When temperatures climb, the last thing anyone wants is an outfit that feels heavy, clingy or uncomfortable. Sound familiar? Plenty of Amazon shoppers feel the same, which is why so many are adding the R.Vivimos Flowy Maxi Dress to their carts as fast as they can. Made from 100% cotton, the breezy style was made to keep you cool while making getting dressed feel almost effortless, all for just $36.

Part of what makes this dress such a standout is how versatile it is. It’s the kind of easy, laid-back piece you can throw on in seconds and somehow manage to look miraculously put together, whether you’re off to the farmer’s market, packing for vacation or meeting friends for lunch. Better still, its relaxed silhouette keeps you comfortable even on the hottest summer days.

Get the R.Vivimos Flowy Maxi Dress for $36 at Amazon! Please note, prices are accurate as of the publishing date but are subject to change.

The lightweight cotton fabric delivers an airy, effortless feel that’s hard to find, especially at such an affordable price point. Its flowy shape moves beautifully, while the otherwise simple design makes it easy to dress up with a kitten heel and jewelry or keep casual with flats and a straw tote.

Related: This ‘Slimming’ Amazon Maxi Dress ‘Glides Over’ the Midsection

Advertisement

Wardrobe panic is real — but add in warmer temps and the pressure to find something that makes you feel cool, calm and confident can be even more of a struggle. You want something feminine and pretty for vacation or Saturday morning farmer’s markets, but the thought of squeezing into something tight in 90-degree heat […]

It’s also the type of wardrobe staple you’ll find yourself reaching for again and again. Comfortable enough for everyday wear but polished enough for vacations, brunches and backyard gatherings, it solves one summer’s biggest style dilemmas: looking chic without overheating.

Many shoppers say the dress quickly became their go-to warm-weather outfit. “I basically live in these dresses,” shared one five-star reviewer. “I have multiple colors and cycle through them. Literally the most comfy piece of clothing I own, and they are super cute too!”

“The 100% cotton material is soft, breathable, and feels wonderful against the skin—especially in the summer heat,” wrote another five-star reviewer. “I’ve looked at similar high-end cotton and linen dresses that cost over $150, and this one is just as stylish and well-made for a fraction of the price.”

If your summer wardrobe is missing that one easy dress you’ll want to wear on repeat, this shopper-loved maxi is well worth considering. Lightweight, breathable and endlessly versatile, it’s easy to understand why so many shoppers are calling it one of Amazon’s best.

Get the R.Vivimos Flowy Maxi Dress for $36 at Amazon! Please note, prices are accurate as of the publishing date but are subject to change.

Looking for something else? Explore more maxi dresses here and don’t forget to check out all of Amazon’s Daily Deals for more great finds!

By Chris Snellgrove
| Published 17 seconds ago

Growing up, I always respected Don Bluth, whose animated films felt like the weirder, scruffier alternative to the squeaky-clean movies of Walt Disney. Some of these were moving and inspirational, like An American Tail. Others were almost horrifying in their own way, like The Secrets of NIMH and All Dogs Go To Heaven. In a weird way, that was part of the charm: while you generally know what to expect from a Disney movie, you never know what you’ll get from Don Bluth. That’s especially true of his forgotten, turn-of-the-millennium sci-fi classic: Titan A.E.

To put it mildly, Titan A.E. is a movie that shouldn’t work. The plot is filled with warmed-over sci-fi cliches, the 2D and 3D animation clash, and the voice cast is beyond eclectic. However, all of these bizarre elements add up to a strange brew that is surprisingly tasty. The movie has also aged surprisingly well, especially now that Star Trek and Star Wars have started circling the drain. If you want a genuinely fresh view of the future, then you need to take a trip to the past. Fortunately, it’s just a click away: Titan A.E. is currently streaming for free on Tubi.

In Your Space

The plot of Titan A.E. is that after Earth is attacked by evil aliens, humans must wander the galaxy, each trying to cobble together a living. One such human is Cale, whose father was working on an ambitious project that caught the aliens’ attention. As a young man, he joins a ragtag crew who need his help (and the holographic map in his ring) to track down his father’s old ship. According to dear old dad, that ship may hold the key to saving what’s left of humanity. But unless our hero can outwit an alien army and find allies he can truly trust, the human race may be completely doomed.

The most striking thing about Titan A.E. is its animation style. The film came out a few years after Toy Story normalized CGI animation. As such, this movie has a mixture of styles: most of it is animated in gloriously beautiful 2D animation, but some of the action (basically, anything involving aliens or spaceships) is animated with CGI. This ends up effectively being a double-edged sword for Titan A.E. On the one hand, the animation styles visually clash, and some of the computer-generated imagery has aged particularly poorly. On the other hand, this mixture of styles gives Titan A.E. a very distinct style, which is only fitting for a movie that, to this day, is like no other cartoon that you’ve seen.

Witty And Wordy

While Titan A.E. will appeal to many audiences (including animation fiends and sci-fi nerds), it will particularly resonate with fans of shows like Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Firefly. That’s because Joss Whedon is one of the film’s writers, and he does a great job bringing these quirky characters to life. Also, while saying this may get me staked by crazed fans, the writing in Titan A.E. arguably represents Whedon at his peak: the dialogue is funny and memorable without feeling like it’s trying too hard. Personally, I’ll take dialogue like this any day over Whedon’s attempts at humor in The Avengers, a movie where a quarter of Tony Stark’s lines are dumb puns and outdated references.

Of course, the dialogue in Titan A.E. is that much more memorable thanks to the movie’s weirdly stacked cast. Lion King alumnus Nathan Lane provides great comic relief as a cutesy alien, while Bill Pullman is all grizzled charisma as a gruff space captain. Janeane Garofalo lends her comedic talents to a kind of stern, den mother of an alien, and Drew Barrymore is all sexy confidence as a pilot turned love interest. At the heart of it all is Matt Damon, whose rich performance helps protagonist Cale stand out as one of the freshest and funniest main characters in sci-fi history.

