X-Men 97 season 2 is in full swing following last week's three-episode premiere. And, while you'll only be able to stream one new chapter this week, it's such a great episode — one equipped with a bombshell ending — that you'll need plenty of time to recover after watching it. On this occasion, then, a new two-episode drop isn't necessary.

But, I digress — you want to know when the Marvel TV show's forthcoming entry will come out on Disney+, so let's stop beating around the bush and get on with it, shall we?

What time can I watch X-Men 97 season 2 episode 4?

The next installment of X-Men 97 will make its debut on Wednesday, July 8 at 12am PT / 3am ET in North and South America.

Based in another world region and can't work out when this season's fourth episode will air on one of the world's best streaming services? No sweat. Check out the list below to see what time you should tune in to catch it:

• US — 12am PT / 3am ET
• Canada — 12am PT / 3am ET
• UK — 8am BST
• India — 12:30pm IST
• Singapore — 3pm SGT
• Australia — 5pm AEST
• New Zealand — 7pm NZST

When do new episodes of X-Men 97 season 2 come out?

New entries of this Marvel Phase 6 TV series will arrive on Disney+ every Wednesday for the foreseeable future. With five more episodes left of the X-Men's animated show before it departs our screens — until its third season is released, that is — there'll plenty more mutant mayhem to consume in the weeks ahead.

Want to know the official launch dates that new episodes of this Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) project will make their bow on? See below:

• Season 2 episode 1 — out now
• Season 2 episode 2 — out now
• Season 2 episode 3 — out now
• Season 2 episode 4 — July 8
• Season 2 episode 5 — July 15
• Season 2 episode 6 — July 22
• Season 2 episode 7 — July 29
• Season 2 episode 8 — August 5
• Season 2 episode 9 — August 12

The Ingalls are back, 2026 style. Thanks to Netflix, Laura Ingalls Wilder's hit book series Little House on the Prairie is returning to the small screen, 52 years after it was first adapted.

The 1974 Western-drama ran for nine seasons, starring Michael Landon, Melissa Gilbert, Karen Grassle and Melissa Sue Anderson in the leading roles... but can the 2026 version last as long?

Before new episodes have even hit the streaming service, there's good news: Little House on the Prairie has already been renewed for a second season.

But let's not get ahead of ourselves just yet — when is season 1 available to watch?

What time can I watch Little House on the Prairie on Netflix?

Little House on the Prairie drops on Netflix on Ju1y 9, 2026.

As for exact time, it should be the standard 12am PT release that previous hit shows such as Emily in Paris have enjoyed.

For global regions, here's when you need to be prepared:

• US – 12am PT / 3am ET
• Canada – 12am PT / 3am ET
• UK – 8am BST
• India – 12:30pm IST
• Singapore – 3pm SGT
• Australia – 6pm AEST
• New Zealand – 8pm NZDT

When do new episodes of Little House on the Prairie come out?

All eight episodes of Little House on the Prairie will likely be its standard release schedule going forward.

There's currently no word on when season 2 might be released, though it is thought to be in production.

Many of the best VPNs come with ad-blockers built in, meaning you can surf the web uninterrupted, but when it comes to watching live broadcasts like the 2026 World Cup online, ad-blockers can bring your entire stream to a standstill.

Those using an ad-blocker on a streaming service usually have no problems – until the ad break, at which time the screen can freeze or turn black.

This is because many streaming sites use server-side ad insertions (SSAI), which deliver ads from the same pre-browser server as the rest of the broadcast, rather than through a third-party domain.

When the VPN’s ad-blocker detects an advertisement, it shuts down the entire viewing experience, rather than only the ads – because the ads and broadcast are coming from the same place. Your ad-blocker can’t tell the difference between the two and calls time on your stream.

Thankfully, most VPNs will allow you to switch off ad-blocking. So, you just need to remember to do that when you're using an ad-funded World Cup streaming service, like ITVX. (It's not a problem on ad-free ones like iPlayer.)

If you don't currently have a VPN for the World Cup, then give Norton VPN a try. It's very good for streaming and has a 60-day money-back guarantee. That's double the length of over VPNs.

It's also more than enough time to cover you for the rest of the World Cup.

It's simple enough to switch off Norton's ad blocker. Go to the settings cog and find the Ad Tracker Blocking toggle. (It's in the VPN preferences tab if you're using a laptop). Then switch it off. Simple.

If you are hesitant to switch off your ad-blocking tools completely, there is a fairly techy workaround if you really want.

While streaming, open your browser’s developer tools and watch the network tab as the stream crashes – this should show you the blocked tracking domain.

You can then add that URL to your ad blocker’s whitelist, which will keep the video running while continuing to block other ads.

It’s worth noting that one of Norton’s competitors, Windscribe, allows users to create custom whitelisting rules by site with it’s R.O.B.E.R.T tool (yes, that's its actual name), meaning you won’t need to switch off ad-blocking while enjoying a match. Check out our Windscribe VPN review for details.

Walk deep into Walt Disney Imagineering’s sprawling, surprisingly unassuming Glendale campus, and you’ll eventually find Studio C.

It’s where Imagineering mixes the audio for its attractions, but when I recently stepped inside, I quickly realized it was much more than a recording studio. The room is lined with dozens upon dozens of speakers designed to recreate the sound field of Disney attractions, letting Imagineers hear a ride long before guests ever do.

During my visit, I watched a live mix session for Zootopia: Hot Pursuit, Shanghai Disneyland’s trackless dark ride, and the experience was almost uncanny. Sound moved seamlessly around the room, tracking the ride vehicle as though I were actually inside the attraction.

That same room became the proving ground for one of Imagineering’s most unusual engineering challenges yet: figuring out how to mix the audio for Soarin’ Across America.

The reimagined version of Disney’s iconic flight simulator debuted this summer at both EPCOT at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida, and Disney California Adventure in Anaheim, California, timed for America’s Semiquincentennial celebration. Disney’s Unscripted behind-the-scenes video confirmed that Imagineers used the Apple Vision Pro during production of Soarin’ Across America, but it left one obvious question unanswered: why? That’s what I wanted to find out.

So I spoke with Greg Lhotka, Sr. Manager, Audio Media Design at Walt Disney Imagineering, who walked me through the surprisingly complicated process behind mixing one of Disney’s most technically demanding attractions.

“For Soarin’ Across America, we utilized Studio C not only as a production facility, but as a proving ground for an entirely new field-mixing approach developed specifically for this film. On the sound design side, we partnered with Skywalker Sound, and together we used Studio C to prototype and validate a custom speaker configuration that closely mirrors the unique audio architecture of the Soarin’ theaters.”

If you’ve ridden Soarin’, you already know why that matters. Riders are lifted into the air in three stacked rows facing a massive curved projection screen, while sound moves not only around the theater but above and below you as well. As Lhotka explained, the attraction uses a four-tiered speaker system — upper, mid-level, lower, and a dedicated floor array — creating an audio environment that’s far more complex than a traditional movie theater.

Having now ridden Soarin’ Across America several times, it’s easy to appreciate the result. The updated film sweeps from New York Harbor and the Grand Canyon to California’s rolling hills and countless landscapes in between through soaring aerial cinematography, practical effects, and a soundtrack that glides almost effortlessly alongside you. The audio shifts just as fluidly as the visuals, making each transition feel natural as the ride carries you across some of America’s most recognizable landmarks and scenic vistas.

Studio C could simulate much of that during production, but not all of it.

“For Soarin’ films, mixing historically required the construction of scaffolding inside the theater to reach the appropriate listening height for final mix decisions,” Lhotka explained. “Even then, the process was far from ideal, as the ride canopy significantly influences the acoustics. For this project, one of the key requirements was that the theater remain fully operational and open to guests throughout production — eliminating the possibility of scaffolding altogether.”

That constraint forced Imagineering to rethink its entire workflow.

“The challenge was clear: how do you mix a show with over 1,000 audio tracks and an extremely complex panning matrix while seated in a ride vehicle? The solution came through an innovative use of new AR technologies. By leveraging advanced screen-sharing capabilities, we were able to remotely control our production system — directly connected to the theater — while seated in the ride vehicle itself. This allowed us to place virtual screens in our field of view, effectively bringing the mixing console into the theater environment.”

Before anyone tested it inside the attraction, Studio C became the test lab.

“Studio C once again played a critical role as our testbed. Over the course of a week, we evaluated multiple configurations to confirm that things could be controlled precisely in this way, and that the AR headset’s external cameras would allow us to view the film clearly in the theater’s low-light conditions while simultaneously monitoring the virtual screens. The final configuration exceeded expectations.”

Once validated, the workflow moved from experiment to production.

“This workflow was ultimately used as the solution — and it became the method by which Soarin’ Across America was mixed. The result is a soundtrack that was shaped directly from the guest’s perspective, using tools and techniques that reflect our continued commitment to innovation, immersion, and storytelling.”

Having experienced Studio C for myself, that revelation immediately clicked. The room is already designed to recreate the feeling of sitting inside a Disney attraction with remarkable accuracy. But even a purpose-built facility couldn’t perfectly replicate Soarin’s unique acoustics. The only place left to finish the mix was inside the attraction itself.

It’s an elegant solution that solved two problems at once. Guests never lost access to Soarin’ during production, and Imagineering’s audio team was able to shape the soundtrack from the exact seat every future rider would occupy. Rather than approximating the experience from scaffolding or even Studio C, the final mix was crafted where it mattered most: inside the attraction itself.

In the least surprising news known to man, Dutton Ranch was renewed for a second season before season 1 had even had time to air its penultimate episode (let alone that explosive finale).

According to Paramount+, season 1 amassed 12.9 million viewers globally in its first seven days following the Yellowstone spinoff's premiere, making it the biggest original series launch in the streamer's history.

But having nailed so many aspects of Beth (Kelly Reilly) and Rip's (Cole Hauser) new life in Rio Paloma, the numbers make complete sense.

But with Dutton Ranch season 2 now official, what do we know about its development so far?

Dutton Ranch season 2 release window predictions

Currently, there's no confirmed word on when Dutton Ranch season 2 will air. However, it wouldn't be surprising for it to adopt the production of other Taylor Sheridan-produced shows like Landman, which gives us a rough guess.

The best-case scenario is that season 2 will film in late 2026, bringing episodes to the small screen in the first half of 2027. However, we could easily be left waiting until the latter half of the year, too.

Dutton Ranch season 2 trailer: is there one?

Don't be silly. It took us until early May 2026 to get one for season 1, so expect the first full trailer to arrive around two weeks before the second season does.

Dutton Ranch season 2 cast

We're expecting the following main cast members to return for Dutton Ranch season 2:

• Kelly Reilly as Beth Dutton
• Cole Hauser as Rip Wheeler
• Finn Little as Carter Green
• Juan Pablo Raba as Joaquin Jackson Reyes
• Jai Courtney as Rob-Will Jackson
• J. R. Villarreal as Azul Ramos
• Marc Menchaca as Zachariah Moss
• Natalie Alyn Lind as Oreana Lynn Jackson
• Ed Harris as Everett McKinney, the local veterinarian in Rio Paloma and a Vietnam War Navy veteran
• Morgan Wade as Carol
• Berto Colón as Miguel
• David DeLao as Claudio
• Josh Stewart as Sheriff Handy Wade
• Sterlin English as Austin Lewis

We can also expect new faces to join the cast, so watch this space.

Dutton Ranch season 2 plot predictions

Spoilers for season 1 ahead.

While no specific plot points have been confirmed (and likely won't be for a while), it makes sense for Dutton Ranch season 2 to pick up exactly where the season 1 finale left off.

Obviously, there are quite a few questions that need answering here. The most pressing is whether Carter will survive his kidnapping, and whether Beth and Rip can get to him before anything bad happens.

Then we'll have the fallout of Rob-Will's death, which will definitely have messed with Joaquin's mind. This is also going to affect Mariano's standing in the 10 Petal business, arguably likely to see even more power than he had before.

Beulah, meanwhile, has absolutely nothing to her name. She needs to grieve Rob-Will, but Everett wants nothing to do with her, so her next moves cannot be immediately guessed.

Then, there's Oreana. Will she keep the baby? Will Beth be there to support her? And will Rio Paloma ever be the same again?

However, because there's set to be a change in showrunner (more on that below), a major shift in narrative tone and/or direction can't be ruled out. We'll know more on this once a replacement has been announced.

Who will take over as Dutton Ranch showrunner?

As you might have heard, season 1 showrunner Chad Feehan exited the series a few weeks before its launch, after alleged on-set tension with Reilly, Hauser, and executive producer Taylor Sheridan.

Industry rumors have suggested that another writer would take over as lead showrunner, but this has so far been unconfirmed.

Sheridan has not directly led a Yellowstone spinoff since 1883 and 1923, but you can read more about why he'd be my ideal choice (because I won't stop going on about it).

Avengers: Secret Wars is set to bring down the curtain on Marvel's wildly inconsistent Multiverse Saga. And, even though the much-anticipated movie isn't due to land in theaters until December 17, 2027, some details about its plot, cast, and eventual impact on the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) have already been confirmed by those involved in its production.

Luckily for you, I've rounded up the latest and biggest news on the sixth Avengers film in this guide. So, if you simply can't wait to get the lowdown on the sequel to this year's Avengers: Doomsday, read on.

Avengers: Secret Wars release date

Avengers: Secret Wars will be jettisoned into theaters worldwide on December 17, 2027.

Originally, it was supposed to come out on May 7, 2027 — Marvel confirming as much during its Hall H panel at the 2024 San Diego Comic-Con (SDCC). However, in May 2025, Marvel announced Doomsday and Secret Wars would be delayed by seven months. The former, which was due out on May 1, 2026, will now drop on December 18, 2026, with Secret Wars debuting almost exactly one year later.

Marvel has never explained why their launches were pushed back. However, the sheer scale of these productions, plus the criticism leveled at Marvel Studios over the varying quality of its Multiverse Saga projects, means they need as much development time as possible to be as good as we hope they'll be.

Avengers: Secret Wars trailer — is there one?

No, and we definitely won't see one before Avengers: Doomsday is released. After all, Marvel isn't going to spoil what happens in the aforementioned film before we get to see it.

My best guess is that a brief teaser will receive its worldwide premiere during Marvel's Hall H panel at SDCC 2027, before a full trailer is unveiled much closer to Avengers: Secret Wars' release date. In short, we'll be waiting a long time to see some footage.

Avengers: Secret Wars cast — confirmed and rumored

Avengers: Secret Wars' cast hasn't been confirmed because — again — that would spoil who'll survive the events of Avengers: Doomsday.

However, some actors have already ruined the surprise by confirming they'll be back in Avengers 6. Additionally, some respected news outlets have also reported on other individuals who might appear. Potentially huge spoilers immediately follow for Secret Wars, so read on at your own risk:

• Robert Downey Jr as Doctor Victor von Doom
• Chris Evans as Steve Rogers/Original Captain America
• Chris Hemsworth as Thor
• Paul Bettany as Vision
• Simu Liu as Shang-Chi
• Letitia Wright as Shuri/Black Panther
• Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Ben Grimm/The Thing
• Sadie Sink as TBC

It goes without saying that Downey Jr's Doom will return. He's the Big Bad of the Multiverse Saga's two-part concluding, so he'll be back for round two.

Meanwhile, Evans confirmed he'll be part of proceedings in a video call with a fan. Serial MCU leaker Mark Ruffalo, who plays Bruce Banner/The Hulk in Marvel's cinematic franchise, has also let slip that Hemsworth's Thor will show up in Secret Wars.

Ebon Moss-Bachrach, who portrays Ben Grimm/The Thing, announced his involvement by saying filming will begin this August, so, we'll see at least one member of The Fantastic Four in Secret Wars. Speaking to people.com, Simu Liu also revealed Shang-Chi is involved in Avengers 6, while Letitia Wright told ScreenRant she'll show up, too.

Furthermore, Paul Bettany told The Telegraph that he's "got some Avengers duties" to do, which all but confirms he's part of the cast. Lastly, rumors abound that Sadie Sink will have a role to play in Secret Wars following the debut of her mystery character in Spider-Man: Brand New Day.

There are bound to be more cast announcements, including confirmation that one of Marvel's most bankable stars, Tom Holland, who portrays Peter Parker and his superhero alias Spider-Man, will appear (NB: For what it's worth, Holland has already teased he'll be involved). Once further details about this film's ensemble come to light, I'll update this section.

Avengers: Secret Wars story speculation

Predictably, Marvel hasn't unveiled Secret Wars' story synopsis yet. Nonetheless, directors Joe and Anthony Russo have dropped hints on what we can expect.

For starters, the Russo brothers, who are also helming Secret Wars' predecessor — for more on that, find out everything we know so far about Avengers: Doomsday — exclusively told me they "will draw inspiration" from both of Marvel's Secret Wars comic book storylines.

The literary pair, which came out in 1984 and 2015, shares some narrative similarities (for instance, both explore the Marvel Multiverse), but mainly tell distinct tales. Expect the Russos to cherry-pick elements from both comic book runs, then, to help them tell their own original story.

Again, it's unclear how its narrative will play out. However, last March, a major Marvel concept art leak appeared to give us our very first look at what could happen in Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars. The images were only live for a brief spell before they were pulled offline, which suggests they were legitimate. That said, the vast majority of pre-vis artwork is never used in a film or TV show, so it's possible they were never used further during the development process.

On the recent rumor front, the final Marvel Phase 6 project won't be split into two. There was speculation that, given the significance and scale of its plot, plus how many characters could be involved, Avengers: Secret Wars could be turned into a duology of its own. Marvel has stayed quiet on this, but numerous reliable industry insiders have shot down this particular piece of gossip since it emerged in February, so it's highly unlikely to happen.

Anyway, once Avengers 5 is released, we'll have a clearer idea of what Secret Wars' plot will entail. Until then, the above is the best information available to us.

How will Avengers: Secret Wars impact the Marvel Cinematic Universe

The likeliest scenario would involve something of a reset of the MCU as we know it.

There's no denying that Marvel's cinematic juggernaut has become more unwieldy with each phase. The introduction of more and more heroes and villains (not all of whom have proven to be popular with audiences), plus the laborious amount of homework required of viewers before they watch one of Marvel's new movies in theaters or TV shows on Disney+, means a rebooting of the comic giant's cinematic franchise would be welcomed by diehards and newcomers alike.

