this list for one important reason. Keaton directed the music video for "Heaven Is A Place On Earth" by Belinda Carlisle and that is a stone-cold Gen X classic. 

Kenneth Branagh

Kenneth Branagh might be as well known for his directing as he is for his acting, and that's really saying something. Not only has he directed some of the best Shakespeare adaptions for the silver screen, but more recently he's been killing it with his Agatha Christie adaptations. 

Leonard Nimoy

Appropriately, Leonard Nimoy's first foray into feature film direction came in the Star Trek franchise when he directed both Star Trek III: The Search For Spock and Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home. Outside of the iconic franchise he helped make famous he also directed the beloved Three Men and a Baby. 

Sylvester Stallone

Sylvester Stallone has always been a self-starter. His work to get the original Rocky made is legendary and after it made him a huge star, he wasted no time getting into directing, starting with Rocky II and adding Rocky III, Rocky IV, and 2006's Rocky Balboa as well. Of course, he's also directed in two other franchises he was at the center of with 2008's Rambo and the first Expendable movie. 

Helen Hunt

This one might surprise you, but Helen Hunt has had an impressive career as a director. Most of her work has been on television on shows varying from her own Mad About You and This Is Us. She also has two feature films under her belt with 2007's Then She Found Me and 2014's Ride. 

Joel Edgerton

Joel Edgerton is seemingly everywhere these days, popping up in all kinds of movies and TV shows from Star Wars stuff to Dark Matter. He's also started directing, but his output is limited, with 2015's underrated The Gift and 2018 Boy Erased. Let's hope he finds more time to direct in his busy schedule. 

March is on its way out but there’s still plenty more fantastic content to watch on streaming this week. Whether you’re a Netflix subscriber, a Disney+ subscriber, or a subscriber to the seemingly endless number of streaming services out there, there is absolutely something to watch. Most streaming services add so much any given week that it can be difficult to figure out just what to watch, so let's try and cut through it all.

From movies to series, here are just a few of the highlights from the next seven days of streaming on the major platforms you know and love. From a highly anticipated Netflix series to the return of one of the most popular animated series of all time to a highly anticipated movie remake, here’s what’s coming to the major streaming platforms this week.

What's On Netflix

Odds are if you’re reading this you have a Netflix subscription, even if that’s the only streaming platform you have. The complete list of everything new on Netflix is so massive daily that finding what you’re looking for can be difficult. But there are a couple of glittering diamonds worth taking note of this week. 

The 3 Body Problem - March 21

David Benioff and D.B. Weiss changed television when the pair developed Game of Thrones. Since then the pair almost made a Star Wars movie, but instead left that behind to focus on projects for Netflix. The Three-Body Problem is the long-awaited new series from the pair. Based on the popular Chinese science fiction novel of the same name, the Netflix series isn’t the first time the book has been adapted, but it will likely be the first time many Western audiences have seen it. It is the first in a series of books, so if this one is the hit that Netflix is hoping for, it could be the next major television franchise.

Shirley - March 24

Shirley Chisholm was the first Black woman elected to the United States Congress and the first Black woman to run for a major political party’s Presidential nomination. An iconic woman, whose story probably isn’t as quell known as it should be. Regina King stars in Shirly. The film focuses on her failed, but historic run for President of the United States in 1972. The film also includes one of the final performances of the late Lance Reddick.

What's On Disney+

Disney+ isn’t a streaming service that releases masses amounts of content weekly, but what it does drop on the platform is almost always worthy of checking out. This week’s highlights include a documentary series from NatGeo and a brand new Marvel animated series that is also the return of a classic Marvel animated series.  

Photographer - March 19

The magazine from which NatGeo was born is perhaps better known for its images than its words. It’s perhaps fitting then that Disney+ has the new series Photographer which follows the stories of multiple professional photogs as they travel the world trying to get the iconic and inspirational shots that take our breath away. The series will also be available to Hulu subscribers.

X-Men ‘97 - March 20

Before the Marvel Cinematic Universe, one of the single most popular Marvel adaptations ever created was the X-Men animated series of the 1990s. X-Men ‘97 is something truly special to fans of that show. It is not simply a new X-Men animated series, but a continuation of the original that picks up where the the original series left off. Using a similar animation style, and many of the same voice actors that provided their talents the first time around, X-Men ‘97 is equal parts nostalgia and originality in a way that’s likely going to get people going back to watch the original series just to make sure they’re caught up. 

What's On Peacock

Documentary films are a popular source of original content on all streaming platforms, and this week Peacock has one that is sure to entice viewers, as it takes an unvarnished look at one of the stars of adult film, who is now famous for a great deal more.  

Stormy - March 18

Stormy Daniels likely wasn’t a household name in your house, unless your household spent a lot of time on the internet in the dark. But when the adult film star claimed she’d been paid hush money to prevent her from talking about her relationship with Donald Trump, she instantly became a national celebrity. The new Peacock documentary Stormy takes a look at the woman, and how her life has changed following her public allegations as she attempts to reinvent herself. 

Prime Video

Maybe you only have a Prime Video subscription because it came with your free shipping, but whatever the reason, you’re going to want to take advantage of your subscription this week, as it may provide you with one of the year's best action movies.  

Road House - March 21

Road House with Patrick Swayze is one of those classic action movies that fans of the genre ‘80s will always cling to. It was a simple movie with a simple premise and bone-breaking action. A great deal of controversy has surrounded the fact that the new Road House remake starring Jake Gyllenhaal has been a Prime Video project and not a theatrical release, but whatever the medium, action movie fans are almost certainly going to want to check this one out to see how it holds up to the classic. 

What's On Apple TV+

When it comes to Apple TV+, comedy is not necessarily what you come to the platform to find, but this week a new show drops that may change that in a very big way.  

Palm Royale - March 20

With a cast that includes Kristin Wiig, Leslie Bibb, Laura Dern, and the legendary Carol Burnett, Palm Royale is a show that may be worth subscribing to Apple TV+ if you don’t already. The new series stars Wiig as a woman trying to make her way in Palm Beach high society in the late 1960s. It’s got a near-perfect look and a perfect cast. The Palm Royale premiere date this week may be a big night for Apple TV+.

These are just a few of this week’s highlights. Be sure to check out everything new on Hulu for a complete list of what’s coming to that platform as well as the list of everything upcoming on Disney+ so you don’t miss anything there. 

Trigger Warning: This story includes sensitive subject matter that may be hard for some readers.

To many, Regina King is one of Hollywood’s brightest stars, as she’s worked tirelessly as an actress for decades and is now also forging a path for herself as a director, who’s currently set to take on a comics adaptation. However, she’s also been a devoted mother to her son, Ian Alexander Jr. Sadly, it was reported at the end of the week that Alexander had died by suicide at the age of 26. The One Night in Miami director is now speaking out in the wake of the tragic news. 

Regina King released a statement on her son’s passing this past Friday. In the comments, which were obtained by The Today Show, the actress paid emotional tribute to her child:

Ian Alexander Jr. was the Oscar winner’s only child, and she shared him with record producer Ian Alexander, whom she was married to from 1997 to 2007. The star and her son were incredibly close, as the young man would frequently be seen attending award shows with his mom. One of the most notable instances of this was during the 2019 Golden Globes, when he lovingly referred to the Watchmen star as a “super mom” while speaking with E! News:

In the past, Regina King has spoken about how her relationship with her son has helped to inform the projects she chooses and how she approaches them, like her social justice roles.  This was especially the case for her Academy Award-winning turn in If Beale Street Could Talk, a film that reminded King of an old TV show. The James Baldwin adaptation, which sees a young Black man (and expectant father) convicted for a crime he did not commit, deeply resonated with King. 

Her decision to take on One Night in Miami also proved to be inspired by her love for her son. The historical drama was a keen examination of the Black man’s experience and featured a number of upstanding, real-life figures (played by a formidable cast of actors). Those who’ve seen the film would surely agree that the director succeeded with the film and that it serves as a true love letter to her son and any young Black man.

Losing someone is never easy, but losing a child is especially difficult for a parent. Through her statement, it seems that Regina King is choosing not to simply mourn her son but to honor his legacy and the man that he was. We here at CinemaBlend extend our deepest condolences to her and her family during this difficult time. 

For any readers who are struggling with suicidal thoughts or depression, know that you are not alone and that there are those who can provide assistance. You can find resources on the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention and the National Suicide Prevention Helpline at 800-273-8255.

Regina King has made a career out of playing strong, fiercely independent women whose refusal to back down is an inspiration to audiences around the world. That being said, the Academy Award winner’s next project, the Netflix exclusive Shirley, will be another great addition to the list that also includes If Beale Street Could Talk, Watchmen, and The Harder They Fall. 

If this is the first you are hearing of the upcoming biographical drama about the groundbreaking United States Congresswoman and one-time Presidential nominee Shirley Chisholm, don’t worry, because we have plenty of information on the upcoming release, including its cast, what it’s about, and how Chisholm’s impact can still be felt 50 years after she changed the political landscape.

The Shirley Cast Includes Regina King, Lance Reddick, Lucas Hedges And More

When Shirley lands on Netflix at some point in the near future, it will feature a cast headlined by Regina King, who will be taking on the role of Shirley Chisholm. Joining her in the star-studded cast will be Lance Reddick (John Wick, The Wire), Lucas Hedges (Manchester By The Sea, Let Them All Talk), Christina Jackson (Swagger, The Good Fight), Michael Cherrie (Home Again, Limbo), Dorian Missick (For Life, Lucky Number Slevin), Amirah Vann (Underground, Queen Sugar), W. Earl Brown (Deadwood, There’s Something About Mary), André Holland (Passing, Moonlight), and Terrence Howard (Empire, Iron Man).

Only Regina King’s role has been revealed at this time, but expect to hear more about who the other stars will be playing, as well as any other additions to the cast, in the coming weeks and months.

Shirley Will Center On Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm’s Groundbreaking 1972 Presidential Campaign

In terms of inspirational true stories, it doesn’t get much better than that of Shirley Chisholm, and that’s what the movie will dive into. According to Netflix, Shirley will be an “intimate portrayal of the trailblazing political icon” and will center on her 1972 presidential campaign, which was the first time a Black woman sought the highest office in the country. This campaign came just a few years after Chisholm was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives from New York’s 12th District and became the first Black woman to serve in Congress.

Shirley is based on a series of extensive and exclusive interviews with the late Congresswoman’s family, friends, and other important people in her life. 

Shirley Is Helmed By 12 Years A Slave Writer John Ridley

Leading the creative charge behind Shirley and the film’s inspirational story is Academy Award winner John Ridley, who took home an Oscar in 2013 for adapting the story that would become 12 Years a Slave. Ridley’s feature film directing credits include Cold Around the Heart, Jimi: All Is by My Side, and the 2017 documentary Let It Fall: Los Angeles: 1982-1992. 

This will not be the first time John Ridley has worked with Regina King on a project, as he wrote and directed multiple episodes of ABC's crime anthology series, American Crime, during the show’s three-season run.

Regina King Has Said Shirley Chisholm’s ‘Fearless Determination’ Has Long Been An Inspiration

When Shirley was first announced in February 2021, Regina King, who is also serving as a producer through her Royal Ties Productions, described Shirley Chisholm as an “inspiration” in a statement (via The Hollywood Reporter):

Adding to that, writer-director John Ridley explained in an accompanying statement that he was thankful he had been given the opportunity to help tell the story of Shirley Chisholm, who he considers a “truly remarkable individual.”

Netflix Landed The Rights To Shirley In December 2021

Over the course of the past decade, Netflix has acquired more than a few thought-provoking films based on the real life stories of individuals who broke the mold with a new of way of thinking and pioneering actions. And, now that streak looks like it will continue, as it will be the home of Regina King’s Shirley. In December 2021, Deadline announced that the streaming giant had landed John Ridley’s upcoming feature length film. As mentioned earlier, Shirley was first announced in February 2021 and is being produced by Participant and Royal Ties Productions, which was founded by King and her sister Reina.

There is no word on when Netflix plans on releasing Shirley, and it is not yet known if the steaming giant will give the movie a brief theatrical run like it has done with some of its other major releases the past few years.

Production On Shirley Is Underway In Regina King’s Hometown Of Cincinnati

It’s not everyday an actor gets to return to their hometown to film their latest project, but that just so happens to be the case for Regina King, who is returning to Cincinnati, Ohio, for production on Shirley. In December 2021, the Cincinnati Enquirer newspaper reported that the Queen City’s Academy Award-winning native and the rest of the cast and crew would descend upon the city later that month to begin shooting the highly-anticipated biographical drama. The publication reported that local casting began the previous month. 

At this time there is no word on how long the shoot will take place or if other locations will be used in addition to Cincinnati. 

A Shirley Production Company Will Lead A Campaign To Advance Civic Engagement And Social Justice

When Netflix announced that it would be releasing Shirley at some point in the future, the company pointed out that Participant, one of the two production companies working on the project, would be leading a campaign to advance civic engagement and social justice timed to the film’s release. No concrete details were provided at the time, but Participant does have a history of carrying out similar campaigns with its releases. 

The Participant website features information and calls to action for its previous releases, including the Oscar-winning drama Judas and the Black Messiah, the COVID-19 documentary Totally Under Control, and several other notable projects.

Expect to hear more about Shirley in the coming weeks and months. In the meantime, take a look at our list of all the upcoming Netflix movies scheduled for release in 2022. 

At this point in time, it’s fair to say that Bowen Yang is crushing it on Saturday Night Live. The show’s first-ever Chinese-American cast member was nominated for an Emmy this year and has been prominently featured in a number of sketches that reached viral popularity. One big perk of the gig seems to be that he gets to work alongside his heroes, and when it comes to Regina King, he’d be happy to let her slap him around… and then some. 

Bowen Yang previously starred with Regina King in a sketch titled, “70s Green Room,” where he plays a music manager that is slapped after being unable to please his diva of a client, who is played by King. When EW asked him what moment from SNL he would do all over again, he responded accordingly:

Well, there ya go. If you know anything about Yang’s sense of humor, you should know this is very on-brand. While not overtly risqué in his persona, he does tend to throw out some zany quips that lean a little blue, so him making a BDSM reference in regard to the Academy Award winner is funnier than it is surprising. You can watch the sketch in question below:

Yang has only been on SNL for only a few short years, but he’s already broken so much ground. In addition to being the show’s first Chinese-American cast member, he’s the third openly gay performer to join the cast in the show’s whole 47-season run. He’s become known for tackling characters and sketches that pertain to queer culture and LGBTQ+ issues. Whether he’s an Oompa Loompa that’s been outed on national television, or a voguing Daddy-Longlegs a la FX’s Pose, he’s certainly carved out a niche for himself and brought a fresh new voice to the iconic sketch comedy series. 

Let’s not put Yang in a box, though, as he also successfully portrayed presidential candidate Andrew Yang during the lead-up to the 2020 election. He’s also taking full advantage of his platform, and spoke out against Asian hate on a “Weekend Update” segment. Not to mention that before joining the cast of SNL he had proved himself as a successful writer on the show.

Bowen Yang is also working on projects outside of 30 Rockefeller Plaza, as he plays Edmund on Aquafina’s Nora From Queens. He also just wrapped filming on Billy Eichner’s Bros, a rom-com featuring an all-LGBTQ principal cast playing heterosexual roles.

As for SNL, the show is currently in its 47th season and is off to a strong start with some huge names. This coming weekend, Saturday Night Live will be hosted by Jonathan Majors of Loki and Lovecraft Country fame, with musical guest Taylor Swift as part of the solid lineup of upcoming hosts and musicians. We'll have to wait and see if any more slaps come into play though. 

Fans who love the western genre don’t get too many new films to enjoy nowadays, but a new entry is now with us, as the star-studded The Harder They Fall recently hit Netflix. The film, starring Idris Elba, Regina King, Jonathan Majors, Zazie Beetz, LaKeith Stanfield, Delroy Lindo, and many more, focuses on revenge and rivals in the Old West, with each actor playing real historical figures, but in a fictional situation. And, it’s said to be a fantastic blend of brutal, bloody violence, and surprisingly funny moments.

You will probably be wondering just how you can watch The Harder They Fall streaming when your leisure time allows, and, luckily for you, this guide will break down exactly how to do that. We’ll also give you some further viewing options for similar movies. So, let’s get to it!

Where To Watch The Harder They Fall Streaming

It is no longer uncommon for a number of movies to have their first, and only run, on streaming services. Most movie lovers already have access to several different streamers, especially one as common and (basically) beloved as Netflix. The Harder They Fall is streaming, worldwide, exclusively on the massive service, and was released there in the wee hours of November 3, 2021, meaning that you can already dive into the rootin’ tootin’, gun-toting, revenge-gathering adventure as of this writing.

Can I Watch The Harder They Fall In Theaters?

Something else that’s been done on a more regular basis in the past few years, is giving streaming movies like The Harder They Fall a limited release in theaters. The new film, which is billed as one that “injects New Blood into the Old West,” also had this treatment, and released in some theaters a few days after its world premiere at the BFI London Film Festival on October 6, 2021. Once it had shown at a few more festivals, The Harder They Fall had a limited theater release on October 22. Now, though, in order to watch the movie from writer/director Jeymes Samuel, you’ll have to head to your Netflix account. 

What Else To Watch If You Liked The Harder They Fall

The Harder They Fall is not the first, and is unlikely to be the last, Western starring a main cast that features some of Hollywood’s most recognizable black actors. So, if you enjoyed the action-packed story of this film, know that there are others (like Django Unchained) you can check out as well, which are either already available on streaming or can be rented when you need more shoot-em-up action. To start, Idris Elba appeared in yet another movie this year as a man who rides a horse, in the Netflix drama Concrete Cowboy. While not technically a Western (or action film), as it takes place in modern day Philadelphia, it has roots in a real community in the city.

Watch Concrete Cowboy on Netflix.
Watch Django Unchained on Tubi.

The 1993 movie, Posse, focuses on a group of Buffalo Soldiers, led by Jesse Lee (Mario Van Peebles), who get sent on a dangerous mission with a white soldier (Stephen Baldwin), but when they realize that the racist officer (Billy Zane) who sent them on the assignment had planned to betray them, the only way to get out is with guns blazing.

Watch Posse on Pluto.

Finally, we have the 1972 classic, Buck and the Preacher, which was directed by and starred Sidney Poitier. The movie follows former soldier Buck (Poitier) after the Civil War, as he makes his living by helping former slaves settle in the West. When con artist Preacher (Harry Belafonte) joins the group, the two clash constantly, until a gang of bounty hunters attempts to round up the former slaves, which leads the men to fight their common enemy.

Rent/Buy Buck and the Preacher on Amazon Prime.

The Harder They Fall, Jeymes Samuel’s new school western starring Jonathan Majors as the outlaw Nat Love as he seeks revenge against those responsible for his parents’ murder is finally streaming on Netflix following a limited theatrical engagement. After watching the movie that also features Idris Elba and Regina King, you might be wondering why so many people on The Harder They Fall cast look so familiar. Well, fret not, for we have put together a quick yet comprehensive guide of all the major players and cut-throat bandits seen throughout the movie. Let’s break down all those familiar and not-so-friendly faces…

Jonathan Majors (Nat Love)

Taking on the role of the vengeful slave-turned-cowboy Nat Love in The Harder They Fall is Jonathan Majors, who is currently in one of the most impressive runs in show business in recent memory. A relatively unknown actor only a few years ago, Majors has skyrocketed into stardom ever since he appeared in the 2019 drama The Last Black Man in San Francisco. But Majors’ career really took off in the 2020 when he landed the lead role of Atticus Freeman on the HBO supernatural horror series Lovecraft Country.