In Space, Everyone Can Hear You Rock

Beyond the unique animation, great writing, and immersive voice cast, Titan A.E. has one more secret weapon in its arsenal: a killer alt-rock soundtrack. We get fun needle drops from millennial-friendly bands like Lit, Jamiroquai, and Powerman 5000, making this the perfect movie for anyone who went to high school in the ‘90s. Heck, this is a film that prominently included Creed’s “Higher” in its trailer, cementing this movie as an artifact of a simpler time. Will the soundtrack make aging nerds want to stand up and shake their groove thing? Yes. Will you probably need a little pain medicine after you do it? Also yes.

All of this adds up to a movie greater than the sum of its parts. The story is a mishmash of various sci-fi cliches, but it remixes them well enough that the resulting film feels surprisingly fresh. The animation styles clash at times, but the combination of 2D and 3D looks better than almost any modern cartoon. Plus, while the needle drops from yesteryear seriously date the film, that’s not necessarily a bad thing; rather, they serve as a bass-shaking reminder that Titan A.E. hails from the waning twilight of the golden age of animation.

Want to reexperience that golden age for yourself? Don’t worry: you won’t have to form a ragtag band to find answers on the far side of the galaxy. All you need to do is check out Titan A.E., which is currently streaming for free on Tubi. This film is Star Wars meets Firefly, and it will appeal to anyone who has ever obnoxiously quoted the works of Joss Whedon. Throw in a rollicking soundtrack and a pitch-perfect celebrity cast, and you have a forgotten epic that’s worth sharing with the entire galaxy. 

For decades, Dragon Ball fans have wondered how Goku’s story will ultimately end. Will the legendary Saiyan unlock one final transformation? Will he ascend to an even greater level of power? Or could his final form be something much simpler?

An obscure piece of artwork from 1989 is now reigniting that discussion.

The illustration, created by Dragon Ball creator Akira Toriyama for the Dragon Ball Z Anime Special book, depicts an elderly Goku many years into the future. While the image was originally created as a joke, fans are now revisiting it as a fascinating glimpse at what Goku’s final years could look like.

What makes the drawing even more interesting is its origin. This version of Goku was not created out of nowhere. It is based on an old sketch Akira Toriyama drew back in 1989 for the Dragon Ball Z Anime Special book. At the time, Toriyama jokingly imagined what Goku might look like as an old man after fans repeatedly asked him when the story would finally end and how Goku would look in it.

The sketch presents a much older version of the beloved hero, a stark contrast to the youthful and energetic fighter fans have followed for decades. Rather than sporting a new transformation or overwhelming aura, this Goku appears aged by time, offering a rare vision of a future that has never been explored in the manga or anime.

Goku [credit: Akira Toriyama 1989]

Since the illustration came from an obscure publication released long before the internet era, many fans had never even seen it before. Now that it has resurfaced, the image is sparking fresh conversations throughout the Dragon Ballcommunity. Some see it simply as a humorous drawing from Toriyama’s past, while others view it as an intriguing possibility for where Goku’s journey could one day end.

Of course, Dragon Ball has changed dramatically since 1989. Goku has gone on to achieve forms that Toriyama himself may never have envisioned when he first drew the sketch. From Super Saiyan to Ultra Instinct, the Saiyan warrior has repeatedly surpassed expectations and rewritten his limits.

Still, there is something compelling about seeing Goku not as an unstoppable fighter chasing greater power, but as an old man who has lived a long and extraordinary life. It is a reminder that even legends grow older, and perhaps the greatest ending for Goku is not one defined by power, but by peace.

Whether Toriyama ever intended the drawing to represent Goku’s true final appearance may never be known. But more than 35 years later, fans are once again asking the question:

Could this sketch from 1989 be our first glimpse at Goku’s final form?

Kyle Busch’s wife, Samantha Busch, is honoring the late NASCAR legend after his death on a day the racer should be spending time with his children.

“This still doesn’t feel real at all. I was up all night thinking about what today should have looked like for Kyle and the kids. The Father’s Day cards that were already made, sitting in a drawer with no one to give them to. Trying to figure out how to navigate a day that should be filled with so much joy for them,” Samantha wrote via Instagram on Sunday, June 21. “He was the dad who never missed a chance to be silly, race the kids around the neighborhood, wrap them in his arms, or stay up a little longer for one more book, one more question, one more moment.”

She continued, “Nothing made him prouder than being Brexton and Lennix’s dad.Watching these memories hurts more than I can explain, but they also remind me how lucky we were to have him.”

Samantha concluded her post with a message for Kyle, sharing that their family — which includes son Brexton, 11, and daughter Lennix, 4 — “[misses] you every second of every day.”

Related: Kyle Busch’s Wife Samantha Breaks Down in Tears Ahead of Moment of Silence

Samantha Busch (née Sarcinella) was brought to tears ahead of a moment of silence at the Indy 500 that honored her late husband, NASCAR driver Kyle Busch. Clutching the shoulder of son Brexton, Samantha, 39, was overcome with emotion while one of the event’s announcers paid tribute to the Busch family at the Indianapolis Motor […]

“Our hearts ache for you, but it’s more than that. Your absence is something we physically feel. Our bodies hurt from missing you, from reaching for someone who isn’t there, from loving someone we can’t hold anymore,” Samantha wrote. “I will keep telling your stories, sharing your laughs, and making sure Brexton and Lennix always know just how deeply they were loved by their dad. Happy Father’s Day. We love you and miss you more than words can say.”

Alongside the message, Samantha shared several clips of Kyle with their children through the years. In one video, the family embraced in a sweet hug while standing on a race track.

News broke in May that Kyle unexpectedly died at age 41. One day prior to his death, the racer was hospitalized after he was found unresponsive in a race simulator in North Carolina. A death certificate obtained by Us Weekly showed that Kyle had pneumonia for “days or weeks” before his death, which progressed into sepsis, a life-threatening blood infection that can cause multi-organ failure.

Samantha addressed Kyle’s death the following month, sharing a statement signed by her, Brexton and Lennix.

