Audiences are about to take a trip into the minds of the animals when Pixar’s Hoppers hits the 2026 movie calendar. The premise of the upcoming kids movie puts 19-year-old Mabel’s mind inside a robotic beaver in order to communicate with other animals and save their habitat. Critics have screened the movie ahead of its March 6 release, and fans should get excited, because they’re calling it the "best" Pixar offering in years.

Piper Curda is the voice of Mabel Tanaka, and she’s joined by an ensemble cast of recognizable voices, including Jon Hamm as Mayor Jerry, Kathy Najimy, Bobby Moynihan, Dave Franco, and Meryl Streep as Insect Queen to name just a few.

‘Best New Release In A Solid Decade’

Wilson Chapman of IndieWire gives the movie a B+, writing that it’s the “freshest” Pixar product since Turning Red and “the best new release in a solid decade.” It comes at a time when Pixar has lost a bit of its luster. Elio and Elemental felt constrained and formulaic, the critic says, and didn’t take risks, but Hoppers doesn’t have that problem. Chapman says:

This isn't the only critic who thinks there are some unique things happening here.

‘Pixar At Its Best’

Nell Minow of RogerEbert rates Hoppers 4 out of 4, writing that the artists show us the beauty of the natural world through the characters’ eyes and provide a fabulously tactile sense of the plant and water textures. As gorgeous as the animation is, the message of empathy for others is the heart of the film. Minow says:

Lots of critics are making big statements about Hoppers, including:

‘One Of Its Best In Recent Years, And Quite Possibly Its Best This Decade’

Gregory Nussen of ScreenRant rates the upcoming Pixar movie 7 out of 10 saying that if we’re measuring pure fun and humor, Hoppers delivers one of Pixar’s “best in recent years, and quite possibly its best this decade.” Nussen calls the movie “bizarre” and “unhinged by children’s film standards,” resembling Avatar or even the Game of Thrones universe more than the animal kingdom. The critic continues::

The plot resemblance to Avatar is brought up by a lot of critics and even addressed in the Hoppers.

‘A Film You Can Very Easily Imagine Ranking Among The Absolute Best Pixar Movies Ever’

Germain Lussier of Gizmodo has a lot of words to describe Hoppers, which he says may very easily rank among the best of the animated offerings from Pixar. It’s highly unpredictable, flat-out shocking, not afraid to take risks, dark and scary at times, with predictably stunning animation. However, Lussier writes …

Better pack the tissues! (Not that I'd ever leave home without them when headed for a Pixar movie.)

‘The Best Pixar Movie Since Coco’

William Bibbiani of The Wrap continues the superlatives by saying this movie is “dam good” and, in fact, is “the best Pixar movie since Coco.” It’s funny, clever, kind, playfully dark and wonderfully weird, the critic says, writing:

These aren’t the only critics singing the praises of Hoppers. The animated flick holds a 96% on Rotten Tomatoes’ Tomatometer as of this writing. Some of the critics warn that it’s not a perfect movie and that it has moments that are pretty shocking or dark for younger audience members. However, if this sounds like one you need to check out, you can head to theaters starting Friday, March 6.

It’s been nine years since we last saw Daniel Atlas and his crew use their magic skills to pull off a heist, and now they’re back for Now You See Me, Now You Don’t. The third movie in the Jesse Eisenberg-led series hits the 2025 movie calendar on November 14. Combining magic with a good heist movie made for a lot of fun in the first movies (horrible plot twists notwithstanding), and the cast is bursting with talent, both old and new. But does that translate into positive reviews? Let’s see what the critics have up their sleeves.

Work on Now You See Me 3 started 10 years ago, and the three-quel has gone through changes in screenwriter and director over the years. Zombieland director Ruben Fleischer ended up landing the gig for another project with Jesse Eisenberg, who is rejoined by Woody Harrelson, Dave Franco and Isla Fisher as their characters recruit some new illusionists to assist in a big diamond heist. And according to Caroline Siede of AV Club they all seem to be having a blast. She gives the movie a B, saying:

Mark Kennedy of the AP says the old gang’s still got it, and the future is in good hands, as Now You See Me 3 introduces a trio of Gen Z illusionists, played by Justice Smith, Dominic Sessa and Ariana Greenblatt. The critic appreciates this offering not relying on CGI as much as the 2016 sequel, rating the movie 3 out of 4 stars and writing:

Owen Gleiberman of Variety says it’s a worthy continuation of the franchise, and Jesse Eisenberg is “gripping” as the leader of the Four Horsemen. Daniel Atlas? Try “Danny Ocean reborn as a terse megalomaniac of illusion.” Gleiberman continues:

Chris Hayner of Polygon, meanwhile, says the trick of Now You See Me: Now You Don’t is actually being played on the audience. The movie isn’t actually a sequel but a reboot that’s seemingly passing the torch to a new generation of Horsemen. In the end, it’s a fine movie, the critic says, despite flaws like replacing magic with puzzles. In Hayner’s words:

Eric Goldman of IGN gives it an “Okay” 6 out of 10. As with the two that came before it, Now You See Me: Now You Don’t coasts on the charm of its ensemble cast but never fully realizes the potential of its concept. Goldman says:

Well, it sounds like Now You See Me 3 definitely has some issues, but regardless, Jesse Eisenberg and company are still game to entertain audiences. The movie currently stands with a 64% Rotten Tomatoes score, but if the first two movies are any indication, the audience will likely rate the movie higher than critics.

If you want to refresh yourself on the first two movies (or if you, ahem, didn’t realize there were two other movies) they can both be streamed with a Peacock subscription. Now You See Me: Now You Don’t hits theaters on Friday, November 14.

Spoilers for Regretting You can be found throughout this story. If you haven't caught the movie yet, don't say I didn't warn you!

2025 movie releases may not be chock full of romance movies, but in Regretting You, there are actually two love stories to fall for based on Colleen Hoover's It Ends With Us book. One is between Mason Thames and Mckenna Grace’s Miller and Clara, and another is between Allison Williams and Dave Franco’s Morgan and Jonah. I'm especially not over the coming-of-age storyline between Miller and Clara, but during CinemaBlend's interviews with the cast, we learned how it could have been different. Let's get into it.

The Regretting You Ending Between Clara And Jonah

In Regretting You, Mckenna Grace's Clara is dealing with a lot of transition and sadness in her life following the sudden death of her father (Scott Eastwood), and her mom (Williams) isn't taking it so well either. But, one major bright spot of it all is her blooming romance with Miller throughout the film. However, things get a little rocky for the young couple after her birthday dinner where the couple end up fighting, and leaving things on bad terms.

Clara's rough birthday dinner leads to her and her mother finally reconciling with Morgan finally telling her daughter that her father and her aunt were secretly having an affair – hence why Morgan has been having such a particularly rough time handling things as of late. The revelation allows Clara to understand what's been going on with Morgan, and both women decide they deserve to be happy. It lead Clara to surprise Miller at his place of work in a movie theater for an epic kiss, and the movie ends with Miller asking Clara to prom with a cute video her made for her, and word that they are both going to the same performing arts college.

How Regretting You's Ending Could Have Been Different

When I asked Mason Thames and Mckenna Grace about the ending during CinemaBlend's Regretting You interviews, they talked about one former version of the movie they wish they got to do. Per Thames' words:

So, the circumstances around the kiss were almost different. In fact, rather than Clara and Miller having an iconic kissing in the rain moment, it ended up that Morgan and Jonah got one instead. As Grace said:

Honestly, I totally get why Morgan and Jonah get the kiss in the rain. Their love story has spanned over 15 years, starting with when they were teenagers, so it's a lot more hard earned. (Oh, and Grace told me a hilarious story about Franco playing a 17-year-old in the movie).

Grace and Thames may not have gotten a kiss-in-the-rain moment, but they are already lined up to work together again in an upcoming Green Day-centered movie called New Years Rev, and based on their reactions to a popular Tangled fancast, they could have many more projects together to come.

The latest of Colleen Hoover's upcoming book adaptations is almost here, as Regretting You is set to premiere on the 2025 movie schedule this weekend. Since the story between Allison Williams and Dave Franco's characters spans 17 years, the actors got the chance to play teenagers, and it was quite the journey for Franco in particular.

When CinemaBlend spoke to McKenna Grace about filming Regretting You, she recalled the time she stumbled on one of Franco’s early looks. In her words:

In the new movie, Dave Franco plays Jonah, who was a childhood best friend of Allison Williams’ Morgan Grant. He has also recently gotten back together with her sister Jenny (Willa Fitzgerald) and had a baby with her. When Jenny and Morgan’s husband Chris (Scott Eastwood) get into a car accident together, and their partners learn they’d been in a long-term affair together, Morgan and Jonah start to explore their former feelings for each other.

Along with it revolving around Morgan and Jonah’s relationship following their partners' deaths, it also focuses on Morgan’s daughter Clara (Grace) as she falls in love for the first time with one of her schoolmates, Miller (Mason Thames), whilst dealing with the emotions of her father’s passing.

To really understand Morgan and Jonah's story, we get flashbacks of their times as teens, and Williams and Franco play them both in the past and present. As Grace continued in our interview:

CinemaBlend then talked to Franco about Grace’s comments, and he shared more context as to why he was wearing a hilarious blonde wig before going for a more understated look in the flashback sequences. In his words during our exclusive conversation:

Hey, it was worth a try, right? Many of us had some pretty hilarious hairstyles in high school, and it’s fun to highlight that when looking back at a character’s teen years.

However, as someone who’s seen the movie and knows the flashbacks are not comedic, it makes sense why Franco didn’t end up in a blonde wig. As the Together actor continued:

There are no shots of Dave Franco or Allison Williams as teens in the Regretting You trailer, so you’ll just have to wait and see. The movie is based on one of Colleen Hoover’s bestsellers that was published back in 2019.

Regretting You is the second Colleen Hoover adaptation after last year’s It Ends With Us, which ended up having a controversial release regarding what happened behind the scenes. There’s another one on the way next year with Reminders Of Him coming out next with Maika Monroe, Tyriq Withers and Lauren Graham. You can see Regretting You in theaters this Friday, October 25.

After years and years of waiting, Now You See Me: Now You Don’t will finally be released on the 2025 movie schedule this fall. It will also return with almost all of its original cast, too, as Jesse Eisenberg, Woody Harrelson, Isla Fisher and Dave Franco are all back as the Four Horsemen, along with Morgan Freeman and some new faces. We got to see all of them in action in the new trailer as well, which got me all kinds of excited.

However, it also left me with a question about Mark Ruffalo’s character and how he could be involved in this third Now You See Me movie.

Now You See Me: Now You Don’t's Second Trailer Shows The Old And New Cast In Action

Now, the trailer opens with Woody Harrelson’s hypnotist Merritt McKinney explaining why the Four Horsemen haven’t worked together in a long time. He notes that they tripped up a few times, saying:

However, now they’re back together and back in action. They also have some new people working with them, as Dominic Sessa, Ariana Greenblat and Justice Smith have joined the cast as the new (and younger) magicians in the crew. While it’s not explained how exactly all these folks come together, we know it happens, and that they’ll all be working on a mission to stop Rosamund Pike’s Veronika Vanderberg.

So, yeah, it's pretty epic to see Jesse Eisenberg and Dominic Sessa in an upside-down room, Dave Franco throwing cards and being upstaged by Ariana Greenblatt’s character while trying to pick a lock, and some epic sleight of hand. It’s everything I want in a Now You See Me movie.

A highlight of the trailer, in fact, was when we learned about Pike’s character and her money laundering schemes. As that was explained, we also got a peek at the heist they’re seemingly trying to pull off, which included Eisenberg’s J. Daniel Atlas holding up a diamond after making the one in Veronika’s hand explode.

Although, while I love seeing the Horsemen back in action, I can’t help but wonder if Mark Ruffalo’s Dylan Rhodes, the man behind the tricks, will be involved somehow.

Could The Calling Card Used In The Trailer Have Anything To Do With Mark Ruffalo’s Character?

In the first two trailers for Now You See Me 3, we have not seen Mark Ruffalo. He’s also not featured or named on the film’s poster. However, according to Variety, he will be returning. So, if he’s coming back, I have a feeling it will have something to do with the Tarot card referenced in the trailer, as J. Daniel Atlas said in reference to it:

In the first Now You See Me (which you can currently stream with a Netflix subscription), Eisenberg, Dave Franco, Isla Fisher and Woody Harrelson’s characters are brought together with Tarot cards. It’s then revealed later in the film that the man who orchestrated that was Ruffalo’s Dylan Rhodes, the FBI agent who had spent the movie seemingly trying to catch them.

So, I’m now wondering if this new card that brought the magicians together was sent by Rhodes. If it was, that would explain how Mark Ruffalo is involved in the third Now You See Me flick. However, as of right now, we still really have no clue if he’ll appear.

But we do know the Now You See Me cast is thrilled to be back, and that there’s an epic plot twist in Now You Don’t that even Jesse Eisenberg was ticked by. So, I have a feeling that no matter how Mark Ruffalo comes or doesn't come into play will be surprising and very entertaining.

So, to see the Four Horsemen and co. back in action, and to see if the man who put them together returns, you can catch Now You See Me: Now You Don’t in theaters on November 14.

Dave Franco and Alison Brie are now among real-life couples who’ve starred in horror movies, thanks to their 2025 movie release, Together. The body horror film sees Brie and Franco play a couple on the outs, who literally come “together” due to a supernatural force. Now, it would seem that after Franco and Brie, another notable couple has lined up a scary movie. Husband-and-wife duo Justin Long and Kate Bosworth are headlining a horror movie as well, and it sounds like a wild one!

News of Kate Bosworth and Justin Long's new movie comes courtesy of THR. The scary flick is called Coyotes, and it's set to debut at Fantastic Fest on September 20th. A horror-comedy directed by Colin Minihan, the flick centers around a family targeted by coyotes in their Hollywood Hills home. If that doesn't sound like a true nightmare, then I don't know what does.

While there have been plenty scary animal movies that involve dinosaurs, sharks, bears, and even dogs, I’ve never seen one that involves coyotes as the main threat. With one of the well-known traits of the canine breed being their distinct vocals with which they call each other, there's plenty of creepy potential for this film. Should the filmmakers achieve their goal of delivering a frightening tale, fans may hear ominous howls long after the credits roll.

“Scream King” Justin Long has actually collaborated with his wife -- to whom he's been married since 2023 and shares a child with -- in the horror genre before. They were both part of the cast of Barbarian, with Bosworth making a vocal cameo. Both also co-starred in House of Darkness (which is streamable with a Hulu subscription). The prospect of seeing the couple work together again is exciting, but I also just love their general interactions with each other.

Bosworth and Long proved they were couple goals the year they tied the knot when the Jeepers Creepers actor penned a sweet 40th birthday tribute to his then-future wife. The Blue Crush actress returned the favor with lovey-dovey photos of the couple that could make anyone believe in love. Coyotes likely won't be a mushy film, but I'm still eager to see how Long and Bosworth's natural chemistry manifests on screen.

There’s something special about real-life couples co-starring in horror flicks. What's satisfying about Together is that it contributes to the body horror wave, and, on top of that, it showcases the genuine chemistry of Dave Franco and Alison Brie. The combination of intimacy and unsettling terror is palpable and, collectively, it's enough to make audiences root for the two protagonists to beat the curse that's fusing them.

Still, Dave Franco and Alison Brie, it’s time to step aside for Kate Bosworth and Justin Long, who could prove with Coyotes that they're also a couple capable of delivering true frights by way of the silver screen. Be sure to keep an eye out for developments on Long and Bosworth's film, and be sure to check out Together in theaters now!

I can say from experience that, in my opinion, some of the best romantic relationships are shared by two people who love sharing moments of chills and thrills with each other. In that same vein, I have a lot of respect and admiration for couples who have joined forces to create moments of chills and thrills for others, such as the stars and co-producers of Together, Dave Franco and Alison Brie.

The husband and wife duo are far from the first real-life couple to star in a horror movie together, and, because of the genuine onscreen chemistry they bring to the new 2025 movie, I sure hope they are not the last. In fact, let's begin my little breakdown of notable Hollywood power couples who made some great scary date movies over the years with the stars of Together.

Dave Franco And Alison Brie (Together)

Recent releases like the Oscar-winning The Substance and The Ugly Stepsister have paved the way for a golden era of body horror movies that continues with writer and director Michael Shanks' Together. The new horror movie stars the aforementioned Dave Franco and Alison Brie as Tim and Millie, who find themselves growing too close for comfort when a mysterious force causes them to be involuntarily bound by flesh.

Echoing Eric Eisenberg's Together review, Franco and Brie portray the troubling circumstances of their characters' relationship, even those existing before the supernatural starts to make things worse, so flawlessly that you can't help but wonder about the state of their actual marriage. Of course, by the end, it becomes clear they possess more than enough chemistry to make this bizarre and unsettling, but also funny and even heartwarming thriller a satisfying and touching experience.

John Krasinski And Emily Blunt (A Quiet Place)

I believe 2018's A Quiet Place boasts one of the most astonishingly unique concepts for an alien invasion movie I have ever seen: a world overrun with malevolent, non-seeing extra-terrestrials, forcing the remains of humanity to live in silence. However, I also believe the key to its unnerving effectiveness lies in the lead performances by John Krasinski (who also co-writes and directs) and Emily Blunt.

As Lee and Evelyn Abbott, the beloved power couple, who wed in 2010 and have since had two children, deliver a compelling and authentic sense of devotion to one another and desperation to protect their family at all costs. Had Krasinski not cast his own wife to play his onscreen partner, the film's man-versus-monster suspense could have easily lacked the breathless urgency that made it an instant sci-fi movie classic.

Jeff Goldblum And Geena Davis (The Fly)

Together is not the first body horror flick to star a real-life couple, but it might be the first to involve both romantic leads experiencing the same grotesque situation first-hand. In David Cronenberg's 1986 version of The Fly, Jeff Goldblum's Dr. Seth Brundle slowly becomes a half-human, half-insect hybrid while the love of his life, Ronnie Quaife (Geena Davis), only witnesses the dehumanizing process in shock and heartbreak.

Goldblum and Davis were engaged at the time they shot the revered horror movie remake, having actually met on the set of a 1985 horror-comedy movie called Transylvania 6-5000, and tied the knot the following year, only to split in 1990, according to People. Their genuine affection for each other, which appears to have survived their divorce, based on their 2024 SAG Awards appearance, explodes on the screen, cementing The Fly as one of horror's most unforgettable romantic tragedies.

David Arquette And Courtney Cox (The Scream Movies)

Watching the Scream movies in order is fascinating in the way the cleverly meta slasher franchise traces two notable timelines in pop culture. The subsequent films not only illustrate the modern evolution of the horror genre, but also that of the relationship between two of its most famous stars, David Arquette and Courteney Cox.

The Friends cast member, playing journalist Gale Weathers, and the Dewey Riley actor met on the set of the 1996 original, were dating while they shot the sequel (after some encouragement from Wes Craven), and were married during the third one, but had split before reprising their characters as husband and wife in 2011's Scream 4. However, Cox has since referred to Arquette as her "best friend "(according to People), and that shows in their willingness to reunite and play their roles as divorcees in 2022's Scream, which saw Dewey succumb to Ghostface's knife. However, Arquette has somehow been cast in Scream 7, so it looks like the reign of Dewey and Gale is, thankfully, not over just yet.

Freddie Prinze Jr. And Sarah Michelle Gellar (I Know What You Did Last Summer)

Scream is not the only '90s slasher movie favorite from which romance bloomed behind the scenes. In I Know What You Did Last Summer, Freddie Prinze Jr.'s Ray Bronson may have been dating Jennifer Love Hewitt's Julie James, but the actor really had his eye on their co-star, Sarah Michelle Gellar.

After falling in love on the set of the 1997 thriller, they would later wed in 2002, which is the same year they shared a kiss as Fred and Daphne in the first live-action Scooby-Doo movie. Since Gellar's Helen did not survive the first Summer, the couple was not able to reunite for the arguably more fun 1998 sequel, but she would make a surprise cameo in the 2025 reboot, achieved through a dream sequence, that also allowed her and Prinze the opportunity to have a fun family trip in Australia, where the legacyquel as filmed, as she shared with the country's iteration of Today.

Eli Roth And Lorenza Izzo (Aftershock)

Until their divorce in 2018 after four years of marriage, horror multi-hyphenate Eli Roth and actor and model Lorenza Izzo were one of the genre's top power couples, collaborating on projects like Netflix's Hemlock Grove, The Green Inferno, Knock Knock, and The House with a Clock in Its Walls. Their personal and professional relationship began with a disaster thriller from 2012 called Aftershock.

In addition to co-writing and producing the thriller from director Nicolás López, Roth stars alongside Izzo as survivors of a deadly earthquake in Chile struggling to make it out of the ruined city safely. The Chilean-born actor shared with WWD that she was cast in a leading role when Roth discovered she could speak English and, after spending the entire shoot together and boasting a chemistry that comes through effectively in the film, they became more than scene partners.

It is celebrity couples like these, in addition to the likes of Stranger Things' Charlie Heaton and Natalia Dyer, who prove to me that sometimes the key to a great horror movie, especially ones in which romance plays a pivotal role, is casting two people whose love offscreen is so strong, it's scary.

After seeing Together, I think I can confidently proclaim that we have entered a golden era for body horror movies. Following acclaimed, grotesque recent releases like the Oscar-winning The Substance and Shudder’s The Ugly Stepsister, writer and director Michael Shanks’ insane new horror movie about a mysterious force threatening to bond a struggling couple’s flesh together reinforces my faith in a subgenre I have always been cautiously curious about.

Said couple from the 2025 movie release is played by real-life husband and wife Dave Franco and Alison Brie, who also produce Together, but actually previously collaborated on another horror flick from several years ago that I had always been curious to check out. It turned out to be yet another example of a movie that I regret not giving a chance sooner, and one I would recommend to any horror fan who enjoys Franco and Brie’s work in Together – which we reviewed well – but, mostly, for different reasons. Allow me to explain, WITHOUT SPOILERS…

The Rental Is An Unsettling Vacation Thriller

The movie in question is 2020’s The Rental – the directorial debut of Dave Franco, who also co-produces and co-writes with Joe Swanberg, who is known for the found footage horror favorite V/H/S and the insane home invasion thriller, You’re Next. Franco does not appear in the film, but it does star his spouse, Alison Brie, alongside underrated Scream King Dan Stevens, future Emmy-winning The Bear star Jeremy Allen White, and Sheila Vand of A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night fame as two couples spending a weekend away at a vacation rental home that soon proves to be a nightmare of life-changing and life-threatening proportions.

For his first feature, Franco proves to have a competent handle on crafting a strong slow-burn horror movie with The Rental (available with a Shudder subscription), with its ominous pacing and excellent character-driven suspense, elevated by a cast that captures their roles’ desperation perfectly. While not quite as original in concept, I would go so far as to call this a more haunting tale of Airbnb horror than 2022’s Barbarian, as it depicts a more frighteningly grounded situation and is portrayed in such harrowing and heartbreaking ways that I might now be convinced to only use hotels for the rest of my life.

The Rental Boasts A Few Similarities To Together

While Together is a supernatural thriller and dramatically different in tone, I noticed a few ways that it does relate to The Rental, outside of the involvement of Franco and Brie. Most notably, both films incorporate troubled romance and codependency as prevalent themes, as each of the main couples in the film is threatened by secrets that develop from either repressed dissatisfaction or a lack of self-assurance. These details have no allegorical connection to the film’s more overtly horrific moments, unlike what Together achieves with its body horror elements, but they would prove to be even more heart-wrenching in some respects.

Also, both films prove to me that Franco and Brie, as a creative team, are not above using domesticated animals to tug at your heartstrings. Together’s opening sequence, without giving too much away, involves two dogs experiencing a very disturbing situation, and there is also a dog in The Rental, named Reggie, who proves to be a potent source of trauma in the story when he suddenly goes missing. I will just say, his ultimate fate is nothing to be too worried about, especially when compared to the poor pooches in Together, but I felt I should warn pet lovers about the suspense that comes with his absence.

I have heard very little about The Rental since it came out, but I hope to see its popularity surge following the release of Together. If you have yet to see it and you have Shudder, I recommend you stream it, or even rent it on Amazon. You might end up agreeing with me that it is one of the best horror movies you waited too long to see.

I’m not the biggest fan of body horror. While I have watched the best body horror films out there, it is not the type of genre that I would blatantly search out to watch because there are so many other great horror films out there that don’t utilize body horror to a certain degree. I tend to stay away from it.

But then the marketing for Together became a constant in my life, and I knew somewhere deep down in my soul that I was going to end up seeing it in theaters. And I did. I mean, it’s Dave Franco and Alison Brie. I love them, and the fact that they’re in this body horror film together boded so well for me. However, I didn’t walk out of this movie severely grossed out – I actually walked out with a different feeling, and here’s what it was.

