I can imagine that a significant number of young actors in Hollywood right now are feeling a smidge of envy directed at Glen Powell. After all, the guy is definitely having a moment right now, playing leads on screens big and small following his breakout turn a few years ago in Top Gun: Maverick. But just because Powell is soaring high right now doesn’t stop him from being wowed by the work of his colleagues – an example being Topher Grace’s performance as an enthusiastic megachurch pastor in their new A24 movie How To Make A Killing.

I sat down with Powell, Grace and Jessica Henwick earlier this month during the Los Angeles press day for the 2026 movie, and in the spirit of Kind Hearts And Coronets (which the new film is a remake of) and the multiple roles played by Alec Guinness, I opened the interview asking the trio what part they would have loved to play in How To Make A Killing in addition to their own. Powell gave a lot of credit to the actor sitting to his right, saying,

In the new film, Powell stars as Becket Redfellow, a descendant of one of the richest families in America who has been cut off from the family tree but is still lined up to inherit a sizable trust. The only thing standing in between him and the money are various relatives ahead of him in the succession order, and so he sets about quietly knocking them off. One of these cousins is Grace’s Pastor Steven J. Redfellow, who we meet in the story while he is in the middle of a work day.

Powell had the chance to simply observe his co-star doing his thing up on a stage preaching to a packed audience, and he was taken aback by the energy he was putting out:

Topher Grace recalled the day in question, looking out on a large and engaged crowd, and he freely admitted that he got a real kick out of the whole experience:

He got the chance to really live in the shoes of his character, which must have been a super cool thing to do when filmmaking can often be a stilted process… but there apparently were some side effects to all of the actor’s exhibited passion.

According to Grace, what he was saying on stage weirdly got through to some people, and he had to do a bit of awkward de-escalation:

Care to see if you too might be ensnared by Topher Grace’s gospel? How To Make A Killing – featuring Margaret Qualley, Bill Camp, Zach Woods, and Ed Harris in addition to the aforementioned Glen Powell, Topher Grace, and Jessica Henwick – is playing in theaters everywhere now.

Glen Powell has played everything from a storm chaser to a fighter pilot to a football player to a hit man, and for his latest role in the upcoming A24 movie How to Make a Killing, it looks like he’s returning to his murderous ways. Critics saw the film ahead of its release on the 2026 movie calendar, in which Powell’s Becket Redfellow goes after the inheritance he thinks he’s owed after being disowned at birth by his disgustingly wealthy family, so what are they saying about the revenge thriller?

How to Make a Killing stars an ensemble cast, including Margaret Qualley and Jessica Henwick as Becket’s childhood friend and girlfriend, respectively, as well as those who make up the Redfellows standing in the way of his fortune: Bill Camp, Zach Woods, Topher Grace and Ed Harris, to name a few. According to Alexander Mooney of Slant, the humanity in these characters gives a grim sense of irony to Becket’s plight. The critic scores the movie 3 stars out of 4, writing:

Previously titled Huntington, Glen Powell’s dark comedy is “watchably weird,” according to Owen Gleiberman of Variety, who writes that its take on the depravity of greed keeps it afloat. The critic continues:

Jacob Oller of AV Club writes that despite the many different roles Glen Powell has played, this movie yet again shows him as smirking, quippy and strikingly put together. Add to that the script's loose grasp of the haves and have-nots and inability to find the tonal balance between outlandish and self-serious, and the critic can’t grade it higher than a C. Oller says:

Ouch! Although IndieWire’s Kate Erbland also gives it a C, saying the film lacks the fun required to pull off such a kill-the-rich dark comedy. The critic attributes this to two missteps: First, the voiceover narration makes the film exposition-heavy, depriving us of what should be the most deliciously devious scenes, and secondly, Glen Powell isn’t believable as a rage-driven bad guy, especially when the director doesn’t seem able to decide whether we should want to root for him or not. Erbland continues:

Kristy Puchko of Mashable feels Glen Powell was miscast, as he’s unable to match the humor of the ensemble around him. Also, he’s playing an underdog but has the suavity of a leading man, Puchko says, and his thinly written character comes off as “bland.” After seeing so many compelling eat-the-rich comedies in the past few years, How to Make a Killing is tame by comparison, the critic says:

This is a tough one to call, as critics are split right down the middle on Rotten Tomatoes, giving How to Make a Killing 50% on the Tomatometer. If you want to check out Glen Powell’s latest role amongst a killer supporting cast, this dark comedy revenge thriller is in theaters as of Friday, February 20.

A few days ago, I wasn’t sure if I was going to stick with The Waterfront. Despite the popularity of the Netflix series and a reasonably strong critics and audience score, I really had trouble getting into the first few episodes. But a coworker told me to hang with the show through Episode 4, and I did, and it did get increasingly more interesting. Which means I am now champing at the bit to know whether or not the show will be renewed for Season 2?

Thankfully, I’m not the only curious person on the Internet. While Sullivan’s Crossing has taken over the No. 1 slot for those with a Netflix subscription and Squid Games remains strong at No. 2, The Waterfront is still chugging along at No.5 on Netflix’s Top 10 (in the U.S.) list. As people continue to binge, there’s been curiosity about whether or not there will be more to come, and it’s something Kevin Williamson absolutely told THR the creative team is hoping for. Not only that–but they already have plans for a new big baddie.

It’s rare that one might hear a TV creative say a show was envisioned as a one and done, so I’m not surprised Williamson and co. have already considered what they might do next if The Waterfront returns to the Netflix schedule. However, as we know Netflix is fond of killing off first season shows, so it’s still a big “if.”

The bigger question – well, at least the bigger question outside of the renewal question – will The Waterfront have a new big baddie every season? That's a question that's still up in the air but Williamson does already have a plan for Season 2 if the show gets the greenlight from its streaming parent.

I'm actively avoiding some major spoilers for the first season here! Obviously, though, if you’ve seen The Waterfront, Topher Grace’s unnerving big baddie, Grady, will not be back for another season, which is a bit of a shame because he added the much-needed oomph (in my opinion) that Season 1 needed. But I’m interested to see the show be able to reset again in Season 2, and the idea of two families fighting for prominence is intriguing to me. I do hope we get to see if the show can really grow from its foundation, here, as there are still a lot of family dynamics to unfold, particularly given what happened during the Season 1 finale.

Kevin Williamson is infamously the brain behind Dawson’s Creek (and the Dawson's spinoff that nearly was), so I know he has a good nose for plot, and I’m hoping The Waterfront won't land on our list of canceled shows in 2025 and will nab that second season order soon. We'll keep you posted either way.

The number one show streaming with a Netflix subscription is The Waterfront, from creator Kevin Williamson (Scream, The Vampire Diaries). The show is decent, though if I’m honest, it's not my favorite show in the 2025 television schedule so far. It feels a little like a Taylor Sheridan knock-off as a prominent Southern family turns to crime to save their failing small town empire. The cast is solid, especially Holt McCallany as the head of the Buckley family. The one performance that really stands out, however, is Topher Grace as the diabolical Grady. There are light spoilers ahead, so head back to shore if you don’t want to know anything about the show before you watch.

It Takes A While For The Waterfront To Find Its Rhythm

The Waterfront, which started streaming this week, follows the downward spiral of the prominent Buckley family (hence comparison to a Taylor Sheridan show) in the fictional North Carolina town of Havenport. It starts a little disjointed with the first three episodes being just different members of the Buckley clan having really bad days–a fact they all mention multiple times. The family has returned to their drug-running roots to hopefully get out from underneath a crushing seven-figure debt and save their family business and beachfront property from being developed.

The patriarch of the family, Harlan, has had a series of heart attacks and has spent most of his recent days and weeks drinking and sleeping around on his wife (who knows all about it). His wife, Belle (Maria Bello), and son, Cane (Jake Weary), are doing whatever they can to save the family empire. That means Cane has gotten into running drugs with their fleet of boats, something the senior Buckley and his father did in the bad old days before Harlan cleaned the business up. Things aren’t going well for Cane until Harlan finds out and steps in. Still, it’s not until Topher Grace’s Grady character is introduced that the show really gets going.

In Episode Four, We Finally Meet The Supplier

Grady has been pulling strings behind the scenes for the whole show before we finally meet him in Episode Four. He is introduced on his farm, where he is not only importing heroin, but growing poppies and manufacturing his own. He has a small army of thugs living on the farm with him and almost immediately it’s clear that he has more than a few screws loose. Grace plays the role brilliantly with just enough menace behind his wannabe tech bro entrepreneur facade to make him unpredictable and scary.

As the final five episodes of the series play out, Grady gets more and more evil and more and more unpredictable. I found myself really only watching to see just how far he would go. I had a feeling that the show wasn’t going to twist things up too much, and in the end, the Buckleys would prevail. It was all about how much pain and craziness they could endure from Grady, and how they would finally outsmart him.

Grady is a great villain, and Grace is perfect casting, and while he’s not someone you can root for, he is definitely someone you want to see more and more of.

Despite a limited number of seasons and episodes, Black Mirror has, since the beginning, killed it with its casting. The Charlie Brooker-led show has landed some of the biggest stars in the world for episodes and chooses some of the best character actors from both sides of the pond as well. Here are 32 casting examples that prove Black Mirror crushes it. 

Daniel Kaluuya

Before Daniel Kaluuya hit the really big time with break-out roles in Get Out and Black Panther, he had a role in just the second episode of Black Mirror, called "Fifteen Million Merits." Kaluuya played a low-level bike rider looking to escape his boring life by performing in a reality TV show. It's a powerful performance and helped set the tone for the series. 

Hayley Atwell

Season 2 of  Black Mirror started with a bang, with an episode called "Be Right Back" starring Hayley Atwell and Domhnall Gleeson in a real mind-bending episode about a couple with a classic Black Mirror twist. 

Jon Hamm

In between Season 1 and Season 2, Black Mirror aired a Christmas special featuring its first big American star, Mad Men's Jon Hamm. It's a super disturbing episode in a ton of ways, not the least of which is just how evil Hamm's character turns out to be. 

Bryce Dallas Howard

Season 3 marked a big change for the show when it moved to Netflix. It also started with a band with the episode "Nosedive" starring Bryce Dallas Howard. It felt a first like a different take on the general premise of Black Mirror, being brighter and seemingly more upbeat. But that didn't last long, of course, and Howard's performance made it all work perfectly. 

Kelly MacDonald

Kelly Mac Donald isn't often the star of her projects but she is consistently excellent in everything she is in. She does star in one episode of Black Mirror, the Season 3 episode "Hated In The Nation" which is the show's take on a police procedural, with  MacDonald playing the main investigator. 

Salma Hayek

There are few stars bigger than the great Salma Hayak and her role in the episode "Joan Is Awful" in the Sixth Season is just perfect. She plays a version of herself, playing the character Joan and her no-BS attitude is just pitch-perfect. 

Jesse Plemons

The first episode of Season 4, "USS Callister" often ranks among the best episodes of Black Mirror, and a big reason why is the performances of the actors in the episode. There is no character more important than manipulative Captain Robert Daly played wonderfully by Jesse Plemons. 

Andrew Scott

Andrew Scott elevates basically everything he is in. Whether it's shows like Sherlock and Fleabag or movies like 1917, he also turns in one of the most memorable performances. Black Mirror is no exception. While the episode he appears in, "Smithereens" isn't well regarded among fans, there's no denying that Scott's performance is excellent and even earned him an Emmy nomination. 

Anthony Mackie

Anthony Mackie has never shied away from playing Gay men, with his first breakout role coming as a Gay art student in the film Brother to Brother. His role in Black Mirror wasn't quite as clear cut, as he played a man clearly struggling with his feelings and identity in the Season 5 episode "Striking Vipers." 

Kate Mara

The Season 6 episode, "Beyond the Sea," is one of the more messed up episodes of Black Mirror and that's really saying something. Kate Mara stars in the show as a woman trapped in the middle of a love triangle by two astronauts, one her husband, and one her suitor. It's a polarizing episode, like many, but there's no question it's as disturbing as the show can get. 

Miley Cyrus

In the final episode of Season 5, Miley Cyrus stars as Ashley O, a pop star not unlike her real-life self. Of all the Black Mirror episodes, it's maybe the least disturbing, but that really makes it underrated, if anything. It still makes the viewer question modern culture and tech, it just doesn't end in tragedy. 

Topher Grace

In Smithereens, Topher Grace plays a Jack Dorsey-type tech CEO who leads a social media company. While the episode is often criticized for its simplistic social commentary, by Black Mirror standards, Grace's performance is actually pretty perfect. All the acting performances are great in this uneven performance. 

Letitia Wright

Letitia Wright had been building a solid career in the U.K. before 2018 when she exploded on the world stage with her appearance in Black Panther. Prior to becoming a big part of the MCU, however, she starred in the Season 4 finale, "Black Museum." It's a fun episode with an almost greatest hits-type vibe, as it's filled with easter eggs to previous episodes. 

Benedict Wong

Benedict Wong has low-key become one of the most popular side characters in the MCU as... well... Wong. The same year he joined the MCU, in 2016's Doctor Strange, he also starred in the Season 3 episode "Hated in the Nation." He has a smaller role in the show compared to some of the other stars (like Kelly MacDonald) but he's great, as he always is in his many roles. 

Aaron Paul

Aaron Paul will likely forever be known first and foremost as Jesse Pinkman from Breaking Bad. There's nothing wrong with that, but Paul has had an impressive career outside of the legendary AMC show as well. One very notable role came in Season 6 of Black Mirror when he appeared alongside Josh Harnett and Kate Mara in "Beyond the Sea." It wasn't Paul's first appearance on the show, however. He had a quick cameo in "USS Callister" during the show's 4th Season. 

Zazie Beetz

Zazie Beetz hit the big time as a member of the hit show Atlanta starting in 2016. She later gained an even larger fanbase as Domino in Deadpool 2. In 2023, she got to star in an episode of Black Mirror called "Mazey Day" which broke new ground for the show, dipping into the supernatural for the first time. Though it wasn't the most well-received episode of the series, Beetz put together a great performance as a paparazza. 

Josh Harnett

Over the last 25 years, Josh Harnett has quietly put together one of the most underrated careers in Hollywood. He's played all kinds of roles, from heartthrobs to nuclear physicists. Of course, he also appeared as part of the star-studded cast of "Under The Sea" in Season 6. 

Michael Cera

Michael Cera has never been afraid to play ridiculous versions of himself. Most notably, in This Is The End, but also in the Season 6 episode "Joan is Awful." Everyone in the episode is playing some sort of version of themselves and Cera, as the character Beppe is, of course, over the top in his performance and we're here for it. 

Tobias Menzies

As character actors go, they don't get much better than Tobias Menzies. The English actor seems to pop up constantly in "prestige" shows. He was Brutus in HBO's Rome, he was Edmund Tully in Game of Thrones and he won an Emmy for playing Prince Philip in two seasons of The Crown. In the second season of Black Mirror, he played a British politician running for office against an animated bear named Waldo in "The Waldo Moment."

Domhnall Gleeson

Sure, Domhnall Gleeson is part of two of the biggest franchises in film history as a member of the Weasley family in the Harry Potter movies and General Hux in the Star Wars movies, but he's also been one of the best actors around for a couple of decades now. He appeared in the first episode of Season 2, "Be Right Back."

Wyatt Russell

Even though he has two very famous actors as parents, Wyatt Russell originally strived to play professional hockey. When injuries cut his career short, he fell back on acting. Lucky, huh? Still, he's putting together a really nice career, one that includes an appearance in the 2016 episode "Playtest."

Jodie Whittaker

Jodie Whittaker made history when she became the first woman to play The Doctor in three seasons of the modern era of Dr. Who. That wasn't Whittaker's first dabble in  science fiction TV, however, as she appeared in the third-ever episode of Black Mirror called "The Entire History of You." She is excellent in the episode, which ranks tops all-time on quite a few rankings. 

Jerome Flynn

One of the most disturbing episodes of Black Mirror came in its third season. "Shut Up and Dance" is a complicated episode, as viewers are repulsed by the characters, including, most notably, the one played by Game Of Thrones vet Jerome Flynn. Viewers are also taken aback by what those terrible characters have to do. It's a polarizing episode, but that's part of what makes it so great. 

Rory Kinnear

There are two roles that Rory Kinnear is likely most recognized for. One is Bill Tanner in four of the Daniel Craig-era James Bond movies. He's one of the most important characters from the Craig-led Bond films. The second is from the now-legendary premiere episode of Black Mirror called "The National Anthem." His performance as the beleaguered Prime Minister forced to do unspeakable things in the episode is, frankly, legendary.  

