Entertainment
7 Forgotten Heist Movies That Are Perfect From Start to Finish
The heist movie genre is one of cinema’s most undeniable pleasures. There’s something deeply satisfying about watching a crew of professionals (or lovable amateurs) execute an elaborate, impossible plan against equally impossible odds. The genre offers a unique medley: the tension of the setup, the precision of the execution, the inevitability of the double-cross, and the catharsis of the escape. Some of the best heist movies out there have that inevitable and beloved “gathering the crew” montage—arguably the best part of any heist movie.
For every Ocean’s Eleven or Heat that becomes a cultural touchstone, there’s a plethora of heist films that slipped through the cracks and remained in the “forgotten gems” category; although they likely didn’t get the blockbuster marketing push, time has been kind to them, and they remain underrated. From the first frame to the last, the forgotten heist movies that are perfect from start to finish deliver the tension, the twists, and the catharsis that they promise.
‘The Bank Job’ (2008)
Jason Statham built a career on being the most reliably entertaining action star working today, but The Bank Job is a reminder that he can do more than throw punches; he can carry a real thriller. Directed by Roger Donaldson and loosely based on the real 1971 Baker Street robbery, the film is set in London and follows Terry Leather, a small-time used-car dealer and petty crook who’s offered what sounds like a simple job: tunnel into a bank vault and empty out the safety deposit boxes inside.
Terry, of course, quickly learns that nothing about this job is simple. The boxes in the bank turn out to hold secrets tied to British intelligence and the royal family, secrets powerful people are willing to kill to protect, and the film spends its runtime escalating from a straightforward heist into a genuine conspiracy. Statham gives one of his most restrained performances here, anchoring the chaos with a working-class charm that never crosses the line into camp, and Donaldson’s sharp, grimy-glamorous period cinematography keeps the whole thing feeling dangerous. It’s the type of tight thriller that explains why Statham became a star in the first place; it’s also the most popular title on this list, making it easy to overlook how good it is.
‘Quick Change’ (1990)
Bill Murray has one directing credit to his name, and almost nobody talks about it, which is a genuine shame given how much Quick Change still feels relevant and rewatchable (though Geena Davis’ account may not deem it as such). Murray also stars in the film, playing Grimm, a New Yorker who’s had enough of the city and decides to rob a midtown Manhattan bank while dressed as a clown, alongside his girlfriend Phyllis (Davis) and best friend Loomis (Randy Quaid). The premise sounds like a singular, sketch-worthy gimmick, but the film uses it as a launchpad into even bigger, widespread chaos.
Quick Change stands out among similar movies of its class by making the robbery the easy part of the story. The real ordeal is getting out of New York City afterward, as the trio gets tangled in bureaucratic nonsense, rotten luck, and the sheer chaos of the five boroughs just trying to reach the airport. The film gleefully subverts heist-movie conventions, finding comedy in the most mundane obstacles possible rather than shootouts or double crosses. Murray’s deadpan delivery is razor-sharp, and the supporting cast — Jason Robards, Tony Shalhoub, and Stanley Tucci — is impressive. Quick Change flopped at the box office, grossing about $15.3 million against a $17 million budget, but it’s since become a cult favorite that only gets funnier with each viewing.
‘The Score’ (2001)
Some casts are so stacked they sometimes tend to feel like a marketing gimmick; on paper, The Score looks like exactly that: Robert De Niro, Edward Norton, Angela Bassett, and Marlon Brando are first billing here, and for each of them, the 2000s were a defining era in many ways (for Brando, in particular, this turned out to be a final screen role). Directed by Frank Oz, The Score is a straightforward “one last job” story; De Niro plays Nick Wells, a veteran safecracker who’s ready to retire and run his Montreal jazz club full-time, until his fence, Max (Brando), talks him into one final heist: stealing a priceless scepter locked inside the city’s customs house.
The issue is that Nick has to work with Jackie (Norton), a brash young thief with an inside connection to the building and an agenda nobody else is quite sure about. The film builds its tension almost entirely out of that pairing, with Norton’s unpredictable energy keeping both Nick and the audience off-balance long before the actual robbery starts. Oz wisely lets the performances carry the suspense rather than leaning on flashy set pieces, which makes the film feel more grounded than most heist movies from the same era. Made on a $68 million budget, it grossed around $114 million worldwide, which is a solid if unspectacular return for a film that deserves to be remembered as more than a novelty gathering of cinema legends.
‘Grand Slam’ (1967)
Of everything on this list, Grand Slam is by far the most obscure; it’s an Italian-Spanish-German co-production most audiences today have never heard of, let alone seen, which, if anything, only strengthens its case as a forgotten gem. Edward G. Robinson stars as Professor James Anders, a mild-mannered American teacher living in Rio de Janeiro who, after decades of watching a diamond company from across the street, decides he’s bored enough to plan the perfect crime. He recruits a team of international specialists, played by Janet Leigh, Klaus Kinski, and Robert Hoffmann, to pull off the theft during the chaos of Rio’s Carnival.
The structure of Grand Slam is flawless; the actual robbery unfolds with stunning precision, closer in spirit to the greatest heist film of all time, Rififi, than any particular shootout-heavy caper. The real tension shows up only afterward, in the paranoia and slow-building distrust among a crew that no longer needs each other after a done deal. With a score by Ennio Morricone and location work that makes full use of Rio’s skyline and streets, Grand Slam earns a place alongside the genre’s best. It’s lean, stylish, and proof that a heist movie’s characters matter as much as its vision.
‘Logan Lucky’ (2017)
Steven Soderbergh built his reputation on the Ocean’s trilogy, so it’s telling that when he came out of a brief retirement in 2017, he chose to make Logan Lucky, which has fondly been referred to as “Ocean’s 7-Eleven.” Logan Lucky is a heist movie stripped of tailored suits and Vegas glamour and dropped into rural West Virginia instead; Channing Tatum stars as Jimmy Logan, a construction worker who’s just been laid off and decides, almost on a whim, to rob the Charlotte Motor Speedway during a NASCAR race. He recruits his one-armed bartender brother Clyde (Adam Driver), his hairdresser sister Mellie (Riley Keough), and a locked-up, deadpan safe cracker named Joe Bang, played by Daniel Craig in one of the most outstanding performances of his career.
