TIM CURRY (1946 - 2026)

Tim Curry, the British actor of stage and screen who is probably best known for his role in the filmed version of the cult classic, rock musical, "The Rocky Horror Picture Show", has passed away on August 26th. The actor had suffered from a debilitating stroke in 2012 which left him with severe mobility issues and requiring a wheelchair. No cause of death has been revealed to date. He was eighty.

Curry began his career on the stage, making his acting debut in a London production of "Hair" in 1968. During that time, he met fellow cast member, Richard O'Brien who would go on to later write his own stage musical. "The Rocky Horror Picture Show", O'Brien's wild tribute to his love of sci-fi and horror B-movies, premiered at the Royal Court Theatre in 1973 and the popular show moved to larger venues in London before closing in 1980. Originating the role of Dr. Frank-N-Furter, Curry brought a humorously posh style to the mad, transvestite scientist.

The musical did transfer to Broadway in 1975 but was not as warmly embraced in America at that time, closing after only forty-five performances. A movie version of "Rocky Horror" was assembled at the same time with Curry, O' Brien, Patricia Quinn, Nell Campbell and director, Jim Sharman all reprising their parts from the original London production. "Rocky Horror", the movie, didn't fare much better on its initial release in theaters but gradually gained popularity on the midnight movie circuit. Audiences would begin interacting live with the film at the Waverly Theater in New York City in 1976.

Curry would make other notable appearances in films: co-starring in John Huston's 1982 film version of the Broadway musical, "Annie", Ridley Scott's 1985 fantasy film, "Legend' with Tom Cruise, and in the comedy mystery film. "Clue" which was based on the boardgame and has since gone on to become another cult movie classic. He appeared on several television series and did many voiceover roles for animated films and video games. And one of Curry's best-known television roles was as Pennywise the Clown in the 1990 horror miniseries , "Stephen King's  It". Curry also recorded three studio albums and wrote a memoir, "Vagabond" that was published last year.

2026 VENICE FILM FESTIVAL

The Venice International Film Festival, with the eighty-third annual edition to be held from September 2nd to 12th, will help introduce the latest in world cinema and kick-off the fall movie season. The Opening Night film selected is "Ink", the latest from the Oscar-winning British filmmaker, Danny Boyle. Based on James Graham's acclaimed 2017 play, the film examines how Australian businessman, Rupert Murdoch (Guy Pearce) lures the editor of the popular, The Daily Mail newspaper, Larry Lamb (Jack O’Connell) to oversee his newly acquired British daily, The Sun. To gain attention for the struggling paper, they decide to put anything in the paper, regardless of how extreme or titillating, to help The Sun rise above the competition, helping to create tabloid culture.

Maggie Gyllenhaal, the American actress and filmmaker, will serve as this year's Jury President to select the winners of the Main Competition awards along with fellow jurors: Tunisian filmmaker, Kaouther Ben Hania, British musician, Daniel Blumberg, Italian-American film theorist, Francesco Casetti, French filmmaker, Xavier Giannoli, Afghan filmmaker, Shahrbanoo Sadat and Hong Kong filmmaker, Johnnie To. Gyllenhaal will also premiere the short film she wrote and directed, "Flesh Impact", that features Ellen Burstyn (who is also this year's recipient of the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement) and Dakota Johnson which will pay tribute to Hollywood legend, Marilyn Monroe (who would have celebrated her 100th birthday this year) during the festival.

With the films selected for competition this year, what is most notable is the almost complete absence of Hollywood studio films present in the lineup, much like at Cannes a few months ago. In addition to Boyle's "Ink", other filmmakers who will be up for prizes include new works from Werner Herzog ("Bucking Fastard"), Lance Oppenheim ("Primetime"), Cedric Kahn ("A Place To Heal"), Lee Chang-dong ("가능한 사랑 (Possible Love)"), Nanni Moretti ("Succederà questa notte (It Will Happen Tonight)"), Martin McDonagh ("Wild Horse Nine"), Hirokazu Kore-eda ("ルックバック (Look Back)", Stéphane Brizé ("Un bon petit soldat (Good Little Soldier)"), Florian Zeller ("Bunker") and Casey Affleck ("Company").









The Closing Night film will be "Dio Ride (God Laughs)", a comedy from writer/director, Giovanni Veronesi. In seventeenth century Tuscany, a friar (Pierfrancesco Favino) engages the masses about God by making them laugh. But this attitude begins to attract the hostility of the Church.

The Glory to the Filmmaker Award, a honorary prize given to artists who have made a significant contribution to contemporary world cinema, will be presented to Italian filmmaker, Luca Guadagnino. His latest feature, "Joie de vivre", an over 7 hours long documentary (that will be screened into two parts) about the life, art, and cinema of Bernardo Bertolucci, will make its premiere at the fest. And George Clooney will also receive the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement this year.

THE 100 MOST POWERFUL DIRECTORS

What makes a filmmaker powerful in Hollywood? Is it strictly box-office or does critical acclaim and awards factor more heavily into it? Nate Jones with Vulture consulted with various agents, executives, producers, and publicists to help decide what it takes to achieve success and influence as a film director working today.

This was considered by using their body of work, bankability, creative control and reputation to help determine not only which directors would make the cut but also where they would happen to fall in this ranking. Streaming has certainly changed the game for directors working at this time and not a completely accurate way to help assess their power in the industry. So their achievements theatrically played a more important determination in making the list while not discounting any streaming projects entirely.

Please click below to read the selections:

Vulture: The 100 Most Powerful Directors in Hollywood

ONE NIGHT ONLY (2026)

Written by Travis Braun

Directed by Will Gluck

Where & When: TCL Chinese Theatres, Hollywood, CA. August 12, 2026 4:55 PM

When I heard about the plot for "One Night Only" which involves two single people trying to make a love connection during a time when premarital sex is outlawed in the United States except for one twelve-hour exemption period each year, I found the idea a bit preposterous. Yet surprisingly this high concept rom-com from director, Will Gluck manages to find a way to be delightfully funny and charming, thanks in large part to the clever script from Travis Braun. And while there are some moments that still remain hard to swallow, our leads, Monica Barbaro and Callum Turner are able to uplift the film even further with their irresistible chemistry and magnetic star quality.

Owen (Turner), who owns a pizza shop, is looking forward to spending the exemption night with his longtime, live-in girlfriend, Malika (Maya Hawke) and planned on proposing to her. However, during dinner, Malika informs her boyfriend that she plans to have sex with a neighbor in their building this evening, feeling they should both have an experience with someone else. Disappointed and deciding to put an end to their relationship, Owen presides to find a hook-up for the night.

Meanwhile, Allie (Barbaro) is a jingle singer with a specialty in songs for pharmaceuticals. This year she plans to go out with her friend, Jacinta (pop singer, King Princess) so they can try to meet men of substance together. But Jacinta quickly meets a guy at the bar, running off with him and leaving Allie to go through the night solo.