Rupert Everett

Rupert Everett has been killing on screen for more than 40 years now and though his role in the second episode of Season 1 is small, he's brilliant. He plays a Simon Cowell-type on a dystopian version of Britain's Got Talent and he, like Cowell, steals the show as a judge. 

Cherry Jones

Season 3's first episode, "Nosedive" is a fantastic episode, and a big reason why is the acting performances, including from Cherry Jones, who appears in only one scene of the show, but it's the pivotal moment in the show. Jones is one of the more underrated character actresses in Hollywood, but she's probably best known for playing President Allison Taylor on 24 and Holly Maddox in two seasons of The Handmaid's Tale. 

Oona Chaplin

Oona Chaplin comes from a family of true film royalty. Her grandfather was the legendary Charlie Chaplin. She's carved out an impressive career as well. She's best known as Talisa Stark, the ill-fated wife of Robb Stark in Game of Thrones, where she was the first death at the infamous Red Wedding. She stars alongside Jon Hamm in the Christmas special of Black Mirror in a smaller role, literally and figuratively, but her performance is sure to freak out everyone who watches. 

Jimmi Simpson

It's hard to believe that Always Sunny In Philadelphia first hit the airwaves in 2005, but it did. Jimmi Simpson has been along for most of the ride, as the oddball frenemy to "The Gang" and member of the McPoyle family, Liam McPoyle. He also appeared one of the most star-studded casts of Black Mirror in the "USS Callister."

Annie Murphy

Annie Murphy is most famous for playing Alexis Rose in Schitt's Creek and in 2023 she appeared as a strange version of herself playing "Joan" in "Joan in Awful" alongside Salma Hayek in the sixth season.  

Kirsten Dunst

"USS Callister" has one of the more star-studded casts and one of the stars you may not have even seen, Kirsten Dunst. Dunst's cameo in Black Mirror is truly a blink--and-you-miss-moment in the episode. She appears as a fellow office worker in the show and it's so brief most people missed it. 

Cristin Milioti

The multi-talented Cristin Milioti started her career on the stage on Broadway where she became a Tony-nominated actress, but made her on-screen breakthrough as "The Mother" in How I Met Your Mother. Since then, she's shined in shows like Fargo, The Resort, and The Mindy Project, as well as starring in "USS Callister" in Black Mirror. 

Will Poulter

Will Poulter seems to like showing in prestige TV shows. In addition to starring in the groundbreaking interactive "choose your own adventure" Black Mirror movie called Bandersnatch, he's also shown up in a cameo on The Bear. That's in addition, of course, to his film roles in The Revenant, Midsommar, and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3., among many others. 

Danny Masterson was formally sentenced this past week months after being found guilty of rape during his retrial. The former That ‘70s Show actor was given 30 years in prison for raping two women. In the aftermath of that legal development, subsequent details regarding the lead-up to the sentencing have come to light. The most significant information that’s since cropped up is arguably the fact that Ashton Kutcher, Mila Kunis and more of Masterson’s former co-stars wrote letters on his behalf. Now, Kunis and Kutcher have broken their silence on the matter.

The celebrity couple discussed the situation in a video that was posted to Kutcher’s Instagram account. The two spoke intermittently while explaining their decision to write letters on behalf of Danny Masterson. Ashton Kutcher started the clip off by acknowledging the “pain that has been caused” by their choice before providing further context:

Mila Kunis went on to state that she and her husband support victims of sexual assault. She later added that the documents they submitted were not intended to delegitimize any part of the legal process in their former co-star’s case:

The pair closed out their joint message by stating that they never intended to “retraumatize” the victims and apologized if that had taken place. You can see the video in its entirety down below:

Danny Masterson first became embroiled in sexual assault allegations in 2017, when at least four women accused him of raping them between 2001 and 2003. The ladies eventually filed suit against the actor as well as the Church of Scientology (of which Masterson is a member) in 2019 for purported harassment and stalking in connection to their rape claims. Masterson was formally charged in 2020 and, in 2021, he pleaded not guilty to the accusations. A trial began in October 2022, but it would ultimately be declared a mistrial due to a hung jury. The case was retried in April 2023, and the guilty verdict was delivered in May.

Post-sentencing, letters written to the judge by family and friends (which are customary in these cases) were divulged, including those of Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis. Details on the contents of the documents were initially scarce, but EW and other outlets have since obtained them. In his letter, Michael Kelso actor Kutcher referred to his ex-That ‘70s Show and The Ranch co-star as “an extraordinarily honest and intentional human being” that had been a “positive influence" on him. Kutcher also acknowledged the charges and that the women are seeking justice but also hoped that his testimony would be considered. Jackie Burkhart actress Kunis, also said, “Danny has proven to be an amazing friend, confidant, and, above all, an outstanding older brother figure to me.”

Other responses came from fellow ‘70s Show veterans Kurtwood Smith and Debra Jo Rupp, who played Red and Kitty Forman, respectively, on the classic sitcom and its Netflix sequel series, That ‘90s Show. Rupp referred to the Steven Hyde actor as a “respectful and kind” individual. She concluded the letter by sharing her thanks for “allowing me to tell you about the Danny Masterson that I love.” Masterson’s on-screen surrogate father figure, Smith, called him “a good friend” and later stated that “Danny treated all women on the show with respect, not only the women in the cast, but women on the crew as well.” He also called Masterson “a wonderful father to his daughter.”

As of right now, Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis are the only high-profile individuals to have spoken out about writing character letters. Time will tell if any others will choose to address the situation. 

That ‘90s Show was just renewed for a second season along with other streaming hits this past week. This shouldn’t be a surprise, given the teen sitcom has ranked high on Netflix since its release. As you would expect, the stars are pumped to be returning for Season 2, which is set to be comprised of 16 episodes. On that note, the OG That ‘70s Show cast immediately hopped online to celebrate the renewal, with Debra Jo Rupp, Wilmer Valderrama and more responding to the major development with some greatmessages.

Kitty Forman actress Debra Jo Rupp was one of the first cast members to jump on social media to mark the occasion. She took to Instagram account to post the most Kitty reaction ever, and it perfectly illustrates her excitement. Look at the That ‘90s Show clip she shared in the the A+ post down below:

Seriously, the beloved actress couldn't have chosen a better way to celebrate the big news, and she wasn’t the only Forman family actor to share thoughts on the spinoff's early Season 2 pickup. Red Forman himself, Kurtwood Smith, hopped on his Instagram Stories to repost the official word from Netflix. Just like his co-star, Smith tapped into his character's demeanor to react and did so with one of the gruff patriarch’s famous catchphrases. See what he had to say about audiences getting more of Grandpa Red:

Looks like fans – new and old – will get to hear Leia Forman and her friends get called “dumbasses” for the foreseeable future The excitement from Kurtwood Smith and Debra Jo Rupp, who also serve as executive producers on the Netflix series, is lovely to see. And the Forman family celebration wasn’t done, as Eric Forman actor Topher Grace shared a message to his Instagram to champion the series’ renewal. And in typical Eric Forman fashion, Grace celebrated the show’s upcoming season with snarky and clever reaction:

Also joining in on the fun was Fez actor Wilmer Valderrama, who celebrated the surprising moment by borrowing a page from Smith’s playbook. The star reposted Netflix’s renewal announcement on Instagram and also shouted out the new cast as well as Kurtwood Smith and Debra Jo Rupp for getting a second season:

But the star wasn’t done congratulating the cast and crew, as he sent out a special message to the young cast. The father of one took a moment to acknowledge the pride he felt for his “nephews and nieces.” Check out the proud uncle moment in his post below:

The OG ‘70s Show star is clearly excited for another season, so viewers might already be getting the idea that they'll see Fez return in Season 2, despite Wilmer Valderrama’s busy schedule. His on-screen girlfriend, Andrea Anders, seemed to hint at the possibility as she jumped on her Instagram account to celebrate the early renewal. Anders was quite ominous with her words, as she proclaimed the sequel series was here to stay.  Her posted was captured by co-star Kurtwood Smith:

It goes without saying that she seems ready for the viewers to revisit Point Place. The show has proven to be a breath of fresh air, revitalizing the classic TV franchise by placing it in a new decade. That's arguably made the series somewhat of a novelty. Of course, with Season 2, fans will get to see more of Leia and the gang and more of their misadventures. And since the show is set in the 1990s, maybe viewers will get more homages to classics like Beverly Hills, 90210 and even name-checks of stars such as Kevin Smith. And hopefully, more OG That ‘70s Show stars will appear in as well. We'll have to wait to see what happens but, in the meantime, let's just join the cast in celebrating this renewal.

While you wait for That ‘90s Show Season 2, check out Season 1 using a Netflix subscription. You can also stay in the know on the new movies and TV shows that are hitting the streamer over the next few months. And as always, CinemaBlend's 2023 TV schedule is a resource for you as well.

I would come to side with the more positive reviews for That ‘90s Show overall after giving the new coming-of-age comedy a shot. However, the biggest draw of the new Netflix original series for me was seeing a reunion of the stars of That ‘70s Show — the long-running sitcom the new show is spun-off from. 

In addition to Kurtwood Smith and Debra Jo Rupp reprising their roles as Red and Kitty Forman, respectively, in the That ‘90s Show cast, some of their now A-list former co-stars — such as Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis — were kind enough to stop by Point Place, Wisconsin, for a sweet guest appearance or two. Let’s talk about what else the original That ‘70s Show cast has been up to lately.

Topher Grace (Eric Forman)

After leaving the role of Eric Forman a season early, Topher Grace pursued a film career that led to a variety of interesting roles like Eddie Brock (a.k.a. Venom) in the final, 2007 installment of Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man trilogy, David Duke in Spike Lee’s Oscar-winning, biographical cop drama, BlacKkKlansman, in 2018, and Anne Hathaway’s boyfriend in 2009’s Valentine’s Day (also starring Ashton Kutcher). 

He also, intriguingly, would make some great turns in three different sci-fi anthology series: Love, Death and Robots, Black Mirror (in arguably, the best episode of Season 5), and Jordan Peele’s Twilight Zone revival. Grace’s current day job is a new sitcom on ABC called Home Economics.

Laura Prepon (Donna Pinciotti)

Making her breakthrough as Eric’s girlfriend, Donna, was Laura Prepon, whose first major success after the sitcom was joining the Orange is the New Black cast as drug money smuggler, Alex Vause. However, before landing that Netflix hit, she did have a memorable recurring role opposite the How I Met Your Mother cast as Ted’s vile ex, Karen, and played a fictionalized version of Chelsea Handler on the short-lived NBC sitcom, Are You There, Chelsea? 

Prepon has also appeared in movies like 2016’s The Girl on the Train, and The Hero with Sam Elliott (Ashton Kutcher’s The Ranch co-star), recently continued her directing career with an episode of That ‘90s Show, and co-wrote the health and wellness book, The Stash Plan, in 2016. 

Ashton Kutcher (Michael Kelso)

While his character, Michael Kelso, was certainly not the brightest of the bunch, Ashton Kutcher would go on to prove himself as one of the more enterprising cast members with the development of successful tech-based media company A Plus, investing firms Sound Ventures and A-Grade Investments, and the anti-human trafficking organization, Thorn. 

As for his acting career, the former model played Steve Jobs in a 2013 biopic and replaced Charlie Sheen on Two and a Half Men, to name a few things. Kutcher also recently received praise for his performance in director B.J. Novak’s Vengeance in 2022, stars opposite Reese Witherspoon in the upcoming 2023 Netflix original movie, Your Place or Mine, and leant his voice to a web series called Stoner Cats, alongside another familiar face.

Mila Kunis (Jackie Burkhart)

Kutcher’s Stoner Cats co-star, Mila Kunis, rose to fame playing his onscreen love interest, Jackie Burkhart, years before — much to their former co-stars’ surprise — falling in love in real life. The Ukrainian-born actor went on to earn a Golden Globe nomination for Black Swan, tried her hand at launching a sci-fi franchise with Jupiter Ascending, did successfully lead a comedy franchise with the Bad Moms movies, and also balanced action with comedy well in The Spy Who Dumped Me. Kunis recently took another dark turn with the Netflix original drama, Luckiest Girl Alive, and is still the voice of Meg on Family Guy.

Wilmer Valderrama (Fez)

Also leading an eclectic career since That 70s Show’s final curtain call is Fez actor Wilmer Valderrama, who starred in Richard Linklater’s Fast Food Nation, played one of the main villains of the series adaptation of From Dusk Til Dawn, and voiced the title role of the animated series Handy Manny. 

He also played a cop on several TV shows — namely the short-lived Awake, Fox’s series adaptation of Minority Report, and, most notably (and currently), in the NCIS cast as Nick Torres. The Venezuelan actor also gave an impressive performance in the Blast Beat cast in 2020, had a memorable role in the Encanto voice cast, and is preparing to play Zorro in an upcoming reboot.

Debra Jo Rupp (Kitty Forman)

After she (temporarily) said goodbye to playing the ultimate ’70s-era mother, Kitty Forman, Debra Jo Rupp, would reunite with some of her co-stars with guest appearances opposite Kutcher on The Ranch and Valderrama on NCIS. She also added movies like Kickin’ it Old School and She’s Out Of My League on to her resume and would (technically) return to sitcom acting by poking fun at the genre on Disney+’s WandaVision. 

Rupp is now preparing to reprise her role from that hit on another upcoming Marvel TV show called Agatha: Coven of Chaos and, for now, it is refreshing to see her back as Kitty on That ‘90s Show.

Kurtwood Smith (Red Forman)

Also back on That ‘90s Show as Kitty’s husband, Red, is Kurtwood Smith, who was previously best known for another demanding father in Dead Poet’s Society, and as the main antagonist of one of the best ‘80s sci-fi movies, RoboCop. Like Rupp, he also went on to star in comic book adaptations — such as the animated series Beware the Batman as Commissioner Gordon — and guest-starred on The Ranch. 

More recently, he appeared alongside Amanda Seyfried on Hulu’s Elizabeth Holmes miniseries The Dropout, was in 2022’s Firestarter remake cast, and returned to the Star Trek franchise (years after playing one of Star Trek: Voyager’s best villains) by lending his voice to the animated series, Star Trek: Lower Decks.

Don Stark (Bob Pinciotti)

Another That ’70s Show cast member with ties to “the final frontier” (i.e., a Deep Space Nine episode and one of the Star Trek movies, First Contact), is Don Stark, whose best know role is, arguably, as Donna’s father, Bob. Since then, he has made guest appearances and landed recurring roles on an eclectic variety of TV hits — including Supernatural, American Horror Story, and Maron, to name a few. You could also see Stark on the big screen in the likes of Disney’s 2012 The Princess of Mars adaptation, John Carter, and the 2019 Best Picture Oscar winner, Green Book.

Tommy Chong (Leo)

The only series regular in the cast who actually rose to fame in the ‘70s was Tommy Chong, who was perfectly cast as aging hippie, Leo. His popularity has, arguably, skyrocketed ever since, as has the variety on his resume, which includes hit animated movies like Zootopia as Jax and one of the best horror movies on Shudder, 2019’s Color out of Space. The Canadian legend has also been known to reunite with his old comedy partner, Cheech Marin, on various projects, including their own brand of cannabis, unsurprisingly. 

It was so refreshing to see the actors above coming back together again for yet another nostalgia-fueled sitcom. However, missing from That ‘90s Show and our list, as you may have noticed, are Hyde actor Danny Masterson —  who is currently facing sexual assault charges — Josh Meyers (Seth’s younger brother), who joined the That ‘70s Show cast in the show’s least favored season as Eric’s replacement, Randy Peterson, and the late Lisa Robin Kelly (as Eric’s older sister, Laurie) and Tanya Roberts (as Donna’s mother, Midge), who are deeply missed.

Nostalgia has been the inspiration for plenty of series over the years, with networks bringing back characters from some of our childhood shows and introducing younger protagonists to appeal to new generations. Netflix's That ‘90s Show is the latest of these spinoffs — joining the likes of Fuller House, Girl Meets World and How I Met Your Father — as it introduces Leia Forman (Callie Haverda), daughter to That ‘70s Show's central couple Eric and Donna, along with a new group of teens primed to take over Red and Kitty’s Wisconsin basement. The reviews are here to tell us whether they‘re able to capture that same magic in a different decade.

