Meghan McCain made it clear she will not miss Prince Harry and Meghan Markle when they relocate from California to the U.K.

“One thing about Americans is we can see through bulls*** and we don’t like entitled grifters,” McCain, 41, tweeted on Wednesday, August 19. “They could never hack it here and truly no one gives a s*** about d list royals.”

On Wednesday, People reported that Harry and Meghan are planning to move back to the U.S. six years after stepping down as working royals. The royal couple have reportedly already made plans for their son Prince Archie, 7, and daughter, Princess Lilibet, 5, to attend school there in September. (Harry and Meghan are expected to keep their U.S. home in Montecito, California, as well as other international properties.)

Offering the Duke and Duchess of Sussex a less-than-friendly goodbye, McCain tweeted, “Good luck to our friends in the UK, they’re your problem now.”

McCain has been a consistent critic of Harry and Meghan as they branched out into a production deal with Netflix and launched the Duchess’ As Ever lifestyle brand.

The former View panelist dismissed Meghan’s Netflix lifestyle show, With Love, Meghan, as “highly curated, produced and out of touch” when a trailer debuted in January 2025.

“I would have told her to do a show helping bring fresh food [and] desserts in low income neighborhoods. Do something to help people instead of your ego,” McCain tweeted at the time.

The conservative pundit later railed against Meghan during a February 2025 episode of her Meghan McCain’s Happy Hour digital series.

“I cannot stand her,” McCain declared. “I love people that I can relate to, like every other 40-year-old mom. I don’t want to eat her jam. I love Princess Kate [Middleton].”

McCain is not the only one questioning the Sussexes’ move back to the U.K. Royal author Christopher Andersen exclusively told Us on Wednesday that Harry and Meghan’s U.K. return is likely to cause chaos within the royal family.

“All I can think of is: here we go again,” Brothers and Wives writer Andersen told Us. “For starters, I can only imagine that William and Kate are tearing their hair out. They have so much on their plate as it is trying to shore up the monarchy and propel it into the future; they don’t really need to cope with having Harry and Megan on their proverbial doorstep.”

Anderson, 77, continued, “By returning to the U.K., the Sussexes will inevitably suck up all the oxygen in the room. They will generate countless tabloid stories and take the focus away from other members of the Royal family, which is a major no-no. King Charles and Queen Camilla, in particular, don’t like to be upstaged, and the same goes for William.”

The royal expert speculated that the couple’s decision to move back to the U.K. could also raise “obvious privacy” and “security concerns.”

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Related: Meghan McCain Slams Trolls Calling Her ‘Old and Ugly’: ‘I’m Going to Age’

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Meghan McCain is shutting down trolls who called her “old and ugly,” revealing she is aging just like everyone else. “I am normally an Armadillo-skinned person, and there’s been a lot of commentary about how ‘old and ugly’ I am now,” McCain, 41, said during the Wednesday, July 22, of her and Miranda Wilkins’ “Citizen […]

“The King and Prince William were apparently gobsmacked by the announcement. Oh well, here comes the drama,” Andersen teased. “The Palace is scrambling to make sense of this. After all, it was not that long ago that Meghan and the children cut short their stay in the U.K. after a meeting with the King and Queen that was described as perfunctory.”

Harry and Meghan announced in January 2020 that they were stepping down from their duties as active royals. They initially moved to Vancouver Island, British Columbia, for an extended stay that same month, before relocating to Montecito in July 2020.

Us has reached out to Harry and Meghan’s spokesperson for a comment on McCain’s tweet.

Sam Asghari and Britney Spears may have gone their separate ways, but the model and actor still has plenty of admiration for his former wife. In a recent interview, Asghari discussed the legendary pop star’s music career, praising her talent and the lasting impact she has had on pop culture. His comments offer a glimpse into how he views her years after they ended their relationship.

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Britney Spears and Sam Asghari‘s relationship ended in 2023, but the actor appears to harbor no ill feelings toward his ex-wife. In fact, he has nothing but praise for the singer, speaking highly of her talent.

In a recent episode of “Page Six Radio,” Asghari said he didn’t really listen to Spears’ music before they began their relationship. He leaned toward other music genres back then, citing Eminem, 50 Cent, and Tupac as some of the artists he listened to the most.

“I didn’t know much of it, and I didn’t know about pop culture, what it meant to the world,” he said. He only understood the magnitude of Spears’ influence after getting to know her and listening to her music.

