Counting On alum Joy-Anna Duggar decided to wait to publicly announce her pregnancy — and she wouldn’t have it any other way.

“Thank you all so much for the love on our pregnancy announcement,” Duggar, 28, wrote via her Instagram Stories on Wednesday, September 2. “We are over the moon and cannot wait.”

Duggar and her husband, Austin Forsyth, announced on Tuesday, September 1, that they are expecting another baby. The couple already share sons Gideon, 8, and Gunner, 2, as well as daughter Evelyn, 6. (Duggar suffered a stillbirth in 2019 and named her late daughter Annabell.)

“It’s [definitely] been challenging keeping it under wraps b/c [because] I feel like, with each pregnancy, I show sooner,” she noted on Wednesday. “But, having a lil time for us to soak this in quietly as a family has been so special.”

To share her pregnancy news, Duggar asked Gideon and Evelyn to snap maternity portraits in their family’s living room. In the images, Duggar cuddled up to Forsyth, 32, as they looked over sonogram photos.

“Decided to have the kids take these photos for us on a whim,” the former TLC personality wrote in a follow-up upload on Wednesday. “They turned out to be so cute.”

Joy-Anna is one of Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar’s 19 children. She received a flurry of support from her siblings amid her pregnancy.

“Sooooo excited to meet this baby!!” Jinger Duggar replied, while sister-in-law Maddie Duggar added, “Sooooo excited to meet baby!!!! You look amazing ♥️.”

Related: How Joy-Anna Duggar Supports Sisters’ Pregnancies in Wake of Miscarriage

Joy-Anna Forsyth (née Duggar) is there for her sisters during their pregnancies, despite suffering a miscarriage in June. “I thought it was going to be a lot harder being around [Kendra Duggar (née Caldwell), Abbie Duggar (née Burnett) , Lauren Duggar (née Swanson), and Anna Duggar (née Keller) … because there are three sisters that […]

While raising her growing family, Joy-Anna has continued to honor Annabell, who died at 20 weeks.

“That was extremely hard. I felt like, at first, I was like, ‘I’m going to be strong and I’m going to push through this,’” Joy-Anna recalled of her loss on the Wednesday episode of Jinger’s podcast. “But after the dust settled and, like, a new normal had to start happening, it was really hard.”

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She continued at the time, “I really had to work through a lot of hard things and … I guess in a lot of ways, I didn’t know how to handle it. I was like, ‘I don’t want to turn into this bitter person that just can’t move on from the past, like, I want to be able to work through this.’ It felt like I would never see light at the end of the tunnel.”

According to the influencer, the fog from her grief slowly began to lift after six months.

“True joy comes from the Lord, and I think my kids help me have a little bit of happiness here and there in the dark moments,” she recalled. “It is really hard to find joy in those hard moments.”

A strange thing happens with truly great novels. Their premise stops being the part you remember most. Years later, what comes back is a moral complication, a voice, a particular room, the feeling of somebody making the wrong choice for reasons you understand too well. Plot gets you inside. The book’s way of seeing people is what follows you home.

That is especially true of the six novels on this particular list. They deal with slavery, migration, political power, cloning, parenthood, and the collapse of civilization, yet none of them can be reduced to the large subjects printed on their jackets. Their real force comes from making history and systems feel painfully private. Or maybe let’s put it this way — these are books that keep expanding after you finish them.

6

‘The Underground Railroad’ (2016)

Image via Doubleday

The Underground Railroad follows Cora, an enslaved young woman on a Georgia plantation who escapes with Caesar and discovers that the Underground Railroad is literally operating beneath the country through hidden stations and trains. Colson Whitehead takes a historical network and makes it physical, then uses each stop on Cora’s journey to expose a different American method of controlling Black life. South Carolina initially offers apparent safety. North Carolina reveals another form of terror. The geography keeps changing, while the larger machinery of racism simply learns new disguises.

That speculative choice gives Whitehead enormous freedom without loosening the historical weight. Slave catcher Ridgeway pursues Cora with an almost ideological devotion, treating her escape as an insult to the national order he believes in. Cora’s own understanding of freedom keeps evolving because survival in one place does not guarantee dignity in the next. The novel won both the National Book Award and the Pulitzer Prize, but its staying power comes from how naturally history, horror, adventure, and allegory coexist. It moves quickly enough to feel dangerous and leaves enough behind to make every station worth thinking about afterward.

5

‘Never Let Me Go’ (2005)

Image via Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group

Kathy H. remembers growing up at Hailsham, an English boarding school where the children are encouraged to create art, remain healthy, and accept rules whose real purpose they barely understand. Never Let Me Go gradually clarifies that Kathy, Ruth, Tommy, and their classmates were created as organ donors. Their lives have been designed in advance by a society that prefers not to look too closely at the human cost of extending everyone else’s. Kazuo Ishiguro never turns that discovery into a conventional rebellion story. The horror is that these characters have been raised so completely inside the system that its limits feel almost natural to them.

Kathy’s calm narration is devastating because memory does most of the emotional work. She recalls schoolyard jealousies, cassette tapes, friendships, sex, minor betrayals, and the possibility that love might somehow earn two people more time. Tommy’s childhood anger becomes more painful once adulthood explains what he could sense without understanding. Ruth’s behavior also grows richer when insecurity and regret begin catching up with her. Ishiguro makes an enormous ethical crime visible through people remembering very ordinary days, which is precisely why the book hurts. The science fiction stays quiet. The humanity does not.

4

‘Pachinko’ (2017)

Image via Grand Central Publishing

Pachinko begins with Sunja growing up in a poor Korean family during Japanese occupation and follows the consequences of one relationship across generations. After becoming pregnant by Koh Hansu, a wealthy married man, she accepts a marriage proposal from Isak, a Christian minister who takes her to Osaka. Japan offers the family opportunities Korea could not, but it also places them inside a society that treats Koreans as permanent outsiders. Children are born there, businesses are built there, and still the question of belonging refuses to disappear.

Min Jin Lee makes that history intimate through money, food, work, education, marriage, religion, and the small humiliations people learn to anticipate before entering a room. Sunja selling kimchi to support her family carries as much importance as larger historical events because survival is built from those decisions. Noa tries to move through Japanese society by distancing himself from what others despise about his background. Mozasu finds another path through the pachinko business, where luck, manipulation, and economic possibility sit together rather neatly. The novel spans decades without losing sight of the people paying for those decades. You finish with the feeling that one family has somehow taught you an entire century.

3

‘Wolf Hall’ (2009)

Image via Henry Holt & Company

Thomas Cromwell is usually remembered as one of the cold operators surrounding Henry VIII. Wolf Hall does something far more interesting. Hilary Mantel enters his perspective during the king’s effort to end his marriage to Catherine of Aragon and marry Anne Boleyn, turning Tudor politics into a world of negotiations, debts, religious pressure, memory, family alliances, and people constantly measuring what another person might want. Cromwell begins the novel carrying the death of his wife and daughters while navigating the political collapse of his mentor Cardinal Wolsey.