The Film Itself Had Some Great Body Horror

Before I say that, the film did have some excellent body horror. I think I’ve slowly gotten used to it, with films like The Substance giving me nightmares and movies like Bring Her Back creatively using cantaloupes to make me never want to eat one again. But body horror is riding a wave right now that can’t be stopped.

Together was also a part of that and had some moments where I was truly turning away from the movie screen because the cracking sounds and so much more were getting to me. It all culminates in that final shot of Together, which is wild and crazy to think about, but while the body horror was intense, it wasn’t what truly made me love this film.

However, Dave Franco And Alison Brie Had Me Reeling With Their Line Delivery

Warning: Spoilers ahead!

I laughed a lot during this film. Like, to a point where I wondered if I was honestly okay or if I was losing my mind like these two were. But honestly, it was just the delivery of these two.

There were so many moments that were truly terrifying, but were delivered with some grandiose and hilarity that made me snicker every single time. For example, when Millie was trying to grab the drugs to try and stop their bodies from morphing together, she was screaming about the child lock on them, and I don’t know what it was, but I was snorting laughing during it.

Another part that I couldn’t help but laugh at was when Millie was sawing through their arms, and she was trying to remain so calm, and Tim was freaking out, and it felt like a couple who was just on the edge of losing their minds together. They felt like such a real couple there, which, obviously, makes sense due to the actors’ real-life marriage. But sometimes that doesn’t translate to the screen, and this time, it was perfect.

And Even The Ending Felt Almost As Cheesy As A Rom-Com Despite It Being Horrifying

Even the ending of this movie was hilarious in specific ways. The fact that it almost ends with a horrifying twist on a rom-com, where they just give in and combine while listening to “2 Become 1” as they dance and make out, was hilariously terrifying to me, and I was just shaking my head at the audacity. They were legit so in love, and yet there’s this horrible moment happening, and I was crying laughing because it’s so morbid in the best way.

I feel like there have to be more horror movies out there, ones that are more comedic to ease people like me into body horror. Not necessarily a horror-comedy, but leaning more into the joke of it to relax viewers before traumatizing them moments later. I feel like the ones that I’ve seen in the past have almost been too much for me to handle, but this one was just right. And truthfully, if I saw Together again in theaters, I’d probably continue to laugh just as much.

SPOILER WARNING: The following article contains spoilers about a particular scene in writer/director Michael Shanks’ Together. If you have not yet seen the film, you can ready my spoiler-free CinemaBlend review; otherwise, proceed at your own risk!

Being a very proud new entry to the body horror subgenre, Together is a movie with plenty of nastiness and extremes, and easily one of the best examples is what can casually be called the “bathroom stall scene.” When Dave Franco’s Tim is meant to be going away for rehearsal with a band that wants him to tour with them, he instead finds himself supernaturally drawn to the school where Alison Brie’s Millie works. A mix of uncontrollable urges and a chance to end their sex drought as a couple leads them to hook up in a public toilet – but things go from passionate to panicked as Tim disturbingly can’t seem to... disengage.

It’s a complicated scene: it’s both humorous and horrific, it features some of the movie’s most graphic material, and you can tell just from watching it that it must have been supremely difficult to film. So, of course, I felt compelled to ask about it last month when I interviewed Michael Shanks, Alison Brie and Dave Franco during the new horror movie’s press day in Los Angeles.

Alison Brie And Dave Franco Love The Bathroom Stall Scene, But It Was Exceptionally Uncomfortable To Film

For actors, there is surely a natural expectation of awkwardness that comes with filming a sex scene. That’s true for sequences where two characters are getting intimate on a comfortable mattress covered in silk sheets – but now swap out that comfortable setting in your mind for a stall in a public bathroom, and you can understand why the sex scene in Together was a special challenge.

The sequence is one of the best in the film, and Alison Brie identified it as her favorite moment in the script when she first got the chance to read it, but she also totally underestimated just how grueling it would be to perform. She loves how it turned out, but both the physical and emotional aspects of it ended up being tremendous. Seated beside her co-star/husband Dave Franco, Brie said,

As captured in the video at the top of the article, the two actors detailed how their closeness in filming the sequence got a bit gross even without any supernatural forces trying to fuse them together. Because Tim is basically a slave to his urge to be with Millie in the moment, Dave Franco was given spritzes of fake sweat to suggest a sickness caused by being without her, and that combined with real sweat he was producing as a result of physical exertion/close quarters in the stall. It was not comfortable.

Director Michael Shanks estimated that it took somewhere in the range of eight hours to shoot the sequence in the bathroom stall, and Dave Franco acknowledged that there was a level of claustrophobia that colored things:

It was tough to shoot, but shooting the sequence also had some surprising wins – like lucking into a box of sex toys that the effects team was able to use for what is arguably the most shocking shot in Together.

Facing Budget Problems, Together Lucked Into ‘A Shoebox Full Of Genitals’

Alluded to above, the Together sequence in discussion here ironically doesn’t reach its climax as the characters are having sex, but instead in the immediate aftermath. For a brief moment, Tim and Millie and giggly and happy, but those positive emotions evaporate as the former is physically unable to separate himself from the latter. Initially, it seems that the audience is only going to register the drama via the fear expressed by the characters, as they are only framed from the waist up – but then there is a shocking angle that goes between them, and we see what I’m going to politely refer to as the compromised circumstances of Tim’s penis.

It’s graphic, and you probably would not expect the title that Michael Shanks used as a reference point:

As far as actually getting the shot, however, there was a practical issue: money. Released into theaters this past week by Neon, Together was made an independent production shot in Australia, and budgetary restrictions meant that not every part of the vision for the movie could be realized. But for the graphic shot of Tim’s stuck penis, luck ended up winning out over frugalness.

Michael Shanks told me that there wasn’t room in the budget for the practical/visual effects required to get the shot, but he ended up being fortunate in that his partner at the time was working for a sex toy company and was able to supply the production. Said the writer/director,

In most workplaces, someone showing up with a shoebox full of sex toys would probably be grounds for dismissal, but I suppose that’s why you have to love the specialness of the film industry.

This Is Where A Married Couple Acting Together Is Super Helpful

The sex scene in Together is graphic, and shooting it was immensely uncomfortable for the stars, but getting free dildos via the director’s partner wasn’t the only “organic” benefit the production had: filming would have been much more awkward if the two stars were relative strangers, but Alison Brie and Dave Franco have been a romantic couple since 2012, and they have been married since 2017.

Working with a spouse isn’t necessarily always a boon, and one watches the romantic drama of Together wondering if the on-screen conflict between the characters had the actors reflecting on their own relationship – but in the case of the bathroom stall scene, their shared history allowed Alison Brie and Dave Franco to be a bit more emotionally free. Discussing how shooting the scene with her husband made it different than it would have been with a different co-star, Brie said,

Adding to her comments, Franco noted that they were both able to make certain choices and take certain chances that they otherwise may not have been able to make because they had the inherent trust and support of their scene partner:

It’s a special working relationship, and one that helped yield one of gnarliest big screen moments of 2025 so far.

Also starring Damon Herriman, Together premiered earlier this year at the Sundance Film Festival and is now playing in theaters everywhere – the low-budget, critically acclaimed feature landing in sixth place at the weekend box office.

SPOILER WARNING: The following article contains major spoilers for Together. If you have not yet seen the movie, proceed at your own risk!

Watching Together at a screening last month, I found myself wowed, impressed, and mesmerized by the movie’s final shot. The film builds well to its freaky, body horror-centric climax, which sees Alison Brie’s Millie and Dave Franco’s Tim submit and embrace the force that is fusing them together, and I left the theater instantly curious how the final shot came together with the Mille/Tim hybrid that greets Mille’s parents at the door of their home when the older couple arrives for a Sunday visit.

Fortunately, one of the best aspects of my job is that I get to satisfy that kind of curiosity via interviews with filmmakers and actors, and that’s exactly what I got to do when I sat down with writer/director Michael Shanks, Alison Brie and Dave Franco during the Los Angeles press day for the new horror movie late last month. In separate interviews (as captured in the video above), I asked them all about how that final shot was accomplished, and not only did I learn about the execution of some amazing special and visual effects work, but I discovered that the married stars have a hilarious “qualm” with the final look.

How Together Accomplished That Final Shot

Did they find an actor who looks like a hybrid of Alison Brie and Dave Franco? Is it entirely a VFX creation? I had questions like those running through my head after witnessing the wild final moment of Together, and when I asked Michael Shanks about how the shot was created, I found myself impressed and amazed. It’s a mix of practical and digital artistry, and the work that went into it is fantastic.

The Millie/Tim hybrid is played by Alison Brie, but you can be forgiven if you don’t recognize her at all. In addition to extensive makeup work on set that saw parts of Dave Franco’s visage applied to the actresses, there were also visual effects employed that changed the shape of her face to be more like her co-star’s/husband’s. Shanks explained,

Our society is presently without advanced cloning/genetic engineering technology that could perfectly generate a hybrid, nor do we have time travel technology that could age the creation up, so this is really the best option that the production of Together had… and it worked out perfectly. That being said, there is one issue with the final shot that the stars of the movie don’t love, and it was something that the actors came to understand after test screening early cuts of the feature and getting some weirdly insulting feedback…

The Mille/Tim Hybrid Is A Combination Of Two Attractive People… But Alison Brie And Dave Franco Are A Bit Perturbed That They Aren’t More Attractive

Together had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year – where it was met with critical acclaim and eventually picked up by Neon for distribution – but before it had its big debut, unfinished versions of the work were shown during test screenings to determine how the movie would play with audiences. One of the “unfinished” aspects was the final shot… and one unfortunate side effect was a reaction to the work that particularly hurt Alison Brie’s feelings.

While it’s not super common for creatives to attend test screenings, the Community star snuck in to secretly observe how people felt about the movie. At the time, the VFX for the final shot and the applications of details from Dave Franco’s face on top of the makeup were still being experimented with, and the audio wasn’t finished either, so the voice that the audience’s heard from the hybrid was the actresses. It didn’t look perfect… and it led to Brie being shocked by one person’s response:

It was this super funny comment that led to a confession from Alison Brie and Dave Franco, which is that they’re a bit upset that a blend of their movie star good looks didn’t yield a more attractive person. They don’t feel that the hybrid is ugly – but it wasn’t quite what they expected. The actors explained:

Dave Franco: We will say one qualm we have with that final creature is we were just disappointed with how unattractive...
Alison Brie: We wish they were a little more attractive. Like the merging of our two faces made that face.
Dave Franco: They're not unattractive, but we just wanted them to be a little cuter.

Humorous niggles aside, it’s a great conclusion to the film, and one with which Michael Shanks is particularly happy, if not especially because it was an element of Together that featured in the very first draft and was the only conclusion that the writer/director could envision for the movie. Said Shanks,

I’m excited to see the film again just so that I can really focus on the face of the hybrid creation and appreciate the high level movie magic that went into it. And if you want to do the same, Together is now playing in theaters everywhere (having landed at sixth place with a strong debut at the box office this past weekend).

A year or so after It Ends With Us became the most talked about movie in the country, the next Colleen Hoover adaptation is ready to begin its marketing campaign. Regretting You, a Paramount adaptation based on her 2019 novel of the same name, dropped its first trailer today, and the initial response has been extremely positive amongst the author’s fans. In fact, many have been talking about how it looks to be exactly what they’d hoped for.

The film stars McKenna Grace and Allison Williams as a mother and daughter trying to figure out how to move on after a terrible accident. Mason Thames plays Grace’s love interest, a local cool kid, and Dave Franco plays Grace’s uncle and Williams’ brother-in-law, who is also wrestling with the scars of the aforementioned terrible accident. You check out the trailer that’s somber and emotional but also very full of life…

You can’t always judge something’s reaction based on social media, but I will say the comments are extremely positive on YouTube. Like really, really positive. Many are singling out the casting director, and it’s easy to see why. It really feels like there’s a strong chemistry here with all of the leads, which is particularly important since many of the characters have complicated relationships with each other. I guess we shouldn’t be surprised about Thames and Grace’ rapport though, given all the rumors that they’re allegedly dating in real life too.

Regardless, I’m really excited for this movie. I like films that don’t necessarily have one tone, and a lot of Hoover’s books are able to hit different kinds of emotional beats. This film is clearly going for that, and it has actors who, in theory, should be able to do that. Williams, in particular, has bounced between genres during her career and always excelled, no matter the subject matter.

It’ll be interesting to see whether this film is able to have the same cultural resonance as Hoover’s last adaptation It Ends With Us. The Blake Lively-led film took in more than $350M at the worldwide box office and was in the US top 10 for almost a month and a half, but at some point, the story became less about the movie and more about the behind the scenes problems. Director Justin Baldoni and Lively ended up suing each other, and numerous stories have emerged about tense meetings, inappropriate conversations and alleged meddling from Lively’s husband Ryan Reynolds.

Controversy can, of course, be good for business. I’m sure all the stories helped expose some people to the movie who may not have heard about it otherwise, but on the downside, it’s left a lot of unanswered questions about Hoover’s viability at the box office. Many in Hollywood see her as someone whose books can get passionate fans into the theater, but because of all the noise around It Ends With Us, no one is quite sure whether that success will translate. We'll find out soon, as she has multiple upcoming adaptations in the works.

Regretting You will hit theaters on October 24th. Fingers crossed the discourse this time will be about how good the movie is and not about behind the scenes rumors.

Disneyland is the happiest place on Earth, but apparently, for some people, the joy that comes from fun rides and great vibes just isn’t enough. As much has been said about Disney Adults, they are adults after all, and anybody who has been in the theme park world for any length of time has certainly heard stories of people getting up to…adult activities on theme park rides. It turns out actor Dave Franco is one adult who has done just that.

Dave Franco Reveals He Had Sex On Pirates Of The Caribbean

Franco, who stars in the new well-reviewed film Together, recently appeared on the Call Her Daddy podcast, where host Alex Cooper asked him what the wildest place he had ever had sex was. The actor revealed an event, at an undisclosed time in the past, where he got a little freaky on one of Disneyland’s classic attractions. He said…

Franco is certainly right that Disneyland attractions have cameras everywhere. Having said that, I’d be more concerned with the other people riding on the attraction. Even if they were in the back seat of the boat, the next boat isn’t that far behind, and the people in the front would certainly have been able to see what was going on.

And while Dave Franco and his unnamed partner may not have gotten busted by Disneyland Cast Members, that doesn’t mean that he didn’t still give them a show. While Cast Members will often get on a loudspeaker to shut down any inappropriate activity, they don’t always do that, though even in the dark, they can see everything. I'm not aware of people being banned from Disneyland for this particular activity, but it's certainly possible, so people should beware.

People Having Sex On Disney Parks Rides Is Far From Uncommon

A quick glance at Reddit reveals plenty of stories from both people who have attempted amorous encounters on Disneyland rides, people who have witnessed such things, and the Cast Members who had to deal with it. If nothing else, it confirms that even if you don’t think anybody saw you having sex on the Haunted Mansion, people absolutely did.

Pirates of the Caribbean does appear to be a popular choice for those looking to get busy at Disneyland. It makes some sense. The ride doesn’t have a lap bar or any other seat restraint, and it’s also the longest ride at Disneyland, giving you the most time to do whatever it is you’re going to do. Though it's also one of the best rides at Disneyland, and you're going to miss a lot about it if you're...otherwise engaged.

That said, please don’t have sex at Disneyland. I have to get on that ride after you, and I don’t even want to think about what the previous rider was up to.

In a broad context, co-dependence is wonderful thematic material for a horror film. There is tremendous beauty to recognize in the idea, as who wouldn’t want to find another person with whom they can perfectly harmonize for a lifetime? But we also live in a world of constant change that threatens that harmony, which can instill paranoia that an ending is always right around the corner, and there is also the fear of losing one’s independence and identity as a part of a couple. Mix that trouble with multi-dimensional characters, some dashes of the dark supernatural, and a sprinkle of freaky terrors, and you have an exciting and intimate scary movie. Or to be more specific, you have writer/director Michael Shanks’ Together.

Arriving in theaters during a brilliant summer for original horror, the film doesn’t have the mesmerizing complexity of Danny and Michael Philippou’s Bring Her Back or the arresting scope of Zach Cregger’s Weapons, but it succeeds pairing a fairly simple narrative with big ideas and nasty execution that will be appreciated by sick puppy cinephiles. Married co-stars Alison Brie and Dave Franco are independently and collaboratively so excellent that you wonder about the stability of their actual relationship (it’s intense enough to make you question if simply taking this project on was an effort to test their marital bonds), and while it can’t be said that Together on the whole is full of unexpected twists, the finale is definitely a delightful shocker.

Millie (Alison Brie) and Tim (Dave Franco) are a long-term couple when we first meet them in the movie, and while the latter is reticent about getting married, they do make a commitment by moving together from the city to a new home in the countryside. Tim’s hopes to make it as a professional musician are fizzling, and his remote new zip code doesn’t exactly help, but Millie supports them with her job as a teacher at the local elementary school. Stress is high after the relocation, and helping nothing is that their relationship has become sexless.

In an effort to both try and reconnect and explore their new area, they decide to go on an afternoon hike together in the local woods… and as you can imagine given the genre, things take a bad turn. First they get lost, then it starts thunderously rain, and then they accidentally discover a new age church that has sunk into the ground – and by “discover,” I mean he falls into a hole and then pulls her in as she tries to help him get out. Temporarily trapped, thirsty and out of water, they opt to drink from a pool that has gathered in the cave, and they make camp for the night to wait out the downpour.

Needless to say, drinking the water was a big mistake. In the morning, the couple wakes to find that two of their legs are stuck together, and while they are able to tear apart and chalk it up to cave mildew, it’s just the start of their shared nightmare. I kind of biological magnetism slowly starts to build, and Millie and Tim find themselves drawn to each other with increasing magnitude, both psychologically and physically.

There is a simplicity in the story of Together that doesn’t get in the way of it being captivating.

Together unfolds with a straightforward narrative that has natural escalation and momentum, and while that doesn’t ultimately leave much room for surprise during the journey, one is nonetheless entranced in anticipation of seeing just how far the horror is going to go. The lesions left after Millie and Tim rip apart their calves in the early cave scene is just the start of the experience and effectively teases the nastiness to come, and – with the exception of one sequence that I won’t reveal in this spoiler-free venue – it delivers on that promise. You have an idea of what’s on the way, but it still successfully gets you more and more excited for the next level of the supernatural force that is constantly growing in power.

Along similar lines, the movie isn’t particularly coy when it comes to its themes about co-dependency, as it’s the principal source of conflict for the couple as they enter a new stage of their relationship, but understanding the subject matter doesn’t render the Millie and Tim as flat caricatures. They’re equally likable, flawed, and passionate – which makes their arguments and fights all the more interesting, as Together doesn’t take sides and you can understand their points of view. The film effectively keeps you going back and forth regarding whether or not these two people need to cut ties or never let one another go, and your emotional investment in them adds weight to all the horrors.

Alison Brie and Dave Franco both bring great range to a pair of complicated characters in a complicated relationship.

Obviously nothing is hurt by the film starring two talented and charismatic leads who make effective use of their demonstrated range. There is a terrific blend of sweetness, awkwardness, and anger that make up the relationship between the main characters, and Alison Brie and Dave Franco have the natural chemistry that makes it all feel very real. And not only is there plenty of heavy emotional material for the performers to explore, but there is also impressive physical work as they are both attracted to each other and fused with awesome movie magic.

Some amazing makeup and effects work in Together will have you gasping.

It’s somewhat unfair that Together has to live in the shadow of Coralie Fargeat’s The Substance, which blew minds late last year with its extremely gory, body horror madness, but for its scale and what it attempts to do, Michael Shanks’ movie will most certainly have more sensitive members of the audience averting their eyes and covering their mouths in extreme shock. Not only are brilliant special effects employed as hands gets slowly embedded into arms, but there is also chilling (and seamless) work from contortionist performers and the stomach-churning action of Millie and Tim making efforts to separate themselves. Casual movie-goers will squirm, and genre fans will cheer – with the standout sequence being a very… special bathroom stall encounter between the protagonists.

As far as my personal tastes are concerned, I’m always going to appreciate a gnarly horror movie with smart themes and complicated characters, and Together effectively checks all of those boxes. It has limitations, which can be excused by production resources, but it’s still a standout during a hot time for the genre, and it immediately establishes Michael Shanks, a filmmaker with a wicked vision, as a talent to watch.

Dave Franco is having a body horror moment on the 2025 movie schedule. As the twisted delights of Together are about to blow some minds, and empty some stomachs, the upcoming horror movie sees Franco and wife Allison Brie get pretty close. With a resume such as his, the Neighbors star probably has stories to tell on all sorts of on-set shenanigans, as seen in his story about how Zac Efron actually hurt himself during a crotch grabbing showdown in that 2014 comedy.

During an appearance on Call Her Daddy, host Alex Cooper asked for some clarification on a story where the High School Musical alum alleged he’d broken his hand while hilarious movie about college life. Dave Franco corrected the record swiftly, offering this explanation for what really happened:

If you have a Netflix subscription and suddenly see Neighbors in the top 10 movies being streamed on the platform, this could be one of the reasons why that result may be on display. Though if you’re curious why frat brothers Teddy (Zac Efron) and Pete (Dave Franco) are getting into such a form of combat, you’ll have to watch the film for yourself.

However, you can read Mr. Franco’s description of how this scene played out, as follows:

It’s a bit weird reading a description of this sort of thing, isn’t it? I mean it doesn't have the same shock value as, say, Dave Franco's surprisingly good Robert De Niro impression. Don’t worry, as there’s a YouTube clip from Neighbors (retitled Bad Neighbors in some territories) showing this handful of chaos in action:

Is it just me, or does the whole black light atmosphere add to the comedy going on here? I don’t know why, but it certainly doesn’t hurt when watching Zac Efron and Dave Franco busting each other’s balls for a laugh. Or at least, observing them go as hard as one can with a cup present in that setting.

Neighbors is currently streaming on Netflix, while Together presents bodily harm of a much graver sort starting on July 31st. Without having seen that new horror show myself, I fear the possibilities of one-upping this story with some grotesque material. So needless to say, I need to see this twisted romance at once!

Horror is presently experiencing a massive boom on the big screen, and while one of the most delightful aspects of the success is that it hasn’t been defined by any single subgenre, there is no question that body horror is having a special moment. One of the most beloved and talked about movies of all of 2024 was Caroline Fargeat’s incredible, sexy and totally disgusting The Substance, and audiences were shocked by what they witnessed earlier this summer in Danny and Michael Philippou’s Bring Her Back. It’s a trend that is continuing in excellent fashion this week with the release of Together starring Alison Brie and Dave Franco – and writer/director Michael Shanks has been delighted to see the obvious hunger demonstrated by sick puppy cinephiles.

Together made its world premiere earlier this year at the Sundance Film Festival, but the filmmaker got to see The Substance with a collection of his colleagues while the work was still being finished, and it certainly made an impression. When I spoke with Shanks last week during the Los Angeles press day for his new 2025 movie, I asked him about the love for body horror that has been getting a spotlight since the release of the Demi Moore/Margaret Qualley film late last year, and he offered a candid response to the Oscar-winner:

I feel I should note: it’s a funny and self-effacing comment from the director, as while it’s true that Together doesn’t go quite as big as The Substance, it has more than a few scenes with great effects that will turn your stomachs. In the new horror movie, the aforementioned Alison Brie and Dave Franco play a couple that moves to a house in a remote, sparsely populated town and becomes afflicted by a supernatural force. A commentary on co-dependent relationships, the protagonists find themselves literally drawn to each other, and the moments of fusion are… not for movie-goers with weak stomachs.

Not only was Michael Shanks wowed by The Substance as a film with some stunning practical effects, he was equally pleased to be a part of a crowd of people who delighted in the revolting insanity as much as he did. He witnessed a theater audibly loving the nastiness being projected, and he recalled the terrifying work of his countrymen Danny and Michael Philippou getting similar responses with their recent features. He continued,

As for whether or not there’s a reason why body horror is having such a great moment in the sun right now, Michael Shanks made an interesting point: it may not be anything specific, because one of the greatest things about the subgenre is that it’s both universal and timeless. Each and every one of us have complicated feelings about the bags of meat in which they inhabit, and there is endless opportunity to exploit it with cinema magic. Said Shanks,

Also starring Damon Herriman, Together is the newest offering from Neon – the distributor that has brought us the horrors of The Monkey, Cuckoo, Longlegs, and Immaculate – and it will be arriving in theaters this Wednesday, July 30. Be sure to check it out on the big screen and then make your way back here to CinemaBlend for more of our coverage, including my interview with Alison Brie and Dave Franco and more from my conversation with Michael Shanks.

Many exciting upcoming horror movie will be playing this summer, like The Home starring Pete Davidson and Zach Cregger’s scary flick Weapons. But the one title that I’m most intrigued by is Neon’s new film Together. The studio’s marketing has taken many shocking tactics teasing the body horror film about codependency, but the latest references the cheating scandal that occurred at a Coldplay concert, and OMG!

