Currently climbing the Prime Video streaming charts is the simply titled horror-thriller Wrong Turn. Ostensibly a straight slasher flick from the description and poster art, it actually takes more risks than one may expect, with multiple twists and an end credits sequence that’s an essential part of the film. However, despite the growing number of eyes on it, many viewers may miss the fact that Mike P. Nelson’s gruesome 2021 blend of folk horror and cult thriller is actually a complete reinvention of a slasher series that dates all the way back to 2003.

Wrong Turn (2003) was a modest hit in theaters, earning $29 million, but really took on a life of its own on home media, where its throwback The Hills Have Eyes–style inbred splatter thrills found a new generation of fans — and spawned a seven-film series. Viewers taken by the bloody thrills of the 2021 film should absolutely see where the series began — and can, today, with it streaming free over on Plex.

The Original ‘Wrong Turn’ Is a Very Different Kind of Horror Film

Director Rob Schmidt’s 2003 slasher is part of the early 2000s studio-horror period when, for a time, it seemed like 1980s-style gore-for-gore’s-sake was making a comeback. And coming out the same year as Platinum Dunes’ stylish, grisly Texas Chain Saw Massacre remake and a year before Saw kicked off the so-called “torture porn” era, Wrong Turn itself was a throwback to an even less reputable slasher subgenre: inbred backwoods killers.

Drawing on imagery from classics like The Final Terror, Deliverance, and Just Before Dawn, Schmidt made no bones about the film’s objective: throw a group of attractive, naive city-dwellers into the mountains of West Virginia, and have most of them graphically slaughtered by cackling maniacs. Wrong Turn had an ace up its sleeve, however, with its gruesome makeup and practical effects handled by the legendary Stan Winston (who also executive produced).

Winston’s genius work, even on a tight budget, results in a gritty physicality and thickness in the film’s gore sequences. Most memorable is a “half-decapitation” with the top of a woman’s head balancing on an axe embedded in a tree, while her body falls. Winston partner Shane Mahan explained in a Winston School video that budgetary limitations forced the FX whizzes to go back to the drawing board from animatronics and draw on a far simpler whip-pan technique popularized by James Cameron to get the gruesome scene looking just right. Everything from the makeup of the mountain men to the death scenes oozes with craft and care — something today’s CGI-laden action and horror distinctly lacks.

‘Wrong Turn’ 2021 Is a Fresh Take on Backwoods Horror

With original creator Alan McElroy returning to write, the 2021 film starts off with a good old bait-and-switch, lulling audiences into believing they’re about to get more of the same backwoods mutant mayhem. A mid-film twist, however, takes things to a darker, slightly more believable and contemporary place, as Jen (Charlotte Vega) and her friends find themselves captured by mask-wearing cultists who have created their own twisted utopia in the woods.

The film doesn’t skimp on the gore (highlights include a character blinded by a hot poker and a skull-crushing), but notably focuses more on tension, believable characters, and the growing horror of a desperate situation. And even more surprisingly, the film shifts gears yet again to focus on Matthew Modine, playing Jen’s father, as he searches for his missing daughter. What he finds, and where the film goes from there, deserve to be left unspoiled, but Wrong Turn (2021) does not skimp on surprises or macabre subject matter.

With the reboot performing so well on streaming, it would make sense if a sequel were in the works, but so far, nothing has been announced. However, Wrong Turn (2021) deserves credit as a complete, bold overhaul of a successful franchise — and one made by its original creator, no less. It’s a tense, professionally mounted thriller that takes a stab at a slightly more mainstream audience, while leaving none of its twisted roots behind. And over on Plex, the original splatter classic is still available to stream for free.

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Release Date

February 26, 2021

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Runtime

84 minutes

Director

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Mike P. Nelson

Writers

Alan B. McElroy

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Producers

Aaron Ryder, Brian J. Gilbert, Don Carmody, Erik Feig, Patrick Wachsberger, Robert Kulzer, Stan Winston, Sven Ebeling, Hagen Behring

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  Charlotte Vega

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  Chris Flynn

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  Adain Bradley

  Jessie Burlingame

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After three major projects were scuttled — including a third Wonder Woman movie, a Cleopatra epic, and a sequel to Red Notice — Gal Gadot appears to have pivoted to a smaller-scale project. Gadot was also the face of two significant misfires, the streaming tentpole Red Notice and the theatrical bomb Snow White. Her pivot comes on the heels of a similar shift in strategy executed by streamers. Netflix, in particular, has had exceptional success this year. The platform seemingly moved away from mega-budget projects such as Red Notice and concentrated on mid-budget genre movies instead. This has resulted in hits such as The Rip, War Machine, and the recently released The Last House. Gadot’s new movie, which marks her first headlining role since 2023’s Heart of Stone, is right around the corner.

Unlike Heart of Stone, which was released to poor reviews on Netflix three years ago, Gadot’s new film will debut on Prime Video. The streamer has also had success with mid-budget genre movies in recent months, with The Devil’s Mouth, Pretty Lethal, and The Bluff drawing strong viewership. Prime Video would hope to keep the streak going with Gadot’s new movie, which has been directed by the versatile Kevin Macdonald. A prolific documentary filmmaker, he’s best known for the Oscar-winning biopic The Last King of Scotland, and the star-studded political thriller State of Play.