Advertisement

Related: Kyle Busch’s Wife Samantha Reveals ‘Promise’ She Made on His Deathbed

Samantha Busch, the widow of late NASCAR icon Kyle Busch, gave some emotional insight into their final moments together before his shocking death last month.  “In the hospital, I made Kyle a promise,” Samantha, 40, shared via Instagram on Wednesday, June 10. “I promised him that I would do everything I could to help our […]

“As a family, we wanted to take a moment to say thank you,” she wrote via Instagram. “The prayers, messages, flowers, meals, hugs, and countless acts of kindness have carried us through the most heartbreaking days of our lives. While our hearts are absolutely shattered, we have felt God’s presence and arms wrapped tightly around us through each and every one of you.”

Thank You!

You have successfully subscribed.

Advertisement

She continued, “The love that has surrounded our family during this unimaginable time has brought comfort in the middle of so much pain. Knowing the impact Kyle had on others and seeing how they are honoring him through each unique act of generosity is a true testament to how special Kyle is to so many people. There are moments when the weight of this loss feels impossible to carry, yet time and time again God, through you all, has shown us we are not alone.”

Samantha concluded by sharing “family and friends to fans and complete strangers” for “showing up for us.”

“Thank you for loving our family so well,” she wrote. “Thank you for loving Kyle. Thank you for honoring him. We may never find the words to fully express what your support has meant to us, but please know that we are deeply grateful.”

North West reportedly has a first concert tour in the works following the release of her debut EP, “N0RTH4EVR,” in May.

According to reports, the tour will consist of 14 shows across cities in the United States and is expected to kick off in early August.

Joining the daughter of Kanye West and Kim Kardashian on the road will be Molly Santana, with whom she recently shared the stage at Rolling Loud 2026 and Lyrical Lemonade’s Summer Smash.

After largely making brief stage appearances at other artists’ shows, North West is now set to headline concerts of her own as part of her upcoming debut tour.

Tickets for the concerts went on sale Friday, while the tour itself is scheduled to begin on August 5 and conclude on August 27.

The average ticket price is around $78.46, although some seats are available for as little as $32. Premium seats and VIP packages are expected to cost more than $500.

North will perform exclusively in major U.S. cities, including Dallas, where the tour kicks off, and Los Angeles, which will host the final show. In total, the tour consists of 14 dates, with each show scheduled to begin at or after 7 p.m.

North Taps Molly Santana For Tour

For each of the tour dates, North will be joined by rapper and singer Molly Santana, who first emerged on the music scene in 2021 with the release of her debut EP, “Molly’s World.”

Santana has gained greater recognition in recent years, including through her feature on the track “Ran to Atlanta” from Drake’s album “Iceman.”

The tour will not be the first time Santana and North have performed together in public. They most recently shared the stage at Lyrical Lemonade’s Summer Smash in Chicago just a week ago, which featured artists such as Lil Baby, Playboi Carti, and Lil Uzi Vert.

The pair also appeared together at Rolling Loud 2026 in Orlando, where their appearance was billed as a surprise performance.

North West Dropped Her Debut EP In May

Going on tour follows North’s debut EP, “N0RTH4EVR,” which she released early last month on streaming services through Gamma, per Billboard.

The EP features six tracks, including “H0w Sh0uld ! F33l,” “Th!s t!m3,” “Aishite,” and “#N0rth4evr.”

Across the project, North blends elements of punk rock and intense rage rap in a way that moves fluidly across the sonic styles of her generation. It also incorporates elements of emo and Jersey club.

She self-produced and wrote all the tracks on the project and, interestingly, did not feature any collaborators, seemingly to keep the project solely her own. However, she did sample a couple of songs, including Meg & Dia’s “Monster” and Social Repose’s rock-based cover of Mumford & Sons’ “Little Lion Man.”

Kim Kardashian And Family Backed North’s EP

North’s EP release appears to have been met with enthusiastic support from her family. Instagram Story posts from Rob Kardashian, Khloé Kardashian, and Kris Jenner showed them streaming and listening to the project, tagging North and sharing emojis to express their pride.

At home, her mother, Kim Kardashian, went the extra mile by decorating the house with inflatable balloons spelling out the album title. North later shared a clip of the scene on her Instagram Story, which also included a snippet of “Aishite” playing in the background.

In addition to the family promotion, North hosted a two-day pop-up event at Complex’s Fairfax store in Los Angeles. At the venue, fans could listen to the EP, purchase exclusive merchandise, and meet her.

Supporting her at the event were her father, Kanye, and his wife, Bianca Censori, who attended on the first night, and Kim, who appeared on the second night.

North West Recently Marked A Major Birthday Milestone

A few days ago, North officially became a teenager and received heartfelt messages from her parents to mark the milestone.

“Happy Birthday my Northiiiiiieeeeeeeee (Uzi voice!!!).” Kim wrote on Instagram. “I can’t believe you are officially a teenager!!!!! There’s no one like you my baby girl! I love being your mom and watching you grow. I love you to the aliens galaxies you would speak of as a kid and beyond.”

Meanwhile, Kanye kept his message brief, writing, “Happy Bday Twin,” alongside a picture of the teenager.

Amber Heard is giving fans a rare look at her life far from Hollywood. The rare social media update comes as the actress continues to live a largely private life overseas following her highly publicized legal battle with ex-husband Johnny Depp.

The actress took to Instagram on Sunday to celebrate a personal milestone after completing the KLM Norte Sur 10K race in Madrid, sharing a series of photos that highlighted both the accomplishment and her life as a mother of three.

“First race glow,” Heard captioned a smiling post-race photo of herself dressed in a pink sports bra and matching jogging shorts.

Heard Celebrates Finish Line Moment With Her Daughter

In addition to her Instagram post, Heard shared several moments from race day on her Instagram Stories. One image showed the actress smiling into the camera after completing the event, while another featured a sweet moment with her eldest daughter, Oonagh.

The actress could be seen cradling the 5-year-old after crossing the finish line. “Nothing beats this feeling,” Heard wrote across the photo.

Advertisement

Heard is also the mother of 12-month-old twins, Agnes and Ocean, whom she has largely kept out of the public eye.

