Every once in a while, celebrity siblings - such as Ben and Casey Affleck or Dakota and Elle Fanning - end up sharing the screen together. Well, apparently it happens a little more often than just every once in a while, given the amount of examples we compiled below.

Jake And Maggie Gyllenhaal (A Dangerous Woman, Homegrown, Donnie Darko)

Oscar nominee Jake Gyllenhaal and his twice-nominated older sister, Maggie, are in three movies together: 1993’s A Dangerous Woman, 1998’s Homegrown (both were directed by their father, Stephen), and the eventual sci-fi cult classic, Donnie Darko, in 2001.

Jeff And Beau Bridges (The Fabulous Baker Boys)

Oscar winner Jeff Bridges and his older brother, Beau, also played siblings in The Fabulous Baker Boys - a 1989 comedy in which the titular musicians become rivals after teaming up with a beautiful aspiring singer (Michelle Pfieffer).

Kate And Rooney Mara (Urban Legends: Bloody Mary)

Kate Mara of the House of Cards cast led the 2005 straight-to-video slasher, Urban Legends: Bloody Mary, in which her younger sister, Nightmare Alley’s Rooney Mara, made her acting debut.

Sean And Chris Penn (At Close Range)

Future two-time Oscar-winner Sean Penn and his late younger brother, Chris (best known from the Reservoir Dogs cast) played siblings in the 1986 crime thriller, At Close Range, starring Christopher Walken as their criminal father.

Andrew, Owen, And Luke Wilson (Bottle Rocket, The Royal Tenenbaums) 

Owen Wilson and his younger sibling, Luke have also acted alongside their eldest brother, Andrew, in 1996’s Bottle Rocket and The Royal Tenenbaums from 2001 - both of which Owen also co-wrote with director Wes Anderson.

Chris And Luke Hemsworth (Thor: Ragnarok)

Chris Hemsworth has yet to star in anything with his little bro, Liam, but the Australian Marvel movie star’s older bother, Westworld star Luke, did show up in Thor: Ragnarok as a dramatized version of the God of Thunder, whom he is set to reprise (along with Matt Damon as “Actor Loki”) in Thor: Love and Thunder.

Dylan And Cole Sprouse (Various)

Twin brothers Dylan and Cole Sprouse (the latter of which went on to join the Riverdale cast) have shared the same role in several TV shows (most notably Grace Under Fire) and movies (such as Big Daddy with Adam Sandler) and have played siblings just as often, most famously as the title characters of The Suite Life of Zack & Cody, its spin-off The Suite Life on Deck, and 2011’s The Suite Life Movie.

Tia, Tamera, And Tahj Mowry  (Sister, Sister, Smart Guy, Seventeen Again)

Twin sisters Tia and Tamera Mowry have shared the screen with their little brother, Tahj, several times - most notably as guest stars on each other’s respective sitcoms, Sister, Sister and Smart Guy, and in the 2000 Showtime original movie, Seventeen Again.

James And Dave Franco (The Disaster Artist)

After years finding success in the business in separate projects, James Franco and his younger brother, Dave, played Tommy Wiseau and Greg Sestero of the infamous cult favorite, The Room, in the 2017 biopic, The Disaster Artist.

Hilary And Haylie Duff (Various)

Haylie Duff would appear on three episodes of her younger sister, Hilary’s, Disney Channel show, Lizzie McGuire, and provided the singing voice of Isabella Parigi in the theatrical spin-off before they both played a singing group on an episode of American Dreams, sisters in the 2006 rags-to-riches story Material Girls, and both leant their voices to the infamous animated movie Foodfight!, which was released in 2012.

Aly And AJ Michalka (Various)

Singer-songwriter duo Aly and AJ Michalka first shared the screen in the 2006 Disney Channel original movie Cow Belles as sisters, again in the MTV original Super Sweet 16: The Movie the next year as rivals, followed by three episodes of Aly’s CW series Hellcats in 2011 as half-sisters. Most recently, they appeared in the 2015 drama, Weepah Way For Now, as what appear to be fictionalized versions of themselves.

Dakota And Elle Fanning (I Am Sam, Taken)

Elle Fanning has portrayed a younger version of her older sister, Dakota, on two separate occasions: first in the 2001 drama I Am Sam and secondly in the Steven Spielberg-produced, Syfy original miniseries, Taken, in 2002.

Spencer And Abigail Breslin (Various)

Academy Award nominee Abigail and her older brother, Spencer, played siblings in both Raising Helen and The Princess Diaries 2: A Royal Engagement in 2004, played elves in The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause in 2006, and later played cousins in the 2014 crime drama, Perfect Sisters.

Jason And Justine Bateman (Arrested Development)

Justine Bateman played her real-life brother, Jason's, sibling in the 1986 TV movie Can You Feel Me Dancing? and a sex worker whom Jason’s Michael Bluth mistakes for his long-lost sibling on Arrested Development.

John, Joan, Ann, And Bill Cusack (Grosse Pointe Blank)

While beloved star John Cusack and his Academy-nominated sister, Joan, have appeared in more films together than most celebrity siblings can claim (including Say Anything… and High Fidelity), the only screen credit that they also share with both their sister, Ann, and brother, Bill, is 1997’s Grosse Pointe Blank, which John also co-wrote and produced.

Bill And Brian Doyle Murray (Various) 

Bill Murray and his older brother, Brian, are both Saturday Night Live veterans (although at different times) and have several classic movies in common - including Caddyshack, Scrooged, Ghostbusters II, Groundhog Day, and The Razor's Edge.

Ben And Casey Affleck (Good Will Hunting, Chasing Amy)

Years before casting him in his amazing directorial debut, Gone Baby Gone, Ben Affleck shared the screen with his younger brother and fellow Oscar winner, Casey, in Good Will Hunting (which Ben co-wrote with Matt Damon) and Kevin Smith’s Chasing Amy in 1997.

Macaulay And Kieran Culkin (Home Alone, Home Alone 2: Lost in New York)

Kieran Culkin (now more famous than ever since starring on HBO’s Succession) made his acting debut alongside his older brother (child megastar Macaulay Culkin) in 1990’s Home Alone cast as his cousin, Fuller - a role he would also reprise in the 1992 sequel.

Rory And Kieran Culkin (Igby Goes Down)

In addition to playing Macaulay’s younger self in Richie Rich, the youngest Culkin brother, Rory, also played a younger version of Kieran as the title role in 2002's Igby Goes Down.

The Wayans Siblings (Various) 

Where do we start with the Wayans Siblings? Well, for instance, several of them (such as Damon and Kim Wayans) were a part of the In Living Color cast with star and creator Keenen Ivory Wayans, who later directed his younger brothers, Marlon and Shawn, in movies like White Chicks, the first two Scary Movie installments, and Little Man.

Zooey And Emily Deschanel (Bones)

In Season 5 of Bones, star Emily Deschanel’s sister (Zooey of the Elf cast fame and later the lead of the New Girl cast) guest starred as Temperance Brennan’s second cousin, Margaret Whitesell.

Fred And Ben Savage (Little Monsters, The Wonder Years, Boy Meets World)

After playing siblings in the family-friendly horror film, Little Monsters, in 1989, Ben Savage made a guest appearance on his older brother, Fred’s, hit dramedy, The Wonder Years, in 1990 and later returned the favor by inviting him to the Boy Meets World cast for an episode in 1998.

Charlie Sheen And Emilio Estevez (Various)

After making several movies together - including Young Guns, Men At Work, and Rated X (the latter two of which Emilio Estevez directed), Charlie Sheen (née Carlos Estevez) reunited with his brother on an episode of his hit sitcom, Two and a Half Men, in 2008.

Vanessa and Laura Marano (Saving Zoë)

Both of these talented ladies had guest appearances on Dexter at different times in the series’ run, but Vanessa Marano and her younger sister, Laura, did appear together in the 2019 mystery, Saving Zoë, as siblings torn apart by one’s unsolved murder.

Nat And Alex Wolff (The Naked Brothers Band, Mr. Troop Mom, Stella’s Last Weekend)

Hereditary’s Alex Wolff and his older brother, Peacock’s Joe vs. Carole cast member Nat Wolff, both debuted as fictionalized versions of themselves in Nickelodeon’s faux rockumentary, The Naked Brothers Band, its series continuation, and the 2009 TV movie Mr. Troop Mom before reuniting in 2018’s Stella’s Last Weekend, which was written and directed by their mother, Polly Draper.

Vera And Taissa Farmiga (Higher Ground, At Middleton, The Nun)

Scream Queens Vera and Taissa Farmiga, who are often mistaken for mother and daughter, played mother and daughter in 2013’s At Middleton after Taissa previously played her older sister’s younger self in Vera’s 2011 directorial debut, Higher Ground. However, interestingly, their characters in the 2018 Conjuring spin-off, The Nun, have no apparent familial ties.

Maude And Iris Apatow (Knocked Up, This Is 40, Funny People)

Euphoria’s Maude Apatow and her younger sister, Iris, have played siblings in 2007’s Knocked Up, its “sort-of sequel” This is 40 from 2012, and 2009’s Funny People - all three of which also starred their real mother, Leslie Mann, as their mother, and were written and directed by their father, Judd Apatow.

Dan And Sarah Levy (Schitt’s Creek)

While Annie Murphy plays co-creator Dan Levy’s on-screen sister in the Schitt’s Creek cast, Café Tropical owner, Twyla Sands, is played by his real-life sister, Sarah.

Mary-Kate, Ashley, And Elizabeth Olsen (How The West Was Fun)

After Full House made the Olsen Twins, Mary-Kate and Ashley, household names and  before the Marvel movies made their younger sister, Elizabeth, an A-lister, all three of them appeared together in the ABC original TV movie How the West Was Fun in 1994.

Bill And Alexander Skarsgård (White Water Fury)

Years before his terrifying performance as Pennywise in It, Bill Skarsgård made his acting debut alongside his older brother, True Blood cast member Alexander, in the 2000 Swedish thriller, White Water Fury.

Blake And Robyn Lively (Simon Says)

Robyn Lively, star of 1989’s Teen Witch, shared the screen with her then up-and-coming half-sister, former Gossip Girl cast member Blake Lively, in a 2006 slasher flick called Simon Says, which also stars fellow ‘80s icon Crispin Glover.

