[Editor’s note: The following contains major spoilers for Season 2 of Cross.]

In the Season 2 finale of the Prime Video series Cross, Detective Alex Cross (Aldis Hodge) reached a breaking point, leaving his badge and walking away from the career that he’s dedicated himself to. Before making that decision, he finally caught up with vigilante killer Luz (Jeanine Mason) and made billionaire Lance Durand (Matthew Lillard) answer for his crimes. But the clash with FBI Agent Kayla Craig (Alona Tal) went to a whole other level when she attempted to take him down to make an impression as the new Assistant Director. With Cross’ career hanging in the balance, it’s sure to take something big to draw him back in for Season 3.

Collider recently got the opportunity to chat one-on-one with show creator/showrunner Ben Watkins about how everything played out in Season 2, what led to him stepping in as Roy McElhannon, an FBI supervisory character that becomes suspicious of Alex Cross, and how it all leads into what could come next in Season 3. During the interview, he discussed the desire to reveal different sides of the characters we first got to know in Season 1, percolating on some ideas for Season 3, his favorite moments that Hodge delivered in Season 2, why Roy was the right character to get him to return to acting, how his lead actor came to punch him in the face, the importance of diverse voices in a writers’ room and how that lead to the stand-out face-off between Kayla and Elle (Samantha Walkes), giving the vigilante storyline a real history and legacy, the brutal violence throughout the season, Kayla’s arc and her clash with Alex, and burying Lillard alive. Watkins also went on to share what could come next, his desire to bring back Ed Ramsey (Ryan Eggold), the four-season arcs he has planned, and a future for the series that he’d like to continue for as long as possible.

Collider: After people loved Season 1, how did you want to change things up even further in Season 2? How did you want to approach the second season to set it apart from the first season and to keep it fresh for you?

BEN WATKINS: I loved Season 1. It’s like your first child. But as somebody who has four kids, one of the things I love about having kids is that each one is different. They change how you see the world. And I felt like that’s what we wanted to do. We wanted to expand our perspective, and we really applied that rule across the board. Number one, we had different storyline. Number two, we explored the lives of the characters around Alex Cross after a season that was so Cross-focused. We also shot at a different time of year, so it changed the color palette of the show a little bit. We created a storyline that got us outside of Washington, D.C. a little bit.

After a very D.C. centric show in Season 1, we got to go to Texas, we got to go to Mexico, and we got to go to Florida, and that gave us a different look. Just that variety, in and of itself, was really fun. Of course, you’re always going to do a new storyline, and you need it to be something that puts your characters in positions that reveal different sides of themselves. And so, with Season 2, to go down a storyline that is about vigilantism and that really forces the characters to ask themselves questions about what’s right or wrong, who’s good or bad, and where do you stand in that equation, gave us a chance to really reveal different sides of all of our characters, but especially Alex Cross.

The Creative Team for ‘Cross’ Has a Good Sense of What Season 3 Will Be

“We’re already hatching ideas.”

Image via Prime Video

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You shot Seasons 1 and 2 before viewers got to see a single episode, so where are things at with Season 3? Having now had time to hear some feedback, has that informed or shaped what you’d want to do with Season 3 in any way?

WATKINS: I will say that we’re already hatching ideas for Season 3, and we’re percolating on that. We’re very excited about what that would look like. This show hit in a way that we never expected when Season 1 dropped. To get 40 million viewers in 20 days was phenomenal. The way that it was number one worldwide for so many weeks was something that went beyond what we could have wished for. It did set the table for us to potentially have a long life as a series, but right now, it’s just one step at a time. We feel very proud of what we’ve done with Season 2, that we got a chance to play in a different sandbox, but also really honor the world that we had created. And now, starting to get feedback from Season 1, it has helped in terms of what we think about as we’re hatching ideas for Season 3. We’re really excited about that potential.

You’re also actually in Season 2, and I’ve read that you decided you wanted to do it, had to do an audition tape, and now here you are in the show. Now that you can look back on the experience, how did it feel to get back into acting, to work in that way with your cast, and to have some moments during the season? What was that whole experience like and how did it feel for you to experience the show in a different way?

WATKINS: That was really eye-opening for me. It started off as sort of a lark. I’m not the only one who does this, but I do it a lot, and maybe it’s because I started as an actor, but when we’re in the writers’ room breaking story, especially when we get into the scene work, I’ll start acting out the scenes in the room, and I’ll be all the characters. For some reason, I was just really feeling the Roy stuff. When we started the audition process and didn’t feel like we had landed it, one of the writers was like, “You should just be Roy.” Of course, I’ve always loved acting. I always thought that, at one point, I would come back to it. All of a sudden, this seemed like the time to do it. But it was really eye-opening because doing it right is hard. It was fun to get in there and be surrounded by people who were really pulling for me and really got to make sure that we landed it. It was almost like a homecoming, to be back in that seat, approaching the material differently, and exercising these different muscles.

That was really eye-opening but also gave me a great appreciation for the level of the cast that we were dealing with. It was very daunting to be standing toe-to-toe with Aldis Hodge and Alona Tal and Matthew Lillard, doing these scenes. That was fun. The only other thing I would say is that my writers’ room started taking advantage of me. They started using me to be what I call an exposition cat. We had a character who had to say things like, “Why haven’t we made more progress? Here’s where I need you to go next.” I was connective tissue giving that perspective on things. They started putting me in way more scenes than I ever expected to be in, so that was fun. And then, they also started writing lines that maybe were secret messages to me, including a moment they had me getting punched out. So, we’ve got some issues we’ve got to talk about.

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Matthew Lillard joins the cast for Season 2 of the hit series.

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Since he is playing the title character of the show, what was your favorite scene with Aldis Hodge in Season 2?

