Austin and Colten Gunn are far from a nostalgia act. The second-generation stars are the sons of WWE Hall of Famer Billy Gunn, and while they do subtly pay homage to their father in some ways, The Gunns have blossomed into their own. Much of that is thanks to Bullet Club Gold, AEW's spin-off faction of the historic New Japan Pro Wrestling stable. The Gunns linked up with Jay White and Juice Robinson earlier this year and have donned the black and gold ever since. In a company inundated with factions, the bang bang gang have stood out amongst the rest thanks to their charisma, match quality, and perhaps most crucially, their branding.

The Gunns Remastered DX's Catchphrase For Bullet Club Gold

Among that branding includes a cornucopia of catchphrases. Top-shelf gunslingers. High-rolling with the bang bang gang. And if you're not down with that, we got two words for ya: suck it guns up.

That prompt was made famous by Billy Gunn in D-Generation X. While crowds have been trained to respond one way, The Gunns have successfully remastered it in Bullet Club Gold's image.

"The other catchphrase sucked and the guy who said it sucks," Austin Gunn told ComicBook.com. "What the bang bang gang does is we take something that wasn't cool and we make it cool, because we are actually cool. We don't force it down people's throats. We're cool in general. We don't have to prove it. We know we're cool."

Adding a fresh coat of paint is a recurring theme with Bullet Club Gold. Before this spin-off made its way to AEW, many fans felt the faction was on life support, as it had lost a significant amount of the magic it once had when stars like Finn Balor, AJ Styles, and Kenny Omega were leading it. The mainline Bullet Club in NJPW is currently in its biggest reset yet, with David Finlay leading multiple new recruits like Clark Connors, Gabe Kidd, and Alex Coughlin.

"The Bullet Club, you add 'Gold' to the end of it, now it's cool because we're in it," Austin continued. "You take that catchphrase that sucked before, I'll take it over from here kid. We just made it cool again. We're taking everything that you give to us and we just make it cool. That's it."

AEW Dynamite returns tonight at 8 PM ET on TBS.

The Naughty Nine premieres tonight on Disney Channel and viewers will be delighted to meet Danny Glover as Santa Claus. In the Disney Channel Original Movie, the beloved actor is the man in charge up at the North Pole. ComicBook.com interviewed The Naughty Nine costume designer Julia Caston about working with Glover and his interactions with the cast and crew. When a star of that caliber steps onto set, it inspires everyone to bring their A-game. With Santa, Caston said that she really wanted to communicate him being in his off-time, while still keeping his gentlemanly leisure feel. Read about her process down below.

"Oh yes, he was so wonderful to work with and it was a surprise when they told me the casting. I was so happy to hear that it was somebody as amazing as Danny Glover and it's so great," Caston began. "So yes, this is an Alberto [Belli] thing. We work together to come up with the look we really wanted because its the day after Christmas, right? So, Santa would kind of be on his off hours. What does he look like on his off hours?"

"And we decided that we kind of wanted him to be, a gentleman. We wanted him to have an elegance about him. We wanted him to be relaxed, but with fabrics that were rich, right? We wanted him to feel cozy," she continued. "He's just based on a very elegant, trendy kind of well-fitted. I was like, he's incredibly like put together. He's just like, you walk in his office and he's like, oh no, I got a handle on this thing."

"It was fun. And we also wanted to do justice to the actor as well. The idea for this kind of grew. We had discussions before he was cast, but then once he was cast, we're like, 'Let's grow this into his very nattily dressed gentleman on his days off," the designer added. "So, that's how that came about. It was really fun to work with him. When we heard I was like, 'This is great!' He's so wonderful and he's such an acting icon. He's so incredible and what a what a win for us. It elevated the whole movie, in a way I thought."

How Do The Naughty Nine Assemble Their Christmas Looks?

Elsewhere in our conversation with Julia Caston, we talked about tackling the look of Christmas in The Naughty Nine. They had Santa covered, but young actors like Winslow Fegley, Imogen Cohen and Ayden Elijah are all in the mix too. How did the costume designer dream up how these young adventures would look? Well, it comes down to some collaboration with director Alberto Belli and some classic color influences.

"How do I conceive it? Okay, so. Well, you know, I met with the director Alberto and I Listen to his concept and think what he wants to do with it. He was really interested in creating this kind of magical, elevated, special place that we had never seen before," Caston revealed. "He did that with the the scenery and just how his vision was very clear that he wanted it to be elevated. He wanted it to be on trend and he wanted it to have a little fashion. He wanted it to have a little like fabulousness, right? So taking that on, and then listening."

"Reading the script and everything, I just I just was like oh how do I make these characters pop a little bit? Let's get him a little edge. Let's give him a little fun. And ,I wanted the kid that watched it to think, 'That's cuter than the normal elf!' You know? I wanted them to feel. I've never seen a tracksuit elf for a or a racing suit elf. I wanted to take the characters that were being played by all these great actors and give them a little nuance," she added.

Caston continued, "So they all were different and they all felt like they had personality. And so that's, how I went about it was just like listen to Alberto's vision and then add to it. Or elevated it, you know? Just try to make it what he wanted."

The Naughty Nine Is Out Today!

"Mischievous fifth grader Andy finds himself without a visit or presents from Santa on Christmas morning. Realizing he must have landed on the "naughty list" and feeling unfairly maligned, Andy pulls together a team of eight other "naughty listers" to help him execute an elaborate heist at the North Pole to get the presents they feel they deserve. Along the way, the group comes to realize that the very best way off the naughty list is to redirect their unique talents for good -- instead of mischief."

The Naughty Nine premieres on Disney Channel today and will release on Disney+ Thanksgiving Day!

Are you surprised by Glover playing Santa Claus? Let us know in the comments!

The ComicBook Nation Crew Reviews The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes and talk to DC's Tim Sheridan about his new comic series Alan Scott: The Green Lantern!

PLUS: MCU Casting is ramping up with Pedro Pascal joining Fantastic Four and Invincible's Steven Yeun playing Sentry??? There's also talk about Netflix's new series Scott Pilgrim Takes Off, the MonsterVerse continuing with Monarch: Legacy of Monsters and predictions for AEW's Full Gear event!

ComicBook Reviews The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes

If you're a fan of The Hunger Games, The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes is going to transport you back to Panem with great ease. The film is daring, engaging, tense, and even occasionally funny. It's no easy feat to make a prequel that's just as good, if not better, than the films that came before. However, The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes manages to outshine both Mockingjay films while giving The Hunger Games and Catching Fire a run for their money. Not only is The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes faithful to the book, but it showcases one of the best casts of the year. If you have any affection for this franchise, you won't want to miss the newest installment on the big screen.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5

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Swerve Strickland has arrived. The former NXT North American Champion joined All Elite Wrestling back in March 2022, signing his contract at AEW Revolution. His first couple of months saw him form an impromptu tag team with Keith Lee, a partnership that led to the duo capturing the AEW World Tag Team Championships that summer. After losing the straps and going their separate ways, Swerve began fronting Mogul Affiliates, a new faction that initially struggled to find its footing. Upon merging with Ring of Honor's The Embassy, the new-look Mogul Embassy began to gain momentum with Swerve firmly in the driver's seat.

That momentum is currently at a fever pitch thanks to Swerve's rivalry with "Hangman" Adam Page. Swerve began targeting Hangman in the lead up to AEW WrestleDream, taking exception with what he perceived to be the former AEW World Champion's recent complacency. While he secured a pinfall victory over Hangman at that pay-per-view, Swerve's career-defining victory was this past weekend when he defeated Hangman in what many are calling the greatest death match of all time at AEW Full Gear.

Swerve Strickland Embraces His Villainous Role

The Mogul is all about being the bad guy.

Swerve Strickland is no stranger to playing a heel inside the squared circle, but his recent run has revved up the sinister to a new level. Speaking to ComicBook.com, Swerve says he only sees himself and AEW TNT Champion Christian Cage as the ones embracing the evil.

"For the guys in our position that are like me, competing in that realm, is just myself and Christian," Swerve said. "That's another legend that's been doing this for 30 years. I'm in a really good spot right now. Once again, I say I'm a new face of that role of villain, that face of evil in a sense. You don't really see guys that look like me in that position rank that high, and especially in this industry, it's very unique."

Swerve's persona is not the only thing that has evolved. The former AEW Tag Team Champion has noticeably bulked up in 2023, which was a calculated change he made this past spring.

"I went with a personal trainer of mine that I really just stumbled upon, just mutual friends of ours in the gym, and I told him my target weight. He was like, 'Oh man, I can get you there in six months.' Sure enough, he got me there within three," Swerve said. "It was literally thousands of reps. It was exhausting. It was strenuous.

"It got to a point where I'm now able to bench 315 pounds, and I've never been able to get over 200. It was just constant work, getting to the gym where I didn't want to. It was just a lot of sacrifice and moving my time around and knowing how much I wanted to dedicate to my physique, and to my personal trainer who I don't want to let down. I went from 199 pounds in March, which was Revolution to Double or Nothing, I was 225."

AEW returns to television this Wednesday with AEW Dynamite on TBS at 8 PM ET.

WIsh is heading to theaters next weekend, and it stars Ariana DeBose as Asha, a girl who learns a dark secret about her kingdom's wish-granting ruler, Magnifico, who is voiced by Chris Pine. The voice cast also includes the talents of Alan Tudyk, Angelique Cabral, Victor Garber, Natasha Rothwell, Jennifer Kumiyama, Harvey Guill?n, Evan Peters, Ramy Youssef, and Jon Rudnitsky. ComicBook.com recently had the chance to interview Wish producers Peter Del Vecho and Juan Pablo Reyes Lancaster Jones who spoke a little bit about the film's casting process.

"I mean, we all started with Asha because we wanted to find the point of view of who is wishing on a star," Lancaster Jones explained. "It wanted to be a very relatable character that we could all see ourselves in. And then we found Ariana, who's the most genuine, cool, enthusiastic person ever. And she just brought a lot to the table and she brought in the different flavors of the character. So I believe she really took the character to a different level. And then Chris Pine..."

"Yeah, certainly the casting process is very different because we started in the pandemic," Del Vecho added. "So oftentimes we listen to voices and we have an idea of what the character is. We've already designed the character and we start to listen to voices against the character. And Magnifico was tricky because Magnifico has to be charming and handsome and believable because you have to believe that people would move from anywhere and willingly give him their wishes to protect. But he also has to sing, and he also has to have enough gravitas that when he devolves into a true villain, that they can carry that. And Chris, once we heard Chris, it was no question that he was the right casting."

What Is Wish About?

You can read the official synopsis for Wish here: In Wish, Asha, a sharp-witted idealist, makes a wish so powerful that it is answered by a cosmic force--a little ball of boundless energy called Star. Together, Asha and Star confront a most formidable foe--the ruler of Rosas, King Magnifico--to save her community and prove that when the will of one courageous human connects with the magic of the stars, wondrous things can happen. Featuring the voices of Academy Award(R)-winning actor Ariana DeBose as Asha, Chris Pine as Magnifico, and Alan Tudyk as Asha's favorite goat, Valentino, the film is helmed by Oscar(R)-winning director Chris Buck (Frozen, Frozen 2) and Fawn Veerasunthorn (Raya and the Last Dragon), produced by Peter Del Vecho (Frozen, Frozen 2) and co-produced by Juan Pablo Reyes (Encanto).

Jennifer Lee (Frozen, Frozen 2) executive produces -- Lee and Allison Moore (Night Sky, Manhunt) are writers on the project. With original songs by Grammy(R)-nominated singer/songwriter Julia Michaels and Grammy-winning producer/songwriter/musician Benjamin Rice, plus a score by composer Dave Metzger.

Wish opens only in theaters on November 22nd.

Steve-O's newest special, Steve-O's Bucket List, is now available to watch on SteveO.com, and it sees the 49-year-old Jackass star crossing off some extreme items on his bucket list. Steve-O is known for doing wild and gross stunts, so it's no surprise that he often gets some shocking requests from fans. In fact, he used to frequently kick fans in... a sensitive area. ComicBook.com recently had the chance to chat with Steve-O about his new special, and we asked if any fan stories come to mind.

"But yeah, people have asked outrageous stuff," Steve-O shared. "Very recently, somebody said, 'Hey, I'm a transgender person. Can I ask you to kick my penis off?' I can't even remember the nuts and bolts of it all, but there was a prosthetic penis that was attached. The person was very familiar with the stages of my career and fully aware that I have retired from kicking people in the nuts. They started the request by saying, 'I know you've retired from nut-kicking, but I'm trans, and can I ask you to kick my d*ck off?' I declined to do that, but there was a pretty crazy video that we made nonetheless."

Steve-O added, "Yeah, I mean, it's pretty just rad. I tell these stories and it occurs to me that in some ways I feel quite uniquely qualified to bring joy to people."

Steve-O Talks Jackass 5:

During Steve-O's chat with ComicBook.com, he explained why he's hesitant to make another Jackass movie

"No, I've heard nothing of that," Steve-O added when asked about Jackasss 5. "I know that Knoxville, and thank God, Knoxville is not trying to risk his life anymore or hit his head anymore. That's just the one important thing. Knoxville hitting his head has really lost its fun for us."

"Yeah, trust me, I was there," he added when we mentioned Knoxville's injury in Jackass Forever. "I was like, 'Why are we doing this? Come on man. Why are we doing this?'"

What Is Steve-O's Bucket List?

You can read an official description of the special here: "If you thought Steve-O was crazy before, then get ready for his unrated Steve-O's Bucket List, his new stand-up special filmed in front of a sold-out London crowd. With a complete disregard for societal norms, laws, and his own well-being, Steve-O is in top form as he brings his multimedia comedy tour straight into your living room with his hilarious stand-up and stunts deemed 'too extreme' for Jackass... oh, yeah... and it's a love story too! Steve-O's Bucket List not only pushes him to his limits but also finds him his 'happily ever after' that will melt your heart or passed out on the floor."

Steve O's Bucket List is now available on SteveO.com. Stay tuned for more from our interview with the Jackass star.

Found debuted on NBC last month, and the new procedural follows a team led by former kidnap victim Gabi Mosely (Shanola Hampton) as they try to find missing persons who fall through the cracks of the system. The series also stars Agents of SHIELD alum Brett Dalton as Mark Trent, a cop who often toes the line in order to help Gabi with her cases. ComicBook.com recently had the chance to chat with Dalton, and we asked him about the current state of network television, whether he thinks Found could get a 22-episode second season, and his future hopes for Mark.

"That is a good question. And unfortunately, the creators don't ask me my opinion on any of this, but I would love to do 22," Dalton shared. "I think that it deserves 22 and it can hold up to 22. I agree with you that everything is changing right now. And so even to have 13, we feel very lucky," he added.

"Whatever they take me back for, I will do. But of course, I would love a full season, and you are right. And actually speaking to your point too, I feel like even though this is a procedural and it is on network television, I do think that this is not just a garden variety procedural where we solve some random case. I do think that this is stepping up with the network television game and trying to bring something relevant, and it's not shying away from a very sensitive topic. And it's doing something, it's a procedural with purpose."

"Yeah, very much so," Dalton replied when asked if he has hopes for Mark's development. "I mean, we're not going to know everything in the first season. I do think that there's a lot in season two that will be explored with Mark. I can't say too much, but he has a different backstory than everyone else. Everyone else on that team is a kidnap survivor, and so their trauma has bonded them and they're all pulling in the same direction. They all have intimate knowledge of what it's like to be on both sides really. Not on both sides, but kidnapped and then also the one solving the case."

"But yeah, I think that it's going to be really interesting to see where this goes. Clearly, Trent is drawn to Gabi, and he relates his best, but she has gone through experiences that he can only imagine. And I think that he views himself as a protector and a safe harbor in these wild seas. And he's there with his arms open as a very patient person who really just wants the best for Gabi and her team," Dalton continued. "But I think that we will see, because there is a big secret that she has hiding in her basement, and it's not just sitting there patiently reading."

Found's eighth episode airs on NBC on November 21st, and the first seven episodes are available to stream on Peacock.

Wish is heading into theaters this weekend, and it marks the latest feature film from Walt Disney Animation Studios. The new film is an animated musical that's meant to follow in the footsteps of the many projects released by the company over the last 100 years. ComicBook.com recently had the chance to chat with the creatives responsible for bringing the film to life and they talked about everything from the movie's soundtrack to the beloved heroines of Disney. We also spoke with the film's stars, Ariana DeBose (Asha) and Chri Pine (Magnificao), and they shared their experience working in animation.

"No," DeBose revealed when asked if she got the chance to work with any of her co-stars. "My work was mainly with [songwriters] Julia Michaels and Benjamin Rice and [directors] Chris Buck and Fawn [Veerasunthorn], and our producers and our writers, our writing team, our incredible writing team. So that was very different and it required me to rely on my sense of creativity and imagination. But that was a really fun exercise, and that was very inspiring to me. So while it was strange, it felt like coming home. Because I think that's probably what I did as a kid."

"It's different," Pine said of the animation process. "That's more the case I find in a film where you see more people. When I go into a booth once every month or something, you see about five of the same people and they're all the pivotal characters there. There's the engineer, the sound editor, the writers, the two directors. There's the people that are really, even if it's a vocal thing, it's Julia and Ben. So they're all essential. There is not one missing link or necessary link."

Wish Producers Tease Magnifico:

ComicBook.com also had the chance to chat with Wish's directors, Chris Buck and Fawn Veerasunthorn, as well as producers Peter Del Vecho and Juan Pablo Reyes Lancaster Jones. During the interviews, they talked about bringing Pine's Magnifico to life, and listening to Disney fans who were clamoring for a specific kind of villain.