In the summer of 2021, Jonathan Majors reached yet another level of his career (one that has potential to turn him into an everyday name) when he took on the role of He Who Remains on the Disney+ streaming series Loki. Majors will reprise that role (though as a different variation of the character) when he portrays Kang the Conqueror in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, which is slated for a 2023 release.

Idris Elba (Rufus Buck)

Idris Elba shows up in The Harder They Fall as Rufus Buck, the recently escaped convict who finds himself in Nat Love’s crosshairs after killing the outlaw's parents. The Netflix western caps off an impressive year for the former star of The Wire, a year that also included Concrete Cowboy and The Suicide Squad. But Elba was already a massive star before the start of 2021, with memorable roles on Luther, The Office, and the aforementioned HBO crime drama.

Over the years, Idris Elba has appeared in the Fast and Furious franchise, the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and various other movies including dramas like American Gangster and sci-fi thrillers like Prometheus, to name only a few.

Zazie Beetz (Stagecoach Mary)

Zazie Beetz brings to life the historical figure known as Stagecoach Mary, a legend of the Old West, in The Harder They Fall. Ever since breaking out as Vanessa “Van” Keefer on Atlanta  and Noelle on Easy in 2016, Beetz built up an impressive career for herself, with appearances in massive box office hits like Deadpool 2 and Joker. 

Other notable movies and shows to feature Zazie Beetz include Lucy in the Sky, Seberg, The Twilight Zone, and Invincible. Beetz looks to keep the momentum going in 2022 with the star-studded Brad Pitt action thriller Bullet Train and DreamWorks Animation feature film The Bad Guys.

Regina King (Trudy Smith)

Portraying the “Treacherous” Trudy Smith, Rufus Buck’s most loyal right-hand-woman, is Academy Award winner Regina King. Throughout her career, King has appeared in some of the most consequential and successful films including Boyz in the Hood, Friday, Ray, and If Beale Street Could Talk (for which she won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress). King also received a Golden Globe nomination for her feature film directorial debut One Night in Miami.

Regina King has been just as successful on TV since breaking out on the medium with a starring role on the long-running comedy series 227 in 1985. Since then, King has appeared on The Boondocks, 24, Southland, American Crime, Seven Seconds, and Watchmen, taking home Primetime Emmy Awards for those last three.

Edi Gathegi (Bill Pickett)

Portraying Bill Pickett in The Harder They Fall is Edi Gathegi, who has appeared in a little bit of everything since making his professional acting debut in the 2006 action flick Crank. Since then, Gathegi has appeared in Gone Baby Gone, X-Men: First Class, The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn — Part I, and The Last Thing He Wanted.

Edi Gathegi’s TV career is probably where most will recognize his face though, as he has had roles on House, Justified, The Blacklist (and The Blacklist: Redemption), StartUp, and Briarpatch. He is also set to have a main role on the Apple TV+ streaming series For All Mankind when the show returns for a third season.

RJ Cyler (Jim Beckwourth)

Taking on the role “Bloody Arm” Jim Beckwourth in The Harder They Fall is RJ Cyler. Ever since breaking out with his portrayal of Earl Jackson in the 2015 coming-of-age dramedy Me and Earl and the Dying Girl, Cyler has gone on to play the Blue Ranger, aka Billy Cranston in the 2017 Power Rangers movie, show up in White Boy Rick, and share the screen with Brad Pitt, Ben Kingsley, and several other notable stars in War Machine.

RJ Cyler’s TV work is just as impressive with major roles on I’m Dying Up Here, Black Lightning, Scream, and Swamp Thing, as well as a few episodes of the HBO comedy series Vice Principals.

Lakeith Stanfield (Cherokee Bill)

Stepping in to take on the role of Cherokee Bill in The Harder They Fall is Lakeith Stanfield, who is perhaps one of the most recognizable faces in the large ensemble cast. Over the years, Stanfield has had major roles in everything from Short Term 12 to Selma and The Purge: Anarchy to Straight Outta Compton. In 2017, Stanfield had a small yet key role in Jordan Peele’s horror film Get Out before starring in the truly bizarre Sorry to Bother You the following year. Here more recently, Stanfield has played major parts in Uncut Gems, Knives Out, and Judas and the Black Messiah.

Lakeith Stanfield is also one of the main stars of the FX series Atlanta, which is expected to return for a third season at some point in the first half of 2022.

Delroy Lindo (Bass Reeves)

Veteran of film, TV, and the stage, Delroy Lindo portrays Bass Reeves in The Harder They Fall. Throughout his film career, which goes back to the mid-1970s, Lindo has appeared in a total of four Spike Lee Joints — Malcolm X, Crookylyn, Clockers, and Da 5 Bloods —as well as action thrillers like Congo and Romeo Must Die to dramas like The Cider House Rules and The Devil’s Advocate.

Delroy Lindo has also appeared on shows like The Good Fight, This Is Us, Kidnapped, and Law and Order: Special Victims Unit. Perhaps the most impressive portion of Lindo’s career is his work on various stages around the world. With memorable performances in multiple Shakespeare productions and 20th Century classics like Of Mice and Men and A Raisin in the Sun, Lindo’s talent is undeniable.

Danielle Deadwyler (Cuffee)

Danielle Deadwyler shows up in The Harder They Fall as Cuffee. Prior to landing a role in the new Netflix western, Deadwyler spent the majority of her career taking part in various TV projects that just so happen to be some of the most notable of the past decade or more. This includes Atlanta, Watchmen, The Haves and the Have Nots, FBI: Most Wanted, and several others of note. Deadwyler has also appeared in movies like The Youth, Gifted, and It’s Time during that same stretch of time.

Deon Cole (Wiley Escoe)

Deon Cole portrays the character Wiley Escoe in the Netflix western drama The Harder They Fall. Over the years, Cole has been a fixture of the Barbershop franchise as well as other comedies featuring large ensemble casts like Friendsgiving and Holiday Rush. 

However, most will probably recognize Deon Cole from his TV work, which includes playing Charlie Telphy on black-ish and its spinoff series grown-ish. Outside of that critically acclaimed beloved property, Cole has appeared on Angie Tribeca, The League, and Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts. Cole is also an accomplished comedian, having made appearances on shows like Def Comedy Jam, and Wild ’n Out. He has also been nominated for two Primetime Emmy Awards for his writing work on The Tonight Show with Conan O’Brien and Conan.

Damon Wayans Jr. (Monroe Grimes)

Damon Wayans Jr. shows up in The Harder They Fall as Monroe Grimes. Wayans, the son of legendary comedian Damon Wayans, has spent much of his life working on various film and TV projects. Starting with his work on the silver screen, Wayans has appeared in movies like Blankman (as a young Kevin Walker), The Other Guys, Let’s Be Cops, Big Hero 6, and Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar, with multiple movies scattered between those.

Like his father before him, Damon Wayans Jr. has carved out a nice place for himself on the small screen throughout her career. This includes everything from Happy Endings to New Girl and Happy Together to Bob’s Burgers. At some point in the near future, Wayans will also serve as the host of the Frogger game show.

Well, that about does it for The Harder They Fall cast, but with so many great 2021 Netflix movies coming out before the end of the year, be on the lookout for more lists just like this one.

Westerns seem to be having a moment again in Hollywood, or at least it looks like they might be poised to after having seen the latest trailer to the Netflix original The Harder They Fall. If you thought the classic genre was only a staging ground for dry and stodgy tales of justice, director Jeymes Samuel is here to disprove that notion and then some. Though it also helps that the cast, presumably led by Idris Elba, is so impressive, that one can’t begin to fit all of those names in a headline.

Thankfully, Netflix released a trailer for The Harder They Fall, and you can see the cast do their thing at 24 frames per second. As the main conflict seems to rest between Rufus Buck (Idris Elba) and Nat Love (Loki’s Jonathan Majors), factions start to become apparent. With a bench that also includes stars like Regina King, Delroy Lindo, Zazie Beetz, and LaKeith Stanfield, there’s going to be an insane amount of action, shootouts, and quips flying on screen. And from what it sounds like, Elba might be the bad guy in this showdown; though there’s always room for a twist or two to land on the table.

“Energy” is a word that best sums up what’s on offer in this latest project to take a shot at reinvigorating the western. The Harder They Fall has a lot of movement coursing through its metaphorical veins, and the visual style used to channel it into images really sparks. Pair that sort of excitement with a cast that boasts this much talent, and in some cases pits them against one another, and it adds up to a movie that looks truly unpredictable.

There’s literally a moment where Zazie Beetz and Regina King are engaged in a go-for-broke fight, which includes Beetz showcasing some impressive knife work. LaKeith Stanfield gets to deliver some comedically dry dialogue about violence, and even Black-ish star Deon Cole gets an absolutely badass moment tossing some dynamite into the air. The Harder They Fall doesn’t look like a western built solely on quiet contemplation about the nature of the law versus the lawless. This trailer is too vibrant and too charged to even pretend it wants to do that sort of thing, and you’re either on board, or you're not.

Gunplay and wordplay are all on display in The Harder They Fall, giving Netflix a shot of adrenaline at a time when theatrical releases are ramping up. As the studio’s theatrical footprint has been experimenting with wider releases, it’s a bit of a shame not to see Jeymes Samuel’s all-star free-for-all make it to a larger screen count. So if you find this one at a theater near you, consider it striking gold; aggressively entertaining gold.

The Harder They Fall plays its cards, and loads up for action, in select theaters on October 22. Meanwhile, Netflix subscribers will get to watch the original from the comfort of their own homes, starting on November 3. Though if you want to see what the wider world of theatrical exhibition has coming your way, 2021’s release schedule is ready to rock and roll.

The upcoming Hulu thriller Nine Perfect Strangers, set for a staggered release in August, is the story of nine people who are seeking relief via a health and wellness retreat at the beautiful and isolated Tranquillum House. It's a fair assumption the series, adapted from the book of the same name by Big Little Lies author Liane Moriarty, will provide its characters with quite a different experience than the brochure promised. The cast, led by The Undoing's Nicole Kidman and Thunder Force's Melissa McCarthy, is a who's who of awards show invitees, and I can't wait to see how this ensemble comes together to act out what is sure to be pure, delicious madness.

Created by David E. Kelley (Big Little Lies, The Undoing), Nine Perfect Strangers promises to be a dark and twisty journey, with frequent Kelley collaborator Nicole Kidman leading the way as Masha, the head of Tranquillum House. The nine strangers who have signed up for the pricey ten-day retreat are all seeking transformation, and the eight-episode miniseries should give viewers plenty of quality time to take that trip with the eclectic bunch. Here's a look at who will portray the retreat-goers, as well as the Tranquillum House staff, and remember to check back for more updates as we get closer to the August 18 premiere.

Nicole Kidman (Masha Dmitrichenko)

No stranger to Liane Moriarty's work, Nicole Kidman will play the role of Tranquillum House leader Masha Dmitrichenko, which comes with a nice paycheck for Kidman, who is reportedly pulling in $1 million per episode. Aside from her award-winning role as Celeste on Big Little Lies — for which Moriarty might be working on Season 3 source material — Kidman starred in David E. Kelley's disturbing miniseries The Undoing. She's also known from her work as Satine in Moulin Rouge!, Virginia Woolf in The Hours, and multiple other roles, and has another high-profile upcoming project coming in Aaron Sorkin's Lucille Ball biopic Being the Ricardos.

Melissa McCarthy (Frances Welty)

Nine Perfect Strangers features Melissa McCarthy's return to television for her first series regular role since Mike and Molly, though Nobodies and SNL kept her busy in recent years. Her character, romance writer Frances Welty, goes to Tranquillum House "in need of some fixing," according to the series' trailer. A master of both comedy and drama, McCarthy is known for her hilarious roles in Thunder Force opposite Jason Bateman and as Megan in Bridesmaids, among others. And who could forget Sookie from Gilmore Girls?

Michael Shannon (Napoleon Marconi)

Michael Shannon is set to bring his signature intensity as the Marconi family patriarch Napoleon, who is attending the Tranquillum House retreat with his wife and daughter after a family tragedy. Shannon's ability to bring humor to a dramatic performance should fit this role perfectly. Shannon is known for portraying as Zod in Man of Steel, as well as Walt Thrombey in Knives Out and Richard Strickland in The Shape of Water, and was nominated for an Academy Award for his role in Revolutionary Road. On the TV side of things, he's best known for playing Nelson Van Alden in the HBO series Boardwalk Empire and Shannon will also appear in Bullet Train starring Brad Pitt and most of the rest of Hollywood, set for release in 2022.

Asher Keddie (Heather Marconi)

Asher Keddie is set to play Napoleon Marconi's wife, Heather. The highly decorated Australian actress is known particularly for her role as Nina Proudman on the Australian drama Offspring, but American audiences might still recognize her. Keddie had a small role as Dr. Carol Frost in X-Men Origins: Wolverine, starring Hugh Jackman.

Grace Van Patten (Zoe Marconi)

Grace Van Patten rounds out the Marconi family as the couple's young adult daughter Zoe. Van Patten is known for her roles in the Netflix movies Tramps and The Meyerowitz Stories as Adam Sandler's daughter. As a child she made guest appearances in episodes of The Sopranos and Boardwalk Empire.

Luke Evans (Lars Lee)

Divorce lawyer Lars Lee will be played in Nine Perfect Strangers by Luke Evans, who won audiences over as Gaston in the 2017 live action remake of Beauty and the Beast (and will do the same again in the upcoming TV spinoff.) He'll take on another Disney role soon as The Coachman in the upcoming live-action Pinocchio movie. Others may recognize Evans as Owen Shaw from the Fast and Furious franchise and apparent bad-guy Scott in The Girl on the Train, while his most prominent TV work of late came in TNT's crime drama The Alienist.

Samara Weaving (Jessica Chandler)

Australian actress Samara Weaving has made a name for herself as one of the great modern scream queens for her roles in movies like Ready or Not, The Babysitter and Mayhem. Which makes me wonder just how horrifying the retreat will turn out to be for Weaving's seemingly lucky lottery winner Jessica Chandler in Nine Perfect Strangers. But Weaving is no one-trick-pony, as she showed off her comedy chops as Ted's daughter Thea in Bill & Ted Face the Music, as well as in SMILF and Guns Akimbo.

Melvin Gregg (Ben Chandler)

While the characters may have won the lottery, it doesn't appear as if Melvin Gregg's Ben Chandler and wife Jessica are living their dream, or anyone else's, as they make their way to Nine Perfect Strangers' Tranquillum House. Gregg is known for his roles as DeMarcus Tillman in Netflix's mockumentary series American Vandal and Erick Scott in High Flying Bird. He also played Marcus Parrish in The Way Back with Ben Affleck.

Regina Hall (Carmel Schneider)

Another entertainer known for her hilarious comedy skills, Regina Hall will presumably dial up the drama to play Carmel Schneider, a single mother struggling with the demise of her relationship. Hall is known for her roles as Jordan Sanders in Little and Brenda in the Scary Movie franchise. She played Lisa in the critically acclaimed film Support the Girls and is a standout opposite Don Cheadle as Dawn on the Showtime comedy Black Monday.

Bobby Cannavale (Tony Hogburn)

Tony Hogburn, a former athlete attending the Tranquillum House retreat, will be played by Bobby Cannavale, who appeared in Thunder Force with Melissa McCarthy. Cannavale has been in the Marvel Cinematic Universe as well as a smorgasbord of HBO series including Sex and the City, two episodes of Oz, Boardwalk Empire (for which he won an Emmy) and Vinyl. You might also recognize him as one of Will and Grace's best guest stars as Vince D'Angelo, or from a zillion other roles. Cannavale has quite a few projects in the works, including Sing 2.

Manny Jacinto (Yao)

Best known as the Jacksonville Jaguars-loving Jason Mendoza from The Good Place, Manny Jacinto seems to be going in a wildly different direction as Tranquillum House staff member Yao. In fact, I bet there’s a good chance Yao has never yelled, “BORTLES!” even one time in his whole life, though he would certain bet the quarter back some refreshments and/or a hot towel. Jacinto is also set to play a pilot named Fritz in the highly anticipated sequel Top Gun: Maverick later this year.

Tiffany Boone (Delilah)

Tiffany Boone rounds out the ensemble, playing fellow Tranquillum House staff member Delilah. No stranger to Hulu, Boone previously channeled her inner Kerry Washington as young Mia on Little Fires Everywhere and is also known for her roles as Roxy Jones on Hunters and Jerrika Little on The Chi.

Nine Perfect Strangers will bring loads of talent and personalities together on screen, and coupled with the storytelling of author Liane Moriarty and creator David E. Kelly, this Hulu miniseries should be considered a can't-miss event when it premieres August 18. Until then, be sure to check out our 2021 summer TV schedule, as well as what else is coming soon to Hulu.

Recently celebrating its 25th anniversary, Friday is the little stoner comedy that could. Though it received mixed reviews and didn't gross more than $30 million, the New Line Cinema movie jumpstarted Chris Tucker's film career, established F. Gary Gray as a big-time Hollywood director, and proved that actor-writer Ice Cube was a bright comedic actor in addition to a chart-topping rap musician. It's also filled with notable supporting talents, including Regina King, Nia Long, and the late Bernie Mac, John Witherspoon, and Tommy "Tiny" Lister Jr. Let's take a look at what the Friday cast is doing right now.

Ice Cube (Craig Jones)

As Craig Jones, our unemployed main character, Ice Cube plays the protagonist in Friday, which he also co-wrote and executive produced. The actor-writer-producer would reprise his role as Craig Jones in the sequels, Next Friday and Friday After Next, which he also wrote and produced. Best known for his involvement in N.W.A., resulting in the legendary album, Straight Outta Compton, the musician-turned-actor began his movie career with a supporting turn in Boyz n the Hood. He also appeared in Anaconda, Three Kings, Higher Learning, Ghosts of Mars, Torque, Rampart, and the Jump Street movies. Additionally, Cube starred in xXx: State of the Union and Barbershop, later producing and starring in the sequels. The actor also starred in and produced Are We There Yet?, Are We Done Yet?, the Ride Along movies, The Longshots, and First Sunday.

Additionally, Ice Cube wrote, produced, and starred in All About the Benjamins and wrote, directed, produced, and starred in The Players Club. His other starring credits include Fist Fight and last year's The High Note. Next, Cube will star in War of the Worlds. He's also trying to make Last Friday, the final film in the Friday franchise. Most recently, it was announced that Ice Cube could be teaming up with Jack Black, who's in talks for a movie called Oh Hell No.

Chris Tucker (Smokey)

In the role of Smokey, Craig's irresponsible best friend (and misbehaving drug-addled influence), Chris Tucker gave a star-making performance as the deuteragonist in Friday. Outside of this film, Tucker's film star career propelled when he played Detective James Carter in the Rush Hour movies. The stand-up comedian's other notable film credits include Jackie Brown, The Fifth Element, Silver Linings Playbook, Dead Presidents, and House Party 3. Also, Tucker can be seen in Money Talks, The Meteor Man, and Panther.