It seems like we'll be getting that, too. The Russos have suggested that the next two Avengers films will be a "new beginning" for the MCU. Additionally, Marvel President Kevin Feige told Variety that the MCU 2.0 will return to a "singular timeline" that, among other things, will introduce viewers to a brand-new version of the X-Men, aka the comic titan's famous mutant superteam.

It remains to be seen which established characters will make the leap to the new MCU, but I'd be surprised if fan favorites like Spider-Man aren't a part of it. Throw in the likely recasting of Black Panther, the retention of The Fantastic Four, and the introduction of new heroes who are currently popular in Marvel Comics, and the MCU won't be going anywhere anytime soon after Avengers: Secret Wars.

We are officially halfway through 2026 — how did that happen??? — but the world's best streaming services aren't letting up on the new movies and TV shows front.

Indeed, this week's selection might be on the smaller side, but every entry we've rounded up below is definitely worthy of your time. Quality over quantity, and all of that jazz. So, what are you waiting for? Read on to find out what your next must-see film or TV series is. — Tom Power, senior entertainment reporter

X-Men 97 season 2 (Disney+)

Get ready to hum and air-drum along to that iconic theme tune, Marvel fans, because X-Men 97 is back for its sophomore season on Disney+.

Picking up directly after X-Men 97 season 1's finale, the highly-rated animated X-Men TV show finds the world-famous mutants scattered across time as they all attempt to avert the same crisis. That being, the world falling under the totalitarian rule of the immortal superhuman known as Apocalypse.

X-Men 97 season 2's first three episodes are out now, and you'll be able to see one new entry of this Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) adjacent project every week for the foreseeable future. So, grab a bowl of cereal, throw on your favorite pajamas, and settle in for some more Saturday morning cartoon-style fun... well, in-between all of the weeping that X-Men 97 season 2 will make you do, anyway. — TP

• Watch X-Men 97 season 2 on Disney+

Enola Holmes 3 (Netflix)

Who's ready for another round of Victorian era whimsy and detectiving (yes, that's a word, look it up)? If you raise your hand, you'll be happy to know that Enola Holmes 3 has made its debut on Netflix.

This time around, a spanner is thrown in the works of the titular character's impending wedding to Lord Tewkesbury. The reason? Her more famous cousin Sherlock has been kidnapped. Way to spoil her upcoming nupitals, Mister World's Greatest Detective...

Millie Bobby Brown, Henry Cavill, Helen Bonham Carter, Louis Partridge, and Hamish Patel are among the movie's starry returning ensemble. So, don't delay — load up Netflix because the case is afoot! — TP

• Watch Enola Holmes 3 on Netflix

Elle (Prime Video)

Fictional lawyer Elle Woods is a pop culture sensation and now she's got her own Prime Video series.

Before Legally Blonde comes Elle, a prequel set in 1995 where our upbeat, pink-loving protagonist tries to navigate the tumultuous waters of high school. A tagline for the Amazon TV Original teases that it's even harder than law school was, and we'll soon learn why across this eight-part season.

Here, Lexi Minetree steps into the eponymous character's glamorous shoes, following on from Reece Witherspoon in the original movie. Our entertainment reporter Jasmine Valentine gave Elle a glowing review, but what will you think of the prequel? — Lucy Buglass, senior entertainment writer

• Watch Elle on Prime Video

Lee Cronin's The Mummy (HBO Max)

Not to be confused with the Brendan Fraser-led movie of the same name, Lee Cronin's The Mummy is one of a few new horror movies arriving on HBO Max this month.

In it, we follow a family who is reunited with Katie, their long-missing and now mummified daughter. They soon realize something's wrong with her and what follows is a jump scare heavy, incredibly bloody, and divisive supernatural flick.

You may need to suspend your disbelief for this one, but if you're in need of a good scare this weekend, it definitely does the job. — LB

• Watch Lee Cronin's The Mummy on HBO Max

Ready or Not 2 (Hulu/Disney+)

Ready or Not 2: Here I Come was not a sequel I had anticipated and, in my Ready or Not 2 review, I was certainly on the fence about it.

The sequel, which is out now on Hulu (US) and Disney+ (everywhere else), is fortunately saved by its star power, and it's particularly great to see Sarah Michelle Gellar loving every moment of the character she plays. Here, she's part of an aristocratic group of individuals with murder on their minds, who hunt down Grace (Samara Weaving) and her sister Faith (Kathryn Newton) as part of a high-stakes ritual. — LB

• Watch Ready or Not 2: Here I Come on Hulu (US) and Disney+ (internationally)

Silo season 3 (Apple TV)

It's time to literally unearth more secrets at the heart of this critically-acclaimed Apple TV Original.

Indeed, with Silo back for its third and penultimate episode, the Rebecca Ferguson-led dystopian drama must start giving viewers the answers that they seek. Thankfully, Silo season 3 does just that, with its separate timelines — one of which is set centuries before the Earth's surface became uninhabitable — starting to pull back the curtain on its wider mystery.

This season's first episode has gone live on Apple's streaming platform. New episodes will air weekly, too, so prepare yourself for nine more weeks of twists, turns, betrayals, and other shocks aplenty. — TP

• Watch Silo season 3 on Apple TV

Worst Neighbor Ever (Netflix)

Finally, Netflix has a new spin-off for their Worst Ever documentary series. We've seen worst exes and worst roommates, and now we're taking a look at the neighbors from hell.

There's harassment, paranoia and, even murder across its four episodes, which features insights from local law enforcement and those involved in the neighborly disputes that got way out of hand, often ending in irreparable hurt and damage.

You won't believe some of these stories, but they're 100% true and among the most shocking you'll find in Netflix's true crime library. — LB

• Watch Worst Neighbor Ever on Netflix

• Reacher season 4 is coming to Prime Video in mid-August
• All episodes of new spin-off show Neagley will drop after the former's finale, too
• Many fans had assumed it would arrive prior to Reacher 4

Reacher season 4 finally has a release date on Prime Video — and we don't have long to wait for its debut. Indeed, the hugely successful Amazon TV Original's next entry will premiere on Wednesday, August 12, which is a little over a month away at the time of publication.

We don't have a trailer for the forthcoming installment yet, but we've received some other exciting news alongside Reacher 4's launch date in the form of new spin-off series Neagley, which is also arriving soon.

Focusing on fan-favorite character Frances Neagley, the off-shoot's story is set after the events of Reacher season 3, so you'd think it would drop prior to Reacher's next season, wouldn't you? Not so, because Neagley won't released until Wednesday, September 16 — i.e. the day that the Reacher season 4 finale also comes out.

We're really jumping around the timeline here, but I'm sure long-time fans of the show will be happy to get a double dose of Reacher goodness anyway.

What do we know about Reacher season 4?

Plot-wise, Reacher season 4 adapts the 13th novel in Lee Child's Jack Reacher book series, which is titled Gone Tomorrow. In it, the eponymous all-action hero witnesses a suicide that pulls him into a huge, multi-layered conspiracy. We can expect undercover terrorists, local police, the FBI, and more when the show returns for a gripping new story.

The forthcoming season won't be this series' last, either, because Reacher season 5 was renewed by Prime Video last month. So, we can expect even more from the hugely popular thriller series down the road.

Reacher season 3 became Prime Video's biggest returning show last year and has quite the dedicated fanbase. It will be interesting to see how Neagley performs in comparison, then, especially if Amazon has ambitions on making even more off-shoots.

Spoilers for Dutton Ranch episode 9 ahead.

I knew that the season finale of Dutton Ranch was going to be a corker, and the Yellowstone spinoff hasn't let me down.

Last week, episode 8 saw Carter (Finn Little) flip out at Beth (Kelly Reilly) and Rip (Cole Hauser) separately, both feeling alienated after their move to Rio Paloma and suffocated by their decisions for his life.

A week on, and Carter is no longer the main player in our drama. Beulah (Annette Bening) is now out of the hospital after a heart attack at the 10 Petal anniversary party, and her decision to announce Rob-Will (Jai Courtney) as her successor is now starting to have serious repercussions.

But in the season finale, everyone needs to watch their back. Here's a full Dutton Ranch episode 9 breakdown, including what you need to watch out for when season 2 hits Paramount+.

Beth and Rip find fentanyl in 10 Petal's latest cattle shipment

We join episode 9 as Rip and Beth are intercepting a cattle shipment arriving at 10 Petal. Rob-Will arrives and tells the pair to get off his property, causing Rip to punch him in the face when he insults Beth.

An incredibly satisfying fight unfolds, leaving Rob-Will on the floor with a bloodied nose. Beth picks up his cattle book, calling out numbers to be hauled to one side.

Everett (Ed Harris) is called, and the separate cattle are tested. Making an incision in the first, Everett finds packages of drugs — that we later learn are filled with fentanyl — hidden in the cow, confirming that 10 Petal has been running an illegal drug smuggling business across the Mexican border.

After working through them all, Zachariah (Marc Menchaca) and Azul (J.R. Villarreal) estimate that the drugs have a street value of around $2 million, meaning that somebody is bound to come looking for it... and soon.

Beulah confesses all to Everett

After examining the cattle, Everett returns home to question Beulah. He's furious that she's been lying to everyone around her for so long, especially after claiming that she wanted to "run away" with him at the end of episode 8.

Immediately, she tells him everything. As we already saw in episode 7's flashback scenes, Beulah confesses to ranch hand Mariano (Raoul Max Trujillo) helping her hide Luke’s body.

What we didn't already know is that Luke is Rob-Will’s father, and Beulah’s dad blames Mariano for her assault. He offered Mariana a deal: take the heat and escape to Mexico, and the family would take in baby Joaquin (Juan Pablo Raba).

However, Mariano's wife was killed back at the border, meaning he had extra leverage on the Jackson family. Cut to 15 years before the events of Dutton Ranch, and 10 Petal was on its knees after a drought ruined everything they had.

Joaquin stepped in and offered financial help to Mariano, and the drug smuggling scheme was born. Beulah claims that she's been looking for a way out of it for years, but Everett tells her to leave.

Mariano returns — and immediately threatens everyone

As you might have guessed from Joaquin's phone call at the end of episode 8, Mariano is officially back on the scene. After refusing to help Rob-Will when Beth and Rip unearth the smuggling scheme, Joaquin meets Mariano at a nearby motel.

Joaquin fills Mariano in on basically everything that's happened in the present day, with Mariano seething with rage at the idea of "strangers" being brought in to manage the ranch.

Rob-Will arrives and tells Mariano about the compromised cattle, leading Mariano to call Beth and Rip and threaten them over the phone. He then asks his guys to kill the rest of the 10 Petal ranchers and asks Joaquin to kill Rob-Will.

Oreana finds out that she's pregnant

While all of this is going on, Oreana (Natalie Alyn Lind) finds herself at a crisis point. She finds out that she's pregnant after spontaneously doing a test, having to play off her fear when Beth arrives to ask if Oreana has seen Carter.

Without Beth knowing, Oreana immediately tracks Carter down to Dwight's (Ray McKinnon) old farm, where the pair share beers and talk about their woes. Oreana convinces Carter to call Beth, who's been relentlessly trying to get hold of him since his episode 8 disappearance. He does, but puts the phone down when Beth asks him to come home.

Back at 10 Petal, Oreana convinces Carter that they should elope, not telling him about the pregnancy. Carter is only too happy to do so, and the pair begin to pack their bags while Carter sneaks home to get his stuff.

Rob-Will dies after Joaquin's drive-by murder

While Oreana is packing, Rob-Will arrives home to see her. Oreana tells him that she's leaving, and instead of discouraging her, Rob-Will says that there's nothing for either of them at 10 Petal or in Rio Paloma, and kisses her.

However, Oreana never actually goes anywhere. A few seconds after leaving her bedroom, Rob-Will is found bleeding to death in the house's hallway following a loud gunshot. Oreana comes down the stairs quickly enough in time to see a black SUV speeding away, breaking down in tears over her dad's body.

She stays there until Beulah arrives, who cannot believe what has happened. We cut to Joaquin in the car, who is struggling to collect himself.

Mariano's men descend on Dutton Ranch — and kidnap Carter

Not knowing what to do for the best, Beth and Rip have huge decisions to make. Beth raids Beulah's slaughterhouse, but finds nothing aside from a wrangler who wants to beat her up (don't worry, Rip gets there first).

By the time they get home, Beulah is there, with Beth pulling a shotgun on her. Rip convinces Beulah to be let inside the house, where she details the same story that she told Everett earlier.

Beulah claims that she needs the drugs before Mariano can find out that they're missing, with Rip telling her that he's already got Zachariah to load them up in her car.

Obviously, the threatening phone call means that Mariano already knows what's up, so Beth, Rip, Azul, Zachariah, and later Everett get ready for Mariano's men to storm their ranch. Sure enough, they surround the house in the dead of night, with a classic shootout then taking place.

All of Mariano's men end up dead, except one, whom Rip takes to a nearby barn and interrogates while suspending him in the air.

At the same time, we see another group of Mariano's men storm into Carter's bedroom, pinning him to the ground before bundling him into a van. Beth gets another phone call, with Mariano confirming that they've kidnapped Carter.

The final scene of episode 9 shows Beth running into the barn in tears and telling Rip, "They've got him."

Season 2 predictions

Obviously, there are quite a few questions that need answering here. The most pressing is whether Carter will survive his kidnapping, and whether Beth and Rip can get to him before anything bad happens.

Then we'll have the fallout of Rob-Will's death, which will definitely have messed with Joaquin's mind. This is also going to affect Mariano's standing in the 10 Petal business, arguably likely to see even more power than he had before.

Beulah, meanwhile, has absolutely nothing to her name. She needs to grieve Rob-Will, but Everett wants nothing to do with her, so her next moves cannot be immediately guessed.

Then, there's Oreana. Will she keep the baby? Will Beth be there to support her? And will Rio Paloma ever be the same again?

I hope you're ready for another episode of House of the Dragon season 3, because its next chapter is right around the corner.

This week's entry will be with us in less than 72 hours — and, without wanting to drum up the hype to unprecedented levels, this is easily my favorite of the four episodes I saw before writing my House of the Dragon season 3 review.

I'll refrain from saying anything else because, well, spoilers — but also because you're here to find out when and where the Game of Thrones prequel's next episode will be available. So, read on for more details.

What time can I watch House of the Dragon season 3 episode 3?

House of the Dragon's next installment will premiere on Sunday, July 5 at 6pm PT / 9pm ET in North and South America.

Meanwhile, viewers who live on other continents will have to wait until Monday, July 6 to check out the high fantasy show's forthcoming episode. Thanks to the aforementioned times, though, we know when it'll be available in other regions:

• US — Sunday, July 5 at 6pm PT / 9pm ET
• Canada — Sunday, July 5 at 6pm PT / 9pm ET
• UK — Monday, July 6 at 2am BST
• India — Monday, July 6 at 6:30am IST
• Singapore — Monday, July 6 at 9am SGT
• Australia — Monday, July 6 at 11am AEST
• New Zealand — Monday, July 6 at 1pm NZST

What streaming service can I watch House of the Dragon's third season on?

Where it's available, HBO Max, aka one of the world's best streaming services, should be your first port of call.

There are numerous nations, including Canada and India, in which the Warner Bros. Discovery-owned platform hasn't launched yet, but that doesn't mean you won't be able to catch it. Check out the list below to see where the series airs where you live:

• US — HBO and HBO Max
• Canada — Crave
• UK — HBO Max, Sky Atlantic, and Now TV
• India — JioHotstar
• Singapore — HBO Max
• Australia — HBO Max
• New Zealand — HBO Max

How many episodes are there in House of the Dragon season 3?

Eight — and, just like this week's entry and the two before it, new episodes will air every Sunday in the Americas, and every Monday everywhere else, until this season's finale comes out in August.

You can find the release dates for each chapter below:

• House of the Dragon season 3 episode 1 — out now
• House of the Dragon season 3 episode 2 — out now
• House of the Dragon season 3 episode 3 — July 5/6
• House of the Dragon season 3 episode 4— July 12/13
• House of the Dragon season 3 episode 5 — July 19/20
• House of the Dragon season 3 episode 6 — July 26/27
• House of the Dragon season 3 episode 7 — August 2/3
• House of the Dragon season 3 episode 8 — August 9/10

Project Hail Mary, starring Ryan Gosling and based on the best-selling sci-fi book of the same name by Andy Weir, is now streaming on Amazon Prime Video in Australia.

It’s shaping up to be one of the best movies of 2026 so far, with TechRadar’s senior entertainment reporter, Tom Power, giving the film a glowing 4.5 stars. And he’s not alone — Project Hail Mary currently has a Rotten Tomatoes score of 94%, with audiences rating it higher at 95%. It’s also already the 2nd most-watched show on the platform today.

So, how pleased am I to learn it arrives on Amazon’s streaming platform at the perfect time, with the retailer’s biggest sale event, Prime Day, set to start next week.

To stream Project Hail Mary on Prime Video, you’ll need a Prime membership — which will also grant you access to all the tantalising deals during next week’s sale — and if you haven’t had an account before, you can sign up for a free 30-day trial.

Having seen Project Hail Mary myself, I am in complete agreement with the praise heaped by my colleague Tom and the Rotten Tomatoes scores — Project Hail Mary has become my favourite feel-good movie of the year, and to quote my colleague Tom’s review, it’s nothing short of “amaze, amaze, amaze” with how much it moved me. If you haven’t seen this movie yet, I can confidently say that you’re in for an absolute treat. And if you have seen it before, I’m positive that you’d want to watch it again.

The movie follows Gosling as a high school teacher who wakes up aboard a spaceship light-years from Earth, not remembering who he was and how he got there. He later finds out that he’s been tasked to save humanity by finding out more about a mysterious substance that’s causing our Sun to slowly die. He is joined by an adorable alien named Rocky in this adventure that puts you on the edge of your seat, while tugging on your heartstrings and tickling your funny bone in the process.

Once you’re done watching Project Hail Mary, there are plenty more options to choose from, too. New additions like Elle, the Legally Blonde prequel, Clarkson’s Farm season 5 and season 2 of Aussie sitcom Deadloch are some great ones to check out. Some older movies I can recommend on Prime Video are the classic comedies Superbad, Hot Fuzz and Ace Ventura: Pet Detective.

