Don’t talk to me; I’m entering my “dragons era” once again.
But, on a real note, the live-action How To Train Your Dragon has finally happened, guys. It’s finally here. It feels like just yesterday that the 2025 movie release was confirmed, and we started to get casting news, story updates, filming posts, and so much more. Now it’s dropped, and honestly…I think it’s the best live-action adaptation I’ve ever seen.
Before we delve into that, however, we need to address the actual concern I had going into this film and how the movie addressed it in a matter of seconds. Let’s talk about it.
How To Train Your Dragon movies, you’re going to enjoy this film. It’s essentially the same story, and it feels like it was ripped right out of the animation and brought to our eyes in live-action form, which is something that I am so freaking happy about.
It’s not even just that which made this good – the characters’ mannerisms were there, the dragons were there – Toothless looked so good, and I literally felt tears come to my eyes when John Powell’s score swelled as he and Hiccup took their first real flight together. It was like a blast to the past.
This is what a lot of Disney live-action remakes are missing – the heart of the story, the fact that we all love the original – so if you’re going to remake it, keep it relatively the same. We don’t need flashy changes, or at the very least, I don’t. And, this movie had everything you could want and more.
However, like I said, there was one concern I had going into it.
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Halle Bailey’s Ariel from The Little Mermaid, who is literally just a made-up fantasy character and could look like anyone. However, with the Vikings – the group this is based on – it is historically accurate that most of them were white, and Nico Parker is not.
Again, I don’t care about race 99% of the time as long as you give a compelling performance. However, Parker’s casting did turn some heads, and then when I saw that there would be more characters of that race within Berk, I started to wonder how they would explain this.
Then I saw the movie, and everything fell into place.
Mulan remake, I couldn’t tell you how many times it repeated the phrase “Mulan can’t fight because she’s a woman” over and over. We get it. We don’t need to hear this explanation time and time again when that premise was clear the first time we heard it.
This movie did it right – where the explanation was just said, very quickly, so we don’t really have to even think about it – and then we move on to the main story. You know, fighting dragons and stuff, cementing this as one of my favorite fantasy movies ever because yes, it’s so much fun.
It’s a great time to be a Conan O’Brien fan, between his podcast Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend still going strong, his travel series Conan O’Brien Must Go being available to stream with a Max subscription, and March seeing him both host the 97th Academy Awards and receive the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor (the latter of which can be watched with a Netflix subscription). However, many still remember him best from his late night talk show days, starting with his 16-year stint hosting Late Night after being a writer on Saturday Night Live and The Simpsons.
While there were plenty of popular sketches from his Late Night tenure (where Sarah Silverman bounced back after being fired from SNL), O’Brien recently spent some time going over the more obscure offerings he and his writers created. Additionally, he recalled the time he wanted to change the name of the show to something wild, yet I’m not surprised at all it came out of that mind of his.
What Conan O’Brien’s Favorite Obscure Late Night Sketches Are
Late Night with Seth Meyers, his first time revisiting the show since he left in 2009, he dedicated some time to the lesser-known sketches, starting with:
the streaming hit Conclave involving the The Always Disappointing FedEx Pope. Conan O’Brien then mentioned a take on one of the most famous X-Men characters who’s way less useful than the real deal:
I love ‘Shoe-verine’ by Andrew Weinberg. It was Wolverine, but he had shoes on his hands. So, those were the ones I liked.
Yeah, I’ll take adamantium claws over shoes for hands every time, although at least Shoe-verine’s punches would pack a little extra oomph. These characters exemplify O’Brien’s sense of humor when it comes to the visual medium, which he described thusly:
I’ve always had a cartoonish sense of humor, and I like things to be visually silly. I always thought, ‘I want people to laugh at this show if the sound is off.’
Wacky fits Conan O’Brien to a tee, but those kind of antics are a key reason why he remains popular. Even in Conan O’Brien Must Go, he finds hilarious ways to visually amuse, oftentimes just by donning a costume or silly outfit. So while the aforementioned Late Night characters are obscure, it’s understandable why he still thinks fondly of them.
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What Conan O’Brien Wanted To Call His Show Instead Of Late Night
Conan O’Brien succeeded David Letterman on Late Night, who’d been hosting the series for 11 years before moving over to CBS to start The Late Show after being passed over for The Tonight Show. Between Letterman’s lengthy run and O’Brien basically being an unknown, there was a lot riding on him to stand out as the new Late Night host. Later on in his conversation with Seth Meyers, O’Brien recalled how he and original writer Robert Smigel felt a good way to do this was to change the title of the show.
I remembered we were so afraid of being compared to Letterman, because he’s a genius. He invented this time slot and this sensibility. And we kept thinking, ‘We don’t want to be associated [with that.] We want people to think we’re doing something different. Let’s not use the name Late Night.’ And Robert and I became convinced that we should change the name to Nighty Night. I’m not kidding. We were convinced that it should be Nighty Night with Conan O’Brien.
