By Robert Scucci
| Updated 1 hour ago

Here’s some free advice for anybody who doesn’t like living outside of a jail cell or a coffin. If you hire somebody to commit crimes on your behalf, the kind of crimes that result in the death penalty if you get caught, make sure you properly vet the person you’re working with. Because they don’t in 2011’s Killer Joe, and everything goes exactly how you’d expect. The crime in question is murdering a family member to cash in on their life insurance policy, and the desired criminal is actually a cop who moonlights as a contract killer.

I’d call Killer Joe a comedy of errors, because it certainly feels like it falls into that territory, but make no mistake. This movie goes beyond dark, and most of the humor, outside of Matthew McConaughey’s pithy observations, is situational. Here we have two would-be criminals who are too cowardly to do the deed themselves, but don’t have the funds to outsource it, culminating in the kind of family-annihilating disaster that could only truly be captured with a gritty Southern Gothic aesthetic.

It Won’t End Well For Adele

Killer Joe boasts a stupid-simple premise, but it doesn’t take much to understand the stakes. We’re introduced to Chris Smith (Emile Hirsch), a young drug dealer who owes $6,000 he doesn’t have to his supplier, Digger Soames (Marc Macaulay). The reason he owes money is because his abusive mother, Adele, stole the drugs he was supposed to sell and kicked him out of the house. Confiding in his not-so-bright, trailer park-inhabiting father, Ansel (Thomas Haden Church), who’s also not on the best of terms with Adele, his ex-wife, Chris comes up with what, in his mind, is the most logical plan: kill Adele, collect her $50,000 life insurance policy, and split the money evenly with Sharla (Gina Gershon), Ansel’s current wife.

The problem is that Chris and Ansel are profoundly stupid and unwilling to carry out the dastardly deed themselves. Chris has a solution in the form of “Killer Joe” Cooper (Matthew McConaughey), a respected detective with a dark streak and secret double life as a contract killer. The terms of the deal are simple: Joe kills Adele, her insurance payout goes to Dottie (Juno Temple), Chris’ younger sister and the sole beneficiary of the policy, and everybody splits the money.

Here’s where things get very messy. Joe demands a $25,000 advance and has very strict operating rules since his day job puts him on the right side of the law while his extracurricular activities could land him in a whole heap of trouble. Unable to pay the advance, Chris and Ansel reluctantly agree to use Dottie as his “retainer” because she’s allegedly a virgin and Joe is very interested in her, with the promise that everybody will go their separate ways once the deed has been done.

As you would expect from this arrangement, nothing goes according to plan. Joe very quickly marks his territory by seducing Dottie, who often says cryptic things suggesting she knows about the entire murder plot even though nobody told her about it. She even recalls an incident from infancy when Adele allegedly tried to kill her. Joe’s presence is intrusive, invasive, and aggressive, and he’s hellbent on not only finishing the job, but also running off into the sunset with Dottie if he can help it.

Alright, Alright, Alright … 

Everything goes horribly wrong for Chris, Ansel, Sharla, and Adele in Killer Joe while Dottie, naive enough to not know any better, sits in horror on the sidelines. Loyalties are betrayed, motives are revealed to be dubious, and the third act gets so violent, among other things, that it’s hard to maintain eye contact with the screen but equally hard to look away. If you’re not quite picking up what I’m throwing down, here’s a spoiler-free hint: the most upsetting sequence in this movie involves a bucket of fried chicken, Matthew McConaughey’s performative Southern charm thinly veiling his sadistic tendencies, and everybody at the table trying to act like they didn’t completely screw up what should have been an incredibly simple job.

Killer Joe is a uncomfortable viewing experience, and every character in it is the worst person you’ve ever met. They’re so stupid, though, that you can’t help but laugh at their misfortune, of which there is plenty, when everything begins to backfire and they have nobody to blame but themselves.

As of this writing, Killer Joe is streaming on Netflix.

Whew, Roommates! K. Michelle still isn’t letting up on Tamar Braxton. Fans know they have been beefing for a minute, and it looks like the smoke isn’t clearing anytime soon. Even though K. still isn’t cool with her, she’s now suggesting that they do a Verzuz together, and of course the internet is seated waiting to see if Tamar accepts.

