Joaquin has only been doing what’s best for 10 Petal Ranch and his mother, Beulah Jackson (portrayed by Annette Bening). Still, his brother, Rob-Will, has been causing headaches since the beginning of the season, including murder.

“From now on, after Episode 7, everything that happens or doesn’t happen to Joaquin, anything that he does or doesn’t do has one root and one root only, and that’s heartbreak,” Raba tells Nerd Reactor. “And that is a very powerful driver because it’s very unique. It’s not like, ‘Oh, they took away my political position, I’m going to get it back.’ It’s not like, ‘They took my money away, I’m going to take more money from you.’ It’s like, no, they broke my heart. And now it’s going to get real because you broke my heart. What a unique place to work from.”

As a Latino actor, Raba was proud to be in this production because the creative team did not try to change his performance just because of his background.

“You have no idea how many times I have been asked on sets, like, ‘Oh man, you don’t look Latino enough,'” the actor explained. “I’m like, ‘Brother, it doesn’t get more Latino than me.’ So this is something I’ve been fighting with, and not against, because I always think there are ways to work around stuff. [In Dutton Ranch], you would think, ‘Oh, he’s going to Texas to show Texans, they really are going to rough him up, and they want him to look Latino.’ Not once have I been talked down to or talked about changing my performance according to my heritage. And that makes me feel very proud and very grateful.”

Episode 7 will air on June 19, 2026.

About Dutton Ranch

Synopsis: Cole Hauser and Kelly Reilly return as the indomitable Rip Wheeler and Beth Dutton in Dutton Ranch, premiering globally on Paramount+ on Friday, May 15 with two episodes, and this time, they’re taking on Texas. As Beth and Rip fight to build a future together – far from the ghosts of Yellowstone – they collide with brutal new realities and a ruthless rival ranch that will stop at nothing to protect its empire. In South Texas, blood runs deeper, forgiveness is fleeting, and the cost of survival might just be your soul.

Dutton Ranch premiered globally on Paramount+ on May 15, 2026 The series also premiered on the Paramount Network May 15, at 8pm ET/PT.

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The film is directed by Kenji Tanigaki, known for his action directing in the Rurouni Kenshin live-action films. It stars Xie Miao as Wang Wei, a tradesman who will fight his way to save his kidnapped daughter. Joe Taslim portrays Navin, a journalist also on the hunt for the criminal organization.

“Last decade, I got lucky to be part of such an amazing action project called The Raid, and it changed how people watch action movies,” Taslim tells Nerd Reactor. “And now this decade, 2020 to 2030, in The Furious, I know for sure this movie is a game-changer as well. I’m part of it as well. Well, I can’t complain. This has been an amazing two decades, and to be a part of the movies that really changed the game of people watching action movies.”

Brian Le is a rising martial arts star who has appeared in Everything Everywhere All at Once opposite Michelle Yeoh. In The Furious, he is a tough henchman who will give Wang and Navin a tough time.

“I found it very beautiful,” Le said. “I think it’s a very special case where all the cast themselves have 20+ years of martial arts experience as well as action filmmaking experience. Within the rehearsal rooms, on camera, off camera, we actually spent a lot of time together, and we actually became friends. We actually became brothers.”

Joey Iwanaga, who can be seen in Alice in Borderland and the upcoming live-action Blue Lock film, is a villain who is trying to move up in the world.

“The first thing [Director Kenji] told me was that we want to make this the best action movie in history,” Iwanaga recalled. “When I first got the call from him, I was like, ‘Really? Like me? Are you sure?’ Because I’m the young guy in this team and I just had to give it my all.”

About The Furious

Synopsis: After the daughter of Wang Wei (Xie Miao) is kidnapped by a criminal network and he receives no help from the corrupt police, Wei sets out on a rampage to find her himself. His only ally is Navin (Joe Taslim) – a relentless journalist whose wife has mysteriously disappeared. Fueled by a furious vengeance, the unlikely duo ruthlessly fights against the kidnappers in this explosive martial arts showdown.

The film is directed by Kenji Tanigaki and written by Mak Tin Shu, Lei Zhilong, Shum Kwan Sin and Frank Hui. It’s produced by Bill Kong, Shan Tam and Frank Hui.

The cast includes Xie Miao, Joe Taslim, Yang Enyou, Brian Le, Joey Iwanaga, Sahajak Boonthanakit, Manatsanun Phanlerdwongsakul, Guo Junqing, Winai Wiangyangkung, Yayan Ruhian and Jija Yanin.

