Minor spoilers below for anyone who hasn’t yet finished watching Twisted Metal Season 2 via Peacock subscription, so be warned!

As quickly as it revved up and exploded back into our lives, Twisted Metal Season 2 has already run its full course through the 2025 TV schedule, giving fans all the vehicular-based action and chaos that only a video game adaptation like this can deliver. The finale, “NUY3ARZ,” did indeed see Anthony Carrigan’s mystical and mysterious Calypso crown his tournament’s big winner, though he honored the victor’s wish in more of a “Monkey’s Paw” manner akin to the character’s actions in the games. You just can’t trust anybody these days.

When I spoke with Twisted Metal’s cast to talk about the new season, I asked several of the stars what they themselves would wish for upon reaching the end of Calypso’s tournament, and the answers were as fun as they were unpredictable. Strap on your completely useless seatbelts, and either hit play or keep reading. (Or both!)

Stephanie Beatriz

When it came to Stephanie Beatriz's Quiet, I was personally wishing for a return from Richard Cabral's Loud after his surprising death in Season 1. When I asked the actress herself what her guilty-pleasure wish would be if ethics and real-world concerns didn't enter into it, she was such a class act that she couldn't buy into that premise of having a wish and not using it to better society. As she put it:

It might just take something as feasibly impossible as a supernaturally gifted weirdo's war-with-cars tournament to actually give absolute equality a shot at existence. I think if everyone was obsessed with The Baby-Sitters Club books as John Doe, then we might all have a keener sense of family and friendships. We might all appreciate meager hourly wages a little more, also.

Anthony Carrigan & Michael James Shaw

I asked Calypso actor Anthony Carrigan and Axel behemoth Michael James Shaw about what their blue-sky wish would be, and I'll admit that I may have slipped up and had a direct hand in influencing the answer.

• ANTHONY CARRIGAN: That's a tough one,
• NICK VENABLE: Season 3. Say Season 3
• ANTHONY: I'm gonna say Season 3 of Twisted Metal, I think, is probably what I would wish for. Michael, what do you think? What do you think, bud?
• MICHAEL JAMES SHAW: I would actually take a little step, maybe like, you know, three seasons. Three more seasons of Twisted Metal. Let's get it going.

Hell yeah! From Shaw's lips to the Peacock's programming Powers that Be. It's still unclear what this show's future might look like, though I'm hoping that the three final episodes' arrival means we won't be waiting too much longer to get an update. But only a positive one. If it ends up on the list of shows ending this year, I'm good with not learning about it.

Richard De Klerk & Lisa Gilroy

Mr. Grimm portrayer Richard De Klerk readily called out Calypso's tricky nature when I asked him and Vermin actress Lisa Gilroy about their ideas for no-limit wishes. Then, surprisingly enough, he let his sports fan flag fly high, and fellow Canadian Gilroy proposed a similar option.

• RICHARD DE KLERK: I know that Calypso doesn’t really grant a wish sort of, like in the games. It’s always the cutaway scene, and it’s never what you expect. But my wish is that Holland would win the World Cup. I’m 41 years old. I’ve never seen them win the World Cup. They’ve come close. I just want them to win the World Cup.
• LISA GILROY: Okay, I guess, you know what? I’m changing my answer. We’ve been asked this a few times, and at one point I said that I would wish that the wars would stop. But let’s give the Oilers a Stanley Cup.
• RICHARD DE KLERK: Yeah, there you go. There you go. I mean, you know, second for me would be the Vancouver Canucks. But also, we see what happens when they lose, they riot, so….

That's almost definitely how Calypso would work that one. The Canucks would win the Cup, but then fans would destroy the entire city through celebratory riots. Cheeky bastard.

Also, how amusing is it that Lisa Gilroy went from "no more wars" to "Oilers Cup victory" without too much provoking? As a lifelong New Orleans Saints fan, I can absolutely sympathize with the yearning for championships.

Saylor Bell Curda, Patty Guggenheim & Tiana Okoye

Talking to Saylor Bell Curda (Mayhem), Patty Guggenheim (Raven) and Tiana Okoye (Dollface) was an absolute hoot, and when I asked about their biggest no-guilt wishes, Curda gave it quite a bit of thought and voice more of an inward desire than what other cast members shared.

• SAYLOR BELL CURDA: What a crazy question. It's so tricky. It's so tricky because Calypso's such a little sneaky dude that like, I don't think Mayhem would think twice about it. I'm sure she like genuinely would be like, 'invincibility,' But like, me being me, I'd be like, 'Let me write everything down. Let me make sure I have the correct usage of words to make sure I get exactly what I want.' But I would probably, if I was trying to go basic as well, to stay safe, I would probably also ask for a superpower. I'd probably want teleportation.
• TIANA OKOYE: I was gonna say that!
• SAYLOR BELL CURDA: Teleportation is rad. Not having to pay for like, airplanes fees again? Yes, please.

It's almost surprising that Curda was the first person to give an answer about having souped-up abilities. Though I guess Calypso's way of borking a "teleportation" wish would be to turn the actress into an electrical current or a quark or something.

Patty Guggenheim shared her idea for a Multicplicity-style life, but her co-stars were quick to point that out as being a pop culture cautionary tale.

• PATTY GUGGENHEIM: I just want to be able to multiply so I could go to everything all at once.
• SAYLOR BELL CURDA: That is actually genius. Cause then you could teleport, but...
• TIANA OKOYE: But, oh, that scares me.
• SAYLOR BELL CURDA: That would scare me a little.
• TIANA OKOYE: Because what if one of one of them, like, turn turns against you? Have you seen Dark Matter?
• SAYLOR BELL CURDA: Have you seen Gravity Falls?
• TIANA OKOYE: You, of all people, should know about this multiverse.
• PATTY GUGGENHEIM: Yeah, but one of me is really gonna learn how to fight.

After I pointed to some Gravity Falls decor in my office, Curda excitedly brought up the episode "Double Dipper," in which the Dipper used a cloning machine to make copies of himself, which eventually went haywire. And Calypso didn't have anything to do with that one.

The actresses seemingly landed on teleportation, but then the topic of food came up.

• TIANA OKOYE: I'm sticking to teleportation. I'm gonna teleport.
• SAYLOR BELL CURDA: Yes, teleportation, yeah, absolutely. Or...free food for the rest of my life,
• TIANA OKOYE: Bottomless pit of a stomach so I can just have everything, as much as I want.
• SAYLOR BELL CURDA: Or like, quick digestion.

Like, I hadn't even considered such a fantastic answer like "quick digestion" before Saylor Bell Curda shared it. Sure, it might not be as eye-catching as a traditional superpower and it might not make the world a better place like equality and Twisted Metal Seasons 3-5 would. But this is all pretending anyway.

Stay tuned for hopefully more updates about Twisted Metal's future, and the best way to help that along is by streaming episodes on Peacock.

I don’t know about you, but I’m loving Twisted Metal Season 2. One of the most absurd (and absurdly awesome) shows on the 2025 TV schedule, this great video game adaptation has everything this longtime fan wants in a series and then some.

From cracking up at Will Arnett and Samoa Joe’s Sweet Tooth to living vicariously through Anthony Mackie having so much fun as John Doe, I’m loving this goofy, bloody, and addictive Peacock original. I recently noticed something really sweet when watching Twisted Metal with my Peacock subscription, and this little minor detail has led to me loving the show even more.

No, it’s not the “weird as hell” orgy, all those wild callbacks to the games, but instead the music. Let me explain…

All Of The Songs In Twisted Metal Are From Before The World Crashed In The Show

If you look at the official Twisted Metal playlist on Spotify, you’ll see songs like Gorillaz’s breakout hit “Clint Eastwood,” the late DMX’s “Ruff Ryders’ Anthem,” and Michelle Branch’s pop phenomenon “Everywhere,” to name just a few. What do all of these songs have in common, you may ask? Well, they were all released in or before 2002, the point at which the world went to shit in the Twisted Metal-verse.

I lost my mind during “ONURMRK,” when Rob Zombie’s “Dragula” started playing during the opening of the Twisted Metal tournament. Not only was this a track released before society’s collapse, but it was only a nice nod to Twisted Metal 4, which featured “Dragula” on the soundtrack and as the name of Mr. Zombie’s vehicle in the tournament.

It's A Minor Detail, But Having Songs From That Era Adds So Much To The Feel Of The Show

Just like the “Thong Song” needle drop during the first season of Twisted Metal, including all of these era-specific songs adds so much to the feel of the show. Sure, there's the traditional instrumental score from composers Leo Birenberg and Zach Robinson (which really is great, by the way), but including these chart-topping songs that existed inside the show’s world before the collapse adds some great worldbuilding.

These small moments, which are admittedly brief at times, add so much magic and humor to the scenes, especially during that training montage set to “Clint Eastwood” during the early part of the season. It just wouldn't feel quite right to hear Taylor Swift or Kendrick Lamar behind these scenes.

What Showrunner Michael Jonathan Smith Has Said About Those Needle Drops

You know what makes these ‘90s and early 2000s tracks so much fun in Twisted Metal? Well, besides the fact that they make the world so much more fun? When speaking with CinemaBlend’s Nicholas Venable ahead of the Season 2 premiere, showrunner Michael Jonathan Smith talked about the personal connections to the songs, including an iconic and bad SNL movie:

I have my “Dragula” and “Clint Eastwood” memories, Smith has his “What Is Love?” first date story, and both prove why these songs just work!

With all these needle drops, comedy, and over-the-top violence, hopefully, we get more Twisted Metal in the future, because I’d love to see this join the list of other promising upcoming video game movies and shows.

Spoilers below for anyone who hasn’t watched the sixth episode of Twisted Metal Season 2 with a Peacock subscription, so be warned!

Though Twisted Metal has certainly featured some gnarly deaths so far in its action-packed second season, I haven’t exactly been emotionally jarred seeing Sweet Tooth turn one-off characters into posthumous ventriloquist dummies, or by seeing Axel’s weirdo creator vanquished. But Episode 206, “MKAW1SH," did indeed throw me for a loop by taking out a lead that I was certain would survive the season: Tiana Okoye’s Dollface.

Maybe it won’t end up being the most depressing death on the 2025 TV schedule, but nobody can say Dollface went down like anything but a hardcore badass. Having led the Dolls to becoming a formidable female force in post-America, Dollface successfully went through all the blood, sweat and tears to make it to the qualifying round of Calypso’s tournament, only to lose a lot more blood after being shot, stabbed and blown up via airstrike. Hard. Effing. Core.

Alongside her co-stars Patty Guggenheim and Saylor Bell Curda, TIana Okoye talked to CinemaBlend about Season 2. Noting that it is perhaps too soon to call Dollface a marty (considering what John wishes for in the end), I asked her to speak to the character representing something more important than what someone might expect from a video game adaptation. In her words:

For all that Twisted Metal is an extremely heightened and fairly pessimistic take on society's downfall — not that I know what an optimistic apocalypse looks like — Dollface was arguably as inspirational and motivational as any other character. Which isn't to say every single one of her methods and ethical decisions was perfect, or that she would legitimately be a good leader in peacetime, but as a beacon of unwavering strength, she's all beastmode.

So while Dollface may not always have non-deadly solutions to solve her problems, a lot of what she gets done BEFORE bloodshed can certainly be seen as aspirational. To that end, Okoye talked about the character's leadership quality, saying:

I can only imagine that future episodes will take more major characters out of the picture, but it was rough to lose Dollface this early. Of course, with the opening and ending tying into John voicing his wishes to Calypso, I understand why his biological sister would be the one who needed to die first, for plot purposes. Will that wish come true at some point?

Well, John would need to win the tournament, naturally. Also, Calypso would need to be an honest person and not a weirdo trickster, so the jury's still out on all of it.

Twisted Metal Season 2 drops new episodes Thursdays on Peacock.

There were few shows on the 2025 TV schedule I was looking forward to watching more than Twisted Metal Season 2 with my Peacock subscription. The latest installment in a damn good video game adaptation has everything I loved about the first season (and game on which it is based) and then some. This is especially true for Anthony Mackie’s John Doe, the hilarious, crafty, and deadly everyman hero of the series, even more so after watching him in Captain America: Brave New World earlier this year.

The truth is, I can’t get enough of the “Milk Man,” his comedic timing, the way he handles himself in a fight and vehicular combat, and pretty much everything else about Mackie’s dynamic character.

I'm Not Saying Sam Wilson Is Boring, But Captain America: Brave New World Wasn't Exactly Fun

Though Captain America: Brave New World was one of the highlights of the MCU’s Phase Five, it wasn’t necessarily a fun movie, which didn’t really allow Anthony Mackie’s Sam Wilson to shine like his character on Twisted Metal.

The new Cap does have some funny quips, was charming, and makes for a good hero, but at times it felt like Mackie was either holding back or being told to tone it down, which is a shame, considering he’s a great comedic actor and the character has been so much fun to watch over the years. I get it, as random ‘90s pop culture references, an obsession with The Baby-Sitter’s Club books, and puns don’t really work in a dramatic superhero flick paying homage to ‘70s political thrillers.

Twisted Metal's Ridiculousness Brings Out The Best In Anthony Mackie's Comedy And Action Skills

What’s so great about Twisted Metal is that its utterly bonkers tone allows Mackie to show off his incredible action skills while also giving him the opportunity to cut loose, have some fun, and say/do some ridiculous stuff in each episode. I’m only five episodes into the second season (all that has been released up to the point of this writing), but I already have a hefty list of hilarious moments involving John Doe so far:

• John starting a “John Dough” pizza delivery service
• John Doe freaking out when he can’t find Book #89 of the Baby-Sitter’s Club
• John still being obsessed with the books when his sister tries to reconnect
• John and Quiet crawling on the floor during the orgy
• John recreating THAT Entrapment scene in the laser hallway

Now That The Tournament Is Underway, I Can't Wait To See Where John Doe Takes Us

Before Twisted Metal first premiered in 2023, I had a list of things I wanted to see in the adaptation. Though a lot of those didn’t happen in the first season, it’s a completely different story this time around, including the actual Twisted Metal tournament itself. I had long dreamed of seeing the vehicular combat of those classic PlayStation games on the TV show, and the fifth episode of Season 2 gave me just that after it was teased in the Twisted Metal trailer.

Now that Calypso has gathered deadly, unique, and truly bizarre drivers from around the country to take part in his tournament, I cannot wait to see where John Doe goes on this journey. Those who’ve played the games know that the maniacal tournament founder can’t be trusted with those wishes, so anything could happen with John if he wins…

You can watch Twisted Metal on Peacock right now, and new episodes will drop in chunks weekly through the end of August. Who knows, maybe we’ll see a third or fourth season pop up on the list of upcoming video game movies and shows in the near future.

Mild spoilers below for those who haven’t yet caught up with Twisted Metal’s fourth episode via Peacock subscription, so be warned!

The first five episodes of Twisted Metal’s second season, at least to me, deliver as many fun and exciting moments as the entire first season did, and it’s a huge highlight on the 2025 TV schedule. (And I’m not bumping on Season 1, which I adored.) From the barrage of weirdo new characters like Lisa Gilroy’s Vermin to exploring the ins and outs of Calypso’s tournament, I’m having a blast, and never more than when Joe Seanoa’s Sweet Tooth and Mike MItchell’s Stu are sharing the screen.

I talked to the hilarious co-stars about their highly gory buddy-comedy escapades in Season 2, and I had to ask Seanoa (who dons the Sweet Tooth costume while Will Arnett provides the voice) if having the character’s signature clown mask on made it easier to hide his laughter while filming. As seen in the video above, he confirmed that it is indeed easier to shield his reactions to certain moments. In his words:

For all the fun and hilarious moments that show up on the screen, it means Twisted Metal's cast and crew were bringing their all-serious A-game to the production. Despite being a big dude who can handle criticism, the WWE and AEW vet doesn't want to be the guy holding filming up because he's visibly chuckling behind the clown mask. (Of all the on-screen foibles to make, a laughing clown doesn't seem that sinful.)

Seanoa continued, saying he thinks it's a top-tier get where necessary masks are concerned:

If Sweet Tooth's vibe was more about oozing charm and empathy, that mask would not be the way to go. We all know that's not his M.O., though.

For all that Joe Seanoa knows how to keep his professional composure while filming, he hilariously let some of that slide during our interview to lightly troll Mike Mitchell just as he was sharing a variety of compliments.

• MIKE MITCHELL: Joe is such an incredible actor and performer, and his physicality is incredible. So it's, honestly, it's easy to…
• JOE SEANOA [interrupting]: Mitch is a great high jumper. I don't know if you guys know that. He's one of the better ones that I've seen on set. So just don't let that fact go unsaid. Thank you.
• MIKE MITCHELL: He's right. I can get like, two inches off the ground. Joe such a good actor, such a good performer. It's so easy to play across from him for that reason. If it's not six in the morning, it is hard to not break.

I can imagine that getting to set and ready for filming before 6 A.M can lead to some moments where absolutely nothing seems funny or worth breaking over. But once that misery evens out, let the good times roll.

To that end, though, Mitchell pointed out that there were moments where the duo went off-script and took moments a bit too far comedically, to the point where someone else chimed in.

• MIKE MITCHELL: There's a scene when I'm in my underwear where I was trying to get a missile out and turning around in circles. And I think Joe and I will push it to the limits where we'll go extremely silly, and they'll be like, 'Okay, reel it back.' Or they'll just cut it out.
• JOE SEANOA: Right, 'Knock out the Keystone Cops. Bring it back into reality, boys.'

One might think it'd be easy to get away with performing behind a mask like Sweet Tooth's, but not being able to deliver facial expressions means everything else about the physical performance needs to be top-notch. And Mike MItchell says that Seanoa is even able to keep up with the flow when the actors start improvising during scenes. In his words:

I gotta say, there's no way I would have been able to make it through this particular moment without guffawing in the most plainly visible way to anyone paying attention. "Sweet Toot's Tournament" alone is enough to send my into giggling hysterics.

Don’t expect Sweet Tooth to get all obsessed with The Baby-Sitters Club books like Anthony Mackie’s John Doe. That said, I wouldn’t put it past Stu, especially if he can lay down on a comfy couch instead of riding around looking for victims.

All creative teams working on upcoming video game adaptations should take note of how to have a good time. Twisted Metal will bring even more when new episodes drop on Thursdays, with the sixth and seventh episodes arriving on August 14.

Spoilers below for anyone who hasn’t yet watched Twisted Metal Season 2’s fourth episode with a Peacock subscription, so be warned!

Following its three-episode Season 2 debut, which featured a literary cameo from the family-friendly book series The Baby-Sitters Club, which Anthony Mackie’s John obsessed over, the action-comedy eschewed all-ages subject matter for a motherfluffing orgy in its fourth installment. It brought a totally different kind of action for quite a few characters, such as Quiet, John and Stu, and easily topped the first season’s amusingly gross ball-pit sex scene.

Twisted Metal’s cast and showrunner Michael Jonathan Smith talked to CinemaBlend ahead of the season hitting the 2025 TV schedule, and I couldn’t possibly make it through those conversations without putting a heated spotlight on Episode 4, “LZGTBZY.” Check out the video above and read on!

Stephanie Beatriz On Quiet And John's Hottest Sex Scene Yet

In the episode, Stephanie Beatriz's Quiet and Anthony Mackie's John infiltrate a group of horned-up insiders who are posing as outsiders, all to gain access to better weaponry. Upon fooling the group's leader Emperor, portrayed by Jon Daly — no, not Happy Gilmore 2 highlight John Daly, but the comedian — the protagonists soon realize they're not just surrounded by strangely dressed weirdos, but they stumbled across a genuine orgy.

Quiet and John are able to avoid mixing bodily fluids with others for a while, but the pheromones take over, and they end up banging it out in front of a rather lovely wall of fire. When I asked Beatriz how this scene compared to knocking boots in a ball pit for Season 1, she told me:

If you thought a professional like Stephanie Beatriz would balk at the idea of faux intimacy with Anthony Mackie amidst so many flames, think again. In the scheme of things, though, the Brooklyn Nine-Nine vet said that sequence was basically par for the course in a show that goes as hard on batshit storytelling as Twisted Metal. She continued:

Considering Twisted Metal skews more PG-13 than a hard R with its subject matter, it was wild to see an orgy play out with minimal nudity on display, even though there were definitely plenty of scantily clad bodies throughout. Beatriz told me some of those bodies were not as well-kept as others, which made for a smelly experience.

In an era where intimacy coordinators are a regular and expected part of the filming process, one can only hope that hygeine coordinators will be mandated soon as well.

Showrunner MIchael Jonathan Smith Talks The 'Horny Heist' And The Fun Idea Anthony Mackie

Showrunner Michael Jonathan Smith told me that the concept of a horny heist was one the creative team really wanted to nail down this season, semi-pun semi-intended. But talking and planning for an idea like that is on a wholly different level from actually pulling off (also semi-intended) such a large-scale endeavor. Here's how he put it:

You can't have a bunch of half-naked eggs standing around if you don't want to make a naked omelet, amirite? Wait, no, that's not how that saying goes. Maybe it's something about not fucking your chickens before they've hatched? I'll look it up later.

On the opposite end of the spectrum from accidental nudity, Smith laughed while telling me that it wasn't solely background actors involved, as several members of the show's crew volunteered to take part. He continued:

I can't say I've ever had any kind of makeup sex that compared to what went down in this episode, and I doubt we'll see anything similar in any other upcoming video game adaptations. (Although I'll give Nintendo all the kudos in Hyrule if the Legend of Zelda movie attempst a similar sequence.)

Michael Jonathan Smith shared that one of the funniest details from the episode — John and Quiet's in-tandem shimmying and scooting across the floor — was Mackie's idea. As Smith put it:

The way they moved around should enter the annals of camp games like three-legged sack races and the like. We can call it The Doggystyle Shuffle or something.

Joe Seanoa And Mike Mitchell Talk Stu Being King Of The Orgy And Filming Comedic Nude Scenes

Not that Quiet and John were the only characters who actually got busy during "LZGTBZY." Mike Mitchell's loyal and bumbling dimbulb Stu also found himself in the midst of abject affection after he and Joe Seanoa's Sweet Tooth also infiltrated the rowdy event. While the masked killer was busy fighting off Dollface in back rooms, Stu found himself to be a lust magnet before long.

When I asked Seanoa and Mitchell about filming the episode, the WWE and AEW vet joked that he wasn't allowed in the area, but that he was rooting for his co-star from the sidelines.

• JOE SEANOA: Well, they wouldn't let me on set because, you know, obviously you have to be respectful to the intimacy coordinator and Mitch's wishes, so whatever. . . . I was rooting from outside the hangar. I was like, 'Get 'em, Mitch, yeah!' I was really trying to [be like] Tyson, get him hyped up for the for the role.
• MIKE MITCHELL: You know what's crazy is that, as a big guy — and Joe, it did work; I was hyped up and I was ripping my shirt off every day — but as a big man, I've done so many more scenes, like, I've had so many scenes in my underwear, or like basically nude, that I'm shocked that this has happened to me over the course of time. I was on the show Love on Netflix, and I was basically...you see almost everything in that show. Here, it was the same thing. I was a little self-conscious, but you know, Joe does this every episode. Joe is shirtless all the time.
• JOE SEANOA: Yeah, but you know, us in the biz, we do call you a bit of a flesh merchant. You know what I mean? You kind of do flaunt it a lot in a lot of your projects. I'm just saying, like, 'Reel it in a little bit, bud.'

Anybody familiar with the sketch comedy group the Birthday Boys (and their IFC series) is probably also aware of Mitch's sporadic bouts with nudity for comedy's sake. Total flesh merchant behavior, amirite?

Both actors talked about how, depsite Quiet and John's sex scene happening in front of a wall of fire, it wasn't quite as hot in the building while filming their scenes.

• MIKE MITCHELL: The only issue is that, we've said this, but it was freezing cold the day, so you could cut glass with our nips that day
• JOE SEANOA: Yeah, absolutely. Sign us up for the Union. We were ready to get through some Pyrex, let me tell you.

