• 2024 may not have been as big a year for television as 2023 – but there were plenty of gems.
• Series like FX's "Shōgun," Prime Video's "Fallout," and Netflix's "Baby Reindeer" cut through the noise.
• Here are the BI entertainment team's favorite television series of the year.

Amid shake-ups in the television industry, 2024 still delivered a slate of great TV series ranging from familiar continuations to ambitious debuts.

That includes series like FX's "Shōgun," an immersive adaptation that brought top Japanese talent to American screens; the Brian Jordan Alvarez comedy "English Teacher," which turns high school culture wars into comedy fodder; and hits like "Baby Reindeer," which captivated the world with a story pulled from creator Richard Gadd's life.

Here are our favorites from this year.

"Abbott Elementary" season 4

Season four of "Abbott Elementary" picks up with Janine (Quinta Brunson) and Gregory (Tyler James Williams) officially dating after their slow-burn romance played in the show's previous seasons. At the start of this season, the pair are unsuccessfully trying to keep their relationship a secret from their Abbott Elementary coworkers when they return to school.

The writing of "Abbott Elementary" remains as sharp and culturally relevant as ever, and the latest season sprinkles in new characters that keep the show fresh and exciting — from Jacob's younger brother Caleb (Tyler Perez) and an IT guy named O'Shon (Matthew Law) whom the staff have a crush on to a lovable guinea pig named Sweet Cheeks who breaks through Melissa's (Lisa Ann Walter) tough exterior. — Olivia Singh

"Arcane" season 2

Netflix and Riot Games' "Arcane" is one of the most impressive and ambitious animated works of the past decade — and while it doesn't always find its footing, the end result is still so spectacular.

The series is adapted from Riot Games' massively popular video game "League of Legends," honing in on a small cast of characters who live in Piltover, the gleaming city of progress, and Zaun, its less-than-scintillating undercity. The conflict between the two cities has reached a critical point by season two. Unfortunately for all parties, so has the evolution of Hextech, a magic-powered technology that has spiraled out of control and turned one of its developers into a misguided messiah. Oops!

Season two is nothing if not ambitious and widens its scope while leveling up its already excellent animation, courtesy of the French studio Fortiche. In the process, it loses some of the intimate character work and tight focus that made its first season truly extraordinary. Still, the second season serves as a fitting conclusion and is a harbinger of good things to come from Riot's entertainment arm. — Palmer Haasch

Read Haasch's interview with "Arcane" showrunner Christian Linke.

"Baby Reindeer"

Few shows caused as much of a stir this year as "Baby Reindeer," starring and written by comedian Richard Gadd. Netflix and the creator himself billed the series as a true story based on Gadd's real-life experience of being stalked by an older woman. Unfortunately, the show's stalker character, Martha Scott, was quickly outed as Fiona Harvey, who took legal action against the streamer.

Despite all the behind-the-scenes controversy, "Baby Reindeer" is a work of art. Gadd lays himself bare as Donny, who's loosely based on himself. He's a powerhouse in episode four, which flashes back to explain the source of Donny's trauma before meeting Martha.

It's an engrossing watch with equally powerful performances from Jessica Gunning, who plays the disturbed but deeply sad Martha, and Nava Mau, who plays Donny's girlfriend, Teri. — Caralynn Matassa

Read about the legal drama behind "Baby Reindeer.'

"The Boys," season 4

If "The Boys" is Prime Video's NSFW answer to superhero fare like the Marvel Cinematic Universe, then season four feels like the equivalent of "Avengers: Infinity War" — minus a snap from a villain that wipes out half the universe.

Season four of "The Boys" is darker than past seasons, as the characters confront deep-seated traumas. For an aging Homelander (Anthony Starr), this means grappling with the legacy he'll leave behind for his son Ryan. For his nemesis Billy Butcher (Karl Urban), it means coming to terms with his looming death and trying to prevent Ryan from succumbing to Homelander's darkness.

It's a season filled with even more gory, jaw-dropping scenes and yet another Emmy-worthy performance by Starr, particularly in Homelander's gory homecoming episode.

The endgame is nearing, with a fifth and final season of "The Boys" likely premiering in 2026. Season four ends with the perfect foundation for all hell to break loose one last time. — OS

"English Teacher"

It's astounding that it took this long for Brian Jordan Alvarez to get a series order after the release of his excellent 2016 web series "The Gay and Wondrous Life of Caleb Gallo" — but thankfully, "English Teacher" premiered this year.

The series stars Alvarez as Evan Marquez, a beleaguered but idealistic Texas high school teacher who comes under fire at work when a parent complains about him kissing his ex-boyfriend in front of the students.

While "English Teacher" embraces the thorny politics of being an American educator in 2024, it doesn't spin them into saccharine teaching moments or cheap jokes. It mines them for character threads and comedy. — PH

"Fallout"

With "Fallout," Jonathan Nolan proved that prestige-y video game adaptations weren't exclusive to HBO. Rather than directly adapting one of the multiple games in the postapocalyptic "Fallout" universe, Nolan instead leverages the style, humor, and striking visual identity of the games to show us something new.

"Fallout" stars Ella Purnell as Lucy, a naive resident who grew up in an underground bunker known as a Vault, established to protect humanity from nuclear armageddon. However, after tragedy befalls her home, she ventures to the surface, only to learn it isn't as deserted or unsurvivable as she was led to believe.

The series features stellar performances from Purnell and Walton Goggins, who spends most of the season admirably noseless. And while it's set in the grim aftermath of a nuclear apocalypse, it's also irreverently funny and endearing. — PH

Read Eammon Jacobs' review of "Fallout" and Jason Guerrasio's interview with Walton Goggins.

"Hacks" season 3

The Max original "Hacks" has only gotten better with age, and in season three, it feels like the show has hit its stride.

The show follows veteran stand-up comedian Deborah Vance, who, on the coattails of a successful comedy special, is gunning for her dream: a late-night hosting gig. After cutting her young writer, Ava Daniels, loose at the end of season two, Deborah realizes that she needs Ava — and Ava craves working with Deborah again, too.

This central relationship — and all the ways Deobrah and Ava support, encourage, and mess each other up — is constantly in flux. Season three not only succeeded in being funnier and more resonant than its predecessors but also in shifting Deborah and Ava's power dynamic into something new and a bit dangerous ahead of season four. — PH

Read Haasch's interview with "Hacks" stars Carl Clemons-Hopkins and Mark Indelicato.

"Industry" season 3

Move over, "Succession" — there's another contender for the best HBO show about horny, psychopathic capitalists. "Industry," the show about London's most dedicated and depraved bankers, finally broke through to the mainstream with its third season.

Seasons one and two delivered well-written, well-acted, character-driven drama about the highs and lows of a group of young bankers trading stocks (and spit). Still, season three upped the ante, spending more time away from the office in lavish locations, such as the English countryside, a yacht in the Mediterranean, and a Davos-like conference in Switzerland.

The change in scenery enhanced the story and deepened our understanding of the series' core group of complicated characters, most of whom have greatly evolved since we first saw them sitting and sweating at their Pierpoint desks.

All of it leads to an explosive finale that's massive in both budget and sheer plot, effectively wiping the slate clean for a now-confirmed season four. It's an appropriately daring move for a show confident in its vision. It's peak TV at its peak. — Samantha Rollins

Read Rollins' interview with "Industry" showrunners Mickey Down and Konrad Kay.

"Love Island USA" season 6

There were many (many) reality dating shows that aired in 2024. Having regrettably watched most of them, I can confirm that the latest installment of "Love Island USA" blew them all out of the water.

The franchise, which spun off of the UK edition, has the secret sauce that makes this genre sing. It's largely thanks to a format that other shows have tried — and failed — to replicate, wherein participants must constantly recouple to find true love (and win a cash prize).

Season six had a particularly explosive set of personalities among its cast, leading to some serious drama, shocking betrayals, truly memorable moments, and fan-favorite standouts, including Serena Page, Leah Kateb, and Jana Craig. — CM

"A Man on the Inside"

"A Man on the Inside" is initially presented as a spy mystery series as Charles Nieuwendyk (Ted Danson), a widower who recently lost his wife, accepts a job to go undercover in a retirement home.

That's all background noise to the main event, which follows the lives of a kooky gang of residents who find community with each other after being left behind by their loved ones.

Anyone who has seen Danson in any of his other many roles would not be surprised that he is an incredible leading man. However, the show's real strength is the supporting cast, especially Margaret Avery, Stephen McKinley Henderson, and Sally Struthers, who provide so much humor and heart that they may make you shed tears.

"A Man on the Inside" proves we really need more TV shows centered on older characters, and there's ample talent out there to make those stories worth watching. — Ayomikun Adekaiyero

Read Rollins' interview with "A Man on the Inside" creator Mike Schur.

