First Pass

101 stories from 15 sources

Entertainment turns toward streaming, continuity, and franchise reinvention

Day’s Recap

Supporting Articles

Discovery Plus is raising its monthly prices from $5.99 to $6.99 for the ad-supported plan and from $9.99 to $11.99 for the ad-free plan. The increases arrive one week after Paramount completed its acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, which owned the service.

9:52 AMThe Verge

CNN is pursuing an international streaming expansion under David Ellison, targeting $1 billion in annual digital subscription revenue by 2030 as traditional cable audiences decline.

5:30 AMFinancial Times

In the second episode of VisionQuest, J.A.R.V.I.S. sacrifices himself to save another artificial intelligence. The death gives a long-running MCU character a final act tied to his defining role as a protector and guide.

10:55 PMPolygon

VisionQuest establishes Wanda and Vision's son as a key character and draws on revelations from Agatha All Along to explain his existence. The connection elevates the earlier series from a side story into an important part of the MCU's continuing narrative.

9:56 PMPolygon

Bryan Cranston, Vince Gilligan, and other figures from Breaking Bad expressed shock and grief after RJ Mitte's death, with Cranston calling him his son.

5:00 PMNew York Times Arts

HBO is bringing Girls back for a limited run, a decade after the series finale. The new episodes will examine its characters as they approach the milestone of turning 40.

10:09 PMBBC

Other Developments

A curated list of other prominent stories from this day.

Isabelle Huppert plays a largely forgotten film extra who becomes an unlikely presence in the life of a more established actress, played by Sandrine Kiberlain. The film uses their relationship to satirize status, recognition and hierarchy in the French film industry.

10:27 PMVariety

Video of Kelly Clarkson's visit to Brooklyn novelty store Art of Play has been released, offering additional evidence in the dispute over her allegation that the business treated her like the customer in Pretty Woman. The footage provides a version of the encounter that can be weighed against Clarkson's public account.

10:00 PMVariety

The second episode of VisionQuest shows Vision being shot with adamantium bullets, marking the metal's first use in the MCU. The detail introduces a concrete place for adamantium within the franchise's established history.

9:31 PMPolygon

Podcasts have become influential political platforms that can reach large audiences outside traditional media channels. Their growth raises a central question: do they broaden political participation, or do they allow powerful figures to avoid the scrutiny applied by more formal news outlets?

8:27 PMAl Jazeera

“Clean Hands” dramatizes a real police officer’s campaign to help his addicted daughter, but its effort to turn the story into an inspiring crime drama creates an uneasy result. The film either alters its subject’s life for effect or fails to recognize how troubling some of his conduct appears.

7:14 PMVariety

Josh Dylan and Antonia Thomas discuss the finale of “Tommy & Tuppence,” which leaves the modernized Agatha Christie detectives poised for a new chapter. They also address the duo’s unresolved romantic tension and the possibility of a second season.

7:00 PMVariety

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