Interview with the Vampire ended its second season, concluding the events of Anne Rice’s first novel. In the series finale, the conductor of the titular interview, Daniel Molloy, (Eric Bogosian) publishes the interviews as a book and goes on a press tour. During a stop on an Atlanta news show, the host mocks his book, and laments how this once respected journalist was now “a Bigfoot hunter, tracing the bloodline of Jesus.”

This was, of course, a jest at The Da Vinci Code, and the conspiracies that proliferated after the book’s success. However, it might mean more, as Jesus is actually a character in Anne Rice’s Vampire Chronicles. And in a potential future season, we could see the Vampire Lestat drink the blood of Christ. We don’t mean metaphorically in a church either. We mean the actual blood of Jesus, some two thousand years ago.

The Vampire Lestat Meets Jesus in Memnoch the Devil

The event in question occurs in Anne Rice’s fifth vampire novel, 1995’s Memnoch the Devil. This book came out at the peak of Lestat-mania, right after the release of the 1994 feature film Interview with the Vampire. In fact, the VHS rental of Interview had a video message from Rice promoting Memnoch the Devil. The novel was a huge bestseller in hardcover, but was a departure from the period vampire melodrama of earlier books. Instead, it focused on religious themes. Vampire Chronicles fans still remain divided on it.

After the world-shaking events of book three, The Queen of the Damned, and having his body highjacked in book four, The Tale of the Body Thief, Lestat is at his most powerful. A being who claims to be Satan approaches Lestat in New Orleans. Only, he hates that name, and much prefers the name Memnoch, the Devil. He wants the “Brat Prince” Lestat at his side, thinking he’d make a perfect lieutenant in his ideological battle against God, and takes him on a trip through history. Memnoch then displays all the religious atrocities done in God’s name.

Lestat Was at the Crucifixion (Or Was He?)

At one point, Lestat actually encounters Jesus at the crucifixion. Jesus offers Lestat his blood, which he consumes. Lestat emerges into the present day with the Veil of Veronica, proof of his religious experience. The Vampire Armand became so moved by this, he immolated in the sun in front of a crowd as “proof” of the miracle (Don’t worry, he gets better, and he even gets his own book). By the end of the novel, however, Lestat isn’t sure if what he experienced was real or not. He suspects it was. Lestat loses his marbles at this point and becomes catatonic for the better part of a decade. Several novels in subsequent years focused on other vampires in the series.

Could we ever get to this controversial moment in Rice’s story? Memnoch the Devil is book five in the series, and Interview with the Vampire showrunner Rolin Jones has recently said recently he’d love to get to potentially eight seasons. If each book constitutes two seasons of television, then seasons seven and eight could adapt Memnoch the Devil. Perhaps by that point, the world will be ready to see Sam Reid’s Lestat meet a fictional Jesus of Nazareth.

The post Could Lestat Meet Jesus in a Future INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE Season? Quite Possibly! appeared first on Nerdist.

At Nerdist, we love a battle-tested friendship. What could be better than deep connections forged in the midst of harrowing danger? There’s nothing like an epic adventure to bring people together. And that’s why we’re thrilled to exclusively reveal the cover of DAW Books’ The Serpent Called Mercy, a Malaysian Chinese-inspired fantasy by debut author Roanne Lau. The underlying, steadfast friendship between the protagonists of The Serpent Called Mercy creates the beating heart of this story. But, in addition to resonant interpersonal dynamics, the fantasy-adventure book also promises no shortage of heart-pounding battles and mysterious (and ferocious) sun-cursed beasts. And we feel like we can see all of this well-represented in The Serpent Called Mercy‘s cover.

You can take a look at it below.

Exclusive Cover Reveal for The Serpent Called Mercy

Okay, isn’t this cover art stunning? We are stunned. The Serpent Called Mercy‘s gorgeous cover is by Rowynn Ellis (they/them) and art directed by Katie Anderson. We absolutely hope we’ll be seeing all these monsters in the story. But both literally and symbolically, we’re obsessed with them already. The elemental energy, the dynamic action, the little hint of adorable friendship in the corner—we feel it all in this cover. The ferociousness, fury, and little brushes of gentleness all come together perfectly to help us understand what awaits readers in The Serpent Called Mercy.

(But seriously, get that little guy his own streaming show, stat. We would follow him until the ends of the earth.)

Likely, this cover will only become more beautiful as fans grow to learn more about its true meaning as they read the book. But we’re honestly thinking of buying a second copy of The Serpent Called Mercy just so we can display this piece in our house.

More About The Serpent Called Mercy

Just in case The Serpent Called Mercy‘s swoon-worthy cover reveal isn’t yet enough to sway you, here’s a little bit more about the book. A release shares that “Fans of the tense, dynamic action and battle-tested friendships like The Witcher and Squid Game will love The Serpent Called Mercy, where a debt-ridden slumdog joins an illegal monster-fighting arena for some fast coin but quickly learns the most dangerous beasts are outside the ring.” Basically, this book strives to answer the question, “What if an epic fantasy with already high stakes met even higher stakes and added heart-wrenching friendship on top?” It sounds guaranteed to have us both sobbing and at the edge of our seats. And we could ask for little more from a book than that. We also just have to say that the home of this novel adaptation should definitely be Netflix. An even fuller synopsis of the book can be found at the end of this article.

Of additional interest to some, Roanne Lau’s novel will feature asexual and neurodivergent representation, which we definitely support and applaud. Both asexuality and neurodivergence deserve more representation in media, and books that feature representative characters should be championed.

Pre-Order The Serpent Called Mercy by Roanne Lau Today

The Serpent Called Mercy releases on December 3rd, 2024. You can pre-order it on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Books-A-Million, and Bookshops.org. You can also follow Lau on Twitter, @roannelau, and Instagram, @roannelau, for more updates on the story.

The Serpent Called Mercy‘s Full Synopsis

Here is the full synopsis of The Serpent Called Mercy by Roanne Lau:

Lythlet and her only friend Desil are shackled to a life of debt and poverty that she fears they will never escape. Desperate for money, they sign up as conquessors: arena combatants who fight sun-cursed beasts in the seedy underworld of the city.

Match-master Dothilos is initially enamored of Desil’s brawling reputation, but after seeing Lythlet lead the pair to triumph with her quick cunning, he takes her under his wing, scorning Desil. Ambition takes root in Lythlet’s heart as a life of fame and wealth unfolds in her imagination.

But Lythlet isn’t the only one out for coin and glory, and she soon finds herself playing an entirely different game—a game of politics and deception. As the cost of her ambition grows, she will have to decide if sacrificing her honor, and only friendship, is worth the chance to shape her own fortune.

A whirlwind of blood-pounding battles as characters grapple with their choices in the face of wealth and financial security, The Serpent Called Mercy’s heart is the underlying, steadfast friendship between its protagonists.

The post Check Out the Cover for THE SERPENT CALLED MERCY, a Fantasy Book Full of Deadly Adventure and Battle-Tested Friendships appeared first on Nerdist.

The finale of Interview with the Vampire season two had quite the twist, as a flash forward showed the audience that the Vampire Armand (Assad Zaman) had turned the reporter Daniel Molloy (Eric Bogosian) into a vampire, some time before or after published his interviews with Louis and Armand as a book. We don’t know exactly how and when this happened. It seems to be an act committed more out of spite towards Daniel than love. However, Armand making Daniel a vampire on Interview with the Vampire does have its origins in Anne Rice’s Vampire Chronicles series of novels.

In the novels, Daniel Molloy doesn’t even have a proper name until the third novel in Rice’s series, The Queen of the Damned. In the 1976 novel Interview with the Vampire, the young reporter was simply referred to as “the Boy.” At the end of that first novel, he ran off, with Louis’ tapes in tow, hoping to find Lestat. In book two, The Vampire Lestat, we find out that the boy had the recordings transcribed and published as the book Interview with the Vampire. A recently reemerged Lestat discovered that his name and much of his life was put on public display for mortals, passed off as fiction. Yet we never learned what became of the young reporter until Rice’s third novel.

“The Story of Daniel, the Devil’s Minion, or the Boy from Interview with the Vampire“ from Queen of the Damned

In 1988’s Queen of the Damned, we learned in Part 1, Chapter 4, a chapter called “The Story of Daniel, the Devil’s Minion, or the Boy from Interview with the Vampire” that the anonymous boy went searching for Lestat after his fateful interview with Louis in San Francisco in 1973. We also now had a proper name for him—Daniel Molloy. Lestat was slumbering at the time of Daniel’s search, and he didn’t find the undead French aristocrat. Instead, the Vampire Armand finds Daniel while he searches for Lestat, during a time when Armand made New Orleans his home. No other vampires lived there, as Lestat had long ago gone to sleep. Armand had “cleaned out” the city of any younger vampires. No one else dared to call New Orleans home at this time, as it was Armand’s territory.

Scanning Daniel’s thoughts upon encountering him, Armand discovered this young mortal boy knew his name, and his true vampiric nature, and became fascinated. He began stalking him, and no matter what city or country Daniel ran to, Armand would find him. At first, he casually threatened to kill him if he ever published his book. Yet he continued to allow him to live for his own amusement. Then something unexpected happened. After years of cat and mouse, Armand came to actually love the mortal Daniel. Even so, he constantly refused to give him the Dark Gift, no matter how much he begged.

Daniel, Armand, and the Night Island

Many years into their relationship, Armand decided to become “incalculably wealthy.” Using his knowledge of where old ships with treasure lay at the bottom of the ocean, he recruited Daniel, who now saw himself as “the Devil’s Minion,” to help him procure wealth. All while he was asleep during the day. With this fortune, Armand, with forged documents Daniel helped him create, purchased an island off the coast of Florida. Armand turned it into an entertainment and shopping paradise that came alive only after dark called The Night Island.

Armand and Daniel lived at Night Island for years in the Vampire Chronicles. Daniel had everything he wanted from Armand, the finest clothes, the newest cars, all except the one thing he wanted most—to become a vampire himself. However, when Daniel’s life was in danger, on one of the many instances when he would run away from Armand, the 500-year-old vampire gave him what he wanted at last, and turned him. As Armand feared, however, making Daniel a vampire would only serve to drive a bigger wedge between them.

Daniel and Armand in AMC’s Interview with the Vampire

All we know from the AMC Interview with the Vampire series is that sometime after Daniel reveals to Louis the truth about Armand, and how he planned to let his Paris coven execute him along with Claudia, he turns Daniel into a vampire out of spite. (Or so Louis says.) But when did this happen? We don’t know yet. Do Interview with the Vampire‘s Daniel and Armand engage in a relationship similar to the one they had in the books? There doesn’t seem enough time for that intense love/hate relationship to have happened offscreen. Unless there is one further wrinkle to Daniel and Armand’s story that Interview with the Vampire is waiting to spring on us.

We know from episode five of season two of the series, that Armand encountered Daniel back in 1973, interrupting Louis almost killing Daniel. Not only encountered him, but very nearly killed him, and erased his memories of the event. Yet he clearly had a fascination with Daniel, and Interview with the Vampire leaves space for the possibility that the pair had a relationship decades ago. One that Armand then wiped from Daniel’s mind. After all, there is a limited series AMC announced called The Night Island. Could this series, at least in part, involve Interview with the Vampire‘s Armand and Daniel and their relationship? There are lots of ways this story could go for Daniel and Armand, and we’re eager to see how Interview with the Vampire tackles this fan-favorite pairing going forward.

The post The Book Inspirations Behind the Armand/Daniel Vampiric Pairing in INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE (And What ‘Devil’s Minion’ Really Means) appeared first on Nerdist.

Tomi Adeyemi has brought the gods back and, to be honest, she is a goddess herself. As a 23-year-old, the Nigerian-American author, speaker, and fashionista broke open the doors for Afro-fantasy books with her debut novel Children of Blood and Bone in 2018. The fantasy world, set in a reimagined Nigeria, features protagonist Zélie Adebola, a young diviner who strives to restore magic to her people after an oppressive monarchy took it away. Seven years later, Adeyemi has two #1 New York Times bestsellers, Children of Blood and Bone and the sequel Children of Virtue and Vengeance.

Now, with millions of copies sold worldwide and a movie in the works with The Woman King director Gina Prince-Bythewood at the helm, her Legacy of Orïsha trilogy is ending with Children of Anguish and Anarchy, released June 25. As Adeyemi’s characters have grown and matured, so has she. At 30, she’s embracing and reveling in being a creator who can do whatever she wants—cue Beyoncé.

Unearthing Diverse Protagonists Through an Enlightening Moment

“I look at the world, and I just see the fabric of the world… I just see this as being a part of the fabric of the world. And so I’m grateful,” Adeyemi tells Nerdist. “I’m grateful to play a part with all the amazing creators and storytellers who have been fighting this fight, not just in our generation, but I even look at Gina Prince-Bythewood, who’s been creating these stories for us for 30 years. It’s an incredible opportunity, and I’m just excited to keep watching this story ripple throughout the world.”

Adeyemi didn’t always see herself within the fabric of the literary world. Although she was always a voracious reader, Adeyemi didn’t see herself on the page. This lack of representation initially influenced the way she described her characters. She routinely wrote what she wanted her life to be; however, her titular characters were often white or biracial Black girls. When she got to college, she began looking back at her writing and had an awakening: She had erased herself from her subconscious in the same way her Blackness was ignored in the books she read.

“We grew up with these amazing fantasy novels, these amazing characters, but the same way I can watch a Bollywood movie every day for three years and believe in love…fate…family…color…music…dance is the same way I can look at all these worlds and consume them and love them and say, oh wait, I don’t belong here,” Adeyemi said. “And even if I didn’t tell myself that consciously, I realized and internalized that subconsciously because what does it look like for a little girl to spend ten years writing herself out of her imagination?” 

This personal journey of self-discovery and realization is a thread that connects Adeyemi’s work to her readers, fostering a sense of empathy, understanding, and pride.

The Tangible Impact of Tomi Adeyemi’s Children of Blood and Bone

Since the debut of her first novel, a wave of YA fantasy novels featuring Black protagonists, such as The Gilded Ones by Namina Forna, Skin of the Sea by Natasha Bowen, and Blood at the Root by LaDarrion Williams, have emerged. This surge in diverse representation is a testament to the transformative power of Adeyemi’s work, inspiring a new generation of writers and readers.

Now, with her characters Zélie and Amari—dark-skinned Black girls with kinky hair—as the newest faces of fantasy, Adeyemi sees a new future for the next generation of Black girls. She believes the popularity of her book series and the forthcoming movie will make it impossible for a young Black girl not to see herself on bookshelves, television screens, films, and even toys.

“I’m so excited because when I put out Children of Blood and Bone in 2018, there weren’t [many] covers like Zélie,” Adeyemi notes. “They were few and far between. Now, if you click on Children of Blood and Bone, the algorithm is going to show you dozens of fantasy novels with beautiful Black girls on the cover. And [it will be] similar with this [movie adaptation]. When I was writing Children of Blood and Bone, Black Panther hadn’t been released yet. So now, to be actively closing out this trilogy in book form, to be actively awakening this franchise and movie form, to be meeting with cast and production, and just to see all the collective genius…brought to life through this film…in two generations, I don’t think a young Tomi is going to have an opportunity not to see herself.”

Inserting Ifa and the Orïshas Into a Fantasy World

The representation Adeyemi has brought to the culture goes deeper than phenotype. Her series highlights the ancient African Traditional Religion of Ifa—the Yoruba tradition practiced across the Black Diaspora. 

Although raised by two Nigerian parents, Adeyemi didn’t learn about the Orïshas until she did a fellowship in Bahia, Brazil, after graduating from Harvard University with an English literature degree. She stumbled upon a shop in the market with the Orïshas splashed across plates and was in awe. She’d never seen or read about gods that looked like her. Thanks to her Legacy of Orïsha trilogy, she’s brought these revered Nigerian deities to the forefront of pop culture, instilling a sense of pride and admiration for Nigerian heritage and culture in her readers.

“The way the Yoruba tradition has spread across the diaspora, whether you call it Ifa, candomblé, santería… it’s human, and it’s spiritual, and it’s divine,” Adeyemi said. “And when I started this journey with this trilogy and saw the Orïshas for the first time, I was struck with, I guess, my own divinity because I had never even imagined myself in a divine light. So to be face to face with these ceramic plates and not even know what I was looking at, but to see African divinity and be like, whoa, we’re out here.”

She said that being able to help bring Ifa and the Orïshas out of the shadows while breaking the stigma and stereotypes around the divination system has been beautiful and glorious. The reception from fans continues to Adeyemi’s heart. Those who practice Ifa feel seen, and those who discovered the Orïshas through this series say this knowledge was life-changing.

Children of Blood and Bone Moves Toward Live-Action as Children of Anguish and Anarchy Hits Bookshelves

Now, the film is moving forward, with Adeyemi announcing that casting is underway. She cannot wait to see how people react to the film and says working on the film has been breathtaking. So many creative geniuses—who she won’t name—are onboard to bring her story to life.

“[There are] Academy Award-nominated people who have designed things that have taken over pop culture in front of the camera, behind the camera…bringing a hundred percent of their genius to 1% of this story,” she teases. “And every single time, just my mind doesn’t know what to do with that… to have a genius come in and be like, ‘Look at all the details that I’m using to build [this world].’ To see a fight coordinator who’s designed a style for Zélie that no one has ever seen before, that never existed, and show it to me…like, what the heck did I just see? This is cinema-changing, and it’s all us…it’s insane and gorgeous to have [people that look like us] at the helm.”

The excitement about the film and the latest installment isn’t confined to Adeyemi. On Children of Anguish and Anarchy‘s release date, she kicked off her highly anticipated book tour at Barnes & Noble-Union Square in NYC. As she entered the sold-out affair wearing a stunning leather burgundy ensemble designed by British Nigerian designer Tolu Coker, she received a standing ovation with fans chanting, “Tomi, Tomi!”

The emotions culminating at the end of this seven-year journey overwhelmed her as she tearfully thanked her fans and family in attendance for all of the support they’ve shown her. After trying—and failing—to keep her tears at bay, she allowed herself a beautiful moment of vulnerability.

“This isn’t even about the book; it’s about looking out into this room… you’ve been reading this and supporting me, and supporting this series makes you all you’re blinding to look at right now…thank you for being here,” she said tearfully. “This has been the journey of a lifetime and encapsulates so much of the first half of my life. It encapsulates the girl in her room watching Naruto and reading Harry Potter. The teenager who desperately used to come to Barnes & Noble… touching the books all dramatically…even walking around at Barnes & Noble is very emotional. To come into this room and see all your faces means so much to me.”

As the Legacy of Orïsha continues to be a global phenomenon, Adeyemi is breaking the glass ceiling in terms of what Black writers, young Nigerians and others across the diaspora can achieve. Yet, she says she’s not focused on comparisons to calling her the “Black J.K. Rowling” (Editor’s Note: Pretty sure no one wants to be like her in 2024.) or Octavia Butler—the mother of Afrofuturism. In her words, just call her Muva because she is only competing against herself.

“I think there are greats who have done incredible things,” Adeyemi states to wrap up our interview. “I’m still wowed by Octavia Butler; I got to write a foreword for Kindred for the new edition…and that’s been such an incredible honor. It is an incredible honor to be compared to a literary titan. Even if I’m [considered] a literary [icon], I still want to put on [my] boxing gloves and like go up against [my]self and get better and stronger and deeper and learn more about the human experience and then like take you to church.”

The post Tomi Adeyemi on Ending Her Orïsha Trilogy with CHILDREN OF ANGUISH AND ANARCHY appeared first on Nerdist.

Interview with the Vampire‘s second season is officially over. The AMC series now heads into Anne Rice’s second vampire novel, The Vampire Lestat for season three’s contents. This season of Interview with the Vampire gives us a finale makes a big change to the narrative of the book. And it is a change that some longtime fans might find themselves shocked by. It’s a fairly big alteration to a pivotal moment in the novel that alters the relationships of Lestat (Sam Reid), Louis (Jacob Anderson), and Arman (Assad Zaman) as we head into future seasons.

Interview with the Vampire the Novel’s Ending

In Rice’s original 1976 novel, vampires Claudia and Madeleine are executed by the Paris coven for the crime of killing Claudia and Louis’ maker, the Vampire Lestat. Or at least, for attempting to kill him. Louis is given a lighter sentence for the same crime, however. (Perhaps it is a worse sentence, depending on how you look at it.) Louis is imprisoned by the coven members inside a locked coffin. That coffin is placed within the walls of the catacombs under the Théâtre des Vampires. He’s meant to die excruciatingly slowly, perhaps over several years, all while going insane from his lack of blood sustenance.

However, in the climax of the novel (and the 1994 film), Paris coven leader Armand rescues him. He tells Louis he could not prevent the execution of Claudia because she’d broken too many laws. Yet he exerted his power over his coven enough to rescue his beloved Louis from eternal imprisonment. Louis then takes revenge on the entire Paris coven by setting fire to the Théâtre des Vampires. Later, he takes a scythe to vampire Santiago, the coven’s second in command, ending his undead rival for good.

Louis then leaves Paris with Armand, both now free of the machinations of the coven. The pair wander the world for decades. Louis eventually confronts Armand with the truth—he knows Armand allowed the Paris coven to murder Claudia. He denied the truth to himself for years, but now realized Armand orchestrated Claudia’s death and his rescue (and the subsequent revenge against the coven) as a way of securing Louis’ companionship.

The film tackles this in a slightly different manner. Louis (Brad Pitt) tells Armand (Antonio Banderas) that he knew he was behind it all immediately after the events took place. Louis then wanders the world alone, and we never discover what became of Armand afterward. Now, the Interview with the Vampire AMC series presents a third version of these events.

AMC’s Interview with the Vampire Season Finale Modifies the Original Ending of the Book

In the series, Louis is freed from his coffin prison, when Armand feeds him his blood, giving him the strength to break free. We never see who the vampire rescuer is, but Louis insists that it was Armand. Louis remains too starved and out of it to really care. The rest of the events transpire much like the book, as Louis takes his bloody revenge against the entire Paris coven, burning the theater to the ground. He then leaves with Armand, who takes credit for rescuing Louis.

Louis knows full well that Armand betrayed him, along with Claudia (Delainey Hayles), and Madeleine (Roxane Duran). But he believes they forced Armand to cooperate, thanks to a coup within the Paris coven masterminded by Santiago (Ben Daniels). Rescuing Louis was Armand’s way of making amends for letting the coven abduct them and force them into a public court spectacle. The two flee Paris together, apparently staying a couple for decades.

But Daniel Molloy (Eric Bogosian), via his Talamasca contacts, discovers the truth about what happened decades ago in Paris. Despite appearances, Armand was not an unwilling accomplice in what the coven did. He didn’t just write the kangaroo court/mock trial play. He absolutely directed it. He was perfectly willing to sacrifice Claudia, Madeleine, and Louis to death in order to save his own skin. His vampiric underlings were revolting against him and he needed to prove himself to them (again).

In fact, it was not Armand who saved Louis from death. It was his maker Lestat. Lestat used his telepathy to force the mortal audience to give Louis a different sentence than death. Louis always believed Armand did this. Once Louis took his revenge on the coven and slaughtered them all, Armand happily took credit for saving him. With the threat to his own life gone, he now had everything he wanted. But Louis’ true rescuer was none other than Lestat.

This revelation enrages Louis in the modern day, who beats Armand by throwing him around their Dubai home. He later goes to New Orleans, where he tells Lestat that he knows the truth now. This is all a pretty big change from the original narrative. We always knew Armand was willing to sacrifice Claudia to remove her as an obstacle to his being with Louis. But, in the series, we now know he was also willing to let his beloved Louis die to save his own life. Once the coven was no longer a threat, he took credit for Louis’ commuted death sentence. Louis introduced Armand as “the love of his life” in season one, but it is actually his maker, the Vampire Lestat.

The post How the Season 2 Finale of INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE Changes the Book’s Ending appeared first on Nerdist.

The second season of Interview with the Vampire has ended, bringing a close to the events of the book of the same name that inspired it. But the show’s creators, Rolin Jones and Mark Johnson, have already said a third season tackles The Vampire Lestat, Anne Rice’s second chapter of The Vampire Chronicles. This was confirmed in AMC’s official announcement for season three. Yet the season two finale actually hinted at more than just book two in the future. There are hints for elements from book three and beyond. Here are the biggest things in the season two finale that tease what the future may hold for Louis (Jacob Anderson), Lestat (Sam Reid) and the other eternally sexy undead.

The Vampire World Exposed

One of the central conceits of Anne Rice’s Vampire Chronicles is that each novel in the series is also a book in-universe. Daniel Molloy’s interview with the undead Louis is published as Interview with the Vampire, and most of the world at large consumes it as historical fiction. But those in the vampire world, and in the Talamasca Order? They know that it’s all true, and that Louis has exposed the world to their secrets, breaking their highest laws.

In book two, The Vampire Lestat, we learn that Louis is Public Enemy #1 in the undead world for giving the interview, and the end of season two suggests that scenario is already in play. Vampires all over the world are already threatening to tear him apart for his crimes. In The Vampire Lestat, the vampire community declares war on Louis and Lestat for revealing their secrets to the mortal masses. It looks like that fight is certainly coming in season three.

Interviewer Daniel Molloy Becomes a Vampire

One of the biggest changes to Rice’s overall story in season one concerns the reporter, Daniel Molloy (Eric Bogosian). In the novels, the young reporter published his interview with the vampire Louis in the ‘70s. He then enters into a long and twisted affair with the vampire Armand, which lasts for a decade. He becomes his human familiar, but Armand continuously denies giving him the Dark Gift, no matter how much Daniel begs for it. All of this occurs in book three, The Queen of the Damned.

Armand finally makes Daniel a vampire while he’s still a young man, when he thinks he’s near death, in the novel Queen of the Damned. With Daniel growing to old age in the series, many believed the Armand/Daniel relationship would never play out in the series. But in the season two finale, we flash forward some time, and learn that Armand (Assad Zaman) did indeed make Daniel into a vampire. The how and why remains a mystery, but it seems that we might see the twisted story of Daniel and Armand from Queen of the Damned play out in season three. Especially as Eric Bogosian is confirmed as returning as Daniel.

The Arrival of Akasha, the Queen of the Damned

One of the most important characters in Anne Rice’s Vampire Chronicles finally gets a name-drop in the season two finale. When Louis goes to say his seemingly final goodbye to Lestat in 1940s Paris, after the execution of Claudia (Delainey Hayles) by the Paris coven, he and Armand threaten to kill him with the Fire Gift. (In other words, mentally set him on fire). He tells Armand that it won’t work, even fire won’t kill him, all because he has “the blood of Akasha” in his veins.

