Gal Gadot's latest film, Heart of Stone, debuts on Netflix on Friday, August 11th and the action thriller is already shooting to be more than just a one-off with director Tom Harper having previously said that he's hopeful the movie is the start of a new, female-led action franchise in the vein of Mission: Impossible. But living up to the level of stunts that Mission: Impossible star Tom Cruise pulls off in that franchise might be a daunting task. Gadot says that while she's up to pushing her own limits, Cruise is a "unicorn".

"Tom Cruise is a unicorn in this genre," Gadot told ComicBook.com's Chris Killian prior to the SAG-AFTRA strike. "I don't think there's anybody like Tom. And he's a big inspiration. And I'll always try to push my limits."

Gadot Has Previously Spoken About Heart of Stone's Action and How It's For "Everybody"

Gadot previously told Empire Magazine about how she wanted to create a female-driven action movie for everyone, not just a story focused on male characters.

"I realized that there was an audience for a female action protagonist," Gadot said. "I grew up watching Bond, and Mission, and Bourne. I wanted to create a really strong, female-driven action movie that is for everybody, not a male story that's been done many times already."

She also spoke about one of the scenes from the film that had a particularly wild sequence that they worked on to ensure that it was really something that a real human could do -- and how she always goes into things to really perform them with intention.

"The scene was even crazier, at a higher altitude," Gadot revealed. "and we got into the science of it and dialed it down so that a human could do it. That was something I wanted to really make sure we nailed. That could be done by people."

"What I can do as an actor, I'll always go for it and... fight with intention and really perform that," Gadot continued. "The crazy, crazy stuff, I can't, they won't let me!"

What is Heart of Stone About?

This is how Netflix describes Heart of Stone: Rachel Stone (Gal Gadot) appears to be an inexperienced tech, on an elite MI6 unit headed up by lead agent Parker (Jamie Dornan). What her MI6 team doesn't know is that Stone actually works for the Charter -- a covert peacekeeping organization, secret even from other spies, which uses cutting-edge technology to neutralize global threats. Rachel has been trained to be the consummate professional: a phenomenal field agent who sticks to the mission, follows the numbers, and trusts no one. When a routine mission is derailed by mysterious hacker Keya Dhawan (Alia Bhatt), Rachel's two lives collide. As she races to protect the Charter and strives to beat the odds, her humanity might just be her biggest asset.

Heart of Stone debuts on Netflix August 11th.

Ricochet and Will Ospreay are forever linked. The two innovative high-flyers set the professional wrestling industry on fire with their one-on-one contests in 2016 and 2017, taking standards maneuvers like DDTs and clotheslines and putting their acrobatic spin on it to create bouts that had to be seen to be believed. Ricochet would take his talents to WWE in 2018 while Ospreay set his sights on New Japan Pro Wrestling. These two have not shared a ring together in well over six years, but their classic clashes and similar in-ring styles have made them forever linked.

Speaking to ComicBook.com at the WWE SummerSlam press junket, Ricochet noted that he's still close with Ospreay as the two regularly keep in touch.

"I think I talked to him [on Thursday] actually," Ricochet said. "He's doing great. He just beat [Kazuchika] Okada."

Ricochet is pointing to Ospreay's big victory in New Japan's G1 Climax tournament over Okada, someone he has struggled to get the 1-2-3 on for years.

While they're no longer in the same company, Ricochet emphasized that he still follows the careers of many of his friends in the greater wrestling world.

"I keep up with [Will] and all of his stuff because a lot of his matches are against my other friends as well like Takagi Shingo. All those guys that he's been wrestling even in Japan and overseas and Europe, those are my friends as well," Ricochet continued. "I got to keep up with those guys and got to watch what they're doing. As much as I influence them, they influence me. They push me to do better."

Ricochet competes on Monday Night Raw which returns to television tonight at 8 PM ET on the USA Network. Ospreay is deep in the G1 Climax which culminates later this month.

WWE SummerSlam Results

• Logan Paul def. Ricochet
• Cody Rhodes def. Brock Lesnar
• SummerSlam Battle Royal: LA Knight def. field
• MMA Rules Match: Shayna Baszler def. Ronda Rousey
• Intercontinental Championship: Gunther def. Drew McIntyre
  
• World Heavyweight Championship: Seth Rollins def. Finn Balor
• WWE Women's Championship: Bianca Belair def. Asuka and Charlotte Flair
• Undisputed WWE Universal Championship: Roman Reigns def. Jey Uso (Tribal Combat Rules)

WWE SummerSlam is available for replay on Peacock. WWE returns to television with Monday Night Raw tonight at 8 PM ET on the USA Network.

Ricochet and Logan Paul culminate their eight-month long rivalry tonight at WWE SummerSlam. These two high-flying sensations first crossed paths, or rather crossed flights, in the Men's Royal Rumble Match this past January. Ricochet and Paul went viral for their double springboard clothesline collision that occurred in mid-air. While Ricochet went on to tag with Braun Strowman and Paul got into a feud with Seth Rollins, the two always seemed to be an arm's length away. Tensions resumed in July when Ricochet and Paul both competed in the Men's Money in the Bank Ladder Match, a multi-man bout that once again involved these two performing an acrobatic spot.

Paul has impressed in all of his WWE matches, but he has had the luxury of strong dance partners. Ricochet is no exception, as Paul admitted earlier this year that when it came to timing their WWE Royal Rumble spot, Ricochet told Paul to not worry about landing simultaneously as he would catch up to him.

Speaking to ComicBook.com at the WWE SummerSlam press junket, Ricochet noted that getting in the ring with Paul is always unpredictable.

"I got to understand that he's someone that's new, someone that's kind of a wild card," Ricochet said. "Someone that, although he doesn't know as much as a lot of the people that I'm around, he's still an athlete. He's still crazy. He's still a stunt man. He's still on his own wavelength of stuff that he does. Plus he's a trained boxer. Going in there with him, you don't really know what you're going to get. You don't know what you're going to have planned. You don't know until you get to cooking and then it all kind of molds together and it all kind of just comes naturally as it just starts flowing kind of thing. It definitely is a different process."

On-screen, Paul has emphasized his objective in this WWE SummerSlam bout is to go viral. While Ricochet doesn't deliberately try to make those trending moments, he noted "virality" is second-nature to his in-ring style.

"Obviously, what Ricochet does kind of goes viral, but it's not like I have the intention of going out there and going viral," Ricochet continued. "I just go out there and use what's in my environment. It just so happens that what I can do and things that are in my capability just happen to go viral."

Ricochet faces Logan Paul tonight at WWE SummerSlam, streaming live on Peacock at 7:30 PM ET.

The DC Universe on film is headed in a new direction under James Gunn and Peter Safran, but it sounds like Gal Gadot is still going to be involved with Wonder Woman's future. Gadot debuted as Diana Prince in 2016's Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. She then headlined 2017's Wonder Woman and its 2020 sequel, Wonder Woman 1984 opposite Chris Pine as Steve Trevor, both helmed by director Patty Jenkins, while also appearing in Justice League (and the fully Zack Snyder-helmed director's cut). As Gunn and Safran took over as co-heads of the rechristened DC Studios for Warner Bros., plans for Patty Jenkins to return for Wonder Woman 3 were scrapped. That left Gadot's future as Wonder Woman unclear. Things became murkier when she appeared in a cameo role in Shazam! Fury of the Gods, but had a similar cameo cut from The Flash, starring Ezra Miller, where she would have appeared alongside Ben Affleck as Batman and Henry Cavill as Superman, further confusing fans.

Speaking to ComicBook.com's Chris Killian for her new Netflix movie Heart of Stone before the SAG-AFTRA strike, Gadot said that, as she understands it, she will be developing Wonder Woman 3 together with Gunn and Safran. "I love portraying Wonder Woman," Gadot says. "It's so close to and dear to my heart. From what I heard from James and from Peter is that we're gonna develop a Wonder Woman 3 together."

Gal Gadot on the new Superman casting

DC Studios recently confirmed that David Corenswet will play Clark Kent in the upcoming movie Superman: Legacy, directed by Gunn, opposite Rachel Brosnahan as Lois Lane. Gadot hadn't heard who had landed those roles but said she was aware of the tests taking place and thoughts everyone involved seemed worthy of the parts.

"I saw that they were testing, doing different screen tests, but I don't know who got it, but it seemed like everyone was super legit and talented and, like, great," Gadot says. "So I'm happy for them. It's such a huge take-on and it's such an exciting beginning to any actor, and I wish whoever it's going to be the best of luck and enjoy the ride."

Wonder Woman in the DC Universe

Gunn and Safran's plans for Wonder Woman in the new DC Universe are unclear at this point. Currently, there is no Wonder Woman movie among the DC movies included in the slate of projects for Chapter One of the DC Universe, called "Gods and Monsters."

However, there are plans for a Max series titled Paradise Lost, which will be a series full of intrigue set amongst the Amazons on Themiscyra. Additionally, Gunn has hinted that he's interested in developing a Wonder Woman animated series.

Gal Gadot stars in Heart of Stone on Netflix

Gadot plays spy Rachel Stone in the Netflix thriller Heart of Stone. According to the synopsis, "Rachel Stone is an intelligence operative, the only woman who stands between her powerful global peacekeeping organization and the loss of its most valuable -- and dangerous -- asset."

Tom Harper directed Heart of Stone from a screenplay by Greg Rucka (The Old Guard) and Allison Schroeder, based on Rucka's story. In addition to Gadot, Heart of Stone stars Jamie Dornan and Alia Bhatt. Heart of Stone debuts on Netflix on August 11th.

Editor's note: This interview was conducted prior to the SAG actors' strike.

Cody Rhodes has had quite the journey over the past few years, and WWE pulls the curtain back on that journey in American Nightmare: Becoming Cody Rhodes documentary. The documentary stretches from Rhodes' early life all the way to his sensational return to WWE at WrestleMania 38 and beyond. ComicBook.com had the chance to speak to Rhodes all about the documentary, including what was most important to include, how his daughter changed his life in wrestling, and more. The documentary includes references to Cody's full journey, including All In and his eventual signing with AEW, and that full picture was the most important element of the documentary for Rhodes.

"When I talked to Ben Hauser and Matt Braine, who really are the architects of this documentary, I was just adamant that you don't exclude my time away," Rhodes said. "That you don't just say, 'Cody was gone on a boat ride for six or seven years. Now he's back.' I said, 'I know it's difficult and it's somewhat taboo. We're a different team here.' And I said though, The story, it all has to be in there."

"And again, you could take sections of a documentary and extrapolate on them further and get deep, deep, deep, deep into them, but I just wanted to make sure that things were covered honestly and fairly. The good, the bad, the beautiful, the ugly, all those things, and it's in there. So my time away needed to be included," Rhodes said.

The topic of family is a major part of the documentary, especially in regard to Brandi Rhodes and their daughter Liberty. At one point Rhodes says he hopes to make her proud to say that her dad is Cody Rhodes, something any dad can relate to, and during our discussion I asked how she had affected his approach to wrestling and his career overall.

"Well, I'd say the thing that changed most for me career-wise was I no longer had any capacity for any BS. It's not ... I have no capacity for circling, backstabbing, politicking, any of that. If anything, I'll just tell you to your face in the polite way this is how I feel, this is what I should be doing, this is what they should be doing," Rhodes said. "Whatever it might be. I thought that was the best to free me up to just be fully transparent. And in an industry for a long, long time where I had been just like everybody else in a sense that there's weird things you have to navigate in show business."

"And when she was born, it just ... My capacity for BS was that was it. I couldn't deal with it, and that was very helpful, helpful for me because also, not only are you saying, 'Hey, this is what I need for me. This is what I want to be doing'. You also are getting answers back about the level you're at and where you should be, and it's just more honest. If anything, Liberty being born and being a part of my life and having to report back to her, it freed me up to just be a hundred percent honest and not coy, not sly with anything. Here's the deal, let's go," Rhodes said.

American Nightmare: Becoming Cody Rhodes is streaming now and WWE SummerSlam streams on August 5th, only on Peacock. You can sign up for Peacock right here.

What did you think of American Nightmare: Becoming Cody Rhodes? Let us know in the comments and as always you can talk all things wrestling with me on Threads @mattaguilarcb!

Season 2 of Good Omens is finally here, and things are still fragile between heaven and hell after their rivalry almost ended the world in Season 1. The new season sees plenty of familiar faces, including David Tennant as the demon Crowley, Michael Sheen as the angel Aziraphale, and Jon Hamm as the archangel Gabriel. There are also some fresh faces joining the ranks, including Liz Carr as angel Saraqael, Quelin Sepulveda as angel Muriel, and Shelley Conn as demon Beelzebub. ComicBook.com recently chatted with the trio of newcomers, and we asked if there were any angel vs. demon rivalries behind the scenes. Conn is also known for playing Lady Mary Sharma in Bridgerton, and she ended up comparing her costumes from each show.

"Not rivalry," Conn explained." No, because I think even on set, we're all kind of the same. We're all into the same petty politics. We've all got the same gripes. We just don't realize that when we look in each other's eyes, but off camera we do. We're like, 'Oh, are you working tomorrow? Oh, god. Shall we have lunch together?' Or, 'Oh God, what time are you finishing?'"

"Maybe just a moment of envy as a very demurely dressed angel in white, kind of thing," Carr added. "The joy of being a demon and the costumes, as you were just saying. I'm like, 'Oh, I want stuff on my face.'"

"Don't forget, though, I had spent the previous up until the day before, dressed incredibly demurely on Bridgerton," Conn explained. "Do you know what I mean? So, I do know how you feel. So it means your demon is coming, I'm sure of it. I feel very sure of it."

"I hope so. My demon is coming," Carr joked. "Yeah. It's going to get you," Conn joked.

Will Good Omens Get a Season 3?

The first season of Good Omens was based on the book of the same name by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett, and while the book never got a sequel, Gaiman wrote the show's new season. Recently, Gaiman teased that the second season is actually a bridge between the first book and his original sequel idea. The new season also ends on a cliffhanger for Crowley and Aziraphale, which means fans are already eager for news about a Season 3. This week, Gaiman took to Twitter to reveal how fans can help make another season possible.

"It's planned and plotted and if there wasn't a Writers Strike on I'd be writing it right now," Gaiman replied to a fan who asked if there's hope for another season. "Ways to help make Good Omens Season 3 happen are A) watch Season 2, B) get people who know nothing of Good Omens to start watching S1, and C) encourage the studios to negotiate with WGA."

Good Omens is now streaming on Prime.

Editors note: This interview was conducted prior to the SAG actors' strike.

The second season of Good Omens is now available to stream on Prime Video, and fans are thrilled to see David Tennant and Michael Sheen return as the demon and angel duo, Crowley and Aziraphale. ComicBook.com recently had the chance to chat with Sheen and Tennant, and they spoke about being less nervous about Season 2 and collaborating with Neil Gaiman. While speaking with Sheen, we asked the actor if there were any unsung heroes of the show's production, and he spoke about the "detailed design" that went into creating the show's sets.

"Well, I'm always blown away by the detailed design work that goes on in these shows, and particularly in this season because they've essentially built the Soho community and all those shops that are in this, particularly the record shop and the magic shop," Sheen explained. "The detail of work that's in there. I just used to spend hours in those shops in between takes, just looking ... Particularly, the record shop, because none of the records could be actual records."

He continued, "So, they had to make up bands and singers and album names and come up with concept art and covers. And I was just amazed by it. And it was hilarious seeing the names of these bands that they come up with. And again, the magic shop, it was like the most magical of magic shops you could ever have gone into as a child. Aziraphale's bookshop is the bookiest of bookshops you could ever go into. And the magic shop is the same for magic. So, I would say it's the people who came up with all that incredible detail."

Will Good Omens Get a Season 3?

The first season of Good Omens was based on the book of the same name by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett, and while the book never got a sequel, Gaiman wrote the show's new season. Recently, Gaiman teased that the second season is actually a bridge between the first book and his original sequel idea. The new season also ends on a cliffhanger for Crowley and Aziraphale, which means fans are already eager for news about a Season 3. This week, Gaiman took to Twitter to reveal how fans can help make another season possible.

"It's planned and plotted and if there wasn't a Writers Strike on I'd be writing it right now," Gaiman replied to a fan who asked if there's hope for another season. "Ways to help make Good Omens Season 3 happen are A) watch Season 2, B) get people who know nothing of Good Omens to start watching S1, and C) encourage the studios to negotiate with WGA."

Good Omens is now streaming on Prime.

Editors note: This interview was conducted prior to the SAG actors' strike.

Haunted Mansion is now playing in theaters, and it's the latest film to be based on a Disneyland ride. The success of Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl back in 2003 launched an entire franchise, and it's clear Disney has been chasing that success with other ride-based films like Jungle Cruise. Currently, Haunted Mansion is not off to a great start at the box office, but there's always a chance the movie might find its audience when it hits Disney+. Recently, ComicBook.com had the opportunity to talk with Haunted Mansion director Justin Simien in New Orleans, and we asked if he has any sequel ideas brewing.

"Absolutely," Simien replied when asked if there are more Haunted Mansion stories to be told. "My favorite thing about being a director is building the world around the story so that you feel like, 'Okay, after the story ends and before the story begins, there's still a world there.' That's my favorite part. And so there's a lot of things that we set up in the movie and a lot of places that we just point to as being over there, but we don't necessarily go all the way in that particular room or go all the way into that particular mansion. So I think that there is plenty, plenty more story left, plenty more mysteries to discover in the mansion itself. And shockingly, even more Easter eggs, if you can believe it."

Is Haunted Mansion Too Scary For Kids?

During our chat with Simien, he revealed Disney was concerned some moments in the upcoming film would be too scary. However, kids in the test audience felt differently.

"There were some things that the studio thought would be too scary," Simien revealed. "And then we started to screen the movie and the first folks in, we'd be like, 'Is the movie too scary?' Kids would raise their hands like, 'No, I can handle it. We want more.' And so eventually there were things that I truly didn't think were, especially involving the Hat Box Ghost, and especially with some of the jump scares, that I wasn't sure if it was really going to make it through, but it did because the kids wanted more of it. And I kept saying my first Disney movies, those are still the scariest movies I've ever seen. So I talk about Pinocchio becoming a donkey, Snow White getting lost in the forest, these things are terrifying. Like Simba losing Mufasa, these are scary moments."

"And kids can handle it. And if you just respect them enough to handle the story, they can do it. And we just leaned into that," he added. "Life is scary."

What Is Haunted Mansion About?

In Haunted Mansion, a doctor (Rosario Dawson) and her 9-year-old son (Chase Dillon), looking to start a new life, move into a strangely affordable mansion in New Orleans, only to discover that the place is much more than they bargained for. Desperate for help, they contact a priest (Owen Wilson), who, in turn, enlists the aid of a widowed scientist-turned-failed-paranormal expert (LaKeith Stanfield), a French Quarter psychic (Tiffany Haddish), and a crotchety historian (Danny DeVito).

The film is based on Disney's classic theme park attraction and is directed by Justin Simien (Bad Hair, Dear White People) and produced by Dan Lin and Jonathan Eirich (Aladdin). Nick Reynolds (Easter Sunday) and Tom Peitzman (The Lion King) are the executive producers.

Haunted Mansion is now playing in theaters.

The second season of Good Omens is now streaming on Prime, and it sees the return of David Tennant and Michael Sheen as Crowley and Aziraphale. The new season also features returning actors Nina Sosanya and Maggie Service, however, they are playing new characters this time around. Sosanya and Service played nuns of the Chattering Order of St. Beryl in the first season, and now they're back as Maggie and Nina, two shopkeepers who work on the same street as Aziraphale's bookshop. ComicBook.com recently had the chance to chat with the duo, and we asked if there were any unsung heroes from the production. This led to them shouting out their fellow castmates.

"There's a day when there's quite a lot of us all smushed in together," Service explained. "It's about Episode 5. I won't say any more than that, but we were quite hot and there was quite a lot of us and all just standing around. And then I said, 'Has anyone got a joke?' And Tim Downie, who plays Mr. Brown, just has fantastic jokes. So I'd like to sing his praises for a minute and just say, 'That's a great man to have around for jokes if you're ever in a big shot smushy group.'"

"And the rest of the cast that play the Whickber Street Shopkeepers Association ... were a lovely, lovely bunch of people to be part of an ensemble with. That was really great," Sosanya added. "Every day we'd go, 'Here's the lovely demons now. And oh, then they've got the lovely angels in today," Service continued. "And then, oh, here's all the shopkeepers in.' It was great turnaround of fantastic people."

Will Good Omens Get a Season 3?

The first season of Good Omens was based on the book of the same name by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett, and while the book never got a sequel, Gaiman wrote the show's new season. Recently, Gaiman teased that the second season is actually a bridge between the first book and his original sequel idea. The new season also ends on a cliffhanger for Crowley and Aziraphale, which means fans are already eager for news about a Season 3. Today, Gaiman took to Twitter to reveal how fans can help make another season possible.

"It's planned and plotted and if there wasn't a Writers Strike on I'd be writing it right now," Gaiman replied to a fan who asked if there's hope for another season. "Ways to help make Good Omens Season 3 happen are A) watch Season 2, B) get people who know nothing of Good Omens to start watching S1, and C) encourage the studios to negotiate with WGA."

Good Omens is now streaming on Prime.

Editors note: This interview was conducted prior to the SAG actors' strike.

WWE has had a bevy of memorable moments over the last few decades, but most assuredly included in that list is the battle between Booker T and Stone Cold Steve Austin at a grocery store. To this day it's still often referred to and remembered, and fans who tuned into NXT this past week had the chance to see a modern take on that involving Roxanne Perez and Blair Davenport. ComicBook.com had the chance to speak to Perez about the grocery store throwdown, as well as the advice she got from Booker T in putting it together.

"He definitely had some tips on what not to do," Perez said. "He said, 'I got jumped at a grocery store, maybe you should jump her at a grocery store.' But yeah, definitely was inspired by Booker T and Stone Cold and that was just so cool to be able to relive and actually firsthand do what I watched. I was not born at the time. I don't think that (I watched when) they actually aired that, but I did watch that years back when I started becoming a wrestling fan. So to be able to do that now, it was pretty cool."

Perez trained at Booker T and Sharmell Huffman's Reality of Wrestling promotion before moving on to Ring of Honor, and now Perez and Booker T are both part of NXT. Learning from someone like Booker T would be amazing in itself, but NXT also has Shawn Michaels leading the charge, and Perez couldn't be more thrilled that she has two legends to learn from.

"I think it's so amazing that I grew up being trained by Booker T and now I'm able to have him here with me and I'm still learning from him," Perez said. "I still learn from him every single day. After all of my matches, he comes to the back and I'm like, 'What did you think? What could I have done better?' And then learning from Shawn Michaels too, the greatest of all time. Who better to learn from than Shawn Michaels and Booker T? You know?"

NXT is also getting a lot more crossover across the board, as not only do NXT superstars appear on Raw and SmackDown, but superstars from the other brands also mix it up in NXT more and more. "So to just have both of them there and yeah, it's so cool having the crossover and potentially being able to work with some of the main roster people before actually getting up there," Perez said. "Yeah, it's awesome. And I feel like everybody is so hungry now and it's amazing," Perez said.

Perez will take on Davenport at the Great American Bash, and you can find the full card below.

NXT Championship Match: Carmelo Hayes (C) vs. Ilja Dragunov

NXT Women's Championship Match: Tiffany Stratton (C) vs. Thea Hail - Submission Match

NXT North American Championship Match: Dominik Mysterio (C) vs. Wes Lee vs. Mustafa Ali

NXT Tag Team Championship Match: Gallus (C) vs. The Family

Roxanne Perez vs. Blair Davenport - Weapons Wild Match

Gable Steveson vs. Baron Corbin

Dragon Lee, Nathan Frazer, Yulisa Leon and Valentina Feroz vs. Meta-Four - Eight Person Mixed Tag Team Match

NXT's Great American Bash streams on Peacock on Sunday, July 30th at 8 PM EST.

Are you excited for the Great American Bash? Let us know in the comments and as always you can talk all things wrestling with me on Threads @mattaguilarcb!