Most recently, Chris Tucker appeared in Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk. There have been talks of making Rush Hour 4, but it's unclear when — or if — that comedy sequel will happen. It's possible that the comic will reprise his role as Smokey in Last Friday, though Tucker said in a 2021 interview that he probably wouldn't return to the role.

Nia Long (Debbie)

Playing the part of Debbie, Craig's love interest, Nia Long has a romantic role in Friday. Following her breakout performance in Boyz n the Hood, the actress established her star power in The Best Man, the Big Momma's House movies, Soul Food, Love Jones, and The Best Man Holiday. Additionally, Long played Lisa Wilkes in The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. Also, she appeared in NBC's Third Watch. Her other film credits include Boiler Room, Alfie, Keanu, Lemon, The Single Moms Club, and 47 Meters Down: Uncaged. Later on, Long reunited with Ice Cube for Are We There Yet? and Are We Done Yet?

On television, additionally, Nia Long appeared in House of Lies, Empire, Dear White People, The Divide, Judging Amy, and Lifetime's Beaches. She can also be heard in many episodes of The Cleveland Show. Most recently, Long was seen in The Banker, Life in a Year, and Netflix's Fatal Affair —her producing debut. She also appeared in several episodes of #BlackAF. Next, Long is expected to star in Dreams of the Moon.

Regina King (Dana Jones)

As Dana Jones, Craig's sister, Regina King found one of her first famous roles in Friday. Most notably, King is an Oscar-winning actress for her supporting turn as Sharon Rivers in If Beale Street Could Talk. Additionally, King won two Emmys for her performances in ABC's American Crime, another Emmy for Netflix's Seven Seconds, and a fourth Emmy for her lead performance in HBO's Watchmen. Additionally, King starred in Southland and the award-winning actress had main roles in The Leftovers, 24, and Leap of Faith. Furthermore, King voiced Riley and Huey Freeman in The Boondocks.

Additionally, in film, Regina King appeared in Jerry Maguire, Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous, Ray, A Cinderella Story, How Stella Got Her Groove Back, Enemy of the State, Year of the Dog, Higher Learning, Mighty Joe Young, Daddy Day Care, and Poetic Justice. Last year, King made her feature directorial debut with One Night in Miami... She's expected to follow this film up with Bitter Root. As an actress, additionally, King will be seen in Netflix's The Harder They Fall.

Paula Jai Parker (Joi)

In the role of Joi, Craig's girlfriend who always thinks he's cheating on her whenever he's around another woman, Paula Jai Parker played a pushy partner in Friday. Outside of this film, Parker is known as the voice of Trudy Proud in The Proud Family. She also played Monique in The Wayans Bros. Additionally, the TV actress was a series regular on The Weird Al Show, Snoops, and A House Divided. Also, Parker had recurring roles in True Blood, Ray Donovan, Black Jesus, and Family Time. Most recently, Parker appeared in Them.

Outside of television, Paula Jai Parker can be seen in Hustle & Flow, Idlewild, Phone Booth, Sprung, and Tales from the Hood. Additionally, Parker appeared in Ray, She Hate Me, My Baby's Daddy, Get on the Bus, and Don't Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood. Next, the actress reprises her role as Trudy Proud in The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder. She'll also be seen in Sasha Lanes and Kings of L.A. Currently, Parker is filming Temperature Rising.

Faizon Love (Big Worm)

Playing the part of Big Worm, a drug supplier who hides his illegal activities through his job as an ice cream man, Faizon Love plays the secondary antagonist in Friday. Outside of this film, Love is best known for his supporting turn as Wanda in Elf. His other film credits include Don't Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood, The Replacements, Torque, BAPS, Made, Couples Retreat, Who's Your Caddy, The Meteor Man, and 3 Strikes. He also appeared in The Players Club, Blue Crush, Just My Luck, Idlewild, The Fighting Temptations, and Money Talks. As a voice actor, additionally, Love voiced Robin Harris in Bebe's Kids. He's also heard in Zookeeper.

Furthermore, on television, Faizon Love starred in The Parent 'Hood and The New Edition Story. He also appeared in Step Up: High Water, black-ish, My Name is Earl and It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. Most recently, Love starred in Bulletproof 2. He was also seen in She Ball and The War with Grandpa. Next, Love appears in Trading Soles.

DJ Pooh (Red)

As Red, Craig's co-worker who ends up the worse for wear after a violent altercation with Deebo, DJ Pooh plays a vengeful character in Friday, which he co-wrote with Ice Cube. Following the film's success, Pooh went on to write and direct 3 Strikes, The Wash (which he also produced), and Grow House. Additionally, he was a writer for In the Flow with Affion Crockett, and he provided dialogue for Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. Also, Pooh was a creative consultant on Boyz n the Hood, Grand Theft Auto V, and The Boondocks, where he also voiced a few side characters. As an actor, he can be seen in his own films, 3 Strikes and The Wash. Furthermore, Pooh provided voice work for Freaknik: The Musical and Trunkful.

Additionally, as a music producer, DJ Pooh produced albums for 2Pac, Snoop Dogg, LL Cool J, Del the Funkee Homosapien, King Tee, Ca$hius, Yo-Yo, Breeze, and, of course, Ice Cube. Whether as a filmmaker or musical artist, his next project isn't announced.

Tony Cox (Mr. Parker)

In the role of Mr. Parker, a disgruntled neighbor with a sultry wife, Tony Cox had a standout supporting role in Friday. Most notably, Cox is known for his performance as Marcus Skidmore in 2003's Bad Santa. The actor's other film credits include Willow, Beetlejuice, Spaceballs, Leprechaun 2, Disaster Movie, Epic Movie, Oz the Great and Powerful, Me, Myself, & Irene, and The Fantasticks. Additionally, Cox appears in I'm Gonna Get You Sucka, Bird, Return of the Jedi, Under the Rainbow, Ghoulies IV, Who's Your Caddy?, The Legend of Awesomest Maximus, and National Lampoon's TV: The Movie.

In recent years, Tony Cox has worked as a voice actor, notably in Strange Magic and Toy Story Toons: Partysaurus Rex. His other recent film credits include The Heyday of the Insensitive Bastards and Guns, Girls, and Gambling. On television, additionally, Cox appeared in Rescue Me, Martin, Mad TV, The Jamie Foxx Show, Psych, Frasier, and In Living Color. Most recently, Cox reprised his role as Marcus Skidmore in Bad Santa 2.

Anthony Johnson (Ezal)

Playing the part of Ezal, a local homeless man, Anthony Johnson is an impoverished character in Friday. Making his film debut with House Party in the role of E.Z.E., Johnson's other notable film credits include House Party 3, Lethal Weapon 3, Menace II Society, BAPS, O, On the Edge, Woo, Panther, How to Be a Player, and Undercover Princesses. Additionally, he appears in I Got the Hook Up, The Great White Hype, On the Edge, Hittin' It!, Hey, Mr. Postman!, Sweet Hideaway, Consequencez, Rising to the Top, Baller Blockin', and 5K1. Later in his career, Johnson reconnected with Ice Cube in The Players Club. On television, additionally, the actor appeared in Moesha, Martin, The Bold and the Beautiful, and The Jamie Foxx Show.

Most recently, Anthony Johnson was seen in The Dummy, I Got the Hook Up 2, and the short film, Shorty Betta 2 Work - Grandma Huttie's Boyfriend. He's expected to reprise his role as Ezal in Last Friday.

Kathleen Bradley (Mrs. Parker)

Playing the part of Mrs. Parker, the unfaithful and shamelessly sexy wife of Mr. Parker, Kathleen Bradley is a sultry seductress in Friday. Most notably, Bradley was a long-standing model on The Price is Right. Her other film credits include Harlem Nights, Troop Beverly Hills, An Everlasting Piece, and The Stolen Moments of September. Additionally, on television, Bradley can be seen in Grey's Anatomy, Martial Law, and A House Divided.

Most recently, Kathleen Bradley appeared in A Day of Trouble. She also reprised her role as Mrs. Parker in the short film, Dice Game Part 2. Next, the actress will be seen in Mad World and I Am Black and I Am Proud.

Tommy "Tiny" Lister Jr. (Deebo)

As Deebo, Craig's menacing arch-rival, Tommy "Tiny" Lister Jr. played a memorable antagonist in Friday. Later, he reprised this role in Next Friday. Outside of these films, Lister Jr. is also remembered for his performance as President Lindberg in The Fifth Element. With 40 years of acting experience, Lister amassed more than 200 credits to his name throughout his distinguished career. Some of his notable film credits include The Dark Knight, Posse, Austin Powers in Goldmember, Little Nicky, Beverly Hills Cop II, Universal Soldier, Jackie Brown, and The Human Centipede 3 (Final Sequence). Additionally, Lister lent his voice to the role of Finnick in Zootopia. On television, the actor appeared in Matlock, NYPD Blue, and The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.

Late in 2020, Tommy "Tiny" Lister Jr. passed away due to illness. While the COVID-19 was first believed to be the cause of death, it was later revealed that the actor died due to atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease. He was 62.

You can rent Friday on Amazon Prime.

Regina King has been professionally acting for over 35 years, appearing in movies like Jerry Maguire and Legally Blonde 2, and TV shows like 24 and Southland. But recently, King joined the club of actors who have also gone behind the camera to direct a movie, with the critically acclaimed One Night in Miami marking her feature filmmaking debut. Now King has found her next movie to bring to life, and it’s based on an Image Comics horror series.

Regina King will helm a cinematic adaptation of Bitter Root for Legendary Entertainment, the production company that most recently delivered Godzilla vs. Kong to the masses. Along with her directorial duties, THR mentioned that King will produce the Bitter Root alongside her sister Reina King through their Royal Ties banner. Black Panther’s Ryan Coogler, Zinzi Coogler and Sev Ohanian are also producing through Proximity Media, and Bryan Edward Hill (who’s penning the next Power Rangers movie) rewriting the script.

Created by David F. Walker, Sanford Greene and Chuck Brown, the Bitter Root comic book series, which scored an Eisner nomination in 2019, is set in the 1920s during the Harlem Renaissance and follows the Sangeryes, who keep New York City and the rest of the world safe from supernatural forces. However, this once-great family of monster hunters has been torn apart by tragedies and conflict moral codes, and they must work to heal the wounds of their past and work past their differences if they’re going to save humanity from being eradicated by a new evil force.

Judging by the official statement that Legendary Entertainment put out, the Bitter Root movie will follow a similar premise rather than take the property in a drastically different direction, which makes sense given that David F. Walker, Sanford Greene and Chuck Brown are executive producing. Describing the upcoming feature as Get Out meets Blade, here’s what the company said:

This will be Regina King’s second time working on a comic book media project, as she previously starred as Angela Abar, a.k.a. Sister Night, in HBO’s Watchmen series. However, it was undoubtedly her work on One Night in Miami that resulted in Legendary Entertainment deciding she was the one who should bring Bitter Root to the big screen. One Night in Miami starred Kingsley Ben-Adir as Malcolm X, Eli Goree as Cassius Clay, Aldis Hodge as Jim Brown and Leslie Odom Jr. as Sam Cooke, with the movie delivering a fictionalized account of when the four men met each other in 1964. The movie scored three Academy Award nominations in the Best Supporting Actor, Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Original Song categories, among numerous other accolades.

Once more news about Bitter Root starts trickling in, including who will comprise the main cast, we’ll be sure to let you know. In the meantime, keep apprised of what’s coming out later this year with our upcoming 2021 movies schedule.

Back in February, it was revealed that Warner Bros. is planning a fascinating big screen future for Superman. While things remain up in the air regarding Henry Cavill’s future as the character, the studio is now developing a new Man Of Tomorrow-centric movie with producer J.J. Abrams and screenwriter Ta-Nehisi Coates, and it appears that the plan is to have the film feature a Black actor in the lead role. Now the project seems to be moving forward, reportedly looking for a Black filmmaker to take the helm, and it has inspired us to do some thinking about what the movie could be.

The Hollywood Reporter published an article earlier today about the on-going search to find a director to make the next Superman movie, and while it doesn’t specifically name anybody who is actively in line for the job, the news got us thinking about a few individuals who we would like to see get the gig – taking into consideration both their proven abilities, and demonstrated interest in the material. There are a lot of great options in the industry, but these are the filmmakers who stick out at the moment:

Rick Famuyiwa

Truth be told, the last time that Rick Famuyiwa worked to make a DC Comics blockbuster it didn’t end up working out. The filmmaker signed on to direct the DC Extended Universe’s solo Flash movie all the way back in 2016, even appearing on stage at that year’s San Diego Comic-Con, but the gig was short-lived, as he wound up departing the project four months later due to cited “creative differences.” In the time since then, Famuyiwa has had the chance to get into the franchise game, helming three episodes of The Mandalorian – and with that work under his belt it would be great to see him get a chance at the Superman job. He hasn’t made a feature since his fantastic 2015 indie movie Dope, and with the experience he has now it would be great to see him get a shot at making a movie about the Kryptonian who fell to Earth.

Regina King

Two years ago, Regina King starred in what can honestly be called one of the best comic book adaptations we’ve seen. While fans feared the worst from the idea of expanding the world of Watchmen, the HBO series that served as a sequel to the original Alan Moore/Dave Gibbons comic proved to be an absolutely stunning piece of work, with King's turn as Angela Abar a.k.a. Sister Night being one of the greatest highlights. Recognizing this positive history with live-action DC, as well as noting the actor-cum-filmmaker’s impressive feature directorial debut last year, she is definitely a candidate who should at least be considered for the Superman gig. One Night In Miami has already provided her with the experience of rendering iconic figures on the big screen, and making a new movie about the Man of Steel could give her an opportunity to do it yet again, albeit with a much larger budget and more visual effects.

Shaka King

Following the incredible success of Judas And The Black Messiah, Shaka King is surely been crazy busy taking meetings around Hollywood in the last couple months, but hopefully one of those business gatherings has seen him discussing Superman with the folks at DC and Warner Bros. (which distributed the Oscar-nominated film). Telling the story of Black Panther Chairman Fred Hampton and the conspiracy that led to his assassination, King unleashed some powerhouse cinema built on intimate portrayals and dynamic camerawork, and it would be amazing to see those skills put to work on a movie that could change the world’s perspective on a legendary hero. He’s surely getting a ton of offers right now, and it would be amazing if this were one of them.

Boots Riley

In 2018, Boots Riley made one of the most bombastic and memorable directorial debuts in the last decade, writing and helming the bizarre comedy Sorry To Bother You starring LaKeith Stanfield and Tessa Thompson. Last year it was announced that his next project will take him to the small screen, as he is developing a series with Mr. Mercedes star Jharrel Jerome – but it would be amazing to see him make a return to the feature world with a new Superman movie. Part of the argument for Riley getting the job stems from his deft ability to sculpt commentary in a fantastical form, but even stronger is the idea of seeing his outrageous aesthetic utilized in a blockbuster with a six digit budget. It’s worth noting that the filmmaker has criticized the genre in the past, but that would just make it all the more fascinating to discover what kind of story would result from his perspective.

Ava DuVernay

DC fans were dealt a serious bummer a few weeks ago. After years of developing The New Gods as a film with Ava DuVernay and Tom King collaborating on the script, it was announced that the project was no longer moving forward. While we haven’t heard any specific reasoning given as to why that particular move was made, we’re holding out hope that the situation has kept the door open for a conversation with DuVernay about the next Superman movie. Between Selma, When They See Us, and the documentary 13th, the filmmaker has demonstrated a tremendous capacity to create powerful cinema – and while her first venture into the blockbuster realm, 2018’s A Wrinkle In Time, didn’t quite perform at the box office as well as hoped, one can still absolutely appreciate the large-scale beauty in the movie. She clearly has an interest in bringing the world of DC Comics to the big screen, and we’re holding out hope she eventually gets the opportunity.

Of the directors mentioned here, who would you like to see take the helm of the developing Superman movie? Answer our poll below, and while you stay tuned for more updates about this specific project, be sure to check out our Upcoming DC Movies guide to find out about everything that the comic book franchise has coming in the next few years.

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The 2021 Academy Awards was always going to be an odd year for the Oscars considering how the COVID-19 pandemic affected the film industry. Blockbusters were pushed back, more movies went to streaming than ever, and a majority of award ceremonies leading up to the industry’s biggest night largly took place over Zoom. The 93rd Academy Awards became the first major event during the season to happen in person, and while it wasn’t the most flashy of shows in the event's long history, it definitely had its share of moments to remember.

The award show will likely be remembered for Glenn Close getting down, more diversity in winners, and calls of social justice from Hollywood favorites. Let’s break down the most memorable parts of the 2021 Oscars:

Regina King Makes A Breathtaking Entrance Through Union Station

One Night In Miami director and Oscar-winning actress Regina King kicked off the night with a sleek opening moment that had the camera tracking her walking up to the stage at Los Angeles’ Union Station as the opening credits rolled for the show. It was a breathtaking reveal to the Academy Awards’ unique setup. Although King had a small trip on the stage, her tremendous presence in lieu of an Oscar host for the third year in a row more than made up for the small flub. The opening was simple, but started things off on a delightful note nonetheless.

Daniel Kaluuya Hilariously Tells Everyone His Parents Had Sex

Daniel Kaluuya took home one of the early Oscars of the night with his Best Supporting Actor win for his depiction of Black Panther chairman Fred Hampton in Shaka King’s Judas and the Black Messiah. During his speech, the actor gave moving words about portraying the important social justice leader before showing a bit of his sense of humor. He capped off the speech by sharing his excitement to celebrate his win… and reminding everyone that his mom and dad had sex and “that’s amazing.” It created a hilarious reaction shot where his sister covered her face and his mom mouthing, “what is he talking about” in hilarious disbelief.

Chloe Zhao Makes Oscar History With Her Best Director Win

The Oscars have long been criticized for its lack of diversity among its nominees, with a particular emphasis in recent years being placed on the Best Director category. This year was already a historical one for the Academy Awards, with two female directors being nominated in the same year for the first time: Nomadland’s Chloe Zhao and Promising Young Woman’s Emerald Fennell. Zhao took the prize, becoming the second woman to win the Best Director award ever, and the first woman of color to not only be nominated, but take home the prize. Before her, Kathryn Bigelow won for 2009’s The Hurt Locker.

Yuh-Jung Youn's Cute Moment With Brad Pitt

This year’s Best Supporting Actress category was packed with talent, including Olivia Colman, Glenn Close, Amanda Seyfried and Borat 2 breakout Maria Bakalova. The Oscar went to Minari’s Yuh-Jung Youn, a 73-year-old South Korean actress who has been performing for over 50 years. The award was presented by Brad Pitt and as she accepted the trophy she shared how excited she was to “finally” meet the famous leading man. She also gave a moving speech that had us all falling in love with her even deeper following her incredible performance in Minari.

Tyler Perry Urges People To ‘Refuse Hate’ During Honorary Award

Between his Madea franchise and the studio he founded in Atlanta, Tyler Perry has built his own empire within Hollywood over the past 20 years. At tonight's Oscar ceremony, he accepted the Academy’s Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award with a gripping speech about rejecting hate amidst a year that will be gravely remembered for social justice protests. In an especially poignant message during the telecast, he shared the following:

It was a beautiful moment for the writer, actor, producer and director as he accepted the prestigious humanitarian award.