If you loved Dave Franco and Alison Brie in the vacation-from-hell horror movie, The Rental, you should be very aware of their return to the genre with Together. The real-life married pair play a couple who move to the countryside only for a supernatural force to literally merge them together. Neon decided to go with an OMG marketing strategy for the 2025 movie release by comparing the summer horror movie to a recent cheating scandal that took place at a Coldplay concert. See if you can find the studio’s humor in the two comparisons:

As Together’s tagline is “It’s the perfect date night movie,” it looks like Neon is playing on that with a screenshot from the scandal that recently took place at the Coldplay concert. As you can see in the photo, a Kiss Cam at the concert captured married Astronomer CEO Andy Byron wrapping his arms around his company’s Chief People Officer, Kristin Cabot.

After being caught on camera, Byron ducked to the ground, and Cabot turned and hid her face. Coldplay’s frontman, Chris Martin then jokingly said to the crowd, “Either they’re having an affair or they’re very shy.” (Per Newsweek)

Based on the trailer of Together, a married couple becomes physically attached in the most literal sense. Neon may be drawing similarities between the horror characters stuck on each other to a screenshot of Andy Byron and Kristin Cabot, who were also “together.” You’ve got to admit that’s one way to draw attention to the hyped movie that premiered at Sundance.

I’d be really curious if Neon’s marketing strategy will work for Together. After all, it wouldn’t be the first time a viral post brought attention to a new horror movie. For example, the first Smile movie’s memorable marketing campaign had actors go to sporting events and other public appearances staring into broadcast cameras with a creepy grin. Its sequel also followed suit when a creepy smile was seen in the audience during LL Cool J’s MTV VMA performance. If Together can also bridge fantasy with reality with its marketing strategy, Neon could have a viral horror flick on its hands.

What an OMG moment it was for Neon to market their new movie Together by relating it to the Coldplay concert cheating scandal. It's an eerie and humorous way to tie two very different kinds of togetherness. And now that you're sufficiently teased about the Michael Shanks-directed feature, make sure to watch his “perfect date night movie” in theaters on July 30.

There are a lot of exciting things happening on the 2025 movie calendar these days. Superman is kicking off the DCU, fast zombies are a thing again in 28 Years Later, and I couldn’t be more excited for the upcoming Naked Gun reboot. I’m also intrigued by the heist movie Now You See Me: Now You Don’t that’s coming in November, and I’m actually really embarrassed that I’m only finding out now that it’s the third movie in a series.

I think I’ve been tricked. It’s the only explanation. Allow me to explain how I came to realize that the Jesse Eisenberg flick has two predecessors, as well as how finally checking out the first movie (available via Netflix subscription) affected my opinion of Now You See Me 3.

I Was Interested In Now You See Me: Now You Don’t Without Even Knowing About The Previous Movies

In my defense, if the three-quel were actually called Now You See Me 3, this wouldn’t have been an issue. This story won’t do much to prove otherwise, but I’d consider myself a fairly intelligent human being. However, this movie is called Now You See Me: Now You Don’t. (The colon is a bit of a hint, but the title in the trailer did not include the colon, and honestly, with movie titles these days, you can never really tell.)

The trailer for the upcoming heist movie played when my daughter and I went to see Jurassic World Rebirth. Admittedly, I didn’t pay too much attention to it, because I don’t like when previews give too much away. I saw Jesse Eisenberg surrounded by a great cast, I saw heists, I saw magic. Sold. That’s all I needed to know … so I thought.

When I returned home, I was recalling the trailers we’d seen — The Running Man remake, The Odyssey teaser, Wicked: For Good — and I mentioned Now You See Me: Now You Don’t to my husband (a fellow CinemaBlend employee) and asked him if he’d heard of it. That was when he broke the news to me: Two other magic heist movies had come before. Not only that, but apparently he’s seen them both and mentioned them to me several times.

*Starts playing air violin to prove I’ve been hypnotized by Woody Harrelson’s Merritt to forget such things.*

How Did Now You See Me Pull Off This Disappearing Act In My Memory?

It seems ridiculous that I hadn’t heard of 2013’s Now You See Me and 2016’s Now You See Me 2. The really annoying part is that I did know about Isla Fisher almost drowning in a water stunt and heard colleagues discussing why the third movie has another water tank scene. I just didn’t know what movie they were talking about.

I have to admit, with this ensemble cast — Jesse Eisenberg, Morgan Freeman, Dave Franco, Woody Harrelson, Mark Ruffalo, Isla Fisher and more, many of whom are apparently returning for Now You See Me: Now You Don’t — it’s actually unreal that I never paid this movie any attention.

My only guess — outside of sorcery, which I’m sticking with as my official defense — is that in the years that both of those movies came out, I had infants in the house. I was barely sleeping and was consumed by a different job that was not as conducive as my current one to keeping me in the know about fun movies about magic.

Quick Note From The Aforementioned Loving Husband

• "While I can safely say with confidence that I'd suggested both the first and second NYSM movies to Heidi around the time of their respective releases, I can also speak to the fact that both of our children were slightly more attention-worthy than any Hollywood directors' efforts at the time. To her credit, I probably couldn't pick the second movie's plot out of a lineup, while I could easily pick at least one of our children out of that same lineup. "

Also, apparently my Netflix algorithm hasn’t been given the information it needs to know that heist films — especially ones with horribly ridiculous plot twists like we get in Now You See Me — are right up my alley. Hopefully I’m on my way to remedying that situation, because I have now watched the 2013 installment of the Four Horsemen’s hijinks, and it made me even more excited for what’s to come.

After Finally Watching The First Movie, I Can’t Wait For The Second And Third

Just in case anyone else is as thick-headed as myself and somehow missed the memo (or rather, saw the memo that was sent multiple times but still threw it away, as some might contend) that a decade ago an all-star Hollywood cast put out two perfectly binge-worthy heist movies revolving around magic, I’m going to keep this spoiler-free. I will, however, say that I understand why some moments from Now You See Me still bother people. Also, I really don’t know what the ending with the carousel was all about.

Absolutely none of that has done anything to dampen my spirits about the second and third movies. I don’t need my heist movies to be realistic any more than I need to know how a magic trick was performed. In fact, if magic is the point of the heist movie, being able to explain everything that happens could suck the fun right out of it.

I may not be able to explain how the Now You See Me 3 trailer is my first conscious awareness of this franchise, but I have to believe there are others out there like me. Maybe there are people who are unfamiliar with the 2013 movie but are just excited to see any film that reunites Jesse Eisenberg and Woody Harrelson with Zombieland director Ruben Fleischer (that alone is reason enough for me to buy a ticket).

Or maybe you also saw the three-quel’s trailer at a showing of Jurassic World Rebirth and thought it sounded like a blast, even if it felt a little like the Four Horsemen’s story was starting in the middle. You can actually check it out below:

Whichever way you've come to the movie, now that we’ve taken off our blindfolds and awoken from our hypnotic trance, there’s plenty of time to get caught up before Now You See Me: Now You Don’t arrives in theaters on Friday, November 14.

Whether you’re watching for the first time or need a refresher on those wild plot twists, both Now You See Me and Now You See Me 2 are available to stream on Netflix.

There are all kinds of exciting upcoming 2025 movies I’m looking forward to as we soon enter the second half of the year, but since the Now You See Me movies arrived for those with a Netflix subscription I’ve been getting more amped for the third movie, Now You See Me: Now You Don’t. When I caught the trailer this week, I wasn’t expecting it to call back to a dangerous stunt from the original film. I need to talk about it.

That Time Isla Fisher Almost Died Filming Now You See Me

Have you heard the story from Now You See Me regarding the water tank scene? Well, I was recently reminded of the story behind it when I came across an old interview on Instagram. Here’s what Isla Fisher told On Demand Entertainment when she was on the Now You See Me press tour:

As you may recall, early in the 2013 movie, Isla Fisher’s magician character of Henley Reeves performs an escapist act where she attempts to get out of being handcuffed in a water tank in under a minute before piranhas are unleashed on her. During the scene, Fisher fakes out the audience by pretending there’s a problem and banging on the glass. Here’s what happened when Fisher really felt trapped in the tank in her words:

I can’t even imagine! There’s been a lot of actors who have incidents while filming movies, but this one is especially scary because she actually could have died if the crew never caught on that she wasn’t acting, but really needed help.

So Why Does Now You See Me 3 Have A Water Tank Scene, Too?

That brings me to what we know about Now You See Me 3, which is officially called Now You See Me: Now You Don’t. The movie’s first trailer dropped in late April to introduce what to expect, which is the return of The Four Horsemen, consisting of Jesse Eisenberg’s J. Daniel Atlas, Woody Harrelson’s Merritt McKinney, Isla Fisher’s Henley Reeves and Dave Franco’s Jack Wilder.

This time they’ll be teaming up with a younger group of magicians played by Justice Smith, Dominic Sessa and Ariana Greenblatt for a heist involving the world’s largest queen diamond from a family crime syndicate. Check out the trailer below:

If you look closely at around two minutes, you’ll see that there’s a scene being previewed where not only Henley, but all the Horsemen are dropped into a water tank and one shot calls back to the original with Fisher’s character banging on the glass. The trailer shows that the Four Horseman definitely finds a way out of the tank somehow, but I’m so curious about how the stunt was accomplished and how Fisher felt about the whole thing after her traumatizing moment on the set of the original.

It is kind of sweet that all the other main leads did it with her, and I'm excited by the scene, I've got to say. But I need to know more about how and why another water tank scene got written and approved after the hullabaloo surrounding the first movie’s stunt. Anyways, Now You See Me: Now You Don’t hits theaters on November 14, 2025.

Spoilers below for anyone who hasn’t yet streamed The Studio’s Season 1 finale with an Apple TV+ subscription.

Seth Rogen & Co. deserve a lot of praise for everything that’s made The Studio’s first season such a hilarious treat for streaming audiences, from A+ directors cameoing as themselves to the spot-on satire surrounding its Kool-Aid movie to Rogen’s proficiency with on-screen pratfalls. The main cast also excels, of course, but the finale firmly proves that recurring star Bryan Cranston is not only this show’s biggest highlight, but quite possibly the funniest thing on TV in 2025 altogether.

Of course, Cranston’s studio boss Griffin Mill wouldn’t have reached such unpredictably nutty highs and lows without the events of the preceding episode, "CinemaCon,” which goes a long way in supporting this argument. It’s of course where Griffin imbibed on countless shroom-enhanced chocolates and other drugs, leading to a largely bumbling and completely incoherent performance in “The Presentation.” Speaking of…

Bryan Cranston Deserves Awards For His Weekend At Bernie's-esque Physical Comedy

Matt's plight to pull off the most successful CinemaCon presentation imaginable seems all but possible on the morning of the event itself, considering no one involved is able to get any sleep, with Matt thinking it'd be a good idea to have a hallucinogen-fueled rager the night before. Who knows how successful he would have been if not for Griffin showing up and drinking, eating and snorting whatever was in his midst. Behavior that's made all the more troubling by Matt learning Griffin is 82, far older than what others believe him to be.

This perfect set-up for disaster is indeed hell for Matt, Sal and others, and the finale turns into a very self-aware semi-parody of 1989’s vacation-gone-awry movie Weekend at Bernie’s. (The second Andrew McCarthy movie reference, following Matt namechecking Mannequin in a previous episode.) That gimmick could easily lose its appeal with the quickness if handled wrong, but The Studio makes an artform out of it thanks to Bryan Cranston’s upper-echelon physical comedy talents.

The fact that Cranston isn’t playing a corpse makes his lolling and other unpredictable movements all the more hilarious, and there are moments where I felt positive a dummy was used in the actor’s place, only to realize the Breaking Bad star never left. Every single time his head rolled backwards or forwards, with his mouth awkwardly hanging open, I howled. Similarly, his every attempt to lick his ice cream cone floored me. I had to rewind several times because jokes were drowned out by my voice.

While many fans can’t wait to see Bryan Cranston return to the world of Malcolm in the Middle for that sitcom’s upcoming revival, I can’t imagine that anything he does in those four episodes will come anywhere near the excellence of his Studio performance. Which is made all the more impressive due to how completely incomprehensible the character was in the finale, with his only big line happening during the “Movies!” chant that closes things out.

It’s a perfect performance that just doesn’t happen very often in modern entertainment, but Cranston proves beyond all doubt that slapstick will never die. And if it turns out any of The Studio’s shelved episodes are about Griffin Mill, I will do whatever’s necessary to see them come to light.

Though Bryan Cranston's performance is on a wholly different level from everyone else in The Studio's finale, the episode also features the wildest scenes from Zoë Kravitz, who unwittingly chows down on way too many illicit chocolates before realizing that there's psilocybin in them.

I honestly could have watched everything that went down in Kravitz's hotel room in real time, considering how hiliariously childlike and completely random she became. Perhaps the biggest highlight? Her effortlessly nailing the Blackwing presentation for the CinemaCon crowd before walking backstage and gleefully confessing that she was peeing her pants. Pure chaos and pure comedy.

Honorable Mention #1: Zoë Kravitz On Mushrooms Is A+ Television

Honorable Mention #2: Dave Franco Should Always Be This Hysterically Loud And Unpredictable

As if there weren't already enough unpredictable moving parts wandering around Las Vegas during The Studio's final two episodes, Dave Franco's presence is almost completely uncessary from a narrative perspective, but absoultely necessary to ramp up the comedic quotient. He basically exists to offer the loudest and most sporadic exposition possible, as he's also under a number of different influences

It's a testament to Franco's unbridled id-energy and charismatic smile that his performance works so well, since there isn't much to it beyond him yelling and enjoying everything. I mean, he obviously gets as caught up in the mayhem as anyone, and pulls off his own CinemaCon presentation despite being covered in blood from an unrelated incident. And it's hard to judge the crowd for applauding it, since it's surprisingly effective for something so off-the-cuff.

So by the time the Emmys come around again, if Bryan Cranston's name isn't one of the Guest Actor nominees for his stellar work as Griffin Mill, I. guess the only next step would be to eat a bunch of mushroom-filled chocolates and then produce my own version of the Emmys at home. Nobody needs to see that, though.

As far as great comedies go, we really don’t give enough credit to Neighbors. The 2014 collaboration from Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg was hilarious! After Zac Efron reminisced about how memorable Dave Franco’s Robert De Niro impression was, Rogen added his own recollection of shooting the funny frat party sequence.

Amidst Neighbors recently turning ten years old in May, Zac Efron spoke about sharing the scene with Dave Franco where the Delta Psi Beta brothers hold a Robert De Niro party. While The Greatest Showman star remembers “winging” his impression of the Taxi Driver actor, he was shocked by how well Franco nailed the Meet The Parents character. Now, Seth Rogen is weighing in on filming the Neighbors scene. In his words:

In an interview with Etalk, Rogen couldn’t stop laughing as he remembered Dave Franco’s Robert De Niro impression on the set of Neighbors.

As he shared, the production shot the angle of the scene where Rogen and Rose Byrne’s husband and wife characters were speaking to the loud frat bros next door. By the time the camera moved to shoot Efron and Franco, the Now You See Me actor’s face was “exhausted” from holding the expression. Check out the scene itself:

The new tidbit about the making of Neighbors makes it even more impressive! Zac Efron initially spoke about making the 2014 comedy while rewatching iconic scenes from his career thus far for Vanity Fair. Here’s what he said about filming the scene:

It’s such a great scene, especially because of how chaotic the frat party gets as Rogen’s new father gets annoyed with the college kids.

Neighbors was so good that a sequel came out two years later called Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising, which brought Chloë Grace Moretz’s Shelby and her sorority sisters into the neighborhood. Rogen shared a crazy idea for a third Neighbors movie back in 2016, but it feels unlikely another flick would be made.

Thank goodness both Efron and Rogen have projects on the 2024 movie schedule to promote so close together that allowed for these Neighbors stories to pop up. Zac Efron has had a top Netflix movie for three weeks with A Family Affair, and Seth Rogen created and stars in Sausage Party: Foodtopia. The new series is now streaming for those with an Amazon Prime subscription. You can also watch CinemaBlend’s own interview with Rogen, where Kristen Wiig and Sam Richardson talked about recording food orgy scenes.

Doing an impression of Robert De Niro is almost ritual at this point in pop culture, with Matthew McConoughey a close second favorite. But according to Zac Efron, who has worked with the Taxi Driver himself, no one does a better De Niro impression than Dave Franco. Efron was able to see Franco's impression first hand when they filmed Neighbors. And it was during that shoot that Efron was banking on his own impersonation being so bad that it would be hilarious.

The raunchy comedy about a couple with a newborn baby living next door to a frat house released a decade ago, but the Baywatch star says he remembers it so vividly like it was yesterday. In a recent edition of Vanity Fair’s Scene Selection, Zac Efron was asked to rewatch the scene in which the frat brothers throw a Robert De Niro party. The script called for Efron's Teddy Sanders to do an impression of the legendary actor, and the Paperboy star found it was easier said than done:

The High School Musical alum is no stranger to impersonating people on screen. Some of Zac Efron’s best performances have been biopics in which he has portrayed the likes of Kevin Von Erich in The Iron Claw and Ted Bundy in Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile. His performances have been so well done that Rob Lowe expressed interest in the Greatest Showman actor playing him in a biopic, and another person with that desire was the late Matthew Perry, whom Efron played a younger version of in 17 Again. 

While filming Neighbors, Zac Efron ultimately couldn't get the classic “You talkin’ to me?” down nearly as well as the Nerve actor. Dave Franco, who plays Pete Regazolli, managed to not only top Efron’s character but nail his own impression of Mr. De Niro from his Meet The Fockers role. Efron went on to explain:

Dave Franco really commits to his impersonation, even sticking a mole on his face and squinting and scrunching his facial features in proper Fockers fashion. And the Hairspray actor is right, Franco’s impression is dead on, but that’s not even the best part of the 21 Jump Street actor’s bit. My favorite is when he tells Seth Rogan’s Mac Radner that he is upsetting Jinxy cat, and holds up the stuffed cat he had been holding the whole time. You can watch the entire hilarious clip here:

I love anything Dave Franco does and, after watching this scene, I appreciate Franco's acting chops even more. Now, I'm wondering if he actually mimicked Mark Ruffalo’s voice in that one scene from Now You See Me or if it was a voice over. I wouldn’t be surprised if the former were true, given all the other feats he pulled off in that movie. I’m excited to see him reprise his role as Jack Wilder in the third installment of the NYSM franchise, now set to release in November 2025.

The Little Hours actor was only one of an extremely stacked cast in Neighbors, as it was filled with comedy alums. Zac Efron went on to rave about his other co-stars, as well as comment on several other movies throughout his career. Based on his comments, Efron not only has a firm appreciation for comedy -- he also doesn't mind giving his co-stars their props when they're more than due.

If you feel the need to check out Neighbors or its 2016 now you can buy or rent them on digital platforms. Also, check out Zac Efron's newest film, A Family Affair, which recently premiered amid the 2024 movie schedule and is available to stream with a Netflix subscription. 

Now You See Me is about to be a trilogy, as the third movie in the franchise is in the works.

For some time, we didn't really know if Now You See Me 3 was going to happen. While the second film was released in 2016 to mixed reviews, it was a commercial success, and a sequel for a third film was confirmed only a short time after. However, we didn't get much news about the movie until 2024.

Now You See Me 3 is officially happening and taking huge steps forward, and there is so much we know. Let’s get into it.

What Is The Now You See Me 3 Release Date?

At the time of updating this in December 2024, Now You See Me 3 will be released on November 14, 2025, according to Deadline. This means that it’ll be a part of our 2025 movie schedule.

The Now You See Me 3 Cast

We do have an idea of who will return for Now You See Me 3. According to an article from The Hollywood Reporter released in April 2024, four cast members from previous Now You See Me films are expected to return:

Jesse Eisenberg as J. Daniel Atlas

Jesse Eisenberg is expected to return as J. Daniel Atlas in Now You See Me 3. Since 2016's release of the sequel, Eisenberg has appeared in Justice League, Vivarium, The Hummingbird Project, Resistance, Manodrome and many other films. He also was the star of the Fleishman is in Trouble cast on Hulu.

Woody Harrelson as Merritt McKinney

Woody Harrelson is expected to return as Merritt McKinney for Now You See Me 3. Harrelson has since appeared in films like Wilson, War for the Planet of the Apes, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, Solo: A Star Wars Story, Midway, Triangle of Sadness, and Champions. He also had a starring role in True Detective and a main role in The Freak Brothers.

Dave Franco as Jack Wilder

Dave Franco is expected to return as Jack Wilder for Now You See Me 3. Since the second film, plenty of Dave Franco movies have been released, including If Beale Street Could Talk, 6 Underground, Day Shift, The Disaster Artist, Nerve, and more. He was even in the 2024 film Love Lies Bleeding.

Isla Fisher as Henley Reeves

Isla Fisher is expected to return as Henley Reeves in Now You See Me 3. She wasn't in the second film but is expected to return for the third. Since the first movie, she's appeared in movies like Tag, Grimsby, Greed, Strays, Godmothered, and more. She also holds a lead role in the show Wolf Like Me.

Morgan Freeman as Thaddeus Bradley

At first, we didn't know if Morgan Freeman would return for Now You See Me 3, but The Hollywood Reporter said in May 2024 that he's expected to return as Thaddeus Bradley for the third film. Morgan Freeman's best films span decades, but since the 2016 sequel, he's appeared in movies like Coming 2 America, Paradise Highway, Vanquish, and more.

So far, it's been unconfirmed if Mark Ruffalo will return as Dylan Rhodes, although according to IMDB, it does say he’ll be back. Right now, it’s still up in the air, as no official first look of him in the movie has been released. GamesRadar also reported in an interview with Eisenberg in October 2024 that Ruffalo is a part of the cast, so we just might see him again.,

We actually have some additional cast members who have signed on for Now You See Me 3, some of whom are newer-ish faces to the industry and will be welcome additions to the franchise.

Ariana Greenblatt

According to The Hollywood Reporter article above, Ariana Greenblatt is set to appear in Now You See Me 3. The young actress has been on a roll the last few years with several small but meaningful roles – like Avengers: Infinity War, Ahsoka, In The Heights, and more – and has only since grown into more prominent roles, like her big part in the Barbie cast, and the upcoming Fear Street: Prom Queen.

Justice Smith

According to The Hollywood Reporter, in April 2024, it was confirmed that Justice Smith had signed on for a part in Now You See Me 3. The actor has appeared in various movies, including Paper Towns, All The Bright Places, Pokemon Detective Pikachu (which I still want a sequel for), Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves, Sharper, and many more. I know him best from the underrated and canceled too-soon TV show The Get-Down.

Dominic Sessa

Also confirmed by The Hollywood Reporter article in April 2024 regarding Justice Smith was that Dominic Sessa had also joined the NYSM3 cast. Sessa is a fresh face to Hollywood, as his debut role was in The Holdovers.

Rosamund Pike

As said in The Hollywood Reporter article in May 2024, Rosamund Pike is set to join the cast of Now You See Me 3. The actress has appeared in Gone Girl, Saltburn, A United Kingdom, A Private War, I Care a Lot, and more.

Talk about a stacked cast – one that's only going to get bigger.

What Is Now You See Me 3 About?

So far, there are really no plot details out there that we can dig into deeply. However, the Hollywood Reporter articles said that the third film would follow what the last two films did – the lives of the illusionists known as the Four Horsemen, who use their tricks for their heists. Beyond that, we'll have to wait and see what challenges the characters are facing next.

Ruben Fleischer Will Direct The Third Film

It was confirmed by Deadline back in September 2022 that Ruben Fleischer will direct Now You See Me 3. He has directed films like Zombieland, Venom, Uncharted, Gangster Squad and more. Also confirmed in that Deadline article is that Seth Grahame-Smith wrote the script for the film.

Filming Is Complete

The last thing we know is that filming for Now You See Me 3 has officially concluded. The official X (formerly Twitter) for the film tweeted out a few first-looks of the movie now that filming had wrapped, showing off the cast:

This just makes me more excited for 2025 to come.

What are you the most excited about when it comes to Now You See Me 3? I'm so eager to witness where it goes from here – or at least attempt to, as they do tricks beyond my very eyes.

Marriages can be tricky. Some couples can work together, while others need that time apart to make their living situation work. Things can get even more challenging if the pair work in the same industry. Now, imagine part of your job involving seeing your partner in a spicy sex scene, like one you might find in one of the sexually explicit movies on Netflix, now add the extra layer of having to direct said scene. It seems like it would be pretty uncomfortable, but for married couple Alison Brie and Dave Franco, that doesn't seem to be the case. According to Brie, it's all part of the job description.

Alison Brie now stars in Franco's recent movie, Somebody I Used to Know, the second big-screen collaboration for the couple with the actor in the director's chair after the horror movie The Rental–an experience the actress says was wonderful. While chatting with Jezebel the Community alum was asked whether or not it's uncomfortable to see each other in intimate scenes, especially in the movies they work together on. Brie said they don't get uncomfortable after working together for so long because they are both actors who understand it's part of the job description. She said:

Brie and Franco have had relatively active acting schedules, so one can imagine that romantic scenes are bound to crop up, especially when both of their stars are on the rise and are in more demand. It's good to hear the two don't get jealous, and they recognize sex scenes for what they are: work.

