Tron: Ares star Jared Leto is doing his own kind of viral marketing and promotion for the film, by making a public display of riding the Tron Lightcycle ride at Walt Disney World. Leto posted an entire video to his Instagram showing him taking an evening walk through Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida, and arriving at the Tron Lightcyle ride attraction. After exclaiming "We gotta go, we gotta do this, holy sh*t! I feel like I'm home!" the video shows Leto, hair flowing, feeding his 'need for speed' while riding the high-speed coaster.

Leto recently wrapped filming on Tron 3 - so he has all the reason in the world to celebrate, right now.

What Is Tron Lightcylce?

Read Below for Disney's official description and background on the Tron Lightcycle ride attraction at Walt Disney World:

In 1982, Disney made filmmaking history with TRON, the first production of its kind to mix live action with computer-generated visuals and backlit animation. This iconic film went on to inspire video games, comic books, an animated series and the 2010 sequel TRON: Legacy-as well as this Disney theme park attraction.

Leave the real world behind and join Team Blue in a quest across the Grid-the dark, computerized world with no horizons from TRON. Here, there's no limit to the excitement.

Climb aboard your very own Lightcycle and take off on a high-speed adventure, racing against the Grid's most menacing Programs. Surge past your fierce opponents as you attempt to cross through 8 Energy Gates and secure your team's victory.

TRON Lightcycle / Run is one of the fastest coasters at any Disney theme park in the world.

What Is Tron: Ares About?

Synopsis: TRON: Ares follows a highly sophisticated Program, Ares, who is sent from the digital world into the real world on a dangerous mission, marking humankind's first encounter with A.I. beings.

Joachim R?nning (Kon-Tiki, Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales), who took over directing duties from Legacy's Joseph Kosinski, said in a statement that TRON 3 "builds upon the legacy of cutting-edge design, technology and storytelling" established by the ground-breaking original film 40 years ago.

TRON: Ares stars Jared Leto (Suicide Squad), Greta Lee (Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse), Evan Peters (X-Men: Days of Future Past), Hasan Minhaj (Haunted Mansion), Jodie Turner-Smith (Star Wars: The Acolyte), Arturo Castro (Narcos), Cameron Monaghan (Gotham), and Gillian Anderson (The X-Files). Sean Bailey (TRON: Legacy), Jeffrey Silver (The Little Mermaid), Justin Springer (Oblivion), Emma Ludbrook (Morbius), Leto, and original TRON writer-director Steven Lisberger are the producers, with Russell Allen (Disney's The Lion King and Snow White re-imaginings) on board as executive producer.

The Harry Potter franchise offered audiences a number of sinister threats, with the nefarious Death Eaters being some of the most intimidating. Fans who head to Universal Orlando Resort this fall might come face to face with the ominous characters, as they'll be appearing in Diagon Alley in conjunction with the park hosting Halloween Horror Nights. Whether you're hoping to check them out for yourself, or avoid them at all costs, they will be spending their time in Knockturn Alley. The Death Eaters will be appearing select night between August 29th and November 3rd, which is also when Halloween Horror Nights will be happening at the park.

Per press release, "The Darker side of magic is back at Universal Orlando Resort this fall as the infamous Death Eaters return to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter - Diagon Alley in Universal Studios Florida on select dates August 29th through November 3rd. This interactive live entertainment experience brings guests face to face with Lord Voldemort's most loyal supporters, the ominous Death Eaters, as they lurk through London and into the shadowed streets of Knockturn Alley. These fanatic witches and wizards do not shy away from the practice of the Dark Arts and will challenge guests to join the Dark Lord alongside them. Fans can also visit Borgin and Burkes in Diagon Alley to shop for Dark Arts-themed merchandise like t-shirts, accessories, and Death Eater masks -- or check out the selection of Death Eater wands at Ollivanders."

The Death Eaters made their debut at the park last year and made enough of an impact and garnered enough attention that they have return for another year.

Luckily for fans attending this year's Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Orlando Resort, the Death Eaters are only one of the unsettling experiences being offered. This year's movie-inspired haunted houses include A Quiet Place, Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire, Insidious: The Further, and Universal Monsters: Eternal Bloodlines, while fans can also experience the original houses Monstruos: The Monsters of Latin America, Slaughter Sinema 2, The Museum: Deadly Exhibits, Major Sweets Candy Factory, Goblin's Feast, and Triplets of Terror.

Like in previous years, the park also has five Scare Zones, as well as all-new performances, merchandise, and food offerings throughout the park.

Halloween Horror Nights runs at Universal Orlando Resort August 29th through November 3rd.

Are you looking forward to attending the experience? Contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter or on Instagram to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

Batman's tragic origin story is one of the most famous ever told across mediums. But do you know the origins of the man who put the Bat on the big screen? Michael Uslan -- the DC Comics writer turned producer who purchased the Batman movie rights in 1979 with fellow producer Benjamin Melniker -- has been credited as an executive producer on every film featuring the Dark Knight since 1989's Tim Burton-directed Batman. Now Tony Award-winning actor and comic creator Dan Fogler (the Fantastic Beasts films) will play Uslan in a stage play adaptation of his 2011 memoir, The Boy Who Loved Batman.

Nederlander Worldwide -- behind The Who's Tommy, On Your Feet!: The Story of Emilio & Gloria Estefan, and Grease -- in association with Legion M Productions is developing the play, which was first announced by The Hollywood Reporter.

The Boy Who Loved Batman stage play (formerly known as Darknights and Daydreams) is "an inspirational comedy about one man's vision that became a national phenomenon," according to the official synopsis. "It's a crazy journey that goes from New Jersey to Hollywood, comic books to the silver screen. Every hero needs a hero, even Batman." The true story-inspired show will premiere at the Straz Center for the Performing Arts in Tampa, Florida, running from October 1st-November 10th.

"Dan's exceptional talent, comic timing, impressive stage presence and deep, enthusiastic roots as an unabashed fanboy make him the perfect actor to take on the obviously challenging, complicated role of Michael Uslan," Uslan told THR. "From the first moment he was given the script, Dan has been spot-on in his approach to the material, and I could not be happier that he agreed to join us on this journey."

"I can't wait to be back on stage again, and Batman and comic books are two of my favorite subjects," added Fogler, who won the Tony his role as William Barf?e in the Broadway musical The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee and who played Francis Ford Coppola in The Offer, about the making of The Godfather. "I was 12 in 1989 and seeing Batman on screen -- how he was meant to be in all his dark brooding glory -- was a life-changing experience. It was electric, and I can't wait to tell the story of how it all came to be."

Directed by Tony winner Jeff Calhoun (Newsies), The Boy Who Loved Batman also features Paul Adam Schaefer (Broadway's The Phantom of the Opera) as Imaginary Friend, Katherine Yacko (Hamlet) as Nancy Uslan, with Kelly Bashar, Nicholas Perez-Hoop, and Hugh Timoney portraying multiple roles including Uslan's family members, as well as visionary Marvel Comics creator Stan Lee -- who collaborated with Uslan on DC's Just Imagine -- and Bill Finger, the long-uncredited co-creator of Batman.

Thank you to @LegionMOfficial for sharing this.

"We are so excited to share with you some BTS of the first table read for 'The Boy Who Loved Batman' play, formerly known as 'Dark Knights and Daydreams, based on the book by @michaeluslan.

The play delves into the life of... pic.twitter.com/TnFe5d3t4i

-- Michael Uslan (@MichaelUslan) April 9, 2024

The book, which was republished as an updated second edition in 2019, chronicles the comic book-obsessed Uslan's decade-long effort to bring the brooding Batman of the page to screen with a tone unlike the 1960s TV show that starred Adam West as the campy caped crusader alongside Burt Ward's boy wonder Robin.

Despising the campy Batman, Uslan was "determined to bring the real Batman -- dark, serious, burdened by a tragic past -- to the silver screen," the description reads. "Undeterred by Hollywood's initial lackluster response, after a ten-year human endurance contest in which every major movie studio turned him down, Uslan went on to become Executive Producer on every modern Batman film, beginning with Tim Burton's widely hailed Batman in 1989 to Christopher Nolan's celebrated Dark Knight trilogy and well beyond."

"The story of a young boy seeing his parents murdered, and then taking a vow that he would get the people responsible as well as all the other criminals out there that do terrible wrongs even if he has to walk through hell to do it was so compelling to me, I knew I had to be involved with it forever," Uslan said in a 2011 interview for his book.

"When I saw the TV series with Adam West, I knew I couldn't let it stand. I thought of myself as a young Bruce Wayne," Uslan continued. "I was thrilled and horrified at what I saw. The car was cool, and they were spending money, but I was so horrified that the whole world was laughing at Batman -- it just killed me. It was then that I knew that some day, some way, some how I would bring the story of the real Batman to life. The Batman that was created in 1939: a creature of the night stalking criminals from the shadows and would one day erase those three words, 'Pow!' 'Zap!' and 'Wam!' from the collective consciousness of the world."

The ComicBook Nation crew previews the Fall TV and Movie schedules and share their hype levels for some of the most highly anticipated releases! There's also a review and discussion of The Crow reboot starring Bill Skarsg?rd!

PLUS: Deep-dive discussion about the status of Star Wars after The Acolyte's cancelation, and a debate about Marvel's Blade reboot and what kind of film it should be.

The Crow Reboot Review

This is what ComicBook Nation host Kofi Outlaw had to say in his 2-star review of The Crow:

Under the direction of Rupert Sanders (Snow White and the Huntsman) and the genuine effort made by stars Bill Skarsg?rd and FKA Twigs, The Crow isn't a total failure - but it is a messy mismatch of high-art aspirations and bloody, brutal, B-movie action-horror. It's both vibrantly alive with creative spark and passion - and a listless, muddled attempt at telling a cinematic story.

...It's not impossible that, despite its flaws, The Crow will follow the path of the original and grow into a cult hit in years to come. If nothing else, it's one of the biggest showcases yet of Bill Skarsg?rd's potential as a leading man (and not just the lineup of odd creatures and/or creeps he's played). But, after more than a decade of trying to get this reboot off the ground - and all the creative talent that's been attached to it along the way - it's almost amusing that middling effort is the end result.

FALL PREVIEW

MOVIES

• BEETLEJUICE 2 (9/6)
• TRANSFORMERS ONE (9/13)
• THE WILD ROBOT (9/20)
• JOKER 2 (10/4)
• VENOM 3 (10/25)
• RED ONE (11/15)
• GLADIATOR 2 (11/22)
• MOANA 2 (11/27)
• WICKED PT. 1 (11/27)

TV

• RINGS OF POWER S2 (8/29 - Prime Video)
• TERMINATOR: ZERO (8/29 - NETFLIX)
• PENGUIN (9/19 - HBO)
• AGATHA ALL ALONG (9/18 - Disney+)
• ZACK SNYDER's TWILIGHT OF THE GODS (9/19 - Netflix)
• CITADEL: DIANA (10/10 - Prime Video)
• CITADEL: HONEY BUNNY (11/7 - Prime Video)
• SILO SEASON 2 (11/15 - Apple TV+)
• JAMES WAN'S TEACUP (10/10 - Peacock)
• LIKE A DRAGON: YAKUZA (10/24 - Prime Video)
• STAR WARS: SKELETON CREW (12/3 - Disney+)
• KOFI: ST. DENIS MEDICAL - IMAGE
• MATT: MATLOCK - IMAGE

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Chris Hemsworth is best known for playing Thor in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and soon the actor will be heard voicing the iconic Optimus Prime in the new animated film, Transformers One. Hemsworth's credits also include Furisoa: A Mad Max Saga, Extraction and Extraction 2, Ghostbusters (2016), Men in Black: International, and much more. He also has a reality docuseries from National Geographic called Limitless with Chris Hemsworth. It was announced earlier this year that the show would be getting a second season on Disney+, and a taping just took him somewhere extra special. This week, a crowd of 70,000 people were attending an Ed Sheeran concert in Romania's National Arena when Hemsworth showed up with a surprise.

Hemsworth made a surprise appearance at Sheeran's show to play drums on the track "Thinking Out Loud." Sheeran took to Instagram yesterday to celebrate the moment. "Got @chrishemsworth to learn drums for my stadium show, find out why on his show #LimitlessWithChrisHemsworth Season 2 coming 2025 to @disneyplus #thorfortheencore #iwasworthy," he captioned the post. You can watch a video from the night below:

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Ed Sheeran (@teddysphotos)

What Is Transformers One About?

Set on Cybertron, Transformers One is the untold origin story of a young Optimus Prime and Megatron. Before they transformed into sworn enemies as the leaders of warring robot factions -- the Autobots and Decepticons -- they were brothers-in-arms Orion Pax (Hemsworth) and D-16 (Henry), who changed the fate of their planet forever. While working waste management in the bowels of Cybertron, Orion and D-16 meet workers B-127 (Key), a.k.a. Bumblebee, and Ariel (Scarlett Johansson), a.k.a. Elita-1, before embarking on a dangerous journey to the planet's surface world.

The star-studded voice cast includes Jon Hamm (Mad Men) as Sentinel Prime, Steve Buscemi (Transformers: The Last Knight) in an undisclosed villain role, and Laurence Fisburne (The Matrix) as Alpha Trion -- sworn protector of Vector Sigma, the mega-computer at the heart of Cybertron -- who unlocks the Transformers' full potential, giving the 'bots the ability to transform. The new movie comes from Paramount Animation (The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run), Hasbro Entertainment (Transformers: EarthSpark), and New Republic Pictures (The Tiger's Apprentice).

"We did our take on the origin, which is still staying true to the lore of Transformers," director Josh Cooley told ComicBook of the first-ever CG-animated Transformers movie, adding that Optimus Prime's origin story is "something we've never seen before on screen." "I wouldn't say that this is a direct prequel to anything that's been done with live-action ones," the director added. "But it's definitely its own story as well."

Transformers One opens only in theaters on September 20th.

This might be one time where it's okay to cry when it comes to baseball. According to EW, The Jay Littleton Ball Park located in Ontario, California was destroyed in a fire that started on Thursday night. The field was a filming location for 1992's A League of Their Own. The park had also been featured in other films and television projects. It was built in 1937. In a press release, the Ontario Fire Department indicated that there were no victims in the fire and it's cause remains unclear. An investigation is ongoing.