Brian And Domhnall Gleeson (Mother!, Frank Of Ireland)

Despite plenty of years of experience between the them, it was not until 2017 when Star Wars star Domnhall Gleeson and his younger brother, Brian, shared the screen in Mother! before reuniting as co-creators and co-stars of the Amazon Prime original comedy Frank of Ireland - also starring their father, Brendan Gleeson.

Eddie And Charlie Murphy (Harlem Nights, Norbit)

Comedy icon Eddie Murphy worked behind the scenes a lot with his older brother, Charlie, who passed away in 2017, but the two would also share a few acting credits, - namely Eddie’s 1989 directorial debut Harlem Nights (also Charlie’s first movie), and in 2006’s Norbit, in which Charlie voiced a dog named Floyd.

Phylicia Rashad And Debbie Allen (The Cosby Show, Grey’s Anatomy, The Old Settler)

Phylicia Rashad and her younger sister, Emmy-winning dance legend Debbie Allen, have made guest appearances on each other’s shows - The Cosby Show, on which Rashad played Claire Huxtable, and Grey’s Anatomy, on which Allen plays Dr. Catherine Fox (née Avery) - and both starred in a 2001 TV movie called The Old Settler, which Allen also directed.

Ron And Clint Howard (Various) 

You can find Clint Howard in just about every movie directed by his brother, Ron Howard - including his feature-length directorial debut from 1977, Grand Theft Auto, which was also the brothers’ third time acting alongside each other after the 1963 film The Courtship of Eddie’s Father and a handful of episodes of The Andy Griffith Show.

Angelina Jolie And James Haven (Gia, Hell’s Kitchen, Original Sin)

Audiences probably remember Angelina Jolie’s brother, James Haven, better for other reasons than all the times he shared the screen with his younger sister - namely Gia and Hell’s Kitchen from 1998, and 2001’s Original Sin.

Jared And Shannon Leto (Various)

In addition to being bandmates with his young brother, Oscar winner Jared Leto, in 30 Seconds to Mars, Shannon Leto also shared the screen with him on a couple of episodes of My So-Called Life (on which Jared played the iconic Jordan Catalano) and through brief appearances in the movies Prefontaine from 1997, 1998’s Highway, and Sol Goode in 2003.

Chris And Scott Evans (Before We Go, Playing It Cool)

Former Captain America actor Chris Evans has a brother named Scott who has also appeared in two romantic-comedies from 2014 with his older sibling, called Before We Go (which Chris also directed) and Playing It Cool.

Sarah And Laura Silverman (The Sarah Silverman Program, Bob’s Burgers, Masters Of Sex)

Comedian and actress Sarah Silverman and her sister, Laura, played heavily fictionalized versions of themselves as series regulars on The Sarah Silverman Program, made guest appearances on Showtime’s Masters of Sex together, and have recurred on Bob’s Burgers as Jimmy Pesto’s twin sons, Andy and Ollie.

Kevin, Nick, And Joe Jonas (Camp Rock Movies, Jonas)

Back when they were the biggest thing to come out of Disney Channel, Kevin, Nick, and Joe Jonas played three brothers in a band not named the Jonas Brothers in the Camp Rock movies, and later played themselves to more comedic effect in their own sitcom, aptly titled Jonas.

Looks like talent really does run in the family.

Whether Paul Rudd has been one of your favorite leading men since the '90s, or he’s just now becoming one of your favorites to watch, there are plenty of Paul Rudd movies to fit your style. You may be a fan of the Paul who stole his ex-stepsister’s heart, or the one who sometimes fights bad guys and always makes you laugh. You might even be a fan of the more obscure, meme-worthy Paul. There are so many choices when it comes to Paul Rudd’s best movies.

The 2021 sexiest man alive has plenty of great films available to purchase, rent, or stream. For this list, I chose movies that mainly feature Rudd as one of the main characters. There may be a movie or two with him in a supporting role, but the majority of the films on this list have him as the star. It also contains picks from the 1990s and early 2000s, so it's not just new school Paul Rudd.

The 40-Year-Old Virgin (2005)

Middle-aged electronics store employee Andy (Academy Award nominee Steve Carell) lives a quiet and simple -- but a bit lonely -- life that is suddenly upended when his coworkers discover he has never had sex. After his new friends make it their mission to help him lose his virginity, he embarks on a riotous journey of self-rediscovery that may lead him to achieving something more meaningful when he meets a woman around the same age (Academy Award nominee Catherine Keener).

Rudd's first of many collaborations with Judd Apatow, The 40-Year-Old-Virgin, is also the writer and director's debut feature and still considered one of the best Apatow movies to this day that stands out among other raunchy comedies of the time for a surprising dose of maturity and heart. Rudd is a key component to that, giving an endearing performance as Andy's sympathetic, broken-hearted friend, David.

Stream The 40-Year-Old Virgin on Amazon Prime.
Buy The 40-Year-Old Virgin on Blu-ray on Amazon. 

Clueless (1995)

Cher (Alicia Silverstone) is the typical wealthy American teenager. She loves makeovers, shopping, and hanging out with friends, but she starts to reevaluate her life and values when she finds herself falling for an unexpected person.

If you’re like me, you’ve seen Clueless a million and one times and always love it. It’s not just a great movie, but Cher and Josh (Paul Rudd) are relationship goals, even if their relationship is a little on the weird side, because they’re ex-step siblings. The Clueless cast may have done so many things since the 1995 movie, but it’s an epic teen classic that lives on forever, and one of the reasons for its success is Rudd  being so charismatic in it.

Stream Clueless on HBO Max.
Rent/buy Clueless on Amazon.
Get Clueless on DVD/Blu-Ray on Amazon.

The Ant-Man And Marvel Movies (2015-)

Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) was a professional thief who happened to find himself as the new operator of an Ant-Man suit designed by Hank Pym (Michael Douglas). He joined the Marvel Cinematic Universe in 2015's Ant-Man. Rudd has now appeared in numerous MCU projects, including the upcoming Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.

Rudd has brought a light energy to the Marvel Cinematic Universe that always makes it fun to see Scott on screen. He’s far less serious than some of the other characters, and even when he’s trying to be serious, there is still some element of comedy.

Stream Ant-Man on Disney+.
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Get Ant-Man on DvD/Blu-Ray on Amazon.

The Fundamentals Of Caring (2016)

The Fundamentals of Caring is a Netflix original movie about a man who becomes the caregiver of a boy with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. The film stars Paul Rudd, Craig Roberts, and Selena Gomez. The Fundamentals of Caring is one of the great coming of age movies that not only explores learning and growing from the young adult perspective, but from an adult as well.

The Fundamentals of Caring is a comedy but with some serious elements about grief and loss. Rudd manages to keep the film lighthearted while also showing viewers a realistic portrayal of a man deeply saddened and trying to cope with a tragic event.

Stream The Fundamentals of Caring on Netflix.

I Love You, Man (2009)

Fearing that he doesn't have enough close male friends, Peter (Paul Rudd) decides to find a new best male friend before his wedding. He meets Sydney (Jason Segel), and they instantly become great friends, but Peter’s fiancé, Zooey (Rashida Jones), and Sydney don’t mesh as well.

I Love You, Man is a buddy comedy that really leans into the elements that resemble a romantic comedy, especially when Peter and Sydney first initially connect. That’s one of the many ways that I Love You, Man offers a true to form but unique take on the buddy comedy movie. Rudd and Segel also have great on-screen chemistry that almost makes you more interested in their relationship drama than Zooey and Peter’s problems.

Stream I Love You, Man on Netflix.
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Get I Love You, Man on DVD/Blu-Ray on Amazon.

Role Models (2008)

Paul Rudd stars as Danny, a man who works at an energy drink company. Danny has one too many bad days and gets himself and co-worker Wheeler (Seann William Scott) sentenced to do community service as mentors. Role Models also stars Elizabeth Banks, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Bobb’e J.Thompson, and Jane Lynch.

Role Models was also co-written by Paul Rudd. The film includes a slew of well-known comedians in very fitting but over the top roles. Role Models details the life of a man who hates everything, but starts to hate things a little less through mentoring an unusual kid.

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Get Role Models  on DVD/Blu-Ray on Amazon.

Wet Hot American  Summer (2001)

Wet Hot American Summer is a satirical film that takes place during the last day of a fictional summer camp in 1981. It’s a film that satirizes those '80s teen sex comedies. It features an all-star ensemble that includes Amy Poehler, Bradley Cooper, Elizabeth Banks, Ken Marino, and Paul Rudd. Netflix created a TV series version of Wet Hot American Summer that lasted for two seasons and included many of the film’s original cast. 

I wouldn’t say Wet Hot American Summer is for everyone, but for those who can appreciate its quirk and humor, it is a fun film that highlights some of the ridiculousness that makes '80s sex comedies so awesome or cringey/problematic, depending on what stance you take on them. 

Rent/buy Wet Hot American Summer on Amazon.
Get Wet Hot American Summer on DVD/Blu-Ray on Amazon.

This Is 40 (2012)

This is 40 is the sequel/spin-off of Knocked Up. It focuses on the marriage of Pete (Paul Rudd) and Debbie (Leslie Mann), and depicts many of the stresses that their marriage is dealing with as they're both turning 40. This is 40 is one of the three Judd Apatow films that Paul Rudd has appeared in. The other two films were The 40-Year-Old Virgin and Knocked Up.

The 40-Year Old Virgin, in my opinion, is the best of these three films, but Paul Rudd has more of a supporting role in the other two movies, and This is 40 allows him to be the star alongside Leslie Mann. The film is not the happiest look at aging, marriage, or life, but it’s executed with humor and optimism.

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The Anchorman Movies (2004, 2013)

Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy is a satirical comedy that stars Will Ferrell. It takes a shot at '70s news reporting with this over-the-top news anchor and his crew. The first Anchorman film also starred Christina Applegate, Paul Rudd, Steve Carell, David Koechner, and Fred Willard. In 2013 the sequel, Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues, was released.

The Anchorman films are the right blend of wacky, fun, and over-the-top. They’re what a good time looks like in film form. Rudd plays one of his most ridiculous characters in the Anchorman films.

Stream Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy on Paramount+.
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Ghostbusters: Afterlife (2021) 

Ghostbusters: Afterlife takes place thirty-two years after the events of the second Ghostbusters film. It follows a single mother, Callie (Carrie Coon), and her two children, Trevor (Finn Wolfhard) and Phoebe (McKenna Grace), as they move to a farm left by Callie’s estranged father. Paul Rudd plays seismologist Gary Grooberson. 

