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No Child Left Behind Pedro Pascal strapped on the helmet to become The Mandalorian and help launch the Disney+ streaming service back in 2019. Is there a beating heart underneath the Beskar steel armor that convinces the cold-blooded bounty hunter to betray his client, Werner Herzog, and prevent "Baby Yoda" from falling into the hands of Giancarlo Esposito (Better Call Saul)? Listen Now to find out if creators Jon Favreau (Iron Man) and Dave Filoni (Star Wars: The Clone Wars) forged a Season One that honors the influences of Spaghetti Westerns, samurai flicks, and the OG Star Wars trilogy.

The Devil Wears Ghorman Twill Four years of Star Wars spy missions have Andor (Diego Luna) ready to ditch the Rebellion with equally traumatized girlfriend Bix (Morbius' Adria Arjona). Can schemer Stellan Skarsgård keep his agents in position like the bugged antiques in his shop until he has all the Death Star intel? And is Mon Mothma too busy throwing her teenage daughter's wedding to notice best friend Jimmy Smits has been replaced by Benjamin Bratt? Listen Now to learn if the Now Playing Podcast hosts get caught in creator Tony Gilroy’s Season Two spider web.

Now You’re Playing With Millennials  Princess Peach (Anya Taylor-Joy) and Toad (Keegan-Michael Key) rocket into another Galaxy to rescue her kidnapped sister Rosalina (Brie Larson) in the 2026 Super Mario Brothers Movie sequel. Can brothers Mario and Luigi (Chris Pratt and Charlie Day) keep the Mushroom Kingdom safe as Bowser (Jack Black) returns to full size and escapes to a homemade planet built by imaginative son Junior (Benny Safdie)? And what do video game icons Yoshi (Donald Glover), Honey Queen (Issa Rae), and Fox McCloud (Glen Powell) bring to this “Mario Party”?  Listen to Find Out Now!

Stuart's Burning Down the House on this episode... What did we lose when video stores disappeared, and can streaming ever replace it? Arnie, Stuart, and Justin dive into that, along with immersive theater, playoff hockey, and a round of listener trivia that puts their movie knowledge to the test. And this is still a new podcast format for us, so let us know if you enjoy the show. We welcome your feedback to help shape this new type of Now Playing Podcast! If you like this looser vibe, let us know. We’ll be back next month!

Do NOT confuse this title for another Caravan of Courage on the Ewok moon Before he was the martyr of Rogue One, Diego Luna was a desperate thief who accidentally lit the spark of the Rebellion in the 2022 series Andor. Is he better off making Death Star parts in prison with Andy Serkis, or facing the consequences of the Imperial robbery he pulled for chameleon Stellan Skarsgård? And can Senator Mon Mothma (Genevieve O’Reilly) keep footing the bill while Forest Whitaker, Denise Gough, and Kyle Soller follow the money? Join rebels Justin, Arnie, and Stuart for the darker side of Star Wars right now!

Qui-Gon but Not Forgotten Ewan McGregor returns to the role of Obi-Wan Kenobi in a 2022 miniseries that gives him another chance to school his rogue Padawan, Hayden Christensen, for rebranding himself as Darth Vader. But is the Force strong enough with this middle-aged Jedi Master to save little Princess Leia (Bird Box’s Vivien Lyra Blair) after she’s kidnapped by Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Flea? And will Inquisitor Moses Ingram (The Queen’s Gambit) succeed in her mission? Listen now to find out whether Arnie, Stuart, and Justin have renewed hope that Star Wars will thrive on Disney+.

The Date After Anthony Edwards (Revenge of the Nerds) needs to travel more than a Miracle Mile to escape the blast radius of a nuclear missile headed straight for L.A. in this throwback Cold War thriller.  But is he stuck at the La Brea Tar Pits until he can locate his true love, Mare Winningham (St Elmo’s Fire)?  And should you trust any intel that can only be verified by Star Trek: Next Generation defector Denise Crosby at an all-night diner?  Let Stuart, Arnie, and Justin help you get into the Duck and Cover position when you become a March Now Playing Patron today.

The Hate U Give Disney Ends All Their Hopes (T.H.U.G. D.E.A.T.H) Lee Jung-jae (Squid Game) attempts to save twin sisters from a witch coven and bring them into the Jedi fold, only to watch his Acolyte turn to the Dark Side in this Star Wars prequel. Can Amandla Stenberg (The Hate U Give) as former Jedi Osha be Forced to return to the Order and stop her sister Mae before she assassinates a meditating Jedi Master, a Wookiee hermit named Kelnacca, and even Trinity herself, Carrie-Anne Moss? And will Arnie, Justin, and Stuart give a Sith about this eight-episode Disney+ epic after it was cancelled following its first season? Listen and find out now.

