What went down in the pop culture spheres of film, gaming and comics this past week? Below are the biggest stories of the past few days. In addition to all the announcements and trailer drops, the period included a couple of notable passings as well. L.J. Smith, author of The Vampire Diaries, has died at just 66. The writer had been struggling with autoimmune disease for some time. Also passing this week was actor Clive Revill, aged 94. While that name may not be familiar to most, the Royal Shakespeare Company veteran was both the voice of butler Alfred Pennyworth in Batman: The Animated Series and Emperor Palpatine in the original release of The Empire Strikes Back.
Speaking of people with a Star Wars association, it’s been revealed that legendary poster artist Drew Struzan (78) is fighting for his life as his Alzheimer’s disease advances. Struzan’s illustrated art style is associated with film series like Indiana Jones, Back to the Future, and Harry Potter, as well as The Goonies, Blade Runner, and many more.
Film
After a 14 year absence from cinemas (and 25 years since the original horror film released), the Final Destination franchise is back. Upcoming Final Destination Bloodlines is the sixth entry in the series about teens dealing with the consequences of outmaneuvering Death. With the threat of a grisly demise hanging over her head, a college student learns that her family is tied to the first instance that Death was defied, causing a chain reaction of deadly, twisted accidents.
Final Destination Bloodlines comes to cinemas from 16 May.
One other piece of movie news, the cast (at least to start) of Avengers: Doomsday was unveiled this week via a surprise livestream stunt that ended up earning over 275 million views. The next big MCU ensemble will be a multiversal gathering that includes established heroes like Thor, Ant-Man and Black Panther, along with newer teams like the Thunderbolts, and Fantastic Four, plus several of the original 2000s X-Men. Missing are the “still alive” likes of Spider-Man, Captain Marvel, the Hulk, the Guardians of the Galaxy, and Doctor Strange. You can check out a full list of actors and characters here.
The filmmakers (the Russo brothers are back behind the camera) better motor, though. Avengers: Doomsday is set for release next year already, on 1 May 2026.
Lifestyle
Comic Con Cape Town‘s comic-centred partner FanCon Comic Con continues to bring it! Just announced is another international comic creator: Jim Cheung out of the UK. With a portfolio that includes work on some of the biggest Marvel and DC books, Jim will be around on all four days of CCCT 2025.
Speaking of artists, South African comic star Sean Izaakse will also be a guest on 3 days, 1-3 May, while graphic artist Keith Vlahakis, celebrated for his incredible tribute movie posters, will be in the StreetCon section on all days.
A few other need to knows about Comic Con Cape Town 2025:
- Saturday, 3 May, is officially sold out. This means that tickets won’t be available at the door.
- The Geek Meet and Mingle speed social activity is back on 1 and 3 May at the Pop-Taku Stage. Head there from 6pm both days to make new like-minded connections.
Gaming
While it was free of information on the highly anticipated Switch 2 (fans will have to wait until the Nintendo Direct: Nintendo Switch 2 presentation on 2 April for that), yesterday’s 45-minute Nintendo Direct stream highlighted a slate of new games and features for current Switch owners. Two new titles that stood out for us:
From the makers of throwback arcade-style brawler Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge, comes similar colourful side-scroller MARVEL Cosmic Invasion. Players assume the role of multiple Marvel heroes, including Nova, Spider-Man, Wolverine, Captain America, and Storm, as they defend Earth from the forces of Annihilus. The game is launching in the Northern Hemisphere summer for PC, Switch, PlayStation 4/5 and Xbox consoles.
One for the Stardew Valley fans is cosy life sim Witchbrook, where players move to the seaside community of Mossport to attend Witchbrook College. Between mastering your studies, you’ll make friends, potentially find romance, accept part-time jobs to fund your tuition (too real!), craft goods to sell at the local market, and customise your home. You know the drill by now. There’s up to 4-person online coop too.
Witchbrook is out at the end of 2025 for Switch, PC and Xbox.
One gaming news tidbit: Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, which released in December 2024 as a timed PC and Xbox exclusive has its PlayStation launch date: 17 April 2025.