“Stranger Things 4: Volume 2” dropped July 1, with two super-sized episodes and a conclusion to Season 4’s Vecna storyline — allegedly. After nine episodes and 13 hours, the big bad is not gone but resting, biding his time until the next Season– um, fight. Here’s where everything wrapped up in “Stranger Things 4,” and where we go from here. [Editor’s Note: The following article contains spoilers for “Stranger Things 4,” Episodes 8-9, including the ending....

Perhaps the best post so far is a new illustration Hayao Miyazaki drew to mark the start of 2021 (see below). The image nods to the Japanese zodiac calendar and shows an ox stepping on a rat to mark 2021 as the year of the metal ox. The illustration was published alongside an annual new year’s post on the Studio Ghibli website that reads: “Thank you for always supporting Studio Ghibli....

Here’s the official synopsis from Apple, which promises plenty of soapy thrills: “When the son of a prominent American businesswoman (Thurman) is kidnapped from a New York hotel, the eye of suspicion quickly falls on four seemingly ordinary British citizens who were at the hotel on the night in question. As they find themselves in a trans-Atlantic cat and mouse race to evade the combined forces of the National Crime Agency and the FBI to prove their innocence, it becomes apparent that not everyone can be trusted....

The series was created by filmmaker Jim Mickle, co-creator of SundanceTV’s “Hap and Leonard,” and director of hit genre films such as “Cold in July” and “We Are What We Are.” Mickle serves as executive producer alongside Amanda Burrell, Susan Downey, and Robert Downey Jr. The fantasy series takes place in a world where an apocalyptic event known as “The Great Crumble” leads to a hybrid breed of babies being born with animal characteristics....

Thompson herself is often compared to the great Black actresses of the past: Diahann Carroll, Lena Horne, and the aforementioned Dandridge. But in talking to Thompson she’s shocked to hear it. “This is the first time I’m hearing this,” she laughingly toldIndieWire. “I’m flattered; I stand on the shoulders of so many giants.” Thompson said a huge reference point for her performance was Caroll in the 1961 feature “Paris Blues.”...

For insight, IndieWire turned to two of its most devout “Ted Lasso” teammates, each of whom saw Season 2 a bit differently. IndieWire’s TV Awards Editor Libby Hill and Deputy Editor & Critic Ben Travers break it all down in this edition of Double Take, offering postgame analysis on what went wrong, what went right, and what’s next for everyone’s favorite mustachioed coach. LIBBY HILL: By the time the credits rolled on the Season 1 finale of “Ted Lasso,” I was hooked....

At the opening day brunch, Telluride attendees were already chatting about what they have heard of the films that premiered out of Venice, which had kicked off two days ago. Naturally, the conversation turned to a couple of projects that also happen to be at Telluride as well. While there is still much excitement for “TÁR,” which will close the Cate Blanchett tribute on Saturday night, the previous day’s wave of divisive reviews for “Bardo” had brunch goers wondering whether or not they can power through its ever-evolving runtime (there were whispers that even sure exceeds the 174 minutes listed on the program guide)....