Owen and Allie literally bump into each other on the street, briefly flirting before he throws up (bad sushi from dinner) and she quickly moves on. We then follow them as Allie goes through a series of oddball men she meets at a bar before connecting with a sexy piano player (Andrew Burnap). Owen finds sympathy from a hot bartender (Julia Fox) who is willing to have sex with him after her shift. But condoms are required and have become a rare commodity on this particular night. Owen and Allie run into each other again when they are fighting over purchasing the last rubber in town.

As the story continues on, Owen and Allie each go through even more problematic and humiliating situations while trying yet failing to achieve a sexual connection, all the while continuing to run into each other through various intervals over the evening and becoming closer with each encounter.

The script of "One Night Only" gained attraction when it was placed on the Black List in 2024, an annual collection of the "most-liked" motion picture screenplays not yet produced. Braun (who became the first writer to make the list consecutively with his script, "Bad Boy" appearing in 2023) has a history creating programing for the Disney Channel and his time there may have helped inspire the broad concept for this movie. Braun's amusing screenplay might explain how the country ended up with this crazy law and the exact rules that apply (bio-sensor chips implanted in single people's arms to keep their libido on lock with gay people exempt from this sexual control) yet the overall silly plot still remains highly improbable.

Gluck, fresh off his surprise hit rom-com, "Anyone but You" that helped give rising stars, Sydney Sweeney and Glen Powell a boost on the big screen, puts his spin on Braun's story, managing to keep the energy fast-paced and playful. But it's his compelling cast that really makes "One Night Only" worth watching. Barbaro, who made many supporting appearances in television and film before her Oscar-nominated breakthrough playing Joan Baez in the Bob Dylan-biopic, "A Complete Unknown", has a lovely, easy charm and well matched with the British actor, Turner who lays on his New York accent pretty thick but it's not too distracting. And there are plenty of high-profile actors who make supporting or cameo appearances that includes Molly Ringwald as Owen's mother and LeVar Burton as her boyfriend along with Mike Birbiglia, Nicholas Braun, Pete Davidson, Bobby Cannavale, Este Haim and Ziwe popping up throughout the movie.

It's unclear to me if Gluck was intentionally trying to make a statement regarding sexual politics on how the women prepared for the evening with the ladies parading around town in lingerie, incredibly short skirts and their breasts barely concealed while the men simply show up dressed for the night like--well, men, not putting too much thought into their appearance. I suppose under these dire circumstances, people would not feel like wasting too much time as the basic primal urges would resort back to the prehistoric rules of attraction.

In this current political climate, the idea that the American government would radically try to control what people decide to do with their bodies is sadly not all that farfetched. Despite the hyperbolic premise, "One Night Only" still manages to draw you in with breezy comedic set-ups, appealing characters and some actual heartfelt emotions. Lately, most of the recent rom-coms are sorely lacking in any type of inventive spirit and adventurous style. "One Night Only" is a pleasant reminder of the simple pleasures a solid romantic comedy can actually create when there is some sort of effort made to engage viewers.

I WANT YOUR SEX (2026)

Written by Karley Sciortino and Gregg Araki



Directed by Gregg Araki



Where & When: AMC The Americana at Brand 18, Glendale, CA. July 31, 2026 4:30 PM



After he completed college with studies in cinematic arts, LA native, Gregg Araki was ready to tackle a career as a filmmaker. Pulling together about five thousand dollars, Araki made his feature film debut in 1987, "Three Bewildered People in the Night", a black & white drama involving a straight couple and their gay, male friend. Winning a Critics' Prize at the Locarno International Film Festival for this film, Araki collected some more money to make his next low-budget feature two years later, "The Long Weekend (O' Despair)" which featured a gay, lesbian and straight couple all spending a weekend together, winning an award from the LA Film Critics Association.

Araki's next movie would arrive in 1992 with a slightly larger budget and a premiere at the Sundance Film Festival. Lazily described by some as a "gay Thelma & Louise", "The Living End" is a road-trip adventure involving two HIV-positive male lovers on the run after stealing and leaving a trail of dead bodies. Boldly political, disturbingly violent and driven by a post-punk soundtrack, "The Living End" became a critical and box-office success while also one of the early films that helped spark the New Queer Cinema movement which had included other provocative films by Todd Haynes, Isaac Julien and Derek Jarman. Araki would go on to make more, challenging cinema like his Teenage Apocalypse trilogy: "Totally F***ed Up", "The Doom Generation" and "Nowhere", "Mysterious Skin" and the stoner comedy, "Smiley Face". But following "White Bird in a Blizzard", his little seen 2014 adaptation of Laura Kasischke's novel that featured an all-star cast, Araki has been missing from movie screens.

That has now been rectified with Araki's return to the big screen with "I Want Your Sex", a colorfully stimulating, sex comedy that sees the director back in fine form. There's some BDSM kink tossed in along with erotic thrills, queer undertones and a possible murder which together creates an intriguingly twisted, dark edged farce.

When we first meet Elliott (Cooper Hoffman), bloodied and wearing lingerie, he sees a naked female body face down in a pool. This is his boss, Erika Tracy (Olivia Wilde), a provocative visual artist and we are taken back several months ago when Elliott first went in to apply for a job as one of her studio assistants who help assemble her sexually charged art. Unfocused and a bit disheveled, he doesn't really seem like a good fit for this position yet Erika seems intrigued and hires Elliott on the spot.

But she has more nefarious plans for the young Elliott that is not exactly work related. After inquiring if he has a girlfriend (which he does, played by pop star, Charli XCX, who is far more interested in studying than having sex with him), Erika promptly initiates a purely sexual relationship with him. Hesitant at first, Elliott soon gives in to his urges but he discovers that Erika has something more extreme in mind. She enjoys being dominant during their erotic encounters and guides Elliott into a deeply submissive position, pushing him to do things he never would have imagined.

Never motivated by commercial appeal or the potential of huge box-office, Araki hasn't changed much since his early days of guerilla filmmaking, continuing to make scrappy movies on his terms that are queer in spirit and style. He was inspired to make "I Want Your Sex" (working on the script with Karley Sciortino for about a decade) after learning that Gen Z was having less sex than previous generations. Shocked by this news, Araki set about to create this film less to be critical but more to provoke conversation about this subject. As Erika says to Elliott, "Making a mistake is what being young is all about.", encouraging him to enjoy his youth by having bad love affairs, getting sloppy drunk or just being reckless. And trust me, there will be plenty of time later in life to be safe and cautious.

Much like his father, the late Philip Seymour Hoffman, the twenty-three year old Hoffman displays an easy, natural screen presence with a performance filled with charm, nuance and depth. Since his debut as the lead in family friend, Paul Thomas Anderson's "Licorice Pizza", Hoffman has been giving nepo babies a good name while revealing the potential to have an promising career ahead of him.

Wilde is having a particularly good year. After the letdown of "Don't Worry, Darling", her second feature as a director, she recently received glowing raves for her direction and performance in the comedy-drama, "The Invite" and will appear as an actor in Tony Gilroy's upcoming drama, "Behemoth!" that will reach theaters in December. As Erika, Wilde is fearless, unconcerned about being likeable or appealing while perfectly capturing the wild, narcissistic nature of this overindulgent artist.

