It looks like it’s going to be a summer to remember for Prince Harry. In July, the former working royal will travel across the pond to mark the one-year countdown to the 2027 Invictus Games with his wife, Meghan Markle, and their two children, Prince Archie, 7, and Princess Lilibet, 5, in tow. Harry has returned to England a number of times since he moved to the U.S. in 2020, but it will be the first time back for Meghan and the kids since 2022.

Despite their estrangement, King Charles III has invited the family of four to stay at a royal residence during their visit. “He’s made it clear their comfort and security is a priority,” says a source. “Everyone’s buzzing with excitement, saying this might be the first step in mending the relationship at large.”

The olive branch certainly seems like a good sign, but there’s no question the royal family at large remains fractured. And the widest rifts are between Harry and his older brother, Prince William, and Charles and his younger brother Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor (formerly Prince Andrew). William, 44, is angry at Harry, 41, for airing the royal family’s dirty laundry in his 2023 memoir, Spare, and in TV interviews, while Charles, 77, stripped Andrew, 66, of his titles and royal status last fall over his ties to late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

For Charles and William — who’s set to succeed his father to the throne — their loyalty to the crown only complicates matters. “This is a family for whom, for many years, duties come first, and I think that it’s a very difficult balance, because there are human beings involved and at the end of the day, siblings involved,” says royal expert Emily Nash. “You don’t want to turn your back on them completely, but at the same time, you have to protect the institution.”

The once-close brothers are currently not in contact. “There’s no direct communication, no texts, no calls, no emails, nothing,” says the source. While they share a history (“there are only two people alive who know what their childhood was like,” the source explains) and grief over their late mom, Princess Diana, as well as concerns over their father’s health (Charles revealed his cancer diagnosis in 2024), there’s “no movement” toward a reconciliation. “Harry is not Andrew, and he never will be, but William isn’t ready [to make up].”

William hasn’t forgiven Harry for speaking out against The Firm in Spare, the 2022 Netflix docuseries, Harry & Meghan, and in his bombshell 2021 TV interview with Meghan. “[That] created a public, permanent record,” explains the source. “The fly in the ointment has always been William’s ongoing beef with his brother over the Sussexes’ notorious [TV] interview, and the broadsides Harry delivered to the royal family in his memoir,” notes Christopher Andersen, author of Kate!: The Courage, Grace, and Power of the Woman Who Will Be Queen.

Harry, meanwhile, has his own trust issues. A second source tells Us Weekly he worries about “stories being planted in the UK press that are anti-Meghan and Harry and pro-Charles and William.” The father of two previously accused Princess Kate and William’s press office of leaking negative stories about him and Meghan to British news outlets to sway public opinion. “That concern is not something that will go away,” the second source says.

The first source believes the brothers still carry sadness over their falling out. “Harry misses William more than he misses ‘the institution.’ He misses having someone who doesn’t need anything explained,” shares the source, adding they believe William feels the same way, even if he doesn’t say it directly. “William’s desire [to see Harry] exists at a level he hasn’t given himself permission to act on yet.” Adds Nash: “I think there’s almost certainly sadness on both sides, but this is the situation they’re in, and they have to make the best of it.”

According to Andersen, the siblings are unlikely to meet up when Harry’s in town. “Is there a sliver of hope? Yes,” Andersen says, adding that it’s more probable that “the Waleses and the Sussexes will assiduously avoid each other.” Nash echoes that there are “no plans” for Harry and William to cross paths. “There’s no communication there at present. It’s very sad for all involved, but they’re both very busy getting on with their lives, and I think Harry does have a bit more of a relationship with his father, so perhaps he will focus his efforts there for now.”

Kate and Meghan are following their husbands’ leads. “They are waiting for William and Harry to decide what’s going to happen,” says the first source, adding, “Kate would love her children to have a relationship with their cousins, and she is interested in seeing the kids as well. But she will respect William’s decision.”

There’s talk that William and Harry will mend fences — eventually. “They will patch things up in the future,” the first source says. (As for connecting over the 29th anniversary of their mom’s tragic death in August, the source says they grieve “separately.”) In a June 22 interview with The Times, William and Harry’s former private secretary Jamie Lowther-Pinkerton weighed in on a possible thaw between the future king and his younger brother, saying, “I was and am very fond of [Harry]. He has huge redeeming features, and I’m a perennial optimist.”

Related: Prince Harry’s Ups and Downs With the Royal Family Over the Years

Prince Harry‘s relationship with his relatives is complex and complicated. Harry is the youngest son of King Charles III and the late Princess Diana. As children, he and his older brother, Prince William, seemed inseparable, but as they got older, cracks began to form in their relationship. “There’s always been a part of Harry that […]

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Charles is stuck in the middle of his sons. “He’s felt as if he were caught in the crossfire,” says Andersen. “But if he had to pick a side, he sympathizes [more] with William.” Nash says Charles and Kate’s cancer battles have bonded them. (Kate revealed she was in remission in early 2025.) “That’s brought Charles and William together,” she says.

Harry hopes to see his dad during his trip. The father and son last met in September 2025, spending roughly an hour together at Charles’ Clarence House residence. While the first source tells Us Charles is handling security matters for the visit, Andersen insists the subject remains a touchy one. Harry lost his initial court case to have taxpayer-funded security while he’s in the UK with Meghan and his children in May 2025; at the time, he said he couldn’t “see a world in which I would bring my wife and children back to the UK” without protection. However, in January 2026, the Mail on Sunday reported that Harry and his family would be allowed government-funded security during trips to his home country after a new risk assessment from the Executive Committee for the Protection of Royalty and Public Figures (RAVEC).