"First of all, we are fans ourselves, even though we're working for Disney Animation, we all love it," Del Vecho explained. "And Disney villains have evolved over time and some villains are revealed, but there's something delicious about knowing that someone's the villain from the beginning. What makes this one unique is he's also charming and charismatic and you actually watch him evolve as more pressure is put on him. And I believe you may not like what he does, but you'll understand the 'why' because we can all relate to it, the pressure that he must feel."

"Well, Magnifico was born out of the want to do a villain that hearkens back to some of our older villains, and it's a villain that is the villain from very early on, and that it's a villain that you love to hate," Buck shared. "They come on the screen and you're like, 'Yes, yes. This scene's going to get real now.' So that was our desire. We are big Disney fans ourselves, and we had also heard from many fans about wanting another villain."

What Is Wish About?

You can read the official synopsis for Wish here: In Wish, Asha, a sharp-witted idealist, makes a wish so powerful that it is answered by a cosmic force--a little ball of boundless energy called Star. Together, Asha and Star confront a most formidable foe--the ruler of Rosas, King Magnifico--to save her community and prove that when the will of one courageous human connects with the magic of the stars, wondrous things can happen. Featuring the voices of Academy Award(R)-winning actor Ariana DeBose as Asha, Chris Pine as Magnifico, and Alan Tudyk as Asha's favorite goat, Valentino, the film is helmed by Oscar(R)-winning director Chris Buck (Frozen, Frozen 2) and Fawn Veerasunthorn (Raya and the Last Dragon), produced by Peter Del Vecho (Frozen, Frozen 2) and co-produced by Juan Pablo Reyes (Encanto).

Jennifer Lee (Frozen, Frozen 2) executive produces -- Lee and Allison Moore (Night Sky, Manhunt) are writers on the project. With original songs by Grammy(R)-nominated singer/songwriter Julia Michaels and Grammy-winning producer/songwriter/musician Benjamin Rice, plus a score by composer Dave Metzger.

Wish opens only in theaters on November 22nd.

Star Trek: Lower Decks Season 4 was a game-changing season for Beckett Mariner, voiced by Tawny Newsome. The season began with Mariner and her fellow lower deckers promoted to lieutenants junior grade. Despite her best efforts at self-sabotage, Mariner's commanding officer refused to demote her back to ensign, leading Mariner to commit escalating acts of unnecessary danger as she reckoned with trauma from her past, both fighting in the Dominion War and the death of her friend, Sito, while on a covert mission for Starfleet Intelligence. Ultimately, during a knife-rain delay in a life-or-death duel with a Klingon, Mariner unburdened herself and realized the best way to honor Sito's memory is to be the best Starfleet officer she can be.

It's a heck of an arc, and it should leave a lasting impression on Mariner through Star Trek: Lower Decks's future. ComicBook.com had the opportunity to speak to Newsome - who is also writing for Star Trek: Starfleet Academy -- about Mariner's big season, what the future holds, and that live-action crossover with Star Trek: Strange New Worlds.

Before we get into Star Trek: Lower Decks, let's talk about the Star Trek: Strange New Worlds crossover. Technically, that wasn't the first time you got to dress up as Mariner since you did cosplay at Comic-Con. A significant difference between dressing up in costume at Comic-Con and getting the official Star Trek treatment? How vastly different were those experiences?

Tawny Newsome: It was vastly different. Bernadette Croft, the costumer for Strange New Worlds, is incredible. That whole team is incredible. That uniform felt so expensive. It was so perfectly tailored to my body. We filmed for a couple of weeks and then -you might be the first person I'm telling this, so I hope I don't get in trouble, but - we got COVID. Jack and I got COVID, and we had to shut down filming. I don't think we gave it to anyone else, thank God, but we had to shut down.

And so, then we came back a month later to finish filming it, and I was like, "That costume is not going to fit. I have not been doing the same activities in my life. There is no way." And when I put that costume on, it fit, I was like, "Oh my God, thank God. Thank God." I was so worried because it's down to the millimeter, it feels like. It was incredible.

Onto Star Trek: Lower Decks, when you signed up for the Star Trek comedy cartoon, were you expecting to have to go as deep and dramatic as that conversation with the Klingon during the knife rain? What was your reaction to reading that and realizing, "Oh, I've got to do that"?

I thought it was really well-earned. I think for a silly little 22-minute comedy that packs all the funny that it does, packs all the action, and all of the respect for canon that our show does, that's a lot. I don't think that we would've earned an emotional deep dive like that any earlier. I think we had to wait until Episode 9 Season 4, I really do.

I think that by doing that, we had so much energy and excitement and understanding of who Mariner is, and where she's come from, and why she's like this, it was like a little key that unlocked something huge. I saw it in the fandom. I saw people's reactions to be like, "This makes so much sense," that of course this would basically give her PTSD from the Dominion War and dealing with her friend dying. Of course, no wonder. She's not just acting out for no reason. This is a real reason.

I think that Mike and the writers played it really smart and really earned that moment. He told me he was going to do something like it, I think way back in Season 3. He told me his long game plan for it, and I was like, "Genius. This will satisfy a lot of the people who've been wondering why Mariner's acting the way she is." I was thrilled when I saw how the scene came together.

The way we recorded it, we did it a bit differently too. Mike and I read it together and we recorded it like it was a live-action scene. We weren't just doing repetition on each of the lines to get coverage. We were acting through the whole scene. It felt more similar to how you film live-action stuff.

When he told you about the scene, did he mention that it was going to tie into the original "Lower Decks" episode? I know you're a Star Trek fan from long before this. What did that mean to you, to see that line drawn?

Yeah, he did. I didn't know about the Locarno of it all, but he said, "My long game plan is to tie Lower Decks to the episode "Lower Decks," and make you friends with Sito, the ensign who died." And I was like, "That's genius. That's so smart. That will be so satisfying for the fans." And that's all I knew.

Then, to see that it was Locarno, I loved it because it's like Lower Decks is Wrath of Khan. Because I remember when I first saw Wrath of Khan, I was like, "That guy from that one episode is now the villain for this whole huge film that's become this critically acclaimed, heralded film?" And that's what Lower Decks did. We took that one guy who looks a lot like Tom Paris, for reasons we won't talk about, and we made him our big bad of Season 4. It's very fun.

You got to play Mariner on the other end of the spectrum too, after having that breakthrough, because you got that really sincere, inspiring speech to all the people stranded on that planet, the kind of speech you expect the captains on the show to give. Having played this character for so long, what did that moment feel like? Did it feel like, "Oh, she's arrived, she's fully formed now." Was it a little weird to play that sincerely after being on the other side of Mariner for so long?

No, it didn't feel weird because I feel like she's always had that in her. It's just her tactics weren't always as eloquent. For me, from a storytelling standpoint, it felt like the third beat of a very funny runner. That runner is, we've seen Ransom now twice throughout the season start his, "Though we come from different worlds," speech. I think we saw it first in episode 103, and then we saw it again in that episode where there was the volcano and the baby. He starts the cliche Kirk/Picard/Captain speech, "Though we come from different worlds..." And then we fade out and it's like a little Lower Decks-y joke.

Then I love that, in my mind, it's almost the third beat of that multi-series long runner is Mariner doing the real version of that speech. That just speaks to what type of show this is, that we can set up a long - and I don't know if that's what the writers were intending, but that's what I got from watching it - we can set up this long thing that's tongue-in-cheek, but then pay it off with something real and emotional. That's the magic of Lower Decks.

While also being a show where you can describe an episode as, "The one with the volcano and the baby." Which is its own sort of special, I would think.

But when you describe "serious Star Trek," you sound just as nuts. So, that's not unique to Lower Decks. The one where a Rumpelstiltskin chases Miles O'Brien around the space station? That's in an hour-long drama, my friend.

I don't know if you've seen scripts from Season 5 yet, I know Mike McMahan was deep into writing them, but how different do you think playing Mariner is going to feel after what she experienced in Season 4?

We're fully back. We just got back into the recording of 5. I've read the scripts, I've read almost all of them, and recorded I don't know how many, but we're in the middle somewhere, and it's great. I think the biggest thing that I've noticed is they've had to balance Mariner's need for pushing back against authority but doing it with the newfound responsibility of managing... What word do you use in the military? Managing ensigns.

Delegating? Organizing?

Commanding.

Commanding, I guess, yeah.

Leading missions. God, I would suck in the military. I'm like, "What do you do? You hold a rehearsal for your cadets, what do you do?"

She's got to balance that type of responsibility and that type of maturity with still her very Mariner-like tendencies of instigating a little bit of chaos, but also breaking rules that don't serve people in order to make Starfleet better. I think that has found some really nice fertile ground that we get to see Mariner behaving a little differently in season five.

Star Trek: Lower Decks is streaming now on Paramount+. Star Trek: Lower Decks Season 5 is currently in production.

Star Trek: Lower Decks star Tawny Newsome isn't leaving the USS Cerritos anytime soon. Newsome has played Beckett Mariner through four seasons of Star Trek's first animated comedy and is currently recording lines for Star Trek: Lower Decks Season 5. Amid that, she's also joined the writers' room of Star Trek: Starfleet Academy, the upcoming live-action Star Trek series focusing on a young adult audience. ComicBook.com spoke to Newsome recently and asked about how her work voicing Mariner in Lower Decks might influence her contributions to Starfleet Academy. Newsome took the opportunity to address some speculation she's seen about her commitment to Lower Decks now she's writing for Starfleet Academy.

"One thing I do want to say because I have seen fans speculate that I'm not going to be as available for Lower Decks: full cards on the table, Lower Decks takes priority," Newsome says. "That was my job first. That's my priority, and everyone involved with both shows is understanding of that. I'm not going anywhere on Lower Decks is what I want to say."

Tawny Newsome is bringing her lifelong Star Trek fandom to Starfleet Academy

Newsome went on to to say that she doesn't necessarily feel like her time working on Star Trek: Lower Decks is having a particular influence on what she's bringing to Star Trek: Starfleet Academy. Rather, it's her lifelong love of Star Trek that's coloring her work.

"I don't know that Lower Decks itself is influencing my work [on Starfleet Academy], but just my lifelong fandom and my tendency to always gravitate towards a lot of the fun and funny in a lot of these storylines, that influences all of my work," she explained. "I'm always just pushing for fun and funny and silly and with a little bit of pathos that sneaks up on you and gives you some meaning where you didn't expect it."

Star Trek: Starfleet Academy's Writers' Room

Newsome sounds as if she's enjoying her time in the Starfleet Academy writers' room. She went on to praise showrunners Alex Kurtzman and Noga Landau for the team they've assembled.

"I'm always just pushing for fun and fast and funny, and really holding onto canon," she says. "I love this world for a reason, so the canon's super important to me, and we've got a room full of people also doing that. We've got a room full of the loveliest people in the world. I keep shouting this: Alex Kurtzman and Noga Landau, our two showrunners, really did a no-assholes rule for this room, and everyone is delightful. I think that the rest of Hollywood should take note because I don't know how the f*** they did that. It's great."

What is Star Trek: Starfleet Academy?

In early 2023, Paramount+ greenlit Star Trek: Starfleet Academy, which had been rumored since at least 2018, with plans to enter production in 2024 (though those plans were made before the strikes and may have since changed). Kurtzman and Landau are showrunners of the series, which will follow the coming of age of Starfleet cadets attending Starfleet Academy in San Francisco. They have not yet specified in what era of Star Trek the show is set. Star Trek: Starfleet Academy is expected to debut on Paramount+ in 2025. Here's the synopsis for Starfleet Academy from Paramount+:

"Star Trek: Starfleet Academy will introduce us to a young group of cadets who come together to pursue a common dream of hope and optimism. Under the watchful and demanding eyes of their instructors, they will discover what it takes to become Starfleet officers as they navigate blossoming friendships, explosive rivalries, first loves and a new enemy that threatens both the Academy and the Federation itself."

Star Trek: Lower Decks is streaming now on Paramount+. Star Trek: Lower Decks Season 5 is currently in production.

This September marked ten years since Agents of SHIELD debuted on ABC. The Marvel series followed the events of The Avengers (2012) and saw the return of Clark Gregg as Agent Phil Coulson. The series also starred Chloe Bennet as Skye/Daisy Johnson, Ming-Na Wen as Melinda May, Brett Dalton as Grant Ward, Iain De Caestecker as Leo Fitz, and Elizabeth Henstridge as Jemma Simmons. Five out of the original six cast members remained part of the series throughout its entire run with the exception of Dalton. However, after departing at the end of the third season, Dalton did make a surprise appearance in the fourth season and remained close with the rest of the cast and the show's creators. ComicBook.com recently had the chance to chat with Dalton about his new series, Found, and we brought up Agents of SHIELD's 10th anniversary. Unfortunately, the show's special day happened during the SAG strike.

"It was. We couldn't even tweet about it really. Not tweet, but we couldn't even post about it," Dalton shared. "If you know of something, please let me know," he joked when asked if there will be a reunion. "I'm still in touch with those guys. It would be wonderful. I have thought about that myself. We are in a time of reboots, and this would be a perfect time, in my opinion, to bring it back."

"Unfortunately, I played a character who died three separate times, so they would have to do some sort of time travel thing, but that's also not off the table," Dalton added. "So they have my number and I would just love to see Grant Ward in some way, shape or form pop up in either a TV show or a movie. And maybe if I put it out there now, it will actually happen. So get to work on that Jamie and ComicBook.com."

What Is Found About?

You can read an official description of Found here: "In a riveting new drama, brilliant recovery specialist Gabi Mosely and her team are dedicated to finding America's missing and forgotten people. They'll stop at nothing to solve these cases because for them, it's personal - every member of the team has firsthand experience with a mysterious disappearance. But Gabi has a chilling secret of her own that could unravel everything... she's got her childhood kidnapper locked up in the basement, helping her crack every case."

Stay tuned for more from our interview with Brett Dalton. Found's eighth episode airs on NBC on November 21st, and the first seven episodes are available to stream on Peacock. Agents of SHIELD is streaming on Disney+.

Wish is heading to theaters next week, and it's the latest in a long line of animated musicals from Walt Disney Animation Studios. The film follows Asha (Ariana DeBose) as she learns a dark secret about her kingdom's wish-granting ruler, Magnifico (Chris Pine). Disney has already released many songs from the film, which were written by Julia Michaels and Benjamin Rice. ComicBook.com recently had the chance to chat with Disney Animation's Chief Creative Officer and Wish co-writer, Jennifer Lee, as well as producers Peter Del Vecho and Juan Pablo Reyes Lancaster Jones. We brought up the success of Encanto's "We Don't Talk About Bruno," and asked about their favorite songs from Wish.

"I have to say I don't have a favorite, because I absolutely love them all, and I'm not just being cheesy," Lee shared. "I mean, I will say 'This Wish' was the first, and it was written before I even wrote the script, so that gets so much credit for being an anchor for me. But every one of the songs, they were all so dynamic, so different."

She continued, "The collaboration with Julia, it was beyond my wildest dreams. She is such a fantastic storyteller herself as a songwriter who also has had a career as long as mine, I mean in terms of at least over a decade of bringing other people's vision out, for helping them do that as she writes for others. So to collaborate, she understood right away what, as a storyteller, I needed when I write, versus what she needs to do as a songwriter. She always brought back songs that not only were far more than I ever imagined they could be, but then re-inspired the story, so it helped me write as a writer and it helped Allison Moore, as well, who wrote with me."

"We would always come back, and we've got a song, 'We got it. We got it.' And then we'd go, 'Okay, we've got to change this. We've got to change this. Now we've got this, and this could lead to this, and now we don't have to write that scene, because the song already did all the work.' We just had such a fun time with every song," Lee added.

"Look, we have many favorites and we joke that every time Julia writes a song, it becomes our new favorite song," Del Vecho shared. "We start singing it. It's hard. It's hard to pick out. It's hard to know which ones will. I think all the songs are going to resonate with everyone. If you ask which one is the standout, it's hard to predict that."

You can watch our interviews with the Wish creatives at the top of the page.

What Is Wish About?

You can read the official synopsis for Wish here: In Wish, Asha, a sharp-witted idealist, makes a wish so powerful that it is answered by a cosmic force--a little ball of boundless energy called Star. Together, Asha and Star confront a most formidable foe--the ruler of Rosas, King Magnifico--to save her community and prove that when the will of one courageous human connects with the magic of the stars, wondrous things can happen. Featuring the voices of Academy Award(R)-winning actor Ariana DeBose as Asha, Chris Pine as Magnifico, and Alan Tudyk as Asha's favorite goat, Valentino, the film is helmed by Oscar(R)-winning director Chris Buck (Frozen, Frozen 2) and Fawn Veerasunthorn (Raya and the Last Dragon), produced by Peter Del Vecho (Frozen, Frozen 2) and co-produced by Juan Pablo Reyes (Encanto).

Jennifer Lee (Frozen, Frozen 2) executive produces -- Lee and Allison Moore (Night Sky, Manhunt) are writers on the project. With original songs by Grammy(R)-nominated singer/songwriter Julia Michaels and Grammy-winning producer/songwriter/musician Benjamin Rice, plus a score by composer Dave Metzger.

Wish opens only in theaters on November 22nd.

Brett Dalton is best known for playing Grant Ward in Agents of SHIELD, and the actor has returned to television in NBC's new procedural, Found. The series follows a team led by former kidnap victim Gabi Mosely (Shanola Hampton) as they try to find missing persons who fall through the cracks of the system. In the show, Dalton plays Mark Trent, a cop who often toes the line in order to help Gabi with her cases. ComicBook.com recently had the chance to chat with Dalton about the series, and he spoke about the importance of spotlighting "underserved communities."