The rest of the impressive cast includes Chase Sui Wonders as Apple, Elliott's platonic roommate, getting drawn into the kinky games when Erika demands that he quickly find a third for a three-way. Daveed Diggs appears as the harried business manager who gracelessly informs Elliott, frustrated by his interruption of the work flow, that he's hardly the first of Erika's assistants she has spent time with after hours. Mason Gooding delivers the sass as Zap, Elliott's gay co-worker and Johnny Knoxville and Margaret Cho show-up, playing against type, as the hard-nosed detectives trying to get answers from Elliott on his relationship to Erica and what could have happened to her.

Kinky and uninhibited, "I Want Your Sex" might be power driven by unconventional carnal desires yet doesn't really have much of a honest erotic charge. And while the mystery at the heart of the film winds up being a bit too tidy and improbable to be satisfying, Araki is still able to keep his depraved version of a rom-com a hilariously enjoyable watch.

COMING SOON

If you take a look at the picture above, that is Tom Cruise. Yes, the same handsome, big screen action superstar who you know and love from the "Top Gun" and "Mission: Impossible" movies. And he appears ready to challenge himself once again as an actor in the upcoming black comedy, "Digger" which he teams up with Oscar-winning filmmaker, Alejandro G. Iñárritu.

Cruise plays Digger Rockwell, a wealthy oil tycoon, who wants to be viewed as the savior for humanity before an impending disaster that he's responsible for causing destroys the entire planet. With echoes of Stanley Kubrick's wild political satire, "Dr. Strangelove", "Digger" looks like the perfect showcase to remind audiences that he is quite capable as a character actor in a comedic role. Cruise is surrounded by an impressive cast that includes John Goodman, Riz Ahmed, Michael Stuhlbarg, Jesse Plemons and Sandra Hüller.

"Digger" is due in US theaters on October 2, 2026

MADDIE'S SECRET (2026)

Written & Directed by John Early



Where & When: Landmark Theatres Sunset, West Hollywood, CA. July 14, 2026 4:20 PM



"Maddie's Secret" tells the story of a woman living in Los Angeles who seems to have a good life: a loving husband, a close friend and contentment at her job. But Maddie secretly dreams of becoming a professional chef. An opportunity comes her way but the pressures from this success reopens the door to an even darker secret that she had been suppressing, creating chaos and despair for Maddie and her loved ones. 

Loosely inspired by a 1980's television-movie-of-the-week, writer and director, John Early has put an amusing queercentric spin on this melodramatic parody for his feature film debut. Early also plays Maddie as an actual woman in the film: not trans or non-binary. Make of this what you will but I believe he took on this role less as a political statement and more about an opportunity to play a fascinating character.

Maddie (Early) and her best friend, Deena (Kate Berlant) work as dishwashers for Gourmaybe, a video test kitchen program. And while the haughty Emily (Claudia O'Doherty) might be the star of the show, Maddie would love to have a chance to be in front of the camera as a cook. After Maddie's husband, Jake (Eric Rahill) films his wife preparing one of her best vegetarian meals, he posts the clip online despite her protests. The next day, the video blows up, going viral and her crass boss, Zack (Conner O'Malley) quickly makes her an on-camera personality on the program.

Maddie achieves much of the success and popularity that she's ever wanted yet this also creates new problems for her. Cruel comments from viewers about her weight triggers the bulimia she once had under control. Maddie starts to act manically, pushing herself hard in dance classes while purging all of the food she does consume. After her husband catches her retching into a toilet, she tells him she's pregnant and Jake is thrilled since he has been wanting to start a family for sometime. And Deena starts feeling neglected by her friend with Maddie fearful in confiding to her what's actually going on.

Early has been working as an actor, stand-up and sketch comedy performer for a number of years, participating in several sketch programs and created content with Berlant. He had his own HBO musical-comedy special, "John Early: Now More Than Ever" in 2023 and released a studio album with songs from the program. With his feature film directorial debut, Early brilliantly takes on those earnest dramas that had an important message, one that is told through wacky hysteria and overheated emotions.

As Maddie, the actor dives all the way in, expressively capturing all of the fears and trauma of this tortured woman in a wild and darkly hilarious performance. After a cardiac health crisis, Maddie's eating disorder is discovered and she's checked into an inpatient treatment program. During a session with a doctor and her overbearing mother, Beverlee (played by the comedy great, Kristen Johnston), Maddie confronts her parent about how she was treated about her weight since she was a small child, revealing how she's the root cause of her complicated relationship with food.

With an open-ended conclusion and a classic freeze-frame on the face of a triumphant Maddie, "Maddie's Secret" has taken us on an amusing, emotional adventure, handling a health disorder with outrageously dark humor yet still finding some room for thoughtful candor. Early has admitted he was greatly influenced by a variety of offbeat cinema that includes the singular works by John Waters and Paul Verhoeven to create this film. Yet he stands tall with his own sense of stylish, eccentric comedy, proving to be a modern craftsman of deranged camp. Following the hilarious, "Maddie's Secret", I'm definitely looking forward to seeing what else Early has in store for us on the big screen, hopefully in the very near future.

SAM NEILL (1947 - 2026)

Sam Neill, the charismatic character actor turned movie star, has sadly passed away on July 13th. The New Zealand actor had been struggling with stage 3 T-cell lymphoma over the last three years but he had recently revealed that the chemotherapy was no longer working. Neill died from pneumonia in Sydney, Australia at the age of seventy-eight.

Neill began his professional career on the stage in the 1969 production of "Marat/Sade" in Wellington, New Zealand. He would find work in several television and film productions with a standout performance in the New Zealand feature, "Sleeping Dogs" in 1977. After moving to Australia, Neill would appear on the popular television drama, "The Sullivans" and a co-starring role in Gillian Armstrong's 1979 feature, "My Brilliant Career" with Judy Davis, which achieved international acclaim. This helped Neill land roles in the third "The Omen" film, "The Final Conflict" and "Possession", Andrzej Żuławski's psychological horror drama with Isabelle Adjani that has since gone on to become a cult classic.

"Dead Calm", the psychological thriller set in Australia, would be a major breakthrough for Neill as well as for co-star, Nicole Kidman and director, Phillip Noyce. This helped Neill be viewed as a leading man and would go on to star in "A Cry in the Dark (Evil Angels)", "The Hunt for Red October", "Jurassic Park", "Sirens", "Event Horizon", "In the Mouth of Madness", "Hunt for the Wilderpeople" and "The Piano", the Oscar-winning film from Jane Campion.

He was born Nigel John Dermot Neill on September 14th in Omagh, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland, to an English mother and a New Zealand father. When he was five, the family relocated to New Zealand and settled in the Christchurch suburb of Cashmere. As a child, Neill had a stammer but would outgrown this condition. He began calling himself "Sam" because there were several other boys named "Nigel" in grade school.

It had been said that Neill had been one of the leading contenders to succeed Roger Moore as James Bond, but the role would ultimately go to Timothy Dalton. He would reprise his role of Dr. Alan Grant in "Jurassic Park III" and for the final time in "Jurassic World Dominion" in 2022. He wrote a Memoir, "Did I Ever Tell You This?" which was published in 2023.

