Few genres are as thrilling as the spy film, whether it’s the kind with a cat-and-mouse game played across exotic locations; suave, debonair secret agents uncovering evil plots to destroy the world; or more cerebral fare, where the protagonist stumbles across a conspiracy that is rooted deep within global institutions. But let’s say there’s a spy movie that largely bucks those conventions, one that pits the Americans against the Russians during the Cold War. There’s no exotic locales, just water as far as the eye can see, with the bulk of the film spent aboard cold, gray submarines, with a protagonist who isn’t a suave secret agent in the vein of James Bond, but instead a desk jockey with a fear of flying. Would you believe that such a film isn’t just good, but is a bona-fide masterpiece thriller? If you don’t, you should: the film is The Hunt for Red October, and 36 years after its release, it’s found new life as one of the most popular rentals on Apple TV.

Jack Ryan Has Three Days to Uncover a Rogue Soviet Submarine Captain’s Intentions in ‘The Hunt for Red October’

Image via Paramount Pictures

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It’s November 1984, and the Soviets have given command of Red October, a state-of-the-art Typhoon-class ballistic missile submarine with a “caterpillar drive,” to the esteemed Captain Marko Ramius (Sean Connery). It’s a decision they’ll soon regret, after Ramius kills the political officer on board and tells his crew that they have been instructed to conduct missile drills off the American East coast. With that, they engage the caterpillar drive and, now undetectable, make their way to their destination.

Government officials in Washington call on CIA analyst Jack Ryan (Alec Baldwin) to brief them on the threat that Red October—and its commander—poses. It’s certainly not good news, and after hearing that the bulk of the Soviet Navy has been mobilized to locate and sink the sub, the military staff surmises that Ramius has gone rogue and plans a renegade nuclear strike. Only Ryan, who has done extensive research on Ramius, has a different hypothesis, suggesting that Ramius actually plans to defect to the United States with the sub, a major coup for the Americans if he’s right. It’s his monkey, so now it’s his zoo, and Ryan’s given three days to confirm his theory before the U.S. Navy joins the hunt to find, and scuttle, Red October.

So Ryan is sent to the mid-Atlantic, where he boards the American submarine USS Dallas at the risk of his own life. There, he tries to convince Commander Mancuso (Scott Glenn) to contact Ramius to determine his real intentions. His timing is perfect, given “Jonesy” (Courtney B. Vance), the sonar technician aboard, has discovered a means of tracking Red October using underwater acoustics software. They catch up to the Soviet sub, where Mancuso, swayed by Ryan’s arguments, contacts Ramius and offers assistance. Sure enough, Ryan was right, and Ramius, stunned but relieved that the Americans figured it out, accepts. After staging a nuclear reactor “emergency” that forces the crew to abandon ship, Ramius welcomes Ryan, Mancuso, and Jonesy aboard, turning over Red October and requesting asylum for himself and his officers. Only the arrival of Alfa-class submarine V.K. Konovalov puts a damper on the proceedings, setting up a deep-sea battle to the death.

A Wealth of Talent Both On and Off the Screen Makes ‘The Hunt for Red October’ Work

By rights, The Hunt for Red October shouldn’t work as well as it does, but a wealth of riches both on and off the screen creates a memorable film that stands as a masterpiece of the genre. The cast, including heavyweights like Tim Curry, Sam Neill and James Earl Jones, is perfect (Glenn’s performance, in particular, is one of his best). But the film lives and dies with its two leads, and they rise to the challenge. Baldwin is perfectly suited for Jack Ryan’s first appearance on film, taking a character unprepared (and largely unwilling) to be involved directly in the proceedings through a journey that sees him grow in confidence and assertiveness, taking control of the situation and claiming his role as an action hero.

Baldwin’s good, but he’s not Sean Connery good, with the seasoned vet commanding the screen in one of the best performances of his post-James Bond career. His Marko Ramius cuts an imposing, authoritative figure, one that keeps up appearances and (largely) deflects suspicion in order to facilitate the defection of himself and his crew. He balances that with the vulnerability that comes with seeing his plan, his freedom, come to fruition. It’s good enough that even his maligned non-attempt at a Russian accent (Marko McRamius?) isn’t enough to distract from it.