WATKINS: Yeah. It’s been amazing, throwing different layers at him and watching him embrace them, and Season 2 was no different. I loved the scenes where the tables got turned with Sampson and Cross, where, all of a sudden, Cross is having to help guide and prop up his friend. They have different tactics and different approaches because they’re different characters, but they had to switch roles, and watching them and seeing that dynamic change was amazing. Also, for me, one of the key scenes was the scene in the finale when Cross is on the run, and he shows up at Elle’s place. Considering what we put their relationship through all season, I had been looking forward to that moment for such a long time because it’s part of a longer story of this love story between them, and in particular, Black love and the ups and downs of that. And then, when all the shit hits the fan and they need each other in that moment, she’s there for him. There is a connection that is so visceral and foundational. The way they both played that scene was just perfect for me. That might’ve been the sweet spot.

I love that she also doesn’t just let him get off easy. She made that comment about how she wanted him to succeed so that she can kick his ass, and I thought that was the perfect response from her in that moment.

WATKINS: Yeah. That’s a testament to making sure that you have balance and variety of voices in the room, because that little tag there was a byproduct of some of the women writers in the room saying, “Listen, we know we can’t get into a big argument right now. We know we can’t have her really bust on him. But she has to say something that lets us know that it ain’t as easy as just saying, ‘Oh, I’ve come to my senses.’” And so, we added that, and it turned out to be a lot of people’s favorite moment, with that tag. And then, she also gives us a little bit more when she has the follow-up scene with Kayla. That’s why you’ve got to have strong women advocating for different POVs. I like to consider myself progressive, but I wasn’t thinking about doing that.

Creator Ben Watkins Wanted To Showcase Obstacles Unique to Black Love in ‘Cross’ Season 2

“I don’t feel like you can show the viability of it without showing it getting tested.”

Image via Prime Video

When I spoke to Isaiah Mustafa and Samantha Walkes at the junket about the emotional side of the relationships this season, they both talked about how Cross keeps people in emotional purgatory. I feel like you set that up this season to make him have to answer for some of that in Season 3.

WATKINS: It definitely does, especially between Cross and Elle. That was the whole plan from the beginning. I really wanted to tell a love story that would be a model for all the things that love has to overcome in order for people to stay together, and in particular, this very specific version of Black love. There are some unique obstacles that a couple has to encounter when we’re talking about Black love. I don’t feel like you can show the viability of it without showing it getting tested. You can see in Season 2 that they really got tested in some ways that felt like they could have broken it, but somehow, they come out the other side, barely hanging on. And then, in Season 3, they’ll have to work through that. It’s not as simple as just saying, “Let’s pretend none of that happened,” because then you’re setting yourself up for failure. In Season 3, they’ve really got to cover some ground, in terms of who they are to each other and what they want to be as a couple.

I love the finale scene between Elle and Kayla. I didn’t know I needed that moment until you gave us that moment. What was it like to finally get the two of them together, and to let Elle have an honest moment with Kayla?

WATKINS: I always tell people, when you put together writers’ rooms, to try to be balanced and diverse across the board, with different life experiences, different genders, different ethnicities, different languages, and different perspectives on life. That scene is a perfect example of why you need it. I didn’t think of that scene. A couple women in the writers’ room, who were so instrumental over the course of the season, and have been instrumental over both seasons, were the ones who said, “We’re not finishing this season without having that scene.” I was hesitant at first. Aiyana Whie, who’s one of our EP’s, Marissa Lee, who’s a great writer, and Sonja Perryman, who’s also a writer, said that we needed to have them face off. So, I said, “Okay, we’ll break that scene.”

And then, when I saw the outline, I said, “Oh, that’s interesting. I like where it is.” And then, I saw it on the page and I said, “Yes, this is so needed.” Then, we went to film it, and you get that in the hands of Alona Tal and Samantha Walkes, and it goes to a new level. People who have seen that scene are obsessed with it. It’s two characters that have never crossed before and people are fixated on it. That’s why you’ve got to have balance in the writers’ room. That’s why you’ve got to have other voices around. So, I give all the credit to our amazing writing team because they’re the ones who forced my hand, and I’m so glad they did.

Are there other scenes that originated in the writers’ room that you hadn’t expected or thought of, but you’re glad they found their way into the season?

WATKINS: I love getting together with the writers that I’m working with and pitching out the vision for the whole season. Even as I’m pitching the broad strokes, I already have specific scenes in mind, and I’ll pitch those out. I also have scenes that I don’t think fit. And I love when our writers force the issue and say, “I really think this needs to be in here. I really think we need to show these different sides of it.” Those [scenes you mentioned] are two examples. In Season 2, we also have a storyline where our vigilante, our villain, is Mexican, and she is drawing from some of her history and her legacy as part of her momentum and her motives.

We actually worked with a writer by the name of Evelina Fernández, who was helping us with that storyline, and she really advocated for us giving more context to the history, even with the Lotería cards, making sure that was really specific and giving people a little bit of a roadmap. For me, as a storyteller, a lot of times I’m thinking, “I don’t want to slow things down just to explain it. Let’s just get to the chase. Let’s just get to the shoot-out. Let’s just get to the face-off.” She was advocating, and other writers said, “I think we need a little bit more.” And then, when I go back and look at the scene and I hear from people who appreciate the level of detail and authenticity, it makes me really appreciate that I’m collaborating with people, not just doing my own thing.

That background really helped with understanding and sympathizing with Luz.

WATKINS: Yes, and that was intentional. If you notice the type of killing that she’s doing, it starts off with people that we all want to see go. But by the end of the season, there are people who don’t deserve to die. We wanted you to be in a position where you are so attached to her by this point, and you are so like-minded in terms of who she’s killing or who she’s ultimately after and why, that you start to look past some of the innocent people that are collateral damage. Hopefully, you have that moment where you’re like, “Wait a minute, did I just clap for her killing an innocent person?”