SUPERGIRL (2026)

Written by Ana Nogueira

Directed by Craig Gillespie


Where & When: TCL Chinese Theatres, Hollywood, CA. July 7, 2026 4:00 PM


Near the conclusion of the latest reboot of "Superman" from writer/director, James Gunn, we were briefly introduced to Kara, played by Milly Alcock, who is a relative of the hero from Krypton and the only other survivor from their dead planet. This has led to a movie, "Supergirl" that spotlights this other super-powered visitor from Krypton. Unlike her cousin, Supergirl is edgy, disheveled and far from what many would consider heroic. Yet this coming-of-age, sci-fi adventure from Craig Gillespie winds up feeling disappointing due to a lack of an inventive style and persuasive thrills.

We first see Kara (Alcock) traveling the galaxy with her dog, Krypto, bar hopping from planet to planet, drinking heavily in a solitary celebration of her twenty-third birthday. Her cousin, Clark (David Corenswet) attempts to contact her to check in, concerned that she's having difficulty adjusting to life on Earth, but she tries to avoid his call.

On one of her stops, Kara's partying is interrupted by Ruthye (Eve Ridley), a young girl searching for someone to help her kill Krem of the Yellow Hills (Matthias Schoenaerts), the ruthless leader of the space pirates, Brigands who murdered her entire family, in exchange for the majestic sword her father designed. No one in the bar is interested, particularly Kara. But an imposing alien decides to just take the sword from Ruthye which causes Kara to forcefully get it back, solely on principal.

But Krem had been following Ruthye. After disabling Kara's spacecraft, Krem shoots a charging Krypto with a deadly poison that will slowly kill him within three days. Now she must track down the dangerous space pirate for the antidote to save her dog while reluctantly taking Ruthye along who still wants revenge.

As Supergirl begins her pursuit of Krem, she discovers that these pirates are kidnapping young girls to use as sex slaves while another entire family is wiped out by trying to save their child from this murderous crew. I usually appreciate when these super-hero films make an effort to expand beyond the expected plot beats of this genre. But this all just feels far too dark and bleak, creating a harsh and unpleasant tone that just drags this movie down. This isn't helped by the screenplay from Ana Nogueira, which was adapted from the comic-book mini-series, "Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow", that fails to drive up the thrills with its plodding narrative filled with clunky one-liners and underdeveloped characters.

We are given Kara's back story, told throughout the film, where her parents, scientist, Zor-El (David Krumholtz) and his wife, Alura (Emily Beecham) manages to save a large section of Argo City with a force field system that separate and protects the city after Krypton explodes. Kara is born eight years later but is sent to Earth after the survivors in Argo City are slowly being poisoned from exposed Kryptonite. Alcock certainly captures a scrappy, party girl vibe as Kara but her character is not fully fleshed out enough to help us really understand her brooding, self-serving nature.

  
Gillespie has a history of making engagingly quirky films like "Lars and the Real Girl", "I, Tonya" and "Cruella", each elevated by an offbeat charm and unhinged humor. However I don't know what happened with "Supergirl". Perhaps the studio gatekeepers held him back on a firm leash but this movie feels constrained, needing a serious infusion of wacky levity and weirdness to offset the overly grim setting. Supergirl repeatedly getting drunk at a bar and showing her severely hungover the next day is about as wild as the film gets. We do get Jason Momoa who shows up as the shadowy bounty hunter, Lobo to apparently add more menacing gruffness and star power to the film. But the striking actor, in his brief appearance, doesn't end up really contributing much that is crucial or memorable.

The first time "Supergirl" made it on to the big screen was back in 1984 with a solid Helen Slater as the girl from Krypton and a grandiose Faye Dunaway as the glamourous villain. This banal, campy movie ended up being a critical and box-office flop. The new filmed version of "Supergirl" seemed like an opportunity to give this character another fighting chance to soar high above this previous cinematic misstep. Yet this latest attempt from Gillespie has run into much of the same problems as the first film with "Supergirl" having an aimless narrative, inconsistent characterizations and a serious lack of entertaining fun.

2026 OUTFESTNEXT

After beginning a new chapter last year, OutfestNext returns with a summer film festival that celebrates LGBTQ+ experiences through cinema. For four days, July 23 to July 26, the fest will offer independent queer feature films, shorts, documentaries and engaging conversations. The screenings will be held at the LGBT Center Renberg Theater and Micro Cinema in Los Angeles.

Some of the films that will be featured include "I Want Your Sex", the first feature film in over a decade from filmmaker, Gregg Araki, one of the pioneers of the New Queer Cinema movement. This erotic comedy stars Olivia Wilde as an art-world provocateur and Cooper Hoffman as her new young assistant that she turns into her sexual plaything. Charli XCX, Margaret Cho and Johnny Knoxville also star. "Test" from director, Sam McConnell follows an amateur bodybuilder (Brock Yurich who also wrote the screenplay) in working-class Ohio who is working hard to achieve his dream of becoming a champion. But to afford his daily regime of meds required to bulk up, he discretely performs on the web for men. 

William Friedkin’s 1980 film "Cruising" was the controversial mainstream movie to depict gay life which involved a cop going undercover to solve a murder. The documentary from Jeffrey Schwarz, "Mineshaft: The Cruising Murders" examines the real-life killings that inspired the main narrative of "Cruising" while also exploring the legacy of this film today. This year's winner of the Teddy Award at the Berlin Film Festival from director, Brydie O'Connor, "Barbara Forever" looks at the life and work of the late, pioneering lesbian filmmaker, Barbara Hammer. "Maspalomas", from Spanish directors, Aitor Arregi and Jose Mari Goenaga, tells the story of an elderly man (José Ramón Sorois) who came out late in life and is now making up for lost time in the gay paradise of Maspalomas in the Canary Islands. But a stroke changes his life with his daughter moving him against his wishes into a conservative nursing home. And "Dreamboi", an erotically charged horror film set in the Philippines from director, Rodina Singh that was recently banned by that country's motion picture review board.









For the complete list of films and to purchase tickets, please click below:

OutfestNext 2026

WHAT IS THE DEFINITIVE MOVIE ABOUT AMERICA?

As the United States has reached it's two hundred and fifty years as a nation today, the New York Times has assembled ten of their writers to select a film that best represents this country and why. Each of these films manages to capture a little insight into how we might view ourselves as a country and how the rest of the world possibly perceives us because of our cinema. The nation is currently in a severely political divided state of mind (with a perfect example being the muddled events that have been put together to celebrate our country's milestone) but I still believe that we still remain united, bound by our shared history, a deep love of country and a strong desire for a more perfect union.

Please click below to read the selections and here are a few trailers for some of these films:

NYT: What Is the Definitive Movie About America?

COMING SOON

"Klara and the Sun", based on the popular novel by Kazuo Ishiguro, will be coming to movie screens this fall. Jenna Ortega plays Klara, a solar-powered, artificial friend who is in search of the perfect home. When Klara is purchased for an ailing Josie (Mia Tharia), they immediately make a deep connection with each other. But Josie has a complicated relationship with her mother (Amy Adams) yet Klara’s positive energy and unwavering loyalty begins to help heal the family. Taika Waititi, the Oscar-winning actor and filmmaker behind "Jojo Rabbit", has adapted the book with Dahvi Waller and directed the film. Natasha Lyonne and Steve Buscemi also star.