"I mean, I'm happy to be a part of something like this," Dalton shared. "I haven't seen any of these stories on screen ever. This felt just like a project with purpose, with a perspective, and it's shining a spotlight on underserved communities. And it's also a bit of a sensitive subject with having kidnappers and stuff. I think that that can be sensitive, that can be triggering, but it's handled with such dignity and care that I felt like this is something I would like to be a part of. And it's awesome. It's the most diverse, talented cast I've been a part of. It's really incredible."

He added, "So even though we're handling things that aren't always fun to look at, it's really important."

"Oh, of course I have," Dalton replied when asked if he's gotten an education while making Found. "And a lot of it is fairly disturbing. I didn't realize that that many kids were lost each year or have gone missing each year, almost a half a million, which is a pretty staggering number. And then over half of those have been children of color. And as I said, these sort of children who, it feels like, fall through the cracks, and many of them are... The first 48 hours of any missing persons case are the most important. And if the wheels of justice are not paying attention, that time gets wasted. And if they're categorized as runaways instead of missing persons, then that also is wasted time and brings the chance of them being recovered down significantly. So that's the unfortunate part."

Dalton continued, "When I was a kid, there still was, I think that was kind of the end of having children printed on milk cartons, but all of those kids were blonde hair, good-looking, and got all of this attention. But at the same time, there were so many that didn't get nearly the amount of attention or hype, and that was happening in the background with seemingly nobody really caring. And that's the unfortunate thing."

What Is Found About?

You can read an official description of Found here: "In a riveting new drama, brilliant recovery specialist Gabi Mosely and her team are dedicated to finding America's missing and forgotten people. They'll stop at nothing to solve these cases because for them, it's personal - every member of the team has firsthand experience with a mysterious disappearance. But Gabi has a chilling secret of her own that could unravel everything... she's got her childhood kidnapper locked up in the basement, helping her crack every case."

Stay tuned for more from our interview with Brett Dalton. Found's eighth episode airs on NBC on November 21st, and the first seven episodes are available to stream on Peacock.

Steve-O's newest special, Steve-O's Bucket List, is now available to watch on SteveO.com in partnership with Moment and Patreon. In the new special, Steve-O crosses off some NSFW goals and is joined by a few familiar faces. You can see him reunite with some of his Jackass pals, including Chris Pontius, Dave England, Preston Lacy, and Ehren McGhehey. The film also features appearances by comedian Bill Burr, Jay and Silent Bob's Jason Mewes, and big names from UFC including Chuck Liddell, Ronda Rousey, and Jon Jones. Recently, ComicBook.com had the chance to chat with Steve-O about his new special, and he talked about getting people in for cameos.

"Yeah. Doing something with poop, you definitely call Dave [England]," Steve-O explained. "Preston Lacy has been the driver a lot of the times. Way back in the day, we did a box cube disco rollerblade thing, and Preston drove for that. On my second comedy special where I was duct taped to the billboard truck, Preston drove that all the way to Denver. So yeah, Preston's always going to be my driver. Pontius dressed up as a nurse, made a lot of sense. Danger Ehren was a pretty random one. There was the stuff I filmed with Wee Man that wasn't that good. But yeah, overall, man, I loved it. I love them all."

"Yeah, I definitely asked everybody myself," he added of the non-Jackass cameos. "Let's not forget the heavyweight king of comedy, Bill Burr, flying the helicopter."

In the special, Steve-O gets a vasectomy, and he told us a special story about the doctor who did the deed.

"The doctor was so great, and we learned after that at that time, the doctor knew that he didn't have long to live, that he was dying of cancer," Steve-O shared. "Filming with him really represented this bright spot, this joyful moment in what was otherwise a very sad time. In the waiting room after the procedure, it's all his family there. They were all there and they're all laughing and it's just so much joy. We learned that really not that long after that the doctor passed. That's why the very first credit at the end is in memory of the doctor."

He added, "We only spent that one day with them, but for the rest of that whole tour tour, whenever we were even remotely near, his family members would come out on the tour."

You can watch our chat with Steve-O at the top of the page.

Steve-O Talks Jackass 5:

During Steve-O's chat with ComicBook.com, he explained why he's hesitant to make another Jackass movie

"No, I've heard nothing of that," Steve-O added when asked about Jackasss 5. "I know that Knoxville, and thank God, Knoxville is not trying to risk his life anymore or hit his head anymore. That's just the one important thing. Knoxville hitting his head has really lost its fun for us."

"Yeah, trust me, I was there," he added when we mentioned Knoxville's injury in Jackass Forever. "I was like, 'Why are we doing this? Come on man. Why are we doing this?'"

What Is Steve-O's Bucket List?

You can read an official description of the special here: "If you thought Steve-O was crazy before, then get ready for his unrated Steve-O's Bucket List, his new stand-up special filmed in front of a sold-out London crowd. With a complete disregard for societal norms, laws, and his own well-being, Steve-O is in top form as he brings his multimedia comedy tour straight into your living room with his hilarious stand-up and stunts deemed 'too extreme' for Jackass... oh, yeah... and it's a love story too! Steve-O's Bucket List not only pushes him to his limits but also finds him his 'happily ever after' that will melt your heart or passed out on the floor."

Steve O's Bucket List is now available on SteveO.com. Stay tuned for more from our interview with the Jackass star.

Ming-Na Wen is a Disney Legend who is best known for voicing Mulan in Mulan, playing Melinda May in Marvel's Agents of SHIELD, and Fennec Shand in Star Wars: The Mandalorian and The Book of Boba Fett. Currently, you can hear her lend her voice to the new film Pencils Vs Pixels, a documentary about animation's switch from 2D to 3D. While the movie doesn't focus solely on Walt Disney Animation Studios, the company's history is a main focus of the documentary. ComicBook.com had the chance to chat with Wen about the project, and we asked what she's hoping to see from Disney in the future.

"Well, they're always evolving," Wen explained. "The fun thing about seeing this documentary, for me, was actually learning a lot about the evolution of the 2D to the CGI formats and how Roy E. Disney really helped to resurrect the Disney franchise with Little Mermaid and then Lion King and Mulan. I think it will now go more towards melding the two art forms together because the soul and the authenticity of 2D animation was missed a lot. Just the CGI, I think people got too much of it, and now there's a beautiful blend of the two. So I am looking forward to future animations where you get to see that. And I'm sure there's going to be other technology with AI coming in that will blow people's minds. And I can't wait for all of that."

Wish Producers Reveal Their Hopes for Disney's Next 100 Years:

Walt Disney Animation Studios is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year, and over the last century, the studio has released over 60 films starting with Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs in 1937. Their latest feature, Wish, is coming to the big screen next week and follows Asha (Ariana DeBose) as she learns a dark secret about her kingdom's wish-granting ruler, Magnifico (Chris Pine). ComicBook.com recently had the chance to chat with the film's directors, Chris Buck and Fawn Veerasunthorn; producers Peter Del Vecho and Juan Pablo Reyes Lancaster Jones; and writer/executive producer, Jennifer Lee, who is also the Chief Creative Officer at Walt Disney Studios Animation. We asked each creative what they were hoping to see over the course of Disney's next 100 years.

"Oh gosh, there's so many things," Lee replied when asked about her hopes for the studio's future. "Well, you know what I love? Instead of the 'dead mom,' the mom is the lead. We love to joke about it, and the innocence of why so many times characters did not have the mom around. And it's like, well, everyone knows moms solve all the problems. I love moms. And so I'd love a film that tackles that in a wonderful way and celebrates that in a way that relates to all ages, too. And I think moms can be that."

Lee added, "There's so many I think that are just fun opportunities ... but that was the first one that popped into my head."

"Look, the imagination of Disney is boundless," Del Vecho began. "I will say that as a studio, we've really grown. We've become more diversified than ever, and I think that's only elevating the stories that we're telling in the stories we will tell in the future."

"Yeah, I agree with that," Lancaster Jones added. "I mean diversity, but in every way. I think something beautiful about Wish is that interaction between the different generations as you see with Chris and Fawn and how it's not just one perspective. We work as a community and you see all of these perspectives and points of view make their way in one way or another into a movie."

Pencils Vs Pixels is now available to rent on various streaming platforms. Wish opens only in theaters on November 22nd.

Chris Pine will soon be heard in Wish, the new animated film that was made to honor Walt Disney Animation Studios' 100th anniversary. The movie is quite joyous, and it's not the only film Pine made this year that fits that description. Earlier in 2023, Pine could be seen in Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves, which was a hit among critics and audiences alike. ComicBook.com recently got the chance to speak with Pine about Wish, and we asked what draws him to these joyful projects.

"We live in a really not joyful world so much, and so I think I'm drawn to things right now that make people smile or make people giggle that aren't so serious," Pine explained. "I think there's room for all sorts of films, but I have recently really been pulled towards things that have really nice messaging because there's a lot of sh*tty messages in the world."

You can watch our interview with Pine at the top of the page.

Chris Pine Addresses Sag Strike Ending:

After 118 days, SAG-AFTRA's historic strike against the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) came to an end last week. During ComicBook.com's interview with Pine, we asked the actor about the strike and he spoke about all of the actors who struggled without work.

"Well, I had the great... I live in an odd world, I have the luxury of not having to work," Pine explained. "So I think what I'm most happy about is all of that feeling of ranker and sadness and desperation that I was feeling from some of our other people in the ranks can now be assuaged a bit and they know that they have something to look forward to. It's nice to feel our community unified once again."

What Is Wish About?

You can read the official synopsis for Wish here: In Wish, Asha, a sharp-witted idealist, makes a wish so powerful that it is answered by a cosmic force--a little ball of boundless energy called Star. Together, Asha and Star confront a most formidable foe--the ruler of Rosas, King Magnifico--to save her community and prove that when the will of one courageous human connects with the magic of the stars, wondrous things can happen. Featuring the voices of Academy Award(R)-winning actor Ariana DeBose as Asha, Chris Pine as Magnifico, and Alan Tudyk as Asha's favorite goat, Valentino, the film is helmed by Oscar(R)-winning director Chris Buck (Frozen, Frozen 2) and Fawn Veerasunthorn (Raya and the Last Dragon), produced by Peter Del Vecho (Frozen, Frozen 2) and co-produced by Juan Pablo Reyes (Encanto).

Jennifer Lee (Frozen, Frozen 2) executive produces -- Lee and Allison Moore (Night Sky, Manhunt) are writers on the project. With original songs by Grammy(R)-nominated singer/songwriter Julia Michaels and Grammy-winning producer/songwriter/musician Benjamin Rice, plus a score by composer Dave Metzger.

Stay tuned for more from our interviews with the creatives behind Wish, which opens only in theaters on November 22nd.

The next Coheed and Cambria album, Vaxis - Act III, is on the way, says frontman Claudio Sanchez. That's not all that surprising. Sanchez has long said that the Vaxis, the sequel to The Amory Wars story, is a pentalogy. The saga began with Vaxis - Act I: The Unheavenly Creatures in 2018, introducing new lead characters Sister Spider and Nostrand. Vaxis - Act II: A Window of the Waking Mind followed in 2022, continuing their story and delving into the mind of their son, the story's title character, Vaxis. When ComicBook.com spoke to Sanchez about the crowdfunding campaign for The Amory Wars: No World for Tomorrow, adapting The Amory Wars' finale into comic book form, he also confirmed that work on Vaxis - Act III is coming along, but there's still a way to go.

"Vaxis III is very much percolating as well, and next year we'll probably do some preliminary touring that'll lead to a release," Sanchez said. "I'm not sure exactly when that release is because there still is a lot of work to do in terms of recording it and illustrating the novella. We've started down those paths, but they take some time, as well as writing the novella, of course. Things are going to happen hopefully in the next year or so."

Sanchez confirmed that he and his wife, co-writer Chonda Echert, have been splitting their time between scripting the No World for Tomorrow comic book and developing the story for Vaxis - Act III. While that can be tricky, Sanchez also said that it has allowed him to ensure that these stories resonate with one another.

"[W]hat makes No World so exciting to see now come out is its connection to subsequent stories like Vaxis III and the first story, Year of the Black Rainbow, as well as the connection to The Afterman because the last record has that Incredible Hulk #180 ending, where you have the Wolverine silhouette in the doorway, but this is the Afterman making an appearance at the end of Vaxis II in a very Wolverine fashion -- though not a silhouette, you see him but it feels like that to me," Sanchez explains. "All these stories are now going to make so much sense when they come out once No World starts and Vaxis III happens, and with the idea of adapting Year of the Black Rainbow, everything is going to connect so much more than it's ever before. That's thrilling to me because it's going to be a domino effect of 'this is all making so much sense to me' and I can't wait to see how it ends with Vaxis IV and V."

Coheed and Cambria playing When We Were Young 2024

In addition to preliminary plans for Vaxis - Act III, Sanchez and his bandmates in Coheed and Cambria (guitarist Travis Stever, drummer Josh Eppard, and bassist Zach Cooper) are headed to 2024's When Were Were Young festival, playing the celebration of early 2000s emo, pop-punk, and post-hardcore for the first time as it enters its third year as an annual event. Coheed and Cambria will play the entirety of their third studio album, Good Apollo, I'm Burning Star IV, Volume One: From Fear Through the Eyes of Madness, at the event. The album has a 77-minute runtime and includes Coheed and Cambria's best-known single, "Welcome Home."

My Chemical Romance and Fall Out Boy are headlining 2024's When We Were Young festival. Tickets for the event go on sale on November 24th.

The Amory Wars: No World for Tomorrow's crowdfunding campaign is live now on BackerKit. Vaxis - Act I: The Unheavenly Creatures and Vaxis - Act II: A Window of the Waking Mind are available now.

Disney's Wish is heading to theaters next week, and the animated film stars Ariana DeBose as Asha, a girl who learns a dark secret about her kingdom's wish-granting ruler. Back in the day, most Disney heroines were princesses, but there have been a lot of characters recently who don't fall into that category such as Asha and Encanto's Mirabel. Recently, ComicBook.com had the chance to chat with Walt Disney Animation Studios' Chief Creative Officer and the co-writer of Wish, Jennifer Lee, along with Wish producers Peter Del Vecho and Juan Pablo Reyes Lancaster Jones, and directors Chris Buck and Fawn Veerasunthorn. We brought up how Mulan is always clumped in with the princesses, but now that she's paved the way for more non-princess characters, should there be another moniker for the studios' heroines?

"We have two queens in Frozen," Lee pointed out, referring to Anna and Elsa being considered "princesses." When asked if Asha would be part of a hypothetical princess movie like the fan-favorite scene from Ralph Breaks the Internet, Lee replied, "Well, you'll always get from me is what is important to me, but this is just me, is as a kid especially, the more you could connect me to the unique qualities of that character, the more I was excited."

She continued. "With Frozen ... everything that's connected to Frozen is Frozen, so you can really immerse yourself. I'd love the same for Asha, but at the same time, I think all these heroines are so wonderful together and deserving together. There's a label of 'Princess' ... maybe it's that we're redefining what that means. Really, what we did with Frozen is, the responsibility they carried by being in charge of their kingdom added so much to their story, and I think what I love is where Asha ends up is something really special. I mean, that's directly connected to all our heroines in its own way, so I think it's fun to see how they'll find each other."

"I don't know. I mean, when we start these movies, it really is all about the story," Buck explained when asked about the "princess" moniker. "It's really about how this character fits into the story. And we love all our princesses 'cause they're amazing. I know that you grew up on-"

"Yeah, the '90s," Veerasunthorn replied. "And then Raya was also a princess. I'm like, 'Yes, two princesses in that movie.'" She added, "Yeah. And we love these qualities of aspirational young women who has all this determination. They're very sure of what they want to do and they pursue it. And we see that in Asha as well. And Asha's specificity comes so much from collaborating with Ariana DeBose who brings joy, exuberant personality, and quirkiness. Someone who's not afraid to be who she is, very comfortable in her own skin and say what she wants and express herself. And those qualities we find that in Ariana and we're like, 'Ariana is Asha. Asha is Ariana.'"

"You know, I think it's phenomenal that we kind of look at them together because they are role models for so many people," Lancaster Jones shared. "So in that level, I think it's cool. But I also like the independence of each character and let them be their self."

"I think that's the key is each character deserves to have its own identity," Del Vecho added. "So it's hard when you group them in. You don't want to sort of just make them all the same. So I think the key is making sure they keep identified as who they are. "

Stay tuned for more from our interviews with the creatives behind Wish, which opens only in theaters on November 22nd.

The Marvel Cinematic Universe is deep into the "Multiverse Saga," which means actors from various Marvel projects could easily show up at any unexpected time. In fact, the mid-credit scene of the recently-released film, The Marvels, brought in a Marvel character from outside of the MCU. There's been a lot of debate over the years as to whether or not Agents of SHIELD is MCU canon, but with the current state of the franchise, it's been confirmed that everything is canon within the multiverse. That means, the upcoming film Avengers: Secret Wars could have some exciting and unexpected cameos. ComicBook.com recently had the chance to chat with Agents of SHIELD star Ming-Na Wen, and we asked if she thinks anyone from her TV team could cameo in the Avengers film.

"You can ask, and I will just say we can continue to hope, but the likelihood right now, no," Wen admitted.

You can watch our interview with Wen at the top of the page.

Clark Gregg Claps Back at Bob Iger:

It was announced earlier this year that Disney CEO Robert Iger has extended his contract through 2026. Around that time, Iger also blamed the launch of Disney+ and the COVID-19 pandemic for the creative and financial issues facing Pixar and Marvel Studios.