The pleasure is in watching how quickly his mind works. Cromwell remembers favors, recognizes weaknesses, understands money, and notices when somebody’s public position no longer matches the private reality underneath it. Mantel’s present-tense prose keeps sixteenth-century England from feeling embalmed, while the famous use of “he” pulls the reader unusually close to Cromwell’s consciousness. Henry remains dangerous partly because everybody around him has to convert royal desire into lawful reality. Anne is equally alert to the stakes of every conversation. Wolf Hall won the Booker Prize and began one of modern historical fiction’s greatest trilogies, yet the immediate appeal is simpler. Politics has rarely felt this alive at table level.

2

‘The Road’ (2006)

Image by Alfred A. Knopf

Few books make love feel this practical, frightened, and necessary. A father and son travel south through a burned America in The Road, pushing their possessions in a shopping cart and trying to survive cold, hunger, armed strangers, and a landscape where almost nothing living remains. Cormac McCarthy removes nearly every comfort associated with post-apocalyptic adventure. There are no rebuilding montages, clever factions, or exciting scavenger runs. Food means another day. A locked cellar can contain something worse than starvation. The father’s entire idea of the future has narrowed to keeping the boy alive long enough to reach somewhere safer.

That simplicity makes every moral decision enormous. The father has learned to distrust almost everyone, while the boy keeps asking whether compassion still has a place in a world where kindness can be fatal. Their language about “carrying the fire” becomes a way of preserving some idea of goodness when civilization can no longer enforce one. McCarthy’s stripped prose can make a can of Coca-Cola, a remembered meal, or a shared blanket feel almost sacred because scarcity has changed the value of ordinary things. The novel won the Pulitzer Prize, though awards are almost beside the point once these two begin walking.

1

‘The Known World’ (2003)

Image via Amistad Press

The Known World won the Pulitzer Prize in 2004, but its greatness sits deeper than recognition. The book begins with the death of Henry Townsend, a formerly enslaved Black man in antebellum Virginia who became a slaveholder himself. That fact immediately disrupts any comfortable way of organizing the world around him. Henry owns people because the society he lives in has taught him that property, race, status, and freedom can coexist inside grotesque contradictions. After his death, the plantation begins losing its fragile order, and Edward P. Jones widens the story through Henry’s widow Caldonia, the enslaved people he owned, neighboring families, white authorities, and lives that will continue long after the immediate events have passed.

Jones refuses to arrange these characters according to easy moral categories. A person can suffer under one hierarchy and still participate in another. Affection can exist inside ownership without making ownership less monstrous. The narration moves freely across time, sometimes telling us what becomes of a seemingly minor character decades before the present story reaches that future, which gives the novel the eerie authority of a historian who already knows where everybody ends up. That structure turns one Virginia county into a complete social system with memory stretching in every direction. The Known World literally makes American history harder to simplify once you have lived inside its contradictions.

Throughout history, many fiction books have sold a remarkable number of copies; but only a few have been so commercially popular that they’ve gone down in history as the best-selling works of literature in history. There is nothing quite like sitting down with a good fictional story to read through and quickly grow addicted to, and the ten highest-selling fiction books of all time have clearly been so popular that millions upon millions of people were dying to get their hands on a copy.

From foundational fantasy masterpieces like The Hobbit to ancient texts like Dream of the Red Chamber, the best-selling fiction books ever published are proof that the joy of reading is a truly timeless thing. Even to this day, they continue selling millions of copies around the world, so that they will very likely never cease to be remembered as essential classics of the art form.

10

‘She: A History of Adventure’ (1887)

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H. Rider Haggard‘s Gothic British novel She: A History of Adventure was originally serialized in The Graphic magazine between 1886 and 1887, until finally being published in book form that same year. The book, a massively influential pioneer of the lost world genre, was so immensely popular upon publication that it has never been out of print. A whopping 139 years after its publication in book form, it’s still just as enjoyable and admirable today as it was back then.

Over the course of that nearly one-and-a-half century, She has been able to sell around 83 million copies around the world. It set a wholly new blueprint for fantasy fiction, and its influences can still be felt across adventure classics as foundational as Tarzan or as modern as Indiana Jones. But on top of being so iconic that everyone should read it at least once in their lives, even if only to be able to appreciate how influential it truly has been, it’s also just as fast-paced and fun to read today as it surely was back in the 19th century.

9

‘Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland’ (1865)

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Nowadays, Lewis Carroll‘s Alice is one of the most iconic characters in all of English-language pop culture, and Wonderland is easily one of the best-known fictional worlds in the history of literature. It all had to start somewhere, though, and that “somewhere” was Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. This paragon of Victorian literature and pioneer of the literary nonsense genre helped usher in a new era of children’s literature, where books became less didactic and more focused on entertaining kids and helping their imaginations flourish.

It’s no wonder why Alice is far and way one of the best-selling fantasy books of all time, with its having sold around 100 million copies worldwide to date. Fum, whimsical, and wonderfully (pun not intended) imaginative, it’s such a fresh and creative novel that anyone—regardless of their age—should still be able to thoroughly enjoy it today. Many a fantasy book from the 19th century feels a bit dated by modern standards, but not Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, which is still one of the most important pillars of fantasy pop culture.

8

‘The Hobbit’ (1937)

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It would be a later fantasy novel by J. R. R. Tolkien that would revolutionize the fantasy genre in a way that it had never seen before, but that isn’t to discredit the value and importance of the world’s introduction to Middle-earth, the magical children’s novel The Hobbit. The book was an immediate critical and commercial success, and that’s hardly surprising. This is, after all, the sort of book you know will be a masterpiece just from reading the first 10 pages.

The Hobbit has sold around 100 million copies worldwide, and even that still isn’t enough considering just how delightfully timeless, entertaining, and influential it has proven to be over the years. Whether as a bedtime story, as a breezy weekend read for a fantasy fan, or as a re-read for anyone who loves Middle-earth, it’s an absolutely perfect whose commercial success shouldn’t be surprising in the slightest.

7

‘Dream of the Red Chamber’ (1791)

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Also known as The Story of the Stone, Dream of the Red Chamber is an ancient family saga penned by Cao Xueqin, considered one of the Four Great Classic Novels of Chinese literature—and thus, a must-read for anyone interested in the history of world literature. Surprisingly deep in its psychological scope and wonderfully intricate in its plotting, it follows the rise and tragic fall of a wealthy aristocratic family.

Since its publication over two centuries ago, Dream of the Red Chamber has sold over 100 million copies worldwide, a continued commercial success that’s nothing short of impressive for a text so old. Through its depth, thematic layeredness, and profoundly humanist and emotional tone, the novel has transcended cultural and language barriers over the centuries. It offers social commentary on themes like wealth and social decline that’s still shockingly timely in 2026.

6

‘And Then There Were None’ (1939)

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British writer Dame Agatha Christie is one of the most legendary writers in the history of literature not only because she authored several of the most iconic thriller and mystery novels ever, but also because she’s the most translated author in history and the best-selling fiction writer of all time. A staggering number of those sales come from what’s both her highest-selling book ever and the highest-selling mystery book ever by an admirable margin: And Then There Were None, one of those essential thriller books everyone should read at least once.

To date, And Then There Were None has sold around 100 million copies around the world—over 20 million more than the next best-selling mystery thriller ever, Dan Brown‘s The Da Vinci Code. All of that commercial hype is perfectly warranted. And Then There Were None is a brilliant subversion of the whodunnit formula which has aged like fine wine, creating an atmosphere of psychological dread that’s still just as effective today as it surely was back in 1939.

