James Hunt

Had the exact same thoughts on 2025 movies. One Battle in particular I just immediately wanted to rewatch

My top 3 rewatched would probably Top Gun: Maverick, Barbie, and Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour Movie (and Tay ain't #3)

The Wakanda/F4 trailer has been released online. It's not quite as interesting/exciting as the X-Men one, but it's still cool to see these worlds colliding and actually get at least some sense of how things will come together in Doomsday. What are all your thoughts? How would you rank it next to the others, and who do you want to see next (assuming there's more to come)?

I thought it looked fine and at least a different approach, but more "I'll enjoy it enough on streaming" fine than "Ok I'll go see it in theaters" good

Trailer for this is great so I was tempted, but now you've recommended it I probably won't be watching 🙂

Marty Supreme was my first movie theater trip of 2026 (and I loved it). I'm hoping to get to see 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, but Scream 7 is the next 100%er

The Boys, I'm hyped to see where that goes in its final season and if they can stick the (superhero) landing. For Marvel/DC, I'm pretty excited for Daredevil: Born Again Season 2 and Lanterns

Fawlty Towers is incredible for this in that my brain will never accept there are only 12 episodes, always feel like there are way more because it's always so hilarious (Only Fools and Horses is the other UK sitcom that I've watched more than I could possibly count and never, ever tire of)

Friends is the TV show I have watched more than any other by far, but Gilmore Girls has replaced it in the last few years as the series I'll have playing on repeat and immediately start over as soon as it ends. Game of Thrones and Buffy are both in my top 3 favourite TV shows of all time, and I rewatch them a lot, but not in that same constant, comfort blanket way I do with Friends and Gilmore Girls (and to an extent, HIMYM and the Golden Age of The Simpsons) where I can watch it any time, any episode, any mood.

Of the stuff that's definitely happening, probably Starfighter, because it's something actually new (and also because Ryan Gosling). Though quality-wise, I have pretty high expectations for Maul and the Ninth Jedi series. Of the 1,138 other projects they've put into development, I'd say James Mangold's Dawn of the Jedi movie because, again, it's something entirely new and different. That's totally, 100% happening and will absolutely not be shelved indefinitely.

The news of Frodo and Gandalf's return is doing the rounds again (it's actually from August), but since it is... how do you feel? Gandalf appearing was inevitable since the story demands it, Frodo just feels unnecessary to me (even if it'll likely be a small role, perhaps as a framing device). LOTR, like so many franchises, feels a bit stuck in not being able to move on from the original trilogy and those main characters.

Inspired by Bill Simmons' recent podcast (IYKYK), it got me thinking about what movies from the 21st Century I've seen the most. Not what's the best, or even favourite, but just the ones that I have rewatched the most times. For me, it's either something that was always on TV (American Pie 2, Hot Fuzz, and Shaun of the Dead were movies that were always on one specific channel at night in the UK for years and years, and I always inevitably watched them), or something where I tend to do a yearly rewatch, like LOTR/Harry Potter. What were yours?

I believe in (Sebastian Stan as) Harvey Dent. Also wouldn't say no to him being Hush though. (There's also something fun in Winter Soldier/Mr. Freeze, perhaps a cold take but he'd be quite chilling, etc etc)

Like you say, Filoni was expected. I can't say I know enough about Brennan to pass judgment, but he obviously needs someone well-versed in the business side to run it alongside him (I've never understood the idea/clamor for him to get the job alone, he's a creative), and she is clearly experienced. I'm forever hopeful Star Wars will turn things around, but think anyone expecting that all the problems will be magically solved with Filoni replacing Kennedy is in for disappointment