So who is the mysterious Akasha, you may ask? She is one half of a royal pair of vampires known as “Those Who Must Be Kept.” The other is King Enkil, her consort. The reason they must be kept is because as the first vampires, the bloodline of the entire race comes from them. If they die, the entire vampire race dies too. The official season three announcement mentions the inclusion of “Those Who Must Be Kept” in the upcoming continuation.

Akasha, in Rice’s vampire mythology, is the first vampire, over 6,000 years old. The mother of the vampire race, Akasha was an ancient Egyptian ruler, who became the source of all their power. Her husband Enkil actually was only the second vampire made, and so the power truly lies with Akasha. She first appears in book two, later playing a central role as the titular Queen of the Damned. The late Aaliyah played her in the 2002 movie of the same name. With season three adapting The Vampire Lestat, it means our first glimpse of the undead royal in the flesh. A queen who has sat frozen like a statue for millennia. Start your casting guesses now. Who will fill Aaliyah’s crown?

Armand’s Treachery Exposed

In the season two finale, reporter Daniel Molloy finishes his interview with the vampires Louis and Armand. He reveals the bombshell information to Louis that evidence he uncovered suggests Armand didn’t save Louis’ life in the trial of the Théâtre des Vampires as he’s believed for decades. It was his maker Lestat that did. Lestat telepathically influences the “jury” to give Louis a sentence of banishment instead of death. He later secretly helped Louis escape his torturous imprisonment in the walled-up coffin.

Louis becomes enraged at this revelation, that Armand not only fully orchestrated Claudia’s death, but also his own, all in order to save his own skin from his own coven. Only when he was out of danger from the coven did he take credit for Lestat’s actions. In the novel, Louis realizes that Armand was ultimately responsible for Claudia’s death decades later. Instead of making a fuss, he quietly leaves him. In the series, however, this revelation comes in the modern day, fracturing their relationship. In the books, Armand then moves on to seduce the interviewer, Daniel Molloy, and establishes a billion-dollar vampire lair called the Night Island. With Armand’s duplicitous nature revealed, we may see these aspects of the story play out now.

Lestat the Rock Star

Louis sees Lestat (Sam Reid) again, for the first time in decades, at the end of season two. He encounters Lestat singing to himself and playing music in a rundown old shack in New Orleans. This occurs right as a hurricane is about to hit. He quips to Louis about “practicing to go on tour.” Now, that may seem like a joke, but in The Vampire Lestat, the 18th-century bloodsucker becomes a bonafide rock star, an internationally famous performer with stadium tours and music videos, all depicting vampiric history. And in the official season three announcement, they confirm that Lestat is putting together a band to go on tour. Even the announcement image features what look like stage lights.

When his progeny Louis tells his story and has it published, Lestat feels the need to one-up him. Not only does he tell his (far more expansive) backstory, he also tells his story on stage and MTV. This was the ‘80s after all. Since the series takes place in the modern day, the notion of a vampire rock star seems very dated. It already seemed dated in the 2002 movie Queen of the Damned. But who knows? Maybe this series can make that aspect work. We already know Sam Reid can sing. It would be a shame not to see him rock out in some capacity. We’re very curious to see what the future holds for this bold TV adaptation of Anne Rice’s vampiric universe.

The post How the Season 2 Finale of INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE Sets Up Season 3 appeared first on Nerdist.

Interview with the Vampire is close to ending its second season soon, and thus, closing out the events of Anne Rice’s original novel. So what will a possible third season entail? Well, even though the show’s name is Interview with the Vampire, it’s actually adapting elements of Anne Rice’s entire Vampire Chronicles saga. And that’s a whopping thirteen books. According to series creators Rolin Jones and Mark Johnson, season three will tackle Rice’s second undead novel, The Vampire Lestat. Here’s what Rolin Jones recently told us at the Interview with the Vampire season two premiere:

The next book was the one I wanted to do. So I hope I get a shot at it — The Vampire Lestat.

At the time, season three didn’t have an official greenlight, but Deadline recently announced that Rolin Jones had signed a new deal with AMC. And that made us think a greenlight for their anchor Anne Rice’s Immortal Universe show was imminent. And we were right: Interview with the Vampire has now been renewed for season three. There was a dash of The Vampire Lestat in this season, with episode three in the form of the flashback of Armand (Assad Zaman’s) first meeting with Lestat, but we’ll be heading into the book full force next season.

Season 3 of Interview with the Vampire Will Officially Be Based on The Vampire Lestat

A synopsis for season three of Interview with the Vampire reveals that we can expect The Vampire Lestat in full. It shares:

In season three, resentful of the perfunctory portrayal in the trashy bestseller “Interview With The Vampire,” the Vampire Lestat sets his story straight in a way only the Vampire Lestat can—by starting a band and going on tour.  Gabrielle. Nicholas. Magnus. Marius. Those Who Must Be Kept. They join Louis, Armand, Molloy, Sam, Raglan, Fareed and others we can’t tell you about yet on a sexy pilgrimage across space, time and trauma. No Auto-Tuning. No Trigger Warnings. All Feels Amplified.

More About The Vampire Lestat

Anne Rice’s second vampire novel The Vampire Lestat was published in 1985, nine years after Interview with the Vampire. Interview was initially a cult hit that took years to build into a classic. Yet its sequel was an instant best-seller, truly spawning a franchise. Rice took the original novel’s villain, made him an anti-hero, and greatly expanded the vampire mythology. In book two, through Lestat’s eyes, we go back in time to Renaissance Italy, the Roman Empire, and ancient Egypt. The scope is much bigger, so it will be interesting to see how Rolin Jones tackles it in a series.

One potential problem fans might have is that Louis, played by Jacob Anderson, is a very minimal presence in book two. The bulk of the events of the novel take place before Lestat ever meets Louis in New Orleans. One remedy for this problem could be Louis interviewing Lestat about his past, instead of Lestat merely writing a memoir, as he did in Rice’s novel. Thus, the name Interview with the Vampire still makes sense, and Jacob Anderson could remain in the series. Anderson’s Louis going from interviewee to interviewer would be an interesting twist for sure.

Originally published on June 17, 2024.

The post INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE Creators Reveal Which Book Season 3 Will Be Based On appeared first on Nerdist.

Two titans of the comic book publishing world are coming together to celebrate one of the medium’s most celebrated characters. They are also celebrating one of its greatest creators. Dark Horse Comics and Marvel are teaming up for The Art of the Amazing Spider-Man by John Romita, coming in Fall 2024. This oversized hardcover showcases several essays on Romita’s interior artwork, as well as covers. It also includes original art scans from the Marvel Comics archives. Aside from Peter Parker’s co-creator Steve Ditko, Romita is the most influential artist in Spidey’s publishing history. You can see the cover for The Art of the Amazing Spider-Man down below:

The Art of the Amazing Spider-Man is the first of a new collaboration series and imprint between Dark Horse and Marvel, called Bullpen Books. This follows up their Marvel collaboration with The Art of Marvel’s Spider-Man 2. This new line of deluxe art books will honor the works of legendary Marvel Comics characters and creators. Spider-Man and John Romita are but the first of many. We expect to hear additional details about other books in the series very soon. Here’s what Dark Horse Comics’ John Lind had to say about this new Bullpen Books series:

Our initial projects will concentrate on exploring the extensive artistic and design legacy of Marvel Comics, including the substantial contributions made by its iconic creative teams. Combining the incredible depth and content within Marvel’s art archives with Dark Horse’s exceptional design and production will offer fans unparalleled editions of this material.

Meanwhile, Dark Horse President and Publisher, Mike Richardson shared:

I grew up with the Marvel characters and their creators from my earliest days, so I’m very excited about this new collaboration. We’re very excited about working with Marvel to highlight some of the greatest art and artists from their extensive library. I’m sure these books will be a special treat for comics fans everywhere

The Art of Amazing Spider-Man is available for pre-order at your local bookstore, comic shop, and various online retailers for a price of $59.99. This oversized (10” x 14”, 200-page) in-depth art book arrives in bookstores on October 15, 2024. It arrives in comic book shops one day later, on October 16, 2024.

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Fans of Anne Rice’s Interview with the Vampire, be it the novel or the film, knew the current AMC version was barrelling towards one horrible event since the show began. That is the death of the child vampire Claudia (Delainey Hayles), and her newly made vampire companion Madeleine (Roxane Duran), at the hands of the vengeful Paris coven who operates the Théâtre des Vampires. It’s a heartbreaking moment in the novel, and the series did it justice, while tweaking a few details. Here’s each medium handled Claudia’s executionm in the novels, film, and ultimately, in the second season episode “I Could Not Prevent It.”

The Death of Claudia in Anne Rice’s Novel, Interview with the Vampire

In Rice’s 1976 novel, when the Paris coven discovers that Louis and Claudia broke the Great Laws of the vampires by attempting to murder their maker, the Vampire Lestat, they capture them and hold them in a sort of trial for their crimes. Their star witness is Lestat, who survived their murder attempt in New Orleans years prior. Lestat eventually discovers his progeny fled to Paris, and follows them there. Once the coven discovers that Louis and Claudia broke their laws, they capture them and put them on trial. Of course, it’s trial with a predetermined verdict.

When the coven deems them guilty, they execute Claudia, the chief architect of the crime, and her new companion Madeleine, via murder by sunlight. They leave them alone in a well, until the sun rises and burns them both to ash. The sun rises, and all that remains of Claudia is a tattered yellow dress, covered in ash. The coven gives Louis a different punishment, as they bury him alive within the theater in a locked coffin, meant to slowly drive him mad, and eventually, starve. In the book, all of these events take place in the late 19th century.

How the 1994 Film Version of Interview with the Vampire Handled Claudia’s Death

In the film version, the trial is nonexistent, and the Paris coven merely proceeds to the verdict—guilty. The coven leaves Claudia (Kirsten Dunst) and Madeleine (Domiziana Giordano) alone in the well, with the sun rising and burning them to ash. However, in the film version, both Claudia and Madeleine burn together and their bodies form an ashen sculpture. A sculpture that collapses into dust with the slightest touch. It’s a visually striking effect, but one made just for the film. Claudia’s dress does not survive the sun any more than Claudia does in director Neil Jordan’s big-screen iteration.

Claudia and Madeleine’s Death in Interview with the Vampire on AMC

In the series, the Paris Coven captures Louis, Claudia, and Madeleine. Their kangaroo court trial is actually a matinee performance at the Théâtre des Vampires. The human crowd watches the spectacle of suffering, as the court deems each vampire guilty for attempting to murder Lestat. The coven only gives Madeleine a special dispensation, as Louis made her after the murders. However, she chooses to die with Claudia. Louis is buried within the walls of the theater catacombs. This is after the “jury,” a.k.a. the crowd of mortals in the theater, are telepathically manipulated to give Louis a different sentence than death — exile. Did the Vampire Armand (Assad Zaman) save Louis’ life? Did he plant the exile verdict in their minds? That’s the assumption, as that is what occurs in the book and the film. But perhaps the series will go down a different route.

Instead of executing them in a well, Claudia and Madeleine are murdered on stage, in front of the horrified theatergoers. She threatens to come back from the afterlife and murder each and every person in the audience. The vampire Santiago (Ben Daniels) then opens a skylight that only hits the two female vampires on stage with rays of sunlight, as they writhe in agony and turn to ash. Lestat (Sam Reid) watches, with tears in his eyes as the vampire child he created, and later condemned to death, burns away to nothing. Just as in the novel, all that remains of Claudia is her yellow dress.

Claudia’s Original Fate

The original ending of Rice’s novel had Claudia live, finding happiness with a group of vampire children like herself. But Anne Rice’s editor believed the novel called for a tragic ending. And she was right. So Rice rewrote the entire second half of the book, with Claudia’s death as the emotional climax of the novel. It’s easily the moment Louis’ tragic tale hinges on. Claudia never comes back to life in later novels. Yet she remains a haunting presence in the minds and hearts of Louis and Lestat for eternity. We imagine that in Interview with the Vampire the series, this will remain the case.

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The wonderful worlds of wizardry, lush lands of fantasy epics, and all sorts of fictional adventures in between feature so many elements. There’s magic, monsters, adventure, action, and much more to craft narratives that whisk us to universes. The themes of these stories often intertwine with different sociopolitical viewpoints, providing commentary on the world we live in. But, it’s done with the flair of aliens, spaceships, wands, and maybe even a lightsaber. Or, if we’re really lucky, it is simply a fun romp that taps into our escapist nature. 

One part of magical and fantasy narratives, specifically books, that could always make room for improvement is representation. Why does it seem to be so hard to imagine a whimsical world or a space saga with non-White leading characters? One demographic that is oft overlooked is young Black boys. Many of their stories, film or otherwise, tend to center on similar narratives. But what if they wanted to be wizards and wield magic? 

That’s what writer LaDarrion Williams delivers in Blood at the Root, a New York Times bestseller novel that features a young man’s journey at an HBCU for those who are young, Black, and magical. He learns about his family roots and mysteries and finds a new set of family at Caiman University. Nerdist caught up with Williams to talk about his nerdy childhood loves, crafting Blood at the Root, Black Southern culture, and more. 

Nerdist: What were the nerdy franchises and interests and stuff that captured your attention as a kid?

LaDarrion Williams: I was a Disney kid back when Disney Channel was the good version because I don’t know what these kids got nowadays. I remember when the new Disney Channel original movies came out, you had to sit at home on Friday night at seven o’clock to watch them… I was the nerdy boy that was watching all of those movies every Friday night. And I remember when High School Musical came out and Camp Rock, all of that… I always [loved] ‘90s black cinema, watching all of those movies really shaped me. Some of those movies I’d had no business watching when I was a kid!

Yes, Love and Basketball, The Wood, Love Jones…

Williams: Yeah! Even The Best Man. Watching that now as an adult is wild! But those movies shaped me. I remember watching Eve’s Bayou and really becoming very fascinated by not only the story, but the magic that it had, the southern mystery that it had. And also, The Mummy with Brendan Frazier. But yeah, that’s what I grew up on. I have a big range of movies that I used to love watching growing up.

Love it. So how did you get into creative writing? 

Williams: I’ve always been a creative kid, but I really didn’t take it seriously until high school. I was in detention and, once you finished all your homework for the day, you had to do something. They don’t just let you sit there. And the teacher at the time, she gave me a newspaper or a book, and I was like, “well, I kind of just want to read a book or something.” I don’t want to read a newspaper all day long. And little did I know it was the play “A Raisin in the Sun” by Lorraine Hansberry. And I read that play literally from front to back. And I really resonated with Walter Lee Younger… I was like, “man, these characters sound like my family.”

And I was like, “I kind of want to write something like this one day.” …the next year I got into theater, I was always the choir kid. I love singing. I love the arts, but I didn’t take it seriously until I think the 10th or 11th grade. And I started acting and doing theater, and my theater teacher gave me the play “Fences” by August Wilson. I was blown away. 

So I wrote a play about two people trapped in a hospital room during Hurricane Katrina, and come to find out they were dead the entire time. It was like The Sixth Sense. I don’t know why I wrote that at 17. When I wrote that, I won a competition and first place in playwriting in the state. My teacher was like, “I think you’re going to be a playwright. I think you’re a writer, you’re an actor, you’re a creative.” That’s what ushered me into creative writing. 

And look at where it got you! You’re here now with a successful book. Tell me about your journey with Blood at the Root, from conception to the present. 

Williams: The conception of it came in the middle of the pandemic. It was the pandemic and a lot going on in the country… I was binging The Originals and The Vampire Diaries at the time, and I was just like, “man, I’m tired.”

The Vampire Diaries made me so mad! Justice for Bonnie.

Williams: Listen, they won’t see Heaven, whoever created that. So I was just kind of angry about the type of representation we were seeing. And then Lovecraft Country came out, I was like, “whoa, wait, what?!” It just felt so refreshing. Once Lovecraft Country came out, Twitter was going crazy every Sunday night. But it was really when Beyonce dropped [her album] Black Is King as well. I was finally being fed creatively after a long time… I tweeted and said, “what if Harry Potter went to an HBCU?” It was random. I don’t know where it came from. I’m just randomly tweeting. Everybody kind of gravitated towards that tweet and I think it kind of sparked something. And so people were like, “you got to make that.”

And I was like, “well, I can’t make it in the middle of the pandemic.” We could barely get toilet paper. I’m not going to go out and shoot a whole film… I started writing the television show because Blood at the Root wasn’t supposed to be a book. It was supposed to be a TV show. I moved to LA to be a TV writer. 

I wrote the pilot script and me and my friends did a Zoom reading of it and people were like, “man, this is really cool.” I was sharing pages on Twitter and people felt like they were with it from the conception, from the tweet to the short.

That’s so cool. How did you eventually get to making the short film? 

Williams: People started donating money and were reaching out to me… I asked my friends to go shoot the short film. And everybody was like, let’s do it. And I was like, okay, let’s go do it… We snuck onto the UCLA campus to shoot the magic school [scene]. Shout out to them for not arresting these Black people for making a short film there during the pandemic! 

I realized I had something very, very special because it was really cool to see my friends being in this fantasy space. We felt like little kids playing again. And when we got done with the short film, we posted it on YouTube and Amazon Prime and people were having watch parties. 

I remember when that happened and it was great! Why didn’t you move forward with Blood at the Root in the film space? 

Williams: I was thinking Hollywood was going to come calling. I had this short film that’s viral. At the time, people were going viral and getting brand deals. They were getting TV shows, even though it was the pandemic. But when things started opening up, I couldn’t get an agent. I couldn’t get a manager. I couldn’t get nobody to even look at the short film. It was getting rejected from every single short film festival that we submitted to… It got rejected from every single one. 

That is so surprising! 

Williams: Yeah. Having that rejection toppled on me every single day, checking my email every day, I got very depressed about it. I was embarrassed because I was like, “oh, I’m going to be this big shot with this movie.” And nothing came of it. But I started to fall in love with this story even more. After a year of trying, my friends were like, “hey, why don’t you turn it into a book?”

…I saw The Hate You Give. I saw Children of Blood and Bone. I was like, “well, okay, so there are Black books that are making it.” I asked the bookstore clerk at Barnes & Noble if there were stories with Black boys. I want to see myself and be able to relate fully to the character. We went over to the YA fantasy section and we couldn’t find anything.

I’ve noticed that many Black fantasy stories will include Black girls prominently but the boys not so much. 

Williams: Black girls absolutely deserve everything and more! But when it came to the Black boys, I was starting to see a certain type of story being published. I was like, “Why are they getting killed by police? Can Black boys not live too?” I literally made the declaration right there at the bookstore that I would write this story. I locked myself in my apartment for 12 days and I wrote the first draft of Blood at the Root, the book. I took ideas from the short film and the television pilot script, and I put it into the book and created this full story about this Black kid named Malik Baron going to a magical HBCU.

You get to meet his friends and you get to go to classes and all of that. I was going to self-publish it but I worked with an editor, Margot Westin, a Black woman for Louisiana. She said, “LaDarrion, you got to traditionally publish this novel.” I know you want to self publish it. And I was like, nah. At that time, publishing really didn’t want Black boys in YA fantasy. She eventually convinced me. We worked really hard and I ended up getting an agent, whom I worked with for a year. We went to publishers and I was getting the same rejections I was getting from the short film. “We can’t connect to the character, we don’t know how to market this.” 

Mmmhmmm, we all know what that means.

Williams: Right?! But in January of 2023, we eventually signed with Penguin Random House for a three book deal. And now here it is, Blood at the Root book one is out. And I’m currently working on the sequel. 

That’s an amazing journey. You got delayed a few times, but you ultimately were not denied. What are your ultimate hopes for this trilogy and how it’ll affect the YA space?

Williams: I really hope publishers are more open to not always trying to think about white audiences. Because I think ultimately what they are saying is that they think audiences can’t connect to Black people because you don’t see Black people as human. At the end of the day, we connected to a little white British boy going to magic school. I connected to him even though I grew up in Alabama. I didn’t know nothing about the UK. I hope that publishers are more open to all types of Black stories, especially Black stories that are set in the South that do not always try to center whiteness. 

I hope that Black girls, little Black kids, queer kids, Black boys, like everybody, I hope they could see themselves in the story because Malik can be you… I also hope people are open-minded to Malik. He talks with a Southern twang, he cusses. He is angry, he is vulnerable, he’s everything. And I hope people are more open to that, to seeing that type of character in the publishing world and also in audiences. I hope they’re open to receiving it.

I certainly hope so, too. And I want people to have a more open mind when it comes to reading about and engaging with Black Southern folks and our culture. There’s always these stereotypes and thoughts about our perceived intelligence or the lack thereof based on how we talk. I want people to reject that notion and maybe Blood at the Root will help with that. People love to consume Black culture without acknowledging that a chunk of Black American culture as a whole comes from the South. I say this as a Carolina girl. 

Williams: I know that’s right! The South got something to say, just as OutKast said, right? But I think people don’t realize that. I think I’m out here in LA and I’m just like, “y’all, some of the stuff that y’all are doing is from the South.” …a lot of us don’t know about the great migration. People went from Mississippi to Chicago to Alabama. A lot of people came from Alabama to LA and Texas and Louisiana. You don’t think they brought their customs and their traditions and stuff with them?

I think about my mother, I think about my father, my grandmother, my aunties, and seeing them. And they’re reading books probably for the first time in a long time. And they say,”man, this grandmother sound like me.” Now they feel seen and they feel edified in the book. And I think I want to show that the simplicity of life in the south, the poetry, the language of the everyday people, that’s what August [Wilson] did.

I love it and I hope so many people feel seen and that we get to celebrate Black culture and the joys of magic in Blood at the Root.

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Westeros isn’t getting any bigger, but its presence on HBO certainly is thanks to a very large and legendary knight. A second live-action Game of Thrones spinoff is coming about the Realm’s most beloved duo, Dunk and Egg. What’s the show called? Who is this famous knight and his young Targaryen squire? And why are fans of George R.R. Martin so excited to see them come to life? Here’s everything we know about A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms so far.

HBO Shares First Production Image From and New Cats Members

Ser Duncan is officially here. HBO has shared the first official pimage from the production in Belfast and it features the “lunk” known as Dunk walking through a market. His raggedy clothes suggest this moment comes from his pre-Egg days. (Not that he’ll look that much better later. Hedge knights aren’t exactly the best dressed knights.)

The network also announced some major new cast members and their roles along with the photo’s release:

• Finn Bennett as Aerion Targaryen
• Bertie Carvel as Baelor Targaryen
• Tanzyn Crawford as Tanselle
• Daniel Ings as Ser Lyonel Barotheon
• Sam Spruell as Maekar Targaryen

Sarah Adina Smith (Lessons In Chemistry) has also come aboard to direct three of the season’s six episodes.

Title

At one point the spinoff was working under the wordy title of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: The Hedge Knight. But a recent report says HBO has—thankfully—dropped the latter. The prequel is now operating under the simpler name and the book it’s adapting, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms.

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms‘ Plot 

The show’s official logline provided an introduction to the series’ time period and characters. From HBO:

A century before the events of Game of Thrones, two unlikely heroes wandered Westeros… a young, naïve but courageous knight, Ser Duncan the Tall, and his diminutive squire, Egg. Set in an age when the Targaryen line still holds the Iron Throne and the memory of the last dragon has not yet passed from living memory, great destinies, powerful foes, and dangerous exploits all await these improbable and incomparable friends.

Fans of A Song of Ice and Fire know much more about the beloved duo’s exploits and lifelong friendship. Martin’s three novellas cover both big and small events related to Westeros during a dangerous time in the Seven Kingdoms. Dunk and Egg began their time together shortly after the second Targaryen civil war known as the Blackfyre Rebellion. The fresh wounds of that Realm-splitting battle is why Egg needed to hide his real identity while serving as Duncan’s squire.

Martin has also previously confirmed a fan theory that the honorable, noble Ser Duncan the Tall is the ancestor of Brienne of Tarth. (Though we don’t yet know how.) Despite taking place a century before its HBO predecessor, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms will also have more direct ties to Game of Thrones. Brynden Rivers, Egg’s uncle and the most notorious figure in Westeros, would go on to become the Three-Eyed Raven. And Egg’s older brother is none other than Maester Aemon of the Night’s Watch.

Martin has long said he has plans for many more Dunk & Egg stories. The show could ultimately adapt those unwritten/unpublished tales into entire seasons. HBO’s head of drama Francesca Orsi has said the series will “ideally year-to-year and arcing out a three-season series, which maps out the three novellas that George wrote.” But that doesn’t mean it will only run three years. She also said, “Of course, we’d like more beyond that, and George is continuing to think about the remaining novellas that he still wants to write, but at this point, we have our eye on three seasons that would map out each book, each novella.”

The adult exploits of Dunk and Egg are also explored in Martin’s massive compendium book The World of Ice and Fire. (Spoilers!)

Behind the Scenes

Martin and Ira Parker will write and serve as executive producers the show. House of the Dragon showrunner Ryan Condal will also serve as as executive producer along with Vince Gerardis. Owen Harris (Black Mirror‘s “Be Right Back” and “San Junipero”) will direct the show’s first three episodes.

Production began in the spring of 2024 following the end of the writers and actors strikes.

Additionally, Martin wrote The Hedge Knight will be shorter than the other Game of Thrones series on HBO, however, it will be no less brutal, to be sure. Success for The Hedge Knight could mean other Dunk & Egg stories receive spinoffs. (And maybe Martin will even write a few more.)

Here’s what Martin shared in full.

THE HEDGE KNIGHT will be a lot shorter than GAME OF THRONES or HOUSE OF THE DRAGON, with a much different tone… but it’s still Westeros, so no one is truly safe  Ira Parker and his team are doing a great job.  I hope to visit the shoot come July, when I swing by Belfast on my way to the worldcon in Glasgow.    The show will make its debut next year… and if it does well, THE SWORN SWORD and THE MYSTERY KNIGHT will follow.  By which time I hope to have finished some more Dunk & Egg stories (yes, after I finish THE WINDS OF WINTER).

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms‘ Cast

The only two stars of the show we know so far are the two most important. 6’4″ tall Peter Claffey (Bad Sisters, Vikings: Valhalla) will play the legendary Ser Duncan the Tall. Young Dexter Sol Ansell (The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes) will serve as Dunk’s diminutive squire, the fiery secret Targaryen prince Aegon forever known as “Egg.”

Martin publicly praised Dexter Sol Ansell’s transformation into Egg.

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms‘ Release Date

Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav has previously said HBO is targeting a “late 2025″ premiere.

Originally published May 22, 2024.

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Although not entirely absent, Sam Reid’s Vampire Lestat has been a minimized presence in season two of Interview with the Vampire. As fans of Anne Rice’s novel know, the character of Lestat largely disappears for the second half of the novel. This is after the attempted murder of Lestat by his progeny Louis and Claudia in season one. But Sam Reid is such a vibrant presence, the creators wanted to keep him around for season two, which covers the back half of the book. So he appeared peppered throughout season two as the manifestation of the guilty conscience of Louis (Jacob Anderson). But in episode six of season two, “Like the Light By Which God Made the World Before He Made Light” Lestat finally shows up in the flesh. And it restores a pivotal moment from Rice’s novel that the 1994 movie cut out.