"[Marvel] had not been in the TV business at any significant level. Not only did they increase their movie output, but they ended up making a number of television series, and frankly, it diluted focus and attention," Iger said.

This quote caught the attention of Agents of SHIELD star Clark Gregg who had a short but sweet reaction. Variety shared Iger's quote and Gregg replied, "Bro..." Of course, saying Marvel hasn't made TV "at any significant level" is certainly insulting to those who spent seven years making Agents of SHIELD. You have to respect Gregg for his simple (and hilarious) reply.

What Is Pencils Vs Pixels About?

You can currently catch Ming-Na Wen in the new film Pencils Vs. Pixels, a documentary about animation's switch from 2D to 3D. You can read the official description of Pencils Vs Pixels below:

"Pencils Vs Pixels is a celebration of the unique magic of 2D hand-drawn animation and an exploration of how the Disney Renaissance of the late 1980s and early 1990s led to an animation boom that was quickly upended by the computer animation revolution that followed. Narrated by Ming-Na Wen, Pencils Vs Pixels features many of the legendary artists who brought these now-classic films to life as they guide us through the last few decades of animation and into the future that's yet to come."

Pencils Vs Pixels is now available to rent on various streaming platforms. Stay tuned for more updates about the MCU.

The Marvels star Iman Vellani revealed her favorite X-Men scenes she'd like to see in the MCU. ComicBook.com's Phase Zero podcast sat down for a lengthy interview with the Ms. Marvel actress. Over the course of our talk, she discussed Jonathan Hickman's recent run with the X-Men and lamented how far away from something like that the MCU really is. But, there's a ton of stories that Marvel Studios has to choose from when forming their take on the mutants. With that feature being a ways away, Kevin Feige and company have ample time to get their ducks in a row. But, Iman Vellani will be waiting there with some notes if they need them.

"Oh wow. There's so many. I have been reading a lot of X-Men lately, so forgive me," Vellani began I mean, okay, Krokoa in recent memory, honestly, what they're doing in the comics, it'd be sad for the end of that era, but that would be one, just like a whole gorgeous jungle-y island full of X-Men and all those portals. It's so beautifully drawn in Hickman's Run. I would love to see that adapted on screen"

Iman Vellani Excited About Mutant Possibilities

Later in our conversation, the Ms. Marvel actress would also praise Grant Morrison's work with the X-Men. It seems like some of that DNA is already working its way into the MCU with the costumes in Deadpool 3.

"There's specific scenes from Grant Morrison's run that just adjust that scene. I want to see a lot of Emma Frost, her with the Stepford Cuckoos," she mused. "Their interactions are always my favorite. I love them calling her old, and she's like, 'I'm 27 actually,' and everything to do with her nose job. She's just such a specific character. There's moments with her and Angel and they're in a fitting room and they're trying on clothes. I just love those very grounded X-Men moments and then they go fight crime at the end of the day. It's amazing."

Check Out The First MCU Mutant

In The Marvels, (now in theaters), Carol Danvers aka Captain Marvel (Brie Larson ) has reclaimed her identity from the tyrannical Kree and taken revenge on the Supreme Intelligence. But unintended consequences see Carol shouldering the burden of a destabilized universe. When her duties send her to an anomalous wormhole linked to a Kree revolutionary, her powers become entangled with that of Jersey City super-fan, Kamala Khan (Iman Vellani ) aka Ms. Marvel, and Carol's estranged niece, now S.A.B.E.R. astronaut Captain Monica Rambeau (Teyonah Parris ). Together, this unlikely trio must team-up and learn to work in concert to save the universe as "The Marvels."

The Marvels will also see the franchise returns of Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury , Saagar Shaikh as Aamir Khan, Zenobia Shroff as Muneeba Khan, and Mohan Kapur as Yusuf Khan. New cast members include Zawe Ashton , Park Seo-joon, and Shamier Anderson . Produced by Marvel Studios , The Marvels is directed by Nia DaCosta with a script from DaCosta, Megan McDonnell, and Elissa Karasik.

What are you hoping to see with the MCU X-Men? Let us know down in the comments!

Last month, Walt Disney Studios Animation celebrated 100 years. The studio has marked this milestone in various ways ranging from the short film Once Upon a Studio to the upcoming animated feature, Wish. ComicBook.com recently had the chance to chat with Wish producers Peter Del Vecho and Juan Pablo Reyes Lancaster Jones as well as directors Chris Buck and Fawn Veerasunthorn. We asked both duos if they celebrated Disney's anniversary in a special way.

"Oh, absolutely," Lancaster Jones shared. "And they actually had a very cool celebration here at the studio, and I think it's really cool that the studio is really embracing the movie Wish as kind of like the jewel of the celebration because we really worked hard to create something that evoked Disney emotionally. So words like 'hope' and 'joy.' So yeah, to me, I think Wish is our way to celebrate."

"I think, yeah, the whole making of this movie for us was a celebration," Del Vecho added. "Everybody wanted to be a part of it. Everybody wanted to contribute to this movie. It literally was a joy for us to all work on this project."

"We had a little thing across the lot," Buck explained. "There was a 100th celebration just a few weeks ago, and everybody could sign this big kind of fairytale book. And this is just a personal thing, and I wrote on it, it was to Walt, and I said, 'Thank you for making my life so magical.' Yeah, because a lot of people say, 'Thank you for making my childhood so magical.' And I'm like, no, he made my whole life magical."

"Well, this year we got to visit Walt's original office across the street, and I don't know why I have never been there before and that was my first time and I was like, 'How fitting?' This is the 100th year, and this man who has started it all had worked here," Veerasunthorn added. "All the stuff on the wall and in the office. This feels, this energy of someone who had persevered throughout, against all odds, and was able to create this animated feature-length film that everyone came to see at the time when people were like, 'That's never going to work.' And he started this studio that had brought so much joy to the world."

You can watch the interviews at the top of the page.

What Is Wish About?

You can read the official synopsis for Wish below:

In Wish, Asha, a sharp-witted idealist, makes a wish so powerful that it is answered by a cosmic force--a little ball of boundless energy called Star. Together, Asha and Star confront a most formidable foe--the ruler of Rosas, King Magnifico--to save her community and prove that when the will of one courageous human connects with the magic of the stars, wondrous things can happen. Featuring the voices of Academy Award(R)-winning actor Ariana DeBose as Asha, Chris Pine as Magnifico, and Alan Tudyk as Asha's favorite goat, Valentino, the film is helmed by Oscar(R)-winning director Chris Buck (Frozen, Frozen 2) and Fawn Veerasunthorn (Raya and the Last Dragon), produced by Peter Del Vecho (Frozen, Frozen 2) and co-produced by Juan Pablo Reyes (Encanto).

Jennifer Lee (Frozen, Frozen 2) executive produces -- Lee and Allison Moore (Night Sky, Manhunt) are writers on the project. With original songs by Grammy(R)-nominated singer/songwriter Julia Michaels and Grammy-winning producer/songwriter/musician Benjamin Rice, plus a score by composer Dave Metzger.

Stay tuned for more from our interviews from Wish, which opens only in theaters on November 22nd.

Ming-Na Wen is known for an array of roles, but many fans knew her first as the voice of Mulan. Wen has gone on to voice the Disney character in multiple projects in addition to various other voice roles. Currently, you can hear her lend her voice to the new film Pencils Vs. Pixels, a documentary about animation's switch from 2D to 3D. Not only does Wen narrate the film, but there's also an animated version of her that shows up in the end credits. ComicBook.com recently had the chance to chat with Wen about the project, and she explained how she got involved and revealed what she thinks of her animated self.

"Well, I'm good friends with one of the creators and producers of it, Tom Bancroft. We go way back to our days of putting Disney's Mulan together. And he has a twin brother, Tony, who helped to direct it as well, Mulan anyways. And I'm on the board of their studio Pencilish. So I just love 2D and when he asked me if I could help out, I didn't hesitate," Wen shared.

"You know what, I did not negotiate for that," Wen said when asked if she got to keep any art of her animated self. "Yes, I'm going to text him as soon as we're done with this interview. No, I completely trust his abilities. He's such an incredible artist. And I just got giddy every time I saw the different versions of her. And I'm like, 'I wish I had beautiful hair, big, big, big hair.'"

Wen continued, "But what I really loved was the very end, there's a little tag thing where animated me and Tom, we do a cute little skit and it turned out great. I was so happy that it actually was funny."

You can watch our interview with Wen at the top of the page.

What Is Pencils Vs Pixels About?

You can read the official description of Pencils Vs Pixels here: "Pencils Vs Pixels is a celebration of the unique magic of 2D hand-drawn animation and an exploration of how the Disney Renaissance of the late 1980s and early 1990s led to an animation boom that was quickly upended by the computer animation revolution that followed. Narrated by Ming-Na Wen, Pencils Vs Pixels features many of the legendary artists who brought these now-classic films to life as they guide us through the last few decades of animation and into the future that's yet to come."

Pencils Vs Pixels is now available to rent on various streaming platforms.

Austin and Colten Gunn are currently on the run of their careers. The second-generation tag team joined Bullet Club Gold earlier this year, aligning with Jay White and Juice Robinson, immediately inserting themselves into the main event and becoming a staple of weekly programming. The Gunns are no stranger to stables, as the brothers had already been in two groups prior to the Bang Bang Gang. Upon entering AEW, Austin and Colten formed a trio with their father, WWE Hall of Famer Billy Gunn, collectively calling themselves Gunn Club. Years later, Austin and Colten aligned with Stokely Hathaway's The Firm, a "stable on retainer" for MJF.

While The Firm debuted in AEW in a big way, helping MJF become No.1 Contender to the AEW World Championship at AEW All Out 2022, the faction quickly fell off the rails, with some of that to blame on injuries and suspensions surrounding their planned storyline.

The Gunns Reflect on Working With MJF in The Firm

Austin and Colten Gunn are no stranger to their AEW Full Gear opponent.

Speaking to ComicBook.com, The Gunns reflected on their brief history alongside MJF, blasting the AEW World Champion for being untrustworthy.

That you can't trust MJF. That's it," Austin said when asked what he learned from working in The Firm. "But you know who I can trust? Juice Robinson and Jay White and my brother [Colten]. That's all you need. You don't need to add more people in our gang. Nobody belongs in our gang. We have our gang set and that's it. The Bang Bang Gang rules. Every single episode of Dynamite, Rampage, Collision you put us on, we're taking over. You can't trust MJF at the end of the day. That's why he has no friends."

"Behind the scenes, we took that card and we joined The Firm," Colten added. "He was masterminding all this and every single promise he made never came true because he's a liar and a fake. That's what we learned from The Firm."

Alongside The Gunns and MJF in The Firm were Big Bill, Ethan Page, and Lee Moriarty, three stars that Austin and Colten never got the opportunity to develop legitimate chemistry with. The quite opposite can be said for their new stablemates.

"We do everything together. When we're backstage, we're hanging out. When we're traveling, we're on the same planes," Austin said of Bullet Club Gold. "It's like when you go out and you meet a brand new friend for the first time and you just connect right off the bat. That's how it was with the Bang Bang Gang."

"We have a group text and that thing goes off all day about how we're going to continually take over AEW. I mean it's just literally from the first second we just felt like we all clicked and connected and you can't find that," Colten added. "It just happened organically and like you said, it feels like we've been together for years and it's been what? Two, three months maybe? You can see that on the screen that we're just very connected and we work well together."

The Gunns challenge MJF and a mystery partner for the Ring of Honor Tag Team Championship this Saturday at AEW Full Gear: Zero Hour, the pay-per-view's pre-show that will air on AEW's social channels.

Ming-Na Wen is known for an array of roles ranging from Mulan to Melinda May, but these days many know her best as Fennec Shand. Wen's character debuted in the first season of Star Wars: The Mandalorian and she went on to appear in Season 2 of the series as well as The Book of Boba Fett. However, she was entirely absent from the third season of The Mandalorian. Now, fans are wondering when she's going to show up again. ComicBook.com recently had the chance to chat with Wen about Pencils Vs. Pixels, a new documentary about animation that's narrated by Wen. During the interview, we asked the star if she knows when she will be seen in Star Wars again.

"No, but I'm keeping my fingers crossed," Wen said. "I keep sending out good energy. I miss being her. Now that the strike is over, I think it's going to be fun and accelerated to try to get every production back online. And I certainly pray and hope that Fennec comes back, but unfortunately, that is ... unless I cosplay myself," Wen joked.

"Well, I get a lot of fans asking if there could be a spinoff of just vetting. I'm like, why not? I don't know. Yeah, any reason to just do Star Wars again," Wen added.

Earlier this year, Wen recalled being disappointed that she wasn't in The Mandalorian's third season. However, she also made it clear that she trusts filmmakers Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni and she understands why her bounty hunter wasn't involved in the recent episodes. The actor also expressed how her being such a fan of the franchise means that she wants to be involved in as many projects as possible.

What Is Pencils Vs Pixels About?

You can read the official description of Pencils Vs Pixels here: "Pencils Vs Pixels is a celebration of the unique magic of 2D hand-drawn animation and an exploration of how the Disney Renaissance of the late 1980s and early 1990s led to an animation boom that was quickly upended by the computer animation revolution that followed. Narrated by Ming-Na Wen, Pencils Vs Pixels features many of the legendary artists who brought these now-classic films to life as they guide us through the last few decades of animation and into the future that's yet to come."

Pencils Vs Pixels is now available to rent on various streaming platforms. Stay tuned for more updates about Star Wars.

Iman Vellani revealed that there was another version of The Marvels' Young Avengers scene. ComicBook.com's Phase Zero podcast caught up with the Kamala Khan actress to talk about Ms. Marvel uniting the Young Avengers. The first person on her list: Hailee Steinfeld's Kate Bishop. One of the last moments of The Marvels is Kamala cornering Hawkeye and channeling Nick Fury to assemble a new team. These younger Marvel heroes have been stacking up for a while and now it looks like they might be ready for primetime. Vellani told us there was a version of this scene where the team was already put together. But, it'll never see the light of day.

"Yes, I mean, it was like pretty much the same lines," Vellani explained. "I think they were trying their best to incorporate as many as they can. But, I think its better that we see Kamala actually form the Young Avengers starting from the beginning. Because, there was a version where they already exist and I was like, 'That doesn't make any sense' and they were like 'We know, we're not gonna film this.'"

"But, yeah, I think it was really fun and I loved working with Hailee for just that one day that I got to meet her and see her and talk to her. She's so... it was nice just having someone to relate to about the super suits and... you know, where the future of the Young Avengers lies. So, yeah I'm very excited. Hopefully, that turns into something real.... It's my favorite part about the first Avengers film too. When Nick Fury and Scarlett Johansson, they all gather together, and they're like 'we're a team now.'"

Iman Vellani Excited About Mutant Possibilities

Earlier in the MCU conversation, Iman Vellani told ComicBook.com about the day they shot Ms. Marvel's mutant reveal. Apparently, the young actress could barely contain her excitement. It was a huge honor for her to be the first Mutant in the MCU. But, Vellani had to calm down to actually get those words out.

"The hardest part was when we were filming it," Vellani told us. "First of all, I couldn't keep it together. Every single time Matt Lintz would say 'mutation' -- which still makes me giddy every time I say the word -- I would just break. They even did his coverage first so I could hear it enough times, so that by the time the camera rolled around to me, I was normal. It didn't work. First take, I was gone. It was just so cool! And it was one of the last things we shot, and it was nighttime in Atlanta.

"It was such like vibes, you know? It was very cool. But again, we didn't know if that was gonna make it into the cut," she added. "I think that was like the most annoying thing, filming it, because it was so cool, and I was having so much fun, and I just wanted people to see my excitement over it. And what an honor, you know, to use that M word for the first time in the MCU. So I'm very glad it made it in."

What's Going On With Kamala Khan?

In The Marvels, (now in theaters), Carol Danvers aka Captain Marvel (Brie Larson ) has reclaimed her identity from the tyrannical Kree and taken revenge on the Supreme Intelligence. But unintended consequences see Carol shouldering the burden of a destabilized universe. When her duties send her to an anomalous wormhole linked to a Kree revolutionary, her powers become entangled with that of Jersey City super-fan, Kamala Khan (Iman Vellani ) aka Ms. Marvel, and Carol's estranged niece, now S.A.B.E.R. astronaut Captain Monica Rambeau (Teyonah Parris ). Together, this unlikely trio must team-up and learn to work in concert to save the universe as "The Marvels."

The Marvels will also see the franchise returns of Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury , Saagar Shaikh as Aamir Khan, Zenobia Shroff as Muneeba Khan, and Mohan Kapur as Yusuf Khan. New cast members include Zawe Ashton , Park Seo-joon, and Shamier Anderson . Produced by Marvel Studios , The Marvels is directed by Nia DaCosta with a script from DaCosta, Megan McDonnell, and Elissa Karasik.

When do you think we'll see Young Avengers? Let us know down in the comments!

Kamala Khan / Ms. Marvel (Iman Vellani) is playing a massive role in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, not only starring in her own Disney+ Ms. Marvel series, but joining the superhero ensemble of the recent The Marvels film. Ms. Marvel's Season 1 finale broke the Internet by revealing that Kamala is a mutant, fulfilling a bit of lore originally planned for the character when she first debuted in the comics nine years ago. In an exclusive interview with ComicBook.com's Phase Zero podcast, which will be available on all podcast platforms on Friday, November 17th, Vellani reflected on filming that surprising reveal, and revealed that just hearing the word "mutation" in the scene was enough to make her break character.