"Mr. and Mrs. Smith"

Prime Video's "Mr. and Mrs. Smith," a reboot of Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie's 2005 film (mostly in name only), is deeply funny, emotionally stirring, and clever.

Sure, both titles share a similar premise — a husband and wife who are both assassins — but the television series flips it on its head to create something much better.

Donald Glover and Maya Erskine play two strangers who, upon taking a new job as shady agents for a mysterious boss, are paired together as a cover story.

The 10-episode season features a laundry list of guest stars, ranging from Ron Perlman to Micaela Coel. — PH

Read Haasch's review of "Mr. and Mrs. Smith" and Jacobs' interview with guest star Ron Perlman.

"Nobody Wants This"

Rom-coms are so back.

Six years after Netflix was credited with a rom-com renaissance thanks to hits like "Set It Up" and "To All the Boys I've Loved Before," the streamer struck gold again with "Nobody Wants This," a comedy series starring Kristen Bell and Adam Brody. The show became an instant hit, proving audiences yearn for more high-quality modern rom-coms.

"Nobody Wants This," created by Erin Foster and loosely inspired by her love story, follows Noah (Brody), an attractive and newly single rabbi, and Joanne (Kristen Bell), the outspoken agnostic host of a sex podcast. Despite their different views on religion and lifestyle, they pursue a relationship.

Noah and Joanne's swoon-worthy first kiss scene went viral, people realized that Brody had been leading man material all along, and the show jumped to the No. 2 slot on the streamer's Top 10 list for English-language TV in the week of its debut. Unsurprisingly, "Nobody Wants This" will be returning for a second season, which begins filming in February. — OS

"One Day"

The second attempt at bringing David Nicholls' bestselling novel "One Day" to the screen (after a 2011 film adaptation) is a rousing success.

The novel of the same name is already beautifully tragic, relatable, and perspective-altering, but the Netflix show amplifies all these strengths with gut-punching performances from leads Leo Woodall and Ambika Mod, who play destined lovers Dexter and Emma.

With each episode set in a different year, "One Day" takes audiences on a 14-year journey as the two grow into adults and fall in love with other people and each other, but never at the right time. For romantics or young people worried about the future, this is the show to watch from 2024. — AA

"The Penguin"

Colin Farrell leads the spinoff sequel to the 2022 film "The Batman," playing the titular comic book villain Oz "Penguin" Cobb. It was fascinating how quickly it became apparent that the show had more in common with "The Sopranos" than nearly anything DC Studios has released.

Farrell utterly transforms as Cobb, the mobster clawing to the top in Gotham after the death of crime boss Carmine Falcone in "The Batman" left a power vacuum. Still, Cristin Milioti is the real standout as Sofia Falcone, Carmine's daughter and accused psychopathic serial killer, fresh out of a stay in Arkham State Hospital. — CM

Read Jacobs' interview with "The Penguin" showrunner Lauren LeFranc.

"The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives"

On its surface, "The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives" was a show greenlit solely because of a TikTok scandal where several couples in a Mormon community were implicated in an alleged swinging scandal. That premise didn't seem like it'd carry far, but turns out the swinging was possibly the least dramatic thing about these women.

After a moderately slow start, "Secret Lives" turns the dial up to 11 in episode four, a group birthday vacation where all hell breaks loose as the group of friends and frenemies start calling one another out. (Shout out to the truth box, the real MVP.)

It was hard not to root for Taylor Frankie Paul and follow her tumultuous relationship with Dakota Mortensen or to root against the deeply annoying Whitney Leavitt, who became the sleeper villain of season one. We're dying to see what becomes of MomTok when the show returns in 2025. — CM

Read Haasch's interview with Taylor Frankie Paul and Mayci Neeley.

"Shōgun"

There was no stopping "Shōgun" at the 2024 Emmys, and for good reason. Based on James Clavell's 1975 novel, the stunning historical epic focuses on an English sailor who finds himself shipwrecked in Japan and crosses paths with Lord Toranga, a powerful warlord.

With incredible performances, sweeping visuals, and mesmerizing battle sequences, it's no wonder the show set a record for the most Emmys won by a single season of television and that the creators decided to rethink their limited series plan and continue the show with second and third seasons. — CM

"The Traitors" season 2

They were the words heard 'round the reality TV-loving world: "Oh lord, not Ekin-Su."

Few shows were as memed as "The Traitors," the US iteration of the international competition series where reality stars and celebrities try to deceive one another to claim a cash prize.

Season one, which aired in 2023, was entertaining, but season two reached new heights, largely thanks to compulsively watchable characters like meme factory Phaedra Parks and "Shahs of Sunset" star MJ Javid, who gave us one of the best reaction shots of the year. — CM

Read Matassa's interview with "Big Brother" alum Dan Gheesling, who tried and failed to extend his gaming skills to "The Traitors."

"X-Men '97"

Not only did "X-Men '97" expertly capture the spirit of the original animated "X-Men" series, but it also made it feel modern and relevant to the 2020s amid some gorgeously animated action.

The performances are seamless with the original show, adding new dimensions to the Marvel Universe that fans, new and old, will appreciate.

It deserves all of the praise for easily navigating the messy Jean Grey/Madelyne Prior clone saga from the comics. Season two can't come quickly enough. — Eammon Jacobs

• Paramount announced "Sonic the Hedgehog 4," just as the third movie is about to release.
• "Sonic the Hedgehog 3" is projected to have a bigger domestic opening than "Mufasa: The Lion King."
• 2019's "The Lion King" remake made $1.6 billion worldwide, but the prequel has far lower expectations.

Paramount announced that a new Sonic movie is already in development ahead of the opening weekend for "Sonic the Hedgehog 3."

The announcement came as revenue projections for "Sonic 3" came in surprisingly strong — and ahead of Disney's anticipated "Mufasa: The Lion King."

The franchise is based on the beloved Sega video games about the blue speedster, who has been starring in games for more than 30 years. Paramount brought Sonic into live-action in 2020's "Sonic the Hedgehog" movie and a 2022 sequel.

"Parks and Recreation" star Ben Schwartz voices Sonic in the movie franchise, and Jim Carrey plays his nemesis, Dr. Robotnik.

Combined, the two films have made $707 million, according to TheNumbers.com. And Paramount seems to have faith in the third film as Variety reported that the studio has already greenlit "Sonic the Hedgehog 4" for Spring 2027 ahead of the threequel's release on December 21.

"Sonic the Hedgehog 3" is competing with the Disney prequel "Mufasa: The Lion King" over the holidays.

The Hollywood Reporter estimated that "Sonic" would come out on top, with $60 million from its first weekend versus $50 million from "Mufasa."

The outlet sources its estimates from theater chains and major analytics companies like Nielsen and Comscore, and is widely respected in the movie industry.

The difference is a shock, given the historic power of the "Lion King" story. The 2019 remake of "The Lion King" raked in $1.6 billion worldwide, making it one of Disney's greatest financial successes.

"Sonic the Hedgehog 3" earned a healthy 87% critic rating on Rotten Tomatoes ahead of its release, while "Mufasa" got a "rotten" 54% rating.

• The first trailer for James Gunn's "Superman" gives a first look at David Corenswet's hero.
• It also introduces a handful of other heroes, villains, and monsters.
• Here is the cast of the new DC movie and who they play.

It's been over a decade since audiences last saw a solo "Superman" movie in theaters, but director James Gunn has finally revealed the first trailer for his new DC reboot.

The film stars "Twisters" actor David Corenswet as the new version of the Man of Steel, as he takes over the role from Henry Cavill. The trailer starts with Superman crashing down in the snow before calling his dog, Krypto, for help.

It then introduces audiences to the new iteration of the DC Universe as Clark Kent balances his life as a young reporter at the Daily Planet and as a superhero. It puts some of the focus on his relationship with Lois Lane (Rachel Brosnahan) a fellow reporter, as well as Lex Luthor (Nicholas Hoult), a nefarious tech billionaire.

The action also sees Superman fighting a huge monster and a mysterious black-suited figure. Take a look below.

David Corenswet plays the new Superman, taking the mantle from Henry Cavill.

Corenswet is known for his roles in "Pearl," "The Politician" and "Look Both Ways." He also starred in 2024's "Twisters" alongside Glen Powell and Daisy Edgar-Jones. 

He told the "Manly Things (Sort Of)" podcast that he bulked up significantly for the role.

Corenswet said: "Getting to bulk up for 'Superman' was... I was looking for an excuse to really throw on some weight. I thought 210 was going to make me happy, but then I got up to 238... I wasn't 238 when we started shooting. 238 was my max." 