“The second I realized that these songs actually meant and why people resonated with it and why they were icons like Michael Jackson, Madonna, and her, you know, King of Pop, Queen of Pop, and Princess of Pop. Then I understood, and it made me appreciate the music even more,” Asghari explained.

The Actor Talks About Britney Spears’ One-Of-A-Kind Artistry

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Asghari gushed over Spears’ career evolution, highlighting her beginnings as an “innocent girl” with her debut album, “…Baby One More Time,” and her transformation into a bolder, more daring pop star in later records.

“It sort of created a blueprint that nobody after that has ever really accomplished. And I mean, we see some artists now that are trying to do it, but it’s just not ever going to happen,” Asghari said, adding that many singers today were inspired by Spears, whether they admit it or not.

The actor shared that he always championed Spears in whatever she wanted to pursue, as he wanted her to express herself. “I think once you’re those people that you’re entitled to be the Princess of Pop, you can say something, and it’s going to become iconic,” he said.

Inside Sam Asghari And Britney Spears’ Relationship

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Asghari and Spears first met in 2016 when the model was cast as the singer’s love interest in the music video for her song “Slumber Party.” Dating rumors began after the two were spotted hanging out, and they made their relationship Instagram-official later that same year.

The couple shared snapshots of their time together, from celebrating special occasions to going on vacations and attending public events. Asghari and Spears got engaged in 2021 and announced they were expecting a baby in April 2022. Just a month later, however, the singer revealed that she had suffered a miscarriage. The couple went on to marry in June of that year.

Britney Spears Called Marriage To Sam Asghari A ‘Fake Distraction’

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In 2023, Asghari filed for divorce, citing irreconcilable differences. At that time, sources noted the couple had explosive arguments and reached a breaking point that led them to go their separate ways.

Later, Spears posted an Instagram photo, which has since been deleted, writing in the caption that her marriage to Asghari “felt like a fake distraction” as a way to cope with the pressures she was facing.

In response, Asghari said the marriage felt “very real” to him, adding that he was in love with the singer and “will always have love for her,” as The Blast previously reported.

Sam Asghari Continues To Speak Highly Of His Ex-Wife

Asghari has moved on from Spears and is in a relationship with real estate agent Brooke Irvine, but he has remained complimentary of Spears whenever she comes up in interviews.

When Spears was arrested for a DUI in March, Asghari responded with compassion, saying that everyone makes mistakes and asking people to respect the pop star’s privacy, per The Blast.

The model has repeatedly said that, while breakups are difficult, he remains grateful for the time he spent with the singer and wishes her only well.

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2026 has already been a strong year for HBO. The return of hit medical drama The Pitt starring Noah Wyle and an impressive debut season for A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms were just two of the big success stories, with the recent third season of House of the Dragon making up for a divisive second installment. But perhaps one of the most underrated shows to air this year so far has been the fourth season of Industry, which scored impressive reviews during its early-2026 run.

The acclaimed drama, created by former investment bankers Mickey Down and Konrad Kay, has only increased in popularity since its first installment, with the recent Season 4 premiere earning over 800,000 cross-platform viewers in its first three days across HBO and HBO Max, the show’s highest premiere to date. This then grew to 1.1 million viewers for Season 4, Episode 6, “Dear Henry,” with the success encouraging HBO to renew the series for a fifth and final season.

“In terms of ‘why now?’, I mean, it’s been five seasons… I think five seasons is a really good run,” HBO boss Casey Bloys said when asked about the fifth season being the last, with thoughts quickly turning to how Down and Kay can bring their thrilling gem to an epic conclusion. Well, adding several exciting names to the cast is a great start, with it now confirmed that a selection of talented faces will be joining Season 5. This includes Cary Elwes as investor Padgett Stillman, Glee‘s Dianna Agron as Skip Binksy, the CFO of a wellness tech company, Sam Riley as elusive British businessman Solomon Kerr, Silo‘s Jessica Brown Findlay as Marina, a family friend of Sir Henry Muck, and Luke Manley (Marty Supreme), Baby Gill (Slow Horses), and Eduard Poliakov (On Drive).

What’s the Most Anticipated HBO Max Release Still to Come?