“Even if they iron out all the details, there’s no guarantee the king will set aside more than a few minutes to meet Harry and his family,” Andersen says. They are “trying to align everyone’s schedules,” says the first source, adding, “the king wants to spend time with Archie and Lilibet. They are seeing if they can have a couple of shared meals together and some casual family time.”

William understands his father’s desire to maintain a relationship with Harry and his grandchildren. “He would not stand in the way of that,” notes the source. “There are mixed emotions about him seeing Harry given their history, but William’s feelings about Harry and his father’s happiness are two separate matters, so he won’t get involved.” However, Andersen believes that without William “signing off on a full-blown reconciliation, Charles will probably just be going through the motions — if he sees Harry at all.”

Charles and his younger brother — who was arrested in February on suspicion of misconduct while in public office — haven’t been in contact in months. (Andrew was released from jail hours after being questioned.) “Charles called Andrew [when he stripped him of his titles] and [let him know he] had no choice. They haven’t spoken since,” says the first source, adding, “they have no relationship.” Nash agrees, telling Us the brothers’ relationship is likely “incredibly strained.”

Related: Where Harry and Meghan Stand With Each Member of the Royal Family

Following their shocking step away from their senior royal duties in March 2020, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have distanced themselves from their relatives across the pond. Nearly one year after their initial step away, Buckingham Palace confirmed in February 2021 that Harry and the Suits alum were not going to return as working royals. […]

Like William and Harry, the siblings were also once tight. “Andrew could make Charles laugh,” the first source says. “Andrew was the loud, crazy one, where Charles was measured and refined.” Charles found Andrew’s scandalous behavior increasingly exhausting. (Andrew was previously accused of sexually assaulting a then-17-year-old woman named Virginia Giuffre; they settled for an undisclosed amount of money in 2022. She died by suicide in 2025.) “Charles doesn’t agree with Andrew’s choices and is devastated by the scandal,” says the source. “It felt like a death.”

Charles feels Andrew posed a serious threat to the monarchy. “I don’t think anyone believed the king would act so decisively, but it’s to his credit that he did,” says Andersen, adding, “Andrew’s downfall was inevitable. To say he felt entitled to do whatever he pleased would be a gross understatement.” Adds Nash: “Charles has come out in support of victims, and that sends a powerful message. He would like for Andrew’s scandal to not be a stain on his reign.”

Nash tells Us that Charles and William are “in lockstep” about the decisions regarding Andrew’s removal from royal life. “They are in full agreement about this,” she says. “I think there have been times in the past where perhaps one or the other didn’t quite see the same things, but they’re both resolute about this. They’ve taken the steps they needed to take.”

Andrew — who was booted by Charles from his longtime home at Royal Lodge and is now living at Marsh Farm on Charles’ Sandringham Estate — is keeping his distance. “He stopped answering most calls,” says the first source. “He takes a lot of walks and asked someone to send him his model soldiers from storage, so he’s been [keeping busy with] hobbies.”

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The royals are clearly far from exempt from family drama. “They may be royals, but they’re still a family, and the dynamics are the same whether you’re a king or a coal miner,” says Andersen, pointing out that even Queen Elizabeth and her sister, Princess Margaret, famously had their differences. The author also notes that The Firm is made up of several camps that have long competed for attention and money to fund their various causes. “Inevitably, their egos get tied up in all of this,” he explains. “Charles used to hate being overshadowed by Diana, and Harry and Meghan decided they couldn’t live out their days playing second fiddle to William and Kate.”

Now, Charles has the most at stake. He’s caught between his fractured relationship with Andrew, his strained bond with Harry and the ongoing feud between his two sons. “He wants to be seen as a strong monarch,” says Andersen. “He really has to be the glue that holds everything together.”

For more on the royal family rift, watch the exclusive video above and pick up the latest issue of Us Weekly — on newsstands now.

Sony’s June 2026 State of Play showcase was packed with new game reveals, first looks, release dates, and franchise returns. From Marvel’s Wolverine and God of War: Laufey to horror titles like Silent Hill: Townfall and Until Dawn 2, PlayStation delivered one of its biggest presentations in recent memory.

Below are some of the biggest announcements from the event.

Marvel’s Wolverine Gets A Brutal New Look

Insomniac Games finally unveiled an extended look at Marvel’s Wolverine, showcasing Logan’s savage combat style, Team X connections, and several major character reveals. The highly anticipated PlayStation exclusive is currently scheduled to launch on September 15, 2026.

God Of War: Laufey Officially Revealed

Santa Monica Studio surprised fans with the reveal of God of War: Laufey. Instead of following Kratos, the next chapter puts players in control of Faye as she battles through a dangerous realm filled with magic and mythical threats.

Silent Hill: Townfall Finally Gets A Release Date

Konami’s Silent Hill: Townfall received a brand-new trailer and an official release date of September 24. The latest footage introduced new characters and terrifying creatures lurking within the Otherworld.

Until Dawn 2 Continues The Horror Franchise

Horror fans also got a fresh look at Until Dawn 2, the sequel to the fan-favorite interactive survival horror game. While details remain limited, the new footage suggests another terrifying experience built around player choices and deadly consequences.

Onimusha: Way Of The Sword Arrives This September

Capcom showcased a new story trailer for Onimusha: Way of the Sword and confirmed a September 25 release date. Players can also jump into a playable demo available now.

