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# Witness the first trailer for ‘Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga’
- URL: https://www.theomnicosm.com/witness-the-first-trailer-for-furiosa/
- Published: 2023-12-01T12:00:58.000Z
- Updated: 2024-01-19T18:46:56.000Z
- Description: Anya Taylor-Joy and Chris Hemsworth lead the fantastic debut teaser for the ’Fury Road’ prequel. PLUS: Marvel finds a new 'Kang Dynasty' writer (and director?), and does Gunn have his Lex Luthor?
- Author: Bill Kuchman
- Tags: Popculturology • Friday Newsletter, Popculturology, Mad Max, Anya Taylor-Joy, Chris Hemsworth

**Popculturology** is back after a week off for Thanksgiving. Hopefully you all had a great holiday weekend and didn’t cap your travels off by getting strep like I did. (I blame the children’s museum we took our daughter to while in Rochester. This one is on you, Strong National Museum of Play …)

Before we left for Thanksgiving, I had time to watch the first episode of *Monarch: Legacy of Monsters*. Caitlin isn’t interested in this one, so I’m trying to find pockets of time here and there to catch up on it.

I thought the first episode was great, doing an impressive job of weaving not just the various timelines together but also creating some real connective tissue between *Kong: Skull Island* and 2014’s *Godzilla*. Showrunner **Matt Fraction** and director **Matt Shakman** have, at least through one episode, pulled off the task of bringing the MonsterVerse to TV.

I had to look up who does the show’s score too, since I kept getting notes of *The Social Network* but I knew it wasn’t **Trent Reznor** and **Atticus Ross**. Turns out it’s **Leopold Ross**, Atticus’ brother.

After over a decade of living on the platform, I’ve also made my break from Twitter. While I’m still using it as a newsfeed, I can’t in good conscience contribute content and activity to a site that benefits **Elon Musk**. I’m not the only one who feels that way. Musk’s embrace of antisemitic content and endorsement of dangerous conspiracy theories have led to [major companies not just pulling their ads but also ceasing to post on the social media network](https://www.npr.org/2023/11/17/1213836636/advertiser-exodus-grows-as-elon-musks-x-struggles-to-calm-concerns-over-antisemi?ref=theomnicosm.com).

Musk lashed out at these companies on Wednesday, telling *The New York Times*’ **Andrew Ross Sorkin** that companies who have pulled their ads from Twitter can “go fuck themselves.” You can check out the entire bewildering exchange below.

Yikes. It sounds like Musk didn’t endear himself to advertisers with this tirade.

“\[Advertisers are\] not coming back \[to X\]”, **Lou Paskalis**, the founder and chief executive of AJL Advisory, a marketing consultancy, [told ](https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/30/technology/elon-musk-dealbook-advertisers.html?smid=threads-nytimes&ref=theomnicosm.com)[*The New York Times*](https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/30/technology/elon-musk-dealbook-advertisers.html?smid=threads-nytimes&ref=theomnicosm.com)[ on Thursday](https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/30/technology/elon-musk-dealbook-advertisers.html?smid=threads-nytimes&ref=theomnicosm.com). “There is no advertising value that would offset the reputational risk of going back on the platform.”

As **Drew Magary** puts it, we’re witnessing [the end of Elon Musk](https://www.sfgate.com/sf-culture/article/elon-musk-nyt-interview-18524602.php?ref=theomnicosm.com).

Twitter may continue to limp on but, for all purposes, the site is dead. I’ve been posting a ton over at Threads (and also occasionally on Bluesky). When Threads launched, I thought it was a disaster. Without a chronological timeline, users were at the mercy of the site’s Instagram-esque algorithm — a huge problem for people who wanted to use the site to follow the news. There also wasn’t a way to access the platform via your web browser.

Meta has fixed both these issues over the past few months, and Threads really seems to be alive now. Yes, it’s still a **Mark Zuckerberg**/Facebook product, but we all gotta choose our battles.