Running Has Long Been One Of Amber Heard’s Favorite Outlets

The actress has previously spoken about her love of running and the role it plays in maintaining both her physical and mental well-being. “I like running because it’s a way for me to alleviate stress, clear my mind, and refocus,” Heard told SHAPE magazine in 2018. “Plus I can do it anywhere. I travel so much that it’s invaluable to me to have something that keeps me healthy and feeling good no matter where I am.”

Heard has often been photographed jogging through Madrid since relocating to Spain and appears to have made fitness a regular part of her routine. While discussing fitness, Heard previously explained that she no longer believes in chasing unrealistic standards at the expense of happiness.

“If you’re not going to enjoy life, there’s no point in eating a certain way and working out and doing all the things actors do to manipulate how we look, and how the world looks at us,” she said, adding that she prefers to make exercise a natural part of her daily life rather than treating it as an obligation.

Heard’s Life Changed After Her Legal Battle With Johnny Depp

Heard has largely remained out of the spotlight since the conclusion of her highly publicized defamation trial against Johnny Depp in 2022.

The former couple’s defamation trial took place in Virginia after Depp sued Heard over a 2018 Washington Post op-ed in which she described herself as a public figure representing domestic abuse. Although Heard did not name Depp in the article, he argued that the piece damaged his reputation and career.

Advertisement

The televised trial lasted six weeks and featured explosive testimony from both actors. Heard accused Depp of physically, emotionally, and sexually abusing her throughout their relationship. Among her claims were allegations that Depp struck her during arguments, threw objects, damaged property during heated confrontations, and assaulted her during a trip to Australia in 2015.

Depp denied the allegations and argued that he was never physically abusive toward Heard. His legal team instead claimed that he was the victim of abuse during the relationship, pointing to audio recordings, witness testimony, and incidents in which Depp alleged Heard became physically violent.

One of the most heavily discussed pieces of evidence during the trial was a 2016 video showing Depp slamming kitchen cabinets while appearing visibly upset. Jurors also heard audio recordings of arguments between the former spouses and testimony from friends, employees, medical professionals, and family members who offered differing accounts of the relationship.

Amber Heard Relocated To Spain Following Johnny Depp Trial

After the verdict, the actress spent time living in Mallorca before eventually settling permanently in Madrid, where she has focused on raising her children away from Hollywood.

In a 2023 TikTok video, Heard spoke with local reporters in Spanish and expressed her appreciation for her new home. She said she “loves living” in Spain and indicated that she planned to remain there long-term.

Advertisement

Since then, public appearances have been relatively rare, making her latest race-day update a notable glimpse into her life abroad.

Editor’s note: The below contains spoilers for The Vampire Lestat Episode 3 and mentions rape.

Well, The Vampire Lestat definitely dials up the pain this week. Writer Anusree Roy and director Claudia Llosa‘s show-stopping “Toronto” drags Lestat de Lioncourt’s (Sam Reid) and Louis de Pointe du Lac’s (Jacob Anderson) unhealed trauma to the surface in the devastating but magnificently artistic way Interview with the Vampire has perfected. If Louis’ grief-driven pursuit follows a linear path, then Lestat’s tendency to leap between timelines and distort past events (when he doesn’t skip them altogether) makes unearthing his history even more of a labyrinthine undertaking.

Episode 3 opens with Lestat and Gabriella (Jennifer Ehle) savoring their latest kill. Daniel Molloy (Eric Bogosian) calls Lestat and unleashes some one-sided yelling, since the subject of Daniel’s documentary happens to be very late for his official talking-head interview. As the de Lioncourts arrive at a makeshift studio space, Lestat’s voiceover muses over Daniel’s foundational experiences — a nurturing mother or lack thereof, his journalism career, Armand (Assad Zaman) turning him without his consent — and calls Daniel’s vampire life “brief” and “incidental.” He even harbors “regrets about Dan.” (Red herring or future heartbreak? My anxiety has skyrocketed.)

An Official Interview Opens Old Wounds in ‘The Vampire Lestat’ Episode 3

At last, Lestat sits down for the camera. He introduces himself by listing off everything that might or might not kill him (lines lifted straight from Anne Rice‘s The Vampire Lestat novel): fire, the sun, fellow vampires with a grudge, and, for cheeky kicks and giggles, the band Jefferson Starship. Daniel interrogates Lestat as ruthlessly as expected. For his opening salvo, he eviscerates the less-than-poetic lyrics of “Long Face” and the sexual innuendo pervading “Black Licorice.” Ever the thespian, Lestat insists that every lyric holds meaning. They’re reflections on his life, a commentary on society’s existential crisis, or an amplification of his “performative vampire” persona.

Daniel refuses to let go of the childhood stutter question. Lounging nearby, the composed, in-control Gabriella looks mildly unsettled. Lestat’s irritation and repressed vulnerability escalate the more unrelenting Daniel becomes; the Pulitzer Prize winner is on the hunt for the secret truth he smells. Do Lestat’s excessive displays of “pure expression” double as an elaborate funeral? The Brat Prince either pretends to break — teary-eyed, wailing about how “no one cares” that he’s poured his soul into 40 concerts, then mocking Daniel for believing his impromptu performance — or uses his trusty armor to conceal legitimate hurt.

Once he’s danced around the subject enough to exhaust an Olympic athlete, Lestat does discuss his stammer as well as his “wolfkiller” infamy. He can’t help but cover the confessions in self-effacing sarcasm, of course, blaming both situations for his damaged psyche. There’s also the horrifying time his nine-year-old self watched teenage girls be burnt to death for supposed witchcraft. As for the events of his twenty-ninth year, those transformative moments warrant multiple flashbacks. Lestat, using a different surname and sporting a cloak lined with wolf fur, escapes his abusive family’s controlling grasp long enough to visit Paris. The glory that captivates his Auvergne heart isn’t the city’s wonders, but a gifted violinist named Nicolas “Nicky” de Lenfent (Joseph Potter).

