1. “Wicked” (PG) Trailer 1 and Trailer 2
Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande star in this movie adaptation of the 2003 Broadway musical. They both insisted on doing their singing live for the movie.
(The soundtrack for the Broadway play won a Grammy for Best Musical Album back in 2004. Its biggest songs are “Popular“, “For Good“, and “Defying Gravity“.)
“Wicked” puts a spin on “The Wizard of Oz”, and tells the story of an unlikely friendship that develops between the young woman named Elpheba who’ll become the Wicked Witch of the West, and her more popular classmate Glinda.
Jonathan Bailey from “Bridgerton” plays a guy they both fall for named Fiyero, Michelle Yeoh is the university headmistress, Jeff Goldblum is the Wizard, and you might recognize the voice of Peter Dinklage as a talking goat professor.
They also got an actress named Marissa Bode to play Elpheba’s wheelchair-bound sister, Nessarose . . . making her the FIRST to actually use a wheelchair in real life. Marissa’s been in one since a car accident when she was 11.
2. “Gladiator II” (R) Trailer
It’s hard to believe it’s been 24 years since the first “Gladiator” came out. The sequel stars a guy named Paul Mescal as Lucius, the illegitimate son of Maximus and former heir to the Roman Empire.
When he was a kid, his mom sent him into hiding to protect him from anyone who wanted revenge after Maximus died while killing Commodus. But now his life’s come full circle, after a Roman army invades his city and sells him into slavery.
Denzel Washington is the guy who mentors and uses him to get his own revenge on Rome. Pedro Pascal is a Roman general Lucius blames for his wife’s death. Connie Nielsen returns as Lucius’ mom. And Joseph Quinn from “Stranger Things” plays one of the twins sharing the imperial throne.
3. “Flow” (PG) Trailer
An animated movie about a cat who becomes trapped on a small boat with a group of other animals while trying to survive a great flood. The animation was rendered completely on the open-source software Blender.