---

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## NEWS, NOTES AND TRAILERS

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/f4/8b/f48be8ca-23c6-4d81-b0cf-da2fb0785911/content/images/2024/01/https-3a-2f-2fsubstack-post-media-s3-amazonaws-com-2fpublic-2fimages-2f719b1e43-1366-4b08-a0f3-f9411b7cb211_2360x980-jpeg.jpg)

****Chris Hemsworth** in **Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga*. / Warner Bros.

### 🎞️ “Do you have it in you to make it epic?”

Yes, **Chris Hemsworth**, I’m pretty sure *Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga* has it in it to be an epic movie. The upcoming sequel to *Mad Max: Fury Road* debuted its first trailer on Thursday night, courtesy of Comic-Con Experience (CCXP) in Brazil.

**George Miller** returns to direct Furiosa, with **Anya Taylor-Joy** taking over the title role from **Charlize Theron**. Hemsworth (and that ridiculous fake nose) plays Dementus, a warlord in the apocalyptic future. It looks like a younger actor is playing Immortan Joe, the decrepit villain from *Fury Road*.

*Furiosa* hits theaters on May 24, 2024, which is also the same date that *Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes* is scheduled to open. If Warner Bros. or Disney doesn’t flinch on that release date, it’s going to be a busy weekend for a lot of us. (If anyone has a catchy *Barbenheimer* nickname for *Furiosa/Planet of the Apes* weekend, let me know.)[1](#footnote-1)

•••

### The future of *The Kang Dynasty* and *Secret Wars*’ creative teams

When news broke a few weeks ago that **Destin Daniel Cretton** had stepped away from directing *Avengers: The Kang Dynasty*, I suggested that if Marvel Studios really saw *Kang Dynasty* and *Avengers: Secret Wars* as a two-part *Avengers* event comparable to *Avengers: Infinity War* and *Avengers: Endgame*, [they needed to put a single creative team in charge of both movies](https://www.threads.net/@billkuchman/post/CzriNIIp8Vs?ref=theomnicosm.com).

The **Russo brothers** directed both *Infinity War* and *Endgame* with **Christopher Markus** and **Stephen McFeely** handling the screenplays. (The Russo/Russo/Markus/McFeely team actually stretched back to *Captain America: The Winter Solider* and *Captain America: Civil War*, with Markus and McFeely also writing *Captain America: The First Avenger*.)

Seems like Marvel Studios had the same thought. News broke this week that **Michael Waldron** had replaced **Jeff Loveness** as *The Kang Dynasty*’s screenwriter. Waldron was already on board to pen *Secret Wars*, meaning one writer is now handling both of the upcoming *Avengers* movies. [***Read the article at Deadline.***](https://deadline.com/2023/11/loki-michael-waldron-marvel-studios-avengers-kang-dynasty-1235638887/?ref=theomnicosm.com)

- **A shift in focus?** Loveness previously wrote *Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania*. On paper, he looked like the perfect person to write *The Kang Dynasty*, already handling Kang’s big-screen introduction in *Quantumania*. Swapping Waldron in, though, leads me to believe that Marvel Studios would rather have someone with experience writing stories about the growing multiverse in charge of *The Kang Dynasty*. (Probably doesn’t help that *Quantumania* was widely seen as missing the mark too.) There’s no one better prepared for that challenge than Waldron, as he’s already created *Loki* and written *Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness*.
- **About *Multiverse of Madness* …** Waldron might not be the only behind-the-camera talent coming over from the most recent *Doctor Strange* movie. A rumor from **Daniel Richtman** (via *Murphy’s Multiverse*) says that Marvel is considering **Sam Raimi** as not only the director of *Doctor Strange 3* but also *The Kang Dynasty* and *Secret Wars*. If this comes true, the Multiverse Saga will have its version of Russo/Russo/Markus/McFeely in Waldron/Raimi. [***Read the article at Murphy’s Multiverse.***](https://www.murphysmultiverse.com/rumor-marvel-studios-considering-sam-raimi-for-multiple-projects/?ref=theomnicosm.com)