Gal Gadot and Alan Ritchson Are Headlining Two Action Movies with Near-Identical Titles

Macdonald and Gadot’s new movie, an action-thriller, is The Runner. It shouldn’t be confused with Runner, which is an action movie starring Alan Ritchson and Owen Wilson, due out in theaters in the same month. Gadot’s movie follows a London-based attorney whose son is abducted by a mysterious man who sends her on a chase across the city. The premise makes the film sound like a cross between the Liam Neeson blockbuster Taken, and the 2002 thriller Phone Booth. In fact, Neeson himself starred in a movie with a similar premise a couple of years ago. It’s called Retribution, and it follows a man who must protect his two children after he receives a call warning him that his car will blow up with them in it if he tries to get out. The Runner also features Damian Lewis, and will be released on Prime Video on September 2. Later this year, Gadot will appear in Doug Liman‘s artificial intelligence-powered movie Bitcoin, also starring Casey Affleck and Pete Davidson. Stay tuned to Collider for more updates.

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Release Date

September 2, 2026

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84 Minutes

Director

Kevin Macdonald

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Jon Lucas and Scott Moore are a dynamic duo. They have a long history of churning out some of the wildest, funniest comedies in the past couple of decades, penning everything from The Hangover to Four Christmases and serving as both writers and directors for both Bad Moms movies, Office Christmas Party, Jexi, and more. Add in Emmy-nominated producer Suzanne Todd into the mix, whose resume includes the Oscar-nominated Memento, Ridley Scott’s G.I. Jane, and the Austin Powers films, and you have a truly unstoppable trio.

The three of them have once again teamed up for their newest project, Spa Weekend, which follows in the tradition of several of their previous films by letting the women take center stage. The movie sees a group of four very different high school friends — sensible mom and lawyer Jane (Leslie Mann), underappreciated Sophie (Anna Faris), bitterly separated Coco (Michelle Buteau), and unfiltered Mel (Isla Fisher) — going on a relaxing trip for Jane’s birthday, only for increasingly wild situations and deep-seated wounds constantly threatening to make them more stressed out than ever.

Collider got the chance to speak to the creative team behind the movie. During the conversation, they discussed the challenges of shooting elaborate stunts, finding their incredible cast, bringing back the blooper reel, and more.

‘Spa Weekend’s Directors Talk the Unique Challenges and Perks of Filming in Australia

“We like our Aussies.”

Image via Black Bear

COLLIDER: First of all, congratulations.

JON LUCAS: Thank you. We enjoyed chatting with you on the carpet. That was fun.

Oh my gosh, thank you so much! I absolutely loved it. Of course, your lead cast is incredible, but I was also really struck by your supporting cast, especially the spa workers. I’m curious if you can talk about finding all of them.

LUCAS: Oh, right on. This is a great question. We haven’t gotten this question. We shot in Australia, so all the cast is Australian, outside of our lead four, and it was pretty simple. It’s just auditions. What’s interesting is that Australia has a lot of great actors, but they’re all over. The country’s enormous. There was a lot of, “We’re going to get these great actors,” but we were shooting on the Gold Coast, which is kind of far away. Anyway, there were people who were, like, 3,000 miles away who were “local Australians.” We’re like, “Oh, that’s going to be a bit of a trip for them to get to set.” [Laughs] But they were great. It’s probably one of the more comedy-oriented countries. People like comedy down there. They’re really a lighthearted culture, so finding comedic actors there was not hard.

SCOTT MOORE: It’s pretty great. All of them were super talented, like Erica and Dominic [Ona-Ariki]. Dominic had won a ton of awards, and it was weird to have this experience where you have someone who’s a day player behind the counter doing this, and then you’re driving down the street, and she’s on all these billboards. She’s in these two shows, and you’re like, “Wait, what is going on?”

SUZANNE TODD: She’s super Australian famous.

MOORE: Super famous, super talented, so it was a luxury to have so many talented people.

TODD: And obviously Isla and Adam are also Australians, so a wealth of riches there.

LUCAS: We like our Aussies.

We love the Aussies.

LUCAS: Yeah, they’re good eggs.

TODD: They really are a good time.

‘Spa Weekend’s Directors Discuss Filming Those Wild Stunts

“When I see a great stunt in a trailer, I’m like, ‘I gotta go see that movie.’”

Image via Black Bear

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There were some pretty elaborate stunts in this movie, from the golf cart chase to the goats on the loose. How do you approach these huge moments of physical comedy as a director and then producer as well?

TODD: Jon and Scott hate those scenes. [Laughs]

LUCAS: I actually love them! They take a lot of work. When it’s the four women sitting around a table at a cafe, you’re like, “Oh, this is gonna be a great day. This is easy. [Sing-songs] Da da da da da da ta ta.” And then you’re like, “I got to jump a golf cart over a sand dune, and it’s got to land, and the people who own the beach are not really psyched about what you’re doing.” There are a lot of ins and outs, but I love that stuff. We always talk about it in terms of, like, there are some scenes that just have to go into a trailer. And those stunts, to me, are kind of what sells the movie. When I see a great stunt in a trailer, I’m like, “I gotta go see that movie.” There’s something about the appeal of that — “someone really went for it.”