The Horse Girl actress said that though it probably sounds crazy, witnessing her partner in love scenes with other actors isn't all that weird for her. Brie also added that when it comes to Somebody I Used to Know, which was written by the pair and directed by Franco, they see the film as their "baby," and the only thing on their minds is making the best film possible. She continued, talking about the film that features her having intimate scenes with another actor: 

While seeing your partner in a romantic situation (job or not) might be hard for audience members to imagine, Alison Brie has never been shy about her sex appeal and love for her body, which has extended to many of her roles. She was happy to showcase herself trying on lingerie in one of the best rom-coms of all time, Sleeping With Other People. Plus, in her and Franco's rom-com, the couple decided to write Brie's "love of streaking" into the screenplay. And you know what? Good for her.

You can decide for yourself whether or not Alison Brie's sex scene with Jay Ellis comes across as awkward or not by catching Somebody I Used to Know, streaming now for anyone with an Amazon Prime subscription.

Alison Brie is an actor who is never afraid to show off her sex appeal and love for her body. Remember, this is the same woman who we saw trying on lingerie in one of the best rom-coms of all time, Sleeping With Other People. In her next rom-com, Somebody I Used To Know, Brie decided to show off her “love of streaking” and take it to a whole other level by writing it into the movie.

We all have moments when we want to just shed our clothes and bare all. Whether you want people to look or not, of course, is up to you. Alison Brie definitely has the courage to do so, as the poster for Somebody I Used To Know shows her running stark naked. Because she loves to streak so much, she told Entertainment Tonight that she couldn’t help but write a scene in her husband Dave Franco’s new rom-com where her character runs nude on a golf course. Said Brie,

While we may picture in our minds running through a field stark naked with no care in the world, Alison Brie is basically living out our fantasies with gusto. According to People, while the Community actress acknowledges her character in Somebody I Used to Know is not a reflection of her, she took it upon herself to draw from aspects of her personality and sense of humor for the role. The plot of the new film may seem familiar – with a woman finding a spark between her and her ex only to find out he’s engaged – but expect to see free-spirited scenes of pot-smoking, adult humor, and running freely naked outside. 

One person who may not be completely comfortable with Alison Brie’s right to bare all would be her husband. The Mad Men actress continued telling People that she’s spent years talking Dave Franco into being comfortable with her nudity in public. This being her husband, his averseness to it makes sense. But, there's no better way of telling your wife his newfound comfortableness about it than by having her appear nude on-screen in one of his movies. The 21 Jump Street actor told ET that Brie was running up and down the halls naked in their home moments ago with his wife giving a logical reason for that:

Maybe we should all try that before we go to sleep. One thing you may not know about the GLOW star was that she was a nudist while studying theater at the California Institute of the Arts. Back in the early 2000s, she would occasionally jog around campus in only her tennis shoes or even hang from a tree nude to get a laugh out of her roommate! Considering she believes the last time she indulged in nudity was during her time on the binge-worthy Netflix series GLOW with its last episode being three years ago, it’s been a long time coming for her to be her most natural self, to say the least.

The fun is not over yet for Alison Brie, as she and Dave Franco are in the middle of another writing project together. Who knows if the nudist actress will have her way again with yet another streaking scene in their next film? Get ready to watch Somebody I Used to Know on your Amazon Prime subscription on February 10.

Vampires are clearly never going to die. I mean that both in the sense that these creatures of the night are ageless (as long as they drink enough blood, avoid garlic, and don’t get stabbed) and that stories about this classic staple from some of the best horror movies will likely continue to get made until the end of time. Luckily, we have films like the new horror-comedy Day Shift to keep things fresh and interesting along the way.

From first-time director J.J. Perry — a stunt performer and coordinator for films like the John Wick franchise — this new Netflix original movie stars Jamie Foxx as a desperate family man using his pool cleaning business as a front for hunting vampires lurking in the San Fernando Valley. Before you check out this new “gun-fu” style take on the subgenre pioneered by Bram Stoker and Anne Rice, let’s meet the hunters and the hunted of the Day Shift cast — starting with our Academy Award-winning lead.

Jamie Foxx (Bud Jablonski)

Making his horror debut as vampire hunter Bud Jablonski in Day Shift is Jamie Foxx, who has done almost everything else under the sun since his stand-up career led to a break-out spot on the In Living Color cast. He played a football player in Any Given Sunday, took on Tom Cruise in Collateral, sought revenge in the brutal western Django Unchained, played a psychopath in Baby Driver, and played Spider-Man villain Electro in two Marvel superhero movies (so far).

The Grammy-winner has also presented his musical talent in movies like the music biopic Ray (which earned him a Best Actor Oscar), the cinematic adaptation of Broadway hit Dreamgirls, and as the lead of Pixar’s Soul cast more recently. Day Shift is only his latest Netflix collaboration — following  Dad Stop Embarrassing Me! and Project Power — and won’t be his last in 2022 with upcoming sci-fi comedy They Cloned Tyrone. 

Dave Franco (Seth)

As Bud’s vampire hunting partner, Seth, we have Dave Franco — certainly no stranger to horror having starred in the 2011’s Fright Night remake, as well as writing and directing The Rental, to name just a few. The multi-hyphenate is even more well-averse in comedy, having starred in modern classics like Superbad, 21 Jump Street and its sequel, Neighbors and its sequel, The LEGO Movie, and AppleTV+’s The Afterparty cast most recently.

Franco has also done plenty of drama, such as biopics Milk and The Disaster Artist, Oscar-winners like If Beale Street Could Talk, mind-bending thrillers like the Now You See Me movies, and action films like 6 Underground. The Michael Bay-helmed 2019 flick was also Franco’s most recent Netflix collaboration preceding Day Shift and following a guest spot on Bojack Horseman, the 2018 drama 6 Balloons, and a recurring role on Easy.

Snoop Dogg (Big John Elliott)

Fellow vampire hunter Big John Elliott is played by Snoop Dogg, who is also no stranger to horror (he played the title role of 2001’s Bones), comedy (he made his feature film debut in stoner classic Half Baked), and horror-comedies (he starred in and executive produced Snoop Dogg’s Hood of Horror in 2006, to name just one example). Another notable example of his spookier career highlights is voicing Cousin It in the recent animated reboots of The Addams Family.

What really got the hip-hop legend noticed for his acting chops, however, was his role in Antoine Fuqua’s Training Day, which led to more major roles in movies like Starsky & Hutch, Dreamworks’ animated hit Turbo, or his other most recent Netflix original movie, Dolemite is My Name. Snoop also plays himself in many movies and TV shows — like in Pitch Perfect 2, for instance. Among his other roles, he voiced a sentient joint in Machine Gun Kelly’s Good Mourning.

Karla Souza (Audrey) 

As vampiric real estate mogul Audrey in Day Shift, we have Karla Souza, who made her acting debut in 1993’s skiing drama Aspen Extreme years before starring in movies and TV shows based in her native Mexico. She broke out into the American mainstream with a regular role on How to Get Away with Murder as Laurel Castillo. 

She would follow that hit drama by starring on Amazon Prime’s Spanish-language drama series El Presidente and the ABC comedy Home Economics. Souza also has a horror credit to her name — the 2019 remake of Jacob’s Ladder opposite Michael Ealy. She also previously starred in a Netflix original movie called The Sleepover in 2020.

Meagan Good (Jocelyn Jablonski) 

Playing Bud’s wife, Jocelyn, is one of the most underrated actors of her generation, Meagan Good, who debuted in iconic the 1995 comedy Friday two years before making her horror debut in the classic Black Horror movie, Eve’s Bayou. The following year she joined the cast of the hit Nickelodeon series, Cousin Skeeter, which might be her most iconic TV credit, if not FOX’s Minority Report series or Amazon Prime’s Harlem. She also appeared in the 2017 TV comedy series, White Famous, which starred Jay Pharoah and was produced by Jamie Foxx. 

A few of Good’s other notable film credits include Rian Johnson’s 2005 Neo-noir thriller Brick, dance flicks Stomp the Yard and You Got Served, both Think Like a Man movies, and Shazam! as Darla’s Superhero counterpart — whom she will reprise on the Shazam! Fury of the Gods cast in 2022. Her other previous horror credits include One Missed Call and Saw V in 2008, 2009’s The Unborn, The Intruder in 2019, and the cinematic adaptation of video game Monster Hunter from 2020. 

Steve Howey And Scott Adkins (The Nazarian Brothers)

As sibling vampire hunting duo The Nazarian Brothers, we have Steve Howey and Scott Adkins — the latter of whom has an impressive reputation as an action star for his appearances in one of the Jason Bourne movies (The Bourne Ultimatum, namely), a few of the Expendables movies, and the Oscar-winning Zero Dark Thirty, to name a few. Adkins is also part of the MCU, having played one of Kaecilius’ henchman in Doctor Strange in 2016.

Steve Howey is best known from TV comedies like Reba as Van and, especially, from Showtime’s Shameless cast as Kevin Ball, but has dabbled in action (normally on TV shows like Sons of Anarchy and CBS’s SEAL Team) as well as action comedy (with recent movies like 2019’s Stuber and his last Netflix original project, Game Over, Man!, from the year before). He is also a horror-comedy veteran, having played the title role of 2009’s Stan Helsing, opposite Kenan Thompson and Leslie Nielsen.

Natasha Liu Bordizzo (Heather)

Bud’s neighbor, Heather, is played by Natasha Liu Bordizzo — who made her debut in an action-packed Netflix original movie (2016’s Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: Sword of Destiny) and later starred on the platform’s short-lived coming-of-age fantasy series The Society in 2019. In between then, she starred in 2017’s hit musical The Greatest Showman and the fact-based political thriller Hotel Mumbai the following year.

Also in 2019, Natasha Liu Bordizzo was the female lead in the romantic-comedy Crazy About You and appeared alongside Daniel Radcliffe and Samara Weaving in Guns Akimbo a year before starring in Quibi’s Most Dangerous Game opposite Liam Hemsworth. In 2021, she collaborated with Netflix again to lend her voice to the animated film Wish Dragon and appeared in Amazon Prime’s The Voyeurs with Sydney Sweeney and Justice Smith and, in 2023, look out for her on Disney+’s upcoming Star Wars TV show Ahsoka as Sabine Wren. 

Zion Broadnax (Paige Jablonski)

As Bud and Jocelyn’s daughter, Paige, we have Zion Broadnax — who has already acquired a lengthy resume in her few years in the business. After debuting in the 15-minute crime thriller Deducoria in 2018, she made her feature-length debut the same year in the holiday fantasy comedy Holly Day. 

In between other short films, Broadnax would appear on the fire department-set Grey’s Anatomy spin-off Station 19, did an episode of Disney Channel’s Sydney to the Max, and was in the pilot for Abbott Elementary. She is currently lending her voice to the Paramount+’s upcoming animated series, Transformers: Earthspark.

Eric Lange (Ralph Seeger) 

As a beureaucratic vampire hunter’s union leader named Ralph Seeger, we have Eric Lange, who also encountered vampires early in his career with a guest spot on Angel. While he also appeared in several episodes of Lost, the TV credit he is best known for, however, might be as passionate performing arts teacher Mr. Sikowitz on Nickelodeon’s Victorious, if not Lyle Mitchell on Escape from Dannemora, Detective Holcomb on HBO’s Perry Mason, or Bill Stechner on the Narcos cast.

The Wind River actor’s other Netflix original credits include Unbelievable and Brand New Cherry Flavor, which is only the most recent horror-centric credit of his career after appearing in Antebellum and the underrated mind-bender The Empty Man in 2020. Lange also has a horror-comedy under his belt with 2016’s Fear Inc., with Abigail Breslin.

Peter Stormare (Troy) 

Playing the role of Troy — a pawn-broker with connections to the vampire-hunting business — is Peter Stormare, who last worked with J.J. Perry on John Wick: Chapter 2. That 2017 sequel also saw one of a few times he worked with Keanu Reeves (i.e Constantine and Swedish Dicks) and the umpteenth time he played a villainous sort of character (a list that deserves its own article).

Perhaps the Swedish actor is best known for the times he has starred in Coen Brothers movies (such as Fargo or The Big Lebowski), in Michael Bay movies (like Armageddon and Bad Boys II), or Steven Spielberg movies (i.e. The Lost World: Jurassic Park and Minority Report). Stormare’s seemingly endless resume also contains a few vampiric roles, such as Bram Stoker’s famous character in the animated The Batman vs. Dracula and Godbrand on Netflix’s Castlevania.

If you were not already sold on the idea of a John Wick-style vampire movie, perhaps the Day Shift cast is enough to convince you not to sleep on this new horror-comedy on Netflix.

Summer is a great time for fun action movies, and this year’s been a pretty good one. But between all the fighter jets, dinosaurs and bullet trains, can we all agree that there’s always room for more vampire movies? Netflix is here to answer the call with Day Shift. And while we’re not talking about Twilight here (the Day Shift trailer pokes some fun at the sparkly vampires), it looks to provide plenty of laughs and some pretty wild vampire contortionism thrown in for good measure.

The film stars Jamie Foxx and Dave Franco (check out CinemaBlend’s exclusive interviews with the Day Shift actors here!), as well as Snoop Dogg, who was personally cast by Foxx. The critics have seen the movie, and while “buddy cop-esque movie where Jamie Foxx and Snoop hunt vampires” sounds like a pretty good endorsement by itself, I guess we should let the professionals do their thing. Let’s check out the reviews, starting with CinemaBlend’s review of Day Shift. Eric Eisenberg rates the Netflix movie 1.5 stars out of 5, saying that while it’s definitely flashy, the film is also lazy and scattered, resulting in a finished product that’s really dull:  

Lovia Gyarkye of The Hollywood Reporter isn’t quite as down on the project, calling it “passable popcorn entertainment.” The critic says Day Shift is enjoyable enough if audiences don’t read too much into it, and the leading trio’s jabs and one-liners make for characters worth rooting for:

Chris Evangelista of SlashFilm rates it 5 out of 10, saying Day Shift succeeds with its action, but, as noted by other critics, doesn’t develop its most interesting ideas. It’s inoffensive enough, and Jamie Foxx gives a good performance — even if his character is a little one-dimensional. From the review:

Sam Stone of Comic Book Resources says the movie is enjoyable enough for viewers in the dog days of summer. While certainly not trying to break any new ground, there’s enough gore and comedy — and plenty of action — to make it possibly one of Netflix’s better original movies of the summer. The critic says: 

The review from Todd McCarthy of Deadline, however, falls more in line with CinemaBlend’s, as the critic says the script never rises to the occasion of the action put forth by J.J. Perry’s fight sequences, and the whole movie is a “hodge-podgy mess”: 

The critics seem a little conflicted, with many wanting more from the script despite their positive comments about the action. If you want to check this one out for yourself, or if Day Shift sounds like just the thing your summer has been missing, you can catch it on streaming with your Netflix subscription starting on Friday, August 12. 

Check out some of Netflix’s other August 2022 releases, as well as our 2022 Movie Release Schedule if you’d like to start planning your next trip to the theater.

Netflix's "Day Shift" stars Jamie Foxx, Dave Franco and director J.J. Perry chat about their upcoming supernatural action film in this interview with CinemaBlend's Sean O'Connell. They discuss what they loved most about making the movie, how they filmed some of its coolest action scenes, and of course, Jamie Foxx has more “Spider-Man: No Way Home” behind-the-scenes drama for us.

Video Chapters

• 00:00 - Intro / ‘Spider-Man’ Tease
• 00:16 - Jamie Foxx On How Trailers Make Or Break A Film’s Debut Today
• 02:05 - Dave Franco Explains ‘Day Shift’s' Hilarious ‘Miami Vice’ Reference
• 02:51 - Director J.J. Perry’s ‘Bag of Tricks’ Was Endless When It Came To ‘Day Shift’s' Gory Action
• 03:40 - How Director J.J. Perry Took Car Chase Scenes To The Next Level With New Technology
• 05:23 - Jamie Foxx Almost Completely Spoiled ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ While Filming
• 06:52 - Director J.J. Perry On Working With Foxx And Franco As Newly Minted Directors Themselves
• 07:49 - Jamie Foxx Gives An Update On ‘All-Star Weekend’

It’s an understatement to say the the library of original Netflix movies is wild, especially when it comes to Jamie Foxx. Previously, he got to flex some super powered muscle in the platform’s action flick Project Power; but now the Academy Award winner is saddling up for a new gig in the Netflix original Day Shift. This time, Foxx is cracking Twilight jokes while hunting vampires for cash, and he’s got Snoop Dogg’s help for that second half of the equation. 

Courtesy of a new trailer released by Netflix, we see Jamie Foxx playing Bud Jablonski, a professional vampire hunter who’s in need of some serious money. Unfortunately, he and the official union for vamp blasting kind of parted ways on some less than friendly terms, thanks to Bud being a bit of a bad cop when it comes to his job. 

Seeing as that’s where the big money’s at, he teams up with friend Big Jon Elliot (Snoop Dogg) and a very skittish newbie (Dave Franco) to get his cred back and save the day. Which is exactly where Day Shift kicks the fun into gear, as this new film looks like a buddy cop movie, with vampire hunting, "from the guys who taught John Wick to kick ass." 

On top of some sick action moves, undoubtedly bolstered by producer Chad Stahelski and his John Wick pedigree, there’s a lot of colorful visuals and humor in Day Shift’s first look. California is made into a hotspot for bloodsucking baddies yet again, and the tone is fast and fun based on this footage. Not to mention, much like Stahelski's other action universe, the international union of vampire hunters could be the next Continental, leading to all sorts of surprises in potential sequels.

Jamie Foxx and Dave Franco having a debate about how the former knows the names to The Twilight Saga’s sequels pairs rather well with the footage of flat-screen decapitations and no-look shotgun blasts we’ve seen. Could Bud Jablonski’s knowledge be so deep that he knows where to stream the Twilight movies? If so, let's hope that Snoop Dogg somehow gets a good joke in related to that fact.

Knowing that Jamie Foxx personally cast Snoop Dogg to play against type makes his inclusion in Day Shift all the more exciting. While you’ve still got some of the rapper’s hallmarks present, especially with his on-brand one-liner used to close out the trailer, that swagger that Foxx mentioned is definitely there. Not to mention, watching Snoop Dogg tearing through hordes of vampires with a machine gun named “Big Bertha” is something most people can admit they enjoy seeing. 

High action movies are always welcome, especially if they happen to hit during the summer movie season. Day Shift may be creeping in on the tail end of the fun, but with Jamie Foxx and Snoop Dogg teamed up to bring the fight to those with fangs, it’s a good bet that people won’t forget about this movie any time soon. Foxx may not have the powers of a pistol shrimp like in Project Power’s ending, but as you can see, his aim is still pretty deadly. 

Day Shift calls open season on all vampires, as the upcoming Jamie Foxx movie is set to debut on August 12th. While it’s not specified in the trailer, the lack of an “Only on Netflix” message does hint that this could be headed to limited theatrical release; so keep your eyes peeled. In the meantime, there’s a whole bunch of added fun on the 2022 Netflix movie schedule, and it’s waiting for anyone who is seeking its knowledge.

Every once in a while, celebrity siblings - such as Ben and Casey Affleck or Dakota and Elle Fanning - end up sharing the screen together. Well, apparently it happens a little more often than just every once in a while, given the amount of examples we compiled below.

Jake And Maggie Gyllenhaal (A Dangerous Woman, Homegrown, Donnie Darko)

Oscar nominee Jake Gyllenhaal and his twice-nominated older sister, Maggie, are in three movies together: 1993’s A Dangerous Woman, 1998’s Homegrown (both were directed by their father, Stephen), and the eventual sci-fi cult classic, Donnie Darko, in 2001.

Jeff And Beau Bridges (The Fabulous Baker Boys)

Oscar winner Jeff Bridges and his older brother, Beau, also played siblings in The Fabulous Baker Boys - a 1989 comedy in which the titular musicians become rivals after teaming up with a beautiful aspiring singer (Michelle Pfieffer).

Kate And Rooney Mara (Urban Legends: Bloody Mary)

Kate Mara of the House of Cards cast led the 2005 straight-to-video slasher, Urban Legends: Bloody Mary, in which her younger sister, Nightmare Alley’s Rooney Mara, made her acting debut.

Sean And Chris Penn (At Close Range)

Future two-time Oscar-winner Sean Penn and his late younger brother, Chris (best known from the Reservoir Dogs cast) played siblings in the 1986 crime thriller, At Close Range, starring Christopher Walken as their criminal father.

Andrew, Owen, And Luke Wilson (Bottle Rocket, The Royal Tenenbaums) 

Owen Wilson and his younger sibling, Luke have also acted alongside their eldest brother, Andrew, in 1996’s Bottle Rocket and The Royal Tenenbaums from 2001 - both of which Owen also co-wrote with director Wes Anderson.

Chris And Luke Hemsworth (Thor: Ragnarok)

Chris Hemsworth has yet to star in anything with his little bro, Liam, but the Australian Marvel movie star’s older bother, Westworld star Luke, did show up in Thor: Ragnarok as a dramatized version of the God of Thunder, whom he is set to reprise (along with Matt Damon as “Actor Loki”) in Thor: Love and Thunder.

Dylan And Cole Sprouse (Various)

Twin brothers Dylan and Cole Sprouse (the latter of which went on to join the Riverdale cast) have shared the same role in several TV shows (most notably Grace Under Fire) and movies (such as Big Daddy with Adam Sandler) and have played siblings just as often, most famously as the title characters of The Suite Life of Zack & Cody, its spin-off The Suite Life on Deck, and 2011’s The Suite Life Movie.

Tia, Tamera, And Tahj Mowry  (Sister, Sister, Smart Guy, Seventeen Again)

Twin sisters Tia and Tamera Mowry have shared the screen with their little brother, Tahj, several times - most notably as guest stars on each other’s respective sitcoms, Sister, Sister and Smart Guy, and in the 2000 Showtime original movie, Seventeen Again.

James And Dave Franco (The Disaster Artist)

After years finding success in the business in separate projects, James Franco and his younger brother, Dave, played Tommy Wiseau and Greg Sestero of the infamous cult favorite, The Room, in the 2017 biopic, The Disaster Artist.

Hilary And Haylie Duff (Various)

Haylie Duff would appear on three episodes of her younger sister, Hilary’s, Disney Channel show, Lizzie McGuire, and provided the singing voice of Isabella Parigi in the theatrical spin-off before they both played a singing group on an episode of American Dreams, sisters in the 2006 rags-to-riches story Material Girls, and both leant their voices to the infamous animated movie Foodfight!, which was released in 2012.

Aly And AJ Michalka (Various)

Singer-songwriter duo Aly and AJ Michalka first shared the screen in the 2006 Disney Channel original movie Cow Belles as sisters, again in the MTV original Super Sweet 16: The Movie the next year as rivals, followed by three episodes of Aly’s CW series Hellcats in 2011 as half-sisters. Most recently, they appeared in the 2015 drama, Weepah Way For Now, as what appear to be fictionalized versions of themselves.

Dakota And Elle Fanning (I Am Sam, Taken)

Elle Fanning has portrayed a younger version of her older sister, Dakota, on two separate occasions: first in the 2001 drama I Am Sam and secondly in the Steven Spielberg-produced, Syfy original miniseries, Taken, in 2002.

Spencer And Abigail Breslin (Various)

Academy Award nominee Abigail and her older brother, Spencer, played siblings in both Raising Helen and The Princess Diaries 2: A Royal Engagement in 2004, played elves in The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause in 2006, and later played cousins in the 2014 crime drama, Perfect Sisters.

Jason And Justine Bateman (Arrested Development)

Justine Bateman played her real-life brother, Jason's, sibling in the 1986 TV movie Can You Feel Me Dancing? and a sex worker whom Jason’s Michael Bluth mistakes for his long-lost sibling on Arrested Development.

John, Joan, Ann, And Bill Cusack (Grosse Pointe Blank)

While beloved star John Cusack and his Academy-nominated sister, Joan, have appeared in more films together than most celebrity siblings can claim (including Say Anything… and High Fidelity), the only screen credit that they also share with both their sister, Ann, and brother, Bill, is 1997’s Grosse Pointe Blank, which John also co-wrote and produced.

Bill And Brian Doyle Murray (Various) 

Bill Murray and his older brother, Brian, are both Saturday Night Live veterans (although at different times) and have several classic movies in common - including Caddyshack, Scrooged, Ghostbusters II, Groundhog Day, and The Razor's Edge.

Ben And Casey Affleck (Good Will Hunting, Chasing Amy)

Years before casting him in his amazing directorial debut, Gone Baby Gone, Ben Affleck shared the screen with his younger brother and fellow Oscar winner, Casey, in Good Will Hunting (which Ben co-wrote with Matt Damon) and Kevin Smith’s Chasing Amy in 1997.