The two childhood acquaintances reconnect in a tavern. Although Lestat’s “first love” and the subject of last week’s ballad, “Why Do I Have to Feel?,” is following his passion for music, he’s penniless, unappreciated, and insecure about his abilities. The present-day Lestat skips over their love affair’s intimate details, although he doesn’t deny Daniel’s claim that he mourned Nicky by burying himself “in the ground for a century.” He does, however, correct his interviewer on one detail: he keeps a music box not as a loving memento, but as a self-loathing reminder about his culpability in Nicky’s demise.

Lestat Reaches His Breaking Point in ‘The Vampire Lestat’ Episode 3

Image via AMC+

What about Lestat’s demise? For that, Daniel turns to “Your Biggest Fan,” a song written from the perspective of Lestat’s maker, Magnus (Damien Atkins). Lestat refuses to call Magnus abusive, so the rock ballad’s first half unfolds with a bone-chilling cognitive dissonance. The series casts the most horrifying moment of Lestat’s life as a playful satire about obsessively adoring fans, right down to Magnus gazing at Lestat from afar and lip-syncing the lyrics music video-style. The moment Lestat’s memories veer too close to the truth — Magnus dragging the courageous wolf-killer from his bed by the throat, dumping him into a room filled with corpses that resemble Lestat, psychologically tormenting him for a month before feeding from his crumpled form — abrupt silence takes over.

Lestat jumps ahead to his and Nicky’s post-Magnus reunion. As much as Lestat savors Daniel’s flabbergasted reaction when he drops the bombshell that he turned his mother (who then followed her son to Paris), Lestat claims Gabriella didn’t survive past her “toddler” years. Suspicious, Daniel studies the woman who calls herself Sofia. He follows her telepathic suggestion and asks about the Great Conversion. Lestat turns up his nose at the idea of a vampire-dominated world. Instead, he circles back to Nicky. Lestat turns his first love at the other man’s distraught request, and against Gabriella’s warning. Nicky might have begged to spend eternity with his lover, but immortality means he’ll never escape his wounded sensitivity.

Nicky’s violin skills blossom. He joins the Théâtre des Vampires‘ orchestra, but Armand disdains his frequent outbursts: his mind scattered, his heart overwhelmed by perfectionist self-hatred. The tragedy reaches its terrible conclusion once Nicky cuts off his own hand. Even though Lestat tries to make Nicky’s death as kind and comfortable as possible, he can’t strike the final blow. Armand holds Nicky down in the fireplace until he disintegrates into “nothingness.”

Finally, the Lestat of the 21st century reaches his breaking point. A bloody tear falls; he barely staves off a panic attack. Off-camera, he acknowledges how poorly the tour has sold and the battering his ego’s taken. He drives away, leaving even Gabriella behind. Daniel reviews the footage, and his ecstasy about this long-awaited breakthrough curdles into rage. None of the crew heard a word about Nicky because Lestat had telepathically communicated with Daniel. He’d bared an agonized part of his soul, but no recorded proof exists — just minutes of Lestat sitting in awkward silence.

Louis and Lestat Find Some Calm Before the Storm in ‘The Vampire Lestat’ Episode 3

Image via AMC

As for Mr. de Pointe du Lac, there are zero tears in sight. He arrives at the Detroit coven’s lair and decapitates a vampire named Vester (Taylor Wint) in their front yard. Vester’s severed head expires before he can reveal Bruce’s (Damon Daunno) location. No matter — Louis strolls through the house and casually, effortlessly eliminates everyone who isn’t his target. Later that night, Bruce carries Baby Jenks (Ella Ballentine) over the threshold. The newlyweds find Louis waiting downstairs, smoking a cigarette and stripped down to a blood-stained white undershirt. He tears several bones out of Bruce’s spine to prevent his escape. Then, Louis reads aloud from Claudia’s (Bailey Bass) diary.

As Claudia’s graphic description of Bruce’s assault reaches his uncaring ears, the scene cuts back-and-forth between Louis’ revenge and Lestat hallucinating Magnus in his car. He can’t suppress the memory of his own abduction any longer; the torturous truth thunders free like water from a shattered dam. Lestat recites the same desperate, terrified prayer he did in the 18th century, when he was helpless against his merciless abuser. Deliverance never arrives for himself or his surrogate daughter. Claudia’s words describe her agonized despair from beyond the grave; Magnus pins Lestat to the floor and forces the screaming boy to consume his blood. Overwhelmed, the modern Lestat wrecks his car; Louis sets Claudia’s diary page and Bruce, by extension, on fire.

Louis visits that one specific diner to soak in the sight of Regina (Delainey Hayles), the waitress who resembles Claudia. And despite totaling his vehicle, Lestat still arrives at the concert venue. His music is reopening countless wounds, but confronting his muses might provide some cathartic healing. A vision of Nicky cheers him on from the audience while Magnus, and the real Gabriella, walk away. Elsewhere, Baby Jenks grieves Bruce, Daniel devours a victim in an alleyway, and Alex (Seamus Patterson) attends the same substance abuse recovery meeting as Arun — otherwise known as Armand.

Advertisement

Release Date

Advertisement

June 7, 2026

Network

AMC

Advertisement

Writers

Jonathan Ceniceroz, Ryan Kattner, Anusree Roy, Hannah Moscovitch, Kevin Hanna, Rolin Jones

Advertisement

Cast

Advertisement

• 

  Jacob Anderson

  Louis de Pointe du Lac

• 

Advertisement

Advertisement

Pros & Cons

• Episode 3’s experimental editing creates a haunting mood without sacrificing narrative coherency.
• Sam Reid’s performance might be his most vulnerable and remarkable yet, especially the car hallucination scene.
• Even with less screentime, Jacob Anderson delivers a nuanced tour de force.
• Having Delainey Hayles play Claudia’s doppleganger sends my curiosity about the rest of Louis’ arc through the roof.

Advertisement

By Chris Snellgrove
| Updated 5 seconds ago

You know the most insidious thing about Mad Men? The show goes to painstaking depths to portray all of the greed and cynicism at the heart of commercial advertising. Nonetheless, when Don Draper gives a big speech to clients, you still get caught in the honeyed trap of his words. As with propaganda, nobody is immune to marketing, and Jon Hamm’s relentless sloganeering takes on a magic life of its own. My personal favorite moment is when he’s pitching to Kodak and says that, “In Greek, nostalgia literally means the pain from an old wound. It’s a twinge in your heart far more powerful than memory alone.”

