Streaming News Round-Up: ‘Wednesday,’ ‘Pantheon’ Get Trailers, Netflix Brings Back ‘The Mole’
The Addams Family’s latest incarnation — “Wednesday” — arrives on Netflix this fall. The new spooky series from Tim Burton released a trailer this week that took the internet by storm. Wednesday, the unusual daughter of the freaky family, enters Nevermore Academy, where she uses her preternaturally subversive gifts to solve a murder. Jenna Ortega of “Jane the Virgin” and “Scream” fame stars as the eponymous Addams, with Catherine Zeta-Jones as Morticia and Luis Guzmán as Gomez Addams. The streamer hasn’t confirmed a release date yet, but “Wednesday” will almost certainly stream in time for Spooky Season.
Check out the “Wednesday” trailer:
AMC+ released a trailer for its upcoming animated, sci-fi thriller “Pantheon” this week. In the show, a bullied teen gets online messages from someone claiming to be her dead father, whose consciousness has been uploaded to the Cloud as an Uploaded Intelligence. While investigating, she discovers a larger conspiracy and a scary new technology. Based on short stories by Ken Liu, “Pantheon” will also run on HIDIVE, AMC’s anime streamer. The show’s voice cast includes Katie Chang, Paul Dano, Daniel Dae Kim, Maude Apatow, Rosemarie DeWitt, and Aaron Eckhart. “Pantheon” will debut on Sept. 1.
Watch the “Pantheon” trailer:
The reality show “The Mole,” which originally aired on ABC and was hosted by a pre-CNN Anderson Cooper, will return to this fall. A new season will stream on Netflix. Twelve people will work together to gin up prize money, which only one player can ultimately win. But to keep the suspense — and paranoia — going the show plants a mole among the dozen with one goal: to secretly sabotage the others. The original U.S. series ran for five seasons from 2001-2008 and featured multiple seasons of “Celebrity Mole” hosted by Ahmad Rashad.
Recruiting sorority pledges for the University of Alabama’s Bama Rush began as “Bama Rush Tok,” a TikTok video. But it has since morphed into an HBO Max and Vice Team documentary, directed by Rachel Fleit (“Introducing, Selma Blair”). “This film is a thoughtful and compassionate portrayal of young women in 2022 as they rush the sorority system at the University of Alabama,” Fleit stated. Pledging is stressful — and pricey. The New York Times reports the average cost of dues for a new member in her first semester is around $4,100.
Three new musical docs arrived on Freevee this week. The new films, following the release of “Post Malone: Runaway,” are “Free Meek,” about Meek Mill’s transformation; “The Boy From Medellin,” about J Balvin, and “A Man Named Scott,” which charts Kid Cudi’s career.
PBS is streaming Ken Burns’ newest documentary — “The U.S. and the Holocaust” — from Sept. 18 through Sept. 20. The three-part, six-hour series examines America’s indifferent response to the most horrifying humanitarian tragedy of the 20th Century. Americans consider themselves a “nation of immigrants,” but as the catastrophe of the Holocaust unfolded in Europe, the United States proved unwilling to open its doors to all but a tiny fraction of refugees.
Comcast’s Xfinity entertainment platforms, including Xfinity X1 and Xfinity Flex, have made the MasterClass app available to subscribers. MasterClass offers over 150 instructors and classes in the arts, business, sports, and more. The video lessons average 10 minutes and are taught by key instructions in their fields, such as Richard Branson, Serena Williams, and Neil deGrasse Tyson. New and existing MasterClass customers can access the service on X1 and Flex by saying “MasterClass” into their voice remote.
Paramount+ is taking a dive into an original animated film, “Baby Shark’s Big Movie!” Set to launch in the 2023 holiday season, it follows Baby Shark and his family’s move to Chomp City. “Baby Shark’s Big Show!” debuted in 2021 across Nickelodeon branded channels and platforms and just earned a second season.
Free streamers Local Now and thegrio will feature the Love Stories TV FAST channel – which showcases entertaining real stories, including actual wedding films. Local Now offers weather, sports, and news, while thegrio streams movies, TV shows, and documentaries geared to a Black audience.