I half-jokingly asked Joe Seanoa if anyone brought up clown fetishes during that portion of the production, and he confirmed that was not the case, which he was appreciative for. While Mitch gave his screen partner credit for making it easier to not be embarrassed about anything happening in his scenes. As they put it:

• JOE SEANOA: Thankfully, no. But yeah, we got too weird too early. We started having to dial it back midseason.
• MIKE MITCHELL: I will say this, though: Joe would be leading by example, with his shirt off and the leather straps and the clown mask. You can't be embarrassed to do anything. You know what I mean? It's that sort of thing where the show pushes the limits, and it's fun to see where they push it, and for me, being the King of the Orgy was an honor. It was great. It wasn't my mom's favorite episode, but I had a blast.

As if getting sexed up by random women wasn't enough for Mitch's Stu, he also had his foot licked by another character whose butt he ended up biting during a hilarious confrontation, for lack of a better word. As the Doughboys co-host told me about that moment, Seanoa jokingly went hoighty-toighty in complimenting the show's subject matter.

• MIKE MITCHELL: Poor John, the man. He’s the man for licking my foot for real. And I bit his butt for real. That was real for both of us.
• JOE SEANOA: This is art, guys. This is what we call art. This is how it works out, right? Don't let anybody tell you any different.

Art indeed! This was easily one of my favorite Twisted Metal episodes to date, given just how over the top and unpredictable it was from beginning to end. You can't tell me anyone predicted Stu having too much sex at any point. Not a single person.

Will his streak as King of the Orgy be contested in the next episode, or will these characters find another hectic and potentially deadly situation to get into? My money is on the latter. No offense, Stu.

Twisted Metal's sixth and seventh episodes will be available to stream on Peacock on Thursday, August 14, with two more weeks of episodes to follow.

If you feel like you’ve seen everything the best streaming services have to offer, buckle up, because you haven't. August is kicking off with a variety of new streaming releases on the 2025 TV schedule, which means you can spend the weekend exploring new worlds like 18th-century Hawaii, a post-apocalyptic wasteland, and even Oxford. In other words, you can watch the premieres of Anthony Mackie's Twisted Metal Season 2, Jason Momoa's Chief of War, and the new Netflix romance My Oxford Year.

So, as we try to figure out what to watch first, here's what the critics are saying about these new projects.

Twisted Metal's Season 2 Levels Up With A 92% On Rotten Tomatoes

I can't lie, 2023 was seriously the best year for video game adaptations with hits like The Super Mario Bros. Movie and The Last of Us. But, we can’t leave out Peacock’s adaptation of Twisted Metal, which is about an amnesic milkman who’s sent to deliver a mysterious package across the post-apocalyptic Wasteland. It rocked back then, and now it's back to rock harder with Season 2.

While its first season had a fine opening of 67% on Rotten Tomatoes, Season 2 has proven to be a major success with a 92% Critics and Audience score. Brian Tallerico’s review for Roger Ebert noted that it felt like everything went up a notch, sure to provide greater satisfaction for longtime fans and new ones:

Based on Brian Tallerico’s claims of Season 2 having “more action, personality, character development, and effective humor,” these are the ingredients that make a perfect sequel worth watching.

You’re always hoping a show’s second take is willing to take risks and improve on everything that came before to keep audiences hooked. CBR’s Joshua M. Patton agrees that Season 2 brings new improvements to its characters, which helps add emotional stakes to this crazy story:

Indeed, you do need to feel for your characters to care about their fates. As the first season’s finale introduced the concept of the deadly tournament John Doe competes in, Season 2 looks to raise the stakes that the previous season presented.

So, you better believe it's worth tuning into it with your Peacock subscription.

Chief of War Is A Visual Spectacle With a Deep Dedication to Hawaiian Authenticity

Chief of War (which is streaming with an Apple TV+ subscription) takes streamers to the 18th century, where Jason Momoa plays warrior chief Ka’iana, who is rebelling against the unification of Hawaiʻi. As the Aquaman actor co-created the show and incorporated Pacific Islander representation in its cast, crew, and location, Kelly Lawler’s review for USA Today explained how much she loved the show’s use of grand storytelling scale as it shined a spotlight on key moments in Hawaiian history:

It’s about time that Hawaiian history got a big-budget treatment in mainstream streaming. Clearly, Chief of War is a passion project for Jason Momoa, who made sure his ancestors were portrayed in a glowing light. Aramide Tinubu’s review for Variety praised the historical drama series for allowing audiences to learn about Hawaiian history they’ve never seen on screen before:

It’s amazing to know that Chief of War uses character-driven narratives and grand visuals to not only bring Hawaiian history to life but also deeply resonate with it. With slo-mo running scenes and a volcano erupting mid-shoot, we're in for a remarkable ride with this show.

My Oxford Year May Be a Mixed Bag, But It Still Makes For An Entertaining Watch

The 2025 Netflix release of My Oxford Year stars Sofia Carson as Anna, who experiences a life-changing trip to Oxford after meeting a charming local there. Archi Sengupta's review for LeisureByte explained that while she thought the rom-com film presented itself with a “generic” plot, it still had a positive takeaway that made the book adaptation worth watching:

Rom-coms do tend to follow familiar plots. But if each star can bring their A-game, you know you’re in for a good time.

Brandon Yu wrote a harsher review for The New York Times, calling the movie “joyless,” but he still liked its unpredictability thanks to its plot twist:

Adapted from the novel by Julia Whelan, 'My Oxford Year' may quickly fall prey to this trap, but it has the benefit of having a trick up its sleeve, switching from one genre trope to another halfway through. The halfhearted execution remains, though.

Listen, it's normal for romance movies like this one to be a mixed bag review-wise. So, you can draw your own conclusions about My Oxford Year with a Netflix subscription.

Personally, I always find it refreshing when a rom-com flips the script. Audiences will be kept on their toes, and the emotional payoff will surely hit harder. So, I'll for sure be checking this film out.

Based on the reviews of each new streaming release, it looks like I have a date with my couch this weekend. Season 2 of Twisted Metal is expected to take me on a wild ride. Chief of War will time-travel me to 18th-century Hawaii. Meanwhile, My Oxford Year should hit me with some romantic vibes. So, with all that considered, I think I'm going with Chief of War first since I love historical dramas and visual masterpieces.

Spoilers below for anyone who hasn’t yet watched the first episode of Twisted Metal’s second season with a Peacock subscription, so be warned!

The tournament is coming, drivers! Now that Twisted Metal Season 2 has finally arrived on the 2025 TV schedule, it’s time for Anthony Mackie’s John Doe to get serious. Wait, no, that would probably go against the entire concept of the loosely connected video game adaptation. Though in the very first episode, John does get serious about reading through a bunch of Baby-Sitters Club novels, and while it might have started out as desperation, it seemingly became a true obsession.

When I talked to showrunner Michael Jonathan Smith ahead of the big Season 2 premiere, I had to ask about that unexpected cameo from Ann M. Martin’s beloved novels for teens and tweens. As seen in the video above, here’s what he told me inspired that reference from a personal level:

Awww, gotta love that The Baby-Sitters Club had such a key connection point for Smith that he felt the urge to bring it into the wonky remnants of pop culture in Twisted Metal. And that John went through a pretty specific panic at the thought of continuing to read through the series despite one book being missing. Just when you think it’ll be non-important, that’s when whole new characters come into play.

Smith continued, saying he wanted that to be a familial nexus for John and his sister rekindling their relationship. In his words:

People love the book series enough that it became a critically acclaimed live-action Netflix series years ago, though it made for one of the more disappointing cancellations in 2022 when the streaming service pulled the plug. Sadly, attempts to further the show went unfulfilled as well.

One has to wonder if John Doe would have been as invested in the TV series as he was in the novels. I have to think he’d have made himself just as comfortable on the couch with his feet swinging behind him. And that dichotomy between the two is part of the fun for the showrunner, who continued:

I wonder if John could talk Sweet Tooth and Stu into spending an afternoon speed-reading through a bunch of Baby-Sitters Club books instead of murdering anyone with a deadlier reputation. Probably not. Sweet Tooth would likely just burn all the books eventually anyway.

Find out if John Doe will ever finish the series — could he even stand the little sisters? — when Twisted Metal Season 2 drops new episodes on Thursdays on Peacock.

I’m not going to lie, I’m extremely excited for Twisted Metal Season 2. For the past two years, since the Season 1 finale over on Peacock, I have been anxiously waiting to see how all those beloved and iconic characters from the vehicular combat franchise would show up in the upcoming video game adaptation. And now that the first teaser has dropped, I’m even more excited about one character in particular.

No, it’s not Anthony Carrigan’s Calypso (though I’m stoked to see what the Barry star does in the role of the tournament organizer), and it’s not Mr. Grimm. Instead, I’m talking about Axel, one of the most special, unique, and recognizable characters from the 30-year-old franchise. Here’s why…

Axel Has Been One Of My Favorite Characters For Nearly 30 Years

Though he didn’t show up in the first game when it was released back in 1995, Axel, a man trapped in a “hellish contraption," was one of the main attractions of Twisted Metal 2. He was the most prominently featured character on the game's original box art, and the 8-year-old version of me was pretty much obsessed with him as soon as I saw an ad in GamePro or EGM ahead of its release.

Since then, I’ve played as Axel in every game in which he has been featured, fallen in love with his special attacks, dug deep into his backstory, and saw him as a character that would have to be any Twisted Metal adaptation. And here we are.

Axel Has An Incredibly Traumatic Backstory

All of the characters in the Twisted Metal games have tragic or traumatic backstories, and that’s definitely the case for Axel. According to his character introduction in Twisted Metal 2, Axel had spent the previous 20 years hiding from the world after his crazed and enraged father confined him to a contraption in which he was stuck between two massive tractor wheels. Entering the tournament to ensure his freedom and confront the man responsible for his personal hell, the tortured son would do anything and kill anyone in his way.

Though it looks like the Peacock original series will take a different route (it seems like Axel can get in and out of his machine in the teaser), I still hope the family trauma and quest for freedom aspects of the character live on.

Axel Has Such A Unique Look, And I Can't Wait To See How That Works On A TV Show

His look has changed over the years, but Axel has always been a man with his arms stretched out between two massive wheels and decked out in all kinds of weapons. Twisted Metal took some liberties with the characters and their vehicles during the first season, but that’s to be expected in a live-action adaptation of a cartoonish video game franchise.

It’s hard to know how the show will depict Axel, as we’ve only seen a few seconds of him (that includes the shot of his back in the Twisted Metal Season 1 finale), but I can’t wait to see how his unique look is handled. Based on the teaser, it looks like Axel won’t be confined to his “hellish contraption” and will be able to attach to it with some kind of robotic hands. I wonder what other changes await me when I get to watch with my Peacock subscription.

Though Mr. Grimm And Calypso Are Being Introduced, Axel Is The Character I'm Most Excited To See

I can’t wait to see how Twisted Metal handles Calypso, Mr. Grimm (I have so many questions about the motorcycle-riding Grim Reaper character from the games), and other new characters, but honestly, I can’t stop thinking about Axel. Maybe it’s the mystery, maybe it’s my nostalgia, or maybe it’s the fact he’s unlike anything else the games have to offer. Regardless of the reason, just know he’s the character I’m most excited to see.

Though I am sure a proper Twisted Metal Season 2 trailer will show more of Axel, I would love it if Peacock holds off on the big reveal until the series returns this summer.

One could argue that The Last of Us Season 2 is the most exciting upcoming video game adaptation hitting the 2025 TV schedule, but for those who prefer their post-apocalypses with more sunlit skies, vehicular action and madcap humor, the future is all about Twisted Metal Season 2. Anthony Mackie and Stephanie Beatriz’s John and Quiet will face even more explosive and potentially deadly mayhem when the Peacock series returns. Mayhem that goes by the name of Calypso and Mr. Grimm, among others.

The first teaser trailer for Season 2 does indeed feature the first footage of Twisted Metal tournament organizer Calypso, the supernatural wish-granter portrayed in live-action by Barry and Gotham fan-favorite Anthony Carrigan. And it also delivers on the Season 1 finale reference to the game’s motorcycle enthusiast, Mr. Grimm, as well as his on-brand gang. Check out the first big promo below and read on for more.

Anthony Carrigan's Calypso Is A Haunting Weirdo, And I Love It

Given this isn't a massive official trailer with a fully established premiere date, the amount of episodic footage seen therein is fairly minimal, and this video is more focused on showcasing both familiar and new characters to give viewers a clear view of everyone we can expect to see. And it makes all the sense in the world to cap the promo off with a shot of the raven-haired Calypso.

Anthony Carrigan is known for bringing his low-key charisma to largely hairless villains such as No-Ho Hank in HBO's Barry, but he's rocking some dark locks to match the video game look of Calypso, and it's a nifty visage. He kind of looks like he'd be a magician who ported over from Castlevania game, and I say that with all due love and respect.

Looks Like Live-Action Mr. Grimm Will Be A Mortal Version

In the video games, the motorcycle gang leader Mr. Grimm has various origin stories. He's initially a literal skull-headed reaper of souls, like Ghost Rider without the flames and chains. The look then morphed into something of an undead biker, then a pirate (let's forget that time), then a traumatized soldier. then the son of a dead stuntman who wishes to bring his father back. A pretty wide variety of narrative beats to choose from for showrunner Michael Jonathan Smith.

And considering the TV version of Mr. Grimm is wearing a helmet with a skull painted on it, it's probably safe to assume there's a somewhat normal human being behind the visor, even if we never see who it is. Then again, if there's nothing but smooth skull bones under the helmet, he'd probably need to wear it anyway just to stop people from asking where all of his head skin went.

The trailer also shows off more from John Doe's sister, who's going by the video game moniker Dollface. We don't know very much about the character at this point, beyond her direct relation to Anthony Mackie's character. But she is the leader of a group of similarly masked badasses who will no doubt hinder John and Quiet's efforts in Calypso's tournament before eventually helping in some way.

Twisted Metal Season 2 will arrive at some point in Summer 2025 for fans with Peacock subscriptions, so be sure to get your brakes checked and your oil changed, and think about what you secretly wish for more than anything else in the world, so that Calypso can eventually go all "Monkey's Paw" on it.

For almost as long as video games have been popular, Hollywood has been adapting them for movies and television shows. Often it's fighting games like Mortal Kombat, but even more G-rated games like Candy Crush have been adapted in one way or another. The adaptations aren't always great, but the games they chose usually are. Here is our list of great games that have been adapted into movies and TV shows.

Mortal Kombat

When the first Mortal Combat video game was first released in 1992 it was immediately one of the most controversial games on the market. It was also massively popular. It's still very popular, as new games have continued to be released over the years and there have been multiple adaptions, including for the first time as a movie in 1995.

Tomb Raider

The first Tomb Raider video game came out in 2001 and there have been multiple installments of the game about a female archeologist and action hero, Lara Croft. The game was first adapted into a movie starring Angelia Jolie in 2001's Lara Croft: Tomb Raider, and its sequel. It was adapted again in a reboot starring Alicia Vikander, in 2018.

Sonic The Hedgehog

The first Sonic The Hedgehog game became a pillar of the SEGA gaming system in 1991. It took a long time, but it was eventually adapted into a hit movie in 2020 with the same name. In the '90s, it was briefly turned into an animated show as well.

The Last Of Us

The Last Of Us was an unlikely hit video game before it was turned into a very well-received hit TV show on HBO. The show, starring Bella Ramsey and Pedro Pascal, has found fans far from its core gamer base and is one of the best shows in HBO in recent history.

Warcraft

The Warcraft series of video games has been one of the more enduring franchises in the whole industry. It makes sense that eventually it would get adapted into a movie. It finally was for the first time in 2016. Unfortunately, the movie didn't live up to the popularity of the game and was a critical and box office flop.

The Super Mario Bros. Movie

The Super Mario Bros. Movie released in 2023 defied all the cynics when it became a massive hit. Critics of the movie doubted the animated movie could be a hit, but in a tribute to the enduring popularity of a game series that started in the early 1980s, the movie went on to make over $1.3 billion at the box office.

Five Nights at Freddy's

Indie video games don't often turn into huge media franchises, but that is just what Five Nights at Freddy's has done. The original game, released in 2004 found a hardcore cult following that has grown with each subsequent release. The first movie was released in 2023 and made more than ten times its budget at the box office.

Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego?

In the mid-80s, computer games were still in their infancy, and one of the most popular games was Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego? It was so popular that it was turned into a kids game show in 1991 with the late, great Lynn Thigpen presenting it. It was rebooted by Netflix, but that proved to be a great example of a show that didn't need to be rebooted.

Twisted Metal

Between 1996 and 2012 the Twisted Metal franchise released eight games and became one of the most popular driving games of all time. More than a decade after its last release, it was turned into a TV show on Peacock where its enduring popularity made it a hit.

Assassin's Creed

The Assassin's Creed games have been wildly popular since the first game was released in 2007. Multiple version of the game, spread out over different eras of history, have remained popular in spite of the one attempt to adapt to a movie, starring Michael Fassbender, in 2016, disappointed critics and fans of the game alike.

Double Dragon

Double Dragon was one of the very first one-on-one fighting games when it was first released in 1987. It was also one of the first to be adapted into a movie when a film starring Robert Patrick, Scott Wolf, and Alyssa Milano was released in 1994. The movie was pretty bad, and that was reflected in its dismal box office performance.

Resident Evil

Resident Evil is a rare example of a video series and a movie series that have both been wildly successful. Multiple entries of both have proven to be popular over the last couple of decades. Zombies never really go out of style.

Fallout

The Fallout video game series launched in 1997 and multiple entires in both the main series and in spinoffs have been released in the years since. After a few attempts to get a movie made, the game was finally adapted for a TV show in 2024, and it became an instant hit on Amazon's stream service.

Rampage

Of all the movies on this list, Rampage has to be the one that was the most surprising to get a movie adaptation of it. Sure, the game was popular when it was released in 1987, but it never seemed like the kind of game that would get turned into a movie. That is until it was made into a disaster film starring Dwayne Johnson in 2018.

Pokémon

It's hard to pick just one adaption for Pokémon. The franchise is ubiquitous in every possible way. Whether it's video games, playing cards, comic books, TV shows, and movies, Pokémon is everywhere.

Pac-Man

In the 1980s Pac-Man was more than just a video game. It was a cultural phenomenon. It was really the first time a video crossed over fully into pop culture, so it makes sense that it would be one of the first games to get adapted into a TV show, in the form of a Saturday morning cartoon in 1982.

Doom

Dwayne Johnson has starred in a few video game adaptations, including 2005's Doom. The movie was based on one of the first, and most popular first-person shooter games of the same name that was also incredibly controversial as such. The movie was less controversial, and significantly less popular than the game as well.

Candy Crush

One of the early smash hit games for smartphones was Candy Crush when it came out in 2012. It was adapted into a game show presented by Mario Lopez in 2017, but it was not popular, to say the least, and was canceled after just nine episodes.

Maniac Mansion

Perhaps the weirdest entry on this list is Maniac Mansion. The 1987 PC-based game was pretty popular for its day, but no one would have thought it could be turned into a TV. Those doubters were proved wrong when it did become a TV show on Canadian television in 1990. The show did not have much in common with the game, however.

Halo

When the XBox was first released, a ton of effort was put into the first game included with the console, Halo. It has remained a staple of the console and many different versions of the game have been released over the years. After many starts and stops in other media, with multiple attempts to make various movies and TV shows, finally in 2022 the hit franchise was launched as a TV series on Paramount+, where it ran for two seasons.

Alone In The Dark

In 1992 Atari created the first Alone In The Dark game and it has since gone on to become one of the most enduring franchises since. In the ultimate proof that a game's popularity doesn't automatically translate to box office success, the 2005 Alone In The Dark movie, starring Christian Slater, was a huge bomb.

DOA: Dead Or Alive

Sometimes it seems that most video game adaptions bomb when they are adapted into movies. That's because of movies like DOA: Dead Or Alive. Based on the hit fighting franchise of the same name DOA: Dead Or Alive absolutely tanked at the box office, making less than $8 million against a $30 million budget.

Prince Of Persia: The Sands of Time

Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time starring Jake Gyllenhaal was a huge gamble by Disney when they put up a monster budget to adapt the movie from the hit video game franchise, Prince of Persia. The movie made money, which must have relieved some at the House of Mouse, but it was a pretty modest success, and ultimately a planned sequel was canceled.

Tekken

Fighting game franchise Tekken launched on the heels of the massive success of Mortal Kombat and Street Fighter. For many, it's always felt like a bit of a copycat to those other two monster franchises, but it has a solid core of fans. Enough, in fact, to get a movie financed in 2009, but it completely bombed at the box office.

Knuckles

Paramount+ show Knuckles is a rare example of a spinoff of a video game adaptation. The show is based on the titular character, known as Knuckles the Echidna in full, who appears in the Sonic The Hedgehog movies and is also a playable character in video games. He first appeared in the third installment of the video game, in 1994.

Need for Speed

A popular genre of video game that seems like more adaptations could come from is racing games. There aren't many, though Need for Speed is a notable exception. The games are all great, and the movie is a pretty great car racing movie.

Wing Commander

For some of us, it's hard to believe that the Wing Commander video game franchise is more than three decades old at this point, but the first one was released in 1990. The movie adaption, released in 1999, was significantly less memorable, having bombed big time at the box office.

House Of The Dead

German director Uwe Boll made a name for himself in the mid-'00s when he adapted a slew of video games into films. Unfortunately, almost all of them bombed, including his first attempt, House of the Dead in 2013. It was adapted from the video game of the same name.

Gangs Of London

The 2006 game Gangs of London seemed like an unlikely choice for adaptation, but it defied expectations when it became a surprising hit TV show for Sky Atlantic and AMC in 2020. Popular with fans and critics alike, the show has proven to be more popular than the game it is based on.

BloodRayne

BloodRayne, starring Kristanna Loken, Michael Madsen, and Michelle Rodriguez was the third attempt by director Uwe Boll to adapt a video game. It was also the third time that an attempt bombed at the box office. The movie is based on a pretty popular game released in 2002.

Uncharted

With almost a dozen released over the years, Uncharted has remained a very popular video game series. As such, it makes sense that someone would try to adapt into a hit movie. The 2022 movie starring Tom Holland turned into one of the most popular video game adaptations of all time, bringing in more than $400 million at the box office.

Street Fighter

Before Tekken, and before Mortal Kombat, there was Street Fighter. For its many fans, it was and remains still the greatest fighting game of all time. With dozens of releases over the years on virtually every game console since the '80s, it's one of the giants in video game history. It was first adapted into a live-action film in 1994 starring Jean-Claude Van Damme and over the years it's been adapted into multiple animated movies and TV shows.

Only one month remains before 2025 TV officially sizzles up and ceases to exist, coinciding with the final season of Stranger Things and a slew of New Year's Eve specials. Thankfully, it'll lead right into the 2026 TV schedule, but there are still a slew of premieres, winter finales, stand-up specials and more to enjoy before truly calling it quits. (To say nothing of all the NCAA and NFL football.)

Be sure to bookmark all those upcoming 2025 Christmas movies airing soon, as well as Hallmark's holiday movie schedule, but save lots of room for all the non-Christmas fare coming as well. Also, get ready to bid temporary farewells to the bulk of everything airing on network TV, with midseason finales popping up all over the place. We've noted the full-on season finales lower down.

[Note that all times listed in the schedule below are for the ET/EST time zone, and that all brand-new series premieres will be listed in ALL CAPS.]

December 2025 TV Premiere Dates

One end-of-year holiday deserves some more, and December always delivers tons of family-friendly parades and specials to both celebrate Christmas and beyond, while also setting up to welcome in the new year, often with Ryan Seacrest involved in some way. (Not to mention the plethora of new made-for-TV Christmas movies debuting on Hallmark, GAF and more.) For all the yuletide cheer, December features some brutal debuts from TV creators like Kurt Sutter, Steven S. DeKnight, and...Rowan Atkinson, as well as the latest streaming retrospective for Taylor Swift fans.

December 2025 Biggest TV Finales

As much as we love to celebrate when new and returning shows arrive and start off their new seasons, attention should also go to the variety of shows that are ending (temporarily or otherwise) for winter hiatuses. So let's take a look some of the most noteworthy season and midseason finales that are hitting soon.

