The return of Netflix鈥檚 鈥淪ex Education鈥� with Gillian Anderson, Sean Penn's documentary about and a docuseries that charts the rise of the first supermodels are some of the new television, movies, music and games near you
Among the offerings worth your time as selected by The Associated Press鈥� are an album from Doja Cat and a reboot of Robert Rodriguez's 鈥淪py Kids" franchise with a film starring Gina Rodriguez and Zachary Levi.
NEW MOVIES TO STREAM
鈥� In Mexican lucha libra wrestling, ex贸ticos traditionally are male fighters dressed in drag who offer a campy contrast to the machismo of the main-event matches. premiered Friday on Amazon Prime Video, stars Gael Garcia Bernal as a pioneering ex贸tico named Sa煤l Armend谩riz who rose to become one of the biggest stars in Mexican wrestling. In my , directed by Roger Ross Williams, I wrote that Armend谩riz鈥檚 transformation of the ex贸tico into something more than was prescribed by lucha tradition makes for a stirring metaphor for gay empowerment.
鈥� Robert Rodriguez鈥檚 鈥淪py Kids鈥� movies are pluckily still going, more than two decades after the director 鈥� with his kids in tow 鈥� first launched the admirably goofy, charmingly childlike espionage fantasy. The family film franchise, begun with the 2001 original, had tapered off by the time the lackluster fourth installment, 鈥淪py Kids: All the Time in the World,鈥� was released in 2011. But Rodriguez and clan return for a reboot in Netflix鈥檚 debuted Friday. The film, written by Rodriguez and his 26-year-old son, Racer, stars Gina Rodriguez and Zachary Levi.
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NEW MUSIC TO STREAM
鈥� Long gone are the days of the viral 鈥� but who could expect the pop experimentalist Doja Cat to stay in one lane? (Anyone who remembers the viral 鈥淢oo! (B---- I鈥檓 a Cow)鈥� video that made her an internet star would know better.) On 鈥淪carlet,鈥� Doja Cat and in the hardest rap verses of her career, demands listeners鈥� heed. Like on the lead single, 鈥淎ttention,鈥� a criticism of normalizing parasocial relationships, or 鈥淒emons,鈥� where she spits, 鈥淎re you off a key/I would never let you in my VIP/ We are enemies, we are foes/Who are you? And what are those?鈥� while embodying her inner 鈥� and outer 鈥� incubus.
鈥� And now, to look away from pop鈥檚 present and into its future! Chappell Roan, the Missouri-raised, LA-based dark pop balladeer first made headlines for her queer theatrical pop hit and later, the Gen-Z situationship anthem, 鈥淐asual,鈥� which she worked on with Olivia Rodrigo鈥檚 chief collaborator and producer, Dan Nigro. 鈥淭he Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess鈥� is Roan鈥檚 solo debut, an enterprising collection of explicit ballads and bangers. Next year, Roan will on the 鈥淕UTS鈥� singer鈥檚 first-ever arena tour. Big things are on the horizon.
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NEW SERIES TO STREAM
鈥� Oscar-winning actor Sean Penn has co-directed a documentary about Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the resilience of the Ukrainian people. Penn says he began the project 鈥� called 鈥� in 2021, with a lighthearted approach to the life of Zelenskyy, who was a comedian and actor before he entered politics. The tone and focus of the film shifted when Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. 鈥淪uperpower,鈥� which features interviews with Zelenskyy and families affected by the war, is streaming now on Paramount+.
鈥� Before Gigi Hadid, Kendall Jenner and Winnie Harlow ever stepped onto a catwalk, , Cindy Crawford, Linda Evangelista and defined the word glamour and became household names. A new four-part docu-series called traces their rise to success. It strutted onto Apple TV+ on Wednesday.
鈥� The critically-acclaimed one of Netflix鈥檚 most popular shows, returned for its fourth and final season Thursday. The series stars Asa Butterfield as Otis, an awkward, precocious teen whose mother (played by Gillian Anderson) is a sex therapist. (You can watch how that unique situation affected Otis鈥� high school experience and social standing in earlier episodes.) In season four, Otis heads off to college.
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NEW VIDEO GAMES TO PLAY
鈥� The mighty Shaolin warrior Liu Kang has created his own universe, and he鈥檚 decided the best way to keep it peaceful is to invite his old friends over to beat each other up. That鈥檚 the typically loopy setup for Warner Bros. Games鈥� (the follow-up to Mortal Kombat 11 鈥� go figure). Granted, most fans of the franchise aren鈥檛 here for plausible plotting. They鈥檙e looking to get reacquainted with their favorite fighters (Sub-Zero! Kitana! Johnny Cage!) and try out some new ones (Homelander from 鈥淭he Boys鈥�! Peacemaker from 鈥淪uicide Squad鈥�! Megan Fox as a vampire!). Or they鈥檙e psyched to find new ways to rip out their opponent鈥檚 innards, which MK developer NetherRealm is always happy to deliver. The limbs started flying Tuesday on PlayStation 5, Xbox X/S, Nintendo Switch and PC.
鈥� The 鈥淧鈥� in Neowiz鈥檚 is Pinocchio 鈥� but he鈥檚 come a long way from the cute little guy you know from the Disney movie. He鈥檚 still a puppet, but he鈥檚 all grown up and kind of looks like Timoth茅e Chalamet. He can also unscrew his left arm and replace it with a shield, a grappling hook or a flamethrower. That鈥檒l come in handy as he explores a decadent Gilded Age city that鈥檚 filled with hostile, corrupted automatons as well as more supernatural monsters. It鈥檚 an eye-grabbing mix of steampunk, eldritch horror and the sort of demanding combat popularized by games like Dark Souls and Elden Ring. Don鈥檛 expect Jiminy Cricket to start singing when the nightmare began Tuesday on PlayStation 5/4, Xbox X/S/One and PC.
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