MOORE: And some, like the golf cart, you really do a lot of previs, and you really think about, “How’s this gonna work?” Some of it, like the goats or the mud bath scene, you’re like, “Just put a ton of cameras in there, and just go. See what we get, and hopefully, it’ll be something.” I remember the mud bath scene because there’s no reset in that, right? So we shot the dialogue, and then we’re like, “Okay, we’re going to get one take of you guys cutting loose.” Thankfully, Michelle could do the whole movie in one take. She’s so talented, and so funny, and so creative that we were a little stressed out during that scene, but it turned out great because she’s awesome and so willing to play and do whatever.

LUCAS: I will say, one of the challenges of working with women — the only one — is hair. You can’t fuck up someone’s hair. If you mess up my hair, you wash the mud out, and you’re shooting five minutes later. Michelle has beautiful long hair, and you cannot mess that up.

TODD: Michelle’s was the toughest reset of all four.

LUCAS: It’s like a three-hour reset.

MOORE: Especially if you put mud in it.

LUCAS: So we’re like throwing mud around like, “Oh my god. How are we gonna do this?”

TODD: But I feel like we also had a little PTSD because we had some mud in a scene in Bad Moms Christmas. We had a different mud bath scene that was equally hard to crack the logistics of the mud. Mud is harder than you think — the movie version of mud.

LUCAS: It worked out, but to Scott’s point — largely because Michelle nailed it in one. If she hadn’t — if she wasn’t doing it the way she was doing it — it would have been a long day. It would have been really bad.

‘Spa Weekend’s Directors Are Bringing Back the Blooper Reel

“We did argue a bit about whether it’s hacky to have bloopers.”

Image via Black Bear

I feel like we’ve really lost the art of the blooper reel, so I was so excited to see that during the credits.

LUCAS: We’ve been talking a lot about the bloopers. Maybe it’s time to bring bloopers back.

I agree! Why do you think it’s gone away?

LUCAS: I think people see it as hacky, and they’re not wrong. It’s a little hacky. There’s a period where, like, every movie did it.

TODD: It was done a lot.

LUCAS: I think the first one I ever saw was like the Jackie Chan movies when I was a little kid, and he would, like, die. He’d, like, fall off a train, and you’re like, “Oh my god.” And then he’d pop up and be like, “Ha ha ha ha!”, and you’re like, “Is he okay? Have we lost Jackie?” I love that stuff. I think that stuff you watch when you’re a kid, you never really shake, do you know what I mean? It’s always in you. We did argue a bit about whether it’s hacky to have bloopers, and the answer is yes, it is hacky, but we love it.

MOORE: We just had so much good stuff that we couldn’t not share it with the audience.

LUCAS: Those girls breaking? I mean, there’s so much stuff. And frankly, there’s some stuff that we didn’t put in the bloopers, or we put it in originally, and they were just too disgusting or crazy. I can think of two moments.

TODD: Not to really just talk about Isla.

LUCAS: [Laughs] Why do you think Isla? Why would you say Isla’s name? We’re like, “This is hilarious. The crowd is gonna eat this up.” You get all the way through your movie, you’ve worked so hard on the movie, and you get to the end of the test screening, and there’s one joke at the very end that they’re like, “No, that’s not okay. I want to take my mom to this movie, and I can’t do that if [this is in there].” You do find that, even though the bloopers are pretty fun and a little more outrageous than the movie, there are lines. There are certain things that audiences are just like, “Dude, come on — let us drive home in peace.”

Can you share them with the class, or is this sworn to secrecy?

TODD: We call these movies lightly R-rated, right? We’re staying away from the harder R-rated.

LUCAS: Find me outside. I’ll tell you all the stuff we can, but I cannot do it on camera.

I feel like the bloopers also showed that there was a lot of improv in this movie. Do you feel like you hire actors who are naturally skilled at improv?

LUCAS: Yes, 100%.

Okay, I didn’t know if it was a coincidence or if you looked for that.

MOORE: We love working with actresses or actors who can riff, who have comedic timing, who can generate comedy, and who can ad lib. Because there’s nothing better than that. It feels real. It feels funny. And we tend to shoot the script once — we’re like, “Let’s just put it on camera” — and then we allot time for them to riff, and run, and dodge, and weave, and do whatever magic it is that they do. That’s often where you get the best stuff.

LUCAS: We were just writers for like 10 or 15 years before we started directing, and when we made that transition, a lot of directors told us, “When writers become directors, they’re often so excited that they finally get to be in charge that they’re like, ‘You have to say it exactly. I wrote a period, and you gave that a semicolon.’” And actors are like, “What is going on?” So we really didn’t want to be the directors who were obsessed with their own writing. All the best jokes in all of our movies — I’m not saying this to be humble — literally are [improvised]. We started with something we had, so it wasn’t like we weren’t part of it. But often the best stuff is like, we had this idea, and then someone came in, either put a spin on the ball, or added something entirely, or said it in their own little weird way that makes it funny. We’re especially conscious of not being too precious with the words.