"The hardest part was when we were filming it," Vellani explained. "First of all, I couldn't keep it together. Every single time Matt Lintz would say 'mutation' -- which still makes me giddy every time I say the word -- I would just break. They even did his coverage first so I could hear it enough times, so that by the time the camera rolled around to me, I was normal. It didn't work. First take, I was gone. It was just so cool! And it was one of the last things we shot, and it was nighttime in Atlanta. It was such like vibes, you know? It was very cool. But again, lwe didn't know if that was gonna make it into the cut. I think that was like the most annoying thing, filming it, because it was so cool, and I was having so much fun, and I just wanted people to see my excitement over it. And what an honor, you know, to use that M word for the first time in the MCU. So I'm very glad it made it in."

Will Ms. Marvel Get a Season 2?

At the moment, Ms. Marvel has not been confirmed to be getting a second season on Disney+ -- but Vellani has teased that a new batch of episodes would have a lot of potential, especially following Kamala's journey in The Marvels.

"It would be fun to see Kamala post-'The Marvels' after she's fought with her idol," Vellani said in an interview with Stylecaster earlier this year. "It's similar to what Spider-Man went through after fighting with the Avengers in 'Civil War' and going back to the friendly neighborhood thing."

What Is The Marvels About?

In The Marvels, which arrived in theaters on November 10th, Carol Danvers aka Captain Marvel (Brie Larson) has reclaimed her identity from the tyrannical Kree and taken revenge on the Supreme Intelligence. But unintended consequences see Carol shouldering the burden of a destabilized universe. When her duties send her to an anomalous wormhole linked to a Kree revolutionary, her powers become entangled with that of Jersey City super-fan, Kamala Khan (Iman Vellani) aka Ms. Marvel, and Carol's estranged niece, now S.A.B.E.R. astronaut Captain Monica Rambeau (Teyonah Parris). Together, this unlikely trio must team-up and learn to work in concert to save the universe as "The Marvels." The Marvels will also see the franchise returns of Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury, Saagar Shaikh as Aamir Khan, Zenobia Shroff as Muneeba Khan, and Mohan Kapur as Yusuf Khan. New cast members include Zawe Ashton, Park Seo-joon, and Shamier Anderson. Produced by Marvel Studios, The Marvels is directed by Nia DaCosta with a script from DaCosta, Megan McDonnell, and Elissa Karasik.

The Marvels is now playing exclusively in theaters. Phase Zero's full interview with Vellani will be available on all podcast platforms on Friday, November 17th.

Warner Bros. has been in the news this week for shelving Coyote vs. Acme, the live-action/animated Looney Tunes movie starring John Cena, in order to take a reported $30 million tax write-down. The backlash was severe, especially since it wasn't the first time CEO David Zaslav pulled a move like this. In fact, shortly after the news broke, it was reported that Warner Bros. reversed course to allow the filmmakers to shop Coyote vs. Acme to other distributors. Another film that fell victim to this tactic was Scoob!: Holiday Haunt. It was reported that 90% of the animated film was finished before the decision came. The movie featured many exciting stars, including Ming-Na Wen. ComicBook.com recently spoke to Wen about the new documentary, Pencils Vs Pixels, and we brought up the recent Coyote vs. Acme drama and asked whether or not she still has hope for Holiday Haunt.

"Yes. Oh my god," Wen replied when we told her we'd still love to see Holiday Haunt. "Never say never. I don't know what happened, why it happened. I stay out of the politics of everything. I think that's how I stay young-looking," she joked. "But so many people worked so hard on that. And the story is fun and just it needs to come back. Yes. So maybe next year."

What Is Scoob!: Holiday Haunt About?

The first look at Scoob!: Holiday Haunt was shown during an HBO Max teaser at the end of 2021. Produer Tony Cervone confirmed a sequel was in the works and shared his excitement for the project before things fell apart. "Actually, we are kicking the tires on a follow-up to Scoob!" Cervone revealed to Comic Book Movie. "It hasn't been announced yet, but it's something we're all excited about. The whole creative team that made the first movie is still around and back and working on something new. It was neat to create this Hanna-Barbera Cinematic Universe, and it's exciting to return to it."

The synopsis for Scoob!: Holiday Haunt reads: "To celebrate Scooby Doo's first Christmas, 10-year-old Shaggy and the gang take him to a holiday-themed resort owned by Fred's favorite Uncle Ned. When the park is beset by a ghostly haunting, the kids must solve a 40-year-old mystery to save the resort and show Scooby the true meaning of Christmas."

What Is Pencils Vs Pixels About?

You can read the official description of Pencils Vs Pixels here: "Pencils Vs Pixels is a celebration of the unique magic of 2D hand-drawn animation and an exploration of how the Disney Renaissance of the late 1980s and early 1990s led to an animation boom that was quickly upended by the computer animation revolution that followed. Narrated by Ming-Na Wen, Pencils Vs Pixels features many of the legendary artists who brought these now-classic films to life as they guide us through the last few decades of animation and into the future that's yet to come."

Pencils Vs Pixels is now available to rent on various streaming platforms. Stay tuned for more updates about Warner Bros.' canceled projects.

Blue Beetle star Xolo Maridue?a told us how he found about James Gunn's decision to bring him back for more action in the DC Comics universe. ComicBook.com sat down with the young Cobra Kai star to unpack everything that's happened since Blue Beetle. It feels like Maridue?a might have had an inkling that he was coming back as Jaime Reyes before the rest of us. Still, he had a little fun describing the sensation of reading the social media posts about his return along with the fans. Blue Beetle is one of the confirmed elements from the old DC movies that's making its way over to the new universe that James Gunn and Peter Safran are building with Warner Bros. Discovery. Check out what else he had to say down below!

"Well, that is how it works. You know, once the tweet goes out, then they put that on a piece of paper. James Gunn signs it and then I'm on board," Maridue?a joked. "So, no. I mean, it was like, luckily I had spoken with him prior to that tweet. So, it was... We were in post production. You know, in the offices next to each other. So, it was like, if it was gonna be anything otherwise, I would have found out before."

"But, like in a word... again, validating to know that [Walter] Hamada and the Warner Bros. DC team that brought me on and believed in me," he continued. "In the beginning, it was them who handed it off to Gunn and to Peter [Safran], who also felt the same way? Like, that feels so good. And, where it goes in the future? We'll see."

Blue Beetle Coming Back For James Gunn's DCU

Xolo Maridue?a isn't the only person happy to hear that he'll be back in the Blue Beetle suit for more adventures. ComicBook.com also spoke to his director Angel Manuel Soto about James Gunn's decision to keep Jaime Reyes around for more in this new DCU. It's a decision that a lot of fans cheered as they felt that Blue Beetle really never had a chance to promote itself with the stars out in front of the movie. Still, there will be plenty of time for that in the next go-around.

"It was very reassuring to know that it's not just the character of Blue Beetle, it's Xolo being Blue Beetle," Soto explained in our interview, which you can check out above. "Which means that what we have learned up to this point about his background and his family are part of Jaime Reyes' character. And that is a beautiful thing to see because it's a vote of confidence that what we did, the impact that it did and how it was shown, Whatever they end up doing in the bigger scheme of the DCU, you can always go back to Blue Beetle to know what are the foundations of Jaime Reyes."

What Was Blue Beetle About About?

From Warner Bros. Pictures comes Blue Beetle, which arrived in theaters on August 18th, marking the DC superhero's first time on the big screen. The film, directed by Angel Manuel Soto, stars Xolo Maridue?a in the title role as well as his alter ego, Jaime Reyes. Recent college grad Jaime Reyes returns home full of aspirations for his future, only to find that home is not quite as he left it. As he searches to find his purpose in the world, fate intervenes when Jaime unexpectedly finds himself in possession of an ancient relic of alien biotechnology: the Scarab. When the Scarab suddenly chooses Jaime to be its symbiotic host, he is bestowed with an incredible suit of armor capable of extraordinary and unpredictable powers, forever changing his destiny as he becomes the super hero Blue Beetle.

Starring alongside Maridue?a are Adriana Barraza, Dam?an Alc?zar, Elpidia Carrillo, Bruna Marquezine, Raoul Max Trujillo, with Oscar winner Susan Sarandon, and George Lopez (the "Rio and "Smurf" franchises). The film also stars Belissa Escobedo and Harvey Guill?n. Soto directs from a screenplay by Gareth Dunnet-Alcocer, based on characters from DC. John Rickard and Zev Foreman are producing, with Walter Hamada, Galen Vaisman and Garrett Grant serving as executive producers.

When do you think Blue Beetle will pop-up again? Let us know down in the comments!

Chris Pine is known for an array of films and has appeared in many franchises over the years, including DC and Marvel. The actor played Steve Trevor in Wonder Woman and Wonder Woman 1984, and also voiced Peter Parker in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. Recently, ComicBook.com had the chance to chat with Pine about his upcoming film, Wish. We brought up the recent changes to DC and the fact that Marvel is focusing on multiverse stories and wondered if he would be interested in coming back to either franchise.

"No," Pine simply replied when asked if he'd be interested in making another DC or Marvel film.

Could Gal Gadot Play Wonder Woman Again?

While Pine doesn't want to play Steve Trevor again, many are wondering if Gal Gadot's days of playing Wonder Woman are officially over. During a DC Studios press event, James Gunn was asked if any former stars have been in talks for the franchise's future, to which he confirmed, "Some. We don't know. We've talked to Gal. She's up for doing stuff. We're not sure what we're going to do with that. All I can tell you really right now really is just Henry [Cavill] and Ben [Affleck] are not a part of this universe."

This summer, ComicBook.com interviewed Gadot, and the actor revealed she was helping DC Studios' James Gunn and Peter Safran develop Wonder Woman 3.

"I love portraying Wonder Woman," Gadot said at the time. "It's so close to and dear to my heart. From what I heard from James and from Peter is that we're gonna develop a Wonder Woman 3 together."

Shortly after, Variety published an article titled "Wonder Woman 3 Won't Fly in the New DC Universe, Despite Gal Gadot Teasing Development Plans (EXCLUSIVE)" over a week after the original ComicBook.com story ran. In the Variety article, it is stated that "nothing was ever promised to Gadot regarding Wonder Woman 3."

What Is Wish About?

You can read the official synopsis for Wish here: In Wish, Asha, a sharp-witted idealist, makes a wish so powerful that it is answered by a cosmic force--a little ball of boundless energy called Star. Together, Asha and Star confront a most formidable foe--the ruler of Rosas, King Magnifico--to save her community and prove that when the will of one courageous human connects with the magic of the stars, wondrous things can happen. Featuring the voices of Academy Award(R)-winning actor Ariana DeBose as Asha, Chris Pine as Magnifico, and Alan Tudyk as Asha's favorite goat, Valentino, the film is helmed by Oscar(R)-winning director Chris Buck (Frozen, Frozen 2) and Fawn Veerasunthorn (Raya and the Last Dragon), produced by Peter Del Vecho (Frozen, Frozen 2) and co-produced by Juan Pablo Reyes (Encanto).

Stay tuned for more from our interviews about Wish, which opens only in theaters on November 22nd.

When it comes to Walt Disney Animation Studios, there are many iconic characters, and fans tend to have a soft spot for the villains. In the upcoming film Wish, Chris Pine voices Magnifico, a king who has the magical ability to grant wishes. However, the film's heroine, Asha (Ariana DeBose), learns that Magnifico has been keeping people's wishes with no plans to make them come true. In true Disney villain fashion, Magnifico also gets to sing. ComicBook.com recently got the chance to speak with Pine, and we asked about following in the footsteps of the greats such as Scar and UrsulaUrsala. We also mentioned that Magnifico might just be Disney's hottest villain, and he revealed what he thought when he first saw the character's design.

"I mean, I don't know if I'm up there [with Scar and Ursula], but I certainly gave my best, my best effort. Credit's really due to Ben [Rice] and Julia [Michaels] who wrote incredible music and gave me the shot to try to pull it off. I just had great fun doing it," Pine explained. He added of Magnifico, "I thought the guy had great eyebrows."

You can watch our interview with Pine at the top of the page.

Wish Producers Tease Magnifico:

ComicBook.com recently had the chance to chat with Wish's directors, Chris Buck and Fawn Veerasunthorn, as well as producers Peter Del Vecho and Juan Pablo Reyes Lancaster Jones. During the interviews, they talked about bringing a new Disney villain to life and listening to the fans who were clamoring for a specific kind of bad guy.

"First of all, we are fans ourselves, even though we're working for Disney Animation, we all love it," Del Vecho explained. "And Disney villains have evolved over time and some villains are revealed, but there's something delicious about knowing that someone's the villain from the beginning. What makes this one unique is he's also charming and charismatic and you actually watch him evolve as more pressure is put on him. And I believe you may not like what he does, but you'll understand the 'why' because we can all relate to it, the pressure that he must feel."

"Well, Magnifico was born out of the want to do a villain that hearkens back to some of our older villains, and it's a villain that is the villain from very early on, and that it's a villain that you love to hate," Buck shared. "They come on the screen and you're like, 'Yes, yes. This scene's going to get real now.' So that was our desire. We are big Disney fans ourselves, and we had also heard from many fans about wanting another villain."

Stay tuned for more from our interviews from Wish, which opens only in theaters on November 22nd.

Wish is heading to theaters this month, and it marks the latest film from Walt Disney Animation Studios. The movie was produced and written by Jennifer Lee who is also the Chief Creative Officer at the company. Before taking on the role of CCO, Lee wrote Wreck-It Ralph, created the story of Zootopia, wrote/co-directed both Frozen films, and more. Frozen III was announced by Bob Iger back in February, but it's unclear if Lee will be stepping back into the director role. ComicBook.com recently spoke to Lee about Wish and asked if directing was still on the table for her considering her current role at Disney.

"Well, I definitely know that I want to go back to filmmaking at some point," Lee explained. "I'm getting older, but I'm not old yet. Depends on who you ask. The Frozens were the only two I got to do, and I never really got to do a film from scratch. Wish is the closest thing to that, because Wreck-It Ralph, I was brought; on Frozen, I was brought on; Zootopia, I was brought on. So that is a hunger for me, and at some point, I definitely will go back. Right now, I'm having so much fun with the new generation. I do get to be a part of every film. I do get to be a part of Frozen. It all feels great. But yeah, it's there. I think I'll know the right moment."

"The only thing I can say is Bob has announced there's more Frozen. And I'll say what we are working on, I am very, very, very excited about. That's all I can say," Lee teased when talking to ComicBook.com in another interview back in September.

What Is Wish About?

You can read the official synopsis for Wish below:

In Wish, Asha, a sharp-witted idealist, makes a wish so powerful that it is answered by a cosmic force--a little ball of boundless energy called Star. Together, Asha and Star confront a most formidable foe--the ruler of Rosas, King Magnifico--to save her community and prove that when the will of one courageous human connects with the magic of the stars, wondrous things can happen. Featuring the voices of Academy Award(R)-winning actor Ariana DeBose as Asha, Chris Pine as Magnifico, and Alan Tudyk as Asha's favorite goat, Valentino, the film is helmed by Oscar(R)-winning director Chris Buck (Frozen, Frozen 2) and Fawn Veerasunthorn (Raya and the Last Dragon), produced by Peter Del Vecho (Frozen, Frozen 2) and co-produced by Juan Pablo Reyes (Encanto).

Jennifer Lee (Frozen, Frozen 2) executive produces -- Lee and Allison Moore (Night Sky, Manhunt) are writers on the project. With original songs by Grammy(R)-nominated singer/songwriter Julia Michaels and Grammy-winning producer/songwriter/musician Benjamin Rice, plus a score by composer Dave Metzger.

Stay tuned for more from our interviews from Wish, which opens only in theaters on November 22nd.

Wish is Walt Disney Animation Studios' next project and it follows Asha (Ariana DeBose) as she learns a dark secret about her kingdom's wish-granting ruler, Magnifico (Chris Pine). ComicBook.com recently had the chance to chat with Pine and DeBose, and we asked them to share their go-to Disney karaoke songs. Much to our delight, Pine sang a little bit of "Under the Sea" from The Little Mermaid while Ariana DeBose sang a bit of "Colors of the Wind" from Pocahontas.

"'Under the Sea,'" Pine answered in song. "'Colors of the Wind'," DeBose shared when we asked the same question. "Hands down, 'Colors of the Wind.'"

When we told DeBose that Pine sang a little bit of his favorite, she followed in his footsteps.

"And here I am being like, 'Yes. Power ballad,'" she joked before singing, "'Have you ever heard the wolf cry to the blue corn moon?'"

You can watch the dynamic duo sing in the video at the top of the page.

Wish Producers Tease Magnifico:

ComicBook.com recently had the chance to chat with Wish's directors, Chris Buck and Fawn Veerasunthorn, as well as producers Peter Del Vecho and Juan Pablo Reyes Lancaster Jones. During the interviews, they talked about bringing a new Disney villain to life and listening to the fans who were clamoring for a specific kind of bad guy.

"First of all, we are fans ourselves, even though we're working for Disney Animation, we all love it," Del Vecho explained. "And Disney villains have evolved over time and some villains are revealed, but there's something delicious about knowing that someone's the villain from the beginning. What makes this one unique is he's also charming and charismatic and you actually watch him evolve as more pressure is put on him. And I believe you may not like what he does, but you'll understand the 'why' because we can all relate to it, the pressure that he must feel."