This Christmas, Dominic McLaughlin‘s titular Boy Who Lived, Arabella Stanton‘s Hermione Granger, and Alastair Stout’s Ron Weasley will finally make their debuts in the first season of HBO’s Harry Potter adaptation. The rest of the cast includes Paapa Essiedu as Severus Snape, Janet McTeer as Minerva McGonagall, Nick Frost as Rubeus Hagrid, and many more famous faces. The series is shrouded in controversy due to the outspoken comments from the magical franchise’s creator, J.K. Rowling.

For more updates on Industry and other HBO shows, make sure to stay tuned to Collider.

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The term “low fantasy” refers to magical stories that take place on Earth rather than a totally separate world like Middle-earth or Narnia. These tales inject whimsy and enchantment into otherwise mundane settings, which actually makes the fantastical elements hit even harder.

Magic systems, meanwhile, come in a spectrum ranging from “hard”—meaning magic with clear rules and mechanics, like those in the Mistborn series—to “soft”—which refers to magic that is mysterious and ambiguous, like some of the spellcraft in Game of Thrones. With those points in mind, this list looks at the most memorable and ingenious magic systems in all of low fantasy, the ones that stand out because of their creativity, structure, and dynamism.

‘Skulduggery Pleasant’ (2007)

Image via Harper Collins Children’s Books

“Magic belongs to those willing to master it.” Skulduggery Pleasant is a great YA urban fantasy that follows twelve-year-old Stephanie Edgley after she inherits her eccentric uncle’s estate and becomes the partner of the skeletal detective Skulduggery Pleasant, a bag of bones animated by raw magic, capable of casting spells and hurling fireballs. He’s just one of many colorful inhabitants in a hidden magical society operating alongside contemporary Ireland.

Through Stephanie’s eyes, readers slowly learn about a system in which practitioners generally devote themselves to a single branch of magic, like elemental manipulation, developing genuine expertise through years of study. Magic here isn’t limitless or easy; it requires a ton of intelligence and experience. Author Derek Landy bundles all this within an enjoyable package of sharp humor and fast-paced plotting.

‘Storm Front’ (2000)

Image via Ace

“Magic always demands preparation.” Another story about a magical detective, though a darker, grittier one. Storm Front is the first installment in Jim Butcher‘s Dresden Files, centering on Harry Dresden, Chicago’s only professional wizard-for-hire. In this one, he investigates a series of gruesome supernatural murders while balancing his responsibilities to both the magical and ordinary worlds. The magic Harry uses is pretty “hard,” grounded in rules and unbending principles.

For instance, spells demand physical and mental effort, leaving practitioners drained, and are strictly governed by the body of wizards known as the White Council. Mages require concentration, symbolic tools, and preparation to cast spells effectively, and violating certain magical principles carries severe consequences. In other words, in the book, wizardry feels more like a demanding craft involving staves, blasting rods, circles, potions, enchanted objects, and a lot of practice.

‘The Magicians’ (2009)

Image via Cornerstone

“Magic is harder than anyone imagines.” Most fantasy novels portray magic as empowering, but The Magicians takes a far more complicated view. In it, author Lev Grossman presents spellcasting as an extraordinarily demanding academic discipline requiring immense intelligence and precision. Even more strikingly, the students who master it still find themselves wrestling with depression, ennui, loneliness, and nihilism.

In this regard, The Magicians is a kind of anti-Harry Potter, replacing wonder and enchantment with stress and competition, and portraying magic as a power that corrupts those who wield it. Protagonist Quentin Coldwater enrolls at a magical university expecting fulfillment, only to encounter exhausting studies and endless danger. On top of that, interpersonal problems still abound. Ultimately, while the characters’ spells may be mighty, they can’t solve their emotional issues or undo their trauma.

‘Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire’ (2000)

Image via Bloomsbury Publishing

“The magical world is far larger than Hogwarts alone.” Practically any Harry Potter book could make this list, though the one with the most striking explanation and depiction of its magic systems might be Goblet of Fire. It broadens the scope of the story and world, with Harry’s unexpected selection for the Triwizard Tournament introducing us to magical schools beyond Hogwarts, as well as all sorts of new spells and items. There’s just so much colorful stuff here: grindylows, merpeople, arcane cups, dragons, and even resurrection rituals.

Importantly, a lot of this stuff isn’t just entertaining set dressing but integral to the plot itself. For example, near the beginning of the book, Harry and Ron use a Portkey, an ordinary object that has been enchanted to transport those who touch it to another location; this magic is what later teleports Harry and Cedric to the graveyard when they both touch the Triwizard Cup. Finally, Goblet also explains the Unforgivable Curses, which, too, make a dramatic reappearance in the third act.