Ghostbusters: Afterlife connects the past films in a way that pays homage but also moves them toward a future franchise and what that could become. It’s a great film for Ghostbusters fans who love the original and want a film that keeps that spirit but also lets the film’s new stars, like Rudd, shine. 

Rent/buy Ghostbusters: Afterlife on Amazon.
Get Ghostbusters: Afterlife on DVD/Blu-Ray on Amazon.

Overnight Delivery (1998) 

Overnight Delivery is a romantic comedy about a college man who believes that his long-distance girlfriend is cheating on him. He gets drunk and seeks revenge by mailing her some staged photos of himself with a dancer he met at a strip club through an overnight delivery service. The next morning he discovers that she didn’t cheat, and now he must retrieve the photos before they arrive.

Overnight Delivery stars Reese Witherspoon, Paul Rudd, and Christine Taylor. This isn’t one of Paul Rudd’s best films, but it is a charming romantic comedy that many may not have heard of or seen. Rudd and Witherspoon are fun to watch together in what is nearly a FedEx propaganda film. 

Rent/Buy Overnight Delivery on Amazon.
Get Overnight Delivery on DVD/Blu-Ray on Amazon.

The Cider House Rules (1999) 

The Cider House Rules follows Homer (Tobey Maguire), an orphan who works as a doctor’s apprentice while living in an orphanage during World War II. Instead of following the path his mentor, Dr. Larch (Michael Caine), sets for him, he decides to follow a young couple and begins to work in a cider house. 

The Cider House Rules has a cast full of future stars, including Charlize Theron, Kieran Culkin, and Paul Rudd. The cast also includes big names such as Delroy Lindo, Erykah Badu, and Heavy D. Paul Rudd has a supporting role as Lt. Wally Worthington. It’s not a huge Rudd-centric film, but he has enough material to bring that famous Rudd charm. The Cider House Rules is also full of amazing performances, especially by Lindo and Caine. 

Stream The Cider House Rules on HBO Max.
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The Object Of My Affection (1998) 

The Object of My Affection is a romantic dramedy about a woman who falls in love with her gay best friend. It stars Jennifer Aniston and Paul Rudd before their Friends days. 

The Object of My Affection isn’t a traditional romantic dramedy, because it’s less about romantic love and more about friendship and accepting that true love doesn’t always have to be romantic. 

Stream The Object of My Affection on Starz.
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These are only a few of Paul Rudd’s best movies available online. Romeo + Juliet, Reno 911: Miami, The Perks of Being a Wallflower, and Our Idiot Brother are just a few other great Paul Rudd movies that you can check out. Paul Rudd’s upcoming projects shows that there may be even more great movies added to this list in the future. 

I, like many people who reached adolescence in the mid-to-late 2000s, have been a longtime admirer of Megan Fox – an actor who continues to impress me with her talents and her amusing choice of roles to this day. See what I mean by taking a look at my picks for some of the best Megan Fox movies yet, along with how to watch them.

Subservience (2024)

Director: S.K. Dale

Starring: Megan Fox, Michele Morrone, Madeline Zima

What it’s about: A man brings home a human-esque machine to act as a domestic helper but it proves to have a damaging effect on his family.

Why it’s worth checking out if you are a Megan Fox fan: Megan Fox gives one of her most chilling performances yet in Subservience – a sexy robot movie that became a hit on Netflix in 2024.

How to watch Subservience

• Stream Subservience on Netflix
• Rent or buy Subservience on Amazon
• Buy Subservience on Blu-ray on Amazon

Night Teeth (2021)

Director: Adam Randall

Starring: Jorge Lendeborg Jr., Debby Ryan, Lucy Fry

What it’s about: A young chauffeur-for-hire unwittingly agrees to escort two young vampires on a night of debauchery.

Why it’s worth checking out if you are a Megan Fox fan: Fox and Sydney Sweeney have small but memorable roles as two bloodsucking queens in the Netflix original horror movie, Night Teeth, which is a fun, stylish, modern take on vampire lore.

How to watch Night Teeth

• Stream Night Teeth on Netflix

The Expendables 4 (2023)

Director: Scott Waugh

Starring: Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Megan Fox

What it’s about: A group of skilled, experienced mercenaries are tasked with stopping a terrorist from releasing a nuclear warhead in Libya.

Why it’s worth checking out if you are a Megan Fox fan: In The Expendables 4, Fox joins the typically male-dominated ensemble of the action-packed franchise as Gina – a CIA agent who is also Lee Christmas’s love interest.

How to watch The Expendables 4

• Stream The Expendables 4 on Starz
• Rent or buy The Expendables 4 on Amazon
• Buy The Expendables 4 on Blu-ray on Amazon

Transformers (2007)

Director: Michael Bay

Starring: Shia LaBeouf, Megan Fox

What it’s about: A teenage boy discovers his new car is really an alien robot in disguise, embroiling him in an intergalactic conflict between two warring races of sentient, shapeshifting machines.

Why it’s worth checking out if you are a Megan Fox fan: While not her acting debut, Fox’s role as Shia LaBeouf’s onscreen love interest, Michaela Banes, in the premiere installment of the live-action Transformers movies skyrocketed her to mainstream acclaim.

How to watch Transformers

• Rent or buy Transformers on Amazon
• Buy Transformers on Blu-ray on Amazon

Jennifer’s Body (2009)

Director: Karyn Kusama

Starring: Megan Fox, Amanda Seyfried

What it’s about: A meek teen discovers that her more popular best friend has become a deadly succubus feeding on her male classmates.

Why it’s worth checking out if you are a Megan Fox fan: The actor landed her first leading role in one of the best horror movies directed by a woman, Jennifer’s Body - a cleverly dark teen angst satire now remembered as an underrated and sorely misunderstood cult classic.

How to watch Jennifer’s Body

• Rent or buy Jennifer’s Body on Amazon
• Buy Jennifer’s Body on Blu-ray on Amazon

The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Movies (2014-2016)

Director: Jonathan Liebesman, Dave Green

Starring: Megan Fox, Will Arnett

What it’s about: A reporter discovers a group of human-sized, reptilian vigilantes living in the New York City sewers.

Why it’s worth checking out if you are a Megan Fox fan: After exiting the Transformers franchise on less-than-stellar terms, Fox reunited with producer Michael Bay for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows as the titular CGI heroes’ human ally, April O’Neil.

How to watch the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movies

How To Lose Friends And Alienate People (2008)

Director: Robert B. Weide

Starring: Simon Pegg, Kirsten Dunst, Megan Fox

What it’s about: A London-based journalist is hired as an entertainment reporter for a highly regarded New York City magazine, where he makes a complete ass out of himself at any given chance.

Why it’s worth checking out if you are a Megan Fox fan: Fox showed that she had a great sense of humor about herself by playing a Hollywood starlet in one of the best Simon Pegg movies, How to Lose Friends and Alienate People – a funny rom-com loosely inspired by Toby Young’s memoir.

How to watch How to Lose Friends and Alienate People

The Dictator (2012)

Director: Larry Charles

Starring: Sacha Baron Cohen, Anna Faris

What it’s about: The oppressive, self-serving ruler of Wadiya experiences life from an impoverished perspective in New York City.

Why it’s worth checking out if you are a Megan Fox fan: The talented star poked fun at herself even further by playing herself in a very lewd scene from The Dictator - another uproarious political satire from writer and star Sacha Baron Cohen not filmed in a mockumentary style.

How to watch The Dictator

• Rent or buy The Dictator on Amazon
• Buy The Dictator on Blu-ray on Amazon

This Is 40 (2012)

Director: Judd Apatow

Starring: Paul Rudd, Leslie Mann

What it’s about: Peter and Debbie struggle with their children’s rivalrous relationship, their failing business, and other hardships as they approach middle age.

Why it’s worth checking out if you are a Megan Fox fan: Fox plays an employee at Debbie’s small clothing store whom she befriends and envies for her youthful glow in This Is 40 – an endearing yet brutally honest spin-off to the 2007 hit, Knocked Up.

How to watch This is 40

• Stream This is 40 on Netflix
• Rent or buy This is 40 on Amazon
• Buy This is 40 on Blu-ray on Amazon

Friends With Kids (2011)

Director: Jennifer Westfeldt

Starring: Adam Scott, Jennifer Westfeldt

What it’s about: Two single, platonic friends agree to have a child together, which becomes complicated when they try dating other people.

Why it’s worth checking out if you are a Megan Fox fan: Friends with Kids is a clever, star-studded romantic comedy about the pressures of being 30, featuring Fox as a woman Scott’s character takes interest in after his child is born.

How to watch Friends with Kids

• Stream Friends with Kids on Amazon Prime
• Stream Friends with Kids on Tubi
• Buy Friends with Kids on Blu-ray on Amazon

Till Death (2021)

Director: S.K. Dale

Starring: Megan Fox, Eoin Macken

What it’s about: A woman wakes up to find herself handcuffed to her dead husband and must fend off the hitmen he hired to kill her.

Why it’s worth checking out if you are a Megan Fox fan: The actor made a striking return to horror movies in the intense, blood-soaked Till Death.

How to watch Till Death

• Stream Till Death on Netflix
• Rent or buy Till Death on Amazon
• Buy Till Death on Blu-ray on Amazon

Rogue (2020)

Director: M.J. Bassett

Starring: Megan Fox, Philip Winchester

What it’s about: A tough mercenary and her crew are left stranded in the African desert where they fall prey to vicious rebels and bloodthirsty lions.

Why it’s worth checking out if you are a Megan Fox fan: Fox has, arguably, never been more badass than when she starred in Rogue, which has the story beats of a scary animal movie but the pulse of a war film.

How to watch Rogue

• Rent or buy Rogue on Amazon
• Buy Rogue on Blu-ray on Amazon

BONUS: New Girl (2016)

Starring: Zooey Deschanel, Jake Johnson

What it’s about: After a painful breakup, a young, quirky school teacher moves in with three single men who share a loft in Los Angeles.

Why it’s worth checking out if you are a Megan Fox fan: The star joined the New Girl cast for 15 episodes of Seasons 5 and 6, as a temporary fill-in for Zooey Deschanel while the actor was on maternity leave.