•••

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/f4/8b/f48be8ca-23c6-4d81-b0cf-da2fb0785911/content/images/2024/01/https-3a-2f-2fsubstack-post-media-s3-amazonaws-com-2fpublic-2fimages-2ff131f222-18df-4ddf-b38d-29d79084fb0f_1903x801-jpeg.jpg)

****Nicholas Hoult** and ****Ralph Fiennes** in **The Menu*. / Searchlight Pictures

### Is Nicholas Hoult our next Lex Luthor?

Casting for **James Gunn**’s *Superman: Legacy* has been flying along. **David Corenswet** and **Rachel Brosnahan** are playing Clark Kent/Superman and Lois Lane. We even know that **Nathan Fillion** is playing Guy Gardner, one of the DC universe’s many Green Lanterns. There’s been a lot of speculation over who — if anyone — will play Lex Luthor, Superman’s arch nemesis.

According to a report that broke right before Thanksgiving, **Nicholas Hoult** is our guy. No stranger to superhero movies, Hoult previously played Hank McCoy/Beast in the *X-Men: First Class* run of *X-Men* movies. He was even reputedly a finalist to be Gunn’s Superman. [***Read the article at Deadline.***](https://deadline.com/2023/11/nicholas-hoult-superman-legacy-lex-luther-1235630393/?ref=theomnicosm.com)

- **Gunn’s silence:** The thing about the news that Hoult is playing Lex Luthor, though, is that Gunn has yet to weigh in on it. The writer/director/co-chief of DC Studios is extremely forthcoming on social media when it comes to casting news, but he’s yet to confirm this one. He even recently posted a bit of a warning when it comes to casting rumors. [***Read Gunn’s post on Threads.***](https://www.threads.net/@jamesgunn/post/C0KuoLGvr0D?ref=theomnicosm.com)
- **‘Wanted a movie star’:** Another report not only confirms the casting but also notes that Gunn “wanted a movie star to play Lex Luthor” and talked about the role with **Bradley Cooper**. Gunn and Cooper, of course, spent a decade working on the *Guardians of the Galaxy* movies together. [***Read the article at The InSneider.***](https://www.theinsneider.com/p/bikeriders-new-path-2024-lex-luthor-nicholas-hoult-jason-bourne-returns?ref=theomnicosm.com)
- **Gunn confirms Jimmy Olsen, Eve Teschmacher:** As I said before, Gunn has had no problem confirming much of the *Superman: Legacy* casting news. He did just that with the news that *The Righteous Gemstones* star **Skyler Gisondo** will play Jimmy Olsen and model **Sara Sampaio** will play Eve Teschmacher. [***Read James Gunn’s post on Threads.***](https://www.threads.net/@jamesgunn/post/Cz6-yH4PlFX?ref=theomnicosm.com)

•••

### Academy sets earlier time for the Oscars

One way to keep the Oscars from running too late? Start the broadcast an hour earlier.

The Academy announced on Thursday that the 96th Oscars will begin at 7 p.m. ET instead of the usual 8 p.m. start time.

“A 30-minute pre-show will lead into the live show (6:30-7:00 p.m. EDT/3:30-4:00 p.m. PDT), and immediately following, ABC will air an original episode of the Emmy Award-winning comedy series *Abbott Elementary*,” the Academy said in a statement. “The telecast will also be rebroadcast in the Pacific Time zone in primetime after the live presentation.”

The Oscars take place on March 10, 2024, with **Jimmy Kimmel** returning to host.

•••

### 🎞️🧸 Peacock sends *Ted* to school

Whoa, Max from *Parenthood* is all grown up now. I had to *Wikipedia* this show since I knew the actor playing a younger version of John looked very familiar but I couldn’t place it. Never did I imagine while watching *Parenthood* that Max Braverman (**Max Burkholder**) would grow up to be **Mark Wahlberg**.