At the end of episode six, the coven at the Théâtre des Vampires has all the evidence they need that Louis and Claudia (Delainey Hayles) attempted to murder Lestat, not just their maker, but the owner and founder of the Théâtre des Vampires itself. That is a violation of the vampire coven’s highest “Great Laws.” Now that they know the truth, Santiago (Ben Daniels) holds a trial for the accused in a special matinee performance. (Why matinee? Remember what sunlight does to the undead). And yes, Louis’ lover Armand (Assad Zaman), leader of the coven, is complicit in this. The star witness is Lestat himself, giving testimony as to his attempted murder by his American fledglings. This is how Lestat appears in the flesh at last in Interview with the Vampire’s second season.

Although the series often deviates from the novel, this is one instance where it restored an important part of the book which the 1994 film deleted. In Rice’s novel, Lestat reappearing at the Paris coven’s trial for Louis and Claudia was a key moment. They believed Lestat dead, and when he reappears, it confirms to the coven that Louis and Claudia broke their sacred laws. And thus, needed punishment. Neil Jordan actually did film a version of Lestat’s reappearance in Paris for the movie. Yet for unknown reasons, he deleted it from the final film. However, images of Tom Cruise’s Lestat in burnt makeup from that scene have surfaced over the years online. We’re glad they finally adapted this important moment for Lestat’s character arc for the AMC series.

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House of the Dragon has a big creative advantage over most adaptations. George R.R. Martin’s Fire & Blood is not a definitive account of events. It’s a history of House Targaryen “written” by a maester that is incomplete or even wrong in certain places. (Though we can’t always know how or where). That’s especially true of the time period the HBO’s prequel series is retelling. That section is based on three biased sources that frequently conflict with one another, often because none of the chroniclers actually witnessed the events they wrote about. Their blindspots and distortions provide House of the Dragon narrative freedom. It also lets the show fill in huge gaps never mentioned. And House the Dragon‘s season two premiere used that storytelling advantage to make Queen Alicent and Ser Criston Cole’s relationship far more troubling, complex, and interesting.

In Fire & Blood, Kingsguard member Criston Cole goes from being the sworn sword of Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen to the personal protector of her enemy, Alicent Hightower. No one in Westeros ever hated Rhaenyra more than the man who crowned her brother Aegon king. The Targaryen history provides a very personal reason for the enmity between the two formerly close duo: their relationship turned sexual.

In Fire & Blood, one source claims Cole asked Rhaenyra to run across the Narrow Sea with her, giving up her claim to the Iron Throne. Another says it was Rhaenyra who asked him to forsake his vows to the Kingsguard. What every historian agrees on is that, after that moment, the two despised one another. Criston Cole didn’t just turn his back on her, he worked to destroy her.

House of the Dragon‘s first season provided a definitive answer as to what happened between them. It’s the one that always made the most sense based on what we knew about each. It was Criston Cole, the worst person ever, who begged Rhaenyra to leave Westeros behind with him. The HBO series also gave us a reason for his request. It wasn’t one driven by love or even lust. Cole felt guilt for having broken his sacred vows in the first place and he wanted Rhaenyra to give up everything to make him feel better about himself. When she refused in House of the Dragon season one, Criston Cole abandoned her and went into the service of Queen Alicent instead.

For everything Fire & Blood says/suggests about Cole and Rhaenyra’s relationship, both explicitly and in subtext, it says almost nothing of his relationship with Alicent. Criston Cole becomes Alicent’s sworn sword and protector, but none of the book’s sources raise even a hint of impropriety between the two. But that doesn’t mean the show created a physical relationship out of thin air, either.

Westeros remembers Criston Cole for the unethical punk he was. It also knows he almost certainly broke his vows and slept with Rhaenyra. (Who was a drunk teenager the first time they slept together on the show). It’s not a stretch, in any way, to imagine Cole also went on to violate his oaths with a young, beautiful widow like Alicent. Nor it is absurd to think that a woman whose entire life was defined/bound by duty until that point took her handsome knight to bed when she was under the most stress she’d ever know.

While their physical relationship contributed to the show botching Fire & Blood‘s most shocking moment (the other side of the adaptation freedom coin), this expansion of their story is ultimately a good thing for the show. It makes all of their interactions more fraught. Their advice to Aegon, whether they agree or not, is also harder to trust. Alicent and Criston Cole have entangled themselves in a way that has often doomed other duos because personal relationships have a tendency to undermine duty and rational thinking.

Each character is also more interesting on their own now, too. This evolution of the relationship makes Alicent more complex and, therefore, more compelling. She’s not as “perfect” as she thought. Maybe now she fears/knows Rhaenyra was right about her true nature, especially since Alicent did the very thing she held against Rhaenyra. It’s even possible jealousy of how Rhaenyra got to live her life drove Alicent into Criston Cole’s arms in House of the Dragon season two. And while Alicent’s hypocrisy makes her less righteous, calling her piety into question, it makes her more human and, therefore, possibly more sympathetic. She’s as vulnerable and flawed as anyone. She gave in to her basest desires just like any other human might.

While this relationship twist makes Alicent more dynamic, it also makes Lord Commander Ser Criston Cole an even greater villain. He’s less a knight and more a walking fraud who speaks with a forked tongue. Every awful thing he says about Rhaenyra is projection. He can’t truly protect the King and his family because he’s compromised himself. He’s the amoral, unethical center at the Dance of the Dragons.

He’s what the show needs just as Game of Thrones needed characters like Joffrey, Ramsay, and Baelish. The handsome Kingsguard member who began his story so nobly and with so much promise is like a reverse Jaime Lannister, someone we hated but grew to love.

No one will ever love Criston Cole… Except apparently Alicent Hightower. And House of the Dragon is better for it.

Mikey Walsh is a staff writer at Nerdist and the original Criston Cole hater. You can follow him on Twitter and Bluesky at @burgermike. And also anywhere someone is ranking the Targaryen kings.

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House of the Dragon‘s second season began in the North. There, Prince Jacaerys met with the Lord of Winterfell, Cregan Stark. Their discussion revealed a monumental secret about the two families’ deep bond. But their shared past might have also finally answered a question fans of George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire have long had about Benjen Stark: why did he join the Night’s Watch?

Benjen Stark, the youngest sibling of Ned, took the black shortly after Robert’s Rebellion ended the Targaryen dynasty. At that point, Benjen’s father Rickard, oldest brother Brandon, and only sister Lyanna were all dead. That left Ned the Lord of Winterfell and Warden of the North. Despite Ned needing all the support he could get (both as a ruler and as a person), Benjen swore his oath to the ancient order mere months after his only surviving sibling returned home. That left the entire ancient family on the verge of total annihilation.

Even with Ned’s best friend atop the Iron Throne, and their surrogate father Jon Arryn serving as Hand of the King, the war left House Stark in tatters. There just weren’t as many of them left in a region where brutal winters can claim the lives of even the most powerful Northerners. If something happened to Ned, the only Starks (by blood) left were two newborns, Robb Stark and Jon Snow.

Why would Benjen leave his family for the Night’s Watch at that exact moment? Why didn’t he get married and have kids, replenishing the line with potential heirs and strengthening their numbers? It’s not as though fathers or older men can’t join. Even if he wanted to join previously (as youngest siblings were known to do), why wouldn’t he at least wait until Ned’s two boys got older and stronger? Or until Ned had more children? One bad chill could have left House Stark without a lord or worse. A single sickness at Winterfell could have wiped them all out. If that happened, Benjen wouldn’t have been able to do anything. He couldn’t violate his sacred oath to the Night’s Watch to claim his family’s ancient seat, just as Maester Aemon couldn’t claim the Iron Throne after the death of the Mad King Aerys II.

Benjen’s decision to become a Sworn Brother when he did has never made sense. George R.R. Martin hasn’t explained it yet, either. The only overt textual evidence he’s ever provided is that a teenage Benjen became enamored with the Night’s Watch after hearing a member try to recruit new members during the very same tourney where Lyanna fell in love with Rhaegar. But that hardly explains why he headed to the Wall just a couple months after Ned returned and House Stark was holding on by a thread.

This mystery has always been a fun one for fans to speculate about. Did Benjen’s departure have anything to do with him possibly knowing the secret of Jon Snow’s birth? Or was it made out of guilt for not fighting in the war? For knowing Lyanna wasn’t kidnapped and had voluntarily ran off with Rhaegar, the entire reason for the rebellion? Had Benjen actually been the one who helped Lyanna run off in the first place? They’re all fascinating possibilities, the kind of small character mystery that give Martin’s story so much emotional depth and intrigue. But House of the Dragon might have revealed Benjen’s reason had absolutely nothing to do with him because he didn’t have a choice at all.

The prequel’s season two premiere opened with new Northern lore. Lord Cregan Stark was overseeing a ceremony his ancestor Torrhen Stark began a century earlier. That’s when House Stark began sending one in ten of its own kin, drawn by random lot, to the Night’s Watch at the outset of every winter. The order, made up mostly of “doomed men,” needed strong, capable, noble members and leaders to keep the Night’s Watch in line. House Stark would keep its sacred oath to protecting the Wall and the Realm by sending their own men to fill those roles.

That ceremony and its origins indicate Aegon the Conqueror told Torrhen Stark about his prophetic vision of a White Walker invasion. That has huge ramifications for all of A Song of Ice and Fire. It also provides the best, most logical explanation for why Benjen Stark joined the Night’s Watch at what seemed like the worst possible time for his family. House Stark needed to send someone and he was the only option since Ned couldn’t go. There was literally no one else to go, so the family and Benjen made a sacrifice in the name of duty, echoing Cregan’s opening words in the episode. It didn’t matter the Starks needed Benjen at Winterfell. “Winter is coming” and that’s the only thing that has ever mattered.

If this sacrifice is why Benjen joined the Night’s Watch, why wouldn’t Martin have revealed it long before? It only makes both Benjen and House Stark look more noble. It was always the one family that truly put Westeros first. Likely because the ceremony that sent Benjen to the Wall is so much bigger than any one character. Tying House Stark and House Targaryen via Aegon’s Dream is a monumental revelation. Assuming it’s not entirely a show creation (or alteration), Martin might very well have been holding the truth of Benjen’s departure back until his final two books in A Song of Ice and Fire.*

Of course, even if this does fully explain why Benjen Stark joined the Night’s Watch, readers still don’t know what happened to the Head Ranger. His story will be different in Martin’s novels than what we saw on Game of Thrones. And in the books Benjen is still missing and presumed dead beyond the Wall.

We hope someone finds him, for lots of reasons. When they do he might confirm he had no choice but to take the black in the first place.

*No comment

Mikey Walsh is a staff writer at Nerdist and loyal bannerman to House Stark. You can follow him on Twitter and Bluesky at @burgermike. And also anywhere someone is ranking the Targaryen kings.

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House of the Dragon‘s season two premiere ended with a violent scene readers of George R.R. Martin’s Fire & Blood have desperately waited to see. It was the iconic, infamous event known as “Blood and Cheese,” arguably the single most shocking, cruel, and heartbreaking moment in the history of Westeros. And House of the Dragon completely botched it by needlessly delivering a vastly inferior version.

I love every single book and short story George R.R. Martin has written about Westeros. Yet I also know books are not TV shows and TV shows are not books. Adaptations, even faithful ones, must make significant changes if they hope to succeed. The written word, no matter how good, simply does not always translate to the screen. In its first season, House of the Dragon made a lot of amazing changes, the majority of which I supported and celebrated. From the revelation of Aegon’s Dream to an infinitely more dynamic King Viserys, it provided so many fantastic new aspects to Martin’s story.

Of course, the show also made some terrible changes. It undercut the major figures’ storylines and created big spectacles free of logic. Those kinds of alterations are frustrating (to be polite), but it’s a part of the process. I get that. I really do.

But some scenes need zero changes because they’re not only perfect on the page, they’re already perfect for the screen. And—more than any other moment in all of Fire & Blood, and maybe in all of A Song of Ice and Fire—no scene was ever more TV ready than “Blood and Cheese.”

The murder of Prince Jaehaerys on House of the Dragon almost certainly shocked and bothered those who had no idea what was coming. The violent murder of a child, even in Westeros, is still inherently stunning. The problem is those who did know what was coming, the people most excited and invested in this scene, know this version is monumentally, infuriatingly worse. George R.R. Martin’s version is so much more powerful, creative, and awful than House of the Dragon‘s. It’s also more logical and far more meaningful to the story.

In Fire & Blood a scheming, angry, worried Alicent Hightower is the chief architect of Aegon usurping his half-sister’s throne. House of the Dragon took away some of her agency by making her believe Viserys had a deathbed change of heart about succession. Fortunately season two’s premiere gave some back to Alicent by showing she knows the only way forward now is violence. She accepts blood must be shed and she has played a role in that inevitability. That scene with her father (along with the rat catcher walking by her earlier in the episode) also seemed to be setting up the horror that awaited her at the end by having her naively believe a war for the Iron Throne would free of “wanton” violence. The series did a fantastic job foreshadowing the worst moment in Alicent’s life, one that would make her truly face the consequences of her choices.

Then it didn’t have her experience it.

In Fire & Blood, Daemon’s two hired assassins aren’t bumbling around without a plan. They are far more capable, focused, and diabolical. The rat catcher is chosen specifically because he knows how to get around the Red Keep’s secret tunnels (including where the royals live) in a way few others do. That includes even those who actually live there. Cheese, as he is eventually called, knows all the hidden passageways in and out of bedchambers and offices. His intimate knowledge is also partly why they targeted Haelena’s young son rather than Aegon or Aemond in the first place.

Book Alicent resides in an accessible part of the castle, the Tower of the Hand. The highly protected King and his family sleeps in Maegor’s Holdfast, which has no secret ways entrances. King Maegor had the Red Keep’s secret tunnels installed, but wisely didn’t want any where he lived and slept. The subtext of Martin’s story reveals no one in the royal court worried about where Alicent, Helaena, and the kids went anyway because they obviously weren’t targets. This is a war between Rhaenyra and Daemon against Aegon and Aemond. Even the murder of Lucerys Targaryen wouldn’t make someone think little Prince Jaehaerys was in danger. He’s a literal child. But that’s one of the major points of the entire scene, which is really not about Jaehaerys or Helaena at all. They’re just victims. The scene is really about Alicent and how she made her loved ones targets.

In Martin’s book, Blood and Cheese hide in Alicent’s bed chamber because that’s how they can get what Daemon wants, “a son for a son.” Spies let Daemon (not still on Dragonstone at this point) and Mysaria (still in King’s Landing and willingly involved in this scheme) know about the Queen’s activities. Every night Helaena takes her three kids— the twins Jaehaerys and Jaehara, aged six, and son Maelor, aged two—into their grandmother’s bedroom to say goodnight.

On that fateful evening, Blood and Cheese had already bound and gagged Alicent and strangled her bed maid. Then they waited, as a helpless and terrified Alicent looked on, not knowing exactly what they had planned. When Helaena walked in with the three kids holding Maelor’s hand, Blood “barred the door and slew the queen’s guardsman, whilst Cheese appeared to snatch up Maelor.” After promising to kill them all unless Helaena stayed calm and quiet, they also swore to only harm one son. Only, in one of the most horrific decisions ever faced by anyone in Westeros, Helaena would have to pick which son died.

The Queen pleaded with them to take her instead, but they threatened to assault her daughter if she didn’t choose. Finally, “on her knees, weeping, Helaena named her youngest, Maelor.” Why him? Some think because he was too young to understand, others because Jaehaerys was the King’s heir. Whatever drove her choice, it didn’t matter. Cheese whispered to little Maelor, who must have been so confused and scared, “You hear that, little boy? Your momma wants you dead.” Cheese then smiled at Blood, who instead struck Jaehaerys’ head off with a single blow.

Yeah. Yeah.

On the page this horrible, shocking, heartbreaking scene—a true testament to Martin’s gift as a writer—reads like a short play in a way few moments of Fire & Blood do. It’s all there. There’s no guessing at the action, tension, and dialogue. There’s no mystery to fill in. Nor is there any way to improve it. It’s perfect, as is the purpose it serves in this story about two women fighting over the Iron Thrones. That’s what really matters.

This is the moment where Alicent literally must face what she’s put in motion. For all her talk about protecting her family from Rhaenyra, she is the one who put them all in mortal danger. She started this war. Her anger and ambition helped make such a moment of evil possible.

And for all of the Greens’ arrogance about righteousness, they must now spend the rest of the war knowing none of them, not even the youngest and most innocent, are safe. This is a fight to the death no one will win even if they survive. Helaena, Alicent, Jaehaera, and Maelor all walk away from Blood and Cheese with their lives, yet each life is destroyed in its own way.

For indefensible, incomprehensible reasons, House of the Dragon decided not to have Alicent present for any of this. Neither does it make Helaena agonize over an impossible decision only to be left with a son who knows she named him for death. Instead Alicent only had to hear about what happened while Helaena instantly gave up her son. (Which itself was an illogical moment of non-tension. Blood and Cheese could have easily looked under the kids’ pajamas to identify Jaehaerys.)

Why did House of the Dragon take a scene this good and beloved, one of the most highly anticipated in all of Game of Thrones history, and make it inferior? Why did it lessen the emotional impact, horror, and meaning to the story? It’s not as though these changes were about lessening the violence. The show actually amped the physical brutality of the moment. The murder of little Jaehaerys was worse because Blood slowly sawed off his head rather than chopping it off in a single blow. Why amplify the physical awfulness but lessen the emotional aspect when that’s the entire reason for the scene in the first place?

Ultimately the show’s reasons doesn’t matter, at least not to book readers who know what they missed out on. The only thing that matters is that House of the Dragon blew a rare opportunity. It had the chance to adapt a book moment that was already perfect for the screen in every way.

Mikey Walsh is a staff writer at Nerdist. You can follow him on Twitter and Bluesky at @burgermike. And also anywhere someone is ranking the Targaryen kings. (Or complaining about how House of the Dragon did the impossible and screwed up “Cheese and Blood.”)

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House of the Dragon‘s first season featured one of the most significant revelations in all of A Song of Ice and Fire. Aegon the Conqueror came to Westeros because he “foresaw the end of the world of men” at the icy hands of the White Walkers, and he believed the only hope to defeat the darkness was a unified Westeros led by a Targaryen. We learned about Aegon’s Dream when Viserys shared the secret with his daughter Rhaenyra. It was a vision the family’s kings had only ever told their own heirs. Or so we thought.

House of the Dragon‘s season two premiere has indicated the Conqueror shared that secret with an outsider, the Lord of a family Aegon knew would be the first line of defense when a “terrible winter gusting out of the distant north” began: House Stark. And that shared secret deepens the binds between House of the Dragon, Game of Thrones, Aegon, Jon Snow, the Targaryens, and the Starks.

House of the Dragon returned by returning us to Winterfell at the outset of winter. Season two also began with the voice of Lord Cregan Stark. He said, “Duty is sacrifice. It eclipses all things, even blood.” Those were no mere words, either. He said them as part of a ceremony we’ve never seen on either Game of Thrones show before. When winter starts, House Stark sends one in ten of its own kin, drawn by random lot, to join the Night’s Watch.

Most members of that ancient order are made up of “doomed men who had their life as their only possession.” Game of Thrones viewers know those doomed men—often rapists, thieves, and cravens—usually aren’t the best Westeros has to offer. The Night’s Watch needs capable, honorable fighters and leaders to keep those men in line. The Night’s Watch needs Starks.

Even without that ceremony, though, Starks have served in the Night’s Watch since its inception. The family’s members have often served as Lord Commanders.

What makes this new piece of northern lore so monumental is who began this tradition and when. This “sacrifice” changes everything we know about Aegon Targaryen’s interactions with the Starks and the North, and, therefore, the “bastard” who will one day unite the Realm against the White Walkers.

With the ceremony complete, Cregan Stark brought Rhaenyra Targaryen’s oldest son and heir, Jace, to the top of the Wall. Jace was on a diplomatic mission to secure support of major houses for his mother’s claim to the Iron Throne. The two talked about the first time a Stark swore an oath to a Targaryen, when King Torrhen Stark bent the knee to Aegon.

The current Lord of Winterfell then assured the prince, “Starks do not forget their oaths.” The North will keep the vow Cregan’s father Rickon made to Viserys when the King named Rhaenyra his rightful heir. However, Cregan also said he has an even more sacred oath that limits how many men he can commit to the Queen’s cause.

“My gaze is forever torn between north and south,” Cregan said. “In winter, my duty to the Wall is even more dire than the one I owe to King’s Landing.” Jace did not understand why guarding against “wildlings and weather” was more important than stopping the Hightowers and saving the Realm from a war that will rip it apart. That is until Jace gazed out past the Wall in awe.

Cregan then told the story about how Jace’s great grandparents, King Jaehaerys and his wife Queen Alysanne, once visited this very spot with his father Rickon. From there, the two Targaryens watched as their dragons, “the greatest power in the world,” refused to cross the Wall. The implication was obvious even before Cregan spoke again. “Do you think my ancestors built a 700-foot wall of ice to keep out snow and savages?” Lord Stark asked the prince. When Jace then asked what the Wall does keep out, Cregan told him: “Death.”

The Warden of the North’s comments show House Stark, even millennia after the First Long Night, always knew what the Wall kept out. That exchange also reflected a memorable and ominous moment from Game of Thrones‘ pilot.

In the original series’ premiere a visiting Benjen Stark, member of the Night’s Watch, discussed whispers of White Walker attacks with his brother Ned. Unlike everyone in else Westeros would for many years, the two did not dismiss or mock those reports. They spoke of the possibility with the solemnity of a Stark who knows, and has always known, “winter is coming.” House Stark’s ancient words were always a reminder of the real threat out of the darkness plotting its return.

That’s what makes the timing and originator of the Stark Night’s Watch ceremony so significant. That’s actually an understatement. It’s among the most meaningful pieces of lore ever introduced to A Song of Ice and Fire. To understand why, we need to go back to the start of House Stark and House Targaryen’s relationship, a century before House of the Dragon.

Aegon Targaryen had already conquered most of Westeros when he turned his attention to the King in the North, Torrhen Stark. Torrhen had marched 30,000 men into the Riverlands to take their stand against the larger force of House Targaryen. But by then, Torrhen knew what Aegon, his sisters, and their dragons could do, both good and bad. The Targaryens had already ended the lines of ancient houses who had not bent the knee while empowering those who had. Aegon bestowed honors on his new allies and spared their people.

Not surprisingly, some northern lords still wanted to fight, even though they must have known on some level they would lose. Instead, the evening before the battle, Torrhen sent his bastard brother and maesters to treat with Aegon.

George R.R. Martin’s Fire & Blood tells us “all through the night messages went back and forth” between the camps. In the morning, Torrhen did not fight as most expected of the northerners. Instead, he knelt as the King of Winter and “rose as Lord of Winterfell and Warden of the North” for King Aegon Targaryen.

Why did Torrhen kneel? Wouldn’t a Stark—-leader of a family that traces its ancient blood back to the First Men, who defended Westeros against the White Walkers long ago, who held firm against the Andals—rather go out on his shield fighting than kneel to a foreign invader?

Those obvious questions have always made Torrhen’s decision seem an easy one to explain. He was a wise ruler who didn’t let his pride get in the way of saving the people he swore to protect. But those obvious questions are also why that explanation has always felt incomplete. Why didn’t Torrhen Stark, at least, offer to fight Aegon Targaryen in single combat? He might have died, but it would have been an honorable death that still kept northerners safe from dragon flame. Without understanding what he was fully saying, on House of the Dragon, Jace provided the reason why.

The prince told Cregan, “Surely the great Torrhen Stark would’ve sooner died than bent the knee. Unless he believed the Conqueror could bring unity to the Seven Kingdoms.” Cregan said that was right, but it’s not completely accurate. Before Aegon no one cared about unifying the Seven Kingdoms, especially the North, which was unlike any other kingdom. Torrhen Stark would not have knelt to Aegon Targaryen in the name of unity.

Not unless he truly knew what Aegon was unifying the Realm against.

Everything House of the Dragon revealed about Torrhen Stark—from why he kneeled to the Night’s Watch sacrifice he began right after he knelt—can be explained by something unsaid in words during that scene yet so obvious when taken as a whole: Aegon Targaryen told Torrhen Stark about his dream.

The Conqueror believed the battle with the White Walkers would begin in the North. He even personally called his prophetic dream “A Song of Ice and Fire.”

Aegon trusted Torrhen with the most important secret in the world because only together, Stark and Targaryen, did the living have a chance against the dead. We know Aegon was right. Jon Snow, the son and rightful heir to the Iron Throne born from the love Rhaegar Targaryen and Lyanna Stark shared, was the only one who could unite the Realm to stand against the White Walkers. Jon Snow’s song, as the prophecy foretold of the Prince That Was Promised did, in fact, promise, was a song of ice and fire.

Did Torrhen tell his own heirs? That seems unlikely based on everything else we know of House Stark, but he didn’t have to. The Starks always knew what was lurking beyond the Wall, which is why Torrhen believed Aegon Targaryen in the first place. It’s why Torrhen started making sure the Night’s Watch had men from his own family who could lead them. It’s why Cregan Stark can’t send all his men to help Rhaenyra Targaryen. Winter has arrived, and that means the Night King might come with it.

Like in season one with Aegon’s Dream, this enormous revelation does more than just connect both shows. It’s also bigger than even the Starks and Targaryens and how important Rhaegar and Lyanna’s love will be one day. Its beauty goes beyond even that of the wondeful symmetry it creates, as King in the North Jon Snow—secretly named Aegon Targaryen—will one day kneel to a Targaryen ruler in the name of uniting the Realm just as Torrhen Stark once did.

This revelation gets to the beating heart of George R.R. Martin’s massive story.

Without this bond between Stark and Targaryen, these houses of ice and fire, death would have done what Aegon and Torrhen both feared. Together, they began crafting the song that would save the world.

Mikey Walsh is a staff writer at Nerdist who got goosebumps during Jace and Cregan’s scene. You can follow him on Twitter and  Bluesky at @burgermike. And also anywhere someone is ranking the Targaryen kings.

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AMC’s Interview with the Vampire serves up lots of Easter eggs for fans of The Vampire Chronicles series by Anne Rice. In episode five of season two, “Don’t Be Afraid, Just Start the Tape,” we get one that’s fairly obscure to even some of the biggest fans of Rice’s novels. In the series, the interview in question is actually a “round two.” Eric Bogosian plays Daniel Molloy, the reporter interviewing the titular vampire, Louis (Jacob Anderson). “Round one” of the interview took place in 1973, just as in the original novel. In episode five, we get a proper flashback to that interview, and the house it takes place in looks exactly like the home that inspired Rice over 50 years ago.