Haunted Mansion is now playing in theaters, and it's the latest film to be based on an iconic Disneyland ride. The film features a star-studded cast that includes Rosario Dawson, LaKeith Stanfield, Danny DeVito, Tiffany Haddish, Jamie Lee Curtis, and Owen Wilson. This isn't Wilson's first time working with Disney as he is also known for voicing Lightning McQueen in various Cars projects and playing Mobius M. Mobius in Marvel's Disney+ series, Loki. However, Disney isn't the only interesting connection Wilson has with Haunted Mansion. The actor also starred in the 1999 remake of The Haunting, which means he has experienced haunted houses before. ComicBook.com recently had a chat with Wilson about Haunted Mansion, and we joked that he probably won't be meeting the same gruesome fate as his character from The Haunting.

"Yes. Well, careful with that assumption," Wilson joked when we guessed he wouldn't be getting decapitated in Haunted Mansion. "Yeah. I don't want to give too much away. But yeah, it was nice to sort of get a chance after experiencing that genre with that movie, to now get a chance to try to make it through the whole story ... To live. Please, root for me."

Does Owen Wilson Believe in Ghosts?

Haunted Mansion takes place in New Orleans, so the cast spent a lot of time in the city, which many believe to be haunted. During our interview with Wilson, we asked about his time in New Orleans and whether or not he believes in ghosts.

"Well you know, I'd been to New Orleans I think twice, always for just kind of a day at a time, where I never really understood why people kind of love it so much," Wilson explained. "And this time, being there for a while, I was like, 'Okay, this is a great city.' There's always the food and the music, but just walking around and the sense of history. And it does feel like you're kind of walking in ancient footprints and you can see why that sort of lends itself to kind of a place where ghosts would like to gather. "

"I do," Wilson replied when asked if he believes in ghosts. "I do. I've kind of been changing my answer, because earlier on it was, 'I'd like to. I've never experienced it.' But I think that there is more going on than meets the eye." He added, "And I like the idea that there's something supernatural. Just that word, 'supernatural.'"

Haunted Mansion is now playing in theaters.

Editors note: This interview was conducted prior to the SAG actors' strike.

Funko is synonymous with pop culture, which is embodied in its Funko Pops line. Franchises big and small have been immortalized in Pop form, and now Funko is moving that Pop style to the frontier of video games. Funko has branched into mobile games before, but its latest project is heading to consoles and PC, and is known as Funko Fusion. Funko Fusion is the first game from 10:10 Games, which was formed by former members of TT Games, and the studio has created a 4-player adventure that takes advantage of Funko's unique style and vast relationship with IP. Franchises like Masters of the Universe, Jurassic World, Umbrella Academy, Chucky, and more will be in the mix, but that's just the start. ComicBook.com had the chance to speak with Design Director Arthur Parsons all about Funko Fusions, and they are making a game and experience that gets everyone in on the fun.

The Funko and video games partnership is so perfect that it seems like something that should have already happened. That's what 10:10 thought as well, and it didn't take long for the ideas to get rolling. "That's what we thought in June, July in 2021. It literally was a piece of paper. We thought that there was an opportunity with Funko that it could become the next big video game franchise because, the great thing about Funko Pops!, if you're into them, which obviously I am, you can see, the great thing about Funko Pops! is that they give you the ability to celebrate the things that you're into," Parsons said.

"They give you that kind of tokenistic way of going, "Hey, look, I'm into He-Man, or I'm into the Goonies, the Boys," bizarrely, "Duran, Duran." I'm pointing around, you can't see, Andy Taylor's over there, as is Elle Woods from Legally Blonde. But it's one of those things that's just... It's a terrific way of people being able to kind of extend their engagement with the things that they love," Parsons said.

"And for us, when 10:10 Games first came about, it was, 'What are we going to do?' We had this great vision, John, myself, and Paul of forming a new studio and doing something that kind of is in our wheelhouse," Parsons said. "John's obviously the original founder of Traveller's Tales, TT Games. I worked for 23 years at TT games. We always made games that celebrated IP and games that really celebrated movies and TV shows that people loved, and so we knew that's what we wanted to do."

In addition to the immediately recognizable Pop styling, Funko's adorable characters also lend themselves to comedy, and 10:10 is definitely utilizing that throughout the game. "And then we were like, 'We have to work with Funko' because they have this incredible aesthetic that could be something exciting that brings something different to the table in terms of not just the visual aesthetic, but it's like there is something undeniably cute about Funko Pops. There's also, the actual anatomy of a Funko Pop! means that we can have a lot of fun there. Because they've got big heads, because they've got small bodies, we can add a load of humor into the game that's almost unwritten. It naturally comes from that sort of anatomy," Parsons said.

Funko appeals to collectors and fans of all ages, and it was important that Funko Fusions embraced that wide reach. That's partly done through the game's use of IP, but also the mix-and-matching nature of how fans can approach the game's diverse roster of franchises and characters.

"And when we actually sort of were looking at the type of game we want to make, we looked who we thought we would be targeting in terms of... Who are the people that are going to play this video game? And it turned out that it's actually an incredibly broad audience. Funko resonates with pretty much everyone from teenagers through to people like myself in my late 40s. And as such, you then have to go, 'Right. Well, if we want as many people as possible to come with us on this journey and have a great time playing the game, we have to kind of have a little bit of something for everyone.' because no two people are alike. No two people like the same stuff. And that's something we kind of realized very early," Parsons said.

When it came time to figure out which franchises would be on the game's initial roster, there were a bevy of choices to choose from. It would end up being NBCUniversal up to bat first, and that allows a mix of franchises that includes everything from Umbrella Academy and Jurassic World to Battlestar Galactica and Shaun of the Dead.

"And then obviously, NBCUniversal was the sort of winner because they have IP like Jurassic World where they've just obviously released the most recent movie in that franchise, but they go all the way back to classics, something like Jaws or Battlestar Galactica from the '70s. You mentioned Masters of the Universe. I grew up on Saturday mornings in the '80s watching He-Man, and that was my childhood. Then in between that you have... I'll be very careful, trying not to mention IPs we haven't revealed yet, but you have everything in between. So Umbrella Academy is still current, still massively popular. People are waiting for the new season with bated breath to see what happens next. So I think they were the perfect partners because they have something for everyone. Whether it is the sort of, I guess, what could be called the obscurity of something like the Thing, which has that cult-movie following, or whether it's stuff that has never been celebrated in video game form like Shaun of the Dead," Parsons said.

"And as we sort of pieced together the IP roster, it was like, 'This is great.' We've got horror franchises, action franchises. We've got the kind of more fantasy cartoon elements in there. We've got the big-budget action sort of blockbusters. We've obviously revealed... I think there was nine different IP that were revealed in the teaser, but there's a whole roster of other IP that we've yet to reveal," Parsons said."

"I think when people see that mix, you'll find that there really will be something for everyone, and that's the great thing about Funko Fusion. We can all play together, but we can all celebrate the things that we love, that someone else maybe doesn't love," Parsons said. "I can be playing as one of my favorite Masters of the Universe characters with someone that has no interest in that franchise but loves Umbrella Academy, and so we're going to be bringing people together into, I guess, that social hangout, which is what games are becoming now, and they can all celebrate the things that they love. I think that is just a really refreshing take on video games."

Funko Fusion will accommodate four players online, though you can just play it solo if you so choose. If you do decide to team-up, you should see some fun and unique combinations, and that's part of the fun of playing in this type of franchise-wide sandbox.

"It is, yeah. The game's been built so that it can be played four-players online, but at the same time there is the scope for people to just play it on their own. It doesn't rely on four players, but it's up to four players, playing online. And the cool thing that we've done, the way we've designed it is that you're able to enjoy the game, and you're able to enjoy the content regardless of who you are and who you're playing because of the way that we are sort of layering the mechanics and the gameplay depth," Parsons said.

"And I think it's going to be so exciting. I can just squint and fast-forward and look at those Let's Play videos in the future where you've got that lineup of someone's rocking around as He-Man. Someone's there as Shaun from Shaun of the Dead. Someone's going to be doing cool stuff as Five from Umbrella Academy, and then someone will be running around as Chucky, And the mix of groups of four is just going to be mind-blowing," Parsons said. "Obviously, we've worked on big IP in the past, but this is just a whole other level because it's going to be so sort of free for people to do different things. It's going to be super exciting, and yeah, we're doing what we do best. We're doing deep-cut IP Easter eggs, and super-deep fan service. So I don't think anyone's going to be disappointed with what they play."

We'll keep you up to date on Funko Fusion's release date and updates, and right now Funko Fusion is heading to PC and consoles in 2024.

Let us know which franchises you are most excited to see in the game in the comments, and you can also talk all things Funko with me on Threads @mattaguilarcb!

Haunted Mansion is now playing in theaters, and the Justin Simien-directed film follows a doctor (Rosario Dawson) and her 9-year-old son (Chase Dillon) who move into a mansion in New Orleans, only to discover that it's haunted. Desperate for help, they contact a priest (Owen Wilson), who also enlists the aid of a widowed scientist-turned-failed-paranormal expert (LaKeith Stanfield), a French Quarter psychic (Tiffany Haddish), and a crotchety historian (Danny DeVito). While there are plenty of spooky moments and laughs to be had in the film, the newest Disney flick also has a surprising amount of heart. ComicBook.com recently had the chance to speak with Stanfield, and we asked him if the film's emotional beats are what drew him to the script.

"Wow. I'm glad that you felt moved by it," Stanfield replied. "I mean, it was real for me, so I'm glad it could be real for you, too. Yeah, there's a story that's at the heart of this already fun, fantastical, interesting, scary kind of movie and story, but there's something there that has sustenance. And I feel that always speaks to me when I read scripts."

He continued, "I like to, if I'm going to put something out in the world, hopefully, put something out there that makes people reflect. You're going to have a good time, but hopefully you can also, too, reflect your own life and see how what you're ingesting might help you navigate that. Or maybe there are things you're being shown that you want to avoid or whatever. So, I'm glad that there was that central story there, that was big for me."

You can watch our interview with LaKeith Stanfield and Rosario Dawson at the top of the page.

LaKeith Stanfield On Working With Disney:

There are a few actors in Haunted Mansion who have worked with Disney multiple times before, but it marks Oscar nominee LaKeith Stanfield's first time playing in the House of Mouse. During ComicBook.com's interview with Stanfield, we asked about his first Disney experience.

"It was cool. Just the scale was really big," Stanfield explained. "And that's what I realized at first, walking onto the set, it was just so intricate. And it's like Rosario pointed out in a conversation that we were having about the level of detail and how many people are involved, it's like a small city. You walk on set, you're like, 'Wow, there's so many people who specialize in their particular aspects.' And it was just nice to have that. And to be involved with this ensemble of just so many different people from different backgrounds that are helping us do this one thing together. It really felt communal and cool."

He continued, "And it made me think about how this is life. It's us, as living beings, working together for a common goal. And it kind of is interesting to think about mortality and all of that and how the generation sort of come in and out tides, and what we're doing while we're here and how we help each other. And I don't know, there's something like metaphorical about that. While we were on set, I was like, 'Wow, we're all here right now. We all won't always be, but we're all here right now and we're enjoying this moment and that matters.' So, it was cool."

Haunted Mansion is now playing in theaters.

Editors note: This interview was conducted prior to the SAG actors' strike.

Debuting late in 2020, How To with John Wilson offered audiences an eccentric and unconventional look not only at daily life in New York City, but also delivered genuine advice about some of life's most common questions, from "How To Make Small Talk" to "How To Split the Check." Comprised of footage captured largely by Wilson, the series was less of a self-help series so much as it was a natural history documentary chronicling unexplored walks of life, digested through the lens of Wilson and producer Nathan Fielder's absurdist sense of humor. Over the course of its first two seasons, How To has shed a light on everything from conventions exploring the Mandela Effect and Avatar fan group meetups to a man attempting to re-grow his foreskin and Wilson's own connection with his elderly landlord, affectionately known as "Mama." Throughout it all, How To has been both bizarre and touching, as it delivers countless incredibly human moments that are at once both outlandish and relatable. How To with John Wilson's third and final season debuts on HBO on July 28th.

In Season 3 of How To with John Wilson, documentary filmmaker and self-described "anxious New Yorker" John Wilson continues his heartfelt mission of self-discovery, exploration, and observation as he films the lives of his fellow New Yorkers while attempting to give everyday advice on six new deceptively simple and wildly random topics. Nathan Fielder (HBO's The Rehearsal), Michael Koman, and Clark Reinking, who previously worked together on Nathan For You, serve as executive producers. Building upon Season 2, the episodes take unexpected turns, as John navigates a new set of topics including; how to find a public restroom, how to work out, and how to clean your ears.

ComicBook.com caught up with Wilson to talk developing this final season, the most visceral footage he has captured, and what he has personally taken away from this journey.

ComicBook.com: Season 3 feels like it's your most personal, most vulnerable season yet, and so for you as a filmmaker, how do you find the balance, or is there a balance, between John Wilson: the filmmaker, the person, the actual identity versus the John Wilson of How To with John Wilson?

John Wilson: I feel like in the show I do drift in and out of a schtick. I hope it's obvious to the audience when I'm being cheeky and when I'm telling you a true story. I mean, it's all a true story, but there are certain visual gags that I am in a bit of a satirical character for.

But each episode is always anchored by a very real personal story a lot of the time, and I want to make sure that the audience does not doubt the veracity of that in any way. It's tough tonally sometimes to thread that needle, but I make the show a lot of the time because there are things that I do want to confess, things that I do want to process that I have no other healthy way to do.

This has been consistent throughout the lineage of the whole project. I've been making how-to movies for 13 years, and that's been the major engine for a lot. For the whole time, it's actually dealing with my actual life and my actual problems. So, to me, having the show out in the world just makes it a little easier to talk to people in real life, which helps with social anxiety and stuff. Maybe if they know a bit about me from the show, then maybe I won't have to worry about pitching myself as much as you would just meeting someone at a party normally.

Throughout the whole tenure of the show, you've captured some truly remarkable pieces of footage and really incredible, must-be-seen-to-be-believed encounters with other people. The conversation about Parasite, for example, is the one that comes to mind that just blows me away. When you look back on the series, is there an encounter or piece of footage that even you feel like you can't believe that you captured? Or, for you, is there no real difference between just a compelling shot of a dog walking down the street versus someone walking into the CEO of Bang Energy Drinks' house?

There is a spectrum, for me, of things that astound me, for sure.

The shot of a dead pigeon is low-hanging fruit at this point, but in the end of the episode I made about batteries when this trash can spontaneously ignites in flames, and there's this ad for vodka behind it that says, "Good vodka shouldn't burn." That was, especially in an episode about trash, it was just this crazy ... I just couldn't believe what I was witnessing and that I was there at that exact time after this whole journey, and things like that make me -- that's the most religious experience I'll ever have, or moments like that, when things just happen to line up like that or ... I don't know.

There's a lot of stuff in this season, too, I don't know when this is coming out, but there were so many moments where I walked out of an interview, and I was just speechless. I had to sit for a while and think about why the universe delivered that to me.

What have you personally taken away from this experience of putting this show out there? Is it a type of thing that it can't really be quantified how much this TV show has impacted your life, or are you able to, with Season 3 about to come out, you can look back to where you were in life, emotionally, professionally and you see what those more distinct differences are for you as a person since this started?

I feel like I try to acknowledge that a bit in one episode this season, socially and professionally, how the show has impacted my life. But at the end of the day, I'm still walking to the same restaurants and getting coffee at the same place. The pleasure I get from the same routines hasn't changed. It's like when someone wins the lottery, and they still just would rather shop at Walmart.

You not only capture all these visually striking images and moments and encounters, but just the people themselves, the conversations that you get into are just so fascinating and reveal so much about the human condition. Have you ever had one of your subjects reach out to you afterwards and felt like maybe they were misrepresented? I feel like it's all very authentic, and you're delivering objective footage of these people, but do people ever deliver any backlash, if you will, about how they appear in your shows?

Not really. I think the only person I can think of was my former boss at the infomercial place that I worked at. I think it was in the scaffolding episode. He reached out basically to say that he saw the episode and he didn't seem that upset, though. I think he said that maybe someone who was on-screen, one of the on-camera talent, in some of the footage that we used, was maybe upset, but it was all fair use. So I didn't even say anything about that person.

But other than that ... And that was even in good spirits, because I think he was just glad that his company was getting PR anyway, press. But I am very upfront about what the context of a lot of this stuff is when I'm shooting with someone in the moment, so there really aren't that many surprises.

Something that I've wondered going all the way back to Season 1, and it might change from episode to episode, but how much of the show is written to the footage that you've captured versus you write the show and then you find the applicable footage that will help punctuate the things you're writing?

Each episode is different, but sometimes it'll start with just an episode title or maybe even just a piece of iPhone footage that I know I have that was weird or just a kernel of another story maybe. Then I'll just start shooting based around this general concept, and then weird stuff, just, I know it's vague, but weird stuff just starts happening the more you talk to people.

Then you reorient everything around the material that is most compelling, and then you write broadly about what the beats could be. Then when you get in the edit, you then are very specific, like, line by line, shot by shot, line everything up.

Do you feel like you approached Season 3 of your show any differently than the previous seasons? Would Season 3, Episode 4 be just as in line with Season 1, Episode 6? Do you think they all are on the same playing field, or do you think there's a theme or tone for Season 3 that sets it apart?

I would like for the audience to be able to just start at any episode, basically, without -- save for maybe the finales of each season just because they have these wrap-up moments, but formally, I wanted it to be consistent throughout the way it's shot. Just like in The Simpsons or any other thing, you just start from square one, "This is the problem and this is what we're dealing with today."

I had saved this as my last question, almost because I'm not sure I want the answer, but I noticed that Mama wasn't in Season 3...

No, I think she's okay. I haven't talked to her in a few months, but I still get her mail and stuff. I think she's good. I should text her.

Thank God. I was seriously bracing for a horrible scoop here.

I don't think, even if that was the case, I don't think that I would lay that on you or put that in an episode, anyway.

Well, John, again, I can't thank you enough for taking the time to chat. I've been such a fan of the show. I can't wait to see what you do next, and, in the words of Mama, "Have a nice day. Have a nice life."

Thanks, man. I really appreciate it.

Season 3 of How To with John Wilson premieres on HBO on Friday, July 28th at 11 p.m. ET.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity. You can contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter.

Twisted Metal star Anthony Mackie wanted us to know that he remembers every word to Sisqo's "Thong Song." ComicBook.com's Chris Killian had the pleasure of interviewing the actor about one wild moment from the Peacock series before the actor's strike. With reboots in the air and sampling music more prevalent than ever, it's no surprise that Twisted Metal would employ a massive hit from about 20 years ago. Mackie says that he didn't need to re-learn the words at all. In fact, just hearing that violin start up was enough to get it all flooding back. Sisqo's career started back with Dru Hill in the 90s, so that's right in the Captain America star's wheelhouse.

"No, I absolutely did not have to learn the lyrics, I know pretty much all of Sisqo's music because I was a huge Dru Hill fan. Like, 90s R&B is kind of where I stayed and I will stay for the rest of my life," Mackie joked. "So, the song is something that I can speak on. Like, 'Oh that girl is so scandalous, shaken those hips like she's..." I mean, like I know every word. So, there was nothing I needed to learn."

The Captain America: Brave New World star took our Chris Killian back as they joked about Pony by Ginuwine being up there as well. Mackie said, "Just that song and Pony. Those are the two songs." (No word on if "Rodeo" will end up in Season 2, but we'll let you know as soon as we find out!)

Twisted Metal Reviews Are Great

Reviewers are smitten with the Twisted Metal TV series. In our review for ComicBook.com, Cade Onder says that the show continues PlayStation's hot streak in the world of TV that began earlier this year with The Last of Us. It feels like things are just revving up for Twisted Metal.

"The Twisted Metal TV series seems to prove that The Last of Us was not a fluke for PlayStation Productions, a new production company designed to faithfully adapt the console-maker's vast library of franchises to television and film," Onder argues. "While Twisted Metal is very different from The Last of Us, the new Peacock series maintains the DNA of the IP that fans hold dearly while making it accessible to a new audience. This may come as a bit of a surprise, as some were put off by the marketing to the show, but it manages to make itself an appealing new offering for Peacock subscribers and a show mostly worthy of the branding it represents."

Twisted Metal Respects The Source Material

The people behind Twisted Metal obviously care about the franchise. ComicBook.com's Patrick Cavanaugh talked with Mike Mitchell about how the creative team approached the show. People had some pretty big expectations when it came to the PlayStation franchise. It goes without saying on the Internet, but you can't please everyone.

"I'm like, 'You have no idea how much attention to detail this guy has and how much he loves the game.' I've learned so much more about the game even since I started on there," Mitchell explained. "But yeah, man, it's a lot of fun. Obviously, it's a challenge to adapt something like that to a series, and I think the writers did such a great job."

He continued, "It's a lot of fun, and it's crazy, and it really goes there in a lot of different ways. I think that there's a comment that got people who love the show upset was, where it was like, 'Oh, there's a lot of things that there's not a huge lore to Twisted Metal or whatever.' And people are like, 'Yeah, there is.' And it's like, no, they are thinking about all of that stuff. They care. Like I said, M.J. cares so much about the lore of the game."

Editor's note: This interview was conducted prior to the SAG actors' strike.

Did you like that moment in Twisted Metal? Let us know in the comments below!

To the delight of many, WWE has brought down the walls between the brands more and more over the past few months, with stars from Raw and SmackDown appearing on NXT and NXT stars even getting in the ring on Raw and SmackDown from time to time. This has also led to an unexpected challenge from Bron Breakker to World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins, and Rollins, and Rollins ended up returning to NXT for a Title match as a result. ComicBook.com had the chance to speak to NXT Superstar Roxanne Perez, and if she were able to issue a Title challenge, would it be to WWE Women's Champion Asuka or Women's World Champion Rhea Ripley?

"Honestly, I think I would call out Asuka because I've never been able to step foot in the ring with Asuka," Perez said. "I'd love to test myself against Asuka. I have already gone up against Rhea and that was a pretty tough one. So I think I'm going to get in the ring and train a little bit more before I get in the ring with Rhea again. But I would love to get in the ring with Asuka. I respect her so much and I've watched her growing up as a kid, studied her and everything. I think she's amazing."

Asuka isn't one to turn down many challenges, so it feels like this could possibly happen down the line. Asuka will be defending her Title next week at SummerSlam, but she'll be defending it against two Superstars, not just one. Asuka will have to take on both Charlotte Flair and Bianca Belair to retain her Title, a difficult feat for anyone to overcome. That said, if anyone can make it happen, it will be Asuka.

As for Perez, she has Blair Davenport to deal with before any challenges can be made, and she will take her on at the Great American Bash this Sunday in a Weapons Wild match. Perez has been in a Weapons Wild match before, but Davenport hasn't, and that gives Perez an advantage going into the match.

"Yeah. I mean, I did have my fair share of no disqualifications on the independent scene, and then I have had a Weapons Wild Match against Cora Jade last year, actually late in October. So I definitely feel like that gives me an advantage," Perez said. "Blair Davenport has never been in a Weapons Wild Match. I have."

"I definitely think that Blair Davenport... I'm not going to say is anymore, but was taking me lightly because I don't know if you saw our grocery store fight, but I attacked her from behind, and I think I showed her a side of me that she didn't think I had," Perez said. "And maybe that I didn't know that I had either, but I'm definitely going to show her who I really am this Sunday at the Great American Bash."

You can find the full card for the Great American Bash below.

NXT Championship Match: Carmelo Hayes (C) vs. Ilja Dragunov

NXT Women's Championship Match: Tiffany Stratton (C) vs. Thea Hail - Submission Match

NXT North American Championship Match: Dominik Mysterio (C) vs. Wes Lee vs. Mustafa Ali

NXT Tag Team Championship Match: Gallus (C) vs. The Family

Roxanne Perez vs. Blair Davenport - Weapons Wild Match

Gable Steveson vs. Baron Corbin

Dragon Lee, Nathan Frazer, Yulisa Leon and Valentina Feroz vs. Meta-Four - Eight Person Mixed Tag Team Match

NXT's Great American Bash streams on Peacock on Sunday, July 30th at 8 PM EST.

Are you excited for the Great American Bash? Let us know in the comments and as always you can talk all things wrestling with me on Threads @mattaguilarcb!