Director John McTiernan is no stranger to generating high tension in confined areas, as he did in Die Hard. He keeps the tension on high throughout the film, dropping dangers at key intervals and generating real concern from the viewer. His vision is perfectly complemented by cinematographer Jan de Bont, his partner on Die Hard. It’s a chemistry so in sync that it creates magic, and the tricks de Bont picked up from McTiernan can be seen in de Bont’s first directorial affair, 1994’s Speed, another thriller that spends the bulk of its time in confined quarters.

Surprisingly, one of the film’s best scenes has no action whatsoever, but simply captures Ryan and Ramius conversing on the deck of Red October at the end of the film. McTiernan and de Bont immortalize the moment in a gentle blue hue, with the two talking heads on the left side of the screen, and the river behind adding an unimpeded calmness to their discourse. In a high-stakes thriller like The Hunt for Red October, it’s a savvy move that grounds the film with humanity, a perfect end to a masterpiece.

Jordon Hudson had yet another unusual interaction with the media — this time on the sidelines of her boyfriend Bill Belichick’s University of North Carolina football game.

Pat Welter — a sports reporter for WRAL in Raleigh, North Carolina — shared footage via Instagram on Saturday, September 12, that showed him panning his phone camera over to Hudson, 25, on the sidelines at Kenan Stadium in Chapel Hill, only to realize that she was already filming him with her own mobile device.

The video showed the two seemingly at a stalemate for a few seconds before Hudson waved at him while smiling.

“Me filming Jordon Hudson. Jordon Hudson filming me,” Welter, 38, humorously captioned the clip.

Related: Details of Jordon Hudson Hot Mic Drama Explained by Journalist at the Center

The journalist responsible for leaking audio of Jordon Hudson complaining on a hot mic explained why the footage is emblematic of a larger issue surrounding Hudson’s relationship with her boyfriend, Bill Belichick. The footage of Hudson, 24, was from a taping of Belichick’s show Coach in September 2024, and released on Friday, October 17, by […]

Hudson was rocking a Tar Heels T-shirt, which she wore over white denim pants with a low-hanging ivory-colored belt. Her first appearance of the season on the sidelines may have helped propel UNC to a blowout victory against East Tennessee State Buccaneers, 35-3.

While Hudson hasn’t explained why she was filming Welter on the sidelines, the reporter has recently been critical of UNC’s leadership.

The school has gone through a tumultuous few weeks after Tar Heels football general manager Michael Lombardi resigned from his post on September 3 amid an internal investigation into a human resources complaint.

While reporting on the Lombardi scandal, Welter recently suggested that there could be a knock-on effect on Belichick’s strategy for the Tar Heels since Lombardi and Hudson were key influences on the coach last season.

“From a #UNC source ‘the downfall of this whole thing is who Bill listens to.’ Last season that was Jordon Hudson and Mike Lombardi,” Welter tweeted on August 26 alongside a clip of a wider discussion of Belichick’s leadership.

Related: Jordon Hudson Says She’s a ‘Gold Digger’ While Celebrating Cheerleading Win

Jordon Hudson gave a playful nod to her haters while celebrating another milestone cheerleading victory. Hudson, 24, and her Cheer Extreme Raleigh Code Black squad earned a full paid bid to the 2026 Worlds with their performance at the Cheer for Charity 2026 competition on Sunday, March 15.  “📣📣📣📣📣 #GOLDDIGGER GOT #PAID 🤑🤑🤑🤭🤭#IDigGoldMedals #GRANDioseCHAMPS #TroubleCubStrikesAgain,” […]

Hudson is no stranger to clashing with the media, as she became a viral sensation in 2025 for interrupting a CBS Sunday Morning segment when reporter Tony Dokoupil asked Belichick how his age-gap romance began.

“We’re not talking about this,” she insisted in a now-infamous moment.

Hudson has since called out reporters via social media when they were critical of her frequent presence alongside Belichick on the sidelines of Tar Heels’ games.

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In December 2025, she threatened to sue podcaster Pablo Torre over his reporting that she’d been banned from the university’s football facilities — an allegation that UNC later denied.

“I can report that there has been no legal notice or letter or communique of any kind sent to me,” Torre, 40, told The Contrarian’s editor-in-chief Jen Rubin days later. “I have not been sued by Jordon Hudson despite her threatening to do so on Instagram last week, which is a fun sentence that I never get tired of saying out loud.”

He added, “I can further add to the clarity of the dynamic that the University of North Carolina, who I contacted, has made clear to me that they have no part of any of the legal threats at all made by Jordon Hudson.”