"Klara and the Sun" is due in US theaters on October 23, 2026

SCARY MOVIE (2026)

Written by Marlon Wayans & Shawn Wayans & Keenen Ivory Wayans & Rick Alvarez



Directed by Michael Tiddes



Where & When: TCL Chinese Theatres, Hollywood, CA June 10, 2026 5:10 PM



It has been fourteen years since the last "Scary Movie", a spoof on horror films and other moments in popular culture, last appeared on the big screen. This series of comedies, originally conceived by Marlon and Shawn Wayans along with writing partners, Buddy Johnson and Phil Beauman, is filled with raunchy humor and comedic spins of popular slasher flicks. The first "Scary Move" back in 2000 was directed by their brother, Keenen Ivory Wayans, who was the creator and host of the sketch comedy series, "In Living Color", and went on to become a box-office hit with a sequel quickly released the following year. But by the time for a third film, the Wayans brothers were forced off the film when they could not come to a salary agreement with the studio at time, Miramax. David Zucker, who was a co-creator and director of "Airplane!" and "The Naked Gun" films, went on to helm the next two "Scary Movie" sequels with Malcolm D. Lee directing a fifth as the box-office results diminished with each subsequent film.

"Scary Movie" is now back to offer parodies on current horror movies to modern viewers and the Wayans brothers along with stars, Anna Faris and Regina Hall have also returned for this sixth installment of the series. Filled with plenty of sight gags and wacky recreations of characters from popular scary movies, "Scary Movie" also attempts to create humor from the frightening culture wars of today. But this film never feels like it has made any real effort to evolve, remaining stuck retreading stale comedy that was barely funny in the previous era.

Our story opens with goth teenager, Tuesday Campbell (Savannah Lee Nassif) being attacked by the return of the deranged killer, Ghostface. At the hospital, her sister, Sara (Olivia Rose Keegan) along with her boyfriend, Jack (Cameron Scott Roberts) realize that this seems similar to what happened with the girls' estranged mother, Cindy (Faris) twenty-six years ago and decide to go to her for help. Living as a recluse, Cindy is too frightened to get directly involved. Sara and Jack team up with Brad (Gregg Wayans) and Dei (Sydney Park) who happen to be the children of Brenda Meeks (Hall) to try solve who is the killer behind the mask.

As we move through this thin narrative, we are given comic send-ups of the genre movies, "Ma", "Get Out", "M3GAN", "Smile", "Longlegs", "Sinners" and there's even a brief animated sequence inspired by "KPop Demon Hunters". And much like many "Saturday Night Live" skits, these comedy bits loosely strung together throughout the film are hit-or-miss routines, filling the screen with either laugh-out-loud occasions or (more often) plodding, groan inducing moments.

Faris and Hall remain the only noteworthy performers here but these comic vets wind up having to take a backseat to the younger characters who lack presence and serious comedy chops. Others who make a reappearance from the past are Brenda's stoner brother, Shorty (Marlon Wayans), reporter, Gail Hailstorm (Cheri Oteri) and the mentally challenged, Doofy Gilmore (Dave Sheridan) who had turned out to be the original Ghostface. And Teyana Taylor make a brief cameo in the opener playing herself in a spoof of this movie series called "Horror Movie".

Since the very beginning of this franchise, "Scary Movie" has focused far more about being clever than actually funny. The latest version wants to appeal to a new generation yet fails to take into account that the world and comedy has changed considerably since the first movie hit theaters. This "Scary Movie" feels dated, extremely lazy and way too formulaic in it's approach and delivery to succeed in its attempt to find laughs spoofing horror movies.

COMING SOON

William Greaves, who was first an actor before moving behind the camera to become a pioneering documentarian, had invited every surviving creator during the Harlem Renaissance he could locate back in 1972 to Duke Ellington’s home in Harlem for a party. Over the next four hours, Greaves filmed as this group of artists reminisced and debated about their experiences and how they had shaped the culture. 

The director behind the "Symbiopsychotaxiplasm" films struggled for years trying to figure out how to best utilize his footage. But Greaves died in 2014 at the age of eighty-seven with the film incomplete. Louise Greaves, his widow, would go on working on the project until she died in 2023. Then their son, David and daughter, Liani would continue on with this work until they were able to finally complete the film.

"Once Upon a Time in Harlem" made its world premiere at this year's Sundance Film Festival where it was well received and highly praised. The documentary will be released theatrically this fall by Neon who won the bidding war following the screening during the fest.

"Once Upon A Time In Harlem" is due in US theaters on October 16, 2026

I LOVE BOOSTERS (2026)

Written & Directed by Boots Riley

Where & When: TCL Chinese Theatres, Hollywood, CA  May 26, 2026  4:10 PM

Boots Riley has finally returned with a follow-up to his cleverly absurdist comedy, "Sorry To Bother You" with "I Love Boosters", a lively comedy that pushes even more aggressively to be hilariously deranged, visually eye-popping and slyly thought provoking. Propelled by an impressive and game cast, Riley certainly wants to entertain while discretely delivering a weighty message with his latest. But "I Love Boosters" is unable to seamlessly merge these sentiments into an effective and meaningful manner.

Corvette (Keke Palmer) is the ringleader behind the Velvet Gang who are sort of like a modern-day Robin Hood and his merry men, regularly shoplifting from high-end designer shops and turning around to sell the expensive clothes to help out the common fashionistas for a far more affordable price point. Along with Mariah (Taylour Paige) and Sade (Naomi Ackie), Corvette's main focus is on a chain of stores called Metro that is run by designer, Christie Smith (Demi Moore). As an aspiring fashion designer, Corvette greatly admires Christie who views what she does as important, transformative art.

The trio get jobs at one of the Metro stores which will make it far easier to get their hands on the clothing. But before they are able to steal the store's inventory, someone else has beat them to it and emptied out the store. Using the surveillance footage, which shows the robber vacuuming up all the merchandise into a large bag, the gang are able to track down the retail thief. It turns out to be Jianhu (Poppy Liu), an employee at the Metro manufacturing plant in China. She explains that the company uses a teleporter to ship their merchandise, saving them a lot of money. But the working conditions at the factory remains miserable and dangerous, so she's using a stolen teleporter to ship the clothes back to China so the workers will have some leverage against the company.

Enhanced by the colorfully vivid production design by Christopher Glass, the delightfully gaudy costumes from Shirley Kurata and the quirky musical score by indie pop artist, Tune-Yards, "I Love Boosters" chugs along with a manic energy, continuously throwing us off balance with chaotic visuals. Riley thrillingly lets his imagination run wild by throwing in absurdist humor (with a black character able to appear as a white woman when she hold her breath), stop-motion animation and a madcap, car chase that utilizes a miniature set. But by the time we reach the third act, our story shifts even deeper into a surreal atmosphere, still with some amusing moments, that becomes more narratively convoluted and exhausting.