This weekend WWE NXT Superstar Roxanne Perez will take the fight to Blair Davenport at the Great American Bash, and there's no shortage of bad blood between the two. This feud has brought out an edgier side to Perez, and she is completely dialed in on the challenge in front of her. That said, that doesn't mean there aren't other goals in the back of her mind, and one such goal is getting back her NXT Women's Championship. ComicBook.com's Matthew Aguilar had a chance to speak to Perez about what she hopes to achieve before being called up to Raw or SmackDown, and Perez hopes that she can not just get her Title back, but become a dominant NXT Women's Champion before all is said and done.

The first goal is taking her Championship back, a Title she was never actually defeated one-on-one for. "I think I want to get my NXT Women's Championship back. I definitely want to become two-time NXT Women's Champion and I think really solidify my reign," Perez said. "Because I definitely feel like my reign was a little cut short."

"How can I say this? I think when I first won the NXT Women's Championship, it was a big shock factor, especially to me. So I think I was very much kind of... I was still trying to find myself here. I think holding that NXT championship was a little, not uncomfortable, but I think I needed to get really comfortable with the fact that like, You know what? No I am NXT Women's Champion and I'm not surprised by it anymore," Perez said.

"I think now when I get my NXT Women's Championship back, I'm going to be a dominant champion. And I'm not going to be worried about, 'Am I going to keep this title against Meiko? Will I be able to keep it? I don't know.' No, I am an NXT Women's Champion and no one's going to take this damn championship away from me," Perez said.

The first step towards that reunion with the NXT Women's Championship is taking down Davenport, and as we've seen during her time in NXT so far, it would be foolish to bet against Perez making it happen. Perez's next obstacle will be the NXT Women's Champion herself Tiffany Stratton, and the last time they met in the ring it was Stratton walking away the winner. Perez will look to make sure that doesn't happen a second time if the two end up meeting again with Championship gold on the line. You can find the full card for the Great American Bash below.

NXT Championship Match: Carmelo Hayes (C) vs. Ilja Dragunov

NXT Women's Championship Match: Tiffany Stratton (C) vs. Thea Hail - Submission Match

NXT North American Championship Match: Dominik Mysterio (C) vs. Wes Lee vs. Mustafa Ali

NXT Tag Team Championship Match: Gallus (C) vs. The Family

Roxanne Perez vs. Blair Davenport - Weapons Wild Match

Gable Steveson vs. Baron Corbin

Dragon Lee, Nathan Frazer, Yulisa Leon and Valentina Feroz vs. Meta-Four - Eight Person Mixed Tag Team Match

NXT's Great American Bash streams on Peacock on Sunday, July 30th at 8 PM EST.

Are you excited for the Great American Bash? Let us know in the comments and as always you can talk all things wrestling with me on Threads @mattaguilarcb!

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania retained the bulk of the bite-size franchise's ensemble but was missing one key group: the X-CON Security Consultants. The trio of Michael Pe?a's Luis, David Dastmalchian's Kurt, and Tip "T.I." Harris's Dave were nowhere to be seen during this quantum realm-based adventure, much to the chagrin of many Marvel fans. Luis cemented himself as one of the most popular non-superpowered characters in the Marvel Cinematic Universe upon his debut in Ant-Man (2015), receiving big applause for his famous fast-paced anecdotes that bookended the film.

Marvel Studios was well aware of that storytelling technique's popularity. Marvel President Kevin Feige revealed in years past that a "special shoot" of Luis "recapping the entire 10-year history of the MCU" was shot for a past San Diego Comic-Con.

Speaking to ComicBook.com during the Jack Ryan Season 4 press junket, Michael Pe?a reflected on the infamous recap.

"The recap was with me and Paul Rudd, and I think that was an internal thing. I don't know if it was at Comic-Con or not, but that was four or five years ago," Pe?a said. "Six years ago? Seven years ago? You're going to have to ask those people. I don't know. I think it was only meant to be a one-time thing."

Editor's note: This interview was conducted prior to the SAG actors' strike.

Why Wasn't Luis in Quantumania?

Ant-Man and the Wasp director Peyton Reed addressed Luis's absence in a recent interview, noting that the threequel's additions to the ensemble meant some characters ended up on the cutting room floor.

"There were no versions of this movie [with Luis]. There are a lot of characters in the movie," Reed said. "We obviously have our Lang, van Dyne and Pym family, but then we also introduced Kang, MODOK and all of our Freedom Fighter characters. So we had to make decisions early on about what stories we could tell and what stories we couldn't tell."

Despite his Quantumania absence, Pe?a has big things happening in the Jack Ryan world. He joined the John Krasinski led show in the latest season as Ding Chavez and is rumored to lead a spin-off series centered around his character in the future.

Pe?a can be seen in Jack Ryan Season 4, now streaming on Prime Video.

On paper, Jack Spade is on top of the world. Heels Season 1 concluded with Stephen Amell's leading character successfully selling out a full-size arena for the Duffy Wrestling League at the Georgia State Fair, but it cost him his family. Leading up to the big event, Jack put all of his energy into the DWL that his wife and son took a backseat, resulting in them leaving the house for an extended period of time. Beyond that, Jack reveals to brother Ace Spade (Alexander Ludwig) that he played a major role in the crowd turning on him. Ace didn't take this news well, as he began to legitimately fight Jack during their scripted match. Entering Heels Season 2, the DWL is the most over it has ever been, but Jack's real-life heat is off the charts.

Speaking to ComicBook.com, Amell provided insight into Jack's headspace going into Heels Season 2.

"I remember reading the first script and going like, 'Okay, how is Jack going to deal with this?'" Amell said. "He's had this massive success, but then he gets out of the ring and he he has nothing to show for it. Sure, they've got some money and they can pay some of their bills, but he comes home to an empty house. It's in that moment that things start to change."

The "empty house" realization brings Jack down to Earth, as Amell notes that moment comes with an immediate wake-up call.

"It's just all laid out there in front of him: what you're doing isn't working. So he just stops and he goes, 'Okay, it's not working. We're going to try and figure it out,'" Amell continued. "He has no idea how he's going to figure it out, but he's going to listen to people around him and ask for help and at the very least recognize that what his dad did broke him. He's got to himself back together."

CM Punk and AJ Lee Share the Ring in Heels Season 2

Heels Season 2 welcomes former WWE star AJ Lee to the cast and features her doing her first in-ring work since leaving WWE in 2015. In a clip shared ahead of Season 2, Lee's Elle Dorado is seen sparring with CM Punk's Ricky Rabies.

Heels Season 2 premieres this Friday, July 27th on Starz.

Editor's note: This interview was conducted prior to the SAG actors' strike.

Jamie Lee Curtis might be best known for her prolific career as an actress, but she's soon headed into a whole new domain -- comics. Curtis is co-writing the Titan Comics graphic novel Mother Nature, an "eco-horror" tale created alongside co-writer Russell Goldman and artist Karl Stevens. The story of Mother Nature has been a passion project for Curtis for a while, and according to the actress, its central themes have only become more relevant than ever. While speaking to ComicBook.com's Brandon Davis at San Diego Comic-Con, Curtis revealed her own personal catalyst for the environmentally-conscious story.

"When I was 19, I somehow knew we were blowing it," Curtis explained. "I just knew it from an environmental standpoint. And I had this story that had been in my head since I was 19 with a couple visual images. And then after I finished the movie Halloween, which reinvigorated my love for movie-making, I decided to try to write it out as a story. I met young Russell Goldman who helped me. He and I then collaborated when Russell decided to really focus the story on mothers. Mother Nature. It's a story about two mothers and two daughters. And Karl Stevens, who I've collected the work of for a long time now, read the story that we wrote and said, "Well, guys, I think it's a graphic novel." And here it is."

What Is Mother Nature About?

Mother Nature follows Nova Terrell who, after witnessing her father die in mysterious circumstances on one of the Cobalt Corporation's experimental oil extraction projects, has grown up to despise the seemingly benevolent company that the town of Catch Creek, New Mexico, relies on for its jobs and prosperity. The rebellious Nova wages a campaign of sabotage and vandalism against the oil giant, until one night she accidentally makes a terrifying discovery about the true nature of the 'Mother Nature' project and the long-dormant, vengeful entity it has awakened that threatens to destroy them all."

"For me, it's the big wake-up call," Curtis said elsewhere in the interview. "It's the way that art can stimulate all of us. I don't know if any of y'all who are watching this have been paying attention to the news. I don't know. Maybe it's just been the hottest days on record ever in the United States. I don't know. Records rainfall. They got a month's rainfall in Pennsylvania in an hour. So it's happening. It's game on. And we're just watching it going, "Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God," and not doing anything. And the "Oh my God, we're not doing anything" isn't going to get us anywhere. And so I think the beautiful part of art is that art can stimulate change. And it's how change has happened throughout history, is that art has led the way. Art is the translator. Art is the great equalizer. And just where you were talking about the energy that we have been sucking out of the earth for a very long time. Oil, and then it became uranium, and then it became natural gas, and then it... Fracking and all of the ways that we just go, "Oh, Mother Nature, I'm going to take everything from you.""

Mother Nature will be available wherever comics are sold on August 8th.

AEW's House of Black continues to be one of the company's most popular factions, and as they currently hold the AEW World Trios Championships, their rule doesn't look to be ending anytime soon. The group currently includes Malakai Black, Brody King, Buddy Matthews, and Julia Hart, but there's always room for one more, right? That topic came up during ComicBook.com's interview with Brody King and Danhausen at San Diego Comic-Con, and when asked who from Violence Unlimited might make a good fit for House of Black, King knew the perfect addition right away.

"It's Homicide, 100%. I could only imagine...if you've never seen Homicide or his promos, I recommend you do it immediately," King said. "He is the best. He's also a great professional wrestler. I can only imagine Malakai Black doing a House of Black promo and Homicide busting out doing a Homicide promo, where he typically talks about stabbing someone with a fork. He's great."

Violence Unlimited was a faction in Ring of Honor that featured King, Homicide, Chris Dickinson, and Tony Deppen. Homicide has appeared for AEW before during AEW's Grand Slam at Arthur Ashe Stadium, and during an interview with Sam Robert's Notsam Wrestling, Homicide revealed what that meant to him (H/T Wrestling Inc).

"I had a dream and that dream just shut down," Homicide said. "My dream was MSG. Then I wrestled at Arthur Ashe Stadium, the US Open you know? That was incredible. Mind you, it was a visit I came just to visit my friends, and they told me 'you're doing something today.' And I said 'no, I'm not doing nothing!' I was so appreciative, grateful that they said you're going to do something on Rampage."

"It was the last match of the night. It was Lance Archer and Minoru Suzuki, who is the legends of all legends, against one my pals, Eddie Kingston, and another one, Jon Moxley, in a street fight. It was the very last match. It didn't even hit me. What hit me is, behind the scenes, Eddie did a little speech. His mother was there and he had made it. And suddenly Frank Sinatra came on, and it was 'New York, New York.' That's when it hit me," Homicide said.

"I was like 'oh my god. Forget about my dream at MSG, this is it. This is my dream.' I just couldn't believe it. It was 20,000 people, and even though it was a TV taping, it was the best," Homicide said. "It was incredible. It was one of the biggest moments of my life. And it was funny because I wanted to do something where I came out of the audience, like Stone Cold Steve Austin, like if I got arrested for jumping out."

"And they were like 'no, we've got music for you.' I was like 'what?!' 'We've got something like a titantron with your name on it.' I was like 'are you kidding me?!' And they did it and I was like 'okay!' I'm not going to say no to the boss. It was phenomenal. I'm very grateful where I'm at right now. My dream was to become a WWE wrestler, an ECW wrestler. I wanted to walk down the ramp of the Tokyo Dome for New Japan. It didn't happen. But something happened for me," Homicide said.

Who would you like to see join the House of Black? Let us know in the comments and as always you can talk all things wrestling with me on Threads @mattaguilarcb!

Barbie is now playing in theaters, and the movie is absolutely crushing it at the box office. The film stars Margot Robbie as Barbie and Ryan Gosling as Ken in addition to many other stars as various Barbies and Kens. The movie also sees Michael Cera playing Allan, Ken's best friend who was introduced in 1964 and could "fit in all of Ken's clothes." Warning: Spoilers Ahead! When Gosling's Ken learns about the patriarchy in the real world, he takes the idea back to Barbieland and the Kens begin taking over. However, Allan isn't a fan of the new regime and tries to help the Barbies take back their world. Recently, ComicBook.com had the chance to chat with Cera, and he revealed one thing he loved about playing Allan.

"I love that I get to be a part of the uprising," Cera shared. "I'm honored that Allan is included in that and he's just really happy to be there and get rid of all these horses and leather couches."

Who Almost Played Allan?

Before the role of Allan went to Cera, the part was almost performed by Mindhunter and Broadway star Jonathan Groff. "Dear, dear Jonathan Groff was like, 'I can't believe I'm typing this, but I can't do Allan," casting director, Allison Jones told Vanity Fair. Bowen Yang, Dan Levy, and Ben Platt were also unable to be a part of the film due to the production's three months in London.

Greta Gerwig Addresses Barbie's Snyder Cut Joke:

There are plenty of laughs to be had in Barbie, and there's one moment that pokes fun at another Warner Bros. project: Zack Snyder's Justice League. The joke is in good fun, but there's no denying that fans of Snyder are one of the most intense groups of people on the Internet. In the movie, Writer Barbie (Alexandria Shipp) is awoken after being brainwashed by Kens, and she describes it as follows: "It's like I've been in a dream where I was really invested in the Zack Snyder cut of Justice League." While this is a pretty innocent joke, there are already people upset about it on social media. It feels like the joke is poking fun at fans rather than Snyder himself, so ComicBook.com recently asked Barbie director Greta Gerwig about it. Turns out, she's not well-versed in the Snyder fandom.

"I didn't even really realize that," Gerwig said when asked about antagonizing such a forceful group of fans. "I didn't even... Because I don't have a dog in this fight, I didn't even really know, I knew it was a thing. I don't know the contours of all the ins and outs. But it's the kind of thing that I vaguely know. But I think that was the thing, that it was like if [Writer Barbie] had a vague knowledge of, and then all of a sudden in a certain state, it really meant a lot to her, and then it went away."

What Is Barbie About?

In Barbie, to live in Barbie Land is to be a perfect being in a perfect place. Unless you have a full-on existential crisis. Or you're a Ken. From Oscar-nominated writer/director Greta Gerwig comes Barbie, which hit theaters on July 21st. Barbie stars Oscar-nominees Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling as Barbie and Ken, alongside America Ferrera, Kate McKinnon, Michael Cera, Ariana Greenblatt, Issa Rae, Rhea Perlman, and Will Ferrell. The film also stars Ana Cruz Kayne, Emma Mackey, Hari Nef, Alexandra Shipp, Kingsley Ben-Adir, Simu Liu, Ncuti Gatwa, Scott Evans, Jamie Demetriou, Connor Swindells, Sharon Rooney, Nicola Coughlan, Ritu Arya, Grammy Award-winning singer/songwriter Dua Lipa and Oscar-winner Helen Mirren. Gerwig directed Barbie from a screenplay by Gerwig & Oscar nominee Noah Baumbach, based on Barbie by Mattel.

Editor's note: This interview was conducted prior to the SAG actors' strike.

The original Twisted Metal was unleashed on the first PlayStation back in 1995, and thanks to the experience not only embracing the advancements in graphics afforded by the groundbreaking console, but also the PlayStation's tendency to explore more mature content, the experience became a major hit with gamers. Nearly 30 years and multiple installments later, the game is being brought to life for an all-new Peacock series, and as confirmed by star Mike Mitchell, the TV show is much more than an opportunity to cash in on a beloved title, as the storyline will honor the core components of the franchise that fans know and love. Twisted Metal premieres on Peacock on July 27th.

Twisted Metal, a half-hour live-action TV series based on the classic PlayStation game series, is a high-octane action comedy, based on an original take by Rhett Reese & Paul Wernick and written by Michael Jonathan Smith, about a motor-mouthed outsider offered a chance at a better life, but only if he can successfully deliver a mysterious package across a post-apocalyptic wasteland. With the help of a badass axe-wielding car thief, he'll face savage marauders driving vehicles of destruction and other dangers of the open road, including a deranged clown who drives an all too familiar ice cream truck.

ComicBook.com caught up with Mitchell to talk the new series, his connection to the source material, and more.

Editor's note: This interview was conducted prior to the SAG-AFTRA actors' strike.

ComicBook.com: Were you a Twisted Metal kid? Were you a fan? Do you have many memories about the series when it was just a video game?

Mike Mitchell: I didn't have a PlayStation, but I played Twisted Metal quite a bit just from other friends who had PlayStations. So I wasn't a PlayStation kid, but I remember watching my friend Anthony play Final Fantasy 7, just watching, and it was fun to just watch. Holding a PlayStation remote felt so foreign to me. It was like, "What is this? This is not what I usually hold." I was just a Nintendo kid through and through. 100% Super Mario World. I still do that to this day. I 100% almost every Mario game I feel like. The only two I haven't played are the Galaxies, but I've played them, I just haven't beat them. But PlayStation was ... I was a Nintendo kid and there was PlayStation.

Then, as time went on, I went to college and I was like, "I'm a man and now I put away childish things." And I was so wrong. I bought a GameCube that year. It didn't even last. I bought a GameCube and was playing it. But that's definitely when my video game playing went away a little bit. Then when I graduated college, I came out west. I bought a Wii much later than people had already. The craze had already died down a little bit. I liked that a lot. Did a Wii U, and then finally I moved over to PlayStation.

I had a roommate that had, Jack Allison, I think it was a PlayStation 3 or 4. I played it, and I played some of the ... What's the Indiana Jones-type game now? I can't think of the name of it. Uncharted. I played the Uncharted games. I played The Last of Us, and then I was fully on board with PlayStation. And now it's been a good 12, 13, 14 years since I've been playing PlayStation.

I love video games. Just as a 40-year-old man, when I put 100 hours into a game, I'm like, "God, you suck." I just feel time slipping away, and I'm like, as an older man, it hurts. I still do it. For everyone who's reading this, I still do it and I love, it just is, I feel like anyone, once you get older, you're just like, this is a big time commitment. But still, I get a ton of joy out of doing it. But yeah, I wasn't as much of a PlayStation kid when I was younger, and I've come around on that.

I played Twisted Metal. And everyone remembers Sweet Tooth, you know what I mean? And also, I liked Twisted Metal because it was also, it's like a f-cked up game. I feel like so many games like that when you're younger, it's like Mortal Kombat, holy sh-t, this is crazy. And fatalities. And any game where you can see pixelated blood, there's brain or whatever. You get so excited over sh-t like that. And Conker's Bad Fur Day, that's one that I loved. It was like, "Oh, my God, they're swearing. A big pile of sh-t is singing a song." Stuff like that always -- which is dorky, you know what I mean? It is, as some people would say, edgelord-y in some way or whatever, but I ate it up. And Twisted Metal definitely had that thing of, "Hey, this is a game that your parents don't want you to play," or something.

I was trying to explain what Twisted Metal was to somebody, and it was basically like, "It's kind of the battle mode of Super Mario Kart, but like Mad Max, apocalyptic." I hadn't even realized how it was the same rudimentary basics of driving around, but you're shooting missiles instead of red shells at people.

Yeah. Try to obliterate each other.

So when it came to a series that was being developed, I'm sure there's still tons of people who are very curious about how that's going to translate to a TV show. Can you talk a little bit just about what sort of role you have in the new show? No matter how much screen time you might have, if you can talk. I don't know if you're having any fistfights with Anthony Mackie or anything.

I got, funny enough, I'm in the show quite a bit. I am in there, which is great. I'm really lucky to be a part of it. And I think Michael Jonathan Smith, who's the showrunner, did such a great job. And he's a guy who cares so much about the game. I think it's fun seeing clips get released and whatever people's reactions are to it, because, look, I am a nerd and I get very specific about stuff. And I don't like a lot of stuff. It also feels like weirdly, and I don't do it intentionally, but when people are loving stuff, I usually am, I don't love it. And then when people are hating on stuff, I'm like, "I don't get why you're hating on this." I'm not trying to be contrary, and, I swear to God, but this game, they released a clip and I feel like people were hard on it and asking all these questions in the comments about, "Do these people even know this game or have they played this game?"

I'm like, "You have no idea how much attention to detail this guy has and how much he loves the game." I've learned so much more about the game even since I started on there. But yeah, man, it's a lot of fun. Obviously, it's a challenge to adapt something like that to a series, and I think the writers did such a great job. It's a lot of fun, and it's crazy, and it really goes there in a lot of different ways. I think that there's a comment that got people who love the show upset was, where it was like, "Oh, there's a lot of things that there's not a huge lore to Twisted Metal or whatever." And people are like, "Yeah, there is." And it's like, no, they are thinking about all of that stuff. They care. Like I said, M.J. cares so much about the lore of the game.

There's a lot of fun things to do to adapt it to a TV show. Just character stuff and learning more. For instance, I play Stu of Mike and Stu, and we're like the Rosencrantz and Guildenstern of the universe, and we're around a lot of different things as it happens throughout the show. But what do you know about Mike and Stu from the games? Just two dummies that are there, and then they wish to fly and they jump off a building and they die. That's the basis of their story.

So it was fun to create a character off of what you see in the game and then also what you thought it should be and what the writers wrote for you. That was a blast, too. I think Sweet Tooth is the one that people were very protective of. There's a lot of different backstories to him, and I love what they came up with. Samoa Joe is so good in the show. I watched the first two episodes last night. And Will Arnett is so great. He's such, again, another great voice guy.

Well, it's great that, not that the filmmakers are connected or anything, but that you have something like The LEGO Movie, or now you have the Barbie movie where it's like, it might seem super thin or super just superficial cashing in on a title. But then once you actually watch it and realize not only does it respect the passionate fans and that lore, but it also reinvents it in ways that make it so exciting for fans. That's what it sounds like Twisted Metal's going to be.

100%. And, again, just so much credit to M.J. and the writers who are on strike right now. And they should get what they're demanding and they deserve it because they did such a good job, I can't wait for people to see it because I think people have also been like, "Oh, I wanted this to be darker in tone," and stuff. I'm like, the show is dark. It's not not-dark, it is funny and fun. That's what I loved about it when I was reading it, is like, this is a genuinely funny and fun, and f-cked up show that I think people are going to have fun watching.

And, look, I'm not saying anything bad against -- obviously people loved The Last of Us, but it's like, I want to have fun watching shows, too. I don't want to always watch a show where I'm just like, "Man, life sucks." You know what I mean? I think that they did just such a great job of balancing the fun, and the comedy, and the darkness, and the gore, and I think they did a great job. They set so much stuff up for seasons to come, too, which I hope there's more of.

Well, I inadvertently made a connection that helps me with a segue by mentioning The LEGO Movie to director Chris McKay, and you worked with him on The Tomorrow War, which he claims is getting a sequel. Have you heard anything about The 2morrow War?

Man, I mean, I thought that movie was so much fun, and I thought McKay did a great job with it, and I had a blast doing that role. I think that movie is just, again, a lot of fun. I would love for 2morrow War to happen, but I don't know, I'm not sure how they could write Cowan into the movie, because you do see me get, basically, I get immolated, I guess you could say. I just get overtaken by a wave of flames. So how do you come back from that? I don't know, really. But it also deals with time travel, so I'm like, could they maybe jump in and save Cowan and Norah, which is Mary Lynn Rajskub, which we were like a duo? I had a blast.

My time on The Tomorrow War reminded me, I spent so much time with Mary Lynn, we were like a duo, and then on Twisted Metal, it was the same thing for me and Samoa Joe. We spent a lot of time together during the course of filming the show. But I think there's a way to pull it off.

So, McKay, if you're listening, I think that you should, there's time travel, there's a way for us to come back. But yeah, my favorite parts of that movie, and the script, too, was a bunch of idiots trying to manage their way through this alien war. So it'll be fun to get some of the dummies back, which includes me and Mary Lynn Rajskub, but I don't know if it will happen. I have no idea.

Look, I don't work at Amazon. I don't know Jeff Bezos, but they should make a sequel to it.