‘Spa Weekend’s Directors on the Movies That Scarred Them for Life

“Please don’t watch it.”

One of my favorite moments in this movie is when Jane walks in on her young kids watching Pulp Fiction. Is there a movie you remember watching way too young that either scarred you or inspired you?

LUCAS: Everyone does, by the way. Every single human on Earth, especially nowadays, has seen something where you’re like, “Why was I allowed? Who thought I was allowed to watch that?” I saw Hot Dog. You’re too young. You’re very young. Do you know the movie Hot Dog?

I don’t. I’ll look it up after.

LUCAS: No, don’t. Please don’t watch it. Hot Dog is a very ‘80s skiing movie. It’s a sex comedy, and everyone just has sex. It’s one of those very ‘80s…I’m not sure there’s even a plot. Maybe there’s a ski race at the end to give yourself a third act. It is just sex, and I watched it when I was, like, seven because I was like, “Oh, skiing.” And my parents are like, “Go ahead — enjoy Hot Dog.” And I was like, “[gasps] Oh, is this what adult life is like? Is everyone just fucking?” The whole movie is just like sex. That was one of those movies where I don’t remember anything about it other than the second I got out, I was like, “I should not be watching this.” That’s why Pulp Fiction was perfect because that’s, to me, the most ‘you really don’t want your kids to watch this.’ Your children should not watch the Gimp. They’re not ready for that yet.

MOORE: I’m glad you flagged that scene because it’s one of my favorite shots: the kids’ faces, right when she comes in, their eyes are like, “What is going on?”

TODD: Mine would definitely be a scary movie from when I was young — maybe Halloween or something. There was a guy with a knife, and then all I could think the whole night was that the guy was outside my window. I was up for days, terrified.

LUCAS: Premature horror. When you’re not ready for horror, and you’re too young.

TODD: No, because, of course, I thought it was real. I was too young to watch that. I was like, “Oh, there are guys with a knife outside my window.”

‘Spa Weekend’s Directors Reveal the Scene They Had to Cut

“Audiences were like, ‘This is not funny.’”

Image via Black Bear

There is so much editing and shaping of a movie that happens with the writing, then the filming, and then the editing. What is the biggest change from the first draft of the script to what we see in the final cut?

TODD: There are three versions of a movie: there’s the version they write, and then you shoot it, and everything changes, and then you take everything that was shot, and you go into the cutting room, and everything changes probably as much again. It’s almost three completely different things. Especially in comedy, as [Jon] pointed out, we always try to build the time for the girls at the end to have improv. And the guys, in addition to the script that they write, they write an entire book of what we call alts, which are at the ready. You have the funny version, and then you have 17 other funny versions. There’s so much material from where you started with the script to when you get into the cutting room that it’s just about this finesse of what joke leads into the next joke playing bigger. It’s probably more complicated an editorial than people think.

MOORE: We make these movies for the audience. We love test screening because you’re like, “Okay, let’s see what jokes are working and what jokes aren’t working.” It’s not like, “I love that joke, so I’m gonna put it in the movie.” There was actually a whole scene that we shot at a funeral, which we thought was hilarious — it was sort of dark and weird — and audiences were like, “This is not funny.”

LUCAS: The first note on that test screening was like, “The funeral scene isn’t funny.” I’m like, “Look at that sentence. Of course, it isn’t! What were you thinking?”

TODD: It wasn’t a funny funeral — it was funny things that happened at a funeral that were funny to us, but it didn’t seem as funny in screenings.

MOORE: Test screenings are important because we want to know what people think of the movie, and it was very clear that they did not like that scene.

TODD: They didn’t want to laugh at the funeral.

LUCAS: I’m always jealous when directors do these things, and they’re like, “I’m cutting in my head the whole time. I know the whole movie while I’m shooting.” I’m like, “That’s so cool. That would be so nice. I don’t do that.” [Laughs] We shoot everything, and we really hope there’s a movie in there at the end. I think that’s the difference between comedy and most other genres. I think in other genres, you kind of do have to know every beat, because there’s not as much room, but the tone of the comedy in this movie can get broader or more dramedyish, depending on how you cut it. There are lots of different zones — the comedy world is pretty wide — and which jokes and takes really affect it. So I never know. I exude confidence on set like, “We got this,” but in my head I’m like, “I don’t know. I think we got it. I don’t know. We’ll find out in like six months.”

Spa Weekend is now in theaters.

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Release Date

August 21, 2026

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Runtime

97 minutes

Director

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Scott Moore, Jon Lucas

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The fantasy genre has always been pretty popular in the world of literature, and saw a major surge in the 1980s and ’90s with the rise of tabletop RPGs. Previously, it was only seen as something “for nerds,” but it has lately become much more mainstream. It feels like fantasy novels are about a dime a dozen nowadays, because there are a ton of new ones coming out each and every month. It’s impossible to keep up with them all.