He added: "It didn't feel great... I did it so quickly that my body just hadn't adjusted to the extra weight... But that was at the peak of my bulk, and then I slowly lost weight before we started shooting. 

"I started shooting at about 228. I put on one of those sweatshirts, and I was like an XL or double XL, and I was like, 'I fill this out. This is amazing.' I didn't fit into any of my pants."

Rachel Brosnahan joins Corenswet as Lois Lane, Superman's love interest and colleague.

Rachel Brosnahan plays Lois Lane, a determined reporter at the Daily Planet and the love interest of Superman/Kent. 

The actor is known for her roles in "House of Cards" and "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel," she reportedly beat actors like "Sex Education" star Emma Mackey, "Bridgerton" lead Phoebe Dynevor, and "Ready or Not" actor Samara Weaving to the role.

In February, Brosnahan told Variety what drew her to the role, saying: "I have always loved Lois Lane. She's smart, ambitious, and can be funny. She knows she's the smartest person in the room more often than not."

Nicholas Hoult is on villain duties as Lex Luthor.

British star Nicholas Hoult originally auditioned to play Superman in the film, but Gunn decided to cast him as the hero's archnemesis, Lex Luthor, instead. 

Hoult told The Hollywood Reporter that he enjoyed working with Gunn on getting Luthor right.

He said: "I was like, 'Oh, this is exciting where he imagines this character being, and hopefully I can bring the energy that he wants to what he's written on the page.' Yeah, you do want him to be imposing and dangerous. That's something about that character. Whenever you're playing the villain, I suppose you want people to feel that they are dangerous."

Nathan Fillion plays Guy Gardner, one of the many Green Lantern superheroes in DC comics.

Nathan Fillion voiced the Hal Jordan Green Lantern in several animated movies and starred in "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3" and "The Suicide Squad."

In "Superman," he's playing Guy Gardner, a hot-headed member of the Green Lantern Corps.

Isabela Merced plays another superhero called Hawkgirl.

Isabela Merced is playing Hawkgirl, a hero with a complicated backstory involving reincarnation. She also appeared in the Sony Marvel movie "Madame Web" as another superhero, Anya Corazon, and had a very gross role in "Alien: Romulus."

Edi Gathegi plays Mr. Terrific, whose intelligence is said to rival Batman's.

Edi Gathegi is playing Mr. Terrific, a tech genius who uses his inventions to fight injustice. The actor has also played a superhero before — Darwin in "X-Men: First Class."

Anthony Carrigan plays another new DC hero named Metamorpho.

Carrigan can briefly be seen as Metamorpho toward the end of the trailer — although he's easily mistaken for another character, Brainiac, due to the alien-like design of his face.

But it is definitely Metamorpho due to his purple crystal shoulder that can be seen on the right of the screen.

—Jorge (@djodjeee_) December 19, 2024

The character is typically a hero in the comics, but this ominous shot might suggest he has a villainous role to play in the film.

Carrigan is best known for his role in "Barry" but he has played two supervillains in DC shows "Gotham" and "The Flash."

Krypto the Superdog as himself.

James Gunn previously told fans on Instagram that his version of the character was inspired by his rescue dog, Ozu.

He wrote: "Gosh, how difficult would life be if Ozu had superpowers?" - and thus Krypto came into the script & changed the shape of the story as Ozu was changing my life."

View this post on Instagram

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• Tom Holland said working on films with Zendaya is the "best thing" that's happened to him.
• He said the couple can vent about what annoys them on set back at their hotel room.
• Holland and Zendaya have worked on three "Spider-Man" movies together.

Tom Holland said working on set with Zendaya, his girlfriend, is a "saving grace" because they can vent about what's annoyed them when they get back to their hotel room.

Rumors of their relationship started in 2017 when they were working on "Spider-Man: Homecoming," but they didn't make things official (and public) until 2021 after photos of them kissing in public surfaced online.

They have starred in three "Spider-Man" movies together, and are expected to reprise their roles in the as yet untitled fourth movie.

On Wednesday's episode of the "Dish" podcast, Holland briefly opened up about how the pair's relationship is useful when they're working on the same project.

He joked: "Studios love it. One hotel room. Separate drivers. We're not crazy now. Listen it's work, alright?"

When asked about having Zendaya as his costar, he said: "Oh God, yeah. It's a saving grace. Yeah, best thing that's ever happened to me.

"It's just that perfect thing when you're on set and a director will give you a note that maybe you don't agree with, or I know that she doesn't particularly like, and it's just that, like, familiar glance at each other of like, can't wait to talk about that later."

While Marvel Studios is still figuring out the plan for "Spider-Man 4," the couple will next appear in Christopher Nolan's upcoming movie for Universal Pictures.

The premise and title are currently being kept under wraps, although it's rumored to be a futuristic action movie about helicopter cops in New York.

Holland said: "To be perfectly honest with you, I don't know anything about it. I'm super excited. Everything is very, very hush-hush. I met with him, it was awesome, he loosely pitched what it was. I'm sure when he's ready, he'll announce what it is."

In November, Zendaya told Vanity Fair that working with Holland is "strangely comfortable."

She said: "It's like second nature, if anything. You feel extra safe with the person you're acting beside. I love working with him. He's so talented, and so passionate about what he does.

"He always gives things one thousand percent, even if he's absolutely worn down. I really appreciate that about him."

• J. Robert Oppenheimer was the director of the Los Alamos Laboratory during the Manhattan Project.
• During the World War II-era project,  scientists created the world's first atomic bomb.
• Oppenheimer had a wife and two children. He also has grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

Robert Oppenheimer led the Manhattan Project, which created the world's first atomic bomb for the United States during World War II.

He famously quoted the Hindu text "The Bhagavad Gita" following the first nuclear weapons test, saying: "Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds." Shortly after the US dropped nuclear bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in Japan, he resigned from the Manhattan Project. 

In 2023, Cillian Murphy portrayed the theoretical physicist in Christopher Nolan's "Oppenheimer." The film was met with huge critical acclaim, earning five awards at the 2024 Golden Globes, including best picture. It also won seven awards at the 2024 BAFTAS, with Cillian Murphy and Robert Downey Jr. taking home awards for best actor and best supporting actor, respectively.

In addition to Oppenheimer's nuclear work, the film looks at the scientist's complex personal life, including his marriage to Katherine Oppenheimer, née Puening.

Here's everything you need to know about the real Oppenheimer's family.

Katherine "Kitty" Oppenheimer was married three times before she married Oppenheimer.

Katherine "Kitty" Oppenheimer, née Puening, married the scientist in 1940, only two years before he joined the Manhattan Project.

Kitty had been married three times before, as she wed musician Frank Ramseyer in 1932 before their marriage was annulled in 1933. 

Shortly afterward, in 1934, she was involved with the Communist Party of America, and became John Dullet Jr.'s. common-law wife when they lived together in Chicago, before separating in 1936.

Kitty then married Oxford doctor Richard Stewart Harrison in 1938, but had an affair with Oppenheimer while Harrison was working in California. She divorced Harrison in 1940, and married Oppenheimer a day later. 

They remained married until Oppenheimer's death from throat cancer in 1967, and Kitty scattered his ashes into the water by the island of St. John in the Virgin Islands, where they had spent plenty of time with their children, Peter and Toni.

Kitty spent the rest of her life with Robert Serber, another physicist from the Manhattan Project, whose wife had died by suicide. Kitty died in hospital in 1972, just as the pair had set out to go sailing to Japan, the Galapagos Islands, and Tahiti.

Peter Oppenheimer has spent most of his life on his father's ranch in New Mexico.

Oppenheimer had two children with his wife, Kitty. Their oldest child, Peter, was born in Pasadena, California, in May 1941, before the family moved to Los Alamos for the Manhattan Project.

When Peter was just two months old, the Oppenheimers left him with friends Haakon and Barbara Chevalier, according to "American Prometheus." Robert said his wife was exhausted. The couple then spent two months at the family's ranch, Perro Caliente, in New Mexico.

According to the Nuclear Museum, Peter struggled with anxiety as a child and didn't have a good relationship with his mother. 

"Robert thought that, in their highly charged, passionate, falling in love, that Peter had come too soon, and that Kitty resented him for that reason," Oppenheimer's secretary, Verna Hobson, said during a 1979 interview.

When his father died in 1967, Peter moved back to the family's Perro Caliente ranch in New Mexico. He's worked as a carpenter over the years and has three children.

Katherine "Toni" Oppenheimer died in 1977.

Toni Oppenheimer was born in 1944 and lived at Los Alamos until she was three. That's when her father became director of the Institute for Advanced Study and moved the family to Princeton, New Jersey.

As a baby, Toni lived with the Oppenheimers' friend Pat Sherr for several months. Robert visited regularly but asked if she wanted to adopt Toni, Sherr later recalled. When Sherr asked him why, he said, "Because I can't love her," adding that he wasn't "an attached kind of person." 