• Warner Bros will adapt Trevor Henderson's Siren Head for the big screen
• Weapons director Zach Cregger and Whalefall's  Brian Duffield are working on the script
• This news comes after A24's Backrooms became the second highest grossing horror movie of 2026

We're seeing a trend of Creepypasta adaptations coming back, and Siren Head is the next internet horror phenomenon to be adapted for the big screen.

Creepypasta-based movies have varied in quality over the years, whether it's the terrible Slender Man or the critically acclaimed Backrooms, and it seems we're about to get even more new horror movies based on these terrifying online tales.

When it comes to Siren Head, it already has a strong team behind it. Trevor Henderson's original creation has been picked up by Warner Bros., with Weapons' Zach Cregger and Whalefall's Brian Duffield working on the script, according to reports from Deadline.

Siren Head has all the ingredients to be a successful horror movie, but it's, of course, too early to say if it will ever reach the heights of Backrooms, which became the second highest-grossing horror movie of 2026 with box office takings of $331 million.

The question is, will a Siren Head movie work as a feature length? At the moment, I'm not entirely convinced.

Siren Head's short film was good, but I'm not sure a feature length movie is necessary

Sometimes, less is more. That's how I feel about Siren Head, as the creepy cryptid is well suited to short-form entertainment like YouTube videos and quick horror games. Will it have the same impact with a longer runtime?

Creepypasta stories are often quite simple, and Siren Head is no exception. The creature is known for camouflaging with its surroundings before attacking anyone in its vicinity, with the Siren Head wiki page explaining it is responsible for "a large number of disappearances across suburbia and rural environments".

Scary as it is, I'm worried there's not enough substance to make this work, and we may get bored with Siren Head's modus operandi of chasing and killing anyone in its path, seemingly for no reason, before doing it all over again.

Backrooms, on the other hand, is more of a slow burn and requires deep exploration to uncover the true horror, which is why I think it has done exceptionally well theatrically. There are lots of areas, lore, and monsters to explore, and the Backrooms fandom is full of fan-created levels featuring new threats and ideas.

Like the Backrooms, the storytelling possibilities seem infinite. It is a vast, terrifying space with weird set design and that signature dark ambient sound design to keep us on edge. Any character can set foot in it, often no-clipping out of reality unexpectedly. It's ripe for multiple adaptations and interpretations, whereas Siren Head may not live up to that.

But, as I said, there is a strong team behind it. We may well be headed into a new era of very effective Creepypasta adaptations, and I'm excited if that's true.

I'll be following Siren Head closely, and I hope it'll be a thrilling feature-length adaptation after all.

The best streaming services have added plenty of new movies to their library in July and, as always, there are some horror gems among them.

Many of these horror movies were released at the beginning of July, meaning you can stream them immediately. Others require a bit of a wait, but based on their trailers alone, I'm sure they'll be worth it.

Here are the horror movies I recommend checking out in July 2026.

Talk to Me 

When: July 1
Where: Netflix (US); rent or buy (UK, AU)

Talk to Me was a hugely successful debut from filmmaking brothers Danny and Michael Philippou. After starting out on YouTube, they released this feature film and scared people all over the world.

It follows a group of teenagers as they discover they can contact spirits via a mysterious embalmed hand. They become hooked on the thrill of it until a seemingly innocent party game gets out of control and someone unleashes terrifying supernatural forces. Their second movie, Bring Her Back, is just as good, and you can find it on HBO Max.

World War Z

When: July 1
Where: Prime Video (US); Paramount+ (UK); rent or buy (AU)

Brad Pitt's zombie movie World War Z is a perfect choice if you want a blend of action and horror. The movie is based on the novel of the same name by Max Brooks, and follows Pitt's character Gerry — a former United Nations investigator who travels the world seeking a solution for a zombie apocalypse.

It was a huge box office success at the time of its release, and now you can watch it across the best streaming services. This is one of the zombie movies I go back to, as it's a shot of pure adrenaline.

The Witch 

When: July 1
Where: Netflix (US); rent or buy (UK, AU)

Robert Eggers' The Witch is streaming on Netflix, and considering the trailer for his new movie Werewulf dropped recently, now is the perfect time to watch his first folk horror movie.

Eggers is a huge name in the horror genre now, where he has become known for his love of period settings and mythology. This brilliant horror was also the feature film debut for lead star Anya Taylor-Joy, where she plays a woman who lives in a Puritan family and is accused of being a witch. Keep an eye out for Black Philip too, my favorite character of the bunch.

The Ring

When: July 1
Where: Paramount+ (US, UK); rent or buy (AU)

Gore Verbinski's The Ring is a remake of the iconic Japanese horror, but it's no less brilliant. The English-language version has become a staple among many horror fans, and now you can relive the terrifying moments on Paramount+.

The well loved (and feared) movie follows a journalist who discovers a cursed VHS tape that causes its viewers to die seven days later. It's a classic for a reason and if you haven't seen it yet, I strongly recommend it.

Exit 8

When: July 17
Where: Shudder (worldwide)

Exit 8 is one of the great liminal-focused horrors that was released this year, and you can now relive the nightmare on Shudder. I loved this adaptation of the classic horror game, as we follow a man trapped in a never-ending subway tunnel.

Despite taking place in one location, it will leave you on the edge of your seat as you try to figure out if escape is possible for our poor protagonist, known only as The Lost Man. In my interview with director Genki Kawamura he described it as being "like purgatory", and I couldn't agree more.

Saccharine

When: July 24
Where: Shudder (worldwide)

Saccharine taps into the dangerous world of extreme weight-loss trends, and this one is especially disturbing. We follow Hana, a medical student who begins eating human ashes in an effort to lose weight quickly.

If that wasn't strange enough, it gets even stranger. Hana soon finds herself terrorized by the ghost of the person she's eating, making this a unique and truly frightening supernatural horror movie.

Nightborn 

When: July 31
Where: Shudder (worldwide)

Finally, Nightborn arrives on Shudder at the end of the month. Here, Seidi Haarla and Rupert Grint star as new parents living in the Finnish forest. We follow them over the course of one year as they discover that there's something wrong with their baby.

Nightborn explores well-known horror themes like anxieties around motherhood. Director Hanna Bergholm has done this before with the brilliant movie Hatching, and I'm excited to see where her latest story goes.

The third — and likely final — season of Squid Game dropped worldwide just a few days ago. Perhaps you're eking out the final episodes, or maybe you've binged them all already. Either way, if you're a fan who's keen to express their enthusiasm (or struggling to say goodbye to the show), there's all kinds of merch available to help you do just that.

Below, I've rounded up my favorite merch. My picks include water bottles, totes, mugs and even a buildable recreation of the show's iconic staircase, but really my favorite is the Red Guard crochet set. I can't think of a better way to mark the end of the Squid Game era. (There's also a yarn player, Young-HEE and Front Man, if you fancy). I've focused on non-clothing items here, but you'll find plenty of Squid Game tees, tanks and sweatshirts at Hot Topic or Box Lunch if that's your preference.

Not started the new season yet? You're in for a treat. In our Squid Game season 3 review, our reviewer praised the "emotionally charged plot beats, twists and turns... hyperviolence, and unrelenting tension" and declared it "a nail-biting, poignant last hurrah" for the show.

Squid Game merch

• Backrooms is getting an extended cut, which will be in theaters from July 4
• The movie will be titled Backrooms: Everything Must Go and features 16 minutes of new footage
• Backrooms is the second-highest-grossing horror movie of 2026 so far

Backrooms was a monumental success for A24, becoming the second-highest-grossing horror movie of 2026 so far. Those of you hungry for even more lore won't be disappointed, as an extended cut is coming to theaters.

From July 4, Backrooms: Everything Must Go will be playing in theaters globally, where it will feature 16 minutes of brand-new footage. According to Deadline, the new version will have "more lore, and more Easter eggs for fans."

If you're a fan of the Backrooms lore like me, the promise of even more footage is likely an intriguing one. One of the reasons I keep coming back to the Backrooms is just how deep the online lore goes; I truly could spend hours wandering the place given half the chance. No matter how dangerous it might be.

The hype around Backrooms isn't dying down

It's a great time to be a horror fan right now. Backrooms has caused quite the stir on social media, marking the first time the Creepypasta has been adapted for the big screen.

In an interview with our senior entertainment reporter Tom Power, Backrooms director Kane Parsons spoke about the rise in YouTubers making horror movies from Markiplier's Iron Lung to Curry Barker's Obsession, which is now available on demand.

Parsons said: "A common trait shared by a lot of these YouTube filmmakers is having an established contract with their audience, and treating fans like they're a little more intelligent and cognizant than the average entertainment fan. So, I can't speak to why studios are finally taking notice of us, but I'm glad they are."

With Backrooms re-entering theaters for an extended cut, I am certainly glad that horror is being taken seriously across the board. I can't wait to see what Backrooms: Everything Must Go has in store for us.

Silo season 3 is returning to Apple TV after a year-long break, which is a comparatively short wait for fans of Apple Originals.

The hit dystopian sci-fi series is widely acclaimed as one of the best Apple TV shows, and season 3 sees Juliette Nichols navigating her new role as mayor of Silo 18 while trying to regain her memory after the events of season 2.

There's plenty left to explore when it comes to Silo, and it has been renewed for a fourth season too. For now, here's what you need to know about Silo season 3's arrival on Apple TV.

What time can I watch Silo season 3 on Apple TV?

If you're in the US you can expect the first episode of Silo season 3 to be available on Apple TV on July 3 at 12am PT / 3am ET. Episodes will then drop weekly until the finale on September 4

Internationally, look out for the below times:

• US – 12am PT / 3am ET
• Canada – 12am PT / 3am ET
• UK – 8am BST
• India – 12:30pm IST
• Singapore – 3pm SGT
• Australia – 6pm AEST
• New Zealand – 8pm NZDT

When do new episodes of Silo season 3 come out on Apple TV?

Episode 1: July 3

Episode 2: July 10

Episode 3: July 17

Episode 4: July 24

Episode 5: July 31

Episode 6: August 7

Episode 7: August 14

Episode 8: August 21

Episode 9: August 28

Episode 10: September 4

I'm enjoying the cultural references in all episode titles of Rick and Morty season 9, but this week's, Mortgully: The Last Rickforest, sounds like a complete enigma.

All we have to go on is one short line: "Rick and Morty gotta evolve, broh." Take into account eight and a half seasons of absolute chaos, and this could literally mean anything.

Still, we've only got a few days of speculating left. But when does Rick and Morty season 9 episode 7 arrive on Adult Swim, Hulu, and HBO Max?

What time can I watch Rick and Morty season 9 episode 7 on Adult Swim, Hulu, and HBO Max?

In the US, Rick and Morty season 9 episode 7 will debut on Adult Swim on Sunday, July 5 at 8pm PT / 11pm ET.

Viewers elsewhere, as well as in the US, have two streaming options: Hulu and HBO Max. Episodes should appear on these platforms 24 hours after they've aired on Adult Swim, meaning you can expect episode 7 on Monday, July 6.

These are the timings you need to take note of:

• US – 12am PT / 3am ET
• Canada – 12am PT / 3am ET
• UK – 8am BST
• India – 12:30pm IST
• Singapore – 3pm SGT
• Australia – 6pm AEST
• New Zealand – 8pm NZDT

When do new episodes of Rick and Morty season 9 come out?

Rick and Morty season 9 is set to have 10 episodes. As long as there are no unexpected delays, we can expect it to have the following release schedule:

• Episode 1: out now
• Episode 2: out now
• Episode 3: out now
• Episode 4: out now
• Episode 5: out now
• Episode 6: out now
• Episode 7: July 5
• Episode 8: July 12
• Episode 9: July 19
• Episode 10: July 26

• Lee Cronin's The Mummy is coming to HBO Ma on July 3
• The horror movie is a reimagining of the iconic Mummy franchise
• It follows a mummified young girl who is returned to her family eight years after she disappeared

Lee Cronin's The Mummy is heading to HBO Max on July 3, making it one of the huge new movies heading to the streaming service that month.

The horror movie is a reimagining of The Mummy franchise and features Nasmaranian, an ancient Egyptian demon that possesses victims. The chilling story follows a family who are reunited with their long-missing, mummified daughter, only to learn something is very wrong with her.

This is a much gorier take on the story than the famous Mummy series starring Brendan Fraser, and the movie features scenes of body horror and plenty of great scares.

Take a look at the trailer ahead of its streaming debut.

Lee Cronin's The Mummy was a box office hit, but divided the critics

Plenty of horror fans flocked to see Lee Cronin's The Mummy when it was in theaters, and the movie earned $90 million back from its $22 million budget.

Audiences and critics were left divided by the horror movie, with its two Rotten Tomatoes' scores being wildly different. Critics only awarded Lee Cronin's The Mummy a 45% Tomatometer score, with the consensus being that it was gory and scary, but dragged on too long and relied on cliches and jump scares too much.

The audience were a lot more forgiving here, giving Lee Cronin's The Mummy a 75% approval rating, praising the movie for being highly entertaining and full of gross scenes. It didn't seem to matter if it was predictable because many horror fans did enjoy it regardless.

If you haven't seen it yet, why not check it out this weekend and see which side of the debate you fall on?

When I think of Enola Holmes, one word springs to mind: naff. Average, run-of-the-mill, mundane, as our friends across the world might put it instead.

It's been four years since the sequel and six years since the original movie came to Netflix, and I have no bearing on where it sits culturally. As an avid internet user in my pre "I have a job reviewing film and TV" days, the Millie Bobby Brown-led franchise felt like a complete flop. But look at the trilogy from a critic's perspective, and it's been a solid entry into the streamer's canon.

Watching Enola Holmes 3, I finally get it. As Sherlock's little sister takes on her wildest case — Sherlock (Henry Cavill) himself being kidnapped — I understand the brief writer Jack Thorne is trying to fulfil... a harmless one.

Suitable for all the family thanks to its genuinely fun and compelling (though not exactly unexpected) narrative, Enola Holmes 3 has all the hallmarks of a solid three-star movie. In fact, it's the most three-star movie to ever three-star.

Can you guess the ending? Yes. Do you care? Probably not. Will you look at your phone occasionally while streaming it, or maybe get started on those pesky household chores you keep putting off? I'd put money on it. Will you lose the storyline or interest if you suddenly pop out to make a coffee and keep the TV running? Not in the slightest.

It's safe storytelling at its most entertaining, and I felt a little like I imagine a baby does when a sensory YouTube video presents them with dancing fruit. Gripped, unmoving, but ultimately numb to what's actually going on.

Enola Holmes 3 must have been an actor's dream working holiday — like Mamma Mia! without the singing

If you have an account on X/Twitter or Instagram and are into pop culture, you have probably seen the pictures of the cast wrap party for the 2008 movie version of Mamma Mia! — which involved the likes of Meryl Streep and Colin Firth getting drunk and doing karaoke in Croatia.

In my mind's eye, Enola Holmes 3 had the same effect on its cast. Set and filmed in Malta, the exciting action sequences, picturesque heartfelt scenes walking along the coast, and frequent galivanting around the capital Valette likely amounted to a similar jovial spirit (and imagine a wrap party abroad with a Netflix budget).

The cast is just as stoic as they ever have been, with standout Helena Bonham Carter as a vagrant outsider, a veritable thrill. They're having fun, so we're having fun along with them, with the ingenious use of animated title cards to explain Sherlock lore, a shrewd interactive touch.

It's not particularly taxing or sophisticated as far as storytelling is concerned, but the existence of this IP wouldn't work if it tried to be. Let's stick with tried and tested easy-on-the-eye action, please.

Netflix needs to stop casting actors with 'iPhone face' in its period dramas

Before I come to my main gripe, let me make clear that Millie Bobby Brown is a) beautiful and b) absolutely doesn't deserve to have her appearance critiqued by the internet.

Instead, I wish that the costume and make-up departments had paid closer attention to its continuity, particularly around 'iPhone face' (the theory that someone cast in a period drama has clearly seen an iPhone).

As Brown has matured over the last six years, it's understandable that she'd want make-up that matches where she is in life. The result is that, unlike the previous two movies, she's got a full face of easily identifiable foundation, contour, and lip liner, which definitely wouldn't have been the case in the late 1800s.

Add to this that wider shots show Brown wearing gel acrylic nails — whereas close-ups show her slightly dirtied yet authentic natural nailbeds — and the illusion of a genuine period drama is ruined.

Continuity seems to be a wider issue across Enola Holmes 3, such as shots spliced together in a single scene not properly keeping track of whether someone's eyes have just been opened or closed. Much like the harmless safety of the narrative, it's this lack of attention to detail that keeps the franchise cocooned in its middling category, though armchair detectives might enjoy trying to spot said mishaps.

Still, it all adds to the light-hearted spirit of the piece, doesn't it? How likely is it that Sherlock, the Sherlock Holmes, could really be kidnapped anyway? Just roll with it, as the saying goes.

55 years ago, the legendary Gene Wilder invited us to join him in "a world of pure imagination." Now, a disembodied AI recreation of his sonorous vocals is inviting us to join him in his "my newest wonders beyond imagination."

But there's little-to-nothing imaginative about the use of an AI-generated version of Wilder's voice to help sell Netflix subscribers on a new Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory-themed reality show, and, quite honestly, I hate everything about it.

To catch you up, this new show, which is set to air in September on one of the best streaming services, Netflix, borrows sets (recreations), themes, and even one living actor who played an Oompa Loompa from the original 1971 film to create a reality show that it hopes will somehow, if not match, approach the charm and danger of the original film.

Not getting the point

Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, based on the Roald Dahl bookCharlie and the Chocolate Factory, is a commentary on wealth, poverty, family, risk, and cruelty, all wrapped in a candy-covered fantasy.

The protagonist, Charlie Bucket, is so poor he lives in a ramshackle London cottage with multiple generations of family members, including a grandfather who has not left his bed in years. Meanwhile, Wonka is finally opening up his secretive factory to a select group of the public, chosen at random via golden tickets hidden in some of his candy.

I know, it sounds like a confection, but the first scene in which Wilder appears gives you a hint that this is not your typical children's story. When all the winners, including Charlie, arrive, Wonka (Wilder) unsteadily walks out while using a cane to greet them. As he approaches the gate, Wilder loses his grip on the cane and falls forward, but instead of face-planting, he does an effortless tumble and is suddenly upright and boisterous.

I tell you all this because there is so much complexity and nuance in that one scene and virtually all of it engineered by Wilder's performance. Throughout the film, his face and especially his voice drive the narrative and mood, yo-yoing it between playful host and sinister guide who keeps losing children to one self-imposed calamity after another.

