Weekly Entertainment Digest – June 29th

June 29, 2024

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As we roll closer to the holiday week, we’re getting a taste of what’s coming this fall in movies as well as some of what to expect next year. We’ve got a lot of exciting movies coming soon!

Check out the release schedule here, or find the new movies and series coming to this summer on Hulu, Prime Video and Netflix.

Metro Detroit Local Events

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Screenings

Despicable Me 4 (7/1)

Movie and Series Review

Movie and Entertainment Updates

GASSED UP – In Theaters & On Demand Now

Ash, who is trying to earn money to raise his 14-year-old sister and send his mother to rehab, gets caught up with an organized crime ring led by a young and charismatic Albanian immigrant.

SCARS UNSEEN – World Premieres at Dances With Films on June 30th

SCARS UNSEEN is a ‘triumph of the human spirit’ documentary, following three women who have overcome domestic violence and are paying it forward. Due to the COVID 19 pandemic, the statistic of 1 in 4 women affected by domestic violence went up to 1 in 3 women. This inspiring documentary highlights each individual’s experience involving domestic violence, focusing not on the grim details of their trauma, but rather on the tools and techniques that helped them to persevere on their healing journey. SCARS UNSEEN aims to illuminate the power of healing, de-stigmatize victimhood, and encourage open communication about the causes, treatment, and prevention of abuse. This documentary focuses on the resiliency of three phenomenal women and encourages us all to be more trauma informed. SCARS UNSEEN is changing the conversation around domestic violence.

ESCAPE Hits Theaters July 5th

After completing his required decade of military service and being honored as a hero, a North Korean sergeant makes a sudden shocking attempt to defect to the South, risking life and limb for the chance to finally determine his own destiny.

MOTHER, COUCH – Opening in Theaters Starting July 5th

The members of a dysfunctional family find themselves mysteriously trapped in an antiquated furniture store when their elderly matriarch (Academy Award®-winner Ellen Burstyn) suddenly refuses to get up from one of the display couches. Reluctantly assembled, her three estranged children – David (Ewan McGregor), Gruffudd (Rhys Ifans), and Linda (Lara Flynn Boyle) – must figure out how to escape this bizarre predicament. With the help of the store managers, Marco & Marcus (Academy Award®-winner F. Murray Abraham), and their daughter Bella (Taylor Russell) the siblings embark on a mind-bending odyssey that forces them to face life-altering truths about their own lives and upbringing. Boasting “sensational” performances from an “A-List cast” (Deadline), Mother, Couch marks director Niclas Larsson as “a major new voice breaking through in cinema” (Slash Film).

TAROT AVAILABLE ON BLU-RAY™AND DVD JULY 9th

When a group of friends recklessly violates the sacred rule of Tarot readings – never use someone else’s deck – they unknowingly unleash an unspeakable evil trapped within the cursed cards. One by one, they come face to face with fate and end up in a race against death to escape the future foretold in their readings.

DISC DETAILS AND BONUS MATERIALS
BLU-RAY™, DVD & DIGITAL EXTRAS

A Twist of Fate: Making the Film
Circle of Friends
Killer Outtakes

Blu-ray™ & DVD include a digital code for movie and bonus materials as listed above, redeemable via Movies Anywhere for a limited time. Movies Anywhere is open to U.S. residents age 13+. Visit MoviesAnywhere.com for terms and conditions.

“Hit-Monkey” Season 2 Streaming on Hulu July 15th

In New York City, Monkey finds a path to escape his life of killing, while Bryce attempts to repair the damage to those he wronged in life. But what will it cost them to undo the past?

Series Synopsis: A Japanese snow monkey, aided by the ghost of an American assassin, goes on a killing-spree, and becomes the famous “killer of killers.”

Hulu’s “How I Caught My Killer” Season Two – Streaming July 18th

How I Caught My Killer” is a true-crime docu-series that highlights the real-life stories behind unique homicide cases with in-depth interviews, authentic archival material and cinematic recreations all packaged together into a fresh spin in the genre.
Whether it’s a fraught letter to a friend, an urgent text message detailing a heated argument, a private diary entry describing a horrifying experience, or an ominous social media post revealing a motive for murder…these victims all leave a case-breaking clue that will one day help to solve their crime.