Glenn Close Winning Oscar Trivia And Doing "Da Butt"

This year’s Academy Awards was lacking in comedic bits , but Lil Rel Howery did come out in the third act of the show to challenge Oscar nominees to some trivia regarding famous music from the telecast’s history. First, the comedian picked on Andra Day regarding Prince’s “Purple Rain,” which had her calling out the Oscars with a bleeped out response. After Daniel Kaluuya took a crack at the game, the mic then went to eight-time nominee Glenn Close who correctly remembered the "Da Butt" song from School Daze before shaking her own butt for the dance. It was an unexpected flex from the 74-year-old, but much respect.

Frances McDormand Gives Her Best Wolf Cry For Nomadland Winning The Night

The show closed out with two major wins for Nomadland, with Frances McDormand taking home her third acting Oscar for her role as Fern, along with sharing the Best Picture honor as a producer on the critically-acclaimed movie. While the actress was short and sweet during her acting speech, she took a moment during the Best Picture acceptance to let out a glorious wolf howl into Union Station. It was a lovely moment and fitting considering the movie had the most wins of the 2021 Oscars.

What did you think of the ceremony? Vote in our poll below and check out where you can watch this year’s highlighted films here on CinemaBlend.

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This year’s Academy Awards ceremony was all about change. Venue changes. Presentation changes. So far, as the show trucks along, we have been impressed by the updates that the Oscars have implemented, and one of the biggest ones is how the Oscars pulled off being a maskless ceremony in a pandemic.

All of the awards ceremonies have been figuring out how to pull off the all-star audiences that viewers have come to expect to see on screen. Earlier telecasts like the Golden Globes had hosts Amy Poehler and Tina Fey in different cities, and small crowds in reduced-spaced venues with masks on. That’s not good enough for the Oscars, though. Also, we are further along in the vaccine stage of the ongoing pandemic, and Oscar host Regina King walked us through how the Oscars pulled off a maskless ceremony this evening. Watch the video above.

Hollywood, as an industry, has been jumping through hoops figuring out how to get actors, screenwriters, camerapeople, audio technicians, directors and crews back onto movie sets. It has been a rigorous process, but it has worked! Under strict restrictions that are in place to protect all of the people necessary to make a film set hum, movie sets are back up and running.

So the Academy Awards wisely treated the Oscars like one giant film set.

As Regina King explained to those of us who are watching the Oscars from back at home:

Part of the reason why I love that the Academy went to these lengths to make this ceremony work this way is because I think we’re already going back on this year’s Oscar winners and view it as an abnormal year. The deadline for when movies could qualify was pushed back to accommodate more films. But many studios stayed out of the full race, giving smaller films that might not have had the chance to shine to get into important categories.

But at the same time, while this is an unusual year, I want the people who DID get nominations to get as full of an experience as possible, so it warms my heart to see people like Emerald Fennell and Daniel Kaluuya getting a chance to stand on stage, accept their Oscar, give heartfelt and emotional speeches without having to wear a mask, and feel safe about doing it.

No matter how the rest of the show goes, this was a terrific step right out of the gate for the Oscars in 2021.

It’s nice to see the Golden Globes go on despite what’s going on in the world, but I have to be honest here: most of it being a giant Zoom meeting didn't necessarily make the hours go by quicker. Still, there was a certain charm about seeing our favorite actors at home (or fancy hotels?) with their families. More importantly, the Globes put some of their pets into the spotlight and it was distracting in the best way. I’m already drifting off thinking about Watchmen’s Regina King and her pup.

Before the telecast had even begun, Regina King gave a pre-show interview where her dog could be seen plopping on its bed, as to say ‘goodnight, I’ll check all the winners in the morning.’ Check it out:

The One Night In Miami nominee was displaying her beautiful gown, but we certainly got something special tonight beyond the usual red carpet shenanigans. Pets became a running perk of the night, with Sarah Paulson’s dog also making an appearance halfway through the show. Take a look:

During the Best Actress in a Drama Series grouping, pets became a point of conversation among the women, as Sarah Paulson and Olivia Colman could be heard asking Emma Corrin (who won for her role as Princess Diana in The Crown) to bring her kitty out. And then it happened:

The best part about being on Zoom all the time has been the rare animal sightings, so were we really surprised to see so many during the show? The very best doggo of the entire night was definitely Jodie Foster’s canine couch mate, who was lovingly at her side for her fourth Golden Globe win. Foster nabbed Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture for The Mauritanian. Check it:

Jodie Foster accepted the award on her couch next to her wife, Alexandra Hedison, who was cozied up with the Silence of the Lambs actress in sleek pajamas. It became an immediate highlight of the night that had many ogling over Foster and her little family. As one Twitter user said:

And of course there were many more that were likely sitting next to the talent who won tonight that we're off camera. Such as Dan Levy’s pup, who made it into the glamour shot of actor and Schitt’s Creek creator, who also had a big night when the hit show won Best Comedy series. Check them out:

Can we all agree that the Golden Globe pets were the best part of the show? Next year they should bring them along!

As for who won all of the literal awards during the awards show, you can check out the victors in all categories by checking out our Golden Globes 2021 winner rundown.

Watchmen lead and One Night In Miami director Regina King stopped by Saturday Night Live this week to lend her Oscar-winning talents to the hosting chair. The star’s episode covered everything from the impeachment trial to drunk Tom Brady to that woman putting Gorilla Glue in her hair. As someone who been obsessively following that whole saga, I, of course, couldn’t get enough of that last sketch.

In it, Kenan Thompson and Regina King play lawyers from the highly credible firm of Commode and Commode. They know Gorilla Glue mishaps happen sometimes, and they’re willing to go get you justice, even at the risk of the gorilla getting upset inside the courtroom. You can check out the sketch below…

These fake commercial/ law firm sketches always work best when everyone is completely committed to the seriousness of it. That clearly happens here as the cases and issues get weirder and weirder and Kenan Thompson and Regina King just keep making it clear they’re ready to fight, even if it’s for a woman that went for the diamond in the head look like Vision… or Lil Uzi Vert.

The viral haircare story first broke earlier this month when a woman named Tessica Brown uploaded a Tik Tok talking about using Gorilla Glue when she ran out of her usual product. 10 days and millions of views later, she’s now gotten medical care, generously donated most of the GoFundMe money that was raised for her and now inspired a Saturday Night Live sketch. It’s amazing how quickly your life can change sometimes. You can catch up on where everything started with her original video below…

As for Regina King, she continues to execute whatever she attempts. Last night’s Saturday Night Live episode was packed with good sketches, and the early reviews were mostly positive, especially for King’s performance itself. That might seem obvious given her long history of winning acting awards, but there are actually a lot of good actors who don’t have the demeanor and timing down to properly execute sketch comedy. That’s a very different skill set, and it’s a credit to King that she handled things so well.

It’ll be interesting to see where Saturday Night Live goes from here. The show has generated most of its headlines over the past four years with Donald Trump-related sketches, and while they’ve gotten some wins with the revolving wheel of Joe Biden performances they’ve tried out, it’s very unlikely the current President will generate as much interest as the last one. That may mean it’ll be a good time to try different things, whether they’re invented by the writing staff or inspired by likeable people who put Gorilla Glue in their hair.

I would say Regina King has been having a well-deserved moment, but that moment has been going on for five or six years now. The critically-acclaimed actress has been working regularly since the mid-90s, but over the last decade, especially half decade, the size of her roles and the recognition she’s gotten for them have grown exponentially. She’s won 4 Emmys, an Oscar and a Golden Globe since 2015, all for parts in movies or television shows that tackle issues related to social justice, police officers or the prison system. She was recently asked about those recurring themes and confirmed it’s definitely an intentional choice.

The Watchmen star recently stopped by The Big Interview with Dan Rather for a sitdown to promote One Night In Miami, a wonderful film she directed that’s currently streaming on Amazon Prime. The full interview will air on AXS TV on Wednesday January 20th, but CinemaBlend was able to snag a first look in which she talked through why she’s picked so many movies that tackle social justice or the Black experience in America. Here’s what she said…

The majority of actors in Hollywood take what roles they can get. The projects they end up choosing are very directly related to the roles they’re offered. A small percentage of actors, however, are in the enviable position of having real choice over what they would like to do. Some choose the roles that pay the most money. Some choose roles that allow them to work with their friends. Some pick movies and TV shows that speak to the artist inside them. Most seem to find a balance of the above. Regina King has very specifically chosen the artist inside her option, and you can really tell in the majority of her more recent efforts how directly she connects to a lot of these parts. You can see her talking more about that below…

One Night In Miami is the first feature film directed by Regina King. It follows Malcolm X, Muhammad Ali, Sam Cooke and Jim Brown as they all talk about their lives, popular culture and what’s important, each bringing their own perspectives and positions on the issues. It has been getting rave reviews, which isn’t a surprise given everything King has done lately has worked out really well. You can check out our very positive reaction here.

The Big Interview with Dan Rather airs on AXS TV. Earlier episodes have featured sitdowns with a wide variety of famous faces including Dolly Parton, Ice Cube, Lindsay Buckingham, Carlos Santana, Quentin Tarantino and more. More episodes are expected to be announced for later this year.

A lot of things happened in 2020, from the pandemic to the political protests and everything in between. For one star of One Night in Miami, the Black Lives Matter movement and protests against police brutality resonated particularly deep while he was working on the film. Eli Goree who portrays Cassius Clay (before he became Muhammad Ali) called his experience recording ADR for One Night in Miami days after George Floyd 'surreal.'

Directed by Regina King and starring Kingsley Ben-Adir as Malcolm X, Leslie Odom Jr. as Sam Cooke and Aldis Hodge as Jim Brown alongside Eli Goree’s Cassius Clay, One Night in Miami packs a big punch. Not only are we treated with show-stopping performances by all members of the cast, but the script discusses civil rights in the eyes of each of these legendary men in 1964. The crazy part is many of the lines could’ve just as easily been talking about the world today. When asked about this in an interview with CinemaBlend, Eli Goree said:

Wow. I can’t even imagine going over that dialogue days after George Floyd’s death. The tension in the scene Eli Goree mentioned is palpable, and it almost doesn’t matter if the actors have tapped that deeply into their character’s feelings or if they broke character and were having the discussion on their own, because the gravity of the subject and the emotions are the same. It’s great to have a timely and relevant film, but not so much when it holds relevance due to a negative part of history repeating itself.

That being said, actors are professionals, and even if it was hard they were able to emotionally connect with the material and deliver a really beautiful film. One Night in Miami is the feature film debut for Regina King after much experience directing television, and she told the hell out of this story. Most of the film takes place in a single hotel room with the four leading men, which gives a nice intimate feel. However, you’ll notice the more complicated scenes with a lot more people, such as the boxing ring or the various venues where Sam Cooke performs, feel just as intimate.

One Night in Miami is available on Amazon Prime Video January 15. If you like this movie, check out these quintessential Black-led films and these that explore race and social justice.

The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the world of entertainment as we know it, from suspending TV and film productions to forcing theaters to close their doors. Many are back to work with new safety precautions, though they make things a bit tricky, but there’s still the matter of completed films with planned theatrical releases that had to be pushed back or changed. For One Night in Miami, the delay has only strengthened the relevance of the film. In light of all that has happened in 2020 and in these first few weeks of 2021, director Regina King spoke about American history repeating itself.

Already well accomplished as an actress and having directed a good amount of television as well, the esteemed Regina King makes her film directing debut with One Night in Miami. The film is set in 1964 and gives a fictional account of a night when real legends Cassius Clay (later called Muhammad Ali, played by Eli Goree), Malcolm X (Kingsley Ben-Adir), Sam Cooke (Leslie Odom Jr.) and Jim Brown (Aldis Hodge) meet to celebrate Clay’s defeat of heavyweight champion Sonny Liston. The men discuss their roles in the civil rights movement throughout the film, and Regina King talked about the relevance due to history repeating itself in an interview with CinemaBlend, saying the following:

This is bittersweet because One Night in Miami is an excellent film that everyone should see, regardless of when they’re able to or how much time has passed after it was completed. It deserves to make an impact. But it pains me that you wouldn't know it's 1964 by the film’s the dialogue around how Blacks are being treated. I do agree with Regina King that the impact of this film will be equally strong (probably stronger) as it would have been if released when originally intended. It’s eye-opening to see scenes that are very clearly depicting a problem, and then knowing that people still experience this today.

The performances in every scene of One Night in Miami are phenomenal. Regina King makes every moment feel authentic. She brings the audience into the room with these characters and lets them feel the tension, the pain, and also the joyous moments. This film is beautiful, the casting is spot on… I truly can’t rave about it enough. You have to see it, trust me.

2020 was certainly a challenging year, to say the least. But I will say something I was grateful to see was a lot of open discussion regarding social justice. One Night in Miami is a great film to watch with others and talk about the work that is still left to do. One Night in Miami is available on Amazon Prime Video January 15.

There has been a fascinating trend establishing itself in 2020, where contemporary filmmakers are telling stories from our past, but drawing thick lines of connectivity that attach lessons of the past to problems of our current day. Aaron Sorkin illustrating police-brutality protests in The Trial of the Chicago 7 could have been lifted from headlines of our day. Spike Lee’s Da 5 Bloods tackled systemic racism during the Vietnam War-era, but carried that story all the way up to the Black Lives Matter conversations of 2020 (and beyond).

To this prestigious list we can now add Regina King’s remarkable One Night in Miami, an adaptation of Kemp Powers’ stage play of the same name that presents fictionalized conversations that took place after an actual event. Jim Brown (Aldis Hodge), Malcolm X (Kingsley Ben-Adir), Sam Cooke (Leslie Odom Jr.) and Cassius Clay (Eli Goree) have gather together in a Florida hotel room after the celebrated boxer defeated Sonny Liston to claim the title of World Heavyweight Champion. Their dialogue -- the issues they face and the concerns they carry -- speaks volumes about where we were as a nation… and where we potentially could have been heading. But King’s fluid presentation of the stage play’s complicated ideas helps One Night in Miami sing with a vibrancy and an urgency that precious few other films released this year can boast.

One Night in Miami solidifies Regina King as a storyteller to watch.

Movies adapted from stage plays have the tendency to adhere too closely to their stage roots. They feel restricted by the boundaries of the physical stage, and don’t figure out how to take the material into the real world, where it can dance around, breathe and enhance the concepts that are being presented in the text.

One Night in Miami doesn’t have that problem. While the bulk of the action is contained to a Miami hotel room, King discovers ways that she can follow these four individuals into pivotal locations that expand on who they are, and their contributions to our culture. In doing so, King also is able to flex her visual storytelling muscles in the realms of sport, song, politics and religion. It says so much about her confidence that she seems as comfortable staging Sam Cooke (Leslie Odom Jr.) encountering blatant racism at the famed Copacabana night club as she is dancing around the boxing ring with Eli Goree’s Cassius Clay during a pivotal match.

Whether capturing intimate scenes with the complicated individuals who are finding their way through complicated times, or painting the larger-than-life reasons why their struggles should resonate with us today, King masters her film’s method of conversation, and avoids it looking or sounding like a play put to film.

One Night in Miami pulls off the difficult act of balancing all four legendary personalities.

Though, if we are being totally honest, Eli Goree’s exquisite Cassius Clay owns the evening, followed very closely by Kingsley Ben-Adir’s conflicted Malcolm X. Part of that is because the wish that Brother Malcolm has for his talented friend, Cassius, bolsters the biggest conversations to be had in One Night in Miami. At the start of this story, Clay has not fully embraced the Nation of Islam, and has not declared himself to be Muhammad Ali. That groundbreaking decision feeds into the largest theme of One Night in Miami: What are influential people doing with their influence to make the world a better place?

Jim Brown, by this stage, was setting records in the NFL. But what do they matter if he’s still not able to go into a white man’s home because of decades of built-up racial tensions? Songwriters like Bob Dylan at the time (February 1964, to be exact) were making waves with the lyrics. Is Sam Cooke obligated to do the same with his music?

Malcolm X believes it to be so, but the reasons why Clay, Cook and Brown have for hesitating are relevant, compelling and emotionally devastating. One scene involving Brown and the blunt ignorance of racism lands like a punch to the gut in one of the film’s most visceral sequences. What balances the cultural impact of One Night in Miami is the lighthearted swagger and magnetism provided by Goree, who creates one of the most accurate depictions of the “pretty” superstar I can recall seeing on screen.

One Night in Miami says as much about today as it did 1964.

And this goes back to the point I made at the beginning, that history is cyclical, and several important movies released in 2020 remind us how the lessons of our past can inform our present and future.

That can be depressing. Or even a little disheartening. Especially in Spike Lee’s Da 5 Bloods, where the scenes of Black Lives Matter Protests virtually slap us in the face as we’re forced to ask ourselves why we haven’t progressed as a society from the tumultuous times ,of the 1960s. So much time has passed. What have we been doing?

One Night in Miami seems to ask those same questions while posing similarly important ones: What else can we do? On this fateful evening, four very powerful men who held influence in different spheres were confronting the hard truth that the righteous path forward was in their grip, though capitalizing on this well-earned success would come with obstacles. In one jaw-dropping soliloquy, Cassius Clay comments that he has conquered the sport of boxing, and he was only 22.

Should a man so young possess so much? Is a man at fault if he attains that influence, then does nothing with it? I don’t have those answers, but thanks to Regina King’s spectacular One Night in Miami, I’ll be mulling it over for weeks and months to come.

Eight months or so after its last episodes aired, The Big Interview with Dan Rather will return with four new conversations this January. The legendary newsman will continue crossing big names in the music industry off his bucket list with chats featuring Lollapalooza founder Perry Farrell, breakout country music star Luke Combs and the always popular Randy and Mary Travis. In addition, he’ll also mix in Oscar winner and Watchmen star Regina King.

The first of the chats featuring Jane’s Addiction frontman Perry Farrell will drop on January 6th at 8 PM ET/ 5 PM PT on AXS TV. The following week will be Luke Combs, then Regina King and finally Randy and Mary Travis will wrap up the new block of episodes on January 27th. Same Bat Time. Same Bat Channel. In addition to these four, the network will also drop additional new episodes in early Spring, though the specific talent involved hasn’t been named yet. Feel free to fill in the blanks with your dream guests and cross your fingers.

Following his departure from the anchor chair of CBS Evening News back in 2005, Dan Rather has found plenty of ways to stay in the public eye. He’s written books. He’s amassed a Twitter following of 1.7 million, and he’s built a really steady partnership with AXS TV. Initially, he contributed to the network with Dan Rather Reports, which launched in 2006, but since 2013, he’s focused most of his efforts on The Big Interview, landing some huge names during that time.

There’s not nearly enough time in this story to outline all of the big names Rather has sat down with as part of the program, but I’ll drop a quick highlight list of guests: Dolly Parton, Lindsey Buckingham, Weird Al, Quentin Tarantino, Carol Burnett, Edward Norton, Gene Simmons, Kenny Rogers, Ice Cube, Kid Rock and Kiefer Sutherland. Any journalist would be proud of that squad, but the interviews are all the more impressive given their length. Rather’s show allows him the opportunity to really dig in and talk to the guests about a variety of topics that most quick hit interviews can’t possibly cover. He doesn’t shy away from real issues either.

For example, in the upcoming Luke Combs episode, Rather asks the singer about the perception that country music isn’t particularly diverse or welcoming to outsiders. You can check out Combs’ answer to that question in the clip the show provided to us below…

At 89 years old, Dan Rather has found a way to stay relevant, stay working and continue contributing thoughtful content to his fans. It’s wonderful that he’s found the right platform on AXS TV. If this is the sort of thing you enjoy, you should consider checking it out when the show officially returns on January 6th.

