Following the reveal-packed Summer Game Fest period (here’s our indie coverage, and Xbox Showcase highlights), gaming news has been on the light side over the past few weeks… barring the announcement that Polish developers Bloober Team will be tackling a remake of the very first Silent Hill game. This following their update of Silent Hill 2, which impressed critics and fans alike.
Anyway, below you’ll find the entertainment stories of the past fortnight that stood out for us. Again, it’s been a relatively quiet period all things considered.
Film
Time to place your Oscar bets. These days, almost every year includes a new musical biopic with award season potential, and 2025’s front runner is Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere.
Based on the book of the same name, the film explores the period, in 1982, when rock legend Bruce Springsteen stepped back from impending superstardom to emotionally process his blue collar New Jersey past through the recording of acoustic album Nebraska. The Bear’s Jeremy Allen White plays The Boss (and reportedly does all his own singing), while Crazy Heart’s Scott Cooper directs.
Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere comes to cinemas from 24 October.
Following the teaser, here’s the full-length official trailer for The Naked Gun, a sequel and revival of the Naked Gun comedy franchise. With original star Leslie Nielsen long passed, it’s a similarly straight-faced and physically imposing Liam Neeson stepping in to play the son of Frank Drebin, who is also a cop.
Neeson is joined onscreen by the likes of Pamela Anderson, Paul Walter Hauser, CCH Pounder, Kevin Durand, and Danny Huston; while Saturday Night Live’s Akiva Schaffer and Ted’s Seth MacFarlane are driving things behind the scenes.
The Naked Gun comes to cinemas from 1 August.
Speaking of unlikely sequels, Spaceballs is getting a follow-up. Yes, Mel Brooks’s 1987 Star Wars parody is returning with a planned 40-years-later release, spearheaded by Amazon MGM.
98-year-old Brooks is contributing to the writing, along with Josh Gad, though it’s Barb and Star Go To Vista Del Mar, and Strays, director Josh Greenbaum behind the camera. New faces in the cast are Lewis Pullman and Keke Palmer, while Bill Pullman (Lone Starr), Daphne Zuniga (Princess Vespa), Brooks (President Skroob/Yogurt) and, most surprisingly as he’s been retired for years, Rick Moranis (Dark Helmet) reprise their original roles. With Thunderbolts’ Lewis Pullman the son of Bill in real life, it seems likely we’ll be getting a wink at the Kylo Ren and Han Solo dynamic.
Finally, we’re wrapping this section with news on Clayface, the movie spin-off based on the shape-shifting Batman villain. Mike Flanagan wrote the script for this body horror tale set in the DC Universe, but scheduling conflicts mean its Speak No Evil’s James Watkins behind the camera. Welsh actor Tom Rhys Harries has just been cast as the title character, an actor who attempts to advance his career by ingesting a dangerous, experimental liquid. The Clayface introductory episodes in Batman: The Animated Series are reportedly a major influence on the screenplay.
Likely R-rated, Clayface will be out on 11 September next year.
Series
It’s sad that the multiple sexual assault allegations around author Neil Gaiman have tarnished, and tempered excitement for, the second and final season of The Sandman. Because the live-action Netflix adaptation of the DC/Vertigo comic series is a triumph. But here we are.
Pulled from The Sandman collections Seasons of the Mist and Brief Lives, Season 2 of the dark fantasy epic sees Dream (Tom Sturridge) attempting to restore his realm after decades away. However, his past actions can’t escape vengeful consequences, which in turn leads to a gathering of the personified Endless family: a returning Death (Kirby), Desire (Mason Alexander Park) and Despair (Donna Preston), plus newcomers Destiny (Adrian Lester), Delirium (Esmé Creed-Miles) and The Prodigal (Barry Sloane). Netflix has published a comprehensive look at Season 2 here.
The eleven-part The Sandman S2 releases in two sets of episodes: Vol. 1 (six episodes) on 3 July, and Vol. 2 (five episodes) later that same month on 24 July. Following that, there’s a special bonus episode releasing on 31 July.