How to watch New Girl

• Stream New Girl on Hulu
• Stream New Girl on Peacock
• Buy New Girl on Amazon

Most recently, Megan Fox has lent her voice to the Mortal Kombat games as Nitara and there should certainly be more where those came from!

Those who caught the pilot episode of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier after it premiered on Friday, March 19, likely had two different reactions to the ending. They either balked at the sight of Captain America wannabe U.S. Agent holding the famous star-spangled shield, or pondered at the sight of Wyatt Russell, the actor playing the Steve Rogers replacement, wondering if they may have seen him before.

Well, chances are that you probably have seen the 34-year-old Los Angeles native in a decent number of things, but had trouble placing him with his clean-shaven mug under that helmet instead of the long blonde hair and beard he usually sports most of the time. You might be able to identify him even better as the second generation in his family to be a part of the Marvel movies’ continuity after his dad, Kurt Russell, starred in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 as Ego.

Yeah, that’s right: this is the son of both Escape from New York’s Snake Plissken and Goldie Hawn we are talking about here, so despite how much fans hate John Walker, his character on The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, I think we should show the real man a little a respect. In fact, in honor of his debut into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, let us take a look at some of Wyatt Russell’s most notable roles thus far, starting with the humble beginnings of his acting roots.

Escape From L.A. (1996)

You might not have so easily spotted an uncredited, 10-year-old Wyatt Russell in John Carpenter’s Escape from L.A. as one of several young orphans being held outside of the post-apocalyptic penal colony that was once Los Angeles. However, this would be not only his debut film role, but the first of two times he appeared in a movie with his dad, Kurt Russell, reprising his badass, anti-heroic character from Escape from New York in a sequel released almost two decades later. The second would be 1998 sci-fi flop Soldier (from original Mortal Kombat director Paul W.S. Anderson), in which Wyatt played his father’s younger self.

Cowboys & Aliens (2011)

Wyatt Russell’s acting career did not really take off until he reached his 20s, but even then he was still taking some pretty small roles, such as this character in Cowboys & Aliens that I genuinely had no recollection of until now. In the sci-fi/Western hybrid from executive producer Steven Spielberg and director Jon Favreau in which Daniel Craig plays a 19th-Century amnesiac outlaw battling extra-terrestrials, Russell plays Little Mickey, one of the troublesome cattle handlers employed by Harrison Ford’s character, Woodrow Dolarhyde.

This Is 40 (2012)

The following year, Wyatt Russell landed a slightly more noticeable role (despite not having any lines) in Judd Apatow’s This is 40 as one of the hockey players hitting on Megan Fox and Leslie Mann’s characters at a club. The fascinating thing about his appearance, alongside real members of the Philadelphia Flyers, is that Russell was actually an avid hockey player before he took up acting as his main career.

Goon: Last Of The Enforcers (2017)

Eventually, Wyatt Russell got to relive his roots of chasing the puck around for a role in Goon: Last of the Enforcers, a sequel to the 2011 cult comedy in which washed-up bouncer Doug Glatt (Seann William Scott) earns a second chance as a semi-pro hockey team’s violent secret weapon. Doug’s career is threatened, however, when Russell’s young, ambitious hot shot Anders Cain gives him a devastating taste of his own medicine.

22 Jump Street (2014)

Before merging his hockey talents with his acting talents in Goon: Last of the Enforcers, Wyatt Russell experimented with portraying a couple different kinds of athletes. His first experiment was in 22 Jump Street, another sequel to a surprise comedy hit with Channing Tatum and Jonah Hill infiltrating a college campus this time. Russell plays Zook - a football player who befriends Tatum’s Jenko and is later discovered to be a customer of the drug ring he and Schmidt (Hill) are investigating.

Everybody Wants Some!! (2016)

In his next onscreen athletic experiment, Wyatt Russell embodied a college baseball pitcher circa 1980 named Charlie Willoughby, who makes no secret of his love for getting stoned and listening to Pink Floyd but is hiding the fact that he is actually 30 years old (and really was at the time). The film was Everybody Wants Some!!, another quirky, nostalgic experiment with time from writer and director Richard Linklater that would serve as spiritual sequel to his 1994 ‘70s high school flashback Dazed and Confused (as the marketing would claim, that is).

Black Mirror (2016)

That same year, Wyatt Russell really got to show off his dramatic chops more deeply than ever as the lead of one of the best Black Mirror episodes (and one of the most terrifying on record) if you ask me. In “Playtest” from Season 3 (the technophobic anthology series’ first as a Netflix exclusive), his cash-strapped tourist character Cooper Redfield volunteers himself as a guinea pig for a virtual reality game that quickly becomes too disturbing and oddly familiar for him to distinguish what is virtual from what is reality.

Overlord (2018)

Soon after his horrifying Black Mirror experience, Wyatt Russell would soon make an epic return to horror in a film that is also crossed with the genre that made his dad one of the biggest stars of the ‘80s. In the action-packed World War II period piece Overlord, Corporal Ford (Russell) and the soldiers he suddenly becomes the leader to discover that Nazis are hiding something that preemptively reminded audiences of the zombie levels in Call of Duty games.

Lodge 49 (2018-2019)

In the same year that he played a tough military officer, Wyatt Russell reverted back to the aimless stoner persona he so perfectly encapsulated in Everybody Wants Some!! as the series lead of this obscure dramedy that aired on AMC for two seasons. His character, Sean “Dud” Dudley, is an all too easy-going beach bum who gets the chance to finally be somebody when he uncovers the titular secret society of Lodge 49.

Coincidentally, Wyatt Russell’s Lodge 49 co-star Bruce Campbell (who appears in three episodes of Season 1) also makes an almost completely unrecognizable cameo in Escape from L.A. Even crazier, both he and Kurt Russell have also played Elvis at different points in their careers (Russell in a TV biopic directed by John Carpenter and Campbell in the horror-comedy Bubba Ho-Tep in 2002). That may have been a bit of stretch from the topic of Wyatt, but amusing nonetheless, eh?

Whether you love or hate his style, Judd Apatow has undeniably influenced comedy. As a writer/producer/director or mere influence, Apatow's loose, lighthearted sensibilities— adopted from James L. Brooks, John Cassavetes, and more— are both irreverent and emboldening, shaping a comedy era that's as emotionally resonant as it's richly funny.

It's a tricky balance, but Judd Apatow makes it look easy, allowing his talented performers to influence his scripts with extensive improvisation and other creative freedoms. The results can be shaggy and overly-sentimental, but more-often-than-not, they work. Apatow's movies bring something present and appealing to their tales of adolescent people in self-discovery. He receives his share of criticism, both warranted and not, but we're here to celebrate. 

Here's how we'd rank Judd Apatow's directorial efforts in feature length films.

8. This Is 40 (2012)

Over the course of Judd Apatow's first three features— The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Knocked Up, and Funny People, respectively —our central characters elevated from emotionally/sexually/intellectually-stunted man-children to more psychologically-tormented influential people in showbiz. While Apatow's work became more personal, it strained from his relatable focus and reliable easy-going comedy. We watched characters struggle with concerns outside most people's problems, related to wealth and ego, that didn't connect with mainstream audiences. With This Is 40, his fourth film, the results weren't poor, but its indulgent, navel-gazing perspective lost what made Apatow's previous films more winsome and personable.

Centered around Pete (Paul Rudd) and Debbie (Apatow's real-life wife, Leslie Mann), previously Knocked Up's supporting characters, This Is 40 is a not-so-subtle look at Apatow's marriage/parenthood struggles. It follows a wealthy couple's growing insecurities, i.e. worries regarding their upper-class well-being, coinciding with their 40th birthdays. While our leads remain dependable as comedic/dramatic performers, finding emotional truths despite the therapeutic film's inconsistent tone and hit-and-miss jokes, This Is 40 falters from numerous problems that plagued other Apatow films. Namely, it's too long, shapeless, and self-involved. While Apatow's agreeable filmmaking offsets some annoyances that deprive from wallowing in privileged problems, it falls short compared to his past glories.

7. The King Of Staten Island (2020)

Having used his influence to boost the careers of several now-superstars, including Steve Carell, Seth Rogen, and Amy Schumer, Apatow's eighth film, The King of Staten Island, sees the co-writer/director telling a semi-autobiographical account of Pete Davidson, a troubled personality who impressed many with his raw, self-effacing, open-hearted comedy. Exploring Davidson's bizarro world, where he still lives at home but didn't find success with Saturday Night Live (or elsewhere), The King of Staten Island is a character study on Scott Carlin, a 24-year-old high school dropout with aspirations of becoming a tattoo artist but no honest drive or ambition. Notably following his firefighter father's tragic death, Scott lacks direction.

But things change when Scott's single mom (Marisa Tomei) dates Ray (Bill Burr), a hard-nosed firefighter who provides clarity about Scott's instability. From there, Davidson's cinematic avatar searches for himself. Like many Apatow movies, there's something hopefully cathartic with this film, which Davidson co-wrote. The lead character mirrors many of Davidson's traumas and tragedies; he lost his father in 9/11 and has a history of mental illness. This makes Staten Island more directly dramatic than other Apatow movies, exploring heavy sadness in his familiar themes of stunted masculinity and repressed personal growth. Unfortunately, this story fumbles into formula and cliches. But Robert Elswit's cinematography is gorgeous, Apatow's world-building remains lived-in, and it's a standout cast. It appropriately showcases Apatow's own mature growth.

6. Trainwreck (2015)

While Trainwreck doesn't reach the same heights as Apatow's earlier triumphs, it's a clear step up. The director gained a greater sense of style and a greater understanding of his sensibilities, notably following his adrift This Is 40. Although he's working off a traditional rom-com's model, like Knocked Up, Apatow's more finely-tuned balance of raunchy humor, personable drama, and earthbound characters find success. Similar to Staten Island, Apatow focuses on elevating Amy Schumer's profile, though he works from her own script (his first-time directing another person's screenplay) and provides a woman's perspective — notably following criticism regarding his portrayals of the opposite sex. 

While Schumer's screenplay doesn't break new ground, it's a refreshing template for Apatow in many respects.

Telling the story of Amy, a fictionalized version of the actress-screenwriter's persona, a hard-drinking, free-spirited writer who enters a serious relationship with straight-laced orthopedic surgeon Aaron (Bill Hader) after multiple unstable courtships and one-night-flings, Trainwreck adopts Schumer's irreverent brand of crass, self-deprecating humor and allows this irreverent personality to combat rom-com cliches in an entertaining, eventually accessible fashion. 