Showrunner Ben Watkins Wants Viewers To Find the Violence Shocking in Season 2 of ‘Cross’

“We felt like the violence quotient had to be brutal.”

Image via Prime Video

There are some moments of pretty shocking violence this season, whether it’s watching any of Luz’s kills, or the moment between Luz and Lincoln are both holding the gun, and he decides to sacrifice himself, or Luz’s aunt shooting Donnie, or even Luz jumping off the bridge in the finale. What was all of that like to figure out? How did you want to lay that out during the season?

WATKINS: With regard to Luz, we felt like the violence quotient had to be brutal because we already knew that we were going to write her in a way that people would start to root for her, and we didn’t want it to be easy for them. Especially in this day and age, I’m glad we did that because the reason she’s going after people is more timely than even when I wrote this stuff. We wanted there to be some elements of shocking violence, so that it wouldn’t be easy for you. Every now and then, there would be this reminder that, while you’re rooting for somebody to get revenge, you might also be contributing to a rampage where innocent people aren’t just dying, but they’re dying in brutal ways. That’s really where that came from, and we had that throughout the entire season. We were just looking for those moments to shock you back into the reality of what the stakes are. That was the real motivation for amping that up.

Did that also affect how you wanted to portray what happened to her? Did you intentionally not want to have a definitive ending for her, so that maybe she somehow could have survived?

WATKINS: Yeah. I like to keep the last episode in particular, but really the last two episodes, completely open-ended. I stay ready to change, based on trying to harness what is happening as we’re filming. One of the things that started to emerge with Season 2 was that the way we originally planned to resolve Luz’s storyline changed because of the way that it was playing out and being organic. The same thing happened with Alex Cross. I did not start Season 2 thinking Alex Cross would turn in his badge. But the more we started going down the road of what Season 2 was and having these scenes and making them more organic to what he was going through, I had to finally just honor what was happening.

With his resolution and with Luz, both of those things were a byproduct of how the scenes were unfolding. By the end, we realized that Luz is a vigilante, and even though she crosses the line, she really enters folk hero status. And with folk heroes, they don’t die. We even planted an Easter egg in the funeral procession that really makes you wonder what her fate is. One of the things that emerged mid-season, and we even started writing to it, was the toll this must have taken on her. She has been living with this idea that her mom was taken from her since she was a kid. And then, in her teenage years, she realized the truth about why her mom was taken from her and who did it. She’s been carrying this incredible obsessive burden for a long time. We actually then went back and rewrote some scenes, so you could see the emotional toll that was taking on her and really root for her to get not only to the end of this journey of some sort of justice, but also some sort of relief. And so, we hope that that’s what played through, as people watched the finale.

Showrunner Ben Watkins Became a Meme After Getting Punched in the Face by Aldis Hodge in the Season 2 Finale of ‘Cross’

“People would send me those memes.”

Image via Prime Video

How did you end up handing your lead actor, Aldis Hodge, a script with a scene where he punches you in the face and knocks you out? Whose idea was that?

WATKINS: It was hilarious. We have such a good time doing these scripts. I had actually pitched the scene as, “We’re nervous that about Cross and we want to keep eyes on him, so Roy escorts him to the men’s bathroom just to keep the pressure on and maybe poke him a little bit and be an irritant.” It was as simple as that. And then, I got a call, and they said, “We think he should punch Roy out.” And then, the next thing you know, we wrote a scene where Roy gets decked, and I asked myself, “What did I do to these writers over the course of this season that made them want to see me get knocked out?” But it was all in fun and all with love. I was a little surprised at how much Aldis enjoyed filming that. He knocked me out multiple times, and then he’d say, “Oh, I think I can do better. Let’s do that again.” He also loved dragging me across the floor after the knockout. I had to be passed out, and I was in pain, and we did multiple takes of that. He really got a lot out of that. It was a blast. The post team made little clip memes, and those memes made it throughout the entire cast and crew and our team. People would send me those memes. They would answer questions by sending a meme of me getting knocked out.

When I spoke to Matthew Lillard about this season, he told me that you almost killed him by actually burying him alive. How did that idea come about? Did it just feel like you wanted to make him suffer a little bit before his character was done on the show?

WATKINS: It’s funny, of course, you want to see Matthew Lillard suffer. There’s nothing wrong with that, especially when he’s playing Lance Durand. That was one of those images that I had in my head from the beginning. I knew there were going to be unmarked graves for some of these young workers who were being exploited, and I’m big on symbolism, especially for bad guys. This is what you wanted the most? Whatever you wanted the most, that’s what you won’t get. If you did this to someone else, maybe there’s a way for us to symbolically do that to you. I love that. I wanted to give that same instinct to Luz. We knew there was a moment there where he was going to get buried, and there’s so much metaphorically involved with that.

When you finally vanquish your demons, and then you can bury them, and the way people can decompose, even bad people can become nutrients for the soil and maybe something good grows out of it. There were so many metaphorical pieces. We knew we were going to bury him, but at the time, we just didn’t understand the technical challenges to that. I was like, “We’re doing this practically. We’re going to put this dude in the hole and cover him in dirt.” Matt was game, but there still were a couple moments there where it seemed like he was going to truly get smothered. He was such a great collaborator. He understood it all. And he made the most of those moments. He didn’t ham it up. He really played it grounded. For that to be their final confrontation, it turned out to be a great way to end that storyline for them.

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A lot comes at Cross in the finale. Kayla double crosses him, he gets arrested, and he turns in his badge and quits, which makes you wonder what could happen next. What does all of that mean for Cross and what comes next? How does a good man survive a bad system, like he asks?