In Anne Rice’s 1976 novel, the vampire Louis gives his interview to an unnamed boy reporter (played by Luke Brandon Field). The interview occurs in a house on Divisadero Street in San Francisco. This is near where New Orleans native Rice was living at the time with her husband, the poet Stan Rice. Louis is said to be looking wistfully out of the window at traffic going by the busy street. A street to this day filled with popular bars and shops of all kinds. Rice chose the 1888 Victorian house because she thought it reflected Louis himself. It was an old-fashioned creation standing among neon signs and modern life, an anachronism blending into the background.

Anne Rice never gave an actual address for the house in the novel, just the street it was on. However, in The Vampire Companion: A Guide to Anne Rice’s Vampire Chronicles by Katherine Ramsland, she finally says where the house she imagined Louis gave the interview was. It was a Victorian home with a stained glass window, on Divisadero not far from Haight Street. The Vampire Companion shows an illustration of the house, but not a photo or an address. But it didn’t take ardent Rice fans long to discover which house it actually was. The Vampire Companion all but drew an “X” as to where it was in fact.

The 1994 film version of Interview with the Vampire still had Louis give the interview in San Francisco. However, it was from an apartment on Market Street instead (which you can see above). The producers of the TV series clearly knew about the house on Divisadero Street which served as inspiration. They either filmed there (unlikely) or created an exterior that matched it. Why is that address important? Given the significance of the Vampire Chronicles series to the LGBTQ community, it matters that Divisadero Street is where Castro Street ends. And Castro Street is one of the original gay neighborhoods in America. So tipping the hat to the house that inspired Anne Rice to imagine a vampire looking out its window? That was a very nice touch.

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Fifty years ago this year, Stephen King published his first novel, Carrie, and American popular fiction was never the same again. In that time, over 60 movies based on King’s work, and almost as many TV series, have come out. Now, we can add another one to that expansive list. MGM+ has announced a series order for The Institute, a drama thriller based on King’s novel from 2019. The series comes from director Jack Bender (Lost) and executive producer and writer Benjamin Cavell (The Stand). Cavell also produced three seasons of Mr. Mercedes, also based on a King novel. The Institute will feature eight episodes, and among the cast are Ben Barnes and Mary-Louise Parker. You can read the official synopsis for The Institute below:

When 12-year-old genius Luke Ellis is kidnapped, he awakens at The Institute, a facility full of children who all got there the same way he did, and who are all possessed of unusual abilities. In a nearby town, haunted former police officer Tim Jamieson has come looking to start a new life, but the peace and quiet won’t last, as his story and Luke’s are destined to collide.

Ben Barnes plays the character of Tim Jamieson, described as “a disillusioned ex-cop who takes a job as the night knocker in a small town, withdrawing from the world.” Luke’s kidnapping gives him something to care about and believe in again, and he finds a new purpose. Mary Louise Parker’s character is Ms. Sigsby, a “charming but iron-willed director of the Institute and a true believer in its awful mission.” Like any good villain, she thinks she’s the actual hero of the story, and that history will vindicate her actions. Production commences for The Institute in Nova Scotia later this year. The series is scheduled to premiere in the latter half of 2025.

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AMC’s Interview with the Vampire series just changed and embellished a major part of the book it’s based on. In episode five of season two, “Don’t Be Afraid, Just Start the Tape,” we get a proper flashback to Daniel’s 1973 interview with Louis in San Francisco. Luke Brandon Field plays Eric Bogosian’s character of reporter Daniel Molly in the flashbacks. Things suddenly go off the rails in this version of the interview, far more than they ever did in Rice’s original novel. Here’s how the Interview with the Vampire series changed and expanded on a major moment in the original novel’s ending.

Please note: The following article contains discussions of sensitive themes.

Anne Rice’s Interview with the Vampire was published in 1976, but she actually wrote it in 1973. This is likely why the series placed Daniel’s original interview in that year. In the novel, we never really know where Louis encountered Daniel, simply called “the Boy” in the book, and agreed to an interview with him. (The name Daniel Molloy is not attributed to him until book three, The Queen of the Damned). The novel starts with the interview already in progress. However, Rice implies that they met at a bar in Interview with the Vampire. The series makes that official, with Daniel agreeing to interview with Louis in a San Francisco pub called Polynesian Mary’s.

This is but a small change, though; the Interview with the Vampire series goes on to alter events from the book much more deeply than this clarification. Before we get into that, though, let’s look at what originally happened.

In the Interview with the Vampire novel, Louis is alone when Daniel interviews him. At the end of the interview, Daniel begs Louis to give the vampire life one more shot, pleading with him to make him into a vampire, and his companion. Louis is disgusted at Daniel’s request, feeling the entire point of his story was lost on him. An enraged Louis then attacks and bites Daniel, yet stops short of killing him. In the novel, Daniel wakes up the next day, grateful for his life but drained of blood. He runs off, interview tapes in tow, looking for Lestat, based on the clues in Louis’ confessions.

Meanwhile, in the 1994 Interview with the Vampire film, Louis attacks Daniel, but doesn’t feed from him. Daniel escapes that very night, and it is Lestat who appears in his car and bites him. The Interview with the Vampire TV series changes the events of that original interview session even more than the movie did.

In the series, we learn that Daniel wasn’t alone with Louis while interviewing him for one night in the early ‘70s. When he asks Louis to make him into a vampire, the vampire flies into a rage just as in the novel. Louis bites him, but this is where things change in the Interview with the Vampire series change drastically from Rice’s prose. The vampire Armand (Assad Zaman) suddenly arrives on the scene, and saves Daniel from Louis’ bloodlust and wrath. Louis then explodes on Armand, partially due to the drugs in Daniel’s system, which he just took into his own body.

Louis proceeds to tell Armand that life with him is boring and dull and colorless, and has been for decades. Armand, meanwhile, is furious at how obvious it is that Louis never got over his maker, Lestat, given how often he mentioned him in the interview. A despondent Louis then leaves the house in the middle of the day, ready to meet the sun and die. He talks about his beloved Claudia calling to him from beyond. The morning sun begins to scald his skin, but Armand rescues him, although he is badly burnt and in agony.

As Louis lies in bed suffering and burnt, windows blocking out sunlight with newspapers, a very angry Armand takes mental control of Daniel’s body, forcing him to recall painful memories he’s pried from his mind, a major change in events from Interview with the Vampire. He keeps him hostage in their home in San Francisco for up to six days. Next to him is the corpse of an unfortunate neighbor Armand killed after he witnessed the events of the morning. Armand feels jealousy toward him, as Louis confessed things to Daniel he never told Armand. Eventually, at Louis’ request, he chooses not to kill Daniel, although that was his original plan. He erases his memory of everything but the interview with Louis, up until the point Louis attacked him.

In the modern day in Dubai, Louis realizes that Armand “edited” his memories of the events as well, making him forget his suicide by sun attempt and the violent argument that preceded it. It’s only in the modern day that both Louis and Daniel realize Armand has been removing their memories to his liking, something that doesn’t sit well with either the vampire or interviewer. What will happen now that both Louis and Daniel know what Armand has done to their minds? We’ll have to wait and see how the rest of Interview with the Vampire season two plays out and how it continues to change or stays to true its original source texts.

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Dune: Part Two proved the excitement around the world of Arakkis and the plight of Paul Atreides is sky-high. The audience is certainly there for at least one more movie. However, in the meantime, you can soon take your own chances in Frank Herbert’s sci-fi universe with Dune: Awakening. The open-world action MMO will let players explore Dune and all its many dangers. Sandworms, yes, but other factions. At Summer Games Fest 2024, we finally got a story trailer for the game, and it gives us a fascinating look at when (and when not) the game takes place.

Just a heads up, the Dune: Awakening trailer has spoilers for some of the later books and potential movies. Watch with caution if that kind of thing puts you off.

The Dune: Awakening trailer gives us narration from Paul himself, some time after the events of the first book/second movie. Paul explains his visions of various timelines where key events of Dune never happened. One vision shows what if his mother Jessica gave birth to a girl, where Dr. Yueh was caught before his treason, where the Atreides don’t die at the hand of the Harkonnens, or if the Emperor and his Sardaukar army took control of spice production on Arrakis. He then explains how his path was the one path that would prevent the utter destruction of the human race, but that in these alternate Dune: Awakening timelines, we, the players, also forge potential timelines toward salvation.

The future is ours to write, and it seems parts of the Dune: Awakening game will take place off of Arrakis and potentially further into Paul’s life. How much jumping back and forth in timelines we’ll get in the game is not clear. What is clear is that all the visuals look very inspired by the Legendary Pictures films. And who wouldn’t want to live in that desert?

Dune Awakening will be released on PS5, PC and Xbox Series X/S.

Editor’s Note: Nerdist is a subsidiary of Legendary Digital Networks

Kyle Anderson is the Senior Editor for Nerdist. He hosts the weekly pop culture deep-dive podcast Laser Focus. You can find his film and TV reviews here. Follow him on Instagram and Letterboxd.

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Get ready to go back into the arena. Suzanne Collins and Scholastic have announced a new Hunger Games prequel book will arrive on shelves next year. And Sunrise on the Reaping will take fans back to a period that impacted the original trilogy. The novel focuses on one of the most consequential battle royales in Panem’s history. It’s set during the Second Quarter Quell, the supersized Hunger Games won by a young Haymitch Abernathy. Here’s what we know about this Haymitch-centric Hunger Games novel coming in 2025.

On March 18, 2025, fans will get a full account of the Fiftieth Hunger Games. That’s one of the most important Games ever. That’s when Haymitch became a victor in name only. The new Hunger Games book, set 24 years before the original novel (and four decades after The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes), will start in the same way. It begins on the morning of the Games’ reaping.

“Suzanne Collins has done it again, bringing us back to the world of Panem in order to ask us important questions about our own world,” said Ellie Berger, President, Scholastic Trade, in the book’s official announcement. “Sunrise on the Reaping is a remarkable book, bringing new complexity, perspective, and revelations to a piece of the Hunger Games story that readers have longed to know more about.”

In the release, Collins shared the inspiration behind her new entry into the Hunger Games world. “With Sunrise on the Reaping, I was inspired by David Hume’s idea of implicit submission and, in his words, ‘the easiness with which the many are governed by the few,'” she said. “The story also lent itself to a deeper dive into the use of propaganda and the power of those who control the narrative. The question ‘Real or not real?’ seems more pressing to me every day.”

There’s no word yet on this new Haymitch Hungers Games book getting its own film. It would be shocking, though, if Lionsgate didn’t ultimately adapt this book as it has Collins’ four previous installments. The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes got its own movie just three years after the book’s release. And this story, which will include Haymitch, should have even more appeal to fans of the original Hunger Games trilogy.

When Will the New Hunger Games Book Sunrise on the Reaping Release?

As mentioned, the new Haymitch-centric Hunger Games book will release on March 18, 2025. Practically just around the corner.

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The latest Star Wars show, The Acolyte, features a new type of character that’s never been shown in a live-action film or television show: a Wookiee Jedi. Fans have loved Wookiees ever since Chewbacca won their hearts in Episode IV: A New Hope, with his skeptical but loyal personality. Now, The Acolyte will expand fans’ horizons about Wookiees and Wookiee culture with the character of Master Kelnacca. Wookiees are already formidable warriors without the Force, making a Wookiee Jedi even more fearsome. Master Kelnacca is the only Wookiee Jedi we’ve seen in live-action. But he is not the only member of his species in the Jedi Order during the High Republic period. In fact, it could be argued that Wookiee Jedi are a staple of the High Republic as a whole. 

The History of the Wookiee Jedi in the High Republic Era

The Acolyte, set during the tail end of the High Republic, takes place a hundred years before The Phantom Menace. In total, the High Republic lasted four hundred years. The Jedi Order was at its most powerful during this period, with scores of Jedi from a diverse array of species scattered in temples across the galaxy. Given how the Jedi Order flourished during the High Republic, it would be strange for there not to be any Wookiee Jedi. 

The High Republic as a time period within Star Wars was first championed by a multimedia publishing initiative that introduced the era’s key players, geopolitics, and more across novels, comics, manga, and audio dramas. It kicked off with Charles Soule’s novel, Light of the Jedi, the cover of which prominently features a Wookiee Jedi named Burryaga. Standing directly behind Master Avar Kriss, the Padawan Burryaga Agaburry (or “Burry” to his friends) fiercely holds his distinctive blue lightsaber, growling at a threat in the distance. 

Burryaga is a beloved member of the Jedi Order because of his selfless and empathetic nature. In fact, Burry has a unique Force power where he can detect emotions with a much greater intensity than other Jedi. This makes him skilled at comforting people in distress, even using the Force to remove some of the emotional burden. He also wields a lightsaber specifically designed for his tall stature, its length nearly as great as a double-bladed lightsaber. The hilt of the saber is made from materials found only on his native planet of Kashyyyk.

The Challenges of Being a Wookiee Jedi

Being a Wookiee within the Jedi Order isn’t without its difficulties though. In Burryaga’s case, he can understand Basic, but he only speaks his native language, Shyriiwook. His master, Nib Assek, is one of the few non-Wookiee Jedi who can speak and understand Shyriiwook fluently. As Light of the Jedi shows, this can be sometimes distressing for Burry. This is particularly true in tense battle situations when he senses vast amounts of fear or danger and can’t convey it easily to other Jedi. 

Master Arkhoff, a Famous Wookiee Jedi in the Star Wars Universe

While Burryaga eventually became a Jedi Knight, there is another, more seasoned Wookiee in the Jedi Order: Master Arkhoff. Master Arkhoff is a wise mentor to many other Jedi, particularly Master Lily Tora-Asi, who was once his apprentice. Briefly appearing in Light of the Jedi, Arkhoff was a principal character in the manga series, The Edge of Balance by Justina Ireland, Shima Shinya, and Mizuki Sakakibara. There, he helped settle refugees on the planet Banchii who were displaced by the Great Hyperspace Disaster. (This took place in Light of the Jedi).

Arkhoff is immediately recognizable thanks to his braided beard. (Or is it facial fur? Do Wookiees even have beards?) His tall stature made him a little intimidating to the younglings at Banchii’s Jedi Temple. Nonetheless, he played a vital role in helping his former Padawan, Lily Tora-Asi, mentor her own Padawan. Unlike Burryaga, Arkhoff worked with Jedi who understood Shyriiwook.   

Master Kelnacca, the Wookiee Jedi in The Acolyte

This leads us now to The Acolyte’s Master Kelnacca. The elusive Jedi Master has hidden himself on the planet of Khofar, known for its thick forests. It has been long established within Star Wars lore that Wookiees prefer wooded environments that resemble their home planet of Kashyyyk. Though we only get a small taste of Kelnacca’s life on Khofar in episode 2 of The Acolyte, we have to assume that the Wookiee was living his best life in seclusion. 

So far, Kelnacca seems to be the only Wookiee Jedi in The Acolyte. Given how instrumental Burryaga in particular was to the very start of the High Republic initiative, it would be a treat to see other Wookiee Jedi in other live-action projects. If we can agree on anything, it’s that the sight of a Wookiee Jedi will always be a winner.

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When the newest Disney+ Star Wars series, The Acolyte, was first announced in 2020, one of the big takeaways from the then-enigmatic project was that it would take place during “the waning days of the High Republic.” The promise of a live-action series brought a new spotlight to the ambitious new multi-media literary effort slated to debut in early 2021. It offered a swath of new Star Wars stories set in an era that was older than the New Republic but newer than the Old Republic. This era is The High Republic.

Over the last several years, the High Republic gained a loyal cult following of Star Wars fans to its pages. The Acolyte will be many fans’ first real experience with the storytelling of this galactic era and some of the unique characters created for it. As such, we’ve decided to offer you a history of the era, as far as we know currently. While each book and story within the High Republic has its share of twists and turns, consider this a broad overview of the main overarching throughline of the High Republic as a collective in anticipation of The Acolyte. For a more in-depth coverage, check out our video timeline.

The High Republic Origins 

The real-world origins of the High Republic began in 2018 under the name Avengers Initiative. Wait, sorry, the All-Star Initiative, and later, Project Luminous. The initial project included five authors: Justina Ireland, Cavan Scott, Claudia Gray, Daniel José Older, and Charles Soule. Each are fan-favorite authors, both within the Star Wars canon and their outside work. They would later add more authors to the mix, like George Mann, Alyssa Wong,  Zoraida Córdova, and Tessa Gratton. 

Starting around 500 years before the first Star Wars movie, or “500 Before the Battle of Yavin,” the High Republic era is one of exploration and expansion. The Galactic Republic has largely recovered from the dark ages following the fall of the Old Republic. Now the Republic is trying to expand out again to the Outer Rim. This is especially true for the region known as the Galactic Frontier. This Frontier is popular among pirates including familiar faces like Maz Kanata. 

This is a golden age for the Jedi. Believing the Sith threat fully defeated generations earlier, the Jedi focus on their mission as the “guardians of peace and justice” as Obi-Wan Kenobi would say. These Jedi often rally around the cry “For Light and Life.” They frequently dress in resplendent gold-on-white temple robes, though Jedi in the field still wear the more familiar brown vibes. 

Story-wise, The High Republic consists of three main phases. We’re going to discuss them in chronological order instead of publishing order. We’ll start with Phase 2, which takes place in 382 BBY, 150 years before the rest of the series. Star Wars was like, “we heard you like prequels so here’s some prequel for your prequel.”

The High Republic Phase 2 – 382 BBY

Phase 2 introduces a few different religious groups with affiliation to the Force, including groups that have appeared in previous Star Wars media. These groups include the Guardians of the Whills and the Church of the Force. We also meet a more fanatical cult known as the Path of the Open Hand. They believe the Jedi and any other Force sensitives who use powers are actively harming the Force. Their belief is basically a hyper-extended version of Chaos Theory. The use of the Force, even innocuously, in one spot could cause catastrophe somewhere else in the universe. Their own catchphrase is “The Force shall be free,” because any good cult should have a motto. 

A good cult needs a false prophet too, and the Path has one in The Mother. Despite the cult’s beliefs, the Mother is secretly a Force-user herself, with a bitter personal grudge against the Jedi. She comes into possession of creatures that feed off of Force users, causing them to have intense, terrifying hallucinations before the creatures devour their essence, leaving a lifeless husk behind. The Mother calls these creatures the Leveler, but the Jedi and later books call them the Nameless. 

The Mother’s powers allow her to pass most charisma checks, causing followers to flock to her, often not knowing why they find her so alluring. The Mother manipulates current events and even tries to sabotage the peace talks of a major generational war between two worlds to destabilize the region and drive more followers to her flock.

One such follower is Marda Ro, a member of refugee alien race the Evereni whom the galaxy at large distrusts. A great storm destroyed the Evereni homeworld, and then a corrupt government left the survivors distrustful of everyone but themselves. Marda is a true believer in the Path of the Open Hand. However, her love for the Jedi Padawan Kevmo Zink tests that faith.

Kevmo and his master are killed by the Nameless. Marda, in her fanaticism, interprets their deaths as an example of the destruction that follows from using the Force. This only strengthens Marda’s devotion to the Path’s cause. She claims they are now the Path of the Closed Fist, a more militant version of the cult. Soon more Jedi arrive at the Path’s homeworld of Dalna after their sabotage of a peace treaty leads to a full-scale riot and battle on the pilgrim’s moon of Jedha. Jedha, of course, is where Jyn Erso later visits in Rogue One. 

The Nameless’ effects on the Jedi, as well as internal tensions within the cult, cause events to escalate into a massacre known as the Night of Sorrow. Marda swears revenge against the Jedi. The Path of the Closed Fist now becomes a gang of marauders called the Nihil. 

Afraid public knowledge of the Nameless could harm the Jedi, Grand Master Yoda and other Jedi keep information about them out of the archives. Over the next few decades the Nameless become something of a Jedi folklore, a nursery rhyme to scare younglings in an era before Anakin Skywalker existed. And we come to the end of Phase 2. 

The High Republic Phase 1 – 232 BBY

A cargo ship known as the Legacy Run travels through hyperspace when a strange shadowy object appears in front of it causing a collision. The impact of the crash sends huge chunks of starship careening through hyperspace. These chunks cause more crashes and destruction along many high-traffic routes. These force ships in the region to drop out of hyperspace lanes and become stranded. This event is known as The Great Hyperspace Disaster.

The pieces of the ship emerging from lightspeed threaten to obliterate a system known as Hetzal, home to over 40 billion people. Every Jedi within reach of the system converges in an attempt to avert the disaster. Their leader in this Avar Kriss, a powerful Jedi who uses her impressive Force abilities to guide this task force to work as a collective unit. 

The Republic’s current Chancellor, Lina Soh, engaged in a series of Great Works projects to present the Republic as a shining symbol of hope. One such project is the Starlight Beacon. This Jedi space station positioned near the Galactic Frontier would serve as the Jedi’s base of operations on the Galactic Frontier. It would allow them to respond to calls for aid sooner than the Temple on Coruscant could provide. As the Hero of Hetzal, Avar Kriss becomes marshal of the station.

In the last 150 years the Nihil have evolved, or devolved, into a marauding group of Viking-like raiders with a prominent storm theme. They are led from the shadows by Marchion Ro, a descendant of Marda, who carries her mission of vengeance with him. At first, the Nihil seem like opportunists, extorting worlds threatened by the emerging starship remnants from the Great Disaster. We later learn that the Nihil caused the explosion to begin with. Marchion sacrifices a third of the Nihil during a space battle against the Jedi and Republic, appearing that they lost.

231 BBY

A year after the Great Hyperspace Disaster, the Republic grows complacent thinking that the threat of the Nihil has gone. Chancellor Soh moves forward with her plans for another of her Great Works, The Republic Fair. This is like a World’s Fair but in Star Wars. 

Shocking probably nobody except the characters in the book, the Nihil attack! A massive coordinated assault by the Nihil informs the Republic that they are indeed still around. The Jedi and Republic begin Operation: Counterstrike, an effort to seek out and destroy the Nihil. In an attack on a Nihil base, the Jedi learn that the marauders have some of the Nameless. One of the creatures kills a Jedi named Loden Greatstorm, reducing him to a Force-drained husk. 

The Jedi mistakenly believe that one of Marchion Ro’s top lieutenants, a Twi’lek woman named Lourna Dee, is the leader of the whole organization. Avar Kriss and her Starlight Beacon Jedi defy the council and send Jedi undercover into Nihil territory to capture Lourna. 

230 BBY

Once again the Jedi and Republic mistakenly believe that they’ve defeated the Nihil. Marchion Ro springs the next phase of his plan. He launches a series of assaults on a number of worlds, creating a refugee crisis at Starlight Beacon. A Nihil sabotage team takes advantage of how overwhelmed the Beacon is and slips through, moving quickly throughout the station causing systemic and structural failures. They also unleash a Nameless into the station to cause havoc among the Jedi onboard. Despite their best efforts, the Jedi are unable to save the station. Starlight crashes onto a nearby world, killing many of the Jedi serving on it. The Republic watches in horror as the crash rips the symbol of the Jedi’s light from the sky. It’s at this time that Marchion Ro finally reveals himself to the galaxy.

The High Republic Phase 3 – 229 BBY

The Nihil have installed a massive barrier in space called the Stormwall. This series of disruptive buoys pull ships out of hyperspace preventing lightspeed travel beyond them. The Nihil have declared a region of the Galactic Frontier to be the Nihil Occlusion Zone. Thus far they have prevented the Jedi and Republic from traveling beyond this border. Avar Kriss finds herself trapped behind it in Nihil-controlled space. After months of isolation, Avar manages to get past the Stormwall and return to the Jedi Temple to report on her time behind enemy lines. 

Phase 3 is still in the middle of publishing, so we don’t fully know how the events will play out beyond this point. We also don’t know how they’ll feed into the story of The Acolyte close to a century later. How much the events of these stories still press on the Jedi will become clear when the series debuts on June 4.

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Warm up your vocal chords and put on your finest pointed hat, because a true legend of Middle-earth is coming to Amazon. Tom Bombadil, one of J.R.R. Tolkien’s strangest, most notorious Lord of the Rings characters, will appear in season two of Prime Video’s The Rings of Power. But we don’t have to wait for the show to return to see him. The studio has already shared its first images of the strange character. Let’s take a look at Tom Bombadil in The Rings of Power.

Tom Bombadil Joins The Rings of Power Season 2

Vanity Fair has the exclusive first look at an almost unrecognizable Rory Kinnear (No Time to Die, Men) as the mysterious Tom Bombadil. (Some fans would say “maddening” over “mysterious.” Others would say “delightful.” He’s a polarizing figure.) This The Lord of the Rings character is well-known to readers of Tolkien’s seminal trilogy. However, in the lead up to his The Rings of Power appearance, Tom Bombadil has been excluded from some of the books’ most famous adaptations. That includes Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings films.

Bombadil, a very ancient being with a fondness for singing who some believe is the living embodiment of nature itself, appears early in The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring. He aids and guides the traveling Hobbits during a time of great danger. However, the long-haired, bearded figure expresses little concern for the outside world. He instead prefers his woodland life free of the worries the living deal with.

Here Are First-Look Images of Tom Bombadil From The Rings of Power

The Rings of Power will introduce Tom Bombadil during an era long before Frodo carried the One Ring. And these first images show that Daniel Weyman’s The Stranger, a wizard (we’d bet a lot of money is definitely Gandalf) will visit Tom on his journey with Nori and Poppy. Why are these two powerful figures meeting? What knowledge does Tom Bombadil have for a member of the Istari? And how will that factor into both season two and Middle-earth’s coming war with Lord Sauron?

Tom Bombadil’s Role in The Rings of Power Season 2

Co-showrunner J.D. Payne offered some insight into Bombadil’s role on the show.

When he finally crosses paths with the Stranger, you could say he has a desire to try to keep the destruction that has happened there from spreading to his beloved lands in the West,” Payne told Vanity Fair. “He nudges the Stranger along his journey, which he knows will eventually protect the larger natural world that he cares about. So I’d say our Tom Bombadil is slightly more interventionist than you see in the books, but only by 5% or 10%.

Does that mean he’ll also sing 5% or 10% less, too? It better not. Fans haven’t waited this long to see Tom Bombadil without also hearing him sing.

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The first two seasons of Interview with the Vampire have, up until now, largely stuck to the events from Anne Rice’s original 1976 novel. But in season two’s third episode, “No Pain,” we go beyond book one at last. Viewers witness a slice of events first described in Rice’s second vampire novel, The Vampire Lestat. These events pertain to Lestat (Sam Reid) and his connection to Armand (Assad Zaman). What we saw on screen was all largely faithful to Lestat’s canonical backstory.