However, a childhood friend of Toni's described Robert as a "loving dad" in an April interview with The Winchester Star.

Toni had polio when she was young, which is largely why the family started visiting St. John in the Virgin Islands; the warmth seemed to help her condition.

Toni had a complicated relationship with her mother, largely because of Kitty's alcohol use. 

"She leaned on Toni an awful lot and it was difficult for her in that way, but she wanted only good and happiness for Toni," Hobson said of Kitty in 1979. 

Two years after Robert's death in 1967, the United Nations rejected Toni's application to become a translator. The FBI wouldn't grant her the appropriate security clearance for the job.

She struggled to cope with losing her father and her job opportunity, and after living on the island of St. John for a while, she died by suicide in January 1977, just a month after she turned 32.

Peter Oppenheimer had three children: Charles Oppenheimer, Dorothy Vanderford, and Ella Oppenheimer.

Although Toni didn't have any children before her death, Peter Oppenheimer has three: Charles, Ella, and Dorothy. 

Dorothy Vanderford, who was born in 1973, is Oppenheimer's oldest grandchild. She works in the nuclear industry and has a PhD in English. 

In 2023, she spoke to KSNV about the film and said that Christopher Nolan didn't consult the family about making his movie.

After seeing the movie, she said, "There were a few things that I didn't agree with and didn't like, but overall I felt like it was a good movie."

Charles Oppenheimer was born in 1975 and has worked in software development for many years. 

The youngest sibling, Ella, keeps her life private. 

Both Dorothy and Charles took part in a lengthy interview in 2015 about their grandfather for the Atomic Heritage Foundation.

At the time, Charles said that many historians find his grandfather a mysterious figure.

"In particular, people are having a hard time pinning down who this guy was. I guess it's made it difficult to deal with for the family, for some people. Not for me," he said.

Charles has two daughters with his wife, Karen Pak Oppenheimer, which means that Oppenheimer has at least two great-grandchildren.

Both Charles and his wife are co-executive directors of the Oppenheimer Project, which honors Robert's legacy. 

In a recent essay for The New York Times, Charles wrote that nuclear war would end the world as we know it. "I'm not afraid to be the voice calling for increased unity in the world, even though my grandfather was eventually attacked for this," he wrote.  

This story was originally published in July 2023 and was updated on December 17, 2024.

• "Barbie" director Greta Gerwig said she was at "totally zero" regarding ideas for a sequel.
• THR reported in December 2024 that "Barbie 2" is in "early stages" based on a concept from Gerwig and Noah Baumbach.
• However, reps for Gerwig, Baumbach, and Warner Bros. denied THR's report, calling it inaccurate.

It looks like everyone is living in a "Barbie" world, and the party might not be over yet.

The 2023 Greta Gerwig-directed movie starring Margot Robbie as Barbie and Ryan Gosling as Ken raked in $1.4 billion globally, winning the box office battle against Christopher Nolan's "Oppenheimer." 

"Barbie" wasn't just a box office sensation. The movie earned an 88% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes, landed eight Oscar nominations, and became a pop culture phenomenon. 

Given its critical and commercial success, it's only natural to wonder whether the studio is planning "Barbie 2" with Mattel, the toy company behind Barbie.

Mattel CEO Ynon Kreiz previously told Time magazine that the company is keen to make "more 'Barbie' movies."

"We're looking to create movies that become cultural events. If you can excite filmmakers like Greta and Noah to embrace the opportunity and have creative freedom, you can have a real impact," he said.

At the time, Gerwig said she was unsure about taking on a sequel, but a new report suggests that she might be back for more. 

Greta Gerwig addressed 'Barbie 2' in a 2023 interview with The New York Times

In an interview published in July 2023, the director told The New York Times that she exhausted all her ideas for "Barbie."

"I feel like that at the end of every movie, like I'll never have another idea, and everything I've ever wanted to do, I did," Gerwig said.

She added, "I wouldn't want to squash anybody else's dream but for me, at this moment, I'm at totally zero."

However, speaking to Uproxx about Ken's obsession with Sylvester Stallone in the movie, Gerwig joked that the "Rocky" star could show up in "Barbie 2," or even direct it himself.

"You never know!" she said. "Or that he's going to direct it. I mean, he's welcome to it. It would be an honor. It would be such an honor."

While Gerwig wasn't sold on the idea of returning, star and producer Robbie told Time in June 2023 that conversations about a sequel had yet to happen.

"It could go a million different directions from this point," she said. 

But Robbie also said that "you fall into a bit of a trap if you try and set up a first movie whilst also planning for sequels." 

Mattel is also looking to make movies based on its other properties, like a Hot Wheels movie being developed by J.J. Abrams. 

A new report suggested a 'Barbie' sequel could be in the works, but it's unclear

On December 13, 2024, The Hollywood Reporter published a story reporting that Gerwig and Noah Baumbach, who cowrote the "Barbie" screenplay, presented Warner Bros. with an idea for a sequel that was in the "early stages." The publication also said that talks about a deal were in similarly early stages.

Don't get excited yet, though: Gerwig and Baumbach's rep denied THR's report, telling the publication, "There is no legitimacy to this reporting."

And a rep for Warner Bros. said, "THR's reporting is inaccurate."

• James Everett Duchtske tried to assassinate Barack Obama with ricin letters in 2013.
• He carried out the plot to frame his associate, Paul Kevin Curtis.
• The wild story is the focus of the Netflix docuseries, "The Kings of Tupelo."

James Everett Dutschke, a former Taekwondo instructor, sent poisoned-laced letters in an attempt to kill President Barack Obama in 2013.

The failed attempt was meant to frame his associate, Paul Kevin Curtis, an Elvis impersonator.

Netflix explains how the bizarre set of events unfolded in its latest true crime docuseries, "The Kings of Tupelo."

The three-part series is mainly told from Curtis' perspective, as he explains his belief that an illegal organ harvesting operation was being run out of a Mississippi medical center.

The feud began when Dutschke refused to publish Curtis' claims in a newspaper he owned.

It culminated in an April 2013 attempt kill Obama as well as Roger Wicker, a US Senator from Mississippi, and a local judge.

Dutschke sent letters to the trio that were dusted with the poison ricin.

James Everett Dutschke is serving a 25-year prison sentence for sending the ricin letters

GQ profiled Curtis 2013, a few months after the attempts. He told the magazine that authorities arrested him before realizing that Dutschke was actually the prepatrator.

The Secret Service managed to intercept the letters to Obama and Wicker. Although the letter to Holland was opened, no one was hurt.

Dutschke was arrested 10 days after Curtis and charged with the attempted assassination.

He struck a plea deal with federal prosecutors, agreeing to a 25-year prison sentence, with no right to appeal. He was sentenced in May 2014.

According to the Federal Bureau of Prisons, Dutschke remains incarcerated in the Tucson penitentiary and is not due for release until 2034.

• Netflix's "The Kings of Tupelo" is about an Elvis impersonator called Paul Kevin Curtis.
• He went down a rabbit hole of conspiracy theories after he said he discovered a fridge full of body parts.
• In 2013, he was accused of using ricin to try to assassinate Barack Obama.

Netflix is continuing its trend of telling true crime stories that seem almost too wild to be true with "The Kings of Tupelo."

The three-part docuseries follows Paul Kevin Curtis, an Elvis impersonator from Tupelo, Mississippi, who was accused of using the poison ricin to try to assassinate Barack Obama in 2013.

As shown in the series, Curtis was a self-employed janitor in 1999 when he said he discovered a fridge full of body parts while cleaning the morgue at the North Mississippi Medical Center. After raising the issue with management, Curtis claims he was ejected from the building by security guards and was told he was banned from the hospital. North Mississippi Medical Center did not immediately respond to Business Insider's request for comment.

He attempted to publicize his unfounded theories that the body parts were being used for an illegal operation. But when the media ignored him, Curtis approached James Everett Dutschke, a Wayne Newton impersonator, who also lived in Tupelo.

In 2013, GQ reported that Dutschke owned an independent newspaper and promised to publish any story that the mainstream media wouldn't. However, the pair's relationship soured when he refused to publish Curtis' story, fearing it could harm his chances of starting a political career.

This led to a feud between the two men, and Dutschke framed Curtis for attempting to assassinate Obama.

Dutschke sent letters containing ricin, signed with Curtis' name, to Obama in April 2013, as well as US Senator Roger Wicker and Lee County Justice Court Judge Sadie Holland.

The authorities arrested Curtis on April 17, 2013, but quickly established that Dutschke was the culprit when they found his DNA on a dust mask that he wore while making the ricin. Curtis was released without charge.