WATKINS: You’re asking a question that I think is really important. If you think an institution is wrong, and you’re in that institution, but you’re a good part of that institution, do you leave the institution because you feel like you can’t win that battle, or do you stay in that institution because if you’re not there, it’ll be even worse? I want that question to be asked. I actually don’t know the answer completely, but that’s one of the things I want asked. I love that Season 2 forced Alex Cross to really grapple with that question of, what is justice? There’s a difference between law and justice, and when that gap becomes too big, and you’re on the side of law, what do you do? How can you reconcile that with your own integrity and your own morality? I think there are a lot of people who can relate to that. Watching a character go through that is going to be really interesting for folks, especially Alex Cross. When you see someone like him turning in his badge, and you know that this is what defines him, you have to ask yourself, what’s it going to be like in Season 3? Will he return? And if he does, what would be compelling enough to make him return.

FBI Agent Kayla Craig Has a Story Arc That Is Rooted in the Mythology of the Cross Books

“If you know the books, then you’ll know where Kayla Craig is headed.”

Image via Prime Video

Did you know from the beginning where Kayla would end up this season? What did you find most interesting about that relationship between Cross and Kayla, having them go from partners to something more intimate to having her eventually turn on him to further herself? Was that always the arc for her?

WATKINS: Yeah, and it’s part of a longer plan. If you know the books, then you’ll know where Kayla Craig is headed. If you know the books, Kayla Craig is one of the characters that is really rooted in the mythology of the books. And so, because of that, I knew I had to do a couple of things to make their relationship as complicated as I could get it. First, I had to show chemistry, but platonic. They both are great at their jobs, but there’s a closeness and it’s almost a spark. We did that in Season 1.

And then, in Season 2, I wanted to take that to the next level and throw that curveball, not only at the relationship between Cross and Elle, but at the relationship between Cross and Kayla, and not just on a personal level, but on a colleague/professional level and how that could make everything so messy. You see that early in Season 2. And then, and you see the consequences of that and the collateral damage. And then, by the end of Season 2, you realize it has gone to a place that might be unfixable for them. I’m trying to play on that ground because I want to see that journey. You’ve seen how connected they can be. You’ve seen that they have chemistry and so much in common. But at the same time, you see that they’re a mistake for each other, but it’s too late. It’s been done. It’s messy now.

Even though Alex Cross is the hero of the show, just having the character be a hero and somebody you root for, a lot of times will make you overlook some of their flaws. We have really been going to great pains to make sure that people in this world notice their flaws and talk about them in a way that makes them real. She’s saying some things that have validity. We wanted her to be in a position where she could bring things up and there’s some validity to it. Whether you like her or not, she’s saying some valid things. The only way to make that work is if you have seen those flaws, and you can understand it.

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I thought it was really an interesting choice with Cross turning in his badge. He could have just said, “I’m going to go away for a while, and I’ll let you know when I’m ready to come back to work.” Instead, he was like, “I’m leaving this here with you. I’m done. I’m out of here.”

WATKINS: That was definitely a tough one. I wanted to raise questions, thematically, about the difference between real justice and law and order. What do we do when we don’t feel like the institutions or the forces for law and order or the rules aren’t working for us. When we want real justice, what do we do? I want to have all those things in there. I didn’t think that it would lead to Cross turning in his badge, but by the end of the season, given everything that he witnesses and everything that he’s trying to represent, and being at the intersection of being somebody who is a champion for justice but working for law enforcement and realizing that might mean he’s protecting a bad guy and chasing a good guy, if he doesn’t turn in his badge, it’s all lip service, in terms of the inner turmoil. That doesn’t mean that there’s not more conversation to be had, and Season 3 will continue that conversation. But in that moment, at that time, I don’t think we would be honest about his inner turmoil if he doesn’t go so far as to turn in his badge.

You’ve had such great villains on this show, with Ed Ramsey from Season 1 and now Lance Durand in Season 2, that make a deep impression on the characters. Is there a temptation to bring them back?

WATKINS: When we started off, I knew at some point that I wanted Ramsey to come back. One of the things that I really appreciate about the books that Jim Patterson writes is that he creates these villains that we’re fascinated by. Even when they’re devious, we like it when they come back. We also like it because they’re such worthy adversaries for Alex Cross. They maybe even have the upper hand, and we love to see Alex Cross get tested. I always intended for Ramsey to come back. When that happens, I won’t tell. I now also want Lance Durand to come back because of what I experienced, filming with Matt in Season 2 and the way that whole story unfolded. Especially with the way things are today, you see billionaires getting away with basically anything. These elites are getting away with anything. The things that you think are the most outlandish conspiracies don’t match what’s actually happening, so a character like Lance Durand could be really relevant in the future.

Showrunner Ben Watkins Is Game To Do As Many Seasons of ‘Cross’ As Possible

“I would love to do 10 seasons. I would love to do 15 seasons.”

I’m guessing that you have a clear plan for Season 3. You’ve also said you have a plan for the series to run for four seasons. Is that still the plan? Do you have a plan for more seasons than that?

WATKINS: I would love to do 10 seasons. I would love to do 15 seasons. But in terms of a couple of the key relationship arcs and one villain arc, I planned for four seasons for that stretch. If you look at how we approach these seasons, I like to look at each season as its own book. If you watch Season 1, there is an ending to that book. If you watch Season 2, there is an ending to that book. I’m playing two personal lines for Alex Cross. One is relationships – the one with him and Elle, and the one with him and Sampson – and those are both on a four-season arc, in terms of what that journey is. And then, there is a villain line that is on a four-season arc. That’s what I meant by planning four seasons. Does that mean we can’t go for 10 more seasons after that? Absolutely not. With the characters and the world and the fact that there’s always going to be somebody bad out there, that means there’s always going to be a need for Alex Cross. That means we can do as many seasons as they’ll have us.

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Release Date

November 14, 2024

Network

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Prime Video

Directors

Craig Siebels, Nzingha Stewart

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Writers

Ben Watkins

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Franchise(s)

Alex Cross

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Cross is available to stream on Prime Video.