• Murder in a Small Town Season 2 (Fox) - Dec. 2
• Bel-Air Series Finale (Peacock) - Dec. 8
• All's Fair Season 1 (Hulu) - Dec. 9
• The Amazing Race Season 38 (CBS) - Dec. 10
• South Park Season 28 (Comedy Central) - Dec. 10
• The Kitchen Series Finale (Food Network) - Dec. 13
• IT: Welcome To Derry Season 1 (HBO) - Dec. 14
• The Voice Season 28 (NBC) - Dec. 16
• The Floor Season 4 (Fox) - Dec. 17
• Survivor Season 49 (CBS) - Dec. 17
• The Road Season 1 (CBS) - Dec. 21
• The Kardashians Season 7 (Hulu) - Dec. 25
• Pluribus Season 1 (Apple TV) - Dec. 26
• Mayor of Kingstown Season 4 (Paramount+) - Dec. 28
• Stranger Things Series Finale (Netflix) - Dec. 31

When you're done setting up your own personal TV lineups, be sure to check out everything hitting the big screen in the near future as well with our 2025 movie release schedule.

Have you ever felt like you exist in a post-apocalyptic movie or TV show? Well, before you start building an underground bunker, stock up on non-perishable food, and practice any other survival tactics you know, take a look back at some of the best dystopian movies (and the genre's finest small-screen entries) and see if the potential causes to civilization's downfall that they provide feel at all familiar to you.

Climate Change Experiment Gone Wrong (Snowpiercer)

In Bong Joon-ho's 2014 adaptation of the French graphic novel, Snowpiercer, a diverse group of passengers boards a self-sustaining bullet train right before an experimental attempt to reverse climate change turns the outside world into an uninhabitable tundra. Seventeen years later, the survivors have set up a caste system from inside the train, but some of the impoverished citizens of the caboose, led by Curtis (Chris Evans in one of his most underrated performances), aim to resist.

Global Outbreak Of Post-Fatal Reanimation (The Walking Dead)

Until an explanation was provided in the post-credits scene from the finale of the short-lived spin-off, The Walking Dead: World Beyond, we never knew what caused the "Walker Apocalypse" in AMC's series adaptation of Robert Kirkman's hit comic book. However, the second season did reveal a unique aspect of the zombie virus, in that all survivors are somehow doomed to be reanimated no matter how they die unless their brain is destroyed.

Flooded Earth (Waterworld)

In Waterworld, global warming worsens enough to melt the polar ice caps, causing mass flooding that leaves the entire Earth fully submerged... or so it seems. Kevin Costner stars in the now beloved 1994 box office flop as a mariner who searches for what is believed to be the last of dry land in this anarchic dystopia.

Mystical Tree (Sweet Tooth)

Based on the DC Vertigo comic book series by Jeff Lemire, Sweet Tooth tells the story of a deadly virus that broke out at the same time many infants were mysteriously born as human/animal hybrids, causing suspicion that these unique beings were somehow responsible for the pandemic. In the Netflix fantasy series finale, it is revealed that a unique tree with antlers for branches was attacked by an axe-wielding human, inspiring it to kill the human race and replace them with animal-like beings.

Artificial Intelligence (The Terminator Movies)

The first three Terminator movies are, more than anything, time travel movies set in the modern day that provide hints and glimpses of a future eradicated by sentient machines. The fourth installment, 2009's Terminator: Salvation, is the first to be set entirely in the wartorn dystopia in which a grown-up John Connor (Christian Bale) leads a human resistance.

Nuclear Disaster (Fallout)

The long-running video game franchise, Fallout, and its Amazon Prime original series adaptation involves a unique depiction of a world eradicated by nuclear bombs, forcing some lucky people underground and others struggling to endure the surface. It takes place in the distant future, but one in which microprocessors were never invented, causing technological progress to remain largely trapped in the 1950s.

Sound-Hunting Aliens (A Quiet Place)

The A Quiet Place movies depict the ongoing aftermath of an alien invasion that is easy to survive, as long as you watch your volume. The vicious "Death Angels," as they are called, cannot see but have impeccable hearing ability that makes them a danger to anyone who makes even the slightest peep.

Cordyceps (The Last Of Us)

Craig Zobel developed one of the most acclaimed video game adaptations of all time with his HBO series based on the hit PlayStation game, The Last of Us. One of the most interesting things about the show's take on zombie fiction is that the inciting incident — a Cordyceps fungus that turns humans into grotesque monsters — is scientifically plausible.

Unknown, Psychologically Manipulative Phenomenon (Bird Box)

Even though Josh Malerman's novel that inspired Bird Box was published years before A Quiet Place was released, many audiences compared the 2018 Netflix original thriller to it for somewhat understandable reasons. Instead of aliens that force survivors to keep quiet, Sandra Bullock's character and others must shield their eyes from a mysterious force that has a fatal effect on some and a dangerous psychological effect on others.

Universal Loss Of Sight (See)

Jason Momoa leads the Apple TV+ series See, which foretells a global virus that leaves a mere few million survivors, whose descendants are later born blind. The main setting takes place so far in the future that the sense of sight is believed to be a myth among the people, who live in a more primitive and tribal society. 

Depleting Resources And Economic Collapse (Mad Max Movies)

It is never explicitly stated in the Mad Max movies what caused Australia to become a barren, desert wasteland of fire and blood, but there are clues littered throughout George Miller's seminal franchise. The 1979 original depicts a near future with an increased crime rate while the following films show further decay resulting from a rapid loss of natural resources and a ruined economy.

Disappearance Of 2% Of Mankind (The Leftovers)

Imagine if two percent of the world's population suddenly vanished from the face of the Earth. Tom Perotta's novel The Leftovers and co-developer Damon Lindelof's HBO series based upon it does not bother to ask how or why the rapture-esque event occurs but envisions how it would affect those who remain.

Infertility (Children Of Men)

One of the best movies of the 2000s, director Alfonso Cuarón's adaptation of P.D. James' novel, Children of Men, takes place in a dystopian future in which all women have mysteriously lost the ability to have children, ensuring the human race has an expiration date. However, when the first woman to become pregnant in years is discovered, Theo Faron (Clive Owen) is tasked with escorting her through a wartorn world and bringing her to safety. 

Extraterrestrial Infiltration (V)

While the antagonists of most alien invasion movies are pretty upfront about their intentions, the cult favorite miniseries V (and its subsequent series continuation, concluding miniseries called V: The Final Battle, and ABC's 2009 remake) flips the script a bit. Lizard-like creatures from another world don human-like disguises to gain mankind's trust, but their plans to deplete Earth's resources and feed on humans are later revealed.

Mutated Strain Of Ebola (28 Days Later)

What makes 28 Days Later one of the most realistic zombie movies is that the infected are not the living dead, but are alive and not doing very well at all. In director Danny Boyle and writer Alex Garland's 2003 thriller, a strain of Ebola evolves into a highly contagious virus that instantly turns people into mindless beings of insatiable fury, leading to a mostly desolate London. 

Technological Breakdown (Twisted Metal)

As the 1990s were coming to a close, people feared that once we entered the year 2000, all technology would fail, which is similar to the cyber attack that created the dystopian society in Twisted Metal. Peacock's series adaptation of the video game franchise stars Anthony Mackie as a delivery man traveling through the dangerous lands that exist outside of the walled-off fortresses where the last of the world's major cities stand.

Darkseekers (I Am Legend)

One of Will Smith's best movies is 2007's I Am Legend, in which he plays Robert Neville, who believes he is the last human being alive, due to a virus that he helped create in an attempt to cure cancer. Instead, it turned those infected into nocturnal, zombie-like creatures referred to as "Darkseekers" that fed on the immune survivors, leading to the lonely Earth the doctor must endure on his own.

Alien Invasion (Falling Skies)

From producer Steven Spielberg, Falling Skies depicts the aftermath of extra-terrestrials coming to Earth and destroying all major cities, with the sole intention of extracting an Earthly resource that can power their technology. Noah Wyle leads the series, which ran for five seasons on TNT, as a former history professor who becomes a leading figure of mankind's resistance.

Evil Robot (9)

Director Shane Acker's Tim Burton-produced, feature-length adaptation of his animated short 9, which came out in 2009, begins after humanity is no more and the only living beings left are a group of nine sentient rag dolls. They were created by a scientist who was also forced by a fascist leader to build the robotic device that would end mankind known as B.R.A.I.N.

Vampires (The Strain)

In most vampire lore, the creatures typically keep to themselves, waiting until nightfall to feed on, maybe, one or two victims at a time. However, Guillermo del Toro and Carlton Cuse's FX TV show The Strain — also based on their series of novels — sees the bloodsuckers attempt world domination, leaving a small batch of unbitten survivors to hopefully bring light back into the world.

Dragons (Reign Of Fire)

We often associate dragons with stories set in a fantasy world and at a time way before modern technology existed. However, Reign of Fire, starring Matthew McConaughey and Christian Bale, imagines a near future in which most of humanity has been wiped out by the large, winged, fire-breathing beasts.

Global Loss Of Electricity (Revolution)

Creator Eric Kripke's NBC series Revolution takes place years after a worldwide blackout leaves humanity in a state of violent disarray. It would later be revealed that a highly advanced computer virus is what caused electricity to become extinct.

A Combination Of Things (This Is The End)

The point of the 2013 apocalyptic comedy This Is The End is really just to see celebrities like Seth Rogen, Jonah Hill, and Emma Watson poking fun at themselves. So, Rogen and co-writer and co-director Evan Goldberg do not harm the story one bit by throwing various doomsday scenarios at you, such as the Rapture, earthquakes, a sinkhole, and giant demons.

Virus Carried Through Precipitation (The Rain)

One of the best horror TV shows on Netflix is a Danish import called The Rain, in which the eponymous, common weather pattern becomes humanity's worst fear. The reason being: that anyone who is touched by rainfall immediately contracts a disease that proves deadly for most, but causes bizarre effects for others.

Zombie Outbreak Via Mad Cow Disease (Zombieland)

Most of the best zombie movies do not even bother to explain how the dead rise from their graves and pass on an appetite for human flesh through bites. Leave it to a horror comedy movie like 2009's Zombieland to come up with a source of the carnage, which Columbus (Jesse Eisenberg) reveals in his overhead narration to be a mutated strain of Mad Cow Disease.

Global Animal Attacks (Zoo)

Animals lack ego, ambition, and other qualities that keep humanity at the top of the food chain, but what if they suddenly gain a desire to take the planet back? Authors James Patterson and Michael Ledwidge envisioned this scenario in their 2012 novel, Zoo, which was later adapted into a short-lived CBS series of the same name. 

World War III (Equilibrium)

Writer and director Kurt Wimmer's Equilibrium imagines a society in which, in the aftermath of a brutal third World War, human emotion is medically suppressed by law, in addition to all art being banned. Yet, when John Preston (Christian Bale), whose profession involves maintaining order in his dystopian society, accidentally misses a dose, the emotional response leads him to join a resistance against his totalitarian state.

Overpopulation And High Pollution (Terra Nova)

With the world's population rising rapidly and the environment suffering as a result, an ordinary family searches for a new place to call home. They find what they need by traveling back to prehistoric times and joining Terra Nova, which is the eponymous colony from Fox's short-lived sci-fi series.

Vanishing Technology And Government (The Postman) 

If you missed the opening caption that indicates The Postman takes place 16 years in the future, you might be quick to assume this dystopian sci-fi flick is just another Kevin Costner-led Western. While the initial cause of the apocalypse in the 1997 thriller is never made clear, its lingering aftermath involves the complete erasure of modern technology, leaving people to travel by horse, for instance, and a rise in neo-feudalism.

Deadly Exposure To Sunlight (Into The Night)

In Netflix's Belgian sci-fi series Into the Night, the radiation from the Sun becomes too intense for humanity to withstand, causing anyone exposed to its light to drop dead where they stood. This event forces a group of airline passengers to fly wherever the sun has not risen for as long as they can.

Nuclear Holocaust (The Book Of Eli)

The desolate world from 2010's The Book of Eli was brought on by a nuclear disaster that caused a wide depletion of most natural resources... and religion, too. Denzel Washington stars in the title role of a drifter on a mission to bring the last Bible in existence to the right people, if he can survive the treacherous dystopian landscape.

Monsterization (Sweet Home)

Netflix's live-action adaptation of the webtoon Sweet Home takes place in a version of South Korea eradicated by a virus that turns humans into bizarre creatures in a process referred to as "monsterization." The series' hero, Cha Hyun-su (Song Kang), becomes infected by this disease in Season 1, but is one of the few to maintain human characteristics amid his transformation.

After the great year for video game-inspired movies and TV shows we had in 2023, it seemed like it was actually safe to say that we had entered an era in which “bad” video game adaptations are a far less frequent occasion. As far as I am concerned, the release of the new series adaptation of Fallout has made it official.

Based on a series of popular video games set in a post-nuclear dystopia, the Amazon Prime original TV show has impressed experienced gamers, non-gaming audiences, and critics alike with its imaginative vision of a post-apocalyptic society, clever writing, and strong performances. If you have already used your Amazon Prime subscription to journey through all eight available episodes and you just can’t wait until the confirmed second season, we have selected a few TV shows like Fallout that might get your Pip-Boy cackling.

The Last Of Us (2023-Present)

Starring: Pedro Pascal, Bella Ramsey

What it's about: Decades after a mysterious virus brings about the fall of civilization, a grizzled survivor is tasked with guarding a teenage girl who may hold the secret to a cure.

Why it is a show worth watching if you like Fallout: Fallout is only the latest example of a TV series based on a post-apocalyptic video game and one especially notable example is co-developer Craig Mazin’s HBO series, The Last of Us, which Fallout also relates to in the way a zombie-esque illness is revealed to be major plot detail.

How to watch The Last of Us

• Stream The Last of Us on Max
• Buy The Last of Us on Amazon
• Buy The Last of Us on Blu-ray on Amazon

Twisted Metal (2023-Present)

Starring: Anthony Mackie, Stephanie Beatriz

What it's about: A drifter is hired to drive across what is left of a war-torn United States to deliver a mysterious package.

Why it is a show worth watching if you like Fallout: Another recent TV show based on a post-apocalyptic video game is Twisted Metal — based on a popular series of PlayStation games that, like the Fallout games, began in the ‘90s — which is more tonally similar to Fallout than The Last of Us, due to its comical approach to the source material.

How to watch Twisted Metal

• Stream Twisted Metal on Peacock

Miracle Workers: End Times (2023)

Starring: Daniel Radcliffe, Geraldine Viswanathan

What it's about: In a barren, desolate wasteland, two brutal warriors get married and try to have a normal life.

Why it is a show worth watching if you like Fallout: Yet another recent TV series with a nuclear, post-apocalyptic setting and a humorous tone is the fourth season of TBS’ comedic anthology series, Miracle Workers — subtitled End Times — which sees Radcliffe and Viswanathan adopt spot-on Mad Max-style personas.

How to watch Miracle Workers: End Times

• Buy Miracle Workers: End Times on Amazon

The Last Man On Earth (2015-2018)

Starring: Will Forte, Kristen Schaal

What it's about: Years after the breakout of a deadly virus, an average man becomes the last human alive… or so he thinks.

Why it is a show worth watching if you like Fallout: Yet another TV series with a post-apocalyptic setting and a humorous tone is Fox’s The Last Man on Earth — not to be confused with a Vincent Price-led, 1964 adaptation of I am Legend — which was also created by Forte and was cancelled before it could finish its story, unfortunately.

How to watch The Last Man on Earth

• Stream The Last Man On Earth on Hulu
• Buy The Last Man On Earth on Amazon
• Buy The Last Man On Earth on DVD on Amazon

The 100 (2014-2020)

Starring: Eliza Taylor, Bob Morley

What it's about: Years after a nuclear war, a group of survivors explore planet Earth, which is now inhabited by disparate groups of people contending with a fight for supremacy, mutants, and other bizarre dangers.

Why it is a show worth watching if you like Fallout: Let’s get back to more serious post-apocalyptic TV shows, such as The CW’s The 100, which is not based on a video game, but its plot boasts quite a few similarities to Fallout — save the fact that the returning survivors took refuge in space, not underground.

How to watch The 100

• Stream The 100 on Netflix
• Buy The 100 on Amazon
• Buy The 100 on DVD on Amazon

Silo (2023-Present)

Starring: Rebecca Ferguson, Rashida Jones

What it's about: In the future, an engineer and others begin to suspect that the leaders of their protective underground community are not being completely honest about their surroundings.

Why it is a show worth watching if you like Fallout: Based on a popular series of books by Hugh Howery, Silo does follow a group of survivors taking refuge from an uninhabitable, dystopian environment beneath the surface and, like Fallout, follows a group of survivors who question the truth behind their society.

How to watch Silo

• Stream Silo on Apple TV+

Westworld (2016-2022)

Starring: Evan Rachel Wood, James Marsden

What it's about: In a dystopian society, wealthy people are allowed the chance to live out their deepest desires in a fabricated society resembling the Old West and inhabited by human-like machines.

Why it is a show worth watching if you like Fallout: Before signing on as executive producers of Fallout, Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy co-developed HBO’s Westworld — a reimagining of Michael Crichton’s technophobic 1973 film that also cleverly combines post-apocalyptic and sci-fi themes with old school Western elements.

How to watch Westworld

• Buy Westworld on Amazon
• Buy Westworld on Blu-ray on Amazon

Scavengers Reign (2023)

Starring: Sunita Mani, Wunmi Mosaku

What it's about: The crew of a damaged space freighter struggles to survive when they are left stranded on a desolate planet.

Why it is a show worth watching if you like Fallout: While not exactly categorized as “post-apocalyptic,” the animated series, Scavengers Reign, is a thriller very much in the same vein as Fallout in the captivating and creative way it conceives its strange and dangerous setting.

How to watch Scavengers Reign

• Stream Scavengers Reign on Max
• Stream Scavengers Reign on Netflix

The Man In The High Castle (2015-2019)

Starring: Alexa Davalos, Rufus Sewell

What it's about: A young woman makes a discovery that could liberate the United States from control by the Nazi Regime.

Why it is a show worth watching if you like Fallout: In addition to being a futuristic story, Fallout is also an alternative history tale (imagining a world dominated by a ‘50s-style aesthetic and technology without microprocessors), similar to how The Man in the High Castle — based on the novel by Phillip K. Dick — takes place in a version of early 1960s America if the Axis Powers prevailed in World War II.

How to watch The Man in the High Castle

• Stream The Man in the High Castle on Amazon Prime

Yellowjackets (2021-Present)

Starring: Melanie Lynskey, Tawny Cypress

What it's about: A group of women who played soccer together in high school recall the horrifying events that took place when a place crash left their team stranded in the Canadian wilderness.

Why it is a show worth watching if you like Fallout: While Ashley Lyle and Bart Nickerson’s Showtime original hit is not a dystopian alternative history drama based on a video game, the Yellowjackets cast does include Ella Purnell as a woman who must contend with survivors of an unforgiving, dog-eat-dog world, much like her Fallout character, Lucy MacLean.

How to watch Yellowjackets

• Stream Yellowjackets (Season 1) on Netflix
• Stream Yellowjackets on Paramount+ with Showtime add-on
• Buy Yellowjackets on Amazon
• Buy Yellowjackets on Blu-ray on Amazon

These shows should be enough to help you survive the wait for Fallout Season 2.

Anthony Mackie already has plenty of credibility as an action star. After all, the man is currently sporting the Captain America mantle in the Marvel Cinematic Universe following years as Falcon, and he'll be headlining his first blockbuster next year in Captain America: Brave New World. That being said, Mackie is evidently interested in upping his game, and in his mind, that means going toe-to-toe with genre legend Keanu Reeves.

The Falcon And The Winter Soldier star recently spoke about his action aspirations with Total Film, and he expressed a specific desire to appear in an upcoming John Wick movie (assuming that one is made following the shocking ending of John Wick: Chapter 4). He told the magazine,

For those who don't get the reference, Anthony Mackie and Samoa Joe (a.k.a. Joe Seanoa) both star in the Peacock original series Twisted Metal, which premiered last year. During production of the show, Seanoa evidently landed a punch that connected with his co-star's face, but the blow wasn't strong enough to take Mackie off his feet.

When it comes to shooting action movies, accidental contact sometimes happens during fight choreography – but Anthony Mackie is making it clear here that he can take what's dished out (and he's certainly shown in his filmography that he can hold his own in a cinematic fight.

Fellow Marvel star Samuel L. Jackson has interest in John Wick, and previously stated his interest in making a film. Beyond that, director Chad Stahelski has a wish list of stars that includes Cillian Murphy, Colin Farrell, Charlize Theron and Michelle Yeoh. Perhaps a sequel could bring them all together in a grand two-hour battle royale that could be the most epic sequence in the franchise yet.

As of right now, the future/possibility of John Wick: Chapter 5 is unclear, but the franchise is still expanding. Having already gone through production, director Len Wiseman's Ballerina will be arriving in theaters in June 2025– and the Ballerina cast is stacked, with the film featuring a cast that includes Ana de Armas as well as Keanu Reeves, Ian McShane and Lance Riddick (in one of the latter's final performances). Stay tuned here on CinemaBlend for all of the latest updates about the franchise, and Anthony Mackie fans can check out his aforementioned work on Twisted Metal with a Peacock subscription before his next MCU blockbuster arrives in theaters next year.

For fans of a certain vehicular combat game, it’s safe to say that Twisted Metal Season 2 is one of the most highly anticipated upcoming video game adaptations, especially after the great success of the show’s first season. The Peacock original series, which is one of the best video game adaptations in recent memory, will be back before you know it, and we have all the details.

From its release window to its cast (both old and new), the direction of its story, and details about the ongoing production, there’s actually quite a bit we know about Twisted Metal Season 2 right now. Let’s get back in the driver’s seat and get this show on the road…

What Is The Twisted Metal Season 2 Premiere Date?

Though Peacock has not yet revealed an exact Twisted Metal Season 2 premiere date, the streaming platform has announced that the show will return in Summer 2025. We’ll be sure to update with more specific information once it’s available in the coming weeks and months as we get closer to the halfway point of the 2025 TV schedule.

What Is Twisted Metal Season 2 About?

After only having the Twisted Metal tournament teased in the final moments of the show’s first season, it sounds like the sophomore season will give longtime fans what they’ve wanted with some killer vehicular combat. But that isn’t all, as the official Twisted Metal synopsis reveals that Anthony Mackie’s John Doe will have a highly personal journey ahead of him:

And what will John or Quiet (Stephanie Beatriz) get if they win the bloody and action-packed tournament? Well, they’ll bet a single wish granted. But those who have played the games are painfully aware that getting what their heart desires the most can sometimes be a mixed bag, especially when it comes to Calypso’s treachery.

The Twisted Metal Season 2 Teaser

In February 2025, just one day before Anthony Mackie’s Captain America: Brave New World opened in theaters, Peacock released a Twisted Metal Season 2 teaser that hyped up some returning characters, as well as the debut of several of the video game franchise’s most popular tournament contestants. Check it out below.

Calypso, Mr. Grimm, Dollface, and Axel all get some time on screen in this teaser that also puts a lot of focus on the titular tournament from the games. We’re still left with a lot of questions about the show’s return, but this short yet exciting teaser will hold us over until Twisted Metal returns, or at least until a full trailer comes out sometime between now and then.

The Twisted Metal Season 2 Cast

The main players from the Twisted Metal cast will return for the show’s second season, meaning fans of the dynamic shared by Anthony Mackie’s John Doe and Stephanie Beatriz’s Quiet are in for a familiar treat when Season 2 debuts. But they won’t be alone, as other beloved characters from the games will be making their debut.

Anthony Mackie as John Doe

Sitting atop the cast again is Anthony Mackie, who will play the mysterious John Doe in Twisted Metal Season 2. The last time we saw Mackie’s wise-cracking and ass-kicking character, he was being tasked with serving as Raven’s (Neve Campbell) driver in an upcoming tournament.

Stephanie Beatriz as Quiet

Quiet’s story was far from being complete in Twisted Metal Season 1, so we’ll see the mourning sibling's quest continue when the show eventually returns. Former Brooklyn Nine-Nine star Stephanie Beatriz has been busy since we last saw her character, most recently voicing several characters on Creature Commandos..

Will Arnett as Sweet Tooth

Will Arnett provided the voice for the deranged Sweet Tooth during the first season of Twisted Metal, and that’ll again be the case when the show returns. Arnett previously told CinemaBlend he was influenced by the Joker when bringing the character to life, and we can’t wait to see more.