Though some amazing fantasy books have come out over the course of the genre’s history, there have been some extra special ones released just over the last 20 years. This might be a small time frame, yet it has seen some revolutionary works of fantasy, some of which have even received screen adaptations. Whichever subgenre you like best, these are some of the best fantasy novels that have come out over the last 20 years.

10

‘Children of Blood and Bone’ (2018)

Image via Henry Holt Books for Young Readers

Children of Blood and Bone is the first in a YA trilogy by Tomi Adeyemi. Taking inspiration from her Nigerian heritage, the story is set in a fantastical world inspired by West Africa, where an oppressive empire has separated people into two classes: the Kosidán majority and the Divîners. The Divîners were formerly a race of magic-users and are recognizable by their stark-white hair. However, the empire somehow disrupted the source of their magic, leaving the Divîners unable to access it.

In the midst of political turmoil, a young Divîner girl named Zélie teams up with the Kosidán princess, Amari, on a quest across the land of Orïsha to restore magic to her people. The magic system in this book is simple, but very easy to digest, and the story actually plays upon a lot of real-life issues that Adeyemi feels passionately about. It’s got a really fresh and interesting setting, a good message behind it, and it’s easy to access for youths and adults alike. While not the best book of the last 20 years, it has found a sizable following and has done very well with critics. Fans will be glad to know that Children of Blood and Bone is set to receive a movie adaptation very, very soon.

9

‘The Name of the Wind’ (2007)

Image via Gollancz

The Name of the Wind is the first book in Patrick Rothfuss‘ The Kingkiller Chronicle duology. Though it was initially planned as a trilogy, it has been 15 years since the second book came out, so the third is unlikely to be released any time soon, if at all. The book opens up with the introduction of Kvothe, an innkeeper who was quite a famed figure in his youth. He recounts his story to a Chronicler, talking about why he became famous and how he is to blame for the terrible things to come.

The book switches between third-person “present day” sequences and first-person flashbacks, though flashbacks make up the majority of it. Kvothe tells the story of how he began life as part of the Edema Ruh, a travelling group of entertainers, and how he came to study at the University, where he learned magic. The book includes enough mysteries to string the reader along and keep them hanging on every word. Not only is it adventurous, but it sets up a lot of questions and teases the answers. It hooks people really easily. It’s unfortunate that those answers may never come.

8

‘The Blade Itself’ (2006)

Image via Gollancz

Joe Abercrombie‘s The Blade Itself belongs to the grimdark subgenre. Grimdark fantasy is basically any fantasy (typically high fantasy) where basically nothing is good. People are manipulative, selfish, or rude, and the world is constantly in a state of war. It’s a genre that exposes the worst of humanity, even if it takes place in a completely fictional world.

This book is the first in a trilogy, and the first in a shared universe, as well. The story is primarily about three major empires at war with each other on two fronts, with three key figures caught in the middle of it all. They offer different perspectives of the conflict, and their stories begin separately from each other, though they do eventually intersect. If you like gore, grittiness, or the most depraved parts of human nature, this is a great fantasy book you should totally check out.

7

‘Prince of Thorns’ (2011)

Image via Harper Voyager/Mark Lawrence

Prince of Thorns, written by Mark Lawrence, is set in the Rhineland region of Europe, centuries after a nuclear war destroyed the planet and reverted the world back to the Dark Ages. What remains of humanity comes in the form of the Broken Empire, a group of approximately 100 kingdoms and realms sprawling across Europe, Western and Southern Asia, and Northern Africa. In the midst of it all is Prince Jorg Ancrath, a 14-year-old who is a self-described sociopath. He leads a band of mercenaries across the ruined landscape, trying to escape his father’s legacy.

Jorg Ancrath is objectively a horrible person. At just 14, he is morally bankrupt and utterly reprehensible, yet he is so much fun to read. Written in a first-person perspective, the book allows audiences to really see his thought process, showing his deep trauma and how little he cares for anyone other than himself. The first in a trilogy, this book isn’t even all that long, and is pretty average in terms of novel length. Still, it’s perfectly paced and worth every word. It’s dark, gritty, completely messed up, but so enjoyable, all at the same time.

6

‘The Lies of Locke Lamora’ (2006)

Image via Bantam Spectra

The Lies of Locke Lamora, written by Scott Lynch, is the first novel in the Gentleman Bastard sequence. It’s a sort of urban fantasy rather than an epic fantasy adventure. The setting is the fictitious city of Camorr, which resembles Venice with its weaving canals and elaborate architecture. The plot unfolds into two storylines: the first is set in the “present,” where a crew known as the Gentleman Bastards take on a new threat in Camorr’s criminal underworld. The other storyline is mostly about the history of Camorr and its dark underbelly.

This book in particular was a massive hit for urban fantasy fans, as were its sequels, but you just can’t beat the original. It’s such a great story because, unlike many of the other books on this list, it isn’t about large-scale wars of empires or resurrected forms of magic or ancient threats from millennia ago; it’s just an Ocean’s Eleven-style adventure through a dark and layered world.