Logan Lucky steers away from the genre’s usual playbook through how it treats the characters it introduces. They’re working-class people with real financial stakes, and the film takes their plan just as seriously as it would a team of George Clooney-style professionals. The heist itself is genuinely clever, the humor is bone-dry, and Soderbergh directs with the same effortless confidence he brought to his glossier work. Made for around $29 million, it earned back roughly $48 million worldwide, a modest return the film’s critical reception never quite matched; Logan Lucky is a joyful movie that actually gets better with repeat viewing.
‘Thief’ (1981)
Before Michael Mann became the filmmaker behind Heat and Collateral, he made his feature debut with Thief, a film that already has his entire visual language fully formed: neon-soaked nights, rain-slick streets, and criminals defined more by their code than by the crimes they commit. Though Thief barely escaped the jaws of time, modern audiences remember it for its influence on later cinematography, particularly in the crime caper genre. James Caan stars as Frank, a professional safecracker in Chicago who wants nothing more than to leave that life behind and build a family. Standing in his way is Leo (Robert Prosky), his mentor and fence, who has no intention of letting his best earner walk away.
Thief is the kind of heist film that’s less interested in the mechanics of a single job than in the crushing weight of the job that forces Frank to stay trapped inside it; retirement from a life of crime is harder than he imagines, as it turns out. Tangerine Dream contributed a stunning synth score that gives the film its hypnotic, almost dreamlike rhythm, and Caan delivers one of the greatest performances of his career, portraying rage beneath a carefully maintained calm. Thief had a quiet release, but its influence far outweighed its financial gains, allowing Mann’s debut to reverberate through crime cinema for decades. It’s moody, aesthetic, and human, and it rewards anyone who sits with it.
‘Ronin’ (1998)
John Frankenheimer spent much of his career making sharp, paranoid political thrillers, and Ronin is what happens when that sensibility and his undeniable talent are pointed at the crime caper/heist genre instead. Robert De Niro portrays Sam, leading an ensemble of former intelligence operatives, played by Jean Reno, Stellan Skarsgård, and Sean Bean; Sam and his crew are hired by a mysterious handler named Deirdre (Natascha McElhone) to steal a heavily guarded briefcase. What’s inside is never revealed, and the film is smart enough to know that that very mystery matters more than any answer could.
Ronin, unlike some of the other entries on the list, is primarily about the job itself, depicting the shifting loyalties of people who no longer have a country or cause, as well as the cold professionalism they resort to instead. Its car chases through Nice and Paris are still among the best ever filmed, and David Mamet’s rewrites give the dialogue a bite that most action films of the time lacked. Ronin underperformed significantly at the box office when it was released, but audiences that have seen it gave it overwhelmingly positive reviews (though critics didn’t seem as thrilled). Ronin has aged pretty well, and we could argue for it to be the best forgotten heist film on this list.
Ronin
- Release Date
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September 25, 1998
- Runtime
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122 minutes
- Director
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John Frankenheimer
- Writers
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David Mamet
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Another science fiction franchise has once again captured audiences, proving there’s still love for the genre. As fantasy and horror now take over the cinema space — with the release of the live-action Moana, The Odyssey, Obsession, and Backrooms — audiences are using streaming services not only as a palate cleanser, but also to revisit some of the genre’s older yet iconic works.
Recently, a variety of science fiction titles have appeared on various streaming charts. Films like 2025’s The Running Man and Pacific Rim have made a streaming resurgence, while Project Hail Mary continues to dominate the Prime Video charts following its theatrical box office success, as well as the new The Ghost in the Shell anime series. But there’s another sci-fi franchise that’s capturing audiences, so much so that all of its entries have landed on the charts.
Men in Black is a sci-fi action comedy trilogy starring Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones as Agents J and K, two agents of the Men in Black organization who investigate criminal cases involving aliens. Recently, all three films landed on Peacock’s Top 10 Movies in the United States, with Men in Black II at #5, Men in Black III at #6, and Men in Black at #10. All three Men in Black entries grossed over $1.6 billion worldwide and led to a stand-alone sequel in 2019, called Men in Black: International, featuring a new cast.
Is the ‘Men in Black’ Trilogy Worth Watching?
Since its release, the Men in Black trilogy has performed well at the box office, but only the first and third films have been praised by fans and critics alike. Men in Black II received a low 38% critics’ score and a 45% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes, with critics calling it “forgettable” and “joyless.” In contrast, audiences debated whether it was underrated or simply unenjoyable. The first Men in Black film earned a high 91% critics’ score and an 80% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes, with critics praising it as comedic, entertaining, and playful. In agreement, audiences called it “rewatchable.” Men In Black 3 was able to redeem itself nearly 10 years later, with a 67% critics’ score and 70% audience score, with critics claiming it was better than the 2002 sequel, that it was close to capturing the spirit of the first movie, and a good summer flick. Audiences said that the third installment brought new life to the franchise and agreed that it was better than the sequel.
The Men in Black trilogy is available to stream on Peacock. Follow Collider for more updates.
- Release Date
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July 2, 1997
- Runtime
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98 minutes
- Writers
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Ed Solomon, Lowell Cunningham
- Producers
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Laurie MacDonald, Walter F. Parkes
Jason Statham is among the most credible action stars around. From features like Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels to high-octane franchises like The Fast franchise, The Transporter, The Expendables, to solo adventures like A Working Man, The Mechanic, and more, all are a testament to his immaculate action skills. And when you add a menacing creature to the action spectacle, the mix gets even better.