Lestat’s Backstory Finally Explored

In the second novel in Rice’s Vampire Chronicles series, The Vampire Lestat, we finally have a proper telling of Lestat’s origins. He deliberately kept this information from his progeny, Louis and Claudia, in the first novel. In The Vampire Lestat, we learn that Lestat was the young son of a nobleman in 18th-century France. One who had long ago lost his fortune. He runs away with his best friend Nicolas to Paris, where he becomes an actor. A powerful vampire called Magnus becomes enamored with Lestat’s talent on stage and flowing blonde hair. He then makes him a vampire against his will. He also leaves him his fortune, after throwing himself into the fire. Lestat uses that money to buy the theater.

The History of Lestat and Armand Revealed

Eventually, another more ancient vampire starts stalking Lestat. This is Armand, a 300-year-old vampire who leads a coven called the Children of Satan. These vampires dress in filthy rags and live in the catacombs beneath Paris. They believe it is God’s will they serve Satan, and eternally suffer. Thus, Lestat is an outcast for living richly and among mortal humans. Armand kidnaps Lestat’s human companion, Nicolas, as a way to lure him to Cimetière des Innocents. This is a medieval cemetery in Paris where he and his coven reside. Once Lestat enters the coven’s lair, they realize the rules about haunting graveyards and running from crucifixes are just myths, stories perpetuated by Armand to control them all.

Armand then tries to lure Lestat as his companion, feeling he owes him for breaking his coven of their traditions. Although Lestat finds himself intrigued by Armand, he ultimately rejects him. He chooses to leave France to search for older, more powerful immortals. However, Lestat leaves the theater he owns to Armand and his coven, instructing them to use it as their new lair. It was Lestat’s idea they pose as humans pretending to be vampires. That was the untold origin of the Theater of the Vampires from Rice’s first novel, and how Armand came to be in charge of it.

Interview with the Vampire Finally Ventures Beyond Rice’s First Novel

In the third episode of Interview with the Vampire season two, we get our first taste of history first presented in The Vampire Lestat. In the original novel, there is no hint of Lestat and Armand having a past. Or the theater ever belonging to Lestat at all. Rice reveals all of this in book two, along with Armand’s backstory. In “No Pain,” we see Armand’s retelling of events. He explains to the interviewer, Daniel Molloy (Eric Bogosian), how he first met Lestat.

In the series’ continuity, Armand and his coven spy Lestat parading about Paris in fine clothes and feeding upon mortals almost openly. He mentions that Lestat was made by the ancient vampire Magnus, who was an outcast from their coven. This is a minor deviation from the novels. In the books, Magnus was never part of the coven. Instead, he stole the vampiric blood from one of the coven entombed in the ground. Although Lestat leaves the theater to Armand, in the novels, he never performed with their troupe. As theater owner, one can interpret that as the founder. Most importantly, Lestat’s period of origin is 18th century France, which is when he became a vampire in the novels. Interview with the Vampire’s first season changed the events of the novel to the early 20th century.

Is Episode 3 a Hint of Interview with the Vampire Season 3?

All of this indicates that when the producers of Interview get to season three, and focus on the events of The Vampire Lestat, it will likely remain faithful to the book. While a period-accurate version of Interview with the Vampire was made in 1994, Lestat’s backstory was almost totally altered for the 2002 movie Queen of the Damned. The AMC series would be the first screen-accurate adaptation of Rice’s second novel. The book that really turned Lestat into a name brand, and truly got The Vampire Chronicles going.

Although this episode gave us a part of Lestat’s backstory, there is still much left to show. Armand’s full backstory from Renaissance Venice, Lestat’s mother Gabrielle, and the ancient vampire queen Akasha are all a big part of Lestat’s tale. We’re excited for this series to finally get to this part of the story. This is where Rice’s supernatural world really opens up. Although it will be interesting to see how big a role Jacob Anderson’s Louis plays in season three. His character is barely in the second novel. Perhaps he interviews Lestat, who spills the tea on his history to his love at last? We’d honestly be there for that reinvention.

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The newest show in the Star Wars universe, The Acolyte, is nearly upon us. Set during the High Republic, a century before the events of the prequel films, The Acolyte will introduce fans to a new group of Jedi. However, readers of the High Republic novels and comics will see at least one familiar face: Vernestra Rwoh (Rebecca Henderson). This Mirialan Jedi already has a storied history within the High Republic books. So, let’s look at the Star Wars moments that shaped Vernestra Rwoh. 

Which Star Wars High Republic Books Does Vernestra Rwoh Appear In?

Vernestra Rwoh appears in several High Republic books for adults, young adults, and middle-grade readers. She is also in issues 2-5 and 15 of Cavan Scott, Ario Anindito, and Mark Morales’s Star Wars: The High Republic (2021) comic book series published by Marvel. I don’t want to overburden you with every possible detail about Vernestra’s publication history. So I will tell you that the core of her story is told in middle-grade books A Test of Courage by Justina Ireland and Race to Crashpoint Tower by Daniel José Older. We also get her story in YA novels Out of the Shadows by Justina Ireland and Defy the Storm by Justina Ireland and Tessa Gratton.

She also appears in two short stories in the anthology, Tales of Light and Life. It provides connective tissue for Vernestra’s adventures outside the novels. The novels that Vernestra appears in are tied to major events that happen across all of the High Republic books. They all explore the Republic’s biggest battles from different perspectives. 

The History of Vernestra Rwoh

Vernestra, or “Vern” to her closest friends, is an alien of the Mirialan species, originating from the planet of Mirial. Mirialans have a variety of skin tones ranging from green, to yellow, to pink, and blue. Like Vernestra herself, many Mirialans have face tattoos. In The Acolyte, Vernestra sports tattoos on the outer corners of her eyes, as well as an intricate set on her scalp. Her scalp tattoos are a new addition to her character design. All her other appearances in High Republic books show her with her trademark purple hair. The Acolyte takes place a century after the current setting of the High Republic books. So there is probably a good reason for why Vernestra ditched her previous look. 

Among the Jedi, Vernestra is known as a wunderkind. She became a Jedi Knight at the age of fifteen, and took on her first Padawan, Imri Cantaros, at age seventeen. This made Vernestra one of the youngest Jedi Knights in the Order’s history.

Vernestra and Her Relationship With Her Jedi Master, Stellan Gios

The Jedi Master that Vernestra studied under was Stellan Gios, one of the most important Jedi in the High Republic. Stellan, a human, was immediately recognizable from his ornate blue lightsaber with a crossguard on it. His handsome looks made him popular on the holograms. But Master Gios had a reputation for rambling about minute Jedi lore and philosophy. In contrast to his best friend, the renegade Jedi Master Elzar Mann, Stellan was a traditional, by-the-books Jedi. He felt comfortable politicking where others shied away.

Unfortunately, in one of the most heartbreaking twists of the High Republic, Stellan Gios was killed in the destruction of the Republic’s Starlight Beacon base in the Outer Rim (as seen in The Fallen Star by Claudia Gray). He bravely refused to evacuate the base, instead piloting it in his last moments so others could flee. 

While Vernestra was no longer Stellan’s Padawan at the time of his death, his loss was devastating to her. Before his death, she had considered telling him that she had modified her own lightsaber so that she could use it as a light whip by turning a bezel on the hilt of her saber. This was going to be an important moment for her. In fact, she had procrastinated because she was nervous about how her traditional mentor might view such a modification. To make matters worse, in the destruction of Starlight Beacon, Vernestra also lost her Padawan, Imri Cantaros, who was declared missing after the incident. 

Vernestra’s Journey as a Wayseeker

To deal with her grief, Vernestra became a Wayseeker. It is more or less the Jedi Order’s version of a sabbatical. Wayseekers go off on their own to the furthest reaches of the galaxy to meditate and reshape their relationship with the Force. One crucial part about Wayseekers is that they are not beholden to act as ambassadors for the Jedi Council’s policies. As individuals, they can choose to get involved in political conflicts in the Outer Rim, if they believe that the Force wills them to. Vernestra went to the remote planet of Ibbe where she lived peacefully.

Who are Vernestra Rwoh’s Friends?

That is, until her close friend, Avon Starros, arrived to ask her to help her find Imri Cantaros. Avon Starros is part of a larger network of allies that Vernestra has across the galaxy. A brilliant inventor, Avon is the daughter of Ghirra Starros, a senator of the Republic who defected to the villainous pirate group, the Nihil.

Vernestra is friends with another daughter of a Nihil member, Sylvestri Yarrow. Sylvestri’s mother, Chancey Yarrow, was mistakenly killed by Jedi Elzar Mann. This happened during the destruction of Starlight Beacon, as she was trying to prevent the base from crashing. Elzar’s poor judgment directly led to the death of his best friend Stellan Gios, adding an extra layer of tension between Vernestra and him. In the absence of her mentor, Vernestra grew close to Stellan’s other best friend, Jedi Master Avar Kriss. 

In addition, Vernestra has close ties to a member of the prominent and wealthy San Tekka family, Jordanna Sparkburn. The San Tekkas made their money as hyperspace prospectors, essentially seeking out “highways” that could be traveled safely through hyperspace. Vernestra’s connections to the San Tekka family would later elucidate her mysterious Force powers. 

Vernestra’s Powers, Abilities, and Lightsaber, Explained

Vernestra has special Force abilities that allow her to see “lanes” in hyperspace. She can also see visions of events taking place in other parts of the galaxy. Because of this, she can navigate a ship manually while in hyperspace without setting coordinates. In the Out of the Shadows novel, Vernestra had hyperspace visions of a long-lost member of the San Tekka clan, Mari San Tekka, who possessed similar hyperspace abilities.

Through a series of visions, Mari San Tekka instructed Vern on how to use her mysterious Force abilities. This eventually led Vernestra to where the elder San Tekka was held captive by the Nihil. While Stellan Gios had encouraged Vernestra to develop her unique Force abilities, she had been reticent to do so. But after learning from Mari San Tekka, Vernestra became more welcoming of her strange skills. 

As mentioned earlier, Vernestra Rwoh has a unique purple lightsaber in the Star Wars universe. It can transform into a light whip by twisting a bevel on the hilt. Vernestra uses her saber as a light whip particularly when she is fighting in close quarters, or is sustaining intense blaster fire. She can spin the whip at such a velocity that it acts as a shield against blasters. 

Thus far, we have only seen Vernestra Rwoh as a young Jedi Knight in the High Republic books and comics. Considering that she is a Jedi Master in The Acolyte and sporting a whole new look, there is lots more to her story that we haven’t yet seen. Did she ever take on another Padawan after Imri Cantaros? What became of her friendships with Jordanna Sparkburn, Avon Starros, and Sylvestri Yarrow? The Acolyte may not answer all of these questions, but it hopefully will build off of everything we already know about Vernestra Rwoh. 

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Frank Herbert’s Dune features so many characters, groups, and elements that it can be hard to keep track of them all while reading. The world is so dense that when David Lynch’s film adaptation came out in 1984, audiences were actually given terminology cards to help them keep track of what was going on in the movie. As we continue to explore the world of Dune in new movies, series, and more, we are reviewing some key elements you need to know from Dune universe, so you can have a head start on the mythology. In this installment, we’re focusing on the Bene Gesserit.

Who are the Bene Gesserit?

An ancient and powerful order of women. They are able to influence the events of the world as well as people on an individual level. Similar to the Mentats, they arose as a solution to thinking machines and computers after the Butlerian Jihad war.

What do the Bene Gesserit do?

The Bene Gesserit act as overseers of humanity, influencing events so as to protect and keep (relative) peace and stability. They have the unique ability to look back at past generations of Bene Gesserits and learn directly from their history. However, members can only see the memories and actions of female Bene Gesserits; the male history is inaccessible to them.

In order to achieve ultimate peace and stability, the Bene Gesserit have a selective breeding process. Their ultimate goal is to breed a male Bene Gesserit that can unite the warring houses of Atreides and Harkonnen. Their plan is for the daughter of Leto Atreides and nephew of Baron Vladimir Harkonnen–Feyd-Rautha–to breed. Their offspring, a son, would become the Kwisatz Haderach.

Who is the Kwisatz Haderach?

The Kwisatz Haderach is the Bene Gesserit’s “Chosen One.” The Kwisatz Haderach is also known as “one who can be many places at once” and “the Shortening of the Way.” Most importantly, the Kwisatz Haderach is a male heir that could understand higher dimensions unknown to them. Said higher dimensions would include accessing the history of male ancestors, which normal Bene Gesserit members cannot do. In short, they are the only person who can observe and unlock the complete ancestry of the Order. 

According to Lady Jessica, a Bene Gesserit and later on Reverend Mother, the Kwisatz Haderach would also be a super-Mentat. As a super-Mentat, he would also be able to mentally travel through time and space; history and future.

Rankings of the Bene Gesserit

The Bene Gesserit order is mostly women, but some men do occupy important roles. However, they all report to one ultimate leader: the Reverend Mother Superior. With the final word on all major conditions, the Reverend Mother is the prime leader and decision-maker of the order. Multiple Reverend Mothers exist on different planets with different roles in order to maintain the order’s total power. 

In order to become a Reverend Mother, a Bene Gesserit must complete the spice agony: drinking poison. This poison is known as the Water of Life and is derived from drowned sandworms. Bene Gesserits who can change their physiochemistry deftly enough to make the liquid non-toxic are appointed to Reverend Mothers. Lady Jessica, while on Arrakis, passes this test. Those who complete the task are then connected to the consciousness of past Reverend Mothers, who can help advise them.

The spice agony is also common among Arrakis’ indigenous people: the Fremen. Most likely, the Bene Gesserit introduced the ritual to the Fremen to further establish their influence on the desert planet. 

What are the Bene Gesserit’s powers?

From birth, the Bene Gesserit go through a rigorous training that grants them special abilities. They are able to control their physiology, such as regulating their internal processes in order to survive extreme conditions. A Bene Gesserit is also incredibly perceptible, able to detect the ingredients inside food or the materials around them.

Bene Gesserit also have the ability to tell when a person is lying by sensing the emotions behind one’s statement. In turn, they can conceal their emotions—like fear—in order to remain level-headed and neutral in tense situations. They also have the incredible ability to use the Voice, a special intonation that makes people follow their orders. However, it is important to note that the Voice does not work on Bene Gesserits. It can also be resisted by Mentats and other individuals, so it is only used sparingly and if absolutely necessary.

The Bene Gesserit know how to fight, too. They are trained in a special martial arts style known as the weirding way, making them fast and deadly fighters. Bene Gesserit can also control when they have a child and what gender it can be. This, of course, is necessary for the order’s strict breeding system.

What makes the Bene Gesserit so powerful?

The Bene Gesserit’s storied history and abilities make them heavily influential figures in the galaxy. However, they don’t draw attention to themselves so as to further conceal how much influence and power they have.

One specific Bene Gesserit tactic is their development of a special subsection of the order: the Missionaria Protectiva. These sisters were responsible for planting superstition and myths amongst primitative, early civiliazations. By linking the Bene Gesserit to these legends, the order is able to protect themselves and attain power for future generations.

Warner Bros. Pictures / Legendary Pictures

Who are some Bene Gesserit?

Lady Jessica, Paul’s mother, is the most accessible Bene Gesserit in Dune. Through her, we learn the Bene Gesserit’s customs and abilities. We also gain insight into the path of becoming a Reverend Mother, and its demands. Lady Jessica’s interactions with other Reverend Mothers make us privy to the order’s intentions and goals. Without spoiling too much, it’s safe to say Lady Jessica is one of the most important Bene Gesserits you will encounter in Dune.

Another Bene Gesserit is Paul. Lady Jessica trains him in the weirding way and teaches him how to use the Voice. She also teaches Paul the greatest Bene Gesserit tool: dispelling fear. Whenever faced with strife, a Bene Gesserit chants the following statement to themselves:

“I must not fear. Fear is the mind-killer. Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration. I will face my fear. I will permit it to pass over me and through me. And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path. Where the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only I will remain.” 

Paul and Jessica use this chant to calm themselves, alleviate suspicions, and clear their mind for rational decision making.

We’re sure to learn far more about the Bene Gesserit on their upcoming TV series, Dune: Prophecy, which will release this fall.

Originally published on August 6, 2019.

Editor’s Note: Nerdist is a subsidiary of Legendary Digital Networks.

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Every story starts somewhere, and this fall Dune fans will learn where the legend of the Kwisatz Haderach began. At its 2024 Upfront presentation, Warner Bros. Discovery shared the first fantastic teaser trailer for its upcoming prequel series Dune: Prophecy. The studio also announced the six-episode season will debut sometime this fall. But this first-look shows why the legacy of this sisterhood will last much longer.

The onscreen world of Dune is getting even bigger by moving to the small screen. Max’s upcoming spinoff series Dune: Prophecy will take viewers back to the start of a story Denis Villeneuve just explored in two epic Dune movies. Only, unlike his films, the show is not adapting one of Frank Herbert’s books. It’s “inspired by” his son Brian Herbert’s 2012 novel Sisterhood of Dune, which he wrote with Kevin J. Anderson.

When does this prequel take place? Who began the legend that changed the galaxy forever? Why did the Bene Gesserit form in the first place? Here’s the official logline from Warner Bros. Discovery for Dune: Prophecy to bring that teaser trailer into focus:

From the expansive universe of Dune, created by acclaimed author Frank Herbert, and 10,000 years before the ascension of Paul Atreides, Dune: Prophecy follows two Harkonnen sisters as they combat forces that threaten the future of humankind, and establish the fabled sect that will become known as the Bene Gesserit.

The series comes from Max and Legendary Television. Legendary also produced Villeneuve’s films alongside Warner Bros. Discovery. It stars Emily Watson, Olivia Williams, Travis Fimmel, Jodhi May, Mark Strong, Sarah-Sofie Boussnina, Josh Heuston, Chloe Lea, Jade Anouka, Faoileann Cunningham, Edward Davis, Aoife Hinds, Chris Mason, Shalom Brune-Franklin, Jihae, Tabu, Charithra Chandran, Jessica Barden, Emma Canning, and Yerin Ha. 

Showrunner Alison Schapker will also serve as an executive producer. As will Diane Ademu-John, who co-developed the series. Anna Foerster directs multiple episodes, including the premiere. And Herbert and Anderson are also co-producers for the show.

The Bene Gesserit is responsible for the “prophecy” part of Dune: Prophecy. Or at least that’s what we think we know. We’ll find out for sure this fall.

Editor’s Note: Nerdist is a subsidiary of Legendary Digital Networks.

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Prime Video’s The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power will soon reveal its second season to the world. The show takes place in the Second Age of Middle-earth and has familiar characters like Galadriel and Elrond. Sauron is the villain, and there’s no chance of seeing Frodo or Gollum or Aragorn because they aren’t alive yet. And thanks to the era and title, we know that the series will detail the creation of the Rings of Power. But what exactly are the Rings of Power, where did they come from, how many are there, and why are they important?

Here’s everything you need to know about these important rings straight from J.R.R. Tolkien’s books and Peter Jackson’s films. We’re running down the inception of the Rings of Power, their creation, and why they’re so central to the Second Age of Middle-earth.

Where Have We Seen The Lord of the Rings’ Rings Of Power Before?

If you’ve watched Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings film trilogy, then you’re aware of the Rings of Power, even if you don’t remember their exact function. The first movie opens with a prologue—narrated by Galadriel—that sets the stage and also explains a little bit more about each of the rings. While the rest of the movie largely follows only one of the Rings of Power, this early focus reminds us of their importance.

How Many Rings of Power Are There and Who Received Them?

Galadriel’s opening speech in The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring gives us a lot of background about the Rings of Power. It shares the following information:

The world is changed. I feel it in the water, I feel it in the earth, I smell it in the air. Much that once was is lost, for none now live who remember it. It began with the forging of the great rings. Three were given to the Elves, immortal, wisest, and fairest of all beings. Seven to the Dwarf lords, great miners and craftsmen of the mountain halls. And nine, nine rings were gifted to the race of Men, who above all else, desire power. For within these rings was bound the strength and will to govern each race. But they were all of them deceived, for another ring was made.

Galadriel reveals to us that there were nineteen Rings of Power created in total, plus, of course, one more ring of a different sort. We count three Elven rings, seven dwarven rings, and nine rings to the mortal men, addition takes us to nineteen rings. Then, the last line, of course, refers to the One Ring, the one that Frodo carries to Mount Doom to destroy. But where did all these rings come from? For those who may not know, the title of The Lord of the Rings books refers to Sauron, the Lord of the Rings himself. But let’s back up a bit. Why did Sauron even create the rings of power in the first place and what was his master plan? 

Why Were the Rings of Power Created and Who Made Them?

Before Sauron was a great big eye atop a spooky black tower, he was a Maia, one of the primordial spirits of Middle-earth. The Valar, who were gods of Arda (Tolkien’s word for “Earth”), created the Maiar to shape and protect the world. Sauron’s original name was Mairon, and he was known as a great craftsman. But like all good villains, this incorruptible soul was, well… pretty corrupted. Mairon fell under the power of Morgoth—another spiritual being gone bad—and became the Dark Lord Sauron. After Morgoth’s defeat, Sauron became the prime evil of Middle-earth.

Sauron took up residency in Mordor and sat dormant for centuries, hatching a master plan. When he emerged, he assembled an army of Orcs, Trolls, and Men, before setting his eyes on the Elves. Elves were the cleverest of Middle-earth’s creatures and therefore the hardest to thwart, so Sauron had to get crafty. He disguised himself as a fair being called Annatar (Sauron was also a shapeshifter) and befriended the Elf smiths of Eregion, an Elvish realm near Moria. He trained these Elves in magic, then convinced Celebrimbor—a prince and master craftsman descended from one of the earliest and most powerful clans of Elves—to help make the Rings of Power. 

While Celebrimbor and his smiths created rings for the Elves, Sauron forged his own master ring in secret, in the fires of Mount Doom. His ring would control the other rings when worn by the Elves, making Sauron the most powerful being in Middle-earth.

Unluckily for him, the Elves were no fools. As soon as Sauron put on the One Ring, they sensed his treachery. Sauron flew into a fit of rage and demanded they return his gifts. Three rings were successfully hidden, but the others either fell into Sauron’s hands or were lost. He gifted the remainders to the mortals of Middle-earth: the Dwarves and Men. The Dwarves were mostly immune to Sauron’s magic (although their rings did give them a lust for gold), but the Men were susceptible to their corruption. All nine fell to darkness when they put them on, and in turn became the Nazgûl. (Also known as the Ringwraiths, those nasty hooded dudes who hunt Frodo and his Hobbit pals in The Fellowship of the Ring.) 

Sauron now had the Nazgûl as his evil henchmen, but failed to conquer the Elves. Still, his lust for power only grew, and he formed a new plan: to thwart the Men of Númenor. From there, a lot of bad things happened. Bloody wars and new allegiances and the literal reshaping of the world. Sauron was defeated at the end of the Second Age and the One Ring taken from him by a Man called Isildur. Isildur died, the One Ring fell into the hands of Sméagol, Sauron came back into power, and the events of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings then transpired. 

What Kinds of Powers Do the Rings of Power Have?

They are the Rings of Power for a reason… because all of them have distinct powers. The Elvish rings even had names! Because all of the rings were originally intended for the Elves, they in turn gave their mortal wearers extended lifespans. (That’s why Bilbo is able to live past age 111.) 

The Three Elven Rings of Power and Who Wore Them

The Elvish rings are Narya (the Ring of Fire), Nenya (the Ring of Water), and Vilya (the ring of air). Gil-galad (and later Gandalf) wore Narya, Gil-galad and later Elrond wore Vilya, and only Galadriel wore Nenya.

The Dwarven Rings of Power

The rings given to the Dwarves had no real power over them (because Dwarves are among the most stubborn creatures), instead becoming a part of their hoards of gold and jewels. After the Men became Nazgûl, it’s unclear where their rings went, only that they were controlled by Sauron most effectively. 

The One Ring

The One Ring was the most powerful and had all of the abilities of the other Rings of Power. When heated, the One Ring revealed an inscription, which translated to read: One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them, One Ring to bring them all and in the darkness find them. It was eventually destroyed by Gollum when he fell into the fires of Mordor after stealing it from Frodo. The ring’s destruction finally killed Sauron for good. 

The Rings of Power in the Television Series

The Amazon series will likely depict most of the events we just went through, from Annatar’s deception of the Elf smiths right up to Sauron’s initial defeat by Elendil at the end of the Second Age. But just how the events play out is still a mystery. We know the show’s creators are condensing the timeline so that characters like Celebrimbor and Elendil are alive at the same time. This makes narrative sense for a TV show, but it does make us wonder what other liberties they’ll take. For now, we know that the three elven rings have been forged and, of course, there will be more rings to come.

Will the story of the Rings of Power play out exactly as it does in the appendices of The Lord of the Rings, or are we in for more surprises? We’ll find out when The Rings of Power season two returns to Prime Video on August 29.

Originally published on August 8, 2022.

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If you’ve played Stardew Valley, you know how big an element food plays in the game. You grow it on your farm, you forage for it, you fish for it. Then you craft meals and use them to win the hearts of your fellow Pelican Town villagers. Or maybe you keep those meals for yourselves to provide plenty of energy for long expeditions in the mines. Whatever your motivation for learning recipes in the game, you don’t need any reason to prepare them in real life besides the fact that you want to. The Official Stardew Valley Cookbook by game creator Eric “ConcernedApe” Barone and Ryan Novak gives you all the reasons you need to pretend to be The Queen of Sauce. You can get started now because we have your exclusive look at recipes for the Strange Bun and Void Mayonnaise.

The Stardew Valley cookbook follows the seasonal vibes of the popular video game. Recipes are divided by the time of year and taken from the in-game meals and food. This cookbook is more than only recipes, though. You get photographs, original illustrations, and lots of little character notes. For this Stardew Valley enthusiast who has put hundreds of hours into different farms, it’s delightful.

You can get a taste of the illustrations and photographs in The Official Stardew Valley Cookbook in these Strange Bun and Void Mayonnaise recipe pages. We know almost no characters like these items in the game, but out of the game? Both recipes sound delicious.