Listen, if you go on petition.org right now, the number one petition is to rewrite all the Star Wars but with no women. And then the number two is to bring back Cowan from The Tomorrow War for the Tomorrow War sequel that's definitely going to happen.

I only started the second one, not the first one. I just want to be clear that I did nothing to do with the first one.

It's a good thing that you cleared your name, because I know how much you love every Star Wars sequel. Every Disney Star Wars. I know how much you can't get enough of those.

It's really funny. With Disney, I have a podcast Doughboys, for people that don't know of it, and we review fast food and chain restaurants, and I gave a lot of sh-t to the new Star Wars movies. And I was like, man, I never knew that giving sh-t to Disney properties gets people mad at you. Had no idea that. It's like, don't we all agree that they're the most giant evil corporate entertainment company there is?

You don't need to defend them. You don't need to defend Mickey Mouse. He'll be fine.

Yeah, exactly. And I love Disney in a lot of different ways, but the new Star Wars movies didn't do it for me as much, but to each their own.

Twisted Metal premieres on Peacock on July 27th. You can catch up with Doughboys wherever you get your podcasts. The Doughboys Double is available through Patreon.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity. You can contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter.

One of the most talked-about movies of the year was Cocaine Bear, which was based on the true story of the discovery of a black bear who seemingly died of a cocaine overdose. The incident was only one facet of a drug-running operation, but in the new Shark Week special Cocaine Sharks, marine biologist Tom "Blowfish" Hird aims to uncover whether sharks in select regions could be tempted to similarly ingest cocaine and the impact it would have on these ecosystems. Hird also appears in Great White Fight Club, which premiered earlier this week and is now streaming on Max. Cocaine Sharks premieres on Discovery on Wednesday, July 26th at 10 p.m.

In Cocaine Sharks, "For decades, rumors of cocaine-fueled sharks have spread throughout the fishing community. Shark expert Tom Hird travels to the Florida Keys to investigate what happens when the sharks come in contact with the most notorious drug on the planet." In Great White Fight Club, "A team of experts venture into the treacherous waters of New Zealand to provide groundbreaking evidence that female white sharks unequivocally dominate the ocean, reigning as the ultimate controllers of its fierce battlegrounds."

ComicBook.com caught up with Hird to talk the new specials, what was learned from the process, and what the future holds for Shark Week.

ComicBook.com: I think the first, most important thing that I got to ask you, talking about Cocaine Sharks, you're the host of Cocaine Sharks. Did you get the name "Blowfish" before or after hosting the show?

Tom "Blowfish" Hird: Before. But it's a shame, we filmed a fabulous intro that was a cross between Miami Vice, Don Johnson, and Dukes of Hazzard that we were hoping was going to be the start of Cocaine Sharks. I think it's going to be going out as a social media one instead. Maybe, I don't know, keep an eye on that. But no, I am the Blowfish, the world's only heavy-metal marine biologist. And the only drug I need is sharks, and beer, but that doesn't count.

Brings the term "drinking like a fish" to a new definition.

I have put many a man and a woman under the table. I don't mess around. I'm from Yorkshire, mate, we know how to put it down.

Another really important question is, with some of the other specials on Shark Week, they focus on one specific shark. With you, you get to deal with great whites, you also get to deal with the cocaine sharks, the sharks in that certain area. But of all the shark species, do you have a favorite species of shark?

Oh.

Is that the end of the interview? Too controversial?

No, no, it's fine. It's tricky because the great white is very, very, very cool. It just is. Everything about it is tip-top business, right? I would say that was my favorite shark. But as the kids would say, my "heart shark" is actually the tasselled wobbegong, because they've got these fabulous beards, just like me. They sit on the bottom of the ocean with these big old beards, and they actually use their tails to lure fish towards them. And then they can strike and catch a fish so quickly that the other fish can't see it in time.

So they don't know that, they're swimming along in a shoal. Bang! And they're like, "Where's Dave? Oh, nevermind. Well, carry on." They don't realize Dave's been munched. Tasselled wobbegong, that's my heart shark. But I love all sharks, there isn't a shark I don't like. They're all top dollar.

And the wobbegongs especially are just so weird. Because you hear "shark," so many people think of the obligate ram ventilators, they have to keep swimming to stay alive. And so just to be like, no, plenty of them can just hang out and chill, and then bite you.

Yeah. We know so little about our deep ocean areas that most of our shark species are going to be in the deep ocean. And I say that because we haven't discovered them all yet. It's only the sharks that are caning up and down the highways and byways of the ocean that bother with the ram ventilation. Otherwise, quite a lot of them just sit on the floor and just chill. And why not?

Yeah, why not? It's a great question. Why waste the energy?

Exactly.

Between both Cocaine Sharks and Great White Fight Club, you get much snappier titles for your specials. You could say they sink their teeth into the audience from titles alone. With these programs, how tightly are you involved in the development of these shows? Is it that Discovery comes to you, pitches some ideas and you workshop it? Do you come to Discovery with these ideas that you really want the research and they have the funds to bring them to life?

Well, first things first: Great White Fight Club, that is very much the show of my fabulous friend, Michelle Jewell. She is just amazing. She knows way more about sharks than I do, and she's awesome. That was her baby, and she gave me a bell and she said, "Look, Fish, going to do this, going to do that. What do you reckon?" I was like, "Yeah, yeah, yeah, that's good." And I said, "Well, look, I've tried this before." In that kind of scenario, Michelle had the idea and we talked it through for the bits that I was involved with. She then fed that back.

In terms of Cocaine Sharks, which I'm very privileged to be hosting on that one, the guys at Ping Pong Productions came to me and said, "Look, we've got this mad idea called 'Cocaine Sharks.' This is the background of it. We need someone who's crazy enough and hairy enough to make it work." And I said, "Well, I'm your man." I'm certainly crazy enough. And, well, it's getting a little bit thinner [on top], but I think [my beard] makes up for it.

In that case, Ping Pong, they were great. Why have a dog and bark yourself, as they say? So I could talk to them exactly about what we needed to do. Certainly with everything we did on Cocaine Sharks, because of the time limits we've got and the resources that we have, we had to look at behavior. Which I thankfully have got a lot of experience in, and a lot of studying. That was the best thing to do in that scenario. They were really, really good on that side of things. And, as always, as a marine biologist and ambassador for multiple charities and such, I'm quite happy to say, "No, we're not saying that. This isn't good enough." Or, "That's not true, this is." And that is the benefit, of course, of being a marine biologist working in ocean conservation and ocean science for however many years.

I'd rather get it right for the sharks than get another five minutes of screen time for me, because it's just not about me. So working with Ping Pong, it was fabulous working with Michelle, always a pleasure. I enjoyed it all.

Looking towards the future, Shark Week 2024, and then taking into account the research and everything you learned from these two specials this year, is there dream project that you are now inspired to pursue, maybe not necessarily a direct sequel or anything to either of your specials this year, but just taking everything you've learned and now looking to the future?

Well, I think that, as far as Cocaine Sharks is concerned, we are talking about what could potentially be a decade's-worth of scientific, peer-reviewed study into the way that pharmaceuticals are affecting our coastal seas. And great whites get into our coastal seas. It's a huge conversation to be had there. But also, there has to be a certain amount of entertainment. No one wants to see me in a lab pipetting for two hours, that's not going to be fun.

I want to do "Viking Shark" for no other reason than, well, they'll say, "What's Viking Shark?" I'll say, "Well, it's me diving in Norway." And they'll be like, "That doesn't..." "I said it's me diving in Norway." And then we just go with it and just don't tell anyone. And then at the end they're like, "What do we prove?" And I'd be like, "What?" And you just play it out.

That's how we do. I'm always interested in the next story, and we just have to wait and see what comes along, as far as Discovery is concerned.

Well, and if there's Cocaine Sharks 2, I can hop down. I can just drive the boat. I can be a sidekick.

And you've got the mustache, as well. Cocaine Shark 2: The Second Nostril. That's what we'll call it.

Cocaine Sharks premieres on Discovery on Wednesday, July 26th at 10 p.m.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity. You can contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter.

Blackpool Combat Club lost its leader late last year. At AEW Full Gear 2022, William Regal slipped his signature brass knuckles to Maxwell Jacob Friedman, helping the young star defeat Jon Moxley to become AEW World Champion. This was seemingly done to set up Regal as MJF's manager, but MJF would attack Regal the first time they shared a ring together after the pay-per-view. This attack was done to write Regal off of AEW TV as he had been granted his requested release. Regal has since returned to WWE to work with NXT, specifically alongside his son, NXT prospect Charlie Dempsey.

Even with Regal gone, Blackpool Combat Club still operates as a cohesive unit and has racked up numerous championships and pay-per-view victories to their name. That said, his absence is felt by the group.

"It's definitely weird that he's not with us physically at the shows, but he's definitely always with us in the lessons that he taught us and all the tools he gave us going forward," BCC's Wheeler Yuta told ComicBook.com.

While they do not appear on television together anymore, Yuta and the rest of Blackpool Combat Club still chat with Regal to this day.

"He's just a phone call away as well," Yuta continued. "So we all keep in touch."

Beyond being the faction's manager and mouthpiece, Regal also trained with Blackpool Combat Club. As showcased on AEW TV, Regal's history with Moxley, Bryan Danielson, and Claudio Castagnoli was long-documented, as he played a big role in introducing them to mainstream audiences. Even though he had a pre-established connection with most of the group, Regal still made sure to develop a bond with Yuta specifically.

"He was so instrumental and was really important in bringing me into the wrestler I am today. That could be said about every member of the BCC," Yuta added. "He had a connection before already with the other three guys before the BCC started. The fact that he was able to take me in and really impart his wisdom on me, that's something that I'll always be grateful for. He gave me so many lessons, in and out of the ring."

AEW Dynamite returns tonight, airing at 8 PM ET on TBS. The full card can be seen below...

• AEW International Championship: Orange Cassidy vs. AR Fox
• Darby Allin vs. Swerve Strickland
• Dr. Britt Baker DMD vs. Taya Valkyrie
• PAC vs. Gravity
• Jon Moxley & Claudio Castagnoli vs. The Lucha Brothers vs. Best Friends
• Adam Cole and MJF speak

The Dragon Prince: The Mystery of Aaravos is back for its fifth season (and second with that subtitle), which debuted early over the San Diego Comic-Con weekend. As anyone who has seen the new season of the animated fantasy series can attest, The Dragon Prince is growing darker as it enters its final few seasons. With the time jump that occurred between The Dragon Prince's third and fourth seasons, the young cast of heroes -- including King Ezran his brother, Prince Callum, who is now also the kingdom's High Mage; and the Moonshadow Elf Rayla, who was once an elven assassin and is now the last of the Dragonguard -- are older. Their responsibilities are great, and the threats and complications in their lives have grown more serious and more complex.

ComicBook.com had the opportunity to chat with The Dragon Prince creators Aaron Ehasz and Justin Richmond ahead of the surprise release of The Dragon Prince Season 5, touching on how the series is maturing in its second half. Here's what they had to say:

Jamie Lovett, ComicBook.com: I've seen The Dragon Prince Season 5. It's good. Finnegren, the Pirate villain, really stands out as a great new antagonist addition to the show.

Aaron Ehasz: Can you tell who Finnegren is based on a little bit? Have you seen the show Deadwood? He's based on Al Swearengen, who is played by Ian McShane, who's a wonderful villain. Very charismatic, very powerful, very persuasive in his way. A lot of Finnegren was leaning into that kind of archetype and maybe even a little bit as a parody. Even the name -- Swearengen, and then Finnegren -- and then that led to "Finnegren's Wake," but yeah, he's a fun character and we had a lot of fun.

When you all sat down to make Season 5, what were some of the goals, ideas, and themes that you wanted to explore? What was on the big board, or whatever you use to brainstorm, when you set out?

AE: It's always hard to answer questions like that. I mean, we did want to lean a little more into the primal thematic than we had in the original seasons, so we knew we wanted to have an ocean adventure and see Tidebound Elves and tidebound mages and nautical criminal types.

Thematically, I think we were in a couple of different places. It just depended on the character. We wanted to see Ezran growing into a role of trying to assemble forces to face the challenge of being a king, but also as a global king who's going out into Xadia and leveraging his relationships with Zim and Zubeia to get things done. We also wanted him to enjoy and have some fun with the fact that, and see that, he's being asked to act like a grownup all the time and forgetting -- in the scene where he and Soren chat about basically him not even being able to giggle at saying "duty" or whatever. That's part of what this kid is facing. He's not being allowed to be a child. He's having to overthink everything.

We wanted to push on in the world of Callum and Rayla. Last season was seeing the wound and her return and how that hurt him and just seeing the first glimmers of them reconnecting by the end. This season we wanted to see them develop trust again, or realize they trust each other again, and start to rebuild their friendship and their trust. Hopefully. that's something that people felt and that's meaningful and that's important because what happened between season three and season four was traumatic for Callum and hard for both of them, and it was something that hurt trust, and so focusing on that was the most important thing for those characters this season in terms of their relationship.

Viren, as you know, at the end of last season, he starts to slip back into himself. He uses dark magic one more time. Well, now it turns out that triggered the dark magic fevers and re-accessing all the emotional trauma and all the rationale behind why he did dark magic in the first place and all of that, and seeing him now grapple with, "Who was I? Who am I? Who should I be?" Having opportunities by the end of the season to decide, "Can I renew myself? Can I change who I am or am I committed to the path that I was on for all this time?" and for that choice to be a life or death choice. We really loved this arc with Viren and working with Jason [Simpson] on this arc. We wanted to see, especially, Viren's vulnerability, which we saw all season.

We wanted to see Claudia have to really start to step up and take command of what was happening and why and be the leading force. We started to see glimmers of that in Season 4 when [Viren] can't do the spell to release the homunculus and things like that. But it's really in Season 5 where we start to see that, no, Viren is grappling with his self-identity.

If Claudia wants this to happen, she's got to make it happen. She's got to take the lead here, so we're seeing Claudia grow in those ways, but we're also seeing Claudia and Terry, their relationship and the way they support each other and the way he's responding to some of the things she's dealing with and grappling with.

Terry is a really interesting character to me. Introducing a new character partway through a series is often difficult because people get upset that they're taking up time that could be spent on the original characters. Yet, Terry is really fascinating because he's obviously very supportive of Claudia as a person, but it's still ambiguous how on board he is with the actual plan that she's trying to enact. It seems like he's there for her, not necessarily whatever she's trying to do. Can you talk a little bit about him?

AE: First of all, in terms of introducing new characters, we had the very positive experience during Avatar of introducing Toph in the middle of Season 2, I think literally halfway through the show. So we knew if we brought a character to life with nuance and subtlety, and we're fortunate to have great performers, that people can fall in love with the new character and that that's okay. You can do it. That's how we felt about Terry. So the first comparison for Terry is Toph. The second Avatar comparison though is Uncle Iroh, which is to say part of, I think, what we see in Terry is he's in love with Claudia and -- not "but" -- and Claudia is a complex, flawed person.

And Terry's not a perfect person. Terry has a certain instinctive kindness and certain almost childlike wisdom aspects to him. But I think he sees something in Claudia even though she's complicated, even though she's flawed, that he loves and is in love with and he wants to be there for her and support her in a way that's not unlike Iroh. I think you have to pick and choose the moments where you're like, "Hold up. This is effed up." A lot of the time you're trying to be there for the person and support them and not enable the things that are wrong or the things that are bad, but support the person you love. So I don't know, it's complicated. We often have thought there's something similar to Iroh. He sees something in her long term, he believes in her, he truly loves her and she loves him. They have something in each other that they need.

But in terms of, "What is dark magic? What does dark magic mean to him? Why does she do the things she does? Is he against dark magic?" At some point, is he going to be like, "Hey man, you got to quit." I don't know. We saw the line at the end of season four when she's mean to Rayla and tricks her. That's where Terry is like, "Hey, that maybe wasn't right. I've seen you do a lot of weird stuff, but you just took that elf's heart and you took advantage of it." And she's moved by it. It works. Claudia goes back and throws the coins to Rayla.

So there's some traction here between them. There's something in their relationship where he has plenty of influence. He can move her in certain directions and he's certainly going to find opportunities to exert that influence. But we'll have to watch everything play out. We'll have to watch how she's growing, how she's changing, and see what Terry thinks of it and what kind of influence he chooses to, or tries to exert on her. He's also such a respectful person in terms of he would never be controlling or bossy, but he might say, "Hey, this is what I see and this is how it makes me feel, and maybe I think you can be better than that." Those are all interesting aspects of their relationship that I think we enjoy as we tell this story.

This season ends with some characters in some dark places. We're about halfway through the season. Going into this, did you guys look at this as the Empire Strikes Back era of The Dragon Prince, so to speak? Was that on your mind that this should be the dark middle chapter? Where are you in terms of that overarching story?

Justin Richmond: Yeah, since the beginning, we'd always said that these seasons get progressively more mature and some of that means that we go to darker places and this is the first flexing of those muscles in terms of putting it into the show. That doesn't mean that it's grimdark and Warhammer-esque, but trying to go to emotionally different places with the characters, I think, was important. That being said, we still have two more to go, so there are definitely highs and lows in this season, and I think the peaks and valleys will continue as we head towards Season 7 and what we have planned there.

I think Empire's a good way to look at it in terms of the good guys won in the first three seasons, and now, well, what happens after that? The answer is, well, things are still pretty broken. Not everything is fixed just because they won one big fight. So getting a chance to actually explore that is really interesting.

What's the trick to balancing those darker elements with the fact that these characters are still by and large children and you want to have some of that levity? The Ezran "duty" scene that came up earlier is a good example. Is there a trick to keeping that balance so it doesn't veer one way or the other too much?

AE: Yes, it is a trick and it's not easy. For example, we received some fair feedback that maybe we did a little too much of it in Season 4. I think to some degree this is a little bit of an answer, which is to say, hey, some of this is, these characters are kids and this is some of what they go through. This is fine. Even Corvus who's like, "Guys, this is super immature" can't resist.

So I don't know. The answer is yes, it's a balance. Yes, we've gotten feedback from Season 4 that we did a little too much of it, and we have intentionally tried to pull some of it back and find a clearer balance. We don't want the show to be all dark. A lot of things are getting darker. I mean, the things that you're seeing in Season 5, honestly, things coming in Season 6 and Season 7 are testing limits that Season 5 didn't test, so it's got a ways to go. Part of getting there is also trying to maintain some sense of humor and humanity in our characters. I think we're seeing the balance shift a little more as the drama and stakes increase a bit. Hopefully.

Having worked on Avatar, a lot of fans assumed -- rightly or wrongly -- that the humor in that series was because it was a Nickelodeon cable show, and they believed there was something like a quota on kid-like jokes for shows there. But does the equation change, or the balance change, because you're on a streaming series versus when you're on a cable network like Nickelodeon?

AE: It can. The equation changes based on who the characters are and who the audience is. We know that our audience for The Dragon Prince, the vast majority comes from adult accounts, honestly. But we also know that there are millions of young people who watch too. So we're aware that there's a balance. That said, I don't know how that will shift in Seasons 6 and 7. You can see things are getting darker and there are some chances that things like our rating could shift. We have other examples like the Harry Potter that we saw that get more mature over time, and that was okay because the audience grew up with that. And we know that some of our audience is growing up with the show as well.

So we know we want to tell the most epic, awesome, emotionally satisfying story we can for our characters, and we want the stakes to be real. And that sometimes real stakes, the cost of that is things that are hard for younger audiences to understand or grapple with. Some of that we're going to see in Season 6 and Season 7, and it may be that Season 6 and Season 7 are not for younger audiences. So we'll have to see when we get there.

The Dragon Prince: The Mystery of Aaravos Season 5 is streaming now on Netflix.

Over the past eight years, listeners of the Doughboys podcast have been reminded by comedian Mike Mitchell that he hails from Quincy, Massachusetts, as either he or his co-host Nick Wiger reference it in nearly every episode. Mitchell isn't the only significant figure to emerge from the Boston suburb, as the beloved coffee chain Dunkin' was also birthed in Quincy, with the original location still active to this day. Between not only Dunkin's iced coffees being a popular item for the summer, but also the beloved summer spectacle Jaws taking place off the coast of New England near the fictional Amity Island, it marked the perfect time to catch up with the comedian to reflect on other chains of the region and how he celebrates the summer.

Headgum describes the Doughboys podcast, "The podcast about chain restaurants. Comedians Mike Mitchell and Nick Wiger review fast food/sit-down chains and generally argue about food/everything." With the proper Doughboys podcast barely containing all the banter between Mitchell and Wiger, the hosts have also expanded the brand into the Doughboys Double through Patreon, allowing them to dive deeper into movies, video games, and anything else they want to talk about, as well as having delivered live shows across the country.

ComicBook.com caught up with Mitchell to talk the podcast, beloved chains from New England, and more.

Editor's note: This interview was conducted prior to the SAG-AFTRA actors' strike.

ComicBook.com: About a year ago, I interviewed Jason Mantzoukas, who's the voice of Dunkin'. Brian Cox has got McDonald's. Ving Rhames has got Arby's. Do you have a fast food chain that you feel like you would want to do some voiceover for, whether it's because you love it or you feel like you fit the spirit of what they're offering? Would you like to be a spokesperson for any fast food chain?

Mike Mitchell: When you think about those three actors there, you've got Jason Mantzoukas, you've got Ving Rhames, and you've got Brian Cox. All three of them have great, distinctive voices. But, and this is the thing I think about acting, too, I'm like, "Man, to be blessed with such a cool voice." And, also, all three of those guys are extremely talented people. But I just sound like a dweeb. So I don't know what the best fast food chain for me would be because I'm not baritone enough.

Brian Cox has a distinguished voice. And Mantzoukas has a hilarious voice. I just have a boring, dorky voice. It's not that cool. So maybe something like Wienerschnitzel or something would be good for me. I'm like, "Come on, eat at Wienerschnitzel," or something. Something that's one of the more pathetic chains, I guess, would probably be better for me. Not that Wienerschnitzel is pathetic. I don't think that at all.

You could go into, "Take it from me. I'm a wiener and I eat at Wienerschnitzel."

I think that would maybe work, honestly. But yeah, I don't find my voice that interesting. John Hodgman, interesting voice. A lot of people who I know, interesting voices, and I find my voice boring. Maybe it's just because it's me, but the sound of my voice, I think, is boring.

I don't know. I think millions of Doughboys fans will beg to differ in how much they enjoy listening. The millions upon millions that are out there.

I would love to help a chain out that's hurting right now, like Papa Gino's, or Bertucci's, or D'Angelo back in my hometown. I would love to, and I would play it up for sure.

My absolute favorite New England chain is Friendly's because I didn't realize until I first moved to Chicago that Friendly's wasn't everywhere. It feels like every time I go back to New England, they have closed another location, and also tripled their prices. D'Angelo is good, but I want to see you use your star power to bring back Friendly's, personally.

It's not looking good for a lot of New England chains. It kills me.

There's also the nostalgia factor, of course, but outside of that, which I think people don't believe I can do, outside of that, Friendly's was great. You've been there, it was great. It was a great place to get a hamburger or a hot dog, the buttery bun, grilled on the flat top. Get yourself a nice little sundae afterwards. It's surprising to me that its staying power has finally evaporated.

I don't really understand it, but there's some other local ice cream spots there. But Friendly's covered everything. It had good food, too. I mean, Brigham's went the same way. Brigham's got bought out by Hood and then eventually they just destroyed all of them, so that's the world we live in, this corporate world, and eventually you see all of them fade, whether it's by someone buying them out and they're not meeting quarterly profits, or their time is over. There's a new, cooler place to go to. Remember, Pinkberry killed so many ice cream places and now Pinkberry's almost gone.

So it's the corporate circle of life, I guess. But it does, it makes me sad. I find myself rooting for, I say this a lot, but I find myself rooting for smaller chains, which is a crazy thing to do. I rooted for a lot of local spots, and now I have to root for localized chains. It's like, someday I'll be rooting for Target, maybe. Is that how bad it will get? Maybe. But that's the way it goes.