Like other broadcast networks, NBC is building out its programming for the 2026-2027 TV season. The network blends new and returning shows, with some schedule changes. The Hunting Party is the only show from the previous season that won’t return following its cancellation. However, a new replacement is lined up, and it debuts in one week. That series is Line of Fire, a family drama with procedural elements led by Peter Krause and Hope Davis. It is one of four new shows on NBC this season, but some don’t debut until next year.

Another is also a procedural that follows a private investigator. It is a modern retelling of a classic NBC series with the same premise that ran from 1974 to 1980 for six seasons. It follows Jim Rockford (James Garner), an ex-con and private investigator who works low-level investigative cases for a fee. Rockford typically uses his quick thinking and charm to solve most cases without getting into physical fights unless the situation calls for it. Garner played the character in the story’s initial run in the subsequent TV movies.

Now, James “Jim” Rockford is back on TV and on NBC after a short stint on CBS in the reunion movies. David Boreanaz (Bones) plays the character, and the show’s premise doesn’t deviate from its predecessor, except for some contemporary updates. When the series starts, Rockford has just been paroled (not pardoned like in the original series). He returns to his job as a PI in Los Angeles. However, his quest to seek legitimacy hits a snag because of friction with the police department and organized crime. The series also stars Michaela McManus and Jacki Weaver. The Rockford Files has been held for a midseason premiere, meaning viewers won’t see Rockford’s exploits until January 2027.

What Does the Rest of NBC’s Fall Schedule Look Like?

NBC’s scripted premiere kicks off on Monday, September 21, with Line of Fire. In November, St. Denis Medical and The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins form an hour-long comedy block from 8 pm. Tuesday has no scripted shows, with the NBA taking over the primetime slots. Wednesdays remain One Chicago night with Chicago Med, Chicago Fire, and Chicago P.D. occupying the three-hour block. Thursdays are for Law & Order and Law & Order: SVU. Fridays feature another comedy block with Happy’s Place and another brand-new comedy series, Newlyweds. Jake Johnson’s new comedy Sunset P.I. doesn’t premiere until February 2027.

Collider will keep you updated with more news, including the premiere date for The Rockford Files.

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Release Date

1974 – 1980-00-00

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Directors

William Wiard, Lawrence Doheny, Ivan Dixon, Jerry London, Reza Badiyi, Russ Mayberry, Jackie Cooper, Lou Antonio, Corey Allen, Jeannot Szwarc, Stephen J. Cannell, Alexander Grasshoff, Arnold Laven, Harry Falk, John Patterson, Stuart Margolin, Alexander Singer, Bernard L. Kowalski, Bernard McEveety, Bruce Kessler, Charles S. Dubin, Christian I. Nyby II, Dana Elcar, Hy Averback

Writers

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Gordon T. Dawson, Rudolph Borchert, Don Carlos Dunaway, Edward J. Lakso, David Taylor, Donald L. Gold, Rogers Turrentine, Walter Dallenbach, Lester Wm. Berke, William R. Stratton, Jo Swerling Jr., Leigh Brackett, Mitch Lindemann, Robert Hamner, Zekial Marko, Howard Berk, Shel Willens, Eric Kaldor, Gloryette Clark

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• 

  James Garner

  Jim Rockford

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  Noah Beery Jr.

  Joseph “Rocky” Rockford

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Certain novels seem to be making their way to the big or small screen. They’re filled with complicated romantic plots, expansive backgrounds, and memorable characters. However, producing a quality film or series from a book isn’t based solely on good writing. In some cases, production might not get past the planning stage, while in others, it might take certain aspects from the original work and alter them beyond recognition.

Of the five books listed below, some have the characteristics of great potential for film adaptations, while others include details that must remain in their film adaptations.

The Lies of Locke Lamora

Image via Gollancz/Spectra/Benjamin Carré

The Lies of Locke Lamora, a novel by Scott Lynch, leads readers to a city called Camorr, based on the real medieval city of Venice. The city of Camorr is full of criminals, thieves, nobles, and so many shady dealings that cheating someone seems simple compared to people’s business in Camorr. The story follows a boy named Locke Lamora, the leader of Gentleman Bastards, a group of talented thieves who steal from the rich while pretending to be harmless. Unfortunately for them, the world in which they live is turned upside down when a criminal called Gray King takes over the underworld of Camorr.