Samoa Joe as Sweet Tooth

Former AEW World Champion Samoa Joe brought out the physicality and hulking presence of Sweet Tooth throughout Twisted Metal Season 1, even if his vocal cords went unheard. That’ll again be the case for the wrestler-turned-actor when the show returns.

Anthony Carrigan as Calypso

When Twisted Metal Season 2 premieres, it will see Barry actor Anthony Carrigan take on the role of Calypso, the unhinged mastermind behind the titular vehicular combat tournament featured in the games (and soon to be shown).

Tiana Okoye as Dollface

Tiana Okoye will be showing up as Dollface, John Doe’s long-lost sister and the leader of one of the most brutal gangs seen in the Twisted Metal Season 2 trailer. Prior to this, Okoye appeared on shows like Mrs. Davis, Panhandle, and The Good Place.

Peacock has also announced that Richard de Klerk, Patty Guggenheim, Lisa Gilroy, Saylor Bell Curda, and Michael James Shaw will also be a part of the show’s next installment, but their characters’ identities have not yet been revealed. Expect that to change very soon.

Twisted Metal Season 2 Will Introduce Other Iconic Characters Like Calypso, Axel, And Mr. Grimm

Twisted Metal Season 1 obviously included several memorable characters from the video game franchise, like Sweet Tooth, Agent Stone, Mr. Slam, Preacher, Blood Mary, and Twister. That said, some of the franchise’s most iconic figures were nowhere to be found, or were only referenced in passing. Expect to see more familiar drivers when Season 2 arrives, which showrunner Michael Jonathan Smith shared with NBC Insider in December 2023.

When discussing both new and returning characters, Smith revealed that fan-favorites like the aforementioned Twisted Metal tournament organizer Calypso and the motorcycle-riding Mr. Grimm will be coming along for the ride. The showrunner said the writers even have big plans for Axel, the driver stuck between two giant tractor tires, and how that absurd competitor will fit in with the slightly more grounded approach of the series.

What Happened In The Twisted Metal Season 1 Finale

It has been a year since the Twisted Metal Season 1 finale brought an end to John Doe and Quiet’s cross-country journey to pick up and deliver a mysterious package (a pint of ice cream) to New San Francisco for Raven (Neve Campbell). That said, you may be wondering what went down before the credits rolled.

After completing the quest, John learned that Raven was testing him to see if he had what it took to be her driver in an upcoming vehicular combat tournament: Calypso’s Twisted Metal competition. And we’ll soon see that deadly competition play out before our very eyes.

Production Wrapped In October 2024

It shouldn’t be that much longer before we get to see Twisted Metal Season 2 in action, as production on the show’s sophomore effort has already wrapped. In October 2024, just a few months after cameras started rolling, Michael Jonathan Smith took to Instagram with a series of photos revealing that the principal photography stage had concluded and that he was getting ready to start post-production.

Judging by the state of the February 2025 teaser trailer, it looks like Smith and crew are nearing the finish line. But make sure to be on the lookout for more information soon.

Twisted Metal Season 2 Will Have 12 Episodes

Much like how Twisted Metal 2 expanded on the first game with new characters and even bigger maps, it sounds like the show will give fans more action when it returns this summer. According to Deadline, the series’ sophomore season will have 12 episodes as opposed to 10, with directors Phil Sgriccia, Bill Benz, Iain MacDonald, and Bertie Ellwood splitting them up.

While there is a lot we still don’t yet know about Twisted Metal Season 2, expect all those details to be worked out before too long. Before you know it, we’ll be in the heat of vehicular combat!

We’ve come a long way, people. There was a time when you had to really make excuses for video game adaptations being as terrible as they once were. 

I mean, I’m old enough to remember all of the old Nintendo cartoons, and the original Super Mario Bros. movie (which I hated back in ‘93, but I’ll defend to my dying breath today). And, while I was just happy to have anything based off of some of my favorite characters back in my youth, even I could admit that they were all pretty damn bad.    

But, 2023 was a banner year for video game adaptations. Now, it almost seems like video game movies and TV shows are finally getting the respect that I always knew they deserved. Here are just a few such examples of that.  

For A Time, The Super Mario Bros. Movie Was On Track To Being The Highest Grossing Film Of The Year 

A lot of critics didn’t love The Super Mario Bros. Movie (we ourselves didn’t give it the highest recommendation). But you know what? Many fans (myself included) didn’t care. I LOVED The Super Mario Bros. Movie!

And the box office is more proof that people showed up for it. For a time, The Super Mario Bros. Movie was on track to being the highest grossing movie of the year. Barbie tied with it for a time, but then eventually surpassed it. That said, do you have any idea how massive that is that The Super Mario Bros. Movie made THAT much money?     

The writing was on the wall that video game flicks were now ready to make major bank at the box office. Just look at how well the Sonic movies do. But, the fact that Super Mario beat DC and Marvel at the 2023 domestic box office is just mind blowing, given the humble beginnings that video game adaptations have come from.   

And, with The Legend of Zelda being the next Nintendo cinematic release (that we know of), and with Sonic the Hedgehog 3 (which we know a thing or two about) likely going to be another seismic success, there really seems to be no stopping video game movies now. But, that’s just from Nintendo and Sega. That’s not even talking about what Sony is bringing to the table.  

Gran Turismo Made In-Roads To Bringing Lesser Known PlayStation Titles To The Big Screen 

A lot of people tend to forget that 2016’s Ratchet & Clank movie exists, and for good reason. While it wasn’t terrible, it was rather forgettable, and so it kind of gets lost when discussing some of the best video game movies.  

So, when Sony decided that they were going to go full throttle with PlayStation Productions, it was wise to start off with Uncharted as their first major movie, and it did well at the box office, raking in $407.1 million dollars worldwide.

Now, while 2023’s Gran Turismo: Based On A True Story didn’t make quite as much money as Uncharted (It only made $121 million dollars worldwide in comparison), it also didn’t cost as much to make, as Uncharted’s price tag was double that of Gran Turismo’s

What impresses me the most about this though is Sony’s willingness to diversify their properties. Rather than going with something major like a God of War, or a Horizon: Zero Dawn movie as a follow-up to Uncharted, they instead decided to scale back and make something more affordable, and from a lesser-known Sony property. This gives me hope for Sony, especially when it comes to what they’re doing on the small screen as well.  

The Last Of Us Television Series Brought Prestige And Acclaim To A Video Game Story 

Can we all just take a minute and marvel at the fact that for a time, pretty much EVERYBODY was talking about a television series based off of a video game? That show, of course, was The Last of Us, which was so popular that a Season 2 of the post-apocalyptic series seemed all but inevitable.  

What is major about this for me, though, is that the first season plucked LIBERALLY from the video game, even including some scenes that were shot-for-shot from the popular title. 

With The Last of Us, we got a series that leaned HARD into the story’s narrative. But, to be honest, that's not too impressive, since the source material’s story was arguably already movie-quality. What IS impressive though is what Sony did with one of their other titles this year… 

Twisted Metal Did The Source Material Justice 

Honestly, the Peacock series, Twisted Metal could have been terrible, or even worse, boring. It's not that the GAMES are boring, but they are pretty one-dimensional. Drive around. Blow other cars up. Wash, rinse, repeat. 

But, the show, which is a comedy, manages to take the premise and stretch it out into a really enjoyable show starring the likes of Anthony Mackie, Neve Campbell, and Samoa Joe's body (but Will Arnett's voice). 

And what's so cool about this is just HOW different this is from The Last Of Us. Twisted Metal is a clear indication that video game adaptations are not just any one thing, and it was a pleasure getting invested in this world.  

Castlevania: Nocturne And Onimusha Are Further Proof That Netflix Is A Great Home For Animated Video Game Adaptations 

And lastly, I just want to talk about how Netflix has been killing it lately when it comes to video game adaptations. I've already talked about my feelings on Castlevania: Nocturne, which I both loved and also had issues with, but we also got Onimusha closer to the end of the year, and that, too, is a worthy series. So much so that I'm hoping that we get a Strider series next, since I love Strider!

This is actually a new feeling for me--WANTING video game adaptations, rather than just watching whatever comes my way--and a major reason for this new feeling is because we're finally getting some quality video game adaptations, and a lot of them are coming from Netflix. 

So, yeah. What a year! For more news on all things video game adaptation-related, be sure to swing by here often!   

Although Twisted Metal's most visually eye-grabbing character Sweet Tooth was voiced by LEGO Batman vet Will Arnett, the villain required an on-screen actor with a far more physically intimidating presence. Thankfully, the casting team absolutely nailed it by bringing in AEW star and WWE vet Samoa Joe, who would have had a commanding presence in every scene even without the spooky clown mask on. When the beloved athlete talked with CinemaBlend (ahead of the ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike), I got his take on which mischievous clown would win in a wrestling match: Sweet Tooth or arguably the most iconic harlequin in all of sports entertainment: Doink the Clown.

Specifically, I started off our conversation by asking Samoa Joe (real name Nuufolau Joel Seanoa) how he thought Sweet Tooth would fare in the ring against Doink, perhaps under a One Clown Beats All format, and he did not hesitate with his answer after grasping the idea. In his words:

Now, did I think there was a chance in hell that Samoa Joe would give Doink the win there out of respect for the in-ring persona’s legacy? Nahhh, I was absolutely hoping to hear him confirm my own thoughts that Sweet Tooth would go ham on the WWE vet, possibly even including a cartoonish ham hock, such is his bizarre behavior. Granted, Sweet Tooth having a “Thong Song” duet wasn’t a story element in any of the video games, but that’s not a knock on his badassery. Rather, anyone who can still be that frightening after belting out Sisqo gets extra points.

I think it would take the most hardcore wrestling fan to genuinely debate the idea that Doink could take down Sweet Tooth, but I’d love to hear the argument. (Which would almost definitely include a rule-breaking appearance from his henchman Dink.) Technically, Doink isn’t just one clown, as several wrestlers took the mantle over the span of the character’s existence, but with O.G. portrayer Matt Osborne as the most notable version.

It’s interesting to note that Doink actually made his video game arrival before Sweet Tooth did. While the vehicular battle royale’s first entry arrived in November 1995, Doink debuted as a playable character in the Sega Genesis exclusive version of 1994’s WWF Raw. He also appeared in the next year’s wrestling title, WWF WrestleMania: The Arcade Game, which hit consoles around the same time Twisted Metal did. 

Later in our talk, I asked Samoa Joe about his thoughts on the stuntwork for Peacock's Twisted Metal, and if his career in wrestling gave him a leg up over other actors in that sense. Here's what he told me about how much common ground the two job fields share:

While there were probably some insurance issues to deal with as far as what he could and couldn't do while filming, Samoa Joe was clearly game to handle whatever he was allowed to, from driving the AC-free ice cream truck to getting physical with co-star Mike Mitchell. The latter's character Stu probably wouldn't do well with clown makeup going over his beard, but maybe he could dress up like Doink if Season 2 happens...

Twisted Metal Season 1 is available to stream with a Peacock subscription, so be sure to watch it from beginning to end. After reading our thoughts about the ending, check out what Stephanie Beatriz told us about the show's bonkers sex scene(s).

Actors frequently find inspiration in surprising places when embodying iconic characters. While AEW superstar Samoa Joe applied his physical prowess (as well as singing skills) as part of Twisted Metal's stacked cast, Will Arnett brought his distinctive gravelly voice to their terrifying shared character Sweet Tooth in the eagerly awaited video game series adaptation. CinemaBlend was privileged to have an exclusive chat with the Arrested Development veteran, during which Arnett -- who once voiced Batman -- delved into the fascinating links between his new character and the notorious Joker.

Considering that the BoJack Horseman star previously voiced the Dark Knight, he knows a thing or two about evil jesters -- if you can consider Zach Galifianakis’ unique take on the Clown Prince of Crime to be “evil.” Will Arnett says the villain -- who could appear in an upcoming DC movie -- did influence his approach to playing a terrifying clown. For him, the allure of Sweet Tooth lies in striking a balance between fear and humor. While speaking with CB's Nick Venable during Twisted Metal's virtual press day ahead of the SAG-AFTRA strike, the actor explained:

In portraying Sweet Tooth, Will Arnett isn't facing a physical challenge, at least not personally, but rather a complex psychological one. This character is more than just a copy of other frightening harlequins; it's an evolution, merging the widespread fear of clowns with a sense of dark humor. While this massive and intimidating character might violently give someone an ass whooping, he’ll perform a duet of the "Thong Song" while doing it. That is, indeed, “finding balance.” My man!

You have to imagine that there was a little bit of pressure for the actor when it came to taking on the role of the wild character as well. Sweet Tooth is an iconic character, and has arguably been one of the Playstation family's most notable mascots since the video game franchise launched in 1995. Thankfully, the Blades of Glory actor was able to do justice to the role.

Twisted Metal made its exciting debut on July 27, with all 10 adrenaline-fueled episodes available for immediate binge-watching. The first season ended with a crazy cliffhanger, leaving fans eagerly anticipating what's next. If you're keen to see the story continue into a second season, it would be wise to secure a Peacock subscription, watch the entire season, and encourage others to do the same. 

While the current WGA writers' strike and SAG-AFTRA strike cast uncertainty over the future of the entertainment industry, now might be the ideal time to immerse yourself in a show like this. The 30-minute runtime for each episode is a secret weapon for the series that is a refreshing feature that many viewers may find appealing. Hopefully, we'll get to see more of the series and its Joker-like character.

As we anticipate further news on what's next for Twisted Metal and Will Arnett and Samoa Joe’s iconic dual performance as Sweet Tooth, take the opportunity to explore the vast array of upcoming video game adaptations that are making their way to both theaters and TV in the foreseeable future. And for more info on offerings from the latter medium, take a look at the 2023 TV schedule.

Spoilers below for anyone who hasn’t yet watched Twisted Metal the entire way through, so be warned!

Throughout the ten episodes that make up Twisted Metal’s debut season, a whole lot of hectic and violent mayhem surrounds the main characters John and Quiet, as partially caused by the nutso Sweet Tooth and his nonconsensual henchman Stu. In the end, the characters are mostly split up again, as John (and viewers) are made aware of an impending tournament set to show off the participants’ skills by way of vehicular combat, which is essentially the roots of the hugely popular video game franchise. It was quite the reveal, and a welcome one to balance the baffling twist that everything Anthony Mackie’s character went through was all for the sake of delivering a pint of ice cream. And then that was followed by Stephanie Beatriz’s thief being accosted by a woman claiming to be John’s sister, not to mention the post-credits scene and possible death.  

All in all, Twisted Metal’s ending was a great way to set up a follow-up season, and when CinemaBlend talked with Stephanie Beatriz (as seen above), I asked how she felt about the way things wrapped up, and she seemed to be all in on wrapping up the story with a hook that leaves viewers wanting more. Connecting it back to her fandom of comics and graphic novels, she told me:

I think we can all agree here that it would be a total gut punch straight from Joe Samoa's Sweet Tooth if this wound up being the only season we get from Twisted Metal. As Beatriz put it, the introduction of Calypso's tournament sets up future where anything could happen (at least within the loose logical standards of this batshit universe), considering the season largely stuck with Quiet and John's journey, and didn't fully explore the rest of the apocalypse-ravaged country. Not to mention the concept of digging more into John's actual family history, and learning about his sister. 

I also had the pleasure of talking to Doughboys co-host Mike Mitchell about how much of a blast he had playing Stu, a character loosely adapted from the video game series. Throughout Twisted Metal, Stu starts out being a fairly terrible deputy to Thomas Haden Church's corrupt authority figure Agent Stone, alongside his best friend Mike (Tahj Vaughans). He then becomes an accomplice to Sweet Tooth, more out of survival necessity than anything, and while it seems like the season ends with Stu in a good place, the post-credits scene spins that assumption on its head. 

As Mike and Stu are getting comfortable on the beach with a pair of fake ladies as companions, Sweet Tooth shows up out of nowhere and appears to slaughter the former while keeping Stu alive, presumably for being as minorly loyal as he was. Here's what Mike Mitchell told me about that scene, as well as working with pro wrestler Samoa Joe:

While the Birthday Boys co-founder did vaguely make it seems like Sweet Tooth might not have slaughtered Tahj Vaughan's character, I think it would take some wild explaining to reverse the massacre that was implied. And now we're left to think about the many, many, many sordid things that Sweet Tooth might do with Stu. He doesn't seem like the kind of monster who would treat Stu like one of those life-sized female dolls on the beach, but considering the villain still has a working knowledge of "Thong Song" lyrics, maybe I shouldn't assume anything about his libido. (Speaking of, check out what Samoa Joe told us about singing Sisquo's summer jam while filming.)

So for everyone like me who desperately wants to see what happens to these characters in a second season, I'd say make damned sure to snatch up a Peacock subscription, watch all ten episodes, and then tell everyone you know to do the same thing. Even though the WGA writers strike and SAG-AFTRA strike are currently making it difficult to forecast anything about the entertainment industry’s future, it’s possibly a perfect time to binge a show like this. Especially since it boasts 30-minute runtimes for all episodes, which is something I wish other shows would get behind.

While waiting to hear more about Twisted Metal's future, check out all the other upcoming video game adaptations that are heading to theaters and TV in the near-to-distant future.

Spoiler Warning: The following article is an expressway of spoilers for Twisted Metal Season 1. If you have yet to watch Peacock’s video game adaptation and wish to avoid spoilers, please take your first exit.

After what seems like years of hearing about it, Peacock’s high-octane thrill ride that is Twisted Metal has completed its first season; a run of 10 episodes that was as fast and furious as the classic video game franchise on which it is based. With a combination of intense action, some over-the-top and hilarious music moments, and outstanding chemistry shared by its leads, Anthony Mackie and Stephanie Beatriz, there was a lot for viewers to enjoy.

While the show’s debut season didn’t offer up as much vehicular combat as longtime fans may have liked, the Twisted Metal ending sure did a great job of teasing what’s to come, both when it comes to the titular tournament at the center of the game franchise and the mysterious figure pulling all the strings. Here’s where the show has been and where it could be headed in the future.

What Happens At The End Of Twisted Metal Season 1

In true video game adaptation fashion, Twisted Metal Season 1 was essentially a 10-episode fetch quest that saw milkman John Doe (Anthony Mackie) be tasked with driving from New San Francisco to New Chicago in order to pick up a mysterious package for the even more mysterious Raven (Neve Campbell). However, In the season finale, we learn that the amnesiac delivery driver wasn’t picking up medicine, riches, or some biological weapon, but instead a pint of ice cream (the wrong flavor at that).

In the final moments, as John is about to leave the safety of the Bay Area to find Quiet (Stephanie Beatriz), who is on her own journey after their cross-country trip, Raven tells the milkman that this was actually a test to see if he could handle driving for her in Calypso’s upcoming Twisted Metal tournament, a vehicular combat contest in which the winner gets anything they desire…

Calypso Has Been Teased All Season, Who Is He?

Though he is never seen in the flesh, Calypso is a major presence that can be felt throughout Twisted Metal Season 1, with the first reference to the creator of the titular destruction derby with guns coming in the debut episode in the form of a “Calypso is real” tag on a highway sign. 

There are a few more teases throughout subsequent episodes, and John Doe and Quiet even speak with the mysterious figure upon arriving in New Chicago in the “NUTHOUZ” episode. Even then, we only hear his voice (through an intercom) and never get to see his face. Then the biggest reveal about the character comes in the aforementioned scene in which Raven tells John about an upcoming tournament being organized by the mystery man. But, who is Calypso, anyway?

Ever since the Twisted Metal video game franchise was introduced back in 1995, Calypso has been a major figure in the series’ events, as he is the founder of the tournament from which the game draws its name. The malevolent, charismatic, and demented event organizer has the ability to grant any wish the winner desires, but more times than not, there’s a catch that results in the champion actually being the biggest loser.

From the first game’s hilarious canned endings to those comic book-like cutscenes from its sequel to 2001 reboot, Twisted Metal: Black, Calypso has long been a man who can pull off the impossible, but for a hefty price. How the character is depicted (and who plays him) in a potential second season is anyone’s guess. 

All Roads Lead To The Titular Vehicular Combat Tournament

Though the Twisted Metal tournament itself doesn’t get mentioned until the final minutes of the new Peacock original series’ debut season, the previous episodes do a fantastic job of laying the groundwork for the vehicular combat contest with the aforementioned Calypso signs, the walled-off cities, and vast battlegrounds sprinkled throughout the Divided States of America. We don’t know where the deadly tournament will take place – the first game was in Los Angeles, the second was a “World Tour,” and Twisted Metal: Black was in the fictional city of “Midtown” – all roads lead to vehicular combat, possibly in New Chicago.

Unlike New San Francisco and Agent Stone’s (Thomas Haden Church) car blockade in the American West, the “Windy City” could be the best possible place for Twisted Metal to go down. It’s centrally located in the country, there are obviously multiple roads going in and out of the region, and the city is seemingly an automated fortress, which would be ideal for Calypso to hold and oversee his epic destruction derby. Just thinking about John Doe, Sweet Tooth, Quiet, and the rest of the possible contestants racing down Lake Shore Drive, blowing up landmarks like Wrigley Field, and recreating The Dark Knight’s “truck flip” would be sight to see.

If the combat in Twisted Metal Season 2 is anything like the showdown with Agent Stone’s cops in the Season 1 finale, then we’re in for one hell of a ride. 

Who Are The Drivers Participating In Twisted Metal?

More than a dozen characters from the Twisted Metal franchise showed up in the first season, and many of them are still alive and well enough to enter the upcoming tournament. 

In the final moments of the Season 1 finale, as Raven is telling John Doe about the contest, drivers from throughout the season – Preacher (Jason Mantzoukas), Miranda Watts, a.k.a. Twister (Jamie Neumann), Amber Rose, a.k.a., Flower Power (Diany Rodriguez) – are shown on a bracket, leading you to believe they’ll all be in the tournament. Interestingly enough, the board also featured Bloody Mary (Chloe Fineman), even though she was presumed dead after an encounter with John and Quiet earlier in the season. The brief scene also teased some of the franchise’s most iconic characters, like the motorcycle-riding spirit known as Mr. Grimm and Axel, a man who has long been trapped in a vehicle of his father’s creation.

But, that isn’t all, since Sweet Tooth (Samoa Joe/Will Arnett) could also be in the tournament, as it’s revealed in the Twisted Metal Season 1 mid-credits sequence that he somehow survived setting his head on fire, being shot, and getting hit by a car in that epic battle with Stone. There is also the Dollface situation, as John Doe’s long-lost sister confronted Quiet before the credits rolled. We’ll have to see if the pair form a team of their own or become bitter enemies on the road to Twisted Metal.

Hopefully, the show is picked up for a second season so that we can see Calypso and his tournament in all their glory after the way things wrapped up in the Twisted Metal ending. But, while we wait for more information on the return of one of the most surprising shows on the 2023 TV schedule, now would be a good time to check out everything that comes with a Peacock subscription.

Stream Twisted Metal on Peacock.

Spoilers below for the first half of Twisted Metal’s debut season on Peacock, so be warned if you haven’t yet watched! And then also be warned before watching!

Peacock’s high-octane new action-comedy Twisted Metal takes no time at all with its premiere to make it obvious that it stemmed in part from the same brains who scripted the Zombieland and Deadpool film series, Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick. Seemingly everyone and everything is covered in sweat and/or blood at some point, with gunfights and other forms of over-the-top violence on display throughout for stars Stephanie Beatriz and Anthony Mackie. And speaking of extremes, Twisted Metal features some of the most bonkers TV love-making ever put on camera — ball pit sex!!! — and Beatriz talked to CinemaBlend about how icky it was to film, and why she’s proud of it all the same. 

Twisted Metal filmed in New Orleans in the midst of the summer months, and as a South Louisiana native, I can attest that even the thought of standing inside a building without an air conditioner is enough to completely ruin one’s actual libido. Like, you really have to be comfortable with someone to get all touchy-feely with them amidst a bunch of hot plastic spheres, which speaks to the co-stars’ chemistry and on-set relationship. So major props go to Stephanie Beatriz and Anthony Mackie (as well as the crew and the rest of the cast) for filming as much as they did within that setting and others, even beyond the ball pit stuff. 

