Here’s all the movie and TV news you need to know from the past week, it’s the News Shotgun.
A Quiet Place 3 confirms main cast: Director John Krasinski confirmed the cast of the upcoming A Quiet Place 3, with Emily Blunt, Cillian Murphy, Millicent Simmonds, and Noah Jupe returning from the first two films, and Jack O’Connell, Jason Clarke, and Katy O’Brien joining the cast as new characters. The movie is set for release on July 30th, next summer.
Assassin’s Creed series adds more cast members: Netflix’s upcoming Assassin’s Creed series has added more cast members with Noomi Rapace, Ramzy Bedia, Sean Harris, and Corrado Invernizzi. Lola Petticrew, Toby Wallace, Zachary Hart, Laura Marcus, and Tanzyn Crawford were previously announced as cast members. The series takes place in Ancient Rome in 64 AD, the year of the Great Fire of Rome, which devastated the city while Emperor Nero was away at a coastal resort.
Minions & Monsters finds main voice cast: The next entry in the Minions series has found its main voice cast with Allison Janney, Christoph Waltz, Jeff Bridges, Jesse Eisenberg, Zoey Deutch, and Trey Parker. Parker previously appeared in Despicable Me 3.  The new movie follows the Minions as they conquer Hollywood, unleash monsters, and ultimately save the world. Pierre Coffin, who directed the first three Despicable Me films and the first Minions movie, is directing this entry and also voices the Minions, as he’s done in every film in the series.
RIP Nicholas Brendon: Buffy the Vampire Slayer star Nicholas Brendon tragically passed away this week at age 54. A statement from his family says he died of natural causes in his sleep. Brendon played Xander Harris on Buffy, one of her best friends and a member of the evil fighting Scooby Gang. He later appeared in a recurring role on Criminal Minds and in films like Demon Island, Unholy, and Psycho Beach Party.
The Last of Us Season 3 finds key casting: The Last of Us Season 3 has cast some of the key roles from The Last of Us Part 2.  Michelle Mao and Kyriana Kratter have been cast as Yara and Lev, who encounter Abby (Kaitlyn Dever) when they are on the run from the Seraphites, who have branded the siblings as apostates when Lev, a transgender boy, refuses to marry an elder Seraphite. Patrick Wilson and Jason Ritter also join the cast, with Wilson playing Abby’s father, Jerry, who *spoilers* was murdered by Joel (Pedro Pascal) when he took Ellie (Bella Ramsay) by force out of a Firefly hospital. Ritter is playing a soldier named Hanley, a member of the WLF, of which Abby is also a member. Ritter’s wife, Melanie Lynskey, appeared in the first season as Kathleen Coghlan, the head of a revolutionary group in Kansas City.
Kirsten Dunst joins Minecraft sequel: Joining the returning Jason Momoa, Jack Black, Danielle Brooks, Matt Berry, and Jennifer Coolidge, Kirsten Dunst has been cast in the key role of Alex for the upcoming Minecraft sequel. Alex, along with Steve (Black), is one of the main avatars that players can choose from in the video game.  A Minecraft Movie was one of the biggest films of 2025, making almost $1 billion worldwide. Jared Hess is returning to direct the sequel.
Kristen Stewart playing Sally Ride in new Amazon series: Kristen Stewart is playing pioneering astronaut and physicist Sally Ride in an upcoming Amazon limited series, The Challenger.  Along with being the first woman to ever travel to space, Ride was part of a commission to investigate the Challenger disaster, and the series will follow events leading up to and following the tragic explosion of the space shuttle Challenger in 1986. The series will also follow Ride’s journey as she rose through the ranks of the shuttle program as a member of the Astronaut Class of ’78.
New American Gladiators gets a premiere date: Amazon’s reboot of American Gladiators will arrive on April 17th with the first three episodes. Hosted by Mike “The Miz” Mizanin, the new show features 16 Gladiators and brings back classic events like Joust, Powerball, and Hang Tough, along with new events like The Ring and Collision.
The Game of Life movie in development: Hasbro’s classic board game, The Game of Life, is getting a movie from Amazon MGM with Sean Anders directing. Anders previously worked on Spirited and Instant Family for Apple and also wrote and directed Horrible Bosses 2 with John Morris, who is producing along with Anders. It’s not yet clear what the plot will be or how it will adapt the board game.
Cross renewed for a third season: Alex Cross will be back for a third season on Prime Video, as Cross was renewed this week. Aldis Hodge portrays James Patterson’s brilliant detective as he faces off against deadly killers. Season 2 was the third-most-watched premiere on Prime Video last year and garnered over 40 million views globally in its first 20 days.
Jason Bateman is directing The Cackling of the Dodos: Jason Bateman is back behind the camera to direct the upcoming Netflix film, The Cackling of the Dodo.  Woody Harrelson and Sam Rockwell co-star, and the movie follows George, a farmer who discovers a dead body in his grain silo and gets dragged into a chaotic cover-up by his boss. Bateman has frequently worked with Netflix, including Ozark and Black Rabbit.
New cast members for Greyhound 2: Johnathon Schaech and Eric Lange are the two latest actors to join Greyhound 2 at Apple. The World War 2 sequel finds Captain Krause (Tom Hanks) and the crew of the Greyhound as they journey from Normandy to the Pacific to help turn the tide of the war. Elisabeth Shue, Stephen Graham, and Jack Patten co-star, and Aaron Schneider, who directed the first film, returns to direct the sequel. Hanks wrote the screenplay.
Rest of the Scooby Gang cast for Netflix: Netflix has found the rest of the Scooby Gang, who will join McKenna Grace’s Daphne in the upcoming TV series. Tanner Hagen is Shaggy, Abby Ryder Fortson is Velma, and Maxwell Jenkins is Fred. The series will be an origin story for Mystery Inc., as the gang all meet during a summer at camp and must solve a seemingly supernatural mystery involving a certain Great Dane puppy. Midnight Radio, Berlanti Productions, and Warner Bros. Television are producing the series.
Michaela Cole remaking Bloodsport: JCVD’s iconic martial arts movie Bloodsport is getting a remake from A24 and Michaela Cole. Cole is writing and directing the remake, but there are no details on what the remake/reimagining will be. Cole previously created I May Destroy You and Chewing Gum and appeared in Black Mirror and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.  She’ll appear in A24’s Mother Mary with Anne Hathaway later this year.
Paradise renewed for a third season: Hulu’s hit drama series Paradise has been renewed for a third season. Disney says the entire series has been streamed 12 billion minutes globally, and Season 2 has amassed 30 million hours of viewership. The Season 2 finale debuts on Hulu/Disney+ on March 30th.
Glen Powell is producing the crocodile horror movie The Death Roll: Glen Powell has signed on via his Barnstorm production company with Dan Cohen to produce the horror film The Death Roll for Lionsgate. The movie, written by Kas Graham & Rebecca Pollock, follows a couple on a dream vacation that turns into a nightmare when they encounter a 15-foot saltwater crocodile.