The novel was already adapted into a film after the rights were bought, but unfortunately they eventually expired. The elaborate cons provide the spectacle, but Locke and Jean’s friendship gives the story its emotional core. A faithful adaptation would also need to preserve Lynch’s willingness to let the Gentleman Bastards be funny, reckless, violent, and genuinely vulnerable rather than turning them into conventional fantasy heroes.

The Night Circus

Image via Doubleday

Set in Le Cirque des Rêves, a mysterious circus that appears and disappears unexpectedly, The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern depicts the thrilling duel between two young illusionists, Celia Bowen and Marco Alisdair, trained by opposing magicians. This is a game of magic, though neither Celia nor Marco knows who their rival really is. The game eventually leads to their cooperation that neither of their mentors could have imagined.

This is one of those books where the atmosphere is almost as important as the plot, which makes it a particularly tempting adaptation challenge. The circus’s impossible tents, magical attractions, and shifting locations could produce some extraordinary visuals, but spectacle alone would miss the point. Set in Le Cirque des Rêves, a mysterious circus that appears and disappears unexpectedly, The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern depicts the thrilling duel between two young illusionists, Celia Bowen and Marco Alisdair, trained by opposing magicians. This is a game of magic, though neither Celia nor Marco knows who their rival really is. The game eventually leads to their cooperation that neither of their mentors could have imagined.

The Priory of the Orange Tree

Image via Bloomsbury Publishing/Samantha Shannon

The Priory of the Orange Tree is a massive fantasy epic by Samantha Shannon, set in a world torn apart by differing beliefs about dragons, magic, and history. In the West, dragons are feared and despised, while in the East, they are worshipped as godlike beings ridden by dragonriders. The focal point of the conflict is Queen Sabran IX, who poses a serious threat in her quest to give birth to an heir while facing the menace of the ancient Nameless One. Her protector, the spy Ead Duryan, is secretly loyal to the Priory, while dragonrider-in-training Tané and exiled alchemist Niclays Roos become caught up in the same growing crisis.

The novel’s scale is obviously a selling point, but its real strength is how those enormous fantasy stakes intersect with deeply personal conflicts. By using four points of view, the narrative can traverse court politics, espionage, religion, and dragon adventure without reducing the plot to a simple good-versus-evil conflict. A standard adaptation should also keep queer love and complex female characters within the book’s framework, rather than ignoring them or reducing them to mere background plots.

Six of Crows

Image via The Grishaverse

In Leigh Bardugo‘s book Six of Crows, we meet six youngsters assigned to carry out an exceptionally challenging jail escape. The team is led by mastermind criminal Kaz Brekker, and the crew includes spy Inej Ghafa, sharpshooter Jesper Fahey, Grisha Heartrender Nina Zenik, former Grisha hunter Matthias Helvar, and demolition expert Wylan Van Eck. The gang targets the Ice Court military base, and as if that’s not enough, the mission gets even more complicated when the drug they are expected to secure could affect international politics in one way or another.

There is a major caveat: the Crows have already appeared in Netflix’s Shadow and Bone, which gave them an original storyline rather than directly adapting Six of Crows​​​​​​, and that makes a faithful adaptation of Bardugo’s duology even more appealing. The novel’s heist structure, shifting perspectives, and complicated relationships would work brilliantly across a season of television, especially because each crew member brings their own history, vulnerabilities, and reasons for taking the job.

The Song of Achilles

Image via Ecco Press

Written by Madeline Miller, The Song of Achilles tells the Trojan War from Patroclus’s perspective. It begins centuries before the war and follows Achilles and Patroclus’s friendship from their first meeting through the war’s major events. Patroclus accidentally kills a boy and is sent to Phthia, where he meets Achilles, who is the son of Peleus and Thetis. Despite Thetis’s efforts to prevent their friendship, their relationship becomes love.

A faithful adaptation must understand that the Trojan War is not the heart of this story; instead, this is the stage for a story in which the bond between Patroclus and Achilles deepens amid questions of fate, mortality, and duty. The work took Miller 10 years, and the author used not only The Iliad but many other Greek and Roman texts in the development of the storyline, aiming to center a character who was a minor one in the classic poem. Strictly speaking, this close perspective makes the book great, and that is exactly what the screen version needs to achieve.

The K-Drama market has long relied on a combination of formula and versatility. While exceptions always exist, by and large, as long as a new series delivers time-honored tropes through a skillfully fresh concept, audiences will turn the show into appointment viewing. 2023’s My Demon might not count as new by airdate standards, but the smash-hit genre mash-up (fantasy rom-com with a mystery-thriller edge) fits the bill and then some.