Tomb Raider Returns In Legacy Of Atlantis

Lara Croft is back. Tomb Raider: Legacy of Atlantis was officially announced and is currently targeting a 2027 release window. The reveal trailer teased a globe-spanning adventure packed with ancient mysteries and dangerous exploration.

New Horror Game ILL Looks Absolutely Terrifying

One of the showcase’s biggest surprises was ILL, a first-person horror title featuring grotesque monsters, realistic physics, and an intense dismemberment system. The game immediately became one of the most talked-about reveals from the presentation.

Rayman Makes A Comeback

Ubisoft announced Rayman Legends Retold, a reimagining of the beloved platforming franchise that introduces new content, updated visuals, and expanded multiplayer features.

Final Thoughts

Sony’s June 2026 showcase featured a strong mix of blockbuster exclusives, beloved franchise revivals, and brand-new experiences. With Marvel’s Wolverine, God of War: Laufey, Silent Hill: Townfall, and several surprise announcements leading the charge, PlayStation fans have plenty to look forward to over the next year and beyond.

By Brian Myers
| Published 1 hour ago

The 1988 film Heathers not only helped launch the careers of three of its stars but also captured the cynicism and black humor that grew to become two of the defining characteristics of Generation X. The film’s dark subject matter is remarkably lightened with Daniel Waters’ script and director Michael Lehmann’s touches, who both worked to produce a movie that was the polar opposite of the more optimistic teen films of the John Landis/John Hughes era.

Mean Girls Before Mean Girls

Heathers follows high school student Veronica Sawyer (Winona Ryder) who inadvertently falls into the popular girl clique at Westerburg High School. The three girls she runs with are snarky, cruel, and from wealthy families, and seem to revel in making life harder for anyone they believe is beneath their station in life. Heather Chandler (Kim Walker), Heather McNamara (Lisanne Falk), and Heather Duke (Shannen Doherty) are collectively known as “The Heathers,” and serve as a group that Veronica strives to separate from.

Enter a new guy J.D. (Christian Slater), who becomes the object of Veronica’s affection. His zany behavior includes firing a gun (loaded with blanks) at bully football players, and a fascination with explosives. He and Veronica quickly bond and concoct a plan for revenge on Heather Chandler after the snobby girl has a falling out with Veronica at a party.

In true black comedy fashion, Heathers has the worst-case scenario come to life multiple times throughout its 103-minute run. J.D. and Veronica end up killing Heather Chandler, setting off a course of events that lead to insane murder plots that culminate into an explosive ending.

Heathers follows the darkest of plotlines but successfully pulls off becoming a comedy with its quirky one-liners and outrageous plot twists. The film itself is the penultimate definition of irony captured on celluloid, as each action taken by J.D. and Veronica have the most unintended consequences imaginable. Though entirely unbelievable, the writing and the characters are able to make the environment and the vibe of the film familiar and leave you wanting a bit more.

Ryder and Slater Knew The Assignment

Heathers gives a great look at Winona Ryder’s jump from little Lydia Deetz (Beetlejuice) into teen comedy and drama roles that would be her mainstay in the years before her co-starring role on Stranger Things. The movie certainly made her a commodity in Hollywood and elevated her to elite status among Gen X audiences.

The same could be said for Christian Slater, who’s J.D. made it possible for the actor to be cast in offbeat comedy films Kuffs and Pump Up the Volume. He and Ryder play off one another without missing a beat and are truly one of the film’s components that shine the brightest.

Heathers proved to be well ahead of its time, but the cult status it quickly earned made filmmakers pay attention to a new subset within teen audiences who wanted so much more out of films than love stories and happy endings. Its legacy is far reaching, as Slackers, Reality Bites, and Jawbreaker would likely not have been made if not for the example set by this underappreciated 1988 film. Heathers gets 4.0/5.0-stars for its acting, hilarious screenwriting, and the overall vibe that Lehmann was able to capture with the project. 

As of this writing, you can stream Heathers for free through Tubi, YouTube, Pluto TV, and Amazon Prime Video.

Peacock is having a quiet month in July compared to other streamers like Netflix and HBO Max, but that doesn’t mean it’s not offering must-see content.

Watch With Us has been a huge fan of Jennifer Garner since Time of Your Life (remember that Party of Five spinoff?), and we’re pumped for her newest streaming series, The Five-Star Weekend, which also stars Chloe Sevigny, Regina Hall and Gemma Chan.

The NBC-owned streamer will host the streaming debut of Reminders of Him, the latest Colleen Hoover adaptation, and season 20 of The Real Housewives of Orange County.

July 1

27 Dresses
The Abyss
The Adjustment Bureau
Alita: Battle Angel
Bad Moms
Big
Blink Twice
Blue Crush
Born on the Fourth of July
Braveheart
Bridesmaids
Challengers*
Clear and Present Danger
Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs
Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs 2
Crisis
The Dictator
A Dog’s Journey
A Dog’s Purpose
Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax
Fast Five
Fast & Furious 6
Focus
Ford v Ferrari
Forrest Gump
Furious 7
Fury*
Hall Pass
Heist
Hellboy
Hellboy II: The Golden Army
Holes
The House Bunny
The Hunt for Red October
I, Robot
The Idea of You
Jaws*
Jaws 2*
Jaws 3-D*
Jaws: The Revenge*
Journey to the Center of the Earth
Journey 2: The Mysterious Island
Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle*
Just Go with It
Kick-Ass
Knives Out*
Lone Survivor
Mamma Mia!
Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again!
Man on Fire
The Mask
Men in Black*
Men in Black II*
Men in Black 3*
Men in Black: International*
Mission: Impossible
Monsters vs. Aliens
Nobody*
Ocean’s Eleven
Ocean’s Twelve
Ocean’s Thirteen
The Patriot*
The Prestige
Pretty Woman
Profile*
The Punisher
Red
Red 2
Rio
Robocop
Role Models
Seven
The Shallows
Shark Tale
The Spy Who Dumped Me
Straight Outta Compton
The Sum of All Fears
Tammy
Titanic
Tropic Thunder
Twister
Van Helsing
War of the Worlds
We Were Soldiers
Wet Hot American Summer
Who Framed Roger Rabbit