"It's a terrible loss for our community, Ontario's director of communications Dan Bell said. "Everyone here either played or had relatives or kids who played on that field over the years. In 87 years of existence, a lot of people played on that field."

"When units arrived, they saw fully engulfed grandstands of the ballpark," Bell added. "So, they went into full attack mode and tried to put it out as quickly as possible, but being a wooden structure of grandstands from 1937, it went up pretty quickly. So, the end result is, unfortunately, a total loss of the grandstand structure. The grandstands are all gone, the dugouts are all gone, everything associated with being a spectator at that field is gone. The field itself is intact, but any observation area for a game is destroyed."

The park grandstands were built in 1937 and the field was the home of the minor league Ontario Orioles for their one (and only) season in 1947. In addition to being a community landmark, the field has been featured in numerous Hollywood productions, including 1948's The Babe Ruth Story, 1988's Eight Men Out, a 1999 episode of X-Files, and both the 1992 A League of Their Own film and the more recent Amazon television series of the same name. Prior to the fire, the field - which was given historical landmark status in 2003 -- was still being used for both little league and high school games in the Ontario community and it is possible that they will rebuild, though it's something that will need to be evaluated.

"We'll have to look at what we're gonna do in the future with that field" Bell said. "Being such a significant part of our city's history, we'll look at how we move forward with it."

Bob Iger is hard at work trying to find his replacement prior to the expiration of his current contract at The Walt Disney Company. In fact, the Disney CEO admitted in a recent interview he's even a bit "obsessed" with finding the right person to lead the company when his contract expires at the end of 2026.

"I think it would be safe to assume that I think about this all the time. I could say that I'm obsessed with it would be probably an understatement and actually, the board and I established when I returned that that would be among our biggest, if not our biggest priority," Iger said during a recent stop on SiriusXM's Let's Talk Off Camera with Kelly Ripa.

"It's actually something that I'm obviously very focused on, not just because of the past, but because I'd like to retire again and I'd like to leave the company in great hands, and that is my intention," he added. "I'm now confident that not only will we do that, but we'll do so on a timely basis that works for the company and hopefully works for me as well, but yes. It's a huge priority."

Iger's first stint as Disney CEO lasted from 2005 to 2020, where the executive oversaw the acquisitions of Marvel, Pixar, Lucasfilm, and 20th Century Fox. Upon his retirement, he named former Disney Parks head Bob Chapek as his successor, an arrangement that lasted less than a year.

Iger then returned with a new four-year contract with the understanding he and the Disney board would exhaustively vet future candidates in hopes of finding the best Iger replacement possible.

TheWrap reports four internal Disney employees are currently being looked at to become Iger's successor including Disney Parks head Josh D'Amaro, Disney Studios co-heads Dana Walden and Alan Bergman, and ESPN boss Jimmy Pitaro.

"I know this company has asked so much of you during the past three years, and these times certainly remain quite challenging, but as you have heard me say before, I am an optimist, and if I learned one thing from my years at Disney, it is that even in the face of uncertainty--perhaps especially in the face of uncertainty--our employees and Cast Members achieve the impossible," Iger wrote in a memo sent to Disney employees upon his return.

It's still summer for the better part of the next month. Before long, however, the leaves will begin changing colors, streaming services will push horror films to the forefront, and spooky season will be in full effect. In fact, some might say it's already started given General Mills has already started shipping this year's line of Monster Cereals to supermarkets around the country.

"Got 'em! Just found all of the new Monster Cereals, including 'Monsters' Frightful Friends' -- a berry-flavored mash-up starring all of the mascots' new pets, in marshmallow form," @DinosaurDracula tweeted earlier this month.

Got 'em! Just found all of the new Monster Cereals, including "Monsters' Frightful Friends" -- a berry-flavored mash-up starring all of the mascots' new pets, in marshmallow form. Yes! pic.twitter.com/0vTdk00YhI

-- Dinosaur Dracula (@DinosaurDracula) August 3, 2024

This year, the Big Three--Boo Berry, Count Chocular, and Frankenberry--are back plus the newest cereal in the line, Carmella Creeper. This year, however, they're all accompanied by a new pet.

Per press release, "Halloween's hottest haunters are baaaaack... and this year, they are joined by their one-of-a-kind scary sidekicks! For the first time ever, the beloved, nostalgic Monsters Cereal characters -- Count Chocula, Boo Berry, Franken Berry, and Carmella Creeper -- are accompanied by their Frightful Friend pets to bring more festive fun to the Halloween season."

"Just like you, the Monsters are also obsessed with their pets. And this year, each classic cereal includes specialty marshmallows shaped like each of the characters' frightful friends. More information on each sidekick is available below!"

This year's lineup of Monster Cereals includes:

• Frightful Friends: It's a spooky pet party! The Monsters Cereals you know and love are all joined by their scary sidekicks in this epic mashup of all frightful Monsters flavors, now with new pet-shaped marshmallows! From spiders to snakes, Monsters' creepy critter friends are here to add even more mischief to Halloween.
• Count Chocula with Igor the Spider: Chocolatey, classic cereal bits are mixed with spider-shaped marshmallows. Igor is Count Chocula's loyal guard spider and sidekick.
• Franken Berry with Bennie the Bat: The berry-delicious cereal is joined by bat-shaped marshmallows in honor of Bennie, Franken Berry's best bud who has a wicked sense of humor and wonky sonar.
• Boo Berry with Meow Berry the Cat: The irresistible berry cereal incorporates cat-shaped marshmallows as an ode to Boo Berry's feline friend. When Meow Berry disappears, there's not a ghost of a chance at finding her.
• Carmella Creeper with Scratch the Snake: The newest cereal of the crew combines caramel apple cereal with snake-shaped marshmallows. Scratch has serious attitude and crazy-good rhythm, making him the perfect partner-in-crime for the edgy zombie DJ.

Earlier this month, Prime Video confirmed that they had cancelled the historical fiction series My Lady Jane after just one season, less than two months after it first made its debut on the platform. While the series wasn't a huge ratings hit, it performed well with critics and had a devoted fan following and now, those fans are trying to bring the series back to life. According to EW, fans of My Lady Jane have launched an online campaign to save the series from cancellation and have already racked up more than 20,000 signatures on a petition for Prime Video to reverse course.

In addition to the petition, which you can find on Change.org, there is also a Linktree with further avenues to help the cause, including options for the fans to rate the series on IMDb and other cites as well as groups to follow, and an email template to send messages to Amazon COO Albert Cheng. There is also GoFundMe for an undisclosed surprise intended to aid the campaign. The petition was officially launched prior to news of the series' cancellation.

"My Lady Jane, the fascinating adaptation on Amazon Prime has garnered widespread acclaim and quickly built a passionate fan base," the Change. org petition reads. "After a successful first season, viewers are undoubtedly craving a follow-up. Amazon Prime has. yet to officially announce a second season, leading many fans to uncertainty and disappointment. The popularity of the show is evident as it ranks particularly well amongst viewers. Renewing My Lady Jane would not just please fans, it would also generate a significant amount of traffic and viewership benefits for the streaming platform. We are calling upon Amazon Prime to listen to the voices of fans around the globe and confirm the renewal of My Lady Jane for a second season. Show your support for this unique storytelling, sign this petition to demand the return of My Lady Jane."

What Is My Lady Jane About?

Based on the 2016 novel of the same name from Jodi Meadows, Brodi Ashton, and Cynthia hand, My Lady Jane tells the tragic tale of Lady Jane Grey (Emily Bader), the young Tudor noblewoman who was Queen of England for nine days and then beheaded, back in good ol' 1553. The series is an alternate approach to history promising to retell it the way it should have happened: the damsel in distress saves herself. This is an epic tale of true love and high adventure set in an alt-universe of action, history, fantasy, comedy, romance, and rompy-pompy. Buckle up.

The cast of My Lady Jane also included Edward Bluemel as Lord Guildford Dudley, Anna Chancellor as Lady Frances Grey, Rob Brydon as Lord Dudley, Jordan Peters as King Edward VI, Kate O'Flynn as Princess Mary, Abbie Hern as Princess Bess, Henry Ashton as Lord Stan Dudley, Dominic Cooper as Lord Seymour, and Jim Broadbent as the Duke of Leicester.

Details on what a second season of My Lady Jane would have entailed have been few, but the book series does have two additional installments -- one featuring Jane Austen protagonist Jane Eyre and one centering around Wild West folk hero Calamity Jane -- as well as a spinoff centered around Mary Queen of Scots, My Contrary Mary.

After months of deliberation, NASA has decided to return the Starliner planetside without its crew. Saturday, the space agency announced plans to bring the Boeing-made craft back to Earth without astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams aboard. Wilmore and Williams piloted the Starliner through a trip on the craft in June, with it seemingly suffering damage upon its docking at the International Space Station.

"Spaceflight is risky, even at its safest and most routine. A test flight, by nature, is neither safe, nor routine. The decision to keep Butch and Suni aboard the International Space Station and bring Boeing's Starliner home uncrewed is the result of our commitment to safety: our core value and our North Star," NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said during a Saturday press conference. "I'm grateful to both the NASA and Boeing teams for all their incredible and detailed work."

Officials with NASA and Boeing discovered helium leaks and, in turn, problems with the craft's thrusters, during Spaceliner's maiden voyage. The flight with Wilmore and Williams was to be the craft's first crewed flight after years of uncrewed tests.

"Decisions like this are never easy, but I want to commend our NASA and Boeing teams for their thorough analysis, transparent discussions, and focus on safety during the Crew Flight Test," added Ken Bowersox, associate administrator for NASA's Space Operations Mission Directorate. "We've learned a lot about the spacecraft during its journey to the station and its docked operations. We also will continue to gather more data about Starliner during the uncrewed return and improve the system for future flights to the space station."

Wilmore and Williams have been helping other astronauts with experiments aboard the International Space Station since June and will remain aboard the orbiting vessel until at least February of next year.

"Starliner is a very capable spacecraft and, ultimately, this comes down to needing a higher level of certainty to perform a crewed return," said Steve Stich, manager of NASA's Commercial Crew Program. "The NASA and Boeing teams have completed a tremendous amount of testing and analysis, and this flight test is providing critical information on Starliner's performance in space. Our efforts will help prepare for the uncrewed return and will greatly benefit future corrective actions for the spacecraft."

For additional space and cosmic stories, check out our ComicBook Invasion hub here.

Disney just gave Avatar fans a brand new look at California Adventures upcoming Avatar Land. During the Disney Experiences Presentation at D23, guests in attendance got to see a large concept spread of what this location in the theme park will look like. Now, the Disney Parks Blog has given fans an even cooler look at one of the glowing river areas from that concept art on social media, they posted about it and invited fans to hear more from their team of Imagineers. Ali Rubinstein, the executive at the head of global management-creative development for Imagineering described the surprises waiting for guests when Avatar Land finally opens up.

The Parks posted, "Journey farther into the world of Pandora at Disney's California Adventure! This destination will draw inspiration from Avatar: The Way of Water and future Avatar films bringing Pandora to life in a brand new way."

"I joined Josh on stage to dive deeper into the new space including how guests will go on the adventure of a lifetime and search for majestic natural wonders that can only be found on Pandora and the beauty - and danger - that came along with the journey," Rubinstein explained. "This new and thrilling excursion will bring all the action, excitement and wonder of Avatar, taking guests all the way to the wide open season Pandora. This is going to be a dynamic, intense and emotional experience on a grand scale that we know our guests will love."

Disney Parks Excited For Guests To See New Sides Of Pandora

Disney's California Adventure is getting some massive expansions in the coming years. D23 highlighted a good number of these. (Avengers fans rejoice because a lot is coming to Avengers Campus including Iron Man!) But, Avatar Land is clearly a point of focus for the Parks as the future unfolds down in Anaheim, California.

"We're taking our guests to a whole new location on Pandora as all of you know our land in Florida is set in a rainforest amongst the floating mountains in the Mo'ara Valley which to me feels just like we're stepping into the first Avatar film, "Ali Rubenstein told the people in attendance. "Our new destination we're inspired by the second movie The Way of Water as well as the upcoming Fire and Ash, and future Avatar films. It will be at a scale and at a level that is worthy of these epic stories. One thing I'm particularly looking forward to is an innovative new attraction that will bring all the action, all the excitement and all the wonder of Avatar to life in a completely new and thrilling way."

How do you feel about this new Avatar Land? Catch all of our pop culture discussion at @ComicBook on social media!

Subway is bringing back one of its most popular deals -- but there's a catch. On Friday, Subway announced that they will begin selling their footlong sandwiches for $6.99 starting August 26th. It's a major discount on the fan-favorite menu item, which can cost as much as $14 in some locations according to CNN. However, the deal does come with a catch: it's available only via the Subway app or website using the code 699FL and it is only available for a limited time: the deal ends September 8th.

The $6.99 footlong deal can be used on any footlong sub on the Subway menu, be it one of the brand's 22 subs in the Subway Series or a custom creation. In a statement, Subway North America president Doug Fry said the deal "means our guests can get the sandwiches they crave at a great value."

"Today's diner is stretched more than ever, and too often that means a tradeoff on quality, variety or flavor to find an affordable meal," Fry said. "At Subway, our definition of value is a mix of delicious options at the right price without compromising quality. Our menu is full of footlongs for every budget, and this new deal means our guests can get the sandwiches they crave at a great value."

In Other Food News

In other food news, Popeyes recently announced an expansion in their chicken wing line with their take on the "Swicy" trend: Sweet & Smokey Chipotle wings.

"Football is all about bringing people together, and at Popeyes, we believe that great food is at the heart of those moments," Popeyes chief marketer Bart LaCount offered in a press release. "With our new Sweet 'N Smokey Chipotle Wings and our commitment to being The Official Wing of Watching Football, we're making it easier than ever for fans to enjoy the game with a flavor-packed spread that's sure to be the MVP of any gathering. But, don't take our word for it - try for yourself."