Every curated case details a complex portrait of a human being whose life was cut short by a killer that would have escaped justice if it hadn’t been for the victim’s own actions. Ultimately, the twists and turns of the investigations into these victim-solved crimes expose an awful truth in America today: our systemic failures as a nation all too frequently deny many citizens justice. Each episode forces us to confront the harsh reality that our system is blind to many underserved and invisible communities that make up a disproportionate percentage of the people who lose their lives to homicide every year.

MIDNIGHT TAXI – ON VOD and Digital July 23rd

A sleepwalking cab driver must delve into London’s seedy underworld to solve a murder and learn whether or not he was unconsciously involved in the gruesome crime.

Experience The 2024 Paris Olympics Opening Ceremony in IMAX® – Tickets on Sale Now – July 26th

For the first time ever, friends and families can gather together for a unique and immersive IMAX experience and enjoy what promises to be one of the most spectacular Opening Ceremonies in Olympic history. The 2024 Paris Olympics Opening Ceremony will be presented live in more than 100 IMAX locations throughout the United States on Friday, July 26th.

This year, the Paris Olympics Opening Ceremony is making history by taking place on one of the world’s most famous waterways, the River Seine. Organizers plan to transform this iconic River into the world’s largest theatrical stage for what promises to be one of the most spectacular Opening Ceremonies in Olympic history. Instead of walking into a stadium, a four-mile-long flotilla of nearly 100 boats will carry athletes from more than 200 countries past hundreds of thousands of spectators seated on the banks of the Seine.

SLEEP NO MORE – in Theaters/VOD/Digital on July 28th

SLEEP NO MORE is a Los Angeles-set neo noir crime thriller, combining grit and atmospheric style, occasional comic desperation and an inspired literary bent. As the 2014 film, director Antonia Bogdanovich’s debut feature, neared its 10th anniversary, she wanted to revisit the film, a New York Times Critic’s Pick (originally distributed as Phantom Halo), with a goal of releasing the version that she originally envisioned. So, as a tribute to her late father, multi-hyphenate Peter (who also executive produced), she set to work to produce SLEEP NO MORE: THE DIRECTOR’S CUT.

Warren Emerson (Sebastian Roché, Queen of Tears, 1923, Big Sky, The Man in the High Castle) once a Shakespearian thespian of renown, is now a gambling-addicted drunk. Puck-like Samuel (Thomas Brodie-Sangster, The Artful Dodger, The Maze Runner series, The Queen’s Gambit, Godless) enchants crowds on Santa Monica’s 3rd Street Promenade reciting Shakespearian monologues his father all but beat into him while his brother Beckett (Luke Kleintank, FBI: International, Midway, The Man in the High Castle), a master pickpocket, makes his way through the unsuspecting crowd. When Warren gets in deep with a vicious loan shark (Gbenga Akinnagbe, Power Book II: Ghost, Asphalt City, Wu-Tang: An American Saga), his sons need to find a way to escape and like Samuel’s beloved comic book hero, Phantom Halo, they must break free of the “mud” that traps them. There is counterfeit money, a Bentley, a beautiful woman, knives, guns and an ending that is more like a Shakespearean tragedy then a film about growing up in the urban decay of Hollywood. Rebecca Romijn (Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, The Librarians, X-Men), Tobin Bell (The Saw series, The Flash), Ashley Hamilton (Gothic Harvest, Rules Don’t Apply) and Jordan Dunn (Read the Room) co-star.

SAVING BIKINI BOTTOM: THE SANDY CHEEKS MOVIE Teaser Art Debut – On Netflix August 2nd

When Bikini Bottom and all its denizens are suddenly scooped out of the ocean, Sandy Cheeks and SpongeBob SquarePants journey to Texas to save the town from a villainous plot.

One Fast Move ON PRIME VIDEO August 8th

ONE FAST MOVE is an action-adventure thrill ride about a young man down on his luck who seeks out his estranged father to help him pursue his dream of becoming a professional motorcycle racer. With the help of his small town love interest and a motorcycle shop owner who moonlights as his mentor, he begins to break down the walls that his father’s absence had built up.

