The Knockturnal had the honor of attending “The Crossover” premiere at the Hollywood Athletic Club. “The Crossover” is the television adaptation of Kwame Alexander’s novel-in-verse. Alexander won the 2015 John Newbery Medal and a Coretta Scott King author honor for his work, and serves as the executive producer and showrunner for the new series. “The Crossover” follows Josh (Jalyn Hall), nicknamed “Filthy”, and Jordan Bell (Amir O’Neil) throughout their middle school experience while they figure out how to balance their social life, school, and basketball. The teenagers are coached by their dad (Derek Luke), a former professional basketball player.
Disney
The Knockturnal had the privilege of attending Prom Pact’s premiere on the pink carpet at the Wilshire Ebell theater. The red carpet attendees were dressed accordingly, with colorful prom dresses to fit the theme of the 80’s promposals displayed in the film. (Graham) stated that their favorite part of working on the movie was becoming friends with each other. Milo recalls sitting on his balcony after a workday, and discussing the craft of acting with his peers. The pink carpet displayed how tight-knit the cast was, with each Disney star jumping at the opportunity to support their friend, or hug a castmate on camera.
Broadway’s ‘The Lion King’ featured intricate puppets and costumes. Ensemble dancers marched across the stage with grass hats. Kellen Stancil operated a giraffe puppet on stilts. Aisha Mitchell’s large, wooden cheetah extended from her chest. The actors communicated a story about African ecosystems.
The Knockturnal got to sit down with Yuya Yagira at the Hulu offices to discuss his new role as police officer Daigo Agawa in GANNIBAL. Daigo is posted to a mountain village where a series of alarming events makes him realize that there is something deeply wrong with the village and those who live there.
EXCLUSIVE: Mickey: The Story of a Mouse interviews with Floyd Norman and more
Mickey: The Story of a Mouse is now streaming on Disney+.
Disney brings us a new movie, the true story of their greatest hero: Mickey. In this documentary we discover what has made Mickey so famous and iconic for decades. This story about Mickey is also the story of his creator: Walt Disney. Mickey: The Story of a Mouse follows the history of this character. Featuring interviews with creators, historians and fans this documentary provides a fresh appreciation for what Walt Disney built. This movie also reminds us of why we loved Mickey and Disney as a child and why we still love them.
The Knockturnal recently interviewed some of the artists involved in this film. First we interviewed Floyd Norman, an animation artist that was hired by Disney in 1956. In the film, Floyd shared his experiences working with Walt Disney and animating for Disney. We then interviewed Dr. Carmenita Higginbotham, she’s a prominent art history. She shared her experience studying Mickey and talked about what made this mouse an enduring character. Then we interviewed Meghan Walsh and she talked about the process of collaborating with Disney and the other creatives involved in creating this movie.
Stream Mickey: The Story of a Mouse now on Disney+.
After four long years, Marvel Studios has finally blessed us with a Black Panther sequel: Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. Having been released mere days ago, the film is already the highest grossing theatrical debut for the year and 13th highest opening weekend grossing film of all time. How do we suggest you see this top crossing film? On a Dolby screen, of course. And here’s why…
To begin, much of the film is a tribute to Chadwick Boseman, who tragically passed away in 2020 of stage III colon cancer at the age of 43. Dolby’s ultra-vivid colors and sound system make seeing Boseman’s face on the silver screen feel like we never lost the talented actor at all. Beginning with T’Challa’s (Boseman) death, Queen Ramonda (Angela Bassett) is now at the helm, running an empire that is rich in vibranium, a metal used to make weapons and armor. Tensions rise when other nations attempt to procure this scarce resource via taking it by force or tracking missions in the Atlantic Ocean led by the US government.
The Atlantic is populated by the Talokan and led by Namor (Tenoch Huerta), who wishes to keep Talokan secluded. However, the tracking mission threatens exposure to his secret empire. Infuriated, Namor goes to Wakanda, claiming them responsible for the mission and asks for help to kill the lead scientist who built the vibranium tracking device, but Wakanda refuses, thus spurring conflict between the two worlds. What ensues is a complex tale of colonialism, struggle, and loss.
Seeing the world building executed by Ryan Coogler on the Dolby screen enriched the experience for the viewers. The Dolby screen unlocked the emotional impact of every scene and enhanced the costume design that defines each character within their respective communities. And thanks to Dolby’s superior sound capabilities, the audience felt like they were part of the action scenes.
In all, if you want to be one of the millions who have seen Black Panther: Wakanda Forever on the silver screen, our suggestion is to experience the beauty and power of this film on a Dolby screen near you.
Exclusive: Tony Hale, Mystic Inscho, and more talk The Mysterious Benedict Society
The Knockturnal recently spoke with the cast and creators of this show. Tony Hale, who plays Mr. Benedict and his evil twin brother Dr. Curtain, shared his creative journey of developing these characters. Mystic Inscho (“Reynie Muldoon”), Marta Kessler (“Constance Contriare”), Seth Carr (“George “Sticky” Washington”) and Emmy DeOliveira (“Kate Wetherall”) are the four main heroes of this show. We spoke with them about the costumes, sets and exciting process of creating another season of this show. Gia Sandhu (“Ms. Perumal”) and MaameYaa Baofo (“Rhonda Kazembe”) told us about working with these young actors and the excitement that filled each new day of filming. We also spoke with the creators of this series Darren Swimmer, Todd Slavkin, Phil Hay and Matt Manfredi. They shared their creative processes of collaborating on the Mysterious Benedict Society.
Watch The Mysterious Benedict Society season two now only on Disney+.
EXCLUSIVE: Milo Manheim, Meg Donnelly, Matt Cornett and More Talk Zombies 3
Stream Zombies 3 now on Disney+!
The popular Disney movie series Zombies concludes with Zombies 3. The final film in the trilogy is filled once again with amazing acting, dancing and music from our beloved characters. Leading the crew once again is Milo Manheim as the zombie football star Zed and the girl cheerleader Meg Donnelly. They shine once again with their beautiful romantic duets and leading their epic dance offs. Their town and school in Seabrook has changed dramatically since their first film. The zombies, wolves, and humans in Seabrook now face an alien invasion.
The Knockturnal spoke with the Zombies 3 stars. Milo and Meg star once again in the lead roles. Appearing in all three of the Zombies films is Carla Jeffery as Bree, Trevor Tordjman as Bucky and Kylee Russell as Eliza. The werewolves return again after first staring in Zombies 2. The leading werewolves include Chandler Kinney as Willa, Ariel Martin as Wynter and Pearce Joza as Wyatt. Appearing as the aliens for the first time in the Zombies universe is Terry Hu as A-spen, Matt Cornett as A-lan and Kyra Tantao as A-li. We spoke to this cast about their dancing, acting and music in this film. They shares their stories of team bonding and working together to create this epic film.
Zombies 3 is now available for streaming only on Disney+.