RELATED: K. Michelle Gets Real About Why It Took Her Husband 10 Years To Marry Her (VIDEO)

K. Michelle Keeps The Pressure On Tamar Braxton With Verzuz Talk

Okay, so BOOM! K. Michelle recently sat down with Shannon Sharpe and chopped it up about her career, love life, and beefs. While chatting with Shannon, K. seemingly spoke about her issues with Tamar Braxton and she didn’t hold back. When Shannon asked if she’d do a Verzuz, she said she was definitely down. Then, when he asked who she would face off with, she didn’t drop any names, but fans quickly caught the subliminal shade. “Probably the muppet.” She continued, “I’ve been quiet on your attack, so get up there and do your Verzuz little lady.” 

From there, she kept going in, saying Tamar has spent years acting like she was better than her, but she’s the one who keeps getting caught up in a lot of different situations.

“She’s suppose to be so much better than me […] as an elitist and Black person and she’s so refined, but she’s the one with teeth knocked out sleeping with married men, not me!”

More About K. & Tamar’s Long-Simmering Beef

K. Michelle and Tamar have literally been going at it for 40 days and 40 nights. K. shared her side of their beef during her 2025 interview with Cam Newton. She told Cam Tamar keeps poking at her behind the scenes, and she ‘s tired of her speaking on her name.

“All because you ain’t got no edges. All because your sister really star. This is what this is really about. All because the man that you loved tried to talk to me before you, in the middle of you, and after you. She continued, “All because I’m from the country, but you are the bumpkin. It is always something with this loud mouth coyote.”

K. Sets The Record Straight On Where She Stands With Porsha Williams

K. Michelle has been airing out her past exchanges recently. She also set the record straight on where she stands with Porsha Williams after they previously traded words on social media. The ladies went back and forth after K. reacted to an episode of ‘RHOA.’ That led Porsha to step in and tell her to bring that energy to her “front door.” THat’s when K. fired back and accused her of allegedly being intimate with her ex. Now, K. Michelle says she’s open to clearing things up with Porsha.

“When it comes to her, I feel like she feels like it’s her show or whatever.” She continued, “So hopefully, you know I’m always open. Especially in this type of arena and things you have to forgive.”

She also said she doesn’t have any ill feelings towards her. “I don’t hate her. That’s not that.” 

RELATED: K. Michelle Shocks Fans After Admitting She Was In Love & Intimate With R. Kelly But “Wasn’t The Woman He Wanted” (VIDEO) 

By Chris Snellgrove
| Published 1 hour ago

Confession time: when I heard that Nicolas Cage would be acting in a live-action Spider-Noir TV show, I thought it was the worst idea I had heard in a good, long time. Sure, Cage had done an excellent job voicing this Spider-Man variant in Into the Spider-Verse, but I always thought his casting was a bit of cheeky meta-humor. The idea of putting the 62-year-old actor in spandex and actually having him fight crime on a prestige TV show? Now, that seemed laughable in the worst kinds of ways.

Now, the trailer for this show (premiering on Prime Video on May 27th) has me eating a few healthy heaps of humble pie. It seems like Spider-Noir is going to find that elusive balance between being a superhero show and being (what else?) a noirish detective show. Similarly, it found just the right amount of humor, all while leaning into Cage’s quirkiest strengths as an actor. If the actual show can deliver the goods, then Spider-Noir is shaping up to be the rare Sony production with the potential to blow the MCU out of the water.

Letting Cage Be Cage

To my surprise and relief, one of the first things the Spider-Noir trailer does is address the fact that Nicolas Cage is seemingly too old to play a high-flying superhero. Instead of being a plucky hero suiting up for the first time, Cage plays a character who has happily hung up his spandex, leaving his wall-crawling days behind him. Now, though, with his city going to hell thanks to a Kingpin-like criminal (played by Silvio Manfredi), he returns to having two lives: private eye by day and spectacular superhero by night. 

If the trailer is any indication, Spider-Noir also leans into Cage’s larger-than-life screen presence as one of Hollywood’s weirdest actors. He gruffs his way through some appropriately noirish lines (including an ironic “Because with no power, there’s no responsibility), but there’s also some of Cage’s wonderfully weird humor. When asked if he’s “going to be a dick about” starting his life anew, the actor replies, “Uh yes, actually, a private dick, to be exact!” It’s such a delightfully strange delivery of such a basic line, which gives me hope that Cage will be able to elevate the source whenever the writing is lacking.