The Furious releases in theaters on June 12, 2026.

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“I would be first-wave dead,” Riggs tells Nerd Reactor. “I would be out like the first 12 hours of the virus. I would be dead.”

The actor commented while discussing his latest dark comedy film, Hacked: A Double Entendre of Rage-Fueled Karma. The inspiration for the film came from director/writer Shane Brady and producer Emily Zercher, who were hacked and lost $20,000 that was supposed to be a down payment on their first home. As a result, they both crafted a comedic revenge film. It also reunites Riggs with his former The Walking Dead co-star Katelyn Nacon.

Riggs portrays the antagonist who wreaks havoc on the Rumble family. Later on, the family gets their revenge. Parts of the film were shot inside and outside of his real home at the time.

“A lot of the stuff that we shot in the hacker’s house was my actual house,” Riggs revealed.

“His house at the time,” Nacon clarified. “He does not live there anymore. So do not go to that house and try to bug the people who live there.”

Riggs’ role as the hacker was more than he bargained for, with the filming feeling very intense.

“This film was probably one of the most invasive experiences in my life,” he said.

However, it was still a film that he cherishes.

“It would have sucked if it were anyone else at the helm other than Shane,” he explained. “But we had just the best experience and the best time. It was the best cast and the best crew.”

Nacon jumped at the opportunity because of Shane.

“[Shane] has a very interesting way of writing, and his humor is so specific that sometimes you don’t get it until you hear it out loud,” she said. “But once you hear it out loud, you’re going to be laughing your guts out until you’re vomiting.”

Even with the film’s chaotic scenes, both actors talked about its message of connection and collaboration.

“It’s just a group of people coming together to create something cool,” Riggs said. “It’s more honest. It’s more of a love letter to making movies and creativity and indie filmmaking in general.”

Nacon added about the importance of being in a community.

“Community is a huge thing,” she said. “Even if you’re going through the worst parts of your life, if you have the right people around you, those horrible things don’t seem as bad.”

About Hacked: A Double Entendre of Rage-Fueled Karma

Based on true events that happened to Director Shane Brady and Producer Emily Zercher, the film stars The Walking Dead alum Chandler Riggs, Owen Atlas (Little Evil), Collin Thompson, Richard Riehle (Office Space), Katelyn Nacon (The Walking Dead), Shane Brady (Breathing Happy), and NHL Hall of Famer and Founder of the Tampa Bay Lightning Phil Esposito.

Hacked: A Double Entendre of Rage Fueled Karma was released on VOD on June 2, 2026.

The post Chandler Riggs Says He’d Be ‘First-Wave Dead’ in a Zombie Apocalypse appeared first on Nerd Reactor.

We spoke with both actors about joining the franchise, what surprised them on set, and the personal moments that made this larger-than-life project feel special.

Portraying Ram Man wasn’t just any other role for Jon Xue Zhang; it was something that went all the way back to his childhood.

“Absolutely surreal, because I grew up watching this with my older brother,” Zhang tells Nerd Reactor. “So I was familiar with the characters. So we had all the comic books, we watched all the cartoons, and we had all the action figures. When the audition came through, it’s like, ‘MOTU? It sounds like Masters of the Universe. Surely not.’ Scroll down. ‘Ram Man?! No! This is amazing!'”

Zhang being a part of this project was very personal for him.

“My dad helped me with the audition tape,” the actor explained. “He said, ‘Hey, I remember buying you the action figure. I remember the springy legs.’ And so honestly, for my parents, for my brother, and for childhood me, I couldn’t NOT book this role.”

Christian Vunipola on Entering the World of Eternia

The majority of the film is set in Eternia, but audiences will see Adam trying to live a normal life on Earth. He has a mission to find the Sword of Power, but the people of Earth think he’s crazy. Vunipola plays Adam’s friend, and he tries to tell him not to share his childhood backstory in Eternia.

The actor felt blessed to be joining Masters of the Universe.

“It wasn’t a secret that it was for Masters of the Universe,” Vunipola said. “And I was really excited. I did my best with the audition, and I think they liked something I did. And now we’re here.”

One cannot have Eternia without Castle Grayskull, and Vunipola was not prepared to witness the glory of the iconic location.

“Seeing the set was actually such a surreal moment; to walk outside and see Castle Grayskull,” Vunipola explained. “To actually see that thing in front of you, it was wild. It’s like a dream come true. I couldn’t believe it was real.”