"Well, Magnifico was born out of the want to do a villain that hearkens back to some of our older villains, and it's a villain that is the villain from very early on, and that it's a villain that you love to hate," Buck shared. "They come on the screen and you're like, 'Yes, yes. This scene's going to get real now.' So that was our desire. We are big Disney fans ourselves, and we had also heard from many fans about wanting another villain."

What Is Wish About?

You can read the official synopsis for Wish here: In Wish, Asha, a sharp-witted idealist, makes a wish so powerful that it is answered by a cosmic force--a little ball of boundless energy called Star. Together, Asha and Star confront a most formidable foe--the ruler of Rosas, King Magnifico--to save her community and prove that when the will of one courageous human connects with the magic of the stars, wondrous things can happen. Featuring the voices of Academy Award(R)-winning actor Ariana DeBose as Asha, Chris Pine as Magnifico, and Alan Tudyk as Asha's favorite goat, Valentino, the film is helmed by Oscar(R)-winning director Chris Buck (Frozen, Frozen 2) and Fawn Veerasunthorn (Raya and the Last Dragon), produced by Peter Del Vecho (Frozen, Frozen 2) and co-produced by Juan Pablo Reyes (Encanto).

Jennifer Lee (Frozen, Frozen 2) executive produces -- Lee and Allison Moore (Night Sky, Manhunt) are writers on the project. With original songs by Grammy(R)-nominated singer/songwriter Julia Michaels and Grammy-winning producer/songwriter/musician Benjamin Rice, plus a score by composer Dave Metzger.

Stay tuned for more from our interviews with the producers and directors of Wish, which opens only in theaters on November 22nd.

Kraven the Hunter is heading to theaters next year, and it's the latest Marvel movie from Sony that follows a Spider-Man villain from the comics. The film was helmed by J.C. Chandor (Triple Frontier), and it's set to star Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Avengers: Age of Ultron) as Kraven and Ariana DeBose (West Side Story) as Calypso. This week, ComicBook.com had the chance to chat with DeBose about Wish, and she teased to "expect the unexpected" when it comes to Kraven the Hunter. We also asked the star which of the Spider-Man actors she would most want to fight out of Tobey Maguire, Andrew Garfield, and Tom Holland...

"I'd probably say Andrew because that would be fun. And he's a pal, so he'd probably like ... I would genuinely kick his butt, but he might just do me solid and let me kick his butt. I don't know. You'd have to ask him that question," DeBose shared. He might be like, 'Absolutely not.' Or, 'What?' Who knows?"

You can watch our interview with DeBose at the top of the page.

What Is Kraven the Hunter About?

You can read the official description for Kraven the Hunter here: "Kraven the Hunter is the visceral story about how and why one of Marvel's most iconic villains came to be. Set before his notorious vendetta with Spider-Man, Aaron Taylor-Johnson stars as the titular character in the R-rated film."

Kraven the Hunter is the fourth film in Sony's Spider-Man Universe, which exists separate from Disney's Marvel Cinematic Universe, home to Tom Holland's Spider-Man. Sony has weaved its own web of Spidey spin-offs that include Venom (2018), Venom: Let There Be Carnage (2021), and Morbius (2022) with Madame Web coming next year.

"He is a hunter and from that world of hunting and there's so many aspects [to him]. What I love about that character is that he has flaws," Taylor-Johnson previously told ComicBook. "Kraven is a beautiful character. Sergei Kravinov is a beautiful character because it's someone who's really understanding themselves and has flaws. This is a character that was built ages ago and it's in a new time and era, but yeah, is he going to be the hunter that we all want to see? Yeah, absolutely. Absolutely."

You can hear Ariana DeBose in Wish in theaters on November 22nd. Sony's Kraven the Hunter is slated to open in theaters on August 30, 2024.

Today saw the release of the first trailer for Madame Web, but that's not the only Marvel movie Sony has in the works. Kraven the Hunter is heading to theaters next August, and it will see Aaron Taylor-Johnson taking on the role of the titular Marvel character. The movie was helmed by J.C. Chandor (Triple Frontier) and also stars Ariana DeBose (West Side Story) as Calypso. This week, ComicBook.com had the chance to chat with DeBose about Wish, the upcoming animated film that sees her voicing Asha, the lead character. During the interview, we brought up Kraven and asked if fans can expect a Calypso that's similar the the comics version.

"I think you should expect the unexpected," DeBose teased.

You can watch our interview with DeBose at the top of the page.

What Is Kraven the Hunter About?

You can read the official description for Kraven the Hunter here: "Kraven the Hunter is the visceral story about how and why one of Marvel's most iconic villains came to be. Set before his notorious vendetta with Spider-Man, Aaron Taylor-Johnson stars as the titular character in the R-rated film."

Kraven the Hunter is the fourth film in Sony's Spider-Man Universe, which exists separate from Disney's Marvel Cinematic Universe, home to Tom Holland's Spider-Man. Sony has weaved its own web of Spidey spin-offs that include Venom (2018), Venom: Let There Be Carnage (2021), and Morbius (2022) with Madame Web coming next year.

"He is a hunter and from that world of hunting and there's so many aspects [to him]. What I love about that character is that he has flaws," Taylor-Johnson previously told ComicBook. "Kraven is a beautiful character. Sergei Kravinov is a beautiful character because it's someone who's really understanding themselves and has flaws. This is a character that was built ages ago and it's in a new time and era, but yeah, is he going to be the hunter that we all want to see? Yeah, absolutely. Absolutely."

Sony's Kraven the Hunter is slated to open in theaters on August 30, 2024.

What Is Wish About?

You can read the official synopsis for Wish here: In Wish, Asha, a sharp-witted idealist, makes a wish so powerful that it is answered by a cosmic force--a little ball of boundless energy called Star. Together, Asha and Star confront a most formidable foe--the ruler of Rosas, King Magnifico--to save her community and prove that when the will of one courageous human connects with the magic of the stars, wondrous things can happen.

Featuring the voices of Academy Award(R)-winning actor Ariana DeBose as Asha, Chris Pine as Magnifico, and Alan Tudyk as Asha's favorite goat, Valentino, the film is helmed by Oscar(R)-winning director Chris Buck (Frozen, Frozen 2) and Fawn Veerasunthorn (Raya and the Last Dragon), produced by Peter Del Vecho (Frozen, Frozen 2) and co-produced by Juan Pablo Reyes (Encanto).

Jennifer Lee (Frozen, Frozen 2) executive produces -- Lee and Allison Moore (Night Sky, Manhunt) are writers on the project. With original songs by Grammy(R)-nominated singer/songwriter Julia Michaels and Grammy-winning producer/songwriter/musician Benjamin Rice, plus a score by composer Dave Metzger.

Wish opens only in theaters on November 22nd.

Swerve Strickland has cemented himself as a top dog within AEW. The former NXT North American Champion joined the young company just last year, signing his contract at AEW Revolution in March 2022. Like many new AEW signings, Swerve teetered on getting lost in the shuffle in his first couple of weeks in the land of All Elite, but a tag partnership with Keith Lee squashed all of those fears. Those two went on to win the AEW World Tag Team Championships and reigned with the gold throughout Summer 2022 before losing the gold to The Acclaimed that September. From there, Swerve's tag team with the Limitless One was on borrowed time, and by year's end he had turned on him, cementing himself as a singles heel.

That initial turn saw Swerve form Mogul Affiliates, a faction that included rapper Rick Ross as the mouthpiece. In the weeks that followed, Mogul Affiliates underwent a facelift, merging with Ring of Honor's The Embassy to become the Mogul Embassy.

Swerve Strickland Teases Rick Ross's AEW Return

While he has yet to mingle with the new-look Mogul Embassy, The Boss is always an arm's length away.

Speaking to ComicBook.com, Swerve Strickland teased that Rick Ross could be back in AEW at any point.

"You stay tuned. He could pop up anywhere," Swerve said. "This man just dropped a huge single with Meek Mill. He's busy working, but he'll always have time for AEW and especially myself. He can drop in at any moment."

The Mogul Embassy currently consists of Swerve leading the charge, Prince Nana serving as the manager, and the unit of Brian Cage and the Gates of Agony holding down the fort in Ring of Honor where they reign as ROH Six-Man Tag Team Champions. Since merging earlier this year, the Mogul Embassy has not added any new members, but that's not to say there aren't prospects out there.

Swerve's former stablemate in WWE, "Top Dolla" AJ Francis, was released this past September. When asked if there's an opportunity for a reunion within AEW, Swerve noted that the Mogul Embassy's focus is on building up its current members rather than adding new ones.

"Good luck on anything he's trying to do, man. He needs to do his own thing and become his own man," Swerve said. "I don't know about room [within the Mogul Embassy]. I'm still working on growing us, getting the individuals acquainted with the audience. Those guys still have a lot more to grow, and I'm happy with what we have. We're going to grow with those guys."

Swerve Strickland takes on "Hangman" Adam Page this Saturday, November 18th at AEW Full Gear in a Texas Death Match.

Slayers: A Buffyverse Story brought back fan-favorite Buffy the Vampire Slayer characters for a new adventure, and the cast is ready for more. During the BoxLunch Holiday Gala to benefit Feeding America, ComicBook.com had the opportunity to catch up with Emma Caulfield, who reprised her Buffy the Vampire Slayer role as Anya Jenkins in Slayers: A Buffyverse Story. Slayers offers a second chance to characters like Anya, Tara (Amber Benson), and Cordelia Chase (Charisma Carpenter), three women who met tragic demises in Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel. "What do you mean? They were treated so well," Caulfield says sarcastically of the characters' treatment in television series. Caulfield then says sincerely that she and her co-stars are eager for more, even getting a little ahead of themselves while recording the first Slayers installment.

"We're all for it. It's not up to us. Everybody wants to, oh yeah," Caulfield says. "We were clamoring for it while we were still doing the first one. And I've said this before: I really feel like any of the Anyas need to have secret journals that have, like, Taylor Swift poems and lyrics and need to sing about it. It's about the only thing I didn't do this time around. I'm like, 'I need to bust some.'"

Caulfield also confirmed that Benson, who co-wrote Slayers: A Buffyverse Story with veteran Buffy novelist Christopher Golden, already has thoughts on a sequel. Benson has even already shared some with the cast.

"Oh yeah, lots of them," Caulfield says. And while she doesn't know if a second Slayers season will happen or if the ideas Benson shared will make it in, she does say that the cast "all seem to be vibing on the same wavelength."

What is Slayers: A Buffyverse Story?

Written and directed by Amber Benson and Chris Golden and co-directed by Kc Wayland, Slayers: A Buffyverse Story is an Audible Original that spins out of the original Buffy the Vampire Slayer series, sending beloved Buffy characters on a new and different adventure. Here's Audible's official description of Slayers:

"A decade has passed since the epic final battle that concluded Buffy the Vampire Slayer (TV). The game-changing spell that gave power to all potential Slayers persists. With new Slayers constantly emerging, things are looking grim for the bad guys. Rebellious vampire Spike (James Marsters) is working undercover in Los Angeles with his old pal Clem (James Charles Leary) when he meets feisty, rookie Slayer, Indira (Laya DeLeon Hayes), who wants Spike to be her mentor. Stakes intensify as Cordelia Chase (Charisma Carpenter) emerges from an alternate reality where she alone is the Slayer, and Buffy Summers doesn't exist. Cordelia enlists Spike's help with a classic big bad terrorizing her world...his ex, Drusilla (Juliet Landau). Giles (Anthony Head), Anya (Emma Caulfield Ford), Jonathan (Danny Strong), and Tara (Amber Benson) also return, but through the years and the vastness of the multiverse, not everyone is who they used to be..."

Caulfield spoke to ComicBook.com previously ahead of Slayers: A Buffyverse Story's release. She described how much she enjoyed the Buffy the Vampire Slayer reunion.

"It was the most fun I've had on a job in years," Caulfield said. "It's one of my top, top, top, top favorite projects I've ever done. Loved it. And I never thought I would revisit that show in a million years. Never. But then knock, knock, and it's Amber, and I was like, 'Hmm, what are you doing? What's up? What is this?' And that was enough for me."

Slayers: A Buffyverse Story is available now on Audible. Buffy the Vampire Slayer is currently streaming on Hulu.

Tom Hiddleston has been around the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Loki for over ten years. In that time he's crossed paths with Thor naturally but countless others including Iron Man, The Hulk, Captain America, Hawkeye, Nick Fury, Doctor Strange, Thanos, and even different versions of himself. Despite multiple appearances and over a decade of time in the MCU there are still plenty of heavy hitters that he didn't meet along the way. Speaking with ComicBook.com in an exclusive interview about Loki season 2, we asked the Marvel star which of his MCU collaborators he would liked to have met on screen, and who he might want to see again.

"There are a couple of characters I think... I don't think Loki ever met the Guardians, if I recall," Hiddleston said. "That could have been fun, I think. I think he would've found 'em intriguing. I think it's interesting that Loki never comes up, never comes face-to-face with Spider-Man, I think that's correct. I think he never meets the Winter Soldier, never meets Bucky or Sam. I always wanted to see... Loki and Strange is an interesting matchup, I think. In Ragnarok, I think Strange, that is one-nil to Doctor Strange based on that particular interaction."

Will he even get that chance though? After the Loki season 2 finale, wherein his character is now at the entire center of the multiverse and seated amid the World Tree. It surely seems like Hiddleston's Loki is off the table in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, perhaps until something like Avengers: Secret Wars, but Hiddleston isn't betting against more appearances by the trickster god.

"It's so hard because like, I'll be completely honest with you. I have at least twice in my life, said goodbye (to Loki)," Hiddleston added with a laugh. "And as you know, I've like written to Kevin Feige and Louis D'Esposito and Victoria Alonso, 'Thank you so much. It's been like the role of a lifetime' and they've written notes back saying 'Come and see us any time you're always part of the family, we're always here. You know, you've given us so much.' Tears have been shed. So I, I think I'd be unwise at this point. To be conclusive about any of it. We'll see, time will tell, I guess. An open heart and open mind."

Marvel's Loki gets a New Name

Despite being Loki, god of mischief, for most of his time in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, he has a new name and a new title now, God Loki. At the end of the episode Loki has collected every timeline in the multiverse together, weaving them into his cape and holding them in his hands at the very center of all time, holding everything together, essentially saving the entire multiverse. Confirmed by Marvel after the episode aired, Loki is now God Loki, despite Marvel comics readers thinking it might be the MCU version of Loki, God of Stories (though they are still very similar).

Marvel Studios fan-favorite Tom Hiddleston stars in Loki Season 2, returning as the titular God of Mischief for another round of time-traveling hijinx on Disney+. Loki is once again joined by Mobius (Owen Wilson) as the two attempt to keep the timelines intact. After the events of Season 1 saw his variant Sylvie (Sophia Di Martino) kill He Who Remains and unleash the wrath of Kang the Conqueror upon the Multiverse, Loki must once again embark on an adventure to keep reality from collapsing. Loki was last seen in the post-credits scene of Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, where he and Mobius were keeping tabs on one of Kang's mysterious variants. Loki Season 2 will continue the story of the Multiverse Saga in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Loki star Tom Hiddleston teased a "hilarious" interaction between Loki and Deadpool. ComicBook.com's Phase Zero podcast spoke to the God of Stories about the most recent season of Loki. During that chat, we asked about a possible meeting between Deadpool and Hiddleston's character. The MCU actor would think a lot about the possibilities, but could only promise that it would have the audience laughing. Both Loki and The Merc With A Mouth have an affinity for wordplay. With Deadpool 3 on the horizon and the multiverse completely thrown open, any combination of characters can share the screen at any time. So, the opportunity is there if Marvel Studios sees an opportunity to bring these two silver-tongued heroes into contact with one another.

"It would be hilarious," Hiddleston smiled. "Yeah. I'm very curious to see what Deadpool would say about Loki. I think he'd be withering. Although Loki famously has a silver tongue, so I think he'd give as good as he gets."

Will Hiddleston Appear In Deadpool 3?

Jimmy Fallon also asked Hiddleston about appearing in Deadpool 3 this week. The Marvel star was the first actor to show-up on The Tonight Show after the SAG-AFTRA strike ended. It feels like the people want to see Loki turn up alongside Ryan Reynolds. But, it remains to be seen if Deadpool 3 will really involve Hiddleston at all.

"I mean, I know they're making Deadpool 3," Hiddleston carefully said. "It's a very good question. I'm thinking of all the answers I could give it. I know that Ryan Reynolds he like, owns a football team in the UK. A soccer team."

Right after this, Fallon would ask Hiddleston if Loki's time-slipping abilities might pave the road to bring back some retired superheroes. "Time-slipping, technically, gives Loki some interesting moves he could make," Hiddleston mused. "I suppose. Yeah. He can move from past, present, future. I know that I can time-slip. I don't know that other characters can time-slip. Speaking for myself, Loki's died a few times and come back. I'm still here. So I don't know that death is necessarily up for grabs. It's an existential question."

Will Deadpool 3 Feature The TVA?

Fans have speculated that Loki or at least the TVA could make an appearance in 2024's only Marvel Studios movie to release. ComicBook.com spoke to Loki producer Eric Wright about the Time Variance Authority's possibility to show up in future MCU projects. While the executive couldn't give a definitive answer on that, he did express some hope that other Marvel series and movies would make use of the world they've crafted with Loki Seasons 1 and 2. It sounds like things may be centering around the Disney+ show going forward.

"I think everything we are doing here certainly lays the groundwork for fertile storytelling elsewhere," Wright told us. "I can say from everyone on the Loki team, we are hopeful and excited about the possibility of the TVA being able to--- to continue to tell stories at the TVA. I always kind of think of them as our time-based multiverse version of SHIELD that it's like we can use them in so many places and tell so many cool stories."

