“Vanderpump Rules” alum Stassi Schroeder recently walked in a Sports Illustrated fashion show in a bright orange bikini. As she strutted down the runway, onlookers stared in amazement, and netizens on social media praised the reality TV star, complimenting her looks. Now that the show has come and gone, a source is opening up about what Schroeder reportedly went through to become runway ready.

A source told The Daily Mail that Schroeder wanted to look her best for the Sports Illustrated fashion show. So, in order to get into the best shape, the Bravo veteran reportedly stuck to a very strict diet.

“Stassi really wanted to look incredible for the show so went on a massive diet,” the source said, claiming that she “skipped breakfast, had only a salad for lunch and then did not touch a carb after 5 p.m.”

They added, “So she was only having about 600 calories a day.”

Advertisement

What Was Stassi Schroeder Eating And Drinking To Get Prepared For The Sports Illustrated Fashion Show?

According to the source, Schroeder’s alleged diet was so effective that the mother of two started seeing results almost instantly.

“The weight just melted off her body, but that kind of diet is very hard to do because the cravings are insane,” the source shared. “It’s not easy for her to diet that hardcore, but the results are amazing and she felt great about herself.”

It’s unclear exactly what Schroeder ate while dieting, but in the past, she said her routine consisted of a caffeinated Celsius drink in the morning and, for lunch, a Chinese chicken salad with chicken, lettuce, carrot slices, ginger, and almonds.

Regarding dinner, the “Vanderpump Villa” star would eat a snack to keep her full throughout the night.

Stassi Schroeder Previously Said She Stays Thin By Trying To ‘Starve’ Herself

Schroeder previously raised eyebrows when she confessed to starving herself to stay thin during a 2017 interview.

When asked about her fitness routine, Schroeder claimed, “I’m really lazy. I stay thin by trying to starve myself for the most part, if I’m being totally honest.”

Advertisement

She went even further, sharing, “When I’m home in LA, it’s like one meal a day, but when I go out of town or on work trips, it’s breakfast, lunch and dinner.”

Despite her limited intake, Schroeder said she enjoys foods such as cheeseburgers, hot dogs, macaroni and cheese, pizza, and Mexican dishes.

Later in that interview, Schroeder got candid about getting work done on her body, saying, “I’ve always been really open. Even when I got a chin implant when I was 18 years old, and anyone who asked me, I would always tell them.”

For Schroeder, being honest was more important than putting “on this facade” that she was perfect. “Then the rest of us look at it and feel badly about ourselves. I’m all about plastic surgery or Botox and fillers, but be open about it, because there’s nothing to be ashamed of,” she said.

Advertisement

Who Else Walked In The Sports Illustrated Fashion Show In Summer 2026?

Schroeder wasn’t the only public figure to appear in the Sports Illustrated fashion show. According to Page Six, “Truth Hurts” singer Lizzo walked the runway along with Alix Earle, Ilona Maher, Bethenny Frankel, Brooks Nader, Maura Higgins, Jena Sims, and more.

Beyoncé Followed A Strict Plan To Get Prepared For Coachella In 2019

Schroeder isn’t the only celebrity who has followed a structured plan ahead of a major event. Beyoncé has spoken about losing weight after welcoming twins Rumi and Sir Carter in 2019, a process made even more demanding by her approaching Coachella performance.

“Good morning. It’s 5 a.m., and this is day 1 of rehearsals for Coachella,” she says in a video shared on her YouTube. “Every woman’s nightmare…this is my weight,” she said before stepping on the scale. “175. Long way to go. Let’s get it!”

To shed the weight, Beyoncé followed a program called 22 Days Nutrition, founded by her friend, trainer, and exercise physiologist, Marco Borges. In the “Homecoming” documentary, Beyoncé said her diet consisted of “no bread, no carbs, no sugar, no dairy, no meat, no fish, no alcohol.”

Advertisement

By Joshua Tyler
| Updated 28 seconds ago

The end of World War I was a mess. Soldiers flooded home, without jobs, and with nothing to do. Veterans became angry and disillusioned; protests and social upheaval ensued.

With an even larger military force returning home after World War 2, the United States government sought to avoid repeating this mistake by finding ways to keep its returning soldiers busy. Their answer was the GI Bill, a massive funding system largely designed to keep veterans busy by funneling them into a gigantic college education system that hadn’t even really existed before the war and definitely wasn’t needed by the country as it was constructed back then. 

Before World War 2, fewer than 15% of men and 12% of women ever attended college. After World War 2, that number surged to 32% of men and 24% of women. It was the first time in human history that secondary education became a common fixture, and, out of nowhere, a booming post-High School education industry was willed into existence, born of a need to give traumatized soldiers a bunch of busywork.

As America spent the next few decades getting involved in further overseas wars, the endless funding of newly created college education for Veterans continued. Soon, it also became a way to get out of war, as men rushed to enroll in college to avoid a draft that would have sent them to die in Vietnam. By 1970, more than 50% of all high school graduates were attending college. 

In 1975, the Vietnam War ended, and the forced conscription of young men was over. At the same time, the United States government’s grant program began to drastically reduce spending, and free money for college began to vanish. 

Instead of free money in grants, the government and bankers began offering high-interest loans as a way to attend a University. And obviously, that’s not nearly as attractive. Now college wasn’t free, it wasn’t necessary, and men noticed. College enrollment for men began to dip.

So the powers that be decided to make college horny. This is the story of how Hollywood screenwashed men into living a life of debt slavery, just to get a shot at banging some girl from a sorority. 

It’s Not Just About Promising Hedonism

Right now, you’re probably thinking, ok, this one’s kind of obvious: Hollywood made a bunch of movies portraying college as a place of debauchery, so of course that got young men to go into debt thinking they’d get to party.

However, that’s only the surface level of what these movies are doing. The United States was still a majority Christian country until the late 1990s. Promising endless hedonism to Christian young men wouldn’t have been enough. Given the extreme level of debt slavery that colleges were asking men to sign up for, they needed something more than the possibility of drunken partying.

That something more is an Assimilation Rebellion. Once you see it, you’ll never be fooled by it again. You’ll also understand why, in recent years, young men have begun abandoning college as their way forward into life.

The College Comedy That Started It All

Since most college raunch comedies follow the same pattern, it makes sense to go to the source. The college raunch comedy was born on July 28, 1978, with the release of Animal House. It grew out of the anarchic comedy culture surrounding National Lampoon magazine in the 1970s. That magazine itself was spun off from the Harvard student publication Harvard Lampoon. 

All of this was deeply rooted in college culture, so when writers Harold Ramis, Douglas Kenney, and Chris Miller decided to write a movie script, they did so with a focus on wild fraternity stories Miller liked to tell about his time at Dartmouth. Instead of a polished college comedy, they made something crude, chaotic, and openly hostile to authority.

Everyone hated their Animal House script. No one in Hollywood wanted to make it. They rejected it as vulgar, gross, and ridiculous.

It only exists as a movie because of a man named Ned Tanen. He was the president of Universal Pictures, and he used his clout to push Animal House into production, even though no one else believed in it. 

Tanen made his career out of pushing counterculture propaganda pictures and films designed to change society’s views. Animal House was his biggest, and perhaps most important, persuasion victory.

Animal House’s Assimilation Rebellion

National Lampoon’s Animal House follows the disaster-prone members of Delta House, the worst fraternity on a fictional college campus in 1962. Why set it in 1962? Because by 1978 the world the characters in the movie are rebelling against no longer exists. By 1978, the hippie movement had already destroyed everything, but for Animal House to work, they needed something to rebel against. 

So the movie goes back in time before Vietnam protests, hippie culture, and the full collapse of trust in institutions. Animal House needs something to rebel against because that’s how it’s setting up the audience for an Assimilation Rebellion.

An Assimilation  Rebellion is a persuasion technique in which someone is Screenwashed into conformity by forming a rebellion that appears to reject or fight against an institution, system, or authority, but ultimately encourages people to join, support, or become emotionally attached to that same system. 

Here’s how Animal House and the college raunch comedies it spawned persuade audiences into college debt with assimilation rebellion, step by step. 

• Step One: Show the institution you want your audience to join as boring,  oppressive, or even corrupt.

That’s right: before we can get people to go to college, we have to make it seem like it sucks. Animal House does that with a Dean who’s a hypocrite and a system of straight-laced fraternities that oppose all sorts of fun. 

It’s basic stuff, but the film goes out of its way to make everything about college seem joyless and empty. The fraternities playing by the rules are stiff, formulaic, and they don’t seem to be happy. They’re angry and totally corrupt

Donald Sutherland plays a professor in the movie, and during the only classroom scene shown in it, he confesses he finds what he’s teaching boring and suggests it’s pointless. Even the staff doesn’t seem enthusiastic about this whole college thing and the ones who do, like the Dean, are portrayed as extremely stupid. 