Macaulay And Kieran Culkin (Home Alone, Home Alone 2: Lost in New York)

Kieran Culkin (now more famous than ever since starring on HBO’s Succession) made his acting debut alongside his older brother (child megastar Macaulay Culkin) in 1990’s Home Alone cast as his cousin, Fuller - a role he would also reprise in the 1992 sequel.

Rory And Kieran Culkin (Igby Goes Down)

In addition to playing Macaulay’s younger self in Richie Rich, the youngest Culkin brother, Rory, also played a younger version of Kieran as the title role in 2002's Igby Goes Down.

The Wayans Siblings (Various) 

Where do we start with the Wayans Siblings? Well, for instance, several of them (such as Damon and Kim Wayans) were a part of the In Living Color cast with star and creator Keenen Ivory Wayans, who later directed his younger brothers, Marlon and Shawn, in movies like White Chicks, the first two Scary Movie installments, and Little Man.

Zooey And Emily Deschanel (Bones)

In Season 5 of Bones, star Emily Deschanel’s sister (Zooey of the Elf cast fame and later the lead of the New Girl cast) guest starred as Temperance Brennan’s second cousin, Margaret Whitesell.

Fred And Ben Savage (Little Monsters, The Wonder Years, Boy Meets World)

After playing siblings in the family-friendly horror film, Little Monsters, in 1989, Ben Savage made a guest appearance on his older brother, Fred’s, hit dramedy, The Wonder Years, in 1990 and later returned the favor by inviting him to the Boy Meets World cast for an episode in 1998.

Charlie Sheen And Emilio Estevez (Various)

After making several movies together - including Young Guns, Men At Work, and Rated X (the latter two of which Emilio Estevez directed), Charlie Sheen (née Carlos Estevez) reunited with his brother on an episode of his hit sitcom, Two and a Half Men, in 2008.

Vanessa and Laura Marano (Saving Zoë)

Both of these talented ladies had guest appearances on Dexter at different times in the series’ run, but Vanessa Marano and her younger sister, Laura, did appear together in the 2019 mystery, Saving Zoë, as siblings torn apart by one’s unsolved murder.

Nat And Alex Wolff (The Naked Brothers Band, Mr. Troop Mom, Stella’s Last Weekend)

Hereditary’s Alex Wolff and his older brother, Peacock’s Joe vs. Carole cast member Nat Wolff, both debuted as fictionalized versions of themselves in Nickelodeon’s faux rockumentary, The Naked Brothers Band, its series continuation, and the 2009 TV movie Mr. Troop Mom before reuniting in 2018’s Stella’s Last Weekend, which was written and directed by their mother, Polly Draper.

Vera And Taissa Farmiga (Higher Ground, At Middleton, The Nun)

Scream Queens Vera and Taissa Farmiga, who are often mistaken for mother and daughter, played mother and daughter in 2013’s At Middleton after Taissa previously played her older sister’s younger self in Vera’s 2011 directorial debut, Higher Ground. However, interestingly, their characters in the 2018 Conjuring spin-off, The Nun, have no apparent familial ties.

Maude And Iris Apatow (Knocked Up, This Is 40, Funny People)

Euphoria’s Maude Apatow and her younger sister, Iris, have played siblings in 2007’s Knocked Up, its “sort-of sequel” This is 40 from 2012, and 2009’s Funny People - all three of which also starred their real mother, Leslie Mann, as their mother, and were written and directed by their father, Judd Apatow.

Dan And Sarah Levy (Schitt’s Creek)

While Annie Murphy plays co-creator Dan Levy’s on-screen sister in the Schitt’s Creek cast, Café Tropical owner, Twyla Sands, is played by his real-life sister, Sarah.

Mary-Kate, Ashley, And Elizabeth Olsen (How The West Was Fun)

After Full House made the Olsen Twins, Mary-Kate and Ashley, household names and  before the Marvel movies made their younger sister, Elizabeth, an A-lister, all three of them appeared together in the ABC original TV movie How the West Was Fun in 1994.

Bill And Alexander Skarsgård (White Water Fury)

Years before his terrifying performance as Pennywise in It, Bill Skarsgård made his acting debut alongside his older brother, True Blood cast member Alexander, in the 2000 Swedish thriller, White Water Fury.

Blake And Robyn Lively (Simon Says)

Robyn Lively, star of 1989’s Teen Witch, shared the screen with her then up-and-coming half-sister, former Gossip Girl cast member Blake Lively, in a 2006 slasher flick called Simon Says, which also stars fellow ‘80s icon Crispin Glover.

Brian And Domhnall Gleeson (Mother!, Frank Of Ireland)

Despite plenty of years of experience between the them, it was not until 2017 when Star Wars star Domnhall Gleeson and his younger brother, Brian, shared the screen in Mother! before reuniting as co-creators and co-stars of the Amazon Prime original comedy Frank of Ireland - also starring their father, Brendan Gleeson.

Eddie And Charlie Murphy (Harlem Nights, Norbit)

Comedy icon Eddie Murphy worked behind the scenes a lot with his older brother, Charlie, who passed away in 2017, but the two would also share a few acting credits, - namely Eddie’s 1989 directorial debut Harlem Nights (also Charlie’s first movie), and in 2006’s Norbit, in which Charlie voiced a dog named Floyd.

Phylicia Rashad And Debbie Allen (The Cosby Show, Grey’s Anatomy, The Old Settler)

Phylicia Rashad and her younger sister, Emmy-winning dance legend Debbie Allen, have made guest appearances on each other’s shows - The Cosby Show, on which Rashad played Claire Huxtable, and Grey’s Anatomy, on which Allen plays Dr. Catherine Fox (née Avery) - and both starred in a 2001 TV movie called The Old Settler, which Allen also directed.

Ron And Clint Howard (Various) 

You can find Clint Howard in just about every movie directed by his brother, Ron Howard - including his feature-length directorial debut from 1977, Grand Theft Auto, which was also the brothers’ third time acting alongside each other after the 1963 film The Courtship of Eddie’s Father and a handful of episodes of The Andy Griffith Show.

Angelina Jolie And James Haven (Gia, Hell’s Kitchen, Original Sin)

Audiences probably remember Angelina Jolie’s brother, James Haven, better for other reasons than all the times he shared the screen with his younger sister - namely Gia and Hell’s Kitchen from 1998, and 2001’s Original Sin.

Jared And Shannon Leto (Various)

In addition to being bandmates with his young brother, Oscar winner Jared Leto, in 30 Seconds to Mars, Shannon Leto also shared the screen with him on a couple of episodes of My So-Called Life (on which Jared played the iconic Jordan Catalano) and through brief appearances in the movies Prefontaine from 1997, 1998’s Highway, and Sol Goode in 2003.

Chris And Scott Evans (Before We Go, Playing It Cool)

Former Captain America actor Chris Evans has a brother named Scott who has also appeared in two romantic-comedies from 2014 with his older sibling, called Before We Go (which Chris also directed) and Playing It Cool.

Sarah And Laura Silverman (The Sarah Silverman Program, Bob’s Burgers, Masters Of Sex)

Comedian and actress Sarah Silverman and her sister, Laura, played heavily fictionalized versions of themselves as series regulars on The Sarah Silverman Program, made guest appearances on Showtime’s Masters of Sex together, and have recurred on Bob’s Burgers as Jimmy Pesto’s twin sons, Andy and Ollie.

Kevin, Nick, And Joe Jonas (Camp Rock Movies, Jonas)

Back when they were the biggest thing to come out of Disney Channel, Kevin, Nick, and Joe Jonas played three brothers in a band not named the Jonas Brothers in the Camp Rock movies, and later played themselves to more comedic effect in their own sitcom, aptly titled Jonas.

Looks like talent really does run in the family.

It’s been nearly eight years since the release of Neighbors, the family vs. frat comedy that reintroduced the world to the hilarity of airbag explosions. If you loved following the conflicts between new parents Mac and Kelly Radner and the house of fraternity brothers that live next door, then it shouldn’t be surprising that nearly all the big-name actors from this 2014 movie have gotten even bigger. Let’s take a look at what the Neighbors cast is up to now.

Seth Rogen (Mac Radner)

Despite the fact that Neighbors is a movie featuring gross-out humor and copious amounts of weed jokes, Seth Rogen delivers a heartfelt performance as husband and father Mac Radner while still delivering gut-busting laughs.

Seth Rogen has racked up a long list of acting credits since the premiere of Neighbors, including parts in the Academy Award-nominated film The Disaster Artist, the live-action remake of The Lion King, and Long Shot, in which he stars alongside Charlize Theron.

His current work focuses more on producing and writing for television. In the past five years he’s been the executive producer for eight different shows, two of which he’s also credited as a writer – including the critically acclaimed superhero series The Boys (which has a 97% on Rotten Tomatoes). The Boys will return for its third season this June.

Rogen’s upcoming projects include producing roles for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2023) and The Something, an astronaut thriller. He’s also slated to voice Donkey Kong in the upcoming unnamed Super Mario movie.

Currently, fans can watch Rogen on the new Hulu series Pam & Tommy and hear his voice in Prime Video’s adult comedy Invincible. He’s also branching out into the podcast world with his show Storytime with Seth Rogen and has been honing his crafting skills in his pottery studio.

Zac Efron (Teddy Sanders)

In the years since his role as fraternity president Teddy in Neighbors, Zac Efron’s roles have ranged from a demented serial killer in Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile to a singing playwright in The Greatest Showman. The man has range, okay? He’s also one of many actors on this list to appear in The Disaster Artist.

He’s also produced and appeared in the Netflix series Down to Earth with Zac Efron and is set to appear in the recently-announced adventure series-spinoff titled Killing Zac Efron.

In 2022 we can expect to see Zac Efron in the Disney remake of Three Men and a Baby and The Greatest Beer Run Ever, based on John Donohue’s memoir about delivering beer to his friends fighting in Vietnam in 1967. He’ll also star in the new adaptation of the Steven King novel Firestarter and one of 2022’s upcoming films, Gold, where he’ll star alongside writer and director Anthony Hayes.

Rose Byrne (Kelly Radner)

Don’t ever say women can’t hang with the boys. Rose Byrne managed to be one of the funniest actors in Neighbors, from her stressed-out mom outbursts to her devious meddling skills in the war against Delta Psi Beta.

Recent popular gigs from Rose Byrne include the 2018 comedy Instant Family and her ongoing role as Bea in the Peter Rabbit children's movies. But it’s her role as Gloria Steinem in the 2020 Emmy award-winning drama Mrs. America that could mean she’s attempting a shift from comedy to more dramatic roles. 

Rose Byrne’s current starring role in the Apple TV+ dramedy Physical highlights her comedy chops as well as ability to play more nuanced roles. Byrne stars as Sheila, a 1980’s housewife who channels her self-criticism and need for control into dominating the world of aerobics.

Her upcoming movie They Are Us is based on the 2019 Christchurch attacks on the Muslim community in New Zealand, but we’re also excited to see her act and produce alongside her partner Bobby Cannavale in Seriously Red, a musical film about a Dolly Parton impersonator that will feature music from Dolly Parton herself. The film will be the first from Byrne’s production company, Dollhouse Pictures.

Dave Franco (Pete)

Dave Franco’s role as Pete the frat boy in Neighbors (and as Pete the engaged gay man in Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising) definitely proved his comedic abilities to the world. You might have also seen Dave Franco in his appearances in Oscar-nominated films like If Beale Street Could Talk and The Disaster Artist (yes, the same film produced by his Neighbors costar Seth Rogen).

Dave Franco currently appears in the Apple TV+ series The After Party, a murder-mystery/comedy costarring Tiffany Haddish, Ilana Glazer, Sam Richardson, and fellow Neighbors alum Ike Barinholtz.

Upcoming releases for the youngest Franco brother include Day Shift, set to release in 2022. He’ll also reprise his role as Jack Wilder in the recently announced third installment of the Now You See Me franchise and dip his toes into the waters of directing with his upcoming comedy Somebody I Used to Know.

Ike Barinholtz (Jimmy)

You’ve definitely seen Ike Barinholtz as the goofy (but usually well-meaning) sidekick character in everything from Neighbors to The Mindy Project. He also appeared briefly in the beginning scene of The Disaster Artist.

Barinholtz’ upcoming projects include the true story The White House Plumbers, a five-part miniseries about the Watergate scandal, and The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent, a Nicolas Cage movie starring Nicolas Cage as Nicolas Cage as an informant for the CIA. You know, typical Nic Cage stuff.

Barinholtz’ writing career will continue in 2022 with Maximum Truth, a mockumentary-style comedy in which he’ll also star as the “sketchy friend” character. You can also catch him on Batman: The Audio Adventures, DC’s scripted podcast series featuring Batman stories. Barinholtz voices Harvey Dent/Two-Face. 

Christopher Mintz-Plasse (Scoonie)

From frat brother to guidance counselor? The upcoming comedy Honor Society features Christpher Mintz-Plasse in a role as Mr. Calvin, the guidance counselor to a group of high school seniors trying to get into Harvard. He’ll star alongside Angourie Rice and Gaten Matarazzo in this 2022 Awesomeness Films production.

To catch up on the projects Christopher Mintz-Plasse has been involved in since Neighbors, check out his voiceover work in the ABC comedy When Nature Calls or the Academy Award-winner Promising Young Woman where he appears as a predator-turned-prey to Carey Mulligan’s protagonist. He’s also a prominent player in the ongoing How to Train Your Dragon cinematic universe, and appeared in The Disaster Artist.

Jerrod Carmichael (Garf)

You may remember Jerrod Carmichael as Garf, the frat brother inexplicably dressed as Samuel L. Jackson at the Robert De Niro Party. This standup comedian has since written, produced, and starred in The Carmichael Show and written for Laugh Factory.

Recent credits include a gritty leading role in the Sundance film On the Count of Three, as well as producing and acting roles for the Hulu series Ramy. He’ll pull more double-duty in the future, acting and producing for an upcoming untitled Nate Bargatze project.

Oh, he also appeared in The Disaster Artist, along with basically everyone else on this list. Neighbors co-stars stick together.

In the near future, Carmichael will appear in the 2022 Victorian period-piece Poor Things alongside Willem Dafoe, Emma Stone, and Margaret Qualley.

Brian Huskey (Bill Wazowkowski)

Mac and Jimmy’s boss Bill Wazowkowski was played by none other than character actor Brian Huskey. He’s been in everything from New Girl to Drunk History to The Disaster Artist and continues to appear in TV and film roles of all sizes and genres. Some of his most impressive parts are his tenure as Leon West on the award-winning HBO show VEEP and an appearance in the Marvel film Ant Man and the Wasp.

Current gigs for Huskey include the recurring role of Rudy on Bob’s Burgers and the voices of Doug and Shart on the Apple TV+ cartoon Central Park. In 2022, fans will see Huskey in the 1990's roller rink film Saturday at the Starlight, as well as the thriller Helen’s Dead, both of which are in post-production.

Hannibal Buress (Officer Watkins)

Buress’ scene-stealing role as the cop in Neighbors may have only lasted several minutes, but the movie truly wouldn’t have been the same without him. In the years following Neighbors, Buress continued to steal scenes as Lincoln in the Comedy Central series Broad City.

Recent projects include the 2018 buddy comedy Tag, as well as appearances in both Spider-Man: Homecoming and Spider-Man: No Way Home. (And yes, Hannibal Buress was also in The Disaster Artist.) 

Buress continues to perform as a stand-up comic and has released several comedy specials, including Miami Nights which premiered for free on a YouTube live stream in 2020. He also takes part in the internet series TheDailyBugle.net, a viral marketing campaign for the MCU’s Spider-Man trilogy.

Fans of Neighbors can see many of the cast members reunite in Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising.

Alison Brie and Dave Franco have been regarded as one of Hollywood’s cutest couples for years. Red red-carpet premieres showcase the couple as a loving fun time. The pair have been married for five years. Of course, few viewers don’t know much about the origins of Franco and Brie’s love story. Now, The Afterparty star is opening up about how his proposal to Brie went awry.

Dave Franco went into how he and Alison Brie met during his interview on The Late Late Show with James Corden. Franco spilled he met Brie during Mardi Gras while shooting a project in New Orleans. It was a silver Mardi Gras mask that started it all. The GLOW star wouldn’t let the actor wear the mask the entire evening, before departing and leaving the mask for him with a love note. Franco decided to keep it as a love memento. This led to him implementing the silver mask into his marriage proposal five years later. According to the Day Shift star, everything started on a good note.

Franco felt the mask was a better symbol of their love rather than a huge diamond ring. Thankfully, he understood his wife’s preference for picking out her ring. While the gesture was sweet, things took a turn when it came to the proposal. In this case, it was more on Alison Brie’s part than Dave Franco.

You can’t fault Brie for not remembering the mask. She might’ve thought he threw away the party mask after reading her note. But it spoke to the hopeless romantic in Franco to incorporate the love memento into his proposal. At least, things worked out as Brie ended up accepting his proposal.

The loving relationship between the couple has extended beyond sharing a home. Franco directed Brie in acclaimed horror The Rental, which his wife called the experience “wonderful and easy” with the first-time director. The film proved Dave Franco is one of the Hollywood actors with a promising directing career. Their wonderful experience translated to them teaming up for another film – the romantic comedy Somebody I Used to Know.  Of course, fans were still waiting on the news if they will team up again for a Rental sequel, which Franco is interested in doing.

Right now, the couple is busy with their careers as Franco will pop up in Day Shift with Jamie Foxx and Brie will appear next in Spin Me Round. If you want to check what Alison Brie and Dave Franco have coming up, you can look over our 2022 film schedule as well as our 2022 TV premiere schedule. 

Earlier this week, James Franco did a bombshell interview with Sirius XM’s Jess Cagle. He spoke out on a variety of topics, including sobriety, sex addiction, sleeping with students while teaching and his current relationship (or lack thereof) with his former working partner Seth Rogen. Amidst those comments, though, he explained the reason he is finally speaking out after 2018 accusations.

In fact, over the past several years, James Franco has been silent about allegations of sexual misconduct at his acting school. The actor was never formally charged with anything, but was embroiled in a lengthy lawsuit that ended earlier in 2021 when Franco and others involved agreed to pay out a little over $2 million. 

It’s been six months since the lawsuit was settled, but the actor says he wanted to speak out now simply because he does not want people who know him or formerly knew him to have to speak for him. This includes his brother Dave Franco and the aforementioned Rogen. He spoke with Jess Cagle about why Seth Rogen spoke out, noting:

What James Franco is referring to are some comments made by Seth Rogen just before the lawsuit was settled. Back in May of 2021, Rogen was asked about his current relationship with his Freaks and Geeks and Pineapple Express (among other projects) co-star. Rogen said at the time he does not have any plans to work with his former collaborator right now, a fact Franco also confirmed. He’s not the only person who gets asked about this though. James Franco in particular mentioned his brother Dave Franco, a famous actor in his own right. 

Dave Franco’s been asked about his famous brother for much of his career. The two worked together on several projects, and in 2017 said it took a long time for that to happen simply because he didn’t want to ride on his brothers “coattails.” Apparently, this goes the other way as well, as he’s been dealing with the fallout of what happened with his famous brother, as well. 

James Franco didn’t just explain the reason why he was speaking out now, he actually got into detail on a variety of topics and mistakes he feels he made. Noting he went to treatment and got sober, he said that led to an addiction to sex. He also admitted that he slept with students during his tenure at the acting school, where the allegations of misconduct took place, though he said in the interview that at the time he justified the behavior as OK since it was “consensual.” 

James Franco says he didn’t speak out for a long time because he thought it was time “to pause” after the allegations, revealing he didn’t think it was “the right time to say anything.” Meanwhile, his career has somewhat stalled since the allegations came to light. His TV series The Deuce was cancelled after Season 2.  The allegations also led his Oscars hopeful movie The Disaster Artist (also featuring Seth Rogen) to fall out of favor before the Academy Awards that year. Prior to this interview, the actor most recently made headlines for being roped into the legal drama between Johnny Depp and Amber Heard. 

I have a good feeling that The Batman is about to show us a version of the Dark Knight unlike any interpretation that we have seen on the big screen before. That being said, I am sure that director Matt Reeves’ upcoming DC movie (due for a March 2022 release) will also feature fascinating twists on various other characters known to Gotham City, especially The Riddler.

The comic book villain, whose quite fitting real name is Edward Nygma, has enjoyed toying with the Caped Crusader ever since he was first dreamed up by Bill Finger and Dick Sprang in 1948. The puzzling foe has also inspired various interpretations in Batman movies and TV shows, each one more distinct than the last. Before Academy Award nominee Paul Dano’s new take makes his grand debut, let’s take a look at some of the funniest and most frightening onscreen versions of The Riddler so far.

Frank Gorshin (Batman, Batman: The Movie)

The first actor to ever portray The Riddler in a comic book adaptation (live-action or animated) was Frank Gorshin on the Adam West-led 1960s Batman TV show and its feature-length spin-off, which was released in theaters in 1966. The comedian would actually earn an Emmy nomination for his lively and (at times) wonderfully manic performance in the green suit, which would undeniably set an iron-clad precedent for the character that every actor to succeed him would strive to live up to.

Jim Carrey (Batman Forever)

One of the most essential examples of looking to Frank Gorshin for inspiration is Jim Carrey in Batman Forever. Joel Schumacher assumed directorial duties and Val Kilmer assumed the cowl for this film in which a Bruce Wayne-obsessed Edward Nygma teams up with Two-Face (Tommy Lee Jones) to drain Gotham City citizens' brains with his powerful invention. This goofy sequel has evolved into a bit of a guilty pleasure, but I can honestly say I derive pleasure from watching the Ace Ventura actor chew the scenery in a relentlessly maddening performance that make the film worth revisiting alone.

John Glover (Batman: The Animated Series)

Despite being a cartoon, Batman: The Animated Series is considered less cartoonish than the 1990s live action Batman movies and, fittingly, featured a more reserved and darker version of The Riddler. John Glover (also known for DC adaptations Batman & Robin, Smallville, Shazam!, and Lucifer) invokes a uniquely sinister playfulness when voicing Edward Nygma - a puzzle designer seeking revenge on his former employer in his first appearance on the Emmy-winning series. 

Glover made a strong enough impression on fans to celebrate news that he and Batman voice actor, Kevin Conroy, will both reprise their roles for an upcoming audio drama that serves as a sequel to BTAS.  

Robert Englund (The Batman) 

The underrated, mid-to-late-2000s animated series, The Batman, has a much darker version of The Riddler, with the mere fact that he is voiced by iconic horror movie actor Robert Englund contributing much to that distinction. 

This Edward Nygma (who almost resembles Marilyn Manson in full makeup) is, once again, out to get back at a man who ruined his career, and does so by filling his home with deadly traps. Imagine if the A Nightmare on Elm Street cast member played Jigsaw instead of Freddy Krueger, and then faced off against Batman. That describes this Riddler in a nutshell.

Matthew Gray Gubler (Batman: Assault On Arkham)

Imagine if Criminal Minds cast member Matthew Gray Gubler’s Dr. Spencer Reid had instead become a criminal himself, and that describes this Riddler perfectly for you. He is just about the funniest and most unusually likable character in the 2014 animated movie, Batman: Assault on Arkham, which is really more about the Suicide Squad than it is about Kevin Conroy’s Dark Knight. 

However, the featured Task Force X members have no trouble voicing their personal dislike of the quippy and conceited villain, even after he promises he can help diffuse the bombs Amanda Waller (CCH Pounder) placed in their heads.

Cory Michael Smith (Gotham)

Watching characters slowly fulfill their destinies as Batman villains made Gotham a fun watch for fans, and Riddler’s evolution on the series was certainly no exception. 

Played by Gotham cast member Cory Michael Smith, Edward Nygma’s origin is a fascinating one - having initially worked as a brilliant (but widely disliked) forensic scientist for the GCPD until unforeseen circumstances caused his murderous split personality to emerge and, eventually, take full control. It’s a character arc that more accurately resembles Two-Face, but is still a welcome reinterpretation for the drama that unfolds.

Dave Franco (Young Justice)

Speaking of welcome reinterpretations, Young Justice is an earnest take on the Teen Titans comics that most fans agree is one of the strongest DC TV shows ever conceived. The secret is how the animated series borrows classic hero and villain characteristics, but adds new features that lend brilliantly to the plot, and its Riddler is certainly no exception. 

Voiced by Dave Franco, this Edward Nygma still loves to tease adversaries with clever wordplay, but mostly to make his bombastic acts of terrorism more fun for himself, making this take a bold balancing act between comedy and tragedy.

Jim Rash (Harley Quinn)

Now, if it is comedy that you really want from your Riddler, I highly recommend Harley Quinn on HBO Max, starring Kaley Cuoco as the Clown Princess of Crime. The fact that the hit animated series’ representation of Edward Nygma looks so much like the actor who plays him - Academy Award winner and former Community cast member Jim Rash - is already enough to earn a laugh. However, if you keep watching, I promise it only gets funnier from there when he becomes one of main antagonists of Season 2.

