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There's always big news that comes out of the annual D23 Ultimate Disney Fan event, and 2026 was no different. Yeah there were new rides and park attractions announced, and a plethora of sequels (plus the Bluey movie!). But the biggest news (for us anyway) was the shock announcement that Marvel had finally bagged their white whale-Adam Driver. That's right, our ride-or-die Adam Driver has been cast in the upcoming untitled X-Men reboot as Mister Sinister. We dive deep into what may have been going on behind the scenes for this development, including our theories on how this all ties back to the tragically (but maybe not permanently) shelved The Hunt for Ben Solo. Follow us on social media and let us know what you think about everything that came out of D23!

The Nerds didn't attend San Diego Comic Con this year (because life), and the FOMO was real. But we still had to talk about all the exciting details that came out, so here is everything we missed when we were missing out on SDCC! Joined by friend-of-the-pod Annette, we chatted activations, The Rings of Power news (helloooo Celeborn), the joy of the Spaceballs 2 reunion and of course, Marvel and its infamous Hall H Saturday panel. Plus, all the other little things about SDCC that make it so special. Find us on social media and chat all things Comic Con and pop culture with us!

Dearest Gentle Listeners, we can't believe Bridgerton is already over for the next two years. But it's not really over until we break it down, so let's get into it. Joined by frequent-friend-of-the-pod Andee, we discussed all the things from Season 4 Part 2. Was Benophie our favorite Bridgerton couple? How did we handle Francesca's heartbreaking scenes? Who do we think the next Lady Whistledown is? Tune in to find out! Find us on social media and let us know what you thought about Bridgerton Season 4 Part 2!

Dearest Gentle Reader...The Bridgerton family and their steamy hijinks are once again gracing our Netflix accounts, and you KNOW we had to talk about it. We teamed up with Big Gold Belt Media to break down the first four episodes that make up Part 1 of Season 4. In this episode we give our thoughts on the main couple Benedict and Sophie, the numerous side plots, and what we hope to see in Part 2. Spoilers abound so make sure you've watched the episodes beforehand! Find us on social media and let us know what you think of this season! You can also watch a video version of this episode on YouTube.

In a world where music transcends boundaries and connects people, few artists have achieved the level of impact that Taylor Swift has. From her early beginnings as a country singer to becoming a global pop sensation, her career is a testament to talent, resilience, and connection. Julie is joined by her best friend and fellow Swifitie, Shannon, to celebrate Taylor's newest documentary, End of an Area, the Final Show, and the community that has formed around her music.  Are you a Swiftie? Which Taylor era is your favorite? Find us on social media and tell us!

It's been a hell of a week for Ben Solo fans.  In a recent AP interview, our fav Adam Driver dropped an atomic bomb on the Star Wars fandom: he had been secretly working on a Ben Solo movie for two years. Titled The Hunt for Ben Solo, it took place after The Rise of Skywalker and would have explored the mystery of what might have happened to Ben after he disappeared into the Force. The worst part? Disney execs Bob Iger and Alan Bergman had said no.  In this episode we take break down the drama, including our theories for why Adam released this information now, plus the amazing efforts that Star Wars fans are going to try and get this movie made.  Do you think a Ben Solo movie was a good idea? Are you also sticking pins in a Bob Iger voodoo doll? Find us on social media and let us know!

Marvel dropped-albeit very, very slowly-a massive announcement about the cast of Avengers: Doomsday this week, and we had to immediately talk through our feelings about it! Julie and friend-of-the-pod Andee talked all about the electrifying cast list and everyone it included (and everyone it mysteriously didn’t). They also talked theories, recent projects and the future of Marvel. What did you think of the casting announcement? Are you excited for the re-vamped future of Marvel? Find us on social media and tell us!

Every once in a while at The Nerds Awaken we sit down with no plan, no outline, no agenda; we just hit record and let the pop culture gossip flow. And that's what this episode is, our stream-of-consciousness thoughts on all the recent pop culture and entertainment happenings, plus all the books/movies/tv shows we're loving lately and the ones we're looking forward to. Hear our various hot takes on the Oscars, the upcoming 20th anniversaries of Revenge of the Sith* and Pride and Prejudice, Janna's C-Drama addiction, Julie's obsession with Paradise on Hulu, and why Mate by Ali Hazelwood is our most anticipated book of 2025. *in the recording we mistakenly call it the 25th anniversary of Revenge of the Sith- we're old and it was past our bedtime, okay?! Find us on social media!