Writer Choi Ah-i, one of the minds behind the sensationally clever Mr. Queen, combines numerous top-tier tropes into a nearly pitch-perfect package: a marriage of convenience, a fated love story between a supernatural entity and a human (with a side of reincarnation), expertly timed banter, bucket-loads of formative trauma, sneakily potent themes, and a conventionally attractive couple gazing into each other’s eyes as the rousing music swells. This irresistible binge-watch will make you splutter with laughter, kick your heels in delight, and maybe shed a subtle tear or two.

What Is ‘My Demon’ About?

Jeong Gu-won (Song Kang), an immortal demon, offers humans their greatest wish in exchange for collecting their souls 10 years later. Gu-won suspects he was born human, but aside from some recurring dreams, he can’t recall any memories. It’s puzzling, but not a huge concern when he spends his days and nights slinking around in black leather and rocking a disdainful smirk. Inconveniently for his hellish business, however, an accident robs him of his fancy powers — unless his hand is touching a specific human woman.

Meet Do Do-hee (Kim You-jung), the heir apparent to a massive family-owned corporation. The merciless chaebol entrepreneur wields razor-sharp intelligence and cut-throat confidence from the top of her perfect hair down to her clacking high heels. Only Do-hee’s adoptive mother, Joo Cheon-sook (Kim Hae-sook), has witnessed Do-hee’s heart-of-gold vulnerabilities, all of which stem from her birth parents’ deaths. Do-hee refuses to let anyone new into her life, because the chance of losing more people she loves isn’t worth the risk. Cheon-sook’s will forces Do-hee’s hand, stipulating that she can only stay on as CEO if she marries within one year.

To make matters worse, Do-hee’s adoptive siblings aren’t exactly pleased about their mother’s favoritism for the sister they despise; their jealousy kicks off a succession power struggle that includes mysteries, manipulations, and multiple assassination attempts. Since Gu-won, now the person desperate enough to make a bargain, depends upon his powers, and Do-hee simultaneously wants to claim her inheritance and needs someone to protect her life, they agree to a mutually beneficial — and mutually disdainful — contract marriage. Enemies-to-lovers sparks fly, and they’re a glorious inferno.

Watching My Demon is a little like opening a bottle of champagne: its whimsical and zany tone pops forth like sparkling bubbles. To stretch the metaphor further, the show is pleasantly intoxicating thanks to a wealth of charming characters with believable inner lives, a compelling network of relationships, pacing that moves at an engaging clip but doesn’t sacrifice character development or intimate emotional interplay, and satisfactorily tight plotting. My Demon largely rejects common narrative shortcuts in favor of nimbly sliding past viewers’ expectations, yet always knows when to enthusiastically and unashamedly commit to the characteristic K-Drama spectacle. Nowhere else will you see two leads fighting villains by dancing a magical tango.

As for that main couple, Gu-won and Do-hee’s courtship is so electrifying that it almost circles back around to distressing. Their bristling rapport snaps between whiplash-inducing bickering and head-over-heels sensitivity, even after their earlier hostility has mostly faded into smitten devotion. Since both actors could have chemistry with a slab of motionless plastic, it’s My Demon‘s sneakily deft characterization that provides the performers a runway to brandish their exceptional skill. Gu-won isn’t the brooding bad boy archetype but a mischievous tempter, only for Song to temper that irreverent swagger with startled complexity once he starts rediscovering his lost compassion. Every Kim performance radiates the sense that she’s left everything on the table, no stone unturned; here, she’s sensational at depicting the legitimate power of Do-hee’s infamous ice princess persona as well as how it shields her inescapable, terrified loneliness. Immortal or mortal, devil or human, the duo are equally wounded and equally made for each other.

Ultimately, My Demon does dance around its themes about the cost of human connection — the inherent need for it, the courage love requires, unhealthy but completely normal responses to grief, being another person’s personal heaven and their hell — instead of wrestling with the ethical complications to their fullest extent. Although some later-stage choices lean repetitive and lackluster, those emotional beats only fizzle out because My Demon‘s opening salvo blazes so high. Choi Ah-i knew their goal from the start and achieved it by creating an earnest, sparkling, enchanting rom-com that’s both warmly familiar and wildly inventive.