•••

### “No truth to those rumors”

We’ll surely continue to speculate over the possibility of **Christopher Nolan** directing a *James Bond* film, but the *Oppenheimer* director once again tamped down those rumors.

“No, sadly no — no truth to those rumors,” Nolan told *The Associated Press* (via *The Hollywood Reporter*) while promoting the home release of his latest film.

I dunno. Until a director is actually announced for the first film in *Bond*’s post-**Daniel Craig** era, this is a Schrödinger’s cat situation: Nolan is both directing and not directing the film at the same time.

[***Read the article at The Hollywood Reporter.***](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/christopher-nolan-not-directing-james-bond-1235674448/?ref=theomnicosm.com)

•••

### *Godzilla x Kong* posters reveal new look at Skar King

With CCXP kicking off in Brazil yesterday, a slew of new trailers should be on their way. With *Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire* one of those expected trailers, Legendary got the promotional machine going this week. The studio debuted three new posters for the *Godzilla vs. Kong* sequel, giving us new looks at Skar King (the film’s villain) and Godzilla and Kong.

I cannot wait to see Godzilla demolish Skar King. (This is a staunchly #TeamGodzilla newsletter.)

•••

### *Bourne* again

News broke before Thanksgiving that Universal Pictures is working on a new *Jason Bourne* movie, with *All Quiet on the Western Front*’s **Edward Berger** in talks to direct. *Deadline* notes that no script exists yet and **Matt Damon** “would be approached first to return in the iconic role once a script is finished.”

If Damon didn’t return, would Universal try to relaunch the franchise with another actor again? The **Jeremy Renner**\-anchored *Bourne Legacy* was a dead end.

The *Bourne* franchise has been dormant since 2016’s *Jason Bourne*, a film that did financially well but failed to live up to the lofty critical acclaim bestowed upon the original trilogy.

[***Read the article at Deadline.***](https://deadline.com/2023/11/new-jason-bourne-movie-all-quiet-on-the-western-fronts-edward-berger-1235630286/?ref=theomnicosm.com)

•••

### 🛩️ Drowning snags *Bourne* director

While the *Jason Bourne* franchise finds new life with Edward Berger as its director, **Paul Greengrass**, who directed every Matt Damon *Bourne* movie except the original *Bourne Identity*, has found his next project.

*Deadline* reported on Tuesday that Greengrass will adapt and direct *Drowning: The Rescue of Flight 421*. I haven’t read the book from author (and former flight attendant) **T.J. Newman**, but it was a hot property, [sparking a bidding war](https://variety.com/2023/film/news/flight-attendant-t-j-newman-hollywood-bidding-war-drowning-novel-falling-1235587118/?ref=theomnicosm.com) upon its release.

[***Read the article at Deadline.***](https://deadline.com/2023/11/paul-greengrass-drowning-adapting-to-direct-t-j-newman-bestseller-warner-bros-1235640313/?ref=theomnicosm.com)

•••

### Timothy Olyphant joins *Alien* TV show

*Justified* (and *Girl Next Door*) star **Timothy Olyphan**t has joined the iconic *Alien* franchise. Deadline broke the news earlier this week that Olyphant will play “Kirsh, a synth who acts as a mentor and trainer” in the upcoming FX series from *Fargo* showrunner **Noah Hawley**. (I have no idea what that means either …)

This show shouldn’t be confused with *Alien: Romulus*, the upcoming *Alien* movie helmed by *Evil Dead* director **Fede Álvarez**.

[***Read the article at Deadline.***](https://deadline.com/2023/11/timothy-olyphant-cast-alien-noah-hawley-fx-series-1235638841/?ref=theomnicosm.com)

•••

### 🗓️ Dune sequel shifts to earlier date

Had Warner Bros. and the other studios quickly agreed to a fair deal with the writers and actors, we could’ve had *Dune: Part Two* in theaters in early November. Instead, the studio pushed the sequel into 2024\. Turns out the wait won’t be as long as expected with Legendary announcing that *Dune: Part Two* will now premiere on March 1, 2024.