Never before or since have I seen a character in a children's film swing so wildly from gentle and childlike to ominous. It's a wonder the Academy didn't recognize his performance.

Fast forward more than half a century to this streaming show, which uses Wilder's voice with the permission of his family; you can get your first sample of it in the new show trailer (above). Created by increasingly well-known ElevenLabs, the voice is, in my opinion, a poor recreation at best, but I guess I might also call it unmistakably Wilder-like.

It's also depressing. The thing about Wilder's real voice in films like Willy Wonka, The Producers, Stir Crazy, and Young Frankenstein is that it could be wildly emotional. Wilder as a hysteric was often the funniest thing you had ever seen. No one went off the rails like Gene Wilder, but also few other actors could express such warmth and compassion, and sometimes he did it all in a single scene.

At the end of Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, Wonka discovers Charlie is stealing his everlasting gobstopper to deliver it to Wonka's chief competitor. His anger at Charlie is terrifying, but as soon as Charlie leaves the candy behind, Wonka (Wilder) transforms, and the compassion and joy in his voice is something to behold.

The AI Wilder voice in this trailer is devoid of passion, pathos, or really any recognizable human emotion. It's a soulless Gene Wilder.

Look, there's no doubt the power of AI is transforming life and culture. It lets us do things we never thought possible. It's a co-worker, a companion, a sleuth, a coder, and a creator, but we are now at the point where we must ask ourselves: Just because AI can, should it?

I guess we can ask a similar question about the AI-generated Val Kilmer in the unfortunately titled As Deep as the Grave. While I can understand if Kilmer had completed some filming and they wanted to bridge the gap in scenes filmed after his death, this full-scale recreation, even with the estate's permission, seems wrong. I love these actors, but none are irreplaceable, and using their likenesses and voices simply to generate nostalgia and sell a product feels very wrong, and certainly not the best use of AI (and all the resources behind it).

Surely, we can agree that it's often better to let the dead stay dead and not try to resurrect a simulacrum of their essence through the power of AI. The results are, to be honest, rather like the work of Baron Von Frankenstein: a monstrous creation that probably has no place on earth.

• Lego's Olivia Rodrigo collection features five sets inspired by her Guts era
• All sets are available to preorder now ahead of an August 2026 release
• There are multiple Olivia Rodrigo Minifigures to collect

Olivia Rodrigo’s been keeping busy. Just a few weeks after dropping her third album, You Seem Pretty Sad for a Girl So in Love, the pop sensation is making her next move. And it’s a pretty big one that’s good 4 all of us: she’s collaborating with Lego on not one, not three, but five brick-built sets.

In fact, she’s the first musician to get multiple dedicated Lego sets, and they’re all distinctly Olivia Rodrigo, complete with her iconic shade of purple. And maybe most importantly, Olivia is getting her own Minifigures.

Fans who saw Olivia Rodrigo on the Guts World Tour — or streamed the concert on Netflix — will recognize the iconic moon she flew over the audience in the Olivia Rodrigo's Concert Moon set, which is available to preorder for $49.99 / £44.99.

Not only does it include an Olivia Minifigure that can be placed on the purple moon, but the base is also a record player.

You can even use the knobs on the right side of the record player to make the disc spin, causing the moon to rotate. As with most Lego sets, this one is highly interactive, with plenty of hidden details packed into the full build.

If you’re just after a Lego brick-built record, Olivia Rodrigo’s Vinyl is worth a look at $34.99 / £24.99. Made from 360 pieces, it lets you build a vinyl record that can be displayed using a stand on the back. The front features several elements, including a red megaphone — as used on the Guts Tour — a butterfly, stars, and a spot for an Olivia Rodrigo Minifigure.

The flagship set in the Olivia Rodrigo Lego Editions line is the Dual Guitar, which is made up of 1,228 pieces and costs $119.99 / £109.99. You’ll build an iconic purple guitar that stands more than 20 inches tall, includes two Minifigures of Olivia Rodrigo, and features hidden details.

Best of all, it’s half acoustic and half electric, offering the best of both worlds. Beneath the electric side, you’ll find spots for both Minifigures, along with easter eggs that Olivia Rodrigo fans will appreciate. If you've ever wanted to get "obsessed" with the details, this is probably the set you'll spend the most time exploring.

Rounding out the Olivia Rodrigo Lego Editions line are the $79.99 / £69.99 Olivia Rodrigo's Secret Storage set and the $49.99 / £39.99 Flower Bouquet set. All five are available to preorder now from Lego’s online store and will begin shipping on August 1, 2026.

• 2026's breakout movie Obsession has finally made its home debut
• The supernatural horror film is available to rent or buy on specific platforms
• Unfortunately, it isn't available to stream everywhere yet

Obssession, 2026's breakout movie that's had the whole world talking since it landed in theaters on May 15, is finally available to watch at home — but only if you live in specific countries.

The year's biggest surprise package, which cost a reported $750,000 to make and — at the time of publication — has almost surpassed $400m globally, is out now on some of the world's best streaming services.

Right now in the US, you can rent the Curry Barker-directed supernatural horror-romance movie is on premium video on-demand (PVOD) platforms like Apple TV and Amazon for $19.99. Alternatively, you can permanently add it to your digital film collection for $24.99.

For those who've been living under a rock for the past seven weeks and know nothing about it, Obsession tells the tale of Bear (Michael Johnston), a lovesick loser who doesn't know how to tell long-time crush Nicki (Inde Navarrette) how he truly feels.

However, Bear soon discovers a mysterious item called a 'One Wish Willow', which is said to grant any wish that an individual desires. Long story short: Bear buys one and wishes for Nicki to love him more than anything in the world — and it doesn't take long for him to realize he's made a terrible, terrible mistake.

Fuelled by Navarrette's award-worthy standout performance and positive word of mouth, Obsession has had fans, well, obsessed for almost two months now. Armed with a simple but highly effective tale, deeply uncomfortable themes and subject matter, and scenes that'll stay with you long after its credits have rolled, it's essentially this year's Kpop Demon Hunters, albeit without an album's worth of earworm songs and, you know, definitely not being for kids.

Why can't I watch Obsession at home yet?

Ever since Obsession's home release was confirmed via whentostream.com, fans have been desperate to check out one of this year's best-performing and best-rated new movies from the comfort of their couch.

Unfortunately, while cinephiles in the US can definitely check it out from today (June 30), movie fans in other territories aren't so lucky. Indeed, in a thread relating to its digital platform release on r/movies, numerous fans have expressed disappointment that the darkly comedic, jump scare-laden flick isn't available to watch at home in their world region.

Right now, it seems that Obsession can be rented or bought in the US and New Zealand. However, I've checked Prime Video and Apple TV in the UK, and it isn't available on either video on demand (VoD) service. There's no indication as to when it will be, either.

Hopefully, it won't be much longer Obsession makes its way onto PVOD platforms globally — and, once its juggernaut box office run finally comes to end, other streamers including Peacock (US) and Netflix (internationally). Until then, you'll just have to watch it at your local theater for the umpteenth time.

• US DOJ has seized nearly 400 domains
• The sites were being used to illegally stream World Cup games
• Users of the sites were exposed to malware, data theft, and other threats

Almost 400 domains have been seized as part of Operation Offsides - a coordinated global effort to take down sites illegally streaming the FIFA World Cup 2026.

The sites were seized by the US Justice Department's Criminal Division for violating copyright and intellectual property law.

The takedowns were coordinated by members of the International Computer Hacking and Intellectual Property (ICHIP) network.

US and friends enforce the offside rule

Many of the seized domains now display a banner explaining that the website was seized as part of Operation Offsides. “This action was taken to protect consumers and enforce intellectual property rights worldwide,” the banner states.

Back in May 2026, the FBI warned that thousands of domains were being registered ahead of the World Cup, with most set up with the intention to scam fans looking for cheap tickets, access to streaming services, and those looking for discounted merchandise. It appears that Operation Offside was focused on disrupting streaming sites in particular, rather than taking down the wider scam networks associated with these domains.

“We have seized hundreds of domains, used to illegally stream World Cup matches for profit, to disrupt the international networks that profit from the global popularity of the World Cup,” said Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.

“This operation illustrates the Department’s respect for intellectual property rights and the responsibility of the United States as a host nation to protect the FIFA World Cup from criminals. The Criminal Division will continue to disrupt and, where appropriate, seek to prosecute these sites and the subjects responsible for this criminal activity.”

In many cases, the networks of fake domains offering cheap or free access to streaming services are run by cybercriminals deliberately operating at a loss in order to attract users to their services. In return for accessing the streaming site, the domain will use the user’s local network as an exit node for the cybercriminal network, obscuring their traffic and making it appear legitimate.

Unfortunately for the user, who may think they have just found free access to every World Cup game, their network and IP address could be used to distribute malware, cybercriminal communications, and illegal content such as stolen data and exploitative materials - including child sex abuse material.

• A new 4K restoration of Hammer's Dracula is coming to theaters and Blu-ray in October 2026
• Uncensored and with new footage believed to have been lost forever
• Pieced together from 'the best original archival materials sourced from around the world'

Here's a tale to really sink your teeth into: Hammer Films has "painstakingly restored" (pun intended, I assume) the original 1958 Dracula, adding "long-lost" footage and delivering an uncensored cut in full 4K. It'll be coming to movie theaters and home entertainment in October 2026.

This isn't a remaster. It's a resurrection. It features footage that was believed to be lost for over six decades, and which was only ever seen by Japanese cinemagoers in the 1950s. The recovered material is "from the best original archival materials sourced from around the world" and has never been released in the US or UK, nor available for home viewing in either country.

Dracula was the second on-screen pairing of Peter Cushing, who plays Dr Van Helsing, and Christopher Lee, who plays… I'm just checking my notes here… Dracula.

Fangs for the memories

There have been many Dracula movies, but the 1958 one delivered the definitive Drac: as Hammer Films says, Lee's portrayal introduced "the bloodshot eyes, predatory fangs and visceral physicality that became the blueprint for modern vampire mythology and whose influence can still be seen across horror cinema today."

It's hard to overstate Dracula's influence. Everything you'd expect from a Dracula movie — the fangs, the heaving bosoms, the wooden stakes, the suggestion that some women might actually enjoy having their necks bitten by a charismatic count — features here, and the film has frequently been included in rankings of the best films and horror films of all time.

As director Terence Fisher explained to our friends at SFX Magazine, this was the movie that made vampires sexy. "My greatest contribution to the Dracula myth was to bring out the underlying sexual element in the story… At the moment he bites it is the culmination of a sexual experience."

As you can see from the still images above, the restored version looks absolutely spectacular. And the film itself is a masterpiece. As Empire wrote in its retrospective review, "It was garish, it was sexy and it was never afraid to be gory. And with its spectacular ending — in which The Count's flesh peels away and crumbles to dust when caught in the first rays of the morning sun — Dracula created one of the classic images of horror cinema."

According to the wonderfully named John Gore, CEO of Hammer Films and executive chairman of John Gore Studios, “Bringing Dracula back to audiences in 4K goes far beyond a piece of film restoration work. This is the recovery of a piece of British film history that audiences believed had been lost forever. Seeing Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing together again in such extraordinary detail is a reminder of just how powerful this film remains nearly seventy years after its original release.”

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• Another Batman villain-led DC Universe movie is said to be in the works
• It could be the next film to arrive after James Gunn's Superman sequel
• There's bewilderment among fans over which projects are being prioritized by DC Studios

DC fans have expressed confusion and concern over the wider plan for the DC Universe (DCU) amid reports that another Batman villain-led film is being prioritized over one starring The Dark Knight.

With Supergirl enduring a calamitous debut in theaters, pulling in a measly $68 million worldwide, all eyes are on DC Studios co-heads James Gunn and Peter Safran to see if they'll make any sweeping changes to their DCU Chapter One lineup.

Anyone hoping to see or hear that a Batman and/or Wonder Woman movie will be fast-tracked, though, should temper their expectations. That's because, according to The Wrap, the next film set to enter production after Man of Tomorrow, aka the sequel to last year's Superman film, will be... one starring Batman foes Bane and Deathstroke. Yes, really.

Comment from r/DCULeaks

The Wrap's sources aren't the only ones who've heard that this movie could soon be a reality. Indeed, X/Twitter user and reliable industry insider Apocalyptic Horseman has also indicated that a Bane-and-Deathstroke flick is shaping up to be the next big-screen project from the Warner Bros. subsidiary.

This isn't the first time that rumors of such a movie have circulated online. In May, Deadline claimed that the project was not only in early development, but that Greg Mottola (Superbad, Peacemaker) had been tapped to direct it.

Should Messrs Gunn and Safran officially greenlight a Bane and Deathstroke movie, it'll be the third one to feature characters associated with Batman before the Caped Crusader even gets a standalone film.

A project starring shapeshifting Batman enemy Clayface, which lands in theaters this October, is the first of that trio. Meanwhile, a puppet animated flick currently titled Dynamic Duo will introduce the DCU's versions of Dick Grayson and Jason Todd, aka individuals who assume the mantle of iconic Batman sidekick Robin in DC Comics.

Why Supergirl's calamitous debut has put serious pressure on DC Studios' co-chiefs

Comment from r/DCULeaks

Amid the discourse maelstrom that's enveloped DC Studios and Supergirl since the latter's disastrous launch, fans have wondered if Gunn and Safran will go back to the drawing board and rework their entire release strategy.

It appears, though, that they're remaining steadfast in their current approach to their nascent cinematic franchise — and that's certainly riled up some sections of the fanbase.

Indeed, in numerous threads on r/DCULeaks and r/DC_Cinematic, people have expressed their confusion and frustration about the duo focusing their efforts on developing projects that won't star DC Comics' most famous and popular characters.

Comment from r/DC_Cinematic

Some believe that it's now more important than ever to introduce and establish Batman and Wonder Woman in the DCU, and that if it doesn't, DC Studios will face a uphill battle in attracting newcomers to its fledgling universe. Meanwhile, others say that DC Studios should learn from Sony's on-hiatus Spider-Man Universe (SSU), which prioritized stories centered on members of the titular webslinger's rogues gallery and, despite initially doing well, eventually paid the price amid increasingly negative reviews and diminishing box-office returns.

Then there's the small matter of Paramount Skydance's potential buyout of Warner Bros. Pictures. Should it go ahead, some think that the DCU could be axed before it's truly become estabilshed, especially if Clayface underperforms later this year and Lanterns, which comes to HBO Max in August, similarly doesn't do as well as predicted. The pressure would then certainly be on Man of Tomorrow to save the day and ensure the DCU's survival, for however long that might be.

For more DCU coverage, check out the latest casting rumor for the DCU's Batman, and read my Supergirl review to see if I think it's as bad as everyone's making it out to be.

• Hundreds of TV episodes and movies will be removed from PlayStation Store accounts on 1 September
• People had bought the movies and shows
• No apologies, let alone compensation, from Sony

One of the best things about Blu-ray discs is that you don't need to worry that Sony will sneak into your home in the middle of the night and take them away.

Unfortunately you can't say the same about digital purchases: Sony is scrubbing hundreds of movies and TV show episodes purchased on the PlayStation Store from people's collections with no compensation. Come September, they're gone.

The list of affected movies and shows is on the Sony website and includes the remastered Terminator 2: Judgement Day, Gomorrah, the Rambo movies and many more. The problem is the end of a licensing agreement between Sony and StudioCanal, a major producer and distributor of movies and shows.

As Sony explains, from September 1, 2026, "you will no longer be able to access your previously purchased content from StudioCanal, and it will be removed from your video library."

To add insult to injury, the notification ends with the PlayStation slogan: "Play has no limits".

As you can imagine, this has gone down very well with movie fans.

Why is Sony removing people's purchases?

Sony's arrangement with the film production company StudioCanal has ended, and that means Sony no longer has the rights to sell those TV shows and movies. The fact that people have bought them is irrelevant to Sony, because in the terms and conditions that absolutely nobody reads it says that you're buying a license to view a show or movie, not to own it.

Since the news broke, my social media has been full of people saying the same thing: Sony's move is a pretty great advert for digital piracy. And it's definitely upset a lot of movie fans, such as Quelonious on r/movies who vowed: "I will never buy streaming movies again", although that poster is sticking with Blu-ray rather than flying a pirate flag.

"If I were you I wouldn't make digital purchases for movies," Rewdyroo writes on the same subreddit, noting that "you aren't buying the movie. It functions more like a lease and if the license for the movie that whatever service you bought it from runs out your digital movie also goes away, no refund. I've had it happen on Amazon and will never purchase a digital movie again."

Mildmichigan spoke for many: "This should be illegal. If I buy something digitally, and the platform loses distribution rights or whatever then I should be grandfathered in."

We've discussed this before, because it's a key reason to keep buying Blu-rays: Blu-rays are yours forever. But it's an issue with all kinds of digital media, going back to the days of Microsoft's PlaysForSure digital music, which sold audio files that died when Microsoft shut down the servers. Whether it's a streaming catalog or GTA 6, if it's not on physical media you can't ever be sure that it's yours forever.

(Is now a good time to mentioned the Criterion's 4K Blu-rays are 50% off at the moment in the US?)

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Sugar season 2 returned to Apple TV after a break, and we've been introduced to an intriguing new case against that moreish LA noir-style backdrop.

One of the best Apple TV shows gave us quite the twist in season 1, and we've seen Colin Farrell's detective John Sugar deciding to stay on Earth after many of his fellow aliens decided to leave. He's been searching for his sister while staying hidden as a human detective, but how long will he be able to stay undetected?

Here's what you need to know about Sugar season 2, episode 3.

What time can I watch Sugar season 2 on Apple TV?

The US can expect the third episode of Sugar season 2 to be available on Apple TV on July 3 at 12am PT / 3am ET. Episodes will then drop weekly until the finale on August 7.

Internationally, look out for the below times:

• US – 12am PT / 3am ET
• Canada – 12am PT / 3am ET
• UK – 8am BST
• India – 12:30pm IST
• Singapore – 3pm SGT
• Australia – 6pm AEST
• New Zealand – 8pm NZDT

When do new episodes of Sugar season 2 come out on Apple TV?