Do you think Loki and Deadpool will ever meet? Let us know down in the comments!

The Conjuring universe has established itself as a titan in the horror genre. First coming onto the scene over one decade ago, The Conjuring told a tale from the real-life Ed and Lorraine Warren's paranormal investigation careers. While it began as a standalone, The Conjuring planted plenty of seeds in its initial installment to birth sequels and spin-offs. The Conjuring itself would go on to get a complete trilogy while both Annabelle and The Nun received spin-off spotlight. Both Annabelle and The Nun were successful enough on their own to turn into franchises themselves.

The Nun II is Michael Chaves's "Best Film Yet"

The vast world of The Conjuring continued this past September with The Nun II, a sequel to its 2018 predecessor. Helming this project was Michael Chaves (The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It) in just his third feature film outing.

"I think it's easily the best film I've made yet," Chaves said of The Nun II. "I think that you're always trying to get better. You're always trying to just push things and stretch different muscles. It was amazing shooting this in France. Just shooting in another country I think that added a whole other level to the film, just like the look and the texture.

"It's funny. Before I did (movies), I shot all these commercials and I was so cocky. I was like, 'I can do a movie. It's like a whole bunch of commercials altogether!'" Chaves continued. "Then I do La Llorona and like it's so much harder than you imagine. Then after that I'm like, 'Okay, I can do Conjuring 3. I did one movie. This is going to be easy.' Then you just learn all these new lessons. It's just always a process. You think all the lessons would just immediately apply to the next movie, but there's always new challenges. I think that that's kind of what's exciting and scary about it."

Those new challenges were exemplified in The Nun II's tagline: "The greatest evil in The Conjuring universe."

"That was all on [The Demon Nun actress] Bonnie (Aarons). I was like, 'Bonnie, this is on you. I don't know what to do with that tagline,'" Chaves said. "Honestly, I think we had a great script to start out with. I think that think people love the character. I think they love the character that [The Conjuring director and franchise producer] James (Wam) created and Bonnie has really just run with. She's iconic. I think that that's something that just really resonated with people. I just try to come up with the scariest moments and ideas possible to try and put these characters through the ringer."

The Nun II is available on home media this Tuesday, November 14th.

The Gunns are in the midst of a career year. The sons of WWE Hall of Famer Billy Gunn have only been teaming on a professional level for just over three years, as Colten Gunn didn't begin wrestling until late 2020 (via CageMatch.net), but they already have multiple AEW Dynamite main events and an AEW World Tag Team Championship reign to their names. Somehow, The Gunns' momentum increased after they lost those championships thanks to a newfound alliance with Jay White and Juice Robinson in Bullet Club Gold. That said, their most memorable moment as a tag team came on the night that their title reign concluded.

The Gunns Reflect on "Many Men" AEW Dynamite Entrance

Many men wish death upon them.

The April 5th edition of AEW Dynamite was headlined by FTR dethroning The Gunns to become AEW World Tag Team Champions. While Austin and Colten did not leave with the win, they entered the UBS Arena with a major victory, walking to the ring to "Many Men" by 50 Cent.

"I can't even put into words how that felt," Colten told ComicBook.com when asked about his and his brother's emotions as the crowd was hearing the instrumental beginning to crescendo. "Because we obviously knew it was coming and we were the tag champs. Coming out to that song and just, I don't even know how to describe it, but once it hit and we just had that swagger to come to the ring. That song made us feel it, and I think you could see that through the screen that we were in the zone. We were ready to fight them for real. It was awesome."

"We've been doing this for such a short amount of time and proving ourselves over and over and over, and still getting hate online," Austin added. "Still people flicking us off and hating us for just being good at what we do. Sorry, we didn't watch wrestling growing up. We're just good at what we do. So that hate building up into that match, that song encapsulated that moment. We knew when the lights went down and it started going that piano riff, everybody in the building could go, 'Come on. Absolutely not. They're not doing this, right?' When the lights came on, everybody was still flicking us off, but singing the song. I think that was kind of the turning moment of it doesn't matter how much hate we get, we're still going to show up and show out."

In the subsequent weeks, Austin and Colten campaigned to make "Many Men" their permanent entrance music going forward. AEW has a number of licensed tracks used regularly, like "Jane" by Jefferson Starship for Orange Cassidy and "Wild Thing" by X for Jon Moxley, but "Many Men" is in the "The Final Countdown" category of being a one-off track.

"The update to get that full-time is you're going to have to talk to Tony Khan," Austin noted. "I tried to get a campaign going on Twitter and it went viral. If that didn't get his attention, I don't know what will. But I mean when The Gunns do something cool, we just have to do something cooler."

As for what that "something cooler" is, Austin teased that they have a surprise planned for their match at AEW Full Gear: Zero Hour.

"I'm not going to put any spoilers out there, I don't want to put words in anybody's mouths or promise anything, but we're about 90 percent there for something way cooler," Austin teased. "We are 90 percent sure that it will be way cooler than Many Men."

Austin and Colten Gunn challenge MJF and a mystery partner for the Ring of Honor Tag Team Championships this Saturday, November 18th at AEW Full Gear on the Zero Hour pre-show.

The road to Avengers: Secret Wars has made significant progress in 2023. Back at San Diego Comic-Con in Summer 2022, Marvel President Kevin Feige officially dubbed the ongoing slate of Marvel Cinematic Universe projects to be The Multiverse Saga, a three-phase arc that would culminate with the aforementioned Secret Wars movie. While most of Phase 4 was reactionary to the fallout of The Infinity Saga, Phase 5 projects like Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, The Marvels, and most recently Loki Season 2 gave fans a clearer picture of where this is all heading. While Feige still oversees production on all Marvel Studios projects, this current build to the next Earth's Mightiest Heroes crossover event has been helmed by multiple different filmmakers.

While The Infinity Saga also had dozens of different creatives on its films, one directing duo was responsible for the saga's three most crucial motion-pictures: the Russo Brothers. Joe and Anthony Russo made their MCU debuts by helming Captain America: The Winter Soldier and went on to be the masterminds behind Captain America: Civil War, Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame.

Seeing the results that that consistency has produced, some fans have called upon Loki Season 2 directors Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead, who also directed Moon Knight and have Daredevil: Born Again next on their Marvel schedule, to carry their momentum into Avengers: Secret Wars.

Loki Season 2's Directors Are Open to Avengers: Secret Wars

Will Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead bring glorious purpose to Battleworld?

Speaking to ComicBook.com's Brandon Davis, Loki Season 2's directors both expressed openness to taking on Avengers: Secret Wars if they got the call.

"You know what's funny is we come from independent feature films, so we come from movies," Moorhead said. "I mean there's absolutely no telling what our future holds."

"Right now we sort of have a day-to-day. We run this company that where we mostly are, I guess we would describe ourselves as filmmakers, but more specifically we're like writer, director, actor, editors, and it's kind of a different life than this one," Benson said of Rustic Films, the directing duo's production company that has produced multiple festival darlings. "But that said, there's always this life and that life going simultaneously. We never know what the future holds. We just try to keep up."

"Yeah and they both feed each other really well too," Moorhead added. "We like to make sure they both stay alive."

While Loki Season 2 represented the tenth time that leading man Tom Hiddleston has portrayed the titular role, this project was just the sophomore Marvel season for Benson, Moorhead, and multiple other creatives including executive producer Kevin Wright. Wright was an associate producer on Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018) before taking on this time crime drama in an EP capacity.

When asked if he'd be up for making the leap to Avengers: Secret Wars, Wright coyly teased that those roles are already filled.

"Well, I think those seats are taken, but look, if somebody came to me, I would love to," Wright said.

As of this writing, Marvel has not announced who will be directing Avengers: Secret Wars. The film's predecessor, Avengers: The Kang Dynasty, will be helmed by Destin Daniel Cretton (Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings).

Loki Season 2 is now streaming in full on Disney+.

Mickey Mouse is the face of Disney, and the animated icon has been voiced by various actors over the years. Bret Iwan is coming up on his 15th anniversary of playing Disney's mascot, and he recently spoke to ComicBook.com about the newly-announced Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 2.0. The original series ran from 2006 to 2016, and the revival will see the return of Mickey and lots of his friends. In fact, ComicBook.com recently caught up with Iwan at the BoxLunch Holiday Gala, and he teased some "little cameos" and also spoke about voicing Mickey during Disney's 100th anniversary.

"Oh my gosh. Well, you know what? I wasn't sure what to expect," Iwan said of the Clubhouse revival. "We all know about 'House' and I was like, 'Okay, well what's this going to feel like? I have to say going to the first recording session for Clubhouse 2.0 was like meeting an old friend again. It was really exciting and really heartwarming. It was like we got the gang back together in a formula that we all know and love, and I'm not sure I knew how much I truly appreciated it."

Iwan continued, "So getting to do that was really great. The stories, it's the same kind of story we've grown to love from the earlier Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. Just a little bit more adventurous I'd say, and instead of the 'Mystery Mousekatool' we have a 'Mystery Mousekapal.' You get a surprise guest every once in a while. Little cameos. In addition to the universe. So yeah, we're having a lot of fun with it. Production is in full swing. We're just recording as often as we can right now."

Bret Iwan on Voicing Mickey Mouse During Disney's 100th Year:

"It's hard to explain what being Mickey feels like," Iwan admitted. "I always say I'm a small part of Mickey. Obviously, there's so many people behind the scenes, writers, directors, artists. I'm honored to be one of the guys that gets to say, I voiced Mickey and I just happened to be doing it during the hundredth, which is such a great milestone. I'm going to be celebrating 15 years doing it this next year. It's just hard to believe. So I guess... I think a hundred years of Disney, I can't wait to see what the next hundred years are and I can't wait to see what part I get to play in it."

Stay tuned for more updates about Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 2.0.

In 2023, BoxLunch celebrated a milestone of 175 million meals donated to Feeding America. The BoxLunch Holiday Gala took place in Los Angeles this week and saw BoxLunch Ambassador Simu Liu (Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings) passing the torch to the new ambassador, David Harbour (Stranger Things). During the event, Harbour and more famous faces took the stage and shared donations for the cause. ComicBook.com was also in attendance and had the chance to chat with some of the stars about the gala and Feeding America.

"In America, it's just clear people like to say 'food and security,' but I think it's much more clear when you say 'people are hungry' and they are, from children to adults," Anika Noni Rose (Tiana) shared with ComicBook.com. "Most recently and most close to home, Feeding America fed actors and writers during the strike who could not afford groceries. Nobody thinks that when they talk about the actors' strike, that actors are actually somewhere worried about food. But people were, and it was an amazing thing for people to know that they could go somewhere. It's a beautiful thing to feed people. It's one of my favorite things to do. It's a great way to express love, to feed someone."

"This happens every year. We have a great time. People come out to help, and to be able to give back to the less fortunate, it's always a great time," Khleo Thomas (Holes) explained of the event.

"Honestly, I've become informed about food scarcity in America and how significant it is," Erin Moriarty (The Boys) explained. "I've become so much more informed about the details of it, for example, the statistics behind it and how many people, adults versus children in America have and are experiencing food scarcity related issues and how that impacts their health later on and all these things that are so significant. And how disturbing, if I'm being honest. I do stand by the fact that sunlight is a really good disinfectant and I've just never been one to sit back ... It's really lovely to be amongst people who are here for such selfless [reasons] because that is something that doesn't always happen.."

"BoxLunch captured the deep generosity of spirit that beats in the heart of the holiday season with their 'art of giving' campaign," Harbour previously shared in a statement. "I'm proud to be a part of it and support the amazing work done by both BoxLunch and Feeding America."

You can learn more about BoxLunch and Feeding America here. Stay tuned for more interviews from ComicBook.com's time at the BoxLunch Holiday Gala.

Before the son of Poseidon gets a new lease on live-action life in December, Percy Jackson continued his novelized adventures this past September in Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Chalice of the Gods. This sixth installment in the original Percy Jackson franchise represents the first time that author Rick Riordan is writing from Percy's first-person perspective since 2009, and it's safe to say that a lot has changed since then. For Percy alone, he had his River Styx-induced invulnerability washed away, his mind erased and put back together again, an introduction to Camp Jupiter, a brief civil war with the Roman demigods, and a full-blown war with Mother Earth herself.

Warning - The rest of this article contains spoilers from Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Chalice of the Gods.

That's not to mention the chaos that went down in The Trials of Apollo, which Percy found himself entangled in on a couple of occasions. While Percy only made cameo appearances in those books, that pentalogy involved a number of franchise-altering events for the greater PJO universe, the biggest being the death of Jason Grace.

Rick Riordan Details Jason Grace Tribute in Percy Jackson 6

The son of Zeus's spirit was felt in Percy Jackson's latest adventure.

During his culminating battle with Old Age himself, Percy taps into a memory he had with Jason Grace to help him defeat the seemingly unbeatable entity. Percy recalled Jason sharing a dream he had about a future that never ending up coming to fruition, once which he grew old with his girlfriend and had a full family. That vision "made him feel like there was a way forward" when he needed it in a moment of crisis.

While Jason is canonically alive at the time of The Chalice of the Gods, he doesn't make a physical appearance, but author Rick Riordan hopes that this memory serves as a moment of closure for the late demigod.

"I hope so. I think so," Riordan told ComicBook.com. "Loss is part of life. It's a terrible part of life, but it is something that we all go through. The loss of an important family member, an important character in the book is a way to make the stakes resonate that we really are playing for keeps here. As the old saying goes, none of us gets out of life alive. We're all only here for a certain amount of time, and how we live is more important often than the amount of time that we have, because we don't know how much time we have. We have to treat the time that we do have as important and to step up to whatever life throws at us and try to act like heroes."

Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Chalice of the Gods is available in bookstores now.

Apple TV+ is heading to the red planet. Debuting in 2019, For All Mankind takes world history in an alternate direction, one which sees the Soviet Union beating the United States to the moon in the space race of the 1960s. While it is said that throwing a rock in a rushing river will always lead to a course correction, this simple wrinkle in the past leads For All Mankind's current to slowly pivot human history in a new direction. With each season leaping forward one decade, every new For All Mankind batch includes a significant shift forward in space travel technology. Now entering Season 4, For All Mankind is prepared to land on Mars.

For All Mankind's Mars Mission

Speaking to ComicBook.com at New York Comic Con, For All Mankind creator Ronald D. Moore revealed that while the series started out as moon-based, Mars has always been the destination.

"Oh, right from the beginning," Moore said when asked at what point he knew he wanted to take For All Mankind to the red planet. "We laid out a general seven year plan for the show, and we just kind of laid out the jumps that were going to be basically a decade by decade. Mars was quickly right on target. We're still basically on track to the overall sort of structure that we laid out back in the beginning."

Unlike other space-based Hollywood projects, For All Mankind puts its strongest emphasis on the "science" half of science-fiction.

"I wanted to have a show that not only told the audience what could have been, but what could actually still be," Moore said. "I wanted the things that happened in this show to be plausible and real enough so that the audience could be inspired by it and go, 'Wow, we really should have a base on the moon. We really should go to Mars. We really should mine the asteroid belt. We should develop much greater space technology.' Expanding the benefits to people on Earth are real."

Those aforementioned decade jumps continue in Season 4, which is the closest to the present day that For All Mankind has ever been. Even though this latest season roots itself in 2003, For All Mankind is operating with a level of technology that is essentially more advanced than what NASA has in the real world's present day. With that in mind, questions are rising about what other planets For All Mankind could venture to next.

"There's plenty of other planets and I think some of them are within reach in terms of, again, believability and what could be plausible sort of within the timeframe of the show," Moore teased. "We have our eye on some other planets as well."

For All Mankind Season 4 premieres on Apple TV+ on Friday, November 10th.

Star Trek: Picard has run its course with the show's third and final season streaming on Paramount+ earlier this year. While the Star Trek: Picard - Season Three Blu-ray has been available for a while, Star Trek: Picard The Legacy Collection, which is on sale now after a short delay, offers Star Trek fans the opportunity to own Jean-Luc Picard's entire Star Trek story in one high-end set that collection every episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Picard, as well as the four Star Trek films featuring the TNG cast, plus bonus collectibles like a magnetic set of Picard's badges, Chateau Picard drink coasters, The Wisdom of Picard book, and more.

Production designer David Blass played a large role in crafting Jean-Luc Picard's final chapter. Working on Star Trek: Picard Seasons 2 and 3, Blass led the design team that created the look of the new U.S.S. Stargazer and U.S.S. Titan-A, the planet M'Talas Prime, the fearsome Shrike, and more. To coincide with the release of Star Trek: Picard The Legacy Collection, ComicBook.com had the opportunity to talk to Blass about his work modernizing the aesthetic of TNG-era Star Trek and what might remain on his Star Trek project wishlist. Here's what he shared with us:

I know you were a Star Trek fan before working on the show, and that you had hoped to get the opportunity to work on the franchise. How did this experience working on Star Trek compare to what you thought it might be like when you were coming up in the industry?

David Blass: Way more painful, and I think Terry Matalas, the showrunner, would agree with me. You have this idea that you're going to achieve this goal, and it's going to be so much fun because you're finally doing what you set out to do and whatever. And I remember going up to him, he's shooting on the bridge of the Enterprise-D with the cast and everything, and our heads are exploding because you're in the moment and you're like, "There's nothing worse than achieving your lifetime goal of doing something and then failing miserably at it."