The Anti-MCU Is Here

Based on the trailer, the writing for the show is solid and shows a remarkable amount of restraint. I feared that producers would try to jam Spider-Noir with Spider-Verse levels of chaos or otherwise try to one-up the MCU with multiversal superhero shenanigans. But the trailer makes it seem like the show will mostly be a grounded, noir-style story, one in which special powers are treated like something more than a bit frightening. That’s kind of an exciting prospect, really: a low-tech fictional universe where superpowers are treated with horror instead of reverence? It’s basically the anti-MCU, and I’m here for it.

Overall, the trailer did a gangbusters job of making a show I had no interest in seem like appointment television. I still have a few doubts about the show. For example, I think it’s super-cowardly to provide audiences with both color and black-and-white viewing options (if you wanna go noir, guys, then go freakin’ noir!). But this trailer presents a superhero show that is drenched in style, one that has found the perfect balance between humor, world-building, and even horror. Will it stick the landing, or will this show have its own long goodbye in the ratings? Fans and haters can find out together when Spider-Noir comes out on Prime Video on May 27th.

Actress Scarlett Johansson had nice things to say about Adam Driver, and now it seems he is returning the favor! The “Jurassic World Rebirth” actress first worked with the “Star Wars” actor on 2019’s “Marriage Story” before teaming up with him again on 2026’s “Paper Tiger.” The comments come on the heels of Lena Dunham and her 2026 memoir “Famesick,” in which she alleged that the actor threw a chair in her direction after she forgot her lines and screamed in her face while they were filming the hit HBO comedy “Girls.”

In 2019’s “Marriage Story,” Johansson starred opposite Driver in the acclaimed Noah Baumbach drama that follows two parents navigating a tumultuous custody battle amid their divorce. In September 2025, she told PEOPLE magazine that it was “great” working with the “Paterson” actor.  

“I love Adam as a person, and he is an absolutely extraordinary actor,” she said at the time. “If I could make every movie with Adam Driver, I would.”

Scarlett Johansson Recalls Their ‘Brutal’ Scenes In ‘Marriage Story’

In 2019, she opened up to As If magazine about how “brutal” some of their scenes were to film. “We spent two entire days screaming at each other, brutally screaming and fighting for two full days,” she shared at the time.

“It was exhausting, but if I didn’t have as strong an actor as Adam to take all the stuff I was giving him, I would have been lost,” she added. “For me, working with other actors is a really important part of what I do … it’s everything.”

In “Paper Tiger,” she isn’t married to Driver, but the two did share a few scenes together. “I would’ve loved to have had even more scenework with him, I love working with him,” she told The Hollywood Reporter ahead of the film’s premiere at the Cannes film festival last week.

Adam Driver Recalls His ‘History’ With Scarlett Johansson On ‘Paper Tiger’

While speaking to Collider about his relationship with his “Paper Tiger” costars, Driver praised Miles Teller, who is married to Scarlett Johansson’s character in this film, as “very generous and prepared.”

“Scarlett, I’d worked with before, so we immediately had a history and a familiarity that we didn’t have to work at that,” he continued. “And it really, honestly, wasn’t a big thing to work out with Miles. He was very forthcoming with how he related to the script, and I was too.”

Adam Driver Describes Filming ‘Some Very Intimate Moments’ With Scarlett Johansson On ‘Marriage Story’

He went on to discuss their working relationship on “Marriage Story,” which he described as a “challenging shoot” due to their intense argument scenes.

“We had some very intimate moments on Marriage Story — on set, to be clear. That was a challenging shoot, and a lot of people were being very generous in the shooting of that,” he explained. “So, I felt immediately familiar with Scarlett. She’s great.”

“She’s another actor where she’s not only thinking about her character, she’s thinking about the culture on set and making sure that the whole system is operating,” he continued. “She’s generous, she’s prepared, she’s awesome, awesome to work with.”

11 years since its finale, it’s hard to find many shows that even brush up against the greatness of Mad Men. Released during the peak of the prestige television boom, airing the same year as The Sopranos‘ conclusion and one year prior to the start of another AMC masterpiece, Breaking Bad, Matthew Weiner‘s historical drama, lasting seven seasons across 92 episodes, is still a worthy binge in 2026. With the series now available on HBO Max, it’s never been easier to be fully immersed in the world of advertising in New York City during the 1960s. Its lead star, Jon Hamm, who plays the inscrutable but captivating Don Draper, is one of television’s hottest stars thanks to the hit Apple TV series, Your Friends and Neighbors. Mad Men signaled the beginning of a remarkable career, as well as a profound evolution of the medium.