Paul Kevin Curtis avoided prison and still performs in Tupelo

Dutschke pleaded guilty in 2014 and was sentenced to 25 years in prison for sending the ricin letters.

Curtis posts pictures and videos on Instagram of him singing, but doesn't share much about his personal life.

He has made a few promotional posts about "The Kings of Tupelo," which he appears in throughout.

In one post, he wrote, "Watch my life story on Netflix on December 13, 2024. I am the first Elvis Presley impersonator ever framed in a presidential assassination plot and lived to tell the story."

• Rapper Jay-Z has been accused of sexually assaulting a 13-year-old with Sean "Diddy" Combs.
• 50 Cent appeared to react to the news by posting a photo from his appearance in HBO's "Entourage."
• Here's what his joke about the Super Bowl means.

50 Cent reacted to the accusations that Jay-Z sexually assaulted a 13-year-old with Sean "Diddy" Combs by posting a joke about the Super Bowl.

On Sunday, Jay-Z (real name Shawn Carter) was named in a civil suit that accused him of raping a 13-year-old girl with Combs in 2000 after the MTV Video Music Awards in New York.

Both rappers denied the allegations, and Carter called the allegations "heinous" in a statement posted on the X account of his company Roc Nation.

50 Cent (aka Curtis Jackson) was quick to react with a jab at Combs following their 20-year feud.

Jackson posted a photo on Instagram on Sunday that appeared to be a reference to the situation. The picture was of 50 Cent's appearance in "Entourage" season six, when he pulls up next to Turtle (Jerry Ferrara) and insults his car before driving off in a scene that became an instant meme.

In the caption 50 Cent wrote: "Ok I don't know what's going on, but are we gonna still have the Super Bowl. I'm just asking for a friend!"

The Super Bowl reference reflects the role Roc Nation often plays in organizing the halftime show at the yearly NFL championship and implies that the allegations could affect the arrangement.

In October, Bloomberg reported that Roc Nation had extended its partnership with the NFL, and that Carter will continue to produce the halftime show.

50 Cent's post is his latest joke about allegations relating to Combs. The "Power" actor first started taunting Combs about the allegations in November 2023 when Cassie Ventura, Combs' ex-girlfriend, filed a lawsuit against him for rape, sexual assault, and human trafficking.

Since then, 50 Cent confirmed that he's producing a documentary about the sexual assault allegations against Combs, with profits going to victims of sexual assault.

• HBO is expanding the "Game of Thrones" universe with another prequel.
• "A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms" takes place between the main series and "House of the Dragon."
• It's based on George R. R. Martin's novellas and follows a knight and his squire.

"House of the Dragon" season three probably won't air until 2026, but "Game of Thrones" fans have another prequel to look forward to in the meantime: "A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms."

Although the "Game of Thrones" ending disappointed many fans in 2019, HBO recognized that the world of Westeros is a lucrative property. And there's plenty of material to use considering all the spinoff stories and novellas that George R. R. Martin has written.

The network is also working on other "GOT" prequel shows, including "Nine Voyages," "Ten Thousand Voyages," and "The Golden Empire."

"A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms" is set about 70 years after "House of the Dragon" and 100 years before "Game of Thrones," as the network fills in the huge timeline of the fantasy franchise.

The story follows Ser Duncan the Tall and his squire, Egg. Here's what you need to know about "A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms."

'A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms' is about Dunk and Egg

The first season is based on Martin's first novella in the "Tales of Dunk and Egg" series, which is called "The Hedge Knight."

It introduces Ser Duncan the Tall, a knight who roams the country offering his services. At a tournament to prove his knightly skill, Duncan meets a boy with a shaved head called Egg.

Egg's real name is Aegon Targaryen, a distant member of the feared rulers of Westeros.

The series depicts his youth away from the centers of power — but later in his life, he bypasses many in the line of succession to be crowned Aegon V and take the Iron Throne.

After "The Hedge Knight," the unlikely duo's adventures continue in "The Sworn Sword" and "The Mystery Knight."

In May 2023, HBO executive Francesca Orsi told Deadline that the network plans to adapt each of the three novellas into a six-episode season.

But, as with the source material for "Game of Thrones," Martin has not finished Dunk and Egg's story. In a 2015 blog post, the writer said he plans to write more Dunk and Egg stories, with tentative titles including: "The She-Wolves of Winterfell," "The Village Hero," "The Sellsword," "The Champion," "The Kingsguard," and "The Lord Commander."

Should Martin release these in the future, HBO could easily turn "A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms" into a longer-running series.

'A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms' will premiere in late 2025

In March 2024, Warner Bros. CEO David Zaslav confirmed to investors that "A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms" would start streaming on Max in "late 2025," IGN reported.

Warner Bros. Discovery's head of global streaming and games, JB Perrette, said that the "late 2025" launch was still a go, Variety reported in December. The publication indicated that, according to its sources, the series would likely premiere in the fourth quarter of 2025 — i.e. sometime in October, November, or December.

The 'Knight of the Seven Kingdoms' cast is led by Peter Claffey and Dexter Sol Ansell

"A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms" stars Peter Claffey ("Bad Sisters") as Ser Duncan the Tall, and Dexter Sol Ansell ("The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes") as Egg, his young squire.

In June 2024, HBO announced that five other actors had joined the cast, per Deadline. "True Detective: Night Country" star Finn Bennett will play Prince Aerion Targaryen, "The Gentlemen" actor Daniel Ings will play Ser Lyonel Baratheon," and "Fargo" season five star Sam Spruell will play Aerion's father, Maekar Targaryen.

Additionally, "The Crown" alum Bertie Cavel will play Maekar's brother, Baelor Targaryen, and Tanzyn Crawford will play Dunk's love interest, Tanselle.

In August, Entertainment Weekly reported several more actors had joined the cast of the prequel, including "A Good Girl's Guide to Murder" star Henry Ashton as Daeron Targaryen.

He isn't the same Daeron who gets mentioned in "House of the Dragon," because "A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms" is set 100 years later — the Targaryens often reuse names.

Ashton will be joined by Edward Ashley as Ser Steffon Fossoway, Daniel Monks as Ser Manfred Dondarrion, Youssef Kerkour as Steely Pate, Tom Vaughan-Lawlor as Plummer, Shaun Thomas as Raymun Fossoway, and Danny Webb as Ser Arlan of Pennytree

The first trailer for 'A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms' showcased Dunk and Egg

HBO released the first teaser for "A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms" as part of a 2024-2025 preview trailer in August 2024, alongside footage from other highly anticipated shows including "The Penguin," "IT: Welcome to Derry," and "The Last of Us" season two.

The footage sees Dunk introduce himself as Ser Duncan the Tall while also giving a brief look at Egg. There are a few quick shots of Dunk training with his sword and a moment where he punches someone during a fight.

• Reports emerged last week that Sabrina Carpenter and Barry Keoghan had split up.
• Neither has directly addressed their relationship status publicly.
• Keoghan posted a statement online asking fans to stop "intimidating" his son.

Sabrina Carpenter and Barry Keoghan have reportedly split up — and fans are speculating about why things appear to have gone sour.

The couple never confirmed they were dating, but made multiple high-profile appearances together, including a party after the Grammy awards in February, Vanity Fair's Oscars after-party in March, and the Met Gala in May.

Keoghan was even seen supporting Carpenter during her performance at Coachella, and he also appeared in the music video for "Please Please Please."

Earlier this month reports suggested they had split up.

Here's a complete timeline of the drama between Carpenter and Keoghan.

August 19: Barry Keoghan and Sabrina Carpenter have an 'on and off' relationship, People reports

In August, rumors swirled that Carpenter and Keoghan had parted ways, and an unnamed source told People that the pair had an "on-and-off" relationship.

But Keoghan dampened speculation after liking one of her Instagram photos about the release of her album "Short n' Sweet."

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Sabrina Carpenter (@sabrinacarpenter)

December 3: Reports emerge that the pair had split up

On December 3, People reported that the couple had separated after a year of dating, citing an unnamed source supposedly close to both celebs.

"They are both young and career-focused, so they've decided to take a break," the source said.

The report did not have any detail about the reason for the breakup, or the rumors that Keoghan had cheated on the "Please Please Please" singer.

December 3: Rumors circulated that Keoghan cheated with TikToker Brekkie Hill

Fans were quick to speculate that there was a bigger reason behind the split. Many looked to Deux Moi, the blind-item gossip account, which had posted a report saying the "A-list singer who's having her breakout year and her foreign boyfriend are done for good." Many took this as a reference to Carpenter and Keoghan.

The post went on to suggest that Keoghan was cheating on Carpenter with a "blonde, semi-famous, LA based influencer (who's particularly big on TikTok)."