5

‘Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone’ (1997)

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Setting J. K. Rowling‘s condemnable personal views aside is always necessary when talking about the best-selling books in history, because there’s no conversation about the topic than can elude the highest-selling book series in history: Harry Potter. The most commercially successful novel of the bunch is the one that started it all, a children’s fantasy novel which revolutionized the publishing industry as a whole: Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, published as Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone in the United States.

It’s one of the best fantasy books of the last 100 years, a landmark in the genre’s history whose nearly-unprecedented pop-cultural importance and level of influence simply can’t be overstated. Having sold around 120 million copies around the world to date, Sorcerer’s Stone continues to further enshrine itself as one of the most timeless pieces of children’s literature the world has ever seen.

4

‘The Alchemist’ (1988)

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When it comes to world literature, few regions have had an output more historically important than Latin America. Case in point: the great Brazilian author Paulo Coelho, whose The Alchemist sold quite poorly when originally published in Portuguese. It was after finding a larger publisher and landing an English translation that slow-burning word-of-mouth (and even Coelho’s embracing of Internet piracy) would eventually transform what was originally a flop into one of the most widely-read novels in history.

This wonderful fantasy adventure has historically received some criticism for presenting ideas and themes that are at times deemed too simplistic, but it’s precisely the universal accessibility of its philosophical messages and musings that has allowed it to sell around 150 million copies worldwide. That’s without even counting the people who have read The Alchemist through the piracy that Coelho himself supported in an effort to get his book even further out there.

3

‘The Lord of the Rings’ (1954–1955)

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As incredible as The Hobbit is and as massively influential as it was back in the ’30s, it wouldn’t be until the ’50s that Tolkien would publish an epic novel which would completely change the course of fantasy literature’s history: The Lord of the Rings, far and away one of the most ambitious books of all time. Published in three volumes, this fantasy epic is widely regarded as the greatest and most foundational of the entire 20th century.

Due to its often being sold in three separate volumes, the book’s sales numbers aren’t the clearest, but it’s generally accepted that it has sold a little over 150 million copies worldwide to date. Indeed, over the years, The Lord of the Rings has never ceased to be a pillar of modern fantasy, Tolkien’s writing having completely redefined the way several future generations of fantasy authors would approach the genre going forward.

2

‘The Little Prince’ (1943)

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French author and aviator Antoine de Saint-Exupéry‘s The Little Prince was written and illustrated by him at the suggestion of a publisher, who said that he should write a children’s book to calm himself during his self-imposed exile in New York during World War II. What Saint-Exupéry ended up writing is one of the most important novellas in history, the second most translated literary work ever published, right behind only the Bible.

It’s one of the most perfect fantasy books ever published, making the fact that it has sold around 200 million copies worldwide all the less surprising. Saint-Exupéry’s deceptively simple and charming prose is a great way to get children to enjoy The Little Prince, but the book hides such beautifully complex and profound truths about the human condition and being an adult that anyone, regardless of their age, should consider it essential reading.

1

‘A Tale of Two Cities’ (1859)

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Calling Charles Dickens one of the greatest and most influential authors in the history of the English language could be considered an understatement, seeing as he’s almost universally hailed as the most prominent novelist of the Victorian era. For proof of why, one needn’t look any further than his best-selling work, the historical novel A Tale of Two Cities.

The book is an absolute masterpiece, but that doesn’t make it any less surprising or admirable that it has sold more than 200 million copies around the world since its publication, making it the best-selling fiction book in history. Dickens’ writing can feel a bit slow or overly dense at times, but A Tale of Two Cities is nevertheless a pretty-much-perfect must-read. It’s a truly timeless story about love, sacrifice, and revolution which will likely only continue to be a commercial juggernaut as the years continue to pass.

Unfairly or not, sequels have had a less-than-great reputation over who knows how many years now for being inferior to the stories that came before. It’s not exclusive to movies, since book sequels had existed before feature films were really a thing, but there have been a lot of movie sequels, to put it mildly. And some have missed the mark, or felt cynically made, potentially just existing to piggyback off the success of one movie. A sequel being worthy of standing alongside the original is desirable, of course, but then the instances where sequels are arguably better than the originals have proven rare enough that such films have been praised a ton (see The Empire Strikes Back, Toy Story 2, and debatably The Godfather Part II, which more than filled what were already some pretty big shoes).

To focus on one genre and one decade, though, the 2000s seemed like a pretty great one, in hindsight, for sequels to superhero movies. The following ones are all “first” sequels, in the sense that they’re all basically a “Part 2” to a single movie that came before. All but one of these sequels got a third movie, and all those third movies were inferior to the second ones, so the momentum wasn’t perfectly kept up in any example here. Still, the fact that in this decade, five superhero movies came out and improved upon originals that were already good to great in quality is worth celebrating, and so these sequels have all played a part in making superhero films as dominant as they have been throughout the 2010s and until now, too (the 2020s, at the time of writing).

5

‘X2’ (2003)

The first X-Men movie came out in 2000, and it was pretty good. For its time, it was pretty great. Nowadays, it’s pretty good. Quite a lot in the superhero/comic book movie sphere has surpassed it, including X2, which might not be the very best X-Men movie, but it’s a contender (and might only place behind the likes of X-Men: Days of Future Past and Logan, if the latter counts). It does what good sequels tend to do by hitting the ground running and giving more interesting things for most of the returning characters to do. If you want Professor Charles Xavier to do a lot, you might be disappointed, and the same goes for Cyclops, though the latter is infamously discarded across the first three X-Men movies, so it’s not as surprising that happens in X2.

Also, X2 looks ever greater when you see where the X-Men films went, because 2006’s X-Men: The Last Stand is not very good at all, and unfortunately squandered the momentum the run of films up until that point had been building. Still, it’s good to just focus on what works, and X2 holds up well. It’s got better action than the first, a great villain played by Brian Cox, and a good mix of returning characters and interesting new ones (as people tend to say, Nightcrawler is indeed a highlight). This one just gets most things right, as far as superhero movies with ensemble casts go, and it’s definitely the best of the “original trilogy” of X-Men movies.

4

‘Blade II’ (2002)

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Of all the movies here, Blade II is probably the furthest from great, but quality-wise, it still more than delivers. And also, of all the movies here, there’s probably the smallest difference in quality between it and the movie it’s a sequel to. Blade (1998) is quite good, and also fairly ahead-of-its-time, given it was a successful R-rated comic book movie at a time when that was quite the novelty. And for one more thing, calling Blade II better than Blade might not be the most popular opinion, since both are well-regarded, and Blade (1998) might be the slightly more consistent and straightforward film. It’s unlikely anyone would consider Blade: Trinity the best of the bunch, though.

That one’s a mess that makes X-Men: The Last Stand look not all that bad in comparison. Blade II is much easier to like, and it’s technically the strongest of the bunch, since Guillermo del Toro was brought in to direct this one, and though he didn’t go full del Toro, he went fairly hard on the del Toro-isms. There’s sufficient eccentricity here that gives the movie a bit more personality than the first, even if that first movie gives the title character a bit more to do, and is particularly appreciable as a shock to the system (so to speak) for superhero movies overall.