July 2

Black Bag*
Brilliant Minds, Season 2 – Finale (NBC)

July 4

Macy’s 4th of July Fireworks Spectacular 2026 (NBC Simulcast)

July 6

On Patrol: First Shift, Season 4 – Finale (Reelz)
On Patrol: Live, Season 4 – Finale (Reelz)

July 9

The Five Star Weekend – Premiere, All Episodes, 8 Episodes, 60 Min (Peacock Original)*
The Five Star Weekend Podcast – Premiere, 2 episodes (Peacock Original, Batch Drops 2-2-2-2)
Love Hurts*

July 10

Reminders of Him – Premiere (Peacock Exclusive)*
The Real Housewives of Orange County, Season 20 (Bravo)

July 11

On Patrol: First Shift, Season 5 – Premiere (Reelz)
On Patrol: Live, Season 5 (Reelz)

July 12

Love Island USA, Season 8 – Finale (Peacock Original)*
Married at First Sight, Season 20 – Premiere, One Episode, 60 min (Peacock Original)*

July 15

In the City, Season 1 – Finale (Bravo)

July 19

The Real Murders of Atlanta, Season 4A – Premiere (Oxygen)
Killer Couples, Season 18B – Finale (Oxygen)

July 22

In the City, Season 1 – WWHL Reunion (Bravo)

July 23

Team Mekbots: Animal Rescue, Season 2C – Premiere (Peacock Original)*
The Valley After Show Podcast, Season 2 – Finale (Bravo Digital)

July 25

Jeopardy!, Season 42 – Finale (Syndicated)

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July 29

In the City, Season 1 – WWHL Reunion (Bravo)

July 30

Dog Man*
The Valley, Season 3 – Finale (Bravo)

July 31

Surviving Earth, Season 1 – Finale (NBC)

By Jonathan Klotz
| Published 6 seconds ago

Before the rise of dedicated networks for cartoons, the Saturday morning and after-school animation blocks were the day’s highlight for most kids. We got to enjoy such classics as Denver the Last Dinosaur, Cowboys of Moo Mesa, Dinosaucers, Bravestar, and not one but two Sonic the Hedgehog cartoons. As fun as those shows were, story and character development weren’t their selling point, which is what Exosquad was created to change about American animation.

Airing from 1993 through 1994, for 52 episodes, Exosquad was the response of Jeff Segal, the head writer from Challenge of the Go-Bots, to match the quality output of Japanese anime. Typically, American cartoons were structured more like sitcoms than dramas, and the status quo would always be reset by the end of the 22-minute episode. Taking heavy inspiration from Mobile Suit Gundam, the original storyboard designs for the series even refer to it as “American Anime.”

In The Grim Darkness Of The Far Future

Exosquad is set in the future after humanity has colonized and terraformed Venus and Mars, where the Neosapiens, a bio-engineered slave race used by humanity for menial labor, have launched an uprising. Taking control of the planets, the Exosuit pilots that form Able Squad and their allies form the core of humanity’s fight against the Neosapiens.

Unusual for an American cartoon of the time, Exosquad treats the war completely seriously, with characters dying and multiple episodes of fighting followed by more episodes of clean-up and what to do as an occupying force.

While the long-form storytelling was something unique and groundbreaking, what wasn’t new and different was that each member of Able Squad had a different exoframe that they would pilot. From the winged blue frame used by squad leader J.T. Marsh, to the green reconnaissance frame of Alec DeLeon, and the extra-large two-pilot vehicle design of Diana and Thrax’s frame, it’s clear that while Exosqaud broke storytelling ground, it was still designed to sell toys.

When Afternoon Cartoons Go Dark

The colorful designs of the exoframes covered the dark nature of the story, with Episode 22, “Fire Ship,” remaining a standout that has stuck with me for decades. After being betrayed, Able Squad is captured and held on board a captured ship rigged with explosives as a booby trap for the Terran leadership. I was 10, and here was an episode with the heroes contemplating mortality and debating a plan to explode the ship prematurely so that no one else would die.

In 1993, this was unlike anything else on the air, and while yes, the heroes survived this time, that wasn’t always the case. Characters would routinely be injured and unseen for episodes at a time as they recovered, nameless pilots would die in almost every episode, and there was a very palpable sense of dread as the war ramped up and it was clear that not everyone would be making it home alive.

Tragically Ahead Of Its Time

No matter how dark the story became, the animation remained spectacular throughout, but it was the same studio, AKOM, in South Korea, that handled X-Men ’92, Batman: The Animated Series, and Gargoyles, so of course, it’s going to look good. For an American 90s cartoon that is, compared to its contemporary, Gundam Wing, Exosquad doesn’t hold up.

Exosquad came out during an interesting time for American animation, as the industry was quickly evolving and changing, going from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles at the start of the decade, to Spongebob Squarepants by the time it came to a close. The saga of Able Squad and the Neosapien War still stands out as a series that was unique and ahead of its time. Thankfully, if you want to experience the war yourself, is available for rent or purchase through Amazon Prime Video and Apple TV+.