Among such features is Meg 2: The Trench, a sequel to the iconic The Meg movie that brings him face to face with a prehistoric shark. In the sequel, directed by Ben Wheatley, Statham returns as Jonas Taylor to lead a research team on an exploratory dive into the deepest depths of the ocean. Their voyage turns into chaos when a mining operation threatens their mission and forces them into a high-stakes battle for survival. Stuck between colossal, prehistoric sharks and environmental plunderers, the group must outrun and outswim their predators. Meg 2 garnered mixed reviews and couldn’t compare commercially with its predecessor, earning $397.8 million worldwide in contrast to The Meg’s $529 million box office haul. But the film polarized the critics and the audience, garnering 27% and 72% Rotten Tomatoes scores, respectively. And fans’ love for the feature is showing.
‘Meg 2: The Trench’ Finds Redemption on Streaming
As is the case with many movies nowadays that do not find their audience in the theaters but are a big hit when they drop on streaming, Meg 2 has found its audience on streaming. Meg 2: The Trench has found a spot on Netflix’s global Top 10 charts, as per FlixPatrol. It stands tall among features like the Spanish drama Desire, Agatha Christie’s Death on the Nile, Robert Downey Jr.’s Due Date, and Netflix original Heartstopper Forever, among others.
While the movie’s pacing and tonal inconsistencies were heavily criticized, check out Meg 2 for its slick action sequences, Statham’s charismatic performance, and the new prehistoric creatures. The feature has some compelling performances from Wu Jing as Jiuming Zhang, Sophia Cai as Meiying, Cliff Curtis as Mac, Page Kennedy as DJ, Sergio Peris Mencheta as Montes, and Skyler Samuels as Jess. Also rounding off the cast are Melissanthi Mahut as Rigas, Whoopie Van Raam as Curtis, Kiran Sonia Sawar as Sal, Felix Mayr as Lance, and Sienna Guillory as Hilary Driscoll.
Check out Meg 2: The Trench on Netflix. Stay tuned to Collider for more such updates.
- Runtime
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116 minutes
- Writers
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Erich Hoeber, Jon Hoeber
- Producers
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Belle Avery, E. Bennett Walsh, Gerald R. Molen, Jason Statham, Wu Jing, Lorenzo di Bonaventura, Erik Howsam, Randy Greenberg, Cate Adams, Ying Xujun
Who doesn’t love a good Letterboxd franchise ranking? Taking a look at the average Letterboxd reviews for movie franchises is a ton of fun, given the fact that the social media platform has some of the more accurate general thoughts from fans and audiences alike. Letterboxd isn’t like Rotten Tomatoes, where there are critic reviews, but it is a platform for the people.
When it comes to rating franchises, it doesn’t get more interesting and divisive than the Marvel Cinematic Universe. It’s one of the longest-running franchises in cinema and has one of the largest numbers of films in a movie series. So, there are a lot of movies to rank, and many that are fan favorites for different people. This makes the MCU a specifically difficult one to put against itself, but Letterboxd should be helpful in discovering the consensus among audiences.
20
‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever’ (2022)
Letterboxd Rating: 3.3/5.0
After the untimely passing of Chadwick Boseman, it was up in the air whether Marvel Studios could continue to produce the Black Panther franchise. Thanks to the ever-beloved director, Ryan Coogler, though, the sequel managed to work out very well. They didn’t recast T’Challa, but rather had him pass in-universe, which incites a phenomenal character arc for his surviving sister, Shuri (Letitia Wright).
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is one of the most underrated post-Avengers: Endgame MCU films. The character arcs that Shuri, her mother, Ramonda (Angela Bassett), and Namor (Tenoch Huerta Mejía) go through are extremely well-written. This movie is character-first, and that serves it so well, especially given the fact that this is a huge tribute to Boseman and everything he did for not just the MCU, but cinema as a whole.
19
‘The Fantastic Four: First Steps’ (2025)
Letterboxd Rating: 3.3/5.0
The Fantastic Four has needed a win in cinema for quite some time. Always seeming to pull the short end of the superhero movie stick, Marvel’s first family, they finally got a huge win in 2025 with the release of Marvel Studios’ first bout with the team, The Fantastic Four: First Steps. While it’s not some perfect film, no, it’s still super entertaining and keeps the audience on their toes.
Set in the 1960s, with a retro-futuristic backdrop, this movie takes so much inspiration from the classic era of Marvel Comics, and it serves it very well. This movie is so inherently The Fantastic Four in every way, and with that, it found a lot of love from fans and, honestly, people simply hoping the movie would turn out alright. Not to mention, Sue Storm (Vanessa Kirby) totally owns the screen and is the highlight of the film, with a Letterboxd user saying, “invisible woman ALWAYS serves.”
18
‘Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings’ (2021)
Letterboxd Rating: 3.4/5.0
While the consensus of Phase 4 of Marvel Studios’ MCU doesn’t have as good a reputation as the previous three, one film that absolutely stands out is the likes of Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. A huge thanks goes to Andy Cheng from Jackie Chan‘s stunt team, who brought some amazing martial arts to this movie and gave it some of the greatest fight sequences in a Marvel movie.
“[From] me to marvel — don’t forget that you have Shang-Chi,” is an opinion given by one fan on Letterboxd that is often shared by many, with people hoping that the general performance of Phase 4 MCU doesn’t land Shang-Chi (Simu Liu) in a place like the likes of Moon Knight—being discarded for seemingly the rest of time. Thanks to the fact that Simu Liu has been cast in Avengers: Doomsday, it seems like Marvel Studios understands what they had here… Good.
17
‘Captain America: The First Avenger’ (2011)
Letterboxd Rating: 3.4/5.0
Captain America: The First Avenger may very well be one of the most underrated Marvel Studios films ever made. Being a period piece, it finds itself being unlike anything found in Phases 1, 2, or 3 (aside from Captain Marvel). It’s a movie about a character that defines what America could and should be, put best by one user: “every unpatriotic cell in my body leaves when I watch this movie.”
While the third act isn’t absolutely perfect, one could argue that the first two are pretty dang close to perfect as one could get. Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) is easily one of the most well-written characters in the MCU, and it all begins here in his origin film. Captain America: The First Avenger sets the standard for how the character should be brought to life.