The ‘90s are hot right now, but there was more to the decade than Super Nintendo and Jazz cups — like, for example, a certain genre-defining franchise of sci-fi movies. While most of the series came out in the 2000s (plus one in the 2020s), it’s still a good time to revisit the films that virtually defined the turn of the millennium: The Matrix. Plus, all four movies are streaming on HBO Max, making it easy for you to plug yourself in to your couch, grab a bowl of delicious gray future goop, and just watch one Matrix after another.

The original Matrix, released in 1999 and directed by Lilly and Lana Wachowski, is one of the most iconic, influential, and critically acclaimed movies of all time. It was also a ridiculously big hit, having made nearly $480 million at the box office off of a $63 million budget (that’s been buoyed by subsequent rereleases a bit, but it still counts). The sequels fared a little worse, at least according to critics at the time, but if you take the series for what it is and not what you wished it would be, each movie is fascinating in its own ways.

The Matrix Is the Smartest Sci-Fi Series of All Time

Image via Warner Bros.

The Matrix, for those who didn’t become unplugged until recently, is about a computer hacker (Keanu Reeves, whose character uses the hacker alias “Neo”) who finds out that the world is not what he thinks it is. In reality, as explained by a fellow rogue hacker named Trinity (Carrie-Anne Moss), the world is a computer simulation run by machines that have taken over the world. Humans are kept in pods that tap into the electrical energy that human bodies produce, which is used to power the machines, and the virtual world they live in is used to make them complacent.

It’s pretty cool stuff, and that’s without even mentioning Laurence Fishburne’s Morpheus or Hugo Weaving’s Agent Smith, plus the very cool (for the time) sunglasses and black leather. The first two sequels, Matrix Reloaded and Matrix Revolutions, go deeper into the lore of how the Matrix works and why it was created, doubling down on the first movie’s themes of free will and fate and whether or not they exist or can be changed. They’re also incredible action movies, with each one having at least one unforgettable sequence — like the lobby scene, the freeway chase, or the Dragon Ball Z-esque anime fight that ends Revolutions.

The fourth movie, 2021’s Matrix Resurrections, is a little pricklier than the previous movies and doesn’t fit into a box quite as easily. In it, Neo has been trapped in the Matrix again, but now he’s a famous video game designer who created a hit series of video games called… The Matrix. It’s all literally about going back to The Matrix and figuring out how to reimagine the series for the 2020s. Reeves and Moss are phenomenal in it, and there’s a pointed refusal to do the kind of violent action scenes that the original trilogy was known for.

What Are the Matrix Movies Actually About?

Image via Warner Bros.

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It doesn’t take a particularly deep analysis to figure out that there’s even more going on in the Matrix movies than what you get on the surface. For example, when everyone in the grimy and gloomy real world is somewhat haggard, wearing boring rags with no late-‘90s techno rave fashion sense, but once they enter the virtual world of the Matrix, they look how they want to look — as in, super cool. Even before he “wakes up,” Neo is a boring office drone in his real life, but an ace dark web hacker online.

There are themes of identity in there, about being who you want to be rather than who society (or, literally, the machines) forces you to be, which seems like a uniquely personal and powerful concept for the Wachowskis (see also: their Netflix show Sense8). Not everything in the sequels holds up as well as the original, but writing them off entirely is a mistake and will only result in missing out on a bunch of brilliant sci-fi concepts.

The Matrix movies are all streaming on HBO Max.

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Release Date

March 31, 1999

Runtime

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136 minutes

Producers

Andrew Mason, Barrie M. Osborne, Bruce Berman, Erwin Stoff

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Peaky Blinders might have ended on a cliffhanging note back in 2022, but Tommy Shelby (Cillian Murphy) still has some business to tend to. Nearly seven years after the events of the final season, Tommy returns from the “dead” in the upcoming Peaky Blinders: Immortal Man. With his nation at stake from World War II, so is his well-established business empire in Small Heath, Birmingham.

Once a humble gambling den, Shelby Ltd. has, over six seasons, expanded into a feared enterprise with multinational exports and imports. However, that growth came at a cost. Along the way, the Shelbys formed alliances and made enemies with powerful figures, ranging from the revered Winston Churchill to outright Nazi sympathizers. Much of his business success is built on sacrificing his family’s well-being in pursuit of long-term profit, but if there is one thing Tommy consistently fails at, it’s setting limits. With Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man around the corner, here’s what to remember about where the story last left off with the Shelbys.

Tommy Shelby Finds Post-Prohibition Business in ‘Peaky Blinders’ Season 6

The last time fans saw the Shelbys in Peaky Blinders, they were at rock bottom after the failed assassination of fascist Oswald Mosley (Sam Claflin). Tommy takes the outcome too seriously, nearly killing himself were it not for his wife, Lizzie (Natasha O’Keeffe), taking out the bullets from his gun. Tommy learns the ambush on the Shelbys wasn’t ordered by Mosley himself, but carried out by IRA brigades. Two of Tommy’s closest confidantes are killed: Aberama Gold (Aidan Gillen) and his aunt Polly Shelby (Helen McCrory, whose death is implied off-screen following the actor’s passing). Polly’s son and Tommy’s cousin, Michael Gray (Finn Cole), who has been holding a business-related grudge since Season 5, is shattered by her death and swears revenge.

Fast forward four years to December 5, 1933, when Tommy arrives on Miquelon Island, a French territory located near Newfoundland that was a major hub for alcohol smuggling during U.S. Prohibition. With Prohibition ending at midnight, Tommy plans to use the same smuggling systems already established on the island to smuggle opium he has imported from Shanghai. During a meeting on Miquelon, Tommy invites Michael to join his new business venture and gives him a bag of opium. Unbeknownst to Michael, Tommy tips off Boston authorities that Michael is carrying drugs back to the city, framing him and getting him arrested.