Episode 1: Out now

Episode 2: Out now

Episode 3: July 3

Episode 4: July 10

Episode 5: July 17

Episode 6: July 24

Episode 7: July 31

Episode 8: August 7

What, like making a prequel series is hard? I should never have doubted the power of Elle Woods, who at this point feels like the pop culture equivalent of Mother Teresa to millennials.

Since the moment that Elle was announced by Prime Video, I've been it's number one hater. I've written opinion pieces about how its existence is going to destroy the sanctity of Elle's journey at Harvard, and I've spent hours stewing over how anybody could touch the side of Reese Witherspoon's career-defining performance. If we're getting another Legally Blonde project, make it about Elle's Supreme Court Justice years... right?

But oh, how the mighty have fallen. Having now watched all eight episodes of Elle, my hater-self is metaphorically standing in a dumpster fire of her own making. As someone prepared to loathe it, take this next remark with absolute seriousness and sincerity: this series is outrageously good.

In the blink of an eye, I once again felt like my 6-year-old self when the 2001 movie first came out — enraptured, inspired and completely at ease with who I am inside. How? Well, that's just what Elle Woods does, regardless of who is playing her.

But if you'd have told me at Lexi Minetree was actually an AI version of Witherspoon in her twenties, I'd have believed you. Minetree has all of Witherspoon's mannerisms down to a tee, has perfected her voice, and wholeheartedly understands the spirit of the woman we all know and love. It is, frankly, a miracle.

But Minetree isn't the only reason for Elle's success... absolutely everybody, and almost everything, is pulling their weight.

Elle is about to put the Legally Blonde haters to shame — and most of the film's lore holds up

When Elle turns 16, she's forced to leave her Bel-Air luxury lifestyle behind for Seattle, all thanks to a plastic surgery scandal that her father is embroiled it. With her new high school in the grip of the 90s grunge scene, our favorite pink tornado is once again a fish out of water, and she has to fight to fit in.

As I've pointed out, Minetree's freakishly brilliant understanding of Elle — and how unwilling she is to deviate from Witherspoon's blueprint — spearheads the feel-good fun, but let's look at what's happening around her.

Surprisingly, Elle isn't just a nod to Legally Blonde. There are also clear references to big nineties and noughties hitters including Mean Girls, Clueless, Freaky Friday and The Breakfast Club, and the nostalgic yearning is strong. From the corded landlines to the banging soundtrack, our young adult life from this time period is fully and lovingly represented.

As willing as I initially was to write our Seattle newbies off, they're also a treat of an ensemble. Bel-Air bestie Madison (Jessica Belkin) shirks the airhead sidekick stereotype in favor of a grounded spirit and unshakable loyalty, while high school mean girl Kimberly (Chandler Kinney) is hiding a true self that is the last thing you'd expect (no spoilers here).

British boy Dustin (Zac Looker) fuels Elle's curiosity for anarchy and change, while also providing proof that she can truly extract the best out of every walk of life. A more touching shoutout goes to the enigmatic role of Dean Wilson, which marks James Van Der Beek's final acting credit before his death earlier this year.

It's no surprise that my favorite side character is Eva Woods, played by the underrated powerhouse in June Diane Raphael. You only had to briefly see this woman in Parks and Recreation or Grace and Frankie to know how much she truly understands the superficial class, which she poignantly balances with a steady heart and sense of empathy.

Sadly, Perfect Day by Hoku is nowhere to be seen

Now for the most important bit of feedback: the existing Legally Blonde lore. For the most part, I found that it adds to my love of the IP rather than takes away from it, especially when it answers some pivotal questions.

Without giving too much away, we'll find out how Elle gets Bruiser the Chihuahua (who's wardrobe is absolutely jaw-dropping, by the way), how Elle ends up back in Bel-Air in time for the events of the original movie, and how she begins to gain an interest in defending innocent people.

However, it's this last one that's a bit of a sticking point. For those of us who know the 2001 film better than we know ourselves, it's unspoken knowledge that Elle had zero interest in pursuing anything related to a law degree, but was only compelled to do so to win boyfriend Warner back.

That, in a nutshell, is the reason why Legally Blonde even exists. So the mere fact that Elle's rewritten history suggests that this inspiration came much earlier in her life doesn't completely sit with what we know of her adult life. It's clearly supposed to be a seedling for what's to come, but perhaps is a little overplayed.

Even so, I had such a good time watching Elle that I don't even care. The ebbs and flows of high school drama are deliciously played, the script is genuinely hilarious, and the overarching narrative plot is addictively compelling. I've been that engrossed that I'd even go as far as to say that it needs a second season, stat.

The return of Marvel's best-rated TV show is almost upon us, and with critical and commercial darling X-Men 97 set to return for its second season later this week, you'll want to know when it'll premiere on Disney+.

To spare you the trouble of searching for the release date and launch times for this season's first three chapters, I've rounded up the necessary information below. So, to paraphrase Cyclops: to me, my fellow Marvel fans!

What time can I watch the first three episodes of X-Men 97 season 2?

X-Men 97 season 2 will make its Disney+ debut on Wednesday, July 1. That's its global launch date, too, so North and South American viewers won't be able to watch this Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) project earlier than fans on other continents.

As for the exact time that its first three entries will arrive, they're expected to drop on July 1 at 12am PT / 3am ET. Based on those likely release times, we can work out when viewers in other nations should tune into one of the world's best streaming services to catch them, too:

• US — 12am PT / 3am ET
• Canada — 12am PT / 3am ET
• UK — 8am BST
• India — 12:30pm IST
• Singapore — 3pm SGT
• Australia — 5pm AEST
• New Zealand — 7pm NZST

X-Men 97 season 2 full release schedule

Following this X-Men animated show's latest premiere, new episodes of the Marvel Phase 6 production will come out every Wednesday. That'll be the case until the season 2 finale airs on August 12, too.

For a quick rundown of the dates you need to know about, read on:

• Season 2 episode 1 — July 1
• Season 2 episode 2 — July 1
• Season 2 episode 3 — July 1
• Season 2 episode 4 — July 8
• Season 2 episode 5 — July 15
• Season 2 episode 6 — July 22
• Season 2 episode 7 — July 29
• Season 2 episode 8 — August 5
• Season 2 episode 9 — August 12

For more on the highly-rated TV series ahead of its return, remind yourself what happened in last season's finale via my X-Men 97 season 1 ending explained piece. Then, find out everything we know so far about X-Men 97 season 2.

Once you're done, read up on how to watch the X-Men movies in order and/or how to stream the Marvel movies in order.

• Netflix users are being asked to add email addresses to their individual profiles
• The platform says this will allow separate sign-ins while offering even more personalized recommendations
• It seems convenient on paper, but users think it could lead to another big crackdown

Sharing Netflix accounts today isn’t as easy as it was in the mid-2010s, but now the best streaming service has another account crackdown on the way that’s already getting under people’s skins.

A handful of users have noticed a new in-app pop-up asking each member in a shared account to add individual email addresses to their individual profiles, instead of using the account owner’s email address as the primary one. One of the most jarring parts about it is that the pop-up doesn’t clear unless the request is fulfilled.

This hasn’t rolled out to all Netflix account holders yet, but the company informed Ars Technica that the new sign-in update began on June 15, so we imagine a wider rollout is inevitable. The outlet also stated that this pop-up doesn’t apply to profiles that are labelled as belonging to children.

Netflix households accounts have always been built on the traditional 'one email, one password’ foundation, allowing you to create up to five profiles to keep watchlists and recommendations separate from other members in your family. That’s all about to change, but why Netflix has decided to roll out yet another crackdown is the question that everyone is asking.

According to the details mentioned in the pop-up, this is purely a convenience reason. Having individual emails assigned to individual profiles under one account means you won’t have to keep relying on using the account holder’s email to sign in each time. It also means that if you ever need a verification code to log into Netflix, you won’t have to chase up the account holder for it in their inbox.

Additionally, the pop-up also says that adding an email address to your profile will make it a lot easier for you to recover the account when needed, and get personalized content recommendations with more features to come. On paper it sounds like Netflix is adding this requirement as a user experience enhancer, but subscribers are convinced it’s just another way for the company to surveil user activity.

When Netflix rolled out its password crackdown back in 2023, it ended an era of serial account sharing and that’s where the service decided one account was strictly for one household, the ‘Netflix Household’ in official terms. With its latest move, we believe that there’s more than meets the eye — and so do a vast majority of users online.

Bye Bye profiles on Netflix. So shady. Sheesh. from r/netflix

Over the past few weeks Reddit has seen a swarm of reactions following the first appearances of the pop-up, but the main concern expressed by users is the possibility of this morphing into a payment system, charging account holders to fork out extra just to add more profiles. “This is killing Netflix for me”, one user added.

Based on Netflix’s past crackdowns, the new requirement could also give the streaming giant another way to better distinguish between the activity of individual profiles, or even shift them to individual accounts later down the line. But while users have expressed outrage over this, some say they’ve found a workaround.

It appears that creating email aliases has helped some users get past the pop-up without giving Netflix all of their information, however this has only worked for those using Gmail.

One person in particular says that you can amend your Gmail address in order to create an alias, giving the example that if your email is ‘johnsmith@ gmail.com’ you could set up ‘johnsmith+kid1@gmail.com’. They go into further detail in their Reddit post, while others in the replies who use this workaround for other situations confirmed that it works.

As mentioned, this update hasn’t reached every Netflix subscriber yet and is rolling out slowly to start, similar to how the platform kick-started its password crackdown. Given Netflix’s history, we’re definitely keeping one eye open on this one.

• DC Studios won't alter its long-term vision for its cinematic universe
• That's what co-CEO Peter Safran told one reporter after Supergirl's disastrous launch
• The Milly Alcock-fronted film earned just $68 million during its opening weekend

It appears that it's damage limitation time for DC Studios.

After Supergirl launched — and subsequently bombed — at the global box office, the comic book giant's movie and TV division is seemingly refusing to alter its wider plan for its nascent cinematic universe.

Indeed, speaking to The New York Times (NYT) in the wake of Supergirl's disastrous opening weekend performance, DC Studios co-chief Peter Safran insisted that he, fellow studio head James Gunn, and parent company Warner Bros. "remain confident in" the long-term vision for the DC Universe (DCU). That's despite Safran's admission that the Milly Alcock-starring movie "didn't meet our box office expectations".

Such a statement is a, well, understatement. Following its June 26 release, the film formerly known as Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow suffered something of a catastrophic debut. As NYT's report noted, the DCU Chapter One earned a paltry $68 million worldwide — $38 million in North America and $30 million internationally — during its first four days in theaters.

To put the first of those figures in frighteningly bleak context, the much-maligned Spider-Man spin-off flick Morbius, aka the vampiric anti-hero film starring Jared Leto, made just $39 million in North America during its own miserably opening weekend in late 2022.

What makes Supergirl's performance all the worse is, at the time of publication, it holds a middling 56% critical score on review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes. Meanwhile, Morbius has been stuck at a life-draining 15% for almost four years. The fact that the second DCU Chapter One movie made $1 million less in North America than Morbius, then, should really set the alarm bells ringing at DC Studios HQ.

Why didn't Supergirl fly higher at the global box office?

There are numerous reasons that can be pointed to, including the ongoing superhero fatigue debate, prioritizing a new Supergirl movie over, say, a film starring another of DC Comics' so-called Holy Trinity in Batman and Wonder Woman, and — perhaps most crucial of all — word of mouth. After all, where the last of those reasons is concerned, movies can live or die on what critics and/or general audiences not only think of them, but say about them. You can see what I thought of the Alcock-led adventure via my own Supergirl review.

But I digress. In my view, there's another major cause for Supergirl's incredibly poor performance worldwide — and it's got to do with two powerhouse animated film franchises: Toy Story and Minions.

Where the former is concerned, the critical reception to its fifth installment was as mixed as Supergirl's was. Heck, in my Toy Story 5 review, I gave it three out of five stars, which is the same score Supergirl earned.

Nevertheless, Toy Story's immense popularity means it can — for now, at least — withstand any negativity that comes its way. That much is clear based on its own worldwide ticket sales, which have seen Toy Story 5 rack up an almighty $585 million (per Variety) in its first 12 days in theaters.

Then we come to the other aforementioned billion-dollar-spinning film series in Minions. With its next story — Minions and Monsters — set to not only arrive on July 3, but also predicted to make a similarly huge sum of cash, the timing of Supergirl's release couldn't have been worse. Maybe if its launch had been held back until August when its biggest competitor would arguably have been the next Insidious film, it might have soared higher.

For more on the latest DCU project, check out my Supergirl ending explained piece to see how it potentially sets up Man of Tomorrow, aka the sequel to last year's Superman film. Alternatively, see when Supergirl might come to HBO Max.

Episode 6 of Cape Fear on Apple TV is right around the corner, and we're now halfway through the gripping thriller series.

Last time, we learned more about the mysterious "Amber" (Malia Pyles) through a scene that pays homage to the original Cape Fear movie as we see her laughing disruptively in a movie theater. We now know that her real name is Nevaeh, and she's Max Cady's (Javier Bardem) daughter who is just as disturbing as he is.

Excited for the next part? Here's when Cape Fear episode 6 will drop on one of the best streaming services.

What time can I watch Cape Fear episode 6 on Apple TV?

We're expecting Cape Fear episode 6 to be available on Apple TV on July 3 at 12am PT / 3am ET. Episodes will then drop weekly until the finale on July 31.

Internationally, look out for the below times:

US – 12am PT / 3am ET

Canada – 12am PT / 3am ET

UK – 8am BST

India – 12:30pm IST

Singapore – 3pm SGT

Australia – 6pm AEST

New Zealand – 8pm NZDT

When do new episodes of Cape Fear come out on Apple TV?

Episode 1: Out now

Episode 2: Out now

Episode 3: Out now

Episode 4: Out now

Episode 5: Out now

Episode 6: July 3

Episode 7: July 10

Episode 8: July 17

Episode 9: July 24

Episode 10: July 31

• A new rumor about the DC Universe's (DCU) Batman is spreading online
• Various insiders claim an unlikely name has been cast as the Dark Knight
• Interestingly, said actor almost won the race to play Superman

James Gunn and Peter Safran have reportedly found the actor they want to play Batman in the DC Universe (DCU).

According to industry insider John Campea, an unlikely name has been tapped to portray the Dark Knight in Gunn and Safran's comic book franchise.

Campea wouldn't reveal the identity of said actor on the latest edition of his podcast, but says two different sources — one of whom is "well-positioned" to know these things, and neither of whom knows the other — linked the same star to the role.

So, who is this mystery individual? According to other leakers with less reputable track records, including MyTimetoShineHello, it's Tom Brittney.

Who is Tom Brittney and has he actually been cast as the DCU's Batman?

An English actor best known for playing the lead role in seasons 4 to 8 of British detective drama Granchester, Brittney won't be familiar to the vast majority of readers.

However, he's starting to make a name for himself in Hollywood circles. For a start, he was one of three individuals who made it to the final round of auditions to play Superman in the DCU. The others? David Corenswet, who won the race to play the Man of Steel, and Nicholas Hoult, who wound up being cast as Supes' archnemesis Lex Luthor.

Among other roles post-Granchester, Brittney had a small supporting role in hit Netflix movie Back in Action, which starred Jamie Foxx and Cameron Diaz. He'll next appear on the big screen in Lionsgate's Fall 2: Deadpoint, aka the follow-up to 2022 survivor thriller Fall, which is out in early September. If Brittney hasn't officially been announced as the DCU's Caped Crusader by then, expect him to field many, many, many questions about his potential casting during Fall 2's press tour.

"Great, Tom, but is there any truth to this rumor?", I hear you ask. At the time of publication, Gunn, who isn't shy about debunking hearsay — or, on the rarest of occasions, confirm a casting rumor — via social media, hasn't commented on the matter.

Admittedly, the DCU co-chief has his hands full with Man of Tomorrow, i.e. the sequel to 2025's Superman movie. Unless Gunn raises his head above the parapet to confirm or deny Brittney's involvement, we might not know until, well, tomorrow (June 30) when new scenes are expected to be filmed for Clayface, the next DCU Chapter One film.

Why new filming days for Clayface could confirm Brittney's casting as Batman

According to X/Twitter use 4thdoctorstan74, Clayface's production crew will be back on Merseyside in the UK to shoot more material for the forthcoming body horror flick between June 30 and July 1.

Now, 4thdoctorstan74 has claimed that said crew will only be filming pick up shots. These are usually shot during the post-production process to, among other things, aid a movie's pacing and narrative flow. It's highly likely, then, that the film isn't underdoing any major reshoots ahead of its late October launch.

That said, I don't think we can completely rule out the possibility that one of these pick ups could involve Brittney if he has been hired to play Bruce Wayne and his vigilante alter-ego. After all, there have been countless rumors that Batman won't appear in Clayface, which feels like a huge misstep considering, you know, the titular villain is just one of the Gotham-based crimefighter's many foes. And, with Supergirl currently struggling to make an impact at the box office, it might be in Messrs Gunn and Safran's best interests to introduce the DCU's Batman as soon as possible to maintain interest in their nascent cinematic franchise.

If — and I honestly cannot keep stressing this enough — Brittney is set to portray the legendary hero in this DC comic book universe, it would make sense for his Batman to make his debut in Clayface, even if it's just a cameo, ahead of his standalone DCU film The Brave and the Bold. All eyes, then, are on Gunn's social media accounts and the north-west of England to see whether Brittney has been tapped to play the World's Greatest Detective.

In the meantime, find out everything we know so far about Clayface. Alternatively, find out how to watch the Batman movies in order or see if you agree with our ranking of the best Batman movies.

According to our series poll (which you can vote in below), you've all loved new Yellowstone spinoff Dutton Ranch as much as I have.

In fact, it's surely only a matter of time until Paramount+ renews it for a second season, but we're waiting for the news with baited breath as of writing.

It might not have felt like it to them, but Beth (Kelly Reilly) and Rip's (Cole Hauser) move to Rio Paloma has been nothing short of a success, even if Carter (Finn Little) actively hates it.

Now, we've only got one episode left until it's all over. But when does Dutton Ranch episode 9 land on Paramount+?

What time can I watch Dutton Ranch episode 9 on Paramount+?

Dutton Ranch episode 9 will drop on one of the world's best streaming services on Friday, July 3.