3

‘Hellboy II: The Golden Army’ (2008)

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Guillermo del Toro did another superhero sequel a few years on from Blade II: Hellboy II: The Golden Army. Between then, he also directed the first Hellboy, so Hellboy II: The Golden Army feels heavier with his style, compared to Blade II, because both films feel more like passion projects, or movies where he had more control. Hellboy (2004) was not a huge hit, but a couple of years later, del Toro did Pan’s Labyrinth, and no, that one’s not a superhero movie, but it was a perfect movie. So del Toro probably had a lot of freedom going into his first post-Pan’s Labyrinth movie, and he poured it into Hellboy II: The Golden Army. Like the first, it wasn’t really a hit in the financial sense, though it did rock, at least.

Since The Golden Army, there have been two Hellboy movies not directed by Guillermo del Toro, and neither of them did well financially. The whole series seems a bit cursed, as far as box office is concerned. Also, the two more recent ones aren’t great, so at least del Toro’s are actually good. Money ain’t everything, and the important thing is that Hellboy II: The Golden Army has aged so well in the nearly 20 years since its release. It’s a great dark fantasy movie on top of being a fun and fast-paced superhero film, and it effectively set up a third installment that sadly never came to fruition. 2008 was a crowded year for superhero movies, so The Golden Army probably got buried under Iron Man and another film that’ll be mentioned shortly (since it was also an excellent sequel), though it’s held up well, and even if not enough people have watched it, you’ll probably struggle to find too many people who have watched it and don’t have nice things to say about it.

2

‘Spider-Man 2’ (2004)

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Spider-Man 2 is so good. It’s so, so good. It’s perfect. How is it #2 here? Well, this rambling isn’t necessarily ranked, though if it was, there’s an argument to be made that the one movie that appears below is somehow even better than Spider-Man 2. With Spider-Man 2, though, this is about as good as a live-action Spider-Man movie can possibly be. And there have been other great ones, with Spider-Man: Brand New Day being quite recent at the time of writing, and also beloved, in part because it scratches the same itch as Spider-Man 2. Peter Parker is going through a lot in both, even by Peter Parker/Spider-Man standards. And he is the ultimate underdog/relatable hero, so the more he struggles, and the more he has to overcome, the better the story he’s at the center of usually is.

Having a great villain also helps, and you get that with Doc Ock here, who’s about as iconic as the already incredible Green Goblin, who was the main antagonist of Spider-Man (2002). As for Spider-Man (2002), that movie was also great, being even more important than the first X-Men movie for establishing just how a superhero film could be done on a proper blockbuster scale. The tone’s a bit chaotic with that first movie, and some of the effects don’t hold up, but otherwise, there’s not much done wrong in the first Spider-Man. So, to highlight Spider-Man 2 as a movie that does hold up, in its entirety, and improves upon just about everything found in that first film? It’s a pretty bold statement to make, but it’s accurate.

1

‘The Dark Knight’ (2008)

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Christopher Nolan made his first superhero movie in 2005, when he directed Batman Begins, and that was also his first full-fledged blockbuster. Like with X-Men, Blade, and Hellboy, it was good for its time, albeit not quite as exciting nowadays. There are a few flaws that feel more evident nowadays, but the foundation is still good, and it was one of those first movies in a series that walked so that the next one could run. The Dark Knight actually didn’t run. It got in a monster truck, accelerated to 100 miles an hour in the span of a few seconds (it’s a really modded-out monster truck or something), ran over all the other runners, and crossed the finish line without being disqualified, somehow. It just did that much right, and proved that good.

It’s all undeniable. And like a long-distance runner who is allowed to mod a monster truck, use it instead of running, and then get away with murdering their competition, it’s hard for many movies to compete with The Dark Knight. It overshadows Batman Begins, and then it was too difficult to match, quality-wise, when it came to Nolan directing The Dark Knight Rises in 2012 (still, at least that movie’s better than X-Men: The Last Stand and Blade: Trinity). The Dark Knight goes above and beyond, in terms of what you’d expect out of a superhero/comic book movie, and also in terms of what you might expect from a sequel (even a good sequel). It really is simply that great.

It’s by no means an exaggeration to say that Hollywood’s Classical era—typically understood to have spanned between 1930 and 1960—revolutionized science fiction cinema. Though it wouldn’t be until later that the genre would reach its true peak in Hollywood, there are still plenty of classical American sci-fi masterpieces from Hollywood’s Golden Age which have become essential cornerstones of the sci-fi cinema canon.

Whether it’s a horror classic like Island of Lost Souls, a space opera like Forbidden Planet, or a wholly different kind of sci-fi classic altogether, the genre produced many great films throughout the Classical period of American cinema. It was around the late ’60s and the ’70s that sci-fi really became one of Hollywood’s leading blockbuster genre juggernauts, but those who think that no true sci-fi masterpieces were produced in the US before that are dead wrong.

10

‘Village of the Damned’ (1960)

German-British filmmaker Wolf Rilla never made a film more prominent or timeless than Village of the Damned, based on John Wyndham‘s 1957 sci-fi novel The Midwich Cuckoos. This British-American production was one of the last sci-fi films produced during what’s strictly considered Hollywood’s Golden Age, and what a way this was to close off such a phenomenal period of sci-fi filmmaking.

Turning a tight budget into a tremendous hit, Village of the Damned was widely successful immediately upon release, and has continued to only get better with age. Its approach to horror is powerfully quiet and subtle, which helped further enshrine the “creepy killer children” trope in mainstream horror. Scary, atmospheric, and incredibly dark in tone, it’s one of the best sci-fi horror gems from the ’60s.

9

‘Forbidden Planet’ (1956)

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Fred M. Wilcox‘s Forbidden Planet is a true landmark of ’50s genre filmmaking and an important precursor of modern sci-fi cinema, helping prove just how seriously the genre deserved to be taken. Its plot often considered an uncredited adaptation of William Shakespeare‘s The Tempest, the film has been recognized as both the first sci-fi film to depict humans traveling in a manmade faster-than-light starship and the first to be set entirely on a planet orbiting another star.

Thanks to this, Forbidden Planet continues to be remembered as one of the most foundational and influential space operas in the history of cinema 70 years after its release, and that’s why it’s one of those classic sci-fi movies that are still a must-watch in 2026. Thanks to it, audiences realized that even a low-budget sci-fi B-movie could deliver a fully serious and artistically-executed story.

8

‘Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde’ (1931)

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Many a great (and not-so-great) film has been made adapting the revolutionary Gothic horror novella Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde by Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson, arguably none of them better than Rouben Mamoulian‘s 1931 version. This pre-Code horror gem deservedly earned Fredric March the Academy Award for Best Actor in 1932, but great acting is by no means the only thing that makes this classic a must-watch.

Even with a budget of over half a million dollars, which was quite high for a horror film at the time, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde was just as successful as the many great Universal horror pictures from the era. Time, too, has been kind to it, with the film still seeming surprisingly creepy and audacious thanks to its inventive special effects, March’s performance, and the uniquely pre-Code depiction of sexuality and violence.

