Normal site scheduling will resume from next week, following public holiday disruptions and a much needed vacation. Until then, here’s a bumper week and a half’s worth of recapped news to tide you over.
Streaming television
It’s been all about Netflix the past few weeks. First of all, there was this past weekend’s online global fan event TUDUM, offering over three hours of first looks, announcements and hype-stoking behind the scenes content. Watch the full recording of TUDUM here.
The Witcher (we hope you like The Witcher because there are loads of franchise projects in the works), Bridgerton, The Umbrella Academy, The Crown, Tiger King, Vikings, Cowboy Bebop, Red Notice, Extraction 2, Army of Thieves and many, many more series and movies featured.
Our top three take-homes from TUDUM?
1) Sex Education Season 4 already has the greenlight! We won’t be left dangling on that S3 cliff-hanger forever.
2) We got our first look at, and some character posters, for The Sandman, an adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s massively influential comic series. After decades of languishing in development hell, we’ll finally see an on-screen version of Dream (played by Tom Sturridge), and other members of the Endless, presumably in the first half of 2022. More on The Sandman’s journey to the small screen, and what to expect, here.
3) Stranger Things Season 4 – due for release sometime next year – seems to be heading in a spookier direction, if this teaser trailer is anything to go by. Evidently the Upside Down has been accessible for quite some time.
Apart from TUDUM, Netflix recently revealed the trailer for Night Teeth, about a young chauffer (Jorge Lendeborg Jr.) who realises the party girls (Debby Ryan, Lucy Fry) he’s ferrying around are actually vampires. The blood-sucking resurgence continues! Night Teeth starts streaming on October 20, just in time for Halloween. Megan Fox also stars.
Out of nowhere, Netflix also announced that they now own The Roald Dahl Story Co. (RDSC), which manages the British novelist’s catalogue. So expect a full Dahl universe on the streaming service, which is already involved in a Taika Waititi animated series (or two) based on Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and an adaptation of Matilda The Musical, with Emma Thompson as Miss Trunchbull.
In non-Netflix news, the 2021 Emmy Awards also took place two Sundays ago. The full list of winners is here, but, in summary, The Crown and Ted Lasso dominated in the drama and comedy series categories respectively, while in the limited series or TV movie categories, Mare of Easttown, The Queen’s Gambit and I May Destroy You had strong showings.
The good news for South African viewers is that if they loved Jean Smart in her supporting role in Mare of Easttown, the razor-sharp comedy Hacks – which just won Smart the Emmy for Outstanding Actress: Comedy – will be streaming on Showmax from November 1.
Film
We’re about two weeks from the release, on October 15, of Halloween Kills, the sequel to Halloween (2018), the surprisingly strong revival of the seminal slasher franchise. Here’s the Final Trailer, although personally I prefer the energy and set-up of the first one. Jamie Lee Curtis and Judy Greer are back to take the fight to unstoppable masked killer Michael Myers.
Considerably more highbrow (and awards-baity) is Joel Coen’s black-and-white take on William Shakespeare’s “Scottish play.” The Tragedy of Macbeth stars Denzel Washington, Frances McDormand, Corey Hawkins and Brendan Gleeson, and will screen in US cinemas from December 25, before hitting Apple TV+ just a few weeks later on January 14.
Gaming
Something that caught our eye gaming-wise is upcoming indie survival adventure Breakwaters from Soaring Pixels Games. There’s crafting, building, and a co-op option in this dynamic open world of islands, but what makes the game really stand out is its nifty water manipulation element – to solve puzzles and bend the ocean to your needs. Breakwaters is set for release in October for PC, PS and Xbox. It’s also in Early Access on Steam right now.
You didn’t think that only Sonic the Hedgehog and Pokémon were going to get the big screen treatment, did you? At last week’s Nintendo Direct, the all-star voice cast of an animated Super Mario Bros. movie was announced. The video game adaptation hits cinemas in December 2022. More here on who’s playing who.