The relationship is winning and thankfully more relatable than This Is 40, capturing NYC's vibrant personality filtered through this romantic-yet-tough-to-please woman. While tighter than most Apatow movies, it's overlong at 125 minutes. If Trainwreck was trimmed to 105 minutes, it might've been Apatow's most solid, cohesive film. Nevertheless, Trainwreck is Apatow's polished return-to-form and Schumer's strong leading woman introduction.

5. May It Last: A Portrait Of The Avett Brothers

Admittedly, one doesn't naturally associate Judd Apatow with The Avett Brothers. The comedy filmmaker and the acclaimed folk-rock band don't appear too similar on paper; Apatow's brash characteristics contradicting to Avett Brothers' gentle, smooth sounds. Yet, through HBO's documentary, May It Last: A Portrait of the Avett Brothers, you discover unexpected similarities in their processes. Specifically, each of them digs for what feels ethereal and emotionally profound, finding their own euphorias in their creative endeavors. Above all else, The Avett Brothers strive not only for harmony but emotional honesty. They want songs to connect deeply to their listeners' souls. They do this by creating songs as extensions of their souls — deriving from their pain, failures, fears of inadequacies, and reflections on lives lived.

While that's true for many artists, this music documentary does a fine job of discovering this inherent humanity in the band's tunes, particularly as they're crafting their album, True Sadness. Made with Michael Bonfiglio (Apatow's first directing collaboration), May It Last explores the relationships between art and the artists, and how one's life interweaves with their work. When it comes to insights gleaned, Avett Brothers fans might not learn anything new. But this documentary's approach is uniquely intimate-yet-refrained — allowing the performers to expose the nakedness to their song-making. It's not eye-opening but vividly authentic, and the music-making sequences— evocative of '70s documentaries —stun. Alas, as the subtitle suggests, it's merely a portrait.

4. Funny People (2009)

With his third feature, Funny People, Judd Apatow dived deep into Hollywood, making something more observant and unreserved than anything else he's done before OR since. It follows George Simmons (Adam Sandler), a once-revered comedy legend who gained great wealth as a middling movie star but lost his voice along-the-way. When he's diagnosed with a terminal illness, the depressed comedian goes on-the-road, hoping to reconnect to what he once loved about comedy. He's also haunted by a long-lost love (Leslie Mann), whom he disconnected with while searching for fortune and fame. Unabashedly moody and heartbreaking, Funny People isn't uplifting, but that's not to suggest its title is false. It finds the humor in the tragedy, and how comedy branches from that root.

Funny People represents many of Apatow's lows and highs. As his longest film, it's the most prone to meandering; a judicious editor could cut a solid 30-40 minutes. But it's among Apatow's most mature, reflective works, exploring one's place from a humane, rewardingly layered perspective. While it didn't elevate Sandler's career (he was already A-list), Funny People instead allowed Apatow to explore a more wistful side to Sandler's persona unseen throughout Happy Madison productions. It's hard to know how much truth factors into Sandler's performance, but there's an honesty here that seems authentically sincere, showcasing once again how good Sandler is at drama. It's among his most emotionally revealing works — a refreshing change-of-pace after several half-inspired comedies.

3. The 40-Year-Old Virgin (2005)

Once a burgeoning writer/producer behind several cult favorite (albeit not long-running) sitcoms, The 40-Year-Old Virgin jumpstarted Judd Apatow's exceptional Hollywood path, while also helping Steve Carell find his leading man status. In Apatow's feature directorial debut, we follow Andy (Carell), a lowly electronics store clerk who remains a virgin, even at 40. His colleagues (Paul Rudd, Seth Rogen, Gerry Bednob, Romany Malco) help Andy trade in his v-card, but it's not easy. While raunchy sex comedies were frequently found in the years (and decades) leading to its success, what separated 40-Year-Old Virgin from other R-rated comedies in this vein wasn't merely its crudely outrageously material but its unexpectedly charming sweetness.

Through our hapless protagonist and Carell's winning performance, we're given a lead who's delightfully unlike the ribald, uber-horny teenagers typically found in sex comedies. While lacking experience, Andy's age brings a (slight) maturity that's unique to this typically youth-centered genre. Carell also provides his usual humanity and likability, even during broader moments, which informed every Apatow comedy to follow. Alas, as Apatow's debut, Virgin is patchier and less polished than his later work, which says something. But its improv-heavy workplace environment invited more consistent, uproarious laughs than most movies, pushing against a sterilized PG-13 standard and inspiring more freely/frequently risqué comedies.

2. The Zen Diaries Of Garry Shandling (2018)

In 2016, many Hollywood personalities were heartbroken by Garry Shandling's passing. The Emmy-winning voice behind It's Garry Shandling's Show and The Larry Sanders Show influenced several aspiring comics, including Apatow. The showrunner adopted Apatow under his wing, making him a writer-director on Larry Sanders. This mentorship informs early segments of Apatow's HBO documentary, The Zen Diaries of Garry Shandling, but this two-part analysis/retrospective sees several personalities offering their memories/perspectives into this troubled mind. While this extensive documentary risks oversimplifying/over-glorifying Shandling's life and influence, it's to Apatow's credit that it's a thorough as it is without lionizing or demonizing him.

Zen Diaries is as personal/self-reflective as any Apatow film, and he uses his history/reflections with Shandling to produce a sweet, affecting portrayal of this idiosyncratic personality. Apatow's familiarity with the interviewees, likewise, allows them to open up freely, giving us a genuine warts-and-all examination of Shandling's tough-to-read internal dialogue. 

Poring through decades of diaries, we gain profound reflection, introspection, and nuance into Shandling's legacy, personality, and sense of self-worth. The results are vulnerably emotional but not too sentimental or assumptive. While it's Apatow's longest film at 259 minutes, it's surprisingly investing and rewarding, despite its intense focus on a deeply depressed, distressed individual. Its beating heart empowers— rather than detracts from —its emotional searching. Shandling influenced nearly every self-referential modern-comedy but rarely found peace. Thankfully, Apatow provides a lovely, thoughtful, soulful tribute.

1. Knocked Up (2007)

While 40-Year-Old Virgin established Apatow's ascension, it was Knocked Up, his sophomore feature, that informed his future. Ironically, this involved delving into his past. In this fresh, funny take on the rom-com format, we follow an unwitting couple— stoner slacker Ben (Seth Rogen) and career-focused Alison (Katherine Heigl) —who partake in a drunken one-night-stand that turns serious with Alison's pregnancy. Opting to keep the baby, they spend months together, finding a spark they never expected. There's a grounded realism to Knocked Up separating it from several broader, more bombastic comedies.

Like 40-Year-Old Virgin, Judd Apatow infused warm affability to his crudely funny/specifically down-to-earth stylings, creating an enjoyable blend of improvised raunchiness and winning rom-com sentimentality. Aided by Rogen and Heigl's sparkling chemistry, which found the honesty and poignancy which made these two unexpected lovers so likable, Knocked Up discovered the premise's heart and humor, particularly when focused on naturalistic moments during this nine-month time-lapse. 

This attention-to-details made Knocked Up more disheveled than other comedies. But, in this case, for the better. These moments weren't merely funny but effectively tender, giving an uncommon slice-of-life feel. Though not faultless, this formula created an immensely endearing rom-com, solidifying Apatow as a premiere filmmaker.

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After appearing in projects like Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen, Two and a Half Men and Hope & Faith, Megan Fox was propelled to worldwide stardom when she was cast in 2007’s Transformers, the first live action adaptation featuring the robots in disguise. Fox gained a lot of attention and media exposure for her portrayal of Mikaela Banes, but while we’re still getting Transformers movies (the Bumblebee spinoff rolled into theaters last December), Fox’s time in the film series would be short, as she departed after the second movie.

However, don’t think that Megan Fox’s career has slowed down since then. While she’ll arguably always be best known for her time in the Transformers universe, she’s starred in various other movies and television shows that have allowed her to stretch other acting muscles, with the occasional foray back into blockbuster territory.

So if you’re interested in learning what she’s been up to in the decade since her last Transformers appearance, read ahead to learn about the most notable Megan Fox movies and TV shows that have come out since then.

Transformers Movies

Actually, let’s first quickly recap Megan Fox’s time on the first two Transformers movies. Her character, Mikaela Banes, served as the love interest of Shia LaBeouf’s character, Sam Witwicky, and she was also quite skilled at fixing and stealing cars thanks to lessons from her incarcerated father. Transformers is what put Fox on the map for a lot of people, and she was nominated for three Teen Choice Awards and an MTV Movie & TV Award for her participation in that movie.

Megan Fox returned for Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen and the plan was for her to be back for the third installment, Dark of the Moon, too. However, plans changed after Fox compared working with director Michael Bay to working for Hitler. After initially refusing to apologize, Fox later retracted this statement and said she was “very fortunate” to be part of the Transformers franchise, but the damage was already done. She was eventually fired and replaced in Dark of the Moon by Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, who played Carly Spencer, Sam Witwicky’s new girlfriend.

Jennifer’s Body

Although Megan Fox had already completed work on Jennifer’s Body before her ungraceful departure from the Transformers franchise, it’s nonetheless notable for being her first movie after the debacle, coming out just three months after Revenge of the Fallen. Jennifer’s Body sees Fox’s titular character becoming demonically possessed and killing her male classmates in order to survive, and her best friend Needy, played by Amanda Seyfried, tries desperately to stop her.

Upon its initial release, Jennifer’s Body was met with mixed-to-negative reviews, and it didn’t make much of a splash at the box office either. However, in the wake of the #MeToo movement, the movie has received more attention for its depiction of sexual harassment and how Jennifer later uses her body to exact revenge on those who wronged her. Now Jennifer’s Body is considered more of a cult classic, but whether or not viewing it through this news lens makes it better is up to the respective viewer.

Jonah Hex

A year after Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen and Jennifer’s Body, Megan Fox returned for Jonah Hex, which brought the same-named DC Comics character to live action for the first time. In the movie, Fox played Lilah, a gun-toting prostitute who is dragged into the chaos that Josh Brolin’s scarred bounty hunter in caught up in. It’s revealed later that Lilah’s real name is Tallulah Black, who is a character from the Jonah Hex comics, although Fox’s version didn’t have the scarred physical appearance of her comic book counterpart.