Nighty Night With Conan O’Brien does have a nice ring to it, but it would have been a huge mistake to go through with retitling. Fortunately, this got the kibosh after O’Brien and Smigel with NBC executive Rick Ludwin, with O’Brien joking that he saw “four blood vessels burst” in the man’s head. Ludwin informed the men that Late Night was a “proven franchise” that would “long outlive” them, so they just dropped the idea and “ran away.”
Conan O’Brien’s late night TV days might be behind him, but it’s still easy to find him interviewing people and entertaining the masses on the small screen in multiple ways. Looking ahead, Conan O’Brien Must Go was renewed for Season 3 in March, he’ll be back to host the Oscars in 2026, and he’s voicing Smartypants in Toy Story 5.
At this point, it’s hard to imagine anyone but Chris Evans playing Steve Rogers (a.k.a. Captain America) in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Back in the early aughts though, Evans had to vie with other actors for the gig. There were a few notable names in the running, including Scott Porter, who’s still known for his work on Friday Night Lights. Porter recently recalled his audition and shared honest thoughts about what it was like losing the part to Evans. Based on the way he described it, it was a painful experience.
Scott Porter has forged a solid career for himself, having landed roles in various TV shows and movies. Nevertheless, losing the opportunity to play the leader of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes really stung at the time. Porter discussed it all during his appearance on Watch What Happens Live, where host Andy Cohen and others listened with intrigue as he shared his recollections. The Ginny & Georgia actor recalled being in the final four and, as he explained in the clip shared to TikTok, he prematurely bought into the hype around him:
Yeah, you said a punch in the gut earlier, yeah, that was a kick in the nuts. That was a big like, I’m bent over sobbing, heaving – yeah, it was bad. Well, because all these press outlets had put my head on Captain America’s body, and I started to buy in – ‘I can do this.’
(Image credit: Amanda Matlovich/Netflix)
Steve Rogers takes a lot of hits, but I’m sure the comic book hero has never felt the sting of losing an acting job to someone. It’s hard not to empathize with Scott Porter, as I can certainly understand why he’d want to play the MCU’s Sentinel of Liberty. However, despite having that freakout years ago, Porter now has a very tempered and reasonable take on not landing the role:
Under the Dome and Sex/Life fame). Bethel has been open about losing out on Cap and, in hindsight, it’s ironic that he was in contention since he was later cast as the MCU’s Bullseye. Other notable stars auditioned before the top four were selected. John Krasinski tried out for the part, though he opted against it after seeing the muscular Chris Hemsworth in costume as Thor. Comedian Dane Cook even apologized to Marvel for his audition after the fact.
Chris Evans may not have been everyone’s first choice for the role of Cap, given his prior role as Johnny Storm/The Human Torch in the Fantastic Four films of the 2000s. However, Evans ultimately embodied the role perfectly, playing Steve Rogers in various MCU films between 2011 and 2019. The star’s winning performance is a major reason why a number of fans would like to see him reprise his role in the upcoming Avengers: Doomsday and/or Secret Wars. Evans had denied rumors of a reprisal (though some fans remain skeptical).
Scott Porter should, at the very least be proud to have made it as far through the auditions as he did. Not only that, but Porter went on to voice heroic characters in animated productions like Marvel Anime: X-Men, Ultimate Spider-Man and Avengers Assemble. And, based on his MCU fandom, I’d imagine that he’d be seated if Chris Evans does actually return as Captain America. Fans can check out Cap’s exploits in the MCU by streaming the films of the Infinity Saga on Disney+.
It’s been three months since the Severance Season 2 finale was part of the 2025 TV schedule, but I know I’m still emotionally recovering from everything that took place during it. While I’m not surprised it took a toll on the series’ star Adam Scott, it’s interesting to hear him talk about one scene he was worried about, because he clearly crushed it. SPOILERS are ahead!
There are a lot of standout scenes from the finale, particularly how the season ends with Mark and Helly running away from Gemma after all that time when his outie thought his wife was dead and wanted to reunite with her. One moment from the episode that Scott’s friend and fellow actor Kristen Bell asked him about during an interview with Variety was when Innie and Outie Mark talk to each other over a camcorder. Here’s how he said he reacted to seeing that scene on paper:
If you read something like that, you just immediately start dreading [it].
upcoming award shows for later this year, I will still be thinking about the Severance finale and what it means for Season 3 and potential Severance spinoffs.
Halle Berry dropped some big news just days ago, as she revealed that longtime boyfriend Van Hunt proposed to her. However, it would seem that the A-list actress has yet to formally provide a response to her beau. During the same interview in which she confirmed the proposal, Berry provided an explanation for why she’d yet to accept or reject the offer. So there remains a question as to whether Hunt and Berry might ever actually jump the broom. With that, a source is dropping alleged details on whether the couple will take the leap.