16
‘Spider-Man: Far From Home’ (2019)
Letterboxd Rating: 3.4/5.0
Spider-Man: Far From Home has plenty of issues with it that many will gladly note—being more of an Avengers: Endgame sequel rather than a Spider-Man: Homecoming one—the movie is still phenomenally entertaining all around. While it struggles in Act Two, Acts One and Three are both genuinely amazing.
Jake Gyllenhaal stands out here as giving one of the best Spider-Man movie performances of all time, solidifying himself as one of the best Spider-Man villains out there. While Spidey fans knew that Mysterio had nefarious things up his sleeve, they didn’t know what exactly it was, and it paid off very well. Hilariously, one Letterboxd user describes the character of Mysterio very well when he said, “Working for Mysterio is what I imagine being friends with a D-List actor is like”. Not to mention, this project features one of the best visual sequences in a modern superhero film as the Wall-Crawler steps up against Mysterio in his “illusion world”.
15
‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ (2024)
Letterboxd Rating: 3.4/5.0
The Deadpool franchise has been beloved by people ever since the first film’s release in 2016, thanks to how little it holds its punches, while still having a plethora of heart and soul at the core. While some have complaints about Deadpool 2, the franchise returned to its former glory in the third film, and the first time the 20th Century Fox characters made an appearance in the MCU, Deadpool & Wolverine. One Letterboxd review reads: “It made me laugh quite a bit, and the emotional aspects were much weightier than I had hoped for.”
It was a bold move making Deadpool (Ryan Reynolds) of all characters the first X-Men-related character to be introduced in the MCU. While he’s tagged along by Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine in this adventure, it’s safe to say that having it be an R-rated title for the X-Men universe of characters’ first debut was risky. However, it paid off extremely well and even went on to be one of the highest-grossing movies of all time. If that isn’t a testament to its quality, there’s not much that is.
14
‘Doctor Strange’ (2016)
Letterboxd Rating: 3.5/5.0
Doctor Strange is an incredibly underrated superhero origin film, and the people of Letterboxd seem to really recognize that. It’s been pretty forgotten over the years, but the first movie following the Sorcerer Supreme is not bad in the slightest. One Letterboxd user expresses the charm of Doctor Strange in comparison to others when he says, “Doctor Strange is bonkers. It goes to so many weird places.”
That’s right, the world of the Mystic Arts that this movie introduces to the MCU is so funky and unique, which makes what would be seen as a standard and basic origin film into a trippy ride. This flows into the visuals, making Doctor Strange one of the more visually electric MCU movies, as well.
13
‘Spider-Man: Homecoming’ (2017)
Letterboxd Rating: 3.5/5.0
In what world does a Spider-Man movie not find itself being successful in one way or another? Not this one, because while there was some anxiety and nervousness surrounding the MCU Peter Parker’s (Tom Holland) first solo outing, people ended up loving it (for the most part — looking at you, Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.).
Iron Man complaints aside, though, Spider-Man: Homecoming finds itself being adored by many — even being a favorite Spider-Man movie for some, with one user saying, “My favorite Spider-Man.” The decision to bring Spider-Man back to high school and keep him there for the entire first trilogy was abundantly smart on Marvel Studios’ part, and the entire charm of it was established first here.
12
‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2’ (2017)
Letterboxd Rating: 3.6/5.0
One of the most beloved superhero trilogies out there is also one of the most beloved space opera trilogies, too. The second film of said trilogy may not be the best of the trilogy, but there’s no denying that Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 is still amazing. It has so much heart and soul as it explores the newer corners of the cosmic side of the MCU.
One fan emphasizes one of the best parts of the sequel when they write, “… loved Ego and Peter’s dynamic and story,” in their review of the film. The father-son plot here is one of the beating hearts of the film and serves to be pretty dang relatable to a lot of audience members, keeping this sequel still very adored despite not hitting the same highs as the first and third movies.
11
‘Captain America: Civil War’ (2016)
Letterboxd Rating: 3.6/5.0
Also considered by many fans as “Avengers 2.5,” Captain America: Civil War brings the MCU together once more, but this time, they’re facing each other (for the most part). Adapting one of the most famous comic book storylines of all time, of the same name, this second Joe Russo and Anthony Russo-directed Marvel Studios project is unforgettable for multiple reasons. It also cements the Steve Rogers trilogy as one of the best, similarly claimed by a user when they said, “This film solidified for me that Cap had one of the best trilogies in Marvel, rivaled only by Guardians.”
Not only did this project split the Avengers up in a terrible way before Thanos arrived in the third and fourth The Avengers movies, but it also introduced none other than the MCU’s iteration of the web-slinging wall crawler himself, Spider-Man. This makes Captain America: Civil War not only significant for its quality, performances, and action sequences, but also because of how much it changed the cinematic landscape between studios with the Disney and Sony Pictures Entertainment deal to bring Spidey into the MCU.
Summary
- Collider’s Steven Weintraub talks with Tom Holland, Jon Berthal, and Jacob Batalon for Spider-Man: Brand New Day.
- Holland discusses how director Destin Daniel Cretton elevates the franchise and his first reaction to the finished film.
- Bernthal discusses how Punisher fits into Spider-Man’s PG-13 without sacrificing the character’s core identity.
It’s been a long time since Tom Holland’s Peter Parker has had that youthful glint in his eye we first saw nearly a decade ago. A lot has transpired in the MCU, from Avengers: Endgame to Spider-Man: No Way Home, but as long as the world keeps spinning, so too does your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man’s web — even if everyone he’s ever known and loved has completely forgotten he exists. In Spider-Man: Brand New Day, Peter isn’t just facing formidable new adversaries but also a startling new change within himself.