7

‘Island of Lost Souls’ (1932)

Image via Paramount Pictures

Based on H. G. Wells‘ groundbreaking 1896 novel The Island of Doctor Moreau, Erle C. Kenton‘s Island of Lost Souls is another exceptional sci-fi horror film that could have only possibly been produced during the pre-Code era of Hollywood’s Classical period. It was Paramount’s follow-up to Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, and in more ways than one, it’s generally regarded as the superior film.

But even setting comparisons aside, Island of Lost Souls is a must-see for those who love Golden-Age-Hollywood sci-fi and horror. Thanks to Charles Laughton‘s iconic terrifying performance as Dr. Moreau, the film’s chilling and psychologically-tense atmosphere, and the lack of strict Hays Code restrictions allowing Kenton to deliver body horror and other transgressive elements that couldn’t have worked just a couple of years later, Island of Lost Souls has aged like fine wine.

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‘Frankenstein’ (1931)

Image via Universal Pictures

Throughout the ’30s, Universal started making low-budget horror movies, largely in order to keep themselves financially afloat after the stock market crash of 1929. From the cycle of horror movies came several of the best in the history of Hollywood’s Golden Age, the most iconic of the bunch arguably being James Whale‘s sci-fi horror classic Frankenstein from 1931.

On top of introducing the world to one of the best sci-fi horror movie monsters ever, Frankenstein completely reshaped the horror film genre. It may not be all that scary by modern standards, but this adaptation of the Mary Shelley novel that birthed sci-fi as a whole is so well-made, so visually impeccable, and so well-acted by Boris Karloff that it hasn’t gotten old in the slightest as a classic sci-fi masterpiece.

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‘The Incredible Shrinking Man’ (1957)

Image via Universal Pictures

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On top of several incredible sci-fi classics that tend to receive every bit as much praise as they deserve, Hollywood’s Golden Age also produced many criminally underappreciated sci-fi gems. Case in point: Jack Arnold‘s The Incredible Shrinking Man, which may look like a cheap B-picture on the surface, but was actually an A-level Universal production with a respectable budget and some very high ambitions.

The movie’s reception was only slightly positive back in 1957, but as the years have passed, it has grown into more and more of a classic sci-fi cult classic. This pulpy premise that you’d expect to see in a B-picture is transformed into a surprisingly profound meditation on human identity and mortality, proving just how philosophically rich and thematically deep sci-fi could be when in the hands of a talented enough team.

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‘The Invisible Man’ (1933)

Image via Universal Pictures 

H. G. Wells’ 1897 sci-fi novel The Invisible Man is one of the genre’s most important from the late 19th century, and fittingly, Universal’s film adaptation of the same name instantly became one of the most important Hollywood sci-fi productions from its era. As if any more proof were needed that James Whale was an undisputed master of sci-fi horror, The Invisible Man is a gem that has aged like fine wine.

For one, the visual effects were nothing short of jaw-droppingly revolutionary back then, and they’re still just as charming and impressive today. Add to that a powerhouse voice performance by Claude Rains; some exceptionally-written character development; and Whale’s perfect blend of sci-fi creativity, horror, and humor, and you get one of the defining pre-Code masterpieces of 1930s Hollywood.

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‘Invasion of the Body Snatchers’ (1956)

Image via Paramount Pictures 

Released during one of the many peaks of the Cold War, Invasion of the Body Snatchers has come to be retroactively read as a film all about the paranoia and fear that became inherent to the era. Those who don’t much care about the political implications of sci-fi and horror, however, should still be perfectly able to have a hell of a time with this Don Siegel classic, generally regarded as one of the most iconic Hollywood horror classics.

With its impressive score of 97%, Invasion of the Body Snatchers is one of the best-rated alien invasion movies on Rotten Tomatoes, and for plenty of good reasons. Eerily atmospheric, visually perfect, full of underrated performances, and perfectly understanding of everything that makes sci-fi horror fans tick, it’s an essential ’50s classic without which Hollywood horror would simply have never been the same.

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‘The Day the Earth Stood Still’ (1951)

Image via 20th Century Studios

Well before he became an Oscars darling with epics of the caliber of West Side Story and The Sound of Music, Robert Wise directed The Day the Earth Stood Still, one of the best classic movies from 1951. Based on Harry Bates‘ 1940 short story Farewell to the Master, this legendary classic is yet another sci-fi classic intimately tied to the Cold War era of the United States.

The film proved tremendously influential, thanks to the way it elevated sci-fi from cheap creature features and B-picture fare into art that could prove itself to be philosophically complex, full of clever social commentary, and all-around as serious as any other genre. With its bold anti-war message and the way it manages to be hugely entertaining while prioritizing restraint over pure spectacle, it’s the sort of sci-fi masterpiece that every movie fan should watch at least once in their lives.

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‘Bride of Frankenstein’ (1935)

Image via Universal Pictures

Who, if not James Whale, could possibly be worthy of being considered among the directors of not just one, not just two, but three of the best sci-fi movies from Hollywood’s Golden Age? And which James Whale masterpiece could possibly be considered the era’s best American sci-fi outing if not Bride of Frankenstein, one of the best movie sequels ever created?

The film was critically and commercially successful upon release, but its reputation has only kept growing more and more since its release, with its now being considered among the greatest cinematic cult classics of the 1930s. It has been embraced by mainstream cinephiles, LGBTQ+ cinema scholars, horror lovers, and midnight screening fanatics alike over the years, and it will likely only keep being every bit as entertaining a few decades from now as it is today.

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The Bride of Frankenstein

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Release Date

April 20, 1935

Runtime

75 minutes

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Director

James Whale

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Writers

Mary Shelley, William Hurlbut, John L. Balderston, Josef Berne, Lawrence G. Blochman, Robert Florey, Edmund Pearson, William Hurlbut

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  Boris Karloff

  The Monster

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  Colin Clive

  Henry Frankenstein

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General Hospital has Britt Westbourne (Kelly Thiebaud) thinking that she’s going to get some info from Anna Devane (Finola Hughes) about her dead brother. But little does Britt know, Anna is setting a trap for her, and things are going to get really scary for Britt this week.

But there’s a hero in the wings waiting to save her. Today we’re going to talk about Britt Westbourne going missing this week and Jason Morgan (Steve Burton) worrying about her and he may figure out Anna Devane is to blame and save his girlfriend.

General Hospital: Anna Opens Up to Valentin — Britt Confides in Lucas

All right, so this week we saw Britt hanging out at the Metro Court bar with Lucas Jones (Van Hansis). They were having drinks and talking about guys. It was really chill. Meanwhile, Anna was with Valentin Cassadine (James Patrick Stuart) at the gun range for target practice. And Anna told him even though Cesar Faison (Anders Hove) is dead, Anna just can’t shake him or his memory.

And she told Valentin that makes her vulnerable. Anna told Valentin there are people who want to follow in Faison’s footsteps. People like Cassius Faison (Ryan Paevey) people like Britt. But Valentin countered and said Ross Cullum (Andrew Hawkes) was the one tormenting her, not the other two. And they know that Cullum’s dead and gone.