Succession: The Complete Series is Coming to Blu-ray August 13th

Warner Bros. Discovery Home Entertainment will be newly releasing Succession: The Complete Series on Blu-ray. Get ready to binge on all 39 episodes from HBO’s Emmy® award-winning original series, along with all the previously released special features. The brilliant high-stakes drama following the Roy Family and their quest for power will be available to purchase online on August 13.

Succession stars Brian Cox, Jeremy Strong, Sarah Snook, Kieran Culkin, Alan Ruck, Matthew Macfadyen, Nicholas Braun, J. Smith-Cameron, Peter Friedman, David Rasche, and Fisher Stevens.

The series was created by Jesse Armstrong; executive produced by Jesse Armstrong, Adam McKay, Frank Rich, Kevin Messick, Jane Tranter, Mark Mylod, Tony Roche, Scott Ferguson, Jon Brown, Lucy Prebble, Will Tracy, and Will Ferrell. Jesse Armstrong served as showrunner.

Succession earned an impressive 75 Emmy® nominations and 19 wins over its four-season run. The series achieved a remarkable streak, being nominated for Outstanding Drama Series throughout all four seasons and securing the Emmy® win three times (2020, 2022, 2023). In its fourth and final season, Succession dominated the Emmy® field with 27 nominations and secured six wins, including Outstanding Drama Series, Outstanding Lead Actor, and Outstanding Lead Actress. The season also set a new record for Golden Globe TV award nominations with nine total and winning four, including Best Television Series (Drama) — its third win in that category. Further adding to its accolades, Succession was honored at the 2023 Screen Actors Guild Awards for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series.

SYNOPSIS:

Power, politics, money…it’s all in the family in this provocative, satirical series about a highly dysfunctional dynasty. When the aging patriarch of one of the world’s largest media conglomerates considers retirement, his family members position themselves for a takeover. But tensions rise as corporate battles threaten to turn into a family civil war in this sharp, scathing, binge-worthy series.

MY PENGUIN FRIEND only in theaters on August 16th

A sweeping family adventure, My Penguin Friend is a triumphant tale of friendship between a lonely father and a little lost penguin who recharges his spirit and heals his family with an unshakable, ocean-crossing loyalty. Humble fisherman João (International star Jean Reno) has turned away from the world in the wake of tragedy. But when he discovers a penguin drifting alone in the ocean, drenched in oil from a spill, his first instinct is to help. To his wife’s (Oscar nominee Adriana Barraza) dismay, he not only rescues the sea creature, but takes the flightless bird under his wing. For the first time in years João starts to feel joy, even if he cannot fathom just how unbreakable a bond is being formed. When the penguin suddenly disappears back into the immense wilds of the ocean, João believes it is impossible that he will ever see his friend again. But thousands of miles away, the penguin is caught in misadventures of his own, determined to use his unique GPS-like powers to find his way back to the place he now considers home. Based on an emotional true story that riveted the world and filmed on the spectacular coasts of Brazil and Argentina, My Penguin Friend is a tale that traverses the magic of the ocean, the beauty of nature, and the transformative power of love.

THE CROW – In Theaters August 23rd

Bill Skarsgård takes on the iconic role of THE CROW in this modern reimagining of the original graphic novel by James O’Barr.

Soulmates Eric (Skarsgård) and Shelly (FKA twigs) are brutally murdered when the demons of her dark past catch up with them. Given the chance to save his true love by sacrificing himself, Eric sets out to seek merciless revenge on their killers, traversing the worlds of the living and the dead to put the wrong things right.

Vikings: Valhalla: The Complete First Season is coming to Blu-ray & DVD August 27th

From Creator/Showrunner/Executive Producer Jeb Stuart (The Fugitive, Die Hard), Warner Bros. Discovery Home Entertainment brings you the next chapter in the Vikings franchise, with the release of Vikings: Valhalla: The Complete First Season on Blu-ray and DVD on August 27, 2024. One hundred years have passed, and a new generation of legendary heroes have arrived to create their own destiny — and make history! On August 27, all 8 gripping episodes from the first season will be available for purchase online and in-store at major retailers. Pre-order your copy today.