The series is set in 1995, 20 years after the original, with Debra Jo Rupp and Kurtwood Smith returning as Kitty and Red to welcome their granddaughter Leia to their house for the summer. That ‘90s Show blends the old with the new, as fans are also introduced to Jay Kelso (Mace Coronel), son of Jackie and Kelso from the OG series, and others, while Topher Grace, Laura Prepon, Mila Kunis, Ashton Kutcher, Wilmer Valderrama and more make guest appearances as their famed characters. (Danny Masterson does not reprise his role.) Let’s see what the critics have to say about the series.

Laura Sirikul of IGN rates the Netflix series a “Good” 7 out of 10, saying That ‘90s Show hits all the right nostalgia points, but focuses too heavily on the original cast, rather than developing the new faces. The critic says: 

Angie Han of THR says the spinoff brings back a number of old tricks from its predecessor, including the multicam format, laugh track and 22-minute runtime. It also calls back to that same laid-back humor and, of course, the smoke circle. From this review: 

Kelly Lawler of USA TODAY, however, isn’t quite as charmed by the update, rating That ‘90s Show 1.5 stars out of 4. The critic says the new characters don’t capture the same lightning in a bottle as the OG cast, and along with the bad writing and lackluster attempt at recreating the 1990s, this series is a chore to watch. The review continues: 

Miles Surrey of The Ringer says the 10-episode first season suffers from a lack of imagination, with many of the new characters simply mirroring those from That ‘70s Show. However, the potential is there for something better, the critic opines, and Reyn Doi as Ozzie is a bright spot of the series. According to the review: 

Dave Lemetz of TV Line isn’t sure who That ‘90s Show is geared toward, with the OG cast being more relegated to the background (and some of the actors not putting in much effort). Younger audiences, meanwhile, also aren’t likely to latch on to the series that is “half tired nostalgia tour and half mediocre retread.” The critic gives it a D+, saying: 

While many of the critics aren’t throwing their full-fledged support behind the project, which is available for streaming now with a Netflix subscription, That ‘90s Show has compiled a better-than-average 72% Fresh rating from 18 critics on Rotten Tomatoes, with the Audience Score even a little higher, with 78% as of this writing. 

You can see what else is new to Netflix, and check out our 2023 TV schedule to see what other series are premiering soon on TV and streaming. 

Even though streaming didn’t exist in the 1990s, everyone with a Netflix subscription will get to go back to that snazzy boom-bazzy decade to visit the Forman family in That ‘90s Show. The upcoming sitcom released its full-length trailer after having given fans a taste of what those hangouts will feel like — answer: like Red’s foot up our ass — and offered up a first look at nearly the full ensemble of returning That ‘70s Show stars. (At least those who entered the picture before the final season.) And in that respect, we learned a bit about what’s to come for Wilmer Valderrama’s Fez, while a big detail was revealed for Ashton Kutcher’s Kelso and Mila Kunis’ Jackie.

For those who weren’t able to check out the trailer above, let’s run through some of those first looks, starting with Topher Grace’s Eric and Laura Prepon’s Donna sitting in quite the familiar location. 

Check out Wilmer Valderrama's fresh AF look below, as he's now styling and profiling like nobody's business. Well it's his business, I guess. Remember how buttoned-up the character was all those years ago? Where are those top buttons now, I ask you?

Seeing Fez in his current glory makes Valderrama's butt-shake revival celebraton all the more understandable. Not that it wasn't understandable before, since what is Fez going to do with his butt except shake it?

And now here's Ashton Kutcher's Kelso all dressed up and not wearing his tie upside-down or anything, next to Mila Kunis' Jackie, who presumably didn't tie Kelso's tie for him. 

Mila Kunis has shared that she felt a little skeptical upon finding out where Kelso and Jackie landed in the years between the flagship series’ conclusion and the start of That ‘90s Show’s narrative. Not only did she believe she’d end up with Fez — which perhaps speaks to why he looks as good as she does, while Kelso looks like he sells door-to-door encyclopedias — but she brought up how Kelso was already married to a wholly different character in the previous narrative. It’s unclear how that will be addressed, but it should be fun, especially if Shannon Elizabeth also makes a cameo.

Okay, now it's time for a SMOKE BOMB ALERT! Um, wait, I mean: BOMBSHELL ALERT: For those who didn't already have sneaking suspicions, Netflix paired the trailer release with the reveal that Mace Coronel's Jay is a Kelso, as he's the son of Kutcher and Kunis' doofuses. That's the bloodline that just keeps on giving.

To be sure, it was already known that Jackie and Kelso brought life into this world together, though it wasn't confirmed before now that their kiddo was part of the main group. But after watching him in the trailer, particularly during the basement-blazing, it seems like he couldn't have been cast as anyone but Kelso and Jackie's offspring.

The trailer also featured a peek at what'll likely be a s-weed-t return from Tommy Chong's Leo, as well as new adult character Sherri (Andrea Anders), the mother to Maxwell Donovan's jock-esque Nate and Ashley Aufderheide's rebel Gwen. 

With more smoke-filled reveals likely set for the episodes themselves, That ‘90s Show is set to debut on Netflix on Thursday, January 19, so be sure to get your Lisa Frank Trapper Keepers, your blank VHS tapes, and your pump-up sneaks for a binge session that thankfully doesn’t need to rely on dial-up internet. Head to our 2023 TV premiere schedule to see everything else that’s heading to the small screen soon.

It may be the 2020s, but we are about to take a trip back to the ‘90s with the highly-anticipated series That ‘90s Show. The That ‘70s Show spinoff wrapped filming on its first season over the summer, and fans and the stars couldn’t be more excited. With much of the original cast returning, it’s only just a matter of time before we see them all on the screen together again. And Topher Grace is opening up about his return.

Following the announcement of That ‘90s Show, questions rose about the original cast’s return on top of Debra Jo Rupp and Kurtwood Smith, who were spearheading the spinoff. Since the series revolves around the daughter of Eric (Topher Grace) and Donna (Laura Prepon) spending the summer with her grandparents Kitty and Red in Point Place, Wisconsin, fans immediately hoped for Grace and Prepon’s returns. 

Due to Grace filming Home Economics, it seemed like he was too busy to do That ‘90s Show. But he is indeed coming back to Point Place and even told ET some details about Eric’s long-awaited return:

While it is disappointing that we will only get Grace in the premiere, it is better than nothing. With Grace filming Home Economics, that does make taking on other projects difficult. However, just knowing that Eric is coming back and we will most likely see him interacting with his parents is something that fans will definitely be looking forward to.

Of course, along with Topher Grace coming back, Laura Prepon is returning as well. In June, the actress shared her emotional thoughts about returning as Donna, admitting she cried on her first day on set. It sounds like filming That ‘90s Show was special and nostalgic for all involved, and fans can probably look forward to plenty of references throughout the season to keep the nostalgia going. 

Wilmer Valderrama, Mila Kunis, and Ashton Kutcher are all returning for That ‘90s Show, meaning the mood on set was probably a crazy one. Hopefully, the series will do better than That ‘80s Show, which lasted 13 episodes in 2002. Since this story actually involves its former star, fingers crossed it becomes the next great reboot that lasts a long time.

With That ‘70s Show now streaming on Peacock with a subscription, fans are able to go back to Point Place and relive all the crazy storylines that happened. There currently is no word on when That ‘90s Show will premiere, but be sure to check out CinemaBlend’s Netflix TV schedule to see what else is coming soon!

Topher Grace made a name for himself as the snarky Eric Forman on That ‘70s Show. While he’s done plenty since then, it's safe to say he'll always be Forman to fans of the classic sitcom. While reboot series That ‘90s Show is in production, many fans still love rewatching reruns of the Fox comedy. However, for Grace, it’s difficult to view old episodes of the show, and he recently explained why he doesn’t watch them, as well as touched on what's going on with That '90s Show.

The star recently reminisced about his time working on the cult classic while speaking with SiriusXM’s The Jess Cagle Show, in promotion of his ABC comedy Home Economics. While giving props to his TV mom and dad Debra Jo Rupp and Kurtwood Smith along with the spinoff's new young cast., he shared some of his feelings on the OG show. When doing so, he explained that the show is just too "nostalgic" for him to seek out reruns:

While the average Joe has a challenging time remembering young adulthood, the actor's time was captured on film. Sure, for us, watching those old episodes is about revisiting certain scenes or Easter eggs but, for the That ‘70s Show star, it’s all about the fun times and touching memories he shared with his cast and crew. It's clear that the sitcom was more than a job for him; it was a special time in his life.

The Spider-Man 3 actor is busy with other projects but was asked whether he and former co-star Laura Prepon would return as the adult versions of Eric Forman and Donna Pinciotti in the revival series, which will see the TV couple's daughter spend a summer with her grandparents in Point Place, Wisconsin. Upon hearing the suggestion, the star played coy about his participation, saying that everything related to the new show is “top secret," though it does sound as if he's busy with Home Economics right now, also noting: 

Topher Grace wasn’t the only That ‘70s Show alum excited about the revival, either. His TV parents, Kurtwood Smith and Debra Jo Rupp celebrated the upcoming Netflix series starting production, giving devoted fans a peek into what to expect. Grace’s former co-star Danny Masterson shared an enthusiastic response to the news by calling everyone involved “dope.” While Masterson won’t be reprising his role of Hyde anytime soon, it would be a treat to see other alums Mila Kunis, Ashton Kutcher, and Wilmer Valderrama reprise their roles in some capacity. Such cameos could be nostalgic for fans and the cast themselves.

As you wait for news on That '90s Show, grab yourself a Netflix subscription so you can watch when it premieres. And if you'd like to check out some reruns of the parent show, you can stream all eight seasons by grabbing an Amazon Prime subscription.

The secrecy surrounding Spider-Man: No Way Home has spawned multiple theories and rumors from Marvel fans. With the multiverse playing an essential role, there have been some confirmations and speculation about who is and isn’t popping up in the sequel. One name that hasn’t come up is Spider-Man 3 alum Topher Grace. Of course, Grace entered the Spider-Man universe as Peter Parker’s well-known adversary Eddie Brock/Venom. The character in Spider-Man 3 wasn’t as well-received as Tom Hardy’s take, but he still left an impression, so his return for the next Spider-Man film wouldn’t be too far off. The BlacKkKlansman star channeled his inner Eric Forman to give a hilarious response about his involvement in Spider-Man: No Way Home.

Seeing Topher Grace return as Venom would be a big moment for the Spider-Man sequel. The actor was taking part in a Reddit AMA session and was asked about possibly appearing in Spider-Man: No Way Home. Marvel’s well-known unveil of secrecy gave Grace the chance to tease about a possible return to the Spider-Verse. The Home Economics star couldn’t help but inject some humor into his response. He replied with a hilarious synopsis.

The thought of multiple Venoms in one movie could make for an interesting time for Marvel fans. All those Spidey villains on one screen could be overloading for viewers (not to mention other properties getting involved). Of course, Topher Grace had a hilarious take on Kevin Feige’s Phase Four plan. Grace’s synopsis sounded like either utter chaos or marketing genius.

It could be a fantastic way for Tom Holland to go out in his trilogy, or it could end up being as polarizing as Spider-Man 3. It could also mark a redemption for Topher Grace’s Venom. His take on the antihero was cited as a weak point in Tobey Maguire’s final Spider-Man film. For now, the only multiversal characters who've been confirmed for Spider-Man: No Way Home are Alfred Molina's Doctor Octopus and Jamie Foxx's Electro.

While Topher Grace veered into troll territory, fans might create another theory out of his response. Despite joking around, Grace could pop up in the sequel. Of course, fans won’t get any confirmation until Spider-Man: No Way Home arrives in theaters on December 17.

It’s tough to stand out in the entertainment industry. Many actors go on countless auditions, waiting years for their big break. Sometimes, if you’re in the right place at the right time, you might hit gold. This is exactly what happened to Topher Grace, who recalled the funny story behind how he ended up on That '70s show in a recent interview.

Topher Grace is perhaps best known for his portrayal of Eric Foreman on the beloved sitcom That ‘70’s Show. The half-hour comedy told the story of a group of Wisconsin teenagers living during the - you guessed it - 1970s. Grace’s co-stars included the likes of Mila Kunis and Ashton Kutcher (now married), as well as Orange Is The New Black star Laura Prepon. Topher Grace recently appeared on the PeopleTV web series Couch Surfing where he made the following admission:

Bad luck for the tennis team, good luck for television. Despite his initial lack of acting experience and less-than-professional headshot, Topher Grace obviously had the chops and After so many years and so many rewatches, it’s difficult to imagine anyone else playing the nerdy yet endearing Eric Foreman. In the 15 years after Grace’s last season on That 70's Show, he’s worked on a multitude of projects. He’s been in films such as Sam Raimi’s Spider Man 3 and Christopher Nolan’s Interstellar.

Most recently, he played David Duke in Spike Lee’s BlacKkKlansman, with critics praising his performance. But all that may not have happened if Topher Grace had never gotten the chance to audition through a series of hilarious accidents.

Next up, Topher Grace is set to star in the new ABC comedy Home Economics. The series, which also stars Karla Souza, Caitlin McGee, and Jimmy Tatro, premiered on April 7. New episodes will air on Wednesdays at 8:30pm EST.

Topher Grace has been in the acting game for a while now, having starred in an array of TV shows and movies. He’s probably most famous for his role as Wisconsin teen Eric Forman on the hit Fox sitcom That ‘70s Show. However, within the past few years, Grace has dabbled in different kinds of projects, having guest-starred in shows like Black Mirror and The Twilight Zone. The actor hasn’t had a regular TV home in some time and has been primed to return through an ABC pilot called Home Economics. Well, it appears that the project just took a major step forward.

Home Economics was one of several pilots ordered by the network, including one that stars comedy vet Katey Sagal. Now, ABC has officially given the Topher Grace vehicle a series order, according to THR. The single-camera comedy was created by Leverage’s John Aboud and Michael Colton, with the series being loosely based on Colton’s life. In addition, Grace will also serve as an executive producer.

The show focuses on three siblings, one of which is a member of the 1%, another who is part of the middle class and the third who is struggling economically. Topher Grace plays the middle child, who is coincidentally part of the middle class.

Topher Grace will lead the cast, which also includes Caitlin McGee, Karla Souza, Jimmy Tatro and Sasheer Zamata. The stars have all had roles in notable TV comedies and dramas over the past few years. Saturday Night Live fans may be particularly excited to see Sasheer Zamata return to network television. The show will also feature a few new faces in the form of Jordyn Curet, Chloe Jo Rountree, Shiloh Bearman and JeCobi Swain, who are all set to play the children of the three main siblings.

Some may be surprised to learn of Topher Grace’s return to TV. But in a statement, the actor revealed that it was Aboud and Colton’s script that convinced him to return to his small-screen roots:

ABC has developed a number of hit single-camera comedies over the past few years, such as Modern Family, The Goldbergs and Black-ish. With the latter two shows still on the air, Home Economics is in good company. It’s hard to say when we may get our first look at the new show but, with an interesting premise and a cast led by Topher Grace, it seems to have some real potential.

Keep it here at CinemaBlend for more news from the world of TV and movies.

The TV pilot season that networks usually use to determine which projects have the potential to become the next hit shows has been turned upside down by the same production shutdowns that cut the 2019-2020 TV season short, but ABC has some good news for a handful of its potential projects. Katey Sagal's Rebel, Topher Grace's Home Economics, and three more have gotten official pilot orders, while others weren't so lucky. Here's the latest.

The five shows to receive pilot orders from ABC are Katey Sagal's Rebel, Topher Grace's Home Economics, Bossy, Harlem's Kitchen, and Work Wife, according to THR. Rebel is a drama based on the true story of Erin Brockovich, with Katey Sagal attached to star since back in January.

Rebel is also executive produced by Grey's Anatomy showrunner Krista Vernoff, who obviously has a history of success at the network. Sagal has appeared on a couple of ABC series in recent years, with a recurring role on The Conners and three episodes of Grand Hotel.

Topher Grace, who built a comedic name for himself as star of Fox's That '70s Show, is attached to the single-camera comedy Home Economics as star and executive producer. If ordered to series, Home Economics could center on three siblings of three very different economic statuses. It would mark Grace's first regular broadcast TV show since That '70s Show.

Bossy (which Deadline reports was previously known as Kids Matter Now) is a multi-camera comedy about a diva boss who adopts a baby and then asks her assistant, who has three kids of her own, to become her motherhood mentor. Work Wife is a single-camera comedy inspired by the partnerships of Kelly Ripa and Ryan Seacrest of Live with Kelly and Ryan. Ripa and Seacrest also serve as executive producers on the project.