‘Mad Men’ is a Novelistic Examination of the American Dream

Mad Men‘s brilliance stems from the boldness of its concept and execution. Where contemporaneous prestige dramas were set in worlds of organized crime, the drug trade, and fantastical kingdoms, Mad Men‘s central storylines centered around meetings with clients, corporate finances, and family stability. Weiner and his writers refused to hold viewers’ hands, throwing you into this intricate and opulent world of advertising. Because of the alluring nature of the offices of Sterling Cooper and the intrepid lives of each employee, audiences wanted to be privy to the jargon and inner-workings of this world. Executed with superb confidence, exemplified by its subtle tone and thematic explorations, Mad Men turned office chatter and restrained emotionality into riveting action that keeps you clicking on the “Next Episode” button. The level of depth, thematic grandeur, and general ambiguity of its intentions are novelistic.

At first glance, the glossy aesthetic of Mad Men paints a nostalgic glow of a romanticized period, particularly the early ’60s, prior to John F. Kennedy’s assassination and the Vietnam War. While the series is deeply immersive and handsomely crafted as a period piece, Weiner and his writers undermine the veneer of innocence and prosperity every episode. Don Draper (an alter ego to his real identity, Richard Whitman) and his colleagues create and sell dreams to consumers, but their own lives are unfulfilled. Mad Men underscored that America has always been better at marketing its morals and values than they are at abiding by them. The series is unflinching in its commentary on class, racism, and office sexual harassment that legend-makers tend to minimize, without ever feeling too heavy-handed for the audience.

‘Mad Men’ is a Brilliant Character Study About Unknowable People

Anchoring this profound series is Jon Hamm in his breakthrough performance as Don Draper. His turn on Mad Men was so groundbreaking that most prestige dramas are still aspiring to reach his level of charm, gravitas, and taciturn moodiness. A man of contradictions, Don’s aspirations and goals are indecipherable across the show’s seven seasons. He seems to value family and strong morals during the day, but as the clock turns midnight, we see him engaging in adulterous affairs. Does he take pride in his trade as the creative director of Sterling Cooper, or does he just use the position as a vessel for his emotional expression? His sullen demeanor and standoffish aura signal that he’s perpetually miserable with the life he’s made for himself, despite all the luxuries to his name. However, considering he took the place of a deceased soldier in the Korean War, guilt understandably runs through his DNA.

What takes Mad Men to the next stratosphere of excellence is its remarkable supporting cast, which is on par with any drama before or since. As a performer, Elisabeth Moss went toe-to-toe with Hamm every episode, from her scene-stealing character, Peggy Olsen, starting as a timid secretary, to her ascent up the corporate ladder to becoming an accomplished copy and creative editor. The outwardly vulnerable and determined Peggy is the needed foil to the reticent Don. Each character arc is marked by triumph and tragedy, with the complex dynamics of Pete Campbell (Vincent Kartheiser), Betty Draper/Francis (January Jones), Joan Harris (Christina Hendricks), and Roger Sterling (John Slattery) rich enough to carry shows on their own.

In the end, Mad Men extends beyond the trials and tribulations of Sterling Cooper and the tumultuous domestic life of Don Draper. As a story about aspirational, often morally corrupt, people who find success and failure in a capitalist world, the series captures the American experience with as much austerity and nuance as any show in history.

Editor’s Note: This article contains spoilers for the Season 6 finale of Ghosts.

Just like that, the first hour-long finale for Ghosts has officially come and gone. While Sam (Rose McIver) and Jay (Utkarsh Ambudkar) landed some pretty major wins in the thrilling and chaotic climax of the two episodes, Season 5 also leaves us on one of the most emotional cliffhangers we’ve ever had. When complications keep Pete (Richie Moriarty), Jay, and Kyle (Ben Feldman) overseas longer than they intended, Pete’s heroism in the fight to save Woodstone leads to him completely disappearing before the trio can make it home. Where he’s gone, and what that disappearance means, is something we’ll have to ponder all summer until the series returns in October.