Anna’s Spiraling on GH

But Anna hates that Cassius was able to fool her. Anna’s angry that she believed Cassius was Nathan. Even though Valentin reminded Anna that Cassius fooled literally everybody, not just her. But Anna insisted she’s not supposed to be just anybody. She thinks she should have known Cassius was not Nathan. And because of ghost Peter August (Wes Ramsey) constantly yammering in Anna’s head, she thinks that Britt is a threat to her and that she won’t be safe until Britt is dead. But Valentin has no idea that Peter is living rent-free in Anna’s head, encouraging her to do these acts of violence she’s planning.

However, Valentin does know that something is wrong because he wanted to take Anna for a drink after the range, but she insisted on staying behind to continue practice shooting some more. And she told Valentin he couldn’t stick around. She said she didn’t need a babysitter. And then Anna made a calculated move. She called Britt and flat out lied and said she got some info from her WSB sources about Cassius and his death and what happened to his body. But Anna’s got no intention of actually looking into Cassius’ death and didn’t reach out to the WSB.

General Hospital: Anna Tricks Britt

But Anna knows that Britt and Liesl Obrecht (Kathleen Gati) are desperate for answers. They of course want to know more about what happened to Cassius, whom everybody thinks is dead. And as you know, the only people who know that Britt’s brother is alive is Z (John Oliver) and Cassius himself.

Then they set it up using Josslyn Jacks (Eden McCoy) to make it look like Cassius was the villain. And Britt knows how much Liesl needs some closure about Cassius. So, Britt was real excited to get that call from Anna, and she told Britt she would get in touch with her later to tell her where to meet to get the info.

General Hospital: Anna’s Dark Behavior

And as Anna was talking to Britt, we saw Anna tracing the bullet holes in her paper target at the range. That’s a scary red flag. Also, if you remember, Anna recently convinced Sonny Corinthos (Maurice Benard) to sell her some of his remote mountaintop acreage. And Anna lied and told Sonny that she wants to build a little retreat for herself to get away from it all because of her recent struggles.

He recommended therapy, but she was like, “nah.” And from the moment that Anna talked to Sonny about getting a remote piece of property, I immediately had a feeling Anna was going to use that spot as a place to torture and kill Britt. We even did a video about it right after those Sonny scenes because it’s quiet and secluded with nobody around. Perfect place to do crime.

Anna’s Sinister Plot on GH

And Anna has already picked out the perfect spot, it seems, to do some bad things to Britt because Peter told her to. We also know this week Anna lures Britt out there promising her the info about Cassius that Liesl wants. Britt asks Anna why they had to meet all the way out there. And she pulls a gun on Britt.

And it takes a really scary turn as Anna says, “So no one can hear you scream.” So this coming out of Anna’s mouth is going to terrify Britt. And it’s going to be even worse because I think Anna’s going to start talking to ghost Peter in front of Britt. That seems inevitable.

Britt Goes Missing on General Hospital

Once Anna snatches her, obviously it’s going to be noticed. Elizabeth Webber (Rebecca Herbst) will be calling and leaving messages asking why Britt missed work. Anna can use Britt’s phone though to send back a text saying she’s taken off or she’s out sick or she quit or whatever. I’m betting that Lucas would reach out as well. And of course, Anna can handle that with a text.

Honestly, Elizabeth and Stella Henry (Vernee Watson) might believe that Britt just took off again and was flaking out on her job at General Hospital because she’s a repeat offender. However, I don’t think Jason will buy this for a minute. He knows Britt wouldn’t leave town without telling him and has no reason to leave at all. And there’s nothing that Anna can text from Britt’s phone that will convince Jason otherwise.

Anna’s Strategy on General Hospital

So, it looks like Anna may trap her and then leave Britt out there because we know Anna is heading back to Port Charles, possibly for alibi purposes. Based on official General Hospital spoilers after that, Jason and Anna cross paths. And I’m betting that Jason’s going to realize something is off with Anna, just like Valentin realized it, because Jason knows Anna pretty well by now.

Jason may figure out Anna’s lying to him and seems nervous, but Jason may not know why. Meanwhile, he’s worried about Britt. And if Jason reaches out to Liesl, because remember, they’re supposed to have that barbecue that she was going to have, that family dinner they were talking about. If she doesn’t know where Britt is, then Jason may get more worried.

Jason Gets Suspicious on GH

And if he and Liesl realize nobody’s heard from Britt, then Jason’s going to start asking around. He may go see Liz up at General Hospital, talk to Lucas, talk to Nina Reeves (Cynthia Watros), and then Jason may circle back to Anna and say he wants to open a missing person’s case. And I expect she’ll tell Jason the PCPD can’t open a case because Britt has a history of going missing. She’s an adult. She sent text messages. You know, if Jason says the messages seem strange, Anna may argue it doesn’t matter. Those texts are proof that Britt’s not missing. Just another red flag.

And if Jason has suspicions but gets nowhere with Anna, but senses she’s being evasive, we could see Jason turning to Sonny to talk things over. I would suspect he would then tell Jason Anna seemed anxious when she visited and Sonny suggested therapy and she pushed back. And Sonny will likely mention to Jason that he sold some mountain acreage to Anna. I don’t think Sonny would mention it with the idea of, “Oh yeah, that’s probably where she took Britt.”

But Sonny may mention it as an aside about Anna’s mental health struggles and that she wanted to build a retreat there. Especially if Jason goes looking for Anna after that, finds out she’s not at the PCPD when she should be, she’s not at her place, Emma Scorpio Drake (Braedyn Bruner) doesn’t know where she is, and she’s not taking calls. So Jason’s smart enough to put two and two together and suspect that Anna might have done something to Britt.

Jason Gets Anna Help on General Hospital

And Jason may hope Anna isn’t responsible for Britt going missing, but wants to make sure. And I suspect he’ll go out to that remote property, and Jason plays hero, saves Britt, but then also needs to save Anna from herself. I’m sure Britt would want to press charges, and from there, Jason will try and talk Britt out of it.

There’s a lot of ways for this to go, and I’m sure Jason’s take when all this comes out is Anna needs help, especially when he finds out Peter is in her head. I’m guessing Jason may have to remind Britt of all the second chances she’s gotten and that there’s a reason she needs to show Anna some grace.

Jenni ‘JWoww’ Farley has revealed a terrifying health scare she recently faced.

The “Jersey Shore” star gave fans a glimpse into how things looked very different from what she imagined for the first day of the school year with her kids due to her medical issues. She disclosed that although the illness did not hit her with a shock wave, it was still a horrible experience.

Jenni ‘JWoww’ Farley has been open about her health battles in the past, including her struggles with substance use, boxing injuries, and TMJ dysfunction.

JWoww spilled the beans on a frightening health scare that landed her in the hospital. The reality TV star disclosed that she has spent the past week, which she described as “one of the hardest weeks of my life,” fighting to recover fully.

She detailed that her focus has been on trying to get healthy enough to be back home with her husband and kids after being hospitalized due to a “horrible kidney infection and appendicitis.”

The “Jersey Shore: Family Vacation” star admitted the illness didn’t come out of nowhere, as she had been experiencing certain symptoms in recent months. “Weight loss, exhaustion, constantly feeling off JWoww wrote, adding, “… and then last Friday, my body finally said, ‘We aren’t making it like this anymore.’” 