On the drama front, Harlem's Kitchen is a potential series that follows an executive chef, his wife, and their three daughters after an unexpected death puts the future of their fine-dining restaurant in jeopardy. The cast options for these five projects have been extended through the end of September, with the goal of filming as soon as production can resume.

ABC has already resumed production on another one of its shows, but that doesn't necessarily indicate that these pilots will be able to shoot any time too soon. If that's the case and the pilots can't film by the end of September, ABC can pick them up one more time, with an end date of December 30.

The hope for these pilots is that they will lead to some series pickups that can film and be ready to launch in midseason. ABC has already announced its plans for the fall TV season, with a lineup that includes two new shows that have already been ordered to series.

That said, there are no details available at this point about when production will be able to pick up in the entertainment industry across the board, so it's not 100% certain what fall TV season will look like. ABC did pass on three prospective pilots that definitely won't lead to a fall or midseason series.

The Brides, which would have been about the brides of Dracula with Suits alum Gina Torres as star, won't become a pilot. ABC also passed on Thirtysomething(else), which would have been based on the kids of the original Thirtysomething characters and starred a Vampire Diaries veteran. A Jason Lee comedy project, called Valley Trash, is out as well. Three pilots have been pushed back: Kevin Coster's National Parks Service, a comedy called Adopted, and medical drama Triage.

For now, you can find plenty of viewing options on our 2020 summer TV premiere schedule. If streaming is more your style, check out our 2020 Netflix premiere guide!

From the late '90s through the mid-aughts, Topher Grace was at the forefront of Fox's popular sitcom That '70s Show, becoming the modern-day version of Ron Howard's Happy Days lead Richie Cunningham. The actor chose to vacate the role going into the series' eighth season (though he returned for the series finale) and since 2006, Grace has yet to return to network TV in an equally sizable role. Such distinctions could definitely change soon, though, as Grace has signed on for a new TV pilot called Home Economics.

Topher Grace is indeed meant to lead up the Home Economics pilot, and he'll also be doing some behind-the-scenes work as an executive producer, which was reportedly set up through a financially pleasing deal for the star. For the show, Grace will portray the character Tom, the middle child between a brother in the 1% of the country, money-wise, and a sister for whom money problems are second nature.

Tom is a novelist that is comfortable in his intellect, though book sales could be better. Though some of his books have done well, his latest release sunk, and while the ups and downs of the industry weren't always a major cause for concern, Tom is now the father of twins, so the lack of consistency starts to seriously stress him out. He hopes to attain a fraction of the success his brother has had, but Tom fears that he'll end up in a comparable situation to his more reckless sister.

On paper, Home Economics could be an effective drama just as much as it could be a comedy, so one can assume that tone is everything with a project like this. The project was created by Michael Colton and John Aboud, who worked together on Penguins of Madagascar, Childrens Hospital, Leverage and many more. Add to that work on projects like Zoolander: Super Model and Sit Down Shut Up, and it becomes a lot more obvious that these guys are probably big fans of weird and absurd humor.

Topher Grace has enjoyed a bit of weird and absurd humor throughout his career, which got extremely varied in the 14 years between That '70s Show ending and now. He immediately followed it with a trek into comic book infamy as Spider-Man 3's Venom, later starring in and co-writing the throwback comedy feature Take Me Home Tonight, and more recently winning over critics uncomfortably as David Duke in Spike Lee's BlacKkKlansman. He'll be seen in Jon Stewart's upcoming political comedy Irresistable, which releases on May 29, 2020 and co-stars Steve Carrell and Rose Byrne.

On the TV side of things, some of Topher Grace's post-'70s Show highlights include a Simpsons appearance, a spot as Drunk History's Milton Bradley, a starring role in the outbreak-tethered TV miniseries The Hot Zone, and an intriguing appearance in Black Mirror Season 5's installment "Smithereens." Grace also won a Daytime Emmy in 2013 for the category of Outstanding New Approaches – Original Daytime Program or Series for his work on the web series The Beauty Inside.

Thanks to syndication and streaming, That '70s Show is still a beloved sitcom by wide swaths of fans, and you just know if Home Economics makes it beyond the pilot stage, everyone will want to see Topher Grace's former co-stars popping by for mini-reunions. I mean, Ashton Kutcher is currently done with Netflix's The Ranch, which had its own '70s Show connections that took a downward turn. Laura Prepon is done with Netflix's Orange Is the New Black. Mila Kunis, meanwhile, has a pair of films coming in 2020, but nothing on the TV side. Wilder Valderrama is the standout there, with his regular role opposite Mark Harmon on TV's most-watched drama NCIS.

Fingers crossed that Home Economics lands the rest of its casting and is eventually high-quality enough to earn a series order from the network. In the meantime, stay tuned with everything that's coming to the small screen soon with our Winter and Spring TV schedule.

Spoilers below for the Black Mirror episode titled "Smithereens," so be sure to watch before reading on.

The latest season of Charlie Brooker's anthology Black Mirror recently hit Netflix to varying opinions, and is arguably the most polarizing season of the tech-savvy drama to date. Critics have largely been kind about the performances, in any case, with Season 5 once again netting Black Mirror some interesting and high-profile stars for the three latest eps. One such star is That 70s Show vet Topher Grace, who has an important role in the episode "Smithereens."

For the surprisingly modern-day episode, Topher Grace plays the head of the giant social media company, Smithereen, whose influence over his creation has long since been rendered irrelevant. He becomes the catalyst of a tortured man's final wish: to be able to confess accidentally killing his fiancée in a vehicle accident by looking down at a Smithereen update on his phone. The episode ends in a way that keeps viewers out of the loop, but no one should expect Grace to share what happened, or what Billy Bauer's final message was. In his words:

At least it doesn't look like Charlie Brooker and executive producer Annabel Jones left the "Smithereens" ending completely ambiguous among the cast and crew, since that might have been handling things a tad too preciously. So it seems as if there is an official resolution for how things went down for Andrew Scott's still-mourning Chris and Damson Idris' captive intern Jaden, even if audiences might have to wait for an easter egg in Season 6 to learn how it happened.

Technically, it's not such a slap in the face to get left in the dark about how the episode ends for its kidnapper and hostage, since viewers can easily take a guess about what happened. The likeliest outcome, with most things considered, is that the second shot was a success and Chris was taken down without anyone else getting harmed. Though justice would have been served in one way in that scenario, it's still a bummer of a resolution.

The Ten Best Black Mirror Episodes, Including Season 5

On the flip side is an even darker ending, though. What if the cop had accidentally shot Jaden instead of Chris? The latter would be left with a few seconds (before the cops opened fire on his vehicle) to be washed over with guilt about someone else's death due to his harmful actions. The biggest tragedy in either scenario is that Chris grand gesture of a confession ultimately did nothing but tear up more people's afternoons and lives.

In that sense, it's less important to note exactly what happened, and more important to take away the overall message and theme. Basically, that just about no social media update is so important that it should distract someone from doing anything that risks anyone's lives. Also, that major life moments are all relative, and that anything we do might just be a glance-worthy notification in someone else's life.

When speaking with THR, the subject of avoiding phones while driving came up, and Topher Grace was positive about that being a solid takeaway.

Hopefully no one is reading this particular story while driving. And whenever you're on solid ground, you can catch Black Mirror Season 5 and all of the other future-leaning episodes (complete with Bandersnatch) on Netflix, which has tons of other great shows coming in June and in the future.

They were just a mixed bag of kids from Wisconsin in the later years of the disco era, hanging out down the street, doing the same old thing they did last week. Yet, that simple premise happened to become one of the most endearing sitcoms of the past quarter century: That '70s Show. Groovy, right?

But what That ‘70s Show is best known for, outside of still holding the record for the Fox network’s second longest-running sitcom from 1998 to 2006, is launching the careers of some of Hollywood’s top talents, and even giving a few veterans their shining moments as well. How do the successes of the That ‘70s Show cast measure up outside “The Circle"? Who came out “all alright” and who has “not a thing to do?”

Let’s see how the That ‘70s Show cast has turned out by ranking their careers from least successful to megastar status.

Danny Masterson (Steven Hyde)

Steven Hyde was the guy your parents would forbid you from hanging out with, and often for good reason. In That '70s Show, Danny Masterson (the brother to Malcolm in the Middle’s Christopher Masterson) portrayed the smart-mouthed stoner as a lovable, misunderstood young man with a heart of gold and an ear for Led Zeppelin.

However, Masterson’s reputation has not measured up to that of his troubled onscreen persona. While the actor later found some success after That ‘70s Show appearing in 2008’s Yes Man with Jim Carrey, leading the TBS sitcom Men at Work, and the Netflix hit The Ranch with former co-star and friend Ashton Kutcher, he was fired from the show in 2018 amid rape allegations. Earlier allegations resurfaced in the wake of the #MeToo movement, leading to his Ranch character James “Rooster” Bennett being written out in the middle of the third season.

While he does have a few projects on the horizon, including the supernatural thriller In Limbo and the dark comedy Killing Winston Jones with Richard Dreyfuss, Danny Masterson's career has certainly seen setbacks recently and we'll have to wait and see what happens in the future.

Debra Jo Rupp (Kitty Forman)

While sitcom mothers were always undisputedly squeaky clean, Kitty Forman could only wish to be June Cleaver, if it were not for having a staunchly divisive husband, two rebellious children, and a not-too-subtle drinking problem. But Debra Jo Rupp’s charm made it obvious why the That ‘70s Show cast always ended up at the Forman household to pass the time.

But where has Debra Jo Rupp been up to since? A little bit of everything, really, landing bit parts on various TV hits such as This Is Us and a recurring guest spot on Kutcher’s The Ranch. Before being cast on That ‘70s Show, her most recognizable appearances were as Jerry Seinfeld’s assistant in two episodes of Seinfeld and as Phoebe’s sister-in-law, Alice Knight Buffay, on Friends.

Outside of That ‘70s Show, you cannot really call Debra Jo Rupp a household name. However, while Kitty Forman may remain the role of her life, she is sure to pop up as a familiar face in something you might even watch today.

Don Stark (Bob Pinciotti)

Bob Pinciotti, father to Laura Prepon’s Donna, was the goofy next-door neighbor you would always love to see get picked on, even when his frequent misfortune (divorce, bankruptcy, Red’s constant ridicule) made you feel some sympathy for him. Not to mention, Don Stark probably got the part by appearance alone, looking as if some suburban, 1970’s dad jumped right out of a vintage road trip photo.

But when Don Stark isn’t rocking the Bob fro, he has lent his talents to a variety of projects on the big or small screen for more than four decades. He still does not shy away from comedy, having starred as a former addict on Marc Maron’s semi-autobiographical series Maron, but has gotten serious appearing in Supernatural and the second season of American Horror Story. He even has the bragging rights to call himself part of the Star Trek mythology, having starred in the Deep Space Nine series and the 1996 feature film Star Trek: First Contact; he also had a brief role in the Best Picture Oscar winner, Green Book.

Like his fellow parental characters in That ‘70s Show, Don Stark may always be remembered best as Bob Pinciotti, but his full resume is bigger than Bob’s hair.

Kurtwood Smith (Red Forman)

While Kitty Forman was the one who kept her son and his friends welcome in their house, her husband Red was the one who kept them in fear. This war veteran with a tendency to threaten people by placing his foot where the sun don’t shine was played by acting veteran Kurtwood Smith, whose early work proves he was born to play Red.

Smith’s role as the demanding father to Robert Sean Leonard’s Neil Perry in Dead Poet’s Society makes Red Forman look more like Bob Pinciotti by comparison, but his most notable antagonistic role would be as the man who took on Alex Murphy in RoboCop. While Kurtwood Smith's face still appears on television from time to time, his voice has become just as prolific, whether he is guest-starring on Rick and Morty or playing Commissioner Gordon on Beware the Batman.

With a legacy like that, Red looks even more intimidating, huh?

Wilmer Valderrama (Fez)

Fun fact: “Fez” actually stands for “Foreign Exchange Student.” While that may have been a joke at the expense of the That 70s Show gang’s spunky, ethnically ambiguous friend, Wilmer Valderrama must have felt that way when he first landed the role, given how little acting experience he had and how little English he spoke at the time.

Valderrama, who grew up in Venezuela, hit it off strongly with the cast and has maintained strong friendships with them since. In fact, outside of acting, in 2007, he went into business with Ashton Kutcher and Danny Masterson by opening up the Italian eatery Dolce Enoteca e Ristorante, which closed in 2012.

While some may always just see him as Fez, Wilmer Valderrama has risen above typecasting, having garnered a prominent career in television, with roles on Grey’s Anatomy, From Dusk Till Dawn: The Series, the title role of animated children’s program Handy Manny, and, currently, as Nick Torres on NCIS. Fez really did grow up. We’re so proud!

Laura Prepon (Donna Pinciotti)

What a lucky guy Eric Forman was. Donna Pinciotti was the perfect girlfriend: a saucy redhead who loved Eric unconditionally, enjoyed playing basketball, and would often put up with his Star Wars obsession without a hitch. Laura Prepon’s performance was so genuine, it made it easy to believe that she was not too different from Donna in real life, which is why it was especially exciting to see her eventually play a role that was a complete 180.

Before 2013, Donna would have been the first character you’d think of when hearing Laura Prepon's name, but with the massive success of Netflix’s Orange Is the New Black, backstabbing drug money smuggler Alex Vause may have taken that title.

She has yet to find success post-That ‘70s Show greater than Orange Is The New Black (October Road and Are You There Chelsea?, both of which she landed starring roles on, did not make it past one season), but with her work as a director, producer, and co-author of wellness book The Stash Plan, her current repertoire is nothing short of impressive.

Topher Grace (Eric Forman)

He was the average high school everyboy, who acted as the audience’s vessel into the world of 1970s Point Place, Wisconsin. Eric Forman was the heart and soul of That ‘70s Show, which is why when Topher Grace chose to leave the show after six seasons, audiences thought of calling him a certain word Red Forman was prone to using.

But, Topher Grace poved to be worthy of a life beyond sitcom stardom, even if that meant playing himself in Ocean’s Eleven and Twelve. While he might still be confused about how he got the role of Eddie Brock in Spider-Man 3 or whichever character he played in the overstuffed rom-com Valentine’s Day (also starring Ashton Kutcher), Grace’s career is now looking better than ever, earning acclaim in the recent faith-based hit Breakthrough and his wildly unexpected but compellingly wicked portrayal of David Duke in BlacKkKlansman.

It may be impossible to look at Eric Forman in the same way again.

Ashton Kutcher (Michael Kelso)

Because Michael Kelso was not the brightest member of the That ‘70s Show gang, it may be difficult to believe, at first, that Ashton Kutcher graduated from the University of Iowa with a degree in biochemical engineering. On top of that he is the co-founder of tech-based media company A Plus and a general partner to investing firms Sound Ventures and A-Grade Investments.

As for his acting career, his comedic charm and boyish good looks earned him instant A-list status, leading him to headline comedies like Just Married or My Boss’ Daughter, before transitioning into more serious roles, such as The Butterfly Effect or as the co-founder of Apple in 2013’s Jobs. Despite even landing major roles with additional sitcom work, such as replacing Charlie Sheen on Two and a Half Men or on Netflix hit The Ranch, some of his biggest successes have been from producing non-scripted content, including Beauty and the Geek and, especially, the hidden camera MTV hit, Punk’d.

Say what you want about Ashton Kutcher the actor, Ashton Kutcher the producer and businessman is dynamite. Perhaps his greatest success is his current marriage. Speaking of...

Mila Kunis (Jackie Burkhart)

Jackie Burkhart had one of the most interesting character arcs on That ‘70s Show, transitioning from a spoiled, self-centered popularity hog to a humbler, kindhearted, independent young woman. You could easily compare her metamorphosis to that of the actress who played her, Mila Kunis, who went from merely a sitcom darling to one of the most prolific and sought-after actresses in Hollywood.

We fell in love with her in Forgetting Sarah Marshall. We became afraid of her in her Golden Globe-nominated turn in Black Swan. We forgave her for Jupiter Ascending.

Of course, the Ukranian-born actress also owes plenty of credit to Seth MacFarlane, casting her as Meg Griffin in Family Guy and Lori in Ted, to help continuously ensure her comedic talents. Whether Mila Kunis is tickling our funny bones or sending chills down our spines, we can’t wait to see what she does next.