Gone are the days of Stark Industries’ advanced tech and the support of his superpowered friends. Spider-Man is at his lowest, fighting crime full-time, while watching everyone, including his best friend Ned (Jacob Batalon) and even MJ (Zendaya), move on with their lives without him. The isolation has left Peter in unfamiliar territory, and he finds guidance in the last place he’d expect, with Jon Bernthal’s Frank Castle, a.k.a. The Punisher. But to make matters worse, this lonely new life has triggered a mutation in Peter’s transformation as he’s trying to fight an enemy he can’t see. Brand New Day also features Sadie Sink in her MCU debut and Mark Ruffalo as Bruce Banner/The Hulk.
In this interview with Collider’s Steven Weintraub, Holland, Bernthal, and Batalon discuss what it was like to work alongside director Destin Daniel Cretton and Marvel’s elite team of creatives, how Cretton’s vision has helped the franchise grow, and Holland’s reaction to seeing the finished film for the first time. Bernthal also talks about the Punisher joining Spider-Man’s PG-13 world, his initial concerns, and why fans of The Punisher: One Last Kill won’t be disappointed.
Tom Holland Was Extremely Impressed With Destin Daniel Cretton’s “Level of Talent” on ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’
“He has found a way to grow this franchise and to make the movie feel bigger.”
COLLIDER: How did the finished film compare to what you thought it was going to be when you started filming?
TOM HOLLAND: To be perfectly honest with you, it is above and beyond what I thought it was going to be. I think Destin [Daniel Cretton] is a filmmaker with a level of talent that you rarely come by. I think that he has found a way to grow this franchise and to make the movie feel bigger, and to make the action feel more dangerous, and to make the stakes feel higher without sacrificing the emotion and the heart of what makes these characters tick.
When I watch a movie for the first time, I always ask if I can watch it twice right in a row, because the first time I watch it, it’s so overwhelming. I finished it the first time, and I ran upstairs in Burbank at Marvel Studios, and I was literally jumping up and down with the editing team and Destin.
JACOB BATALON: I was just pleasantly surprised that they let me watch it. [Laughs] No, it was definitely way more than I expected. The script itself was already so great that just seeing it put together was very beautiful. It put a big smile on my face.
JON BERNTHAL: I’ve not seen it, but what he said about Destin and this entire team is how I feel. It felt enormously human. I was very surprised, in the making of it, how much attention to character and, like Tom said, to emotion and just to the fractured human connection between these characters, and how important it is. In the world of something of this size and scope, that that was so vital is beautiful.
How Jon Bernthal Brought Punisher’s R-Rated World Into ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’s PG-13 Setting
“I think we explored it fully.”
I was very surprised when Punisher was added to this movie, because Punisher is famously R-rated and Spider-Man is famously PG-13. Talk a little bit about figuring out how far Frank can go in this universe. Is it more about the debate between the two characters about one person saying, “You can’t kill,” and one person saying, “It’s the only way?”
BERNTHAL: Look, I think that’s certainly part of it, but that was an issue, and what I saw was the issue for all of us. I think the goal was, going in, would we buy that he could walk off of One Last Kill and walk into this world, and go back and forth? Would we buy it? And I think we dug into the issue. I think we explored it fully.
Colton Hill, a Green Beret who worked with me on One Last Kill, worked with me also on this and was there every day, and I was really blown away by how open these guys were to really exploring that issue and to diving into it, and not to run away from it or try to avoid it, or just to say it doesn’t matter, because it did. I believe that we were successful.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day swings into theaters on July 31.
- Release Date
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July 31, 2026
- Runtime
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150 Minutes
- Director
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Destin Daniel Cretton
With Hollywood continuing to revive films decades after their original releases, more movies are getting long-awaited sequels than ever before. While some would welcome a follow-up to “Matilda,” Mara Wilson isn’t convinced the 1996 cult film should follow the trend. The actress recently shared why she has reservations about revisiting the beloved family movie.
“Matilda” was released in 1996, based on the 1988 children’s novel of the same title written by Roald Dahl. It starred Mara Wilson as the titular character and also featured Danny DeVito as her father, Rhea Perlman as her mother, Embeth Davidtz as Matilda’s kind and sweet teacher Ms. Honey, and Pam Ferris as ruthless principal Ms. Trunchbull.
At a Fanboy Expo panel, Wilson shared that she’s often asked about the possibility of a “Matilda” sequel. One of the plots often pushed is about Matilda’s daughter. However, the actress doesn’t think that would work.
Wilson said Matilda overcame adversity in the movie and “found power in educating herself,” adding, “I don’t think Matilda would raise her daughter to be in a position where she developed those powers to protect herself,” per PEOPLE.
The Actress Thinks No One Is Good Enough For Matilda To Marry
Furthermore, Wilson thinks it would be difficult to create a narrative in which Matilda is married and has a family of her own.
“This is a tricky question, but who would Matilda marry? Who’s good enough for Matilda? Matilda’s such an awesome character that I can’t imagine who she would marry and have kids with, you know,” the actress asked the audience.
She continued to say that she used to be bothered by her association with the character. The former child actress appeared in several movies, including “Mrs. Doubtfire,” “Miracle on 34th Street,” and “A Time to Heal,” but for some reason, many identify her with Matilda and even call her by her character’s name.
Wilson came to appreciate it over the years, saying, “You know, Carrie Fisher, who played Princess Leia, she said, ‘I feel like me and Princess Leia have kind of merged over the years.’ And I sort of feel like that too,” she said.
Danny DeVito Expressed His Desire For A Sequel
DeVito, who produced, directed, and co-starred in “Matilda,” voiced his desire to do a sequel in 2019. “I always wanted to do Matilda 2, but when the kid was still a kid,” the actor said. However, he noted that the idea was about 20 to 25 years old. “Maybe Matilda has a kid and we can do something that, I don’t know,” he said, per Comicbook.
In 2025, DeVito shared why he decided to bring Dahl’s story to the big screen. “I wanted to capture that Roald Dahl magic… that balance of dark and light, where even in the bleakest moments, there’s hope and humor,” he explained.