[***Read the tweet.***](https://twitter.com/legendary/status/1725612224679760146?s=61&t=naqZYoOlYPcKjx70KkNNxw&ref=theomnicosm.com)

•••

### Michael B. Jordan will return to direct *Creed IV*

I haven’t seen an official announcement for a fourth *Creed* movie from MGM, but according to the franchise’s producer ([no, surprisingly not ](https://deadline.com/2022/07/sylvester-stallone-calls-for-my-rights-back-from-rocky-producer-irwin-winkler-1235071269/?ref=theomnicosm.com)[**Sylvester Stallone**](https://deadline.com/2022/07/sylvester-stallone-calls-for-my-rights-back-from-rocky-producer-irwin-winkler-1235071269/?ref=theomnicosm.com)) *Creed IV* is in the works and star **Michael B. Jordan** will return as its director.

“He did such a great job — he was comfortable with the camera,” **Irwin Winkler** said during *Deadline*’s Contenders Film: Los Angeles event.

[***Read the article at Deadline.***](https://deadline.com/2023/11/creed-iv-michael-b-jordan-directing-1235618362/?ref=theomnicosm.com)

---

## *SNL* ROUNDUP

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/f4/8b/f48be8ca-23c6-4d81-b0cf-da2fb0785911/content/images/2024/01/https-3a-2f-2fsubstack-post-media-s3-amazonaws-com-2fpublic-2fimages-2f080e2cf1-71f0-4699-a5bd-5c08e5d4f6b0_1539x993-png.jpg)

****Emma Stone** in her **Saturday Night Live* promo. / NBC

### Emma Stone reveals the secret to comedy

Emma Stone joins the *Saturday Night Live* Five-Timers Club this week, appearing as the show’s host for the first time since April 13, 2019\. Her promo for the episode is a quick one without any *SNL* castmembers.

•••

### Adam Driver and Kate McKinnon set to host

*SNL* announced on Wednesday that **Adam Driver** will host the show on Dec. 9 (his fourth time) and **Kate McKinnon** will host on Dec. 16 (her first time).

I’ve actually been noodling on a post looking at people who need to host *SNL* again, and Driver was high on that list. Back to the drawing board on that one …

***See the announcements for*** [***Driver***](https://www.instagram.com/p/C0PNFQAOKAs/?ref=theomnicosm.com) ***and*** [***McKinnon***](https://www.instagram.com/p/C0PNHAgOX09/?ref=theomnicosm.com) ***on Instagram.***

•••

•••

### The story behind “Washington’s Dream”

I’m still kicking myself for not naming “Washington’s Dream” as the top sketch of **Nate Bargatze**’s episode. I missed that *IndieWire* chatted with *SNL*’s **Mikey Day** and **Street Seidell** earlier this month about the creation of the sketch.

[In the ](https://www.theomnicosm.com/p/deep-snl-thoughts-nate-bargatze-great)[**Deep SNL Thoughts**](https://www.theomnicosm.com/p/deep-snl-thoughts-nate-bargatze-great)[ on Bargatze’s episode](https://www.theomnicosm.com/p/deep-snl-thoughts-nate-bargatze-great), I asked: “Do they have an evergreen file or was this brainstormed during the writing sessions for Bargatze’s episode?” Turns out the answer is the former.

“I wrote a draft of it last season,” Seidell told *IndieWire*. “I forget who we originally wrote it for, but it was very much a dramatic actor who would play more of a serious Washington.”