Both Jon Xue Zhang and Christian Vunipola represent the different worlds in Masters of the Universe, but also in real life with the former rooted in childhood nostalgia and the latter in awe and wonder.

Synopsis: After being separated for 15 years, the Sword of Power leads Prince Adam (Nicholas Galitzine) back to Eternia where he discovers his home shattered under the fiendish rule of Skeletor (Jared Leto). To save his family and his world, Adam must join forces with his closest allies, Teela (Camila Mendes) and Duncan/Man-At-Arms (Idris Elba), and embrace his true destiny as He-Man — the most powerful man in the universe.

Masters of the Universe releases in theaters on June 5, 2026.

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Nerd Reactor had the opportunity to speak with Rhys Ifans, creators Matt Wolpert and Ben Nedivi, Anna Maxwell Martin, and Josef Davies about the series’ darker tone, the real-life inspirations behind its characters, and how there is still hope despite the gloomy setting.

Rhys Ifans on Playing an Obsessive Genius Hidden From History

Fans of Rhys Ifans may know him as Dr. Curt Connors in The Amazing Spider-Man, a scientist obsessed with a cure for his amputated arm. In Star City, he portrays The Chief Designer, who has a different kind of obsession.

“Yes, you’re right,” the actor tells Nerd Reactor about the similarities between Curt Connors and the Chief Designer. “They’re both obsessed. But in this case, the most pleasing thing for me as an actor is that one was actually a real human being, the Chief Designer. With many obsessions, yes, to fly the Russian flag. But also, on a personal level, I think he was a kid who, like many children, stared up at the night sky, saw the moon, and was irrepressibly curious as to what that might present or represent.

“And then what was interesting to me was the fact that he had to do all this without the knowledge of anyone, not just knowing that he was behind the great work that was done, but that he himself is invisible in the whole story. And one could argue the greatest story ever told.”

Star City Explores the Human Side of Life Under Pressure

Ben Nedivi is the co-creator and serves as a showrunner and executive producer. Even with the show’s darker tones, hope is a pivotal part that allows the Soviets to push their space program further.

“I think even For All Mankind, there’s a constant push and pull of the optimism of that show,” Nedivi said. “I think that’s something we wanted to capture – as important as this idea of the pressure that they were under – but also how they overcame that pressure. As people watch the show, you’ll see that the power is in these humans, that overcoming the system, overcoming the odds, to still thrive and still succeed in their own way. That’s to me where I see the hope in the show.”

Revisiting the Soviet Space Race Through a Different Lens

Viewers will be transported into an alternate Cold War setting once again, and because of the Soviet world, it feels completely different.

“There’s also a nostalgia for the simpler time of the Cold War, ironically, even though we were a breath away from nuclear war all the time,” Matt Wolpert said. “It was like, ‘Oh, but those were the days,’ because now everything just feels so kind of incomprehensible. At least then you understood there were two sides and everybody was on one of those sides. And so there is kind of a nice warm feeling about being back in 1969 and in the USSR, weirdly.”

“At least then you knew if you were going to die, who was going to kill you,” Ifans added.

Surveillance and Paranoia

The series captures how the KGB spied on its own people, especially as audiences follow Anna Maxwell Martin as the head of the KGB surveillance department at Star City and Agnes O’Casey as a recruit.

“There was certainly a history in a country where children informed on their own parents,” Martin said. “That was a grim reality. You have to be committed to immersing yourself in a very different type of culture and time.”

Finding Hope Inside Star City’s Dark World

Josef Davies portrays the younger Sergei Nikulov, an engineer who works at Soviet Ground Control. Even when the government is spying on its own people, these characters find ways to persevere.

“Although it’s in the same universe, it’s a completely different world and a completely different experience,” Davies said. “I think it’s more of this setting, and then, as we’ve said before, it’s kind of character-driven, and it’s really the story of people just trying to be human and live and fight for the thing that they’re passionate about. So the oppression and the depression and everything that we’re living in, I think, it kind of just feels more of a tool to help us provide that story.”

Star City premieres on Apple TV+ on May 29, 2026.

The post Rhys Ifans and the Cast of Star City Discuss Secrecy, Hope, and the Soviet Side of the Space Race appeared first on Nerd Reactor.

The film brings a sense of familiarity between Jack Ryan and Mike November. The joyous relationship between Krasinski and Kelly off the screen helped add to their on-screen chemistry.