But I mean, since we’re talking about the ball pit stuff already, might as well stick with it. I love that viewers got to see two versions of events, with Quiet and John’s first experience depicted as more of a cute, slightly sensitive, rolling in the hay kind of sex. And then the second is hilariously just straight pound-town, with bodies slapping and thwacking against each other, which implies that they had a conversation that took into account other areas in the building where they could bang, and opted to go back in. I suspect a rejected episode title for this was “The Dichotomy Of Ball Pit Boinking.”

As if coitus in a play area wasn’t bonkers enough, Twisted Metal truly pushed logic to the brink when Quiet attempted to fall asleep within the ball pit. When I commented on the awkwardness of that scenario, Stephanie Beatriz made me guffaw with her response:

If only The Revenant had only featured a scene where the character Hugh Glass soothed his emotional wounds by engaging in a few rounds of ball pit shenanigans. But that probably wouldn’t have helped with the runtime, so let’s all give thanks that Twisted Metal took that one for the team. 

All ten episodes of Twisted Metal are available to stream with a Peacock subscription and a full tank of gas. Head to our 2023 TV premiere schedule to see what else will be popping up in the near future, and always steer clear of ball pits in the wild. 

At long last, the video game adaptation Twisted Metal has been unleashed for fans with Peacock subscriptions, and all ten Season 1 episodes are available to stream with engines revving as loudly as possible. The series features a slew of skeevy and suspicious characters, which definitely includes the clown mask-wearing psychopath Sweet Tooth, as portrayed on camera by AEW superstar Samoa Joe, with Arrested Development great Will Arnett providing the voice. CinemaBlend spoke with the pro wrestler about bringing Twisted Metal to life, and you better believe I asked him about filming that “Thong Song” scene with Anthony Mackie, as seen above. 

As the first bit of extended footage to be released for fans, Twisted Metal’s “Thong Song” clip was quite the interesting choice, though it certainly signified just how off-the-wall and comedic the adaptation would be amidst all the car chases and explosions. Not to mention just how banging the ‘90s-infused soundtrack is, with Sisqo’s booty-bouncing bop coming in fairly early. And when I asked if he was indeed singing along with the track while filming the scene, Samoa Joe was quick to confirm that he was not only singing, but also going a little too hard with it. In his words: 

Not gonna lie, I kinda love the idea of someone as big and hulking as Samoa Joe performing "Thong Song" at only 30% or lower. Just mumbling the lyrics under his breath while slowly backing out of the room. But that's not a reality that Joe lives in, and Sweet Tooth is anything but an introvert, so anyone watching that sequence can now try to imagine both the wrestler harmonizing with Will Arnett's voiceover audio. 

Speaking of, check it out below.

I feel like that's the kind of scene I could never pull off with just one take. Doing a "Thong Song" duet with anyone would be hard to keep a straight face for, much less when the other singer is a sweaty behemoth behind a clown mask. Would Sisqo himself be able to?

I brought up how great Twisted Metal's song choices were, with many of them transporting me right back to my teen years, and asked Samoa Joe if he had a chance to actually watch the series and hear all the throwback tracks. Here's what he told me:

It's possible that he would have watched some of the unfinished episodes without all the needle drops at the time of the interview, which took place well before the SAG-AFTRA strike began. Hopefully Joe has been able to catch up with the entire playlist in the meantime, and was able to belt the songs out without fear of drowning Anthony Mackie out. 

While wearing whatever kind of undergarments you choose, regardless of their capabilities of inspiring summer bops, be sure to make it to Twisted Metal’s ending which is now streaming on Peacock. And head to our 2023 TV premiere schedule to see what new and returning shows will be zooming up soon. 

Spoiler Warning: The following article contains spoilers for the first three episodes of Twisted Metal. If you have yet to watch the show, put your car in reverse and come back later.

My love of the Twisted Metal property is well-documented. I’ve written about it, made countless social media posts regarding the vehicular combat games, and some of my most cherished video game memories are of taking on multiple enemies in places like rooftops, freeways, and even Antarctica. And so when I learned an adaptation was in the works, I knew I had to start watching as soon as episodes dropped.

And I did just that…

When Twisted Metal debuted on the 2023 TV schedule, I woke up before the Sun (like the mid ‘90s version of myself waking up early to play a few rounds before school) and watched the first three episodes of the Peacock original series. And let me tell you, this show is a violent, hilarious, and all around fun experience so far….

I Was Prepared For Violence, But This Is Wild

The Twisted Metal games have always been violent by nature – you go up against other armored vehicles in a destruction derby with guns – and so I was expecting to see some blood and light gore once the show picked up. However, I was not prepared for the gratuitous violence and over-the-top situations on display in the first three episodes of the new show.

Cannibals turning a kitchen into a hellish buffet of cooked-up body parts (with the latest victims still alive and marinated in teriyaki), Quiet (Stephanie Beatriz) witnessing her brother’s suicide, Agent Stone (Thomas Haden Church) straight-up shooting guys point blank in the head, and John Doe (Anthony Mackie) using his new windshield blades to wipe away a trail of blood after shooting a bandit where the Sun don’t shine are just some of the visceral displays of action. This is wild!

The Twisted Metal Trademark Sick Humor Is Here, And It's Awesome

From the first game’s canned full-motion video endings to off-putting jokes present throughout later games in the series (see: running over “groupies” in Twisted Metal 2), the franchise has long had a distinct and sick sense of humor, and I’m so glad that carried over into the new TV show. 

Anthony Mackie’s character is especially funny whenever he’s making sick jokes while running down and shooting marauders and zealous “law enforcement officers” on his quest to deliver a package to New Chicago, but that’s just part of it. The aforementioned cannibal scene is terrifying but also hilarious, especially when one of the captors starts sprinkling lemon pepper on his next meat plate. And then there’s Sweet Tooth (Will Arnett/Samoa Joe), whose unhinged Vegas show is a highlight of the show’s second episode.

There's A Deep Cut In The Second Episode That Had Me Rolling

There are a ton of references in Twisted Metal, so much so that I felt like the meme of Leonardo DiCaprio in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood watching the first three episodes. From a copy of the original game (in its rectangular case) landing on John Doe’s windshield early on to a “Calypso is Real” sign referencing the founder of the Twisted Metal tournament to Quiet’s car looking just like Shadow’s hearse in the games, it was like an Easter Egg hunt while walking down Memory Lane. 

But the best is a deep cut in the second episode in which Sweet Tooth pulls out a paper bag and introduces him as “Harold.” As soon as I saw that oh so familiar bag in the demented clown’s lair, I knew it was “Crazy Harold the Wacky Lunch Sack,” Sweet Tooth’s best friend and prize for winning the tournament. If there’s more like this, I’m going to be more than pleased with this show.

That Better Not Be The Last We See Of Sweet Tooth

Again, as of the time of this writing, I have only watched the first three episodes of Twisted Metal, but plan to finish the 10-episode season in the coming days. That being said, I really hope we see more of Sweet Tooth later on in the series, because the character is honestly one of the most fun things about the show at this stage. And I have sneaking suspicion that we’ll see the clown and his iconic ice cream truck somewhere down the road.

When we last see him, Sweet Tooth lets John and Quiet leave his Las Vegas hotel and says that he’s taking the show on the road. What that means for the former mental patient (and everyone else in the Divided States of America) is anyone’s guess, but it’s going to be awesome, that’s for sure!

There's Something For Everyone, Even Those Who Haven't Played The Games

Though Twisted Metal has a lot of fun tricks and treats for fans of the games, this doesn’t mean the show is made exclusively for those who grew up with the franchise. In fact, the series deviates from the original story enough that it feels like its own entity, with several characters and references being the only real ties to the PlayStation games. 

Yeah, there’s still the vehicular combat element to the show, but instead of fighting in a tournament, John Doe is in a race against time to traverse the wasteland that is America years after everything went south. And considering the episodes are all 30 minutes or less, even those with the shortest of attention spans will be able to stay up with it. 

That Late '90s Soundtrack Is Really Taking Me Back

In the first few episodes of Twisted Metal you are treated to iconic late ‘90s songs like Oasis’ “Champagne Supernova,” Len’s “Steal My Sunshine,” Aqua’s “Barbie Girl,” and Sisqo’s “The Thong Song,” the latter of which played a prominent role in John Doe and Sweet Tooth’s first interaction.

Hearing these songs in a show based on one of my favorite video games is really taking me back to those afternoons playing PlayStation in my older brother’s room in the late ‘90s. And honestly, the thought of hearing more songs like those as the season goes on has me even more excited.

I Can't Wait To See Where This Ride Takes Us

As good as the show has been so far, I can’t wait to see where this ride takes us as John Doe and Quiet (and hopefully Sweet Tooth) make their way across the broken landscape of America. We haven’t even met all the Twisted Metal cast, with Saturday Night Live standout Chloe Fineman and Jason Mantzoukas having yet to be introduced nearly a third of the way through the season.

What will happen between now and the final episode is anyone’s guess, but I’ll be riding shotgun for it. 

All in all, Twisted Metal is one hell of a ride so far, and it could very well become one of my favorite video game adaptations by the time I finish the first season. If you still haven't checked it out, make sure you have a Peacock Premium subscription. 

Stream Twisted Metal on Peacock.

On paper, Peacock’s new show Twisted Metal seems like a can’t-miss kind of project. It’s based on one of the biggest first-wave 3D video games, it features a stacked cast led by Anthony Mackie and Stephanie Beatriz, Deadpool film scribes Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick serve as EPs, and it’s a hilarious, action-packed joy ride from one end to the next. And while everyone’s mileage will vary (vehicular pun intended), I think most would readily agree that one of Twisted Metal’s biggest strengths is a secret weapon called “faithfully adhering to 30-minute runtimes.”

That may sound like a silly form of accolade to lay upon the show’s head along with a matching sash, but the value of hard-and-fast TV runtimes cannot be underestimated or ignored, especially in the current era of streaming platforms whose programming length isn’t automatically hindered by the need for commercial breaks. But Twisted Metal showrunner Michael Jonathan Smith & Co. have gloriously pulled out the old rulebook in breaking down its first season, and as far as I could tell when watching episodes made available for review, every episode clocked in at under 30 minutes without credits. 

But even if that isn’t exactly right, it’d only be off by 90 seconds at the most, without any danger of viewers having to sit around for 50-110 minutes wondering why the events were split up into different parts. (Or, in less desirable cases, wondering why half of the footage was deemed good enough to film in the first place.) Which isn’t to say that every single TV show that regularly releases hour-long eps is automatically guilty of overkill. For example, many Stranger Things fans were just as quick to defend Season 4’s gargantuan final episode sizes as others were to decry them, so not everyone will agree on what the perfect time capsule is. 

That said, Twisted Metal fits enough action, stunts, emotional beats, comedic moments, and more into each half-hour that I wish writers and producers from other series would take note, and challenge themselves to aim for the shortest length possible, and then expand out from there if absolutely necessary. 

The series follows Mackie's John, a delivery driver tasked with bringing a package across a post-apocalyptic wasteland while being chased by the government (or what serves in its place), and desperately greedy thieves, among other threats. Along the way, he connects with Stephanie Beatriz's car thief of few words, nicknamed Quiet, and a maniacal killer driving an ice cream truck who goes by Sweet Tooth (as portrayed by AEW star Samoa Joe and voiced by LEGO Batman vet Will Arnett). Without spoiling anything, it's safe to say John and Quiet experience all kinds of shit throughtout the season, such as Thomas Haden Church's Agent Stone, whose shirt is so blue you might think something is weird with your TV. 

But no matter what happens, you can be damned sure everything is going to work itself out will arrive at a proper stopping point right around the 30-minute mark, which is a blessing that I truly miss about the pre-streaming era. Obviously HBO and other cable platforms would also push boundaries with runtimes, but not to the needless extremes that have become the norm. 

If I'm being 100% honest here, Twisted Metal may itself have too much going on during those half-hour blocks, in a way that may be a detriment to its winning qualities. Which basically comes down to things getting a little more confusing as it goes along and more characters come into play. So in a perfect world, maybe all of that could have been sorted out so that an eleventh episode would have been necessary to move things around successfully. But guess what? Before you can actually think to yourself, "Wait, is this confusing?" that episode is already over, with the next one queued up to continue the fun. 

When I spoke with co-star Thomas Haden Church ahead of the premiere (and also ahead of the SAG-AFTRA strike), I asked him if bringing Twisted Metal's 30-minute eps together compared at all to his past work on half-hour sitcoms such as Wings or Ned and Stacey, and he said the one that fit the bill the most was his HBO comedy Divorce with Sarah Jessica Parker. Here's how he put it:

There are many times where Hollywood talents will refer to TV seasons as mini-movies, and those comparisons are almost always a stretch to say the least. But Thomas Haden Church actually gets it right with that assessment, since Twisted Metal zooms so quickly along that it doesn't ever feel like the action is truly being paused from one to the next.

Also, would I have taken 30 minutes solely of Samoa Joe’s Sweet Tooth and Anthony Mackie’s John Doe belting out Sisqo’s “Thong Song” and other ‘90s jams? I mean, probably. At least as a featurette. 

All ten episodes of Twisted Metal Season 1 arrive on Thursday, July 27, for streaming with a Peacock subscription. So don’t waste time before checking it out, even though you’ll actually have time to spare with this one. 

Coming off of the billion-dollar box office of The Super Mario Bros. Movie, and with the first Five Nights at Freddy’s movie set to possibly crush other upcoming horror movies with its Halloween release, audiences are arguably living amidst a golden age for video game adaptations. That assumption will seemingly be bolstered by the impending release of Peacock’s vehicle-centric action-comedy Twisted Metal, with MCU star Anthony Mackie heading things up. Though fans probably shouldn’t expect to see him showing off Captain America-esque levels of badass heroism as John Doe, as proven by the new footage seen below, which has everyone’s favorite ice cream truck driver, Sweet Tooth, opening up an ice cream bucket of whoop-ass. 

Along with the new footage, Peacock unveiled a batch of new imagery for Twisted Metal as the streaming service revs up the promotional push for the anticipated new show. But before we get to some of the other co-stars such as Samantha Beatrix, Thomas Haden Church, and WWE’s Samoa Joe, check out the clip below, which showcases the most amusing use of Sisqo’s “Thong Song” since Legends of Tomorrow brought him into its Season 5 finale.

Even though that clearly isn't Will Arnett doing the physical acting, it's so funny to hear his voice coming from that hulking beast in a clown mask. We can only hope that Sweet Tooth will show up in LEGO Masters Season 3 or on a future episode of Arnett's podcast Smartless. Though hopefully in a calmer mood, as not to have those appearances end in bloody carnage.

This clip seems like it cements everything that fans can expect to see from Twisted Metal's live-action adaptation, at least in that it's a mix of bone-cracking action and tongue-in-cheek humor. And if the song choice is any indication, the show might just be full of music pulled from Universal Music Group's massive library.

If I'd have had 300 guesses for what song Anthony Mackie's John and Arnett's Sweet Tooth would team up on at any point in Twisted Metal, I likely wouldn't have come close to making "Thong Song" an option. Even if it was just limited to '90s tracks. Probably could have done it if "clothing-specific" was part of the clue, at least after guessing Weezer's "Sweater Song" and TLC's "Hat 2 Da Back."

Now let's step away from Mackie getting beaten up to...Mackie being tied up and held at gunpoint. Clearly things are not going well for this dude early on in the season. Check him out alongside the similarly bound Quiet, as portrayed by Brooklyn Nine-Nine vet Stephanie Beatriz, as they're being guided away by Mike and Stu, as played by P-Valley's Tahj Vaughans and Doughboys co-host Mike "The Spoon Man" Mitchell, respectively. (Mike and Stu were introduced in Twisted Metal 2 as Hammerhead's drivers.)

And then we have Neve Campbell taking on the Twisted Metal: Black character Raven, who is behind the wheel of the hearse Shadow in the games she appears in.

Thomas Haden Church is in T-1000 mode as Agent Stone, which was the name of two characters in the video game's universe. The first was an alien-truther secret agent who drove the Lamborghini Crimson Fury in the flagship title, while the TM: Black and TM: Lost version is a sharpshooter that comes from a family of police officers in Midtown. 

I can't wait to see more from Twisted Metal, which will be avaible to everyone with a Peacock subscription starting on July 27, when all 10 high-octane episodes will be there to binge. Head to our 2023 TV schedule to see what else is popping up between now and then.

I have been a massive fan of the Twisted Metal video game franchise ever since I played a demo of the first game at a KB Toys store back in late 1995. Admittedly, I was way too young to be playing such a violent game at the time, but with my dad talking to the cashier about which games we should get for the Sega Saturn we ultimately returned for a PlayStation, I was able to sneak off and become entranced by the sweet and grim vehicular combat game.

So, just imagine how stoked I was to find out that there will soon be a Twisted Metal TV show based on the video game franchise at the root of so many of my core memories. Not only am I excited to put my Peacock Premium subscription to use, I am hopeful that longtime fans like me will be treated to some incredible references in the upcoming video game adaptation. Here are a few that stick out the most.

The Games' Sick And Twisted Humor

Whether it’s the more outlandish games like Twisted Metal 2 and Twisted Metal: Head-On, or more serious titles like the original game and the 2001 reboot titled Twisted Metal: Black (let’s not talk about the third and fourth entries by 989 Studios), the franchise has long had a unique sense of humor that is both sick and twisted. With those “careful what you wish for” endings where the Twisted Metal champion would get anything they desired (oftentimes with a catch), the various pedestrians like mimes, groupies, and even Santa Claus, and over-the-top and zany characters, there’s a lot to choose from.

Considering writers from Deadpool and Cobra Kai created the Twisted Metal TV show, it’s pretty much a given that it will have a sick sense of humor like the games, which is making me even more hopeful for the upcoming series.

Some Kind Of Reference To The Twisted Metal Tournament

So far, it sounds like the Twisted Metal series will center on Anthony Mackie’s character as he delivers a mysterious package across a devastated United States, but we haven’t heard anything about the tournament at the core of the video games. For those not familiar with the franchise, or maybe haven’t played in more than a quarter-century, the first two games focus on the annual Twisted Metal competition, a contest where various drivers from around the world compete against each other for a chance to make their biggest dreams come true. 

I really hope the show either is set during one of the tournaments or at least makes mention of the vehicular combat contest that’s essentially a destruction derby with overpowered weapons of the conventional and fantastical varieties. With the competition such a large part of franchise lore, it has to be mentioned, right? 

Appearances From (Or Callbacks To) Iconic Characters And Vehicles

The Twisted Metal cast is shaping up to have some great actors, like Mackie, Stephanie Beatriz, Will Arnett, Thomas Haden Church, Neve Campbell, and several others, but there’s still room for some of the franchise’s most iconic characters and their vehicles on the new Peacock show. Considering Sweet Tooth (also called Needles Kane), with his flaming head, is going to be a major part of the proceedings, who’s to say we won’t get other other-wordly characters like Mr. Grimm (the grim reaper on a motorcycle), Mr. Ash, Axel, No-Face, and so on.

It will also be interesting to see which version of Agent Stone ends up being portrayed by Thomas Haden Church, as the character was a special agent behind the wheel of Crimson Fury in the first game, and a crazed police officer driving the Outlaw vehicle in Twisted Metal: Black. Or, maybe they just go all crazy and make him the driver of Warthog or Minion. 

Calypso Has To Be On The Show, Right?

Pulling the strings throughout most of the Twisted Metal games is Calypso, the mysterious and megalomaniacal creator of the titular vehicular combat competition. This guy, who gave me nightmares back in the day with his skinless face (which was fixed in Twisted Metal 2), is one of the most iconic villains of the PlayStation 1 era, and one that you never face in the original games. He just organizes the events and grants the wishes, only to twist the words of the victor. Oh, and he steals the souls of everyone who dies, which makes him a godlike figure.

Now, will the show take a more grounded approach to the franchise? We’re not entirely sure. Regardless, there’s more than enough room for the character who was supposed to be at the center of the never-realized film adaptation more than a decade ago. Just imagine Calypso, riding around in his blimp, high above the destruction on the planet, laughing as he maps out battlefields in "Paris, Hong Kong, even Antarctica" like in the classic Twisted Metal 2 intro.

The Destruction Of Famous Landmarks

This is more of a callback to Twisted Metal 2 than anything else, but I’d love to see some famous landmarks get destroyed when Twisted Metal premieres this summer. In case you forgot, the second game in the franchise, which was called Twisted Metal: World Tour in Europe, allowed you to destroy the Hollywood sign in Los Angeles; bring down the Eiffel Tower in Paris and use it as a bridge to reach the Louvre, and you guessed it, burn up the Mona LIsa to reveal a cheat code; and shoot the robe off the Statue of Liberty before destroying the statue entirely. 

With Las Vegas featured prominently in the Twisted Metal TV show trailer, maybe we’ll see a similar degree of destruction when it comes to landmarks like the Hoover Dam, various casinos, and the whole strip, like it’s Con-Air all over again. Will we see other cities turn into a post-apocalyptic playground full of carnage, death, and destroyed wonders of the modern world? God willing. God willing. 

The good news is we won’t have to wait all that long to see if any of this happens on the small screen, when the Twisted Metal series premieres on July 27, but if some of my wishes do come to fruition, it could very well be the most destructive and ridiculous show on the 2023 TV schedule. 

Ever since its debut on the PlayStation console back in 1995, the Twisted Metal franchise has been one of the most beloved of all of video games. Despite not having a new addition since the 2012 release of Twisted Metal on PlayStation 3, the franchise remains as recognizable as it was more than a quarter-century ago, thanks in part to its unique take on vehicular combat, those over-the-top characters, and demented and oftentimes hilarious story elements

While there has been talk of a Twisted Metal movie with characters like Sweet Tooth, Roadkill, and tournament orchestrator Calypso over the years, the property has kind of spun its wheels in the adaptation department. Well, until now…

In the very near future, Peacock will give the world the first proper Twisted Metal video game adaptation in the form of a new streaming series. Here is everything we know about the upcoming video game TV show.

What Is The Twisted Metal Premiere Date?

Who knows when, or if, we’ll ever get another addition to the decades-old video game franchise, but Peacock has announced that the Twisted Metal TV show will debut on July 27th. In a few months, anyone with a Peacock Premium subscription will be able to see what the series has in store for them with its take on the vehicular combat and unique humor that has entertained for multiple console generations. 

Until then, you can always go back and watch those “lost” Twisted Metal endings that were cut before the original game’s release back in 1995. They are still available on YouTube in all their full-motion video glory. 

Anthony Mackie, Stephanie Beatriz And Will Arnett Lead The Twisted Metal Cast

A lot of the more recent video game movies and TV shows have featured large ensemble casts made up of well-known actors, and the upcoming Twisted Metal show is no different. In fact, the Twisted Metal cast features its fair share of Marvel superheroes (and villains), Disney stars, a professional wrestler, and one of Hollywood’s funniest voices.

Back in September 2021, The Hollywood Reporter revealed that Anthony Mackie, who will appear in 2024’s Captain America: New World Order, had landed the lead role in the video game adaptation. Well, Peacock has since announced that Mackie will be taking on the role of the show’s main character, a man simply known as John Doe.

Stephanie Beatriz, from Encanto and Brooklyn Nine-Nine fame, will star alongside Mackie as a mysterious woman named Quiet, a character created for the show that has an “antagonistic bond” with John Doe. 

Sweet Tooth, who has essentially been the franchise mascot since his ice cream truck appeared on the cover of the original Twisted Metal game decades ago, will be portrayed in a unique way. Peacock has announced that former WWE superstar and current ROH World Television Champion Samoa Joe will provide the imposing physical presence of the character, while Will Arnett will handle the speaking voice of the roving lunatic.

Other members of the Twisted Metal cast include Thomas Haden Church, Neve Campbell, Richard Cabral, Tahj Vaughans, Mike Mitchell, Lou Beatty Jr., Michael Carollo, and Chloe Fineman. 

The Twisted Metal Teaser Offers A Glimpse Into The Show’s World And Vehicular Combat

After what seemed like an eternity, Peacock finally gave the world its first look at the Twisted Metal TV show in April 2023 in the form of an extremely brief teaser trailer that primarily focused on Anthony Mackie’s John Doe and his love of late ‘90s alternative rock (“Steal My Sunshine,” anyone?) while preparing to fight his way across the country:

John Doe in his shot-up Subaru and Y2K-era alt-rock weren’t the only things teased in the Twisted Metal trailer, as the video also introduced Sweet Tooth in a decimated Las Vegas. We got to see Samoa Joe’s embodiment of the character, but it looks like we’ll have to wait for a proper trailer before we hear Will Arnett’s take on him.

