We start off this week’s pop culture news recap with the sad announcement that South African actress and cultural activist Connie Chiume has passed aged 72. Chiume is probably best known to international audiences as one of the Wakandan governing elders in the Black Panther movie series, while closer to home she appeared in the likes of Yizo Yizo 2, Rhythm City and Queen Sono.
Series
Netflix has dropped a Save the Date teaser for its 2024 Geeked Week, which this year even includes a live event on 19 September in Atlanta, Georgia. Kicking off with online events from 16 September, it’s safe to assume that audiences will be treated to looks at the likes of upcoming second seasons of Arcane, Squid Game and Wednesday, in addition to the Tomb Raider anime series, and plenty of surprises.
Still talking Netflix, toy-themed documentary series The Toys That Made Us is finally getting a fourth and fifth season. With four instalments per season, covering the likes of Barbie, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and LEGO, the last new episodes debuted back in 2019.
No date reveal has been made for Season 4 & 5 but we know, courtesy of an announcement at San Diego Comic-Con, that episode topics will include the likes of Ghostbusters, Hot Wheels, Polly Pocket, Pokemon and Nerf.
Netflix wasn’t the only streamer to drop a content reel this past week. Max went a little further with sneak peeks and release dates for some of its most highly anticipated upcoming content. This includes HBO Original Series like The Penguin, and Dune: Prophecy, both out before the end of this year, plus 2025 debuts It: Welcome to Derry, and new Game of Thrones spin-off A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms. This is in addition to the returning likes of The White Lotus, The Last of Us, and The Gilded Age. Get a glimpse of everything below.
After Yellowjackets and Fallout, we’ll pay attention to anything starring Ella Purnell. Next up from the actress is Sweetpea, a six-part series based on C.J. Skuse’s 2017 novel. Rhiannon Lewis is a quiet young woman, shy and overlooked. That is until one day she’s pushed over the edge, and her anger triggers a taste for murder, and addiction to the resulting sense of power.
Sweetpea comes to Sky and streaming service NOW in the UK, and Starz in the US, in October.
Speaking of the Game of Thrones on-screen universe, with the end of prequel House of the Dragon’s Season 2, it’s been revealed that the current plan is to wrap up the series with 4 seasons. Filming of Season 3 is on the cards for next year, with a 2026 release in mind. Meanwhile, there are reportedly seven more spin-offs (both live-action and animated) in various states of development. Just note that many of these are unlikely to happen as two projects have already been binned.
Film
Here’s one to keep an eye on. Auteur Steven Soderbergh is putting a fresh spin on supernatural thrillers with Presence, a film shot from the point of view from a ghost who haunts a house and must contend with the new family that moves in. Starring the likes of Lucy Liu, Julia Fox, and Chris Sullivan, Presence premiered at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival and will be released by NEON in US cinemas starting in mid January next year.
One notable movie news tidbit this week: If you were looking forward to more of filmmaker Zack Snyder’s zombie universe, introduced in horror actioner Army of the Dead, sorry but plans for an expanding franchise have been scuppered by Netflix. This information was revealed in a recent The Wrap interview with Snyder, to coincide with the release of the Rebel Moon Director’s Cuts. Snyder’s comment: “We are very ambitious with everything.”