“The more you get to know Michael Kelly, you have to just embrace what you got, which is a wild horse,” Krasinski tells Nerd Reactor. “He’s the nicest, funniest, most generous person who also makes me laugh incredibly hard. It’s no coincidence that his character went from being a buttoned-up CIA guy to a complete wild man.”

Kelly reiterates the sentiment, focusing on the same energy on set.

“Personally, I’m in tears every single day of filming,” Kelly added. “We laugh that hard every day, even through a lot of difficult days on set. Somehow, we always find a way to get through it by making each other laugh.”

Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan: Ghost War is now available to stream on Prime Video.

You can watch the full interview via the video above.

About Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan: Ghost War

Synopsis: In this new film, Jack Ryan is reluctantly thrust back into the world of espionage when an international covert mission unravels a deadly conspiracy, forcing him to confront a rogue black-ops unit, and the clock is ticking. Operating in real time with lives on the line and the threat escalating at every turn, Jack reunites with battle-tested CIA operative Mike November (Michael Kelly) and former CIA boss James Greer (Wendell Pierce), their combined experience the only edge they have against an enemy who knows their every move. Backed by an unlikely new partner – razor-sharp MI6 officer Emma Marlowe (Sienna Miller) – Jack and the team navigate a treacherous web of betrayal, facing a past they thought was long put to rest – making this the most personal, high-stakes mission any of them have ever faced.

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Jake Johnson is known for voicing Peter B. Parker in the Spider-Verse animated films. In Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed, he portrays Karl, Paula’s ex-husband, who does not see her as a fit mother.

“I don’t think Peter B. Parker would like Karl at all,” Johnson tells Nerd Reactor. “I don’t think he would be interested in him. I think Karl is so in his little battle for Hazel and doing what he thinks is right that Karl’s not able to see anything else besides his reality and his truth.

“And I think he is 100% convinced he’s right. And I don’t think that’s something that Peter B. Parker finds attractive in people.”

Jake’s character believes what he’s doing is right; however, Bartlett’s character is a whole other beast. One of the most talked-about episodes in HBO’s The Last of Us series featured Murray Bartlett and Nick Offerman. It showed viewers that love can bloom even in a post-apocalyptic world. In Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed, Bartlett portrays an antagonist who would become an obstacle for Tatiana’s Paula.

“I think he’d be awesome because I think he’s a sociopath,” Bartlett said about his Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed character if he were in The Last of Us. “I think he can distance himself from emotion, or just naturally, he just doesn’t have a lot of it. He has a very small spectrum of emotions. So I think he could get it done, and not be worried about consequences.”

David J. Rosen is the creator, executive producer and writer of the series, whose credits include Us & Them, Invasion, Sugar, and Hunters. Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed is a series with dark and comedic elements, and it’s a balancing act throughout the series.

“I think trying to make them laugh is weirdly hard,” Rosen said. “That’s kind of how we attacked the series, actually. We can write the thriller moves, and we have to execute them. But we could know intellectually that these should line up and be good. But you can’t really intellectually know whether or not something funny will land. It’s just a whole different thing. Because of that, let’s write a bulletproof thriller, as bulletproof as we can make it. And then the humor will come from the characters and how they respond to those thriller moments.”

About Maximum Pleasure Guarantteed

Synopsis: From creator and showrunner David J. Rosen, Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed follows newly divorced mom Paula (Maslany) as she falls down a dangerous rabbit hole of blackmail, murder and youth soccer. Convinced she witnessed a crime – while simultaneously struggling through a custody battle and an identity crisis – Paula begins her own investigation, one that could unravel a greater conspiracy while also holding the keys to rebuilding her family and sense of self.

Brandon Flynn (“13 Reasons Why”) and Murray Bartlett (“The Last of Us,” “The White Lotus”) also join the ensemble cast, which includes Jessy Hodges (“Barry”), Jon Michael Hill (“Elementary”), Charlie Hall (“The Sex Lives of College Girls,” “Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story”), Kiarra Hamagami Goldberg (“Charmed,” “Invasion”), Nola Wallace (The Strangers: Chapter 2, The Strangers: Chapter 3) and Dolly De Leon (“Nine Perfect Strangers,” “Triangle of Sadness”).

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Voicing the English version of Hathaway is Caleb Yen (Metaphor: ReFantazio), the leader of MAFTY, who seeks to disrupt the Federation government. The character is very serious, who is the complete opposite of Yen.

“I like to play a character that’s so different from me,” the actor said. “So getting to be someone who thinks a lot more than I do and has a mission that he’s very dedicated to, but thinks about it instead of talking about it. Whereas I would just talk about it a lot. And what’s great about this movie or the trilogy, you’re not sure who to root for.”