• Step Two: Introduce charismatic rebels inside that institution.

Give the audience characters who break the rules yet remain within the system’s boundaries. Attach pleasure, freedom, status, humor, and belonging to the rebels.

Animal House is built around Delta House, a rebellious frat full of charismatic, drunken louts designed primarily to appeal to the sensibilities of the working class. It’s a template followed by nearly every college raunch comedy that came after, with the only difference being what group the rebel frat is meant to appeal to.

In Revenge of the Nerds, the rebel frat is meant to appeal to, obviously, nerds.

In PCU it’s Gen X slackers

In Old School it’s past-their-prime thirty-somethings.

What kinds of people populate the rebel frat changes depending on what group is being propagandized, but they’re always portrayed as lovable, wild-partying, outside-the-box thinkers.

• Step Three: Reward the internal rebels.

 Let the rebels humiliate authority, win social status, get sex, gain friends, or become legends.

Animal House quickly establishes that being a member of Delta House somehow gives its members total immunity from normal laws, regulations, and morality. When its members steal from a grocery store, a clerk catches them and then just waves them on, because they’re Delta.

When our rebel “heroes” abandon their girlfriends to be “assaulted” by “large men” at a club, the girls don’t even seem that mad about it and just walk home by themselves without complaining about what was done to them. 

Delta is even immune from the ire of its own members. Flounder briefly has a steady girlfriend in the film, and when he introduces her to his frat brothers, they immediately seduce her and sleep with her behind Flounder’s back. 

Flounder doesn’t seem to mind; he doesn’t even complain. Instead, he joins in the various assaults being perpetrated on other women by his frat brothers throughout the rest of the film. If you’re in Delta, you can literally do anything at all. 

If you haven’t seen Animal House, I need to be extremely clear here. This isn’t the normal, boys-will-be-boys partying you might have seen in the college comedies this movie inspired. There’s nothing innocent about anything in Animal House, and that’s on purpose. The movie goes to immoral and illegal extremes to prove to you that by joining a college, you can literally get away with anything.

It’s so extreme that the film’s primary protagonist, a twenty-something-year-old man, knowingly sleeps with the Mayor’s 13-year-old daughter after getting her black-out drunk, and nothing is done about it. Instead, the movie presents this horror as awesome and seems to suggest that the audience should consider trying something similar.

The fact that, in the era of #MeToo, Animal House is not only still available to stream freely but also doesn’t even have one of those annoying warning labels about outdated content in front of it should tell you a lot about how important this movie is to the institutions around it.

It’s worth noting that Revenge of the Nerds is not available to watch on streaming, having been canceled for an only slightly less horrific scene in which an adult woman is lured into intimacy under false pretenses.

Meanwhile, every frame of Animal House is basically frat-house Epstein Island, and everyone in our culture is fine with it. They have to be, because Animal House is the pillar on which the modern college myth was constructed. Pull out that pillar and the whole thing collapses.

• Step Four: Don’t present escape from the system as an option; instead, make rebelling a lifestyle.

In Animal House, as in every college raunch comedy, the hero frat is composed of guys who basically do nothing but sit around partying. They don’t attend college classes, play sports, or hang out in the quad. They just hang out in a group home, getting drunk.

So when these lazy hedonists run afoul of campus regulations, you’d think they’d all just shrug and move the party to a different house, since none of them were really attending college anyway. You can literally party anywhere.

That never happens. It never even occurs to them. Instead, the group fights desperately to stay in the very system they’re against, though there’s no reason for them to be there. 

There are variations on this. For instance, in Old School, people who aren’t already part of the college to begin with fight to get in. But they aren’t fighting to get in and take math classes; they want to hold topless wrestling matches in their basement. Something you don’t need college enrollment to do.

• Step Five: Leave the institution intact.

The system survives, but now it looks cooler because a rebellion happened inside it.

In Animal House, we never explicitly see what happens to the college after Delta House’s rebellion. But the movie ends with a note that tells us what happened to each member, making it clear that they were eventually all let back in, got their degrees despite never attending classes, and that everything worked out fine.

Other movies spend more time on showing the aftermath of the rebellion. The result is always the same. Everyone resumes attending college, only it’s more fun now.

They get all the status and income promised by college, but get it by doing nothing that resembles studying. The classic college raunch comedy’s protagonists do drugs, commit crimes, and bang sorority girls. Then they graduate.

When they’re done, the college is still there, ready for the next class of hedonistic criminals. It’s still there, ready for you.

• Step Six: Transfer the audience’s affection.

With the Assimilation Rebellion arc complete, the audience now falls in love with the idea of college itself. Because none of this could happen without that system, and hedonism without any consequences looks like a lot of fun. 

You don’t really have to conform man, you can go and be an independent free thinker just like all the other independent free thinkers there who just happen to be independently free thinking exactly the same things as everyone else. Conformity becomes liberation. Rebellion becomes assimilation. That’s an Assimilation Rebellion. 

The College Lie Is Collapsing Too Slowly

Luckily, the lie started by Animal House and transmitted by its successors is starting to collapse in on itself. A few people are, finally, starting to realize that allowing kids who can’t legally rent a car, drink alcohol, get a tattoo, or purchase a lottery ticket to take on long-term predatory loans and pause their lives for four years in the hopes of assaulting a minor may not be a good idea.

Yet, it’s not happening fast enough. 55% of men were still attending college after high school in 2024, down from a high of 60% in 2020. Women seem to be going in the opposite direction, with 70% of them attending college, up from 67% in 2020.

There have been recent attempts to tweak the standard college-deserves-all-your-money narrative to account for the fact that people have begun to notice it doesn’t deliver on its promises. Netflix, for instance, recently released an entire series designed to screenwash audiences into believing that college is only good when it’s totally useless. 

I did a full video on this one; you’ll have to see it all to believe it. 

Unfortunately, tactics like this are working to deflect from secondary education criticism. Though there are now a few objectors, for most, college still seems like a foregone conclusion, despite the fact that there’s no longer any real evidence that it helps improve people’s future job prospects or in any way contributes to their long-term happiness. Despite the fact that you’re almost certainly not going to bang a hot sorority girl and will most definitely go to jail if you rob a grocery store. 

Congratulations, future college debt slaves: You’ve been screenwashed.

Bold and the Beautiful shocks as Hope Logan (Annika Noelle) is officially over at Logan and everything falling into place, while we still have some more surprises coming, there’s also some negative surprises coming because the problem is she’s lying to her mom, Brooke Logan (Katherine Kelly Lang).

And that means there’s going to be a huge explosion before too much longer. Once Hope and Deke Sharpe (Harrison Cone) do their thing and they get a collection ready, there’s going to be a public launch that’s going to flip things upside down. It’s obviously going to devastate Brooke. So, we’re going to talk about Hope blindsiding Brooke and the Forresters.

Hope And Deke’s New Venture At Logan on Bold and the Beautiful

So, this week we saw Deke excited and agreeing to work with Hope at Logan. And Katie Logan (Heather Tom) reminded Deke that she was excited about his design work even before this. Bill Spencer (Don Diamont) promised that they have faith in Hope and Deke and are going to give them all the resources that they need to get this collection out. And we know they want it fast.

So, Deacon and Hope are both super excited to finally be working together again, and Liam, Bill, and Katie are ready to rock and roll. Plus, Bill has something else up his sleeve. We know that he wants Wyatt Spencer (Darin Brooks) to get the Hope for the Future diamond for them to use as part of Hope’s big launch at Logan.

Now, Bill hasn’t told Katie yet that he’s working to score the jewel because I think he’s waiting to see if he gets it. But Bill did say he’s going to make Katie and Hope the crown jewels of the fashion industry.

So, not only are Deacon and Hope about to make their dreams come true, but there’s also a revenge plan at play to hit back at the Forresters. So, Bill is determined to get the diamond for Hope. And that’s just one more thing that’s going to feel like a face slap to Brooke and the Forresters.

The Foresters’ Mistakes and Losses on B&B

So, there’s a lot of bad stuff here. You know, first they lost the Logan trademark, which they literally never used, but to say that Katie stole it isn’t accurate. Forrester Creations let it lapse and you can’t sit on a trademark you’re not using anyway. So, Liam grabbed it up fair and square.

And then Brooke and Ridge Forrester (Thorsten Kaye) did Eric Forrester dirty and they lost him even though he later came back. That’s another problem. That never would have happened if Ridge hadn’t shoved his dad out the door. And now, although Brooke and Ridge don’t know it yet, they’ve lost Hope.