The engagement was revealed when Halle Berry and Van Hunt appeared on Today with Jenna & Friends earlier this month. Berry expressed hope that they will get married at some point, yet she also said that she didn’t believe they needed it to “validate” their relationship. An insider spoke to InTouch Weekly about the couple’s current situation and, despite the engagement being “on hold,” the unnamed person feels optimistic about the chances of Hunt and Berry exchanging vows:
Halle says Van is her soulmate. She’s 100 percent sure she wants to spend the rest of her life with him. Before meeting Van, she swore off ever getting married again, she was so disillusioned with men and with the whole ‘fairytale ending’ fantasy. But then she met Van, and she opened up her heart again, and the truth is, she does feel like he is her happy ending — the one she was meant to be with all along.
penned sweet posts to Hunt and even gushed about her holidays with him as well.
who’s clapped back at trolls who claim she can’t keep a man – have tied the knot a few times already, but she believes the “Moving Targets” performer is the person she “should have married” from the jump. However, the insider claims that reason she’s open to being wed once again is because she allegedly no longer feels “shame” over her other relationships:
Looking back at her failed marriages, she doesn’t have shame anymore. She just sees them as having lasted for as long as they were meant to. She knows people will have plenty of comments for her when she announces that she’s getting married again, but she’s so in love with Van, and so certain about him as a person, that she doesn’t care.
Halle Berry’s been open about having manifested the kind of relationship she wanted. Not only that. She also explained she had to take time and become comfortable with being alone, and she was for two years before meeting her latest partner. The insider says that the mother of two reportedly didn’t rush into her latest romance and claims that it goes deeper than a physical attraction:
[Van] is the first man she truly got to know before jumping into bed, and in her mind that’s very significant because she was able to see him so clearly as a person. She wasn’t blinded by all the hormones that happen with sex. In her past relationships, things moved very quickly, passion was the name of the game, but with Van, it all went much slower. The passion is there for sure. They’re still wildly attracted to each other, but it’s a much deeper love than just physical attraction.
At the end of the day, it’s ultimately up to both Halle Berry and Van Hunt as to whether they want to get married. Time will tell whether they’ll walk down the aisle together. In the meantime though, their comments about each other seem to indicate that they’re happy with where they are as a couple right now.
For a multitude of reasons, my dream guest star for Shrinking has always been Michael J. Fox. So, when it was announced that Fox would be joining Shrinkingin Season 3, I properly freaked out. Now, I’m overwhelmed with anticipation and hope that new episodes might premiere on the 2025 TV schedule. So, as we wait for those and to see who he plays, I’ve been thinking a lot about the possibilities, and these are three of the ideas I’ve come up with.
Michael J. Fox Could Be A Mentor For Harrison Ford’s Character, Paul
This feels like the most obvious way to include Michael J. Fox in the show. Paul, Harrison Ford’s character, is learning to live with his Parkinson’s, and it’s been implied that it’s going to get harder for him. So, it would be meaningful to see the Family Ties actor play a mentor to him.
impacted how the disease has been represented on Shrinking. The show’s co-creator, Bill Lawrence, worked closely with the Back to the Future actor on Spin City and cast him as a guest star on Scrubs. During a conversation with People, he noted that Fox was his “first mentor,” and that relationship helped them depict living with Parkinson’s in an “inspiring” way.
Season 3 of Shrinking. Plus, it’d mean we would see him and Ford sharing scenes, and that’d just be a dream come true.
Maybe Michael J. Fox Will Play A Therapist
The last time we saw Fox act on screen was on The Good Fight in 2020, as he reprised his role of Louis Canning. He first played the lawyer while guest-starring on The Good Wife, and seeing him go toe-to-toe with the other attorneys on the show was always really fun. So, with that in mind, it could be entertaining to see him in the same occupation as many of the characters on Shrinking.
This would open a door for him to work with Ford, Jason Segel and Jessica Williams at the very least, seeing as they’re the three therapists on the show. Then, hopefully, it could open the door for him to potentially therapize and interact with the other members of the iconic Shrinking cast.
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My final guess, and this feels like a stretch, is that the Family Ties star could be introduced onto this show as a relative of Jimmy or Liz. We know Jeff Daniels has been cast in Season 3 to play Jimmy’s dad, and it’d be nice to meet other members of these characters’ families.
I’d love to see Christa Miller — who plays Liz, is married to Bill Lawrence and was on Scrubs — share some scenes with Fox. I also think their quick wit would complement each other quite well.
It’d be entertaining to see how Jimmy and Fox’s character interact, too, especially if they’re related somehow.
Obviously, all of these are just guesses, and we’ll find out who the actor is playing when we’re finally able to watch Season 3 of Shrinking with that handy Apple TV+ subscription. Considering how shocking Brett Goldstein’s role was in Season 2, I’m sure they’ve created a meaningful and surprising character for Michael J. Fox. So, I truly cannot wait to see him return to the screen in this beloved comedy.