Like The Madison and Landman, we can expect the episode to arrive at 12am PT. Here's when it will be released in other nations globally:

• US – 12am PT / 3am ET
• Canada – 12am PT / 3am ET
• UK – 8am BST
• India – 1:30pm IST
• Singapore – 4pm SGT
• Australia – 7pm AEDT
• New Zealand – 9pm NZDT

When do new episodes of Dutton Ranch come out?

Dutton Ranch will have a total of nine episodes, airing weekly after its two-episode premiere.

That gives us the following schedule:

• Episode 1: out now
• Episode 2: out now
• Episode 3: out now
• Episode 4: out now
• Episode 5: out now
• Episode 6: out now
• Episode 7: out now
• Episode 8: out now
• Episode 9: July 3

Cast your mind back to the so-called "flopfest" season that is January. Only five short months ago, Chris Pratt and Rebecca Ferguson were fronting Mercy, a new movie following a man falsely accused of murder, only to be tried by an AI-generated court.

The premise is simple: Make the AI judge believe you're innocent through a numerical threshold, and you walk free. Don't, and you die. There's no lawyer or jury — just your brain and access to your life via curated digital files.

After its theatrical release, it has been on Prime Video for the majority of 2026, and I cannot discourage you enough from watching it. It's far from the worst movie of the year so far, but it's bad enough to be a must-miss.

Without boring you too much, the production feels cheap, it struggles to retain momentum, and Pratt (whose character is hilariously also called Chris) being restrained in a chair for 90% of Mercy's runtime runs thin incredibly quickly.

But let's not talk about Mercy... instead, we need to focus on the movie Pratt recommended as a double bill. Not only does it serve as inspiration for Mercy's action, but it's arguably the most underrated Christopher Nolan movie all time.

Perfect timing ahead of The Odyssey, don't you think?

Chris Pratt reveals Christopher Nolan's Memento is a huge inspiration — and you need to stream it ASAP

"There's a little bit of Memento in this," Pratt told me shortly before Mercy's release.

"This is a character who does not know what's going on, and he's unpeeling the layers of his reality as he learns in real time what has happened."

As soon as he mentions it, I remember just how much of an astonishing viewing experience it was. Starring Guy Pearce and Carrie-Anne Moss, it follows insurance investigator Leonard Shelby (Pearce), who suffers from anterograde amnesia.

He uses notes and tattoos to hunt for the man he thinks killed his wife, which is the last thing he remembers. This means that we know as much as he does, making it one of the most unique and interactive crime thrillers of the last 26 years.

You're thrust back and forth in time with so much confusion that you're wondering if you killed your ex-wife. It's no secret just how much of an exceptional director and storyteller Nolan is... but this was only his second movie.

The talent was already off the scale, but it's no surprise that, given just how many corkers came out more recently (his Batman trilogy, Inception, and Oppenheimer, to name a few), Memento has been put on the collective back burner.

For Matrix fans, Carrie-Anne Moss is also the best female lead that Nolan could have picked. Add in sharp 2000s vibes and lashings of desperation, and you're about to stream a movie you'll never forget (unlike Mercy, which you hopefully do immediately).

• Watch Memento on Prime Video in the US
• Watch Memento on Sky in the UK
• Watch Memento on Paramount+ in Australia

I've got quite the varied selection for our first instalment of Scream or Skip, which features a mix of new releases and an indie horror movie I had never heard of until a few days ago.

Thanks to my social media algorithms being full of horror content, it's never hard for me to discover new things. This month, we have a bit of a water-based theme going on, as two out of my three picks are set there, and the third comes from nautical beginnings.

But they couldn't be more different, ranging from a disturbing coming-of-age story at a lake to a Lovecraftian-style nightmare. There's been a lot of discussion about all three of these, but what did I think of them?

Read on to find out more about my three horror picks across streaming and gaming in June.

TV - The Terror: Devil in Silver

Where to watch: AMC+ (US only for now)
Lucy's verdict: Skip

The Terror: Devil in Silver is the newest installment in the AMC+ horror anthology series, and unfortunately, it has taken a nosedive in quality after the first two seasons. If you take anything away from this, it would be that I recommend you check out 2019's The Terror because it is still the best out of the three stories and is widely available to stream, unlike Devil in Silver, which is currently US-only.

For Devil in Silver, we're in an entirely new setting, moving from a cursed ship at sea to a psychiatric hospital. Here, Downton Abbey's Dan Stevens plays Pepper, who has wrongly been committed there, and begins to experience supernatural events whilst trying to prove he should be freed.

There's no denying the performances are great, both from Stevens and Judith Light, who plays Dorry, a fellow hospital resident. But the series does unfortunately suffer from pacing issues and a lack of genuine scares, meaning it pales in comparison to the original The Terror series. It might be a good pick for those who like a slow burn, but it seems to stand out when compared to the others in the anthology for the wrong reasons.

Movie - Mean Creek

Where to watch: Paramount+ (US); rent or buy (UK, AU)
Lucy's verdict: Scream

Mean Creek is a 2004 movie that completely fell under the radar for me. I'd never heard of it until I stumbled across this TikTok video. I was immediately intrigued by the premise, and I must say, I'm glad I watched it. It's billed as a "dark coming of age story" and is very psychological in its approach to horror, so expect a lot of dread and harrowing scenes rather than jumpy moments.

Josh Peck has comfortably moved away from comedy in recent years, and here he plays school bully George, who has terrorized his peers for too long. They decide enough is enough, so they invite George to a fake birthday party at a lake, where they decide to play a prank on him, which involves throwing him overboard during a boating trip.

Inevitably, things go wrong, and this movie examines the consequences of that. It is bleak, realistic, and will linger for a while, and it has been widely praised by horror fans as a result. What goes down is truly horrific, and I'm glad I gave this a go. It is worth the rental price in the UK and Australia, too.

Game - The Sinking City

Where to play: PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, PC
Lucy's verdict: Scream

There are a lot of Lovecraftian horror games out there; it can be hard to know where to start. The Sinking City 2 releases in August this year, so I wanted to take a look at the first game to see how it holds up.

The Sinking City was released in 2019 and is a survival horror RPG. Here, a half-submerged city is gripped by supernatural forces. You play a private investigator, and you have to uncover the truth of what has possessed the city and the minds of its inhabitants.

I had a great time playing this, and I'm now keen to check out the sequel. You can explore The Sinking City by boat, on foot, and in a diving suit if you're brave enough to swim down into the depths. There's plenty to uncover and lots of fun creature design, and there are multiple endings to explore based on your decisions. This game is also widely available across platforms, which is just another bonus.

VPNs offer features and tools to boost your video streaming performance, and some of those are particularly handy for the World Cup.

Anyone using a VPN to get around local broadcast restrictions might still encounter problems if the free World Cup streaming service they're trying to use is blocking access from the IP address that their VPN server has issued.

That can happen before you try to stream or even part way through the match itself. Either way, that's a pain and, with some VPNs, that means disconnecting from the server and then trying out a bunch of others until you identify one that works, but some VPN providers can save you the hassle.

We particularly like the technology that Norton VPN has introduced in time for the 2026 World Cup. It's called Manual IP Rotation and it allows you to ‘rotate’ your VPN’s IP address to another location within the same country, without interrupting the encrypted tunnel you’re streaming through.

Put simply, it’s a one-button solution to streaming services blocking your VPN’s IP. The idea is that you connect once and then never have your World Cup stream interrupted again.

Norton has a 60-day money-back guarantee, so even if you still find that it doesn't work for your needs, you can just get a refund. But do try it out before kick-off just in case, please.

In terms of the competition, Surfshark is our pick for the best cheap VPN service and comes with its own IP rotation system thanks its Nexus technology, which connects all of its VPN servers together in one network.

And if your streaming service has a specific server on lockdown, NordVPN’s massive network of servers could offer a working alternative.

Avatar: The Last Airbender season 2 has only just landed on Netflix, but we're already thinking about season 3 (you can read our ending explained to learn why).

Luckily for us, it had incredibly early confirmation. We've known all along that Aang (Gordon Cormier) needs to learn all four elemental bending skills in order to stop the Fire Nation, led by Lord Ozai (Daniel Dae Kim), from controlling the Four Nations.

As our current batch of episodes draws to a close, we're still far from reaching this conclusion. Enter Avatar: The Last Airbender season 3, which is already poised to take over.

From release window predictions to returning cast, here's everything we know about the next installment.

Avatar: The Last Airbender season 3 release window prediction

It's worth pointing out that, as of writing, Avatar: The Last Airbender season 3 doesn't have a confirmed release date or window. However, internet rumors suggest we could be seeing new episodes at some point in summer 2027.

Seasons 2 and 3 were shot back-to-back, and filming for new episodes wrapped back in November 2025.

Worst case, we can expect season 3 at some point in 2028, given that there's been a two-year gap between seasons 1 and 2.

Avatar: The Last Airbender season 3 trailer: is there one?

A trailer for Avatar: The Last Airbender season 3 hasn't made its debut yet. Once one is released, we'll update this section.

Avatar: The Last Airbender season 3 cast

We can expect the following cast to return for Avatar: The Last Airbender season 3:

• Gordon Cormier as Aang
• Kiawentiio as Katara
• Ian Ousley as Sokka
• Dallas Liu as Zuko
• Daniel Dae Kim as Ozai
• Paul Sun-Hyung Lee as Zuko
• Elizabeth Yu as Princess Azula
• Miya Cech as Toph
• Chin Han as Long Feng
• Justin Chien as King Kuei
• Amanda Zhao as Joo Dee
• Crystal Yu as Lady Beifong
• Kelemete Misipeka as The Boulder
• Hoa Xuande as Professor Zei
• Lourdes Faberes as General Sung
• Rekha Sharma as Amita
• Madison Hu as Fei
• Dichen Lachman as Yangchen
• Lily Gao as Ursa
• Terry Chen as Jeong Jeong

Dolly De Leon as Lo and Li, Jon Jon Briones as Piandao, and Tantoo Cardinal as Hama were all originally tipped to appear in the second reason, but do not. Despite this, we can expect them to star in season 3.

More new names will likely be announced as we get closer to the show's release, so keep your eyes peeled.

Avatar: The Last Airbender season 3 plot predictions

Spoilers for Avatar: The Last Airbender season 2 ahead.

We're pretty confident that season 3 is going to directly adapt the third Avatar book, following Aang learning to firebend, infiltrating the Fire Nation, and preparing for his climactic showdown with Fire Lord Ozai before Sozin's Comet arrives. Not too much, then.

We also know that Zuko will eventually team up with Aang and the gang to make this happen, so we can expect to see some more emotional upheaval from him.

Obviously, finding out if Aang has actually survived the battle is a top priority for season 3. But the mere fact that season 3 has already been greenlit basically confirms that we'll be seeing Aang again anyway.

Will there be more seasons of Avatar: The Last Airbender?

As of writing, nothing has been announced. Narratively, it makes sense for season 3 to be the last, if Books 1, 2, and 3 have all been adapted in each.

However, the fact that there are so many written and comic book continuations means that the possibilities could be endless. Even if we don't get a direct season 4, Netflix could invest in spinoffs galore.

Full spoilers follow for The Bear season 5, including its finale.

I love The Bear. It's one of my favorite TV shows of the past decade. And, while I understand the criticism leveled at its third and, to a greater extent, fourth season, I don't necessarily agree with all of it.

Nevertheless, when it was announced that The Bear season 5 would be the FX TV Original's last hurrah, I'll readily admit that I had a feeling in the pit of my stomach. The reason? Other shows I've enjoyed that ended recently, including Stranger Things and The Boys — coincidentally, they also stopped after five seasons — failed to stick the landing with their finales.

I feared that The Bear would go the same way. You can probably sense my relief through the screen, then, that its series finale not only delivered a fittingly bittersweet conclusion to its overarching narrative, but avoided the pitfalls that its TV peers blindly stumbled into.

One of the biggest issues — among many other problems that I don't have the time nor space to cover here — that befell the hit Netflix and Prime Video shows' finales was that they didn't utilize their time well.

Where The Boys season 5 was concerned, the Amazon TV series' rushed ending gave the impression that it simply couldn't wait for its end credits to roll. In sharp contrast, Stranger Things season 5's finale was dragged out to the point where I was begging for its final credits sequence to begin.

Admittedly, The Bear season 5's pacing isn't perfect, but it uses its time more efficiently and wisely. Indeed, part of its success comes from how this season's plot is structured.

Unlike past seasons, The Bear's fifth installment is 24-esque in its storytelling approach. Vis-à-vis its eighth and final chapter notwithstanding, it takes place over the course of a single day.

In episodes 1 to 7, we follow the titular restaurant's ragtag but lovable crew as they navigate what could be their final-ever service, due to the eatery's lack of funds.

That possible scenario ends up being the least of their problems. A massive, unrelenting thunderstorm not only floods the restaurant but also results in the next food delivery being canceled, meaning the staff can only serve what little stock they have left. Throw an overbooked guest list and storm-related traffic issues in for good measure, meaning their table turnover has to be on point, and it's no surprise that tensions and tempers are soon running at an all-time high.

However, rather than do what past entries have done by slowly but purposefully building the pressure until things boil over, The Bear 5 deliberately shows how its eccentric — and, depending on who we're talking about, emotionally damaged — cast of characters have evolved over the five seasons.

A great example of this happens midway through the penultimate episode, titled 'Caramel'. Here, the storm's impact on the restaurant's power supply makes the lights flicker and leads to Carmen 'Carmy' Berzatto dropping a lamb rib-based dish for one of the evening's most important diners.

Previous seasons would've seen Carmy completely spiral and take his anger out on his colleagues, which would've likely resulted in a verbal and/or physical altercation with occasionally confrontational associate — oh, and long-time family friend — Richard 'Richie' Jerimovich.

This time, though, Richie and Carmy's former protégé, Sydney 'Syd' Adamu, calmly prevents him from overreacting, keeping what's already been a nightmarish day on track.

That's just one of myriad instances this season I could point to that show how far these individuals, and the collective as a whole, have grown since the series first premiered on Hulu and Disney+. Compare that to Stranger Things and The Boys, whose approach to individual character development wasn't always on point, and, from a character study perspective, The Bear is — if you pardon the pun — a different beast altogether.

Speaking of character progression, each member of The Bear's primary ensemble gets their moment in the spotlight, as well as a fitting conclusion to their personal arcs.

And when I say everyone, I mean everyone. With Carmy's blessing and Uncle Jimmy's backing, Ebraheim finally starts to turn The Original Beef of Chicagoland into a franchise. Meanwhile, Sydney reaffirms her trust in Tina by appointing her as the restaurant's new chef de cuisine.

Furthermore, Marcus starts to make peace with his estranged father and proves that his recent award win wasn't a flash in the pan. Natalie, aka 'Sugar', and the Berzatto family matriarch Donna's previously strained relationship continues on an upward trajectory. Heck, even Gary, aka 'Sweeps', gets a genuinely crowd-pleasing moment; after the storm ruins the 1997 and 1999 year labels on two bottles of red wine, he correctly guesses the right one – using his wine-based powers of deduction – to serve to a diner who happens to be a wine connoisseur.

The biggest wins are reserved for Carmy, Syd, and Richie, though.

Richie is offered the chance to attend an international hospitality summit in Japan. He's not only accompanied by Jessica on the trip, but showrunner Christopher Storer also gives fans what they've been wanting for this pair by ending the 'will they, won't they' subplot and establishing their romantic feelings for each other.

As for Syd and Carmy, Syd fully establishes herself as The Bear's new head chef, while Carmy quits the food business entirely and, putting his love and skill for drawing to good use, becomes an architectural intern.

However, the biggest cause for celebration is that, almost four seasons after they first set their sights on earning a Michelin star, they don't get one, but two.

Like so many other moments in season 5 – and after watching this duo endure hardship after hardship throughout the series – the emotional release I felt once they processed their achievements and shared a joyful hug was euphoric. It's the sign of great writing when you genuinely care about a bunch of fictional characters, and I certainly lost count of how many times I fought back tears, clapped, and fist-pumped the air in The Bear's final two episodes as its crew individually and collectively triumphed against the odds.

Stranger Things 5 and The Boys 5 occasionally struck an emotional chord, and there's no denying that they have their fair share of impactful moments. Held up to the light against another tale centered on a group of underdogs fighting the impossible, though, and it's clear The Bear just does everything better in a concluding chapter whose every bite is delightfully delicious.

Though it ends in magical albeit bittersweet fashion, The Bear doesn't wrap up every storyline in a neat little bow, nor give every character the perfect send-off, but I suppose that's the point.

As a fixture of the Chicago food scene, the eponymous eatery doesn't end simply because Carmy is no longer a part of it — its story, and the lives of those past and present who were involved in it, continue whether we have a seat at the table to see what happens next or not. As Lucca reminds Marcus towards the end of its finale: "The Bear has something that no other place has... family" — and he's right. If I had to choose a fictional found family to be a part of out of the previously mentioned shows, I'd choose The Bear every time.

All five seasons of The Bear are out now on Hulu (US) and Disney+ (everywhere else), aka two of the world's best streaming services.

Is it just me, or has Prime Day flown by this year? Maybe it's because I've been tracking all the best deals alongside my colleagues, but even on the fourth and final day of Amazon's member-only savings event, I have good news.

If you're a Lego Star Wars fan, it's especially good news. I've rounded up the best Prime Day deals still available on sets from a galaxy far, far away, including discounts on three of my favorite Lego Star Wars builds ever.

• Shop the full Amazon Prime Day sale here

First up is a classic: the Lego Star Wars R2-D2 set, which lets you build the iconic astromech droid, now 20% off at $79.99. It's also a fantastic gift for any Star Wars fan. Lego's buildable C-3PO is discounted on the final day of Prime Day as well, alongside Chopper. You'll also find savings on battle packs for recreating moments from Mandalore and The Clone Wars, plus buildable starfighters.

Just remember that Prime Day 2026 comes to a close when the clock strikes midnight on June 26, so there's no telling whether these deals will stick around afterward.

The best Prime Day Lego Star Wars deals

More Prime Day deals in the US

• Amazon Devices: Fire Sticks & Echo from $18
• Amazon Haul: viral gadgets, tech & appliances from $1.99
• Apple: MacBooks, AirPods & AirTags from $29
• Back-to-school tech: 48% off laptops, headphones & tablets
• Cheap TVs: Samsung, Sony & LG from $89.99
• Headphones: 50% off Beats, Bose & Samsung
• Laptops: Apple, HP & Dell from $199
• Smartwatches: up to $250 off Garmin & Apple
• Vacuums: Dyson, Shark & Bissell from $34

Great news, 4K Blu-ray fans and physical media collectors — the huge Criterion Collection half-price sale is back again. This is the month-long sale, which will run until late July — but given how many tempting buys Criterion has, you're going to need that whole month to make your list and then whittle it down.