Alas, like a lot of pre-DCEU DC Comics movies not centered on Batman or Superman, Jonah Hex was met with negative reviews, and it was also a huge box office bomb, making a little under $10 million despite costing $47 million to make. Fortunately for Fox, this wouldn’t be the last time she’d get to leave her mark on a property that began as a comic book, but we’ll get to that later.

Friends With Kids

Thus far we’ve looked at Megan Fox’s experience in genre work, but she also has experience in the comedy realm. Case in point, 2011’s Friends with Kids, where Fox was part of an ensemble that included Kristen Wiig, Adam Scott, Jon Hamm, Maya Rudolph, Chris O’Dowd and Edward Burns. Fox played Mary Jane, an actress who becomes romantically involved with Scott’s Jason. No spoilers here on what happens with their relationship.

Friends with Kids might not go down in film history as one of the more beloved romantic comedies, but when it came out it did fairly well for itself critically, if not commercially. At the very least, this was an opportunity for people only familiar with Megan Fox through her more visually-stimulating work to see that she could lend her talents to a smaller-scale movie.

The Dictator

To American audiences, Sacha Baron Cohen is arguably best known for starring in the wacky mockumentaries Borat and Bruno, but in 2012, he returned to the big screen in The Dictator, where he played Admiral General Aladeen of the fictional Republic of Wadiya in a purely fictional narrative. Fox plays a fictional version of herself who sleeps with Aladeen and other world leaders in exchange for handsome payment. But she doesn’t do cuddling!

Megan Fox’s appearance in The Dictator is nothing more than a cameo, but at the very least, it showed that she can poke fun at herself. If/when Sacha Baron Cohen leads another movie as one of his ridiculous characters, maybe she can cameo in that as well or obtain a bigger role.

This Is 40

In 2007, Seth Rogen and Katherine Heigl starred in Knocked Up, which Leslie Mann and Paul Rudd also appeared in, with the former playing Debbie, the sister of Heigl’s Allison, and the latter playing Pete, Debbie’s husband. Five years later, Rudd and Mann’s characters returned for the semi-sequel/spinoff This is 40, and Megan Fox played Desi, who works for Debbie at her boutique and makes a side living as an escort.

While Knocked Up was met with a lot of positive reviews (though it wasn’t without controversy), This is 40 earned more mixed reception. There was talk of making a sequel, which possibly could have resulted in Megan Fox reprising her character. That sequel never moved forward, but This is 40 still remains an noteworthy example of Fox’s comedy work.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

Megan Fox and Michael Bay’s time on the Transformers movie might not have ended well, but the two of them would reunite for the 2014 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles reboot, which Bay produced. Fox played April O’Neil, the intrepid reporter who accidentally learns about the Turtles during her investigation into the Foot Clan and soon becomes their closest ally on the surface. As alluded to earlier, the Teenage Mutant Turtles first appeared as comic book characters in the mid-1980s, so this movie marked Fox’s second time working on a comic book property.

Megan Fox reprised April O’Neil two years later in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows, which saw April meeting Casey Jones, the sports equipment-packing vigilante played by Arrow’s Stephen Amell. While there were plans to make a third Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie set in this continuity, a threequel was scrapped due to Out of the Shadows’ mediocre box office return, but at least Fox had two movies where she got to star alongside anthropomorphic giant reptiles. Few others have done that.

New Girl

Up to this point we’ve only covered the movies Megan Fox appeared in post-Transformers franchise, but she also collected some TV work as well. In New Girl Season 5, star Zooey Deschanel had to leave for maternity leave, so her character Jess was written as being called in for a long amount of jury duty. Megan Fox filled in for her during that period as Reagan, a pharmaceutical sales representative who rented out Jess’ room and shook things up among the main characters.

Megan Fox continued recurring as Reagan in New Girl Season 6, but she did not return in the final season. While the New Girl creative team was undoubtedly glad to have Fox fill in while Zooey Deschanel was away, Reagan wasn’t particularly well-received among fans, and her presence served as a reminder that there’s no substitute for the lead character who hooked people in from the start.

Legends Of The Lost With Megan Fox

In addition to acting, Megan Fox has also made a name for herself in the realm of documentary programming. Last December, the first four episodes of her series Legends Of The Lost With Megan Fox, where saw the actress traveling across the globe and learning about ancient history, cultures and myths.

This show received some criticism for how it blended actual history with pseudo-archaeology, and overall it’s earned a mixed reception. It’s unclear if Travel Channel will bring Legends Of The Lost With Megan Fox back for Season 2; if it does return, Fox will have more opportunities to go visit other countries and learn about their history when she’s not acting.

So these are all the major projects that Megan Fox has appeared in since she exited the Transformers franchise, but don’t think she’s slowing down now. She’ll appear later this year in Zeroville and Above The Shadows, and she’s also signed on for Big Gold Brick, which doesn’t have an assigned release date yet, but began production earlier this month.

Stay tuned to CinemaBlend for any major news concerning Megan Fox, but for now, be sure to browse through our 2019 release schedule to plan your trips to the movie theater this year accordingly.

Through the powers of sites like Rotten Tomatoes and Twitter, everyone is a critic nowadays. And poor fan reception can kill a movie before it even starts, as folks no longer have to attend screenings to find out whether or not a movie is "bad". This has made movie production particularly challenging in the past few years, especially for the comedy genre. Critics don't seem happy with comedies unless they're rolling on the floor with laughter, and this trend has seriously pissed off director/writer Judd Apatow. He recently vented about his frustrations, saying:

Mic drop. Judd Apatow's statement to Vulture seems to highlight the strange double standard in the world of film production. Dramas are consistently the critical darlings of the business, and make up the vast majority of award nominations every year. And it's because critics and Academies apparently don't take comedy movies all that seriously.

While sad subject matter can reduce most audiences into a puddle of tears, it takes a different type of detail oriented work to make folks laugh. The story must be crafted appropriately; comedies are almost musical in the way they continue to set up and deliver joke after joke, while presumably having some heart at the center of the story.

Judd Apatow has been on the receiving end of all types of feedback. While his current movie The Big Sick has been critically acclaimed, he's also produced films that received a more icy reception. His dark comedy This Is 40 was heavily criticized back in 2012, especially for the film's runtime and pacing issues. In the same interview, Judd Apatow also described how many of the best comedy writers are actually focusing on television, resulting in a lack of exciting new movie scripts. He said,

Judd Apatow makes another great point, although the migration from film to TV has been one that has affected all genres. Some of the best stories are being told on the small screen, and people are taking notice.

You can catch The Big Sick in theaters now. In the meantime, check out our 2017 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.

You can poke fun at Judd Apatow all you want for continuing to cast his daughters in his movies-- he's still not gonna stop. In fact, he's considering making it a full trilogy of films in which Iris and Maude play the same characters, who started out as cherubic kids in Knocked Up and started going through some adolescent and pre-adolescent angst in This is 40. With the release of This is 40 just now happening in the UK, Apatow has started talking about what might be next-- and his daughters are definitely at the front of his mind.

"I think it's fun to see people grow up," Apatow said in a Getty interview (via Hey U Guys). He name-checked Truffaut, which might be considered pretentious, but is in fact a pretty good model for following a single character across various stages of life thanks to his four films about Antoine Doinel. But before you think Apatow has gotten all high-minded, he's also well aware of what might be his real motivations:

Apatow has given himself a pretty big cushion for making the college-set movie, since his daughter is still just 14. That's probably the point, given how many other projects Apatow is involved with as a producer. Will we ever actually see the completion of the unofficial Knocked Up trilogy? Who knows. Will Apatow ever stop putting his kids in movies one way or another? Absolutely not.

I can't even imagine how hard it must be keeping a straight face on the set of a Judd Apatow movie. The writer/director regularly brings together the funniest people acting in movies today and not only does he give them funny scripts to work from, he also lets them improvise and make the material the best it can be. And as professional as the stars are, it's totally understandable that they would occasionally break down and just start guffawing. Need proof? Just watch the newly released blooper reel from Apatow's latest feature, This is 40.

The video is actually the latest in a long line of internet releases for the film featuring material that one would think would be saved for the Blu-ray/DVD release. Just a few days after the comedy hit theaters Universal began releasing deleted scenes and that has continued through this week. The new clip comes to us courtesy of Funny or Die and you can watch it below.

My favorite part? When Jason Segel is trying to deliver the line, "Everything you need is inside of you" and starts berating himself for not being a professional ("Come on, Segel! This is what you do!"). It's clear how hard the guy is working, but at the same time his plight is understandable: after all, he is basically dry humping the director's wife on camera and delivering one hell of a double entendre at the same time.

This is 40 will next be making its way to home video, but a date has not yet been announced. To see more from the movie head over to our Blend Film Database.

Undeniably, as a writer-director and producer Judd Apatow has a gift for creating movies and television shows that are crass, a little ludicrous, and yet chock-full of heart. But even the most devoted fans of Judd Apatow acknowledge that when it comes to killing his darlings Apatow struggles, offering movies that are hilarious but often overlong. This is in part because of his improvisation-friendly style, which sometimes leads to comedy gold and other times leads to moments too funny to be forgotten, but not good enough for the final cut.

To see the latter, audiences usually have to wait for Apatow's movies to come out on DVD, but not anymore! To promote his Knocked-Up spin-off This is 40, Apatow has been unveiling a steady stream of deleted scenes. There was the awkward double date, and Billie Joe Armstrong's pitch of a violent new sound sure to hurt his record sales. Now a new clip has surfaced featuring Megan Fox, Jason Segel and Chris O'Dowd. Check it out below.

It's funny to see Apatow essentially pitting two of his previous romantic leads (Segel in The Five-Year Engagement and O'Dowd in Bridesmaids) against each other, attempting to win the attention of Fox. To her credit, she holds her own in this scene, though it's easy to understand why only a shorter version of the scene made the cut.

This is 40 is now in theaters. Read Sean's review and check out trailers in our Blend Film Database.

Judd Apatow doesn't make short movies. His the first film he directed, The 40 Year Old Virgin, clocks in at an hour and 56 minutes long - and that's his shortest one to date. His latest, This is 40 - which came into theaters this past weekend, doesn't break the trend that Apatow has started either, and is a full two hours and 14 minutes long. In the editing room, however, it wasn't just small bits and pieces that he had to delete from the final cut - he had at least one five and a half minute scene that didn't make it to theaters. But you can just watch it below.