Twisted Metal Follows A Man Named John Doe As He’s Tasked With Delivering A Mysterious Package Across A Post-Apocalyptic Wasteland

When Twisted Metal premieres on Peacock this summer, it will follow Anthony Mackie’s John Doe as he is tasked with delivering a mysterious package across a country that has become a post-apocalyptic wasteland. But, with diabolical lunatics inhabiting what was once a united nation, and other dangers around every turn, the road won’t be easy, and it definitely won’t be safe for the show’s hero.

About The Game

There’s a good chance that most of the people interested in the Twisted Metal series either grew up playing the games or discovered them later on, but it wouldn’t hurt to provide some insight for the uninitiated. Each of the games in the franchise have a similar plot, in which a maniacal madman known as Calypso organizes a vehicular combat tournament (a destruction derby with guns, missiles, and other weapons) in which the winner gets whatever they desire.

The series, which consists of seven main games and various spinoffs, is known for its violence, satirical comedy, and some of the best gameplay on the PlayStation family of consoles.

Twisted Metal Will Consist Of 10 Half-Hour Episodes

The action featured in the new show will certainly be fast and furious, as the Peacock original will consist of 10 half-hour episodes. When details about it were released in April 2023, Variety reported that the entire season will be available to audiences upon its July 27th premiere.

The Twisted Metal Series Was Created By The Writers Behind Deadpool And Cobra Kai

If you want to know what to expect from this adaptation, just know that the creative minds behind the series also wrote the Deadpool movies and Cobra Kai. The initial pitch that was later developed into a 10-episode series order was originally written by Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick, who co-wrote the Deadpool movies (including the upcoming Deadpool 3), Zombieland, and various others. But, that is just one part of the equation.

Twisted Metal was written by Michael Jonathan Smith, who will also serve as the showrunner for the series. Smith previously wrote multiple episodes of Cobra Kai and served as a co-executive producer on the Netflix series.

Showrunner Michael Jonathan Smith Has Described Twisted Metal As A ‘Love Letter’ To The Games And Era In Which He Played Them

The showrunner is someone who seems to have a lot of history with the video game franchise of the same name. When sharing the show’s teaser trailer on his Instagram, Smith described the series as a “love letter” to one of his favorite games and that era of his life:

With someone so well-versed in the lore of the franchise at the helm, Twisted Metal could become one of the best video TV shows upon its release.

While we wait for a longer trailer and more details about Twisted Metal ahead of its release, now would be a good time to go over our 2023 TV schedule for all the other new and returning shows coming to the small screen this year. 

Updated with video.

Video game adaptations are all the rage now, as evidenced by the acclaim of HBO's The Last Of Us and oodles of cash The Super Mario Bros. Movie continues to rake in at the box office. It was only a matter of time before players like Peacock got into this "game," and that streaming service has certainly lined up an interesting series, with Anthony Mackie and a stacked cast leading Twisted Metal, which just dropped its first trailer.

The show follows a milkman with no memory of his past who is tasked with delivering a package in a world filled with villainous folks in cars that can cause massive amounts of death and destruction. There are a lot of stars attached to this series from Deadpool and Cobra Kai writers, but let's kick things off with the stars of who will lead this action-packed and twisted series, starting with our leading man. 

Anthony Mackie

Anthony Mackie, who is currently playing Captain America in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, joins Twisted Metal as a much more mysterious character. John Doe is a milkman with amnesia who can gain a better life for himself by delivering a package through a dangerous wasteland. Doe will seek to deliver the package and perhaps find out more about his past in the process. 

Stephanie Beatriz 

Brooklyn Nine-Nine and Encanto star Stephanie Beatriz comes into Twisted Metal with an original character to the franchise, Quiet. Quiet seems anything but that based on her personality, and is described as a car thief who often acts on her impulses. I can't imagine you're too quiet when always doing the first thing that comes to mind, but I guess we'll find out!

Thomas Haden Church

Thomas Haden Church has appeared in Spider-Man: No Way Home and so many other movies and television shows, and now he's in Twisted Metal. Those with a Peacock Premium subscription will see Church as Agent Stone, an agent from the original game with an axe to grind with the United States government. Who knows how much of his story will carry into the adaptation, but I'm definitely excited to see what Church brings to the character. 

Samoa Joe

Pro wrestling superstar Samoa Joe will step into Twisted Metal as one of the most iconic characters of the video game franchise. Sweet Tooth is someone with a lot of history, but if you're looking to enter this story spoiler-free, you may not want to read up much on him. With that said, Sweet Tooth is the spooky clown readers might've seen on the games over the years, and is a pretty merciless and wild killer. I'm very curious to see this character in live-action, especially with Samoa Joe being the imposing figure that he is. 

Will Arnett

From Murderville to LEGO Masters, Will Arnett has built up an impressive body of work in the television genre. This time around, he'll be providing a little vocal work for the Twisted Metal series, as he's the voice behind Sweet Tooth. Arnett may not have the physicality for the role of the mysterious and violent mascot of the franchise, but he has a noted track record as a great voice actor. I mean, c'mon, even as LEGO Batman, he still has one of the coolest of the Caped Crusader's voices. 

Richard Cabral

Richard Cabral is hopping over from his former gig at Mayans M.C. to Twisted Metal. Cabral will play Loud, and for those wondering if he's connected to Quiet in any way, you're very astute. Loud is Quiet's older brother, and apparently an overprotective brother at that. It's possible he'll be in pursuit of her throughout the series, as well as targeting anyone he deems a threat to her wellbeing. 

Neve Campbell

Neve Campbell has been popping around Hollywood ever since her breakout role on Party of Five and, of course, the Scream franchise. In Twisted Metal, she'll take on the role of Raven, who is a character from the original games. Raven, perhaps predictably so, has a sort of goth-type style, so it's possible this adaptation of the character will rock the same look. We can only wait and see, and hope this role for Campbell is as iconic as the rest of hers. 

Tahj Vaughans

P-Valley actor Tahj Vaughans will join Twisted Metal to play the role of Mike. He is one-half of the driving duo of Mike and Stu, who, in their sole appearance in Twisted Metal 2, were cruising around in search of the ultimate high. Their giant monster truck Hammerhead apparently doesn't provide enough thrills for them, so perhaps we'll see them get into more action during the series. 

Mike Mitchell

The Tomorrow War actor Mike Mitchell will hop into Twisted Metal to play Stu. As previously mentioned, he's Mike's partner, and they're traveling around in their Hammerhead truck searching for what could be the ultimate high. I'm unsure if either will find it, but I'd question searching something like that out in a world as dangerous as the one in Twisted Metal. 

Lou Beatty Jr.

Lou Beatty Jr. might be most known lately for his time on A Million Little Things, but folks will soon know him from Twisted Metal. The actor will step into the role of Tommy, who is a cartographer who knows the ins and outs of the dangerous road that travelers must navigate in this world. That's always handy for anyone on a mission, so hopefully our heroes find him pretty early on. 

Michael Carollo

Michael Carollo is an up-and-coming actor with guest roles on NCIS: New Orleans and Chicago P.D., and now he's stepping into Twisted Metal. It's been reported by Collider that Carollo's role is undisclosed, so we're not entirely sure what he'll be up to when this series kicks off. 

Chloe Fineman

Saturday Night Live's Chloe Fineman will also step into Twisted Metal, and like Carollo, in an undisclosed role. The tone of this series is said to fall between action and comedy, so it's of little surprise someone with Fineman's comedic chops will be a part of the fun. Unfortunately, there's only so much we can speculate on without knowing the details of who or what she's playing, but we're excited to see her all the same!

Twisted Metal is headed to Peacock on July 27, 2023. Hopefully it continues the streak of successful video game adaptations in media and encourages even more upcoming video game shows to hit streaming services. 

If you thought the 2023 TV schedule was already filled with weirdness, then prepare yourself for a trailer that’s bound to rev your motor with laughter and fear. The Anthony Mackie-starring adaptation of Playstation’s Twisted Metal series is finally on its way and we’ve got the first trailer to prove it! While Mackie’s first series since The Falcon and the Winter Soldier looks to show him having fun, things are excitingly creepy as we also got our first look at infamous villain Sweet Tooth in the flesh. Check out the trailer above!

Peacock showed us the goods with a quick but upbeat look at the “post-apocalyptic landscape” that Anthony Mackie’s John Doe will have to navigate. Fans of the legendary Sony exclusive game series will feel right at home seeing a souped-up speed machine with machine guns belting bullets like nobody’s business. But the fun comes from the fact that despite people already asking if Rob Zombie will be a part of the soundtrack, Mackie is shown rocking out to Len’s pop hit “Steal My Sunshine.” That is pretty much what you’d expect from a creative crew that includes Deadpool writers Rhett Reese & Paul Wernick.

However, diehard fans are probably wondering how Sweet Tooth fits into Twisted Metal’s first glimpse of glory. Well, patience is truly rewarded with this streaming series teaser, as a familiar-looking ice cream truck appears, its tune floating in the wind at Las Vegas’ ruins. Which then leads to this fantastic sneak peek: 

That definitely doesn’t look like a character series that producer Will Arnett would be playing, unless that chilling giggle at the end happens to belong to his voice. But that really doesn’t matter, as Twisted Metal looks like it’s definitely ready to deliver the sort of high-caliber excitement that’s been hitting home consoles since 1995. Come to think of it, it does feel a bit weird that it took this long to get Sweet Tooth and his friends into a TV show, as the saga unfurling in these dark and... well, twisted games has always had a cinematic flair to it. 

TV audiences have been digging PlayStation apocalypse narratives as of late, as HBO’s first season of The Last of Us crushed records and broke hearts through its eight episodes. Don’t go into Twisted Metal expecting Linda Ronstadt tearjerkers on the radio though, as the soundtrack is presumably going to reflect this seriously weird world that Anthony Mackie’s about to travel across. Although if the massive success of “Long Long Time” is any indication, there’s plenty of musical hits that could come out of this potential new streaming hit.

It might be a good idea to keep an eye on Len’s streaming numbers throughout the next couple of days, just to see if this Twisted Metal teaser is truly a hit. That’d certainly pass the time, as the series won’t start its engines of chaotic evil on July 27th. If you’re looking for the keys to this particular speed machine, you’re gonna need a Peacock subscription to get in the door. 

Mayans M.C. is in the midst of a pummeling fourth season on FX, with Alvarez and the rest of the club caught up in a war against their rivals in the Sons of Anarchy. Regardless of what happens in the rest of the episodes, the biker drama dropped a heartbreaking mega-shock on viewers by killing off Richard Cabral's troubled fan-favorite Coco. While we'll never be able to fully get over that turnout, which fans felt rivaled Sons of Anarchy's most depressing death, everyone can take comfort in knowing Cabral has already landed a sweet (tooth) of a follow-up project, as he'll be a recurring star in the upcoming small screen adaptation of the Twisted Metal video game series.

In the same way that Mayans M.C. was packed with acting talent, Richard Cabral isn't exactly missing out on that front by joining Twisted Metal, which will be an exclusive for anyone with a Peacock subscription. The action-packed dark comedy will be fronted by the likes of the MCU's current Captain America, Anthony Mackie, along with Brooklyn Nine-Nine vet Stephanie Beatriz and recent Spider-Man: No Way Home guest star Thomas Haden Church. And it'll be Beatriz's character that Cabral is most connected to, as he'll play her brother. 

Within Twisted Metal's over-the-top world of vehicle-driven chaos and destruction, Stephanie Beatriz is playing a car thief named Quiet who isn't the kind of person whose instincts can be thwarted easily, with a problematic past that caused her to fall into silence. Now on a journey of revenge alongside Anthony Mackie's John Doe, Quiet will likely also be able to depend on the help of Richard Cabral as her sibling Loud. And this apparently isn’t an ironic kind of name like Robin Hood’s Little John.

As Loud, Cabral will be…well, a loud guy. Shouldn’t be hard for the actor, whose work on Mayans M.C. often involved dialogue scenes over loud music, revving motorcycles and beer-swilling bikers. It’s not clear from the character’s brief description whether he’ll have his own vehicle within the show, or if he’ll possibly be a key passenger during Quiet’s crimes. Any way it goes, it’ll probably rock. 

Because really, as awesome as Coco was on Mayans M.C. across 3+ seasons, the character’s quality of life dipped more and more with each year. Coco was plagued with addictions, a traumatic family history, and other issues that understandably didn’t allow Richard Cabral to lean as heavily into charisma and good vibes. While I fully expect Loud to also go through some violent motions within Twisted Metal, I do hope the actor gets to have a lot of cathartic fun in his new role. 

Richard Cabral joining the show isn’t the only big Twisted Metal news, as the show added several other actors to close out its initial casting process. Soon after Arrested Development vet Will Arnett was revealed to be the voice of the game’s most iconic character, the flame-headed Sweet Tooth, Peacock announced that former WWE superstar and current AEW wrestler Samoa Joe (Joe Seanoa) will be responsible for the character’s physical performance. 

Filling out the Twisted Metal cast will be The Tomorrow War vet and Doughboys podcast co-host Mike Mitchell and P-Valley’s Tahj Vaughans as Stu and Mike (respectively), who are dubbed the “Rosencrantz & Guildenstern” of this universe, as they tend to be on the outskirts of the action rather than in the middle of it. Finally, A Million Little Things vet Lou Beatty Jr. will play the grizzled and world-weary  cartographer Tommy.

Fans can get ready to see Richard Cabral back in a fast-moving series, just one without as many motorcycles, when Twisted Metal hits Peacock likely in 2023. While waiting for more updates, head to our 2022 TV premiere schedule to see what’s on the way soon. 

Following her lead voice role in Disney’s Encanto and supporting vocal roles in a slew of awesome series — Central Park and Bob's Burgers forever — Brooklyn Nine-Nine vet Stephanie Beatriz is set to return to the small screen for more live-action fun. The actress is set to star in the new Peacock series Twisted Metal alongside The Falcon and the Winter Soldier star Anthony Mackie.

Twisted Metal will be a live-action adaptation of the classic PlayStation game series. The half-hour high-octane action-comedy (all these hyphens) follows a “motor-mouthed outsider” who is offered a better life on the condition that he successfully delivers a mysterious package, which definitely isn't as easy-peasy as it sounds. Getting help from a trigger-happy car thief, Anthony Mackie's character has to face obstacles, like a deranged clown driving an ice cream truck, in order to cross the post-apocalyptic wasteland. 

Within this vehicularly focused storyline, Stephanie Beatriz will play the character, “Quiet,” and based on the character description, it sounds like the perfect part for her, or at least the perfect part for her B99 character Rosa Diaz. According to the snyopsis:

Beatriz joins previously announced series lead Anthony Mackie in his second follow-up series since The Falcon and the Winter Soldier premiered on Disney+ in March 2021. (The first follow-up was the anthology series Solos on Prime Video, which dropped a month after TFATWS finale.) Mackie will portray the aptly-named John Doe, whose sole goal is survival while delivering much-needed supplies from one settlement to the next, until he gets the chance-of-a-lifetime opportunity. 

Twisted Metal marks Stephanie Beatriz’s first live-action TV follow-up to Brooklyn Nine-Nine after the beloved cop comedy ended last year after eight seasons. However, she has thankfully taken on a bunch of acting jobs before, during, and after B99’s final season. Along with Encanto, Beatriz also starred in the musical movie In the Heights as Carla in 2021 and will reprise her Bob’s Burgers voice role of Chloe Barbash in the upcoming The Bob’s Burgers Movie, set to release on May 27.

On the TV side, she did six different voice roles in 2021 alone, including on The Casagrandes, Jurassic World Camp Cretaceous, and American Dad! She also lent her voice to The Legend of Vox Machina on Netflix earlier this year as Lady Kima. Stephanie Beatriz is keeping plenty busy post-B99, and Twisted Metal will only add to the craziness.

Beatriz is the latest B99 star to land another project following the show’s end, as Melissa Fumero wrapped up a movie before the final episode even aired, with a Netflix comedy based on the last remaining Blockbuster Video store coming to the streamer soon. Meanwhile, Terry Crews has been holding out hope for a revival of some sort to premiere on Peacock. With more and more stars taking on different roles, that may be a bit hard, at least in the nearest of futures.

Anthony Mackie will also executive produce Twisted Metal for Make It With Gravy Productions alongside Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick, Will Arnett and Marc Forman for Electric Avenue, Jason Spire for Inspire Entertainment, Peter Principato for Artists First, Asad Qizilbash and Carter Swan from PlayStation Productions, and Hermen Hulst, who is the Head of PlayStation Studios. Michael Jonathan Smith will serve as writer, showrunner, and executive producer, while Kitao Sakurai will direct multiple episodes and also serve as an executive producer.

The Twisted Metal video game first released in late 1995 and comprises of eight video games in the series with two spin-off games. The most recent release is 2012’s Twisted Metal, which is a reboot of the franchise. Like many other adaptations, video game adaptations are either a hit or a miss, so it will be interesting to see how it turns out.  

Without any further details on Twisted Metal, nor when it could debut on Peacock, we'll be waiting for more news with our feet on the accelerator. In the meantime, check out everything to know about getting a subscription on Peacock, so you’re all set for when the series comes out. And be sure to check out CinemaBlend’s 2022 TV schedule to see what shows to look forward to in the coming months.

Last year, Anthony Mackie scored a major upgrade in the MCU, thanks to Sam Wilson finally becoming Captain America in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. After that point, you’d think life couldn’t get any sweeter; and yet the charismatic actor just got some great news to sink his tire treads into. It has now been confirmed that Mackie’s about to head into the vehicular nightmare known as Twisted Metal, with the legendary Playstation game becoming a streaming action/comedy series with a newly announced series order.

Meet Anthony Mackie And The Rest Of The Twisted Metal Series' Team

Freshly announced by Peacock, the joint venture between Sony Pictures Television, Playstation Productions, and Universal TV is officially a going concern for traffic cops everywhere. There’s a hell of a pedigree behind the scenes on Twisted Metal beyond Anthony Mackie's starring presence as well, with Deadpool and Zombieland’s Rhett Reese & Paul Wernick previously developing the property alongside Cobra Kai’s Michael Jonathan Smith. Smith is set to be the showrunner, with Reese and Wernick executive producing on a team that also includes Mackie and Will Arnett. As far as Mackie’s role is concerned, here’s what the official press release had to say:

For the moment, it doesn’t look like fans of the longrunning PlayStation franchise will be seeing Anthony Mackie playing a familiar face from the nearly 30-year history that goes back to its PS1 roots. That doesn’t mean Twisted Metal is suddenly dropping its lore in the name of half-hour episodes of Hell, especially with the concept of an amnesiac protagonist racing to learn more about his shadowy past in the driver’s seat. However, looking at the larger story of the series, there’s even more of the gaming franchise’s DNA that’s about to be brought to flaming, grinning life for Peacock subscribers to behold.

What’s The Story To Anthony Mackie’s Twisted Metal Adventure?

John Doe sounds like an Anthony Mackie character through and through, and even the series’ synopsis knows it. Repeating his fast talking nature in the rundown, we’re given more details about what to expect down the road for this forgetful traveller. Twisted Metal fans, you’re going to love where the following story is heading:

Just when you thought Sweet Tooth might not be rearing his head in Twisted Metal, the iconic vehicle's presence is made clear right at the end of the synopsis to the series. It’s like seeing a fan favorite character dropped in as DLC, which is something Sweet Tooth is very used to. While there’s no one cast in the role just yet, it’s hard not to hope that Will Arnett’s executive producing credit is a trojan horse to his eventual casting in that very important role.

There’s probably plenty of time for that decision to be made, as we more than likely won’t see Sweet Tooth until the middle of the first season. Even saying that feels like a generous assessment, as Twisted Metal would probably want to save one of its most iconic racers for an unveiling towards the end of its initial arc. This is, after all, a vehicle for Anthony Mackie’s John Doe to shine. 

Imagining all of the presumably TV-MA trash talk The Falcon and the Winter Soldier star will be able to deliver on an episodic basis in Twisted Metal makes that concept all the more comfortable. Thinking about Mackie’s potential stand off against a Will Arnett voiced/acted Sweet Tooth? That’d be the hypothetical cherry on the post-apocalyptic sundae; provided of course that Arnett’s star studded Netflix comedy Murderville can spare him. 

Twisted Metal has no set production start date or release date set, so we’re going to have to wait for further action and updates from Peacock. In the meantime, you can catch all of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier on Disney+. Those still looking for something new in the world of TV can check out the 2022 TV premiere dates. 

It’s hard to believe that it’s been several months since the end of Marvel and Disney+’s The Falcon and Winter Soldier, and that long since Anthony Mackie’s Sam Wilson finally embraced his new role as Captain America. Since then, Mackie had been announced to star in Captain America 4. Though the Marvel actor is trading in the comics for video games in a new TV show.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Anthony Mackie is set to play the lead role in an adaptation of Sony PlayStation’s long-running game series Twisted Metal, as well as executive produce. Mackie’s role of John Doe is a little less like a superhero and more like a milkman who has no memory of his past life. John has to deliver a mysterious package “across a post-apocalyptic wasteland” if he wants to be offered a chance at a better life.

Twisted Metal is still in development from Sony Pictures TV and PlayStation Production, and the two studios plan on taking it to potential buyers sometime in the near future, meaning that it hasn’t been picked up by anything yet. Currently, Disney+ has yet to renew The Falcon and the Winter Soldier for an official second season, so whether or not both shows move forward will be dependent on Anthony Mackie’s obligation to the two of them. TFATWS would take top priority, but it also depends on when both of them would film.

Anthony Mackie gave some of his best performances in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, though fans were appropriately upset when he got snubbed from any Emmy nominations. This new series could give Mackie another leg up and another chance at proving what kind of actor he really is. It will be interesting to see him in a different role, but still part of a long-running franchise. Sony’s Twisted Metal, a demolition derby, first came onto the scene in 1995 for PlayStation and PC. So it’s going to have some loyal fans watching.

The show is only in development and has not been picked up by any network or streamer as of yet. But with Anthony Mackie attached to the project that is an adaptation of a long-running game series, it wouldn’t be surprising if a company jumped on that chance. Just don’t count Mackie out of anything Marvel, because he does have Captain America 4 in the works. Let’s just hope that if Twisted Metal does get picked up, it doesn’t interfere with anything that he has to do that involves Marvel Studios.

Stay tuned to CinemaBlend for any updates and in the meantime, check out what to look forward to in the coming months with our fall 2021 TV schedule!

The first big video game adaptation on the 2026 movie schedule, The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, is in the books and saw huge box office returns, bringing in over $800 million in theaters. It's not the only big one coming out this year, with May seeing the release of Mortal Kombat II, with others on its heels later in the year. There is also a lot to look forward to on the 2026 TV schedule, which we'll get into as well on this list.

All in all, 2026 is shaping up much like the past couple of years with a number of adaptations on the way, as Hollywood seems to have finally figured out the formula on how to adapt a video game onto the big or small screen. Here's what we're looking at for the rest of 2026 and beyond.

Devil May Cry Season 2 - May 12, 2026

Not long after Devil May Cry, the animated adaptation of the Capcom video game franchise of the same name, debuted on Netflix in 2025, the streamer announced that orphaned demon-hunter-for-hire, Dante, will be back once again to take on all manner of threats, both living and undead.

Several months later, in August 2025, Netflix released the first Devil May Cry Season 2 teaser along with a 2026 release window. It has since been revealed that we’ll be seeing Dante back in action starting May 12, 2026.

Mortal Kombat II - May 15, 2026

Despite being one of the 2021 Warner Bros. movies that debuted on HBO Max at the same time it opened in theaters, the rebooted Mortal Kombat was a sizable box office success, meaning it was all but certain that a sequel would be on the way sooner rather than later. It's a sequel that a lot of people are very excited about, and will almost certainly be better than the last Mortal Kombat sequel, Annihilation.

Though word out of early screenings was good for the upcoming flick, Warner Bros. delayed its release by several months, and now it won’t hit theaters until May 15, 2026. That day is rapidly approaching, and we’ll finally get to see Karl Urban’s Johnny Cage lead and check out some of those gruesome and much-talked-about fatalities.