5

‘Between Two Fires’ (2012)

Image via Ace

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Between Two Fires is a low fantasy novel set in France during the Hundred Years’ War and the Bubonic Plague. As you can imagine, this means the streets are riddled with corpses, and there’s a general aura of misery that hangs thick over everyone and everything. The fantasy aspect comes in the form of demons, which prowl the French countryside, as if everything else going on weren’t bad enough.

In the midst of one of the darkest periods of France’s history, a lone knight saves a young girl from a fate worse than death. Directionless in life, the knight decides to see the girl to safety, evading and battling demons in the process. This horror/fantasy/historical fiction hybrid is one of the bleakest stories out there, but it’s absolutely brilliant at the same time. Christopher Buehlman really knocked it out of the park with this one.

4

‘A Memory of Light’ (2014)

Image via Tor Fantasy

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A Memory of Light is the final book in the enormous The Wheel of Time saga, coming in as the 14th entry. This is also one of the longest ones at well over 1,000 pages. The series was primarily written by Robert Jordan, beginning all the way back in the 1990s. Unfortunately, Jordan died at a relatively young age due to a heart attack following the release of the 11th book, prompting fellow author Brandon Sanderson to take over. While Sanderson did technically write the book, much of the credit is given to Jordan, provided he had the original notes and had already outlined the book in meticulous detail long before his passing.

The most remarkable part about this book is the chapter titled “The Last Battle,” which goes on non-stop for over 200 pages. It’s a huge feat to tackle, but a rewarding and exhilarating experience. It’s so exciting that it’s easy to lose track of time while reading it, to the point that before you know it, the chapter is over and the sun has set. Every part of the complex plot comes together, and it leaves off with a bittersweet ending that fans loved. It’s the best book in the Wheel of Time series and easily one of the best books of the 2010s.

3

‘The Crippled God’ (2011)

Image via Tor Fantasy

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The Crippled God is the tenth and final installment in Malazan: Book of the Fallen, the main sequence of a massive literary universe kickstarted by Canadian author Steven Erikson. Malazan is a big hit in the fantasy fandom, though books one and 10 of the series are generally considered its strongest points. It can be daunting for some people due to how much lore is behind the series, but most fans are perfectly fine with this.

The story of the series is about the Malazan Empire, and about how it rapidly expanded to cover an entire continent. Now, they’re setting their sights on another continent. That’s the extremely short version of the story, anyway. As far as conclusions go, this one is absolutely epic. It’s rife with massive battle sequences, the kind that no TV or movie adaptation could ever hope to capture. It’s perfectly written and very cinematic.

2

‘A Dance with Dragons’ (2011)

Image via Bantam Spectra

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A Dance with Dragons is the fifth and final book in the unfinished A Song of Ice and Fire series, which, of course, became the massive television phenomenon, Game of Thrones. Though there were two sequels planned to wrap up the series, it’s been 15 years, and George R. R. Martin is still dragging his feet, so it’s unlikely fans will ever see the literary conclusion. In any event, this book is absolutely fantastic. Sure, it has some weaker parts, and no, it’s not as good as the others in the series, but it’s the only one that actually came out in the last 20 years, save for its previous installment, A Feast for Crows. The latter is considered the low point of the series, though, so that certainly wasn’t going to make the list.

Like the prior installments, this book is about a civil war in Westeros, where nine royal families are competing for a throne, all while a primal threat from centuries ago is quietly building up strength in the North. This book is pretty large, at about 900-1,100 pages depending on which format you get it in. Still though, it was a marked improvement over the book that came before it in both scale and story, and it definitely earns a spot as being one of the best fantasy books of the last 20 years.

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‘Oathbringer’ (2017)

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Oathbringer is the third book in the ongoing The Stormlight Archive series by Brandon Sanderson. The series is part of Sanderson’s shared literary universe known as the Cosmere. Basically, each stand-alone or series in the Cosmere is set on a different planet within the same galaxy. Each planet has its own unique magic system. This monstrous tome of nearly 1,300 pages is set on the barren world of Roshar, which is constantly bombarded with hurricane-like events known as highstorms. There is little to no plant life, and any animals are typically crustaceous, even on land.

The overall story of the series concerns a war between the crustaceous race of humanoids called the Singers and humanity, with the stakes being extinction. Each side has resurrected an ancient and lost form of magic to use to their advantage. Each book in the series also features flashback sequences from one character per novel, with this one focusing on the backstory of military leader Dalinar Kholin. There are tons of epic battles in this book, profound moments of moral wisdom, excellent character development, and some quippy humour, too. This is one of Sanderson’s finest efforts, and a real jewel in the crown of the Cosmere as a whole.

At one point, Bob Odenkirk decided he was no longer content just being the slimiest lawyer on television and the world’s most deplorable conman, he wanted to become John Wick. Well, it’s nice to have dreams, right? And he was good at it! Who knew? Nobody proved that Saul Goodman could absolutely kick your ass, turning the Better Call Saul star into one of action’s most unlikely leading men. If you thought Nobody was it, think again.

Normal is officially charting on HBO Max after arriving on the platform on August 14. The 91-minute action thriller reunites Odenkirk with Nobody writer and John Wick creator Derek Kolstad, while Kill List and Free Fire filmmaker Ben Wheatley directs. And at roughly an hour and a half, it doesn’t exactly overstay its welcome. It’s Odenkirk, a small town hiding something nasty, the creator of John Wick and the director of Free Fire smashing everything together for a wild ride.