The actor was able to revisit “Matilda” through “Matilda in Concert,” an orchestral screening of the movie. DeVito was heavily involved in the production and said it was a way of introducing new audiences to the decades-old movie. “It brings the story to life in a way that’s both fresh and deeply nostalgic,” he told The Globe and Mail.
Mara Wilson And Danny DeVito Share A Deep Bond
Wilson has fond memories of working on “Matilda,” especially the support she received from DeVito, whom she calls her “favorite uncle.”
During the Fanboy Expo panel, the actress debunked a long-running rumor that the veteran actor legally adopted her. “Danny DeVito did not literally adopt me. That’s a myth. But he did take very good care of my family,” she shared.
Wilson was 8 years old at the time of filming, and her mother was battling breast cancer. She died before the movie’s theatrical release, and the director dedicated the film in her honor. The actress sought comfort in DeVito and Perlman, sharing that they’ve become her “lifelong friends.”
“There were hard days, but there were also days where it felt like summer camp, and I am still friends with the people that I worked on it today,” said Wilson.
‘Matilda’ Grew Into A Beloved Cult Favorite
“Matilda” was released in August 1996 and competed with other big movies such as “Mission: Impossible,” “Independence Day,” and “Twister.” The family film was not a box office success, grossing only $47 million worldwide on a budget of $36 million.
However, it found its audience through home videos and was heavily on rotation on cable TV. Over the years, “Matilda” developed a devoted cult following, with audiences embracing the heartfelt story and memorable characters. Today, it is widely regarded as one of the most beloved family films of the ’90s and continues to resonate with both longtime fans and new viewers.
General Hospital alum Kirsten Storms has issued a public statement about her daughter amid an ongoing custody battle with ex-husband Brandon Barash.
“Please remember that we are people who are divorced and have a child,” Storms, 42, wrote via Instagram on Sunday, July 19. “I appreciate the supportive comments, but now that my daughter is of the age where she will Google her name while riding the bus to school, I’m asking that the speculation on this issue please stop.”
The actress, who split from former costar Barash, 46, in 2016, attracted headlines in April after her ex filed an emergency restraining order against her, per legal documents obtained by Us at the time. The documents showed that Barash also filed for custody of their daughter, Harper Rose, 12, in December 2025. (Prior to the filing, the former couple coparented their child, relocating from California to Tennessee in 2025.)
Storms’ Instagram post also discussed the profound impact that Harper has had on her life. “I had Harper, and how I viewed every single thing in life shifted. I swear I’m not going to continue to bring up my medical situation (I’ll make jokes and it will be awkward), but until I began to understand how precious time is and how what we prioritize becomes ALL we have, there was never a thought that my life would ever change,” she continued, referencing the 2021 brain cyst, 2025 brain aneurysm and subsequent treatments she’s undergone over the years.
Kirsten Storms and Brandon Barash met on the set of General Hospital, eventually sparking a real-life romance. Storms began playing Maxie Jones on and off in 2005, while Barash brought Johnny Zacchara to life from 2007 to 2013. The pair kept their offscreen romance private until August 2013, when news broke that they had secretly […]
The actress also took the opportunity to comment on her current relationship with Barash. “I will briefly acknowledge that there is an ongoing situation with Brandon that will be getting sorted out (soon hopefully),” Storms wrote. “I would appreciate (and encourage) for people … not to worry about me, or think there is something larger going on, other than 2 ex-spouses dealing with a “disagreement” that WILL be resolved.”
Storms and Barash tied the knot in 2013 after falling in love while working together on General Hospital — Storms portrayed Maxie Jones while Barash played Johnny Zacchara.
General Hospital star Kirsten Storms‘ ex-husband, Brandon Barash, was granted a restraining order amid concerns for her mental health. Barash, 46, recently filed for an emergency restraining order, according to TMZ. The request was approved after Barash claimed that his ex-wife is exhibiting concerning behavior and he fears for their 12-year-old daughter’s well-being. In his […]
After welcoming their daughter the following year, Barash told Soap Opera Digest in April 2016 that the pair’s marriage was over. “We are splitting due to the cliché irreconcilable differences, but we’re splitting amicably,” the actor said at the time. “We have every intention of remaining a family through this and coparenting our kid and retaining a friendship in the efforts of raising her in a healthy environment.”
In Barash’s recent legal filing, he requested a change to his and Storms’ initial agreement due to multiple issues that had risen since their cross country move.
Anne Hathaway confirmed her return as Mia Thermopolis in October 2024, and since then, fans have eagerly been awaiting more details about “Princess Diaries 3.” The film’s lengthy development stems from years of reworking the story, assembling the right team, and ensuring the movie meets fans’ expectations before moving into production.
Now, Hathaway is sharing a promising development that may signal the long-awaited sequel is finally moving forward.
It has been more than two decades since “The Princess Diaries” introduced audiences to Mia Thermopolis, an awkward teenager who discovers she is heir to the throne of Genovia. The franchise returned with “The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement” in 2004, leaving fans wondering what happened after Mia embraced her royal destiny.
Many changes have happened in the development of the third movie, and while details are scarce, Anne Hathaway shared that the current script may be the one they are moving forward with.
The actress sat down with Andy Cohen on “Radio Andy” and said, “I can say I think we had a story breakthrough. I think we are moving in the right direction,” noted Hathaway, adding that the previous script had to be scrapped and writers started over.
“We all feel really good that this is gonna be the one,” she said.
Adele Lim Teased The Direction The Third Film Is Going
“Crazy Rich Asians” co-writer Adele Lim was announced as the director for “Princess Diaries 3” in 2024. In May, she shared a glimpse of what’s to come in the upcoming movie, and rather than focusing on Mia as a princess, she wants to present a “wish-fulfillment” for the character as a queen.
“The girls who grew up believing in princesses, we want to grow up believing that there is a world in which you can be a queen and be fabulous and kicking a-s and also find a way to mentor the young women coming up after us,” Lim told E! News.
The second movie ended with Mia calling off her wedding and convincing the Parliament to abolish the archaic law that required a queen to be married before ascending the throne. She was then crowned as the ruling queen of Genovia.