‘Piranesi’ (2020)

Image via Bloomsbury

“The House gives everything, but only to those who truly observe it.” A gorgeous, lyrical novel by the great Susanna Clarke. The plot revolves around a character nicknamed Piranesi who lives within a strange dimension he calls “the House.” It’s an endless labyrinth of halls, statues, tides, and clouds that appears to exist outside ordinary reality. As Piranesi carefully documents the rhythms of this impossible place, he slowly begins uncovering secrets about both the House and his forgotten past.

The magic in the book is mysterious, and we never really understand how all of it works, like how or why the House alters people’s consciousness and distorts their memories. Different characters also have contrasting beliefs about its nature and how it works. For example, two of the supporting characters take an academic approach, using rituals and scientific tools to try and extract power from this odd alternate world, while Piranesi treats the House like a living thing meant to be understood rather than exploited.

‘Babel’ (2022)

Image via Harper Voyager

“Translation itself becomes a source of power.” This book from R.F. Kuang (author of The Poppy War) boasts a very cool, original magic system rooted in translation. Set in an alternative nineteenth-century Oxford, the novel follows Robin Swift as he studies at the Royal Institute of Translation, better known as Babel (a reference to the biblical tower where everyone spoke a different language and no one could understand each other).

At Babel, scholars harness magic through specially engraved silver bars that exploit the subtle differences between words in different languages. Those tiny gaps in meaning become sources of supernatural energy capable of reshaping the physical world. Kuang fleshes this novel system out into an entire discipline, showing how it influences politics and conflict all across the globe, and supports both empires and rebels in pursuing their aims. Thematically, she uses these ideas to comment on colonialism, language, scholarship, power, and identity.

‘Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell’ (2004)

Image via Bloomsbury

“Magic has a history every bit as important as its power.” While Piranesi is great, Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell remains Susanna Clarke’s masterpiece. It’s set during the Napoleonic Wars in an alternative version of nineteenth-century England and follows the country’s only practicing magicians, the cautious Gilbert Norrell and the brilliant but impulsive Jonathan Strange, as they attempt to restore English magic to its former glory.

Along the way, Clarke constructs an entire scholarly tradition complete with centuries of forgotten history, rival schools of thought, legendary practitioners, and academic debate. Footnotes, fictional books, ancient folktales, scholarly disputes, and long-forgotten magical traditions create the impression that English magic has existed for centuries before the novel begins. Some of the magic is systematized and academic, while other parts of it are dark and dangerous, like the arcana wrought by the Raven King, a stolen human child raised in the faerie world.

Sandra Bullock is opening up about the private grief that began long before she said goodbye to Bryan Randall. 

The actress recently revisited the three-year ALS battle her longtime partner endured, revealing how keeping his diagnosis private left her carrying an enormous emotional burden largely alone. 

As Bullock reflected on Randall’s final years, she also described the complicated reality of caring for someone she loved while helping their children navigate an illness that changed their family long before his death in August 2023.

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For Sandra Bullock, her husband’s illness was not something she could openly discuss, even as its impact reshaped their lives. 

Appearing on Jason Bateman, Will Arnett and Sean Hayes’ “SmartLess” podcast, the “Bird Box” actress explained that Randall had specifically asked her not to reveal his ALS diagnosis. 

“I wasn’t allowed to speak about it. That was the request and I tried — I honored it,” Bullock explained. 

The 62-year-old understood why Randall wanted privacy, yet keeping the diagnosis to herself during an already difficult period became isolating.

“It isolated me in the process,” she shared. The COVID-19 pandemic intensified that experience, leaving Bullock to carry what she described as the “huge weight” of the diagnosis without being able to publicly acknowledge what her family was facing.

Bullock also revealed that her grieving process began much earlier than people might have realized. 

“I started grieving Bryan four years before he passed,” she said, explaining that he “was ill for half of our relationship.” 

Randall ultimately died at 57 in August 2023 following his private three-year battle with ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease.

Bullock Was Already Grieving Before Randall Died

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Sandra Bullock described the emotional experience as unfolding gradually rather than beginning with Bryan Randall’s death. 

As his illness progressed, the “Lost City” star was forced to confront the reality of losing the person she considered her partner while he was still physically present.

“My person left a lot earlier than the body left,” Bullock revealed. She admitted that she did not fully process that reality until after Randall died because she remained focused on getting through each day.