Vikings: Valhalla chronicles the heroic adventures of some of the most famous Vikings who ever lived — the legendary explorer Leif Eriksson, his fiery and headstrong sister Freydis Eriksdotter, and the ambitious Nordic prince Harald Sigurdsson. As tensions between the Vikings and the English royals reach a bloody breaking point and as the Vikings themselves clash over their conflicting Christian and pagan beliefs, these three Vikings begin an epic journey that will take them across oceans and through battlefields, from Kattegat to England and beyond, as they fight for survival and glory.

Vikings: Valhalla stars Sam Corlett as Leif Eriksson, Frida Gustavsson as Freydis Eriksdotter, Leo Suter as Harald Sigurdsson, and Bradley Freegard as King Canute. Other cast members include Jóhannes Jóhannesson as Olaf Haraldson, Laura Berlin as Emma of Normandy, David Oakes as Earl Godwin, Caroline Henderson as Jarl Haakon, Pollyanna McIntosh as Queen Ælfgifu, and Asbjørn Krogh Nissen as Jarl Kåre. Jeb Stuart, Michael Hirst, Morgan O’Sullivan, James Flynn, Sherry Marsh, Alan Gasmer, Sheila Hockin and John Weber served as executive producers. The series was produced by MGM Television and originally debuted on Netflix February 25, 2022, with the third and final season set to premiere on July 11, 2024.

Slow Horses returns to AppleTV+ for season four on September 4th

Apple TV+ unveiled a first-look at the upcoming fourth season of its widely acclaimed, BAFTA Award-winning espionage series “Slow Horses,” starring Academy Award winner Gary Oldman. Adapted from “Spook Street,” the fourth novel in the CWA Gold Dagger Award-winning Mick Herron spy series “Slough House,” season four of “Slow Horses” will premiere globally on Wednesday, September 4 with the first two episodes, followed by one new episode weekly, every Wednesday through October 2, on Apple TV+.

“Slow Horses” is a darkly humorous espionage drama that follows a dysfunctional team of British intelligence agents who serve in a dumping ground department of MI5 known un-affectionately as Slough House. Season four opens with a bombing that detonates personal secrets, rocking the already unstable foundations of Slough House.

Oldman stars as Jackson Lamb, the brilliant but misanthropic leader of the spies, who end up in Slough House due to their career-ending mistakes as they frequently find themselves blundering around the smoke and mirrors of the espionage world. The returning ensemble cast also includes Academy Award-nominee Kristin Scott Thomas, BAFTA Scotland Award-winner Jack Lowden, Saskia Reeves, Rosalind Eleazar, Christopher Chung, Aimee-Ffion Edwards, Kadiff Kirwan and Academy Award-nominee Jonathan Pryce. SAG Winner Hugo Weaving, BAFTA winner Joanna Scanlan, IFTA winner Ruth Bradley, Tom Brooke and James Callis join “Slow Horses” in season four.

“Slow Horses” is produced for Apple TV+ by See-Saw Films and adapted for television by Will Smith (“Veep”). Jamie Laurenson, Hakan Kousetta, Iain Canning, Emile Sherman, Jane Robertson, Julian Stevens, Douglas Urbanski, Gail Mutrux, Graham Yost and Will Smith serve as executive producers on the series. Season four is directed by Adam Randall.

Fans can catch up on the first three seasons of “Slow Horses,” which all hold a Certified Fresh score on Rotten Tomatoes, now streaming globally on Apple TV+. In addition to the upcoming fourth season, Apple TV+ recently announced a fifth season set to be adapted from the fifth novel, “London Rules.”

Since its premiere in 2022, “Slow Horses” has won two BAFTA Television Awards while earning nine additional nominations. The 2024 wins were for Best Editing: Fiction (Sam Williams) and Best Sound: Fiction (Sound Team), and the nominations across 2023 and 2024 included Best Drama Series, Oldman’s first for Best Lead Actor; Lowden’s for Best Supporting Actor; Best Editing: Fiction (Zsófia Tálas); Best Editing: Fiction (Katie Weiland); Best Original Music: Fiction (Daniel Pemberton and Mick Jagger); Best Sound: Fiction (Martin Jensen, Joe Beal, Duncan Price, Craig Butters, Sarah Elias and Andrew Sissons); and, Best Hair and Makeup Design (Lucy Sibbick). The series also landed the award for Best English-Language Drama Series at the 2022 C21 International Drama Awards.