Fans believe that Brekkie Hill, a content creator with 4.3 million followers on TikTok, is the other person involved.

UNCONFIRMED reports are circulating that Sabrina Carpenter and Barry Keoghan have broken up after Barry allegedly cheated on Sabrina. pic.twitter.com/F9addTGS8d

— Pop Flop (@PopFlopHQ) December 3, 2024

December 7: Hill says she's never met Keoghan

In a December 7 video on TikTok, Hill said that she'd never met Keoghan.

"To put it simply for you all, no, I did not get with Barry. I have never even encountered this man in my life. The only time I've seen him is on my TV screen from watching 'Saltburn,'" she said.

Fans noted that Hill had also reposted the rumors of Keoghan cheating on her Snapchat account, something she said she did because she thought they were "ridiculous."

Hill added: "I'm sorry but if I really was the one getting with Barry, why in the world would I be reposting about it? … Coming from someone who has been cheated on … I would never want to homewreck any relationship or put any girl through that pain — ever."

@breckiehill

❤️

♬ original sound - Breckie Hill

December 7: Keoghan deactivates his Instagram account and asks fans to stop "intimidating" his son

Keoghan deactivated his Instagram account on December 7, and indirectly addressed the situation in a statement on X.

He said he "can only sit and take so much. My name is being dragged across the internet in ways I usually don't respond to."

The actor said that he'd received abuse online that "no person should ever have to read" regarding his looks and parenting.

He also said people had been "knocking on my grannies door" and "sitting outside my baby boys house intimidating them."

At the end of his statement, he asked fans: "Please be respectful to all."

Please be respectful
x pic.twitter.com/N03eHAIbC8

— Barry Keoghan (@BarryKeoghan) December 7, 2024

• Prime Video's "Reacher" season three arrives in February 2025.
• The series follows Alan Ritchson as former military policeman Jack Reacher.
• Here's what we know about "Reacher" season three.

Based on Lee Child's "Jack Reacher" books, Prime Video's "Reacher" series shows no signs of slowing down. Season two wrapped up in January with an action-packed finale, and season three will be out this February.

The show follows Alan Ritchson as Jack Reacher, a former military investigator who has become a nomad since leaving the armed forces and frequently gets caught up in conspiracies, assassination attempts, and underworld shenanigans.

The first season introduces Reacher in a mystery involving corruption in a small town, season two focuses more on his past, and it seems like season three is setting up a bigger challenge for the titular hero.

Here's what we know about "Reacher" season three.

The 'Reacher' season 3 teaser confirms that it is based on the 2003 book, 'Persuader'

On December 7, Amazon released a 44-second-long teaser for "Reacher" season three. It's light on plot details but filled with wince-enducing action and an intimidating new opponent for Reacher: Paulie (Olivier Richters).

Paulie is a seven-foot-two henchman who is more than a match for Reacher, as seen when he knocks him down with a slap. He's played by Olivier Richters, a Dutch bodybuilder.

Frances Neagley (Maria Sten), who used to work on Reacher's Special Investigators team back in their military days, also makes an appearance in the teaser. She tells Reacher: "The last time I saw a guy twice your size was on Mount Rushmore."

As Paulie's appearance indicates (as confirmed by Prime Video) the series will be based on Child's 2003 novel, "Persuader," and the show's synopsis teases what to expect.

It reads: "Reacher hurtles into the dark heart of a vast criminal enterprise when trying to rescue an undercover DEA informant whose time is running out. There he finds a world of secrecy and violence — and confronts some unfinished business from his own past."

'Reacher' season 3 starts on February 20, 2025

Following the "Reacher" season three teaser, Amazon confirmed that the first three episodes will drop on February 20, 2025.

New episodes will then be released weekly until the finale on March 27.

Alan Ritchson is joined by some newcomers in 'Reacher' season 3 cast

Alongside Ritchson, Sten, and Richters, Anthony Michael Hall, Sonya Cassidy, Brian Tee, Johnny Berchtold, Robert Montesinos, and Daniel David Stewart, have been cast in undisclosed roles.

In October 2024, Deadline reported that Amazon greenlit a "Neagley" spinoff series, with Ritchson set to make a guest appearance.

So it seems likely that "Reacher" season three will set up the spinoff.

• Netflix's "Black Doves" follows a spy who seeks revenge when her lover is assassinated.
• Keira Knightley plays Helen Webb opposite Ben Whishaw as Sam Young.
• The end of the season leaves things open for both characters.

Netflix's "Black Doves" is the latest buzzy espionage TV drama to get audiences talking in 2024 after the likes of "Slow Horses," "The Day of the Jackal," and "The Agency."

The show follows Helen Webb (Keira Knightley), a spy who seeks revenge over the death of her lover, Jason Davies (Andrew Koji), who is assassinated on London's South Bank during the show's opening sequence.

Webb works for a private espionage organization, the Black Doves, and her boss orders hitman Sam Young (Ben Whishaw) to protect her because she's also a potential target as the wife of the British defense secretary.

By the end of the six-episode series, Webb and Young figure out who killed Davies and why. Here's what happened.

Trent Clark killed Jason Davies to cover up the accidental murder of the Chinese ambassador.

During Webb and Young's investigation into who assassinated Davies, they discover that it's closely linked to the death of the Chinese ambassador in London.

The coverup around the incident brews a potential war, because the Chinese government believes the U.S. and Britain planned the attack. However, the truth is much different.

Webb and Young discover that Trent Clark (Angus Cooper), the son of the powerful Clark crime family in London, accidentally killed Ambassador Chen (Andy Cheung) in a moment of rage. The high-ranking official confronts Clark, who has been supplying his daughter, Kai-Ming (Isabella Wei), with heroin.

Clark pushes Chen during the argument, causing him to fall and hit his head — killing him.

Davies and his associates record the whole incident and plot to release the footage to expose the Clark family and the political corruption they were involved in.

That's why Clark had Davies executed.

Sam Young kills Trent Clark at the end of "Black Doves," putting a target on his own back.

This all culminates in a dramatic confrontation between Webb, Young, and Clark, who is backed up by his mother and the family's steely matriarch, Alex Clark (Tracey Ullman). Webb is determined to execute Clark for killing her secret boyfriend — but when Alex attempts to disarm her, Young jumps in and executes both of the Clarks.

Webb is angry that she was unable to get revenge on the people who killed her boyfriend. But by killing two prominent members of the Clark family, Young effectively paints a target on his back and cuts his chances of leaving the life of a triggerman behind.

Season two was confirmed in August without a release date. When it arrives, Young will probably have to deal with being hunted by the rest of the Clark family.

Showrunner and creator Joe Barton told Tudum that Young saving Webb is a poetic moment because she did the same for him. During a flashback to 2017, she chose to save Young's ex-boyfriend, Michael (Omari Douglas), instead of leaving the Black Doves while pregnant.

Barton said: "The idea was that Sam makes a personal sacrifice for his friend because he loves her, and because, as you see in episode three, she sacrificed her own chance to get out in order to help him. He's there to do anything for her, so he does it."

The final episode closes leaving a few other threads open for exploration in season two. Young still hasn't killed gangster Hector Newman (Luther Ford) for Lenny (Kathryn Hunter), which will probably continue to cause tension.

Meanwhile, Webb's husband, Wallace Webb (Andrew Buchan), is on track to become the next prime minister, which will likely make her job as a Black Dove even harder.

• Netflix's new thriller series "Black Doves" follows a spy who hunts for her lover's killer.
• It stars Keira Knightley and "Paddington" voice actor Ben Whishaw.
• The streaming service renewed "Black Doves" months before the first season premiered.

Netflix's new series "Black Doves" is taking off on the streamer.

The London-based spy thriller was met with critical praise when it dropped on Thursday, receiving a 97% rating on the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes.

The show stars Keira Knightley as Helen Webb, an operative for the Black Doves, a private espionage agency that gathers secrets and sells them to the highest bidder. She's also married to the UK government's defence secretary, something she uses to the advantage of her company.

However, she embarks on a revenge mission with her old mentor, Sam Young (Ben Whishaw) when the man she's been having an affair with is assassinated shortly before Christmas.

Knightley's role as a spy is a little different from what audiences might expect from her, and in a recent interview with the Los Angeles Times, the actor said that the series would've impressed her younger self.

"My teenage self is thrilled with this. Sometimes you have to listen to your teenage self and go, 'This one's for you,' you know. I think she would have found this very cool," she said.

Fans who have binged the six-episode series already will be keen to know whether Webb and Young will return for more shady shenanigans. Here's what we know about "Black Doves" season two.

'Black Doves' season 2 was confirmed in August 2024

The streaming service seemingly had a lot of faith in "Black Doves," because it announced that it had renewed the series for a second season back in August 2024, several months before it premiered.