The new wings will be available at participating locations beginning Monday, August 26th, and will be available for a limited time as supplies allow. The chain is also giving away free six-piece Sweet & Smokey orders from the 26th until September 8th with a purchase of at least $10.

The opening of Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Studios Hollywood is right around the corner, but this won't be the only nighttime event fans can look forward to on the horizon, as the park has announced today that it will be kicking off Universal Fan Fest Nights in spring 2025, allowing guests to celebrate their favorite Universal properties in all-new ways. The limited-time, after-hours experience will allow fans to immerse themselves in the worlds of Star Trek, Back to the Future, and Dungeons & Dragons, all of which will match the impressive production quality of what Universal unveils every year at Halloween Horror Nights. You can head to the Universal Fan Fest Nights official website to sign up to be able to purchase tickets.

"For decades, Universal Studios Hollywood has been a leader in creating and executing innovative special events that are consistent with our brand," Scott Strobl, Executive Vice President and General Manager of Universal Studios Hollywood, shared in a statement. "From our esteemed Halloween Horror Nights event to this all-new Universal Fan Fest Nights experience, we are thrilled about how this breakthrough program will continue to elevate the guest experience in an all-new way."

The brands being showcased are described as follows:

• Star Trek: This experience is inspired by the Star Trek universe, one of television's most enduring franchises, which is known for its groundbreaking storytelling that addresses social, political, and cultural issues as well as entertaining millions of fans. Star Trek's optimistic view of the future and reflection on what it means to be human has inspired generations of dreamers and doers.
• Back to the Future: This exciting experience is inspired by the blockbuster 1985 Back to the Future movie. The groundbreaking adventure sparked one of the most successful trilogies in film history, won an Academy award, and launched a franchise that would go on to generate almost $1 billion globally.
• Dungeons & Dragons: 2024 has been a banner year for Dungeons & Dragons (D&D). On the heels of the acclaimed film, Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves, and the smash hit video game Baldur's Gate 3, D&D is celebrating 50 years of the WORLD'S GREATEST ROLEPLAYING GAME. More than 64 million D&D fans love rolling dice, slaying monsters, and envisioning themselves as the amazing heroes they all are inside.
  

Per press release, "In spring 2025, Universal Studios Hollywood will introduce guests to Universal Fan Fest Nights, an all-new interactive and immersive separately ticketed event that brings the most compelling worlds of Sci-Fi, Fantasy, Gaming, and Anime to life from the creators of its highly acclaimed Halloween Horror Nights event."

"Featuring a slate of all-new, thrilling, and unique fan-favorite experiences, the inaugural Universal Fan Fest Nights 2025 at Universal Studios Hollywood will debut these exciting properties with more to be announced soon.

"Universal Fan Fest Nights will be a limited-time, after-hours experience, exclusive to Universal Studios Hollywood that will showcase a dynamic line-up of captivating, immersive in-world experiences along with engaging celebratory activations throughout the theme park, from live entertainment to cosplay, inviting guests to embrace their favorite characters and share their enthusiasm with like-minded fans.

"Additionally, fans can look forward to an enticing menu of themed foods and new merchandise, including collectibles, apparel, drinkware, accessories, and more, to show off their fandom during Universal Fan Fest Nights and beyond."

You can head to the Universal Fan Fest Nights official website to sign up to be able to purchase tickets.

Will you be checking out the event? Contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter or on Instagram to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

Forget pumpkin spice season; football season is upon us and now, Krispy Kreme is celebrating with a new collection -- and a brand-new collaboration. On Thursday, Krispy Kreme announced that they have teamed up with Dr Pepper for the first time for an all-new doughnut, the Dr Pepper Doughnut. The new offering is joined by the new Buttercreme Goals Doughnut and the returning, fan-favorite Football Doughnut. The new doughnuts will be available beginning Friday, August 23rd for a limited time at Krispy Kreme locations across the U.S.

The new Dr Pepper Kickoff Doughnut marks Krispy Kreme's first collaboration with Dr Pepper. The doughnut is an Original Glazed Doughnut piped with Dr Pepper flavored frosting and features a Burgundy Sprinkle Blend topped with a white chocolate Dr Pepper logo. The new Buttercreme Goals Doughnut is also an Original Glazed, this one dipped in green icing, topped with colorful sprinkles and a yellow buttercreme flavored goal post. And as for the returning favorite, the Kreme Filled Football Doughnut is an unglazed doughnut filled with white Kreme that's been dipped in chocolate icing and decorated to look like a football. The collection is available in shop for pick-up and delivery via Krispy Kreme's app and website. It can also be purchased in a Krispy Kreme custom half-dozen box delivered fresh daily to select retailers.

"Two of America's most loved flavors are about to become one amazing gameday sensation to make this the sweetest kickoff to football season ever," Dave Skena, global chief brand officer for Krispy Kreme said in a statement.

In Other Food News

In other fall-oriented food news, Starbucks also helped kickoff fall this week with the launch of their fall menu -- including the return of the Pumpkin Spice Latte. The new fall menu debuted on Thursday and saw the return of the PSL, the Pumpkin Cream Cold Brew, Iced Pumpkin Cream Chai, Apple Crisp Oatmilk Macchiato, the Iced Apple Crisp Oatmilk Shaken Espresso, and the new Iced Apple Crisp Nondairy Cream Chai. Starbucks also added two drinks to the menu for those ordering through the app, the Iced Caramel Apple Cream Latte and the Iced Honey Appel Almondmilk Flat White.

Krispy Kreme's new Krispy Kreme x Dr Pepper Kickoff Collection will be available for a limited time beginning Friday, August 23rd.

With August coming to an end, that means the "-ber" months are coming and with them, that means October and Halloween will be here before we know it. The spookiest time of year is about to be upon is and for the fifth year in a row, Ferrero is back to help countdown to what is, for some the best holiday of the year -- and for a good cause. On Thursday, Ferrero announced their fifth annual 31 Days of Halloween Countdown Calendar benefitting Children's Miracle Network Hospitals.

For those unfamiliar, the 31 Days of Halloween Countdown Calendar functions similarly to an advent calendar. Each day offers up a little treat for fans as they make their way towards Halloween. From October 1st through Halloween, families open a little calendar door each day to reveal a treat from Ferrero's confection and cookie brands. This year's brands include Butterfinger, CRUNCH, Baby Ruth, 100Grand, Kinder Bueno, Kinder Joy, Kinder Chocolate, Tic Tac, Nutella & GO!, Keebler, Mother's Cookies, and Fannie May.

To get your hands on one of these 31 Days of Halloween Countdown Calendars, here's what you need to know. The calendars will be available in three drops: September 3, September 10, and September 17 on Instagram @FerreroNACorp and @cmnhospitals. The drops will be in limited quantities. Once the drop goes live, fans just need to go to FerreroHalloween.com and donate $31 or more to receive the calendar. They're available while supplies last.

"Halloween is an exciting time for our business and each year presents a bigger, better opportunity for us to lead with new innovations while bringing back fan favorites," said Jim Klein, Chief Customer Officer, Ferrero USA. "Not only does this shake up the aisle and help grow the confections category, but it gives us the opportunity to help new and loyal consumers celebrate Halloween all month long, while also supporting local hospitals that change the lives of children every day."

"We are incredibly thankful for partners like Ferrero who continue to support our vision to change kids' health to change the future," said Aimee J. Daily, Ph.D., President and CEO of Children's Miracle Network Hospitals. "Ferrero's commitment to engaging local communities ensures that our children's hospitals have the resources to provide top-notch care for kids. We hope this year's exciting calendar product drops will not only generate more buzz but also help us raise essential funds. We're looking forward to spreading even more smiles this Halloween season and beyond."

Guillermo del Toro may be known for his films that lean towards the spooky and the macabre, but now the filmmaker is dealing with something a little freaky in real life -- and he's live-tweeting it. On Social media, del Toro has been documenting what can only be called a ghost hunt after noting unusual occurrences at the hotel he's staying at in Aberdeen, Scotland while filming Frankenstein, occurrences that reportedly prompted one of his producers into leaving.

"Whilst in Aberdeen, I am staying in an old 1800's hotel," del Toro wrote. "I am in the Most Haunted room of it -- which was vacated this morning by one of our producers. Odd electrical and physical occurrences scared her into leaving asap. Stay tuned -- if anything happens, I will report."

Whilst in Aberdeen, I am staying in an old 1800's hotel. i am in the Most Haunted room of it- which was vacated this morning by one of our producers. Odd electrical and physical occurences scared her into leaving asap. Stay tuned- if anything happens I will report.

-- Guillermo del Toro (@RealGDT) August 20, 2024

"I always stay in 'the most haunted rooms' but only once did I experience anything supernatural -- the rest of the time: nothing. I have high hopes. I love Scotland -- and even when my links to it are not by bloodline, I feel close to it," he continued. "My mother's family side has lineage going to Ireland -- the O'Colligan family. My Grandfather (after whom I am named) was Guillermo Gomez O'Colligan."

Del Toro updated followers on the situation on Thursday, writing that nothing had happened -- yet -- but the room has an "oppressive" atmosphere and he will be sleeping in another room.

"UPDATE -- I can only say nothing has happened yet, but the atmosphere in the room is oppressive and I am not gonna spend much more time in there," he wrote. "It may be suggestion, but at this point I kept it but am sleeping in another room -- I need 6 hours of sleep to have a good shooting day -- I'm stopping there early and late in the day -- but something is in that room with me... If anything happens or nothing does expect one or two more updates."

Subsequent updates has seen del Toro share a photo of the mirror in Room #4 (the room in question) as well as note that "the room has more than vibes, there is something angry and territorial there. A shred of rage." The most recent update as of this article's writing was that del Toro was attempting an EVP (or electronic voice phenomenon) on his iPhone.

Del Toro is currently in Scotland to shoot Frankenstein. The film stars Oscar Isaac, Christoph Walz, Mia Goth, and Jacob Elordi and production on the film kicked off earlier this year. According to del Toro's frequent collaborator and producing partner J. Miles Dale, the filmmaker is working on making his own little Monster Universe between Pretorius, the working name for this new Frankenstein film, and The Shape of Water.

"At one time, he was going to do the Monster Universe with Universal -- Frankenstein's Bride, Creature from the Black Lagoon, Invisible Man, The Wolf Man -- and he didn't," Dale previously explained to The Academy. "We feel like Shape of Water was kind of a version of a creature. So now, here he is doing his own Monster Universe."

"In the last couple of films, certainly with Nightmare Alley and then with Pinocchio, we've dealt with the whole father-son relationship. And Guillermo and I both lost our fathers in the last few years. When you have a strong father figure, it's a big part of our lives," Dale continued. "This version of Frankenstein very much goes down that thematic road. So, I feel like this is the third film in Guillermo's father trilogy. That's exciting, and when you read the script, it's very emotional and, of course, very iconic."

Guillermo del Toro's Frankenstein movie has yet to set a release date. Keep checking with ComicBook for updates on the filmmaker's ghost hunt.

Earlier this month, Punkie Johnson announced that she was leaving Saturday Night Live after four seasons on the sketch comedy series, departing ahead of SNL's landmark 50th season. Now, Johnson is opening about her departure, revealing that she opted to leave Saturday Night Live because she didn't feel like she fit the series. During an appearance on the Fly on the Wall podcast (vial The Hollywood Reporter) with SNL alums Dana Carvey and David Spade, she explained that she almost left before Season 49 but was convinced by her team to stay.

"I talked to my team. I was like, 'Look, I don't really know if I belong at this job, so maybe I should step away," Johnson said, explaining that they convinced her to stay, telling her, "'You need a plan. You can't just quit your job.'"

Johnson went on to explain that the first part of Season 49 ended up being very good for her with her getting three or four sketches in the first half as opposed to the two or three she usually got in an entire season, but things changed when her writer, Ben Silva, left SNL because he "just knew how to speak Punkie".

"So, if I was telling him something, he knew how to put it in SNL format for me," she said. "If I try to put it in SNL format, that's the hard part."

Johnson went on to explain that she just didn't feel like she fit on the series generally and that SNL is for "a different type of person".

"I didn't really feel like I fit, like I didn't feel like that was my zone," she said. "That show is for a different type of person. I came from stand-up, so I just thought everybody else came from stand-up. I started having conversations with people and everybody was like, 'Oh yeah, we went to school for this,' I'm like, y'all went to school to be here?'"

Johnson first joined the cast of Saturday Night Live in 2020 and announced her departure during a stand-up comedy show at Brooklyn's Union Hall earlier this month. She later followed up with a social media post explaining that there was "no bad blood".

"After four seasons, I will not be returning to SNL for the 50th," Johnson wrote. "It's no bad blood, it's not bridges burned, it's no hard feelings. Bro, I love my people! I didn't think none of this was going to be a big deal."

"SNL was a dream I didn't even know I that I could achieve. I was a part of one of the most elite institutions in comedy, and I am so grateful for it. That's still my people. I love them. I'm gonna be at the after parties acting a plumb fool! My time now has come to an end, and, um, Punkie outside now, y'all."

Molly Kearny is Also Not Returning for Season 50

Johnson isn't the only cast member who is not returning for Season 50 of Saturday Night Live. Molly Kearny also announced earlier this month that they are not coming back next season. Kearny is the first non-binary cast member in the show's history.

"Y'all that's a wrap on my time on SNL! Reflecting on the amazing 2 seasons I got on this show, it was such a dream come true. So incredibly grateful for this period in my life. So much love to all my big-hearted buddies behind the scenes who make the magic happen every week. So many bald caps, so little time. It was a true honor to work with such a talented group of writers and DON'T EVEN GET ME STARTED ON THE CAST. Special shout out to my day 1 crew @marcellohdz @internetdevon and @longfellow_michael. Head up and heart out! Harold forever!!!!!" Kearney captioned their social media post announcing their departure.

Season 50 of Saturday Night Live is set to premiere on September 28th.

Star Wars: The Acolyte being canceled after one season doesn't seem to be enough for Disney and Lucasfilm: Fans are now noticing that the entire line of merchandising for The Acolyte has been pulled from the Disney Store, following the cancelation. A fan on Reddit posted an image of a Disney Store search for The Acolyte, which quickly went viral as people speculated (or simply jumped to conclusions) about what it meant. However, like so many things in business, it may not be the nefarious cutthroat move some fans want to see it as.