Click To View Gallery

And here are the recipes:

Strange Bun and Void Mayonnaise

LOBSTER IN A SOFT BUN WITH A GARLIC MAYONNAISE DIP

From the Kitchen of: Shane

Yield: Makes 6 Buns

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 cup (120 ml) WHOLE MILK

1 2/3 cups (230 g) plus 3 tablespoons BREAD FLOUR

3 tablespoons UNSALTED BUTTER, at room temperature, plus more for greasing

3 tablespoons MALTED MILK POWDER

2 tablespoons packed DARK BROWN SUGAR

KOSHER SALT

1 (1/4-oz; 7 g) packet INSTANT YEAST

1/2 cup (120 ml) BUTTERMILK, at room temperature

2 LARGE EGGS, at room temperature

1 cup (140 g) ALL-PURPOSE FLOUR

2 whole LOBSTERS (about 1 1/2 lb; 680 g each)

1/2 cup (l stick; 110 g) SALTED BUTTER

FRESHLY GROUND BLACK PEPPER

6 large SAGE LEAVES, thinly sliced

2 teaspoons finely grated LEMON ZEST

2 GARLIC CLOVES, finely grated

VOID MAYONNAISE, for serving (recipe follows)

Special Equipment:

6-cup JUMBO MUFFIN TIN and 6 (6-inch; 15 cm) WOODEN SKEWERS

In a medium saucepan, whisk together the whole milk and 3 tablespoons of the bread flour until smooth. Place the saucepan over low heat and cook the mixture, whisking constantly, until thick and like cake batter, 7 to 9 minutes. Transfer the milk mixture to a small bowl and let cool until just barely warm to the touch, 5 to 10 minutes.

Lightly grease a large bowl with a little butter.

In another large bowl, whisk together the malted milk powder, brown sugar, 2 teaspoons salt, the yeast, buttermilk, and 1 egg until well combined. Add the remaining 1 2/3 cups (230 g) bread flour, the all-purpose flour, and the milk mixture. Use a rubber spatula to stir the ingredients together until mostly combined and resembling a very shaggy dough. (There will still be a good amount of flour at the bottom of the bowl, and that is okay as long as the mixture is no longer wet.) Using your hands, continue to mix until you have a fairly smooth dough. Add the 3 tablespoons butter, 1 tablespoon at a time, using your hands to work the butter into the dough before adding more. Every time you add more butter, the dough will start to feel greasier, but that is okay. Use one hand to knead the dough while you use your other hand to hold down the bowl. Use the rubber spatula to scrape down the sticky side of the bowl as needed. Continue kneading the dough in the bowl until it is no longer wet and sticky, 3 to 5 minutes.

Turn out the dough onto a clean flat surface and continue kneading (now with both hands) until smooth and elastic, 5 to 7 minutes. Shape the dough into a ball, place it in the greased bowl, and turn to coat with the grease. Cover the bowl and let the dough rest at room temperature until puffed to almost double its size, about 2 hours.

Lightly grease the cups of a 6-cup large-cup muffin tin.

Deflate the dough and gently press it into a rectangle (the size really doesn’t matter). Divide the dough into 6 equal pieces. Use your hands to roll each piece into a 16-inch (40 cm) rope about 1/2 inch (1.3 cm) thick.

Starting at one end, roll each rope into a semi-conical spiral shape with a larger base and 2 coils that get slightly smaller as you work upward. The second coil will be almost the same size as the base, but the third coil on the top will be much smaller than the first two. Tuck the second end of the dough into the top of the bun and place the buns into the muffin cups as you form them. Nudge a 6-inch (15 cm) wooden skewer pointed side up into the very center of each bun.

Let the buns rest, uncovered, at room temperature until puffy and squishy like jumbo marshmallows, about 1 hour. The fully puffed buns should fill most of the muffin cups. After they puff up, the buns might end up leaning over. Use the wooden skewers to gently lift the buns and coax them so they sit straight again. Don’t be concerned if they are not perfect; the imperfection will add to the “strangeness” of the buns.

About 40 minutes into the buns’ second proof, preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).

In a small bowl, whisk together the remaining egg and a splash of water. Brush the egg wash lightly onto the risen buns. Bake the buns until golden brown all over and the dough is cooked through, about 30 minutes, rotating the baking sheet once after 20 minutes. Transfer the buns from the muffin cups to a wire rack to cool completely.

Remove the wooden skewers and use a small paring knife to make a roughly 2-inch (5 cm) opening at the top of each bun, then use your fingers to carefully hollow out the buns, leaving a 1/2-inch (1.3 cm) wall on the sides and bottom. (Save the bun tops and any extra pieces to make fresh bread crumbs, if desired.) Loosely cover the buns.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over medium-high heat. Fill an extra-large bowl with ice water and season it generously with salt.

Add the lobsters to the pot, cover with a lid, and boil until the shells are bright red and the meat is cooked through, 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer the lobsters directly to the ice bath to cool.

Pat the lobsters dry with a kitchen towel. Remove the meat from the claws, tails, and legs and roughly chop into bite-size chunks; you should have about 2 1/2 cups (340 g). Chill the lobster meat.

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt the salted butter. Add several large grinds of black pepper and continue to cook, stirring frequently, until light brown specks start to form and the butter smells nutty, 7 to 10 minutes. Turn off the heat, add the sage, lemon zest, and grated garlic, and warm for 1 minute in the residual heat. (Be careful during this step because the mixture will get quite foamy and might sputter.) Add the lobster and stir to combine in the warm butter sauce. Season with additional salt and pepper, if needed.

Divide the lobster mixture among the 6 hollowed-out buns. Drizzle any extra butter sauce over the lobster and serve immediately, accompanied by the mayonnaise.

VOID MAYONNAISE

Makes 1 scant cup (190 g)

5 black garlic cloves

1/4 teaspoon food-grade finely ground activated charcoal powder

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1 large egg yolk, at room temperature

2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

Kosher salt

3/4 cup (175 ml) neutral oil, such as light olive oil

Use the back of a large kitchen knife to smash the garlic until it forms a paste (about 2 teaspoons). Transfer to a small bowl.

In a medium bowl, combine the activated charcoal and 2 teaspoons of the lemon juice. Whisk until the charcoal is dissolved. Add the egg yolk, Dijon mustard, and a large pinch of salt, and whisk again until smooth.

Very slowly, begin to drizzle the oil into the bowl with the egg mixture, whisking constantly and vigorously. At the beginning, you want to add the oil nearly drop by drop to form an emulsion. Make sure any oil you add is incorporated into the egg mixture before adding more.

When you have added nearly half the oil, increase the speed at which you add the oil but still add it slowly and continue to whisk constantly and vigorously. At this point, your arm will be tired, but muster your strength and persevere (or ask a friend to help out).

When the mixture is thick and creamy, add the remaining 1 teaspoon lemon juice, a small splash of water, and the black garlic paste. Whisk until smooth. If the mayonnaise is super thick, whisk in additional water, a small splash at a time, until you reach your desired consistency. Season to taste with additional salt, if needed.

Reprinted from The Official Stardew Valley Cookbook by ConcernedApe and Ryan Novak. © 2024 by ConcernedApe LLC. Published by Random House Worlds, an imprint of Random House, a division of Penguin Random House LLC.

The Official Stardew Valley Cookbook arrives on May 14. You can place a pre-order now.

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Keefe Sencen is a key character in Shannon Messenger’s Keeper of the Lost Cities series. Since the first book in the fantasy series released in 2012, his character has taken all kinds of delicious twists and turns. From devil-may-care troublemaker to serious spy, Keefe always surprises. We’ll learn a lot more about the Keefster in the next book in the Keeper of the Lost Cities, Unraveled. This is book 9.5, a full-length novel that bridges what happened in Stellarlune (book 9) and what will happen in book 10 of the series. It’s told from Keefe’s point of view, and appropriately, Keefe takes center stage on the cover. Take a look at the cover of Unraveled, Keeper of the Lost Cities book 9.5.

Jason Chan’s art sets the tone for the book, but don’t take it from me. Shannon Messenger tells Nerdist, “Since this is book 9.5 in the series, and written in a new character’s POV, we wanted a cover that matched the others—but also made it clear this book is a little bit different. So there’s no Sophie this time (gasp!) and we went with a human city for the setting, because Unraveled is all about Keefe’s adventures in the human world. I love how the final art captures both the scene and the mood of the story—and how could I not adore a cover that’s totally Keefe! Keefe! Keefe! Jason Chan never ceases to amaze me with how perfectly he draws my characters and his absolutely breathtaking imagery.”

I don’t know if we’re ready for all the antics Keefe will run into as he tries to navigate the world of humans. But if there’s one thing we can say about Keefe, it’s that he’s always trying his best. We can’t wait to spend time with his perspective. He’s been through a lot, but Keefe usually manages to be entertaining in spite of it.

The description for Unraveled states:

Please be careful. Please be happy. And PLEASE forget all about me. It’ll be better for everyone that way.

Those were the last words Keefe Sencen wrote to Sophie Foster before he ran away to the Forbidden Cities. He didn’t want to leave, but it was the only way to keep his friends safe while he figured out how to control his scary new powers and searched for answers about his past.

What he found was so much more than adventures in Humanland.

Where did he go? What did he do? And who did he meet while the rest of his friends worked to solve the mystery of Stellarlune? The answers go far beyond anything anyone could have ever imagined, and give Keefe the power to change his destiny.

Oh boy, Humanland. While I will miss the Lost Cities, I’m curious to spend more time in the world I know. Unraveled, Keeper of the Lost Cities book 9.5, will arrive on November 12, 2024. It can’t get here fast enough. You can place a pre-order now.

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One of the most celebrated science fiction novels of all time is soon becoming a series for Apple TV+. Neuromancer, based on the iconic novel by William Gibson, will become a 10-episode series for the streamer. Many credit the 1984 novel for creating the cyberpunk genre. Others even cite the novel for coming up with the term “cyberspace” in the first place. Forty years later, it is finally getting a proper adaptation. This series comes from creators Graham Roland (Jack Ryan) and J.D. Dillard, with Roland serving as showrunner and Dillard directing the pilot episode. Additionally, per Deadline, Masters of Air‘s Callum Turner has joined the cast as the series’ lead, Case.

According to the official series description, the story follows a damaged, top-rung super-hacker named Henry Case, who, as mentioned, will be played by Callum Turner. He finds himself in a web of digital espionage and high-stakes crime with his partner Molly. A razor-girl assassin with mirrored eyes, Molly aims to pull a heist on a corporate dynasty with many untold secrets. Case soon comes in contact with a powerful A.I., decades before that term was in common use. Gibson followed up the original novel with two more in what he called “the Sprawl trilogy,” Count Zero and Mona Lisa Overdrive. It’s unknown if these 10 episodes serve as a self-contained season, or if the other books are part of this adaptation as well.

Neuromancer is famously the only sci-fi novel to win the Nebula Award, the Philip K. Dick Award, and the Hugo Award for an original paperback novel. Its influence is huge, and many have noticed its fingerprints on the themes and storylines of The Matrix. It’s the latest celebrated science fiction novel to receive the big-budget treatment as a series from AppleTV+, along with Isaac Asimov’s Foundation. No word yet on who will star in Neuromancer, or even when filming commences, but don’t expect to see the series on AppleTV+ before 2025.

Originally published on February 28, 2024.

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Get ready The Lord of the Rings fans; it’s time to pack your bags for the UK. (Unless you already happen to live there.) Because a The Lord of the Rings musical is heading to the stage of The Watermill Theatre. And, in even more exciting news, this The Lord of the Rings musical has immersive portions. Even more exciting than that, the musical will take place in a gorgeous, open-air setting. That makes it absolutely perfect for the content and our current life and times.

Update: The Lord of the Rings musical is coming to the US in July 2024. According to Deadline, performances will be at The Yard at Chicago Shakespeare Theater from July 19 through September 1. It is not clear when tickets will go on sale but this run will precede an international tour for The Lord of the Rings fans to enjoy worldwide.

Previous: Here’s what we know about this The Lord of the Rings musical so far.

The official description of the musical reveals more about what we can expect. It notes:

Venture into the otherworldly depths of Middle-earth with a brand-new intimate production based on the classic trilogy The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien featuring the music of A.R. Rahman (Bombay Dreams, Slumdog Millionaire), Värttinä and Tony Award winner and Grammy nominated Christopher Nightingale (Matilda the Musical).

As the Hobbits celebrate Bilbo Baggins’ eleventy-first birthday, he gifts his nephew Frodo his inheritance – including his most precious belonging – a gold ring. Little does he know that his legacy will confront Frodo with an immense and impossible task; a perilous journey across the darkest realms of Mordor to foil the Dark Lord’s quest for total dominion.

Bursting out of the theatre and into the Watermill gardens, be immersed in the magical landscape of Tolkien and join an ensemble cast and large-scale puppets on an epic journey celebrating the power of friendship and common goodness to conquer unimaginable evil.

Okay, basically, we feel obsessed with this The Lord of the Rings musical. And we have always wanted to attend Bilbo Baggins’ eleventy-first birthday. ”We’re going to give audiences a very visceral experience in that they’ll be arriving into The Shire” for Bilbo Baggins’ ‘eleventy first’ [111st] birthday ‘on our lawn,'” Paul Hart, Watermill’s artistic director, tells Deadline. Hart promises immersive portions of The Lord of the Rings musical at the beginning and the end of the show. And the whole musical will have the backdrop of the River Lambourn, giving a very Middle-earth feel to the production.

Tickets for The Lord of the Rings musical go on sale for theater supporters on March 15. Email subscribers will have the ability to purchase on March 21. And the general sale begins on March 22. If you’ve ever wanted to go to Middle-earth, this is your chance. But if you can’t make it to the UK, content yourself with magical screenings of Return of the King in theaters instead.

Originally published March 3, 2023.

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If the Roman Empire had continued its reign, what would the world be like? Sophie Burnham aims to explore that question in their debut novel, Sargassa. Set in an alternate North America called Roma Sargassa, where the Roman Empire never fell, this novel tells a tale full of political intrigue, queer romance, and revolution. The first in the Ex Romana trilogy of speculative fiction, Saragassa weaves together a rich and compelling story about an unlikely group of protagonists who are ready to burn down an empire. In celebration of the thrilling novel, which had us at the edge of our seats after only one chapter, Nerdist is delighted to exclusively reveal Sargassa‘s cover and an excerpt from the novel.

Take a look at Sargassa‘s stunning cover below.

Sargassa‘s Cover Reveal and Synopsis

Sargassa‘s cover aret s by Rebecca Yanovskaya and its cover design is by Adam Auerbach. The Sargassa cover art reveals its main character Selah Kleios, gorgeously drenched in gold. But just who is Selah Kelios? She looks like she’s firmly standing her gilded ground. Well, the Sargassa‘s synopsis sheds light on its intriguing cover image and its central protagonist.

Selah Kleios is twenty-two years old and suddenly one of the most important women in the empires. The role of Imperial Historian is her birthright, something she’s been preparing for since birth–but she was supposed to have more time to learn the role from her father, the previous Historian. In the wake of her father’s sudden and shocking assassination, Selah finds herself custodian of more than just the Imperial Archives, the towering central library that safeguards all collective knowledge of the Roman Imperium and its client empires. There’s also the question of the two puzzling classified items her father left in her care—an ancient atlas filled with landscapes that don’t exist, and a carved piece of stone that seems to do nothing at all.

“A carved piece of stone that seems to do nothing at all.” We bet that’s the most powerful piece of stone in the entire empire. And the rest of Sargassa‘s synopsis lets us know we’re onto something. It notes:

Soon, though, it becomes clear that the Iveroa Stone is more than just a slab of rock. With the reappearance of an old lost love who’s been blackmailed into stealing it for an unknown entity, Selah finds herself in a race to uncover the mysteries the Stone holds. But she isn’t the only one with an interest in it—she’ll have to contend with the deputy chief of police, an undercover spy, and her own beloved half brother along the way. What begins as an act of atonement and devotion ultimately pulls her into the crosshairs of deep state conspiracy, the stirrings of an underground independence movement, and questions that threaten to shake the foundational legitimacy of Roma Sargassa’s past, present, and future.

A release further notes that “This novel is told from multiple POVs: a young heiress, an undercover spy, a bastard brother and a fugitive with history with all three, Sargassa is equal parts political intrigue, queer romance, and revolution.” What we think we hear sounds a lot like queer found family, one of our favorite things. We also can’t wait to see how all these characters, motivations, and secrets come together into one mesmerizing tale.

An Exclusive Excerpt from Sargassa

To get you even more excited about Sargassa, Nerdist also feels thrilled to share an exclusive excerpt from the novel. This excerpt, which comes from chapter two of the book, gives a taste of Burnham’s lush writing. This tease of Saragassa‘s narrative is filled with evocative descriptions, captivating world-building, and characters that leap off the page, even in only a few short pages. In this snippet, we enter the universe through the perspective of Theo, one of the novel’s many queer protagonists. And let me tell you, I feel like I know (and love) Theo already.

This Saragassa excerpt also gives a taste of just how chilling it can feel to exist in the world of this story. But we must warn you, this quick journey into Sargassa ends on something of a cliffhanger. And you’ll be asking for the rest, stat.

Sargassa will release on October 8, 2024, but you can pre-order the book today. (Amazon link) In the meantime, keep up with author Sophie Burnham on Twitter @sophielburnham. Burnham is a queer nonbinary novelist and screenwriter. As mentioned, Sargassa is their debut novel.

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You’d be hard pressed to find a nerd who doesn’t enjoy at least one sweeping space saga. Some of us are devotees to The Doctor and the TARDIS, a cosmic joyride that can take us (almost) anywhere in space and time. Others pledge their allegiance to the Rebel Alliance and its ongoing drama in a galaxy far, far away. Exploring the final frontier in warp drive is also quite the epic adventure, too. Watching these expansive worlds in live-action is fantastic but there’s something special about a sci-fi/fantasy story in print. That anticipation of flipping to the next page and watching a universe slowly unfold sparks supreme joy, especially when the narrative hits several checkpoints that separate it from typical mainstream fare. That’s what Esmie Jikiemi-Pearson’s The Principle of Moments, the first book in her Order of Legends trilogy, does with ample heart. 

This book has a little something for everyone: a Regency-era queer romance, time traveling, an evil emperor to overthrow, and an unfolding prophecy, among other things. Better yet, the characters are culturally diverse and fuel this high-octane story with their distinct personas. Here’s a quick synopsis:

A century-spanning space fantasy novel that will take you on a whirlwind adventure, from a Regency Era love affair between a time-traveller and the prince waiting for him in the past, to a rescue mission in the 60th century, where a girl desperately races against time as she searches for the sister the emperor stole.

Nerdist caught up with Sunday Times Bestselling author to chat about this epic space opera, her recent Doctor Who novelization, and how fanfiction laid the foundation for her creative journey. 

Nerdist: What was your relationship with sci-fi and fantasy like during your childhood? 

Esmie Jikiemi-Pearson: I was always the biggest sci-fi and fantasy fan… I was actually born in Australia. And there was not that much fantasy and sci-fi TV. There wasn’t much TV at all. We had about five channels. So when I was growing up, I read a lot of books because Australia had a really amazing literary scene there, especially for children… My gateway into sci-fi was the book series called Animorphs by K.A. Applegate. And they’re the weirdest books ever! 

Animorphs is awesome! 

Jikiemi-Pearson: They’re amazing! And I’m so passionate about them.. those books were all about alien battles and aliens invading Earth and kids having to step up and become heroes. Something about that just engaged me from a really young age. 

The other big thing for me was Star Wars. My mum’s a huge Star Wars fan and she said when she was pregnant with me, she would watch the movies on repeat. I like to think that it somehow filtered through and turned me into a sci-fi baby. I love everything Star Wars…

When I came to the UK, I was about 10 years old. I started watching Doctor Who because it was on BBC iPlayer. I remember I was struggling to make friends and stuff in the UK. On the weekends and after school, my sister and I would watch Doctor Who, and we were obsessed with it. It was like nothing we’d ever seen before. In a big way, Doctor Who really got me into sci-fi and fantasy. I was into Harry Potter as well, but then I started reading a lot of Harry Potter fanfiction. And that was, again, a huge fantasy work… Those were my big influences and the things that really got me hooked.

Those are some heavy hitters! I especially love, and already knew, that you’re a Doctor Who fan like me. What was it specifically about that show that drew you? 

Jikiemi-Pearson: I think because I came to it as a child, it really appealed to my sense of wonder. It felt very much like an adult show with adult characters that doesn’t take itself seriously… except for when it does, and then you are crying and your heart’s broken! I love [the show] strikes that balance while retaining a sense of joy without ever feeling patronizing or like it is dumbing down any of the themes.

As a kid, it felt like I’d been let into the cool club of adult stuff, whilst also nurturing the most creative parts of me. I appreciated Doctor Who’s love ethos and the positive messages that it prides itself on. 

When I was watching it, I totally latched onto Martha as a companion. I was mesmerized by her. I remember when she was introduced and her first episode, the one with the hospital…

Yes, “Smith and Jones!” I love Martha.

Jikiemi-Pearson: Yes! I wasn’t fully aware of the idea of companions at that point. It was like, “Oh, yeah. Sometimes people come along for the ride.” I didn’t realize in that episode that Martha was being set up as a companion. I thought she was just going to be in that one episode… When I got towards the end, I was like, “Oh my God, I think she’s going to travel with The Doctor!” 

I was absolutely just overjoyed. And I remember watching their seasons and being a bit in love with her, really, because she was just so clever and funny. And she wasn’t afraid to put the Doctor in his place at all! I loved that… it was obviously amazing to see a strong, intelligent, funny Black woman in this show that I just absolutely adored. So, she was probably a bit of a role model to me as well.

She brought something to the partnership, because she’s obviously a fully qualified as a doctor. So, she had that pragmatic way about her. As an eldest child, I appreciate that pragmatism and the logic

I love that and I definitely share those same sentiments. When I started watching, I liked Rose well enough but once Martha came on board, I was like, “Okayyyy…”

Jikiemi-Pearson: …I can rock with this!

Yes, I can rock with this show! So, you mentioned that you were into reading fanfiction. Was writing fanfiction a part of your path towards becoming a novelist? 

Jikiemi-Pearson: Yeah, I did write fan fiction! My first full fanfiction was The Maze Runner fan fiction, which is the most random thing. I thought The Maze Runner was so cool at the time. It was mainly marketed as being the answer to The Hunger Games but for boys, so I wanted to be super cool as a girl. I also had a crush on Dylan O’Brien, as did many people, so I wasn’t unique there. I also wrote a little bit of Harry Potter fanfiction.

It was that sense of play with writing that was kind of like, “I’m just doing this for me, it’s not for anyone else. It’s not supposed to be this mega prestigious thing. It’s just like what makes me laugh? What makes me emotional? What do I want to explore within the existing themes of a work that I’ve really enjoyed?”

And how did that experience inform your original work, like The Principles of Moments?

Jikiemi-Pearson: It gave me the courage to explore themes that I find interesting, rather than trying to appeal to a historically white audience or a historically heteronormative audience. With fan fiction, there’s no limits, there’s no rules. It’s a bit of a free for all. And that’s very much how I approached writing The Principle of Moments. I’ve never thought of it like this, but you could call The Principle of Moments fanfiction of the sci-fi fantasy genre and fan fiction of the Regency genre. It takes all of the existing tropes and settings and character archetypes that we know and love. And then I just brought myself to it. I showed up and was like, “These are the things that I would do, that I would change. These are the kind of alternate universes that I would want to explore.”

That’s such a wonderful way to approach a story! Besides Doctor Who, what were some other influences on The Principle of Moments‘ settings and storylines? 

Jikiemi-Pearson: It’s definitely inspired by Star Wars, too. Especially things like Finn’s character. I felt like it was a missed opportunity in many ways… he actually had a great motivation for wanting to overthrow the Empire because he’s part of this abused underclass of stormtroopers who have no other way of life. I thought that was so compelling and something that just wasn’t touched upon enough. So I was interested in digging into that. 

At university, I studied classical civilization, a lot of Greek and Roman stuff. The Iliad, The Odyssey, Greek Ancient history, basically. The story beats of mythical myths, legends, and origin stories of heroes definitely influenced my work in a big way. So much of The Principle of Moments is about understanding what makes a hero and really interrogating the Chosen One trope. Sometimes I feel like we take it too lightly. 

It’s like, “Okay. There’s a prophecy and you’re the Chosen One.” And I remember as a kid, I was always like, “But, do you not think that would be scary?” Imagine if that happened to you, if you were suddenly in charge of saving the world. And then add the layer where you’re in charge of saving the world, but the world hasn’t treated you very kindly. How do you then feel about that?

That’s a good point, especially for people from marginalized groups. Why would we want to save the world?

Jikiemi-Pearson: Yeah. Exactly. And I think that’s definitely a question that’s been persistently on my mind, just as I’ve always been watching fantasy and sci-fi that has particularly had white protagonists, because it’s kind of like, “Of course they would want to save the world.”

Very true. Let’s go back into Doctor Who for a moment. You mentioned writing for Doctor Who and I love your novelization of “The Church on Ruby Road.” It’s such a fun and full circle moment for you as a fan. How did you land that opportunity and what was the collaborative process like? 

Jikiemi-Pearson: …I don’t know how I was put onto the radar of the BBC or Doctor Who as a whole. [The Principle of Moments] was announced in March of 2021, and that was prior to Ncuti Gatwa being cast as Doctor Who publicly. But, I think that when I announced my book, he had already potentially been cast, or they were in talks to cast him. My book deal was a big announcement within the sci-fi and fantasy community, especially among Black writers. It must’ve caught someone’s eye because it’s kind of similar to what Doctor Who was planning [with a Black Doctor] behind the scenes.

…I think the BBC was looking for people with newer perspectives, different perspectives. I believe I am the first Black person to write a novelization, which feels absolutely insane. Not to be naive, but I felt like we were almost over the thing of “the first Black person to do something.” We’re definitely not… I was happy to lend my voice and my writing to Doctor Who, because I’ve proved it can be done. 

I found the process such a joy and so fulfilling and welcoming. Everyone was so welcoming that I was like, “This is a fantastic opportunity. I really, really hope that more women, more women of color get to experience, and more black men get to write for Doctor Who!” 

I love that. Do you have any upcoming ventures that you can share with us?

Jikiemi-Pearson: Well, first of all, I need to finish this trilogy. I’m on deadline for the second book, and it’s kind of murdering me, but I want it to be done. I owe these characters a solid run in these three books. If I can finish these books to a high standard, no matter what turns my career takes, I’ll always be so proud to have produced a very solid, entertaining sci-fi fantasy saga, starring Black and gay characters. For that to exist on shelves, that will always probably be one of my biggest accomplishments…

The other thing that I’m really excited about is my next book, which is a little bit more literary sci-fi. I want it to be like if Emily St. John Mandel really wrote a romance story. I love her work, and I find it so eerie and spooky. I love how she deals with speculative elements in that sense. So, I want to write a romance. And then, I also have a fantasy book planned, which is about a young black girl who is working as a scullery maid in this very big English mansion in a magical society.

She basically gets an invitation letter to join the upcoming class at a prestigious witch university. I want to do a deep dive into what it’s like to be Black at a predominantly white institution, what it’s like to be navigating class, and almost like the different language that you have to then switch into when you’re in such an alien environment. And doing all of that with magic… Hopefully in a year you’ll be hearing me saying, “I’ve got a book deal. It’s going to be on a bookshelf.” 

That’s so exciting! I have a fun final question for you. If you could fancast your top three characters from The Principles of Moments, who would you choose to play the live-action versions of them?