• View the full Criterion sale at Amazon
• View the full Criterion sale at Barnes & Noble

As usual for Criterion, Barnes & Noble is the main host of the sale, but Amazon has discs at half price too. The sale at Amazon is a lot more limited than at Barnes & Noble — several titles are half price, but some are most like 35% off when they're fully 50% off at B&N. And Amazon's range is more limited than B&N's. But I've included Amazon since many people are already buying things there for Amazon Prime Day (while it lasts — it ends tonight), so I thought maybe you just want to slip that disc you've been eyeing up into your basket…

• View the full Amazon Prime Day sale

Below, I've picked out 12 discs I think are especially tempting from the sale, but obviously there are no duds in the Criterion Closet, so you'll probably want to have a look through the whole sale using these links.

Criterion 4K Blu-ray sale — quick links

• View the full Criterion sale at Amazon
• View the full Criterion sale at Barnes & Noble

Criterion 4K Blu-ray sale: 12 titles I'd recommend

More Prime Day deals in the US

• Amazon Devices: Fire Sticks & Echo from $18
• Amazon Haul: viral gadgets, tech & appliances from $1.99
• Apple: MacBooks, AirPods & AirTags from $29
• Back-to-school tech: 48% off laptops, headphones & tablets
• Cheap TVs: Samsung, Sony & LG from $89.99
• Headphones: 50% off Beats, Bose & Samsung
• Laptops: Apple, HP & Dell from $199
• Smartwatches: up to $250 off Garmin & Apple
• Vacuums: Dyson, Shark & Bissell from $34

Congratulations, you've made it to the end of another week. Your reward — especially for those of you in the UK who've spent the last few days dealing with that incredibly uncomfortable heatwave — is to sit back, relax, and watch something on one of the world's best streaming services.

If you're not planning on seeing Supergirl at your local cinema, then, what new movies and shows have arrived this week? You'll have to read on to find out. But, with five of this streaming round-up's biggest releases landing on Netflix and Disney+, those platforms will be your first port of call. Happy streaming! — Tom Power, senior entertainment reporter

Avatar: Fire and Ash (Disney+)

It doesn't often feel like a lifetime between a theatrical blockbuster breaking box office records to finally hitting a streaming service, but it does in the case of Avatar: Fire and Ash.

The third installment in the epic James Cameron fantasy franchise hit the big screen in December 2025, introducing the fire Na'avi, led by Varang. Think The Way of Water, only with more flames.

Expect more jaw-dropping visuals, perilous fighting and an even bigger divided between the Na'avi and humans. Amazingly, Sigourney Weaver once again gets to be both in this film that's out now on Disney+. — Jasmine Valentine, entertainment reporter

• Watch Avatar: Fire and Ash on Disney+

In the Hand of Dante (Netflix)

Netflix's In the Hand of Dante simultaneously follows author Nick Tosches in the 21st century as he takes a violent journey on behalf of a mafia don to steal Dante Alighieri's The Divine Comedy, and Dante himself in the 14th century seeking inspiration to write his most important work.

Here, Oscar Isaac tackles dual roles as Alighieri and Tosches, with the screenplay based on the latter's book of the same name. Other big names starring include Martin Scorsese and Gerard Butler.

Despite the ensemble cast, the movie has been widely panned with many considering it to be too confusing. Perhaps you'll feel differently? — Lucy Buglass, senior entertainment writer

• Watch In the Hand of Dante on Netflix

The Bear season 5 (Hulu/Disney+)

The Bear has served its last course. Indeed, with the award-winning comedy-drama's fifth and final season landing on Hulu in the US, and Disney+ everywhere else, it's time to say goodbye to Carmy, Sydney, Richie, and the rest of the gang.

I won't spoil how The Bear season 5, which, like the first season, comprises eight episodes instead of 10, ends. Instead, let's just say the eatery's tight-knit group of employees find themselves metaphorically drowning as they struggle to keep the titular restaurant afloat amid myriad problems that stack up across a single day. Prepare to laugh and cry, feel second-hand stress, and shout "Yes, chef!" for the last time. — TP

• Watch The Bear season 5 on Hulu (US) and Disney+ (internationally)

Avatar: The Last Airbender season 2 (Netflix)

Blink and you've missed Aang grow from an exceptionally cute little boy into a fledgling young man... and that only gives Avatar: The Last Airbender season 2 more grounding.

The gang's fight to stop the Fire Nation Lord Ozai taking control of the Four Nations persists, with the Earth Kingdom's hidden city of Ba Sing Se now a key target for takeover.

Thankfully, this season has massively improved from its sketchy debut, and we're finally introduced to Toph (Miya Cech), who is an exceptional addition to the team. Bonus points for baby Appa, too. — JV

• Watch Avatar: The Last Airbender season 2 on Netflix

The Sheep Detectives (Prime Video)

One of the biggest surprises of the year, The Sheep Detectives follows a flock of sheep who try to solve the murder of their shepherd George (Hugh Jackman). What follows is an admittedly brilliant Prime Video whodunnit for the whole family, and it's hard not to be charmed by the animals who are desperately trying to seek justice for their poor human companion.

Not to mention, the cast is exceptionally good and features voice acting talents from people like Bryan Cranston, Patrick Stewart, and Bella Ramsey. I'm confident you'll quickly fall in love with this Amazon Original. — LB

• Watch The Sheep Detectives on Prime Video

Life, Larry, and the Pursuit of Unhappiness (HBO Max)

Sure, it's got an unnecessarily long title, but Life, Larry, and the Pursuit of Unhappiness might actually be the HBO Max sketch comedy series we've been waiting for.

Created by Larry David and Jeff Schaffer, and produced by the Obama's production company, it comedically improvise events in American history in celebration of the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States. So, perhaps like Hamilton, just with no singing. Although I'm sure if you asked Lin Manuel Miranda, he'd be more than up for changing that in a potential season 2. — JV

• Watch Life, Larry, and the Pursuit of Unhappiness on HBO Max

Little Brother (Netflix)

John Cena plays famous real estate agent Rudd in Little Brother, and his life is going great until his 'little brother' Marcus (Eric André) shows up and disrupts all that.

Rudd gets a phone call alerting him that Marcus was badly injured in a car crash, which causes him to reconnect with a man he was buddied up with during a high school charity event. Rudd is frustrated that he's back in his life and depending on him, despite them not actually being related.

As you can see in the trailer, Marcus is complete chaos, resulting in a laugh out loud comedy movie that's perfect for your weekend. — LB

• Watch Little Brother on Netflix

You could say Walt Disney Imagineering has been on a decades-long journey with audio-animatronics, which is essentially the tech underneath iconic characters at parks worldwide. What started with Tiki Birds has since grown to give us legendary looks at other characters, and in recent years, Walt Disney himself.

Just like the walking, talking Olaf roaming character, BDX Droids, or the Walt Disney animatronic, that innovation comes from a specific part of Walt Disney Imagineering, and that's the R&D (Research and Development) lab.

In late November of 2025, Imagineering gave us an early first look at next-generation audio-animatronic technology, one that could be expressive in brand-new ways due to the fact it was using front-based projection.

As Leslie Evans, Executive R&D Imagineer at Walt Disney Imagineering Research & Development, told me, "We're really going after more tools to just tell stories in an incredible way."

Now, just seven months later, that same system is debuting inside a Disney Park for the very first time, and TechRadar has the exclusive first look, as I was one of the first to see it in Imagineering's R&D lab.

This next-generation pirate is making its debut at Disneyland in the iconic Pirates of the Caribbean ride, which reopens Friday, June 26, 2026. For the first time, guests floating past the treasure-filled grotto will witness a pirate atop a pile of cursed gold transform from a flesh-and-blood pirate to a skeleton in mere seconds.

Choosing Pirates wasn't accidental — as Evans explained, the team was "looking for a figure where creatively we could do a great transformation," and ultimately landed on the conclusion that "this pirate transformation would be a great, great first place to do it." And considering it's a long-standing ride at the original Disney park filled with countless audio-animatronics, it makes sense that this next-generation technology is debuting there.

But let's roll it back from the ride itself and into Imagineering's fairly unassuming R&D lab in Glendale, California. I walked through a garage-like space with high ceilings and workstations, alongside generations of hydraulic animatronics — all the way through the A-1000 systems — before approaching a pirate figure elevated on scaffolding above a bank of workstations, Imagineers actively running it below. That staging is intentional — guests will look up at the figure from a boat, and the lab mirrors that sightline exactly.

The technology behind the illusion

That, in fact, was the new next-generation animatronic. At first glance, it reads almost deceptively simple. But as Evans explained, the ambition behind it runs deep. "How can we enable transformations that maybe previously are really challenging or in some cases impossible… I want characters that can blush, that can cry," she told me.

Unlike traditional Audio-Animatronics, which rely on complex mechanical systems for facial movement, this figure begins with a 3D-printed shell and almost no visible mechanical articulation in the face.

Instead, expression is driven almost entirely by a high-fidelity front-projected image mapped directly onto the character, and considering how far computer graphics and rendering have come, this dramatically expands what Imagineers can create with physical characters. Think of a person crying, laughing, grinning with emotion, and ultimately being more human.

What that process looks like up close is striking in its own right. During calibration, a blue and white mesh grid is projected across the entire figure — mapping the projection system precisely to every contour of the physical surface, from the brim of the hat down to the beads around the neck. It's a glimpse behind the curtain that makes the technology suddenly legible: this is how light becomes skin, or bone. Once that mapping is locked, the projected character snaps into place with a precision that's genuinely difficult to believe until you're standing in front of it.

With the installation at Pirates of the Caribbean, this next-gen audio animatronic system has various sensors that complete calibration daily, as well as the necessary compute system and projection tech, and redundancies for all of these. Considering it’s operating on a dark, water ride as well, there is a cooling system and a filtration system for the various components to keep them running day in and day out.

That simplicity, though, was deliberate — the result of rigorous testing. Evans and her team actually built and evaluated versions of this next-gen tech with individual facial features, including the nose, projecting onto them and asking a pointed question each time: "Is this adding anything? Is this extra bit of complexity getting us something from a creative standpoint?" If the answer was no, it got cut.

As Evans described it, "We started from that moment of 'let's test this, and we're only going to keep what we actually really need.'"

The nose didn't make it. The jaw did.

Disney's new blend of animatronics and game engines

Evans called it simply "a very exciting tool," and while she wouldn't be drawn on where it goes next beyond Pirates, that understatement might be the point.

That shift moves expressive detail out of mechanics and into real-time rendering — powered by a digital pipeline that connects Unreal Engine-based systems and animation tools. Evans talked about the moment those pieces converged. "When you really had animatronic technology, real-time game engines, and incredible CG assets all together… that's when we said, wait, we've really got something here," she said.

But getting there required pulling every discipline together. As Evans put it, "That's what's just absolutely magical about this team of people… when you bring them all together and say, 'this is the North Star, what are those key components that we need to go make it happen?'"

What that unlocks is a character capable of real-time visual transformation. Because the projection is dynamic, the character can shift emotional tone and surface detail in ways traditional animatronics simply can't — from subtle expressions like sadness or joy, to more dramatic changes that reshape how the character is perceived entirely. In Pirates, that means watching a single figure move between pirate and skeleton in real time, telling a fuller version of a story.

The physical system underneath is still there, but simplified. The body retains enough traditional mechanical motion to interact with the environment, while the face becomes a canvas for projection-driven expression. Redundant projection systems are also built in for reliability — essential for a high-throughput attraction like Pirates of the Caribbean.

And while Disney wouldn't go into full technical breakdowns, the compute setup running it sits closer in architecture to a high-end gaming PC than traditional show-control hardware. Though, as we’ve seen with Smugglers Run and Buzz Lightyear Space Ranger Spin, the blur between ride systems and gaming is blurring.

Disney engineers even mapped the ride path physically inside the R&D lab to simulate what guests will see from the boat vehicles, ensuring the transformation reads correctly from multiple angles.

A platform, not just a pirate

Evans was clear about what drives all of it, telling me, "We want them to believe it's real… we're trying to make people feel."

She added, "We don't build technology for technology's sake. Everything is about telling a great story to our guests."

Proof that it works came not from the engineers who built it, but from the first people who hadn't. Evans described watching fresh audiences encounter the figure for the first time. "Our folks are standing in front of this character for minutes, just watching this cycling transformation happen over and over and over again, and are still kind of mesmerized by it. That's when we got that moment of going — yeah, I think we did something good," she said.

And I can echo that. After the first glance, I stood in front of it, walking around from different angles, watching this pirate cycle from human to skeleton after taking the bait from a gold coin. It drives a genuine reaction of joy — it's deeply impressive, and I look forward to seeing it running at Disneyland alongside the other animatronics that have defined that ride for decades.

It's a meshing of past, present, and future in terms of tech. And that's where things start to open up beyond Pirates. What Disney is building here is not a single animatronic, but a platform for bringing real-time characters with far more detailed expressions to physical environments and attractions in a very scalable way.

So if a pirate can transform from human to skeleton in real time, the question becomes what happens when that system reaches the rest of Disney's universe of characters. Pirates of the Caribbean is where guests will see it first — but if Imagineering's trajectory is any indication, it won't be the last.

House of the Dragon season 3 is — if you'll forgive the pun — off to a flier. Indeed, with season 3 episode 1 getting things off to a physically and emotionally brutal start, episode 2 will examine the fallout from its forebear's events in typically melodramatic fashion.

So, when will House of the Dragon's next chapter air? And which of the world's streamers will it be released on? Warm up your scrolling finger, and read on for more details.

What time can I watch House of the Dragon season 3 episode 2?

Season 3 episode 2 will come out in North and South America on Sunday, June 28 at 6pm PT / 9pm ET.

"But, what about those of us who don't live on those continents?", I hear you cry. Don't worry, I've got you covered. Read the list below to learn when the Game of Thrones prequel's next installment will make its debut where you live:

• US — Sunday, June 28 at 6pm PT / 9pm ET
• Canada — Sunday, June 28 at 6pm PT / 9pm ET
• UK — Monday, June 29 at 2am BST
• India — Monday, June 29 at 6:30am IST
• Singapore — Monday, June 29 at 9am SGT
• Australia — Monday, June 29 at 11am AEST
• New Zealand — Monday, June 29 at 1pm NZST

Where can I stream House of the Dragon season 3?

If you live in a country in which HBO Max has already launched, that platform will be your go-to destination for all things House of the Dragon season 3.

Fear not if one of the world's best streaming services isn't out in your neck of the woods, though, because the high fantasy show has somewhere to live where you, well, live:

• US — HBO and HBO Max
• Canada — Crave
• UK — HBO Max, Sky Atlantic, and Now TV
• India — JioHotstar
• Singapore — HBO Max
• Australia — HBO Max
• New Zealand — HBO Max

When do new episodes of House of the Dragon season 3 come out?

Every Sunday in the Americas and every Monday in other parts of the world. That'll remain the case until this season's final episode drops in early August.

Need to know the exact dates that new chapters will be released? Check out the list below:

• House of the Dragon season 3 episode 1 — out now
• House of the Dragon season 3 episode 2 — June 28/29
• House of the Dragon season 3 episode 3 — July 5/6
• House of the Dragon season 3 episode 4— July 12/13
• House of the Dragon season 3 episode 5 — July 19/20
• House of the Dragon season 3 episode 6 — July 26/27
• House of the Dragon season 3 episode 7 — August 2/3
• House of the Dragon season 3 episode 8 — August 9/10

Spoilers for Dutton Ranch episode 8 ahead.

In the words of Charli XCX in 2024, we're going full brat. Dutton Ranch episode 8 turns the tables on Carter (Finn Little) after getting hideously drunk at the 10 Petal anniversary party and destroying Beulah's (Annette Bening) property.

He's been lashing out in the Yellowstone spinoff for two reasons: the fact he's had to move to Texas in the first place — being convinced that Beth (Kelly Reilly) and Rip (Cole Hauser) are now interfering in his life too much — and because Oreana (Natalie Alyn Lind) has rejected him for someone with more status and money.

Mix in the expected teen angst of a 19-year-old and you've got a very unnecessary storm brewing. With Beulah collapsing to the floor in the finale scene of episode 7 (just after Carter smashed up her prized bull head), the tension is even higher.

In fact, Carter haters might want to look away from Dutton Ranch episode 8 altogether... and you'll see why below.

Beulah is hospitalized after having a heart attack — and everyone is questioning her decisions

Episode 8 starts with Beulah being airlifted out of the party and sent to hospital, with Rob-Will (Jai Courtney) following close behind.

The next morning, Rob-Will finds Oreana, Joaquin (Juan Pablo Raba) and Everett (Ed Harris) in the hospital waiting room, and explains that Beulah has had a heart attack. She has a standard angioplasty procedure and is declared medically fine.

Beulah asks to see Rob-Will and Joaquin together before anyone else, with the pair still taking swipes out of each other. She explains that Rob-Will has been given 10 Petal because he is "weak," with Beulah adding "it's not your prize, it's your protection."

She claims that the brothers are going to be joined at the hip no matter what, and that Rob-Will needs Joaquin much more than the other way around. Rob-Will also claims that he wants to fire Beth and Rip with Beulah refusing, responding that they are the "assets" that the ranch needs.

Beth herself stops by to visit later, offering her apologies for Carter's behaviour the night before. The pair talk about the fallout of parenting boys before Beth moves onto why she's really there: she cannot understand the decision behind Rob-Will's appointment.

"I agreed to work with you, not with him," she adds, claiming that they need to speak about things properly once Beulah is out of hospital. Everett asks her the same questions when he visits on his own later on, with Beulah implying that 10 Petal had to go to a "flesh and blood relation."

Their conversation moves onto Beulah's suggestion of retiring together earlier in the season, with Everett stating that he's ready for a new shot at romance if she is. "If I knew a heart attack was going to change your mind, I'd have had one a lot sooner," Beulah replies.

Everett takes Beulah back to his to recoup at home, essentially breaking out of the hospital before she's officially been discharged.