While it has been a long road since the ‘70s, the futures are bright for (most of) the That ‘70s Show cast. Whether they are popping up randomly on your cable TV ‘80s B-movie block, raking in dough at the box office, or even having a hand in the financial backing of your latest home tech device, you will always have a piece of Point Place, Wisconsin, with you for generations to come.

When people hear the name Topher Grace, they probably think of That '70s Show. That's not a bad thing, necessarily, although remembering the big show he did over a decade ago is a bit of a disservice to the projects he's been part of in Hollywood since.

For those who can't readily think of all those post-Eric Foreman career moves, here's some of the major appearances he's had in both television and film since the Fox series came to an end. (Though it's worth mentioning that he is down for a revival of That '70s Show at some point.)

Spider-Man 3 (2007)

This is probably the second project that comes to mind when people think of Topher Grace, and bears some responsibility for why he left That '70s Show ahead of its final season. Unfortunately, Spider-Man 3 got less acclaim than the first two movies in the Sam Raimi trilogy, and Grace's Eddie Brock didn't get much praise (even from himself). Neither did Tom Hardy's Brock, although Grace didn't get the luxury of a sequel like he did.

The Simpsons (2008)

Much like many celebrities before and after him, Topher Grace has done a guest spot on The Simpsons. This episode is particularly good, however, as "The DeBarted" introduces Topher Grace's Donny in a story similar to The Departed. Donny is a rat for Principal Skinner and informs on Bart's pranks in exchange for rewards. Bart inevitably finds out, and together, they turn the tables and create an ending almost as iconic as the movie it's based on.

Valentine's Day (2010)

On paper, Valentine's Day seems as though it was constructed to be an American version of Love, Actually. While the film knocked it out of the part in casting a bunch of big names and creating a story that intertwines stories within each other, it failed in execution. Topher Grace is just one of the many notable names in this largely forgettable film, which remains the first and one of few feature films to feature Taylor Swift.

Predators (2010)

It's not often one can say a role in the Predator franchise is a highlight in an actor's career, but Topher Grace can say that. The actor was leery to take a role in Predators for that reason, but upon reading the script, he told Bloody Disgusting he likened it to the Aliens of the Predator movies. His instincts weren't off, and while it wasn't given incredible reviews, it remains the second highest-acclaimed film of the franchise to date.

Take Me Home Tonight (2011)

Topher Grace got his big break doing a show about the '70s, so why not take a crack at the '80s? Grace plays a grad student thinking about what he's going to do with his life which, as is the case in most movies, means he's about to go on an epic adventure. He does just that in a movie that didn't win a lot of praise, but may be enjoyed by fans of '80s movies.

Interstellar (2014)

Topher Grace had a smaller, but notable role in Interstellar, as he played Murph's friend Getty. The two share a kiss at one point in the film, and while that's not a major plot point of the film, it is a notable scene that elevates the minor character somewhat. That said, can anyone really consider a role in a Christopher Nolan film a small role?

American Ultra (2015)

Years after Spider-Man 3, Topher Grace got another chance to play the villain in a role opposite Jesse Eisenberg in the action-packed American Ultra. For a movie where it feels like everyone is in a role they're not accustomed to, Grace does well as the baddie with a performance that can actually make one's blood boil while watching. To be honest, if he had this same energy when he played Venom, the movie might've turned out better.

Drunk History (2015)

Lots of actors have done Drunk History, but that doesn't make Topher Grace's appearance on the Comedy Central series any less noteworthy. Grace appeared as Milton Bradley in the "Games" episode, in a performance that detailed the famed game-maker's early exploits. It may not be the most memorable celebrity appearance on Drunk History, but it doesn't have to be to get a laugh from anyone who enjoys good comedy.

Workaholics (2017)

Topher Grace found his way into Workaholics in the show's final season and portrayed the tatted-up drug dealer Noel. Part of the humor is just how different Grace looks in the role, but he also has a good bit where Ders is trying to sexually dominate him with a golf ball trick that is as funny as it probably was a choking hazard. Seriously, does anyone else get nervous he's going to swallow one of those while watching?

War Machine (2017)

Brad Pitt's Netflix film War Machine features Topher Grace in a movie that is based off the non-fiction work The Operators: The Wild and Terrifying Inside Story of America's War in Afghanistan. Grace plays a former lobbyist who becomes Brad Pitt's General Glen McMahon's civilian media adviser. While critics have complained about the general execution of the story, the talent and acting of the cast make this one worth checking out.

Get Shorty (2017)

Those who have Epix may have noticed Topher Grace in Get Shorty as Tyler Mathis. The actor only had a couple episodes he appeared in for Season 1, and unfortunately wasn't on board back when the series returned for Season 2 in 2018. There's been no word on whether or not he'll ever return, but we got our hopes up because we're loving that beard and long-haired look.

BlacKkKlansman (2018)

One of the biggest roles Topher Grace has taken in recent years, BlacKkKlansman puts the actor in the shoes of former Grand Wizard of the Ku Klux Klan, David Duke. That's a rough role to take, and Grace even received a threatening phone call following taking on the role. Despite that, he played the part and, in the process, gave one of the best big screen performances of his career.

Love, Death & Robots (2019)

Netflix subscribers can enjoy Topher Grace on one of its most-bizarre original series to date, Love, Death & Robots. The short features a couple who discover a lost civilization inside of their ice box. It's a short watch, and while the acting is goofy, it fits within the frame of the short given all that's going on. This is one to put on while figuring out what to binge for the rest of the night.

Do you have a favorite performance from this list that other Topher Grace fans should check out? Feel free to share in the comments below, and give a listen to Grace's excellent new podcast called Minor Adventures with Topher Grace, which recently had That 70s Show co-star Wilmer Valderrama as a guest. Check out CinemaBlend for all the latest news on the hottest movies and television shows.

As hard as it is to believe, That '70s Show is twenty years old! The show left its teen years behind, and the cast of the series took to social media to celebrate the occasion. And as luck would have it, the momentous event lined up with Throwback Thursday. Among the stars to take to social media were That '70s Show's leading man, Topher Grace. On Twitter, the actor posted a nostalgic picture of the cast with an appreciative caption. See it below:

That '70s Show premiered on August 23, 1998. The sitcom was a hit for Fox and subsequently ran for eight seasons. Topher Grace starred in seven of them, leaving the show during the finale of its penultimate season. While talk of Eric was omnipresent despite his being off-screen, he did return for the series finale. Grace's breakthrough turn as Eric Forman jettisoned his career to a new level. And he was not alone. The show's other cast members enjoyed tremendous success in its aftermath.

Among them was Laura Prepon, who starred as Donna Pinciotti on the series. Like her co-star and on-screen love interest Topher Grace, Prepon has not forgotten about the show that gave her career its big break. Prepon also took to Twitter to share a Throwback Thursday picture of the cast. Replete with a caption expressing her awe at the show's success, she showed off a photo from their first press tour. You can see it below:

Joining his cast mates in celebrating the show's 20th anniversary was Wilmer Valderrama, who starred as Fez on the series. Like Prepon, Valderrama remained on the show throughout its entire eight-season run. Valderrama took to both Twitter and Instagram to commemorate That '70s Show's special day. On Instagram, Valderrama utilized the social media platform's more generous character count. He shared a portrait of the cast with a caption that thanked and acknowledged numerous people for their contribution to the show.

On Twitter, Wilmer Valderrama's message was shorter, albeit just as celebratory. He also included a bonus picture not seen in his Instagram post. You can check it out in the Tweet below:

With That '70s Show celebrating a milestone anniversary this week, it would not be surprising if it has conjured some nostalgic sentiments for a reunion among fans of the comedy. Given the current commitments of the cast, though, a Will & Grace-style multi-season revival seems out of the question.

When recently asked about the potential for a That '70s Show revival, Topher Grace seemed open to the idea citing the close-knit cast as one of the alluring factors. Whether it actually comes together or not sometime in the future, fans will always have the original, which we've now had for 20 years!

Looking for television that is currently airing? Then check out the new TV content set to arrive in the near future with CinemaBlend's summer premiere guide. For new and returning television shows that are coming this fall, check out CinemaBlend's guide to TV's fall premieres. For more info on shows currently airing on Fox, check out the network's website.

Being an actor requires portraying all types of characters, good and evil, fictional and real, that all bring their own unique sets of challenges. Things become especially difficult however, when playing a real life controversial figure, especially one who is still alive. Such is the challenge Topher Grace faced for Spike Lee's BlacKkKlansman. In BlacKkKlansman, Topher Grace plays former Ku Klux Klan Grand Wizard and 2016 United States Senate candidate, David Duke. As you might have guessed, not everyone is happy about this. One person was so angry that he actually called the actor to berate him about it.

According to TMZ, police have gotten involved after Topher Grace received a troubling phone call from someone denouncing his role as David Duke. The caller apparently called the actor a gay slur and in an aggressive manner warned Topher Grace that his role in BlacKkKlansman was going to ruin race relations in America. Topher Grace contacted police after the threatening phone call. The authorities took an incident report, with TMZ saying that depending on if the caller threatened the actor and how, this could lead to a hate crime investigation. As of right now, this is all that has been reported, so it is unclear what else might have been said and who the caller was or how he got Topher Grace's personal phone number.

Without getting into the various flaws with the caller's complaint, this is definitely troubling that he found the actor's personal number. It is unclear if this is just someone who wanted to vent some frustration to Topher Grace and went a step further than the people who just shout into the void on social media. With any luck, this will be the last we hear of this and things of this kind.

Topher Grace has already spoken about what a challenge this role has been and the emotional toll it took to research and become such a despicable figure. Ultimately, he was grateful to have done it because as a part of Spike Lee's film, he got to say something and contribute to the conversation. Then, as a way to decompress from the negative and trying role, he took some time to recut The Hobbit trilogy into a single movie.

Although some people are clearly not happy about this film, which is sadly unsurprising, reviewers have praised BlacKkKlansman and Topher Grace's role in it. Spike Lee's film debuted to a solid box office on a modest number of screens and has received reviews that rank it among the auteur's very best.

BlacKkKlansman is in theaters now. Check out our premiere guide for all the biggest movies still to come in 2018, and stay tuned to CinemaBlend for all your movie news.

While superhero movies and large franchises are fun moviegoing experiences, they don't necessarily reflect the world we live in. That's a task for smaller projects and directors with a real perspective on the world. And throughout the past few decades, there are few filmmakers who capture the current zeitgeist more than Spike Lee. Lee has made challenging and critically acclaimed dramas since 1986's She's Gotta Have It (which the director recently adapted into a successful Netflix series). His new project is BlacKkKlansman, and tells the out-of-this-world true story of Detective Ron Stallworth, a 1970s police officer who infiltrated a local, and obviously dangerous, chapter of the Ku Klux Klan. The story is truly wild, and Lee is just the visionary to pull it off.

After making history as a black police officer in 1970s Colorado, Ron Stallworth (Ballers' John David Washington) sees an ad for the local chapter of the KKK, and makes a cold call. While he's able to quickly get invited to potentially join the group and even have phone calls with Grand Wizard David Duke (Topher Grace), there's one problem: he obviously can't show up to a meeting looking like himself. That, and he accidentally used his real name on the phone. Enter Adam Driver's Detective Flip Zimmerman, who needs to play "Ron" in order to go deeper into the KKK and its members.

It's a premise that sounds almost cartoonish, yet it's a true story. Spike Lee leans into this dissonance throughout the course of BlacKkKlansman, which borders on both a comedy and visceral political drama at different points throughout the 135-minute runtime. Lee has always made hyper-stylized films, and BlacKkKlansman is no exception. While the issues of race, intersectionality, and extremism are at the film's heart, it ultimately bounces along thanks to the myriad moments of levity. And while the film is an emotional and sometimes harrowing journey, it never feels overly dark or intense.

BlacKkKlansman's unique tone is the most obvious in the way Spike Lee handles the film's villains. Topher Grace's David Duke is the most insidious of the film's antagonists, yet he functions in dual roles. In addition to being the bad guy, in many ways he's also the butt of the film's jokes. Ron Stallworth's ability to get one over on the KKK figurehead is the cause for plenty of comedic beats, as the film's protagonist makes the real-life figure out to be the fool multiple times throughout the movie. Grace plays the performance to slimy perfection, despite the dark place it takes him as an actor-- especially in the film's third act.

Fans of Spike Lee's prolific film career will be happy that so much of his signature style is infused in BlacKkKlansman, although the film is arguably bigger in scope than the majority of his projects. Like any good Spike Lee joint, the music once again takes center stage, and helps to motivate the movie's action and setting. But rather than a long and varied collection of songs, the soundtrack to BlacKkKlansman is a bit more selective, and only a few tracks make it into the finished product. Lee actually found an unused Prince track for the film's credits, a cover of the spiritual "Mary Don't You Weep."

Speaking of credits, Spike Lee goes for a major gut punch in the film's closing moments. After the main story of BlacKkKlansman wraps up, there's a coda that brings the film's contents directly into the modern political climate. Before the credits roll, Lee includes footage of the Charlottesville protest, including the attack that killed protestor Heather Heyer. BlacKkKlansman is dedicated to her memory, which occurred only after receiving permission from Heyer's mother. Its a sequence that is very hard to get through, and ends the film in a powerful way that no one could have expected.

As is the case with all Spike Lee films, the film's contents are inherently political. And while his creative choices may alienate audiences who have opposing viewpoints, Spike Lee's movies have always been focused on the black experience in America, and on the inequality and hatred that exists in the world. And if you can allow Lee to take you on the journey, BlacKkKlansman is undoubtedly one of the most powerful films of the year.

Although Sam Raimi's Spider-Man trilogy remains one of the most successful superhero franchises in history, the third installment is not remembered too fondly. Mileage may vary, but some of the problems people had with Spider-Man 3 were the infamously cringe-worthy emo Peter Parker scene, the inclusion of too many villains and the miscasting of Topher Grace as fan favorite character Venom. While many fans wondered how the That 70's Show actor got cast as Eddie Brock, Topher Grace himself still isn't sure. Being cast as Venom came as a surprise to him, as he explained:

Like countless others, Topher Grace grew up as a fan of the awesome-looking villain, so he had a good idea of who Venom was and what a big screen version of him should look like. So as he told Michael Rosenbaum on his Inside of You podcast, the casting came as a bit of a surprise and he isn't sure why he was chosen. Topher Grace had the self-awareness to realize that he was perhaps an odd choice for the role of the physically imposing character. As a comic book fan, now seeing Tom Hardy take on the character in the upcoming Venom, he instantly recognizes how much better of a fit Tom Hardy is for Eddie Brock. This time, Topher Grace will get to just be a fan watching one of his childhood favorites on the big screen.

Although he found his casting a bit surprising, you can see why Topher Grace would want the role. For one thing, he may not have fit the traditional depiction of Venom exactly, but the filmmaker's intent could have been to do something different with the character. Also, you never know what will happen, and sometimes what looks like terrible miscasting can be proven quite the opposite, as Hugh Jackman and Heath Ledger have shown. And as a huge fan of Venom, who could blame Grace for wanting to play him? I imagine most people would jump at the opportunity to play their favorite comic book character.

Ultimately Spider-Man 3's problems run deeper than a woefully miscast Topher Grace. In hindsight, I actually think he would have been far better suited to Cletus Kasady, a.k.a. Carnage, than Venom. Also, although many fans and Topher Grace alike think that Tom Hardy is right for the role of Eddie Brock/Venom, we still haven't seen the movie. So it's a little too early to crown the definitive big screen Venom just yet.

Topher Grace will next be playing a villain of a different kind in Spike Lee's BlacKkKlansman opening this weekend, and you can see the second big screen version of Eddie Brock when Venom arrives in theaters on October 5. For all the biggest movies still to come this year, check out our release schedule.

As far as filmmakers go, there are few quite as iconic and acclaimed as Spike Lee. Throughout his long career, the director has made each Spike Lee joint a musical and hyper stylized story that often focuses on the black experience in America. His newest piece of work, other than his Netflix series She's Gotta Have It, is called BlackKklansman. Based on a larger than life true story about a black detective infiltrating the Ku Klux Klan in the 70s, the cast includes That '70s show alum Topher Grace, who plays real-life KKK leader David Duke. I recently had the chance to speak with Grace about the difficulties of playing Duke, and he revealed why his casting in BlackKklansman came at such a good time:

While we live in a crazy world, that reality is even more daunting when bringing a new life into it. So while Topher Grace may be overwhelmed watching the news and current state of affairs in the country, he was able to channel his feelings into his role as David Duke in BlackKklansman.