By Robert Scucci
| Published 42 seconds ago

Nature documentaries are incredibly informative if you want to learn how different species interact, feed, and mate in the wild. Taking a page from the National Geographic playbook, The Mating Habits of the Earthbound Human is the ultimate mockumentary about how humans interact with one another while trying to find a romantic suitor. If you’re familiar with Nathan W. Pyle’s Strange Planet comics, you’ll love how the unnamed alien narrator in this movie tries to make sense of human dating rituals through his limited understanding of life on planet Earth.

An Alien’s Explanation Of Human Interaction

Narrated by none other than David Hyde Pierce (Frasier), The Mating Habits of the Earthbound Human is an absolutely hilarious exploration of misguided anthropology. The film is framed as a nature special using humans as its subject of study, and Pierce’s dry delivery gives it a convincing nature documentary vibe. The Narrator’s long-winded attempts at explaining simple concepts, like shaving and phone call etiquette, are detailed to the point of agony and the primary source of humor in this film.

The Mating Habits of the Earthbound Human starts out in a nightclub, and we’re introduced to “The Male,” Billy Waterson (Mackenzie Astin), and “The Female,” Jenny Smith (Carmen Electra). Billy and Jenny immediately hit it off and start dating shortly after their initial exchange. As their romance develops throughout the film, The Narrator attempts to make sense of, and explain to his equally confused audience, the various human interactions he witnesses, highlighting the complexity of modern dating.

The Narrator’s Enthusiasm Will Win You Over

While I think Mackenzie Astin and Carmen Electra deliver flawless performances in this satire, The Narrator’s enthusiasm and curiosity in The Mating Habits of the Earthbound Human is what really got me laughing out loud. For example, when describing how women prefer romance movies and how men like action movies, The Narrator explains, “Human females enjoy stories about one person dying slowly. The males prefer stories of many people dying quickly.”

An equally hilarious observation made by The Narrator in The Mating Habits of the Earthbound Human involves Billy’s use of a computer mouse at his job, which is described as “a toy named after one of the small rodents of his planet.” Extrapolating his observation to the point of absurdity, The Narrator goes on to say that “He presses his fingers against the rodent’s buttocks and gently taps upon its cheeks. Still, he prefers the female of his own species.”

The Narrator’s descriptions range from making sense of human technology to the use of prophylactics, which is acted out by a bunch of actors dressed in white running into a wall to demonstrate how they’re being blocked from the female’s egg after the male and female engage in intercourse.

Fully committing to its bizarre nature documentary premise, The Mating Habits of the Earthbound Human is highly quotable and convincingly points out why and how human dating is such an exhausting ordeal on planet Earth. It’s also worth pointing out that there is some truth behind The Narrator’s assumptions, but his intelligence, coupled with his naivety, adds a layer of ridiculousness to the narrative that makes for a truly unforgettable movie-watching experience.

Pokes Fun At Rom-Coms

The Mating Habits of the Earthbound Human effectively uses satire to poke fun at romantic comedies while being a romantic comedy itself, which is easier said than done. Through its self-awareness, it lampoons every single trope found in the genre without wearing out its welcome. David Hyde Pierce’s ability to play it straight while reading The Narrator’s lines is nothing short of commendable, and I’m going to reasonably assume that he had to work through several takes in the voice-over booth to actually nail his lines without laughing out loud himself.

If you’re looking for a romantic comedy that doesn’t succumb to the usual genre trappings, The Mating Habits of the Earthbound Human comes with strong recommendations. This anthropological analysis of human dating as perceived by an intelligent alien life form can currently be rented or purchased on-demand through Apple TV+, Amazon Prime Video, and Fandango at Home.

THE MATING HABITS OF THE EARTHBOUND HUMAN SCORE

Director Steven Soderbergh hasn’t been shy about answering questions related to his scrapped “Star Wars” film, “The Hunt For Ben Solo.” He and actor Adam Driver, who played Kylo Ren/Ben Solo in the sequel trilogy, worked on the project for years before it was ultimately scrapped by Disney.

Before unveiling his new John Lennon documentary ahead of its Cannes premiere, Soderbergh spoke to Deadline about the shelved Ben Solo movie. They asked what other major franchise could “tempt” him; however, it seems that the director has absolutely no plans to create another franchise film after his deal with Lucasfilm fell apart.

“It’s not coming to mind … I’m not a snob, clearly,” Soderbergh said. “You can see that from my list of credits. [But] the feeling has to be, ‘I can’t bear the idea of somebody else doing this. I’m the person to do this.’ It has to be that.”

“So given my background, there are just certain genres that I’m not steeped in: Didn’t read that stuff, wasn’t exposed to that stuff. You know what I mean?” he continued. “I didn’t buy or read comic books, for instance. So that whole space, I don’t have a problem with it — it’s just not in my DNA, and I wouldn’t be good at it.”

Soderbergh Thought His Scrapped ‘Star Wars’ Film Would Be ‘The Biggest Thing’ He Ever Made

In an interview with The Daily Beast, Soderbergh admitted that he had been taking on smaller projects over the past few years and thought that a trip to a galaxy far, far away would be the kind of ambitious project he was looking for.  

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“Star Wars was going to occupy that slot. That was going to be the biggest thing I’ve ever attempted to make. And I was excited about working on a big canvas,” he said. “You know, it’s been a while. I’ve got other stuff that I’m trying to get going that’ll satisfy that desire.”