The Shelbys Are Haunted by a Curse in ‘Peaky Blinders’ Season 6

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Tommy returns to London for both family and business. Haunted by a prophecy foretelling that one of the Shelbys will die, he is shaken when he learns his young daughter Ruby has been running a high fever. More disturbing, she claims to hear voices and see a “grey man.” Though a combination of modern medicine and centuries-old remedies briefly eases her condition, the worst is yet to come. Ruby’s fever suddenly returns, she begins coughing up blood, and her hallucinations grow more severe.

On the business front, Tommy seeks to build ties with Jack Nelson (James Frecheville), a powerful Boston broker and uncle to Michael’s wife, Gina Gray (Anya Taylor-Joy). Despite his proximity to the U.S. President, Nelson secretly sympathizes with fascist ideology. Using his position in Parliament, Tommy trades political access for influence, informing Oswald Mosley and his aristocratic mistress, Lady Diana Mitford (Amber Anderson), of Nelson’s interest in advancing fascism abroad. Meanwhile, as Nelson visits London to secure alcohol import licenses while quietly advancing his agenda, Tommy proposes a deal: open Boston’s borders to his opium trade. If Nelson refuses, Tommy threatens to partner with the Solomon family of Boston’s Eastern Jewish community, risking a gang war.

Related

The 25 Best Tommy Shelby Quotes in ‘Peaky Blinders,’ Ranked

These lines have no limitations.

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Ruby is rushed to the hospital, where doctors discover she has tuberculosis in her left lung. Although the disease is detected early, the treatment is harsh and uncertain. As a result, Ruby’s chances of recovery are slim. Tommy is convinced her illness is caused by the curse, and sets out to find Esme Lee (Aimee-Ffion Edwards), the wife of Tommy’s late younger brother John (Joe Cole). Esme tells Tommy that many people wish him harm, and he is shown a grave connected to a cursed sapphire he gave his late first wife, Grace Burgess (Annabelle Wallis), back in Season 3. Although he has given the sapphire away, the curse is apparently still attached. Esme believes the curse was placed by Evadne Barwell (Gwynne McElveen). Desperate, Tommy offers money, gold, and a monument in exchange for Ruby’s life.

In Tommy’s absence, his younger sister Ada Thorne (Sophie Rundle) steps in to run the business. As the more morally just and well-composed Shelby, Ada gets into an argument with Mitford and Mosley. However, her confrontation secures an invitation for the Shelbys to attend a future meeting. Ada also sends one of Shelby’s family friends, Isiah Jesus (Daryl McCormack), and a newly sober Arthur to Liverpool to control Hayden Stagg (Stephen Graham), who has been stealing opium from the docks. Instead of killing Stagg, Arthur pulls back when he is challenged about his addiction.

Tommy Shelby Is Given 18 Months to Live in ‘Peaky Blinders’ Final Season

Ruby dies of tuberculosis, leaving Tommy, Lizzie, and their son Charles devastated. Tommy, however, is consumed by rage. Believing it was Barwell responsible for Ruby’s death, the vengeful Tommy visits the Barwells’ forest encampment and murders them. Before leaving, Esme reveals that Tommy has an illegitimate son. The child was conceived before the war and has been living in the encampment under the name Duke (Conrad Khan). Although Tommy is grieving, business continues as usual. McKee, Mitford, Mosley, and Nelson finally have a sit-down and discuss how they can benefit from one another. However, Tommy completely disassociates from the conversation.

It is later revealed that Gina has been secretly sleeping with Mosley. Tommy warns her that if she refuses to work as his informant, he will expose the affair to her uncle, Nelson. Nelson would not take the news lightly, especially now that he is Mosley’s business partner. Soon after, Tommy receives shocking news from his doctor, Dr. Holford (Aneurin Barnard). He is diagnosed with tuberculoma, caused by his exposure to Ruby. This explains why Tommy has been suffering from hallucinations and seizures. Given only 18 months to live, the diagnosis changes everything.

Tommy and Lizzie Shelby End Their Marriage in ‘Peaky Blinders’ Season 6

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Following his diagnosis, Tommy spends his limited time ensuring the Shelbys’ futures are secured. Tommy arrives in Chinatown and shuts down an opium operation by threatening dealers with a bomb, eventually detonating it outside their shop. When he’s done, he brings Duke into the world of Shelby Ltd, intending to make him his successor once he passes away — which he has not revealed to his family. Tommy meets Arthur’s ex-wife, Linda (Kate Phillips), and offers her £10,000 to her foundation if she helps guide Arthur toward redemption. At the Liverpool docks, Tommy puts Stagg back in charge of a weapons shipment from Boston and suggests moving supply routes through Liverpool.

Tommy tries to patch things up with Lizzie, but their intimacy is obviously hollow after all the mourning. At Shelby headquarters, Arthur forces the company singer, Billy Grade (Emmett J. Scanlan), to kill a boxing referee. Billy is not only the youngest Shelby, Finn’s (Harry Kirton) best friend, but also a secret informant who tipped off the IRA after Finn blabbed about the Shelbys’ plan to assassinate Mosley back in Season 5. Nelson finds Billy and nearly castrates him to force him into becoming his informant. Nelson wants Arthur killed because Arthur’s unstable behavior makes him a liability in Tommy’s organization. At a later meeting with Nelson, Mosley, and Mitford, it is revealed that Tommy had sex with Mitford before securing influence for a housing project. Lizzie leaves both humiliated and devastated.