I also got quite a few laughs out of John Leguizamo’s vocal performance as The Riddler on the dramatic podcast Batman: The Audio Adventures, which is also exclusive to HBO Max subscribers. However, laughter is not what I am expecting from Paul Dano’s performance in The Batman. Honestly, as long as he invokes the same calculative, self-righteous traits the character is known for, I could not be more excited for it.

One of my favorite comedies is Superbad. While it’s been more than a decade since its release, it still finds ways to make me laugh over and over again, just like comedies starring legends like Adam Sandler or Chris Rock. From iconic lines to hilarious moments, Superbad has cemented itself into the comedy hall of fame. 

With a cast as long and large as Superbad, several of its stars have gone on to have major careers, and you might be wondering where they are now. From Jonah Hill and Michael Cera, to Emma Stone and Seth Rogen, these are what the Superbad cast has been doing in Hollywood. 

Jonah Hill (Seth)

Seth, played by Jonah Hill, was the first half of the iconic duo in Superbad, and ever since one of his biggest films, Hill has had quite the career in movies. Starting out, he was in several comedies like Knocked Up, a part of the Forgetting Sarah Marshall cast, Get Him to the Greek, and even teamed up with Channing Tatum in the 21 Jump Street cast, a role he would reprise in the sequel. 

Hill stepped into the drama world a little bit, as well, with starring roles in films such as Moneyball, and the Leonardo DiCaprio-led film, The Wolf of Wall Street. The actor was nominated for the Oscar for Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role for each of those films.

Hill has also dabbled in television as well, with a starring role in the Netflix miniseries, Maniac. He has also stepped into the world of animation, voicing several roles. This ranged from parts in the supervillain movie, Megamind, to the adult animated comedy, Sausage Party (alongside many of his Superbad co-stars), to the How to Train Your Dragon series. Truly, Hill is a man of many talents and I can’t wait to see what he does next. 

Michael Cera (Evan)

The second half of the iconic duo, Evan, was played by Michael Cera in Superbad. Since then, he’s been in quite a few movies and TV shows. In film, Cera went on to star in the coming of age movie  Juno, Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, This is the End, and several others. He’s also stepped into animation, as well, like his former castmate, voicing roles in the Lego Batman Movie, Sausage Party, and Between Two Ferns: The Movie. 

Cera has also had a prominent career in television as well. His biggest role thus far has been having a main role on the iconic comedy, Arrested Development. He also voiced Sal Viscuso, the voice of the announcements in Children’s Hospital, and had a recurring role in Burning Love. 

Christopher Minzt-Plasse (Fogell ‘McLovin’)

Who could ever forget McLoving’? Played by Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Fogell is a character that was unforgettable in Superbad and remains that way to this day. Mintz-Plasse has gone on to act in several projects in both television and film. 

He starred as Augie Farcques in Role Models, and as Chris D'Amico in the Kick-Ass superhero series. He rejoined Seth Rogen for Neighbors, as well as its sequel, made an appearance in the comedy movie, Tag, and was in Promising Young Woman. Mintz-Plasse also stepped into voice acting as well, voicing Fishlegs Ingerman in the How to Train Your Dragon franchise, as well as King Gristle Jr. in the Trolls cast.  

With television, he continued to voice Fishlegs in the Dreamworks Dragons series, was Clark in The Great Indoors, and has voiced various roles on When Nature Calls with Helen Mirren.

Bill Hader (Officer Slater)

Bill Hader was most certainly a scene stealer in Superbad as Officer Slater, and because of that, he’s gone on to have a great career. Bill Hader has starred in plenty of movies, including comedies like Adventureland, Trainwreck, Forgetting Sarah Marshall, and many others, but has also done movies like It Chapter 2, showcasing his dramatic acting ability. 

Hader is also a prominent voice actor, voicing the main character in Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, Fear in Inside Out, working on Monsters University for Pixar, had a role in Sausage Party, and many others. 

Hader’s career in television has also been great. At first, he was known for his iconic sketches on Saturday Night Live, but since then, he's expanded into his own territory. His HBO comedy will soon see Barry Season 3 arrive very soon, and he created Documentary Now!, a series that is all about mockumentaries. 

Seth Rogen (Officer Michaels)

Another scene stealer in Superbad was Officer Michaels, the partner to Officer Slater, played by the loveable Seth Rogen. Since his appearance in the comedy, Rogen has not only expanded his acting career, but his ability as a writer, director, and producer. 

In terms of movies, Rogen has starred in animated films like the Kung Fu Panda series, Sausage Party and more, but has been in a series of hilarious live-action films. This includes, but isn’t limited to, Pineapple Express, The Guilt Trip, This is the End, Neighbors (and it’s sequel), Long Shot, The Disaster Artist, the live-action version of The Lion King, and many, many others. 

Rogen has also appeared in several television shows as well, such as appearances in Arrested Development alongside Michael Cera, the Netflix original series, Big Mouth, Future Man, and more. He also has recently had a small voice role in the Amazon original series, Invincible as one of the chillest aliens ever. He also executive produced those last two shows, along with The Boys, Preacher, Black Monday, and several other series and movies.

Emma Stone (Jules)

If we’re talking about stars that shot up to stardom after Superbad, there’s not a better example than Emma Stone, who played Jules. After her role, Emma Stone became a Hollywood A-lister.

At first, she appeared in many comedies, such as being a part of the Zombieland cast (a role she would reprise in Zombieland 2), the teen comedy, Easy A, Crazy Stupid, Love, and others. But soon, she would expand her acting skills into movies like The Help, The Favourite, Birdman, and La La Land, for which she won an Academy Award. As of recently, she took on the live-action role of Cruella, sporting that iconic black and white hairstyle. 

Stone also had her time in a superhero film series, portraying Gwen Stacey in the Amazing Spider-Man series alongside Andrew Garfield, and voiced the lead character in the Croods animated movies. 

Emma Stone even reunited with Jonah Hill from Superbad for their miniseries, Maniac. If only we could see them together again. They work so well together. 

Martha Maclsaac (Becca)

Playing Becca in Superbad was Martha MacIssac, who has made a name for herself in the voice-acting world. While she’s been in movies like The Last House on the Left, Dead Before Dawn, Battle of the Sexes, and more, MacIssac has mainly kept her talents to television. 

She voiced Melosa in Di-Gata Defends, Edwyn and Bisiwog in Magi-Nation, Sarah in Friends and Heroes, and many other voice roles. She’s also had plenty of live-action appearances as well, including Dana Stockwell in the TV series, Greek,  Becca Gilchrist in 1600 Penn, and played the lead, Kate Warne, in The Pinkertons. Currently, she voices Patty and the Airport Announcer on Family Guy. 

Aviva Baumann (Nicola)

Aviva Baumann played Nicola in Superbad, and after her role, she appeared in a few projects and movies. She had a recurring guest role on NCIS, was in Saint John of Las Vegas, The Closer, Party Down, and a couple of other movies. 

However, Baumann has since retired herself from the spotlight. 

Joe Lo Truglio (Francis)

Moving on, we have Joe Lo Truglio, who played Francis in Superbad. Ever since his part, Truglio has had a prominent career in television. His biggest role thus far has been playing Charles Boyle as part of the Brooklyn Nine-Nine cast, as well as a member of Reno 911!, Burning Love, the Wet Hot American Summer franchise, and several other series, along with many guest appearances. Truglio also portrayed Jeff Sessions on the political series, The Comey Rule. 

Truglio has also been in many movies that might sound familiar, such as Pineapple Express, Role Models, I Love You, Man, Gulliver’s Travels, Someone Marry Barry, A Futile and Stupid Gesture, and many more. Recently, he was in the comedy, Mark, Mary & Some Other People. 

Kevin Corrigan (Mark)

Next up, we have Kevin Corrigan, who played Mark in Superbad. Since his role, Corrigan has appeared in many films, such as the mafia flick, American Gangster, Pineapple Express, The Dictator, Seven Psychopaths, Winter’s Tale, the Judd Apatow movie, The King of Staten Island, and more. 

Corrigan also appeared as Sam Weiss in the TV series, Fringe, Professor Sean Garrity in the hilarious sitcom, Community, Agent Bob Kirkland in The Mentalist, Milkshake in Dice, Jackie Moreno in The Get-Down, and many other TV shows. It’s only a matter of time before we see him on our TV screens once again. 

Dave Franco (Greg)

Last up, we have Dave Franco, who played Greg in Superbad. While his time in the movie was brief, we’ve still seen Franco everywhere in movies since his role.

Franco has been all over the place. He appeared in the Zac Efron-led film, Charlie St. Cloud, the 21 Jump Street, Neighbors, and Now You See Me franchises, starred in The Disaster Artist with his brother, James Franco, portrayed Levy in If Beale Street Could Talk, and so many other fantastic movies. 

Franco has had some time in television, as well. He played Gonzo in Greek in a recurring role, Zachary in Privileged, Cole Aaronson in Scrubs, Jeff in Easy and a few others, showing off how capable he is as an actor. Soon, he’s going to be in two upcoming series, called The Now and The Afterparty. 

You know, after writing this, I’m starting to see a trend with these actors often starring in the same movies as their actor buddies - but honestly, who minds that when their films are always so hilarious? While Superbad is iconic and could never be replaced, I’m always down to see these actors collaborate and make great projects together again. 

Now, if I could just get Jonah Hill and Michael Cera in the same movie once more, that would be a dream come true. 

Personally, it's hard to believe that we’re approaching the 10-year reunion for 21 Jump Street, 2012’s surprisingly fresh, funny big-screen reimagining of the once-famous ‘80s show of the same name. Starring Channing Tatum and Jonah Hill, who also co-wrote the film, and continuing the steady rise of directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller, this R-rated comedy was a raunchy riot, and its sequel, 22 Jump Street, also proved to be an entertaining revamping. Now that we’re nine years removed from the hit movie, the 21 Jump Street cast keeps proving their talents in a multitude of projects. Let’s take a look and see what they’re doing right now. 

Jonah Hill (Morton Schmidt) 

As Morton Schmidt, a smart-headed but socially awkward police officer who must pose as a high school student in order to track the rising spread of a synthetic drug, Jonah Hill co-wrote and starred in 21 Jump Street. He later reprised this role in 22 Jump Street. Most notably, Hill received two Oscar nominations for his supporting turns in Moneyball and The Wolf of Wall Street. His other notable film credits include Superbad, Knocked Up, War Dogs, This is the End, Hail Caesar!, Cyrus, Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Django Unchained, Get Him to the Greek, and The Beach Bum. Also, the actor is heard in the How to Train Your Dragon films, The Lego Movie, Horton Hears a Who!, Sausage Party, and Megamind. Additionally, on the small screen, Hill starred in Netflix's Maniac. Most recently, he guest-starred on an episode of HBO's Curb Your Enthusiasm. 

As a screenwriter, Jonah Hill co-wrote Why Him? He also wrote, produced, and directed mid90s. Additionally, Hill produced Richard Jewell and Apple TV+’s Beastie Boys Story. The actor was also seen in Adidas Originals: Superstar - Change Is a Team Sport. Next, Hill will co-write, produce, and star in Kenya Barris’ untitled Netflix comedy, which will premiere sometime next year. 

Channing Tatum (Greg Jenko)

In the role of Greg Jenko, a popular jock-turned-down-on-his-luck police officer who infiltrates a local high school through a revamped program, Channing Tatum proved his unsuspecting comedy skills in Phil Lord and Chris Miller’s 21 and 22 Jump Street. Following his breakthrough performance in Step Up, the actor was quick to impress with star turns in Magic Mike, Magic Mike XXL, Foxcatcher, Logan Lucky, and Side Effects. Tatum’s other film credits include The Vow, Dear John, the G.I. Joe movies, Haywire, White House Down, Jupiter Ascending, The Hateful Eight, Kingsman: The Golden Circle, and Hail, Caesar! Furthermore, he's heard in Smallfoot, The Book of Life, and The LEGO Movies.

Most recently, Channing Tatum was seen in Free Guy and heard in Netflix’s America: The Motion Picture. Next, the actor will make his directorial debut with 2022's Dog, which he’ll also produce and star in. Additionally, Tatum will be seen in The Lost City of D and Pussy Island. He’ll also produce and star in Wingmen. 

Brie Larson (Molly Tracey)

Playing the part of Molly Tracey, a sociable high school student who befriends our undercover cops, Brie Larson was the female lead in 21 Jump Street. Most notably, the actress won an Oscar for her star-making performance in Room. Larson was also acclaimed for Short Term 12, The Glass Castle, Just Mercy, and The Spectacular Now. Additionally, she plays Carol Danvers, i.e. Captain Marvel, in several MCU movies, including Captain Marvel and Avengers: Endgame. Larson’s other notable film credits include Trainwreck, Don Jon, Kong: Skull Island, The Gambler, Rampart, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, 13 Going on 30, Hoot, and Greenberg. Furthermore, Larson directed, produced, and starred in Netflix’s Unicorn Store. 

Recently, Brie Larson won an Emmy for The Messy Truth VR Experience. She also played Kate Gregson on Showtime’s United States of Tara. Additionally, Larson’s other TV credits include Community, Raising Dad, and Kroll Show. Currently, the actress is filming The Marvels. Furthermore, Larson is expected to star in and executive produce Apple TV+’s Lessons in Chemistry and Netflix’s Lady Business. 

Dave Franco (Eric Molson)

As Eric Molson, a popular drug dealer at Sagan High School, Dave Franco plays a secondary antagonist in Phil Lord and Chris Miller’s 21 Jump Street. He later reprised his role in 22 Jump Street. Following this performance, Franco’s profile continued to rise with his work in the Neighbors movies, the Now You See Me films, The Disaster Artist, If Beale Street Could Talk, Nerve, Unfinished Business, Warm Bodies, 6 Underground, and The Little Hours. Additionally, the actor can be seen in Superbad, Charlie St. Cloud, Fright Night, Milk, and Greenberg and he can be heard in The LEGO Movie and its 2017 spin-off, The LEGO Ninjago Movie. 

Furthermore, on television, Dave Franco starred in the final season of ABC’s Scrubs. He can also be seen in Greek, Privileged, and Do Not Disturb. Last year, Franco made his directorial debut with The Rental, which he also produced and co-wrote. He also produced Zola. Currently, Franco is directing Somebody I Used to Know, which he also co-wrote and will produce. As an actor, he’ll be seen in Apple TV+’s The Afterparty and Netflix’s Day Shift. 

Rob Riggle (Mr. Walters)

In the role of Mr. Walters, Sagan High School’s odd gym teacher with nefarious dealings, Rob Riggle proved to be the true antagonist in 21 Jump Street. He also provided a cameo in 22 Jump Street. Best known for his work as a correspondent on Comedy Central’s The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, Riggle has forged a fine career as a reliable funnyman, especially in Modern Family, SNL, NTSF:SD:SUV::., Human Giant, Gary Unmarried, Wilfred, New Girl, Funny or Die Presents, and Angie Tribeca, to name only a few shows. He can also be heard in American Dad!, Golan the Insatiable, and The Cleveland Show. Currently, Riggle hosts ABC’s Holey Moley. Next, he'll lend his voice to Netflix's My Dad the Bounty Hunter. 

Additionally, Rob Riggle’s other film credits include Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby, The Hangover, Furry Vengeance, Larry Crowne, Dumb and Dumber To, Night School, Step Brothers, The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard, The Other Guys, The Internship, and Absolutely Anything. Most recently, he was seen in The War with Grandpa. Next, Riggle will be heard in The Ark and the Aardvark.

Ice Cube (Captain Dickson)

Playing the part of Captain Dickson, the intensely aggressive leader of the police force, Ice Cube often stole the show in Phil Lord and Chris Miller’s 21 and 22 Jump Street. Best known for his involvement in N.W.A., which resulted in the legendary album, Straight Outta Compton, the musician-turned-actor began his movie career with a supporting turn in Boyz n the Hood. From there, Cube appeared in Anaconda, Three Kings, Higher Learning, Ghosts of Mars, Torque, and Rampart. He also wrote and starred in the Friday movies. Additionally, Cube starred in xXx: State of the Union and Barbershop, later producing and starring in the latter's sequels. The actor also starred in and produced Are We There Yet?, Are We Done Yet?, the Ride Along movies, The Longshots, and First Sunday.

Additionally, Ice Cube wrote, produced, and starred in All About the Benjamins and he wrote, directed, produced, and starred in The Players Club. His other starring credits include Fist Fight and last year's The High Note. Next, Ice Cube will star in War of the Worlds. He's also trying to make Last Friday. Most recently, it was announced that Cube would team up Jack Black for next year's Oh Hell No.

Ellie Kemper (Ms. Griggs)

As Ms. Griggs, a teacher who harbors a not-very-subtle crush on Jenko, Ellie Kemper played a smitten character in 21 Jump Street. Most notably, the actress received two Emmy nominations for her titular role in Netflix’s Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. Additionally, Kemper is well-known for playing Erin Hannon in NBC’s The Office. Furthermore, she can be seen in The Mindy Project. As a voice actress, moreover, Kemper can be heard in We Bare Bears and Sofia the First.

Away from TV, Ellie Kemper is best known for playing Becca in Bridesmaids. She can also be seen in Sex Tape, Laggies, They Came Together, Somewhere, Identity Thief, Get Him to the Greek, and Mystery Team. Additionally, as a voice actress, Kemper can be heard in The Secret Life of Pets 1 & 2, Smurfs: The Lost Village, The LEGO Batman Movie, and We Bare Bears: The Movie. Most recently, she was seen in The Stand-In. Next, Kemper will star in Disney+’s Home Sweet Home Alone. Currently, the movie actress is filming Netflix’s Happiness for Beginners. 

Chris Parnell (Mr. Gordon)

In the role of Mr. Gordon, Sagan High School’s drama teacher, Chris Parnell had a supporting part in Phil Lord and Chris Miller’s 21 Jump Street. Most notably, he's known for his time on NBC’s SNL. Additionally, Parnell is recognized for his recurring role in NBC’s 30 Rock. As a voice actor, he was heard in FXX’s Archer as Cyril Figgis and Adult Swim’s Rick & Morty as Jerry Smith. Parnell can also be heard in American Dad, Family Guy, The Mr. Peabody & Sherman Show, and WordGirl. Recently, he appeared in Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt: Kimmy vs. the Reverend. Next, Parnell is expected to be heard in Netflix’s Dogs in Space.

Away from TV, Chris Parnell’s other film credits include Hot Rod, the Anchorman movies Sisters, The Five-Year Engagement, Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story, Down with Love, The Ladies Man, Battle of the Sexes, and The Ridiculous Six. He can also be heard in the Hotel Transylvania movies. Next, Parnell will be seen in Senior Year and Disney+’s Home Sweet Home Alone.

Dax Flame (Zack)

Playing the part of Zack, Jenko’s friend, Dax Flame provided an explosive part in 21 and 22 Jump Street. Prior to this performance, he first came into prominence through his popular YouTube channel. Later, Flame appeared in Project X, The Watch, and Another Evil. Following that last title, the internet personality stepped away from acting in order to pursue other projects. Most recently, Flame co-directed, produced, and edited 2019’s documentary, Indoor Garden. He was also the subject of the documentary, Ice Cream Man. Last year, Flame hosted his talk show, Smoothie Madness. The actor keeps an active presence on his channel. 

DeRay Davis (Domingo)

As Domingo, the leader of the One Percenters, DeRay Davis played a major antagonist in Phil Lord and Chris Miller’s 21 Jump Street. Currently, the actor plays a recurring role as Peaches in FX’s Snowfall. Also, Davis played a recurring role as R.J. in ABC’s My Wife and Kids. His other TV credits include Reno 911! and Empire. Additionally, Davis can be heard in The Boondocks and Black Dynamite.

Furthermore, away from television, DeRay Davis played Ray in the Barbershop movies. His other film credits include Meet the Blacks, Jumping the Broom, Life As We Know It, Old Dogs, Imagine That, Semi-Pro, Scary Movie 4, Johnson Family Vacation, The Fog, School for Scoundrels, Code Name: The Cleaner, License to Wed, Get Him to the Greek, G.I. Joe: Retaliation, Drumline: A New Beat, Starship Troopers: Traitor of Mars, and How High 2. Most recently, Davis starred in Gully. 

Nick Offerman (Deputy Chief Hardy)

In the role of Deputy Chief Hardy, the tough nut police captain who re-assigns Jenko and Schmidt to our retro title-bearing street, Nick Offerman had a notable supporting part in 21 and 22 Jump Street. Most notably, the TV actor played Ron Swanson in NBC’s Parks and Recreation. He also received praise for his work as Karl Weathers in FX’s Fargo Season 2. Additionally, Offerman can be seen in Children’s Hospital, Gilmore Girls, American Body Shop, George Lopez, 24, and NYPD Blue. As a voice actor, furthermore, he can be heard in 3Below: Tales of Arcadia, Comrade Detective, Gravity Falls, The Simpsons, and Axe Cop. Currently, Offerman co-hosts NBC’s Making It, for which the star was Emmy-nominated. 

Outside of television, Nick Offerman can be seen in The Founder, Me and Earl and the Dying Girl, Hearts Beat Loud, The Little Hours, and Bad Times at the El Royale, to name only a few of his credits. Most recently, Offerman was heard in Trollhunters: Rise of the Titans. Next, he’ll be heard in Sing 2 and he’ll be seen in Hulu’s Pam & Tommy and Amazon Prime’s A League of Their Own. Moreover, as an author, Offerman recently published Where the Deer and the Antelope Play.

21 Jump Street is available to stream on Peacock. 

When you spend your days working on set, collaborating with various filmmakers (both of renown and otherwise), and honing your craft, there's a good chance you're gonna pick up a few lessons along the way. Indeed, having the opportunity to work with many different filmmakers and various people in the industry allows many actors to not only get better at their given profession but also explore themselves behind-the-camera as well. 

In the process, these actors expand their talents (hopefully) and showcase their prowess. We've seen several famous actors prove themselves as directors in the past. Dave Franco is just the latest. His feature directorial debut, The Rental, is a surprisingly solid genre piece, showcasing his strong potential as a filmmaker. Whether or not Franco lives up to that promise is undetermined, but he's not alone. Here are just a few actors who've recently proven themselves to be promising new filmmakers.

Dave Franco

Who would've thought that Dave Franco would be one of the more promising horror directors of the new decade? Or, at least, that he would prove himself surprisingly confident in this genre, producing a commendably slow-burning chamber thriller with The Rental, featuring strong performances from Alison Brie (his wife), Sheila Vand, Jeremy Allen White, and Toby Huss. 

Having previously worked in the comedy field with the occasional drama or action movie in the process, The Rental wasn't the direction that his fans likely expected him to go, but Franco proved himself adept at handling the atmosphere and dread of his premise, while also exploring themes on privacy, surveillance, and people's fears of others. It's not without its flaws, but he showcases some serious talent behind-the-camera, and if he wanted to direct more in the future, he could have a bright future. He's apparently working on a rom-com next.

Jonah Hill

Having previously collaborated with some of the finest filmmakers working today, including (but not limited to) Martin Scorsese, Bennett Miller, Quentin Tarantino, Gus Van Sant, and more, it was only a matter of time before Jonah Hill jumped behind the camera. Sure enough, in 2018, Hill finally jumped into the director's chair with Mid90s, a semi-autobiographical coming-of-age drama featuring a fantastic sense of time and place, fine attention to detail, and some well-crafted performances. 

Though the movie itself doesn't lean too far away from the tropes you expect this genre, resulting in a screenplay that's earnest but ultimately not especially unique, Hill's direction allows his vision to flourish, establishing a key sense of this time period without the nostalgia or wistfulness that is often seen in other movies of this variety. The results are a bold, clear-eyed, Harmony Korine-inspired reflection with honest performances and finely-crafted emotional resonance. Hill learned well.

Bo Burnham

Though technically more of an internet personality and stand-up than an actor prior to his outstanding directorial debut, 2018's Eighth Grade, it's clear that Bo Burnham spent years honing his craft, his style, his voice, and his point of view before he decided to finally make his directorial debut. What's most impressive about this movie, however, is that Burnham's approach is oddly reflective. 

It's not showcasing his noticeable voice but rather making an authentic and believable reflection of what it is like to be socially awkward and emotionally insincere in our social media age, where your presence is always demanded in some fashion or another and you always feel pressured to be "true to yourself," even if you don't exactly know who you are yet. It's an exceptionally accomplished directorial debut, allowing Burnham to paint a startlingly relatable and uncomfortable reflection of adolescence with an excellent lead performance from Elsie Fisher.

Olivia Wilde

While it didn't take the box office by storm as much as people hoped it would, Booksmart became one of the most acclaimed, celebrated directorial debuts in recent memory, earned nearly unanimous praise from critics and general moviegoers alike and finding a wide, adoring audience worldwide. It's safe to say that most directorial debuts don't capture that same fervent appeal, but that's a great credit to Wilde's early talents as a director. 

