HBO unveiled the trailer for the six-part docuseries, which is directed by Cullen Hoback, on Wednesday. The premium cabler’s synopsis for the project reads reads: Spanning three years in the making and traversing the globe, the series follows Hoback on a labyrinthine journey to uncover the forces behind QAnon, a movement fueled by conspiracy theories that has grown in scope and political significance, chronicling its evolution in real time and revealing how “Q” uses information warfare to game the internet, hijack politics, and manipulate people’s thinking....

Since “Alex Wagner Tonight” began in mid-August, it has averaged 1.581 million total viewers per evening according to Nielsen. Of that tally, 147,000 viewers come from the 25-54 demographic — the key age range sought by news programming advertisers. Wagner’s averages are down 30 percent and 49 percent, respectively, from “The Rachel Maddow Show” during the same eight-week period in 2021. Yes, Wagner has shed nearly one-third of Maddow’s audience and roughly half the nightly demo number....

“No! I don’t know where that story came from,” Liotta said about the rumor he was offered Tony Soprano, famously played by James Gandolfini. “David [Chase, creator of ‘The Sopranos’] once talked to me about playing Ralphie [eventually played by Joe Pantoliano]. But never Tony.” Why did Liotta pass on joining what would become one of the defining TV dramas in history? “I didn’t want to do another mafia thing, and I was shooting Hannibal....

By his account, Scott has made “three great scripted superhero movies…One would be ‘Alien’ with Sigourney Weaver. One would be fucking ‘Gladiator,’ and one would be Harrison Ford [in ‘Blade Runner’]. They’re superhero movies. So, why don’t the superhero movies have better stories? Sorry. I got off the rail, but I mean, come on. [Superhero movies] are mostly saved by special effects, and that’s becoming boring for everyone who works with special effects, if you’ve got the money....

Ahmed and Tariq dive into that schism of the self in a sometimes surreal movie that also has Ahmed tap into his real-life rap and spoken-word battle skills as a musician. (He performs under the moniker Riz MC.) “Mogul Mowgli,” shot a few months after his Oscar-nominated turn in “Sound of Metal” wrapped production in late 2018, again tasks the London-born Pakistani actor to play an artist coping with degenerative illness....

But that hasn’t stopped great episodic series from being produced. “Room 104” stretched its horror conceit to exciting extremes. “High Maintenance” transported us to various New York venues with compassionate character portraits. “Little America” found distinctly charming avenues into American immigrants’ lives. Some people watch “Black Mirror.” “Roar” is the latest addition to the resistance, as well as one of the era’s best members. Created by Liz Flahive and Carly Mensch (of “GLOW” acclaim), the eight-episode Apple TV+ series functions similarly to its source material — Cecelia Ahern’s 2018 book of short stories — as a collection of fables....

Baron Cohen wrote in an essay last month ahead of the “Borat 2” opening that Trump “had a dutiful ally” and “willing accomplice” in Zuckerberg and Facebook, a social media platform which has taken advantage of “Americans [who] are especially vulnerable to lies and conspiracies.” The comedian added that Facebook is “a megaphone that history’s worst autocrats could only dream of. Its algorithm deliberately amplifies content that generates more engagement…Not surprisingly, most days the top 10 Facebook posts are overwhelmingly from right-wing pundits and outlets....