Somehow in the midst of all that, Waititi is also finding time to promote his latest release. In “Thor: Love and Thunder,” the director continues to revitalize the Marvel character with the comedic polish that made “Ragnarok” such a treasured entry in the MCU. This time, however, the movie injects a surprising degree of melancholy into the plot, which finds the superhero teaming up with his ex-girlfriend Dr. Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) after she manages to wield his old hammer and became a superhero herself....

Save for a handful of gruesome gothics like “Bram Stoker’s Dracula” and “Pan’s Labyrinth” — both prioritizing practical effects over digital — winners in this category can be awards bait (“Bombshell”), fantasy franchise entries (“Lord of the Rings,” “Star Trek”), or the rare original auteur vision (“The Grand Budapest Hotel”). And there have been major short shrifts, such as John Carpenter’s “The Thing” not landing a nomination in 1982 for its human-alien chimeras courtesy of Rob Bottin....

Jeffrey Wright, who plays Gotham City Police Commissioner Jim Gordon in Matt Reeves’ film, told The Hollywood Reporter that he eventually watched several previous Batman movies during a COVID-induced quarantine toward the end of filming but wasn’t particularly interested in other actors who played Commissioner Gordon, most recently Gary Oldman. Wright preferred to read comic books to learn his character’s history and then looked to prominent, real-world Black police figures to find inspiration....

Over a decade into a post-“Creep” world, that tactic pops up not in the marketing materials for “The Chestnut Man,” but the Netflix show itself. Near the end of the first of the season’s six episodes, an assembled group of Danish schoolchildren sing a nursery rhyme about chestnuts, the same marker a murderer leaves at a crime scene as their de facto calling card. As if this one-to-one wasn’t enough, a raw chestnut, still in its outer green casing, falls from a tree....

While the recently released continuation, “The Craft: Legacy,” does not lean any further in the Sapphic direction, it does include a trans girl in the coven. What’s most refreshing about the character of Lourdes, played by 17-year-old newcomer Zoey Luna, is that she’s just one of the witches. Luna, whom LGBTQ audiences may remember from the 2017 documentary “Raising Zoey,” had an interesting introduction to “The Craft.” “I tried to watch it when I was like 15, just on a whim, and I couldn’t get past the first 15 minutes because I was too bothered by Robin Tunney’s wig,” Luna said during a recent phone interview....

Fortunately for Warner Bros., “The Little Things” should have no problem being a huge draw on streaming considering it brings together three Oscar winners: Denzel Washington, Rami Malek, and Jared Leto. The film, written by Hancock, stars Washington and Malek as a pair of Los Angeles cops who clash while investigating a grisly murder. Leto’s character is the prime suspect. The supporting cast includes Natalie Morales, Terry Kinney, Chris Bauer, Joris Jarsky, Isabel Arraiza, and Michael Hyatt....

However, things seem to be on the mend in January 2020 when Jon Favreau posted a picture of Lucas with Baby Yoda, the “Star Wars” show’s breakout star. “The Mandalorian” has been widely regarded as one of the best things Lucasfilm has produced since being acquired by Disney, and the Western-inspired show breathed new life into the brand after a divisive sequel trilogy ended with “The Rise of Skywalker.” The adorable Baby Yoda quickly captured the hearts of fans, and led to a multitude of merchandising opportunities that put the Ewoks to shame....