While she has established herself as an actress for roughly 15 or so years now, it's clear that Wilde has an energetic, passionate desire to push herself as a filmmaker and showcase complex, outspoken women who are both funny and dynamic, producing an entertaining but also engaging new take on the always-expanding high school comedy genre. While it got easy comparisons to Superbad, Wilde's debut allows the new filmmaker to take her own path.

Paul Dano

One of the best directorial debuts of the past few years came from Paul Dano's intimate, involving coming-of-age period drama, Wildlife. This evocative Sundance tale, based on the novel of the same name by Richard Ford, features outstanding performances from Jake Gyllenhaal, Ed Oxenbould, and especially Carey Mulligan, who continues to remain an undervalued talent. 

Dano's directorial presence is gentle but commanding, showcasing fine attention to character and time but also allowing him to explore the darker recesses and impulses of people unchecked and caught fighting against the restrictions of their conservative time period. Having worked with some truly remarkable filmmakers throughout his career, not the least of which includes Paul Thomas Anderson, Steve McQueen, Denis Villeneuve, Bong Joon-ho, Rian Johnson, and more, it wasn't shocking to see Dano prove so adept as a director, but it was still very encouraging. Here's hoping he makes another movie soon.

Regina King

An accomplished, Oscar-winning actress with several noteworthy film/TV titles to her name, Regina King has been an outstanding acting talent for decades, and she finally got her well-deserved due with her award-winning turn in If Beale Street Could Talk. But in addition to King's acting highlights, the three-time Emmy-winning Watchmen actress has steadily built a solid career behind the camera, notably helming episodes of Scandal, Southland, This Is Us, Shameless, The Good Doctor, Insecure, and more. 

Now, King makes her feature directorial debut with One Night in Miami, based on the play by Kemp Powers, which follows Malcolm X, Sam Cooke, Jim Brown, and Cassius Clay who meet up to change history in the South. It'll premiere at TIFF and it was recently acquired by Amazon Studios. Though we haven't seen the film yet for ourselves, we're hopeful that King demonstrates her talents once more with this exciting new project.

Karen Gillan

Though she remains a bright, appealing screen presence, Karen Gillan's recent directing turns showcase a young filmmaker with intriguingly dark and mournful ambitions, exploring the darkness of the human psyche and women with complicated histories and mentalities. This was shown with striking interest in both her horror-drama short film, Conventional, and her feature directorial debut, The Party's Just Beginning, both of which she starred in in addition to writing and directing. 

As a filmmaker and actress simultaneously, Gillan isn't afraid to be vulnerable and unsettling, showcasing how many movies haven't fully explored the recesses of her talents, while also exploring complicated themes and concepts with probing intellect and insight and a splash of dark comedy to boot. Her directorial output is uniquely different than what we've seen from her as an actress thus far. It's fascinating to wonder what she'll do as a director as she moves forward.

Chiwetel Ejiofor

While Chiwetel Ejiofor has continued to receive some major roles in high-budget blockbusters, including Doctor Strange, The Lion King (2019), and, most recently, Netflix's The Old Guard, in recent years following his excellent Oscar-nominated performance in 12 Years A Slave, his directorial debut, The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind, didn't gain much notice when it appeared on Netflix earlier this year. That's a shame because, while it's a small film by design, it was praised as a compelling film that showed promise for Ejiofor as a director. 

While the story itself as considered predictable when it comes to plotting, Ejiofor's vision and the fine performances he brought out of his actors showed audiences that he had the chops to be a strong dramatic director if given the chance. This isn't surprising, but it's disappointing that the movie hasn't gotten much notice on the streaming service since its premiere.

Amy Seimetz

At the end of July, Amy Seimetz's latest film, She Dies Tomorrow, finally released. Though she has more indie credits to her name than mainstream titles, audiences might know her from her work in Stranger Things, Alien: Covenant, The Killing, Get Shorty, and Pet Sematary (2020). As a director, Seimetz made the indie Sun Don't Shine and she directed several acclaimed episodes of television for The Girlfriend Experience and Atlanta. Based on the early reviews for her newest film, a horror film that is getting David Lynch-esque comparisons, it's not one you want to miss.

Which actors-turned-directors have impressed you lately? Please let us know in the comments!

Actor Dave Franco has had a long and successful career at age 35, with notable roles in projects like Now You See Me, The Disaster Artist, and If Beale Street Could Talk. Now the actor is stepping behind the camera, as his directorial debut The Rental was released last week. The horror flick was rented by a ton of people during its opening weekend, and its also fared well with critics. And now Franco has explained why he decided to make his first movie a scary movie.

The horror genre has been in a serious renaissance over the last few years, with unique critically acclaimed movies that also have made money at the box office. And now Dave Franco has gotten in on the action with The Rental, which is a contained story that steadily grows in tension. Franco recently spoke to this decision to step into directing with a horror movie, saying:

Well, that certainly clears things up. It looks like Dave Franco appreciates a specific time of horror movie, and wanted to emulate that with his work on The Rental. And Franco definitely had the opportunity to highlight his type of horror, as he served as the director, writer, and producer of the new release.

Dave Franco's comments to Uproxx help explain the actor turned director's decision to direct a horror movie for his first feature film. He wanted to have a smart take on the genre, and inspire a feeling of atmosphere throughout The Rental's runtime. His horror inspiration are greats, and it looks like that unique perspective has fared well for the movie upon its release.

The Rental isn't a movie rife with jump scars, in fact there's barely any. Instead, the movie takes very human characters and steadily raises the stakes until it all comes to a boil in the third act. When chaos finally ensues its earned, and therefore especially effective for the audience. And in the process, Dave Franco has made a serious splash as a first time director.

Later in his same interview, Dave Franco went on to explain why he didn't fill The Rental with jump scares. This type of filmmaking is common within the horror genre, sometimes to a fault. As he put it,

He's got a point. Characters in horror movies are often expendable, being killed off one by one. And while the protagonists of The Rental seem destined to meet grisly fates, we have to wait for things to get violent. Instead, the movie focuses on their interpersonal relationships, which therefore make their motivations during horror sequences more justified.

The Rental took the #1 spot during its opening weekend at the box office, so clearly Dave Franco's directorial debut is getting and audience. There's nothing like a summer horror flick, with Franco continuing the horror renaissance with its strong critical reception. We'll just have to wait and see if Franco ventures outside of the genre for this sophomore directorial gig.

The Rental is currently available to rent on demand and through Amazon. In the meantime, check out our 2020 release list to plan your next movie experience.

Marriages are a funny thing. Each partnership operates differently; while some couples can work together, others need that time away from each other while making a living. And for Dave Franco and Alison Brie, it seems that collaborating together on a movie is actually a recipe for success. Franco recently made his directorial debut in the horror flick The Rental, with Brie playing one of the protagonists. And from the sound of it, this mixture of life and work was helpful while working on the project.

The Rental was released straight to homes over the weekend, and a ton of people rented Dave Franco's directorial debut for a good old fashioned summer scare. The movie is also faring well with critics, and Alison Brie recently revealed what it was like working with her husband in this capacity. As the GLOW actress explained,

There you have it. While many actors might be nervous to work with a first-time director, Alison Brie didn't have that experience on the set of The Rental. Mainly because she knew Dave Franco intimately, and knew the caliber of work he was going to bring to the horror movie. What's more, she could also provide moral and creative support during this high-stakes moment in Franco's career.

It's somewhat ironic to see how supportive and healthy this dynamic was on set, considering how The Rental is focused on such damaged relationships. While the two couples in the movie are being preyed upon by a mysterious villain, their interpersonal relationships that are also being tested. And what results is the vacation from hell.

Later on his Alison Brie's conversation with THR, she further described the collaborative relationship that she and husband Dave Franco shared while working on The Rental together. Because in addition to their work on set, they'd also continue brainstorming and planning once back in their own Airbnb. As she put it,

In the end, it looks like Dave Franco and Alison Brie both benefitted from their personal relationship while working on The Rental. They know each other and how to communicate, and ultimately translated those skills to the horror movie. And it looks like those efforts paid off, as The Rental fared well with critics and home audiences alike.

The Rental is currently available to rent on demand. Be sure to check out our 2020 release list to plan your next movie adventure.

Actor James Franco has had a long career in film as an actor, director, writer, and producer. And while he's become a jack of all trades, he's not the only famous Franco on screen. Dave Franco burst onto the scene with appearances in Scrubs and 21 Jump Street, before starring in a steady stream of big screen projects. This includes the acclaimed Tommy Wiseau movie The Disaster Artist, where he worked alongside his brother James and names like Seth Rogen. Dave Franco is making his directorial debut with thriller The Rental, and he recently revealed how working with industry greats shaped his work on the horror movie.

Prior to The Disaster Artist, Dave Franco also had a cameo in Superbad, so he's worked with Seth Rogen a variety of times throughout his career. The Disaster Artist is also notable for Dave and James Franco playing opposite each other as Greg Sestero and Tommy Wiseau respectively. Dave recently appeared on ReelBlend ahead of the release of The Rental, which he also wrote and produced.  And when asked about what he's learned from his previous experience, Franco opened up saying:

That's certainly one way to make your cast and crew feel valuable. Because it looks like Dave Franco makes it a point to let everyone in the room have a say, if they feel it's to the benefit of the film. And as a result projects like The Rental benefit from the expertise and perspective of the collective mind. It truly takes a village.

Every director works differently, and Dave Franco was in a unique position while filming The Rental. He wore a ton of hats for the upcoming thriller, and therefore likely benefitted from the help of his crew. Directing yourself is difficult enough, but Franco also served as a producer and writer. Talk about making a directorial debut.

In Dave Franco's same conversation on Reelblend, he went on to explain how curious he'd always been on film sets. Because while filming appearances in projects like Now You See Me and If Beale Street Could Talk, the actor would also be taking in the contributions of everyone else on set. As he went on to explain,

Dave Franco has been working in film for years now, and it seems like the experience was about more than acting and delivering on his specific role. Each movie provided more learning experiences, as Franco formed the idea of how he'd like to run his own set. And with The Rental, he was finally able to use the tools he'd picked up along the way.

The Rental is a horror movie about a group of friends who rent an Airbnb. While dealing with their interpersonal issues, the group soon begins to suspect the landlord of spying on them. Chaos follows, with Alison Brie and Dave Franco leading the cast. The movie is currently sitting on a 71% on Rotten Tomatoes at the time of writing, with particular praise coming for the cast.

The Rental is available to rent on demand and on Amazon. Be sure to check out our 2020 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.

What a special guest we have for you this week! Dave Franco makes his directorial debut this week with The Rental, starring Dan Stevens, Alison Brie and Sheila Vand, available in select theaters, drive-ins and VOD July 24th.

He joins us for a discussion on the shift from acting to directing, and what he's learned from the directors he's worked with. He also dives into some of the behind-the-scenes details of making the film, and the wonderful collaborators he had handy to help pull it all off. Will there be a sequel? He confirms that if audiences take a liking to the film, he does have a "strong" idea for a follow up, and even still, he and Alison Brie are interested in working together again on a romantic comedy they've been cooking up in quarantine.

Also on this week's show, Tenet has been delayed (yet again). We dove into the prospects of nothing coming out this year on last week's show, so check out ReelBlend 126 for a larger discussion on that.

However, some major productions have resumed which has given us a bit of a light at the end of the tunnel that, at some point, there will still be major releases to help bring theaters back from the brink.

San Diego Comic-Con is taking to streaming their major events this year, obviously, so we give a quick preview on what's expected. JusticeCon, the fan-led event surrounding Zack Snyder's Justice League and that whole movement, is also streaming on YouTube this weekend, and our very own Sean O'Connell is attending as a panelist.

Sean gives us a good preview of what fans can expect from the convention, and even gives a rundown of his panel's special plans.

Finally, it wouldn't be ReelBlend without a BlendGame. Paul Greengrass has had a rather prolific narrative filmmaking career since branching away from his documentary roots, and so we went through our favorites from his filmography. Next week, we're taking a look at our favorite cliffhanger endings in cinema history. What's yours? Let us know on Twitter using #CliffhangerBlend.

Be sure to subscribe to the show on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts, including YouTube!

Over the course of its turbulent television run, Scrubs became the little show that could. Despite inconsistent ratings, a station that never really knew what to do with it, a shifting date-and-time slot, a cancellation or two, and a network change, among other problems, Bill Lawrence's beloved hospital dramedy surprisingly made it to nine seasons — even though the last season, which became a soft reboot, was contested among fans. 

Nevertheless, in the series that turned Zach Braff into a household name, Scrubs became a lovably charming, heartfelt comedy-dramedy on the medical profession, with its real-life setting, relatable characters and high-concept comedy mixed with realistic pathos, earning a cult following and a loyal fandom. It's been a little over a decade since we last saw the doctors, resident nurses and other staff members of Sacred Heart Hospital — if you can believe it. Here's what Scrubs cast is doing now.

Zach Braff (Dr. John "J.D." Dorian)

As Dr. John "J.D." Dorian, the fanciful, good-hearted protagonist/narrator of Scrubs who is prone to daydreams, Zach Braff gave his most recognizable performance in Scrubs. Following the show's end in 2010, Braff continued to split his time between film and TV. He had a supporting role in 2013's Oz the Great and Powerful and he starred in the 2012 drama The Color of Time, while also making appearances in The Exes, Cougar Town, Community, Undateable, Inside Amy Schumer, and BoJack Horseman, where he voiced a fictionalized version of himself. Notably, though, Braff has been spending more time behind-the-camera. He co-wrote, directed, produced, and starred in his sophomore film, Wish I Was Here, which had a controversial Kickstarter campaign. He also directed the 2017 studio comedy, Going In Style. Furthermore, Braff headlined, produced, and directed the short-lived ABC series, Alex Inc.

Up next, Zach Braff is set to be seen in the action film, The Comeback Trail, and the drama, Percy. Additionally, following his tenure on Scrubs, Braff made some appearances on the stage. He starred in the 2011 production of All New People, which he also wrote. He also got the lead role in 2014's musical adaptation of Bullets Over Broadway, which fittingly showed on Broadway. Also, earlier this year, Braff started the podcast, Fake Doctors, Real Friends, with Donald Faison where they re-watch Scrubs episode-by-episode and share their thoughts, anecdotes, and memories making the episode. In his personal life, Braff is dating actress Florence Pugh, which has also sparked controversy. Pugh recently addressed it on her social media account.

Sarah Chalke (Dr. Elliot Reid)

As the eccentric-yet-lovable Dr. Elliot Reid, the passionate (if clumsy) Sacred Heart doctor who has an on-again/off-again relationship with J.D., Sarah Chalke was one of our primary leads in Scrubs. A former child actress previously known best for Roxanne, Chalke has been acting for years, though Scrubs was one of her most famous projects. Since the show's run, Chalke was notably seen in reoccurring roles in How I Met Your Mother and Cougar Town, also from Bill Lawrence. She was the lead in the short-lived ABC series How To Live With Your Parents (For The Rest Of Your Life) and she had major parts in Speechless and Backstrom. She also starred in Mother's Day and Netflix's The Wrong Missy. 

Chalke currently lends her voice to Adult Swim's Rick & Morty. She'll soon be star in the drama series, Firefly Lane, from Lawrence as well.

Donald Faison (Dr. Chris Turk)

As the charismatic Dr. Chris Turk, the easygoing surgeon as Sacred Heart Hospital who has been J.D.'s best friend and roommate since college, Donald Faison shared an enormous amount of chemistry with Zach Braff, and he's easily one of the most likable and winning characters on Scrubs. 

Prior to Scrubs, Faison was best known for Clueless, both the 1995 film and the television series of the same name, as well as Remember the Titans, and Waiting to Exhale. Following his time on the NBC/ABC series, Faison starred in the TV Land sitcom The Exes, and he appeared in Skyline, Kick-Ass 2, Pitch Perfect, and Zach Braff's Wish I Was Here. Faison also voices Hype Fazon on Star Wars Resistance, in a role written for him specifically. Recently, the actor starred in ABC's short-lived Emergence. He co-hosts the Scrubs podcast, Fake Doctors, Real Friends, with Braff.

John C. McGinley (Dr. Perry Cox)

As the curmudgeon Dr. Perry Cox, the seasoned, sarcastic Sacred Heart doctor who became J.D.'s unwitting mentor, John C. McGinley played a substantial role in Scrubs. A veteran character actor who appeared in Point Break, Office Space, Se7en, Platoon, Wall Street, and more before his time in Scrubs, this performance became McGinley's most commonly-known part, with his prickly-yet-charming demeanor becoming as oddly endearing to us as it was to J.D. 

Since hanging up his robes, McGinley kept primarily to TV. He's had reoccurring roles in WordGirl, Burn Notice, and, as of last year, Chicago P.D. McGinley also reunited with Bill Lawrence for TBS' short-lived multi-camera sitcom, Ground Floor. He also played the lead in IFC's horror-comedy series, Stan Against Evil and starred in 42, Alex Cross, The Belko Experiment, and Battle of the Sexes. In 2014, McGinley appeared on Broadway in Glengarry Glen Ross.

Neil Flynn (The Janitor)

As the elusive The Janitor, who might've been named Glen Matthews, Neil Flynn played an avid trickster who was constantly avoiding work and pulling pranks on the various doctors and staff members of Sacred Heart Hospital. Once meant to be a figment of J.D.'s imagination, Flynn's role in Scrubs grew as the show continued. He became a main cast member for most of the show's run, though his backstory and other personal details were made mysterious by his habitual lying. 

Also known for Mean Girls, as well as The Fugitive, Magnolia, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, and more, Flynn was notably seen in ABC's The Middle when Scrubs wrapped up. That network sitcom also ran for a very long time, wrapping up in 2018. Now, Flynn stars in NBC's new sitcom, Abby's. He also did a voice role in Hulu's Solar Opposites.

Judy Reyes (Carla Espinosa)

As Carla Espionsa, the head nurse of Sacred Heart's Intensive Care Unit who eventually marries and has kids with Turk, Judy Reyes was a sharp, dryly funny personality in Scrubs. Following Scrubs, Reyes picked up a leading role in Lifetime's Devious Maids. She also appeared in Jane the Virgin, Law & Order: SVU, iZombie, Fresh Off The Boat, Blue Bloods, Search Party, Better Things, and Succession. Reyes also appears on One Day at a Time. Since 2017, Reyes has played a starring role in TNT's crime dramedy, Claws. The series was renewed for a fourth and final season, though its production was shut down due to the coronavirus pandemic. She'll next be seen in the drama, Sorta Like A Rock Star.

Ken Jenkins (Dr. Bob Kelso)

As Dr. Bob Kelso, the Chief of Medicine who has two thumbs and usually doesn't give a crap, Ken Jenkins was a persistent part of Scrubs' long-running history. Though ultimately a supporting character, his presence loomed largely over the series, providing many both comedic and dramatic scenes. With over a hundred credits to his name, Jenkins has been a hard-working actor throughout his career, appearing in several noteworthy movies and shows. Since Scrubs, Jenkins had a reoccurring role in Cougar Town, as well as prominent roles in Black-ish, Gravity Falls, and Netflix's A Series of Unfortunate Events. He also appeared in HBO's All the Way. Jenkins was most recently involved in the Sundance comedy Girls Weekend, which was directed by Kyra Sedgwick.

Robert Maschio (Dr. Todd "The Todd" Quinlan)

As Dr. Todd Quinlan, better known as "The Todd," Robert Maschio's crass, confident macho-man with an overactive lubido rarely took the center stage but his antics were a constant source of rambunctious hilarity. Since the show ended, Maschio hasn't picked up as much acting work as his peers. He does the occasional film or television gig, notably with roles in Undatable, Bones, and Men at Work, but it appears Maschio has made a bit of a career shift. 

Specifically, Maschio is apparently in real estate now, though he is also on Cameo. If you have $95 to spare, you can get a personalized response!

Sam Lloyd (Ted Buckland)

As Ted Buckland, Sacred Heart's sad-sack lawyer whose life was filled with hilariously depressing anecdotes, Sam Lloyd was a darkly funny presence on Scrubs. Outside of Scrubs, Lloyd also starred in Desperate Housewives, Cougar Town, The Middle, Modern Family, Bones, Shameless, Dr. Ken, and American Housewife. 

Tragically, in early 2019, Lloyd was diagnosed with inoperable brain cancer, which was later revealed to be metastatic lung cancer that spread throughout his body. His wife had also recently given birth to their first child around the time of this devastating diagnosis. On April 30th, 2020, Lloyd passed away in Los Angeles at 56. Several Scrubs writers and cast and crew members expressed their condolences and offered thoughts and happier memories of their time spent with the belated actor, celebrating his kind heart, friendly spirit, and warm personality. He is certainly missed.

Christa Miller (Jordan Sullivan)

As Jordan Sullivan, a board member of Sacred Hospital and the ex-wife of Dr. Perry Cox with a complicated relationship to the hard-to-please doctor, Christa Miller had a standout supporting role in Scrubs. Married to creator Bill Lawrence, Miller was most notably seen in The Drew Carey Show prior to her appearance on Scrubs, though this hospital series ultimately became her second most-commonly known performance. Following Scrubs' end, Miller worked with her husband once more with ABC/TBS' Cougar Town, where she got a larger role in the proceedings. Additionally, Miller appeared in episodes of Undateable and Whiskey Cavalier, and she also had a role in 2018's home invasion thriller, Breaking In.

Dave Franco (Cole Aaronson)

Though he's better known for his work that followed, Dave Franco briefly appeared in Scrubs during its final season as Cole Aaronson. Having played minor roles in various films and shows before his time in Bill Lawrence's long-running hospital series, Scrubs was one of Franco's first major roles, though he'd be better remembered for his other projects. 

Notably, Franco starred in 21 Jump Street, Nerve, The Disaster Artist, If Beale Street Could Talk, 6 Underground, the Neighbors movies, and the Now You See Me movies, to name a few. He also played voice roles in The LEGO Movie and The LEGO Ninjango Movie. Next, Franco's directorial debut, The Rental, a horror-thriller he also co-wrote, comes out on July 24th. He's also set to star in Quibi's The Now. It was recently announced that Now You See Me 3 is in development. He's married to Alison Brie.

Eliza Coupe (Denise "Jo" Mahoney)

As Denise Mahoney, a new resident physican of New Sacred Heart Hospital who bothered J.D. with her callous personality, Eliza Coupe was a late-in-the-game addition for Scrubs. Joining the medical show for its last two seasons, she didn't have as long a stay as some of her other cast members, though she would go on to star in some other popular TV series. Notably, Coupe played one of the leads in Happy Endings, another turbulent dramedy with a loyal fanbase. Coupe also played a leading role in USA's short-lived comedy series, Benched. The actress also had prominent roles in shows like Casual, Quantico, House of Lies, The Mindy Project, and Superstore. She can currently be seen in Hulu's sci-fi comedy series, Future Man.

Who is your favorite Scrubs actor or actress? Let us know in the comment section below!

Over the past few years, moviegoers have noticed a clear horror renaissance, with the genre producing unique films that are being widely celebrated. And there are a slew of exciting projects coming down the pipeline, including IFC's The Rental. Helmed by actor-turned-director Dave Franco, The Rental focuses on a group of people who rent a beautiful remote home for a weekend, but soon suspect that the owner is out to get them.

Dave Franco is coming out as a bonafide filmmaker with The Rental, which he directed, produced, and wrote. The movie features a small but strong cast including GLOW's Alison Brie, Beauty and the Beast star Dan Stevens and Halt and Catch Fire's Toby Huss. The plot seems pretty simple, as the group of friends realize they're being watched, and things slowly descend into chaos. Check out the trailer for The Rental below.

Honestly, sign me up. This looks like a good old fashioned slasher movie, with the cast likely being picked off one by one. And if the trailer for The Rental is any indication, Dave Franco has a ton of scares in store for his big directorial debut. Let's break down exactly what we're being shown in this awesome first glimpse.

The trailer for The Rental begins by setting up the movie's titular location. Two couples stumble upon an isolated, picturesque Airbnb to vacation in. The house itself is gorgeous, but the owner Taylor (Toby Huss) is a bit of an oddball. His creepiness is evident from the jump, but is quickly dismissed as the group settles in to enjoy themselves, including some recreational drug use. Anyone who has ever seen a horror movie knows sex and drugs usually result in characters being killed, and that seems to be exactly what will occur throughout The Rental's runtime.

Following a few weird things like dirt falling from the ceiling, the crap hits the fan. In a new take on the classic horror shower scene trope, Sheila Vand's character Mina discovers a small camera hidden within the shower head. Plenty more creepy things happen within the house, and it soon becomes clear that the group isn't safe within their rental home.

Where The Rental's plot goes from there is a mystery, but it looks like the movie will feature a mixture of psychological horror and more traditional kills and jump scares. The group's apparent lack of safety weighs on them, likely fracturing some of the relationships in the process. And through it all, the movie's villain seems to have the upper hand.