Speaking In Tongues Mary Shelley possesses Hamnet star Jessie Buckley and turns her into The Bride!, a politically charged sequel to her 1818 novel Frankenstein. But would the reinvigorated woman prefer not to be engaged to Christian Bale’s Monster when his idea of romance is stomping on mobsters' heads while pretending he’s tap dancing in a movie musical? And is director Maggie Gyllenhaal a mad scientist for fusing a Bonnie and Clyde love story with Gothic horror? Follow dubious detectives Brock, Stuart, and Arnie as they investigate this brain attack!

Neve Campbell sat out Ghostface’s rampage in New York City so she could raise Isabel May to become her Final Girl replacement in Scream 7. Has Matthew Lillard risen from the dead to stalk veteran survivors like Courtney Cox, Mason Gooding, and Jasmin Savoy Brown in a brand new suburbia? And why did O.G. screenwriter Kevin Williamson take another stab at directing a scary movie after his debut, Teaching Mrs. Tingle, nearly killed his career? Join true crime junkies Marjorie, Arnie, and Stuart as they clean the blade of another postmodern slasher installment.

Bring Your Daughter To the Slaughter Neve Campbell sat out Ghostface’s rampage in New York City so she could raise Isabel May to become her Final Girl replacement in Scream 7. Has Matthew Lillard risen from the dead to stalk veteran survivors like Courtney Cox, Mason Gooding, and Jasmin Savoy Brown in a brand new suburbia?  And why did O.G. screenwriter Kevin Williamson take another stab at directing a scary movie after his debut, Teaching Mrs. Tingle, nearly killed his career?  Join true crime junkies Marjorie, Arnie, and Stuart as they clean the blade of another postmodern slasher installment.

Welcome to the very first episode of Now Playing Podcast: Intermission, our new monthly free-form show where the structure is looser, it's far less edited, and anything can happen! This month: Arnie goes nuclear over Alamo Drafthouse’s new mid-movie cell phone ordering system and why he canceled his Season Pass. Brock and Stuart break down Oscar season, from the Best Picture nominees to which films Arnie might actually enjoy. The hosts debate Star Wars fatigue, The Mandalorian & Grogu, and who Lucasfilm is making movies for. And we welcome our very first Patreon supporter guest for some horror trivia! This is the show where we talk about what we’re watching, what’s frustrating us, and what’s coming next for Now Playing Podcast. And this is our first show of this kind, so let us know if you enjoy the show. We welcome your feedback to help shape this new type of Now Playing Podcast! If you like this looser vibe, let us know. We’ll be back next month!

Franken-Stone Emma Stone is born into another Oscar-winning role thanks to director Yorgos Lanthimos and the Poor Things that populate her road to self-discovery. But how much furious jumping will this reanimated woman-child need to experience with Mark Ruffalo before she’s ready to return to creator Willem Dafoe and beau Ramy Youssef? And will her spirit be broken along the way by cynical Jarrod Carmichael, madame Kathryn Hunter, and estranged hubby Christopher Abbott? Enjoy the sugar and violence of this freaky fairy tale when you become a February Patron.

Raging Ghoul  Robert DeNiro couldn’t speak the Queen’s English even before Kenneth Branagh stitched his lips onto other body parts for a 1994 retelling of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein.  Will the miscast actor need to hide at the North Pole to escape the embarrassment of his screen romance with Helena Bonham Carter?  Or was this a worthy creation denied life at the box office because of the bad press the director received over his off-screen dalliances?  Listen Now as Arnie, Brock, and Stuart dig up a classic movie monster and his bride for another re-animated podcast {Individual Movie Reviews} {Frankenstein Series}

Fleshdance Rock star Sting denies his Frankenstein creation Clancy Brown (Shawshank Redemption) a happy wedding day so that the mad scientist can be the one to kiss The Bride. But will Jennifer Beals (Vampire’s Kiss) find reanimated life enjoyable with The Police frontman watching every breath she takes with suitor Cary Elwes (Princess Bride)? And can little person David Rappaport (Time Bandits) successfully reinvent the jilted Monster into a popular circus clown?  Find out if this 1985 Mary Shelley update plays outside Budapest when you Listen Now!