In our world of endless reboots, revivals, and retro Funko Pops, how could your own nostalgia be painful? Simple: when it reminds you of something you’ve lost. This was all I could think about when watching Animal House on Netflix. As an R-rated, snobs vs. slobs boner comedy, it’s quite literally the kind of movie that Hollywood doesn’t make anymore. That’s not the part that hurts, though. No, the real nostalgic sting comes from the fact that these types of students (the slobs and the snobs) don’t really exist anymore. We’ve sanded down education even as students sanded down their brains, creating campuses as devoid of passion as they are of original thought.

Embracing The Chaos

In retrospect, the beauty of Animal House is that it doesn’t really have a plot. Sure, we are nominally following the exploits of two college freshmen (Larry Kroger and Kent Dorfman) as they pledge to a raucous fraternity house. Really, though, the story is just an excuse to revel in frat bros behaving badly, whether that’s throwing toga parties, starting food fights, or even creeping on sorority sisters as they undress. Predictably, our frat heroes are railroaded by snooty students and an angry dean who wants the college to be prim and proper. Quite unpredictably, our protagonists crash a college parade, effectively reasserting that chaos will always reign over order.  

It’s a very unconventional story that represents a kind of thesis statement from director John Landis. Just as National Lampoon had taken the piss out of the college experience, Landis wanted to usher in a new kind of movie: the raunchy, college-centric comedy. It worked fabulously, with Animal House serving as a creative touchstone for literally decades of “boys behaving badly” films. While the film is as funny as it ever was, it can be a little painful to watch because this world no longer exists. The primary reason for this is that modern college students lack the joie de vivre of this film’s heroes and its villains.

A New Kind Of Student

When people talk about Animal House reflecting a forgotten time, they are usually talking about its portrayal of college as a place of endless partying and debauchery. The success of the movie initially led to a revival of fraternity life, with real-life students trying to emulate the raunchy antics they had seen onscreen, complete with binge-drinking and hazing. In turn, university administrators spent countless years tightening their own rules and doing their best to kill campus party culture before it could take hold. While all of that is a factor, the real reason that Animal House is a product of the past is that modern students’ view of college has completely changed for the worse.

Animal House was made back when college was considered a time of personal growth. Not just through the traditional liberal arts education (which is the reason you learn at least a little about so much outside your major), but through the experience itself. In its own demented way, that is something the movie is celebrating: that even when our audience surrogate characters are struggling academically, they are forming friendships, finding love, and generally becoming fully-formed young men. Crashing the parade is the most extreme example of this: these two went from weak-willed yes men to dudes ready and willing to defy authority in the loudest and most hilarious way.

Giving In To Temptation

Unfortunately, modern students see college as nothing more than a jumped-up trade school. They aren’t here to broaden their horizons; they’re here to get a piece of paper required for whatever job they want. It’s education by algorithm, really: they are chasing the careers likeliest to pay well by getting the degrees likeliest to land those careers. Along the way, most will just lean on AI to jump through all those pesky educational hoops. Making friends and joining organizations in meat space mean nothing to the modern generation of students. When they aren’t asking ChatGPT to invent a few more fake citations, these students are just trading brainrot memes on their favorite Discord servers.

Obviously, these students are a product of their environment. The pandemic made them embrace the internet as their only social outlet, and the easy availability of generative AI made them intellectually lazy. Meanwhile, poor job forecasts made the whole prospect of a college education feel like a gamble. Why spend four years mastering skills in an industry that will be dead in five years? Accordingly, these students are trapped in a kind of half-life, with one foot in the internet and the other in the increasingly uncertain real world. Is it any wonder, then, that they don’t have any real passion for classroom lectures, campus parties, or even partying?

The Party’s Over 

All of this is why I get a bit sad watching Animal House. Most modern students will never have the kinds of friendships portrayed in this movie, and they most certainly won’t have the same R-rated campus shenanigans of the titular “animal house” fraternity. They won’t even have the same experience as the uptight snobs trying to shut the party frat down. All of that would require a genuine passion and intellectual curiosity that is completely absent from a generation raised by iPads and planning marriages to their AI girlfriends. It’s no longer slobs vs. snobs, it’s just screens vs. everybody else. And trust me, the screens are winning.

So, if the nostalgia is a little too painful, you might want to sit this one out. Otherwise, you can currently stream Animal House on Netflix. The antics of performers like John Belushi are just as funny as you remember, and there’s something joyful about returning to the age of the flamboyant R-rated college comedy. Plus, the film is filled with lines you’re likely to be quoting for the next week. Just don’t try any of those jokes on the Zoomers in your life; they won’t laugh, but they will make you an endless punchline over in the group chat!

Milly Alcock has sparked debate after offering an uncertain response when asked about the sexuality of her “Supergirl” character, suggesting Kara Zor-El may operate outside traditional romantic labels.

The actress’s comments divided fans online, while also adding to wider discussion around her casting in the upcoming DC Studios film.

Directed by Craig Gillespie and co-starring Jason Momoa and David Corenswet, the Milly Alcock-led project has already generated mixed reactions ahead of release.

Alcock recently raised eyebrows after giving a candid and somewhat uncertain response when asked whether her “Supergirl” character is queer.

The Australian actress, who plays Kara Zor-El in the upcoming DC Studios film, was questioned during promo interviews about the character’s sexuality.

She noted that the story does not center on a male romance or traditional love arc, adding that she herself wasn’t sure how to define it.

“I don’t know,” she said repeatedly, before suggesting the character “probably goes both ways.”

Alcock went on to explain that “Supergirl” exists outside conventional expectations of femininity or relationships, which she believes is part of what makes the role appealing to some LGBTQ+ fans.

In another interview, she echoed that interpretation, saying she personally viewed the character as someone who would “do what she wants” in that regard.