All merchandise for 'THE ACOLYTE' has been removed from Disney's online store
by u/Aileos in StarWars

According to the receipts, some commenters are dropping, The Acolyte merch that was offered exclusively through the Disney Store was limited-release material, only. That means that it wouldn't be out of left field for Disney to pull the material after the show's run when demand for the merchandise would go through a natural drop-off. It's also worthy of note that these Acolyte merchandising materials are no longer available in the Disney Store - but are certainly obtainable elsewhere. Case in point: The helmet worn by dark side warrior "The Stranger" (aka Manny Jacinto's character Qimir) is probably THE most iconic thing to come out of The Acolyte - and it is certainly still available for fans to purchase from places like Amazon and Entertainment Earth.

There's a fair reason that Star Wars fans are feeling paranoid about how Disney is handling The Acolyte. The announcement that the series has been canceled was a rare public drubbing from Lucasfilm, which has been typically closed-mouthed about the futures of Disney+ series like The Book of Boba Fett or Obi-Wan. Fans pretty much know that those series are probably not coming back - but there's been no official confirmation of it. So for Lucasfilm to outright tell us that Acolyte is done can be read as the studio is not only pulling investment in the series but almost distancing the franchise from it. It smells similar to what Lucasfilm did after seeing the response to Rian Johnson's Star Wars: The Last Jedi; the studio did an almost 180? turn with the next film, J.J. Abrams' Rise of Skywalker, which almost went out of its way to invalidate everything that Johnson's film tried to do with the franchise lore.

Star Wars has never been able to bridge the divide that was created between The Last Jedi and The Rise of Skywalker - or restore faith that Lucasfilm has enough confidence in its material to weather any kind of blowback from fans. With The Acolyte's cancelation, Lucasfilm isn't doing anything to reverse that negative perception.

You can still stream Star Wars: The Acolyte on Disney+, and order items of merchandise online from various sellers (just not Disney).

Walt Disney World has made some changes to Peter Pan's Flight, a ride that has been around since 1955 at Disneyland, with the company planning to carry the changes over the the older ride soon. The "tribe scene," in which Tiger Lily and a number of Native Americans were seated alongside a chief while braves played drums, has been updated. The headress-wearing chief has been removed, and the war paint has disappeared from the rest of the tribe members, who are now wearing more period-accurate Native American clothing. Tiger Lily and her mom are now standing and dancing, rather than seated beside the men.

The Disney podcast Chip & Company (via Deadline) got the first look online. You can see it below.

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Disney told Deadline that they are constantly taking feedback, and that when an opportunity arises to make their attractions "more authentic and relatable," they ty to take it. The changes made the the ride apparently took about a month to implement, during which time Peter Pan's Flight was closed. Disney has not said when the Disneyland version will get its facelift.

While Disney's Peter Pan has been beloved by fans for generations, even in the early 20th Century, some were critical of the scene featuring Tiger Lily and her fellow "Picaninnies"(what the characters were called in J.M. Barrie's original novel). Per a 2014 article by Smithsonian Magazine, Barrie's depiction of the Picaninnies was already being criticized by the time Peter Pan came out in theaters.

Recently, Disney unveiled Tiana's Bayou Adventure, an update of their fan-favorite Splash Mountain attraction. Removing elements from Song of the South, a movie Disney took out of circulation decades ago, Tiana's Bayou Adventure replaced those elements with characters and story beats from The Princess and the Frog.

After years of being lobbied by a small but dedicated number of fans to remove the ride's Song of the South characters and theming -- the film contains numerous racist caricatures of Black people and has been all but disavowed by Disney, with no official release in decades -- the company finally made the move after the 2020 police killing of George Floyd sparked a nationwide conversation about how pervasive racism is in everyday American life. The new ride is already in place at Walt Disney World, with the Tiana's Bayou Adventure update slated to hit Disneyland in November.

Before the ride was opened in 1989, then-CEO Michael Eisner, who had already started distancing the company from Song of the South, didn't like the original, planned name (the Zip-A-Dee River Run) and wanted to tie the ride to Splash, the hugely successful 1984 film in which Tom Hanks falls in love with a mermaid played by Daryl Hannah. Eisner's note was mostly ignored, except for the name change, but it seems likely that the Zip-A-Dee name and the more explicit ties to Song of the South might have hastened changes to the ride. On the other hand, if they had more fully embraced Splash, it likely would have been changed much sooner, since while the film remains loved by many, it's hardly thought of in the same way that Disney's animated classics are.

Popeyes' ever-expanding chicken wing line is growing by one. Thursday, the fast-food joint announced the imminent arrival and its Sweet & Smokey Chipotle wings, the chain's take on the increasingly "Swicy" trend combining sweet and spicy flavors. The arrival of Sweet & Smokey Chicken Wings coincides with Popeyes' big wings push around the start of the football season.

"Football is all about bringing people together, and at Popeyes, we believe that great food is at the heart of those moments," Popeyes chief marketer Bart LaCount offered in a press release. "With our new Sweet 'N Smokey Chipotle Wings and our commitment to being The Official Wing of Watching Football, we're making it easier than ever for fans to enjoy the game with a flavor-packed spread that's sure to be the MVP of any gathering. But, don't take our word for it - try for yourself."

The new wings will be available at participating locations beginning Monday, August 26th, and will be available for a limited time as supplies allow. The chain is also giving away free six-piece Sweet & Smokey orders from the 26th until September 8th with a purchase of at least $10.

This time last year, Popeyes launched a massive chicken wings promotion that resulted in the snacks becoming a permanent fixture on the chain's menu.

"At Popeyes, we like to challenge the status quo and are consistently redefining what's expected from fast food brands" Sami Siddiqui, President of Popeyes North America, said at the time. "Ghost Pepper Wings were an overnight success, followed by the addition of Sweet 'N Spicy wings, our best performing product since the infamous Chicken Sandwich. We know our guests want even more bold Louisiana-inspired wing flavors to choose from and are excited to see our new wings line-up take flight."

Hello Kitty fans -- and snack fans -- get excited: Goldfish's limited-edition Hello Kitty Strawberry Shortcake Flavored Grahams are coming back. This week, Goldfish announced that the flavor, which was released late last year ahead of Hello Kitty's 50th anniversary,https://comicbook.com/irl/news/hello-kitty-gets-limited-edition-goldfish-for-50th-anniversary/ is making a comeback and this time the special sweet treat is getting an expanded release so that fans everywhere can celebrate Hello Kitty's milestone year in style.

The Goldfish. Hello Kitty Strawberry Shortcake Flavored Grahams were the fastest-selling limited-time offering in the brand's history, according to Goldfish -- they sold out in just 90 minutes -- and have had a pretty strong fan demand ever since. Now, they're returning to store shelves in September with a suggested retail price of $3.69 per 6.1 oz bag.

The grahams were described at the time of their original release as being inspired by one of Hello Kitty's favorite treats. The grahams come in both the classic Goldfish shape as well as a Hello Kitty shape and feature notes of vanilla as well as a hint of sweetness in each bite.

Hello Kitty Isn't Actually A Cat

While Hello Kitty is an iconic character that has brought joy to millions for the past 50 years, it was recently confirmed that the iconic Sanrio character is not actually a feline as many have long assumed. It turns out Hello Kitty is actually a little girl. In interview earlier this year, anthropologist Christine R. Yano confirmed that Sanrio has shot down the idea that Hello Kitty is an albino feline.

"That's one correction Sanrio made for my script for the show. Hello Kitty is not a cat. She's a cartoon character. She is a little girl. She is a friend. But she is not a cat. She's never depicted on all fours. She walks and sits like a two-legged creature. She does have a pet cat of her own, however, and it's called Charmmy Kitty."

Goldfish. Hello Kitty Strawberry Shortcake Flavored Grahams return for a limited time this September.

Dragon Ball really shook things up when it introduced gods to its multiverse, and one awesome cosplay is helping to do it all over again with the God of Destruction Beerus. Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods revealed that there were a line of gods above all of the higher plane beings we had seen before, and they were much stronger than anyone that Goku had fought to that point. While he was able to reach a point of peace with the god at the end of the film, it was really only the tip of the iceberg of the kinds of characters and fights we'd see from that point on.

Beerus' introduction to Dragon Ball really made some monumental changes to the franchise that fans are still enjoying to this day, and opened up a whole new multiverse of potential stories for Goku and the others to explore for the years to come. As Dragon Ball prepares to celebrate its 40th anniversary, it's from this point on that fans will look back on as a truly game changing time. Artist artistjodysteel on Instagram is helping to celebrate that fact with some godly Beerus cosplay on Instagram. Check it out:

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A post shared by Jo Steel (@artistjodysteel)

What's Next for Dragon Ball?

Dragon Ball is coming back in a big way later this year with Dragon Ball Daima, a brand new anime series currently set to release some time later this Fall to help celebrate the franchise's 40th anniversary. It has yet to confirm a concrete release date as of the time of this publication, but the late Dragon Ball creator Akira Toriyama helped to craft the original main story and character designs for Dragon Ball Daima. Yoshitaka Yashima and Aya Komaki are directing the series for Toei Animation, Katsuyoshi Nakatsuru is adapting Toriyama's designs for animation, and Yuuko Kakihara is supervising and writing the scripts.

Masako Nozawa is returning to the anime to once again provide the voice for Kid Goku, and she is currently the only confirmed member of Dragon Ball Daima's voice cast announced so far. Akira Toriyama previously teased the original story for Dragon Ball Daima as such before his passing, "Due to a conspiracy, Goku and his friends are turned small. In order to fix things, they'll head off to a new world! It's a grand adventure with intense action in an unknown and mysterious world. Since Goku has to make up for his petite size, he uses his Power Pole to fight, something not seen in a long time."

Netflix has enlisted viral TikToker Jools LeBron to curate a "demure, mindful" row of shows and movies for fans to jump on. The streaming brand's social media accounts posted a video where she walked people through her selections while parodying the, now ever present, "demure" trend. Jools has some fan favorites in there like Gilmore Girls, Bridgerton, Emily in Paris, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Crazy Rich Asians, Ugly Betty, Queer Eye, Big Brother and La La Land just to name a few. You can check out all of her selections in those nicely organized rows right here.

"You see how I watch my Netflix. I don't do crazy like these other girls. I have a row. I keep it very organized. I don't do messy like these girls. I keep it very mindful with my row on Netflix. I make sure all of my shows are in one spot for my divas to watch," Jools said. "I make some very demure choices. And I make some very mindful choices. I put all my favorite shows on one spot, so my divas know exactly what I like to watch on Netflix. I don't say go look here, go look there. No, I keep it very organized, very demure, very mindful of why we're on Netflix."

Jools Lebron On The Viral Trend Taking Off

As the trend has skyrocketed through the For You Pages of everyone on Earth, the social media star is capitalizing on that moment. Jools joined CBS News to discuss the TikTok phenomenon in earnest. ( some of the people tuning in probably are wondering where all this talk of demure came from.) Luckily, the woman who got us rolling is there to help.

"Your demure is what it means to you. It's being mindful and considerate of the people around you, but also of yourself and how you present to the world," she told the morning show. "I was like, let's go very natural. Let's not do too much. So then I was like, I don't show up to the first day with a green cut crease. I don't show up looking like a clown, but I was really referencing how I had shown up at another job."

"We're all in this; we're unified, like nothing has to be so serious. Nothing has to be so aggressive. Like everything could just be very cute. Where, you know, we don't do too much. We only do a little bit. I'm not crazy with it. I'm very demure,"

Have you seen this TikTok trend everywhere? Catch all of our pop culture discussion at @ComicBook on social media!

Richard Simmons died after multiple falls at his home, the late fitness guru's family said Wednesday. In a statement the family released through its spokesperson Tom Estey, it was revealed Simmons' death has been ruled accidental as a result of the falls, with heart disease being listed as a contributing factor.

"This morning, Richard Simmons' brother Lenny, received a call from the LA Coroner's office. The Coroner informed Lenny that Richard's death was accidental due to complications from recent falls and heart disease as a contributing factor," Estey wrote in the statement (via Entertainment Weekly).

The statement added, "The toxicology report was negative other than medication Richard had been prescribed. The Family wishes to thank everyone for their outpouring of love and support during this time of great loss."

When did Richard Simmons die?

Simmons was found dead at his residence on July 13th after first responders arrived due to a 911 call. He was 76.

Although Simmons spent the final years of his life out of the public eye, the fitness icon granted PEOPLE Magazine an interview just two days before his death. In it, Simmons touched on the idea of passing away.

"How do you deal with loss? It takes a toll on your heart. Some shed many tears, others stare at the sky. It's so hard to say goodbye. Here is what I know: When it's time for us to go, beautiful angels will greet us with a smile and a hello," Simmons said in the interview. "When I decided to retire, it was because my body told me I needed to retire. I have spent time just reflecting on my life. All of the books I wrote, the videos. I never was like, 'Oh look what I've done.' My thing was, 'Oh, look how many people I helped.'"

Is the Richard Simmons biopic still happening?

It has yet to be unveiled if Pauly Shore is still going through with his unauthorized Richard Simmons biopic after the latter's death. The actor didn't touch on the topic in his Twitter memorial the day after Simmons' passing.

"I just got word like everyone else that the beautiful Richard Simmons has passed," Shore wrote on Twitter. "I hope you're at peace and twinkling up in the heavens. Please give my mother Mitzi and my father Sammy a big hug and a kiss for me. You're one of a kind, Richard. An amazing life. An amazing story. They broke the dolphin shorts when they made you. Rest in peace, my friend. Rest in peace."

Temperatures may still be fairly warm in many parts of the country, but fall is officially here -- at least when it comes to food and drink. This season, all things pumpkin spice have been popping up earlier than they ever have before, prompting many fans of the beloved flavor to wonder when Starbucks would roll out the iconic Pumpkin Spice Latte and make things official and well, that time is now. On Wednesday, Starbucks announced the return of the Pumpkin Spice Latte on Thursday, August 22nd -- the earliest date yet. And of course, it's not coming back alone. Starbucks also announced its full fall lineup as well, including some returning favorites and some new treats as well.