[***Read the article at IndieWire.***](https://www.indiewire.com/features/interviews/washingtons-dream-oral-history-nate-bargatze-snl-george-washington-interview-1234924966/?ref=theomnicosm.com)

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## THE LINKS

- [Four Years, 30,000 Kids, Countless Bricks: Inside the Quest for the Next Hit Lego Set](https://www.wsj.com/business/retail/lego-sets-new-dreamzzz-56b8c1e9?mod=Threads&ref=theomnicosm.com) (**Trefor Moss**, *The Wall Street Journal*)
- [Travis Kelce Opens Up About Taylor Swift and His Life After the NFL](https://www.wsj.com/style/travis-kelce-chiefs-taylor-swift-relationship-413ce0d7?st=pse77icf9qjiald&ref=theomnicosm.com) (**J.R. Moehringer**, *Wall Street Journal*)
- [Everybody Knows Flo From Progressive. Who Is Stephanie Courtney?](https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/25/magazine/progressive-insurance-flo-stephanie-courtney.html?ref=theomnicosm.com) (**Caity Weaver**, *The New York Times*)
- [Russell Brand’s Alternate Reality](https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/13/magazine/russell-brand-conspiracy-theory-sexual-assault.html?ref=theomnicosm.com) (**Matt Flegenheimer**, *The New York Times*)
- [The Strange $55 Million Saga of a Netflix Series You’ll Never See ](https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/22/business/carl-rinsch-netflix-conquest.html?ref=theomnicosm.com)(**John Carreyrou**, *The New York Times*)
- [How Comic Book Legend Matt Fraction Brought Godzilla to TV With Monarch: Legacy of Monsters](https://www.menshealth.com/entertainment/a45839546/monarch-legacy-of-monsters-matt-fraction-interview/?ref=theomnicosm.com) (**William Goodman**, *Men’s Health*)
- [Matt Rife Wants Men to Like Him — So He Punches Down at Women](https://www.thedailybeast.com/matt-rife-wants-men-to-like-himso-he-punches-down-at-women?ref=theomnicosm.com) (**Coulette Fountain**, *The Daily Beast*)
- [Why the NFL Is Using Thanksgiving to Expand Its Halftime Show Ambitions ](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/nfl-thanksgiving-halftime-show-dolly-parton-jack-harlow-1235671744/?ref=theomnicosm.com)(**Alex Weprin**, *The Hollywood Reporter*)

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## AND FINALLY …

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/f4/8b/f48be8ca-23c6-4d81-b0cf-da2fb0785911/content/images/2024/01/https-3a-2f-2fsubstack-post-media-s3-amazonaws-com-2fpublic-2fimages-2fc5261ea4-411b-4bdb-be2c-5c98a7bf89f1_1673x980-jpeg.jpg)

****Grover** and ****Oscar**. / Wired

### *Sesame Street* answers your important questions

Our daughter has gotten super into *Sesame Street* over the past few months, which was a welcome relief from **Ms. Rachel** and **Blippi**. (I’m sorry if those two names are ones you recognize.) I’ve quickly become familiar with the current age of *Sesame Street* where **Elmo** rules all but is kind enough to include **Cookie Monster**, **Abby Cadabby**, **Oscar** and **Grover** on his adventures.

While I grew up with Muppets like **Ernie**, **Bert** and **Big Bird** as the stars of *Sesame Street*, seeing the current stars of the show answer *Wired*’s Autocomplete Interview was still enjoyable. One of my life goals is to meet Cookie Monster. Not someone in a Cookie Monster costume, but the real Cookie Monster.

- **Speaking of Cookie Monster:** *The New York Times* published a piece this week breaking down how the show makes Cookie Monster’s favorite food. Turns out they’re *mostly* edible … [***Read the article at The New York Times.***](https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/27/arts/television/cookie-monster-cookies.html?unlocked%5Farticle%5Fcode=1.Bk0.Z45z.eiBI9R1tAiHF&smid=url-share&ref=theomnicosm.com)

That’s the end of this edition of ****Popculturology**. Thanks for reading the newsletter. If you already are a subscriber, ****please consider becoming a supporter** by [upgrading your account](https://www.theomnicosm.com/#/portal/).

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1. *The Garfield Movie* opens the same weekend, so bonus points for incorporating that title. [↩](#footnote-anchor-1 "Jump back to footnote 1 in the text.")