One of scripted television's longest-running institutions, Saturday Night Live, is headed back into production and returning to the studio after its unexpected time airing with pre-taped skits from cast members' homes at the end of last season. While fans certainly admired the desire of the cast and crew to keep the good ship SNL afloat as much as possible under some trying circumstances, you can bet that viewers will be looking to see the legendary skitcom return to something much more like normal in Season 46. With new announcements on who will be hosting and performing as musical guests, it looks like all of our dreams will be coming true.

Every year brings an assorted number of wonders for those who love SNL. We tune in each week for the promise of laughs, fun surprises, wild satire, the occasional shocking (or shockingly funny) screw up and to see what kind of silliness the guest hosts (and possibly musical guests) will be roped into while trying to deliver the funniest possible show. This season will see Kenan Thompson head into his eighteenth season on the live show, further cementing his place as the longest-running cast member for SNL ever, but this promises to be a banner year for the series in other ways, as well.

This is, after all, an election year, and those behind Saturday Night Live are nothing if not truly gifted when it comes to both lampooning politicians and also casting said political figures for the show. We already know that (after sounding like he was totally done with putting in the effort) Alec Baldwin will return yet again to step into the presidential shoes of Donald Trump, a role that won him an Emmy in 2017, with former cast member Maya Rudolph reprising her Emmy-winning part as Kamala Harris.

Word also came down recently that they'll be joined by Jim Carrey, who will take over the part of Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden from another former cast member, Jason Sudeikis. Who knows, with the way these special guest appearances are going, we might be treated to Brad Pitt's Dr. Anthony Fauci again. By the way, Pitt's performance also got an Emmy nod this year, so if we see a lot more special guests coming in to play real life people, I wouldn't be surprised.

Meanwhile, we do have our first announcement of who will host and act as musical guest on the Season 46 premiere of SNL, and you really can't be mad at who was chosen. So, let's get to the list of who will be handling hosting and musical duties this year! Be sure to bookmark this list, because it'll be updated when new info becomes available!

May 22 - Anya Taylor-Joy With Musical Guest Lil Nas X

Saturday Night Live will wrap Season 46 with another pair of newbies hitting the 30 Rock stage. The Queen's Gambit star and recent Golden Globe winner Anya Taylor-Joy will host, while rapper Lil Nas X will perform.

Past Episodes

October 3 - Chris Rock With Musical Guest Megan Thee Stallion

Hot! Hot! Hot! Chris Rock, of course, is another former cast member, having hit the SNL stage weekly from 1990 to 1993. The actor / comedian / talk show host has been back to lead the festivities at his old stomping grounds twice before, and is funny to his bones, so you know he'll bring his best on opening night. Rapper Megan Thee Stallion is coming off of several hits, including this summer's naughty scorcher "WAP," with Cardi B, and this will be her first time on SNL.

October 10 - Bill Burr With Musical Guest Jack White

Comedian and actor Bill Burr will make his SNL debut on October 10. The Monday Morning Podcast host was most recently seen in The King of Staten Island with Pete Davidson, and The Mandalorian, and his animated family sitcom, F is for Family, will be back for a fifth and final season on Netflix. After a bit of a shakeup, Jack White will step in to act as musical guest on the episode, marking his fourth time rocking the halls of 30 Rock.

October 17 - Issa Rae With Musical Guest Justin Bieber

The star, executive producer, and creator of the HBO hit comedy Insecure, Issa Rae, will mark her SNL hosting debut on October 17. Joining Rae on the show will be Justin Bieber, who will appear as musical guest for the fourth time.

October 24 - Adele With Musical Guest H.E.R.

Music superstar Adele makes her hosting debut on Saturday Night Live with the October 24, episode, after previously acting as musical guest way back in October 2008, and again in November 2015. Ten-time Grammy Award nominee H.E.R. (who won two of the awards in 2019) will make her debut as musical guest on the same night.

October 31 - John Mulaney With Musical Guest The Strokes

Comedian and former SNL writer John Mulaney will hit the stage to host for the fourth time on October 31. Rockers The Strokes will also perform for the fourth time.

November 7 - Dave Chappelle With Musical Guest Foo Fighters

Dave Chappelle returns for his second hosting gig, having previously hit the stage right after the 2016 presidential election. The Foo Fighters will perform as musical guests, for what will be the band's eighth time appearing.

November 14 through 28 - No New SNL Episodes

December 5 - Jason Bateman With Musical Guest Morgan Wallen

Ozark and The Outsider star Jason Bateman will return to host when the show comes back from a three-week break on December 5. This will be Bateman's second time in the job; he last hosted in February 2005. Country music star Morgan Wallen is scheduled as musical guest, after being booted off of the second episode this season when producers found out he hadn't been following their new production guidelines.

December 12 - Timothée Chalamet With Musical Guest Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band

Dune's Timothée Chalamet is coming to host SNL for his first time on December 12, while Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band will be along for their third performance.

December 19 - Kristen Wiig With Musical Guest Dua Lipa

Former cast member Kristen Wiig returns for her fourth hosting gig on December 19, with her starring role as Cheetah in Wonder Woman 1984 heading to HBO Max (and theaters) on Christmas Day. Meanwhile, pop superstar Dua Lipa will hit SNL for the second time.

January 30 - John Krasinski With Musical Guest Machine Gun Kelly

Everyone's favorite prankster from The Office (and star of Jack Ryan and A Quiet Place), John Krasinski, will host when the series returns for the first episode of the new year. Singer/rapper/actor Machine Gun Kelly will appear as musical guest for the first time.

February 6 - Dan Levy With Musical Guest Phoebe Bridgers

Schitt's Creek co-creator/actor Dan Levy will host SNL for the first time on February 6. Rock/indie folk singer Phoebe Bridgers appears as musical guest.

February 13 - Regina King With Musical Guest Nathaniel Rateliff

Oscar, Golden Globe, and four-time Emmy Award winner Regina King will step on the 30 Rock stage for the first time on February 13. Folk and R&B artist Nathaniel Rateliff will perform.

February 20 - Regé-Jean Page With Musical Guest Bad Bunny

Breakout Bridgerton star Regé-Jean Page hosts SNL for the first time, and will appear alongside musical guest, rapper, Bad Bunny.

February 27 - Nick Jonas With Musical Guest Nick Jonas

That's right, the actor/singer, known for films like Jumanji: The Next Level and Midway, hosts the last episode of February, and will also appear as musical guest.

March 27 - Maya Rudolph With Musical Guest Jack Harlow

Former SNL cast member Maya Rudolph returns to her old stomping grounds to host for the second time on March 27. Rapper Jack Harlow will hit the stage as musical guest.

April 3 - Daniel Kaluuya With Musical Guest St. Vincent

Two-time Oscar nominee (most recently for Judas and the Black Messiah) Daniel Kaluuya will host SNL for the first time on April 3. Rock/pop performer St. Vincent will act as musical guest.

April 10 - Carey Mulligan With Musical Guest Kid Cudi

Another two-time Oscar nominee (this time for Promising Young Woman), Carey Mulligan, will also step up to host for the first time in April. Rapper Kid Cudi will appear as musical guest.

May 8 - Elon Musk With Musical Guest Miley Cyrus

Tesla CEO Elon Musk will make his debut as SNL guest host for the first episode of May, as the series begins to wind down Season 46. Musk proved to be a rather controversial choice, so we'll see how his inaugural hosting gig goes. He'll be joined by musical guest Miley Cyrus, who's making her fifth appearance as either musical guest or host.

May 15 - Keegan-Michael Key With Musical Guest Olivia Rodrigo

Emmy winner and all around funny guy Keegan-Michael Key will mark his first time hosting SNL on May 15. Meanwhile, another newcomer, singer/actress Olivia Rodrigo will act as musical guest for the first time.

Again, be sure to bookmark this list so you can stay up to date on all of SNL's latest hosts and musical guests in Season 46!

When you spend your days working on set, collaborating with various filmmakers (both of renown and otherwise), and honing your craft, there's a good chance you're gonna pick up a few lessons along the way. Indeed, having the opportunity to work with many different filmmakers and various people in the industry allows many actors to not only get better at their given profession but also explore themselves behind-the-camera as well. 

In the process, these actors expand their talents (hopefully) and showcase their prowess. We've seen several famous actors prove themselves as directors in the past. Dave Franco is just the latest. His feature directorial debut, The Rental, is a surprisingly solid genre piece, showcasing his strong potential as a filmmaker. Whether or not Franco lives up to that promise is undetermined, but he's not alone. Here are just a few actors who've recently proven themselves to be promising new filmmakers.

Dave Franco

Who would've thought that Dave Franco would be one of the more promising horror directors of the new decade? Or, at least, that he would prove himself surprisingly confident in this genre, producing a commendably slow-burning chamber thriller with The Rental, featuring strong performances from Alison Brie (his wife), Sheila Vand, Jeremy Allen White, and Toby Huss. 

Having previously worked in the comedy field with the occasional drama or action movie in the process, The Rental wasn't the direction that his fans likely expected him to go, but Franco proved himself adept at handling the atmosphere and dread of his premise, while also exploring themes on privacy, surveillance, and people's fears of others. It's not without its flaws, but he showcases some serious talent behind-the-camera, and if he wanted to direct more in the future, he could have a bright future. He's apparently working on a rom-com next.

Jonah Hill

Having previously collaborated with some of the finest filmmakers working today, including (but not limited to) Martin Scorsese, Bennett Miller, Quentin Tarantino, Gus Van Sant, and more, it was only a matter of time before Jonah Hill jumped behind the camera. Sure enough, in 2018, Hill finally jumped into the director's chair with Mid90s, a semi-autobiographical coming-of-age drama featuring a fantastic sense of time and place, fine attention to detail, and some well-crafted performances. 

Though the movie itself doesn't lean too far away from the tropes you expect this genre, resulting in a screenplay that's earnest but ultimately not especially unique, Hill's direction allows his vision to flourish, establishing a key sense of this time period without the nostalgia or wistfulness that is often seen in other movies of this variety. The results are a bold, clear-eyed, Harmony Korine-inspired reflection with honest performances and finely-crafted emotional resonance. Hill learned well.

Bo Burnham

Though technically more of an internet personality and stand-up than an actor prior to his outstanding directorial debut, 2018's Eighth Grade, it's clear that Bo Burnham spent years honing his craft, his style, his voice, and his point of view before he decided to finally make his directorial debut. What's most impressive about this movie, however, is that Burnham's approach is oddly reflective. 

It's not showcasing his noticeable voice but rather making an authentic and believable reflection of what it is like to be socially awkward and emotionally insincere in our social media age, where your presence is always demanded in some fashion or another and you always feel pressured to be "true to yourself," even if you don't exactly know who you are yet. It's an exceptionally accomplished directorial debut, allowing Burnham to paint a startlingly relatable and uncomfortable reflection of adolescence with an excellent lead performance from Elsie Fisher.

Olivia Wilde

While it didn't take the box office by storm as much as people hoped it would, Booksmart became one of the most acclaimed, celebrated directorial debuts in recent memory, earned nearly unanimous praise from critics and general moviegoers alike and finding a wide, adoring audience worldwide. It's safe to say that most directorial debuts don't capture that same fervent appeal, but that's a great credit to Wilde's early talents as a director. 

While she has established herself as an actress for roughly 15 or so years now, it's clear that Wilde has an energetic, passionate desire to push herself as a filmmaker and showcase complex, outspoken women who are both funny and dynamic, producing an entertaining but also engaging new take on the always-expanding high school comedy genre. While it got easy comparisons to Superbad, Wilde's debut allows the new filmmaker to take her own path.

Paul Dano

One of the best directorial debuts of the past few years came from Paul Dano's intimate, involving coming-of-age period drama, Wildlife. This evocative Sundance tale, based on the novel of the same name by Richard Ford, features outstanding performances from Jake Gyllenhaal, Ed Oxenbould, and especially Carey Mulligan, who continues to remain an undervalued talent. 

Dano's directorial presence is gentle but commanding, showcasing fine attention to character and time but also allowing him to explore the darker recesses and impulses of people unchecked and caught fighting against the restrictions of their conservative time period. Having worked with some truly remarkable filmmakers throughout his career, not the least of which includes Paul Thomas Anderson, Steve McQueen, Denis Villeneuve, Bong Joon-ho, Rian Johnson, and more, it wasn't shocking to see Dano prove so adept as a director, but it was still very encouraging. Here's hoping he makes another movie soon.

Regina King

An accomplished, Oscar-winning actress with several noteworthy film/TV titles to her name, Regina King has been an outstanding acting talent for decades, and she finally got her well-deserved due with her award-winning turn in If Beale Street Could Talk. But in addition to King's acting highlights, the three-time Emmy-winning Watchmen actress has steadily built a solid career behind the camera, notably helming episodes of Scandal, Southland, This Is Us, Shameless, The Good Doctor, Insecure, and more. 

Now, King makes her feature directorial debut with One Night in Miami, based on the play by Kemp Powers, which follows Malcolm X, Sam Cooke, Jim Brown, and Cassius Clay who meet up to change history in the South. It'll premiere at TIFF and it was recently acquired by Amazon Studios. Though we haven't seen the film yet for ourselves, we're hopeful that King demonstrates her talents once more with this exciting new project.

Karen Gillan

Though she remains a bright, appealing screen presence, Karen Gillan's recent directing turns showcase a young filmmaker with intriguingly dark and mournful ambitions, exploring the darkness of the human psyche and women with complicated histories and mentalities. This was shown with striking interest in both her horror-drama short film, Conventional, and her feature directorial debut, The Party's Just Beginning, both of which she starred in in addition to writing and directing. 

As a filmmaker and actress simultaneously, Gillan isn't afraid to be vulnerable and unsettling, showcasing how many movies haven't fully explored the recesses of her talents, while also exploring complicated themes and concepts with probing intellect and insight and a splash of dark comedy to boot. Her directorial output is uniquely different than what we've seen from her as an actress thus far. It's fascinating to wonder what she'll do as a director as she moves forward.

Chiwetel Ejiofor

While Chiwetel Ejiofor has continued to receive some major roles in high-budget blockbusters, including Doctor Strange, The Lion King (2019), and, most recently, Netflix's The Old Guard, in recent years following his excellent Oscar-nominated performance in 12 Years A Slave, his directorial debut, The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind, didn't gain much notice when it appeared on Netflix earlier this year. That's a shame because, while it's a small film by design, it was praised as a compelling film that showed promise for Ejiofor as a director. 

While the story itself as considered predictable when it comes to plotting, Ejiofor's vision and the fine performances he brought out of his actors showed audiences that he had the chops to be a strong dramatic director if given the chance. This isn't surprising, but it's disappointing that the movie hasn't gotten much notice on the streaming service since its premiere.

Amy Seimetz

At the end of July, Amy Seimetz's latest film, She Dies Tomorrow, finally released. Though she has more indie credits to her name than mainstream titles, audiences might know her from her work in Stranger Things, Alien: Covenant, The Killing, Get Shorty, and Pet Sematary (2020). As a director, Seimetz made the indie Sun Don't Shine and she directed several acclaimed episodes of television for The Girlfriend Experience and Atlanta. Based on the early reviews for her newest film, a horror film that is getting David Lynch-esque comparisons, it's not one you want to miss.

Which actors-turned-directors have impressed you lately? Please let us know in the comments!

In addition to serving as a continuation of Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons’ graphic novel, Damon Lindelof’s Watchmen provides a unique glimpse at an alternate reality that still deeply mirrors the divisive cultural issues we face in our own reality. In fact, for star Regina King, who plays Angela Abar (Sister Night) on the HBO miniseries, much of her career involves projects of important cultural significance.

After making her acting debut on the hit NBC sitcom 227, from 1985-1990, Regina King transitioned into films with John Singleton’s groundbreaking Boyz n the Hood before collaborating with the late filmmaker again on Poetic Justice and Higher Learning. Prior to her Academy Award win for director Barry Jenkins’ If Beale Street Could Talk, King won three Emmys, two for the ABC anthology series American Crime and one for Netflix miniseries Seven Seconds.

Another fun fact about the actress: her first name translates from Latin to say “queen,” literally making her a “Queen King.” If you care to learn even more about the actress, here are seven things about Regina King that may surprise you.

Regina King Remained In Public School While Starring On 227

Not many child stars get the luxury of having the educational experience of a typical student, but Regina King was one of the lucky ones. When she was cast as Brenda Jenkins on 227 at 14 years old, her mother, a teacher, was concerned that NBC would put King in a smaller, private school where many young TV actors would go, keeping her "out of touch" with the perspective that public education provides, as she recounted in an interview with NPR. King's onscreen mother, Marla Gibbs, understood that concern, convincing her real mother that the set of the hit sitcom was "a good space" for her daughter while attending Westchester High School in Los Angeles.

At One Time, Regina King Aspired To Be A Dentist

Even during her five years on 227, Regina King had originally pursued a career in dentistry, which she recalled during a 2019 appearance on Late Show with Stephen Colbert before adding, "You know how a lot of people, the first the thing they see is the eyes? The first thing I see is the smile." The reveal stemmed from her earlier mention in the conversation that it was not until she was in college (her second year at the University Southern California, to be exact) when she was certain that acting was the right path for her, especially after making her feature film debut in Boyz n the Hood in 1991.

Regina King Was Initially Cast As Just Riley Before Also Voicing Huey On The Boondocks

Another one of Regina King's most notable TV projects is the brutally satirical Adult Swim classic The Boondocks, on which she provides the voice of both Huey and Riley Freeman, two Chicago-born children who move into their grandfather's WASPy suburb. Originally, the actress was only chosen to play Riley, as she explained to BuzzFeed UK, but after being a part of the search for Huey and observing creator Aaron McGruder's notes for the character along the way, King convinced them to give her a shot at both roles.

Regina King’s Tattoo Has An Inspiring Translation And Heartwarming Backstory

For inspiration to play the young Freeman Brothers on The Boondocks, Regina King looked to her son, Ian Alexander, Jr., even if he was too young to watch the series at the time she was cast. When he was older, Alexander suggested he and his mother get matching tattoos by each selecting three Aramaic designs in secret and whichever design they both happened to pick would be the final decision. As King shared during an appearance on The View, the mutual choice turned out to be what translates to "unconditional love," a part of motherhood that the actress has expressed is especially important to her in the past.

Regina King Modeled Her If Beale Street Could Talk Performance From Her Grandmother

Looking to another individual for inspiration is a method Regina King uses often, as Good Morning America host Robin Roberts pointed out when speaking to the her in 2018. The actress then explained how her performance in If Beale Street Could Talk, Barry Jenkins' adaptation of James Baldwin's 1974 novel, was inspired by her own grandmother, describing her as "that woman that made you feel like it was always gonna be okay." King channeled that comforting wisdom into the role of Sharon, whose daughter is pregnant with her imprisoned fiance's child in the film, earning her an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.

Regina King Has A Prolific Career In Directing TV Shows

Regina King is currently focusing on another adaptation important to her, a cinematic take on Kemp Powers' Jim Crow-era stage play One Night in Miami, but from behind the camera. While the period piece will mark her big screen directorial debut, she has several directing credits to her name already from TV projects. Starting with an episode of crime drama Southland, for which she was also a series regular, King went onto helm episodes of Scandal, This Is Us, Shameless, and, most recently, Issa Rae's Emmy-nominated comedy series Insecure.