Because the Game of Thrones finale was good and one day everyone will finally accept that! But more seriously... certainly in comparison to Stranger Things, there's a much richer world here. ST had a more limited scope and mythology - the Upside Down (and later The Abyss) was directly tied to the core characters we care about. There's maybe more it can explore with things like The Philadelphia Experiment from the stage play, or other gates in other countries or something, but it's hard to care because what really mattered were those kids in that specific place at that specific time. When it tried to expand beyond Hawkins, like with the Russia story in S4 or El finding Kali in S2, we got some of the weakest parts of the entire series. Thrones' characters were obviously crucial too, but it was much more expansive with so many different houses and locations, each with their own histories, and there's thousands of years of lore to draw upon in a world that people loved spending time in. They played it smart with HOTD because it's "you like Targaryens? you like dragons? you like the Iron Throne and all the politics and scheming that come with it? Here's all of that in one story, that actually has an ending!" (and while S2 received some backlash, I don't think it was enough to significantly damage things). It'll be very interesting to see how A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is received by viewers (I've no doubt reviews will be strong), because it is something different in terms of the scale and scope of it. That for me will be the greater proof of how much life there is to the franchise, or if we'll just get a dragon show every few years, like the plan for Aegon's Conquest. I also think HBO has been quite admirably restrained in its approach, because it would've been easy to do the MCU or Star Wars approach we saw when Disney+ kicked off by quickly throwing a bunch of different shows out there. Sure, we're getting two this year for the first time, but that's after nothing in 2025, and nothing else has officially been ordered, even if they've developing a lot of ideas.

Season 1 is still my favourite, but it's basically a different show from everything that came after. From there, I think Season 4 is the (almost) perfect form of what the show became/wanted to be, and the Max/Running Up That Hill scene is the show's greatest moment

Matt Smith. He's "my" Doctor insofar as he's the one who really got me to love the show (I didn't watch it growing up, had seen bits of Eccleston and Tennant without it sticking, though later came to love them). He just has the perfect mix of old man, somewhat alien, and childlike wonder and enthusiasm. Will also give a shoutout to Capaldi, because Season 9 is probably my favorite season overall

Definitely A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, because it's exactly what the GOT franchise needs and I love the story. Also HOTD S3, The Boys S5, Bridgerton S4, and for something non-franchise, How To Get To Heaven From Belfast because Derry Girls was sooooo good and it's the same creator.

I (mostly) liked the finale, don't have much interest beyond the show because what I really cared about here were the characters rather than the Upside Down lore, but... will probably still watch Tales From '85, the mystery spinoff, and the inevitable continuation they do in 10-15 years nonetheless

B! I think it was safe, but also solid and, ultimately, emotionally satisfying, which is the most important thing for me. Some problems came from a lack of stakes, the weaker setup of Vol. 2, and connecting so much to a stage play, but the final 45 minutes or so where we say goodbye to everyone I thought they absolutely nailed

It looks really impressive and Epic and this is one of my most anticipated movies of 2026 because of who and what it is, but I don't think this trailer is all that exciting itself beyond selling scale and some stars, if that makes sense

Gunther sold the hell out of it on Raw the following night, which helped. I think it was probably the right outcome/idea, but badly executed (that little smile as he tapped was f**king awful), and made so much worse by so much of the retirement tour being pretty bad. It's been enjoyable since the match with Cody at Summerslam, AJ was great, but ALL the heel stuff besides the turn itself, plus the match with Brock, was such a disaster that it was always going to be hard to stick any kind of landing.

I'll echo they've probably made Steve too obvious a choice to die, but mostly just hope they commit to killing 1-2 characters of real importance (for story/character reasons, though, not just for the sake of it). My major concern with the rest of Season 5 is how much it might connect to The First Shadow, given the setup of Henry Creel and the cave. Lots of theories point to that, and I'm very worried that the biggest show in Netflix history is going to hinge its ending on a stage play that 99% of its audience won't have seen

Almost any of the movies he made in that run from This Is Spinal Tap to A Few Good Men could be named here. The Princess Bride, Misery, Stand By Me... all incredible, but I've got to agree with When Harry Met Sally, which is a truly perfect romcom.

Sanderson gave a fairly substantial update last year on why it isn't happening here https://www.brandonsanderson.com/blogs/blog/state-of-the-sanderson-2024 - there's also been no movement on a Stormlight adaptation either, though both would be tricky to pull off. Unfortunately, this is just the latest in a long, long list of fantasy projects to get stuck in development hell (still waiting for Kingkiller Chronicle, especially with the third book taking so long)