The streaming service has not yet announced a release date or production timeline for the new season, so it's unclear how long of a wait fans will have.

The ending of "Black Doves" leaves Webb and Young in a precarious place. In season two, their hunt for the person responsible for killing Jason Davies (Andrew Koji) will lead to more problems that will no doubt have to be solved with lots of guns and bloody murder.

Showrunner and creator Joe Barton told Variety that he's in the middle of writing "Black Doves" season two, which might involve exploring Webb's backstory further using material cut from the first season.

"We're still early in the process. I'm writing the first episode still, and we're kind of feeling our way through it," Barton said. "We filmed some flashbacks, which didn't make the final cut, of young Helen and her stepdad and her sister Bonnie. I think that would be really interesting to find out more about."

"Black Doves" is streaming on Netflix.

• Keira Knightley recalled how she was told that she "wanted to be stalked" early in her career.
• Knightley became famous after starring in "Pirates of the Caribbean" and "Love Actually" in 2003.
• Now, she's opening up about how toxic Hollywood was for women in the early 2000s.

Keira Knightley was told she "wanted to be stalked" at the beginning of her career. The actor spoke about the "violent, misogynistic atmosphere" of Hollywood in the 2000s in an interview on Thursday.

The British actor became famous after landing roles in "Love Actually" and "Pirates of the Caribbean" in 2003 at 17-years-old. As a result, Knightley spent her late teens and early 20s under the press's microscope.

Speaking to the Los Angeles Times ahead of her new Netflix series, "Black Doves," Knightley recalled being told that she "wanted to be stalked" during her rise to fame.

In response to a question by the LA Times reporter about the culture of Hollywood back then, Knightley said, "I didn't think it was okay at the time. I was very clear on it being absolutely shocking. There was an amount of gaslighting to be told by a load of men that 'you wanted this.' It was rape speak. You know, 'This is what you deserve.'"

Knightley continued to paint a picture of the negative atmosphere in early 2000s Hollywood that women had to navigate.

She added, "It was a very violent, misogynistic atmosphere. They very specifically meant I wanted to be stalked by men. Whether that was stalking because somebody was mentally ill, or because people were earning money from it — it felt the same to me. It was a brutal time to be a young woman in the public eye."

The star is also conscious that despite the harassment and pressure she faced, her early work gave her "financial stability."

"It's very brutal to have your privacy taken away in your teenage years, early 20s, and to be put under that scrutiny at a point when you are still growing. Having said that, I wouldn't have the financial stability or the career that I do now without that period," she said.

Keira Knightley was 17 when she first starting filming the "Pirates of the Caribbean" franchise in 2003. She played Elizabeth Swann, the point of a love triangle opposite Orlando Bloom, who was 26 at the time, and Johnny Depp who was 22 years Knightley's senior.

She of said the five-year period of success in her early career, "It totally set me up for life. Did it come at a cost? Yes, it did. It came at a big cost."

The thing that got the actor through her turbulent era of fame was having people around her who were disconnected from Hollywood.

She added, "I had a separate life from the industry, and I've maintained that."

This isn't the first time that Knightley has opened up about the toxicity she endured at a young age.

In November, she recalled how her role in "Pirates of the Caribbean" was the main reason she was "taken down publicly."

In 2018, Knightley told The Hollywood Reporter that paparazzi constantly followed her because they wanted to tear her down.

"It was big money to get pictures of women falling apart because you [consumers] wanted them to be sexy, but you wanted to punish them for that sexuality," she said.

• The first trailer for "28 Years Later" has dropped, and shows survivors in post-apocalyptic Britain.
• Director Danny Boyle reportedly shot the sequel to "28 Days Later" on an iPhone.
• Actor Ralph Fiennes said that the story follows a young boy trying to save his mother.

The first trailer for "28 Years Later" has dropped.

The film sees "Oppenheimer" actor Cillian Murphy reunite with director Danny Boyle for the long-awaited horror sequel two decades after his breakout role in "28 Days Later."

In the original film, Murphy played Jim, a bicycle courier who wakes up from a coma to find that the UK has been hit by the "Rage" virus, which turns people into fast zombie-like creatures.

The film performed fairly well at the time, earning $84 million worldwide, according to Box Office Mojo.

Boyle's unique vision of a post-apocalyptic Britain led to a resurgence of zombie movies in the 2000s. Many took inspiration from Boyle's fast zombies, such as in the "Dawn of the Dead" remake, and "Zombieland."

While Boyle produced the 2007 sequel, "28 Weeks Later," the Juan Carlos Fresnadillo-directed film focused more on gory action, than the suspense-driven horror of the original.

But judging by the brutal first trailer, it looks like "28 Years Later" will be a mix of both. Here's what we know about the sequel.

The "28 Years Later" trailer depicts a brutal vision of post-apocalyptic Britain

On December 10, Sony released the first trailer for the highly anticipated sequel, showing what post-apocalyptic Britain looks like and who has survived the Rage virus.

It shows characters played by Aaron Taylor-Johnson and 13-year-old Alfie Williams as two survivors living in a heavily defended island community that has become a safe haven.

When they venture out onto the mainland, they're chased by the infected. There are also glimpses of other cast members, including Jodie Comer and Ralph Fiennes.

The footage is narrated using a creepy recording of Rudyard Kipling's poem "Boots," which the military also uses to train elite soldiers.

One scene shows totem poles made out of bones and skulls, which could be where "28 Years Later Part II: The Bone Temple," the sequel which doesn't have a release date yet, gets its title.

Sony also shared the film's synopsis, which reads: "It's been almost three decades since the rage virus escaped a biological weapons laboratory, and now, still in a ruthlessly enforced quarantine, some have found ways to exist amidst the infected. One such group of survivors lives on a small island connected to the mainland by a single, heavily-defended causeway.

"When one of the group leaves the island on a mission into the dark heart of the mainland, he discovers secrets, wonders, and horrors that have mutated not only the infected but other survivors as well."

Cillian Murphy is joined by Jodie Comer and Aaron Taylor-Johnson

Murphy has stated over the years that he would like to return to the franchise that kickstarted his career.

In February, he told Variety: "I've always said I would love to be involved because that movie changed everything for me and I have great affection for it and for those guys Alex, and Danny."

Murphy added: "So I'm really thrilled that we'll get the band back together to make this one."

In May, Sony Motion Pictures Group chairman Tom Rothman confirmed to Deadline that Murphy will reprise his role as Jim in "28 Years Later."

The Irish actor joins British stars Comer, Taylor-Johnson, Fiennes, Jack O'Connell, and Erin Kellyman, per Deadline. Details about their characters are being kept secret.

In October, Fiennes told IndieWire that the story revolves around a young boy trying to save his mother in the north of England.

He said: "Britain is 28 years into this terrible plague of infected people who are violent, rabid humans with a few pockets of uninfected communities. And it centers on a young boy who wants to find a doctor to help his dying mother. He leads his mother through this beautiful northern English terrain.

"But of course, around them hiding in forests and hills and woods are the infected. But he finds a doctor who is a man we might think is going to be weird and odd, but actually is a force for good."

Ralph Fiennes said filming on the "28 Years Later" sequel, "The Bone Temple," has also finished.

The long-awaited sequel will arrive in theaters on June 20, 2025, and is the start of a new trilogy. Per Deadline, "Candyman" director Nia DaCosta was in talks to direct the follow-up in early 2024.

The title for the second movie, "The Bone Temple," was revealed by the United States Copyright Office.

According to Fiennes, the follow-up has already been shot. He said: "It's three films, of which two have been shot."

Danny Boyle used farm animals and an iPhone to film "28 Years Later."

A report by Wired, published on September 19, reported, citing unnamed sources, that Boyle shot the new sequel using an iPhone 15 Pro Max modified with additional lenses.

Wired also reported that "some scenes in '28 Years Later' were shot with action cams strapped to farm animals," although the outlet didn't reveal why.

Sony didn't immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.

It seems likely that this unusual filming method will help capture a specific, energetic visual style during a chase scene involving the infected. But it's not clear whether the animals are specifically in the film, or if they're just an unorthodox filming tool.

• Michael Fassbender thought he'd blown a "surreal" audition with Quentin Tarantino.
• The star told Business Insider what it was like working with the director on "Inglourious Basterds."
• He said he originally wanted to play Christoph Waltz's Nazi villain, Hans Landa.

Michael Fassbender was convinced that he'd blown a "surreal" audition with Quentin Tarantino when he went out for a role in "Inglourious Basterds."

Fassbender rose to fame in the 2000s, with roles in films like "300," "Hunger," and "Fish Tank." However, playing British film critic-turned-soldier Lt. Archie Hicox in Tarantino's 2009 film "Inglourious Basterds," about a group of soldiers who set out to execute Hitler during WWII, was what really pushed him into the spotlight.