First and foremost, the Pumpkin Spice Latte is back this year for its 21st year. The drink, which debuted in 2003, features real pumpkin and is made with Starbucks signature espresso, steamed milk and the flavors of pumpkin, cinnamon, nutmeg and clove topped with whipped cream and pumpkin pie spices. It's available hot, iced, or blended. Joining the PSL in the returning beverage category are two other pumpkin-themed favorites: Pumpkin Cream Cold Brew and Iced Pumpkin Cream Chai. Pumpkin Cream Cold Brew features Starbucks Cold Brew sweetened with vanilla syrup topped with pumpkin cream cold foam and pumpkin spice topping while the Iced Pumpkin Cream Chai brings together spiced chair with pumpkin cream cold foam and pumpkin spice topping.

Not a pumpkin person? Apple is big this season as well. Returning for Fall 2024 is the Apple Crips Oatmilk Macchiato, a layered drink featuring flavors of apple, cinnamon and brown sugar with rich espresso and creamy oatmilk topped with spiced apple drizzle that comes hot and iced. There is also the Iced Apple Crisp Oatmilk Shaken Espresso. New this year is the Iced Apple Crisp Nondairy Cream Chai that combines chai with creamy oatmilk topped with a nondairy apple crisp cold foam.

"We are excited to introduce the new Iced Apple Crisp Nondairy Cream Chai to our customers," Rosalyn Batingan, Starbucks beverage developer, said in a statement. "This beverage perfectly captures the taste and feeling of fall. We have combined creamy oatmilk with notes of cinnamon, clove and other warm baking spices from our chai tea to compliment the layered flavors of apple, cinnamon and brown sugar which are infused into the nondairy cold foam topping."

Starbucks also has two additional fall drinks on the menu -- but only for those ordering through the app. Those drinks are the Iced Caramel Apple Cream Latte and the Iced Honey Apple Almondmilk Flat White. On the snack side of things, the Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffin is back for the season and it's joined by an adorable sweet treat: the new Raccoon Cake Pop. The Raccoon Cake Pop is features vanilla cake and buttercream dipped in chocolaty icing and yes, it looks like a little raccoon.

All of the new fall menu items will be available at Starbucks beginning on Thursday, August 22nd while supplies last for a limited time.

In Other Pumpkin Spice News

As was noted above, pumpkin spice season kicked off earlier than ever this year and Starbucks isn't the first brand to bring the beloved favorite back out. 7-Eleven rolled out their fall beverages earlier this month and even released a first of its kind Pumpkin Spice Slurpee in select locations. Hefty recently brought back their viral scented trash bags for the season as well and Dunkin' is rolling out their first-ever limited season offering in their Dunkin' Spiked line, the Dunkin' Spiked Pumpkin Spice Iced Latte.

Keep checking back with ComicBook for updates on all things pumpkin spice this season!

It's an exciting day to be a Buffy the Vampire Slayer fan. Not only was it announced that a new line of Buffy Funko Pops is coming for the first time since 2017, but there's also a Buffy pop-up experience heading to Chicago. Bucket Listers, the media brand behind some of the biggest pop-up restaurants and events, is celebrating Halloween this year with an immersive activation that will be a "combination of equal parts cocktail bar, restaurant, training ground, and haunted house, molded into a one of a kind, over-the-top evening."

Every ticket to the Buffy experience includes a welcome blood bag cocktail, 90-minute reservations that "will allow you enough time to become the next slayer," stake-throwing (which is based on availability), and food from Buffy Summers' former place of employment, the Doublemeat Palace. You can read Bucket Listers' official description of the event below:

"In every generation, there is a chosen one. Do you have what it takes to become the next slayer? Join the Scooby Gang and step into the world of Buffy. The immersive activation will be a combination of equal parts cocktail bar, restaurant, training ground and haunted house decor, molded into a one of a kind, over-the-top evening. A true celebration of all things Buffy.

Begin your journey with a trip through a full recreation of the hallowed halls and storied library of Sunnydale High, before sneaking their way through the dark depths of the treacherous Hellmouth. Every slayer in training will get the chance to prove their worthy skills via wooden stake-throwing lanes, and the opportunity to fight off a gang of vampires scattered throughout the rooftop Restfield Cemetery."

More Special Buffy-Themed Events Coming From Bucket Listers:

The Buffy pop-up isn't the only thing to look forward to from Bucket Listers. The Chicago experience will also include some special events. A "spooky vibe brunch" will be available every Saturday and Sunday morning at the pop-up, and a special Halloween party will take place on October 26th. You can read a description of the "Vampires Vs. Slayers 90's Halloween Party" below:

"This one night event that takes place on Saturday October 26th, includes 2 drinks, 2 hours of nonstop 90s jams, and access to our 2 story haunted venue (including our foggy rooftop cemetary). Are you a vampire or a slayer? Don your best attire for a chance to win big during our costume contest. Grab your tickets at our early bird pricing, now only $29!"

You can learn more about the Buffy pop-up here.

Chick-fil-A may be known as one of the masters of the fast-food chicken business - but what about as a media brand? In a move few would've guessed, Chick-fil-A has revealed plans to launch its own streaming platform, complete with a slate of original programming to populate it. Yes, you heard that correctly: Chick-fil-Ais getting into the streaming business alongside Netflix, Disney+, Amazon Prime Video and all the others.

According to trade reports "the fast-food firm has been working with a number of major production companies, including some of the studios, to create family-friendly shows, particularly in the unscripted space. It is also in talks to license and acquire content." That translates to family-friendly programming and reality shows being the primary focus of what Chick-fil-Ais developing in terms of originals - although there is mention that "there's also talk of scripted projects and animation."

The reports not that creators and production companies that are already developing content for Chick-fil-A's platform - that list includes "a family-friendly gameshow from Glassman Media, the company behind NBC's The Wall" - as well as a ten-episode order for a series from Netflix's 13 Reasons Why executive producer Michael Suger and his Sugar23 imprint. Brian Gibson (Top Gear, The X Factor) is reportedly in charge of developing the programming; reported budgets for the shows sit about $400K for a half-hour program.

It will be interesting to see how Chick-fil-A brands this streaming service: Will it directly reflect the name and branding imagery of the restaurant? Or create an independent streaming platform brand, which is backed by the restaurant?

The latter might be more shrewd than the former: Chick-fil-A is already something of a cultural lightning rod, given the strong religious beliefs of its founder, Samuel Truett Cathy (1921-2014), who was a devout Southern Baptist. That belief system dictates some considerable parts of Chick-fil-A's business model - namely having restaurants closed on Sundays, as well as on Thanksgiving and Christmas, and promoting fish sandwiches during Lent. The biggest "controversy" was the company's public opposition to same-sex marriages, which came to a head in the 2010s and resulted in Chick-fil-A revising its donation practices so as not to include certain groups that LGBTQ+ activists felt were discriminatory. There will be fair question as to whether or not the programming Chick-fil-A puts out doubles as promotion of its cultural values - which could end up being a strong hook for its marketing, or a major impediment to its growth potential.

No official word on when the Chick-fil-A streaming service will be launching.

This year's Six Flag Fright Fest looks to be its biggest celebration of the Halloween season in history, as it's pulling out all the stops to deliver immersive experiences inspired by beloved Hollywood properties. One of the most exciting haunted houses that fans are looking forward to is one based on 2022's Texas Chainsaw Massacre, with Six Flags having released new details about the house as well as concept art that teases what fans can expect. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre haunted house will open at Six Flags Great Adventure and Six Flags Over Texas in September, as Fright Fest runs through November 3rd.

"We're thrilled to partner with Six Flags for the first-ever haunted maze experience of Netflix's and Legendary's Texas Chainsaw Massacre at this year's Fright Fest extravaganza. Get ready for an unforgettable, heart-pounding adventure where the scares and thrills won't hold back!" Amado Trevino, Director of Interactive Media & Experiences at Legendary Entertainment, shared in a statement.

The experience is described, "In this forgotten corner of Texas, secrets are buried deep, and the tales they don't speak of come to life. They dismiss it as the ramblings of an old timer, but some laugh knowing the dark truth that lurks beneath: the face of madness has returned, Leatherface lives. In this new experience based on the 2022 Netflix & Legendary Entertainment's Texas Chainsaw Massacre guests are cast as visitors to Harlow on the heels of the influencers set on revitalizing the town. However, the dilapidated windows conceal a horrifying secret: the worst kind of monster haunts Harlow, and your arrival has driven him to slaughter. As parkgoers navigate Harlow, they will step into iconic scenes from the film, including the barn, sunflower field, the 'crawl of death' and 'dead street,' before facing the epic final showdown with one of horror's most notorious killers: Leatherface."

During this year's Fright Fest, guests will also have the option to be transported into the eerie realms of Netflix's Stranger Things and Army of the Dead, Legendary Entertainment's Trick R'Treat, Lionsgate's SAW, as well as Warner Bros./New Line's The Conjuring universe.

Attractions vary by location, so be sure to check the official Six Flags website for details.

Are you looking forward to the experience? Contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter or on Instagram to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

More than 30 years after audiences first met the "Ghost with the Most" in the original Beetlejuice, Michael Keaton is reviving the beloved character for Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, which Denny's diner will be celebrating by resurrecting its Value Menu. These deals are more than enough reason to be excited to head to the restaurant, but Denny's is also honoring the character with all-new items in its Afterlife Menu, celebrating various "freakishly good" flavors. Both the Value Menu and Afterlife Menu are currently available at Denny's locations nationwide. Beetlejuice Beetlejuice will be landing in theaters on September 6th.

"Bringing back the $2 $4 $6 $8 Value Menu with innovative new dishes and launching the new Afterlife Menu allows us to offer our guests great food at unbeatable prices, as they immerse themselves in the scary-delicious world of Beetlejuice Beetlejuice," Patty Trevino, Denny's chief brand officer, shared in a statement. "Whether you're a Beetlejuice superfan or simply looking for delicious, affordable options, we're confident there's something on the menus for everyone to fill their cravings -- without emptying their wallets."

The new items on the Afterlife Menu are described:

• The Afterlife Melt: The eternal flavor is back! This triple cheese threat features fried mozzarella sticks and melted American and Provolone cheeses grilled between two slices of artisan bread. It is served with tomato sauce for dipping and wavy-cut fries.
• Beetlejuicy Burger: Invoke freakishly good flavor with three-quarter-pound patties, three strips of crispy bacon, and three slices of Provolone cheese topped with signature Diner Q sauce, pickles, onions, tomatoes, and lettuce stacked high on a golden Brioche bun and served with wavy-cut fries.
• Cookies 'N' Scream Shake: Shake, but not from fear, with this treat made with premium vanilla ice cream, OREO cookie pieces, topped with whipped cream, more OREO cookie pieces, and green sprinkles.
  

The Value Menu breaks down as follows:

Starting at $2

• Add a stack of two signature, fluffy buttermilk pancakes to any meal.
• Add two slices of Brioche French Toast to any meal.

Starting at $4

• Add a slice of New York York-style cheesecake, available plain or topped with strawberry topping and whipped cream, to any meal.
• Add two Choconana pancakes stuffed with HERSHEY'S chocolate chips and topped with fresh bananas and more chocolate chips to any meal.

Starting at $6

• All You Can Eat Pancakes: Bring your appetite for endless stacks of our signature buttermilk pancakes.
• Everyday Value Slam: Choose two buttermilk pancakes, two slices of Brioche French Toast, or biscuits & gravy. Served with two eggs made to order, plus two crispy bacon strips or two sausage links.

Starting at $8

• NEW! Say it Three Times Slam: A brand NEW, scary-good dish, inspired by Beetlejuice Beetlejuice. This bio-exorcist-approved breakfast comes with three silver-dollar chocolate chip pancakes topped with vanilla cream, chocolate sauce, chocolate chips, and green sprinkles. Served with three eggs cooked your way and three strips of crispy bacon.
• Grilled Cheese with Soup or Salad: A blend of American, white cheddar, and Provolone cheeses on toasted artisan bread, served with a bowl of soup or side salad.
• Classic Burger with Fries: An all-beef patty topped with fresh lettuce, tomatoes, red onion, and pickles on a Brioche bun, served with wavy-cut fries.
• Super Slam: Two buttermilk pancakes served with eggs made to order, crispy bacon strips, sizzling sausage links, and hashbrowns.

Starting $10

• Loaded Breakfast Sandwich Bundle: An all-pork sausage patty, an egg cooked-to-order, two strips of crispy bacon, white cheddar, and American cheese stacked on a Brioche bun. Served with crispy hash browns and a cup of hot coffee.
• Chicken Tenders & Fries: Five premium chicken tenders with a choice of dipping sauce and served with wavy-cut fries.
• Mama's Fried Chicken House Salad: Fried chicken tenders, fresh cucumbers, grape tomatoes, cheddar cheese, and croutons atop a bed of iceberg mix. Served with your choice of dressing.

Denny's Afterlife Menu will be available in stores and online until October 29th. Beetlejuice Beetlejuice lands in theaters on September 6th.

Will you be checking out the new menu items? Contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter or on Instagram to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez are reportedly calling it quits again. On Tuesday, a report from TMZ claimed that Lopez has filed for divorce from Affleck, electing to do so herself instead of through a lawyer or attorney. According to their reporting, Lopez has elected to waive spousal support, and the divorce documents do not make it clear whether or not the couple signed a prenuptial agreement. Lopez's documents were filed with the Los Angeles Superior Court on Tuesday, August 20th, which happens to be the two-year anniversary of the couple's 2022 wedding ceremony.

Rumors had begun to swirl earlier this summer that Affleck and Lopez were calling it quits, with a source confirming to People earlier this month that the couple were "moving on separately" from each other.

"Jennifer is trying to find a new home to start fresh," the source said, adding, "Considering everything that's going on, Jennifer is having a good summer. She's been off and able to focus on what's next. She's enjoyed spending time with her kids, family and friends. She always has good attitude even when things are not perfect."

Affleck and Lopez first met on the set of the infamous box office flop Gigli in 2002, getting engaged later that year before ultimately postponing their planned wedding. The pair first broke up in early 2004, remaining friends until they rekindled their relationship in 2021.