Fans sent prayers for a speedy recovery to the TV personality. “Sending nonstop prayers, love, and hugs your way,” a commenter wrote. “Hope you have a speedy recovery, Jenny,” another added.

‘First Day Of School’ Pictures Looked Different For The TV Star This Year

“Not the ‘first day of school’ picture I wanted to post… but then again, I guess we wouldn’t have one. [red heart emoji]” JWoww’s Instagram post began. She attached a lengthy caption to a photo in which she posed in a hospital gown with her two kids, Meilani and Greyson, and to a video showing her straightening her daughter’s hair in what appears to be a hospital bathroom.

She said it was a tradition to do Meilani’s hair on the first day of school, so despite her health issues, she had to make it work. The TV personality praised her husband, Zack Carpinello, for making sure the kids got to the hospital “extra early” so they could spend some quality time together.

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“We didn’t get the normal first-day morning. We got hospital bracelets, a hospital room, backpacks, hair supplies, and a memory I don’t think any of us will ever forget,” JWoww penned. She explained that this year’s situation made her realize how many other children will be going to school having dealt with things “that may have changed their lives forever” over the summer.

JWoww advised her fans to remind their children to be kind to others because they never know what secret battles they are fighting.

More From The Blast

Fans Previously Raised Concerns About Jenni ‘JWoww’ Farley‘s Weight

JWoww’s hospitalization comes about three months after she addressed online criticism of her weight. At the time, fans reacted to a swimsuit photo she posted, highlighting that she looked underweight.

In response to the critics, the media personality made a video clarifying that she had been working out, but not to lose weight. She also revealed that she received a Google alert about an article claiming that she looked “deathly sick.”

“I don’t even know what to say,” she said in the video. “A girl can never win. You gain weight, you’re a fat piece of sh-t. You lose weight, you must be dying of some sort of horrendous disease.”

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JWoww noted that her weight fluctuates due to factors like her age, routine, and gender. She also disclosed that she was briefly ill after a trip to Miami, which contributed to the weight loss. The TV star highlighted how the world is never satisfied, as there is always talk about whether she is gaining or losing weight.

The Mom Of Two Had Postpartum Mental Health Struggles

The “Snooki & JWoww” star previously revealed that she went through what she believes to be postpartum psychosis during her motherhood journey. She described the experience as deeply disorienting and difficult to put into words, adding that it inspired her psychological thriller “Nanny Cam.”

According to the Cleveland Clinic, Postpartum Psychosis is a rare, reversible but severe mental health condition that affects people after they give birth. Hallucinations, delusions, thoughts of self-harm, and disorganized thinking, among others, characterize it.

In an interview with Kylie Kelce, JWoww revealed that after having her daughter, she was filming “Snooki &JWoww” at a production house outfitted with cameras. After the show wrapped, she realized she had become so anxious that she began installing cameras in her real home, too. She disclosed that she became extremely paranoid during that time, and even though “Nanny Cam” had been dramatized, it could be someone’s real story.

Jenni ‘JWoww’ Farley Is Not The First ‘Jersey Shore’ Star To Have Kidney Issues

In 2013, “Jersey Shore” OG, Ronnie Ortiz-Margo, was hospitalized for kidney stones. His rep at the time confirmed that he was suffering from kidney stones after he wrote “Hospital” on X on April 28.

According to The Los Angeles Times, Ortiz-Margo was admitted to an Orlando, Florida-area hospital shortly after he expressed that “he started feeling uncomfortable.” The feeling began while he was promoting his new beverage, Smush Cocktails, at the Wine and Spirits Wholesalers of America convention.

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His rep shared that the TV star was in a lot of pain and was expected to remain hospitalized for several days. He later told some followers on social media that he had both a kidney stone and an infection.  He described the experience as “uncomfortable” and the “worst feeling” he wouldn’t wish on anyone.

Science fiction and fantasy are two different genres that share more than a few things in common. For starters, there’s the often epic heft: some science fiction and fantasy novels craft a narrative that lasts for years, growing to be major inspirations for other works of art. Two key examples are J.R.R. Tolkien‘s Lord of the Rings trilogy, which remains a landmark in the fantasy genre for its epic worldbuilding, and Frank Herbert‘s Dune, which grew to inspire other sci-fi series like Star Wars. One television show took this approach to heart, as it was built to reflect the structure of a novel while also featuring plenty of world building and the epic sweep that drives Dune and Lord of the Rings.

That series is none other than Babylon 5. Created by J. Michael Straczynski, Babylon 5 takes place in the aftermath of a war between humanity and an alien race known as the Minbari. The Babylon 5 space station was launched to serve as a ground where different species can gather to resolve their issues. Over the course of 110 episodes, it also becomes the center of a new interstellar war and a gripping story that involves political intrigue, ancient evils, and a cast of characters who are forever changed by the series’ end. While Babylon 5 remains a cult classic, it also helped launch many of the trends that dominate television today.

‘Babylon 5’ Features a Story With a Truly Epic Scale

Image via PTEN

What sets Babylon 5 apart from other television series is the fact that it was built with a beginning, middle, and end in mind. J. Michael Stracyzynski developed the series to last for five seasons, with each season consisting as a “chapter” in the overall narrative. This meant that episodes in Season 1 could sow seeds that planted the fruit for future episodes, resulting in a story that grows richer with meaning upon revisiting it. A key example concerns Babylon 5‘s commander, Jeffrey Sinclair (Michael O’Hare), who learns that he is meant to be a hero to the Minbari. Season 3 eventually pays this off, having Sinclair travel back in time to fulfill his destiny.

This approach also meant that Straczynski could let his characters grow in ways that weren’t seen on television, and play with the narrative in unique ways. Sinclair’s successor, John Sheridan (Bruce Boxleitner), transforms from a diplomat to a revolutionary when he declares Babylon 5 as independent of the Earth’s government, and eventually a hero as he restores democracy to Earth following his battle against the malevolent aliens known as the Shadows. Another example concerns the Psi-Corps, a group of telepaths led by the mysterious Alfred Bester (Walter Koenig), as the Season 5 episode “The Corps is Mother, the Corps is Father” takes place entirely from their perspective. In a day and age where television shows are cut down in their prime or have smaller amounts of episodes to tell a story, Babylon 5 is a miracle of storytelling.

“Peak TV” Wouldn’t Exist Without ‘Babylon 5’

Babylon 5 faced an uphill battle throughout its run, having to deal with a competitor in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and a network shift at the tail end of Season 4. Despite this, it finished its run and set the stage for what’s known as “Peak TV”. Most people who’ve heard the term “Peak TV” know that it chronicles an era where genre shows like Game of Thrones and Lost drew in characters with rich, constantly shifting characters and a strong mythology. Peak TV was especially kind to the science fiction genre, as Battlestar Galactica and The Expanse followed very closely in Babylon 5‘s footsteps.

Over the years, J. Michael Straczynski has tried to build upon the world of Babylon 5, but very few of these efforts took off. A direct sequel series, Crusade, only lasted a single season. A potential movie never got off the ground. Things started to change in 2023, when Straczynski reunited with most of the Babylon 5 cast for the animated movie Babylon 5: The Road Home. A reboot of the series is also in the works, with Warner Bros. looking for interested buyers. If you want a sci-fi series that feels truly epic, then Babylon 5 should be on your radar.