As a filmmaker, Riley displays a persuasive confidence, boldly and fearlessly expressing his social and political views which at this period in time could be considered very risky. The film may be filled with intellectual vigor, savvy street style and highbrow sci-fi but the characters in "Boosters" end up being not much more than sketches lacking in the fine details that would bring them properly to life.

But this doesn't mean that the actors on board are not able to shine with some dazzling performances. Palmer plays to her strengths, delivering plenty of smarts, sass and style while Moore gets to chew up the fabric as the ego-driven mastermind behind the fashion company. We also get Will Poulter as a prissy manager of a Metro store where the ladies are employed, an unrecognizable Don Cheadle playing a pyramid schemer and LaKeith Stanfield appears as the Pinky Ring Guy, a smooth taking dude who has an peculiar interest in Corvette.

Without a doubt, Riley is a true cinematic innovator, an audacious and compelling visionary eager to challenge audiences to consider stories and perspectives outside of what is continuously being spoon fed to them through all types of media. I really wanted to love "I Love Boosters". Really. But this whimsical yet fiery call for resistance ends up being a wild jumble of mind-bending thoughts and twisted ideas that unfortunately disappoints because the relentlessly outrageous style winds up overwhelming the political agenda.

2026 BLEAK WEEK: CINEMA OF DESPAIR

From May 31st through June 7th, Bleak Week: Cinema of Despair will be returning to theaters for the fifth year. This festival, which has expanded globally this year to seventy-three cities, began in Los Angeles by the American Cinematheque to present a weeklong event that spotlights some of the greatest films from around the world that explore the darkest sides of humanity, as well as some of the bleakest points in human history. This year's series continues with some of the world’s greatest filmmakers who completely embrace a cinema of despair in pursuit of unpleasant truths and raw empathy.

Some of the films presented will include appearances by filmmakers and actors for discussions with highlights include French acting icon, Isabelle Huppert with six of her films that will feature "The Piano Teacher", "Elle" and the infamous, "Heaven's Gate"; filmmaker, Ari Aster will have a retrospective that will include his bleak classics, "Hereditary", "Beau is Afraid" and a director's cut of "Midsommar"; Steven Spielberg's timely, "A.I Artificial Intelligence" will celebrate it's 25th Anniversary with actor, Haley Joel Osment; The Coen Brothers' underappreciated 2001 film, "The Man Who Wasn't There" with the theatrical world premiere of a new restoration and Q&A with cinematographer Roger Deakins; Theresa Russell will be present for a screening of "Bad Timing", a now cult classic that co-starred Art Garfunkel and directed by her then-husband, Nicolas Roeg; the U.S. premiere of a new 4K restoration of Jane Campion's Oscar-winning drama, "The Piano" from 1993; and Al Pacino will be in-person for a Q&A following a screening of "The Godfather Part II" on June 2nd.











The screenings will take place at the Los Feliz 3 Theatres, The Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood and Aero Theatre in Santa Monica. For the complete list of films, please click below:

2026 Bleak Week: Cinema of Despair

For more information on venues participating outside of Los Angeles, please click below:

2026 Bleak Week: Cinema of Despair Global Film Festival

WINNERS OF THE 2026 CANNES FILM FESTIVAL

Cristian Mungiu’s drama, "Fjord" won the Palme d’Or at the conclusion of the 79th annual Cannes Film Festival. The Romanian director, who previously received the festival’s prize for his film, "4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days" in 2007, becomes the tenth director to win the coveted award twice. Sebastian Stan and Renate Reinsve star as a conservative couple who decide to move to the remote village in Norway where the wife was born with their children. But their new life does not go as planned when they come up against a couple who become concerned about how they're raising their family. And theatrical distributor, Neon (which will release "Fjord") continued to make history at Cannes with its seventh straight Palme d’Or winner with Bong Joon Ho’s 2019 film, "Parasite" and Sean Baker's 2024 feature, "Anora" both going on to win the Best Picture Oscar.

Russian director Andreï Zviaguintsev’s "Minotaur" went on to receive the Grand Prize which is the runner-up. Based on the 1969 French film "The Unfaithful Wife" by Claude Chabrol, "Minotaur" is set in a Russian small town and follows business executive on the verge of laying off his employees when he discovers his wife is having an affair.

This year's jury, lead by Park Chan-Wook, seemed to have great difficulty narrowing down just one winner as there our multiple films sharing prizes. The directorial duo, Javier Calvo and Javier Ambrossi for "La Bola Negra" and Paweł Pawlikowski of "Fatherland" both won the Best Director award. Virginie Efira and Tao Okamot jointly received the Best Actress award for their performances in "All Of A Sudden" while Emmanuel Macchia and Valentin Campagneshare, the stars of Lukas Dhont’s World War I drama, "Coward", shared the Best Actor Award.

Here is the list of winners of the 2026 Cannes Film Festival:

Palme d’Or: "Fjord"
Grand Prize: "Минотавр (Minotaur)"
Jury Prize: "Das Geträumte Abenteuer (The Dreamed Adventure)"



Best Director: Javier Calvo and Javier Ambrossi, "La Bola Negra (The Black Ball)" and Paweł Pawlikowski, "Fatherland" (Tie)





Best Screenplay: Emmanuel Marre, "Notre Salut (A Man of His Time)"
Best Actress: Virginie Efira and Tao Okamo, "Soudain (All Of A Sudden)"
Best Actor: Emmanuel Macchia and Valentin Campagneshare for "Coward"



Camera d’Or: "Ben’Imana"
Short Film Palme d’Or: "Para los contrincantes (For The Opponents)"
Honorary Palme d’Or: John Travolta and Barbra Streisand

2026 SUMMER MOVIE PREVIEW

This year in cinema has gotten off to a rousing start this spring which has been driven by several blockbuster hits that include "Project Hail Mary", "The Super Mario Galaxy Movie", "Michael" and "The Devil Wears Prada 2".  All of this appears to be a healthy sign that the upcoming summer movie season should continue the momentum of eager attendance, leading to big numbers at the box-office.

There are many films that look intriguing that will be released over the next three months but these movies I've listed below have really captured my attention.

All release dates are subject to change:

"BACKROOMS"

Release date: May 29, 2026

The twenty year old, Kane Parsons makes his feature film directorial debut with "Backrooms", a sci-fi horror thriller which expands upon the 2022 web series he created with a screenplay by Will Soodik. Oscar-nominee Renate Reinsve plays a therapist to Clark (Chiwetel Ejiofor), who owns a furniture store, as he tries to explain to her some strange happenings at his location. But he soon disappears into this dimension beyond reality and she must venture into the unknown to try and save him.



"DISCLOSURE DAY"

Release date: June 12, 2026

Steven Spielberg's upcoming film, "Disclosure Day" takes us back into the world of dark sci-fi where aliens seem poised to invade our planet. Not many clear details have been revealed but we have Emily Blunt, Josh O'Connor, Eve Hewson, Colin Firth and Colman Domingo all on board in a story that involves solving a mysterious conspiracy about revealing evidence of extra-terrestrial life that has been long hidden by the government. This thriller is based on a story by Spielberg with the screenplay by his long-time collaborator, David Koepp.



"STOP! THAT! TRAIN!"