For Sheriff Ulysses (Odenkirk), his provisional posting to the quaint Midwestern town of Normal was meant to be a welcome respite from both his marital woes and recent moral injuries in the line of duty. But when a botched bank robbery interrupts the municipality’s tranquil pace, a dark secret is inadvertently exposed, and Ulysses soon discovers that the town (and its mayor, played by Henry Winkler) is anything but its namesake.

Who Stars in ‘Normal’?

The similarities to Nobody are hardly accidental. Odenkirk co-wrote Normal alongside Kolstad, who wrote the original John Wick and created the franchise before going on to write Nobody. Wheatley brings his own taste for chaotic violence to the director’s chair, resulting in a movie Rotten Tomatoes describes as delivering “over-the-top carnage.”

Normal also features Lena Headey (Game of Thrones) as Moira, Ryan Allen (Between) as Deputy Blaine Anderson, Billy MacLellan (Nobody) as Deputy Mike Nelson, Reena Jolly (SkyMed) as Lori, Brendan Fletcher (The Revenant) as Keith, Peter Shinkoda (Daredevil) as Joe, Jess McLeod (One of Us Is Lying) as Alex, and Derek Barnes as James.

Critics have largely enjoyed Odenkirk’s latest excursion into action territory. Normal currently holds a 77% Tomatometer score on Rotten Tomatoes alongside a 76% verified audience score, with the critical consensus praising Odenkirk’s “gruff yet playful presence” and Wheatley’s commitment to ridiculous, bloody entertainment.

Normal is streaming now on HBO Max.

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Release Date

April 16, 2026

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Runtime

91 minutes

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Reality star Lisa Vanderpump has turned the Las Vegas Strip into her own glamorous playground, bringing her signature mix of over-the-top design, cocktails, dining, and nightlife to Sin City. 

From lavish restaurants and pink and purple-hued lounges to her growing hospitality empire, The Vegas Files takes a look at five “Vanderpumped” places where you can experience the “RHOBH” alum’s unmistaken Vegas aesthetic. 

In March 2019, Vanderpump opened her first location in Sin City – Vanderpump Cocktail Garden at Caesars Palace. 

This spot really brings Vanderpump’s signature brand of glamour into the spotlight. The garden-inspired lounge blends dramatic lighting, lush greenery, and a feeling that you’ve stepped right into Vanderpump’s world. 

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The menu offers Instagram-worthy cocktails and small bites, shareable plates, and desserts you won’t soon forget. 

Located inside Caesars Palace near the entrance to The Forum Shops at Caesars Palace, it’s the perfect first stop before doing some shopping and gambling, or last stop to unwind with a cocktail in hand. 

For more information, visit the website.

Vanderpump à Paris At Paris Las Vegas

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Vanderpump à Paris opened inside Paris Las Vegas in April 2022. A visit to this spot will transport you from the Las Vegas Strip to a Parisian courtyard. This destination offers a romantic ambiance with signature cocktails, elevated French-inspired bites, and a sexier version of the City of Light. 

Designed to relax with a cocktail in hand, it’s the perfect spot to begin your Vegas adventures, or a great spot to end the day after exploring the area. 

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Visit the website for more information.

Pinky’s By Vanderpump At Flamingo Las Vegas

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Pinky’s by Vanderpump opened its doors inside Flamingo Las Vegas in December 2024. 

This “Vanderpumped” spot puts a glamorous spin on classic Vegas style at the Flamingo, blending the resort’s vintage history with the reality star’s style and flair. 

The restaurant and cocktail lounge surrounds guests with Art Deco-inspired design, lush green tones, and an atmosphere that’s equal parts sophisticated and theatrical. 

With creative cocktails, indulgent bites, and a lively terrace overlooking the world-famous Las Vegas Strip, Pinky’s is serving the kind of glitz and glam that Vanderpump is known for. 

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Find more information on the website.

Gigolo Bar Inside The Reality Star’s New Hotel

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Her newest bar, located inside her brand new hotel, has a unique name that fans immediately recognize. When The Blast spoke exclusively with Vanderpump a few months back, she explained the name and how she landed on it for her hotel’s bar. 

“I think people are surprised when they walk through the hotel, they see Gigolo Bar, which is also a nod to Giggy, my little dog who’s the head of the Vanderpump Dog Foundation that’s saved thousands of dogs, so people have a special place in their heart for that little guy,” she told The Blast. “When I pitched the idea of that bar, I said, ‘I’d like to call the bar in the lobby Gigolo,’ they were like, ‘Okay, so we’re gonna call it after male sex workers?’ I said, ‘No, after a dog.’ They went, ‘Oh it feels so much better now.’ People are loving that bar and it’s very curated and the drinks are all very special.” 

The ‘RHOBH’ Alum’s First Ever Hotel

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Vanderpump’s newest Vegas venture is her first hotel. During a recent appearance at Customer Contact Week in Las Vegas, she joked about her business ventures.