Having seen the movie I can tell you that this would have been somewhere nearly the end of the second act and start of the third, but no plot details are given away so don't worry about spoilers. That said, let me lay down the warning of a long, awkward conversation and a pretty serious poop joke. Check it out, courtesy of Funny or Die.

This is 40, Apatow's fourth film, features Paul Rudd and Leslie Mann returning as Pete and Debbie, the married couple with two kids (Iris and Maude Apatow) from the writer/director's previous film, Knocked Up. Set five years after that film, the movie watches as the duo deal with the fact that they are getting older and have settled into a routine - all while facing some serious money problems. Albert Brooks, John Lithgow, Jason Segel, Megan Fox, Chris O'Dowd, Annie Mumolo and Robert Smigel. You can see the movie in theaters now, and if you head over to our Blend Film Database you can read Sean's review and watch a bunch of trailers.

Tis the season to hear the people sing, as evidenced by the numbers being reported for the anticipated box office take for Les Miserables, which arrived in theaters yesterday for its Christmas release. Tom Hooper's adaptation of the popular stage musical isn't the only film with cause to celebrate. Django Unchained and The Hobbit also did well.

As of yesterday, Deadline reported that Les Miserables grossed somewhere in the ballpark of $18 million for its Christmas release. Given the popularity of the musical, added to reports of record breaking advance tickets sales, it's not entirely surprising that the film performed well, but it sounds like it did better than expected.

Following behind Les Mis is Quentin Tarantino's Django Unchained. The Jamie Foxx starring western brought in about $15.5 million yesterday, which might actually be a new record for an R-rated Christmas Day opening.

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, which arrived in theaters December 14, comes in at #3 with an expected $10.8 million gross for Tuesday. This was followed by new release Parental Guidance, which grossed somewhere near $7 million. The family comedy stars Billy Crystal and Bette Midler as two grandparents tasked to watch their grandkids.

Coming in behind Parental Guidance and the other three mentioned films are Jack Reacher ($5.1 million), This is 40 ($4.3 million), Lincoln ($2.4 million) and The Guilt Trip ($2.3 million).

So, it seems musicals, bloody westerns and adventures have won out over the comedies this Christmas. We'll have to wait and see how the numbers shake out as the week progresses and more people head into the theaters to catch the final set of releases for 2012.

On a more personal note, I went with Django for my Christmas movie of choice, and I wasn't disappointed. Nothing tops a day of gift-giving, delicious food and fine, family fun quite like a Tarantino film.

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Going to the movies on Christmas Day is usually thought of as a tradition for Jews, or anybody else not celebrating the holiday who's got the day off. But really, no matter how you're spending the holiday, there's probably going to be a time that you want to get out of the house and away from the family or friends you've gathered with-- or maybe you want to take them with you, but just get to a place where you don't have to talk to them much.

That's where movies come in handy, of course, and this Christmas season is as packed as ever with new releases that ought to appeal to everyone in your crowd. Some of them are holdovers from Thanksgiving, and you can consult our Thanksgiving movie guide for the rundown on those films like Life of Pi, Lincoln, Skyfall and all the rest. For the stuff that's new, read below as we let you know what they're all about (with links to our reviews were applicable), and who you should bring to see them. See you at the movies!

When everyone's ready for a good cry, but is also emotionally stable enough to handle it: Les Miserables

Week after week of "Will it win Best Picture? Is it worthy of Best Picture?" buzz has drowned out the fact that it's exactly as crowd-pleasing and epic as the musical it's based on, and if anyone in your family has even been caught humming "Master of the House" while doing their chores, they're probably already planning to drag you there.

Best for: Families with at least one theater geek passionate enough to convince everyone to see a musical, dammit.

Kind of like that time you all saw… The King's Speech in 2010, because you heard it had Oscar buzz and knew everyone would at least sort of like it.

[ OUR LES MISERABLES REVIEW ]

When you're all 100% in synch on most political issues and can handle a lot of blood: Django Unchained

Quentin Tarantino's new film is kind of a mysterious choice for a Christmas release, given its hard-R rating and gleeful stomping over many, many things considered within the realm of good taste. But for hardcore movie fans it's a must-see anyway, and so long as nobody at your holiday gathering is spoiling for a fight about gun control, it could be an interesting experiment for a group.

Best for: Actually, maybe it's best to just slip off and see this one by yourself.

Kind of like that time you all saw… Munich in 2005, and wanted a revenge tale with a little more blood and less historical accuracy.

[ OUR DJANGO REVIEW ]

When only the name of a very, very famous movie star will get anyone to go to the theater: Jack Reacher

Who would have guessed that Tom Cruise would be the option the entire family could agree on, but a year after Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol here we are, and Jack Reacher is the totally serviceable, straightforward drama that really could work with everyone you know.

Best for: That uncle, cousin, dad, or whoever is a big fan of the Lee Child books-- there's guaranteed to be at least one in your family. .

Kind of like that time you all saw… Vanilla Sky in 2001, and wished Cruise would just get on with it and kick some ass.

[ OUR JACK REACHER REVIEW ]

When everybody is either young enough not to relate or old enough not to worry: This is 40

Judd Apatow's latest uncomfortable comedy mines humor-- and endless awkwardness-- from his own home life, which makes the foibles and fights of This is 40 feel alarmingly real. It's not as funny as his most famous comedies, but not as depressing as Funny People, and might have the biggest famous-person quotient of any holiday release. That has to count for something!

Best for: Adults ready for some uncomfortable silences in the car ride home.

Kind of like that time you all saw… Spanglish in 2004, and mentally edited Adam Sandler out of it.

[ OUR THIS IS 40 REVIEW ]

When you really want to get in good with your mom: The Guilt Trip

It helps, of course, if your mom is a big Barbra Streisand fan, but this comedy about an adult son bringing his mom along with him on a road trip ought to work for any mothers who wish they saw more of their kids-- and who doesn't? Be prepared for some potential guilt trips of your own once you leave the theater.

Best for: Your mom. And maybe your siblings, if you can form a united front in not getting talked into a road trip of your own.

Kind of like that time you all saw… It's Complicated in 2010, but wished there were fewer awkward sex scenes involving Alec Baldwin.

[ OUR GUILT TRIP REVIEW ]

When you're in a major city and are ready to do a lot of thinking: Zero Dark Thirty

With the debates about its depictions of torture and all the awards buzz swirling around it, Zero Dark Thirty is clearly a must-see movie for many people-- but given that it will only be in a handful of cities until January, it's not exactly for everyone. Fans of All the President's Men and other slow-burn procedurals will dig it-- but at two and a half hours, it's a big commitment for even them.

Best for: Major government wonks who aren't going to go into it with a political agenda.

Kind of like that time you all saw… There Will Be Blood in 2007, and wanted the person who got killed at the end to be an actual person, and preferably a notorious terrorist.

[ OUR ZERO DARK THIRTY REVIEW ]

When you just don't think Les Miserables will be emotionally devastating enough: The Impossible

You have been warned: this movie begins with an incredibly realistic and graphic depiction of the tsunami that devastated much of the South Pacific in 2004. The story that follows from there is a fairly encouraging one, about a family attempting to be reunited in the aftermath, but seriously: that tsunami has the power to ruin your holiday. Go in expecting the worst.

Best for: People getting nowhere near an ocean any time soon.

Kind of like that time you all saw… Marley and Me in 2008, except instead of just one dog dying at the end, thousands of people die.

[ OUR THE IMPOSSIBLE REVIEW ]

When you've got kids to entertain at all costs: Monsters Inc. 3D

It's a weirdly fallow time for children's movies right now, and odds are most families already caught Rise of the Guardians if they were interested. So stick with a classic, and if you've got kids who have never seen 3D before, maybe they'll be dazzled by the upgrade.

Best for: Kids, and major Pixar fanatics.

Kind of like that time you all saw… Well, Monsters Inc., which opened in November of 2001.

When everyone else hasn't seen it yet: The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

The Hobbit is going into the Christmas season a huge hit already, so there's a decent chance everyone you know who's up for a trip to Middle-earth has already gone. But these movies are a little more accessible and more kid-friendly than the Lord of the Rings films, so with that in mind, you might be able to sway a few more for your own second viewing

Best for: Everyone who doesn't mind a little Elvish and talk of Orcrist the Goblin Cleaver.

Kind of like that time you all saw… Fellowship of the Ring in 2001, mostly, since the plots of the movies are essentially the same.

[ OUR HOBBIT REVIEW ]

With so many titles to choose from, Netflix Instant's library can be overwhelming. And so we offer this biweekly column as a tool to cut through the clutter by highlighting some now streaming titles that pair nicely with the latest theatrical releases.

This week we found inspiration from The Hobbit, This Is 40 and Zero Dark Thirty, so have provided a selection of family-friendly adaptations, raunchy R-rated comedies, and true and remarkable true tales for you to enjoy over the holiday.

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

Lord of the Rings' trilogy director Peter Jackson returns to the works of J.R.R. Tolkien with this spirited adventure set in Middle Earth. Martin Freeman stars as young Bilbo Baggins, a homebody Hobbit who dares to leave the Shire, setting out on a grand adventure where he'll meet a band of dwarves, a trio of trolls and a strange creature called Gollum. Ian McKellan and Andy Serkis co-star.

Based on the iconic children's book, Jackson's adaptation will bring to life a host of characters many have long loved. For more exhilarating adventures that were born from the pages of great kid-friendly books, we suggest this triple play of adventures the whole family can enjoy.

The Adventures of Tintin (2011) Steven Spielberg took motion-capture to new highs with his epic adaptation of Georges Remi's classic comic strip about a fearless young journalist named Tintin and his dedicated dog, Snowy. When a flea market purchase leads Tintin to a mystery, nothing can stop him from tracking down the truth behind a sunken treasure! Jamie Bell, Andy Serkis and Daniel Craig lend their voices; Peter Jackson produces.

Hugo (2011) Last winter, Martin Scorsese's ambitious adaptation of Brian Selznick's The Invention of Hugo Cabret was being heralded by critics, and delighting audiences with its captivating tale of a boy who lives in the walls of a Parisian train station. This holiday season, you can enjoy Hugo from the comfort of your couch, and revel in the film's quirky characters—including a snooty inspector played by Sacha Baron Cohen—and its wonder-filled world. This one will be especially engaging to cinephiles, though to avoid spoilers I won't say why. Asa Butterfield, Chloe Grace Moretz, and Ben Kingsley co-star.