And she’s planning to never come back. Plus, Katie, Bill, and the others are about to find out Ridge fired Will Spencer (Crew Morrow) because R.J. Forrester (Brayan Nicoletti) is a whiny nepo boy. And that’s going to add even more fuel to the fire.

The Hope for the Future Diamond and Launch

So, coming very soon, I do expect Wyatt is going to get his hands on that diamond and that Bill’s going to give it to Hope to use as part of her launch. And when they debut her collection designed by Deacon, we could see that diamond on the neck of the showstopper model, but I kind of don’t think so.

I think it’s going to be around Hope’s neck. Maybe as she and Deke walk down the runway because if you remember, Hope first wore that iconic blue diamond at a Hope for the Future launch. So maybe she’ll be the one wearing the showstopper dress and the diamond or just wearing it without the showstopper dress.

But can you even imagine? I think Brooke’s head would completely explode over that. So bottom line is yes, this is a fresh start for Katie, Hope, Deacon, and Will to achieve their dreams, but it’s also going to be a revenge mission because everybody at Logan pretty much has a reason to hit at Forrester Creations.

Hope’s Revenge on the Forresters on Bold and Beautiful

In terms of Hope looking for payback, I think her primary revenge targets are Steffy Forrester (Jacqueline MacInnes Wood) and Ridge. But I also think Hope’s got a grudge against Brooke because she thinks her mom chose Ridge over her. Hope still salty that Brooke didn’t force Ridge to give her Steffy’s job as co-CEO. So, Hope definitely wants revenge on all of them on Bold and the Beautiful.

And she wants to show them what they lost because Steffy and Ridge didn’t believe in her or her line. Because I think we all know even if Steffy did indeed bring back Hope for the Future, she knows that it would always be a fight with Steffy. She would always be a second-class citizen at Forrester Creations. And now of course we’ve got Will, who definitely wants revenge on R.J. Forrester.

Will’s Firing and Revenge Plans on B&B

So, this week we saw Ridge fire Will for assaulting R.J., saying they can’t have violence in the workplace. I think honestly Will could probably sue and win for wrongful termination because Ridge was clear he fired Will for an incident at the bar. They were talking about a hostile work environment, but this happened outside of work. Now, Carter Walton (Lawrence Saint-Victor) brought up that they had an incident at work as well, but Will was quick to remind them that R.J. instigated that, which Carter had to acknowledge. And I also appreciated that he told Ridge that R.J.’s behavior is problematic.

But Will was right. R.J. ran crying to his mommy and daddy and got him fired. So when Will said R.J. is going to regret ever messing with him, I kind of think it’s justified. And after Will left, R.J. kept dissing Will and the Spencers and just being a nasty little creep. Like when he smirked after Ridge fired Will. I honestly think R.J. is the absolute worst character on B&B right now. So, this week, Bill and Katie are going to be appalled that Ridge fired Will, but also Bill’s eager to have their son working with them.

So, I think that Will is going to get his revenge by making sure that Logan trounces Forrester Creations in the fashion press with their next collection. And I’m sure he’ll also make sure Electra doesn’t give R.J. the time of day. But at the same time, I expect R.J. to be creeping on Electra Forrester (Laneya Grace) all day long at work. And that’ll keep Will focused on making him pay professionally, but I think also personally. Heck, he might even try his hand at designing, you know.

The Spencer Revenge Plan on Bold and the Beautiful

So, that leads us into Bill’s revenge. Obviously, he wants to slap at Ridge and blow Forrester Creations out of the water. So, Bill’s going to make sure that Katie’s fashion firm is headline news. Bill wants to totally humiliate Ridge and him firing Will is only going to fuel Bill’s fire for revenge on Ridge and nepo crybaby R.J. And then, of course, Katie, I think, is going to double down on wanting to clap back at Ridge for him firing Will.

While Ridge said he felt bad about firing him, Brooke was happy that he stood up for their son. But as Will said, at his age, R.J. should have handled his business like a man, not a crybaby. Katie’s going to be mad and she’s already annoyed at Brooke, dissing her and predicting failure. And then when her first collection with Eric was a hit, you know, then Brooke was basically saying, “She’s a one-hit wonder and this is over for you. This is it. This is all you had.” So this week, Katie and Brooke get into it again. And I’m guessing that Katie walks away from that showdown with more anger.

Bold and the Beautiful: Katie on Fire

And after the Will incident, Katie may go from worrying about what Brooke thinks about Hope working for them to Katie not caring and wanting to rub it in her sister’s face. Brooke and Ridge fired Katie’s son, and now Katie has hired Brooke’s daughter, Hope. So, there is some irony there.

And I think after this upcoming showdown, Katie is going to want to absolutely crush Brooke. And somebody else looking for a little revenge, I think, is going to be Liam Spencer (Scott Clifton). I can see him wanting to get payback for how Steffy and Ridge have treated Hope. He feels like that she’s been sidelined. Honestly, the only Spencer who doesn’t have vengeance on their mind at this point is Wyatt. I think he’s just in it for funsies right now, but he will support the other Spencers.

The Big Bold Reveal Coming In July

It’s not going to be too much longer. I expect it’ll be in July sweeps when Brooke, Ridge, R.J., and Steffy get slapped with a rude awakening because once Logan reveals their next collection and they see that not only did Katie and Bill have Hope, but also they’ve got that big blue diamond, it’s going to be another win in the fashion press. And I think there’s going to be a bunch of salty, ticked off Forresters. And honestly, I’m here for it. I think this fashion rivalry is so much fun.

Days of Our Lives may have four possible deaths we may get in Salem this summer. Kristen DiMera (Stacy Haiduk) and Lexi Carver (Nikki Crawford) are on that list and possibly two babies, which is truly horrible. Plus, EJ DiMera (Dan Feuerriegel) is targeted, Dimitri Von Leuschner (Peter Porte) is back, and Sarah says, “I love you, but not to Xander.”

We’ve got the lowdown on what happens in Salem this summer. We took the big summer promo and made sense of it because it was choppy, out of order, and all over the place. But we fixed all that, but we have lots to cover. So, I’m going to be talking a little faster than usual.

EJ’s Ambitions and Lexi’s Illness on Days of Our Lives

So, first of all, EJ is determined to carry forward with Stefano DiMera’s (Joseph Mascolo) vision and preserve the empire that his dad built. And Lexi thinks the DiMera name could be something better. And Susan Banks (Stacy Haiduk) doesn’t like this at all and tells EJ he’s not Stefano and she’s not going to let him turn into that monster. Also, Lexi is soon sick. Scary symptoms start this week.

Plus, Mark found the dead rat that took the same serum. Later this week, Dr. Wilhelm Rolf (Richard Wharton) tells EJ about the rat. And once Lexi knows she’s sick, she’s going to rant that EJ never stopped to think what this would do to her. So, it looks like Lexi is going to get secret treatments from Rolf down in the tunnels because she walks out of the secret entrance. And Kristen DiMera (Stacy Haiduk) tells Lexi she doesn’t have to hide things.

Days Spoilers: EJ Fires Sarah

She claps back at Kristen that she wouldn’t have walked into the living room if she were hiding. Also, EJ is going to fire Sarah Horton (Linsey Godfrey) after telling her she doesn’t need your help. So, maybe that’s about Chanel Dupree DiMera (Raven Bowens), but it may also be about Lexi since Rolf is taking care of EJ’s sister. We also see Lexi crying in Theo Carver‘s (Cameron Johnson) arms.

Also, Lexi winds up hospitalized again, and Abe Carver (James Reynolds) screams at EJ to get the hell out when he walks into the room to check on Lexi as Abe and Theo sit at her side on what may be her deathbed all over again. So, looks like that might be the end for her. We could get Lexi dying in Abe’s arms yet again.

Kristen’s Downfall and Gwen’s Betrayal on DOOL

We’ve also got Kristen in deep trouble this summer. EJ finds out that Kristen was plotting with Sophia and EJ screaming in Kristen’s face about her trying to murder his son. And then in a quick shot in the promo, we see Kristen getting kidnapped. She’s grabbed from behind by some henchmen.

No doubt EJ’s. We know Stacy Haiduk wrapped her run as Kristen and is over on Young and the Restless now. So, she might be dead. We also have disgruntled Gwen Rizczech (Emily O’Brien) telling EJ that he stabbed her in the back, so she’s returning his knife. He looks furious at Gwen. And I’m sure this is about her leaking dirty DiMera details to Leo Stark (Greg Rikaart) to spread across the Spectator.

Days of our Lives Spoilers: EJ Loses It

Also, EJ is in near tears, screaming at a woman that everything he did, every decision, every sacrifice, he did it for family. There’s also some pills in his clutches and there’s some sort of tainted pill outbreak in Salem this summer that EJ may literally have a hand in. Steve Johnson (Stephen Nichols) is with Brady Black (Eric Martsolf) as he tells Johnny DiMera (Carson Boatman) that if the tainted drugs are still out there, this could be a public health crisis.