"It was so painful after we broke up," Lopez told Zane Lowe on Apple Music 1. "Once we called off that wedding 20 years ago, it was the biggest heartbreak of my life. I honestly felt like I was going to die. It sent me on a spiral for the next 18 years where I just couldn't get it right. But now, 20 years later, it does have a happy ending. It has the most would-never-happen-in-Hollywood ending."

Affleck and Lopez were later married on July 16, 2022, holding the ceremony in Georgia a month later for their friends and family. The pair have attended multiple red carpets together and also appeared in each other's work, with Affleck playing an instrumental role in Lopez's musical documentary This Is Me... Now: A Love Story, and Lopez cameoing in Affleck's "DunKings" Super Bowl commercial campaign for Dunkin'. Affleck was previously married to his former Daredevil co-star Jennifer Garner, while Lopez has been married three times prior to Affleck.

Deadpool & Wolverine continues to dominate and now the title character is joining the Avengers, just not how you would think. Disney Cruise Line announced Avengers Assemble!, an entertainment experience aboard the Disney Adventure cruise ship. There are three massive LED screens, special effects and more headed to the Garden Stage in 2025. On the Disney Adventure, guests can venture towards the Disney Imagination Garden to meet up with their favorite heroes. Of course, Deadpool wouldn't be rolling solo into this mission. Familiar faces like Captain America and Spider-Man will be there too. Here's what Disney Parks Blog had to say about the latest addition.

"Making his grand Disney Cruise Line debut, Deadpool will be among a legendary line-up of Marvel Super Heroes and Villains who take the stage in Avengers Assemble!," they wrote. "This epic entertainment experience will feature jaw-dropping stunts and unbelievable special effects during an action-packed battle of good vs. evil."

"During the show, guests will witness first-hand the unbelievable powers of Spider-Man, Iron Man, Captain America, Black Widow, Thor, Black Panther, The Scarlet Witch, Ms. Marvel, Loki, Red Skull, Taskmaster and more." So, there's just a full roster of heroes for people to celebrate. The social media posting around this unveiling is going to be wild.

What's Coming In Deadpool & Wolverine?

In Marvel Studios' Deadpool & Wolverine, Deadpool (Ryan Reynolds) will change the history of the Marvel Cinematic Universe with Wolverine (Hugh Jackman). The film also stars Matthew Macfadyen as Paradox, and Emma Corrin as Cassandra Nova, with the return of Deadpool alums Morena Baccarin as Vanessa Carlysle, Leslie Uggams as Blind Al, Karan Soni as Dopinder, Stefan Kapi?i? as Piotr Rasputin/Colossus, Brianna Hildebrand as Negasonic Teenage Warhead, Rob Delaney as Peter, and Lewis Tan as Shatterstar. Aaron Stanford is returning as Pyro from the X-Men film series, with Jennifer Garner rumored to return as Elektra Natchios.

Kevin Feige, Ryan Reynolds, Shawn Levy and Lauren Shuler Donner produce with Louis D'Esposito, Wendy Jacobson, Mary McLaglen, Josh McLaglen, Rhett Reese, Paul Wernick, George Dewey and Simon Kinberg serving as executive producers. Deadpool & Wolverine is written by Ryan Reynolds & Rhett Reese & Paul Wernick & Zeb Wells & Shawn Levy. Deadpool & Wolverine was released exclusively in theaters on July 26th.

Will you be making the trip to see Deadpool? Catch all of our pop culture discussion at @ComicBook on social media!

Jeffrey Piccolo, a widower whose wife died following her dinner at a Florida restaurant Disney had advertised as allergy-friendly, will be allowed to take his claim against the company to court. Walt Disney Parks and Resorts had tried to force Piccolo into arbitration, claiming that due to fine print on some of his purchases prohibited him from taking Disney or any of its subsidiaries to court. While Disney pointed to multiple transactions for its defense, the one that made international news was their claim that Piccolo could not sue because he had accepted the terms of service for a one-month free trial of Disney+ years ago.

Piccolo filed the suit claiming that his wife, Dr. Kanokporn Tangsuan, died from an allergic reaction following a visit to Florida's Walt Disney World Resort's Raglan Road Irish Pub in October 2023. While Disney does not own Raglan Road Irish Pub, it is situated on Disney land, and an area map provided by Disney had reportedly characterized the book as allergy-friendly.

"At Disney, we strive to put humanity above all other considerations. With such unique circumstances as the ones in this case, we believe this situation warrants a sensitive approach to expedite a resolution for the family who have experienced such a painful loss," Josh D'Amaro, the chairman of Disney Experiences, said in the statement. "As such, we've decided to waive our right to arbitration and have the matter proceed in court."

Public Citizen, a consumer-rights organization, took to social media to celebrate Disney's about face. "Putting public pressure on big corporations is a moral imperative," the group posted on Threads.

Piccolo claims that he and Dr. Tangsuan had made clear with their server that she had a potentially fatal allergy to dairy and nuts, but the medical examiner found elevated levels of both in her body after death. Tangsuan tried to use her EpiPen to control the allergic reaction, but it was not enough to save her.

Forced arbitration clauses are a common way big companies try to mitigate their exposure to lawsuits, particularly ones that can cost millions of dollars and/or hurt the company's reputation if they play out in public. Such clauses are common in the fine print of contracts, terms of service, and end-user license agreements. Besides the Disney+ trial, Piccolo had supposedly also agreed to a similar clause when purchasing his tickets to Walt Disney World. The tickets were reportedly never used, since Dr. Tangsuan died before they went. Legal experts have expressed serious doubt that Disney could succeed on the merits of the argument, and Piccolo's lawyer Brian Denney had called Disney's argument "so outrageously unreasonable and unfair as to shock the judicial conscience."

h/t CNN

Horror studio Blumhouse is taking a stab at Halloween baking shows. Prime Video announced Monday it has ordered Killer Cakes, a fright-flavored competition baking special from executive producer Jason Blum (M3GAN, the Insidious movies) and Cake Boss creators High Noon Entertainment. Horror veteran Matthew Lillard, star of 1996's Scream and 2023's Five Nights at Freddy's, is hosting the "deliciously-gory" special judged by Scream Queen Danielle Harris (the Halloween franchise) and experimental food artist and cookbook author Nikk Alcaraz (Peculiar Baking).

The new two-part special, which premieres exclusively on Prime Video in more than 240 countries and territories on October 8, is a one-of-a-kind competition show where bakers with terrifying skills attempt to win some of the most frightening challenges ever produced for television. Contestants will work with the best horror special effects artists in Hollywood to unleash their twisted imaginations and create cakes so disgusting, so disturbing, and so realistic, it's the stuff of nightmares.

Along with the first-look image above, Prime Video announced the competitors include: Amanda Yother (Rathdrum, ID), Dillon Barlow (Houston, TX), Dziedra "Z" Brusberg (Marysville, WA), Deadra "Dee" Compean (Beaumont, TX), Eszter Summerlin (Gulf Breeze, FL), Jesse Lesser (Dallas, TX), Mark Lie (Chicago, IL), and Shanelle Long (Pensacola, FL).

Ruth Amsel -- who has executive produced Food Network's Halloween Wars and Cake Wars, Ridiculous Cakes, the pumpkin carving competition Outrageous Pumpkins, and the hyper-realistic cakes game show Stab That Cake -- serves as showrunner. Blum and Gretchen Palek (Food Porn) executive produce for Blumhouse Television, behind The Purge TV show, the scripted series Sharp Objects and The Horror of Dolores Roach, and the unscripted true crime series Worst Ex Ever and Cabin in the Woods. Scott Feeley (Haunted Gingerbread Showdown) is executive producing for High Noon Entertainment.

Lillard will executive produce as well as host the special produced by Blumhouse Television, ITV America's High Noon Entertainment and Amazon MGM Studios. Killer Cakes is streaming globally Oct. 8th on Prime Video.

In other seasonal programming news, Food Network also set its 2024 Halloween slate. Starting in September and running through October, the network will debut new seasons of Halloween Baking Championship, the Halloween-themed Kids Baking Championship special Scary Good, the Road to Halloween Wars special, and new seasons of Halloween Wars and Outrageous Pumpkins. Food Network also announced Halloween-themed episodes of its daytime series The Kitchen and The Pioneer Woman.

Delicious in Dungeon really took fans by storm with the first season of its anime earlier this year, and now one cosplay is helping to serve up Senshi. Ryoko Kui's original Delicious in Dungeon manga made its anime debut at the start of the year, and through its first season became one of the biggest hits of the year overall. Once it started to heat up even further with the second half of the season, it was clear there would be no signs of slowing down as more fans than ever had been drawn to Laios and his party as they explored a deadly dungeon and ate delicious meals along the way.

Helping things along was a key addition to their party, Senshi, a mysterious warrior who had been living within the dungeon and was already experienced with cooking the monsters within it. Fans have since seen him cook up all kinds of delicious meals through the monsters the party took down through the first season, and now he's one of anime's best characters ever. But Senshi's come to life in a wildly unexpected way as artist HimboHusbando on TikTok has shared a Senshi cosplay that taps into his fully animated look from the anime. Check it out:

@himbohusbando

All Senshi wants is bread. #dungeonmeshi #cosplay #anime #senshi

? Bread by Anya Nami - Anya Nami

Where to Watch Delicious in Dungeon

Delicious in Dungeon Season 2 has been announced to be in the works following the end of the first season, but it has yet to be revealed when the new episodes will actually release. That also means there's plenty of time to catch up with the anime before the new episodes hit. You can now find the entire first season of the Delicious in Dungeon anime now streaming with Netflix, but if you wanted to read ahead instead, you can find the physical volumes of the Delicious in Dungeon manga now on shelves as licensed by Yen Press in North America.

They tease the anime as such, "Delicious in Dungeon. That is, 'to eat', or 'to be eaten' --- Within the depths of the dungeon, his younger sister was eaten by a Red Dragon - and adventurer Laios barely made it back to the surface with his life. He attempts the dungeon again, but money and food are deep within its bowels... Faced with the critical situation where his sister may be digested at any moment, Laios decides: 'Food shall be self-providing from within the dungeon!' Slimes, basilisks, mimics and even dragons! While eating those that attack you, aim to traverse the dungeons, adventurer!"

Michael Madsen, a prolific actor known for his work in the films of Quentin Tarantino and projects like Thelma and Louise and Donnie Brasco, has been arrested on a count of domestic battery. On Monday, a report from The Wrap confirmed that Madsen was arrested over the weekend after allegedly pushing his wife, Deanna, and locking her out of their Malibu home. A Malibu/Lost Hills Sheriff's Station jailer confirmed in the report that Madsen was arrested around 1:15am, ultimately being booked on misdemeanor domestic battery and released on $20,000 bond. According to Madsen's spokesperson, the actor subsequently returned to his home.

"It was a disagreement between Michael and his wife, which we hope resolves positively for them both," Madsen's spokesperson said in a statement.

This is the latest instance of Madsen getting into trouble with the law, after he was arrested for a DUI in 2012, and again in 2019, which ultimately led to him being sentenced to four days in prison. He was also arrested for trespassing in February of 2022, a month after his son Hudson died in an apparent suicide.

"I am in shock as my son, whom I just spoke with a few days ago, said he was happy - my last text from him was 'I love you dad,'" Madsen explained to The Times in a written statement at the time. "I didn't see any signs of depression. It's so tragic and sad. I'm just trying to make sense of everything and understand what happened. He had typical life challenges that people have with finances, but he wanted a family. He was looking towards his future, so its mind blowing. I just can't grasp what happened."

Born on September 25, 1957, Madsen has developed a decades-long career in the entertainment industry, beginning with acting in theater in Chicago. He appeared in Tarantino's directorial debut, Reservoir Dogs, as "Mr. Blonde." He subsequently had roles in Tarantino's Kill Bill: Volume 2, The Hateful Eight, and Once Upon a Time in... Hollywood. Outside of Tarantino, his filmography has included Thelma & Louise, Free Willy, Donnie Brasco, Speeches, Die Another Day, Sin City, and Scary Movie 4. He has also had multiple voice acting roles for video games, including Grand Theft Auto III, Narc, and Dishonored.

Danielle Fishel, former star of Boy Meets World and now co-host of Pod Meets World, revealed on the latest episode of the show that she has been diagnosed with breast cancer. She characterized the diagnosis as "stage zero" and "very, very, very early," reassuring her audience that she would be fine. According to the star, her first instinct was to stay quiet about her diagnosis, but she decided to go public because that might be useful to her audience, whom she encouraged to get screened for cancer, in the hopes of catching anything similarly early.

"To be specific, just because I like too much information all the time, I was diagnosed with high-grade DCIS with micro-invasion. And I'm going to be fine," Fishel said (via TVLine). "I'm having surgery to remove it. I'm going to be on some follow-up treatment. I've had to make a lot of decisions over the last couple of days."

She added, "The only reason I'm sharing it is because, if you've ever had those thoughts in your life where someone close to you is diagnosed with cancer, somewhere in your mind you think, 'What would I do if this were me? What would I do in this situation?' And for some reason, I had always thought I would suffer in silence. I would not tell anyone. I would tell only my small, small group. And then I would just suck it up. And then when I'm on the other side of it, then I would tell people, 'Here, I've gone through this journey and here's what I did.' As I've gotten older... I've tried to learn from the experiences of others because I don't think I did that enough when I was younger... but the place you have the most to learn from is at the very beginning of a story or in the very messy middle of the story."

In 2022, Danielle Fishel, Will Friedle, and Rider Strong launched Pod Meets World, a podcast devoted to rewatching their iconic 1990s sitcom Boy Meets World in which they interview actors and producers involved with the series as well as share their own, behind-the-scenes memories.

What is Boy Meets World About?

Boy Meets World ran for seven seasons between 1993 and 2000 on ABC. The series followed Cory Matthews (Ben Savage) and his friends and family as he grows through childhood to adulthood, chronicling his everyday life. The series also starred William Daniels, Friedle, Lily Nicksay, Betsy Randle William Russ, Strong, and Fishel. The series got a follow up series in 2014 with a similar premise, Girl Meets World, this time following the life of Cory's daughter, Riley.