Topher Grace's comments may strike audiences surprising, especially after seeing BlackKklansman. While Spike Lee's tone is fascinating and unique, Grace had to spew some serious hate throughout the film's runtime. An open white supremacist, the former Grand Wizard of the KKK is shown preaching to his followers, as well as speaking directly to Detective Ron Stallworth on the phone. Sitting in his shoes (and robes, as the case may be) was certainly challenging for the Spider-Man 3 actor, but Topher Grace grinned and bared it, knowing he was helping Spike Lee's message get across to cinephiles.

You can see my conversation with Topher Grace below.

David Duke functions really interesting within the confines of BlackKklansman. In some ways he's the villain, while also being at the butt of many jokes. We'll just have to wait and see if the real-life Duke catches the flick, and has thoughts on Topher Grace's performance.

You can catch Topher Grace as David Duke in BlackKklansman starting on August 10, 2018. In the meantime, check out our 2018 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.

Tom Hardy's Eddie Brock a.k.a. Venom is now just weeks away from hitting theaters - but fans will long remember that the actor isn't the first to try and take on the part. Instead, that honor belongs to Topher Grace, who played Venom in Sam Raimi's Spider-Man 3. That story admittedly doesn't have much of a happy ending, but at the very least Grace is as excited as anyone to see Hardy's upcoming performance:

Topher Grace will be back on the big screen this weekend playing the extremely evil David Duke in Spike Lee's highly-anticipated and lauded BlacKkKlansman, and it was while speaking about the new movie with Inverse that the subject of Venom was raised. Grace was asked how he feels about Tom Hardy taking on the role that he once played - and clearly there is no ill-will on his part.

In case you don't remember too well, fans were not exactly enamored with Topher Grace's version of Eddie Brock/Venom - and that really started long before Spider-Man 3 hit theaters. The comic book character in question has always been drawn as bulky figure with huge muscles, and so from the very beginning fans were questioning Sam Raimi's decision to bring Grace on-board. The reality is that Raimi was trying to set up a mirror contrast between Eddie and Peter Parker, having the former come across as a "cooler" version of the latter, but things didn't exactly work out as planned.

According to reports, Sam Raimi's primary focus in the making of Spider-Man 3 was showcasing the villain Sandman (Thomas Haden Church), but he got pressured by the studio to include Venom as a character given his extreme popularity among comic book fans. This turned out to be a mistake, as the storyline still to this day feels very much jammed in and out of place in the finished film. Despite the blockbuster making a ton of money, ultimately it wound up killing the franchise, as Raimi's plans for Spider-Man 4 were nixed, and eventually Sony decided to reboot everything with the Amazing Spider-Man titles.

Everything with Spider-Man 3 went down over a decade ago, however, and now it's time to move on - specifically with a brand new cinematic version of Venom. The Ruben Fleischer-directed movie, which stars Michelle Williams, Riz Ahmed, Jenny Slate and Michelle Lee in addition to Tom Hardy, arrives in theaters on October 5th - and we'll continue to have more and more in-depth coverage of the blockbuster as we get closer and closer to its upcoming release date.

Each role brings its own set of challenges, but playing a despicable figure from real life can be especially difficult. That's what Topher Grace had to deal with when he was cast as former Ku Klux Klan Grand Wizard David Duke in Black KkKlansman. It's no easy feat getting into the headspace of one of history's most famous white supremacists, so after his time on the Spike Lee movie was over, Grace decided to unwind and mentally distance himself from the Duke role by cutting together a two-hour version of Peter Jackson's Hobbit trilogy. Grace voiced his thoughts on how The Hobbit adaptation should have been put together thusly:

Backpedaling a little bit, Topher Grace recalled that he was "so depressed" while working on Black KkKlansman, not just because he was portraying David Duke, but because he would see on the news how Duke's ideology was affecting "us" in the present day. So after the movie finished filming, Grace turned his attention to the Hobbit trilogy . While each book in J.R.R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings trilogy each received its own movie, The Hobbit, the novel that launched the Middle Earth mythology, was stretched out to three movies, a.k.a. 434 minutes of screen time. The end result was certainly a financial success, adding up to $2.9 billion worldwide, but critically, The Hobbit trilogy wasn't met with the same level of praise as the Lord of the Rings movies. Grace decided to piece together a "tighter" version of The Hobbit as a creative challenge, and it sounds like he was pleased with the end result. Continuing in his interview with Indiewire, the actor said:

This isn't Topher Grace's first time editing together his own cut of a blockbuster franchise. Back in 2012, he made an 85-minute version of the Star Wars prequel trilogy and showed to some industry professionals before legal restrictions put the kibosh on future screenings. It's also worth noting that Grace isn't the first person to edit together a condensed version of The Hobbit, although the previous fan version released in 2015 was four hours long, making Grace's version an easier watch. Though if his experience with the Star Wars prequels cut is any indication, don't expect Grace to ever release his Hobbit cut to the public.

You can see David Duke in Black KkKlansman when it hits theaters on August 10. If you want to find out what other movies are coming out later this year, look through our 2018 release schedule. As for the Lord of the Rings franchise, it's time on the big screen is over, but an Amazon TV series that will explore new stories is in development.

It may be hard to believe, but That '70s Show has been off the air for over a decade. With so many revivals and reboots returning to the air this year, it stands to reason that fans are hoping the Fox comedy joins the ever-growing ranks of series to be revisited. The good news is that original cast member Topher Grace is definitely not opposed to doing a revival of the show, saying:

Now, this sounds really promising. That '70s Show ended in 2006 after eight seasons. Topher Grace left the show in its penultimate season with his character Eric moving to Africa to teach. He eventually returned for the series finale. Grace's response to THR about a potential reboot sounds promising. It sort of goes without saying that having a tight-knit cast has seemed to be one of the keys to having the original cast join in on a revival.

From what Topher Grace has said, that is one thing the cast of That '70s Show has down to exceptional levels. If the show were to do a reunion special or a full-blown revival that spanned multiple episodes it would be tricky for the show to maintain its original title. When the series ended, the characters were ringing in the first day of the 1980s. It would be interesting to see how the show finds a way to embrace the new decade.

There are certainly a lot of things fans may be curious to find out. For instance, did Eric and Donna stay together after their reunion in the series finale? And if so, did they ever get married? Are Jackie and Fez still together after their tumultuous road to get together? Those are just the romantic relationships. Is everyone still as good a friends or did they drift apart when disco died, and shoulder pads became all the rage?

Now is the perfect time to start answering these burning questions. Sitcom revivals have become one of the top trends on television with fans getting a chance to reconnect with their beloved characters. With ABC successfully bringing back Roseanne, NBC rebooting Will and Grace, and CBS set to revive Murphy Brown; it seems like it is Fox's turn to join in by bring back one of its most popular series. Time will tell if the network acts.

Don't wait for a potential That '70s Show revival to watch good television. For the new and returning shows set to arrive over the next few months, check out our guide to TV's summer premieres. To gain better insight into what to expect when summer ends, check out CinemaBlend's 2018 network TV rundown to find out which shows have been renewed and which ones have been cancelled.

Judging by the trailer that was released earlier this week, BlacKkKlansman looks like it will be one of the more unusual cinematic offerings this summer season, but it's actually based off a true story. One of the main participants in this story is David Duke, the former Grand Wizard of the Ku Klux Klan. That '70s Show and Spider-Man 3 star Topher Grace was tapped to play Duke for BlacKkKlansman, and with two decades of acting under his belt, Grace found the role especially difficult to tackle due to the intense preparation process. Grace recalled:

It's one thing to prepare to play a fictional villainous character, but when you're playing someone from real life who has spread hateful rhetoric, I can understand how that can take an emotional toll when preparing for the role. As Topher Grace explained to Vulture, he told his agents he wanted to be in contention to play David Duke in BlacKkKlansman since it was not like something he'd ever done before, and after reading for director Spike Lee, he obtained the part. But once Grace started reading David Duke's writings and listen to his speeches and public appearances, that's when he realized this would be more challenging than he thought. I can't blame Grace's wife for wanting him not to recite so much white supremacist material while around their newborn baby, but then again, if he was going to properly play Duke, it was necessary for him to do all that research.

Set in the early 1970s, BlacKkKlansman follows Detective Ron Stallworth, played by John David Washington, the first African-American detective in Colorado Springs, Colorado, working to infiltrate and expose the city's chapter of the Ku Klux Klan, which had started sanitizing its violent rhetoric to appeal to the mainstream. After establishing his cover over the phone to David Duke, Stallworth works with fellow detective Flip Zipperman, played by Adam Driver, to rise through the ranks of the organization's membership. The movie's cast also includes Laura Harrier, Corey Hawkins, Jasper Pääkkönen, Paul Walter Hauser, Ryan Eggold, Ashlie Atkinson, Robert John Burke, Craig Grant and Harry Belafonte. Focus Features has also put out new teaser art for BlacKkKlansman, which you can look at below.

Having just premiered at the Cannes Film Festival, BlacKkKlansman will be released in theaters on August 10. If you're interested in learning what other movies are coming out this year, look through our 2018 release schedule.

Sam Raimi's Spider-Man 3 is widely viewed as one of the worst cinematic outings for the web crawler. Similar to the X-Men series that started out strong for the first two outings but failed to close properly, Spider-Man 3 proved to be a disappointing entry that eventually led to a reboot of the franchise. One of the biggest failures in a film overstuffed with villains was the portrayal of Venom. While many feel Topher Grace was woefully miscast as Eddie Brock, one of the actor's co-stars defended his performance. Actor Thomas Haden Church, who played Sandman in the film, had this to say about Topher Grace's Venom:

Thomas Haden Church's assessment of the studio's thinking here is interesting. The way he phrases it while speaking to JoBlo, he makes it sound very much like the studio's thinking was that it would need another villain to represent a different demographic versus adding the character because that is what the story called for. Frankly, that's sort of how Venom felt in the film. The character seemed tacked on more out of obligation than any narrative reason. Thomas Haden Church's Sandman had a real emotional arc, but it was as if they studio felt he wasn't flashy enough alone. Personally, I found Topher Grace somewhat cheesy in the role, but given the tone of the rest of the film, I have to think that this was more a directorial choice than any sort of failure on the actor's part. Topher Grace did what he could with what he was given, and he wasn't necessarily bad, he just didn't feel like Eddie Brock.

Spider-Man 3's failure was not due to any one single element, but a myriad of factors that combined to crush the film under their weight, including too many villains, a mishandled Gwen Stacy and the cringe-inducing Emo Peter Parker. I think that Topher Grace's Venom stands out in such a negative way because of the love and excitement people have about the character. Venom, while not necessarily being the most complex villain in history, looks incredibly cool, and realizing that on film was an exciting prospect. Venom is the kind of character that you're immediately sold on as a kid as soon as you see him. Sadly, Venom was something of an afterthought in Spider-Man 3, and many fans would have preferred Venom as the main or only villain.

Comic book film history is full of missteps and outright disasters, with Topher Grace's Venom and Spider-Man 3 among them. But each of these missteps provides a lesson for future comic book films. Venom will get another chance to live up to fan expectations this fall when the character returns to the big screen with Tom Hardy taking on the role of Eddie Brock. This time, the character will not be getting second billing either. Instead of squaring off with Spider-Man, Venom will be going full anti-hero as the star of the film. If nothing else, the Spider-Man 3 portrayal of Venom looked cool for the time, and hopefully the symbiote suit will look even more frightening and awesome a decade later. Venom hits theaters on October 5.

Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man 3 isn’t a good movie. It’s about as bad a superhero movie as we are bound to see. And yet, those involved in the film are still able to say that it is a successful movie… to a certain extent.

Topher Grace – the absolute WORST choice to play brooding psychopath Eddie Brock in Raimi’s Spider-Man sequel – was doing press for the controversial drama Truth when he decided to bend the truth a little in his old film’s favor. Asked about Spider-Man 3, Grace took the financial high road, telling THR:

And he’s right. Sam Raimi’s third Spider-Man movie banked $336 million domestically, and totaled an impressive $890M worldwide. BoxOfficeMojo tells you that it’s the third-highest-grossing film in the Spider-Man series, besting both of Marc Webb's Amazing Spider-Man efforts… despite the fact that the abysmal creative performance of Raimi’s third movie led to the need for a Webb reboot in the first place.

However, no one is going to argue that Spider-Man 3 is a good film, and Grace begrudgingly admits that when he offers that a lot of people "weren’t happy" with the way that the movie turned out. It goes beyond the too-many-villains complaint that’s lobbed at Spider-Man 3 (though trying to cram Venom into a movie that already had Sandman and a second Goblin did reek of overkill). Something happened in between the second and third Spider-Man movies where Raimi lost his grip on the character of Peter Parker (played by Tobey Maguire for his final time). The director didn’t know how to grow and mature Peter. He grossly mishandled Gwen Stacy in the film, and obviously botched Venom because he didn’t care about him as a villain. But it’s the tone-deaf comedy in Spider-Man 3 that’ll always have me scratching my head. Because Spider-Man is a funny hero, but this sequel is anything but humorous.

Spider-Man gets another shot at silver-screen redemption when Marvel teams with Sony for a reboot starring Tom Holland as the wall-crawler. That movie hits theaters on July 28, 2017. Are you going to give it a shot?

American Psycho’s Patrick Bateman takes Huey Lewis and the News pretty seriously, and apparently he’s not the only one. Jimmy Kimmel and Topher Grace are also big fans of the band. In fact, they once attended the same concert, where Topher filmed what may be the most embarrassing footage of Jimmy Kimmel ever. You can check out the classic segment, below.

Topher Grace popped up on Jimmy Kimmel Live! this week and immediately brought up his shared love for Huey Lewis and the News with Kimmel. Apparently, Kimmel is friends with Huey, and invited Topher to a concert, during which the late night host was invited onstage and asked to play with the band. Kimmel is actually familiar with some wind instruments and plays the bass clarinet, so this isn’t as ridiculous as it might seem. But his solo with Huey Lewis did not go as well as some of his other performances in the past. Just look at Kimmel’s face in this video.

Kimmel didn’t know Topher Grace would be bringing in the clip, so the whole segment is a surprise, and an amusing one for the audience. But the late night host takes the whole thing pretty well, and even even confides in the actor, explaining the performance was an extremely humiliating moment for him.

Kimmel may be fond of a lot of types of humor, including the mean-spirited variety, as evidenced when celebrities are forced to read mean Tweets and average citizens are duped on “Liewitness News,” but I do like that he can take it as well as he can dole it out. Earlier this spring, Rihanna actually pulled an epic and rather mean-spirited prank on the late night host, waking him up in the middle of the night with club lights, music and dancers.

Topher says in another part of the interview that he’s usually not big into pranks, but I have a feeling Jimmy Kimmel will get him back for sharing that awkwardly awesome musical moment at some point. In the meantime, you can catch new episodes of Jimmy Kimmel Live! on weeknights at 11:35 p.m. ET, only on ABC.

Jessie Eisenberg is a stoned-cold killer in the first American Ultra trailer -- emphasis on the stoned. If you thought Seth Rogen and James Franco made the perfect stoner movie duo in Pineapple Express, just wait until you get a load of Eisenberg and Kristen Stewart in what likely will be your new favorite stoner-comedy-action extravaganza. Watch the red-band trailer below and be mindful of naughty words and NSFW content.

Yahoo Movies debuted the American Ultra trailer and it looks like a fun and wild ride. Eisenberg plays Mike Howell. On the surface, he may seem like your average convenience store counter clerk who gets stoned all the time, but in reality he's a sleeper agent for the government. There's just rarely a moment when he's not baked off his ass, so he processes things -- including his activation and orders -- a bit more slow than other operatives. All he wants to do is propose to his girlfriend, Phoebe (Stewart), but that's when the government comes back into his life. After he kills a couple of agents trying to break into his car with a spoon -- "A fucking spoon?" Yes, Topher Grace, a fucking spoon -- his handlers want to put him down, and they'll even go through his future fiance to do it. Now he must fight with all the spoons he has in his arsenal, while trying to be as sober as possible, to battle bad agents and save the love of his life. Oh, and not get busted for all the weed and mushrooms he has stored in his car.