It's weird. Because I do feel, especially Friendly's, I remember they started experimenting with the burgers where the buns were grilled cheese. Like, two individual grilled cheeses and then a burger in the middle. I know it now has a Doritos Cool Ranch cheeseburger. They're getting so wild. I feel like it would totally fall in line with Doughboys audiences and fans. We grew up to, "Oh yeah, that's that place that did the Fribbles," but now it's, "Oh, that's that place that's doing grilled-cheese-bun burgers"

I know. Which, it feels desperate a little bit, but I mean, I've got a lot of love for Friendly's. I hope that they can turn it around, or just keep a few locations. You know what I mean? That's what I think I'm looking for, for all of them. D'Angelo I love, and their bread is great. And they get it from a specific bakery, which I should know the name of, but it's like, man, I hope at least a couple of spots can stay open. Same with Papa Gino's and the same with Bertucci's. Bertucci's is one of the places that got bought out and then the quality has dipped quite a bit since they were bought out. It feels like they're about to go down. I think that that's my guess for the first of those restaurants to go down. But I hope it's not the case.

When I was out there last summer I was going to D'Angelo multiple times a week for their Thanksgiving sandwich.

It's really good. It is good. It's weird how a place won't catch on nationally. I mean, they've never tried to expand that much, but I'm like, this place is really good, and even regionally it can't do well? What's the deal? You also got Jersey Mike's coming in and that's a really good spot. So I don't know why D'Angelo went down the tubes, but I love it, personally.

Well, this is going to be the big push. Once this article gets published, this is going to be the push that D'Angelo and Friendly's needs. We're going to bring them back personally.

Make it a D'Angelo and Friendly's summer. And if you can, hit up Papa Gino's, and, look, Bertucci's needs you, too. Hit up all these chain spots. The local chains need your help. Get out there. I think we just have to say make it a D'Angelo summer. If we have to just put this down to one thing, make it a D'Angelo summer.

Especially their Thanksgiving sandwich when it is 105 degrees with humidity and you're heading to Cape Cod, make sure to pack up those sandwiches at 10 in the morning, leave them out in the sun all day.

Nothing beats the August heat like a 12-inch sub. That's what I say.

I do want to make note that I'm doing this interview before the potential, or which seems very likely, SAG. I just want to point that out.

Oh yeah. Definitely. I know how nightmarish that is for you, and SAG, and what's going on with the writers.

Yeah. People like to yell at you, too.

You're such a fan of so many different things like Star Wars, or video games, or even sports, especially how big of a fan you are for New England Sports. Celtics, Patriots and all that sort of stuff. When you look back on being a kid, was there a certain thing that you really connected with, that you really nerded out over that? It could be sports, which is not typically what "nerds" align with, it's more sci-fi or whatever. But was there a thing that you realized you connected with and resonated with more than some of your friends or what was popular?

I wish that I connected more with sports because I was not a great athlete and my favorite sport was baseball, and that's the one I connected with the most as a kid, probably, but even still wouldn't, if you quizzed little-kid me, which I feel like now every young kid in New England knows everything about all the popular sports. They know everything about the Patriots, Celtics, Bruins, and they know everything about every player. And as a kid, I didn't really know that. I wanted to connect more to stuff, but I loved TV, and I liked video games, and I leaned more that way. I wished that I was more of a sport ... As I got older, I grew to appreciate it more. By the time I was in high school, I was definitely watching stuff and enjoying it.

But as a kid, Nintendo all the way for me was such a huge ... And PlayStation. But I mean, I was a Nintendo kid. I was born in 1982 and I remember my dad bringing home a Nintendo and playing it. And that was a life-changing thing for me in a lot of ways. Bought Super Nintendo the first day it came out with first communion money at Child World, which is another New England chain that's gone away. It also is horrifying-sounding, so maybe it's better that it's gone.

I bought Nintendo 64 the first day it came out. I was crazy about video games. And I was crazy, as a kid, about Ghostbusters and Ninja Turtles. I was so nuts about the two of them. Anyhow, those movies came out when I was right at the right age. So all that stuff I loved. And I just got sucked up into the world of TV and movies, especially back then. I loved going to the movies. I still do. It's one of my favorite things in the world is to go see a movie. And so video games, movies, TV, Ninja Turtles, Ghostbusters, all that stuff was, that's what my world revolved around.

With your love of movies, are there summer movies you have to revisit to get you into the summer mood?

Jurassic Park was a summer movie, right?

Yeah, June of '93.

That, to me, is one of the most magical movie experiences. For me, as an 11-year-old kid or 10-year-old kid, I guess, at the time, seeing that movie, I'm sure for people who saw Jaws or E.T., it was a similar experience, but I love that movie. And a huge one for me, because it was like, "Oh, is there going to be a big movie like this every summer?" Even though I didn't realize that there already was.

Independence Day did kind of start a string of the Will Smith blockbusters and stuff like that. But Independence Day, I remember seeing down in Cape Cod, and it was the start of summer, and I was like, I just loved it. I was in a theater. The theater was packed. It was July 3rd or whatever, and it was life-changing in a lot of ways. I loved it.

I think I've been chasing that ever since. That, for me, is ... It's not like, "Oh, it's summertime, I've got to watch Independence Day," but Jaws is 100% one where, obviously it came out before I was born, but being down Cape Cod in the summertime, and Shark Week would be on, and then they'd also show Jaws during the summer. Being in a Cape house, coming back from the beach and turning those on, and being terrified of the waters I was just in. You know what I mean? I loved it. Eating some Cape Cod potato chips. It's a dream. I wish I could go back.

It wasn't until I did my first watch of Jaws after moving out of Massachusetts that I felt homesick, because those beaches that are always overcast, and those fences with the super skinny pieces of wood that are barely holding together, it would immediately transport me to how much I took those beaches for granted.

The dunes of the Cape. I mean, they sing about it in the Pina Colada song.

You can catch up with Doughboys wherever you get your podcasts. The Doughboys Double is available through Patreon. Mitchell will appear in Twisted Metal when it premieres on Peacock on July 27th.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity. You can contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter.

All Elite Wrestling currently boasts the most amount of programming it has ever had. When AEW broke onto the scene in 2019, the company was running one-off pay-per-view events on Bleacher Report Live. That eventually transformed into a weekly television product, AEW Dynamite, on TNT. Less than two years after hitting cable, AEW would add a third hour of televised content to its Warner Bros. Discovery lineup in the form of AEW Rampage. The exponential broadcast growth continued this past June when AEW announced a third weekly series, AEW Collision, that would air in a primetime position on Saturday nights.

The addition of AEW Collision has raised questions about the future of AEW live events. AEW brought in WWE Hall of Famer Jeff Jarrettin November 2022 to help launch AEW House Rules, a non-televised live event series. With three televised shows being produced per week, there has been uncertainty about where AEW House Rules would fit in AEW's schedule.

Speaking to ComicBook.com's Brandon Davis at San Diego Comic-Con, Jarrett noted that more content only helps keep wrestling in the mainstream.

"Everybody says, 'That's going to kill the business. It's going to oversaturate it.' It's just getting bigger and bigger and bigger," Jarrett said. "Along with that, it comes more stars. You hear the word, 'Oh, it's a niche product.' Well, Bad Bunny and Logan Paul and Shaq, I could go down the list of celebrities. They're not niche. We are mainstream. It's not like we're striving to get in pop culture anymore. We are pop culture."

The surge of content also gives AEW a wider net for fan feedback, something that Jarrett emphasized is an aspect of the business that AEW takes very seriously.

"You have to [listen to the fans]. It's a barometer. I'm either blessed or cursed to be around this long, but you learn to decipher your feedback," Jarrett said. "You can look at a YouTube video and literally read their comments. The exact same video, go put it on Twitter, go put it on Instagram. I guarantee you that you're not going to see the same comments. There's different audiences per social media channel. There's a different mindset. Facebook's different. All in all, it's a barometer that you have to use. At the end of the day, the amount of impressions that we can give as talent throughout a single day? When I broke in, you had Saturday mornings for about 3-5 minutes as a talent to get over. Now you have 24.7, 365."

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

David Tennant and Michael Sheen return as the demon Crowley and the angel Aziraphale, respectively, in Good Omens Season 2 on Prime Video. Amazon's announcement of a second Good Omens season surprised many since the first Good Omens season, billed as a limited series, covered the entirety of Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett's popular novel. In interviews about the first season of the TV show, Tennant noted how much pressure there was to do the cult favorite novel justice. Speaking to ComicBook.com, Tennant discussed how that pressure has changed with Good Omens 2 telling a story that no one has read before.

"There's less pressure in that you're not recreating exactly something that has been so treasured," Tennant says. "You are telling a new story and moving into new areas with these characters. There's always the pressure when something's going well and has been admired and enjoyed, the pressure that you might break it, that it might not be quite as good the second time. The difficult second album, I suppose, is always a little bit there. But we still have Neil Gaiman, and he's had some extremely exciting writers working alongside him on this, but he's been there over every script, and so you feel confident that it's a different kind of a story. It exists in a different place and Aziraphale and Crowley are in a different place, but it's certainly in the spirit of those characters and it's in the spirit of the Neil Gaiman universe, and, most importantly also in the spirit of the Terry Pratchett universe. I think Neil manages to recreate that particular version of his voice, the one that was that world that they created together, which is quite very specific."

Good Omens' Dance of Forgiveness

The debut episode of Good Omens 2 includes a scene in which Crowley must dance as a means of asking for forgiveness. Having seen that episode, ComicBook.com had to ask Tenant what went into those moves.

"We workshopped it for weeks," Tennant says. "What can I tell you? I had to sit down with choreographers. We had to work from the ground up. It had to be a dance that was new and yet old, classical and modern all at the same time. I mean, we did have a choreographer, because there's a lot more dancing later. There's a spoiler for you. There's a lot more dancing in later episodes, not just from me, but from many other characters. So we had a choreographer on staff, as it were, and they certainly helped me to figure out what the dance of forgiveness is."

And Tennant says he hopes the dance catches on. "I hope it's recreated," he says. "I look forward to critiquing many others' take on it. But the great thing about being the creator of a series of moves is that I can define whether other people have got it right or not. So even if other people do it better than me, I will still be able to tell them that they haven't got it right. So for someone who's not a natural dancer, that's a very pleasing place to sit. There's a very pleasing summit to self-righteousness to find myself on." After we suggest he may judge dance of forgiveness contests at conventions, Tennant says, "I mean, I hadn't thought of this before now, but now it's all I can think about."

Crowley and Aziraphale's relationship in Good Omens 2

Good Omens 2 once again focuses on the relationship between Crowley and Aziraphale, this time with Jon Hamm playing the amnesiac archangel Gabriel thrown into the mix. ("An amnesiac Jon Hamm is something I would recommend to everyone," Tennant says. "I mean, having one around is immense fun.") Tennant says Corwley and Aziraphale's relationship hasn't changed much since the last time fans saw them -- it is, after all, a friendship that's already spanned centuries -- but their situation is different.

"The truth is that Aziraphale and Crowley have existed for millennia, so it would be wrong to try and reinvent them three years after we last saw them," Tennant says. "That wouldn't really make sense. I mean, they are as old as -- and I think you get to see -- we see a younger version of them at the very top of the show, which is a version of them that we haven't seen before. And there is a fair bit of netting backward and forwards in time. We visit three other moments in their history together, which will inform how their relationship has developed over the centuries."

He continues, "Obviously, their relationship is developing now that they are no longer working for their respective corporate bosses in Heaven and Hell. Their world is slightly different, and they are inevitably thrust closer together. They can operate more openly as a sort of dynamic duo this time, although describing them as a dynamic duo is clearly risible but they don't have to hide the fact that they're working together quite so much this time because of course, they're no longer in the employ of their former bosses, but they still got to hide from them. They still got to keep out of sight and of trouble, which inevitably, as you can probably imagine, they don't manage to do."

Good Omens 2 Release Date and Cast

David Tennant and Michael Sheen star in Good Omens Season 2, which also gives Jon Hamm's archangel Gabriel a more prominent role. The Good Omens TV show is a co-production of Amazon Studios and BBC Studios, written by Neil Gaiman and John Finnemore, and directed by Douglas Mackinnon.

In addition to Tennant, Sheen, and Hamm, Good Omens Season 2's ensemble cast also includes Doon Mackichan, Gloria Obianyo, Miranda Richardson, Maggie Service, Nina Sosanya, Liz Carr, Quelin Sepulveda, and Shelley Conn. Neil Gaiman is also an executive producer on Good Omens, with Caroline Skinner, Chris Sussman, Rob Wilkins, and Rod Brown. Good Omens Season 2 premieres on Prime Video on July 28th.

Editors note: This interview was conducted prior to the SAG actors' strike.

David Tennant reprises his role as the demon Crowley in Good Omens Season 2, alongside Michael Sheen as the angel Aziraphale, which is surprising to fans as well as Tennant himself. Prime Video marketed Good Omens' first season as a limited series and it covered the entirety of Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett's one and only Good Omens novel. With that in mind, Tennant wasn't expecting to be in Good Omens for multiple seasons. However, he's happy to be back and admits he suspected the possibility of a return after hearing Gaiman talk about his and Pratchett's planned sequel while working on Good Omens Season 1.

"When we first came on board, it was a one-off," Tennant tells ComicBook.com. "There was one novel, and we were going to tell that story. We were very pleased to be doing it, but there was no suggestion then that we would take it further. But I think while we were making Series 1, I was aware that Neil would talk very fondly about ideas that Terry Pratchett and himself had to take that story further. He talks about a possible sequel, which would've gloried in the title -- oh, now let me get this right -- 667, the Neighbor of the Beast, which was a pretty spectacular perspective at that stage of our novel."

But Good Omens isn't the only surprising return for Tennant in 2023. To the delight of Doctor Who fans, Tennant once again played the Doctor in the three Doctor Who 60th-anniversary specials that will air in November. Of the two, Tennant says the Doctor Who return surprised him less given the show's history.

"In some ways there's a precedent for returning to Doctor Who," Tennant says. "People have done it over the 60 years of the show. I was probably quite surprised that it ended up being the type of return to Doctor Who that it is, but I can't talk too much about that clearly, because that's all still to come."

By comparison, he continues, "Good Omens was never a franchise, as it were. As you say, it was one story that had existed as this beloved novel for so many years. So I suppose it was a surprise that it might go somewhere else. It was not an option to do more. It was never a notion when we first talked about it, so it sort of crept up on us. So it was less of a surprise and more of a slightly slow dawning realization that actually we were going to get to go back and see what happened to Aziraphale and Crowley next. But then when we were back on set, it felt like the most natural thing. Like, of course, you weren't going to leave these characters alone. Of course, there were more stories to tell. And they seemed to lend themselves to it."

Tennant and Sheen star in Good Omens Season 2, which also gives Jon Hamm's archangel Gabriel a more prominent role. The Good Omens TV show is a co-production of Amazon Studios and BBC Studios, written by Neil Gaiman and John Finnemore, and directed by Douglas Mackinnon. The ensemble cast also includes Doon Mackichan, Gloria Obianyo, Miranda Richardson, Maggie Service, Nina Sosanya, Liz Carr, Quelin Sepulveda, and Shelley Conn. Neil Gaiman is also an executive producer on Good Omens, with Caroline Skinner, Chris Sussman, Rob Wilkins, and Rod Brown. Good Omens Season 2 premieres on Prime Video on July 28th.

Editors note: This interview was conducted prior to the SAG actors' strike.

Thomas Haden Church has now appeared as Flint Marko in two Spider-Man films, Sam Raimi's Spider-Man 3 and Marvel Studios' Spider-Man: No Way Home. If he gets his choice, however, the actor would most certainly appear in a third one. More particularly, Church tells ComicBook.com's Chris Killian that he'd love to appear in a fourth Spider-Man flick from the mind of Raimi.

"There's always been some kind of...I've heard rumors...that Sam Raimi was going to do another [Spider-Man movie] with Tobey [Maguire] and if that happens, I would probably campaign to maybe at least do a cameo," Church says, speaking with us in support of Peacock's Twisted Metal.

Is Sam Raimi making a fourth Spider-Man movie?

Raimi has long been attached to a fourth Spider-Man project, with Sony even pushing the film into pre-production point. The filmmaker has now said he's down to return to such a project, especially after shooting a multiversal project like Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.

"I've come to realize after making Doctor Strange that anything is possible, really anything in the Marvel universe, any team-ups," Raimi last year said when asked about another possible Spider-Man sequel. "I love Tobey. I love Kirsten Dunst. I think all things are possible. I don't really have a story or a plan. I don't know if Marvel would be interested in that right now. I don't know what their thoughts are about that. I haven't really pursued that. But it sounds beautiful. Even if it wasn't a Spider-Man movie, I'd love to work with Tobey again, in a different role."

Spider-Man: No Way Home is now streaming on STARZ. All 10 episodes of Twisted Metal, on the other hand, will hit Peacock on July 27th.

Where do you want the MCU's Spider-Man story to head next? Let us know your thoughts either in the comments section by bit hitting our writer @AdamBarnhardt up on Twitter to chat all things MCU!

Editor's note: This interview was conducted prior to the SAG actors' strike.

Heels is returning for its sophomore installment. The Stephen Amell-led professional wrestling drama left off with the Duffy Wrestling League reaching its highest of highs while simultaneously hitting its lowest of lows. Jack Spade (Amell) was able to successfully sell out a full-size arena for the Georgia State Fair but fractured his relationship with brother Ace Spade (Alexander Ludwig) in the process. Jack and Ace's dynamic personified the show's namesake, as their babyface-heel dynamic inside the squared circle bled to their real-life brotherhood, leading to Ace occasionally labelling his brother as a heel outside of the ring.

Wrestler speak like that tends to become everyday jargon for the people behind the over-the-top personas, and that has become the case for the Heels cast themselves. Speaking to ComicBook.com during the Heels Season 2 press junket, Amell joked that "pop" and "heat" have slipped into his lingo.

"Pop. Like, 'I really popped when my wife brought out the mint chocolate chip ice cream,'" Amell joked. "'How're things with your wife right now?' 'It's okay. I got a little heat.'"

Ludwig echoed Amell's words, noting he uses "pop" fairly often.

"Honestly, he took the word right out of my mouth, It's pop for me," Ludwig said. "I'll be like, 'Oh, that got a big pop' and I'll be talking about a film I went to go screen or something."

Within professional wrestling, "pop" is a term to describe when there is a big, positive fan reaction to something while "heat" refers to a negative reaction to a wrestler, either from the fans or backstage personnel.

"Most of the words I learned I can't repeat on camera," Trey Tucker, who plays Bobby Pin, joked. "And most of them came from Phil Brooks (CM Punk). No, I'm kidding. I think kayfabe was definitely one."

Kayfabe is a complicated term, but it boils down to presenting a staged performance as authentic. A wrestler using his on-screen persona in an interview would be considered "kayfabe."

"I'll say heel," Mary McCormack, who plays Willie Day, revealed. "I don't think I say face very much or kayfabe. I don't think I use a lot of wrestling terminology in my real life. I should."

Heel is arguably the most mainstream wrestling term. It is the label for an in-ring bad guy. The greater sports world have often utilized it to describe when a popular star goes to a rival franchise, like Kevin Durant "turning heel" on the Oklahoma City Thunder when he signed with the Golden State Warriors.

Heels Season 2 premieres this Friday, July 28th on Starz.

Editor's note: This interview was conducted prior to the SAG actors' strike.

While there are a number of iconic and recognizable types of shark, such as the great white shark, tiger shark, or bull shark, there are more than 350 different species that come in all shapes and sizes. A number of Shark Week specials highlight the species that already have a wide fan base, but Forrest Galante and Alien Sharks: Strange New Worlds instead aim to shed light on underseen shark species, highlighting the diversity of the fish. As the title of the new special suggests, some of Galante's findings are as bizarre as something that could have come from another planet. Alien Sharks: Strange New Worlds premieres on Discovery on Monday, July 24th at 10 p.m. ET.

Alien Sharks: Strange New Worlds is described, "The tip of South Africa is a hotspot for unusual sharks that exhibit bizarre behaviors and unusual, otherworldly appearances. Wildlife biologist Forrest Galante explores stunning kelp forests and ocean depths never-before-seen by humans to study these extraordinary creatures."

ComicBook.com caught up with Galante to talk the new special, his favorite species, and his hopes for the future of Shark Week.

ComicBook.com: The toughest question that I've got to ask everybody to get things started, what's your favorite kind of shark?

Forrest Galante: Oh, that is a tough one. What's funny in all the years of doing this, I don't think I've ever been asked that. Isn't that crazy?

That is crazy. This is a scoop.

You know what I think my favorite is, Patrick, and I've seen them but I've never got to work with them, do actual science with them, is the sawfish. I don't know if you're familiar with the sawfish; it's got a long rostrum, looks like a chainsaw sticking out the front. I mean, that creature is, you want to talk alien? That is an otherworldly organism. It's funny, I'm mentioning an animal I haven't even gotten to really work with, but it's something that I think is just one of the coolest creatures on the planet.

That's funny because the next thing I wanted to ask you is what you feel is the most bizarre elasmobranch out there and now you've hit it. But no, sawfish, you're right. That would also be my pick for the most bizarre-looking thing out there. That's really interesting. What do you feel is so enlightening about these specials, of Alien Sharks? What do you feel makes it such a great topic to deliver to audiences?

This is a reboot of a successful franchise, the Alien Sharks franchise -- which was a clip show of unique and weird sharks -- from the past and we've put the Forrest Galante spin on it, which is the adventure element and the linear storytelling. I think the best part about Alien Sharks, in general as a franchise, is it's an opportunity to showcase underrepresented and unique species.

When you think about Shark Week, when you think about the 35 years it's been on the air, straight away you think about white sharks jumping out of the water, tiger sharks, bull sharks, you name it. And this is not that, right? This is a chance to get the little guy some exposure, to show some really cool, really, really unique, and unusual animals and give them the spotlight and let the audience fall in love with those unusual creatures and want to protect and preserve them. I think that's the best part about this, is it's not the same old hit-them-over-the-head-with-a-white-shark show. It's a totally different thing where we really dig into the, in my opinion, much cooler and much more unusual organisms.

You speak to the history of Shark Week and it's celebrating its 35th year. So before, and now that you're a part of Shark Week, what do you feel Shark Week represents to you? What impact did it have on you growing up, watching it maybe as a kid, and how is it now to be a part of it? To be part of the history of Shark Week?

Well, that's a great question, Patrick. I mean, I grew up in the southern African bush of Zimbabwe, so we didn't have a lot of TV and I still tuned into Shark Week every year. It shows you what broad reach it has and has done and how incredible it is. Growing up in a landlocked country in the bush in Africa, a little barefoot farm kid, I didn't think that ... Well, when did I first do Shark Week? Seven years ago? I didn't think that 20-something years later I'd be digging into it. To be a part of it, to have been a part of Shark Week for the last six or seven years, whatever it's been, has been an absolute honor.

It's so great having a partner like Discovery because the way it works is I take them my ideas. I go, "Here's something I really want to do, guys. Let me show off these unique animals. Let me show walking sharks. Let me go to Mexico and show whale sharks," whatever it happens to be. And they're such good partners, if they get excited by the idea the same way I am, then they go, "Sure, let's do this. Let's figure out a way to tell that story and slot it in and fund it."

It's an incredible thing because for me, as iconic as Shark Week is, it's not about being a part of Shark Week, it's not about being on TV or being on the Discovery Channel, it's about promoting the love of animals and promoting conservation. That's a mission that I like to think we're succeeding at.

You never necessarily thought that you were going to get involved in Shark Week at any point in your career. I know the first time I saw you on Discovery Channel was for Naked and Afraid, so you could say you've had maybe an unconventional trajectory towards your place in Shark Week. Do you have any advice or suggestions for people who are just sitting at home watching Shark Week, how they can get more invested in sharks and conservation?

Absolutely. I say this to everybody, I say it in any public speaking thing I do: just do it. And it's that simple, right? Explore your passion. I don't care if your passion's sharks or earthworms or termites or snakes or eagles, get out there and experience it and explore it. If you have enough money to go drinking at the bar on the weekend, you have enough money to go shark diving. You know what I mean?

Make choices to immerse yourself in nature with those creatures and those organisms that you're passionate about because once you do that, you will find a path to conserving them. And that's what it's all about. It's not about one person pushing conservation perfectly, really hard. It's about everybody doing a little piece and caring about it that will lead to big, global change. And so, for me, it's as simple as: get out there and experience it. And once you do that, everything else will fall into place.