Resident Evil - September 18, 2026

There have been so many Resident Evil movies over the years, and the franchise is getting the reboot treatment once again. In March 2025, The Hollywood Reporter revealed that Weapons director Zach Cregger was taking a shot at the next adaptation of the classic survival horror game. The release date, September 18, 2026, is a little more than 30 years after the first game in the series hit store shelves back in March 1996.

When speaking at CinemaCon 2025 (via Deadline), Cregger described the upcoming video game movie as a “wild ride” that will be “unlike any of the previous films” in the franchise. Knowing what Cregger is capable of, this adaptation, which stars Austin Abrams, Zach Cherry, Kali Reis as Pauline, and Paul Walter Hauser (who seems to be in literally every movie this year), should be amazing.

Street Fighter - October 16, 2026

The rivalry between the two most legendary fighting games, Mortal Kombat and Street Fighter, will reach a fever pitch in 2026. Not only is the latter being released in May, but a new Street Fighter movie is on the way this fall.

The Street Fighter cast, which features David Dastmalchian, Orville Peck, Callina Liang, Andrew Schulz, Andrew Koji, Jason Momoa, Noah Centineo, Cody Rhodes, Roman Reigns, and others playing iconic characters, looks absolutely incredible. They look so flashy, so cartoony, and so utterly awesome.

Angry Birds 3 - December 23, 2026

Fans of addictive free-to-play mobile games (and movies based on them) are probably stoked to hear that The Angry Birds Movie 3 is happening after all these years. First announced in June 2024, the third movie based on the highly addictive game is coming to theaters for Christmas, on December 23, 2026, per Deadline.

Though details are still limited at this time, at least in terms of plot, the movie will feature a cast led by Jason Sudeikis, Josh Gad, Rachel Bloom, Danny McBride, Keke Palmer, and Mr. Beast. This could be a fun way to spend a couple of hours with the family (or send your kids and their grandparents) at the movies this holiday season.

The Witcher Season 5 - 2026

Things will soon be coming to an end for Geralt, or at least the TV version played by Liam Hemsworth. The Netflix series based on the book series that also spawned a popular video game franchise of the same name will wrap things up when the fifth and final season premieres at some point down the road.

Netflix announced on Tudum in February 2026 that the saga would wrap up by the end of the year, but the streamer stopped short of revealing exactly when those hotly anticipated episodes would drop.

Sonic The Hedgehog 4 - March 19, 2027

With the success of the first two movies in the franchise, and the third film doing quite well at the box office, it should come as no surprise that Sonic the Hedgehog 4 is coming. On the eve of the Sonic 3 release in December 2024, Variety reported that Paramount Pictures was preparing a fourth film about the iconic Blue Blur that will be coming out at some point in Spring 2027.

Well, in March 2026, Paramount Pictures shared a title reveal trailer, announcing the March 19, 2027, release date and a tease for what’s to come. Not only did the brief video confirm the return of Ben Schwartz’s titular character and Jim Carrey’s Dr. Robotnik, but also the debut of Kristen Bell’s Amy Rose, a beloved fan-favorite character.

The Legend Of Zelda - May 7, 2027

A little more than six months after The Super Mario Bros. movie dominated at the box office in 2024 and became a hit with critics and fans alike, Nintendo announced that one of its other iconic franchises would be getting the big-screen treatment. The live-action Legend of Zelda movie is something fans have wanted for a long time, and at some point in the future, they’ll get just that. And no, it’s not like IGN’s 2008 April Fool’s Day trailer.

In June 2025, the official Nintendo Twitter account announced that The Legend of Zelda would make its big-screen debut on May 7, 2027, a little more than a month after its original planned release. One month later, the Nintendo X account announced that Wes Ball’s adaptation will be led by Benjamin Evan Ainsworth as Link and Bo Bragason as Princess Zelda. Based on everything we’ve seen so far, it’s beginning to look like this will take inspiration from the two most recent Zelda games: Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom.

A Minecraft Sequel - July 23, 2027

It wasn’t that big of a shocker when A Minecraft Movie took the top spot at the box office its opening weekend (or several other weeks after that), and it’s not a big surprise that Warner Bros. is already looking to strike again. In October 2025, WB revealed Another Minecraft Movie, which is slated to open in theaters on July 23, 2027. It was announced in April 2026 that the movie's title had changed to simply: A Minecraft Sequel

We know next to nothing about what the movie will be about, but director Jared Hess told Deadline around the same time that “it’ll be so much fun to go back into the world.” And with Alex, one of the major characters from the game on which the movie is based, showing up in the Minecraft Movie post-credits scene, it seems like we’re just getting started with this adventure.

Funnily enough, months after saying she wanted to star in “a Minecraft Movie” or “a movie where I don’t lose money,” Deadline reported that Kirsten Dunst will be joining the sequel as Alex, one of two playable characters in the original game (Steve being the other).

Call Of Duty - June 30, 2028

How it’s taken this long to get a Call of Duty movie in the works is one of the biggest mysteries in Hollywood, but it looks like it’s finally happening. In September 2025, Variety reported that the newly minted Paramount Skydance and Activision are teaming up to bring the outrageously popular first-person shooter series to the big screen in the near future.

Though the cast and story are a mystery at this point, Deadline reported in October 2025 that Taylor Sheridan and Peter Berg are teaming up to make this happen. This could go in any direction, considering the franchise’s past. This could be a WWII action thriller, a sci-fi adventure set in the future, or a more modern approach. You could even have zombies. In April 2026, Paramount announced a release date of June 30, 2028, at CinemaCon.

Elden Ring - March 3, 2028

The Elden Ring film adaptation is one that fans of the FromSoftware action role-playing game have been dying (and dying and dying and dying) to see since the game based around the Dark Souls series arrived on the scene back in February 2022. The upcoming movie, which doesn’t yet have a release date, will be directed by Alex Garland, according to Variety. Plot details are basically unknown at this point, but Game of Thrones creator George R.R. Martin is working on the story, as was the case with the game on which it is based.

Helldivers - November 10, 2027

Announced during Sony’s CES 2025 press conference (via IGN), Helldivers 2, one of the biggest game franchises of the past couple of years, is getting a film adaptation. Heavily inspired by Starship Troopers, the online co-op shooter has allowed millions of gamers to get together with groups of friends and go shoot wave after wave of massive, man-eating bugs.

There’s been a great deal of news about this project in the early goings of 2026, including reveals that Justin Lin will be directing, Jason Momoa will be leading the movie, and that it will hit theaters on November 10, 2027!

Untitled Sonic The Hedgehog Movie - December 22, 2028

Sonic the Hedgehog 4 isn’t the only upcoming video game movie about the iconic Sega mascot, as there’s a currently untitled film coming to theaters a year and a few months later. In December 2025, Deadline reported that Paramount Pictures is prepping an untitled Sonic movie for a December 22, 2028, release.

Details are nonexistent at this point, but I bet we’ll start learning more about a possible story and characters the closer we get to the speedster’s big-screen return in March 2027.

Tomb Raider Live-Action Series - TBD

Amazon Studios’ Tomb Raider TV show is one of the adaptations I’ve been looking forward to the most, and now it’s about to become a reality. The long-in-the-works project spearheaded by Fleabag creator Phoebe Waller-Bridge will bring the iconic Lara Croft to the small screen with a new set of adventures, along with one hell of a cast.

After seeing the first-look image of Sophie Turner as the trailblazing video game character, I have the highest hopes for the series that will also star Sigourney Weaver, Jason Isaacs, and so many others. With this year being the 30th anniversary of the franchise’s debut, hopefully, that means the show comes out before the end of the year.

Assassin's Creed - TBD

Over the course of the past decade-plus, the Assassin’s Creed video game series from Ubisoft has become one of the most popular and expansive franchises on the market, with installments set everywhere from Renaissance-era Italy, ancient Egypt and Greece, and Norway during the time of the Vikings. Ubisoft and Netflix have partnered up to give Assassin’s Creed a shot as a TV series, less than a decade after the 2016 movie failed to impress.

In July 2025, Netflix Tudum announced that the live-action adaptation was picking up steam and that Roberto Patino and David Wiener were handling the exciting project. That November, Deadline reported that Toby Wallace had been picked to lead the new video game series. Production on the series began in March 2026 and is expected to continue until November, so we will hopefully see the new show on the 2027 TV schedule.

The Last Of Us Season 3 - TBD

The second season of The Last of Us on HBO ends at around the halfway point of The Last of Us Part II, so that's likely where the third season will pick up.Plot details are next to none at this point, but based on the final shot of The Last of Us’ Season 2 finale, it appears as if we’ll be following Kaitlyn Dever’s Abby more when the show returns. J

Joining her will be Kyriana Kratter as Lev and Michelle Mao as Yara, two crucial characters from the second game, per Deadline. In April 2026, Sinners star Li Jun Li was announced as a new cast member and will play their mother, Miriam.

Also, Deadline has reported that this will most likely be the final season in the show’s run, which makes sense considering where the series left off and what we have left in the plot of the hit game.

Fallout Season 3 - TBD

Fallout Season 2 ended not that long ago, but there’s already talk of a third season. In May 2025, Amazon announced it had renewed the series more than six months before the series returned to Prime Video.

Though details are being kept secret at this moment, co-showrunner Geneva Robertson-Dworet teased what could be around the turn when chatting with SFX Magazine (via GamesRadar) in March 2026. Again, not a lot has been said, but it sounds like we’ll be exploring even more regions when the show returns.

Mortal Kombat III - TBD

Wait, Mortal Kombat II hasn’t come out, and they’re already planning a third movie? Yeah, that’s what’s happening, per Variety. Back in October 2025, the outlet reported from the New York Comic Con, where members of the cast and crew of the upcoming sequel revealed that work is being done on a third installment. Jeremy Slater, who penned the soon-to-be-released MKII, as well as Moon Knight, is working on the script.

Steal A Brainrot - TBD

My kids are obsessed with Roblox, and like pretty much every kid between the ages of 8 and 12, they can’t get enough of “Steal a Brainrot.” Well, there will soon be no escape, as the popular gaming experience is getting the big-screen treatment. In early 2026, Deadline announced that Story Kitchen was developing the super-popular game into a movie, but no other details have been announced so far.

This one is still very early on in its development, but hopefully, we will start hearing more about it soon.

Baldur’s Gate - TBD

If you thought Craig Mazin was too busy with The Last of Us for other ventures, you’d be wrong, as he’s also adapting another massively successful game for the small screen. In February 2026, Deadline reported that Mazin was working on bringing Baldur's Gate 3 to the small screen through a partnership with HBO and Hasbro Entertainment.

In a statement provided to the outlet, Mazin admitted that he had put nearly 1,000 hours into playing the game set in the world of Dungeons & Dragons, which should be good news for fans of the game and franchise as a whole. There’s no word on when we can expect the series, outside the fact that it will continue the game’s story.

The House Of The Dead - TBD

The House of the Dead franchise has given us some of the best arcade shooters, but also a forgettable movie adaptation. Well, it looks like Hollywood is giving the zombie action franchise another shot, as Paul W.S. Anderson (no stranger to video game movies) is working on an adaptation of the on-rail shooter. With Isabela Merced set to lead the cast (she’s great on The Last of Us), there’s reason to be excited for this one.

Grow A Garden - TBD

I don’t know if this is the case for everyone, but my kids are OBSESSED with Roblox, the sandbox game that allows users to build anything and everything they can imagine (more than Minecraft). While I long thought a movie adaptation would be impossible, it sounds like that’s about to happen, at least for one of its most popular games.

In November 2025, Deadline reported that Story Kitchen was in the process of developing Grow a Garden, a game that has more than 33 billion plays since its launch last year. That’s insane, if I’m being honest. In the highly collaborative game, players grow and tend to lush gardens, so it’ll be interesting to see how that translates into a feature film.

God Of War - TBD

Just a few weeks after November 2022’s God of War Ragnarok was released on PlayStation consoles, Amazon Studios ordered a live-action series based on the popular action-adventure game, as reported by Variety. The upcoming Amazon original series will turn its focus to the 2018 soft-reboot of the property, which saw Kratos living in the Norse realm of Midgard after trying to escape his violent and heartbreaking past in ancient Greece.

In January 2026, Amazon revealed that Sons of Anarchy star Ryan Hurst would be leading the show as Kratos. It was later revealed that Callum Vinson, Mandy Patinkin, Teresa Palmer, and Alastair Duncan had also joined the cast.

Life Is Strange - TBD

Amazon’s Prime Video platform has become the place to go for video game adaptations, and that trend will continue into the future with the upcoming Life is Strange TV show. In September 2025, Variety reported that Amazon was working on a series based on the popular narrative-driven game.

If you have never played Life Is Strange or watched any videos of its sometimes odd presentation, it basically follows a photography student named Max as she discovers she can rewind time. What follows is a series of choices (both minor and significant) as she learns more about her powers and their source. In March 2026, Variety reported that Maisy Stell had been cast as Max while Tatum Grace Hopkins was tapped to play her best friend, Max.

Death Stranding: Mosquito - TBD

Hideo Kojima has never been a person who does one thing at a time, and that will continue with his Death Stranding franchise, which is getting an anime adaptation subtitled Mosquito, on top of the previously announced A24 movie. Based on the Metal Gear Solid creator’s popular Death Stranding franchise, this mysterious animated film looks to expand the already vast universe of the franchise.

Kojima showed off some footage in September 2025 (via IGN), and it sounds right up there with pretty much everything else from the creative and cinema-obsessed video game producer. In it, a man with a strange tentacle stuck to his face swims in water and walks on land, seemingly approaching some kind of humanoid creatures.

Just Cause - TBD

The Just Cause games are some of the most fun you can have on a console, and many have long been calling for a film adaptation of the series. Well, after years in development hell, it looks like that’s going to happen (for real this time) sometime soon. In 2025, The Wrap reported that Jack Ryan writer Aaron Rabin was hired to pen the script, with Blue Beetle helmer Ángel Manuel Soto tasked with directing the adaptation.

Details are limited at this time, but the games follow Rico Rodriguez, a tough-as-nails yet charismatic secret agent who specializes in overthrowing tyrannical regimes around the world.

Chained Together - TBD

Even if you haven’t played it, there’s a chance you’ve seen footage of Chained Together. This multiplayer game, which pairs two people together and forces them to overcome an increasingly difficult obstacle course that goes up, down, and all around, is in the process of being turned into a movie, per Deadline.

In November 2025, the outlet reported that Cory Todd Hughes and Adrian Speckert had been hired by Anton to turn the hit game into a movie, but it’ll be interesting to see how these two turn a game largely devoid of story into a box office hit.

Kingmakers - TBD

Netflix is no stranger to video game adaptations, and it appears the massive streaming service is adding another title to that collection: Kingmakers. In December 2025, Deadline reported that Shawn Levy’s 21 Laps was working with Story Kitchen to develop an adaptation of the, as of December 2025, yet-to-be-released action-strategy game set in medieval Great Britain.

No surprise here, but details about this movie are slim to none right now, but the idea of a massive film with knights having large-scale battles and medieval politics could be some bloody good fun.

Far Cry - TBD

Ever since its debut back in the 2000s, the Far Cry franchise has been one of Ubisoft’s hottest properties. The series of open-world games set everywhere from the tropics to Asia to America has allowed players to take on iron-fisted dictators, religious zealots, and old-fashioned psychopaths and explore vast regions. Now, we’re getting a TV show inspired by the games.

Set to come out on FX (and Hulu) at some point in the near future, per Variety, the Far Cry series is being spearheaded by Noah Hawley, and It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia co-creator and star Rob Mac (formerly Rob McElhenney), the latter of whom will reportedly star in the show. Not much is known about the series in terms of where it will be set, but it will take a page from the games and be an anthology, with each new season telling a different story.

Overcooked Reality Competition Series - TBD

When I first heard about Netflix and A24 teaming up to turn Overcooked into a TV show, my initial thought was that it was going to be some messed-up psychological thriller about a family being ripped apart by one of the most intense co-op games of the past decade-plus. However, Deadline reported in November 2025 that the two brands were teaming up for a reality competition series inspired by the cooking simulation.

Don’t let the game’s cheery art style fool you. Overcooked is serious business, and I cannot wait to see competitors lose their minds as they try to man a high-stakes kitchen on a soundstage.

Dark Deception - TBD

There have been countless games in the vein of Fight Nights at Freddy’s over the years, with Glowstick Entertainment’s Dark Deception being one of the best. That said, it’s not all that surprising that a film adaptation is in the works with Adrian Speckert and Cory Todd Hughes penning the script, per Deadline.

There were no casting or story details announced when the movie was revealed back in September 2025, but the psychological horror game on which it is based had players attempt to escape diabolical mazes where all kinds of creatures await around every corner.

Finding Frankie - TBD

On top of working on the Dark Deception adaptation, the screenwriting team of Adrian Speckert and Cory Todd Hughes is also hard at work on Finding Frankie, Deadline reported in October 2025. The upcoming video game movie is based on the 2025 game of the same name, which can best be described as Squid Game meets Five Nights at Freddy’s with its colorful yet demented game show setting.

Space Invaders - TBD

We’re two years away from the 50th anniversary of Space Invaders' debut and the start of the golden age of the arcade, and now it’s finally getting a video game adaptation of its own. In August 2025, Deadline reported that New Line Cinema hired Ben Zazove and Evan Turner to turn the classic arcade game into a big-screen phenomenon.

Nothing has been said about the story at this time, but hopefully that changes sooner rather than later.

Beyond: Two Souls - TBD

Back in 2013, Elliot Page starred in Quantic Dream’s Beyond: Two Souls, a revolutionary and complex narrative-based video game that follows a young woman as she tries to make sense of her mysterious powers while escaping the military and terrifying forces of evil. Well, Page is now in the process of turning the popular game into a TV series with Pageboy Productions, Deadline reported in January 2025.

Riders Republic - TBD

We see a lot of video game adaptations, but we don’t see many based on sports games. Well, that’ll change at some point in the near future when Bad Boys: Ride or Die directors Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah turn Ubisoft’s Riders Republic into a big-screen attraction.

In May 2025, the game publisher announced that the filmmaking duo would be turning its attention to the massive multiplayer experience, allowing its more than 10 million players to race down mountains on everything from bikes to skis to snowboards to wingsuits.

Phasmophobia - TBD

Since it came out in early release in September 2020 (October 2024 for PlayStation and Xbox consoles), Phasmophobia has been one of the scariest and most popular horror games on the market. Taking on the role of a ghosthunter, this first-person game tests its players, physically, mentally, and even spiritually.

Well, the game’s developer, Kinetic Games, has announced that it’s working with Blumhouse to turn the terrifying game into an anxiety-inducing big-screen experience. Details are limited at this point, but that should change in the future.

Wolfenstein - TBD

Amazon has had some success with video game adaptations in recent years, and that trend continues when Wolfenstein hits Prime Video. In July 2025, Variety reported that Amazon MGM Studios was teaming up with MachineGames to bring the revisionist history franchise, where players take on all kinds of Nazis, to the small screen.

The influential first-person shooter series, which has been around for more than 40 years and several retoolings, largely follows William “B.J.” Blazkowicz during and after World War II. It’s hard to imagine this being any different when the show comes to Prime Video at some point in the near future.

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 - TBD

Clair Obscura: Expedition took the world by storm upon release in April 2025, and then again when it nearly swept the Game Awards. Well, it looks like game developer Sandfall Interactive is wasting no time getting the ball rolling on a live-action adaptation. In January 2025, around three months before the game hit store shelves, Variety reported that the French developer was teaming with Story Kitchen to bring the property to the big screen.

Set in a world inspired by Belle Époque France, Clair Obscura: Expedition 33 follows a titular group as they embark upon a mission to combat and defeat a god-like figure known as the Paintress.

Twisted Metal Season 3 - TBD

Fans of Twisted Metal are in for a sweet treat, as Peacock is bringing back the vehicular combat series. However, as Deadline reported in November 2025, the series will be without its showrunner, Michael Jonathan Smith, who is departing after two seasons. Don’t get too bent out of shape, as David Reed, whose previous work includes The Boys and Supernatural, is taking over things in that capacity.

Bioshock - TBD

The sci-fi horror series Bioshock has always been a game franchise that would be well-suited to be adapted into a movie. A great setting with the underwater city of Rapture, a twist-heavy story, and those Big Daddies are just a few of the reasons that make a strong case for an adaptation.

In August 2022, Netflix announced that Francis Lawrence would be directing the upcoming movie, which will be based on a script written by Michael Green, best known for scripting movies like Logan, Blade Runner 2049, and Jungle Cruise. After a long period of no updates, producer Roy Lee told The Direct in September 2025 that while he had to keep things under wraps, the movie would be based on the first game in the franchise.

Split Fiction - TBD

Split Fiction, one of the biggest (and best-received) video games of 2025, is already getting a big-screen adaptation with some major talent on both sides of the camera. In April 2025, Variety reported that Sydney Sweeney is set to star in Jon M. Chu’s take on the popular fantasy and sci-fi game about a pair of authors who become trapped in their own creation.

Not a lot has been said about the movie’s release date, cast, or production plans, but Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick, the screenwriting team behind Deadpool & Wolverine, are writing the screenplay.

OutRun - TBD

Michael Bay will soon be turning his attention to one of the most iconic arcade racers of all time when he adapts OutRun. In April 2025, Deadline reported that Bay, best known for great ‘90s action movies like Bad Boys and The Rock, will direct the long-overdue adaptation that will be produced by Sydney Sweeney. An unabashed car fanatic, maybe Sweeney will do more than just produce this one!

In December 2025, producer Brad Fuller told Comicbook.com the project was “in early stages,” but stopped short of revealing how far along everything was at that point.

Sifu - TBD

Chad Stahelski is quickly becoming one of the busiest names in Hollywood these days, and it doesn’t look like the John Wick franchise director will be slowing down anytime soon. In February 2025, Deadline reported that Stahelski’s 87Eleven Entertainment production company will be turning the revenge-centric game about a martial arts student avenging his mentor into a feature film for Netflix at some point. There’s been no word since.

Sleeping Dogs - TBD

In the years that followed the release of Grand Theft Auto III in 2001, open-world crime games were a dime a dozen. One of the most inventive, engaging, and fun to play was Sleeping Dogs, which was first released on consoles back in 2012 by Square Enix. Despite getting off to a slow start in terms of sales, the game has since gone on to have a reputation for being an all-around great experience.

Well, now it appears as if the Sleeping Dogs movie is actually in full development, according to IGN, and we could see MCU star Simu Liu take on the lead role of undercover police officer Wei Shen. In a December 2025 post on X, Liu announced that Timo Tjahjanto, the director of The Night Comes for Us and Nobody 2, was being eyed to direct the adaptation.

Dead By Daylight - TBD

When it comes to horror games deserving of a film adaptation, Dead by Daylight is near the top of that list. This online multiplayer survival horror game, which pits one player taking on the role of a killer hunting four others, has been around for nearly a decade at the time of this writing and has been played by tens of millions of people. In fact, there are countless expansion DLC packs bringing in everyone from Freddy Krueger to Michael Myers and even Nicolas freaking Cage.

For the past few years, there have been plans to turn the game into a movie, with Jasom Blum leading the charge as producer. And while Blum did tell ComicBook.com in late 2024 that a script was in the works, there was no telling when the movie would actually come to fruition.

Death Stranding - TBD

The Death Stranding adaptation from A24 is one of those projects that makes perfect sense. The game’s creator, Hideo Kojima, has a long history of making cinematic experiences masquerading as video games with his Metal Gear Solid franchise, and the 2019 PlayStation game was no different.

It has been more than three years since Deadline first announced the video game adaptation, but details are nonexistent. However, in April 2025, Deadline reported that A Quiet Place: Day One director Michael Sarnoski would be helming the incredibly ambitious project.

Secret Level Season 2 - TBD

Amazon’s Prime Video introduced the video game anthology series Secret Level back in late 2024, and now it looks like we’re getting another season. The series, which was described as a “celebration of games and gamers,” featured original stories set in iconic game franchises like Mega Man, Armored Core, and Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2, to name a few. The series, which had a cast featuring the likes of Arnold Schwarzenegger and Keanu Reeves, was renewed in December 2024, per Deadline.