Alice in Wonderland (1951) Netflix recently inked a deal with Disney that has unleashed a slew of tantalizing titles from the Disney vault. Among them is their colorful classic adapted from Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. The story centers on a British school girl who chases a frantic white rabbit, then stumbles into a wacky world where caterpillars smoke hookahs, walruses can't be trusted, and the queen has a rage that can make her lose her head…and could make you lose yours! Kathryn Beaumont and Ed Wynn lend their voices, Winston Hibler, Ted Sears, and Bill Peet direct.

This is 40

Described as a sort of sequel to Judd Apatow's comedy hit Knocked Up, this funny feature reteams Paul Rudd and Leslie Mann as frequently feuding married couple, Pete and Debbie, who try to make the best out of middle age. Jason Segel, Annie Mumolo, and Megan Fox co-star.

Sometimes there is nothing so satisfying as an R-rated comedy. Full of raunchiness, off-color jokes, and flat-out outrageous gags, this kind of movie can be just what the stress of the holiday season demands. So kick back, relax, and laugh your ass off at the wild misadventures of a anti-heroes who can't get a hang of what being a mature adult means. But it's cool, because we love them for it.

2 Days in New York (2012) A spirited sequel to Julie Delpy's offbeat rom-com 2 Days in Paris, this Big Apple-set romance centers on Marion (Delpy) and her latest lover Mingus (Chris Rock in his best role to date), a couple who seems to be in domestic bliss until her troublemaking French family comes to visit, and throws their lives into chaos. Cultures clash, sibling rivalry sparks, tempers flare, and it's hilarious every step of the way, leading up to one of the oddest (and sharpest) self-mocking cameos in film history. Albert Delpy and Alexia Landeau co-star; Julie Delpy directs.

Young Adult (2011) As follow-up to his Oscar-nominated Up in the Air, Jason Reitman helmed this fierce and funny comedy that goes to the jugular with bad behavior and a total bitch for a protagonist. Charlize Theron stars as Mavis Gary, an immature divorcee who is on the verge of losing her cushy job as a YA ghostwriter when she gets an e-mail from her high school sweetheart. Despite the fact that it's a birth announcement for his first child with his wife, Mavis believes this is a sign he wants to reunite, and so travels back to her old town to free him from the hell she assumes he lives in. Much awkwardness and hilarity ensue. Patrick Wilson and Patton Oswalt co-star.

Klown (2010) It's not every day a comedy can make me scream with laughter, but this fearless feature out of Denmark did just that! While American movies that past few years have been pushing the envelope when it comes to outrageous sexual humor, writer-actors Frank Hvam and Casper Christensen skipped all the foreplay and got straight to the WTF. The story centers on a canoe trip the two have planned that's meant to be a barrage of drunken, drug-fueled days and nights of concerts and casual sex, culminating in a visit to an almost mythic brothel. When Frank brings along his girlfriends nephew to prove he's ready to be a dad, even this turn in events cannot topple Casper's dedication to debauchery. Mikkel Nørgaard directs.

Zero Dark Thirty

The Hurt Locker's filmmaking team of screenwriter Mark Boal and director Kathryn Bigelow reunite for this harrowing historical drama which charts the U.S. forces' long journey to hunt down al-Qaeda terrorist leader Osama bin Laden. Beginning with September 2001 attacks and moving through notorious figure's death at the hands of Navy S.E.A.L. Team 6 in May, 2011, this critically heralded film is as challenging as it is riveting.

Sometimes real world events can be so grand in scope, so emotionally charged it seems impossible to process them in full. In these instances, film can be a powerful tool to help us understand these events or work out our conflicted feelings about them. For more dramas that seek to investigate real world conflicts through personal stories, check out these three celebrated features.

Jarhead (2005) Based on the memoir of U.S. Marine Anthony Swofford, this biographical drama takes viewers deep into Operation Desert Shield as Swofford (played here by Jake Gyllenhaal) and his fellow snipers gear up for what they expect to be the fight of their life in the Persian Gulf. Peter Sarsgaard and Jamie Foxx co-star; Sam Mendes directs.

Hotel Rwanda (2004) This three-time Oscar nominated biopic centers on the incredible story of hotel owner Paul Rusesabagina, a native Rwandan who nobly worked to shield refugees from the genocide that burned through his nation. Don Cheadle portrays the extraordinary man whose sacrifice and efforts ultimately saved more than 1,000 lives, earning an Academy Award nod for his powerful performance. Terry George directs.

A Mighty Heart (2007) Based on the memoir of Mariane Pearl's heartbreaking memoir of the same name, this harrowing docudrama follows her impassioned search for her husband, Wall Street Journalist reporter Daniel Pearl, once he was kidnapped in Pakistan. If you remember the headlines this story grabbed back in 2002, you know this is a tale of tragedy. Yet it's inspiring to see Mariane's perseverance in the darkest hour of her life. Angelina Jolie earned much critical praise including a Golden Globe nod for her devastating portrayal of Mariane. Dan Futterman and Irrfan Khan co-star; Michael Winterbottom directs.

Often, this job means analyzing the moments when current events affect pop-culture, and vice versa. This week, because of the tragic shooting in Connecticut, Hollywood has two unfortunate and unforeseen instances where films heading to theaters are going to address gun violence and murder, and one of the directors is taking a bold step to address the issue before it becomes a controversy.

There’s a conversation in Judd Apatow’s This is 40 where Paul Rudd is talking to his dad (played by Albert Brooks) about having more kids than he can afford to raise. Brooks’ character jokingly asks what Rudd suggests he should do. He plays a morbid game, stating, “Line Up! Line up for murder! Come on! Who wants to be killed?” The kids all raise their hands, and Brooks character mimics shooting one of the children.

It’s not a particularly funny scene in 40, and now – in hindsight – it’s uncomfortable. But Apatow tells TMZ that he wrote the jokes almost two years ago while workshopping the screenplay, and that it is “spoken by a sarcastic father kidding with his children.”

Obviously. I do not think it’s fair to snap-judge any movie that clearly has been in production for more than a year and never could have predicted that a national tragedy such as the shootings in Newtown could have happened the week before a comedy’s release date. And to be honest, I saw This 40 a few weeks back and completely forgot about this exchange until TMZ ran this story. Apatow apologizes for anyone who might deem the scene inappropriate, but Universal does not plan to pull it from the finished movie.

A similar situation faces Tom Cruise’s Jack Reacher, a crime thriller with a strong emphasis on a sniper who shoots random targets in public. The opening scene gives audiences an extended look through the sniper’s scope, and its hard not to think about the Connecticut tragedy as the sequence plays out. It’s not fair to hold this against these films. Five years from now, they’ll be the exact same films, but viewed in a different context. Will it affect what movie you choose to see in theaters this weekend?

Judd Apatow is calling it the "sort-of-sequel to Knocked Up," but we're just calling it one of the easiest movies to look forward to at the end of this year. This Is 40, Apatow's first film since Funny People, is coming to theaters December 21, and now a new trailer has dropped over at Yahoo! Movies. Take a look at it below.

As you can see, Paul Rudd and Leslie Mann are reviving their characters from Knocked Up, along with Apatow and Mann's real-life daughters playing the daughters here, but this time the family is taking center stage. You'd better believe Apatow is back in very, very autobiographical territory, and there are a lot of bits in this trailer that seem like they must be drawn from real life-- the hilarious opening conversation about second wives, or especially the playing Words With Friends on the toilet. There doesn't seem to be a plot here, exactly, more like a series of ruminations on a couple trying to stick together as they approach 40 and realize, well, they're stuck with each other.

But that's OK-- the best parts of The 40-Year Old Virgin, Knocked Up and Funny People all have less to do with the plot and more to do with the conversations Apatow writes among his characters, and how much he gets us to care about them even while earning laughs with some truly out-there jokes. I was one of the many disappointed with Funny People, but the idea of returning to Rudd and Mann's characters seems genius, and already in this trailer I'm itching to get a chance to spend time with them again. Let us know if you agree in the comments, and you can learn more about This is 40 by clicking here.

One of my absolute favorite moments in Knocked Up is a brief scene between Paul Rudd and Leslie Mann, which takes place in the bathroom and has Rudd putting the offer of sex on the table, to which Mann responds with a grunt and an announcement that she's constipated. It's honest and funny and a little bit disturbing all at once. The poster for Judd Apatow's This is Forty seems to revisit that scene in a slightly graphic way.

Described as a "sort-of sequel" to Knocked Up, This is 40 will expand on the story of Pete and Debbie, a married couple dealing with married life, family life and likely the humor in getting older. Screencrush shared the poster below, which has Debbie (Mann) brushing her teeth and Pete (Rudd) using his iPad and talking to his wife while on the toilet.

Putting aside the glammed-up version of Mann's getting-ready-for-bed look (she looks a little too great for the moment, don't you think?), the poster finds the humor in marriage as it approaches mid-life, when a couple might use the bathroom together, leaving the door wide open. Because at that point, there are no secrets. Like the scene in Knocked Up, it's funny, but also a nod to the way the comfort-level of a married couple can escalate to borderline-bizarre heights as the years go by.

In addition to Rudd and Mann, This is 40 stars Megan Fox, John Lithgow, Iris and Maude Apatow, Melissa McCarthy, Robert Smigel, Charlene Yi and Albert Brooks. The film is expected to arrive in theaters December 2012. More information can be found in our Blend Film Database.

And because we brought it up…

A few hours ago I published my recap of the Bourne Legacy footage shown today during the Universal Pictures presentation at CinemaCon, but that was far from the only movie that the studio had on display at the convention. Over the course of two hours they showed off footage from every single film that remains on their 2012 calendar and beyond, including outrageous comedies and Oscar-hopeful dramas. And I’m here to tell you about them.

Below you will find my recaps and reactions to just about every movie that Universal showed off this afternoon*. It should be noted that not all of the footage was 100% done, but I’ve made sure to point out which ones those are. Check it out!

*NOTE: I say “just about” because they also showed footage from Battleship and Snow White and the Huntsman, but because so much is already available online for those projects I figured that it would be best to leave them off. If you have any questions about what I saw, please just let me know in the comments section and I’ll be happy to respond.

To see more of my coverage from CinemaCon 2012, head over HERE