The Nerds are back for the first time in 2025 with an episode that is all things Star Wars! We chat about our love for Skeleton Crew and our need for a second season, plus the upcoming seasons of Andor and Ahsoka. We also talked about the upheaval surrounding the Rey movie and why we think this movie is never, ever getting made. Find us on social media and chat about Star Wars with us!

2024 is coming to a close, so we decided to sneak in one more episode to talk about all of our favorites of 2024, from books and movies to IRL moments that had us obsessed. Plus a look forward to what we’re excited for in 2025. Find us on social media and let us know your favorite pop culture things from 2024!

We return with our final batch of interviews with some of the cast of Outlander Season 7B! With Big Gold Belt Media, Janna was thrilled to speak with Graham McTavish (Dougal MacKenzie) and Lotte Verbeek (Geillis Duncan) about their surprising return to Outlander after several years away (and after the pretty famous deaths of their both their characters). We also got to ask the delightful Charles Vandervaart all about Lord Ellesmere (and Jamie's secret son) William Ransom, including how he's doing after that shocking reveal in Episode 11. Find the video interviews on YouTube: -Graham McTavish and Lotte Verbeek -Charles Vandervaart Follow Big Gold Belt Media: https://www.youtube.com/@BigGoldBelt biggoldbelt.com

We recently had the absolute pleasure of interviewing some of the cast of the Starz hit tv series Outlander through our friends Big Gold Belt Media. Janna sat down with cast members from Season 7 to talk about Part 2 of the season, which premiered Nov 22 on Starz. We chatted with John Bell (Young Ian), Rik Rankin (Roger MacKenzie), Diarmaid Murtagh (Buck MacKenzie), Steven Cree (Ian Murray Sr), Kristin Atherton (Jenny Murray), as well as executive producers and showrunners Maril Davis and Matthew B Roberts. Outlander Season 7 Part 2 is airing Fridays on Starz! Find the video interviews from here: Steven Cree and Kristin Atherton: https://youtu.be/kH-FvneJUYg?si=a7u6KEimu9dW-09B John Bell: https://youtu.be/Kvd_vIcTQm4?si=irt8VF_r9L1KpYoa Rik Ranking and Diarmaid Murtagh: https://youtu.be/Li27DGVIUbE?si=jPj7Ts-IPjRvwk-C Maril Davis and Matthew B Roberts: https://youtu.be/ecvdJOdT8t4?si=O4XukrtrfDMfNr7n Follow Big Gold Belt Media: https://www.youtube.com/@BigGoldBelt biggoldbelt.com

Season 2 of The Rings of Power on Amazon Prime came to a thrilling (ish?) conclusion in episode 8 and we talked through all of our many feelings. We chatted Julie's love for the epic Balrog fight in Khazad-dum, Andee's excitement at Berek's cameo, and the death that absolutely destroyed Janna emotionally. Plus, we repeatedly expressed our frustration at the pitfalls of 8 episode seasons. Stop it, studios!  Find us on social media and let us know what you thought of The Rings of Power season finale!

It’s hard to believe that The Rings of Power is almost over! Each week The Rings of Power is raising the stakes, and episodes 6 and 7 were no exception. From Celembrimbor’s slow descent into madness under Sauron’s abuse, to Galadriel and Adar’s continued but mysterious chemistry, and the incredible massive battle of Eregion, there was so much to talk about. We covered all the major storylines, compared what we loved with what might have been a miss, and made mostly sad predictions about the season finale. Don't worry, we all agreed Berek the horse was going to be fine! Find us social media and let us know what you thought!

We welcomed back author Ashley Hawthorne to the Nerds Awaken studio to talk all about her latest release Death Sentence, available now from Creative James Media! We chatted sophmore novel struggles, her first foray into murder mysteries, and the idea for a lighthouse horror romance she just can't get out of her head. Learn more about Ashley at her website. Find The Nerds Awaken on social media.