And Johnny says on a call to somebody that he doesn’t want to be involved with any of this. And he is though because he’s sneaking around in the dark in a doctor’s office up at the hospital looking around. Doesn’t look like Marlena Evans‘ (Diedre Hall) office. So, this may be about the tainted pill crisis.

Johnny tells Theo they have an opportunity to leave a different legacy for their kids than the one left for them. Looks like they’re going to be co-CEOs. But things take a turn as Johnny sits with an injured Theo at the hospital and he’s asking Johnny what other heinous things that he’s covering up.

Chanel’s Medical Crisis on DOOL

Chanel meets with her oncologist this week and it seems like she turns down the treatment. But then there’s a crisis when she goes into labor. She’s at the hospital with Paulina Price (Jackée Harry), Lani Price (Sal Stowers), Johnny, and Kayla Brady (Mary Beth Evans). Johnny says she’s bleeding and Kayla clears the room as Chanel says she’s scared.

Cat’s Investigation and Romance on Days of Our Lives

Cat Green (AnnaLynne McCord) is still investigating EJ this summer while also trying to get a dose of the serum to give her mom who has dementia. But with Lexi getting sick, EJ might have to tell Cat no. But at the same time, she’s plotting another con job on EJ and is setting him up, maybe with a honeypot trap. Cat goes to see Marlena for hypnosis, and she asks Cat if the connection between her and EJ is personal or professional. And Cat kisses EJ again this summer.

Chad And Belle’s Romance on Days

And speaking of smooches, Chad DiMera (Connor Floyd) is heating up with Belle Black (Martha Madison) and he gives her a proper kiss in the park after they go to a ball game. Also, the chess set mystery continues as other items are delivered to John Black‘s (Drake Hogestyn) family. And Chad tells Belle whoever Stephano got to drop these breadcrumbs is still out there on Days of our Lives. One clue is a little silver key.

And Chad says it’s better if we don’t spread the word. There’s somebody in front of a chessboard watching EJ, Chad, and a woman. It’s not Cat. Maybe Marlena, maybe Belle. It’s a lady in a pants suit. And he’s watching them via a surveillance camera on a tablet. Also, Chad finds out Cat’s keeping dark secrets and confronts her.

Chad’s frantic to Cat that she knew about all this and did nothing. And Cat tries to explain, saying there’s a reason she hasn’t told him everything. So, even if Jennifer Horton (Melissa Reeves) dropped her ban on Cat dating Chad, I doubt he’s going to want anything to do with her after this.

Titan’s Financial Trouble on Days of Our Lives

We’ve also got big trouble at Titan as Philip Kiriakis (John-Paul Lavoisier) warns Xander Cook (Paul Telfer) and Alex Kiriakis (Robert Scott Wilson) that EJ found out they used DiMera money to make the loan payment. Philip says we’re going to lose everything and it looks like Gabi Hernandez (Cherie Jimenez) is eavesdropping. Kate Roberts (Lauren Koslow) tells Xander and Philip they have to stand together or they go down.

This comes soon because Xander’s arm is still in a sling in this scene and it likely won’t be that way too much longer. There’s another scene of Philip ranting at Gabi about money, not buying forgiveness, but that happened this week already. Also, Roman Brady (Josh Taylor). Kyle Lowder is ranting at Kate about more lies and then walking off.

Sarah’s Love Triangle on Days

And we’ve got some triangle action. Brady tells Sarah he loves her and she says it back. Then they kiss in Horton Square, but Xander is telling Marlena he can see it in Sarah’s eyes and Marlena warns that he’s deluding himself that Sarah wants to get back with him. She doesn’t think so.

Also, Xander proves that he’s there for Sarah and he helps her when a patient collapses in the square. Also, in the promo, she’s telling Xander that she hopes they stop EJ in time, and he warns Sarah she does not want to be in EJ’s crosshairs, and that could come before EJ fires Sarah.

Rachel Learning About Sophia and Holly’s Crisis

Also, it looks like Brady and Kristen tell Rachel Black (Lorelie Olivia Mote) that Sophia’s dead, or Rachel hears on the Bayview grapevine, but she’s crying in Brady and Kristen’s arms, asking what if the doctors can’t heal her like they failed to heal Sophia. Looks like Holly Jonas (Ashley Puzemis) has got a rough summer coming, even though Amy Choi (Shi Ne Nielson) couldn’t get Belle to press charges on her over Sophia’s alleged suicide.

We’ll see Holly telling Arianna Horton (Vico Escorcia) that it feels like no place in Salem is safe. And then up at the hospital with Sarah and Tate, we’re going to see Holly insisting, “Those pills aren’t mine.” Then Tate asks, “Can we just talk about this?” And Holly screams no and yells at Tate to get out as an alarmed Sarah watches. So, maybe Holly is taking pills again. Or maybe vengeful Amy is setting her up since the DA won’t hold her accountable and she blames Holly for Sophia’s death.

Stephanie’s Gun Tragedy on Days

And in what may be the most shocking moment of the summer promo, Stephanie Johnson (Abigail Klein) and her fixation on that gun may prove tragic. We see Jada Hunter (Elia Cantu) telling her that she pulled a loaded gun and fired on an innocent person, which is bad enough, but this might be Stephanie killing her marriage.

Beacause Alex rushes into a hospital room and asks Joy Wesley (AlexAnn Hopkins), “Where’s Kelsey?” And Joy falls into Alex’s arms, crying and holding their daughter’s blanket near her empty baby carrier. So, did she show up with the baby to see Alex and Stephanie actually fired a gun at Alex’s baby mama who was holding their child. Did Stephanie shoot his kid?

Other Summer Moments on DOOL

Also, we’ve got some romantic sizzle as Eli Grant (Lamon Archey) surprises Lani with some afternoon delight at the Salem Inn. And Kayla tells Steve she’s grateful to have him. However, I will say this promo is way more dark drama and tragedy than it is hugs and kisses.

And in some more of that drama, Leo asks Dimitri in front of Rafe Hernandez (Galen Gering) and Gwen if he won’t make a deal with Rafe. Will Dimitri make one with him? So, we’ll see if this is DiMera related. I think it is. And that means Peter Porte is back on the scene by Summer. And if Leo is still single, we’ll see if they mingle.

Young and the Restless delivers Matt Clark (Roger Howarth) getting his memories back. All of his vicious deeds come back to him and his heartsick reaction absolutely stuns Nick Newman (Joshua Morrow), Sienna Bacall (Tamara Braun), and everybody else. So, we’re going to talk about big things coming for Matt and also for his victims.

Matt’s Memories Return on Young and the Restless

So, Noah Newman (Lucas Adams) plan to jog Matt’s memory at the Genoa City version of the Shadow Room worked exactly as hoped. Once Nick brought him there, all of Matt’s heinous memories came flooding back to him. And now he’s utterly disgusted to recall all of the awful things that he’s done, not just to Nick, but also to Sharon Newman (Sharon Case) and to Sienna. So now Matt finally sees why they all hate him so much. And if he’s being sincere, it looks like Matt hates himself at this point.

Nick and the others saw how visibly distraught that Matt was when his memories came back. So, they’re not sure what to think. Sharon worried that when Matt’s memories returned, so would the monster that he was. That doesn’t seem to be the case. And Sienna doesn’t think this version of Matt would even survive prison. It’s interesting.

Matt’s Remorse is Pretty Convincing on Y&R

But then again, he didn’t do to Sienna what he did to Sharon, which was violent sexual assault. So, Sienna says she doesn’t even know who this version of Matt is. And Sienna says he’s not like Mitch McCall, the man she thought she knew. Bottom line is Matt seems truly remorseful, and he says he doesn’t want to be a monster anymore.

And this week, Matt is telling Victor Newman (Eric Braeden) that the world would be better off without him in it. But Matt is also desperate to make amends. And he told Victor he wants to do at least one good thing before he dies. So now we’re going to talk about what exactly is coming next for Matt on The Young and the Restless.

Victor May Give Matt A Chance on Young and the Restless

So, the first big thing that could happen is Victor may take a chance on Matt. So right now, Victor’s actually feeling indebted to Matt because he saved Nick’s life. Against all odds, Victor truly is grateful to Matt because seeing Nick overdose and drop dead really hit him hard, you know. Right now, Victor’s truly grateful to both Matt and Phyllis Summers (Michelle Stafford) for bringing Nick back to life.

I don’t think that Victor is going to kill him. And instead he seems to be willing to deal with Matt partly because Victor wants this off of Nick’s plate because we know that Victor just wants Nick to focus on getting clean and staying clean. So, Matt’s asking this week for a chance to prove himself. And I could see Victor actually giving Matt that chance.