Tommy Shelby Discovers a Shocking Truth in ‘Peaky Blinders’ Final Season

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Michael is officially released from prison, with only one mission in mind: killing Tommy. After Mitford exposes her affair with Tommy, Lizzie confronts her husband and calls it quits, emphasizing that he is truly cursed. She departs with Charlie, who admits Tommy has never been truly present as a father. Tommy continues to settle his final affairs and leave Shelby Ltd. in a good place. Believing his time will finally come, Tommy visits Canada to secure £5 million for the family, negotiates housing contracts, and secretly prepares for his death. With the help of Arthur, who learns of Tommy’s condition, Arthur helps Tommy with his funeral arrangements.

Meanwhile, Michael and Gina arrange Tommy’s assassination and order Arthur’s death as well. In Parliament, with nothing else to lose, Tommy goes against Mosley publicly, declining an invitation to his wedding. In a full-circle moment, Michael sets up a bomb trap on Miquelon Island, believing Tommy is killed in the explosion. However, Tommy survives by switching cars and later kills Michaels by shooting him in the head. Back in London, Duke takes control of the Peaky Blinders, executes Billy, and cuts Finn out of the family. To avenge Polly’s death, Arthur kills McKee. After saying goodbye to his family during one last dinner, Tommy takes his carriage to the countryside and lives off the grid. Preparing to end his life, he discovers that his illness was fabricated by none other than Dr. Holford, who turns out to be an acquaintance of Mosley. In his final confrontation, instead of killing Dr. Holford, Tommy puts down his gun when the clock strikes at the eleventh hour, breaking the curse over his family at long last.

Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man premieres March 20 on Netflix.

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Release Date

2013 – 2022-00-00

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Network

BBC One, BBC Two

Showrunner

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Steven Knight

Directors

Anthony Byrne, Colm McCarthy, David Caffrey, Otto Bathurst, Tim Mielants, Tom Harper

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Writers

Stephen Russell, Steven Knight, Toby Finlay

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Whoopi Goldberg is proudly single and is embracing a more carefree approach to her sex life. The EGOT winner is enjoying casual relationships and the freedom that comes with being independent, offering a candid glimpse into how she approaches her sexual needs on her own terms.

Whoopi Goldberg On Being Single And Hooking Up

On the March 18 episode of “The View,” one of the topics the panel discussed was a Cosmopolitan article where the writer, who was happily married, wrote about fantasizing about being single, including bar-hopping and having flings. Goldberg then asked a question to her fellow hosts: “Is fantasizing about being single normal?”

Joy Behar then asked the EGOT winner whether she missed those days. Goldberg said that she was single. Behar said that she knew that before confirming, “But you don’t go bar hopping or do any of that stuff, right?” Goldberg said that wasn’t the case, telling her co-hosts that she does bar hop and “hang.”

“I do hit-and-runs when I need it,” she explained, which was met by hoots and applause from the audience. Goldberg continued that she does that because she isn’t married and doesn’t have responsibilities to a partner, unlike her co-hosts.

Whoopi Goldberg Has Only Been In Love Once

In an interview with The New York Times in 2016, Goldberg shared her thoughts on being single, saying that she prefers it over being with a partner. As the interviewer noted, the actress had previously said she had only been in love one time in her life, and she was asked whether it was because she had a “higher bar” than others.

Goldberg said that she thinks it’s because she’s just “not that interested,” adding that she lives a much happier life being by herself. “I’m not looking to be with somebody forever or live with someone. I don’t want somebody in my house,” she explained.

The actress said that despite being married before, she always felt that way. “I’m the round peg, and marriage is the square hole. You can’t have a square hole, can you?” she said.

The Host Said She’s Not Good At Relationships

In a 2025 conversation with Interview Magazine, Goldberg shared that in the last 25 years of her life, she has come to realize that being in a relationship is not for everyone, adding that for some, one-night stands are the better option.

“I’m not good at relationships,” the actress added, explaining that she has people in her life that she loves, but that doesn’t necessarily mean she wants them in her home, since that means an additional person to think about. “I have enough to think about with my daughter and her husband and my grandkids and my great-grandkids and all the people at work,” she noted.

Moreover, Goldberg said that she might be alone, but she wasn’t lonely, stressing the difference between the two. The actress enjoys her solitude and doesn’t want to have to worry about someone else.

The Actress Has Been Married Three Times

Goldberg had been married three times, but has been single for years. Her first husband was Alvin Martin, whom the actress married in 1973 when she was just 18 years old. The couple had a child together, a daughter named Alex, before they divorced in 1979.

In 1986, Goldberg and cinematographer David Claessen tied the knot but divorced just two years later. Her third husband was Lyle Trachtenberg, whom she married in 1994. The couple called it quits a year later.

In a 2024 episode of The View, where they discussed their exes for National Text Your Ex Day, Goldberg revealed that she still communicated with her exes. “I’m in touch with every one of them, because once they were my friends. It doesn’t mean that we talk all the time, but I will be respectful enough for you,” she stated.

Whoopi Goldberg’s Book About Relationships

In 2015, Goldberg released a book about her thoughts on relationships titled “If Someone Says ‘You Complete Me,’ RUN!: Whoopi’s Big Book of Relationships.”

The book discusses false expectations about relationships depicted in the media, and Goldberg urges her readers to have a fulfilling life without relying on a partner. The chapters focus on various themes, including deconstructing Hollywood romance, advocating for oneself, and relationship checklists.

Goldberg also included an advice segment, which contains relationship questions she has received from fans, as well as her explanation as to why she prefers casual hook-ups over being married.

Spice Girls‘ fans are in for disappointing news, as the iconic act’s highly anticipated 30th-anniversary show has been called off.

It has been years since the British pop sensation, made up of Victoria Beckham, Melanie Brown, Melanie Chisholm, Geri Halliwell, and Emma Bunton, went their separate ways. However, their loyal fan base has remained as strong as ever.

Over the years, the group has repeatedly hinted at reunions, including plans to celebrate three decades since the release of their debut single. However, it has now been confirmed that nothing is moving forward for now.