‘The Princess Diaries’ Author Has Read The Latest Script
“The Princess Diaries” movies are based on the young adult series penned by Meg Cabot. In late June, the author revealed that she has read different versions of the script since its development, but she is most excited about the latest one.
“I read a script, and it was amazing. I told them not to send anymore, because I love it so much,” she told The Hollywood Reporter. Cabot admitted that she has trouble holding her tongue, and since the filmmakers don’t want any details leaked, she jokingly told them not to send her more scripts.
The author refused to share other information about the project, only saying that some details in her books made it to the screenplay. It may be difficult to narrow down what exactly she’s referring to, as the series has more than 10 books in total, in addition to spin-off novels.
The Director Posted A Casting Call
In 2025, Lim took to social media and posted a casting call for “Princess Diaries 3.” The role was for Olivia Robinson and was described as: “15 years old, Mixed Race (Black/White). Smart, sarcastic armored and observant, Olivia Robinson wants to be left alone.”
The books introduce Olivia as Mia’s younger half-sister, born from a secret relationship between Mia’s father, Philippe, and Olivia’s mother. Mia looks for her sister after learning that her mother passed away and fights the teen’s extended family for custody.
‘The Princess Diaries’ Was Anne Hathaway’s Breakout Role
“The Princes Diaries” marked Hathaway’s breakout role, launching her career as one of Hollywood’s most recognizable stars. Prior to her casting, she starred in the short-lived TV series “Get Real.” The film was a commercial success and established the actress as a rising talent, paving the way for future roles.
In April, Hathaway looked back at her debut movie with fond memories, noting that playing the role changed her life. The actress has since appeared in many roles spanning different genres. Some of her works include “Ella Enchanted,” “Brokeback Mountain,” “The Devil Wears Prada,” “Alice in Wonderland,” “Les Misérables,” and “The Odyssey,” just to name a few.
Production for “Princess Diaries 3” has yet to be announced, and since Hathaway is expecting her third child, filming is unlikely to begin soon.
Blake Lively is not letting her latest legal battle with Justin Baldoni get in the way of a good time.
The Gossip Girl alum, 38, attended the 2026 World Cup final in New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium with three of her friends on Sunday, July 19, sharing a glimpse of their sun-soaked day via her Instagram Stories.
Posing for a selfie just steps away from the pitch prior to the game commencing, Lively beamed for the camera while wearing jeans and a white T-shirt beneath a printed open shirt. She paired her summery ensemble with a chunky statement necklace and sunglasses.
While her husband, Ryan Reynolds, was not in the snap, the actor, 49, also showed his love for the sport at the FIFA World Cup’s Fanatics Fest over in Manhattan on Sunday, sharing photos from a panel appearance via his Instagram Stories that day. (Reynolds is the co-owner of the professional Welsh football club Wrexham A.F.C.)
Blake Lively requested financial damages after her shocking settlement with Justin Baldoni over their It Ends With Us legal dispute. Lively, 38, filed a notice of settlement, in which she requested damages to cover her attorneys’ fees and costs, as well as compensatory and punitive damages, according to court documents obtained by Us Weekly on Thursday, […]
Lively’s public outing comes days after Baldoni, 42, announced via his lawyers that he is fighting the actress’ request for him to pay approximately $8 million in legal fees following their recent settlement after a 17-month legal battle sparked by Lively’s sexual harassment complaint against him in December 2024.
Baldoni, who directed and starred alongside Lively in It Ends With Us, vehemently denied Lively’s accusations, which also included him orchestrating an alleged smear campaign against her, and countersued — though his lawsuit was thrown out of court in June 2025.
Blake Lively’s Instagram Story Courtesy of Blake Lively/Instagram
One month after the pair’s May settlement, which was announced just weeks ahead of a scheduled trial, Lively requested that Baldoni be held responsible for $8,035,040.88 in her attorneys’ fees and other costs.
In a court filing obtained by Us on July 13, Baldoni’s lawyers Ellyn S. Garofalo and Bryan Freedman argued that Lively’s motion should be denied. “Lively fails to meet her burden to present credible evidence showing that the fees and costs she seeks to recover are reasonable and, accordingly, her fee motion should be denied in its entirety,” the pair stated in the filing.
Blake Lively Craig Barritt/Getty Images for Fendi
The legal representatives also compared Lively’s request to that of the New York Times seeking $181,622.70 in attorneys’ fees “to dismiss precisely the same defamation claim,” referring to Baldoni’s defamation case against the newspaper. (Baldoni had unsuccessfully sued the outlet for $250 million over accusations that he engaged in a smear campaign against Lively.)
Earlier this month, Baldoni and his wife, Emily, broke their silence over his legal battle with Lively, taking to Instagram to share a joint video. “We have not done this in a while, so we have not spoken publicly for the better part of the last two years and it’s not because we haven’t had anything to say,” Baldoni said in the July 8 clip before Emily, 41, jumped in. “There is so much to say and it makes it hard to speak, it makes it hard to figure out what is right for us for this specific moment. But what does feel important is that we can genuinely say that we are sitting here today feeling immense gratitude for so many things and so many people and so many people that have happened to us.”
Spice Girls singer Melanie Chisholm is officially off the market after saying “I do” to fiancé Chris Dingwall.
“I love weddings [and] when I go to other people’s I always have good craic, but I wasn’t a girl who grew up dreaming about her dress,” Chisholm, 52, told British Vogue in a Sunday, July 19, profile, announcing her nuptials. I was always just focused on my career. I think even relationships took a backseat for me because I’ve been so driven to do what I love, which is performing.”
She continued, “I’d gotten to the point in my life where I just didn’t think it was going to be a part of my story.”
Chisholm, mom to 17-year-old daughter Scarlett whom she welcomed during a previous relationship, changed her tune once she met Dingwall in 2024 via celebrity dating app Raya.
“The spark was immediate. I was 49 when I met Chris and I was in a really good place,” the singer recalled to the outlet. “We had a date in Australia, and it’s been difficult to separate us ever since. He’s been such a beautiful addition to mine and my daughter’s life.”