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Release Date

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1994 – 1998-00-00

Network

Syndication, TNT

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Directors

Michael Vejar, David J. Eagle, Janet Greek, Jim Johnston, John C. Flinn III, Jesús Salvador Treviño, Kevin G. Cremin, Richard Compton, Tony Dow, Bruce Seth Green, John Copeland, John Lafia, Mario DiLeo, Stephen Furst, Adam Nimoy, Kevin Dobson, Menachem Binitsky, Doug Lefler, Goran Gajić, John McPherson, Kim Friedman, Lorraine Senna, Stephen L. Posey

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Writers

J. Michael Straczynski, Larry DiTillio, D.C. Fontana, Harlan Ellison, Peter David, Christy Marx, David Gerrold, Kathryn M. Drennan, Marc Scott Zicree, Neil Gaiman

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  Bruce Boxleitner

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  John Sheridan

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Toosii is opening up about his feelings for his ex-fiancée and the mother of his children, Samaria J. Davis, saying he’s still in love with her and wants them to work things out.

Related: Issa Wrap! Almost A Year After Announcing Their Engagement, Toosii Reveals He & Samaria J. Davis Have Called It Quits

Toosii Opens Up About Still Loving Samaria J

On Wednesday, Sept. 2, Toosii joined streamer N3on and Ray J for a livestream, where a conversation about love and relationships took a personal turn. While the trio rode in the back of a car to their destination, Toosii opened up about his relationship with his ex-fiancée, Samaria J. Davis, also the mother of his two children.

During the stream, after N3on discussed whether he still loved his ex-girlfriend, Sam Frank, Toosii decided to share that he, too, is in love with a “Sam.” The rapper told N3on that he is still in love with his former fiancée and reflected on their history, describing Samaria as his high school sweetheart.

He explained that their feelings were not always mutual, saying Samaria had a partner at the time and that, initially, “I loved her and she didn’t really like me.”

Toosii also reflected on how Samaria had changed over the years, saying she “transformed into a different person.”

As the tone in the car changed, N3on then told Toosii that he deserves love. Toosii responded, “I do, from her.”

This, before asking the chat to pray that he and Samaria can figure things out.

Watch below:

Social Media Reacts

Toosii’s comments quickly sparked conversation on social media, with some users questioning the circumstances surrounding the couple’s breakup.

Instagram user @dnasia.jade wrote, “Toosii gotta be the problem 😭 I’m convinced”

Another Instagram user @__luchini wrote, “Then why break up”

While Instagram user @cajundoll_ wrote, “He just playing with that girl heart like puppet strings”

Instagram user @_phiaa wrote, “Men hate accountability”

Another Instagram user @lightskinnedbratz wrote, “He needs to go to therapy or maybe they both do. Start with therapy and see what can be don’t and if y’all still don’t feel like it’s gonna work then do not try to force it”

While Instagram user @sojuicyjay wrote, “Man that girl never liked him fr 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂”

Instagram user @ant.won.ette wrote, “Why would I bother God with some mess talk got going?? If you love the girl, get with her and then do right”

Another Instagram user @indiaxo51 wrote, “The fact she hasn’t yet spoke on him or their relationship she really is unbothered and I love that for her”

While Instagram user @mrsbbyboo wrote, “he is the problem and I hate how he do her and making it seem like she the problem it’s him”

Toosii Previously Confirmed He And Samaria Called It Quits

Toosii’s latest comments come shortly after he confirmed that he and Samaria are no longer together, per The Shade Room.

On Aug. 24, Toosii took to his Instagram Story and wrote, “Me and Samaria not together and we haven’t been together for some time now.”

At the time, Toosii did not provide additional details about what led to their split. Samaria has also not publicly addressed his latest comments about their relationship.

The former couple shares two children, Ezrah and Aliza. News of their split comes nearly a year after Toosii proposed to Samaria in September 2025.

Related: Daddy’s Here! Toosii Spends Time With Kids In New Clip Amid Split From Fiancée Samaria J. Davis (VIDEO)

“Real Housewives of Atlanta” star Kim Zolciak is facing a difficult challenge, as her son, Kroy Biermann Jr., has been indicted in Georgia on multiple criminal charges. The news of her son KJ’s legal woes comes days after he was arrested and accused of sexually assaulting one of his classmates. Since his arrest, Zolciak has advocated for her son and denied the claims. Before the indictment, KJ also wrote to the judge, asking for his release.

According to TMZ, Zolciak’s son has been indicted on seven criminal charges by a grand jury. Some of the charges include aggravated sodomy, aggravated sexual battery, three counts of aggravated sexual battery, and false imprisonment.

KJ was arrested last month, according to The Blast, for alleged aggravated sodomy and sexual battery after one of his high school classmates accused him of assaulting her at a Lifetime Fitness in April.

The legal documents state that KJ allegedly asked his classmate to go to a different part of the facility, and on the way there, he forced her mouth on his private area and “digitally penetrated her v-gina.”

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‘RHOA’ Star Kim Zolciak Defends Her Son After His Arrest

Zolciak broke her silence after her son’s arrest, telling TMZ that she was disheartened by the “reckless” claims.

“The allegations being made against my son are nothing short of reckless and deeply troubling. He categorically denies ever being involved with this woman or engaging in the conduct she has alleged,” she said.

According to Zolciak, who has four other children with former NFL star Kroy Biermann, her son voluntarily took a lie detector test and “passed.” She also noted that police documents stated no male DNA was found on the alleged victim.

Zolciak said that KJ’s alleged victim has made “similar allegations involving two other people, which raises serious concerns that deserve to be carefully examined,” adding that the accusations can have “devastating consequences.”

Lawyer Representing Kim Zolciak’s Son Breaks Silence

Speaking with Us Weekly, Jason Sheffield, Zolciak’s son’s attorney, said that despite the family’s life in the public eye, they deserve some privacy.

“First and foremost, this is not the kind of information that should be for public dissemination. These are juveniles,” Sheffield said. “Secondly, my client is 100 percent innocent and tried to present evidence to the arresting officer, including a passed polygraph by a notable and respected sex offender polygrapher.”

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Zolciak’s Son Wants Out Of Jail

Since being locked up, Zolciak’s son has made a new request to the court, asking to be released.

Sheffield wrote to the court on his client’s behalf and cited his “strong academic achievement” and participation in “extracurricular and community-based activities.”

“He is an accomplished football player who has received scholarship offers based upon his athletic ability,” he noted further.

Sheffield went on to say that KJ has five other siblings and is “surrounded by an established community of extended family, friends, coaches, teachers and others who remain actively involved in his life and continue to support him and his family during the pendency of these serious allegations.”

Zolciak Celebrated Son’s Birthday In May

Zolciak’s son was arrested three months after the reality star celebrated his birthday in late May 2026. The Bravo star shared a carousel of images on her Instagram and posted a heartfelt caption all about how her life has changed for the better with KJ in it.

“You taught me strength, compassion, patience, and what the mother-son bond truly means. You are my heart walking outside of my body, and every day you amaze me,” she wrote. “No matter how old you get, you will always be my baby, my greatest blessing, and one of my proudest accomplishments. I am grateful every day that I get to be your mom.”

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