Regina King Received A Sneak Peek Of Her Watchmen Character With The Pilot Script

Admittedly, Regina King had no prior affinity for the story of Watchmen when she was offered a role in the miniseries continuation by Damon Lindelof, whom she had previously worked with on The Leftovers. She did, however, receive a strong idea of her costumed vigilante character when she first read the script, which included an envelope with a note instructing her not open it until she reached a certain page. As she recalled on Jimmy Kimmel Live, she "did not cheat" and waited to open the envelope, which revealed an artist's rendering of Sister Night in full costume, complete with her face on the character.

Be sure to check back for additional information and updates on the Oscar-winning actress, as well as even more in-depth fun facts about your favorite celebrities, here on CinemaBlend.

HBO’s Watchmen received critical acclaim when it first premiered last fall and, now that it’s available to stream, more viewers are starting to discover the series for the first time. With so many getting hooked on the show, questions of whether or not it could return for a second season are being reignited. Creator, writer and producer Damon Lindelof has made it very clear that he has no interest in returning for a potential Season 2, and he’s now explaining why he believes a new showrunner should come in if the second season does happen.

Damon Lindelof has nothing but love for the world of Watchmen and the cast and crew he worked with. However, unless he can come up with a story that he feels is as compelling as the first season’s, he firmly believes it would be best if someone else took the reins for a second season:

As bittersweet as his comments to Collider are, they’re completely understandable. Following Watchmen’s conclusion, Damon Lindelof stressed that he had completed the story he wanted to tell and was happy with the way things wrapped up.

With this, Lindelof simply doesn’t want to force out a story but would rather have one come to him naturally. This may come as a disappointment to some fans, but it’s ultimately a wise move. In many cases, when stories don’t come from inspiration, they don’t tend to feel as compelling or personal. And when you consider just how good Watchmen was, anything less than that would be a disappointment.

When it comes to a second season of Watchmen, the limited series’ star, Regina King, also understands Lindelof’s sentiments and isn’t too keen on returning. She did, however, confirm that she would only come back if Lindelof finds a reason to continue the story.

With the action, imagery and social relevance of Watchmen, it’s still hard to fathom that we won’t be getting more of it any time soon. But with such a great limited run that was capped off by a strong finale, it can’t be denied that it was perfectly satisfying.

Watchmen is currently available to stream on HBO Max.

Watchmen Season 1 told such a powerful and relevant story and as a result, received critical acclaim at the time of its release last year. HBO even made all nine episodes free to watch online and on demand during the weekend of June 19. The series, which is based on the graphic novel by Alan Moore, may have come full circle, but it ended on an ambiguous note that left many wondering whether there would be a second season. Recently, series star Regina King explained why there was only one way that she’d ever return for a potential Season 2 of Watchmen.

Watchmen’s Season 1finale saw Regina King’s Angela ingest the egg left behind by Doctor Manhattan. With one foot hovering over the water, viewers waited with baited breath to find out whether she’d inherited Doctor Manhattan’s powers only for the credits to roll. Speaking with Reese Witherspoon in an interview for Variety’s Actors on Actors, King was asked whether she would return for a Season 2 of Watchmen. Here’s what she said:

Regina King went on to say that reading the pilot of Watchmen blew her away because it included so many “historical things that actually happened” and were made central to the HBO show. What’s more, she described Damon Lindelof as a “great collaborator,” so it’s pretty easy to understand why the actress wouldn’t return for a Season 2 if he wasn’t involved.

To be sure, Damon Lindelof has made it clear that he’s not really interested in returning for Season 2 of Watchmen. The showrunner explained how the series was only designed for one season and that he’d set out to tell the story he wanted to tell. If there’s no chance of Lindelof coming back to helm another season, then it seems we already have the answer as to whether Regina King will be involved.

Personally, Watchmen was a beautifully contained nine-episode story and just because it had an ambiguous ending doesn’t mean it should have a second season. Whether or not Angela absorbed Doctor Manhattan’s powers is something that will likely be debated for some time, but it was such a perfect ending that there’s seemingly no way Season 2 could ever live up to its legacy.

All nine episodes of Watchmen are currently available to stream on HBO Max and HBO Now. The series has also been released on Blu-ray and DVD if you’re not up for streaming at all (or don’t have HBO). For more on what to watch in the coming months, be sure to check out our 2020 summer TV premiere schedule.

You are not likely to find a comic book adaptation as refreshingly original as HBO’s Watchmen. Instead of recreating the story that already existed, it serves as a continuation to Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons’ groundbreaking graphic novel. Having been one of 2019’s most talked about television events, Damon Lindelof’s nine-part miniseries continues to attract audiences and incite discussion,and not just in relation to its recent inclusion for the launch of HBO Max.

It is actually quite fascinating how the modern day world of Watchmen (still overrun with crime, corruption, and a distorted sense of identity years after the events of the comic) can be so easily compared to the modern day world in reality... with the exception of costumed vigilantes being a pressing issue. Yet, if social commentary is not what keeps your mind on the miniseries, perhaps it is the wonderful cast. The actors brought in to portray familiar faces to the Watchmen universe and new faces alike are one of the reasons why we almost wish the show could continue past its sole season. Fortunately, the performers have plenty more on their respective agendas in the near future. Just see for yourself…

Regina King (Angela Abar/Sister Night)

Even before playing detective/vigilante Angela Abar (who crusades in costume as Sister Night) on Watchmen, 2019 was already a big deal for Regina King. The actress won her first Academy Award earlier that same year for her supporting role in If Beale Street Could Talk. Despite being a familiar face in several classics spanning decades (such as her debut in sitcom 227, stoner favorite Friday, and music biopic Ray), King seems to be taking a break from acting to focus on her feature-length directorial debut, an adaptation of Kemp Powers' Jim Crow-era stage play One Night in Miami.

Yahya Abdul-Mateen II (Cal Abar/Doctor Manhattan)

One of the most surprising twists on Watchmen was the reveal that Angela Abar's husband, Cal Abar (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II), was actually Jon Osterman, better known as the omnipotent Dr. Manhattan, in disguise. Abdul-Mateen was in disguise for another iconic comic book role as DC villain Black Manta in 2018, which is as role he is set to reprise in the announced sequel to Aquaman, which is currently dated to come out in 2022. In addition to that, the Black Mirror star plays the protagonist in producer Jordan Peele's Candyman, director Aaron Sorkin's retelling of the Chicago 7 trial, and the highly anticipated fourth installment of the Matrix franchise.

Don Johnson (Judd Crawford)

From playing a slimy murder suspect in Knives Out to racist police chief Judd Crawford on Watchmen in 2019 alone, Golden Globe-winner Don Johnson (otherwise known as Miami Vice's Crocket and Dakota Johnson's dad) seems to be more popular than ever at 70 years old. Currently, the actor is set to appear alongside John Boyega and James Cromwell in Green Room director Jeremy Saulnier's upcoming thriller Rebel Ridge , and will star in and produce a revival of his mid-'90s crime series Nash Bridges.

Jean Smart (Laurie Blake)

Another Watchmen star who rose to prominence in the 1980s is Jean Smart, who plays an older version of Laurie Blake, whom fans of the comic recognize as the second Silk Spectre. The 68-year-old, three-time Emmy-winner starred in another TV revival in 2019 (Mad About You on Spectrum) and will next seen as the President of the United States in the upcoming HBO Max exclusive sci-fi comedy Superintelligence, also starring Melissa McCarthy. She will also appear opposite William Shatner and Chistopher Lloyd in the romantic indie comedy Senior Moment, which is currently in post-production.

Tim Blake Nelson (Wade Tillman/Looking Glass)

The mysterious Looking Glass (whose mirrored mask reflects his origin story of being in a carnival fun house the night of November 2, 1985 when the "inter-dimensional squid" landed) is not Watchmen star Tim Blake Nelson's first role in a comic book adaptation, but, arguably, his best thus far following supporting roles in the mostly forgotten The Incredible Hulk in 2008 and Josh Trank's infamous Fantastic Four reboot. The character actor, better known for frequent collaborations with the Coen brothers, will next star in his second collaboration with director James Franco in The Long Home, and also alongside John Boyega in the legal drama Naked Singularity,

Jeremy Irons (Adrian Veidt/Ozymandias)

One of the more brilliant choices for the Watchmen series was Jeremy Irons as an aged Adrian Veidt, the highly-intelligent billionaire who once moonlighted as superhero Ozymandias before emerging as the graphic novel's true antagonist (well, debatably). The Academy Award-winner, whose first foray into cinematic DC Comics adaptations came from playing Alfred Pennyworth in 2016's Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and 2017's Justice League, has two films currently in production, including the romantic comedy Love, Weddings & Other Disasters and the sports biopic Frankel, named after the famous race horse, which Irons is also producing.

Louis Gossett Jr. (Old Will Reeves/Hooded Justice)

In a massive, surprising twist, Watchmen reveals the true identity of legendary vigilante Hooded Justice is Will Reeves, played as an old man by Louis Gossett Jr., who was forced to keep his vigilantism a secret due to his ethnicity. At 84, the Oscar-winner is the oldest cast member of the HBO miniseries cast, and also one of the busiest. He has several film projects on the horizon, most notably as a Vietnam vet opposite Dick Van Dyke in the comedy Capture the Flag and Artisans, a mid-90s period piece about two aspiring rappers written directed by his son, Satie Gossett.

Jovan Adepo (Young Will Reeves/Hooded Justice)

Starring as the younger Will Reeves in flashbacks, Jovan Adepo first worked with Watchmen showrunner Damon Lindelof on The Leftovers before later playing son to Denzel Washington and Viola Davis in Fences. In the past year or so, Adepo headed up the World War II-era horror film Overlord, played an adult Antron McCray in Netflix's When They See Us, and had a recurring role on Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan. His next miniseries will also be based on a work of fan-favorite literature: CBS All-Access' reimagining of the Stephen King novel The Stand. The actor will also soon return to the big screen with Karem Sanga's romantic drama The Violent Heart.

Hong Chau (Lady Trieu)

Starring as Adrian Veidt's daughter, the Vietnamese-born Lady Trieu, is actress Hong Chau, who prior to Watchmen was best known for her Golden Globe-nominated performance as a five-inch tall refugee opposite Matt Damon in Alexander Payne's 2017 sci-fi satire Downsizing. Since appearing in the HBO series, she has been in the drama Driveways (alongside the late Brian Dennehy in one of his final roles), continued her stint as a regular on the Amazon original hit Homecoming, and most recently appeared in the film adaptation of the Artemis Fowl novel series, which premiered exclusively on Disney+ in mid-June.

Tom Mison (Mr. Phillips/Game Warden)

Starring as one of Adrian Veidt's servant clones, Mr. Phillips, is Tom Mison, who also serves double duty on Watchmen as the mysterious Game Warden. The theatre-trained actor began his reputation for playing mysterious, British-accented characters on TV by playing an out-of-time version of Ichabod Crane on Fox's modern day Sleepy Hollow series, and then followed that with Hulu's series adaptation of Four Weddings and a Funeral. There is evidently nothing currently on the horizon in the world of acting for Mison, who has also expressed to NME that he would prefer not to return for a second season of the superhero series as he felt it wrapped up perfectly.

Sara Vickers (Ms. Crookshanks)

Adrian Veidt also has a female servant clone named Ms. Crookshanks, played by Sara Vickers, who is also of British origin, but would probably credit Watchmen as her most recognizable endeavor to date.She did land an appearance on the Netflix original historical drama The Crown as Marion Crawford, and starred in an episode of TNT's 19th-century mystery The Alienist.

Cheyenne Jackson (TV's Hooded Justice)

Hooded Justice is one of the more mysterious figures of the Watchmen graphic novel, and that mystery is heavily dramatized on the show within the miniseries titled American Hero Story where he is played by American Horror Story actor Cheyenne Jackson. The film and stage star will soon appear in a small role in another sci-fi miniseries called Stellar People, this one with a more comedic edge, as well as a humorous cinematic adaptation of the medieval horror video game Werewolves Within. He also has a role in the upcoming Fox sitcom Call Me Kat starring Mayim Bialik, who is also executive producing with her former The Big Bang Theory co-star Jim Parsons.

James Wolk (Senator Joseph Keene Jr.)

Set on carrying out the legacy of his father, who authored the act that outlawed costumed vigilantes, is the insidious Senator Joseph Keene Jr., played in Watchmen by James Wolk – whom DC fans might also recognize as the voice of Superman on Kaley Cuoco's animated Harley Quinn series. The Mad Men actor will soon return to reality as part of the cast of Spinning Gold, a biopic chronicling the career of Casablanca Records co-founder Neil Bogart (played by Supergirl star Jeremy Jordan), and will lead upcoming series Ordinary Joe in the title role of a man living in three parallel realities.

Frances Fisher (Jane Crawford)

Starring as Judd Crawford's wife Jane is Frances Fisher, who has been very successful in film and TV alike for decades, having played a vengeful prostitute in Clint Eastwood's Unforgiven, Rose's mother in Titanic, and, more recently, James Holden's mother, Elise, in the acclaimed sci-fi drama The Expanse. The English actress will continue her versatile career with many upcoming projects, including war movies, a post-apocalyptic sci-fi thriller called Awake, and the animated coming-of-age story The Potters.

Be sure to check back for more information on HBO’s Watchmen, as well as additional updates on cast members from your favorite movies and TV shows, here on CinemaBlend.

Watchmen is now easier to watch than ever, with the Blu-ray and DVD release coming soon after HBO Max's streaming debut. It's just as easy to note the similarities between the show's racially charged storyline and the current real-world political climate, but there are obviously plenty of differences as well, such as the existence of a glowing blue super-being. Another would be that Watchmen's United States has Hollywood legend Robert Redford as its president, a comic detail that the TV show honored. Unfortunately for star Regina King, however, Redford never actually appeared on screen.

As Watchmen's mostly fearless Sister Night, Regina King was a pillar of badassery that rarely lost her cool in the heat of a dangerous ordeal, even in the very end. But it sounds like the actress would have turned into a total fangirl had the series found a way to secure the quasi-retired Robert Redford as a guest star. Here's how she put it to Yahoo.

To be sure, HBO's Watchmen was filled with plenty of surprises for TV viewers that both directly referenced Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons' iconic comic book and also completely revamped the source material. Considering Damon Lindelof's take was a quasi-sequel set in the current day, it would have made sense for the show to avoid using Robert Redford, since his presence would have required many successive Presidential terms in order for him to remain the POTUS for Watchmen.

Luckily for Robert Redford, though, Watchmen already had a Beyond Term Limits agreement for Presidents built into the comic book, thanks to Richard Nixon's Vietnam War victory, combined with the Watergate scandal not being publicized. Strange as it may be to conceive, Watchmen's United States has (assumedly) only seen two Presidents take office in a 50-year span, with Nixon in office from 1969 through the late '80s, and Redford holding down the fort in the decades since.

Alas, the award-winning actor's fictional leadership wasn't destined to be experienced up close and personally by Regina King's Sister Night or any of the other Watchmen TV characters, with Robert Redford refraining from making an appearance in the HBO drama. Clearly that was an unfortunate turn of events for King, whose adolescent fantasies would have been realized had she been able to share a scene with him. Thankfully, Watchmen was a downright incredible series even without Redford's talents added in.

Had Robert Redford showed up within Watchmen, it wouldn't have been his first appearance in a major comic book property. The actor also portrayed the devious Marvel character Alexander Pierce in both Captain America: The Winter Soldier and Avengers: Endgame.

Those in need of some socially relevant superheroics can find Watchmen's nine Season 1 episodes streaming now on HBO Max, HBO Go and HBO Now, and anyone who needs a physical copy can find the Blu-ray and DVD versions on sale now, which are packed with various featurettes that will take fans deeper into the chaos.

HBO's Watchmen elevated the franchise with its phenomenal run by many accounts, and there has been no shortage of cries for Damon Lindelof's sequel thriller to get greenlit for Season 2. While we still have yet to find out if that will ever happen, star Regina King has shared her thoughts on the finale's final scene.

The final scene in question saw King's character, Angela, consume an egg that may have contained the essence of Dr. Manhattan's power. The scene cut just as Angela attempted to walk on water, leaving the audience to wonder whether or not Manhattan's powers transferred over to her or not. Regina King shared her thoughts on the scene with TVInsider, and how anyone watching can relate to it today:

Regina King's ending would be quite a surprise, as Watchmen really made it seem as though Dr. Manhattan had intentionally left that egg for the purpose of giving her his powers. That being said, her pitch would fit the series' twists and turns rather well and create an especially sad arc for Angela as she mourned the loss of her husband in Season 2. Of course, that's still assuming Season 2 will ever happen, as HBO has given no indication that's even on the table.

While Watchmen was not a strong performer in live ratings, the show pulled in a lot of viewership in delayed viewing. With HBO Max just starting its run in the world of streaming, one would think the delayed streams hold more weight especially for a subscription-based service like HBO. Live ratings are nice but, for a network that doesn't sell ad time in its time slots, it's not necessarily as important as it would be on ones that do.

It's also worth noting that creator Damon Lindelof has announced he would not return if Watchmen was greenlit for Season 2. Even though Lindelof gave his blessing to however took up the torch next, one has to wonder if HBO would be willing to sacrifice the standalone season's quality and acclaim when it has so many other options for original content. For now, viewers can only visualize Regina King's fantasy of Angela falling in the pool and play out in their heads how Season 2 would go from there.

Watchmen is currently available to stream on HBO's on demand services. Continue to stick with CinemaBlend for news on whether or not Season 2 will happen, and for the latest news happening in television and movies.

One of the best things about all of 2019 was, without a doubt, Damon Lindelof's stunningly realized Watchmen adaptation, and it's a bummer knowing that Lindelof probably won't be handling a second season. However, the absolute worst thing about 2020 so far, the COVID-19 pandemic, has shockingly delivered a brief and topical return to the Watchmen universe via a hand-washing PSA that features stars such as Regina King, Jean Smart and more reprising their iconic roles.

Accompanied by signature scoring from Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, the brilliantly titled "Washmen" was shared by Damon Lindelof on Instagram, and can be viewed below.

For a quick rundown on all the awesome Watchmen stars who pop up in the cheeky PSA, we have Tim Blake Nelson as Wade "Looking Glass" Tillman, Jovan Adepo as young Will Reeves, Yahya Abdul-Mateen III as Cal Abar / Doctor Manhattan, Jean Smart as Laurie Blake, Dustin Ingram as Agent Petey (or Lube Man, if you prefer), Sara Vickers as Ms. Crookshanks, Tom Mison as Mr. Phillips, Regina King as Angela "Sister Night" Abar, and Andrew Howard as Red Scare. A big blue round of applause to all involved for diving back into character for this.

Ever since the COVID-19 crisis first started keeping people in their homes, social media has been bombarded with videos of celebrity-fueled PSAs like this, with some of them slightly more self-aware than other arguably misguided attempts. But at no point has anyone offered advice as perfect as what Agent Petey gives (while amusingly dressed as Sister Night):

Of course, Laurie Blake's hand-washing scree is even more amusing, though not necessarily something for everyone to commit to memory. And I also rather like Ms. Crookshanks falling back on old habits by singing "For He's a Jolly Good Fellow" as she scrubs up. And if there was an honorary award to grant to anyone in the video, it would go to Tim Mison for calling back to the various versions of Mr. Phillips, while also throwing in a solidly gruff impression of Jeremy Irons' Adrian Veidt.