To unpack the wildly eventful pair of episodes — and get a taste of what’s to come — I sat down with showrunners Joe Port and Joe Wiseman. During our conversation, we spoke about why they chose to solve some of Sam and Jay’s more expected cliffhangers with Sam’s movie script and saving the mansion, making that bonkers lore drop with “Fancy Nancy,” and what to expect from Season 6’s opening holiday specials. The pair also confirmed that there will be a time jump, breaking tradition from previous season finales.

After a few weeks of financial and commercial struggles for Sam and Jay as they dealt with the domino effect of benefiting from Trevor’s job without actually paying taxes on his income, the finale hands each half of our favorite living couple a huge win. In “Across the Pond,” Jay, with a little help from Kyle, Pete, and Halloween’s mummy ghost, Amenhotep (Farhang Ghajar), gets the proof they need to declare Woodstone a historic landmark and prevent Evercreek from tearing it down and building a data center. Meanwhile, Sam stands up for herself after a rousing and heartfelt pep talk from the ghosts — and in doing so, manages to not only sell her movie script but also guarantee that she gets to be the one writing it.

“We wanted to give them a win,” said Joe Wiseman when asked about delivering these two high-stakes moments for our heroes. “We spend a lot of time putting them in situations where they have financial difficulty or other types of difficulty, and that’s because that makes compelling stories, and those issues often don’t go away immediately,” he explained. “But by the end of the season, we wanted to end it on a mostly positive note. We were obviously heading toward a very heavy cliffhanger, so we thought that would be set up well by having a moment of joy and victory before we see Pete disappear.”

‘Ghosts’ Showrunners Unpack Pete’s Disappearance and “Fancy Nancy”

Image via Bertrand Calmeau/CBS

As far as the cliffhanger Season 5 does end on, Ghosts has officially entered uncharted territory. Ending a season with the implication that we might lose a beloved character is not entirely new for the series — Season 2 sees someone get sucked off, Isaac gets yanked into the dirt in Season 3, and by the end of Season 4, Jay has accidentally signed up for a one-way ticket to hell. While Ghosts will certainly find a way to bring Pete back (Moriarty has made no moves to leave the series), this is the first time we actually see one of our ghosts disappear.

When asked about finally going there with Pete, Joe Port explained that this possibility was set up from the inception of his ghost power. “This is something that we’ve touched upon, is Pete’s jeopardy when he’s gone from the property for too long and starts to disappear,” he told Collider. “The few other times that he’s been worried about making it back, he’s made it back just in time. So, we were waiting for a moment to have him not safely make it back, and then, obviously, the end of the season felt like the right time to do that, especially coupled with Pete, in a very Pete fashion, stepping up and sacrificing to help save Woodstone and Sam and Jay.”

While it leaves the season on a somber note, Port and Wiseman are not treating this moment like the end of a fan-favorite character. Instead, the writer duo is excited to dig into the mystery of what’s actually happened to Pete and the possibilities that finally pulling the trigger on this Chekhov’s gun opens up for the show. “So, now we’re left in an interesting position, which is figuring out what that means and where did Pete go, and what will happen to him? So, it’s left us with a lot of fun questions,” said Port.

Pete’s disappearance is far from the only major plot twist of the episodes. When it comes down to declaring the house a historical landmark, the missing piece of the puzzle arrives in the form of Woodstone’s most iconic basement ghost​​​​​​, Nancy (Betsy Sodaro). When asked what they look for in terms of story wiggle room for adding a lore drop like the reveal that our beloved dirt troll was once a princess, Wiseman revealed that her “Fancy Nancy” backstory was an idea they’d been wanting to deploy for multiple seasons. “So the idea of Nancy — we called it ‘Fancy Nancy’ — came up probably a few seasons ago as we were talking about, like, ‘Okay, what was her backstory?’ And I’m glad we waited because it feels more impactful,” said Wiseman. “I’m glad we waited for a story where it could have a huge consequence for Sam, Jay, and the house. We thought it’d be a surprising ghost, whose stature was substantial enough that it would designate the property as a historical property.”

Ultimately, all of the pieces came together perfectly in the Season 5 finale, allowing Wiseman, Port, and finale writers Akilah Green, Skander Halim, Brian Bahe, and Greg Worswick to find the funniest and most satisfying way to finally pull off the big reveal. Wiseman continued:

“We didn’t always see her as a princess, but it seems, as we were breaking out the story, that that was a funny detail, and it just felt like the right time. It felt like we had this funny idea, and then we had a story that was colliding with it, where it could provide a satisfying solution, and I think that’s why we did it. [Betsy’s] so funny, and flashbacks are always fun to do. Our crew is so good at costumes and sets and props and all that stuff, and it really enriches the series and makes it feel special. It’s fun.”

What To Expect From ‘Ghosts’ Season 6

For the first time since the gap between Seasons 1 and 2, Ghosts will jump forward several months when Season 6 officially premieres in October later this year with a 1-hour Halloween special. While Port did not confirm or deny whether we’d get to see Sam filming her holiday rom-com in Joan’s (Taylor Ortega) old stomping grounds — or even Hollywood North, aka Vancouver, as a nod to Ghosts itself filming in Canada — he did confirm a time jump is on the books. “We’re very familiar with filming in Canada. We shoot Ghosts and now Eternally Yours in Montreal,” he laughed. “So, yeah, we are going to do a time jump because when we come back, we’re starting with a Halloween special that’s, like, an hour-long Halloween special. So, we’re going to pick up several months after the finale and catch up with what’s been going on, and catch up on what’s happening with Sam’s movie and what’s happening with the ghosts, and what has become of Pete, if anything. So, there’s a lot to divine.”

With such a significant jump on the horizon, anything could happen at Woodstone — including some major relationship shifts. When asked about the ever-evolving romances on the show, Wiseman played his cards close to his chest, but revealed that the end of Season 5 sets up some interesting potential conflicts for two of our favorite couples. “It seems like Thor [Devan Chandler Long] and Flower [Sheila Carrasco] have kind of been sort of trucking along. Again, we’re very early in the writing process. We’re on day three. But obviously, it seems like we may want to put a couple of obstacles in their way,” he teased. “Flower has this new position as ghost representative; perhaps that’ll somehow affect them. We hinted at that in one of the latter episodes, where Thor was kind of rattled because he felt like he wasn’t important enough. Perhaps that thread will play through.”

Meanwhile, Pete’s disappearance leaves his relationship with Alberta (Danielle Pinnock) up in the air. “Alberta obviously is going to be very affected by Pete disappearing,” Wiseman told Collider. “We bring up questions of when do you move on? How do you know? What do you do? Etc., etc.” Though updates were sparse on fan-favorite pairings like Hetty (Rebecca Wisocky) and Trevor (Asher Grodman), Nigel (John Hartman) and Isaac (Brandon Scott Jones), or Joan and Sasappis (Román Zaragoza), Wiseman promised plenty of juicy interpersonal drama ahead, saying, “We’re going to continue all those storylines. We agree with you. It feels like ghosts have nothing to do and they’re all trapped in a house together; it seems like they would be coupling up and hooking up.”

Despite Season 6’s unique rollout, Port and Wiseman confirmed that production plans aren’t all that different from years past. They’ve officially opened the writers’ rooms for both Ghosts and Eternally Yours and are planning to film both shows concurrently, with cameras expected to begin rolling at the end of the summer. The season premiere will officially serve as both their first hour-long premiere and first hour-long Halloween special. “We’ve never done that before for Halloween, so that’s going to be very exciting,” said Port. While Wiseman couldn’t reveal any plot details, given the early stages of the writing process, he did confirm that both specials will serve as the beginning of the season rather than separate standalone pieces. He explained:

“They are going to be specials, but they’re not going to be standalone. We are going to be addressing the Pete cliffhanger. We’re going to be addressing everything. It’s just going to be wrapped up into an hour-long Halloween and Christmas episode. These aren’t specials in that they’re freestanding. They’re official canon in respect to the timeline that they’re in. As far as what’s going to happen, obviously, they’re going to be big and fun. They’re always fun. Hour-longs are fun. Like I mentioned, we’re only day three into the writers’ room, but we already have a ton of really interesting ideas flying around.”

Ghosts Season 6 has not set an official release date yet. All previous seasons are available now on Paramount+. Stay tuned at Collider for more updates on all things Ghosts.

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Release Date

October 7, 2021

Directors

Christine Gernon, Jaime Eliezer Karas, Katie Locke O’Brien, Nick Wong, Jude Weng, Pete Chatmon, Richie Keen, Alex Hardcastle, Kimmy Gatewood, Matthew A. Cherry, Cortney Carrillo

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Writers

Emily Schmidt, John Timothy, Lauren Bridges, Sophia Lear, Guy Endore-Kaiser, Rishi Chitkara, Julia Harter, Skander Halim, Zora Bikangaga

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  Rose McIver

  Samantha Arondekar

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  Utkarsh Ambudkar

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  Jay Arondekar

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It’s going to be a huge summer for Ted Lasso fans, with Season 4 premiering on August 5 on Apple TV over three years after the series wrapped up. There’s also the real-life FIFA World Cup 2026 starting next month to get everyone back in the soccer spirit, and plenty of other great projects from the show’s cast and creators to keep up with. One closely related series, Apple TV’s Shrinking, makes for the perfect companion to Ted Lasso and a perfect weekend binge for those building anticipation. Shrinking Season 3 just wrapped up last month, and if you’re a Ted Lasso fan who hasn’t watched it yet or hasn’t kept up, now is the perfect time to give it a chance.

Shrinking was co-created by Ted Lasso‘s Bill Lawrence and Brett Goldstein, along with actor Jason Segel. It premiered on Apple TV in 2023 at the height of Ted Lasso‘s success, and while many fans followed Roy Kent to this other comedy at the time, it has never quite reached the fever pitch that Ted Lasso did. That’s a shame, as Shrinking tackles many of the same issues and themes, but from a much different angle that allows for completely different nuances in storytelling. It is also following Ted Lasso‘s lead by expanding its original plan to include a fourth season, and it may be the key to keeping this unique brand of hope on TV for years to come.

‘Shrinking’ Tackles ‘The Richmond Way’ in a Clinical Setting

Image via Apple TV

Shrinking centers around a therapist named Jimmy Laird (Segel), who has become jaded and self-destructive since the death of his wife in a drunk driving accident. In an effort to shake off the grief and become helpful again, Jimmy begins crossing some questionable lines with his patients — intervening in their lives in ways that therapists would usually call unprofessional and eschewing a lot of the usual trappings of a clinical setting. The results are messy from the start, yet the hope and humanity they bring back into Jimmy’s life are always framed as positive for the audience.

At a glance, the similarities to Ted Lasso are abstract, but over time, it becomes clear that these shows work perfectly together at every level. Even superficially, Ted Lasso taught many American viewers about soccer and European sports fandom in a way they’d never understood before, while Shrinking gives viewers a closer look at what talk therapy is and how it works that they might never have had before. It’s an interesting progression for Lawrence and Goldstein, and the emotional nerves these two topics touch on are surprisingly close.

From there, the parallels between these two stories are less practical, but they’re the things that make both shows special. Both emphasize open communication and community as the essential ingredients for a fulfilling life, but both put their characters through the wringer again and again to achieve that. Both leave space for the characters and the audience to consider nihilism as a valid escape, only to bombard them with hope from the last place they expected it.

For most fans, these are the pillars that really hold up Ted Lasso as one of the best TV shows of the last decade, and they’re exactly the reasons those fans should watch or catch up on Shrinking. There may be some who are truly in it for the soccer, but for most, these shows go hand in hand.

Ted Lasso and Jimmy Laird Are Both Underdogs

Image via Apple TV

Ted Lasso is framed as a classic sports underdog story from the beginning, which means it’s easy to believe that Richmond will succeed in the end despite how bleak things look at the start. Shrinking presents an interesting twist on this formula because it’s never clear to the audience that Jimmy’s unique style of therapy can or should succeed. Spoiler alert: that’s true in every episode, and it’s likely to remain true even as the series moves forward.

That may sound like it would take away from the warm fuzzy feelings you’ve come to expect from Ted Lasso, but it’s actually the show’s secret strength. Jimmy’s work is Sisyphean and often thankless, with no scoreboard to validate it. It allows Shrinking to continually reexamine its premise without feeling repetitive or melodramatic, which is an issue that Ted Lasso‘s showrunners have worried about out loud in many interviews. Jimmy and his friends and family will struggle endlessly to keep themselves and their community healthy and happy, and unlike Ted’s tenure at Richmond, there will be no natural stopping point to the story. The fact that it will go on forever is what makes it so real and relatable.

What’s Next for ‘Shrinking’ on Apple TV?

Shrinking also mirrored Ted Lasso in its pacing and flexibility — Lawrence, Segel, and Goldstein initially said they hoped to tell Jimmy’s story in three seasons, but the show has been renewed for a fourth season that is filming now. Star Harrison Ford recently told Variety that the new season will have 12 episodes, while Lawrence told the outlet that the season will kick off a new storyline beyond the one he and his colleagues originally plotted.

After a heartrending third season, Shrinking has set itself apart in many ways, but it’s still the perfect companion to Ted Lasso for those that need a reminder to “BELIEVE.” The series is streaming now on Apple TV. Ted Lasso is there as well, and Season 4 premieres on August 5, airing week-to-week through October 7.

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Shrinking

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Release Date

January 27, 2023

Network

Apple TV

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Roommates, get into this political tea! On Tuesday (May 19), an IRS settlement document went public, rocking the internet and taking over headlines. Per the paperwork, the U.S. government will permanently drop tax claims against President Donald Trump as part of a lawsuit settlement. The move could effectively shield the president from further examination of his finances and legal conduct. And he’s not the only person benefiting from the shocking use of executive power. 

RELATED: Been About Him! Nicki Minaj Reveals What Led Her To Publicly Support Trump & Embrace The MAGA Movement

Who Else Is Protected Under Donald Trump’s Settlement With The IRS? 

As stated, the settlement resolved Trump’s $10 billion lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service over his tax return leak. Going forward, the U.S. is “forever barred and precluded” from examining or prosecuting Trump, his sons and the Trump organization’s current tax examinations, per a one-page document on the Justice Department’s website. Attorney General Todd Blanche signed the document. 

Additionally, the government cannot investigate Trump’s family, affiliates, or others, according to the document. That document is a separate addendum from the original settlement announced Monday. Also, it was quietly added to the Justice Department website on Tuesday.

The IRS settlement refers only to existing audits, not future examinations. That’s what the Justice Department said in response to a request for comment on the expanded settlement.

Judge Says DOJ Did Not Warn Court About IRS Settlement

Kathleen Williams, the judge handling the lawsuit, dismissed the case on Monday. In her filing, she admonished the government agencies, notably the Justice Department, for failing to be transparent about the settlement. She said no agency “submitted any settlement documents nor filed any documents ensuring that settlement was appropriate where there was an outstanding question as to whether an actual case or controversy existed.”

According to the original settlement agreement posted to the Justice Department website Monday, Trump will receive a formal apology from the U.S. government. However, he “will not receive any monetary payment or damages of any kind” from the settlement. Still, the discharge of current potential tax claims could provide protection against any possible outstanding tax liabilities.

Trump Allies Could Receive A Check, Too

The added document comes after the Trump administration announced a $1.8 billion fund on Monday. This fund is part of the lawsuit settlement. It will compensate allies of the Republican president who believe they have been unjustly investigated and prosecuted. The “Anti-Weaponization Fund” of $1.776 billion will allow people who believe they were targeted for prosecution for political purposes, including by the Biden administration Justice Department, to apply for payouts.

Attorney General Blanche called it “a lawful process for victims of lawfare and weaponization to be heard and seek redress.” And apparently, even violent offenders could possibly get a check. Lawmakers grilled Attorney General Blanche on Capitol Hill on Tuesday about the fund. During the session, he would not rule out the possibility that people who carried out violence during the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol could receive payouts from the new fund.

Also, the fund became public news after Trump, his sons Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr., and the Trump Organization agreed to drop their lawsuit against the IRS and the Treasury Department. The lawsuit alleged that a leak of confidential tax records caused them reputational and financial harm. Also, it claimed the leak negatively affected their public standing.

Trump Stands By Fund For Allies Despite Bipartisan Concerns

Following the announcement, Democrats and government watchdogs have criticized the fund as “corrupt” and unconstitutional. Even Republican lawmakers have expressed signs of discomfort about the fund’s creation. Senate Majority Leader John Thune told reporters that he’s “not a big fan.”

Meanwhile, Trump told reporters at the White House on Monday that the fund is dedicated to “reimbursing people who were horribly treated.”

Associated Press writers Fatima Hussein and Alanna Durkin Richer contributed to this report via AP Newsroom.