Of all the mind-bending occurrences 2019 has brought us thus far, in hindsight it may well go down as the Year of the Deepfake—when the nascent technology collided with the mainstream. Over the past ten months alone, viral deepfakes ofNancy Pelosi,Mark Zuckerberg,Jordan Peterson, andBill Haderhave been viewed by hundreds of millions—if not billions. Yet the public is only beginning to grapple with what happens when seeing is no longer believing....

The release ofJoker: Folie à Deuxhas been met with disappointing box office numbers and mixed reviews, if we’re being kind. If we’re being honest,we’d say box office has been disastrous and the reviews have been toxic. On paper, this looks like a shock given how successful its predecessor was. But we need to examine why that is. Well, there’s maybe one reason, and it’s one you might not have realised. While the sequel brought back the original individuals likeJoaquin Phoenixand directorTodd Phillips,there was one person missing from the production team that many may have missed: Bradley Cooper....

Created, written and starring real-life best friendsEmily MortimerandDolly Wellsas somewhat fictionalized versions of themselves, the six-episode behind-the-scenes comedyDoll & Emis back on HBO for Season 2. After the first season explored what happens when a Hollywood actress (Mortimer) hires her childhood friend (Wells) as a personal assistant while making a film in Los Angeles, Season 2 will see them write an off-Broadway play together, in an effort to do something creative on equal footing, and they even manage to getOlivia WildeandEvan Rachel Woodto appear in it, as them....

In the past, I’ve lamented the decline of the PG adventure movie. Kids are either shunted off into family-friendly animated features or they’re thrust into the blockbuster fare of PG-13 summer tentpoles. It’s getting harder to find movies that are appropriate for the 9-12 set while also being terrific. EnterEnola Holmes, a cinematic and electrifying adaptation of a YA book series that focuses on Sherlock Holmes’ kid sister. Developed as a feature in part by starMillie Bobby Brown(who also serves as a producer on the film),Enola Holmesis a pure delight from start to finish that spins a captivating mystery yarn worthy of its protagonist’s surname while being family friendly enough that parents won’t have to worry about anything too dark scaring their young ones....

Paramount Pictures has offered up a first look at what could be one of the studio’s biggest awards contenders of the year.Fencesis a feature film adaptation of the Tony Award-winning stage play byAugust Wilsonwhich takes place in the 1950s and revolves around an African-American former baseball star who now works as a trash collector, crossing the race barrier to serve as a driver, not just a barrel lifter.Denzel WashingtonandViola Davisstarred in the 2010 revival of the play, earning Tony Awards for their performances, and they reprise their roles in the feature film adaptation, which sees Washington stepping into the director’s chair of a drama that tackles American race relations head on....

White, male “hustlers” and “womanizers” are all the rage right now, so 20th Century Fox’s Marvel Comics producerSimon Kinbergis going to double down on the trend by accentuating those aspects of the CajunX-Menteam memberGambitin the long-in-development solo film. Rather than focus on, say, the character’s troubled history with the thieves' guild, his conflicts with the assassins' guild and Mr. Sinister, his fan-favorite and earnest romantic relationship with fellow X-Men member Rogue, or his mutant heritage that sets him apart as a minority,Gambitwill now have a “romantic or sex comedy vibe....

Every year, the wait for a new season ofGame of Thronesseems longer. That’s the curse when your show is so good. So what’s the one thing that could make the wait even harder? Having to wait for fewer episodes. And yet that looks like where we may be headed.Varietyreports that showrunnersD.B. WeissandDavid Benioffare could cut down the home stretch ofGame of Thronesepisode down to 13—seven episodes for season 7 and six episodes for the eighth and potentially final season....

Hands down, my favorite moment to come out of this interview withBrian Wysol, creator of Adult Swim’s new twisted comedy seriesHot Streets, was discovering thatJustin RoilandofRick and Mortyfame once told him that he might have gone too far with one of his jokes. That’s pretty impressive. To find out just what Roiland was talking about, you’ll have to tune into the premiere ofHot Streetson Adult Swim this Sunday, January 14th at midnight ET/PT....

Not thatAvengers: Infinity Warever needed to belonger, but Marvel has been releasing the deleted scenes that will appear on the comic book character-a-palooza’s home video release. The latest seesZoe Saldana’s Gamora confronting her adopted father Thanos (James Brolin) about the whole kidnapping and slaughtering her entire homeworld thing. In turn, the Mad Titan calls out his daughter for lying about the Soul Stone, the orange MacGuffin for which he’ll later toss her off a cliff to possess....

FollowingTitanic’srecentreturn to theaters for its 25th anniversary,and to the tune of an extra $22.3 million, the discussion floodgates (ahem) once again opened regarding the disaster-romance’s merits. Writer-directorJames Cameronput the door debate to bed with science, sure, but isTitaniceven good? (Yes, it is.) Seriously, though, isn’t it overrated? (Nope, but it’s fine if your mileage varies.) Dissecting a pop culture giant this gargantuan isn’t just nerd heaven for movie fans —Titaniccalls for retrospective interrogation....

Rian Johnson’sKnives Out, his return to the crime drama and follow-up toStar Wars: The Last Jedi, is easily one of my most anticipated movies of 2019, and now we know when to expect it. Lionsgate and MRC have sent out a press release announcing that the film will be released on Wednesday, July 18, 2025. Details on the plot are still scarce beyond the story being set in the modern day and a detective, played byDaniel Craig, is the lead role....

Marvel Animation’s new TV franchiseMarvel Risingis bringing a whole new generation of superheroes to the small screen. Years in the making, the rollout recently began with a prequel web seriesMarvel Rising: Initiation, which focused on Gwen Stacy’s Ghost Spider and introduced fans everywhere to the show’s version of Squirrel Girl, Ms. Marvel, Quake and Patriot. Soon, those fans will get to continue the adventure with their new favorite heroes as the special TV event movieMarvel Rising: Secret Warriorshits the air later this month....

You got to give Marvel credit for being willing to get weird with it. The studio that ushered in the age of shared universes kicked theirs off small with a man in an iron suit, but in the years since, that universe has grown exponentially. They introduced the realms of the gods (kinda) withThor, traversed the outer reaches of space withGuardians of the Galaxy, and traveled to the quantum realm inAnt-Man....