Voicing Lane Aim, the young Gundam pilot on the Federation side, is Kieran Walton.

“That’s kind of real-life adjacent,” Walton said of the morally grey characters in the Mobile Suit Gundam Hathaway films. “Sometimes it feels like you don’t know who to root for, and it really is important to sort through those matters on your own and really figure out where you’re passionate.”

About Mobile Suit Gundam Hathaway: The Sorcery of Nymph Circe

Synopsis: The year is U.C. 0105, twelve years after Char’s Rebellion. “MAFTY” has begun resisting the Federation government’s tyrannical rule by assassinating its ministers. Its leader is actually Hathaway Noa, the son of Bright Noa, who fought in the One Year War alongside Amuro Ray.

Haunted by past trauma, Hathaway is drawn to a mysterious girl named Gigi Andalucia, whose strange powers stir memories within him. While swayed by her cryptic words, he continues preparing for MAFTY’s mission — the attack on the Adelaide Conference. Kenneth Sleg of the Earth Federation Forces prepares a defense operation for the Adelaide Conference and a plan to eliminate MAFTY and is approached by Handley Yoxon of the Criminal Police Organization with a secret proposal.

As Hathaway and Kenneth pursue their respective goals, Gigi also sets off for Hong Kong to fulfill her own role.

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“I found it upsetting,” Dano tells Nerd Reactor. “To learn what you do in this film and then see how it’s been applied all over the world. So in that way, it’s not just a film about Russia, but about modern politics and modern power. One of the really disturbing things for me was seeing that the creation of chaos requires a strong figure in the middle. We’ve really seen that put to work in the US as well.”

As an actor, Dano discusses what he does between different projects.

“Absolutely take time to reset if you can, because it’s easy to get lost on tour, so to speak, like a band that can’t stop touring,” he explained. “It is a different life. You’re working very long days, often away from home. It’s really important to go back to your life, your people, your family, get leveled again, get straight again, and regenerate so that you are hungry for the next one.”

About The Wizard of the Kremlin

Synopsis: In the chaos of post-Soviet Russia, rising KGB officer Vladimir Putin (Jude Law) joins forces with master manipulator Vadim Baranov (Paul Dano) to reshape life behind the Iron Curtain, using violence and deception to change the world forever. Putin and Baranov’s reign of chaos begins with lies and corruption, and quickly escalates to assassinations, tyranny, and eventually all-out war.

The film is directed by Olivier Assayas and written by Olivier Assayas and Emmanuel Carrère.

It stars Paul Dano, Alicia Vikander, Tom Sturridge, Will Keen, with Jeffrey Wright and Jude Law.

The Wizard of the Kremlin releases in North American theaters on May 15, 2026.

The post Paul Dano Reflects on Power, Politics, and Shaping Reality Behind the Scenes appeared first on Nerd Reactor.

Nerd Reactor had the chance to chat with Valorie Curry, who portrayed Firecracker, a member of The Seven who uses her show to manipulate the masses. She talks about fans’ reactions to her shocking episode.

“It’s been pleasantly surprising because it seems to have sparked a lot of conversation about the crisis of faith that [Firecracker] goes through,” Curry tells Nerd Reactor. “It’s such a humanizing story and a relatable sort of story for a lot of people. It’s meant so much to me to hear from people who saw themselves in that. I was so happy watching it to see that it doesn’t talk down to anybody. It’s not making fun of anybody. It’s not actually making a joke of people who are having a crisis of faith, leaving a high-control religion, or leaving a political perspective. That existential crisis is treated in a very empathetic way. And that’s why I think it has resonated with so many people.”

Season 5, Episode 5 features Firecracker manipulating the public again on TV, but this time, the viewers understand what she is going through. Will she throw her former pastor under the bus, or will she try to defend her past church?

“The tear thing is interesting,” she said. “Because other than this scene, almost every time she cries, she can turn the water works on like that. They’re crocodile tears, right? She knows how to use her instrument, and none of those tears are coming from some real place. It’s like she’s choking on what she has to say, and that’s the one way that it comes out. It comes through that crack in the mask. That scene was by far the most painful scene to shoot. It was excruciating, and I think the reason it’s so painful is that she hasn’t actually decided yet. She still hasn’t decided when the camera starts rolling, and you just watch her vomit up that lie, and she hates herself.”

The finale episode of The Boys airs on May 20, 2026.

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