ALS itself added another layer of uncertainty. The Hollywood star described the diagnosis as “the process of elimination over the course of a year,” involving repeated medical evaluations and physical assessments. 

She recalled doctors giving Randall different milestones and tests, including grips and breathing tests, as they worked through the progression of the disease.

For Bullock, that uncertainty meant planning quietly while continuing to care for her family. 

“You have to quietly plan. And I’m a very good planner with illness,” she explained. Her experience with illness in her own family had already shaped that instinct, as her father had experienced “accidents” and her mother had cancer.

Sandra Bullock Focused On Her Children Through The Darkest Period

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Bryan Randall’s illness was particularly difficult because Bullock was not navigating it alone. The couple co-parented the actress’s son, Louis, and daughter, Laila, while Randall was also the father of his daughter, Skylar. Bullock said the children’s needs remained central as she dealt with the worsening condition.

“It doesn’t scare me — not the illness itself, it doesn’t scare me. I can see and be around just about anything,” she noted. 

However, the presence of young children made the experience considerably more complicated. Bullock was especially concerned about how Laila would process Randall’s decline because she viewed him as a father figure.

“I had two young kids that were navigating it, especially a little girl who saw [Randall] as a father figure,” Bullock said.

The family’s circumstances meant she had to balance caregiving, planning and parenting while maintaining the privacy Randall had requested. 

Bullock’s sister, Gesine, was the only person who knew about Randall’s diagnosis for a period of time. Eventually, Bullock confided in friends, including Jennifer Aniston and Amanda Anka, Bateman’s wife.

“When the physical illness was then coupled with the mental health aspect of things — and it’s something that people don’t talk about… it was a trifecta that was pretty dark,” Bullock said, revealing just how layered the experience had become.

Sandra Bullock Focused On Healing Before Returning To Hollywood

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Bullock’s careful focus on her children also shaped the way she approached life after Bryan Randall’s death. 

Rather than immediately returning to Hollywood’s demands, she stepped away from the spotlight and focused on healing and spending time with Louis and Laila. 

A source told PEOPLE in April that the doting mom wanted to make sure she and her children were in “the best possible place” before resuming her career. 

That period eventually led to her highly anticipated return with “Practical Magic 2,” marking her first movie since 2022. 

Bullock appeared alongside Nicole Kidman at CinemaCon that month to promote the sequel, signaling that she was ready to begin another chapter professionally. 

Her return was not presented as a rush back to work, however. Instead, it followed years in which family and personal recovery took precedence. 

Bullock Gives Rare Glimpse Into Life With Her Children

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After years of keeping her family life largely out of the public eye, Sandra Bullock has offered another rare glimpse into the world she has built around her children. 

On August 18, the actress shared a rare Instagram carousel offering an unusually personal look at her recent life, captioning the post, “Friends, family, fun, fishies, furries, aaaand work.” 

The collection included Bullock enjoying the outdoors, fishing and rafting, spending time with friends, including Jason Bateman and Amanda Anka, and visiting her parents’ graves with her sister, Gesine Bullock-Prado. 

Most notably, the carousel included a rare image of her children, Louis and Laila, walking with their mother through the countryside. 

The three were photographed from behind, allowing Bullock to share the family moment while continuing to protect her children’s privacy. The post also included glimpses of Bullock’s dog and other personal moments.

Jason Kelce has taken an unconventional approach to address the enormous amount of water consumed by AI data centers.

The retired Philadelphia Eagles legend stars in an ad campaign urging citizens to donate their pee to cool data centers.

Jason does take part in advocacy from time to time and recently put his beer-drinking skills to work to raise money for the Eagles Autism Foundation at his annual bash.

Jason Kelce thinks there’s a better way to handle the issue of AI data centers consuming huge amounts of water.

In a bizarre new advertising campaign, the former football star joined forces with canned water giant Liquid Death and light beer brand Garage Beer, which he co-owns with his brother Travis, to take a stand against the enormous environmental impact of AI infrastructure.

The campaign starts with a shot of Jason filling up a glass jar with urine while speaking to viewers.

“AI data centers waste millions of gallons of water. That’s why Liquid Death and Garage Beer have decided to team up. We want your pee … to cool these data centers,” he says.

Kelce’s Pee Pitch Highlights A Real AI Problem

The video then cuts to a scene in which he performs a song asking for “endless gallons of pee” and encouraging viewers to send it to data centers.