Release date: June 12, 2026

"Stop! That! Train!" is set in the wacky world created by the RuPaul's Drag Race franchise with many of the stars of that television competition program appearing in this wild ride of riotous comedy. Train stewardesses, Tess (Ginger Minj) and DeeDee (Jujubee), best friends who work together on the Stank Rail for the Glamazonian Express. A horrific storm threatens to derail the high-speed train and crash it into Los Angeles unless the girls along with the passengers come together to save the day. Drag queens, Latrice Royale, Monét X Change, Brooke Lynn Hytes and Symone plus non-drag queens, Lisa Rinna, Jerry O'Connell, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Nicole Richie and Charo also star. And of course, RuPaul makes an appearance as President Judy Gagwell. Adam Shankman directs.



"LEVITICUS"

Release date: June 19, 2026

Creating a buzz at this year's Sundance Film Festival, "Leviticus" is a queer horror-drama about two Aussie teenage boys (Joe Bird, Stacy Clausen) that are falling in love but live in a religious environment. They are soon being tormented by an evil and violent entity who is able to create havoc by taking the form of each other. The Australian filmmaker, Adrian Chiarella makes his directorial debut with this film.



"THE INVITE"

Release date: June 26, 2026

Olivia Wilde’s third directorial effort, "The Invite" follows Joe and Angela (played by Wilde and Seth Rogen), a long married couple going through some challenging times in their relationship, who are hosting a dinner for their upstairs neighbors, Pina (Penélope Cruz) and Hawk (Edward Norton). But the evening does not go smoothly with the neighbors making an unexpected offer to the couple. This comedic-drama (written by Rashida Jones and Will McCormack) is based on the 2020 Spanish film, "The People Upstairs" and made an impressive splash during its premiere at this year's Sundance Film Festival, leading to a bidding war for distribution rights with A24 becoming the victor.



"SUPERGIRL"

Release date: June 26, 2026

She briefly made an appearance near the end of the "Superman" reboot last year and now "Supergirl" is the focus of her own movie, directed by Craig Gillespie. This is the latest iteration of this DC comic-book character following the campy 1984 movie and the 2015 television series that lasted six seasons. Based on the 2021–22 comic book miniseries, "Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow", Kara Zor-El (Milly Alcock), the cousin of Superman who was raised on a chunk of the destroyed planet Krypton before that soon perished, travels across the galaxy to celebrate her twenty-third birthday with her dog, Krypto. But her celebration is interrupted when she is asked by a young girl (Eve Ridley) to help avenge her father's death. Matthias Schoenaerts and Jason Momoa (who appears here as the alien bounty hunter, Lobo even though he played Aquaman in several movies) also star.



"THE ODYSSEY"

Release date: July 17, 2026

For his next feature film, Christopher Nolan is taking on an adaptation of Homer's ancient Greek epic, "The Odyssey". On his very long journey home to reunite with his wife, Penelope (Anne Hathaway) following the Trojan War, Odysseus (Matt Damon), the king of Ithaca, encounters many treacherous obstacles that will delay him which includes sirens, the witch-goddess, Circe (Charlize Theron) and the Cyclops. A very impressive cast has been assembled with Tom Holland, Zendaya, Robert Pattinson, Mia Goth, Jon Bernthal, John Leguizamo and Lupita Nyong'o to name just a few on board.



"THE END OF OAK STREET"

Release date: August 14, 2026

"The End of Oak Street" is a sci-fi thriller involving a family that begin to notice very strange events happening on their street. Anne Hathaway and Ewan McGregor play the parents of two teenage children (Maisy Stella and Christian Convery) who live a comfortable life in a suburban neighborhood. After a mysterious cosmic event, their entire street is transported to some perilous other world and they must work together in order to survive. This is the latest feature film from writer/director, David Robert Mitchell ("It Follows", "Under The Silver Lake").



"TONY"

Release date: August 7, 2026

Anthony Bourdain was a celebrity chef, author and host of the popular television cuisine travelogue program, "Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations" before shockingly ending his own life in 2018. Now there is a biopic about how Bourdain became the famous culinary bad boy with "Tony", co-written and directed by Matt Johnson. Dominic Sessa stars as Bourdain, a nineteen year old who wants to be a writer but fails to get accepted for a fellowship. Discouraged, he winds up working at a seafood restaurant in Cape Cod, run by the no-nonsense owner, Ciro (Antonio Banderas), where his eyes are reluctantly opened to possibilities. Emilia Jones and Leo Woodall also star.

MICHAEL (2026)

Written by John Logan



Directed by Antoine Fuqua



Where & When: TCL Chinese Theatres, Hollywood, CA. April 28, 2026 3:55 PM



Despite his tragic death at the age of fifty in 2009 from a drug overdose and some disturbing allegations that have continued to muddy his legacy, Michael Jackson has managed to maintain his position as one of the biggest global pop music stars on the planet. The biographical musical drama, "Michael", capably directed by Antoine Fuqua, focuses on the singer's life from childhood as the highlight of the popular singing group with his brothers, the Jackson 5 to him going on to become even more famous as a solo artist after anxiously breaking free from the tight grip of his manager who also happened to be his father. With Graham King, who was the producer behind the rock band, Queen's bombastic yet neutered bio-pic, "Bohemian Rhapsody", John Branca, Jackson's former attorney and co-executor of the estate and the participation by most of the Jackson family all on board, "Michael" is slickly packaged, visually stunning propaganda, presenting a Jackson that fans would want to believe existed: gifted, enigmatic, quirky, a little sad but relatively harmless.

The film wastes no time jumping us straight into Gary, Indiana in 1966 where we witness the conflict between Joseph Jackson (Colman Domingo) and his five sons, Jackie (Nathaniel Logan McIntyre), Tito (Judah Edwards), Jermaine (Jayden Harville), Marlon (Jaylen Lyndon Hunter) and the youngest, Michael (Juliano Krue Valdi). He has assembled his children as a musical act and believes that in order to achieve success, they must constantly rehearse. But since they are kids, this isn't how they really want to spend all their time doing. However, Joseph, frustrated at his job at a steel mill, wants a better life for his family and isn't asking them, expecting his boys to obey otherwise face being beaten into submission.

Their first break comes two years later while opening for Gladys Knight (Liv Symone) and the Pips when the Jackson boys catch the attention of Suzanne de Passe (Laura Harrier), an executive at Motown Records. They are signed to the label, named "The Jackson 5", record their debut album and become an instant sensation. While they are a group, it is Michael, who is the lead singer, that receives the most recognition. Shy and timid off stage, Michael's confidence as a person (and later as an artist) is helped by Motown founder, Berry Gordy (Larenz Tate) who takes the young boy under his wing, guiding him on how the recording process works.

Years later, the Jacksons have left Motown and signed with Epic Records. Now a young man, Michael (played by Jaafar Jackson) is ready to make another solo album and teams with Quincy Jones (Kendrick Sampson) to produce. "Off The Wall" becomes a best-selling smash hit but Michael isn't able to fully enjoy his success because Joseph, who still manages his son's career, expects him to hit the road with his brothers to promote their album. Michael begins to take steps to try and control his own life: first by having surgery to make his nose smaller and then hiring John Branca (Miles Teller) as his attorney and has him fire his father as his manager. Then Michael begins recording his follow-up album with Jones which will be called "Thriller".