Looking towards the future of Shark Week, you've gotten to do a variety of specials for Shark Week in your history and now Alien Sharks, whether it be a continuation of the Alien Shark series or something entirely new, do you have a dream project that you'd really like to develop and bring to life for next year?

I've been very fortunate, Patrick, that I've been able to do pretty much all my dream projects to date. The series I did, Extinct or Alive, was a total dream come true. The next one that I really want to do is combating human-wildlife conflict and showing some big animal trends, locations, seed populations, so bringing in animals in places they weren't previously and re-wilding places and reintroducing them. De-extinction work.

I work with this company called Colossal, which is a big biosciences company that's doing a lot of de-extinction work, including on the mammoth and the thylacine that I'm passionate about. I don't want to sit here and be like, "All my dreams are coming true," but I'm pursuing all of the dream projects that I want, currently, and that in itself is a dream. I'm not saying they're all going to happen, but it's a lot of fun to be able to pursue all the things I'm passionate about.

Alien Sharks: Strange New Worlds premieres on Discovery on Monday, July 24th at 10 p.m. ET.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity. You can contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter.

AEW Fight Forever has finally arrived. After being in development for a number of years, AEW launched its first console video game this past June. Unlike the WWE 2K series, AEW has emphasized that AEW Fight Forever will not be an annual release but will instead serve as a live service title. This has eased some fan concerns surrounding the game's roster at launch, as it has been noted that many stars that are not currently included in the game will be available in future DLC packs. The first DLC drop included AEW World Tag Team Champions Dax Harwood and Cash Wheeler, while the next pack is set to feature The Bunny and Keith Lee.

Speaking to ComicBook.com's Chris Killian during the Twisted Metal press junket, AEW's Samoa Joe noted he is currently in the dark regarding his possible inclusion in future AEW Fight Forever DLC packs.

"As of right now, I have not been told there is any plans, but then again, I'm often not told most plans when it comes to stuff like that," Joe said. "So you should really take that with a grain of salt. I will say this, I know the developer is really, really dedicated to, to putting out the best, most authentic experience ever. If everything goes well, I would not be surprised to see Samoa Joe in future DLC."

Killian joked that he needs Joe in the game so he can play as someone that can beat CM Punk, to which Joe agreed.

"True, and the world does," Joe responded.

What's Next For Samoa Joe in AEW?

While much of his time with Tony Khan has been dedicated to the Ring of Honor brand, Samoa Joe remains a recurring presence on AEW programming. Shortly after his return at ROH Supercard of Honor 2022, Joe ran rough shot through the competition during the Owen Hart Cup Tournament, reaching the 2022 final before being defeated by Adam Cole.

Joe would then form a big man tag team with then-AEW TNT Champion Wardlow which culminated in the Samoan Submission Machine turning on his partner and taking his title. This began Joe's "King of Television" run as he reigned with both the AEW TNT and ROH Television Championships. Wardlow reclaimed the prize at AEW Revolution in March, leading to Joe heading back to ROH.

His most recent AEW run came on AEW Collision where he competed in the Owen Hart Cup Tournament once again, this time losing to CM Punk in the semi-finals. Considering how he responded to the loss, it's likely that Joe vs. Punk will be revisited at some point in the future.

Samoa Joe can be seen as Sweet Tooth in Twisted Metal, premiering on Peacock this Thursday, July 27th.

Editor's note: This interview was conducted prior to the SAG actors' strike.

Gia Sandhu plays a Star Trek character that is simultaneously well-known and, until now, practically undefined in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds. That character is T'Pring, Spock's dejected fiance introduced in the Star Trek: The Original Series episode "Amok Time." That episode provided little insight into T'Pring's personality or life beyond that she was over her engagement to Spock and ready to commit to Stonn. Star Trek: Strange New Worlds adds depth to T'Pring, revealing her work as a treatment specialist for the Vulcan rehabilitation colony Ankeshtan K'til and that she really did love Spock before something drove them apart from each other.

That something may have occurred in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 2, Episode 5, "Charades." Spock had been made human and instead of telling T'Pring chose to keep it a secret and muddle his way through an important Vulcan ritual related to their engagement. Upon finding out, T'Pring was none too happy at being kept in the dark and decided that she and Spock needed some time apart, perhaps setting the stage for "Amok Time."

ComicBook.com had the opportunity to speak to Sandhu about bringing Vulcan romance to the Star Trek universe and adding layers to a memorable Star Trek character. Here's what she told us:

Jamie Lovett, ComicBook.com: When you signed up for Star Trek, did you expect to be involved in so many goofy, romantic comedy plots, as opposed to the kind of thing the franchise is more commonly associated with -- alien encounters, phasers, science problems, etc.?

Gia Sandhu: Well, specifically with T'Pring after watching "Amok Time," I did not think that this was going to be a comedically charged character, but obviously, I'm so happy that it has gone in the direction that it's gone in. I think the levity is so important when telling the story of what's happened during Spock and T'Pring's journey in advance of "Amok Time."

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds has done such an interesting job of fleshing out to T'Pring's character, getting into her work, and going far beyond "Amok Time," which shows her as somewhat one-note in how she's a person stuck in an arranged marriage and not happy about it. Based on "Amok Time," how strong were your preconceptions going into the role? How much did they change as you worked on the character? How much does it resemble who you thought this character would be?

That's a good question. I think what I drew primarily from "Amok Time" was the more superficial layers of the character, because we don't really get to go behind the scenes of what's happening for T'Pring, and she's only seen very briefly. So I think what I got was a lot about just what her presence feels like, the way that she stands, the way that she speaks and there's a lot of sternness and she doesn't really give anything away, and I don't think that that's just because she's Vulcan. I think that there's a lot more to that. So it was more of that I took from the original.

And then every time the scripts come in, I kind of just go with the flow of what the script is telling me because they really are taking massive liberties with how they tell this story. I mean, the world is their oyster. The story can be whatever they want it to be, to lead into what happens in "Amok Time" and I really enjoyed what they're doing. I love that we're seeing a kindness to her and a softness to her and a vulnerability to her, and we see her as this Vulcan who's just so loyal to her love for Spock, so having all of those colors is really nice in advance of what we know happens.

I spoke to Bernadette Croft, the show's costume designer, and she mentioned that one of her favorite things to work on are the Vulcan costumes. Since you mentioned those mannerisms, and the kind of stoicism that comes with T'Pring, partly because she's Vulcan and partly because she's who she is, how much does that costume work factor into your performance for you? Do you feel that Vulcan-ness come on as you put on those pieces?

Oh, absolutely. In the first season, the waistline was really tight on those costumes. I was very corset-like. So then during the second season, I asked them to open it up a little bit because at that point I understood what the feeling was and I thought I should just be able to breathe a little bit in Season 2. And so yeah, it is very informative, not only in the feeling on the body when the costume is on, but also when I look at myself reflected in the mirror, my posture kind of changes, my shoulders go back a little bit and my neck becomes a bit more aligned with my spine and that all feels very natural to what the shape of that costume is.

Can you tell me a little bit about what you considered while you were trying to work on those scenes with Spock? Because we don't see a lot of Vulcan romance in Star Trek, and I imagine there's a challenge to making it feel genuinely romantic but still recognizably Vulcan.

I think we get to see two very different types of romantic relationships between Vulcans in this episode. I mean, the mom and dad don't feel very romantic at all; feels like a couple that's been together for a very long time and have just learned to make it work. And then of course you have T'Pring and you have Spock who are still very early on in their love story and she's obviously very much in love with Spock and of course, Spock is confused about how he feels and he spends this episode kind of, I guess, delving into himself and understanding himself better. But as far as understanding that romance, I think that it's so universal, that relationship that they have. One party is fully in, fully ready to commit and the other party's got some cold feet and some hesitations. I mean, who doesn't know what that's like?

It's interesting because you almost see T'Pring as an antagonist in "Amok Time," because she's the one forcing Spock into the challenge, but all the work that you guys are doing specifically, it makes it so much more tragic because now you see how they really were in love at some point.

And I think T'Pring is finally a bit of a sympathetic character now. You can really understand where she's coming from and the hurt that she feels and the betrayal that she feels.

I'll end this by asking, is this the moment that they split up and don't see each other again until "Amok Time"? Are they on a break? Is there a lot more up-and-down to this story of Spock and T'Pring to come?

I genuinely don't know and I am also looking forward to finding out.

How to watch Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 2

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 2 debuts new episodes on Thursdays on Paramount+ in the United States, the U.K., Australia, Latin America, Brazil, France, Italy, Germany, Switzerland, and Austria. The second season will stream on Paramount+ in South Korea, with a premiere date still to be announced. Star Trek: Strange New Worlds airs on Bell Media's CTV Sci-Fi Channel and streams on Crave in Canada and SkyShowtime in the Nordics, the Netherlands, Spain, Portugal, and Central and Eastern Europe.

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 1 is also streaming on Paramount+. It is also available as home media on Blu-ray, DVD, and 4k UHD.

Editor's note: This interview was conducted prior to the SAG actors' strike.

In Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 2, Episode 5, "Charades," Ethan Peck got to show Star Trek fans a new side of Spock, the fully human side. The episode sees Spock and Nurse Chapel (Jess Bush) crashing into a stable space-time vortex. Spock's body is damaged and the alien beings living within the anomaly attempt to repair him. However, with only Chapel as a point of reference, they restore Spock as a human with no trace of his Vulcan heritage. With T'Pring (Gia Sandhu) and her family making their way to the Enterprise to perform a Vulcan ritual for the betrothed, things quickly get awkward.

ComicBook.com has the opportunity to chat with Peck about the episode and what it was like playing a human Spock and the character's romance with Nurse Chapel. Here's what he had to say:

Jamie Lovett, ComicBook.com: I have to wonder when you signed up to play this famously stoic, unemotional, logically-minded character of Spock, did you ever imagine the amount of romance that this role would end up involving as we got into Star Trek: Strange New Worlds?

Ethan Peck: Super surprised. Season 1, Episode 1 kicks off with some very romantic moments between Spock and T'Pring that I was totally floored by. I just had no idea it would kick off like that. I love where Akiva Goldsman, one of our writers and showrunners, took it. Obviously, Henry Alonso Myers, too, but Akiva directed that episode in particular.

It's so funny because Spock is famously sort of isolated and alone, and in this series, he's the one that has all these romantic relationships. It's crazy.

You've been working hard, getting these Vulcan mannerisms down. Then you get this script that's like, "Hey, you're a human in this one." What was your initial gut-check reaction to that? Was it like, "Oh, cool, I get to unclench in this one," or was it a little bit, "Come on, guys. I've been working so hard at this Vulcan thing"?

No, definitely the former. My reaction was, "Holy moly, this is going to be really challenging." Because, yeah, you're absolutely right, I've got to throw out everything I know about Spock, almost everything. The big challenge there is how far can we take this version of him without being totally untethered to the spirit of Spock. And where I landed, at least, is in these amazing qualities of Spock that I think are so essential to who he is, which are the curiosity -- he's filled with wonder, he's adventurous, he's brave -- and he's got so much depth. He gets to explore those qualities, just in a very different way this time, and that was really, really fun and liberating.

Was there a specific moment that posed a particular challenge when it came to letting go of a particular mannerism without totally dropping the character?

All the time. Every moment was like that. The first few days we were filming the episode -- and shout out to Jordan Canning, our amazing director for that episode, she was such an incredible partner in this for me, really made me feel safe and comfortable, and is such a smart and creative collaborative -- in those first couple of days, we were kind of figuring out, "Who is this guy? How loud is this guy? How big is he in his emotions and his emoting?" And the first couple of days were so discombobulating because this character is so different from the Spock that we know in so many ways, and it was really hard to let go of because I'm still dressed the same, and all of these things reinforce who he is normally. And so to be in these same environments, in the same costume, but be a totally different person was really difficult and exciting.

I know the scene was shot using the magic of television, but I have to wonder how much bacon were you actually forced to consume for that one scene.

A lot. I ate a lot of it.

Are you ever going to look at it the same way?

I'll tell you what, I didn't eat anything else that day, and I didn't want to eat bacon for a while.

Tell me a little bit about working with Jess Bush to establish that nervous energy that seems to radiate between Spock and Chapel leading up to the end of this episode. What were some of the things you talked about as far as what that chemistry should be like, and also what feedback you got from the director in that regard?

Oh, great question. I love working with Jess so much. She's so incredible in that role, and just an incredible person, as well, and we get along so well off-camera. We actually don't really speak too much about process or how things are going to be. I know how she works, she knows how I work, and we show up and see what happens, to be honest with you. We did discuss a little bit the technicalities of the kiss and what that would be like, but we really kind of hide our process from each other and then experience them in the moment together on camera. That's how I remember it.

Those sorts of moments of intimacy are really challenging because on paper it seems really intimate, but practically, it's so mechanical and needs to be done a certain way, and it's got to be discussed and choreographed, and it's just kind of silly and awkward, which really did a lot for me as Spock because I think he's silly and awkward in a lot of those sorts of situations, so, it was perfect.

In your mind, how do you define whatever this thing happening between Chapel and Spock is? I know we've got some episodes left to go, but at this point, what would you say to fans wondering about that?

Oh, that's a good question. I would say that there's some part of him that really hopes for it, that, really, he wants to fit in and he wants to belong. I think ultimately what we discover about him is that he doesn't. He doesn't belong on Earth, necessarily. He doesn't belong on Vulcan, necessarily. He's really perfectly suited to being in Starfleet and being on the Enterprise with all of these weirdos, these beautiful and intelligent weirdos.

And so I think there's a part of him that yearns so badly to have this human relationship with Chapel, but knows that that's not quite right because the same applies to T'Pring that he, I think, aches to be Vulcan and to belong with her and to belong on Vulcan. But there's some part of him that understands that that's not to be, and that's what all of these events are leading him to, that realization that neither of these are really for him. I don't think he knows that yet, but I think maybe the answers are in him, but he's just working to reveal them at this point. But I think he wants to be with her.

The show is a prequel to Star Trek: The Original Series. A lot of people who are watching will know where they end up. Do you think there's a particular trick, be it in the performance, the writing, the directing, to make it feel just as raw and real and exciting as a traditional, "Will they, won't they," even though people may have already seen the ending?

Oh, well, I never think about where it's going. I think about the moment that we have, day to day. So, I really do my best to stay in those moments and not think too much about the bigger picture. In that moment, I think Spock looks to be with Chapel but just isn't really clear on what that means yet. I know that he has yearning and pining for her and to be with her.

There's some great stuff with Amanda Grayson in this episode. One of the scenes really reminded me of a scene from the first J.J. Abrams Star Trek movie where Spock kind of tells off the council when they start looking down on his mother. I was wondering if you could tell me a little bit about filming that scene. Did that scene from that movie pop into your mind or get mentioned at all, or were you purposely trying to avoid it?

No, it didn't pop into my mind, actually. When I was preparing for the role, my focus was really on Nimoy's version of the character because Zachary Quinto, I loved those movies, and I mean, I so admire him and love his performance in those movies, but he's in the Kelvin Timeline, and so if I ever have a reference come up in my mind, it's usually to Nimoy. But that's a really interesting connection, and I think goes to show you that they're both great, well-written Spocks. But again, I really try to view every moment and interpret it on my own and for what I see it to be as best I can at this point in time, knowing Spock as I do now.

How to watch Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 2

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 2 debuts new episodes on Thursdays on Paramount+ in the United States, the U.K., Australia, Latin America, Brazil, France, Italy, Germany, Switzerland, and Austria. The second season will stream on Paramount+ in South Korea, with a premiere date still to be announced. Star Trek: Strange New Worlds airs on Bell Media's CTV Sci-Fi Channel and streams on Crave in Canada and SkyShowtime in the Nordics, the Netherlands, Spain, Portugal, and Central and Eastern Europe.

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 1 is also streaming on Paramount+. It is also available as home media on Blu-ray, DVD, and 4k UHD.

Editor's note: This interview was conducted prior to the SAG actors' strike.

Paul Wesley debuted as a Captain James T. Kirk in the Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 1 finale, and played another Captain James T. Kirk in the tragic time travel romance that was "Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow." He finally gets to play the James T. Kirk, though not yet a captain, in the Star Trek: Strange New Worlds episode "Lost in Translation," where he meets and teams up with Nyota Uhura (Celia Rose Gooding) for the first time years before he becomes her commanding officer on the Enterprise's bridge. And that's only the first of a handful of historic Star Trek meetings in the episode.

"Lost in Translation" also let Star Trek fans see Jim Kirk interacting with his brother, Sam Kirk (Dan Jeannotte), for the first time, and ended with the very first meeting of Kirk and Spock. ComicBook.com had the chance to speak to Welsey about playing multiple Kirks, that understated historic meeting, and the potential for 25th-century Kirk adventures.

Jamie Lovett, ComicBook.com: When you signed up to play Captain Kirk, were you aware that you'd actually be playing three different versions of Captain Kirk? Does it feel like you've done three times the prep? Or, do you like they've been, more or less, the same character?

Paul Wesley: No. Look, the first appearance I did was based on "Balance of Terror," which I watched a few times, and I remember, when I watched it, I thought, "Okay. Kirk doesn't smile very much. He's very serious. A lot of people have died. This is a very serious mission." There's very little Kirk-isms in there. There's little charm. He's a man on a mission. And he's taking everything very, very seriously." And I thought, "Okay, for this episode, I'm going to make a concerted effort to make it a little more of the serious Kirk, because this is an alternate timeline and I have that flexibility to do that." And so, I made a very conscious effort to hold back on some of that charm and, for lack of a better word, the Kirk-isms that we all know, knowing that there would be future episodes in Season 2 where I would be able to explore those facets.

So then, in Season 2, Episode 3, when I read that script, I thought, "Oh my gosh, thank God," because it is the exact opposite of the Season 1 finale, and I get to have so much fun. So then, I decided, "Okay, I'm going to make him a bit of a goofball." Because in many ways, Kirk was a goofball in TOS. Every episode is different. There are episodes where Kirk is incredibly lighthearted. There are episodes where he's actually taking himself very seriously. And so, there are so many facets of Kirk that we can explore. And I thought, "Let me do that for this one." And so, it's not that I changed, radically shifted the character. It's just more that I chose to bring out different personality traits in different episodes.

When was the first time that you fully felt like you were Captain Kirk? I know for some of the people I've talked to, it was when they put on the uniform. For some other people, it was when they sat in the chair, or wherever their station was, that it hit them they were in Star Trek. When did that moment come to you? Or was it more gradual?

I think, more gradual. And also, I don't feel like Captain Kirk yet, because he is not Captain Kirk. He's Lieutenant Kirk. And I think, for me, I don't really want him to feel like Captain Kirk yet. I want him to feel like Captain Kirk eventually. In terms of his unwavering ability to lead a ship. I think he's still growing into that. But, I do feel like James T. Kirk. I feel like, in many ways, with the interactions that I've had with, be it, Uhora, or La'an, or Ethan Peck, they've been limited now, but nonetheless, as I interact with these characters, and I form these relationships, and these character dynamics, I begin to feel more and more like James T. Kirk. Because really, James Kirk, in my opinion, he's all about the relationships that he has with people, and that's what makes him who he is. So, I think, I'm beginning to feel more Kirk as the episodes progress and as the relationship dynamics grow, if that makes sense.

I want to ask about Spock because we get what is the first meeting between Kirk and Spock and it is so understated. We get this whole episode with Kirk and Uhura, and then a brief shot of Spock sitting down with Kirk afterward. Can you talk about what filming that scene was like? I spoke to Akiva Goldsman beforehand, and he made the point that "Kirk and Spock don't know that this is the first meeting of Kirk and Spock." Did you have this discussion on set?

Actually, yeah. It's funny, and Ethan will say -- we had discussed this moment, because I remember we were on set, and Dan, the director was like, "Okay, great. Let's shoot this." And I remember we shot the first take, and I was like, "Okay, wait." And I was like, "Okay, can we just pause forT a moment here?" And I was like, "Dan, this is a really big deal. It's the first time Kirk and Spock meet. And, we're creating canon here. And, we want to really emphasize this moment. And maybe we should do this. Maybe we should..."

And he's like, "Dude, no. It's the exact opposite. They're just two dudes that are meeting. And, there's a curiosity, and there's something that draws them to one another, and there's the beginning of that friendship, but they don't know that yet. And so, let's just not try to milk this for something that it's not yet. Let's let it grow." And I thought it was a smart, understated choice because just think about how forced it could have been. Sometimes, the imagination is more powerful than anything else. And so, let's imagine what this relationship will be, as opposed to handing it on a platter to the audience.

It felt like the opposite of what the first JJ Abrams movies did where it kind of insists that Spock and Kirk have to be friends, otherwise the galaxy is doomed. This is more like, "Eh, it happens."

And it wasn't there in the beginning. I don't remember now, but initially, Spock didn't like Kirk in the JJ Abrams movies, right?

Right, because he cheated on the Kobayashi Maru test, which Spock created.

Right, right, which was interesting because, there was an animosity that then grew into a trust and a friendship, which I thought was also a pretty wise choice.

Another interesting moment in the episode is getting to see Kirk with his brother because that's not really a thing that we get to see elsewhere as Sam dies immediately in Star Trek: The Original Series. Can you talk about what discussions went into how Kirk behaves as a sibling, and what that family dynamic is like?

I think, honestly, a lot of it was on the page. It became very, very clear from day one, the minute I read their first interaction, that they had an obvious sibling rivalry. But, I made a very concerted effort, and frankly, the writing was so good that I didn't need to work that hard, to make sure that it was lighthearted and that there was still a sibling love. I think, honestly, it's meant to be funny. Sam is silly, but he's silly because he should be the better brother in many ways. He should be ahead, and dad's favorite, and perhaps even higher rank, and he should be the adventurer, but he's not. He's the scientist. He's the logic-oriented one. He chooses the safe route,, and, I think, in spite of himself, it drives him crazy, which I think is part of the humor. And Kirk is just someone who's naturally, I don't know, ahead of everyone else, and, he doesn't even quite know why. It's just being himself, and it drives Sam crazy. It's funny.

Kirk has been played by two different actors before you. Here we're seeing him in a prequel. Obviously, you might look to those other performances for inspiration, but where do you see space to add something original, to explore a side of Kirk that hasn't at all been seen in those performances?

I'm very much doing that. Look, I made a very conscious decision to do something a little different. I think some people love it, some people don't, and that's okay with me. What I really wanted was to make sure that I played a guy who was still growing into the Kirk that is very much part of pop culture history.

I didn't want the personality traits that he's known for to be fully formed yet. I wanted those to be blossoming like a flower in many ways. I wanted to explore the brainier side of Kirk. I hate to use the word nerd, but in some ways, he's a cool nerd. I drew from certain resources that allowed me to delve into that aspect. I didn't want him to be this jock guy. I wanted him to be this charming, intellectual goofball in many ways. Not to say, that he can't have acts of courageousness and pure heroism. I wanted that to still exist. But, I just wanted to layer it a little bit.

Last question I'll ask you, I don't know if you're aware of this, but Star Trek: Picard included this Easter egg where Kirk's body is in stasis at Starfleet, as a nod to a series of books where Kirk gets revived and goes, and has adventures in the future. Does the idea of playing a revitalized Kirk in the 25th century on whole new adventures appeal to you as a possibility? Hypothetically, of course?

Hypothetically, of course. Yeah, absolutely. I love this character. I honestly have been having the best time, and that's obviously a testament to the cast that I'm working with and the writers. I love it. It's fantastic. I love how much room there is to grow, and I love all the different facets of his personality. So playing Kirk in the future, I would approach that in a completely different way, and it's such a gift for an actor to be able to do that.

How to watch Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 2

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 2 debuts new episodes on Thursdays on Paramount+ in the United States, the U.K., Australia, Latin America, Brazil, France, Italy, Germany, Switzerland, and Austria. The second season will stream on Paramount+ in South Korea, with a premiere date still to be announced. Star Trek: Strange New Worlds airs on Bell Media's CTV Sci-Fi Channel and streams on Crave in Canada and SkyShowtime in the Nordics, the Netherlands, Spain, Portugal, and Central and Eastern Europe.

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 1 is also streaming on Paramount+. It is also available as home media on Blu-ray, DVD, and 4k UHD.

