The Playlist | Movie & TV News, Reviews, Trailers, & Podcasts

Film Writers Offer Alternatives To ‘The Help’ After Film Surges In Popularity On Netflix

June 5, 2020 3:46 pm

When Netflix announced plans to help further show what people were watching with its Top 10 lists, people were initially very happy. Finally, instead of Netflix telling subscribers what’s “popular” and “trendi...

Gwen Stacy Hailee Steinfeld Spider-Man Into the Spider Verse

Hailee Steinfeld Is Ready For A Female-Led ‘Spider-Verse’ Spin-Off: “This Is The Time To Figure It Out”

Charles Barfield

June 5, 2020 2:10 pm

News

Of all the characters that appeared in “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-verse,” the two that have definitely gone on to become massive fan-favorites are Miles Morales and Gwen Stacy. And though there is a ‘Spider-...

Sam Mendes Says Streaming Services Benefiting From Quarantine Should Help Live Theater Survive For Actors’ & Creators’ Sakes

Charles Barfield

June 5, 2020 1:56 pm

News, Television

Sam Mendes is an award-winning filmmaker and clearly has a love of all forms of live entertainment. As someone that writes and directs films, working with actors of all types, he’s also very much a fan of live...

Kate Mara Michael B Jordan Fantastic Four

‘Fantastic Four’: Josh Trank Is “Embarrassed” He Didn’t Hire A Black Actress For Sue Storm Role

Charles Barfield

June 5, 2020 1:39 pm

News

Dating back to the announcement that Jessica Alba was cast to play Sue Storm in the first “Fantastic Four” film from the early-‘00s to the time that Michael B. Jordan was cast as Johnny Storm in the 2015 reboo...

Ava DuVernay’s ‘Selma’ Is Now A Free Rental For The Month Of June Courtesy Of Paramount

Charles Barfield

June 5, 2020 1:21 pm

News

Ava DuVernay’s Oscar-winning film, “Selma,” is joining recently released “Just Mercy” and a curated list of films from the Criterion Channel in dropping its price tag for the month of June, in light of the var...

‘Narc’: Revisiting Joe Carnahan’s Story About The Fallout Of Police Violence

Matthew Monagle

June 5, 2020 1:01 pm

Essays, News

As acts of police violence have played out across social media and the nightly news, audiences have begun to rethink their relationship with cop movies. On Monday, critic Kathryn VanArendonk dug into the ironc...

‘Riverdale’ Creator Says Show “Will Do Better” After Being Called Out For Making Black Characters “Sidekicks”

Charles Barfield

June 5, 2020 12:42 pm

News, Television

With the rise of protests around the world, in the aftermath of the brutal killing of George Floyd by a police officer, it appears that Black actors are feeling more empowered to speak up about the racism and ...

‘Ammonite’: Kate Winslet & Saoirse Ronan Period Romance Shows The “Power Of Touch & Hope”

Charles Barfield

June 5, 2020 12:23 pm

News

One of the more surprising announcements as part of the recent Cannes 2020 Official Selections list is Francis Lee’s “Ammonite.” The film has been discussed quite a bit already, as it stars two of the most res...

‘Spelling The Dream’: Sam Rega’s Inspirational Doc Will Leave You At A Loss For Words [Review]

Asher Luberto

June 5, 2020 11:58 am

News, Reviews

Words abound in Sam Rega's "Spelling the Dream," which follows the winning streak of Indian-Americans at the National Spelling Bee. The Netflix documentary celebrates a group of young contestants who have dedi...

Andrew Lloyd Webber Really Didn’t Like James Corden’s “Unfunny” Acting In ‘Cats’

Charles Barfield

June 5, 2020 11:40 am

News

Remember December of last year, when the biggest story that the film industry was concerned with was the botched release of Tom Hooper’s “Cats?” Those were simpler times. Well, even though the world is seeming...

‘Runner’ Exclusive Trailer: Guor Marial Flees A War-Torn Country To Become An Olympic Athlete In New Doc

Charles Barfield

June 5, 2020 11:19 am

News, Trailers

The life story of athlete Guor Marial would be an incredible feature film even if it stopped before he arrived in the US as a young adult. Hailing from the war-torn region of Sudan, Marial had to fight for his...

‘Selma’ Cast/Crew Accused Of “Stirring Sh*t” By Academy Members After Wearing “I Can’t Breathe” Shirts in 2014

Charles Barfield

June 5, 2020 10:55 am

Awards, News

Half a decade ago, after the death of Eric Garner, the cast and crew of Ava DuVernay’s film, “Selma,” wore “I Can’t Breathe” shirts to show their support for the murdered Black man. The film would go on to ear...

‘True Mothers’ Teaser: Naomi Kawase’s Cannes Film Follows A Married Couple’s Adoption Drama

Charles Barfield

June 5, 2020 10:19 am

News, Trailers

Earlier this year, it was expected that Naomi Kawase was going to make her return to Cannes, where she has screened a number of her films over the years, to premiere her highly-anticipated drama, “True Mothers...

Theater Owners Expect 90% Of World’s Cinemas To Be Open By ‘Tenet’ Release Date

Charles Barfield

June 4, 2020 3:38 pm

Box Office, News

Perhaps the most frustrating part about the whole release date fiasco surrounding “Tenet” is the lack of information from Warner Bros. We all know that the studio would love to release the film in July, and Ch...

Lilly Wachowski Walked Away From Filmmaking After Corporate Interference Pushed Her To The “Breaking Point”

Charles Barfield

June 4, 2020 3:16 pm

News, Television

The Wachowskis are some of the most influential filmmakers of the past two decades. Whether it’s with their work on films such as “Bound,” “Speed Racer,” or, of course, “The Matrix” (and its sequels), the film...