The 2020s aren’t over yet, but many fans are already claiming it is one of the best decades in terms of video games ever. That claim is hard to argue considering it already houses masterpieces such as Elden Ring and Baldur’s Gate 3. Everyone has their preferences, but each decade has provided fans with incredible video games to play, especially the 2010s.

It felt like there was a big shift in the 2010s in terms of graphics, design, audience, and general vibe, with some claiming that video games are now too realistic and lacking soul and creativity. However, the 2010s are so great because they feature the best of both worlds. That is why this list will crown the best video game from every year of the 2010s based on gameplay, design, narrative, visuals, fan opinion, critical acclaim, influence, originality, and overall quality.

2010: ‘Super Mario Galaxy 2’

Image via Nintendo

Nintendo is one of the greatest video game companies of all time, meaning they have a plethora of video games throughout the 2010s, including 2010’s Game of the Year, Super Mario Galaxy 2. Similar to the first game, this one has Mario traveling around galaxies with his green friend, Yoshi, to rescue Princess Peach from the nefarious Bowser.

Whichever is better, the first or second game, is up to fans, but for those who prefer Super Mario Galaxy 2, it is because of the way it added to an already perfect game with new gimmicks, including Yoshi, and polished mechanics. It is one of the most nostalgic Nintendo games because of its charming vibe and timeless platforming gameplay that was a fantastic start to the decade.

2011: ‘Portal 2’

Image via Valve

2011 was one of the greatest years for gaming in the 2010s, and maybe all time. The Game of the Year was between The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim and Portal 2, but ultimately the latter won. Years after the first game, Chell wakes up in an abandoned scientific facility where, with the help of a robot, she tries to escape and avoid the harsh punishments GLaDOS is planning for the player.

It was a tough choice between the two, but Portal 2 is one of the most polished and complete gaming experiences that is ageless. The game innovates with its physics-based engine and core mechanics that offer complete agency and solutions. With some of the most stimulating puzzles and fun mechanics, Portal 2 is a charming game with sharp writing and witty dialogue to pair with its riveting gameplay.

2012: ‘Journey’

Image via Thatgamecompany

It is rare for an indie game to be the best of the year, but 2012 was the perfect storm when the lineup wasn’t the greatest, and Journey innovated more than anyone else. Taking place in an atmospheric desert, the player wanders the barren landscape in order to scale the distinct mountain. But this journey will take them from dark caves to the freezing peak.

Even though 2012 wasn’t the greatest year for gaming, that shouldn’t take anything away from Journey, which became one of the best indie video games ever. The serene atmosphere is one of the most calming and immersive in the medium, enhancing the eerie quest to the mountain. Journey is a short but sweet game that somehow remains underrated despite being the best title of 2012.

2013: ‘The Last of Us’

Image via Naughty Dog

The 2010s saw some of the best video games, and that partly resulted in many live-action adaptations, including The Last of Us. In a post-apocalyptic world ravaged by a zombie infection, Joel is a grizzled veteran whose next job is to escort a girl across the country. But when he learns she may be the cure to the disease, the adventure becomes even more dangerous.

In terms of storytelling, there might not be a better game than The Last of Us, which didn’t just show fans the plot, but took them through it in immersive detail that expanded the characters, their dynamics, and their growth. Not to mention, the final plot twist is one of gaming’s best and most somber, proving that The Last of Us is easily the greatest video game to come out in 2013.

2014: ‘Mario Kart 8’

Image via Nintendo

Nintendo has a few entries on this list, and while 2014 could have gone a couple of ways, ultimately it was Mario Kart 8 that took the slot. Players can select from a group of characters and set out to compete in a series of Grand Prix races. From anti-gravity waterfalls to haunted mansions, gamers can race anywhere.

Games like Dragon Age: Inquisition and Dark Souls II were phenomenal, but Mario Kart 8 is one of the most influential racing games. Sure, the Switch port is more popular, but they are essentially the same game. Mario Kart 8 is a perfect Mario video game that gave fans a wide roster of playable characters and colorful, intricate courses to play through, delivering the definitive Mario Kart experience that is as chaotic as it is fun.

2015: ‘The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt’

Image via CD Projekt

The recent news of the free remastered version of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt has brought it into the limelight again, reminding fans just how good the game is and how much better it will get. Geralt of Rivia has put off his usual gig of monster hunting in order to find Ciri, his adoptive daughter, who is on the run from a spectral group that wants her for her powers.