Victor Watches Matt Like a Hawk on Y&R

But I also think Victor would keep Matt close by so that he could keep a really, really good eye on him. So, maybe Victor will have Matt working at the ranch, maybe living someplace that Victor provides for him. I don’t think he’ll take it at face value that Matt is a changed man.

But Victor may give Matt one shot, just one chance, because he owes him a life debt for saving Nick. But if Matt steps one toe out of line, I think Victor would probably kill him and they would never find the body.

Matt May Avoid Criminal Charges on Young and Restless

Another big thing I think is coming is Matt likely isn’t going to face criminal charges because honestly in Genoa City, he hasn’t broken any laws because if you remember, he had been released by the GCPD. Charges dropped and then the Newmans kidnapped him and then the car wreck and then he was hiding and then Kyle Abbott (Michael Mealor) got him and just all that.

So, then he took off to Vegas. So there is the fentanyl case the feds are looking into in LA, but that drug case could easily fall apart. And as far as the Vegas stuff goes, you know, they may not have enough proof to make what happened in Las Vegas stick in terms of a criminal case.

Young and the Restless: Matt’s Legal Stuff Slides

Yes, Sharon, Noah, Nick, and Adam Newman (Mark Grossman) were all there, but it’s their word against Matt, somebody that they hate, somebody that they kidnapped, you know. So, maybe they can’t prove that he blew them up. Maybe they don’t press charges, but there is proof that Sienna actually tried to kill Matt, which is fun. So, Christine Williams (Lauralee Bell) may not be able to prosecute for lack of evidence of any local crime.

So, I think we’re going to see that legal stuff slide away because Young and the Restless seems intent on redeeming this rapist. Josh Griffith seems to think Matt feeling bad about his crimes is enough. As much as I love Roger Howarth and I think he’s a great actor, the whole premise of redeeming this Matt character is very icky to me, but it seems pretty clear Young and the Restless is going there with Matt despite a lot of fans being appalled by it. So, I digress. Sorry.

Phyllis May Become Matt’s Protector

Another big thing I see happening involves Phyllis. She seems very invested in Matt this week. She’s asking Nick what’ll happen to Matt if she goes to prison. Like Phyllis is his protector and caretaker and she seems very worried about his fate. So, it seems that Phyllis is going to give Newman back this week because Nick forces her hand.

And once Victor presumably gets Christine to back off, then Phyllis is going to be at loose ends and I think Matt’s going to be her pet project and possibly her future boyfriend. That would make a lot of sense because we know Michelle Stafford and Roger Howorth have really good chemistry. They played a romantic pair over on General Hospital several years back. They were a very popular pairing with GH fans and they’re actually close friends in real life. So, I could definitely see them coupling up eventually.

Patty May Pursue Matt on Y&R

And that brings us to another big thing we could see because, as you know, Patty Williams (Stacy Haiduk) is also really interested in Matt. She’s still checking on him even while Patty’s trying to get Diane Jenkins (Susan Walters) out of the way so she can make a play for Jack Abbott (Peter Bergman). But once Diane is found, probably by the end of this week, she and Jack reconcile.

We know this because Diane and Jack are reunited and all smiles next week on a crossover on Beyond the Gates. So, with Jack out of reach, I’m thinking Patty’s going to circle back and pursue Matt and he may be her next obsession. Plus, Patty may want to take him from Phyllis just for spite.

Sharon May Help Matt Heal

And then the fifth and final shocking thing that we could see is that Sharon may let Matt get closer. I could see Sharon working with Matt kind of as his casual therapist. It’s not like Sharon’s got an office with a couch, but right now she seems cautiously optimistic about Matt and she may give him the benefit of the doubt kind of like Victor’s trying to do.

And I think it could be healing for Sharon to talk to him and reassure herself that he truly is in danger so she doesn’t have to live in fear. I think Matt is going to likely want to make amends to Sharon because he’s disgusted by what he did to her.

So, in a really bizarre twist, they might wind up where Matt actually has Sharon helping him. And if there’s nothing grosser than them redeeming rapist Matt, it would be them redeeming him and using his victim to help. And I say this because I really think they are going to go there, but at the same time, again, I’m disgusted.

Matt Headed for Redemption on Young and the Restless

So, Sharon may help Matt sort through his feelings over the monster that he was and help him learn how to live this new life that he’s been lucky enough to get. Plus, Sharon is a forgiving person, even when people really don’t deserve the grace she gives them. And it certainly looks like Matt is on the fast track to redemption, whether fans like it or not.

So, buckle up. But hey, maybe there’s a chance Victor goes ahead and kills him anyway. Or Nick, you know, sneaks away from the family, sneaks into the room, and chokes the life out of him. That’s honestly what Matt deserves. But I don’t think he’s going to get what he deserves. I think he’s going to get redeemed.

Hard science fiction is a subgenre that strives to be as scientifically accurate as possible. It’s obsessed with mathematics, engineering, astrophysics, biology, and cold scientific possibilities. The terror and wonder of these stories come from the realization that these futures, discoveries, and disasters might genuinely happen someday.

With that in mind, this list looks at the very best hard sci-fi novels ever written, from stories of lonely astronauts stranded millions of miles from home to epics about civilizations confronting incomprehensible alien intelligences. They make for engaging, informative, and revelatory reads, proving that sci-fi can be just as affecting even at its most cerebral.

10

‘Children of Time’ (2015)

Image via Tor UK

“WE ARE GOING ON AN ADVENTURE.” In this one, a human project to terraform a distant planet accidentally causes a species of spiders to evolve at a rapid rate, leading to the rise of an entirely new civilization. From here, the book alternates between the remnants of humanity aboard a failing ark ship and the gradual development of the spider civilization over thousands of years. It’s a truly colossal and ambitious tale.

Author Adrian Tchaikovsky’s greatest achievement here is making the spiders genuinely alien while still emotionally understandable. Their religion, politics, warfare, gender dynamics, and scientific revolutions evolve in ways shaped by their biology rather than by human assumptions; they’re not simply just eight-legged people. In the process, Children of Time becomes a deeper meditation on intelligence itself, while still serving up an engrossing survival story.

9

‘The Andromeda Strain’ (1969)

Image via Alfred A. Knopf

“This organism attacks and feeds upon blood-clotting factors.” This banger was Michael Crichton‘s first novel under his own name, putting his name on the techno-thriller map. The story begins when a military satellite crashes near a small Arizona town, leaving almost the entire population mysteriously dead. A team of scientists is brought into an underground laboratory to investigate what appears to be an extraterrestrial microorganism capable of wiping out all life.

The premise is juicy, and Crichton elevates it with a realistic, documentary-like storytelling approach. The author went to Harvard Medical School, after all. He immerses us in procedural detail, scientific jargon, diagrams, bureaucratic protocols, and medical analysis, really helping with the suspension of disbelief. These techniques are pretty common today, but back in the late 1960s, they were innovative, and they’re still effective.

8

‘The Forever War’ (1974)

Image via St. Martin’s Press

“You can conquer a million planets and still lose yourself.” Drawing on author Joe Haldeman‘s experiences in Vietnam, The Forever War is a time-twisting work of military sci-fi with a bleak emotional edge. The protagonist is William Mandella, a soldier drafted into an interstellar war against a mysterious alien species known as the Taurans. Because of relativistic time dilation caused by near-light-speed travel, he experiences only a few years of combat while centuries pass back on Earth. Every time he returns home, humanity has changed beyond recognition.

This setup becomes a powerful metaphor for the alienation many veterans feel on reintegrating into civilian life, as if they can no longer relate to the society around them. The battle scenes themselves are also unusually grounded for 1970s sci-fi. Here, combat is chaotic and brutally impersonal; less space opera adventure, more industrialized catastrophe.

Image via Simon and Schuster

“Small moves, Ellie. Small moves.” Penned by the great astronomer and science communicator Carl Sagan, Contact follows Dr. Eleanor Arroway, a scientist working on the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence project, who discovers a mysterious signal transmitted from deep space. Hidden within the message are instructions for constructing an enormous machine whose purpose humanity cannot fully comprehend. Sagan builds this first contact premise into a deep intellectual and philosophical statement.

Indeed, rather than being about alien invaders or wondrous technology, Contact is really concerned with humanity’s longing for meaning in a vast and seemingly indifferent cosmos. It suggests that science and spirituality both emerge from our desire to understand existence, even if they approach truth differently. Themes aside, Arroway stands out as one of the genre’s greatest protagonists: she’s intelligent, emotionally complex, skeptical, ambitious, flawed, and deeply devoted to scientific truth.