Since the estate of the pop singer was behind the production of this film, it was clear that "Michael" was never going to be an in-depth and revealing examination into who Jackson actually was and his turbulent personal history. The film, with a serviceable screenplay by John Logan, simply rehashes the familiar details of his career that many people are probably already fully aware. The only revelation I learned from this film was how severely Michael had been injured during the filming of the Pepsi commercial when a spark from the pyrotechnics sets his hair on fire, actually leaving him with third-degree burns on his scalp and nerve damage. Fuqua, who has made his career as a proficient filmmaker who was behind "Training Day" and "The Equalizer", doesn't try to elevate this movie with any artistic flourishes instead just sticks to the basics in his storytelling, briskly taking us from point A to point B, leaving no room for introspection.

Jaafar Jackson (the nephew of Michael and son of Jermaine) does make a dynamic impression with his acting debut playing his uncle. With an obvious advantage of having a family resemblance, his performance also captures the soft spoken, sweet-natured side of Jackson while expertly recreating some of the dazzling dance moves and musical highlights of the chart-topping artist with the singing in the film is largely from Michael's recordings. Domingo, buried under heavy prosthetics, does what he can with the one-note villain role of Joseph. But since there's nothing revealed about what made this ruthless man tick, we simply witness him terrorizing and manipulating everyone in his orbit with his horrid behavior. Nia Long appears as the matriarch of the family, Katherine Jackson who isn't given much to do or say beyond looking grave and concerned as she silently watches her husband abuse their children.

It is quite jarring that several key members of the Jackson family are treated like they just don't exist (most notably the second most famous Jackson, Janet) in this movie. But the rest of the Jacksons who did agree to appear in "Michael" are largely just shadows, with nothing made known about them and are simply filling up space around the actual star of this story when needed. And an unrecognizable Mike Myers makes a very brief appearance as Walter Yetnikoff, the president of Jackson's label, CBS Records who plays a vital part in helping take the performer to the next level by getting his videos played on MTV, which had largely refused to run Black artists, by threatening to pull all of the label's acts from the music channel.

"Michael" ends after his final tour with his brothers, completely severing professional ties with his family and begins his first solo tour in 1988. This means that this film doesn't deal with any of the child sexual abuse accusations against Jackson which began about five years later. There had been plans originally to include the allegations and scenes were apparently shot. But after "Michael" had been nearly completed, the producers were informed that they could not mention the accuser due to a clause in the settlement. You would have thought that since this was such an extremely sensitive subject matter that the production's legal team would have made some effort to look into this long before the cameras rolled.

Due to the overwhelming and expected success of "Michael" (with a half billion dollars earned at the global box-office to date and still growing), there is a follow-up planned of Jackson's story which will continue with his career and apparently deal with some of the more unsavory aspects that occurred later in the pop superstar's life. But much like this well made yet toothless bio-pic, there isn't any expectation that the sequel will dig too deep nor make Jackson appear in any way that would actually make him seem deceitful or threatening. "Michael" was never intended to disrupt the connection between the eternal King of Pop and his devoted and loyal fanbase. This film was supposed to serve as a solid and entertaining reminder of the extraordinary talent and enduring influence of Michael Jackson, never to tarnish his image or question his morals. And with that, "Michael" largely succeeds.

2026 CANNES FILM FESTIVAL

The 79th annual Cannes Film Festival is set to begin with the glamourous star-studded event will run from May 12-23 on the French riviera. This international celebration of cinema will be the first opportunity to see some of the exciting new works that will reach screens throughout the rest of the year and beyond. The poster for this year's fest features the image of Geena Davis and Susan Sarandon as "Thelma & Louise" in Ridley Scott's 1991 road-trip drama that made it's world premiere at Cannes going on to become a critical and commercial success.

The festival opens with the world premiere of "La Vénus électrique (the Electric Kiss)" from Pierre Salvadori which will be screened Out of Competition. The film stars Pio Marmaï as Antoine Balestro, a painter in 1920's Paris who has been unable to work since the death of his wife, Irène (Vimala Pons), much to the frustration of his gallery owner, Armand (Gilles Lellouche) who goes through some drastic measures to try and get him in front of an easel.



Korean writer/director Park Chan-Wook will serve as this year's jury president. He will be joined by American actress, Demi Moore; Swedish actor, Stellan Skarsgård; Irish actress, Ruth Negga; Ivorian-French actor, Isaach De Bankolé; Chinese writer/director Chloé Zhao; Chilean writer/director Diego Céspedes; Belgian writer/director, Laura Wandel and Britsh screenwriter Paul Laverty to select the winners of the top prizes.

There have been twenty-two films selected for Competition that will feature an impressive collection of films by a wide range of international filmmakers. Some of the movies will include new works by acclaimed directors, Andrey Zvyagintsev ("Минотавр (Minotaur)"), Pawel Pawlikowski ("Fatherland"), Lazlo Nemes ("Moulin"), Cristian Mungiu ("Fjiord"), Hirokazu Kore-eda ("箱の中の羊 (Sheep in the Box)"), Lukas Dhont ("Coward"), Javier Calvo and Javier Ambrossi ("La Bola Negra (The Black Ball)"), Marie Kreutzer ("Gentle Monster"), Asghar Farhadi ("Histoires Parallèles (Parallel Stories)") and Pedro Almodóvar ("Amarga Navidad (Bitter Christmas)"). This year will be very slight in regards to an American film presence at Cannes with only Ira Sachs' "The Man I Love", a musical fantasia set during the AIDS crisis and the recent addition of James Gray's "Paper Tiger", a crime-drama featuring Adam Driver and Scarlett Johansson, as the only movies from the US selected for competition.





In the Un Certain Regard section, which presents a lineup which recognizes emerging talent and innovative cinema, will feature the latest film from Jane Schoenbrun with "Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma" which will be the opening film; American actor/comedian, Jordan Firstman's directorial debut, "Club Kid"; "A Girl’s Story" the debut feature directed by French actress, Judith Godrèche and Greek director Konstantina Kotzamani’s "Titanic Ocean" about a special school in Japan that trains teenage girls into being professional mermaids.



Some intriguing films that will be shown out of competition includes the return of the Danish filmmaker, Nicolas Winding Refn with his horror-thriller, "Her Private Hell", his first feature film in ten years. The actor, Andy Garcia will premiere his second film as a director with "Diamond", a crime-drama that stars Garcia, Vicky Krieps, Brendan Fraser, Bill Murray and Dustin Hoffman. Steven Soderbergh will screen his documentary, "John Lennon: The Last Interview", the controversial film that will combine AI visual elements with the audio of the former Beatle's final interview with Rolling Stone magazine and Ron Howard will debut his documentary "Avedon" about the life and career of the famed photographer, Richard Avedon.

And Peter Jackson, the New Zealand filmmaker best known for his work on the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy, will be presented this year with an honorary Palme d’Or. The Academy Award winning director will also participate in the fest's Talks program along with fellow Oscar-winners, Cate Blanchett and Tilda Swinton for separate onstage conversations.