“La Maison,” First Look premiering globally on Apple TV+ September 20th

Apple TV+ revealed a first look at “La Maison,” the upcoming French-language 10-episode one-hour family drama set within an iconic Paris-based high-fashion atelier. A behind-the-scenes look at the contemporary ever-evolving world of fashion and aspirational French elegance and luxury,“La Maison” follows two rival illustrious, dysfunctional and powerful families as they vie for dominance in the cutthroat world of high-fashion.

The highly anticipated series will make its global debut with the first two episodes on Friday, September 20, 2024 on Apple TV+, followed by one episode weekly on Fridays through November 15, 2024.

High fashion meets high stakes in this behind-the-curtain, look at how an iconic fashion house is thrown into scandal and reinvention by a viral video featuring star designer Vincent Ledu (Lambert Wilson), leaving his family’s iconic and legendary haute couture house LEDU hanging by a thread. Perle Foster (Amira Casar), Vincent’s former muse who is still in his shadow, teams up with next-generation, visionary designer Paloma Castel (Zita Hanrot) to save, evolve and renew the century-old Maison LEDU. Taking advantage of Vincent’s demise, Diane Rovel (Carole Bouquet), the ruthless CEO of the powerful Rovel luxury group, launches an offensive to acquire what she sees as her most important prize: Maison LEDU. To achieve her goal, anything is fair game as this is more than acquiring just another brand, it’s about revenge.

“La Maison” stars seven-time César Award nominee Lambert Wilson (“De Gaulle”), César Award-nominated Amira Casar (“Call Me by Your Name”), Best Actress César Award winner Carole Bouquet (“En thérapie”), Most Promising Actress César Award winner Zita Hanrot (“Fatima”), Most Promising Actor César Award winner Pierre Deladonchamps (“Stranger by the Lake”), Best Actor in a Supporting Role César Award winner Antoine Reinartz (“Anatomy of a Fall”), four-time César Award nominee Anne Consigny (“Elle”), César Award nominee Florence Loiret Caille (“The Bureau”), rising star Ji-Min Park (“Return to Seoul”) and Most Promising Actor César Award nominee Corentin Fila (“Being 17”).

Based on an original idea by Alex Berger, who serves as executive producer, the series is created by showrunners José Caltagirone and Valentine Milville and directed by award-winning directors Fabrice Gobert (“The Returned”) and Daniel Grou (“Lupin”). Emmanuelle Bouilhaguet also serves as executive producer. “La Maison” is a TOA-The Originals of America production, in conjunction with multi award-winning studio TOP-The Originals Productions (“The Bureau” / “Le Bureau des Légendes”).

MY OLD ASS – In Theaters September 13th

In this fresh coming-of-age story, an 18th birthday mushroom trip brings free-spirited Elliott (Maisy Stella) face-to-face with her wisecracking 39-year-old self (Aubrey Plaza). But when Elliott’s “old ass” starts handing out warnings about what her younger self should and shouldn’t do, Elliott realizes she has to rethink everything about family, love, and what’s becoming a transformative summer.

Disclaimer to premiere globally on Apple TV+ October 11th

Apple TV+ unveiled a first-look at “Disclaimer,” and announced that the seven-episode limited series will make its global debut on Friday, October 11, 2024 with the first two episodes, followed by new episodes every Friday through November 15, 2024.

“Disclaimer” is a gripping psychological thriller in seven chapters, starring Academy Award winners Cate Blanchett and Kevin Kline. Written and directed by five-time Academy Award winner Alfonso Cuarón, “Disclaimer” is based on the best-selling novel of the same name by Renée Knight. Acclaimed journalist Catherine Ravenscroft (Blanchett) built her reputation revealing the misdeeds and transgressions of others. When she receives a novel from an unknown author, she is horrified to realize she is now the main character in a story that exposes her darkest secrets.

As Catherine races to uncover the writer’s true identity, she is forced to confront her past before it destroys both her own life and her relationships with her husband Robert (Sacha Baron Cohen) and their son Nicholas (Kodi Smit-McPhee). The ensemble cast includes Lesley Manville, Louis Partridge, Leila George and Hoyeon.

