He built 17 of them, in fact. The moments where McCreary’s themes interact are some of the most electric in “The Rings of Power,” so clearly defined that they’re able to push the series’ story forward on more than one occasion. The show’s first episode ends with Galadriel (Morfydd Clark) on a boat to the Undying Lands of Valinor, the elven equivalent of retiring to a nice farm upstate, and the way that McCreary incompletely blends and alternates the “Valinor” theme and Galadriel‘s own theme creates an intuitively understood push-pull inside the elf captain....

“She asked me if I considered auditioning because I sound a little bit like a duck,” Zien said. “I was miffed. And I told my agent. He said, ‘Oh, my God! Someone came to you about ‘Howard the Duck?’ Chip, it’s huge! This is a great thing! I am going to call right away.’ And then I became aware that everyone in the world was auditioning for it, from big names to people like me....

Notable films on the year’s lineup include Chloe Okuno’s “Watcher,” a Sundance horror hit in the tradition of paranoid classics like “Rosemary’s Baby;” James Morosini’s “I Love My Dad,” a comedy that took the top prizes in the Narrative category at SXSW; and Andrew Semans’ “Resurrection,” a psychological thriller that earned high marks from critics and fans alike at Sundance this year. Tickets for select upcoming screenings are on sale now via the Rooftop Films website, with additional dates and tickets to be released in the coming weeks....

Last year, the site added over 600 new critics part of its continuing dedication to amplifying underrepresented voices in film and TV. Rotten Tomatoes will, per today’s release, “continue to recognize critics contributing to Top Critic-approved publications and will be granting approval to several new outlets whose high-quality work serves underrepresented audiences.” Established in 2008, the Top Critic designation was originally created “to distinguish Tomatometer-approved critics who excel at and demonstrate a deep commitment to their craft....

Now, former Blue Sky executives — who requested to remain anonymous — told Insider that Walt Disney Co. allegedly took issue with queer elements of the film, including a gender non-conforming lead character and LGBTQ+ themes that culminated in a same-sex kiss. Chloë Grace Moretz and Riz Ahmed were reportedly set to star as two shapeshifters in the film. “Nimona” was estimated to be “75 percent” completed, with Ahmed’s character Lord Ballister Blackheart sharing a kiss with hero Sir Ambrosius Goldenloin, whose casting was never made public....

In Episode 2, Disney and Marvel’s “She-Hulk” starts to reveal the show it really wants to be. With the premiere’s super-powered exposition out of the way, Jen/She-Hulk (Tatiana Maslany) invites viewers into her life as an attorney-at-law, but that life is quickly upended by her fight against Titania (Jameela Jamil) in court. Jen’s bosses claim she’s a liability — that they can’t risk further attacks or the influence of She-Hulk’s presence on a jury — and they fire her....

Host: Jason Sudeikis The thing about “SNL” alumni eventually hosting episodes is that even their hosting debut never quite feels like a true “debut.” Whether that’s because they’ve made a number of other “SNL” appearances (outside of their tenure as cast members or, in John Mulaney’s case for example, writers) over of the years or because the audience already has a laundry list of returning characters (Sudeikis, unfortunately, did not revive “Two A-Holes…”) coming in, there’s not quite the same spark that comes with a debuting host out of the bubble....