Author: business

The first season of the Emmy-nominated Disney+ series “Andor” featured Diego Luna reprising his role as Rebel spy Cassian Andor from the 2016 “Star Wars” movie “Rogue One” and showing how he hooked up with the galactic good guys. A prequel to a prequel (since that film was a backstory to the original 1977 “Star Wars”), “Andor” Season 2 (first three episodes streaming April 22 at 9 ET/6 PT, then three more each Tuesday) sets up the events of “Rogue One” while also upping the action and the anxiety − for its characters and the audience.

As the Empire rules the galaxy with an iron hand (and builds a secret weapon of mass destruction), pockets of resistance are growing, and everybody’s stressed out. That psychological aspect is “the beauty of the season,” Luna says, and explores “how difficult a revolution is. There’s all these factions, and yes, there’s a moment where everyone can aim to the same target, but then you are there, left together, and all those differences become an issue.”

Join our Watch Party! Sign up to receive USA TODAY’s movie and TV recommendations right in your inbox.

In Season 1, Cassian was part of a massive prison break and an insurrection against Imperial forces in his home of Ferrix. Twelve new episodes ratchet up the stakes, as he steals a TIE Fighter, goes undercover on the planet Ghorman − where the Empire’s up to no good and there’s a scrappy group of resistance fighters − and is recruited for a high-profile rescue mission.

But all the various personalities around him are tested as well. His girlfriend, Bix (Adria Arjona), has PTSD after being tortured by the Empire. Senator Mon Mothma (Genevieve O’Reilly) risks her personal and political life for the nascent Rebel Alliance, while the more hardcore guys in the resistance, including Luthen Rael (Stellan Skarsgard) and extremist Saw Gerrera (Forest Whitaker), are a bit more morally dubious in their actions. Even Imperial folks are feeling palpable unease, including ambitious couple Dedra Meero (Denise Gough) and Syril Karn (Kyle Soller).

Showing this sort of universal galactic anxiety was important to “Andor” creator Tony Gilroy. “That’s how I fed my family for 30-plus years. I’m in the behavior empathy business,” says the Oscar-nominated director of “Michael Clayton” and writer on “Dolores Claiborne,” “The Devil’s Advocate” and four “Bourne” movies. “The better my ability to inhabit every character, the better the storytelling will be. That’s the game.

“In this show, everybody’s confronted with epic decisions of great importance all the time, organically. It’s just my job to make them as real as I possibly can.”

‘Andor’: Diego Luna sparks a rebellion in ‘Star Wars’ series

Cassian Andor (Diego Luna) and other Rebels scramble to revolt against the Empire in the second season of Disney+’s “Star Wars” series “Andor.”

Gilroy doesn’t tell stories about “good and bad” people, Luna adds. “There’s just people surviving a galaxy that’s turning darker and darker on them. It’s why this show is so relevant today, and it’ll be relevant in years, because it’s about the complexity of community work.”

Gough compares “Andor” to “Angels in America,” which she starred in on Broadway in 2018.  “You have essentially six leading characters across eight hours of the most intense journeys for each of them,” the Irish actress says. “They never cross each other enough to help each other out of whatever. They are all on their own mission. And when I was watching (‘Andor’), I was like, ‘God, you’re sort of alone together.’ ”

The appearance of Ben Mendelsohn’s villainous Orson Krennic, the primary antagonist of “Rogue One,” was one example of a “Star Wars” personality where showing vulnerability and “realness” might demystify him in a way.

“All roads lead to the Death Star, and I had to get him in there to start the fuse on that,” Gilroy says. “Some characters really benefit from learning their DNA and their provenance, and it might diminish his. I’m not sure I want to watch him make coffee in the morning.”

Luna calls “Andor” a “beautiful excuse” to explore the political and social climate of a revolutionary period. Besides a commitment to actual emotions, there’s also an emphasis on bringing more relatability and less fantasy to the “Star Wars” landscape, from mass media to wedding receptions. “If it doesn’t remind you of something you have experienced before, probably it’s not right.”

Gilroy also dipped into our own history, especially when depicting the Imperial massacre at Ghorman − mentioned in various “Star Wars” projects and explored in depth in “Andor” − that ignited the rebellion. A scene from the Season 2 premiere featuring Krennic and the Imperial brain trust was modeled after the Wannsee Conference, a 1942 meeting of Nazi officials pivotal to carrying out the Holocaust.

“One of the things they really needed was propaganda and media,” Gilroy says. “Power has always used narrative as a way of shaping the battlefield, whether it’s the burning of the Reichstag or the Gulf of Tonkin (incident) that gets America into Vietnam or the sinking of the Lusitania. The use of truth and story has been in the playbook of oppression since people were sitting around a campfire. Instead of carrier pigeons, now it’s something else, but that’s a very potent tool.”

In a conversation with Vanity Fair published April 21, the Oscar-nominated actor, 42, reflected on how much the role of Bucky Barnes in the Marvel Cinematic Universe changed his life. Stan recalled how he was “actually struggling with work” before he was cast in 2011’s “Captain America: The First Avenger.”

“I had just gotten off the phone with my business manager, who told me I was saved by $65,000 that came in residuals from ‘Hot Tub Time Machine,’” he told Vanity Fair.

In the 2010 comedy about a group of friends who go back in time through a hot tub at a ski resort, Stan played the over-the-top bully character Blaine, who gets into a fight with Rob Corddry’s Lou.

If you’ve ever wanted to visit the cozy bookstore from Netflix’s hit series “You,” now is your chance. You might not find Joe Goldberg working the counter, but for two days only, New Yorkers get to step inside the show’s world at a pop-up Mooney’s in Soho. 