Her comments quickly sparked debate online. Some fans criticized her wording and questioned the framing of the character, while others defended her response as open-ended and appropriate given the film’s focus.

“Kara is straight, she’s in love with Jimmy Olsen in every iteration lol,” a fan of the comic book character noted.

However, another person argued, “DC doesn’t really lean into it like other characters, but I think it’s been implied a few times in the comics that she’s bisexual.”

One critic stated, “Pathetic what films are nowadays, back in the day, characters’ [sexuality] was not even talked about or mentioned.”

Defending the actress’s comments, a fan wrote, “Why are we talking about sexuality when the movie is about loss and trauma and finding a place to call home? The interviewer is actually so weird for asking that.”

A separate group of commenters said they were unconcerned with the character’s sexuality altogether.

Alcock’s remarks come amid fears over the movie’s box office performance after its release due to weak tracking data.

Former ‘Superman’ Actor Took Aim At The ‘Supergirl’ Star With A Viral Meme As Casting Controversy Continues

Alcock’s remarks also come amid wider online debate surrounding her casting as “Supergirl” in the upcoming DC Studios reboot.

The film, directed by Craig Gillespie, features Jason Momoa alongside Alcock, with David Corenswet set to appear as Superman. The supporting cast includes Eve Ridley, Emily Beecham, and Matthias Schoenaerts.

Tension also briefly escalated after former “Lois & Clark” Superman actor Dean Cain drew backlash online for reacting to a meme that compared Alcock’s appearance to Cha-Ka, a character from the 1970s series “Land of the Lost.”

The post, which included a laughing reaction, quickly circulated on social media and prompted criticism from fans, some of whom accused Cain of undermining his legacy.

“What a fantastic way to kill your legacy. And what a glorious way to lose the respect of millions of kids that looked up to you three decades ago. What a disgrace,” one fan wrote.

Cain later clarified that he never directly called Alcock ugly, though he largely brushed off the controversy.

Milly Alcock Shrugs Off Online Criticism While Admitting Fear Over Global Fame

Alcock has also addressed criticism surrounding her casting, saying she is largely unbothered by negative comments online, particularly those coming from anonymous or troll accounts.

She noted that many critics appear to be “burner accounts, or someone’s name and then ‘Dad of four, Christian,” and said she does not place much weight on that kind of feedback.

Alcock added that she is comfortable with the reaction if it means “p-ssing the right kind of people off.”

Separately, the actress has spoken about the pressure that comes with fame ahead of her superhero debut.

Advertisement

In an interview with SFX Magazine, Alcock admitted she feels overwhelmed by the prospect of increased public attention, saying she is not ready to be “idolized” on a global scale.

She described the idea as intimidating, explaining, “I think it’s because I know all of me. You guys only know a certain part, and that’s a frightening thing, to be met with that.”

Early Reactions To ‘Supergirl’ Praise Milly Alcock and Jason Momoa But Call Film A ‘Mixed Bag’

Meanwhile, early reactions to “Supergirl” have begun circulating online ahead of its June 26 theatrical release, with critics offering mixed but largely enthusiastic impressions of the DC Studios film.

Chris Killian of ComicBook.com described the film as a blend of “Guardians of the Galaxy,” “True Grit,” and “Mad Max,” calling it a “grimy, funny, yet surprisingly somber space adventure.”

He praised Alcock’s performance, particularly during moments tied to the character’s tragic backstory, and said Momoa appears to be “having the fraggin’ time of his life” as Lobo.

Advertisement

Killian also highlighted the film’s practical effects and described Corenswet’s Superman as “peak casting,” noting that his scenes bring a strong sense of charm.

Film critic Tessa Smith described the movie as somewhat uneven, calling it a “mixed bag.” While she praised both Momoa and Alcock for their standout performances, she noted that certain adaptation choices and a less compelling villain prevented the film from reaching its full potential, summarising it as “just fine.”

Erik Davis offered a more upbeat comparison, likening “Supergirl” to a mix of the “underdog rock’ n’ roll energy” of “Guardians of the Galaxy” and the harsher, grittier tone of “Mad Max.”

Advertisement

Editor’s note: The below interview contains spoilers for The Vampire Lestat Episode 3.

AMC’s Interview with the Vampire set a distinct tone when it premiered back in 2022, but with the show’s official transformation (and retitling) into The Vampire Lestat, there’s also the sense that a completely different perspective has taken over the story. Lestat de Lioncourt’s (Sam Reid) decision to finally sit down with journalist and newly-made vampire Daniel Molloy (Eric Bogosian) for his own on-camera interview starts more straightforwardly than you’d expect, with Daniel attempting to wring out the truth through a series of increasingly provocative questions and Lestat deftly evading honesty at every turn.

Yet the real story, as we’ve seen, always lies somewhere between public performance and what goes completely unspoken. When it comes to the tragic culmination of Lestat’s relationship with his first love, musician Nicolas “Nicki” de Lenfent (Joseph Potter), as well as his own traumatic turning by the vampire Magnus (Damien Atkins), “Toronto” is as close to an instance of soul-baring as viewers have ever earned before — even if, as Potter reflected on in our interview ahead of the episode’s premiere, it’s delivered through a “lens of deceit.” Below, Potter and Atkins discuss Episode 3’s emotional Nicki and Magnus flashbacks, how manipulation and betrayal shape their characters’ narratives in the series, the experience of playing ghosts who literally haunt Lestat’s story, and more.

COLLIDER: Joseph, Nicki is one of the few characters who actually knows Lestat before he’s turned into a vampire. How did that unique foundational knowledge impact your and Sam [Reid]’s approach to their relationship?

JOSEPH POTTER: It’s interesting because, obviously, we meet them when they’re in Paris for the first time. There’s a level of, like, “Oh, how much did they know about each other in Auvergne?” It was such a privilege to have that little meet-cute in that scene. I think when Nicki and Lestat first meet each other, they’re very down on their luck. They are poor. They’re both these tragic souls, which, for Nicki, really unites them, which makes the difference when they get to Paris, and Lestat starts flying high. That makes the change just that much more devastating. So, that kind of shift was really fun to toy with.

