'Mandalorian' spin-off mystery answered
And Chadwick Boseman left us one more Black Panther performance
Welcome to the brand new Pop Culture Brain Daily newsletter! Well, mostly new. While this form of Pop Culture Brain is a new thing, I’ve been highlighting and curating the best and most important entertainment news for over a decade on Pop Culture Brain. I even won a couple of awards for doing it.
So what is this and why did you sign up? I’m cutting out the middle man. I want to send you the top entertainment news directly to your inbox every day in a quick but informative format.
If you want to know the latest show to watch, whether that new movie is any good, and who just got cast in the next big franchise — this newsletter is all you’ll need. Tuesday and Wednesday editions will be free, while the Thursday, Friday, and Saturday editions are accessible via monthly or the more-affordable yearly subscription.
Enough rambling, let’s get to it.
What to know
The Boba Fett series is a spin-off, not season 3 of The Mandalorian (TV Line)
[MANDALORIAN S2 SPOILER WARNING] An entire Boba Fett show is coming. The Mandalorian season 2 finale post-credits scene teased The Book of Boba Fett for December 2021. We didn’t know if it was a spin-off show or The Mandalorian season 3. Now we know it’s the former, it’s already filming with Temuera Morrison and Ming-Na Wen reprising their roles, and Dave Filoni and Robert Rodriguez (!) producing. Mando himself will be back on season 3 of his show, which will film right after Boba.
Chadwick Boseman left us one more Black Panther performance (Uproxx)
Chadwick Boseman’s death shocked the world back in August and left behind just one more movie role (Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom now on Netflix) — but he’s playing T’Challa one last time in Marvel’s upcoming Disney+ animated series What If. Boseman recorded 4 sessions for the show, which remixes the MCU and imagines T’Challa as Star Lord. It will be a bittersweet send off for Boseman, as Marvel has thankfully committed to not recasting T’Challa in the next Black Panther movie.
The new relief bill includes $15 billion for movie theaters and live venues (Forbes)
Yes! Congress has finally reached an agreement on a new coronavirus stimulus package and in the $900B deal is $15 billion for independent movie theaters and live venues via the Save Our Stages Act. “These venues are so important to my state and so many other states across the country. They are the lifeblood of our communities. They were the first to close and will be the last to open,” said Sen. Chuck Schumer.
John Mulaney checks into rehab (People)
Very tough news. Mulaney first became sober at 23 after struggling with alcohol and cocaine. The comedian recently joined Late Night with Seth Meyers as a regular contributor. Wishing him all the best in his recovery, hopefully we’ll see him on TV soon. If you haven’t watched his Sack Lunch Bunch special on Netflix, definitely check it out.
Also...
John Krasinski’s Some Good News returned for a holiday special
Millie Bobbie Brown will star in a new sci-fi film from the Russo Brothers
Wonder Woman 1984 is not doing great at the int’l box office
Why did SNL cut this hilarious new Middle-Aged Mutant Ninja Turtles sketch?
Tatiana Maslany’s She-Hulk Disney+ show will be a half-hour legal comedy
What to watch
I’m catching up on Cobra Kai (Netflix) ahead of its season 3 premiere Jan. 8. The Karate Kid sequel series is way better than you’re imagining — even if you don’t have a ton of nostalgia for the original. Its winning blend of heart, comedy, action, and teen drama allows the series to stand on its own. It succeeds where so many other sequel shows and movies have not by iterating on its source material and extending its universe logically.
For fans of: Ted Lasso, The OC, Friday Night Lights, kicking, punching, Coors Banquet, Billy Zabka’s episodes of How I Met Your Mother.
New notables on streaming this week:
The Midnight Sky (Dec 23) - George Clooney Netflix movie, 55% on RottenTomates (RT)
Bridgerton (Dec 25) - Shonda Rhimes’s first Netflix series, no reviews yet.
Soul (Dec 25) - Pixar movie on Disney+, 98% on RT
Wonder Woman 1984 - HBO Max, 83% on RT
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About the Author: Alex Rabinowitz has led the way on social media and story packaging at media outlets big and small. With his acclaimed Tumblr site PopCultureBrain.com, Alex became a leading figure in emerging social networks and entertainment news. Sourced by many top destinations, including New York Magazine, BuzzFeed, and Videogum, Pop Culture Brain was featured by BuzzFeed and TIME as the best pop culture blog on Tumblr. Alex's writing has appeared on The Huffington Post, GQ, Mic, and Time Warner Cable.