Damon Lindelof followed that video up by posting a "thank you" message to everyone who participated in creating this fun PSA.

While it seems like the above video might have been reverse-engineered after the concept of "Washmen" was first conceived, I like to think the video came first, and was followed by a spirited round of off-base pitches: "Who Bathes the Bathesmen? No, that's not right. Who Cleans Up The Cleans-Upsmen? No, still not getting it. Who Anti-Bacterializes The Anti-Bacterializers? Yeah, I think that one. Wait, no..." Not that anyone on Damon Lindelof's creative team is as dumb as that.

Most of America remains hunkered down in our homes for self-quarantining, with a growing desire for fictional superheroes to break through into our reality to provide safety and comfort (and medical supplies). Those heroes ain't comin', but at least we have Watchmen's protagonists around to make sure we're doing our part to keep our mitts clean.

Watchmen is currently available to stream on HBO Go and HBO NOW, with the Blu-ray and DVD sets hitting retailers on June 2 (unless that date gets affected by coronavirus setbacks). While waiting to see if someone else might pick up the reins for Season 2, check out the Marvel comics we'd like to see Damon Lindelof take on.

HBO's Watchmen isn't the easiest show to follow. Beyond the fact that the superhero drama has been purposefully cryptic with parts of its story, the live-action Watchmen draws on certain elements from the original comic, and seemingly the Zack Snyder movie that preceded it. So as someone who has never taken the time to dive into Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons' comic, and only has the movie to look back to, it's a lot to absorb.

Some comic fanatics may be wondering what the Watchmen viewing experience is like for the uninformed, and I'll be honest, I'm not entirely sure what I'm missing out on. Which is to say, I don't even know what I don't know. With that said, here are some of the thoughts I've had watching the first handful of Watchmen episodes as someone who hasn't been able to rely on comic knowledge for guidance.

I'm Never Sure If Confusing Moments Are From Watchmen's Comic Or Damon Lindelof

I may not be a well-read Watchmen fan, but I've definitely watched a show or two from Damon Lindelof, which has been something of a saving grace in these early episodes. Although it also means I'm always unsure if the details I don't understand are a result of my ignorance of the comic, or the fact that Lindelof's creations always tend to be mysterious and cryptic. For instance, I'm not sure if Doctor Manhattan's situation was hinted at in the source material, or if it all came from the show writers.

For that reason, it's a lot easier to just take Watchmen's oddities for what they are, while accepting that not everything will make sense in the moment. Though I'm still not 100% on exactly why I'm ignorant of some plot details, I can't really say any of it has kept me from understanding the major beats and themes of the story. So if anyone else out there was worried about not understanding anything without a comic background, I don't see it being a problem. So far.

So, Rorschach Is A Symbol Of White Supremacy?

One of the most confusing things that Watchmen threw at fans immediately was the implication that Rorschach is a major inspirational symbol for the white supremacy group dubbed the Seventh Cavalry. Now, it has been a long time since I've seen the movie, but don't fully recall the character (who many consider a hero) exhibiting lots of overtly racist behavior that would gain him such a following.

Granted, I know ideological movements can grasp onto the notions of notable people who may have never intended for their words to impact others in such ways. Still, that reveal was such a surprise that I can't help but continue to wonder each week how much knowledge about Rorschach I'm missing from the comic, or even the movie, I hadn't previously known.

Watchmen's Squid Rain Doesn't Make A Ton Of Sense Even With Context, Right?

While I certainly feel some narrative elements have gone far over my head, I've been able to soldier through a good portion of Watchmen so far without having to jump to the internet for explanations. As a major exception, I did have to look into what the hell is happening with all those squids, as I knew there was a squid-related conclusion in the comics that never made it into the film adaptation.

As it turns out, learning the the answer didn't really help me understand the situation any better. Did Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons' giant squid creation somehow have lots of tiny babies that rain down from the heavens every so often? Or is this another one of Veidt's tricks, as part of whatever plan he's got now? I still have no idea, and for now, I'm just chalking it up to being a standard kind of Lindelof-ian plot device. I'm all good being out of the loop in this mystery, provided the payoff is satisfying.

Most Of The Vigilantes So Far Are Cops With Costumes

I know Watchmen is a universe in which there is really only one person who has super powers (Doctor Manhattan), but a lot of heroes in the movie were at least Batman-like in their vigilante abilities. Even if they weren't "super" in the sense they could clone themselves and teleport to Mars, they had exceptional amounts of prowess with certain physical and mental skills.

So far, a vast majority of the "vigilantes" in Watchmen are just cops in alternate uniforms. I guess I was assuming there'd be more independent vigilantism, despite it being outlawed, though I can understand the narrative draw of having the strength in numbers of a city's police force, given the deadly actions of Seventh Cavalry members. I'd like to see more vigilantes riding solo like that Lube Guy; by the way, I'm still chuckling about how utterly ridiculous that whole sequence was.

Does Adrian Veidt Have Any Role In Watchmen's Current Events?

While I'm aware that some of Veidt's actions from the original Watchmen timeline created a ripple effect that shaped the nation (and world) the way it did, I'm not so sure Jeremy Irons' castle-dweller has a direct hand in anything happening in America or elsewhere. The most recent episode revealed that he's in a (self-described) prison of some sort, and was possibly put there by another familiar character.

I have no idea who could do such a thing, considering Veidt's location has its own logical fallacies, but it does seem like the answer will come soon enough. Veidt seems to think the key to his escape deals with lifting off the ground, as evidenced by his rocket man and catapult experiments in the past couple episodes. But will he escape, and if so, how will he respond to the state of the world that he has been locked away from?

This Story Doesn't Feel Like It Will Be Wrapped Up In A Season

We're about halfway through Watchmen Season 1 and while I may be in the dark about a lot of things, I think everyone is in the dark on exactly what the major threat in this series is. The lack of overall clarity is pretty surprising, since Damon Lindelof has confirmed his Watchmen story will wrap up suitably by the end of the season, and he's fine with ending things after that.

Now, that doesn't exactly mean Season 2 of Watchmen won't happen, but if it does, it's entirely possible Damon Lindelof won't be involved. It's hard to imagine a show this bizarre keeping that same energy with someone else at the helm, though Lindelof has mentioned he'd love to see Ryan Coogler take a crack at the franchise. Who knows, by the time this whole event wraps up, fans may be happy with it not returning.

Will HBO Max Rule Streaming In 2020?

Anyone else flying the Owlship blind while watching the series? Share all thoughts in the comments below and remember Watchmen airs on HBO Sundays at 9:00 p.m. ET. Stick with CinemaBlend for updates on the show, and for a look at what's happening in the world of television and movies throughout the rest of 2019.

Actor and comedian John Witherspoon, who was known for his comedic turns on shows such as black-ish, The Tracy Morgan Show and The Wayans Bros., as well as films like the Friday franchise, Dr. Doolittle 2 and Bulworth, died yesterday at the age of 77. After a loving statement from Witherspoon's family, which was posted to his personal Twitter page, confirmed his death, fans, and many of the celebrities he had worked with during his over 40 year career in film and TV, began to post tributes to the comic actor.

Rapper / actor Ice Cube was one of the first to post about John Witherspoon's death. Ice Cube, of course, starred in Friday and its sequels Next Friday and Friday After Next with Witherspoon, who played the father of his character in the franchise. Witherspoon was set to reprise his role in another upcoming sequel, Last Friday, but the film is in pre-production and hasn't begun filming yet. Here's the sweet and simple message Ice Cube posted:

Marlon Wayans, who also played John Withspoon's son, but on The Wayans Bros., which ran from 1995-1999 on The WB, has posted tributes to Witherspoon on his Instagram a few times since learning of his death. But, his first post in particular, is a wonderful remembrance of the man and what he's meant to him and his career. Take a look...

John Witherspoon's long career also included several gigs as a voice actor, and he is well-remembered for his work voicing Granddad on The Boondocks from 2005-2014. Oscar winner Regina King, who voiced Riley on the series and can currently be seen on Watchmen, took to Twitter to share her feelings on Witherspoon's passing:

Questlove, drummer and joint frontman for The Roots (which has served as Jimmy Fallon's Tonight Show house band since 2014), reached out on Instagram to post a beautiful tribute to John Witherspoon which explains why the comedian struck a chord with so many fans...

Comedian, actor and former late night talk show host Arsenio Hall, who has signed on to reprise his role alongside Eddie Murphy in the planned sequel Coming 2 America, also had some lovely words to offer for his fellow comedic legend:

Oscar nominated filmmaker Ava DuVernay, who's currently working on the Warner Bros. / DC comics film New Gods, also stepped up and added a very succinct thank you post for all the work John Witherspoon has done to her Twitter feed...

John Witherspoon, who most recently appeared in Black Jesus for Adult Swim as well as voicing a role in BoJack Horseman, is survived by his wife Angela and his sons, Alexander and JD. All of John Witherspoon's family and friends will be in our thoughts; he will be missed.

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MAJOR SPOILERS below for anyone who hasn't yet watched the second episode of HBO's Watchmen. You have been warned.

After blowing comic book fans and TV viewers away with the revisionist modernization that was Watchmen's star-studded premiere, HBO and creator Damon Lindelof returned for another Sunday night of shocking reveals, badass action and, of course, more comic book references than you could shake a (flaccid blue) stick at. Episode 2 continued following up on the events that followed Alan Moore and Dave Gibbon's seminal comic series, dropping some huge reveals for Regina King's Angela, Don Johnson's Judd and more characters.

Similar to how I broke down the Watchmen debut episode, the following is a mostly sequential rundown of all the biggest comic references and easter eggs that happened in Episode 2. Feel free to mention anything I missed in the comments, too.

The Importance Of Titles

Though last week's premiere title was about as on the nose as the top of Sister Night's mask, Watchmen's second entry "Martial Feats of Comanche Horsemanship" was more of a metaphorical nod to its biggest early-season mystery. It comes from the title of George Catlin's 19th century painting of a similar name – Comanche Feats of Horsemanship – and refers to the mighty horse-riding skills the Comanche members built up. In particular, their ability to hang surreptitiously off the side of a horse in mid-gallop, keeping them out of enemies' sight.

When the painting was revealed onscreen above the Crawfords' mantle, clear observations could be made, especially given what was revealed about the late chief just prior. Less obvious to decipher, though, was director Nicole Kassell's thought-provoking close-up on the painted horse's mouth. A reference to the common phrase, or perhaps to Joyce Cary's 1944 novel?

Pipe Smoking

In the world of Watchmen's comic books, tobacco is generally smoked through either hand-rolled cigarettes or through glass-ball pipes used by Laurie and others. For the Watchmen TV series, it hasn't become entirely clear how modern citizens get their nicotine fixes, but Episode 2's 1920s flashback sequence did feature a German military leader smoking a traditional tobacco pipe. A sign of changes to come?

Doctor Manhattan Tidbits

Before coming slightly more clean with Angela, Will Reeves threw the idea out there that he might actually be Doctor Manhattan, justifying it by referencing the superhuman's ability to make multiple copies of himself, as he did during an awkward bedroom moment with Laura. Will also referenced Doctor Manhattan growing to be 100 feet tall, which was shown during a war scene in Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons' comic, as well as how he could change his skin color, which Manhattan had done for his TV interview.

Watchmen Spoilers: Series Premiere Director Talks Deadly Twist, Doctor Manhattan's Whereabouts And More

Interestingly, Will also mentions the possibility that Doctor Manhattan could pose on Earth as a normal human, which isn't something the comic book was direct about. (But would strengthen theories that the Manhattan seen via satellite isn't the "real" version. Though it seemed like Will was just distracting Angela when making those claims, it didn't seem very coincidental when Will's egg timer went off just as Angela got her big phone call. Plus, he pulled that egg out of boiling water with his bare hand, so there's certainly something up with him.

Hiroshima Lovers Grafitti

One of the comic book's most frequently used visuals is the shadowy lovers' embrace that is painted on various walls in Watchmen's New York City, which led to a variety of other shadow-related imagery in the text. The doomsaying graffiti references two lovers' final embrace before the atomic bomb dropped in Hiroshima, with only their silhouette left behind.

In the TV show, the Hiroshima shadow is first seen in an alleyway outside of Sister Night's headquarters and bakery. It's an obvious reference to throw into the live-action series, but one wonders what its relevance is in Watchmen's 2019, which is clearly more focused on in-country fighting as opposed to Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons' increasingly hectic global situation. Does the Kavalry have something atomic up its sleeve with all those watch batteries, or is that more up Adrian Veidt's alley?

The Newsstand Is Back

Following the squid disaster (that was absent from Zack Snyder's extremely faithful adaptation) the Watchmen comic had replaced Bernard's oft-seen newsstand with a New York Gazette vending machine, but Damon Lindelof & Co. thankfully reintroduced the concept in Episode 2. Obviously Bernard and his comic-reading buddy Bernie perished 30+ years earlier, so now we have The Wire and Ballers vet Robert Ray Wisdom as Tulsa's corner vendor hocking copies of the still-around-in-this-world Elle, Essence and Maxim, along with other comic-familiar brands seen below.

Interestingly enough, Robert Ray Wisdom's character is named Seymour. It might have been too much to have another Bernard take over Watchmen's corner newsstand, but comic fans know that Seymour was the name of the New Frontiersman worker who, on the comic's final page, was seen reaching for Rorschach's submitted journal, presumably to publish it. He's likely responsible for the journal getting out there in HBO's Watchmen, too. (Perhaps non-incidentally, DC's official semi-sequel Doomsday Clock revealed that Seymour was beaten to death soon after the journal went public.) Incidental homage or legitimately significant clue?

New Frontiersman And Nova Express

Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons set up New Frontiersman as an overtly conservative publication that promoted stereotypically prejudiced views about race, culture, etc, along with generally siding with masked vigilante justice. Rorschach was a regular reader, and its editor in the comic, Hector Godfrey, was revealed to have been something of a KKK apologist, at least on the TV show's Peteypedia website. It's likely that publishing Rorschach's journal boosted the pub's popularity, keeping it alive into the Seventh Kalvary-populated present.

On the flip side of the political spectrum is Nova Express, a liberal-leaning magazine that's much more disapproving about unlawful vigilantes and other social issues. In the HBO episode, a young girl received a stack of publications from Seymour to give to an unnamed recipient. She was told that the Nova Express is late, but that it would be put in the next order. The comics' Nova Express got its money from the ever-present Pyramid Deliveries, which was likely owned by Veidt Enterprises, so it'll be interesting to see if the TV show goes behind the curtain for those details.

Clocks, Of Course

As it went in the premiere, the Watchmen TV show is just as intent on giving viewers clock visuals as the comic book was, and there were two significant Episode 2 references worth mentioning here. First, it was 11:30 a.m. or so on the morning after Judd's body was found, possibly indicating that the modern-day storyline is still fairly far away from reaching absolute chaos.

Conversely, it was revealed that the most recent hyper-tragedy, the heinous White Night massacre, went down in the last minute before midnight, and on Christmas Eve, no less). Expect Sister Night's Watchmen narrative to once again creep closer to the witching hour as its first (and possibly only) season goes on.

Pirate And Owl Costumes

This one is pretty obvious. The kids' Halloween fun included a pirate costume and an owl costumes, both clearly tied to the heights of pirates' pop culture pull in Watchmen and to the existence of owl-related superheroes. (The fact that the "ghost" looked so much like a Klansman shouldn't go ignored, either.)

Hooded Justice & Rolf Müeller

The German origins of the "Watch Over This Boy" pamphlet quickly fueled some post-premiere fan theories about Will Reeves' possible connection to the vigilante Hooded Justice, which Damon Lindelof and Watchmen's writers seemed to anticipate. Episode 2 introduced the Hooded Justice mystery through its American Hero Story show-within-a-show, and went the Before Watchmen route of debunking theories that German strongman Rolf Müeller was his actual alter ego.

With some Zack Snyder-esque slo-mo fight scenes adding to the fun, this Hooded Justice sequence might have appeared to be a one-off easter egg if it wasn't for the episode's very first scene, which introduced Annika Pampel's Fräulein Müller as the original typist for Will Reeves' war pamphlet. Does she have anything to do with Hooded Justice's origins, and how will any of that carry on into the overall narrative? Also, did Will's assumed father frustratedly turn his back on the U.S. during the war to escape racial bigotry?

Alien Invasion Headline And Other Squid Stuff

In the American Hero Story sequence, a newspaper boy promoted a headline about Orson Welles' 1938 War of the Worlds radio broadcast proven to be a fictional production. The headline used, though, spoke far more directly to the Watchmen comic's climax: "Alien Invasion Is Just A Hoax." It doesn't yet appear that this universe's citizens ever discovered the truth about Adrian Veidt's squid plot, and viewers are still waiting to understand how that global event permanently changed the planet.

That wasn't the only squid-centered reference in Episode 2, of course. One newspaper noted that squids fell on four different cities, and another headline read "Squid Falls Baffle Scientists," further implying that everyone in Watchmen's world is just as clueless as fans are about the various cephalopod incidents. Though viewers have theories about how Veidt may have followed up on his initial squid catastrophe.

The Comedian And Judd Crawford Connections

The Watchmen premiere made it pretty obvious that Don Johnson's Tulsa Police Chief Judd Crawford was going to be an explicit TV stand-in for Edward Blake's Comedian, and the comic comparisons continued in Episode 2. When Angela followed Will's advice about seeking out Judd's secrets, she discovered his bedroom closet contained a secret compartment where a KKK hood and robe were displayed, with a police star brazenly affixed to the front. This reveal no doubt involves the photograph more prominently displayed in Judd's closet.

In Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons' Watchmen, Rorschach looked deeper into Edward Blake's private life after his death, discovering all of Blake's hidden Comedian gear. The comic book placed an impetus on showing how immoral The Comedian could be even while doing "heroic" work for the U.S., so TV audiences can likely expect to learn more about Judd's dark and complicated history in Tulsa, and possibly elsewhere. It appears Watchmen will flesh that story out through flashbacks, similar to how The Comedian's story was developed, so here's hoping Don Johnson continues popping up.

Doctor Manhattan's Blue Dong, And The Rest Of That Play

Jeremy Irons' maybe-Veidt sequence was once again worthy of much contemplation. First, it appears that his Watchmaker's Son play has been performed a variety of times by his assistants, with the portion seen in the episode being Janey and Jon's final Gila Flats exchange before the accident that turned him into Doctor Manhattan. How does maybe-Veidt know about those details, and why does he have such a blatant emotional attachment to seeing it play out? (Unless he is Doctor Manhattan. Might as well officially guess it at this point.)

The play sequence is also the Watchmen TV show's first reference to one of the comic's more X-rated visuals, Doctor Manhattan's penis. The full-frontal blue-dity was on display once Manhattan himself showed up in the play, though it obviously doesn't count as an official Doctor Manhattan dong sighting. However, there's nary a shade of a doubt that Damon Lindelof will deliver legit superhuman genitalia before the season is over, so keep those bingo cards handy.

Gordian Knots

Comic readers' ears likely perked up when Jeremy Irons hollered that Gordian knot line. Historically, the Gordian knot ties back to Alexander the Great's problem-solving skills, with claims that his approach to a supposedly impossible-to-untangle knot was just to cut the knot with his sword. Today, the phrase "cutting the Gordian knot" refers to solving a problem in a way that completely bypasses the perceived obstacles.