He admitted that he had been working on the canceled “Star Wars” film for a “long time,” but compared complaining about its cancellation to “complaining about the weather,” adding, “You just have to figure it out.”

Steven Soderbergh Has No Plans To Return To A Galaxy Far, Far Away

Filmmaker Steven Soderbergh says even with new Star Wars leadership, he doesn’t plan to pursue his Hunt for Ben Solo project with Adam Driver

“If it was gonna happen, it would have happened”

via: The Playlist pic.twitter.com/sF0RkgNuej

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— ScreenTime (@screentime) April 7, 2026

Although some “Star Wars” fans are hopeful that the script may someday get made, Steven Soderbergh told The Playlist that the film is dead, saying, “Look, if it was gonna happen, it would have happened.”

“It’s that simple,” he added, giving a clear “Nope” when asked if he would ever return to the project.

However, he said that he had no regrets about working on the project. “I don’t regret one minute of the time we spent working on that,” he said. “I felt the work was good. It’s just good for you to be in that room and working on it. It’s like CrossFit—it’s good for you. It’ll have a residual effect that will be unexpected at some point.”

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Soderbergh Reveals The Idea Came From Adam Driver

During the same interview, Soderbergh also revealed that Driver was the one who had brought up the idea of making another movie focused on the character. “It was strictly Adam saying, ‘I think there’s still somewhere to go with this character.’ That’s how it started,” Soderbergh revealed.

While speaking to Variety, he revealed that Driver “felt bad” about getting him involved in the project, only for it to be shut down.

“Adam felt bad for having gotten me into it. I think he felt like he wasted my time, and I made it clear to him, ‘Dude, that was not wasted time.’ It’s a problem-solving experience that will get applied to everything I do going forward,” Soderbergh said.

“I’m not upset,” he continued. “I feel positive about everything that we did together.”

Steven Soderbergh Is Still ‘Disappointed’ About How It All Played Out

Steven Soderbergh says he wasted 2 and a half years on his Star Wars film ‘THE HUNT FOR BEN SOLO’

“I’d made the movie in my head, and just felt bad that nobody else was going to get to see it. It’s insane. We’re all very disappointed.”

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(Source: https://t.co/85OT35Hwzi) pic.twitter.com/DkR3wO4auJ

— Cinema Solace (@SolaceCinema) February 18, 2026

Even though he doesn’t consider it wasted time, he told the BK Mag that they were “all frustrated” that the film was canceled after they had already written the script.

“You know, that was two and a half years of free work for me and Adam and [writer] Rebecca Blunt,” he explained. “When Adam and I discussed him talking about it publicly, I said, ‘Look, do not editorialize or speculate about the why. Just say what happened, because all we know is what happened.’ The stated reason was, ‘We don’t think Ben Solo could be alive.’ And that was all we were told. And so there’s nothing to do about it, you know, except move on.”

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“I’d kind of made the movie in my head, and just felt bad that nobody else was going to get to see it,” he continued. “I thought the conversation was strictly going to be a practical one—where they go, what is this going to cost? And I had a really good answer for that. But it never even got to that point. It’s insane. We’re all very disappointed.”

Adam Driver Revealed The Film’s Existence In October 2025

In October 2025, Driver told AP News that he was “always interested” in doing another film in a galaxy far, far away and worked on the idea with Soderbergh after Kathleen Kennedy had “reached out.”

They presented a script, written by Scott Z. Burns, to Kennedy, Lucasfilm vice president Cary Beck, and Lucasfilm chief creative officer Dave Filoni.

“We presented the script to Lucasfilm. They loved the idea. They totally understood our angle and why we were doing it,” Driver explained. “We took it to Bob Iger and Alan Bergman, and they said no. They didn’t see how Ben Solo was alive. And that was that.”

Although many fans are disappointed that Disney canceled “The Hunt For Ben Solo,” the franchise recently returned to theaters for the first time in years. “The Mandalorian & Grogu” was the first movie released since 2019’s “The Rise of Skywalker.” It will be followed by “Star Wars: Starfighter,” which is scheduled to hit theaters in May 2027.

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Prime Video’s Elle debut is bittersweet for the inaugural cast, as they celebrate the start of their new show while mourning the absence of costar James Van Der Beek.

The Legally Blonde prequel, streaming now, marks Van Der Beek’s final TV role before his death in February at age 48. While speaking exclusively to Us Weekly, June Diane Raphael said it was “the honor of my professional life” to serve as Van Der Beek’s scene partner in season 1.

“I loved acting with James,” she told Us about their characters crossing paths in the show.

When fans meet Elle’s (Lexi Minetree) mother, Eva (Raphael), in the show, she is struggling just as much as her daughter after leaving Los Angeles for Seattle. Enter Van Der Beek’s character, Dean Wilson, who encourages Eva to help him with his run for office.

“He is just so charming in this show. I think his fans are going to be so excited to see him and to see his work in this,” Raphael, 46, gushed. “We had so much fun together.”

Despite their bond off screen, Raphael recalled being worried that Eva’s digs at Dean Wilson would upset the actor.

“I’m really attacking the way he looks and what he’s doing,” she added. “I checked in with him at one point and was like, ‘Is this OK? Because I’m improvising a little too?’ And he was like, ‘Just give me [it] … I love it.’”

Raphael walked away from the experience with a new respect for Van Der Beek. She recalled getting to see the Dawson’s Creek alum reach a milestone when his kids visited him on set. (Van Der Beek shared six children with wife Kimberly Van Der Beek.)

