News

• By now you’ve heard that Joseph Fiennes has been cast as Michael Jackson in a series that is ostensibly both a comedy and about 9/11. In other news, Michael Cera will be playing Audrey Hepburn and Dakota Fanning has been cast as Gary Coleman. Samuel L. Jackson will meanwhile take on the role of everyone else in everything ever.

• On the other end of the “gee, didn’t see that one coming” spectrum is a futuristic, gritty reboot of Zorro titled simply Z. Yes, really. The saving grace could be in the form of Jonas Cuaron as director, who will give us something special if he’s learned anything from his father Alfonso.

• In the ever-expanding world of superhero adaptations, The Flash is set to cross over with Supergirl a few weeks from now, kinda-sorta-possibly bringing Kara Zor-El into the Arrow-verse. Who should play Batman in the Dark Knight’s inevitable appearance? How about Joseph Fiennes?

• Check out some awesome X-Files art from the iam8bit “Conspiracies, Monsters and Mythologies” art exhibit, showing from bow through Valentine’s Day, courtesy of Collider.

Trailers

Green Room, the sophomore film from Blue Ruin director Jeremy Saulnier, released the first red-band trailer this past week:

Here’s a heartwarming return to The Force Awakens:

And Miles Ahead finally has a release date and a trailer after premiering at the New York Film Festival this past October:

In Cinemas

The Coens’ Hail, Caesar! opens today, having already garnered a handful of positive reviews. Check back tomorrow for our take.

On TV

The Super Bowl will take up most of the TV attention this weekend, and the following weekend sees the return of The Walking Dead on AMC. Also…

On Netflix

In preparation for the second season we’re rewatching the rookie year of Better Call Saul, which just started streaming in the U.S. Check out our most recent Staff Picks for more recommendations.

Review of the Week

Also on Netflix is The Human Stain, which means you have no excuse not to watch it. We also recommend the book by Philip “Sexy Old Man” Roth.