“A lot of people have been in my bars and drank with me, had dinner at my restaurant and ate with me, so in a way I feel we’ve been dating for a long time,” she told the crowd. “And now you get to sleep with me.” 

The hotel is her 40th venue. She transformed The Cromwell into the Vanderpump Hotel, and while doing that, filmed a reality show called, “Vanderpump Rules: Lisa Las Vegas” which is set to air sometime later this year. 

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Learn more and book your stay on the website.

Be sure to check out The Blast’s social media pages to see a reel of Vanderpump’s Vegas locations.

The biggest weekend in domestic box-office history delivered a massive $400 million-plus haul, thanks mainly to Spider-Man: Brand New Day‘s record-breaking $360 million debut. This wasn’t like the “Barbenheimer” event three years ago, when Oppenheimer and Barbie delivered more than $220 million in combined revenue in one weekend. Later this year, Warner Bros. and Disney are hoping for a repeat of the “Barbenheimer” event when Dune: Part Three and Avengers: Doomsday clash at the box office. Both films began pre-sales months before release; based on current revenue, they could produce another $400 million-plus weekend and possibly a new record.

Avengers: Doomsday has generated $35 million in advance ticket sales so far, according to Global Box Office. The movie is projected to gross between $260 million and $300 million in its opening weekend, with room for change given how much time there is until its release in December. By comparison, Avengers: Endgame set an opening-weekend record in 2019, grossing $357 million. This record was beaten by Spider-Man: Brand New Day in July. Marvel and Disney are leaving no stone unturned in bringing the MCU back to its former glory; despite the success of Spider-Man: Brand New Day, the franchise has been damaged in recent years by the underperformance of movies such as The Marvels, Thunderbolts*, Captain America: Brave New World, and Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.

How Much Is ‘Dune: Part Three’ Projected to Gross in Its Box-Office Debut?

Meanwhile, Global Box Office is reporting that Dune: Part Three has generated $10 million in advance sales already. This sets the movie up for a franchise-record opening, putting it on track to become the trilogy’s first installment to gross more than $100 million in its first weekend. By comparison, Dune: Part Two grossed $82 million in its domestic debut in 2024, and finished its global run with around $715 million. The first Dune was controversially released day-and-date on HBO Max, which dented its overall box-office performance. Despite the setback, it ended up grossing more than $430 million worldwide, including revenue from a re-release in 2024. All three movies in the acclaimed sci-fi series have been directed by Denis Villeneuve, with Timothée Chalamet and Zendaya in the lead roles. The third film will also feature Anya Taylor-Joy, Florence Pugh, Javier Bardem, Rebecca Ferguson, Robert Pattinson, Jason Momoa, and others. Dune: Part Three and Avengers: Doomsday will face off on December 18. Stay tuned to Collider for more updates.

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Release Date

December 18, 2026

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Director

Denis Villeneuve

Writers

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Jon Spaihts, Denis Villeneuve, Frank Herbert

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Although it has been an extremely strong year at the box office, 2026 has still had its fair share of flops, from Jessie Buckley‘s divisive performance in The Bride! and director Travis Knight‘s Masters of the Universe to the critically panned AI-based thriller Mercy and the inevitable flop The Death of Robin Hood. But perhaps the most notable flop of the year came from the new DC Universe, as talented young star Milly Alcock headlined as Kara Zor-El for the first time.

Opening to just $38 million domestically and $68 million worldwide, Supergirl marked a significant drop compared to last summer’s surprise smash Superman, as it whimpered out of theaters with just $126 million worldwide, against a reported budget of $170 million. So poor was this result that DC Studios co-CEO Peter Safran felt the need to publicly comment, admitting that “Supergirl didn’t meet our box office expectations,” but adding, “it’s just one component of a broader, long-term strategy at DC Studios that we remain confident in.” For James Gunn, who was an executive producer and creative supervisor on Supergirl, this is far from his first flop.

Back in 2021, Gunn faced a similar box office disaster as writer and director of The Suicide Squad, a sequel to David Ayer‘s Suicide Squad from 2016. The film boasted a $185 million budget and a stacked cast of famous faces, from Margot Robbie and John Cena to Idris Elba. However, it only made $168.7 million in total global revenue, falling far short of expectations and becoming one of the most high-profile flops of 2021. Gunn himself acknowledged the failure, although he was quick to admit that the COVID-19 pandemic and a poor streaming release strategy harmed its chances.

‘The Suicide Squad’ Has Bounced Back

Five years later and in the shadow of Supergirl‘s collapse, The Suicide Squad has surprisingly bounced back. At the time of writing, the film is one of the ten most-watched on Netflix worldwide. Other films to have ranked in the current top ten include the 2026 Indian film Cocktail 2, Kevin Hart‘s latest Netflix comedy 72 Hours, the 2003 rom-com gem What a Girl Wants, the 2015 sci-fi favorite Extinction, and Louis Leterrier‘s The Last House.

Stay tuned to Collider for the latest streaming stories.

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Release Date

August 6, 2021

Runtime

132 minutes

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Director

James Gunn

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Producers

Charles Roven, Peter Safran

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