One Piece introduced fans to Dr. Vegapunk and his six satellites in the Egghead Arc, and now one awesome cosplay is putting the spotlight on the one that represents greed, York. One Piece: Egghead Arc officially kicked off the Final Saga of Eiichiro Oda's long running franchise with the first new adventure that will bring Luffy and the other Straw Hats closer than ever to their final goal of the One Piece treasure. This arc not only brought them to Dr. Vegapunk's future island laboratory, but revealed some big secrets about the One Piece world itself in just its first phases alone.

One Piece: Egghead Arc revealed that in order to keep up with his experiments, Dr. Vegapunk split himself into various different identities to handle different tasks with different aspects of his personality. Each served a major function, and York's was to take care of his eating and sleeping until she took matters into her own hands in one of the arc's first big twists. Now York has come to life thanks to some awesome cosplay from artist kappy_w on TikTok, and you can check it out below:

@kappy_w

Punk 06 ? #OnePiece #cosplay #Yorkcosplay #Vegapunk #Egghead

? Bad Feeling (Oompa Loompa) - Jagwar Twin

Where to Catch Up With One Piece

If you wanted to go back and check out the One Piece anime from the very beginning (along with various OVAs, movies, and other specials), you can find the entire back catalog streaming with Crunchyroll with both Japanese and English language dubbed audio. The newest episodes of the anime, One Piece: Egghead Arc, are now airing weekly and are available to stream with Crunchyroll and Netflix alongside their initial release in Japan.

If the manga is more your speed, you can also find the newest chapters of the One Piece manga (with the three most recent chapters being available for free) with Viz Media's digital Shonen Jump library or Shueisha's MangaPlus service if you wanted to read ahead to see what's coming next instead. There's also the entire back catalog of the decades long series available as well.

There are still even more ways to enjoy One Piece outside of the anime and manga releases too such as the live-action One Piece series with Netflix, which is now in the works on Season 2 for a release in the near future. There is also a brand new anime remaking the One Piece series from the very beginning with Netflix, The One Piece.

Disney is seeking to block a wrongful death lawsuit, citing the terms and conditions agreed to by the plaintiff when they signed up for Disney+ in their request for dismissal. According to Deadline, attorneys for Disney have filed requesting that Jeffrey Piccolo's $50,000 case be dismissed and instead settled out of court. Piccolo filed the suit claiming that his wife, Dr. Kanokporn Tangsuan, died from an allergic reaction at Florida's Walt Disney World Resort's Raglan Road Irish Pub in October 2023.

According to Disney's filing, when Piccolo signed up for a free, 30-day trial of Disney+ in 2019 as well as when he purchased tickets to Walt Disney World in 2023 via his Disney+ account, Piccolo agreed to Disney+'s terms of service. Included in the terms of service is language that requires all disputes with the Walt Disney Company be settled via arbitration.

"We are deeply saddened by the family's loss and understand their grief," an attorney from Disney's attorney read. "Given that this restaurant is neither owned nor operated by Disney, we are merely defending ourselves against the plaintiff's attorney's attempt to include us in their lawsuit against the restaurant."

The lawsuit against both Disney and the restaurant alleges that Dr. Tangsuan died from anaphylaxis due to an allergic reaction caused by elevated levels of dairy and nut in her system. Piccolo alleges that both he and his wife questioned the waiter at the restaurant numerous times and were assured that their order would be allergen free. The lawsuit was brought on behalf of Tangsuan's estate.

Piccolo's attorneys responded to Disney's filing in a motion on August 2nd, claiming that Disney's argument is both "preposterous" and "fatally flawed". A hearing on the case is scheduled for October 2nd.

"The notion that terms agreed to by a consumer when creating a Disney+ free trial account would forever bar that consumer's right to a jury trial in any dispute with any Disney affiliate or subsidiary is so outrageously unreasonable and unfair as to shock the judicial conscience, and this court should not enforce such an agreement," the motion reads.

"In effect, Walt Disney Parks and Resorts is explicitly seeking to bar 150 million Disney+ subscribers from ever prosecuting a wrongful death case against it in front of a jury even if the case facts have nothing to do with Disney+"

One Piece has a number of Straw Hats that have made an impact on the franchise over the years, and one awesome cosplay has brought the Thousand Sunny to life in a wild way. One Piece has introduced Luffy to all sorts of characters over the course of Eiichiro Oda's long running franchise over the years, and his crew has been stacked up with tons of memorable faces. But the Straw Hats crew also includes their ships as well much like the Going Merry, and the Thousand Sunny to follow. The Sunny's taken the Straw Hats to some memorable locations too.

It's hard to imagine how far Luffy and the others would have come in their journey without the Thousand Sunny, and it's not going to be long before that journey eventually brings them to an end. Luffy and the others need their ship to bring them for as far as it will take them, and now the Sunny's even helping fans get around in the real world thanks to some awesome cosplay from artist oliviashimada on Instagram. Showing off a fully moveable Thousand Sunny, it's no wonder it's gone viral with fans and you can check it out below:

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A post shared by Olivia Shimada (@oliviashimada)

How to Watch and Read One Piece

If you wanted to go back and check out the One Piece anime from the very beginning (along with various OVAs, movies, and other specials), you can find the entire back catalog streaming with Crunchyroll with both Japanese and English language dubbed audio. The newest episodes of the anime, One Piece: Egghead Arc, are now airing weekly and are available to stream with Crunchyroll and Netflix alongside their initial release in Japan.

If the manga is more your speed, you can also find the newest chapters of the One Piece manga (with the three most recent chapters being available for free) with Viz Media's digital Shonen Jump library or Shueisha's MangaPlus service if you wanted to read ahead to see what's coming next instead. There's also the entire back catalog of the decades long series available as well.

There are still even more ways to enjoy One Piece outside of the anime and manga releases too such as the live-action One Piece series with Netflix, which is now in the works on Season 2 for a release in the near future. There is also a brand new anime remaking the One Piece series from the very beginning with Netflix, The One Piece.

Audiences first caught a glimpse of the creepy collection of paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren back in 2013's The Conjuring, with their home becoming a holding place for various possessed relics. At this year's Fright Fest Extreme at Six Flags, fans will get to experience the closest thing to entering the Warrens' home thanks to its The Conjuring Universe haunted house, which replicates the seminal location in impressive detail. The first looks at the new haunted house have been unveiled in concept art, which you can see below. Six Flags Fright Fest Extreme kicks off in September at parks across the country and runs through early November.

"One of the main concepts behind creating this maze was this idea of scaring you to the point of no return. It really needed to feel like you started at the beginning, you finished and there was a story that was told to you that would stay with you long afterward. Inspired by the series, the maze is designed to be cerebral, psychological, and super scary," Edithann Ramey, Chief Fright Officer, Six Flags, shared in a statement.

Per press release, "Six Flags, the world's largest regional theme park company and largest operator of water parks in North America, recently unveiled Fright Fest Extreme -- presented by SNICKERS (release here), featuring an expansive lineup of terrifying horror franchises ahead of the brand's highly anticipated annual event. Beginning shortly after Labor Day, thrill-seekers and horror enthusiasts are invited to immerse themselves in the pulse-pounding excitement and terror that only Fright Fest can deliver with Six Flags' largest investment and expansion yet."

"This fall, step into the extended world of New Line Cinema's The Conjuring universe with a new authentic experience blending elements from all of its spine-chilling series -- including for the first time Annabelle and The Nun. Guests are invited to enter the Warren Museum of the Occult where they will notice familiar items have gone missing. With pedestals and display cases now empty, demonic sounds filling the air, and objects moving on their own -- it is clear the spirits are aware of a new presence in the building.

"As visitors navigate the museum, they will step into iconic scenes from the films including Bathsheba's Den, Annabelle's Playroom, and a confessional at St. Carta. With shadow lurkers, demons, scarecrows, and the Crooked Man on the prowl, you will feel like a target of 'the conjuring.'

"The Conjuring Universe will be open at Six Flags Great Adventure, Six Flags Magic Mountain, Six Flags Over Texas, and Six Flags Fiesta Texas in early September and running through November 3rd. During this year's Fright Fest, guests will also have the option to be transported into the eerie realms of Netflix's Stranger Things and Army of the Dead, Legendary Entertainment's Trick R'Treat, Lionsgate's SAW, as well as an experience centering around Legendary and Netflix's Texas Chainsaw Massacre."

Attractions vary by location, so be sure to check the official Six Flags website for details.

Are you looking forward to the experience? Contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter or on Instagram to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

The Addams Family have been key components of the Halloween season for decades, but thanks to the debut of the spin-off series Wednesday on Netflix, the franchise is arguably more popular than ever. In honor of the Jenna Ortega-starring series, Lowe's is releasing a new wave of Halloween decorations celebrating the series, which includes a life-size Wednesday that is even animated to replicate the signature dance from the series. Lowe's is also celebrating Disney's The Haunted Mansion, along with a number of other all-new and unique items. Halloween items from Lowe's are now available in store and online.

"Those who are creeping it real with their spooky decorations this year may have already seen the first batch of Lowe's Halloween merch, but more tricks and treats are coming," Lowe's describes. "This year we're seeing dark color palettes and moody and mysterious d?cor with a luxe gothic vibe, alongside some '90s influenced whimsical approaches to the holiday. No matter which route they go, shoppers can go big decorating their homes this Halloween -- making their house the 'ultimate thrill' of the neighborhood. From creating a graveyard groove in the front yard to decorating a haunted home with mystery and mischief, Lowe's has all of the latest Halloween trends. Not to mention, the spook-tacular Wednesday and Addams Family collection!"

The Addams Family and Wednesday collection is described, "Wednesday's childhood may be 'full of woe,' but these decorations are anything but. Dive into the world of Netflix's iconic pop-culture phenomenon, Wednesday, through themed home decor, yard decorations, and even life-sized figures -- with some killer dance moves. There's never a dull moment at Nevermore Academy; find out what could be in store for you with this creepy, kooky, mysterious, and spooky line."

Wednesday 5-ft Musical Wednesday Addams Raven Dance Animatronic

• Life-size animated Wednesday delights trick-or-treaters with her famous dance...as seen on TV!
• Wednesday makes the scene this Halloween as a premium animatronic, engineered for maximum fun by Lowe's Haunted Living and Tekky.
• Spirited surf music syncs with Wednesday's groovy "side-to-side swinging-arms" dance motion upon activation.
  

The Addams Family 4-ft Cousin Itt Musical Animatronic

• It's alive! Life-size animated Addams Family Cousin It delights trick-or-treaters as he dances 'round the room...as seen on TV! Indoor use.
• Addams Family Cousin It makes the scene this Halloween as a premium prop, engineered for maximum fun by Lowe's Haunted Living and Tekky.
• Addams Family theme music plays as Cousin It comes to life to spin around your scene!

Wednesday 13-in Musical Wednesday Thing Bookstack Tabletop Animatronic

• It's the next big Thing this Halloween! Realistic, life-size animated Halloween prop features finger-tapping Thing, cinematic sound effects and sound clips from the screen...and an unexpected (spine-chilling) spider jumpscare!
• The Wednesday ThingBook Stack makes the scene this Halloween as a premium animated decor item, engineered for maximum fun by Lowe's Haunted Living and Tekky.
• Sound and motion-activated animated sequence!

Disney 6-ft The Haunted Mansion LED The Caretaker Animatronic

• ANIMATED HALLOWEEN DECOR: 6-ft x 2-ft W x 2.6-ft D animated The Caretaker with shovel and lantern
• ANIMATION/SOUND: Plays "Grim Grinning Ghosts" with crow sound effects, The Caretaker moves lighted lantern
• EASY SETUP/STORAGE: Includes assembly directions and collapses for easy storage

Disney 12-in Musical LED The Haunted Mansion Wall Plaque Decor

• HALLOWEEN DECOR: 12-in H x 6.9-in W x 2-in D indoor Disney Haunted Mansion Logo Wall Plaque with lights and sound effects
• STYLE/FINISH: Weathered, dark patina finish with ornate details and gargoyle at top
• SOUND/LIGHT EFFECTS: Plays instrumental version of "Grim Grinning Ghosts" and lights up with blue light

You can see the full lineup of Halloween items from Lowe's online and in stores.

Will you be adding these items to your collection? Contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter or on Instagram to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

Throughout his career, Jimmy Fallon has offered fans exciting experiences in countless formats, and this fall will see him exploring an all-new endeavor, as he's unleashing "Jimmy Fallon's Tonightmares" in Rockefeller Center. "Tonightmares" will be an immersive experience that takes fans through terrifying haunted houses that promise to guide visitors through Fallon's "deepest nightmares." The all-new event might surprise some audiences, given Fallon's career as a comedian, but with Universal Orlando Resort already having a ride honoring The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, there's a built-in history of the host exploring unconventional opportunities. You can head to the official website for "Jimmy's Fallon's Tonightmares" to join the waitlist for tickets before the event opens on September 20th.

"'Tonightmares' has got everything you need to get supremely frightened this Halloween," Fallon shared in a statement. "I'm not saying it has killer scarecrows, brain-hungry zombies, and an abandoned gas station in the middle of nowhere. But... it has... killer scarecrows, brain-hungry zombies, and an abandoned gas station in the middle of nowhere. Spoiler alert."

"Each year, we bring Halloween to life in new and exciting ways across NBCUniversal through Halloween-themed content and experiences," David O'Connor, President, Franchise Management & Brand Strategy, added. "Whether it's expressed in our Theme Parks or through Film and Television, we're building on our rich horror legacy and we're thrilled to support Jimmy Fallon to pair his true fandom of the holiday with the expertise of our company to create this one-of-a-kind experience."

Per press release, "This Halloween season 'Jimmy Fallon's Tonightmares,' an immersive haunted maze, will bring to life the Emmy and Grammy Award-winning host of The Tonight Show's deepest nightmares to those brave enough to visit at Rockefeller Center. In this terrifying experience, visitors will journey through 10 chilling rooms, each featuring one of Jimmy Fallon's spine-tingling nightmares."