6

‘The Martian’ (2011)

Image via Ballantine Books

“I’m pretty much f—d. That’s my considered opinion.” The Martian is a stubbornly practical sci-fi book, in the best way. It centers on Mark Watney, an astronaut who is accidentally stranded on Mars during a disastrous mission evacuation. Believed dead by NASA and abandoned by his crew, he must survive alone on a hostile planet with limited supplies, failing equipment, and almost no margin for error. Watney is forced to solve one problem after another, drawing on his knowledge of botany, chemistry, engineering, and mathematics, as well as his deep reserves of sheer grit.

Along the way, the reader becomes emotionally invested in crop yields, oxygen calculations, pressure seals, and improvised repairs because every tiny technical success or failure determines whether Watney lives another day. At the same time, the novel avoids becoming dry because Watney is such a charismatic narrator. His sarcasm and humor give the book enormous energy.

5

‘Neuromancer’ (1984)

Image via Apple TV+

Advertisement

“The sky above the port was the color of television, tuned to a dead channel.” Neuromancer introduces us to Case, a washed-up computer hacker living in the criminal underworld, who is recruited for a dangerous mission involving artificial intelligence, corporate espionage, and cyberspace infiltration; all the juiciest sci-fi noir essentials. Alongside the razor-sharp street samurai Molly Millions, Case descends into a future dominated by multinational corporations and invasive technology.

Here, William Gibson imagines technology not as sleek utopian progress, but as something grimy, addictive, overwhelming, and deeply entangled with capitalism. This approach was deeply influential, becoming a permanent part of the genre’s DNA. At the same time, he was years ahead of the curve in his treatment of cyberspace. He understood early on that the future would be about information and the merging of human consciousness with digital systems.

4

‘The Three-Body Problem’ (2006)

Image via Tor Books

Advertisement

“Weakness and ignorance are not barriers to survival, but arrogance is.” Few sci-fi novels this century have generated as much global discussion as The Three-Body Problem. It begins during China’s Cultural Revolution, where astrophysicist Ye Wenjie witnesses brutality and ideological fanaticism that permanently shatter her faith in humanity. Years later, her actions lead to first contact with an alien civilization from the unstable three-sun system of Trisolaris, and humanity slowly realizes it may already be facing an existential threat.

The story that follows is packed with real-world physics, nanotechnology, virtual reality simulations, and more than a little dread. The intellectual ambition here is off the charts, with Liu Cixin diving into all the toughest sci-fi questions. How would humanity react to proof of alien intelligence? Would advanced civilizations cooperate or destroy one another? Does technological advancement make civilizations safer or more dangerous? The Netflix adaptation is solid, but the book is unbeatable.

3

‘The Moon is a Harsh Mistress’ (1966)

Image via Berkley Medallion Books

Advertisement

“Don’t explain computers to laymen. Simpler to explain sex to a virgin.” The Moon is a Harsh Mistress is one of the defining works by genre legend Robert A. Heinlein, who also wrote the classics Stranger in a Strange Land and Starship Troopers. Set on a lunar penal colony governed by Earth, the story follows Manuel Garcia O’Kelly-Davis, a computer technician who becomes involved in a rebellion against Earth’s oppressive authority, teaming up with a small group of revolutionaries and a self-aware supercomputer named Mike.

Like Neuromancer, this book resonated strongly with the up-and-coming crop of sci-fi writers and left a lasting imprint on hacker culture. It’s very political and scientifically realistic, earning praise for its layered depiction of a possible future human society. Heinlein gets granular with issues like orbital trajectories, low-gravity physiology, and agriculture in closed environments. Not to mention, here he also popularized the phrase “There Ain’t No Such Thing As a Free Lunch.”

2

‘Rendezvous with Rama’ (1973)

Image via Orion Publishing Group

Advertisement

“The Ramans do everything in threes.” Another genre cornerstone, Arthur C. Clarke‘s Rendezvous with Rama takes place in the 22nd century, with humanity detecting a gigantic cylindrical alien object entering the solar system. A crew aboard the spacecraft Endeavour is sent to investigate before the mysterious vessel continues its journey into deep space. Once inside Rama, the astronauts discover an enormous artificial world filled with technologies far beyond human understanding.

While that setup sounds pretty far out, Clark approaches it with restraint. There are no massive battles, evil aliens, or melodramatic twists; instead, the book focuses almost entirely on scientific exploration and discovery. Rama itself becomes the protagonist: an incomprehensible object whose scale and engineering create a nearly spiritual sense of wonder. Clarke, who had deep expertise in physics and space science, carefully grounds everything in plausible concepts.

1

‘Foundation’ (1951)

Image via Gnome Press

Advertisement

“Violence is the last refuge of the incompetent.” Isaac Asimov‘s landmark Foundation series casts a long shadow over all of sci-fi. Originally published as a series of stories before being collected into a novel, the first book follows mathematician Hari Seldon, who develops a revolutionary science called psychohistory capable of predicting the large-scale behavior of civilizations. Seldon foresees the collapse of the Galactic Empire and the coming of a thirty-thousand-year dark age, and sets out to prevent it.

The scale of the story on offer here is dazzling. The plot spans millennia and examines whole civilizations rather than just individual characters. Asimov treats history almost like physics, attempting to locate the rhyme and reason in the rise and fall of political systems, economic structures, religions, and empires. It was all a radical break with the pulpy sci-fi that was popular in the 1950s, opening up rich new possibilities for the whole genre.

“Summer House” star KJ Dillard recently made a heartbreaking admission about his relationship with girlfriend Dara Levitan. Speaking with his co-star, Carl Radke, on his “More Life” podcast, Dillard, 28, said the pair actually broke up during the height of his mental health struggles.

“Summer House” viewers watched Dillard and Levitan become an official couple during season 10 of the series. However, Dillard said that the pair actually took a break when the cameras went down due to some of the mental health challenges he was facing.

“Pre-show, nothing was really going on for me. Modeling was slow. I’d taken a break during the summer to focus on the show,” Dillard said. “Financially, I was in a terrible place. Me and Dara were struggling because I was taking out what I was going through out on her. I wasn’t even aware of it.”

KJ Dillard Says His Co-Star, Mia Calabrese, Encouraged Levitan To Break Up With Him

Dillard went on to tell Radke that some of his challenges were exacerbated because he wasn’t in therapy at the time. “I was only on one medication for my anxiety and depression, but I didn’t realize that I had another diagnosis,” he shared.

Later in the conversation, Dillard said that his co-star, Mia Calabrese, whom he’s called a “sister,” actually encouraged Levitan to take a break from Dillard while he worked on himself.

“Dara, I think, was gonna hang on … but that wouldn’t have been good for either of us,” he said. “I needed the time, because after the hospital, I went to recovery … and that’s when we broke up.”

KJ Dillard Believes His Break From Levitan Was For The Best

According to Dillard, his break from Levitan was for the best. “Looking back, if me and Dara were dating when I was in recovery, it would have been a mess,” he told Radke. “I would have been focused on saving the relationship rather than focusing on my health. Recovery changed my life.”

According to a previous report from The Blast, Dillard shared that he was diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder during part 1 of the season 10 “Summer House” reunion.

“In the fall, I went through some heavy stuff mentally,” Dillard said. “I actually had to go to the hospital for self-harm, and I was there for a week.”

Elsewhere during his segment, Dillard told host Andy Cohen that he was thankful to be alive and surrounded by love.

“Everyone here has somewhat shown support in their own way, so I appreciate that,” Dillard shared. “And I’m very thankful that the audience is just embracing that because it’s my truth, you know, and I’m not gonna not be honest about what I go through, especially if it can help others.”

Dillard Opens Up About His Strained Friendship With West Wilson

Dillard also opened up about his strained friendship with West Wilson while speaking with Radke. Although Wilson brought him on the show, Dillard confirmed that the pair were no longer close. Things soured between the pair after Wilson confirmed his romance with Amanda Batula.

“I know people make mistakes. I’m someone that gives grace, trust me,” Dillard said. “I’ve made plenty of mistakes, and people have given me grace, but it just seems like he’s not learning from his mistakes.”

Dillard said that he’s continued hearing things about Wilson and has questioned his motives. “I’m just like, ‘Bro, what is going on? Are you actually sorry?’”

He continued, “My dad has apologized to me and said, ‘I’m gonna do this. I’m gonna be better.’ Then, it just continues to repeat these cycles. It’s just like, ‘What is going?’”

Wilson And Batula Release Joint Statement

According to The Blast, Wilson and Batula said their connection was unexpected.

“We’ve shown up for each other as friends over the years, through all the highs and lows, and what’s developed recently was the last thing either of us expected. Our connection grew out of a genuine, long-standing friendship, which made it especially important for us to approach this with care,” their joint post stated.