Editor's note: This interview was conducted prior to the SAG actors' strike.

Hook has been one of the brightest stars in AEW ever since he debuted, and while much of his time has been as a singles star, he's been part of two successful Tag Teams during that time as well. Unfortunately one of those came crashing down recently, as Hook has been feuding with former tag partner Jack Perry. That resulted in him losing the FTW Championship, and while their story might not be over, fans have been calling for Hook to reunite with his HOOKHausen teammate Danhausen. At San Diego Comic-Con ComicBook.com's Jim Viscardi asked Danhausen if a HOOKHausen reunion could happen.

"People keep asking for it. We are undefeated, so I suppose. He did lose the Title last night, so maybe he could let Jackal Man Jack Perry or whatever his name is, keep that one and maybe we'll get the Tag Team Titles. But I don't really want to fight FTR to be honest with you. Good friends of mine but also quite good at professional wrestling. I don't want to wrestle for an hour. I think that would be tiring," Danhausen said.

Danhausen quickly became an AEW favorite once he joined the company, and fans are excited to finally see him getting more merchandise in the form of action figures in Jazwares' AEW Unrivaled and Unmatched lines. Danhausen joined the Unrivaled line in wave 13, but he also recently received a Very Nice Very Evil AEW Ringside Exclusive figure. The figure comes with three alternate portraits, a full cape, swappable hands, and more. You can find the official description below, and you can order the figure right here.

"Beware: this figurehausen carries a terrible curse. But it's the AEW line debut of Danhausen! Help Danhausen make the human monies with the Danhausen (Very Nice Very Evil) AEW Ringside Collectibles exclusive figure from Jazwares! Danhausen comes with three alternate heads all featuring his ghoulish facepaint and a variety of very evil expressions. He's wearing gray tights with a black splatter print as well as red detailing, hypnotic swirl design on the front, and red "Very Nice/Very Evil" print on the legs.

His lookhausen is complete with black laced boots, accurate tattoos, and black-and-red fabric cape with a high collar and "Very Nice, Very Evil" print and Danhausen face logo. Danhausen's accessories include alternate hands for bestowing curses. He comes displayed in unique "Very Nice, Very Evil" window box packaging featuring a fold-out panel simulating the opening of his cape!"

As for HOOKHausen, they made a delightful team, but we didn't actually get to see much of them in the ring together. While Hook moves to his next opponent and feud, perhaps we'll get to see a reunion between the two somewhere down the line. AEW's next big event is All In at Wembley, so if a reunion were to happen, setting it up ahead of All In could benefit all parties involved. We'll just have to wait and see.

Do you want to see HOOKHausen reunite? Let us know in the comments and as always you can talk all things wrestling with me on Threads @mattaguilarcb!

Marine biologists have been using decoys in their research for years, as they've proven to be one of the most effective ways at drawing sharks up to the surface of the water, but with the upcoming Discovery Channel special Belly of the Beast: Feeding Frenzy, Dr. Austin Gallagher takes this concept to thrilling new levels. As if developing a whale decoy in hopes of drawing in great white sharks isn't ambitious enough, Gallagher puts himself inside the decoy to get remarkably close to the fish to gather all-new data. In addition to Belly of the Beast, Gallagher also gets up close and personal with mako sharks in the special Monster Mako: Fresh Blood. Shark Week kicks off on the Discovery Channel on July 23rd.

Belly of the Beast is described, "In a Shark Week first, researchers with cameras brave a great white shark feeding frenzy from inside a life-size whale decoy. Their findings could be the key to finding the biggest great white shark in South African history."

In Monster Mako, "Twelve-foot-long monster mako sharks compete head-to-head with great whites for prey off the coast of California. Using a custom clear, acrylic diving bell, Dr. Austin Gallagher and legendary free diver Andre Musgrove get up close with both predators and track makos breaching eight feet out of the ocean."

ComicBook.com caught up with Dr. Austin Gallagher to talk about his new specials, his favorite sharks, and what's next for his research.

ComicBook.com: With this year's Shark Week, you have a few specials. You get to work with makos, you get to work with great whites. Not to put you on the spot, but do you have a favorite type of shark?

Dr. Austin Gallagher: That's a great question. I feel like it's changed a lot over the years. I've got to be honest: I love tiger sharks. They are the ones that I do probably the most work on through my own research at Beneath the Waves. It's an organization that I founded. I've done a lot of Shark Week shows on tiger sharks.

But this year we went into the colder waters, and this is the second year in a row I did a show on white sharks. They are my favorite because they are so smart. They are so smart. They are the kings and queens of Shark Week for a reason. They're just on a different level. They really are just on a different level. You see that, especially in Belly of the Beast, the show this year that's leading off Shark Week.

With Belly of the Beast, everything about the whale decoy EARL, just designing it, executing it, the added blood helmet, it really, I feel like, pushes Shark Week to new depths, I guess, as opposed to heights. When it came to EARL specifically, what was the most challenging thing about bringing that submersible, that decoy to life?

I would say the most challenging thing was figuring out a way that would simulate a real whale carcass, but also doing it in a safe way for me and for the sharks, too. I've done quite a bit of research, Patrick, on the ecological importance of dead whales for white sharks. They are everything for these white sharks. They sustain them on their migrations. They bring the largest white sharks in. It's incredible. When white sharks get really big, it becomes hard for them to kill seals. They might actually be swimming around waiting, looking for these dead whales.

We knew it was going to be an exciting thing to do. We ended up building something that simulated that. But getting inside was freaky, I'll be honest. We wanted to make sure that that observational platform that I was going to be in would give good observations, but also we didn't want the sharks to break it and then eat me. I didn't want to die.

As an audience member, since I don't have that adrenaline surge that you probably had, was the possibility that something could go wrong while you're inside of EARL, is that something that you are constantly aware of, but maybe you are allowing your objective to take over? Or is it something where the adrenaline is surging so much that it's almost like an afterthought of, "Wow, that's how close I really came to something dangerous happening,"?

All the above. I would say that pre-visualizing these things ahead of time is always what I do in terms of a safety standpoint. Going through all the things that could go wrong, what would you do when it goes wrong, lots of time sitting with myself thinking about that. This is, of course, after already speaking to all of the medics and the operations folks. But I would say the first time before I do something, whether it's a cage dive or any dive with sharks or EARL, you have that come-to-realization moment, "Okay, this is what's going to happen. I'm good." Then you go do it and you don't think about it because the adrenaline does take over. But then you come out of that experience and then you think, you reassess, you reevaluate, and what could you do differently?

With EARL, I was pretty freaked out about it until I actually laid eyes on it in South Africa. It was built in South Africa. When I finally got there and saw it, I didn't feel as bad. I didn't feel as bad, but I felt a lot safer. Really well constructed. With the small white sharks, it wasn't a big deal.

But when the huge 18-, 20-footers showed up in the second part of the show, all bets are off. At that point, it's like we're scrambling to get the shots, getting in the water, you have no idea what's going to happen with this large animal. I actually stayed in it, I guess, for like five hours, which was amazing. But if that shark wanted to, it could have destroyed EARL and me. I felt that for sure. There were definitely a few moments in the heat of it where I was telling the crew, and you could hear it in the show, "Guys, if this thing goes wrong, you got to get me the f-ck out of here," is what I said. I meant it. I mean, it's like I had an exit strategy just in case I got knocked out.

With both Belly of the Beast and Monster Mako, there's lots of really exciting footage, lots of information, lots of exciting reveals just as a viewer. With both of these specials, what were your major takeaways and how do you think those takeaways will impact your future research?

That's a great question. A big thing, for me, the takeaways from the show is that doing innovative science is really awesome. Going around the boundaries, working on the edges of innovation is something I always try to do. With our own research at Beneath the Waves, that's a huge thing. I've always been a bit of a maverick in terms of my approach to shark science and wanting to do things differently. I didn't want to do the same thing as everyone else. To me, that's just boring.

I love trying new things, and when you get the payoffs that we did on these two shows ... Shark Week allows me, as a scientist, to do riskier things, to do projects that I might not be able to do always with a typical, funded study or a week-long expedition. The takeaways are that if you push the boundaries and you innovate the right way, sometimes the biggest rewards come from that.

Looking to the future, you've had so many different specials for Shark Week already dealing with so many different species and really pushing boundaries. Have you started thinking about Shark Week 2024 and some of the things that you're hoping, whether it be taking research from past specials that you want to explore further or a brand-new foray that you want to embark upon?

Well, I think that we might want to take EARL to another place and do a Belly of the Beast sequel because it worked so well. That might be something that we might look at.

I'd like to get back to the Caribbean. A lot of my research is focused in the Caribbean on tiger sharks, hammerheads, bull sharks. We made this really incredible discovery last year, Patrick, where we partnered with tiger sharks and we found the world's largest seagrass ecosystem. It was huge viral news in November 2022. Huge. I mean, the entire country of the Bahamas essentially is an underwater seagrass meadow and by putting cameras on tiger sharks, we found this.

What I want to do now is zoom into a day in the life of a tiger shark and follow a tiger shark with an underwater automatic vehicle, a UAV, unmanned autonomous vehicle, and basically just follow that shark through its day, see what it does. The longer you can observe these sharks, the more time you get, the more incredible things you see. That's the inherent challenge about not having gills is that you just don't get as much time in the ocean.

Belly of the Beast: Feeding Frenzy premieres on Discovery on July 23rd at 8 p.m. ET. Monster Mako: Fresh Blood premieres on Discovery on July 27th at 9 p.m. ET.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity. You can contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter.

Chelsea Green and Sonya Deville are the new WWE Women's Tag Team Champions. The duo defeated Raquel Rodriguez and Liv Morgan to win the gold this past Monday on WWE Monday Night Raw, just two weeks after Rodriguez and Morgan's reign began. This victory marks the first time that both Green and Deville have been champions in WWE, as neither woman had held singles or tag gold before this. While Green's current WWE run only began at January's WWE Royal Rumble, she has a long history with WWE, competing on WWE Tough Enough back in 2015 and having her initial developmental run from 2018 until 2021.

Speaking to ComicBook.com's Brandon Davis at San Diego Comic-Con, Green emphasized that her win on Monday is nearly a full decade in the making.

"The funny thing is people think my story started at the Royal Rumble, but my story started in 2015 when I was not accepted onto Tough Enough," Green said. "Then when I was eliminated from Tough Enough and I wasn't given a job immediately within the company, and then I was. So this bumpy road goes way, way back. That's why I feel like I'm so ready for this. This is my moment. This is my time."

As Green alludes to, she did compete on WWE Tough Enough but only as a last-minute replacement, as one of the contestants quit after the competition began. Green would be eliminated in the subsequent weeks, finishing in fourth place. While other eliminated contestants like Mandy Rose and Velveteen Dream landed WWE developmental deals after the show wrapped, Green had no offer from WWE. She would instead get the attention of Impact Wrestling where she went on to win the Impact Knockouts Championship and eventually compete in the women's match at the historic ALL IN independent wrestling event.

Green has what is possibly her biggest test yet now as WWE Women's Tag Team Champion. Despite being introduced over four years ago, the titles have never caught significant steam due to forgettable reigns and thrown together tag teams competing for them.

"Honestly, we're already doing it," Green said when asked about how she and Deville will elevate the titles. "Look at the way we look. Look at what we bring to the table. Star power. Period. All these other teams, they go out there, they're mismatching. We come prepared, and we came prepared day one. One of our first tag matches ever is at WrestleMania. Who else can say that? I just feel like we come with more history and more backstory, and the element of being prepared."

WWE Hall of Famer Mick Foley has given his stamp of approval for the new titleholders, as he popped into the interview to praise Green and Deville.

"Chelsea and Sonya are amazing champions," Foley said. "It's Chelsea's time, but long may they reign."

Since he returned to WWE at WWE WrestleMania 38, Cody Rhodes has found an eternal enemy in Seth Rollins. Rollins was the first person to lock up with Rhodes upon his comeback, taking a pinfall loss to the American Nightmare on the Grandest Stage of Them All. That WrestleMania match kicked off a trilogy between Rollins and Rhodes, one which Rhodes swept. Rhodes picked up subsequent victories over Rollins at WWE WrestleMania Backlash and WWE Hell in a Cell before taking extended time off to heal from a torn pectoral muscle. In the time that Rhodes was away, Rollins started cooking, picking up the WWE United States Title briefly and cementing himself as Monday night's workhorse.

Today, Rollins reigns as WWE World Heavyweight Champion while Rhodes is in a blood feud with Brock Lesnar. The two may not be directly feuding, but Rhodes recently noted that he feels he is in active competition with Rollins to be the face of the red brand.

"I compete with a guy, the World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins, every week, and it's not negative. He would like to be the Raw face, and I would like to be the Raw face. I don't know, some weeks, maybe we trade it off, but that is what makes this good," Rhodes recently said. "Competition is what makes this good, and I needed to compete against the very best."

Speaking to ComicBook.com's Brandon Davis at San Diego Comic-Con, Rollins agreed with Rhodes's sentiments but noted that the Raw roster has multiple names who could make the "face" argument.

"I think he's absolutely correct and I think there's a lot of guys who would argue that they're the faces of Monday Night Raw. Cody would be one of them. Drew McIntyre just returned. He'd love to be one of them," Rollins said. "You got Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn as tag team champions who main-evented one of the nights of WrestleMania this year. They would have an argument. I think that's what's going to make Monday Night Raw very exciting for a long time to come. You've got so many guys at the top of their game vying for the top spot."

Rollins defends his WWE World Heavyweight Championship against Finn Balor at WWE SummerSlam on Saturday, August 5th. Rhodes will settle his months-long feud with Lesnar on the same event.

A new era for Diana Prince began in Wonder Woman #800, which included a tease of what fans can expect from the much anticipated Tom King and Daniel Sampere Wonder Woman series that launches later this year. That first look introduced fans to Wonder Woman's daughter Trinity, who is working right alongside Jonathan Kent as Superman and Damian Wayne as Batman. While this future timeline looks to figure heavily into King's series, Diana is obviously a major part of the series as well, and King teased what fans can expect from his Wonder Woman in an interview with ComicBook Nation. King highlighted what makes Wonder Woman so different from Superman and Batman, as well as the challenging contradiction of someone who wants peace but makes war.

"That's the hard part of writing her, is that she's almost radical in some of her belief in love, compassion, and peace. Much more so than Superman or Batman, but she's also a warrior or war. She's someone who comes from a society involved with a sort of endless conflict that trains you to fight. She comes from that sort of Game of Thrones atmosphere, and those two contradictions live inside of her," King said. "She's someone who wants peace but makes war, and her having to deal with that I think makes her one of the more interesting characters in fiction."

"To me, I think I've written more Batman than anyone alive or close, and I've written some big Superman stuff, and now on Wonder Woman, I had to sort of differentiate her from those other two pillars of our universe. To me she's...Superman is, he's truth, justice, and the American way," King said. "He's the boy scout. He stands for the American flag and I like him as that. He's of the system, I want the system to work as best as it can."

"And Batman's almost kind of the same way, but on the dark side of that. Batman's enforcing the law. He's against law breakers, and I know it's about justice and not law for Batman, but in some sense, he's just kind of fighting crime. What is crime, crime is breaking the law," King said.

"Wonder Woman's not that. Wonder Woman is more rebellious than that. Wonder Woman is not with the system. She's not trying to enforce the system. She's against the system. She's rebellious. Iconoclastic, and I wanted to bring that out in her," King said. "So in this, she is not with the government, she's against the government, which I think in sort of our modern time, a lot of us have had the instinct that there are some great injustices happening with the people in power, and I wanted Wonder Woman to be the person who stands against that. Absolutely."

You can find the official description for Wonder Woman #1 below.

"After a mysterious Amazonian is accused of mass murder, Congress passes the Amazon Safety Act, barring all Amazons from U.S. soil. To carry out their plans, the government starts a task force, the Amazon Extradition Entity (A.X.E.), to remove those who don't comply, by any means necessary. Now, in her search for the truth behind the killing, Wonder Woman finds herself an outlaw in the world she once swore to protect! Writer Tom King (BATMAN, MISTER MIRACLE, SUPERGIRL: WOMAN OF TOMORROW) and superstar artist in the making Daniel Sampere (DARK CRISIS ON INFINITE EARTHS, ACTION COMICS) join forces for this action-packed relaunch and the beginning of what will undoubtedly become a groundbreaking run on the character."

Wonder Woman #1 hits comic stores on September 19th.

Are you excited for the new Wonder Woman series? Let us know in the comments and as always you can talk all things comics and DC with me on Threads @mattaguilarcb!

Filmmaker Steven Spielberg changed the face of cinema with Jaws back in 1975, as its popularity was so tremendous, it helped coin the concept of a "blockbuster." The film's impact wasn't entirely positive, as it not only spread the fear of sharks to audiences around the world, but it also inspired countless imitators that all aimed to recreate that film's success. With the new documentary Sharksploitation, filmmaker Stephen Scarlata explores what it is about shark cinema that makes it such a popular subgenre, as well as diving into the real-world impact of these outings and the wealth of offerings out there. Sharksploitation debuts on Shudder on July 21st.

Sharksploitation is described, "In the wake of blockbuster classic Jaws, a new subgenre was born. This new documentary explores the weird, wild cinematic legacy of sharks on film and the world's undying fascination. The film features multiple interviews including Roger Corman, producer of Sharktopus and Dinoshark; Joe Dante, who directed Corman's Piranha; Carl Gottlieb, writer of Jaws, Jaws 2, and Jaws 3D; Johannes Roberts, director of 47 Meters Down, and Mario Van Pebbles, who starred in Jaws: The Revenge along with marine and environmental conservation advocate Wendy Benchley, who was married to late Jaws, author Peter Benchley. Produced by Scarlata, Kerry Deignan Roy (Leap of Faith: William Friedkin on The Exorcist), and Josh Miller (Sonic the Hedgehog), the feature-length documentary examines the sub-genre of sharksploitation films, from Corman's 1958 She Gods of Shark Reef, to the release of Jaws, and the subsequent knockoffs."

ComicBook.com caught up with Scarlata to talk his first experiences with the genre, the personal impact of developing the documentary, and more.

ComicBook.com: Do you remember the first time you watched Jaws and the impact it had on you? Also, do you remember the first Jaws ripoff that you watched that also had an impact on you?

Stephen Scarlata: The first time I saw Jaws, I didn't realize it at the time, but it was definitely one of the re-releases in the theater before it came on HBO, because that was another big deal, when it came on HBO. I saw the re-release. I'll never forget, because my mom never goes to the movies. I was in the theater with my mom and my dad. It blew my mind because I couldn't stop drawing shark fins or drawing sharks, and then because the movie would get re-released and be out in the theaters for a while, my dad would literally come home from work, six o'clock at night, and then just say, "Let's go see Jaws." We'd jump in a car and just go see Jaws, sit in a theater, and just watch it whenever, whatever scene was on.

I remember we walked in and the raft was on the beach, and my dad was like, "Oh, we missed Jaws eat the little boy." Before it came on HBO, my dad would take me all the time just to go see the re-release. My dad was in the Navy and all that stuff, so he loved aquatic adventure movies, but Jaws is what did it. Jaws is what made me obsessed with horror.

I was always obsessed with horror films, before I can remember. That's a whole other topic, but Jaws is what got me obsessed with sharks and aquatic movies and it became a drug, where I had to chase the Jaws dragon by watching anything that had to deal with ocean and sharks. That's a huge impact.

The first Jaws ripoff, it's hard to pinpoint it. It was probably Piranha, I'm guessing. I know I saw Up from the Depths as a kid, also on cable. Probably Piranha was the first Jaws ripoff, and I loved it. That's another masterpiece, for sure. But at the time, I didn't realize there were Jaws ripoffs. It was just whatever I could watch that had a shark in it, whatever I could watch that had the ocean, like, terror in the ocean, I had to watch it because I had to see a shark. I f-cking needed to. Then I would take books out of the library that had sharks in it. I was obsessed. I was more obsessed with Jaws than Star Wars.

Your love of sharks, your love of Jaws, and you being a documentary filmmaker, when did the inspiration strike you of, "This is a topic I want to fully immerse myself in because this is a topic that hasn't been covered with a documentary," the same way a zombie documentary or a slasher documentary has been covered?

Well, doing a documentary, it was definitely ... Before Jodorowsky's Dune, I was going to write a book on shark movies and then I slowly came to the realization, I didn't know yet that I had dyslexia, but I knew I'm not going to be able to write a book on shark movies. It's not going to happen. I can't do it. But then when Jodorowsky's Dune premiered at Cannes, that's when it started to hit, because people started talking to me, like, "What do you want to do next?"

Then, just immediately, I just started saying, "Maybe a documentary on shark movies." I wasn't putting it a hundred percent together in my head how insanely difficult it would be, but I just knew when I made Jodorowsky's Dune, I was obsessed with [Alejandro] Jodorowsky's Dune, that I just wanted to live in it and research it, which I did a lot. So I knew the next project I had to do, I had to do something I knew I was going to be enjoying, immersing myself in. I'm obsessed with shark movies, so it just made sense, that should be my next thing.

I was stoked to see Dr. Emily Zarka show up in your documentary because I'm a fan of her YouTube channel and I interviewed her about monsters a couple years ago, so I really appreciated seeing her.

She rules. Emily rules.

The amount of historical knowledge about, "Oh, what about a banshee?" and she can just rattle off the complete history of it.

Dude, some people want questions ahead of time and all this stuff. Her, just chilling in her sick library area of her home filled with Stephen King books, all kinds of horror stuff. It just would bring ... The scene in the movie about The Suicide Squad, she just brought up The Suicide Squad and I was like, "Can you talk about that a little bit?" Because I love shark-men, I wanted it to be a bigger part of the doc, but I wasn't able to. Then she just went off in that little thing that's in the movie that I love, and that's one of my favorite things in the movie. It's like, I love her describing that and it worked. She rules, Emily rules. That's all I'm going to say.

You bring up shark-men, was there part of you, given the fact that you were focusing on sharksploitation movies, that was upset that you didn't incorporate Street Sharks?

Yes, there was a lot. In front of me right now, I have boards with tons of index cards right now. It's my next two things I'm outlining, but it was all shark stuff and it was the history of sharks and all the subgenres and it bummed me out, that it's 90 years of history and being such a fanatic that I am, that was the hardest part, was when you had to start losing stuff. It was like, "Ah, there's just not enough time. I can't get to it." That was the hardest part.

And I'm not going to lie, it still haunts me to this day that there were things I couldn't get to because I'm such a fan and there was stuff we recorded, just couldn't get to it. But yeah, I wanted Street Sharks in it and I wanted stuff -- there was so much I wanted, but I had to just stick ... As we were moving along in post, and post was a fast thing, it was just like, whatever's working in the line, whatever's the most important needs to start going in. Trust me, there's a lot of stuff. I had a whole lot of stuff I wish I could have gotten to, but I just couldn't.

Fingers crossed, once it breaks all the streaming numbers on Shudder, the demand for part two of Sharksploitation will allow you to explore that.

Volume two, I hope.

You have so many incredible people in this documentary, is there someone that you were really, really hoping to get, that things, just timing or schedule or access, didn't work out?

There were a lot of people we wanted to get, but when you're doing a documentary, it's the timing, because people could be working on movies. There's people that might not be in state. It's very hard, catching, scheduling, and even getting in contact with people is very difficult, because unless you know someone and can get their personal email, if you go through their agents, you're never going to hear from them. It doesn't matter, like, "Hey, I have my letter. I did an Oscar-shortlist documentary. I'm not just some dude, and I respect cinema. I want to approach this with the amount of respect I did with Jodorowsky's Dune. I respect cinema and I'm not someone that wants to exploit. I just really want to tell and document stories." And it was very difficult.

I wish I could have had Spielberg because I didn't want to do a Jaws hate piece. That was the biggest thing, is I'm obsessed with Jaws. I love Jaws. Jaws is what inspired me to be a filmmaker, got me into the ocean. It got me into sharks, but you have to still touch on what it did. It's sharksploitation. You have to touch on it because I was terrified of sharks growing up. I still won't go in the ocean because of them, because of Jaws, but you have to touch on it. I really wanted him, just because I don't want to do it ... I would've loved to have heard his side. That was the one I wish I really could have got, but he's the biggest filmmaker in the world. He's one of the greatest filmmakers ever, and he made one of the greatest movies ever and he made it too f-cking good. He made it too damn good, that it freaked everybody out. If someone else made that movie, maybe we wouldn't have been so afraid of sharks. It was just that he is so f-cking good.