Chisholm gushed that it’s been “a beautiful dynamic” welcoming Dingwall into her family.
“I’m a single mum. My daughter is 17, and we’re pretty resilient, the two of us, we’re a team,” she stated. “For anybody coming into our world, it was going to be tough, and he just fits perfectly.”
Dingwall ultimately popped the question during the couple’s July 2025 Mallorca, Spain, vacation. The pair wed in a simple legal ceremony in Australia, followed by a relaxing celebration in Cumbria this summer.
“I didn’t feel like a big traditional wedding was right for me,” Chisholm acknowledged, revealing that she picked out a bridal gown from former bandmate Victoria Beckham’s eponymous label.
Spice Girl Melanie Chisholm says she made a “conscious” choice to keep her daughter out of the spotlight. Chisholm shares daughter Scarlet, 16, with ex-partner Thomas Starr, but despite her mom’s global fame, the teenager has no plans on following in her footsteps. The singer told The Times of London in an interview published on […]
“I was actually having dinner with Melanie and asked her what she was up to. She very casually told me she was leaving for Australia in two days and getting married!” Beckham, 52, told Vogue. “When I asked what she was wearing, she mentioned she had actually ordered one of my dresses but that it didn’t quite fit, and she didn’t have time to get it altered before leaving. I happened to have that exact dress in my own wardrobe and offered to lend it to her.”
Chisholm wore Beckham’s Lace Cami Dress to her Australian ceremony and the fashion designer also offered to make a bespoke creation for her friend’s lavish party in England.
“Victoria wanted to make it much more personal to me. She found some gorgeous vintage lace, and everything was really delicately dyed to the perfect shade,” the bride gushed. “It’s very flattering, open at the back.”
By Chris Snellgrove
| Published
As a huge genre nerd, I have complex feelings about television reboots. Specifically, I think it’s a waste of time trying to reboot something truly great because the new show is likely to be a huge disappointment compared to the earlier one. Honestly, that’s why I was happy the Buffy the Vampire Slayer reboot got canceled; that depressing sixth season notwithstanding, the original show was nearly perfect, and trying to improve on that would be inevitably disappointing. Instead, it’s better to reboot a disappointing show that had potential, like Ronald D. Moore did with Battlestar Galactica.
With that in mind, there has never been a genre show more in need of a reboot than Sliders. The show had an absolutely perfect concept, and it explored how fun the multiverse can be way before Marvel ran this idea into the ground. But after a couple of seasons of awesome storytelling, Sliders transformed into a schlock action show that ripped off almost everything and started bleeding cast members until the series was almost completely unrecognizable. The result is a decent show that should have been a great show, and a reboot may be the only way for Sliders to achieve its full potential.
Playing Slide-And-Seek
The plot of Sliders is that Quinn Mallory (Jerry O’Connell) develops the technology to “slide” to different parallel realities, and he takes three companions (including a professor played by John Rhys-Davies) on a visit to a new universe. Unfortunately, the device they use to slide soon loses the ability to track the coordinates of their home dimension. Now, they are forced to travel to random worlds, hoping to eventually get back to their original reality. But there’s a timelock: they must travel to a new dimension when the countdown timer reaches zero. Otherwise, they’ll be stuck in an alternate reality for decades!
It’s a great concept, and the series is basically the lovechild of The Twilight Zone and Quantum Leap. As in the Twilight Zone, different dimensions are used to explore one fantastic scenario after another, including a world where America lost the Revolutionary War and worlds where time flows backwards. But much like Quantum Leap, our heroes typically spend their time in each reality trying to improve as many lives as possible. The result is a surprisingly heartwarming show in which our characters navigate prickly moral dilemmas while wearing their hearts firmly on their sleeves.
A Cast Driven Away By Bad Writing
Sliders had two seasons of nearly perfect storytelling, and if it had been canceled after that, genre fans would speak of it with the same reverence that we speak about Firefly. Unfortunately, the show went on for two more seasons, and it began to go seriously downhill in Season 3. That’s because the Fox network demanded that the show transition from thought-provoking sci-fi stories to action schlock. In an interview with Digital Spy, Rhys-Davies noted how Sliders “could’ve been the best show on television” but that the network interfered and turned most of the scripts into “incomprehensible gibberish.” This is one of the reasons he exited the show.
Rhys-Davies has been hilariously blunt in describing what went wrong with Season 3. When he was interviewed at the Toulouse Game Show, he discussed how the writers just started ripping off others’ ideas. “We did an episode like Tremors, one like Twister, one like The Night of the Living Dead, and even one like The Island of Doctor Moreau, using the film’s original masks!” Continuing, he said, “The breaking point for me was when I walked in and saw the writers sitting around looking at a DVD of Species, which had just been released, and saying: ‘Look, we could take a bit of that scene there and a bit of that scene there.’
Does Whatever A Slider-Man Can
Conveniently enough, the Raiders of the Lost Ark actor has summed up exactly why Sliders needs a reboot. A new series that never tries to do crappy ripoffs of other movies and shows could take its time exploring all of the practical, ethical, and moral conundrums involved with interdimensional travel. This would reduce the risk of core actors abandoning the show; like, by the end of the original series, only one member of the original cast (Cleavant Derricks) was still there! But a Sliders with a consistent cast and a perfect premise for episodic adventures? That’s a reboot that would be utterly unstoppable.
However, a reboot of this show seems less likely than ever before. Previously, Jerry O’Connell and John Rhys-Davies discussed a possible reboot with Sliders creator Tracy Tormé, who was working on reviving the franchise as recently as 2021. Sadly, he died in 2024, meaning we might have to slide into a new universe to see what a reboot looks like. Fortunately, fans can still experience the original show in its entirety at the click of a button. Sliders is currently streaming for free on Tubi. Just be sure to keep the remote handy; Season 2 is a countdown, and once it hits zero, you’ll want to slide your TV over to a better show!!
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