The Witcher 3 is known for storytelling being ingrained in every aspect of the design, creating unrivaled lore and worldbuilding. The folklore is fresh and expands the many side quests, allowing players to experience mini-adventures that add to the overall fun. The Witcher 3 was the unanimous Game of the Year in 2015, and fans hope that the upcoming The Witcher 4 will follow suit whenever it comes out.

2016: ‘Inside’

Image via Playdead

Fans shouldn’t underestimate indie video games, because some of them are Game of the Year favorites, such as Inside. Set in a brutalist and eerie world, players control a child who escapes from a Big Brother-esque scientific facility. However, the only way to get out is by going deeper into its maw, learning uncomfortable truths at every step.

Inside is a masterclass of design through lighting, using it not only as an atmospheric tool, but as a design mechanic to help guide the player. The stark difference between light and dark in this game immerses players in the gritty style. It may mainly be a walking simulator, but it is one of the best side-scrolling video games because of the puzzles and story experienced on this adventure.

2017: ‘The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild’

2017 was a competitive year for gaming, mainly by Nintendo since the Switch came out. But among all these juggernauts, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is hands down the best. A hundred years after Zelda sealed Ganon away, Link finally wakes up to venture across Hyrule and defeat the Gerudo King before he breaks the seal and destroys the Kingdom.

Breath of the Wild reinvented open-world games by introducing the concept of open air, which allows the player to climb any mountain, soar through any part of the sky, and basically, go anywhere. The traversal and exploration are some of the best, and with design techniques such as making three landmarks visible from every point on the map, it is easy to see why Breath of the Wild isn’t just the best video game of 2017, but of the entire 2010s.

2018: ‘God of War’

Image via Sony Interactive Entertainment

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2018 was the most heated argument in terms of gaming, and this list just brought it back by selecting this apparently controversial Game of the Year. God of War follows a mellowed-out Kratos who honors his wife’s final wish for her ashes to be spread over the highest peak. However, along the journey, the gods want something from Kratos’ son, Atreus, making the ascent far more complicated.

Red Dead Redemption 2 and God of War were the front-runners, and while many would choose the former, the latter is the better video game, not just having a renowned narrative, but also boasting satisfying combat. This modern gem of the medium is one of the most fun video games of all time because of the engrossing narrative and father-son dynamics, as well as the acclaimed gameplay.

2019: ‘Disco Elysium’

Image via ZA/UM

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This list features not one, not two, but three indie games, which should highlight the rise in popularity and quality of this genre during the 2010s. Disco Elysium has the gamer playing as an amnesiac detective with multiple personalities who must simultaneously figure out who he is while also piecing together a murder that has serious political implications.

Disco Elysium rounded out the 2010s with a bang, sending off the decade with one of the greatest indie titles in recent memory. The worldbuilding is detail-oriented and features complex, political, and emotional ties that connect to the character and plot. The gameplay casts aside usual combat in favor of dialogue, encouraging critical thinking to solve problems, truly making Disco Elysium a unique Game of the Year.

McBee Dynasty star Steve McBee Sr. has officially reunited with his famous family following his release from prison.

“A little more appreciation for the simple things in life….Thank you Lord for all the blessings in my life,” Steve Sr., 53, wrote via Instagram on Saturday, September 12, alongside a video of him returning to his farm in Gallatin, Missouri.

His son Steven McBee Jr. commented, “Best 24 hours we’ve had in a long, long time. So many good memories to make and time to have together as a COMPLETE family!”

Steven Jr., 33, originally shared the news on Friday, September 11, that his dad had been released from custody as he posted a clip of the patriarch meeting up with his grandchildren.

Cole McBee welcomed his dad home by posting a photo of Steve Sr. holding his baby granddaughter Tate, who arrived in August.

“So blessed to have the family back together,” Cole, 27, wrote alongside the photo. “Dad and Tate have officially got to meet now.”

The Justice Department announced in November 2024 that Steve Sr. “pleaded guilty in federal court today to a multi-million dollar fraud scheme involving federal crop insurance benefits he was not entitled to receive.” The reality star confessed to selling “more than 1.2 million bushels of corn and nearly 416,000 bushels of soybeans” to another party in 2018, per the Justice Department.

Steve Sr.’s plea deal required him to pay more than $4 million in restitution, in addition to forfeiting $3,158,923 to the government.