Watch Dogs - TBD

At some point, Mathieu Turi will present his vision for Watch Dogs, a live-action movie based on the Ubisoft action-adventure game series of the same name. Starring Tom Blyth, Sophie Wilde, and Markella Kavenagh, the movie will feature an original story set in the universe.

Though nothing has been said about a release date at this time, the Ubisoft X account posted in September 2024 that production had wrapped on the project. In September 2025, Blyth told ScreenRant that he had recently gone back to film reshoots, adding that the movie feels like its own thing when compared to the game. No word since.

Mass Effect - TBD

Since the franchise’s debut back in 2007, Mass Effect has given gamers some of the most unforgettable moments and started some of the strangest controversies. Now, it looks like the series of games that primarily focused on Captain Shepard’s quest to save the galaxy is going to be getting the small-screen treatment. Just like it has done with the Fallout and Yakuza properties in recent years, Amazon MGM Studios is developing a series based on the game with Karim Zreik writing the show, as reported by Variety back in late 2024.

Horizon Zero Dawn - TBD

There has been talk of a Horizon Zero Dawn movie for a few years now, and it’s bound to happen sooner or later. Well, we got some new information in January 2025 at Sony’s CES press conference (via IGN), where it was confirmed that the massively popular PlayStation exclusive would be getting the big-screen treatment.

The plan is for the film to be released by Columbia Pictures, which handled the Uncharted adaptation back in 2022, at some point in the future, but no release information has been revealed outside of reports of a possible 2027 rollout, per IGN.

The Sims Movie - TBD

The Sims, a game that some would consider impossible to turn into a movie for various reasons, is getting the big-screen treatment. In March 2024, Variety reported that Margot Robbie’s LuckyChap production company was spearheading an adaptation of the popular sandbox series with Loki director Kate Herron helming the project.

Though details about The Sims movie are sparse at the time of this writing, it sounds like the movie will be something fans of the games will love. Hopefully, we will learn more about this sooner rather than later, but things have been quiet for more than a year now.

Gears Of War - TBD

Gears of War, one of the most popular video game franchises on the Xbox family of consoles, will soon get not one, but two adaptations on Netflix – a live-action movie and an animated TV series. In November 2022, Netflix announced that the story of Delta Squad, which is led by the disgraced sergeant Marcus Fenix, would be at the center of the upcoming adaptations, but didn’t provide too many specific details about either property. David Leitch signed on as the director in May 2025, per THR, but no major updates have been announced since.

Previously, when speaking with Comic Book in February 2025, Dave Bautista, who has been trying to be a part of the project for years, called on fans to petition Netflix to get it together and make this happen already. Please, let this happen!

As always, we're keep out ears out for any updates and new announcements!

PlayStation fans can prepare to nerd out, as a major old school video game franchise is about to get its own TV series. Twisted Metal, the large-scale demolition derby game where players use insanely tricked-out murder vehicles as weapons, is going into development via Sony TV and Playstation Productions. Not only is that amazing in and of itself, but the project will be crafted by the writers behind awesome action-packed projects such as Cobra Kai, Deadpool, and Zombieland. Thankfully, it sounds like Twisted Metal's TV adaptation will have the same action/comedy vibe we are used to from all the writers involved.

While Twisted Metal fans may have expected this dark video game series to be adapted into something more horror-driven – these characters might not be so out of place in a Purge movie – the action/comedy angle makes sense coming from Deadpool and Zombieland writers Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick, who developed the initial pitch. Meanwhile, Cobra Kai writer and producer Michael Jonathan Smith will actually be the writer for Twisted Metal, as well as an executive producers. Considering the Karate Kid continuation series is less over the top as the previously mentioned movies, we can probably expect the comedy to have a darkness to it, and that the classic game's crass characters will be adapted in interesting ways.

Instead of starting off straight out of an insane asylum or focusing on a literal demon from hell, the new project will center around a character who needs to deliver a package in order to gain a better life. Sounds easy, right? If you’ve played the games, you know how dangerous getting into any of these cars can be, and we can pretty much guarantee the main character will come into contact with some not so nice travelers on the road.

It sounds like the new Twisted Metal project will take some liberties with the storyline, but fans of the game will see some familiar faces as the main character navigates his way through a post-apocalyptic wasteland. According to Variety, we’ll be able to meet everyone’s favorite ice cream truck driving, homicidal clown: Sweet Tooth.

The Twisted Metal franchise consists of 9 video games released over the course of just under 20 years. Over the various games, very dark and disturbing backstories have come out about the playable characters within the franchise. Some would say characters of Twisted Metal aren't exactly the main component of the destroy-them-all games, so it will be interesting to see them brought out to a different platform with a creative team that knows both pop culture adaptations and how to bring classic content to the modern era.

Although the project has been greenlit by the studios, there is no telling if or when we will be able to see the TV adaptation of the classic video game. Some more good news for video game fans, though, is there there are several video game adaptations coming. Uncharted is getting a film, with Tom Holland starring as Nathan Drake. Also, Sony and PlayStation are also partly behind HBO's The Last of Us series, to star The Mandalorian’s Pedro Pascal and fellow Game of Thrones vet Bella Ramsey. If this video game adaptation movement we are seeing becomes an even bigger trend, we are here for it, just maybe behind lots of protective barriers.

The developers who have worked on Twisted Metal series under David Scott Jaffe have had some tough news to swallow in recent times, as they've been hit with some massive layoffs. The news obviously wasn't the sort of thing that most of the employees wanted to see, nor was it something PlayStation fans were expecting to read across social media.

The news came courtesy of studio head David Scott Jaffe via Twitter, who explained that the outlet Bartlet Jones has been hit with massive layoffs. The layoffs were in response to the studio's most recent project being cancelled.

Jaffe doesn't say exactly what the studio was working on, only that the project has been canned. Was it a new Twisted Metal? Apparently not. Back on January 18th, Jaffe posted a nine minute video on YouTube discussing the state of Twisted Metal, where he explained that every day someone will ask him about a new version of the game, a reboot, a sequel, or a remaster. He explained that neither he nor his studio have the rights to Twisted Metal and that it belongs to Sony, so he stated that, for as far as he knows, Naughty Dog could be making the newest version of the game or anyone for that matter; assuming a new version is being made. However, he said that he doesn't know and hasn't heard anything about a new game in the franchise being in development.

So, in case you were wondering if Bartlet Jones was actually working on a Twisted Metal game under Sony, the answer is no.

The company doesn't have any major titles under its belt, and whatever project it was working on was cancelled. According to its LinkedIn page, there were around 20 employees working at the studio, but after the "massive layoffs" it's hard to tell exactly how many of them still remain.

Based on Jaffe's last video update regarding the other Sony titles being remastered, such as Crash Bandicoot and MediEvil, it didn't sound like Bartlet Jones was working on anything directly under Sony.

At this point, the studio will likely have to focus its efforts elsewhere. It's still possible that whatever was cancelled could make a return to form in the way of crowdfunding, assuming Bartlet Jones is willing to go the Kickstarter or IndieGoGo route. There's also sourcing through crowd-investments, similar to Fig or Start Engine.

However, maybe things could turn around if Jaffe and the remaining crew can cook up a worthwhile prototype and pitch an idea to a publisher. Jaffe is working with those on social media to help find new work and placement for some of the staff who worked at Bartlet Jones, so it's not all bad. Still, it's never easy to find out that a studio housing developers that were responsible for some of gaming's most noteworthy titles, such as God of War and Twisted Metal, is letting go of staff.

PlayStation owners who want to spice up their library with something fresh, unique, different, exciting or challenging, will find that Sony has a current sale going on right now on PlayStation exclusives over on the PlayStation Store.

The PlayStation exclusive sale on the PlayStation Store consists of 112 different games spanning the likes of the PlayStation 4, the PlayStation 3 and the PlayStation Vita.

So what sort of deals can you expect? Well, right there on the front page you'll see exclusives like Until Dawn, starring Hayden Panettiere and Rami Malek for 50% off its normal price, so you can get your hands on it for only $9.99 instead of $19.99. The horror title is very similar to the likes of Cabin In The Woods meets Supernatural. The game is not what you think and will take a pretty stark turn halfway through the adventure.

Until Dawn is very much unlike anything else out there, though. While it may be classified as a quick-time game like many of David Cage's titles, such as Heavy Rain or Beyond: Two Souls, the reality is that Until Dawn has its own unique flair and personality that Supermassive Games managed to bring to life in a way that helps separate it from other QTE titles. And funnily enough, Beyond: Two Souls is actually marked down by 50% off for only $4.99.

But if cinematic horror experiences isn't your thing, maybe God of War III is right up your alley? The remastered version of the PS3 title for PS4 gamers is currently available for only $5.99, down from the $19.99 price point. It's actually a pretty darn good deal and something hard to pass up if you really wanted to add the title to your library or rekindle the adventure on your PS4 after having played it on your PS3.

And speaking of God of War on PS3... the God of War Collection, God of War: Ascension and God of War Origins Collection are also available all available for the PS3 for under $4.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, titles from thatgamecompany such as flOw and Flower are also marked down for just under $2. The other award winning title from thatgamecompany, Journey, is also available for only $5.99.

Now if action games, QTE titles and zen games aren't your cup of tea, there are also racing games and vehicular combat titles available as well. I'm talking about classics like Twisted Metal and Motorstorm, both of which you can pick up for $2.49 and $1.99 respectively. On the casual side of the racing spectrum, there's Modnation Racers, which is marked down by 50% off for only $4.99.

On the more niche side of things, games like the PlayStation VR title Bound is available for 45% off the normal price, so you can grab the VR game for $10.99.

They also made sure that PS Vita gamers weren't left out of the mix either. You can grab classic titles like Hot Shots Golf: World Invitational for only $2.69 after it was marked down to a massive 80% off.

Of course, you'll want to get in on some of these deals before the sale ends because it's only going to be available for a limited time. The sale runs through March 27.

Do you remember the commercials for Crash Bandicoot? A guy ran around in a Crash suit doing stupid things, and yet somehow I completely understood what was going on and what the message behind the commercial was: play Crash Bandicoot, of course! These are five of some of the most entertaining video game commercials from the earlier days.

1. Crash Bandicoot

If there’s one thing Crash Bandicoot is really good at, it’s being a snarky...jerk. In this commercial, Crash dances around in front of Nintendo headquarters, showing off TV’s displaying Crash Bandicoot gameplay. This hysterically illustrates the obvious rivalry between the two major video game companies, PlayStation and Nintendo. It’s funny when Crash makes the comment, “Your days are numbered!” to Nintendo when, in fact, Crash Bandicoots days were even more numbered. Now, Crash Bandicoot seems to have fallen into oblivion and Nintendo is releasing its own handheld console this year. Funny how things happen.

2. Twisted Metal

Twisted Metal was a hit PlayStation game in the 90’s and involved some serious automobile construction. This is also where infamous PlayStation icon, Sweet Tooth, made his debut. The game was known for being outrageously outlandish with a collection of psychotic characters, so it only makes sense that the commercial works to highlight some of the more memorable of the bunch. It’s too bad Twisted Metal hasn’t made a comeback since its last title of the same name in 2012. PS4 could use a revamped Twisted Metal game.

3. Nintendo 64

Many of you Nintendo fans might remember this commercial showing classic characters from the early Super Smash Bros. on Nintendo 64 skipping merrily through a meadow—until they start beating each other up. Thus is the great and joyous objective for Super Smash Bros. What made this particular commercial so memorable was its ridiculous depiction of people in Nintendo character suits like Donkey Kong and Super Mario beating the crap out of each other in a bright meadow.

4. Xbox 360

The YouTube description for the video states that the commercial was released in 2005 to advertise the Xbox 360 console, which was known for its first-person shooters. But people complained the commercial promoted violence, so it was removed. Nowadays, there are far more violent commercials than people pointing finger-guns at each other, so obviously things have changed a little since then, including the stigma that video games cause violence.

5. Sonic The Hedgehog 2

Sonic The Hedgehog 2 was one of the best Sonic games ever released, long before he and his lovable sidekick, Tails, were contorted into empty shells of who they once were. This commercial hilariously mocks the boring and repetitive format of a typical ad on TV, noting that Sonic The Hedgehog 2 can even cut vegetables and hide horrid balding spots. While it’s an entertaining commercial that doesn’t do the game enough justice, it was memorable simply for its stark weirdness.

The PS3 iteration of vehicular combat game, Twisted Metal, is celebrating its one-year anniversary and, to celebrate, Sony is dishing out the goods with a big sale on all thins Twisted Metal.

Designer/Director David Jaffe dropped by the PlayStation Blog earlier today to talk about the big celebration, saying that, while the latest Twisted Metal wasn’t necessarily a massive hit, the team at developer Eat Sleep Play continues to stay committed to the fans who have stayed committed to their game.

“On behalf of myself and the amazing Twisted Metal teams from Eat Sleep Play and Sony, please allow me to say thanks to all of the Twisted Metal fans who showed up to support this latest explosion of carnage and meaty gameplay,” Jaffe said. “while our online community is by no means the biggest in gaming, it’s so exciting to see that it’s very much alive and kicking. It’s easy to find games and the new players are hitting the scene each and every week.”

Hoping to add even more new players to the roster, Jaffe also announced that, in order to celebrate Twisted Metal’s first year on the PS3, the PlayStaiton Network is hosting a special sale on four of the games, as well as bundling them together for an even deeper discount.

For one week only, both of the original PlayStation hits, Twisted Metal and Twisted Metal 2, will be available for $4.99 a pop. You can also get the PS2’s Twisted Metal Black for $7.99 and the digital version of the PS3’s Twisted Metal for $29.99. If you’re feeling especially pumped for automotive mayhem, you can pick up all four of the above titles for just $39.99 as part of the Twisted Birthday Bundle.

Look for these prices to go live once the PlayStation Store updates later this afternoon.

Rising action star Luke Goss had a sit-down interview recently to talk about the latest film in the Death Race franchise, Death Race 3: Inferno, and during the discussion talks about a Death Race video game made it into the conversation and Luke Goss, admitting that he's a huge PlayStation 3 gamer, would love to see a “well done” video game franchise that ties in with the Death Race movie.

GamerHub.tv managed to get hold of Goss and throw a few questions his way regarding the movie, working on the set and experiencing all the grit of the death-racing action. One of the questions hovered over a Death Race video game, and you can check out Goss's reponse at the 3:05 mark.

Some gamers have commented that a Death Race video game would pretty much be Twisted Metal, however I disagree. Twisted Metal is an arena combat game with vehicles, where-as the Death Race signature is an actual race to a finish line with deadly armament, similar to the old Death Race arcade games and that recent PC title Gas Guzzlers.

Still, being able to outfit a vehicle and curb-stomp through the competition with high-explosive rockets and 30mm Gatling guns would be pretty cool, especially doing tag-team races online. Man, how awesome would it be with someone running offense while your buddy goes for the line? Shaking and baking to the finish line while leaving a wake of destruction in your path and twisted metal in your rear-view mirror would be epic.

So how about it, would you buy a Death Race game if it was done right?

Eat Sleep Play initially wanted to have three endings for their Twisted Metal reboot's single-player component. Calypso, Dollface and Preach are all shown in a new video narrated by designer David Jaffe. The video is quite lengthy, clocking in at just over 11 minutes of unused footage.

Depending on the difficulty level, the developer intended to shed more light on the Twisted Metal universe via several endings. A video post via his personal blog saw Jaffe explaining the reasoning behind why the alternate endings were canned.

While one of the unfinished original endings has already been showcased by Jaffe, he's released alternate versions, accompanied by an explanation throughout the footage from the developer.

Twisted Metal released exclusively for the PlayStation 3 in February but its worldwide launch was staggered. European regions received the game a few weeks later in March.

You can pick up a copy of the right now or you can learn more about the game by paying a visit to the Official Twisted Metal Website.

On Wednesday, Twisted Metal developer Eat Sleep Play will deploy a free patch for the PS3 vehicle combat game. The patch unlocks the character Axel for all players. Axel was previously available only to players who pre-ordered the game.

Axel's vehicle is essentially two giant tires connected in the middle by the driver in a harness. The Spiked War Wheel ability allows players to steamroll his enemies. The other special, Crowd Control Shockwave, knocks all nearby enemies away.

Overall, Axel has a pretty nimble vehicle. It can jump higher than any other car in the game as well. However, Axel is more vulnerable to enemy fire than his combatants.

In other Twisted Metal news, Lightbox Interactive has released a video previewing the Sweet Tooth multiplayer skin for Starhawk. The skin, based off the psychotic clown who's essentially TM's mascot, will be unlocked through a voucher included with new copies of TM.

While I consider myself to be a competent driver in real life, it's amazing how awful I am at racing video games. Be it Mario Kart or Gran Turismo, I somehow always end up driving my car right off the road and never fail to come in last place. But that's why I loved Twisted Metal as a kid. It was a game that allowed me to operate a vehicle, but instead of trying to beat my friends to the finish line all I had to do was try and blow them up with giant missiles. It was perfect for every male adolescent with a desire to blow shit up (read: every male adolescent) and now that fun is going to be translated into a movie.

Deadline reports that Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance co-director Brian Taylor has been hired by Sony Pictures to write and direct a film based on the Twisted Metal video game series.The project will be the first that Taylor will be tackling alone, as he typically works with writer/director Mark Neveldine. The movie will be set in the world of underground demolition derby, where cars are outfitted with dangerous weapons that the drivers can use against their opponents. At the head over it all is a puppet master named Calypso who organizes the events to learn about the "human condition." The winner of the derby "will get any wish granted."

The movie will have call backs to the game series and include characters like Sweet Tooth (a clown who drives a deadly ice cream truck) and Doll Face (a woman who wears a porcelain mask and drives an 18-wheeler). The video game launched on the original Playstation back in 1995 and the most recent release, simply called Twisted Metal, was released on February 14th.  

The upcoming Twisted Metal game will be David Jaffe's last project with Eat Sleep Play. He will be leaving the Salt Lake City-based developer in order to pursue unknown projects.

The Salt Lake City Tribune reports that the studio laid off eight employees last week. They're planning to focus on mobile game development after TM has been released.

"He’s excited to go into the casual space as well," Scott Campbell said of Jaffe. The two co-founded the company in 2007 along with Gene D. Martin. "He’s got some projects that he’s excited about. So we’re kind of going down two separate paths."

Casual games seem like a strange fit for Jaffe. He's best known for his work on Twisted Metal and the first God of War. Sure enough, Jaffe took to Twitter to say that his future plans had been mischaracterized.

"Never say never but I have zero plans to make games like FarmVille and Angry Birds," tweeted Jaffe. "I never said what I was doing post TM (and I'm still on TM along with ESP) for the next months as we launch it and balance it in real time and make sure it's a perfect game and continue to support it). At the same time I will be opening a game studio here in San Diego because I really miss internal game development. Happy to share more details later."

He adds that he's in discussions about "big, huge next gen game ideas." He's also considering browser-based games, which he describes as "action oriented" and "gamer centric."

Twisted Metal will launch on February 14th.

Sony formally announced today that vehicle combat game Twisted Metal has gone gold. They also provided details on some of the bonus content that will ship with the game.

Each copy of Twisted Metal will come with a voucher for the Sweet Tooth Outcast Multiplayer Skin. This skin will be usable in fellow PS3 exclusive Starhawk. You'll have to hang onto that voucher for a few months, though, as Starhawk won't be out until May.

Sweet Tooth, a serial killer who wears clown makeup and drives around in an ice cream truck, is essentially the mascot of Twisted Metal series. Outcasts, in Starhawk, are the violent mutants running amuck on the frontier of space. Put the two together and you've got a crazed alien clown pulsing with rift energy. As you can see in the picture below, he looks quite awesome.

The Sweet Tooth skin is just one of three bonuses you can earn by purchasing the game. If you pre-order, you can get early access to Axel. You'll also get a download code for PS2 game Twisted Metal Black.

Twisted Metal will arrive on February 14th in North America and on the 17th in Europe. David Jaffe, the head of developer Eat Sleep Play, said that a patch will be released for the game on launch day to make some small fixes and tweaks. A demo is also on the way but no word on when we can expect that.

Twisted Metal is mere weeks from release but developer Eat Sleep Play still has two big tasks to finish before launch. They're planning to release a demo and day one patch for the vehicle combat game.

In a video posted on his blog, Eat Sleep Play honcho David Jaffe said that they're wrapping up work on the demo now. They expect to complete it this week. No word on when it will actually hit PSN, though.

Jaffe said that the day one patch will be small. The team did some playtesting after the game went gold and decided that their work wasn't completely done yet.

"There are a couple of bugs," said Jaffe. "We don’t want to release it buggy. But we’re also doing it for some real final tuning and balance."

"Once you go gold, you have a couple of weeks to really play the game, and me and the QA guys we’re just like ‘you know, this seems a little unbalanced. It would be really cool if this weapon did a little less damage.’ It takes a lot of time to suss those things out."

The team has some larger changes they'd love to make. Jaffe mentioned that they might alter the game's levels. However, they're putting off a major patch for now.

"You start downloading a huge, memory-intensive level and it starts to feel like ‘I just bought this, I just wanna play. If the game is successful enough we’d love to do future tweaks and adjustments to the game, and some of those hopefully will be level-based."

Twisted Metal will arrive on February 14th in the United States and on the 17th in Europe.

Twisted Metal director David Jaffe revealed the game's new release date today. The vehicle combat game will debut on the PS3 on Valentine's Day - February 14th - in North America.

"It's a very romantic game," Jaffe said in a video address to fans. "I predict people will come home from their romantic dinners, and play the crap out of local split-screen."

PlayStation.Blog in Europe confirmed that the European launch of the game will occur around the same time.

"You may have seen the Twisted Metal announcement on @PlayStation. We can confirm TM is also coming to Europe next February, exact date TBC," tweeted PlayStation Blog EU.

Twisted Metal was originally scheduled to arrive this fall. Jaffe announced a delay to the game a couple weeks back.

"Thing is, you gotta trust me when I tell you that – with this extra time for tuning and polish – the game is going to be so much better than it already is," said Jaffe at the time.

PS3 gamers have one less release to look forward to this fall. Eat Sleep Play co-founder David Jaffe revealed today that the vehicle combat game Twisted Metal will not make its October 4th release date. They're now targeting an early 2012 release.

"It sucks bad when games miss their announced launch dates. We’re gamers too and we know how annoying it is," said Jaffe on the PlayStation.Blog. "It’s disappointing and frustrating and it really takes the wind out of your sails if you’re a fan that has been looking forward to playing a title for a long time."

"Thing is, you gotta trust me when I tell you that – with this extra time for tuning and polish – the game is going to be so much better than it already is. And if you played Twisted Metal and liked it at E3 or Comic-Con, or if you get to play it (and you enjoy it) at one of the August shows, just imagine how much more fun the final game will be with some extra time, polish, and love."

Jaffe balanced out the bad news with some good news: Eat Sleep Play will be showing off a new build of Twisted at GamesCom and PAX Prime this month. Attendees of both shows will get to try out a new mode called "Team Hunted." A new level called Thrills & Spills Amusement Park and a Dollface story trailer will also be unveiled at the conventions.

Gamescom will take place August 17th-21st in Cologne, Germany. PAX Prime runs from August 26th to the 28th in Seattle.

David Jaffe ended the Twisted Metal panel at Comic Con by providing a look at TM ideas that never saw the light of day. One of the ideas really sucked and one was kinda cool.

The good idea was called Twisted Metal: Apocalypse, with characters battling it out on a post-apocalyptic wasteland. Why didn't they go this route? Jaffe's not actually sure. He and his team apparently chatted about it this morning and couldn't remember.

The second idea wasn't named but Jaffe described it as having an urban or Midnight Club vibe. It was a bit more realistic than other TM games. The playable characters were going to be Yakuza hitmen, FBI agents and other people who might conceivably kill each other on the road. Sweet Tooth would appear in the game but instead of being a masked clown, he was a well-dressed African American man with facepaint. The crowd's sour reaction to that art makes it pretty clear why this game didn't happen.

Ultimately, the team went with the style that characterized earlier TM games. It's the old "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" approach. The Apocalypse idea does seem worth exploring, though; the battles in TM always bring destruction to whatever environment they're fighting in so an apocalypse seems like the natural progression.