‘The Vampire Lestat’s Damien Atkins Reveals Magnus’ True Motivation for Turning Lestat

“He was an alchemist. He’s looking for gold.”

Image via AMC

Advertisement

Damien, we’ve known very little about Magnus until this season apart from what Lestat has divulged, per Louis’ recollection. “Your Biggest Fan” paints him as this twisted fanboy, but from your perspective, what do you think really drew Magnus to Lestat and drove him to want to turn Lestat into a vampire?

DAMIEN ATKINS: Oh, my book is upstairs, because I was just looking at it yesterday. I mean, he says, “brave little wolfkiller.” What we see in the book is that he has killed dozens or hundreds of blonde men. It’s a really strange Aryan something, like he’s looking for the perfect heir, and then he finds one that has spunk and bravery. You know what I mean? He’s looking for the perfect son. It’s twisted.

Magnus does know [Lestat] before he’s turned, as well, but from a distance, so it’s probably distorted, not real knowledge of him. But he does see that Lestat has got an effect on people. I will say, when you think about the arc of the universe of it, I think Magnus is looking for the chosen one. He’s looking for the guy to lead the revolution. Somebody who has something very special, which has to do with bravery and charisma, I think, as well as beauty — which, all of that is nasty and gross, but I do think that’s where he’s coming from. He was an alchemist. He’s looking for gold.

Joseph, it feels like Nicki’s decline in this episode, mentally and emotionally, doesn’t happen overnight. Do you feel that there was any major tipping point for him, or was it really a series of lies, omissions, things that Lestat was clearly telling him before doing the exact opposite?

POTTER: In Lestat’s recounting of events, we track it from Season 2, Episode 3, when Nicki’s turning happens with the coven and Armand. Then we get to the moment where he snaps. In our episode, when I say “a month ago,” we’re tracking back from there. Like you said, it’s this gradual building of deceit. You never know what’s real and what’s not in this show sometimes — memory’s a monster. But I feel like we see the gaslighting happen, and we’re watching that, and so Lestat is kind of honest in how he’s betrayed Nicki in that way, which is why he still carries that music box with him.

Yeah, it’s a consistent repetition of lies, is how we’ve got to where we’ve got to, but the way in which we see it, it feels like it happens quick, and that he dives into mania quite quickly. I love Nicki, and I think he was hard done by at times. [Laughs]

Damien, I was so compelled by how this episode frames Magnus, and there are two very different lenses through which we see him. The first time he shows up, it’s the music video, the version that Lestat is publicly telling in “Your Biggest Fan,” but then later on, there’s a very different version of events, set against the voiceover of Louis reading from Claudia’s diary. Which version did you film first, and did one sequence unexpectedly inform the other?

ATKINS: Oh, that’s such a good question. We did the music video stuff late. So, on some level, it was very considerate, a sort of organic process of trying to start with the… It’s not really a small reality, it’s quite already a pungent reality, but a kind of vulnerability, which I think is what you’re referring to. Certainly, that was my experience, of love. You’ve got to go inside, without judging [Magnus], to this sort of tremulous love, and then let it kind of explode through. There’s violence, and there’s all that stuff, too, and we did the music video quite late, so it felt like a natural blooming, a ridiculous blooming of what had been quite a small, tender thing.

Honestly, this is one of those questions where my perspective will be entirely different from everyone else’s, because for me, it’s all of a piece. That was an awful night, shooting that scene. You have to keep grounding yourself in, “I think I’m doing the right thing. I think I’m doing the loving thing,” and letting the show and letting Sam make it into what is the real story for people who are watching, and what is Lestat’s story. For me, I’ve got to insulate myself from all of that, so I did. The car, that scene, the music video, it was all a kind of expression of love — twisted love, but you know.

‘The Vampire Lestat’s Joseph Potter on Whether Lestat Is Being Honest About Nicki’s Death

“It’s telling that we get the truth through this lens of deceit.”

Image via AMC

Advertisement

Before, Joseph, you brought up the “memory is a monster” tagline, and that was something I wanted to mention pertaining to Lestat’s very emotional confession to Daniel about Nicki’s death — followed by the twist that it’s a telepathic prank, and Daniel’s the only one who’s made privy to that story. How honest do you think Lestat is being about what really happened?

POTTER: This is a question for Sam, this is a question for Rolin [Jones], this is a question for Hannah [Moscovitch]. [Laughs] It is interesting, because when I read it, and upon watching it, the recounting of how Nicki dies, of Armand holding him down in the fire, it’s so open. It feels so profoundly there and present. Then, when you hear that it’s a trick, you just feel like the rug has been pulled out from under you. That kind of juxtaposition is exactly what Lestat is all about, for me.

I think it’s telling that it does happen. I think there’s a level of vulnerability within Lestat that hasn’t quite fully dealt with, regarding his place or position in Nicki’s betrayal or descent. So, it’s telling that we get the truth through this lens of deceit. And who knows? Maybe one day we’ll get the whole truth. Maybe he chopped off his own hand. I have no idea.

What do you both remember most about the experience of getting to literally haunt the narrative, especially at the end of this episode when we see the two of you in the crowd, among all of those screaming fans, during the “Loneliness” sequence?

ATKINS: It’s so fun. It’s so tricky to talk about because it made me feel powerful. It made me feel important. So gross, right? So gross. But shooting that concert scene, everybody’s sort of rocking out around me, and I’m standing there very still, feeling fatherly. [Laughs] It’s so gross. It was wild. It was great.

POTTER: On the other side of that, that scene was the first time that I’d seen Sam in the band, so I’ve got two things running through my head: “Haunt the narrative, haunt the narrative,” and also, “Holy shit, that’s so good!” [Laughs] But it’s interesting being the muse or a ghost, and I was trying to ask Rolin wherever I could, because without spoiling anything going on, there are a couple more moments where things pop up, and Muse Nicki or Ghost Nicki is different to who he actually is. It’s that kind of provocateur, and a way of guiding Lestat’s dealing with his trauma. It’s a different beast altogether.

New episodes of The Vampire Lestat premiere Sundays on AMC.