“Disclaimer” is produced by Esperanto Filmoj and Anonymous Content. Cuarón serves as executive producer alongside Esperanto Filmoj’s Gabriela Rodriguez and Anonymous Content’s David Levine, and Steve Golin. Renée Knight serves as co-executive producer. Academy Award winner Emmanuel Lubezki (“Gravity,” “Birdman,” “The Revenant”) and Academy Award nominee Bruno Delbonnel (“The Tragedy of Macbeth,” “Inside Llewyn Davis,” “Darkest Hour”) serve as directors of photography and executive produce. Donald Sabourin and Carlos Morales also executive produce. The score is composed by multiple Academy and GRAMMY Award winner Finneas O’Connell (“Barbie,” “No Time to Die”).

Flight Risk – In theaters October 18th

In this high-stakes suspense thriller, Academy Award^® nominee Mark Wahlberg (Actor in a Supporting Role, 2006 – The Departed) plays a pilot transporting an Air Marshal (Michelle Dockery) accompanying a fugitive (Topher Grace) to trial. As they cross the Alaskan wilderness, tensions soar and trust is tested, as not everyone on board is who they seem.

RED ONE – In US Theaters November 15th

After Santa Claus – Code Name: RED ONE – is kidnapped, the North Pole’s Head of Security (Dwayne Johnson) must team up with the world’s most infamous bounty hunter (Chris Evans) in a globe-trotting, action-packed mission to save Christmas.

NOSFERATU| Teaser Trailer – In theaters December 25th

Robert Eggers’ NOSFERATU is a gothic tale of obsession between a haunted young woman and the terrifying vampire infatuated with her, causing untold horror in its wake.

DOWNTON ABBEY 3 TO BE RELEASED IN THEATERS GLOBALLY ON SEPTEMBER 12, 2025

Focus Features and Universal Pictures International will partner once again to bring the wildly successful and beloved franchise to audiences around the world.

Downton Abbey 3 is currently in production in the UK. The third film in the Downton franchise is written by Downton creator and Academy-Award® winner Julian Fellowes.

Produced by BAFTA and Emmy Award-winning Gareth Neame, Fellowes and BAFTA and Emmy Award-winning Liz Trubridge.

BAFTA and Emmy Award nominee Simon Curtis is returning to direct after helming 2022’s Downton Abbey: A New Era.

Hugh Bonneville, Elizabeth McGovern, Michelle Dockery, Laura Carmichael, Jim Carter, Phyllis Logan, Robert James-Collier, Joanne Froggatt, Allen Leech, Penelope Wilton, Lesley Nicol, Michael Fox, Raquel Cassidy, Brendan Coyle, Kevin Doyle, Harry Hadden-Paton, Sophie McShera, Douglas Reith and Dominic West return for the third film, alongside exciting new additions, Paul Giamatti, Joely Richardson, Alessandro Nivola, Simon Russell Beale, Arty Froushan, and many other fan favorites.

The film is a Carnival Films production, with Focus Features and Universal Pictures International distributing. Carnival Films is part of Universal International Studios, a division of Universal Studio Group.

PRODUCTION BEGINS ON SEQUEL TO “FREAKY FRIDAY” WITH JAMIE LEE CURTIS AND LINDSAY LOHAN – Theatrical Release in 2025

Production on the sequel to “Freaky Friday,” the studio’s hit comedy from 2003 starring Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan, began today in Los Angeles. The film will be released in theaters nationwide in 2025.

Curtis and Lohan reprise their roles as Tess and Anna Coleman. Other returning cast members from the original film include Mark Harmon, Chad Michael Murray, Christina Vidal Mitchell, Haley Hudson, Lucille Soong, Stephen Tobolowsky, and Rosalind Chao. They are joined by Julia Butters, Sophia Hammons, Manny Jacinto, and Maitreyi Ramakrishnan.

The film is directed by Nisha Ganatra. The producers are Kristin Burr, Andrew Gunn, and Jamie Lee Curtis, with Nathan Kelly, Ann Marie Sanderlin, and Lindsay Lohan serving as executive producers. A sequel to the beloved 2003 film with a multigenerational twist, the film picks up years after Tess (Curtis) and Anna (Lohan) endured an identity crisis. Anna now has a daughter of her own and a soon-to-be stepdaughter. As they navigate the myriad challenges that come when two families merge, Tess and Anna discover that lightning might indeed strike twice.