Jikiemi-Pearson: I was thinking about this last night! These are the ones that have the clearest ideas of. So, Nicholas Galitzine would play the love interest, the British prince who’s very angsty and depressed and who goes on a mission with his boyfriend Obi’s dad. I’ve always fan-casted Obi’s dad Alaric as Idris Elba. I think those two would capture that awkwardness and the comedy quite well.

The actor of Obi would be… well, he’s a model. Mukasa Kakonge. He is just gorgeous and has a really nice smile, but he can also look quite mysterious and brooding. So, I think that’s perfect for Obi. Yeah. So those are my top three fan casts at the moment.

…For my female main character, Asha, honestly, I mourn the lack of diversity among young, Black female actresses. The only actress that I can think of that looks like Asha is too old to play her. I was talking to someone recently and they said they could see Ayo Edebiri playing her, which I thought was so fun. I know there are a lot of black actresses, but for some reason, Ayo is the only actress that I actually feel represented by, because she’s a bit awkward.

Those are some great answers! Here’s to hoping it happens one day!

Jikiemi-Pearson: That would be the dream!

Check out Esmie Jikiemi-Pearson’s The Principle of Moments novel and her Doctor Who novelization of “The Church on Ruby Road” today.

Author Bio: Esmie Jikiemi-Pearson is the Sunday Times Bestselling author of The Order of Legends trilogy. Inaugural winner of Future Worlds Prize Award in 2020, her debut novel, The Principle of Moments, was published in January 2024, by Gollancz. She holds a BA in English Literature and Classical Studies from the University of Exeter, where she enjoyed writing essays on Disney villains and reading Greek lyric poetry on the same day. As an author of Nigerian, Jamaican, and British-Australian heritage, her work primarily focuses on people who live at the intersection of identities, whether that’s here on Earth, or in far away galaxies of her own creation.

Tai Gooden is the Features Editor at Nerdist and a sci-fi fan who spends most of her free time watching the same Doctor Who episodes on a loop. She hopes the Doctor and the TARDIS will take her away from this very ridiculous planet soon.

The post Sci-Fi Author Esmie Jikiemi-Pearson on Writing DOCTOR WHO and Her Novel THE PRINCIPLE OF MOMENTS appeared first on Nerdist.

The Neverending Story has a runtime of just one hour and 32 minutes, so it does, in fact, end. But fans of both the movie and the book have never stopped loving it. Now a whole new generation will get to find out why. Author Michael Ende’s classic story is getting ready to return to theaters with a new adaptation. Only this time it’s getting more than a single movie. The Neverending Story is getting an all-new film franchise.

Variety reports that after years of searching Michael Ende Productions has finally settled on a partner to bring the late German author’s best-selling book back to the screen. It is partnering with See-Saw Films for a new cinematic series. Even more exciting, they’ll bring the fantasy world of Fantastica to life with multiple movies.

For those who care about the book and its iconic 1984 movie, this is big news. See-Saw Films is behind some critically-acclaimed movies and shows. Its film library includes The Power of the Dog, Widows, Lion, and The King’s Speech. And it’s responsible for TV shows like Slow Horses, Heartbreaker, and Top of the Lake. The Neverending Story franchise will be a different type of production in terms of scope and subject, but they’ll make it alongside Michael Ende Productions. See-Saw’s Iain Canning and Emile Sherman are producing with MEP’s Roman Hocke and Ralph Gassmann.

The two groups will now begin the search for a creative team to tell the story of Bastian Balthazar Bux. Until they have their filmmakers it’s impossible to know when the first film will debut, or even exactly how many movies they will produce. But it won’t be hard for a beloved, best-selling book adapted into 45 different languages that has entertained generations of readers and moviegoers alike to find talented people eager to fly with Falkor. Because while books and movies might end, love for The Neverending Story never does.

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It seems old franchises are continuing to get new life. The Scream universe is back and thriving, a Gremlins animated series is coming soon, and now it seems we are getting more Twilight. Yes, you read that right. A Twilight TV series is in the works via Lionsgate Television. But, in a surprise turn of events, the new Twilight series actually won’t be live-action, instead we will soon see an animated Twilight series. We’re very curious about how this will play out.

Deadline reveals that Lionsgate Vice Chairman Michael Burns shared the news of an animated Twilight show at the Morgan Stanley media conference. He noted, “We’re going to go out with the Twilight series, an animated series, I think there’ll be a lot of interest in that.” We’re sure there will be. When news of the project first arrived, reports did not note its animated nature.

But the publication shares that the Twilight show “had been envisioned as animated from the get-go.” We suppose it would be hard to compete with the live-action version already in the world, so an animated Twilight series is a good way to go. Animation could allow Twilight to bring some of its magical components to life more intricately.

Initially, The Hollywood Reporter, reported that writer Sinead Daly would pen the script, but the latest update on the new Twilight series did not offer confirmation.

Sources also say that Twilight author Stephanie Meyer could be working behind the scenes for this show. And honestly, it is not a bad idea to have a Twilight TV series at all, especially an animated one. There are certainly a plethora of stories that could be told in that universe outside of the dramz we got with Bella, Edward, and Jacob over the course of the Twilight film franchise. Of course, we may just see a retelling of the main trio’s story. What will Renesmee look like this go-around? Only time will tell. But whatever the animated Twilight TV series has in store for us, we are certainly keeping our eyes open for more information. Hold on tight, Spider Monkey. We’re in for another wild ride.

Originally published on April 19, 2023.

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In Frank Herbert’s Dune, there exists a powerful drug cherished by the known universe for its psychotropic properties, its time-alerting abilities, and its extreme rarity. It’s called spice melange, or simply “spice,” and is the driving force of the first novel in the series. But what is spice, exactly? And why is spice so coveted in Dune‘s world?

To celebrate the release of Denis Villeneuve’s Dune: Part Two, we’ve put together an explainer of his all-important substance. Here is everything you need to know about Spice Melange in the world of Dune.

Spice Is the Most Important Commodity in the Dune universe

In the opening sequence of David Lynch’s 1984 Dune adaptation, Princess Irulan (Virginia Madsen) explains the importance of the spice, and why it is the most precious substance in the universe.

The first novel, Dune, begins when Duke Leto Atreides of the ocean planet Caladan is assigned by Padishah Emperor Shaddam IV—the ruler of the known universe—to relocate his family to the desert planet Arrakis and harvest spice melange. Mining and managing spice production is considered a prestigious task in Dune‘s world, but also a difficult one, which puts House Atreides in a tricky position. In addition to overseeing the harvest, they must also contend with the Fremen, or the Arrakis natives, who consider spice melange a holy substance.

Because Dune‘s spice is only found on Arrakis, it is considered one of the rarest commodities in the universe. It is a symbol of wealth and status outside of Arrakis and has highly addictive properties. Spice plays a central role in all of the Dune novels and sets up much of the first novel’s conflict. We won’t get into plot spoilers, but here are some facts about the substance to know going in.

Warner Bros/Legendary

What Does Spice Smell and Look Like?

In the Dune novels, the appearance of spice is only briefly alluded to. In its gas form, it is said to be an orange-ish color, however when it appears in bins in God Emperor of Dune it is said to glow a “radiant blue.”

If there’s one real-world spice most associated with spice melange, it’s cinnamon. The substance is described to have a cinnamon-like smell and taste.

Why Do Dune‘s Characters Have Blue Eyes? The Answer Lies in Spice

When someone is addicted to spice, their eyes also glow blue, which the Fremen call the “Eyes of Ibad.” Spice makes their eyes blue-within-blue. Due to their constant exposure to spice—in the air they breathe and the food they eat—all Fremen have glowing blue eyes.

Universal Studios

How Is Spice Made in Dune?

Spice melange is formed deep beneath the sands of Arrakis, where the fungal excretions of sandworm larva mixes with water to form a mass that eventually explodes to the surface due to the planet’s extreme heat. Collecting the melange is extremely difficult; the explosions are deadly, and the material hazardous. Spice is collected by a vehicle called a Harvester in Dune, which must also avoid the giant sandworms. Aircrafts known as Carryalls lift Harvesters to safety.

The Fremen, however, co-exist with the sandworms in the desert and have learned how to harvest Dune‘s spice manually for their own consumption and use.

What Does Spice Do?

What doesn’t spice do is almost the better question. Here’s a short list of some of the best-known properties of spice melange in Dune.

For those who consume spice, it may allow:

• Extended life
• Psychotropic abilities
• Prescience, or an ability to see into the past, present, and future

That prescience is also used to navigate space, allowing for safe interstellar travel. This is done through a process where melange is turned into gas that is then consumed by beings known as the Spacing Guild Navigators, who can see paths through time and space that avoid collision with other planets and heighliners.

Spice is used as an entheogen by the Bene Gesserit, a powerful order of women who oversee and influence humanity throughout the universe; the spice gifts them with clairvoyance and other heightened abilities that mimics witchcraft. The Fremen also have these abilities due to their massive exposure. They use spice to make materials like cloth, plastics, and paper. It can also be used to make explosives.

As the novel’s antagonist Baron Harkonnen explains:

As you can see, spice melange is a hugely impactful and important substance that is integral to everything in the Dune universe. To see how it factors into the plot, you’ll have to check out Denis Villeneuve’s Dune and Dune: Part Two.

Featured Image: Warner Bros/Legendary

Editor’s Note: Nerdist is a subsidiary of Legendary Digital Networks.

Originally published on May 6, 2020.

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Denis Villeneuve’s Dune: Part Two once again showed the only thing more brutal than Harkonnens is Arrakis itself. Surviving that harsh desert planet is challenging enough for natives, let alone outsiders. That is, it’s hard if you actually step foot on the Fremen home world. Fortunately you’ll soon be able to travel to the land of sandworms and spice without needing to strap on a stillsuit. Funcom is bringing the iconic planet to you with its upcoming open-world MMO Dune: Awakening, and the game’s first Direct event showed fans just how immersive this version of Arrakis will be in a new trailer.

With a whole lot of natives heading to theaters on this planet to see Dune: Part Two, Funcom capitalized on the film’s release with a display of what gamers can expect from Dune: Awakening. Soe Gschwind hosted the first episode of the game’s new online Direct series. It included insight from the creative team, all-new game footage, and a trailer. It also offered insight into game mechanics and features. (Including how a weekly coriolis storm will completely reform the game’s terrain!) And it also showed a featurette that explained how the game takes inspiration from both Herbert’s book series and Villeneuve’s films.

While players will be eager to hear about character and weapons creation, as well as different game play options, long time fans will be most excited to see yet another interpretation of Frank Herbert’s world come to life. Every image and clip from the game looks absolutely beautiful. Even the sandworms look majestic. Majestic and terrifying, yes, but still majestic.

Of course, Arrakis might be beautiful to look at, but it’s not an easy place to survive. That will still be true in the game, where players—whether working together or against one another—will test their mettle. Here’s the official synopsis from Funcom for Dune: Awakening to bring the game trailer into focus:

Rise from survival to dominance on the most dangerous planet in the universe. Dune: Awakening combines the grit and creativity of sandbox survival games with the social interactivity of a large, persistent multiplayer game to create a unique and ambitious Open World Survival MMO.

Eager Dune fans can sign up for the game’s beta test, but Awakening still does not have a release date. Funcom says it’s not rushing it out until it’s ready. We’re bummed we have to wait, too. But we cna always use this extra time to store up on water. Not because we’ll run out of it on Earth, but because we might not want to get up while playing.

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When Dungeons & Dragons got its start in the 1970s, no one involved probably imagined where it would end up. The wildly successful tabletop roleplaying game is unmatched in popularity. Countless players have sat around tables, rolled dice, and imagined over the decades. In honor of the game’s 50th anniversary, Wizards of the Coast is turning back the clock with the definitive record on how Dungeons & Dragons came to be. The Making of Original Dungeons & Dragons: 1970 – 1977 explores the game’s history, including co-creator Gary Gygax’s first draft of D&D. This marks that draft’s first release to the public.

This collection pulls together early published writings, booklets, and supplements. Early articles and documents show the foundation for contemporary D&D. There’s even previously unpublished correspondence between Gygax and Dave Arneson, who co-created the roleplaying game. Other aspects of this tome of D&D history include:

• Peruse a remarkable collection of magazine and fanzine articles, many of which are no longer publicly available or remain undiscovered by D&D historians and fans of classic D&D.
• Flip through facsimiles of all the first printings of Original D&D, compiled in a single book for the first time in D&D’s publishing history.
• Explore the creation and development of the original 1974 game with insightful commentary by Jon Peterson, one of D&D’s foremost historians.

Wizards does note that some of the legacy content in The Making of Original D&D collection does not reflect the franchise’s value. They’re presenting everything as it was as history, but they recognize the depictions were wrong—then and now.

The Making of Original Dungeons & Dragons: 1970 – 1977 will arrive on shelves on June 18, 2024. The book is available for preorder now.

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Star Wars is one of the biggest and most beloved pop culture franchises of all time. It’d be impossible to name every bit of art influenced by the galaxy far, far away since the release of Star Wars: A New Hope in 1977. But George Lucas’s space fantasy series wore its own influences pretty boldly on its sleeve. From science-fiction serials like Flash Gordon to the films of Akira Kurosawa, Star Wars is essentially an amalgamation of many things that came before. But one of the biggest pieces of media to impact Star Wars was Frank Herbert’s 1965 novel Dune.

The two share an enormous amount of similarities, from their galactic setting to their character journeys and more. In fact, the two share so much DNA that Herbert complained that Lucas stole from him. “I’m going to try very hard not to sue,” Herbert told an Oregon newspaper back in the ‘70s, before adding that he found the first Star Wars film “boring.” So what are those similarities? In celebration of the second part of Denis Villeneuve’s movie adaptation of Herbert’s novel, we compiled all of the major things Star Wars borrowed from Dune.

It is hard to discuss some of the likenesses without entering spoiler territory for both sagas; we’ll put the rest of the post below a spoiler warning to be safe.

Here Are the Major Things Star Wars Borrows From Dune

Star Wars‘ Tatooine and Dune‘s Arrakis

Let’s start with the most obvious one. The most famous planets in both Star Wars and Dune are incredibly similar. In the former, Luke Skywalker hails from a desolate and nearly inhabitable desert planet on the far reaches of the galaxy called Tatooine. In the latter, Paul Atreides and his family move to a desolate and nearly inhabitable desert planet on the far reaches of the known universe called Arrakis. Both sandy planets feature centrally to the plot of their stories; they’re where our respective heroes recieve the call to destiny.

Moisture farmers and Dew Collectors

On Tatooine, Luke’s uncle is a moisture farmer, who implants devices in the desert to draw moisture from the atmosphere. On Arrakis, a device a called dew collector has the same function.

Sandcrawlers in Dune and Star Wars

Another similarity between Star Wars‘ Tatooine and Dune‘s Arrakis? Both are home to vehicles known as sandcrawlers. In Star Wars, the Jawas use these large vessels “left over from a forgotten mining era long ago.” In Dune, people on Arrakis use sandcrawlers to mine the drug spice melange.

Sarlaccs vs. Sandworms

In Star Wars: Return of the Jedi, we meet a giant, sand-dwelling creature with a massive and many-toothed mouth called a Sarlacc. These Star Wars creatures bear a striking resemblance to the giant sandworms in Dune. The Sarlacc lives on Tatooine, and the sandworms live on Arrakis.

Spice in Dune and Star Wars

Spice is a popular commodity in both universes. In Star Wars, the mines of Kessel contain loads of “spice,” which is a dangerous drug. In Dune, spice melange is the most powerful and desired substance in the known universe; a drug that gifts its taker with prescient abilities among other mental and physical advantages.

The Empire Meets The Imperium

In the original Star Wars trilogy, the ruler of the galaxy is an evil galactic Empire. In Dune, the known universe is run by an evil interstellar Imperium. Both of these have an emperor as the head. Both sagas are eventually about the collapse of this totalitarian system of government.

Princess Leia and Princess Alia’s Characters Mirror One Another

We all know and love Princess Leia from Star Wars. As we learn in the series, she is the sister of Luke Skywalker. The two share a powerful spiritual and psychic connection. This Star Wars character recalls Princess Alia of Dune, Paul Atreides’s sister with whom he shares a powerful spiritual and psychic connection.

Main Characters Descended from Villains

In Star Wars, Luke and Leia eventually learn of their secret lineage. They are the children of the saga’s main villain, Darth Vader. In Dune, Paul and Alia learn they are the grandchildren of that saga’s main villain, Vladimir Harkonnen.

Star Wars‘ The Force and Dune’s The Voice

In Star Wars, there exists a mystical and transient power called the Force, that allows certain characters to perform Jedi mind tricks. People can use this for persuasion and manipulation of another person. Similarly to Star Wars, in Dune, the Bene Gesserit use something called the Voice, a use of powers they’ve acquired through mental conditioning that allow them to mind control another person.

Duncan Idaho Informs Han Solo

Jason Momoa, who portrays House Atreides swordmaster in Villeneuve’s Dune, recently described his character as “Han Solo-esque.” It’s not hard to see why we made the comparison. In the novel, Idaho is pledged to House Atreides, but exists a bit on the margins. He becomes an ambassador to the Fremen to unite the people of Arrakis with the Atreides. He’s a renegade and a ladies’ man, and we can see how this Star Wars‘ Han Solo mirrors the Dune character.

Jedi Bendu and Prana-Bindu 

In George Lucas’s original rough draft of Star Wars, the Jedi were referred to as the “Jedi Bendu,” the carriers of the Force—a connection to all life in the universe. In the script, they are also referred to as “the most feared warriors in the universe”. Eventually, Star Wars canon repurposed the term Bendu in the animated series Rebels, where we meet Force-sensitive entities of the same name who represent the center of the Force. In Dune, Prana-Bindu is a method of training that leads to the complete control of one’s nerves and muscles which aids in combat. It’s a major principle of the Bene Gesserit.

Both the Star Wars and Dune terms are derived from the symbol Bindu, from the Sanskrit word meaning “dot.” Bindu is associated with chakra and also means “the point at which creation begins and becomes unity.”

Slug Creatures in Star Wars and Dune

In Star Wars: Return of the Jedi, we see the life of Jabba the Hutt, a slug-like creature carried on a dais who lives like a king on Tatooine. In the Dune universe, the son of Paul Atreides, Leto II Atreides, slowly transforms into a sandworm-like creature carried on a dais who is quite literally royalty.

Pop-Cultural Artifacts That Reference Dune Aside From Star Wars

These are just a few of the major similarities between Dune and Star Wars, but from these, we get a sense of just how much the latter borrowed from the former. If you’re interested in other pop-culture movies, TV shows, and more that reference Dune, you can check out the video above or explore our article on the topic.

Originally published on May 13, 2020.

Editor’s Note: Nerdist is a subsidiary of Legendary Digital Networks.

The post Everything STAR WARS Borrowed From DUNE appeared first on Nerdist.

Frank Herbert’s Dune is one of the most influential novels of all time. Published in 1965, the science-fiction epic tells the story of a feudal universe and a young man named Paul Atreides at the center of the conflict. House Atreides is assigned stewardship of a planet called Arrakis, to mine the most precious material in the known world: a powerful drug called spice melange. Paul, gifted and prodigious, must get to know his new home world through tragic and fateful circumstances, as political turmoil and ecological warfare swirl about him.

Dune is a dense story full of odd terminology, intense human conflict, and an abundance of moral quandary. And thus, it is hugely popular, and has influenced culture in a major way since its release. A David Lynch film adaptation came out in 1984, and, of course, we now have a couple of movies from Denis Villeneuve. But it’s worth looking at Dune‘s impact on a larger scale, and how it’s referenced and alluded to in non-direct adaptations—everything from cartoon television series to video games to songs from major recording artists.

It’d be nearly impossible to list every single Dune reference in pop culture, but we did our best to compile all of the major ones, as well as some fun, more obscure nods to Herbert’s world.

Major References to Dune in the Movies

Star Wars

Let’s start with the most obvious. Herbert’s DNA is all over Star Wars, from the desert planet Tatooine that shares much with Arrakis, to “spice” as a valuable drug, to the Force’s similarities to the Voice. It’s very clear that George Lucas borrowed heavily from Dune when crafting the galaxy far, far away, although he imbued his universe with more a serialized fantasy element than Herbert’s harder sci-fi.

Phantasm

The 1979 fantasy horror film makes a few references to Dune, including a bar literally named Dune and a part where the protagonist Mike puts his hand into a black box that inflicts pain as part of a test, which mimics the Gom Jabbar sequence in the opening of Dune.

Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind

Hayao Miyazaki’s 1982 animated film, based on a manga of the same name, follows a young princess named Nausicaä embroiled in a struggle with a kingdom called Tolmekia that uses an ancient weapon to destroy a jungle of mutant insects. She becomes a savior of this devastated world, not unlike Paul Atreides on Arrakis. Dune was an influence on both the manga and Miyazaki’s film, and the advertising for the latter leaned into the connection, featuring monsters that look like the giant sand worms on Arrakis.

Warner Bros.

Beetlejuice

Speaking of sand worms and Arrakis, the 1988 Tim Burton horror comedy Beetlejuice also features giant sand creatures erupting from the depths of a desolate sand planet. This strange, time-bending location exists outside the home of the Maitlands after they tragically die, trapping them forever in their abode. It’s a clear visual reference to Dune.

Moonrise Kingdom

In this 2012 Wes Anderson film, two 12-year-old kids fall in love and run away together into the New England wilderness. The girl, Suzy, brings her favorite fantasy novels along for the journey. One of them, titled The Girl from Jupiter, has a map on the back of the dust jacket. The map is one of the north pole of Arrakis from David Lynch’s Dune.

Trolls

In the 2016 animated film Trolls, the Chef says the line, “He who controls the trolls controls the kingdom!” This is a reference to the famous line from Dune, “He who controls the spice controls the universe!”

Ready Player One

Surprising absolutely no one, there is a nod to Dune in Steven Spielberg’s reference-heavy 2018 film Ready Player One (based on the novel of the same name by Ernest Cline). The planet Arrakis is mentioned as a virtual destination that exists in OASIS.

Major References to Dune in Television

The Simpsons

The Simpsons regularly pays respects to Dune. Animated covers for Dune books appear in one episode, and Krusty the Clown writes a book called The Sands of Space that is clearly modeled after Herbert’s work. Perhaps the most famous reference is when Lisa eats spicy food and says, “I can see through time,” a reference to the spice from Dune, which also helps see through time.

Futurama

The animated TV series Futurama features several references to Dune, including an episode where a tailor tries to sell Fry a stillsuit, the suit worn on Arrakis to preserve the body’s moisture. Another episode features a giant, desert-dwelling sand worm.

Star Trek

Many of the Star Trek series contain references to Dune. In Voyager, Arrakis Prime is listed as a planet the ship’s surgeon has visited. The same show also names Giedi Prime in another episode. The Next Generation mentions a planet called Caldonia that shares a physical likeness to Caladan, the home world of House Atreides.

Cartoon Network

Adventure Time

The episode “Red Starved” takes place in an underground sand city and features a giant sand worm that recalls the imagery of Dune.

The Venture Brothers

Dune is referenced pretty frequently in this animated series. There is a direct callout in the season seven episode “The High Cost of Living” when Henchman 21 compares Professor von Helping’s appearance to Paul Atreides and The Monarch’s to Piter De Vries. Von Helping’s appearance is based on Kyle MacLachlan, who played Paul in Lynch’s adaptation.

Robot Chicken

The skit “Sand Worm Strategy” from Robot Chicken is totally Dune-focused. It’s set on Arrakis and features the worms.

The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy

The most thorough and awesome Dune reference in animation comes from this Cartoon Network series. The show’s third episode, “Mandy the Merciless,” is based on the fourth novel in Herbert’s series, God Emperor of Dune. Mandy assumes the role of Leto from the book, and learns the secret of immortality by transforming into a worm creature. Billy plays the part of Duncan Idaho, and Grim is Moneo. The episode also references Star Wars.

Chuck

The USA series Chuck is another show that wears its Dune love on its sleeve. The eponymous character has a poster of Lynch’s Dune on his bedroom wall, and in the episode “Chuck Versus the Sandworm” he and Morgan dress as a sand worm for a Halloween party. The Dune line “fear is the mind-killer” is also said many times on the show.

Nickelodeon

SpongeBob Squarepants

The episode “Sandy, SpongeBob, and the Worm” has a few clear-cut Dune callouts, most notably a giant sand worm creature called the Alaskan Bull Worm. At one point, when the worm approaches, Sandy picks up a sign saying “worm” that warns of his advances. This is a reference to the wormsign from Dune.

Law & Order: SVU

One episode of this long-running series, titled “Limitations,” features a clever little Dune nod. When a victim in court begins to panic, she utters the phrase: “I must not fear. Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration. I will face my fear.” Dune fans will recognize this as the Litany Against Fear, spoken many times in the series to help people focus their minds in times of peril.

Wilfred

This comedy series also contains the famous Dune line, “I must not fear, fear is the mind-killer.”

South Park

As with many animated series on this list, South Park also references Dune rather often. The Thanksgiving episode, “A History Channel Thanksgiving,” contains the line, “He who controls the stuffing controls the universe.” The 2019 episode “Turd Burglars” also contains nods to Dune including a spice melange reference.

Warner Bros. Animation

Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated

The second season episode of this Scooby-Doo series opens with a narration from a dog named Nova. It mimics the opening sequence of David Lynch’s Dune, where Princess Irulan sets up the story before a galaxy of stars.

Mystery Science Theater 3000

It’d be hard to pin down every time this series throws out Dune mentions. We counted at least 20 different ones throughout the show’s run, including nods to the famous line, “I will kill him,” Gom Jabbar, and Muad’Dib. There are also Dune comparisons a’plenty during the 1993 episode about the film Outlaw of Gor.

Rick and Morty

The third season episode “The Rickshank Rickdemption” includes the line, “He who controls the pants controls the galaxy!”

Major References to Dune in Books

Name of the Wind

Patrick Rothfuss loves to reference his influences in his popular book series The Kingkiller Chronicles, and Dune is no exception. The first book in the saga, The Name of the Wind, contains a scene where a group of children request stories, and one girl says: “I want to hear about the dry lands over the Stormwahl. About the sand snakes that that come out of the ground like sharks. And the dry men who hide under the dunes and drink your blood instead of water.” This is a reference to Arrakis and the Fremen who live there.

National Lampoon’s Doon

This 1984 novel by Ellis Weiner is a parody of Herbert’s Dune, and is noted as “something of a tribute to Herbert’s success on college campuses.” The stories share a general plot, but, ya know, one is much funnier. Weiner’s book changes names like Arrakis to Arruckus and Duke Leto to Duke Lotto. Instead of giant sand worms, Arruckus is inhabited by giant pretzels, and instead of spice being the universe’s vital commodity, it’s beer.