Part 2 of the “Summer House” reunion airs tonight on Bravo at 8 PM ET.

By Chris Snellgrove
| Published 14 seconds ago

You know how it’s possible to turn Bucky Barnes back into the Winter Soldier by repeating a few gibberish words in the right order? I used to think that this was the kind of stuff of film fantasy. After all, how could just a few words send an intelligent man into an utterly mindless frenzy? However, this is exactly what happened to me yesterday. Nobody had to repeat gibberish to me; I simply had to read the absolute worst news of the year: Zack Snyder will be rebooting John Carpenter’s Escape From New York.

The original Escape From New York is a singular classic, one that comfortably straddles the line between action epic and dystopian horror. It’s the movie that transformed leading man Kurt Russell into a convincing action hero, all while proving that horror maestro Carpenter would never be tied down to a single genre. Unfortunately, this masterpiece is now being rebooted by the guy who helped destroy the DCEU. On many levels, Snyder is the absolute worst guy to be handling this project, and now all fans of the original movie can do is sit back in dread as the Batman v. Superman director prepares to ruin another franchise.

Somehow, New York Returned

Recently, The Hollywood Reporter exclusively reported that an Escape From New York reboot will be directed by Zack Snyder, the man best known for tights-and-flights films like Watchmen and Justice League. The film will be produced by Picture Company partners Alex Heineman and Andrew Rona, thanks to the deal they made with StudioCanal. That studio and original director John Carpenter own the rights to this particular property. Carpenter will serve as an executive producer on this new film, and Snyder will also produce through his Stone Quarry production company.

If all of this is giving you a keen sense of deja vu, that’s because there has been talk of rebooting Escape From New York for many, many years. At one point, New Line Cinema had the rights to the IP and considered handing the reins to several very different directors, including Breck Eisner, Len Wiseman, and (deep shudder) Brett Ratner. When 20th Century Fox owned the rights, they wanted Robert Rodriguez to direct. Later, Radio Silence (who brought us Ready or Not and the recent Scream movies) had the rights, but they never got as far as naming an intended director.

Zack The World

So far, I’ve got a very bad feeling about StudioCanal’s Escape From New York reboot. The only really notable film this studio made with Picture Company was Gunpowder Milkshake, a good-but-not-great attempt at turning the John Wick formula into a girl-power ensemble piece. As for Zack Snyder, his recent track record is pretty bad. The first Rebel Moon movie currently has a 22 percent on Rotten Tomatoes, and the second one has an abysmal 16 percent. The director’s cuts fared mildly better, but it’s not a good sign when a director repeatedly needs two attempts to make a half-decent film.

Plus, Snyder is the man most responsible for the failure of the DCEU. While the director has his fans and his Justice League was much better than Whedon’s (a very small hurdle to clear), his earlier movies like Man of Steel and especially Batman v. Superman established this cinematic universe filled with colorful superheroes as a grimy, grimdark kind of place. Later movies like The Suicide Squad and even The Flash tried to reverse course, but it was too late: as it turns out, making multiple movies aimed squarely at angry little edgelords is one of the best ways to alienate mainstream audiences, and the DCEU eventually died with a whimper.

No Franchise Is Safe 

Will Zack Snyder ruin yet another franchise when he directs the Escape From New York reboot? Maybe not: THR reports that “Snyder aims to make a more down and dirty movie, using plenty of practical effects or locations” more akin to his Dawn of the Dead reboot than his “slick” DCEU movies. Dawn remains Snyder’s best film, and an Escape film in that vein could be very thrilling. But considering that he went from ruining DC’s first cinematic universe to releasing three aggressively disappointing movies direct to streaming, you probably shouldn’t hold your breath that this will be anything other than another shameless vanity project that will be forgotten as soon as it’s released.

Psychopaths. These kinds of people are incapable of remorse, lack guilt for the actions they commit, and use superficial charm to manipulate those they love most. Furthermore, they always seek thrills because they are easily prone to boredo. For some, killing and other criminal behavior is the way they use to satisfy their darkest desires.

Hollywood has tried to replicate, in different movies, throughout the years, how a psychopath would behave. Examples are iconic characters such as Hannibal Lecter in The Silence of the Lambs, or Norman Bates in director Alfred Hitchcock’s masterpiece Psycho. The following is a compilation of movie villains based on their psychopathic tendencies. So, get ready to deep dive into the inner psyche of these unforgettable villains.

10

Voldemort from the ‘Harry Potter’ Franchise

Image via Warner Bros.

After Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone was released in 2001, based on the books written by J.K. Rowling, it became a worldwide frenzy. Decades later, with over eight films under its belt, the franchise of this fantasy story has created a legion of fans that is not easily forgotten. Furthermore, it now even includes a Broadway play in its catalog, named Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, in which Tom Felton, who portrayed the character of Draco Malfoy in the movies, returned to reprise his iconic role for a short time.

However, the franchise’s true villain is Voldemort, portrayed by Ralph Fiennes in the movies. Voldemort can be considered a psychopath, definitely. He has no moral compass and does not feel empathy for the people around him. He is a master of manipulation, as seen in his interactions with Harry Potter. His obsession with his plan to take over the world shows narcissistic traits, which can be seen in psychopaths. Furthermore, his moves were strategic and calculated, making him an unforgettable villain after all.

9

Loki Laufeyson from ‘The Avengers’ (2012)

Image via Marvel Studios

One of the most beloved superhero classics, The Avengers was a milestone for the Marvel franchise. All superheroes in this movie are still considered to have strong ensemble chemistry, as well as being able to deliver unforgettable comedy and humor throughout the film. But what was truly unforgettable was the performance of Tom Hiddleston as the Norse god Loki Laufeyson, after viewers got a taste of his insanity in the previous Thor movie.

Despite critics saying he is more of a sociopath, Loki Laufeyson clearly exhibits traits of a psychopath in The Avengers, in my opinion. Loki is a narcissist who believes he should reign supreme over others, considering everyone to be below him, as seen when he forces civilians in Stuttgart to kneel before him. Additionally, he uses manipulation to get information, and psychologically tortures the people he speaks with, gaining pleasure from doing so. An example of this is the interrogation scene with Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson) aboard the S.H.I.E.L.D. helicarrier. To conclude, he is blinded by a strong desire for power, yet has a huge sense of insecurity lurking below the surface. So, still not psychopathic enough to bring chills to your spine.

8

Billy Loomis from ‘Scream’ (1996)

Image Via Miramax

With a new movie in the works, it is clear that the Scream franchise has taken over the slasher horror genre for years now. The seven movies have created a wide range of different killers that took over the persona of Ghostface, executing savage killing sprees. The reason for this is that they were fueled by revenge on the people who ruined their families.

The killer that started it all was the one in the 1996 blockbuster, Billy Loomis (Skeet Ulrich). With hatred for Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell), he pretends to be her boyfriend to execute his revenge on her family. That is because her mother was the one who had an affair with his father, tearing his family apart. Billy showcased traits of psychopathy, as he had no remorse against his victims, while fueling his vendetta against Sidney’s family. Billy’s intelligence was what made him a scarier psychopath than his accomplice, Stu Macher (Matthew Lillard), who found pleasure in murdering. Specifically, he carefully deceived everyone who knew him with extensive manipulation tactics, yet obsessively trying to control the narrative of the killings.

7

J.D. from ‘Heathers’ (1988)

Image via New World Pictures

With a legacy over 30 years later, Heathers is a movie that remains timeless. The 1988 dark horror-comedy is something that is unique in its genre, condemning teen angst and toxic masculinity, putting empowering women at the top of everything it stands for. This is seen in the phenomenal main characters of outcast Veronica Sawyer (the legendary Winona Ryder) and the brooding Jason Dean (a young Christian Slater).

Jason Dean is the emblem of a psychopath: his brutal killings are the focus of the movie, which are fueled by a hate for school cliques, believing he is morally superior to his peers. His strength is manipulation, as he ensures that Veronica believes that three of the movie’s killings happened because of her. Furthermore, he is cynical and a misogynistic person, which makes him even scarier. In the end, Veronica ultimately understands the real personality of Jason, killing him in the end, after a gruesome fight. Still, one of the scariest performances.

6

Patrick Bateman from ‘American Psycho’ (2000)

Image via Lionsgate

Based on the novel of the same name written by Bret Easton Ellis, American Psycho is a film that can also be considered a mirror of today’s society. Specifically, what’s scary about this movie is the fact that the corporate world is all about appearances, but truly hollow if you look into it. Furthermore, this movie is definitely a way to show how much humans aspire to become powerful and live a luxurious life. It’s criticizing that fact, which makes this film even more amazing to watch.