In another scene, a crowd of people can be seen taking jars of urine to the post office, with a disclaimer saying, “The suits want us to tell you to please don’t actually send your pee.”

The move was a promotional effort for Liquid Death’s sparkling energy drinks and Garage Beer, which Jason co-owns with his brother, Kansas City Chiefs star Travis Kelce.

While the campaign is satirical, it draws attention to a very real ecological concern that has sparked tense debate online.

A study funded by the Department of Energy found that data centers across the United States consumed 66 billion liters of water, while another study found that local community water systems could require $10 billion to $58 billion in new infrastructure by 2030.

Jason Kelce Has Used His Platform To Support Good Causes

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Jason is no stranger to speaking up on societal issues and championing causes close to his heart.

Back in June, the New Heights podcast cohost put his drinking skills to good use during the annual Eagles Autism Foundation fundraiser in New Jersey.

The event saw him compete against a patron in the Beer Bowl, where they drank to become the champion and win a $50,000 prize. Jason won the drinking competition and reportedly donated $50,000 of his own money to the fundraiser, per the New York Post.

Sam Altman Calls AI Water Consumption Claims ‘Fake’

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Meanwhile, OpenAI boss Sam Altman dismissed concerns about data centers consuming large amounts of water as “fake,” arguing that humans also consume energy.

He made the assertion while weighing in on some of the common criticisms the new technology continues to garner during the India AI Impact Summit.

Altman noted at the time that rumors suggesting ChatGPT uses gallons of water per query were “completely untrue, totally insane” and have “no connection to reality,” per CNBC.

Sam Altman Says AI’s Energy Demands Matter More Than Water

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While data centers traditionally rely on large amounts of water to cool operating systems and prevent overheating, some evolved models don’t require it at all.

In his address, Altman implied that energy availability was a far more critical concern to the advancement of AI than water.

“Not per query, but in total – because the world is using so much AI … and we need to move towards nuclear or wind and solar very quickly,” he said.

He then pushed back against a previous comment by Bill Gates that the efficiency of the human brain suggests AI will become progressively more energy-efficient.

“One of the things that is always unfair in this comparison is people talk about how much energy it takes to train an AI model … But it also takes a lot of energy to train a human,” he said. “It takes like 20 years of life, and all the food you eat before that time, before you get smart.”

“The fair comparison is if you ask ChatGPT a question, how much energy does it take once a model is trained to answer that question, versus a human, and probably AI has already caught up on an energy efficiency basis, measured that way,” he added.

EDITOR’S NOTE: This interview contains spoilers for ‘Star Trek: Strange New Worlds’ Season 4, Episode 5, “Level-Five Transporter Accident.”

Strange New Worlds has officially delivered one of the most delightfully unusual Star Trek episodes of the entire franchise with Season 4, Episode 5, “Level-Five Transporter Accident.” The episode was first teased at SDCC 2025, as the creative team revealed that the series would officially be doing a “Puppet” episode in its then-distant fourth season. The episode goes full Muppets, with incredibly designed puppets from the Jim Henson Company, plenty of physical comedy, and even a touch of romance.

Ahead of the season, I sat down with co-showrunners Henry Alonso Meyers and Akiva Goldsman to discuss this long-awaited episode, which Meyers co-wrote with Dana Horgan. During our conversation, Meyers revealed that the episode required hours upon hours of planning, new builds for the bridge set, and 14 dedicated puppeteers bringing the crew of the Enterprise to life. Meanwhile, Goldsman teased a “timey-wimey” adventure for the Season 4 finale, “Tomorrow’s Enterprise,” which references the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode, “Yesterday’s Enterprise.” He also spoke about the six-episode final season expected to air next year and promised to go out on an emotional note. You can watch the interview in the player above or read the full transcript of our conversation below.

This ‘Strange New Worlds’ Episode Required 14 Puppeteers and 100s of Hours of Planning

“I think that there is a median between people who love Muppets and people who love Star Trek, and we really wanted to find a way to explore that.”

Image via Jan Thijs/Paramount+

COLLIDER: My favorite episodes each season are always the ones where you guys take full advantage of the premise that anything can happen in space. Henry, I know you co-wrote this one with Dana Horgan. How did the concept for this puppet episode come about, and what was the most exciting part of pushing beyond our expectations for this episode?