Games

World of Warcraft

This popular online game features an item called Jom Gabbar, which increases attack power. This is a reference to the Gom Jabbar from Dune.

Space Craft III: The Pirates of Pestulon

This fun 1989 adventure game contains a Dune Easter egg. A postcard in Fester’s World O’ Wonders shows the planet Arrakis, and references its dust storms and sand worms.

Bethesda Softworks

Fallout

The post-apocalyptic video game series Fallout has a drug called Mentats, which are chalky red pills that increase memory functions, impact creativity, and speed other mental processes. In Dune, Mentat is a discipline where human brains are trained to replicate computers, after AI are banned in the universe.

Far Cry 3

This 2012 first-person shooter game contains a collectible memory card that describes a drug called Spice, with “interstellar travel” listed as one of its properties. This is a reference to the spice melange in Dune, which also makes interstellar travel possible.

Sudden Strike 4

This 2017 World War II video game has a little Dune nod. During one campaign, you encounter a soldier who says, “I had a weird dream last night. Blue-eyed men were controlling giant worms and fought over spice in the sand.” This is a reference to Arrakis and the Fremen.

Major References to Dune in Music

Fatboy Slim’s “Weapon of Choice”

This popular tune by big beat musician Fatboy Slim features vocals from American funk musician Bootsy Collins, who sings, “Walk without rhythm and it won’t attract the worm,” a line straight out of Herbert’s Dune.

30 Seconds to Mars’s 30 Seconds to Mars

The rock band, fronted by Oscar-winner Jared Leto, used their self-titled debut album to explore themes of humanity with space as a metaphor. Many tracks on the record reference Dune, including the song “Capricorn” that features the lyrics, “I’ll start again with a brand new name and eyes that see into infinity,” a nod to Paul Atreides.

Iron Maiden’s “To Tame a Land”

This track off the 1983 album Piece of Mind is based entirely on Dune. The band wanted to call the song “Dune” but Herbert refused, replying to their request, “No. Because Frank Herbert doesn’t like rock bands, particularly heavy rock bands, and especially rock bands like Iron Maiden.” Despite that curt denial, the song still contains several direct references to the book, including terms like Fremen, Muad’Dib, and Caladan.

Grimes’ Geidi Prime

The debut album of Canadian singer Grimes, mother of X Æ A-12, is a concept album based on Herbert’s novel and Lynch’s film adaptation. Geidi Primes is a reference to the planet Giedi Prime from Dune, and every track alludes to some term from the book, such as “Caladan,” House Atreides’ home planet, and “Beast Infection,” after Glossu Rabban. Dune is Grimes’ favorite novel.

Interscope

Lady Gaga’s “Telephone”

Though the actual song doesn’t have any Dune-isms, the music video for Lady Gaga’s “Telephone” features a recipe that any Herbert fan will recognize. She lists “meta-cyanide” in the ingredients for a poisonous brew she concocts in prison. This is a poison referenced in Dune, specifically related to the Gom Jabbar, a needle infused with the toxin.

Tool’s “Liatnie contra la pour”

This song from the 2019 Tool album Fear Inoculum is French and translates to “Litany Against Fear.”

Featured Image: 20th Century Fox Television

Editor’s Note: Nerdist is a subsidiary of Legendary Digital Networks.

Originally published on May 8, 2020.

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Fans of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians books were recently delighted by the live-action series adaptation created by Disney+. The live-action Percy Jackson garnered much fan approval, critical acclaim, and even a season two renewal. But unfortunately, adaptations of other books in the Percy Jackson world just received less welcome news. Netflix has elected not to move ahead with adapting Rick Riordan’s Kane Chronicles into a trilogy of movies. Here’s what we know.

Speaking to a fan on Goodreads, in a now-deleted post, Riordan revealed the news. Variety recorded his reply and notes that it read, “Right now, Kane Chronicles is in ‘turnaround,’ which means Netflix has decided not to move forward and their option has lapsed after trying for two years to develop a script they liked. Now it depends on whether another studio would like to step in, assume the preproduction costs, and move forward.”

He added, “This is not at all unusual. It happens, I would guess, with the majority of film projects. Also, the streaming industry as a whole is shrinking their development slate right now, meaning they are cancelling more content and making less content. Kane got caught in that trend, despite the strong success of Percy TV.”

While the lack of present forward motion for The Kane Chronicles movies is disappointing, perhaps, given that the novels are a part of Percy Jackson‘s universe, we might see some interest from Disney. These stories would expand the world of the current live-action show, after all. The Kane Chronicles contain three books, “The Red Pyramid,” “The Throne of Fire,” and “The Serpent’s Shadow.” They follow Carter and Sadie Kane, who are descendants of Egyptian pharaohs Narmer and Ramses the Great. In them, Carter and Sadie meet gods from Egyptian mythology during modern times.

Egyptian mythology has always been a fan-favorite area of exploration. So, we have our fingers crossed that Rick Riordan’s The Kane Chronicles stories find their way onto our screens in some form.

The post Netflix Not Moving Forward with KANE CHRONICLES Movies From PERCY JACKSON Author appeared first on Nerdist.

Batman has been protecting Gotham City in the pages of DC Comics for a whopping 85 years. To honor his incredible legacy, The Folio Society, independent publisher of illustrated hardback books, in collaboration with DC, honors the Dark Knight’s first appearance with the release of DC: Batman.

This collectible compilation includes twelve seminal comics by a host of iconic writers and artists. These creators include Bill Finger, Bob Kane, Jerry Robinson, Denny O’Neil, Neal Adams, Marshall Rogers, Frank Miller, Dave Mazzucchelli, Alan Moore, Brian Bolland, and Kelley Jones. Former DC President, and Publisher Jennette Khan selected and introduced each story. You can check out images of the new scans from Batman #232 with art by Neal Adams, below:

Click To View Gallery

Along with the 320-page one-of-a-kind deluxe book, DC: Batman also comes with a stand-alone replica copy of Batman #1. Scanned in its entirety from an original 1940 copy, the replica copy of the Batman #1 comic book, which includes the original back-up strips and vintage ads, introduces DC’s Clown Prince of Crime, The Joker, and The Cat, later known as Catwoman.

Among the seminal comics included are the following stories from Batman’s publishing history:

Golden Age

“The Bat-Man,” from Detective Comics #27 (May 1939) by Bill Finger and Bob Kane, “Robin—the Boy Wonder,” from Detective Comics #38 (April 1940) by Bill Finger, Bob Kane, and Jerry Robinson, and “The Crimes of Two-Face!” from Detective Comics #66 (August 1942) by Bill Finger, Jerry Robinson, and George Roussos.

Bronze Age

“Batman and Green Arrow: The Senator’s Been Shot!” from The Brave and the Bold #85 (September 1969) by Bob Haney, Neal Adams, and Dick Giordano, “Daughter of the Demon” from Batman #232 (June 1971) by Dennis O’Neil, Neal Adams, and Dick Giordano, and “The Dead Yet Live” from Detective Comics #471 (August 1977) by Steve Englehart, Marshall Rogers, and Terry Austin.

Modern Age

“The Dark Knight Returns” from Batman: The Dark Knight Returns #1 (June 1986) by Frank Miller, Klaus Janson, and Lynn Varley, “Batman: Year One—Chapter One: Who I Am—How I Come to Be,” from Batman #404 (February 1987) by Frank Miller, Dave Mazzucchelli, and Richmond Lewis, Batman: The Killing Joke (July 1988) by Alan Moore, Brian Bolland, and Richard Bruning, “The Last Arkham (Part One)” from Batman: Shadow of the Bat #1 (June 1992) by Alan Grant, Brian Stelfreeze, Norm Breyfogle, and “Knightfall Part 1: Crossed Eyes and Dotty Teas,” from Batman #492 (May 1993) by Doug Moench, Kelley Jones, Bob LeRose, and Norm Breyfogle.

Former DC president Jennette Khan sums up why Batman remains such an enduring myth in her introduction to this book:

“Trauma is a through-line in the Batman mythology. It has made psychopaths of Batman’s foes and brought him to the edge of madness himself. Batman’s battle is not just against criminals and crime. He fears the day he’ll look into a mirror and see, not Bruce Wayne’s face, but The Joker’s.” 

These comics have been reproduced in 10” x 7” treasury format. The anti-scratch laminated hardcover features Batman’s signature silhouette, with titles foil-embossed in yellow and midnight blue. The book itself has a pitch-black slipcase bearing the famous Bat-Signal. It’s a compendium of gothic artwork and Batarang-sharp storytelling. DC: Batman is an investigation into the adventures and pathology of one of the world’s most famous—and most troubled—superheroes.

DC: Batman will be available from for US $100/£65 on February 20, 2024, exclusively from Folio Society.

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Fear is the mind killer, but Dune fans have nothing to fear on March 1. That’s when the next chapter of Denis Villeneuve’s epic adaptation will arrive in theaters. It’s also when Insight Editions will launch its beautiful new behind-the-scenes companion book, The Art and Soul of Dune: Part Two. But you don’t even have to fear waiting to see what it has to offer. We have your exclusive first glimpse inside the book. We can also tell you how to get your spice-loving hands on some very special editions.

The Art and Soul of Dune: Part Two ($54) comes from the film’s producer Tanya Lapointe. It shows how Villeneuve brought the second half of Frank Herbert’s seminal 1965 novel to the screen. Insight Editions says the book will provide fans “unparalleled insight into the project’s genesis – from its striking environmental designs to its intricate costume concepts and landmark digital effects.”

The book, which includes a slipcover, also features exclusive interviews with key members of the creative team, including Villeneuve himself, as well as production designer Patrice Vermette.

This exclusive look at the book’s interior also shows why the visuals alone make it a must-have for Dune lovers. From art design to on-set photos, it captures the scope of the Warner Bros. and Legendary Pictures adaptation.

It also reveals that despite the serious story and the harsh filming conditions, the cast found plenty of time to have fun on set.

It’s always nice to have some fun before all-out war. We’ve always said that.

Some very lucky fans will also be able to grab one of two incredible limited editions of the book. The first, The Art and Soul of Dune: Part Two Portfolio Edition, comes with a special slipcase and four, digitally-signed lithographic prints. Villeneuve and Lapointe personally selected each print and all of them features concept art from Dune: Part Two. Every Portfolio Edition also comes finished in a debossed and foil stamped Saifu cloth.

The second limited edition version is The Art and Soul of Dune Artifact Edition. It’s debossed and foil stamped clamshell presentation box features a Fremen design created just for Dune: Part Two. This luxury edition also comes wrapped in Saifu cloth, but it’s what inside that will have this rare copy flowing off shelves.

The Artifiact edition includes six digitally-signed lithographic art prints Villeneuve and Lapointe picked. Each shows concept art created for the film. This version also comes with a prop replica of a Fremen thumper for those want to read their books atop Shai-Hulud. That collector’s item, based on original VFX files used for the film, is unique to this edition. It comes wrapped “in a hand-cut piece of cloth that was taken from the Dune: Part Two costume stores, and has been cut from the same bolts of fabric that were used to make the film’s costumes.”

Insight Editions only produced 750 copies of both the Portfolio and Artifact editions. Each comes individually numbered and signed by Villeneuve and Lapointe.

We know these special limited-edition prints won’t last long when they go on sale March 1. Don’t be afraid if you miss out on one, though. For one, fear is the mind killer. Plus the original edition will be worth its weight in spice.

Editor’s Note: Nerdist is a subsidiary of Legendary Digital Networks.

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If you’ve heard of Sarah J. Maas’ A Court of Thorns and Roses book series, then you are possibly (likely?) a rabid fan. Frequently abbreviated to ACOTAR, the fantasy series tells the story of Feyre Archeron, a young mortal huntress who gets swept into a journey in the faerie lands of Prythian. With a sprawling world, deeply flawed and intriguing characters, and a whole lot of steamy love scenes, the ACOTAR series has attracted legions of fans since Maas published the first book in 2015. And while Hulu had planned to develop a TV series based on the beloved books, that has changed. TVLine reports the Court of Thorns and Roses TV series is not moving forward .

In 2021, Maas first shared the news about the TV series via a now-deleted Instagram post. But that post let us know she was working with Ron Moore (Battlestar Galactica, Outlander) to adapt A Court of Thorns and Roses for Hulu. Since then, we didn’t hear any updates for a while, but Moore shared in November 2023 that Hulu was still game for the ACOTAR series. He noted, “It’s still in development… We’ve written some scripts, and we’re just sort of waiting. I think the whole town is kind of waiting to see if we have actors before things really move forward, but it’s still in development.”

But that appears to no longer be the case. During the Television Critics Association’s winter press tour, Disney Television Group president Craig Erwich didn’t have any updates about the Court of Thorns and Roses TV series. Sources have told TVLine the project is no longer moving forward and that Hulu is not looking to shop it to other streamers.

Bloomsbury Publishing

It’s too bad. Maas has a massive fan base, hungry to immerse themselves in her worlds. A Court of Thorns and Roses TV series would have had a vast playground to explore. And given Moore’s experience in telling epic stories, he seemed like an excellent choice to work with Maas—especially given his role in bringing Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander to the screen.

Originally published on March 26, 2021.

The post A COURT OF THORNS AND ROSES Hulu TV Series Is No Longer Happening appeared first on Nerdist.

Disney+’s adaptation of Percy Jackson and the Olympians brought Rick Riordan’s books to life with joy, adventure, and magic. Perfect casting and creative storytelling made for an entertaining take on the first Percy Jackson book. Percy figured out who stole Zeus’ Master Bolt, but that’s far from the last quest the demigod goes on. And luckily, we’ll get to see at least one more. Disney+ has renewed Percy Jackson and the Olympians for season two. This makes sense, as Disney reports the show has over 110 million hours streamed to date.

The second season of Percy Jackson will adapt the second book in Riordan’s series, The Sea of Monsters. In it, mythological monsters threaten Camp Half-Blood. Percy must act to save the special haven for demigods, along with Annabeth and Grover. And the Sea of Monsters? That’s the Bermuda Triangle. It’s all going to be fine, we’re sure.

Riordan said in a statement, “I can’t wait to bring the next season of Percy Jackson to Disney+! Raise anchors. Hoist the mainsail. All hands on deck, demigods. We’re heading for the Sea of Monsters!”

Walker Scobell, Leah Sava Jeffries, and Aryan Simhadri will of course return as the main trio in the Riordan and Jon Steinberg-created series. We’re bound to see many familiar faces from season one, along with plenty of new ones. You never know which gods and creatures Percy Jackson will run into.

Percy Jackson and the Olympians season one is now streaming on Disney+.

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We are in a time where critical race theory detractors threaten to soften, whitewash, and/or exclude the more unsavory (and blatantly racist) parts of American history. Therefore, it is vital for today’s youth to learn the oft-harsh truths about the challenges marginalized people have faced throughout American history. Sure, there are history books in school but they 1) frequently glaze over or omit vital events 2) can’t cover everything and 3) are painfully boring. 

So how do you present historical events/facts to kids in an innovative and engaging way? A graphic novel with rich characters and a storyline that combines their reality with a dash of time-traveling magic might do the trick. This is exactly what Marvel and DC Comics writer Amy Chu, her son Alexander Chang, illustrator Louie Chin, Third State Books, and The Asian American Foundation did with Fighting to Belong!, a three-volume comic book series for kids ages 8-13.

Fighting to Belong! Vol. 1 introduces four middle school protagonists—Sammy, Tiana, Joe, and Padmini—who go on a journey through time with their guide Kenji to observe key events in Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) history from the 1700s through the 1800s. Nerdist spoke with Amy Chu about crafting this special project, her nerd cred, and how Fighting to Belong! can benefit all who read it. 

Nerdist: I know you’re an acclaimed Marvel and DC Comics writer now, but were graphic novels and comics a part of your childhood? And if they were, how did they shape you as a person?

Amy Chu: Nope! I was not one of those [people] who when they were six they picked up “issue whatever” and remembered the exact page when their life suddenly changed. It was not like that. I mean, as much as any regular kid growing up in America, I read comics. I’m sure I read Archie and occasionally Wonder Woman. I asked my mom about this by the way, and she said, “No, because we never had money to get you comics.” She was saving money so we could eat.

I actually started reading comics in college. I was not into superhero stuff but I was into things that were hot at the time, like Vertigo. I went to MIT, so it’s not like it was a “geeky” thing because everybody read comics. There was literally a comic bookstore in the student center… I was the weirdo who did not read comics. I was on the chess team. I was a huge Doctor Who fan in the ’80s. I’m geeky but I didn’t have that comics’ cred. Of course, now I have all the comics cred!

Yes you do! I love that you’re a Doctor Who fan. So am I! There’s a reference in Fighting to Belong! and I love it. 

Chu: Oh yeah! I didn’t know if you’d read the book yet. I put it in there! I was a little bit worried [the editors] were going to take it out, but they didn’t even notice it.

Well, I certainly noticed it! I enjoyed Vol. 1 and I’m glad this series exists. How did you learn about this project? And what was it about Fighting to Belong! that really resonated with you and made you want to get involved?

Chu: It randomly started because the head of The Asian American Foundation (Norman Chen) is an old friend of mine from MIT. We went on very different paths and now here we are back together with this one project. He [contacted me because] I’m the only one he knows from MIT who’s a comics writer. He said, “Why don’t we do this graphic novel?” And I’m like, “Of course!”

I was actually very involved in Asian American activism in college, but also afterwards. It’s not like this is new ground for me. There’s a lot [of history that] I learned now, but a lot of the stuff in the book I learned in college and fighting for Asian American studies on campus… It’s nice to have funding and all these things coming together for a book. I believe it should have been done a long time ago. But I’m just pleased that I could be the one to get this going.

I’m so thrilled about it! Can you tell us, in your words, what Fighting to Belong! is about and what it aims to teach young readers? 

Chu: It’s American history with some of the omitted stuff about Asian American stories. It is through the eyes of some middle graders who are learning these stories as part of a school project. They essentially go back in time. There’s no TARDIS but there’s some Magic School Bus type magic to take them [into the past]. 

This particular volume goes as far back as the Manilamen, the first Filipinos who came to America. I don’t want to reveal the final ending because it’s actually not written, but they will present their school project and there will be some big revelations throughout three parts.

No spoilers, of course. You talked a little bit about some of the historical events that you put into the book and that they were things that you learned at MIT. But what was the character development process like? Everyone has such distinct personalities, specifically Sammy, who is a jokester having a hard time seeing the past.  

Chu: Oh my God, it was so hard! I just got an email from somebody who said, “Congratulations, it must’ve been so fun!” I’m like, “Do you know how hard it is to do this?” To make every frame represent somebody, but feel real and be an entryway for kids to learn about history they would not normally learn about without being exceptionally dry is really, really hard.

I fully recognize we’re not representative of everybody. I co-wrote this with my son and he’s like a Time Lord. He’s an old soul. With Sammy, he was like “He’s not serious.” I said, “You got to have someone like Sammy.” When we teach history, it doesn’t have to be dry and serious to make it worthy. In fact, it should be the opposite. We needed to have engaging characters so that every single child in this country can feel and resonate with at least one of the characters. Right?

Absolutely.

Chu: Sammy was great because he stood out among the others. Every good story has to have some character development and arc… The focus will shift to some of the other characters because immigration patterns will change. Padmini has to come to her own realizations too, as a South Asian. 

For sure. I really appreciated how the chosen events forced the kids to deal with some uncomfortable feelings related to violent behavior and discriminatory laws and practices. Why was it so important to get that messaging across?

Chu: We are seeing some movements of people trying to cherry-pick history, and we don’t get to do that. History is history. And I think it’s important to reflect what actually happens so we can learn from it. We can conveniently say, “Let’s forget about that and talk about how great everything was for everybody.” That’s not really teaching anybody anything that’s useful.

Kids are actually much more mature and smarter than we think when it comes to stuff like this. They can probably take it better than I can at my age. I do believe that we need to respect our kids and appreciate that they can read stuff and make up their own minds over certain things. The hard part is just making sure we’re accurately reflecting what happened in a way that is engaging for the kids…

We’re not very good overall about teaching forms of intersectionality. There’s often a lot of pushback sometimes about things like skin color and stuff like that. We are so many different shades. And there’s a lot of multiracial, multi-ethnic, multi-religious… there’s a lot of things. We were trying to get that in Fighting to Belong! too and I feel like we did the best we could, given that it still needed to be within a certain page count. I’m not trying to write Lord of the Rings here. But I hope we got what we needed to get in for at least a chapter.

Yeah! I think the book strikes a really good balance. As a Black mom, I tell my kids that we need to learn history about other marginalized and minority communities. A lot of those struggles run parallel or intertwine with ours. And there are a lot of fights that people have been fighting, and we’re continuing to still fight those same things. 

Chu: Right. And I feel like it’s not taught properly. The only reason that Asian Americans were even allowed into universities was because of the Civil Rights Act. There’s a lot of things that we are not taught and we don’t fully appreciate.

Exactly. I know you’re not an educator by trade, but how do you think teachers and adults can use Fighting to Belong! to amplify and educate kids about AANHPI history?

Amy Chu: We deliberately did in a way that is hopefully engaging. I hope it’s not a hard ask to get a kid to read it. I think it’s good to get asked questions and things like that. [Kids’] other option is to really read a really dry textbook that may or may not be accurate. I think this is a no-brainer. Any parent should pick it up. 

Absolutely. You teased a little bit about the future because I know we have more volumes coming and that they’re going to indeed finish their project, but what else can readers look forward to in future volumes?

Chu: Well, it’s interesting… the cliffhanger that was at the end of this volume with Kenji was not in the original pitch, but I’m like, “This feels right. We need to get some stakes in here.”

There also has to be some realization about Kenji’s own past… we’re going to find out that his grandfather, who’s Japanese American was interned during World War II in the camps… Hopefully we bring the kids in there and there’ll be, of course, some uncomfortable truths there that people have to think about.

I love it. I’m excited.

Chu: That was a scoop for you!

It is much appreciated! Can’t wait for Fighting to Belong! To make a difference in kids’ lives. 

Fighting to Belong! Vol. 1 is currently available. Volumes 2 and 3 will be released in September 2024 and January 2025, respectively. Keep up with Amy Chu on Instagram and learn more about Third State Books’ partners for this project, Leading Asian Americans to Unite for Change and the Asian American Education Project. 

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Anne Rice’s seminal Gothic horror novel, Interview with the Vampire, was published in 1976. Almost immediately, Hollywood optioned the rights, hoping to turn it into a film. However, no studio made it for 18 years for various complicated reasons. But an interesting factoid that few ever knew has recently resurfaced. In a 1977 New York Times profile on Star Trek legend Leonard Nimoy, he revealed he was lobbying hard to snag the role of Lestat, the undead French aristocrat who becomes a vampire. The man who played Spock nearly traded in pointed ears for pointed fangs. Here’s what Nimoy told the Times, via The Trekker Scrapbook:

Paramount owns the movie rights, and I want that role. I had my agent call, I had my publisher call, telephone calls and memos have been going back and forth, and you would think someone at the studio would put two and two together and hire me. I could create interest. I am right for that vampire.

It’s hard to imagine Nimoy in the part of the androgynous, French vampire. But it’s entirely possible that he viewed the part as the chance to play an outright villain. When Interview with the Vampire was first published, Lestat was undoubtedly the bad guy in the story. He wouldn’t become the “sexy antihero” until book two, The Vampire Lestat, where he took center stage. But that came out nine years later. Maybe he could have pulled it off? After all, no one thought Tom Cruise could play Lestat, including Anne Rice herself. When she saw his performance, she issued a public apology. Sometimes casting against type works. Especially with the right hair and makeup people. (Or in Michael Keaton’s case as Batman, the right rubber muscle suit).

We will say that Nimoy would have played a terrific Louis, the novel’s protagonist vampire. And we know this because for several years, Leonard Nimoy played Spock on Star Trek as a character who struggled with integrating both halves of his personality, the Vulcan and the human. Louis similarly struggled with his human and vampire duality. Honestly, Nimoy would have nailed that particular role. All we know is we want a little peek into the alternate universe where Nimoy got to play Lestat—if only to see him in a blonde wig and wearing billowy pirate shirts.

The post Leonard Nimoy Lobbied to Play Lestat in INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE appeared first on Nerdist.

Margot Robbie and her stylist Andrew Mukamal set red carpets buzzing with their real-life, life-size Barbie looks for the actress’ appearances related to the Barbie movie. Borrowing notes from the iconic doll herself, Robbie took center stage in high-fashion versions of Barbie’s clothes. But sadly, because of the studios’ refusal to pay and respect their actors, many looks that Robbie had planned for the Barbie world tour never got to see the light of day. But luckily for us, Mattel and Rizzoli New York are coming together to publish Barbie: The World Tour which will reveal new Barbie looks we haven’t seen and offer a glimpse of rare fashions from Mattel’s Barbie archives. Get excited, Barbie fans; it’s all happening.

More actors should dress to evoke their roles on press tours and red-carpet appearances. That is the kind of glamor and imagination that we deserve. And we can’t wait to see all the tricks that Robbie, Mukumal, and Barbie had up their pink sleeves.

The release for Barbie: The World Tour shares more, noting:

For the press tour following the record-breaking release of Greta Gerwig’s award-winning, acclaimed Barbie movie, producer and star Margot Robbie and her stylist Andrew Mukamal immersed themselves in some of Barbie’s most iconic outfits and curated vintage pieces, then approached designers, from Giorgio Armani to Donatella Versace, to create looks inspired by the doll-size originals. Many of these looks were not seen as the official Barbie press tour was cut short—so Margot and Andrew worked with renowned fashion photographer Craig McDean to shoot her in the looks exactly as they were curated: Schiaparelli in Los Angeles, Vivienne Westwood in London, vintage Chanel with matching Streamline luggage at the airport, and beyond.

And additionally:

Accompanying McDean’s sumptuous photography are images of original Barbie dolls from the period, a treasure trove of rare materials from Mattel’s Barbie fashion archives, and the designers’ sketches and Polaroids from fittings, layered into evocative collage by art director Fabien Baron. With text by Margot Robbie and Andrew Mukamal, as well as handwritten contributions from the designers behind the looks (from Olivier Rousteing and Michelle Ochs to Manolo Blahnik and Jeremy Scott), this unique book blends the serious chic of high fashion with the serious fun of Barbie’s world—the dolls, the history, and the style that have captured imaginations for 65 years.

What an incredible tribute to Barbie and the Barbie movie. After all, the movie’s true magic lay in the way it leaked out into the world, leaving behind the box and spreading into pink-drenched theaters and streets. Although we weren’t wearing couture, we, all of us, for a minute, into the best plastic versions of ourselves and now, through Barbie: The World Tour, Robbie and co. will share their more elaborate version of that same experience with us.

Barbie: The World Tour releases on March 19, 2024. It is now available for pre-order.

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