While he was eligible for as much as 30 years in federal prison without parole, a judge sentenced Steve Sr. to two years behind bars in October 2025. He began serving his sentence at the Federal Prison Camp in Yankton, South Dakota, last December. (Steven Jr. ultimately served less than a year of his sentence in federal custody.)

Steven Jr. exclusively opened up to Us in July about how his father was coping with life behind bars.

Related: Steven McBee Gets ‘Misty-Eyed’ Sharing Holiday Update From Dad in Prison

The McBee Dynasty’s Steven McBee Jr. got a little teary-eyed while sharing a holiday update from his dad, Steven “Steve” McBee Sr., who is currently serving a two-year prison sentence for crop insurance fraud. “I talked to my dad last night. He wanted to make sure that we posted a video saying Merry Christmas to […]

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“Thankfully, we’re down to less than two months now before he gets out … [He was] able to get into a program that allows him to cut down on the time served,” Steven Jr. confirmed to Us. “He’ll be under home confinement for four to six months, but he gets out early.”

In the weeks leading up to his release, Steve Sr.’s family documented renovating his lodge and office as a surprise for their patriarch.

“Got my old man a list of some of my favorite reads (about 20 more coming in tomorrow),” Steven Jr. recently wrote via Instagram as he dropped off a pile of books. “Big believer that reading is single-handedly one of the best things you can do to immediately improve your life and outlook/mindset.”

Steve Sr.’s legal drama played out across the second and third seasons of Bravo’s The McBee Dynasty: Real American Cowboys, where viewers watched him turn over the running of McBee Farm & Cattle Co to his sons.

Before surrendering to prison, Steve Sr. joked on Todd Chrisley’s podcast that he was thinking about his prison sentence as if he was “going on [his] sabbatical.”

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The McBee Dynasty star explained that he’d agreed to “plea out to giving one count of a fraudulent statement — not that we committed fraud” to prevent investigators from looking into his son Steven Jr.

“[I decided] OK, get my son off of this. Get all my other people off of it. Get all the other companies [off],” Steve Sr. recalled. “At the end of the day, the buck stops with me. I take that accountability and responsibility.”

He added, “I said, ‘No one else is owning this but me.’ It’s just so crazy it was based on a clerical issue.”

The historical epic is a staple of cinema, and it’s currently proving to be one of the most popular genres. The 21st century’s headline filmmaker Christopher Nolan delivered the most ambitious of its kind in recent memory with his adaptation of Homer‘s ancient Greek epic The Odyssey, which debuted this summer. Dubbed an “unrivaled cinematic spectacle” in Joe Schmidt‘s review for Collider, The Odyssey is likely to sweep up at the 2027 Academy Awards, and might even break the nominations record set by Ryan Coogler‘s Sinners this year.

Having made over $1.6 billion at the box office and still sailing towards new milestones, The Odyssey is far and away the biggest success in Nolan’s filmography, and is also the highest-grossing historical epic of all time. Part of its success can be attributed to its star-studded ensemble, led by Matt Damon as the King of Ithaca, and including Lupita Nyong’o, Charlize Theron, Anne Hathaway, Tom Holland, Jon Bernthal, Zendaya, and Robert Pattinson.

The historical epic genre’s biggest hit of all time is encouraging fans to seek other examples on streaming. One such example is The Last Samurai, the 2003 gem set in 1878 during the Meiji period in Japan. Hollywood veteran Tom Cruise stars in the film as Civil War veteran Captain Nathan Algren, as he joins forces with director Edward Zwick before the pair would make Jack Reacher: Never Go Back. Also starring Ken Watanabe, Hiroyuki Sanada, Timothy Spall, and others, The Last Samurai is a true hidden treasure in the historical epic genre and is currently one of the ten most-streamed movies on HBO Max in the U.S.

What Is Tom Cruise Making Next?

Recently, Cruise announced that he would be teaming up with The Odyssey‘s Anne Hathaway on a long-awaited Days of Thunder 2, which is scheduled to hit theaters in 2028. But before that, there’s the small matter of his first non-franchise film since 2017’s American Made, the satirical black comedy Digger, which hits theaters on October 2, 2026. Directed by Alejandro G. Iñárritu in his first English-language film since his 2015 hit The Revenant, the film will be looking to make an impact in next year’s Oscars race.

The Last Samurai is streaming on HBO Max. Stay tuned to Collider for more updates.

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Release Date

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December 5, 2003

Runtime

154 minutes

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Director

Edward Zwick

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