Dave Franco first worked with Alison Brie back in 2013, when he directed and starred alongside the actress in a Funny or Die short. It looks like that work relationship has bloomed into a more extensive project, with Brie playing The Rental's protagonist Michelle. Smart money says she's the final girl, although I have to wonder what twist and turns Franco has in store for audiences.

The Rental currently has a release date for July 24, assuming theaters are open at that time. In the meantime, check out our 2020 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.

Being primarily known as so-and-so’s sibling can be a tough gig – one that Dave Franco was certainly burdened with a decade ago as his brother James Franco found early fame in his roles in Freaks and Geeks, the Spider-Man trilogy and Pineapple Express. It’s not only that, though, James Franco certainly is no stranger to memorable performances, from chopping off his arm at the end of his Oscar-nominated role in 127 Hours to donning cornrows and platinum teeth in Spring Breakers.

In the past few years, Dave Franco moved out of the shadows, paved his own path as an actor and made a name for himself in the industry. The 33-year-old actor is primarily known for starring in comedies, but has made some interesting career choices and showed off dramatic chops we didn’t know he had. Maybe a little sibling rivalry can do some good? On the surface, it may be easy to compare the brother’s accomplishments, but there are movies that you can check out which really showcase Dave’s talent on the big screen, so be sure not to ignore the films listed below!

21 Jump Street

The younger Franco first made a splash as the “cool” high school kid that buddy cops Channing Tatum and Jonah Hill have a run in with during the undercover mission in 21 Jump Street. He plays the perfect calm, cool and confident heartthrob much of the time, but then hilariously erupts into cry fits when the action of the film really takes hold in the third act of the movie. The role showed that Dave Franco can roll with big comedy stars and complement their humor in it, which isn’t something that the typical high school “pretty boy” types have always been able to bring to a movie like this. Ja feel?

Now You See Me

Now You See Me was a fun ensemble thriller featuring an impressive cast including Jesse Eisenberg, Mark Ruffalo, Woody Harrelson, Isla Fisher, Morgan Freeman and Michael Caine. So, one might think a newcomer such as Dave Franco would get lost in the crowd and become forgettable in a big film like this. Franco comes to play, though, and helps make his street thief character amongst the team of magicians an intriguing one. He can do impressive card action stunts and even bring you over to his side with sympathy when the mission goes awry and the fate of his character comes in question. Franco complemented the star-studded cast well and stood out in all the right moments.

Neighbors

Dave Franco’s casting in the Seth Rogen (who is often James Franco’s partner in crime) comedy could have been due to some talking up by his brother, but Dave could certainly pull off playing a college student and the role became a great showcase of his “bro comedy” skills. With Zac Efron by his side as his fraternity brother, the duo make for some entertaining adversaries to the young parents (Seth Rogen and Rose Bryne) who live next to them. Efron and Franco spoof the stereotypical frat boys as they party and prank their new neighbors with some pretty funny scenes. And, Franco’s Robert De Niro from Meet the Parents impression during their “De Niro” party? Flawless.

Nerve

Dave Franco was paired with American Horror Story’s Emma Roberts in a fun thrill ride about two 20-somethings who participate in a vicious real-life game of “truth or dare” that serves as entertainment in the world they live in. The film was an adrenaline rush of a Black Mirror-esque story that showed off Dave Franco as a lead taking on the action, romance and drama of Nerve as his and Roberts’ characters must push the boundaries and break rules in order to survive the game they find themselves in. The two stars made for an entertaining pair to watch as they bring some humor and heartwarming moments to the reality video game flick.

The Disaster Artist

In 2017, Dave Franco finally joined his brother for the Oscar-nominated The Disaster Artist, about the making of Tommy Wiseau’s cult-classic The Room. While James Franco took on the role of director and lead to tell this unbelievable true story, he enlisted Dave to play Wiseau’s other half, Greg Sestero. With some incredible makeup work, the two don’t even look like brothers as they play actor friends trying to make it in Hollywood.

Dave’s realistic portrayal perfectly grounds the film while James blows it out of proportion with his detailed portrayal of the larger-than-life personality of Wiseau. Part of why the movie works is due to the brothers’ natural chemistry with one another and ability to play off each another. Dave has the job of playing a real person just as James does, and gives his most memorable performance to date.

The Little Hours

It’s one thing to star in a comedy, but signing on to an ambitiously raunchy movie about nuns who say “fuck” every other word and roll their eyes at their priest is something else. Dave Franco starred in this peculiar indie comedy gem alongside Aubrey Plaza, Fred Armisen, Nick Offerman, John C. Reilly and Allison Brie, which was a very modern retelling of The Decameron, and it was epic. While the movie is certainly not everyone’s cup of tea and won’t go down in history as the actors’ best works, it shows that Franco isn’t afraid to commit to a weird bit for the fun of it – and, in my opinion, that’s better than always opting for the same, average story.

6 Balloons

Dave Franco has also recently started working with Netflix, first as a guest star on the comedy Easy, and also in the recent drama 6 Balloons alongside Broad City’s Abbi Jacobson. The emotional film has Franco portraying a heroin addict who has relapsed. His sister (Jacobson) attempts to confront and help him with his problem but they run into issues with paying for his health care, his 4-year-old daughter’s presence and a party they are trying to attend. It’s a harrowing watch with a message that certainly shows Franco is more than capable of carrying more dramatic fare.

The actor has certainly come a long way in making a name for himself and showing his own talents in the past decade, first as a scene-stealer in comedies and now as an accomplished lead actor. What will he do next? Well, Dave Franco is set to star in another one of his brother’s directorial projects, Zeroville, later this year and a Michael Bay film called 6 Underground alongside Ryan Reynolds. He is also writing and directing his own horror movie called The Rental starring Alison Brie (his frequent collaborator and wife) and Dan Stevens.

What’s your favorite role from Dave Franco and what would you like to see the actor take on next? Sound off in the comments below!

At this point in his career, it wouldn't be unfair to say that Dave Franco is best known as a comedic actor and the younger brother of James Franco. But while his most famous roles are probably in Now You See Me, 21 Jump Street and Neighbors, Dave Franco is continuing to branch out beyond those types of films, and his latest role looks to be his most emotionally powerful yet. Dave Franco stars opposite Broad City's Abbi Jacobson in Netflix's 6 Balloons, and based on the trailer, he is turning in a dark and powerful performance.

This trailer certainly gets dark quick and shows that this will probably not be an easy film to watch. What's effective about this trailer is that it shows Dave Franco's character, Seth, being a bright and happy person and having fun with his sister and daughter before we learn what's really going on: he's a heroin addict. We don't find out a lot about him here, but we do see quick glimpses of Seth going through withdrawal and begging for another fix. Dave Franco looks to be giving a raw and emotional performance here as Seth struggles with his addiction as it impacts the lives of those around him.

6 Balloons seems to be telling this story from Abbi Jacobson's Katie's perspective. Her character is in the extremely difficult position of having someone she loves at the mercy of his own addiction. Katie confronting Seth about his addiction is an incredibly tough situation to be in, and one that unfortunately many people have had to experience. Katie always wants to believe in him and hope that he can overcome this, and as a result she winds up enabling him. By the looks of the trailer, Seth's life isn't the only one put in danger as a result of his addiction.

Netflix's original movies have gained a lot of attention of late, as the streaming service has pumped out buzzworthy and flashy titles from exciting creatives, only for those films to fall short critically. 6 Balloons comes from writer and director Marja-Lewis Ryan, and this is the kind of independent-type film that the Netflix model allows for. A small film from a relatively unknown director about heroin addiction isn't exactly box office gold, but hopefully with the opioid epidemic remaining a real issue in America, this movie will provide a nuanced take on the subject, showing that addicts do not exist in a vacuum, but they are people with families who care about them.

In addition to 6 Balloons, Dave Franco next stars in his brother's The Disaster Artist follow-up, Zeroville, and then he joins Oscar-winner and Moonlight director Barry Jenkins next film, If Beale Street Could Talk. 6 Balloons premieres on Netflix April 6. Check out our guide to see all the biggest Netflix original movies hitting the service in the near future.

One movie that has cinephiles everywhere excited is James Franco's The Disaster Artist. Arriving in theaters this month, The Disaster Artist tells the outrageous story behind the making of what is said to be the worst movie ever made, The Room. The Disaster Artist has some good awards buzz going for it right now, and critics have been giving it positive reviews, which is far more than can be said about the original theatrical run of The Room. It's debatable how much of The Room a viewer needs to be aware of to fully enjoy The Disaster Artist, but if you've never seen it, we've got you covered.

The brainchild of wannabe movie star Tommy Wiseau, The Room has been described as the Citizen Kane of bad movies. Just about anything a movie can do wrong is done in The Room multiple times, leading to a film so nonsensical and terrible that it's actually brilliant because of what a trainwreck it ends up being. The Room has gained a massive cult following over the years, becoming a favorite of midnight movie screenings around the globe. The story behind the making of The Room is just as crazy as the movie itself, so if you really want to understand The Disaster Artist, then sit back and let us guide you through the journey that is The Room.

What 'The Room' Is About

Describing The Room is... difficult. The movie has so many abandoned subplots and supporting characters that are introduced and then never show up again, that it can be hard to pin down what you're actually watching. Essentially, the main plot is a love triangle between banker Johnny (Tommy Wiseau -- don't worry, we'll get more into him), his fiancee Lisa (Juliette Danielle), and his best friend Mark (Greg Sestero). There's also stuff about a drug dealer, an attempted murder, weird sex scenes, football, and breast cancer that is never again addressed in the film. It's hard to justify it all with just words alone, but the bad acting, terrible dialogue, and a ton of other strange details (there are random framed pictures of spoons) all come together in a perfect storm that makes The Room a must-watch for movie fans.

It's The Brainchild Of Tommy Wiseau

The Room is pretty much the sole creative vision of a man named Tommy Wiseau. Not only did Wiseau star in the lead role, but he also directed, produced, wrote the screenplay, and personally financed the budget. Originally, Wiseau conceived of The Room as a stage play in 2001. Then Wiseau claims that he adapted the play into a 500-page novel, but failed to get it published. Eventually, he began to adapt it into an independent movie production, with himself in total creative control. Almost everything seen on screen can be credited to Wiseau and his very specific vision and tastes. It should come as no surprise that he's kind of an odd guy.

Nobody Knows Anything About Tommy Wiseau's Background

Tommy Wiseau is a human puzzle box, but one that completely changes the second you think you've started to figure it out. Much like his movie, Tommy Wiseau himself has been elevated to a cult status. Nobody really knows where Wiseau is from, or even how old he is (this is a running joke in The Disaster Artist). Wiseau claims to have been born in France, in his words, "a long time ago," and he often gives conflicting details about his own background. He supposedly moved to New Orleans, Louisiana where he eventually found his way to San Fransisco, California. Greg Sestero claims to have found immigration papers that say Wiseau was born in an Eastern Bloc country in the 1950s, while an entire documentary about The Room made its own conclusion that he is from Poland. Recently, Wiseau told Jimmy Kimmel that he was "originally from Europe."

'The Room's' Budget Was $6 Million

It may look cheap as hell, but The Room was anything but. The film had a budget of a whopping $6 million dollars. Cultural Weekly did a study in 2014 that the average budget for an independent film was found to be around $750,000 per movie.The Room's budget is over $5 million more than a typical indie movie. As to why the cost of the movie was so high, those close to production claim it was a number of things, like buying unnecessary equipment and using green screen instead of just filming on location. Wiseau paid for the budget himself, and, you guessed it, no one really knows how he got his money. Wiseau claims to have held a number of odd jobs throughout his life, ranging from a busboy to a fashion vendor (he has his own underwear line), but he may have become independently wealthy from selling and renting retail space. Some on the crew (which was 400 people, btw) thought that The Room might have been a money laundering scheme for organized crime, but there's no evidence of that.

It Was A Production Nightmare

The Room may as well be a textbook for everything not to do when making a movie. The whole thing was said to be extremely difficult to produce, with the odd demands of Tommy Wiseau playing a big part in that. The script was apparently incompressible, but Wiseau insisted that the words be spoken exactly as they were written, though, several monologues were cut. The Room shot on both a film and video camera at the same time, with two different camera crews needed to operate them; they only ever used to film footage. The crew had to be replaced at least two to four times. Actors had multiple understudies and needed to be replaced on more than one occasion, while some crew members would be doing several jobs. Minutes-long dialogue scenes would take hours to film because Wiseau could not remember his lines. You will likely see a lot of these examples in The Disaster Artist. All in all, it took six months to shoot The Room.

The Main Character Was Almost A Vampire

As if The Room weren't weird enough, the cherry on top of the sundae would have been revealing that Johnny was actually a vampire the whole time. Apparently, Tommy Wiseau had a fascination with vampires and at one point seriously considered revealing that Johnny was a bloodsucker. According to Greg Sestero, Wiseau tasked the crew with coming up with a way to do a sequence where Johnny's Mercedes-Benz would lift off of his townhouse and fly across the San Fransisco skyline. This was meant to clue in the audience on Johnny's vampiric nature, because what other explanation would there be for a flying car? Honestly, I kind of wish that they had gone for this ending. It would have been the perfect WTF way to cap of what's already a very weird movie.

It's Not Supposed To Be A Comedy

Despite the film's reputation as a laugh-out-loud comedy event, The Room was never meant to be a comedy. It's supposed to be a drama that serves as "an advisory warning about the perils of having friends." However, The Room is so unquestionably bad, that it's become hilarious. That's just the inherent fun in bad movies and The Room is the best bad movie. Since the release of The Room, Tommy Wiseau has retroactively said that it's a black comedy, but audiences generally agree that it's a poorly made drama.

'The Room' Is A Midnight Movie Classic

When The Room released in limited theaters in California, it wasn't received well. Critics slammed it, and the few people that did see it didn't have many nice things to say. However, a word-of-mouth campaign began spreading about how terrible the movie was, encouraging groups of friends to see and mock The Room. This sudden interest in the film sparked several extra bookings in the midnight movie circuit (traditionally reserved for B movies or cult films). These proved to be extremely popular as audiences would interact with the film in a fashion similar to The Rocky Horror Picture Show; people throw spoons at the screen, recite lines together, and toss footballs to each other. These are incredibly fun screenings, and you should try to find one near you if you ever get the chance. The Room screens regularly worldwide, with Tommy Wiseau and some other members of the cast making appearances and embracing the cult status. Find out where it's screening by going here.

There's A Tell-All Book Called The Disaster Artist

The making of The Room was just too ridiculous a tale to not be told. Greg Sestero, who starred as best friend Mark, wrote a tell-all novel about his relationship with Tommy Wiseau and the filming of The Room called, The Disaster Artist: My Life Inside The Room, the Greatest Bad Movie Ever Made. Sestero goes into detail about how he first met Wiseau in an acting class and the two became friends. They were both frustrated actors, which eventually led to Wiseau's inspiration to simply make his own film with Sestero tagging along, originally as the line producer before agreeing to star as well. The novel is full of interesting details about The Room, and Sestero's own suspicions about the origins of Wiseau. Sestero also narrates the audiobook, which is VERY worth it. The novel, of course, serves as the basis for a full-length feature film, making the odd story of The Room come full circle.

In the realm of cinematic enigmas, there are few modern stories stranger than the tale of Tommy Wiseau and The Room. The former is unquestionably one of the most untalented actor/filmmakers to ever grace this planet; and the latter, his most famous work, is so incredibly bizarre and terrible that you question whether it was actually made by a sane human mind. A dictionary definition of "so bad it's good," the 2003 film is a unique experience that leaves you helplessly wondering about all of the terrible decisions that were made leading to its creation.

Thankfully, we now have James Franco's The Disaster Artist to tell that particular story -- and it is successfully as weird and funny as you would hope. Showcasing fantastic turns from both Franco and his brother, Dave; a mile-long list of funny and surprising cameos; and what is legitimately a heart-felt story about passion and expression, it's the fantastic result of a brilliant stranger-than-fiction tale falling in the hands of the perfect cast and crew, and comes together as one of the best movies of the year.

Scripted by the talented duo Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber, The Disaster Artist starts by taking audiences back to San Francisco in the year 1998. It is there that we are introduced to Greg Sestero (Dave Franco), a young aspiring actor who lacks the confidence required to give him any kind of presence. It's because of this, however, that Greg finds himself somewhat in awe of Tommy Wiseau (James Franco), an oddball, pale-eyed, strange-looking member of his acting class who leans towards what can be subtly described as "explosive drama." Drawn in by Tommy's self-assurance and blinded to the fact that he's absolutely talentless, Greg seeks him out for guidance, and a friendship is quickly formed.

Greg quickly finds out that the more you know about Tommy, the less you know about him. While clearly an older guy, he claims to be as young as 19. While he speaks with an often-unintelligible accent, he claims to have been born and raised in New Orleans. And while he comes across as a complete moron, he possesses an immense fortune that basically lets him do whatever he wants. Naturally, never really questioning any of this is what allows Greg to form a close bond with Tommy, and after a few months working together they decide to make a run at their Hollywood dreams and move down to Los Angeles.

Like millions before them, Greg and Tommy find the film industry to be a haven of rejection, and their dreams of achieving stardom flicker with every failed audition. It's because of this disappointment, however, that they are sparked to a "brilliant" idea: if they can't get hired to star in other peoples' movies, they can just make a movie themselves. Tommy is inspired to write and direct The Room -- his vision of a romantic drama with himself in the lead role, and soon the wheels are in motion, with the production picking up a full cast and crew. But, of course, this is an endeavor spearheaded by an "idiotcrazyman," and a never-ending series of terrible decisions quickly cause things to unravel.

The Disaster Artist marks the first time that the Franco brothers have collaborated, and while they respectively have very different material to work with, they're really both magnificent. As you would expect, Tommy's unique personality makes James Franco the principal eye-catcher, but it goes much further than that. Playing the cult movie icon requires an authentic, transformative performance really unlike anything we've previously seen from the actor/director, and he successfully adds an important humanity to a guy who comes across as an extraterrestrial's interpretation of a person. He certainly maintains an air of mystery in his characterization (you shouldn't expect to fully understand The Room by the time the credits roll), but you also understand him through his motivations, priorities and relationships -- screwed up as they all may be.

Not only as Tommy but also as the director of the film, James Franco will certainly draw the lot of the acclaim for The Disaster Artist, but what Dave Franco delivers deserves due recognition as well. Greg Sestero could easily come across as a fool for not understanding Tommy Wiseau's lack of talent, or possibly even sinister given the resources provided to him by the friendship, but the younger Franco halts that with an impressive earnestness and sense of innocent ambition. While the world at large clearly doesn't understand Tommy, he sells that he really does, and it adds a certain magic to the narrative.

Clearly the fact that that Francos are siblings adds a special layer to The Disaster Artist, but the movie is also wonderfully enhanced by the director's status in film community, given the impressive star power that the indie movie possesses. Seth Rogen, who has been working with James Franco since the 1999 TV series Freaks and Geeks, and Paul Scheer are standouts, playing key members of the Room crew who find themselves in constant befuddlement regarding what's going through Tommy's mind, but they are just two of the many, many recognizable faces brought together to recreate this story -- all of whom find a memorable moment to play within the story. It not only supports the film from a comedic perspective, as many of the actors rank among the industry's funniest performers and have opportunity to demonstrate their gifts, but even somewhat completes the full ambition of The Room -- which was always imagined as a "big Hollywood movie," and now has the star power it always wanted.

The Disaster Artist is a love letter to The Room, a feature that has delivered a lot of unintentional joy to the cinematic world in the last 14 years, and those familiar with the cult title will have an enhanced appreciation for it. But it's not solely a film for that audience. Even if you've never heard of The Room, what James Franco has to offer here a fantastic, hilarious true Hollywood story that is as phenomenal as its subject matter is awful.

Tommy Wiseau, writer and director of the notoriously terrible film The Room, is a fascinating enigma. Nobody knows where he really comes from; nobody knows how old he is; and nobody knows how he made his impressive fortune. These are the kind of things that an actor typically needs to know about a person prior to a portrayal in a feature film, but they simply weren't available to James Franco in the making of his new movie, The Disaster Artist. Still, Franco was ultimately able to find a way to connect with the mysterious "filmmaker" for his performance, and as he recently revealed to me in an interview, a key piece of the puzzle was their shared affection for James Dean. Franco explained,

I had the fantastic opportunity to sit down with both James and Dave Franco, the stars of The Disaster Artist, during the film's press day in Los Angeles earlier this month, and a good portion of our conversation was spent discussing the mystery that is Tommy Wiseau. I opened my interview noting just how little is known about the writer/director behind one of the most entertaining bad movies ever made, and James Franco expressed that he was never actually interested in answering the three biggest questions about the man. Rather, he found a personal connection to Wiseau through their shared affection for James Dean, and noted that it's arguably just genetics that saw the two of them take very different paths in their careers (including actually playing Dean in the 2001 TV biopic James Dean).

The connection Tommy Wiseau sees between himself and James Dean is very present in The Disaster Artist, even beyond a scene where Tommy watches Rebel Without A Cause with Dave Franco's Greg Sestero. One of the most awful moments in The Room -- Wiseau delivering the world's worst line delivery of, "You're tearing me apart, Lisa" -- is actually an homage to the classic film, and one of Dean's more impactful big screen moments in his limited career.

You can watch James Franco discuss his funny personal connection with Tommy Wiseau by clicking play on the video below.

With James Dean close to his heart, James Franco may find playing Tommy Wiseau earn him his second Academy Award nomination for The Disaster Artist -- and it would certainly be deserving. Don't believe us? Just check out the film for yourself, which is in limited release this Friday, December 1st, and will be in theaters nationwide on December 8th.

Many people have said that a hero's story is only as good as his or her villain. Between Lord Business and The Joker, the LEGO franchise has thus far managed to deliver on that idea, but with The LEGO Ninjago Movie about to debut this weekend, that idea is about to get even more absurd with the franchise's first-ever cat villain: Meowthra. The adorable take on the kaiju genre delivers plenty of laughs, and its inclusion in the film was one of Dave Franco's biggest reasons for signing onto the project. The actor recently sat down with CinemaBlend at the Ninjago press junket at LEGOLAND California and explained:

The LEGO franchise has become well known for its ability to channel irreverence into its stories, and Meowthra encapsulates that idea. At its core, The LEGO Ninjago Movie is designed to skewer the conventions and cliché of classic Asian cinema, and the use of this feline captures the spirit of old-fashioned kaiju monsters like Godzilla and (you guessed it) Mothra. As a well-established cat person, Dave Franco could not resist, and the fact that the cat used in this film apparently looks quite a bit like his own cat served as icing on the cake for the job.

The inclusion of a beast like Meowthra is also important for The LEGO Ninjago Movie because it continues a tradition of live-action visual elements established by the first LEGO Movie. While The LEGO Batman Movie eschewed the live-action framework for story reasons, the narrative device was not just a one-off for the folks behind the franchise. In fact, during a separate conversation I had with producers Dan Lin and Chris McKay, they explained that live-action would continue to play a significant role in the overarching LEGO franchise going forward. Incorporating something like Meowthra into the story is an invaluable (and endlessly cute) way to see how far that premise can stretch, so we are excited to see how it will be handled in The LEGO Movie 2.

Meowthra will lay waste to Ninjago when The LEGO Ninjago Movie debuts in theaters this weekend on September 22. You can also take a look at CinemaBlend's 2017 movie premiere guide and our 2018 movie premiere guide for more up-to-date information on anything and everything debuting over the next year!

James Franco's The Disaster Artist made its debut on the fall film festival circuit a few weeks back, impressing critics and entertaining audiences with its deft recreation of Tommy Wiseau's The Room -- largely considered to be one of the worst movies ever made. But The Room, which plays Midnight repertories and encourages passionate reactions from its rabid fanbase, has a very distinct look... one that's very, very bad. Because Franco was meticulous in telling the story of how Tommy and his best friend, Greg Sestero, created The Room, he and his collaborators -- Seth Rogen and brother Dave Franco -- went to great lengths to match The Room at every step. Dave Franco recently opened up to CinemaBlend, explaining:

The Disaster Artist plays really well for people who are intimately familiar with the meme-worthy awfulness that is The Room. Even the first full trailer for James Franco's The Disaster Artist was basically just a recreation of Tommy Wiseau (James Franco) filming an infamous scene on a recreation of his rooftop. It's the "Oh, hai Mark" line that you all know so very well.

But because James and Dave Franco knew that there's a large chunk of the audience coming to The Disaster Room with knowledge of The Room, this meant that had to treat their recreations of The Room as seriously as possible, or it would take people out of their movie. There was speculation following screenings of The Disaster Artist that James Franco might have actually filmed an entire recreation of The Room, but now Dave confirms that they basically only recreated half of it, and some of those scenes we will see side by side with footage from Tommy Wiseau's film.

The Disaster Artist picked up incredible buzz at the Toronto International Film Festival. It is coming to theaters on December 1, from A24. Could it have Oscar aspirations? We will know soon enough.