Movies

These days, it’s hard for TV shows to get rerun on local stations unless they were created by Chuck Lorre or originally aired before 2015. However, the team behind the show *Ghosts* – CBS Studios, Lionsgate, and BBC Studios – is exploring the possibility of syndication. Just recently, with no prior announcement, *Ghosts* started airing five nights a week on 13 CBS-owned stations and one station in Chicago. This is currently a trial run; the show is only scheduled to air on these stations for ten weeks, ending in mid-December. The goal is to see if the local ratings are high enough to justify a wider, national launch into syndication, potentially in the fall of 2026, when the show will have around 90 episodes available.

It actually helps that most people know Hart’s work better than his life story. He and composer Richard Rodgers created over twenty-four musicals and many classic songs, including the famous melody of “Blue Moon.” The film focuses on March 31, 1943, a time when Richard (played by Andrew Scott) is celebrating a new partnership with Oscar Hammerstein II (Simon Delaney). Their musical, *Oklahoma!*, has just begun its incredibly successful Broadway run. However, Lorenz Hart (Richard’s former partner) has already left the celebration to start drinking, believing *Oklahoma!* is overly sweet and fake. He claims he turned down the chance to adapt the original play, *Green Grow the Lilacs*, with Richard. Richard likely would have told a different story, attributing Lorenz’s departure to his alcoholism, depression, unpredictable behavior, and dislike of sentimental themes. Regardless, Lorenz has been left behind as Richard achieves success, and he’s now coping with his disappointment by drinking bourbon and trying to pitch an ambitious musical about Marco Polo – a project that seems connected to his personal obsession with a young woman named Elizabeth Weiland (Margaret Qualley).

Kaiju No. 8 is a popular action anime set in a world constantly threatened by giant monsters called kaiju. The story follows Kafka Hibino, who cleans up after kaiju attacks, despite his lifelong dream of joining the Japan Defense Force – the organization that fights them. When a bizarre kaiju merges with his body, he unexpectedly gains the power to become a kaiju himself, finally allowing him to join the Defense Force and fight alongside his friend, Mina Ashiro. You can find Crunchyroll’s list of similar anime, “10 Anime Like Kaiju No. 8,” below.

Speaking with recently to promote the upcoming *Part Two*, director Chu revealed they were finishing up editing just recently. He expressed immense pride in the final product and is eager for audiences to see it. He also hinted that a well-known actor will voice the Cowardly Lion in *Wicked: For Good*, which caused a huge buzz among fans.

Filming has finished on Marvel Studios’ Avengers: Doomsday, directed by Joe and Anthony Russo. The movie is scheduled for release next year, with its sequel, Avengers: Secret Wars, coming in 2027.

Everyone’s talking about what happened on the latest episode of *NCIS: Origins*! Season 2 kicked off during CBS’ premiere week, and we finally learned what happened to Lala. But that wasn’t the only exciting news – Tom Cruise, star of *Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning*, recently paid a visit to the *Origins* set! Check it out:

The current season of *The Amazing Race*, featuring former contestants from *Big Brother*, is taking place across Europe and has been really fun to watch so far. We’ve seen teams working together and facing some tough – and occasionally frustrating – challenges. The latest episode continued this trend, with teams racing around Budapest, Hungary, all hoping to win the grand prize.

Here are the details for the film: It will be released on October 17, 2025, and is directed by Scott Derrickson. The screenplay is by Derrickson and C. Robert Cargill. The film stars Mason Thames, Madeleine McGraw, Ethan Hawke, Demián Bichir, and Jeremy Davies. It is rated R for strong violence, gore, teen drug use, and language, and has a runtime of 114 minutes.

The new package comes in two options: $15 or $20 per month. Both include an ad-free Apple TV subscription (which recently dropped the ‘+’ from its name). One option adds Peacock Premium, which includes ads, while the more expensive option includes Peacock Premium Plus, which is mostly ad-free except for certain content like live sports, channels, and some shows and movies. If you already subscribe to Apple TV through an existing Apple One Family or Premier plan, you can get Peacock Premium Plus with a 35% discount – that’s great news!

The biggest news this week in The King Beat is the announcement of a new book. We also have an interesting update for fans of Francis Lawrence’s *The Long Walk*: a look at an alternate ending! There’s plenty to cover, so let’s get started.