A disgraced Carter finally opens up to Beth — but it all goes wrong

Rip and Carter make their way back from the party on horseback, with Carter repeatedly falling off and vomiting over his own horse (maybe one of the worst things I've ever seen).

The next morning, Beth makes Carter a coffee and asks to talk to him outside. Carter reveals that he's quit school, though neglects to tell her anything about working with Dwight (Ray McKinnon). Beth implies that just hating school isn't good enough, telling Carter that he needs to take every opportunity to make his life better with both hands.

Despite being hungover, Rip makes good on his promise to Carter to take him to work at 10 Petal to get some experience. Immediately, Azul (J.R. Villarreal) and the other ranchers start ribbing Carter for how much he's had to drink, which takes a sour turn when Carter is thrown off of his horse while trying to lasso an escaped cow.

Rip scolds Carter for snapping at Azul, with Carter swearing and storming off in a huff. Rip finds him in a cattle barn, telling him that if any other rancher had rode away from him, they'd be fired on the spot.

Carter threatens Rip to do it, with Rip sensing that Carter wants to throw a punch. Rip then tries to teach him lessons from life's failures while also empathizing with Carter's struggles of being an orphan, but Carter is having none of it.

Returning home, Carter than explodes at Beth, who tearfully claims that she's going to try harder to be a better mother figure. Carter says he needs some time alone, and drives off.

We later find him back at Dwight's, with the Sherriff (Josh Stewart) finding him outside the empty leopard cage. Carter than tries to blackmail the Sherriff into getting a job shadowing him by threatening to reveal that he killed Dwight for no good reason.

It doesn't work, but there is some good news... we learn that Dwight's leopard has been rehomed at a local zoo.

Joaquin tries to turn Rob-Will in for murder

Fuming after his conversation with Beulah, Joaquin pays his own visit to the Sherriff's office. He reveals a gun in a plastic bag, which was the same gun that Rob-Will used to kill Wes (Nakoa DeCoite) in episode 1.

Joaquin tells the Sherriff about Wes, but cannot prove anything because he doesn't know where the body is. The Sherriff tells him to leave the gun, but that he doesn't believe a word Joaquin is saying. "I haven't forgotten who you are... I just no longer give a f**k," the Sherriff says.

On the drive home, an infuriated Joaquin is seen roadside by a local graveyard in a fit of rage. In episode 8's final scene, we see Joaquin get back in his car to dial his dad — who if you remember from episode 7, was essentially Beulah's caretaker.

In Spanish, we hear Joaquin say, "Hi, Dad. I need your help."

Austin tells 10 Petal's truth to Beth and Rip

10 Petal rancher Austin's (Sterlin English) moral crisis also reaches a head in episode 8. After the deaths of Wes and Chet (Hart Denton), he's on a rampage to reveal the Jackson's family secrets once and for all.

This starts with Austin pulling a gun on Miguel (Berto Colon) during wrangling hours, demanding that he reveal what's been going on or be killed. Zachariah (Marc Menchaca) has to intervene, with Austin later asking him if Rip can be trusted. "With your life," replies Zachariah.

That evening, the pair visit Beth and Rip at home and reveal the truth — 10 Petal is running an illegal cattle smuggling operation across the Mexican border to keep financially afloat. The next shipment is in two days, leaving Rip and Beth at a loss for what to do next.

This also explains how Bullet, the bull bought at cattle auction in episode 2, was able to be unvetted while having foot and mouth disease.

Supergirl has finally taken flight in theaters — and, if you're weighing up whether to see it, read my Supergirl review first to find out if it's worth doing so.

If you've already made up your mind about not seeing the DC Universe (DCU) movie on the big screen, though, you might be wondering when it'll be available to watch at home.

So, when might the Milly Alcock-fronted superhero film make its streaming debut? Below, I've offered my thoughts on its possible HBO Max release date, so read on to see when it might come to one of the world's best streaming services.

Does Supergirl have an HBO Max release date?

No. One of this year's many new movies only landed in theaters globally on June 26, so it'll be a while before it airs on Warner Bros. Discovery's (WBD) streaming platform.

That said, we can use some recent examples of WBD movies releasing on HBO Max to take an educated guess at when it may join the service's library.

For starters, Superman, the first DCU Chapter One flick, dropped on HBO Max on September 19, 2025. That means it came to the platform exactly 70 days after its initial theatrical release on July 11, 2025.

If Supergirl follows in Superman's footsteps, it would make its HBO Max bow on September 4, 2026 — but, how likely is that to happen?

Well, Warner Bros. movies that have come out this year and are now on HBO Max include Wuthering Heights, The Bride!, and They Will Kill You. Curiously, this trio all launched on the service 77 days their original theatrical release dates.

Should other films yet to launch on HBO Max, such as Mortal Kombat II and Lee Cronin's The Mummy, also arrive 77 days after their theatrical debuts, Supergirl may similarly follow this release pattern, and be available to stream at home on September 11. (NB: Lee Cronin's The Mummy is now confirmed to make its HBO Max debut on July 3, aka 77 days after its original release date).

However, considering the aforementioned date is when the 9/11 attacks, aka one of the most tragic events in US history, occurred, I'd be very surprised if the movie formerly known as Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow comes out on that date. My best guess, then, is that Supergirl will make its streaming bow on September 4 or 18.

What is the runtime for Supergirl?

Supergirl is one of the shortest superhero films of all time. Indeed, at just one hour and 47 minutes, Kara Zor-El's second-ever standalone film, which includes its end-credits crawl, is certainly on the punchier side.

For those of you with small bladders, though, that means you might only need to take one bathroom break during your screening, if you need to take any at all!

Does Supergirl have any end-credits scenes?

You'll need to read my Supergirl ending explained piece to find out. It goes without saying, but that article is full of spoilers, so only read it once you've seen the DCU flick.

Haven't done so yet, but want to find out more before you do? First, read up on everything you need to know about Supergirl. Then, check out my Supergirl cast and character guide to learn who's joins Alcock in DC Studios' latest film.

• Apple has raised prices across multiple categories in Australia
• The MacBook Neo has lost some of its entry-level appeal
• The move follows rising RAM and storage costs

Australian shoppers looking for after EOFY offers, or waiting for early Amazon Prime Day tech deals, now have another price shift to factor in. Apple has raised local prices across several major product categories, including the new MacBook Neo, MacBook Air, iPad range, Apple TV 4K, HomePod mini and more.

The timing is awkward, but it also hasn't come from nowhere. Apple has usually been better than most tech companies at absorbing supply chain pressure before it reaches shoppers, though the current RAM and component crunch has been dragging on for long enough to change that calculation.

The warning signs came last month, when Tim Cook flagged "significantly higher memory costs" on an earnings call, then said RAM prices would "drive an increasing impact" on Apple products from this month.

Australian buyers will feel this

One of the clearest examples is the new MacBook Neo, Apple's lower-cost MacBook model and the machine most likely to appeal to students, or anyone trying to get a new Apple laptop for less than MacBook Air money. In Australia it launched with a price from AU$899. It now starts at AU$1,049, so it has lost some of its entry-level appeal.

Sure, it’s still Apple's cheapest laptop, but the higher starting price makes it less competitive against Windows laptops that have been fighting to compete with the Neo. The 512GB model with Touch ID has also gone from AU$1,099 to AU$1,249.

The MacBook Air has lost some of its competitive edge, and the 13-inch model with the M5 chip (check out our MacBook Air 13-inch M5 review) has jumped from AU$1,799 to AU$2,099 to start.

The 15-inch model is up by the same AU$300 amount, from AU$2,199 to AU$2,499. For a laptop that often sits in the middle of Apple's consumer Mac range, that is a significant hit to its value proposition.

The MacBook Pro increases are especially notable in some configurations. The 14-inch MacBook Pro with M5 now starts at AU$3,199, up from AU$2,699, and the higher-end M5 Max models have also moved up by several hundred dollars. Buyers looking at extra memory or storage were already dealing with expensive upgrades, so the higher base prices only make that decision harder.

The Mac mini is another notable hit. It has gone from AU$999 to AU$1,299, which is a 30% increase on a machine that has often been one of the easier Apple desktops to justify on price.

The iPad range is up, which matters for students, families and anyone who was looking at a new tablet for work, study, travel or general use. The 11-inch iPad Air now starts at AU$1,249, up from AU$999, while the standard iPad, iPad mini and iPad Pro models have also increased.

The rises are not limited to Macs and iPads. HomePod mini has gone from AU$149 to AU$199, HomePod is up from AU$479 to AU$549, and Apple TV 4K has jumped from AU$219 to AU$299. Vision Pro was already a niche product at AU$5,999, and the new AU$6,299 starting price certainly does not broaden its appeal.

Apple's iPhone lineup, Apple Watch and AirPods appear to have avoided this round of increases at least. That helps limit the pain for some buyers, but it doesn’t change the issue for anyone who was waiting to buy a Mac, iPad or other Apple device.

Aussie price changes

Of course, Apple is not the only company dealing with higher memory and storage costs, but the scale of these changes is still pretty notable. Price rises across one or two products are easy enough to explain. Price rises across most of Apple’s range are not something that’s easily avoided.

An Apple spokesperson said: “The consumer electronics industry is facing an unprecedented challenge. The rapid expansion of AI data centers has created an extraordinary surge in demand for memory and storage. We have never seen a component price increase this much, this quickly. We have shielded our customers from these increases so far, but we have now reached a point where we need to begin raising prices on a number of products, including today’s increases for iPad and Mac. We know this is not welcome news, and we are working tirelessly to find solutions.”

The main question is whether the Australian prices come back down if the RAM shortage eases, or whether these higher starting points become normal. We are hopeful, but Apple hasn’t promised a reversal.

For now, local retailers may be worth checking more closely, especially if older stock or short-term deal pricing remains available during EOFY and early Prime Day sales periods.

Other Apple deals

These products haven't gone up in price, but they're still great deals. Note, the prices were last checked on July 1, 2026.

• The Sopranos: The Complete Series is a limited edition 4K Blu-ray release
• 86 episodes over 28 discs including 2 bonus Blu-rays
• December 2026 (US), $149.99

One of the greatest TV dramas of all time is coming to 4K Blu-ray. The Sopranos: The Complete Series box set is available for pre-order in the US and Canada, and will be released at the end of 2026.

This far from the first Sopranos box set: in addition to the DVD box set I've got on the shelf, there was a Blu-ray box in 2014, plus a 25th anniversary Blu-ray box set in 2024, which included The Many Saints of Newark as well. So this is the first time it's all available in 4K.

This edition delivers a brand new and currently untitled featurette with Sopranos creator and writer David Chase. That featurette is on one of the two bonus discs that also include hours of extra material including a two-part documentary, seven behind-the-scenes featurettes, and all of the bonus content previously released on The Sopranos: Complete Series Blu-ray release. And it's all delivered in hardcover lay-flat book packaging.

For fans of the show, this looks like the ultimate release: the best-looking, most pristine way to see one of the most influential TV shows ever.

Why The Sopranos in 4K is a must-have mafia drama

The Sopranos tells the story of depressed mob boss Tony Soprano, who's going to therapy in secret because he knows that if word gets out about his "weakness", he's a dead man walking. It's as much about family as it is about mafia families, and it features stellar performances throughout.

During its run the show amassed multiple well-deserved awards including 111 Primetime Emmy nominations and 21 wins, 5 Golden Globe awards, and Emmys for cast members James Gandolfini, Edie Falco, Michael Imperioli, Drea de Matteo, and Joe Pantoliano.

I'm not being hyperbolic when I tell you that The Sopranos began a golden age of TV drama. Without The Sopranos, there would be no Breaking Bad, Mad Men or any of the other premium shows we love so much.

It was pivotal in shifting the view that TV was inferior to cinema, and that our relatable protagonists couldn't be awful people. And it was really, really, really good: the writing, the performances and the cinematography were all superb.

While much of the praise for The Sopranos centers on the cast, and rightly so, the work of cinematographer Alik Sakharov was crucial too. The cinematography was groundbreaking in how it contributed to the story, and there's a fascinating article about it on No Film School. And if that's the kind of thing you find interesting, then this new 4K box set was made for you.

The Sopranos 4K Blu-ray box set has a release date of 8 December 2026 in the US and a recommended price of $149.99.

Thinking of buying a new TV?

Try our TV size and model finder! You tell it how far you sit from your TV, we'll tell you what size to buy based on viewing angle advice from image quality experts, and we'll recommend our three top TVs at that size for different prices.

• The Long Walk is coming to HBO Max on July 10
• HBO Max will be the movie's US streaming home after a successful theatrical run
• The Long Walk is based on a Stephen King story and was a box office success

The Long Walk is finally coming to HBO Max for US subscribers, joining a host of exciting new movies arriving in July.

HBO Max has confirmed that The Long Walk will arrive on July 10, so we don't have long to wait before we can stream it at home. The movie was a huge success among critics and saw box office takings of $63.1 million before it moved onto streaming.

If you haven't seen The Long Walk yet, it's based on the novel by Stephen King and follows 50 boys in an annually televised competitive walking contest which is meant to inspire viewers.

They maintain a pace of 4.8 km/h of nonstop walking for days, and failure to do so after three warnings results in their death. The boy who lasts the longest wins a large cash prize and the fulfilment of one wish of his choice.

The walk only ends when one survivor remains, so it is a nail-biting watch. If you enjoyed director Francis Lawrence's adaptations of The Hunger Games, I think you'll love what he's done with The Long Walk too.

There's some other great titles arriving on HBO Max in July too. Sofia Coppola's movie about iconic designer Marc Jacobs., Marc by Sofia, arrives on July 16.

Elsewhere, dark comedy The Drama starring Zendaya and Robert Pattinson arrives on July 31, and it promises to be the most dramatic wedding of the season. Hence the name, of course.

If none of that catches your eye, check out our best HBO Max movies or best HBO Max shows round ups for more titles. There's plenty to enjoy on one of the best streaming services.

For the first time in over 40 years, a Supergirl movie has soared into theaters. And, if you weren't put off by its middling reviews — check out my Supergirl review to see what I thought of it — and have already watched it at your local cinema, you might need some clarity about what happens in its finale.

Below, I've answered your biggest questions about the DC Universe (DCU) film's ending and how it sets up next year's Superman sequel. So, this is your one and only warning: full spoilers immediately follow for Supergirl. Turn back now if you haven't seen it yet.

Does Krypto die in Supergirl?

Rejoice, dog and animal lovers alike, because Krypto does not die.

As you'll know, part of this film's plot revolves around the titular Kryptonian — real name Kara Zor-El — retrieving an antidote to neutralize the effects of a poisoned dart that Krypto was shot with.

The problem? The only cure is in the possession of villain-in-chief Krem of the Yellow Hills, who just so happened to be the individual responsible for gravely injuring Krypto in the first place. And, as Kara learns, she only has 72 hours to track down Krem, acquire the necessary cure, and administer it, otherwise Krypto will succumb to the toxin.

To cut a long story short, Kara succeeds in her mission. Returning to the planet she left Krypto on, she hands the medication to the local physician, who injects it into Krypto and, within seconds, he's fit and healthy once more. Phew!

Why does Kara kill Krem in Supergirl?

On the surface, the answer is simple: Krem is responsible for Krypto's near-death experience. Her Kryptonian cousin — Clark Kent/Kal-El/Superman — notwithstanding, Kara's only tie to the duo's annihilated home world Krypton is her superpowered pup. So, considering Krypto's life was severely threatened, you can understand why she ultimately decided to take Krem's life.

There are other factors at play, too, though. For one, Kara kills him because he murdered the family of young warrior Ruthye, who enlists Kara's help to enact revenge on Krem. However, rather than let Ruthye slay him and carry that weight for the rest of her days, Kara convinces Ruthye not to go through with it and, after sending Ruthye away, Kara deals the killing blow instead.

Then there's the fact that Krem and his criminal enterprise, aka the Brigands, hop from planet to planet to kidnap teenage girls and use them to create the next generation for this all-male gang. Furthermore, killing Krem means that he won't be able to revive the Brigands and, by proxy, his reign of terror. Add those reasons together, and it's little wonder that the honor-bound Kara bumps him off.

Nevertheless, Kara's decision to murder Krem is sure to polarize viewers.

In Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow, aka the 2021 graphic novel that this film is based on, Krem is allowed to live. That's because Kara wants to teach Ruthye that revenge is never the answer, and breaking the cycle of violence is the only way to process your trauma and heal from it.

Supergirl follows the same thematic line right up until Kara kills Krem — and, in spite of the reasons I outlined earlier, it still doesn't sit right with me.

Sure, the narrative reasoning for Krem's death is sound. Additionally, despite the similarities that exist between Kara and Supes, it not only proves how different their worldviews are, but also positions her as something of an anti-hero rather than a traditional champion of the people.

That all said, Kara choosing to murder Krem completely undercuts the thematic purpose of the entire story, and I'm willing to be that there'll be many viewers like me who wished that this specific part of the DCU Chapter One movie had ended differently.

Does Supergirl have any end credits scenes?

Nope, there isn't a mid-credits and/or post-credits stinger to stick around for once Supergirl's end credits sequence begins.

So, if you don't want to stick around and appreciate how many people worked on this project, you can make a quick exit from your screening without worrying that you've missed the set up for DC Studios' next big-screen offering.

How does Supergirl set up Man of Tomorrow?

Supergirl doesn't set up any specific story threads for Man of Tomorrow, aka next year's follow-up in 2025's Superman movie. If you were hoping for even the slightest tease about its plot via a first-look clip or otherwise, then, you'll be sorely disappointed.

Regardless, Supergirl's final scene reconfirms that Milly Alcock's Kara will be part of Man of Tomorrow's cast.

Indeed, before Supergirl's end credits crawl, we see Kara and Krypto return to their Metropolis-based apartment just as David Corenswet's Supes is checking in on the place in their absence. As Krypto goes through Kara's trash, Kara and her sole surviving relative sit down for a quiet and brief chat, which ends with Kara telling Clark that she plans on sticking around on Earth for a while.

We already knew that Alcock's Girl of Steel would return in Man of Tomorrow — DC Studios co-chief Peter Safran revealed as much in a recent chat with The Hollywood Reporter. Nonetheless, it's pleasing to see that Supergirl acknowledges Kara is back on Earth prior to her appearance in next year's Superman sequel and that she won't just turn up out of the blue at some point in the film.

For more information on what'll be the fourth DCU movie, find out everything we know so far about Man of Tomorrow.