For two weeks, it’s been a relatively quiet period for pop culture news. Maybe the Thanksgiving break had something to do with it; maybe people are just tired. Either way, here are a handful of film, series and gaming stories that stood out for us.

Before that, though, filmmaker Jim Abrahams passed away on 26 November, aged 80, after twenty years living with leukaemia. Abrahams frequently collaborated with the Zucker brothers, resulting in beloved spoof movies like Airplane!, The Naked Gun and Hot Shots! He also directed 80s black comedy Ruthless People.

Film

So many live-action adaptations of classic Disney animated films, but until now the House of Mouse hasn’t applied the treatment to the movie that started it all: Snow White and the Seven Dwarves.

Out 21 March next year, though, is Disney’s Snow White, starring Rachel Zegler as the kind-hearted and beautiful princess who earns the envy of her step-mother, the Evil Queen (Gal Gadot). Fortunately, or unfortunately given how terrifying they look in CGI, Snow has the seven dwarves, Bashful, Doc, Dopey, Grumpy, Happy, Sleepy, and Sneezy, on her side. Marc Webb (The Amazing Spider-Man) directs.

A live-action Voltron movie is finally on the way. In development in some form or another since being announced back in 2005, this adaptation of the 80s animated series has already locked down the likes of Henry Cavill, Rita Ora, Sterling K. Brown, John Kim, Tim Griffin, Alba Baptista and Daniel Quinn-Toye for undisclosed roles. If you need a Voltron franchise refresher, the series sees a team of space explorers work together to pilot a giant robot.

Speaking of giant mecha controlled by humans, a live-action Pacific Rim TV series is also in development. The show will act as a prequel to the movies, and is being driven by Eric Heisserer, the writer of Arrival and Birdbox, and showrunner of Netflix’s Shadow & Bone.

Finally, closer to home, cinema chain Ster Kinekor has revealed its December lineup of Throwback Cinema releases, where beloved films return to the big screen (at select movie houses) for a week or so, at a budget-friendly price of R50 per ticket.

It’s hardly a surprise but the holiday line-up is primarily Christmas themed, with Elf, the original Home Alone, and How the Grinch Stole Christmas leading the pack, before Back to the Future Part III caps off the December offering.

Series

What would Christmas be like without a Doctor Who seasonal special? Disney+ and the BBC have released the full trailer for this year’s time- and universe-spanning adventure, titled Joy to the World.

Premiering 25 December, the special kicks off when Joy (Bridgerton’s Nicola Coughlan) checks into a London hotel in 2024, and opens a secret doorway to the Time Hotel. In the process, she discovers danger, dinosaurs, and the Doctor (Ncuti Gatwa), who is dealing with his own issues this festive season. Steven Moffat is responsible for the script.

Need more Arcane in your life after the story capped with Season 2? Christian Linke, co-creator of Netflix and Fortiche’s massively popular League of Legends adaptation, has revealed that three new League of Legends shows are in development. They take place in the Runeterra regions of proud, lawful Demacia; naturally beautiful and magical Ionia; and harsh, conquest-minded Noxus.

Just don’t expect animation studio Fortiche to be making them. They’re working on their own original feature, sci-fi themed Penelope of Sparta, while Riot wants a completely different look and feel for future Arcane spin-offs.

Gaming

We love us some sci-fi survival horror (and hey, on that note, The Thing: Remastered has had a surprise launch for PC, PS and Xbox). For that reason, we’ll be keeping an eye on Deepest Fear, from Variable State, the makers of Virginia and Last Stop.

Looking to sit in a similar category to this year’s excellent Still Wakes the Deep, and described as being inspired by The Abyss and The Thing, in Deepest Fear, you play as Dr. Danni Carroll, a scientist trapped on Neptune, a retro-futuristic deep-sea facility which is hiding dark secrets and dangerous truths. Danni must contend with hostile creatures that spawn from water sources, failing infrastructure, and submerged environments that change with each moment.

No release date yet for Deepest Fear, which is currently only coming to PC, but you can wishlist the game on Steam here.