Aside from Jesse Eisenberg, Kristen Stewart and Topher Grace, American Ultra also features Connie Britton as a government operative and one of Mike's handlers, and John Leguizamo as Mike's friend who likes to drop acid and go to titty bars. Walton Goggins, Bill Pullman and Tony Hale also feature. Driving this drug-fueled ride is Project X director Nima Nourizadeh, while Max Landis of Chronicle wrote the screenplay. Though first impressions peg this as all laughs and gun-slinging, Nourizadeh says it'll mostly be about the relationship between Mike and Phoebe. As reported by /Film, he said that all the explosions and gunplay are really "softening" the "sweet love story" at the core of this film. We've never heard of such Michael Bay-esque theatrics as softening anything, but so far, American Ultra looks to have potential to be one of the comedic surprises of the year.

The film hits theaters on August 21, when it will compete against other releases of the weekend Hitman: Agent 47 and Sinister 2. Think this has what it takes to dominate the box office? Weigh in below!

Who is Topher Grace? We’re sixteen years removed from the origins of That 70’s Show, and it’s hard to say how he’s distinguished himself. He’s played quite a few smarmy boyfriends in stuff like Traffic and Mona Lisa Smile, but practically vanished from the screen as a leading man in Win A Date With Tad Hamilton and In Good Company. He’s not good, and quite distracting, when he pops up in big genre films like Predators and Spider-Man 3, but that hasn’t stopped casting agents: he’ll be seen in this year’s Interstellar. And yet, the question remains: who is Topher Grace? Or, considering his new multimedia project, what is Topher Grace? An… (shrug) editor?

A couple of years ago, Grace picked up editing and tried an 85 minute supercut of the Star Wars prequel trilogy. Claiming the trilogy "only had one good movie" in it (which surely thrilled George Lucas), he presented the footage to a few bloggers in Los Angeles. And that interest in re-cutting and reworking movies has spawned a new website, according to The Wrap. CerealPrize.com encourages people to cut, chop, slice and dice their favorite movies any way they want, reflecting the vision of an anonymous dude in front of a computer screen instead of an actual filmmaker.

Though it can’t be embedded, Grace revealed his new project to The Wrap, which was pretty much editing the scenes of Brock Landers and Chest Rockwell together from Boogie Nights. In case you haven’t seen Boogie Nights, you’re an idiot who is wasting your life and you should walk away from the computer and go watch it now. You’re still here? Idiot. Anyway, much of the Landers and Rockwell material, from the porn films within Boogie Nights, is just period-specific, meticulously-crafted background material, some of it found only on the special features. The footage isn’t recontextualized as much as crammed together, like a YouTube supercut. Why thousands of people do this sort of thing with more creativity on YouTube but Grace gets to be on a major industry blog remains a puzzle. Also, where is the shameful footage of Rock Harders as the latter-day fugazi Brock Landers?

Next, Grace is working on a "remix" of Close Encounters Of The Third Kind and oh god someone stop this man right now.

"It’s all done out of reverence for the material," Grace says, forgetting that he lacks the reverence to just leave it alone. A film is a film is a film. It doesn’t need your fingerprints, and if you need to put those prints somewhere, put them on your own film. What’s to gain from shortening Atonement to twenty minutes, as Grace did, and giving it a happy ending? Where’s the reverence in basically manipulating the hard work done by Joe Wright without once leaving your chair? A retroactive happy ending? What, is he Marty McFly now? Why doesn’t he just recut The Big Wedding so that it never exists? Maybe we shouldn’t ask, ‘Who is Topher Grace?’ Maybe we should ask, who does Topher Grace think he is, anyway?

Topher Grace is getting yet another chance in the world of genre blockbusters. Following turns in big films like Spider-Man 3 and Predators, Grace is now in talks for a supporting role in Interstellar, the original sci-fi epic from director Christopher Nolan. Should the star sign on the dotted line, he will be joining a stacked cast that also includes Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway, Jessica Chastain, Casey Affleck, Ellen Burstyn Michael Caine, Timothee Chalamet and Mackenzie Foy. Deadline, which reported the casting news, doesn't mention what kind of part Grace will be playing or how he will fit into the plot.

The film is partially based on the work of Caltech physicist Kip Thorne, who is actually serving as both a technical consultant and an executive producer on the project. Jonathan Nolan, Christopher's brother, wrote the first version of the screenplay, and when Christopher came on board to direct he rewrote the script and merged its story with another idea that he had been toying around with. While nothing about the story has been confirmed by the filmmakers or the studio, it's said that the movie centers on a crew of space explorers who travel through a wormhole to another dimension. It has also been said that the film will contain some time travel elements. Christopher Nolan is also serving as a producer on the movie with partner Emma Thomas.

Grace hasn't had much box office success in recent years, starring in movies like Take Me Home Tonight, The Double, and, most recently, The Big Wedding, but a role in a Nolan film could easily end that trend (after all, the filmmaker did make three of the biggest blockbusters of all time in the last five years). He will soon be see alongside Susan Sarandon and Ellen Burstyn in the Jason Stone-directed thriller The Calling and recently wrapped production on the Justin Reardon comedy A Many Splintered Thing, with Chris Evans, Michelle Monaghan and Aubrey Plaza. Fans haven't been kind to Grace in genre roles, as his version of Venom is constantly cited as one of the biggest problems with Spider-Man 3, and people weren't all too fond of the twist ending of Predators. Perhaps this will be his opportunity for redemption.

Earlier this year at CinemaCon in Las Vegas it was confirmed that Nolan will be filming parts of Interstellar in IMAX, his third time doing so after both The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises. Unlike those previous titles, however, he won't be working with cinematographer/long-time collaborator Wally Pfister, who is off making his directorial debut, Transcendence. Instead, the director will be working with Hoyte Van Hoytema, who served as DP on acclaimed films such as Let The Right One In, The Fighter and Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. Production on the new film is expected to start in the next few months and Paramount Pictures will be releasing the film on November 7, 2014.

Chris Evans and Michelle Monaghan have acquired a whole bunch of new friends joining them on the set of A Many Splintered Thing. The film, which is being directed by Justin Reardon, now has Topher Grace, Anthony Mackie, Aubrey Plaza, and Giovanni Ribisi on-board to star.

Deadline, which found the casting news, says that the movie exists somewhere between (500) Days of Summer and Amelie, telling the story of a down-and-out young man who meets and falls in love with an engaged women white attending a charity dinner and pretending to be a philanthropist. Getting encouragement from his friends and ignoring her soon-to-be husband, the protagonist decides to fake a platonic relationship with her so that he can make his way to her heart. News about the "anti-romantic comedy" sprung up early last month when Evans and Monaghan were cast. The script by Chris Shafer and Paul Vicknair was featured on 2011's Black List (the annual list of the most popular unproduced screenpalys in Hollywood) and was also a Nicholl Fellowship Finalist.

Grace will play the main character's best friend, but character details aren't given about the other new actors. The That 70s Show star will next be seen in the recently-delayed The Big Wedding; Mackie will also be starring alongside Evans in Captain America: The Winter Soldier; Plaza can currently be seen on NBC's Parks and Recreation; and Ribisi will next appear in Gangster Squad this January. A Many Splintered Thing will go into production at the end of this month (on October 26th to be exact), and there is no current release date.

Take Me Home Tonight is, without question, one of the ten best comedies that will be released this year. It has heart, skillful camera work and more than a couple of big laughs, but there’s a good chance you’ll see none of that because so many of my fellow critics have mistakenly decided it’s terrible. It’s not. I won’t lie to you and say it’s as good as The Forty Year Old Virgin, but most movies aren’t. In fact, the majority of comedies are awful. They’re absolute shit like Just Go With It. Lazy, disorganized and most importantly, not funny, they exist merely to make a buck without care for their own characters or the audience that’s foolishly paid to see them. Comedy, like anything else, is about presenting new and interesting ideas, and Take Me Home Tonight is chock full of ‘em, letting its characters dream, make life decisions and behave in totally realistic—and funny—manners. To paraphrase Joe from Idiocracy, it’s about knowing who’s ass farted and why that’s funny.

In spite of this, Take Me Home Tonight has been getting slandered by idiotic, out-of-touch critics since it was released yesterday. Most have used words and phrases like “sophomoric”, “drunk” and “pointless” to describe its chaotic, one-night plot, but it’s actually not any of those things. It’s grown-up, sober and highly pointed, but there’s no explaining that to critics who seem to think a vomit is a vomit is a vomit and boobs are boobs are boobs. Just because characters behave in a juvenile manner doesn’t mean the subject matter is being dealt with in a base, unsophisticated manner. Here we have three characters with no idea what to do with their lives. Matt, an MIT graduate, is working at Suncoast Video because he’s unwilling to commit to anything which might trap him. Wendy, who recently applied to Cambridge, is stuck in an unfulfilling relationship with the most popular idiot in high school that hasn’t grown up. And Barry, bless his heart, is a mess. They may not have figured out where they’re going, but for one night, all three sure as hell try.

There are so many reasons this film is worth seeing. Out of consideration for your time and unwillingness to spoil it all, we’ve narrowed those reasons to four. None involve Topher Grace’s handsomeness.

Most Critics Don’t Know Comedy

You know those blowhard jackasses who say things like screw the critics, they’re always wrong anyway? I am not one of those jackasses. In fact, in many ways I’m the opposite. If there’s one thing going to the movies twice a week for the last decade has taught me, it’s that critics, when overwhelmingly agreeing with each other, are almost always right.

If ninety percent of critics tell you a movie is worth your time, chances are it’s worth your time. For the most part, these people know. You shouldn’t rely on them to formulate your own opinions, but you can rely on them in determining which films to see—with one very overt and powerful exception. Your average critic doesn’t know shit about comedy. Don’t believe me? Let’s look at Roger Ebert’s track record. The man is, without question, the greatest film critic of all-time. His words on a film count almost as much as the rest of the pack combined. He’s the reason I got into writing about movies, and well, there aren’t enough great things I can say about the man. Except when it comes to comedy. He gave Fast Times At Ridgemont High one star, Raising Arizona one and a half and Caddyshack two and a half. He thumbs down Dumb & Dumber and gave a glowing review to You Don’t Mess With The Zohan. He hated The Wedding Singer, yet lavished praise on The Nutty Professor II. It should come as little surprise to anyone that he called Take Me Home Tonight “inane” in a largely dismissive one and a half star review.

Technical Excellence Is Too Easily Ignored

Critics tend to get caught up in reviewing a movie’s script, but there’s more going on here than what’s written on the page. From a purely technical standpoint, Take Me Home Tonight is miles ahead of its comedic peers. Most comedies use the camera to show us the joke. Director Michael Dowse uses his to tell a story. Because the majority of the scenes take place within a party, this forces him to get a little creative.

He’s up for the challenge, particularly in an extended shot where Matt’s character is confronted with awful news. Shocked and irritated, he zones out while dozens of celebrating partygoers dance around him. It’s a quiet respite amidst chaos, but once the party is left behind, a few more wonderful moments emerge. One takes place on a trampoline, the other in front of a boss prone to sexual harassment. Write both the script and the direction off at your own peril. If you ever go back and take the time to listen and really watch, you’ll notice these cool little shots and complicated undertones exist throughout.

It’s About Twenty-Somethings

People in their twenties are underrepresented. They don’t have expendable income, and they don’t go to the movies. There’s something to be said for a movie like Take Me Home Tonight, a film which is candid, sometimes witty and represents twenty-somethings who are just on the way to getting their shit together quite positively and quite acutely. It’s not easy to not know where you’re going. Some of you may have always been Captain-have-your-shit-together, but I bet most of you at one point or another felt the way Matt Franklin and Tori Frederking feel in Take Me Home Tonight. You may have just forgotten, boozed your feelings away, or maybe those feelings make you too uncomfortable to ever have faced them properly.

There’s a generation gap with Take Me Home Tonight that’s likely influencing reaction. Older people might poke fun at the film’s incessant use of vulgarity, the large amount of nakedness, the certain stupidity that comes with being a young adult at that age. It’s alright to be a cocksucker, but this is often how life for a kid in his or her twenties is. People drink too much and throw up. Some kids are smart and don’t have their shit together, some kids are idiots and kind of do have their shit together--it goes many ways. The moments of idiocy in Take Me Home Tonight aren’t pointless or silly. Some of them are even inspiring. And some of them are really fuckin’ funny.

Chuck Klosterman once wrote about a night he met a random girl and spent the whole evening discussing the merits of Pearl Jam, Nirvana and Soundgarden. He never saw her again. He then reflects about how nothing like that would ever happen to him now. This stuff happens in your twenties. You meet people, sometimes you make poor decisions, and sometimes you hook up with your high school crush or a hot cougar or the pot-selling business major who lives next door. Then, you grow up, and move on. I get why people wouldn't necessarily want to relive those moments on the big screen; however, this fact shouldn't tarnish the value of the concept. Hating moments from your past shouldn't deride a film as harmless, intriguing, and well put-together as Take Me Home Tonight.

Anna Faris & Dan Fogler

Much of the credit for this success should go to Anna Faris and Dan Fogler, and neither of their names is exactly the type to garner respect. As you may know, each has a tendency to shoot for the fences, and in doing so, structure characters so over-the-top they no longer resemble anything we would meet in real life. Not here. Faris lets herself be swallowed up by her louder boyfriend. She lets the comedy come from understated reactions and great brother/ sister chemistry with Topher Grace. Watch her face near the end when she finds out a secret about her twin for the first time.

Then watch Dan Fogler’s. The star of such forgettable comedies as Balls Of Fury is great here, playing sixty percent as ridiculous. It may not seem a huge change, but because of that scale-back, his fat and loud schtick feels familiar, not annoying. He isn’t an obnoxious product of his movie environment, he’s an obnoxious dude we’d roll our eyes at in real life. And if that’s not enough, Topher Grace is steady as always, Chris Pratt is extremely funny in his limited work and Teresa Palmer turns her role into a lot more than just eye candy.

A look back at Roger Ebert’s review tells me viewers are giving this film three stars. They’re right. Take Me Home Tonight is a movie for all twenty-somethings and for anyone brave enough to want to remember the lives they led when they were still a little bit out of control. It’s a wonderful way to spend two hours. It’s better than its counterparts and absolutely worth your time. Please see it, and just this once, ignore the critics.

Topher Grace had to take the long road in order to get Take Me Home Tonight to arrive in theaters. Though it was made three years ago under the titled Kids in America, the original studio balked at some of the film’s content and decided to keep it on a shelf. Now the film is set to be released and Grace, who is credited as the star, executive producer and story developer, couldn’t be happier.

A few weeks back I was given the opportunity to speak with Topher Grace one-on-one about the project, his relationship with the character he plays, what it was like being back in a Suncoast Video store and how classic 80s music helped map out the film’s progression. Check it out below!

You guys made this movie three years ago, but playing such a large role in the film’s development, what is it like seeing it finally hit theaters?

Well, the wonderful thing is that it is what our original idea for the movie was. It was always going to be dated, so that wasn’t really an issue for the film. It’s kind of idiot logic that we happened upon that, but it was really frustrating when our original studio on the film, who we really respect because they paid for the film, they let us make it, but they felt there was too much drug use and our feeling was if you’re doing a film about the prohibition, gotta show people drinking alcohol. It was the prohibition, but guess what? There was even more drinking going on. Similarly, if you’re doing a movie about kids who are in their 20s, in Beverley Hills, partying their ass off, they’re doing cocaine – or at least one of them is. And it would have hurt the structure of the film had we cut it out. It would have been like one character starts acting really weird in the middle of the movie for no reason.

So we were really lucky to have Ron Howard and Brian Grazer – Ron who was in one of these kind of films, which I think had its own issues. I heard Francis Ford Coppola, I didn’t hear this from Ron, but Francis Ford Coppola offered to kind of just buy [American Graffiti] at the first test screening. The studio wasn’t behind it; it will always be this way, that people want to make movies about 20 years in the past because the filmmakers are starting to have a view of that time, it’s a little clearer because they’re not so close to it, and I’m sure they weren’t happy with American Graffiti, that there was so much drinking and cigarette smoking and they weren’t happy with Dazed and Confused, there was so much marijuana and in ten years they won’t be happy with the 90s film where there’s so much extacy in it. But you can’t pull punches or the whole thing falls apart. The romance isn’t as real because the other parts of the film aren’t real.

It’s like looking back on history with rose colored glasses.