"'Jimmy Fallon's Tonightmares' will set a new standard for haunted experiences in Manhattan, bringing these nightmares to life in a fully immersive haunt with terrifying sets, practical effects, and scares behind every corner. Direct from the mind of Jimmy Fallon, this original concept was developed in collaboration with NBCUniversal's Global Franchise Management group and the design team behind Halloween Horror Nights, the premier Halloween event and global phenomenon from Universal Destinations & Experiences.

"'Jimmy Fallon's Tonightmares' opens to the public on Friday, September 20th, and will run select nights through October 31st. Tickets will be available for purchase starting on Thursday, August 22nd but fans who sign up for the waitlist before Wednesday, August 21st can unlock exclusive access. Ticket prices start from $36.90, and will be available through the Fever marketplace. You can read more about the experience at jimmyfallonstonightmares.com."

"Jimmy Fallon's Tonightmares" officially opens on September 20th.

Will you be checking out the experience? Contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter or on Instagram to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

UPDATE: Marvel has responded to the claims made in X-Men '97 creator Beau DeMayo's social media post.

"Mr. DeMayo was terminated in March 2024 following an internal investigation," a Marvel spokesperson said in a statement (via The Hollywood Reporter). "Given the egregious nature of the findings, we severed ties with him immediately and he has no further affiliation with Marvel."

The original story follows below.

Earlier this year, Marvel fans were stunned when just days ahead of the premiere of the eagerly anticipated animated X-Men '97 series, Marvel Studios confirmed that series showrunner Beau DeMayo had been fired. Details about the sudden change were unclear at the time, but now, DeMayo is breaking his silence. In a post on social media on Thursday, DeMayo said that he had received a letter from Marvel on June 13 notifying him that he'd been stripped of Season 2 credits due to a post he shared on Instagram for Gay Pride just days previously. DeMayo also shared the post in question as well as shared his gratitude for having worked on X-Men '97, but also noted he would "have more to say soon".

"Firstly, I'm so grateful to have worked on #XMen97, collaborating with some amazingly talented folks. Creating this revival was a dream come true and the support fans have shown is so touching. However, I felt it pressing for me to speak up in the wake of leaving the show," DeMayo wrote.

Firstly, I'm so grateful to have worked on #XMen97, collaborating with some amazingly talented folks. Creating this revival was a dream come true and the support fans have shown is so touching. However, I felt it pressing for me to speak up in the wake of leaving the show... pic.twitter.com/kbOTL3IQJj

-- Beau DeMayo (@BeauDemayo) August 16, 2024

"Above is #XMen fan-art I posted on Instagram for Gay Pride in June. On June 13, #Marvel sent a letter notifying me that they'd stripped my Season 2 credits due to the post. Sadly, this is the latest in a troubling pattern I suffered through while working on XMen97 and #Blade. I'll have more to say soon but must take a step back from social media to find a safer space for me to be out, proud, and nerdy. Stay tuned."

News broke back in March that Marvel Studios had fired DeMayo, creator and executive producer of X-Men '97. DeMayo had also served as a writer-producer on Marvel's live-action Moon Knight series and as a writer on the Blade reboot. DeMayo had also completed work on the second season of X-Men '97 and was reportedly planning a third season of the series at the time of his firing. Later, head of streaming, television, and animation at Marvel Studios and executive producer on X-Men '97 Brad Winderbaum said that he couldn't speak about details, but that DeMayo had "real respect and passion" for the characters and "wrote what I think are excellent scripts that really the rest of the team were able to draw inspiration from [to] build this amazing show that's on screen." Winderbaum also said that he didn't consider the situation with DeMayo a firing: "'We parted ways' is the best way I could say."

As for Season 2 of X-Men '97, DeMayo has previously clarified the extent of his involvement, sharing on social media that he can't really speak to the second season, but looks forward to seeing the final product when it airs. It was announced in July that Marvel's What If... scribe Matthew Chauncey is set to take over as writer for the series.

"I did write a lot of Season 2," DeMayo wrote earlier this year. "However, unlike Season 1, I will not be heavily involved or leading production, cast records, design, editorial, post, music, etc., nor doing any production rewrites as it relates to the creative vision of the show. "

"This is why I've said I can't really speak to Season 2," he added. "But, looking forward to seeing the final product with you all whenever it airs. I have high hopes."

Time for Critter Country to be movin' along. After revamping the land's signature ride -- the Song of the South-themed Splash Mountain -- Disneyland's Critter Country will be renamed Bayou Country when the area reopens with the new Tiana's Bayou Adventure ride on November 15. The name change was announced during Disney's D23 convention in Anaheim, where the company's theme parks division unveiled a new attraction poster for the California version of the classic log flume ride rethemed after the 2009 animated feature The Princess and the Frog.

Disney describes the reimagined land: "Bayou Country is situated on the edge of New Orleans Square with shady trees, mesmerizing music and a vast collection of enchanting surprises. Guests will discover a land filled with friendly woodland animals, from a trumpet-playing gator and an adorable bear who craves honey to a musical cast of bears, frogs, and other critters."

The land first opened in 1956 as the Indian Village section of Frontierland. In 1972, a four-acre expansion of the park's northwest quadrant reimagined Indian Village as Bear Country -- Disneyland's seventh themed land anchored by the since-shuttered Country Bears Jamboree (which has been rebooted at Disney World's Magic Kingdom). The area was renamed Critter Country in 1988 to coincide with the 1989 opening of Splash Mountain, which featured Br'er Rabbit and other animated characters from the 1946 film Song of the South.

Along with Tiana's Bayou Adventure, Bayou Country is home to The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh ride, Davy Crockett's Explorer Canoes, and the reimagined Hungry Bear restaurant (renamed Hungry Bear Barbecue Jamboree). Both of the land's retail stores will be rethemed to The Princess and the Frog: the left-hand side of Pooh Corner shop will become Louis' Critter Club, and The Briar Patch will reopen as Ray's Berets.

In 2023, Disneyland Park opened Tiana's Palace, its Princess and the Frog themed restaurant that offers Creole and Cajun cuisine in nearby New Orleans Square. Tiana's Bayou Adventure opened at the Frontierland section of Disney World's Magic Kingdom park in June and will kick off the holiday season at the Disneyland Resort when the California version opens in November.

Also coming to Disneyland Resort: two new Marvel-inspired rides for Avengers Campus, a boat ride themed to Pixar's Coco and an area based on Pandora from the Avatar films at Disney California Adventure Park, and on Disneyland's Main Street, the just-announced new show "Walt Disney - A Magical Life" featuring the first-ever Walt Disney audio-animatronic.

Margot Robbie and Colin Farrell's new movie project is confirming its release date. Sony has now set a release date for A Big Bold Beautiful Journey of May 9, 2025 - which will be Mother's Day weekend, not to mention a week after Marvel's Thunderbolts* hits theaters.

It's noted in the trade reports that Sony is now touting A Big Bold Beautiful Journey as a "female-focused project" and has set this release date right on the heels of Blake Lively's new film It Ends With Us leaping above box office projections of $25-$30 million to open at $50 million worldwide while crossing the $100 million mark within its first week of release. The studio clearly sees an investment in female-led, star-driven properties that will appeal to female moviegoers - a trend Robbie ushered in with the Billion-dollar success (and worldwide phenomenon) of her Barbie movie.

A Big Bold Beautiful Journey centers around two strangers (Robbie and Farrell) who find that their lives cross in strange ways. The film also co-stars Lily Rabe (American Horror Story), Jodie Turner-Smith (Star Wars: The Acolyte), Phoebe Waller-Bridge (Fleabag, Solo) and Hamish Linklater (Batman: Caped Crusader). Kogonada will direct the film. Producers include Dan Friedkin, Bradley Thomas and Ryan Friedkin of Imperative Entertainment - with Seith Reiss (who is also writing the script) and Youree Henley.

Margot Robbie has entered an entirely new era as both an expecting mother and a film mogul. After Barbie was a hit, Robbie's production company LuckyChap signed a first-look deal with Warner Bros., opening a new lane for her to develop and release her own projects. That list already includes a Monopoly movie with Lionsgate; Robbie teaming with Olivia Wilde for an adaptation of Deadpool creator Rob Liefeld's Avengelyne character, and a Sims movie with Marvel's Loki director Kate Herron.

In addition to all that, the plans for Robbie to star in a female-led spinoff of Pirates of the Caribbean are seemingly still alive - even though Johnny Depp could return as Captain Jack Sparrow in the main series.

"We had an idea and we were developing it for a while, ages ago, to have more of a female-led -- not totally female-led, but just a different kind of story -- which we thought would've been really cool, but I guess they don't want to do it," Margot Robbie told Vanity Fair back in 2022.

Now, in 2024, super-producer Jerry Bruckhemier and Disney are looking at Robie differently after Barbie, and wants to add her to the Pirates Universe:

"We hope to get 'em both made, and I think Disney agrees they really want to make the Margot one, too," Bruckheimer said to EW earlier this year.

Colin Farrell will next appear in DC's The Batman spinoff series The Penguin, which will air on HBO and stream on Max in September.

The New York Botanical Garden is scaring up some surprises in the moonlit night. The Bronx-based museum of living plant collections has announced the first-ever light trail inspired by Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas, the 1993 stop motion-animated musical that director Henry Selick called "a perfect collision" between the Christmas and Halloween holidays. But Disney Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas Light Trail will be here in an instant and gone in a flash: the nine-week limited engagement runs from September 27th through November 30th.

Featuring over 8,300 square feet of dazzling light installations forged by cutting-edge technology including interactive video projection, intelligent LED lighting, and 3D printed sculptures of the film's iconic characters -- like Halloween Town's own Jack Skellington, Sally, and Zero -- the outdoor attraction brings scenes and songs from the musical to life amongst the leaves of New York's most treasured garden.

The frightfully festive outdoor adventure presented by special arrangement with Buena Vista Theatrical will "ignite the senses and invite audiences deep into the imagination of the story's visionary creator, Tim Burton," says experience creators Adventurelive, the producing team behind Broadway's Hamilton, and LETSGO, the creative team behind the immersive exhibition Tim Burton's Labyrinth.

"I want to make an experience that surprises people -- that is both visually stunning and sonically cool. This is going to be a thrilling new way to experience both Tim Burton's story and one of the greatest gardens on Earth," said Jeffrey Seller, the founder of Adventurelive and a four-time Tony Award winning producer of Rent, Avenue Q, In the Heights, and Hamilton.

Added LETSO founder I?aki Fern?ndez, "After creating Tim Burton's Labyrinth and Lights in Nature in several cities, we are excited to arrive in New York with a magical an unforgettable journey. Visitors will be able to take the best photos they have never imagined and have an experience that they will remember for years."

Tickets start at $39 (Jack's 4-pack for 4 or more tickets), $49 for adults and $39 for children (timed entry), or $55-59 (flexible entry adult/child) and are on sale now on the official website. The Nightmare Before Christmas-themed light trail operates from dusk to 10 p.m. every Thursday through Sunday beginning September 27th through November 30th.

Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas is available to stream on Disney+.

Authorities in southern California have made at least one arrest linked to the death of Friends star Matthew Perry. The actor, who died in October, was found to have ketamine in his bloodstream at the time. Perry, who had long struggled with addiction, had been undergoing ketamine therapy for depression at the time, but his last treatment had been more than a week before his death, and the amount found in his bloodstream raised red flags. Reports have indicated that Perry sought out additional medication to treat his condition without medical supervision, and that those who helped him acquire it could face charges.

The ketamine killed Perry through a mix of overstimulating his heart and depressing his breathing. His cause of death was listed as the effects of ketamine, with contributing factors cited as drowning, coronary artery disease, and the effects of buprenorphine, a drug for which Perry had a prescription.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, "multiple arrests" were made during an early morning operation, and charges will be announced at a press conference later today.

The investigation into Perry's acquisition of the drugs began in May, and has involved numerous organizations including the Drug Enforcement Agency and the United States Postal Service.

Perry is best known as Chandler Bing, one of the primary cast of NBC's Friends -- a role he played for ten seasons. The series, widely regarded as one of the best sitcoms of its era, has continued to find new audiences year in and year out thanks to streaming platforms keeping it constantly available. In 2021, Perry and the rest of the cast reunited for a Friends reunion on HBO Max.

Besides Friends, Perry had memorable roles in projects like The West Wing, The Whole Nine Yards, and Fools Rush In. After friends, Perry returned to TV regularly, starring in Aaron Sorkin's Studio 60 on the Sunset STrip, a revival of The Odd Couple, and a number of sitcoms. His last notable role was on The Good Wife.

Just a year before his death, Perry released an autobiography -- Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing -- which spoke frankly about his struggles with addiction.

Yes, really. You can see the full video below.

"I had just done New York Undercover, a Dick Wolf cop show where I played a uniformed cop, a New York Cop, fast-talking...bad cop on the take, you know?" Simmons recalled. "I might have been in the middle of shooting that or I'd just finished it, and I showed up at this audition and there are little character descriptions. The red M&M, he's a fast-talking, wise, blah blah blah, and then the yellow M&M is this slow, sweet, kinda dumb, you know. I'm in Red M&M mode...you go in, Janet Eisenberg is this wonderful casting director, 'Okay, hi, so you'll read yellow,' and I was like, 'whoa whoa whoa.' It was like I was talking to Scorsese about something. I said, 'Nah -- I'm Red.' Red's fast-talking blah blah blah blah, I gotta be Red.' And she was like 'I mean, you absolutely could, you're a wonderful actor, but I really see you as Yellow.' We had this ridiculous back-and-forth with her talking me into auditioning for the yellow M&M. Thank you, Janet. Billy West, of course, is cast as the Red M&M, and we've been doing it for -- is it thirty years? It's been a long time. As that campaign grew and Billy and I became entrenched as Red and Yellow and the salary went up, that was the first time that I felt like I'm in a position now, financially, where I don't have to take every single acting job and be away from my family for three weeks in wherever. I can do what I want to do, and I can try to stay home, have a life and career at the same time."

Simmons has played the role of Yellow in dozens of ads, theater bumpers, and other projects since 1996. That is, as he notes, almost thirty years with a character who doesn't grow much, but audiences have yet to tire of the campaign, or of Simmons in the role.