When speaking to Business Insider, Fassbender recalled how he originally wanted to play Nazi officer Hans Landa (Christoph Waltz), the terrifying villain who takes great pride in hunting Jewish families throughout Europe.

"Originally, I wanted Landa! I had prepped about 27 hours of Landa," Fassbender said. "I was shooting 'Fish Tank' at the time, and my agent said 'They'd like you to look at Hicox as well.' And I was like, 'I'm not going to have time to do both.'"

The actor flew himself over to Berlin to audition for Tarantino.

"I came into the room and Tarantino said, 'Okay, let's take a look at Hicox.' I said, 'Do you think I could read for Landa?' And he was like, 'I cast Landa on Tuesday.' I was like, 'Okay, let's read Hicox…," he recalled.

Fassbender said that he auditioned with Tarantino reading the other lines, and the "surreal" experience left him feeling like he'd blown the opportunity.

"I did a cold reading of it basically, and he read the other parts, which was super surreal and kind of intimidating. But I just went for it and I was pretty sure I blew it," Fassbender said. "I called my parents straight away after I came out and I was like, 'I blew it. I messed it up.'"

Despite Fassbender's perceived failure, he won the role and cemented himself in one of Tarantino's most memorable scenes: the Mexican standoff between the Basterds, and a bar full of Nazi soldiers.

Fassbender said that his costar August Diehl, who played the sinister Gestapo major Dieter Hellstrom, was "phenomenal," which made him determined to deliver a great performance.

He said: "From day one in rehearsals, he was off-book and I was like, 'Okay, I better get my shit together. This guy's great.'"

Over 15 years later, Fassbender has become an A-list actor in his own right, starring in huge franchise movies like "X-Men" and "Alien," but he still looks for complex roles.

His most recent project, Showtime's "The Agency," sees him play a deep-cover CIA agent named "Martian" who returns to the London office after six years in the field. The show, which premiered in November, has already been renewed for a second season.

The actor was keen to explore the layers underneath Martian's cold, stoic exterior in the series.

"I think he's kind of crawling in his skin, but he can't show it. So everything is always hidden. The idea of when he's telling the truth and when he's lying, I'm not even sure he's aware of that, and the idea that he's also unhinged," he said.

Fassbender added that for him, a complex character is a welcome challenge.

"I try to see something new, something that scares me a little bit. I always feel like, 'God, I can't do this' and just to keep the challenge element alive, I tend toward characters that are complicated," he said.

"The Agency" is streaming on Paramount+.

• Taylor Swift's "Eras Tour" book sold 814,000 copies in its first weekend.
• It became the second-best-selling non-fiction book after Barack Obama's memoir, "A Promised Land."
• The book gives fans extra insight, details, and unseen photos from the singer's mammoth world tour.

Taylor Swift's "The Eras Tour" book has become the second-best-selling non-fiction title after Barack Obama's presidential memoir.

It's yet another achievement for the singer, whose globe-trotting tour became the first to gross over $1 billion and helped boost the local economy in various locations where she performed.

Swift self-published the book, which was sold exclusively through Target for $39.99 alongside "The Tortured Poets Department: The Anthology" vinyl and CD. Despite only selling through one retailer, the "Eras" book was the biggest book launch of 2024.

It includes over 500 never-before-seen photos giving readers a unique look at the tour and the singer's music. According to Circana BookScan, which tracks publishing sales, the book sold 814,000 copies after hitting shelves over Black Friday weekend.

This places the book only behind Obama's memoir, "A Promised Land" in debut weekly sales, according to the Associated Press. Part one of Obama's memoir sold 816,000 copies in its first week when was published in November 2020.

However, it's worth noting that the memoir was available at other retailers, unlike Swift's book, which was solely sold through Target.

Circana's data also only accounts for the first two days of Swift's book sales as the tracking week ending on Saturday, after the book's launch on Friday.

By self-publishing under her newly-formed imprint "Taylor Swift Publications," the pop billionaire ensures she receives more of the revenue share. This isn't the first time Swift has taken the reigns on the distribution of her "The Eras Tour" content.

In October 2023, Swift released her concert movie, "Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour," through AMC and Cinemark theaters because her team was "disappointed" by the discussions they had with major Hollywood studios.

The success of her self-published book has not been dampened by fans reporting a number of errors in the copy, including typos and printing issues with some of the photographs. Swifties online were quick to dub the new release as "The Errors Tour" book.

Her most recent business triumph comes alongside Swift being named Spotify's global top artist of 2024 by the streaming giant in its annual Spotify Wrapped feature.

According to the service, fans streamed Swift's music 26.6 billion times in 2024, likely because of "The Eras Tour" and the April release of "The Tortured Poets Department."

• Marvel actor Jack Veal told fans on TikTok that he was homeless after suffering abuse at home.
• Veal played Kid Loki, a child version of Tom Hiddleston's character, in the "Loki" series.
• In the video posted on Sunday the 17-year-old said, "I have nowhere else to go, and I need help."

Jack Veal, who played Kid Loki opposite Tom Hiddleston in Marvel's "Loki" TV series, said he's homeless after facing abuse.

The child actor appeared in "Loki" season one in 2021 when he was 14 as an alternate version of titular character. He also played a younger version of the main character in the popular Netflix original "The End of the F**king World" in 2017.

Veal, who is now 17, posted a video on TikTok on Sunday saying that he isn't living at home because of physical and emotional abuse.

The actor asked his audience to help make the video go viral in a attempt to receive support from the UK government.

"I'm a famous actor, I'm 17 and I'm homeless. You may know me from 'Loki', 'The End of the F***ing World,' or various other movies where I played important roles," he said.

The actor said he experienced physical and emotional abuse at home. "I've been sleeping in the streets," he told fans on Sunday, "I have nowhere else to go, and I need help."

In his initial video, which has accumulated over 241,000 views since the weekend, Veal said that he hadn't received any help from social services despite being under 18.

Veal added at the time of the video he was sleeping in a trailer with broken windows and showed viewers his temporary accommodation.

Veal pleaded with viewers to share his video, "I'm on my knees, begging, for this, for you guys to just share this and do something – spread the message of how the government are treating kids."

According to the British government, children who are 16 and 17 are classed as a "child in need" and should be provided with accommodation support by their local council's Children's Services.

Centrepoint, the UK charity for youth homelessness, said that the government has a "legal duty" to provide safe housing for children who are homeless or at risk of homelessness.

In a follow-up video posted on Tuesday, Veal said support from fans has helped his situation. The 17-year-old said social services have arranged a meeting to help get him into foster care and supported accommodation.

In his emotional response he added, "I don't know what you guys have done, but it's gotten out there and it's really, really helped me."

Representatives for Disney and Marvel Studios did not immediately respond to Business Insider's request for comment.

• Margot Robbie described slapping Leonardo DiCaprio in her audition for "The Wolf of Wall Street."
• Robbie said she thought she'd gone too far, and worried someone would call the police.
• She said: "I was thinking, 'I'm going to get arrested, I'm pretty sure that's assault or battery.'"

Margot Robbie said she slapped Leonardo DiCaprio in her audition for "The Wolf of Wall Street," and worried she'd be arrested.

Robbie played Naomi Lapaglia, the fictionalized wife of Jordan Belfort, the financial criminal portrayed by DiCaprio.

But she took a risk in her audition, which left an impression on her costar and director Martin Scorsese, she recalled when appearing on the November 26 episode of the "Talking Pictures" podcast.

She said she was contemplating whether to kiss DiCaprio or slap him — and chose the slap.

She said: "I thought, 'I could kiss Leonardo DiCaprio right now, and that would be awesome. I can't wait to tell all of my friends this.' And then I thought nah. And just walloped him in the face. It was dead silent for what felt like an eternity but was probably three seconds."

"They just burst out laughing. Leo and Marty were laughing so hard. They said, 'That was great," she said.

"I was thinking, 'I'm going to get arrested, I'm pretty sure that's assault or battery. Not only will you never work again, actually you will go to jail for this, you idiot.' And also why did you have to hit him so hard? You should have done it lighter.'"

The actor's move paid off because not only did it win her the role, but it drove her career forward and pushed her into the spotlight.

She later landed roles in other blockbusters like "The Suicide Squad," "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood" and "Barbie."

During the podcast, Robbie also touched on her decision to go nude for a scene with DiCaprio, which also got the audience's attention at the time. She said that Scorsese offered to make her more comfortable by having her in a robe instead, but she decided against it.

She said of her character: "That's not what she would do in that scene. The whole point is that she's going to come out completely naked—that's the card she's playing right now."