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Related: ‘Legally Blonde‘ Cast: Where Are They Now?

The iconic comedy that gave us “bend and snap!” lives on! Released in 2001, Legally Blonde follows Reese Witherspoon‘s Elle Woods, a sorority girl who is dumped by her boyfriend who thinks he’s too good for her. In an effort to prove him wrong and win him back, she hits the books and is accepted […]

“There wasn’t a moment on set where he wasn’t talking about them,” she continued. “He brought two of his daughters to the set, which was really special. … Kimberly shared with me that was the first time they had really been able to be on set with him. To bring your daughters to a workplace means that he really loved it [here] and really wanted it modeled for them.”

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Van Der Beek’s wife confirmed his death at age 48 earlier this year writing via Instagram, “Our beloved James David Van Der Beek passed peacefully this morning. He met his final days with courage, faith, and grace.”

Kimberly, 43, shared kids Olivia, 14, Joshua, 13, Annabel, 11, Emilia, 8, Gwendolyn, 6, and Jeremiah, 3, with the late actor.

“There is much to share regarding his wishes, love for humanity and the sacredness of time,” she wrote at the time. “Those days will come. For now we ask for peaceful privacy as we grieve our loving husband, father, son, brother, and friend.”

Game of Thrones is less colorful than its source material, A Song of Ice and Fire. This is true in a literal sense, except for the Night’s Watch; practically every character is described in the books as having more varied and brighter wardrobes than they ever wore on TV. But it’s also true in a larger sense. George R.R. Martin’s writing is often celebrated for its moral complexity, but it’s also broad, sweeping, and Romantic in the classical sense. He depicts a wide range of customs, worldviews, and personalities that exhibit all the extremes and contradictions of any real person in a more fantastic manner.

Even in its earliest days, Game of Thrones was more constrained in what notes it would let its characters play. The longer it went on, the more that constraint became an issue. Slowly, the color and life were leeched out of the likes of Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke), Arya Stark (Maisie Williams), and Cersei Lannister (Lena Headey).

The flattening of Cersei was particularly frustrating to watch season by season. Martin is outspoken in liking gray characters, but there are still heroes and villains among them. The latter have their reasons for their misdeeds, but it’s hard to imagine anyone regarding Roose Bolton (Michael McElhatton) or Ramsay Snow (Iwan Rheon) as heroes. Cersei is as much a villain as the likes of them, but being present from the beginning, she looms larger in A Song of Ice and Fire.

As a viewpoint character, we see inside her heart and mind — and what we see is fascinating, the most colorful, entertaining, and sympathetic of the series’ villains to date. Most of the traits that make Cersei so interesting were never fully incorporated into her TV counterpart, and almost none were left by the time the character met her fate in the finale.

Cersei’s Backstory Is Darker in the Original Books

The Cersei played by Lena Headey is clearly derived from the one in the pages of A Song of Ice and Fire. She’s still of the House Lannister, daughter of Tywin (Charles Dance), incestuous twin of Jaime (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau), and older and unloving sister of Tyrion (Peter Dinklage). The story still begins with Cersei as Queen of the Seven Kingdoms through her arranged marriage to Robert Baratheon (Mark Addy). The outside world assumes that Cersei’s three children are Robert’s, but all are bastards born of her sexual relationship with Jaime, and Cersei is one of many in the Red Keep conspiring against her husband. When Ned Stark (Sean Bean) uncovers the truth about her incest, she arranges Robert’s death, arrests Ned, and stages a coup to place her oldest son Joffrey (Jack Gleeson) on the throne with herself as regent.

On the page and the screen, Cersei’s marriage is loveless and violent. She’s openly contemptuous of Robert, shaming and manipulating him at one point into killing an innocent direwolf to satisfy her vindictiveness. A resentful Robert indulges in his appetites for food, women, and especially drink, and by the time of A Game of Thrones, he has hit her on several occasions. The Robert of the books is ashamed and frightened of what marriage and “kinging” have made of him (a shame he does his best to ignore). He’s frightened of what Cersei and Joffrey might do were they to gain power. The Robert of the show is a less troubled and more piggish brute. Left unmentioned in the show are Cersei’s threats to kill his bastard daughter if she ever comes to court, and rumors that she had two twins that Robert fathered at Casterly Rock killed. Once Robert is dead, Cersei orders the slaughter of all his baseborn children in King’s Landing.

While angry over Robert’s bastards, the Cersei of the books takes pains not to have any children by him. Game of Thrones invents a legitimate baby who died in infancy, a fact Cersei uses to her advantage but can also discuss sincerely with Robert. In A Song of Ice and Fire, pride and resentment won’t allow Cersei to go even that far. The one time she becomes pregnant, she arranges for an abortion and afterward finds ways to avoid insemination by Robert when they sleep together. Other pieces of backstory unused by the show concern the depth of Cersei’s hatred for Tyrion. Like her father, Cersei blames her little brother for their mother’s death.

But an additional grievance comes from the prophecy of the woods witch, Maggy the Frog. The show retains a flashback wherein Maggy (Jodhi May) predicts Cersei’s marriage and children, the deaths of all her offspring, and her dethronement by a “younger and more beautiful” queen. But the show cuts Cersei killing the friend who goes with her, the only witness to the prophecy. And it cuts the final prediction Maggy gives, that when everything has been taken from her, Cersei will be strangled by the valonqar – High Valyrian for “little brother.” Though Cersei precedes Jaime in birth by mere moments, making both her brothers younger by technicality, Cersei is convinced that Tyrion is the brother to fear — a conviction that becomes an obsession by the fourth book, A Feast for Crows.