In the Watchmen comics, the Gordian Knot Lock Co. is a business that's frequently employed by anyone who gets surprise visits from Rorschach, whose mode of uninvited home entry usually involved kicking front doors in. Instead of picking the locks, Rorschach just destroyed the area surrounding them, which fits with the meaning.

Adrian Veidt's Cloning

I love that Watchmen only took two episodes to set up and reveal that maybe-Veidt's various assistants are all cloned versions of the same male and female played respectively by Sleepy Hollow's Tom Mison and Endeavour's Sara Vickers. It was very curious why "everyone else" remained unseen, or made to wear masks, as it went with the musicians and stagehands during the play performance. The comic's Adrian Veidt hadn't cloned any human beings, at least assumedly, but his iconic pet Bubastis was indeed genetically created. The lynx reappeared in the Doomsday Clock series, despite getting obliterated in the original storyline, implying it was a clone.

This reveal wouldn't be properly Watchmen without a secondary implication, though. Maybe-Veidt advised for the incinerated former Mr. Phillips to be thrown in the basement with all the others, and said that there will be a use for all those burned-up corpses before too long. How will all those scarred bodies play into the presumed villain's next big game-changing scheme? I am oddly attracted to the idea of them being smooshed together to make a new version of the alien squid creature.

Family Heritage Surprises

One of the bigger under-the-radar twists in Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons' Watchmen comic was the subdued reveal that, in the years after Edward Blake assaulted Sally Jupiter, the two heroes had more consensual relations. Likely not just once, either, considering Sally's nostalgic longing at the end of the source material. Laurie eventually connected the dots and realized that The Comedian was her real father, which obviously messed with her. The Watchmen TV show website revealed she later took his last name, Blake, and changed her vigilante persona to that of The Comedienne.

What does that say for Regina King's Angela Abar, who learned in the final minutes that Lou Gossett Jr.'s Will Reeves is actually her grandfather? The reveal's implications weren't immediately obvious, since we don't know much about Angela's past yet, such as whether her parents are biological or adopted. Could Angela's role as an adoptive parent be paying it forward from her own childhood? Or was Will's role in the family tree covered up over the years? It should go without saying that I'm also confounded by that flying craft that took off with Will and Angela's car.

Other Connections And Questions

How crazy was it to see Angela's son Topher building a hovering replica of maybe-Veidt's castle using those "Magna-Hattan Blocks?" And how much crazier was it when he demolished it similar to how Doctor Manhattan destroyed his Mars-crafted castle? Are Topher and Doctor Manhattan linked up in some way?

How significant was it that the biological father character portrayed by Jim Beaver showed up at Angela's house, but was happy to accept money rather than seeing his kid? A quality character actor like that definitely wouldn't have been cast just for a one-off appearance.

I came close to making an entry out of Angela's lack of sugar (for Will's coffee) being a reference to the way Rorschach stole Dan's sugar cubes in the comic book, but inevitably felt it was too much of a stretch.

An interesting American Horror Story and American Hero Story connection went down in the episode, with frequent Ryan Murphy collaborator Cheyenne Jackson thanklessly taking on the role of Hooded Justice. I can only hope more AHS stars will be used to fill out the rest of the Minutemen roles.

I couldn't help but take notice that presidential candidate Senator Keene was wearing a pin on his jacket lapel. No blood was spilling down it just yet, but what about in the future?

Who exactly are Will Reeves' "friends in high places" that he spoke of? Other vigilantes? Aliens?

Despite the fact that the Seventh Kavalry uses Rorschach masks as their defining feature, Tim Blake Nelson's Looking Glass feels far more like the true successor to the comic book's morally wavering vigilante. Especially during his conversation with Angela, in which his accusatory nature and his disrupted emotional state are fully visible, despite his "face" being mostly on.

With two episodes down, Watchmen will continue its highly acclaimed Season 1 run every Sunday night on HBO at 8:00 p.m. ET.

One might think there would be a tipping point for superheroes on TV, but we are definitely not there yet. And HBO knows it, with the network going forward with its mega-ensemble adaptation of Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons' seminal graphic novel Watchmen. With the series premiere now here, Damon Lindelof's episodic take on the superhero saga can finally start to show off its stunning cast.

Given HBO's history with original programming, it's no surprise that Watchmen rocks a bunch of talented stars. So let's take a look at all the Watchmen cast members and characters we know so far. It's possible that even more new characters will be revealed as the season goes on, too.

Don Johnson - Chief Judd Crawford

Former Miami Vice frontman Don Johnson has gone through a TV renaissance in recent years, from the short-lived Blood & Oil to the comedy Sick Note to Fox's cancelled LA to Vegas. But while he's always been a badass, he's never been part of the comics, and Watchmen should be a fantastic start. His character Judd Crawford will be Angela's boss and the chief of police in the story.

Regina King - Detective Angela Abar/ Sister Night

From American Crime to The Leftovers to The Boondocks, Regina King knows a little something about making popular and wildly acclaimed TV. Watchmen will hopefully be just as popular and critically adored, and I would bet money on King being a big part of that appeal. Her character Detective Angela Abar fights injustice as a member of the masked police force under her hero pseudonym Sister Night. Details on her character are still pretty sparse, but we've wondered if there's a Silk Spectre connection.

Tim Blake Nelson - Looking Glass

One of cinema's most fantastic character actors, most notably within the Coen brothers' filmography, Tim Blake Nelson has popped up in two comic book movies that weren't the most memorable, but Watchmen should change all that. Empire reported Nelson's been cast as an Oklahoman cop who may be a sociopath named Looking Glass. Looking Glass sports a silver reflective mask that is the perfect accessory to help people remember his name.

Lou Gossett Jr. - Will Reeves

With such classics as Roots, An Officer and a Gentlemen and Iron Eagle in his past, Lou Gossett Jr. has appeared in so many TV shows and movies, it's hard to keep up. Most recently, he could be seen in the now-cancelled Hap and Leonard and in Season 1 of The Good Fight, with many more projects on the horizon. Gossett plays Will Reeves who, according to EW, is a survivor of the Tulsa 1921 race riots.

Adelaide Clemens - ???

Having starred in one of TV's most powerful dramas, Rectify, Adelaide Clemens certainly had work cut out for her in finding an equally noteworthy follow-up show. Clemens was initially reported to play Pirate Jenny in this modern sequel, though that role ended up going to another actress.

Andrew Howard - Red Scare

Having appeared in some of the most popular shows on TV, actor Andrew Howard is no stranger to the world of action and comic book stories. He was part of the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. cast some years back, and has been seen in Limitless, Hell on Wheels, 24: Legacy, The Brave and Bates Motel. He plays Red Scare in Watchmen, and dons a red track suit while working with the police department.

Jeremy Irons - Adrian Veidt/Ozymandias (Probably)

Jeremy Irons has a long history of prestigious and popular projects in showbiz, ranging from playing Alfred in the DC extended universe to Rodrigo Borgia in The Borgias to Scar himself in The Lion King. He even won the Academy Award for Best Actor in 1991 for his performance in Reversal of Fortune. Slashfilm has reported that Irons will be playing Adrian Veldt, aka Ozymandias, in what will be an older version of the ego-mad quasi-villain.

Tom Mison - Mr. Phillips

Prior to 2013, Tom Mison was primarily known for projects filmed across the pond. Pride and Prejudice fans will recognize his character's name, Mr. Bingley, from the 2008 miniseries Lost in Austen on ITV, and he was back on the miniseries circuit in 2012 with Parade's End. In 2013, he debuted as Ichabod Crane in Sleepy Hollow, which ran for four seasons. His Watchmen character is named Mr. Phillips, a servant to Adrian Veldt.

Frances Fisher - Jane Crawford

Despite a long and prosperous career, Frances Fisher is probably still best known for her role as Rose's mom in Titanic. More recently, she had multi-episode runs on Resurrection, Criminal Minds, Masters of Sex, and Swedish Dicks, as well as a memorable appearance in Fargo. Like Tom Mison, she appeared in a project based on Pride and Prejudice will the Hallmark movie Marrying Mr. Darcy. Fisher will play Jane Crawford, the wife of Don Johnson's Judd Crawford.

Jacob Ming-Trent - Panda

The career of Jacob Ming-Trent kicked off back in 2007 with an appearance on Law & Order: Criminal Intent, but he didn't get a bigger break into the TV biz until almost a decade later with AMC's short-lived Feed the Beast in 2016. He followed that up in 2017 with Showtime's White Famous, although that too was cancelled after one season. His Watchmen character is Panda, and all we know about him so far is he wears a giant plush Panda head.

Yahya Abdul-Mateen II - Cal Abar

Yahya Abdul-Mateen II made a name for himself in 2016 with The Get Down, where he played the character Cadillac. He then moved to the big screen for roles in Baywatch and The Greatest Showman. He made a return to streaming television with an episode of The Handmaid's Tale and was featured as the villain Black Manta in Aquaman. In Watchmen, he'll play the husband of Regina King's Angela, Cal Abar.

Sara Vickers - Ms. Crookshanks

Scottish actress Sara Vickers is best-known for her performance as Joan Thursday in Endeavour, which airs on ITV. She's turned in performances in the period pieces The Alienist and The Crown. In 2016, she appeared in the third season of British crime drama Shetland in a stint running six episode. Prior to that, she could be seen in Privates on the BBC. Who does she play in Watchmen? Her character's name is Ms. Crookshanks, but that's about all we know for now.

Jean Smart - Agent Blake/Silk Spectre

Jean Smart has had a couple of memorable gigs on television as of late, but superhero show fans may recognize her as Melanie Bird from FX's recently concluded Legion. Smart will play an FBI agent investigating a murder by the name of Agent Blake. We don't know a ton about Smart's character in the present, though it has been revealed she was formerly the Silk Spectre.

James Wolk - Senator Keane

James Wolk, who was a big part of CBS All Access twisted fairy tale series Tell Me A Story, is apparently playing a sizable role in Watchmen. Wolk will be playing Senator Keane, who as mentioned, will be a big part of Season 1 as it unfolds. We're guessing because of some political policy he'll be in support of, though he could always be a hero or villain in disguise.

Jessica Camacho - ???

From her roles on The Flash, Jessica Camacho is no stranger to superhero shows. Now, she's coming into Watchmen with an unknown role, though some are saying she's playing Pirate Jenny. As mentioned earlier with Adelaide Clemens, there's some discrepancy on who's actually playing that role, but we should know once the season gets rolling.

Hong Chau - Lady Trieu

Hong Chau (Downsizing) will play what is being called a key role in Watchmen. For now, all we know is that Trieu is Vietnamese, which comes from Deadline. The fact that the series is being cagey about her role makes us think there's more to it than is being said, so look for some surprise to come from her character.

Dylan Schombing - ???

He may be one of the younger actors of the lot, but Dylan Schombing has made quite a career for himself in a relatively short time. Schombing appeared in the much-hyped American adaptation of The Slap and had long-running roles on Girlfriends' Guide To Divorce and HBO's Sharp Objects. There are no details or rumors about Schombing's role in Watchmen at this time.

Adelynn Spoon - Emma Abar

Adelynn Spoon is a fresh face to Hollywood with Watchmen being one of her first two roles in Hollywood. Spoon is one of three children involved in the production, and will be playing the child of the Abar family, Emma. Her role is listed as recurring, so it's unknown just how much of an impact her character will have in Season 1.

Lily Rose Smith-???

Lily Rose Smith is another relatively fresh face in Hollywood who has joined the cast of Watchmen, but she has had one sizable role prior to joining. Smith was a part of The Vampire Diaries and played the part of Josie Saltzman from 2015 to 2017. Again, we're not sure how these three children will be incorporated into the show's plot, although we're optimistic Damien Lindelof has something in mind for all of these young talents.

For now, these are all the cast members that Watchmen currently has lined up for its HBO debut. Stay tuned for more announcements, and bookmark our fall and midseason premiere guides for all the new and returning shows hitting primetime soon.

If you've seen If Beale Street Could Talk then you know that it's one of the most original love stories ever put on the big screen. The film focuses on Tish Rivers (KiKi Layne), a 19-year-old pregnant woman whose life long friend and now fiancé, Fonny (Stephan James) has been imprisoned for a crime he did not commit. As we follow Tish and Fonny's love story, we also see the efforts of Tish and her family to prove Fonny's innocence as the young couple struggles to keep their love alive through near impossible circumstances.

While the movie is far from a comedy, it turns out that Oscar-winning star Regina King, who plays Tish's mom Sharon, actually feels that the strong family bonds exemplified by the Rivers family (which is also comprised of Colman Domingo as dad Joseph and Teyonah Parris and sister Ernestine) remind her of those of a popular sitcom family from a classic show. Here's what King had to say:

I have to say, as I was watching the special features on the Blu-Ray for If Beale Street Could Talk (which is out now), I was very surprised to find that Regina King could make any comparison between the Rivers family in this sad, yet hopeful and lyrical love story and the Evans family from Good Times, which ran from 1974 through 1980 on CBS. But, after seeing how King manages to make the connection I can certainly understand how she came to such a conclusion.

As King mentioned, the Rivers and Evans families both share an easy closeness and are capable of having lots of fun with each other. Both families also deal with poverty and the dire circumstances that can cause, especially when things go wrong, but each group is also completely dedicated to supporting its members and showering them with as much love as possible to help them get through all the trials that life throws at them.

As you might imagine, getting a cast together that feels like a real family can be difficult, and director Barry Jenkins, who spoke about If Beale Street Could Talk during the same featurette, explained how the cast became like a real family during shooting.

No wonder the positive feelings of love and never-ending support for one another, no matter the situation, came through so well in If Beale Street Could Talk. If you want to check the movie out for the first time, or give it another watch, it's available right now on Blu-Ray, DVD and Digital HD.

Regina King didn't intend on stealing the show when she attended a recent NBA game between the Philadelphia 76ers and the New York Knicks in Madison Square Garden, but that's exactly what happened when she almost wound up in a collision with athlete Joel Embiid trying to catch a loose ball in the middle of the game. The Academy Award-nominated actress certainly had a memorable reaction to the situation too, as you can see below.

As it was recounted by Good Morning America, Joel Embiid was making a bit to catch the high-flying ball during this week's basketball game when he opted to fly straight into the crowd and halo over Regina King's head, who ducked instantly when the 7-foot (!) professional basketball player went into the air and flying towards the ball.

Thankfully, it appears that Regina King wasn't hurt during the incident, although the person behind her might've gotten an injury or two based on the footage that's presented in this social media clip. It certainly would've been awkward if King found herself with an injury before she is set to walk down the red carpet for this year's 91st annual Academy Awards ceremony. But thankfully, the star appears unharmed.

Regina King wasn't the only celebrity in attendance during the basketball game. Tracy Morgan can also be seen in the crowd, and he appears to be laughing at the wild spectacle that he saw during this sporting event. It's not every day that you see an Academy Award-nominated actress almost get thrown off her rocker by a professional athlete, but that's (almost) what happened during this sporting event. But Regina King doesn't appear to have walked away with any injuries. Instead, she left with a story she's not likely to forget anytime soon -- especially since it's on camera.

As it was mentioned earlier, Regina King is celebrating a career high-point at the moment. The actress was nominated for Best Supporting Actress for her tremendous work in Barry Jenkins' masterful adaptation of If Beale Street Could Talk, and it's her first Oscar nomination. It is not yet known if she will win the coveted award later this month, since it's a competitive category (as per usual) with Emma Stone, Rachel Weisz, Marina de Tavira and Amy Adams vying for the award too. But King has a decent chance of winning, notably since she took home the Golden Globe in January.

With that, the next time we write about Regina King, there's a pretty darn good chance it will be because the actress won her first Academy Award. But we'll obviously keep you posted if that happens during the height of awards season. For now, though, if you want to catch up on the latest news in film, television, pop culture, video games and more, you can always check back with us right here at CinemaBlend.

Netflix has been producing an ton of new and exciting content over the past few years. And while the streaming service has recently begun producing unscripted shows like Queer Eye or food show Ugly Delicious, its true bread and butter is the fantastic scripted content. It seems every few months brings a new release, and this week is no exception. Crime drama Seven Seconds is just hours from hitting the web in its entirety, focusing on how an accidental death can escalates already existing racial tensions. With much of the drama focusing on issues between law enforcement and African American citizens, the themes feel something close to what we've been seeing on the news. It's for this reason that actress Clare-Hope Ashitey believes now is the perfect time for Seven Seconds, recently telling me:

Clare-Hope Ashitey seems to believe that exploring the current tensions between law enforcement and the black community will actually help to address the real life issue. Having one's experience seen on screen helps to validate their feelings, which Ashitey seems to be especially proud of. Art has been known to do crazier things, after all.

Seven Seconds seems like a series that features sympathetic characters on both sides of the central conflict. While there are law enforcement officers in the show help cover up an accidental death, the perpetrator himself is shown feeling regret in the series' trailer. Showing both sides of the tragedy will hopefully allow more bridges to be built.

This is exactly what Clare-Hope Ashitey and I spoke about at Netflix's recent press junket in New York City. The actress hopes that the series will help open people's minds to experiences that might not align with their own. She said,

We should find out how audiences respond to Seven Seconds soon enough, as the series is set to arrive in just one more day. The way that the star tells it, Netflix's new drama may just have the ability to bring people together, while also likely making them ugly cry during their binge watch.

Seven Seconds debuts February 23, 2018 on Netflix. In the meantime, check out our midseason premiere list to plan your next binge watch, our Amazon List and superhero premiere list to make sure you don't miss a single episode.

We all have those scenes in movies that get us every time. The ones that hit us where it hurts and drum up emotions we didn’t know we had. For actor Jake Gyllenhaal the scene that makes him cry every time is in Jerry Maguire. Yet, it’s not the scene at the end that has all the characters crying, but rather one a few minutes before that shows how much another couple in the film is in love.

The scene takes place near the end of the film while Tom Cruise’s title character is on the sidelines of the football game with his client, Rod Tidwell, the role that won Cuba Gooding Jr. an Oscar. Tidwell takes a massive hit in the endzone which knocks him unconscious. This leads to Jerry calling Tidwell’s wife Marcee, played by Regina King, in order to keep a line of communication open and make sure that she stays calm. Only she’s not calm. She’s in hysterics because her husband may be seriously hurt. The line that puts Gyllenhaal over the edge comes here where King says, "You don’t understand. This family doesn’t work without him."

While the movie is about the budding relationship between Tom Cruise and Renee Zellweger, the one portrayed by King and Gooding Jr. is a huge part of the film. The two young lovers look at King and Gooding's long marriage and see something they would both like to have for themselves one day. The love the two characters have for each other is deep and clear. This is what makes such a scene so powerful, when it looks like, if only for a moment, what they have may be gone.

In the interview with W Magazine, Gyllenhaal gets very emotional talking about the scene so you can see how it gets him worked up. He says the combination of King’s delivery along with Cruise’s attempts to keep her calm is what does it for him. Check out the interview below.

It’s an interesting choice for a scene because it’s not the one people remember. If people think of the football game at the end of the movie they don’t think about the hit, and the aftermath of it, so much as the touchdown dance that occurs immediately following the scene, once it’s discovered that Rod Tidwell is ok.

Then, of course, there is the oft-quoted scene that follows that one, where Jerry Maguire races home to try and save his own relationship.

Is Jerry Maguire one of the movies that makes you cry? Let’s get emotional in the comments below.