Spice Girls Comeback Reportedly Falls Apart Over Disagreements

Speaking on an episode of “The Smallzy Show,” released on Tuesday, Chisholm did not beat around the bush as she revealed the current situation.

“July will be the 30th anniversary of ‘Wannabe’ being released. And then later in the year, ‘Spice,’ the first album. So, yeah, it’s a big one,” the singer said on the radio show as seen in a clip later shared on Facebook. “And no, there is no reunion.”

While it is not happening now, Chisholm is not ruling out the possibility of it happening in the future. “We are communicating all the time, we want to do something,” Chisholm said. “Who knows when? But I still feel very optimistic, and I keep my fingers crossed that you will see the Spice Girls together at some point in the future.”

According to Page Six, the planned show crashed because they “failed to reach an agreement.”

Mel B Opens Up About the Challenges Behind A Reunion

Although negotiations reportedly broke down, Melanie B has since been candid about the complexities of having a reunion show. 

As The Blast previously reported, she explained that coordinating schedules is a major obstacle, especially since each member is balancing personal commitments and family life. “There’s five of us, and we’ve all got completely different diaries, and we’re all parents,” she said.

Despite the complications, Mel B teased that something nostalgic was in the works, describing it as “the gift that keeps on giving.”

Victoria Beckham Reflected On Her Time In The Band

While the exact cause of the disagreement surrounding the planned show remains unclear, Victoria Beckham has previously spoken about how revisiting her past with the band can be emotionally triggering.

According to The Blast, the fashion designer admitted that her identity as part of the pop group stayed with her for years, revealing it took nearly two decades to fully move beyond that chapter of her life. 

However, going over that phase is not something that appeals to her. “I’m not going to lie, being asked questions about when I was in the Spice Girls was quite triggering,” Beckham said. 

Despite those feelings, she emphasized that she loves her former bandmates and remains in regular contact with them.

The Music Group Hung Out Earlier In The Year 

Although a tour is not on the horizon, the women continue to reconnect and share moments that excite fans.

Per The Blast, on Saturday, January 24, Halliwell-Horner, Chisholm, and Beckham joined Bunton for a countryside celebration in England. However, Mel B was absent but sent Bunton a heartfelt birthday message to honor the occasion.

Beckham later shared photos from the event on her Instagram. “Happy birthday to the most beautiful soul @emmaleebunton. I love you girls so much @gerihalliwellhorner @melaniecmusic xxxxxxx,” she wrote in the caption. 

As expected, fans were excited about the moment, and even David Beckham chimed in that he was happy to see the reunion. 

How Members Of The Group Seemingly Reacted To Victoria Beckham’s Feud With Her Son Brooklyn

Beyond their sweet moments, some of the bandmates appeared to weigh in on Victoria’s rift with her eldest son, Brooklyn Beckham. According to The Blast, in a January interview, Chisholm spoke about the challenges of raising children in the public eye, noting how difficult it can be to grow up in the shadow of a successful parent. 

She explained that this perspective influenced her decision to keep her daughter, Scarlett, out of the spotlight. While Chisholm believes she made the right choice, she said she’s not judging her friends who made different parenting choices. 

Although Chisholm didn’t name anyone, her comments seemed to indirectly touch on the ongoing tension between Victoria and Brooklyn, who have accused her of feeding lies to the public about him.

Shyne has reacted after Ray J said he would “slap the daylights” out of him and Mase for claiming they allegedly dated Brandy at the same time.

RELATED: Ray J’s Mom Sonja Norwood Speaks Out & Sets The Record Straight On His Health (WATCH)

Mase & Shyne Allege They Dated Brandy At The Same Time

During a recent episode of Cam’ron and Mase’s podcast, ‘It Is What It Is,’ Shyne was featured as a guest, and the conversation shifted to an alleged overlap between him and Mase. In a short shared via YouTube, Cam’ron asked Mase if he was “dating Brandy at one time.” In turn, Mase explained that he was “special.” However, he added that Shyne “came in” and “wound up being special too.”

“So I had to let him be special,” Mase added as the room cracked up in laughter.

In turn, Shyne appeared to joke about wanting to be “special” to Brandy, too. However, he seemingly explained that he had no idea about Mase and Brandy’s relationship.

“We had a mutual friend who was a snitch… but I was so excited, so I kept telling one of our mutual friends, and he was snitching me out. So Brandy was like, ‘Yo! Who you told you here? How does so and so know that you here with me right now?’ And I’m like, ‘Aw, man,’” Shyne claimed.

Ray J Says He’ll Slap The Daylights Out Of Shyne & Mase For Claiming They Allegedly Dated Brandy At The Same Time

On Tuesday, March 17, Ray J took to a livestream and shared strong words for Mase, Shyne, and even Cam’ron, in a clip captured by Instagram user @livebitez.

“Keep my sister name out your mouth before I slap the f*****g daylights out of you, period. ‘Cause one thing n****s not gon’ do is talk s**t about my sister without me going back on these big head ass n****s. Shyne, Mase, and Cam — like, I don’t know. I never had a problem with them but I saw some s**t today, and they gotta know that a n****a gon’ come back strong and say some s**t,” Ray told viewers.

Watch the NSFW clip by clicking here.

Shyne Reacts Alongside Social Media

On Wednesday, March 18, Shyne took to Instagram to share an apparent throwback photo of himself, Brandy, and Ray J alongside Ray’s single, ‘I Hit It First.’

“Let the record reflect I DID NOT ‘HIT IT FIRST’…….. Most respectfully @masonbetha @mr_camron @itiswhatitis_talk MAY 2 @kingsbklyn,” he wrote alongside the clip.

Meanwhile, the reactions poured in via @livebitez’s comment section.

RELATED: Ray J’s Mom Sonja Norwood Speaks After Kim Kardashian & Kris Jenner Reportedly Deny Planning Intimate Tape Release Under Oath