The main character here is Patrick Bateman (Christian Bale), a 27-year-old VP for the fictional company named Pierce & Pierce, who has clear psychopathic tendencies throughout the movie. Patrick lacks empathy and has severe mental instability, as seen by the ending of the movie, which makes viewers wonder if the killings were all in his head or if they were real. He has a massive ego, a fair share of manipulation tactics, and irresponsible behavior. What makes him scarier to the viewer is the fact that he blends perfectly into society, hiding his true psychopathic nature.

5

Annie Wilkes from ‘Misery’ (1990)

Image via Columbia Pictures

One of the most disturbing movies of the late 90s, Misery is an adaptation of Stephen King’s book of the same name. It tells the story of author Paul Shedon (James Caan), who is involved in a car accident. Afterward, he is rescued by former nurse Annie Wilkes (Kathy Bates), who takes him to her remote cabin in the mountains. She claims that she is his biggest fan, and she takes care of his injuries. However, when Annie finds out that Paul has killed off her favorite character in the book, Annie’s true dark and obsessive side is revealed as she begins being controlling and violent, forcing the author to rewrite the story according to what she wants, or else he will be killed.

Throughout the movie, Annie Wilkes’ secret is revealed: she is a nurse who killed all of her patients back when she worked in the hospital, and escaped, hiding in her cabin in the mountains. She shows classic psychopathic traits: manipulation, as she pretends she is good to Paul at first, but then becomes insane, showcasing her darkest side. She is impulsive, as seen in the scene where she pounds Paul’s legs with a hammer because he didn’t do what she wanted. Furthermore, she is definitely mentally unstable, as seen from the easily noticeable mood swings she showcases throughout the movie. Bates’ Academy Award win here was rightfully deserved!

4

Oliver Quick from ‘Saltburn’ (2024)

Image via MGM

Saltburn is a psychological thriller directed by Emerald Fennell. It follows the story of Oliver Quick (Barry Keoghan‘s most terrifying performance), an outcast Oxford student who becomes enthralled by Felix Catton (the talented Jacob Elordi), befriending him and getting an invitation to stay at his family’s estate for the summer. What Felix doesn’t know is that Oliver’s true intentions are darker than they seem. This movie can be considered the most disturbing yet fascinating piece of media I have ever seen. And you should watch it also.

Without a doubt, Oliver is considered a psychopath in this film. Oliver purposefully manipulates his way into Felix’s life because he is obsessed with him and his wealth, wanting to have him yet be him at the same time, at all costs. He shows a grand lack of empathy, as seen in the scene in which Felix’s family finds his corpse. Yet, he is overwhelmed by emotion every time he is around Felix. Maybe it’s because psychopaths are used to mimicking people’s emotions. This is still a big question mark that fans overanalyze. His impulsive behavior truly bursts out in abnormal acts, examples being the bathtub and the grave scenes (not going into further details about those). Furthermore, what makes Oliver scary enough as a psychopath is the fact that he is strategic in his moves, all this being a twisted chess game for him, in which every single person he speaks with is a pawn, and whoever gets in his way gets killed. Truly a mastermind.

3

The Joker from ‘Batman: The Dark Knight’ (2008)

Image via Warner Bros.

One of the most famous and beloved superhero movies, Batman: The Dark Knight is an unforgettable piece of media. The storyline follows Batman (Christian Bale) and Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart) as they join forces to stop the Joker (the late Heath Ledger). Furthermore, The Joker represents the traits of an actual psychopath, after all.

The Joker is highly methodical, as seen in the moments when he plans every move he has to pull next. Also, he believes people have no morals and goes to great lengths to prove his point. Everything he does has a specific reason: destroying society entirely. The Joker, with his unhinged personality, is one of the most outstanding psychopathic villains out there, who has stood the test of time, becoming an icon in the film industry. Ledger’s performance as The Joker is something truly iconic, as his portrayal of this role will never be forgotten.

2

Norman Bates from the ‘Psycho’ franchise

Image via Paramount Pictures

Ah, yes. The most terrifying Anthony Perkins performance. Psycho is one of the best horror movies directed by Alfred Hitchcock. This movie follows the story of Marion Crane, portrayed by Janet Leigh, who steals money from her company to flee with her lover, detective Sam Loomis (John Gavin). Because of the rain, she stops at the Bates Motel for the night, a few miles outside of Sam’s town, Fairvale. In the motel, she meets Norman Bates (Perkins), a shy and seemingly kind man who lives with his mother in a Gothic house near the motel, which they also own. What she doesn’t know is that this family is not what it seems, which sparks an investigation from Sam and Lila Crane (Vera Miles), Marion’s sister.

Norman Bates’ inner psyche is truly captivating, yet horrifying at the same time. He suffers from Dissociative Identity Disorder, in which he has two distinctive personalities: one of himself, and one of his mother, who goes on a killing spree. Psychologists think that he was most likely traumatized by his mother’s incestuous and abusive behavior towards him when he was a child, after his father’s death, which led to him becoming an unhinged psychopath. After the infamous shower scene and the psychologist analyzing Bates’ mental state at the end, it is up to the audience to break down and analyze every single aspect of Bates’ psychopathic tendencies.

1

Hannibal Lecter from ‘The Silence of the Lambs’ (1991)

Image via Orion Pictures

The scariest thriller I have ever seen in my life, even more than Psycho, contrary to popular opinion, The Silence of the Lambs is a movie that transcended the test of time. After decades, it is still acclaimed and beloved as if it were released today. It tells the story of Clarice Starling (the talented Jodie Foster), an FBI detective in training, who has been assigned the case of Buffalo Bill, a killer who skins women and unalives them. To get more clues and be able to solve this case, Clarice is sent by FBI detective Jack Crawford (Scott Glenn) to speak with a famous killer, Hannibal Lecter (the phenomenal Anthony Hopkins), who is locked in the Baltimore State Hospital for the Criminally Insane.

Hopkins’ portrayal of Lecter is truly terrifying, as he portrayed perfectly the insane, cold, calculating psychopath that Lecter truly is. Lecter is a prime example of a functioning type of psychopath who is aware of what he does. However, he has no morality towards anyone, believing he is truly doing god’s work in eliminating people that he considers rude. This also showcases the high narcissism that he exudes. Hannibal Lecter is the best psychopathic villain out there, and no one can say otherwise.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Release Date

February 14, 1991

Runtime

Advertisement

119 minutes

Director

Jonathan Demme

Advertisement

Writers

Ted Tally, Thomas Harris

Advertisement

Producers

Edward Saxon, Kenneth Utt

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

While Marvel fans are preparing for a few big movies this year, like Spider-Man: Brand New Day and Avengers: Doomsday, it’s angling to be a quieter year for DC in 2026. The studio does have a few big new releases coming later this year, like Supergirl, which features stars like Milly Alcock and Jason Momoa. The second and final DC movie of the year is Clayface, starring Tom Rhys Harries, which is coming to theaters this October. Both films are operating under James Gunn’s new DCU banner, but there’s another DC film in development set in Elseworlds that may be the most anticipated superhero movie of the next few years. The film in question is The Batman Part II, which comes from director Matt Reeves, who also helmed the 2022 Batman film.

At the time of writing, The Batman Part II is scheduled to be released on October 1, 2027. The film was previously supposed to be released much earlier, but it was subject to several delays and setbacks. Now, after all this time, cameras are finally rolling on The Batman Part II, which should leave it plenty of time to hit its planned release date. Bruce Wayne actor Robert Pattinson recently sat down for an interview to promote his new movie, The Odyssey, and he provided an interesting timeline for The Batman sequel’s production schedule, confirming that there are “11 weeks of night shoots” planned. “I just heard it from the stunt guy the other day, he said, ‘Ooh, 11 weeks of nights.’ I’m like, ‘Excuse me?! No one has even sent me a schedule.” Pattinson also hit back at the critics who said he was “too small” to play Batman, insisting that he worked out “every single day.”

Who Else Stars in ‘The Batman Part II’?

Returning to star alongside Pattinson in The Batman sequel are Jeffrey Wright and Andy Serkis, who will star as Commissioner Gordon and Alfred, respectively. A pair of Marvel veterans, Sebastian Stan and Scarlett Johansson, will also have key roles as Harvey and Gilda Dent in The Batman Part II, with Game of Thrones veteran Charles Dance joining the ensemble as their father, Christopher Dent. Colin Farrell is also confirmed to return as The Penguin in The Batman Part II, and Brian Tyree Henry has been cast in an undisclosed role. Reeves is directing with a script he wrote with Mattson Tomlin.

Stay tuned to Collider for more updates and coverage of The Batman Part II.

Advertisement

Release Date

October 1, 2027

Advertisement

Director

Matt Reeves

Writers

Advertisement

Matt Reeves, Mattson Tomlin, Bill Finger, Bob Kane

Franchise(s)

Batman

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement