Who We Are
Cinemablend is a constantly updated hub for fans to explore and discuss movies, TV shows and the best streaming has to offer. We cover whatever fans are into in a voice they recognize because we’re fans too.
We don’t judge or gatekeep what people like, but we do provide our own insights, opinions and perspectives. The result is a welcoming place for people with diverse viewpoints to talk, advocate, argue, nerd out and get help to decide what to see, what to stream and what to recommend to their friends and family.
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We always aim to provide unbiased editorial created by our journalists and writers. We also need to pay our teams and website costs so we make money in a number of ways. We sometimes use affiliate links to products and services on retailer sites for which we can receive compensation if you click on those links or make purchases through them. From time to time we also publish advertorials (paid-for editorial content) and sponsored content on the site. When this is the case the content is clearly marked as sponsored or promoted, so you’ll always know which content is editorial and which is not. Future PLC is our parent company and has an in-depth terms and conditions page with a lot more information that you can read right here.
WE ARE IPSO MEMBERS
Privacy & Editorial
CinemaBlend is a member of the IPSO (Independent Press Standards Organisation) which regulates the UK print and digital news industry.
We abide by the Editors’ Code of Practice and are committed to upholding the highest standards of journalism. If you think that we have not met those standards and want to make a complaint, please contact legal@futurenet.com
If we are unable to resolve your complaint, or if you would like more information about IPSO or the Editors’ Code, contact IPSO on 0300 123 2220 or visit www.ipso.co.uk
Content Funding
The majority of our content is created by our editorial team, but on occasion, we work with partners to create content we hope our readers find useful and interesting. This article explains how that process works.
Leadership Team
The Background: Mack Rawden is the Editor-In-Chief of CinemaBlend. He first started working at the publication as a writer back in 2007 and has held various jobs at the site in the time since including Managing Editor, Pop Culture Editor and Staff Writer. He now splits his time between working on CinemaBlend’s user experience, helping to plan the site’s editorial direction and writing passionate articles about niche entertainment topics he’s into. He graduated from Indiana University with a degree in English (go Hoosiers!) and has been interviewed and quoted in a variety of publications including Digiday.
What He’s Into: Mack is a professional wrestling fanatic, who enjoys Bobby Heenan’s commentary, Bret Hart’s in-ring work and an angry promo from The Miz. He loves a good case of the week mystery, particularly when it’s solved by Patrick Jane. He’s seen every episode of The Amazing Race, Top Chef and The Great British Bake-Off, among many reality competition shows. He watches more than 50 new release movies a year, yells at his TV during every single Chicago Bulls game and is still mad about what happened to Varys. His all-time favorite TV show is Freaks and Geeks. His all-time favorite movie is Clue. His all-time favorite book is Peter Pan, and most importantly, his all-time favorite snack is an english muffin with peanut butter and some chocolate chips sprinkled on top.
What He’s Excited About Right Now: The Gilded Age on HBO Max, the return of WWE Retro Action Figures and Tournament Of Champions on Food Network.
The Background: Sean O’Connell is a journalist and CinemaBlend’s Managing Editor. He's frequently found on Twitter at @Sean_OConnell. He joined the staff as a freelancer in 2011, and gradually climbed the ranks as he helped the site grow in stature. Currently, he manages the site’s junket and interview opportunities. He also co-hosts CinemaBlend’s official podcast, ReelBlend, with fellow Critics Choice Association members Jake Hamilton and Kevin McCarthy. Sean has had his byline published in various respected publications including USA Today, The Washington Post, and Fandango. He’s also the author of two nonfiction books: Release the Snyder Cut, detailing the controversial saga of Zack Snyder’s Justice League, and; With Great Power, an in-depth retelling of Spider-Man’s history in Hollywood.
What He’s Into: Sean is a basketball fanatic, and divides his love evenly between the NBA (the Charlotte Hornets are his team) and college basketball (where he drives bandwagons for the North Carolina Tar Heels and the Kentucky Wildcats). He spends most weekends watching his two sons play basketball, and sometimes coaches their teams to, at least, .500 overall records. Sean also loves cooking, and thinks there’s no better feeling than preparing a meal for someone and watching them enjoy it. If Sean didn’t write about movies, he’d probably be involved full-time in the music scene somehow. He grew up playing guitar, switched to drums, handled bass for two bands, and now rotates between all three, depending on the needs of whatever garage band he’s playing with at the moment. His all-time favorite TV show is Breaking Bad. His all-time favorite movie is Spider-Man: No Way Home. His all-time favorite book is Stephen King’s IT, and his all-time favorite snack is fudge-covered Oreos that he keeps in the freezer.
What He’s Excited About Right Now: Ozark (which he is binge-ing), the Screen Drafts podcast, and the music of Neck Deep.
The Background: Jessica Rawden is Managing Editor at CinemaBlend. She’s been kicking out news stories at CinemaBlend since 2007 and joined the full-time staff in 2014. She oversees news content, hiring and training for the site. Jessica has a Masters in Library Science degree from Indiana University, and used to be found behind a reference desk most definitely not shushing people. She now uses those skills in researching and tracking down information in very different ways.
What She’s Into: A former soccer player and recent tennis addict, Jessica also enjoys running, both of the distance and sprint variety. When not at the movies, her other free time is spent in book clubs, hiking, drinking wine and going to medium venue music shows. Has a serious Avon romance habit and an even bigger record-buying habit. Will bake for compliments.
What She’s Excited About Right Now: Top Gun: Maverick’s eventual release, Top Chef’s recent return, and to top it off, spring weather.
The Background: Hannah Saulic is the Head of Video at CinemaBlend. Starting as a video production intern in 2016, Hannah helped build CinemaBlend’s video efforts from the ground up and has previously held titles including video producer and Video Team Lead. In addition to continuing to produce, edit, direct and host CinemaBlend videos, she now spearheads editorial video strategy, manages production workflows and designs graphics for CinemaBlend’s Instagram. During college, she worked as a news reporter and producer for KOMU-TV before deciding to make a career shift closer to her one true love: the movies. Hannah graduated with honors and received a Bachelor of Journalism (Emphasis in Radio - Television) with minors in Film Studies and Business from the University of Missouri, Columbia.
What She's Into: Hannah loves every genre and is thrilled about female filmmakers and female-centric stories getting more time on-screen. She’s always been a fangirl, growing up with loves for “Sailor Moon,” “Scooby-Doo” and “Harry Potter.” She’s more recently become engrossed with anything DC/Marvel, and for your own sake, do not get her started on “Game of Thrones.” If you ask Hannah to reveal her favorite movie, she’ll probably roll her eyes at you, then go on a rant about how that question is absolutely looney tunes, and people who expect you to narrow down your favorite movie or tv show — especially in situations where that is a defining piece of information, like an author bio — are monsters who enjoy giving her overwhelming anxiety. She’ll then eventually tell you her favorite movie is “500 Days of Summer.” Hannah has always been passionate about filmmaking, and when she’s not producing content for CinemaBlend, she’s dabbling in a few ideas for shorts or befriending other peoples’ dogs.
What She's Excited For Right Now: Anything Greta Gerwig or Florence Pugh breathe near. Matt Reeves’ Batverse, “Harley Quinn” Season 3. Kristen Stewart.
News
The Background: Eric Eisenberg is the Asst. Managing Editor at CinemaBlend. After graduating Boston University and earning a bachelor’s degree in journalism, he took a part-time job as a staff writer for CinemaBlend, and after six months was offered the opportunity to move to Los Angeles and take on a newly-created West Coast Editor position. Over a decade later, his title has changed, and his role on the site has continued to advance. In addition to conducting filmmaker interviews and contributing to the news and feature content of the site, Eric also oversees the Movie Reviews section, and has two weekly columns: the weekend box office report (published Sundays), and Adapting Stephen King – which digs into the long history of Stephen King’s books adapted for film and television (published Wednesdays).
What He’s Into: When he isn’t excitedly waiting for the lights to go down in the movie theater, Eric can often be found with his nose in a book, and it’s a safe bet that it is something by Stephen King or a comic book omnibus (Marvel or DC – he doesn’t discriminate). He is a long-suffering fan of the New York Mets, still waiting for them to win a championship in his lifetime, and the highs and lows of the experience have driven him subtly mad over the last twenty-five years. An avid collector of physical media and prop replicas, his apartment is the equivalent of the seed vault for movies, television, and comics.
What He’s Excited About Right Now: Life is a perpetual countdown clock waiting for the next Stephen King book/movie/TV show; he’s all-in on Yellowjackets after just one season; and he is giddy at the fact that 2022 is a year with new films from Sam Raimi, Alex Garland, Jordan Peele, and both Martin and John Michael McDonagh
The Background: Corey Chichizola has been with CinemaBlend since 2015, starting as the Weekend Editor before climbing up the ranks and eventually becoming the Movies Editor. Born and raised in New Jersey and an alumnus of Ramapo College, he's combined his degrees in theater and literature to cover the the way stories are told in TV and film. On top of helping run the news cycle, Corey has been honored to do a variety of on camera interviews with his personal heroes, and has been particularly privileged to speak with actors about their process on set. Before joining the CB team he worked in the New York theater world, and is thrilled to be in such close proximity to the city that never sleeps.
What He's Into: Corey is one of CinemaBlend's biggest horror nerds, and is happy to cover all thing spooky, especially related to favorite franchises like Halloween and Scream. He's also taken his passion and education for theater to cover the movie musical beat on the website. While a movies editor, Corey is also a television addict, watching what seems like a billion different shows every year. Aside from scripted programs, he's got a passion for certain corners of the Reality TV world including Survivor, RuPaul's Drag Race, and the Real Housewives. He's also got a passion for the mockumentary subgenre on both the big and small screens, especially projects like Drop Dead Gorgeous, Waiting for Guffman, and The Office.
What's He's Excited About Right Now: he Scream franchise's continued success, Halloween Ends, whatever is next from Jordan Peele, and the developing Wicked movie adaptation by Jon M. Chu.
The Background: Nick Venable is an Assistant Managing Editor, and the TV Editor. His humble origin story with CinemaBlend began all the way back in the pre-streaming era, circa 2009, as a freelancing DVD reviewer and TV recapper. After rising up through the ranks covering Movies, Nick leapfrogged over to the small screen to cover more and more television news and interviews, eventually taking over the section for the current era. Born in Louisiana and currently living in Texas — Who Dat Nation over America’s Team all day, all night — Nick spent several years in the hospitality industry, and also worked as a 911 operator. And if you ever happened to hear his music or read his comics/short stories, you have his sympathy.
What He's Into: Nick is one of those people who won’t necessarily insert a Monty Python reference into every conversation, but is still mentally equipped to do so. Beyond such appreciation for surreal UK comedy, Nick also indulges in as much horror splendor as possible, from Stephen King novels to James Tynion IV comics to Freddy Krueger one-liners to all things Mike Flanagan. Throw in a dash of NFL, some 311 and Weird Al, fried crawfish poboys, bourbon, ‘90s-era pro wrestling, crossword puzzles and mystery-driven video games, and baby, you got a stew going. (Nick will insert an Arrested Development reference into every conversation, if possible.)
What He's Excited About: Anything Jeff Lemire, Tom King and W. Maxwell Prince think of, ever. More of Kelly Reilly’s deliriously fierce performances on Yellowstone. HBO’s The Last of Us. Clone High’s return. Colin Farrell’s Penguin being in every movie/TV show/breakfast cereal.
The Background: Laura Hurley is a Senior Content Producer at CinemaBlend. She started at CinemaBlend as a freelancer in 2015 with a strong background in sci-fi and superheroes. She has since gone on to write full time as part of the staff, and covers a wide variety of television across the small screen and streaming. Primetime is her time of day, and she can also be found covering nighttime TV ranging from medical dramas to crime procedurals to sci-fi, and everything in between. She studied English, and is happy to have found a use for it. If it's set in the Dick Wolf TV universe, she watches it.
What She's Into: Laura's lifetime love of fiction set her up for spending her days writing about television, and she continues to enjoy binge-watching, binge-reading, and going to the movies. Her love of underdog stories set her up for a lifetime of rooting for Cleveland sports teams, which has paid off exactly once in her lifetime. (Thanks, LeBron!) She can still quote The X-Files and will happily do so over a plate of pad thai.
What She's Excited About Right Now: Warmer weather, crossovers, traveling again someday, and the fact that Star Wars came to TV to give her an excuse to write about the galaxy far, far away.
The Background: Adam is a Senior Content Producer at CinemaBlend. He started working for the site back in late 2014 writing exclusively comic book movie and TV-related articles, and along with branching out into other genres, he also made the jump to editing, with his previous title being Shift Editor. Along with his writing and editing duties, as well as interviewing creative talent from time to time, he also oversees the assignment of movie-related features and helps with planning longform content. He graduated from the University of Oregon with a degree in Journalism, and he’s been sourced numerous times on Wikipedia.
What He's Into: Adam has been a fan of Marvel, DC and Star Wars stories since he was little, and among the fandoms he’s joined later in life are Star Trek, Indiana Jones, Doctor Who, John Wick and the MonsterVerse. He also still dips his toes into the procedural pool by being a dedicated NCIS watcher, and he’s also up for a good historical/period piece movie or TV show every now and then. Adam also enjoys reading, and while nowadays this mostly consists of pouring over comics (thank you for making this easier than ever, DC Universe Infinite and Marvel Unlimited!), he’s making an effort to get back to delving into regular books, starting with the original Dune novels. Movie-wise, his favorite drama is The Dark Knight and favorite comedy is Anchorman, and on the TV side of things, his favorite drama is Battlestar Galactica and favorite comedy is Scrubs.
What He's Excited About Right Now: The MCU and DCEU franchises, any piece of on-screen or written Star Wars media he can get his hands on, The Sandman comics and TV show, another changing of the guard in Doctor Who and rewatching Frasier.
The Background: Erik Swann is a Senior Content Producer at CinemaBlend. He began working with the publication in 2020 when he was hired as Weekend Editor. Today, he continues to write, edit and handle social media responsibilities over the weekend. On weekdays, he also writes TV and movie-related news and helps out with editing and social media as needed. He graduated from the University of Maryland, where he received a degree in Broadcast Journalism. After shifting into multi-platform journalism, he started working as a freelance writer and editor before joining CB. During his time with the site, he's been able to cover some excellent TV shows and films and interview some wonderful stars.
What He's Into: Erik is a superhero fan, and his love for comic books began after he first watched Batman: The Animated Series as a child. He also enjoys comedies, action/adventure flicks, dramas and science fiction. He has a love for sports as well, particularly professional basketball. Though he's a Maryland/Washington D.C. native, he roots for the Boston Celtics. Some of his all-time favorite TV shows are BTAS, Breaking Bad, Sanford and Son, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Better Call Saul. And when it comes to movies, Beverly Hills Cop, A Raisin in the Sun, Toy Story, Iron Man, Star Wars, and Wall Street are among his favorites. He also enjoys a good pizza (preferably with pepperoni and mushrooms) while he's watching great films and TV series.
What He's Excited About Right Now: The fourth (and final season) of Atlanta, Abbott Elementary Season 2, The Mandalorian Season 3, Marvel's Secret Invasion, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Wendell & Wild and Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery.
The Background: Mike Reyes is the Senior Movie Contributor at CinemaBlend, though that title’s more of a guideline really. Passionate about entertainment since grade school, the movies have always held a special place in his life, which explains his current occupation. Writing in some way, shape, or form since fifth grade, Mike’s time at CinemaBlend started in 2014, when he was hired as a freelance writer. In 2019, Mr. Reyes became a full time fixture of the CB staff, a decision that the management still hotly debates to this very day, questioning whether it was “a good idea, or the best idea?” Mike graduated from Drew University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science, but swore off of running for public office a long time ago. You can hear him on various podcasts, you just need to know where to look.
What He's Into: This is a tough question to answer, as Mike’s kind of into a lot of things. Most prominently, he is CinemaBlend’s James Bond expert, thanks to being raised with a healthy appreciation for the storied spy series and anything espionage related. Mike has several other specialized fields that he’s been passionate about since his early years. Among those interests are breaking down the ins and outs of time travel, studying and admiring Large Scale Aggressors, Titans, Kaiju, and dinosaurs; as well as detective work. Adjacent to his entertainment interests, Mr. Reyes enjoys the worlds of high end mens fashion (eyewear included), fine alcohol and cocktails, and the comforts of a good book or video game. If you ask nicely, he might even dip back into his experience as a singer, just for fun.
What He's Excited About Right Now: The hunt for the new James Bond, Roberta the T-Rex’s chances of survival in/Michael Giacchino’s upcoming score to Jurassic World: Dominion, anything Julian Fellowes wants to put out into the world, and the hope for a day when Detective Elliot Stabler once again gets his hands on a rocket launcher.
The Background: Mick Joest is a Content Producer for CinemaBlend with his hand in an eclectic mix of television goodness. Star Trek is his main jam, but he also regularly reports on happenings in the world of the WWE, Doctor Who, 90 Day Fiancé, The Masked Singer, and Big Brother. He graduated from the University of Southern Indiana with a degree in Journalism and a minor in Radio and Television. He's great at hosting panels and appearing on podcasts if given the chance as well.
What He's Into: Most everything Mick reports on because he's passionate and a fan of the subject. He really loves interviewing people, and getting the bigger answers behind questions. Outside of work he's a sports fan who supports the Indiana Pacers, as well as the New England Patriots.
What He's Excited About Right Now: He's excited about Paul Wesley playing James T. Kirk in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds.
The Background: Dirk began writing for CinemaBlend as a freelancer in 2015 before joining the site full time in 2018. He has previously held positions as a Staff Writer and Games Editor, but has more recently transformed his true passion into his job as the head of the site's Theme Park Beat. He has previously done freelance work for various gaming and technology sites. Prior to starting his second career as a writer he worked for 12 years in sales for various companies within the consumer electronics space. He has a degree in political science from the University of California, Davis.
What He's Into: As the head of CinemaBlend's Theme Park Beat Dirk is a theme/amusement park junkie. Time not spent in a park is largely spent wishing he was in a park. He prefers to Disneyland Resort to Walt Disney World in nearly all circumstances. He loves a good third wave coffee house or a glass of red wine. He would enjoy video games if he ever had time to play them anymore. The Carthay Circle Lounge is his happy place.
What He's Excited About Right Now: The ongoing transformation of Epcot, Universal's Epic Universe, Super Nintendo World, the endless possibilities of Disneyland Forward.
The Background: Sarah El-Mahmoud has been with CinemaBlend since 2018, starting as a freelancer shortly after graduating from Cal State Fullerton with a degree in Journalism. In college, she was the Managing Editor of the award-winning college paper, The Daily Titan where she specialized in writing/editing long-form features, profiles and arts & entertainment coverage, including her first run-in with movie reporting, with a phone interview with Guillermo del Toro for Best Picture winner, The Shape of Water.
What She's Into: Sarah is CinemaBlend's resident YA enthusiast, often bringing her lifetime love of books and the stories behind their often contentious adaptations to the site. Deeply into when music and movies intersect, from knowing the hype musical tracks of Mamma Mia!, beautiful scores of Michael Giacchino and yes, the absolute banger Twilight soundtrack way too well. She is also passionate about highlighting and interviewing voices within the industry to help open the door for Hollywood to better represent the world through movies and television.
What She's Excited About Right Now: The continued resurgence of horror and musicals. Anything Greta Gerwig, Mike Flanagan or Edgar Wright touches and... probably lunch.
The Background: Heidi Venable is a Content Producer for CinemaBlend. She started freelancing for the site in 2020 and officially came on board in 2021. Her job entails writing news stories and TV reactions from some of her favorite prime-time shows like Grey's Anatomy and The Bachelor. She graduated from Louisiana Tech University with a degree in Journalism and worked in the newspaper industry for almost two decades in multiple roles including Sports Editor, Page Designer and Online Editor.
What She's Into: Heidi grew up in the 1990s, and her tastes strongly reflect that. She can (and does) quote Friends constantly, enjoys a good West Wing binge, thinks Can't Hardly Wait was the most influential movie of her life and finds solace in 311 concerts. On Sundays during football season, she can be found cheering on the New Orleans Saints with her husband and two daughters. Who Dat! She loves to read but usually settles for a pop culture podcast, and thinks the best weekends are spent cooking and playing cards with friends and family, preferably with some UFC fights or other sporting event on TV.
What She's Excited About Right Now: Football season, This Is Us, Better Call Saul, the Party Down reboot, and re-reading and re-watching the Harry Potter series with her kids.
The Background: Riley Utley is the Weekend Editor at CinemaBlend. She has written for national publications as well as daily and alt-weekly newspapers in Spokane, Washington, Syracuse, New York and Charleston, South Carolina. She graduated with her master’s degree in arts journalism and communications from the Newhouse School at Syracuse University. Since joining the CB team she has covered numerous TV shows and movies -- including her personal favorite shows Ted Lasso and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. She also has followed and consistently written about everything from Taylor Swift to Fire Country, and she's enjoyed every second of it.
What She's Into: Riley’s range in likes is random and wide, from Marvel to musicals and from Game of Thrones to the latest Netflix rom-com you can catch her watching just about anything. Her favorite movies include but are not limited to When Harry Met Sally, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-verse, Finding Nemo and The Grand Budapest Hotel. She loves going to the movie theater, consuming copious amounts of popcorn and logging whatever she saw on Letterboxd immediately afterward. She constantly walks around quoting Ted Lasso, SNL and Parks and Rec. She has been known to create the occasional PowerPoint explaining the MCU to those who don’t get it. In the non-media realm, Riley is a massive college basketball fan. She is a firm believer that the Gonzaga men’s basketball team is the best team of all time, and she is patiently waiting for the day they finally win a national championship. She grew up in Washington and loves skiing, coffee and making sure that people know she is from the state, not D.C.
What She's Excited About Right Now: Anything Taylor Swift or Andrew Garfield does, finally seeing strong female representation in the MCU and eventually seeing Jonathan Bailey sing his heart out in Wicked.
Features
The Background: Kelly joined CinemaBlend as a freelance TV news writer in 2006 and went on to serve as the site’s TV Editor before moving over to other roles on the site. At present, she’s an Assistant Managing Editor who spends much of her time brainstorming and editing feature content on the site.
What She's Into: Books, movies, TV— The very things that brought her to CinemaBlend as a reader and eventual writer and editor. She loves Harry Potter, books from a variety of genres (sci-fi, mystery, horror, YA, drama, romance -- anything with a great story and interesting characters.), watching Big Brother (or waiting for the next new season), frequently rewatching The Office, listening to Taylor Swift, playing The Sims and spending time with her pets.
What She's Excited About Right Now: Movie and TV adaptations of the books she loves, catching up on Big Brother Canada now that it’s on Paramount+, the upcoming Marvel movies and TV shows, and Taylor Swift’s re-recorded album releases (all of them, but especially Reputation).
The Background: Adrienne Jones is a Senior Content Producer at CinemaBlend, and started at the site in the fall of 2015. In addition to writing and editing stories on a variety of different topics, she also spends her work days trying to find new ways to write about the many romantic entanglements that fictional characters find themselves in on TV shows. She graduated from Mizzou with a degree in Photojournalism.
What She's Into: Adrienne will maintain until her dying day (and probably well after that, if possible) that 9 to 5 is one of the best movies ever made, though she also holds a special place in her heart for Auntie Mame, Office Space, and Bridesmaids. This may make it sound like her life and entertainment choices are only giggle-focused (not totally untrue), but she also enjoys warm-hearted dramadies (Gilmore Girls, Lovesick), creepy stuff (The X-Files, Evil), sci-fi/fantasy (Star Trek, The Witcher), romantic shows (Bridgerton, Sweet Magnolias, Outlander), drama (The Wire, Vikings: Valhalla) and the occasional hit of reality TV insanity (Love Is Blind). Adrienne likes cooking, but also ordering delivery so that strangers can be forced to bring her food, and believes that most days are incomplete without chocolate and reading for fun.
What She's Excited About Right Now: Fall weather and all the new/returning shows that come with it!
The Background: Jason Wiese writes feature stories for CinemaBlend's features Team. His occupation results from years dreaming of a filmmaking career, settling on a "professional film fan" career, studying journalism at LIndenwood University in St. Charles, MO (where he served as Culture Editor for its student-run print and online publications), and a brief stint of reviewing movies for fun.
What He's Into: Readers may notice a recurring theme of horror and superhero-related content (especially in regards to Batman) in much of Jason's work, but his favorite film of all time is more in line with traditional action/adventure stories: Raiders of the Lost Ark. His favorite TV series is the gritty, grounded crime thriller Breaking Bad and if you catching him reading anything, it is probably a comic book (and, more often than not, one featuring Batman). More important to him than entertainment, however, are his wife and two dogs.
What He's Excited About Right Now: Two of Jason's all-time favorite movie franchises (Indiana Jones and Evil Dead) are making a comeback in 2023 with James Mangold's fifth installment and Evil Dead Rise, which has made staying calm quite a struggle for him lately. However, even more than either of those sequels, he is especially looking forward to returning to Matt Reeves' vision of Gotham City in the upcoming follow-up to The Batman.
The Background: Philip Sledge is a content producer at CinemaBlend with a focus on longform features. He started writing for the website in December 2019, though his journey in journalism started years earlier. Writing gigs with school newspapers, multiple daily newspapers, and other varied job experiences led him to this point where he actually gets to write about movies, shows, and documentaries (which is a huge win in his eyes).
What He's Into: As has been in the case for many years, Philip loves all things professional wrestling (especially early '90s WCW and late-stage WCW if we're being honest). But outside of the squared circle, Philip is obsessed with all things George A. Romero as you can probably tell by the plethora of zombie stories he's written over the years. Documentaries, especially Frontline specials, are another passion for Philip, and he can often be heard going on and on about why everyone should watch some random doc about an obscure movie no one has ever seen before.
What He's Excited About Right Now: Let's see... there are some actual promising video game movies and shows coming out in the near future, which is nice to see for a change. Oh, and shows like the upcoming Tokyo Vice (the pilot was directed by Michael Mann) series is something he can't stop thinking about.
The Background: Alexandra Ramos is a Content Producer at CinemaBlend. She first started off working in December 2020 as a Freelance Writer after graduating from the Pennsylvania State University with a degree in Journalism and a minor in English. She later moved over to full-time in July of 2021, and primarily works in features for movies, TV, and sometimes video games. She is also the main person who runs both our daily newsletter, The CinemaBlend Daily, and our ReelBlend newsletter that is sent out bi-weekly to patrons.
What She's Into: Alex is into many things. She loves all kinds of movies except for super sappy romantic ones - with the only redeeming case being The Notebook, and is a big fantasy nerd. She’s a huge fan of the streaming shows that have been released, and loves to watch series’ like The Witcher, Shadow & Bone, and more. Her all-time favorite TV show has to be a solid three-way tie between Breaking Bad, Game of Thrones and Attack on Titan - she just can’t seem to pick one. Alex is also a big Marvel nerd, and will defend Scarlet Witch until her dying day. For years, she’s been an avid gamer, primarily for the PlayStation, and has become a part of the fanbase for games like The Last Of Us, God of War, Spider-Man, and more, but that won’t stop her from playing simple games like Animal Crossing, or FPS’ like Call of Duty. Alex is also a big sports fan and considers herself a couchside coach because she will threaten to throw stuff at her TV if Penn State or the NY Giants are losing (which is often), usually with pizza in her hands.
What She's Excited About Right Now: The Last Of Us TV show, House of the Dragon because I need my GOT fix after all these years, and all of the Star Wars piece of media coming out - I just miss baby Yoda, man, I want Season 3 of The Mandalorian out now!!!
Video
The Background: Jeff started his career producing television commercials in his hometown of Fresno, California. After a few years, he came across the opportunity to make a living talking about his favorite thing: movies. That's when he moved to St. Louis, MO in order to start CinemaBlend's first video department. Eventually he moved to Los Angeles, where he resides today, in order to pursue in-person opportunities covering events and interviewing talent. Emily Blunt once told him he looked "better than Dwayne Johnson," Jim Carrey once told him he has a "great name," and his mother once told him he was a "disappointment."
What He's Into: Jeff is simply a film buff who refuses to stop romanticizing the Oscars, no matter how unpopular they become. He's a fan of comedy. Specifically, SNL, anything late night, and political satire/commentary. When he feels sad, he re-watches episodes of 30 Rock. When he feels hopeless, he re-watches episodes of The West Wing. When he feels like he's stuck in second gear, he re-watches episodes of Friends. In his free time he dabbles in screenwriting, time-lapse photography, and complaining that the rent is too damn high.
What He's Excited About Right Now: Witnessing Timothée Chalamet's career trajectory over the next 20 years.
The Background: Gabe Kovacs is a Video Producer and the Podcast Lead at CinemaBlend. He started as an intern in 2016, and has since produced content across CinemaBlend’s various platforms and outlets including YouTube, social media and the site’s flagship podcast ReelBlend. These days, he spends his time generating content that lives on the site proper, and handling the day-to-day tasks of running a movies podcast, from booking guests to planning live events and more. Gabe studied filmmaking and photography at Webster University.
What He's Into: Beyond the prerequisite love of movies and TV, Gabe is an avid sports fan. Currently you can find him bewildered by Manchester United’s form, elated by the St. Louis Blues’ rise in the NHL, and eagerly waiting for his hometown, St. Louis, to finally get a professional MLS franchise.
What He's Excited About Right Now: Right now, Gabe is fighting the urge to binge watch Downton Abby for a third time, catching up on his long list of “must reads” and trying to figure out how to swing a golf club.
The Background: Katie Hughes is a Senior Video Producer at CinemaBlend. She grew up the Scene-It champion in her household, so it was inevitable she'd end up in entertainment. She graduated early and with honors from the University of Missouri - Columbia in 2017 with a degree in Convergence Journalism with an emphasis in Multimedia Producing. While she was hired as an intern for CinemaBlend's former parent company right out of college, she was promoted shortly thereafter to a full-time Video Producer. She now holds the title of Senior Video Producer and is responsible for maintaining the workflow and quality assurance of CinemaBlend's on-site video content. She also continues to contribute to CinemaBlends premium content on YouTube, including interview packages and longer-form reviews and analyses of the hottest new films and TV shows.
What She's Into: Katie is here for all things streaming. Her most recent binges include "Yellowstone," on Paramount+, "The Gilded Age" and "Euphoria" on HBO Max and "Dollface" on Hulu. She's also a sucker for all things Marvel dropping on Disney+, so much so that she has been lead producer on CinemaBlend's Marvel TV analysis series on YouTube since "WandaVision" premiered in 2020. She can't exactly name a favorite movie, but she does have favorite genres: superhero cinematic universes and psychologically thrilling dramas. When she's not catching up on what's new, she can probably be found watching 'Schitt's Creek' or 'New Girl' for the thousandth time, or readying any book Sarah J. Maas has published.
What She's Excited About Right Now: Disney+'s "Moon Knight" series, the final season of "Peaky Blinders" and Matt Reeves' "The Batman."