HENRY ALONSO MYERS: We had been talking about doing a puppet episode for a long time, and we felt that, much like we did with the musical, that in order to do it, we couldn’t just half do it. We couldn’t just do a sort of slight version of it. We really needed to rise up and try to make the best possible version of it.

Then the other thing that we really needed to do was make sure that it felt like a Star Trek episode distinctly, specifically, and in all of the story. The transporter accident kind of ended up being the thing that pulled it all together. We hadn’t done a transporter accident episode yet. We felt like this was a great opportunity to try that.

And part of the goal, I think, in doing the episode was: what is the biggest, most difficult thing that we haven’t had a chance to do yet? I think part of it was also like, if this is the last season, because we never know, what are the things that you really, really, really wish you’d tried? I think that there is a median between people who love Muppets and people who love Star Trek, and we really wanted to find a way to explore that.

I mean, part of our goal in doing this show is to make a show that is, at its heart, for lovers of Star Trek, but also that reaches out to people who’ve never seen Star Trek before and present something for them. So, I feel like there is something for people of all types in a given season. You may not love every episode, but you will love all of the show. There’s something for you in everything, and our goal was to do a big reach for people who had never seen it and do a big reach for people who have seen it and know it in their hearts.

I’d love to hear more from either of you about the logistics of filming this episode with so many puppets. How many puppeteers did you have on set? How much time did it take for props to design and create all of these puppets?

MYERS: I feel like we had 14 puppeteers. Part of it was Jordan Canning, our director, who we had done a lot of prep work with her the season before, literally walking through all the sets, about the concept of it, just as we were talking about it. We reached out to Henson as early in the process as we could, because we felt like they would be the right people to do the puppet builds.

We had a kind of broad early concept of what the episode would be, and we knew that it would lean on Spock, and so we had a long talk with Ethan [Peck] about it. We had to rebuild the captain’s chair in order to have a puppeteer fit through it. There were a few sections that required a lot of adjustment, but you’d be surprised. I mean, our sets are great and are weirdly well suited towards puppeteering.

And then, obviously, this is about having a director who really knows and understands how this has to work, and can work around the sets and work with their understanding of how they want to design the shots in a way that feels like puppets, and yet it gives it that feeling of, “Oh, they just kind of came up with it at the last minute.”

I love the scientific advantage of the puppets not needing to breathe or being able to be chopped in half, and I love the ending moment with them all during their little suitless spacewalk. Were there any “we can only do this with puppets” concepts that didn’t make it into the episode?

MYERS: I feel like there were 100 things that we kept trying, but weirdly, everything ended up in the episode that we wanted. There were a few things that we pushed the idea of that we may or may not have put in the episode finally. Part of it, I think, is that just the presence of puppets alone makes a dramatic scene funny.

Yes, the ‘Strange New Worlds’ Season 4 Finale Is a ‘Star Trek: The Next Generation’ Reference

“It might be a timey-wimey episode.”

Image via Jan Thijs/Paramount+

We were delighted to reveal the episode titles at Collider. I’m really curious if you can tease anything about the back half, especially the soap opera reference with Chronitron’s “Through the Hourglass” and the finale, “Tomorrow’s Enterprise.”

AKIVA GOLDSMAN: “Tomorrow’s Enterprise,” I think in a very sort of tangential way, is a reference to a Next Gen title, obviously. So, it’s not, dare I say, rocket science for anybody to imagine it might be a timey-wimey episode, to use an adjacent genre reference.

I think what you’ll discover in the back half of the season is it’s fully equipped with all the things we do. It has as classic Star Trek as you might find in the most straight-ahead action-adventure sci-fi way, and then it does that thing that we do, which makes us Strange New Worlds. Our worlds are genres, and what we try to do is we try to use different genres as different lenses on storytelling. So, as we continue to focus on the deepening of our characters and we drive towards the inevitable end, and prepare for that, we’re getting everything ready for that last season, which is ultimately a single suite of six episodes, which lets us say goodbye to the show and hello to the eras that we know.

We’ve had musicals, puppets, horror, noir. So many things. How are you going to top that in the final season?

GOLDSMAN: We won’t, actually. And I mean that honestly. I mean, if we top it, which I hope we will, and I believe we have, we will top it by doing the thing that we do best and that our cast does best, and that all these genres we’re in service of, which is storytelling and emotion, and emotion and emotion and emotion.

New episodes of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds air every Thursday on Paramount+.