When you watch these documentaries about the making of Jaws, they're so good in that, at every turn, you forget that the movie does actually get made, because they face so many disasters. You think it might as well be the Richard Stanley Island of Dr. Moreau documentary where it's like, "Oh, this is such a nightmare. This is going to be such a piece of garbage." And then you forget like, "Oh no, they completely pulled it off and Jaws is one of the greatest films of all time."

I like that movie, too, actually. I'm one of the rare people that like it. I remember I saw it, David Gregory's a f-cking phenomenal documentarian, and I remember when he premiered [Lost Soul: The Doomed Journey of Richard Stanley's Island of Dr. Moreau] at Beyond Fest, he's like, "Does anyone here even like the movie?" And I actually think I was the only one that raised my hand and I was embarrassed. I was like, "Oh, sh-t."

It occupies a very specific space of mine in the '90s. This is coming from a guy who absolutely loves Congo, one of my favorite, most re-watched movies of all time. So there's definitely a soft spot for '90s schlock that are big-budget, summer, "this is going to be the next blockbuster" movies, but then it just completely misses the mark and is not quite Jurassic Park.

No, I hear you. I think we are wired differently. Before I could remember, I loved horror movies. My dad showed me Horror Express when I was a kid. I don't remember watching it, but it got me obsessed with horror films. So that's all I watched. My whole life of growing up watching constant horror films, I think I've always just been able to turn off my brain and accept movies for what they are. I think Yor, the Hunter from the Future was the first time I noticed a movie wasn't good.

I was like, "Wow. I get now why people are saying this isn't a good movie." And I think that's why a lot of people can't believe like, "You watch Asylum movies? You watch these Wild Eye Releasing shark movies? They're not good and the effects aren't good." But I was like, I don't know, my brain is wired that I can just enjoy them without judging certain things about them. Maybe I'm lucky that I could withstand just enjoying things that other people can't. And also, they're getting made for a reason. People are watching them. But I don't know, I think just from an early age, I always just can handle stuff. I saw Congo opening weekend, I thought it was pretty cool. There was some dark sh-t in that movie.

Back to sharks, you had this passion for sharks your whole entire life, you make this movie about sharks, covering myths and science and conservation and exploitation. Do you think the process of making this movie has changed your relationship with sharks at all? Whether it be you're even burnt out on sharks, you love them even more, you're seeing them through a different lens?

I got way more sensitive towards sharks, working on it, to the point ... Since I started making this documentary, I can't go fishing anymore. I used to love fishing. I stopped eating fish, I stopped eating meat while working on this documentary. I'll never be able to fish again. I could never take a fish and put a hook in its mouth and throw it in the ocean.

The first time I ever saw a shark, I was seasick fishing and I threw up on it, actually. I took an edible, I shouldn't have done that. And I think that's what made me really nauseous. Then I threw up when I saw -- everyone was like, "There's a shark," and I was vomiting overboard so I couldn't even experience it very well.

There's some violence towards sharks in the doc and we trimmed a lot of it out because it's just ... I can't watch Shark Week anymore because I can't watch sharks being tagged. It affects me. When I see a shark getting pulled out of the water onto a boat and then getting tagged, I can't watch it. I'm very sensitive towards them after making this documentary. I still won't really go in the ocean because I'm terrified, but that's the thing, man: it's their home.

But yeah, I love sharks. I'm way more sensitive towards them since I've done this documentary. They've made me way more sensitive towards them.

I don't want to totally put you on the spot to name your top five, top 10 shark movies, but generally speaking, just as a fan of shark movies, are you more of a fan of 6-Headed Shark Attack, more a fan of the sharksploitation or, when you are watching a movie and it's something like Open Water or The Shallows or 47 Meters Down, where they stick to the more genuine, realistic shark behavior? Which side of that spectrum do you connect with more?

During the process of this movie, it's not a public list, but I tried to start making a list on Letterboxd of all the shark movies I'm watching and how I feel about them. I only got up to around 60 shark movies, because there's over 200 shark movies. I made an Excel sheet when I was working on this movie and I counted.

Let me see ... Yeah, there's over 200 shark movies. Maybe close to 250, actually. It's weird, it's all over the map. Everyone's favorite shark movie is Jaws. I get it.

It's definitely Deep Blue Sea. I love The Last Shark, I love The Shallows, I love 47 Meters Down. I love that movie that came out last year, Shark Bait. I love Red Water, I love Ghost Shark, and I like the first Sharknado, I think that movie's great.

I like them all, to be honest. The thing I miss is when Sharknado was on the SYFY channel and, every year, a new Sharknado came out, SYFY did a Sharknado Week. Every night was a new shark movie premiere, and that's where I noticed Misty Talley, who's in the movie. I reached out to her immediately after I saw Mississippi River Sharks. I was like, "This movie's a blast," and I reached out to her and she's in the doc.

Planet of the Sharks, I saw in there, which was Waterworld with sharks. I like them all, to be honest. I liked Cocaine Shark, I think Mark Polonia did this really fun f-cking movie. There's like a dope voiceover through it. I'll watch them all, dude. To be honest, I'll watch any shark movie. I don't enjoy them, I just love them.

But I am hyped as f-ck for Meg 2. And when you said, "Am I burnt out?" I think the moment I finished the movie, I was burnt out. And then Black Demon came out and I had to watch it, and now I'm like, "All right, now I got to start watching a couple other ones I hadn't watched the first few months." But I'm hyped for Meg 2, I'm so hyped. I think I was burned out for maybe a couple of months, but now I'm back in it.

I don't love the original The Meg, but just the fact that this is Ben Wheatley doing The Meg, just the fact that Ben Wheatley has a budget. In the Earth was the last movie he made, and I'm sure this budget is, no exaggeration, 200 times more than what he had on In the Earth.

Dude, he is a phenomenal filmmaker. He almost did Tomb Raider, I think. I'm so happy he did The Meg because Tomb Raider didn't end up coming out anyway. But at least we're getting him doing The Meg. I keep forgetting he did it, and that's another bonus to it. But, besides, another freaking [Jason] Statham movie, I'm f-cking hyped. F-cking Statham here, man. Expendables Four and Fast X and The Meg.

Sharksploitation debuts on Shudder on July 21st.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity. You can contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter.

Mike Judge's Office Space has remained a cultural focal point since its premiere in 1999, but no piece of it more meme'd than Stephen Root's performance as Milton. The character actor's performance is a clear highlight, but his iconic line "I believe you have my stapler" has been one of his biggest calling cards as a performer for decades. Speaking with ComicBook.com in a new interview for the Freeform animated series Praise Petey, we had the opportunity to ask Stephen Root about his association with red staplers and how it has continued to follow him. When we asked him how many red staplers he thinks he's been gifted, he replied:

"Not so much that as that people expect me to have them on me to sign them," Root said with a laugh. "It's like, so I've had to buy them and take them to different sets. Although pretty much every set I go to has a cardboard box of seven staplers in it and I sign them up. Apparently the ADs new job is to do that on every set that I go to...No, I'm happy to do it. I, I love the fact that Mike's work has lasted that long, that different generations keep seeing it and even though the computers look old and weird, it's still relevant."

As fans may recall, Office Space wasn't a success at the time of its release but would develop a cult following and now has a special place in the heart of audiences everywhere. Stephen Root's Milton and his red stapler are just one element that lead to this. Nothing should prove the cult appeal of Office Space more than the fact that Swingline began to manuifacture and sell red staplers based on the one seen in the film, they hadn't actually been sold prior to Office Space's release.

Praise Petey premieres on Freeform on Friday, July 21 with two back-to-back episodes. Root is part of an ensemble cast that also includes Annie Murphy as Petey, plus Christine Baranski, John Cho, Amy Hill, and Kiersey Clemons. The series follows Petey (Murphy), a New York City "it" girl who has it all until her life comes crashing down around her. As luck would have it, a mysterious gift from her father gives her a new lease on life: She's going to "lean into" modernizing his small-town cult.

Editors note: This interview was conducted prior to the SAG actors' strike.

AEW Dynamite: Blood & Guts is back for round three, this time pitting The Golden Elite against Blackpool Combat Club inside the double steel cage. As evident by past editions of AEW Dynamite: Blood & Guts, the titular match is utilized for faction warfare. Groups like The Inner Circle, Pinnacle, and Jericho Appreciation Society have gone to battles with rival groups in the two rings. While past editions have featured unofficial additions to either side, like Eddie Kingston or Pac linking up with BCC, never has there been a Blood & Guts match that features a squad assembled strictly for the bout itself.

Speaking to ComicBook.com, BCC's Wheeler Yuta tapped into some fantasy booking and drafted his dream Blood & Guts team.

"We've always been rivals, we've never gotten along, but being in there with him last year was special to me just from a career standpoint. He was very violent and it hurt a lot, fighting him," Yuta said. "Daniel Garcia I would say definitely would be on my team."

Daniel Garcia is currently a member of Jericho Appreciation Society and has been a long-running rival of Yuta's. The two have fought over the ROH Pure Championship on numerous occasions, trading it back and forth throughout last fall.

"I'm going to put 'Hot Sauce' Tracy Williams on my team as well," Yuta said. "Tracy and I, we were a tag team on the Independence. He was another guy who was a real big mentor to me. He's a little sick up here [in the head], which I think is important in a Blood and Guts match."

Tracy Williams has been wrestling for over a decade, making a name for himself in promotions like Evolve and Ring of Honor. He recently locked up with Yuta on ROH TV, facing him this past April.

"I'm going to put William Regal on my team anyways," Yuta said. "He never wrestled for us in the Blackpool Combat Club. Because again, the villainy, the ability to figure it all out and be the mastermind of everything, I think would be awesome."

William Regal is championed as one of the best brawlers in wrestling history. Many will know him from his in-ring days in both WCW and WWE, but his AEW recognition comes within Blackpool Combat Club. Regal was the one who assembled the group to begin with, as it is named after his hometown in England. As Yuta mentioned, Regal only ever operated as the faction's manager, never actually wrestling alongside them in an AEW ring.

"This is the guy that a lot of people probably aren't going to recognize, but his name's Mason Myles. He's an independent wrestler from the Carolinas," Yuta said. "He's a guy that I trained with, a guy that I came up in wrestling with. And I think that when you're in a match like that, it's life or death, and you need some of your best friends. I'm going to keep him behind me. Check him out, he's cool."

Mason Myles currently wrestles on the independent circuit. Despite being just 29 years old, he has over 11 years of in-ring experience. He last wrestled Yuta in March 2022.

AEW Dynamite: Blood & Guts goes down tonight at 8 PM ET on TBS.

In Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 2, Episode 5, "Charades," Nurse Chapel, played by Jess Bush, finally got what she wanted out of Spock (Ethan Peck). SPOILERS follow for Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 2, Episode 5, "Charades." Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 2's latest episode gave fans Spock as they'd never seen him before, fully human. In an ironic twist, Spock's efforts to mask his transformation in order to properly honor a Vulcan betrothment ritual were successful, but his hiding the change from his betrothed, T'Pring (Gia Sandhu), led to the couple taking some time apart. Only after returning to his half-Vulcan self did Spock and Nurse Chapel finally act on the feelings they'd been harboring toward each other.

It's a complicated situation. We turned to Bush to help unpack it for us.

Jamie Lovett, ComicBook.com: What was your initial reaction when you found out that your character was going to be involved in this romantic angle with Spock? Was there at all a reaction like, "Spock? You mean the one that doesn't have emotion?" Or were there no questions or hesitations?

Jess Bush: That was something that was told to me the moment I booked the role. They were like, "This is a big part of what you are going to be doing," and I was aware of their past in canon, so I was prepared and intrigued to see how that was going to play out, for sure.

There's this crackling nervous energy between Spock and Chapel in this episode. How did you go about developing their chemistry? Were there discussions with Ethan Peck or advice from the director that helped?

Ethan and I didn't really intellectualize anything. We didn't sit down and go, "This is what's going on." Because I think that often, you just have to be in open discovery mode in order for that stuff to crackle, because in real life, you're not deciding what's going to happen when you encounter someone that you're interested in or that you have complicated chemistry with, it's often really hard to put into words. So I think that for me anyway, it was more just about paying attention to what's already there, and being curious about that and leaning into it, and allowing the physical chemistry just to be.

It's interesting watching a will they-won't they style romance in a prequel, where anyone familiar with Star Trek: The Original Series will know how it ends. Do you think there is a trick or something special that goes into making it feel exciting despite that?

I think there's this cool thing about the way that they're making the show, where there are points in the story that are recognizable and staying true to the canon, but they also have allowed for deviations from that, and new complexities in relation to it being in the 2023 world rather than the '60s. Naturally, I think that it's not a far reach to allow things to be much more complex, and it's still part of their story that's never been told, so it's exciting, it's fresh, it's new, and I feel like it makes it even more romantic and tragic that you know that it's not going to work in end. I don't know, there's something gut-wrenching about that. And it's cool to fill in the gaps and be like, "Oh, how did they make it to that weird point" They could have made it there through so many different versions of a relationship. We don't know, there could be so much that could have happened in that time, and so exploring that, I think, is very satisfying.

Is there a term for what's going on with Spock and Chapel right now? Are they in the avoiding labels stage of the relationship?

It's almost like it's beyond a relationship. It doesn't really fit inside the normal bounds of a, "Oh, you are my girlfriend, you're my boyfriend," kind of thing. It's almost deeper than that, in a way.

As Chapel says at the end of the episode, it's "I don't know, shut up."

Yeah, this is just what it is, I don't know, some kind of soul connection that's undeniable, but doesn't make any convenient sense

One of the interesting things about this episode is that Spock gets transformed into a human, but otherwise, he's fine. There's no life-threatening ticking clock that's forcing him to turn back. He could go on living a human life, which means Chapel's urgent motivation to turn him back is coming from a different place and must be mixed with some feelings about Spock finally being able to express himself in more human, emotional terms. For you, what was the balance of all that going through her mind in the episode?

Yeah, it's super messy. It's super complicated. Someone else had said to me before, it's almost like a genie in the bottle moment, where you get your one wish that he is fully human, and can express to you, and is available, and animated, and can read what's going on for him. But it's also like you say, he's not going to die, but if he was to stay human, there would be a death of sorts, there would be a loss. And that's the person, the real Spock, the half-Vulcan Spock, is actually the person that she developed these deep feelings for, and for a reason. And so while it might feel good in the moment, it's not real, it's not him.

And there's also this moral counterpart, where even if she did want to just entertain that for a while and see what that was like, she would never do that. That's not her decision to make. This would be changing the course of Spock's life forever, and that's not her decision, and she'll do everything she can to make sure that she preserves the thing that is best for Spock.

I think the ending speaks to that too. She doesn't even seem to consider the idea until he's half-Vulcan again. She never settles for whatever is going on with him at that moment until the real Spock comes back.:

Totally. Yeah, because he's not in his full right mind. I think it feels iffy for her, morally iffy, to be taking advantage of that.

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 2 has already shown us a few different sides of Chapel. There's the romantic stuff going on, but also the badass/traumatized soldier veteran fo the Klingon War. Is there a particular side her that you most enjoy playing? And are we going to see additional sides, or more digging deeper into these as the season progresses?

Definitely digging deeper into what we've broached already. In terms of the first part of your question, I don't think it's that I prefer one or the other. When I have the opportunity to explore a side of her that's more hardened, more action-based, more of a fighter, experiencing that then also informs when I'm in a softer space or having an emotional, somewhat more romantic time, the information from that other experience comes into her, just like it would for a person in real life. We're a big, complex, circular, swirling smoosh of experiences and emotions, and I don't think it really separates out. I think that it's all more

Before I let you go, just anything else you'd like to say to fans of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds? Any teases of what's next for Chapel throughout the back half of the season?

Just way more. The second half of the season for Chapel is so sick, so I had a great time. So I'm really excited for you guys to see what we've put together. There's some cool stuff.

How to watch Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 2

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 2 debuts new episodes on Thursdays on Paramount+ in the United States, the U.K., Australia, Latin America, Brazil, France, Italy, Germany, Switzerland, and Austria. The second season will stream on Paramount+ in South Korea, with a premiere date still to be announced. Star Trek: Strange New Worlds airs on Bell Media's CTV Sci-Fi Channel and streams on Crave in Canada and SkyShowtime in the Nordics, the Netherlands, Spain, Portugal, and Central and Eastern Europe.

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 1 is also streaming on Paramount+. It is also available as home media on Blu-ray, DVD, and 4k UHD.

Editors note: This interview was conducted prior to the SAG actors' strike.

Gunther recently surpassed an impressive milestone as WWE Intercontinental Champion, with a reign that has surpassed 402 days. Gunther only looks to continue that reign when he takes on the recently returned Drew McIntyre, and the Champ has made quite the impact for the red brand since being drafted to Monday Night Raw earlier this year. When you're talking about the Intercontinental Championship, few are more synonymous with the Title than The Miz, who has actually held the title for close to 600 days cumulatively. During a recent interview with The Miz, we asked him for his thoughts on Gunther's reign so far and what it would mean if he could be the one to dethrone the Ring General.

"I think he's doing with the Intercontinental Championship what exactly he should be doing with it, and that is making it relevant, making it prestigious, being involved in meaningful storylines and making it mean something," Miz said. "I feel him with the title, he is at a level now where if he say drops that title, he's in the mix for a WWE Championship."

"And that's what I always felt that Title was supposed to be. It was not necessarily a stepping stone, but it was a Title that literally builds you, builds you, builds you, builds you, builds you until you're almost literally level with the World Heavyweight Championship. And then once that title is dropped, or you could even go and get two titles, the World Title and the Intercontinental," Miz said.

"So I think he's doing a great job. Who will unseat him? I mean, you got Drew McIntyre going for it, and that is a very viable person. I mean, I remember when back in the pandemic era, he was unstoppable in a WWE ring," Miz said. "No one could touch him, except for me. I beat him for the WWE Championship, my second one, but who's counting? But Gunther's been doing a terrific job with the Intercontinental Title."

Gunther vs McIntyre is the likely move for SummerSlam, and depending on what happens there, perhaps we'll see Miz enter that intercontinental Title picture once again. In the meantime, Miz is focused on being the best WWE Superstar he can be, as well as keeping any more WWE Championships away from Xavier Woods. The two have battled quite a bit in the past on UpUpDownDown, and Woods has walked away with Miz and Maryse's Titles as a result. It's resulted in some animosity for sure.

"100%. There is always an animosity. He has all my Titles. We have a competition where we play Street Fighter basically almost every year. Every time I do Street Fighter comes out, we play it, and I always put up one of my Titles that I have won in WWE, and he's got, I think, five of my Titles. He's got my United States Championship, my Intercontinental Championship, my Tag Team championships. I think he won my WWE Title. Yeah. So he's got all my Titles, so I have to keep putting up more Titles to beat him. And so yeah, it's not fun losing to Xavier Woods at anything," Miz said.

You can watch Miz in action on the latest episode of Weakest Link, which is now streaming on Peacock. You can also catch Miz every Monday on WWE's Monday Night Raw on USA Network.

What do you want to see next for The Miz? Let us know in the comments and as always you can talk all things wrestling and TV with me on Threads @mattaguilarcb!

The Venture Bros is coming to an end. With two decades of stories told in its history as a part of Adult Swim, the Cartoon Network favorite will make its swan song with a feature-length film, The Venture Bros: Radiant Is The Blood Of The Baboon Heart that is landing this week. In preparation for the highly anticipated film, we here at Comicbook.com had the opportunity to sit down and talk with series creators Jackson Publick and Doc Hammer about the series and the original title that was almost used when it came to the series finale.

To start, Jackson Publick took the opportunity to discuss how "Radiant Is The Blood Of The Baboon Heart" became the title of the film and their thought process when it came to why they went with such a lengthy title, "Doc came up with the original title. We wanted "Epic Stupid". We had a list of potential titles but when Doc said 'Radiant is The Blood of The Baboon Heart', we went with that one. We really wanted blood in the title with that sense of stupid."

The Venture Bros Movie's Original Title

Initially, as Publick stated, The Venture Bros' finale was set to be titled "Red Monday", but the pair of creators had many meetings of the mind when it came to which title they should ultimately go with. Doc Hammer took the opportunity to confirm that the duo had titles for past episodes that would sometimes be as long, if not longer, than the scripts themselves, "The list of titles we have are bigger than the episode scripts! Initially, we thought 'wouldn't it be cool and horribly awkward if we had a title that long.'"

The Venture Bros: Radiant Is The Blood Of The Baboon Heart will arrive digitally on July 21st, with the Blu-Ray disc set to hit retailers on July 25th of this month. if you want more of an idea as to what this series finale will cover, here's an official description of the story, "Doc's latest invention will either bankrupt Team Venture or launch them to new heights, as Hank searches for himself, Dean searches for Hank, The Monarch searches for answers, and a mysterious woman from their pasts threatens to bring their entire world crashing down on them."

Editor's note: This interview was conducted prior to the SAG actors' strike.

Jared Harris enjoys science fiction, telling us he "loved Star Trek, Battlestar Galactica, both versions, obviously Star Wars" during our discussion at the Foundation Season 2 virtual press junket. "I enjoy the ability that sci-fi has to speak to a condition that exists in the present world as an analogy or through metaphor, so it's received a little easier if you like." He's become a familiar face to sci-fi fans thanks to his roles on series like Fringe and The Expanse, and he plays Hari Seldon, one of the most important characters in the history of American science fiction, in Apple TV+'s Foundation series. That sci-fi background may have helped prepare him for playing multiple versions of Hari in Foundation Season 2, as Seldon has had himself killed off and uploaded his consciousness in the form of multiple hologram avatars.

"It was very deliberate that we make sure that there were two clear, distinct versions of the character," Harris says of keeping the different Hari Seldons straight in his performance. "That was part of the discussions, that it came down to the way that he looked, the way that he appeared, the way he was wearing and everything, down to what the characters knew and what they didn't know, because obviously neither character actually knows everything, which is one of the things that we slowly grappled with, which is to get away from the idea that the character knows everything. Otherwise, they become very remote, and they're not accessible as humans in that sense. There has to be vulnerability about them."

But is Seldon the hero of Foundation, or a villain? He set out to minimize the dark age that will follow Empire's fall, but now he's set himself up as a god, and even his closest allies accuse him of being a controlling egomaniac. We put the question to Harris.

"That'll be up to [showrunner David S. Goyer] to reveal, but my approach is, until otherwise notified, he's somebody who is embarked on, a noble goal and prepared to use questionable means to achieve that goal," Harris says. "He's allowed himself to become a figure of worship and is probably starting to enjoy it."

What is Foundation Season 2 about? How to watch:

According to the official synopsis for Foundation Season 2, "More than a century after the season one finale, tension mounts throughout the galaxy in Foundation season two. As the Cleons unravel, a vengeful queen plots to destroy Empire from within. Hari, Gaal and Salvor discover a colony of Mentalics with psionic abilities that threaten to alter psychohistory itself. The Foundation has entered its religious phase, promulgating the Church of Seldon throughout the Outer Reach and inciting the Second Crisis: war with Empire. The monumental adaptation of Foundation chronicles the stories of four crucial individuals transcending space and time as they overcome deadly crises, shifting loyalties, and complicated relationships that will ultimately determine the fate of humanity."

Foundation Season 2 features returning stars Jared Harris as Hari Seldon, Lee Pace as Brother Day, Lou Llobell as Gaal Dornick, Leah Harvey Salvor Hardin, Laura Birn as Eto Demerzel, Cassian Bilton as Brother Dawn, and Terrence Mann as Brother Dusk. It also introduces newcomers to the series, including Isabella Laughland, Kulvinder Ghir, Ella-Rae Smith, Holt McCallany, Rachel House, Nimrat Kaur, Ben Daniels, and Dimitri Leonidas. David S. Goyer is Foundation's showrunner.

Foundation returned for its second season on Friday, July 14th. New episodes debut on Apple TV+ on Fridays.

Editors note: This interview was conducted prior to the SAG actors' strike.