It's like, all of a sudden, the pressure of the world, we're like, "Oh, okay, great, create a brand-new starship, make it look cool." And so, again, you're like, "But what if it sucks? What if everyone hates it?" It's saying, "What if?" and then getting into it, and then realizing the pressure to do it and to deal with everything that the other designers throughout history had done with it. It's like, "Oh, you want to do a planet? You have no money. You want to do this great ship? We have no money." And then you see that the reasons for the decisions that they made for certain things were because "We have no time. We have no money. This is what you got. Deal with it, dude."

You got to do a lot of exciting stuff on Star Trek: Picard. Is there anything left on Star Trek wishlist that you didn't get to do that you'd still like a shot at?

I wanted to do more. I wanted to do the engine room on the ship, something like that, or I think I would have loved to do more Klingons and to have Michael Dorn there in full regalia as Worf. But I'm a huge fan of the Star Trek novel The Final Reflection, which is all Klingon-based, and I would have loved to design a Klingon vessel and to design one that is iconic, whether it's a Bird-of-Prey or a classic D7 cruiser or something like that. I would have loved to have done that.

But again, in a perfect world, you look back at The Next Generation, and they had seven seasons of 20-something episodes. I had two seasons of 10 episodes. It's not even one full season of what they had to do and the room that they had to play with and everything. And also, Season 2 was so different from Season 1, and Season 2 is so different from Season 3. It wasn't one of these things that get carried over from one thing or another.

A big part of these seasons of Picard was modernizing the look, starting with that Next Gen aesthetic and modernizing it. What did it mean for you to modernize that? Was there storytelling going on in your head about how that culture has changed? Or was it just starting with what the show needed and somebody else can fill in the blanks? What was that process like?

We started with the modernizing it. That's a tough word to play with because you run into the idea of modernizing it, to upgrade it to what we could do today. So things like, we have the transparent OLED screens because they look like holograms, but they're actually a real functioning piece of glass that has graphics on it. You're like, "How cool is that, and to use that technology?" So, for me, that's kind of modernizing the set.

But what I didn't want to do was to make it look like a different version of just, "Hey, I'm going to redo Star Trek and make it look like whatever I think will be new and cool for our modern audience." So, specifically for Season 3, we looked at Voyager, which was Voyager, and kind of the Enterprise-E, and we said, "Okay, this is kind of our guide of what Star Trek looks like, and we want to just evolve it a little bit." It's like, "What does an elevator look like today? What did it look like 20 years ago?" Same thing. That's why turbolift should look the way turbolift should look like.

We actually included, in the hallways, the big octagon door. "Why does that door look the way it does?" Because in the Star Trek future, it made sense. A door is still a door. A door 20 years ago looks like a door today. That's what a door looks like. We went with that idea of trying to evolve it. We studied those sets and just said, "We're not here to put our stamp on things. We're here to make it look like Star Trek: The Next Generation."

Something I saw in one of the featurettes was you talking about "space crate," that ubiquitous background material. That's one of those things that never occurred to me but now that you've pointed it out, it's like a bell going off in my mind. Were there any other cool little details that you feel like only a production designer or somebody truly obsessive about Star Trek would notice, that you latched onto and tried to work further into Picard, that maybe other people still haven't picked up on?

Space crate was a fun thing, and I can just use that as an idea for, "Okay, we don't have enough money to do things. We got to find cool textures and ways to do things." And this is how they solve that problem in Next Generation, and you'll see it if you go back and watch anything in the '90s. It was a common thing, because there was this one prop house that had a ton of it, and you would just go to the prop house and rent it, and we used it in Roger Corman movies and everything. Everyone used it at the time. And then the prop house went out of business, and with it, the stuff got sold and whatever.

When we started Season 2, I'm like, "Okay, find me some of that for the Stargazer," and no one could find it, because I went with the prop house. "No. No one has it." I'm like, "Okay, but it was something before it was a prop. What was it?" And everyone's like, "Oh, it's custom this and that." And then it wasn't until Season 2 that Liz Kloczkowski, I gave her the same mission, and she came back a day later, and she's like, "Oh, it's freezer spacers. They use it in freezer pallets." I'm like, "Can we still get it?" And then she's like, "Yeah, they're only 60 bucks a piece." I'm like, "Buy them all. We'll use them."

And then everyone's like, "Okay, but we use this in the last set." I go, "We're going to use it in every set." And then people just got it. They're like, "You stick it on the wall, you stick it on the ceiling, you stick it on the floor, you just keep using it, and it gives the look of Star Trek." And once you establish that, "Oh, that's a thing," everyone buys into it. And then especially now that audiences have seen it, they're like, "Oh, okay, yeah." And then the cinematographers were like, "Wow, it works really good with light." But the first time we brought it up, they're like, "Oh, we're going to do a camera test because we don't know how this is going to look on camera." And I go, "Have you seen this show called Star Trek?" And they would cut up, and they'd make tables out of it, and they did tons of stuff. But we took that and, again, used that for everything.

We used the graded plexiglass in sickbay and the transporter room, that type of thing. I would have loved to have done an updated holodeck. We had designs at one point where we were going to do that, the holodeck-off version with the grid lights and everything like that. That was going to be a fun version, but we never got around to it.

You've built on Star Trek: The Next Generation as a base, but then you've added things wholesale. The Shrike is this brand-new ship design. Did you find it was more of a challenge to add something wholesale to that Star Trek tapestry? Or was it more challenging to try to extrapolate from what was already there, if that makes sense?

I think equal, because the Shrike was a challenge. Someone said, "Oh, we did like 80 versions." I go, "No, we did one version of the Shrike. We just did 79 versions that weren't the Shrike." And that was the thing. Terry knew what he wanted, and a lot of times, it's just that we want the vibe. And you look at something like the Bird-of-Prey, and that just comes on the screen, and you're like, "Damn, look at that. That's cool. That's cool."

It's the idea of creating something, and we really worked hard on that, but I think the idea of doing that, and then also, the Stargazer, which was a completely brand-new design and the most updated look. The Titan in Season 3 really owes a lot to the Stargazer because the Stargazer had been defined, it set the tone, and that was actually harder because the idea of going, okay, we can do a saucer again. We don't have to do, "Which version of nostalgia and tone do we go with?"

We went with kind of the idea of the Dodge Charger, the new version. You look at it, it looks like the 1960s Dodge Charger, but it's upgraded. We went with that classic look. I think what Andy Probert and Herman Zimmerman did with the Enterprise-D is phenomenal. It's just a completely different thing, and it's exactly what it needed to be and everything. We just were in a little bit of a different world because we were battling all the different versions of what it could be, so learning what it should be was hard.

We never find out where the Shrike came from, do we? Do you know the ship's origin story within the universe?

We went with the idea that if you're going to go rob a bank, you don't use your own car. "Where did the Shrike come from?" It came from the people in the places and whatever. They got the ship, but it's not going to be a Dominion ship because then it's telling that, "Oh, this is who's doing all the sketchy stuff." It was the idea that they had the ship that they had bought, stolen, ordered, whatever, from the bad-guy, ships-are-us depot. That was the thing. But again, I think we had six or seven different designers working on that design, and it was a collaboration of everyone coming together to finally make that, and bring that to life.

Modern sci-fi shows and movies look much different than they did back a couple of decades ago. A lot of that, I think, has to do with that there's now decades worth of sci-fi that you can look back on. Did anything outside of Star Trek stand out in your mind as being an influence on your approach to Star Trek: Picard? For example, to me, M'Talas Prime has a little Blade Runner-y look. I don't know if that's intentional or not.

Oh, yeah, 100%. When we looked at the M'Talas Prime, our directing producer, Doug [Aarniokoski], had said there was a video clip on YouTube of the pitch that they had done for the new Blade Runner, and it's Dave Bautista in these little teeny alleyways with neon. We had also done, in Season 2 of Picard, this Okinawa alley when we were in the bad alt universe when we introduced Elnor and Raffi, and they're in this very similar Blade Runner-y type of world. And we did that whole street, and we did that whole scene, and everyone was just blown away by how cool it was, and it was for one teeny tiny scene. So we did this amazing set and it's like, "Wow, that was a waste of all this cool stuff." And then when we came back for Season 3, Terry was like, "Yeah, do that, but just bigger." And that was kind of the idea of it.

But I think it's impossible nowadays to run away from the dystopian vision that Blade Runner has given us. I think Altered Carbon does a nice version of it, and then a lot of different people do different things. It's a cost-effective way to do alien, cool, futurey stuff without doing slick and shiny because slick and shiny costs a lot of money. The dystopian, "Oh, put some neon in the background and put some smoke in there" is a lot more cost-effective to do.

Watching some of the commentary tracks and the special features and stuff, it comes up a few times that you and your team really littered those sets and those backgrounds with little touches, and some of them don't even necessarily get a big shot where they come through on-screen.Iis there something that you were proud of in one of those sets that didn't necessarily get a lot of screen time or a lot of focus that you wish had a bigger moment to shine?

Yeah, I would say the Picard Chateau, his library. Tim Stepeck, who was the decorator in Season 2, just did a phenomenal job layering it. There was like 82,000 layers of Picard's history in there. In Season 1, Picard goes to the archives to pull up his stuff, and he walks into this darkened, very empty room where he has all his memorabilia. It really bothered me when I saw that. I was like, "Okay, I get it from the storyteller's thing," but Picard has always been that guy where he has his history around him, and he has the tapestry and the flute, and it's all on his desk. And I said, "He would have that stuff at his house." I mean, why wouldn't you? Why would I have to go to someplace and sign into my thing to see the Picard Day banner?

It worked perfectly for the storytelling, but I said, "Well, let's bring all that stuff, all the gold models and the things back to his house." And the library was actually two stories. There was a spiral staircase that went up to a whole upper deck that was completely decked out with more stuff, and every bookshelf had details and things from his past and all this stuff, and we barely saw it because there were so many different timeframes. We start out in the Prime timeline with Picard and Laris, and they're having this conversation and looking for a book, and then, all of a sudden, we're onto an alternate version of Picard with Q and the skulls and things. Then I'm like, "Oh, so we never saw the old upper stairs. We never saw this. We never saw the kitchen. We never saw the hallway." And everything was totally detailed out. It was a phenomenal set.

Star Trek: Picard The Legacy Collection is on sale now. You can order the ultimate Picard Blu-ray box set here on Amazon and here at Walmart

The Marvels composer Laura Karpman teased how Monica Rambeau grows from WandaVision to the new MCU movie. In an interview with ComicBook.com, the woman behind the music of The Marvels explained how the team-up changes the dynamic of Captain Marvel, Kamala Khan, and Monica Rambeau individually. While viewers might have met the brilliant astronaut in WandaVision, this is a whole new world of possibility. Karpman compared the changes from the Disney+ series to the leap to an Avengers movie. The Marvels has the unique distinction of being the first real team-up between some Avengers since Spider-Man: No Way Home. It's a challenge that will test each of the women, including Captain Rambeau.

"I love that show," Karpman began. "That show is so awesome. I think that the thing about this particular movie is it's not a sequel. You have familiar characters, but it's a new thing. And the thing I've been using is, it's like the Avengers to Captain America. It is a team. So, what's most important about the film? And the really big storyline of the film is how can these three come together? When don't they? And when do they? And what does that music sound like? And then of course, they go places and they do things. So, you've got to be able to cover all of that musically as well."

Captain Marvel Teams-Up With Monica Rambeau

It's a weird time for Captain Marvel and her niece in The Marvels. ComicBook.com spoke to the movie's director, Nia DaCosta about teaming Carol Danvers up with Monica Rambeau and Kamala Khan. Usually, Captain Marvel is a bit of a solo act. But, in The Marvels, she's going to have to lean on her allies if there's to be any hope of defeating Dar-Benn and saving their universe from absolute catastrophe. Here's what the filmmaker had to say!

"It was so important to me that we do that for her," DaCosta told us in an interview this week. "The first movie was so beautiful because you see this family that she's lost, and now in this movie, you kind of see how she's isolated herself from family. But family is so important to help any of us get anything done and feel supported and [like we] can take on the world. I really wanted to be able to see that, and who she was, in this film."

The Marvels Teases What's Next

In The Marvels, which arrives in theaters on November 10th, Carol Danvers aka Captain Marvel (Brie Larson ) has reclaimed her identity from the tyrannical Kree and taken revenge on the Supreme Intelligence. But unintended consequences see Carol shouldering the burden of a destabilized universe. When her duties send her to an anomalous wormhole linked to a Kree revolutionary, her powers become entangled with that of Jersey City super-fan, Kamala Khan (Iman Vellani ) aka Ms. Marvel, and Carol's estranged niece, now S.A.B.E.R. astronaut Captain Monica Rambeau (Teyonah Parris ).

Together, this unlikely trio must team-up and learn to work in concert to save the universe as "The Marvels." The Marvels will also see the franchise returns of Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury , Saagar Shaikh as Aamir Khan, Zenobia Shroff as Muneeba Khan, and Mohan Kapur as Yusuf Khan. New cast members include Zawe Ashton , Park Seo-joon, and Shamier Anderson . Produced by Marvel Studios , The Marvels is directed by Nia DaCosta with a script from DaCosta, Megan McDonnell, and Elissa Karasik.

Are you seeing The Marvels this week? Let us know in the comments!

Will Ospreay has had a career year in 2023. Things started white-hot for the Aerial Assassin, as he and Kenny Omega wrestled what many still consider to be the best match of the year at NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 17 in January. While he took the L in that bout, Ospreay got his win and the IWGP United States Championship back five months later at AEW x NJPW Forbidden Door in another instant classic against Omega. That victory kicked off a legendary stretch for Ospreay, as he would go on to pick up singles victories over Kazuchika Okada and Chris Jericho in the subsequent months. That 1-2-3 over Jericho was especially a career highlight, as it came in front of 81,035 fans at AEW ALL IN: London.

Will Ospreay Reflects on AEW ALL IN: London

After months of making his desire to compete at Wembley Stadium crystal clear, Will Ospreay got his wish.

This past August, Ospreay battled Chris Jericho at AEW ALL IN: London, a match that represented the largest crowd he had ever competed in front of. Speaking to ComicBook.com, Ospreay reflected on his emotions before "Elevated" hit.

"Oh man, I was scared. I just remember feeling like I've done it now," Ospreay said. "The maximum I've ever performed in front of was 40,000 at [NJPW] Wrestle Kingdom. This was twice as many. I was worried that my stuff was going to get lost, or not as big of a reaction as what it could get. Maybe I'm not the guy that they really want in this position. Maybe it should have gone to someone else. That's all going through my mind."

Ospreay received a special entrance at AEW ALL IN: London, complete with his theme song's extended intro and a firework show for the ages.

"The moment the music was playing, just that bit of the piano, I could just feel my heart coming out of my chest," Ospreay continued. "So flipping scared. Family's here. Everyone is here just wanting to just enjoy wrestling in England, wrestling of this caliber and stage."

Ahead of his entrance, opponent Chris Jericho came out first, performing "Judas" live with the full stadium singing along. Fortunately for Ospreay, Wembley was able to memorize the lyrics to more than one entrance song.

"Going out and hearing people sing my song... man," Ospreay said, taking an emotional pause. "I literally heard people screaming it and then pointing up to the sky and when the fireworks were going off. Just watching it, it felt like two minutes. It felt like everything was going in slow motion.Then to get in the ring and the bell rung and then just 80,000 people do the ol?! chants. Oh man, it was just the coolest thing. It was the coolest thing I've ever done."

Ospreay defends his IWGP United States Championship against Jon Moxley and David Finlay at NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 18 on January 4th, 2024.

Ric Flair is All Elite. The Nature Boy made his AEW debut this past October, surprising Sting by announcing he will be by his side throughout his current retirement tour. While Flair has just had the one segment in AEW thus far, he is scheduled to be at AEW Full Gear later this month and noted his desire to attend AEW Revolution next spring, the site of Sting's final match. While all of this indicated that Flair's AEW tenure would just be tied to Sting, things changed when AEW announced that they had signed the 16-time world champion to a multi-year contract.

Ric Flair Wants Another Woo-Off With Jay Lethal

The Nature Boy already has plenty of segment ideas for his AEW run.

When asked by ComicBook.com's Liam Crowley if another "woo-off" with Jay Lethal is on the table, Ric Flair responded enthusiastically.

"Oh, I'd love it. I'm a big fan of Jay," Flair said. "He and [Jeff] Jarrett owe me money! After the last match, [Jarrett] got hired by AEW. What the hell? I should get ten percent of their money (laughs). They're great together. I'm happy for Jeff and I think the world of Jay Lethal, he's one of the most entertaining people in the world. He can do me and ["Macho Man" Randy] Savage better than we could do ourselves."

Lethal and Jarrett's history with Flair dates back years, but their most recent in-ring interaction came in Summer 2022. At Ric Flair's Last Match, a one-off pay-per-view special that was headlined by Flair teaming with son-in-law Andrade El Idolo to face that aforementioned duo.

That "woo-off" is one of TNA's most famous segments. The moment came during a 2010 episode of TNA iMPACT! when a young Lethal confronted Flair and his stable at the time. Lethal impersonated The Nature Boy, leading to complete pandemonium breaking out. Lethal and Flair traded Flair-isms back and forth until they eventually just screamed "Wooooo!" at one another.

Flair reflected on that original segment, revealing that there were no rehearsals beforehand.

"I'm not a rehearse guy. I got to hear the crowd. You got to remember we're at [Universal Studios], right?" Flair said, pointing to the fact that TNA iMPACT! taped its weekly television from the Orlando-based tourist spot. "It's not like you're in a hometown crowd. You're not going to get the expected reaction. There's people that are buying a ticket like anything else, to go to an event. It was great and I just think the world of Jay. On top of that, he's one of the most underestimated performers in the business. He's really good."