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Release Date

2022 – 2027-00-00

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Network

Paramount+

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Showrunner

Henry Alonso Myers, Akiva Goldsman

Directors

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Dan Liu, Amanda Row, Maja Vrvilo, Akiva Goldsman, Dermott Downs, Eduardo Sánchez, Jeffrey W. Byrd, Jonathan Frakes, Jordan Canning, Leslie Hope, Valerie Weiss, Sydney Freeland, Christopher J. Byrne, Rachel Leiterman

Writers

Onitra Johnson

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Hayden Panettiere posed for what would be her final PETA campaign mere weeks before her shocking death at age 36.

On Tuesday, August 18, PETA unveiled a new promo video Panettiere filmed in the final weeks of her life to protest the captivity of whales, dolphins and other marine life at theme parks across the world.

“Can you imagine [the animals’] frustration, their trauma, their depression? All that is important and crucial for their well-being is ripped away,” Panettiere argues in comments about the animals, obtained by Us. “We can end this. You and me. In their ocean homes, they can be with their families, dive deep to escape the hot sun and enjoy the rain on their backs … all of that is taken from them when they are confined to small tanks.”

In the ad, Panettiere draws attention to the way animals are forced to live inside small enclosures at various parks around the planet, performing tricks for screaming visitors without any refuge.

The powerful PETA clip ends with the former Heroes star asking viewers to pledge to stop visiting marine theme parks.

“Vow today to never go to a marine park that keeps dolphins in extreme captivity. Together, we can end this cruelty,” she asks.

Alongside the video’s release, PETA Senior Vice President Lisa Lange paid tribute to Panettiere’s long history of fierce animal rights activism. (Panettiere memorably appeared in the acclaimed 2009 documentary The Cove, where she was shown paddling into the ocean off the coast of Japan to confront dolphin hunters.)

“Hayden Panettiere became a household name playing a hero on TV, but to animals, she was the real deal,” Lange said on Tuesday. “She fearlessly paddled into the blood-stained waters of Taiji, Japan to stare down dolphin hunters during their annual massacre, a moment captured in the Oscar-winning documentary The Cove, and never stopped denouncing marine parks like SeaWorld, calling their confinement of complex, far-ranging marine mammals in concrete tanks ‘disgusting.’ The world has lost a kind soul and the animals a fierce ally, and everyone at PETA holds her memory close.”

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Related: Inside Hayden Panettiere’s On-Off Relationship With Brian Hickerson

In the years after they broke up, Hayden Panettiere’s relationship with Brian Hickerson was still complicated even at the time of her tragic death. “Hayden and Brian have been on and off for years, but have pretty much always remained in contact,” a source exclusively shares with Us of the pair’s history prior to her […]

The actress was also the spokesperson for the Hawaii-based marine charity Whaleman Foundation, which fights for the welfare of whales, dolphins, and porpoises in their natural habitat.

PETA joined a chorus of Hollywood stars in paying tribute to Panettiere’s life and legacy following her death on Sunday, August 16. The Greenville Police Department confirmed on Sunday that Panettiere was found “unresponsive” at a residence in Greenville, South Carolina. The Nashville alum was later pronounced dead from a suspected overdose.

“It is with profound sadness that we share the tragic passing of our beloved Hayden,” Panettiere’s father, Skip Panettiere, told Us in a statement at the time. “She was an incredible light and a force of nature who brought immeasurable love and joy to all who knew her — and to the millions who watched her onscreen.”

An autopsy — which was completed on Monday, August 17 — determined that “no signs of trauma were discovered that would have contributed” to Panettiere’s death. An official cause of death is “pending further investigation and the completion of additional studies,” per the Greenville County Coroner’s Office.

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Related: Hayden Panettiere’s Ex Wladimir Klitschko Breaks Silence on Her Sudden Death

Hayden Panettiere‘s former fiancé, Wladimir Klitschko, is speaking out for the first time about her shocking death. “Our family is going through a time of profound shock and grief,” Klitschko, 50, wrote via Instagram on Tuesday, August 18, alongside a throwback photo of him, Panettiere and their daughter, Kaya. “The announcement of Hayden’s tragic death […]

Us reported that Panettiere’s ex-boyfriend Brian Hickerson and his brother, Zach Hickerson, were at the Greenville apartment when emergency personnel arrived on Sunday. An incident report obtained by Us indicated that Brian, 37, provided a “bag of medication” that Panettiere was “currently on.”

Local police are still investigating the circumstances surrounding Panettiere’s death.

If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse, contact the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).