From April 22-23, fans can take photos inside the staged store, grab “You” swag and participate in literary scavenger hunts at the location at 489 Broome St., New York. Participants must register for entry and can sign up for a time slot between noon and 9 p.m. using a QR code posted outside the store.

Bookstore from ‘You’ series gets temporary NYC spot

The Mooney’s early birds caught the worm on the pop-up’s opening day – “You” star Penn Badgley himself made an appearance to surprise fans and snag some pictures. 

Inside the pop-up, you’ll find dark walls, gold-framed pictures, green bankers lamps and dozens of bookshelves reminiscent of “You.” Grab a Mooney’s swag bag from the front desk and head out on a scavenger hunt amid the shelves to solve for a secret code that’ll get you access to the second part of the experience.  

On April 22, Mulaney announced a brand new stand-up comedy tour, which will bring him to venues across the U.S. and Canada. Kicking off in June, the tour, entitled John Mulaney: Mister Whatever, will run through mid-December.

With 31 stops, the Emmy-winning funny man, who is currently hosting the quirky Netflix talk show “Everybody’s Live with John Mulaney,” will bring laughs to crowds across North America.

John Mulaney opens up about life with infant son Malcolm during Hollywood Bowl show

John Mulaney tour dates

See if John Mulaney is headed to your city:

• June 27, 2025 − Prudential Center Arena − Newark, New Jersey
• June 28, 2025 − Turning Stone Resort Casino − Verona, New York
• June 29, 2025 − Tanglewood Theater − Lenox, Mass.
• July 18, 2025 − Grand Casino Hinckley Amphitheater − Hinckley, Minn.
• July 19, 2025 − Assiniboine Park − Winnipeg, Manitoba
• July 20, 2025 − Kinsmen Park − Edmonton, Alberta
• Aug. 7, 2025 − Westbille Music Bowl − New Haven, Conn.
• Aug. 8, 2025 − Bethel Woods Center for the Arts − Bethel, New York
• Aug. 9, 2025 − Cross Insurance Arena − Portland, Maine
• Aug. 10, 2025 − Garrison Grounds − Halifax, Nova Scotia
• Sept. 5, 2025 − Massey Hall − Toronto, Ontario
• Sept. 6, 2025 − CMAC − Canandaigua, New York
• Sept. 13, 2025 − Brockton Oval − Stanley Park − Vancouver, B.C.
• Sept. 18, 2025 − The Met − Philadelphia
• Sept. 25, 2025 − Boch Center − The Wang Theatre − Boston
• Oct. 4, 2025 − Durham Performing Arts Center − Durham, North Carolina
• Oct. 5, 2025 − North Charleston Coliseum & Performing Arts Center − North Charleston, South Carolina
• Oct. 10, 2025 − The Mountain Winey − Saratoga, Calif.
• Oct. 11, 2025 − Dolby Live − Park Theater − Las Vegas
• Oct. 12, 2025 − The Rady Shell at Jacobs Park − San Diego
• Oct. 16, 2025 − Fox Theatre − Detroit
• Oct. 23, 2025 − Peterson Events Center − Pittsburgh
• Oct. 24, 2025 − Palace Theatre at Playhouse Square − Cleveland
• Nov. 7, 2025 − Texas Trust CU Theatre − Dallas
• Nov. 8, 2025 − Smart Financial Centre at Sugar Land − Houston
• Nov. 13, 2025 − Bass Concert Hall − Austin
• Nov. 22, 2025 − The Masonic − San Francisco
• Dec. 6, 2025 − Straz Center − Tampa, Fla.
• Dec. 7, 2025 − Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino − Hollywood, Fla.
• Dec. 11, 2025 − Walt Disney Theater at Dr. Phillips Center for the Perofrming Arts − Orlando, Fla.
• Dec. 12, 2025 − Fox Theatre − Atlanta
• Dec. 18, 2025 − The Anthem − Washington D.C.

English author and “Heartstopper” writer Alice Oseman took to Instagram on April 22 to confirm the show would return for a last installment after fan speculation that the series would end on a cliffhanger.

“We are making a feature film to conclude the Heartstopper screen adaptation, based on Heartstopper Volume 6 and the ‘Nick and Charlie’ novella. We are getting to tell the end of the story!!!” Oseman wrote.

Oseman continued: “I’m deeply relieved and so excited about this new creative venture. I’ve written the script and we’re hard at work already. I know you’ll have a lot of questions, and I’ll be able to talk about it more very soon, but for now let’s CELEBRATE! Heartstopper is getting its ending!!!!!! 🍂”

‘Heartstopper’: Why you should make time to watch Netflix’s sweet, queer YA romance

Based on the graphic novels by Oseman, who wrote the show, “Heartstopper” premiered in 2022 as a half-hour series about Charlie (Joe Locke) and Nick (Kit Connor), two British teens who fall madly in love over the course of a school year.

Netflix’s thriller drama “You” returns this week for an “epic fifth and final season,” according to Netflix as “Joe Goldberg (Penn Badgley) returns to New York to enjoy his happily ever after… until his perfect life is threatened by the ghosts of his past and his own dark desires.”

Co-showrunner and executive producer Michael Foley told Netflix’s Tudum the producers loved the “idea of things coming full circle for” Joe.

“We always said that we would stop after five and [that], in a perfect world, we would bring Joe back home to New York,” Foley told Tudum. “We loved the idea of things coming full circle for him. We’re excited by the fact that Joe came home as such a different person than [who] we saw in Season 1. At the core of our final story for Joe is this dichotomy of the old and the new.”

According to Netflix, the final season picks up three years after Joe and Kate (Charlotte Ritchie) left London for New York City. Kate is now CEO of the Lockwood Corporation while Joe is her loyal husband “dubbed Prince Charming by the adoring public.”