George R. R. Martin’s Cersei Is a More Volatile and Compelling Character

One might argue that these adjustments to Cersei’s backstory are neutral or even necessary trims. Game of Thrones had time constraints that A Song of Ice and Fire does not. The valonqar prophecy, which book fans have long speculated will turn out to be Jaime, didn’t fit into how he and Cersei ultimately die, or the overall diminishment of prophecy and magic in the show compared to the novels. The loss of the valonqar story was one of the worst casualties of Game of Thrones, paring back the magic. But it’s true enough that most of this background material represented a clean lift, and that the Cersei of Season 1 corresponds fairly well to the Cersei of the first book. The real trouble comes when Robert is dead and Cersei begins wielding and contending for power.

Martin’s Cersei is as Trumpian a villain as you’re likely to find, far more so than her son Joffrey, who was sometimes compared to The Donald. She’s a complete narcissist: entitled, self-absorbed, boastful, and self-deluded about her talents and capacity to rule. The most basic flattery convinces her to make unwise appointments and actions. Envy, impatience, greed, and anger all cloud her already impulsive judgment. Her ruthless streak shatters potentially useful alliances and spills innocent blood, on account of paranoia or simple slights. And her moods are compared by Jaime to wildfire; the passions of the moment send her into fits of glee or torrents of rage.

All this is apparent in the first three books, but A Feast for Crows makes Cersei into a viewpoint character and lets readers see just how deep her narcissism runs. Jaime was made a viewpoint character in the previous book and revealed doubts, guilts, feelings, and his own sense of honor that made him — the man who threw a child out a window — seem a sympathetic and even piteous human being. Cersei’s chapters show her to be coo-coo for cocoa puffs. It’s glaringly obvious how deluded and self-defeating she is, but the immersion into her warped mind is so complete that you can fall into her paranoid, egocentric line of thinking. It’s a fascinating disconnect, making Cersei’s some of the most electrifying chapters of the latest two books to read.

Those chapters also reinforce a harsh truth about Cersei’s relationship with Jaime that earlier books introduced. If you set aside the fact that they’re an incestuous couple, then Jaime comes off as a devoted lover. Whatever his other faults, he never strays with other women and constantly strives to please Cersei. She, on the other hand, regularly turns to sex as a tool of persuasion. She carries on multiple affairs, including one with her cousin Lancel, and was eager to wed Rhaegar Targaryen as a young girl. Her love for Jaime is a love for an extension of herself; when he loses his usefulness to her as a knight and begins to question her judgment, the relationship quickly sours, and as of A Dance with Dragons, the fifth book, Jaime is completely disillusioned with his twin.

Cersei’s love for her children isn’t quite that transactional in Martin’s writing. Even her enemies judge her sincerely devoted to them, though a dangerously unfit mother on account of her… well, everything. But even with them, there is that element of extension. Joffrey and his brother Tommen are tools through which Cersei can wield the power of the Iron Throne, a power she is denied on account of her sex. Westerosi misogyny is a barrier for Cersei throughout the books, but she turns to it as an excuse for any challenge she faces (while also displaying a great deal of misogyny herself to other women). Men like her uncle, Kevan Lannister, don’t doubt her fitness to be regent because she’s a woman, at least not entirely; they doubt her because she’s so clearly unfit for the job.

‘Game of Thrones’ Flattened Cersei’s Character Completely

Image via HBO 

This is the stuff that sets Cersei apart from the likes of Roose and Ramsay, a cold schemer and a violent psychopath respectively. It’s what makes her such a volatile and destructive, yet still dimensional, villain. There’s schadenfreude aplenty to be had in seeing her dig her own hole in A Feast for Crows, which makes her moment of sympathy during the walk of shame all the more impactful. It’s also the stuff that Game of Thrones never knew what to do with. From the second season on, there were awkward attempts to make Cersei a more loving mother and a more sympathetic gray character that always seemed to collapse in on themselves. The murder of Robert’s children is outsourced to Joffrey, who becomes much more of a sinister tyrant than the spoiled bully of the books. The show’s Cersei is fully aware of how demented her son is, deeply troubled by his violence and her lack of control over him – and yet she mourns him just as she did in the book.

Her love and education for Tommen (Dean-Charles Chapman) are less insane, but that love seems to vanish the second he’s dead. She and Tyrion have more heart-to-hearts throughout the series, only for her to go back to hatred. Forget her manipulation and betrayal of Jaime; Game of Thrones has an uncomfortable reworking of a sex scene and a strange amount of sympathy for their incestuous love affair to impart instead. And all those swings of passion, those fits of narcissistic joy, rage, and paranoia that make Cersei’s book chapters so alive? That aspect of the character is diluted from the start, but it was nonexistent in the last few seasons. TV’s Cersei becomes a stone-faced whisperer by the end. Her expression hardly varies, her voice is low and icy, and her vanity and weaponized sexuality are cast aside.

That is a much flatter character than the one Martin wrote. But the problem is made worse by the fact that it happened to so many of the show’s women. Daenerys, Arya, Sansa Stark (Sophie Turner) – they were all rendered ice queens in the end. Such monotony is the death of the kind of color A Song of Ice and Fire injects into its personalities. With Cersei made the last villain standing, one whose defeat is inexplicably given more emphasis than the great battle to save all humanity against a horde of ice demons, such a dull antagonist is one more nail in the series finale’s coffin.

Game of Thrones is available to stream on Max in the U.S.