Yeah. It’s not a documentary, but you have to look back and be real about what it is or else it’s kind of a pointless exercise. The thing that we’re really lucky about is that Ron and Brian said, “Why don’t you not change it?” [Relativity CEO] Ryan Kavanaugh is about three years older than me, most of the executives in town are 60 or 70 and it’s ironic when they’re telling you what kids want and you feel like you’re a lot closer. Ryan saw it and he’s the only with money in Hollywood anyway, and he said “Let’s do this! This is amazing! I think it’s hilarious!” So then it was like it was the right thing to do. The best thing to do for the movie is the best thing to do for the movie, not for ego or any other…when I want it to come out. The best thing to do is to wait for the best artistic moment for it.

In addition to the starring role and the executive producer credit you also have a story credit. Where did this movie come from?

Well, we thought about those generation movies like American Graffiti and Dazed and Confused and we thought the 80s are so ripe, and we love those John Hughes movies so much. There are a lot of movies now that are all raunch, which are great, which are big hits, or all romantic, but those John Hughes movies with those great casts, what if we did it as a cast with all my peers? They don’t do it where it has everything and it’s like a fun, fully round movie. So we had that and then we thought, “Let’s make a mixtape.” And we made it, it’s very indicative, specific to that time – so the ultimate 80s mixtape. And we started getting into songs that were just good, instead of… what’s that one? [singing] “I always feel like somebody’s watching me”? You go, “I can’t believe people listened to this.” So we listened to “Betty Davis Eyes” [by Kim Carnes] and went, “This would be a hit if it were on the radio now.” “Hungry Like The Wolf,” [by Duran Duran], “Video Killed The Radio Star” [by The Buggles], and they stood the test of time anyway. So we had this mix, and before we hired the writers we kind of started thinking about key plot points that could go with the music. I think this is the worst way to sell the movie possible, it has a lot of tits and cocaine, but we kind of wanted to make it like a musical in the sense that the music comes of the characters and the situation, it’s not laid over it afterwards. You could do a movie set in the 80s and go, “Oh, we’ll figure out the song later.” But most of the time the song was playing while we were shooting the scene.

You can tell.

It bleeds into the film, you go, “This really took place that time.” So we had those plot points. “We gotta have a dance off!” He goes to the bathroom and there’s this Grace Jones song, “It’s gotta be a threesome!” Something like that.

Obviously a lot of people got to know you as an actor thanks to your time on That 70s Show. Was there ever any hesitation about taking on another period comedy?

No, they served different purposes. 70s was a great experience, but I wasn’t really that big a part of it. We were actors for hire on that, and you couldn’t get a better gig, it was totally fun. But on this one there were some things that I wanted to say about who Matt Franklin is, and I shared some of those experiences. So, at least for me, it feels different because I really wanted to say some different things.

From that, your character, Matt Franklin, has a lot of self-doubt and confidence issues. Do you ever have those similar feelings?

None. Well when you’re perfect like me… I’m sure people do have self-doubt issues, but [laughs]. Yeah, I was working at Suncoast when I was in high school. I couldn’t get laid in high school. I certainly thought there was something special about me, but I couldn’t figure out how to access it. So in that way I really understood that, but, on the flip side, I didn’t get out of college and not know what I wanted to do with my life. By the time my friends were getting out of college we were in season four or five. But I did look at my friends and think, “That’s really interesting.” Obviously it’s a much bigger deal now because a much bigger percentage of kids are getting out of college without jobs.

That was me [laughs].

Yeah! I thin there’s a part of everyone that understands. It’s why I really wanted to make him really bright, though. It’s wasn’t like he’s an average dude – he’s well above average but hasn’t figured out… he’s almost so smart he’s talked himself out of everything.

You mentioned that you worked at Suncoast video and share characteristics with the character, but when this movie is set, 1988, you were 10 years old. Were you still able to bring any of your own memories from the decade to your part?

No. I just didn’t understand that it was the 80s. There were things on the periphery, that I go, “I remember hearing that in the 80s,” I guess. Like that song, or seeing Reagan or whatever, but it’s more about how our society looks back on the 80s now. So they watch I Love The 80s on VH1.

On that same idea, there is dialogue in this movie that isn’t around any more…

“To the max!”

“To the max,” “That was choice”… Was there a lot of improvisation in making the film and, if so, was it ever a challenge to keep the conversations decade-centric?

Not really. The things we have were really written in on purpose. I think we went through and the movie’s frontloaded with more 80s pop stuff than the end, which was by design, in terms of songs and language and all of that stuff. That first scene we really wanted to have in the mall so you’re really time-stamping it all the time, and then first couple songs were very 80s. But then by the end we had some in there that were kind of like…these movies are all really a trick, Dazed and Confused, American Grafitti, whatever, because they’re all really about timeless issues that anyone can appreciate at any time. But they have this great window dressing of a very specific period of time.

Having worked in a Suncoast back when you were in high school, what was it like standing in the middle of one on set?

Because it was a Suncoast it was bizarre, but to see all of the posters up, like Better Off Dead, Three O'Clock High, Howard The Duck, there’s a Howard The Duck poster.

I definitely noticed that.

It’s great. Look, I’ve done other decades. I was in the 50s for Mona Lisa Smile and that was really fun. And I’m not sure what decade we were in for Predators. I don’t know what that was.

Another world.

I think there were a couple clues that were not from the present or something. But I think I read that on the internet. It just helps. It helps put you in another place, which is part of the job, you know?

Another aspect that I really like about this movie was the relationship between Matt and his father, who was played by Michael Biehn. What was it like working with him, because the guy cuts a pretty intimidating figure.

Yeah. Did you see the music video?

I did. It’s fantastic.

He’s great. He’s really funny. That’s something that people don’t really know about Michael Biehn. He’s a really funny guy, he gets it. He needed to have humor for that turn at the end. But he’s also super intimidating. The design with his character was to find someone who was synonymous with the 80s, but someone who wasn’t only synonymous with the 80s. He’s done great work in The Rock and the Grindhouse movie that Robert Rodriguez did. The guy’s a great actor. The Abyss…maybe that was the 80s, I don’t know [Note: it is]. That’s what I’m saying. He’s in these movies that kind of transcend the 80s and other stuff and he was fantastic in this, but we didn’t want it to be someone who didn’t act outside of the 80s, but it was cool to have the guy who helped kill the Terminator. Come on!

In terms of the casting, you have a great core in this movie with Dan Fogler, Teresa Palmer and Anna Farris, but you also have an incredible supporting cast with actors like Michael Ian Black, Lucy Punch, Bob Odenkirk, and Demetri Martin.

Bob and Michael Ian Black are my two favorite actors from my two favorite comedy troupes, which are Stella and Mr. Show. Bob did an amazing scene where he fires Dan, and just because of time we had to cut it, and I called and he was so wonderful about it, he couldn’t have been cooler. “I know what it is, the movie we made, go with it.” He even sends me texts once in a while, “I saw the poster, I’m so psyched for you.” But I just can’t believe that we had to lose that scene, A) because he’s my comedy idol, and B) because the scene’s fantastic. It’s on the DVD, it’s the first one up on the DVD. It’s ready to go. He is so great, and unfortunately his character is… is was just a long first act, basically. But, man, he was so good. He does this whole thing where he fires Barry, he’s kind of being nice and he goes, “You have the lowest record of all time here, which is a record in itself. Congrats!” Yelling at Barry, he’s hilarious.

Does he go over the top with it?

No! It’s like Michael Ian Black’s thing. These guys are great actors so they understand their utility in any given thing. Michael Ian Black, he’s done some really over the top stuff, but he was great, great kind of antagonist in that scene. He’s such a great guy, they’re both great. The way he kind of checks [Teresa Palmer] out [laughs].

Speaking of that scene, I’m personally absolutely horrible with math, probably one of reasons why I got into journalism…

Acting, by the way [laughs].

There’s a great deal of number crunching in that scene and obviously it’s scripted, but was that a hard scene to film? There’s also a small sample of it in the scene with Demetri Martin.

No, that was incredibly hard, more because of memorization. We took a lot of takes, man, and I got one of them finally, and you know it only takes one! But yeah, there’s a camera move and it’s very hard to figure it all out, but that’s the beauty and magic of Hollywood. You know what’s also amazing is Demetri, did we talk about him? Demetri is also a third in that comedy trifecta there. I’m a huge fan of his and he came on and he wrote about half of that thing. He just kills it, it’s amazing.

What was harder, the math or the ball?

Probably the math, to be honest [laughs]. The ball was a pain in the ass too. I really got beat up on this one. I went running after Tori to show her I had this car and I fall down? That was for real! That was just one take, I can’t believe they used it, but it does look pretty pathetic. I had to dance that 80s dance. A lot of rough stuff.

Getting back to those supporting players, Bob Odenkirk and Lucy Punch also happen to both be in a movie you’re doing called The Giant Mechanical Man. Was that just kind of coincidence the way that worked out?

It is just coincidence, and I don’t have any scenes with them, which is such a bummer because I love both of them so much. Bob was gone by the time I was down there. They had to squeeze me in at the end of the film because I was doing another film, but I went out to dinner with Lucy and she couldn’t be cooler or funnier. She’s doing so great. She was in that Woody Allen movie [You Will Meet A Tall Dark Stranger].

Can you talk a little bit about your role in that movie?

Sure. I’m a motivational speaker and I have shoulder length hair.

Like you had in Oceans 12?

Longer, and more kind of quaffed. And I only wear cable knit sweaters. That’s a really special movie. [Lee Kirk] did such a great job and Jenna [Fischer] did an amazing job producing. I’m a motivational speaker about conversation, but I never really have a conversation with her. We have some great date scenes and we filmed my entire seminar in the hotel we were staying in, we went and filmed this two hour seminar where I helped people. It was a really great experience.

Speaking on Jenna producing that movie, did producing Take Me Home Tonight change your perspective on the whole movie making process?

In the best way. I did this Richard Gere film where it’s a big to-do, FBI-CIA…

The Double.

Yeah. We’re hunting down a killer, so there’d be a day where we’re kind of losing light and one of the producers will come and talk to the director and at first I would kind of go in there and be a part of the conversation, and I’d go [claps] “Nope. I’ll be in my trailer. Peace!” [laughs] It’s great to do all of the work to be able to not do it. I’m happy to just act.

Was The Double the movie you were doing before Giant Mechanical Man?

That’s right.

That movie has another stacked cast with Richard Gere and Martin Sheen. What was making that movie like?

Oh my God. Doing scenes with Martin Sheen that are dramatic, and Richard Gere… most of the film is me and Richard, and, man, that’s a great way to spend a summer. I’ve worked with guys like Dennis Quaid and Michael Douglas and you go, “Oh, I’m like with a CEO of acting.” One of the great, top ten CEOs of acting and just through osmosis you learn so much. By the way, it’s what makes a movie like this so sweet, is that I really wanted to work with a group of my peers. At the end of our day, we’d go to an IHOP because it was six in the morning, that was the end of our film day, we shot at night. We were, Anna and Demetri would start doing a bit and Dan would join in and it was like, I’m here, I’m at one of these places in the past – in the future this will be the past – and it will be like someone’s sitting at a table and there’s [John] Belushi and Gilda Radner and Dan Aykroyd and Bill Murray. These people are all really funny together! It’s really great. I really like working with people that I have a lot of stuff to learn from and my peer group. When they’re this good it’s amazing.

On the subject of amazing casts, last summer you signed on for a project with Paul Rudd and Kristin Wiig called Bobby Blue Sky.

I don’t know if the funding has come together on that, but that is an amazing script. It has to get funded to get made, but really, really great script written by Emily Kapnek, who’s a great writer.

What kind of a part is it for you?

That was a kid named Bobby Blue Sky who’s like the Christopher Robin Milne of his generation. His father wrote a book, but the family is incredibly screwed up because of it. And there are two other kids who he didn’t make parts for, so they have a really bad family dynamic. It’s a little bit like The Royal Tenenbaums. It’s great, great idea and I hope it gets made.

Is it more of a drama or just a dark comedy?

It’s a “comeda” or a “dramedy” as they call it.

You have a lot of comedies on your record, but you’ve also branched out to do dramas.

I just love doing the opposite of the last one that I did. It’s good for your longevity, I guess, it’s bad for my agents, because they wish I did the same thing and made more money. But it’s good for the audience, they don’t get blown off from me doing one kind of role. It’s really good for you as an actor, because you get challenged and you’re working out different muscles all the time. It’s a full body workout instead of just working one muscle all the time.

Last week we posted the trailer for Take Me Home Tonight, the 1980s set comedy starring Topher Grace, Anna Faris, Dan Fogler, and Teresa Palmer. Though the film is now set for a March 4 release date, the project, originally titled Kids In America, wrapped production all the way back in 2007 and has been sitting on a shelf ever since. But why has the film had such a hard time getting released? Apparently it's not because of the quality, but because of the content. According to Grace, the studio was nervous about some particular scenes in the film, namely the ones involving characters snorting cocaine. Speaking with MTV, the actor said that the movie really tries to capture the essence of the 80s and it couldn't have been done without scenes involving plenty of nose candy. Mentioning that the film actually tested "really well," Grace likened it to movies set during the 1920s.

While some might take this as Grace simply covering up for a bad movie, I'm inclined to believe him. While I didn't enjoy the tonal shifts, the funny parts actually seem funny and the trio of Topher Grace, Dan Fogler and Anna Faris is intriguing. I'm willing to give this project a shot, but I also won't be mortally shocked if it's a disappointment.

Though I wasn't born until three years before they were over, the 80s is a fun decade to look back on. The hair, the clothes, the music and the movies are all so ridiculous, but it all has a very special kind of charm. Earlier this year, Hot Tub Time Machine was the movie that tried to make us all nostalgic for those lost years, and it looks as though Take Me Home Tonight will fill that role in 2011.

Starring Topher Grace, Anna Faris, Dan Fogler, and Teresa Palmer (as well as a host of others), the film takes us back to the summer of 1988 when a young slacker (Grace) and his two friends (Fogler and Faris) attend a party to celebrate their youth. Apple has posted the first trailer for the Michael Dowse film over at their website. Head over there if you want to catch it in HD or watch the video below.

The movie seems to have its bright spots and actually works pretty well up until the tone of the whole thing changes and everything becomes over-dramatic and angst-y. The reason I enjoyed Hot Tub Time Machine was because it was fairly devoid of heavy drama and instead kept focused on its over-the-top nature. Take Me Home Tonight seems to have some elements of that, but lets hope that it doesn't all get washed out. Also: I miss video stores.

When first reporting the existence of the forthcoming romantic comedy Giant Mechanical Man, Mack claimed that the news was everything you could possibly hope to know about the project, given that we already knew the director (Lee Kirk), the stars (Jenna Fischer, Chris Messina, Topher Grace, Malin Akerman), and the concept (a zookeeper is stuck in a romantic triangle between a street performer and a motivational speaker). That was pretty much all there was to talk about, right?

Wrong! There's always room for more side characters, of course, and THR reports that Lucy Punch, Bob Odenkirk and Rich Sommer have all signed on for small roles in the film. They're not explaining any of the roles but Punch's, who will play Messina's character's girlfriend, but with Odenkirk recognizable from a current stint on Breaking Bad and Sommer still a regular on Mad Men as Harry Crane, you'll immediately recognize both of them when they pop up on the screen.

As for Punch, she's the least well-known of the three newcomers, even after roles in two high-profile films this summer, the comedy Dinner for Schmucks and Woody Allen's You Will Meet A Tall Dark Stranger. Both films underperformed, though, which helps explain why her name still isn't quite out there. Who knows, Giant Mechanical Man may turn out to be the big break; the project is already shooting in Detroit, so will likely show up at some point in the next year.

Principle photography on the Robert Rodriguez produced Predators has come to a close, so naturally we're going to start seeing bits and pieces from production trickle onto the interwebs and start whetting our appetite for the Nimrod Antal helmed sci-fi reboot. Today, we get our first real look at the characters and a bit of the wild setting of the Predators' home planet.

The images showed up over at AVP Galaxy but mostly look like they're from the personal camera of one of the film's meat shields, Oleg Taktarov. The photos are all very obviously amateurish, but you get your first look at a commandoed out Adrien Brody, a bloodied Topher Grace, and the beautiful if not a little dirty Alice Braga. It will certainly be interesting to see just how this unlikely cast will come together in the final product.

You may also notice that in the few glimpses of Pred-architecture that their world doesn't seem to be looking like some perverted Lego land like in AVP-R. Overall these photos are a nice preview of things to come, and it's looking positive so far. Reboots are always a tricky situation, especially of such loved properties as Predator, so lets hope that the next batch of marketing will get us even more excited to see invisible jungle predators blasting people's limbs off.